I have science to do!

Making a happy little noise, I run towards the mug, totally missing the baffled looks my family sends me. The mug of water has been on the side for over an hour at this point, and I don’t need the thermometer to tell me that the water has cooled back to room temperature. 'And now for the big test!' Taking the thermometer out of the other mug, I hold it ready, noting that Ash and Emily have followed me over, and are now watching on in interest. Well, mostly interest. There may also be a little bit of snickering.

'Steady… steady… NOW!' In a single smooth motion, I bring the second mug out of my Inventory and dunk the thermometer in the liquid with a small plop. I eye the digital display nervously as the thermometer does its thing, then whoop in joy as the temperature reads the same as if I had just boiled the kettle. Well, it’s actually off by a couple of degrees, but it's close enough!

I turn back to my attentive audience, arms raised in victory, only to be met by two bemused looks. Belatedly, I realise that I never told anyone about all the scientific research I was doing earlier. “So, you know you can store water and other liquids in an open container in your Inventory, and it won’t spill, right?” Amused looks are exchanged, then Ash pipes up with, “We do now?” 'Oh, hadn’t told them that bit either…'

“Well, it does! Anyway, earlier I filled two mugs with boiling water, left one on the side and stuck the other in my inventory. It’s been about an hour. The mug I left on the side has cooled, but when I took the other out of my Inventory, the water in it was basically still boiling!” I finish my speech with a flourish, gesturing grandly towards the mug, which steams gently on the side. Two blank faces stare at me, glance at the mug, then back to me.

I wait for the light of comprehension to dawn in my sisters’ eyes. It’s Emily who breaks first, the giggle slipping from her lips before she can stop it. I sigh in exasperation and give Emily a dry look, before I focus on my twin, she surely gets it… Right? Ash is sporting a poker face, but the amusement dancing in her eyes is clear. In a voice only a little bit shaky with mirth, she says, “I have a feeling us dum-dums are missing something here, wanna fill us in?”

I shake my head. 'The shit I have to deal with from these two clowns.' “The boiling water that went into my Inventory an hour ago is still boiling. That means that time doesn’t act on the shit in our Inventories, like, at all!” Hesitantly, Emily replies “Oh? Neat.”

“Neat? Neat!?! We have access to a pocket dimension entirely untouched by time, and the best you can come up with is neat!?” The girls exchange another look, both grinning at my clear exasperation, before Ash says, “Yup, that’s pretty neat.” All I can do is sigh, before replying, “You guys are the worst.” Ash winks at me then wonders off, chucking softy and muttering about her "Idiot brother" ('rude!') whilst Em channels her inner brat and sticks her tongue out at me.

I half expect her to wander off to, but she hangs around, propping herself up against the side. She gives me an intensely searching look, then says, “How do you do it? One minute we’re having a normal evening, then boom, one apocalypse coming right up! Extra existential dread on the side! We were told that the world was literally ending, and nothing we could do would stop or change that. I couldn’t help but freeze… I was so god’s damn scared. But you? You took things in stride, got us moving and organised. Even now, when we are as prepped as we can be and are awaiting whatever’s coming next, you’re trying your best to keep us all cheered up. How are you so brave about this?”

By the end of her question, her voice is quavering. The light glints off of little drops of moisture as they begin to form in the corners of her eyes as she stares at me intently. It doesn’t take a social genius to know she’s on the verge of tears. Compassion fills me as I see how much my little sister is struggling, tempered by a feeling of deep guilt. I step forward, wrapping her in a fierce hug again. I smile as she returns the hug with interest, burring her face in my chest again and squeezing me tightly.

“You want to know how I’m still going?” A nod. “Honestly? you might not like the answer.” A second nod, I sigh. 'Well, I did warn her. This is gunna make me look like such an ass.' “It’s probably because I’m the nerdiest nerd in the history of nerdom.” There's a slight pause as Emily digests my statement, then I hear a slightly muffled (but very confused) “Huh?”

“You heard, the reason that I’m ready for this? This is like a little nerdy dream come true! You’re telling me I not only don’t have to stick around on boring old earth and become a tax accountant or some shit, but I get to go to another world, potentially become a motherfucking wizard, and I get to take my family with me? Where the hell do I sign!?”

I realise that by this point I’ve gathered a bit of an audience. The rest of the family is listening to my little speech, each sporting a complicated expression. 'Welp, I’ve started now, may as well finish.' “Listen, I understand losing Earth sucks, but you can’t say none of you have ever dreamed that you were your D&D characters and you were the one's having the adventure. Well, now we can have that!”

“We’ve already been given spells, which to me suggests we are heading to a world with goddamn magic! Doesn’t that make you exited? Who in their right mind wouldn’t want to fling around spells if given half the chance? We have a prime opportunity to start fresh and do whatever we want to do in our new world. Fuck it, we’re already in a party, why shouldn’t we become adventurers?”

“Mum, you have the chance to become the family’s true protector. Don’t think I haven’t noticed that every time you roll a character, you always seem to end up with a Tank. You’ll be the Mama bear, the bulwark that keeps the rest of us safe behind a wall of steel. Lisa? I know for a fact that you’d love to be your Ranger. Why the hell else would you take archery lessons twice a week? Ash, the shenanigans you cause as you sneak round casting illusions during games are fucking hilarious. Imagine how much mischief you could get up to if you could do that for real?”

“Em?” She looks up at me, eyes shining with the beginnings of hope. “Yeah?” “How many problems can’t be solved with 8D6 fire damage?” 'There it is, that little smile I was hoping for.' “Not many.” “I’m not sure about you guys, but here? On Earth? I feel truly powerless. If everything had carried on as normal the world would trundle onwards, whether I was here on not. But elsewhere? We have the chance to become incredibly powerful and shape our new home, leaving it better than we found it. And even better? We get to do it together.”

I look round at my family, hoping that my words have had the desired effect. Mum still looks uncertain, but I see the first fires of determination spark in her eyes. Lisa’s usual stoic expression is belied by her fidgety movements, speaking of an eagerness to be moving and doing. 'At least I hope that’s what it is, rather than a desire to run away, with Lisa it’s kinda hard to tell. Hell, she might just really need to pee.'

Ash has a faraway look and a small smile on her face. She notices me looking, and as our eyes meet, I see a glint that I can’t quite place. 'Not sure if that's good or bad, but it’s certainly something.' Finally, I look down at Emily who is looking up at me intently. For a moment, I swear I see the fires of as yet unburnt buildings reflected in her eyes. 'Oh gods, I may have created a monster.'

Time passes slowly as we talk about the home we are about to leave, reminiscing over good times. It’s a bittersweet few minutes and more than a few tears are shed, but eventually the conversation takes a more hopeful turn as we speculate what we will encounter on our new world. In what feels like no time at all, the Quest timer runs out, and we receive the notification we have all been waiting for.

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

The time allotted for you to prepare has elapsed. Would you like to begin the evacuation process?

(Y/N)

0----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------0

I look up at my family, all gathered in a huddle and say, “I’ll see you all soon.” With that done, I mentally press the yes button. For a few scant moments nothing happens, and we all look around in confusion. Then Ashley gasps and we all look over to see her being enveloped in a blinding column of light. Soon enough all of us are glowing, the light slowly getting brighter and brighter until all I can see is white.