[PP-F9] <<The Gatekeeper of Fire>> Mac wont stop flirting with Baldur and Baldur is into it. Cord and Mari are now a third wheel

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia paused.

Well that ended a lot faster than she had expected it to. 

"Ah, well. I guess we can take a few minutes to rest before the Cerberus," she said, sweatdropping. 

She looked over to Baldur and Macradon. Thank God. She wasn't sure how much longer she could take those two flirting before she would impale herself with her own katana. Just something about a person who dives their hands into juice for strawberries and a man who made unbearable puns hooking didn't suit well with her. 

"Uh, okay?" She said confusingly. "You know that Macradon already has someone, right?" She whispered. She was sure that whatever the hell was going on between Baldur and Macradon was. . . just for fun, hopefully. Hopefully.

She wasn't sure exactly what was going on in general anymore. Things were confusing. Everyone was probably confused. Maybe it was just her. She was really confused. Was she watching a love triangle form? Well, she supposed that there was always a first for everything. She never thought she would experience it in a burning hot cave before she was about to fight a three headed dog practically made out of fire and magma, though.  

920/920 +30 HP

[Macradon 0]

Macradon smiled when Mari accepted his hand and he helped her get up, but something wasn’t right, she didn’t seem like herself … she seemed … different from how she usually were, from how she usually acted while they were out adventuring together. His confusion was only enhanced from what would come next, her words, and then her actions. Baldur had done his and taken down the very last hellhound as good as he would do with his blade, wielded by a true master. When Mari began to talk about how she wasn’t showing how good a teacher she could be, Macradon tried to argue back, but he had no time to do so before she began talking about so much else. He would just stand nearly dumbfounded, he wanted to talk to her, encourage her, tell her to give it another try, but he couldn’t get himself to interrupt her.

He would look almost defeated as he stood there in front of his friend, trying to think of what to tell her, thinking of how he could comfort her, but all he could do was look shocked. “Wha-” he only mustered to say as Mari pushed him away. The way she talked, the way she acted and whence it has started. “Oh.” was all he could say “So that’s what it is …” he muttered for himself and looked disappointed towards the ground, he had been to slow to notice, he had been too occupied doing stupid stuff with Baldur that he hadn’t realized the situation. The way she had acted towards Baldur before, and how she acted towards Macradon now after the incident.

He would throw a smile at Mari as he felt like he was being pushed for long enough “Don’t worry!” he said with a broad smile as he quickly made a pirouette, now facing Baldur.

He would grab the Gaijin Samurai by his shoulders and turn him towards Mari “Go get her, tiger!” he said with a light joking tone in his voice to Baldur to make the situation seem less tense. With a heavy shove, Macradon would use the momentum from Mari’s push to redirect it into Baldur and send him back towards Mari. “I hope this will help the situation. I’ll try to get a talk with her soon, but I’ll have to see this happening first, I want to assure her that I am not a rival.” he thought as he stood back and hoped that the tense situation would get better, that their teamwork and tactics wouldn’t be in such discord as it were now. Hopefully this would help Mari off the possible misunderstandings that had been going on.

@Baldur @Mari @Cordelia

[Baldur 0]

Baldur watched with a bit of a confused look on his face as Mari and Cord went on further into the cave without saying anything, and then Big Mac bumped into Baldur, in turn pushing the gaijin on further into the cave with a "Go get her, tiger!"

I thought Mac was going to be the one to pull aggro on the Cerberus? Well, I did just do a lot of damage, maybe they want me to see if I can take out one of the heads with my Alpha Strike.

Baldur turned and charged on ahead, pushing past the two women and heading into the next chamber.

It had been a long time since Baldur had done the Cerberus quest. It had been himself, Tyger, Ariel, and maybe Oikawa? It was so long ago he could hardly remember.

This... this Cerberus was very different. The creature had a very intimidating cast to it's frame, and the evil red eyes bore down on the Samurai when he entered the room, fire roaring all around them. But the Samurai locked his eyes onto the first head, and paused no more than a breath.

Once more the samurai seemed to become a streak of color as he raced across the room with his charged sword art, the brilliant white light tore into the head of the Cerberus, but instead of cutting it clean off in a single strike, Baldur was forced to kick off from the chest of the massive animal, flipping over backwards to gain some distance.

"Tsk." Baldur made an annoyed sound, but his focus never wavered from the monster before him with it's read health bar, one among three.

Hopefully me charging in will give Mac and Mari a chance to talk. Maybe that's why he sent me on ahead of the rest?

---

ID#137444 BD: 2+7=9 -1 charge, -2 evasion = 6 (hit)
San Ge+Charge: 23+5=28x15=420-75 MIT = 345 Damage Dealt

[1/-/-] Baldur: HP: 1300/1330 | EN: 109/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  -12 EN, +1 EN, +53 BH, -30 Thorns
[-/-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 104/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 73/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/-/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 179/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF 

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 155/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 10, 2020 by Baldur

[Mari 1]

"Yeh..." Mari said as she turned to Cordellia. "Mac's engaged to Kairi I think her name was...I met her briefly at the gala she's pretty cute." Mari shrugged. "But, I don't know their relationship - for all I know Mac's like...dating both of them at the same time? Maybe they have some sort of open thing? I unno - I get that's a thing and all these days. But I'm probably the worst person when it comes to romance or anything of the sort."

