Austin woke up to Maya urgently shaking him awake. He was confused as to what was so urgent. She did not usually wake him up aggressively. He rubbed his eyes as he tried to understand what was going on. As his eyes started to fully open, he noticed they were no longer in the forest. He was lying on green grass. He could not believe it. The grass was green.

  As Austin stood up, he looked over the area. The first thing he noticed was that everyone in the camp seemed to be transported to this same area. Then he looked over the area. They were some sort of suburban neighborhood. Many of the houses looked similar, like they were from a cookie-cutter neighborhood that was built by a real estate company.

  “Are we back on Earth?” Austin asked Maya as he looked around.

  “It definitely seems that way,” Maya said with a wide smile. “Not quite sure where exactly, though.”

  “It doesn’t matter where! We are back!” Austin’s eyes lit up. “We really made it home!”

  Austin grabbed Maya’s wrists and pulled her into a dance. She was completely caught off guard, but joined him as they jumped and danced in a circle. Once they ended their dance, Austin drew his attention to Elliot. Austin grabbed his son and lifted him in the air with a large smile on his face. They actually did it. They made it home! Austin did not even have time to question it. He was just so happy to be home.

  As Austin set Elliot down, he heard a ringing from his pack. The noise caught Austin off guard. He had completely forgotten about his phone. Then, Austin heard more ringing throughout the area. Everyone’s phones were going off at once.

  Austin was instantly reminded that the Survival Game was just the beginning, and figured there was a reason all the phones went off. His excitement died as he opened his pack and looked for his phone. The group grew quiet as they all reached for their phones. Once Austin opened his phone screen, he was met with a text message that did not have a phone number attached to it.

  “Congratulations, Survivors! You made it through the Survival Game! Consider yourself lucky, out of 8 billion participants, only 400 million survived! Quite a staggering difference. You should feel honored that you were strong enough to make it through.

  Now, many of you probably have questions. So there are a few clerical things to be addressed. This message is real. After adapting to your world, it was found that this is the most effective way to communicate with a mass population. Many of your conveniences will still work. Power has been replaced with Aether. There is very little point in removing the progress of humanity. Nuclear power and weapons have been stabilized. The reduction of humanity’s population would guarantee a fallout. This is in your best interest.

  You will find that your planet has drastically changed from its original state. Habitats have changed to suit your growth as an Essence user. This includes changes in fauna, flora, and resources. You may also find dungeons with rare treasures and resources.

  Please enjoy your time in your new world. Good luck on your Path to Gold.”

  Austin looked up from his phone to see that people were still reading the message. He knew about the habitat change but felt some relief that some of their conveniences would remain. He hoped that meant he could get a warm shower. He felt like he was in desperate need of one.

  “That doesn’t seem too bad,” Maya said to Austin as she looked up from her phone.

  “We’ll have to see,” Austin said. “It’ll be nice to have a shower, but I don't think things are completely safe yet.”

  “I agree, it just seems a little better,” Maya nodded. “What should we do now?”

  “I guess we should go talk to everyone,” Austin suggested.

  “Right,” Maya said as she picked up Elliot.

  The family walked to join the rest of the group. As people finished reading their phones, they joined up with the group. Everyone seemed to wait in anticipation for what came next. They may have been back on Earth, but there was still a lot to figure out with their new world. The group started to look at each other like they expected someone to speak up and take action.

  “I guess we have some things to figure out,” Austin stepped up to speak. “Most importantly, we will have to survey the surrounding area. We can get an idea about these new habitats, and if these houses are here, maybe there is a grocery or convenience store nearby. We’ll also have to figure out our individual roles now that we are back on Earth. I’m sure it will be similar to the camp, but we may have to diversify more. Before we do all that, I say we split up these houses. I know they were probably someone else’s before, but we do need shelter.”

  If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  The group was silent at first. Austin felt strange taking charge, but he felt like someone had to step up and speak. He hoped that he did not say anything wrong. He worried that was the reason everyone was silent. They were judging his speech.

  “Sounds like a good plan,” Mike nodded. “I say we just split up the houses as we are comfortable. There is plenty for all of us.”

  Everyone nodded in agreement and split up. Even single people picked someone to live with. It seemed as if no one wanted to live alone. Austin and Maya chose a smaller house. It was a simple one-story ranch, but they felt like it was all they needed.

