[PP-F2+F9] <<Iron Guardian>> Black and Blue (Calrex)

[Zandra 0]

Calrex agreed to Zandra suggestion to make camp now.''Yes, it would be very stupid if one of us got killed just because we decided to push on when the more clever option would be to stay and rest a bit. My attacks barely draining any energy from me, so Im full when it comes to that, thou I wont be able to do that much when up against the last boss.'' she squat down and looked into the cave.

It seemed Calrex wasnt tired at the moment and told her to go get some rest first.''Well sure, but Im not that tired so wake me up if you wanna change shift.'' she said even when he said she wouldnt think about it.

Just when she had closed her eyes Calrex asked her about her health. She opened them again and checked at her health bar.''Almost back to full. About a tenth left or so.''

Zandra: 86/96 +3 HP out of combat post

[Calrex 0]

(1 Post Until Full Energy Recharge, 1 Recovered)

"Awesome. Alright then get some rest. If anything happens I'll be sure to give you the heads up. Go ahead and get some rest."

With that Calrex gave a calming breath as he felt himself go into a form of "auto-pilot," feeling himself go half-asleep, yet awake enough that he could continue to keep watch. It was something he had been doing a lot more of the past few weeks in order to guard Teayre while they were out in the field zones during the night. Since his wife was currently an orange player, she didn't have the comfort of staying in the safe zones, meaning that to some level she was constantly at risk, something that the Ultramarine Knight wouldn't allow to happen if he could do anything about it.

As the night passed the heat of the ninth floor seemed to get a bit cooler, the bright red emanating from the lava flows seeming to persist, yet not as effective as it was during the afternoon, "I just hope things will work out better this time than when I did it."

[Zandra 0]

Zandra laid down on the hard geound, changing position several times in her bedroll so she would lay comfortable. Aftee trying for half an hour she sat up."I cant do this. Cant get any sleep. She walked out of the cave a sat down, leaning her back on the mountain side. She opened her inventory and took out a bottle with a turquise very thin potion inside. She drank half of it. Slowly but steadily her tireness weared of. She stretched the bottle to Calrex."You want some?"

Zandra placed her hands behind her head while keeping an eye on the surrondings after any enemies."Calrex, how did you and Teayre met?" She asked friendly and glanced at him.

[Calrex 0]

Not much time seemed to have passed before Calrex noticed that his teammate had woken up once again, offering him a sip of her potion that she had on hand. He gave a polite sideways shake of his head, "I'm alright, thank you though. Go ahead and drink the rest."

It had been quite some time since the bluenette had made use of pretty much any recovery item, the last he could remember being at least ten to twenty levels ago. Since then most of his abilities have been solely reliant on his own skills and abilities. However, he still played it careful, as the last time someone offered him a potion the concoction turned out to be Mari's infamous Obsessive Allure. Zandra didn't seem to be the type of person to pull a stunt like that, but he preferred to be safe than sorry.

As the young woman inquired about he and his wife's first meeting he gave a friendly smile, "Well, Teayre and I actually met on the first day that I decided to get started adventuring here in Aincrad. In a sense, she actually kind of stumbled into my life, heh. It was actually the first time I met a lot of individuals when I first made her acquaintance. Back then, as now, the two individuals I would consider myself the closest to would be her and the master of the Grand Forge, Oikawa."

[Zandra 0]

It seemed that Calrex didnt wanted to take a sip from her potion.''Okay then. If you dont want it.'' she placed it on the ground where it after a few seconds it started to fade out into pixels. After a second look she saw something different in his sight, just a little, thou she couldnt tell what it was. She shrugged her shoulders.''If you change your mind and starting to feel tired, just tell me, I have like at least ten more.''

''Oikawa? Yeah Ive met him twice. He was the creator of my first real weapon after the beginner weapon, claw of the northern ice dragon. As well as my first armour.'' she stared out into the air, looking at nothing in paticular when thinking about how excited she was back then. She have realy evolved since then.''Oh my oh my. Back then the hardest enemies I encountered was those little nepents. My opponents is a little stronger nowadays.'' she smiled at her frontline companion.

[Calrex 0]

"Heh, I think we've all come a long way from before. I remember when the field bosses seemed to be the toughest things I would ever encounter in this game. Now they're not much better than the other monsters I regularly face on the floors."

With a smile he patted his sword as he continued speaking, "Oikawa was actually the one that made most of my gear after the basic equipment I obtained. Teayre was the one that commissioned my original full-body armor from him, and I ordered a set of gauntlets and the sword I still wield now not much afterwards. I think of all the armor and weapons I've used, this sword has been the one that I've kept wielding the longest."

Getting to his feet he gave a few stretches before looking down at his teammate, "In any case, we'd best get moving. The field boss' lair should be much farther now, so we might as well keep chatting on that way there."

