F03/SP The Hunt <<DHA4>>

[Oscar 0]

DHA 4
First Part
TW: We're gonna need a flashlight

"Look at the time! I have a quest to finish. Let's get this over with," Oscar said.

Megin-Fi
Talia
Asketil
Phaedra
Adren

They had, quite literally, had the misfortune of making Oscar's shit list. To be fair though, only two of them were still on the list. Sorry, three. He hadn't killed Phaedra yet. The lanky man was between a rock and a hard place. You see, it would have been too easy for them to dash back to the city. Oscar had to make things a bit more interesting. As it turned out, setting the forest ablaze with Tesseleth's Fury made it plenty interesting. Now, Phaedra had allowed the flames to push him towards some fallen trees. Try as he might, he couldn't find the handholds to clamber over the felled trunks. Oscar watched from one of the branches of one of the trees that hadn't caught on fire yet. In preparation for the fights to come, Oscar consumed a few buffs and sorted his equipment. Phaedra wasn't going anywhere. Oscar would take his time.

Spoiler

Oscar - Lvl 68
1390 HP
136 Energy
5 Accuracy (+1 Mod, +2 Gear +2 Food)
5 Evasion (+1 Mod, +2 Gear +2 Food)
23 Base Damage - (1 Base +7 Skill +1 Ferocity +9 Familiar +1 Athletics +1 Totem +3 Potion)
106 Mitigation 
12 Fallen
2 Burn

Equipment
Tesseleth’s Fury [Tier 3 Demonic Two-Handed Battleaxe] | Fallen, Fallen, Burn, Burn
Money Shot [Tier 3 Perfect Two-Handed Battleaxe] | Absolute Accuracy, ACC, Bleed
Tactical Outfitting Mk.III [Tier 3 Demonic Light Armor] | Vampiric (Defensive), Para Immune, Rec, Rec
Mythril Greaves [Tier 3 Perfect Heavy Armor] |  +81 MIT
Gloves of Caerus [Tier 1 Perfect Light Armor] | +3 Loot Die
Ivory Gold Leaf Ring [Tier 1 Demonic Trinket] | ACC, ACC, EVA, EVA

Familiar
Leeroy & Jenkins - Familiar: +9 DMG

Battle Ready Inventory
Teleportation Crystal
Empty Inventory Slot |
Empty Inventory Slot |
Empty Inventory Slot |
Empty Inventory Slot |
Empty Inventory Slot |

Buffs
Well-Rested: -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat.
Filling: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 slot.
Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
Skylight: Expertise - Rank 5 Searching
Squeaky Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 25%
Kumatetsu Statue | +1 DMG
Focused Dog | +2 ACC
Evasion Dog | +2 EVA
Azrael's Sports Drink | +3 DMG

Skills
2HBA - Rank 5: +8 Damage
Light Armor - Rank 5: +25 Damage Mitigation
Battle Healing - Rank 5: Recover 5% of Max HP every round while in combat
Searching - Rank 5: +5 LD, +5 Stealth Detection
Concentration: +1 to your BD (3 turn cooldown)
Survival: Heal 15*Tier HP when out of battle
Parry: 2-turn CD, 5 EN Half damage of next attack and remove Stun/Paralysis effects
First Aid: Rank 3: Restore 12% of target’s max health [Cost: 4% of healing done]
Fishing - Use a Post Action to attempt to Fish, results determined by CD roll.

Skill Mods
Ferocity: +1 Base Damage
Athletics: +1 Base Damage, Max HP by 10*tier
Precision: +1 ACC
Justified Riposte:  Successful Parries Stun Opponent, 3 Turn CD
Finesse Rank 3: -3 EN on 2HBA Sword Arts
Sprint & Acrobatics: +1 EVA
 

 

[Oscar 0]

There was a certain amusement to be founding in watching Phaedra scurry about - searching fruitlessly for a way out. But, as amusing as it was, every moment he spent drinking it all in was a moment spent not crushing his enemies under his heel. Oscar hopped down from the tree onto the forest floor. It was awash in black flame, but they parted to allow Oscar to pass. The Fury of the Tyrant granted him dominion over the flames. Which was weird. Cardinal really had a lot of shit to patch. How had the state of the game deteriorated to the point where a player with a boss drop could light a forest on fire? Questions for men bigger than Oscar. For now, he had much bigger concerns. The flames danced across the surface of his weapon as he slammed his weapon down onto Phaedra's back. His health bar tanked. To his credit, the man whirled about and tried to thrust a wicked-looking spear into Oscar's gut. But given the axe in his back making it difficult to move, that was little more than a token attempt at attacking.

