[SP-F2] <<Long live the queen>>

[Calyx 0]

"I know, buddy, but it's for our own good." Lockheed grumbled his unconvinced discontent. "Ever since that last patch, two-handers are nerfed; we're better off going sword and shield from now on. No matter how I look at the numbers, I just can't make it work. I liked Kaeseras too." The large blue greatsword in question was now notably absent from Calyx's back, leaving the small orange dragon without his high perch to ride on. He had now been lowered to clinging to the edge of the shield hung across Calyx's back, and he was thoroughly displeased. "Maybe you just shouldn't be so frail.", the dragon huffed. "It seems like a perfectly viable option to me."

[Calyx 0]

Calyx ignored the dragon's sour mood and continued wandering the fields outside Urbus, looking for more mobs to farm. The fields had scattered <<Wind Wasps>>, and they were low enough level that Calyx could feel pretty safe hunting them on his own for a while. He wanted to train with something easy while he got the hang of his new loadout, and after his recent run in with some elves in the Forest of Wavering Mist, he could use a little quiet predictability. Up ahead in the field, Calyx saw another <<Wind Wasp>>, and drew his sword and shield, leaving Lockheed perchless and forced to circle above during the coming battle.

[Calyx 0]

Calyx raised his shield in front of him and his sword over his left shoulder, and charged the wasp. He had been hunting these things all day and wasn't particularly worked up, so he didn't feel the need to let out a yell and instead just silently ran toward the creature. The wasp turned just as Calyx brought down his sword, and it wasn't able to move in time to miss Calyx's sword slicing into it's side.

 

Battle dice 10 (+2), ID 3884

Calyx health: 22

Wasp health: 11 -5 = 6

[Calyx 0]

The creature swiped sideways at Calyx as he rushed past, but Calyx had no intentions of staying still after his attack and allowing the wasp to hit him. He followed through with his charge and as soon as his blade left the wasp's side, he dove forward into a roll to dodge the retaliation he knew would obviously be coming. The maneuver worked, and the wasp's legs flew clean over Calyx's head. As soon as he landed, he sprung up out of his roll and turned to face the wasp, readying his second attack.

 

Mob dice: 3 (-2), ID 3885

Calyx health: 22 -0 = 22

Wasp health: 6

[Calyx 0]

Deciding to go for another head-on offensive, Calyx charged the wasp again. The wasp was more prepared this time, but given Calyx's proximity, he was close enough to at least land a glancing blow before the wasp got out of range. The bug's wings began buzzing at a higher pitch as they sped up, which Calyx could only assume wasn't a good sign. The thing was mad now, and clearly alert and ready to fight.

 

BD: 6 (+2), ID 3886

Calyx health: 22

Wasp health: 6 -3 = 3

[Calyx 0]

With its close proximity, the wasp was able to lash out an angry stinger at Calyx, piercing his armor a bit. Calyx shoved the creature off of him, yanking the stringer out of his torso. He retreated two steps back and took place behind his shield again, wondering to himself why these monsters always seemed to be able to get through his armor a little bit, no matter how much stronger than them he was...

 

MD: 8 (-2), ID 3887

Calyx health: 22 -1 = 21

Wasp health: 3

[Calyx 0]

Calyx crouched behind his shield for a moment with his sword extended out to his left, waiting for the blade to glow and watching for the wasp to launch a surprise attack. It never seized its opportunity before the blade turned blue, at which point the System took over and carried Calyx, attached to his sword, straight toward the center of the bug. The blade struck true, and the wasp froze for a moment before exploding into thousands of tiny, glittering shards. Calyx heard the familiar ping of an item being added to his inventory, and pulled it up to see if he had gotten anything interesting. It turned out to be just a lump of nectar that he could use for crafting later, but that was one thing he really did like about this latest update. Mobs dropping materials so much more frequently now was going to make his life as an alchemist a lot easier.

