Chapter 27
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*knock, knock.*
"Hmm?" Quinn rolled over in bed glancing at his alarm clock. Damn.. its 5:30am, it has to be Tal. He stumbled out of bed. The ex-army captain was a chronic early riser, so was Quinn, but his early was about two hours later then Tal's early.
The tall blonde smiled at him when she opened the door, she gave him a quick hug and walked past. Quinn stared at her for a moment and then shut the door. At least she brought food.
Tal smiled at him as she unwrapped a breakfast burrito and handed it to him. "One hot breakfast burrito from Salazar's. Just the way you like it!"
Quinn felt his mouth start to drool as the smell of sausage and eggs seeped out of the hot shell. " I love these Tal, you are the best!" He immediately took a huge bite, his eyes half closed in pleasure.
"How did you get him to make one this early? He doesn't even open until 6."
Tal smile and shrugged. "I can be very persuasive Quinn." She love watching him eat, he attacked everything like a cornered wolf.
"Well... you are awesome." Q offered her a bite and she leaned over and sampled some of his burrito. "And beautiful too... besides that you smell really nice."
"Wow, all that?" She reached a hand out and smoothed down his bed hair, it popped back up stubbornly. "You are awfully sweet this morning."
Quinn cocked his head to one side. "Aren't I always like that?"
"Maybe?" Tal liked Quinn best when he was being sweet. "Hey! Did you get a girlfriend or something?"
Quinn felt his face turn red as he swallowed the last of his breakfast. "Does a VR girlfriend count?"
Tal laughed at his face. "Not sure. So... the redhead?"
Quinn nodded. "The Apple princess."
"I love those freckles." Tal's eyes lit humor. "Get those local surveys done?"
"Yeah, looks like spawn points are erased when you change geography." Quinn knew this an important part of Tal's plans.
"Really? I'm gonna log in now!" Tal held up the headset she had in her hand.
I'm going to get a workout in first." Quinn started cleaning up his breakfast and grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge.
Tal stood up and grabbed Quinn in a big hug. "Damn.. I use to be taller than you."
Quinn bent his knees and hunched over so that he had to look up at her. "Better?"
Tal laughed as she walked towards his bedroom. "Thanks little Q."
Two hours later Q was finishing his shower and was sitting comfortably on his bed. It was a bit crowded, even though it was a big bed. He stared at the blonde woman lying on his bed. "Not sure why you can't use your own apartment. You even took my favorite pillow. "
Q shook his head. The big tough army captain was scared over a little VR jump. Quinn would have teased her, but honestly, he was happy to have her around. Since Tal retired, all she did was take care of Renri. That ridiculously impressive brain was not being challenged at all. He got comfortable next to her and made use of his other pillow. "Hope you aren't breaking anything."
"Log On TAP."
TAP Interface Acquired.
Synchronizing character data.....
Welcome Back Q, find your path!
A few moments later he appeared in the warehouse Alcove. Mojo, Remmy, Tal and Leah were seated and were all staring at the table's hud. Q stepped behind the rows of shelving and exited the building. He pulled out the red bridle from his inventory.
"Let's see how good your memory is Red." Q summoned the big red stallion.
Scorch stood calmly staring at Q, then stepped forward and nuzzled his chest. Q patted his neck. "Such a good boy, all those bad people calling you devil horse."
He stepped to the side and swung easily into the saddle. Scorch showed a bit of friskiness with some small crow hops, but settled down right away. Q rubbed the big stallions shoulder. "They say you're the wind, show me!"
Q heeled him and immediately was pushed back into the saddle by Scorches acceleration. He pointed the horse down the dried river bed and let him run.
A red streak tore through the countryside, his rider bent low, the sound of the galloping stallion echoed like thunder through the valley. Q finally reined him half a mile from the Warehouse and jumped down.
"Well.. gotta admit, as a fodder you're faster than any horse I ever had. Wonder how you'd do against the speedsters in Guns and Gore."
Q slid the saddle off and dropped it on the ground, he grabbed a handful of grass and started rubbing the red stallion down.
"Gonna leave you loose, plenty of grass and water around." Q still had the red bridle in his inventory, so he could summon him whenever he wanted, he put the saddle in his inventory and left him there on the bank of the river. "Don't bite anyone!"
"I want to declare my TAP class."
System Message: Do you wish for A World Wide broadcast
"Yes."
