[PP-F10] Moving Forward Together <<DHA:10>> (Telrenya)

[Jomei 0]

"Hmmm" the ginger responded with a long, over exaggerated hum, "Must have been some pretty hard core material gathering if you jumped in levels from it" he said with a small chuckle "You'll have to tell me your secrets." The ginger had taken note of Telrenya's slightly shy tone, hiding a bit of guilt for her actions behind it. Jomei decided to, rather than simply speak of forgiveness, to play along with her small tease, in hopes that it would make her feel more comfortable and know that it was okay. His shoulder's rose and fell as he took in a content deep breath, enjoying the loving embrace the two shared. All was silent in the open foyer, save for the crackling sound of the pyres lit around them, that was until Tel broke the silence to express her seriousness in wanting to learn more from Jomei. 

His lips pulling into a half smile, the man separated himself from Telrenya and lowered his chin to look into her eyes. A playful brow rose over his visible eye, "And I was serious about trying to keep up" he playfully mocked the conversation the two held earlier in the heat of battle. "Of course I'll show you a thing or two.. and I'm sure you've picked up more than just that fancy slide during the escapades as Erin." Jomei's gaze turned back to the set of stairs off to their side, letting out a tiny sigh, "But that'll have to wait.. Let's go finish this." 

Reaching a hand out towards Telrenya, he beckoned her to take his hand. Once her fingers intertwined with his own, the couple started their way up the tall staircase. As the two stepped away from the obelisks that once housed the nine knights, the fire's that burned at their bases slowly died down, until they were nothing but smoking coals. Jomei paced himself as the two moved step by step, olive eyes looking to the small blue bar that rested under his health, watching as it slowly climbed back up to meet where the larger, green bar was-- his mind, however, was elsewhere. Every story the two would climb, another set of torches would ignite along the wall, lighting the way. The taller the two climbed, the less light from the chandelier below reached them, which resulted in their path becoming more and more dimly lit. 

Used:

• Matriarch's Stinger: +1 DMG

Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 74/139 EN
[ 1/3 EN Recovery ] 

[Telrenya 0]

"Ehheheh," Telrenya let out a small laugh that was laced with exaggerated nervousness as she played along with his teasing. "Yeahh, about that..." She let the sentence hang as it obviously had no conclusion to come. For the first time in a long while, Telrenya's guilt, regret, and the other sour feelings that had built up over the past month were forgotten about. Or rather, they had finally begun to fade away.

The couple separated in order to face each other, and she took on another smile when he confirmed his willingness to help her train further. Her chin dropped and head tilted to one side slightly when he made mention of her adventures in disguise, and once again she wondered if and when she should offer more details about all of the things she had done while taking on the false name. Luckily, before she could dwell on the topic, Jomei held out a hand and urged them in the direction of the next challenge that awaited them.

Fingers interlocking with the Irishman's, Telrenya took careful steps up the large spiral staircase that circled the edge of the room. The colored stats in the corner of her vision gradually recovered with time, and the higher they climbed the more curious the girl grew. The sight of the dark stone ceiling above that would become a new floor had her mind busy, wondering what lay in wait ahead of them. As they breached the surface of the next story in the castle, chocolate eyes were quick to move around the room. Close to identical as the room below them, save for the pedestals that had housed the nine Dragon Knights, there was no lack in other decorations. More tapestries hung and lined the walls, this time displaying impressive landscapes of Aincrad's first ten floors, the dragons absent from their weave. With no threat of danger able to be seen, Telrenya's eyes widened, and she allowed herself to become lost in the massive portraits. Another grand chandelier hung from the tall ceiling, providing them with a fresh light source. And to the side, a faint flicker eventually caught the girl's attention. A wide hallway stood, lined with torches and leading to an ornate castle door, to which Telrenya presumed would hold their next, and possibly final, challenge. "These are beautiful..." Glad for the tranquil setting that would allow them to regain the last of their energy, the blonde's shoulders relaxed and she turned her attention first to Jomei, then back to the picturesque tapestries along the stone walls with a warm smile on her face.

Telrenya: 678/720 HP | 6/72 EN
[2/3 Energy Recovered]

[Jomei 0]

The second floor that the two players arrived onto, was similar in the first in architecture, though the threat of being attacked was absent. The ginger let out a tiny sigh of relief as he looked above them, making sure they were, indeed, safe. Jomei's gaze turned to the blonde's for a moment, before realizing that the woman was fixated elsewhere, lost in the thick tapestries that draped down from high above them. The art depicted on each of the ten canvases were of Aincrad's first ten floors from an aerial view that no player would be able to see on their own. His eyes would follow around the room, looking upon each of the floors, until he ended at the tenth, which fell a bit shorter than the rest. Under the tapestry was an opening to a long hallway lined with flickering torches, at the end, a set of double doors. After taking in the breathtaking sight of the beautiful works of art around them, Jomei turned to Telrenya with a confident nod, and the two slowly made their way down the long hallway ahead.

The couple stood in front of the large, ornate door that would lead to their final challenge of this castle. They knew that whatever awaited them on the other side of that door would be unlike the hatchlings, and the dragon knights that represented them. This fight would truly test each of their resolves and capabilities in combat. Jomei’s heart raced in his chest, though his nerves were not from the thoughts of the oncoming battle. No, he knew there was something else that needed to be said before they walked through those doors. It was now or never, and Jomei fought against his frozen body to make sure it happened now.

A hand shot forward as Telrenya took a few steps towards the door, his fingers wrapping around her wrist. “Wait.” he said quickly. The Irishman forced the lump that had formed in his throat down, searching for the words to say. “Estelle... What’s on the other side of those doors.. may be one of the toughest thing’s we have seen together yet.. If it stands in any sort of comparison to the knights we fought downstairs.. then it has to be tough.” The man took in a deep through his nostrils, olive eyes slowly trailing across to meet hers, and with a shaky exhale, he continued. “We’ve both been through a lot these past two years.. even before we met.. we’ve just seen so much. All the things I have been through.. it really made life difficult to live here.. sometimes I wondered if it was worth it.. but.. then I met you. And, well... all the bad memories and thoughts that pained me just, didn’t matter anymore. You’ve brought out this side of me that.. I didn’t know existed.. my life has truly changed for the better since you entered it...” 

