Abellio

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"GET YOUR FLIPPER OFF OF ME!" You could count on three things: Death, Taxes, and Abellio sticking his head right smack. dab. into the bear trap. Such was the case - and the reason - for his presence on Floor 29. The man couldn't possibly tell you what possessed him to take such a risk. But from the moment he set foot onto Floor 29, he was beset by monstrosities from all directions. Shambling masses, mutated freaks, all with a flipper or a fin or a set of gills they should not have. Perhaps the most ominous thing about them (other than everything about them) were the black crystals floatin

Kismet was a cute name. As she began her monologue, Abellio watched enraptured. Towards the middle, there was a brightness in his eyes as he hung on every word. And, at the end, when she was interrupted by the newcomer, Abellio was clapping his hands in front of his chest with a smile on his face. Some people might have thought such behaviors to to be juvenile. Lame, even. Most people, actually, might have considered it to be a little odd. But not Abellio. He thought it was cool that she had thought up something like that. He certainly could never. And as the matron made her threats, Abel

Abellio watched as Oscar carted them away. From the reactions of the two men, he wasn’t taking them anywhere fun. He followed along from a distance, growing ever more concerned at the rising panic of the two men. By the time they reached the dark hole in the ground, the pair were apoplectic. They gushed apologies and promises. Pleaded to be let go. But as casually as throwing out the garbage, Oscar pushed them inside. There was a sinking feeling in Abellio’s gut. Something told him that this would be the last those two would see the light. But he didn’t want to ask. He knew better than to do t

Abellio winced as Oscar pointed out the obvious. If he’d not been so excited, maybe he would have questioned it. But they were on Floor One. Why would anyone try to get noobs killed? His shame began to turn to rage. Blazing heat ignited in his breast. Had they pulled this with anyone else? Before he knew it, Abellio was marching toward the pair as they started to retreat towards the alley. His feet moved on their own. He wasn’t even thinking about it. All he could think about was how their little prank almost got him killed. How their little prank could have gotten others killed. Someone

Abellio nodded intently. With Oscar at his side, the two of them headed back to the settlement. It wasn’t an easy trip. There were more monsters on the return trip. And they were drawn to him like a magnet. They seemed to be coming out of the woodwork. Descending from the ceiling, tunneling up from underfoot. How had he even made it this far in the first place? But Oscar was able to dispatch them quickly. The man cut a path through the hordes of mobs, sticking close to Abellio to make sure nothing slipped through. All the while, Abellio wondered just how in the Hell he could bridge the ga

Abellio caught the offered item. His gaze flicked between the piece of equipment and Oscar. Why was he giving such a high level item away? The question answered itself as soon as he thought about it. Clearly, this man wasn’t worried about equipment. Was this man one of those Frontliners he’d heard about? The intent had been to join the Frontlines at some point. But if this guy was one of them, he realized that he had a really long way to go in order to be able to stand with them. The difference between their skills was palpable. And it couldn’t all come down to simply equipment. Seeing th

Oscar’s admonishments hit Abellio like a ton of bricks. He’d already admitted that he was dumb. Did he really have to twist the knife? Of course he did. Abellio had forced the man into a boss fight without so much as a greeting or a request for aid. And Oscar had jumped into the fray to help him, no questions asked. Abellio had to be grateful to him for the assist. Still, the words hurt. Having them thrown in his face hurt. Abellio looked up in time to see the King looming over Oscar while his back was turned. He wanted to shout a warning, but there was something about the man’s gaze.

Stupid? Abellio’s chest puffed up at the man’s words. But much as he wanted to refute them, he couldn’t. Watching the fight with the boss, Abellio realized that he was walking right into his own death. If the man hadn’t shown up when he did, Abellio shuddered to think of the consequences. He would have died. Plain and simple. “You’re right,” Abellio said. “I should have done more research. I was really stupid, okay?” He paused, his ever-present smile wavering. “And I got lucky someone like you was around. But I was just so tired of being stuck in this fuckin’ rut. And the guys who to

The cascade of energy was so brilliant that Abellio had to avert his gaze. When the light finally subsided and his eyes recovered from the dancing spots upon his vision, the fiery-haired man looked awestruck at his new companion’s handiwork. “Holy shit,” Abellio muttered to himself. In just two attacks the boss was almost dead! Abellio’s mind swam with questions. How had he pulled that off? And, again, just who was this guy? His eyes were wide as he watched the man clash with the enemy. But something was off. The man had stopped moving. The King stumbled backwards and lashed out, but

Abellio nodded along as the woman regaled him - and their new companion - with her woes. It was a perfectly-justifiable stance. After all, he was in the exact same boat. He resonated with her trepidation. Logic didn’t matter. There was no telling her ‘it’s just the first floor.’ It never worked with him, after all. It required a certain level of resolve. Resolve that she and he seemed to have found. Sometimes it takes getting sick and tired of being sick and tired. Abellio was going to respond, but he didn’t really appreciate the chastisement from a stranger. His exaggerated bow and tone

Abellio had been caught off-guard by the sudden assault. He was about to open his mouth to protest when the boss turned to face them. It locked straight onto Abellio and as it entered into an aggressive state, its health bar manifested next to it. Well, health bars to be more precise. There were three of them. The crystal over the creature’s head was jet black. It loomed over them, slowly walking to their location. But the man who had him by the collar didn’t seem to be too phased by it. Who was this guy? And why was he jumping in? The party invite appeared in front of him. The man r

The further Abellio meandered through the winding tunnels, the worse his nerves got. Not only that, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being watched. But he chalked that up to anxiety. This was the first time he had been out of a settlement. Much less somewhere so high up. But it was weird. The tunnels seemed to be abandoned. He could swear that he could hear the ambient sounds of monsters echoing through the mines. But every time he felt like he should have been able to set eyes upon a beast, he rounded a corner to find that it was gone. The sounds cut off. It certainly didn’t hel

<<Betrayal of the King>> Abellio came in hot! He stepped off of the Teleportation Platform and into the settlement of Tomoika pumped and ready for action. He was practically bouncing with energy, ready to finally make his first break into the game proper. His target? The Forgotten Time King. Everyone said it was a super scary boss, but he felt confident that he could take it. After all, he wasn’t bad at video games. Challenge runs hadn’t been anything new to him back when he played games religiously. And what better way to break out of his fearful funk than swinging on th

<<The Gemini>> ph