"You've got my number." I tell the tout, joining the rest of the passengers disembarking the bus.

"The office will contact you about the ticket refund, Adam." the tout says as he takes up the rear of our procession, "As for any rewards though ..."

"Saving your skins wasn't good enough?" I snort good naturedly, coming to a stop right beneath the statue of the Three dominating Pay 2 Win's town square.

"You know how corporate is." the tout responds apologetically, "And aren't good deeds their own reward?"

"Good deeds became a business a long time ago." I shrug back, gesturing at statue of the Three, "Not everyone fights for free like these guys."

"Yeah." the tout muses meditatively, looking at the statue. The Three stare silently into the distance, their trademark weapons raised high into the sky.

"Dawn's going to break soon. A doctor's office should be open." I finally say while picking up my luggage, "See you around."

"Good luck, Adam!" the tout yells back as he's swallowed up by the milling crowd of passengers.

What a rough couple of days. And the irony of the entire escapade is that just when I resolved to return to Crossroad City, circumstances conspire to send me to the Pay 2 Win casino town instead. Recalling the directions Breath had relayed to me in our last conversation over the phone, I make my way down the streets of Pay 2 Win, the morning light shyly peeking just over the horizon.

A few shops on the drag have already opened their doors for business, even though the streets are still fairly empty. Just morning joggers going about their routine and municipal workers cleaning trash. I receive a few odd stares from the passersby, probably thanks to torn up flak vest I'm still wearing and my obviously messed up appearance. Getting injured from a fight and not bathing for several days had not done my appearance any favors.

"There it is." I mutter, spotting Breath's white van parked innocuously by the side of the road. Scanning the neighborhood, I notice the doctor's office Breath had kindly directed me to. All expenses paid no less. Generous of him for sure. But I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop at this point.

"Adam, right?" the nurse asks me the moment I step through the clinic's front door.

"Seems like I'm expected." I grunt.

"The Sensorium called ahead." the nurse answers, leading me to a consultation room, "This way, please. We've just completed treatment of our brother."

"Brother?" I frown. There seems to be some misunderstanding, but I hold my peace for the moment.

Entering the consultation room, I quickly realize that I'm not the first person to arrive at the clinic. The room is equipped with a pair of beds, one of which already has a patient. A man wearing a shopping bag on his head towers over the patient, resembling a silly scarecrow.

"Breath. In the flesh." I note as the nurse takes my luggage and places it in the corner of the room.

"Seeker." Breath responds in his placid voice, "I see that you've grown from your duel."

"Something like that." I nod, taking off my damaged armor and clothes so that the nurse can examine my wounds, "Never realized the Sensourium's so free with money. Paying for my treatment like this."

"As I related over the phone," Breath adjusts the bag on his head as he turns to face me, "I've a job that requires doing. Let's say you are the right person, in the right place, at the right time."

"You sure its OK to talk about this stuff right now?" I point at the nurse, "Confidentiality and all that."

"I've already treated one of our brothers." the nurse answers my query without missing a beat.

"Just so." Breath confirms, "Not everyone has the desire to ascend. Some initiates leave after receiving an education and seek their own paths."

"No coercion and all that." I mutter, recalling what Breath told me at the Cathedral.

"Yes." the nurse agrees as she injects me with healing serum, "Those that don't ascend contribute in other ways."

"Like how?" I question, curious on the workings of the Sensorium, "You're maintaining a safehouse here in Pay 2 Win?"

"That's part of it, yes." Breath picks up the explanation while the nurse slathers a thick paste over my wounds, "Though this clinic is more of a distribution point for us at Pay 2 Win. Our merchandise is not always welcome, and needs to be transacted discreetly."

"You're dealing drugs through a doctor's office." I give Breath a critical look, "There better not be any weird stuff in the medicine you're using on me."

"We're giving you only the best." the nurse scoffs as she finishes applying the medicine on my wounds, "Show some gratitude."

Stolen story; please report.

"The best." I muse. A comforting warmth spreads through my body and I feel my wounds starting to knit back together.

"You didn't need to cast a healing spell." I comment to the nurse, "That's not possible, unless the medicine has been laced with something."

"Our secret ingredient." Breath chuckles as the nurse leaves the room, "Don't worry, Adam. The sensorium knows its magic and chemistry."

"I'll have to take your word for it." I shrug, putting the issue out of my mind. Breath wouldn't go through all this trouble to hurt me. It would be a terribly roundabout way of doing in someone who's already injured. I've got more important questions on my mind at the moment. Namely, who is the other patient in the room. Breath notices my interest and obligingly steps aside to give me an unobstructed view of the neighboring bed.

"Isn't that Mr Cattle Prod?" I exclaim, recognizing the man almost immediately.

Mr Cattle Prod, the first man I approached during my visit to the Sensorium. After I told him that I wasn't interested in the drugs he was peddling, the man actually offered to shock me with his magic cattle prod as part of a whacked out medical treatment plan. Parts of his face are covered in the same thick paste the nurse applied on me, but I don't forget someone who tried to electroshock me easily. Thinking back, the odd thumping noise I previously heard coming from Breath's van was most likely due to Mr Cattle Prod moving about.

