"We ... I mean you are in trouble," Ash glanced at Jace as they walked from the cafe. The others had gone on their ways and the two boys were headed home.

"How are you going to last in the orc realm if you are not supposed to die? We thought we would have a few chances and re-spawn there if we die as long as you remain above Level 80."

"Well, we thought wrong. I guess I will just have to be more careful from now on."

"How? Laz is not getting any better. He is getting weaker and will die more easily. If he re-spawns in his City, he will not be able to crossover. Forget collecting the Orbs again, it would take too much time and effort ..." Ash stopped in mid-sentence as he caught the determined look on Jace's face.

"Laz will just have to survive long enough to get well, that's all."

"Umm, I guess so. What if that crazy Nadine advances Laz's poison to Stage five?"

Jace shrugged. "I don't know but I'll do my best to save Laz before he becomes totally useless. He still has time ..." he trailed off as his thoughts turned inward.

Ash watched his friend's expression turned thoughtful. "What are you thinking?"

"Tell me, what has Kasakh got?"

"You are not answering my question," Ash grumbled. "You've got a plan? I know you do, you have that weird look on your face."

"I need to think about it some more. Laz's poison may not be impossible to beat after all. It may be nothing ... I need to fit the pieces together and check something out first. What does the orc have?"

"Your 'nothings' always turn out to be brilliant 'somethings'.When you got it figured out, tell me first."

Jace laughed. "Who else would I tell? ... and recruit for my wild ideas or trust to back me up when I ..." he trailed off, his expression becoming serious.

"When you what?" Ash asked impatiently. "Spill!"

"Not now ... and you may not like it. I'll tell you the details when I've got it figured." Jace did not want to worry his friend unnecessarily, his insane idea may well turn out to be nothing. Better to stay focused. "Now about Kasakh?"

"Arghhhh! I hate it when you do that!" The blond youth made a face. "Of course I won't like it now whatever it is."

"I'm not quite sure what we got with Kasakh. When we got there and started searching the place, she found some scraps of leather with scratches on it. She said it was a code only she and her father know about, a special father daughter thing."

Jace smiled in amusement. "I thought only humans did that kind of thing."

Ash snorted rolling his eyes expressively. "Please, don't let her hear you say that. I've had enough of her saying how barbaric we are. Apparently orcs are very similar to us despite their being superior beings, according to Kasakh." Ash laughed. "So much for Simtrixx's creative team."

"I think I'll go online when I get back, check up on her and see if she has anything new. See you in there?"

"I think ... I'll pass. I need to find my courage before going back in," Jace shuddered.

Ash's brow lifted. "That bad? What didn't you tell us in front of the girls?"

"Ash, the orcs," Jace looked fugitively around but no one was paying the two boys any attention. "They shackled Constantine in orc chains to nullify his magical abilities and strung him up. He was powerless. Then they interrogated and whipped him until he was barely alive. They practically stripped his flesh off him."

"What?!!" Ash stopped in mid stride. He couldn't imagine the brutal scene. "Lorenzo never mentioned it."

"I told him not to, besides, I think the thrill and satisfaction of killing the orcs afterwards made him forget the pain. He is mad. He said he couldn't wait to get back in there and explore more of the place."

Ash looked shrewdly at his friend, eyes narrowing. "If they whipped Constantine, what did they do to you?" he asked suspiciously.

"They collared me and broke my legs," Jace replied grimly.

"Broke your legs? Oh my God. Is Simtrixx crazy?" Ash exclaimed appalled. "We can sue them!"

"Well, yes I suppose so but no. The case would drag on and there are too many legal loopholes. Simtrixx could easily get away with it on technical terms and all that. It was virtual and the avatars are the company's. Anyway ..." Jace continued quickly before Ash could argue, "the point is, we have to be more careful now that we know the orcs won't hold back. Dying is not an option until we complete our mission or I'll have to quit Orc Wars."

"Quitting Orc Wars is not the problem ..." Ash said catching the mixed expression on Jace's face. "What are you really thinking?"

"As you said, quitting is no longer the real issue, although I will lose my income from the Game if I quit the contract."

