If there was one thing the Guild loved more than forms, it was gossip.By the time I walked through its doors that afternoon, every adventurer in Havenford apparently knew I'd "talked the shrine into ringing" and "given the sky new ideas.""Hey, Kai!" someone called from a table. "Heard the bell screamed your name!""It chimed politely," I said. "Screaming is scheduled for later."Harven stood behind the counter, arms crossed, spectacles halfway down his nose. He jerked his head toward his office."In," he said. "Before the rumor mill upgrades you to 'god.'""Is that a promotion with benefits?" I asked."Fewer holidays," he said.Inside, his office was the same chaos as before: maps, ledgers, a sword hanging on one wall that looked like it hadn't been used in years but still could be.Rel leaned against a shelf, and Lyse was perched on the edge of a chair, idly making little sparks dance between her fingers. Sara sat properly, back straight, hands folded, expression somewhere between patient and resigned."Council of Concerned Adults," I said. "Should I sit, or is this a standing ovation?""Sit," Harven said. "You're getting a rank change and a headache."I dropped into the lone empty chair.Harven tossed something at me.A card.My old bronze Guild tag had been replaced by one with a silver sheen.——————————
ADVENTURER RANK UPDATED:
BRONZE → SILVER
——————————"When the Guildmaster promotes you before your first month is up," Lyse said, "it's either because you did something impressive… or something terrifying.""In this case, both," Rel said.Sara's gaze was steady."Harven told us about the drain," she said. "And the… ritual. And that you closed something you shouldn't have been able to."Harven tapped the desk."I don't like not understanding what my adventurers are walking into," he said. "I like it even less when the shrine starts ringing on its own and everyone points at the new guy.""Technically, the shrine pointed at me," I said. "Bell and all.""Don't help your case," he said.He sighed, rubbing his forehead."I'm not asking you to explain everything," he said. "Frankly, I doubt I'd understand. But I am asking this: when something big and weird happens, bring us in. Early. Let the Guild and Guard handle the parts we can handle, so you're not alone at the center every time."Rel nodded."You looked… off after the drain," he said. "Like your bones were arguing with physics.""That's just my natural charm," I said, then sobered. "But yeah. Understood. I'm not trying to hog all the existential crises."Lyse's sparks popped."Also," she said, "if you're going to pick fights with demons, I want front‑row seats."Sara pinched the bridge of her nose."Translation," she said, "we're worried. In our own annoying ways."A small knot in my chest eased."I hear you," I said. "And I appreciate it. I'll shout next time a crack shows up in a bad place."Lyse leaned forward, eyes bright."Speaking of cracks," she said, "Rel said you were at the shrine when it did the weird bell thing. Did the spirits say anything? Did they give you a dramatic prophecy? I've always wanted to heckle a prophecy.""Lyse," Sara sighed."No dramatic prophecy," I said. "Just… curiosity. The land caught a whiff of another world and got confused."Harven's brows knit."Another… world," he repeated."Long story," I said. "Short version: the cracks aren't just… holes. They're part of a bigger pattern. There are… other places out there with their own problems and… links."Harven's fingers drummed on the desk."Can those problems come here?" he asked."Not easily," I said. "I'm trying to keep it that way. The door I opened goes through a buffer. But… there might be echoes. Dreams. Shared… ripples."He studied me for a long moment."At my age," he said finally, "I've learned that pretending something isn't there never makes it go away. If this 'bigger pattern' ever threatens Havenford, you tell me. If it doesn't… then it's your business. And your burden."He slid a sheet of paper across the desk."In the meantime," he said, "you're not getting out of regular work. Silver rank comes with expectations."I glanced down.——————————
QUEST: "South Field Shadows"
RANK: SILVERDETAILS:
– Farmers report strange lights and sounds at night near the old scarecrow line.
– No confirmed monster sightings. Livestock skittish.OBJECTIVE:
– Investigate. Dispel threat (if any).REWARD:
– Standard pay + hazard bonus if applicable.
