After Alan looked at the note as well, he scoffed humorously.

Clay stood up a little straighter. Had Alan seen something he hadn't that trivialized the situation?

"He calls you 'Sadman'. Hehe!"

I was hoping to gloss over that.

Alan handed the note back to Clay and cleared his throat so he could convincingly take on a more serious tone. "But the fact that he's been watching us long enough to know that mopey look you have is your actual resting face is kinda pissing me off."

Do I really just look sad all the time?

It probably wouldn't help his image if he started asking people about it.

No, the more important thing was the introduction of this person who knew he was a 'player'. Was this another person using the Lomion System trying to reach out to him? Somehow he doubted it.

That was Clay's gut instinct, but he didn't know why.

Wait, if he'd been watching them long and thoroughly enough to know they dropped their bags and where they live…

"Might be watching us right now for all we know." Alan finished his thought.

Clay tried to seem disaffected when he instinctively looked around. The obvious place to look was at the windows of nearby buildings, then around the entrance to the alley. He even resorted to lifting the lid of a dumpster to see if he and this Radman were of a like mind. They weren't.

It seemed like the only way to confront this guy was to meet up on their terms.

The idea scared Clay at first, but then he got to thinking about what it could mean for him. This was a person who knew about the Lomion System and possibly had information about it that he did not. What harm could there be if he just--?

"What are you thinking over there, genius?" Alan cut off his thought.

"I'm thinking I might go see Radman," Clay answered honestly. "There's more upsides than downsides if I do, right? Who knows what sort of valuable information they might have about my powers if they can tell what I am?

"You thinkin' Radman might be a V-Man, too?"

"I considered it, but I don't know. I don't think so. Still, there's nothing to lose if I go to the meet-up."

"Uh, actually, there's plenty to lose. What if this is some kinda trap to get you alone?"

"They said I could bring you, though," Clay said, trying not to sound argumentative.

"Okay, but what if he's a V-Man and it turns out you're in some kinda real life battle royale kinda game? Maybe he's saying I can come because he's so strong that it don't matter what you bring." Alan started miming a big circle that gradually shrinks towards the middle.

Clay wondered what sort of battle royale games this world used to have. Was it something original, or was it just Fortnite?

"If Radman were that strong, there'd be no reason to lure me out. They could just waltz into the apartment and rip my head off."

"Yeah, but…" Alan sounded like he was on his last limb, "I still don't think it's a good idea. Didn't your mama ever tell you not to talk to strangers?"

"Do rules like that still apply with things the way they are?"

"I feel like that's one rule that oughta be carried on into the new world," Alan huffed. "That's how I'd teach my kids. I thought I could stop worrying about Angie getting carried off by a Radman once the internet went away, but now these sicko freaks can even ruin the purity of sending letters. You should take a stand against this shit by not going!"

What the hell are you on about, old man?

Clay kept his response even, "I think this person honestly doesn't mean any harm."

Alan's expression was sour.

"It might just be me being overly trusting and falling into a trap, but I think Radman could have done a few things to force us to show up that they didn't do," Clay justified as he held up his mystery box. "For example, they could have held my reward box hostage. They could have even kept our bags and left the note behind where we dropped them. Instead, they brought them right to us with all of our stuff still inside."

"Sounds like the sorta shit someone would do if they were trying real hard to get your guard down."

"True, but it also sounds like the sort of thing someone would do if they genuinely wanted to show goodwill. If it turns out they're good and we scorn them, then they might start doing more extreme things to get our attention. It's best if we verify their intentions now while they're being nice, right?"

It sounded like a good enough argument to Clay as he said it, but it didn't factor into his decision at all. He was hooked the moment they revealed they knew anything about the system.

Still, there was genuine merit in at least knowing who this person was, as well as what they wanted.

Alan worked his jaw the way he always did when he had to think something over for longer than a few seconds.

"Alright, fine. Since you're going, I have to come along. So if this guy ends up ripping my arms off and beatin' me to death with them, it's on you."

