Katoka

ph

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Looting Sundered Blight Wolf 3:

2520*Col
4*Materials
T4 Perfect Armor/Shield #223144a
T4 Perfect Consumable #223144b
T4 Perfect Consumable #223144c

ph

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Looting Sundered Blight Wolf 2:

3780*Col
2*Materials
T4 Rare Trinket #223141a
 

The wolf lunged before Katoka could react properly. She only managed to draw her katana before it's jaws clamped down over the blade, sending sparks flying from it's mouth. Using all her strength she only just managed to yank her weapon free and kick the monster back to put some distance between them. Only then did the name of the mob appear above it's head for her to read, 'Sundered Blight Wolf'.

The animal jumped once again and left Kat to move on the defensive, smacking her sword into the side of it's head in order to deflect it's attacks. She moved and danced through the trees, not getting a moment to stop and rest as she slashed and slammed the monster as much as she could. Clearly whatever was in the jar left behind by the man earlier had an effect on this wolf, and the name sounded like something she had heard in passing before. At this time she couldn't do much to think, but once she had finished it off she would make a break for town and wrack her brain in the process.

Slipping behind a tree to dodge another bite, Kat finally took the opportunity to charge sword art as she circle around the trunk and cleave the beast from shoulder to hip. Its body slumping lifelessly to the ground with a thump. The samurai let out a sigh of relief, and turned to walk away. However she stopped and looked back at the fallen wolf, her eyebrow cocked in confusion.

All the enemies in Aincrad always died in the same way, exploding into light with the sound or glass shattering. This one however, remained on the ground like it was an actual dead body. After a few moments the crystals on it's back pulsed with a deep red light and the wolf dissolved into a black sludge that slopped onto the ground with a splat before slowly oozing back into the crystals.

Katoka gagged as she stepped away from the things on the forest floor. "What in the hell was that?" she thought to herself as she began to back track to where the other wolves had died. "Those other two also didn't disappear." With that last thought she entered the clearing she was in once before to find one of the previously dead wolves now on its feet, the same crystalline growths protruding from different spots on its body.

"I really need to shut the hell up sometimes."

----

Looting Sundered Blight Wolf 1:

2520*Col
4*Materials
T4 Rare Weapon #223139a
T4 Uncommon Consumable #223139b
 

Panicked eyes shot towards the beast left standing. It chuffed a breath of air from it's snout and stepped forward to sniff the bodies of it's companions. The samurai had a better view of the growths on the wolf's side as it did this, seeing veins of black that snaked through the red crystals and into the flesh of the creature.

"I need to get out of here." she thought to herself, "Before this thing decides it wants something fresh to eat." The wolf whipped it's head up and glared at Katoka, as if it could hear her thoughts right then and there. A growl creeped up it's throat and rumbled from it's maw as it pulled it's lips back to reveal razor sharp teeth.

"Me and my big brain mouth." the samurai groaned as the wolf took a step towards her. "Looks like you aren't letting me get out of this that easily."

With that she heard a growling noise in the distance, growing louder as three white wolves emerged from seemingly nowhere. Katoka slowing began to back away as the creatures padded over to the meat. Two of them stopped at the haunch of meat that was covered in the gross concoction of pheromones, crystal, and what she assumed to be blight.

Kat had stepped back slowly several feet to put some distance between her and the hungry monsters. She had wanted to destroy the trap before anything had been drawn to it, but at this point that would have just made the wolves attack her outright. The third wolf approached the other two, stopping next to them. It's white fur was different, seeming to be matted and duller than the other two.

Katoka felt the hair on the back of neck stand up as she saw various growths of red crystal on it's side. Her hand slowly inched to her weapon, gripping the hilt as she watched the two normal wolves begin to eat the infected meat on the ground. Within a few bites of their meal they dropped to the ground, coughing and sputtering until they stopped moving all together. Kat stared dumbfounded at the monsters, waiting for them to shatter into light and fade away. However they did not.

Tapping the outside a windowed display opened, revealing the name of the item in the jar. "Sundered Embers?" she asked aloud, "What the hell does that mean?" Her eyes were now drawn to the dripping vial nearby. Placing the jar in her inventory she approached the tree once again, this time leaning in to tap the side of the glass to being up the item name without getting too close.

