83 Planning Venture

QJ sat at his desk, reading a few messages he had received while working on Bart's weapon. After a satisfying lunch and fresh shower, he felt revived enough to hit the ground running. 

"Do you have to go to the range after lunch?"

QJ glanced up to see Lotte in his doorway. Her wet hair was combed back, exposing her forehead and neck, something she would never have allowed a few months earlier. "Nope, I plan on doing some questing. Need anything?"

Lotte nodded and used her crutches to walk in. After entering, she pushed the door shut with her foot. "I don't care if you see me."

"Hmm?" QJ noticed she carried a large tube in one hand. "Need a hand?"

Lotte wore a white terrycloth robe extending a few inches past her knees. "In addition to weekly EPO injections, I have to apply this ointment; it is supposed to facilitate nerve repair. I can do most of it myself, but it takes me a long time."

QJ grinned to lighten the mood before wiggling his fingers. "You need fast? They call me quick-hands QJ! Just take off the robe and make yourself comfor..." 

His words trailed off when she slid her robe off her shoulders and onto the floor. Lotte approached the bed and eased into a sitting position before letting the crutches fall to the floor. 

QJ cleared his throat when she reclined. "So... Front first?"

Lotte nodded and handed him the tube she still held in one hand. "You saw me last night, maybe you thought I changed things when I made my avatar, but I didn't. This is me." 

QJ read the label on the tube. "For treating neuropraxia and axonotmesis? Do you have another for neuromesis?"

"I was told I didn't need that because my nerves aren't severed." Lotte's nervous expression relaxed into one of wonder. "Is there anything you don't know?"

"I didn't know anything about burns," QJ admitted before flipping open the cap. "I spent a few days learning everything I could about treatments and therapy rehab."

She stared at him for a long moment. "I'm sorry if I cry a bit; although my skin feels numb, the muscles and nerves beneath it cause me a lot of pain." 

"I'll go slow." 

Sato, Breeze, and Nina were perusing the newly posted inventory from the guild treasury in the kitchen. The lowest items were level 55; no one except QJ  was high enough. 

"These GCP estimations are outrageous!" Sato's freckled nose was peeling from his permanent sunburn. 

Nina nodded in agreement. She had her eyes on one of the three legendary horses but kept it a secret. "I'd bid on a gun, but QJ promised to make me one like his."

"Maybe he'll lend me some GCP... I'm gonna ask him." Sato started to stand, only to be pushed back into his chair by Breeze. 

"Don't bother him." Breeze exchanged smiles with Nina. They were in the kitchen when Lotte entered QJ's room wearing a bathrobe. Shortly after, the door closed. 

"Me and QJ are tight! It's no bother." Sato frowned when Breeze tightened her grip. "What? Is he napping or something?"

Breeze snorted. "Lotte is in there." 

Sato shrugged. "That means he's awake."

Nina leaned closer and lowered her voice. "I'm going to be blunt because you aren't the sharpest tool in the shed. Two people who regularly eye-fuck each other are in a bedroom with the door closed. Get it?" 

Sato shook loose from Breeze's grip. "What? No way..."  He glanced in the direction of QJ's room. "No way..."

"Going to log in," Nina headed toward the stairs. 

"Us too," Breeze replied before grabbing Sato's hand and pulling him toward the stairs. 

Nearly an hour later, QJ helped Lotte put her bathrobe on. Her eyes were red with unshed tears. He tied the belt before tilting her chin up. "You did really well." 

Lotte smiled suddenly; raising on her tiptoes, she kissed him lightly. "Thank you for helping."

QJ wiggled his eyebrows at her. "It was no bother." 

When QJ entered the Sonbird, Wu was sitting in OP's booth. He waved at the guild's Information Broker before giving Pops the peace sign. 

"Two beers, please." QJ waited while the old man opened the bar freezer for the frosted glasses. 

"That was fun last night," Pops declared. He, Mike Obreen, and Gus drank themselves into a stupor before treating the rest of the family to the Songbird's greatest hits. Even sober, none of them had what you'd call a pleasant voice.

QJ nodded in agreement. "Next time, I'll bring a piano and accompany you guys." 

Pop's slid the beers to his grandson. "We'll make you look good, boy." 

No doubt," QJ agreed. 

Wu transferred his personal hud to the booth so QJ could make any adjustments he needed. "This is the feed you asked Maia for."

QJ smiled at the mention of TAP's first brown wing. "Monkey Butt shot this?" 

Wu laughed loudly while shaking his head in wonder at QJ's courage. Maia was one of the few Ba'Avriel who regularly fought all-challengers in the Exodus Arena. 

From the bird's eye view Maia provided, you could see the three separate train tracks. 

Wu paused the feed and pointed to the southmost track. "This is the Alto Malia Line, the central track is the Goshiean Line, and the northern one is the Charo'matel Line."

QJ nodded. "Let's refer to them as the Alto, Goshi, and Charo Lines." 

"Sounds good," Wu agreed. "Instead of trying to explain it, I prepared a brief for you to read." 

"Works for me. Anything I should know beforehand?"

Wu nodded. "The train stations and a good portion of the tracks are completely inaccessible by horse or foot traffic. The terrain is as nasty as it comes. No fliers will be allowed during an active quest; your Ba'Avriel friends can't help you."

[Venture Quest parts I, II, and III.] 