"…Okay."

So they unloaded their gas canisters in the apartment to deal with the diesel problem another day.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was a good thing that Alan decided to join him, because otherwise Clay wouldn't have had any idea how to actually get to the address on the envelope. The extent of his navigational knowledge was what he gathered from their outings, which were landmarks like 'apartment building that still has all of its windows' or 'cleaned out bodega with red car in front of it'.

This was probably the reason why Alan started the quest off by telling him to lead the way. It was so that he could graciously overlook how tech-dependent Clay's generation was and guide him like the hapless child he was.

"Can't get around right without using your phone, huh?"

He didn't do a good job being gracious about it, but he did a perfect job finding alternative routes when Kissy's scouting blocked off the more obvious paths.

"I'm pretty sure this is taking us close to a real dangerous business district, so be careful."

Some parts of the city were so flooded with Crowders that they were off-limits. The occasionally vacant street was a fairytale in Crowded areas.

So why did Radman want to meet so close to one of these areas? It nearly made Clay rethink this person's intentions.

The building they were led to was labeled 'Elmwood Community College'. It was large in comparison to most of the shops near Alan's complex, but quaint when one looked a little to the side and saw the skyscrapers in the distance.

Clay and Alan filed in as quickly as possible to get out of the open.

The first thing they saw was the front desk, the second thing they saw was an assortment of corpses, and the third thing they saw was a piece of paper taped to the front desk with a thin arrow drawn on it that directed them to the right.

It pointed down a hallway, at the end of which was another arrow pointing them in a new direction.

"This is some supervillain shit, man. Why didn't he just meet us out here?" Alan complained.

Clay found it hard to argue with him and opted to just silently follow the arrows.

I'm getting the impression I'm going to end up in a giant mouse trap.

The twists and turns brought them to a door with an arrow pointing directly towards its doorknob. Alan readied his shotgun and motioned for Clay to similarly prepare for the worst.

Under his insistent gaze, Clay couldn't do anything except ready his revolver before slowly opening the door.

They couldn't tell what sort of room it was, but a lot of its furniture had obviously been moved around in ways that the original occupant wouldn't have tolerated. Directly in front of the door was a series of bookcases that forced anyone attempting to enter to shimmy against the wall to reach a single gap on the far right end before they could properly step inside.

Only Clay was skinny enough to do so easily. Alan tried to follow behind, but couldn't quite suck in his gut enough to make the squeeze. With a grunt of frustration, he tried to shove against the bookcase and knock it over. Unfortunately, the bookcase was being fortified by something out of sight to keep it from going down.

It wouldn't be impossible, but it was going to take him a lot of squirming and breath-holding. Alan whipped his head around to see if Clay was staring at the embarrassing scene.

Clay had definitely been staring, but he's sure he turned his in time to act like he hadn't.

In a corner overlooking the room, right above the gap Clay was moving towards, was a circular convex mirror. The kinds they had in gas stations so the cashiers could keep a better eye on the rest of the store from where they worked.

The strange entrance made sense to him now. The bookcases slowed them down, and the convex mirror allowed anyone in the actual room to see intruders before they got in. Of course, this meant that Radman already knew they were here.

Clay stepped through the gap and slid into the room. It obviously used to be some kind of administrative office, but a lot of its desks had been repurposed as work benches with tools and parts strewn all over the place. He felt Kissy pop her head out to look around as well.

Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.

He could already feel that there was some organization to it, however. An entire desk had been covered in a layer of newspapers and used exclusively for greasy parts. There was even a corner of the office where parts too big to sit on a desk were left in a neat pile. Clay had no idea what any of this stuff actually was beyond 'parts and mechanisms'.

"Greetings, gentlemen."

A chair behind a desk at the head of the office slowly turned around. Sitting in it was a…young man with a buzzcut? He was wearing a white doctor's coat and had a pair of welding goggles lifted up against his forehead. His voice was low enough that it made it hard for Clay to parse his age, but not so low as to be comical against his youthful face.

