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Dien
Exalted Player
Posts: 226
Joined: Fri May 12, 2006 1:59 am
Class: Blademaster
Location: The "Who's Online List," Stalking People...

Post by Dien » Sun Aug 27, 2006 8:44 pm

The world seemed to spin about, time passing at its own hectic pace. Closed eyes revealed a sea of black: light’s antithesis pouring into the brain through sealed irises. It was a strange thing how the darkness was the only thing allowed into the mind through closed eyes, how it was the only thing the body naturally trusted. To think that trust could so easily be betrayed was frightening. Darkness was deceptive by its very nature. The mind didn’t give its trust so easily and tried to fill the void with an imagination. Dreams and dreams of dreams were called upon to call it out. Some scientists argued that without dreams the body would die, that the darkness would betray the human trust to death.

A cold and unforgiving slab cradled him, stealing the warmth from him, never seeming to adjust to his body’s temperature. Arms and hands rested on whatever the material was, robbing them of precious energy. There was nothing holding him down that he could feel, but for some reason Dien didn’t feel it was time to get up yet. Still, was he restrained? Lifting his head off the slab seemed to require more effort than he recalled as being necessary the countless times past, but it wasn’t being held back. His eyes opened to nothing: its cool blackness ripping existence out of the very air.

He closed his eyes, letting his head fall back to rest. A moment passed, and then the echo of his head’s pounding returned, rebounding off whatever distant surface it had found. Warmth: it poured over his body in a short, sudden blast, forcing his eyes open once more. Where had that come from?

“Hello?” he asked, pulling his body up after his head to sit on the pedestal he was on. Slowly he shifted his gaze around, his hand sliding onto the hilt of his sword as he tried to pierce the darkness as much as he could. Even the slightest hint of light would have been double checked if it were found, and by this means several false alarms were given.

Jedediah,” the voice said from behind, and with the silence broken the room was revealed in a blinding light. A whole array of color streamed into his eyes, and he pinched them shut, even the red from the light’s passage through his flesh threatening to overload his cerebrum. Slowly, he let his eyes open again, the well-lit room coming into full view. Under his feet, gold was made to shimmer in the light provided from torches around the perimeter of this massive, perfectly-domed room. Seven vaults ran up to the top, stretching up from the walls. At their bases, wide basins were alight, each one holding its own bonfire over brass stands. Intricate mosaics covered the walls, and every tile was made of its own perfectly-formed gemstone. Scenes of victory and glory almost came to life in the light of the multitudinous flames about the room.

“Where are you?” the boy asked, stepping off the bed and onto the floo- wait, when had it become a bed? Surely enough, whatever cold slab he’d been lying on before had been swapped for the more comfortable choice, and Dien turned yet again, the rest of the room seemingly empty. “Why can’t I see you?”

You cannot see me,” the voice said from above, “because I have not yet revealed myself to you.” Jed looked up, indeed not finding the speaker of those words.

“Well why not?” he asked, jumping back on the bed and keeping his gaze fixed on the peak of the room, where all eight buttresses met and shot downward to half the room’s total height in a massive spire.

To reveal myself to you would only do more harm than good.” This time, there was no clear origin.

“Can you at least tell me who you are?” The boy asked, shifting his head left and right to desperately try and find the proprietor of the words. There was no one else in the room, and for a moment, he feared there not being a response.

To put it in a word would not suffice,” finally came his response, “but given time, you will come to know me more.” At that, the spire at the room’s peak burst into flame, its essence seeming to embody the element fully. Oddly, there was no fear. No debris fell from it, and no smoke came off it. As it burned more and more fiercely, the smaller fires in the room responded, growing stronger and more intense with each passing moment. The heat from them all was overwhelming, and yet the blademaster was not harmed.

“I want to know you,” he finally said, “why can’t I now?”

Go, and know that I will be with you,” the voice said, and suddenly all was dark again.
__________

The air was alive with the sounds of wind rustling through the trees of this deciduous forest realm. It was a calm breeze, nestling the player’s body to life as he inhaled again, the fresh air streaming into him as the sun threw more warmth on his former carcass. He yawned, stretching and pushing himself off the leaf-strewn floor of forest. With a crack of his neck, Dien pushed upward, standing amid the trees and gazing about. Something was amiss, despite the apparent serenity of this place. Wait, why was it so serene?

Instantly, Glitter was in the blademaster’s hand, and he turned about, scanning the area for anything suspicious. He could hear voices and footprints making their way in a certain direction, and then the whole ordeal flooded back to him. From the tower to Mac Anu to the hideout, and now here: he couldn’t help but groan. It was like a bad dream, one of the ones that you know is a dream, but for some reason no matter how hard you try you can’t wake up.

“Hey guys, wait up!”

Rejoining the group just in time to not be caught in the solidification of Juk’s gateway, Dien followed the rest of the group into the dark Anid room after the artifact was placed in its rightful place. What they found at the hallway’s end was surprisingly bright for a room embodying the dark. Speckled off-white tones of granite decorated the four walls of the room, with pitch black, ragged pillars at its corners, holding the ceiling a considerable distance from the polished obsidian floor. A fifth column rose in the room’s center, a prism floating in front of it.

Too easy, Dien thought, watching as Nall stepped forward and catalyzed the room’s transformation, yep, way too easy. Three monsters appeared, and were dealt with in the same speedy manner, and then three more appeared, also dealt with, and a third trio showed up. These beasts were things of darkness, so fighting them properly meant calling on Quetzalcoatl’s element. Well, that was the easier way of working.

“Rig Gaem,” Dien said, and the spell’s self-restoring effects began to play out. That done, he swapped out the tiara for his Cougar Bandana once more, and smirked as a pair of the horsemen turned to him. Well, now was the time to see how good his aim could be. Simultaneously the steeds neighed ferociously, their riders brandishing large swords overhead. Coming from either side, the blademaster couldn’t help but consider the outcome of the two enemies charging into one another. No, they wouldn’t hit each other, but they’d both be in very close range. Ah, so that would be when to strike.

In a foolish effort to attack from two fronts, the knights charged, each one an exact mirror image of the other. Black stallions ran, and Dien merely closed his eyes, waiting for the last possible moment before getting out of the way. If this worked, then this fight would prove to have been ridiculously simple. Eyes shot open, and the blademaster rolled forward, spinning quickly out of it and calling out the name of the one static spell he possessed.

“Rai Rom! Rai Rom!” The monsters were caught in the dueling cyclones of elemental critical energy, racking up numbers that, simply put, completely decimated them. Residual energy from the spell faded out of existence, and the blademaster yawned, turning to find the scene of the monsters’ defeat rather bare. There weren’t any scuff-marks from the hooves having skid over the polished floor, nor burn marks from the dual lightning spell. Granted, obsidian was rock formed of the heat of a volcano, so even the heat of a bolt of lightning’s strike wouldn’t do much more than, well, strike it.

It was when he went to pick up his head that he realized something was wrong. It wouldn’t move: his body was frozen still, and the blademaster closed his eyes, knowing what he was in for. For a moment, there was nothing, but then it hit him: two globs of raw death. It was curious how such a thing could be called an element, and as the spell clung to his skin, sucking the very life from him, Dien collapsed. Like thick ooze, the stuff made his skin go pale, draining the heat and vitality out of his body through the pores. At least it wouldn’t last; at least it would be over in a manner of seconds and he’d be able to heal up and exact revenge on just whichever monster had dealt the damage.

One pillar remained in the room, and Dien slowly got up to face it. Almost before he knew what was happening, his body was flying headlong for its face. He swore, pulling out Glitter and equipping his Souleater. One sword per hand, he held the blades in front of him in an X, attempting to block his impending collision with a life-ending column. Crap.

Blood hit the ground before he did, the blades in his hands having been no use against the force of his own momentum. Instead of blocking like he’d intended, his half-dead body now had two slashes across the chest, and several other injuries of varying severity littered his flesh. His body landed, crumpling into a heap as the blood poured from the wounds. Raw tissue was exposed, and against the ground it did not feel good. Red faded in and out over the room, and the fighter’s hand wearily passed into the bag at his side, pulling out a pair of health drinks. Precious liquid passed his throat, and the blood was sopped back into his body as wounds closed and pain subsided.

The blademaster stood, eyeing the battle field and taking account of what monsters there were. In his field of vision, there were three left, all of them injured to some extent. Wait, where were the rest of the pillars? He turned, facing the dark one behind him: the one thing keeping the black floor and ceiling connected. Floating a few inches below where he’d hit, the prism seemed to tempt him, to call for his touch. If it had traveled between the pillars with each touch, where could it go this time? It would have no anchor if it were grasped as before, and wouldn’t that mean that it was free for the taking? His sixth sense screamed at him not to take it, but logic dictated that there was nothing more it could do: unless there was yet more to unleash.

“Screw it,” he said, putting his swords away and leaving Glitter in its sheath, “better to get it over with now.” With that, his hand hit the prism.
Last edited by Dien on Wed Aug 30, 2006 4:59 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Image|||Level 35 Blademaster (+200 EXP)
Wishlist: EXP, Ends of Earth, Armor with Status Effects

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Nighthand
Master of Games
Posts: 1265
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2003 9:23 pm
Class: Bladesmage
Location: ...Tracking...please wait...

Post by Nighthand » Mon Aug 28, 2006 10:58 pm

The group was doing well enough, it seemed, their drive to finish this quickly restored. Horsemen began to fall, under the blades and spells of the allied players. After all, they were just normal monsters, a far cry from the resilient and massive hacked tree in the previous room. Compared to Yggdrasil, these were pushovers.

They had to choose sooner or later if they would activate the other pillars as they went, and the choice soon became plain. Each pillar was activated in turn, spawning three more of the dark riders to hassle them, while removing one of the razor-edged obstacles the riders used as weapons. Things seemed to be looking up, as though this room would be finished in no time.

That alone should have informed them that something was amiss.

Dien activated the final pillar, his hand caressing the black crystal oh-so gently... before it disappeared. The gem was one more hovering in the exact center of the room, where it had tempted them when they first entered. As Dien's hand closed on nothing, he became aware that something was different with this pillar. Aside from being the final, it seemed also it was the strongest.

Not three, but four of the standard-fare dark riders emerged from nothingness, prepared for attack. It appeared though, that they would be the least of the group's worries. They were not alone.

Two more figures materialized, shortly after the first four. Outwardly, they appeared the same, but to Nall's enhanced vision and to the sixth sense of anyone present, they were more than the others before had been. More powerful, greater, slightly taller and stronger. They, too, were standard game monsters, but they had been altered. Not rebuilt, such as the typical hacked monster, but tweaked. One obvious difference seperated them from the rest... their weapons were not swords, but spears.

Before he could react, the two moved forward, flanking the blademaster Dien. One shifted its lance to its off-hand, and together they scooped up the blademaster. Held by his arms several feet above the ground, he was helpless to do more than kick at the haunches of the ghostly animals the pair rode. Still, he wasn't killed, and soon curiousity got the better of fear. Why was he being held?

Why? The master had not yet arrived, of course. One more figure emerged from the wall, horse stepping with a strong, slow gait befitting a seasoned warsteed. The horse stood inches taller than the beasts of the other riders. Its coat was a midnight black, mere tendrils of wispy darkness where it faded midway. Hooves shod in the finest iron, an armored plate over its snout, fiery red eyes glaring around, it was a fitting mount for the master rider.

