It is Sunday. Today is game day and my stomach is filled with butterflies. This is a game using Zoom with my own doppelganger. This was going to be weird.

The session zero with Frank was a little surreal. This reality’s version of me has a great improvisational mind if my guess is right. He didn’t have more than three days between when I met him the day he ran the session zero. He sent me through wondrous strange areas of a game world that he himself designed. The fact that he has been a DM since he was fourteen years old is really impressive.

In session zero there was an issue with us periodically talking at the same time, sometimes using the same word at the same time, in a completely different sentence construction, we would meet at the beat of one word at the exact moment. It was very strange but we solved the problem by raising our hand on camera before speaking in order to avoid the clash. After that it was an amazing session. He has created a world very well thought out, with its own mythology and extensive history. There are heroes of legend that are characters of his friends from high school who had been playing with him at a Burger King patio area, instead of going to school.

That is one of the obviously divergent events in our lives. Frank had grown up in a low middle-class home with an abusive stepdad, far more siblings, and unchecked mental health issues only addressed recently. This reality is so corrupt and barbaric that I can barely stand it, but if I was going to find anything like my peers back home, it would have to be someone from home, which I am not allowed to talk to, or the doppelganger of myself and my friends, which I am also not allowed to talk to. It makes me angry that everyone in his childhood failed him to some degree or another, and that those failures would turn a person of great potential into a mentally broken fellow that is currently surviving on charity from others.

I logged into the session using the link Frank sent to me about fifteen minutes before the game. It was a link he seemed to forward from a previous message further up in the group chat on Facebook. I would have thought Frank was going to be in the chat, considering he has been doing a countdown since last night. The goddamn message woke me up. I didn’t expect an alert at freaking 1am here on the east coast of the nation. Freaking dingbat.

Raul popped up on my screen, muted.

“Oye. Raul. You about?” I ask.

The mic icon is unmuted. “About what?” Raul asked.

“I mean, are you here? Sorry, I still have my accent from back home, idioms and such might be wrong from time to time,” I answered, knowing that he is likely to call me…”

“Fucking Canadian,” Raul said.

“I’m not a Canadian damn you!” I bark.

I hear James’ low rumble of a chuckle, coming from Raul. I missed this.

“Whatever you say scumbag. Far as I am concerned you are an AI program Frank is using to mess with us,” He spouted and muted the mic again.

Another name popped up, none of them are using a web camera and now I feel silly having mine on.

“Hey guys! What’s up?” came the greeting from a man named Jose.

Frank told me about the other players and their characters during our debrief while he suggested character classes. Jose is playing Jom Gobbler, a roguish bard that has been taken from the past and placed into the current timeline as Raul’s character, Pav’lo, with the rest of his party.

I wave at the screen and introduce myself. “Hello Jose, I’m Fred, I’m going to be joining the campaign,” I say excitedly.

Jose looks at me closely then looks confused. “Are you Frank’s brother?” He asks.

“Long story mate. Let’s get to know each other first, yeah?” I reply and turn off my camera in suit with the others that are joining the session.

“Oh. Okay,” Jose replied.

“Hey all!” Frank said as he entered. “I see our new player has joined us. Welcome to your first full game Fred,”

“Thanks,” I say, waiting for the others to arrive and hoping to dodge the small talk from Frank.

Xavier entered the chat. He is the wizard Hector the Endowed of Lazerus. Apparently he has an artifact that is powerful and temperamental called The Conduit, Frank has filled me in on some of the past games where The Conduit had really saved the party. “Hey there happy people,” Xavier greeted. “I see we have a new player,”

“This is Fred, hey Fred, turn on your camera,” Frank said.

I roll my eyes and turn the video back on.

“Oh cool, is this your cousin or something?” Xavier asked Frank.

Fred laughed a bit like a kid before saying, “Something like that,”

Kason entered the room which completed the party of character attendees for this game.

“Kason!” Jose said as the last member entered.