This was Radman?

15 years old. 16 tops.

"I see you've…" He started, but then awkwardly trailed off and glared up at the mirror to see that Alan was still struggling to get inside.

Clay pointed back towards the bookcases with his thumb. "Can I move these a little bit?"

"Preparations have been made." The boy flourished a hand towards the far wall. "Behold!"

He directed Clay's attention towards a lever on the wall that was connected to a railing system behind the bookcases on the floor and ceiling. Attached to this railing system were a series of metal rods that kept the bookcases from being pushed further into the room.

"Simply pull that lever a few times and Alan will be able to comfortably step inside," he declared dramatically, "no matter how fat he is!"

"Don't do it, kid!" Alan's voice demanded between grunts of exertion. "That shit's gotta be a trap! I'm almost through!"

Clay wondered if it had just become a matter of pride. Deciding that he didn't want to waste any more time, he stepped up to the lever and yanked it down.

The metal rods were pushed further towards the door, squeezing Alan into the wall and making him release a pained yell. "Agghh! I told you! He's killin' me!"

"No! Pull it the other way! Push it up! Do it a few times, like a carjack!" The boy shouted, voice losing a lot of its theatrical flair.

"Sorry!" Clay quickly apologized and moved the lever as directed. The metal rods, also connected to the bookcases by brackets, were pulled back into the room towards the rails with each pull.

Soon enough, both Clay and Alan were standing in front of the desk. Clay had his eyes focused straight forward to keep from making eye contact with his partner.

"You guys have completely ruined the mood," Radman told them flatly, then turned his head to focus on Clay. "Sadman, I take it you've read my note."

Alan answered for him. "Wouldn't be here if we hadn't."

Radman looked at Alan briefly, then back at Clay. "I'm guessing you have some questions. Like how I know you're a player, or how I found you."

"Yeah, I'm wondering about that," Clay affirmed, "but I want to be sure of a few things first. Alan, do you know this guy?"

Alan blinked at Clay, then raised the rim of his hat enough to get as good of a look at Radman as he could. "No way. I'm sure I'd remember knowing someone like…Well, now that you mention it, I think maybe he's kinda familiar. He's definitely ringin' a bell."

"I figured as much." Clay looked Radman in the eyes. Even he wasn't so craven that he'd avert his eyes in front of a child, he thought. "He calls you out by name in the letter, but all I got was a nickname."

Radman frowned. "I wasn't really planning on hiding it, but it's good to know you've got the barest minimum of brains. Yes, I do know Alan."

"This is botherin' the shit outta me!" Alan complained. "You're gonna have to spell it out, cuz' I don't know a lot of kids these days."

Radman's frown deepened into a glare, his voice turning cold, "I'm not a kid. I'm 24 years old."

"What?" Clay couldn't believe it.

This kid is older than me!?

Agh, now he felt kind of bad for vocalizing his disbelief like that. It wasn't this dude's fault he was so short.

"Now I remember you!" Alan snapped his fingers. "You're the kid that lived on the second floor, the one whose parents were always out!"

Radman was obviously doing his best to remain measured. "I did not live with my parents in that building. I was a college student who lived alone."

Alan seemed pleased with himself for remembering, but then his jubilant spirit was soured once he stood with the knowledge a little bit longer. His words came out bitter.

"What the hell are you doing back here, then? Get tired of having hot air pumped in through every hole?"

"Alright, this isn't how I wanted this talk to go. I was hoping you wouldn't recognize me until I had a chance to speak with Sadman and work out a few things." He looked accusingly at Clay. "Good going, smartass. You ruined my mad scientist vibe."

Clay was too confused to figure out if he should be offended by Radman's remark. He dwelled on other things.

So Radman had a past in this world. That probably meant that he didn't have access to the Lomion System, but Clay had already figured that he wasn't dealing with another user. He couldn't place why he'd expected a normal person at first, but now he knew.

