Imperial Order (conclusion)

QJ leaped suddenly, soaring thirty meters into the air before activating his [Glide] ring. Targeting two shotgun wielders taking cover behind a metal horse trough, the OP leader landed with a loud bang that accompanied the nearer outlaw being sheared from shoulder to waist in a maneuver that splashed blood in all directions. 

[System Message] A Junebug outlaw has been slain. 

QJ knocked a shotgun barrel to one side when it was thrust in his face an instant later.

[Silverlight: Point Blank]

QJ's shotgun blast erased his target's face in a gruesome spray of blood and bone before he kicked the dying outlaw to one side. 

[System Message] A Junebug outlaw has been slain. 

The buzzing of bees overhead caused QJ to glance up. The OP Vice Leader was already separated from his group, but he retained the ability to rejoin them momentarily, so he was okay with being overrun. 

"DIE BASTARD!"

QJ dodged to one side as an entire wall of the Creed Saloon disappeared in a fiery explosion that tossed him into the air. QJ instantly engaged his [Glide] ring and landed on a nearby rooftop before turning toward the disturbance. 

[OP: Ringo] What was that?

[OP: QJ] Still trying to figure it out.

QJ leaped into the air, aiming for the roof of the building in question. 

[Wu] That building looks like an armory. I grabbed a screenshot; it's heavy armament.

[OP: Ringo] What kind?

[Wu] Cannon. 

[OP: Sato] I'll take down the cannon.

[OP: QJ] I'll back you up.

QJ slashed a hole in the roof of the second-story building and stealthed before dropping into the room below. Sato had started to come into his own in recent months; it was becoming evident that he possessed the confidence and skillset of an elite gamer. 

"Oh god..." QJ glanced around the room, wrinkling his nose at the acrid smell in the air. "Not good..."

The second story of the armory was a wide open storage area stacked to the ceiling with wood barrels. QJ pushed the tip of [Roll Credits] into the soft wood before withdrawing the blade. A steady stream of black powder leaked onto the wood floor. Without pausing, he jumped through the hole he had entered a few seconds earlier, soaring into the sky overhead.

[OP: QJ] Retreat, Sato! Take cover!

Sato's stealthed figure was caught in the open, near the building's destroyed wall. With no other options, he dived into the horse trough. 

A bright light flashed, followed by a massive explosion that turned the adjacent buildings into fiery rubble. Thirty meters above the disaster, the blast's power tossed QJ and his glide suit dozens of meters into the air, engulfing the entire area in a haze of smoke. The OP Vice Leader used the momentum to land safely on the top of the Junebug tower.

Chainy glanced up from her sniper rifle and favored QJ with a wide smile. "Did you do that?"

QJ shook his head. "What kind of idiot stores block powder above the armory?" 

Chainy squeezed off a round. "We decided to name this tower Babel."

QJ grinned. "Tower of Babel? I like it." 

On one of the alleys bleeding off the main street, two slingers spammed six-gun fan to flush out the outlaws dug in like ticks on a hound. The duo sprayed bullets down the narrow dirt path while advancing steadily. 

Both slingers skidded to a halt when a pale figure wearing a white dress stepped out into the street. 

(Group: Lotte) Isn't that the bell woman?

(Group: Ringo) I believe so.

An instant later, an object impacted the back alley street, cutting the white-dressed woman in half from neck to hip in a cut that splattered blood on both sides of the buildings. QJ stood up, wiping the gore from his face. 

(Group: Ringo) Was she armed? Or even a combatant?

(Group: QJ) For sure. 

(Group: Lotte) Think so?

(Group: QJ) Of course. If she were a non-combatant, she would be sitting in place with her hands on her head.

[System Message] The Mistress of Junebug has been slain. A reward of 100 million credits has been placed on the head of QJ. An additional 10 million credits have been placed on the heads of all OP guild members.

[System Message] QJ has looted a [Silver Bell]

[Silver Bell] Mystic Artifact.

Description: Ring the bell and instantly hire a gunfighter to fight for your cause

Tier I 1 million credits.

Tier II 5 million credits.

Tier III 10 million credits.

[OP: Breeze] I'm only worth 10 million? What a scam.

