Vayl

She was about eight inches too short to pull off that move, though the effort was absolutely spectacular.  Mari bounced off him like she’d just rammed her face into a lorry and somehow expected it to budge.  Vayls eyes welled over with laughter as he clamped his right hand over his mount to keep the laughter from getting him killed, giving himself a snow job in the process.

All around, everyone was groaning, and the idiot at the centre of it all was trying to wipe a mess of his own making off his face.

“Hey, murder-lady, did you know that your face matches your hair when you get real mad?”  Her face went brighter at that comment. He practically fell over backwards, tripping over his own feet and flopping to the ground with a big puffy cloud poofing up all around him.  “I’m level 1, baby!”  He said, stabbing a finger proudly into the air, like he’d somehow just won a championship game against Liverpool all by himself.  “If I’m gonna die surrounded by a crowd of angsty-preteens in fancy cosplay gear that is just a LITTLE TOO REAL, I’m doing it with a smile on my face.  Just. Like. This!”

Here lay Aincrad’s biggest moron, making angels in the snow with a stupidest looking grin on his face, probably about to die, and he looked positively pleased as punch.
 

None of this was adding up.  A ‘PKer’ - what a weird frikkin name - who looked after kids?  And the hoity-toity brigade that were trying to lock her up for it?  

“What the hell?  I just came up here for…”  Vayl’s lips pursed like he’d just swallowed a tweety-bird, a twinkle suddenly flashing in his eyes.  

Mari was too busy getting worked up to pay attention to the most clueless of their number.  Landon had the head veins going full-throb.  Avery kept combing his hair back.  Had the bird thing really gotten to him that much?!  Lark kept trying his own gloves up in his knot.  It was all about to explode when a big-ass snowball suddenly crashed into Landon’s face.  The veins actually stopped throbbing for a second, like they were trying to figure out what had just happened.  Avery got hit next, the force behind it knocking him clear off his feet, and Lark turned just in time to have his tabard yanked over his face and his pants dropped down to his ankles.

Vayl just beamed, bouncing another snowball up and down in his hands and flashing Mari a pair of high eyebrows full of confidence for having turned the entire scene upside down in an instant.

“Listen, cupcake,” he said to Landon, talking to the man the same way he had to dozens of street thugs that used to harass his siblings, in the back alleys of York.  “The nice lady’s just trying to catch a little rest and do some public service by keeping the ice of the path with those fancy straps of hers.  It doesn’t sound to me like she’s causing anybody any grief.  In fact, quite the opposite.”  He spun Lark around for good measure, who corkscrewed into a patch of deeper powder up to his elbows, letting out a chilling gasp as his tenders met sub-zero.

“So, you gonna be Zappa, and get your asses kicked by team Tangerine here, or are you gonna go back to huddling by the fire, considering yourselves lucky not to be a bunch of broken snowflakes strewn across the glade?  Hmm?”

‘What the fuck am I doing?!’  Vayl wondered, not really knowing where he was going with any of this.  He was just hoping to keep everyone from killing each other.
 

It had taken too long, but awareness had finally dawned that he was in the middle of a potentially lethal situation.  

“Wait a sec.  What’s going on here?”

“Hold your ground,” Landon ordered harshly, as if someone had put him in charge.  His own spear suddenly in hand.

“No way, Leftenant Barky-face.  I didn’t sign on for your crusade.  Start spewing before some or all of us are turning each other into paste for no apparent reason.”

“Are you stupid or something?’  Lark hissed the question at him, pointing at the orange icon hovering accusingly over Mari’s head.

“Yeah?  What?  She’s got matching accessories?  What’s the big deal?  Have you seen the number of people around here running around with bunny ears and water balloons strapped to their chests?  ‘Aviary’ here’s even got feathers, for crying out loud.  Can’t fault people for their looks.”  

Avery fumed.

“It’s not an accessory, dumbass, it means she’s killed other players.”  Landon’s fingers were working hard to massage the stress from his right temple.  “That what I meant when I said she was a player killer.”  He raised the tip of his spear to touch it just below Mari’s chin.  “Now, arms behind you, and no sudden moves.”

“How will this make you… us... any better?”  Vayl countered, the gruff words echoing from his chest deeply enough to give Lark pause, despite the level difference between them.  He looked askance at the woman sitting on the log, wondering what to make of her, wary of their accusation about her.  “Something here doesn’t feel right.”
 

"Hey, you with the shield. Mind helping us?"

Landon placed a firm grip on his shoulder. "Names Landon, my friend here is Avery. You look like you got a sturdy grip. Mind helping us with a Pker problem? We trying to save this little boy."

Vayl had busied himself upon arrival on Floor Four helping Team Kappa in the local weekly snowman-building competition.  He had no idea what a PKer was, and assumed that Landon’s request was just another form of sports team rivalry among players who lived in the area.  Having just finished placing a little girl on top of their snowman’s unusually broad shoulders, to her giggling delight, he was surprised by the sudden request.

“Yeah, sure.  Just gimme a minute.  Gotta make sure we give Zappa over there a run for their money.”  He walked over and hefted a large barrel full of snowballs with a single arm.  He’d made them for the kids, and placed them gingerly behind their little improvised barricade.  “Give’em hell, kids!”  

Dusting the snow from his gauntlets, Vayl wandered to join the trio who’d beckoned him.  His white armor made him look like one of the local frost guards, save for his rosy cheeks and the cheerful orange and yellow tuque given to him by one of the kids as thanks for his assistance.  