World Wide Announcement: A secret TAP class has been uncovered by Q in Talon.
Base Class: N/A
TAP Class: NPC Assassin
"That should cover it."
Q walked back to the warehouse, stopping before he went inside.
"Open Mail."
TAP MAIL
Subject:Fenway Trip Sender: Sinful Jinn Attachment:None
Subject: Our Apologies, (NPC Prince Quinn) Sender: Orion Prime Attachment: Currency
Subject:Hello Q Sender: Jaded Ice Attachment:Package
Subject:Orion Prime Sender: Bo Jangles Attachment:None
"Open first mail."
Hello everyone!
It is the last day of our class field trip. As a surprise we are
all taking a trip to Fenway! Fenway is the home of several
powerful guilds as well as the best shopping on the continent.
Use the apple tokens to meet at the warehouse at 11am. From
there we will access the warehouse link to Fenway. Bring credits and
lots of energy! Let's finish this field trip off on a great note!
Jinn
"Still got some time. Open second mail."
System Message: 500 thousand credits has been deposited into your account.
Prince Quinn,
Let me humbly apologize for the aggressive nature of our first meeting.
Unfortunately I was ill advised by our sponsors and made the poor decision to
agree to an invasion. In the interest of making amends, I offer this currency as
an apology. We made a mistake, but I hope to open up diplomatic relations
sometime in the future.
Orion Prime, Guild Leader
Fullmetal Riot
"Thanks for the credits, no way I'd trust you. Open third mail."
System Message: Warm Fluffy Bath Towel has been deposited into your inventory.
Hello Q,
I have acquired the necessary items. Please contact me
at your convenience. I will be flying to Vegas tomorrow to
personally oversee this transaction.
Jaded Ice, (Anna Li)
p.s. You did say the towel was optional.
"Hmm, I like that. Orion Media group... Orion Prime. That is kinda coincidental. I need
answers before I make nice. Draft a letter to Jaded Ice."
Dear Jaded Ice,
Thanks for the towel. I have two questions before we can move
things along. 1) What is the relationship between Orion Media
group and Orion Prime? 2) If there is a relationship, did Orion Media
knowingly encourage the aggressive action targeting my faction,
the Fora Development Group?
Q,
"Open Fourth mail."
Q,
Another report has come across my desk. It seems that
the NPC Faction you created is overwhelmingly strong. I've
never heard of a Tier 2 raid group being defeated so easily.
This Prince Quinn, what level is he? In the hundreds
somewhere? I've never seen a 90 level Wizard be abused so
badly. Please pass on Concert Hall's good wishes to the
Fora Development Group. We will also send Orion Prime a letter
of reprimand.
Jangles.
"A letter of reprimand? Okay, you are very creepy."
"Okay.. time to face them I suppose." Q opened the door and stepped inside. To his surprise the Warehouse was packed full of NPCs. A few of them noticed him come in and started clapping, after a moment everyone joined in. Q spotted Leah running towards him. 'This a bigger deal then I thought?'
Leah jumped at him and hugged him close, "I knew you would do it!" She kissing him lightly on the lips before releasing him. She slid an arm through his as they walked back to the conference table.
"Q'Ikah'... thank you." Mojo gave him a quick hug before stepping back.
Remmy and Leah looked at each other, both were thinking the same thing. 'Did Mojo hug people?'
Remmy's big smile showed how happy she was as she hugged Q. "Now we are in business!"
Q returned her smile. "Let's go blow something up to celebrate!"
Remmy threw her hands over her head. "Yeah lets do that!!"
Finally the applause stopped, Q looked around the warehouse. Every NPC he'd ever seen was here. Tal was watching him, a smile on her full lips. She stepped close to hug him and whispered. "They thought you were scared Quinn."
Q climbed up on the table, smiling at the crowd. "Thank you everyone. Let me assure you I am committed to helping the Fora Development Group flourish, not only here in Fora, but throughout TAP as well. We will build cities, roads and a better life in Fora. More importantly we will do it together."
Q stepped down as more applause shook the building. Shaking his head he just smiled and waved at everyone. When they'd approach, he introduced himself and shook their hands. It was quite a while before everyone slowed back down.
Tal smiled as a tired looking Q leaned against the table. "Good job Little Q."
"What's next for development Tal?"