[OP: Lotte] That should have been Ringo and me; QJ KS'd us (kill steal). 

[OP: QJ] Lies.

[OP: Ringo] It's true; we were about to engage her. 

[OP: QJ] About to? Intent means nothing. You were probably discussing her shoes.

[OP: Lotte] She did have nice shoes. Too bad they didn't drop.

QJ laughed and leaped to the top of the nearest building to scan the landscape. The Bees were devastating the outlaw combatants; they were too fast and strong. Several isolated pockets of combatants were attempting to surrender. 

[Officer: QJ] We have some white flags being raised. Opinions?

[Officer: Breeze] Won't they resettle in Junebug if we let them off?

[Officer: Sato] Pull weeds out by their roots, and they won't return.

[Officer: Ringo] What do you think, QJ?

[Officer: QJ] Do you get to decide not to fight after you've lost? How great a deal that would be. I'm for smoking them. 

[Officer: Ringo] Agreed.

QJ glided back to the North side of Babel and landed near the healers. He had been taking sniper fire every time he became airborne. A white light settled over the OP Vice Leader as all his wounds faded. 

Ra flashed QJ a wide grin. "You're doing so well." 

Ra's pleasant expression turned solemn as her dark eyes turned toward the street less than half a block away. The water staff in her hand raised suddenly as the area around her glowed. "QJ... A portal is opening up, unlike anything I've seen before."

"Entering or exiting?" QJ turned in the direction Ra was pointing and drew [Roll Credits]. "Can you shut it down?"

Ra shook her head. "Not completely.* Ra grimaced, her brown skin suddenly glistening with sweat. 

[OP: QJ] I need sniper support half a block north of the healers. Drop everything else. Someone is crashing our party.

[Group: Sato] Breeze and I are close. Give us 20 seconds.

QJ leaped into the air, zeroing in on a barely discernable shimmering disturbing the normal airflow. At full dive speed, QJ covered the 50 meters in scant seconds, just as a tunnel appeared in the street. "Holy..." 

The glance exposed more than a hundred armed and mounted fighters. However, whatever was powering the portal was shut down, and the tunnel collapsed after three figures rode in. 

QJ struck at the bearded figure's helm in a full dive strike and received a bone-jarring impact. 

[System Message] A Red Player has been stunned.

[System Message] QJ has been stunned. 

QJ managed to roll to one side as an armored mount charged past him. With his vision blurred, it was a few seconds before he could tell friend from foe. 

[OP: QJ] We have Red Players porting in, but I'm unsure how many got through. 

[OP: Ra] Three snuck in before I could shut down the portal.

[OP: Ringo] Nice job, Ra. All tanks fall back to the healer section. 

QJ finally struggled to his feet, freezing momentarily, when he saw the squat figure standing before him with a badly damaged helm. "You gotta be kidding me, Iron Mount?"

The broad-shouldered man tossed his helm to one side and drew a battle axe. The man's name and guild were replaced with [Red Player], but QJ didn't need anything other than a glance to pinpoint his origin. 

"Boy... You cracked my adamantium helm." The dwarf's accent carried a heavy brogue. He charged an instant later, swinging his weapon in a surprisingly swift flash of speed. 

QJ leaped away while drawing [Silverlight] and firing off a [Grappling] round aimed at his opponent's legs. An instant later, the dwarf was yanked off his feet while QJ's weapon was nearly jerked out of his hands as his glide suddenly stopped.

[OP: QJ] Be careful! These are players from Iron Mount. 

A stealthed Sato unhorsed a dark woman wearing black leather armor. The figure rolled nimbly to their feet and immediately stealthed. At the same time, a ball of flame slammed into Sato from the opposite side, knocking him to the ground. 

A tall old man with a pointed hat grinned suddenly, his hands glowing as runes spun around him. 

"Oh, hell no." 

The old man's eyes widened in shock as he was suddenly picked off his horse and slammed into the ground. 

[System Message] A Red Player has been stunned. 

Before the old man could recover, he was picked up and slammed into the dirt again. 

"You got some balls, glass cannon." Breeze flipped the caster upside-down and then pile-drived him into the street. 

