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- 65 posts here • Page 3 of 3 • 1, 2, 3
As the snow cleared, Marius saw no <<Santa Claus>>, and not one, but TWO Kahlans. Marius just stood there in shock, as both made pleas to attack the other. "Marius quick! It's turned into me! Don't be fooled!" "No Marius! It's her! It's trying to trick you!" Marius glanced to the one on the right. Then the one on the left. Then the one on the right again, and the same with the left. That was useless. They were exactly the same in appearance. Considering the system likely scanned personality and other manerisms, the question game wouldn't fix this.
Marius had one ace up his sleave, though. His tracking skill. He brought it up, and entered in Kahlan's name. Marius could only frown, though, as he saw that even the tracking skill couldn't tell the difference. Only one idea was left. To be honest, he wasn't entirely sure this was going to work either, but it was the best idea he had so far. "Kahlan, whichever one is you, you're going to have to trust me here." Marius was working off the assumption that the npc copy would have poorer reaction time, as it had to process language. Marius split his swords in two, took a deep breath, and then charged the two Kahlans. As he reached them, he called out "Duck!" Instead of attacking either, though, he slid between the two, watching as closely as he could. He ran up the tree behind him, and prepared to strike the one that gave itself away.
Things were looking very good. The <<Helpers>> numbers were dwindling and everyone was in extremely high spirits. Time to finish this. Kahlan leapt back away from the battlefield and observed. There were only a few left, plus they were all cornered into a convenient spot by the <<Sparrow's>> blades and The Voice of Treason's assaults. Each still had a few health bars left but it would be no problem. Easy prey.
"Sparrow! Treason boy! And You!!" She addressed the player who was STILL cloaked. "Good job! I'm going to finish this so we can help Miss Red over there with the main course! Please keep the rest of the <<Helpers>> in one spot for thirty seconds at the most. Once time is up, get the hell out of the way!"
A large magic circle encircled the blonde as she struck the pose for one of her high level spell prompts. Her arms were outstretched out in front of her as her blade began to float in mid air in front of her outstretched hands. It's light grew with stunning intensity and the <<Helpers>> were suddenly frozen, inflicted with the auto <<Stun>> effect her sword's attribute's activated. She began.
"Be gone, shadows
Thou of the unseeable
Fade back into oblivion, if of darkness
Be returned to the immaterial
Ask not me, my answer is clear
In my hand is light. Know that all is in this hand
I am the truth of creation,
In face of all things, thy defeat is certain."
Particles of light weaved themselves around the Paladin's arms and her sword was no longer a sword but a bright rod of light. Taking hold of where the hilt was located, the blonde, her face, eyes and flowing braid now gleaming against the light took hold of her demon sword <<Aeon>>. She was done with these pesky bastards. She should have released this skill from the beginning. Things would've been much easier but fighting with the others certainly was a thrill and she enjoyed every second of it. She remembered the first and only time she had used this spell. With as much power her voice could muster, Kahlan: The Strong willed Paladin of Light cried out to the frigid snowy air trusting her sword skyward,
"AEON!!!"
A blinding beam of light erupted violently from Kahlan's blade. The narrow beam rocketed through the dark clouds in the sky and the entire battlefield was illuminated with the charged light energy. A warm essence descended upon the area. The soothing calm before the storm. After a few seconds, the girl swung <<Aeon>> towards the ground and the sky flashed as if a million thunderbolts crashed through the heavens at the same time. The light subdued and the cold battlefield was dark once again. The <<Helpers>> lay on the ground, each impaled by countless giant glowing light shards that disappeared into white and yellow pixels as their deed was done. The silent, motionless <<Helpers>> did the same but their pixels were a blood red. Kahlan, almost depleted of almost all her mana, fell to her knees gasping for breath. Using her sword for support she sighed seeing her attack had struck. Now the path to the main boss was totally clear. The others could take care of it while she recovered.
Kahlan rasped a labored command. "What are you slackers all standing around for? Go kill that fat ass!"
"...It was a good fight," he bowed to the others, before disbanding from the party. "I'm off."
Kahlan instantly frowned. He was just leaving? What was this. Suddenly a massive deja vu rocketed through her mind. Someone had said something like that before. It couldn't be. She shook her head. He couldn't just leave like that! Refa seemed to think the same as she made a quick farewell and ran off after him.
"That was an amazing fight everybody. Thank you. Sorry but I have to go as well. Meet me back at Pruina Marius and bring those two with you if they want. Drinks on me."
