[PP-F4] Saving Valentine

[Sir Five 0]

It was the flurry of the storm coming through key locations of the fourth floor. Snow had crept its way onto rooftops and began stacking up on the ground forming crystalized layers that shimmered under the sunlight. Clouds swarmed the skies to cover up the blue that was showing above every now and then. For a rather nice looking day, the weather spoke differently, especially for Sir Five.

 

The time had struck noon and he began to worry, unable to find the one he loved. The one whom he wanted to spend the Day of Love with. Beginning to think that she may be missing, he had left his cottage to go into the main city of the fourth floor, Snowfrost Town. "Help! Help!" he cried out, in desperate need of someone to come to his aid. "Please! Somebody  help me!" he cried once more as he was now on his knees begging random players to come to his aid. At this point he was willing to give up the cry for help and admit to himself that he had lost the lover of his dreams.

 

Sighing and sitting, Sir Five was now crying. Sir Five's brown hair and green eyes were covered with crystals and glittering features due to the snow. His tears burned through the snow until it sunk deep enough to freeze as a pearl of ice.

[Tyger 0]

"Alright, and then we'll pop open some of that wine we'd gotten from the boss drop!"

 

Tyger smiled, trudging through the snow as she made her way down the mountain. The heavy cloud cover hinted towards a storm, but she wouldn't be here later tonight, so it didn't necessarily matter. The Catfish would be closed, and she and Baldur would be able to enjoy a nice dinner, chocolates, and a nice restful evening without cause or care. They'd gotten an early start on their dungeon so they'd have the evening free. So, when she'd started through the Snowfrost town to get to the portal with Baldur, on this day of love and celebration, the sound of crying and pleas for help were certainly unwarranted and surprising.

 

"Baldur, hold on."

 

The man continued to cry, begging players as the passed. As she approached, the man collapsed into a crumpled mess, crying into the snow. She crouched down beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder, in an attempt to alert him of her presence as well as comfort him. He was handsome enough, why was he alone?

 

Hey, what can I help with? Nobody should be crying this close to Valentine's Day."

 

She hoped Baldur wasn't angry with this turn of events, but she wasn't about to leave this man to cry in the streets after so many eyes wandered past without so much as a second glance. Snow began to pile on her shoulders and back as she sat with Sir Five. She eventually sat down next to him, and passed him part of her cape to wipe his face. She could always wash it later.

[Sir Five 0]

Jolting at the hand that had touched him, he turned his head so that he could see the hand and the arm that extended from it. At the end of it's length was a face. Looking above the player's head, he registered it in his AI computations that the player's name is "Tyger" with the Cardinal coursing through him, it was what now triggered something. Five wiped his tears away using her cape and nodded to her in a thankful manner. Then sitting up so that he can explain himself and what he had wrong he brushed some of the snow off from her shoulder.

 

"Well, you see... That's just it. It's my partner's and my special day soon and I wanted to do something special. However, when I came home... nobody came to welcome me. In fact, the house was empty. She was gone." he explained as he dried off his face again, showing no signs of being cold or anything.

 

"I was hoping that she was playing tricks on me, but she had been gone for hours now. I'm worried that she may have been taken or worse-" he stopped before he could speak of her possible death that he was unaware of at this point. "Could you help me find my Lady Valentine?" he asked her with the most sincere voice. "I will pay anything you want, I just want to find Lady Valentine." he said to her.

 

Now before the player, a holographic menu prompted up. At the header of the box it stated "SAVING VALENTINE" and it described the objective of the quest to the player. It was up to the player themselves now if they wanted to accept this quest or not.

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

Ariel wa passing by, following her pet back to her store when Kimba  decided to take a hard left, deviating from the usual return route. "Hey what happened girl?" asked Ariel, but she only heard a low growl from her familiar, that didn't even bother to turn her gaze towards her tamer. Sighting Ariel started following the white lion cub, she resigned on trying to control it long ago. She knew that the familiar would do whatever she pleased, ignoring her master until even more if Ariel pushed on or got angry.

