Morningstar

Thread Closing: Morningstar receives: 6,484 EXP (Word Count [7720/10*6*0.7] + Recruitment Drive [3242*2]) 2,952 col (Loot [1,980] + 15% P5 Reward [972]) 2 Materials (Loot [2]) T4 Uncommon Consumable 223701 Typhoonflame receives: 2,680 EXP (Word Count [7720/10*1*0.7] + Quest [800] + Recruitment Drive [1340*2]) 2,500 col (1 page [400] + Loot [100] + Quest [2000]) 6 materials (Loot [5] + Quest [1]) Zachariah's Special Draught | Tierless Potion | HP Recovery III Initiate's Draw | T1 Perfect Rapier | PAR II, ACC I 5x Big Bertha Braciole | T1 Rare Snack | Vitality

Morningstar stifled a laugh at Typhoon's remark. He also didn't think Dorian's name carried weight, but didn't want to say anything aloud. "My pleasure. No debts, don't worry. If you need anything, just shoot a message my way," he smiled, sending a friend request. Then, he went on his way. He had enjoyed his time as a guide. He'd also had more than enough of Floor 1 for a single day. He crushed a shiny blue crystal in his grip and teleported elsewhere. --- He swore he had sent himself home. What should have been a blue sky was a layer of smokey clouds. Smog polluted his senses,

The question was difficult to answer. Ethics and morals weighed at the back of Morningstar's mind, as did his own emotions and personal philosophies. Bahr promised that there was no wrong answer, but Star couldn't help but wonder if that was a lie. He wondered if, deep down, Bahr wanted to be condemned for his misdeeds. He cleared his throat. "I had a mentor—Jack was his name—who once told me to judge people by how they act, and not how they've acted. Couldn't have been easy for him, either. His dad was an addict and went to prison for a good chunk of his life. It was a combination of dru

approved

Approved

Approved

Nobody special, huh? A commonality between them. It was arriving in Aincrad that made Morningstar unspecial. He often thought about his life as Stephen Star; about how different it was in comparison. His name held a level of power that he couldn't imagine now. His once recognizable face had long been forgotten. He was the most plain, normal person you could meet, and he would not have traded a thing for it. That was where they differed. The tears forming in Bahr's eyes were not caused by joy, nor by relief. He restrained himself, holding back from showing Morningstar what he battled

"Well, I'll be... You've found yourself a weapon there, ay? Keep it—and the rest of the loot, too. Consider it my thanks for delivering this to Dorian for me." With a grin so bright it rivaled the sun, Pete bestowed upon Ty a sealed letter for Dorian, saying that its contents will more than settle his debts. He wiped it against a stale barrel of day-old catch before handing over to her. “That should serve Dorian right, for how he treats his debtors,” he spat into the lake to accentuate his dislike. They returned to town square, where Dorian was still calling for players to help him out.

Pete laughed at her apt description of Mayor Dorian. He looked confused at her following question, though. "It didn't. It ended up right here," he raised his fishing rod. "It ain't just fish that live at the bottom of the ocean. Plenty of treasure to pull up, if you're patient and ya know where to look." Somehow, through the junk and scraps, Ty pulled out a treasure chest. Morningstar had not seen one in a while. It was a bit smaller than the ones he was used to finding in dungeons and such, but loot was loot at the end of the day. "Open 'er up," Pete said with a grin. "Whaddaya say

"Pete Larkin is my favorite of the bunch. He's just a fisherman, basically. Back when I did this quest, he took us out onto the water and had us fight a giant swordfish. These days, who knows. So far, this quest has changed a lot. I'd expect this last part to do the same." They arrived at the docks and found Pete sitting in a chair with his rod in hand. Judging by his empty bucket, it had been a quiet day. "Fish not biting?" Morningstar asked. Pete looked over, scowling at the players who had disturbed his peace. "Not yet. But they'll come around. They always do." "We've been se

With three boars defeated, and their tusks gathered, their job was done. They headed back to town and returned to Lyle's shop. He was still at the anvil, smashing away at a different weapon. This one was a a curved sword. He was bending the blade as they waltzed in, announcing their entrance with a simple greeting. He turned to them, rolling his eyes. "Oh, you're back. Bring 'em here, then." They handed over the tusks they had gathered, and Lyle gave a curt nod of approval. "I use these on hilts," he explains simply, before setting the tusks aside. "Now, I've got to get back to work.

"She'll get herself killed if we let her go alone." Morningstar couldn't agree more. Nymoria had definitely evolved since the last time they had seen each other, but strong enough to run through Absolute Zero was a stretch. Hell, Star didn't even like the idea of soloing the thing. He stood up, wrapping himself in his scarf. "I'm here too," he said to Nym, who seemed not to have noticed him. He found it peculiar that the shadow man was more eye catching than the guy in the red coat. A pat on the birthday boy's back and the quick consumption of the drink Freyd had given him was all he

Before Star knew it, Typhoon had caught herself another boarlet. He wished he could throw that well. "Well done. You've earned yourself another boar tusk," he chuckled. With two boars down, they'd almost completed Lyle's portion of the questline. One last boarlet waddled near them, and Morningstar pointed it out to her. "Might as well get this guy if he's going to waltz right up to us." Star was happy to see Ty coming along so quickly. Sometimes, the fresh players he'd meet were afraid of the wilds, and for good reason. To him, she seemed accustomed to leaving her comfort zone. Combat, wi

