[(NK)OP - F11] Seventeenth Floor Raid Meeting

[Xion 0]

Xion sat and listened intently to those around him speak, most of them voicing strategies or opinions on how the group should go about dealing with the boss once the raid happens. Others chose to voice...less productive concerns. The player's hand balled into a fist when he heard Opal speak, he had ignored the witch up until that point, but he was stubborn, and couldn't keep quiet. "Opal, feel free to dismiss my words as that of a weak player but do you really take us to be such fools that we would give you an item of such power? After what you've done, and I see that others agree with me. We would be mad to give you such an item, we would be signing our own death warrants" he said, his voice laced with anger which subsided after a few seconds. Soon after Mack spoke of how they would go about fighting the horde of enemies, after a brief speech about the justice which would be served if anyone dared to Pk. The red headed giant's plan was straightforward: The immortals act as a vanguard and use their boosted stats to weather the attacks of the minions while the others take on the boss. It was a good plan, although Xion didn't like the idea of not being the first into battle, but the tank reminded himself that he wasn't on the lower floors anymore where almost nothing was much of a threat. 

 

 

The tank nodded along with his Vice commander's words, before Kalesh, a player which he had not seen in quite some time voiced his opinions about Mack's 'justice'. "Kalesh, in my mind to end another person's life is the worst thing that you can do, to cut short what little time we already have on this world is a despicable thing, and those who commit such crimes deserve to be punished. And if killing he who kills is the only way to punish them then so be it, feel free to say that we are as bad as them for doing so, but in ending the lfie of one player, who has already taken the lives of others we will be sparing potential lives. And if we don't then the death toll could rise further and further...and trust me, no one wants that to happen" the blonde tank said, before sighing. He had said enough, maybe even too much. 

 

 

"Anyway, Mack. As for what you ended your statement with I have a sand armour potion which can push my MIT north of 100, and I should be able to gain a few levels before the raid so my ability to tank will improve. However I would like to have some overhealth and safeguard potions, heck even better mit potions if possible but I'll have to see if I can get some from an alchemist or the equivalent from a cook" 

[Mack 0]

"Do not lie. Do not cheat. Do not kill. Do not steal," Mack rumbled, fixing his storm cloud eyes on Kalesh. "They are simple rules and a simple code that everyone working to escape from this digital prison can agree to abide by when taking part in Boss Raids. If you cannot follow those rules clearing floors, then do not help," the ginger bearded man continued, raising his hand and directing a single finger towards the door. "The door's behind you, feel free to use it, and if you break this code in our presence during a Boss Raid then I suggest you make sure that you and your allies can drop all of the Knights. Enough is enough, this activity is delaying our escape, and the Knights will tolerate it no longer."

[Seul 1]

The meeting eventually started and all the information was laid before them. Of course, each person chimed in with his or her own ideas for the battle and eventually it seemed like they had at least something that resembled a strategy. Then Kalesh started voicing his concerns about Mack's latest statements. Something about the male's words rubbed him the way, but maybe that was just bias due to Seul being a knight himself.

 "I can see why you're a little worried, Kalesh. Conspiracy theories aside though, I can tell you from my time in the knights that we don't want to be Aincrad's government. That doesn't change the fact we exist for the purpose of clearing this game though. Like Mack said, two people died not only at the last fight but at the one before it too. Not to the monsters, but to some cancerous pieces of scum that find it funny to kill the very people trying to save them from this world. That's a bad trend to have. Do you think they care about you or your life? Because they don't, and you can just as easily end up being the next name that gets crossed out on the monument. So if this is all a game to them, they shouldn't mind if their own lives end if they decide to impede our progress again. Here and now is what's important; there's nothing the law enforcement back in the real world can do to help us in that regard. To me it sounds like you'd prefer letting killers run around unchecked until we're all dead... And I can't agree with that."

Edited June 9, 2016 by Seul

[Kalesh 0]

Kalesh considered the words of the three knights closely before he responded, stepping up out of his seat. He raised his hands up on level with his head, as if he were at gunpoint. "Mack, Xion, Seul, I have no qualms with you, your guild, or your code." He shuts his eyes as he speaks "I just don't see why threats of murder are the go-to strategy here. I would think the knights might want to minimize death, get as many people out as possible, get the people who have done wrong help from psychiatrists when we get out... Not hold them down for the guillotine..." He lowers his hands and opens his eyes. "I don't care if it would be a 'waste of resources' or 'hard' or 'inconvenient'... Would you not even attempt to imprison them? A well placed stun and some rope? You just stated how you have power in numbers. Do not tell me you could not restrain them." He crosses his arms across his chest and focuses his emerald eyes firmly on Mack. "I'll be at the boss fight as long as I am allowed to be present. I want to help, I am willing to risk my life to do this... But I was hoping I'd be your ally in that." He turns to start walking towards the door. "But from what you said about 'my allies' Mack, I think I can gleam what you may not consider me."

