[PP-F6] Secrets of the Jungle Revealed (Azide)

[Oikawa 1]

Azide shot Oikawa a calm yet stern look. Then he spoke. Hearing him out , Oikawa responded. "Knocking me out? Azide-kun how naive you are. Keke" Licking his lips, he accepted the recent dialogue box that had popped up. Gazing at his comrade, Oikawa drew his rapier once more and commented. "No more blood-lust? HAHAHAHA One does not simply give up the urge to torture his enemy. Even if that enemy is his friend..." Narrowing his eyes, he brought himself to a guard stance. The timer continued to tick down.

 

10..9...8...7..6..5..4..3..2..1..GO

 

Oikawa rushed his guild mate. Using a series of side steps and feints, he thrusted his rapier right at Azide's wielding arm. Aiming more for the shoulder, he exposed a fiendish grin and exclaimed "As much as I like you Azide-kun, you brought this upon yourself." Sinking his blade into the man's shoulder he let out a maniacal laugh (Dealt 4 damage. (6- 2 Mitigation)). "Ahh it seems I even healed a bit of HP with that hit."(Healed 1 HP) Retreating back a few steps he took another guard stance. 

 

"Your move Azide-kun!"

 

 

#ID: 8713 BD: 7 (8- 1 Evasion)

 

~Oikawa~

HP: 21/22 (+1)

~Azide~

HP: 17/22 (-4)

[Azide 0]

"Like I said, I won't be leaving this place with a blood-lusted raving lunatic," repeated Azide. He pulled his gloves so that they fit snugly over both his hands, then slowly released Quantum Slicer from its sheath. He flexed his fingers against the weapon's handle, so as to optimize his grip on the sword. As the timer ticked down, he spun the rapier in his hand a few times before positioning himself to a defensive stance. "I'll wait for him to make his move, then I'll make my own accordingly." Such was the method of a scientist. He looked Oikawa back in the eye, showing no malice or hostility. "So to make myself clear, I'll gladly drag a non-neurotic Oikawa out of this place if that's what it comes to."

As the timer signaled the start of the duel, Oikawa had chosen to take the first move, and approached him with rather tricky movements. Azide found his eyes struggling to keep up with his opponent's pace, and soon felt the cold steel of Oikawa's blade slip into his arm. He winced, having attempted to move out of its way, but hadn't been able to full escape it.

Azide stepped back, clutching at his shoulder, but noticed that Oikawa had retreated as well. As the red gash on his arm faded away, he tightened his hold on Quantum Slicer once more, then quickly propelled himself forward. He came rocketing towards Oikawa and delivered a flurry of strikes and thrusts, the majority of which were deflected or dodged by the opposing combatant. As their heated exchange continued in close quarters, Azide soon found just the opening he'd be searching for, as he managed to knock Oikawa's blade just far enough away to leave him vulnerable.

Azide dashed forward, slashing through the other player's side as he did so, and only stopping once he'd passed him completely. "En garde, Oikawa," he said, turning around. And with that, the score had suddenly evened. "My competitive streak is starting to show itself in the first time in years. I can feel the adrenaline rushing through me..." Something seemed to tell him it'd be best to end this as quickly as possible.

ID: 8739

BD: 8 (+1 Accuracy)(-1 Accuracy)

Damage taken (Oikawa) = 1 (Base) + 3 (Rapier) + 2 (Weapon Skill) + 1 (Athletic) - 3 (Mitigation) = 4

Azide | HP: 17/22

[IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-----]

Oikawa | HP: 17/22 (-4)

[IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-----]

[Oikawa 1]

Azide had wasted no time retaliating. Engaging in combat, the two clashed on series of thrusts and jabs. Explosive strikes being met by the clanging of metal against metal. They were even blow for blow until Oikawa had his guard knocked away briefly. This brief window of opportunity didn't go unnoticed by the ever so observant Azide. He took advantage of the situation and dealt a decent blow right back at Oikawa. 