The man froze for another few seconds, though his eyes remained locked with hers. “I plan on getting through this.. all of this.. with you by my side. I promised that.. and I am going to keep that promise. So... No more lies.. No more holding you back.. Just you and me.. Just Nick and Estelle.. S-so..that being said..” A shaky hand slowly began to rise in the space between them, and after stalling for another second, the ginger pushed through the nerves, and took out a small black box from his menus. Releasing Telrenya’s wrist from his other hand, Jomei lowered himself to a knee in front of the girl and opened the box to reveal a rose gold ring with a larger diamond mounted in the center, while smaller gems ran partially down the sides of the band. The ginger managed to keep his gaze locked with her chocolate brown eyes the entire time, his lips contorting as he tried to speak past his nerves yet again. Hell, she knows what you’re about to do, so man up and say it.

“Estelle... Will you marry me?”
 

Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 75/139 EN
[ 2/3 EN Recovery ] 

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya swallowed as she took in the sight of the large metal double-doors at the end of the hallway. She was nervous. Incredibly so. But they hadn't come all this way to back down from the final challenge that these quests held, and so she did her best to steel herself for whatever might lay beyond. A giant dragon, or even another army of knights--as long as Jomei was by her side, she reminded herself that the two of them could surely take on anything this world tried to throw at them.

She had just started to close the remaining distance between them and the intimidating entrance when a hand clasped around her wrist. Telrenya blinked in surprise at the Irishman's sudden call for pause, but quickly turned to face him with an inquisitive expression. She swallowed again, first thinking that he was offering a kind of pep talk similar to the mental one she'd tried to give herself just a minute ago. She nodded in nervous agreement at the thought that whatever they would face on the other side of those doors certainly wasn't going to be easy. But then he continued. He seemed nervous, moreso than she would have expected from the man who was usually quick to flash her a confident smirk in such a scenario, and Telrenya's expression shifted in slight concern. Their eyes locked, and she listened to each of his heartfelt words, the warmth and weight behind them carefully wrapping around her chest. She gradually took on a smile that paired with a soft blush, feeling a touch of embarrassment from his meaningful sentiments.

And then her eyes fell on the small black box that he retrieved from his inventory, and the ring that he revealed from it after he had dropped to one knee. Her mind seemed to falter for a second, as if she knew exactly what was happening but also didn't understand it at the same time. When the question reached her ears, Estelle's hand automatically moved to hover its fingers over her lips. With wide eyes, the woman was suddenly hit by a rush of overwhelming emotion. Her mouth opened, but no sound escaped her for a moment. "Nick," She managed his name in little more than a whisper. "I-- You--!" Her breath and voice caught in her throat as the tears made themselves visible at the corners of her brown eyes. Her other hand joined the first, only partially covering the warm smile that took over her features. The girl seemed to finally realize she hadn't properly responded to the man that had just proposed to her. Again, she tried to speak and failed for a second, and so Telrenya nodded for a second until she had found her voice again. "Yes! Yes, of course Nick, I--" She was cut off by her own breathy laughter, and her feet carried her the short distance to him. She reached forward to take Jomei's face in her hands and leaned forward to bring their lips together in a passionate kiss, serving both to solidify her answer as well as release a portion of the overpowering emotions she felt.

Breaking away after several long seconds, Telrenya laughed softly again, sliding her palms away from Jomei's cheeks in order to wipe away the small pools of moisture from the edges of her eyes. "Ohh my gosh, I must look like a mess right now." She half-joked in an attempt to calm herself down. She looked back up to the Irishman moments later, still beaming with excitement. "I... I had no idea you were planning anything like this..." She admitted shyly, the color on her cheeks burning more intensely. "But, I... I feel the same way. You've done so much for me and, well, I've managed to change for the better ever since I met you. With all of your encouragement, and care..." Her shoulders raised with a widening smile as she reaffirmed her response. "I really do want to stay by your side. Taking on quests. Getting into trouble," She chuckled, "and...everything else."

Telrenya: 708/720 HP | 72/72 EN
[3/3 Energy Recovered]

[Jomei 0]

The ginger knelt there, frozen in time awaiting Tel's answer. Despite it only being mere seconds since he had popped the question, her response felt as though it took forever to finally come out. The broken words that the girl pushed through her own apparent nerves did not give them an a clear answer, and only caused his heart to beat faster in his chest. What if she were to say no? That they were still too early in their relationship.. or that asking her to marry him before fighting a powerful quest boss was not the ideal definition of 'romantic'. Though, as a second hand rose to her lips in utter shock, Jomei could still see hints of a warm smile with brown orbs that twinkled from the moisture that pooled in the corners of her eyes. Finally, the girl answered-- a yes -- and Jomei's face lit up with a bright smile. "Y-yeah?" he asked through the shaky breath he exhaled, letting out a small laugh from his excitement. Though his question had not need to be answered, as the blonde closed the distance between the two and locked her lips with his in a passionate kiss.

