Freyd

"Lady Ladira?! Wha... wha.... how... is this possible?" The aging, balding attendant's face blanched at the sight of the approaching false Freyd, who'd spent enough time studying Simmoné to pull of a half decent courtesan schtick when he needed to. A subtle shift in stance, hand placed on hip as he kept closing the distance, combined with carefree laughter that rang between the local sculptures and topiary with a certain arrogant amusement. "Please! Please! I've heard the rumours, and you should take better care than to listen to such poppycock! I'm absolutely fine, my dear." The m

Floor sixteen could only mean one thing. Greybeard's crew were up to no good again. Craning his head back beneath his cowl until it cracked, Freyd wondered how psychosomatic the algorithms were that even enabled such a thing, let alone make him feel better by doing it. Hopefully, this time, he wouldn't have to get shot out of a cannon or accidentally and indirectly set a party member on fire. "Nahhh. It'll be fine." The gekko perched on the rock beside him gave an eerie and decidedly skeptical look. Maybe the rum had already kicked in, even though it couldn't and he didn't hav

A light chuckle as he read the message, feet dangling of a minaret's rooftop that used to house several dozen flying simians with ridiculous little circus outfits and hats. He despised the hats most of all. They made the mobs look like angry bellhops. Lium was just beginning to realize the consequences of his actions. There would be many more, but he would learn them all, painfully, over time. It had been a personal choice, seemingly frivolously made. The cowl just shook. It wouldn't be an easy road, if he ever chose to try to redeem himself in the eyes of Cardinal. Few were harsher in

Time to make a custom sword art: AoE Shift (Base x20, including shift bonus) +x5 (May only be used after a natural MD9-10 had successfully landed against you the previous turn.) Result: [x25] CSA-FREYD (26 + [2* targets] EN | AOE | All shadows are as one, and none are safe from their wrath when ire stirs in their darkness. When using this sword art, Freyd manipulates all shadows around him to duplicate his attack, with devastating and unexpected effectiveness. May only be used after a natural MD9-10 had successfully landed against you the previous turn. (Cost of AoE Shift in

Skill(s) Being Dropped: R5 Light Armor Mod(s)/Addon(s)/Shift(s) Being Dropped: Resolve, Meticulous SP Incurred Towards Limit: 30 SP Refunded: 40 Cost: 30,000 col

A knock on the shop door, followed moments later by a twisting of the knob and poking of a cowled head just inside the frame. "NIGHT?" Freyd wandered cautiously into the shop, wary that other patrons might be around and not wishing to touch on sensitive subject matter with open ears nearby, or else half-expecting to be jumped by some woman in a white, hooded outfit. He still wasn't sure what was going on there, and hadn't had a chance to follow up, but his visit wasn't about that. "I saw you and Koga leaving Baldur's place in a hurry, back at the tournament. Something looked to

1. Upgrading the following item to Demonic quality, using one Demonic Shard to add 1 slot of EVA: Night Shades (T3 Perfect Trinket – ACC 3) Identification ID: #166287 (Made by Raidou) | Obtained by Freyd: http://www.sao-rpg.com/topic/19822-guild-member-gear/?do=findComment&comment=622069 A black ebonweave mask and bandana set with a slightly hawkish style. They are terribly comfortable to wear and make the wearer’s intention inconceivable. Becomes: Night Shades (T3 Demonic Trinket – ACC 3 | EVA 1) Upgrade ID: 205436 A black ebonweave mask and bandana set with

A polite knock on the door before entry. Freyd entered slowly, making sure to remove his footwear and respect the cleanliness of the shop and particulars of its owner. Courtesies went a long way. The cowl came down as well. Another rare sign of respect from the Whisper. "I'm afraid that progress carries a price, dearest little sister. All this sneaking around has caused me to rekindle skills I thought lost after the confrontation with Shadow and the flood. Even this flexible wear has become cumbersome as a result. It simply wouldn't do to have a whisper squeak while he sneaks. Per

