[PP-04] Bone-Chilling Legacies <<Harbinger of the Night>>

[Freyd 0]

"This wasn't here before."  

Standing on the lower slopes of the lee side of the hill occupied by Snowfrost, this area was usually better sheltered yet somehow less popular for visitors.  Having spent an inordinate amount of time on this floor, it occurred to him that he'd never spent much time away from the areas most directly connected to the its many quests, or the homes of his acquaintances.  That he could even call some friends warmed his thoughts.  Memories of Fortaleza's blazing heat would do the trick, along with Survival skill.

Instead of the quiet refuge he had sought, Freyd had found an old lantern, hanging from a dilapidated timber post leaning awkwardly off to one side.  Nothing else was present in the area, save softly blowing snow, flowing in a downward drift that told him he hadn't quite reached the lake shore.  A cursory inspection revealed nothing more, just roughly wrought ironwork that secured the lamp to the post.  The instant he touched it, a quest prompt appeared.  There were no clues or indication of what might happen if he accepted.

Glacial blue eyes sheltered his thoughts as he debated whether or not to accept.  The cowl shrouding them flapped lightly against his forehead.  An option was pressed and everything instantly changed, replacing his frigid surroundings with aspirations of warmth.  A large bonfire crackled nearby.  The ground lay thawed and exposed for a dozen feet all around it, where rough-hewn benches were arrayed, some occupied by giggling children and their parents.  He recognized a few from the settlement.

"Some sort of instance, or phase?"  The question was speculative and rhetorical.

Where there had been nothing but a field of barren ice and snow just a moment ago, he now found himself surrounded by colourful tents and banners, mirth and merriment having infected the local populace.  Everyone had some manner of food or drink in hand.  Before he could protest, someone shoved a steaming pretzel and tankard full of cider into his hands.  It took two blinks to restart his flustered wits before he bellowed out.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!"

Those gathered nearest to him paused, wide-eyed, until someone forcibly stuck a bright red woolen tuque on his head, complete with white poofy pom-poms. 

***

@Lessa@Baldur

Freyd | HP: 940/940 | EN: 128/128 | DMG: 24 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 6 | BH: 51 | LD: 5 | FLN: 16 | HLY: 16 | PARA IMMUNE | REC: 8

Full Stats:

Spoiler

Freyd, Firm Anima O&I Captain
Level: 31
Paragon Level: 71
HP: 940/940
EN: 128/128

Stats:
Damage: 24
Mitigation: 78
Accuracy: 6
Battle Healing: 51
Loot Dice: 5
FLN: 16
HLY: 16
PARA IMMUNE
REC: 8

Equipped Gear:
Weapon: Samael's Pride (T4 Hammer | Fln 2 | Holy 2)
Armor: Fallen Angel Garb (T4 LA | Mit 2 | Rec 2)
Misc: The Shadowed Rose (ACC 3, Para Imm)

Custom Skill:
All-Consuming Shadows

Skills:
Hammer R5
Light Armor R5
Searching R4
Battle Healing R5
Energist
Charge

Active Mods:
Night Vision
Tracking
Meticulous
Untraceable

Inactive Mods:
n/a

Addons:
Stamina
Ferocity
Precision
Resolve
Reveal

Active Extra Skills:
Disguise
Survival
Meditation
Forgotten King’s Authority

Inactive Extra Skills:
Hiding R3
Brawler
Photosynthesize

Battle Ready Inventory:
Teleport Crystals x7
Mass HP Rec [Inst] (+30*T HP) x7
Mass HP Rec [Inst] (+30*T HP) x7
Crystal of Divine Light (Reusable) x1
Rhino's Horn (Reusable) x1
T3 Probiotics 3 x2

Housing Buffs:
Rested: -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat
Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)
Working: +2 EXP per crafting attempt
Filling: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot.
Item Stash: +1 Battle Ready Inventory Slot
Delicious: Turn 3 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Feast. A Feast contains 6 portions of the food items sacrificed.
Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
Skylight (Searching): +1 Rank to the Searching skill.
Angler: +1 material gained when fishing
Advanced Training: +10% Exp to a thread. Limit one use per month [0/1]
Multipurpose: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll
Decor [Potted Tanabata Bamboo Tree]: This buff affects the player and their choice of up to two party members.

Guild Hall Buffs:
Lucrative: Reduce LD needed for Salvage by 5 (10+ for Alchemist crystals, 6+ for everything else). +2 EXP per craft. Rank 9 crafters receive +1 crafting attempt per day. Rank 10 crafters receive +2 crafting attempts per day.
Col Deposit: +5% bonus col from last-hit monster kills and +10% bonus col from treasure chests.

