When the doors opened, a young man walked in. He was dressed casually in a long sleeve shirt tucked into snug black jeans and comfortable high cut sneakers.

No!! Nadine took one look at him and gasped, one hand going to her mouth in shock. She recognised him at once. He was the reason she was in this mess.

Lazarus.

Lazarus was here!

The Director of Virtual Reality swallowed and turned white.

"Everyone, please welcome Jonathan Carter."

Nadine stared at Jace then glanced furtively at Jared in horror. The CEO was at Simtrixx that day she instructed Zen to torture Lazarus. It was when Lazarus and Valentine had completed Dungeon 80, the Vampire dungeon ... the day of the tour. At that time, she had proudly showcased her two star GateKeepers to the CEO, highlighting everything good about Orc Wars. The high-definition graphics, detailed maps, smooth NPC interaction and fights, a high level dungeon and Boss, gameplay and synergy between two beautifully custom crafted avatars.

Never in her life did she think Jared would use it against her!

But how? Did he know who Jace was? No, of course not! Only the Simtrixx Director had access to the real identities behind the Season One participants. Only she knew who the Gatekeepers were. It was highly classified information.

It was simply impossible that Jared would know ... could know, that Jace was Lazarus.

Even on the off chance that the CEO knew who Jace was, how in hell did he know? How could he? And how did Kirin Group manage to track Jace down in the real world and bring him here? Questions bombarded Nadine's shocked mind. She broke out in cold sweat.

Zen, Damon and Adam studied the young man with interest. Based on Nadine's panicked reaction, he must be somebody very important.

Suri indicated an empty seat near the CEO. Jonathan Carter was the star witness and Jared might have a few questions for him.

"Thank you for inviting me, Mr. Cruz."

"You're welcome. By the way, you can call me Jared here too," Jared Cruz said smiling. "Thank you for coming on such short notice. I know you had to clear your busy schedule to be here."

"Yeah, I did," Jace grinned impishly aware that the older man knew he had cut class today to be here. No problem, Ash would cover for him and bring him up to speed on any notes, assignments and such.

Jace swept his gaze around the room, pausing briefly only at Nadine before sitting down. He recognised her. The beautiful woman sat frozen in her chair.

Zen blinked. Jared Cruz himself had invited Jonathan Carter here! This guy was not intimidated by the CEO or Nadine. Who was he? He was too young to be anyone important, yet, he seemed to know Jared Cruz personally. Impossible! Why, surely he must be below twenty!

Suri's next words answered his question in part.

"Everyone, I would like to introduce Jonathan Carter, the player behind the avatar 'Lazarus' in the Orc Wars game. He will help clarify a few issues regarding the extent of Nadine's actions."

Zen half got up from his chair almost squeaking in excitement. Lazarus!! That was Lazarus?! He was here! In person! He looked around for confirmation with a bewildered expression on his face before he sat back down awkwardly. Smiling like a proud father, his gaze settled on Jace beaming at the newcomer.

Next to him, Damon and Adam sat speechless. Nadine squirmed uncomfortably in her corner.

The Games Master studied Jace. The young man was calm and collected. Did he know what he was here for? Did he know how important his presence here was and the impact he could have on the outcome of the Inquiry?

It was Game Over for Nadine.

"Jonathan ..." started Suri.

"Please, call me Jace. Everyone does."

Suri smiled. "O'kay Jace, let's start."

"Do you know Nadine?" The Ethics' Director gestured at the silent woman.

"Yes, I do. She is the Virtual Reality Director at Simtrixx."

"How do you know her?"

"I first met Nadine when she welcomed participants for Season One of the Orc Wars Reality Show a few months ago. I saw her again at the end, during prize giving."

"So you know her through the Reality Show."

Jace nodded.

"And may I ask, what is your relationship with her?"

"The top five winners of Season One were given a chance at a lucrative contract with Simtrixx. We signed in person, the Gatekeepers and Nadine as representative of Simtrixx. Our identities were kept secret from the other employees."

"Why is that?"

Jace shrugged.

"Maybe so that they could switch us out later as they tried to do so with the other winners. I guess it would only work if no one knew the real identity behind the account."

He and Ash had a theory that Simtrixx wanted to switch out the winners eventually so that they could reduce cash pay-outs. If the avatars were controlled by Simtrixx employees, the company would not have to continue paying cash for gold collected by the seventeen Heroes who survived Season One.

Simtrixx had tried to animate the winners but failed. In the end the other twelve winners were bought out and automated as NPCs at various sites. Simtrixx took back full control of the avatars. However, the company continued to work with the top five winners, the GateKeepers as per their contract.

"Did it work? Switching the others out?"

