[PP-F14] The Enemy of My Enemy, is Still My Enemy <Itzal, Aereth and Kasier>

[Aereth 1]

There weren’t many things that Aereth really hated. But being completely ignored was one of those things. If he didn’t want to answer his question he could have said that he refuses but ignoring… He could be the f*cking god of Aincrad, but that doesn’t mean that he could just be rude like that.

And as if that rudeness wasn’t enough, the shiny knight bluntly asked the trio about their levels. Itzal and Kasier both looked surprised and Itzal objected immediately. “Not answering questions, and digging for information instead…” he thought and readied himself to speak up once again. “I don’t know from where you’re coming, my ‘friend’, but my parents taught me to not to ignore the people that are talking with me. If you don’t want to share information more information about the mobs here, that’s fine. But completely ignoring a question and following up with questions about crucial personal information just seems rude to me. How about we start with exchanging names?” Aereth asked the golden knight and waited for his response.

@Itzal

[Itzal 0]

OOC- Awesome move dude ;)

Fearx first noted that the girl still said nothing, but when the man started to speak it was clear that he was angry.  Fearx appeared shocked at first, then began laughing heartily.  "Of course!  You're absolutely right!  Apologies my friend.  First I shall answer your question.  The monsters here are all undead minion, many of them looking more like skeletons with armor weapons and shields than anything else.  The weakest mob ha no armor and a sword.  The second has thick armor and a much larger sword, and the final stage has a spear and round shield.  Does that answer your question?  As for my name It's Fearx.  A pleasure to meet you."  To this, Itzal's eyes widened with shock and horror.  Fearx?!  No...  No it couldn't be.  Not Fearx.  There was no way he got into this game...  Actually, now that he thought about it there was.  Fearx and Itzal were possibly the most competitive gamers that ever met, the greatest rivalry.  They were enemies and now he was seeing his enemy's real face.  The fact that Fearx was in Aincrad was anything but good.  And with Itzal being in Aincrad with him made things that much worse.  He calmly rested his hand on his sword's pommel, which hung at his hip.  He knew Fearx was most likely a level far superior to his own, so the best he could do was block or parry.  "......Fearx.  It figure's we'd meet again here, of all places..."

@Kasier

[Kasier 0]

Kasier looked at Aereth. Personally, she would not have gone with an approach like the one he went with. He complained about the rudeness of the player openly while Kaiser would've hinted at it if she was him. However, not everyone can be Kasier and Kasier can't be everyone. She looked at the blonde man, wondering exactly what the man's response was. Surprisingly to Kasier, the man's response was quite an apologetic one - although she cannot tell whether it's genuine or not. As soon as the man had said his name, though, she found a strange tension appearing next to her. A tension that was coming - no... Bursting from Itzal. Something had changed about him in that moment - the moment that the man had said his name was when Itzal's actions seemed to change that tiny bit. If Kasier didn't spend everyday with the man, she would not have noticed the small detail that he was exhibiting. His hands clutched the base of his sword as if he was ready to burst into combat at any moment and his eyes were wide with some sort of fear and shock. Kasier, of course, had no idea what was happening but she knew that Itzal needed her at that moment. And hence, Kasier would walk over and hold the man's free hand. No words were necessary, then. And so no words came from her mouth.

@Aereth

[Aereth 1]

To Aereth's surprise, the player in front of him started to laugh at his harsh comment and apologized for not answering Aereths question. Some of the tension was released at that moment, and Aereth also tell the man his name. "No problem, man. And yes this answers my question, so thank you for that. And my name's Aereth, also a pleasure to meet you." Kasier was right. Aereth didn't even notice the tension inside of Itzal as Ferax mentioned his name. He was talking with the blonde guy, after all... But one thing that even he noticed was the tone in which Itzal then replied to the revelation of Ferax' name. 

He then turned around to see Itzal clench the hilt of his sword with the one hand and holding Kasier's hand with his other. Aereth now had to be very careful on what to say, but he decided to go with his gut. After all, he even apologized for being rude, gave them his name and the information Aereth asked for. "So the two of you know each other?" Aereth said to Itzal in a calm voice. "Please let them be friends, please let them be friends.." he thought but at the same moment doubted it because of the tone in which Itzal used to address Ferax...

@Itzal

[Itzal 0]

Fearx was rather surprised at the player's tone.  The words obviously meant that he had met the player sometime before but for the love of life he could not put his finger on it.  He certainly would have remembered seeing this player's face before.  Or, rather, height more.  However this player clearly knew him, or his name at least.  Or perhaps he was someone from outside SAO.  He also noticed that the woman took his free hand and he made the obvious connection.  No rings yet holding hands.  What else?  When Aereth asked the boy the question he stayed silent, waiting for an answer.  Itzal didn't avert his eyes as he was asked the question.  When he felt Kasier's hand though, his tensed body relaxed, though only slightly.  He held her hand back, silently saying thank you to her.  He nodded.  "Fearx might not remember me since we never actually saw each other, but we've fought countless times in the past.  We weren't even rivals, I'd say enemies.  I think we even agreed on that point."  Fearx was pretty confused to this statement and blinked in confusion.  He was a powerful player in any game he played so naturally he had rivals in them all.  However, when he really thought about those words, there was really only one player whom he ran into in every game.  Soon there was dead silence.  "You.  You are.  You can't be serious.  You're Soulblighter?" 