Kahlan took off after the two breathing hard. She still hadn't fully recovered and she struggled to get her bearings. Finally she caught up. Approaching the boy, she caught hold of his cloak.
"Oh no you don't. I'm not letting you two run off like that. First of all, you have no right to just go off like that without introducing yourself. Second, I want to talk to Refa. I haven't seen you in a whole year. You think I'm just going to let you speed off into the distance again without a friendly hello?"
"If you haven't yet, pay for the tab. I'll pay you back later. After that, slip Canon and Asher out the back door. I'll keep the crowd distracted. This is my mess. I'm cleaning it up. Meet me at the nearby inn after this blows over." With that, Marius slipped away, and climbed onto the table and began to give a little speech. The blonde Paladin took this opportunity to slip next to Asher and Canon. "C'mon you two. Time to split. I'll meet you outside. I just need to grab Mr. Cloak over here and the kid. This is WAY to much excitement for one night. Sorry this turned out to be such a spectacle."
And with that, Kahlan weaved herself through the crowd. Luckily, everyone in the tavern had their attention drawn to Marius. Managing to finally make her way to the cloaked player, she gently tugged on his arm. He was shaking and instantly she felt sorry for him. She had dragged everyone into this but she wasn't expecting something like this to happen. That Marius. If he could've just kept his voice a bit lower. But she had fun and would have to admit that tonight was enjoyable because of him. She just wished the others could've had as much fun as she did. But it was true. This was way too much for one night and Kahlan was exhausted. Sleeped sounded extremely heavenly and the only thing she wanted was to plop herself down on a soft bed at a warm inn and sleep till noon. Yes, that was what she was going to do. But..... There was something she needed to take care of. She still didn't know the identity of the boy that stood close to her.
"C'mon. I see an opening."
Trusting that the player had a tight hold on the boy, Kahlan led the both of them through the crowd who was now cheering as Marius finished his speech and was now heading out as well. It was a good thing she had payed for the tab before hand. She could tell Marcus goodbye later. Finally reaching the door, she slipped out into the cool night air. Snow swirled about her and Kahlan drew her <<Traveler's Rags>> closer to her face. She turned her attention to the player behind her and gave him a gentle smile.
"Sorry about that back there. Are you okay? It doesn't seem like your used to big crowds."
He paused then, so quietly. "If he hasn't...perhaps he didn't try hard enough."
With that, he and the boy left, walking away, skirting round the tavern to get by it. Kahlan just stood there motionless. There was so much she still wanted to say. So much she wanted to understand. She wanted him to come back. She wanted to reach out to him, to tell him she wanted to tell him more. The reason why she felt this way, that they were so similar yet so different. Of course she understood that. Of course she had been there. She had crashed, lost all hope. She lost everything. But the reason why she was able to move on was because of a promise she had made long ago. Of course she knew the feeling. She probably knew it better than anyone. But why couldn't he see that? That there was another way?
She wanted to desperately run after him to tell him. But no matter what she tried, her feet would not move from that spot in the snow. Her hand clenched the <<Accesory>> that was adorned on her neck. It was the same. She was unable to convince HIM in the past and now she was unable to convince yet another person that her ideals were true. Was what she had been fighting for all this time a lie? All the hardships and experience? All the bonds she made? Everything she had thought she had fought for, all the lives she lost and the pain it brought her. If all that couldn't help her explain her ideals then what could? Why couldn't she get it across to him? Maybe....... Maybe if she told him where she was coming from. Maybe if he knew her story, then maybe he might understand. But.... Kahlan had never revealed that tragedy to anyone before and she tired her best to forget about it. But... If it was necessary to get her point across, then she would have to do it. The problem was..... Could she do it?
Finally, Kahlan's feet were able to move. One step.... Two steps.... Three.... She wasn't going to just let him walk off like that. She needed to understand. In a flash, Kahlan broke out running in the direction where the player had vanished. Unfortunately, the falling snow, covered up the tracks in an instant, but this was no problem. The Paladin activated her <<Tracking>> skill. If that boy was not with him, this would be impossible because of that damned cloak he was wearing, but Kahlan quickly began to follow what looked to be the boy's trail.
They didn't go far. The tracks led to a nearby inn and Kahlan quickly entered the warm welcome of being indoors. She asked the inn keeper if a cloaked player and a small boy were here and sure enough, the innkeeper pointed in the direction of the stairs.
"Your the second one to ask about someone in this inn, young lady. That pair you asked for was asking about a double blader and a red haired girl. Are those also acquaintances of yours."