Hell, I only just realized my attraction to Baldur - when something like that is usually immediately obvious

Mari cleared her throat; she'd rather not really bother with things too much. She'd rather shift the subject and move on. Mari wasn't really looking at that sort of things. "Yeh." Mari said as she looked at the shadowy figure ahead of them; it was clearly going to be the Cerberus. "I'd rather wait a few minutes before-"

WHOOOOOSH

A flurry of blue cascaded past them, like a torrential wave. Before Mari had a chance to react; Baldur had rushed forward - straight into the fray. Triggering the boss. "So...about that rest..." Mari said to Cordelia. She hadn't even gotten a chance to use her damage increasing potion; she had planned on it...but, she guessed that Baldur wanted to finish the fight quickly. She couldn't blame him...Mari had failed miserably when she tried to attack the dogs. This was to make up for that, right?

Mari grit her teeth and clenched her small dagger tightly in her hand. "I know I don't deal that much damage..." she muttered. But she didn't want to be useless. Mari knew that she shouldn't be activating her charge skill...she knew that she should be buffing herself up before hand - but she hadn't had the time to put things into her battle ready inventory...people had stormed in, twice now - without giving the chance. Any hopes of her wanting to show leadership had fallen apart. Mari felt her heart sink in disappointment.

And in an act of desperation, she activated her charge skill as she sprinted forward, flipping her dagger into a reverse grip so it'd activate the <<Eternal Cyclone>>  skill. Closer...Closer... Mari effortlessly glided past Baldur, then using a nearby rock she propelled herself upwards to attack - but...it just wasn't high enough. She fell short of being able to reach the head - and instead of a successful attack she came crashing down into the ground.

BANG

At least this time...she didn't fall face first. Mari sat there, crouched  as she had braced her fall. Angry tears in her eyes.

You really are useless, aren't you.

"You may as well just use me as a spring board!" Mari shouted back over her shoulder at Cordelia, at least - then, maybe she'd be of some use.

@Macradon  @Cordelia  @Baldur
 

ID#137445  BD:3 +4=7 -1 charge, -2 evasion =  4 MISS
Eternal Cyclone+Charge:11+5=16 x13 = 208 -75 MIT =  MISS

[1/-/-] Baldur: HP: 1300/1330 | EN: 109/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  -12 EN, +1 EN, +53 BH, -30 Thorns
[-/-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 73/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/-/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 179/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF 

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 155/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 10, 2020 by Mari

[Macradon 0]

Macradon groaned as Baldur just flew past Mari, engaging into combat with the great evolved cerberus, instead of engaging in conversation with Mari. “Sh**, ***k, s**t, *u**. How the hell do I handle this.” he mumbled, trying to assess the situation, but there was not enough time to think. He grit his teeth and gripped the handle of his sword, “I don’t have time to waste now .. gotta grab aggro, Baldur can handle an attack from the beast.” he thought and went up towards the rest of the party. With blinding speed, Macradon quickly followed after Mari’s attack, instead of going after the first head like the others had up to now, Macradon aimed for the second head, trying to see if he could begin peeling as a tank for the rest.

With his <Charge> skill activated, the knight gripped his sword and went into battle. With a quick motion, Macradon jumped up into the air and did a long wind for his greatsword with his hand trailing behind him in the jump. Moving his blad up over himself, his other hand would grab the handle of his sword and with the downwards motion of his jump, Macradon would use as much force as he could as he executed his <Galaxy Destroyer> mid air towards the cerberus, but his reckless attack did very little, a bit too predictable from the knight as the Cerberus easily deflected the oncoming attack like it was nothing “S**t.” the exclaimed and tried to regroup with the rest.

@Cordelia @Mari @Baldur

ID: 137465
BD: 5-2+3-1=5 -> Miss.
CD: 12 -> Recovery Proc!
Sword art used: Miss.

[1/-/-] Baldur: HP: 1300/1330 | EN: 109/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  -12 EN, +1 EN, +53 BH, -30 Thorns
[-/-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 73/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/1/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 184/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF (-2)(+7)

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 155/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia silently sobbed as she landed on her face. "Whyyyy?!" She screamed, her cries coming out muffled due to the dirt. 

Why does this happen. She just wanted to kill a three headed fire dog. She just wanted to use her cool sword. It turns out her sword wasn't so cool after all. Not cool at all.

She scrambled to her feet. What the hell is wrong with her sword. She thought it was doing well, but no. It just had to bite her back in the ass again, huh? Just when she thought it was going to go well again? Screw you universe! Screw you sword! Screw you three headed fire dog! Though, it looked like the rest of the party wasn't doing so hot either. That made her feel a tiny bit better. Nothing like seeing the rest of your comrades fail to get your spirits back up, right?

---

ID: 137466
BD: 2, Miss
CD: 12, +4 EN

[1/-/-] Baldur: HP: 1300/1330 | EN: 109/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  -12 EN, +1 EN, +53 BH, -30 Thorns
[-/-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 76/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/1/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 184/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF (-2)(+7)

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 155/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

[Baldur 0]

The others came in behind Baldur, but they all seemed preoccupied by something. Perhaps the amazing display of friendship and camaraderie between Baldur had thrown everyone for a loop. It was easy to see why someone could be jealous of such a deep bond, forged between kindred spirits in the fires of hell that was the Aincrad boss room, over the many floors they had fought together on. There were few people left who had been through so much as Baldur and Mac had. The Argentette was the far more experienced and consistent frontliner than Baldur was, perhaps second only to Calrex himself, but the events they had witnessed together, and the thoughts and emotions they had shared together over their long battles forged an understanding and trust that could not be easily rivaled.

But those thoughts and feelings were for a time not here. Baldur took the emotions and the distractions and threw them into the fire that raged within him. He one with his sword, his mind steeled by Mushin, and all the thoughts and emotions were merely flitting distractions that did not pull attention away from the fight they held. The fire, the fudoshin, within Baldur burned all the brighter. The Yin and Yang of Baldur's mind were razor focused on the task at hand.

