Rifts have been a part of the world for longer than Nathan Hale had been alive. People didn't question their existence endlessly the way they used, the world had just adjusted around them.
They opened up in fixed zones, had entire city blocks were designed around them and schools now taught monster response drills the same way they taught fire drills.
Danger had now become normal and so had the system. Almost everyone received the system by the age of sixteen.
Some kids got it early, their system notification popping up a year or two early. Others waited until their sixteenth birthday some waiting a few weeks longer. But everyone got it around that time.
Unfortunately this was not the case for Nathan.
Sitting in his room with his curtains half drawn, the light from his monitor washed over his face. A livestream playing on the screen with the sound turned down so it wouldn't carry into the hallway.
'That looksdangerous.'
Nathan thought to himself as he watched a group of hunters move cautiously through the broken terrain.
Nathan's room was small with his bed pushed against one wall and his desk against another.
He leaned back in his chair, fingers resting idly on the armrests. His eyes stayed on the screen, but his focus drifted.
'I am almost eighteen.'
'And still nothing...'
At sixteen, he had told himself not to worry as late awakenings were not uncommon and he would read about people experiencing them online.
At seventeen, the reassurance had started to wear thin as most of the people he had studied with were gone from his daily life.
Some were working with small guilds, some working as interns with even some moving to another city entirely.
Although he didn't feel angry about it he still felt as if the world was leaving him behind as he stood still in life.
The livestream on his screen suddenly cut to a closer shot of a monster and the chat exploded with messages which Nathan didn't bother reading, watching silently.
"NATHAN! LENA! DINNER'S READY! COME OUT!"
The shout echoed down the hallway, loud enough to make Nathan flinch.
He left the stream running and stood up to go out, pushing his chair back. His joints felt stiff. He rolled his shoulders, then opened his door and stepped out.
The apartment was quiet except for the faint hum of the kitchen vent. It wasn't a large place. Three bedrooms, one shared space, and a kitchen that barely fit three people without feeling crowded.
Ethan stood by the table, sleeves rolled up. There was a tired look in his eyes that never quite went away.
Lena was already sitting, legs swinging slightly as she waited.
"You sure took your time," she said.
"I was busy," Nathan replied, taking the seat across from her.
"You said that last time you were late too."
Ethan placed a bowl on the table and cleared his throat. "Before anyone complains, I tried something different tonight."
Nathan glanced at the food. Infront of him was a thick stew, green in color.
"That sentence worries me," Nathan said.
Lena leaned forward, peering at the bowl. "Is it spicy?"
"No," Ethan said quickly. "It's… umm balanced."
Nathan raised an eyebrow.
Ethan ignored him and turned to Lena. "So, big year coming up."
Lena made a face. "Don't remind me."
"Aren't you excited?" Nathan asked.
"More like nervous," she replied immediately.
Nathan smiled faintly. "It can't be that bad?"
"It's expensive," she said. "And everyone there except for me know what they're doing."
"You'll be fine," Nathan said. "You are good at making friends."
She pointed her spoon at him. "You're the one to talk Mr. Antisocial."
He shrugged. "My point still stands up."
Ethan watched them for a moment, smiled and then spoke to Lena. "You earned it."
"The institute, I mean."
"I know," Lena said, quieter now. "I'll work hard."
"I do not doubt it," Ethan replied.
Ending this conversation they started eating and as Nathan took a bite his expression completely froze.
Lena reacted faster. She yelped and dropped her spoon back into the bowl. "ETHAAN!"
Ethan frowned. "What?"
"This is-" She coughed. "Why is this so salty?"
Nathan swallowed with effort. "You committed a sin in the name of seasoning."
"More like he attempted murder!" Lena muttered.
Ethan stared at them, then took a bite himself.
There was a long pause.
"…Okay," he admitted. "I might have just misjudged the amount of salt a little bit."
Lena grabbed her glass of water. "Yeah, a little bit..."
They tried to eat a little more out of stubbornness, to no avail.
Ethan sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright. That one's on me."
Nathan leaned back. "So what's the backup plan?"
Ethan glanced at his phone. "Pizza?"
"Yes!" Lena said instantly.
Nathan nodded. "Please do."
While they waited, the conversation drifted.
"How was work?" Nathan asked.
Ethan shrugged. "Same as usual. Hunters arguing about money."
"That sounds exhausting," Lena said.
"It is," Ethan replied. "But today was decent, I am almost done with my contract."
"Bonus?" Lena asked hopefully.
"Probably," Ethan said. "We should go out to somewhere decent when it comes through."
Nathan smirked. "Yeah, somewhere without overly seasoned stew."
Ethan shot him a look.
As a few moments passed, Ethan glanced at Nathan again. "…Any news today?"
Nathan shook his head signally no.
Ethan exhaled quietly. "Alright, that's completely fine."
Nathan said. "I mean. I wasn't really expecting today to be special or anything."
Ethan hesitated. "If you want, I could talk to my supervisor. Get you an internship, maybe support staff or data handling."
Nathan looked down at the table. "I don't know."
"You don't have to decide now," Ethan said. "Just think about it."
"I'm not exactly great with people," Nathan admitted.
Before Ethan could respond, Lena took another bite of the stew and yelped again.
"Oh no," she said. "I thought maybe it was just the first spoonful."
Nathan tried it again, and instantly his face went green.
Ethan groaned. "Okay... Pizza. Definitely getting pizza."
When the boxes arrived, the apartment smelled better immediately. The three of them ate straight from the cartons, the earlier disaster quickly forgotten.
Lena talked about the institute she was going to, Ethan complained about work and Nathan listened.
***
After dinner, Nathan returned to his room, the sound of voices fading as he closed the door behind him.
The apartment grew silent again, looking forward he saw that his computer screen was still on.
The livestream window filled most of the display, light flickering across the dark room.
The image showed a desert stretching out under a pale sky, this was a desert type rift.
Nathan stepped closer and sat down.
This wasn't a small stream as Nathan scrolled down the interface showed tens of thousands of viewers.
The hunter leading the expedition was also well known as he was someone whose name appeared often in highlight clips and breakdown videos mostly specializing in clearing unrecorded rifts.
These were rifts that hadn't been fully mapped and as usually, less data meant fewer guarantees and higher risks, every unrecorded rift clear was a big deal.
Nathan leaned forward slightly, focusing on the screen. The team on the screen moved carefully, spreading out in a loose arc, every movement of theirs looking measured.
'This is what I want,' He exhaled quietly.
Not the fame, not the attention. Just this.
He imagined standing among them for a moment, how would it feel.
He leaned back slowly, eyes still fixed on the screen.
It had been almost two years. Two years since he was supposed to have received his notification.
'I am tired.'
Nathan reached forward and closed the livestream. Instantly, the room felt darker. He stood up and stretched his body as he felt heavy now, exhaustion finally catching up with him.
Then he went through the motions of getting ready for bed. Heading to the bathroom, brushing his teeth. In the water running softly in the sink, his reflection stared back at him, eyes looking more tired than usual.
He shut the lights off and returned to his room his bed creaking as he laid down.
For a few seconds, he just stared at the ceiling, but just as he closed his eyes to go to sleep.
[DING]
He heard a sound, upon which Nathan's eyes snapped open.
A red window hovered in front of him.
[System Initiating]