[PP-F10] An Old Man and His Shield

[Kingsley 0]

 

 

A smooth rock thunked to the ground, echoing off of the cavern walls. 

"Yes, that's it," he muttered. "A little bit closer."

A rogue skeleton wandered out of the endless caverns, lured in by Kingsley's mischief. He tossed another stone, this time a bit harder. The skeleton was a bit dumb, and followed the noise towards the gates of Yomi. He chuckled, watching it cross the bridge, waiting for it to meet its impending doom.

"This way, please," he smirked, tossing a third stone.

The skeleton noticed Kingsley, hiding in the town's entrance. It's hate skyrocketed, and it broke out into a sprint. It clacked its jaw and drew its scimitar, getting as far as five feet before being completely dissolved.

One of Yomi's guardians hung over the town's wall. It's mouth was wide open and green acid bubbled out. Like a waterfall, it crashed down against the cold ground, engulfing the skeleton and melting its old, brittle bones. His gaze shot up. The dragon had made its appearance ahead of schedule.

"Quick! Quick!" Kingsley hurried.

He picked up his metal pail. The stream of acid ended, but droplets continued to fall from its jaw. He held the bucket on top of his head, standing where he could catch the most acid, and waited for it to fill up.

"YYYYOWCH," Kingsley screeched, tossing the bucket away. 

Its contents spilled out onto the path, sizzling the ground. He held his hand tight, jumping and yelping back to the archway. A drop of acid had touched him, leaving a round burn mark above his wrist.

  

| KINGSLEY  | Lv. 3 >> P. 0, Lv. 3  | Status: [ // ]  Notes:  //

Hide contents Kingsley | HP: 60/60 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 8 | PAR: 1 | ACC: 3 equipped Herding Wolf DMG II, PAR I Basalt ACC III battle-ready inventory skills   Hide contents mod count: 0/5 POLEARMS | RANK 3/5 extra # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== buffs   Hide contents statue # | # consumables # # paragon # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== sword arts   Hide contents en cost matches multiplier unless stated otherwise. shift underlined. ST | x8 -> x11 AOE | x7 TECH-A | x8 | STUN | 9EN data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== misc/housing buffs   Hide contents # fishing # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==   data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==

 

 

[Warden 0]

"What are you doing?" Warden asked.

His frame, just under seven feet tall, cast a long shadow over the old man. His face was concealed by metal and a scaly ball rolled in circles around his feet. Kingsley yelped once more, startled by the gigantic, armor-clad figure. He nearly spun around, but stopped when he realized that drops of acid continued to spill from the skeletal dragon's jaw.

Kingsley cleared his throat. "Working."

Beneath his helmet, Warden furrowed a brow. "On what?"

"Gate maintenance."

"You're a maintenance worker?"

"Yes."

Warden noticed the empty bucket next to a plot of melting rock. Green liquid dripped from above, each drop sizzling the ground on contact. He looked up, putting the pieces together.

"Are you collecting the dragon's acid?" Warden asked, after a moment's silence.

"No," Kingsley denied.

"What's that burn on your hand?"

"A birthmark."

"I don't think-"

"Okay, fine—I'm collecting the dragon's acid," Kingsley admitted.

There was a long pause.

"Why?" Warden finally asked.

"Tea," Kingsley said.

It wasn't much of an explanation. "Tea?"

"Yes, tea! You know what tea is, don't you?"

Taken aback by the old man's volatility, Warden scoffed. "Yes, I know what tea is. What kind of tea needs acid?"

Kingsley scurried off to grab his bucket, dodging the falling death liquid as he passed. "Yomi Dragon Tea, of course."

He said it like Warden was supposed to knew what it was. The old man moved back into position, placing the bucket back on his head and waiting for it to fill up. A few drops in, he gave up, frustrated by the slowing downpour. At the rate it was falling, he would be there all day.

"How do you stop the acid from burning through the bucket?" Warden asked, purely out of curiosity.

"It's coated with a serum developed to counter the effects of the dragon's breath," Kingsley grumbled.

A proper explanation, this time. "Do you have more?"

"I'm not selling you any."

"I don't want to buy it!" Warden snapped. "Coat my armor with it and I'll collect the acid for you."

Kingsley's eyes glowed like a lightbulb, as if he had just thought of a world-changing idea. "Brilliant!" He shouted, withdrawing a dozen elixirs from his inventory. "This may take a while to apply."

  

[ lv. 2  ->   l. 2 / p. 0 ] Warden | HP: 40/40 | EN: 22/22 | DMG: 5 | ACC: 3 | THORNS: 18 | TAUNT   Hide contents notes. # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==   Hide contents equipped Vanguard's Sword ACC III Vanguard's Heavy Plate MIT III Vanguard's Shield THORNS II, TAUNT battle-ready inventory # skills.   Hide contents mod count: 0/5 STRAIGHT SWORD | RANK 2/5 extra # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== buffs.   Hide contents statue # consumables  # paragon # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== arts.   Hide contents en cost matches multiplier unless stated otherwise. shift underlined. ST | x6 AOE | x5 TECH-A | x6 | STUN | 7 EN   data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== misc.   Hide contents # housing secondary profession # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==   data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==

[Kingsley 0]

Kingsley lathered the last of his anti-acid elixir on Warden's armor. It reeked of sulfur and burnt herbs, and hissed as it made contact with the metal, sealing the surface with a slick, iridescent sheen. Warden didn't ask what this mix was made of because he knew he wouldn't like the answer.

"Okay, all done," Kingsley grinned, slapping him on his armored back, and immediately wincing from the pain.

Warden pulled from the old man's rock collection and tossed one as far as he could. It flew three times the distance that Kingsley's had. The old man pouted from a distance while Warden threw another. A skeleton, identical from the last, peeked its head out of the endless caverns to see what was causing all the commotion. It would have been difficult for it to not notice the goliath of a man standing in front of the gates of Yomi. Once it locked eye sockets on the player, it charged. It ripped a weathered short sword from a ratty leather sheath, but didn't even make it close to the archway before being blasted by the dragon's corrosive breath.

With the bucket in hand, Warden strode under the acidfall, instantly staggered by the weight of it crashing down upon him. He held the bucket as high as he could before jumping out of the shower of death. Gasping for air, he placed the bucket down beside Kingsley, who was clapping away at their success.

Their success.

"Incredible! Not once have I managed to collect this much acid in one go! Very well done, indeed!"

Warden stood up straight, panting. A bit of acid made its way through the gap between his helmet and body armor, creeping in and burning his neck. His internal scale was weighing towards regret.

"I could use someone like you, y'know," Kingsley nodded, as if agreeing with himself. "Your height, your strength, your willingness to dive headfirst into danger. You'd make a wonderful teashop employee."

Teashop Employee?

"So, what do you say? Are you interested?" The old man asked.

Don't say yes. Don't say yes. Don't say yes.

"Yes," Warden obliged.

Fuck.