The warrior himself was taller than the other riders as well, and not from the height of the horse. He was head and shoulders above the rest, an imposing figure even to Zan in his Garou form. He was obviously of another class altogether. One hand lightly held the reins to the bit of his war horse, but they exerted no force. The beast knew its place. The other hand, both of which were coated with heavy gauntlets of blackened iron, rested on the saddle. Heavy, soot-blackened armor stretched up the master's arms, blossoming into a breastplate emblazoned with the sigil of Ani, drawn in ruby and blood. A black cape flowed from his shoulders behind armored legs, trailing where the back half of the horse would have been. Greenly-glowing eyes stared from slits in a plate-armor helmet, formed with onyx horns and obsidian teeth into the visage of a demon.

This was the master of the room, the king of the riders. This was the Blackest Knight.

Action in the room had come to a standstill. The three remaining injured Dark Riders had stopped their assault, coming to form ranks behind the two 'generals'. Seven in all, they made a formidable wall for the group to pass. They faced inwards, though, not outwards at the group. They had eyes only for their master.

Seeing the injured state of his minions, the decimation his small army had taken before he even set foot on the field, the Knight's eyes slitted themselves within the helmet. This was... disgraceful. Moving with an unholy grace, the master urged his steed forward. Both hands rose, grasping handles jutting over each shoulder. They drew forth blades larger than any a Heavyblade could hope to wield, holding them outwards with not a waver, erasing all doubt that would be had of the strength of the arms wielding them. Both were blade as night, their razor edges gleaming. The wide area of the blades themselves were decorated with a lace of markings fit to confound, an intricate weave of flowing, yet angular lines, looking almost like a cross between celtic knotwork and tribal designs. One blade's markings were red as blood, the other green.

Now was Dien's time to change, from curiousity once more into fear. His kicking renewed, but the horsemen to either side only tightened their grip. He was the sacrifice.

The blades came together in the air, side by side, and lowered in a thrust. They drove into Dien's squirming body, sliding halfway to their hilts. The green and red flared as one, and a light washed over all the riders. The three wounded found themselves healed, cleansed of injury.

Yanking the blades apart, the generals let Dien's body fall. His HP was gone, his form beginning to ghost, his life sacrificed for the benefit of the monsters. More than just healing had occurred in that light. Each of the monsters had an Ap Raio effect, helping to protect them from Rai magic. The two "generals" had Ap Corv, boosting their physical attack as well. The Blackest Knight himself had Ap Corv, as well as Ap Do.

Blades raised to the air once more, the monsters broke ranks, running in different directions. Their mission was clear; this battle would end.

Nall, this whole time, had been hurridly writing a Flashmail to those present. Information was what they needed, and he had no time to shout it all out.

Flashmail To: Dien, Canti, Zan, Senna

The two spear-wielding monsters are Dark Horses, but edited. They don't usually have those weapons. They're level 45, and have close to 2000 HP. They're also more intelligent than their weaker cousins, and can work in teams. They only have the same BiAni Don skill, however, so don't worry about new attacks from them on the magic side.

The big one is a Rebuilt monster. It's called the Blackest Knight, and is nearing level 60! It has BiAni Don, and OrBiAni Don, the level three version. It has 4000 HP and isn't weak to thunder to begin with, so watch out. It has no elemental weaknesses. It also has physical skills stolen from the classes; Vak Crack, Juk Smash, and Ani Break. It probably can't use that sacrifical attack to boost the enemy any more, but when it hits you, life drain kicks in, and heals itself some.

As if that wasn't enough, it also has Rip Maen, so watch your back!



--------------------ooc:

Alright. New Stats!

Dark Rider. Still 1000 HP, still with that spell. They can no longer slam you into pillars, however, as there are no more pillars. They have Ap Raio on, meaning no elemental criticals from thunder for them.

Dark Horse. 2000 HP, same spell, same Ap Raio effect. The big difference is one of strength, and of range; the spears are longer ranged than the swords. Also, they work together, and aren't stupid. They're not really smart, but they know a bit about tactics. The Ap Corv is in place as well to make them stronger.

Blackest Knight. 4000 HP, the two spells and the skills I mentioned, and whatnot. Thunder hurts it about as much as you'd expect darkness to, due to the Ap Raio. Other elements and physical stuff is normal enough. It's quite smart, has a very wide range, and won't go down easy. Also, it will use Rip Maen once on each Dark Horse. Never on a rider, though, and not more than once.

Note: you can grab the prism now, it won't disappear again. If you do, though, the Knight will home in on you and make you its target.

My next post will probably be next monday. I'm not 100% sure though. Thursday I leave to go to a hotel, friday i'll move into college, and by saturday I should have everything set up. If for whatever reason I'm not around Monday (which is a holiday so no class yet), then I'll post about as soon as I'm back.

Zan
Exalted Player
Posts: 206
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2005 10:28 pm
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Post by Zan » Tue Aug 29, 2006 8:56 pm

As combat came to a temporary standstill, an intriguing calm, Zan knew what was to pass. He didn't know it by logic or reason but by the sudden charge of power through the air. As well as he could smell the stench of persperation on his fellow Freedom Fighters he could smell the flux of energy, reeking of ash and things even the harshest darkness dared not whisper, that sought to ensnare his mind and capture even the slightest of thoughts. What had they conjured with their bloodshed? Like the trees before, would the death of the all-too-easy Dark Riders bring forth an angry father? The Heavy Blade's guess was on the money, the parting sweep of soldiers giving way to two generals and their king; a creature that even the lycanthrope, at nine and a half feet, was caught in the shadow of. Unlike when his Beast was swayed under the sway of the crow, his wolf did not cower in sight of the monstrocity. Rather...it rebelled against it, a cub snapping its teeth at the alpha of the pack. Such a metaphor angered Zan's Beast, made the purity of his red-hot Rage tainted with a very human reaction.

Out of a purely reactional instinct, Zan stepped to take point in front of his companions. Nall aside, the lycanthrope could take the most damage if the new arrival chose to launch some introduction 'I can kick your ass with a thought' attack. Luckily enough no such attack took place but something else, something more subtly devious, occurred in its stead. Dien had been taken as some sort of prisoner by the two spear-wielding generals. Gut reflex had Zan's weight shifted forward, prepared almost eagerly to free the Blademaster from his capters and bring them down in a single flex of his arms. The moment he did so, however, two of the soldiers blocked his path, swords and steeds held at the ready. Zan paused his need to attack and instead took the time to wonder why they weren't trying to skewer him at that very moment. Huh. Well hell, they were stalling. Why the fuck were regular, run of the mill monsters stalling? The answer lay in their leader, no doubt, and the sway of his horrendously large and threatening swords didn't help the bubble in Zan's gut settle. The colored markings they left in the air held secrets that the lycanthrope wished he could crack, hidden meanings to this thing's plans.

Finally, Zan grew weary of waiting for the advantage of initial defence and jerked both of his hands forward, fingers capped with gleaming claws shooting upward through the flesh of the horses' throat and into the gut of their riders. The attack came with a dextrous blur and a lethal result; the horses beginning to stagger upon impact and the Dark Riders dropping their weapons in the shock and pain of the stirring-spaghetti of their innards. Instead of retracting his hands and letting the two fall as they most definitely would, he funneled strength into his arms and lifted the steeds (their riders almost limply dangling) up and perpindicular to the ground. Not only did it free up his vision of Dien's impending fate and what he might do to cease it, but it also gave him wonderful options. Even with blood dripping from above him to stain his fur and the tightened muscles beneath, the Heavy Blade persisted. Step by step he charged to the Blademaster until once more his path was barred by a pair of underling soldiers. This time, however, their swords arched up into the air in preparation of assault. Wasting no time, Zan used the dead weight weapons on his arms and the power of his running momentum to swing in the corpses of the half-horses into an inward collision.

A sickening, meaty crunch made itself known as carrion steed collided on either flank the two soldier monsters had made. Both the power of the Garou and the weight of the bodies as they careened with the living was enough to break the two before Zan in places any living creature shouldn't break. Their now-dead bodies crumpled to the ground without further adieu, the Heavy Blade quickling adding insult to injury with a downward slam of his Dark Rider clubs onto the two recent victims that finally tossed their lifeless riders to the granite walls before the Lycan finally pulled his arms free with a wet sucking noise that left both limbs as red as the darkest ruby. All of this took place in a matter of seconds, seven soldiers reduced to three before a person could hope to blink thrice. Soaked in the crimson liquid, battle staining his mind, Zan felt the mastery he had exerted over his Beast slip for but a moment. It was simply another sign of his spiraling health, something he couldn't explain and something that was steadily eating up his concentration. Hopefully, hopefully his ailment wouldn't worsen too badly before they managed to get back to the Hideout. If Zan could hold on till then he just might be able to get a hold upon the situation.

Might.

-------------------------------------------


"Wait...what?" Conner asked, unwilling to believe the words that had slid from Dust's lips.

"You heard me. A Downer was found dead on our turf. No,
my turf." Anger hissed forth, scorching the teen.

"Woah woah woah, I didn't--" Conner started.

"I know it wasn't you. Sadly...I do know who it was." Whatever anger the kid still held was lost. Gone. Oh, shit, this was bad. He was being cautious for God sake.

"Well, who?" Conner wanted him to spit it out, to get the words and the uneasiness they would cause into the air.

"An Upper from Manhattan. As you know, Downers aren't allowed in New York City so, normally, I would look the other way. However, his 'family' is demanding justice. You know our laws, Conner, better than most."

The high school student shook his head, almost too fast. "No, no. I don't care. Don't tell me. Do what you need to do, but don't involve me."

Conner seemed to have a struck the point, Dust's head hanging forward. "That's the thing. The man we have for these sort of...things...was fished out of the river not two days ago. The Upper killed him."

"That isn't possible. Uppers are like...fucking wannabe angels, Dust. You know that. Angels don't commit murder."

Dust sighed. "You know they can turn, if they want. This one's rogue, going Downer. He needs to be taken care of."

Again, Conner began to shake his head. "Whatever. I don't need to know anymore. I hope it works out." The teen turned, preparing to leave the raggedy apartment.

"Wait." He did. "If it's turned Downer and the only other person in New York with your affinity for them is gone...we need you to take his place."

Conner, oblivious as always, took his own turn to sigh. "Alright, I'll rough him or her..." Her? Had he fallen so far to be willing to do such a thing? Sadly enough, it wouldn't be his first time smacking around a Downer chick. Though, in his defence, they were never alone. "...up a little, tell them to get the hell out of New York City."

Dust tried one more time. "We need you to go a little further than that."

Conner began to catch on. "How much further?"

Once more the kid's head hung. "Conner..."

"No! Fuck that Dust! I'm willing to throw down for your cause. I believe in it that much. But I will not fucking
kill somebody for it. You're on your own." Another step was taken towards the door.

"Leave now and you'll be added to that list, Conner. You'll do this." His tone was completely flat, matter-of-fact.

All Conner could do in response was turn and give him a look, a subtle narrowing of his eyes that said 'bring it on' before the door slammed behind him.


-------------------------------------------

The remaining three soldiers had dispersed away to the people behind him, the lycanthrope too late to save Dien from his sacrificial fate and forced instead to watch the sweeping buff of the monsters before him. Left facing only the generals and the 'Blackest Knight' (as Nall called it), Zan indulged in a wolfish snort that cleared his nostrils momentarily of the waft of blood and allowed him to focus on the task ahead. Taking down the generals would be no easy task and their leader...well...that was a whole new level of difficulty. If this is what awaited them in the third room of their choice, what would loom over them in the sixth? What terror would cripple them and send fresh horrors their way? A shake of his head and the train of thought dispersed, leaving Zan to contemplate strategy. Strategy, of course, decided to contemplate him with the rapid approach of the rather intimidating generals. The Blackest Knight hung back for now, almost amused at the show. Not wanting to disapoint an audience, Zan lept straight up with a spring of his legs before the two could hope to fall a strike. The odd thing was...they didn't seem to mind. If the lycanthrope wasn't wrong, they had actually just feigned an attack. The little shits.

