“Alex?”

Val, everything is fine. Don’t attack him.

“Yes. Look, Mark… I’m sorry, I know-”

Before he could even finish his sentence, the big man crossed the room in a few strides and absorbed his half-dressed friend in a bear hug.

“You’re alive, you crazy bastard!” He shook Alex back and forth a few times before setting him back down.

Alex coughed as the hug was released, and he was barely able to hold on to his towel. He gave his friend a smile and glanced over at Sam and Val. The two were still tense and watching the exchange. “Mark, can you talk a bit quieter? This is Sam, and he doesn’t love loud noises.”

Mark winced as he saw the clearly scared teenager and realized that he must seem like a crazy person after that entrance. He scratched the back of his head before talking in a much more quiet and gentle voice, “Sorry, man. I’m Mark and Alex is my best friend. Until a few minutes ago, I thought he was dead.” Mark casually punched at Alex’s shoulder, only for the playful strike to be batted aside on reflex.

Oops.

“Mark, I’m really glad you’re here. I promise I’m alright. Can we wait until Sarah is here before I start explaining things?”

Mark nodded, but he took several long moments to look over Alex. With only a towel covering him and a mask still not in place, Mark was able to see all the changes out in the open.

“Yea… explanations…” He let his words trail off as he kept looking at Alex.

“Hey dude, my eyes are up here.” Alex quipped, feeling their natural banter return easily.

Mark smiled in response.

“Look, do you mind hanging out here for a minute so I can get dressed and find some clothes for Sam? If Sarah gets here, just keep her here and tell her I’ll be out in a second.”

Mark nodded again before moving over to sit on one of the stools on the countertop. Sam’s eyes followed him the whole way.

Alex saw Sam and Val communicate, and the mana wyrm returned to the boy's shoulder and used his illusion skill to hide his appearance. Mark raised his eyebrows as he witnessed the magic, but didn’t press the skittish pair.

Seeing that Val wasn’t going to use a mana burst to explode his living room, Alex walked back into his closet to grab a fresh set of clothes and find a second pair that might fit Sam’s thinner frame. He sent a [Mana Thread] across his floor and into the living room, knowing that Mark couldn’t see it, to tell Sam to come to the closet as well.

Alex handed the teenager a black t-shirt, some jeans that would definitely be too baggy, and a green sweatshirt. “Here, take a quick shower and put these on. We’ll get you some fresh clothes later tonight or tomorrow.”

Sam nodded and walked into the bathroom.

Alex heard Sarah arrive and his two friends talking in hushed tones from the other room. Bracing himself, Alex reached into his spatial bag, which was resting on his dresser, and pulled out some of the Mana Silk. He took the boot knife from the bag as well and cut a piece that would fit well for a mask.

After the mask and a piece of the dead wood were in place, Alex used [Mirage] to create an illusion and walked into the living room.

It’s not perfect, but it’ll help me get through the first part of this conversation before they see all the changes.

When Alex entered, they stopped talking, and both looked over to him.

“Alex!” Sarah called and rushed over to him.

“Alex?” Mark asked, confused at his change of appearance. Now, with clothes on and a mask to mimic his old appearance, he likely looked the same other than having lost some weight.

“Hey, Sarah. Look, I’m really sorry, I owe you guys-”

“Alex!” Sarah cried. He gripped him in a hug, and he could feel her shoulders start to shake.

Just as Mark had done, Sarah interrupted his apology by throwing her smaller body into his. She crashed into him and buried her head in his chest while letting out some pent-up tears.

Alex’s hand hovered awkwardly for a moment before hugging her back and putting a hand on her back for comfort. “It’s okay, I’m back.” He murmured, though the words felt lame as he said them. He glanced over her and at Mark, who was watching the scene unfold from the bar stood across the room. He had a slightly confused look on his face, but he smiled and nodded.

Just as Alex was about to continue, the sound of the front door creaking open wider could be heard. He turned and saw Olivia standing in the doorway with her arms crossed and eyebrows raised.

“Alex?” Olivia asked.

Shit.

He could hear the tension in her voice.

Sarah immediately tensed in his arms and pulled back just enough to glance over her own shoulder at the door.

Mark stood from his seat. “Who are you?”

Olivia narrowed her eyes a bit before responding, “I could ask the same. I don’t know either of you.” She jerked her chin toward Sarah as well.