 

BD: 7 (+2), ID 3888

Calyx health: 21

Wasp health: 3 -3 = 0

 

LD: 3

+1 material (nectar)

[Calyx 0]

"See? The defense boost from that shield actually came in handy. He barely even scratched me that whole battle.", Calyx said to Lockheed. "Hm. Have you considered that maybe that would be for the better? You could stand to learn how to take a hit once in a while..." Calyx rolled his eyes at the dragon's utter lack of concern for his safety. Maybe he could look for some armor or something in town that Lockheed could use as a new perch... That might shut him up.

[Calyx 0]

Just as he was beginning to sheath his sword and Lockheed was gliding down to resume his inferior perch, Calyx heard a buzzing that he hadn't noticed before. He turned to try to find the source, but the noise seemed to be coming from all directions. The buzzing quickly got louder and louder and louder until it was almost deafening; Calyx was pretty sure he wouldn't even have been able to hear Lockheed's voice in his head over the sound. All around him, what appeared to be small bees began to rise up form the field, and gathered together in front of Calyx in a dense cloud. The shape got darker and darker until Calyx couldn't see through the blob at all; and then the bees started to fly away. But rather than the empty space that had been within the mass before, something new remained. As more of the bees flew away, Calyx's eyes grew wide when he realized that from within the mass had emerged a giant insect, at least ten times larger than the one he had just slain....

[Calyx 0]

The remainder of the small bees returned to ground, and Calyx was finally able to read the title above the insect's head: <<Wind Wasp Queen>>. "Ohhhhh boy. Well I've gone and done it now, haven't I?" "Looks like you might get to practice taking a hit after all.", Lockheed said in a voice that Calyx could just hear had a grin behind it. He glanced up to the sky to stick his tongue out at the dragon. As his gaze returned to the queen, he discovered that this wasp wasn't as passive as the others: it had already begun charging at him, and it did not look like it was messing around.

[Calyx 0]

The queen wasn't as fast or as agile as the smaller wasps, but it was large enough that it wasn't as easy to dodge. Rather than being able to roll to the side as he had done with the others, Calyx's only means of evasion was to hide behind his shield and dive backwards, hoping there was enough room beneath the queen to let her fly over. The shield took the brunt of the force of the charge, but the queen still managed to slash at Calyx's legs while the blow sent him flying backwards faster than he had anticipated. The grassy field he was in made for a pretty cushy landing, and he waited for rest of the queen's body to pass above him, having only sustained minor damage.

 

 

Mob dice: 8 (-2), ID 3900

Calyx health: 21 - 2(+1) = 20

Queen health: 30

[Calyx 0]

The queen was large enough that Calyx had time to get his wits about him while the queen was still flying a few feet above. Deciding not to pass up an opportunity, Calyx found his sword nearby and stabbed it up into the underbelly of the bug as it flew past. For some reason, the chitin on the underside of the queen was softer than he was expecting, and the sword cut deeply into its insides. The queen few higher up, out of reach of the sword, and Calyx finally had the breathing room to get back up and assume a defensive stance. 

 

 

Battle dice: 9 (+2), ID 3902

Calyx health: 20

Queen health: 30 - 5 = 25

[Calyx 0]

The queen had too much mass to make the aerial maneuvers the other wasps had, and it would take her a while to turn around and face Calyx again. He was about to use the opportunity to launch another attack, when the queen did something entirely unexpected: rather than attack him head-on again or use her stinger like a spear as the other wasps had, the queen glanced backward and thrust her stinger at Calyx, launching the large point at him with lightning-fast speed. The other wasps hadn't been able to shoot their stingers, so Calyx hadn't been expecting it, and the giant needle caught him in the middle of the shoulder and drove straight through his armor. Calyx staggered back from the shock, giving the queen time to round about and face her attacker again.

 

 

Mob dice: 10 (-2), ID 3903

Calyx health: 20 - 3(+2) = 19

Queen health: 25

[Calyx 0]

Calyx staggered back from the force of the impact and instinctively yanked the stinger out of his arm and threw it on the ground, where it quietly exploded. "Well that was unexpected... At least she won't be doing it again.", Calyx muttered in his mind. "That's... likely not true.", Lockheed replied. "What? But she just shot her only one!" "It would have been, were she not growing another as we speak." The dragon was currently flying behind the queen, and thus had the vantage point to confirm his report. "Crap. Well at least now we know? And knowing is half the battle!" "What? You've only struck it once, the battle isn't nearly over." "It's a reference to- oh, nevermind. Just let me know if it looks like she's about to do anything else sneaky." With a newfound cautiousness and his shield raised in front of him, Calyx charged the queen head-on. At the last moment, he leapt into the air toward the queen's head, and her slow attempts to dodge weren't enough; Calyx's sword drove into the side of the queen's face.

