"Will… will it cause trouble for my family?" Z's voice was barely a whisper, her gaze fixed on a distant point beyond him, unwilling to meet his eyes. Her hands, usually so capable, now wrung themselves together, a silent testament to the fear gnawing at her. "If it puts them at risk, I don't think I can do this. Not even if you promised to make me a king right now just for saying yes." The words were a heavy weight; each syllable laced with a profound reluctance that spoke volumes of her inner turmoil. She had sought his help, thrown herself into this ambitious venture, but the line of family was one she couldn't cross, no matter the potential reward.
John listened, his expression unreadable, allowing her the space to voice her deep-seated anxieties. "I won't lie to you, I don't know if it will or won't, Z," he admitted honestly. "I can't make any promises about it and anyone who could well being in my position would be lying right to your face. This is a path fraught with unseen dangers and a gamble with high stakes above what you're already taking." He told her, getting up and lightly putting a hand gently on her shoulder. "You won't be able to commit to this, will you? You feel the risk is too high for your family to take the risk of going against the gods? Same as the heat from being a personal merchant to someone like me." His questions were direct, cutting through the uncertainty to the heart of the matter, yet there was an underlying current of understanding in his voice, no heat or pressure. He wasn't pushing her or judging her, but rather it was just seeking clarity, wanting to make not only sure about it wanting her to also realize it.
With her head still lowered, a soft sigh escaped her lips. "Yes, I'm sorry," she murmured, the apology heavy with regret. "I know I asked you to be my investor, to help me build my dream and reach my goals, I did it knowing full well it would mean putting you at risk. And yet here I am, unable or perhaps unwilling to do the same for you. It's hypocrisy at its finest." She finally lifted her eyes, swimming with a mixture of shame and resolve as she looked at him. "If you want, we can cut our contract now. I'll let you keep the coin and even most of what I get once the rest of the items sell and I'll use what I have on hand to make it through on my own well trying to start over somewhere else to avoid troubling you further. It's only fair after using you like had."
A faint smile touched John's lips, a surprising reaction that took Z by surprise "It's fine Z. Despite your decision regarding this specific matter, I will still keep being your investor and help you however I can," he stated, his voice firm and unwavering. "But it will be strictly to the letter of our original agreement now, I'll give you supplies and goods to sell and you share a portion of the profits with me. I will still do what I can to help you become a merchant lord or even merchant king. That promise stands even if you feel you can't do this task for me regardless of how things go from here." The sincerity in his eyes was undeniable.
"But I just said I can't help you like you're asking! I want to protect myself and my family without giving a damn about what might happen to you!" Z exclaimed, perplexed by his continued generosity. She had expected him to walk away, to sever ties, not to reaffirm his support.
"This is this and that is that," John explained, his gaze softening further, his hand leaving her shoulder as he returned to his spot. "While I would have loved to have had you on board for the next parts on the merchant side, I'm not so heartless as to not understand where you're coming from. From now on I'll keep our business professional between us and do all I can to not drag you into the bigger picture, ill try to distance you to try and keep you a bit safer along but just know I am not breaking our previous agreement. A deal is a deal Z and I honor my commitments." He gave her a reassuring nod, then turned his attention to Kay, whose expression had remained remarkably blank throughout the exchange but he could see something in her eyes. "And what's your answer, Kay? Are you in, or would you prefer a more basic and professional agreement like what I have with Z?"
Kay's eyes now burnt with a fierce determination as she looked directly into his own. "I want in," she declared, her voice holding no hesitation, ringing with conviction. "I have nothing to lose and only things to gain from this, it's a gamble, a big one but I want to go all in on this. My family is a distant memory, my futures already bleak without me making a bold move to create something great. This is the chance I've been needing." A subtle nod from John acknowledged her resolve. He then pulled six small storage bags from within his coat and placed them carefully in front of the pair.
