[F29-EV] The Final Stand | <<Fatal Error ACT: 2>>

[Plot Master 0]

Final Total for Round 3: 154

Raid participants will receive | Reinforcements | +2 Base Damage {DPS}, +50 Mitigation {Tank}, +25 EN {Support}, +1 Disable Activation Range {Scout}
Raid participants will receive | Renewed Hope | All currently drained [Crystal of Divine Light], [Horrifying Visage] Disabled!

Sword Delivery Word Count: 9608/27000

Round 4 has begun
Players will have 72 hours to make a post
[Countdown Timer]

Edited July 30 by Wulfrin

[Pollux 0]

Yue Hua quickly realized that, in her effort to be polite, she had failed to emphasize the urgency of the situation. More mobs could be spawning or climbing into the outpost for every second she spent idle.

So she tabbed back to her messenger after a minute of waiting and sent a string of follow-up messages consisting only of red exclamation mark emotes. Then she rang Sibyl until he manually declined. He was too busy for her, but he was sending over one of his colleagues and he could keep her on the line until they arrived.

What could be more important than another mob rush on Floor 29? Yue Hua accepted a trade of map data and toggled both its pop-up and the messenger to hover beside her as she pushed off the wall, rubbing her hands up and down her arms. It was only Sibyl’s verbal notice that was giving her the sensation of being watched — [Tracked], rather — she was sure she would have felt nothing otherwise. She thought of all the players she had encountered since her reset, and how many of them could possess that capability without her knowing.

Her map populated with flashing red dots. She had missed one in her sweep, it stood stationary inside the room on her immediate left.

HUA: freshly spawned??
SYL: That’s for you to find out.

Obediently, Yue Hua backtracked. She flipped open a light switch and marched to the farthest corner of the marked room, where a shambler was hidden behind a pair of tall storage shelves, pawing senselessly at the guild’s food supplies. Its mandibles opened and closed, as though it could not figure out what to do with them, as its uncooperative limbs tried to open a sack. Her heart squeezed at the sight. 

She dispatched the mob and dragged the affected supplies to the center of the room for later disposal. Wouldn’t want any of her friends to eat food the shambler might have touched.

---

-> SLAUGHTERING MOBS: 248644: LD 8 + 5 = 13 TOTAL.

Edited August 7 by Pollux

[Riardon 0]

"Sirs," A member of the scouting parties spoke up as they rushed into the command center. "The Sword has been passed off."

"Good," Riardon replied as he continued to examine the map. "Who are comprising the new group of sword carriers?"

"Jevi, Adelyte, Kyra, and Hackman."

"Understood. Continue to monitor them. We need to keep an eye on that sword. The sooner it gets back to the labyrinth boss room, the sooner the raid team can put an end to this madness."

The scout gave a salute before turning around on their back foot and disappearing into the shadows. Riardon turned his attention back to the fight unraveling around him. They were losing ground, a forseen consequence of the primary forces in Aincrad being locked in combat with a raid boss. From what Riardon could tell from this distance, the fight with Belregor at the Black was going well. The beach front was shrouded in darkness and the raid boss continued to shift between the forms of various players on the frontline. Riardon glanced down to the list of names he had been keeping. The four new names added to the sword carriers list were unfamiliar to him, so estimating their success was going to rely entirely on the information he could get from the scouting parties. The list of injured players was growing by the minute and with each additional name, the defendable perimeter shrunk. It wouldn't be long before they'd have to abandon the floor all together. Riardon cleared his throat before approaching the balcony over looking the battlefield.

"HOLD FAST!" Riardon roared with a commanding presence, his voice echoing across the entirety of the battlefield. "DON'T GIVE AN INCH! TOGETHER WE WILL PREVAIL!"

As hopeful as he tried to sound, Riardon couldn't help but notice the failing defenses. All he could do was put his faith in the frontline players and the sword carriers to bring an end to this ongoing plight.

WC: 325

* * *

Post Action: Commanding The Troops (Leadership R5 | +5 LD)
ID 248704 | LD 15+5=20

Running Total: 13+20= 33

Edited August 1 by Riardon

[Astra 0]

The sound of distant pop music, unfettered chaos, and a violent struggle grew closer as he neared Miremoor. As he exited the treeline of the forest, visuals began to match the cacophony of noise. Explosions going off at a rhythmic interval, flashes from sword arts being used against beasts, and an entire battlefield in struggle. The situation was more dire than he previously thought, but Astra wasn't going to let that slow him down. It was time to put his life on the line in the same way others were doing. 

A message notification from Bliss had appeared in his vision, and the message he received had confirmed his thoughts: She was already somewhere amidst the pandemonium. A hint of worry crossed his mind and a bead of sweat formed as he continued to run. I hope I can find her quickly. 

Prior to this Astra had been on a hell of a journey on Floor 29, working with three other players to deliver the sword to the boss room. After surviving a near death experience going over a waterfall, the party had found themselves lost in the daunting forest. Thankfully, another party were able to locate them and the sword was passed off from that point on. He couldn't help but wonder if they were okay, or if they were any closer to making it. A lot was riding on this sword when it came to helping the frontlines. 

