The walk back to the village was quiet.
Neither of them spoke much. There was too much to think about. Too much to process. Rika had a mother. A real mother. A mother who had searched for her for three hundred years. A mother who was Level Eight and from a place called Aquaris. A mother who had bent the stars just by arriving.
Lanine's head was spinning.
Rika walked beside him. Her face was pale. Her eyes were red from crying. But there was something different about her now. Something that had not been there before. A lightness. Like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.
She was not broken. She was Tier Ten. Value over one thousand. She was the most valuable person in this entire region and she had just found out that she had a mother who loved her.
Lanine did not know what to say. So he said nothing.
They reached the village edge as the three suns finished rising. The sky was fully light now. People were starting to move around. Going about their normal lives. Unaware that anything had happened.
Goro met them on the path.
His scarred face showed relief first. Then confusion. Then the particular expression of someone who had many questions and did not know where to start.
"You are alive," he said.
"Mostly," Rika replied.
"The miners said a woman appeared. Said the stars bent." Goro's eyes narrowed. "They also said they are not sure if they were dreaming."
"Probably for the best," Lanine said.
Goro studied them both for a long moment. His lava-colored eyes moved from Lanine to Rika and back again. Looking for something. He did not say what.
Then he sighed. The sigh of a man who had learned long ago that some questions were better left unasked.
"The Chief wants to see you. Both of you. Something about sect contracts." He paused. "Also there has been a lot of activity in the Chat channels since last night. You might want to check yours."
Lanine blinked. Chat. Right. That was a thing now.
"Thanks," he said. "We will go soon."
Goro nodded. Walked away. Clearly still curious. Wise enough to let it go.
Rika looked at Lanine. "Chat channels?"
"I have not looked since yesterday. Too much going on."
"Same." She almost smiled. "We are terrible at this, aren't we?"
"Absolutely terrible."
---
They found a quiet spot near the Destiny Platform. A small alcove behind one of the elders' houses where no one would bother them. The Platform pulsed softly nearby. Its purple-gold light casting gentle shadows.
Rika sat against the wall. Closed her eyes. Accessed her system.
Lanine did the same.
The Chat Panel opened before him. Three sections: World Channel. Regional Channel. Friend Channel.
A system prompt appeared.
World Channel allows one message per day. Immortal Master avatar. ID. True name attached.
Regional Channel allows ten messages per day. Immortal Master avatar. ID. True name attached.
Friend Channel has unlimited messages.
Lanine stared at it for a moment. Then he entered the World Channel.
Messages flooded past. Hundreds of them. Thousands. Voices from across his universe. All dumped into this strange new world. All are trying to make sense of what happened.
"I am not dead! I am not dead! Hahaha! I did not die eatn in the end of the world!"
"Wasn't I on a Universe spaceship? Does anyone know what happened? How did I suddenly end up here?"
"Damn, the person upstairs is a human traitor!"
"I am an official. Everyone be careful when going out. Try to craft weapons before exploring. Prevent encountering wild beasts."
"Hahaha this is great I love it here!"
"Help! My group got attacked by something with six legs! I am sending coordinates to anyone who can help!"
"Where is everyone from? I am from the Veridian Commonwealth. Anyone else?"
"My wife is gone. Has anyone seen a woman named Elara? She has brown hair and—"
The messages kept coming. Endless. Overwhelming. Lanine felt dizzy just looking at them.
So many people. So many survivors. Everyone from his universe was here. Scattered across this world. Trying to survive. Trying to find each other. Trying to make sense of the impossible.
He scrolled faster. Looking for—he did not know what. Familiar words? Familiar names? Something to tether him to the life he had lost?
Nothing looked familiar. No planet names he recognized. No cities he had heard of. Just a flood of strangers. All as lost as he was.
His fingers hovered over the interface.
He could type something. Ask if anyone knew his planet. Ask if anyone else felt as alone as he did.