"Surveys. We have to map out the landscape first thing, then we can start with the heavy lifting."
System Message: Tal has joined The Fora Development Group faction.
Tal
Level 1
Strength 31
Endurance 19
Intelligence 55
Agility 10
Luck 12
Charisma 16
"Those aren't the stats I remember." Q scratched his chin while thinking. "Oh wait, Faction stat bonus. We should add some to that I think."
System Message: You have gained a follower.
System Message: Tal has joined Raven Squad.
Tal
Level 1
Strength 36
Endurance 24
Intelligence 60
Agility 15
Luck 17
Charisma 21
"Wow, now we are talking!" Q smiled
It is a big undertaking, but building something nice often times was difficult. "I have a trip with my class planned to Fenway, I'll bring you something nice!"
Q was well aware that Tal had no idea where Fenway was, but she did understand presents.
Q caught Leah watching him and winked at her, "I'll get you something too Leah."
Leah blushed prettily and mouthed a thank you.
Nimda came through the portal, followed by Jinn, Rhapsody and her class.
"Q! It is so nice to see you brother!" Nimda wrapped Q up in a big hug and then quickly let him go.
"It is nice to see you Nimda!" The burly bandit loved to hug apparently.
Jinn and Rhapsody were talking when they noticed Q approach. They both went for a hug at the same time and ended up in a group hug with Q in the middle.
"Hey... my personal space is being violated here!" Q gave them a harsh frown before cracking a smile. "Fine, fine. Good Morning everyone."
Jinn froze when she glanced at the table. She was Quinn's teacher so she knew exactly who Talia Joki was. She had spoken with Talia on several occasions over the year. When Quinn had petitioned to live by himself, it was Talia who vouched for him. She also knew about her daughter, and her military service. So of course she wanted to meet her.
Q watched as Jinn walked abruptly toward the table, when he gave Rhapsody a glance, she just shrugged.
"Don't ask me Q, so the cats out of the bag now, Mr. NPC Assassin." Rhapsody pursed her lips, "anyways whose that blonde woman?"
"That's Tal, she's a friend irl." Q watched as the two shook hands and then talked for a few minutes.
Several times they both smiled and glanced back at Q.
"Oh wait, is that the woman from your apartment building?" Rhapsody remembered hearing about her from Jinn. "You stay here Q!" With that Rhapsody walked over and joined them, she was quite animated, causing Tal to laugh aloud several times.
Q crossed his arms and shot a frown toward the table, 'this is my warehouse you know, I can go where ever I like.' He mumbled beneath his breathe for a few minutes before Jinn and Rhapsody returned.
Jinn put a hand through Q's arm, "okay everyone, choose Fenway from the Portal options. We will meet up on the other side."
"Follow me!" Rhapsody led the way, leaving Jinn to make sure everyone followed.
After all her students went through the portal, Jinn nodded at Q. "See you on the other side."
Q shook his head at Jinn, somewhere in the past few days he had become friends with his teacher. It was nothing short of miraculous. He glanced back at the conference table and waved to Tal. Then he stepped into the portal.
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
*knock, knock.*
"Hmm?" Quinn rolled over in bed glancing at his alarm clock. Damn.. its 5:30am, it has to be Tal. He stumbled out of bed. The ex-army captain was a chronic early riser, so was Quinn, but his early was about two hours later then Tal's early.
The tall blonde smiled at him when she opened the door, she gave him a quick hug and walked past. Quinn stared at her for a moment and then shut the door. At least she brought food.
Tal smiled at him as she unwrapped a breakfast burrito and handed it to him. "One hot breakfast burrito from Salazar's. Just the way you like it!"
Quinn felt his mouth start to drool as the smell of sausage and eggs seeped out of the hot shell. " I love these Tal, you are the best!" He immediately took a huge bite, his eyes half closed in pleasure.
"How did you get him to make one this early? He doesn't even open until 6."
Tal smile and shrugged. "I can be very persuasive Quinn." She love watching him eat, he attacked everything like a cornered wolf.
"Well... you are awesome." Q offered her a bite and she leaned over and sampled some of his burrito. "And beautiful too... besides that you smell really nice."
"Wow, all that?" She reached a hand out and smoothed down his bed hair, it popped back up stubbornly. "You are awfully sweet this morning."
Quinn cocked his head to one side. "Aren't I always like that?"
