[F01/PP]Fallout

[Oscar 0]

What we got here is a failure to communicate.

The iconic line played through his head, thick high-pitched Southern drawl and all. It had all been going quite well, up until the end there. Not that Oscar was complaining. He'd got the rise he wanted, though perhaps not in the method he sought. It was a short jaunt to the plaza in the Town of Beginnings. Oscar - quite literally - had the need to cool off. He leaned against the side of the fountain nestled in the center of the plaza and let out a heavy sigh. Dipping his hands into the cool water, he cupped them together and flicked his wrists. Water rose up and splashed him in the face, stinging and refreshing him with its chill. He repeated the motion two more times and then turned around, leaning against the stones as he rubbed the nape of his neck. The cool sensations caused goosebumps to prickle up. The man ran his fingers through his dark hair, flicking droplets of water about as he took a deep breath.

Functional calm was what he was seeking. And that was what he found. Oscar didn't have a justification on what possessed him to so suddenly decide *that* had been the correct approach to their duel. But neither did he feel all that compelled to apologize for it. It had been a sudden, knee-jerk opportunity that he seized upon. Perhaps ill-advised, but Oscar had learned to throw himself fully into the moment - any moment. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out what had set her off. He supposed he'd find out soon enough.

Spoiler

Name: Oscar

True Tier: 10

Level: 34

Paragon Level: 57

HP: 960/960

EN: 128/128

 

Stats:

Damage: 24

Mitigation: 142

Accuracy: 3

Evasion: 1

Battle Healing: 

Loot Die: 8

Stealth Rating: -5

PHASEREC: 4

HLY: 16

BLI: 32/-20 

Equipped Gear:

Weapon/Armor/Trinket: 

  - <<DIVINE RANCOR>> T4 KATANA - HOLY/HOLY/PHASE/BLIGHT

Armor/Trinket: 

  - <<TACTICAL UNDER ARMOR>> T4 HEAVY ARMOR//MIT/MIT/MIT/REC

Shield/Armor/Trinket: 

  - <<IVORY GOLD LEAF RING>> T1 TRINKET//ACC/ACC/EVA/EVA

 

Combat Mastery:

  - Combat Mastery: Damage R3

 

Combat Shift:

  - AOE Shift

 

Familiar Skill:

  - 

 

Custom Skill:

  - 

 

Skills:

  - Battle Healing R5

  - Charge

  - Energist

  - Extended Weight Limit

  - Heavy Armor R5

  - Katana R5

  - Lock Picking R3

  - Quick Change

  - Searching R5

 

Extra Skills:

  - Concentration

  - Forgotten King's Authority

  - Meditation

  - Parry

  - Survival

 

Inactive Extra Skills:

 

Addons:

  - Ferocity

  - Iron Skin

  - Precision

  - Reveal

  - Stamina

 

Mods:

  - Impetus

  - Night Vision

 

Inactive Mods:

 

Battle Ready Inventory:

  - <<CRYSTAL OF DIVINE LIGHT>> ID: 236066 x

  - <<GLOVES OF CAERUS>> T1 LIGHT ARMOR//3 LD x

  - <<Kyūketsuki>> T4 KATANA//ABS.ACC/PHASE/VAMP2  x

  - <<RHINO'S HORN>> ID: 236068 x

  - <<SANCTITY'S RUIN>> T4 KATANA - FROSTBITE/BLEED/BLIGHT/BURN x

  - <<TELEPORTATION CRYSTAL>> x

  - <<TROLL'S BLOOD>> ID: 236067 x

 

Housing Buffs:

  - Basic Kitchen: Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps. Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30.

  - Storage Closet: +1 Battle Ready Inventory Slot

  - Living Room: Increases out of combatHP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.

  - Attic (Bedroom): +1 Expertise to declared utility skill. Cannot boost a skill without ranks, or increase a skill past its maximum rank. Cannot boost a skill the user has not learned yet. Ranks obtained using this buff will make the mods of that rank available for purchase. Mods obtained this way are unusable if this buff is removed until the skill is returned to the appropriate rank by way of SP purchase.

  - Basement: Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll

  - Guest Room: Players can have one «Amenity» in a «Guest Room» and the «Amenity» cannot be recovered. Players are allowed to change which «Amenity» is in the «Guest Room». Multiple instances of the same «Amenity» do not stack. This buff affects the player and their choice of up to two party members.