"No, it didn't. And it will not with us too. Players and fans knew immediately that someone else was behind the avatar. No one could simulate the original players. The fans noticed minute differences, you know, the different way of interaction, fighting styles and mannerisms."

"No offense but how do we know Lazarus is really you?" asked Sangeetha (Legal). She wanted everything to be valid. Taking a person's word to judge another must be done carefully. If he proved to be false, everything he said would be void and thus must be disregarded in deciding the charges.

"None taken," replied Jace. He realised the implications of the matter. Nadine's job and reputation was at stake.

"Jace? Are you willing to prove your identity as Lazarus?"

"Sure. How?"

Suri opened another laptop.

"Zen? Would you be so kind as to link Orc Wars. Jace will logon from here to prove he is Lazarus."

Jace's eyebrows shot up. Login here? Seriously? Then he relaxed. Why not? Everyone here was connected to the existence of the game and the company. He was just a Player and they already knew his real identity.

Zen was also startled. Link to the game network from here?

"That's not necessary. All we need is the downloaded game. He can login 2D to prove his identity. No need to go virtual."

"We already have a copy ... Jace?" Suri gestured to the laptop invitingly. The familiar Orc Wars logo was already displayed prominently on the main page. The screen was brought up for everyone to see on another LCD screen.

Jace got up. Wow, to think he had to prove himself. If he was a fake, he would be caught out immediately. These people were not fooling around. It seemed that Suri had everything prepared in advance.

Quickly Jace logged in.

Username : LAZARUS

Password : ********

Login successful.

Lazarus, Assassin Level 92 came up on screen.

The handsome avatar was dressed in the latest black and silver Assassin's garb. Metal rings reinforced his spaulders to protect his shoulders. Sliver runes ran along his expensive outfit enhancing the powerful GateKeeper. Lazarus stood confidently, his long straight black white hair waving gently in the artificial breeze. His trademark customised silver bow was strapped to his back. Specially marked arrows filled a matching quiver.

The Hero smiled lighting up his silver eyes as a large blue eyed white wolf bounded into the screen. Lazarus welcomed her with a warm hug then returned to a relaxed stance. His familiar stood protectively by his side.

Jace smiled proudly. Laz looked unusually good. Thank the Gods Ash made him buy a new outfit to 'celebrate' his full recovery. He had not wanted Laz to spoil the image of the GateKeepers with his soiled and bloody rags.

"Is he the right one?" Everyone turned to the Games Master for confirmation.

Zen nodded. "Yes, that is Lazarus the Gatekeeper," affirmed the Games Master. Damon and Adam were also both nodding.

"Very nice."

Sangeetha (Legal) smiled in delight. Any doubts on his identity with regards to Orc Wars were now dispelled with Jonathan Carter's successful login. Now everything he said could be taken as bona fide Lazarus, the affected avatar in question. Good, she did not want any disputes on this point later.

"Thank you, Jace. Now that we have confirmed your identity, let's continue."

"Please tell us, how do you feel when you play Orc Wars?"

Jace smiled. "Exhilarated. The game is awesome. Playing 2D is great but nothing beats virtual."

The Simtrixx team beamed happily. He was complimenting their baby.

"Are there any problems fulfilling your contract hours?"

Jace shook his head. "No, not really. We can have days off if needed, you know when real life commitments intervenes. All we have to do is give advance notice when we can't be online." He glanced at Nadine. "It's stipulated in the GateKeeper's contract."

"That's true," said Sangeetha (Legal). "A copy of said contract has been forwarded to all of you."

"How did you feel playing after your character got poisoned?"

"Well, it got progressively harder to play. Laz sometimes became unresponsive to controls and would freeze halfway ingame. The symptoms were bad and sometimes it was almost unbearable. The pain and feeling of helplessness was terrible."

"The pain?" asked Xiao (Statistics) looking around in confusion.

"Yes, the GateKeepers play virtual with our newly developed virtual gear. It's very sensitive and responsive," said Vincent (R&D) proudly. "Our lightweight gear is almost as good as state of the art hardware at Simtrixx. The players feel everything, the artificial sun, heat, cold en cetera. Oh ... " he trailed off suddenly in realisation of the implication to the case.

"The poison ..." Xiao (Statistics) winced. "That's got to be some experience," he said sympathetically.

Eyes widened and some started shaking their heads as full comprehension of what that meant sank onto the members of the Disciplinary Board.

"I can't imagine it. If it was so bad why did you continue playing? I am aware that Simtrixx pays well but surely it was not purely for the money."

Jace laughed mirthlessly. "The money is good but to be honest, I was seriously going to quit several times. However each time someone or something convinced me otherwise."

