They had left the city as Janus told the story. They had taken one of the many roads that branched out from it and had started walking. 'three players just standing at a ruined table is going to arouse suspicion' as Croe put it.812Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCKwCnQuKlj
“-So by the time Qilin got everything back under control, our base was in shambles, and everyone was freaked out,” Janus said. “The first thing Qilin did was reach out to the internet and get some halfway decent Coders. He had some beforehand, but out of all of them, only one or two were up to the task. That's how I got in. A guy in my computer science class asked if I would join and I accepted. It was by pure luck that I later got hired to do a bit of freelance work on the game.”
“So you never got to see BA?” Alex asked.
“No, but I heard stories and watched a few videos of him fighting. He was like a one-man-army. With Miles, he was unstoppable.”
“Not unstoppable enough.” Alex said.
Janus shook his head sadly. “No, not enough.”
Alex opened his mouth to say something, when a message popped up in his in-game mailbox. He opened it and read it
Dev Q&A812Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSCv7YrNmn
The developers at Arcanis Interactive will be having a Q&A session January 16th at the Capitol building in the Citadel. Players are required to possess an entry ticket to be allowed in. Tickets can be bought with in game cash, or through a small microtransaction. We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity and eagerly await your questions.
Alex checked the date. The 16th was only two days away! He turned to Croe and Janus to see them reading the message as well.
“Well, that was unexpected,” Croe commented.
“Dude, this is more than unexpected,” Janus said, “This is huge! The devs have never done a Q&A before, let alone a live one! There's no way we can pass this up.”
“Si Senor,” a voice behind them said.
Alex, Croe, and Janus whirled around to see that Silent Stealth had been walking behind them; hands behind his back like he didn't have a care in the world.
“Jesus! How long were you behind us?” Alex yelled, shocked.
Silent Stealth smirked. “Long enough to acquire these,” he moved his hand to show three pouches of money and Croe's scythe
“Give me that!” Croe yelled indignantly, snatching his scythe and money pouch from Silent Stealth, who didn't even protest.
“Most every faction is going to have a representative at the capitolio. They will all try to get the developers to focus on issues. The metal man is certainly going to try and bring the Hacker's to the developer's attention. Naturally, the Hackers will try to stop him.”
“Sounds pretty bad,” Croe said. “I hope he succeeds.”
“That is why I am here,” Silent Stealth said. “Qilin asked me to be a, diplomático between him and you.”
“,, We’re talking about the same guy, right?” Alex asked. “I mean, last time I saw him, he threatened to ban me and throw all of my personal information up on the internet.”
“Much has changed since you last saw him. The Hacker's no longer have a castillo to hide within, and your name has become both revered and feared among Coders. You are a hero, and yet there are still those who wish for your banishment. They are the reason he is unwilling to lower the threat he has placed upon you for fear of looking a coward, despite knowing he needs your help. Qilin juggles lit torches. If he is not careful, he will be burned.”
“So, what is it exactly that he wants us to help him with?” Janus asked.
Silent Stealth shrugged. “As for that, I do not know. I was told nothing more than what I have already told you. All that remains is for me to deliver you should you accept.”
Janus looked at Alex. “We should go see what he has to say.”
“I don’t,”
“You don’t trust him. I get that GN, I really do. But we should at least hear him out.”
Alex folded his arms. “Fine. I’ll listen, but I doubt he will convince me of anything.”
Silent Stealth smiled. “I applaud you for keeping an open mind.” He removed a black ring from his finger and flicked it onto the ground. It turned into a black vortex and widened until it reached Alex's feet. His vision twisted drunkenly and turned to black.”
When Alex regained his bearings, they didn’t help much since he was completely blind. He summoned a fireball to reveal that he, Janus, and Croe were in a dark empty cavern.812Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7gZmb2pM2P
“Where are we?” Croe asked.
“You’re in the first base the Coders ever had,” a female voice replied behind them. They spun around to see a Lizard in leather armor standing behind them, sword and shield drawn.
