The E3 Expo was in the New York Convention Centre, which had been demolished and rebuilt to a grander, larger structure, one that fit the larger audiences of the late 21st Century. In fact, E3's ban on people unconnected to the videogame industry had made sure that much of this space was unutilized, and had to be locked away. This left about a third of the building being left alone, something that suited Arcana Unlimited fine.

ArcU [i]did[/i] help Akira Kariya develop his new 'Magical Virtual Reality' technology, but it didn't plan to let the man go through with his delusions. Rather, they planned to kill Kariya, then use his technology for their own ends, to make themselves gods of their own worlds in case they failed to take over this one. And, to do that, the MegaCorp had been using the unused third of the convention centre as a base for their invisible 'Ghost' troops, and much more; much more indeed.

For ArcU had a secret weapon, one that would turn the tide of any battle that should occur... 

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Just because the building was too large for the convention didn't mean that the E3 gathering was in any way small. In fact, it was fairly well-populated, with at least a thousand people connected to the gaming industry; software developers, hardware developers, single-player game makers, multiplayer game makers, and, of course, logistics and maintenance personnel, as well as snack booths. There was also security, the finest that the NYPD and the private security companies can offer. Oh, and Arcana Unlimited's finest anti-scrying, anti-teleportation, and anti-everything systems, which augmented the natural defenses of the building. Despite the throngs of people that now streamed throughout the building, everything seemed safe.

But why would Anya Tarnova, inventor of Midgard Online, felt suspicious about this particular convention; this had never been the case in Los Angeles? All right, so the move itself had been dubious, but she figured that it was just another way for ArcU to get rich, nothing more. So, why did she have this feeling in her head that said that no, everything's not all right, and things are about to explode soon?

If the 'reporters' would move to interview her, she would try and defy the cold 'Slavic' sterotype and talk to them warmly, answering questions about her game such as safety measures (Midgard Online was realistic, but players can control if they would feel pain at all, there would me measures taken to protect epileptic patients, stuff like that), graphics (she was proud to say that with Pure Technology alone, she was able to make the game look just like real life, without the 'Uncanny Valley' problem, gameplay (it was hack-and-slash, with a Magic System that's more limited than Real Life; now that Magic has been proven to be real, people have been saying that IRL magic was too munchkiny). 

Ken Saddler shared the same suspicions; as the maker of Hope Online, the post-apocalyptic game based on the concept of 'A World Half Full', he was percived by many to be a wise and profound person. And, what he knew was that this was an unusual conference, what with the move, ArcU's involvement, and now the presence of one too many reporters. Thankfully, he and Lizzie (Elizabeth Cortes) knew enough magic to defend themselves.

If the 'reporters' would try to interview him, he would also greet the people warmly, giving the same answers as regards safety as Anya (only in his game, pain is automatically switched off when PCs are tortured instead of NPCs; as for how to tell when a PC is being tortured, well, that system was confidential, but magical), graphics (very, very realistic, but with heavy use of magic to save costs) gameplay (it was basically real life, with real world magic), and even a few words on his motivation ("I want to show that even in the darkness of the end, there is hope and renewal). Not just that, but when asked about his Magical Powers and the Magical Powers of his fellow MMO makers, he would be open about the fact that of the four, only Anya wasn't a Mage.

Akira Kairya and Elizabeth Cortes, meanwhile, were having a private argument behind the former's booth, meaning that the Mafia hit squad can try to nab them both; of course, since both of them were Magi and one of them was a supergenius, such an approach might cause difficulties. That said, though, people who've watched SAO would be most suspicious of the person whose initials are [i]A.K...[/I]