Itzal

Post Countdown: 2

That's one of the reasons Itzal needed Zandra. Or one of the non personal reasons at least. The frontliners knew her. They knew nothing about Are, other than that he was a rogue vigilante who took down pkers in his free time who only recently chose to aid the front lines. If they knew it was Itzal, well. That would probably help with some people while making it much much harder with others. Regardless however, he knew he was perfect for the strategy position. His high health and high evasion helped him play as an evasive tank when he needed to. His sword art let him switch between solo strike, to AoE strike, to Stun strike seamlessly. His high searching skill let him spot any small details he needed in the boss to find weaknesses or sense surprise attacks coming up. He didn't have the SP he needed for the extra damage from hiding just yet, but he was close. And when he got that he would officially have every conceivable skill and mod that could increase his damage.

Post Countdown: 3

When you think about it, there's much more to floor bosses now than just rush in and attack. Players were being forced to think about their actions and strategize. The Leviathan was heavy proof of that. Do I attack or hold back and recover my energy? If I attack now the boss won't be vulnerable and I'll have wasted my energy. Do I attack the boss or hold off the minions? Do I have my supporter focus on healing or buffing players? It was going to be vital for them to find the patterns in the boss, and more vital for the leader to come up with a solid plan as to how to proceed under that new plan. If they did so then they had a very good chance of becoming more versatile and adaptive in these floor bosses. It was something he wanted to bring up in the floor boss if it became clear that no one was taking this seriously. Their groups weren't going to be big enough for there to be an advisor and leader, so whoever was leading their group needed to be able to direct players quickly while also strategizing on the fly. Itzal was good at that, but the trust would be hard to formulate.

Post Countdown: 4

He felt a bit more warm as he thought about Zandra and all the time they'd spent together. We've really become very close haven't we? I mean, we're getting married, so that was the sign in it of itself. And now that the next boss was coming up, he wasn't just going to let Zandra fight that monster on her own. He wanted her to have someone she could trust by her side. And if he was going to fight, he was going to do it by hers and no one else's. Together they were going to bulldoze their way through the floor bosses, aiming for the top and finally getting out of this damn place! Being with Zandra had helped his confidence in himself as well. He may have the lowest, or one of the lowest overall damage in the frontline dps group, but that didn't mean he couldn't be of use. This time around, he was going to try being the leader of his group. He was going to do his very best to strategize. If he needed to prioritize on stunning the boss over attacking, he'd adjust without hesitation. If he needed to tank the boss a bit, he'd switch with another player. Whatever he needed to do, he'd be there to do it.

Of course he still needed to craft all the items he possibly could. Once the debuffs had been crafted, he needed to try and see how many healing songs he could craft so that he could distribute them to the players. He wondered if everyone had thought ahead and stocked up on materials recently. He wasn't prepared as he hoped to be, so he went ahead and purchased a full two days worth of materials. And even if he failed a few, the likelyhood that he'd salvage them for another day was pretty high. He WAS at rank ten as a performer after all, it only made sense. It's been so long since he's crafted anything though. Part of him wondered if he'd even have the skill to play a song properly like he did in the past or not. The other knew that this was false for two reasons. If you messed up, the system helped you out most of the time. And secondly, he had a reason to play his songs again. A smile reached his lips as he thought about Zandra. He'd be fighting beside her again, but this time. The two were closer than either of them had ever thought possible.

When the boss fight starts, he'd need to make sure he had the right consumables on him. He had the dimensional backpack, so he'd have a total of six slots available to him. Teleport crystal was a given, so that was one. Depending on how the floor boss meeting went and what information they gathered, he'd need one debuff against it's accuracy, and one against either it's evasion stats or one to increase the potential damage of DoTs. Of course he could craft every debuff and hand some of them to players who actually had room left in their battle ready inventory. That way everyone was covered. So assuming he had to carry two, that left three slots open. He'd probably need to have a consumable for recovering his energy in case things dragged on for too long, or (more likely), there was some special ability of the boss like the last time. He'd then need to get himself healing items, preferably mass heal so that everyone was covered. And that made it six consumables.

