THE ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN

[MISERY 1]

Then, finally, MISERY's slender fingers left the ivory and obsidian keys of the piano.

Never before had he come so awash with emotion and muse. The selection he'd composed was a masterful illustration of wonder, deceit, humor, misery, and death. It was chaotic, and glorious in that chaos. Never before, and likely never again, would he be capable of creating such a work of art. It was far beyond his technical skill as a pianist, and he himself wasn't quite sure how he'd managed it. His fingers had flowed across the keys as though possessed, while invasive, ridiculous imagery flooded his mind all the while. Even as he studied the notes he'd scribbled down during the whole ordeal, he wasn't sure that he would ever be able to play it again with the mastery and utility he'd displayed during its composition. It was equally as proud a moment for MISERY as it was filled with chagrin. His greatest work, and he might never be able to share it.

It was late, and he was exhausted. He left the bench for now, vowing to come back at a later time and attempt to emulate the masterpiece he'd composed. It could make for some good crystals.

[Lilik 0]

Both ruby eyes flew open, gleaming dangerously in the dim light. The long woman sat up, right hand grabbing for the spear that rest beside her bed every night. Before Aincrad, her instinct would have been to grasp the knife or the pistol beneath her pillow. Now, of course, things were very different. Well, not so different - the night terrors had stuck around.

Lilik's chest rose and fell on ragged breaths, the pointy end of her spear sweeping the air in front of her as she pivoted atop the tiny mattress. With her legs tangled in the thin sheets, maneuverability was limited, but she could still take in the entire room. Nothing there. Of course there's nothing here, the spearswoman thought with a huff, replacing her weapon against the headboard. What had she really expected, to find a giant lizard stomping around her teeny hotel room? That might be more terrifying than the dream itself.

Muttering a colorful string of curses, Lilik flopped back over onto her stomach. "I shouldn't have eaten that burrito," she told the empty room, before falling into fitful sleep.

Edited June 21, 2020 by Lilik

[NIGHT 0]

In the days to come, Aincrad would see its first group-induced hallucination be whispered amongst the townsfolk. A fabled myth, or a sincere occurrence that they'd genuinely forgotten? It was hard to say, for most. It would be easy to dismiss for NIGHT.

But while she was still there, still real, so were the gods underneath that heavenly, divine light. Close as she was, she was able to watch the sun shine down in between the cracks of the clouds, as each figure started to slowly drift away. The fish, the swine, and as her sword tried to meet the skin of the goblin there was a flash that repelled her away, sending her sliding across the floor of the Town of Beginnings. No more, the deities had decided. Enough fighting for one day. But surely, there would be more to come, NIGHT argued, an invisible weight holding her in position as the revelry came to an end. That they would be seen once again, a terror upon the rabble, this force that had shown itself once had to be stopped. Before it became too late in the future.

She would receive no response in turn.

The world was hazy, grim, and quiet. As the final colours of green finally faded into the stratosphere, reality darkened, the inky blots of shadows pushing themselves to the forefront as traces of saturation glowed fervently, a battle of an overexposed image played real. And all at once, the intensity faded. The Town of Beginnings returned to normal. Overhead, the players were greeted with a clear blue sky, the cirrus whites streaking across the nation, and buildings restored their white surfaces, completely devoid of any murky shades and scratches they might've registered from the end of the world just seconds before.

The grip that had held her in place had finally been lifted. And NIGHT picked herself up from the floor, two fingers rubbing at the bridge of her nose and wiping at her eyes. By Cardinal, she was tired. But at least the apocalypse hadn't exactly started just yet.

If there were any mind-games to be played by the system, NIGHT would shrug them off to contemplate for another day. She brushed paths with Yuki, just long enough to hear her take her leave, before turning over to Arabelle, curious to their strategist's take on the... occurrence. Still, even if the girl had said anything, NIGHT was too busy, too weary and too exhausted to have heard it. A curt nod and a wave was the best she could manage, before heavy steps hurried to take her home.