Scents of the Wild:
Kumatetsu Statue: +1 Base Damage for a thread

Wedding Ring:
n/a

 

[Baldur 0]

Baldur, clad in a blue and white toque, sat on a log by the warm fire with Lessa, the both of them wearing thick woolen mittens some kind lady had forced them to wear before handing them large cups of hot chocolate. They hadn't been here long. In fact, the two of them had been enjoying one of their semi-regular long walks through the fourth floor when they found the out of place lantern. When they had been pulled into the phased instance, the fire and the hot chocolate had been more in their wheelhouse than a quest. The two sat shoulder to shoulder on the log, glowing slightly with the amber light of the fire. In fact, they looked so comfortable that they blended in with the scenery more than anyone would have expected, watching steam rise from the cups and into the air.

"You know." Baldur said to Lessa, "I have no idea about this quest, but this may be my favorite instance in the history of Aincrad." The gaijin samurai's cheeks were a bit more rosey from the cold. His blue eyes seemed almost green in the yellow fire light.

"I wonder how long they'll let us sit --"

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" 

A voice of someone clad in a bright red fuzzy hat yelled loudly, shocking Baldur out of their reverie. He vaguely recognized the man, but couldn't put a name to him. Perhaps it was the juxtaposition of the fuzzy hat on top of the edge lord exterior. Baldur brushed at his blue and white haori, slightly buried in the snow from how long they had been sitting in this nice, until recently, very private spot.

"Are you okay -- sir?" Baldur had almost addressed him as a child, it was a force of habit here on Aincrad, but these one was a man grown. His appraisal of the man changed suddenly upward. Baldur often found himself longing for the company of peers, rather than child soldiers.

"You're safe here for the time being, I promise. Lessa and I know how to handle ourselves, we won't let anything hurt you."

Spoiler

» Baldur, The Gaijin Samurai 
lvl 31, Paragon 52

» Base Stats

• Base HP: 880
• Base EN: 122 (includes 20 for Energist)
• Base MIT: 78
• Base ACC: 5 (includes AA and does not automatically miss on 1s)
• Base DMG: 23 
• Base EVA: 2
• Battle Heal: 44 HP
• Keen: +1
• Recovery: +4 EN

» Items Equipped:

• Warden's Fury - Absolute Accuracy/2 Paralyze
• Muramasa - Absolute Accuracy/Fallen/Blight/Burn
• Ethereal Tether - Zanshin - Absolute Accuracy/Keen/Freeze/Burn
• Montsuki haori - 48 DMG MIT/+1 EVASION/+4 EN RECOVERY
• Emerald Teardrop - +2 ACC/+1 EVASION
• Hammerspace Backpack (HB) +1 BR item (allows stacks up to 7)

» Battle-Ready Inventory:

• Medium Damage Potion ^x7 | Rare T2 Item | +2 Damage
• Basic Teleportation Crystal ^x1 | Good Item | Teleports player to the Town of Beginnings
• Max Mass HP Recovery Crystal ^x7 | Perfect T2 Item | +30*Target Tier (30/60/90)
• Max T2 HP Recovery Crystal II ^x4 | Perfect T2 Item | +180 HP
• Safeguard Potion ^x3 | Perfect Tier 1 | Safeguard
• HB: Max Vitality Snack ^x2 | Rare Tier 2 | Grants +12 Energy
• EWL: Medium Antidote Potion ^x1 | Rare Tier 2 | Immune to negative status effects for 2 turns
• EWL: Muramasa or Warden's Fury
• EWL: Emerald Matagama | Perfect | +3 Accuracy
• SC: 
  
   

» Skills:

• One Hand Curved Sword | Rank 1/5 | 
• Katana | Rank 5/5 | 
• Battle Healing | Rank 5/5 | 
• Light Armor | Rank 5/5 | 
• Charge | Purchased | 
• Quick Change | Purchased
• Extended Weight Limit | Purchased
• Energist | Purchased
• Combat Shift | ST Specialist

» Extra Skills:

• Concentration | Equipped
• Survival | Un-equipped
• Meditation | Equipped
• Parry | Equipped
• Forgotten King's Authority | Equipped
• Shatter | Not Yet Unlocked

» Mods:

• Meticulous: Equipped
• Emergency Recovery: Equipped
• [Mod Slot Empty
• [Mod Slot Empty]
• [Mod Slot Empty]
• ADD-ON Ferocity: Equipped
• ADD-ON Stamina: Equipped
• ADD-ON: Precision: Equipped
• ADD-ON: Resolve: Equipped

» Housing Bonuses:

• Rested: -1 EN on first 2 uses
• Tasty: Turns 2 food into feast for 4
• Advanced Training: +2 SP to a thread 1/month
• Filling: Add 1 extra tier 1 slot to food
• Item Stash: +1 BR item slot
• Relaxed: OOC regen 5*tier, recover EN out of combat after 2 turns in lieu of 3
• Angler: +1 Mat when fishing