“Guys, please. Hold on a second,” Alex tried, but his voice was lost in the rising volume.

Sarah loosened her grip to face Olivia. “Wait, what? What’s going on?”

Before Alex could answer, Sarah turned her attention back to him. Her eyes focused on his face, and her eyebrows drew together slightly. “Are you mad? Your face… you look-”

“Sarah, I’m not mad. I-”

“Then why do you look so serious? You’ve had the same deadpan expression.” She interrupted him, and her fingers trembled on his arm.

Damn, she picked that up way too quickly. I wasn’t thinking about how much of my facial expressions are limited with the mask.

He opened his mouth to respond, but Olivia’s voice cut through the room. “Because that’s not Alex.” She said. Her voice was calm and serious, very unlike the teasing, flirtatious behavior he’d heard from her just before leaving Elana’s estate.

The room seemed to freeze. Sarah’s hand dropped from Alex’s arm, and her gaze snapped back to his face, eyes wide. Mark instinctively stepped forward, ready to shield her from the “imposter.”

“Wait, what?” Sarah said again. Her voice quivered.

Mark’s jaw clenched as he moved to stand between Alex and Sarah, his posture protective. “You better start explaining yourself,” he warned, his eyes flicking from Olivia to Alex. Mark seemed more confused than on edge, while Olivia seemed ready to fight if anyone made sudden movements.

Olivia’s expression remained unchanged, unimpressed by the looming tension. She took a step into the room, her hand resting on the hilt of a dagger at her waist. “There’s an illusion on his face,” she said calmly, and Alex’s eyes widened. “I can see the mana. So, who the hell are you?”

Alex groaned internally.

This is not how this was supposed to go. I need to rein everyone in.

He raised a hand in an attempt to ease the situation. “Olivia, wait—”

“Illusion? Are you a shapeshifter or something?” Mark asked, squaring his shoulders as if ready to pounce.

Sarah’s voice trembled. “I don’t understand—what’s happening?”

“You know I’m a Peacekeeper with the Guild, right?” Olivia said. Her eyes didn’t leave Alex’s as he said, “And if this is some sort of trap, you’re going to regret pulling me into it.”

“Wait, you’re with the Guild?!” Sarah’s voice shot up in confusion.

“Stop!” Alex finally yelled, his voice booming over the chaotic voices. “Just... stop.”

Silence. Everyone froze, their eyes locked on him.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Alex took a deep breath and pulled the makeshift mask off his face. The Mana Spinner’s silk tried to cling to his face as he pulled at it from the edge. The illusion shimmered, then dissolved, as it broke. Removing the mask revealed the scar that ran across the bridge of his nose and the glowing, golden left eye that only Mark had seen.

The room held its breath.

Sarah gasped audibly, her hand flying to her mouth. Mark’s eyes widened in realization. Olivia raised an eyebrow, but her expression stayed neutral.

“Alex?” Sarah whispered, her voice soft, like she was afraid to hear the answer.

“It’s me,” Alex said. “I know I look different. A lot’s happened since we last saw each other. Just let me explain to you guys what’s going on.”

They all stood in stunned silence for a beat, staring at his changed appearance. Finally, Sarah stepped closer, tentatively raising a hand to his face as if she needed to touch him to believe it was really him.

“Your eye…” she murmured, her fingers grazing his cheek.

Alex glanced at Olivia out of the corner of his eye. He caught her watching the interaction with a closed-off expression. She didn't say anything, but there was a flicker of something on her face.

Annoyance? Shit, she’s folding her arms again.

“Sarah, it’s really me,” Alex repeated gently, stepping back from her touch. He felt the need to create some space, not just for Sarah’s sake, but because Olivia was watching, and he could already feel the tension rising.

Sarah blinked and looked down. Her cheeks reddening slightly. “I—I’m sorry. It’s just... I thought you were dead, and now you’re here, and…” she trailed off.

Olivia cleared her throat. “So, can someone explain what’s going on and who she is?” she asked while pointedly avoiding looking at Sarah.

Sarah blinked at the tone in Olivia's voice. “What do you mean ‘who I am’? I’m one of his best friends. We’ve known each other for years! Who are you?” she asked, her tone defensive. “And so what if you work for the Guild? I work for the Hunter’s Association.”

Olivia’s lips twisted into a wry smile, one that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Of course you do,” she said under her breath. “That explains a lot.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sarah shot back, her brows furrowing.