"One bag for each of you is filled with the specific goods on the lists you both asked me for, everything on your lists should be there." he explained, gesturing to the two smaller pouches and pointing out which belonged to who. "The other four contain funds. For Z theres one bag of coin, there's ten thousand coin in it to help finance your continued ventures, a healthy boost that should help keep you thriving despite the change in our immediate arrangements, a return on your trust and investment and a way for me to help me fulfill my role as your investor. For Kay it's the other three bags totaling thirty thousand coins there. This isn't just start-up capital for a black merchant alliance I want you to make; it's the beginning of a war chest. It's for proper establishment, to get other black merchants under your influence and to create a formidable organization and to get yourself firmly established as a power in your own right. If you need more, or anything else don't hesitate to tell me and I will do my best to fulfill those needs to ensure you get the black-market alliance I want you to make to take root deeply into everything, I will also need you to get a regular, trustworthy merchant to create the one on the clean side of things, someone you trust and wont fuck me over, they will be offered the same seed capital and there goal will be the same." He offered them a genuine, albeit brief, smile as he explained it all, taking satisfaction in their utterly shocked expressions.
"Next, let's discuss how I plan to break the rules and shatter the old mold," John continued, his voice dropping slightly, now imbued with a chilling undercurrent of resolve as he turned his focus to everyone else present. "We are on the verge of a war. My initial plan was to gather a small but elite force, make strategic alliances with other groups and then snowball our influence across this area well creating a strong group of ruling forces, a collective that controls the region through diplomacy and calculated force. Each of the current powers retaining there, well power but a alliance formed into a sword pointed at the gods." He began, his gaze passing over everyone one by one before sighing. "That plan has changed. My friends who are also my recent allies, have shown me a and encouraged an entirely different path for us to take, one born of shared anger and disillusionment. Instead, I'm going to go all out from the start. We will crush everything in our way, steamrolling with overwhelming force well using every single resource available to us to forcefully rule and control everything." He paused, allowing the gravity of his words to sink in. "I have weapons and people, beasts and supplies, all set and ready to go, far more people than I brought with me last time. Those friends of mine even provided entire buildings and formidable defenses somehow. Gifts of incredible power that I'm going to be setting up immediately after we finish here. Their anger towards the gods burns as hot as my own and it fuels this new, more aggressive strategy I will be going with." A grim smile played on his lips. Having finished his breakfast and once more enjoying the looks of shock, finding now would be a good time to leave and thankful none had asked about Alice after he had mentioned her earlier in the morning. Cliff immediately following him out of the room, clearly excited and ready to offer advice on the crucial placement of the various new buildings, both above and below ground with great interest in seeing what they were like and what they could do.
"He seems… different," Saya observed, watching John's retreating back disappear through the doorway. She picked at a leftover piece of toast on her plate, her brow furrowed in thought. "I'm not doubting a thing he said about the war or the resources, but the way he looked at me and Ash over breakfast seemed a bit different. There was more in it, an odd depth to it that I can't place but it's a bit like how he used to look at her. He seemed almost happy again, like back then, before… you know. And I noticed he didn't mention her either, even though something did happen last night with ties to her."
Ash nodded slowly, her gaze following Saya's. "It was like Natsu seeing the others after training, or a protagonist seeing a long-lost love interest after a long time apart," she agreed, drawing on popular stories to try and explain it the only way she could. "That's the kind of impression I got from him. But it feels… Forced? Maybe even a little bit fake? As someone who's worn a mask a lot, I can tell it's not entirely genuine, at least not yet. He's putting on a brave face, a powerful one, but the underlying pain is still there, just buried deeper with hints of fear mixed in." Her insight was sharp, honed by her own experiences that let her easily notice the signs and pick up what most would miss.
Outside, John had just finished explaining the various types of buildings he had acquired to Cliff, who listened intently, nodding along with each detail seeming extremely eager to see them well occasionally asking for some more details. Cliff soon began to plan the optimal layout, pointing out where to place what for maximum efficiency and defense. New residential buildings would replace those both above and below ground and would have some defensive structures mixed in. A fortified armory, designed to withstand a siege, would be next to the above-ground residents' buildings so their forces could easily gear up when needed. Watchtowers would be strategically positioned across the wall they would build, close enough to maintain visual contact with one another but spaced for maximum coverage of their growing territory. A larger mess hall would replace their cafeteria, designed to feed there swelling number of troops and would connect both the top and bottom areas of the base, he told John that eating together and having it join both above and below ground would be a way to help fostering a sense of community.