 

After a few more turn she could hear someone asking for help and weeping, it seems her pet was searching for that person for some reason. Then she saw a familiar ginger haired girl, none other that her friend Tyger comforting a random NPCs. As she got closer she could hear the NPCs story and decided to join in, once in their field of vision Ariel asked: "If you need any more help we can join you too:D, how about it Tyger?". Meanwhile Kimba started brushing against the sad NPC, in an attempt to cheer him up and get some attention from the stranger.

[RyujinSeaLord 0]

Suddenly a dark shadow casts it way across the stones of where they all stood. A Samurai all in black with an unrecognizable face, and an unrecognizable armor scheme. His mask with the face of a dragon on it, his boots and gloves made of a black metal included spikes throughout his entire armor scheme. His katana at his side as he walked towards the small gathered people in the area around a man complaining about missing his "special some one". 

 

How pathetic can you be sir knight? I asked aloud to him in a raspy voice (almost like batman).

 

I can get your "special someone" back, and not because im kind in my heart. These people seem to want to help you but theres no reason to start crying about it... i spoke a little more harshly

 

I looked to the people i had never met before. Well except for Baldur...I was in Baldurs shop and i knew at least him. 

[Baldur 0]

Baldur looked up from where Tyger had been consoling the NPC, surprised at the sudden crowd they had gathered, but even more so by the troubling appearance of a knight all in black armor. Part of it looked familiar, but the voice had thrown him off. He didn't recall anyone coming to his shop sounding like that. He looked down at Tyger to see what she thought, and then with a downward swipe, he opened up the party menu and invited Ariel and Ryu to join his group. When Ryu's name popped up into the party window, he was able to place the face which was now hidden behind a dragon mask.

 

"This seems like a holiday event. Aren't those usually pretty big? We could probably use the help."

 

Baldur reached over to the window that had popped up, asking if he wanted to accept the quest, and he hit "Yes."

[Tyger 0]

Tyger listened to the plight of the knight, and nodded as he spoke. She put her hand on his shoulder to console him, and about that time, Ariel appeared. Baldur listened, and another newcomer she'd never seen. His face was blocked with armor, but when Baldur invited him to the party, his name came up as Ryu. Sir Five begged for the return of his lady, which seemed like a qu- Yup. A quest. Ryu mentioned his interest in helping, albeit harshly. Tyger looked up, snarling at him. 

 

"There's no need to be rude, asshole. He's worried about his lover. I don't want you in my party if you're gonna keep on like this."

 

Her eyes glowed angrily, and Icarus's fires inside his body flared up angrily. She shot a look of protest at Baldur, but the deed was done. He was already on the quest with them. She prodded yes, and stood up, helping Sir Five to his feet as well.

 

"Don't worry. We'll get her back, I promise. I'd be the same way if something happened to Baldur."

 

Pulling up her menu, Tyger sent a message to her guild leader, Lessa. She'd certainly come in handy if they were going to search for Lady Valentine, aside from the fact she enjoyed questing with her leader to begin with. Shooting another look at Ryu, Tyger walked over and pulled up the quest. 

 

"Ariel, Baldur, i've called up Lessa, so hopefully she'll be here soon. Ryu, just don't be a heartless ass and we'll get along fine. I'll tank anything that comes by, and hopefully we'll get this done quickly for Five."

[RyujinSeaLord 0]

Upon hearing the name Lessa my spine suddenly shot a shiver through my entire body. I smiled under my mask knowing no one could see it.

 

Im not completely heartless...I get he's worried....but if what ive learned from experience...I started to say then i suddenly shut my mouth kniwing no was not the time to even disclose anything about who i was in the past.

 

Never mind....just uh...forget i said anything...Ill keep quiet. I said as my tone changed to more of a sad one as i almost lost my "accent" when changing the tone.

 

I stood there with crossed arms waiting for something to happen so we could start.

[Tyger 0]

Tyger rubbed her temples in annoyance as Ryu spoke. However, she let him finish, even if he did have a silly cover up voice. When he finished, she nodded, and sighed.

 

"That's fine. But, just... be a little more sensitive around others. I'm sure you've got somebody you fancy, and if you thought they were gone forever with no way to get them back, you'd be upset too. There was no reasoning for your harsh tones and words."