"There will always be another avatar to replace Laz and all the gatekeepers in the Game. As much as I love Orc Wars and Anya, the orc realm confirms abuse in the Game. Playing 2D is not an issue but if Simtrixx had to make it so brutal to virtual players, they should at least give us the option to switch off the sensors."

"Not to mention overriding the system for personal agendas," quipped Ash. "Aria said Nadine overrode the system. That's abuse of power."

"There will be future virtual Players to drive the Game forward and maintain it's popularity especially with Season Two coming up but the winners will probably be subjected to similar contracts like us."

"It will be up to them to accept or decline," Ash reminded Jace, "they don't have to accept, you know. It's voluntary to sign on after the realty show."

"I know but can you not accept the enticing offer? Free virtual gear, exclusive excess to the Game, high ranking position and being paid real money just to play. It's not easy to turn down such an offer."

Ash sighed, "I know, I couldn't."

"Well, all we can do now is to continue playing. I'm going to change things."

"How?"

"First things first, Laz will need to survive. By beating the impossible odds, Season One's gatekeepers will continue to be the face of Orc Wars. We will make it impossible for Simtrixx to replace us. The new winners of Season Two will probably be added to the promotional team."

"They will have to devise new roles for everyone."

"By making ourselves indispensible in Orc Wars, we might even be able to set new terms with Simtrixx, make the gatekeepers a permanent feature or something. We can easily be obsolete in future updates to the story and quests. I don't think Simtrixx was really going to renew the contract with the gatekeepers after our contract expires. One year is a long time in the fast pace ever changing landscape of the gaming world."

Jace laughed. "You know, we must have confounded Simtrixx by deviating on our own quest. They must have expected us to start searching for the Lifestone, instead we are wandering around the place exposing the unfinished map."

"I wonder if we would have had a better reception if we mentioned the Lifestone at the orc village." Ash grinned evilly. "I bet they 'completed' the probably paths needed for the quest."

"Hey, maybe we should mention that to Kasakh. It might trigger something. She was there at the Portal site when we first crossed."

"That's an idea."

------------------------

Home at last, Aria fired up her laptop. It was time to find out who Jace really was. She mentally prepared herself for anything, that annoyingly beautiful woman for example. She gritted her teeth. Who was she? She had given Jace the benefit of doubt but still she could not fully suppress the jealous twinges in her heart, not that she actually had any claim on him she argued with herself. Still ...

"Hmm, Jonathan Carter. Let's see what pops up," she murmured as she tapped out Jace's name and hit 'Enter'.

Aria sucked in her breath. "Oh wow, rich is an understatement."

First she looked at all the pictures, then the related pictures. There were tons. She did not expect him to be so rich or famous, but damn, he was so photogenic. Jace was photographed with his family, alone, with his friends, notably Ash or 'Ashton'. She smiled at the prim name and filed away that bit of information to tease Ash later.

Ash was a rich kid too, she found out. His mom was a famous tailor and now the proud owner of a fashionable franchise label. She was beautiful. It was clear where Ash got his looks from. Seriously, if she had known earlier, she would have shied away from them. Now, it was too late. They will always be just Jace and Ash to her.

Aria recognised Mrs.Anderson ... Mrs.Carter, she corrected herself and Gwen, Jace's beautiful sister. She studied the picture of Jace's father. Mr.Grayson Carter was a tall, handsome man who would stand out in a crowd. He radiated charm and presence even from a 2D photograph. Jace had inherited the best from his parents. He had his mom's soft dark hair and enigmatic green eyes. His dad had given him his attractive appearance and charisma. His quiet confidence and self-control came from being in the limelight most of his young life. Jonathan Carter was smiling in most of the pictures, then something had happened. His family was destroyed and he had his youth stolen from him. He had stopped smiling and had disappeared from the media approximately two years ago.

Tears ran down her cheeks as she read the numerous articles and watched the related videos. She followed the news, vicious gossip and speculations of his case. Her heart wrenched at the malicious comments, discussions and not-so funny memes on the scandal. She found out that the beautiful platinum blonde was Monique Deveraux, his father's ex-trophy wife. Between fact and fiction, it was easy to piece the details together. Thank god that was all over and the mentally distraught woman was now behind bars. Aria was startled that it had been a recent thing and Monique was the cause of Jace's recent stay at the hospital.

When she finished, it was well past midnight.

