Chapter 3: A Name Echoing Through Time
The system interface pulsed with faint light as Cal clicked "Start Broadcast." The familiar, floating window confirmed the connection.
[Connecting to Timeline 2010-A…]
[Stream Initialized.]
[Welcome back, Host.]
[Viewers: 128 (and rising)]
Cal blinked.
The count kept climbing. 128… 142… 163…
It wasn't just the regulars anymore. These were new names. Dozens of them, flooding in one by one like spectators entering a stadium, bringing noise, anticipation, and a shared electric excitement. For a moment, Cal just stared at the counter, stunned.
"Damn," he whispered.
[guest4321]: I FOUND THE NARUTO MOVIE GUY
[AkibaWolf]: This is THE guy??
[Mozu_Kun]: Is this the real stream?
[Retro_Neko]: HE'S LIVE!!!
[jin2002]: chat's crazy rn lol
[OGanimefan]: yo cal you blew up overnight
He fumbled slightly as he adjusted his mic. "Hey, uh… yeah, I guess the video got around."
Understatement of the year.
The interface pinged quietly as the chat surged faster than he could read. The stream delay was still near-instant—thanks to whatever unearthly tech the system ran on—but Cal felt his own mind lagging behind the reaction.
He wasn't ready for this.
Yesterday, 28 viewers had felt like a small miracle. Today, the number passed 300.
He took a breath. "Alright, alright. Let's take this slow."
The viewers wouldn't care if he stumbled, he realized. They weren't here for polish. They were here for him. Or, more precisely, the version of him who held secrets no one else did.
The system chimed again.
[Mission "Establish a Channel Identity" in progress]
[Objective 1: Choose a Streamer Alias – Incomplete]
[Objective 2: Customize Stream Overlay – Incomplete]
[Reward: +200 Points + Stream Branding Access]
"Oh, right. I never picked a name." Cal opened the new panel. A simple prompt waited.
[Choose Streamer Alias:]
(Current: Host_0001)
He hesitated.
All this time, even when he'd streamed in his own world, he'd never cared about branding. No usernames, logos, avatars. It had felt pointless—who was watching? No one.
Now, it mattered.
He typed one word.
RetroCal
[Alias confirmed: RetroCal]
[Stream Identity Locked – RetroCal will now be displayed on 2010-A platforms]
[Social Presence Initialized: Auto-generated Fan Page, Tag Threads, Video Attribution Activated]
Within moments, the chat lit up.
[AkibaWolf]: "RetroCal" LMAO that's actually kinda dope
[guest4321]: it fits him so well
[jin2002]: the past-future streamer
[Retro_Neko]: ooooh he has a name now
[OGanimefan]: Cal-sama rise up!
He laughed. For real. A little too hard.
Cal-sama? Seriously?
He leaned into the mic. "Guess I'm RetroCal now."
Later into the stream, the mood shifted naturally from excitement to curiosity.
[Mozu_Kun]: can you show more unreleased anime??
[AkibaWolf]: what about sports stuff? like real matches?
[Retro_Neko]: can u show future anime openings??
[guest8855]: bro do you know who wins the 2010 world cup??
He blinked.
That last one tugged at something. He hadn't thought about sports in years—not since before everything changed. Before his world shrank to four walls, a monitor, and silence.
But he used to love it.
Baseball, football, boxing—especially underdog stories. Even now, highlights played on loop in his mind: buzzer-beaters, impossible comebacks, dramatic finishes. He hadn't watched live sports in ages.
And yet… the system interface updated before he could answer.
[Request Detected: Future Sports Content]
[Available Content: World Cup 2010 Archive (Full HD), NBA Finals Archive, F1 2010 Monaco GP, and more]
[Note: High-Tier License Required – 30 Points per Event Stream]
[Promo Available: First Sports Stream – Free]
"Seriously?" Cal murmured, then turned back to the mic. "Alright. You guys asked for it…"
He clicked on World Cup 2010: Final Match Replay.
[Stream License Confirmed – No Cost]
[Now Playing: Spain vs Netherlands – Full Match Archive | July 11, 2010 | Johannesburg]
[Warning: Contains Historical Content from Timeline-A Future]
[Chat Monitoring Active]
As the opening shots of the match played—flags waving, the roar of the stadium, players lining up—Cal leaned back in his chair, memories returning in waves.
The moment Iniesta scored in extra time. The tension. The flares. The celebration.
To him, it was a memory.
To them, it was prophecy.
The chat erupted.
[guest8855]: NO WAY
[AkibaWolf]: bro this isn't even supposed to happen for weeks!!
[jin2002]: HOW IS THIS IN HD??
[Retro_Neko]: this looks like a movie holy crap
[OGanimefan]: he wasn't joking about being from the future huh…
The viewer count surged again—482… 537… 610…
Cal watched quietly as the game played on. He let the past watch its own future.
But what he didn't say—what he couldn't say—was how much this stream meant to him.
He remembered watching this match live. Back then, his parents were still around. The living room full of yelling and spilled snacks and fake commentator impressions.
It was the last time the house felt alive.
Now, he streamed it to a world where that version of him didn't exist. A timeline where the boy watching with his family didn't know what was coming. Where maybe—just maybe—he could feel that spark again.
He wiped his eyes.
The chat didn't notice. Or if they did, they said nothing.
The game ended, Spain victorious, the screen fading into post-match analysis. The stream chat was flooded with stunned messages, memes, and disbelief. A few viewers even sent donations.
[Donation Received: 100 Points from Retro_Neko]
[Message: "For the chills. That was amazing."]
[Total Points: 335]
The system chimed.
[Mission Complete: "Establish a Channel Identity"]
[+200 Points]
[Unlocked: Stream Branding Toolkit (Overlay, Logo, Alerts)]
[New Feature: Subscriber Rank System – Activated]
[You are now eligible to create a Stream Room for Premium Content.]
Cal exhaled slowly.
RetroCal. A channel with real subscribers. Real reactions. Real energy.
He still had no one in his world to share it with. But… maybe that didn't matter.
He had an audience now. A community forming in another timeline. And they cared.
They didn't know the truth—that he lived in a silent apartment, without a single soul who'd check in on him. That he spent holidays alone, his phone never buzzing, his door never knocked.
But they showed up every night.
And in their world, he was a voice, a screen, a name that echoed through time.
As the stream ended and the system began compiling another viral-ready highlight reel, Cal left the desk and sat on the floor, leaning against the bedframe.
He felt exhausted. Not from work—but from feeling alive again. Emotionally full for the first time in years.
He whispered into the silence, "Thank you."
Not to the system. Not to the viewers.
To the him that didn't give up.
End of Chapter 3