He looked at Anya on the large LCD screen. His beautiful white familiar saved from fading away and being deleted was more than enough reason to endure and complete the arduous almost impossible task. Besides, with Constantine and Valentine by his side urging him on, nothing seemed impossible. They just pushed on, one step at a time.

Zen gulped. It never crossed his mind that Lazarus would actually quit. He had simply assumed that the Gatekeeper being a top player and one of the official faces of Orc Wars would simply soldier on. He knew Laz felt the pain but he had unconsciously let that fact slide. He was too busy with other things like keeping Orc Wars running despite Nadine's constant interferences and other numerous urgent problems. He shuddered at the near catastrophe. They had almost lost one of their main stars. Losing any of the GateKeepers was a disaster for Orc Wars.

"Did anything seem wrong or suspicious during your recent sessions?"

"Yes."

Jared Cruz leaned forward whilst Nadine shrank further into her seat.

"Please elaborate."

"It was little things at first, like the horrid timing of Laz losing strength at crucial moments or the excruciating pain attacks which left him unresponsive and vulnerable. It could not all be coincidence, could it?" asked Jace. "I became suspicious but had no proof. The signs were all there though. Laz's 20 per cent health capping reduction also seemed random and instant on several occasions. Changes in avatar stats, rating and build are usually based on something quantifiable like game time, increased EXP en cetera. But his did not reflect the Games' usual professional algorithms standards for Heroes and NPCs."

Zen almost clapped in delight. Oh My God! He noticed!

Damon and Adam both sported smug looks. Of course he noticed. Every real gamer would be sensitive to his avatar, gaming specs and timing. A tiny adjustment could increase or decrease fighting effectiveness, boosts and buffs. It could determine the success or failure of dungeon runs, PVP, missions or quests.

"The spawn killing was pure torture. The main Hero, a Paladin (Frostblade) who was leading 19 other Players in the raid against me let slip that he was following orders. The siege was so well coordinated that I guessed they were in the same room and talking to each other in real time."

"My friends also pointed out several irregularities," continued Jace. Ash and Lorenzo had cued him further that the game was hacked, for Lazarus at least. "For one, the Witch was initially very stiff on rules when we first encountered her. At first she refused direct help, stating that it was the Player's sole duty to figure out the Bello's trial. Midway, she suddenly seemed very eager to provide hints."

Damon swallowed hard and started sweating. He had instructed Russ (Lily's team leader) and Lily (Witch) to provide said hints. It was to compensate for Lazarus' uncalled for and unscheduled seizures. It was a clear breach of protocol.

Nadine gasped and glared at her colleagues from Simtrixx. Did they work against her behind her back? How dare they? If she was going down, she would drag them down with her.

"Really?" asked Suri. The Disciplinary Board had been briefed on the Games' storyline, the characters which came into contact with Lazarus and his group, and their part in the missions.

"Yeah. There was also another incident which confirmed external manipulation."

Suri raised her eyebrows. So not only did he, the player affected realise the discrepancies. It was so obvious that third parties did too!! This was more serious than first reported.

"The main antagonist after we crossed the portal was the NPC Mallarg. He was an orc necromancer who had been captured after his failed coup and held in a fool proof cell for questioning. He mysteriously escaped via a glitch only to resurface later to confront my friend."

Suri turned to the Games Master. "Zen, what say you?"

Zen cleared his throat. "Guilty on all counts. There was direct interference by games control during those incidences. We released Mallarg to kill Constantine. Lazarus would die faster without his powerful friends helping."

"Another unauthorised manipulation. You had to change the story line again I presume?"

"Yes, Creative had to deviate from the main theme in order to accommodate this new unexpected development. Mallarg was out of the picture but we had to bring him back into the main storyline. The story had to be expanded," admitted Damon.

"Hmmm ..."

Suri brought up a screen listing Nadine's charges on the LCD screen. The main one was unauthorised direct interference with a Player's avatar. The alleged negative results of her actions to the Player's gaming experience and performance were listed in bullet points.

Quickly Suri typed a note below to include direct manipulation of key NPCs. It was elaborated to explain that this action caused a deviation in the main storyline resulting in additional requirements for urgent ad-hoc (unplanned and unbudgeted) input. Failure to expand the story immediately would have resulted in problems for the flow of the game and logical storyline. It would degrade Orc Wars to a faulty game with glitches.

No one objected when she hit the 'Save' button.

Zen's confirmation made something explode in Jace. His green eyes flashed in anger. He clenched his jaw and balled his fists. He tried hard to breathe. Get a grip and calm yourself! Suspecting fowl play was one thing but having it openly confirmed so casually was quite another. Laz had been struggling so hard to survive!! He had been in agony for weeks, physically and mentally! It was unbelievable! Jace was livid.