As their lips finally parted, Telrenya retracted her hands from the man's pink coated cheeks to wipe the tears that had been rolling down her cheeks. The ginger chuckled as he finally rose back to his feet, bringing the back of his gloved wrist up to his own eyes, wiping his own tears of joy that had began to form. As the woman finally turned around, expressing her surprise, Jomei remembered he was still holding the ring. Carefully taking it between his fingers, the man pulled it from the white cushion that held it inside of the box. Discarding the box into the pocket of his coat, the Irishman took Telrenya's left hand and gently slipped the the rose bold band onto her ring finger. "I had... honestly been thinking about it for awhile now. Just was trying to think of the right time." the man started in a soft voice, as his eyes trailed from the ring now on Tel's finger to her eyes, shining a playful wink, "Figured what better time than just before a boss fight" 

"You have changed.. I've noticed." Jomei said with a soft smile, bringing a hand up to place it upon Telrenya's burning cheek, "and it's only made me fall even more in love with you." Olive eyes flickered back and forth between her eyes that gazed into his and her smiling lips, before leaning forward and gently pressing his lips into her's one last time. After pulling away, the man's soft smile turned more confident, then his eyes lit up as he had just remembered something. "Oh, also.." Jomei brought a hand upwards to go into his inventory yet again, taking out a small, blue cube. "Here, its a teleport crystal.. Just in case things get really bad in there." Before she had a chance to turn down his request, he pushed it farther forward towards her, "I doubt you'll have to use it, since we are gonna kick that thing's ass just... put my mind at ease, love."  Once the item was out of his hands, the man rolled his shoulders, turning his body to the door, but keeping a sidelong glance at the blonde  "So.. ready to get into some more trouble?" 

Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 139/139 EN
[ 3/3 EN Recovery ] 

-1 Teleport Crystal > Given to Telrenya

[Telrenya 0]

It would have been a lie had Telrenya tried to claim the thought of marriage hadn't crossed her mind at some point throughout their relationship. Though it had only been a few months' time since they became an official couple, the trials and tribulations they had face in that span had only strengthened their bond and brought them closer. Even so, Telrenya had only regarded such thoughts as girlish fantasies, telling herself it was far too soon or that she just didn't know if she was ready for such a thing. Sure, the game had a marriage system that they could easily benefit from the mechanics of, but for the couple it would mean so much more. And to know that Jomei had been wanting to take such a meaningful step forward in their relationship made Telrenya's heart feel as though it might burst.

He lifted her hand, and the woman's gaze fell as he carefully placed the ring upon her finger. Her eyes began to sparkle as brightly as the gemstones affixed to the rose gold band. "Nick, it's...simply beautiful." She breathed out, lifting her chin after a few seconds to look back into the man's eyes, just in time to catch a signature wink that had her already-pounding heart gently fluttering. She smiled warmly as she felt his palm then rest upon her cheek, and it persisted as she returned his kiss. Before they had parted, a soft blue light gradually appeared between the two lovers. Telrenya had only noticed Willow's round head poking out from the center of her chest after Jomei's attention turned to his own inventory for a moment. "H-hey!" Her eyes met the familiar's bright white ovals as they stared up at her, and the blonde quickly grew flustered under the wisp's curious gaze. "Willow, c'mon, you're embarrassing me." She whispered, and they gave in to her urging after a moment or two, emerging from her avatar completely and looping back over her shoulder in a fluid motion.

Jomei held out a crystal, gently urging the girl to take it. Her brows turned up just slightly, but one look at his face and she could hardly refuse his request. She wore a smile of slight defeat, and accepted the blue crystal before slipping it into a pocket where Cardinal then registered it to her inventory. Their attention then turned back to the large set of doors that had been standing in front of them all the while. She laughed softly, and the corner of her mouth picked up into a small smirk as she returned his sideways glance. "Ready for anything, darling."

The newly-engaged couple moved forward, each of them pushing into one of the ornate doors that made up the room's entrance. The rounded room that they walked into was brightly lit by the ten mounted pyres spread evenly along the walls. They burned brightly, the normal orange flames accompanied by the dancing bright yellow of brimstone. On the other side of the room from which they entered stood an imposing suit of blackened armor to tower over the two players. Behind the figure, a pair of scaled black dragon wings sported sharpened talons at their tips, and whether it was the figures helmet or perhaps protruding directly from the monster's skull, two large, twisted horns rose above his head. There stood Varalys, the name of the final challenge hovering above his form with a set of two health bars hovering alongside his armored shoulder. In his hands, the polearm of an impressive trident was gripped tightly, and the whole suit of metal shifted as he registered the players. Doors swinging shut of their own accord behind them, the World Ender stood and took on a fighting stance, ready to face the couple across from him.

 

• [0] Telrenya: 720/720 HP | 72/72 EN | 13 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
• [0] Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 139/139 EN | 18 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 MIT | 2 Savvy | 38 B. Heal
   
• Varalys the World’s End: 650/650 HP | 250 DMG | 5 ACC | 3 EVA | 80 MIT
  • <<Dragon’s Judgment>>: Natural MD 9-10 causes a symbol of a dragon to appear over his target's chest. The player is frozen in place and loses all Evasion properties for one turn.
  • <<Dragon’s Ascent>>: LD 15+ heals Varalys for 25 HP and raises his base DMG by 10.
  • <<Dragon’s Last Roar>>: Upon hitting 0 HP, Varalys shouts in dragon tongue. Brimstone rains from the sky while the castle itself begins to crumble. Players take 4 posts each to escape the building and rolls on each. CD 1-8 results in 100 unmitigatable damage.

[Jomei 0]

While searching for the Teleport Crystal in his inventory, the man heard Telrenya's reaction to her familiar poking out from its usual home within the girl's avatar, happily floating around her. "Heh, looks like Willow's happy for us as well." he said with a warm smile, looking up to the owl on his shoulder. Though she could not express much emotion through her beak, Adere's large black eyes smiled happily back at Jomei. With a deep inhale through his nostrils, the ginger prepared himself for whatever waited on the other side of those doors, "Right" Jomei simply responded in a whisper as he took his first steps forward. The sound of the player's boots went silent as they stepped atop an ornate red carpet that ran along the remainder of the hallway and under the door into the adjacent room. Each placing a palm on a door in front of them, the large metal entryway opened slowly with a creak, revealing the innards of their final challenge in this castle. 