With little time to spare, Astra had made it into Miremoor - his bright white coat trailing behind him like a beacon. Wreckage from buildings and barricades littered the ground, as players and NPCs alike fought on against waves of mobs. Some players were inspiring the crowds and the frontliners with infectious music. Others were rebuilding barricades as they nearly crumbled under the weight of pressing enemies. Astra knew that the best place for him at this moment would be joining those who were fighting back against the monsters. 

Astra's eyes scanned the struggle, looking for any sign of Bliss amidst the disarray. As he neared the barricades he began to see a petite blonde wielding an oversized wrench, using her skills to repair the battered barricades. Yep, that was her. Equipping his sword to his hand, Astra dashed ahead, before leaping over the barricades. As he came down, he managed to land on the head of one of the mobs, kicking it down into the ground. As he stood up, he took a quick moment to look behind him towards Bliss. "Sorry I'm late," he said with a smile, his sword rested on his shoulder. He probably would've said a little more in a normal situation, but there wasn't much time before the mobs came at him. Doing his best to fight them off, he swung his sword with everything he had, cutting down any mobs that tried to get closer to the barricade. 

 

Spoiler

 

 

***

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs (Straight Sword R5 | +5LD)
ID 248705 | LD: 10+5=15

Running Total: 33+15= 48

Edited August 1 by Astra

[KnightinGale 0]

A flash of white surged past KnightinGale as she moved to take on another wave of shambling blobs of eldritch tendrils threatening to undo her hard work yet again. As the shower of light particles filled the area, KnightinGale was left speechless. Before her, a white haired young man in a stark white coat that stood out against the bleak battlefield around them. Eve cracked a smile, an odd thing for her when her sister wasn't around. Her hammer dropped to her side with a heavy thud as she turned back to focus on the trebuchet at hand.

"Bliss," KnightinGale questioned as her attention drifted to the array of tools between the two mechanics. "This a knight in shining armor for you?"

KnightinGale smirked as she teased her fellow mechanic. It had been far too long since she had anyone to bounce off and tease like that. With her sister being gone, she felt strangely alone, and despite the circumstances, felt more at home now. Her focus returned to her ongoing project as she began tightening bolts and reinforcing beams.

"Don't know your name swordsman," KnightinGale called out from underneath the siege weapon. "You keep those monsters off us. If you need a shield call it out and I'll be there. Now that I'm not having to fill both rolls we can probably get this up and going relatively soon. Once we do you can fire while blondie and I keep the walls from falling over."

Their project was nearing its end and now that they had a proper swordsman at their disposal, they could move that much faster. As a team of three, the prospect of finishing the siege weapon seemed far more achievable. So long as they are able to maintain their position, the monsters threatening to break through to the raid party would never break the defensive line.

WC: 311

* * *

Post Action: Rebuilding Barricades (Heavy Armor R5 | +5 LD)
ID 248729 | LD 9+5=14

Running Total: 48+14= 62

Edited August 1 by Wulfrin

[Bliss 0]

Bliss was entirely focused, her blue eyes sharp, her hands steady, and her nerves on fire. Each board she hammered into place, each tendril she knocked away with her wrench, was another moment bought for the raid parties fighting further up the beach. “B-Back! G-Get b-back!” she snapped, batting away a slime-soaked, blackened tentacle that dared slither too close. The eldritch horrors that haunted this floor didn’t give players a single moment of rest. But Bliss had no plans on slowing down, not when lives were on the line.

Every time she and KnightinGale reassembled a barricade, two more seemed to collapse under the pressure of the swarming mobs. But Gale, ever the strategist, had a new idea. When Gale suggested fixing one of the busted siege weapons, Bliss lit up. “I-I am s-so d-down t-to f-fix this thing,” she chirped with a grin, her voice shaking with both nerves and excitement. Something about having a clear task with tangible results helped her center herself. She examined the trebuchet closely, fingers brushing along its battered frame as she inspected bolts, pulleys, and winches. Despite the chaos surrounding them, the repair job was straightforward. “H-Honestly? E-Easy fix,” she muttered as she worked. Her mind zeroed in on every detail, tightening the supports, rebalancing the counterweight, and making sure the firing mechanism wouldn’t jam mid-launch. After checking, double-checking, and triple-checking everything, she beamed. “P-Perfect!” She turned to Gale with pride. “S-Should be f-fully functional.” Just as she was about to begin loading the first projectile, movement caught her eye. Then she saw him, Astra.

The white-haired swordsman walked toward them, his form somehow graceful even in the midst of sand, blood, and terror. Bliss immediately fought back the utterly lovestruck grin tugging at her lips. Keep it cool, Bliss. He’s just here to help… and also looking incredibly cute. He apologized for being late, and Bliss shook her head quickly. “Y-You’re perfectly o-on time. W-We actually j-just got this u-up and running.” She gestured to the newly refurbished trebuchet proudly. Gale teased her gently, and Bliss laughed softly. “Y-You c-could say that,” she replied, cheeks pink but spirit unwavering.