“Hey y’all. Do we have a new guy?” Kason says. “Is he Frank’s brother?”

“Nope. He’s me!” Frank said excitedly.

Well there that goes. Now I just have to watch this unfold.

“Like a video of you from earlier?” Jose asked.

“I don’t buy it, but I don’t know how to disprove this dude’s story,” Raul said.

“Turn on your camera,” Xavier said, likely to Frank as my camera is on already.

Frank turned on the camera and started pointing at himself then to me with a huge smile.

“Bullshit,” Raul says, it’s basically his theme-song for me at this point.

“It’s true, but try not to go around telling everyone about it, huh?” I verify while clenching my jaw and looking a bit annoyed, but if this is my admission cost, so be it. What is 23 going to do about it at this point anyway?

“Everyone ready for the game?” Frank asks, with a wolfish grin.

“Wait a second here,” Jose said, with obvious confusion.

“Okay, explain that to me now?” Xavier asked with interest.

“Man, do I have to sit through this again?” Raul piped up.

“Quiet you!” Frank said to Raul.

“I’m confused, is this part of the game?” Kason asked.

“Alright,” I say. “Here’s the short gab. My name is Fred, I am from another universe. I am here to study your world…”

“As it ends!” Frank blurts out.

“I mean. I don’t really think that you’re wrong about the world ending, but how is it that you are here?” Xavier asked, turning on his camera as well.

“I am part of a research program from NAU, New Amsterdam University. I was sent here to watch your nation collapse and likely watch as life itself becomes impossible to support as humanity poisons the world. I am here to record the events and send them back home so that we can watch for the early signs and counter them before they start to multiply exponentially into a doomsday cascade,” I answer.

“Why do you sound Canadian?” Kason asked in a deadpan style.

“Because I am from the North East coast of the United States in my reality,” I answer, looking for Raul to come out and start telling me that I am some kind of actor that Frank had hired to play a trick on everyone.

“Can we just start the game?” Raul asks.

“Isn’t there some kind of code of conduct that you are violating by telling us this?” Kason asks, sounding like his interest has finally peaked.

“Oh yeah, tons. He says they are going to lock him up when he goes home,” Raul says sarcastically.

“Okay, now, I enjoy our games and all, but exactly why would you risk your freedom to play in a game you already run?” Xavior asked with a little bit of a chuckle at the end.

“He’s not a Dungeon Master!” Frank said while laughing, far too hard. He has likely hit the pipe and smoked a bowl before the game started.

“It’s true. I’m not a DM, apparently my life was going so well I didn’t need to go into a dissociated state so deeply,” I interject. “I’m with James, can we start the game?”

“James?” Jose asked.

“Raul is named James in his reality,” Frank took a break from his hyena laughing to pump in another fact of my life.

“Oh shit! Wait, do you know us back in your reality?!” Jose half shouted into the microphone.

“Can we just… play the game?” Raul asks again, clearly done with the, meet the alien from another reality BS.

“Hold on. This isn’t exactly a thing you deal with once a week, I mean, this is kind of unreal,” Jose said.

“Look, I am here to relax and attempt to get my mind off all the crazy shit going on. Can we just start the game? I’ll tell you what, if you want to ask me some questions, you can drop me a message in my DMs, I’m easy to find on Facebook, I have the screen name Freddie Al, just friend me there,” I say, which then results in three friend requests almost the second I finish the sentence.

“Are we going to play now?” Raul asks.

“I really hope so,” I add. “I will add you to my friends after the game fellas,” I say, hoping to get a move on.

“Getting points here, fake Frank,” Raul adds.

It takes a little more time to get the game going, but it did get going.

The game was what I needed. I needed to hear my friends' voices. Even if these weren’t my original cohorts, they were at least really good generic brands. Jose is a wit. He has a humor that is similar to Gil. Raul is cantankerous, especially when his blood sugar is low and although James does not have diabetes, it too is familiar. Xavior has similar mannerisms to Correy, both have a big heart and the ambition and drive of a champ. Kason and Dan are nearly identical. Seriously, they could be twins. Dad jokes are thrown around as gracefully as a swan. Just a bullseye zinger at the right moment.

