Chapter 58
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Quinn sat in the Songbird Tavern, he was talking with Jinn about pvp options. Remmy and Tal were at the next table planning roads, aqueducts and train tracks. Leah and Ro-Ro were serving drinks to customers, because the current workers were performing. Ren and Lara on stage together was a standing room only event.
Leah stopped at Quinns table to drop off another Iced Tea.
Quinn smiled, "thanks."
Leah smiled sweetly, her freckled nose wrinkling at him, "thanks?"
"Thanks boss," Quinn muttered, Jinn couldn't stop her laughter, Tal and Remmy heartlessly joined in. Since he had lost, Quinn had agreed to call Leah 'boss" for the next day. She was getting a lot of miles out of it.
Tal reached over and ruffled his hair, "it's fine Little Q."
"..." Quinn.
Jinn spotted Daze and Onion moving toward them, "looks like something up Quinn."
Quinn didn't bother to hide his smile when Onion held Daze's chair, silently he approved of the gesture. "What's up guys?"
Onion sat down and looked toward Daze, she had discovered it, so he'd keep silent.
"We were wrapping up the Southern Survey missions, ran right into an instance." Daze's dark eyes danced with excitement," mid-level 45-55, seems in our ballpark."
"The hell.." Quinn hadn't been dungeon diving in a long time, "well.. you found it, so choose your team of six."
Daze smiled broadly, she hadn't expected to choose a team. "Lets go old school then, myself, Onion, Grace, Jinn, Rhapsody and you."
Quinn brought up his faction hud, he knew everyone had been grinding levels like crazy the past six weeks. He came in at level 51, Grace was the lowest at 43, Daze was next at 45, Onion at 49, while both Jinn and Rhapsody were at 54. "Have you guys geared up since the team went to the Infinity Well?"
Onion shook his head, "we didn't think we should, since we weren't taking part in the Exodus fights."
"Change that immediately, find the best gear we have." Quinn glanced at Jinn, "up for it Miss Sentac?"
Jinn's face showed her obvious excitement, she barely ever saw Daze and Onion anymore. She had shared several midnight snacks with Quinn over the past few weeks. Like her, he would often wake up hungry. "I would love that, so would Ro-Ro." Jinn loved the nickname, only Quinn and her ever used it, but Jinn knew that Ro-Ro secretly liked it.
"Gear up then, jetpacks and supplies for a week. We'll meet up at the Talon front gate in an hour.
Quinn finished the rest of his drink and then stood up, he looked over at Talia. "I probably will miss breakfast, most likely back around nooner."
"Nooner?" Tal gave him a wicked grin.
"Noon! I meant noon."
Tal stood up to hug him. "Either way works for me Quinn."
Remmy stood up on her chair and spread her arms wide, she squeezed him tight and kissed him on the cheek. "Next week is demolitions Quinn, don't let me down."
Quinn patted her on the head, "there's no way I'd miss that Remmy."
He walked in the back, since he didn't see Leah. She was dragging a Keg of beer up from the cellar.
"Let me get that boss," Quinn hefted the barrel onto one shoulder and brought it toward to the bar. He noticed Leah was following him, "walk me out?"
She nodded and grabbed his hand as he headed out the back door.
"I'm taking part of Raven into a new Instance, will make it back later tonight." Quinn pulled her close for a hug.
"Okay Quinn." Leah raised her face and kissed him, "be safe."
************
The journey south took three hours, most of the way they traveled in three groups of two, they rotated every hour to give everyone a fresh face to talk to. The last leg of the journey saw Quinn and Grace traveling together.
Apparently Craven had been pursuing Grace. Quinn didn't really blame him, she was a sweet girl. She told Quinn about being the youngest of five girls, and how she had to fight to be able to be in Miss Sentac's class. The rest of her family had all attended private catholic schools. Her dad was dead set against her becoming a gamer, but he eased up a bit when she showed that she could support herself.
"You've really accomplished a lot here Gracie, you should feel proud." Quinn took out a canteen from his inventory and took a drink, he offered her a drink before putting it away.
"Me?" Gracie blushed, she really looked up to her former classmate. Every since the quarry raid when he had saved her, she had decided to follow him if possible.
*If you compliment her too much, you'll end up marrying this one too.*
Quinn spun around suddenly, "the hell was that?"
Grace looked behind them, "everything okay Quinn?"
"Did you hear that?" Quinn couldn't see anyone.
*Hunt*
Quinn's eyes turned red as he picked up the heat signatures of his companions, there was no one else around. He had discovered that he could use both 'hunt' and 'stealth' without activating the form.
Grace shook her head, "I just hear birds Quinn."
A few minutes later Daze pulled up into a small ravine, it looked like it might have been the entrance to an old mine. "It's through here Quinn."
Quinn took a look around, the entrance was huge and the approach was flat and open. If the instance had solid xp, they could farm levels here in the weeks and months to come. Fora was missing any kind of mid-level areas.
Daze lead the way into the Cavern, she stopped about 30 meters in, the group was looking at a perfect reflection of themselves. "We thought it was some sort of mirror." She pushed a hand in, and it disappeared and then reappeared when she withdrew it. "I stepped in for a moment, was able to figure out what was going on, then I quickly exited.
