Khabi stepped closer to the touchscreen. "Upper right is the map index, you can use it to highlight shops by what they sell." The Steward chose the dagger search icon, a dozen shops on the far wall lit up.

All four of them went in separate directions with Nix heading toward the firearm vendors.

[Whisper: Darsi to Nix] Hey, I stopped by the Scorched Earth Temple, there's quite a waiting list.

[Whisper: Nix to Fajii] Would you push Darsi to the front of the conversion line, please?

[Whisper: Fajii to Nix] Yes.

[Whisper: Nix to Darsi] Ask again, Fajii will take good care of you.

[Whisper: Darsi to Nix] Thanks Nix.

Nix spent a few minutes shopping for a quality sniper rifle that Darsi would like. After finding one and settling on a price, the vendor offered to use their 'delivery service.' This option enabled the person to receive it as a package via their hud.

/Inferno: Nix: Done shopping yet Sem?

/Inferno: Semmi: Um... No.

/Inferno: Tess: Not even close, the corner shops have accessories!!

"Sorry Jani, Mira logged in, so we are swapping her in for you."

"Oh, I see. It's fine... I'll find another group."

Nix overheard the conversation between a handful of guildmates from Tea Leaf. They definitely stood out, every one of them wore a bright green singlet over their armor. They left the cleric in question and entered the elevator.

She noticed his approach right away. "Care to group with me? 44 level cleric!"

"What floor are you on? Nix smiled at her patience, she'd been dumped by her group. She was handling it better than he would have.

"Just the 14th," she admitted. Her hair was dyed bright pink, and she had a smattering of freckles across her nose. "I'm a good healer though, and I work well with others."

Nix laughed at her words, he remembered saying the same thing at his first job interview. "You're hired Jani the Pink."

"Sajani actually... sometimes my guildmates call me Jani." She spoke quietly as if she was in a library.

"I'm Nix, let's head to the 14th floor." Nix summoned the elevator and a moment later they stepped inside.

******************

[Several hours later on the 41st floor]

"Map says there are three more mobs on this level Nix." The pink-haired cleric's face was smudged with mud, she pursed her lips while studying the map.

[Summons: Fey]

The Drake appeared in front of them a moment later. She looked around the area, "where we at?"

"41st floor in the Emba.s.sy. This is Pinkie."

The Drake nodded, "Hi Pinkie. Good thinking bringing a cleric. What's our status?" The drake glanced around, they were in an arid region, low foothills with lots of sagebrush.

"Clearing out the zone, but we are missing some mobs." She pointed to the west side of the map, "my best guess says they are here."

Fey nodded her scaled head, "What kind of mobs?"

"Melee so far, white primates with four arms." Nix waited until the Drake took to the air. "Why did Fey ask about the mobs?"

Pinkie scratched her cheek while considering the question, he had been doing it all day, teaching her small things. "Risk a.s.sessment?"

"Correct. Fey's a flier, so melee mobs don't present a threat. She'll find them."

/Inferno: Semmi: Dumped me Nix?

/Inferno: Nix: Um... you were shopping until ten minutes ago.

/Inferno: Ronnie: 41st floor? You check out the 40th?

/Inferno: Nix: Not yet.

/Inferno: Tess: Cheating on me with another healer?

/Inferno: Nix: Fraid so.

/Inferno: Jun Li: With the Emba.s.sy here, we are going to have to get another Ferry.

/Inferno: Nix: Sounds good.

Fey landed a few minutes later. "Found them, a small cave hidden by some brush. Probably going to need a tank Nix."

Nix scowled, "bosses seem to be randomly occurring every few floors."

"We should stop here Nix, the last boss took us three tries." Pinkie shuddered at the memory, The 38th floor was a volcano, the boss there had been immune to fire.

"I guess." Nix grinned at the young woman and sent her a friend request. "Wanna check out the 40th floor?"

Pinkie kept her face expressionless, it was difficult to know when Nix was teasing. "We are at the top of the leaderboard. That means we'd be the first ones to see it."

A few minutes later they stepped back into the elevator and chose the 40th floor.

/Inferno: Ronnie: Hey... Nix is on the 40th floor!

/Inferno: Semmi: Traitor!

/Inferno: Pon: What's it like?

/Inferno: Sharl: Spill it Nix.

/Inferno: Wind: Nix? Why isn't he answering?

/Emba.s.sy System Announcement: The Emba.s.sy exits and entrances close at 1800 hours, at that time a special campground for overnight guests will be located on the 5th floor. You may continue to shop or advance floors. Enjoy your evening.

******************

Pinkie exited the elevator and strolled into the lobby, she walked over to the kiosk and activated the 'For Hire' option. Her asking price was 5.2 mil credits. She scrolled down the mercenary column, even though his name was grayed out she could see the price. "Holy c.r.a.p. Who has 20 mil?"