Joining the game after they have had years of play together in Frank’s fantasy world was a little intimidating at first. They have stories of great moments in the histories of their characters, Raul having more tales than the others, it seems my doppelganger built the realms while Raul was there every step of the way.

There were great events that ended up in the realms historical records. Between Raul and Frank they seem to regularly recall things that the two of them chuckle about, Raul gasping at times because he had just seen something that pulled his memory back to an event from ages ago. They also periodically make references of players from their high school years.

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There is a fellow named Liam who plays a character named Poot. That fellow also seems to be an expert master of records. There are others I am sure, but he is the only one who has come up so far. It’s also coming from the other, newer players. There is Father Joe, Cassian’s sister Jinni. An elf that brings a bit of chuckling from them here and there.

There is some timeline issue in our current adventure, a fellow named Gormachulii keeps popping in at various ages of the character, oftentimes making mischief of one sort or another.

While we are in the middle of a great reveal about the big bad evil guy my phone starts buzzing with email alerts and chat messages. Being on Zoom made checking the messages while remaining on the call with the players slightly distracting. My camera was off, which was fantastic at the moment, so noone would think I was ignoring the game..

“NAU Researcher F. Alginon Violation of Terms of Agreement”

NAU Audit Manager <[email protected]> to me:

OPEN IMMEDIATELY!

OPEN IMMEDIATELY! THAT MEANS NOW!

OPEN IMMEDIATELY! ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!?

“Fuck,” I mumble.

“What was that?” Frank asked.

“I… have to go,” I say and sign out.

I had scrolled down to the most recent email.

NAU Audit Manager 23:

There is upset in regards to alien exposure and broken silence. First contact is underway. I am having to prioritize relocation of all agents in the field. You are one such agent. I am setting you up at a hotel in the outskirts of New Jersey.

There is a priority red event coming in and I need to keep you all as far away from the reveal as possible. We cannot have the public or the current residents of this dimension aware of your origins. If you are exposed to your doppelganger there is a high probability of timeline pollution. We must avoid this at all costs.

I am working on return tickets immediately. I will keep you posted.

Right when I was starting to get comfortable.

I put on the news hoping for a little more information than 23 was hinting at. The breaking news is red hot.

NEWS CASTER: “The country is looking to the sky as alien ships are slowly descending from outer space. If the authorities knew about this event, they had kept tight lipped about it so far.”

This was familiar. This was my own reality’s G’har Landing. The day that we had direct proof that we were not alone in the universe.

There are camera rolls being shown throughout the world where the shuttles of alien diplomats landing all around the world, into capital cities.

I switch to a stream with Trump’s waddle neck jiggling and the horrendous orange color of his skin on full display.

“Do not be alarmed. I have been talking to the aliens for the last few months. They have assured me that they mean no harm. No harm at all. Everything is going to be fine. I don’t think I need to tell you all. I am the very best negotiator in the world. And, let me tell you, there is a lot to negotiate now,” Trump said, in that strangely confident manner.

“As you can see, our mighty nation, this amazing nation, let me tell you. They wanted to come down simultaneously, So I told them. That’s all great. Everything will be fine, but let me tell you, ‘merica has to be at one in the afternoon. So we get to see them on camera with friendly light. The magic hour. That's what they call it in Hollywood. I don’t need that magic hour. But, just to be safe. We want the money shot, you know, this is history today.” Trump said, in his blustery nonsensical tone.

The camera shows the ships above the Whitehouse descending. The clouds are breaking as they slowly descend. The cubed black ships are surrounded by energy shields, are monstrously big. Those were not the same ships from the ones I remember. These are bigger. A lot bigger. The color schemes were different too. Back home they were light purple and white. These are black and red, with a lot more escorts.

