Day One in Nexus.

After the half elf left, I chewed over his parting words.

I planned on staying far away from the bounty hunters guild. With an open bounty of one thousand gold on my head, I didn't want to tempt any more hunters onto my trail. But the information brokers and the plague quarter definitely piqued my interest. If the other three city quarters were closed to me, they were the best places to begin my explorations.

But before moving on, I sat down cross-legged at the base of the Adjudicator's feet and reviewed my plans while in the sector. My objectives were twofold. One, to find Ceruvax and learn more of house Wolf. All I knew of Ceruvax’s location was that he was imprisoned in one of Nexus dungeons—which one, I'd yet to discover.

Secondly, I needed to acquire my third Class. A simple enough objective considering that the auction was within easy reach, but if I heeded Ceruvax’s words—and at this point I saw no reason not to—venturing into a dungeon and discovering my own Class stone would yield better results.

According to the last Wolf envoy, a dungeon was the best place to acquire a new Class. And not just any dungeon. I’d gathered from his words that the more difficult the dungeon, the greater the reward.

So, I was reasonably certain that the greater part of my time in Nexus would be spent dungeon diving. But I still knew little of them in general, and those in Nexus in particular.

Task one, find out everything I can about dungeons.

Nexus’ dungeons were not my only concern however. There was an unforeseen problem I had to deal with too: Loken’s tracking spell. Until I found a way to rid myself of it, I couldn't go anywhere near Ceruvax.

Task two then is to find a mage to remove a tracking spell. I expected it was going to be expensive though.

Only after I'd accomplished those two tasks, would I consider visiting the auctions. As tempting as it was to hunt down new gear, doing so at the moment was premature.

Rising to my feet, I headed north—not south—through the square. While I was certain of what I needed to do, much of it hinged on the information Shael had provided, and I needed to confirm its veracity first.

~~~

Once I exited the market square, I left the crowds behind. Nexus’ safe zone was enormous, many times larger than both the previous ones I'd been in.

Beyond the auction were more city blocks of stone mansions, each as elaborate and richly decorated as those bordering the auction square, and neatly trimmed hedges and manicured gardens bordered the cobbled road I trod upon.

Players passed me by in ones and twos. At first I tensed, at each look thrown my way, but most barely spared me a glance, and those that did, sneered or wrinkled their noses in disgust.

For the umpteenth time, I glanced down at myself, seeing ripped seams, besmirched leathers, and grimy gear. Damn, the bard was right. I do look like a noob. By contrast the players that strode passed, wore well-tailored garments, all immaculately preserved.

Still, despite the poverty of my gear, it seemed the one thing I need not fear was recognition. Amongst Nexus’ thousands, I was just one face, and I doubted most had even heard of Ishita’s bounty.

The north gate was busier than the streets I walked to reach it. At the gate, I spied a squad of steel-clad players armed in a manner similar to Trion. Triumvirate knights, I thought.

There was another squad of guards at the gate too. They were dressed in grey leather armor and bore crossbows and smaller blades instead of the giant two-handed weapons the knights carried. Casually I drew to a halt and discreetly observed the goings on at the gate.

The two sets of guards had marshaled the gathered players into a line. Each player was individually processed and examined by a pair of officers before being allowed to pass through to the quarter beyond. From this far out, I couldn't determine exactly what the guards were doing, but I suspected the players were being thoroughly analyzed.

I ducked my head in thought. It seemed Shael had not lied. About this at least.

Continuing to loiter near the gate, I let my gaze drift to the fortifications above. Like the safe zone in wolf’s valley, the one in Nexus was ringed by stone walls and topped with ramparts. These however, were many times higher and patrolled by players—Triumvirate knights specifically.

Attempting to bypass the gate would not be easy—but not impossible.

With a thoughtful frown, I swung back around and headed for the south gate.

~~~

On my second stroll through the safe zone, I studied the passing mansions more intently. Some bore signs—either boldly displayed or elegantly understated—that marked them as public places of business. Most did not though, and I assumed them to be private residences. A few buildings in particular caught my attention.

One was labeled ‘First Shadow Bank.’ Nearly ten stories high, it made for an imposing tower. A constant stream of Shadow-Marked players flowed through its doors. Another labeled, ‘The Wyne Brothers’ Merchant House,’ was a series of interconnected smaller structures, walled and patrolled by their own guards.

This time around, I decided against venturing into the market square again. Diverting right, I headed through a quieter network of adjacent streets. The mansions on display here had a surprising uniformity to them. Turning my attention to the players, I saw they were almost exclusively Light-Marked. The nearby palaces likely belong to Light.

I rubbed my chin in consideration. It appeared that the western end of the safe zone, like the west quarter of the city itself was the domain of Light, the north belonged to Shadow, and I was guessing, the east to Dark.

Despite being one immense city, Nexus appeared a sector deeply divided. It was only the city's southern end that was not rigidly controlled, and that I guessed was as much because of the stygian menace as the fact that it served as a handy buffer between Light and Dark.

Whatever the case, it seems the south is perfect for a player like me. Which was all the better, as it was the only part of the city open to me at the moment.

