Chapter two

     "Join us Nick. You just became the number one target in the entire game. You might be strong but you are only one person. If one of the guilds decide to come after you, which after this announcement is going to be all but certain, you are going to be hunted down and killed like a dog. Join us and nobody will even dare to look at you crooked let alone try to kill you."

     Zara's eyes were shining as she made what she thought was an offer that nobody would refuse, a perfect blend of the carrot and the stick; don't join us and die or you can join up and reap unimaginable benefits but Nicholas didn't even show a hint of interest.

     "Thanks but no thanks Zara. I don't need your help. Besides, it's not like anybody knows where I am right now. I'll just vanish into one of the high leveled areas before anybody can get to me."

      Zara's solicitous attitude suddenly vanished and was replaced by her predatory smile,"Are you sure about that?"

      She took out a blurry picture and showed it to Nicholas,"Looks familiar?"

      "Is this a joke? Are you trying to bluff me into joining your little psycho club using a blurry picture? Are you underestimating me that much Zara or are you just losing your touch?"

       Her crafty smile never faltered,"This picture was sent to me by one of our junior members that just happened to be in Dark Moon city when a supposed beast broke out from the Hetrius gladiatorial arena. He didn't see much because he died instantly but he was able to take this picture."

      Nicholas's heart rate suddenly sped up but he still maintained his poker face as he said, "And that has something to do with me how?"

      Zara's smile became a touch sardonic, "Really Nick? Are you really going to continue to play dumb? The image might have been unclear but I can still see the white armor with the golden dragon imprints, a set of unique armor worn only by you, a set of armor you took from me."

     "A lot of armor has dragons inscribed on them. That picture could be of anyone, you are just grasping at straws."

      "Then you won't mind if I sold this information to the other guilds? I'm sure they would pay a lot of money to know the location of the number one world boss in the game."

      "Go ahead. If you can find someone dumb enough to buy unsubstantiated nonsense then knock yourself out but you better be ready to refund their cash when your wild conjuncture turns out to be false."

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

      Zara's smile finally slipped a little and traces of anger colored her eyes, "Why are you being so stubborn. We are the same, you and I. We were both in the streets struggling to survive on scraps while the rich lived comfortably, not even deigning to acknowledge our existence and as if that wasn't enough the Haven Corporation kidnapped us to perform experiments on us. They called us 'Alpha testers' but we both know that we were nothing more than guinea pigs used to adjust the game until it was safe for the paying consumers to enjoy. Half of us died so that the rich people and the pampered little kids could play a realistic game without any consequences. Why do you refuse to get revenge on those that have wronged us?"

      Nicholas just laughed sarcastically at her comment,"Do you really think randomly PKing people and doing terrible things to them is going to help you get revenge? Wake up Zara! Do you think Haven would let you exist in the game if they didn't want you to? Do you think they gave us lifetime subscriptions to the game because they felt guilty about what they have done to us? Do you really think that just because you are no longer in their lab that you are no longer their test subject? You are nothing but a hamster in a wheel in their eyes. You keep running but you don't actually achieve anything."

      Flames of anger and resentment burned in the depth of Zara's eyes and she grit her teeth,"At least we are doing something! At least we are trying to resist! Do you think you are better than us? What have you done to look down on us?"

      Nicholas's smile became sad and tears started flowing silently from his eyes as his recent memories flooded his mind, "What have I done? I fell in love with a dream and then I watched the dream turn into a nightmare as I helplessly looked on. I tried to escape from this cold and cruel world only to find that the game could be even crueler. What have I done? I sold my soul to the devil Zara, and for a while I gained paradise but then I saw that paradise turn into ashes before my eyes."

      "What are you talking about? Are you alright Nick? What happened?"

      Nicholas just shook his head sadly, "Goodbye Zara. Don't call me again."

      Zara tried to speak but Nicholas just terminated the call. He no longer felt like talking.