Stories of Aincrad; The Last Mile [IC][OPEN]

[The Tophat Empire]

there he stood, The Ruler of Blade, the floor boss for Floor 90, the guardian holding the key into the castle that held the final nine floors of this game that wiking and the other remaining five thousand-five hundred and two players had been playing, or rather living in for over two years time. As he stood there and gazed upon the boss he looked to his flanks, directly on his flank stood men in red tunics, and white safari caps, with a golden star carrying his Guilds insignia. The Imperial Police Force, the men in red, inspired by Victorian Era soldiers of the british empire, where the "Military Department". For during its long and diligent work they had grown, now to such a extent that they were one of the biggest clearer guilds, but they had never left the root idea, and still had a police presence on almost every floor that carried players. He himself still carried the Black police uniform with the markings denoting him as the supreme commander of the guild, it also cut in a manner almost identical to those of the london police at the turn on the last century. Further away stood other gilds, there was the Knights of the Blood Oath, a guild of equal size and skill. Then there was other guilds as well, and even some solo players, there were very few of those left, the ancient rule of two-take-out-one was true, and even if pained him to admit it, the IPF was not perfect by any means.

But he had not time to dwell on that, for the battle was about to start, and he gave the command, "Assault wave, move into engage" the plan was that his troops would charge in and take the initial blunt, before retreating squad by squad, replaced by reinforcements, wikings plan was to have no squad fight for no more than 2 minutes at a time, both to let the players heal up and get their skill off cooldown, but also so they would not use too much of their strength. Once he had given the command all of the red coat wearing men drew their weapons before quickly heading in for the fight, wiking leading from the front and by example, even being able to land the first heat on the massive armoured boss.

get out of my way, i did not survive a tour of duty down to Afghanistan, and then a deployment to what is probably the most xenophobic country on the plant, and then getting stuck in this crap for two years, my body slowly rotting away, just so some IT bastard could kill me from with a game he screamed internally as he deployed a massive barrage of strikes from his rapiers onto the mob, placing his feet on it to bounce back he commanded his unit to pull back, the moment they did so a fresh squad of players moved in to replace them.

And so the battle went on, the boss slowly losing health, and after a long battle it fell. Exploding into nothing but polygons, a much pleasant sight for wikings eyes. He did not his men rest however, and immediately looked at his second in command for the squad; "Captain, Find castilty numbers, issue more healing pots to those that are low" he commanded. The red coat wearing man nodded and saluted in reply before running of, his axe quickly finding its way to its white leather sheath.

But before the Captain could return, wiking watched in confusion, as a player, the commander of Knights of the Blood Oath, altho he did little nowadays; Heathcliff started to hover up towards the high ceiling of the boss room, wiking drew his rapier, not sure what to expect.

One thing he did not expect was that Heathcliff suddenly grew and transformed, into a most unpleasant sight; A GM, identical to the one that had informed them of the start of this game of death; Kayaba Akihiko. The GM gave the players to take in what had happened, before starting to speak....

So, the bastard that started this had been amongst the players all this time, even helping them, and now he had congratulated them on reaching this far, and that he would be the final boss, before disappearing. as the players stood there in confusion wiking decided that he needed to do something and did what he did best, shouted commands "Imperial Police Force Military Department, create squad columns, we are advancing into floor nighty-one" his drilled troops doing as command, and slowly the other players followed as well, but inside if wikings head, other words were uttered;

Kayaba Akihiko...
You...
Fucking...
Cunt...

[United States of Indonesia]

90th Floor Dungeon
Josua
Infinity Twilight Brigade. There is no one in the whole game that have not heard of that name. They're one of the most active frontline guild, composing over 84 members, with the early 24 members already considered to be monstrous in terms of strength. Even then, the 10 first members of the guild were even more monstrous than the rest of the 24. The guild master, the vice captain, and the unofficial secretary are already above all of them. Their guild master's name is Josua.

(Timeskip explanation)
Around a year ago, the leader, Josua, went missing during the event Night of the Long Knives. He was the one who brought down Adramelech, one of the Demon Generals in service of the Demon King, Satan. But it was paid at a high cost: he was unable to retreat. His body, without any energy left to move. His eyes, became more and more blurry, as a white-haired lady approached him. He was later taken away by a demon, from the order of that lady. No one was able to do anything, as they took him further & further inside the enemy lines. He was taken to a large castle, where he was put into a large, white room. Unable to contact anyone, he was completely isolated, and at the mercy of the white-haired lady. When the lady revealed herself to him, he was completely perplexed, froze in place, as he has no idea on how to react to the revelation of the fact that the lady was the girl that she met in his dream 11 - 12 years ago. When she embraced him, he can only stood in place, as his mind finally able to be set free from the guilt he experienced during the dream, and tears ran from his eyes. By the time his guild found him, he was already in quite the relationship with the lady. Her name was Thessa Shinobu, while her username is "Virgil". At first, the guild members were completely against his decision to bring her back with them & allow her to join the guild. However, he explained the reasons why he made the decision, and they finally accepted her in the end.

After his return to the guild, he then lead them to more victories than he could count, scoring major victories in conquering countless dungeon. The guild would gain more and more members, as they made their way to the 90th Floor. Now, they're one of the most elite frontline guilds in the whole game, on par with the likes of Holy Dragon Alliance or even the Knights of the Blood Oath.
(End of explanation)

They stood as they prepare themselves, alongside other guilds, to face the Ruler of Blade, the boss of the 90th Floor's Dungeon. He then said the following, "All members of the Vanguard Division. Charge", as he and the rest of the Vanguard Division charged towards the boss, alongside other guilds. It was a fierce fight, as waves upon waves of players charged against the boss, continuously switching parties after 2 minutes. Josua himself was fighting with all he had. Just a little more.... Only 10 more floors... he thought as he continuously slashed the boss. After that, he switched with other parties as his party rests up.