"Maybe?" Tal liked Quinn best when he was being sweet. "Hey! Did you get a girlfriend or something?"
Quinn felt his face turn red as he swallowed the last of his breakfast. "Does a VR girlfriend count?"
Tal laughed at his face. "Not sure. So... the redhead?"
Quinn nodded. "The Apple princess."
"I love those freckles." Tal's eyes lit humor. "Get those local surveys done?"
"Yeah, looks like spawn points are erased when you change geography." Quinn knew this an important part of Tal's plans.
"Really? I'm gonna log in now!" Tal held up the headset she had in her hand.
I'm going to get a workout in first." Quinn started cleaning up his breakfast and grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge.
Tal stood up and grabbed Quinn in a big hug. "Damn.. I use to be taller than you."
Quinn bent his knees and hunched over so that he had to look up at her. "Better?"
Tal laughed as she walked towards his bedroom. "Thanks little Q."
Two hours later Q was finishing his shower and was sitting comfortably on his bed. It was a bit crowded, even though it was a big bed. He stared at the blonde woman lying on his bed. "Not sure why you can't use your own apartment. You even took my favorite pillow. "
Q shook his head. The big tough army captain was scared over a little VR jump. Quinn would have teased her, but honestly, he was happy to have her around. Since Tal retired, all she did was take care of Renri. That ridiculously impressive brain was not being challenged at all. He got comfortable next to her and made use of his other pillow. "Hope you aren't breaking anything."
"Log On TAP."
TAP Interface Acquired.
Synchronizing character data.....
Welcome Back Q, find your path!
A few moments later he appeared in the warehouse Alcove. Mojo, Remmy, Tal and Leah were seated and were all staring at the table's hud. Q stepped behind the rows of shelving and exited the building. He pulled out the red bridle from his inventory.
"Let's see how good your memory is Red." Q summoned the big red stallion.
Scorch stood calmly staring at Q, then stepped forward and nuzzled his chest. Q patted his neck. "Such a good boy, all those bad people calling you devil horse."
He stepped to the side and swung easily into the saddle. Scorch showed a bit of friskiness with some small crow hops, but settled down right away. Q rubbed the big stallions shoulder. "They say you're the wind, show me!"
Q heeled him and immediately was pushed back into the saddle by Scorches acceleration. He pointed the horse down the dried river bed and let him run.
A red streak tore through the countryside, his rider bent low, the sound of the galloping stallion echoed like thunder through the valley. Q finally reined him half a mile from the Warehouse and jumped down.
"Well.. gotta admit, as a fodder you're faster than any horse I ever had. Wonder how you'd do against the speedsters in Guns and Gore."
Q slid the saddle off and dropped it on the ground, he grabbed a handful of grass and started rubbing the red stallion down.
"Gonna leave you loose, plenty of grass and water around." Q still had the red bridle in his inventory, so he could summon him whenever he wanted, he put the saddle in his inventory and left him there on the bank of the river. "Don't bite anyone!"
"I want to declare my TAP class."
System Message: Do you wish for A World Wide broadcast
"Yes."
World Wide Announcement: A secret TAP class has been uncovered by Q in Talon.
Base Class: N/A
TAP Class: NPC Assassin
"That should cover it."
Q walked back to the warehouse, stopping before he went inside.
"Open Mail."
TAP MAIL
Subject:Fenway Trip Sender: Sinful Jinn Attachment:None
Subject: Our Apologies, (NPC Prince Quinn) Sender: Orion Prime Attachment: Currency
Subject:Hello Q Sender: Jaded Ice Attachment:Package
Subject:Orion Prime Sender: Bo Jangles Attachment:None
"Open first mail."
Hello everyone!
It is the last day of our class field trip. As a surprise we are
all taking a trip to Fenway! Fenway is the home of several
powerful guilds as well as the best shopping on the continent.
Use the apple tokens to meet at the warehouse at 11am. From
there we will access the warehouse link to Fenway. Bring credits and
lots of energy! Let's finish this field trip off on a great note!
Jinn
"Still got some time. Open second mail."
System Message: 500 thousand credits has been deposited into your account.
Prince Quinn,
Let me humbly apologize for the aggressive nature of our first meeting.
Unfortunately I was ill advised by our sponsors and made the poor decision to
agree to an invasion. In the interest of making amends, I offer this currency as
an apology. We made a mistake, but I hope to open up diplomatic relations
sometime in the future.