Ten pedestals, each topped with the bust that represented a dragon's head, burst into flames upon the couple's entry. The flaming eyes of the statues stared into the center of the octagonal room where Telrenya and Jomei slowly walked. Lining the walls, rather than tapestries as the last two rooms held, were tall stained glass windows, the dull blue and green crystals that lined the caverns outside brought only enough light to see the different colors of the panes that made up the window. The sounds of fresh armor plates shifting against each other brought the player's attention forward, where Varalys stood waiting for them. A creature that seemed to hold features of both a man and a dragon, with a mighty trident in his hand, readied himself for battle against the two that had hunted the dragonlings, and bested his knights on the floor below. 

The moment Varalys' weapon dropped to a horizontal position, the sharp edges pointing towards the two players, Jomei's Charge skill activated, and the ginger shot forward. The man rounded the room to the right to try and move out of the blackened knight's sight, though Varalys was quick to pick up on the ginger's movements. Bringing his grip up on the long handle that made up the polearm, the knight swept the back end of the trident at Jomei's ankles. Sucking his teeth, Jomei jumped right over the pole, the weapon just barely passing under his boots. As he hit the ground, the Irishman pivoted and changed his direction to close the small distance between himself and the knight. Valarys continued his motion, spinning the trident over his head and meeting Jomei's blade behind him. The ginger pushed through, however, and his blade slipped right past the polearm and pierced into the thick armor of the knight. He then followed up with thirteen continuous strikes that left thin red marks through the black armor. 

ID 98022 | BD 6(+4)(-3) 7 Hit | MD 2(+5)(-4) 3 Miss | LD 19
Over Radiation: 14x18(+5 Charge) = 322 (-80 Mit) = 242 Dmg

• [0] Telrenya: 720/720 HP | 72/72 EN | 13 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
• [1] Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 129/139 EN | 18 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 MIT | 2 Savvy | 38 B. Heal
   
• Varalys the World’s End: 433/650 HP | 260 DMG | 5 ACC | 3 EVA | 80 MIT (-242)(+25)
  • <<Dragon’s Judgment>>: Natural MD 9-10 causes a symbol of a dragon to appear over his target's chest. The player is frozen in place and loses all Evasion properties for one turn.
  • <<Dragon’s Ascent>>: LD 15+ heals Varalys for 25 HP and raises his base DMG by 10.
  • <<Dragon’s Last Roar>>: Upon hitting 0 HP, Varalys shouts in dragon tongue. Brimstone rains from the sky while the castle itself begins to crumble. Players take 4 posts each to escape the building and rolls on each. CD 1-8 results in 100 unmitigatable damage.

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya swallowed down her apprehension, right hand crossing her body to wrap its fingers around the hilt of Celestial Dawn at her hip. Drawing her weapon, it took only seconds for the battle to begin. Jomei sprung into action, circling around the right side of the room with impressive speed. Not wasting a moment, Telrenya leaned forward to do the same, mirroring his movements just a few steps behind as she ran around the left side. The corner of her mouth hooked into a tiny smirk. Although their opponents was heavily armored, his trident was currently locked in a failed attempt to keep the Irishman at bay at his back. Before Varalys had the chance to bring the weapon fully forward to deal with the second of his attackers, the tip of Telrenya's rapier had already plunged deep into the center of the boss' chest.

Celestial Dawn's golden blade gave off an almost blinding white light that flashed with each of fourteen powerful slashes and stabs across the knight's front. The final strike, Telrenya dragged the edge of her blade upwards from one corner of Varalys' torso to the opposite. As her body twisted slightly with the wide diagonal cut, the knight's balance was broken and he stumbled backwards, a faint light from two glowing eyes locking on her behind his helm. With the falter in their opponent's guard, Telrenya called out to her partner in order for him to push the offensive, "Nick, switch!"

ID#: 98023 | BD: 10 - Critical Hit! Over Radiation (x14) +charge Active
(13 base) + (2 critical) + (3 charge) = (18 DMG) x (14 sword art) = (252 DMG) - (80 MIT) = 172 DMG

• [2] Telrenya: 720/720 HP | 59/72 EN | 13 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
• [1] Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 129/139 EN | 18 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 MIT | 2 Savvy | 38 B. Heal
   
• Varalys the World’s End: 261/650 HP | 250 DMG | 5 ACC | 3 EVA | 80 MIT
  • <<Dragon’s Judgment>>: Natural MD 9-10 causes a symbol of a dragon to appear over his target's chest. The player is frozen in place and loses all Evasion properties for one turn.
  • <<Dragon’s Ascent>>: LD 15+ heals Varalys for 25 HP and raises his base DMG by 10.
  • <<Dragon’s Last Roar>>: Upon hitting 0 HP, Varalys shouts in dragon tongue. Brimstone rains from the sky while the castle itself begins to crumble. Players take 4 posts each to escape the building and rolls on each. CD 1-8 results in 100 unmitigatable damage.

[Jomei 0]

Just as Jomei was hoping, Telrenya had made her approach from the opposite side of Varalys. Once Jomei had finished his combination with the last of his strikes, Varalys managed to free his trident from Jomei's lock. Its soulless gaze from behind its helmet locked onto Telrenya as she approached, the polearm creating a large arc over its head as her delivered a downward strike at the girl's head. Telrenya was quick to act with her own sword art, her rapier crashing into the black armor of Varalys, each strike echoing as the metal of her blade pierced the knight's armor. 

With the last of her attacks, Varalys was sent stumbling backwards towards the ginger yet again, who had taken a step back during Telrenya's onslaught to avoid being hit by the tip of her rapier as it cut through the armor. As her words called out for him to switch with her, the ginger nodded. "You got it!" he shouted back with a smirk. Reaching forward with his left hand, Jomei grabbed the knight's shoulder and twisted him around so he faced Jomei, the ginger ducking so the large, armored wings did not smack him as he turned. Once the knight's body was fully facing the ginger, Jomei flourished Oathkeeper in his hand before cutting deep through Varalys leaving another gash from shoulder to hip. Turning on the ball of his foot, Jomei shoved his now gold glowing rapier forward through the knight's chest, and the rest of his strikes afterwards picked up speed. 