 

Already having it in her mind, as she'd approached Five first, that she was probably party leader for the quest at this point, and as she'd invited Baldur to their current group which had grown, she had half a mind to make Ryu apologize to the NPC. But, she wouldn't go that far.

 

"Let's start off fresh, as long as you don't pull anything else like that. I'm Tyger."

 

She stuck out her hand for a shake and a clean slate before Lessa arrived and they could be off on their quest.

[Lessa 1]

The message had come as a surprise to Lessa, who had just settled into her usual bed on the fourth floor inn. The room was much like her own small apartment, as she had been living there for most of her time in Sword Art Online. The innkeepers and other NPCs were all familiar with her, and the first floor banquet hall even served as the Guardian's meeting spot. It was a cozy establishment, one which still enchanted the blonde. It was also a lovely place for naps. Lessa, who spent most of her time grinding with lower-level players, truly valued her down time, now more than she ever had before.

As she already resided on the fourth floor, the trip to Tyger's location took very little time. The heavily armored Guardian jogged up to her friend, cheeks reddened by exertion and the cold, breath curling up from her lips in a nearly opaque cloud. "Hello, you three," came her first greeting, blue orbs bouncing from Tyger, to Baldur, to Ariel. "Thanks for the message." Now, she addressed only Tyger. "I'd be more than happy to help out with this one."

Next, as if as an afterthought, Lessa turned to Ryu. Though he wore a mask, she was able to place him due to the party window. "Hi," she told him, features suggesting she was happy to see him, but tone revealing some uncertainty. "Strange seeing you here, but its nice nonetheless." She offered him a small smile, dry, coral lips cracking slightly against the frigid temperatures. "Will you be helping out as well?"

[RyujinSeaLord 0]

I stood there and listened to her rant off to me about how what i did was uncalled for...but if she had only known...that the three people i had ever fallen in love with me in this world were all now victims of Kayabas sick game...she may have gone a little easier. However i wont tell her that, i barely know her and no one really needs to know why ive become so bitter.

 

I apologize Sir...this world has been...cruel and unfair to not only you and me but a lot of these players and what i said was completely uncalled for...I am very sorry for your special person, and i can promise you we will get Valentine back for you. I apologized to the NPC knight even though he and i were in the same boat, except we can get his woman back

 

I looked over to Tyger and noticed she had stuck her hand out as if to make a friendly gesture. I shook her hand and just nodded my head because she clearly already knew my name from the party box.

 

Noticing the voice of a very familiar girl i turned to see the blonde guardian i had suddenly fallen in love with once i noticed her. She seemed happy to see me, but her voice seemed to say otherwise...but it was good to know she could smile at me unlike most people ive met. She even said it was nice to see me...which really caught me off guard.

 

H-hi there...i suddenly stuttered like a nervous fool. I was gonna ruin my cover like this. I shook my head lightly and removed any trace of smile on my face. Uh...yeah...i mean Yes...i will be joining you...as long as Tyger says i can...that is.

[Baldur 0]

Baldur watched the interaction between Tyger and Ryu, both of them seemed to have a chip on their shoulder, but Ryu seemed to come to terms with what he had said and his demeanor changed back to something that was more familiar to Baldur. He was even more surprised when Ryu apologised to the NPC. It was a program, it didn't have feelings except for what it was programmed to express. It was an admirable peacemaking gesture.

 

And then Lessa showed up, quite a bit sooner than he had expected. She must have been nearby.

 

"Sunshine-sama!" Baldur hailed as she joined the group of them. "I am glad you could make it."

 

When Ryu mentioned that he would join them if Tyger allowed it, Baldur harumphed audibly. "It's fine. As a group, we need to learn to work together, we can't be split by something like this."