He stands in the doorway and turns around to bow his head in respect to the group of players, regardless of affiliation. "I apologize to everyone here if I diverted the point of this meeting, I will excuse myself and hope further planning goes smoothly without me distracting anyone... I brought forth my ideas and suggestions earlier, and hope they are of some help if possible." He raises his eyes to the knights "But my question stands, and I will not pretend that I think anyone in this virtual world can use the word justice when talking about killing another person." With that, he left the meeting to find a nice warm bed for the rest of the day and night. He was not under the impression he'd sleep well in it, but it was better than fretting and stewing out in the open for all to see.

-Exit Thread-

Edited June 9, 2016 by Kalesh

[Oikawa 1]

The blonde had planned to listen in silence, absorb the information, and ready himself for the fight; however all that went out the door when talks began to erupt over actions that happened in the last few boss raids. Again he planned to hold his tongue, but a single phrase caused the player to no longer stand in silence. Quickly un equipping his rapier and removing his cloak, Oikawa marched over to Seul and stood squarely in front of him.

"Cancerous pieces of scum? Want to try saying that without being under the banner of your precious guild? With all do respect Mack, I have no issues withe Knights either, but I will not sit here, be slandered and expected to follow the lead of some two bit twit who's never even seen the front lines. I've made my peace with my crime and I understand I still won't be well received by most, but you shouldn't talk reckless to someone you perceive to be scum. Especially when that scum could end your life with the flick of his wrist."

Turning to Takao, the blonde concluded. "Thank you for hosting this ...meeting...Should I be allowed to the raid, I'll be fine wherever I'm placed. Calrex, keep me posted?", asked the rapier user as he turned to leave as well right behind Kalesh.

Edited June 10, 2016 by Oikawa

[Calrex 0]

"Dang...that drink took a while. I hope I didn't make the NPC go down and get reserves or something..."

As the comically oversized mug of mead appeared in front of him as Calrex gave a small sigh, overhearing the discussions of what was happening in the battle planning. Takao had made mention of some medals he had obtained from the floor boss, items that would give a significant boost to whomever the wear was against the three hundred Spartans at the boss' command, "Hm...I guess I could do with or without. With enough Safeguards and Healing Potions on hand, combined with Achilles and Parry, I could probably endure the blows of the boss for a significantly long period of time without even needing a boost. Of course, we don't know exactly how hard he strikes, so I wouldn't want to be cocky and think I could tank him all by myself without backup. Still...three hundred minions. Whomever we give the medals to would need to have not only the strong area of effect attacks in order to fell them, but also the energy to do so. Even my Lightning Fall attack saps up nearly a quarter of my energy, so the wielders should have a significant amount to start in order for the boost to be the most beneficial."

He gave a nod to Oikawa and Lawfer as they appeared as he downed his drink, wiping off some that had trickled down his chin with the back of his hand. It was at this point the conversation seemed to travel more towards what he was expecting, seemingly struck off by Opal's offer to take one of the medals. The bluenette gave a questioning glance for a second before returning back to his calm state, contemplating the woman's decision to voice her statement, "She should already know with her reputation that no one would likely be comfortable with handing over one of the medals to her. I wonder if that was some form of play to move the topic more towards what's happening now. Opal may be to some mad for starting the Laughing Coffin guild, but she's certainly not foolish. She was the Vice Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath for a significant period of time. What's her game..."

Giving a small sigh he stood up from his seat, merely deciding to lean against the table in the meantime while the others sorted out their concerns. Kalesh, a face he had not seem in quite some time, seemed to give a fairly logical, yet not widely received, statement that the bluenette could attest to. Declaring marshal law on those that have killed would probably solve the issue, but at a larger cost that it might seem. However, the Ultramarine Knight knew he shouldn't interfere in such affairs unless necessary. Trust issues were already bad enough on the frontlines with his wife's last snap during the previous boss fight, and he wasn't going to be the one to agitate it further.

With Oikawa's departure he gave a nod, "Sure thing."

The blonde now departed he fully stood up as he took a few steps forward to address the group before leaving, "I believe we've all said what's been on our minds today. If anyone wishes to discuss further they're welcome to stay behind, but with the boss deliberations done with I'll be taking off. Takao, Mack, I'll leave the team formations to you as before, along with the final decision on distribution of the medals. Personally, I would count me last if anything for them, as the Achilles skill still seems to serve well enough if I'm going to be the main tank. To everyone else, best of luck with preparations, and I'll see you at the raid. Make sure to pack a lot of healing potions, safeguards, and a teleport crystal. Remember that we can always retry the boss should things go south, but we don't get another chance should we die."

