Phoenix Phire Chapter 149

[Officer Meeting: Guildhall on Glory Island]
/Guild Officer: Nix: We have two tough challenges to finish the week . The 79th floor and 7 . 9 in Mermaid City . Preferences?
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: I prefer to head up the Mermaid City team .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: Same here .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Those who want to take on the Mermaid Tower raise your hand .
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: That means Pon, Wind, Banzi, Nix, and Chael will take floor 79 .
/Guild Officer: Tess: With no heals? There's a five-person limit, so if you want me to go someone will have to swap out .
/Guild Officer: Sharl: Let Banzi come with the Mermaid City group, Morti can tank that floor .
/Guild Officer: Tess: Yes! I'm in!
/Guild Officer: Nix: Okay, I'm sending everyone a short letter from a group called the Cabal . Please read and then we'll discuss .
Nix,
We would like to congratulate you and the members of Inferno for your incomparable work in Colonial, the Embassy and Oasis . We've been observing the progress you have made these past few months, we feel that Inferno has all the parts necessary to become an Ascendant Guild . You're only a mid-tier Guild now, yet you wield more power than any of the Upper-Tier Guilds . Oasis is an important part of that journey, however, the Embassy is an equally vital piece . The Embassy was built to put the pieces in place for an Upper-Tier Guild to advance to the next level . We did not foresee that it would be Inferno that took the prize .
Continue to advance and weigh your options carefully . At this time we can't offer you anything other than encouragement .
Regards, TC
/Guild Officer: Pon: That's some vague shit right there .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: The 70th floor is key in progressing passed the Upper-Tier level?
/Guild Officer: Wind: That would mean that the strongest Upper-Tier Guilds should have been battling to finish the 69th raid rather than the Escalades Bridge?
/Guild Officer: Nix: I've been studying this a few days . Beating the 69th floor gives us the ability to cross the Escalade and come back through the Parliament . That must be the key to this higher tier .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: I get it . There must be something on the Embassy Upper levels . Something really big .
/Guild Officer: Pon: Resolute was trying desperately to beat the 69th floor, Caza told me that Sulane was pushing them every day, wipe after wipe .
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: We made choices that no one else thought of . The Aquarion Spirit companions and the Nemesis Allies, we were able to step pass Resolute and take their prize .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: Look at the chain reaction of some of our steps . The battle of Espana Bay, the Faction Event, even Nix uncovering the Cai'Song Artifact conspiracy . All of these together brought us to a key place .

/Guild Officer: Nix: Nope . . . you lost me, Sem .
Advertisement/Guild Officer: Pon: Same here .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: What would you say was the biggest single factor in beating the 69th floor .
/Guild Officer: Nix: There were several factors, but when it comes down to it . . . I'd have to say, Mortimer .
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: The key place was Shangri?
/Guild Officer: Sharl: A bear cub, that can stand off a Salamander Nemesis and Ced' Far . . . None of the tanks could have done it . At least not at the mid-tier level .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: That's why it should have been an Upper-Tier Guild that grabbed the prize . We are strong, but we aren't there yet .
/Guild Officer: Ronnie: Shangri was where Nix found him .
/Guild Officer: Nix: I wonder if Sulane received a letter like this one . Perhaps that's why Resolute remained behind while the other Upper-Tier pushed forward into Oasis .
/Guild Officer: Ronnie: That's a good theory Nix! I'm so jealous .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Something to think about anyway . Next item . . . Have all the members of Inferno reserved homestead plots?
/Guild Officer: Semmi: Yes, thankfully there aren't any disputes over land .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Let's go ahead and let everyone use their Homestead Tokens on the plots they've reserved .
/Guild Officer: Semmi: Sounds good . I'm going with a nice farm . Golden fields of Wheat .
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: Going to build a Vineyard .
/Guild Officer: Wind: Cattle ranch .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Horse Ranch .
/Guild Officer: Ronnie: Water Park .
/Guild Officer: Sharl: Oh god . . .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Nice Ronnie, I'm backing you up .
/Guild Officer: Pon: A Toma Brewery .
/Guild Officer: Wind: F*ck . . . That's a good one .
/Guild Officer: Sharl: I should have thought of that .
/Guild Officer: Jun Li: Oi . . . Is that why you set up so close to Semmi? You two are going into business?
/Guild Officer: Semmi: Yes .

