[F3:SP] I Speak for the Trees! <<Treant Rivalries>> COMPLETE

[Seul 1]

On this particular day Seul would find himself strolling through the forest of the third floor. Although it was true it had been a while since the last time he visited the area, the place still didn't look much different from back then. The same could not be said for him though. Instead of having a dagger at his side he now sported a large greatsword and no shield. His style had completely shifted from that of a tank-like build to a glass cannon attacker. Things would probably be tougher moving forward, but he wasn't that worried. If he was able to survive for so long then something must have been going his way. 

With a new blade sheathed to his back he figured it would have been wise to learn how to use it. Wielding such a weapon would prove to be very different from his previous setup thus travelling to the upper levels of Aincrad would need to wait until he was able to get the hang of fighting once again.

Edited November 17, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

He walked in search of enemies he could consider to be on the weaker side, but surprisingly enough he didn't actually see any. Just as he was about to give up and turn back to go to town he noticed movement in trees nearby. Or maybe it was better say that the trees themselves were moving. One by one each took turns swaying and uprooting to form what looked like legs while the branches twisted into wooden arms. On the trunks grew faces; calm but also cautious of the human who stumbled into the area. Seul reached up to grip the hilt of his sword, but as he did the tallest of the tree people brought up a hand to wave away the action before speaking. 

"We do not wish to fight, traveler. We are the ones who inhabit this forest; the treants. We've lived here for many generations. For most of us it is our only true home, but recently we've been faced with troubling times. Those accursed elves have incited a war with our people after stealing our land and, even worse, I fear we alone are not capable of stopping them. But perhaps your arrival now is a blessing in disguise. You seem like a capable warrior, so without hesitation I am asking you to lend us your strength so that the future of treant-kind may live in peace."

[Seul 1]

While letting the creature's words sink in he allowed his hand to drop down to the side once more. This was certainly a new development. One would think that with the amount of people who visit the forest more news about this particular quest line would be spread around. The only other explanation he could think of was that he was the first to do it or if he wasn't then the people who did it before kept quiet about it. It wasn't like it mattered that much though. He would need accept the mission in the end. While he did feel bad for the treants he was mainly concerned with seeing how well he would perform now that he had converted to a new skill. 

Talking a little more with the tree people gave him all the information he needed to get task of removing the elves underway. Apparently the land that had been stolen was a gigantic tree toward the center of the forest. Something like that sounded pretty hard to miss and he figured there'd be elves swarming the place that could point him in the right direction even if he did end up getting lost.

Edited September 3, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Of course he ended up getting lost. It was one of his few reliable talents after all. He must have been walking for hours in circles because a tree like the one described by the treants never came into view. Were they just sending him on a wild goose chase? It was unlikely, but he wasn't ready to rule out the possibility entirely. 

It would seem his luck would turn around though as he turned the next corner only to see four elvish soldiers standing guard. Of course they too noticed his presence and readied their weapons to drive him away. He didn't have time to think. Only actions would open the way now. For the first time he unsheathed his sword and tried to adjust his palms to the weight of it. Definitely different from a dagger, but he wasn't really surprised. 

He had only briefly looked over a list of sword arts available for the blade type, so trying to pick the appropriate one for the situation was becoming a dire matter as the guards rushed toward him. Ultimately he opted for a higher ranked AoE move: Tempest. The sword itself was pointed away from the quartet and after a few moments of charging he shot of from his back foot, bashing the weapon's pommel into each of the elves' heads as he passed in by them in succession. 

They all died upon impact, leaving behind pixelated dust in his wake and a smirk of satisfaction grew across his face as he swung the weapon up to rest gently on his shoulder. "Not bad at all."

