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

[Takao 0]

This thread and the meeting are open to anybody who wishes to participate.
The meeting takes place outside of a safe zone, so Player Killers may be in attendance.

The setting was not unlike the last meeting he had hosted, although the venue had changed slightly. Following the events that had taken place with Sheeptar and against his better judgement, Takao had chosen a tavern outside of the eleventh floor's safe zone. The blame he had once placed upon Oikawa for what he'd done in one of the raids was justifiable, no argument could convince him otherwise. It was his sword that killed Zelrius, and it was his anger that fueled his actions. Despite not being in attendance for Oikawa's recent explanation on the first floor, word had spread to him, and his then collaboration with Opal began to make more sense. Everything was circling right back to Opal.

Takao stood at the bar on the far end of the tavern, leaning on the counter with a nearly empty glass in his off-hand. Several wooden tables and chairs were scattered from stone wall to wall, offering ample place to sit in the rustic pub. Much like the last meeting, he had made the venue of the meeting public, allowing anybody who was interested to sit in. His reasons for doing so had yet to be publicized, and he would likely be keeping them to himself for a while longer. For now, he simply waited for those who planned to attend to arrive.

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru sighed and walked into the tavern where the meeting was to take place. He knew it was coming up, so he had kept his eyes open for announcements, as Takao was the man that always found the boss room these days. He sighed and continued to the player, coming and giving him a bow to the fellow Dagger-user

"I'm quite excited for this, hopefully you can give us some good insight." He said with a small nod. Then he stood and sat down on a nearby stool, ordering some Vodka and waiting for the meeting to start. He would just listen and take a few notes, but that's about it. He wasn't much for a conversationist, and that's how he would stay. He leaned on the counter as he shot down, shot glass after shot glass of Vodka, feeling the affects take longer than normal, probably starting to grow an intolerance to the drink

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

((OOC: I assume this is NK.)) ((Edit: Yup, Takao said it is.))

 

Having heard through the grapevine that the Boss meeting was being held on Floor 17, Nikodemus packed his stuff and made his way to the meeting. Arriving, he noticed Takao and Hikoru were the only ones there so far. Providing a salute of greetings, Nikodemus cleared his throat. "I am here to once more provide my services free to any frontliner. I shall not be participating in any way. If you wish to pass the info on that my services are free to forntliners, feel free to. I will just be taking notes and prepping for orders." With that, Nikodemus took a roll of paper from his pouch and a quill, ready to take notes. His eyes scanned about, but unlike the scouts, he had no real ability to search for hidden players.

Edited June 7, 2016 by Nikodemus_Blackwood

[Mack 0]

Having missed the previous boss fight against the giant ape, but having still heard of Teayre's actions there as had most of the rest of Aincrad's player population, Mack had resolved that he and a sizable portion of the Knights of the Blood Oath would be taking part in the upcoming Boss Raid. If there were any player kills, or attempted player kills, during the raid then the Knights of the Blood Oath would be there to step in and deal extremely swift justice against the offending player. Ambushing players along the front lines in Boss clearing operations was going to come to a stop.

Immediately.

Pushing open the door to the pub, just outside the safe zone on the eleventh floor, Mack slipped in and pushed back the crimson trimmed snow white hood of his Vice Commander's cloak and surveyed the room. So far, only a few people had showed up for the meeting, including Takao who Mack presumed was responsible for having found the boss' location. Sidling up to the bar next to Takao the ginger man wrapped the knuckles of his right hand on the wood grained bar. When a list of drinks popped up he chose the most ridiculously oversized mug of stout beer that was available. When the drink was placed in front of him he wrapped his right hand around it and brought the mug of dark, nearly black, liquid to his lips and took a long pull.

"I see you found the Boss again," Mack rumbled in a low tone, swiping the back of his left hand across his mouth. "The Knights will be bringing a sizable group to the fight this time. I will lead them personally and we will tolerate no more murders during Boss Raids. We will personally deal with any further offenses of this nature at the time when the offense is committed. Any information you care to share ahead of time?"