While Astra got situated doing his thing, Bliss fell back into rhythm, reinforcing barricades with renewed focus, her body moving on instinct. Between each round of repairs, she helped Gale load the trebuchet, launching chunks of devastation into the masses below. The rhythm of it, the teamwork, the feeling of being useful, it gave her strength.

* * *

WC: 413

* * *

Post Action: Rebuilding Barricades
ID: 248827 | LD: 20 (+Armor Skill R1) = 21
Running Total: 83
*accidentally listed the roll as KnightessCiela but linked this post

Edited August 2 by Bliss

[CosmiQueen 0]

The final chorus was building, and Ahri sang like her life depended on it, because, in some strange, messed-up way, it kind of did. Her voice soared across the battlefield, smooth and commanding, rippling through the air like a war drum dressed in velvet. The energy in her chest burned hot, but her nerves were ice. Her gaze flicked nervously across the raid lines, watching, tracking, hoping.

She watched as Team One had vanished into the darkness earlier, completely shrouded in a curtain of writhing void. For a terrifying moment, she thought they were gone for good. But then, like ghosts returning from the abyss, they reemerged, bearing a few more scars than they previously had, but they were alive. She didn’t have time to process relief before more tendrils snaked toward the stage, twisting and twitching like they had every right to be there. They didn’t. This was her stage. The first one got too close. Without so much as breaking tempo, Ahri slammed her heel down with an elegant, practiced stomp. The impact created a flash of particles before it disappeared in a glitchy shriek. Another tendril, another stomp. Always in rhythm. Don’t break rhythm. Don’t show fear. The beat dropped, and so did another eldritch horror.

Her voice didn’t waver. It couldn’t. She sang with every ounce of strength she had, proud and defiant, her words like a magical barrier that kept despair at bay. She had to be strong, not just for herself, but for everyone out there fighting monsters beyond comprehension. Then, barely cutting through the song’s final verse, she caught the tail end of a conversation nearby. An older man was delivering a message to a few raiders at the barricade. The sword had been passed again, a third handoff. She blinked, heart thudding faster. She took a breath as the music swelled.

High note coming up. Hit it. Don’t choke. Be confident. And she did. She nailed the note so flawlessly it sliced through the noise like a blade through silk, powerful, piercing, and just a little bit cocky.

* * *

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 248828 | LD: 3 (+Weapon Skill R1) = 4
Running Total: 87

Edited August 2 by CosmiQueen

[Lysette 0]

This was nothing new to her. The movements, the sound. Bass thumping, voices harmonizing. It felt familiar. Lydia hated being her celebrity status. But mostly she hated it because it was forced on her. In the heat of the moment, in the rising action of the performance, she had to admit she came alive. Being Lysette was easy. Effortless. She didn't have to think, there was no one to impose their will upon her on stage. She commanded attention. But she wasn't a solo act now. She had three of her friends beside her and their combined energy feed one another. It reflected, rebounded, grew and grew and grew until it all just.

Popped.

As they dove into their final chorus, fire erupted from all around them. Abellio's handiwork. It brought a smile to her face. The man really was going above and beyond to make sure that STY/L's first performance went off without a hitch. Between fighting off Shamblers and some surprisingly good pyrotechnics given what he had to work with, she was over the moon with the visual work. He really had a knack for it. So she needed to match that energy.

Lydia hadn't quite felt as alive as she did right this very moment.

Her gaze shifted between the girls on stage as they moved into formation. Practiced steps clacked against the wooden stage, each and every one of the four giving their all not just in their singing but in their moves as well. If it had been even slightly scuffed at the beginning, it certainly wasn't now - none of them missed a single note, stumbled for a single step. Which was wonderful, given that there was a growing crowd at the base of the stage watching the show from up front. It was a bit less intimidating when they were singing for a group in the distance. But mistakes now would be mortifying.

But they were locked in, each and every one.

Spoiler

Command the Troops
ID: 248852 | LD: 18
Running Total - 105

 

Edited August 3 by Oscar

[Abellio 0]

Chaos.

There was really only one way to describe it. Moments before, STY/L was performing solely for the Raid Team off in the distance. Now they had a veritable mosh pit right in front of them. Abellio had no idea where they came from, but it certainly made his security-slash-pyrotechnical-slash-hype man work that much more demanding. He zoomed around, a red and white blur across the sands. It was about now that he cursed himself for not bringing a weapon. It was so incredibly difficult to deal with the Shamblers efficiently when he was just running hands. So he did the only logical thing - he starting punting them off into the middle distance. They weren't dead but neither were they a threat.