——————————"Strange lights and sounds," Lyse said. "Could be kids with lanterns. Could be ghost cows.""Could be minor fractures," I added.Rel groaned."Why do you always escalate?" he asked."Because if I expect the worst and get goats, I'll be pleasantly surprised," I said.Sara stood."I'll prepare," she said. "We can head out at dusk. More likely to see whatever it is."Harven nodded."Good," he said. "And Kai—""Yeah?""Don't die," he said. "I'm already filling out too many forms as it is.""I'll do my best to disappoint your paperwork," I said.As we left the office, Lyse bumped her shoulder against mine."So, Mr. Multiverse," she said. "When do we meet your otherworldly friends?""Absolutely never," I said.She grinned."We'll see."The south fields looked perfectly normal in daylight.Rolling pastures, weathered fences, scarecrows in patched clothes watching over neat rows of crops. A couple of cows chewed cud with the serene wisdom of beings who'd never seen a demon portal."Hard to imagine anything weird happening here," Rel said, adjusting his spear."Famous last words," Lyse replied.Sara shaded her eyes, scanning."The farmers said the lights were along that ridge," she said, pointing. "Near the third scarecrow line."We walked the boundary, boots crunching on dry earth. The afternoon sun was warm, the kind of golden that made you forget the sky had ever been cracked.The ward stone in my pocket stayed cool and quiet.No fractures, then."Maybe it really is kids," I said. "Or someone smuggling in goods at night.""Could be will‑o‑wisps," Lyse said. "Or swamp gas.""There is no swamp," Sara said."Details."We found nothing more alarming than a rabbit hole before dusk.As the sun dipped, painting the fields in long shadows, we settled in near the third scarecrow line. Rel crouched behind a haystack, Sara sat on an overturned bucket, Lyse sprawled on her back, arms folded behind her head, staring at the darkening sky.I leaned against a fence post, letting my senses stretch just a bit, not enough to invite trouble, just enough to catch it if it decided to dance in front of us."Tell us something weird about your past," Lyse said suddenly. "Before you came here.""Why?" I asked."Stakeouts are boring," she said. "And Rel's stories are all about almost being trampled by carts.""Valid trauma," Rel protested.Sara smiled faintly."I wouldn't mind a story either," she said. "As long as it's not about you nearly dying.""That eliminates about seventy percent of my material," I said."Pick from the other thirty," Lyse said.I thought of cramped apartments, glowing screens, late‑night chats, the incident with the microwaved fork."…I used to stay up late reading stories about other worlds," I said. "Fantasy, sci‑fi, weird mash‑ups. Worlds with magic, worlds with giant robots, worlds where everyone was secretly a dragon. I'd imagine… what if. If I got pulled somewhere else, what would I do? Who would I meet?""And now you're living it," Sara said."More or less," I said. "Though the part where I died to a billboard was not in my fanfic."Lyse chuckled."If you could go back," she said, "would you?"The question hung in the cooling air.I stared out at the fields.Wind rustled the crops. A cow lowed in the distance."…I don't know if I can," I said. "And even if I could… I'd be leaving too many cracks behind. Too many people who've gotten used to me stumbling around.""That's not an answer," she said softly."I miss some things," I said. "Stupid little things. Cheap noodles. Neon signs. Mindless scrolling. But I don't miss feeling like I wasn't… needed. Here, when I fix something, the world sighs in relief. When I help, people look me in the eye and say 'thank you' instead of 'your payment has been processed.'"Rel smiled crookedly."We're stuck with you now, huh," he said."Looks like," I said.A soft glow flickered at the corner of my vision.For a second, I thought it was another system notification.Then I realized it was out there.On the ridge.Near the third scarecrow."Lights," Sara murmured, sitting up straighter.We all stilled.Small orbs of pale blue light floated above the ground, drifting lazily between the scarecrows. They weren't bright enough to illuminate much, but in the growing dark, they were unmistakable."Not lanterns," Rel said quietly. "No flame. No handles."The ward stone remained quiet."Not fractures," I murmured. "Or at least, not the usual kind."Lyse's eyes gleamed."Spirits?" she whispered."Only one way to know," I said.We approached slowly, weapons ready but not raised.The lights bobbed.As we