"I'm in the mood to cause some problems." Vince sat hunched over the chess board and rubbed his chin through his beard. There had to be a move that'd stir shit up. "Hmm… aha!" He moved his knight and threatened Sophia's king. "Check!"

Sophia had her brunette hair tied up in a ponytail and seemed deep in thought, her tongue sticking out slightly. It was encouraging to see that some of her habits and mannerisms from before the accident were still showing. "But if you do that I can take you." She moved a pawn and captured the knight.

"Ah, but now I can move here." Vince moved his bishop and threatened her rook.

"That bishop covered a Queen and King fork…" Sophia moved her own knight and Vince's face dropped. He gazed at the board intently before letting his head hang. "Damn it. This is the fifth game in a row that I lost in such a stupid way!" He was starting to get a little irritated. After finishing another session, Malla had tasked him with Sophia’s weekly chess games, but at this rate he was wondering if there was something wrong with his own head.

"Oh, oh, didn't you promise me ice cream if you lost?" Sophia wiggled back and forth excitedly and all of his pent up frustration just melted away.

"Fine, fine, I admit defeat.” Vince laughed. “What flavour would you like?"

“Pistacchio!” Sophia liked her lips. “The good stuff though. Not that green shit.”

“Hahaha! Some things never change I suppose.” Vince shook his head while grinning. “I doubt the hospital cafeteria has any, but I can go out and get some.

Sophia frowned at that. “I don’t want you to go… What flavors does the cafeteria have?”

“Chocolate and vanilla, I believe…” That was odd. Sophia’s long term memory was suffering, sure, but last time she’d remembered on her own and asked for Chocolate.

“Meh.” Sophia pursed her lips. “Let’s just play another round then!”

“Fine, fine,” Vince chuckled and began setting up the pieces on their starting squares. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to find Lana looking down at him.

“Can I have a game?” she asked Sophia with a smile. “It’s been a while since I’ve had a proper opponent.”

“Lana!” Vince nearly fell off his seat. He hurriedly stood and pulled her to the side, lowering his voice. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to see you, of course.” Lana stepped to the side and sat in his place, facing Sophia. “And to check on our friend, of course.” She set up the remaining pieces and motioned for Sophia to make the first move.

Vince glanced around nervously. Lana had known about Sophia ever since she came into the bar, but just how much did she know? Coming here set a bad precedent and left a bitter taste in his mouth. He inched a little closer. “Tell me what you want.”

“Asire was wounded quite heavily in a recent Dusk battle,” Lana said while advancing her queen’s pawn. Opposite to her, Sophia was focusing on the chessboard and her own moves.

“I watch Twilight news,” Vince replied. “Let me guess, you want me to find who did it?”

“We know who did it,” Lana said. “A wildcard we weren't counting on when we put him up to the task.”

“Oh.” Vince paused. For some reason he thought himself to be the only one up to this task. That’s what they’d let him assume initially at least, with his unique circumstances and all. “So, what about it?”

Lana gripped a bishop and moved it one square. Was she trying to hide her tension? “When can we expect similar progress from you? It’s been weeks now.”

“I did say, originally, that MMOs don’t work like that. I need time to catch up.” Vince felt himself growing a little flushed. “Where is Xua Yu anyway? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t miss the voice in my head, but he’s supposed to guide me. I’ve been going solo these last few days.”

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“On vacation,” Lana mumbled with a finger on her lip. “To work on his drinking problem. He should be on the plane flight home now. Or well, jet. I don’t know what he uses.”

“Did it work?” Vince asked. Lana simply took a deep breath and sighed. It was an answer in itself. He took a moment to think. Just what could he do right now against Asire? Facing the man head on wouldn’t work, he’d get obliterated. The stat difference was too great. He’d have to fight dirty.

“Well, if you want similar results, tell me where he’ll be,” Vince said. “Surely that won’t be a problem for you, Miss SRIA agent.”

Lana turned to look at his with raised brows. The expression felt unfamiliar to her face. Vince grinned. Perhaps she’d only meant to pressure him into progress by coming here. Had he caught her by surprise?

“Moonholme. Sunday’s dawn,” she whispered, then turned back to the chessboard. It had developed into a closed position, with no pieces captured still. “That’s all I know.”

“In two days, huh?” Vince smiled. "Even if I don't get to Asire, I could cause his guild some damage... Doubt I’ll manage as much as your new friend, but I’ll give it my best. Where did you find him anyway?”

“The best players… There’s a lot of monsters out there. Most of them are not listed in the ranking.” Lana took the first pawn and just like that, the chain of exchanges began.

“Lots of people to replace me with, huh?” Down went the pawns, one after another, as Lana aimed to clear the way to the king in the back.

“No need to replace you. You’re more of a long term play,” Lana mumbled. She made a queen move that looked utterly useless to Vince. “Xua Yu always believed in you. He was the one that convinced me to find you. I didn't get it, but he has an intuition for these things. If he believes it’s worth it to invest in you, so do I.”

“I appreciate the vote of confidence, but my contract still has a termination clause,” Vince said, sneaking a glance at Sophia. Normally she’d tease and giggle while playing, but now she seemed fully focused.

“Of course it does. But between you and me, Xua Yu was very impressed with your cause. Even if you had turned our offer down, he’d have helped out. He’s a fan after all, and he’s got more money than he knows what to do with.”

Vince pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re telling me that now?”

“Well, why not?” Lana leaned back in her chair as Sophia blitzed out another move. “You’re a man of your word, aren’t you? You promised your friend you’d help her, and you did, no matter the cost.”

Vince straightened his back. This woman… Just how much did she know? “That was a private conversation. I don’t appreciate you peeking around.”

There was a glint in Lana’s eye as she pushed her Queen and checked Sophia’s king. “It’s part of my job. I have to find just what sort of person you are. What drives you and how to manipulate you if I need to.”

“Awfully straightforward of you.” Vince shifted a little uncomfortably.

“Honesty is often the best approach, I’ve found. The lack of money brought you to me, yet you never worshipped it like your old friends. So why did you agree to my terms so readily? I expected more resistance.”

“I’m not a lab rat,” Vince replied angrily. “There is no big mystery here for you to uncover. I just like the damned game. I live for the thrill of it. My actions matter there. I feel strong in the face of adversity.” He paused and considered his own words. They rang more true than he’d anticipated. Out here, he was powerless. He had no choice but to entrust his only true friend to others.

“Checkmate,” Sophia said and locked eyes with Lana. Vince felt a shiver run down his back. There was purpose and determination in those emerald eyes of hers. An intensity that he never thought he’d see again.

“Hah,” Lana chuckled and pushed her King down with a finger. “The black pieces triumph after all. Good game.” She shook Sophia’s hand and got up, grabbing her jacket.

“Rematch?” Sophia asked hurriedly, seeming a little panicky. Was she also trying to grasp that weird feeling and hold onto it? This must have been what Malla wanted.

“Sadly, I have to work,” Lana smiled sweetly at her. “Besides, it’d be pointless now. I’ll be back after I practise some more though.”

Sophia breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay. Thank you for playing.” She pondered the board for a moment, then started gathering the pieces and placing them in their brown leather pouch.

“What, won’t we play together too?” Vince asked.

Sophia simply pouted and tilted her head left and right. “It’d be boring…”

Lana chuckled at Vince’s bemused expression. “Great. Now she thinks I’m boring.”

“Oh, you’re anything but, Vince,” Lana said and walked a little closer to whisper in his ear. “Moonholme, Sunday's dawn battle.”

“Tell Xua to contact me in game once he’s back then.” Vince puffed out his chest and grinned wickedly. “I have an idea.”