Freyd

"Seriously? You want us for a standard escort and trade route patrol?" Freyd eyed the attendant like he'd just requested a flight of next-gen stealth fighters to escort a courier pigeon. "Are you sure? This seems more like a thing for local security." Jeeves was already plotting their most efficient route, complete with risk-reward analysis. Foyle was speaking with the caravan master about cargo and logistics, examining their gear for optimal travel speed and defensive potential. Ren was staring at the nearby statues, attempting to translate its completely irrelevant engravings. Nerd.

The outskirts having been dealt with, at least for a time, Freyd drifted deeper into the grounds where many were jeering and taunting each other over games of Pallankuli. Not overly familiar with its rules, he kept to the periphery and watched the action play out at a distance. It seemed simple enough, once he'd watched a few moves, his eyes eventually snaring upon a familiar face. Wulfrin was just departing a table, politely excusing himself to explore the rest of the event to the playful dismay of the other participants. He hadn't know the man long, but had grown to admire his persis

Wandering the busy streets, it was soon apparent that Dayanita had successfully enlisted others to the cause. Players carrying similar trays chased after flickering lanterns all over the grounds, some turning it into just another source of fun, racing to reach the next in need of rekindling. Light was hope, and this subtle task, quest or otherwise, gave their thirsty souls a drink of that ambrosial emotion - just enough to keep them going awhile longer. A few familiar faces passed among the crowds, greeted with smiles and nods corresponding to levels of familiarity. Freyd was hardly

Twin statues, soaring high above the nearest tents and booths, facing each other in their loving embrace while smaller versions dance a played around them. It was a lovely sentiment, played out repeatedly throughout the festival as families wandered to and fro. More mischievous youngsters wove and darted beyond their parents' warding gaze, slipping the leash of authority to run amok with gleeful exuberance. Some would laugh it off, while others yelled ineffectively for them to return, their frustrations lost amidst the teeming throng. Freyd had met with the lamplighter; a frazzled youn

Wandering through the festival as if he were no more than one of its many maintenance workers, busily buzzing back and forth like an armada of bees keeping affairs in order and no one any the wiser. He'd considered donning a disguise to match, but it wasn't necessary. It was also nice to be seen, yet not be seen, despite the awkward clanking of heavy armor. People were too busy, the ambient music and droning chatter suppressing any one person's contribution to the whole. Jeers and cheers rang out with laughter throughout, and was comforting. A white-haired man called out at one point,

Staring silently as brows arched upward in realization, so much of what he knew suddenly made more sense. "That's why you're so hard on yourself all the time." An explanation made as much for his own ears to hear, as for hers. It wouldn't feel real unless spoken aloud. "That's it, isn't it? You're more afraid of what you feel are your own flaws, and that they might somehow push me away?" Stone thudded loudly beneath their feet, an ancient mechanism triggered by Elora's gesture, yet also perfectly timed to match a different epiphany. Ruins shifted, slabs peeling back from overgr

Self-pinning to the boss' putrid form left few options as its flesh unraveled all around him, swallowing Freyd in a deluge of gunky raw decay. Even getting bits of Slime King in his mouth, or sliding past the underside of the Monkey King's crotch had not been quite so nauseating. One last desperate gasp of fetid air was all he managed before that sticky, dark miasma fell and engulfed him. It got a few other tanks too, by way of fleeting glance, though there was little he could do for them. Drawing upon his connection to Shadow's insipid darkness, touching that vast, oblivious void conn

Could sentiments ring out in echo? Hearing his thoughts given voice through her words was unexpected, though also heartwarming. Old Elora would have smiled awkwardly, contrived some excuse or self-effacing lie to smother any risk of exposing her own perceived flaws or felt inadequacies. Hints curled upward at the edges of his lips even as careworn edges weathered down the default arch and harshness of his brows. A ring of truth. A touch of the bond slowly yet still burgeoning between them, delivered through the tenderest of touches and the image of fairest skin. Understanding. Pri

Freyd entered the hall and stared at things because the sign on the door said he couldn't just wander in and pick up what he'd wanted. The prescribed time since his last visit had lapsed. He stood around waiting and wasting time, because some arbitrary rule meant he had to, even though there was absolutely no point to it, whatsoever. It was dull, meaningless and felt like a complete waste of time, because it was. Running a mailed gauntlet along poorly traveled surfaces was in no way to test for dust, but if you needed to kill a few minutes, then ensure that they were utterly slain, why not