Turning around Calrex followed suit and exited the tavern, thanking the bartender for the drink.

Calrex Exits Thread.

[Khrysaor 0]

Khrysaor was busy listening to the meeting that was going on and writing down some of the main points of the notes. Khrysaor thought, 'Look at the stats and the quantity of the enemy. This is one tough boss, on second though not so much the boss, but the size of the mob. There sure was nothing like this in the last boss fight, and the boss fight took a big jump. At least those talismans will certainly come in handy, and give them a good chance to defeat the boss.' Khrysaor started to observe the group and see how they were dividing up the talismans. When he heard about the talismans he thought there was bound to be more fighting happening over it, but it was decided quite nicely. Afterwards, Khrysaor went back to writing his notes, in the shadows of the pub.

[Seul 1]

"Eh?" Before he knew it, a blonde player had appeared in front of him, said some stuff, then walked out of the meeting. The whole exchange left him feeling more confused than anything else. The orange cursor above his head meant he had killed before, so he could see why the guy got angry. Sorta. "...Can someone tell me who that guy even was? Yeesh. Glad to see he packed his angry face before he came here though. Anyway, I probably would have said the same thing if I wasn't in the knights and I was mostly referring to 'she who shall not be named'." He said while pointing over towards Opal. "So sensitive though... I would have thought the words of a two bit twit who has never seen the frontlines before would be meaningless to someone as super  powerful and scary as that guy.~" He was talking to himself at this point, but still it made him feel better to get the last word in. The reality was sinking in that this was just the world they lived in. For some backwards reasoning, having an opinion was grounds for death here while actual murderers were free to do as they pleased. There wasn't anything that could be done about it though. As long as he was surrounded by people like that who were stronger than him his life would be at their mercy and freedom wouldn't be a thing... In more ways than one. "Bleh, now I'm all grumpy. I'll catch you guys later." He'd only stop to wave to Mack and the other members of his guild before his own departure.

[Exit stage left-]

Edited June 10, 2016 by Seul

[Rain 0]

The wanderer didn't say anything. He didn't have to. He wrote down everything that was said and wrote down what was needed. In bold letters. "More T2 Perfect Potions" He had begun making those for Mack, as he had stormed in the other day and dropped a fairly sizeable order on him. He's almost done with the order, but it looks like he's gonna need to make more potions, for the frontline. Especially now that there's a decent chunk of KoTB members joining in this time.

With that train of thought, he takes one last swig of the rum before putting away the bottle in his inventory and rushing out to his shop.

- Exits -

Edited June 10, 2016 by Rain

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal stepped into the tavern, late as ever. Several people had already left, as he passed them on his mad scramble to make it here. Panting he opened the door, and was met with familiar faces, and new. "Hey, everyone. Made it." The sandy haired fighter said between his deep breaths. Lowenthal got himself a drink, and took note of the people present. Takao, Opal, Mack, Hikoru, and Ariel were amoung the more notable ones. He scanned the room again, and looked into his drink. He knew it was true, but he still double checked. He couldn't see Zelrius or Ssendom at all. They, really were gone. Zelrius and Lowe never really spoke or hung out. But Ssendom was a close friend, someone he trusted his life with on several occasions. Someone he'd been on double dates with. Even after Meokka left Dom, and what's his name left Lowe, they still hung out. Lowenthal threw back the last of his drink, as he reconciled.

"Alright, what did I miss? Everyone seems so," Lowenthal said, scouring the room. "So tense. It's like you're all scared of being murdered or something." Lowenthal said, half-jokingly. He knew that another two players died in the last boss raid, and not by the bosses hands. Player killing on the front lines. If you had a target who frequented there, it wasn't a half bad idea. Everyone would be to pre-occupied by the mobs and the boss to pay attention to you. The boss could soften up your target, allowing you to get the finishing blow in. Only flaw he could see is trying to avoid the bosses attacks, the mobs attacks, and getting out of the arena itself. Lowenthal looked to Takao. "You find the boss again?" Lowenthal asked.

[Opal 0]

From all sides she was ripped apart, ridiculed and questioned. Her word meant nothing to them. False. Lies. Accusations. She had slain one player, an Orange Player, a player that could have proved more disastrous to herself. She killed the Berserker. It was an eye for an eye, but the added kick was she claimed to be part of a guild of player killers. Yet she was not one as of now; only that of a Player-Killer-Killer. Justified, yet ignored. Her arms folded as she took the insults, head lowered and eyes closed as the room spoke of her. Some even so rudely pointed fingers at her like children would do. There was no use, she was a pariah; outcast. Both Oikawa and Kalesh left, she would have thanked the red headed Wild Dancer herself, but he was gone before she could even bat an eyelash at him.

