Stepping into the 'Margin' was like stepping into a blizzard made of pure light. There was no floor, no ceiling—only a blinding white expanse where the sound of the wind was replaced by the mechanical hum of a cosmic engine. Amine felt his body stretching, his pixels vibrating as if he were being pulled apart by a giant invisible hand.
"Keep your eyes closed!" Amine shouted, his voice echoing in the emptiness. "Don't look at the 'Deleted Scenes'! If you see them, your mind will try to process a reality that no longer exists!"
Zoro was gripping his swords so hard his knuckles were white, his instinct telling him there was an enemy nearby, even if he couldn't see one. Luffy, on the other hand, was laughing, trying to catch the floating bits of 'Draft Text' that flew past them like glowing butterflies.
"Amine! Look! This butterfly says 'Luffy becomes King of the Pirates'!" Luffy shouted, reaching out.
"Don't touch it, Luffy!" Amine lunged forward, grabbing Luffy's arm just in time. "That's a 'Future Draft'. If you touch it now, you might cause a 'Paradox' that deletes the whole Alabasta arc before we even arrive!"
Suddenly, the white void began to crack. Dark, jagged lines of 'Static' appeared, forming the shape of a colossal hand. It was the Senior Editor again, but this time, he looked more like a monster than a man. His face was a shifting mosaic of every enemy Luffy had ever fought—Alvida, Buggy, Arlong—all merged into one horrifying digital entity.
"You are trespassing in the Author's private files," the Editor's voice boomed, vibrating in their very bones. "This is where the stories that failed go to die. And now, you shall join them."
Amine felt a surge of pure terror, but then he remembered the golden stylus. He didn't draw a weapon. He drew a 'Path of Continuity'. He drew a bright, neon-blue line through the white void, connecting their current location to the gates of Alubarna.
"We aren't failing!" Amine roared, his eyes glowing with a violet intensity. "We are the 'Final Draft'! Everyone! Follow the blue line! Don't look back!"