Jinn approached him, "how we doing this Quinn?"
"Standard group, Onion up front tanking, you provide crowd control, Daze and Ro-Ro DPS, Grace has heals and I will pull." Quinn pulled his pistoleros out and checked them, "take a few minutes, check your gear and make any last minute adjustments. This may be nice and leisurely, or we may have to jump through hoops right away. Be ready for anything."
A few minutes later they approached the mirrored entrance. Quinn lead the way as they all stepped in.
System Message: You have entered the Sanctuary Instance. This is a mid-level Instance, recommended levels 45-55. No one over level 55 may advance further. Please move forward to the staging area.
Quinn could see bright lights ahead, the passage continued for another fifty meters before it opened up.
Jinn whistled. "Wow."
Ro-Ro's eyes were wide in amazement. "Serious?"
Quinn didn't say a word. It wasn't going to be a dungeon crawl, this was a habitat instance. There were rolling hills and trees as far as he could see. He could here the sounds of a river nearby, it was absolutely gorgeous. The sky was clear blue, warm sunlight fell upon their faces. In the distance was some sort of stone wall, it was too far to see from Quinn's vantage point.
System Message: You have entered Sanctuary. This is a one time special event. If you die in Sanctuary you will be transported to the entrance and will be unable to reenter. You have 3 hours from first contact to enter the courtyard and fight for Ownership.
On Quinn's hud there was a 3:00 0/25 0/1. "Everyone have the 3, 25 and 1 on their huds?"
The group all nodded.
Quinn took a seat on one of the rocks by the cavern entrance. "Let's take a minute to figure this out. We already know what the three signifies, good news is that it hasn't started yet."
Jinn took a seat next to him, the smell of jasmine tickled his nose. "25 has to be the number of outer mobs, we've 3 hours to defeat them and enter the courtyard."
Ro-Ro twisted her green hair with one finger, "makes sense, then the 1 is whatever badass that is in the courtyard."
"Why's it here though?" Grace was sitting on the ground, leaning against Daze. "Think about it, there is one city in all of Fora, and it's a starter town."
"I've heard that TAP was finished and left to evolution for ten years before it went live. Time was greatly accelerated during that time to hundreds of years." Quinn tried to remember what Pops had told him, "Fora could have been the seat for a forgotten civilization, or a conquered one."
Jinn nodded, "Queen Moa was the recognized ruler of Fora. Did she wipe everything out?"
Onion let his former teacher finish before he jumped in. "The developers let TAP evolve as it would, the strong surviving and the weaker disappearing. Then they came in and developed the starter cities." Onion had read countless books on TAP, it was one of the reasons he had chosen to play. "Who knows how many cultures rose and fell during those years."
Grace closed her eyes, enjoying the sun on her face. "I don't think there is any loot here."
Jinn shook her head, her dark eyes excited, "oh I think there is, and your sitting in it."
"This place is beyond awesome, I for one wouldn't owning a chunk of it. I think we will run out of time before we get to the courtyard." Ro-Ro pursed her green lips, she hadn't built the house she had been awarded yet. This place would be nice.
"I'm going to scout around a bit, everyone stay here."
*Stealth*
Quinn faded away and walked away at an easy pace, he stopped before he reached a worn path.
*Ba'Avriel*
Quinn took to the air, quickly gaining height, being careful not to get too close to the courtyard. Whatever was there might be able to see through stealth.
*Hunt*
Quinn grinned as thermal signatures appeared beneath him. He circled several times before finding all of them. There were twenty five mobs, five of them were roving. Quinn had watched them long enough to notice they were pathed rovers and not random. He returned to the area near by, dropped Ba'Avriel and then unstealthed.
Jinn's face lit up when she saw him return. "You were gone quite a while, but you didn't set off the timer so that's good."
Quinn knelt in the center of the group and brought up his hud, he zoomed out and showed them the birdseye view of the area.
"How'd you get the map filled in? Did you fly?" Onion was well aware that the fog of war should be in effect.
Quinn nodded, "risky I know, but now we have locations." He held back his Ba'Avriel form. Until Sidney Horn was dealt with, he'd keep every secret he could.
"Looks like a upside down peace sign," Grace noted.
"Halfway down either leg are a group of four mobs, there is one pather on each leg, they wander from mobs to the fork." Quinn looked around the group for suggestions.
"Is there a another group at the fork?" Onion zoomed in on the fork, the path left the woods there, flat ground with no cover.
"Yes, at the fork is a group of six." Quinn waited for Jinn's analysis, her and Ro-Ro were PvE experts.
"Those pathers wander from the fork group of six, to the mid-leg group of four." Ro-Ro's sharp teeth nibbled on her lower lip. "Ideally we should hit the group of four, when the pather arrives."
Jinn nodded in agreement, "if those pathers are part of the fork group, then we could end up with a dozen mobs on our hands."