Mari came forth, but was unable to get the height she needed to hit the head she was aiming for as it seemed to rear its head from Baldur's attack, letting out a howl of pain. Macradon was not far behind her, but the massive blow of the Knight of the Blood Oath seemed to fall between the heads of Cerberus, instead turning his blade's ire on the ground at its feet, an eruption of stone and fire as the weight of the blow took out a large chunk of the ground beneath the dog. Then came Cordelia, who seemed to loose her footing from the new, uneven terrain, and then began to curse her sword out again for its unpredictable nature.

It was then that Baldur saw all three heads turn towards him.

Kuso.

Baldur sheathed the blade and then ran for the cover of stalagmites that littered the cave, including a fallen stalactite that Macradon's blow had shaken loose. The dog pounced forward, and before he could get to cover, the first head bit down, catching Baldur's left arm and almost tearing it free before the Samurai was able to get behind a giant stone. The cerberus' second head bite down, but it's snout hit head against the stone and it gave a yelp. The momentum of the azure samurai was too much, however, and he slipped, allowing him to fall prey to the third head of cerberus, this one catching him in its mouth and throwing him high into the air.

Huh... when did I catch fire?

The pain wasn't there, but the extreme discomfort that passed for it in this game struggled to break through Baldur's concentration. The gaijin had been here before, in positions far worse than this. This small degree of damage, of pain, of... flying through the air... would not dissuade the gaijin wanna-be samurai from what he needed to do.

As he flew towards one of the stalactites still attached to the roof of the cave Baldur reached out, grabbing on and using the momentum to spin him around back towards the three heads of the monster that now followed his trajectory like a dog watching it's ball. Instead, Baldur tucked and extended his arms to cause his angular momentum to adjust so that he was now flying towards the Cerberus just... upside down. His eyes were still locked on the read diamond that floated above the injured head.

I've only got one chance at this.

Baldur tucked his knees in to assume the pre-motion stance that would activate <<Iai>> but doing so caused his spin to begin again. He had to maintain eye contact on the boss at the exact moment that he would be in range for his skill to activate, and he could not <<Charge>> this target again. It was almost painful, trying to crane his neck to keep his eyes locked onto the lupine face of his attacker, but then Baldur felt it. The hum of power, the pulling motion of the system, and he unleashed his attack.

Iai was a drawing strike. It wasn't just a sword art in Aincrad, it was something he had practiced for years in the real world, albeit not upside down while flying through the air. When the moment came, Baldur's thumb pushed the blade forward an inch, bearing just the tiniest bit of steel, but in that moment, the white light of his sword art erupted like the flash of the sun at the first hint of dawn, and then a single, razor thin trace of light shot forward as the arc of the sword art was perpendicular to the viewing plane of his allies. Instead, they saw the blurr of color that was his chestnut hair and the blue of his signature haori. Because of the angle, and the post motion delay, Baldur had no chance to try and land from the blow, instead hitting the ground and tumbling end over end until he could drive his blade into the ground and slow himself to a stop as it dragged through the stone.

With a deep breath, Baldur raised his eye, his steel blue eyes burning as he continued to watch his opponent.

With great satisfaction, the first head of three exploded into shards, luminous polygons filling the air as they seemed to defy gravity, floating into space in every direction. He withdrew his sword from the ground, whipped it to the side and prepared for what came next.

---

ID#137498 MD: 5+3-2= 6 (hit) 175 DMG - 79 MIT = 96 DMG Dealt + 36 Burn 0/2
ID#137499 MD: 3+3-2=4 (miss)
ID#137500 MD: 9 (crit) 200 DMG - 39 MIT = 161 DMG Dealt 
ID#137501 BD: 4+7=11-2=9 (hit)
Iai 23*11=253 DMG - 75 MIT = 178 DMG Dealt

[-/-] Baldur: HP: 1066/1330 | EN: 99/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  -11 EN, +1 EN, +53 BH, -30 Thorns, -96 Bite 1, -161 Bite 3, 36 Burn (0/2)
[-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 76/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 184/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF 

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 10, 2020 by Baldur

[Mari 1]

 Mari wanted to pick herself back up and try again; that's all you could rally do in the face of adversity. If you got knocked down you just had to pick yourself up...right? Right? Mari pushed herself back off the ground. In a way, she was somewhat thankful she wasn't the only one who had missed. She was still right beneath the hulking ethereal form of the now two headed dog.

Mari got up, dusted herself off and picked her dagger up from the floor. It was then that she saw Baldur who had drawn the hate of the shadowy creature. She felt her heart still in her chest as she watched one latch onto his arm- then how he ignited. Mari shut her eyes and shook her head. Memories of the Hydra fight flooding into her mind… how the Hydra had crushed Rue - and how Alkor has disappered, seemingly swallowed whole.

No.

No no no… she wouldn't have that happen again. "BALDUR!" Her cry was filled with a pained desperation as she ran over to him.

 "A-are you ok?" She asked as he watched his clothes literally burn. "Uhmm..you're hot-I mean you're uh burning! You're burning!" Mari said as she tried to pat out the flames but to no avail. [censored]. That just slipped right out, huh.

He seemed fine...so did the others. Mari's eyes travelled to Macradon then to Cordelia. Right...these people were fighting by her side - not against her. None of them would draw a blade on her, or wedge it in her back, right? Mari breathed a sigh of relief as she turned her back on the azure samurai. "Sorry." She said to him.

Mari flipped her dagger into a reserve grip, activating the <<Eternal Cyclone skill>> And again, she tried to strike the Cerberus. This time she used nearby rocks and stalagmites to propel herself further and further upward. Enough so she was able to soar over the Cerberus' head. crap crap crap crap she had overestimated the height. Mari came crashing down into the ground behind the great big dog.  She hit the ground, hard - rocks landed on and around her -covering her in the pile of them. THe woman kinda wanted to stay there - cooped up in her painful, blistering hot rock pile...away from her embarassment and away from a battle she clearly wasn't needed in

 

. "Good job at trying to impress people you ginger idiot..." Mari muttered to herself. 