--

Stats in Spoiler:

Spoiler

STATS:       

• Damage: 15                

• Recovery: 1

• Mitigation: 12                

• Holy Blessing: 18 

• Battle Healing: 46    

• Picking: +5 LD   

• Search: +1 LD 

 

Equipment:       

•  Crusader MK II | THSS | +6 Damage

  Reveal hidden contents

• Regret | Light Armor | +18 Holy Blessing / 1 Recovery  

  Reveal hidden contents

• Empty  

  Reveal hidden contents

• Kitsune Mask (Vanity)

• Crimson Blades Cloak (Vanity)

• Crimson Blades Amulet (Vanity)

Familiar: Legna - The Black Dragon (No Buffs / Chibi)

Inventory:

• 9 Mats
• The Hoya of Minos (Vanity)
• Basic Teleport Crystal - x1
• Banner of Support - 3 Charges Left
• Snowfrost Potion

                   

Skills:       

1) Two-Handed Straight Sword (Rank 5 / +5 Damage with a THSS equipped)               

2) Light Armor (Rank 3 / +12 Mitigation)                    

3) Howl (No Ranks / Post Action / Effect: Adds 3 Hate to all opponents)

4) Battle Healing (Rank 1 / Passive / Effect: Recover 6% of max HP on natural CD rolls of 6+)

5) Picking (Rank 3 / Passive / Effect: +3 LD when attempting to open a treasure chest)

6) Search and Detect (Rank 1 / Passive / Effect: +1 LD when looking for stuff)

 

Skills(Extra):  

• Concentration (Extra Skill / No Ranks / Activated free - 5 post cooldown / Effect: Gain +1 to the BD result for a single action)

• Meditation (Extra Skill / Rank 0 / Post Action / Effect: Recover X Energy on a natural CD roll of 10+. X = Rank)     

• Survival(Extra Skill / No Ranks / Passive / Effect: Increases the health you regenerate per post to 6 when out of combat. Survival also gives immunity to damage dealing environment effects)

 

Mods:   

• Athletics: You can endure more and hit harder. +1 Damage and +15 Health.
• Dismantling: Allows one a better chance at picking and dismantling the traps on chests. The mod grants you +2 to your LD when opening chests. (Does not stack with LD bonuses from search and Detect)  

BATTLE START | BATTLE THEME

[ID: 66809] | [BD: 8 (Hit)] 

Party

• Seul [775 / 775 HP] | [57 / 76 EN] 
  • Sword Art: Tempest | -19 EN | 15 x 8 - 30 = 90 AoE DMG + Stun

Enemy

1. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP) Dead
2. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP) Dead
3. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP) Dead
4. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP) Dead

Edited September 3, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

There wasn't much time to really celebrate his victory though as an alarm was set off throughout the forest. The sounds of horns echoed from all directions. Perhaps all the commotion he caused while killing those soldiers got him spotted by a nearby scout that went back to tell the others. Regardless of how they found out he would need to be on his toes moving forward. Staying for too long in one place was like asking for a death sentence so with that in mind he ran off in the direction he thought the tree was most likely to be in.

Some time passed and eventually he did reach the clearing where the tree was. It was larger than he expected to say the least. Far larger than any of the other trees in the forest. The roots protruded from the ground and some of them were even taller than he was! If he had been there under different circumstances maybe he would have been able to actually admire the beauty of the whole scene.

But this was a war zone. He was here to conquer the stolen land and that was just what he was going to do. He could see elvish troops combing the area for the so called intruder, with two staying behind to guard the tree alongside an elf that appeared to be a high ranking officer in their force. If it was only those three he had to deal with he would have no problems with just taking the direct approach to fighting them. From behind though. Just in case. 

Once he was sure their backs were to him, Seul sprang into action. He charged up another one his sword arts, this time the devastating Calamity Disaster. The blade of Crusader MK II ripped through all three bodies of the elves a total of six times, killing them just as quickly as the last group.

[ID: 66814] | [BD: 7 (Hit)] | [CD: 4 (No BH or REC)]

Party

• Seul [775 / 775 HP] | [34 / 76 EN] 
  • Sword Art: Calamity Disaster | +1/-24 EN | 15 x 12 - 30 = 150 AoE DMG (Elvish Soldier)
  • Sword Art: Calamity Disaster | +1/-24 EN | 15 x 12 - 55 = 125 AoE DMG (Elsivish Commander)

Enemy

1. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
2. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
3. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
4. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
5. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
6. Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
7. Elvish Commander [000 / 100 HP] [55 MIT] [20 DMG] (-125 HP) Dead

Edited September 3, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

With the commander down it should have been over. The lack of leadership would lead to the downfall of the elves and his job would have been fulfilled. He would be able to return to the treants as a hero who saved their people from a great evil race. That's how it was supposed to go. Nothing is ever quite that simple though.