drew closer, they drifted away, always staying just out of easy reach, circling the scarecrows in a loose pattern."Are they… leading us?" Sara asked."Or luring us," Rel said."Glass half full, spear half ready," Lyse murmured.I squinted, focusing not with magic, but with… attention. The way I'd learned to listen to the shrine.The lights felt… soft.Curious.Old."This isn't hostile," I said quietly. "It's… an echo. Of something that used to be here.""Like… old magic?" Sara asked."Old agreement," I said. "Between land and people."One of the orbs drifted closer, hovering in front of my face for a moment.Inside it, for just a second, I saw a memory that wasn't mine:A younger Havenford. Fewer houses. Farmers raising glasses around a newly built scarecrow line, laughing under stars. Someone spilling a bit of ale onto the field "for the spirits.""You're… the leftover party," I murmured.The orb bobbed, as if in acknowledgment.Harmless.But drawn stronger now because the world was thinner.The others seemed to sense it too; the fear in their shoulders eased."They used to tell stories about field lights," Sara said softly. "My grandmother said they were the land's way of saying hello. Then people stopped listening. Stopped seeing."Lyse reached out, hand hovering just beside an orb."Hello," she said.It pulsed.Rel let out a breath he'd been holding."So there isn't a monster," he said."There's a story," I said. "That needed witnesses again."We stayed a while, watching the lights dance.Eventually, they dimmed, drifting closer to the ground, sinking like mist into the soil.By the time the moon cleared the clouds, they were gone."Harven's going to roll his eyes when we tell him the 'threat' was shy old spirits," Lyse said on the walk back."He'll be relieved," Sara said. "He pretends to hate quiet nights. He doesn't."Rel glanced at me."Did you… do that?" he asked. "Make them appear?"I shook my head."No," I said. "I just… heard them. You did the important part.""Which was?" he asked."Believing what you saw," I said. "And not stabbing it on reflex."He snorted."Growth," he said.As we approached town, a notification flickered more quietly than usual.——————————
WORLD F‑01 – HAVENFORD REGION:Hidden Phenomena "Field Lights" AcknowledgedLocal Stability: +
——————————[Not every anomaly is a crack.] MMA said. [Some are just… parts of the world that got lonely.]"I like those better," I thought.[Enjoy them while you can.] it replied. [Bigger cracks are still coming.]"I know."We reached the gate.Harven met us there, lantern in hand."Well?" he demanded. "Any monsters?""Only nostalgic ones," Lyse said.I described the lights, the feel of them, the echo of the old celebration. Sara added the bit about her grandmother's stories.Harven listened, then grunted."Used to see those when I was a boy," he said. "Brats would try to chase them. Parents yelled, priests muttered, but nothing ever came of it. Haven't heard anyone talk about them in years.""They remembered," I said. "Tonight."He eyed me for a moment."Silver rank job," he said. "You went out, made sure no one was going to get eaten, and came back with a tale and no casualties. I'll take that."He turned away, then paused."And Kai?""Yeah?""Sometimes," he said, "fixing the world means reminding it of its better habits. Not just slamming doors."I smiled."I'll keep that in mind," I said.Later, back in my room, the Lobby door shimmered faintly, like a cat waiting to see if I'd come play.I touched it once, briefly, feeling the link to distant metal and stars thrum in response."Not tonight," I murmured. "Tonight, Eldoria gets to be the only weird thing in my head."[Bold claim.] MMA said."Fine," I amended. "The primary weird thing."I lay back on the bed, listening to the muffled sounds of Havenford settling into sleep.Cracks in the sky.Lights in the fields.A ring in another world, humming invisible above a different giant.A door in my wall.And a growing list of people—here and out there—whose lives now intersected with my impossible bloodline.For the first time in a while, exhaustion felt… good. Earned. Not like something had been taken, but like I'd given something that mattered and could rest for a moment."Hey, MMA," I thought, eyes drifting closed.[Yes, Host?]"If being the Number One Multiverse Bloodline means I have to handle the worst bits," I said, "I'm glad it also lets me see nights like this."[Sentimental.] MMA said. [Logging anyway.]"Do that," I thought.Sleep took me, somewhere between a cracked sky and a ring of light I only saw when I closed my eyes.