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

It was to be expected, the next boss planning meeting was already here. What she didn't expect was that it was held in Taft, just a walk in the park from Ariel's house. She didn't do much exploring of the town's surrounding but was aware of the general location of the bar where the meeting was held. Despite being outside the safe zone, the blonde decided to keep her usual equipment in her battle ready inventory and as the last time, wear her blue flower themed kimono with her hair caught up behind her and white fan with 'Animal Spirit' written in red kanji on the sides. Today Kimba would be by her side, the lioness walking proudly in front of Ariel as the two entered the Tavern.

She would see the armored blacksmith that ordered from her shop a while back and would wave at him with a smile. Only afterwards noticing the orange marker, she would ignore it as it had little to do with her. More importantly she saw Hikoru at the bar next to Takao, of course the ginger ape man was also next to him. "Moooo, aren't you the popular one." she said with a smile while waving at Takao and Mack, next going towards Hikoru and taking a seat beside him. Things have been... different between them lately and she couldn't really tell why. Seeing him drink like this, made her heart ache a bit as she ordered a lemon drink. She'd catch Mack's last question and wouldn't say anything, curious of the scout's answer.  She snapped open the fan in her left hand and began moving it like a true geisha, hiding her excited smile underneath it.

Meanwhile, Kimba looked around for any other familiars that she could play with. Seeing the mountain of a man, she would be on the look out for his bear... one of the few familiars that could take her one on one. If none were there, she would go next to the main attraction, Takao, looking at him almost as expectant of his answer as the blonde.

[Kalesh 0]

It had been quite some time since Kalesh showed his face to a meeting like this, a fact that did not fill him with any level of pride. Having taken a deep breath he walks into the tavern where the meeting would be held with curiosity. He didn't know if he would even be able to participate, having only just passed the twenty-five level mark to unlock tier two items. His current armor had no real mitigation and focused on evasion and accuracy, so there was nothing that tier one didn't already provide him there. His weapon however could use an upgrade, otherwise his damage would be lackluster in the future. With his own self-evaluation complete he ordered a drink to help calm his nerves, getting a large tankard of alcoholic cider which he sipped at idly.

He raised a brow when he heard another player offering blacksmithing services. He was hesitant to say the least about participating, but the potential of getting a free weapon was nice motivation to make him consider it more heavily. "Hm..." The main problem in his mind was that he was a light armor user, not a heavy one. He would need a tailor to give him proper armor, and he wasn't sure evasion was going to cut it necessarily. He takes a deep breath and approaches the player. "Hey, what exactly do you consider a 'front-liner'? I am about to hit 26 and could easily blitz myself up a level or two before the actual boss." He holds up his Wild Dance weapons which were worn on his hands like gauntlets. "Though getting tier two weapons would be a huge help."

He made note of those in the current crowd he recognized, first noticing Mack for obvious reasons. He wasn't easy to miss for many reasons. It had been quite some time since Kalesh had seen him but his appearance was unmistakable. Ariel however he had met not that long ago for crafting items, as well as her little lion who he had fed some fish the last time they saw each other. His eyes were soon drawn to the host, the person he was having the hardest time remembering. He felt like his face was familiar, and his memory kept trying to tell him it had something to do with a giant statue. He shrugged his shoulders though, sure it would come to him eventually. He was listening in on his and Mack's conversations, curious to hear more about said murders.

[Xion 0]

Xion sighed as he walked out of the glimmering blue portal on floor 11 in Taft, the tank had been there once before for the exact same reason a long time ago, and he was finally strong enough to once more claim a seat at a boss raid meeting. "Well...I best be going..." He said to himself before heading off in the direction of the meeting location, a tavern which was open to PKers, something that unnerved the tank slightly, but he doubted that anyone would attempt a murder with so many powerful players present. It took the young tank a few minutes to find the place, his knowledge of the floor's geography was just good enough to get him there. "This should be the place..." He mumbled before opening the door, taking a second to look around. 

 

A couple of people that he knew were already present, those being: Hikoru, the master of shadows as he was called. Mack, the current VC of KOB and Xion's superior. Along with Kalesh, a player that he had not seen in a long time and a couple that he barely remembered from the odd encounter. The boy himself was clad in his black red and gold Tailight srmour set, his Glaive and shield were in his inventory, and a badly torn gold and Crimson half cloak hung from his left shoulder.  