The woman stood and headed towards the exit and turned around, "One final word. You were all dead the moment you put on those nervegears, as I am. We are all on borrowed time...some of us are on a shorter noose than others." The woman turned once more and left the building. They would feast on their justice and swell like fattened pigs to the slaughter. It was only time that would tell before their juices would flood through the streets of Aincrad. 

-Exit Thread-

[Zandra 0]

Everyone seemed to ignore what Zandra just said. She looked at them with raised eyebrows. She didnt wanted to brag, she never did. But she was one of the highest leveled players, and by far the strongest healer. First Opal ignored her when she greeted her. Then the not-pker ignored her when she told them her opinions. She rose so quickly so her chair pushed back and fell over."Well. See you at the boss fight I suppose." She said, her smile was gone. Then she pulled up her hood to cover her eyes with a shadow, turned on the spot and went out thru the door. With wet eyes she glanced at Lowenthal when she passed him at the entrance giving him a quick smile. When she was outside she slammed the door behind her and hid her face in her open hands while heading back to their beachhouse. Was it going to be like it was for her in real life?

-Zandra leaves the thread-

[Baldur 0]

Baldur silently watched everyone leave and wondered if perhaps this bickering was something Opal had intended to instigate, or if that was applying credit where it wasn't due. Kaleesh wasn't wrong with his words, but they were in the wild west of the digital frontier, and letting a murderer run rampant among the front line could have terrifying repercussions. Regardless of what anyone thought of the dead, going to back to Azide, they had lost many capable players who - if forced to get along - would help clear the death game faster. But is it worth it? Baldur had told Lessa that merely getting out of the floating castle wasn't enough - they had to get out by being true to themselves and their ideals, or else they would not be able, or worthy, to face the world outside, and look into the eyes of those they had left behind.

Watching everyone leave, but mostly Opal, but wondered to himself if he really could bring himself to kill her, even if she had just slain someone right before his eyes. Kaleesh's words were true, but killing someone was far easier than taking them in alive. A stun was useful, but if they couldn't subdue Opal before the stun went off, then she could slaughter her way out of the raid and many more lives would be lost.

It was a conundrum for another time. For now, Baldur remained to hear out the rest of the tactics. 300 minions was a deceptive number. Each player in the raid could be on the receiving end of 10 attacks every moment. Statistically, it was death by a thousand cuts, even at minimum damage.

"Calrex isn't wrong about needing to give amulets to people with adequate energy, however we still have a time limit. My most powerful A O E is also a stun, which means it's also more draining. I can currently get off only one before my energy is sapped, however, with an amulet that increases your energy, that's still enough rounds to wipe out enough minions. The problem is, is everyone else going to be able to last that long? We're already looking at what is perhaps the longest boss fight in recent memory. This is going to be a battle of attrition as much as of survival. Without an amulet, and with Achilles, Calrex-kohei and one or two others may be able to defeat the boss before the rest of us even kill half of the minions. It will be a balancing act that we need to prepare for."

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

Having watched as most of the people left, Nikodemus gathered his things and prepared to leave. He had atleast one order to fill for someone joining the frontlines this time around, and didnt want to miss the opportunity to have his work see the front lines. Looking to Takao, he gave a nod and spoke. "Good luck out there. If you need anything, stop by my shop." With that, Nikodemus put his ornate helmet on and then exited the tavern and began to head back to the teleport plaza for this floor. Reaching it, he called out "Teleport: Nimbus!" and was transported to his home floor.

 

-Nikodemus Exits thread-

[Takao 0]

Takao watched in silence as the players left one by one, opting to stay out of the verbal scuffle between some of the attendees. He had his own opinions on the matter, none of which he voiced, although his belief that killing was never a solution held strong. There were other methods that they could use-- there had to be. Even in this game of death, there was still a semblance of balance. Seldom did the majority of players find themselves pit against unbeatable odds, and typically only those that sought out those types of challenges were rewarded accordingly. Takao had been on the receiving end of that fairness as a result of his own bravery, or perhaps his own stupidity, so he boasted some firsthand knowledge on the matter.

To those few he knew well enough, Takao waved goodbye. His hand slowly lowered as Opal gave her final words before leaving, to which he offered no response, only a jaded stare. Finally, his attention turned to Lowenthal, of whom he found to be an unexpected sight. "Yeah, I found it." Takao answered, taking his first steps from the bar and toward the door. "I don't really feel like repeating all of it over again, so I'll give you the abridged version. One boss, three hundred dregs." He said over the hollow thuds of his boot's soles knocking against the tavern's wooden boards. He was tired, and after scouting the boss room only hours after the raid itself as well as holding the meeting without proper sleep, a good rest was definitely desired. "I'll have the strategy finalized before the raid. 'til then." Takao said as he pushed open the tavern doors and left without another word.

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