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 124/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [1/3] | ID: 168557 | BD: 4+5, Deal 243 DMG

Explode Catapult[x14] - 12 EN

Phaedra HP: 957/1200 | EN: 118/120 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 79 | 12 HLY | ID: 168558 | BD: 7+3-5, Miss

Dimensional Stampede[x15] - 2 EN

[Oscar 0]

Oscar didn't say a word as he ripped his back rather unceremoniously from Phaedra's back. He spun the weapon down, allowing it to hang limply to his side. Oscar's expression was deadpan, his eyes inscrutable from behind his large shades. He'd already gotten his hands dirty - though no one would hold it against him. Savagely slaying player-killers was every civilian's wet dream back in the Town of Beginnings. Their names had been mired in blood already. Oscar was doing Aincrad a favor by getting rid of them. And if their deaths made the inferno raging in his chest abate just a bit so be it. His arm moved suddenly at improbable speed, Tesseleth's Fury arcing through the air and carving a deep gash into Phaedra's chest. He stepped to the right, avoiding the tip of the spear just barely. Unconcerned about the man's weapon, Oscar advanced and Phaedra retreated - pushing the man closer to the wall of flame. 

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 113/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [2/3]  | ID: 168559 | BD: 2+5, Deal 243 DMG

Explode Catapult[x14] - 12 EN

Phaedra HP: 714/1200 | EN: 117/120 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 79 | 12 HLY | ID: 168560 | BD: 7+3-5, Miss

Dimensional Stampede[x15] - 2 EN

[Oscar 0]

Phaedra had realized he was cornered like a rat. He thrust his spear forward, aiming it directly for Oscar's chest. Oscar spun Tesseleth's Fury over the back of his hand, throwing Phaedra's blow off target. He felt the wind of the spear passing a hairsbreadth from his cheek. He caught his weapon and drove the blade deep into Phaedra's shoulder. He forced the man to his knees before ripping the wicked weapon from his body.

"Why are you doing this?!" Terror was plain on his face. Wide-eyed, panicked. At this, some emotion had been roused from Oscar. The corner of his mouth cracked into a half-smile.

They were getting close. Close to the perfect final moment. When Phaedra's fear reached its apex and Oscar finally ended him.

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 102/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [3/3]  | ID: 168561 | BD: 5+5, Deal 243 DMG

Explode Catapult[x14] - 12 EN

Phaedra HP: 471/1200 | EN: 115/120 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 79 | 12 HLY | ID: 168562 | BD: 1+3-5, Miss

Dimensional Stampede[x15] - 2 EN

[Oscar 0]

Another gash was swiped across Phaedra's chest. His health bar had been completely eviscerated. Phaedra was primed to fall. But Oscar would hold back. He would allow the gravity of the situation to seep into Phaedra's mind. He was low on health, surrounded completely by flame, and faced with a man completely devoted to the prospect of his discontinued existence. His escape routes were gone. Oscar could see it in his eyes. The gears turning. Phaedra lashed out - a different Art. A Stun art, actually. Perhaps he hoped that if he stunned Oscar, he would find a way out. Smart, but ultimately desperate. The attack was easily parried. With his attack deflected and having not even landed a single hit upon his foe, Phaedra sunk to his knees. The light had faded from his eyes. He looked towards the smoke-laden sky with a completely glassed expression. 

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 90/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [3/3]  | ID: 168563 | BD: 4+5, Deal 243 DMG

Explode Catapult[x14] - 13 EN

Phaedra HP: 228/1200 | EN: 114/120 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 79 | 12 HLY | ID: 168564 | BD: 2+3-5, Miss

Divide[x8 Stun] - 2 EN

[Oscar 0]

Hope faded, devoured down to its very core by fear.

