[PP-F2] Fists of stone <Itzal, Grave> <Quest-Breaking the Unbreakable>

[Itzal 0]

Itzal watched as Grave equipped some equipment and gave a whistle.  He loved seeing new weapons and he observed the two ball items carefully.  "Is there a cushioning in the items?  Something to soften the shockwave of the blow?  And does the curve deal more damage than a pointed end would?"  Itzal loved talking about weapons and strategy, but when Grave told Itzal to start off the first hit he nodded and walked over, taking position.  He landed a punch but nothing happened.  Frowning he continued to punch the rock, not speeding up or slowing down, but taking it easy, strike after strike.  Hopefully he'd hit a soft area or a weak point in the rock and deal some damage.  After a while however he admitted that no damage was being dealt and gestured for Grave to take a turn.  "So you chose martial arts as your main weapons?  May I ask why and what sort of benefits come from it?"

@Grave

ID#  70472  BD:  4

Itzal:  160/160  <>  14/16

Grave: 560/560  <>  56/56

Rock:  50/50

Edited November 10, 2016 by Itzal

[Grave 0]

Itzal asked about my choice of weapons, and I simply waved the bell-like gauntlets in a shrug. "No, just spheres of pure metal. I do not believe pointed appendages on Martial Arts weapons do any more damage than spherical gauntlets." I explained with a sigh and dropping the heavy weights to the ground. Itzal began striking the rock rapidly; it was obvious he was more build for speed and not giving and taking damage. He seemed to give up and asked a question about my chosen weapon style, causing me to tilt my head to the sky and think momentarily. "Well... it just seemed like a useful skill to have, and unique nonetheless. I had seen no one use it prior to me gaining the skill, so I thought 'why not?'. It also means that if I do head down another weapon path, I always have a backup if I am disarmed." I elaborated and took position in front of the rock. I crouched low and wound my body tightly, one gauntlet in front and one behind, before unwinding like a screw, swinging one of my gauntlets around and sending it crashing into the rock and taking out an enormous chunk from the side, the smithereens strew across the floor, before disassembling into sapphire data. "How about that?" I turned to Itzal with a confident grin.

+1 EN

ID: 70733 | BD: 7 | CD: 12

Recovery +2 EN

14 DMG to Boulder (1 EN)

Grave: 55/56

Rock: 36/50

Edited November 14, 2016 by Grave

[Itzal 0]

Itzal listened to Grave talk about the weapons in a rather blunt and boring manner.  Clearly he didn't care for the statistics of designs as Itzal did.  When he mentioned how he had chosen the skill because it was unique and pretty cool Itzal nodded as that was a pretty good reason.  Then he talked about how he could use it as a back-up and Itzal placed a hand on his chin as he thought about it.  Yes, being able to fight even without a weapon was important he thought.  "Sounds like a good plan to me.  Sorry about those questions, I really love weapon styles and techniques."  When Grave smashed a large piece off Itzal's eyes widened.  That was a lot of damage.  He took his turn, punching the rock again, keeping his steady pace.  "So, if you don't mind me asking, what was your initial reaction when you first learned this was a death game?"  Finally he struck it and he grinned for half a second before realizing that it was a meager one dmg.  It didn't matter though, one day he'd deal enough to do just what Grave did.

ID#  70794  BD:  7

Itzal:  14/16 energy

Rock:  35/50 health

@Grave

Edited November 15, 2016 by Itzal

[Grave 0]

Itzal apologized for the questions and I waved at him with a smile. "Hey, no sweat, I am happy to answer your questions." I reassured him kindly, before watching him have at the boulder once more, obviously impressed by the oversized chunk I had managed to shatter. He asked about my first reaction and my eyes took to the sky as I stood still for a pensive moment. "Well... I cannot say I was that shattered. I did not have a job, did not have any specific hobbies... all I was doing was leeching off of a group of my Japanese friends." I responded with a self-loathing sigh. "You know... I should really check the monument. See if they are still around..." I muttered in a wayward manner. "So to me, while it was a shock and the threat of death is no matter to be taken lightly, I felt like I could be of more use here than anywhere else." I explained with a simper, watching the boy finally chip the rock.

I gently ushered Itzal away from the rock and stood back, raising my heavily weighted fists in front of my face, before taking a lunging step forward. I used my momentum to propel myself into a quick spin, keeping my fists close to my body so as not to slow my winding manoeuvre, before planting my left foot firmly into the ground to halt the spin, swinging one of my armored fists forward to send it crashing into the boulder once more, taking yet another chunk from the rocky foe. I back up and huffed, feeling the weight of the gauntlets begin to bear down on me. "These things... are heavy." I panted and looked to Itzal.

+1 EN

ID: 70795 | BD: 7 | CD: 12

Recovery +2 EN

14 DMG to Boulder (1 EN)

Grave: 55/56

Rock: 22/50

Edited November 15, 2016 by Grave

[Itzal 0]

He listened to Grave talk about how he essentially had no life in the real world and just leeched off of his friends, and how he didn't know if they were around or not.  "Can't you just check your friends list?  If they're dead they'll be crossed off or something right?"  He watched as Grave ushered him away, took position, and performed a particular maneuver.  Itzal nodded as he was starting to see a pattern.  He began to walk over and take position.  "You'll need to teach me sometime.  Well as for me, I was a bit scared a few seconds after, I'll admit, but then in the middle of the crowd I realized something:  Other than the game mechanics, reproduction, and a few minor things, this world is just like the real one.  Danger is everywhere, twisted people lurk in the darkness, and you've only got one shot.  Right?"  When he noted that he wasn't doing any damage he stopped and stepped aside for Grave.