 

What a day...she had tried to organize a raid on a relatively easy boss. Then she found out she found the tall broad man known as Baldur attractive - oh but it looked like he had a thing with her friend so, well - that was out the window. Then when it really counted... she fumbled. Not once, not twice, but thrice.  It seemed like just when she was picking herself back up the world was like 'Haha looser' and threw her back down against the ground again

 

Yeh…

Maybe she should just stay here in her rocks

@Macradon @Cordelia @Baldur

ID:137515   BD: 1 +4-2=miss
11x13=143-75=68

[x13] Eternal Cyclone (11 Energy) - The user holds their dagger in a reverse-grip, and then spins wildly at high speeds, becoming a bladed whirlwind that strikes the target repeatedly.

[-/-] Baldur: HP: 1066/1330 | EN: 99/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  Burn (0/2)
[-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 76/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[-/-] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 184/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF 

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 11, 2020 by Mari

[Macradon 0]

After missing his main attack at the giant doggo, the middle head launched after the knight standing in front of it, but luckily enough, Macradon was fast enough to just bash its giant head to the side with the flat of his blade. “Shoo, shoo! Bad dog!” he exclaimed at the cerberus head. Baldur was in full battle prowess and easily took down a huge chunk of health from one of the heads of the great cerberus, but that also put him in the crosshairs of the beast. Baldur was the one to take the most brunt of force from the oncoming attacks, two of the heads went after him and sunk their teeth down into the samurai.

“Bal!” Macradon roared and went for a new attack. With how well he had taken care of the first attack, he would probably be able to handle the the by himself for now, and with that, Macradon looked around. “Both Mari and Cordelia have missed, they shouldn’t be in any danger from these dogs. If I can grab hate from the third head, I’ll be the one being targeted, and I can take hits easily, shouldn’t be a problem.” he thought and went for a low ascending slash rather than a descending slash like he engaged with.

“Hhhaaaaaggghhhh!” he roared as he rushed over to the third head. With a quick pull, the blade threw up from the ground and went straight for the cerberus’s third head, but unfortunately that attack was also thwarted. The attack was pushed to the side and the momentum Macradon had filled the attack with sent him to the side, smashing his sword into the ground once again. With heavy impact, the ground crackled from his cleave, and even though he missed his attack, he should still be the one being targeted. “Alright, I’m their main target right now, regroup and we should be able to take down the heads in a single rotation of attacks without anyone else than me from now on taking any damage!” he called out to the rest of the party.

ID: 137516
BD: 2-2+3=3 -> Miss.
CD: 9, Recovery Proc.
 Sword art used: Womp Womp, I missed

[-/-] Baldur: HP: 1066/1330 | EN: 99/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |  Burn (0/2)
[-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 76/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[1/1] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 187/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF (-2)(+7)

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 1: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 2: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia pressed her teeth against her as she tucked a strand of silver hair behind her ear before she returned her attention back to the fight at hand. Hair was annoying, especially hers. Though, it's not nearly as bad as it was before she had cut it, thank God. She wasn't sure if she could cut it any shorter than what it is right now, or else it'd feel completely unnatural to her. 

She shook her head and scolded herself mentally. Why was she thinking about hair? She was literally fighting a fire breathing three-headed dog--

"Holy sh-- that does not look right," Cordelia exclaimed quietly under her breath as she watched the first head completely disappear from the main body, leaving the two heads and. . . an almost horrific empty space where the first head once was. It looked like something straight out of a horror film or something like that. 

She looked over to Baldur, who had been the one who killed the first head. He looked fine, however his clothes did not. 

Her gaze swerved back to the dog(s). Alright, one down, two to go. If it only took a couple hits to take down the first head, then it should be a breeze for them to get the other two gone! 

Without a moment to waste, she darted towards the two-headed dog, and by the time she was in the air, Macradon had already commanded for a regrouping. "Are you serious?" She cried, finding it too late to be backing out of this attack since she was quite literally in front of the Cerberus now. Seeing that she had no where to really go, she opted to slam her katana down on one of the dog's head. A blinding light emitted from her blade as it made contact with the creature, which left Cordelia seeing spots in her vision as she pulled away from the Cerberus, skidding to a halt on the ground dizzily. 

She looked back to where she assumed the party was and made a sheepish smile unconsciously. "Whoops?"

---

ID: 137532
BD: 9, [+5 DMG] 14=5= 19x15=285-75=210 DMG 500-210= 290
CD: 10, +4 EN

[-/-] Baldur: HP: 1066/1330 | EN: 99/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 | 
[-/-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[2/-] Cordelia: HP: 920/920 | EN: 66/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[1/1] Macradon: HP: 1765/1765 | EN: 187/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 2: HP: 290/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

[Baldur 0]

Baldur looked up at Mari as she ran over to him, asking if he was okay and fussing over his taking damage and being on fire. The gesture honestly touched Baldur. He had been a solo fighter on the frontline for so long, he had forgotten what it was like for someone to worry over him. It was his job after all, to worry over the others. He gave her a brave, but tired and disoriented smile. After all the tumbling, and then suddenly entering a sword art stance mid fall and then tumbling, the gaijin samurai could barely tell which direction was up.

"Thanks Mari, I just need a moment to catch my bearings."

Thankfully, his allies had his back.