Marius and Refa? That's when she remembered. This was the inn, Marius told her to meet him at. Kahlan quickly nodded a brief yes and thank you to the innkeeper and she bounded up the stairs. Sure enough, the familiar face of the small boy was easy to spot from across the hall and Kahlan approached them. She suddenly felt embarrassed. They had just parted a little while ago. Would he think that she was chasing after him? No matter, she needed to talk to him.
"I-....I wasn't finished yet......" Kahlan's hand was again, touching the <<Traveler's Rags>> around her neck.
"I..... I want to understand. If I just keep blathering about my own ideals without even knowing who you are, then I might as well be talking to a stone wall. I want to get to know you. If you don't mind me prying. In return I.... well...."
What was she doing. She never did this.
"I'll tell you about myself in exchange for your story. Please....."
Kahlan fell to her knees and threw her arms around the slumped form of the cloaked player she still did not know. Even if it wasn't worth it. Even if it was. She could not take back the lives she lost nor the choices she made. She was the Azure Paladin and nothing could change that now. Kahlan managed to get her bearings straight. She had almost lost it right then. The boy's sudden emotional outburst triggered something inside Kahlan that made her doubt everything she had worked for, everything she fought for. Even if people did die, knowing that sacrifices are necessary to accomplish your goals was something Kahlan believed in since she lost her two best and closest friends in ACO. All the deaths she was responsible for gave her the determination to clear the game and to make sure no more were lost to this god forsaken game. That was what she believed.
Unfortunately, not all thought like her. To the player now wrapped in her arms, every death counted. Every life, every soul. And they did count, every single one of them. But that way of thinking was dangerous. If you fight to protect EVERYONE then once one of those precious people die, you become crushed with the harsh reality that you can't protect them all. People die no matter what you do and being the person he was, the cloaked boy couldn't accept that. That was what he believed and Kahlan didn't dare take that belief away from him. Maybe that mindset would save them all one day, who knows? But for now, all she could do was to help him. Since she couldn't change his mind, then she would just have to help him somehow.
Kahlan hoped that the boy didn't find it awkward that she was holding him tightly but it seemed like he needed it. After a few seconds, Kahlan brought his hooded face up to look at her. Again she was desperately trying to meet his eyes under the hood.
"No..... I don't think it's a 'bane' to you at all. It's who you are. You care immensely about everyone around you and I respect that with all my heart. I really do. Though our views about protecting those we love are quite different, I'm happy to say that we have one thing in common. We both care enough to keep fighting. I want to save everyone as much as you do, and I think I can finally say that I understand your reasons for doing the things you do to fight. Hold on to that."
Kahlan scooted away from the boy a bit to give him space. She held out her hand and smiled at him gently. "But I need to tell you this. What you are trying to do. What you are trying to accomplish is impossible to do alone. You need to accept that there are just too many players out there for you to help. The only way to save everyone is to beat this game. You know that as much as I do. If you don't want those sea of faces and the people who you lost to blame you, then beat the game. That is the only way to make sure that their sacrifice will not go to waste. Come with me. Fight beside me. We won't be alone. Marius will be with us as well and I'm sure that Canon and her partner would be more than willing to come along too. Together we all would be able to make sure that Tatsu- was that his name?- will make it out alive. With five frontline players, he will be more than well protected. Will you come with us?"
He stepped forward but almost fell down the stairs, luckily enough he held onto the barrier, supporting himself again."...I can't really walk today." Atoubu apologized, finally turning to look at the Reena with a rather sheepish, childish smile that accentuated his looks, making him seem innocent and boyish, rather than the mature, dark individual he was when he was the <<Shadow>>. It was bit unusual however exactly that made Reena want to protect this ma... no, boy.
"...Nice to finally meet you in person, for real, Refa." He said said to her with another smile. After that, he looked a little crestfallen. "Thanks for coming back..."
"It wasn't all that easy," Reena admitted and scratched her head with an awkward smile. She was still little worried, but since Atoubu was in shock, girl put herself in second place. "And I'm not really Refa now, call me Reena for this day."
Seeing that Atoubu isn't really up for searching now, Reena decided that it would be for best if they just waited for Naito. After all, where could have he gone? Maybe he simply saw something nice little shops around town, they offered all sorts of interesting stuff on Valentine's Day. Or he is just having fun with other people in city square.
"I think that we should just wait for Na... Tatsu to get back. Maybe he went to one of those event shops. I'm sure that he is fine," girl said and went up to the man. Then she firmly put his left arm around her shoulders and slowly starting pushing him to move back to room. In real life it would have been really hard for Reena since boy was bigger than her and definitely a lot heavier too, however since it was a game, her strength was quite high. After all sword didn't exactly weight just 5 kilograms and inflicting some damage on monsters increased ones strength by quite a lot.