A window appeared once again and Kat had to squint to read the tiny frame. "Brew of Blighted Pheromones. This is... an alchemist brewed this." Kat stepped back, trying to process the information she was taking in. "Someone is trying to attract something to this. To eat it? That guy said something about spreading, are they trying to infect the animals here with whatever these crystals are?"

She began to pace back and forth as she mumbled to herself, trying to piece things together with what little information she had. She stopped for a moment, "He said last one." she looked off into the woods as realization flooded over her. "There are others."

She cursed to herself for not being able to hear them fully and at the men for being smart. One thing was certain though, they were both players. Kat wasn't sure if this had disturbed her more or less yet.

Stepping out from behind the trees the woman approached the contraption they had set up. Whatever was dripping onto the meat below seemed to make an odd pulse spread through the ground every tie it dripped down. She got as close as she could before stopping a foot or so from the meat. Just to her left the jar that the cloaked man had pulled out was sitting, seemingly forgotten in his haste. There only seemed to be one dull red crystal inside, but as Katoka crouched she noticed that it seemed to react as she got closer.

She quickly grabbed the cork and slammed it on the lid before anything else happened, her heart racing and her anxiety growing. "What the hell is going on here." she thought to herself as she lifted the jar to eyelevel.

Katoka stopped at a tree and peered around, finally laying eyes on the two individuals she had been hearing for the past several minutes. One was short and stout, wearing what looked like a skull mask and looking about with wild eyes. The other was tall, wearing a hooded cape that covered their face. The hooded one seemed to be positioning what looked like various cuts of meat  on the ground and hanging from the tree.

The samurai arched a brow as she watched him work, confused as to what he was doing. Next he uncorked a jar and took what looked like a pair a medical forceps from a pouch on his person. He reached in carefully and removed a red looking crystal and tapped it to a piece of meat, causing it to glow in the way that some items in the game do when they are combined together. Next he stood and hung a separate bottle from a piece of twine, letting a dark viscous liquid drip down onto the meat, which now had various crystalline growths on it.

He quickly turned to his companion and nodded, "That's the last one, now lets get the hell out of here before this stuff spreads." With that they both pulled teleport crystals from their inventories and cracked them in their hands, whispering locations to themselves so that Kat couldn't quite pick it up. She was sure that one had said Tolbana, however the other had said a completely different town name.

Rounding a particularly large tree Katoka had expected to see the source of the speaking, however there was nothing more than more empty path before her. The voices continued, though now they seemed to be coming from deeper in the forest, off the path. The blonde chewed her thumbnail as she fought with herself, unsure of if she actually wanted to leave the path to pursue the mysterious voices.

After a few seconds she sighed, "Fuck it." she grumbled and quietly stepped into the uncharted woods before her. As she advanced towards the sounds she could begin to make out more and more of what they were saying. Before she wasn't sure how many voices there actually were but now she was able to discern at least two individuals.

"How long is this supposed to take? This place is freaking me out man." the first voice asked, it sounded gruff and clearly afraid.

"Would you shut it? There's no one around here man. Plus we have to make sure this is set up properly like the rest or else the boss will kill us." the second replied, more irritated and strained as whoever it was worked.

Her thoughts drifted to her friends, to Elora and Freyd and anyone else that may be pursuing this floors labyrinth and it's boss. She wished she had been able to take a position on the team making the advance, but she knew that there were others that were more qualified for mapping those areas.

The samurai thought it was odd that to this date there were no defined quests on this floor. For a place this inhabited by NPCs and interesting places, there had to be something. Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard what seemed to be voices in the distance.

Looking about she didn't see anyone close by that was in eye sight, though that wasn't saying much with the amount of trees and rock formations that were spread about. She had stuck to the path this whole time so she was sur that she would be seeing people at some point, but with it being as quite as it was she was caught off guard for a brief moment.

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Vanity tag: @Elora@Freyd

As the samurai entered she couldn't help the feelings of awe that washed over her. The colors of the leaves were gorgeous. She could see in great detail as she walked how this location was named the Fire Forest. As she walked she could see various animals through out the trees, though she found it odd that every single one she saw seemed to be albino.