The thought that came next, of course, was why? The answer came almost as quickly as the question; one moment Zan was at the peak of his jump (a half-hearted one, of course, as he didn't need to crack his skull against the ceiling) with his eyes trained on the Darknest Knight, waiting for a sign of ill will and the next he was paused in the air with pain chewing a hole in his gut. No, that wasn't right. It was a freakishly long pair of blades ripping a hole in his gut. Only a small juggle remained from an attack that should have eviserated him. Phew! Such...luck? The small celebration was foiled as the Blackest Knight imitated and mocked Zan's raising of his soldiers above his head and dragged his weapons (weapons 'stuck' in the obsidian ceiling) back until Zan was held in the same fashion. The pain of the Lycan's slow and bloody crawl down the blades as gravity took hold was indescribable, vitae dribbling down his chin as he coughed away what should have been his last breaths. Sadly, his healing was acting as a rather counteractive assistance, bringing back the HP he was losing point by point, HP that was taken away almost as quickly as his slide continued. He was stuck, too agonized to pull his Lifes Sword, or any sword for that matter, into his hands. Whatever plan he would have come up with was halted as the blades suddenly wrenched from him and left him falling to the black ground below. Miracle and cruelty had him still living, still able to feel the pain. Only a few yards of a fall left to go and Zan flipped the Blackest Knight two birds...

...the wolfish grin on his face stripped away as a flurry of slices made him into nothing more than a decorative splash of flesh and blood about the room before he could even hit the floor.
Lv. 50 Heavy Blade
Wishlist
Special: Levels, GR Sendai, PL Sakai, Darklore.
W: Tonosama Sword, Mineuchi, Jundachi.
A: Samurai Helm, Able Hands, Rare Greaves.
I: Holy Sap, Treebane, Cooked Bile, Nightbane.
EX: Elemental Summon (Lv. 2), Overdrive (Lv.1), Elemental Attacks (Lv. 2), Enhance Dark, Elemental Breath (Lv. 2).

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Senna
Awakened Player
Posts: 150
Joined: Sat Jul 01, 2006 10:28 pm

Post by Senna » Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:43 pm

She’d gotten off two Rai Roms by the time the group broke apart. She backpedaled some more, trying to stay out of range as she caught her breath. This battle was not particularly going badly, but it was not by any stretch done yet. There would be more. This didn’t seem like the sort of place to get easier for the group, nice as that would have been.

And of course, there was more, which answered not only her current uneasiness but the question she’d been thinking from the moment she decided to try for the prism herself. It had slipped through her fingers neatly, as it was programmed to do, and had teleported itself over to the final pillar. And now, the moment of truth – Dien grabbed for it.

At first she thought he must have gotten it. There were no more pillars, after all. Where else COULD it go? But no – there were monsters again. Four more of the Dark Riders they were becoming so familiar with came out, accompanied by a few new surprises. Senna forgot about the fight for a moment, just watching and experiencing to the fullest that sinking sensation that so often accompanied the arrival of creatures lately.

Two more like creatures followed these first four, but the way they kept themselves apart from the vanguard as well as the slightly more careful, almost predatory way they walked suggested they were not the same in most things. Looks perhaps, but these were less something to mess with than the original creatures. Then, of course, there was the more obvious difference – spears instead of swords.

Seeing that, Senna made the automatic assumption. Spears meant longer reach, more power into the slicing of the blade, as it was so far from the point of force that it attained quite a bit of speed when swung. The haft would be less lethal though, unlike the swords, along which the whole blade could cut. So, plusses and minuses.

Six monsters in addition to the three already in the room would have been QUITE enough, thank you very much, but it seemed the room was not of the same mind as her. These creatures were also smarter, and seemed to have a purpose, hemming in Dien and picking him up. She started forward, considering an attack, and would have done so if it seemed Dien was being attacked, but he wasn’t. It was weird. He was just being held, pinned, made to wait. And much as it seemed wrong, to attack when unsure what creature was coming that could make THEM wait calmly would have been dumb. It would have been drawing ire which might not need to be drawn. One thing she’d learned was that not everything in this world would be as it seemed, and sometimes the monsters didn’t really want to kill them.

Well, that sometimes was a very small percentage of the time. This time, it seemed that harm was indeed the main goal. The final creature walked out, slow and stately. As it made its entrance, everything really DID come to a stop. All eyes were on it. It had the center stage. Nearby, Zan took up a position that almost seemed challenging to Senna’s eyes. He started toward Dien, but was stopped by some of the creatures.

Whatever’s going on, they want us to watch," she thought, her stomach twisting a little with worry at that thought.

Zan did not seem to be interested in listening to what they wanted, however. He launched an attack at the two barring his way, skewering them roughly, then using them to attack the next two. His movement shamed her into moving as well, circling around. Stop them. Got to get him free, she thought as she moved. Her SP had recovered a little in the interim. She could probably do some damage…

A sharp movement from the leader-creature drew her attention, and she couldn’t quite credit her eyes as it brought its twin swords down at Dien’s pinned form. As they did, a light, red and green and sickly, washed over them all. It seemed to heal the injured ones. It made her feel nauseated.

There was no time for it though. Dien seemed almost immediately forgotten, his purpose served, as the remaining creatures broke ranks and came at the band of fighters. At almost the same time, a Flashmail appeared, which she quickly checked.

Flashmail To: Dien, Canti, Zan, Senna

The two spear-wielding monsters are Dark Horses, but edited. They don't usually have those weapons. They're level 45, and have close to 2000 HP. They're also more intelligent than their weaker cousins, and can work in teams. They only have the same BiAni Don skill, however, so don't worry about new attacks from them on the magic side.

The big one is a Rebuilt monster. It's called the Blackest Knight, and is nearing level 60! It has BiAni Don, and OrBiAni Don, the level three version. It has 4000 HP and isn't weak to thunder to begin with, so watch out. It has no elemental weaknesses. It also has physical skills stolen from the classes; Vak Crack, Juk Smash, and Ani Break. It probably can't use that sacrifical attack to boost the enemy any more, but when it hits you, life drain kicks in, and heals itself some.

As if that wasn't enough, it also has Rip Maen, so watch your back!


Watch their backs? A good piece of advice. Circling around, she caught sight of Dien’s body and pulled out a Resurrect and targeted him with it. The it was into the fray again, as the creatures now heavily outnumbered the Freedom fighters or whatever they called themselves.

She set up to deal with one of the original creatures, the untweaked ones. Funny, before they looked frightening, but now they looked almost weak compared to their newfound friends. Time to see how willing the monster was to toss around Rip Maens.

An Ap Do enhanced her speed, and grim irritation gave a sharp edge to her focus. There was little art in this, and no magic aside from her enhanced speed, but that seemed to be enough. Her spear left a blurred arc in the air time after time she attacked, and their battle was silent but for the horse’s sounds and the occasional percussive sound of weapons meeting. She was moving like a snake, taking wounds where doing so allowed her a better angle, a stronger attack. And eventually the horse went, knees buckling as it dropped to the ground.

She stabbed her spear through its form, into the ground, but the action proved useless. The rider was dead, apparently before his mount had died. Swiping her hair back out of her face, Senna straightened up and looked around. And one thing immediately caught her attention.

The three larger creatures had decided to take on Zan, and he came out on the losing end of the whole thing. He died in most spectacular fashion, but the Blackest Knight – and this might have just been her own prejudices against the monsters coming into play – seemed almost haughty about the ploy. It was like he was saying, See, this is what you get when you hurt someone on MY team.

Senna glowered. These monsters had attacked them, they were nothing but aggressive, and this was somehow the fault of the players? It thought THEY had done something wrong? And this… this black-painted, night-light-eyed, empty-headed, life-sucking, narcissistic tin can was setting about destroying them? THIS was the creature which had set those Dark Rider minions on them, and now it had the GALL to be taking offense at their defense of themselves? Oh no. Oh, hell no. It wanted righteous indignation? It wanted anger and revenge at the deaths of fallen comrades? It wanted to enjoy healing itself off the pain and death of their side? She’d give it a few things to think about. She’d give it something to send it searching for aid itself. She doubted she could kill it, but she could make it hurt, she imagined.

She backed away, at the same time switching equipment. Fairy Spear, cougar Bandana, Domini Fur, Shiny Ice and Snow Panther fit into place, all but the weapon becoming part of her outfit but lending their strengths to what she wore. One might assume she intended to go fight some fire monsters, kitted out like this as she was. Her Water stat of 32 would probably even do a water-based Wavemistress fairly well.

It might not have a weakness to water, but unless it had grown some new skills (and who knew with this group) it shouldn’t have a particular strength against that element either. Perhaps fortunately, Zan’s death had caused the three biggest enemies to pause momentarily, recovering their momentum after their attacks and she took advantage of this to target the big guy. After all, with Rip Maen, he was the biggest problem in more than one way.

"GiRue Kruz."

The level two spell formed, hovered, then crashed inward on the Blackest Knight. Not liking this particular treatment, it focused its attention briefly on her, as a human contemplating an insect. Seeing the distance between them and perhaps wanting to swat her as fast as possible, It didn’t come running at her with its sword at the ready. Instead, it was casting, so she called on the spell one more time, sending another crash of ice toward it.

Its spell hit at the same time, a level three darkness spell which literally pounded her into the ground. As her form rematerialized as a ghost, she was almost too angry to even think about what had just happened, but this time it was anger at herself. Again, AGAIN she’d acted without thinking and done something dumb. These monsters were strong and smart, and just attacking willy-nilly – well, this was exactly the sort of end she deserved. She’d maybe scratched the surface of the thing’s HP and in return was dead.

Great way to be useful.
Senna, level 33 Long Arm (710 HP/180 SP)
Most common kit: Ichigou, Racoon Earcaps, Air Bracer, Snow Panther, Winter Coat, Graceful Book
Spells/Skills: (Critical Hit/Death) Repulse Cage, Ap Corv, Ap Vorv, Rai Rom, Rue Zot, La Repth
Click for full equipment and items
14300 (1/23)

Lord Canti
Exalted Player
Posts: 300
Joined: Sat May 13, 2006 3:58 pm
Location: In da' plains of hell, natch.

Post by Lord Canti » Fri Sep 01, 2006 6:09 pm

(It was pretty amazing just what the power of darkness could do. Seems like his apparent upgrade in element was effective in two ways, offense and defense. Before, back in the Juk chamber, hadn't it seemed like his Twin Darkness attack exploded with energy? And now, here in the Ani chamber, things were certainly taking a different turn. For one, the skills and powers of these Dark Riders were not nearly as strong against him as they should have been. Fighting them was easy. Well, easier, anyway... And also, he'd flung himself at the prism goal here and missed, causing it to appear somewhere else, and its place were three Dark Riders who did not notice him! That was a surprise. Did they not have senses? He was sitting RIGHT THERE! Well, guess not, because they began to move off and...then a lightning symbol appeared nearby.)

Canti: What the...? FFFFFFUUUUUUUCCCKKK!!!