Mari charged forward against the Cerberus, leaping towards it's head as she distracted the creature while Macradon came up, and using his giant sword to partially phase through the ground, he threw up a giant cover of stone and debris to blind the final two heads of the devil dog allowing Cordelia to take advantage of the opening they had created and land a devastating blow on the second head of the monster. He was truely in awe of how well they worked together in order to create an opening and give the Samurai a moment of respite when the monster wasn't coming after him. Instead, the second head lashed out against his white haired kohai, and the third head bit down on Macradon. While Cordelia caught fire from the attack, Macradon did not, in spite of the fact that it breathed fire on him. Baldur was impressed, though worried when he saw how much Cordelia's health dropped.

Deep within the zone of concentration Baldur held in his mind while in battle, he felt the fires of fudoshin rage as his emotion of concern, and his protectiveness over Cordelia surged within him. He would make sure that Cordelia's health would not get any lower.

The white flame of her sword lingered slightly on the infernal hound, and Baldur took that opportunity to <<charge>> in.

"Here I go!"

Rushing forward, he leapt high into the air, his brilliant white sword making a now golden arc that cut through the heat and red ambiance of the flaming cave and struck the second head of the doggo like thunder. The white arc of light cut the head in twain, and the golden lightning shot all along the infernal, the paralytic effect did not take hold, but it caused the second head of the legendary beast to shatter into luminescent rain.

"Two down, one to go! We got this!"

---

ID# 137644 MD8+2-3 = 7 (hit) 175 DMG - 12 MIT = 163 DMG Dealt to Cordelia +36 Burn
ID# 137645 MD10 (crit) 250 DMG - (152/2 = 76) = 176 DMG Dealt to Macradon +36 Burn
ID# 137646 BD 9 (crit) 23+5=28x15=420 (blaze it) - 75 MIT = 345 DMG Dealt to Head 2

[-] Baldur: HP: 1083/1330 | EN: 88/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 | -12 EN, +1 EN, +53 HP, -36 Burn
[-] Mari:   HP: 1090/1090  | EN: 102/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2
[-] Cordelia: HP: 744/920 | EN: 66/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY -163 DMG 
[1] Macradon: HP: 1589/1765 | EN: 187/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF -176 DMG

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 2: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 500/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 13, 2020 by Baldur

[Mari 1]

She could hear them fighting. Through the cracks in the pile of rocks that had completely enveloped her she could see bits of the fight, bright flashes of sword arts. The cries of a fighting charge - and the concern for comrades.

Comrades that weren't her. Mari felt like no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't do anything right. She had failed in rallying everyone together - had failed in an attempt to lead the charge...hell...she couldn't even land a hit on the so called 'trash' of the floor. Everyone out there...they were working together, teamwork. They had each others backs. And what did Mari have? Herself. In a pile of rocks. Like the dirt she was. Her chest hurt - she felt like she couldn't breathe...and it wasn't just from the insanely hot heat that the beast emitted.

No one cares about you

...No one had come for her, had they? She had checked on Baldur when he had been set on fire - and a sweeping gaze at the time showed that both Macradon and Cordelia were doing well. But, she guessed- that here alone, it was where she belonged. Mari tried to shift the rocks, but they were heavy. "H-Help..." She tried to cry out, but it ended up in a series of coughs and splutters.

It's so hot...

Tears stung her eyes as she tried to lift the weight of the rocks off her, but to no avail. Instead more began to fall around her - she felt like she was being crushed. Her vision was blurry. F**k when was the last time I even ate? Last week?  Was this how she'd die? Forgotten under a pile of f**king rocks?  But how could she get out? No one could hear her crying for help.

How should she get out? Should she just lie here and wait for them to defeat the boss? No...Mari didn't think she'd be able to stay conscious long enough for that. She grit her teeth and flipped her dagger into a reserve hold. Activating the <<Eternal Cyclone>> Sword Art. The dagger flashed brightly and with a wave of her arm she broke through the rocks.

Up she arose, like a phoenix amongst the flames.... If that phoenix was covered in dirt, barely conscious and coughing up a lung. Mari started to run forward, up the pile of rocks, slipping and slidding as she ran - but Mari finally managed to get to a high enough point where she was on top of the Cerberus. Her feet burned - literally. Her shoes caught fire as she continued to run up the large dogs back. She pivoted on her foot and spun around, striking the Cerberus in his final head. Flames licked up her arm and she winced - sh*t This hurt. Mari was able to deal a marginal amount of damage before being slung off the ferocious beasts back.

SLAM

Into the wall, and Mari crumpled like a ragdoll, her arm and feet still aflame


@Cordelia @Macradon @Baldur

ID:137676     BD:9 Critical!  +4 -  -2 = SUCCESS
<<Eternal Cyclone>>
  12x13 = 156-75= 81

[-] Baldur: HP: 1083/1330 | EN: 88/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |
[-] Mari:   HP: 1054/1090  | EN: 91/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2 BURN -36
[-] Cordelia: HP: 744/920 | EN: 66/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[1] Macradon: HP: 1589/1765 | EN: 187/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 2: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2
Head 3: HP: 419/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

Edited March 13, 2020 by Mari

[Macradon 0]

Despite his plea for everyone to regroup and try to let the heads attack him, Cordelia was too engaged in the battle and went in for an attack, somewhat recklessly compared to how Baldur fought. They might have been student and teacher, but from the display in front of Macradon, there was still a long way between their fighting styles. He gritted his teeth but could do nothing about it at the moment.

The first to be attacked was Cordelia, she didn’t heed orders and went in on her own instinct, which was a bad decision. She grabbed the attention of the Cerberus and felt its anger as it bit down upon her. The other head attacked as well and chomped down on the knight. The hit against Macradon seemed to be much more violent than the one hitting Cordelia, but with the proportions to their Max Health, the girl took more damage in proportion to how much she had at her disposal.