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

Ariel turned her attention to the man clad in black with spikes coming out of his armor..the tone in which he addressed the NPC bothered her a bit, but not as much as Tyger, who lashed out to him. She decided not to interfere, just observing the discussion between the two, and was starting to lose interest until she heard Tyger mention the name of her guild master. She showed a bright smile while getting excited, maybe she would get the opportunity to see her again in battle. In the end the black knight(who didn't introduce himself) apologized and the two shook hands, in the end they all formed a party and Ariel saw that the unknown person's name was Ryu. Out of habit more than anything Ariel turned to face him and introduced herself:

 

"Its good to have you with us, my name is Ariel. I'm looking forwards to fighting alongside you." Then Lessa came and greeted then, as her eyes meet Ariel she bowed, this time out of respect than simply custom, and showed a huge smile. Kimba was feeling ignored so she brushed against Ariel's leg, in return the girl let out a small "EEEEEKKKKK", then jump to the side, she started blushing once she realized how she behaved in front of them. Then she gave Kimba an upset glare with the meaning "we'll discuss about this later"

 

(( for the last part, Ariel suffers from Ailurophobia and can only pet Kimba on the head, her familiar knew that her action would freak out her owner.

[Tyger 0]

Tyger eyed Baldur after his harrumph.

 

"Of course i'll let him come. I mean, we shook hands and made up, didn't we?"

 

The fourth floor's bitter chill was beginning to settle in as she stood with the complete group. She shot Lessa a party invite when she arrived. Baldur greeted her, as did Ariel, and Tyger put a hand on her shoulder, grinning.

 

"Glad to have you along! Wouldn't have it any other way."

 

Tyger held the highest respect for Lessa. She enjoyed speaking with her guild leader, but running around and spending time on quests with her was fun as well. Soon, she needed to just go out with Lessa, just for a girl's thing or something. She honestly looked like she was burnt out, but hopefully this little excursion would help with that. Ryu became a stuttering, bumbling fool, and Tyger turned her body towards the woods so nobody would see her rolling her eyes. Figures. She glanced back at Sir Five, and then the group. They were all here, so was everybody ready to get started? 

 

"Alright, well, looks like the gang's all here. Ya'll ready to get started?"

 

She assumed Lessa knew what was going on after she accepted the Quest when she was invited to the group.

[RyujinSeaLord 0]

I gave a nod of conformation stating that i was ready. I was ready to take on any challenge that was thrown my way. I wanted to kill this cyclops just as much as i wanted to kill Cupid and discover the 10th floor boss door but that was besides the point. With Lessa in the group i was going to protect this team because i was able to. Lessa was probably the newest reason as to why im still kicking this games teeth down its throat.

 

So...are we ready then? i asked quietly

[Tyger 0]

(This quest is now being player run. I'm taking a few liberties to get us there quicker so we can go ahead and get this finished up.)

 

Tyger ran one more quick look at the quest menu before nodding.

 

"Yeah, I think we've got it. Let's go ahead and make our way there."

 

The ginger gave Sir Five a reassuring look, before heading out with the team. Something must've taken Valentine, but they couldn't have gotten far. It seemed kind of cruel that a quest of this magnitude would come up so close to Valentine's Day, considering that there were plenty of people that had already lost their loved ones to this game. To be fair, a good portion of those were fickle.

 

"Quest info says there should be a mob somewhere around here..."

 

EEEEEK!

 

A shrill scream pierced the air, and Tyger unsheathed her sword and fitted her shield. Without another word, she charged into the foilage of the bordering forest, until there was a large clearing where a Cyclops held a woman who was continuously beating the fist that wrapped around her. 

 

Put me down! I must go back! Put me down!

 

She continued to hammer her fists against his hand, until she saw the party coming to rescue her. 

 

Oh please! Please! This Cyclops, he won't let me go back to my Dear Five! You must help me!

 

Capable of understanding speech, the Cyclops chuckled and threw her into a makeshift pit she couldn't climb out of while the Cyclops blinked a single eye and stood, towering over the group. Without more than a cruel laugh, the Cyclops swung a massive club at the first player he'd seen, Tyger. However, Tyger jumped back to avoid the blow, and proceeded to charge forward, slicing her sword across the ankles of the large creature.

 

"Let's go guys!"

 

ID 12201, MD 5 (Cyclops Misses)

ID 12202, MD 10 (Tyger Hits for 6+1+2=9 DMG)

 

<Lonely Cyclops . 91/100

 

H2<Tyger> 37/37

H0<Baldur>

H0<Lessa>

H0<Ryu>

H0<Ariel>

[Baldur 0]

Baldur could tell something about this quest was bothering Tyger, and to him it was pretty easy to guess what. It was a terrible nightmare of theirs that one of them would lose the other. He had read as much on Lessa's face that she had experienced this loss many times before, and it made for a more dour hike to the boss mob than it should have been.