"In which case we all go airborne and start kiting." Quinn stood up and fired up his jetpack. "We'll go high, I'm the Main Assist. Onion is Tanking. Grace your heal priority is Onion, yourself, Jinn and then whomever you like. Jinn you're on CC, but be ready in case we need back up heals."
Ro-Ro winked at Quinn, "don't screw up my new digs flyboy."
Quinn laughed at her. "On me."
The group climbed to a few hundred feet, they could plainly see the mobs. "Gnolls? Sweet, just like the Quarry Raid." Daze remembered the raid clearly, the students had been such noobs, except for Quinn.
Quinn caught Grace's eye, "slap a HoT on me sunshine." (Author Note:HoT=Heal over Time)
Grace blushed slightly as she nodded.
Jinn has cast *Rapture*
System Message: An AE buff is in effect. +50 to ATK, +50 to Defense.
Grace has cast *Angels Light*
System Message: All allies heal 4500 hit-points per minute for three minutes.
Quinn stealthed and then descended to 50 feet, he waited until the roving guard was within five yards of the other four gnolls. He quickly cut his jetpack's power.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind the roving guard. His stealth broke immediately.
*Backstab* Critical hit 12,665 points damage, bonus damage 12,665 points.
Quinn grabbed the Gnoll by the back of the neck.
*Return*
Quinn and the Gnoll returned to the original point, 50 feet in the air. Quinn rode him toward the ground in a free fall.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind the stationary group, he pulled his halberd, but didn't strike. The Guard he had pulled slammed head first into the ground.
A Roving Gnoll has been crippled.
Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
Onion slammed his shield into the crippled gnoll, then drew his sword.
A Roving Guard has been stunned for five seconds.
Tormented Rhapsody has activated *Nature's Fury* Critical hit for 26,664 damage, one poison counter applied.
A Roving Guard has been slain.
Onion nodded at Quinn and took a position fifty feet away. Quinn moved beside him. Daze, Grace and Jinn stayed airborne a few feet above them, while Ro-Ro disappeared into the undergrowth.
"Recasting."
Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind a gnoll guard.
*Backstab* Critical hit 16,825 points damage, bonus damage 16,825 points.
Quinn ducked when the Gnoll reacted with a backhand slash, he dived forward and wrapped his arms around the guards waist.
*Return*
Quinn kicked loose from the guard and rolled to his feet.
Daze had activated *Trueshot*
Critical hit for 18,600 damage
Critical hit for 29,444 damage
Critical hit for 32,040 damage
A Gnoll Guard has been slain.
Quinn looked at Daze in surprise. "Wow.. ranger dps!"
The TAP team finished off the Gnoll group and then repeated the same procedure on the Gnolls from the other mid-leg. The kill counter stood at 10/25 while only 12 minutes had passed.
The group moved to within 200 feet of the fork group of six.
"Oh.. that's a Captain isn't it." Jinn's sharp eyes picked out the slight differences in stature.
"Crap, an Elite Captain." Quinn stared at the clock counter. "First or last?"
"I can keep the other five controlled, but the odds are he has some sort of AE attack." Jinn figured five was the outside number she could handle.
"If he does, then Mezz on the group will break." Ro-Ro pursed her lips.
"To mezz the Captain I'll have to use a single point Enthrall, so the rest of them will come at us." Jinn explained the problem.
"Mezz the Captain Jinn, I can tank the rest." Onion hefted his shield confidently.
"I'll root one so you are only facing four." Daze had an AE snare and a single target root.
Quinn nodded in agreement. "Sounds perfect, let's do this."
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Quinn sat in the Songbird Tavern, he was talking with Jinn about pvp options. Remmy and Tal were at the next table planning roads, aqueducts and train tracks. Leah and Ro-Ro were serving drinks to customers, because the current workers were performing. Ren and Lara on stage together was a standing room only event.
Leah stopped at Quinns table to drop off another Iced Tea.
Quinn smiled, "thanks."
Leah smiled sweetly, her freckled nose wrinkling at him, "thanks?"
"Thanks boss," Quinn muttered, Jinn couldn't stop her laughter, Tal and Remmy heartlessly joined in. Since he had lost, Quinn had agreed to call Leah 'boss" for the next day. She was getting a lot of miles out of it.
Tal reached over and ruffled his hair, "it's fine Little Q."
"..." Quinn.
Jinn spotted Daze and Onion moving toward them, "looks like something up Quinn."
Quinn didn't bother to hide his smile when Onion held Daze's chair, silently he approved of the gesture. "What's up guys?"
Onion sat down and looked toward Daze, she had discovered it, so he'd keep silent.
"We were wrapping up the Southern Survey missions, ran right into an instance." Daze's dark eyes danced with excitement," mid-level 45-55, seems in our ballpark."
"The hell.." Quinn hadn't been dungeon diving in a long time, "well.. you found it, so choose your team of six."
Daze smiled broadly, she hadn't expected to choose a team. "Lets go old school then, myself, Onion, Grace, Jinn, Rhapsody and you."
Quinn brought up his faction hud, he knew everyone had been grinding levels like crazy the past six weeks. He came in at level 51, Grace was the lowest at 43, Daze was next at 45, Onion at 49, while both Jinn and Rhapsody were at 54. "Have you guys geared up since the team went to the Infinity Well?"