There wasn’t much he could do at this point, he wanted to grab all the attention from the beast so everyone could stay safe, but he failed at that “Tanking without Howl is difficult … who would’ve guessed.” he thought for himself sarcastically. He looked around to get a good view of his party, someone was missing … Mari was missing. “Wh- where’d Mari go?” he asked out to the party after pushing the big Cerberus off himself.

He heard a sound … something … from a pile of rocks, was it a monster? Or had Mari fallen and unable to get back up. “I really need to find a way to keep focus at the battle at hand as well as keeping track of my party members so I can understand what’s going on, this isn’t an ideal situation at all" he thought. The rock began moving, something was emerging, someone was emerging. Out from the dirt came Mari “Oh, it was her.” he thought and watched her. The light, from what presumably was a sword art, gleamed through the cracks of the rocks as Mari burst out from within.

Macradon quickly waved a hand at Mari and said “Good to see you’re holding up strong!” he said with a smile and went back into battle again. With a quick movement, Macradon rushed up to the last remaining head after Baldur had taken good care of the second one, leaving the third as the last. “Take this you oversized mutt!” he roared as he charged up towards the big dog with his own big dog following behind him. Belphegor jumped up to distract the remaining head while Macradon snuck down below its head and began his <Galaxy Destroyer> sword art.

Gleaming orange light illuminated the closest area where Macradon’s blade shined, the sword was forced upwards towards the throat of the beast, and with a heavy cleave, Macradon’s sword began shining in a much brighter holy white light. The light left behind large gauging red scar on the best, fitting well with its already infernal aesthetic. It was not enough to kill it, but enough to take it down to a low number for everyone else to either join in to take it down or just watch because why not.

ID: 137739
BD: 9+3-2=10 -> Crit +1!
CD: 5 -> No Proc
Sword art used: Galaxy Destroyer -> 32x13-(75/2) = 379 Damage to Cerberus Head 3

[-] Baldur: HP: 1083/1330 | EN: 88/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |
[2] Mari:   HP: 1054/1090  | EN: 91/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2 BURN -36
[-] Cordelia: HP: 744/920 | EN: 66/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY
[4] Macradon: HP: 1677/1765 | EN: 177/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF (+88)(-10)

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 3: HP: 40/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

<< Bringing Hell >> : "Cerberus, Inferno's Rage" gains 1 attack for each head alive.
<< One at a Time >> : Players can only target one Head at a time before hitting another. AoE's do not work on this boss.
<< Burning Bite >> : On successful attacks, the player is inflicted with "Burn" dealing 36 unmitigatable damage for 2 turns.
<< Infernal Punishment >> : On a critical attacks, this boss gains additional damage and will phase through 50% of the target's mitigation on all attacks this turn. [9 = 25 | 10 = 75]
<< Bloodless >> : This boss is immune to all status effects.

[Cordelia 0]

"What the fu--"

Let's just say that dog can pack quite a punch, quite a punch indeed. The girl landed wobbly on her heels. She felt a lot hotter now-- oh look, she was burning. That's nice. 

Cordelia turned her head back to the now one headed Cerberus. She shuddered. It was even creepier now. Alright. One more hit. One more hit and the thing should be dead. One more hit. One more hit and then this whole quest would be over! 

Unfortunately, that's not how God wanted things to play out. No, no, no. He wanted her to completely miss. God's plans, folks. No, he wanted her to face plant into the dirt. Yes, yes. She was fine with that.

No, she wasn't fine with that. Not at all. 

Cordelia stuck her arm out, forming a thumbs up on her hand. "I'm okay!" She exclaimed, her voice muffled from being in the dirt.

---

ID: 137744
BD: 2+1=3, Miss
CD: 6 +4 EN

[-] Baldur: HP: 1083/1330 | EN: 88/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 |
[2] Mari:   HP: 1054/1090  | EN: 91/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2 BURN -36
[-] Cordelia: HP: 771/920 | EN: 69/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY +27 +3
[4] Macradon: HP: 1677/1765 | EN: 177/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 3: HP: 40/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

[Baldur 0]

This was it. It was the final moment of this bad doggos life. Baldur's steel eyes watched as Mari seemed to reappear out of nowhere and launched a valiant attack against the last remaining Cerberus head. Deep within, he felt a surge of pride and relief that she finally got a good hit in. Mac followed up, with another one of his patented and devastating blows. He swelled with pride when he saw Cordelia rising up to finish off the head...

And then fell flat on her face...

He winced slightly, and in that brief moment of neglect, Macradon was savaged by <<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>.

Or that's what Baldur thought he saw. Instead, Macradon appeared to have just barely dodged through the creature's maw and into safety.

Here we go. This is it.

Baldur walked up to <<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>. Fire drizzled from the massive beast's jaw, and each tooth was the size of Baldur's blade. It's fur would probably have appeared jet black in anything but the angry red light and fire that surrounded them. Steam slowly rose off the floor of the deep cave they were in, and the chasm itself gave them room to fight in its cathedral of fire.

For the briefest moment, once the monster had realized it hadn't caught Macradon in its jaws, Baldur wondered if it felt anything akin to fear.

Of course it doesn't, it's an AI.

Baldur smirked, as if he were getting too sentimental.

The creature looked down at Baldur, as the gaijin samurai calmly walked beneath its head, and it reared back, unleashing a howl that shook the chamber, and was abruptly silenced.

Baldur drew Warden's Fury once more, the sword coming free of the saya in a vertical arc, and the brilliant while light it unleashed surged up, the light almost taking a physical quality to it as it extended past his blade and cut the howl short, before finally severing the head. This time, it was the entire creature that broke into glowing polygons, which hung in the air for a moment, before they too, faded like so many monsters before it.