 

This is cruel, Kayaba, even for you.

 

When at last they caught up with the monstrous one eyed mob, Baldur drew his sword and let Tyger go in first. She managed to dodge his first attack and then counter with her own. Charing in, Baldur slashed at the creature, but it was able to backhand him with the club. The blade and and club clashed with a powerful flash of light, and threw Baldur back, but he landed on his feet and gritted his teeth at it.

 

"Switch!"

 

---

[iD: 11210 BD: 1]

<Lonely Cyclops . 91/100

H2<Tyger> 37/37

H0<Baldur>

H0<Lessa>

H0<Ryu>

H0<Ariel>

[Ariel - The Crowned Lion 0]

While the others talked about the quest, Ariel thought about St. Valentine Day. this day didn't mean anything in particular to her, it was just another normal day. She tried to make chocolate for boys when she was younger but nothing out of the ordinary happened, she could tell that the ones she offered chocolate to took it out of fear than actual gratitude..except for that one guy.... She started shaking her head to discard those thought as out of the blue a scream could be heard. Rushing after Tyger and Baldur, Ariel meet 'eyes' with a giant Cyclops mob that was taking hostage a woman, most likely the miss Valentine Sir Five told them about. 'Finally a battle, something to my taste' she thought while rushing towards the mob and stabbing it below the knee:"This will teach you to kidnap defenseless girls. How about dancing with me for a while?". she shouted while grinning.

 

[iD: 12665 BD: 6]

<Lonely Cyclops> 82/100 (-9)

H2<Tyger> 37/37

H0<Baldur>

H0<Lessa>

H0<Ryu>

H1<Ariel>: 40/40

[Tyger 0]

Clearly dissatisfied with the crashing of the Cyclops's 'party,' the creature wasted no time snickering at Baldur with his miss, and scowling at Ariel for the damage she'd dealt to him. His one eye squinted at all of them, and he let out a bellowing roar, swinging his club once again at the red-headed woman. She stuck out against the crowd, and besides, she'd dealt the most damage so far, and deserved to be pummeled first. However, when he raised his club, a bit of blood he'd wiped on his hand from his knee injury made his hand slippery, causing his club to slip from his hands. It rocketed forward, almost hitting the party and knocking them down a few hit points. 

 

"Whoah! That could have been bad!"

 

Tyger gasped, head turning from the club behind them to face the cyclops once more. Upon the realization he needed his club, the Cyclops began to run forwards - a very slow, deliberate process - that gave the team enough time to get another hit in. Tyger wasted no time slamming the edge of her sword into the foot of the creature as it passed her.

 

"Let's get a hit or two in before he gets his club back!"

 

Tyger stated, before running after the Cyclops. After he had his weapon, Tyger wanted to be the first thing it saw. It wasn't going to touch her friends.

 

ID 12779, MD 1 (Cyclops Misses)

ID 12780, BD 7 (Tyger Hits for 6 DMG)

 

<Lonely Cyclops> 76/100 (-6)

 

H3<Tyger> 37/37

H0<Baldur>

H0<Lessa>

H0<Ryu>

H1<Ariel> 40/40

[Baldur 0]

Baldur was upset that he hadn't scored a hit on this mob yet. The idea of that poor woman down in the pit struck a chord with him, and he gripped the handle of his katana tightly. They were here to make short work of Kayaba's cruel joke of a valentines quest. This was a level of emotional cruelty for his friends that he could not bare to let stand. This would end here and now.

 

"Urah!" Baldur cried out as he chased down the giant Cyclops, throwing all of his weight and power into it, Baldur's red Katana bit into the hamstring area of the mob and left behind a red scar of computerized mesh and took with it a chunk of the mobs HP.

 

---

[iD: 14122 BD: 7 CD: 3] (note: this is my re-evaluated gear)

<Lonely Cyclops> 67/100

H3<Tyger> 37/37

H1<Baldur> 39/39 - Hits for 9 DMG

H1<Ariel> 40/40