 

Edited February 19, 2022 by Baldur

[Lessa 1]

꧁༺Lessa༻꧂   Lessa, The Violet Guardian Level: 31 Paragon Level: 39 HP: 820/820 EN: 114/114 Stats: Damage: 23 Mitigation: 122 Accuracy: 2 Battle Healing: 41 H.M.: 8 HLY: 8 REC: 8 THRNS: 72 Equipped Gear: Weapon: Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY) Armor: Empress Armor (T4 HA - HM HM THNS THNS) Misc: Neutron Star Necklace (T4 TRINKET - ACC ACC REC REC) Skills: Straight Sword R5 Heavy Armor R5 Battle Healing R5 Energist Fighting Spirit Charge Active Mods: Impetus Emergency Recovery Addons: Iron Skin Ferocity Stamina Active Extra Skills: Parry Housing Buffs: Well Rested: -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat Clean: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down) Relaxed: Increases out of combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts. Col Stash: +5% bonus col from monster kills and treasure chests Advanced Training: +10% Exp to a thread. Limit one use per month [1/1] Multipurpose: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll Guild Hall Buffs: Helping Hand: Lowest-leveled guild member receives +10 bonus Exp at the end of the thread. At least half of the thread's participants must be guild members. Limit one use per month, per character. [1/1]

"Right?" Lessa drew the cup of hot chocolate to her nose, then breathed it in with the same fervor someone might inhale a line of cocaine. Only after she had exhaled with a hard sigh, her breath mingling with the chocolate-scented steam, did she take a small sip. The drink was far too hot, but she enjoyed the way it burned as it went down. She could practically envision it warming her from the tips of her fingers to the bottoms of her feet. "Anything that gives me fuzzy mitten and hot cocoa in the middle of a frozen wasteland is good in my book." Not that she had come to mind wandering said frozen wasteland, of course. The frozen lake had always held a special significance, as had the entire fourth floor. And the gaijin samurai's company wasn't too bad, either.

She cut him a sideways glance, waiting for him to finish his question. She had no idea how long they would be able to sit there, but she hoped it would be a while longer. She also hoped they might be able to keep the cheery mittens afterward. Did an NPC really make them? Will they be a quest reward? If not, can I steal them?

The exclamation boomed from behind them, and Lessa and Baldur turned in tandem to face the new arrival. As the latter moved to offer assistance - always the gentleman - Lessa stood more slowly. Her flushed face creased slightly, confusion dancing in her blue eyes. Where had she seen him before?

Even as the wheels turned in her mind, Lessa moved up alongside her dark-haired friend. "Yeah," she agreed, though her voice barely rose above the din of the festival. "We've got your back, so-" Like the clicking of a key in a lock, the name suddenly came to her. At the same instant, his player name flashed over his head, confirming her suspicions. "It's Freyd," she announced suddenly. Then, taking a mental step back, she offered the man a small smile. The goofy hat looked so out of place on him, she feared she might laugh if she looked at it too long. So her gaze met his. "Good to see you again."

When she turned back to Baldur, she gave his arm a small pat with a fuzzy hand. "He helped me on the Halloween dungeon, and he can probably fend for himself here, too."

[Freyd 0]

A double-take performed as some blue-clad nurse approached him with expressions of concern. 

"Sir?!"  Freyd looked behind him, on the assumption that the figure meant to address somebody else.  A shake of his head cleared his vision while unleashing a clatter of metallic clanks and clangs.   Locking the swivel at his neck, Freyd's eyes curled upwards with dread.  Fuck.  The thing even had bells. Shoulders slumped in a semblance of defeat, but his focus restored itself.

"Baldur?"

Tilting left, with more jingling annoyance, he looked beyond the self-styled samurai and recognized another player seated only a few feet away. 

"Lessa?"  He offered back an uncertain wave.  "Were you both here already?  There was no one around when I activated the pole."  Surveying their surroundings, he practically ripped the tuque off his head and jammed it into his inventory to shut the damned thing up.  Someone might as well have put a cow bell around his neck, and he wasn't about to alert everyone within thirty yards every time he so much as twitched.

"Oh, my god, were you two... snogging!?  Is this a snogging quest?" His eyes widened, then narrowed suspiciously, until it occurred to him that he really didn't care if they were, that it wasn't any of his business, and that he'd ram a fist into the face of anything that tried to get excessively chummy.  There was a quest around here somewhere, and he meant to find it.  A finger lifted, pressing pause on Baldur's odd assurance of safety.  Sniffing at the air, as if catching stome strange whiff of rumour, he wandered towards a pair of nearby NPCs, agitated in both bearing and mannerism.   