 

Oikawa looked down as the red gash dissolved from view. "Not bad Azide-kun. I underestimated your ability to use that thing." He stated while gesturing to the Quantum Slicer. "En garde!"He called as he drew his stance once more smirking in a creepy yet feral way. "Seems I'll have to get serious" Bending his right arm a bit, he kept his rapier pointing forwards. Then in quick succession, he kicked his right foot forward while simultaneously pushing off his left foot. Outstretching his rapier in hopes to pierce the chest of Azide. He was met by the sound of of Quantum Slicer colliding with his very own Fast Stinger. They went back in forth locking there blades in place. This is too dangerous. I need to create some more distance. Quickly pressing off the toes of his left foot he backed away in graceful fashion. Executing a tempo of back foot, front foot, back foot, front foot, until he returned a little further back from his starting point back into his guard position. Looking up at Azide, he asked "I hope you don't mind losing an arm next time" Making sure to keep his guard up, he eyed his opponent. Waiting to see his response.

 

#ID: 8769 BD: 2 (3- 1 Evasion)

 

~Oikawa~

HP: 17/22 (miss)

~Azide~

HP: 17/22 

[Azide 0]

"Unless bodily mutilation was recently patched in, I'm pretty sure that won't be happening," remarked Azide. "Oikawa is more than an admirable opponent. Even with our differing equipment and skills, we're going toe-to-toe. He'd make for a dangerous enemy- and yet, I'm willing to bet he's off his game right now." He kept Quantum Slicer raised in front of him at an angle, ready to fend off whatever sudden assault Oikawa might throw his way. "Not bad on your part either. Making this thing, that is."

With that comment, Azide launched himself forward and aimed at what he'd perceived to be a weak spot, only for it to be deflected by Oikawa. "This Oikawa might be less stable, but that instability only makes him harder to predict," he noted. Timed seemed to slow down for a moment, but quickly came back to speed as the two continued to trade blows in rapid succession. Once again, they appeared to be an even match, sending a shower of sparks flying in every direction. The sound of metal rang through the jungle as their blades collided time and time again, and would surely draw the attention of any creatures nearby.

Azide's eyes narrowed. "Finally," he thought. He sidestepped a thrust from the other player, then jabbed the dagger-like pommel of his blade into his opponent's side before making a tactical retreat. "Will another hit be enough to knock him out? Can I manage to land another one?"

Meanwhile, somewhere in the background, he'd sworn he'd heard a distant rustling. "Maybe even a faint hiss? Or the sound of something dragging along the ground..." He shook his head. Whatever it was, it could wait.

ID: 8844
BD: 8 (+1 Accuracy)(-1 Accuracy)

Damage taken (Oikawa) = 7 (Base+Rapier+Skills) - 3 (Mitigation) = 4

Azide | HP: 17/22
[|||||||||||||||||-----]
Oikawa | HP: 13/22 (-4)
[|||||||||||||---------]

[Oikawa 1]

(OOC: Kirito got his left hand cut-off by Kuradeel remember? Of course it regenerated when he reentered the safe zone.)

 

Hmm, no arms to swing with and no legs to run away with. Ah, the sight would be glorious. Especially as his panicked screams beg me to stop. Oh, the horror! Turning to face Azide, he spoke. "I wouldn't be so sure about that Azide-kun." Oikawa stated as his eyes grew larger at the thought of a dismembered Azide. The real problem will be disarming him. Literally hahahahahahahaha. He's so efficient a rapier, it makes it hard to one up him. No matter, he'll be missing a limb by the end of this duel, even if its briefly muahahahahahaha....

 

Cackling out loud, he was caught off-guard by Azide's sudden attack. Reacting quickly, Oikawa parried the blow and continued to clash with Azide. Back and forth they went. Like to prize fighters going for the championship belt.Neither one giving the other an advantage, until Oikawa miss stepped in a jab. Azide easily dodged the thrust and and retaliated with a blow to his side. Staggering back a little, Oikawa felt a savage instinct settle in within him.

 

"Tsk Tsk, Azide-kun. You should've knocked me out sooner. Because now I'm going for blood."  Lunging at Azide, Oikawa let loose a volley of quick jabs. Not letting an ounce of effort go to waste, he watched as Azide not only kept up with his sudden barrage but increasingly became the more offensive one, as Oikawa was put on the defensive. Taking his chance, he retreated back a few paces and stared. With a distraught yet crazed look in his eyes, he wondered how he had let himself go so far down this path. 

