"I own a musket for building defence since that is what the young master intended."
"A bunch of ruffians break into the corridor leading to our server room."
"What the devil?!"
"As I grab my powdered wig, Brown Bess rifle."
"Put a golfball sized hole through the head of the first man he is dead on the spot."
"Draw my pistol with my guards on the other men and shoot them because they are still shocked at our presence."
"I have to resort to negotiations to get them to surrender."
"Tally ho lads."
"My negotiations make them surrender, giving us the leverage we require to wrap up all this unpleasantness."
"Just as the young master intended."
Soren Hunt, Captain of James Larant's security and personal guard.
….
It had been a long night.
James Larant was exhausted after talking to 18 business CEOs over the last 3 hours, who all wanted the same thing.
Access to Dynasties Online, which had become a virtual online marketplace for the lower classes as well as their place of work, was something that could not be easily replicated, if replicated at all.
After all, who else would be willing to take a gamble that had already cost a company £750 billion in expenses, and that was just in what they had to pay out to the players who had traded in the majority of their in-game gold money in real life and not including the cost of development and the servers themselves.
It had cost so much money that no sane person or company would take such a risk, even if the rewards were so lucrative that it would make James more powerful than even some countries were.
Though people had all secretly collectively agreed that James Larant was somewhat crazy, so him trying such an outlandish thing shouldn't really be that surprising.
Ring ring!
As James made his way towards his bed, a call came through on his personal phone that he kept in his pocket at all times, and seeing the name of the caller, he sighed in resignation because all that James wanted to do at the moment was go to sleep, not talk to more people.
Something it appears fate disagreed with.
At least this caller would not shout at him and call him every single insult under the sun like all the others had over the last 3 hours that he spent rejecting each and every request or proposition made to him by dissatisfied CEOs wanting a piece of the pie he had created by only paying a few million pounds.
Who would have thought that leading people in business, some of the most ruthless people in the world, would dislike the word no?
It is a simple two-letter word that James has had to say hundreds of times in a myriad of different ways while dealing with the insignificant threats that each of the angry CEOs sent his way.
As if he would be afraid of them when he, for all intents and purposes, lived in a fortress.
However, in the defence of these arrogant CEOs, the eccentric creator of Dynasties Online did consider that these influential businesspeople were not used to hearing the word no, especially when they all call in mass like they had been doing.
The CEOs of all these companies had tried every trick in the book to persuade him to cave in. Bribes, offers of co-operation, threats, anything that could be done to get him to agree to their terms had been attempted, and every single time, James had said the same thing.
No.
No deal.
You must compete for in-game resources if you want access to DO and its market.
Of course, such a thing was incomprehensible to many of these CEOs who had never before dealt with someone as stubborn or weird as James because many could not see the reasons for James rejecting them.
Any other game company would have taken their money or caved into their threats, but James Larant did not.
Even when they threatened to cut all ties with him, James refused and did not care.
To put it simply, James had given a big middle finger to the entire business world, essentially saying that it's 'my way or the highway.'
The most frustrating thing was that James' way was likely the better option, and of course, whenever something is forced, resistance and dissatisfaction follow.
Even though each conversation was only 10 minutes long, it still meant that out of the 500+ odd CEO, he has only been able to deal with 18 in the last 3 hours.
If it were anyone other than the leaders of these large corporate conglomerates, then James would have just given a one blanket no and be done with it.
But no matter how much James personally did not care about these fools' opinions, he had to maintain at least a semblance of decorum, as the last thing he needed was for them to be stubborn because he did not even have the grace to refuse them in person.
'Damn humans and their pride.'
James thought as he answered his phone, knowing that his next few days would be spent talking to and soothing the egos of arrogant young masters who believe they are the centre of the world.
"Mr Smith, you realise I have spent the last 3 hours soothing egos, right?"
James said formally, with a bit of bite in his voice, making it clear that even talking with a friend was the last thing he wanted to do at that moment, wanting nothing more than to relax.
"You brought this upon yourself mate, who asked you to create an entirely new virtual marketplace that the lower classes will only ever use more and more while cutting out all the big wigs and taking their market share."
"You didn't think they would just allow you to take over their market without resistance, right?"
"Especially when you want them all to fight each other for benefits in a game to do so. Honestly, I imagine many of them think you are crazy, not that this is a bad thing mind you as genius and madness are usually two sides of the same coin."
Chairman Lee said, chuckling, knowing just how much of a hard time James would have in the future as they both knew that sabotage was not out of the question when someone sends as many ripples through the world as James has.
James' friend then turned serious.
"You have made preparations, right?"
Chairman Lee asked, though, if he could foresee these powerful people's reactions, then James, who he saw as far more capable than himself, almost certainly could.