"'Scuse me, gents.  We you just mentioning something about an odd figure by the lake?  Something about Darian's campsite?  I couldn't help but overhear."  Looking down at the treats neatly deposited into his hand, moments earlier, he promptly offered them as collateral to sweeten the deal for exchange of information.  Both faces lit up.  It was, apparently, the right price.

[Lessa 1]

“Huh?”

She muttered the word dumbly, blue eyes glazed over as her brain stuttered. Kissing? Freyd couldn’t have surprised her more if he’d kissed her himself. When she finally sorted through the absurd question, no humor lit her expression. Instead, shadows whispered across her face, lips turning down at the edges. Her jaw clenched as she thought of the last kiss she’d shared, and the long months that had passed since. Then, as quickly as it had come, the storm cleared, and Lessa adopted an amused smirk.

“Me? Kissing this guy?” She leaned over to shoulder bump her friend, feigning shock as she rolled her eyes heavenward. “Come on, he’s way too old for me.”

It wasn’t the truth. In all honesty, Baldur’s age had never mattered much to her, though it did present her with some ammunition for occasional teasing. She had actually come to appreciate his wisdom, and his largely more mature way of looking at things. He also lacked much of the drama that generally accompanied men in their early twenties. Still, the idea of kissing him made her feel a bit off-kilter. 

So she turned away from them both, blonde hair tumbling across her snow-dusted shoulder as she scanned their surroundings. As she gazed across the cheery landscape, she battled back the urge to reflect on the last time she’d been there. Arm in arm, she and Bahr had soaked in the carnival-like atmosphere like two teens on their first date. Now, she found the memory as painful as is it was precious. Like a hot stove she couldn’t stop touching, she continued to call up those visions despite knowing what they’d do to her. The brutal self-sabotage was a sign of a weak mind, but she simply couldn’t find it in herself to stop. 

“But if this IS a snogging quest,” she finally called over her shoulder, adding a dramatic flair to her voice, “I call dibs on any Fabio looking types.” 

[Baldur 0]

In spite of the words passed between Lessa and Freyd, Baldur couldn't place the man until he ripped the brightly colored hat from his head. Somehow the bright, festive colors and jingling bells disrupted Freyd's dark and brooding mystique just enough that Baldur didn't remember him, but then memories of the floor 25 boss floor finally came back to mind. He had been there for that fight, and if he had been there, he could handle anything this floor could throw at them.

Suddenly, Lessa's words registered to Baldur. He gasped and clutched imaginary pearls at her agist standards.

"Too OLD for you?" Baldur decried Lessa's comments with equal parts drama and outrage. They had known each other long enough that she could tell when he was being melodramatic and joking, and this was definitely one of those times. "Fabio types?! Why Lessa-chan I had no idea you were so shallow."

In spite of Baldur's obvious attempts to speak his words with a deadpan expression, no force on Aincrad could keep the edges of his lips from curling up in his attempt to hide a cheshire like smile.

After the moment of feigned outrage, Baldur turned frozen lake blue eyes back to Freyd. He had never really interacted with him, but the man seemed to carry himself with a competence that Baldur immediately was attracted to.

"You're right, this isn't normally here.  Lessa and I have often walked here. When we interacted with a lantern pole, we got pulled into some kind of phased instance. We're still here but unless you're part of the quest or the instance, then you're not here here. We weren't in a hurry, so we decided to enjoy the festivities." Baldur brushed back part of the hat, a slight jingle coming from its single bell on top. Somehow, while still silly, the hat didn't seem as out of place on Baldur as it had on Freyd. Perhaps it was the addition of the fuzzy knitted mittens that really tied the look together.

"What brings y--" Then Freyd was off again, moving over to the NPCs and asking them questions about a camp.

"I'm Levi, by the way. Thanks for the treats." The boy made short work of them before speaking again, his companion took the opportunity to jump in.

"Yeah, he looked like he was feral, almost like he was chasing after something. It was like he was an animal and saw everyone as a threat or something."

The first boy nodded in agreement as he hurried to swallow his treats.

"Well if he's gonna run into Darian's camp by the lake we've got nothing to worry about. That guy's as strong as they come."

Baldur walked up beside Freyd, taking a loud, slurping sip of the last bit of his hot chocolate, but he had the decency to look embarrassed about the noise.

"I've never heard of Darian's Campsite before. Curious, with all the time I spend out here. It's obviously a quest, but not one I've seen on this floor before. Might be worth investigating." He turned to look back at Lessa with an inquisitive look that said, 'Are you in?'

[Freyd 0]

“Hrm. Yeah," Freyd said, no hint of interest in his tone.  "The Fabios are all yours.”  He'd taken note of the tension between the other two players, and filed it away for later consideration.  It wasn't germane to his present interests, and could hamper their ability to function effectively together.  