ID#  70797  BD:  3

Itzal:  12/16 energy

Boulder:  22/50 health

@Grave

Edited November 15, 2016 by Itzal

[Grave 0]

Itzal rose a good argument... but there was one problem. "I never added them. We logged in mere seconds before the start of this death game, and to be honest... I actually never got their usernames, so even checking the monument would be useless, come to think of it." I sighed with a deep, distant sense of longing and guilt. As Itzal began to whale on the rock again, he spoke of his experience after the announcement, and I contemplated it for a moment. "Huh... that is actually a smart way of thinking about it. Although, the risk of death is slightly higher here... but so are our chances of survival if we play our cards right." I agreed with a nod and looked to the boulder again. Rather than pulling some spectacular attack like my last two strikes, I instead aimed for a simple approach, feeling the intense movement was too exhausting. On my third attempt, I simply walked up to the boulder, holding both fists back behind my head, and brought them crashing straight down into the boulder. I felt a sudden burst of power flood into the rock, signifying the presence of a critical hit, and almost the rest of the boulder gave way, leaving only a small portion left. "Phew... nearly there."

+1 EN

ID: 70798 | BD: 10 (I swear, my luck'll run out on my next one XD)

14 + 2 = 16 DMG to Boulder (1 EN)

Grave: 55/56

Rock: 6/50

Edited November 15, 2016 by Grave

[Itzal 0]

Itzal listened to Grave mention that he didn't even get his friend's usernames.  He stopped as he knew the gravity of this situation.  After thinking about it he gave a sigh.  "At that point I'd suggest not worrying about it.  If there's nothing you can do then all you'd be doing is making your life miserable.  If you run into them then great but otherwise I'd trust them to handle themselves, hope for the better, and move on."  As they continued to make progress Itzal listened to Grave and gave a nod.  "Well while there is more danger here, there's also more chances to defend yourself.  In the real world, self defense was difficult to practice and even then it was hard to put into action.  In here however, players can learn combat fairly quickly."  He landed a punch on the large rock and created a large crack through the entire boulder and smiled with glee.  Well would you look at that.

ID#  70799  BD:  10

Itzal:  12/16 energy

Rock:  3/50

@Grave

Edited November 15, 2016 by Itzal

[Grave 0]

Itzal posed a thoughtful and positive answer, and I smiled. "Yeah... you are right. I will just have to believe they are still out there somewhere, fighting for the sake of Aincrad like I am." I agreed with an enthusiastic nod, turning to stare off across the plains, wondering where in Aincrad they might be. "Exactly, the game grants everyone a free pass to some form of self defence. Whether they use it to its potential or not is another question." I agreed pensively, tempted to cross my arms, but that would prove to be a difficult task with the giant balls attached to my fists. Itzal's strikes began to rain down upon the rock, and it seemed he managed to score a lucky Total Critical, as the rock simply gave way under his fist rather than cracking. "Nice job!" I complimented him with a smile, patting him on the back just lightly enough to not give myself an orange cursor; any friendly action had to be cautious at the maximum rank of Martial Arts.

Finally it was my turn, and I had to finish it off. I stood before the mere remainders of the boulder and reared one fist back, winding my muscles like a spring, then launched forward like a bolt-action rifle, slamming my steel-coated fist into the rock and shattering the last of it. As I huffed and puffed, a small window popped up, simply declaring '<<Breaking the Unbreakable>> Complete!'. Of course, Itzal's would be showing the fruits of his efforts; some skill points and most importantly, the Martial Arts skill.

I pointed my index and middle finger of my right hand out inside my gauntlet and swiped down, removing the gauntlets from the blank mannequin that was displayed, storing Titan's Grasp away with a brief shimmer of light. I held my fist out to Itzal in a friendly manner. "Good job. I expect you to make good use of that skill now." I teased with a grin and tilted my head.

+1 EN

ID: 70806 | BD: 8 (Lady Luck is smilin')

14 DMG to Boulder (1 EN)

Grave: 55/56

Rock: -11/50

LD: 3 = Nothing

@Itzal

Edited November 15, 2016 by Grave

[Itzal 0]

When Grave finished off the huge rock Itzal watched the congratulations menu pop up and he grinned.  When he saw the skill get added to his list he turned to Grave with a smile.  "Hey thanks man!  And yeah I plan on using this for when I grandmaster straight sword, though it would be a good back up as well.  I really appreciate this Grave.  Maybe we can hang out again sometime?  Oh, and just so you don't think I die off or something."  He sent Grave a friend request and smiled brightly.  "That way we can message each other whenever we have the chance!  I've got to go though, got some things to catch up on.  See ya!"  And with that Itzal dashed off.  Now he would be able to deal massive damage when he mastered his weapon skill.  With this he believed he could take down pkers.  Little did he know that he would be protecting and even befriending two pkers in the future...

Quest complete!

Grave receives 1 sp and 200 col

Itzal receives 1 sp, 200 col and MA skill