@Kasier

[Kasier 0]

(That post was so cheesy xddd. YOU ARE SOULBLIGHTER???)

Kasier stared at the man in confusion. Of course she was confused... It appeared that the man and Itzal were not just acquaintances but very much held hatred for each other. There was something about the way that Itzal talked to him. In fact, he even stated that they were basically enemies. Kasier could honestly not think of any way in which Itzal might make an enemy. He was smart, kind, and although he is naive and awkward some times, that doesn't or shouldn't make him any enemies. Perhaps there was a misunderstanding? Maybe this man was someone else who had named their character Fearx. Maybe that name is very common. Kasier thought, looking at the blonde man and then back at Itzal. This was not the time for her to step in and interfere. There was nothing for her to do here... Nothing to say. This was purely between Fearx and Itzal... And she hoped that Aereth would also step back and allow a transaction between the two other players. Though, Kasier wasn't sure of Aereth's personality so soon after meeting him.

@Aereth

[Aereth 1]

"Enemies? How the f*ck could somebody like Itzal make enemies?" He thought but tried to put everything together. There was that name Itzal was called by Ferax, Souldblighter. Most problably an in game name. And the didn't see each other before. Does that mean that Itzal and Ferax were rivals, or enemies in games? "Has to be like that if the didn't actually meet each other in real life." Aereth thought but for now decided to stay silent. He didn't quite understand why Itzal was clenching his sword this much. Was he assuming that Ferax would attack them. He took another closer look at Ferax posture, but there wasn't any sign that he was preparing an attack. If he was going to attack Itzal's party would be at a major disadvantage. From before they knew that Ferax was a very strong player, on par or even stronger than Itzal himself. So there was no way he could protect Kasier and Aereth at the same time. "We need to stay calm..." he thought and sighed mentally. He knew that Itzal would protect Kasier with everything he could, so Aereth would have to flee on his own....

@Itzal

[Itzal 0]

Itzal grit his teeth upon hearing that name.  True it wasn't the best username, but when he came up with it he was still rather young and eventually everyone started to know him by that name so he kept it.  "Not anymore Fearx.  My username is Itzal now."  Fearx cracked a grin and laughed a little.  "So you finally found a better name have you?  'Shadows'.  I like it.  However I think you should give yourself a title along with the name, otherwise it doesn't give that intimidation factor you always crave.  Well then."  He gave a smirk to Itzal before staring at the blackened sky.  "You're being here can only mean one thing.  And I'm certain you will agree Soulblighter.  A final challenge.  Fate it seems, would have us compete in the ultimate challenge.  Sword art online.  The game gone horribly wrong.  Not for us of course.  And now we get to test ourselves to the very limits.  However I've been rather lax lately so I'm fairly certain you're a higher level than me by now, am I right?"  Itzal gripped his hand around his sword tighter.  Fearx gone lax?  It...  Was possible that if he had, then Itzal might be an even level with him now.  However he doubted it.  There was only one real way to find out.  "...  Level forty nine."  There was a long silence as Fearx appeared to be shocked.  ".........Forty.....Nine you say?........"  He gave a sigh of disappointment.  "Soul, what the h*ll happened to you?  How could you have possibly-"  That's when he noticed it.  He noticed the woman was holding Soulblighter's hand.  He stared for a moment before he smiled.  He chuckled, the chuckle slowly building up to laughter, which soon became booming.  "OhohohoHOHO!!!  OH NO I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!!!  HA HA HA!!!"  Fearx was in such a laughing stat that he had to lean against the castle wall for a moment.  When he finally calmed down enough to speak he looked at Itzal.  "YOU GOT A GIRL?  AHAHAHA!!!  You were the LAST person I'd EVER expect to get a girl!!!  Hahaha!  How'd you do it, play nice?  Oooohhh sweetheart, I don't think you fully know this person you're spending time with.  He's got quite the reputation outside sword art online." 

@Kasier

[Kasier 0]

(Naw I actually read the last post. Guess I have to reply to someone who dissed Itzal)

Kasier's eyes went from one of annoyance to one of disgust. She wasn't very clear on what exactly is happening and she was sure that Aereth didn't have a clue of what was going on either. All she knew was someone seemed to know Itzal from previous games or real life and was currently attacking him on a personal basis. She had been standing around doing absolutely nothing - but how can she simply ignore this? Originally, the man seemed to be quite nice but that first image of him had shattered. Fearx? Kasier thought, arrogant, malicious. That's the new image that had popped into Kasier's mind as she stared at the man, making direct eye contact with him. She wasn't sure whether she had shown much of her serious side to Itzal but this time she would. 