Of course, that was going to happen another day. Today, and tonight by extension, Itzal needed to focus on getting his familiar and training it. Once he did so, if he had enough time, he needed to go ahead and complete the quest which resulted in the +1 evasion consumable. Though there was also the option of purchasing food from another player. He might need to collect a few more materials for everyone if he was really going to do this though. It would probably be for the best of course, since he had a high searching ability. Maybe he could take on a monster or two as well, snag some materials from them. Regardless, he was going to be needing consumables when the frontliners faced the next floor boss. Let's see, what would he need? Overhealth for certain. If there was a way to temporarily increase his energy before a fight, he'd need that. Damage increase as well as increased accuracy and evasion. Mitigation potion. Toxic venom if possible. He didn't know if searching for anything would help but he could get an LD buff. He'd need protein as another damage buff too. Antioxidants and probiotics. And then of course the debuffs he could make himself.

Itzal examined his sword real quick before sheathing it again. He noticed that weapons could lose their durability over a long period of time, so he checked the blade on occasion to ensure that it didn't go breaking down on him when he didn't expect it. Or worse when he really needed it. Player killers were starting do die down a bit too, save for Laughing Coffin. He'd been waiting for the right moment to give everyone their location, and until recently he wasn't sure it was a good idea. Now however, it was more crucial than ever to take them out as soon as he could. Once he double checked with everyone to ensure that no one was going to side with the LC, or double cross the frontliners, he'd call up a meeting for them all. It was going to take some time however, and he'd need Zandra's help to set it up. No one would come if it was Are asking, but Zandra might get a few heads to turn their way. And when the meeting started, he needed to make it clear that they had to move quickly and efficiently.

When it came to levels, they affected a great deal of things. They gave you a hell of a lot of power over the weaker players. While it was true that this power and influence was greater outside of safe zones than inside, it wasn't really that big a difference. If you were higher a level, you could easily drag another player, regardless of their size, from their homes outside the gates. From there you could do whatever you wanted. Of course, now that Itzal began his daily rounds on the town of beginnings (the exact time of these rounds alternating each day, with an occasional repeat to discourage pkers taking advantage of a pattern), the players were losing their fear of abduction and starting to try living a normal life. Most players here who didn't want to go outside the safety of the walls would just pick up a profession and focus on either making enough col to live a happy life, or just make things that other players would enjoy. A great example were the restaurants out there, or the clothing shops.

He didn't say anything, as the sword said it all. The player scrambled to escape, which Itzal let him do, and he ran away screaming. The muscular guy called out for him to come back and that he was a chicken. He swung a punch at Itzal who caught the fist with ease before he twisted the arm in a manner which forced the player to turn around. He then forced him to his knees and pressed his foot against his back while still holding onto his arm. Normally this would be a very painful experience, but all this man would feel right now was worry and humiliation. Itzal held him here for a moment before he shoved the man into the wall with his foot. The player quickly got up again, growled at Itzal but wisely left as well. Before the player on the ground could do or say anything, Itzal took his hand and hoisted him up. Then he began to walk away. Now that this was over with he really wanted to get back to finding his familiar. Besides, he was just going to say thank you, or scream and run away. He didn't care. All he did was remind the two bullies that there was always a bigger fish, and that those with strength should protect the weak, not knock them around.

He expected to get sidetracked every now and then. After all, he 'was' a vigilante. The two bigger players from what he was hearing were pulling a 'give me your lunch money' move. They were probably acting like the bullies who beat them up in real life now that they could feel that power. Deprived players who'd never known what it was like to be liked or strong suddenly in the perfect position to get that power and lord it over others? Just another recipe for disaster. He walked up silently behind them while they shoved the player to the ground and kicked them once or twice. Before they could do more however, Itzal shot his hand past the muscular guy's head, grasped his face with a tight grip, and pulled back, causing him to spin twice through the air before crashing to the ground. Before he hit the ground, Itzal threw his left hand into the throat of the muscle dude's 'henchman' causing him to get knocked into the wall with enough force to knock the wind out of him despite the no damage rules of the town. Itzal didn't do much else after that, but for added effect he did draw his sword and point it at the henchman guy.