When NIGHT finally stepped through the door to her house, she fell.

Into the arms of an angel.

[Elora 0]

Help...

Please...

Anyone...

 

"Help me" Elora mumbled with a ragged voice. Finally, she had been able to utter a sound. Before she could cry out again, her vision sharpened to focus on the ceiling planks above her. She was laying stiffly on her back, unable to move any of her limbs. Gradually, she began to regain sensation in her body, and the panicked hallucinogenic state subsided into somber disillusionment. 

Elora groggily rolled onto her side, hopping that it would prevent her from succumbing to paralysis again. All of her past episodes always caused terrifying nightmares, not grandiose dreams of personal triumph. Then again, she'd never entered the sleep-state within the construct of a virtual world. The thought of entering a dream within a dream, it was all very....meta.

I almost wish this one had been real. Who knows if I'll ever really be able to fight in a battle of that size... Perhaps the most frustrating part to her wasn't that her achievement wasn't real, but that if it had been, it wouldn't have been enough. Sure, I landed an amazing hit on that monster, but it did so little damage compared to everyone else's attacks...Even worse, I was by far the weakest player there. If anything like that really happens, I'll be killed the second I step onto the field. 

 

The words she had pleaded repeatedly echoed in her mind. It wasn't her desire to get help or find sympathy in others. She needed to show them that she was valuable and that she could contribute substantially to the strife. I'm not going to give them a reason to look down on me. 

I need to be better.

Edited June 21, 2020 by Elora

[Zandra 0]

The three kings was flexing, the players was flexing, everyone on the big field was flexing. What was going on he...

Suddenly Zandra inhalled as she woke up with a bang. She sat up in her big doublebed and breathed heavily. The pillow and quilt was soaked. She felt her body trembling and her skin was shiny by the layer of sweat that covered her. Her head went back and forth as she tried to orientate where she was. Wasnt she on a field just seconds ago? Wherever she was, she wasnt on a field now. But, what had she done on that field? She tried to remeber but suddenly everything was blurry. Except one thing. She had been wearing that schoolgirl uniform. She quickly left the bed. As she rushed to the mirror, the quilt fell down on the floor with a deep thud. When she got to the fullbody mirror her breath started to relax. She recognized the mirror as her own. She was back in her own bedroom. And in the mirror, Zandra was staring back at her. Those deep red eyes, the long, black hair. And the moonlight was reflecting in her smooth sweaty and [-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------censoured------------------------------------------------------------------------------------].

Edited June 21, 2020 by Zandra

[Basuke 0]

If the divine had left, it must've been to sheer second-hand embarrassment upon watching Basuke make a fool of himself -- again. Once his familiar had left him, he'd turned his back upon their visage, chasing the worm through the crowd only a few steps away.

When he returned to An's side -- if she was still there, of course -- they were gone.

Oh my gosh. Did his vlog act actually work?

"Hah!" The boy grinned, hugging his tsuchinoko close to his form. "Had it planned all along!" He did not, in fact, know anything of the bosses. But Basuke was happy nonetheless, almost bouncing on his feet and ready to take on another day.

Except it was lunch time. Actually, slightly past lunch time. The boy was incredibly hungry by now, when he'd paid attention to his tummy's rumblings, and in turn his familiar did scree. He'd look over to Andromeda, perhaps, if his friend had still remained, and cocked his head to the side with an uneasy smile. "You think stores still open for food?"

Worst case scenario, he'd find that he'd have to starve. Best case scenario: an outing for food, and traded excitement with a new friend.

Basuke out.

[Calrex 0]

Almost immediately after he had arrived to assist, the armored blue knight saw the three "gods" make their exit, seemingly having grown bored from the players attempts to fell them. That being said, Calrex also made note of the fact that more than half of his health was eliminated and shortened from their single atta...flexing. Giving a small sigh his armor vanished, being immediately replaced by his casual attire, the Grand Legionbane returning to his inventory. Eyes closed the bluenette scratched the back of his head before turning around, orienting himself back towards the first floor settlement, "I'm...just gonna go back to the cafe..."