A research lab, something he called crucial component for their technological advance, was to be tucked deep underground and to the back, ensuring its security, secrecy and safety. An odd, almost archaic computer room was to be added onto its side, the first steps to regaining lost and future technology. A test area, a safe zone for experimenting with new weapons and magical techniques would be placed above ground and a bit away from everything else to avoid causing harm or damage to the main base or buildings. The kitchen would also undergo a massive expansion and be directly connected to the mess hall with new equipment added to make cooking far better and easier than before with a vast freezing warehouse, flanked by two additional normal warehouses to provide ample storage for the torrent of supplies placed behind it, the mess hall and warehouses would also be close to the armory as a extra precaution and safely keep the various resources John would be amassing for them over time. For the greenhouse, Elena's domain, he had a whole lot of new seeds for her to grow and experiment with, he also wanted to try and make the already big indoor greenhouse even bigger, something he already knew she would absolutely love it. Beyond that, Cliff added how he envisioned a forest-like farm area stretching out behind it, providing a sustainable source of wood or other resources that would grow best in such an environment.
Finally, at Cliff's insistence and a bit of back and forth the two most crucial and unique buildings would be set up in the very center of their burgeoning base, serving as the final, crowning pieces of their defense. The other members of their group, drawn by the palpable energy of the base's rapid expansion, had gathered to watch these last, pivotal structures go up with a slight rumble that shook the ground.
The first building to be erected was a monstrosity of different parts, seemingly held together by sheer will and goblin ingenuity. Satellite dishes, some spinning slowly, others fixed in place, stuck out at odd angles all over its scapy form. A few gun muzzles, thick and menacing protruded from its form all while thick steel plates seemed to be welded across its exterior making it look almost like a pile of scrap metal that had somehow come alive. Its purpose, according to Squib who claimed he had supervised the construction of others like it across his own bases was to act as a sophisticated mix of defense and radar. It was able to detect any entity entering a pre-programmed range and to provide unparalleled early warning through loud, obnoxious noises. Not only that, but it could shield the base from projectiles by generating a set sized energy field while simultaneously countering with its own weaponry mounted onto it should the shield be breached or the tower approached by confirmed enemies. Its ammunition was also peculiar, using rocks and sand fed from the ground underneath it via a sophisticated drill system that seemed to stretch out like roots, its drill forming a thick layer to replace what it used to prevent the ground form caving in, the sand and stone would be compressed and then fired at anything deemed an enemy that dared to enter its range. "A fine piece of goblin engineering!" Squib had boasted well preening, adding that it could even be upgraded with better 'weapons' and potentially become mobile if enhanced properly but not explaining how.
The next structure was its exact opposite in every way. It was a beacon of sleek, futuristic design, composed of smooth blue steel and elegant orange copper parts that could faintly be seen in the gaps of its sleek silver shell. A few pipes subtly protruded from it yet blended in seamlessly. A soft, light green light pulsed rhythmically in vain-like patterns between the plates, a mysterious energy emanating from within. Thoris had explained that it was an old and outdated model of what he and the others used to 'hide from the eyes of the gods and cripple fools who get close' to use his exact words. Its primary function was to generate a field that prevented 'divine' interference in the covered area. This field greatly limited and weakened anything involved in the gods' system, such as imps and Administrators as they weren't considered natives to the world the structure would be set up in. While it did nothing to those that the gods had blessed since they were natives, it effectively crippled any of the imps, administrators or other outsides who entered its range, which could be set and adjusted much like Squib's shield system but growing weaker the further out it expanded. Furthermore, Thoris revealed it had the astonishing ability to create smaller, portable versions of itself, albeit with a much shorter range after it was turned on and had a bit of time to properly integrated and only if it was fed the necessary resources to do so. John felt an immediate urge to activate it as soon as it was set up, to throw a blanket over their operations but he managed to resist if only barely. He felt it was better to wait a little longer, to set everything else up first and to have everyone ready, hopefully making his breaking of the rules abruptly clear to get the best response, or at least that was the advice he had been given by Thoris. To gather all his supplies and forces before having the device blanking out their vision so they would get annoyed, angry and maybe nervous if he was lucky.
John's last action, before turning his full attention to the impending war, was to personally oversee the meticulous unloading and packing of the supplies into their rightful places. He stocked the vast warehouses and the new armory first, taking careful stock and making a detailed list of everything they now possessed. As the base buzzed with activity Lacy seemed particularly interested in the machines he brought. She spent all her time inspecting them, seemingly trying to understand their intricate workings before becoming deeply captivated by the computer room. However her intense curiosity and access to such advanced and potentially dangerous technology meant she was always under the watchful eye of Saya, Ash or one of the other trusted members of their expanding group, a necessary precaution according to John after her last betrayal.