But what would he say? Hi, I do not remember where I am from. Does anyone else have that problem?
He closed the Chat.
Not yet. He was not ready.
---
"You okay?" Rika's voice.
Lanine opened his eyes. She was watching him with concern.
"People from my universe," he said. "Millions of them. All here."
"That is good, right?"
"I do not know." He ran a hand through his hair. "I do not even remember my planet's name. How do I find people when I do not know what I am looking for?"
Rika was quiet for a moment. Thinking.
"Maybe you do not have to find them right now," she said finally. "Maybe you just need to know they exist."
"Maybe."
They sat in silence for a while.
Then Lanine felt it.
A whisper. Not in his ears. In his mind. Different from the system prompts. Different from anything he had felt before.
Finally.
He jerked upright.
"What?" Rika asked.
"Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?"
A voice. In my head. Not the system. Something else.
Took you long enough to notice me, the voice said. It was old. Ancient. Tired. But with a spark of something alive underneath. I have been waiting seven days for you to shut up long enough to listen.
Lanine's heart pounded. Who are you?
Who do you think? I am the thing that crashed into your soul when you fell through reality. I am the passenger you did not ask for. I am— The voice paused. I am forgetting. That is the problem.
Forgetting what?
Everything. Who I was. Where I came from. How I ended up here. A frustrated sigh. I remember fragments. Flashes. Fire. A battle. Someone is screaming my name. Then nothing.
Rika was staring at him. "Lanine you are as white as paper. What is happening?"
He held up a hand. "Give me a second."
Why now? He asked the voice. Why not before?
Could not. The system needed to be fully initialized. Seven days. Some nonsense about trade and chat. The voice sounded annoyed. Do you know how boring it is to be trapped in someone's soul for a week unable to communicate?
I have some idea.
No. No you do not. Trust me.
Lanine took a deep breath. Okay. So you are in my head. You are ancient. You are forgetful. What do I call you?
A long pause.
I do not remember my name.
Great. Just great.
You can call me... no that is not right. Wait— Another pause. I had a name. It started with V. V something. Var. Var something.
Var something?
Vareth? No. Varen? Close but not quite. Frustration leaked through the connection. This is going to take time. My memories are scattered. I need you to get stronger before I can access them.
Get stronger how?
Cultivate obviously. Grow. Reach higher levels. The more energy you have the more I can remember. A pause. Also, do not tell anyone about me.
Why not?
Because there are beings in this world who would kill you to get to me. Beings who remember what I am even if I do not. Beings who would— The voice cut off abruptly. I cannot explain more. Not yet. Just trust me. Keep me secret.
Lanine sat very still.
Are you dangerous? he asked.
To your enemies? Yes. To you? A long pause. I do not think so. I hope not. I really really hope not.
"That is reassuring," Lanine muttered aloud.
"What is reassuring?" Rika demanded. "Lanine you are scaring me."
He looked at her. His partner. The one person he trusted in this entire nightmare world.
Do not tell her, the voice whispered. Not yet. She has her own secrets. Her own dangers. Let her process those first.
Lanine hated that the voice was right.
"Nothing," he said to Rika. "Just system stuff. Overwhelming."
She did not look convinced. But she also did not push.
"Okay," she said slowly. "But if something is wrong you tell me. Promise?"
"Promise."
---
They sat in silence for a while longer. Each was lost in their own thoughts.
Lanine could feel the voice—Var something—hovering at the edge of his consciousness. Not speaking. Just present. Like a weight he had not noticed until now.
What do I call you? He asked again.
For now? Call me Ghost.
Ghost?
Appropriate don't you think? Forgotten spirit haunting someone else's soul. Bitter amusement colored the words. Besides it matches that body of yours. Myriad Ghost. We are quite the pair.
You know about Myriad Ghost Body?
I know fragments. It is rare. Valuable. Dangerous if discovered. A pause. Do not tell anyone about that either by the way. The more cards you hold close the longer you survive.