Not only had he called out Alan by name, he also called Clay a 'Player'. Someone who saw the same windows as him would have probably used the term 'Traveler' instead to subtly hint at the truth.

He felt kind of smart for being able to put together the dots like that, and was slightly disappointed when he realized that Radman hadn't been planning on pretending to be a player. It was a damn shame. He already had the scene all planned out in his head.

"Hello, fellow player!"

"Ah, but you see, the system has a term for people like us that I haven't revealed to anyone yet. If you're like me, you should be able to tell me what this term is."

"Gulp! I, uh…"

"I've caught you red-handed! Or should I say…silver-tongued?"

Then Alan would clap and say, "Damn, you can really figure it out when you wanna! You just say the word and I'll shut my mouth so you can think from now on!"

Yeah, in a perfect world!

In reality, Clay instead said, "You're not a player, but you obviously know about the system. I've learned that nobody ever wants anything for free, so can I expect this to be some sort of information exchange?"

Radman leaned back in his chair and wistfully replied, "You catch on quick, but not quickly enough. I'm hoping for an exchange, but there's no information you have that I care about or don't already possess."

"Don't listen to a word this guy says, kid." Alan stepped in front of Clay and pointed down at Radman. "This little scumbag is a goddamn traitor. The whole lot of you are!"

"It was a complicated situation, Alan," Radman crossed his arms, "don't pretend it wasn't. Jesus, I thought it'd been long enough that this wouldn't be an issue."

It seemed that every time Radman attempted to dive back into an eccentric persona, Alan would bring him back down to Earth and force him to speak normally again.

Clay figured this had something to do with the massive exodus that took place a while back that Milly told him about. Information on what went down, or even when exactly it happened, was sparse. Honestly, Clay could have probably been more proactive about asking after those circumstances from the other tenants in the building after Alan stonewalled him, but…

He hadn't really cared. It seemed like a lot of trouble to go to for information that Alan would be angry at him for having. It also didn't feel like a pressing matter.

Now he had no choice but to try and salvage the discussion while tiptoeing around hurt feelings without knowing the full situation.

"Alan," Clay tried, "this is the first time anyone else has brought up the system without already hearing about it from me. I don't know what happened between you two, but it's important that I at least hear him out."

Alan worked his jaw.

"Yeah, and it's not like I was the only one who left back then," Radman added.

Don't be a pissant…

Alan threw his hands up and stepped back. "Fine! Fine! You listen to this guy say whatever he needs to say! But you just be careful what you buy into and be sure not to turn your back for too long, because he could be gone with the wind at any second!"

Clay didn't want to get off on the wrong foot with Radman by validating Alan, but he didn't want Alan to think that he was all-in on trusting the newcomer (oldcomer?) either. He silently stared at Radman and waited for him to speak.

"Sadman…Actually, what is your name?"

"My name is Clay, but you can call me whatever you want."

"Sadman…I know about the 'system' because of a few circumstances I don't really want to get into."

Annoying.

"As for how I found you, that's mostly to do with the fact that I'm probably the single smartest person you've ever met." He shrugged with a nonchalant smile. "Not that the competition around here is very stiff."

Alan said nothing, and Clay didn't turn to see if he was making any faces.

"The reason I'm here is because my previous group is incredibly dangerous, especially the leader. He has a tight hold on everyone there, to the point where he can get them to do just about anything he wants." Radman was the first one to break eye contact to look down at the desk. "He doesn't mind ordering slaughters or taking everything small groups of survivors have when they don't want to join us. And what he does to people he captures alive…"

"I told you something was up with that guy! Oh, but I'm assumin' you have nothin' do with any of that, right? You're totally innocent?" Alan cut in.

Clay accidentally disregarded Alan by saying something without thinking, "So the leader of this group is a player."

Radman looked taken aback. "Huh?"

Clay's lips parted slightly in shock. Why had he said that?

Well, now that he was forced to think about it to keep from looking stupid…

"It's obvious that you had to find out about the system from somewhere, and the only thing I can think of is that another player let you in on a few things. I figured it had to be someone from this dangerous group."