Plunging Oathkeeper into the abdomen of the black knight one last time, the ginger brought a boot up and placed it on his enemy's hip, kicking forward to let the armor slide off of the edge of his blade. "Coming back at you love!" Jomei called back to Telrenya, "He's all yours!"

ID 98024 | BD 6(+4)(+2)(-3) | MD 1 | LD 10
Over Radiation: 14x18 = 252(-80)=  172 Dmg

Switched with Telrenya

• [1] Telrenya: 720/720 HP | 59/72 EN | 13 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
• [3] Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 120/139 EN | 18 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 MIT | 2 Savvy | 38 B. Heal
   
• Varalys the World’s End: 89/650 HP | 250 DMG | 5 ACC | 3 EVA | 80 MIT (-172 Dmg)
  • <<Dragon’s Judgment>>: Natural MD 9-10 causes a symbol of a dragon to appear over his target's chest. The player is frozen in place and loses all Evasion properties for one turn.
  • <<Dragon’s Ascent>>: LD 15+ heals Varalys for 25 HP and raises his base DMG by 10.
  • <<Dragon’s Last Roar>>: Upon hitting 0 HP, Varalys shouts in dragon tongue. Brimstone rains from the sky while the castle itself begins to crumble. Players take 4 posts each to escape the building and rolls on each. CD 1-8 results in 100 unmitigatable damage.

[Telrenya 0]

With a tiny sigh of relief, Telrenya was allowed a moment's respite from Varalys' sights. She hadn't yet seen how much damage the final dragon knight was capable of, and she wasn't eager to find out. She twisted her blade in her right hand as Jomei took his turn to riddle the knight's armor with a whole new set of gashes and stab wounds, preparing herself for the next opportunity she would get to do the same in just seconds.

"Thank you~!" She called out past Varalys' form with an upbeat tone. The knight was stumbling backwards yet again, and towards her this time. With a steady exhale, Telrenya shot forward to meet her target with the tip of her rapier once more. The same successive strikes of her most powerful attack ran through the pitch black armor to force Varalys' health even lower. Well into the yellow, it took only a second to drift into the a dangerous red. And as the fourteenth thrust of the brilliantly glowing blade sliced through the center of the knight's chest, Varalys let out a powerful shout in a language neither of them were able to understand. Curses, maybe? Telrenya hadn't paid attention to catch any real meaning behind them.

The imposing figure that had stood between them vanished in a burst of glimmering shards, and the blonde was left standing across from Jomei in the stillness of the empty castle. After a second of silence, the familiar dialogue window that informed them of a completed quest appeared in front of each of them, and a wide grin broke out over the girl's face. Dismissing the menu and sliding her rapier back to its sheathe, she rushed forward and threw her arms around the Irishman, bubbling with excited laughter. "We did it! We really did it!" She exclaimed into the man's chest.

Though their moment of victory would be short-lived. The ground beneath their feet shook, suddenly and violently. The fires in the mounted pyres around the room seemed to grow in the intensity that they burned, the yellow tint of brimstone taking over and filling the room with an eerie glow. Telrenya turned slightly in Jomei's arms, eyes running over the length of the room with newfound concern. "What...what's going on?"

@Jomei

ID#: 98025 | BD: 8(+4)(-3)=7 - Hit!
(13 base) x (14 sword art) = (182 DMG) - (80 MIT) = 102 DMG

• [2] Telrenya: 720/720 HP | 47/72 EN | 13 DMG | 4 ACC | 3 EVA | 59 MIT
• [3] Jomei: 1270/1270 HP | 120/139 EN | 18 DMG | 4 ACC | 4 EVA | 52 MIT | 2 Savvy | 38 B. Heal
   
• Varalys the World’s End: 0/650 HP | 250 DMG | 5 ACC | 3 EVA | 80 MIT
  • <<Dragon’s Judgment>>: Natural MD 9-10 causes a symbol of a dragon to appear over his target's chest. The player is frozen in place and loses all Evasion properties for one turn.
  • <<Dragon’s Ascent>>: LD 15+ heals Varalys for 25 HP and raises his base DMG by 10.
  • <<Dragon’s Last Roar>>: Upon hitting 0 HP, Varalys shouts in dragon tongue. Brimstone rains from the sky while the castle itself begins to crumble. Players take 4 posts each to escape the building and rolls on each. CD 1-8 results in 100 unmitigatable damage.

ID#: 98029 | LD: 14 | CD: 6 - 1950 col, (1) T1 material, Rare weapon acquired

[Jomei 0]

With Varalys blocking Jomei’s view of his blonde companion, his gaze instead was locked onto the yellow bar of health that hovered just in front of the knight’s person. The blackened armor grunted and flinched as Telrenya’s rapier continuously cut through the enemy that stood between them, its health dropping more and more with each hit. The ginger bounched on the balls of his feet, waiting for the exact moment he would have to strike to finish Varalys off— that was, of course if there was anything left to finish. Telrenya’s attack continued to diminish the knight’s health little by little, until the sharp end of her rapier cut through the small red sliver oh HP that remained, ending the knight’s life indefinitely. 

Valarys cried out in a pained, booming tongue that neither player could understand as he fell to his knees. The shadow of his helmet that hid his facial features shot to the high ceiling above them, before the final Dragon Knight shattered like glass before their very eyes. Jomei stood in disbelief that it was over, that the two had finished it. When Telrenya’s excited shout pierced the silence, his attention was brought back to her, his own mouth expanding into a wide grin. Quickly moving his rapier back to his hip, the Irishman met Telrenya’s embrace, his frame lowering to wrap his arms about her waist and pick her up into the air. The man laughed as he turned in place with his love in his arms, returning her white boots back to the stone floor. “We really did.” Jomei replied softly as he pulled the girl into his chest lovingly.

