1999, June 20th

  It had been two days since they arrived back. Everything was coming along. Just as he expected, Microsoft had struck back. They rolled out DirectX 7 just a few days ago, which was faster than he had expected. They were also tying enterprise software vendors to Windows-only distribution. He could already see what they were trying to do. The biggest weakness of QuantumOS was the availability of software. As they were still new, many developers still hadn't developed software for their platforms. And since QuantumOS didn't natively run .exe, it was a big problem.

  His plan was for QuantumOS 2.0 or QuantumOS 2000, as it would be called, to be released next year. He was still working on it, and it wasn't finished yet. Microsoft had also announced that it would be releasing Windows XP in August 2000, much sooner than before. So next year, he would have to go toe-to-toe with Windows XP, arguably the best Windows product.

  His plan was simple. He had been rewriting parts of the core system to improve performance dramatically. Due to his perks, he was able to do that without much effort. His second improvement would go to the QFS to further improve it. Next would be memory. He had been rewriting it to prevent memory leaks from the OS side, as his perk, Memory Master, was picked specifically to do that.

  His next innovation for QuantumOS 2000 would come from the addition of the translation layer. He remembered in his past life that something called Wine acted as a compatibility layer, which translated Windows API calls on the fly so that it could be used on other OSes. Back then, he was interested in it, so he had studied it briefly.

  His plan was simple enough in concept. In his past life, Wine project had taken years to complete, with multiple collaborators. One advantage he had was that he knew how to implement it. He knew how it intercepted Win32 API calls and how it rerouted them through its own implementation. He didn't have to discover anything through trial and error. He could skip to implementation.

  He named it QLayer. In his previous life, the Wine project had taken years of collaborative effort and still had rough edges well into the early 2000s. It had multiple contributors, endless reverse-engineering, and constant trial and error against Microsoft's undocumented behavior. He had none of those problems.

  The first reason was knowledge. He knew how Wine's architecture worked, where it failed, and where it was simply guessing at implementation details Microsoft had never disclosed. He could skip to building and route around the landmines deliberately instead of discovering them six months before a deadline.

  The second reason was Universal Compatibility.

  He didn't know how it worked, exactly. But it was simple enough. The code didn't write itself, nor anything magical. Instead, it was like an instinct. It was as if he had been doing it for months. He just knew how to write translation logic for a Win32 API call to QEX.

  He estimated that he would finish a working prototype in 6 weeks. It wouldn't be polished or complete, but it would work. By his prediction, QLayer at launch would probably cover around 80% of common Windows applications like productivity software, business applications, office suites, and utilities. Games were a separate problem, as DirectX translation was something he was leaving for QuantumOS 2000's first service pack, which Microsoft's DirectX 7 rollout had now made more urgent than originally planned. It would make what he suspected to be Microsoft's plan of tying developers to Windows only obsolete. He grinned a little, just thinking about it.

  He got up from the chair and stretched. It was morning, so it wasn't good to do much work. He would complete more work, with more efficiency, if he worked the same hours at night, with coffee, of course.

  He walked downstairs. Sarah was on the living room sofa, writing something down in her notebook. "Hey, Sarah," William said.

  She smiled back, "You're finally awake, Will. I prepared some lunch for you in the kitchen."

  "Thanks."

  "Mhmm." She went back to writing.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  The kitchen was clean, and there was a covered plate on the table. He opened it. It was a cold pasta salad, with a fork tucked under the edge of the plate.

  William took the plate and walked out the French doors. The veranda was cooler than expected. Probably because of the ceiling fans. He pulled a chair at the far end of the wooden table, away from the glare of the sun. Beyond the pool deck, the lawn sloped gently away toward the hedging at the rear boundary. The oaks were enormous this time of year, their canopies deep and dark, the moss on their bark almost black in the shade. Through the gaps in the hedging, the bay was flat and bright.