Onion shook his head, "we didn't think we should, since we weren't taking part in the Exodus fights."
"Change that immediately, find the best gear we have." Quinn glanced at Jinn, "up for it Miss Sentac?"
Jinn's face showed her obvious excitement, she barely ever saw Daze and Onion anymore. She had shared several midnight snacks with Quinn over the past few weeks. Like her, he would often wake up hungry. "I would love that, so would Ro-Ro." Jinn loved the nickname, only Quinn and her ever used it, but Jinn knew that Ro-Ro secretly liked it.
"Gear up then, jetpacks and supplies for a week. We'll meet up at the Talon front gate in an hour.
Quinn finished the rest of his drink and then stood up, he looked over at Talia. "I probably will miss breakfast, most likely back around nooner."
"Nooner?" Tal gave him a wicked grin.
"Noon! I meant noon."
Tal stood up to hug him. "Either way works for me Quinn."
Remmy stood up on her chair and spread her arms wide, she squeezed him tight and kissed him on the cheek. "Next week is demolitions Quinn, don't let me down."
Quinn patted her on the head, "there's no way I'd miss that Remmy."
He walked in the back, since he didn't see Leah. She was dragging a Keg of beer up from the cellar.
"Let me get that boss," Quinn hefted the barrel onto one shoulder and brought it toward to the bar. He noticed Leah was following him, "walk me out?"
She nodded and grabbed his hand as he headed out the back door.
"I'm taking part of Raven into a new Instance, will make it back later tonight." Quinn pulled her close for a hug.
"Okay Quinn." Leah raised her face and kissed him, "be safe."
************
The journey south took three hours, most of the way they traveled in three groups of two, they rotated every hour to give everyone a fresh face to talk to. The last leg of the journey saw Quinn and Grace traveling together.
Apparently Craven had been pursuing Grace. Quinn didn't really blame him, she was a sweet girl. She told Quinn about being the youngest of five girls, and how she had to fight to be able to be in Miss Sentac's class. The rest of her family had all attended private catholic schools. Her dad was dead set against her becoming a gamer, but he eased up a bit when she showed that she could support herself.
"You've really accomplished a lot here Gracie, you should feel proud." Quinn took out a canteen from his inventory and took a drink, he offered her a drink before putting it away.
"Me?" Gracie blushed, she really looked up to her former classmate. Every since the quarry raid when he had saved her, she had decided to follow him if possible.
*If you compliment her too much, you'll end up marrying this one too.*
Quinn spun around suddenly, "the hell was that?"
Grace looked behind them, "everything okay Quinn?"
"Did you hear that?" Quinn couldn't see anyone.
*Hunt*
Quinn's eyes turned red as he picked up the heat signatures of his companions, there was no one else around. He had discovered that he could use both 'hunt' and 'stealth' without activating the form.
Grace shook her head, "I just hear birds Quinn."
A few minutes later Daze pulled up into a small ravine, it looked like it might have been the entrance to an old mine. "It's through here Quinn."
Quinn took a look around, the entrance was huge and the approach was flat and open. If the instance had solid xp, they could farm levels here in the weeks and months to come. Fora was missing any kind of mid-level areas.
Daze lead the way into the Cavern, she stopped about 30 meters in, the group was looking at a perfect reflection of themselves. "We thought it was some sort of mirror." She pushed a hand in, and it disappeared and then reappeared when she withdrew it. "I stepped in for a moment, was able to figure out what was going on, then I quickly exited.
Jinn approached him, "how we doing this Quinn?"
"Standard group, Onion up front tanking, you provide crowd control, Daze and Ro-Ro DPS, Grace has heals and I will pull." Quinn pulled his pistoleros out and checked them, "take a few minutes, check your gear and make any last minute adjustments. This may be nice and leisurely, or we may have to jump through hoops right away. Be ready for anything."
A few minutes later they approached the mirrored entrance. Quinn lead the way as they all stepped in.
System Message: You have entered the Sanctuary Instance. This is a mid-level Instance, recommended levels 45-55. No one over level 55 may advance further. Please move forward to the staging area.
Quinn could see bright lights ahead, the passage continued for another fifty meters before it opened up.
Jinn whistled. "Wow."
Ro-Ro's eyes were wide in amazement. "Serious?"
Quinn didn't say a word. It wasn't going to be a dungeon crawl, this was a habitat instance. There were rolling hills and trees as far as he could see. He could here the sounds of a river nearby, it was absolutely gorgeous. The sky was clear blue, warm sunlight fell upon their faces. In the distance was some sort of stone wall, it was too far to see from Quinn's vantage point.
System Message: You have entered Sanctuary. This is a one time special event. If you die in Sanctuary you will be transported to the entrance and will be unable to reenter. You have 3 hours from first contact to enter the courtyard and fight for Ownership.
On Quinn's hud there was a 3:00 0/25 0/1. "Everyone have the 3, 25 and 1 on their huds?"
The group all nodded.
