Avira Silverleaf stood calmly before the woman who had been her employer for five years. Leilani's age was difficult to estimate; she had delicate features and light brown hair that she wore piled on her head. Her slim figure and short stature made others underestimate her, but she had turned a simple traveling bordello into a multi-server spy network that rained credits. Leilani enjoyed lunch with her assistant, Ora Zun, someone who, on the surface, seemed her polar opposite. While Leilani enjoyed bright colors and grand gestures, Ora always dressed in black and wore her short white hair slicked back in a boyish style, amplified by her pants and singlet.
Avira cleared her throat, causing the booth occupants to look up. "OP has confiscated the tower on Phoenix, and the guild's Vice Leader has asked me to relay a message."
Leilani frowned, glancing at Ora, who stirred her soup with a complicated expression. "OP's Vice Leader is QJ..."
Although the Madam didn't ask a question, Avira nodded. "He said you should be satisfied with the other GnG servers and leave Phoenix to him."
Leilani laughed unexpectedly. "Anything else?"
Avira handed Leilani her letter of resignation. "Effective immediately, I'm no longer in your employment."
Leilani wrinkled her nose; being pushed around didn't suit her. "I suppose OP recruited you?"
Avira did not attempt to hide it. "Yes. Since QJ asked, I am happy to work for OP."
Leilani dismissed the Silverleaf woman with a flick of her hand, frowning at her plate while Avira exited. "We could push back."
Ora Zun pursed her lips. "Against OP? You are aware that I couldn't take part in such a thing. QJ is a prince of the Dark Elf nation."
"He's not a prince," Leilani countered with a heavy sigh. "Although he might as well be. We've already built the first tower on Phoenix and invested capital. What would you recommend?"
Ora Zun raised an eyebrow. "We have an existing relationship with the Riley family; few can say that. The total monetary investment and cost of building the tower is about 50 million credits. We use this opportunity to become friends with OP and ask for a return of our expenditures."
Leilani's pretty face showed her distaste for taking orders. "You think the Jol Clan would come at us if we oppose OP on Phoenix?"
"Yes," Ora Zun stated. "You aren't a dark elf, so you don't know. My family would order me home, and all the towers on all the GnG servers would be razed to the ground."
"Do you know QJ?" Leilani asked.
Ora smiled. "Not personally, but I like the way he does things."
"Meet with QJ and let him know we are willing to comply," Leilani decided. In all truth, the feelers she had on Phoenix weren't promising. The intel she gathered from multiple servers was largely inaccurate compared to Phoenix, thanks to fate and OP.
"Phoenix would have been a massive headache," Ora stated. "The King is slain, Morbin was executed, even the King's uncle is dead. Topping all that, Maelstrom is ruled by someone dead on every other server."
Leilani let her frown slip into a relaxed smile. "Why do you think QJ is against us coming to Phoenix? We have a great relationship with the top guilds on other servers."
"I'm guessing he already has his own network in place." Ora opened her hud and sent QJ a quick message, asking for a meeting.
*************
OP Keep was quiet when QJ logged in after lunch. His hud buzzed non-stop, notifying him that he had several messages waiting. "Open mail."
[Subject: Cooperation Sender: Ora Zun]
[Subject: Pool Party Sender: Sierra Sandhealer]
[Subject: Impressive Sender: Galaxia]
[Subject: Your turn. Sender: Q]
QJ headed toward his shop and opened the first message.
QJ,
As you requested, we won't do any business on the Phoenix Server. I'll meet you at the Songbird tomorrow to go over the details. Does 1700 work?
Ora Zun.
QJ smiled and nodded to himself. "1700 works better with my plans. Next message."
QJ,
I can't wait for the pool party tonight. The four of us are going to have a great time.
Ra.
"Four? Who else is coming? Next message."
QJ,
I have to say it: You are one impressive guy. Someone told me you are tight with the Songbirds. Could you introduce me? Maybe they'll let me sing a few of my songs.
Galaxia.