Orion Prime, Guild Leader
Fullmetal Riot
"Thanks for the credits, no way I'd trust you. Open third mail."
System Message: Warm Fluffy Bath Towel has been deposited into your inventory.
Hello Q,
I have acquired the necessary items. Please contact me
at your convenience. I will be flying to Vegas tomorrow to
personally oversee this transaction.
Jaded Ice, (Anna Li)
p.s. You did say the towel was optional.
"Hmm, I like that. Orion Media group... Orion Prime. That is kinda coincidental. I need
answers before I make nice. Draft a letter to Jaded Ice."
Dear Jaded Ice,
Thanks for the towel. I have two questions before we can move
things along. 1) What is the relationship between Orion Media
group and Orion Prime? 2) If there is a relationship, did Orion Media
knowingly encourage the aggressive action targeting my faction,
the Fora Development Group?
Q,
"Open Fourth mail."
Q,
Another report has come across my desk. It seems that
the NPC Faction you created is overwhelmingly strong. I've
never heard of a Tier 2 raid group being defeated so easily.
This Prince Quinn, what level is he? In the hundreds
somewhere? I've never seen a 90 level Wizard be abused so
badly. Please pass on Concert Hall's good wishes to the
Fora Development Group. We will also send Orion Prime a letter
of reprimand.
Jangles.
"A letter of reprimand? Okay, you are very creepy."
"Okay.. time to face them I suppose." Q opened the door and stepped inside. To his surprise the Warehouse was packed full of NPCs. A few of them noticed him come in and started clapping, after a moment everyone joined in. Q spotted Leah running towards him. 'This a bigger deal then I thought?'
Leah jumped at him and hugged him close, "I knew you would do it!" She kissing him lightly on the lips before releasing him. She slid an arm through his as they walked back to the conference table.
"Q'Ikah'... thank you." Mojo gave him a quick hug before stepping back.
Remmy and Leah looked at each other, both were thinking the same thing. 'Did Mojo hug people?'
Remmy's big smile showed how happy she was as she hugged Q. "Now we are in business!"
Q returned her smile. "Let's go blow something up to celebrate!"
Remmy threw her hands over her head. "Yeah lets do that!!"
Finally the applause stopped, Q looked around the warehouse. Every NPC he'd ever seen was here. Tal was watching him, a smile on her full lips. She stepped close to hug him and whispered. "They thought you were scared Quinn."
Q climbed up on the table, smiling at the crowd. "Thank you everyone. Let me assure you I am committed to helping the Fora Development Group flourish, not only here in Fora, but throughout TAP as well. We will build cities, roads and a better life in Fora. More importantly we will do it together."
Q stepped down as more applause shook the building. Shaking his head he just smiled and waved at everyone. When they'd approach, he introduced himself and shook their hands. It was quite a while before everyone slowed back down.
Tal smiled as a tired looking Q leaned against the table. "Good job Little Q."
"What's next for development Tal?"
"Surveys. We have to map out the landscape first thing, then we can start with the heavy lifting."
System Message: Tal has joined The Fora Development Group faction.
Tal
Level 1
Strength 31
Endurance 19
Intelligence 55
Agility 10
Luck 12
Charisma 16
"Those aren't the stats I remember." Q scratched his chin while thinking. "Oh wait, Faction stat bonus. We should add some to that I think."
System Message: You have gained a follower.
System Message: Tal has joined Raven Squad.
Tal
Level 1
Strength 36
Endurance 24
Intelligence 60
Agility 15
Luck 17
Charisma 21
"Wow, now we are talking!" Q smiled
It is a big undertaking, but building something nice often times was difficult. "I have a trip with my class planned to Fenway, I'll bring you something nice!"
Q was well aware that Tal had no idea where Fenway was, but she did understand presents.
Q caught Leah watching him and winked at her, "I'll get you something too Leah."
Leah blushed prettily and mouthed a thank you.
Nimda came through the portal, followed by Jinn, Rhapsody and her class.
"Q! It is so nice to see you brother!" Nimda wrapped Q up in a big hug and then quickly let him go.
"It is nice to see you Nimda!" The burly bandit loved to hug apparently.
Jinn and Rhapsody were talking when they noticed Q approach. They both went for a hug at the same time and ended up in a group hug with Q in the middle.