That, and it's really none of your damned business.

Twin blue orbs swiveled in their sockets towards his own shadow, cast upon the snow, before drifting towards the nearby lake.

“Darian… Darion… isn’t that the mayor of Tolbana.  No.  That’s Dorion.”  Freyd shook his head, as if trying to defragment the crap ton of random information stored in his noggin, hoping that something useful might share loose. “I’ve made it my business to scour the castle gathering information on, well, everything.  Most recently, I’ve been tailing some sly, skeletal NPC who tends to show up unannounced, drop some b-rated cliché or dad joke, then vanish again without a trace.  He might be part of an event, or just a bit of nuisance code, but I’ve come to learn the importance of wary alertness and a bit of follow-up investigation.  It’s what led me here in the first place.  This place just seems like new content, and I’ve scouted this floor enough times to confirm that it’s a recent addition."

"Come on Levi.  Show us the way."  The boy hesitated, possibly paralyzed by the details of his own exaggeration, until a shiny col flipped through the air to land perfectly on top of his mitt.  "Lessa will surely want to escort her elderly counterpart to ensure that he doesn't slip and break a hip, or something."  The slightest hint of a smirk and nod directed at Baldur suggested that he was perfectly willing and able to play the game, should it be necessary.

[Lessa 1]

"I'm the shallowest," Lessa replied cheerfully, rocking up onto the toes of her boots as if to emphasize the point.

When Freyd mentioned the mayor of Tolbana, she blinked big, blue eyes at him. "Huh," she remarked. "It's surprising that you can remember that sort of stuff. I can hardly remember the details of quests I'm currently on, let alone obscure ones I took ages ago." She paused, then after a beat, added conversationally, "Though if collecting information is your thing, I guess it's not that weird. Just impressive. My old friend, Hikoru, does the info broker thing. He was always really good at it, too."

A line formed between her eyes as her brows came together. "But, ah, I haven't heard about this skeletal guy. Skelton sounds creepy, but dad jokes sound less-so. Still not someone I think I'd want to run into."

Her expression softened as Lessa recognized apprehension in the NPC's ice-blue gaze. Even as the boy studied the coin in his hand, his eyes flitted between the three Players, and then toward a path just beyond them. "I'm not much for fighting," he finally explained sheepishly, after a moment of silence had hung between them.

"Neither am I," came her gentle confession. Resisting the urge to pat his shoulder, she instead offered him an easy smile. "But these guys?" With both gloved hands, she motioned to Baldur and Freyd. "They're nuts. Seriously, you're super safe with them. I promise." With a mischievous wink, she concluded, "You and I won't even have to draw our blades."

"All I've got's a slingshot."

Lessa nearly laughed at the pure innocence in his response. "Even better," she told him. "We'll just watch the guys work. Speaking of..." Her voice trailed as she hooked her arm in Baldur's, and patted it delicately. "Come on, Grandpa. Let's get you moving again. If you stay still too long, your arthritis might flare up."

[Baldur 0]

Baldur gave Lessa and Freyd and incredulous smirk, then slowly took Lessa's offered arm with one hand and put the other on his lower back, miming a pained expression, though no such thing existed in sword art online. His acting was right out of some low tier b movie.

"I don't know what you're talking about young lass, I don't move as well as I used to. Why, when I was your age, we were still on on the 10th floor! We had to walk up the tower both ways, in the snow AND lava. We didn't even have sword arts, we had to invent them ourselves!" He hobbled slowly forward as they began to follow Levi.

The kid looked uncertainly at the three of them, as if he wasn't really sure how much he could trust them, but he knew that adventurers were an odd type, and did these kinds of tasks regularly.

The direction that Levi took them wasn't unfamiliar to Baldur. He had often walked this very path with Lessa down to the lake, but as they got closer, he broke off into a different direction, taking them towards a gulley that he normally avoided. He came out here for an enjoyable walk, not a tromp through wet mud and snow and a climb.

ID: 202882 LD: 5+1 (camp not found)

They had to choose their footing carefully, and Baldur gave up the act of elder grandfather in order to make sure no one slipped and fell. While the cold and exposure here wasn't like what it would be in real life, the cold sensation was accurate and unpleasant in the extreme.

"How much further, Levi?"

"Shouldn't be too much past here. He's got a couple of sites he rotates between, but they're all hidden from site and from the wind."

Baldur nodded, as that made sense. Most camps hidden from the wind, on a snowy floor, would quickly end up hidden from site unless it was a full structure like player housing.

As Baldur took small jumps down the rill as it turned into the gulley, his boots sunk further and further into the snow. "I probably should have come better prepared for this." He said with a laugh, suddenly wishing he had snow shoes. "Snow in the boots is a terrible sensation."