"Oy! Loverboy!" Blonde, brawny and exceedingly Scottish, Quip burst into Koga's shop without so much as a knock or ring of a bell. The hardware was probably just too afraid of abuse and let her in without a challenge. Big green eyes sparkling, she strode over to the nearest counter, pulling various items off and tossing them to the floor to make some room before dropping a pair of matching breast plates harshly in their place. "Bet ye haven't forgotten aboot me! Ah wis cleaning oot Freyd's god-forsaken excuse fur a shop th' ither day 'n' fun some thing that keeked lik' thay micht ramm

Thunder cracked in the distance, along with muted cries and monkey-squawks. Bursts of light high in the air first seemed like fireworks, until the truth became more apparent. They were mobs. Dozens upon dozens of mobs, being smashed like confetti cakes all about the aerial perches of the witch's tower. Feminine shrieks filled the air with outrage, but to no avail. Freyd had promised to cull the hazard, and was living up to his word. The witch would simply have to live with it, because he'd offer her no other choice. If she pushed, she'd just join their ranks, in the last charge of the m

Discord. Tension. Dark emotions and cross-wired intentions. Freyd hadn't actually expected Dustin to follow through, but the end result was exactly what he had hoped. The man known as the Whisper in Shadows was as slippery as he was unpredictable, and already two steps ahead of Nari by the time she uttered her threats. Gaze locked forward, Freyd's form shimmered and wavered as they entered the formal grounds. If he'd heard her words, he made no overt reaction. Gone was the edgy darklord-wear, shed like a pixel-thin layer of skin and replaced by something much grander and more suitable to

Freyd watched the man move from one stage of grief to the next. It was progress, albeit measured in baby steps. Feeling nothing was natural progression on the reset from only feeling self-destructive. "Eventually, and gradually, we will need to help him course-correct from feeling nothing back towards feeling something. Right now, all he can manage is anger and sorrow. He needs to be numb for a while and then start to see in others what he has lost in himself. We can help him, separately, but if we keep coming at him in pairs he will eventually come to resent us for pressuring him.

Dustin immediately struck Freyd as another Gaius in the raw, rearing for a fight without needing to know why. The act itself was enough. So be it. There was always a need for shock troops. It was just unfortunate that their casualty rates tended to be so high. Fixing the man's face in his memory, he made a mental note, in case his enthusiasm reduced him to mere pixels a few minutes from now. One never really knew, in Aincrad. Astreya, or Iris as now noted, was her usual whirlwind self, bubbly and eager, overflowing with so much energy that it couldn't possibly be real. No, that was

"So be it." Eyes still concealed behind impossibly reflective glass, Beelzebub turned his back on the battle and his minion alike and vanished into the same shadowy alcove. Strangely and slightly disconcerting, Freyd couldn't sense his destination. Lilith's constant clawing made it impossible to focus fully on the tracking he'd need to follow. Now was not the time. Sidestepping her latest lunge, the Whisper brought his elbow down squarely on the small of her back, laying her flat on the stone floor in the process. Without hesitation, his other hand came down with the telltale flare of an

She was far faster and difficult to hit, but Freyd had finally started to peg the math on this particular fight. For all her fury, Lilith lacked the resilience or sustainability of a player, and that would be her downfall. He just had to endure and whittle her down by attrition. The lightning pace at which they traded blows would have made any anime proud, but the health bars ultimately governed. Hers was in the red, even with her unusual regenerative abilities. He's watch the spraying blood coalesce and merge into her, restoring the brutal damage to her physical form, but it wasn't enoug

"Is that so, Beelzebub?" Wiping more blood on his sleeve, it wasn't a sight to which he had yet grown accustomed. The gruesome factor was unusually high for this effect, which seemed particularly persistent. "Because I can't help wondering if you're just intervening now to save your pet from yet another demise." Lilith roared madly at the threat, still unable to move. "You're not actually sure what will happen if I use these, are you?" His fingers splayed to signal the sanctified weapons adapted by the system to his skill sets. "And that's the part that truly captures my curiosity. You

Lilith launched herself at him with reckless abandon and strength fed by vicious hatred for the very symbol of the things now clad about his hands. They were anathema and drove her frenzy to a fever pitch. Unaccustomed to the balance of his new weapon, Freyd's reactions slowed and granted her an opening. Pouncing, the mistress of vampires caught him by the shoulders as she rose. Using her momentum and supernatural strength, she flipped overtop of him and threw her enemy against a nearby wall, winding him for an instant. Slumping back down to the floor, Freyd needed a moment to recover, bu