And it freed him up to set the charges that Waldo had placed. Neither he or the friendly neighborhood Walrus Man had thought they STY/L would attract such a crowd. So they had to do a quick course correction. Already-placed piles of wood and flotsam needed to be relocated. Abellio had wanted a wall of fire to spring up just as STY/L hit their final chorus.

That plan went out the god damn window with the crowd smack dab in front of things.

It was a mad scramble, both Abellio and Waldo moving it all to the sides and rear of the stage. But they did it. One spark lit the wood and an explosion ripped out, wreathing the back and sides with flame. It did singe his shirt though. That was fine. It was fine. They knew what to plan for and if a stellar performance came at the cost of a blackened hem, he was fine with that. Abellio and Waldo got to work, both of them rushing to where they had left those abandoned Performer Crystals to see what song STY/L could do for their next set.

Spoiler

Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 248853 | LD: 4+4
Running Total: 109

 

Edited August 3 by Oscar

[Siren 0]

Siren was always, without fail, fashionably late. Punctuality just wasn’t in her DNA. It didn’t matter how carefully she planned, her internal clock seemed permanently out of sync with the one blinking at her from her HUD. Alarms? Useless. She’d snooze them, again and again, until they became background noise to her dreams. What finally dragged her out of bed this morning wasn’t her sense of responsibility or the blaring reminders she’d set. It was the sound of Bliss frantically scrambling to get out the door, armor half-on, panicked muttering trailing behind her like a cloak.

Siren stretched, yawned, and took her sweet time getting ready. She wasn’t in a rush. She planned to make an appearance at the raid, maybe lend a hand where needed, but there was no reason to be early. Her armor wasn’t pristine, her hair wasn’t styled, and that was fine by her. When she stepped onto Floor 29, the rain immediately kissed her face, cold and soaking. Siren groaned softly, but quickly accepted her fate, pulling the hair tie from around her wrist and tugging her pink locks into a loose ponytail. Good thing I didn’t bother with eyeliner.

Her eyes scanned the battlefield, and the chaos stretched across the beach. She spotted Ciela and Wulfrin, swords flashing and movements precise. Off to the right were Jomei and Star, their team holding their own. The third team, she didn’t recognize at all. But closest to her, standing strong amid the dark, writhing tendrils, were a few of her guildmates. “Ooh, tentacles. My favorite,” she squealed enthusiastically, smiling as she stepped forward. She glanced over and noticed a stage, “Is that…? A Concert? In the middle of a raid? Huh.” She’d thought she’d seen everything so far, but nope.

She made her way over to Astra, Bliss, and Gale. “Hey, there y’all are,” she called. She waved at Gale, "We haven't met yet. I'm Siren. What's your name darlin?" Her sultry southern accent dripped like morning coffee. After the introduction she took her place beside Astra, who was engaged in fending off the inky horrors. Bliss and Gale were frantically working on the trebuchet, reinforcing barricades as fast as the tendrils and other eldritch abominations tore them down. Siren drew her rapier, smoothly joining Astra on the defensive line. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye, a soft smile spreading across her face. He’d grown so much since they last were in battle together. He was stronger, faster, and more confident. He was already higher level than she was, and not too long ago, they’d been equals. The pride she felt nearly overwhelmed her. That’s my boy, she thought with fondness.

* * *

WC: 450

* * *

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 248855 | LD: 13 (+Weapon Skill R5) = 18
Running Total: 127

* * *

Spoiler

Siren | HP: 140/140 | EN: 32/32 | DMG: 11 | MIT:18 | EVA:1

Spoiler

"Name: Siren
True Tier: 1
Level: 7
Paragon Level: 0
HP: 140/140
EN: 32/32

Stats:
Damage: 11
Mitigation: 18
Evasion: 1

Equipped Gear:
Weapon/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Duelist's Rapier | T1 Perfect Rapier | DMG 3
Armor/Trinket: 
  - Crimson Raiment | T1 Perfect Light Armor | MIT II | EVA I 
Shield/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Vermillion Chastity Belt | Tierless Trinket | LD III

Combat Mastery:
  - 

Combat Shift:
  - 

Familiar Skill:
  - 

Custom Skill:
  - 

Skills:
  - Light Armor R1
  - Rapier R5

Extra Skills:

Inactive Extra Skills:

Addons:

Mods:

Inactive Mods:

Battle Ready Inventory:

Housing Buffs:

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild Totem:

Wedding Ring:

Crafting Profession:

Gathering Profession:
"                                                                                                                            

 

 

 

Edited August 2 by Siren

[Plot Master 0]

Final Total for Round 4: 127 - 13 (Pollux PH not filled) = 114 + 50 (Carrying The Sword #2) = 164

Raid participants will receive | Reinforcements | +2 Base Damage {DPS}, +50 Mitigation {Tank}, +25 EN {Support}, +1 Disable Activation Range {Scout}
Raid participants will receive | Renewed Hope | All currently drained [Crystal of Divine Light], [Horrifying Visage] Disabled!

