THE MOMENT
"Hey, Justice," Jenny nodded at the pink-haired teen. She stood by the table as Justice slid into the green booth. Once she looked settled in, Jenny continued. "I don't think you've been here before, want a menu?" she asked.
"I'm not here to eat...," Justice took a look around the pizzeria to make sure. It was technically still morning and the lunch rush hadn't started yet. Brilliant sunlight flooded in through the windows to highlight how empty the restaurant was. Only one other green and white checkerboard table was occupied. An older couple were already eating and it looked like Jenny had a few minutes to spare. "...I wanted to ask you for a favor if I could...," Justice nodded at the empty seat across from her.
"Really?" Jenny was surprised and she sat down. "Sure, I'll be glad to help; but, why me?" she asked. "Better yet, why not Sharp Development?"
"Because I'm trying to surprise Oren," Justice answered.
"Ohhh, okay," Jenny nodded. She immediately understood the issue. It wasn't likely to be used; but, technically Oren had access to anything that Sharp Development did. He never actually bothered to look into anything, but he could decide to at any moment.
"And... you're better at keeping secrets than Aury," Justice giggled.
"No argument there," Jenny smirked and leaned forward over the table. "So, what's this surprise for Oren?"
"I'm trying to find an old Server for him. Oren left it private but it's been so long, he forgot where it was."
"I can give it a shot," Jenny nodded. "What can you tell me about it?"
"Not much," Justice sighed. "Oren barely talks about it. But, someone told me there is a goblin cave with a princess quest in it. The princess is at the back and wants to be escorted to the entrance of the cave. There aren't any goblins going in; but, they spawn when escorting the princess."
"Someone that's been there?" Jenny asked. Justice shook her head.
"He told me how he knows; I trust him...," she said. "I can't say any more about that."
"Well, that's not very helpful...," Jenny shrugged. "There are many kidnapped, trapped, or imprisoned Princesses. In fact... there are too many Princesses," she chuckled. "Logistically, it makes no sense. Even in the context of a game like the AlterNet... that's going to be trillions of Princesses at least. I'm hoping this surprise is for his birthday?" Jenny asked. "I'm gonna need some time."
"It is," Justice nodded. "If you've found anything, I'd like to show him during the tournament."
"Okay, that's plenty," Jenny said. "I'll put Finn on it."
"Who?" Justice sat up. "Secret, remember??"
"Oh, yeah, 'course," Jenny nodded and pulled a blue translucent node out of her green apron. "Finn's my A.I. assistant," she said. She placed the node on the table and tapped it. "Say hi, Finn," she said.
[Hi. -Finn] glowing golden text appeared on the surface of the node then faded away again. When the text was gone, the blue node lost its shape. The rectangular edges gave way to amorphous liquid as if the node melted. Then, the liquid ballooned from the center and it continued to change shape until Justice was staring at a ball of blue liquid on the table. After it was complete, the ball rippled and clarified. A small white and blue koi fish swam a tight circle inside the now grapefruit-sized ball.
[Nice to meet you. -Finn] golden text appeared on the surface of the sphere and scrolled around it once before disappearing again.
"He'll report only to me and won't tell anyone about the Princess you're looking for," Jenny said.
"Oh wow, thanks!" Justice grinned at Jenny; but, she focused on Finn after reconsidering. "Thank you, Finn. I know you'll be a big help!"
"Can you tell us anything else? How long ago did Oren lose track? Are you sure the Server still exists?" Jenny asked.
"A long time ago...," Justice began her explanation; but, hesitated. "At least 1000 years ago. But, I know it's still around!" she wanted to make that clear. Finn floated in his sphere as he stared at her. Even Jenny raised an eyebrow.
"How do you know that...?" she asked.
"More secrets...," Justice sighed and stared at the green and white checkerboard table. "Sorry...," she slumped her shoulders.
"You guarantee this isn't a wild goose chase?" Jenny asked.
"Yes! I want to do this for Oren!" Justice replied instantly.
"Alright, we're on the case then," Jenny smiled.
"Oh, and one more thing...," Justice said. "I don't know if it'll help. Her name is Eva."
"The Princess is named Eva?"
"I don't know...?" Justice shrugged. "I don't know if the AlterNet uses that name. She's a Princess now; but, her name was Eva before she became an NPC."