A few hourster, Dex returned to his pod and closed it up. Then, without even tampering with the ankle bracelet, he plugged one of his Dex-manufactured connectors into a small socket located next to the bracelet led. The other he plugged into a gutted toaster that contained the dryer circuit board and the hardline that formed a connection to the hand-sized array that sat inconspicuously on his bedside table.


    Dex took a deep breath and powered up the circuit board. "If the cops show up in ten minutes, I''ll know I fucked something up."


    A virtual keyboardplete with a small hud popped up in the darkness inside the pod. "No outgoing camera or audio for my hud, but who cares? It''s better to be quiet and invisible."


    For the first time in three years, Dex essed the inte. His fingers worked the virtual keyboard easily while he scanned the HUD. Hackers called surfing the inte ''Riding the wave.'' Taking that away from someone like Dex was like pulling the wings off of a bird.


    An exhausted and red-eyed Dex emerged from the pod the next morning. But, after spending the night catching up with his circle under an alias, his mood was good.


    He took a few minutes to unhook the circuit boards and array, but he left the wires in ce. He could always yank them out if someone came to visit. "Next step is to camouge everything so that even Kenji could walk by without knowing a thing."


    After a quick breakfast and shower, he felt like a new man, albeit exhausted. Instead of slipping on the shorts he normally slept in, he opted for a one-piece jumpsuit popr for VR jumping. After reclining on the pod''sfortable sleeping pad, he pulled the hatch closed. "I''ll set the y-timer for five hours; I don''t want to sleep all day."


    A few momentster, Dexter''s reality faded away as he watched the introduction movie to the game. Then, two minutes into the show, he swore angrily. "That cheating bastard! This isn''t Colonial; it''s a damned expansion pack!"


    Expansion packs that didn''t have the Main game were just about useless in single-yer mode. The game''s core would be missing; the version you would be ying would be missing keyponents. "Son of a bitch... I''m never going to that ce again... Granted, I can''t go there anyway."


    Dex''s view faded to ck for a few seconds before a disimer became viewable.


    [Single yer Disimer]


    You are ying a single-yer version of the expansion pack, The Flight of Dragons. Certain events and character details may not match up with the Colonial VRMMO version of this game. For Quality Assurance, we would like permission to update your game version at regr intervals.


    Do you wish to have Flight of Dragons Updated at regrly scheduled intervals?


    "Sure," Dex muttered a curse under his breath; he''d have to arrange software updates with Kenji. "Maybe I should 86 this pod..."


    [What was your character''s name?]


    "Dextron."


    [In the Final Confrontation, what role did you y?]


    1) Tank


    2) Damage Dealer (Ranged or Melee).


    3) Healer


    4) Crowd Control


    "Ranged damage dealer."


    [Generate the personal history of Dextron, the Inferno Ranger?]


    "Yes."


    **************


    "Dextron? Are you awake?"


    An odd voice spoke to him in a whisper. Although quiet, it was filled with anxiety.


    Dex tried to sit up, but a pain in his chest stopped him. His body spasmed painfully as it was wracked with a coughing fit.


    [You are fatally poisoned!]


    Dex opened his eyes, immediately noticing the other upant in the small room. The speaker was sitting on the edge of the cot. His small body was barelyrger than a child''s. Dark skin coupled with short horns marked his ancestry as demonic. "Who are you?"


    "You don''t remember, Rabi Qi? The poison must be advancing faster than we thought."


    "Rabi?" Dex shook his head to clear it. ording to the introduction scenes, the Qi family allied with a human guild to destroy the evil that threatened Colonial. "House of Tempest, right? Just call me Dex."


    Rabi nodded and pulled Dex to his feet. "Come with Rabi! You must see Nix right away."


    Dex was forced to follow the tiny demon since the creature refused to release his hand. "How are you so strong?"


    "Rabi is a demon!"


    Dex waited for further exnation, but apparently, the demon thought it was enough.


    The duo exited arge Temple and headed south. In the distance, an enormous stone house structure built into the base of a mountain could be seen. The galloping sound of hundreds of horses filled the air as Dex counted three separate herds. "This is a lot of horses."