Now, she understood why he hated being touched. Why he had looked so ashamed of his past and stricken when he had finally admitted who he was. Why he didn't like to talk about his family or background, even when they were so influential and rich. Why he kept to himself. Why he hated being Jonathan Carter. She would hate it too, if she had gone through what he had, and it must have been true too or he would not have reacted like that. Imagine all your dirty laundry being aired on national news and talked about by the public. Imagine being recognised because of the scandal. It wasn't even his fault.

She tried to imagine her alcoholic abusive parents all over the tabloids with her face on the front page. Brrrr! She shuddered at the horrible image. Aria didn't blame Jace for running away from home, cutting his ties with his family and willingly lived in poverty to hide his identity. She had run away from her parents too but at least she had grandfather. Thank god he had taken her in or she would have nowhere to turn to.

Luckily Ash had stood by Jace throughout his ordeal. Who knew the cheeky, fun and mischievous Ash would turn out to be such a loyal and staunch friend. Her respect for Ash rose.

Aria sighed as she powered down her laptop. She knew so much more about the mysterious Jace now.

Jace was rich, handsome and smart but he was not perfect after all. He hid it well but he was a broken mess inside.

---------------------------

Jace reached for his phone when it wailed at him. The ringtone was set for Ash. The Nutter was calling. It had only been a few hours since he got back from the café. The upbeat combination of war drums and bass was cut off midway when Jace answered his phone.

"Hey. Sup?"

"Jace!! You are not going to believe this!"

"What?"

"I asked Kasakh about the Lifestone. Apparently it is not exactly a stone."

"Not a stone? What are you talking about?"

"It's a gemstone, a powerful one. Sharak's notes hints that it holds the key to the young prince's survival. Unfortunately, the rest of his notes and research is at the Warlord's stronghold where he spent his last days studying and trying to beat the poison. There might be a clue there."

"Survival? That's awesome! There is hope then. So, we need to go to the Stronghold?"

"Looks like it. The next clue is probably there in his belongings. Laz can go with Constantine, I'll continue searching for clues with Kasakh. I think she is hiding something important from me and I'm going to find out what."

"Thanks Ash. I owe you." Jace said.

Ash laughed. "No you don't. Actually, this is more exciting than just dungeoning aimlessly even if your avatar is on the line. Trying to solve the puzzle of Laz's dilemma and cracking our heads searching for the antidote is better than the Lifestone quest. More personal you know?" he finished off apologetically.

"I know what you mean," Jace sighed then half-smiled. He understood his friend perfectly. Anyone could do the Lifestone quest when they reached level 80 and obtained the requirements to pass the Portal, but their mission was a personal one. No other Orc Wars player had this unique problem ...umm, special hidden mission. Finding a solution to a seemingly impossible puzzle was both exciting and stimulating. The impossible mission made it all the more challenging, the stakes were higher, the battles more exciting and the losses more devastating. He only wished it wasn't so painful.

Look on the bright side. It was possible, his guts told him so. He would go as far as he could, as long as there were still clues and subtle hints, he would die trying, literally in Laz's case. It was illogically addictive, the strong desire to solve a problem no one else could, to beat the system and survive.

At first it was about surviving, then saving Anya but ever since Aria told him of the unfair manipulations in Simtrixx, something had exploded in him. It was personal. There was a bigger picture. It was Simtrixx vs Lazarus, no he corrected himself, Simtrixx and Orc Wars was o'kay. The system in place and the gaming framework was good. It was the person behind it. If Nadine, the Simtrixx Director was not stopped, she would continue to mess up the Game and who knows how many other future key Heroes. Season Two was coming up.

It was Nadine vs Lazarus.

Jace didn't know why but the Director seemed to have a personal vendetta against Lazarus.

Ash's voice brought him back from his wayward thoughts. "Sharak was researching the gem's properties when he ran out of time. Jace, he did not have it and he could not make the cure, his studies is just theory. For some reason, the orcs could not go get all the required ingredients. There is more to the Lifestone than Simtrixx is telling us."

"Then, there is Kalthu. Sharak sent him to our realm to find something related to the cure. Find him if you can. He knows something. I'm sure he has a piece of the puzzle."

"Will do," Jace agreed. "No worries Ash. We'll figure it out."