His friend had spent years preparing everything needed to ensure this game had a smooth launch, making contingencies for every possibility.
"Of course, I have those little shits have another thing coming if they think a little sabotage would be able to take me down."
James said a ruthless glint in his eyes that was communicated to Lee through his voice, which turned ice-cold for a second before softening.
"By the way, I would like to thank you for not exchanging any in-game gold for real-life money. While it is only a drop in the ocean, it has helped."
James said sincerely, as some companies who had clocked on quickly had tried to actively sabotage James by exchanging massive amounts of in-game gold for real-life money in an effort to make him cave by disrupting his cash flow, though currently such schemes had failed so far and would only hurt these organisations in the long run if James could hold on.
It was why, despite most players hardly making more than a few hundred to a thousand pounds a month, his costs were so high as these meddling rivals used every trick in the book to make James cave to their demands.
It's amazing how quickly old enemies can cooperate as soon as their collective interests are harmed.
Of course, these businesses would not buy players gold as that was precisely what James wanted, as he made a small commission off each transaction.
Instead, they used their business skills like Reginald had using his in-game character Railius to build up large businesses and merchant groups to exchange hundreds of thousands of gold for money in real life, which, when multiplied by 10 to account for the fact that one silver is worth 1 pound and 10 silver is worth one gold means that James has had to spend millions of pounds he would not have had to pay otherwise.
The only difference is that Railius did not exchange vast amounts of in-game money. Instead, he primarily invested it back into his in-game business to help it expand, which in the long run would give him a leg up if James can hold on and force these businessmen to invest into the game and take over the cost of paying players for their in-game gold with real money.
As more and more businesses join the game thanks to their recent realisations, this behaviour will only worsen in the short term as unscrupulous businessmen do anything to protect their interests.
Hence, pulling underhanded schemes like this was just business as usual and something James had long prepared for.
Of course, that was until one side backed down because the war happening behind the scenes was known only to those people of power and influence, and mostly hidden from the eyes of the general public; otherwise, they would be outraged at these unscrupulous businesses because if these businessmen bought their gold, they could make more money than if they exchanged it with the system.
"Don't worry, my friend. Unlike many of those idiots, I have no doubt about your victory in this war happening behind the scenes, so why would I spend my money in a fight with you when I can get a head start over my competition?"
Lee Smith continued in his usual light-hearted manner.
"Anyway, do you want to meet up and relax somewhere? I have our old friend, the Ice King, with me right now, and it could really help you to relax. It will be just like old times"
Lee Smith said, his voice warm and longing to see his eccentric friend who, since Dynasties Online had been released, had holed up in Dynasties Inc. headquarters a grunt of agreement could be heard through the phone that had been on speaker as Theodore Forelond made his first sound throughout the entire conversation being a man of few words as he always was.
"You're not trying to lure me into a trap, right?"
Lee laughed openly at that, and even Theodore, known for his cold and aloof demeanour, smiled. Their eccentric friend had not changed one bit since his days at university, always being suspicious of everything and everyone. However, considering James' tragic past, neither man was surprised as one event had traumatised their friend for life and led to the creation of DO.
It also happens to be the reason that he was so good at coming up with contingencies should things screw up completely.
"How about you come to my place? Julius will let you through after all the security checks have been made, of course."
James offered, thinking that going out of the safety of his headquarters when he was the target of so many powerful people would not be the most wise course of action he could take.
The meet-up with his old university friends would really help him mentally if he could spend a night with his friends just drinking and hanging out without the constant worry of DO hanging over his head like a dark cloud.
"Sounds good, though it wounds my heart that you still do not trust us after all these years."
Lee Smith accepted the offer with a sarcastic remark.
"See you soon."
James replied, hanging up.
Then he pulled up his contacts and made a call.
A call that needed to be made before his enemies made their move.
"Yes, young master?"
A deep, growly voice said, picking up the phone before it could even ring twice.
"Captain Soren, I hate to disturb you on this beautiful night, but I need you to make sure to increase the security level of the entire building, especially around the server rooms for the next few months. I expect we will be hosting some uninvited guests within the next few days if those fools are as predictable as they always are. Please make sure they are appropriately welcomed."
James said in a voice devoid of emotion that would send shivers down the spine of all but the most stout of heart, already predicting the next move of his rivals.
"Understood, young master, your guests will find our welcome most appropriate, on that you have my oath."
Captain Soren replied seriously.
Captain Soren was a large, muscled man with a scar running around the outside of his right eye and James' head of security. He was an ex-member of the SAS who had been hired by the Larant family because of his excellent skills and fighting prowess, which had not once failed his family since James took over as head.
And James did not doubt that this would not change in the near future either.