(Imagine looking up to find a magic spell symbol appearing overhead by one of the nearby Dark Riders, then realize it's a Rai Rom spell from one of your own teammates. And then come to the sudden realization - during the spell - that you are, in fact, weaker against lightning. That was how Canti felt as he was struck by the secondary bolts of that spell, then rolloed out of the way of another one that was going for the other nearby Dark Rider. Drinking a Health Drink, Canti looked around, seeing who it was that had casted that. Looked like it was Senna. Apparently, she either didn't realize that he was there, or forget that spells with spalsh damage could incur friendly fire. In any case, the Twin Blade was about to say something to her about that when something changed. The last pillar was gone. That left a sort of buzzing feeling in his head as the darkness resonated within him. SOmething was coming. At first, he thought it was going to be more Dark Riders, but it turned out that something new was on the horizon. Adding to the remaining half-horse men were two more creatures who looked like a step up from the rest. They were a little stronger-looking and they had spears...or quite possibly lances. Oh, that brought back some bad memories... Memories of a game called Soul Calibur 3 where, in its Chronicles of the Sword mode, one of the cheapest opponents you could fight there were the knights and their lances. Ye gods... It'd better not be a repeat of that. Shortly after their, appearance, though, another beast appeared. Ah, now this had to be the big boss-man. He was bigger, more badass, and had a pair of cleaving swords that looked like they were instant death in blade-form.)

Canti: Now that's a dark rider...

*Bling!*

Canti: Eh?

Flashmail To: Dien, Canti, Zan, Senna

The two spear-wielding monsters are Dark Horses, but edited. They don't usually have those weapons. They're level 45, and have close to 2000 HP. They're also more intelligent than their weaker cousins, and can work in teams. They only have the same BiAni Don skill, however, so don't worry about new attacks from them on the magic side.

The big one is a Rebuilt monster. It's called the Blackest Knight, and is nearing level 60! It has BiAni Don, and OrBiAni Don, the level three version. It has 4000 HP and isn't weak to thunder to begin with, so watch out. It has no elemental weaknesses. It also has physical skills stolen from the classes; Vak Crack, Juk Smash, and Ani Break. It probably can't use that sacrifical attack to boost the enemy any more, but when it hits you, life drain kicks in, and heals itself some.

As if that wasn't enough, it also has Rip Maen, so watch your back!


(Rip Maen? Rip Maen?! They could be fighting here all week with a guy like that in the mix! Well, in any case, it seemed that Zan was wasting no time in this battle. He'd torn into a Dark Rider and then left the rest for the posse behind him, meaning it was go-time. However, everything had been made immune to lightning criticals, so Canti switched back to his Bloody Twin in this case. The horseman galloped his way and he met it with a leap, stabbing and twisting into the mount's neck as the sword was raised to strike him down. The other knife trapped the blade in between its two prongs and pushed it aside, making an an opening. Canti began to stab repeatedly into the Dark Rider's exposed stomach area, getting a Life Drain out of it that certainly made him feel better.)

Canti: You're not a very good knight, you know.

KA-SHLLNK!!

Canti: WHOA!

(Never make fun of the enemy. They try things like pulling back into their swords to free the blades. Canti backed up, but then got an idea. He got behind the Dark Rider and jumped, grappling it from behind and slicing open its neck between the armor and the helmet. Perfect. The dark horseman died and Canti hit the ground when it disappeared. Hell yeah! He looked over to see the other's progress, but stopped on Zan. Dammit, he was getting the shit beat out of him by the big guys! They were working together, just as Nall said, and very soon the wolfman was a dead man!)

Canti: Zan! Dammit... AP DO!

(He whipped out a Speed Charm and shouted the spell call. There would still be a couple seconds before he could move, and in that time, he noticed Senna taking on the bigs with her own skills. She did alright, at least at first, but then she too was ended by those bastards. Dammit, no... They were being killed off, one by one, and there wasn't much they could even do! Except...)

TO: Nall
FROM: Canti
SUBJECT: Remember that help?

Nall, we need some back-up here. Give 'em some colateral damage to think about.


(In the meantime, it was his turn to fight. Canti was a blur with a smoke-trail, off to fight the big boys, who were now done playing with the Lycan and the Long Arm, which meant it was all on him. Shit... The Blackest Knight waited, patiently, as its two Dark Horse riders came forth first. They were here to soften him up. Was that it? Fat chance he'd let them. The two generals began to systematically stab forward with their spears, two-handed thrusts that were quick and jabbing. A defensive line for their leader? Damn clever, but he wasn't gonna just try to walk right through them. Canti didn't even get close enough for that. He jumped aside and went for the one on the left. It pulled back and twirled its spear as the other one went to out-flank the Twin Blade. Yeah, these guys were perfectly in tune. The flanking general was already close as spear struck knife between player and monster. But it was only to draw him in. Canti rolled under the horse's neck as the other one came stabbing in, making it miss. Then, Canti ran towards one of the walls, hearing the gallop of the Dark Horses behind him. Now, they weren't stupidly following him, of course. Their leader merely wished him to by killed quickly. Canti got near the wall, jumped up, and kicked off of it to send himself hurtling back towards the two monsters. Twin BiAni Don spells made to intercept, but they were...)

Canti: Useless!

(They exploded agaisnt him and did some damage, but he did not slow down, and their swinging spears were exactly what he'd been aiming for. It was difficult to get by these guys, but how about through them? Canti struck down at one of the spears and catapulted himself over the two guys, shooting clear of them entirely! If the Blackest Knight was always going to Rip Maen them, then killing them would be worthless until the big one died. There was just one problem... He was using Ap Do too! The Blackest Knight came dashing around and was in front of Canti as soon as he landed, cleaving down at him with both swords at once. Canti only avoided having his arms removed by quickly shifting to face the monster sideways, then attacked with Tiger Claws. Unbelievably, the Knight parried several of the slashes involved, taking only a small amount of damage!)

Canti: Not easy then...

(He had to move, then, because the Dark Horses were back, making him run around to the back and then get nearly cleaved by the Blackest Knight in a back-swing that he'd just barely stopped with his knife. THis was ridiculous! They were of the same element and he was STILL having trouble with them? Well, it WAS a high-level creature. Go figure. It had one attack spell and two hella-good flunkies, which... BRAIN STORM! Canti backed off, way off, or at least out of the trio's range. Yes, it would work. No healing spells, no other protections, just Rip Maen. Perfect...)

Canti: Juk Rom!

(Aha! Stopped dead for a few seconds by a whirlwind of wood. Small damage, but damage. Canti backed away again and targeted the Blackest Knight AGAIN with the same spell, his two right and left-hand men still nearby. They took it again and Canti laughed. Most of their power was fighting-power. They only had one spell-type and he had high defense against it. However, before he could do it again, the Knight signaled for them to split up. Then, with them now apart, first the leader swooped in, and took a swing at him, which he leaped, then the gruesome twosome did it, one after the other. They were doing it in series, keeping him from having long enough to cast a spell on any one of them with someone else coming in to turn him into hash. Canti decided to hang onto one of the spears and disrupt their plan, which made the Dark Horse's cohort come in to stab at him while the other tried to shake the Twin Blade off. He gritted his teeth as his side was cut and scraped, then let go into a mid-air twist to strike at both of their spears, and then the horses, with another Tiger Claws attack. They reered in sudden pain, but before Canti even hit the ground, something hit him from behind, and HARD. He just got thacked away like a cricket ball in a match, and it was the Blackest Knight's right-handed sword that served as the bat! The Twin Blade was thrown into a wall, and then hit the ground.)

Canti: Urgh....Repth....

(He opened his eyes. That bastard... He was just playing with him, using the flat of his sword to get off a good spin when he went flying. Canti began to get up, but then he noticed something. The Black Prism! He laughed, suddenly, loudly. They were its protectors and they could grab it, which meant... Oh, this was gonna be good... As the Knight sent his two servants ahead again to deal with him, Canti dashed right out of their way and went the long way around the Knight to keep out of range while he went almost immediately for the Prism. As he passed Zan and Senna, he threw a pair of Resurrects at them. He needed those two for this, and Dien and Nall if they could. Canti grabbed the Black Prism, which got the Blackest Knight to charge him without delay. This thing was smart, but it had to, HAD TO, protect this thing. It was still all a game, and it was just a monster. Canti ran from it, knowing his Twin Blade speed and the Speed Charm's ability would keep him ahead as he sent a Flash Mail.)

TO: Nall, Dien, Zan, Senna
FROM: Canti
SUBJECT: New game plan!

Sorry it took so long to get to reviving, but these guys are good. REALLY GOOD. But I've got a plan now. The Knight HAS TO go after me while I've got this thing, or the Horses do. Think of the Prism like a football and me a running back. You can take chunks out of this guy while I give him a run for his money. Spells are the safest bet. And get some Speed Charming done in case I have to make a pass, because this sucker is FAST!
I'll have a doozy of a sig later, I swear. It'll reflect ".hack//CODE" an' everything.

Hey look! A profile! It's got items and stats and things! Cool! If it isn't fully up to date, it will be, so don't worry 'bout it.

User avatar
Marionette
Elevated Player
Posts: 29
Joined: Sun Sep 03, 2006 4:24 pm

Post by Marionette » Sun Sep 03, 2006 4:59 pm

Flashmail
To: Nall, Zan, Canti
RE: handS
alL roadS convergE, pasT thE yelloW wooD. yoU facE challengE. youR stringS arE pulleD. choicE iS noT yourS. finisH youR higH roaD, convergE.

Flashmail
To: Dien, Senna
RE: control
skeiN woveN oF severeD threadS. tangleD witH rusT anD blooD. finD, seeK, witnesS! youR enD iS youR beginninG iS youR enD. whO pullS youR stringS?
whaT happenS wheN thE puppeT pullS thE stringS?

User avatar
Nighthand
Master of Games
Posts: 1265
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2003 9:23 pm
Class: Bladesmage
Location: ...Tracking...please wait...

Post by Nighthand » Mon Sep 04, 2006 6:40 pm

It didn't take very long at all for the group to discover just how powerful the Blackest could be. Zan's assault utterly failed, Senna's spells effective, but only just so. There would be no elemental criticals with this one, and he wouldn't make it easy to kill him off.

Canti was at least the most innovative, and perhaps the best equipped to play decoy with the Knight. He ran in a circle around the room, leading the Blackest Knight around, hoping to keep it from killing the others. His darkness defenses were good... better than most, perhaps. But still, the Knight was powerful, and Canti was still low level. One mistake, and the twin blade would find that even his increased darkness protection wouldn't save him.

That is, of course, if the Blackest was the one that caught him. For all his effective strategy and his darkness defense, there was little he could do when he found himself racing into the arms of the two waiting Dark Horses.

Thinking fast, the twinblade slid under the monsters, a move unexpected enough that the two horsemen were caught off guard. They, too, had fast reflexes however. Canti found himself abruptly caught, a spear hooked in his clothing, and dragged up in the air. He yanked himself from the spear, but the delay was all the Blackest needed. The knight now caught up, swords raised for a punishing blow. The blades swung down...

...and were stopped in mid-air. Canti, expecting death, looked up to see Nall standing over him. The blademaster's sword, seemingly carved from ice, held the two massive blades in place.

Eyes flaring in either rage or amusement, the Blackest Knight drew one blade back. The reddish glow pulsed and the blade burst into flames hot enough to be felt around the room. Nall, too, drew back his blade. It's chilly blue trail pulsed as well. Both blades swung as one, Vak Crack meeting its opposite in Nall's own Rue Crack. The clash of elements, and the clash of the massive blade against Nall's massive strength, sent a shockwave of energy through the room. Everyone, friend and foe alike, was suddenly awash in elemental rage, searing heat and frigid cold. No more damage was dealt than would have come from a level one spell, but it was damage nonetheless.

It was at this point that each member of the group was sent a strange flashmail. Whether or not they opened it, read it, or thought much about it, Nall didn't know. He didn't have time to read it now, with the Knight once more bearing down on him. A simple sideways swing, enough to cleave a lesser player in half, was stopped by Nall's blade once more.

