"I need to understand everything about Rift Runners. Why am I here, who are you, and... is there a way for me to return to my home planet?"

Archie's voice echoed with determination as he demanded answers about the Rift Runners, despite their initial intention to reveal the information gradually.

Archie was eager to leave this planet, so he was determined to learn about it as quickly as possible, hoping that knowledge would expedite his departure.

"Phew!" Deadbeat exhaled, "We've got a restless one here, Mechanic."

“Alright, we will tell you all about the basic things you need to know to survive as a Rift Runner,” Mechanic responded in a composed manner, and began her explanation,“Rift Runners are individuals from different areas chosen by rifts and…”

Archie interrupted her mid-sentence, "Isn’t that what Rift Riders are?"

"Just keep quiet when I'm speaking. We'll have a Q&A session afterwards, okay?" Mechanic's irritation was palpable, but she took a deep breath and continued,"Rift Riders are individuals that hunt down just monsters, but we, Rift Runners, protect and save planets."

Seeing the confusion etched on Archie's face, Deadbeat stepped in to clarify,"Think of Rift Riders as bounty hunters, they fight for rewards. Rift Runners are like peacekeepers that protect and maintain order among planets."

"Rift Riders are unaware of our existence. We operate in the shadows from their perspective, because we are personally chosen by Rifts to save the planet, unlike Rift Riders who consume Egg stones or mate with each other to gain Ethereal. We are granted Ethereal by Rifts itself. So we don’t encounter any natural encounters." Mechanic's elucidation about Rift Runners and Rift Riders prompted Archie to question,"Why did the Rifts choose me? I have Non-Graded ‘F’ Ethereal. I won’t be of any use."

"HA…HA…" Both of them burst into laughter, leaving Archie bewildered. To address his query, Deadbeat responded,"Don’t fib, kid. If you are chosen by Rifts, it means you are only Graded ‘SS’ Ethereal."

Mechanic, grinning broadly, chimed in,"There are no ranked Ethereal here. If you are chosen as a Rift Runner, it means you have ‘SS’ Ethereal."

"I’m not lying," Archie mumbled, feeling ridiculed upon hearing that all Rift Runners possess ‘SS’ Graded Ethereal.

"No kidding." Mechanic’s smile faded upon seeing Archie’s frowning face and she demanded,"Show us your E-Screen, we want to verify."

Archie remained silent and didn’t respond because he was unable to use E-Screen. For the past month, Archie had made numerous attempts to open E-Screen but to no avail.

"Mechanic, how could you forget about E-Screen? You only acquired it last month." Deadbeat corrected Mechanic and reassured Archie, "Kid, you don’t have to feel down that you didn’t get any E-Screen. Rift Runners can only gain E-Screen at the Rift Guild."

Archie's face lit up the moment he heard Deadbeat’s words and he eagerly suggested,"Then, let's head to the Guild immediately."

"Dumb-Dumb, you can’t leave this area until you finish the mission." Mechanic chided Archie, causing him to regain his composure, realizing he could survive eight hours of a volcanic eruption if he stayed indoors comfortably.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

As Archie had anticipated, Mechanic and Deadbeat agreed to stay put for eight hours and then escort Archie to the Guild, but Mechanic negotiated,"I need your reward credits for our service."

"Sure, Sure. I don’t mind, but…" Archie hesitated, fearing Mechanic might ridicule him again, so he turned towards her father and asked, "What exactly are credits?"

Archie was taken aback when Mechanic responded calmly,"You see, credits are money, similar to the currency on your planet. For Rift Runners, all transactions are conducted in credits. Now, how many credits were displayed on the reward screen?"

Archie scratched his head trying to recall the rewards, but Mechanic's patience wore thin and she snapped,"For this Easy mission, it must have been 100 credits."

Archie nodded in agreement, as he remembered the rewards were indeed 100 credits. Mechanic continued to enlighten Archie about the Rift Runners.

As the eight hours slowly passed,

Inside the ice hut, Mechanic and Deadbeat were comfortably seated on chairs, while Archie lay on the icy ground, fast asleep.

Overwhelmed by shock, fatigue, and the stinging pain from his lava burns, Archie quickly succumbed to sleep, even amidst the ongoing conversation.

The cold interior of the ice hut provided some relief and soothed his pain initially, but as he slept, the burn wounds began to throb, disrupting his sleep.

[DING!]

A golden prompt notification roused Archie from his slumber, displaying,

[Congratulations on completing Side Mission:][Survived Volcanic Eruption for 8 hours:][Rewards:100 Credits]

Another golden prompt appeared:

[Warning!][Reward postponed due to lack of E-Screen]

That’s when it dawned on him, Archie asked,"I forgot to ask earlier. What is this reward? Rift Riders don’t have something like this."

Mechanic responded calmly, "That’s the privilege only we, Rift Riders have."

'We, Rift Runners!' Archie slowly came to terms with the fact that his reality was no longer the same. His life was undergoing a transformation, whether he liked it or not.

"Here, catch!" Mechanic tossed a blue crystal bottle towards him. Archie caught it and wondered what it was.

"Drink up, it's for your wounds," Mechanic instructed, as she exited the ice hut with Deadbeat trailing behind her.

Archie managed a faint smile, uncapped the bottle and took a sip, witnessing a miracle as his scars began to heal gradually, although the burn marks on his white chef dress remained.

Once Archie was completely healed, he stepped outside through the small opening in the hut to see that all the lava rocks that had crashed onto the ground earlier had melted and merged to form a new layer of ground, while the ice hut they had been sheltering in remained intact.

"THUD!" As Archie stepped outside, Deadbeat punched the hut causing it to crumble into pieces. As it crumbled from the heat, the ice melted into water which evaporated within seconds.

Archie was gradually getting used to these strange occurrences and began to suppress his shock. He didn’t want to give Mechanic another opportunity to mock him. Every time Archie was taken aback or shocked, she always sported a huge grin on her face which infuriated Archie.

"Let’s head in this direction," Deadbeat gestured towards the volcano to exit the area. Archie noticed that the mountain appeared normal, showing no signs of lava or of having erupted eight hours ago.

Archie noticed his delivery bag had been completely incinerated, leaving only a few remnants. He searched for his earphone and other belongings, but found nothing.

The trio headed towards the mountain and after a few minutes, they reached the base of the mountain where they spotted a cave. Deadbeat entered the cave, followed by Archie, while Mechanic brought up the rear, ensuring everything was clear outside.

Guided by the blue glow emanating from Deadbeat’s Armor gauntlets, they navigated the narrow path for a few minutes until they saw a faint light at the end and emerged to find.

A vast open field with nothing but rocky terrain and distant mountains. Archie spotted two horses resting on the ground.

"You have to share the horse with me, virgin. Hope you give me a good time," Mechanic teased Archie.Archie retorted, growing more comfortable with the duo, "How about we ride each other?"