Quinn took a seat on one of the rocks by the cavern entrance. "Let's take a minute to figure this out. We already know what the three signifies, good news is that it hasn't started yet."
Jinn took a seat next to him, the smell of jasmine tickled his nose. "25 has to be the number of outer mobs, we've 3 hours to defeat them and enter the courtyard."
Ro-Ro twisted her green hair with one finger, "makes sense, then the 1 is whatever badass that is in the courtyard."
"Why's it here though?" Grace was sitting on the ground, leaning against Daze. "Think about it, there is one city in all of Fora, and it's a starter town."
"I've heard that TAP was finished and left to evolution for ten years before it went live. Time was greatly accelerated during that time to hundreds of years." Quinn tried to remember what Pops had told him, "Fora could have been the seat for a forgotten civilization, or a conquered one."
Jinn nodded, "Queen Moa was the recognized ruler of Fora. Did she wipe everything out?"
Onion let his former teacher finish before he jumped in. "The developers let TAP evolve as it would, the strong surviving and the weaker disappearing. Then they came in and developed the starter cities." Onion had read countless books on TAP, it was one of the reasons he had chosen to play. "Who knows how many cultures rose and fell during those years."
Grace closed her eyes, enjoying the sun on her face. "I don't think there is any loot here."
Jinn shook her head, her dark eyes excited, "oh I think there is, and your sitting in it."
"This place is beyond awesome, I for one wouldn't owning a chunk of it. I think we will run out of time before we get to the courtyard." Ro-Ro pursed her green lips, she hadn't built the house she had been awarded yet. This place would be nice.
"I'm going to scout around a bit, everyone stay here."
*Stealth*
Quinn faded away and walked away at an easy pace, he stopped before he reached a worn path.
*Ba'Avriel*
Quinn took to the air, quickly gaining height, being careful not to get too close to the courtyard. Whatever was there might be able to see through stealth.
*Hunt*
Quinn grinned as thermal signatures appeared beneath him. He circled several times before finding all of them. There were twenty five mobs, five of them were roving. Quinn had watched them long enough to notice they were pathed rovers and not random. He returned to the area near by, dropped Ba'Avriel and then unstealthed.
Jinn's face lit up when she saw him return. "You were gone quite a while, but you didn't set off the timer so that's good."
Quinn knelt in the center of the group and brought up his hud, he zoomed out and showed them the birdseye view of the area.
"How'd you get the map filled in? Did you fly?" Onion was well aware that the fog of war should be in effect.
Quinn nodded, "risky I know, but now we have locations." He held back his Ba'Avriel form. Until Sidney Horn was dealt with, he'd keep every secret he could.
"Looks like a upside down peace sign," Grace noted.
"Halfway down either leg are a group of four mobs, there is one pather on each leg, they wander from mobs to the fork." Quinn looked around the group for suggestions.
"Is there a another group at the fork?" Onion zoomed in on the fork, the path left the woods there, flat ground with no cover.
"Yes, at the fork is a group of six." Quinn waited for Jinn's analysis, her and Ro-Ro were PvE experts.
"Those pathers wander from the fork group of six, to the mid-leg group of four." Ro-Ro's sharp teeth nibbled on her lower lip. "Ideally we should hit the group of four, when the pather arrives."
Jinn nodded in agreement, "if those pathers are part of the fork group, then we could end up with a dozen mobs on our hands."
"In which case we all go airborne and start kiting." Quinn stood up and fired up his jetpack. "We'll go high, I'm the Main Assist. Onion is Tanking. Grace your heal priority is Onion, yourself, Jinn and then whomever you like. Jinn you're on CC, but be ready in case we need back up heals."
Ro-Ro winked at Quinn, "don't screw up my new digs flyboy."
Quinn laughed at her. "On me."
The group climbed to a few hundred feet, they could plainly see the mobs. "Gnolls? Sweet, just like the Quarry Raid." Daze remembered the raid clearly, the students had been such noobs, except for Quinn.
Quinn caught Grace's eye, "slap a HoT on me sunshine." (Author Note:HoT=Heal over Time)
Grace blushed slightly as she nodded.
Jinn has cast *Rapture*
System Message: An AE buff is in effect. +50 to ATK, +50 to Defense.
Grace has cast *Angels Light*
System Message: All allies heal 4500 hit-points per minute for three minutes.
Quinn stealthed and then descended to 50 feet, he waited until the roving guard was within five yards of the other four gnolls. He quickly cut his jetpack's power.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind the roving guard. His stealth broke immediately.
*Backstab* Critical hit 12,665 points damage, bonus damage 12,665 points.
Quinn grabbed the Gnoll by the back of the neck.
*Return*
Quinn and the Gnoll returned to the original point, 50 feet in the air. Quinn rode him toward the ground in a free fall.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind the stationary group, he pulled his halberd, but didn't strike. The Guard he had pulled slammed head first into the ground.
A Roving Gnoll has been crippled.
Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
Onion slammed his shield into the crippled gnoll, then drew his sword.
A Roving Guard has been stunned for five seconds.