Olivia rolled her eyes. “Is that where you’ve been for the last week, Alex? Double dipping? It seems like they like to keep their hands in everything.”

Good lord, why is she being so hostile? I could understand if she thought I was still an imposter, but I took the mask off.

Jealousy? This is not at all how I wanted this to go.

“Fuck, I’m tired.” he accidentally said out loud.

Sarah opened her mouth to reply, but Alex quickly stepped between them. “Enough,” he said firmly. Mark and Sarah looked at him with surprise, as the friend they knew almost never took charge of a situation. He turned to Olivia. “Olivia, I’ll explain everything later. This... this is a lot for them to take in. I should have handled this differently. I’m sorry. No I’m not working for the government; I was stuck in a Rift. Can we talk later?”

Olivia’s eyes lingered on him for a moment before she sighed, her annoyance barely concealed. “Fine. Text me when you’re ready. I’ll decide if I’m free,” she said coolly before turning on her heel and heading for the door.

Alex covered his face with his hands as she left and closed the door behind her.

“Well, that could have gone better,” He said into his hands.

“Wait, who are you?” Sarah said.

Alex lifted his head to see Sam emerge from his bedroom in clothes that were definitely too big for him.

“This is Sam,” Alex said, gesturing to the teenager. “He’s been through a lot with me in the Rift, and even more before I found him. Sam, these are my best friends, Mark and Sarah.”

Sam waved without making eye contact before sitting down on the floor across from them, only a few feet from Alex.

Now that it was just Mark and Sarah, Alex felt the tension in the room ease. He took a deep breath and steeled himself for the conversation.

“I guess I should start from the beginning,” Alex said. “It started almost a month ago when I found a Rift near the office… it was that day you were out of town, Mark.”

As Alex began recounting his experience, he watched his friends’ expressions shift from disbelief to concern to awe. He described the initial terror and flight from the sect within the Rift, the strange beauty and quests on the other side, and all the challenges he’d faced.

“… and that’s when I met Sam,” Alex continued while nodding to the quiet teen. “He was trapped there even longer than I was. I’m glad I was able to help him, and Eura could help us both.”

Mark leaned forward, his eyes wide. “Man, that’s insane…”

“Yeah, it sounds crazy, doesn’t it? But it’s all true. The Mana Spinners, the sects, all of it.”

Sarah’s brows came together as she listened, her mind clearly analyzing his behavior more after the story. “Alex, the things you must have experienced… are you- are you okay? This kind of stuff can be a lot to cope with.”

“I’m… managing. It’s a lot to process, but I think being home will help a lot.”

She gave him a slightly skeptical look, but let the matter drop with a nod.

Alex delved deeper into his story and described the betrayal that the sect had faced and the last rush to escape the Rift. Both Mark and Sarah had questions and wanted more details at certain points of the story.

Once he finished, Alex leaned back and felt drained. “So, that’s what happened to me. What happened to you guys while I was gone?”

Mark and Sarah exchanged a glance, and Alex raised an eyebrow. “What? Don’t tell me you two eloped or something.”

Mark let out a nervous laugh. “Not quite, man. But, uh… we kind of awakened too.”

Alex blinked, surprised. “What, what? Both of you? I was only gone for like a week?”

Sarah nodded and her expression was a mix of excitement and guilt. “After you disappeared, we were worried sick. I told Mark about you awakening, and well…”

Mark jumped in and Alex could hear the emotion in his voice. “I couldn’t just sit around doing nothing, you know? I thought if I had powers too, maybe I could help find you or… I don’t know, do something.”

“And you, Sarah?”

Her cheeks flushed slightly. “The Hunter’s Association offered me a job because of my work experience. One of the conditions was being Awakened or being wiling to awaken. After what happened with you, and then Mark… it felt like the right thing to do.”

“We weren’t opposed to the idea from the start, man. If you had just let us in on what was going on, we could have helped with all of this.”

Alex winced and knew his friend was right. “I… I don’t know what to say. I’m so, so sorry I didn’t talk to you guys. Looking back, there was no reason for me to keep it from you, other than I was a bit embarrassed by my trait and I didn’t think you guys would support the idea. I know you want to support me, but you're both also great at talking sense into me.” He let out a sigh and rubbed his forehead. “I think part of me was worried you’d try to talk me out of all of this because it was dangerous.”