The southern walls of the safe zone drew closer, and the gate itself was in sight when I stopped short. On my left was a low single-story structure that at first glance appeared to be built inside a fountain. Hmm… that’s an odd looking building. Striding closer, I took a second longer look.

Nozzles had been inset in the building’s walls and sloped roof and jets of water streamed out from the tiny openings, shrouding the building under a perpetual curtain of water. The liquid gathered in the shallow crater dug all around the building making it accessible only over the thin stone bridge leading to the imposing front doors. Curiously, I studied the plaque affixed to the structure. It read, ‘The Albion Bank.’

A smile spread across my face. It was just the place I needed to visit.

~~~

It was perhaps three yards from the edge of the pool—moat?—to the bank’s entrance. I quickly crossed the bridge, fording the watery stretch. The front doors were unguarded, if wet. Shielding my head from the dripping curtain of water, I ducked within.

You have entered a magical dampening field. All mana, psi, and stamina abilities are inhibited here.

The Game message gave me pause. I wasn’t sure of the need for the dampening field—this was the safe zone, wasn’t it?—and the idea of remaining in it made me uncomfortable enough that I almost turned around and left. But I needed to visit the bank. The bulk of my funds were locked in its vaults.

It is a safe zone, I reminded myself. There is no danger here.

Dismissing the matter from my thoughts, I took in my surroundings. I was in a large marble foyer. There were only a handful of players about—the bank did not seem nearly as popular as the First Shadow Bank. Ignoring the players, I scanned the room for a clue as to where to go next.

At the far end of the room, behind a white counter, I spied three civilians dressed in what looked suspiciously like uniforms emblazoned with the letters, ‘AB.’

The path to the trio was blocked by an array of rune-inscribed rectangular frames. That they were magical in nature was obvious, however I did not expect them to be harmful—not in the safe zone. Boldly, I strode through one of the frames, making for the nearest of the three bank employees.

The moment my foot crossed the threshold, Game messages flashed through my mind.

You have passed through a Watcher. This is a magical detection device of unknown rank. Scanning commencing…

…

You have failed a magical resistance check. You have failed a perception resistance check.

Anomalous spells detected! Subject classified as a potential threat.

A heartbeat later, the bank entrance slammed shut, and concealed doorways around the perimeter of the foyer broke open, spilling out dozens of uniformed players. These however, were unlike the trio behind the marble counter.

They were armored and armed.

Though in the strangest of ways.

Each of the bank guards that emerged—that’s the only thing they could be—were dressed in bulky suits giving them a comically rotund appearance. There was nothing funny about their hard expressions though, or the oversized mittens they wore on their hands. These too, were made of some sort of soft, pliable substance.

In an instant, understanding flashed through my mind. Their gear had been chosen to let them subdue interlopers without breaking the safe zone’s rules.

As the guards converged on me, I raised my hands wearily, making no attempt to draw my own weapons. There was nowhere to flee, and trying to fight my way out would be counterproductive. Besides which, it would be a short fight. Any action I took would likely only land me on the wrong side of the Adjudicator’s judgment.

“Whoa there,” I began. “I'm only here to—”

I got no further.

A guard approaching from my right clamped his foam covered hand across my mouth, while another from behind wrapped his hands around my arms, and a third from the left lifted my feet off the ground.

Urgh.

In a matter of mere moments, the guards had effectively disabled me. It was a practiced maneuver, something obviously done on multiple occasions. Accompanied by my escort of three I was carried out of the foyer, much to the amusement of the watching players.

I tried speaking again, to explain myself, but the guard on my right kept his hand firmly pressed to my mouth. Sighing, I resigned myself to waiting.

The bank guards did not expel me from the premises, as I half expected them to. Instead, they transferred me to a side room behind the now-exposed entrances.

The room I was taken into was small and bare of any furniture except for a metal table in the center and two chairs placed on either side. Without speaking, or communicating in any manner that I could make out, the three guards keeping me restrained placed me in one of the chairs.

The guard to my right still kept his hand wrapped around my mouth, while the one behind me pressed down on my shoulders, and the one on my left moved forward to clamp my hands down onto the table.

In my new position, I was just as firmly restrained as before. And as frustrating as I found my circumstances, I couldn’t but admire the professionalism and precision with which the guards had managed to transport me, all without triggering the Game’s ire.

More guards entered the room behind me. My head was too firmly clasped to turn around, but with my sharp hearing, I picked up the sound of seven pairs of footsteps. Silently, they took up positions against the right and left walls.

The door through which we entered slid closed with a gentle click. Still, no one said anything.

Five minutes passed by. Then another ten.

Finally, I began to suspect the guards meant to hold me here until someone further up in command arrived. At least, that’s what I hoped they intended. I prayed they didn’t plan on keeping me contained indefinitely.

If they did, there was nothing I could do to change my situation. The magical dampening field would stop any of my abilities from working.

God damnit. I am well and truly stuck.

Realizing there was nothing I could do but wait, and wondering what exactly the detection ward had revealed about me, I schooled myself to patience.