Edited December 28, 2021 by Baldur

[Freyd 0]

A hollow smirk adorned the Whisper's face, partially concealed beneath his familiar cowl.  Baldur scored points for good sportsmanship, though he and Lessa seemed to have no shortage of unexplained history together.  The way they danced around each other reminded him of the coy manner of a certain aunt and uncle he'd once had, save the pledge and finger bindings.  Maybe the two were courting, after a fashion.  It really wasn't something he would normally bother with, but it paid to know the nature of the relationships between those with whom you travelled.  Baggage had a way of flying out of left field, when the a partnered pairing had placed itself on the proverbial rocks.

A gloved hand fell gently on Levi's shoulder to halt his progress without sounding alarm or revealing their position.  There was a campfire ahead, at the edge of a sheet of near-polished ice gleaming like a lunar lens to reflect the pallid orb gracing the sky above.  It was picturesque, nearly romantic, save for the awkwardly slumped form draped  over one the larger logs set by the fire's edge.  The figure was on the nearer side to their approach and still too distant to identify, but the sword sticking upright out of its side was a glaring clue regarding its present state.

"Levi," the Whisper whispered, his breath condensing the moment it parted from his lips, "go no closer."  A sideways glance towards his companions warned of danger ahead.  "I'll go around, to the east.  This doesn't look hopeful for Dorion.  There are no tracks in the snow, approaching the camp, and the lake somehow remains frozen despite the unusual thaw that everyone was celebrating.  Be wary."

He'd always had a soft spot for kids, though he'd never let himself admit it to others.  It was a weakness that might be exploited, and far too many perils in this world could hide behind a cherub's mask.  Finding Yuri's shirt at Tanabata had nearly broken him.  Having to later fight the child's corrupted form in the bowels of the shattered Lake of Reflections had been even worse.  Whatever happened, Freyd silently promised to himself, nothing would be allowed to harm Levi.  He'd see to that.

The second figure remained hunched, gnawing on something of questionable origin.  Freyd honestly wondered whether Dorion might be missing a leg.  Now, more than ever, he regretted watching all those episodes of The Shambling Dead.  None of this seemed to make sense.  A suddenly spawning quest or event in the middle of the normally scenic frozen landscapes of floor four didn't add up.  There had to be more.  Being distracted by inner musings didn't help him when fate intervened and placed a brittle bough beneath his boot, concealed by lingering drifts of fluffy, powdered snow.

*SNAP*

The figure turned a pair of dark, hollowed eye sockets in his direction.  Bits of some leg-like meat dribbling from its bluish lips as focused hate emanated towards him.  Broken yellow teeth bared as a grin spread across its malevolent, craggy face.  Dude also needed a haircut.  Badly.

"Good,"  it croaked, in a voice that might make any horror film producer proud.  "I'll have the honor of slaughtering more of you blasphemers."

"Awww... crap."

Spoiler

Searching for camp:

ID #203009 | LD 19+5=24

 

[Lessa 1]

It appeared that the sense of foreboding settled on both Freyd and Lessa at the same time. Even as the dark-haired man cautioned Levi, Lessa drew away from Baldur and along-side the NPC. Her hand came to rest on Arcael's Might's ornate hilt, and for the moment, all thought of the punishing cold left her. Even as the biting wind tugged at her loose hair, and sent snowflakes spinning like throwing stars, she remained on high alert. "I've got him," she reassured Freyd, her voice a mere murmur. Her intention wasn't to baby Levi, but rather put Freyd's mind at ease, so he might be more willing to continue with the quest. Her unspoken message, it seemed, had been received loud and clear. As the Player shifted into the shadows, swept up by the swirling snow, Lessa cut a glance toward Baldur. "Do you have any idea what we're looking at here?" she asked. "It's hard to see because of all the snow, and-" Her voice trailed as her gaze shifted, then came to rest on a lump in the snow. 

Despite the unforgiving cold, it was the sight of the corpse that her froze the blood in her veins.

"Baldur," she sputtered, "is that a body?"

For someone who prided herself on reading the room, Lessa could not have made a more egregious error. Moving with impossible speed, Levi threw himself away from the two Players. "A body?" He echoed, voice shrill with terror. "Dorion? No, it can't be. Dorion!" His cry carried across the frozen wasteland, and before Lessa could grab him, the boy was racing across the snow.

"Damn it," Lessa hissed, before taking chase. Louder, she added, "Levi, you need to stop. We don't know what we're-"

When the scout turned to face them, Lessa's own terror mirrored Levi's.

The boy lifted his slingshot, took aim, and sent a pebble winging toward the mob's head. In slow motion, Lessa watched it connect, and draw the scout's attention. He'll kill Levi, came her only thought before, in a flash of light, Lessa triggered howl.