The parameters were acceptable. One would think Oscar would revel in having crushed his opponent so thoroughly. But, ultimately, this was merely a task to be done. The first in a long line of monstrous deeds that would be carried out by his hands. Each more depraved than the last that would culminate finally with the death of his former protégé. He'd lost the right to call himself a child when he'd come after his friends. Oscar raised his weapon above his head. Phaedra didn't even react. He'd accepted his death. It was the only logical outcome. Best not to keep him waiting. The Executioner brought the Fury of the Tyrant down on Phaedra's head, turning him to dust in an explosion of black flame. The flames faded, leaving only a scorch mark where Phaedra had fallen to his knees. Without so much as a blink toward the act of depravity he'd just committed, Oscar flipped his axe up to his shoulder and abruptly turned on his heels. There was more game to hunt.

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 78/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [3/3]  | ID: 168565 | BD: 8+5, Deal 411 DMG, 36 BRN

Explode Catapult[x14] - 13 EN

Phaedra HP: 0/1200 | EN: 114/120 | DMG: 19 | ACC: 3 | EVA: 0 | MIT: 79 | 12 HLY | ID: 168564 | BD: 2+3-5, Miss

[Oscar 0]

Megin-Fi
Talia
Asketil
Phaedra
Adren

Three down, two to go. But who next was the question. Adren would be an easy kill. Phaedra and Talia had been the heavy-hitters. The other three seemed to only be a part of the group for intimidation. Perhaps it would be best to save him for last? Not a chance. Talia suffers most. How better to further her suffering than to confront her with the deaths of her companions? All of her companions. It was a simple matter of tracking Adren down. Which is where his Searching skill came in. Having come in contact with the Player, Oscar was able to follow a vague trail towards its general direction. He returned to the canopy, eyes glowing yellow as he followed the trail across the forest floor below. But there was an interesting development. Adren and Talia were fleeing together. How chivalrous of him. It was going to get him killed, but it was certainly chivalrous.

[Oscar 0]

Leaping from branch to branch was certainly the right way to get around. He covered more ground more quickly than they could ever hope to. The inferno was behind him. The System must have caught on to the anomaly and halted any further progression. Oh well. Oscar was almost upon Adren and Talia. He saw movement below. Moving lower, he clung to the tree to prevent giving himself away too early. He saw Adren curled up on the ground, wild-eyed and panicked. Oscar hadn't even touched him yet and the man had lost his nerve. Pathetic.

"I didn't sign up for this Talia!" He wailed. "We were just supposed to beat up the blonde guy a little bit. No one said anything about killing!" Ironic considering the orange crystal that hovered over his head. Talia stopped cold, looking back the way they came. She looked genuinely concerned. She stepped forward, kneeling down to comfort the man.

"I had different orders. I'm sorry. If I'd known... I didn't mean to put you in danger," she said.

[Oscar 0]

"Who is that guy," Adren asked, his voice just a bit calmer now.

"Someone the boss really hates. We've been messing with him and his friends for a while. The boss figured that because he didn't know the patsy too well, it was a safe kill. Just another way to hurt him. All this time I thought the boss had all the answers. I've learned my lesson," Talia replied.

Oscar gasped softly as visions of the past swirled in his mind. He was back home - the home that The Major had raised him in. It was a day he had forgotten until now. Perhaps the most important conversation - and there were many - he'd ever had with the man who sheltered him. Oscar had just graduated from college, job offers were lined up. He didn't know where he was going to go now. The last bit of wisdom the Major had ever given him.

The First Rule.

[Oscar 0]

"Hey Oscar, give me a hand with this!" The Major called. A man of average height and muscular build. He bore the scars on his face and arms like badges of honor. IED from Desert Storm he always said, chest puffed out and pride welling in his eyes. It always came before he mentioned pulling half his buddy out of a ditch after a fire fight. He bore himself with confidence - the trained swagger of a soldier. Oscar had just clambered out of his too-small car. With a chuckle, he dropped his bag on the ground and headed over to the Major's truck. A freshly-hunted buck was laying on a tarp in the bed. The two of them pulled and strained but finally got the thing off the truck and over to a hook in the barn behind the house. The Major patted his pockets and swore. Out of instinct, Oscar's hand shot to his own pocket and produced a knife. He offered it to the Major without a word, leaning against a nearby support beam to catch his breath.

[Oscar 0]

"Rule Number Seven," Oscar said breathlessly. "Always carry a knife."

