1:45 P.M.
Enzo spent the next twenty minutes sitting in the shade of a large tree with Rachel, Bebop, Pixie, and Volta while Redgrave, Elias, and Dendrite hung out near the stage. They mostly talked about the real world. Enzo learned that Rachel was a schoolteacher, Bebop was a computer programmer who absolutely loved Tantalus and Redgrave, and Pixie was a barista in Los Angeles who wanted to be an actor. Enzo realized that he, a 28-year-old, was by far the oldest one there. Rachel was the next oldest at 23 years old.
“If you never played Ninth Oasis, Enzo, how did you manage to kill all of those Deluvians?” asked Rachel. “You were really accurate with your rifle.”
“I collect and shoot guns as a hobby,” Enzo said. “My IRL skill transfers over to the game, apparently.”
“That must be an expensive hobby. How does your girlfriend feel about that?” asked Rachel. Pixie made an expression that Enzo couldn’t quite place.
“I’m… between girlfriends right now,” Enzo said, embarrassed that he had to reveal such information to a group of people at least five years younger than him.
“It’s probably ‘cause of the guns,” Bebop said with a laugh, and he struck Enzo's back with the palm of his hand.
“Hey!” Enzo said to Bebop. “Are you gonna tell me you’re any better, Mr. Spike Spiegel?”
“Hey, man,” Bebop said defensively. “We’re not talkin’ about me right now.”
Pixie was whispering something to Rachel, and both of them started giggling.
“I had a boyfriend IRL,” said Volta. “Not that it matters. We’ve all been in hospital beds for a month now… and we’re going to be there for years. By the time we get out, if we ever escape, the rest of the world will have moved on.”
Everyone else looked taken aback by this statement until Pixie said, “That just means that this is our life now.” She smiled. “The opportunities are endless. We’re at such an advantage compared to the NPCs that we'll certainly all end up wealthy and powerful."
“I guess you have a point,” said Volta.
“You’re absolutely right,” said Bebop, getting excited. “We’re basically unkillable, and we can use guns unlike the NPCs. There are thirty thousand players on this server and millions of NPCs. You want a house, just steal it from an NPC. What are they gonna do, stab you with a fork?” Bebop smiled and playfully pulled his handgun half out of his holster.
Rachel seemed like she was about to say something to rebuke Bebop's statement, but then another man walked up to the group. He asked, “Are you guys with Redgrave and Tantalus?”
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“Yeah,” Enzo said.
“Do you mind if I sit with you?” the newcomer asked.
“Not at all, I’m Enzo,” Enzo said. “What's your name?”
“I’m FullDan,” he said. He was clearly very uncomfortable as he spoke.
“You’re a Scion?” asked Pixie, clearly impressed.
“Oh, is that impressive?” said FullDan, smiling. He was happy that Pixie was referring to him positively. “I’m just a guy that was pretty good at a video game five years ago. Trust me, I’m not as impressive as Ashcroft makes me out to be."
The rest of their time sitting there was mostly spent asking FullDan questions. He seemed cautiously happy at his apparent fame. According to FullDan, he was a line soldier in the Scions of the Blue Flame, which meant that he followed the orders of the three field officers: Ashcroft, RealSleep, and CosmiCrow. Line soldiers weren’t tied specifically to any particular field officer. For any particular mission, FullDan would work under one of those three officers. He also mentioned that the leader of the Scions for the entirety of its existence was Kingfisher50. It was the retirement of Kingfisher that caused the Scions to disband. The Scions had three strategists while FullDan was there: Tantalus, Zekava, and InfiniteRecursion. Each strategist worked in tandem with a different field officer depending on the time. Recursion was the lead strategist and the only one to stay after the guild disbanded.
As FullDan was reminiscing, there was a minor uproar as everyone turned toward the road. An incredibly loud vehicle had pulled up to the park. Enzo heard people whispering one word, “Tantalus.”
The main act had arrived.
----------------------------------------
When they finally reached Tantalus beyond the huge crowd, they could see that he had added a few articles of clothing to his outfit. He wore his grey cloak pulled close to his shoulders, and a blue officer’s cap was pulled low over his brow. He had a lit cigarette in his mouth, which further obscured his features. The sea of players parted as he passed through. All of this together somehow managed to make Tantalus look like a giant despite his small stature.
“Tantalus always knew how to make an entrance,” FullDan mused quietly.
As Enzo's group got close, Tantalus pulled something from the pocket of his jacket and threw it at Redgrave who gracefully caught it. Enzo saw the item out of his peripheral vision. It was the muffler of Redgrave’s motorcycle.
Somebody asked Tantalus a question, but Tantalus responded with, “I’m not here to talk; I’m here to deliver results.”
Ashcroft soon reached the front of the crowd. “The Commander has arrived, I see!” he said.
“Let’s go talk on the stage,” said Ashcroft. “Mozaic just finished setting up the sound system.”
“Not yet,” said Tantalus. “Assemble your A-team, Ashcroft, and then we’ll all talk in a secluded place where we can talk in private.”
“Are you sure about that?” Ashcroft frowned. “The people really want to hear from you, Tantalus.”
“You wanted a strategist, and you got one,” said Tantalus. “Part of having a commander is that you need to listen to him. They’ll hear from me, Ashcroft, in ten minutes.”
“I see that you’ve already started putting your plan in motion,” Ashcroft said loudly. “You heard him, guys! The High Command is going to hold a brief ten-minute strategy meeting, and then you’ll hear what Tantalus and I have to say. Don’t go anywhere!”
[Ashcroft]
https://i.imgur.com/SxNStxA.jpg [https://i.imgur.com/SxNStxA.jpg]