Now then, to begin his search for this new familiar. He wasn't going to run, not yet at least. First he had to locate one, and if he started running around the entire city then they'd just fly off rather than watch cautiously. He did his best to stick to the alleyways of course. If he had to cross a street he'd just activate the hiding skill and melt into the crowd. It wasn't very hard honestly. Most of the players here weren't high levels, or if they were they didn't bother using their searching skill. Made it so easy to go unnoticed and just go about his business. Pushing past the crowd into another alley, he spotted two players bullying another. This time the more traditional bullying. Since killing was impossible, higher level players could use their big bodies and strength stats against smaller and lower leveled players. Here, the poor guy was getting pushed around by players a fourth of his height taller. Judging by the the force being applied, he'd have to estimate that there was a ten, maybe fifteen level difference between them. Itzal picked up his pace a little more.

Stopping outside the building he took a deep breath and exhaled before dashing for an alleyway. If he was going to find a familiar to join him, he wanted it to be one that was just as good at hiding as he was, and just as agile. Of course that narrowed it down a great deal. Monkeys were the most agile but they weren't really good at hiding. Snakes were hard to hear, but they couldn't jump from building to building. The more he went down the list the more creatures he ended up eliminating. Any mob could become a familiar of course, but most mobs just didn't fit the criteria. There was an option however: Fowl. Winged creatures were extremely agile, and some of them could be quiet when they needed to be. With that narrowed down he needed to come up with what other preferences he'd have for his familiar. If possible black, to fit his theme and to better hide in the shadows. In fantasy terms that narrowed it down a lot, but if it's personality was too wild and crazy, it would automatically be nullified. The more he thought about it, the more he became sure he wanted to find either a crow or raven. Something simple and straightforward.

Resting on one of the higher rooftops of the Town of Beginnings, Itzal crouched comfortably, his eyes scanning the vast radius of the town region he was currently inside of. Normally when he was at this position, it was just to scout out the area for anything out of the ordinary, or locate new places of interests. Today however, he was here for a totally different reason: Itzal. Needed a new familiar. His hand flexed at the thought of Velnia dying, but for the most part he was over it. He'd been through a lot and now he needed a new companion. He was ready for it this time. And this time, he was going to try something new: He was going to look for a familiar inside the settlement, rather than find one outside of it. Knowing his task, he stood up and jumped off the side of the building, grabbing the rope that hung there so that he slid down rather than fall. When he reached the bottom he headed inside and approached the gypsy who gave the quest. "Well hello dearie~ Would you be interested in obtaining yourself a familiar?" Itzal didn't verbally answer her, simply accepting the quest and tuning out her lessons. The quest may have changed since he last took it, but after some investigations he discovered the process was basically the same. He took the food and walked outside, ready to go out on his hunt.

OOC Note: Unless you tag me, I likely won't know you're talking to me

Stats/Skills/Gear

It had been a very long time since Itzal had seen the frontliners. Well other than Zandra. If he was being honest with himself, he probably would never have come back to the frontlines if it weren't for her... In fact, he probably wouldn't have been able to move past Kasier's death if it weren't for Zandra. He owed her so much. So much so that, at this point, he was perfectly fine with fighting on the front lines, as long as he could do it by her side. He smiled at that thought as he ate his meal. In the past, Itzal always tried to be one of the first people at the meeting. Thinking back on it, he tried too hard to make an impression. But now, as he forked over the last of his eggs, he was content with taking his time and just handling things one step at a time. Though that didn't stop him from keeping a mental checklist of everything he needed to do in the day. Having cleaned his plate he put it into his inventory so he could clean it later and backed up from the table. He stared at the seat on the other end as he did so. Normally he'd envision Kasier sitting there, and feel a tug of pain. But now, as he smiled, all he could imagine was Zandra, and feel the excitement of when they could live together in the same house. No more lonely mornings eating by himself.