Spoiler

I activated howl, and Levi used his slingshot thing. I'm too tired to function, so I'll add stats tomorrow.

 

[Freyd 0]

Barely enough time passed for a mental facepalm as Levi charged forward impulsively, screaming at the top of his lungs and revealing their presence to the twisted, frozen wreck of a figure that was surely Darian's murderer.  A separate side compartment thought it very odd how bodies that normally disappeared upon death in this world somehow remained out of plot convenience during quests, but it was a distraction for another time.  

'This is why you don't bring kids to a fight,' Freyd muttered to himself, internally, even as his body rushed to react.  Fortunately, Persi had sensed the danger before any of the other players and streaked forward like a bolt of black lightning from Freyd's feet straight up to the frigid soldier's face and promptly unleashed her own specialized brand of whirling teeth and claws.  A shriek made up of equal parts surprise and rage was all Freyd needed to confirm he had his opening.  Barely half a second behind his familiar, the Whisper slid in low and silent.  As arms raised to peel frenzied shadows from facial assault, he seized his moment and lunged to catch him right in the belly button and fold him in half over the tip of his staff.  White light filled the campsite and surrounding clearing, followed by the impact of a body against a nearby frozen oak.  The double crunch  of breaking trunk and bones was as satisfying as it was sickening, but the soldier's downward slump after impact suggested that he'd need a moment to recover.

"Baldur!  Finish him," Freyd yelled, a little winded by the effort, even as Lessa's art drew the focus of an enemy who was no longer in any shape to respond.  If they played this right, their foe would be down before it could ever pose a threat - especially to Levi.

Spoiler

Post Action | AoE-I (x15 AoE, 11 EN, +2 AoE Shift, +2/hit,): 15 EN - (Rested 1/2; Stamina) = 12 EN. Charge (CD 0/3, +8 EN)
Free Action (Skill) | Activate Grappling Familiar (CD 0/5)
Free Action (Item) | Activate Crystal of Divine Light

ID #203842 | BD: 9 (Crit +1, Charge +5, Holy +24).  DMG (15*54=810-100=710).  Grappling Stun applied.

Freyd takes double damage if hit, until next turn.
Battle Fury triggered.

Lessa |  HP: 820/820 | EN: 114/114 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 122 | ACC: 2 | BH: 41 | H.M.: 8 | HLY: 8 | REC: 8 | THRNS: 72
Freyd | HP: 940/940 | EN: 108/128 (-12-8) | DMG: 24 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 6 | BH: 51 | LD: 5 | FLN: 16 | HLY: 16 | PARA IMMUNE | REC: 8
Baldur | HP: 880/880 | EN: 122/122 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 2 | BH: 44 | KEEN: 1 | REC: 4

[H:0*,2,0] King's Soldier | HP: 290/1000 | DMG: 200 | MIT: 100 | G.STUN IMM 0/3 | BATTLE FURY (DMG/MIT) | STUNNED (1000-710)

Abilities:

• *Soldier's Insight | Howl does not produce hate against the King's Scout. Instead it focuses his attack on the howler for one post. Afterwards he continues to attack those with the highest hate. If players hate values are equal, he targets the player with the least mitigation and lowest total health, in that order.
• Battle Fury | When his health reaches 500 or lower, every other post, his attacks deal 50 additional damage. On the turns he does not receive this bonus damage, he holds his shield up to mitigate 50 additional damage against him until his next turn.
• Frozen Soldier | If the freeze enhancement is activated on him, he will not receive the frozen affect, but instead receive -1 EVA and -1 ACC for one post.

 

[Baldur 0]

The dead were rising here, it seemed. He saw it coming of course. Winter. Dead body with a sword sticking out. No tracks. There was going to be an ambush of some kind when they got here if this was going to be a combat quest. Then the boy charged forward, Lessa was screaming, Freyd hot on their heals and almost eradicating the monster in a single blow. He didn't have a good feel for Freyd's damage, so he had no idea what was left of the monster based on its remaining health gauge. He would need to go all out on it to prevent it from getting back up.

Freyd's familiar landed a stun attack on the mob and that was everything Baldur needed. In his mind, he felt everything slow down. He pushed snow aside as he slid his boot forward into the pre-motion stance for his Iai attack. Snow whirled around him as power raged up from the ground, but to Baldur the snow seemed to stop for a moment. Wind blew the falling snow away from everyone in the camp, and then Baldur sheathed his sword, the black clicking back into its saya.

The Soldier looked up from where Freyd had toppled him, unable to move before his time was up. He lets out a hoarse chuckle. "I am but the herald. The prophecy still stands. The king. My king... YOUR, KING. Shall return." Instead of shattering into crystals like the usual death effect, the man's body begins to crack and shatter into ice, before crumbling further into snow and blowing off into the wind. 