Mark and Sarah looked at each other, but stayed quiet.

“There’s really no excuse. I know you both better than that, and after the fact, I can tell how stupid I’ve been. So impulsive and barely thinking through what I’m doing. I was telling myself that I was being brave by throwing myself into these things, but… it was just stupid.”

“Hey,” Mark interrupted, reaching out to grip Alex’s shoulder. “Don’t go down that road, man. What’s done is done and we all make our choices. And honestly? We probably would have tried to talk you out of it, despite me thinking it was cool as hell from the start- I don’t think I would have done it without this circumstance. As scary as it is, I’m glad we did it in the end. I feel like we can help people now, you know?”

Sam watched on, clearly drawn by the conversation.

Sarah nodded in agreement. “It’s true. It’s scary and honestly still doesn’t feel real, but it feels good to be part of something that can make a difference.

"You guys are amazing, you know that? I can't believe you did all this in just a week."

Mark grinned. "Well, some of us handle grief by taking action. Plus, someone had to step up and be the hero while you were gone."

They all laughed, the tension in the room finally breaking. As they continued to talk, conversation drifted to the world and what had been rapidly changing. The Hunters Association had been trying to recruit people to the cause and that Rift breaks were being reported more widely, though many people didn’t seem to believe what was happening despite the reports. In the last week, the Hunters Association had started to set up refuge posts and response teams in cities in case a Rift might spawn.

With Sarah having a direct connection the government, Alex felt the pressing need to tell them both a bit about the information Eura had given to Alex. He explained that it was possible to fail this “System Integration” and that if they did, the world would be turned into a broken world or Rift to be used in some other planets integration.

Both of them had been stunned and Alex answered what few questions he could, but his information was limited. He told her that his hope was to have the information passed along anonymously to the government, then they could do whatever they needed with the information. He’d also share the information with the Adventurers Guild and hopefully the more people working toward a common goal of not failing the integration, the better.

Alex wanted to continue talking, but he saw Sam’s head bobbing up and down from sleep exhaustion. He explained to the two what his plan was for Sam and how hectic their last week had been inside the Rift with the betrayal and assault. Promising more explanations later, he attempted to usher his friends out of the apartment.

“Oh hell, no!” Mark said. “You’re not getting rid of us. We can crash in the living room. You go get some rest and move Sam to your bed, also. It sounds like he’s had even more of a rough time than you.”

Alex smiled as Sarah nodded in agreement.

“Fine. But can you guys do me a favor if you’re going to stay?”

“Yes.”

“Duh.”

Alex’s grin widened at the immediate responses. “Will you go grab some food for us? Good food? And can you make sure to get some Oreos? I need to make Val eat one. ”

Mark and Sarah laughed before agreeing. Alex ushered Sam to the bed before returning to the kitchen for his phone. He sent Olivia a long text attempting to explain everything and asking her for a time when she’d be willing to meet and talk one-on-one.

I doubt I’ll get a quick response after that scene. Ugh.

He had one more thing to do before his friends returned or he fell asleep. He pulled up his most recent System window, deciding that he could save the other notifications for later. When his reward prompt popped up, he looked at the name of the item presented.

Congratulations, Awakened. You have completed Hidden Personal Quest: Wrath of the First-born!

You have one Personal Quest Reward available.

Congratulations Awakened. You have completed Hidden Personal Quest: Wrath of the First-born!

You gain: 1x Rare D Rank Mana Pearl

Intrigued and confused by the item, Alex accepted the reward and watched as it materialized in the air before him. The bright light caused Valtherion to come over, clearly interested in what was happening.

A shining white ball with a polished surface landed in his outstretched hand. Valtherion was immediately interested and sniffed around it. Alex gently pushed him away and held the orb up to the light. It appeared to be made of a ceramic-like material and was the size of a melon. It had a gentle blue sheen to his normal eye, though in his left eye, it shone brightly with mana. Alex forced himself to look at it long enough to scan the item.

D Rank Item - Luminescent Mana Pearl

Rarity: Rare Type: Material

He briefly wondered what the material might be used for. He supposed it could be for noncombat classes if there were classes like crafters for video games. He wanted to put more thought into it, but was too tired. Alex decided to put it away before Valtherion tried to eat it. He put it into a spatial pouch and slipped it into his dresser drawer.

Finally, in his own bed, Alex face planted and fell asleep within seconds.