Giving a sigh of satisfaction, Itzal figured it was time to get the day moving. He'd already gotten the training he needed (or more accurately was used to having), and he'd already taken his shower and now he'd finished eating his breakfast. Now he needed to put on his equipment, stock up on supplies, and pray to God that this boss fight wouldn't be as bad as the last ones in regards to players bickering and bringing politics where they weren't needed... At all... Opening his menu, Itzal went to his favorites menu and equipped his black cloth and leather armor. With a flash of light his normal, simple cloth clothes vanished as his armor materialized. Even though it's appearance had a very important meaning to it, he couldn't help but smile as he wore it. Call him childish, but he just felt cool wearing it. With that done, he equipped Beauty Incarnate, his last reminder of Kasier, and finally his black sword. Today he equipped Kins Pen since paralysis was more ideal against pkers, and he really didn't know what to expect today. But it was always good to have some form of 'crowd control' if things went south. After his equipment, he pulled out some consumables, but mainly just a teleport crystal, as well as a few corridor crystals... Just in case...

All geared up now, he took a deep breath and pulled out the corridor crystal which lead to an area near the coordinates given to him by Baldur. He knew that Zandra was going today, so if anyone asked he'd tell them that Zandra informed him of the meeting, and that's how he knew. No one had his username after all, just his alias. He activated the corridor crystal and, after confirming that there was no one in the immediate area outside the portal, stepped through and kept himself low. He scanned the area for anyone else, and while there were a few players down the road, as well as a player who appeared to be ferrying players across the waters into the estate. Itzal stayed hidden behind some vegetation however as he watched this occur. To keep up Are's reputation, he wasn't going to walk in like an honored guest, but rather sneak in unnoticed if possible. So:

Are switched his evasion armor to the mitigation armor. It had the same cosmetic appearance, including his face being shrouded in a black shadowy mist. With that he maneuvered around the large mass of water until he was out of earshot. With that, he dived into the water and began to swim towards the island. Using his night vision, detect and reveal mods, he kept an eye on players should they appear. He was coming from behind so unless people decided to take a detour, he shouldn't have any problem avoiding people's sight. Whenever he needed a breath, after confirming no one was there, he'd float to the surface, take a deep breath, and submerge once again. He continued this process until he reached the island the estate rested on. Climbing quietly out of the water, he quickly switched his gear to the evasion armor, resulting in him being completely dry.

With that, all he had to do now was slip in through the entrance without being noticed. As he approached the entrance, he inwardly groaned since it was lit up, reducing his chances. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to relax and walked towards the entrance from the side. Keeping calm, he kept his stride long and quiet, and stayed close to the walls. Since no one could see his face, he would appear confident, while attempting to avoid attention. Zandra however, would see the anxiety and stress that clouded his expression as he walked in. Assuming she spotted him that is. Itzal would immediately move to a darkened corner of the room as soon as he was inside. After doing so, he'd lean against the wall and open his menu to send Zandra a message:

Quote

To: @Zandra
From: Itzal

I'm here. Currently in the corner of the room shrouded by shadows, but I'm here.

ID# 154543  LD: 14+5=19 Stealth

Shaking his head with a light laugh, he looked back up at the sky. "Yeah, seriously. I don't know what they were thinking. Eighty eight... Doesn't make a lick of sense. Ah, well we can't change it now. At least we can still max out our other skills and mods." He really was happy to hear that too. It meant that, even if you didn't one hundred percent need them, you could get pretty much every mod you wanted and/or needed without worrying about it. In addition, you could still max out any and all extra skills you had. It would be nice to be able to master the martial arts skill so that he'd have something besides the one handed straight sword. That way, if he was disarmed, he could still fight his opponent. When Zandra pondered what to fill the last slot with, Itzal decided to help a little bit. "Well, what sort of skills do you have right now?" Upon her comment on him being paid, he gave a light chuckle. "Yeah, I don't think they feel comfortable letting me play judge in all of this though. To be honest I'm more of a vigilante than anything. I guess you could say I'm the batman of Aincrad, ha ha!" When she mentioned the boss fight however, his face softened, and he looked away for a moment. "...If we're being honest, I've been trying to avoid the front lines for a while... I just.. Couldn't take all the stress you know? Players arguing with each other, fighting each other over all sorts of crap. And I still can't get the image of Hirru jumping in to fight for the bosses out of my mind, even though I know he regrets that. Because with that fallen event, Seul went and did the exact same thing..."