Radman rubbed his chin, eyeing Clay warily. "Well, even if that were true, there's no guarantee it's our leader who would be the player."

"Sure, but there's no guarantee I'm right about any of this. I just thought it was more likely the one with superhuman abilities would be in charge…" Clay frowned. He wouldn't have been confident in this assertion under normal circumstances, but he felt he had things figured out when he saw the look on Radman's face.

He was visibly caught off guard. Even if Radman said something to the contrary now, Clay would probably never fully believe him.

"…Actually, you've pretty much got it worked out. Our leader is a player like you."

"And he was a goddamn V-Man, too. Two of 'em running around now…" Alan murmured.

"As for Alan's accusations, I'm not proud of my involvement, but I can at least say I didn't directly participate in any of the more obscene things that went down there."

Alan most likely had an unconvinced look on his face, one that Clay shared.

"I mean it! Look at me! You think I was kicking ass and taking names!?" Radman stood up from the chair. His height barely changed. "Maybe you can already tell, but my expertise is more in engineering. Did you like the thing with the bookcases? I made that."

"No, it sucks ass," Alan spat.

Clay said nothing on that. He thought it was genius.

"Well, no matter what you think, my smarts are what kept me in his good graces and let me get close enough to overhear him talking with his inner circle about how he gets so strong so quickly." He adjusted the goggles on his head with a hint of a smirk on his lips. "After some experimentation, I realized that you players give off a unique energy signature and secretly made a few devices that let me find them."

What?

"One of my readers detected a spike of energy in the city a few weeks ago, so I decided to search you out. Once you caused enough ruckus to let me find you, I scanned you from far away with a smaller wave detector and confirmed it."

Slow down!

"After that, I just waited for a good opportunity to make my approach. Now here we are! So, what I--"

"Hold on, hold on!" Clay interrupted, having to repeat himself a few times, voices overlapping until Radman finally got the message and allowed him to speak. "This is a lot to take in all at once…"

He had so many questions, but he started simple.

"Why didn't you just come to the apartments?"

"Because his ass ain't welcome!" Alan commented.

"There's that," Radman admitted, "but I also can't make obvious moves. This actually ties into why I got into contact with you in the first place."

He adjusted his lab coat and tried to stand up as tall as he could.

"That group really values my abilities, enough that they're not going to just let me run free. You see, I left a project unfinished that those Cro-Magnons have no hope of completing without me." Radman rubbed his knuckles against his chest. "Not to brag, but I might be the only one in the world who can finish it now."

Didn't ask.

"The fact of the matter is…I don't know whether or not he'll come for me or send a few goons, but someone will come for me eventually. Best not to make it too easy by going to the first place I'd likely be if I came back to the city. If he deigns to retrieve me himself, I think the only thing that could possibly stop him is another player."

Clay's features worried.

"Is he that strong?"

"Definitely. Jumpers were nothing for him last I saw, and that was two months ago."

Do you actually think I could do anything to a guy like that? You'd have to be the biggest retard in the world to think I'd get anything but squished!

"I don't expect you to help me for free, of course! I'm not much in a fight, but the project I was working on was a serious game-changer for guys like you. If I'm allowed enough time to finish my work, you're sure to find it very useful."

"You're using a whole lot of words without actually saying anything right now!" Alan shouted.

And Clay agreed. Radman was playing things close to the chest while pretending that he was giving them a lot, which was probably the smart thing to do during a negotiation. If it weren't for the fact Clay worked out his leader was a player on his own, he suspected that Radman would have kept it to himself.

It made him annoying to talk to.

He needed more information.

"At least tell us what this project involves. You don't have to get into the details, just tell us what it is so we can gauge whether or not it's worth our time. You can at least do that, right?"

Radman didn't quibble like Clay excepted. He smiled.

He'd been waiting for this question.

"How would you like not having to deal with Crowders anymore? Interested in that?"