Looking up to the canopy of foliage above her she could see that very little light managed to make it down onto the forest floor. "Hmm, maybe it's something to do with that." she said to herself as she observed two squirrels as they chased one another around the trunk of a tree.

It felt odd exploring a floor with so much life in it, but not having a goal in mind. Kat usually went to various locations in order to complete a quest or fight a particular boss. This time she was just exploring, searching to see if there was something that hadn't been discovered by players or info brokers.

After half an hour the driver let Kat know that they were coming up to a fork in the road. "What's in either direction?" she asked him, peaking ahead to see what she could make out in the distance.

"I'll be heading off to the left hand side, going towards the MacDonald's place. To the right side the road will lead you to the Fire Forest." he pointed in each direction as he spoke. "Don't let the name fool you, it's not actually on fire." The man reassured her when he saw the look of surprise on her face when he mentioned the name.

Once they had reached the fork Katoka had come to the decision to head to the forest. The cart slowed to stop and let her hop off, the man waving as he began making his way off to his destination. After a some time waving her goodbyes she turned and went her separate way, growing excited as she saw the beautiful colors or the forest as she approached.

The smell in the air and the cool temperatures of floor 28 had set a smile on Katoka's face. She had only been to this floor once previously when it had first opened up, there she had been sucked into an escape room that had taken her far too long to get out of. After a few weeks she had decided it was time to return to the land of pumpkin spice and forever fall to do a bit more exploring.

After doing a quick sweep of Glyndebourne the samurai hitched a ride on the back of a small cart that was leaving the settlement. The man driving it gave her a warm smile and told her to hold on as he steered the horse across a narrow bridge.

"I could get used to a place like this." she mused, taking out a fresh apple that someone back in town had passed to her. "Strange that there haven't been any quests or anything that have popped up around here."

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Katoka consumes:

Draft of Keen Edge | Tier 1 | Damage 3 | 217533
breakfast fry. | TIERLESS MEAL | PROTEIN II [Link]
mousse. | TIERLESS DESSERT | PROSPERITY III [Link]

Katoka | HP: 780/780 | EN: 112/112 | DMG: 28 | MIT: 38 | ACC: 2 | BH: 42 | LD: 3 | AA | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | REC: 8 | STK: 40

Having heard of a traveling cook from various players, Katoka had never outright sought out the location itself. She did hope that maybe one day she would stumble upon it in her travels. Today had apparently been that day. Even though she had heard about this shop she was still surprised to find it in the middle of nowhere on the first floor. Having just finished looking in the area for some crafting materials for her alchemy stock she pushed through a few bushes and into a clearing.

Taking a moment to collect herself she stepped forward and ordered a couple of things she thought she might need in the future. She thanked the man and transferred the col to him before slinking back into the woods, trying not to look over her shoulder and stare.

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mousse. | TIERLESS DESSERT | PROSPERITY III 
^{A glass cup filled to the brim with soft, creamy paste. Comes in various flavours and topped with tiny treats. Mild.}

breakfast fry. | TIERLESS MEAL | PROTEIN II
^{A crunchy, luxurious treat that comes in a variety of flavours. Mild.}

Cost: 1000 col

Katoka watched as what seemed like the never ending pirates parted, allowing a man with dark brown hair and an eyepatch to casually walk between them all and stop a few paces away from the group. Aside from the wind, the hurried sounds of Ryland trying to get the skiff started seemed to dominate the now silent dock. A grin spread across the man's face as he eyed Freyd and Katoka, "My my, it's been a while has it not?" Ulric crooned as he drew his sword, "What do you say we have another go?"

Kat's eyes widened, "He remembers you? I thought they couldn't do that?" Ulric shifted his stance and the samurai felt her body react on pure instinct, her body lashing out as she rushed forward to swing at the man. Her sword art nearly missed, just grazing him on the arm as her katana swung wide. She leapt back near her friend and felt her body breathing heavy. She had reacted on pure fear just then, like an animal that had been cornered.