He walked over to Mack immediately, as he knew the man and, to be honest it was better to stay with his superior officer. "Mack...haven't seen you around in a bit..." He said to the man 

[Mack 0]

It was her. The demon lioness. The demon lioness with the white fur and the tail. The demon lioness with the white fur and the tail that had once pinned him. The demon lioness with the white fur and the tail that had once pinned him and, most probably, tasted like chicken. Or maybe pork. Or, if he was quite lucky, salmon. Or, maybe Kimba tasted like a delicious smorgasbord of all those things. And more. The only way to find out was to try and take a bite out of her hide, or maybe just an ear.

From his perch on high, sitting on the bar, Chewie the grizzly cub eyed Kimba with beady chocolate brown eyes. Much like Takao's scaly flying chicken monster, which clearly was the largest chicken that anyone had ever dreamed could possibly exist, Kimba was the meal that had got away. Fast food, as it were. Drawing his teeth back, the bear padded along the top of the bear moving entirely too quietly for something of his size. The cub's coarse brown fur was bushed out and he had, clearly, locked onto his feline target. All that remained to be seen was when Operation Ursuline Ambush would commence.

With a sudden roar the grizzly propelled himself off of the bar, leaping out into space and dropping like a furry comment aimed for Kimba's feline form. Perhaps today was a good day to OM NOM NOM...

[Hikoru 0]

Hikoru looked to see his Fiancee sit beside him, looking as beautiful as ever. He looked at her for a moment, then looked down, hurt with himself and what he was doing. He knew he was completely broken, and there was nothing he could do about it. He was afraid. Afraid of hurting her, and making her dislike him. That was something... that he couldn't bear with, something that would kill him from the inside out. He breathed as he looked around, seeing a few more player appear, a few that he knew. He gave a nod in the direction of Xion, one of the few players that he had come to know and saw as a young Protege. Even though they weren't of the same class, he still wanted to protect the small player. He breathed as the Red-Haired tank appeared as well, talking to Takao. He gave a nod to him and held up his glass in cheers, then chugged it, finally starting to feel the effects of it.

"There..." He muttered under his breath "About time..."

[Khrysaor 0]

Khrysaor had heard there was another one of those boss raid meetings running. He checked out the details and saw that it was on Floor 11 again but in a tavern outside of the safe zone. "Ahhh, it must because this would allow for some of the PKer's to join in on the meeting. I should be more careful when I go to the meeting." muttering to himself. He traveled on up to Floor 11 and went in search for the tavern. All the while, checking to make sure all his gear was on and placed properly. The moment Khrysaor saw the tavern, he entered it and looked around. He could see a few players he knew, and some he saw during the last boss raid meeting. He went up to one of the tables and sat down to observe. Khrysaor knew he was not ready to enter a raid yet again, but he was thinking, 'This should be good, just like at the last meeting.'

[Yamato 0]

Yamato wandered through the doors of the pub on the eleventh floor where the Boss Raid meeting was to be held just in time to see a bear cub launch itself through the air to attack a lion cub. Silently, the Irishman wondered if those kinds of actions were the norm. Shrugging his shoulders, the Irishman moved to one of the seats around the perimeter of the bar and settled in, far enough away from everyone that he wouldn't be drawn into any conversations that didn't interest him unless someone else were to join him nearby. He had sat in on the previous Boss Raid Meeting and it seemed wise to sit in on this one. If nothing else it would help him to become a more familiar face among the front liners, even if he wasn't actively participating there.

[Nikodemus_Blackwood 1]

Being approached by Kalesh, Nikodemus quirked a brow at his request. Seeing the weapons on his arms, Nikodemus nodded. "Anyone who is participating in this raid is a frontliner. If you will be, then I am happy to provide my services and wares free of charge. I have some weapons much like those, Tier 2 of course, in my shop on Floor 7, Outside Nimbus. Please, when this is done, come see me. I will show them to you and if you like them, they are yours good sir. If not, we can arrange an order and I can see what I can come up with for you." Smiling, Nikodemus wrote some notes down on his paper for later.

[Seul 1]

Chilling in a Tavern Music

A few people had already gathered by the time Seul actually arrived. Among the group were Mack and Xion; two members of his own guild. Though they seemed preoccupied... And there wasn't really much he needed to discuss with either of them. Rather than intrude on their convos, he instead opted to just take a seat at one of the nearby tables. By the looks of things everyone seemed to have their sights set on Takao since he was the one running the show. Whatever information he had would no doubt be valuable, but the boy couldn't help but let his mind wander slightly as he waited.