 

BD: 4 (+2), ID 3908

Calyx health: 19

Queen health: 25 -3 = 22

[Calyx 0]

The queen buzzed loudly in anger and began to fly around erratically to get Calyx off. From where he was, she couldn't hit him with a stinger again; and charging wasn't an option when there already wasn't any distance between the two. Slowly, the queen began to ascend into the air in an attempt to smash her attacker into the ground, but Calyx was wary of heights to begin with, so he quickly withdrew his sword and slid off to the ground before the two got so high that he would have been injured in the fall. He retreated a safe distance from the queen so that he would have appropriate time to respond if she charged him from the air, which she did, but the attempt was only half-hearted. The queen seemed to still be reeling a bit form the last attack, and returned to her place closer to the ground to regain her composure.

 

MD: 2 (-2), ID 3909

Calyx health: 19 -0 = 19

Queen health: 22

[Calyx 0]

Calyx decided to play it smart this time; he had a moment after pushing the queen so far back. He flipped his sword backwards in his palm, and held it out behind his left side as he crouched low to the ground. The sword began to glow behind him, and he soon heard the familiar hum of a sword skill. As the System took over, he leapt heroically into the air toward the queen, involuntarily raising his sword above his head and holding it in both hands. He came down hard on the top of the bug's head, and the skill connected with the sound of cracking chitin. The sword had been driven into the top of the queen's head, and Calyx kicked off of her face to remove the sword before he staggered backwards across the ground as he landed.

 

BD: 10 (+2); ID 3918

Calyx health: 19

Queen health: 22 -5 = 17

[Calyx 0]

Calyx thought he would have a moment to recover after dealing such a heavy blow, but this wasp must have had a higher pain tolerance than its smaller counterparts; because rather than being stunned, the queen immediately slashed at Calyx with her legs. Since Calyx hadn't landed far form the queen after withdrawing form his last attack, the queen was able to reach him before he could even regain his footing to dodge, and she slashed her claws across his torso in several places. Fortunately, Calyx's armor was able to stop at least some of the damage, but this was certainly shaping up to be a more formidable foe than he was used to...

 

MD: 10 (-2), ID 3920

Calyx health: 19 -3 (+2) = 18

Queen health: 17

[Calyx 0]

With admirable foolhardiness, Calyx rushed back at the queen, ignoring his shield entirely, and slashed at her head again. The parties' close proximity was making this a quick fight, because, as usual, the queen was in no position to dodge with so little notice. Calyx's sword struck true, and he made a sizable digital gash in the queen's side.

 

BD: 8 (+2), ID 3921

Calyx health: 18

Queen health: 17 -3 = 14

[Calyx 0]

The queen flew at Calyx, but with what seemed to him to be less force this time. Calyx decided to stand his ground and take the brunt of the queen's attack with his shield this time, rather than dodging away. The queen ran into the shield with all the force she had been able to muster, and bounced off heavily; however, Calyx was now left within easy striking distance for his next attack...

 

MB: 5 (-2), ID 3923

Calyx health: 18 -0 = 18

Queen health: 14

[Calyx 0]

Calyx coiled toward the ground in preparation for his next attack, and held his sword behind him and out to his left a bit, waiting for it to glow. As he heard the inspirational sound, the Cardinal took hold of his weapon and shot him toward the queen. She had flown up in to the air a bit after her last attack had bounced off his shield, and the System took full advantage and drove Calyx's sword straight into the queen's underside. The queen screamed in pain, but instead of freezing up like the other had always done, the buzzing of her wings just grew louder and more menacing....

 

BD: 10 (+2), ID 3931

Calyx health: 18

Queen health: 14 -5 = 9