  - Master Bedroom: -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat

  - Master Bathroom: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 25% (rounded down)

  - Extended Workshop: +2 Crafting EXP per crafting attempt and +1 crafting attempt per day

  - Ornate Fishing Pond: +2 Fishing EXP per Attempt and additional +1 LD & CD to fishing attempts.

  - Dining Hall: Turn 3 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Feast. A Feast contains 6 portions of the food items sacrificed. Feasts created this way cannot be used outside of the thread they are created. Limit 1 item created per thread.

  - Mega Slime Farm: +10% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post.

 

Guild Hall Buffs:

 

Scents of the Wild Totem:

  - Kumatetsu

Wedding Ring:

 

Crafting Profession:

 - Cooking[5280exp] R10

Gathering Profession:

 - Fishing[100exp] R2

 

Edited February 13 by Oscar

[Lessa 1]

The Town of Beginnings was no New York City. There were no skyscrapers, the pizza didn't come close, and she hadn't seen a single Naked Cowboy the entire time she'd been in Aincrad. Still, they did both share the characteristic of never sleeping. No matter the day, no matter the hour, someone wandered the streets. Often many someones, and the small parks and plazas that dotted the city saw their fair share of activity. For that reason, it was suspiring that Oscar had managed to find one without any other Players milling about. Or perhaps he'd simply scared them all off. He did cut an incredibly imposing figure. A figure she'd had on top of her multiple times over the past hour.

Grinding her teeth against the thought, Lessa focused instead on the slap of her boots on cobblestone as she stalked across the plaza. Night had fallen completely by then, plunging the floor in darkness, and ushering in cooler temperatures. The day had been a hot one, cooking beneath a sun with relatively little cloud-cover, and she'd spent the entirety of it watching her friends duke it out on the dueling stage. Surely, that was why her skin felt so raw, and why it seemed to tingle where it was exposed to the night air. Why her cheeks felt so flushed. Toooootally not lingering emotion. She'd absolutely gotten her shit together. Because that was what she was good at, after all. Lessa, the one who always has her shit together.

"Hey," she greeted. It felt weird to throw out something so casual after their duel had been anything but. Hell, she might as well have hit him with the "yo" or "s'up?" But she came to a halt a few feet from him, hooked her thumbs in her belts, and stared at a spot just below his chin. "Everyone's going out for food, so I don't have a lot of time. And if you want to come, you can."

Spoiler

Lessa | HP: 980/980 | EN: 130/130 | DMG: 18 | MIT:127 | THORNS:72 | BH:29 | HB: 39 | MENDING: 2 | REC: 8 | HLY: 8                                                                                                                            

"Name: Lessa, Guardian of Aincrad True Tier: 10
Level: 34
Paragon Level: 60
HP: 980/980
EN: 130/130

Stats:
Damage: 18
Mitigation: 127
Battle Healing: 29
Stealth Rating: -5
HB: 39
MENDING: 2 REC: 8
HLY: 8
Equipped Gear:
Weapon/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Arcael's Might (T4 THSS - DMG DMG DMG HLY)                                                                                                        
Armor/Trinket: 
  - Vega's Panoply (T4 HA - THNS THNS HB HB)                                                                                                             
Shield/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Red Tide Beacon - Venus (T4 TRINKET - LM LM REC REC)

Combat Mastery:
  - Combat Mastery: Mitigation R3

Combat Shift:
  - ST Shift

Familiar Skill:
  - Rending Familiar

Custom Skill:
  - 

Skills:
  - Battle Healing R3
  - Energist
  - Extended Weight Limit
  - Heavy Armor R5
  - Straight Sword R3

Extra Skills:
  - First Aid R5
  - Leadership R5

Inactive Extra Skills:

Addons:
  - Field Medic
  - Hyperactive
  - Iron Skin

Mods:
  - Barrier
  - Energize
  - Inspiring Speech
  - Large Pockets
  - Press the Attack

Inactive Mods:

Battle Ready Inventory:
  - Blessing of the Wood x4
  - Chocolate Truffles (T4 Vitality II Desserts) x13
  - Congealing Ale (Tierless Antidote Salves) x4
  - March to the Dawn (Instant HP Recovery 3) x14
  - Rumbling Rum Party Favor (Tierless Mass HP Recovery Crystals) x13
  - Teleportation Crystal x14
  - Tiger's Balm (Tierless Antidote Salves) x1

