The light was fading, but despite having been on the go for most of the day, Anika's fatigue levels had not yet reached the point where she would need to consider logging out. She waited until it got dark and then made her way to the stables to talk to Ben. She was very careful to avoid being seen by the players she had become enemies with earlier in the day. Ben was taking a break, sitting on a couple of hay bales and talking to some other characters. It looked like they had brought him some food and were just keeping him company. When she approached, he got up to greet her and told the other guys to leave.

"I was wondering when you'd come back. Those idiots didn't give you a hard time did they?"

"No, I stayed out of their way. I don't plan on making friends with them soon though. Did you find any info about my son or the Pure Warheads?"

"I did, take a seat." He gestured to an empty hay bale next to him and offered her some food and drink. With his mouth still full of food, he talked about his connections and how he had pulled in some favours to get the information she wanted. He also suggested that if she managed to find her son, he would be keen to get introduced at some point if that was possible.

"Your son, if he is playing for the Pure Warheads, is fighting for the Crimson Alliance faction. They are a real mixed-race faction, so you get many people fighting for them. They have been around since the Crimson Wars, heard much about that?"

Anika remembered that Ralph had mentioned something about fighting in the Crimson Wars, but she shook her head and asked him to continue.

"The Crimson Wars are a part of the main storyline of the game. I don't have time to tell you about it now, you'll figure it out as you go along. Anyways, the Crimson Alliance are fighting over territory against the League of Ash, plus a few smaller factions." He paused for a few minutes to see if she was following what he was saying.

"I can see that all of this is over your head. Don't worry. When you find the Crimson Alliance, just follow some of their quests, and they'll give you all the background."

"Now, in Everscape, all terrain is procedurally generated. Are you familiar with this?"

She shook her head.

"Okay, no problem. Basically, this means that the game world is as infinite as the universe. The thing is, most players stick to areas that have objectives and rewards. Very few people test the limits of the game world, but some do wander off the beaten track pointlessly. Next thing. The different zones in Everscape are constantly changing. Think of it like massive tectonic plates that are always moving around. While it makes finding your way around somewhat of a challenge, it is something that has kept the game fresh for the millions of users that play the game every day."

"I think the game is stupid. How are you supposed to find anyone? It's ridiculous."

"I know what you mean, but think about it the other way round. Most people come here to escape from something, their day job, people and stuff like that. The game has been designed so that anyone can be anonymous if they want to and nobody will be stuck in the same game world day after day. There's a reason they do it, and there's a reason it has been so successful."

He looked at her and must have noticed that she didn't share his enthusiasm for the way the game had been set up.

"I can appreciate that you don't agree and that it makes your task a challenging one."

"So how do I get to where the Crimson Alliance is fighting?"

"Good. Now we are getting to the real point of the matter. The good news is that most of the territory they are fighting over is on the Gliphos continent. You can get there by boat." He didn't return her smile, but she was beaming when she heard she had a substantial lead and direction to go in.

"The bad news is that Gliphos is a massive PvP zone. This means that as soon as you step off the boat you will need to keep your head up and your wits about you. Any player can kill you whenever they want, except for a couple of neutral spots here and there. I haven't been there myself, so I can't give you any advice, but you might want to level up first and get yourself some better gear. I don't fancy your chances of staying alive for long, especially if you are travelling by yourself."

Anika spent a few moments thinking through the instructions she had been given. She was confident about things now, she knew where she had to go. How to get there was another matter. The main thing was that she trusted his information and she no longer had to fumble her way around in the dark.

"Thank you for all the advice, I know where I am going now. Can you tell me how I get to the boat to Gliphos?"

"Maps. You will need quite a few maps." He chuckled and shook his head. "Because of how the game is always changing, you'll find that there is a market in up-to-date maps. Your best place to start is in the Explorers Quarter in Windfall City. Check in with the Explorers Guild and get advice from them. You should also make it a habit of talking with travellers. Some players specialise in travelling far and wide, and they will return to the main cities on occasions and sell the information for a profit."

"Do I need a map to get to Windfall City?"

"No, Windfall is a capital city. It pretty much stays where it is all the time. The further away you get from places like that, the more in flux the terrain will be. I think I've got an old starter map somewhere in my bag, it should still be accurate enough for getting you there."

He got the map out of his bag and handed it to her, along with an extra gold coin which he had promised the previous day. She took it and thanked him, then made a vague promise she would send him a letter when she found her son to thank him again and to make good on her promise of introducing the two of them.