The boy's feet bolted against the ground at lightning speed but the bewildered Paladin's feet were clear from the ground and she was being dragged along in the wind behind. It was exhilarating no doubt and Kahlan enjoyed the rush of the wind bashing against her face at high speeds. 'Is this a little bit like flying, I wonder?' She was enjoying this a bit too much, but before she forgot about why she was even in this predicament the boy spoke up.
"...Hey." A short pause. "If you're wondering where Refa is...we're looking for her now."
Kahlan looked at him, puzzled. "Where is she? What's going on?" By the tone of his voice, Kahlan knew that this was serious. What had happened to the fiery red head?
One of the group had said something loudly, probably to the one fighting, about continuing forward. Well, since he was already here, he would follow the man up and see what opponents might count as a decent exercise. Following this man up, he did not expect that he would be meeting with a very familiar face. In fact, he might've ran away if given the chance, because unlike any of the people in this tower, he absolutely knew that the owner of the voice behind him was a person who wanted nothing more than to end his virtual (and real) life. But, as he saw the available combatants, three in total, one taken, he heard a booming voice originating from none other than his old guildmate, by the name of Kahlan.
"YOU!!!! I TOLD YOU TO NEVER SHOW YOUR FACE TO ME AGAIN!!!"
Licht froze.
Slowly, he turned to face her. His sword, of course, was at the ready, which might not have been the best thing considering that it was the cause of her hatred. Even still, he wasn't about to be strucken down when he was so close to his target. Light chuckled, ignoring the two foes behind him who were a bit annoyed that they weren't given any attention. "Oh! Hey there uh... Kah-kah, how's it going? You look so nice today. Did you do something with your hair?"
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Kahlan growled as she neared. How dare he!
"Don't try to sweet talk me now you disgusting, manipulative trickster! I should have done away with you when I had the chance!" Kahlan, ignoring practically everything that was going on stepped up to the blue haired boy and seized him by the collar. "Yeah, you'd better have that lovely sword of yours at the ready because once I'm through with you, this will be the last time you'll be seeing it, or anything else if I can help it!"
Kahlan noticed the two enemies nearby who Licht was obviously in the process of engaging. The two, seeing this as an opportunity to strike were creeping in closer by the second. What a bother. "You two come one step closer and I swear you won't live to take another!" Kahlan's piercing gaze was locked on Licht's and she brought his face closer. Apparently, the two didn't get the message and lunged towards the two. The Paladin's eyes flashed with rage. "WHAT DID I JUST SAY, YOU F**KERS!!!!"
Without letting go of Licht for a second, Kahlan swung Aeon and a giant arc of light swept towards the advancing enemy's legs. The impact knocked the two off their feet and Kahlan spun around and slashed at both their middles while still gripping Licht tight. The two attacker's HP dwindled down to less than 1/4th and they cautiously backed away.
"Now... Where were we? Oh, yes..... WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE??"
The Voice of Treason blocked another strike from his opponent with his sheathe, but the force sent him back even farther than he anticipated. âTch⊠Youâre good.â Asher muttered. So far, Asher was at about 33% of his maximum health. Not good, but it wasnât bad at all. His stat buffs allowed Asher to make a comeback, bringing his opponent, <<RedFang>>, to about 55% health. RedFang charged at Asher, his shield flowing, a sign for a <<Charging Shield Bash>> skill. Asher dived and rolled out of the way, chanting, "Oh roar that shakes the very foundations of the earth, resound! Bloody Howling!" RedFang performed a backflip to get out of the range of asher's dark element spell, and countered with another <<Charging Shield Bash>>. Asher had to recover from the skill, so he was bashed in the head by his opponent's shield. 20%, his health bar said. Asher only looked at it in his peripheal vision, as another attack came his way. This time, a <<Spin Attack>>. Asher ducked and jumped the moment the skill was deactivated, front-flipping into a <<Dropkick>>. His opponent was sent back, losing 2% of his health bar. The two fighters chose this moment to catch their breaths.