"I really don't like the looks of this guy."

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In rapid succession Katoka loosed two more arrows, each one sending shock waves through the air as they punched their way into the disgusting monsters that seemed to never stop spawning. Electricity once again lashed out of the wounds, jumping back and forth between the two like a shocking game of hot potato. A dark liquid oozed from the holes left from her arrows that made the ground underneath them hiss and boil.

Kat tugged on the reigns of her steed as she changed her course, stopping near her allies and following their gaze. "What's up?" she asked as her eyes stopped on Freyd, or what was supposed top be Freyd. She felt her blood run cold as she franticly tried to look for the green cursor above his head. "Oh no. Oh no no no."

Her grip tightened on her weapon and a shaking hand drew another arrow from her quiver. "He doesn't seem to be focused on us, but if he shows the slightest bit of aggression at anyone other than these things, we may need to... snap him out of it." She looked at Nari and Morningstar, "Try to stay out of his way."

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The sight of the skiff made Kat stop for a moment and almost forget the battle at hand. "Eh?" had they really been fighting for their lives so they could escape on a ship that looked like, this? She snapped back into focus as more pirates once again entered the fray, their sabers glancing off her blade in a shower of sparks. "Damn these assholes, WHERE DO THEY KEEP COMING FROM?!"

Katoka felt her rage gather inside her, the sky once again rumbling as the clouds that had gathered above them turned dark. The pirates that stood in front her began to nice as their weapons began to spark in their hands, their hair slightly rising on end. "I'm really getting tired of you all." she spoke as malice dripped from those words. With a flash of motion Kat sprinted forward, clashing with the first man in her path. Her blade glancing off of his own and slicing his cheek, leaving him frozen in place. The next skyrat swung an overhanded blow at her, missing as she sidestepped it and skewered him straight through. A flash of blinding light followed by the deafening sound of lighting striking the katana that remained in the man's gut. From the pirate electricity leapt once again to each of the enemies that surrounded them both, making them jerk about as if they were malfunctioning animatronics.

With a quick motion Katoka removed her weapon and dealt two more swift strikes to the remaining men before retreating to the skiff. "I'm ready to break when you are! Is this poor excuse for a boat, plane? Whatever! Even skyworthy?"

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The samurai blinked a few times at the flashy entrance of the red cloaked player, "Does he uh, always show up like this?"

She covered her mouth in an attempt to hold back a laugh, "Yes, I'm Katoka, Captain of the Assault Team in Firm Anima." she bowed and looked back at the two players, "It's a pleasure to meat you both. Any friends of Freyd are bound to be good people." her attention was pulled to the arrival of a familiar face that set her mind at ease. She didn't want to have to accompany two new people on her own.

"Mina! It's good to see you again." she accepted the tea she handed out, trying to hide the flush in her cheeks. She didn't want to look bad in front of the newbies but she hadn't thought about bringing antidotes. "What can I say? Haha, the cold isn't so bad!" A gust of frozen wind blew past the group and Kat felt the wind as it nearly blew up the front her clothing. She quickly drank the tea to try and hide her shivering.

"W-Well! Sh-Should we h-head over t-to the t-t-tavern now?" her teeth chattered as she spoke.

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Katoka consumes:

Fortaleza chai | ID#: 221244

Katoka | HP: 780/780 | EN: 112/112 | DMG: 26 | MIT: 78 | EVA: 1 | ACC: 5 | BH: 39 | AA | BLGT: 32 | P.V.O | REC: 8 | STK: 40 | Antidote: [3/3]

Opening the door to the shop Katoka heard the gentle sound of a bell as she stepped inside. Having met the owner briefly during the last floor raid, she had heard through the vine that she made beautiful jewelry on top of being a skilled fighter. The blonde had found herself needing something to increase her odds of getting better loot drops and finally had worked up the courage to stop by.

Her eyes fell on the block cat on the counter and it had taken everything in her power to not squeal at first sight. Instead she approached and let him sniff her hand before patting him on the head. Fully satisfied with the interaction Kat noticed something for sale that caught her eye, she rang the bell not sure if she should ask for NIGHT or attempt to leave payment with the cat.