Jared's deep voice calmed him down and brought him back to his senses.

"I want a detailed account of all known incidences and its effects on the player. Appropriate punishment will be meted out to all involved. You will include all employees involved directly or indirectly in this unprofessional behaviour for the panel's consideration."

Then Jared addressed Jace.

"Jace, I sincerely apologise on behalf of Simtrixx and Kirin Group. We will get to the bottom of this soon. Thank you for coming and providing your input. It helped cleared several issues."

Jace sighed. All the anger he felt evaporated. There was no point in getting angry now. It was all in the past. "No problem Jared. We managed to cure Laz so everything is o'kay now."

"What?!" cried Nadine. "Lazarus is cured? When was that? How did he manage that?"

"Did you know?" she accused Zen.

Before anyone could say anything Jace spoke up.

"Director ... Nadine, if you didn't want me through the Portal, you could have just told me and we could have worked something out," said Jace tiredly. "You could have put the Gatekeepers on hold, maybe a short hiatus until Simtrixx completed the orc realm. We know it was not completed at the time we crossed over."

"You didn't have to torture me like that!" Jace's voice broke in frustration.

"Talk to you? You are the reason I'm in this predicament!!" Nadine's voice raised an octave. "It's all Lazarus' fault!!"

"Nadine!" Suri called out loudly to get the excited woman's attention. "Please sit down. Your Inquiry is not over yet."

"What he says does not hold any water. He only wants revenge against me. He does not care for Orc Wars at all!"

"That is where you are wrong, Nadine," said Darren (Finance) calmly. "Mr.Carter ... I mean Jace here is a shareholder in Simtrixx. I'm sure he cares for Orc Wars more than you and will not intentionally sabotage it. After all, it is Simtrixx's current cash cow and he plays it."

"What?!!" asked Nadine in disbelief. "He owns shares? In Simtrixx?"

"Yes he does, a significant amount mind you. You ..." Darren said to Nadine, " ... and you three," he said to include Zen, Damon and Adam, "are all technically working for him."

Nadine closed her eyes. She could feel a migraine building up. This was not happening. She was feeling faint.

"Sit down Nadine, I'm still speaking," said Jared calmly. "Jace, I know it is only an interactive game and hacking is quite common. However, when someone our company who is supposed to guard against hacking does it maliciously and during the times when our GateKeepers are virtual, THAT is not acceptable."

"I'm truly sorry you had to go through what you did. You will be compensated accordingly."

"No need."

"Ahh, but we will. It's been settled," countered Jared with a hint of a smile. "Thanks for coming."

Everyone stared openly as Jared got up to accompany Jace to the door. They spoke animatedly in low tones for a while. Jace shook his head indignantly in disagreement but Jared leaned in closer to argue his case. In the end, the older man put his arm around Jace's shoulder in a persuading gesture as the younger man flash an intense look of displeasure at the quivering Virtual Reality Director. Then he pursed his lips and reluctantly gave a small nod. Jared smiled in satisfaction.

After exchanging a few more words and shaking hands, Jared shut the door and returned to his seat. No one knew what the two said. Why was the CEO so friendly to him? Was Jace more than just a winner of Season One?

"I think we have enough information to make an informed decision."

"Thank you Suri, I will leave you and the Disciplinary Board to discuss the matter further. Run your decision by me first."

"Yes, Sir."

"The meeting is now adjourned. Everyone, thank you for coming." Suri proceeded to close the meeting with instructions. "Nadine, you will be on leave until further notice. The Board will inform you of our decision within the week."

"Damon and Adam, thank you for coming. You may return to Simtrixx and go back to work."

"Zen, meet me in my office. You can tell me what you need to in private."

Leather chairs creaked and were pushed back as everyone packed up their notes, closed laptops and got up. Conversation was kept to a minimal in the sombre atmosphere. Nothing of the private disciplinary inquiry was to be discussed outside the four walls. One by one the Directors filed out to return to their respective floors. Their discussion and deliberation will continue after a late lunch.

Nadine grabbed her files and bag. "Suri ...." she called.

"Yes Nadine?"

"I did everything for Simtrixx. I delayed him to gain time for our team to complete the games' maps and refine the algorithms. You must know Lazarus cheated with his friends. How else did all those people know to come help him. Why would strangers help Lazarus?"

"Suri, please, I did it for the company," pleaded the elegant woman desperately. "For Simtrixx."

"I understand where you are coming from Nadine but it is not for me alone to decide. We will discuss the matter. I assure you we will take into consideration your circumstance for your actions."

"Thank you."

"The facts speak for themselves, Nadine. Take a break, go home. We will inform you soon."