First to his purpose for showing up at all. This was what all of the hard work had been for.... Sort of. Sure, this wasn't his first meeting. He attended the last meeting and planned on joining the fight against the 16th floor boss, but he never did. He wasn't ready. In retrospect though it was probably a good thing that he stayed out of the battle given the events that occurred. Something like that could have just as easily happened to him had he shown up and the thought left a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. Honestly, for whatever reason the "strongest" players seemed to be the weakest people in game from an emotional standpoint. Maybe their power was part of the problem though. While most players, himself included, had the leisure of sitting around on the lower floors, the frontliners were up above trying to clear the game; forced to watch friends die in the process. It didn't sound like the most pleasant job (not by a longshot).

But somebody had to do it and if he could contribute to the efforts then he would.

[Calrex 0]

It seemed that yet another raid planning meeting had come to arrive today as Calrex gave a small sigh, making his way into the tavern that Takao had set aside for the gathering. As he entered inside he ruffled a bit of the hair on the side of his head, eyes closed as he glanced around from half-open eyes. A handful of players had already gathered, some being people he knew, and others apparently newcomers to the frontlines, or veterans that had taken a short absence during his current career in facing floor bosses.

Nonetheless, there was some feeling in the back of his mind, should the meeting travel off the general topic of the boss planning, that it would turn to that of the most recent PK events, two recent ones which involved the two of his closest companions within the game. The most recent occurrence, of course, was related to Oikawa's public explanation of his killing of Zelrius, which the bluenette had already known. At the same time the blonde had also dropped the hint of the plans he himself he set in motion.

The second, and potentially more negatively received incident, was that of the last boss fight, where his wife, Teayre, had snapped and killed Manta and Ebony while at the same time eliminating the floor boss. It was a moment that he himself was struggling to wrap his head around, and the very words she spoke seemed to spark anger, disappointment, and worry within him.

"All that time away, and absolutely nothing came of it...is that what I really want to think? Plus now she's gone and disappeared again. I tried contacting her with no reply. For ****s sake do I need to lock her in the shop or something to be able to talk to her now? Haaah, I'll need to figure this out soon or I might drive myself mad in the process."

Stepping over to the end of the bar, near where Takao himself was positioned, the bluenette gave a calm nod before looking over at the NPC bartender, "Closest thing you've got to mead, in the largest glass you've got..."

[Kalesh 0]

Kalesh nodded to the smith with no hesitation, rather happy to hear he was up for consideration in fact. "Awesome, I will see you then. Until then, going to stick around and listen in on the details." He said happily before turning his attention towards the main part of the meeting, though his eyes were soon drawn towards the two warring familiars, a laugh crossing his lips as he recognized them both. Attracted to the cuteness of the situation the fisherman approached closed for a better look at their 'battle' until the meeting really got into full swing or he was approached for one reason or another.

[Baldur 0]

Baldur walked into the tavern and took up one of the seats near the edge of the meeting room. He was far from a key player on the Frontlines, but he was better equipped now, and he was far from useless. After all the recent player killing that had been going on, the Frontlines were thin from death and from fright. He thought perhaps he would listen and see if he could somehow contribute. He knew his katana was no ideal for taking out bosses, but his AoE techniques would be useful against a minion wave if this boss had one.

Baldur offered a friendly smile and a nod to the familiar faces, but as he was just here to listen for now, he remained quiet and stayed out of the way.

[Takao 0]

Players began flooding into the tavern one by one. He recognized some, and others were strangers to him, yet he regarded each with the same slight wave of his hand in greeting regardless of his familiarity. Takao moved his glass holding hand away from where Hikoru had opted to sit after taking the stool next to where Takao was leaning, and took a small drink while Hikoru spoke.

"It's a... It'sa big one, yeah." He said, still working through how he'd give the data pitch when an adequate number of players had arrived. It was then that his attention situated on Mack, who had taken up a spot at the bar nearby. His head tilted at the question the redheaded Guild Master posed.

