"I think it's time you gave us something more hardcore".
It was Scaramouch, the editor of this digital rag. "A longer form piece, something that'll really show us what Second Life is all about, through the eyes of it's first gonzo journalist. Tell me, what do you spend most of your time there doing?"
My fingers paused over the keyboard - it's the same goddam stupid request Editors always ask, to 'get under the skin' to 'peel back the layers'. Only two weeks on the payroll, and already this jackass was wearing thin on me.
"Mainly, I fuck strippers" I replied, truthfully. After all, why lie? A beat, and then...
"OK then - how about the "Ten Best Escorts in Second Life"? We LOVE those Top Ten lists".
It was either continue to type, or punch my fist into the screen. "Do I get an unlimited expense account? In Linden Dollars?"
And so it was decided. I would spend seven days on a road trip - call it "Fear & Loathing in Second Life" - taking in ten of the best escorts the Lindens have to offer. It's a hard assignment, but someone had to do it.