Lanine filed that away.
Anything else I should keep secret?
Your profession. Destiny Theft. Your bloodline. Intuition. Those are even rarer than the body. Ghost's voice grew serious. If anyone finds out what you really are you will be hunted. Studied. Used. Killed. In that order probably.
Great. Anything good to share?
A dry chuckle. You are funny. I like that. It will help with the existential dread.
Thanks. I think.
---
"So," Rika said breaking the silence. "The Chief. Sect contracts. Ready for that?"
"Not even a little."
"Same." She stood. Offered him her hand. "Let us go be terrible at adulting together."
Lanine took her hand. Let her pull him up.
"Partners," he said.
"Partners."
They walked toward the Chief's hall. Side by side.
Partners, Ghost murmured. I like that. Hold onto her. People like her do not come along often.
Can you hear my thoughts?
I am in your head. Where else would I be?
That is going to take some getting used to.
Get used to it fast. We have a lot of work to do. A pause. Also, your hands are still glowing. You might want to put them in your pockets before the Chief sees.
Lanine looked down. Ghost was right. His hands were faintly pulsing with light.
He shoved them in his pockets.
"What are you doing?" Rika asked.
"Nothing. Just cold."
"It is literally three suns and you are from who knows where. How are you cold?"
"Shut up."
Rika laughed. Real warm the first genuine laugh he had heard from her since before the test.
"Fine. Keep your secrets." But she was smiling.
They walked on. Toward whatever came next.
---
The Chief's hall loomed ahead. Same as always. Wooden walls. Stone foundation. Glass windows that Lanine still appreciated every time he saw them.
They went inside.
The Chief was sitting behind her desk. Looking tired. Goro stood against the wall. Arms crossed. Face unreadable.
"Sit," the Chief said.
They sat.
"I am not going to ask what happened last night," the Chief said. "Goro told me enough. The miners told me enough. I have decided that whatever it was it is none of my business."
Rika's shoulders relaxed slightly.
"However." The Chief's eyes sharpened. "The sect contracts are another matter."
She slid two scrolls across the desk.
"Lanine. Your test results were extraordinary. Tier Three High. Varn has already submitted your name to the Molten Core. You have been accepted as a core disciple candidate. You leave for Thornveil in three days."
Lanine nodded. "And Rika?"
The Chief's expression flickered. Something complicated.
"Rika's test showed nothing. Officially she has no cultivation potential." She held up a hand before Rika could speak. "Unofficially Varn is curious. He has offered her a position as well. Not as a disciple. As a support staff candidate."
"What does that mean?" Rika asked.
"It means you will work in the sect's kitchens or cleaning facilities. You will have access to the compound but not to training. You will be paid in basic necessities and maybe if you are lucky allowed to observe classes." The Chief's voice was gentle but firm. "It is not what anyone wants. But it is a way to stay with your friend."
Rika was quiet for a long moment.
Then: "I will take it."
"Rika—" Lanine started.
"I will take it." She met his eyes. "We are partners. That means something."
The Chief nodded. As if she had expected this answer.
"Sign here. Both of you."
They signed.
Three days until Thornveil.
---
Outside the hall, Rika grabbed Lanine's arm.
"Kitchens," she said flatly. "Cleaning. I am going to be a maid."
"Only for now."
"Only for now." She took a deep breath. "Okay. Fine. I can do this."
She is stronger than she knows, Ghost murmured. That constitution of hers. If she ever learns to access it. She will surpass everyone in that sect combined.
Can you help her?
Me? No. I am attached to you not her. But maybe— Ghost paused. Later. First, you need to survive long enough to matter.
Lanine filed that away.
"Come on," he said to Rika. "Let us go look at those Chat channels. Goro said there is useful stuff."
"Since when do you care about useful stuff?"
"Since I realized I do not know anything."
"Fair."