  William took a bite as he thought. Haven't been back here in a long time. Ever since that gym room was completed, Eve and I stopped playing here. Maybe I should invite her to play? ...Nah, that's too weird. How should I frame this? Hmm... Maybe something like swimming? I should get a swimming skill. Yeah. He took another bite. He looked at the empty space between the pool deck and the oak canopies. Man, that space is really empty. Maybe some flowers could be good? How about planting some hyacinth flowers? He set his fork down as he rested his chin on the back of his hand.

  It could give me some kind of gardening skill. And it'll be fun to do it with Sarah and Eve. Sarah would definitely enjoy it. Eve would complain, as usual, but I think she'd also genuinely enjoy it. I could see myself enjoying it as well. He smiled at the thought. It's decided then. And I'll invite her to spar in the backyard daily from now on. It'd be more fun.

  He nodded, satisfied. He finished his lunch while enjoying the view. Damn, the lot is very big. How did I not notice that before? He thought idly as he ate.

  William brought the plate inside and left it in the sink. He paused for a moment before shrugging and doing the dish himself. I wonder if there's a dishwashing skill. What perks would that give? After washing it, he opened a kitchen cabinet and put it inside. What about for cleaning? Like mopping or sweeping? That'd be crazy.

  He leaned against the doorframe. Sarah was still writing. "I'm heading out for a bit."

  She looked up, "Alright."

  As he walked upstairs to get his coat, he texted Peter, the driver who had been with him since he was young.

  Peter was already pulling the car around by the time William came out of the front door. He was a broad, unhurried man in his early fifties, with grey at his temples. That made William pause for a bit. He just noticed how old he was getting as well. While he didn't have as close a relationship with him as he did with Sarah, he was still someone who stuck with William, even after his contract time was over.

  He clenched and unclenched his fist before getting into the car.

  Peter had been working here for 19 years. He hadn't missed a single day since, and didn't plan to miss any. Today was no different.

  He watched through the rear-view mirror as William walked down from the front steps. He noticed that he still had that same calm, unhurried pace and gait from when he was a teenager. The only thing different was that he now wore that ridiculous coat. Not that he had any ground to say anything. He wore a suit every day. William was around 6'2", he noted. Only slightly shorter than himself.

  William opened the door and got in. He sat behind the driver's seat. William had already sent Peter where they wanted to go, so he didn't need to ask for any more information.

  The drive itself was quiet. Despite his training, his mind kept wandering back to the past. Back then, he had operated in the Near East, or the Middle East. He was mostly active in Iraq back then. Shaking his head, he focused on the road. He looked at William through the mirror again, who was clearly dozing off.

  Soon enough, they arrived at Sentinel Arms, a weapon store in Tampa. It sold most firearms, from handguns to fully automated machine guns. Still, William was only here for a gun. He walked in, glancing around the store.

  A man with a very long beard, presumably the owner, got up in shock. "Oh, a customer? What do you need, sir?" said the man, completely unfazed by his age.

  He didn't mind it, "I'm looking for a USP Expert."

  He snapped his finger, "You got it, sir. Please wait here. Let me go grab it."

  William sighed a little after he was out of earshot. The man seemed a bit silly and clumsy. After a minute, the man came back with a case. He opened it, bringing out a USP Expert in all its glory.

  It had a long slide, with an extended barrel, and adjustable sights. The black polymer frame contrasted with the brushed steel of the slide.

  "HK USP Expert. .45 ACP," the man said. "One of the best pistols you can get without going into a custom build."

  "I want it. Include two spare magazines, a Kydex OWB holster, and two boxes of Speer Gold Dot in .45 ACP. Also, 10 boxes of FMJ."

  FMJ was a cheap practice ammo. The man nodded, "Certainly, sir. Is that all?"

  "Yeah," William nodded.

  "That would be... eleven sixty with taxes, sir."

  He paid with cash and walked out with the things. Peter got out of the car to help him carry them into the trunk. Afterwards, he told Peter, "Let's go to a range. Which one would you recommend around here?"

  Peter thought for a second, "The range on Henerson's good."

  He nodded, "Alright, let's go there."