 

ID: 8846 
BD: 5 (-1 Accuracy)(Miss)

Azide | HP: 17/22 
[|||||||||||||||||-----]
Oikawa | HP: 13/22
[|||||||||||||---------] 

[Azide 0]

For a moment, something seemed to flash across his guild mate's eyes. "Rage? wondered Azide. He shook his head, quickly dismissing that bit of conjecture. "Not quite. It seemed more like distress, or maybe even regret." But he realized that a single moment of possible clarity wouldn't be enough. "I'm going to have to see a more permanent change. Besides, duels can only be halted if both sides agree to it." He tightened his grip, eyeing Oikawa as he retreated. "And at the moment, I have a hard time imagining that working out."

And there it was again- the sounds he'd heard before. One of the first things they'd noticed as they'd stepped into this place had been the eery silence. In fact, it'd been completely devoid of all sound, outside of their own. So what was it that seemed to call out to him? Whatever it was, the faint hiss continued, somewhere in the distance as he prepared to strike once more.

"One more clean hit will finish this," thought Azide. With that thought in mind, he advanced at Oikawa, bringing the distance between them to nil in a manner of moments. In an instant, he swung at Oikawa once, and then twice. In a span of a few seconds, he'd lost track of the number, but found himself unable to deliver the finishing blow. Each strike had been met by the steel of Oikawa's blade, and from there, expertly defended.

"Oikawa, get ahold of yourself!" said Azide as he withdrew from their exchange. "This can all be made redundant if you just control whatever's gotten inside your head. It isn't optimal for us to keep fighting, lest we lose too much health to make it out of here." After all, they still had yet to escape the jungle itself.

ID: 8957

BD: 3 (+1 Accuracy)(-1 Accuracy)

Damage taken (Oikawa) = 0 (Miss)

Azide | HP: 17/22

[||||||||||||||||||||||]

Oikawa | HP: 13/22 (-0)

[||||||||||||||||||||||]

[Oikawa 1]

Oikawa tried to focus on gripping reality, but was distracted by some rather interesting sounds that shouldn't be there and the thoughts of controlling this savagery that had overtaken him. He didn't have much time to mull them over, as Azide had yet again gone on the offensive. "Are you growing tired Azide-kun? Your strikes are becoming repetitive and and predictable. Blocking each blow soundly, Oikawa wondered again about the noises he had heard.

 

It's so faint...like a whisper... I wonder what it could be.... FOCUS!! You have an opponent who needs some obvious amputations done to him, and your pondering about imaginary noises. In response to Azide, Oikawa spoke. "I'm trying to control it but..but.. I'd rather behead you instead....I didn't mean that.." Disengaging combat with Azide, Oikawa began to mutter to himself. Grabbing the sides of his head, and pulling on the blonde hair that cascaded his brow, he just mumbled over and over. "I can't go on...I...can do..better. NO I don't deserve better...I'm worthless....I even tried to kill my own guild mate...my l..leader.. Well he does look like a fine specimen for decapitation no? No of course not!...PKing...is wrong...right? Ugghhhhhh I CAN'T TAKE IT ANYMORE!!" Jumping up Oikawa ran full speed at the nearest tree. Nearing it, he dipped his head slightly and collided with the base of the tree. Quite the sound was made as he bounded off the tree. This rendered him unconscious for a few minutes.

 

Oikawa blinked a few times. Suddenly looking up he became aware of his surroundings. He remembered being in the forest, being trapped by immortal plants, the lack of sound that should be present but isn't, and suddenly spiders flashed across his mind's eye. Scrambling to his feet, he looked around. Seeing Azide standing there with a rather bizarre look on his face, prompted a few questions. "What's going bro? Did we get away from the giant spiders? Did you find what you were looking for?" Waiting for a response, he eyed his health bar. "Looks like I didn't walk away from those bugs unscathed eh?

[Azide 0]

"He's right, I am growing tired," thought Azide. He didn't show it, but as the fight dragged on, each breath had begun to take more and more of an effort. Every swing of his sword lacked a bit of the resolve from the swing before it. "It's reckless to continue. This fight needs to end quickly, or now," he thought.

Meanwhile, there were the sounds that continued to call out from somewhere away from this place. How far away they were, however, was another story altogether. In fact, he found himself unable to tell either the direction or the distance of these sounds. The faint hiss in the air, and the sounds of something dragging through the soft soil- both were like a whisper through the trees. "And yet I can tell they're getting closer."