The Major cracked a smile and nodded, taking the knife from Oscar. He flipped it open and gashed open the buck's throat. Crimson blood flowed like water into a trough dug into the dirt floor that would carry it out of the building. The Major wiped the blood off on his pants and handed it back to Oscar, blade open. Oscar held up his hand and shook his head.

"Rule Number 18. Never close a knife you didn't open," Oscar corrected. The Major nodded, closed the knife, and handed it back to Oscar who - this time - accepted and returned it to his pocket.

"Hell of a kill," Oscar said. He counted the points on the antlers. "Eighteen-pointer. Might be mantle material."

[Oscar 0]

"Yeah, I'd been tracking him all morning. Almost shook me twice. Tammy's tired of these fucks eating her roses. Figured the smell of blood would keep em away," the Major said.

Smart thinking. Deer were skittish. They smell blood, they run the other direction. "I suppose the rest of this guy is dinner?"

"Nah. We're celebrating tonight! Tammy insisted we make your favorite. Besides, no way in Hell I can skin and gut this in time for dinner."

Oscar's mouth starting watering at the thought. "Tacos? Really? Usually have to beg you guys to make those."

"Yeah! It ain't every day your son graduates! Sorry we couldn't be there for the ceremony. Tammy's been getting worse. She couldn't get out of bed that morning," the Major said, a wisp of mournfulness in his voice. Oscar frowned and watched the blood flow. A bit macabre, but there wasn't much else to look at. It was better than the alternative, certainly.

[Oscar 0]

Cancer. It had hit her lymph nodes before the doctors caught it. She was in the final stages, but much she was going to be damned if she was going out on her back. Oscar had the feeling that she was in the kitchen, pushing her past her limits just to make Oscar a meal. The guilt was overwhelming.

"Maybe I should go give her a ha-"

"Don't you fuckin' dare, son," the Major snapped. "She'd have both our asses if we started fussing over her."

Oscar looked up. The Major's eyes were misty, but fierce. "Rule number one. When you care about someone, you do what you gotta do. If that means busting your ass in the kitchen when you're so weak you can barely stand, you fuckin' do it." He was shaking. He'd lost his composure. They both knew Tammy should be in the hospital, but good lucking getting her there. It was difficult but Oscar relented. He set his jaw.

"Alright."

[Oscar 0]

A long silence passed between the two of them. Tammy's sickness had taken much of the life out of the house. Oscar had resolved himself to make this meal the happiest one they'd ever had together. He still held out a glimmer of hope for her recovery, but realistically she didn't have much time left. If she wanted to spend that time making him fucking tacos, he wasn't going to argue with her. Not if he wanted a cast iron skillet upside the head. Finally, the Major broke the silence.

"Listen, son," he said. "I never really told you the whole first rule. You're about to go out into the world. I think it's time I told you."

"Well that's ominous," Oscar said, his voice lifting into a half-laugh.

The Major shot him a glare. He'd seen it plenty of times when he was younger. He'd crossed a line. "We don't fuckin' joke about this."

[Oscar 0]

"You've grown into a good man, son. But there's a lot of darkness in you. When I say 'do what you gotta do' I mean that if you gotta tap into that darkness, you do it. If someone steps to your and yours, then it's no mercy, scorched earth. You don't give them a chance to swing again, got it?"

"Wha-?"

"All that shit you went through on the streets has done some real damage. Me and Tammy tried our best, but some wounds don't heal. You may not know it, but chances are, one day, someone's gonna push you over the edge. They're gonna hit you where it hurts and you're gonna snap. I'm telling you that if you're gonna snap, snap hard. When it comes to standing up for the people you care about, get dirty son. You don't need to have clean hands to be a good man. I just need you to know that."

[Oscar 0]

Snapping back to reality, Oscar almost laughed at how prophetic that conversation had been. Tammy had passed a few weeks after that dinner. The Major had said that she died peacefully in her sleep. They'd gone to bed that night the same way they had for thirty years, with a soft kiss on the lips and falling asleep holding hands. The Major cried loudly and openly at the wake. Rule number eight: cry if you have to. As Oscar stalked Talia and Adren, rule number one bounced around his head. Scorched earth, no mercy. You do what you gotta do. The Major had had Oscar pegged. He was a monster. He'd always been a monster. But it wasn't a self-depreciating realization. It was quite liberating actually. To know that there's no limit to what he would do to protect and avenge the people he cared about. Nothing too low, too base. He would bring every ounce of darkness in his heart to bear to tear open a river of blood. A river he would, invariably, drown Tyson in.