Tormented Rhapsody has activated *Nature's Fury* Critical hit for 26,664 damage, one poison counter applied.
A Roving Guard has been slain.
Onion nodded at Quinn and took a position fifty feet away. Quinn moved beside him. Daze, Grace and Jinn stayed airborne a few feet above them, while Ro-Ro disappeared into the undergrowth.
"Recasting."
Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.
*Blink*
Quinn appeared behind a gnoll guard.
*Backstab* Critical hit 16,825 points damage, bonus damage 16,825 points.
Quinn ducked when the Gnoll reacted with a backhand slash, he dived forward and wrapped his arms around the guards waist.
*Return*
Quinn kicked loose from the guard and rolled to his feet.
Daze had activated *Trueshot*
Critical hit for 18,600 damage
Critical hit for 29,444 damage
Critical hit for 32,040 damage
A Gnoll Guard has been slain.
Quinn looked at Daze in surprise. "Wow.. ranger dps!"
The TAP team finished off the Gnoll group and then repeated the same procedure on the Gnolls from the other mid-leg. The kill counter stood at 10/25 while only 12 minutes had passed.
The group moved to within 200 feet of the fork group of six.
"Oh.. that's a Captain isn't it." Jinn's sharp eyes picked out the slight differences in stature.
"Crap, an Elite Captain." Quinn stared at the clock counter. "First or last?"
"I can keep the other five controlled, but the odds are he has some sort of AE attack." Jinn figured five was the outside number she could handle.
"If he does, then Mezz on the group will break." Ro-Ro pursed her lips.
"To mezz the Captain I'll have to use a single point Enthrall, so the rest of them will come at us." Jinn explained the problem.
"Mezz the Captain Jinn, I can tank the rest." Onion hefted his shield confidently.
"I'll root one so you are only facing four." Daze had an AE snare and a single target root.
Quinn nodded in agreement. "Sounds perfect, let's do this."
Quinn sat in the Songbird Tavern, he was talking with Jinn about pvp options. Remmy and Tal were at the next table planning roads, aqueducts and train tracks. Leah and Ro-Ro were serving drinks to customers, because the current workers were performing. Ren and Lara on stage together was a standing room only event.Leah stopped at Quinns table to drop off another Iced Tea.Quinn smiled, "thanks."Leah smiled sweetly, her freckled nose wrinkling at him, "thanks?""Thanks boss," Quinn muttered, Jinn couldn't stop her laughter, Tal and Remmy heartlessly joined in. Since he had lost, Quinn had agreed to call Leah 'boss" for the next day. She was getting a lot of miles out of it.Tal reached over and ruffled his hair, "it's fine Little Q.""..." Quinn.Jinn spotted Daze and Onion moving toward them, "looks like something up Quinn."Quinn didn't bother to hide his smile when Onion held Daze's chair, silently he approved of the gesture. "What's up guys?"Onion sat down and looked toward Daze, she had discovered it, so he'd keep silent."We were wrapping up the Southern Survey missions, ran right into an instance." Daze's dark eyes danced with excitement," mid-level 45-55, seems in our ballpark.""The hell.." Quinn hadn't been dungeon diving in a long time, "well.. you found it, so choose your team of six."Daze smiled broadly, she hadn't expected to choose a team. "Lets go old school then, myself, Onion, Grace, Jinn, Rhapsody and you."Quinn brought up his faction hud, he knew everyone had been grinding levels like crazy the past six weeks. He came in at level 51, Grace was the lowest at 43, Daze was next at 45, Onion at 49, while both Jinn and Rhapsody were at 54. "Have you guys geared up since the team went to the Infinity Well?"Onion shook his head, "we didn't think we should, since we weren't taking part in the Exodus fights.""Change that immediately, find the best gear we have." Quinn glanced at Jinn, "up for it Miss Sentac?"Jinn's face showed her obvious excitement, she barely ever saw Daze and Onion anymore. She had shared several midnight snacks with Quinn over the past few weeks. Like her, he would often wake up hungry. "I would love that, so would Ro-Ro." Jinn loved the nickname, only Quinn and her ever used it, but Jinn knew that Ro-Ro secretly liked it."Gear up then, jetpacks and supplies for a week. We'll meet up at the Talon front gate in an hour.Quinn finished the rest of his drink and then stood up, he looked over at Talia. "I probably will miss breakfast, most likely back around nooner.""Nooner?" Tal gave him a wicked grin."Noon! I meant noon."Tal stood up to hug him. "Either way works for me Quinn."Remmy stood up on her chair and spread her arms wide, she squeezed him tight and kissed him on the cheek. "Next week is demolitions Quinn, don't let me down."Quinn patted her on the head, "there's no way I'd miss that Remmy."He walked in the back, since he didn't see Leah. She was dragging a Keg of beer up from the cellar."Let me get that boss," Quinn hefted the barrel onto one shoulder and brought it toward to the bar. He noticed Leah was following him, "walk me out?"She nodded and grabbed his hand as he headed out the back door."I'm taking part of Raven into a new Instance, will make it back later tonight." Quinn pulled her close for a hug."Okay Quinn." Leah raised her face and kissed him, "be safe."