SP - F8 Resolution of the Ultramarine Knight <<Monkey King>> (Completed)

[Calrex 0]

"I guess more quests have been discovered on these floors. I've been out of it for quite some time. There's no time to waste then..."

As his avatar appeared on the eighth floor in a flash of blue light Calrex gave a sigh as he looked around the settlement of Florenthia Village, putting his hands into his jacket pockets. Attached to his shoulders and knees were the pauldrons and poleyns of his Grand Dragoon armor, the barebones armor needed to keep some mitigation on him. Cracking his knuckles the bluenette gave a calming breath to focus his senses, as if to ready himself before even taking on the quest. Glancing upwards he confirmed Roc's appearance in the air he made haste forward, "Going from the info broker's information the quest appears...here..."

"Please, someone...we need your help."

"Sure thing, what can I do to assist?"

"We've heard that the massive demon monkey that inhabits the space between our village and the waters below has become active once again. Please, go down and dispose of it."

As the quest details appeared before him Calrex gave a quick press of his finger, nodding before immediately departing out of the village, "Demon Monkey huh? Sounds like something that would be lurking underneath a tree village..."

[Calrex 0]

As he made his way out of the city Calrex looked over to his left, seeing a twisting series of branches and roots twisted together, forming a path that wound down towards the lower area beneath the village, "Guess this is the way in, alright then..."

Swiping on his menu the bluenette looked at his options, his pupils reflecting the bright blue glow of the menu as he swiped left, then right, then left again, "So many options...The question is what to use this time. A monkey is certainly potentially more agile, so speed would be useful..."

Button presses followed his thoughts as he shuffled his array of skill mods. His health dropped as his evasion stat boosted as he turned off his <<Stonewall>> mod, "Not like I'm going to be needing that much health..."

<<Stonewall>> Deactivated
-30 HP (265 HP)
+1 Evasion (+3)

265 HP
65 EN
13 DMG
3 ACC
3 EVA
30 MIT
 

[Calrex 0]

Continuing forward Calrex gave a small sigh as he saw the overlooks of Florenthia Village pass over him, the faint misty light of the floor seemingly fading into darkness as he fully entered the area beneath the settlement. At best the only thing he could hear was the rushing waters below. Glancing down the white rapids seemed to complement and synchronize with the noises around him. There was still no hints of movement, or even a beast below. Even the recorded noise of a creature's manifestation was absent from the ambiance, "Well...this is certainly not something you see every day."

Slowly reaching his right hand back the Ultramarine Knight gently wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the Grand Blade II, giving a small tug to release the blade lock. The unhinging noise seemed to echo through the area before dissipating into the white noise of the darkness, "I wonder if this area has a debuff to my accuracy as a result of the darkness. Doesn't seem so, but of course so far the only two times I've seen it was the second floor quest and tenth floor effect. It's not exactly a one-time deal."

[Calrex 0]

A new sound broke through the rushing noise of water crashing against rocks, the sound of a screech as Calrex turned his head towards the familiar echoing voice of his familiar, "Looks like Roc might have found the spawn location. Good, time to get this over with. I'm already getting tired of this darkness."

Turning his body to match where his head was looking he proceeded forward, following the now ever present sound of wings beating, each flap echoing through the cavern, but originating from the peregrine falcon's movements. Every now and then another screech drowned out the atmospheric sounds, helping the bluenette to close in more and more on its location, until finally the blue feathers of his partner fame into clear view of his sight, "Alright, ready for this?"

With a calming breath Calrex lowered his stance, his grip on his sword tightening as the lights in his eyes dimmed slightly, his breathing slowing to a long pause.

The recognizable sound of a creature spawn chimed as a ambiguous form manifested in front of him before the a loud thud touched the collection of roots that served as a floor for the area. Two pairs of fierce red eyes lit the darkness in front of the bluenette as he felt a slight grin come to his face, "About time..."

[Calrex 0]

ID: 61928
Battle Dice: 3 (Accuracy +3) = 6
Mob Dice: 2 (Evasion +3) = -1
Sword Art <<Meteor Break>> Activated / <<Charge>> Activated (11 Energy Used / 54 Remaining)

Erupting forward, as is expecting where the <<Monkey King>> would spawn Calrex closed the distance, easily avoiding the creature's massive fist as it shot out to where he originally was. The first impact crashed directly into the field boss' abdomen, as if knocking the wind out of it before the Grand Blade II blazed alight with the shining golden aura of his <<Meteor Break>> Sword Art.

Streaks of gold streaked through the darkness as the bluenette ripped into the field boss with his <<Charge>> enhanced attack, finishing with a forceful two-handed thrust from his sword to send the creature back. With his attack finished the oversized monkey dropped on all fours, stunned.

