[Group: Sato] All done, my bets in!
[Group: Enju] Same here. I'm finally ahead of the bills I'm responsible for, but I managed to come up with 100k. Even that would have been impossible if OP hadn't started giving allowances.
QJ walked beside Chainy while Sato and Enju brought up the rear. He used his hud to enter the next queue in the All-Comers Matched 4v4 category. Almost immediately, RH took the opposing slot.
Chainy was watching QJ's hud, her pretty face split in a wide grin. "They jumped on that. How we playing this?"
"Leave the two slingers to me at the start," QJ decided. "Sato will tie up their Scout while you create distance and kill their medic. Enju will heal as needed, but I need a HoT slapped on me right when we start."
"If you can take down both slingers, this becomes a cakewalk. Who's my secondary?" Chainy would have laughed if anyone else had made that statement.
"Sato's target; if I need assistance, we can gang up on whoever remains."
[Group: QJ] Cameras are on us; news travels fast.
The entrance to the Arena was treated like any other Game entrance, with a single gate and a large stone archway. The only difference was that there were two entrances, one for spectators and the other for participants.
[Group: Enju] Will the HoT be enough? Both of those slingers are sure to have a ton of dps.
[Group: QJ] I have bracers that will mitigate some of that and [Roll Credits], which will proc (Stagger) as soon as I land a crit hit on them.
[Shield Brother] Legendary
Bracer: (Assault Set 2 of 2)
Description: Tap the bracers together to create a temporary shield that mitigates fifty percent of the next attack. If Shield Brother is activated within melee range of the attacker, a three-second stun is applied.
Duration: Shield is persistent until it receives damage.
Cool Down: Two minutes.
"Holy smokes..." Enju followed QJ through the fighter's entrance, and the stands filled up so fast that it looked like an optical illusion. "This is scary."
[Group: QJ] A bit. No worries, focus on your task.
The holding area was separate from the Arena and divided into Home (H) and Visitor (V) sections per tradition. They assumed the Home side since RH was a holdover from the last match. A small box in the center of the holding area was where the three advocating judges were stationed, monitoring the North, South, and Center sections of the fighting area.
The fight between Basilisk and RH had been a relatively quiet affair, with only hardcore fans paying attention. The press and public rushed to the Arena when OP's participation leaked.
When OP stepped into the holding area, the crowd roared to life. The chants of "OP" drowned out everything else. QJ walked into the Visitor's area and approached the judging box.
The trio of judges wore matching bright yellow uniforms. On the front, a single letter referred to their area of responsibility: either N (North), S (South), or C (Center). Just before the match began, they assumed their positions on the field. Contestants lined up facing each other on their respective H or V lines ten meters from the center (twenty meters apart).
The judges were all male; QJ recognized them from previous matches he had watched. The Center judge looked up when QJ arrived at the box.
"I'm Primary Judge Anders. Do you represent the OP 4v4 team?" Anders was a blond-haired slip of a man with a cheerful round face.
"Yes, sir," QJ replied. "QJ and three members of OP." He used his hud to send him their details.
[One Problem]
Unchained Melody: Rider (Lvl 61).
Enju: Medic (Lvl 60).
Sato: Scout (Lvl 61).
QJ: Wrangler (Lvl 63).
[Group: QJ] Brief our team, Chainy.
[Group: Chainy] Friendly Fire is the greatest difference between the Arena and regular GE (Gaming Environment). Don't throw out items that do Area damage; watch your shots and spacing. The match starts with a ten-second countdown. You can time your heal to land right when we start. Pay attention to range; these fights are much more spread out than GE fights.
[Group: Sato] Got it.
[Group: QJ] Here are the deets for RH. Ringo and I ran into their Phoenix avatars when we wiped out their camp in the Corridor. Needless to say, they're using their Legends characters today.
Kendrix: Slinger ( Lvl 154).
Jowen: Slinger (Lvl 151).
Keely: Medic (Lvl 155).
Muriel: Scout (Lvl 156).
[Group: Sato] Isn't the cap level 200? How come they aren't maxed out?
[Group: Chainy] Couple of reasons. One is that raiding gives crappy XP, and RH is very raid-heavy. Two is that leveling up becomes exponentially harder after 100. Regular level grinding might take three months per level, but it's much more than that on a Raid schedule. I spent my last two years as a Slinger at 145.