[Backstab][Critical Hit]

A Red Player has scored a critical hit on Breeze for 12,323 damage.

Breeze has been [Hobbled]. 

Breeze spun and kicked out at her attacker, driving the black-armored rogue back a few steps.

[Backstab][Tendon Slice][Critical Combination]

Sato has hit a Red Player for 45,766 and 23,544 damage.

A Red Player has been slowed by 40 percent. 

[OP: Chainy] Disengage the dwarf boss; we got him.

QJ jumped 30 meters into the air as four shots sounded off as one. The dwarf's unprotected head exploded in a mess of bone and blood.

[Sniped] Unchained has landed a critical headshot on a Red Player. 

[Sniped] Maric has landed a critical headshot on a Red Player.

[Sniped] Dunnie has landed a critical headshot on a Red Player.

[Sniped] Junzo has landed a critical headshot on a Red Player.

A Red Player has been slain.

QJ scanned the area, the old man had disappeared while Sato and Breeze were fighting the rogue.

[Aimed-Shot]

 (Headshot Bonus)(Critical Hit)

 QJ has hit the target for 83,113 damage. 

 Fire Scorches your target for 16,623 damage.

A Red Player has been slain.

[OP: QJ] The rogue and the dwarf are down. Does anyone have eyes on the pointed-hat guy?

[OP: Breeze] You mean the Wizard? Three little slams, and his health was barely a sliver. He ran off. 

[OP: QJ] Let's find him. High-end casters from Iron Mount can single-shot almost all of us.

The robed caster in question sprinted down a back alley three blocks away while rifling through his pack.

[Iron Mount Alliance: Elton] Where the fuck is everyone? 

The caster skidded to a halt, cursing his luck as he ran into a dead end. Turning back, he stopped suddenly, staring at the angry-looking blond girl that appeared out of nowhere. The Wizard's wand shot up, but he paused when he noticed that the Slinger was only level 40. "Gonna stream myself taking down an OP member."

"Good idea," Mai'Tai's frown turned into a slight smile. "Got some sort of quick cast attack that can take a lowbie like me?"

The Wizard nodded. "Flame Rend has a nearly instant cast, only a tenth of a second." 

"That's not fast enough..." Mai'Tai's hand blurred, and a shot rang out an instant later. 

[Quick Shot][Headshot]

Mai Tai has hit the target for 9,553 damage. 

A Red Player has been slain.

"Bang," Mai Tai muttered while holstering her weapon. "Let's see what you were carrying."

[OP: Mai Tai] Found the wiz guy. He dropped something interesting.

[OP: Ringo] You finished him?

[OP: Mai Tai] He was already circling the drain. I'll link the drop. 

[Interplanar Token]

Description: This token will allow up to five players access to any Exodus game for one hour. If you are killed using this token, you will be transported back to your binding point, and all equipped gear will be lost.

[OP: QJ] The other two dropped the same token. 

[OP: Ringo] What the hell is going on here? Was this a cross-game event?

[OP: QJ] We would have been made aware of it. Let's worry about it after wrapping up this raid. 

[Wu] I'll start looking into it. 

[OP: QJ] Don't post anything about Junebug until we find out what's happening. No one says a word about Iron Mountain coming to GnG.

[Wu] You got it.

OP spent the next hour cleaning up the loose ends that were either bunkered up or well hidden. 

[System Message] By [Imperial Order], Junebug is now the territory of the OP guild and will remain off-limits to non-guild personel for seven days.

[System Message] All OP guild members are awarded two levels.

QJ walked toward the Tower of Babel with Sato, Ringo, Lotte, and Breeze. Ra and Sarah sat on the front steps, chatting like they had just finished afternoon tea.

Ringo glanced at the two clerics. They were a significant asset to OP since GnG only had the medic class for pure healing. "This could have been different if Ra hadn't closed the Red Player entry point."

QJ nodded in agreement. A moment later, he received an urgent notification. 

[Imperial Message] Please return to Briar Rose as soon as possible.

Ringo glanced up from her hud, apparently she had received the same message. "Maybe we'll find something out."

"Maybe," QJ agreed.