[Zandra 0]

Zandra pushed herself up into standing position. Even if she didnt needed to, she streatched her arms.''Yeah, youre right.'' thou it was still dark, the two players presed on, both, well at least Zandra, was tired of waiting. She wanted to take out this boss as soon as possible now. She cheked so she had her whip at her hip.''We getting closer, right?'' she glanced at Calrex''Probably its just me but, Im starting to get a little excited. I know Im not gonna make that huge different, but Ive herd that this boss dosent have mitigation, then my attacks gonna reduce its health with more then just a single point whats mostly the case otherwise.'' She looked around, hoped she would spot the place where the iron guardian was gonna spawn.

[Calrex 0]

"Yep, you're correct. However, while this field boss doesn't have any mitigation, it does have Thorns, just like the two knights we encountered earlier. Nonetheless, we'll be able to take this thing down pretty quickly."

"After that lies the possible problem with the info broker..."

As the two continued onwards Calrex saw the lair of the field boss as he gave a nod to Zandra, "Looks like were finally here. Let me know when you're ready and we'll engage this thing. Most likely we'll be able to take this thing down in two to three strikes."

Drawing the Grand Blade he brought it in front of him as he gave a calming breath, looking deep into the dark blue surface before lowering it back to his side.

[Zandra 0]

Zandra and Calrex had finaly reached the boss's lair. She glanced at Calrx and saw him draw forth his sword and took a claming breath. Zandra smirked when followed his example and pulled up her whip. She held the handle in her right hand and the top links of the chain in her left, ready to charge the boss when it reveled itself. She thougth she saw something lurking in the shadows pretty close to the entrance.''There, you see it Calrex?'' she said. She also saw her regeneration refilled the last health point she had lost earlier.''If he hits me, he gonna reduce my health to almost half, is it okay for you to charge in first?''she looked at the man beside her ''I would have done it for you if our roles was the opposite, I promise.'' she added and hoped the bluenette didnt got offended.

Health and energy full

Edited December 7, 2015 by Zandra Zvift

[Calrex 0]

As Zandra politely requested him to act first Calrex gave a small laugh, "No, it's no problem at all. That's my job as an off-tank right? Just stand back, I'll gain the aggro first. Since we're aiming to take him down before he's able to it it's possible you might get targeted at least once, but I'll be sure to keep any other attacks off of you."

ID: 41395
Battle Dice: 8 (Accuracy +3) = 11
Mob Dice: 5 (Evasion +4) = 1
Sword Art <<Nova Ascension>> Activated / <<Charge>> Activated (12 Energy Used / 39 Remaining)

Giving a calming breath Calrex focused on their target as he activated his <<Charge>> skill. Quickly closing the distance to the field boss he unleashed his most powerful stunning Sword Art, <<Nova Ascension>>. Releasing the rapid flurry of slashes he cut across the creature's body about eight times before he leapt up and spun, delivering a fierce pommel strike to its helm.

The attack sent the boss reeling as the Stun effect appeared next to its neath bar. At the same time Calrex saw that his own health had dropped a small fraction from the monster's Thorns ability, "Alright, let him have it Zandra!"

HP List
Zandra: 96/96
   Energy: 24/24
Calrex: 205/209 (-4 Thorns)
   Energy: 39/51 (-12)
 

Enemies:
Iron Guardian: 108/225 (10+3 DMG * 9 Art = 117 DMG / Stunned Until Next Turn)

Edited December 7, 2015 by Calrex

[Zandra 0]

Zandra saw Calrex slash thru more then halfof the boss's health with eight quick slashes. Not only that, he also fiinished of with ninth attack, stunning the iron guardian. She looked dow at the chain whip she held in her hands. She should start to increase her damage dealing soon, otherwise she was always gonna have to rely on others to help her. So she charged up her most powerful sword art so far, thou its still pretty weak compared to others. She felt the power building up thru her body. When she felt it was ready she took a deep breath and activated her consentration skill, then started to rush towards the iron guardian. When she was in range she let the spinning cross fly thru the air towards their opponent. The cross on the tip of the whip first made a diagonal cut from left to right. Then she made another slash from right to left, making a red cross appear on its chest. She saw its health drop, but so did hers as well.''There, youre turn again.''