"Tch, I guess even without Achilles I can still take these field bosses down pretty quickly."

Calrex: 265/265
   EN: 54/65

Monkey King: 52/200 (13+1+4 * 11 Art - 50 MIT = 148 DMG / Stunned Until Next Turn)

[Calrex 0]

ID: 61931
Battle Dice: 4 (Accuracy +3) = 7
Loot Dice: 18 (Search and Detect +2 / Item +1) = 21 (Materials Found)
Mob Dice: 8 (Evasion +3) = 5 (Disregarded Due to Stun)
Sword Art <<Meteor Break>> Activated / <<Charge>> Activated (8 Energy Used / 1 Recovered / 47 Remaining)

With the creature incapacitated from his last strike Calrex waited no time as the Grand Blade II blazed alight with the fiery orange glow of his <<Howling Octave>> Sword Art, his eyes lit up by the licking flames as they seemed fixed on the field boss he was about to strike down. The grip on his sword tightened for a second before rushing forward, the five stabs of his attack, piercing fives points of a star before cutting down from one shoulder to the base of its abdomen. Following the slash he cut upwards, then finally bisecting the creature in half.

The gigantic monkey let out a roar before it burst into crystals as the bluenette stood up straight, flicking his sword to the side as the flames dispersed before twirling it into a reverse grip. Resheathing his sword Calrex gave a final sigh of relief before returning his hands to his pockets, "Well, that went abut as quickly as I was expecting it."

Loot List
1 Material
1 Monkey Agility
Bonus Loot: 1000 col + 1 Material

Calrex: 265/265
   EN: 44/65

Monkey King: 0/200 (13 * 8 Art - 50 MIT = 54 DMG)

[Calrex 0]

With the beast slain Calrex gave a small sigh as he released his grip on his sword, looking over towards the sounds of Roc's flapping as it grew fainter and fainter, "Guess I should make my way out of here..."

As he turned to depart the bluenette came to an abrupt stop, letting himself think again about his current situation. The area beneath Florenthia Village seemed to be, with the lack of monsters, seemingly a good place to meditate. His vision was already nearly useless, and the white noise seemed to serve as a good thing for his hearing.

"Maybe some resting and meditation might do my some good. I've been adventuring alone without Teayre for a while now, so...maybe some time to collect my thoughts might do me some good."

[Calrex 0]

Crossing his legs the bluenette sat down on the roots that formed the floor of the creature's lair as he gave a few breaths, each one becoming deeper and deeper as he let himself fall into a meditative state. With each inhale his presence within the game world seemed to fade, and each exhale began to drown out all ambient noise until all that he was left in was utter silence. His eyelids relaxed while Calrex's upper body began to relax.

"It's certainly been some time since I've been able to gather my thoughts. Everything that's happened...what can I even say about it. To anyone outside of the frontlines, it probably appears like every floor raid participant is slowly going mad. Azide, Zel, Dom...so many other lives have been lost for many reasons, unpreparedness, haste, ignorance, and the like. I wonder if the people that are commanding the frontlines can even see the trees for the forest."

The frustration of his inability to save anyone that was lost made his hands clench into fists as the Ultramarine Knight felt the emotion seem to want to move through every inch of his body, "I've really messed up these past few months haven't I? Not only have people close to me lost their lives, but those even closer have been put into perilous situations. Some friend I've been..."

[Calrex 0]

Minutes seemed to fly by seamlessly as Calrex continued to sit in the darkness, meditating while pondering his thoughts. The sound of the rushing waters below continued to be ever present as his breath remained long and deep. However, with each emotion that rushed over him, his body seemed to respond in kind. There were point where he felt consumed by anger, every muscle in his body tightening as if wanting to wrench the life out of whatever was in its grasp. Others were recallings of moments of helplessness, where the strength seemed to be void within him, a lack of willpower that made him forcefully relaxed. Many other emotions coursed through as he let his body fully come to terms with what happened.

However, eventually this state of mind was broken as he slowly opened his eyes, "This presence...what the hell?"

Slowly getting to his feet he turned around to look behind him, scanning his surroundings to find the origin of the presence he felt. Summoning his menu the bluenette attempted to discern if there was a fellow player nearby. Unfortunately, none appeared to be around, not even a person from his contacts list, "Strange..."

[Calrex 0]

"...you're more than strong enough..."

"What?"

As the voice seemed to echo throughout the darkened area Calrex's eyes widened for a second as he continued to try and search with his eyes to discern the origin of the voice, but it seemed to have no direction. It was as if the whisper came from the cavern itself, "...the hell?..."