A maximum of 30 people board the train in Banshee Flats; they ride the Alto line to the Jordan Springs station. At Jordan Springs, you'll be attacked as soon as you disembark. The best-proven strategy is to break off into five groups until the Station Boss arrives. If you defeat him, you'll spend the night at the station, and first thing in the morning, you will board the train to Dusky Ravine via the Goshi Line. 

As before, you'll spend most of the day on the train. The strategy on the second day mirrors that of the first. Kill the mobs at the Dusky Ravine station until the Sation Boss spawns, and then board the Charo line the following day to Lucan Falls. This last leg of the journey is where the strategy changes. Instead of facing a station boss, outlaws and beasts will randomly attack the train throughout the day. No resurrections will be allowed on the last leg, and you must finish the raid with at least 1/3 of your original party. Once that's done, the portal will be active for one hour; anyone from OP may enter for the final train to your destination. 

QJ continued to study the map while he summarized. 

"Board the first train, take out the trash mobs and kill the boss, rinse and repeat the second day. On the third day, defend the train on its final journey and finish with at least ten people. Raid is over; we hold hands and sing songs to the summit." 

Wu tapped the end of his nose. "Boom. Any questions?"

QJ noded. "Why wait? After we kill the 1st Station Boss, let's hop the train to Dusky Ravine and wipe everything out."

Wu shook his head. "The second train leaves the station before you arrive; this also happens with the third train. The trains will never be in the same station simultaneously."

QJ pointed to the map. "The first track runs parallel to the second while they traverse this bridge. We could jump from one train to the other."

Wu's face split in a wide grin. "You mean, jump this five-meter gap from one train going 100kph to another traveling in the opposite direction at the same speed?" 

QJ nodded. "Why not?"

"The first train arrives at that point more than an hour after the second," Wu explained. 

"An hour after? What about the second and third lines? They pass each other in this tunnel through the mountain pass." QJ points to the only spot on the 2nd line where it runs parallel to the third."

"Just the opposite," Wu explained. "The third train enters the tunnel 30 minutes before the 2nd arrives... There's no shortcut to be had." 

"Give me a second."  QJ expanded the feed to fill the table and then created a simulation that featured all the trains running at five times their normal speed. 

Wu sat and watched as the three separate trains sped along their routes; QJ ran it through three times before he was satisfied. 

"The second train going across the bridge an hour before the first."  QJ started the simulation when the second train started across the bridge and stopped when it ended. "Let's see... track distance in kilometers from Banshee flats to the bridge. Hmmm...  Decrease speed by .3 percent? No, that's not enough. Run simulation from the point where train one crosses the bridge. Decrease speed by .4 percent." 

The simulation started with the second train crossing the bridge a few minutes after the first. 

QJ pursed his lips while using his personal hud to run more figures. "Run simulation from the same point but decrease the speed of the first train by .44 percent. Start a timer when they are parallel." 

This time, the trains started across the bridge at the same time. When they passed each other, the hud timer started. 

QJ grimaced at the timer. "Only eight seconds; getting thirty people across will be tricky. Half that should be doable." 

Wu stared open-mouthed at the sim. "You aren't serious." 

"I'm dead serious," QJ countered. "We hi-jack the train and slow it down. Once we hit the bridge, we jump from the first train to the second." 

"How will you account for variables?" Wu asked. Your calculations are based from the station to the bridge. What if it takes you ten minutes to take the train?"

"No, they aren't." QJ pointed to a ravine 30 kilometers from the first station. "I started them from this point. We should have fifteen minutes to take control of the train and slow it down." 

"Say you manage to get fifteen people onto the second train. What then?" Wu asked. 

"Highlight the tunnel that the 2nd and 3rd train pass through. Speed up the second train by .25 percent and run the simulation.

"Holy shit..." Wu watched the second train enter the tunnel a few seconds before the third. "Holy shit..."

QJ shook his head. "Rerun sim, speed up the second train by .23 percent of original, run timer when they are parallel." 

This time, the trains entered the tunnel on opposite sides nearly simultaneously.  The timer ran for 7 seconds before it stopped.

QJ scowled at the simulation. Seven seconds to jump trains in a contained space. "Even if twenty people made the first jump, we'd be lucky if five made the second. That wouldn't be enough to protect the train. And we fail if we finish with less than a third of our starting number." 

Wu shook his head. "Maybe not, but that's still some impressive planning."

QJ stared for a moment before a wide smile creased his face. "I'm overthinking this. What a dumbass... I'll stop the first train on the bridge and wait. Nearly all of us should be able to make it." 

Wu felt like he should be streaming this plan. "Jumping from a stationary object onto a moving one will be easier than two fast movers going opposite directions." 

"Yep... Then we'll crank up the speed of the second train deep into the red and stop it in the tunnel."  QJ muttered a curse. "All that good math was just a waste of time." 

Wu watched him run the simulation when he stopped the first train on the bridge and then sped up the second train in time to stop it in the tunnel. Both transitions looked plausible to him. 

"Then we take the last train to our destination and fend off attacks." QJ tapped his fingers on the tabletop. "What do you think?"

Wu nodded. "The three-day Venture quest done in a single day." 

"We can always play it straight, but I'll try to tweak this strategy a bit." QJ stared at the simulation one last time. "This tunnel is halfway through the last route. That should mean we can avoid half of the boarding attempts." 

"You the man, QJ." 

"Thanks for listening, Wu." QJ fist-bumped him and headed toward the exit.