@Zandra

Itzal didn't really have much time to search for materials. He was on a serious time crunch. Thankfully, he had tons of col he never really used. So he walked into a merchant's shop and walked to the counter to the owner: Pandora. He was wearing his black cloth and leather armor, his cowl up. As usual, his face was completely covered in a shadow like mist which obscured his face from anyone viewing it. Even light shining into the hood would not pierce the mist. He moved swiftly and placed the bag of col on the counter. "I need twenty four tier one materials as soon as you can provide them. And I may be coming back here sometime in the future as well." He spoke using his American accent as usual, ensuring that he didn't reveal his identity. Once he had the materials he would give a polite nod and quickly walk out the door, closing it without making a sound.

Buying 24 T1 Materials

Payment: 8,400 col

@Andromeda

Chuckling at her comment of how he'd been staying busy he gave a nod. "Yeah, just a bit." At least it kept him in shape and ready for a fight. Itzal fell silent as it was her turn to start sharing her half of things. She told him that she'd been rather busy as of late, though didn't really tell him what she'd been doing exactly. When she told him that she'd hit the level cap his face lit up. "Zandra that's awesome! You're level eighty eight now? Wait, since you're there, we can still collect skill points right? There's a lot of skills and mods I want to get still... Actually when I hit the cap I'm probably going to need to finally dump the picking and gathering skills and trade them out for combat skills." In truth, he didn't really need them anymore. Once he started going on daily monster grinds, he could rack up enough col to buy materials for days. And even more than that, he could gather materials on the specified floors for nature's gathering. Always helpful. But, that did get him thinking. "Any thoughts on why the game developers capped our levels at eighty eight? It would make more sense to at least cap them at level ninety... Actually if they wanted to cap it, they'd either need to cap it at floor level or at level one hundred. Preferably the latter. Feels odd that they would just leave it at eighty eight." He shook the worry off. "At any rate, that means I can catch up with you guys now. I'm level eighty two, only six levels away." When she asked if there were any benefits to player killing he gave a sad smile and shook his head. "No, not really. Once they're beaten, I use a corridor crystal to send them to the prison I helped discover a while back. No one knows it was me, well. They know Are did it, but "Are" never comes out of the shadows. My choice but still, I'd rather not get paid to fight other humans. I only do it because they have to be stopped."

@Zandra

He nodded when she talked about taking quests. "I'm the same way. It's no fun to take them on alone. The only time I actually go questing for stuff is when I need something pronto that I can get without fear of harm. For example, there's a quest with a boss that drops a consumable which increases your evasion by one regardless of your equipment or mods temporarily. It's easy to destroy at my level, so I'd go in there and kill it before a floor boss as extra protection. Definitely handy." Of course, before he could do any quest like that, he needed to take on the familiar quest. He wondered what kind of familiar he would be encountering this time around... When Zandra's eagle landed on her shoulder, he gestured to ask if he could touch her. With Zandra's permission, he would then stroke the feathered familiar's head. Doing this would help him relax a bit. He missed Velnia... When she asked him about what he'd been up to so far he sighed. "Honestly, not much. Not long after the floor boss was when I found out that..." He paused for a bit, as they both knew what he was trying to say, and he really didn't want to bring it up right now. "After that, I just focused on hunting down player killers. I've already taken out a 'would be' pking guild, several parties including the one from two nights ago, and multiple solo killers. Beyond that, I really haven't done that much worth mentioning, other than scouting out floors. I didn't think I could increase the size of my maps further than they already are."