With a practiced, and familiar to some, almost ritualized process, Baldur cleaned non-existent blood from the sword before he sheathed it. As the sword clicked home, Baldur made as gesture as if throwing something away, before he took a deep breath, and turned back to face the rest of his party. His oceanic blue eyes seeking them out one after the other, and a wide smile on his face, even as the fire only just now burned and then was quenched as if by his joy.

"Well done everyone. I had underestimated how challenging this quest mob was. It was much faster than I anticipated."

Baldur walked over to Mari where she had been flung into a wall, though her HP was relatively unscathed, and offered her a hand up.

"We seem to have been a bit disjointed..." Baldur at least had the self awareness to blush, "but please, allow me to make it up to you. I have a scroll that will allow us to locate a dungeon on any floor we choose. What say we go up near the top and tackle a dungeon, and do it right this time?"

---

Cerberus ID#: 137961 MD: 6+3-4=5 (miss)

Baldur ID#:137962 BD: 6+7=13-2=11 (hit)
Iai 23x11=253 DMG - 75 MIT = 178 DMG Dealt

[-] Baldur: HP: 1053/1330 | EN: 79/130 | 23WF/26MM DMG | 7WF/6MM ACC | EVA 2 | MIT 79 | BH 53 | BURN -36, -30 Thorns, +53 HP, -10 EN, +1 EN
[2] Mari:   HP: 1054/1090  | EN: 91/106  | 11 DAM  | EVA 3 | MIT 43 | ACC 4 | FLAME AURA 2 
[-] Cordelia: HP: 735/920 | EN: 69/90 | 14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 ACC | 3 EVA | 1 PARA VNM [DF] | 2 REC | 4 HLY BURN -36
[4] Macradon: HP: 1677/1765 | EN: 177/187 | 19 DMG | 152 MIT | 3 ACC | 4 EVA | PHASE | 12 HLY | 6 REC | 88 BH | 36 FRTHRN | FIREPROOF

<<Cerberus, Inferno's Rage>>
Head 3: HP: 0/500 | DMG 175 | Flame Aura: 75 MIT/30 Thorns | Acc: 3 | Eva: 2

Edited March 16, 2020 by Baldur

[Macradon 0]

He clapped like at the end of a great play “Well done everyone.” he called out to his party “Went pretty well considering a few slip ups here and there, but we did end up taking down this beast quite fast.” he said and looked over at Cordelia “But seeing how fast the two of us could do it with me as a chewing toy …” he gestured between himself and Cordelia and continued “... I didn’t really doubt that the party of us four would be able to succeed against it like it was nothing.”.

“Is it time to talk now?” he asked himself and muttered, he would look as Baldur got closer to Mari “This would be the time to do so.” he muttered and went over to the two. “You know …” he said and began his little speech “Misunderstandings seem to be something our little Motley Crew here is prone to. Baldur is a friend of mine, a comrade, a battle brother, a really good friend, but not as you think.” he said and chortled, nearly laughing from realizing how weird it must’ve been for the others to witness their bromance.

“And Mari, she’s a dear friend of mine as well. I’ve only heard bad stuff about her from my old comrades, but with how I’ve seen her act, the way she’d been playful like any other childhood friend, I would nearly call her a best friend.” he smiled at the two. He stuck his sword down into the ground, he wasn’t really worried about the tip to chip, since stabs wasn’t really his thing, and with his now free hands, he put a hand on one of Baldur’s and Mari’s shoulders and pushed them together with a encouraging push “But it seems like you have a bit more to tell than I have.” he said and took a step beck.

“Now let’s see if this turns to any further misunderstandings.” he snickered for himself and wanted to see the new act in the play begin.

ID: 137969
CD: 4 -> No Proc.
EN: 178/187 

@Baldur @Cordelia @Mari

[Mari 1]

Mari groaned as she struggled to lift herself up off the ground with shaking arms. Her vision was blurred and a mixture of ash, soot, and sulphur filled her lungs. Luckily this ain't the real world else they'd all be dead from toxic fumes  Instead, it just smelt like someone ripped a big one. Mari fell back to the floor with an 'oomph' Then repeated the process, this time with a much louder groan. How frustrating.

"We seem to have been a bit disjointed..."

"Buh?"  Came Mari's dazed response as she looked up at the source of the voice. Oh... it was Baldur.  Attraction is a funny thing isn't it? It makes us see the world in rose-tinted glasses. When we look at the object of our affections, be it love, lust, or something else - they always seem like they're brighter than others around them. That was what Baldur was like to Mari - and she had no idea how to respond to such a thing. It certainly couldn't be feelings of romance, she'd met the man once - and once only. Mari didn't believe in foolish notions such as love at first sight, destiny, or fate - all those things she abhorred because it meant that life was just sh**ty to some people and it was out of their control.

He had reached a hand out to her, and Mari quickly grasped it to pull herself up. His cheeks alight in a small blush - was he being coy on purpose? His gaze slid to the side. Baldur was like the full moon over the winter snow. His form soft, yet bringing light to everything it touched. His nervous smile made Mari feel like there was beauty in a cruel world. He held an elegance to him, even after a fight - he had barely broken a sweat.

Meanwhile -

She was heaving, sweaty, and completely covered in dirt and mud.