  As the family entered the house, they got right to work. Maya took Elliot to the bathroom to bathe him. Austin looked over the things in the house. He started with the fridge and kitchen cupboards. His most important thought was whether they needed food. Luckily, there was a fully stocked kitchen, and nothing had gone bad. He then went to the rest of the house to see what else there was. It seemed like a couple lived in the house prior, and there were clothes that Austin and Maya could wear. They needed to somehow get clothes for Elliot. Austin hoped they could luck out and find a store nearby that had some clothes.

  As Austin finished looking over the house, he heard Maya finish giving Elliot a bath. Maya brought Elliot into the bedroom where Austin was. Even though Elliot was clean, Maya had to dress him in his old, dirty clothes.

  “We’ll get you some new clothes soon,” Austin said. “Looks like there isn’t any here for you.”

  “That’s kinda disappointing, but I guess relieving too,” Maya said. “If there were kids’ clothes, they probably belonged to a kid who was…gone.”

  “Yeah, not the best thing to think about,” Austin nodded. “You know, I thought we could look for a nearby store, but I bet one of these houses has clothes. We could ask after we get showered.”

  “Yeah, I don’t like the idea, but I would rather Elliot be dressed in something clean,” Maya said.

  “Right,” Austin said as he picked up Elliot. “I’ll look over him while you shower.”

  “Giving me the first shower then?” Maya said with a grin.

  “Yeah, I’m sure you want one just as bad as I do,” Austin said.

  “Thank you,” Maya said with a smile.

  As Maya walked away, Austin grabbed his newly cleaned son. Austin carried Elliot to the living room and sat him on the couch. Out of habit, Austin grabbed a nearby remote and turned the television on. He was not shocked to see that it turned on. The message made it clear they would have electricity. He was shocked to see that it was connected to WiFi and seemed to be working. He tried to open a children’s television app, and somehow it worked.

  “I guess things aren’t too different,” Austin said to himself as he put on a show for Elliot.

  Elliot clapped his hands in excitement as he looked towards the television with bright eyes. Austin was not the biggest fan of screen time, but he figured that Elliot deserved a break as well. He had just experienced the same things as Austin. Even if he did not understand it the same way that Austin did.

  While Elliot watched the television, Austin started to stare and zone out. He did not mean to, but his mind became blank as it finally got the chance to rest. He had been on high alert throughout the Survival Game, and a return to a familiar environment relaxed him. He finally felt like he was in a place of calm where he did not have to worry.

  Austin did not even notice when Maya finished her shower. His eyes just blankly stared forward as he was unaware of the world around him. After Maya got dressed, she came into the living room and lightly shook Austin. In response, Austin’s eyes grew wide, and he jumped. He held his chest as he tried to calm down. While he calmed down, he saw Maya’s new clothes. She wore an olive green blouse and a pair of jeans.

  “What do you think?” Maya asked with a smile.

  “Looks good to me,” Austin nodded. “About time we got to change our clothes.”

  “You GOT to change your clothes,” Maya’s eyes narrowed. “Consider yourself lucky. I had one set of clothes for the entire time in that forest. I am probably going to have to burn them because of how dirty they are.”

  “True, I wonder if I can clean these,” Austin said as he gestured to the training robes he wore.”I’m sure that Artas won’t want me throwing them away.”

  “Maybe if we are lucky,” Maya said with a scowl. “If we can’t get them clean, then store them where I can’t smell them.”

  “Fine, I’ll do just that,” Austin laughed as he stood up. “Can I get my shower now?”

  “Go ahead, I think I am going to go visit other people while you are in the shower. Just come look for me when you are done,” Maya said as she picked up Elliot.

  As Maya walked away with Elliot, Austin prepared to shower. Once in the bathroom, he took off his clothes. Before he got in the shower, he looked in the mirror. He felt like he did not even look like the same person from before the Survival Game. His hair was messy and greasy. He had even grown a slight beard. He had always kept his face clean-shaven, so it was a stark difference to him. The biggest shock to Austin was his build, though. He knew about his muscle definition from Maya, but it was shocking to look at. He was now so thin and wiry. Before the Survival Game, he had a little fat from his sedentary lifestyle. The Survival Game had truly changed Austin both physically and mentally.

  Austin shrugged at his observation and entered the shower. He did not care about dwelling on the thought. His biggest concern was getting a relaxing shower. As the warm water hit his skin, he felt like his worries washed away. His body and mind relaxed. There was still so much more to do. There was so much to figure out now that they were on Earth. All of that did not matter. He and his family were finally free of the Survival Game. Things could only go up.