With that in mind, he turned his attention back to Oikawa, only to notice his guild mate struggling with something. Azide had stood with his sword raised before him, intending to guard against another one of Oikawa's swift assaults, but now found himself eyeing the peculiar sight in front of him. Not only had Oikawa not made his move- he'd begun conversing with himself. "Don't let your clarity slip away from you again, Oikawa," said Azide. His guild mate struggled, clutching at his head and screaming mangled thoughts. Suddenly, Oikawa ran off full speed and collided with a tree, then fell limp against the ground.

Azide stayed back for a moment, managing to resist the urge to run over and check up on him. "His health bar didn't drop because of that little fiasco, but there's no guarantee that he wouldn't wake up and stab me if I were to come running over." He decided this would be a time to exercise caution, for both of their sakes.

Meanwhile, those sounds which had once appeared occasionally had now become a constant presence in the jungle. "It's getting closer." He turned each and every way, attempting to discern the direction of its source, but to no avail. There was definitely the sound of something dragging along the ground, and from the sound of it, it was colossal. A long and low hiss would fill the air, then fade away before resurface moments later.

Noticing his friend's awakening, he was relieved to hear what sounded closer to the Oikawa he'd entered this place with, rather than the one who'd attempted to kill him. At roughly the same time, however, an ominous sound filled the air. The ground rumbled, and he could tell the dragging sound was now dangerously close. Azide turned, surprised to finally be able to determine its location, only to be greeted with an unwelcome sight. Well, that would be understating it.

Peeking out of the passage that they'd entered from was the face of an absolutely colossal snake. The viridian serpent seemed to fill nearly the entire volume of the trail, and nearly scraped the canopy itself with its head as it slithered through the jungle. The creature briefly glanced at the two, then rushed straight past them, knocking both players to the side. It slithered down the path up ahead, and continued to do so- with no end to its tail in sight. Even as Azide stood dumbfounded by the sight, the body of the serpent continued to trail along the ground from out of the forest.

Azide shot a look at Oikawa, sheathing his rapier for the time being. He gestured for his guild mate to stand up. "I'll tell you all about it later. For now, I think we should follow this thing through this maze of a jungle." He took off and began running parallel to the body of the massive snake, which continued to slither along even now.

[Oikawa 1]

The faint hiss had grown louder, or closer rather. Filling his ears from every direction, the sound became the only thing he could hear. The ground vibrated with slight rumbles as something made its way through the area. Oikawa looked up and saw nothing, but he knew better than to only trust his sight. As the low hiss made another cameo among the airwaves, Oikawa turned to Azide. He had opened his mouth to speak when he noticed that his guildmate was no longer paying attention to him.

 

Following his gaze he spotted what had been making the only audible noise that this jungle had allowed. An enormous serpent began slithering its way through the clearing. Its emerald scales reflecting what little sunlight had slipped its way through the blanket of trees. As it made its way through the trail, it didn't even acknowledge the pair of players it had knocked aside. Azide was the first to stand up. As such he declared he would explain on the way, and began running along side of the snake that had no end in sight.

 

Well it beats standing here being spider bait. Jumping up, Oikawa took a different approach in keeping up. Backing up a few steps, Oikawa ran straight towards the the mass of moving scales and leaped on top of it as it passed. Taking no time at all to catch up with Azide, he reached out a hand asked "Need a ride" flashing his usual grin, he waited for Azide to grasp his hand so he could pull him up.

[Azide 0]

"What would I do without you, Oikawa?" asked Azide. He raised a hand up to Oikawa, who took hold of it and pulled him atop the serpent's back. Once he'd managed to make it up, he'd positioned himself low against the creature. Despite the convenience of this method of travel, there were no guarantees he'd still be around to enjoy it if he'd continued to stay upright.