With the initially welcoming silence now came a feeling of alert as the bluenette's hand reached back to grasp the hilt of the Grand Blade II, releasing the hilt lock as he lowered himself into his ready stance yet again, "Roc, you still around?"

His query seemed to go unanswered as the bluenette continued to gaze out into the darkness. For a second he thought he glanced at a helmet before it faded back into the murky black, "Something's definitely not right. I swear there's someone or something in striking vicinity, but I can't get a bead on it, or even some form of info on it. It's certainly not following game mechanics, but there have been many times in the past I've seen that happen..."

"...always ready to fight, good..."

[Calrex 0]

Now what was merely a presence in the darkness seemed to take a more physical form, or at least some semblance of one, as suddenly a few paces away Calrex could hear the sound of footsteps, a leather pad planting onto the roots of the cavern, each step producing a slap against the ground as his eyes seemed to follow along with the proposed direction of the creature. With each step drawing closer the bluenette drew the Grand Blade II fully from its sheath as he readied himself for combat, "If you wish to fight come at me with all you've got. I have no intention of giving any less."

"Courageous...maybe not, but tactically-minded. I see potential..."

"Who or what is talking?"

Twirling his sword into a hammer grip Calrex prepared himself to execute an opening attack, but he still had yet to get a lock on who or whatever was taunting him, the faint whispers growing louder with each passing moment.

[Calrex 0]

As time continued move by the presence continued to grow more and more prominent. Now adding to the leather paddings pressing against the tree roots came the sound of armor shifting, each step producing the familiar clank of metal striking metal. The noise made it easier to track where the creature apparently was, but as Calrex rushed towards the sound it didn't grow louder, as if it continued to maintain it's distance from the bluenette as he moved.

"Maybe some form of glitch, or a remnant collection of player data?"

"...yes...I can make use of you..."

"Who the hell are you?"

Swiping with his two fingers he tried to summon his equipment menu, but to his surprise no overlay appeared. Not even the familiar chime of the menu appearing was produced, "What is this a trap?"

[Calrex 0]

A figure began to take form in the darkness, just enough for Calrex to be able to determine that whatever the presence was, was human. He gritted his teeth as his eyes squinted, trying to discern something like a health bar or player name, but it appeared that the figure was either too far away for him to see their details, or their stats were not set to appear, "I still can't get a bead on this thing. Is it something I need to worry about? It's certainly giving off a menacing presence with all the whispering."

Drawing closer the figure hinted at more of its feature as the sound of a spear head dragging across the ground could be heard, its tip skipping over the gaps in the roots as the bluenette continued to remain on his guard, "What are you after?"

[Calrex 0]

For a second, the presence seemed to vanish at Calrex's question as the silence returned. Confused he slowly began to lower his sword. The supposed threat was gone, but it didn't mean that he was going to be breathing a sigh of relief just yet. "Just what was..."

As he was about to finish his sentence suddenly he sensed the presence behind him as he quickly turned a full 180, swinging horizontally. This time his sword met metal as it clanged and locked against a spear head. Looking at his foe Calrex saw the face of a Greek warrior, clad in armor for a second before it spoke, fading back into the darkness at the same time.

"I will see you soon..."

[Calrex 0]

It took a few moments before Calrex opened his eyes to his surroundings, being met once again by the darkness of the area beneath Florenthia Village. Looking down towards his legs he tapped them a few times, recognizing the sensation that they had likely fallen asleep from his extended time sitting down. His arms were luckily enough not experiencing the same tingling feeling as he shrugged his shoulders a few times before forcing himself to his feet, shaking his legs out to try and regain some form of control.

"What was that? Some kind of dream? It seemed all too real to be that. I didn't even realize I was still meditating when it happened."

Looking down at his right hand, the same way he would as if he were symbolizing his Achilles skill he thought back to the strange ghostly warrior he had encountered, "Was that some form of manifestation of the skill? I wonder why Tristan didn't say anything about it..."

Giving a small sigh he put his hands into his jacket pockets before scratching the back of his head, "In any case, this is no place to be worrying about that. I'd best get back to the village."

[Calrex 0]

Exiting out of the lower area beneath Florenthia Village Calrex raised an arm to block his eyes from the bright contrast from the nearly pitch black lighting down below, almost as if the only thing he had known was darkness. As his eyes adjusted to the harsh change in brightness the bluenette lowered his forearm from his eyebrows, giving a small sigh, "Still...what happened down there? That ghostly warrior..."