Janus bowed to her. “It’s good to see you again, Sharps.” He turned to Alex. “You two didn’t get a decent introduction the last time you met, but this is Sharpslefae, second in command of the Coders, and one of the best fighters in the game.”
“Not counting me!” Garrett’s voice said in the distance.
“Wait, weren’t you the one I scared the crap out of when I first came to your base?” Alex asked.
Sharpslefae nodded her head. “I apologize for that. My actions ended any chance of you being trusted by many of the Coders, and influenced events that got your friends banished from the Coders.” She frowned. “Speaking of which, where is Miles?”
Alex shifted uneasily. “I got in the way of his quest for justice for BA when I wouldn't tell him the general area where Saru and Bearzerker live, and he left.”
Sharpslefae uttered a curse. “That idiot is going to get himself hurt, or worse if he keeps this up. And if it doesn't happen to him, it’s going to be someone else. But I'm getting off track. Listening to me complain is not the reason I asked Silent Stealth to bring you hear.”
“Wait, I thought Qilin asked Silent Stealth to bring us here,” Janus remarked with a hint of confusion.
“Qilin told me to find people willing to protect him from the Hackers while he tries to get the Developer's attention. He left the decision up to me.”
“So, he has no idea that you're talking to us?” Janus asked.
Sharpslefae nodded. “If he did, I have no doubt he would blow a fuse. Or whatever keeps that metal head of his running.”
“Speaking of which, what exactly do we need to do to keep him safe?” Croe asked.
“That is up to you.” Sharpslefae answered. “I would suggest spotting having someone spot out Hackers, and the other two come in and kick them before they can do anything. Just be certain you do it quietly. If you draw attention to yourself, the developers will quickly realize that you do not have entry tickets. They’ve warned that anyone at the event not possessing a ticket will be in danger of having their accounts suspended.”
“If they’ll suspend our accounts, then why don’t we just buy tickets?” Janus asked.
“Because we have reason to believe that the Hackers can get into those lists. If they look at them, they’ll see your names on it. If they see you, they’ll be expecting you.”
“So, how much are you going to pay us for this?” Alex asked
“Dude!” Janus said, affronted.
Alex continued, undeterred. “I’m sorry; but you’re asking me to risk my neck and account for a group that constantly looks down on me, just because I got tricked by a couple of assholes, and can’t get rid of a stupid program they’ve put on my character. If you want my help, then it’s going to cost you big time.”
Sharpslefae nodded. “You are right, I suppose. I do have a proposal though. If you can help us get the Developers’ attention to the Hacker situation, I'm almost positive that you will be welcome among the Coders again.” She produced a flat gray stone with a glowing rune carved into it. “I can also throw in the telekinetic spellstone that Croe failed to win at the auction two nights ago.”
“That would be nice, wait a second,” Croe said suspiciously. “How do you know that I didn’t get the stone?”
She smiled at him. “Because I bought it for the Coders using a different account. It would be a small price to pay for your services should this work out.”
Alex looked at Janus and Croe. “I still don’t know. What do you two think?”
“I think I really want that spellstone,” Croe said. “It’s one of five in the game, and the other four are who knows where.”
“Well, it would work out better if Miles was still with us.” Janus said thoughtfully. “But if someone can get Croe up high, then he can spot out Hackers while you and I take them out.”
“How come I can’t help take them out?” Croe asked indignantly.
“Oh, possibly due to the fact that your primary weapon uses bright orange fire, and disintegrates players in to orange dust,” Janus replied.812Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKzj7pMkHal
Sharpslefae laid a hand on Croe. "I’ll send you three a list with known Hacker characters, as well as files and instructions to kick players. I’ll also be with Qilin to defend him should something go wrong.”812Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AVV0kP3xw
“We could probably get some invisibility potions from Spicy,” Janus offered. “I heard he bought a bunch on the exchange.”
“Well we could, except for one thing.” Croe said.
“What’s that?” Janus asked, confused.
“Silent Stealth never gave us back our money pouches. We’re pretty much broke!”
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