Not really giving notice to the people around him outside of avoiding walking into them, hands in his jacket pockets. This was by far the oddest thing he had witnessed in all of his time exploring Aincrad. "I swear that Cardinal must have been on something if it decided to come up with something like this..."

It wasn't long before he was back at the gates, giving a small glance at the two guards protecting the border. With that he immediately turned right, navigating through the streets until his eyes were met with the entrance to the Starlight Cafe. Opening the store he gave a exasperated sigh, muttering while the door closed behind him.

"What in the ever-loving -XD-..."

[Snow 0]

Snow’s arm released from its coiled tension. Her idea of a final blow, completely stripped of all her gear, swung for Rain Minion’s maw. It’s hand pointed raised. The barrel leveled with her face, and she stared down the black abyss of perpetual night and slumber.

But it didn’t stop.

The gun peaked toward the heavens and the roar gunfire cracked across the battlefield like boisterous thunder. The Snow’s fist halted nearly a hair’s breadth from Rain Minion’s avatar by the concussive force of the first round. The second pull of the trigger slapped her tiny frame to the ground. Each following shot sent her head over heel through the field until the acoustic barrage ceased and the sky clouds bled streams of light.

”Wack.” One twisted word from twisted lips sealed the final notes of the battle and all three gods of chaos lifted into the sky.

Hair disheveled, numbness racking every inch of her body, Snow flopped to her back. The sight of the three departing should have been relieving. Instead, she felt sick, defeated, and overwhelmed. Smears of dirt tarnished her clothes and grass sloppily wove throughout her locks of blonde.

”At least...” She paused under the weight of her chest. Surely something broke. “At least it’s over.” 

How will I ever explain this to Yggdra and the others...?

Spoiler

ID# 154551 results:   Battle: 8 +4 Craft: 11   Loot: 12   MOB: 1

ONE PUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!

 

Edited June 21, 2020 by Snow

[Freyd 0]

Freyd was having an absolutely splendid dream.  He hadn't had such a blissful night since well before entering this living nightmare world.  It had started oddly, with a trio of gigantic oddballs that could beat up people by sheer machismo.  That part hadn't been so good.  Things got progressively worse as the cycle of injury repeated, and as the few players with enough nerve to fight back started losing their minds.  Some were getting into flex-offs against the bosses.  Others were running around like maniacs.  A good third seemingly standing around doing nothing but navel gazing.  Only a mere handful were actually still actively fighting.  Cardinal's fingerprints were all over the scene.  Freyd could practically hear the robotic cackle of his digital nemesis' voice in the background.

But, what began as a nightmarish scenario took a decidedly upward turn when he'd had enough of it all, attempted to take charge of his destiny, and kicked the biggest of the boss-bads in the nuts. 

"WACK" it cried, surely crippled by agony.  From Freyd's perspective, the timing coincided perfectly with his assault on Rain Minion 12's private bits, and was delivered so forcefully that all three villains were launched into the high heavens, never to be seen again.  

It was a nice feel-good moment, and he felt especially pleased with himself as he turned to look at all of the other gathered players celebrating over their collective victory.  Most of his dreams stayed well-entrenched in nightmare territory.

***

Waking with a pleased, goofy smile on his face, Freyd swung his legs to the floor and slipped on his pair of weathered boots.  He was looking forward to having a house built soon, if he could just find a suitably secretive site.  These inns were getting expensive.  Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he caught his reflection in the mirror.  A dark realization suddenly dawned.  Opening a notepad from his menu, he started jotting down the names of every player he could recall from the dream.  Opening another window, he searched for those names and any images that might be available on the public forums.  Every single one of them matched, perfectly.  