 

"I'd rather not got thrown off of this thing because of a few bumps or sharp turns," he explained. After settling himself as best as he could, he marveled at all of the trees they passed every second, as if they were watching the entire forest zoom by. At their speed, however, everything looked more like streaks of green. "Geez, no wonder people get lost here," he remarked to Oikawa. The jungle was larger than he could've even begun to imagine, and it was only now that he'd realized how close they'd come to being stranded here indefinitely. "It looks like our gamble's paying off. My reasoning was that as a creature of this jungle, it should know exactly where it's heading." He peered over the side of the enormous serpent, noting all the twists and turns the creature was taking. There was no hesitation in its movements, even as it came to countless forks in the path, or bounded around corners.

 

He shifted his gaze back to Oikawa, who looked as if he were in a much better state by now. "So just for curiosity's sake, what's the last thing you happen to remember?"

[Oikawa 1]

"You'd still be running, exhausting yourself down there haha" Oikawa replied as grasped Azide's hand and pulled him up. Oikawa watched as Azide adjusted himself atop the scaly back of the snake. "Haha lighten up man. If ole Slytherin here wanted to throw us off, he would've by now. You know he can feel us right?" Oikawa stretched out and relaxed. He gazed up at the verdant canopy that seemed to engulf the entire jungle. He could feel the snakes body contractions as it turned this way and that. It was kind of cool.

 

Azide had began to speak again, so Oikawa sat up. He remarked about why people got lost and how his gamble with following the creature seemed to be paying off. Oikawa nodded, although he wasn't completely listening. He was entranced once more by the scenery. Azide's next question however, snapped him out of it. "So just for curiosity's sake, what's the last thing you happen to remember?" he asked. "The last thing I remember, is seeing two enormous spiders come thrashing down the pathway we were just on. Then it went dark. I could hear noises . Human and monster voices alike. But they were still inaudible"

 

Oikawa looked up, after recounting the events he remembered. "What happened while I was out?"

[Azide 0]

"A little running does the body good," remarked Azide, catching his breath. He looked at Oikawa with a grin. "Slytherin? I feel as if that's a reference to something, but at the moment I can't seem to recall it." Listening to his guild mate's point, he allowed himself to relax his grip a bit, but continued to keep a low profile. "That's true, but at the speed we're going, the wind might very well throw me off if I were to hold my jacket open. I mean, not that I would, but still."

He listened as Oikawa replied to his last question, which depicted a rather vague and disjointed recollection of events that had taken place directly before his guild mate had passed out. "He doesn't remember," noted Azide. He nodded slowly as Oikawa glanced up at him, inquiring about what had transpired after that point. "After you fainted, you were hit by one of the spiders, but they were quickly dispatched without too much trouble, although I'd also taken a hit as well. You were talking in your sleep, in a way, but I couldn't really understand anything you said. You sounded a bit out of it, but that's because you obviously were." He patted the scales of the snake they now rode on. "And then this thing here came slithering by, and now we're up here."

[Oikawa 1]

That Harry Potter joke just flew over him huh? Oh well. "I see your point, I see your point. I guess I should be a little more cautious." Having straddled the snake like a horse the whole time, Oikawa decided to switch positions. He kicked both legs over to one side and watched them dangle softly against the emerald surface they sat upon. "I guess this isn't the safest position either haha!" He smirked looking at Azide.

 

Azide then explained what happened while he was out cold. "Hmm maybe the bite kept me out longer than I should've been. Oh well glad you're safe though man. Also glad this bad boy didn't attack us", he stated while patting the serpent's back. "That would've been bad business."

 

Having traversed the intricacies of the jungle for what seemed like an hour now, Oikawa could feel the muscles in the serpent slow down. "I think we're nearing it's destination. " Looking up, he noticed the trees had significantly gotten shorter and that the trail of snake in front of them seemed to be disappearing. "Wait. You don't think it could be taking us into it's den do you?"

He didn't have to wait long for answer, as they were suddenly thrown downward into a hole. Gripping onto as much scale as he could, Oikawa threw his legs back into a straddling position and braced himself as they descended into darkness. "I hope this was part of your plan too," Oikawa joked, but with a hint of seriousness layered behind the comment.

[Azide 0]

Oikawa had been speaking when suddenly, the serpent altered its path and began hurtling into a dark into a sea of darkness. "I can only assume this must be the creature's burrow," thought Azide. Thinking quickly, Azide hastily drew Quantum Slicer from its sheath and sank it deep into the creature's back. "I can definitely say that this was not part of the plan," replied Azide, keeping a tight grip on his sword. With the creature plunging into the earth at such a steep angle and brutal pace, he felt himself struggling to keep from being thrown off.