He was just about ready to put his blade away when it occurred to him that there was still one more elf left in the area. The final elf stood perched up on one of the tree's branches and glared down at him with a menacing expression. This one was different, the king of all elves. More fierce and wielding a one handed sword that looked sharp enough to cut through a very soul itself. 

Eventually the Elf King jumped down and landed with a satisfying thud. This was it; the final battle was about to ensue. There was no telling how much stronger the king would be than his subordinates but Seul wasn't going to wait around to find out. Without hesitation he launched himself forward and began ripping into the king from an angle with his hefty blade. The impact alone was enough to send his opponent reeling backwards, but to his surprise the elf was able to stay standing though and even manged to retaliate with a stab to the knight's shoulder.

[ID: 66820] | [BD: 7 (Hit)] | [CD: 11 (REC Activated)] | MD: 8 

Party

• Seul [762 / 775 HP] | [23 / 76 EN] [Recovery: +1 EN] (-13 HP)
  • Sword Art: Galaxy Destroyer | +2/-13 EN | 15 x 13 - 75 = 120 DMG 

Enemy

• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
• Elvish Commander [000 / 100 HP] [55 MIT] [20 DMG] (-125 HP) Dead
• Elvish King [30 / 150 HP] [75 MIT] [25 DMG] (-120 HP)
  • 25 - 12 MIT = 13 DMG

Edited September 4, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Despite being struck by the opponent's weapon, he wasn't worried in the slightest. The damage he received was low and Seul's health didn't waste any time returning to full as a result of his battle healing and healing enhancement. The king was severely outmatched it seemed. "Applaud, the play is over!" These would be the last words the enemy would hear as the knight executed his final sword art. A wide sweeping slash from the right, followed up by one from the left, and a final one from the right pushed the king backwards as the blade of Crusader MK II ripped through him. Then four stabs struck each of his limbs, severing them and causing the last of his health to disappear. Just as all the others had he died in an explosion of pixels. The true threat was finally vanquished and now the treants would be able to return to the place they valued so highly. 

[ID: 66853] | [BD: 9 (Crit)] | [CD: 11 (BH & REC Activated)] |

Party

• Seul [775 / 775 HP] | [18 / 76 EN] [Recovery: +1 EN] [Holy Blessing & Battle Healing: +64 HP]
  • Sword Art: Astral Hell | +2/-7 EN | 15 + 1 x 7 - 75 = 37 DMG 

Enemy

• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-90 HP)                Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
• Elvish Soldier [00 / 65 HP] [30 MIT] [15 DMG] (-150 HP)              Dead
• Elvish Commander [000 / 100 HP] [55 MIT] [20 DMG] (-125 HP) Dead
• Elvish King [000 / 150 HP] [75 MIT] [25 DMG] (-37 HP)                Dead

Edited September 5, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The walk back to the treant camp was relatively peaceful. The death of the elvish king most likely kept any additional soldiers from spawning in to attack him. It's not like he was really going to complain about that either. As far as the difficulty level of the quest it was probsbly one of the easier missions he completed during his time trapped in Aincrad. Suffering only minor damage through it all was just something he became used to from his days of playing as a tank. Or maybe the quest mobs were just weaklings when faced with his arsenal. He wasn't too sure, but the treants were free to return to their home now that the trash had been cleared out and a nice reward was probably going to be sent his way as well. Though in truth he had no idea what it might be since trees wouldn't really have a need for money used by humans.