He'd only met one or two of the players gathered in the square during the battle.  How was it, then, that he'd imagined and pictured dozens more that he had never met or seen before with absolute accuracy?

Freyd's smile faded, as he imagined his face blanching.  In the mirror, the reflection's grin grew wider and more menacing as the brown of its eyes deepened and turned to crimson red.

[Assassin 0]

Assassin winced upon receiving more scolding from her older sister. The girl was just trying to have fun in the first place. She didn't mean to get sucked into this event, it kind of just happened for her. As the hooded figure made her way out, Assassin followed behind her.

"N-Nee-san, wait! I'm sorry, I'll do better. I'm still learning how to keep myself alive. I know I'm not doing the best but I want to keep practicing with you." She says finally catching up to the other woman enough to slow down her speed. The child gave her a smile, trying to get on Hidden's good side again. She already knew that she was having a hard time getting used to having someone close to her, so she didn't want to push her luck to much, lest Hidden leave her behind. That was something that she definitely didn't want.

[Setsuna 0]

A victory? perhaps just a bit more was all they needed, she looks to Kasumi and Raidou in earnest, then she snaps awake. Within the walls of the guild hall it seemed she had fallen asleep in the dormant building, positioned with her back against one of the walls with her weapon's handle pressed against her neck which was cold on her throat. "peculiar." was all the girl mutters, the strange premise should have proven that it was in fact a figment and in hindsight, she could see that now but it was so vivid and real. The sleepless nights must have done something to psych and she made a note to attempt to get more rest instead of prowling about as she has days prior, as the horrifying results where uncontested. She lulls and manages to shut her eyes once again, hoping to repress the nightmare that was: Rain Minion 12

[Kasumi 0]

Common ground found the beast seems to retreat, but it was curious if it was due to their efforts or it had simply tired of their attempts. A smile paid to those that stood with her "We did it!" she exclaims before her vision goes black. She awakes inside her shop, a bit precariously sleeping within a stool with her head upon her workbench. "I must have dozed off." Kasumi whispers to the enclosure, looking down at the ring she was working on before this had happened. An onyx band still unset with a jewel she was cutting, she coined this as the culprit of her bad dreams. Removing it and dropping it into a waste bin the object was surely cursed. "No thanks." she overlooks it as it becomes buried in fragments of glass and metal shavings, hopefully, lost to time and the horror would remain gone for eternity.

[The Kings 2]

Deadline reached. Event has officially concluded. Final rewards are posted in the spoiler below. 
 

Spoiler

@tricolor_mina: 3 SP
@Calrex: 3 SP
@Hidden: 3 SP
@Shield: 3 SP
@Lilik: 6 SP
@Zandra: 6 SP
@Zajcica: 10 SP
@NIGHT: 10 SP
@Basuke: 10 SP
@Pinball: 9 SP
@Mari: 9 SP
@Oscar: 9 SP
@Arabelle: 9 SP
@Freyd - The Whisper in Shadows: 10 SP
@Raidou: 10 SP
@Gaius: 9 SP
@Shiina: 9 SP
@Simmone: 9 SP
@Macradon: 10 SP
@Eruda: 10 SP
@Sam: 10 SP
@Snow: 10 SP
@claim: 9 SP
@Shay: 10 SP
@Shye: 10 SP
@Megitsune: 10 SP
@Assassin: 10 SP
@Bahr: 10 SP
@Ariel - The Crowned Lion: 9 SP
@Dracul: 9 SP
@Andromeda: 9 SP
@Cordelia: 9 SP
@Elora: 9 SP
@Crozeph: 10 SP
@Lessa: 9 SP
@Jackpot: 10 SP
@Dederick: 10 SP
@MISERY: 10 SP
@Warren: 9 SP
@Krysta: 10 SP
@Vigilon: 10 SP
@Astralin: 10 SP
@Dazia: 10 SP
@Bistro: 9 SP
@Setsuna: 9 SP
@Kasumi: 9 SP
@Griswold: 9 SP