A giant clawed mitt wreathed in raw, pungent decay wrapped itself around his leg, ensuring hurt would follow. Freyd felt Callisto's massive claws bite into his leg too deep to easily escape. Then the horizon went on a topsy-turvy joy ride, spinning every which way as he was tossed around relentlessly. Whatever rage had twisted this creature, blighting and rotting its body and mind, he'd clearly gotten under its skin - not that it was that hard to do. Half of it was sloughing off already anyway. Resigned to the strange realization that things were going exactly to plan meant his situati

Thread Closing: Typhoonflame receives: 3,301 EXP (Word Count [4312/10*1*0.7] + Quest [5000]) 26,900 col (1 page [400] + Loot [16,500] + Quest [10000]) 1 mon 1 Guild Token [Firm Anima] Unlock <<Forgotten King's Authority>> Extra Skill Freyd receives: 5,430 EXP (Word Count [4312/10*1*0.7] + Quest [0]) 814 col (1 page [0] + 15% P5 Reward [814]) 2 Materials (Loot [2]) 1 mon 1 Guild Token [Firm Anima] T4 Rare Consumable 237355a T4 Rare Armor/Shield 237355b FTK Party Leader Reward | ID 237696 | LD 20 | Forgotten King's Spite | T3 Demonic Weapon

Freyd took in Ty's response with little more than a curious raising of his left eyebrow. There was no right answer. Everyone picked up something different. The point was to be able to answer with any kind of insight at all, otherwise, he'd have just taken a beating for no reason. Sheathing his blade, the Whisper returned to his ward's side, seemingly content. Their goals had been achieved, and she'd be stronger for it the moment they left this frigid, stagnant hall. "As long as you learned something," he merely replied with a smile, dusting off dregs of old mob dust from his armor.

"We're holding our ground and keeping a good pace at the same time," Freyd replied, grateful to Baldur for a moment's respite. "This bear seems to have my number, but as long as I can keep soaking up its damage without other ill effect, that lets the rest of you do what you need." Wulfrin had already charged forward, dutifully resuming his assigned task, and the rest of the team quickly rallied behind. "Looks like the other groups have also recovered. I'm not sure if there's more to this thing or not, or if we're simply meant to endure and wear it down while keeping our fingers crossed

Clashing steel against shadow, Freyd spun and switch wielded Pride for Truth instead, the more tangible blade emerging as if from the former. A swift, unexpected kick to a known weak point in the King's shin guard snapped a brittle bone, made vulnerable by age or frozen in that static state by the ravages of undeath. Either way, the mob's leg snapped, toppling him sideways and right into the arc of Freyd's downward swing. Foot stomping against hard flagstone, itself broken by time and design, Veritas returned to a guarding stance out of habit more than necessity. A skull rattled by, turnin

Mental images of a version of himself jumping through the air, gobbling healing Scooby-snacks out of the air, spread a goofy grin across the Whisper's face. Such absurd moments were always the best. But it was time he properly shattered Bob's ambitions, snatching away any dreams of victory the mob might actually have allowed itself. Sidestepping the latest swing of its massive, rusty axe, Freyd's blade parried and offered a swift counter with an upward strike. Samael's Pride loosed its reigns once more and shrieking filled the stale ruin's air as the black sword carved a swath through the

The King advanced, seemingly convinced that he had Freyd on the ropes and the initiative was his to command. One resounding step after another brought with it the clash of steel on steel as the mob's massive greataxe swung down like a guillotine blade intending to slake its thirst of player blood. A rumbling, raspy cackle wheezed from the villain's undead throat. It hadn't felt this glorious in ages, and reveled in the rare sensations of euphoric vigor, pressing its advantage to the fullest. Freyd, meanwhile, seemed unusually calm, giving ground gradually as he measured his breathing a

"Uh... do you think I have it's attention," Freyd quipped, Callisto having just attempted to gather his spleen without even asking permission. He'd made mobs mad before, but this time was aiming for some sort of unofficial record, and they were barely a quarter of the way through its health bars. "I just keep picturing it rolling around on a unicycle, wearing a pink tu-tu." Twin claws made of pure putrid foulness raked their way across his chest plate in response, apparently unappreciative of his imagination. Freyd found himself wishing he'd brought a dozen of those little pine-scented