@Zandra

He returned her smile with a smile of his own. "I wouldn't be if you hadn't helped me out of the place I was in." Yes.. He was still weighed down, but not nearly as he was before. In fact, for the first time in a long time he felt rather free. He'd had his time to grieve, and took most of his free time yesterday just, thinking. It was a rough night for sure, but he needed to remember that he would see her again in Heaven. He fell asleep that night clinging to that knowledge. So when he woke up this morning, it was without that horrid feeling of loneliness. "I had a lot of time to think last night too, so that certainly helped." When she mentioned how she had not actually finished most of the quests he raised his eyebrow questioningly. "Really? I'm actually a little surprised to hear that. Well either way, we can clear those quests at some point together. They're more fun with company anyway." When she told him that there was a lot she'd like to talk with him about, his curiosity had peaked. He wondered what she wanted to talk about him was. "Alright. Although I doubt we'll be attacked by anything. They're too low leveled, so they'd just stay away from us." He even scanned the area and sure enough, every one of them had the pink cursor over their heads, indicating the vast gap of power between them and the two players. As they started walking through the forest he asked, "So, what did you want to talk about?"

@Zandra

Itzal spotted her before she even left the gates. Such was the power of the searching skill, as well as the searching item he wore at times. He smiled as she walked over to him at the base of the tree. Itzal finished the last of his curry and went ahead and jumped off, rolling on contact with the ground to nullify the fall damage. "Hey Zandra." His sword was still equipped, as he never liked to leave his guard down. Especially after he'd mastered the hiding skill, and stalked pkers in the shadows to become paranoid enough of random surprise attacks. Especially since he was known for hunting down pkers. At this point they talked about him, so he was bound to have enemies by now. That being said, the sword was still sheathed on his belt. He wasn't going to be walking around wielding the black sword every second of the freaking day. And especially not when he was going to be hanging out with a friend. "So, anything you want to do today? We could chat and hang out a bit, or go monster hunting. Or find a quest we haven't done yet, though I don't think that's possible for you," he said with a chuckle. Personally he had some unfinished quests due to his... Departure from the front lines and keeping himself busy in regards to player killers.

@Zandra

Two full days had passed since Itzal's recent encounter with Zandra. A very much needed encounter at that. While he still felt the pain of losing his wife, it wasn't nearly as weakening as it was. As the sun set that night, Itzal told Zandra about Kasier. About how he had married, but they wanted it to be quiet. He didn't go into depth about how they met, though he did mention how it was thanks to Ulises that the two had a chance to begin with. She had asked who he was, and he told her that he'd tell her all about it later. He finished by stating that one day she went on a trip, and a day or two later he found her name on the monument. And after that, everything just went to hell. He even told her that Velnia, his familiar, had perished. And how even though he managed to get her back after the first time she died, he really didn't want to find her a third time. It just, didn't feel right. Eventually the two retired to their homes for the night, but the next day they met up again. This time, in the sunlight, and with a much more lighter conversation. And now it was officially two days later.

Despite him spending time with her partially out of fear of losing someone again, he really did enjoy spending time with her. He missed having a friend to just hang out with. Even before he lost Kasier, he cut ties with his friends for a multitude of reasons. So now, Zandra was the only friend he really had left. He would always wear his black outfit every time they went out of course. He wasn't about to come back as Itzal publicly, just as Are. So here he was, sitting on a branch of a massive tree in the middle of a field. They chose this as their next meeting place, so he just sat there eating some curry while waiting for her.

@Zandra

Itzal took the hand she extended and held it with a tight grip. As if he were holding onto the last lifeline that kept him from falling into the void below. He took in a deep breath, and let it out again slowly before he turned to look at her. While his eyes were still red from crying, this time around she would see hope. "Thank you... Thank you....." Afterwards he fell silent, and the two lay there in the rain for a long while...

THREAD COMPLETED!