ID: 41396 BD: 4+1+1=6 Hit 5x2x2=20 Damage

HP List
Zandra: 92/96 (-4 Thorns)
   Energy: 20/24 (-4)
Calrex: 205/209
   Energy: 39/51

Enemies:
Iron Guardian: 88/225 -20 --Stunned--

Edited December 7, 2015 by Zandra Zvift

[Calrex 0]

OOC: Dangit I unleashed a ghost! Ignore roll 41399

IC:

ID: 41401
Battle Dice: 3 (Accuracy +3) = 6
Mob Dice: 5 (Evasion +4) = Disregarded Due to Stun)
Loot Dice: 14 (Search and Detect +2 / Item +1) = 17 (Materials Found)
Sword Art <<Shadow Explosion>> Activated (9 Energy Used / 1 Recovered / 31 Remaining)

Calrex gave a nod as Zandra's whip struck twice into the field boss, engaging its retaliatory Thorns effect. However, right as she stepped back he rushed forward, the Grand Blade alight with a glowing purple aura as he activated <<Shadow Explosion>>. Unleashing the rapid barrage of cuts similar to <<Nova Ascension>> he finished with a full 360 rotation skip slash, his sword cutting down the length of the creature before it dissipated into shards.

With a sigh of relief he resheathed his sword, looking to see the quest drop appear in his loot list. Swiping a few times he passed the item over to Zandra as he gave a nod, "Nice work. Let's get moving back to the settlement and finish this off."

Loot List:
1 Material

HP List
Zandra: 92/96
   Energy: 20/24
Calrex: 205/209
   Energy: 31/51 (-9+1)

Enemies:
Iron Guardian: -2/225

Edited December 7, 2015 by Calrex

[Zandra 0]

Zandra saw when Calrex reduced the remaining health of the guardian to zero. She herslef had almost made ten percent of the damage. But thats the life of a supporter. And she actually started to get used to it. But maybe she would be able to increase her battle abilities soon. She wasnt that far from making her whip stronger.

''Yeah, youre right. Lets head back and give the item to that broker.'' she said to Calrex when they started the journey back to town.''Its gonna be nice to complete another quest. Ive amlost done all of the ones that have been discovered now. I guess you already done that right?'' She was thinking about the ones she havent done yet. Did she dared to ask Calrex if he wanted to do another one with her? No, not now. Maybe later in the future.

HP: 95/96 Energy: 21/24 1/3 Out of combat posts

[Calrex 0]

"Yeah, at least to my knowledge I've completed all if not almost all of the quests currently discovered. My level grind had really slowed to a crawl, heh, so I'm sure if you keep at it you'll be catching up soon enough."

Looking back towards the settlement he gave a nod before beginning the walk back to their departure location, "For the most part I've been gaining experience just from repeating the quests that are available for recurring undertakings, while the rest has been from fighting field monsters. However, I've heard that they just discovered some sub-dungeons and might pose a good challenge."

"With all of the new things being discovered by the brokers I'll definitely need to get around to making myself even stronger in order to make use of all of them."

[Zandra 0]

''Pfft!'' Zandra sounded and let out a small giggle.''When I catch up to you, its gonna snow in hell.'' she said to her much higher leveled friend.''Thou Im glad you not looking down at me, Im almost half your level, but still Im just a mosquito when it comes to damage dealing, and almost as low mitigation as Zelrius. Yes I do have my first aid, but it gonna take quite a few more floors before its gonna be needed anyway. As in last floor fight, Tristan healed himself the damage he didnt mitigated. I guess I have to wait until the enemies getting stronger, until that, Im gonna be the one that always asking for help from others, not giving anything in return and never gonna be able to handle anything on my own. Sometimes I wonder if I realy did the right thing when grandmastering first aid.'' she kicked a rock, she felt a little sting in her toe, but the game mecanic mitigated the pain. She had been walking with her arms hanging by her sides and head sligthly tilted forward, looking on the ground a few meters ahead of them.

[Calrex 0]

Calrex gave a friendly smile, even though it was concealed beneath his helmet as he nodded in understanding to Zandra's plight, "Trust me, I've been there as well, although I'm sure the feeling must be moreso now that we've finally become more active in the floor raids once again. When I was first starting out I thought I would never catch up to the frontliners, but now it seems I've finally made it."

With a calming breath he gathered his thoughts before continuing, "To be honest, if it weren't for the new abilities being discovered, I probably would have thought I would eventually be left in the dust. With the unique skills being snatched up left and right, and a lack of unique gear available, the only thing that seemed to keep me viable in the frontlines was my high level and variety of skills, but with time eventually everyone would catch up to me."

With that he finished his words, "In the end, I feel that everyone will and should develop in a way that they feel suits them best, even if it lessens your effectiveness in a fight. This may be an MMO, but with the way things are it's still currently out reality. I'm not going to change or be a different person if my life is on the line. So if you feel that grandmastering your healing ability was the right choice, then I think you made the right call. Even with the Battle Healing ability, in later fights that will only get someone so far, so having some extra aid is always welcomed."

[Zandra 0]

Zandra let out a giggle.''Hehe, yeah you have made it, and made it oretty good as well.'' she said and smiled back to Calrex.