The camera on the broadcast returns to the president as the ships are descending from the sky above. The lead ship was the only one to make the full descent to land, but it made it very clear, they were not at all concerned with an attack by this world. G’har are advanced in my universe. If they wanted, they could have easily wiped out a major city within minutes. Back home though. They have laws. Laws that their government enforces with any and all first contact missions. They have diplomatic envoys, and those envoys are more… friendly looking.

The lead ship’s cargo doors open and two dozen armored and armed guards step out first. The ship’s main door splits open further, and a highly polished government official takes their first steps on American soil, followed by another three lessers, most likely.

I have never seen G’har in gear like this. They are amphibious aliens, so they have to have environmental suits in our atmosphere. They are white and look more like SCUBA suits. They are completely encased in liquid, there isn’t much known about what that liquid is, but it is theorized by some to be a gas enriched slush that is regulated by the cybernetics in their suits.

These are deep black with an eerie lack of shine at all. They are such a flat black color that reflects nothing. Looking at them is unnerving. With the contrast of the shine of the official, it makes the entire view hard to focus on without getting a little nauseous.

Trump seems to have no problem looking at it, or at least., it doesn’t show on his face on camera.

“Do we have any microphones for our friend here?” Trump is heard asking on a hot mic.

CASTER: We are now getting feeds from other countries and it seems that each delegation is exiting their ships at the very same moment as the one here in D.C. and each of the teams that are exiting the craft are the same number. This is truly a day of firsts here on Earth.

“Yeah. For me too buddy.” I said into the air.

It wasn’t really even that far from here. Had I been given more warning, I would likely have gone. There was a ring at the door.

I glanced over my shoulder and saw Molly and her buddy showing me their phones through my window. They were all lit up and laughing excitedly. I cross the room and open the front door. They are both laughing a mile a second.

“Are you seeing this?” Molly asks.

“It’s happening! Holy shit it is happening!” Lilly replied.

“Do you think they are here to take back each one to their galactic zoo?” Molly continues.

“Do you have any Coke? We have the rum, but the Cokes in the car are warm,” Lilly asks me.

“Isn’t that for Mr. McNeil?” Molly asks Lilly.

“Fuck him. He can bill me,” Lilly replies.

I listen for a few moments and just wave them in.

“Hey, who am I to deny history right? Come on in, yeah there are some Cokes in the fridge,” I say and grab the remote to the TV. I put the news on and we went back to watching the landing.

My cell vibrates on the kitchen table. I cross the room and Molly hands me the Kraken and smiles.

“Ice?” I ask.

“Only if the Cokes aren’t cold. I don’t plan on too many trips to the kitchen,” She says with a smile.

I pick up the phone and see that I have a mess of texts.

Frank: WTF is going on!?

You said you have aliens in your universe right?

Dude, how about a little bit of a hint on what is about to happen?

COME ON! This is insane. Don’t leave me hanging!

Shit. Are you an alien? I mean, like alien, alien?

MY DUDE. WHAT IS GOING ON?!

ARE YOU SEEING THESE TEXTS?

I roll my eyes and begin a reply.

Yeah. These are the aliens from back home. Well. Mostly. I have company, you’ll just have to watch it live.

The second I have the phone nearly in my pocket I get another text. He’s without calm. Kind of like an excited puppy.

I get to the cupboard and another message comes up, followed by three in rapid succession. I pull out the phone while I am fixing the drinks and check the messages.

NAU Audit Manager 23:

Are you kidding me?! Who exactly do you think you are? You have been in contact with yourself in this reality!? Are there people in your house right now? You are instructed to leave immediately and take the car being sent for you to the hotel as instructed. You are not to continue your fraternization with the native populace. Get your records in order before extraction. Do you understand?

The car has been delayed.

The car has been canceled.

A new car is being booked.

There is no service in your area.