Sword Delivery Word Count: 9608/27000

Round 5 has begun
Players will have 72 hours to make a post
[Countdown Timer]

[CosmiQueen 0]

Ahri was thriving in the spotlight, and the crowd’s energy was absolutely electric. She still couldn’t quite wrap her head around it, performing in the middle of a raid, on the highest floor unlocked so far, with eldritch horrors and seasoned frontliners all sharing the same beach. It was insane… and kind of perfect. She’d half expected herself to choke, but no, she’d delivered every line, every note, like the diva she was born to be. Still, when the song ended, she let herself take a moment. A breather. Breathe in. Breathe out. Center yourself, Ahri. You’ve got this. Her chest rose and fell, lungs filling with the briny tang of the sea air. But before she could finish her deep breath, something shifted in her peripheral vision, a wriggling shape pulling itself onto the stage.

It was small, but grotesque. Fleshy. Its skin glistened unnaturally, covered in twitching eyes and gaping, lipless mouths that moved without sound. Ugh. Gross. Absolutely not. She didn’t hesitate. Her heel came down in time with the faint background music still humming through the speakers, turning pest control into part of the performance. Sweat trickled down her temple, her face flushed from the combination of singing, dancing, and killing monsters mid-act. The thing shrieked as her stiletto ground into it, the sound high-pitched and invasive, like it was clawing at the edges of her mind. She twisted her heel for good measure before the creature burst into a scatter of glitchy pixels.

And then she saw it. Her gaze slid past the crowd, past the raiders still clashing with horrors along the shoreline… to Belregor. Wait… is he...? No. No, no, no. There's no way... He was floating. The lifeless way he drifted above the raid party, every movement stiff and unnatural, sent a chill crawling up her spine. Something was very, very wrong.

* * *

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 249185 | LD: 10 (+Weapon Skill R1) = 11
Running Total: 11

Edited August 10 by KnightessCiela

[Astra 0]

Amidst the chaos, Astra found rhythm in his movement and maneuvers as he leapt and slashed around the battlefield. As more combatants took their stand against the charging mobs, Astra was able to find some time to breathe and take a step back, before jumping into the fray once more. 

"I'm not surprised that you were able to build that thing," Astra said to Bliss, gesturing at the newly finished trebuchet that her and others had built. "If there's anyone who could, it's definitely you." He had already known that she was a mechanic, and great with projects, but building a trebuchet on the battlefield? It was impressive, and it made him swoon. She could do it all. 

Astra turned his attention to one of the players who helped Bliss build the trebuchet. Laughing a bit at her "knight in shining armor" joke, her tone changed as she began to suggest a plan on action on the battlefield. They'd never met before, but immediately he could tell she was skilled in combat preparations. Astra nodded along at her ideas, and prepared himself for what was to come next. "Right, tell me when, and I'll be there! I'm Astra by the way". Maybe a pseudo-warzone wasn't the best place to make introductions, but Astra did it nonetheless. 

Sliding back into his rhythm of fighting back the mobs, the white haired youth began to slash, dodge, jump, and kick once more. His combos became flurries in the heat of the moment, and in a regular world his sword would be stained with the blood of the mobs he was slaughtering. Suddenly, there was a flash of pink, and Astra watched as a rapier struck a mob who was coming up behind him. Behind the thin blade was a friend, Siren, whose presence instantly made Astra more comfortable in the battle. 

"Siren! Glad you could make it. Let's keep holding 'em off!" 

It really seemed like the players could rally against this force, while the frontliners risked it all fighting the looming black knight. This was Astra's chance to repay those frontliners, and he was going to give it his all. 

***

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs
ID 249212 | LD: 5 + (Weapon Skill R5) = 10

Running Total: 21

Edited August 7 by Astra

[Pollux 0]

Five dots scattered wide past the corner. Three in the large square hall, two behind closed doors.

It was darker here. The lights were off, and Yue Hua had her hand on another switch, but she knew it wasn’t wise to flick it. She pictured the outcome was similar to waving a bright red flag in front of a searching bull — could she run fast and far enough to lose aggro and then come back later? She had only cleared the one area, what if there were more mobs lurking behind it?

She glanced at her messenger, its brightness substantially lowered.

SYL: They’ve spread far enough that you can lure them back to your corridor one by one. If you’re quiet.
SYL: You usually are.

They had fought together once, and she was certain Sibyl hadn’t even tried. Yue Hua had to, though, she had the reduced numbers to compensate for, and she supposed her simpler fighting style had caught his eye. Players on the higher tiers liked to make a racket. Yue Hua, for all her vanities, found herself more concerned with being distracted by her own effects. 

She tried to emulate herself as much as she could.

Carefully, she let the first mob detect her. A low shuffling noise told her it had started to move, then suddenly — sped into a run. She crept back into the light, her eyes trained on the darkness debuff on her status bar. The moment it disappeared, Yue Hua struck.

Loud. Still too loud.
 