When he mentioned the release of the new skills she nodded.''Yeah, I was glad when first aid got released. All damage dealers was so far ahead of me, the tanks as well. I thougth that no one would want to be friend with me if I just was one of those middle leveled players that dossent contribute to the fights that much. With first aid, that was kinda rare, maybe someone would like to meet me and befriend me. I know it sounds stupid, but thats the main reason I picked it when I did.'' she paused.''But when I think about it, today I dont regret it at all actually.'' she finished with a happy smile.

After some more walking, the two adventurers was back in Vulcan village. There they searched up the broker that have given them the quest.''Hi there again.'' Zandra said with a warm smile.''Here you have the item you was asking for.'' she gave the boss drop to the broker. The broker accepted it.''Thank you. Here is yo...'' He looked suspicious at Zandra and Calrex.''Hey wait, what are he doing on this floor? You trying to rob me arent you?'' The broker backs of and draws his dagger. He looks from Zandra to Calrex and back to Zandra.''You gonna pay for tricking me!'' before anyone could react, the broker jumped forth and buried his dagger in Zandras shoulder.''Gaaahh!!!'' Zadra got taken by total surprise, her right hand flew up to her left shoulder by reflex when she saw almost half her health disapeared in an instant. She quickly gathered herself together. She took forth her whip, charged her stun move that would give her a moment to get herself together without worrying about a conuter attack. Her whiplash attack hitted the broker right between the eyes, stuunning him, but also reducing its health by a small amount.

ID: 41600
BD: 6+3=9 Hit 5x1x2=10 Damage +Stun
MD: 6 Ignored because of stun

Zandra: 60/96 (19/24) 50-14=36 Damage
Calrex: ???/??? (??/??)

Broker: 140/150 10 Damage -Stunned-

Edited December 9, 2015 by Zandra Zvift

[Calrex 0]

ID: 41602
Battle Dice: 4 (Accuracy +3) = 7
Loot Dice: 16 (Search and Detect +2 / Item +1) = 19 (Materials Found)
Sword Art <<Meteor Break>> Activated / <<Charge>> Activated (11 Energy Used / 1 Recovered / 23 Remaining)

As the two arrived back Calrex gritted his teeth as he saw what he had hoped not to happen take place once again. The info broker had freaked out at his appearance and attacked Zandra. Memories of his wife encountering her father flashed through his mind as he quickly gave a calming exhale. The light in his eyes instantly dimmed as he tightened his grip on his sword.

"Not this time. I'm stepping in...take everything..."

A sinister blue light shone in his eyes as he activated <<Charge>> and <<Meteor Break>> once again. The opening tackle slammed into the broker with excessive force before he unleashed the shining golden barrage of slashes from his sword before ramming into the man once again. Lastly, instead of the leaping vertical slash he usually used to complete the Sword Art, he finished by rushing forward in a stabbing tackle, impaling the man before slamming him into a wall.

As the broker vanished into crystals Calrex remained still for a second as he gave a few breaths, the dark light in his irises fading as they returned back to his normal blue hue. Extracting his sword from the wall he resheathed it, looking back over at his teammate, "Well, I guess what I had hoped wouldn't happen occurred again. Are you alright? Sorry I didn't foresee that opening attack this time."

Loot List:
1 Material

HP List
Zandra: 60/96 (19/24)
Calrex: 209/209 (23/51)

Broker: -3/150 -Stunned- (10+3 DMG * 11 Art = 143 DMG)

Edited December 9, 2015 by Calrex

[Zandra 0]

After his first surprise attack on Zandra, the broker didnt do much, first got stunned by Zandra, then Calrex jumped in and finished him off with one single attack, leaving only fading pixels left.''Oh my, I didnt thougth he was gonna attack us. They should have written that in the quest information. Or maybe I missed it. Thou it was a very critical mistake from my side then. That brooker could easily have been by death if you wasnt here. I owe you my life.'' she made a deep bow to Calrex, It seemed that killing the broker actually was the goal of the quest. Since a quest completed notice appeared and she accpeted the rewards with a huge smile on her lips.''Now Im one step closer to be support number one.'' she said with a happy voice and made a V-shape with two of her fingers on her right hand.

[Calrex 0]

Calrex gave a nod and a friendly smile as he gave a calming breath, putting his hands into his pockets, "Yeah, I believe it might have been mentioned, but it's possible that it's one of things that people choose to ignore because it wouldn't make sense. In any case, at least the quest is done and we don't have to worry about any sudden ambushes."

Turning to face his teammate he stretched his arms over his head before resting them at his sides again, "Nice work these past couple of days. Don't worry about it. I am an off-tank of course, so it is my job to protect anyone that comes under my charge. I'm just sorry I didn't realize it sooner so I could have taken the attack instead."

"Plus the fact I've killed two of those brokers now. If they were in good standing I have a feeling that I'm not going to look good to the other ones that are my normal contacts."

Giving a sigh of relief he, looked over, "In any case, was there anything else you wanted to get done?"