/Guild Officer: Pon: Yep .
/Guild Officer: Nix: Let's take the day off from raiding so everyone can start their builds .
*****************
/Go Fish/ Jun Li: Start the build and then hit the spot?
/Go Fish/ Semmi: I'm in .
/Go Fish/ Nix: Me too .
Nix whistled as he walked through the woods . He had found the place a few days earlier, a small clearing right at the base of a two hundred foot cliff . Nix placed his hand on the smooth granite wall . When Shae eventually returned, she could make as many caves as she liked .
The Homestead Token pulsed with power when Nix activated it . A large menu of different types of buildings became available and he scrolled down the list until he arrived at Horse Ranch . The main house would be a traditional ranch style . He chose a sprawling two-story ranch house with a large kitchen and dining area . There were six bedrooms and a balcony that wrapped around the front of the home . There were three other buildings that accompanied the ranch . A large barn with a corral . A horse stable for a dozen horses and a bunkhouse for ranch hands to stay in . Nix envisioned a place teeming with workers and horses .
Nix adjusted the locations of the bunkhouse, he wanted it closer to the grazing area and he moved the barn a bit further away from the Main house . He definitely didn't want to smell fresh manure when he was eating or sleeping . When he was satisfied he activated the build Icon and walked away . His countdown said 14 hours .
Flash came down to visit him as Nix walked toward the fishing spot . There were five mares following him . "Must be nice to be King . I expect some production from you guys sooner or later . " He took out an apple from his inventory and fed it to the black stallion . It was a habit he had started and it made Flash more approachable . He gave one to each of the Mares as well, no need to play favorites .
Semmi and Jun Li were already waiting when he arrived at the river . Their fishing hole had evolved a bit in recent days . Each of them had their own chair and their rods had been upgraded . Nix's fishing skill stood at 52 while both Semmi and Jun Li were at 46 . Even though Jun Li's skill was lower than his, she seemed to have the best luck fishing .
/Go Fish: Semmi: Welcome Nix, we were waiting for you .
/Go Fish: Jun Li: What's the cook time on your ranch?
/Go Fish: Nix: 14 hours . You guys?
/Go Fish: Semmi: 8 hours .
/Go Fish: Jun Li: 10 hours .
/Go Fish: Nix: How does it work with production type builds?
/Go Fish: Semmi: With grain fields, it clears the area I chose for fields and then auto-plants the first-year crop . I'll have to do the harvesting and planting after this .
/Go Fish: Jun Li: It's the same for my vineyard . I'll probably have to find some hands to help with the harvest .
/Go Fish: Nix: Got a label name for your wine?
/Go Fish: Jun Li: Junie .
/Go Fish: Nix: I like it .
Nix baited his hook and cast his line into the river . The space they had chosen was sheltered from the wind, he leaned back and let the mid-morning sun shine on his face . "Either of you been to the Guild Office in Parliament lately?"
"Nope," Jun Li replied .

