The voluptuous catonid escort led Panda and me into a private room in the back. My heart pounded in my chest as she opened the sliding paper door to reveal… a shower room.

“Please take a moment to wash yourselves and then change into our complimentary bathrobes,” she said courteously, “I’ll be back in a few minutes to escort you to the second floor.”

I nodded my thanks as she left the room and Panda started giggling.

“Once a furry, always a furry,” he said through the laughter.

“You knew this was all she wanted from us didn’t you?” I asked, turning towards him with a frown etched deeply into my face.

“Yup,” he chuckled, “but it was worth keeping it to myself to see you get all flustered like that. This is a fancy place Kaleb. The sex workers here expect to be wined and dined first, not to mention that they demand proper hygiene. People don’t come to a place like this for a quickie, they want the full El ‘Dorado experience.”

“Well you could have given me a heads up at least,” I sighed before delving into my HUD to unequip my clothing. I stepped into the shower, relishing the luxury of warm water drenching my hair and body.

Afterwards I slipped into the provided robe. It was black and seemed to be made of a silk-like material that hung lose and comfortably.

Once the escort returned we followed her to the second floor which was laid out in a much more personal setting. Pillows and low tables littered the floor with bamboo shielding surrounding each area for some privacy.

The men all wore the same robes as I was, but the women were dressed in a plethora of varying garments from refined kimonos to sequined bikinis. There was a look for every mood it seemed.

“I will leave you gentlemen in the capable hands of the second-floor servers,” our escort began, “thank you for your patronage and please enjoy your evening.

She bowed before leaving. The entire set-up seemed oddly oriental to me, even the way the girls spoke and acted was all very eastern. Despite the name, El ‘Dorado was a facsimile of what I imagined a Shogun’s personal brothel to be like.

After the catonid had left, I took the opportunity to try and meet Gav. He was supposed to be our second-floor contact and was the man who had gotten our names on the list outside.

I approached the bar casually and leaned over the countertop, pretending to peruse the selection of beverages, but really trying to decide how to ask the bartender for our contact’s location.

“What can I get for you sir?” A well-dressed human bartender asked.

She was dressed in tight pants and a white shirt with a waistcoat, unbuttoned just enough to remind us that we were indeed in a brothel.

“What do you suggest?” I replied.

“Our specialty this evening is called a Mandrake’s Petal. It’s a lovely blend of dark liquor, blue fizz, and purple draconic juice served with a mandrake’s petal on the top to add some fiery zest,” she replied in a practiced voice.

“That sounds delightful,” Panda said, climbing up onto a barstool beside me. “We’ll take two please.”

As the bartender nodded and began mixing our drinks I slid a little closer to the bar and popped the question.

“Is Gav working tonight?” I asked as nonchalantly as I could.

“He… is,” she replied slowly. “Are you well acquainted with our manager?”

“I am, he’s an old friend. I haven’t seen him in a while but I’d heard he was working here now,” I replied, hoping I wasn’t digging myself a hole with such a detailed reply.

“I can let him know you’re here if you like?” The bartender asked, sliding the first drink across the bar towards me.

“That would be great,” I said, “tell him Kaleb is back in town.”

She nodded and left after sliding a drink to Panda who nearly allowed it to slide off the end of the bar as his undexterous paws fumbled with the bulbous glass.

I smiled over at him and then took a sip from my taller glass of swirling blue and purple liquid. It tasted sweet with a fiery kick at the end that was just enough to warm the tongue.

The bartender returned a few moments later with a short, well-dressed man in tow.

“Kaleb!” He exclaimed, opening his arms, and walking towards me like an old friend. “You didn’t tell me you were in town.” He pulled me into a hug and urgently whispered in my ear, “play along, we can talk properly in private.”

“Gav, I haven’t seen you in ages,” I said in an obviously fake voice. Acting wasn’t really my strong suit but I spied the bartender minding her own business as she moved back behind the bar so hopefully it worked well enough.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Come, come,” Gav said, gesturing towards his office in the back, “I’ve got a lovely Athenile 1500 sitting on the shelf in my office and I can’t think of a better reason to crack it open than reuniting with an old friend after such a long time.”

As he turned away I focused on his small frame and a notification popped up in my HUD.

You have discovered a new race:

Leprechaun

The Leprechaun are a humble race famous for their pranks and mischievous personalities. Often said to be found hunting for multicoloured cereal at the end of rainbows, the Leprechaun are a rare people who usually show up at the worst possible time and disappear as soon as you realise you’ve been bamboozled.

Do not attempt to steal their lucky charms.

Ignoring the system’s comments about well know cereal adverts, I followed the man with the slight Irish accent into a back room. It looked just like any other office room with the exception of the sliding paper doors.

