21 Glad You Made It

Most people didn't notice him, but here and there someone would catch sight of his face and he'd see recognition light in their eyes. They'd open their mouth like they were going to ask him something, but Scar would pull him forward, deeper into the crush, before anyone could make a fuss.

Nial didn't know whether to thank her, or yank his arm out of her grip and rip her mask off.

His head was still spinning from the traveling. And the shock of being recognized. But they were still on the conference floor when he got himself together. And it was because he realized what he was seeing.

They were just passing the biggest booth Nial had seen yet—tall black-out curtains on high railings all around it, massive screens playing and replaying his cut scene. A scrolling digital sign advertising a dedicated "Chrono Nexus Panel—meet the top players, and get your questions answered! 1pm! Doors open at 12:30. Get there early. VIP tickets available here…"

"What do they mean—"

"We need to keep moving," Scar muttered.

But Nial was done following her. He was done being confused. And really done with not knowing what the hell was happening.

Yanking his arm out of her grip, he turned towards the booth and hurried inside—where he could see more monitors playing clips from his stream.

His mouth dropped open as he watched a replay of himself scrambling away from his computer as Dorian burst into the room, and then that moment when Dorian turned to put his sword through the computer. Not that he got to watch that part. When Dorian's face screwed up in rage and he raised his arm, there was no footage of him actually hitting the computer. He must have moved too quickly, because the screen only became a dazzling, distorted starburst of light and color, then went black.

Moments later, bright red letters faded in at center screen.

The Answers are Coming…

Wednesday, 21st of February at 1pm.

Live at GameCon.

"Nero…? Nero! There you are! Oh, thank god! They've been looking for you!"

Nial blinked and turned to find a young woman who had been behind one of the tables, selling passes, or something. He just stared.

She smiled uncertainly. In the low light he couldn't really tell what color her hair was—maybe light brown? But she was pretty and freckled, with glasses and a bright, almost childish smile.

"You're Nero, right?" she said breathlessly. "They were looking for you. Cash is going to be so relieved that we found you. Or you found us. Whatever," she said, with a nervous laugh.

"He got lost. I found him," Scar said quickly.

The girl looked at Scar and her head snapped back. "Oh! Right! You're… that's a great costume. I mean… did they talk to you about doing the panel? I didn't know they were—"

"No, no. I'm not here for that. I'm just a mingler," Scar said hurriedly, and the young woman looked relieved.

"Well, anyway, it's great that you're here, Nial. I'll radio for him. He was having a fit. You're supposed to do photos before the panel—"

"Photos?" Nial squeaked, raking his hand through his hair.

"Yes. If you go out the back there, the staff walkway will take you back to the conference rooms and stuff. They're looking for you—"

"I'll show him," Scar said, taking his elbow again and pulling him away. But Nial yanked his arm back and turned to the girl.

"This isn't an actor. This is Scar. The real Scar. You have to help me. She knocked Dorian unconscious and left him, then brought me here and—"

"Oh wow, that's good. They'll love that," the girl giggled. Then she leaned in like she was inviting him to share a secret. "But you have to remember that Scar's a guy or they'll eat you alive. How much did they pay you to play along? I mean, it's a great idea. The panel is already sold out, and now we're selling tickets to the overflow room just so they can listen live. That's about to sell out too. This was a really brilliant strategy. So it's paying off—if you weren't sure," she said breathlessly. "But you seemed really shocked on the livestream. Did they tell you he was coming before? If they did, you're a great actor!"

"You watched the livestream?" Nial asked.

She nodded. "I'm a huge fan of the game. Honestly. I mean, it pisses me off that I didn't get there first, of course. I think all of us wish we'd been the ones to discover it. But watching him come at you… that was scary. It must have seemed so surreal."

Nial found himself nodding, his mind turning back over everything that had happened in the past day and… wait.

"It's been two weeks?!" he breathed.

The girl nodded again. "Time flies when you're famous, I guess," she laughed again.

But then she looked over his shoulder and her eyes went wide. "I think you've been spotted. You guys better get out of here before they come for you. Cash is already pissed off that he can't find you! Go, I'll slow them down."

Nial looked over his shoulder to find a herd of nerds—both guys and girls—staring and whispering. When he turned and they saw his face, one of the girls actually screamed and jumped up and down. And some of the guys starting pushing forward into the large booth.

Nial found himself pulled deeper inside as Scar took hold of his arm and yanked him towards the back. The girl motioned with one hand to the guys standing at the back, at the same time she said something into the radio in her other hand.

As his name—or rather, his screen name, "Nero"—began to rise over and over in the air behind him, Nial was hustled through a gap in the curtains where a door was held open by a middle aged man wearing jeans and a too-tight button-down shirt. The moment Nial stepped into the quiet, brightly lit hallway, the man pushed the door closed behind him, and beckoned him and Scar to follow.

"Such a relief that you found us. Thank you for coming to the booth. Cash was going to start tearing down the walls."

Nial murmured something about being sorry for being late, but his head was spinning.

The man kept giving him instructions about when he needed to be at "Ballroom Two," stats about the size of the crowd, and warnings about what he could and couldn't say.

"I know they briefed you on all of this, but it's always good to have a reminder closer to the moment, I think," he said with a tense smile. "You can't tell anyone who the actors are for the playable characters. And you can't speak about any of the events that happened off screen. Your NDA applies, even with fans, you understand?"

Nial frowned. "I signed a non-disclosure agreement?"

"Ha ha, you're a comedian too. Wonderful," the man said sarcastically. But before Nial could ask, they reached another door and the man stood aside to open it for them and usher them through.

"The green room is in here," he said, putting a hand to Nial's shoulder and urging him to move ahead first. "We're just in time. Make sure and tell Cash that Max got you here as fast as he could, right?"

Then the door closed behind them and Nial was left sitting in a small room with two couches, fluorescent lighting, a table with a white tablecloth and a huge variety of food… and Dorian sitting in the corner of the couch, his head leaned on one fist, staring bloody murder at them.

"So glad you finally made it," he drawled.

At his side, Nial felt Scar deflate.