    Rabi nodded in agreement. "Hurry Dex, we must take you to see Shae."


    "Shae?" Dex didn''t recognize the name, but he continued to follow the tiny demon.


    In a rather short amount of time, they arrived at the entrance of what could be only be called a castle. "I thought this was supposed to be a horse ranch?"


    Rabi nodded and pulled him through an enormous dining hall. Then, without pausing, they entered arge kitchen where a red-haired woman was cooking. "Hyai! Rabi is looking for Shae."


    The red-haired woman favored Rabi with a smile. "Shae is preparing for an elemental promotion. I''m afraid she won''t be avable for some time."


    "I see... Dex is supposed to meet with Nix!" Rabi pushed Dex forward.


    Hyai face was attractive; a light smattering of freckles on the bridge of her nose made her seem more approachable. "I can bring him. Let me put this pot on simmer, and I''ll handle it. Please wait in the dining room."


    Rabi pped excitedly. "Thank you, Hyai."


    Dex exited the kitchen, d Rabi had stopped pulling him around. "So Hyai can bring us? Isn''t she the cook?"


    Rabi held a finger to his lips. "Hyai is Nix''s wife."


    "Oh... Then who is Shae?"


    "Also, Nix''s wife." Rabi tilted his head sideways. "Didn''t Rabi say this?"


    Dex shook his head. "Nix has two wives?"


    Rabi started counting on his fingers. "Shae, Hyai, Fajii, Mina, Raine, Del..."


    "What? He''s got six wives? ya... That''s too many." Dex sighed heavily; as someone who had never dated before, he found the idea of that many women to be daunting.


    "Not six, seven! I can never remember thest one''s name." Rabi scratched his head while trying to recall. "Su''Dhassi woman with scars on her face, Eri Dale!"


    "I''d settle for one nerdy girl to hang with." Dex nced back toward the kitchen door. "How do I get to the Academy? Shouldn''t we treat my condition first?" Then, as if reminded, his body suddenly seized up in a painful coughing fit thatsted for several seconds. Mentally he noted that virtual sickness felt just like the real thing.


    Rabi''s cheerful demeanor faded slightly. "Best if you don''t ask Rabi these things."


    The kitchen door swung open a momentter, Hyai smiled at the pair. "I will handle things from here."


    Rabi bowed respectfully. "Rabi has other duties. Good Luck, Dex."


    After exiting the dining room, Hyai led him through a series of hallways that ended in a steep staircase. The redhead pulled a torch off the wall and lit it with her bare hand.


    "Fire Mage?" Dex coughed loudly, the sound of it echoing in his ears.


    Hyai nodded, her face filled with sympathy. "We''ll fix this, Dex. We owe you a great debt."


    Dex smiled at Hyai''s back. Although it had nothing to do with him, her words made him feel good. "A debt?"


    Hyai nodded and smiled over her shoulder. "You held Khione''s guards at bay while Pon and Nix destroyed her. Without your courage, all would have been lost."


    Dex puffed his chest out, feeling like a hero until he suffered through another coughing fit. "Those are kind words. Thank you, Hyai."


    After a few minutes of descending, Dex was forced to take a break. Unfortunately, the dampness and the chilled air made his cough much worse.


    Hyai stepped closer and ced his arm on her shoulder, effectively propping him up. The warmth surrounding her had an immediate effect. "It isn''t much further."


    After two more sets of stairs, the pair exited into a dark hallway. There were no torches in view other than the one Hyai carried.


    "Nix keeps his workshop down here so that no one bothers him." Hyai stopped outside arge wooden door. "Let''s go see him."


    Warmth and light flooded Dex''s senses when he stepped into the workshop. It was several timesrger than he would have guessed. A dark-haired man only a few years older than himself looked up from behind a stack of animal pelts.


    "I see you''ve brought Dextron!" Nix hugged the woman tightly before turning his attention to her escort. "I''ve heard your cough for thest half-hour. Come, there isn''t much time."


    "Time? Is something wrong?"


    Nix nodded solemnly. "I''m worried that you won''t survive the night."