"Hmmm... I can make that happen, but first, I'll have to listen to one of your albums. Last message."
QJ,
After discussing it with my team, we finally decided to retire from the Arena Championships. It's evident that you're ready to be handed the torch. The 10v10 is all yours; you have six months to assemble a team.
Dad
QJ paused outside his shop door. "Well... I'm unsure if we can win, but we can probably make it to the finals. I'll wait until after the Summit to worry about that."
QJ entered his shop and checked the guild status; Sam was on the Basara continent, probably involved in the railroad construction. He sent her a quick message asking her to stop by his shop when she had time.
"It feels like forever since I've been here." QJ took a seat and began sketching on the notepad he kept on the workbench shelf. Remmy asked for some new Reaper rounds, and I really should widen my munitions catalog."
QJ ordered freon, lox (liquid Oxegen), a portable deep freezer, and dry ice from the Exodus market. Although none of the items could be found in GnG, as long as they were Exodus-compliant, you could use whatever materials were available.
QJ put aside a dozen 7.62x39 empty steel casing and began planning the payload.
"Standard powder pack, but the bullet itself has to be modified." QJ began by drilling out a small hole in the base of each shell for the igniter and then added 200 grains of black powder before packing it down and placing a thin plastic barrier. By the time he finished a dozen shells, his rush order from Exodus had arrived.
QJ placed the deep freezer on the floor and stocked it with the dry ice and lox he ordered. Thankfully, the lox came with the necessary PPE (personal protective equipment), which consisted of a face shield, lab apron, and insulated gloves.
"Let's see... Lox has a temperature of around negative 290 degrees Fahrenheit while dry ice is only about a third of that. For now, I'll have to go with the colder setting and order a second freezer."
QJ talked to himself while walking to his drill press. "Steel round, but I'll have to hollow it out before deciding on contents."
After drilling a cylindrical opening in each projectile, QJ started experimenting with the different materials. Right away, he noted that when exposed to room temperature, the lox started evaporating at an alarming rate. "I'll have to put lox aside until I can make a containment case."
Pausing momentarily, he ordered a larger deep freeze unit and three 4x8 sheets of 3/4 inch plastic sheeting.
QJ fired the first of three dry ice rounds a short while later. A small puff of fog was released, but it had no discernible effect or damage on the dummy. "Yeah, that was predictable."
Next, QJ attempted freon by itself; this test was an absolute dud and a waste of time. While he was considering the changes, he drilled a few small holes in the [Oh Shit] fire damage rounds and added attempting to add low-grade nitroglycerin.
Robin was sipping her coffee in her office, thinking about surprising QJ, when the door between their work areas blasted open and impacted the far wall. "QJ?"
The Songbird made it to the entrance a second later, wrinkling her nose at the acrid smoke just before an impossible amount of fog and cold air rushed past her. She ducked behind her office wall as a second explosion shook the walls.
QJ swore under his breath.
[OP: QJ] Sara, report to my workshop... Rez required.
[OP: Sara] On my way! Are you okay?
[OP: QJ] No... that's why I need a rez. Don't go in my shop for a few minutes, Robs.
[OP: Robin] Got it.
[OP: Sara] What about me?
[OP: Robin] You can rezz him from the doorway in my office. I see pieces of him.
[OP: Sato] Bruh... What happened?
[OP: QJ] My motivation exceeded my common sense... shit happens.
[OP: Ringo] Nothing can top when you field-tested those magnets. That still makes me laugh when I think about it.
[OP: QJ] Hey.. We completed a three-day quest in one day with those magnets.
[OP: Ringo] I'm not saying they weren't fantastic; there is definitely a method to your madness.
QJ walked out of his smoking shop a few moments later and was immediately enveloped in Robins's arms. "I'm fine. This is nice, though." He relaxed for a few seconds while the Songbird fussed over him.
Sara clucked her tongue at QJ. "This isn't the first time you've blown yourself up."
QJ frowned at his dark elf sibling. "I beg to differ. Rosie did it last time, and I was fine."