[Oscar 0]

"Come on Adren. We're almost to the safe zone," Talia said. A lie. The wildfire cut them off from the town. They were so deep into the forest that it was doubtful that they even knew the way back. She rose to her feet and started off. Oscar dropped from the tree and held his axe to Adren's throat. His voice caught in his throat.

"Come on! We gotta keep moving," Talia said as she turned around. She locked eyes with Oscar, her hand falling to her sword. Oscar made no attempt to stop her. Why would he? They faced off for a long moment, Tesseleth's Fury resting against Adren's collar. Now having a closer look, the dude was level 10. How had he got himself mixed up with these player-killers? It didn't matter, but it was a curiosity. Oscar didn't ask for the simple reason that he didn't want any more information about them buzzing around in his head. He couldn't completely erase their existence, but wouldn't indulge their stories either. He simply didn't care about them.

[Oscar 0]

"Let him go! It's me you want!" Talia screamed.

"How would you know what I want?"

A shocking question. She hesitated. Oscar wanted her to squirm for a bit longer. It wasn't enough to simply kill her. She'd helped torment Jason and turnabout was fair play.

"Killing him won't bring your friend back!" Appealing to his humanity. Trying to make him see reason. Not a bad plan, but it was miscalculated.

"I don't want my friend back," Oscar responded. "It's not within your power. Even if it was, it wouldn't undo what you did. What I want is for you to feel what he felt."

"You'd kill a noob just to get back at me? What kind of monster are you? What would your friends think if they saw you right now? Just let him go!"

Oscar pushed, driving his axe into Adren's neck. His health bar tanked almost instantly. His avatar shimmered and then shattered like glass.

[Oscar 0]

Megin-Fi
Talia
Asketil
Phaedra
Adren

Four down and the last target was right in front of him.

"NOOOO!" Talia screeched. She rushed forward, blade in hand. Oscar planted his feet, contorting his body for her blade to pass harmlessly by him. He then caught her wrist and swept her legs with his right foot. He bent her arm back as he drove her face first into the forest floor. When she attempted to rise, Oscar pushed her back down with his foot.

"I don't care what my friends would think. If they come to hate the monster that I am, let them. They will be alive to hate me, then. I will bear the burden of their hate if it means you and people like you don't fucking touch them. After all, the only way to kill a monster is to find a stronger one," Oscar said.

Talia wasn't given a chance to respond. Oscar didn't need her to squirm any further and so Tesseleth's Fury brought about her end. Dead in the dirt - no better than she deserved.

[Oscar 0]

It would simply be too easy if the wanton murder was the only thing Oscar had to do today. He made his way back to town and teleported up to Floor 4. From there, he tracked down the second Dragon Hatchling of the day. Activating Explode Catapult, he drove his axe forward, carving through the hatchling and reducing its health to zero. The quest was almost immediately completed. He sighed as he collected the diamond. He didn't know what was worse. Killing a baby dragon or the fact he was going home to sleep after what he'd wrought today. Jason's family was probably saying their goodbyes right about now. A child that would never know her father, a woman who had lost her love. Five other people who'd never see their loved ones again had been added to the pile. Oscar couldn't completely shed his humanity. A monster he might have been, but he was still a human one. Silent words lifted up a prayer to the souls that had been lost this day. Their crimes notwithstanding, Oscar could hope the next life would be better for them than this one had been.

Spoiler

Oscar HP: 1390/1390 | EN: 124/136 | DMG: 23 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 5 | MIT: 106 | 12 FLN | 36 BRN [8-10] | -3 EN Cost | -1 EN Cost [3/3] | ID: 168942 | BD: 2+5-1, Deal 272 DMG

Explode Catapult[x14] 

Icefyre, the Diamond Hatchling HP: 0/250 | DMG: 75 | ACC: 2 | EVA: 1 | MIT: 50

Rewards
4 SP [2 Quest, 1 Page, 1 Bonus]
1100 Col
<<Icefyre's Diamond>>