"Ahead of time? ..." Takao parroted, his gaze lingering on Mack for a moment before slowly shifting forward. There was a lot of information to share. From the location itself to the hordes they'd be facing, but little of it seemed relevant to be spoken ahead of time. "Well, eh. If you've ever had the compulsion to re-enact the Battle of Thermopylae from the Persian's perspective, 'spose this'll be your lucky day." He said dryly, just before taking another drink and finishing what was left in the glass and giving Calrex a slight wave.

[Grave 0]

So, the meeting was not in our hall this time? Why that was so had me dumbfounded, but the only way I would even have a shot at finding out would be during the meeting. It was time to prepare for my own fight this time; no more sitting back and cooking in the background, the Ardent Pugilist would be making a landing on the frontlines. I entered the tavern that had been chosen for the meeting and seated myself, noticing there was a decently sized crowd already. "So, did I get here in the nick of time or what?" I asked with a chuckle, waving away the waiter who had come to offer me a drink. I wanted to be able to focus on the details, rather than wobble around with alcohol in my system.

[Opal 0]

The doors open widely as a cold blast of chilling air filtered through. The thoughts of many were on the recent player killers, the people involved, the death of heroes easily slain by others. And with news of Laughing Coffin becoming a plague in people's minds, the very woman who had set the plan in motion clicked her boots against the tavern's flooring and entered with a smug look on her face. She had seen how the Child Hero use to swagger in during meetings feeling overly confident of himself and how he acted, and he was slain by a friend. The woman would exude that same confidence, but she was no child and she no hero. Black glossy lips curled and she flicked her snow white hair off her shoulder giving the tavern a quick look around. Eyes widened when she saw Kalesh, and she gave him a secret look before her eyes moved to the others, "Well, if this is the best Aincrad has to offer..." she laughed finding a seat in the tavern. She had missed the last boss fight, which she wished she had not. Hearing Teayre's recent outbreak and murdering two other players had brought a serene smile upon her lips. Player killers are player killers, they are Orange for a reason. However, her case was slightly different, she was still classified as a Green Player, but that could change at any time. 

Honestly not caring for anyone else but herself for the moment, the busty woman found a seat for herself in the back and opting to keep her familiar Jaken at the inn. Him being here would not be worthwhile and if it was anything like past instances of these meetings; that Takao guy would say his peace and leave everything up to the burly red head and newly appointed Vice Commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath. She mused over that notion, that title seemingly to be weighed by some kind of curse. She wondered how things were going under his thumb and rule. Gesturing with a snap of her fingers, an order was placed for a sweet and fruity drink, opting out of her usual desire for a beer which everyone seemed so dependent on. She laughed when a tall glass of a multi colored layer drink was presented to her with a straw and a little umbrella. She sipped her drink and her black lips curled into a seductive smile for no one but herself and prepared to take the notes. Although her presence here seemed to be bothersome as people were more than prepared to do what was necessary should she act out. 

But that was the thing with Opal, even the slightest of smiles could send people off the edge, the very words she could speak would break a person; there was a time and place for that. But she desired demonic equipment and with Boss chances for the moment being the best opportunity to get those kind of equipments, she would have to show her face among this melancholy look of players which just made her shake her head with that glaring smile. Relaxing in her seat, the woman lifted one leg over the other as it bounced gently as she enjoyed her beverage waiting for this meeting to commence, from the looks of it, it had yet to start. 

[Zandra 0]

So, time for another boss fight. Well, a boss fight raid meeting at least. You can join the boss fight without attending to the meeting yes, but there was some good information given on the meetings that could be well worth it to listen too. So Zandra had left her twostorey beachhouse to get to the meeting that this time was out of the safe zone on floor eleven. Did they like floor eleven or what? But she just had to deal with it. Due to beeing a solo player, she had no guild hall to plan the battle in. Neither was she the founder of the boss room. She entered the tavern that was the place for the meeting. It was already a bunch of players there. She looked around and spotted a blondie. She took a step towards her before she saw there sat a guy beside her. Zandra took another look and spotted a lonely player at the back. She walked to her and sat down beside her."Hello Opal. How are you doing?" She said to the only girl, even person, she had window-shopped with. She was a player killer thou. Zandra had that thougth at the back of her head. But she didnt realy cared about it at the moment. After all, Zandra was almost a player killer herself.