THE NUMAH ARE INSIDE THE GUARD

  You know those rumors in the paper's reader's letters section? The once about a mirror server populated by evil clones?

  Well let me say it straight: They are here. They walk among us. Some of them wear the faces of our friends. Some of them ARE our friends. We've seen them, we've fought them, and we KNOW what they are - NPC spies that seek to replace players with evil copies of themselves! Multiple eyewitness accounts confirm these beings attack without provocation, move with unnatural rigidity, and can perfectly mimic player nameplates and appearances.

  Maybe you've seen them yourself. The way they never blink. The way their eyes track you just a little too perfectly. The way their mouths move like a bad dub, half a second off from the words. It's subtle, but it's there, and you can't unsee it. This is how they've seized control of the capital - THAT'S how they're controlling the NPC city guards! They're not manipulating the NPCs - they ARE the NPCs! There's probably more of them than there are of us by now.

  Stay out of sight. Never walk the same route twice. Avoid the Guard - avoid anyone who acts like the Guard. TRUST NO ONE with unnatural movements. REPORT suspicious behavior. PROTECT yourselves and your fellow humans!

  Sewer People News - From the depths to your doorstep - news that matters!

  Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

  |Ace>

  "Guys..."

  Willard set the article down on his desk and stared at it like it was a dead fish. We were in the Sewer People's headquarters, the steady drip of water from the ceiling punctuating the uncomfortable silence.

  "We can't publish this."

  Cherry pointed her shaking finger at him. "You're with them!"

  Willard leaned back in his chair. "No, it's just sensitive information. We're talking to Poe about it, and we agree that it cannot be let out to the public. It's ammunition for paranoia. Murdock will run a witch hunt to purge dissenters under the pretense of 'enemies of humanity'. Just... keep it cool, guys; we're working on it."

  We nodded, not trusting ourselves to speak, and backed toward the door. Once outside in the corridor, safely out of earshot, Cherry and I huddled together.

  "They've infiltrated the Sewer People, too!" I hissed.

  "I knew it! What do we do?"

  I said, "First, we can't let them know we're onto them. Second... we need multiple layers of escape routes. Let's save up and buy a place in Falconworth. No one will look for us there."

  "I hear they've got good food, too."

  "Let's propose another tourism article - do a scouting mission on real estate."

  ---

  Next Time:

  While plots and schemes continue to develop, so to does the Vanguard's progress through the Citadel. Aided by their three new advisors, the minor guilds prove themselves to be an indomitable force. So much so that Willard has negotiated a deal: in exchange for the minor guild's raid slots on the next 10 fights, the 30th boss fight will be theirs alone. And they plan to make this one a landmark - the first (known) boss fight to have zero deaths.

  Episode 18 - FUN