"Mr Cattle Prod." Breath repeats slowly, "I don't know whether to laugh or feel offended for my brother here."

"Why not both?" I smile brightly, "Looks like someone messed up Mr Cattle Prod. Tried pulling the same schtick here, eh?"

"Actually no, I brought my brother here to assist me in a serious matter." Breath's voice becomes solemn. The atmosphere becomes several degrees colder and I quickly shut up with the jokes.

"Shopping and a meeting?" I purse my lips, "You said something about that during our earlier talk."

"Indeed." Breath confirms, "The shopping went fine, but there was a complication with the meeting. That's the reason why I've hired you, Adam."

"How did you manage that anyway?" I quirk my mouth, "You even got a leave of absence from the Guild for me."

"The Sensorium has a longstanding relationship with Phoenix Guild." Breath says easily, "Hiring one of their staff for an urgent assignment was a simple matter."

"Makes sense." I muse.

But if it was as simple as Breath makes it out to be, James wouldn't have been so weird over the phone. I did however check with HR's online portal about my current status, and it confirms that I'm on assignment, not AWOL. So Breath is most likely telling the truth as far as he knows. James is probably offended that I skipped out of that beach party meeting. That's the best reasoning I have for that strange phone call James made to me.

"I have been in contact with a Mrs Moira," Breath continues with his explanation, "and she has been rather concerned about the safety of her daughter. Mrs Moira requested that I assist in the relocation of her family."

"So why is Mr Cattle Prod here in Pay 2 Win?" I ask, "Surely you can handle this task by yourself."

"I'm rather conspicuous, as you may have noticed." Breath sighs, playing with the shopping bag over his head, "My overt presence would simply draw more attention to Mrs Moira."

"OK. I understand so far." I nod, gesturing at Breath to keep talking, "You needed someone who could blend in to do the job."

"I had arranged for my brother here to pick up Mrs Moira and her daughter at their home." Breath elaborates, "Unfortunately, they were not in and my brother encountered someone else."

"The person Moira was running from." I draw the obvious conclusion.

"A reasonable guess, but truthfully, I do not know." Breath says helplessly, "When I went to investigate, the Moira home was torn apart and my brother left badly beaten. I rushed him to this clinic for treatment."

"So what happened to Moira?" I question, gingerly touching my injured wrist. Huh, almost fully healed. Pretty impressive drugs the Sensorium's got.

"I've searched Pay 2 Win the past few days, but could not find Moira's trail." Breath sounds worried, "Though the search was less thorough than I liked. My appearance prevents me from moving about freely."

"More like you didn't want to attract the attention of whomever gave Mr Cattle Prod a thrashing." I point out, "So that's where I come in then? You want me to track down Moira and her daughter."

"I do not know who attacked my brother," Breath smoothly responds, "getting backup was the most reasonable course of action."

"Oh, no doubt." I agree, "Just make sure that the backup is appropriately compensated."

"I've arranged for suitable bonuses to be paid out by the Guild to you on completion of the contract." Breath notes agreeably.

"Not just that." I shake my head, "I want information. Something only the Sensorium can provide."

"Information? About what precisely?" Breath asks curiously.

"Delacroix." I answer, waiting for Breath's response.

"That's not an easy request to fulfill." Breath grows guarded, "Delacroix is a sore subject, even now. I suppose Mrs Boggs told you of our liaison with her old comrade?"

"Don't deflect." I push forward, "Can you deliver or not?"

"I can't speak for the Sensorium." Breath demurs, "The records on Delacroix have been sealed a long time ago."

"That's bull -" I roll my eyes, but Breath interrupts.

"But between friends, I can tell you what I know of the matter. Is that acceptable?"

"We're friends now?" I laugh, lying back down on the bed.

"I've saved your life, Seeker." Breath comments, "Surely that makes us at least friendly with each other."

"Sure." I smirk, "You got any leads on Moira and her daughter? Blindly searching Pay 2 Win isn't a winning strategy."

Breath retrieves a file left on a nearby table and hands it to me. I accept the slim file, leafing through the scanty documents.

"The trail has gone cold for Moira. She is a single parent and not in contact with any known relatives." Breath begins his briefing, "However we do have a lead. Her close friend, known to us as the Fat Man."

"The Fat Man?" I grunt, looking at the report in the file. An address and a name. Andrew.

"Moira's only regular point of contact, outside of her daughter." Breath picks up the thread again, "I understand that they came from the same hometown. That explains why they're so close with each other."

"A stranger in a strange land, huh?" I remark, "And a single parent to boot. Must be tough."

"It works to our favor. At any rate," Breath replies, "the Fat Man is wary of me. That's why I've not sought him out. Seeker, you are an unknown quantity, so you can approach him without any issue."

"Shouldn't be a problem." I nod, "Got a description of this Fat Man?"

"There's a photo in the file." Breath instructs.

"Got it." I pull out the surveillance photo and take in the picture of a morbidly obese, greasy, bespectacled slob.

"He doesn't look like much." Breath continues, "But the Fat Man is our best hope in tracking down Moira."

I'm silent thanks to the shock I'm still reeling from. I know the Fat Man. I've even seen him before. In the visions.

He's the developer of that game I keep dreaming about.