[Seul 1]

He arrived in no time flat and was greeted by the treants who each took turns embracing him with their branches as he walked toward the leader of the tree people. "The elves have been defeated. They shouldn't be causing you any more trouble from now on." He would say with a smile. It wasn't everyday that he was able to save anyone, let alone an entire race of beings from a full blown war. Savoring this moment was justified in that sense and he'd enjoy every ounce of praise he could gather from the treants, if only for a little while before being on his way once more. There were other quests to tend and above all else he did not wish to overstay his welcome since he expected the treants probably had a lot of work to tend to in order to restore their home back to its former glory. 

[Seul 1]

Of course they thanked him but to his surprise he had also been invited to attend a party to celebrate the victory over the elves. Partying with trees didn't seem like the most interesting thing in the world, but it was out of his hands. It wasn't like he would be able to decline even if he wanted to.

...

The sun began to set in the distance and he could feel the cool woodland air start to set in. Fireflies danced about as in every direction and rather than fire, naturally incandescent flowers bathed the area in light. It reminded him of the times he spent at various parties with the other players, except he was a little more of a nobody back in those days. Now he stood as one of the frontliners; a dream he didn't think would be possible as quickly as it happened. There were still those vastly stronger than he was, but at the very least he could handle himself in a fight if the need was there to do so.

[Seul 1]

One thing that concerned him about the gathering was the food. Being trees and all he didn't really expect them to eat much. If science class taught him anything it was that most plants used photosynthesis for nourishment so serving any sort of meal seemed somewhat pointless. To his surprise though their was a large platter of assorted fruits on one of the tables which he found himself digging into a few seconds after finding.

He guessed it probably wasn't cannibalism for them to eat fruit since they weren't sentient and since they were passing them out he wasn't going to complain. Finding the best looking apple he could Seul took a bite before turning back to the rest of the party to watch. The treants looked so peaceful now. Why anyone would want to harm such a race was honestly beyond him. They just wanted to live in a nice place and he couldn't really fault them for that.

[Seul 1]

In a way the elves sort of wanted the same thing. But to use violence to get it? It was animalistic. He felt bad that things had to end the way that they did between the two races, but the fact of the matter was that there were not enough resources to go around. With one of them gone the other would be free to do as they pleased. In hindsight he probably could have sided with the elves and taken the land away from the treants. Maybe in another life he would have, but he had to live with his choice here and now. The treants did nothing wrong as far as he could tell so they were clearly the good guys in this situation while the heartless elves were the evil invaders. Looking at things in such black and white terms was something he tried to never do, but in an effort to keep a good conscious he had to do something than think about the enemy's reasons behind their actions.

Edited November 8, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Now wasn't the time to let such gloomy thoughts get the better than him. The party was being held to celebrate his win against the elves after all. Needless to say it would probably put a damper on things if he sulked around while everyone else was enjoying themselves. He shook away any lingering doubts concerning whether his choices were justified and returned his attention to the treants.

Just it time it would seem as something strange happened. A woman emerged from one of the nearby trees. Though he wasn't exactly sure if he could call her a human. Her eyes were green... Completely green. Her skin was fair and her clothes were earthy tones that matched the leaves in her brown hair. She was pretty, but it wasn't like he was expecting for people to come out of plants any time soon so being caught off guard was understandable. He hoped.

[Seul 1]

The woman's eyes settled on his form before a smile stretched across her face. He didn't sense any sort of ill intent from her presence so that helped him ease up a bit. But it wasn't like his suspicions had completely vanished either. It was clear she was something different. "I am Lady Danu." She said. Her voice was deeper than he expected, but in a way it suited her. She spoke calmly and with a sense of authority surrounding her words that he couldn't help but admire. "For helping the treants, my children, you have my most personal thanks."

"I-It was nothing..." Seul replied in a sheepish manner. It wasn't often that he spoke to women and admittedly he was out of practice when it came to doing it. Even if she was just another part of the game the NPCs all looked real enough to pass for living beings. One of the things he learned about the game early on was that there wasn't much separating the players from the world's inhabitants.

[Seul 1]

Danu raised one of her hands to silence him before continuing to talk herself. "There's no need to be so modest. You are a hero among my people and the one that allowed us to reclaim our land after so much time has passed. You deserve more than a mere thank you." 