Then, rather than continue to parry the monster's blows, Nall took to the offense himself. His blade drew back, and became a blur. Several loud ringing noises filled the room, Nall's form little more than a blur of afterimages. His target wasn't the monster itself, no; it was the monster's weapons.

When the sound died and Nall had settled to rest once more, the Blackest moved to attack, only to find that one of the massive blades was missing. The blade of fire was little more than a hilt in the monster's grasp. Eyes flaring in clear fury, it tossed aside the remnant of its weapon, taking a two-handed grip on the green blade.

Once more the fight was on.

-------------------------ooc:
Everything same as last time, except now the Knight only has one blade and can no longer use Vak Crack. Keep it up, there's not much more to the fight.

Next post will be Tuesday. This is because classes on monday stretch from something like 11am to 9pm for me, so I probably won't be in the mood to post on mondays.

Zan
Exalted Player
Posts: 206
Joined: Sat Jan 22, 2005 10:28 pm
Contact:

Post by Zan » Tue Sep 05, 2006 7:41 pm

Zan's sudden evisceration had immersed him in a world dark and empty, void of life and any note of warmth. It didn't hold the personal illumination of Nonworld, but instead possessed the eerie feeling of claustrophobia that his singular trip into the place that had shifting walls and the...creature...had claimed as its own. Instead of allowing himself to panic as he had the first time, Zan simply perked his ears (still holding onto the Garou form) and prepared for the monster that had lurked behind him before. Instead, all he received was silence, an all-consuming nothing of sound that left little more than the beat of his own heart in his ears. Once more he fumbled to find a wall, hands groping at air until at last his fingers caressed the slick and chipped walls this place sported. Drawing out the simplicity of the Flamberge for light alone, the lycanthrope took more time scanning his surroundings, indulging more in his curiosity of the make up of the walls than he had allowed himself the time before. Although it felt like wet limestone or some other sort of mineral, it had the visage of an off-white household panel. Flecks of the paint had fallen to the ground and left the odd sight of flaked granite underneath, the paint chips themselves seeming charred and curled with the touch of a flame. The Heavy Blade considered it to be some off-chance touch of his weapon when he wasn't looking, but a continued check a few feet down revealed the same condition. Bizarre.

Still waiting to be revived by someone, anyone, Zan was stirred from his curious trance by a sound less menacing than the unknown growl that had graced him during first trip; a shuddering breath, female, that echoed both within his skull like some brush of velvet and all around him at the same time. A call out, a pleading for a name by the lycanthrope, and the sound ceased. For a second time seemed to halt, as if the very mind of the women he had heard had the very heart of this place wrapped around her metaphysical finger. When no additional breath was made on her part Zan did the only thing he could...move on. But where to? Holding out his sword in any which direction revealed little more than blackness and the wall to his right. Wherever he was, the dimensions it held were impossible to calculate with little more than his own assumptions. A pause and irritation began to set in, the Heavy Blade wondering what in the hell was taking so long for his resurrection. Usually people were quick about reviving anyone. What was so different? A flash in his mind's eye of the Blackest Knight and he answered his own question. If Zan was given the choice of reviving a teammate and running the fuck away from the face of doom, the lycanthrope would more than likely choose the latter. He couldn't think of anything better to fill the time of his wait and, sighing, he called once again to the breathy existence that had pierced the veil of quiet.

This time he got a response.

"Zan? God, Zan...I've been trying to pull you here for...hell, I don't know. Years? Maybe months. Weeks. It's consumed me, made me a part of it. I can't get out, can't let go. It won't let me, Zan. Please come here, I beg you. We...we never should have come here. You were right all those years ago. Months ago. Weeks ago. It was a bad idea. Fuck, it was a bad idea. Why didn't you make me stay?! WHY?!" The maddening voice came to a halt, obviously expecting some sort of assuring response.

"Who...who are you? What the hell are you even talking about?" An audible breath was taken in by the strange voice, its octaves bounced and manipulated by the structure of the place that held him, preventing him from identifying it with anyone he knew.

"You mean, it isn't you? It's...it's you, but not the one that offered me a cold shoulder during the blistering summers nor the one who warmed me with carnal touch when Malfaes's winter settled in. Then maybe, just maybe, this can all be prevented." Hope was now distilled with despair, a mild improvement on her tone.

"What in holy hell are you going on about? Just tell me who-" She cut him off; quick and abrupt.

"Listen to me! Standing at the gates to Malfaes, those wretched black-iron gates riddled with our hatred and bound in flesh and bone, you must turn back. Do not let your heart move you forward, but your mind move you back. Kill me, bleed me, do whatever you can to keep me back or this is all unavoidable. I'd rather die than be stretched and spread over this filth. Please. If you have a heart you'll forsake your own future for mine." Well, that wasn't selfish at all.

"Maybe. Whatever. Just tell me who the fuck you are and I might be able to piece together what's going on." No interruption. An improvement.

"My...name. Right. It's-"

And his body was pulled through the light into a world of breath. Of-fucking-course.

---------------------------------------

Zan had barely a moment to catch his ground and settle the events in that...place...when energy rippled through the room. All at once he was caught in its sweeping touch, his insides seeming to tighten and freeze while his flesh felt as if hot coals snaked their way across its surface. Nall's clash with the creature had pulled the lycanthrope's personal ponderings into the back of his thoughts and brought him back to the here and now. With two Dark Riders, two Dark Horses, and their boss still left, there was still a painful amount to be done before the group could move on. If they moved on. Calling the Time Headband to his aid with a whisper of its valued skill, Ap Do, Zan's already awe-striking speed was pushed to the next level. Ap Corv followed and coupled with Ap Vorv, the buffs spilling through his system and setting his combat abilities as a whole on a completely different tier. The Heavy Blade was through with being kabob and some big-black-and-deadly's bloody rag doll. Sure, it had only happened once, but once was far more than enough to make any individual thoroughly exhausted of the status. His legs begged to be used, his need to zip forward almost a drowning thing, and the tendons in his arms tightened and pleaded for use in turn; strength and speed oddly renewed by his death. The increased defense only added to his Beast's usual arrogance, something Zan refused to be taken by again.

With only a thought he was charging forward, a Dark Rider foolishly positioning itself to take the full force of what he was about to dish out. So be it. The lycanthrope was in the air just as quickly as he had begun moving, a leap that brought him rocketing towards the all-too-confident monster. The first obstacle in his path was the arch of its blade, sharp steel preparing to bite through the constriction of his flesh. A bellow ripping from his lips, Zan curled his right hand into a fist and slammed it to the side, catching the blunt of the weapon and effectively snapping it in half. The metallic shard hummed as it spun through the air, only a second or two passing before it was buried deep into one of the granite walls. The completion of his jump had him vaulted over the head of the horse, both arms and legs attaching to the rider as the momentum carried the both of them flying off of the monster's steed. The claws on his feet blurred in scrapes and dug past metal as the two flew back, rending the lower half of the Rider's body into little more than scraps of meat before they landed and skidded against the wall. Wasting no time and no chance on the thing's survival, one of the Heavy Blade's massive, brown-furred, and clawed hands rested on his left shoulder while the other wrenched his head sharply to the other side. The sound of his neck snapping was coupled with the fleshy satisfaction of spilling blood as Zan's muzzle dipped into the Dark Rider's neck and pulled away dripping with what had once kept the creature's black heart beating.

The remaining Dark Rider was charging towards Dien on the opposite side of the room, strike readied and descending. Quickly calling the Horse Killer into his hand, Martial Assimilation yawning the blade to an eight and a half foot length, Zan heaved the gargantuan weapon (though not nearly as impressive as the Blackest Knight's, sadly) in one grunting motion forward. The Dark Horse that might have been caught in the Horse Killer's path quickly darted out of the way, leaving the Rider its only victim as it sank to the hilt in the monster's back and ripped it from its mount to be pinned and hung limp from the walls. Zan quickly culled the weapon back into his inventory. The body of the Rider crumpled to the floor with nothing to support it, disappearing moments later and leaving Dien safe...if only for another second. A Dark Horse was suddenly obscuring the Heavy Blade's vision, looming over him with blatant fury in its eyes. Oddly enough, it didn't seem to like to see its teammates so easily dispatched. Not expecting the true extent of its speed, Zan lofted his claw-tipped fingers back, preparing to tear out the throat of its horse, when a spear was suddenly lodged rather snuggly in the tangle of his intestines. Uh, ow? The second it took Zan to recover from the pain of its quick retraction was the same second the Dark Horse commanded its ride up and into the air, black iron hooves slamming into the center of Zan's forehead and his collarbone in turn before finally coming back to settle. The shot to the head had dazed him and the hit to his collarbone had shattered it. Now swaying around in a hopeless desperation that the Dark Horse would go elsewhere, Zan's disorientation dropped him to the ground with a spear's slice hissing by where he once stood.

The lycanthrope's regeneration was quick to aid him, whatever head trauma he had received leaving him and his shoulder mending in the time it took the Dark Horse to come galloping back around. The deep wound in his gut had stopped bleeding but, sadly, hadn't quite sealed. Not waiting around for it to finish up, Zan did the only thing he could and met the charging creature. Instead of using his strength and speed in combination to meet one of the monsters head to head, the Heavy Blade focused solely on the control of his dexterity the raw movement of his speed, sliding gracefully to the side (the way a matador would to a bull) with a single claw stretched out. The force of the Dark Horse's charge forced its steed's side to be torn and ripped as it whirred by him, dark blood and a fumble of the horse's gait showing the effect such a simple decision had made. With the horse out of commission for God knows how long, its knees trembling, Zan took his chance and made his way towards the Dark Horse, dodging the lengthy fall of the spear this time around and grabbing the shaft of the weapon instead. Harshly jerking the spear from the hands of its master with the advantage of the ground and his lycanthropic strength, Zan quickly turned it on its wielder, shoving the bladed tip quickly through the awaiting skull. A ping of a flashmail and a quick read over its cryptic contents did little more than add more bother to the weight already on the lycanthrope's shoulders. He'd have to look it over later when he wasn't fighting for his life. If, of course, such a time ever existed.

The death of the Dark Horse left only one more of the sort and the Blackest Knight for them to deal with. Knowing the others can more than handle the remaining Dark Horse, Zan turned his full attention to the head honcho that seemed almost to be excited by the look on Zan's face. It was really that confident. Did it have a reason to be? Well, duh, but truly honorable warriors usually had some tact about the knowledge of their abilities. The lycanthrope quickly added a billionth check next to the 'jackass' box of the Blackest Knight's section in his head. Rather than run blindly with force alone into his foe, Zan once more decided to use the old think-tank. It had range with the length of its weapon and the Heavy Blade quickly called the Horse-Killer to his hands, assimilating it to his size, and hoped it would tip the scale in his favor just a touch. Sure, its weapon was still a hell of a lot more lengthy, but now it wasn't quite like fighting a swordsman with a toothpick. It wasn't long before Zan was immersed in a trance of jumping dodges and sliding deflections, using his strength not to meet the blade in a clash like Nall had done, but instead using it to guide the momentum away from him. His attacks, rather than focus on damaging the Blackest Knight, honed in on assaults on his horse, using feigns and the enlightenment of his expanded senses to try for maiming and disabling attacks on the steed. Whenever he'd get the chance to try for a flanking stab on the Blackest Knight, he'd go for it, choosing however to stay away from anything that involved a head-on confrontation. Now, lost in this limbo of violent dance, Zan could only hope he and the rest of the Freedom Fighters would pull through.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
OOC: Note; only a Dark Horse and the Blackest Knight remain.

[EDIT] Er, well, before the Blackest revives the Dark Horse. So there will be two again, but killing the same Dark Horse I killed will put him down for good. Damn needing two deaths to kill a Horse. Damn asshole boss. Damn damn damn. Yet...awesome?!