Housing Buffs:
  - Bedroom: -1 energy cost for the first two expenditures of each combat
  - Bathroom: The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 20% (rounded down)
  - Living Room: Increases out of combatHP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts.
  - Attic (Storage): +5% bonus col from monster kills and treasure chests
  - Slime Farm: +5% EXP to a thread. Limit one use per month. Must be used on a player's first post in a thread. Cooldown begins counting down when used in a post.
  - Basement: 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:

Scents of the Wild Totem:

Wedding Ring:

Crafting Profession:
 - Blacksmith[465exp] R6
Gathering Profession:
 - Forager[0exp] R1"                                                                                                                            

 

[Oscar 0]

Lessa had a shit poker face. He didn't need his Searching skill to see the pink rouge that her surging blood painted upon her cheeks. Even her stance struck him as forced. That strained greeting, as if she were trying to avoid the talk altogether. But what struck Oscar was the fact she said she didn't have the time. Oscar was taken aback by the audacity. 

"So. You go off and stab me in the dick and you don't have the time?"

His response rolled off of his tongue immediately. He maintained his relaxed stance, leaned back with his arms draped over the side of the fountain. It was clear that he was less bothered by the entire thing than Lessa was. Though, he'd be lying if he didn't find her attempts at looking put-together adorable. That his quickening pulse wasn't simply because of her off-the-cuff remarks.

It was so fucking infuriating to always be the second best looking person in any space they both occupied.

"Make time," he said sharply. "What the fuck was all of that? Things were going so well until you started popping off."

Edited February 14 by Oscar

[Lessa 1]

"Going well? Popping off?" That familiar rage rose again, bubbling through her like white-hot magma climbing a volcano. She'd felt the same way less than an hour before, facing him on that stage. Back then, she'd already been superheated by his words and his hands on her. Time and distance had done little to cool her off, as they'd both just discovered.

She'd stripped off her heavy armor, but hadn't taken the time to change into anything more stylish than the long-sleeved shirt and pants she wore beneath. The cool breeze that blew through the square tugged at the thin fabric, and sent her blonde hair flapping madly around her flushed face as she glared at Oscar. Essentially, Lessa looked every bit the part of the crazed madwoman. She lifted one finger, jabbing it accusingly in Oscar's direction. "We were just feeling each other up and having a great time, and then you decided to turn it into a therapy session, and you-"

The words died on her lips, and for a few heartbeats, Lessa stood motionless. Then she drew her finger back, balling her hand into a fist, before thudding it firmly against her forehead. She repeated the motion once, twice, three more times, a low, rich laugh rumbling from deep inside her. By the time she finally joined Oscar at the fountain's edge, the red flush had lessened considerably. "You are infuriatingly good at pushing my buttons, Oscar."

[Oscar 0]

"Therapy session? Is that what you thought that was?" His question cut through the night air like a knife. "You dumb?" As she sank back into the edge of the fountain, it was Oscar's turn to go on a tirade. Though, to his credit, his own was more calm than hers. "First of all, we needed to cool the fuck down. Don't pretend for one goddamn second we wouldn't have gone at it in the middle of the arena if we kept pushing things." He turned his head to the side and looked down to catch her gaze. "No lies now, you were feeling it as much as I was."

Oscar pushed himself off the fountain, striding forward and spinning around to face Lessa fully. "That was no therapy session. I mean, I can get out my rate clock if you want. But you and I both know you need to get laid - not therapized.” Oscar was nothing if not direct. Perhaps that was what pushed Lessa's buttons so. He had a million jokes about that that he kept under lock and key. And he had no issue whatsoever with any of her past entanglements, but how long had it been since he saw her moving in a little too close to Bahr when they both thought no one was looking.

And there wasn't much on Floor One that Oscar didn't see.

Another, better man, might have felt guilty. But Oscar would never apologize for the physical. They could fight about it later if he wanted.

“I was asking for permission,” Oscar stated flatly. He took a few steps forward, reaching forward to trail his fingers along her jaw as he settled back into his original position against the fountain. The issue, he found, was that she wasn't taking him seriously. Or that she thought he wasn't taking her seriously. The latter couldn't be further from the truth. He was merely waiting on the “yes” she had yet to give.

“From Lessa,” he reminded her. “Fuck a Guardian, honestly.”

 

Edited Wednesday at 01:47 PM by Oscar