Darkness swallowed everything.
No sound.
No sensation.
No weight.
Just drifting.
Riley wasn't sure if he was dead, unconscious, or dreaming.
He wasn't sure time even existed here. Seconds, minutes—years—they all felt the same.
Then—
A spark.
A tiny pinprick of white light flared somewhere far ahead of him. It pulsed slowly, rhythmically.
thump— … thump—
Each pulse echoed through the void, tugging at Riley's chest—familiar, haunting.
The fractured gem.
He remembered its glow. He remembered heat, static, and then—
Nothing.
thump—
The light swelled.
Drew closer.
thump—
Until it hovered right in front of him, too bright to look at, but somehow impossible to look away from.
A voice whispered—soft, distant, ancient.
"Return…"
Riley's eyes snapped open.
---
He jolted upright with a gasp.
Sheets tangled around his legs. His heart hammered against his ribs. Sweat prickled the back of his neck.
This wasn't the VR booth.
Wasn't the tournament facility.
Wasn't even his cramped apartment.
This was—
His bedroom.
His old bedroom.
Blue walls plastered with early Realmwalker concept art.
A wobbly desk with a crooked lamp.
The faded curtains his mother always meant to replace but never did.
Riley's breath hitched.
He threw the blanket off, swung his legs over the side.
Everything felt… lighter.
He looked down at his hands.
Smaller.
Smoother.
No scars from five years of dungeon grinding. No calluses from haptic gauntlets.
"These are…"
His throat tightened.
"These are my hands from high school…"
He stumbled to the mirror on his closet door.
A younger Riley stared back.
Sixteen.
Messy hair.
Rounder face.
Eyes not yet dulled by exhaustion and disappointment.
He raised a trembling hand to his cheek.
"Oh my god…"
This was real.
Somehow—
impossibly—
he was back.
His gaze jerked to the wall.
A calendar hung there, crooked and familiar.
Launch Day
Realmwalker Online goes live — 6:00 PM
Date: Monday, April 4th
Riley covered his mouth with both hands. His breath came in sharp, uneven bursts.
He turned to the bed.
Because sitting on his pillow—where the world had last gone white—
was the gem.
No longer cracked.
Fully restored.
Glowing softly.
Alive.
Riley approached it slowly, half expecting it to vanish like a dream. But it didn't. When he picked it up, warmth crawled through his fingers—gentle, steady.
Like it recognized him.
"…What are you?" he whispered.
The gem pulsed once.
Soft.
Knowing.
Riley sat heavily on the edge of the bed, clutching it to his chest as emotion crashed over him all at once:
Shock.
Fear.
Wonder.
Relief so sharp it hurt.
Then—joy.
A laugh tore out of him, breathless and disbelieving.
"I'm back… I'm actually back…"
He remembered everything—
Andy's calm precision.
Harry's venom.
The guild casting him aside.
But none of that had happened yet.
He had time.
He had knowledge.
He had a second chance.
Riley wiped his eyes, smiling like a lunatic—
BANG-BANG-BANG!
His bedroom door slammed open so hard the hinges rattled.
"RILEY!"
A familiar voice—loud, indignant.
Aria burst in wearing pajama shorts and a shirt with a cartoon bat on it, her hair a frizzy disaster. She froze mid-sentence, staring at him like he was an alien.
Sofia peeked from behind her—quiet, careful, wide-eyed behind her glasses.
Both of them were… tiny.
Younger.
Fifteen-year-old versions of his sisters.
Riley's breath broke.
"Uh…" Aria squinted. "You okay? You look like you watched a horror movie and cried about it."
Sofia tilted her head. "You do look… emotional."
Riley stood up abruptly. The girls flinched.
Then he wrapped his arms around them.
Aria went rigid. "WHAT—HEY—NO—STOP—EW—WHAT IS THIS?!"
Sofia squeaked. "R-Riley? Are you… hugging us willingly?"
He held them tighter.
They were warm. Alive.
Unchanged.
Perfect.
"I'm… just glad to see you," he whispered.
Aria shoved him back, horrified. "What the hell is WRONG with you?! Did someone dump you?"
Sofia blinked. "Dumped? He doesn't talk to girls."
Aria gasped dramatically. "HE'S CRYING. Sofia—get the camera!"
Riley scrubbed his face. "I'm not crying!"
"You TOTALLY are," Aria said triumphantly. "Bro's having a whole emotional breakdown."
Sofia stepped closer, studying him. "You're… different today."
If only she knew.
Aria crossed her arms. "Are you sick? Are you dying? Are you in love? WHO IS SHE?!"
Riley sighed, exasperated. "I'm fine."
Aria narrowed her eyes, unconvinced.
Then her attention snapped to the gem in his hand.
"…What's that?"
Riley hesitated.
"I… don't know," he said honestly.
Sofia approached, mesmerized. "It's beautiful."
Aria poked it. "Are you sure it's not radioactive?"
"It's fine," Riley said quickly, pulling it away.
Aria wrinkled her nose. "You're weird."
"And you're loud," Riley shot back automatically.
Aria smirked. "There he is. Found him."
Riley laughed—really laughed—for the first time in years.
Sofia glanced at the calendar. "Realmwalker launches in six hours…"
Aria groaned. "Don't remind him. He's gonna lose his mind."
Riley looked between them—his sisters, alive and whole—and felt determination settle deep in his chest.
He wouldn't waste this chance.
"Actually," he said slowly. "I need to talk to you both. Something important."
Aria and Sofia traded looks.
"For what?" Aria asked.
Riley looked at them, then at the gem glowing softly in his hand.
"At our future," he said.