"Hey... my personal space is being violated here!" Q gave them a harsh frown before cracking a smile. "Fine, fine. Good Morning everyone."
Jinn froze when she glanced at the table. She was Quinn's teacher so she knew exactly who Talia Joki was. She had spoken with Talia on several occasions over the year. When Quinn had petitioned to live by himself, it was Talia who vouched for him. She also knew about her daughter, and her military service. So of course she wanted to meet her.
Q watched as Jinn walked abruptly toward the table, when he gave Rhapsody a glance, she just shrugged.
"Don't ask me Q, so the cats out of the bag now, Mr. NPC Assassin." Rhapsody pursed her lips, "anyways whose that blonde woman?"
"That's Tal, she's a friend irl." Q watched as the two shook hands and then talked for a few minutes.
Several times they both smiled and glanced back at Q.
"Oh wait, is that the woman from your apartment building?" Rhapsody remembered hearing about her from Jinn. "You stay here Q!" With that Rhapsody walked over and joined them, she was quite animated, causing Tal to laugh aloud several times.
Q crossed his arms and shot a frown toward the table, 'this is my warehouse you know, I can go where ever I like.' He mumbled beneath his breathe for a few minutes before Jinn and Rhapsody returned.
Jinn put a hand through Q's arm, "okay everyone, choose Fenway from the Portal options. We will meet up on the other side."
"Follow me!" Rhapsody led the way, leaving Jinn to make sure everyone followed.
After all her students went through the portal, Jinn nodded at Q. "See you on the other side."
Q shook his head at Jinn, somewhere in the past few days he had become friends with his teacher. It was nothing short of miraculous. He glanced back at the conference table and waved to Tal. Then he stepped into the portal.
*knock, knock.*"Hmm?" Quinn rolled over in bed glancing at his alarm clock. Damn.. its 5:30am, it has to be Tal. He stumbled out of bed. The ex-army captain was a chronic early riser, so was Quinn, but his early was about two hours later then Tal's early.The tall blonde smiled at him when she opened the door, she gave him a quick hug and walked past. Quinn stared at her for a moment and then shut the door. At least she brought food.Tal smiled at him as she unwrapped a breakfast burrito and handed it to him. "One hot breakfast burrito from Salazar's. Just the way you like it!"Quinn felt his mouth start to drool as the smell of sausage and eggs seeped out of the hot shell. " I love these Tal, you are the best!" He immediately took a huge bite, his eyes half closed in pleasure."How did you get him to make one this early? He doesn't even open until 6."Tal smile and shrugged. "I can be very persuasive Quinn." She love watching him eat, he attacked everything like a cornered wolf."Well... you are awesome." Q offered her a bite and she leaned over and sampled some of his burrito. "And beautiful too... besides that you smell really nice.""Wow, all that?" She reached a hand out and smoothed down his bed hair, it popped back up stubbornly. "You are awfully sweet this morning."Quinn cocked his head to one side. "Aren't I always like that?""Maybe?" Tal liked Quinn best when he was being sweet. "Hey! Did you get a girlfriend or something?"Quinn felt his face turn red as he swallowed the last of his breakfast. "Does a VR girlfriend count?"Tal laughed at his face. "Not sure. So... the redhead?"Quinn nodded. "The Apple princess.""I love those freckles." Tal's eyes lit humor. "Get those local surveys done?""Yeah, looks like spawn points are erased when you change geography." Quinn knew this an important part of Tal's plans."Really? I'm gonna log in now!" Tal held up the headset she had in her hand.I'm going to get a workout in first." Quinn started cleaning up his breakfast and grabbed a bottle of water from his fridge.Tal stood up and grabbed Quinn in a big hug. "Damn.. I use to be taller than you."Quinn bent his knees and hunched over so that he had to look up at her. "Better?"Tal laughed as she walked towards his bedroom. "Thanks little Q."Two hours later Q was finishing his shower and was sitting comfortably on his bed. It was a bit crowded, even though it was a big bed. He stared at the blonde woman lying on his bed. "Not sure why you can't use your own apartment. You even took my favorite pillow. "Q shook his head. The big tough army captain was scared over a little VR jump. Quinn would have teased her, but honestly, he was happy to have her around. Since Tal retired, all she did was take care of Renri. That ridiculously impressive brain was not being challenged at all. He got comfortable next to her and made