Garou

He was caught off guard, looking dumbly around before catching Haine's face. "Oh, uh, hey Haine! Didn't think I'd see you here!" He scratched the back of his head awkwardly, chuckling softly as if he were embarrassed. Garou still wore his usual attire, the victorian suit with chains draped around it, connecting to his white-felt linen gloves. He still wore the black, long-rimmed hat, and he had purple hair and green eyes, just as he had all those months ago.

Garou was caught off guard by the hug. "Uh, hey! Um, wasn't I just hanging out with you guys yesterday...?" He extended a hand to Shanok and waved with a smile towards Keith. The lad then looked to see Lisbeth as well, scrunching his face slightly in thought. "Err, I believe so."

Garou nodded in her direction, looking slightly melancholy in the windy weather. His chains rattled loudly in the gust, and he gripped his hat to his head. The boy's eyes were green, but his hair was purple. "We take a habit of trying to protect those in danger, so you should be safe here with us." Garou unsheathed his longsword, launching it into the ground with one hand. He was curious about Akumu's scar, but didn't want to press about it.

Garou awoke in the dense jungle, his memories quite hazy. Well, they were all clear until a black-out period. He was quite certain that he hadn't even been on this floor when he fell asleep. Unsure of what to do, he brought up his HUD and sent a message to several of his friends.

Hey, what have you been up to? I seem to be lost in Floor 6 somewhere, could you come lend a hand?

He flipped his HUD away with his finger and took a deep breath, leaning against the base of an incredulously tall tree. The canopy hid the sun for the most part, but some rays of light managed to dance through the leaves and kiss the ground of the floor.

He still couldn't read the girl's status. Could her name have any bearing...? He didn't want to overthink at the moment. Probably just a little girl wanting to be mysterious, he thought as he momentarily shrugged off his worries. "I am Garou," he said with a tight smile. "It is a pleasure to have another marauder along with us." He did a quick bow and began stretching, anticipating whatever lay ahead.

He marched up to the girl, bowing to her. "Hello, ma'am. I happen to be Garou, The Chained Werewolf. Would you happen to be interested in joining the guild?" He gave a friendly smiled and removed his large black hat.

Garou sat there and enjoyed his tea. It was definitely delicious, that was for sure. The tea stirred itself in the cool wind, and he was so absorbed in the fine drink that he did not notice the confusion around him. Tea was the best beverage in the world, in his opinion.

As a matter of fact, the boy viewed tea as a fine specimen of the gods. Divine nectar, perhaps. If only there were a brave gent to share the tea with.

Dice roll

1-5, miss.

6-8, hit, 1 HP of Damage.

9-10, Critical. 2 HP of Damage.

The utter pressure that the massive avian gave out caused Garou's nerves to bunch up. Here he was, with his younger "brother" and other allies he had never met before, about to risk their lives for glory. For what!? Glory? he thought to himself as an unfamiliar pang hit his side. Could this have been fear? The boy shook his head as he held up his gifted two-handed longsword, Heaven's Beam. He knew know it was do... or die...

He let loose a chaotic shriek from his lungs in adrenaline-pumping terror as he brought down his heavy golden blade onto his foe.

The men looked nervous, slowly beginning to cycle through their HUD menus. Their leader finally called out, struggling onto one knee. "Don't do it! It's not worth it! These kids are higher level than us... It will just be a mistake..."

Garou looked at Shanok in disbelief. I didn't know his bloodthirst was even greater than mine... He piped up. "That's right, neanderthals! Remove your weapons and allow us to escort you to the city's jail! Otherwise, we'll be having some fun with SAO's ragdoll physics with your bodies!"

They did as they were told, looking down at the floor as all three kidnappers fell silent.

The Chained Werewolf dashed towards the Mudcrab as fast as he could, trying to give it no time to react. He raised his weapon and swung earthwards, grunting as he began to grow slightly tired. God... I know this floor hasn't been open for long, but to think that two warriors have already sought the challenge... And they both went alone... He was getting sidetracked, but could he focus long enough to win the battle?

(I apologize to the GMs, I forgot to add the completion of this thread to the title. CobaltsDream and I both earned two items in this thread according to Night Shade/Asen's rules. Please add them to our journals as soon as possible. If you would like me to pinpoint the rolls and posts where we attained said equipment, please contact me through PM or Skype. And thank you guys for what you all do!

Sincerely,

Garou The Chained Werewolf

When the boy saw Unknown, a feeling of odd nostalgia ran through him. He couldn't read her level or HP, but could sense a vibration of power from the player (if she even was one, and not some helper NPC summoned because they were fighting so poorly). He shook his head as an ugly Mudcrab scuttled his way. Seeing the confusing new ally(?) enter brought him back to his senses. Garou tensed his muscles and twitched his whole body to the side, performing a dodge-like movement of minimal effort. He charged a green-glowing sword skill onto his trusty two-handed sword, Heaven's Beam. He took the heavy, shining weapon into his single right hand in a backwards grip, pulling it behind his back with his knees spread apart in a powerful stance. He hopped and spun a 360 like an ice-skater, pushing the sword with the green aura into his dominant left hand in the proper way to hold a one-handed blade. The momentum let Garou tear through his opponent and leave a green streak as he unecessarily roared, "REVERSAL!!!"

Garou waited for them to ascend to the second floor. Once they reached the top of the staircase, he launched himself from the rooftop he was kneeling upon, performing a dive through the window of the old building. He rolled on top of the shattered glass of the window he tore through, drawing his gold, shining sword Heaven's Beam as fast as the chains would permit him to.