"Look, I don't know what you are. Please don't call me sweetheart. Anyone who ever hears you say that to them will probably throw up in the bathroom right afterwards. And I like Itzal for who he is, no matter what sort of reputation he has. Also, how can Itzal be be the last person to get a girl if you are? In fact, I'm sure a boar would rather jump off a cliff than to look at you." Kasier blurted out, "Now, you can go do whatever you want. If you are here to waste our time, you're better off going to do something more productive."
@Aereth

Edited April 1, 2017 by Kasier

[Aereth 1]

"So they know each other from the past..." Aereth thought while Fearx and Itzal were talking. From the reaction of Fearx, Aereth had to assume that this guy must be on a freaking high level, and thus most probably very dangerous. Itzal definitely owed Kasier and him some answers to all the questions that arose from Ferax' comments and insults thrown at Itzal's head. "The situation at hand needs to be treated with care, otherwise..." Aereth thought, before his train of thoughts got interrupted by Kasier's aggressive attempt to defend her boyfriend. He face palmed mentally, and let out a low sigh. "Note for myself: Never p*ss off Kasier... EVER." But now they needed to be even more careful. He could always attack the group, and Aereth wasn't sure how Fearx would react to Kasier's insults...
Before Ferax could respond to Kasier's statement, Aereth decided to interrupt. "How about we all calm down again, and stop throwing insults around?" Aereth said casually putting his hands into his pockets, careful not to raise any suspicion and gripping two teleport crystals that he was hiding inside of said pockets. He needed to buy more time to formulate a proper plan in case the situation turned sour... "Fearx, Itzal, would you mind, explaining some things to us?" he spoke out shooting a look at Itzal that screamed. "DO SOMETHING!" 

@Itzal

[Itzal 0]

Itzal watched Kasier come to his defense and attempted to insult him.  Itzal knew that Fearx was not a man who was easily insulted although he might be annoyed.  Regardless his heart warmed to see her speak up to defend him.  He didn't think he needed it but it was encouraging to see her back him up.  Before he could do anything else, nor Fearx, Aereth spoke up and asked for them all to calm down and for Itzal and Fearx to give an explanation.  Itzal hesitated as his past wasn't the best.  He wasn't a murderer of course but still.  He did a few bad things.  Fearx, who was kept from responding by the brown haired player, turned to him first, the smile still on his face.  "I am calm.  I just find it funny that this guy actually managed to get a girlfriend, let alone a friend at all.  As far as insults I never insulted either of you intentionally.  All my insults are directed to.  You're calling yourself Itzal this time around correct?  We've been doing this for years.  If I have a right to insult anyone it's him, and vice versa.  And miss-"  "Her name is Kasier Fearx."  Fearx held his hands up in defense, his smile still there.  "Kasier then.  You're the only person who's ever described me as such.  Not only that but you don't know Itzal the way I did.  Whether you've really changed Itzal is something I'll be curious to watch.  If you have it will be disappointing to me as that means you're not worthy for me to fight.  At least not until you decide to get a spine again and grind through the levels.  As far as an explanation I'm sure Itzal here can share all the details.  And I never intended to waste your time Kasier.  Remember that it was the brown haired player who asked me the question.  Were it not for him I'd have been long gone."  With that Fearx walked past them waving bye.  "If you actually get that spine just message me!  I'm up for a duel any time."  Itzal was silent for a moment and sighed.  "Before I explain things, don't listen to him.  He's good at making people turn on each other if he needs them to."  He saw somewhere they could sit and sat down, enough room for Kasier to sit beside him, and there was another place to sit opposite of them for Aereth.  "Um.  So before SAO I wasn't someone you'd want to hang out with.  I stayed in my room whenever I wasn't forced to go to school playing video games.  When I played online I rarely joined a party unless it would benefit me.  I did whatever it took to raise my level and get the best gear there was in the game...  Even if the means to get it involved bribery, theft, or tricking a player.  I exploited everyone and always found my way to the top.  Because I never stopped gaming I was almost always the highest level.  That's when I met Fearx.  He was essentially the same way as me except he was more open about it.  He 'befriended' players who would help him get powerful gear.  Once he was strong enough he'd always leave the parties and shoot for whatever was the highest level gear.  Usually the group would make plans to get it and that's when he'd leave, completing the plan solo without them and keeping it all for himself.  When we both hit the top we became fierce rivals, consistently competing for the top in every game.  And we always kept an eye on one another.  If one started playing world of warcraft the other would hop on instantly.  If one switched from WoW to Destiny then the same thing would happen.  It was a never ending cycle.  And the more we competed, the more we exploited.  I didn't care about other players, or that they weren't getting any gear.  All I cared about was beating Fearx.  When we got here I was hoping that I was lucky.  That he didn't come along into sword art online as well.  But that just shows how foolish I was.  And now here we are.  Both of us face to face with the final challenge...  The challenge of who is truly superior to the others."

Oh gosh Kasier was right, this thread sucks x-x

Summary

All players get 133 col and 1 sp

Edited April 19, 2017 by Itzal