[Group: QJ] No one on the older servers is capped out. The highest I've heard of was 190, and he was an independent Tracker.
"QJ!"
QJ turned toward the queue area, where the next challengers were waiting in line. Since OP registered for a one-and-done appearance, the next match was between two different teams. "You must be Damon, the second-year Professor. I'm QJ. It's nice to meet you finally."
A serious-looking man with olive-colored skin, black hair, and a slim build nodded. His team was lined up behind him; his single gun and first aid pouch identified him as a medic. Damon shook the proffered hand, his expression complicated. "They did a number on us."
QJ nodded in agreement, glancing at the glum team behind Damon. "Don't get down about it. You didn't embarrass yourselves. Those four have probably fought here hundreds of times; Kendrix might be an ass, but he's a GnG legend."
Galaxia flashed a bright smile in response to his encouragement. Her hair was a multitude of bright colors—it looked like a rainbow had exploded and then been sprinkled with glitter. "Our medic couldn't make it, so I filled in. I got killed right away; I let everyone down."
QJ waved her words off. "Don't worry. We'll get you some payback."
The 2nd year group pepped up, a large portion of their glumness fading away.
"Can I ask your strategy?" Roman spoke up for the first time; he had been nervous when QJ walked over, expecting to be ridiculed.
"Kendrix is a top-level Slinger, but that's the extent of his skill set. I've watched dozens of his matches; you beat him by attacking his weaknesses, which, in this case, is just about everything else."
"Really?" Roman's expression showed some doubt.
QJ nodded. "Good luck in your next match."
[OP: Ringo] QJ! Next time let us know when you come to the Arena!
[OP: QJ] Spur of the moment thing. The Songbird is fronting all bets. I don't know what the odds are.
[OP: Ringo] I know, most of us are here! The current odds are 3:2.
[OP: Breeze] You brought Sato? I bet he didn't wager.
[OP: Sato] Wrong! I put down 10k! If we win, I'll buy dinner for the house.
[Whisper: Ringo/QJ] How much did you bet?
[Whisper: QJ/Ringo] 30 million credits.
[Whisper: Ringo/QJ] I'll have to match that. Next time, bring me.
[Whisper: QJ/ Ringo] Of course. Like I said, this wasn't planned.
"Fighters take your positions! One minute until the match begins," the Center judge spoke with an enhanced voice while his two partners moved into their positions.
QJ lined up on the V line; on his left were Chainy, Enju, and Sato, each distanced about three meters apart.
QJ tapped his bracers together and brought up [Shield Brother].
[Group: QJ] Remember your assignments; let's put the fear into them.
QJ watched the Arena timer, which wasn't official but gave a reasonably accurate estimate of when the Ten-second countdown would begin.
Kendirx wore a big grin on his face. "QJ... This has been a long time coming."
"What the hell are you talking about? I haven't even played a year yet..." QJ smiled nonchalantly. "Some people don't know their death is at hand until the coffin arrives."
[Timer 10...9...8....7...6...5...4...3]
Enju has placed a [HoT] on QJ. His health will be buffed by 30 percent for 15 seconds.
[GO!]
[Six-Gun Fan]
Kendrix has emptied his gun into the target for 13,298 damage, 16,411...
(Iterrupt!)
QJ covered the 20-meter distance in a single jump, landing squarely on Kendrix and knocking him to the ground. Ignoring the attempted pistol strike, QJ secured the near wrist while sliding his legs over Kendrix's torso. One brutal wrenching later resulted in multiple cracks and a sudden scream of pain.
Kendrix has received 36,899 in grappling damage.
(Critical Injury: Broken Ulna/Radius) (Critical Injury: Dislocated Elbow)
[Six-Gun Fan]
Jowen has emptied his gun into the target for 19,290 damage, 18,766...
QJ grabbed Kendrix and used him as a shield.
(Warning Friendly Fire)
15,989 damage, and (Critical Hit) 28,277 damage.
"I can't target him!" Jowen shouted.
QJ quickly covered the ten meters to the second slinger with another quick leap, despite carrying Kendrix, who was desperately swatting at him with his remaining pistol. Jowen's eyes widened as both men arrived on top of him at the time.