use of his other pillow. "Hope you aren't breaking anything.""Log On TAP."TAP Interface Acquired.Synchronizing character data.....Welcome Back Q, find your path!A few moments later he appeared in the warehouse Alcove. Mojo, Remmy, Tal and Leah were seated and were all staring at the table's hud. Q stepped behind the rows of shelving and exited the building. He pulled out the red bridle from his inventory."Let's see how good your memory is Red." Q summoned the big red stallion.Scorch stood calmly staring at Q, then stepped forward and nuzzled his chest. Q patted his neck. "Such a good boy, all those bad people calling you devil horse."He stepped to the side and swung easily into the saddle. Scorch showed a bit of friskiness with some small crow hops, but settled down right away. Q rubbed the big stallions shoulder. "They say you're the wind, show me!"Q heeled him and immediately was pushed back into the saddle by Scorches acceleration. He pointed the horse down the dried river bed and let him run.A red streak tore through the countryside, his rider bent low, the sound of the galloping stallion echoed like thunder through the valley. Q finally reined him half a mile from the Warehouse and jumped down."Well.. gotta admit, as a fodder you're faster than any horse I ever had. Wonder how you'd do against the speedsters in Guns and Gore."Q slid the saddle off and dropped it on the ground, he grabbed a handful of grass and started rubbing the red stallion down."Gonna leave you loose, plenty of grass and water around." Q still had the red bridle in his inventory, so he could summon him whenever he wanted, he put the saddle in his inventory and left him there on the bank of the river. "Don't bite anyone!""I want to declare my TAP class."System Message: Do you wish for A World Wide broadcast"Yes."World Wide Announcement: A secret TAP class has been uncovered by Q in Talon.Base Class: N/ATAP Class: NPC Assassin"That should cover it."Q walked back to the warehouse, stopping before he went inside."Open Mail."TAP MAILSubject:Fenway Trip Sender: Sinful Jinn Attachment:NoneSubject: Our Apologies, NPC Prince Quinn Sender: Orion Prime Attachment: CurrencySubject:Hello Q Sender: Jaded Ice Attachment:PackageSubject:Orion Prime Sender: Bo Jangles Attachment:None"Open first mail."Hello everyone!It is the last day of our class field trip. As a surprise we areall taking a trip to Fenway! Fenway is the home of severalpowerful guilds as well as the best shopping on the continent.Use the apple tokens to meet at the warehouse at 11am. Fromthere we will access the warehouse link to Fenway. Bring credits andlots of energy! Let's finish this field trip off on a great note!Jinn"Still got some time. Open second mail."System Message: 500 thousand credits has been deposited into your account.Prince Quinn,Let me humbly apologize for the aggressive nature of our first meeting.Unfortunately I was ill advised by our sponsors and made the poor decision toagree to an invasion. In the interest of making amends, I offer this currency asan apology. We made a mistake, but I hope to open up diplomatic relationssometime in the future.Orion Prime, Guild LeaderFullmetal Riot"Thanks for the credits, no way I'd trust you. Open third mail."System Message: Warm Fluffy Bath Towel has been deposited into your inventory.Hello Q,I have acquired the necessary items. Please contact meat your convenience. I will be flying to Vegas tomorrow topersonally oversee this transaction.Jaded Ice, Anna Lip.s. You did say the towel was optional."Hmm, I like that. Orion Media group... Orion Prime. That is kinda coincidental. I needanswers before I make nice. Draft a letter to Jaded Ice."Dear Jaded Ice,Thanks for the towel. I have two questions before we can movethings along. 1 What is the relationship between Orion Mediagroup and Orion Prime? 2 If there is a relationship, did Orion Mediaknowingly encourage the aggressive action targeting my faction,the Fora Development Group?Q,"Open Fourth mail."Q,Another report has come across my desk. It seems thatthe NPC Faction you created is overwhelmingly strong. I'venever heard of a Tier 2 raid group being defeated so easily.This Prince Quinn, what level is he? In the hundredssomewhere? I've never seen a 90 level Wizard be abused sobadly. Please pass on Concert Hall's good wishes to theFora Development Group. We will also send Orion Prime a letterof reprimand.Jangles."A letter of reprimand? Okay, you are very creepy.""Okay.. time to face them I suppose." Q opened the door and stepped inside. To his surprise the Warehouse was packed full of NPCs. A few of them noticed him come in and started clapping, after a moment everyone joined in. Q spotted Leah running towards him. 