"A dungeon?" Mari shifted her gaze to Macradon then Cordelia. "If the others are up to it I'm fine with that...but If I'm being honest I'd really like somewhere I could quickly wash off and-"

Macradon had approached, he talked about misunderstandings. She tilted her head, brows furrowing in confusion as to what he meant by...oh the wheels and cogs in her brain slowly began to tick over - turning through what he had said. Right...so they were just friends? Mari shifted her gaze from him to Baldur then back to him. She was almost skeptical. It looked so real there was no way they were faking it, right? Mari wanted to tell Macradon that it was fine to have those feelings. Who cares if it was with another man - it's not like the past where such a thing is frowned upon. The only ones who cared about that sorta thing these days were overly religious people, and people who had nothing better to do with their lives. "I uh..." Mari pushed her hair back behind her ear. "You sure? Because if ya'll have a thing going on I mean - that's your business, right?"

Macradon then began to explain her, and what her friendship meant to him. Mari couldn't help but let out an audible whimper. "M-Mac..." She shook her head. "I...no one's ever actually said anything that nice about me before." At least, not that she could recall. Mari really considered the white haired idiot savant to be her closest friend. She opened her mouth to say more on the matter, but before she could mutter any semblance of a word she felt Macradon's arm around her shoulder - Then she felt him try to push both her and Baldur together.

"W-whoaa..." Mari fell forward - now, Baldur was at least two to three heads taller than her, so thankfully she didn't headbutt him in his skull, that would be the last thing she needed - instead teh crown of her head hit the soft material of his Haori. "S-sorry!" Mari said as she quickly tried to pull away. "I don't wanna make you dirty."

Where the heck is Cordelia in all this? Maybe she could pull Macradon away by the ear.

"So...about that dungeon?" That must have been what Macradon meant right? Since that was what they were talking about before he came up to them.

@Cordelia @Baldur @Macradon

 

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia giggled as she dizzily stood up from her spot. "Do you guys think we can have concussions in here?" She mumbled, rubbing the side of her head as she blinked feverishly. 

Cordelia nodded along to Macradon before she blinked a few times again. There were still spots in her vision but those should go away soon, she hoped. "Psh, yeah. That thing is nothing," she muttered, waving him off like it was no big deal. She crossed her arms and sniffed. "I didn't come buffed this time, so that was probably why I did worse," she sniffed again, bringing her arms above her head as she let out a small yawn.

Well, she was totally involved with this conversation. She did a mental shrug. It wasn't her place. Those three probably have been friends for years or something, it was only polite to let them talk out. . . whatever they needed to talk out. 

Though, she was pretty sure Macradon was playing Cupid. Now, it wasn't her place to intervene but at least she can watch this whole fiasco happen. It was somewhat cute and somewhat comedic, but, she honestly would prefer Mari with Baldur than. . . Macradon. 

"Heh-heh-- did you say dungeon?"

765/920 +30 70/90 +1

[Baldur 0]

Baldur let out a slight Oof as Macradon pushed the two of them together and Mari ended up headbutting Baldur's solar plexus. Or would have if he had one. Mari apologized to Baldur for making him dirty, as if that were something he were concerned with. Something about her seemed off though. She seemed embarrassed. Thoughts raced through Baldur's mind. What could it be that's embarrassing her? Well, she's used to being a recluse, so maybe being around so many people? Or perhaps she feels embarrassed about her performance? The last one didn't seem to make sense, as her performance wasn't that different from Macradon nor Cordelia.

He placed both of his hands on Mari's shoulders, and gave her a reassuring smile.

"You did well today, Mari. I am sorry we didn't follow anything resembling a plan. Macradon and I can be a bit... impetuous when it comes to some of these fights. We don't treat them as danger-less, but we have a higher threshold for what makes us put on our game faces, if that makes sense?" Baldur normally tried to take every fight as if it were dangerous, but even he at least had a threshold of safety. Trash mobs rarely qualified to even require him buffing himself, though that had caused himself, Calrex, and Hestia no end of headache in the <<Hidden Village>> quest.

He gave her shoulders a slight, encouraging pat, "Your strategy was fine, we just... went a little ham. And for that, I apologize." Baldur stepped back, and gave her a more formal bow of apology as befitted a samurai of his station.

"I think it's best we call it there though. We can clean up and rest and pursue dungeons another day. For now, let's get the hell out of the place and go somewhere cooler."

[Mari 1]

"W-but...I'm all dirty and sweaty..." Mari tried to protest as she felt Baldur place a hand on either one of her shoulders. The warmth that leeched into her skin from the contact was welcomed, unlike the thick heat that permeated in the air around them. Mari tried to look at places that wasn't his face, or his kind eyes - or his stupid sexy clavicles. Why was he being so nice? Mari shifted her gaze first to Cordelia. Hoping the other woman could read her mind.

Help me Cordelia - I don't think I can handle this right now

She thought real hard at her white haired companion, hoping that her thoughts would reach the other woman. "It's ahh...it's ok." Mari said as she finally relented and her eyes swiveled back over to Baldur. "These things happen, right?" She offered him a faint smile - how could she not smile when he was so close? Mari wasn't sure why he was being so nice to her right now, did she look like that much of a mess? Did she fail that horribly? Was she that much of an outsider that he felt the need to single her out? "I gotta remember I'm not exactly in charge - we're all in this together, right?" She asked as she rose her hands so they'd cover his. Gods I hope my hands aren't all clammy and gross, my heart feels like It's gonna just bust out of my chest. F**k.

Just as he had given her an encouraging pat, Mari returned it by squeezing his hands before letting go. "You don't have to apologize really..ah..." Oh he was bowing to her. Mari waved her hands in front of him trying to get him to stop. "S-stop you're not, ah that's not necessary yanno? Really. I got the item I needed - I wanted to make my dagger Bleed Bleed Burn Burn - so this worked out really well for me anyway. Sides..." She tugged on her hair. "It was....really nice being able to see you fight - you were really something out there."

She gave him a toothy grin as he suggested that there would be a next time. "You'll just have to owe me a dungeon then - won't you?"