He stood slowly with the two-handed blade, glistening in the streaming sunlight, slung around his shoulders with a single hand. He smiled slowly, and with a tad of ferocity he whispered loudly: "BOO." The men scrambled back slightly except for the strongest looking one, who simply froze before attempting speech.

"Y-you're that annoying twerp who ruins people like us' fun!" He held out a grubby finger. The man seemed to be fairly rotund but with a layer of muscle as well. The boy frowned at the mention of player killing being fun, slowly taking a step forward. The enemy raised his own sword and buckler, racing towards Garou with a zany look in his eyes.

The purple-haired lad reacted immediately, jerking his body to the side and kicking his assailant to the side. "Weakling..." he muttered, twisting over to the enemy's position. He swept him off his feet with a low kick, then charged his sword a neon-purple colour. "CATAPULTAM ICTUS!!!" He did a sort of uppercut with his glowing weapon as he activated the sword skill, sending the chubby man upwards and crashing into the ceiling. On his way back down, Garou slammed his sword's flat side onto the man's stomach, maximizing his impact back onto the second story floor. The boy twirled the massive blade between his fingers, smiling when he saw his friend. "Alright, Shanok. Clean-up time!"

Garou had seen plenty of Aincrad so far, and he actually felt into the illusion that he had seen practically all there was to see. It wasn't very confusing when he stared at the green gunk, and then at Kirito's picks. "Are those... giant nails?" The boy followed his guide deeper into the cabin, perking his virtual ears as much as possible to detect any malignant noise that could hint at danger. "Could all of this material be toxic and have a poison effect?" He stuck a finger into it, waiting to see what would happen.

He bit down on his tongue, rushing along to catch up with Clarence. "Hey! Wait up! Did you see anything!?" Garou gazed back at Zelrius and Keith, waving them to come along as fast as possible.

The other boy trudged into the oddly empty place. He already could sense the feeling that he had come to know- not emptiness, but settlement. Not a hollow place devoid of possibilities, but a home to festering dangers that were at the brink of nonexistence. Kirito picked up the feeling a few seconds before Garou, but he didn't believe it all the way until he felt the familiar aching in his bones and the heat of his ears. A sensation that he was being watched...

"We must proceed with caution..." he said quietly, more out of being troubled than trying to stay hushed. "Anything could happen. The laws of Aincrad are not the same as the real world. Traps may even be completely invisible..."

The boy ran towards the first Mudcrab in a dizzy frenzy, attempting to swipe the monster to its death. He was sure the hit wouldn't connect, but he hadn't recovered properly and should have used his brain instead of getting excited.

One of the PKers charged Shanok, smashing him against the wall. Of course, no HP was lost in the city. But it wasn't pleasant being knocked about. The other two players began to swarm the boy, giving no room for escape.

He smiled down at her even more. Sadly, they didn't have much more time to enjoy the atmosphere, since a loud clicking sound was heard. The large bed they were laying on tilted about 55 degrees and slid them down a chute that opened from the floor! CobaltsDream and Garou found themselves sliding down the narrow passage, with any attempt to grip for escape impossible. They continued to slide down and down, deeper into the building to the point where they were surely under the ground.

"BEATHA!!!" the boy called out, flailing his arm wildly up to try to reach his female friend.

As Beatha complemented him, Yon let his lips curl slightly upwards as his eyebrows raised as if lifting the burden of the world off of him. The sad smile withheld tears, droplets of despair that he might one day release from his body. He simply smiled at her in silence, needing no words to thank her for what she had spoken. But still, the mention of her brother stabbed Yon in his heart, reminding him of his sworn duty to protect the innocent and return them to peace. The peace of the real world, where families could enjoy nights together laughing through their regretful arguments, despite the horrors of society around them.

His ally nodded, taking off in the same direction as Shanok. He then skidded to a halt about halfway through the alley, speaking to his friend. "I'll take the high road, you take the low!" He then clapped on his black hat and began scaling the cobblestone walls, onto the tiled rooftop in about seven seconds. He dashed towards the edge of the roof facing the house and watched the unsuspecting villains slink into the old, dark-wooden two-story house. He could make out cobwebs inside the second floor, since dusty but translucent windows faced him.

Garou perched and gazed down at Shanok, awaiting him to make the first move.

The girls simultaneously shook their heads. "No. There was no trace left by them. But maybe if you hurry, you can catch them."

Garou nodded and grabbed Shanok by the arm. "Alright. I understand. Let's go." He pulled him out the door, back onto the pavement from which they came. He continued to drag Shanok down the road that led to the city gates.

His expression seemed to drain terribly. What did he even miss? Yon tried to think back, the only thing that really came to mind was his dog. But he knew even that wasn't true. He had taken the dog for granted then, and would only do the same if he returned. He finally gave his piece of mind to Beatha, who perched on his white-shirted chest. "I... There's nothing I would miss," he admitted. "All my life I had been looking for such a bold situation. Sword Art Online just happened to be it." He shrugged lightly. "To be honest, real life bored me. I've always wanted to play the hero, for others to look up to me." A twinkling was caught in his sparkling green eyes.

He nodded. "I hope I can stay here for you, but along the the far road of nobility, sacrifices must be made. Perhaps I will be one of the heroes who give their lives for the cause of freedom..." Yon looked away with a minor sadness, but turned back to smile at her again. He slowly pulled away from her and placed both arms behind the back of his head again. He waited for her to speak again, too tired to continue the conversation on his own terms.