You decide.
Lv. 50 Heavy Blade
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Special: Levels, GR Sendai, PL Sakai, Darklore.
W: Tonosama Sword, Mineuchi, Jundachi.
A: Samurai Helm, Able Hands, Rare Greaves.
I: Holy Sap, Treebane, Cooked Bile, Nightbane.
EX: Elemental Summon (Lv. 2), Overdrive (Lv.1), Elemental Attacks (Lv. 2), Enhance Dark, Elemental Breath (Lv. 2).

User avatar
Senna
Awakened Player
Posts: 150
Joined: Sat Jul 01, 2006 10:28 pm

Post by Senna » Tue Sep 12, 2006 12:44 am

On the whole, Senna was getting used to dying, and the very fact of that bothered her. What bothered her even more was that her irritation with the scene had less to do with that she was dead and more to do with what an ordinary way it had happened.

What could she say? She was used to interesting death scenes.

As a ghost, there was little she could do but wait to be resurrected (or, in the worse-case event, for the rest of the group to die as well.) There were no hidden alcoves here, no place where a ghostly person might be able to to do a little scouting while safely in a non-attackable form. Hm. That might b a thought to save for later, actually…

Canti was battling hard, but took a moment out of that to resurrect both herself and Zan, a move she very much appreciated. In the moments while her form faded from ghostly to corporeal again, she had to admit, Canti had taken a risk, and it seemed to be working out… well, not *well* perhaps, but certainly with more usefulness than what the rest of them had done. It seemed the knight might be big, but when pitted against a speed-enhanced Twin Blade, it wasn’t quite fast enough. The footrace had to be maddening for the Blackest Knight (And what a name, that!). It was almost enough to make a person laugh.

Well, she was back in business now, and with full HP, though her SP was at zero… no, wait. One. She had one SP. How very useful.

Though… now Canti seemed caught. Not good,” she thought to herself as the Blackest Knight looked poised to cleave Canti in half and leave him lying on the ground in ghost-form. But before that could happen, something interposed. It took a moment to recognize the form. She’d not seen him in battle, after all. But Nall had used his sword to stay the attack of the knight. For a few brief seconds, the two struggled against one another. They both aimed skills of opposing elements at one another, and the resultant force was powerful, to put it mildly. Senna herself nearly fell over backward, startled by the energy of it and the sudden chunk of damage dealt to her. Taking the moment as a reprieve of sorts (she hoped) she downed a pair of potions -–a Health Drink followed by a Mage Soul – and rejoined the battle.

Canti’s Flashmail had useful information in it, and she decided to follow it. After all, if that thing DID have Rip Mein, it was better to nullify it first if at all possible. That had been the thinking, in part, behind her initial attack on it and it continued to be just as legitimate now. It and its two closest henchmen were the only ones left now, and one of those was occupied with Zan. Casting Ap Do on herself, Senna began a systematic circling of the room, trying to stay as far as she could from the unengaged Dark Horse while staying in range of the Blackest Knight, who was still trailing around after Canti like some angry bully.

This action, while hopefully keeping her low on the creatures’ radar, had another purpose as well. It always paid to think ahead, and since Canti had done that, she had no interest in not trying to make his plan work as well as possible. To that end, should he had to ditch the prism, she should have at least one open avenue in which to dash and evade. She was even Ap Do’ed, as requested. What a good little order-follower she was becoming, she thought with something like despair. She was getting fairly good at following other people’s directives, but seemed to have no original ideas herself.

She targeted the big guy intending to cast another “GiRue Kruz.” She wasn’t sure which spells should be giving it not only damage, but the most pause in its chase. Every little bit of breathing room they could get Canti would probably be appreciated. This spell, mostly because of its size, was her go-to again and again. And so, keeping moving, she intended to do just that – use it again and again. “GiRue Kruz.” Pause. “GiRue Kruz.

This thing needed to DIE.
Senna, level 33 Long Arm (710 HP/180 SP)
Most common kit: Ichigou, Racoon Earcaps, Air Bracer, Snow Panther, Winter Coat, Graceful Book
Spells/Skills: (Critical Hit/Death) Repulse Cage, Ap Corv, Ap Vorv, Rai Rom, Rue Zot, La Repth
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Lord Canti
Exalted Player
Posts: 300
Joined: Sat May 13, 2006 3:58 pm
Location: In da' plains of hell, natch.

Post by Lord Canti » Tue Sep 12, 2006 1:59 pm

(The plan was a good one, almost fool-proof from even a fool like himself, but even so...the risks involved were high. First of all, he was THE TARGET for the Blackest Knight until he otherwise dropped that prism. But all he had to do was run away, then, right? Wrong. If it was that simple, then he could manage this without even having asked Nall for help earlier. That was the thing, though. Canti did not believe that this could be done without his support right now. The Twin Blade had some high defenses here, but he was alone in that respect, as he'd recently resurrected his teammates. Still - even for having scored some reasonable hit against these knightly bastards, come up with an idea to use against them, and then helped out the team - he was in deep trouble. Out of the friggin' nowhere, the two Dark Horses had gotten in the way and were ready to strike. The only way out was under, so Canti slid to get by...but didn't make it. A spear went into his shoulder and caught onto the black leather jacket his character wore. Soon, he was hoisted into the air, but not for long enough to do more than just that as he pulled off again. However, the Knight had caught up with him then and was already swinging his swords to end it for him.)

*CLANK!*

Canti: What?

(The attack had been stopped by the icy resistance of Nall's sword as the player now stood over the Twin Blade in his defense. The flow of time seemed to stop as these two clashed against each other in combat. It didn't really, but you had to be in awe over these moves for a moment, whether you were monster or player, as a blast of fire and ice shot throughout the room. Once again, Canti felt his defenses and effective weakness kick in. So, it was true, then... Fire and ice, lightning and darkness... He was becoming an embodiment of the demon he portrayed himself to be, stronger in fire and darkness, but weaker in water and light. It made sense, of course. Canti noticed now, as Nall and the Blackest Knight continued to fight, that the ranks had been temporarily broken. It was chaos here, with the Dark Horses no longer supporting their lord, as they lacked the ability to against Nall. Zan was fighting with the last remaining normal monsters, and then taking on a Dark Horse. That left the other one...)

Canti: You're right behind me, aren't you?

(An echoing battlecry, as if shouted from a specter of a man, called out as a heavy spear swung through the space occupied by Canti's head a moment ago. He ducked, replenishing himself by way of Repth before continuing. Strangely enough, the dark Twin Blade felt rather calm around this guy. Sure, he'd been the one that dragged him into the air, but he'd only managed that much when catching the winged one off guard. That meant that when Canti was focused, this monster could hardly threaten him. Not when he was Speed Charmed, anyway. The spear was swung and the spells were cast, but he was not getting hit now. Something about this place and everything about it was relating very well with Canti. The ambient darkness suited him. Go figure. However, he couldn't afford to play around with this Dark Horse, not when Nall had finished fighting with the Knight. Zan had killed this spear-chucker's counterpart and was now working on the big boy. Canti was about to go see about helping him when somethind dinged. A flashmail? Now? Who from?)

Canti: Errr...what the hell? Tiger Claws!

(He spoke the errant skill of his Bloody Twin to have a look at this piece of mail that he'd received. What...was it? A bizarre little cryptic that made less sense than the world he lived in - not The World, mind you, but the real one - or the people he knew there. High road...? Converge...? This didn't make any sense at all. Maybe he could talk about it with the others later. Canti backed up from a sudden stab at his heart from the Dark Horse, and then slid by the monster to slash its ankle before running off. The Dark Horse shouted in anger as it tripped, with the Twin Blade now heading over to the Blackest Knight. He had no choice, really. Circumstance demanded that he attack this thing now. The support group was history and its generals were out of the way for the moment. More than that, it had been weakened and disabled by all previous attacks, but especially by Nall's actions. If he helped out Zan now, they could beat this thing. Canti whistled at the Knight from a distance of twenty feet.)

Canti: Hey, ugly! You lose something?

(The Knight turned, as he had no choice in THIS matter, which made for an opening for Zan to use. Canti was doing exactly what the wolf did NOT want to do at this point. He was going head-on. Of course, when you consider how Canti handles these risky-as-hell maneuvers where he rushes in recklessly, you can't really blame him. But you see, there was still that ace in the hole. The Blackest Knight had to respond to the presence of the Black Prism it was designed to protect. Thus, it charged Canti, sword raised to strike. Canti began to run towards it too. And then...)

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

(Like molasses, The World became thick and slow in its motions. This was not an anomaly in time or any such nonsense, but a moment of compressed reasoning. When events within a given area seem to slow down, it means that the one witnessing these events is in a heightened state of awareness, drinking in the details of all that surrounds him in a sudden and empowering epiphany of existence. This is where all points of action collide, in that split-second red haze between tick and tock of the fated clock. This was also a part of Canti's own personal psyche, which makes the whole business slightly messier. The winged creature - no longer seen as a crow for the moment, but as a demon - was confronted now by a shadow that stood behind the Knight. As this was simply a matter of perception, the form that hovered there could not be seen by others. In fact, none of this could. It wasn't really happening. Not really in any sense that the others would feel. The other form was an obscured match of the form that he'd seen in the tower, in the water's reflection.)

Canti: So then... Are you saying that I might die here if I try?

"You could always die at any time. I'm telling you that this a time in which you might live."

Canti: Yeah, but in what form? Will I ever be Damon again, or am I Canti for the rest of my life?

"You're neither... Those names are just words. It's never been a matter of who you are, but what."

Canti: Can I beat this guy, then?

"That's up to you. I can't do anything for you except try and help you help yourself."


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

(...Canti jumped, and in doing so let go of the prism so that he could launch it over the Knight's head. It looked up for just a fraction of a second - and the wrong one, in fact - just as the Twin Blade came in over the head of its horse to stab at the monster with both knives. They clanged against the green blade as it defended itself, and Canti threw himself off while applying Gan Zot against the thing. Small earth-based damage was delivered and the Knight was angry for just a moment. That small amount of damage was nothing alone, but it had been taking a number of these hits from the Twin Blade and from those who were helping this Twin Blade, and that got under its pseudo-skin. For the moment ignoring even Senna's GiRue Kruz's, the green sword was raised as if prepared...)

Blackest Knight: JUK SMASH!!

Canti: Tiger Claws!!

(The two of them struck at the same time, their blades both doing damage as they were both almost certainly open to attack. Canti was not hit dead on the mark because of his movements, and the Knight was not so drastically hurt because it was a higher-level opponent. However, the two had learned something very important here. Their respective attacks were entwined with the innate ability to Life Drain. The Blackest Knight and the Bloody Twin acted at the same time. The two of them sliced at each other again and again, Canti moving out of the way alot of the time and attacking right after ducking a blade. For the most part, it looked like a trade-off. Canti would lash out and Life Drain here and there, but the Knight would get in an attack to take him down a peg. The two fighters seemed none the worse for where than when they started. That was not necessarily so, in reality, though. For a moment, the Twin Blade seemed darker, with plumes of smoke coming off of him as if smoldering. There was a low chuckle in the air.)

Canti: Well, that's enough of that. I think I've made my point.

(What point? He didn't say anything or do anything but attack the thing! Canti seemed very still for a moment, and then he acted as soon as the Blackest Knight showed any signs of attack. A side-swing ducked... A downward cleave stopped... The Twin Blade grinned.)

Canti: You're far too limited now with only one sword. All I need is to keep a blade between you and me.