“Too bad this game doesn’t have a snow-ball making profession.  I’d be a pro already!” 

Lark and Avery just gave each other knowing grins, certain that Landon would have this guy acting as a human shield within minutes.  Sure enough, they had hardly cleared Snowfrost’s outer gates, and there he was standing in as their sacrificial vanguard. It wasn’t uncommon, people tended to think he was tough in this game just because of his size.  Never having had much time for gaming, much of the game’s mechanics still eluded him.  He’s only chosen the warhammer he wielded because it seemed potentially useful as a tool.  He still couldn’t get the armor to fit quite right, having accidentally triggered its ‘manual donning’ mode.  Half the straps were still undone and his chest plate wasn’t sitting quite

“So, what’s the deal with this kid we’re trying to save?”

Profile

Username:  Vayl
Real name:  Sebastian Cross
Age: 30
Gender: Male
Height: 6’ 4”
Eyes: Pale green
Hair: Light brown
 
About: History/personality

Born and raised in York, in Northern England, Sebastian was the eldest of a large blue-collar family, which forced him to adopt caretaking and even parental responsibilities very early in life.  He learned to scrap to protect his sisters' honor or to help his brothers fend off bullies early on, yet somehow managed to keep himself grounded with a cheerful if gruff disposition.  No matter how dark things got, he always seemed to find a bright side and carry everyone else along with him.  A lifelong fan of the tales of King Arthur and Charlemagne's Twelve Peers, he aspires to the same noble, knightly ideals, but from a well-grounded perspective.  

Sebastian took up work straight out of high school to support family.  Working overnight shifts at a local bakery, he also picked up piece work as a general labourer and came to be well-known as one of the more decent blokes in the neighbourhood.  The lads always made sure there was room for him at the pub.  It didn't hurt that he was especially generous with the rounds, especially if one of his pals was down on his luck.  

As his younger siblings moved on, and moved out, Sebastian found other ways to keep helping others.   There was plenty of interest from the ladies, but he spent so much time helping those around him that he never kept enough for himself, or for any chance at romance.  His days were spent volunteering at local shelters and anywhere else that he could, until the day finally came when the last of siblings had moved out.  His parents passed less than a year later, and the family drifted apart.  Most of his friends had traveled overseas for work.  Those that remained had signed up for the army and encourage him to follow.  He had the size and the build for it.  His choice stunned everyone.

One of the groups he volunteered with was sending a group of youths overseas as part of an exchange program in Japan.  They needed one more: someone responsible enough to help watch over them.  Sebastian was an obvious first choice.  They'd been in Nagato for less than a month when one of the kids somehow won a trial demo of SAO for himself and nine others.  The other adults had no interest, but the kids knew they could enlist Sebastian to their cause, and so they did.  Then, tragedy struck as the death game revealed itself.  He spent the better part of the next two years, sheltering those wards, until each in turn chose to seek their fortunes in the wild.  By the end, he was the only one left, again, and started to flounder without anyone to care for, or purpose to serve.  Then he saw Keith's avatar's name on the Monument of Life, and everything changed.

Virtues:

Courage of the Heart:  Doesn’t shy away from danger or hardship.  Eagerly takes on tasks considered by others to be menial, unglamorous or unpleasant, and does so without complaint.  Fearless in the face of the need for sacrifice.

Merciful: Seeks to create and maintain peace between those he encounters, whether they be friends or foes.  Naturally fosters a sense of community with those around him.  Strives to take away the pain and suffering of others.

Generosity:  Grew up with nothing, giving whatever he earned for the benefit of those who counted on him. Never had anything he wouldn’t give up to another in need.  Most especially, gives up all of his time for others, keeping little or none for himself.

Integrity:  Lives by his word, regardless of the personal cost.  Will stand by a friend, regardless of circumstance, and against any odds.  Places himself in harm’s way so that others never need to.

Optimist: Strives to be a beacon to rally others.  Lifts spirits in need wherever he finds them.  Bolsters the hearts of the weary and the souls of the lost.  Finds purpose by inspiring others.

Flaws:

Dependent Caretaker: Measures his worth by his value to others.  Has little sense of self or identity beyond the ideals he serves.  Wouldn’t know what to do with himself if left alone, and his virtues would suffer.

Idealist:  Seeks the best in all things and people, even when they actively deny its presence.  Overly optimistic about outcomes, even when defeat and failure are staring him in the face. Doesn’t know when to give up.

Predictable: Wears his heart on his sleeve, and is vulnerable to abuse by those who would manipulate him.  Not always the most original, he sticks to what he knows will work.  Can always be expected to act in a manner he thinks is best for those around him, even to his own detriment.
 
Profession:  (Leave blank until the Earning a Living quest has been completed.)
 
Skills
Non-combat:
»
 
Passive:
»
 
Combat:
» Warhammer R1
 
Weapon skills:
»
 
 
Inventory - Weapons/Tools: [Tank Package]

Warhammer (Vanity)
Templar's Plate Armor (T1 Rare Heavy Armor, MIT 1, THORNS 1)
Templar's Shield (Vanity)

2,500 col + 10xT1 Mats
 
Roleplays
»
 
 
Relationships (optional)
» Nine wards (less 'Keith')
 
 
Story Thus Far (optional)
»