Semmi smiled at her two fishing buddies . Jun Li didn't like politics and Nix had been spending his Oasis time in Haven .
"I go every morning for a few hours," Semmi admitted . She loved paging through the dockets and reading the different arguments . "There are two important votes coming up, make sure you read them Nix . "
"I will . "
The trio sat quietly most of the time, fishing was steady enough to keep Nix from falling asleep in the sun . A few hours passed by, the sound of Nix's horses approached caused all three of them to turn around .
Semmi liked the look of the black stallion . "Is he as fast as he looks?"
Nix nodded . "I've ridden him a few times, he's like the wind . "
/Inferno: Hyai: You around Nix?
/Inferno: Nix: Sure . Need something?
/Inferno: Hyai: Can you come to the Inn?
/Inferno: Nix: Sure . On my way .
Nix reeled his line in and then stowed his fishing gear . "Sorry, gotta cut it short . "
Semmi smiled, "I like Hyai . "
Jun Li nodded, "if you need help with anything just ask . "
*******************
A few minutes later Nix walked into the Kindled Spirit . He waved at Hyai from the door, but then stopped short when he noticed her companions . A slender woman with dark hair and serious face stood motionless while staring at him . There was a man with her, he was about the same age and had the same black hair .
"Stixx?" The dark-haired woman ran toward him and hugged him tightly . "It's really you . "
"Hey Frog legs . " Nix smiled at his older sister . She would call him Stixx whenever she was mad at him when they were kids . He would respond with the dreaded 'frog legs' nickname .
"Nicky . " The young man spoke his name quietly, his eyes were shining with emotion .
Nix cocked his head to one side . "The hell . . . Why are you so young?" He embraced his father, squeezing him tightly for a moment before letting him go .
His dad shrugged slightly . "Why not?"
Nix nodded in agreement, suddenly curious as to why Pon had chosen to make his character old as f*ck . "Welcome to Glory Island . " He turned toward his sister . "What are your names? I want to introduce you to someone special . "
"Bev, of course . I thought there would be less confusion that way . "
"I'm Ry," his dad introduced himself . His dad's actual name was Ryan .
"Right . . . Now I know where my creativity comes from . " Nix stepped away from them for a moment and grabbed Hyai's hand . "This is Hyai, she's Innkeeper here and someone I care about . "
Hyai understood that the people who came to Colonial from other worlds lived vastly different lives then what they experienced here . She wasn't the least bit surprised that Nix's father looked the same age as him . "Nice to meet both of you . "
"This is Bev of course, my older sister . The young-looking guy there is my dad . Seriously . . . Were you that good looking at my age . "
His dad nodded . "Yes . "
Bev grabbed his hand . "We can't stay Nicky, we bought a couple of six-hour passes, most of that was spent trying to navigate our way through Jenzi . "
"Follow me . Back in a bit Hyai . " Nix led them upstairs to his room and motioned for them to have a seat on the couch . "So a day pass? Would you like to stay longer?"
Bev nodded, "I'd like to, but I just can't afford it, Nicky . "
"I can set both of you up Bev . " Nix opened up the Vasai Virtual menu on his hud . "I'm what they call a Deep-Stay . That means I'm in stasis for an extended period, in my case, it's ten years . "
His dad listened quietly . He had sold his tailor shop and moved out west with his daughter . He did some alterations on the side too keep busy, he was living an old man's life and he was not even fifty . "I know nothing about VR gaming Nicky . What would I even do here?"
"There's about a million things for you to do every day . " Nix accessed his sister's hud . "Fresno Virtual Center? You are both logged in there?"
"Yes . I took two weeks off from work and planned to visit longer, we didn't realize how expensive it is . " Bev squeezed his hand tightly .
"I got this Frog Legs . I'll set up a 10-day stay for both of you at Vasai Virtual in Canada . If you can manage to get your things in order in a few days . "
"Nicky?" His father stared at him, "can you afford that?"
"I can . This time I'll have a lifestyle player meet you and everything will be smooth sailing . " Nix leaned back slightly and smiled at both of them . "All you have to do is say yes and then show up . "
Bev nodded . "Okay, Nicky . "
The Phire family sat on the couch and talked right up until the day-pass expired, his father and sister logged off with the promise that they'd make the trip to Vasai . Nix used the hud menu to access Vasai Virtual and took a few minutes to set up a 10-day in each of their names, he paid the charges directly so they wouldn't be bothered .
[Whisper: Nix to Nansu] Going to need you to do me a special favor . My RL family will be coming to Colonial for a 10-day stay in 3 days . Neither one of them has any VR experience . "
[Whisper: Nansu to Nix] I will take care of everything . Will they be staying in Glory or Haven?
[Whisper: Nix to Nansu] Haven, I'll be taking 10 days off from raiding when they arrive .
[Whisper: Nansu to Nix] I'll meet them and then escort them personally .
Nansu was an expert lifestyle player and extremely knowledgeable about Colonial in general .
[Whisper: Nix to Nasu] Thanks, that's a load off my mind .
Nix leaned back on the couch and closed his eyes, perhaps there was a chance for the broken Phire family . A soft knock at the door caused him to open his eyes . "Come in"
Hyai opened the door slightly and looked in . "Everything okay?"
Nix nodded, "I think so . They'll be back in a few days . "
Hyai walked in a closed the door before taking a seat next to him . "So . . . Nicky? That's really cute . "

Chapter end