(Actually, he wasn't planning to do that at all. It was a matter of debunking the Blackest Knight and shaking whatever confidence it had. Truthfully, Canti was not aiming for the win. All he had to do was make it lose. He didn't have to be the one to cut it apart. A downward slash came through and he ducked so low that he was practically laying on the ground. After the blade passed, the Twin Blade slashed the ankles of his adversary as he spun to a crouched position. The Knight's steed reered up to crush him with his hooves and Canti dove right under it to avoid the attack entirely. The Knight turned as he again scooped up the Black Prism.)

Canti: Now, come and get me like a good boy!

(He ran off for the time being, his actions clearly made to arouse the anger of his opponent, to get it to want to kill him badly enough that strategy fails for the moment. True, it was not dumb, but if this thing had a mind of any sort, then Canti's actions would be seen as infuriating, all because of that sudden focus he attained.)

OOC: Apologies for not getting in sooner. These things happen, and I was hoping someone else would get done first.
I'll have a doozy of a sig later, I swear. It'll reflect ".hack//CODE" an' everything.

Hey look! A profile! It's got items and stats and things! Cool! If it isn't fully up to date, it will be, so don't worry 'bout it.

User avatar
Dien
Exalted Player
Posts: 226
Joined: Fri May 12, 2006 1:59 am
Class: Blademaster
Location: The "Who's Online List," Stalking People...

Post by Dien » Sat Sep 16, 2006 11:54 pm

Spells, dangit!

The blademaster sat where he’d been revived, thinking about the prism he’d grabbed as it continued in a vast circuit about the room. After grabbing it, he’d essentially become the sacrificial lamb for the dark side of the force. He’d kicked and screamed before being kabob’d, tried in vain to swing the sword in his hand at the fast-approaching doom and all for naught. Fear had overtaken him, and instinct had distracted his mind from at the very least delaying his doom long enough for someone to try and intervene. A spell could have saved him the HP and SP, but now he was slowly waiting for it to recover to the point where Rig Gaem could be cast and he could move on.

Watching the battle was a refreshing change of pace. The blademaster wasn’t terribly interested in jumping in again to be skewered just yet, but it was at the very least amusing to watch from a corner as the rest of the party ran about the room in an attempt to disable the boss and his posse. He would help - eventually. Mentally he was in no condition to fight. Just that he couldn’t keep his mind upon being hoisted up by the arms proved that much. Whether it was his sleep depravation or the non-stop fighting he wouldn’t know for a while, but as it stood he was exhausted. As with the rest of the group, he needed a breather. The only difference was that he was actually taking one.

For a long time Dien just watched things unfold. Canti grabbed the prism as the rest of the fighters seemed to dart to and fro taking care of the enemies only to have them respawn. It was a bold move on the twinblade’s part, taking the artifact and making a run for it. Darkest Knight would follow, and the demonic player would have successfully opened up a nice series of holes for his comrades - that is, if the Knight’s skewer hadn’t proven long enough to keep up. Canti was hoisted into the air, and energy licked in flames across his blade. The intent of his attack was clear: to light the speed-demon on fire and rend him in pieces. Its blade sank through the air, and before it could make contact with the leather of the twinblade’s coat the stronger blademaster in the room had blocked it. A massive shockwave washed over the room, the deafening sound of a sonic boom crackling just behind it as the game’s physics engines struggled to keep up.

The fire of darkness had collided with the Hacker of Time’s frigid blade, and by that had been utterly extinguished. Impressive, Dien thought, watching as Nall departed just as easily to let the battle continue. Two of the dark riders remained. The weaker blademaster petitioned his body for action, but it wouldn’t give. More watching, then? His body affirmed, and he crossed his legs, trying to pick up the enemies’ tactics by watching the others fight. That is, at least, until a ping resounded in his ears, harmoniously reverberating its message: someone had sent him a flashmail.
From: Marionette
To: Dien
Re: control
Message:
skeiN woveN oF severeD threadS. tangleD witH rusT anD blooD. finD, seeK, witnesS! youR enD iS youR beginninG iS youR enD. whO pullS youR stringS?
“What the hell?” he asked to no one in particular, the piece of paper in front of him not offering any answers whatsoever. Similar expressions shot up through the room, and it became clear that he wasn’t alone in receiving this flashmail. Closing his eyes, he waited, still expecting the widgets for his applets to show up. Panic hit him for a moment when they didn’t appear, until he reminded himself that he was stuck in a game and that the applets hadn’t come with him. It was depressing, but not as much as it was frustrating. There was no way for him to search it for a true origin, no way to find out who this ‘Marionette’ character was, and no way to trace his or her location. The only clue offered was that the last letter of every word had been capitalized: the rest was too cryptic to begin trying to interpret - not while trying to simultaneously glean information from the battle waging before him.

A sigh and he pulled out his sword, looking at its shining surface lethargically and losing himself in thought. The ceiling’s mirror made his Glitter almost completely invisible against the floor, and only the edges’ reflection of the walls stood out. A tilt, and the light of the walls was reflected on the blade. For some reason, the blademaster was reminded of his friend on the other team; one of the few he knew well. Zhao Xun had decided to shadow Rayo and as a result was incorporated on his team, leaving the blademaster with Canti as far as that trio was concerned. There wasn’t really anyone else here he went that far back with. Yeah, Zan had somehow elicited a level of trust and friendship higher than any of the others here, but he just didn’t understand as much about what they had all been through. And yeah, Canti did know, but for whatever reason Dien hadn’t had the urge to become great friends with him. Nall had saved them, but he probably didn’t know what that hell had been like: he’d not had to climb the eleven stories of impending elemental doom with them, nor face his own personal demon. No, the only one left who he had really connected with was Zhao, and now they were separated.

Separation, though, didn’t mean they couldn’t communicate. This whole quest revolved around that idea of communication. Somewhere in this field was a hub that the Elites used to hide themselves from the administration, and it was the task of the Freedom Fighters to break it. Not just this one, though, but another hub on another field was the simultaneous target. Breaking these two hubs would severely cripple the communications network, and could conceivably shut down the entire thing due to the sudden stress being placed upon the third. Granted, there were probably backups in place, and destroying these would only be a minor inconvenience to the corrupt organization truly at power in the World, but at the very least they’d be sending their own message to the Elites - that is, if the destruction was nearly simultaneous. That begged the question, how was the other group doing?
From: Dien
To: Zhao Xun
Re: The other side of the World...
Message:
Hey Zhao, I was just wondering how you guys are doing over there in the other field, and how things are going with Rikama. Sorry if this comes at an inconvenient time; respond at your own leisure.

-Dien
With a thought, the data was sent out, traveling along the normal means toward the other field. It was pretty much doubtless that the other half of the Freedom Fighters wasn’t doing too well and that the flashmail would probably show up at just the wrong time, but at the very least there would still be communication. Wait a minute, what about Marionette? It was more than likely that a responsive flashmail could be sent to that address to try and get more information. Whether or not this puppet would respond was beyond anyone’s ability to see, but it couldn’t hurt to try. Once again, Dien mentally composed a flashmail. This time, the recipient would be someone of lesser renown: Marionette.
From: Dien
To: Marionette
Re: Re: control
Message:
I’m sorry, but I’m afraid I’m not terribly good at riddles. Would you be willing to clarify what you’re trying to say just a little bit? Thanks.

-Dien.
You don’t honestly think they’ll respond, do you?” came the familiar voice from next to him.

“Danielle,” the boy responded, looking towards the AI who now sat comfortably next to him, “you haven’t shown your face in a while. How’ve you been?” The girl smiled, leaning her head back apparently just as exhausted as he was.

Busy,” she responded, leaning her face to his direction, “I’ve been trying to isolate the connection between your data and your body, but so far I’m not having any luck.” Dien could only smile.

“I find it funny how while the virus had the effect of taking away my self-prescribed capabilities, yours all remain intact.” The look returned said more than words could: that she was honestly trying with everything she had to get him out. It was almost saying that she would give up her own life for his, if that was what it came to. For a moment, they just looked at one another, word not needed to express their thoughts in that one short period of time. The fact that she was an AI borrowing his brain power didn’t even register to him until he was brought back to reality by a trio of high-level ice spells.

You should get to fighting,” the girl finally said as they both looked to the Darkest Knight, “your team needs you.

“That’s true,” Dien replied, pushing himself to his feet, his body surprisingly compliant, “and don’t give up looking for a way out. At the very least, I believe in you.” He turned to smile at her, but Danielle had already vanished into the recesses of his mind. With a smirk, the blademaster completed his circle to face the fight before him. Canti was involved in an all-out melee against the blade-wielding fury on horseback, providing several openings for the rest of the group. It would be shameful to pass that up, but before the blademaster could move to assist another ping echoed in his ears: the return message from Zhao.
From: Zhao Xun
To: Dien
Re: Re: The other side of the World…
Message:
Thanks for the concern, but we're in a bit of a sticky situation at the moment... can't really take too much time here. Rikama's being... interesting. I'll tell you more when we meet up again alright? Hope to see you soon.
A nod, and the blademaster put the piece of paper into his jacket, depositing it in one of the inner pockets it apparently had. Now it was time to join this fight, and he switched out head-pieces for the Bead Tiara. Rig Gaem cast, he replaced the Cougar Bandana and called out his Zanzamas to cast Ap Do and give himself some kind of equal footing against this monster. Right, he thought, his SP back to recovering at a high pace while the World seemed to slow before him, let’s do this. All at once his plan was thwarted when another dark horseman stood before him on its half-horse, a spear in its hand.

“Oh, well that works too,” he said, calling upon his Glitter once again to engage in battle. A single attack from the spear knocked the ground, bouncing in its natural rebound only to be dragged in a low arc where Dien’s feet had been. Instead, the blademaster was found over the horse’s head, the spear underneath him as he delivered a wholesome chop to the creature’s neck. The head hit the ground, followed quickly by the thing’s body as the horse whinnied in a lack of assuredness. It wasn’t that it didn’t trust its new owner; it was just that it wasn’t programmed to be ridden by anything that wasn’t formed of the darkness element, and so didn’t know how to respond. Some more coaxing, and the blademaster who’d mounted had his new vehicle under control. Just as quickly as that had happened, though, the parallel of this monster was revived, and stood across the room.

The opposing horse reared up, its owner gripping his lance as a javelin. The blademaster’s response was to rear as well, calling upon his inner equestrian to one-handedly hold the reigns while brandishing his sword with the other. All at once, the two charged towards one another, the sounds of battle the only soundtrack needed. He’d never been terribly fond of jousting, but with Ap Do in effect he’d hopefully be able to parry his opponent’s weapon and deliver a swifter blow than its range could handle. Stooping low, he let Glitter dangle back in the wind at his side while they drove on towards each other. Closer they came, and closer still, the moment of decision impending ever more.

The sudden wrench of his gut forced the blademaster to look down. Lodged deeply in his flesh, the other horseman’s spear found itself. Dizzily he grabbed onto the spear, trying to hold it still in his abdomen as the second horseman looped around. He wasn’t quite clear on what happened, but he could feel his strength fading as he dangled from the wound in midair. No, he wasn’t going to let this stop him. Teeth clenched, he cast Glitter aside, putting both hands on the spear and pulling it through. Pain erupted out of his back as the flesh yielded to his applied force and let the spear through. With a loud cry, he fed the spear through his wound, pulling himself up to the horseman before he could respond. The sword was called to his hand once again, and its once shimmering surface pierced his opponent’s neck. The rider dissolved into data, along with his spear and the horse he’d been riding to let Dien fall to the hard floor beneath.