Unearthly cries broke out from beyond her targeted mob as the other two rushed her. Yue Hua, still tangling with the first one, narrowly avoided its bite and carved out another chunk of its HP. She braced herself for more attacks and their simultaneity; her sword raced to block a spike shot out from a mob’s mouth, and she violently shoved another out of the way before it could pin her to the corner. It hit her instead, and charting her position, Yue Hua decided to weather it, unleashing an area effecting sword art while all three were within range. She expected the biting mob would have fragmented… but battle calculations were never her strong point. It remained alive through a sliver of its HP, and its head crashed against hers, briefly dazing her. 

Yue Hua frantically tried to blink the black spots out of her eyes. She heard all three opponents rallying to take advantage of the opening, but she couldn’t see. Her offhand raced to touch the teleport crystal on her belt and she nearly threw herself backward in a desperate bid to buy time.

But a voice yelled behind her: “Don’t move! I’m throwing my weapon!”

Yue Hua’s full vision returned to a fuuma shuriken slicing through the mobs. A white flash raced past her, retrieving the weapon mid-air, and it swung around in a gymnast’s twirl, the shuriken still spinning dangerously in its hand, and the last of the mobs’ HP was shredded from a close range. In the quiet that followed, Yue Hua was awestruck, frozen, as the white resolved into a girl her age, white twintailed hair, wearing a dress that was so short Yue Hua almost blushed and averted her eyes.

But when her savior looked back, her lips were curled into a sneer. “Some frontline guild you are,” she greeted. “Your friends are all outside believing they are holding the mobs at the barricades, while you are alone in here, reporting a breach and unable to call for their support. Where is your line of communication? Your defense failed the moment a mob stepped into this building.”

Yue Hua, forgiving of others to a fault, immediately decided she disliked her.

---

-> SLAUGHTERING MOBS: 249301: LD 10 + 5 = 15 + 21 = 36 TOTAL.

Edited August 8 by Pollux

[KnightinGale 0]

"Get down!" KnightinGale called out as a massive boulder came careening down from the sky aimed perfectly at their beautiful creation. KnightinGale leapt away from the tensioner as the trebuchet splintered into pieces. "God damn it!"

Another boulder sailed overhead, this time aimed towards the Tracker's Alliance headquarters. KnightinGale watched as the watch tower began to buckle and come crashing down. Her attention quickly snapped back to the wave of mobs coming their way. Astra, Bliss's supposed boyfriend and new player to their little group, was about to be overwhelmed. In one quick push from the mobs they'd only barely been keeping at bay, the last of their barricades crumbled and shattered as a massive wave of mobs.

"We've gotta fall back!" KnightinGale ordered as she readied her shield. "Fall back to HQ! We need to regroup with Riardon! We can make our final stand there!

KnightinGale endured blow after blow from the mobs as the group made their way back to the HQ of her guild. The building was in shambles, but salvageable. Without a word, once everyone was within the walls, KnightinGale set to work blocking off windows and doors to the best of her ability. She only spared the briefest of moments for a silent headcount. Everyone at least for now seemed to be safe.

"Anyone got eyes on Riardon?" KnightinGale asked as she tirelessly worked to reinforce what was left of their base of operations. "The watchtower he was using to coordinate the raid defense took a heavy hit and is basically junk now. We're surrounded on all sides by these horror film rejects. Strap in. This is going to become a war of attrition."

Satisfied that their position was as protected as she could get it, KnightinGale's adreneline finally gave way and a wave of exhaustion took her. She pressed her back against a cracked stone wall and slowly slid down it with a sigh. She was out of breath and in desperate need of a strong drink.

WC: 333

* * *

Post Action: Rebuilding Barricades (Heavy Armor R5 | +5 LD)
ID 249302 | LD 15+5=20

Running Total: 36+20=56

Edited August 8 by Wulfrin

[Riardon 0]

This is not going well, Riardon thought to himself as he overlooked the battlefield from the repurposed schoolhouse bell tower turned watchtower that overlooked the massive beach wide battle unfolding around them. We've lost too much ground. Our numbers are thinning rapidly. So many unprepared players are starting to fall off.

Riardon was the last remaining commander from the hand selected group. The rest had all left to join the battle or flat out desert upon seeing how far south the battle had turned. The concert was continuing strong, but even they too would soon be forced to consider fleeing. Riardon sighed as he watched brave warriors falling all around him. The sword's scouting team had fallen silent, leaving Riardon with even less information. It was important to maintain eyes on its return trip to the labyrinth, but who could Riardon task with such a daunting task.

To the west, KnightinGale was holding her own well. Most of the soldiers Riardon had given her had been forced to abandon their posts, but a few other players managed to join her to fill out the ranks. They'd managed to get a trebuchet back into working order and were using it to take out some of the enemy forces before they approached the barricades. Then came the roar from the raid team. Riardon's attention snapped immediately to the raid just in time to see Belregor unleash a massive burst of dark energy giving him just enough breathing room to leap into the air. Riardon knew the tell far too well. Belregor was winding up for a massive attack that could put a massive dent in the raid team's HP. Simultaneously, a massive ink covered boulder rocketed towards the trebuchet, destroying it on impact. Shortly after, a fresh wave of mobs pushed into the defensive line, breaking it.