************The journey south took three hours, most of the way they traveled in three groups of two, they rotated every hour to give everyone a fresh face to talk to. The last leg of the journey saw Quinn and Grace traveling together.Apparently Craven had been pursuing Grace. Quinn didn't really blame him, she was a sweet girl. She told Quinn about being the youngest of five girls, and how she had to fight to be able to be in Miss Sentac's class. The rest of her family had all attended private catholic schools. Her dad was dead set against her becoming a gamer, but he eased up a bit when she showed that she could support herself."You've really accomplished a lot here Gracie, you should feel proud." Quinn took out a canteen from his inventory and took a drink, he offered her a drink before putting it away."Me?" Gracie blushed, she really looked up to her former classmate. Every since the quarry raid when he had saved her, she had decided to follow him if possible.*If you compliment her too much, you'll end up marrying this one too.*Quinn spun around suddenly, "the hell was that?"Grace looked behind them, "everything okay Quinn?""Did you hear that?" Quinn couldn't see anyone.*Hunt*Quinn's eyes turned red as he picked up the heat signatures of his companions, there was no one else around. He had discovered that he could use both 'hunt' and 'stealth' without activating the form.Grace shook her head, "I just hear birds Quinn."A few minutes later Daze pulled up into a small ravine, it looked like it might have been the entrance to an old mine. "It's through here Quinn."Quinn took a look around, the entrance was huge and the approach was flat and open. If the instance had solid xp, they could farm levels here in the weeks and months to come. Fora was missing any kind of mid-level areas.Daze lead the way into the Cavern, she stopped about 30 meters in, the group was looking at a perfect reflection of themselves. "We thought it was some sort of mirror." She pushed a hand in, and it disappeared and then reappeared when she withdrew it. "I stepped in for a moment, was able to figure out what was going on, then I quickly exited.Jinn approached him, "how we doing this Quinn?""Standard group, Onion up front tanking, you provide crowd control, Daze and Ro-Ro DPS, Grace has heals and I will pull." Quinn pulled his pistoleros out and checked them, "take a few minutes, check your gear and make any last minute adjustments. This may be nice and leisurely, or we may have to jump through hoops right away. Be ready for anything."A few minutes later they approached the mirrored entrance. Quinn lead the way as they all stepped in.System Message: You have entered the Sanctuary Instance. This is a mid-level Instance, recommended levels 45-55. No one over level 55 may advance further. Please move forward to the staging area.Quinn could see bright lights ahead, the passage continued for another fifty meters before it opened up.Jinn whistled. "Wow."Ro-Ro's eyes were wide in amazement. "Serious?"Quinn didn't say a word. It wasn't going to be a dungeon crawl, this was a habitat instance. There were rolling hills and trees as far as he could see. He could here the sounds of a river nearby, it was absolutely gorgeous. The sky was clear blue, warm sunlight fell upon their faces. In the distance was some sort of stone wall, it was too far to see from Quinn's vantage point.System Message: You have entered Sanctuary. This is a one time special event. If you die in Sanctuary you will be transported to the entrance and will be unable to reenter. You have 3 hours from first contact to enter the courtyard and fight for Ownership.On Quinn's hud there was a 3:00 0/25 0/1. "Everyone have the 3, 25 and 1 on their huds?"The group all nodded.Quinn took a seat on one of the rocks by the cavern entrance. "Let's take a minute to figure this out. We already know what the three signifies, good news is that it hasn't started yet."Jinn took a seat next to him, the smell of jasmine tickled his nose. "25 has to be the number of outer mobs, we've 3 hours to defeat them and enter the courtyard."Ro-Ro twisted her green hair with one finger, "makes sense, then the 1 is whatever badass that is in the courtyard.""Why's it here though?" Grace was sitting on the ground, leaning against Daze. "Think about it, there is one city in all of Fora, and it's a starter town.""I've heard that TAP was finished and left to evolution for ten years before it went live. Time was greatly accelerated during that time to hundreds of years." Quinn tried to remember what Pops had told him, "Fora could have been the seat for a forgotten civilization, or a conquered one."Jinn nodded, "Queen Moa was the recognized ruler of Fora. Did she wipe everything out?"Onion let his former teacher finish before he jumped in. "The developers let TAP evolve as it would, the strong surviving and the weaker disappearing. Then they came in and developed the starter cities." Onion had read countless books on TAP, it was one of the reasons he had chosen to play. "Who knows how many cultures rose and fell during those years."Grace closed her eyes, enjoying the sun on her face. "I don't think there is any loot here."Jinn shook her head, her dark eyes excited, "oh I think there is, and your sitting in it.""This place is beyond awesome, I for one wouldn't owning a chunk of it. I think we will run out of time before we get to the courtyard." Ro-Ro pursed her green lips, she hadn't built the house she had been awarded yet. This place would be nice."I'm going to scout around a bit, everyone stay here."*Stealth*Quinn faded away and walked away at an easy pace, he stopped before he reached a worn path.