Sara sighed heavily. "Be more careful."
QJ nodded. "Right. Hey.. I can use lead azide. I never thought of that."
Both Sara and Robin looked at him blankly, so he explained further: "Lead azide explodes on impact. It's used in flashbang grenades and blasting caps. Wait... I can use copper azide, although I'll have to invest in a large fish tank."
"I'll rush order you another chemist lab set." Robin smiled and pulled Sara away before she was caught up in QJ's rambling. "Let's have coffee while I get someone to repair my door."
Sara smiled and sat across from Robin's desk. "It's probably best if I stay close for a while."
QJ returned to his office and ordered a large fish tank. "Copper azide must be formed in a solution, or this lab will turn into a fire bomb. On a positive note, it has a detonation velocity (VoD) of over 5,000 meters per second."
Within two hours, QJ had recouped the losses to his shop and constructed a dozen rounds for testing. Half were hollowed and infused with lead azide, and the other half copper azide.
QJ slid his PPE in place and loaded the testing breech barrel before firing three lead azide rounds. A blast of power and bright light caused him to step back, squinting at the dots that appeared in his vision.
[System Message:] Lateral Achievement (Munitions). Do you wish to acknowledge?
"Yes," QJ replied.
[Guns and Gore Announcement: All Servers] Sandhealer Faction Leader QJ has been awarded a Lateral Gunsmithing Achievement (Munitions).
[System Message] Please name your munition.
"Shoryuken," QJ replied.
[Guns and Gore Announcement: All Servers] Sandhealer Faction Leader QJ has created a new munition.
[Shoryuken] (Munition: Flashbang, all firearms)
Description: This round explodes on impact and stuns the target for three seconds. Normal immunities still apply.
[OP: Chainy] Shoryuken? I love it!
QJ ignored the guild chatter, returned to the breech barrel tester, and fired off one of the copper azide rounds. Instantly, the target dummy was blasted against the far wall while his shop shook with impact.
[System Message:] Lateral Achievement (Munitions). Do you wish to acknowledge?
"Of course," QJ replied.
[Guns and Gore Announcement: All Servers] Sandhealer Faction Leader QJ has been awarded a Lateral Gunsmithing Achievement (Munitions).
[System Message] Please name your munition.
"DDT," QJ answered.
[Guns and Gore Announcement: All Servers] Sandhealer Faction Leader QJ has created a new munition.
[DDT] (Munition: HEP Round, (high explosive))
Description: This round explodes on impact and damages everyone within a five-meter radius.
QJ spent the rest of the day creating munitions and leveled up to 64.
[Iced] (Munition: Flashfreeze round, Shotgun only)
Description: Freezes a single target in ice for up to five seconds.
[Venom] (Munition: AoE Poison Round.)
Description: This round applies a poison counter that causes damage to all targets within a 3-meter radius.
QJ was sweeping up his shop when Robin entered through the replaced door. "I won't be too long," he said.
"It's fine," Robin hugged QJ from behind, kissing his neck. "How did you make the poison round?"
"Chlorine and Ammonia sectioned off until impact," QJ replied. "I'm expecting Sam in a few minutes."
Robin pursed her lips. She heard the issue with the quest. "Don't be too hard on her, QJ. Girls like their secrets."
QJ snorted but didn't reply. "Remember that arena match with the 2nd years?"
Robin nodded. "Sure, they got smoked by RH."
"That girl with the crazy hair wants to sing at the Songbird."
"Galaxia?" Robin's face split in a grin. "Really? Tell her yes! I love her songs."
QJ laughed at her expression. "Is it odd that my girlfriend knows who she is and I don't?"
Robin nodded. "Yes, you should spend more time at the Songbird or with me; take your pick."
"With you," QJ answered as someone knocked at the door. "Come in."
Sam poked her head in the door. "Nothing going to blow up, boss?"
"Just you," QJ answered. "We'll talk later, Robs."
"Sure, we'll be over sometime after dinner." Robin waved at Sam before exiting through her office door.