After what seemed like an eternity, he opened his eyes as the beast came to a slow stop. "Oikawa, are you there?" he called. He found himself amazed by the fact that he could still see. It was still dark, and faint, but light still managed to reach his eyes. His eyes darted around the room to see that the whole place was covered in what appeared to be a luminescent moss. This in itself was interesting, and he'd definitely want to obtain a sample of it for study at his lab, but his eyes eventually settled on one thing in particular. in the center of the room rose mid-sized flower, which still had yet to bloom. It was highlighted by the slightest ray of sunlight, which seemed to come from a small crack in the ceiling. It was surrounded by a large circle of fern-like structures that seemed to rise from the ground every so often. "Could this be what I was looking for?"

[Oikawa 1]

As they ventured further and further into the darkness, Oikawa could feel Slytherin (official nickname at this point) tense up. Suddenly the darkness opened up into a small void. Covered in fermented leaves and luminous moss the cave still had an eerie feeling to it. Adjusting his sight to the darkness of the cavern, which was surprisingly not that difficult, Oikawa watched as the snake came to a stop. Azide asked if Oikawa was still there. To which Oikawa replied "Yeah I'm here. In fact, I'm still right in front of you."

 

With a strong flick of its tail, the emerald serpent removed the two players from its back before continuing on down a side tunnel. Looking around Oikawa noticed that the are they were in was quite expansive. Thew luminous blue-green moss covered the walls and the floor while a weird slimy excrete seemed to line every other part of the walls and floor. "Hey Azide, this is the type of stuff you study as an Alchemist right? Must feel like you hit the SAO jackpot for weird substances haha?"

 

Turning around to the center of the cave, Oikawa grew wide-eyed as he set his sights on the un-blossomed flower masterpiece that awaited them. "I take that back. This is the jackpot" Approaching the fern encased sanctuary, Oikawa got close enough to smell the flower. "Azide this thing smells like the perfect balance between honey, satisfaction and life. Weird combination right. Here smell it for yourself", Oikawa stated as he gestured for Azide to get closer.

[Azide 0]

With his eyes now adjusting to the dimmer lighting, he could now see his guild mate a little clearer. True to his word, Oikawa was indeed standing in front of him, alive and well. After dusting himself off, Azide slowly approached the side of the cavern and examined the glowing moss with his eyes. He chipped off a specimen with his sword and held it up to his eye. "You've sure got that right, Oikawa. I haven't seen anything else quite like this in Aincrad." He opened his inventory and sent the item away for safe keeping.

He turned and saw that Oikawa was now standing right in front of the flower, and was even smelling it. He began to speak as he made his way toward his partner at the mysterious piece of flora that stood before them. "The ground feels oddly spongy here," he thought, stepping past a few of of the fern-like structures.

"Oikawa, I'll be honest with you. I began investigating the rainforest off of a few rumors I'd heard floating around. Word was that Kayaba had hidden away a plant of some sort that could be used by an alchemist to create the most valuable potion of all." He paused for a moment, then continued. "A revival potion." He continued his slow approach until he finally reached both Oikawa and the flower, then bent down to take in the bud's exotic aroma. "He's right, it does smell like honey. Satisfaction is arguable, because I'm not exactly sure what that would smell like. But it does smell... alive." He slowly closed his fingers around the base of the flower's stem and looked back at his guild mate. "I hadn't mentioned it earlier, because I didn't want to get your hopes up. It was just a rumor, after all, and I only came here on a hunch." He tugged gently on the stem, but didn't feel it budge even a bit. "I have a feeling what we have here just might be that plant..." He tugged a bit stronger this time, and the flower was released from the ground. He held it in his hand for a moment and grinned, only for it to shatter a few moments later. Immediately, he felt his heart sink in his chest. "What?"

Around them, he felt the ground began to rumble violently. He looked at Oikawa, then gestured for him to make a run for it. As the two immediately made a mad dash towards the glowing walls of the den, the center of the room snapped shut like a clam shell, before raising out of the ground, causing moderate tremors. Azide looked up to see that the fern-like structures had actually been the bristles of this colossal creature. Its appearance resembled that of a massive Venus flytrap. A tag above it read Gluttony of the Jungle. It shrieked at the two with a fierce roar resembling the ones he'd used to hear in Godzilla films growing up. To make matters worse, their little friend from before came charging out from the side tunnel it'd exited before. Its tag was now revealed as Guide of the Jungle.