âNot badâŠâ RedFang huffed, catching his breath. âNever saw you go PvP against someone else, Voice of Treason. Not many get to duel me for this long.â
âOnly when my life depends on it.â Asher smirked as he refereced his passive skill, hiding his fatigue of battle. The two opponents then charged once again. Swords were blocked by sheathes and shields respectively, but Asher thought fast and quickly chanted a common, yet useful, spell. âBurn by my hand! Fireball!â Asher shouted, and flames englufed Asherâs hand before forcing themselves into the shield of his opponent. Unfortunately for him, RedFang saw it coming, and used the momentum to get behind Asher. Thinking quickly, Asher ducked an incoming horizontal slash to the head, and <<Windmilled>> RedFang as he rose up. The member of the Bloody Assassins wasnât able to recover from his attack fast enough, and was kicked to the ground. Asher continued by jumping high and slamming his blade down. Because RedFang didnât get up in time, the system registered a Critical Hit, thus bringing Asherâs opponentâs life down to 47%. Asher leapt back and pointed his sword at his rising enemy. âHeh⊠Iâm surprised that you didnât join our guild, Voice of Treason. Why donât you? We can see a lot of potential stored in you.â His enemy suggested. Asher rolled his eyes in response.
âPlease.â Asher stated. âCan you get any more clichĂ©? First I beat you down to a certain percentage of health, then you want me to join you? No thanks.â Asher prepared his sword in a defensive stance, waiting for his opportunity for his ace. RedFang had also done the same thing. After all, great minds think alike. It was no just a situation of who would charge first. The two waited for the right moment to strike. Moments felt like hours, the seconds ticked away slowly. Asher charged first. He didnât have the time to do this. RedFang smiled as he brought his shield back, and literally sheathed his sword into his shield. Asherâs eyes widened as he knew what was coming next. It was an air combo skill, much like Asherâs <<Slash of Eternity>>. RedFang kicked upward. Asher blocked with his <<Devilâs Eye Blade>>, but the force still send him to the sky. Didnât help that it caused him to crash into the ceiling as well. RedFang brought out his sword and jumped towards Asher, blade first.
Asher had to think fast. Then Asher remembered a skill he saved into the sword. Smiling, Asher recited the chant. âBlind my enemies! End this battle without bloodshed. Shine!â The eye of Asherâs sword glowed before releasing a bright light, blinding RedFang. Asher got the chance that he needed. Not only did Shine blind his opponent, but the skill RedFang was going to use on Asher was cancelled too. Asher recited Kannaâs spell next. âFly! Sylphae Step!â The wind surrounded him, and Asher commanded the wind to send him down. âSlash of Present!â Asher shouted, activating the skill. He sliced through RedFang midair, as well as allowing Asher to go back to the ground. âGhost Wolf!â Asher launched himself back into the air before slicing through his enemy twice, one from behind, one from the front. Asher then activated his combo finisher. âAssault Slash!â 45%. 43%. 42%. 38%. RedFangâs life dropped lower and lower with each slash, as Asher successfully chained all of his skills into a Critical Hit chain, mainly because Shine also causes <<Dazed>> and <<Stagger>>, which causes the next skill or skills to be Critical Hits. A devastating blow indeed, as tremors were felt throughout the castle at the impact of the Assault Slash. Wait⊠That mustâve been Kanna. Asher thought to himself. That mustâve mean she used one of her more powerful skillsâŠ
Asher sighed as he sheathed his sword. No use fighting now. The enemy on the ground was in the <<Unconscious>>, despite having a relatively high amount of health. If he ever got up, which Asher knew he couldnât, RedFang wouldâve fallen prey to Asherâs <<Slash of Eternity>>, putting his life at 20% health, if the system added the last attack into the chain of skills. A lucky break for the Voice of Treason, indeed. Asher walked to the wall and sat down, his hand flicking through the numerous windows for health potions. Unfortunately, Asher forgot to restock. He groaned as he sat against the wall, waiting for his partner to finish the battle. âGodâŠâ Asher muttered. âWhat the hell did Refa do to make this all happenâŠ?"
"Now... Where were we? Oh, yes..... WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE??"
Her voice sounded like a thunderous roar from some mighty beast, and to Licht, she may as well have been that. Licht wasn't necessarily terrified of her, but he understood that he should be cautious near her. Obviously. He smiled and then began speaking in a tone that greatly contrasted Kahlan's own. "I'm sorry, but I wasn't expecting you here, Kah-kah. I only heard of somebody being kidnapped and that someone being a worthy person to fight." he explained truthfully, knowing Kahlan would know that that would be the truth - he was like this for as long as she had known him. He was like this for as long as he had played Antiva Chronus Online.
When he was done explaining, he turned to survey the area. "You know.... we should probably get going. Damsels in distress don't care much for waiting, and I'm already a bit late."
- 65 posts here • Page 3 of 3 • 1, 2, 3