"Excellent captain, I have no doubt in your skill, no doubt at all."
James said darkly, knowing just what the captain's 'welcome' would involve, but considering their guests were uninvited, it's not like they could blame him when it was his home that they were invading.
His lips raised into a small smile, James casually walked towards the room where he and his friends would have an enjoyable night full of good humour and alcohol just like they used to in college.
Ultimately, it would take only 2 weeks for James' predictions to come true….
May 15th 2122.
Dark clouds fill the night sky as not a star nor the moon could be seen in the heavens that night, while black clothed men slowly made their way towards the Dynasties Inc headquarters in London, passing through the streets like shadows unseen to all but the most perceptive of people.
Seeing the drop in revenue and profits and the refusal of James Larant to compromise with them, it did not take long for the leaders of the many large and small conglomerates and corporations to decide to take matters into their own hands and plot ways to remove what they saw as a threat to their prosperity and interests.
In the end, a collection of nearly 100 businesses both big and small came together within Great Britain to make a move on James Larant, who was based there, hiring men to sabotage the game servers of Dynasties Online to take the game down.
The biggest problem for them, however, was that the Larant family and Dynasties Inc had some of the best security systems in the world, making breaking in not the easiest of jobs for even the most experienced netizens of the underworld.
But no matter how loyal your people were, as long as your organisation is big enough, there will always be one person who could be bought or turned to your side if you are willing to pay a high enough price.
£500,000 was more than enough to buy this inside help, so instead of breaking through the windows or triggering some sort of alarm, they could just walk in as if they owned the place.
It was just unfortunate for the infiltrators and the men behind them that James Larant had long prepared for such uninvited guests, as they never wondered how or why they managed to find a willing traitor so quickly, who was oh so very eager to take their money.
And who would happen to know the night his keycard would be needed after he had finished his work.
Beep.
A green light flashed as the card he was given unlocked a staff side door, allowing the saboteurs to enter the pitch black building without sounding any alarms.
The only light that could be seen streamed from the upper floors while the bottom floors were empty.
Taking out a tablet that marked the route to the underground server room, the ruffians' leader quickly led his men towards the server room while leaving a few men to cover their escape, guns at the ready.
Yes, these mercenaries had guns, something that was illegal for most people to own, with only a few people with licenses allowed to own them, and even then, they would not have any assault weapons like these black cloaked figures did.
However, just as they descended the stairs to enter the lone corridor that led to a server room, the lights suddenly turned on, shocking them and revealing them to the waiting security personnel who also held weapons that they shouldn't be able to own.
Bang!
A poof of smoke belched from the musket that hit one of his men in the head, making the body armour they wore useless, as a loud voice echoed through the corridor and up the stairs full of mirth.
"Still got it."
Captain Soren muttered before saying much more loudly
"I own a musket for building defence since that is what the young master intended."
A musket?
Who the fuck uses a musket in 2122?
Many of the shocked mercenaries thought, however, the other security guards wielded much more modern weapons and reminded the captain of these unfortunate men of the tale of a British soldier in World War II bringing a longbow with him to fight.
Captain Soren, didn't care about their shock or confusion and as men quickly opened fire mowing down the men who had momentarily frozen after entering the thin corridor their lifeless lead fill bodies collapsing to the ground the few shots they managed to get off harmlessly bounced off or in the small fortification of sandbags that Soren had prepared before the entrance to the server room.
James Larant had lured them into a trap.
Now, they are trapped with very limited options if they want to escape this situation with their lives intact.
"I recommend surrendering as you are surrounded with no hope of escape."
"Unless, of course, you all want one-way tickets to a meeting with the devil, in which case my men and I will happily oblige you."
Captain Soren shouted calmly as shots continued to be exchanged up the stairs, making every second lost another life lost as it was clear that the few guards they left to cover their escape were either dead or captured.
"We won't be harmed?"
The leader of these mercenaries, who had managed to react faster and retreat out of the firing line of Soren and his men, shouted back.
"As long as you co-operate, I ensure you that you will not be harmed, though whether you remain as free men relies more on the response of your employer than anything else."
Soren replied as he and his men had orders to save the mercenaries and especially their captain, as it seemed that he had plans for them, which is why he wanted his elite and loyal personal guards to handle this initially rather than the police as it gave James more room to manoeuvre.
The captain decided to stop and momentarily think, trying to figure out if they had a way out, before deciding that he didn't, and that if he wanted to keep his life, then surrendering was his best option.
Being the ever pragmatic mercenary he was, the decision was an easy one.
"We surrender."
The mercenary captain said resignedly, throwing his fully automatic laser gun down the stairs before coming out with his hands up.
At least he and most of his men would be able to survive.