He looked up at Oikawa with a look of regret. "Well, let's finish what we've started, Oikawa." He raised Quantum Slicer at the two creatures before them.

(OOC: Both creatures only attack once a cycle. So I'll roll for them during my posts.)

Gluttony of the Jungle | HP: 25/25

Attack: 2 on 6-8, 3 on Crit, 4 on Crit+2.

Guide of the Jungle: | HP: 15/15

Attack: 1 on 6-8, 2 on Crit, 3 on Crit+2

Bleed on 9 and 10, activates during target's turn.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JS7XVMNNZI8

ID: 9200

LD: 16 (Material acquired).

[Oikawa 1]

(BGM was a nice touch :D)

 

Oikawa watched as Azide walked towards one of the cavern's walls and examined the fluorescent moss. Using his blade, Azide managed to break some of it free so he could add it to his inventory. Finishing his little gathering, Azide strolled to where Oikawa was standing. He reached for the flower and began to speak. He recounted how this whole trip was about a hunch that could possibly lead to the greatest alchemic discovery in-game. A Revival Potion.

 

Oikawa nodded as Azide explained. When he finished Oikawa brushed the bangs from his face and spoke. "Well next time just tell haha. It's not like I would've turned you down. A chance to say you helped bring about the strongest potion in SAO history. You think I would've turned that down? No, I wouldn't have.And even if it is just a rumor, this adventure has been fun. Aside from me fainting and all." Looking back at he flower, Oikawa watched as Azide tugged on the plant to release it from the ground. "Well I'll be. The rumor is actually..." His sentence was cut short as the plant burst into several tiny blue crystals. The look on Azide's face was one of sadness and disappointment. 

 

What felt like a small scale earthquake leaked into the depths of the cave. As the ground shook and rumbled, Azide beckoned for Oikawa to follow him. The had just reached the perimeter of the cave when the fern like structures began to move and suddenly snap shut. The ground where the were just standing converted into an over-sized version of a venus flytrap. As if on cue, the familiar sound of hissing filled the air as there emerald companion returned to the scene. This time however, it did not look friendly in the least.

 

Two names briefly hovered mid-air above the respective creatures. <<Gluttony of the Jungle>> dangled above the feral flytrap and <<Guide of the Jungle>> wavered atop the verdant snake. Azide called out to Oikawa "Well, let's finish what we've started, Oikawa." Nodding his head in agreement, Oikawa quickly withdrew his rapier from its sheath and activated his shield. Looking directly at the snake, Oikawa lunged forward. "No points to Slytherin tonight!" is what he shouted as he launched the first attack of the ensuing battle.

 

Jumping forwards, he volleyed off several quick thrusts at the serpents face. Connecting on enough of the blows to deal quite a bit of damage, Oikawa smirked as the serpent hissed and writhed in pain. Jumping back he raised his shield in anticipation of a counter attack from the jungle dwellers. Looking at Azide, Oikawa remarked, "I wish I hadn't lost so much HP. This fight is gonna be a good one."

 

#ID: 9213 BD: 7 

 

~Oikawa~

13/22

~Azide~

17/22

~Gluttony of the Jungle~

25/25

~Guide of the Jungle~

9/15 (-6)

[Azide 0]

(Thanks! Thought it would be fitting for an encounter like this!)

Azide snapped his fingers, a sudden realization coming upon him. "Slytherin! That's right, from that one wizard thing." He could only recall the vaguest of details about it, but he still found himself grinning regardless. "Nothing beats the triumph of recollection." He shook his head, remember the two colossal creatures ahead of them. He watched as Oikawa lunged forward, delivering a clean hit against the serpent.

"Same here, Oikawa. But these creatures look a little weaker than they should be," he said to his guild mate, who'd just jumped back to safety. "I get the feeling the jungle hasn't been fed in quite some time. Looks like most of Aincrad has been smart enough to avoid this place like the plague." He tightened his grip on Quantum Slicer, then went speeding toward the gluttonous flytrap.