Approved

Approved

Thread Closing: Dungeon Wave #1 (Floor 11) = 22 mats Dungeon Wave #2 (700*2*20) = 28,000 col per player Dungeon Wave #3 (2000*50) = 100,000 col Dungeon Drop | ID 223924 | LD 19 | CD 7 | T4 Demonic Armor/Shield 223924 Morningstar receives: 4,877 EXP (Word Count [4729/10*6*1] + Dungeon [1800] + Field Boss [240]) 174,431 col (1 page [400] + Dungeon [128000] + Loot [45,300] + 15% P5 Reward [731]) 38 Materials (Dungeon [22] + Loot [16]) 1 Demonic Shard Random Dungeon Map 223906 T2 Consumable | Blessing of the Wood 221413 T4 Perfect Consumable 223894 T4 Rare Tri

Summoning the last of his strength, Star surged to his feet, reactivating his sword art for the third time. He aimed for the creature’s exposed underbelly, where its thick hide was thinnest. He lunged and drove his sword deep into Noxthral’s flesh, and the energy of the sword art exploded outwards, sending a shockwave through the creature’s body. Noxthral let out a final, agonized screech as the energy ripped through it, its massive form convulsing as the life drained from its eyes. The creature’s body collapsed with a heavy thud, the toxic sludge still oozing from its mouth as it fi

Kent, seeing his friend in danger, didn’t hesitate. He fired arrow after arrow at Noxthral, aiming for its eyes, its limbs—anywhere he could to keep the creature from finishing Morningstar off. But Noxthral was enraged now, its yellow eyes blazing with fury. It ignored the arrows, its focus entirely on Morningstar. "Get up!" Kent yelled desperately, his voice barely cutting through the fog of pain clouding Star’s mind. Star gritted his teeth, forcing his body to move. The sludge was burning into his skin, and the pain was excruciating, but he couldn’t stop now. He managed to get to h

Just as he brought his sword down, Noxthral twisted its massive body. Instead of the clean strike Morningstar expected, his blade glanced off the creature’s thick hide, sending a jarring shock through his arms. Before he could recover, Noxthral reared back and opened its maw wide. A low, guttural noise rumbled from deep within its throat. "Morningstar, watch out!" Kent shouted, seeing the danger before Morningstar did. In the next instant, a torrent of toxic sludge spewed from Noxthral’s mouth, a foul, putrid liquid that arced through the air toward Morningstar. He had no time to dod

Morningstar gasped as the breath was knocked out of him. Cold, slimy water filled his mouth and nose. He struggled to regain his footing, knowing that staying under meant death. Noxthral was already bearing down on him, its remaining three eyes locked onto its target with predatory focus. Kent loosed another arrow, this time aiming for the creature’s arm. The arrow struck, but it only seemed to enrage Noxthral further. It roared and slammed its massive arm into the ground, sending a wave of green water crashing into Kent. The impact threw him off balance, and he scrambled to keep from bei

Noxthral roared in pain, a deep, guttural sound that reverberated through the chamber. The force of the blow staggered the creature, but it quickly regained its composure, whipping its massive tail around to strike. Morningstar barely had time to raise his sword, the impact sending him skidding backward through the sludge. His feet struggled to find purchase in the muck as he dug in, holding his ground. "Keep it busy!" Kent shouted from behind, nocking an arrow and drawing back his crossbow. He aimed for the creature's eyes, knowing that a well-placed shot could turn the tide of the battl

Noxthral, Spawn of the Sewers They found themselves in an open chamber—the dungeon boss's lair. The water had mixed with slime and turned murky green. In the middle, the boss feasted. Noxthral, Spawn of the Sewers was its name. It was large, and had to be quicker than it looked to evade the two trackers. It had two arms that it used to pull itself along the ground and a tail that spanned about ten feet. Four yellow eyes focused in on its deceased prey. It was the woman they had followed into the sewers. They were too late. "Damn it," Kent whispered. Morningstar's sword lit up wi

He assisted Kent, who was seconds from being engulfed by the slime's noxious body, by running through the remaining slime with his blade. It was low enough for him to finish it off with one hit. He had the advantage of not being forced to reload every so often. That was the tradeoff for ranged weaponry. "Thanks," Kent huffed. "I owe you big time." "I'll collect some time," Star joked. They weren't done yet. Neither of the blue slimes was their culprit, and a trail of green ooze still paved the path ahead. The kidnapping mob lurked somewhere at the heart of the sewer system, and

They took on one Noxious Slime each, splitting up to make space. Morningstar circled around his slime, watching it expand and contract with that unsettling rhythm. The fumes were worse up close. Kent, on the other side, was trying to keep his distance, firing arrows to keep his slime at bay. “These things are tougher than they look!” he shouted, his voice strained. Morningstar grunted in response. He lunged forward, slashing through the slime with force, but it just absorbed the hit, pieces of it rejoining like nothing happened. It was like fighting water—it flowed back together after every st

An arrow whizzed by Morningstar's head, aimed immaculately at the leftmost slime. It dug straight through it, getting stuck in its core, where the slimes noxious attributes melted it away. "Geez," Morningstar said, remember not to punch or kick the damn things. His sword seemed to be okay whilst touching the slimes. It would sizzle on impact, but never melt or dissolve. He sliced a piece of gelatinous goo off of the other slime, but it remained unphased. How did you kill something that didn't have a heart or a brain? Or any muscles or organs, for that matter. "Let's just keep pu