A cold win grew off of the lake to fill in the vacuum left behind. Baldur had spent a lot of time on this floor, but he had never felt something so cold.

"Well... that was... ominous." The combat that had happened didn't seem to affect Baldur's mood, he was implacable as always in a fight, but the strange way this monster died... not giving a line, if this was a quest or an event it could be considered if not common at least expected, but it died a different way, and that put the thoughts in Baldur's mind whirling.

"Now I'm really curious about what we've stumbled upon." He glanced around the campsite looking for clues.

"I remember there being a quest before with the Night King, but..." Baldur opened up his inventory and summoned a small notebook. It had been a long time since he had referenced it. "This isn't how that quest started. Perhaps something new, because of the floor 25 clearing? I've heard quests had changed... but this is... too different than just a rewrite."

He looked up at the other two players, "Thoughts?"

Quote

Post Action | ST-I (x15, 11 EN): Charge (CD 0/3, +8 EN)
ID #203843| BD: 4+5-1+1=11 to hit (Charge +5).  DMG (23+5*15=420-100MT = 320 DMG).

Lessa |  HP: 820/820 | EN: 114/114 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 122 | ACC: 2 | BH: 41 | H.M.: 8 | HLY: 8 | REC: 8 | THRNS: 72
Freyd | HP: 940/940 | EN: 108/128 (-12-8) | DMG: 24 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 6 | BH: 51 | LD: 5 | FLN: 16 | HLY: 16 | PARA IMMUNE | REC: 8
Baldur | HP: 880/880 | EN: 103/122 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 78 | ACC: 5 | EVA: 2 | BH: 44 | KEEN: 1 | REC: 4

[H:0*,2,0] King's Soldier | HP: 290/1000 | DMG: 200 | MIT: 100 | G.STUN IMM 0/3 | BATTLE FURY (DMG/MIT) | STUNNED

Abilities:

• *Soldier's Insight | Howl does not produce hate against the King's Scout. Instead it focuses his attack on the howler for one post. Afterwards he continues to attack those with the highest hate. If players hate values are equal, he targets the player with the least mitigation and lowest total health, in that order.
• Battle Fury | When his health reaches 500 or lower, every other post, his attacks deal 50 additional damage. On the turns he does not receive this bonus damage, he holds his shield up to mitigate 50 additional damage against him until his next turn.
• Frozen Soldier | If the freeze enhancement is activated on him, he will not receive the frozen affect, but instead receive -1 EVA and -1 ACC for one post.

 

Edited February 19, 2022 by Baldur

[Freyd 0]

"Agreed.  Something is definitely off.  One simple murderous mob for an entire quest?  I don't buy it."  Freyd's eyes scoured the lake and surrounding frozen wasteland, expecting a horde of shambling popsicle zombies to come shambling out of the landscape at any moment.  This was too easy, by far.

"Levi, did you recognize anyth-"  Freyd's words stopped abruptly when he spotted the boy's shuddering form draped over that of his former friend.  Quest backdrop or not, it was hard not to appreciate the outpouring of emotion, especially as his heart-wrenching cry rang out into the cold air, carrying out over the frozen lake.  Reaching through his pocket, into his inventory, Freyd drew forth a tattered grey wool cloak, his own starting gear from the dawn of their shared time in Aincrad.  A memento of similar moments, some good and bad, it had seen such scenes play out too many times before.  He had draped it over Elora's shoulders once, to keep her warm during the cold and dark of night.  She'd had it mended and returned to him as a gift.  

"You're not keeping this," he told the youngster as he gently laid it over him.  "And we can't stay here for long."

Something internal caused his jaw to clench momentarily and his eyes to squint while he struggled with unspoken memories.

"But you can borrow it for a bit, while you say goodbye."

[Baldur 0]

Baldur stood to the side, silent and unaffected by the display of grief the young NPC had shown. It may have been a compelling script, but it was no more of a display of real grief than that of what he had seen in a movie, and unfortunately, he had seen enough real grief here in Aincrad to last him a lifetime. The puzzle was what engaged him here. How things were changing, and what that meant not just for him, here now, attempting this quest, but how it would effect things going forward for the future of the humans of Aincrad. He would learn, he would scrape together knowledge, and he would use whatever he could gain in expertise to help keep people alive and move this forward.

"It does seem like defeating that... undead thing... has advanced us along. I am sure there is another step to the quest. Maybe if we return to the camp there will be more info? Or is there something we need to search this camp for. A note, or clue, of who is raising the dead in this area?"

The gaijin samurai rubbed his chin in thought, and then began to wander around the frozen camp, looking for things that seemed important as only an adventure gamer could.