He managed to leap out of the way a total of three times as the creature snapped forward at him with its massive maw, but was close enough to feel its bristles brush up against his jacket on the last time. "Missed by a literal hair," he thought. As the creature craned its "neck" around to search for him, he charged toward its stalk and slashed at it once, before retreating to the opposite side before it could attack him again. "Finish up with Slytherin, Oikawa!" he called. "I'll keep this thing busy for now."

ID: 9217

BD: 7 (Hit)

MD: 6 (-1 Accuracy) = 5 (Miss)

Damage taken (Azide) = 0 (Miss)

Damage taken (Gluttony of the Jungle) = 1 (Base) + 3 (Rapier) + 3 (Skills) = 7

ID: 9218

BD: 5 (Miss)

Damage taken (Oikawa) = 0 (Miss)

Azide HP: 17/22 (-0)

Oikawa HP: 13/22 (-0)

Gluttony of the Jungle HP: 18/25 (-7)

Guide of the Jungle: 9/15

[Oikawa 1]

Oikawa gazed over at Azide to see how things were going on his side. The young man had managed to dodge all 3 attack attempts from the vile player eating plant. Luckily he wasn't just a simple duck and dodge character as he swiftly attacked and damaged the stalk of the Gluttony of the Jungle.  "That's good work over there Azide!" Oikawa shouted this. Focusing back on the ridiculous task ahead of him, he could hear Azide remarking about how he also wish he had more HP. 

 

The snake slithered quickly across the ground as it rose up and snapped at Oikawa. Jumping to the side, he rolled into cover behind a moss covered rock.  Taking a deep breath, he peered over the top and and took note of the location of the snakes head. Just a mere few yards away from the rock he hid behind. Rolling on to his stomach, Oikawa pushed off the ground and stepped on the rock. He pushed off with as much force as he could muster, and flew towards the serpent.

 

Cocking his arm back, Oikawa  struck the ground with quite a bit of force. His blade sank right into the earth as the slippery reptile evaded his wrath. Oikawa didn't give up though. He clasped part of the emerald reptile as it thrashed about in obvious annoyance. Holding on for dear life, Oikawa was swung around rapidly until he could time his dismount. Seeing his opportunity, Oikawa removed his grip from the creature and went sailing right into Azide. Crashing to the ground, he rolled over and let out a winded gasp. "Sorry about that mate. I'd rather crash into you though and create some space, than into anything else that may actually cause me damage and keep me within it's current reach..

 

#ID: 9213 BD: 5 

 

~Oikawa~

13/22

~Azide~

17/22

~Gluttony of the Jungle~

18/25

~Guide of the Jungle~

9/15 (-0)

[Azide 0]

"Funny running into you here," remarked Azide. He picked himself off the ground and dusted himself off, thankful that neither of the two had fallen on their blades. "No harm done, I'd rather we crash into each other rather than those two fellows over there any day of the week." He grinned, then readjusted his grip before dashing off to do battle with the carnivorous plant.

As he came running at the creature full-speed, vines came darting right at him from every which way. "They must be connected to the flytrap," he thought. Perhaps they were its roots, or something of that nature. In any case, lashed and whipped at him like wild tentacles, but couldn't manage to land a single hit on him. He sliced through a few fines that came swinging in his direction and continued onwards towards the flytrap, only for one of the vines to wrap around his ankle. Caught off guard and heading too quickly to stop, he tripped and stumbled, but quickly freed himself and repositioned himself before the creature could strike back. "Damn, maybe next time," he thought as he retreated.

He looked over at Oikawa, who was continuing his fight against the colossal emerald serpent. "How're things holding up over there?" he called.

ID: 9227

BD: 4 (Miss)

MD: 4 (Miss)

Damage taken (Azide) = 0

Damage taken (Gluttony of the Jungle) = 0

ID: 9228

MD: 7 (-1 Accuracy) = 6 (Hit)

Damage taken (Oikawa) = 1 (Base) - 3 (Mitigation) = 1 (Min)

Azide HP: 17/22 (-0)

Oikawa HP: 12/22 (-1)

Gluttony of the Jungle: 18/25 (-0)

Guide of the Jungle: 9/15