Seconds later, the two’s moment was cut short by the violent trembling of the ground below them. “W-what?” Jomei gasped, looking around the large room they stood in. The fires that lined the room began to burn brighter, pairing with the yellow of the brinstone, illuminated their surroundings in warm, yet eerie hues. Suddenly, one by one, the stained glass windows around them shattered, the glass raining to the stone floor. The foundation of the tower began to crack and crumble, pieces of the brimstone ceiling collapsing in. “It looks like Varalys had one more trick up his sleeve...” the man turned towards the door, before quickly turning his attention back to Telrenya, “Quick! Use the crystal! Get back to town!” 

As Jomei beckoned Telrenya to use the teleport crystal to get to safety, one of the large columns that held up the ceiling fell atop the man, leaving the ginger little to no time to raise his arms upward to protect his head from being damaged. Jomei fell to a knee under the weight of the stone, but as the dust faded, he looked up to Telrenya “Go!”

ID 98151 | CD 8

Jomei: 1170/1270 HP (-100)

@Telrenya

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya winced at the first sound of heavy stone crashing against stone as a slab of the castle's ceiling came crashing down into what was previously Varalys' lair. She quickly separated from the man and focused on keeping her footing on the unstable ground. Her eyes shot to the door just the same, but Jomei quickly urged her to use the teleport crystal for a speedier escape. So then he would use one too, right? Just as Telrenya opened her mouth to seek confirmation, the words were replaced with a quick gasp, eyes wide with the sight of the structure crashing down on the Irishman. In the corner of her vision, the green bar of his health dropped slightly. "Nick!" Ignoring his instruction at first, the woman rushed to the edge of what remained of the fallen pillar, using her own weight to shift the rubble and help the man out from under it. "Are you crazy?" She moved to his side in order to help the man to his feet.

Hearbeat quickening in her chest, Telrenya was being stubborn with the thought of leaving his side like this. The crumbling castle, however, seemed to have different plans for her. With the growing heat of the flames, one of the tall, stained glass windows at her right burst and shattered, causing the girl to stumble backwards with one arm raised to shield her face from the shards that flew across the room. Her chin tilted upward, the dark sky--or was it the ceiling of the tall caverns of the tenth floor?--visible through the cracks and holes in the castle walls. Eyes widened at the sight of the large stone bricks that came tumbling down, and Telrenya was forced to take another few steps backwards to avoid being crushed beneath them. Her jaw clenched as her back pressed up against the wall, and a huge crash caused her to flinch, bringing her arms up in front of her while she felt the sudden tingling sensations of the loose brick and glass that rained down on her avatar. When she opened her eyes again, she was met with an imposing barrier standing before her. An entire section of the tower wall had collapsed along the length of the room, leaving Telrenya trapped as she was separated from both Jomei and the door that would have served as their means of escape.

"Nick!!" Her palms crashed against the stone upon their severance, and she clenched her teeth with a silent, mental curse. Her left hand reached down to retrieve the blue crystal while she hesitantly backed away from the partition, and she bit down roughly on her bottom lip. Looking to either side, she was clearly left with no choice but to use it. But why did she have such a bad feeling about it. "Nick, I--I'll see you in town!" She called out. She wanted to add something, some sort of confirmation that the Irishman would be appearing at the teleport gate right beside her, but at the same time she didn't want to leave any room for doubt. Her grip tightened and she squeezed the crystal in her palm, the item giving off a glow as it activated.

@Jomei

ID#: 98163 | CD: 6 - 100 DMG
Used Teleport Crystal

• Telrenya: 620/720 HP
• Jomei: 1170/1270 HP

[Jomei 0]

The, still managing to keep himself on his knees, was able to free himself from the rubble with Telrenya's help. His health had dropped by only a sliver, so he knew that he would be fine-- it was Telrenya's safety that he truly cared for. Her voice managed to reach his ears through the sounds of stone crashing, and glass shattering, "Heh, just figuring this out now?" he said, looking to the woman with a smirk as he rose to his feet. Jomei could see the hesitation in the girl's chocolate brown eyes, she did not want to warp back to town without knowing that he would be safe, and he could not blame her. "I'll be fine Estelle." he spoke in the softest tone he could muster, despite the loud sounds around them. 

The ginger was not able to move quick enough as one of the stained glass windows shattered inwards, the glass shards hurtling at the blonde, cutting deep into her skin. Jomei winced, bringing his own arm up to block any of the extra pieces that may have missed her, "Estelle!" he shouted to her, though he could see by her health bar in the corner of his eye that she was still fine. Another piece of the ceiling had broken off and dropped towards Jomei, leaving the man to dive backwards, the stone shattering into boulder-like pieces as it hit the ground. Struggling to get to his feet, Jomei moved forward towards the blonde, who had backed up to the opposite side of the room amongst the madness. Another large column, however, fell between the two, blocking his path to her. "Estelle!!" he shouted again, though her calling of his name reassured him that she was alright.

"You have to use the crystal! Please!" he yelled across to her, slamming the bottom of his fist against the stone surface. After a short moment, Telrenya finally gave in, and told Jomei that she would meet her back in town. The ginger let out a sigh of relief, "I'll see you there." he simply said back, and waited with his body pressed against the broken pillar to hear the sounds of her avatar materializing. "Thank you.." he whispered under his breath. 

"Alright.. now to figure out how the hell I'm gonna get out of here.." Jomei quickly spun around and saw that he had a clear shot to the entryway to Valarys' lair. Charging forward, Jomei used his shoulder to bash open the door and return to the corridor that led to the winding staircase moving back to the first floor. As expected, the entire castle had been crumpling to the ground. The large tapestries that displayed the various floors were either being torn to shreds, knocked down, or burning. Gritting his teeth, the ginger ran forward again towards the first set of stairs leading downward. As he began his descent, large parts of the ceiling caved in and topped down towards him. The pieces of stone smacked into Jomei's tall frame, causing him to tumble down a couple of stairs before stopping himself. 