*Ba'Avriel*Quinn took to the air, quickly gaining height, being careful not to get too close to the courtyard. Whatever was there might be able to see through stealth.*Hunt*Quinn grinned as thermal signatures appeared beneath him. He circled several times before finding all of them. There were twenty five mobs, five of them were roving. Quinn had watched them long enough to notice they were pathed rovers and not random. He returned to the area near by, dropped Ba'Avriel and then unstealthed.Jinn's face lit up when she saw him return. "You were gone quite a while, but you didn't set off the timer so that's good."Quinn knelt in the center of the group and brought up his hud, he zoomed out and showed them the birdseye view of the area."How'd you get the map filled in? Did you fly?" Onion was well aware that the fog of war should be in effect.Quinn nodded, "risky I know, but now we have locations." He held back his Ba'Avriel form. Until Sidney Horn was dealt with, he'd keep every secret he could."Looks like a upside down peace sign," Grace noted."Halfway down either leg are a group of four mobs, there is one pather on each leg, they wander from mobs to the fork." Quinn looked around the group for suggestions."Is there a another group at the fork?" Onion zoomed in on the fork, the path left the woods there, flat ground with no cover."Yes, at the fork is a group of six." Quinn waited for Jinn's analysis, her and Ro-Ro were PvE experts."Those pathers wander from the fork group of six, to the mid-leg group of four." Ro-Ro's sharp teeth nibbled on her lower lip. "Ideally we should hit the group of four, when the pather arrives."Jinn nodded in agreement, "if those pathers are part of the fork group, then we could end up with a dozen mobs on our hands.""In which case we all go airborne and start kiting." Quinn stood up and fired up his jetpack. "We'll go high, I'm the Main Assist. Onion is Tanking. Grace your heal priority is Onion, yourself, Jinn and then whomever you like. Jinn you're on CC, but be ready in case we need back up heals."Ro-Ro winked at Quinn, "don't screw up my new digs flyboy."Quinn laughed at her. "On me."The group climbed to a few hundred feet, they could plainly see the mobs. "Gnolls? Sweet, just like the Quarry Raid." Daze remembered the raid clearly, the students had been such noobs, except for Quinn.Quinn caught Grace's eye, "slap a HoT on me sunshine." Author Note:HoT=Heal over TimeGrace blushed slightly as she nodded.Jinn has cast *Rapture*System Message: An AE buff is in effect. +50 to ATK, +50 to Defense.Grace has cast *Angels Light*System Message: All allies heal 4500 hit-points per minute for three minutes.Quinn stealthed and then descended to 50 feet, he waited until the roving guard was within five yards of the other four gnolls. He quickly cut his jetpack's power.*Blink*Quinn appeared behind the roving guard. His stealth broke immediately.*Backstab* Critical hit 12,665 points damage, bonus damage 12,665 points.Quinn grabbed the Gnoll by the back of the neck.*Return*Quinn and the Gnoll returned to the original point, 50 feet in the air. Quinn rode him toward the ground in a free fall.*Blink*Quinn appeared behind the stationary group, he pulled his halberd, but didn't strike. The Guard he had pulled slammed head first into the ground.A Roving Gnoll has been crippled.Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.Onion slammed his shield into the crippled gnoll, then drew his sword.A Roving Guard has been stunned for five seconds.Tormented Rhapsody has activated *Nature's Fury* Critical hit for 26,664 damage, one poison counter applied.A Roving Guard has been slain.Onion nodded at Quinn and took a position fifty feet away. Quinn moved beside him. Daze, Grace and Jinn stayed airborne a few feet above them, while Ro-Ro disappeared into the undergrowth."Recasting."Jinn has cast *Devils Desire*A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.A Gnoll Guard has been enthralled.*Blink*Quinn appeared behind a gnoll guard.*Backstab* Critical hit 16,825 points damage, bonus damage 16,825 points.Quinn ducked when the Gnoll reacted with a backhand slash, he dived forward and wrapped his arms around the guards waist.*Return*Quinn kicked loose from the guard and rolled to his feet.Daze had activated *Trueshot*Critical hit for 18,600 damageCritical hit for 29,444 damageCritical hit for 32,040 damageA Gnoll Guard has been slain.Quinn looked at Daze in surprise. "Wow.. ranger dps!"The TAP team finished off the Gnoll group and then repeated the same procedure on the Gnolls from the other mid-leg. The kill counter stood at 10/25 while only 12 minutes had passed.The group moved to within 200 feet of the fork group of six."Oh.. that's a Captain isn't it." Jinn's sharp eyes picked out the slight differences in stature."Crap, an Elite Captain." Quinn stared at the clock counter. "First or last?""I can keep the other five controlled, but the odds are he has some sort of AE attack." Jinn figured five was the outside number she could handle."If he does, then Mezz on the group will break." Ro-Ro pursed her lips."To mezz the Captain I'll have to use a single point Enthrall, so the rest of them will come at us." Jinn explained the problem."Mezz the Captain Jinn, I can tank the rest." Onion hefted his shield confidently."I'll root one so you are only facing four." Daze had an AE snare and a single target root.Quinn nodded in agreement. "Sounds perfect, let's do this."