Following the trail the boulder took, revealed a horrifying sight. A hulking behemoth that at a distance appearing as big as it did, meant it was easily about eighteen meters tall. It pickedd up another massive boulder and began to wind up like a baseball pitcher. Immediately Riardon rushed to get down the ladder. That monster was aiming directly for his position and with no hope of surviving the blow, his only option was to run. The boulder impacted just as he touched the ground floor, the sounds of shattering stone and splintering wood echoed in his ears.

WC: 403

* * *

Post Action: Commanding The Troops (Leadership R5 | +5 LD)
ID 249303 | LD 15+5=20

Running Total: 56+20=76

Edited August 8 by Wulfrin

[Battle Maid 0]

Being on the makeshift stage was great, though it would be much better if these stupid party crashers would get off of it! The songs kept going despite the crazy shit storm that was happening in the boss fight. The boss was floating above everyone and drawing up a wind that nearly interrupted the performance. Rude.

A random mob climbing onto the stage, however, was not so lucky or prepared for the gust that was about to happen. It soared at her with a deadly force. With a quick shift to the side, she was able to make a dodge look apart of the routine... and hoped that the other members of STY/L could dodge just as nicely as her if they were in the way.

Still the song went on and still she did her job of keeping the stage clean. Not all of the mobs were sent flying so her feet would be the security as they have been for the past few minutes. One, then two, then three, then four. Dancing with the beat of the song and the battlefield at the same time her feet were on fire... and her legs. It had been awhile since she did this much dancing.

There were so many things happening at this point that it was practically impossible to keep up. Singing, fighting, dancing, watching, panicking. She did her best to keep her cool at all times - And personally, she thought she was pretty damn good at it - but on the other hand, their lives were on the line her. So she quieted down for a moment to speak to STY/L. "Guys, things are looking nuts right now. Do we keep going or get out before things get out of hand?"

---

Post Action: Slaughtering Mobs (Weaponskill R3 | +3)
ID 249305 | LD 5+3=8

Running Total: 76+8 = 84

Edited August 8 by Scarlet Firefly

[Telrenya 0]

Huff, huff, huff…

Telrenya’s heartbeat pounded in her ears like her boots pounded against the pavement. The days bled together, the weeks had become indistinguishable. How long had that announcement been hanging from the bulletin boards? How long had it been since the raid meeting had come and gone? How long had they been up there already, fighting for the sake of everything that stood below?

”Ilridge!” After a single gasp of air, Telrenya shouted the name just as soon as she’d crossed the threshold to the teleport platform. The world warped around her, her vision went white, and lingering momentum whipped her like a car crash. The lingering momentum coupled with a sudden shift in balance sent her lurching forward and straight into the rain-slicked cobblestones of Floor 29. Her palms throbbed lightly as she pushed herself up. Her chest and shoulders heaved with stagnant air that drew in and out of her tired lungs, and her wide eyes shot wildly in all directions, unable to take in the sheer volume of chaos that she’d thrown herself into.

The cries, the shouts, the whining of steel and the crack of splintering wood. It was all so much that her chest squeezed tight and her ears began to ring. ’Do something. Find someone. Someone in charge. Someone in trouble. Anything.’ Telrenya’s legs felt weak when she got them underneath her, but at least she stayed on them. ”Okay… Okay.” She inched forward, then took a couple of small strides, then jogged over to what she could only describe as an emergency triage. Four players huddled together in varying states of injury. One was frantically digging through their inventory to retrieve a healing crystal and shoved it into another’s hands just as soon as it materialized in front of them. Telrenya approached in a hurry, kneeling down and unabashedly hovering her hands over a player littered with bright red glowing gashes. ”Here.” She willed her First Aid to activate, and with the soft yellow glow that enveloped her palms, their wounds slowly began to shrink in size. ”This will just take a few moments…”

Quote

Action - Tending to the Wounded...
ID#: 249316 | LD: 13+5 = 18
Running Total = 84+18 = 102

[no quest active]