"It's alright," he replied. "You kinda get used to ~OOF!" The butt end of the king's axe handle smashed into Freyd's abdomen, lifting him a good two feet off the ground with some appreciably uncomfortable hang time before he stumbled backwards to find the ground with his ass. "Ughhh... I hate it when you do that, Bob." Rolling sideways to avoid the mob's follow-up swing, the Whisper soon regained his footing to the tune of a shrieking banshee as Samael's Pride loosed its wards to unleash the black void within. Swinging low, taking advantage of his own compromised position, Fre

"Sorry Freyd.." All pretense to cloak and dagger solutions fell prey to lethal necessity in an instant. A companion blind and vulnerable, fighting at close quarters with numbers in heavy favour to the enemy, Freyd saw only one remaining option. Dashing forward from their flawed foxhole, a shield grabbed and yanked toppled the first unsuspecting knight over a cliff with a drawn out cry of surprise as his final words. The rest reacted faster, closing ranks, or at least making the attempt. Their tactics were better suited to open ground where a phalanx might find better purchase. Narrow

Like an orchestra tuned and primed, each section delivered its intended part to the benefit of the whole. Zandra was first, her infectious zeal imbuing each of the others' spirits with fire and fury to be unleashed upon their gnashing and decrepit foe. Its decomposing scent? Bearly tolerable. Also fortunately flash frozen by Wulfrin's timely strike, and the wretched hankering to hurl subdued to the point of tolerating an angry algid turd. Mac and Baldur didn't disappoint, each devastating their foe the moment it lay exposed, with Crozeph building up momentum behind them both. All tha

“Callisto was a nymph in Greek mythology, wasn’t she? Transformed into a bear for the transgressions and duplicity of others, as I recall. My parents went on about these things at length,” he added, with a mirthless chuckle. “She was later cast into the sky as the constellation of Ursa Major to prevent her son from hunting her. And all of this occurs just as another Tanabata-like event beings? The coincidence seems unlikely and concerning.” Keeping pace as each group moved forward into position, his muse was racing ahead of his steps. “All of the oddities and mutations I’ve obse

He could see the signs though the welling glaze over her sea-blue eyes, their downturned edges warning of a pending collapse. Keep talking. Don’t let her sink into that darkness. As Elora’s knees wobbled beneath her, his arms were there to cradle and support her. No crashing. Not this time. She was not alone. He knew her. Trial end tribulations, shared, had fostered him out of the denseness of his own dimmed awareness just enough to know one heart in this world: hers. In that moment he finally knew for certain: he would die to protect it. When did that happen? For a

Still slightly dozy, Freyd was slow on the uptake, struggling to find his footing and get in on the fight. Maybe is was the beachwear? The ladies were killing it, after all. Fortunately, that also include the giant fish monster threatening to ruin their day. A weak-hearted blow was all be managed to get in, his loafers catching on some of the deck boards and nearly spilling him into the drink in the process. "Ugh. Just not my day, I guess." he grumbled, trying to unwrench his leg from an uncomfortable looking pose. "Good thinking with that stun, Ciela. Someone want to finish this t

"That's a neurological thing, isn't it?" Medicine and biology had never really been his strong suit, though he recalled that it could be quite debilitating. A flash of concern across his face was soon suppressed. That sympathy struck him at all was remarkable, though perhaps best set aside to be considered when a giant undead quest boss wasn't trying to kill him. "Does it have any impact in here, or have you basically been freed from its effects?" Yup. Big mistake. Seizing on his distraction, the Forgotten Time King slammed him back with the flat of his axe. Partially parried, Fr

"Alright then, Ty. Keep this in mind too: we're fixers, which means that O&I are also home to support-style players. Healers, leaders, and the like, fall under our protective umbrella. None of us can stand alone against everything. We need each other. Whether that's crawling around some dusty dungeon, a back alley, or even the front lines. We're all working together, even when we're apart. And, occasionally, that means helping the newbies face something that would otherwise be impossible." A subtle gesture set them on a rocky trail up to the shattered ruins, climbing along precariou