He sat behind a large desk and gestured for us to join him.

“Wendy says you’re after infiltrating The Morningstar Hotel and Spa,” he began, immediately changing his tone to a less forced one. “Nasty business that, but who am I to judge eh?”

“That’s right,” I replied, “we were told that the entrance is inside the El ‘Dorado and that you can show us the way.”

“Indeed I can,” he said coyly, “considering it’s right here in my office.”

He turned to the side and pulled a book halfway out of a bookcase to his right. The case slid to the side revealing a door which was blacker than the abyss.

There was a grinning gargoyle head jutting out of the door with an open mouth.

“Stick your hand in there and if you have the mark it’ll open,” Gav explained, “if not, then there’s nothing more I can do for you.”

I stood up and glanced at Panda out of the corner of my eyes. I delved into the chat function in my HUD.

Kaleb: Something doesn’t feel right about this.

Panda: Yup, you can’t trust a leprechaun.

Kaleb: Not that! I mean that the door is in his office. He must have ties to the Morningstar Collective. This could be a trap.

Panda: Oh yeah, that too.

I walked towards the door, trying to mask the irritation on my face. Something was definitely off, but I didn’t have much of a choice now.

I placed my hand into the gargoyle’s mouth and felt a slight burning over the place where my pentagram mark was. I removed my hand quickly as the pain made me jump and the door swung inwards revealing a swirling green portal.

“Well, would you look at that,” Gav crooned, “a marked man are you? Off you go then and pleasure doing business with you.”

“Before we go,” I asked, turning towards the man, and quickly changing back into my armour with the instant effect of my HUD’s equip function. “What kind of trap are we walking into?”

Gav jumped back in his chair at my sudden outfit change and gasped in an overly dramatic way.

“Trap?” He said, sounding offended. “There’re no traps in there from me, I can assure you. I might work with the Morningstar Collective but believe you me, there’s no love between us. I collect my pay and let their customers through the door and that’s that.”

“Ok,” I said calmly, “but if I find out you’re lying to me… I’ll be back.” I gazed at him hard for a few moments as his bemused smile turned into a slight frown.

“You’re really playing into that whole edge lord look today aren’t you kid?” Panda said as he stepped up to the portal and peered at it sceptically.

Without replying I stepped through the portal, leaving just enough time to glare back at Gav a second time.

I felt my stomach do a somersault as I whirred through the green abyss, but thankfully it was over quickly as I was thrown out on the other side. I felt queasy, like I might vomit at any second but I managed to hold it down.

Panda stepped out next to me.

“It can be rough the first time,” he said, patting my leg sympathetically. “Not the first time I’ve had to say that.”

The portal had dumped us in a small and empty foyer with red walls and a marble flooring. There was a large concierge desk right in front of us with a bored-looking man sat at it reading a book.

“Welcome to The Morningstar Hotel and Spa, is this your first time visiting us?” He asked without taking his eyes off the crinkled pages.

“It is,” I replied, approaching the desk.

“Oh, really?” He asked, looking up at us and folding the edge of his page over before shutting the book and placing it under the desk. “It’s been a while since we’ve had any new patrons.”

At that moment my HUD flashed and I opened the notification.

Achievement Unlocked:

666

So you’ve finally bitten the bullet and said goodbye to those pesky morals that have been bothering you your whole life.

You’ve entered The Morningstar Hotel and Spa a place for player killers, bandits, outlaws, ne’er-do-wells, and other scum. You’ll fit in just perfectly.

Please check your tommy gun and fedora at the door and collect your cigar from the front desk.

Reward: ne’er-do-well loot box

“… And in the back you’ll find the casino which also has a bar and that’s about it, any questions?” The receptionist asked and I realised he’d been explaining the layout to my whilst I’d been busy reading my notification.

Most notifications stopped time, or at least slowed it down. However, for some reason, achievements didn’t work that way. I guessed it must have been because they weren’t urgent or something.

“No, that’s fine thank you,” I replied and walked past him towards the double doors at the back. “Oh, actually, just one thing,” I said, stopping short of the door and turning back, “do I come back here when I’m ready to leave?”

“Yes sir,” the man said, “just come back here and I’ll open a portal back to where you came from.”

“Can I go through a portal to somewhere else?” I asked, an idea brimming in the back of my mind.

“No sir, only platinum members can use that service I’m afraid,” he replied.

I looked at him for a long moment waiting for him to continue but he didn’t.

“How do I become a platinum member?” I asked poignantly.

“You don’t,” he said in a deadpan tone, “that privilege is reserved for the capos and above and you’re not even in the syndicate.”

Well, that’s helpful, I thought with an internal sigh.

I thanked the man and opened the large double doors. It was time to find Bell and then get the hell out of this place before someone killed me and stole my skin.