Chapter 1, Opening Ceremony (Burning)

Burning Woman, the largest event of its kind, with roots dating back before modern history. Every year close to one hundred thousand people from all over the world gather in the desert of the American West to participate in this one of a kind event. The event is freeform in nature, attendees contributing freely within a few basic principles. These principles are largely unchanged from their origins in the historical event, though they have of course been colored by modern sensibilities. Ideas like inclusion, self-expression, and sexual liberty have become much more ubiquitous across the world than they were in the days of old, but Burning Woman continues to take things to even further extremes. Two more core tenants of the event are participation and immediacy, attendees are highly encouraged to be a part of the event, and to do what they can to make this year's Burning Woman the best yet. Considering all these principles it is no surprise that usually fewer than 20% of the attendees live to return home through all nine days. The demographics of the attendees skews slightly more towards women than the global population, though the ratio of intentional death skews the other way, with almost a fifth of the dead being male.

The old world event took its name from the large wooden effigy that was burned on the last evening of the event. Today's event has modernized this idea, changing it's name alongside. At a large pyre in the center of the event volunteers are burned throughout the event. While the original burned a single effigy at the end of the event, the modern one always has a volunteer burning, though special attention is paid to the first and the last of a particular year. The volunteers are mostly women, but it would be counter to the nature of the event to discriminate, even when it introduces slight inaccuracies to the name.

This year's event is almost underway, just waiting for the ceremonial first burn to start. Attendees are crowded around the pyre, most giving it just enough berth to not get burned once it is set alight. The pyre is fashioned like a stage, just waiting for its performer to walk out upon it. It doesn't have to wait long, as soon a young woman emerges, walking with soft steps to the center of the pyre. The woman is seventeen year old pop idol "Amburr☆". She is wearing a thin skirt that starts low on her hips and drapes down to the tops of her bare feet. The setting sun backlights her and clearly outlines her long shapely legs. Other than the skirt the only thing she wears is a simple flower crown woven into her long auburn hair. Her hair is otherwise free, cascading down just past her shoulder blades. Her breasts are left bare, the modest mounds lightly freckled but otherwise free of tanlines or any other marks. Amburr☆ has the rare claim of having survived five previous Burning Women. It seems that she is determined to not survive another.

Just as the sun dips below the horizon four fireworks shoot into the air from the four corners of the square pyre, setting it alight as they scream into the sky and burst in an explosion of sound and color. Amburr☆ starts her final song, a brand new single written solely for this occasion. In line with the ideals of Burning Woman this song has not been recorded before the event and will not be professionally recorded or released after. This song is for the event, to try to do any more with it or to make anything more of it would ultimately cheapen it, though inevitably some bootleg copies of the live performance will pop up in the coming weeks, as filming is only discouraged, not prohibited.

As the minutes pass the flames slowly creep towards Amburr☆ from all sides, almost as if they were responding to her serenade begging them to draw closer, to engulf her completely. Almost as if on cue the flames reach her and begin to slowly lick at her feet. Her voice wavers for only a moment before regaining its smooth tone, though perhaps now a bit more salacious than it was. At Burning Woman it is trivial to find drugs that can dull pain, or even replace it with pleasure, but if Amburr☆'s past discography was any indication then she was a hardcore dyed in the wool masochist. The viewers had no doubt in their mind that Amburr☆ was feeling every lick of those flames au natural. Amburr☆ continued to sing, and the flames continued to rage. As the flames reached her hips she turned around and walked to a thick pole that stuck out of the pyre a couple meters behind her. As she walked her charred skirt crumbled away, leaving the teen pop idol wearing only her crown of flowers. She turned back to face the audience, raising her hands and sticking them through a loop of rope tied to the top of the pole. She let her weight pull on the loop and it tightened around her wrists, binding her arms above her head, pulling her already modest chest alluringly taut. She continued to sing, and the crew slowly turned down the speakers. Amburr☆'s voice soon disappeared beneath the roar of the flames, though whether the flames were drowning her out or had already silenced her permanently no one would ever know.

At this point most of the gathered crowd began to disperse, either to start realizing their own ideas or to assist or observe other's. Several minutes later the remaining gathered attendees watched as Amburr☆'s arms gave way and her body crumbled into a heap of ash. The crowd further dissolved, but some stayed to watch the second volunteer clamber up onto the pyre. With gritted teeth the thirty something year old woman waded through the fire before similarly binding her arms in the apparently fireproof rope. She briefly lost her composure, a howl of agonized pleasure briefly drawing the eyes of the dispersing crowd.

She did not last long, and less than twenty minutes later the third volunteer approached the pyre, a young girl of eleven. Over the next few hours the pyre would be allowed to burn down to a more manageable size, where it wouldn't go though wood and volunteers quite so quickly. In the meantime though, there must always be a woman burning at Burning Woman.