Maybe that was true. But even if it was he wasn't about to say it. In truth he wasn't planning on helping them, it just sort of happened. If he stumbled into the elvish territory rather than the treants maybe he would have ended up helping them instead. In the end it really just came down the fact that he was in the right place at the right time, so the treants got lucky this time around. He made a choice to enter the woods today to practice with his new sword and to help them fight back against the elves. Whether he liked it or not now was irrelevant. He just had to live with it. 

[Seul 1]

Danu reached out her palm and in a flash of light an item appeared. It looked like a piece of armor, but something was definitely off about it. The thing was made entirely out of wood instead of metal. Against a sword it didn't seem like it would provide any sort of defense. Why was he giving it him? His current equipment was far superior to any buffs that junk would give him.

With a begrudging smile on his face he accepted the gift and took the opportunity to inspect it further. It was called <<Woodland Armor>> and was extremely rare by the looks of it. The item wasn't actual equipable and was instead a consumable with three charges. For a short period of time he would be able to increase his mitigation, but with no way of refilling charges he would need to take advantage of the ability sparingly.  

[Seul 1]

Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing to have around after all. Seul quickly tucked the item away to his inventory and offered Danu a bow as thanks. "Thank you Lady Danu for such a wonderful gift. I'll make sure to put it to good use." He said. She seemed pleased with his response and smiled before glancing around at the rest of the treants who seemed preoccupied with the festivities. The knight had almost entirely forgotten that this was a party and one that was being thrown for him no less.

It wasn't like he could just shake off the formalities of the exchange though. Danu was a goddess and there was no telling what she was capable of... Though if she was actually strong and just hiding it she could have probably handled the elves without his assistance. Perhaps she just didn't want to dirty her hands with the actual fighting. He couldn't actually tell.

[Seul 1]

The night was still young, but he wasn't exactly sure about what he should do next. In the real world he wasn't exactly the partying type. Usually his nights were spent inside with a game of some sort at the ready. Maybe if he attended more parties he wouldn't have ended up in Sword Art Online in the first place. His mind wandered through these thoughts and more as he attempted to reason out the best course of action. That's when he felt someone's palm in his own.

It was Danu with her fingers were wrapped lightly around his. He wasn't sure how to feel about this. Gods and goddesses were supposed to be ageless so even though she looked fairly young her appearance alone wouldn't be enough to tell what age she really was. Even more important than that though was that she wasn't real. None of it was. 

[Seul 1]

Her, the treants, the sky, the buildings, the sword on his back... Even his body. None of it was real. Once the last floor was cleared there would be nothing left of it except for his memories if he was even lucky enough to make it out alive. No one from the physical world would know of the things he has seen or done to help the people during his time here. His actual body was sitting in a hospital bed somewhere, practically already lifeless. What was the point of treasuring anything from this world when there wouldn't be anything to show for it once he got back? What exactly was he even fighting for? He wanted answers, but doubted any would just appear because he asked for them to. Danu wouldn't be able to understand his troubles either even if he did feel like telling her. 

All he could do was sigh and offer a weak smile as she lead him over to where the other treants were swaying to music. 

[Seul 1]

They danced together for quite some time. The nagging thoughts were pushed aside to give Lady Danu his attention instead. Or at least he tried to do that anyway. What was he thinking though? Of course there was a purpose to everything. The NPCs might not have been real in a traditional sense, but they were real to him. He could touch them, dance with them, talk to them just like he could with any player. If that didn't make them real then by that standard he wasn't real either. But that wasn't true. He knew he existed and they existed as well. As long as he was around no misfortune would befall them. And that was okay. Once he got out of the game he would try to find some of the other players to discuss moments like these as they would be the only people who could understand what it meant to live, fight, and breathe in Aincrad.

"This is nice..."

...

Once the party started winding down he bid his farewells to the treants and Danu, saying if they ever needed his help again he wouldn't hesitate to show up and to expect visits from him in the future. With that over, he turned to make his way back to town without offering so much as a look back. He was walking toward the future now.

Edited November 17, 2016 by Seul