Another colossal strike sent Lilith screeching back in pain, the Whisper's hands having gouged out fist-sized holes in her falsely impenetrable flesh. Trying to hiss and roar, she struggled with the absence of half her jaw where now trickles of reddish motes trailed and crinkled like glass dust as it hit the ground. He couldn't say that she hadn't taken her own toll on him, but it still didn't match what Ugzeke and others had managed. Not even close. A wry glimmer in the devil's eyes couldn't quite conceal the one ace he thought he still had left in the hole, only for his hopes to suff

"Fair enough." His first acknowledgement of the devil's presence. "Thing about demons and undead, is that they really can't stand the light." Seeking to capitalize on his retort, Lilith lunged forward and snagged a bit of the shadow before he could fully dodge. But, not enough. Freyd became Montjoy and also the reverse as they swapped spaces. His retribution struck with blinding white light that rippled across the entire chamber, further shattering the mob's already broken form. Sparks and blood alike sprayed from the point of impact as the two combatants traded blows. The space was c

Too frenzied to incapacitate, Freyd tried to redirect that rage against her instead. Blood splattered every which way as they traded blows at blinding speeds, some of it his and some hers. 'Damn, she's fast,' he confessed to himself, but that also kindle an opportunity. So long as he kept he close and trading blows, her position was more readily predictable. Feinting an opening, he caught her as she made for his throat, granting him his opportunity to drive his fist up beneath her jaw. Lilith's form staggered and slowed as it stumbled backwards, her attacks hindered and rendered less effe

Her speed was unreal, dodging mid-charge beneath his counter. Only a last minute intervention by Persi knocked her off course enough for her own attack to miss. Freyd skittered to his feet a short distance away while his familiar bristled with blazing eyes, her inky form standing between him and his assailant. "Yes, do be careful." The devil's grin grew even wider. "She does seem to enjoy toying with her meals." Taunting aside, he made no move to join the melee, which suited Freyd just fine. Monologuing villains were commonplace and he could easily ignore distractive blathering, i

"I don't have time for this." Hooking his leg around the broken bedframe, he tug and lifted one of the posts up into the air, twisting and launching with a kick right at the should-be-dead Lilith. The impact drove her crashing back into the alcove from where her friend had just emerged. "And what do you mean by 'player'?" No mob should know what that means, unless this was yet another of Cardinal's tricks. That damnable program had no qualms about breaking its own rules, yet punished players for the most minor infractions. Who the hell was this guy? "You noticed! How nice. So many

"You've no idea what you've done, or unleashed," she cackled, madness setting behind her eyes in equal measure to desperation. "Actually, I'm pretty sure I just killed you, but if we just wait around a few more second we'll know for certain." Her health bar was definitely depleted, but something wasn't right. Mobs didn't normally last this long before bursting into puffy clouds of sparkly digital bits. Remaining in a crouched, defensive stance, Freyd watched with concern as her form fractured but also reformed. It was as if she was undergoing some sort of metamorphosis, transforming

Pressing his advantage, Freyd punched her straight in the boob, following up with a practiced, lightning speed flurry that systematically staggered her, forcing her back step by step. As the kata reached its final moves, Freyd dug deep within himself, channeling his focus into a final strike. Lilith was caught under the chin and launched back across the room with the same degree of force she had just used against him. Her limp body impacted the far wall hard enough to leave a waifu-shaped imprint in the block and a gasping groan as the vampiress struggled to re-combobulate herself. Lif

Freyd replied to her vampiric tantrum by grabbing Lilith's wagging finger and twisting it in a painful joint lock until it snapped out of its socket. The resulting blood frenzy wasn't quite the effect he'd hoped for, causing her to lunge with reckless abandon and overwhelming speed. She slammed him into the granite block wall on the far side of the room with enough force to dislodge a cloud of dust and scattering of stone chips from the ancient and crumbling masonry, threatening to bring the cross-vault above down on both their heads. "I might have miscalculated a bit on that one," he