ID#: 98171 | CD: 3

• Telrenya: 620/720 HP
• Jomei: 1070/1270 HP -100

@Telrenya

[Telrenya 0]

In a bright flash of light, Telrenya's surroundings suddenly warped and shifted. The smell of sulfur was replaced with crisp air that carried the scents of the city. The broken pieces of rocks and rubble at her feet were now a smooth, cobblestone walkway. And as Telrenya opened her eyes, blinking against the bright sunlight, the sights of Taft washed away the remains of Varalys' castle that had been falling around her. The woman's chest rose and fell with heavy breaths as she slowly came down from the adrenaline of her escape, and her head quickly whipped around to look over the surrounding teleport plaza for the familiar face she hoped to see appearing after her.

Seconds stretched longer, and her brows turned up on concern. "C'mon Nick, what're you doing...?" She asked herself in a small whisper, crossing her arms over her stomach as she took slow, nervous steps to have her pacing in the center of Taft. Her heart continued to beat quickly, now out of apprehension for the ginger's safety rather than the fear of her own. Then a sudden movement in the corner of her vision caught her eye. Jomei's health bar had dropped again, and Telrenya froze with a held breath as she watched it fall. She only let the air escape from her lungs when it stopped moving, and she looked back to the center of the teleport area. It had only been a minute since she appeared on the eleventh floor, but that was more than long enough for her to realize that he wasn't going to--and likely had never intended to--use a crystal of his own to escape the crumbling castle. With a couple of hurried steps, Telrenya called out the name of the tenth floor's settlement and Cardinal carried her back to the cavernous floor in an instant.

[Jomei 0]

"Nngh.." Jomei groaned as he brought slowly pushed himself back up to his feet. That last pice of the ceiling had knocked him on the back of the head, and his body spinning multiple times down the stairs did not exactly help to make him any less dizzy. Ginger bangs brushed against his forehead as he shook his head, his eyes finally opening and looking straight down the open stairwell, a good few story drop to the first floor. "Christ." Jomei cursed under his breath, pushing himself away from the possible fall.  

"Gah.. Tel's gonna kill me when she finds out I didn't have a crystal." the man said, bringing a hand up to the nape of his neck before continuing on down the stairs. What remained of the castle shook violently as the highest tower that Varalys had called his own finally crumpled down to the floor above him, causing even more of the ceiling above his head to break apart. As he continued his path down the stairs, part of the wall collapsed, taking out a good portion of the stairs in front of him. Jomei took no time to launch himself over the gap to make it to the other side. What the man was not expecting, however, was another portion of the ceiling to crash down above him, colliding with him mid air. As the man tried to shield himself from the rubble hitting him, he saw he had mere moments to react and catch himself on the ledge in front of him. Reaching forward, Jomei caught the corner of the stairs and held himself, dangling a few stories above from the first floor. "Maybe she won't.. have to kill me." the man said through a grunt, "This castle might.. do it for her." He tried to make a lighthearted joke with himself, hoping it would take his fear of falling off of his mind. 

ID#:98203  | CD: 3

• Jomei: 970/1270 HP -100

@Telrenya

[Telrenya 0]

Appearing once again in the middle of Yomi, Telrenya wasted no time in carrying herself from the main settlement. The blonde ran for Varalys' castle, doing her best to recall and follow the path that they had taken to reach the massive structure when they had first arrived on the floor once she was outside of the safe zone. As she moved, her eyes regularly flickered upwards to the health bar that sat nicely below hers. It was stable, thankfully, but with the castle that was coming down around them--not to mention any other dangers or surprises that might be waiting for the man--she had no idea how long that would last, and the uncertainty terrified her.

"Nick, you--! I swear, you better be okay, or so help me...!" She let out frustrated half-threats under heavy breaths as she ran. Finally reaching the tall hill overlooking much of the floor after an unstable incline, she stopped in an attempt to catch her breath. She was suddenly thankful for the lesser punishment of pushing her virtual body in the fabricated world while her palms pressed against her knees.

Suddenly the sound of far-off rumbling caused her head to pick back up. She could see it: the remains of Varalys' castle sitting in the distance. She watched as one of the tall spires fell and crashed into the side of another, a cloud of dust pluming from the collision. In that same moment, Telrenya's eyes went wide with another drop in Jomei's health. Ignoring the burning of her lungs, the blonde pushed herself forward. "Please be okay..."

[Jomei 0]

The ginger began to kick his feet, trying to gain the momentum to pull himself back up onto the ledge. He tried to find something, anything to use to push himself up any farther, but the space under the stairs was empty. "Don't look down don't look down Don't look down" Jomei mumbled to himself, as his fear of falling slowly began to take over. Another rumble of the castle sparked Jomei to clench his eyes shut, pulling with all of his might to bring himself back onto the stairs. As he finally opened his eyes again, however, he saw that another piece of the ceiling had collapsed, and the large stone pieces crashed into the part of the stairs he had been holding onto, causing the entire structure to crumble under the force of its weight.

The ginger's arms flailed as his body fell, his terrified gaze locked to the ceiling, so he had no idea how far he was from hitting the ground. Jomei's back suddenly collided with a pile of rubble on the first floor, the pieces of the castle above him crashing all around his body that lay there. The man quickly pulled his knees into his chest and covered his head with his arms, as more pieces crashed atop him, causing his health to drop even more and more. Once the dust had settled from the raining brimestone around him, Jomei took the short moment of calmness to push the fallen debris off of his body and make a quick dash to the front door. His health had dwindled far lower than he was expecting.. and the fact that he was still in a party with Telrenya was most likely giving her a heart attack. However, the stone that had once blocked the entrance to the castle had since been demolished. 