A cough, and blood was spat on the floor. Vision began to blur, and the blademaster pushed himself onto all fours to mutter the healing spell and save himself the wasted SP of death. However, as the blue rivers flooded over him two hooves suddenly came into his blurred view. Looking up as the spell finished, the other rider’s spear launched itself at where he’d been. The sound of a clean strike of the floor echoed about, and Dien’s hand firmly held it where it had landed.

“Care to try that again?” he asked, glaring at the rider whom he’d already killed. Instead of getting some kind of response, though, the horse merely kicked in at its mount. The horse reared up, and its front hooves became fists, punching Dien back some fifteen feet to the wall. He coughed, wiping the blood from his mouth as he stood. Clever, he thought, but not clever enough. The speed spell’s effects hadn’t worn off, and the blademaster picked up his sword. In one breath, he was behind the horse and rider. Another and he hooked his arm around the man’s neck, pushing against what existed of the horse’s derriere to dismount him. The reigns were pulled as more force was applied, and all at once the three bodies fell backwards. Hands pushed off the earth, and as the monster killed itself under its own weight, the blademaster scurried out.

Data departed, and Dien’s eyes became fixed on the fight that continued among the other fighters in this group. It was pretty much all under their control, and he sat down once again, waiting for them to finish and providing support and resurrects as needed: in his mind, he’d more than done his part in actual fighting.
__________

OOC: Well, sorry if the quality’s kinda low, but I’m out of practice. If there’s any posts between this one and Nighthand’s, then just have Dien provide any support you need. La Repths, health drinks, and resurrects are free reign, so go ahead as you will. Oh, and sorry for the delay.
Image
Image|||Level 35 Blademaster (+200 EXP)
Wishlist: EXP, Ends of Earth, Armor with Status Effects

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Marionette
Elevated Player
Posts: 29
Joined: Sun Sep 03, 2006 4:24 pm

Post by Marionette » Mon Sep 18, 2006 10:17 pm

Flashmail
To: Dien
RE: controL
speaK witH otherS. thiS iS noT alL. youR rabbiT holE iS burieD deeP. i'vE beeN watchinG yoU. caN yoU watcH mE? caN yoU finD mE? yoU shalL seE.
whaT happenS wheN thE puppeT pullS thE stringS?

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Nighthand
Master of Games
Posts: 1265
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2003 9:23 pm
Class: Bladesmage
Location: ...Tracking...please wait...

Post by Nighthand » Tue Sep 19, 2006 4:57 pm

(ooc: First off, sorry 'bout not posting last week. I told Zan to post to kill the Blackest, since I figured with him dead, the rest would fall easily and this post here could be moving to the next room. Obviously, that didn't happen. Talk to Zan if you want to know why. So, I post now. )

Nall continued to monitor the battle. After his own little encounter, the group seemed to be doing well enough. In fact, the Blackest was close enough to dead now that it should fall any moment.

And fall it did, under a rain of blades from Canti. The Twin blade had come up with about the only plan that wouldn't have had the Blackest slaughtering them all. It was clear from what it had done to Dien and to Zan, that it wouldn't have been a good idea to go right up against it head on.

The Blackest Knight, for all his magnificent power, died in a less than spectacular fashion. His horse's legs buckled and the mount fell, the Knight himself tumbling to the ground. He tried to rise, using both blades, only to find that one of them no longer existed. He collapsed, and the fire in his eyes and blade dimmed and faded. Finally, the entire corpse burst into a wave of shadow and wind, whipping about the room for a moment but dealing no damage. When that died down, nothing remained.

Nall's flashmail beeped, but what he recieved wasn't a Flashmail. Rather, it was a special system he and Raine had rigged up, a sort of in-game, long-distance instant messaging.
R: There's trouble.
N: What's up? See something coming?
R: It's not that... Whatever just appeared has been there the whole time. Something just sort of swelled up in the fields, all three of them. I had Sheena place monitors on her scout trip. Whatever was there was cleverly hidden.
N: What does this mean for us? I haven't sensed anything new since we arrived, just learning how the field is working. Wait... could it have been Marionette?
R: Marionette?
N: I got a flashmail earlier, from someone named Marionette. I couldn't trace it, but then, that's never been something I'm any good at. It was strange... I've never heard of the character before.
R: It could have been. If it was just a short time ago, then there's a good chance. If so, this Marionette was disguised well. Until it moved, it looked just like a normal part of the field on every scan I did. Though, I detected the same type of movement on the other field as well... There's more to the defense of these hubs than we realized.
N: Yeah. We're not even doing too well right now... We should have been more than half done with this by now. I'm really thinking splitting up wasn't a good idea.
R: I'm going to do some more scans. Maybe I can figure out what this is.
The window closed in front of his eyes, and Nall once more watched the battle. It was winding down, now... Not much left. One step closer to one more minor victory...


------------------------ooc:
I'm going to post much the same thing here as I did in the other thread, even though this one is moving slightly better.

If activity hasn't picked up a lot by two weeks from now, I'm probably going to kill the quest. The only way to avoid this is to agree, both groups agree, to kill one quest and join the other group to finish that one. Which one dies and which one lives, I don't care. Unless activity picks up drastically, at least one is going to die.

Also, check the announcement I'm going to post in a moment. There are now penalties for being inactive. Not based on rewards, since that plainly doesn't work. This is supposed to be the elite board, and all we're doing is failing. Prove our old reputation right.

Lord Canti
Exalted Player
Posts: 300
Joined: Sat May 13, 2006 3:58 pm
Location: In da' plains of hell, natch.

Post by Lord Canti » Wed Sep 20, 2006 8:47 pm

(What in the...? Okay, that was unexpected. After his last assault, Canti thought he'd lead the Blackest Knight on another chase and get him killed in a chief effort, but...well...he freakin' DIED on him! The Twin Blade watched as the boss devil fell over and seemed to melt away like the shadow he was. Was that it, then? Had he no choice but to admit defeat at the hands of the devilish Twin Blade known as Canti? Oh yeah... That sooo kicked ass! He would've done a little dance, too, but didn't have the time. A whole bunch of things were going on right now that needed his attention. The first was this...)

Canti: Hey, you! Shouldn't you be sparking like mad about now?

(Sure, why not? The last two did, and he was right there to feel it happen too. So, if it wasn't doing its business, then that meant... Canti looked around. Yeah, there was still one guy, one Dark Horse. It looked like Dien was tangling with it. The raven-winged avenger drew up his knives and prepared to bring in the backup...when Dien managed to kill it on its own. Wait, that meant the prisim would... Yup! The tunnel was coming alive and so was the freakin' gem-thing. Canti held it up and allowed a massive amount of energy to be poured into it, then tucked it under his armpit like a football. The room was clear and everything was okay now. Everything but one. That flashmailer... Canti delivered a little message to that guy...)

To: Marionette
From: A Pissed Off Canti
Subject: Your timing sucks majorly.

You've got alot of nerve, calling me NOW of all times. And what the hell are you talking about? I'm facing challenges already! I dunno if you have ANY clue what I've been through, but if you've got something to say, some kinda' warning to give, then just SAY IT 'cause I don't like riddles.


(There was something wrong with a guy that never says aything straightforward. No control? No choice? Big challenges ahead? No shit, Sherlock. And what's all this yellow wood and high road business? Is that something to do with this quest? Who the hell was this guy and why was he even bothering him?)

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Canti: Well?

"It has nothing to do with me, but you must admit...you are being led."

Canti: Don't friggin' remind me... And really, I don't have a choice, do I?

"Of course you do, but some of them will be wrong."


>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

(So...no idea what's going on, and no help from his thoroughly messed-up subconscious either. Right... Only one thing to do, since the room's clear. MOVE ON! Canti headed out of the room to place the Black Prism in where it belonged. The trap was dead, so he had nothing to worry about. And of course, the room would probably shut itself down now that everyone was out and he was putting the thing in its place. Afterwhich, he stepped carefully towards the Rai room. Since he'd found out that the elements were both for and against him, the Darkness was his strength and the Thunder was against him. That meant....he would have to be very careful here in this next room...)

OOC: Yeah, that's right. I'M moving it along. That's how much I want to get things going. I'm not gonna stand for this either.
I'll have a doozy of a sig later, I swear. It'll reflect ".hack//CODE" an' everything.

Hey look! A profile! It's got items and stats and things! Cool! If it isn't fully up to date, it will be, so don't worry 'bout it.

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Nighthand
Master of Games
Posts: 1265
Joined: Mon Mar 31, 2003 9:23 pm
Class: Bladesmage
Location: ...Tracking...please wait...

Post by Nighthand » Wed Sep 20, 2006 9:36 pm

ooc: a future reference thing, I'd like a habit to be formed of keeping track what the status of the monsters is. Easier to know when everything is dead.
-----------------------

Nall, somewhat distracted by his conversation with Raine, followed rather than led the way out of the Ani room. Canti, of course, knew the drill by this time, so things went off without a hitch. Only the twin blade's hesitation upon reaching the threshold of the Thunder room gave Nall the reason to step forward first.

Entering into a dark room, it wasn't long before the lights were thrown on; figuratively and literally.

Once the party had entered the room, electricity roared to life. Static discharged arced around on the uneven surface of the walls, looking like raw stone laced with iron ore. In the center of the spherical room, the flattened floor of which was their surface to do battle, stood a pillar. The pillar, a lacework of iron bars, was coated with constantly-moving trails of lightning.

The lightning itself originated from a series of spheres; ten of them, slowly orbiting the central pillar. They had a continuous beam of electricity arcing from themselves to the iron pillar.

Inside the pillar's lacework construction, rested a lone object; the object of their desire, the lightning key. THIS was what they had come to get. It was plain, however, that to reach for it now would be suicide.

There seemed to be no monsters in the room. Nothing to indicated where the collected power from the other rooms had gone. Unless, perhaps, the lightning was stronger than it would have been otherwise... still, that was a matter for another time. They were here now, and this was their challenge.

Five of the orbs seemed fragile; as though made from glass. The other five looked tough, solid chunks of cast iron floating through space. They weren't too high in the air...

Nall looked closer, and saw that each orb had a faint tinge of color to it. Barely enough to be noticable. Seeing one that was both faintly blue and fragile as glass, the blademaster leapt to the air. His SWORD swung, contacting the orb.

"Rue Crack!"

The skill rang out, and the orb shattered into a myriad of pieces. Fragile crystal rained down on the gritty surface of the cave, quickly disappearing.

Nall had barely landed when the reaction to his attack struck. A level two spell, of the Rai Don variety, crashed down on him from nowhere. Even his eyes gave him little enough warning to avoid most of the damage.

"Huh... that's odd. I didn't see that coming." He looked to the sky, to see if he had done any damage. Silently, he counted the orbs.

seven... eight... nine... ten. The faintly blue glass orb was there, rotating serenly in it's place, the lightning still arcing tot he pillar.

There was obviously more to this puzzle than Nall knew... it would be up to the group to solve it.

----------------------ooc
Iron Orb 1: faint red
Iron Orb 2: faint blue
Iron Orb 3: faint green
Iron Orb 4: faint black
Iron Orb 5: faint brown
Glass Orb 1: faint blue
Glass Orb 2: faint green
Glass Orb 3: faint brown
Glass Orb 4: faint red
Glass Orb 5: faint black

hitting an orb correctly will result in the orb ceasing to broadcast it's power. hitting one incorrectly results in it's destruction, casting a level two rai don on the one who initiated the attack. it then reforms and continues broadcasting.

if a full round goes by without all of them being turned off, some of the ones turned off will switch back on. right now, all of them are on. keep a table in your post of which ones are on and which are off.

next post will still be tuesday; i say a "full round" goes by, that means in 13 days, not 6. i'm giving some leeway for experimentation, as the solution is simple enough once stumbled upon.

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