Telrenya | HP: 700/700 | EN: 108/108 | DMG: 21 | MIT:44 | ACC:3 | EVA:4 | BLD: 48  | PARA | LD:1 NOTES   Hide contents   THREAD INFO   Hide contents equipped »Twilight Turmoil (Paralyze II / Bleed II) »Knight's Vow (MIT I / EVA II) »Erin's Favor (ACC II / EVA I)   battle-ready inventory »Celestial Blessing (EVA II / ACC I) »[Consumable] T1 Health Potion (3) +40 HP »[Consumable] Cerberus Soul +2 Burn DMG »[Consumable] Snowfrost 1/2 Burn DMG for 1 battle »[Consumable] Bandit's Guile +1 EVA for 1 battle skills »Rapier R5 (+7 DMG) »Cloth Armor R5 (+20 MIT) »Energist (+20EN) »Combat Mastery: Damage R3 (+3 DMG) »Protector Familiar extra skills (4/5) »First Aid R5 »Survival (10% increased healing from all sources, immune to damaging environmental effects) »Meditation (+16EN | 3 post CD) addons »[Rapier] Precision (+1 ACC) »[Rapier] Stamina (-2EN) »[First Aid] Hyperactive (+3EN for 3 turns on party member or self | Unique | 3 post CD | 5EN) »[First Aid] Field Medic (Heal self and all party members 25% max HP | 3 post CD | 15EN) »[Cloth Armor] Nimble (+1 EVA, +1 LD) mods »Athletics (+1 DMG) »Purify (Remove all status conditions on self or party member | 1 post CD | 3EN) »Energize (Restore 8EN to party member | 10EN) »Barrier (Reduce final dmg from all sources by 15% on all party members for one turn | 2 post CD | 15EN) buffs »

 

Edited August 8 by Telrenya

[Lysette 0]

Standing in the midst of the chaos, it was hard for Lydia to continue to push through. The battle the raiders were fighting seemed to have shifted into high gear. She could tell that much even from this distance. The situation around the stage had mirrored that uptick. Around and on, now. Shamblers swarmed the performance, descended upon STY/L and the people watching them. She was spending more time stepping on skulls than she actually spent focusing on her dancing. Disharmony in every sense of the word.

And the question was posed:

Do they stay or leave?

There was a part of her that wanted to cut and run. A very large part. Lydia had wanted to boost morale with song, but either through their actions or simply the way the fight was building, they had the monsters' attention. So what happened when they stopped? The horde simply wouldn't disappear. They would be bereft of targets.

Save for the Frontlines only a few hundred feet away.

Lydia never really thought about what she would do if her life was actually in danger. Perhaps it was hubris to think that she was safe, even all the way up here. On a floor with no Safe Zones.

Yeah, definitely hubris.

Even if she had that conversation with herself, she was certain she wouldn't reach the conclusion she reached now in the heat of the moment. She called the girls to huddle up, kicking a Shambler off stage as she did. She turned around, grabbing them all and pulling them in head to head to head to head.

"We have to keep going!" 

She had to shout to be heard over the chaos.

"If we leave, all these things are going to go straight for the raid. We gotta pump the volume up! Drown these suckers out!"

@CosmiQueen @Battle Maid @Suzume

Spoiler

Post Action -> Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 249317 | LD: 7
Running Total: 109

 

Edited August 9 by Oscar

[Abellio 0]

Abellio's focus had quickly devolved from logistics to simply doing whatever he could to keep the Shamblers at bay. Which would have been far easier if he had a weapon. He'd taken to just beating down the closest thing to him, but for every Shambler he ran the ones with, another two took its place. And it was a numbers game. And in sheer volume of bodies and levels, they had Abellio beat. It was as if the music had attracted them all here. And it had. The denizens of the floor heard STY/L's music, seemingly to every corner.

Every corner.

Every denizen.

Even those who should be left well alone.

There was a laugh on the air. 

Archaic chants followed.

Yellow light engulfed the stage. An incandescent spotlight. There was a piercing screech, an equally piercing pain behind his eyes. He kept pushing through it, even as the headache intensified. Were they even supposed to be able to have headaches here?

They had been ignorant of the natural order. They had, through note and song, demanded audience with royalty. And he would oblige. Music was, after all, one of the few pleasures that serf and noble alike could enjoy.

A shadow cast itself over the stage. A horrifying visage of their very own. A yellow-garbed angel descending from the blackened heavens on blood-red wings. Shrouded in eyes that held wisdom no mortal mind should be cursed with. Abellio got the sense that what he witness was not truth, but the closest thing that his mind could conjure to define what this being was. He felt warmth ooze down his lip. Fingers absentmindedly swiping away the blood that was not there.

Twisting, writhing shards of glass fluttered down. Heralding the arrival of their monarch. They crashed into the Shamblers, rendering them docile. Their movements ceased. Their groans silenced. 

The Monarch would speak.

The Monarch would perform.

The chaos would come to order.

The glass assembled around the stage. They communicated anticipation. How? With no voice or form. 

Golden hem touched the wooden stage. One became two. And then three and four and five. The robed forms shifted, glitched. Adopted forms more real. Frankly, it reminded him of the Backstreet Boys.

The thought was an insult. He was punished with searing pain through his cranium as ten yellow eyes narrowed to slits in his direction. Abellio dropped to one knee in forced supplication. And the thought thundered through his mind. 

No time to be a fool.

As the chanting rose to a crescendo, silence fell. There were no moans, no sounds of fighting beyond those that rang out from the battle with the dark knight. A single voice filled the void. Distorted.

Quote

I'll be your idol.

 

Spoiler

Post Action -> Slaughtering Mobs
ID: 247318 | LD: 12+4 = 16
Running Total: 125

 

Edited August 9 by Oscar