'This a bigger deal then I thought?'Leah jumped at him and hugged him close, "I knew you would do it!" She kissing him lightly on the lips before releasing him. She slid an arm through his as they walked back to the conference table."Q'Ikah'... thank you." Mojo gave him a quick hug before stepping back.Remmy and Leah looked at each other, both were thinking the same thing. 'Did Mojo hug people?'Remmy's big smile showed how happy she was as she hugged Q. "Now we are in business!"Q returned her smile. "Let's go blow something up to celebrate!"Remmy threw her hands over her head. "Yeah lets do that!!"Finally the applause stopped, Q looked around the warehouse. Every NPC he'd ever seen was here. Tal was watching him, a smile on her full lips. She stepped close to hug him and whispered. "They thought you were scared Quinn."Q climbed up on the table, smiling at the crowd. "Thank you everyone. Let me assure you I am committed to helping the Fora Development Group flourish, not only here in Fora, but throughout TAP as well. We will build cities, roads and a better life in Fora. More importantly we will do it together."Q stepped down as more applause shook the building. Shaking his head he just smiled and waved at everyone. When they'd approach, he introduced himself and shook their hands. It was quite a while before everyone slowed back down.Tal smiled as a tired looking Q leaned against the table. "Good job Little Q.""What's next for development Tal?""Surveys. We have to map out the landscape first thing, then we can start with the heavy lifting."System Message: Tal has joined The Fora Development Group faction.TalLevel 1Strength 31Endurance 19Intelligence 55Agility 10Luck 12Charisma 16"Those aren't the stats I remember." Q scratched his chin while thinking. "Oh wait, Faction stat bonus. We should add some to that I think."System Message: You have gained a follower.System Message: Tal has joined Raven Squad.TalLevel 1Strength 36Endurance 24Intelligence 60Agility 15Luck 17Charisma 21"Wow, now we are talking!" Q smiledIt is a big undertaking, but building something nice often times was difficult. "I have a trip with my class planned to Fenway, I'll bring you something nice!"Q was well aware that Tal had no idea where Fenway was, but she did understand presents.Q caught Leah watching him and winked at her, "I'll get you something too Leah."Leah blushed prettily and mouthed a thank you.Nimda came through the portal, followed by Jinn, Rhapsody and her class."Q! It is so nice to see you brother!" Nimda wrapped Q up in a big hug and then quickly let him go."It is nice to see you Nimda!" The burly bandit loved to hug apparently.Jinn and Rhapsody were talking when they noticed Q approach. They both went for a hug at the same time and ended up in a group hug with Q in the middle."Hey... my personal space is being violated here!" Q gave them a harsh frown before cracking a smile. "Fine, fine. Good Morning everyone."Jinn froze when she glanced at the table. She was Quinn's teacher so she knew exactly who Talia Joki was. She had spoken with Talia on several occasions over the year. When Quinn had petitioned to live by himself, it was Talia who vouched for him. She also knew about her daughter, and her military service. So of course she wanted to meet her.Q watched as Jinn walked abruptly toward the table, when he gave Rhapsody a glance, she just shrugged."Don't ask me Q, so the cats out of the bag now, Mr. NPC Assassin." Rhapsody pursed her lips, "anyways whose that blonde woman?""That's Tal, she's a friend irl." Q watched as the two shook hands and then talked for a few minutes.Several times they both smiled and glanced back at Q."Oh wait, is that the woman from your apartment building?" Rhapsody remembered hearing about her from Jinn. "You stay here Q!" With that Rhapsody walked over and joined them, she was quite animated, causing Tal to laugh aloud several times.Q crossed his arms and shot a frown toward the table, 'this is my warehouse you know, I can go where ever I like.' He mumbled beneath his breathe for a few minutes before Jinn and Rhapsody returned.Jinn put a hand through Q's arm, "okay everyone, choose Fenway from the Portal options. We will meet up on the other side.""Follow me!" Rhapsody led the way, leaving Jinn to make sure everyone followed.After all her students went through the portal, Jinn nodded at Q. "See you on the other side."Q shook his head at Jinn, somewhere in the past few days he had become friends with his teacher. It was nothing short of miraculous. He glanced back at the conference table and waved to Tal. Then he stepped into the portal.