"NIGHT? Just wanted to grab a pair of these ear cuffs."

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Purchasing:

laurel earcuffs. | TIER 1 JEWELRY | LD III
[desc.]: brass earcuffs fashioned with the imagery of leaves and vines.
ID: 220905

Total: 500 col (sent to NIGHT)

With her HP inching back into a much more comfortable range, Kat turned to her friend and nodded. She trusted him fully and despite the close call they had just had, she was determined to get back into the fight. His words lingered in her head for just a moment before she drew her katana once again, "We'll only need one try."

She seemed to vanish from sight as she leapt once more back into the fray, her form materializing in front of one of the pirates long enough her her to slash him from hip to shoulder before vanishing again. She seemed to teleport from one enemy to the next, never staying long enough for them to react to her appearance. An explosion of electrical energy surged out from one of the pirates and seemed to jump to each one causing them to seize and spasm in various degrees.

She reappeared in her previous starting position as the ground zero skyrat shattered into light, only to be replaced by another. The brow of the Cerulean Storm furrowed as she clicked her tongue in frustration, "They just seem to never stop." A smile pulled at the corners of her mouth, "Let them come, I'll show them what it's like to play in the rain." With those words the sky seemed to grow a bit darker as thunder rumbled in the distance.

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Looting Skyrat Pirate 4:

ID: 222844 | LD: 1 | CD: 7
1980*Col
4*Materials
 

Wrinkling her nose as she scooped the final bit of slime that Freyd had requested into a jar, Katoka sealed the lid and set it on a tray with the others. It had only taken her a few days this time to get this order filled. At this rate she might be able to fully open her shop to the public instead of just taking private orders from people she knew.

"One step at a time girl." she told herself as she got up and stretched. The blonde took the tray of Squelch and carried it to the front of the store front and opened one of the larger wooden cubby doors. She slide the contents inside and closed the door locking it, setting the only people to be able to have access as her and Freyd.

Opening her menu and quickly navigating over to her messages she typed up something quick. "Freyd, got your goop order done. It's in bin 20, you know the drill. Let me know if you need anything else made before raid time. Your resident Squelcher."

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Squelch - T1 Perfect Salve | Antidote 3
A soft spread with a pleasant odor that makes a disturbing suction sound once applied, and is considered inappropriate for younger players.
Count: 20
ID#: 222747, 222747-1, 222747-2, 222762, 222810, 222810-1, 222810-2, 222821, 222822, 222826, 222828, 222829, 222830, 222831, 222832, 222833, 222834, 222835, 222836, 222837

[Link]

Squelch (x20)

Material Cost: 30 (Paid)

Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222710, 222710-1) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222828
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222711, 222711-1) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222829
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222711-2, 222744) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222830
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222744-1, 222748) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222831
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222749, 222751) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222832
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222753, 222755) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222833
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222760, 222760-1) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222834
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222760-2, 222811) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222835
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222811-1, 222811-2) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222836
Fusing 2x T1 Rare Salves (222812, 222812-1) to T1 Perfect Salve | ID# 222837

Results: T1 Perfect Salves (10) | ID# 222828, 222829, 222830, 222831, 222832, 222833, 222834, 222835, 222836, 222837

4/17/24

Consuming: Elixor of Vigor | Tier 1 | Crafter's Respite | 218096

Results: 136 exp, -16 materials, T1 Uncommon Salve: 13, T1 Rare Salve: 8, T1 Perfect Salve: 6

EXP Total: 1817

Once again a creature exploded into a shower of light and sound, only to be replaced by yet another. "These guys just don't know when to quit do they?" Katoka nocked another arrow, "How many of them do we have to take out?"

Firing another lightning infused shot, the samurai squinted from the light of the explosion. Various detritus rained down on the battlefield as she steered her horse to round the new crater she had made in the ground. "Watch out for the hole!" she called, "Still getting use to this bow!"

Kat readied herself, drawing another arrow and watching the blighted creatures as her party members readied their own attacks. If this was going to turn into a long drawn out battle, then they would have to be vigilant. She hoped that they could find and destroy the source of whatever corruption was summing the monsters as soon as possible.

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