Itzal & Zandra receive 2 SP & 200 col

And let it out he did. With yet another wail of agony, he cried as he embraced Zandra back. He cried all of his pain out. The loss he had been dealt. The emptiness inside. The pain of loss, the fear of further loss, and the hatred against the loss. He let it all out as the rain washed him clean. He cried and wept and sobbed until he quite literally could not cry any further, even though his body tried to. He gasped for air in between his now soundless sobs, until his lungs were no longer burning. He did his best to steady his breathing, though it did not happen quickly. Finally, he came back to his senses. He opened his eyes and saw Zandra beneath him, and as was his track record, flushed quickly and rolled off, so that they lay there side by side instead. He lay there silent for a moment. When he spoke, it was weak, and cracked, but just audible for her to hear over the rain. "Zandra... Thank you. Thank you for not leaving me. Thanks for that.." He said nothing for a while after that, just staring at the rain as it poured down onto them. Washing the stream of tears away. "..Zandra?.. Please, don't leave me." He closed his eyes and took a shaky breath. "I, didn't mean what I said before... I know you care. I know I'm not useless. And I don't want you to leave me. I just... Feel so empty now... With everyone else gone... Life just, feels meaningless right now... So please... Please don't leave me.."

@Zandra

Rain. In many situations, the rain could be fun to play in. In others, the rain often makes one tired and sleepy. For others, it's depressing. However there is one common aspect that goes unchanged wherever you are. When it rains, people can't really tell if you've been crying. You're entire body is wet from the water falling from the sky, disguising your tears as rainfall. But even with all of that, your eyes can't hide the pain you feel. You can't cover up the loss you've endured, or the hurt or betrayal. You can't disguise the anguish and anger. Your eyes are a window into your very soul. All you can do, is hope that by the end, the rain will wash it all away. The rainfall dampened his hood, weighing it down and causing the poorly held up hood to finally slip off of him as Zandra asked him if he was ok. The rain pelted his face and neck as he cried. And even as Zandra failed to find the words she needed, Itzal turned to look her in the eyes. His face was twisted by pain, and his eyes revealing nothing but endless grief. He stared at her for a little before looking back at the ground again, still crying. "I don't... I don't know.... What to... What I... I just, I don't..." He finally just gave up trying to find words, and instead just let himself fall. He didn't know where he would fall, he just stopped putting the effort in his muscles. He did of course, end up falling onto her, leaning against her as he cried. "I'm not strong... She made me strong... She's gone now, I don't. I don't know what to do..."

@Zandra

More tears started to drift down his face as he heard Zandra talk to him. Criticize him on how they'd been through much at this point, and how she was so happy to have seen him again. When she accused him of just putting up an act the whole time, he started to cry silently. And finally. On her last words. He broke.

Itzal fell to the ground and screamed to the world: "SHE'S GONE! SHE'S GONE! I LOVED HER, I CARED FOR HER, I SWORE I WOULD ALWAYS PROTECT HER AND NOW SHE'S GONE!" His voice was cut off by his own sobbing as he, for the first time since Kasier's passing, cried, his tears mixed with howls of pain as he thought of his wife. His love. Kasier. The person who helped him grow into someone better. The woman who saw something in him others hadn't. The woman who helped him stay on the right path. He wailed and grabbed his head with both hands with enough force to bruise himself in the real world as he continued to cry uncontrollably. Eventually he'd cried enough to calm down, but only just enough to talk again. "My friends, they're gone, forgot me. My wife, she's dead. Even Velnia. My familiar. I. I lost everyone. I lost everything. I'm... I can't... I don't want..." He shut his eyes and just continued to cry. He couldn't go on like this... Every pker he took down only made him angrier. The more angrier he felt, the more empty, lonely and pained he felt. He couldn't keep this up anymore. This stupid facade. He wasn't some hero keeping people safe. He was no different than a petty criminal or bully. For all his lessons, for all his lectures, and for all the things he's told people. He ended up not being able to handle the loss of his wife.

@Zandra