The ginger pressed the crook of his arm into his face, covering his mouth and nose from the smoke and dust that billowed outwards from the open doorway Jomei had moved through. Springing forward, Jomei dove to the ground as the remains of the the castle came crashing to the ground, leaving nothing of Varalys' fortress in its wake. "Ugh.." Jomei groaned as he slowly pushed himself onto his hands and knees. "G-Guess now we did it.." he said with an exhausted chuckle.

ID#: 98209  | CD: 6

• Jomei: 300/1270 HP -670 [Because I can ;3]

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya ran the last stretch of midnight blue and softly-glowing turquoise that made up the cave floors, eyes still flickering regularly to the pair of health bars at the edge of her vision. She was nearly there, she kept telling herself. Just a bit longer, and she would be there, and she could find Jomei again and they would walk away from this together.

As if on cue to counteract her affirmations, the bar that represented the man's health began draining once again. She tried not to worry. It had only been dropping a little bit, and by the time she'd reach the castle's front entrance he should still be fine. But it didn't stop this time. Its color shifted to yellow as it reached the halfway mark, and continued further still. Telrenya could have sworn her heart skipped more than one beat inside of her chest as she watched it change to red. "No, no no...!" She whispered through ragged breaths. The tiniest relief finally rippled through her when the colored meter stopped moving, and she fought against panicked tears as she approached the demolished castle.

Panting heavily, Telrenya stopped and her eyes managed to find the familiar green-clad avatar of Jomei through the clouds of concrete dust and smoke, knelt on the ground in the distance. "Nick!!" She called out his name, running forward to kneel in front of the Irishman. She placed a hand on his shoulder, distress clear in her voice. "Are you okay?! Are you hurt?" Either she wasn't thinking clearly enough to register that their virtual bodies couldn't sustain serious injury, or she didn't care. The woman placed her opposite hand on his cheek before she would help him to his feet, making sure to receive confirmation of his well-being before anything else.

But once she had that, the girl bristled with frustration. She raised a loosely-balled fist and brought it down weakly against Jomei's chest. "You...you didn't...have a teleport crystal for yourself?!" She asked angrily through heavy breaths. "You--! You dummy!" Telrenya scolded him to the best of her ability, but her frustration was quick to subside. Her hand slid to the side and her other arm reached forward to wrap around the Irishman. She pulled herself close to him in a tight embrace, fighting back tears again. "Oh my god, I was so worried about you."

[Jomei 0]

The ginger hacked up the stone dust and smoke that had entered his lungs with the castle's collapse, Telrenya's concerned voice breaking through his coughs to reach his ears. His head jerked upwards to see the blonde rushing towards him before dropping to a knee in front of him. "Estelle.. Thank God you're safe." the man said through a heavy sigh. Placing a hand on his shoulder, the blonde slowly helped Jomei up to his feet. "I'm fine, love" he said with a weak smile, "Took a lot more damage that I was expecting... but that was only because I decided to take the quick way down the stairs." he joked, trying to lighten the mood a bit and shake the own terrifying memory of him falling about two, maybe three, stories to the first floor. Despite the wind being knocked out of him from the fall, and his health dropping nearly 600 points in an instant, Jomei was fine. Hit Battle Healing skill had already began to take effect, and his health slowly began its climb back into the green.

His eyes trailed from the health bar that sat in the corner of his vision down to Telrenya, the small smile fading when he took notice of her apparent frustration with the man. It must not have taken her long after using the teleport crystal that the ginger had not intended on using one himself.. and that he gave his only one to ensure the girl's safety. He chuckled nervously as the blonde slowly rose up a balled fist, hitting it against his armored chest. Though, her words of exasperation were nothing but adorable, and Jomei was able to keep the soft smile that had appeared on his face. His arms slid past Telrenya's shoulders, gently pulling her into his frame. "I know.. I'm sorry. I didn't want to take any chances with you getting hurt or possibly dying."

"But hey.." Jomei said in a soft voice, separating himself from the girl and bringing a hand around to gently brush his knuckles against her cheek. "We did it." The ginger turned to look at what little remained of Varaly's castle behind him. Nothing but a smoldering pile of stone, and no other dragons, knights, or things out to kill them anywhere to be seen. Jomei let out another heavy sigh before turning back to Telrenya with a warm smile, "I say we go celebrate.. We took on an entire quest line-- just the two of us-- Kicked all those knight's asses, made a fool of that last boss.." Jomei stopped mid-sentence and took Telrenya's hand, raising it to get a good look at the rose-gold ring he had given to her as he proposed, "..and got engaged all in the middle of it." 

[Telrenya 0]

Telrenya's head shifted slightly side-to-side as she nuzzled into his chest for the duration of their embrace, holding him tightly as the threat of danger and the leftover tension gradually subsided. When they would separate again, and Jomei's hand gently grazed the skin of her cheek, the woman couldn't help taking on a soft smile while her eyes locked with his. It stretched a bit wider with his affirmation of their success, and she chuckled softly at the sight of the demolished castle. "Mm," She nodded, the feeling of accomplishment coming back to her again. "But, from now on," She continued stubbornly, forcing the corner of her mouth to twist into a small pout, "We always have a teleport crystal. Both of us."

After her simple demand, a pink tint covered her cheeks when Jomei drew attention to the ring on her left hand, and her expression shifted into a warm smile again. "Yeah... That sounds really nice." She agreed to the sentiment of a celebration, her mind working to come up with a clearer suggestion. "That tavern on the fourth floor was pretty nice," Her shoulders picked up a bit while she looked up to meet his gaze, fingers curling around the hand that had taken hers. "How does dinner and some warm drinks sound?"

Thread Complete!

• Telrenya: +7 SP, +11,575 col, (1) T1 material, [Rare T1] Weapon, [Perfect T2] The Blade of the Fallen Dragon - +2 ACC, +1 Fallen
• Jomei: +7 SP, +11,575 col, [Perfect T2] The Blade of the Fallen Dragon - +2 ACC, +1 Fallen