As he continued to ponder it he felt a competitive smirk come across his face, one that he himself didn't perform. Recognizing the foreign reaction his expression turned to one of shock as he slapped his hand over his mouth, feeling a bead of sweat form on the side of his head, "That confidence just now...that wasn't my own..."

Slowly lowering his hand from his mouth the shock seemed to disperse into caution before he gave a small sigh, "This is worse than the cold persona, or even that new sensation from before...It's almost like it's trying to merge with my psyche...I need to be careful and not let my mental facilities slip as I've done in the past...or this thing might overtake me..."

[Calrex 0]

Just as the trip over to the field boss' location was uneventful and quiet, the same could be said for the trip back as Calrex saw the gate leaving into Florenthia Village come into view. He gave a small sigh and a smirk to himself as he reminded himself about the state of affairs for the game. Even though these quests seemed to be have flavor text that would change the fate of safe zones, they would in the end remain the same. No matter how many players complete the quest, or if the quest was left unattended, the village would remain standing, just as it had been for so many months.

"The only changes we can make are amongst the players, not the environment of the NPCs. However, the ripples that we do make among them may leave permanent damage on people's psyche. Each public killing, each life saved...every action causes a wave that touches others."

Putting a hand behind his head the bluenette gave a smile to himself, "Here I am getting all deep and philosophical about things again. There's no time now for thinking, only action. Every second used to come up with a perfect plan, is a second wasted in executing it."

[Calrex 0]

As he passed through the borderline, entering the safe zone once again, Calrex felt the twinge of longing that he had felt many times in the past, "When did this start...oh...right...heh. Ever since she had become an orange player...I guess there is some emptiness about entering through these gates on my own time and time again."

He gave a small sigh before putting his hands into his jacket pockets, passing by the many players and NPCs as he made his way over to the quest NPC. Upon coming into range of the character the person turned and gave him thanks for eliminating the creature. For a second the bluenette was surprised, not having said anything before the response was generated, but he once again reminded himself that his avatar had saved the data of him defeating the creature, which was transmitted to the quest NPC. Technically speaking, he could complete every single quest within SAO without uttering a single word to anyone.

"Guess with this done I'd best make my way back to the upper floors. Back to the other part of this grind."

[Calrex 0]

Standing in front of the circle Calrex gave a small sigh as he swiped to summon his menu, swiping through the various floors to set his cursor on the thirteenth floor. His aim was the Amethyst Boutique, as he had done so many times in the past. As he did his finger froze for a second as his mind wandered, thinking of all the times and interactions he had with Teayre, his free hand tightening as his mind compared how she was to the person she had become, "Dammit...did I screw up somewhere? Or is this something what was inevitable."

Shooting his fist forward it smashed into the wall behind the circle as the bluenette's face was concealed by his bangs. He felt the strength of rage in his fist dissipate as the impact subsided. Lowering his arm the purple marker for an "Immortal Object" appeared in front of him as he stumbled a few steps back, covering his face with his hand, "The hell have I been doing...what's all this reckless training been for..."

[Calrex 0]

Calrex stood there for, to him, what felt like hours. His mind continued to race with the thoughts of his wife, and how he had somehow messed up. He already knew if he asked her, that she would immediately take his side, saying that he had done nothing wrong. But with the last raid, he wasn't sure if that would be the same. After she slayed Manta and Ebony, he knew that whatever feeling overtook him many times in the past consumed him, as he recalled the frustration, disappointment, and rage that had built up inside him. Frankly, to some level he was sure he had snapped, and he was sure that Teayre had realized it as well. Something in him had broken, and he was hopelessly clinging on to whatever shards remained. But what, he couldn't tell, but he already knew that whatever it was, couldn't be returned.

"I have to face facts. I trusted Teayre to be able to come to terms with her actions on her own. It was what I thought was best. But the reality is that from what I've seen, nothing has gotten better, and with that last attack I'm pretty sure it's only gotten worse."

As he gave a deep breath he felt his senses coming back to him, the hopeless darkness in his eyes starting to fade, "There was a saying I heard some time back, that those who hunt monsters are bound to the fate that eventually they will become what they despise the most. If this is true, then Teayre just may be falling for that same trap, and if I let things be, it will be a self-fulfilling prophecy."

Straightening himself the bluenette braced himself for impact as his right fist came up, clocking himself across the face as his head snapped to the left. Since he was in the safe zone without a duel initiated, no damage was taken, but the visual scuff on his cheek was clear. Some onlookers stopped in confusion before continuing on.

"If I don't do anything, I will lose her. So anything I do is better than doing nothing."

Resolved in his thoughts Calrex looked forward at the circle before pressing the thirteenth floor, vanishing in a flash of light.