Fine. Enjoy yourself. Last day kickup. Whatever!

I chuckle to myself. Seems 23 is having a bad day. Serves him right. Dude suddenly has an escape plan, now that there is a little dustup?

I see I have other messages as well. The fellas from the Zoom game are blowing me up.

Raul: Alright. So, maybe you are from another universe.

“All it took was ET’s landing for him to believe, huh?”

“What was that?” Molly asks from the living room.

“Nothing. Just my friends blowing up my phone,” I answer.

“I stopped checking my phone. I figure to witness this is more important than what other people think about it,” Molly adds.

“You are missing out,” Lilly says. “John thinks that we should all get into the storm shelters because they are about to attack,”

“Meh. If they are going to kill us, they wouldn’t have pulled up on the Whitehouse lawn,” Molly says.

I glance at the TV and see 45 shaking hands with the diplomat, news photographers tickling away madly.

“I’m sorry, that is a mouthful of a name, let me see if I got it,” Trump says.

“Oh god. Please don’t…” Lilly says.

“To-mal-E?” Trump attempts.

“Did he just call him a tamale?” Molly says.

“He did,” I replied.

“What was his name?” Lilly asks.

“Th’al-iemi,” Mollys replies.

“He was close I supposed,” I say.

“He is going to start the first war of the worlds isn’t he?” Lilly states and takes a gulp of her drink.

“Very likely,” I add to the conversation, feeling my phone pop off again in my pocket. I pull the it out and read.

NAU Audit Manager 23

I have gotten a reply from Universe 1-Alpha. We are instructed to maintain the research mission while the native authorities react to the visitors. Be advised, there is a standard protocol now in effect.

“It is all business with you isn’t it?” I mumble.

“What?” Molly asks.

“My boss. The guy needs to find his chill. I mean, we are in the middle of first contact and this gent is trying to get the red tape in order,”

“Seriously?” Molly says dumbfounded by the priorities.

“Yeah. The guy is a total hard ass,” I continue.

“Are you a remote worker?” Lilly asks.

“Researcher, yeah,” I continue, this is the longest conversation we have had so far.

“What are you researching in New Jersey?” Molly asks.

“Umm. Societal interaction with critical moments of history,” I say without thinking.

“Wait. Did you know this was going to happen?” Lilly asks for clarification.

“No. I think my boss did though,”

“What is he, a prophet?” Lilly asks, with true curiosity in her tone.

“Like Jay and Silent Bob!” Molly contributes.

“Naw. He’s more of an accountant,” I answer as I take a sip of the rum and coke that Lilly had brought me.

“It’s not like this wasn’t hinted at. I mean, didn’t they already release that footage when Donnie tried out that Muslim ban?” Lilly continues.

“Well, that could have been doctored up. There are still people who don’t believe in the moon landing,” Molly declares.

“Ugh. Don’t remind me,” I say in exasperation.

My phone continues to go off and Molly walks over and takes it from me.

“Remember?” She asks me flatly.

“Remember what?” I reply to the question, not having a clue as to what she means.

“It’s better to witness than to talk about it with someone. Come on. Let the call go to voicemail and let those texts wait,” She said and set my phone down on the coffee table.

I smile and nod.

“HOLY SHIT!” Lilly shrieked.

The diplomat has Trump held in the air by his neck, his head twists weirdly.

“See? I fucking knew it!” Molly shouts. “WAR OF THE WORLDS BABY!”

She looked overjoyed.

“Honestly. It was the most likely outcome in this timeline,” I say flatly. .

“Timeline?” Lilly asked.

“Yeah. That whole research project I’m working on,”

“Uh huh,” Molly and Lilly say in unison.

“I’m here to watch your world end,” I release the words to the air. I mean. Why hide it, this dumpster fire is about to go nuclear anyway, right?

“Called it!” Molly cried out, jumping back and pointing right at me.

“Fine. I owe you a twenty,” Lilly said, fishing into her pocket.