QJ finally drew [Roll Credits], lining up with Kendrix back just before they slammed onto Jowen. The sudden loss of kinetic energy transferred to the blade, driving it through Kendrix's back, Jowen's shoulder, and deep into the sand of the Arena, pinning them both in a gruesome maneuver that splashed blood high into the air.
[Weighted Thrust] (Critical Strike)
QJ has hit Kendrix for 52,109 damage.
[Point Blank] (Critical Strike/Exposed Wound)
QJ has hit the target for 44,202 damage.
Fire scorches your target for 8,840 damage.
[Weighted Thrust] (Critical Strike)
QJ has hit Jowen for 52,109 damage.
[Point Blank] (Critical Strike)
QJ has hit Jowen for 38,322
Fire scorches your target for 7,664 damage.
With both slingers pinned, QJ drew [Silverlight] and blasted down at point-blank range.
At the same time, Sato feinted toward the enemy medic, forcing her to run before he engaged the RH Scout. This gave Chainy time to create distance and QJ the opportunity to maul his targets.
A moment later, the OP Rider slid into a prone position and targeted the opposing team's medic.
[Rider's Sharpshooter]
(Head-Shot Bonus)
(Critical Hit)
Unchained has hit Keely for 64,877 damage.
(Keely has caught on Fire)
Chainy grinned and checked her team's health; with Enju's assistance, Sato was holding his own while QJ's health was steady.
[Rider's Sharpshooter]
(Head-Shot Bonus)
(Critical Hit)
Unchained has hit Keely for 71,999 damage.
(Keely has caught on Fire)
With no pressure from their opponents, Chainy burned through the medic's health before reassessing. Sato and Enju had depleted their target's health to half; a glance QJ made her jaw drop.
The area around QJ looked like it had been spray-painted red. He stood calmly, alternating between blasting down with [Silverlight] and chopping with [Roll Credits]. Both Kendrix and Jowen died at the same time, taking their severed limbs and broken bones with them.
QJ didn't close on the last target, but he did take aim and helped his team eliminate the remaining RH member.
[Group: Sato] Bruh... you're bathed in blood.
QJ glanced down at his gear. The effect of Arena matches was temporary and would fade within a few minutes.
The Center Judged pointed his green flag toward the Visitor side. "One Problem wins, 4-0."
The stadium erupted, shouting, stomping, and clapping rose until the Arena shook. The members of OP returned to the holding area.
[Group: Chainy] It looks like RH has already left. I don't blame them.
[Group: Sato] Thanks for keeping me healed, Enju. That Scout was tricky; I even learned a few things.
Chainy threw an arm around QJ's shoulders, favoring him with a smile. "I can't wait to rewatch this to see what you did to those two slingers. I can't remember ever seeing you fight in the Arena."
"I haven't," QJ admitted. There is a training field in Ravenwood where I learned PVP."
"You're dad trained you?" Chainy asked.
" Mostly Dad, Craven, and my uncles, Hashtage and Jangles." QJ smiled at Chainy's reaction. "A few others in specialized areas."
"Now that's a line-up." Chainy turned her attention toward Sato. "Smart feint on the medic; it opened the door for a first-class beat down."
Sato fist-bumped Chainy. "What's the payout on 10k at 3:2?"
"15k," QJ answered. "Don't worry about buying us dinner. It's on me, we'll order from Dela Rays."
Chainy released QJ after a moment while congratulating herself on her recent life choices. Raiding with Haven had been a chore during the last years of her career. Her business ventures had panned out, but they lacked excitement. Losing squares to QJ started her on a rewarding and exhilarating path; it was more like home than Haven ever was.
[OP: Ringo] That's how it's done, OP.
[OP: Breeze] Straight up and brutal.
[OP: Lotte] Can you help me work out today, QJ?
[OP: QJ] I'll be there. We'll be questing until then so I may need a time reminder.
[OP: Lotte] You got it!
The OP members waved to the crowd as they exited the Arena. Both entrances remained jammed as spectators and competitors moved forward to greet the OP.
[Group: QJ] We'll have to ride to Yaron, it's the only connection to Junebug.