Long story short, they finally defeated the boss. Lucia then came to him. "How's casualty? How many did we lose?" he asked her. "We lost around 2 people." she replied as she observed the list of each party members of the Vanguard Division. "Check on other divisions. Report back to me, pronto." he said to her. She nodded and left.

It was not long after, however, that Heathcliff, the commander of the Knights of the Blood Oath, hover above all of the players. He began to grew larger, and transformed into a familiar, yet unsettling sight. It was the GM that announced the "feature" back during the first day. Josua instinctively have his hands on his katanas, preparing for the worst. Later, "Heathcliff" revealed that his true identity is that of Kayaba Akhihiko, the creator of Sword Art Online, and the one who got the players trapped in the game. "Oi oi.... This is some plot twist your doing, Kayaba... I had a feeling that there was something off about you... But to think you're the arsehead that trapped us in this god-forsaken game... Interesting... INTERESTING INDEED, OH KAYABA AKHIHIKO!!!" he said as he heard everything from him. After all that farce ended, he then shouted to all of his guild members, "ALL TROOPS, PROCEED TO THE 91^st FLOOR!", as he began to march up the staircase & to the door. "Kayaba Akhihiko.... Do you really want things to end like what I think it is..?" he said, as he marched through the door & entered the 91^st Floor, along with other guilds.

[Serah]

The shadowy husk of a man looked from afar.
Its sword got sheathed and it started walking like a ghost.
The person that was once known as the blue duelist was now known as Wraith.

Lios, that was his name, quite possibly one of the most dangerous clearers in the game, his guild was a small powerhouse, and the simple privilege of knowing what they did in general was an honor, and basically any legit information about them was worth millions to the red guilds.
Yet, Lios himself didn't care.

He was the shell of what he once was, like a broken old general that had seen too many good men die for reasons unworthy.

As he slashed away at the boss with eyes devoid of any sort of compassion, it burst into particles.
As it usually does.

During the last year, he had created and formed a guild that was probably one of the most powerful of all despite its rather meek numbers.
It is rumored that any who get accepted get turned into killing machines.
All of the members were beasts, but in comparison, they all paled against Lios, being one of the few with a unique skill that basically gifts him a permanent ally, he was a force to be reckoned with, any who fought him never left unscathed, not even the current members.

In the night of the long knives, Lios had collapsed against the third boss, after playing the evasive tank, he finally managed to have other people kill it and let him rest.
He was promptly carried to a safe place and healed up.
After a few hours of this, he stood up to get back in the fight.
That day, he learned that he had lost someone.
And it was the start of the deaths in ACM.

By now, he had lost five people.
And while some would say five is nothing, those five were people he cared about, laughed with, promised to meet with once the game was over.
He had seen those five men die, and his best friend leave right under his nose without being able to do anything about it.

As Kayaba revealed himself to be the last boss, Lios didn't even respond to it.
He looked at the figure of the Game Master and walked forward quietly, a worn cape covering most of his body.
Dead eyes overlooking everyone around.
He looked like he had taken ten years in the span of two.

He looked older, wiser, but most of all, empty.

"ACM, Al." He spoke quietly, making some pretty well equipped soldiers to come with him.
The main branches of ACM had around fifty people, but this time, he only had three, to minimize casualties.
A single man in ACM could take at least five others.

"Come on, we don't have all day."

[Charlia]

Oh, look at that. Another boss.

Life went on, sadly.

The boss died. As usual.

Oh, look! Yet another boss, except this time it was Kayaba himself, and he just ran away.

Not that she cared.

Honestly, the only thing Noblemind cared about right now... was, well, nothing. She'd had a goal... once. Not anymore. That had been taken from her. Now, she just fought. She killed. She'd slaughtered countless red players without even letting many of them see her face. The ones that did see her face died with the memory of her enraged countenance branded into their minds.

Life went on, sadly.

Still a solo player, she didn't bother trying to make friends. Occasionally she'd run into people she knew--she often saw Dremo around, but didn't often bother talking to him. Usually he started conversations. She didn't really care.

After a while, the infamy she'd won for defeating Malacoda despite all odds wore off, replaced by infamy for her total insanity and disregard for her own life. She'd lost all semblance of sanity during battles.

And yet still, life went on, sadly.

She was still there where she had been when the boss fell, kneeling on the ground, bleeding heavily, panting as she watched her health continue to drop. It was almost to the limit... and then it stopped falling.

She sighed.

I was so close...

She healed herself and stood up wearily, blood still spattered across her face and clothes. However, her left leg then gave out beneath her, and she fell back to one knee, too tired to even bother trying to get up again.

She'd just lie there until she died, she supposed.

[Parcia]

24.

24 soldiers.

24 good men and women with families, sons, daughters, moms and dads, brothers and sisters.

Dead.

The last few months had not been good for the Legion. Red players, monsters, and even other front line groups. Their reputation had diminished after the night of long knives, even with all 30 legionaries putting their lives on the line to stem the tide of mobs to allow the boss fighters a chance to take the beast down. Since then Aterro had taken to using unconventional warfare to keep his group alive. Some one had a bull's eye on the legion and he wasn't going to loose any more good men...and a Women.

Naomi was a soldier like him. JSDF. She was his second in command since the day he formed the legion from the custerfuck of newbies in the plaza at the town of beginnings. She was his confident, his most trusted officer, and the only one who he really trusted. And she almost died... two of his remaining soldiers had their arms around her, her health being in the red. "Well boss, we did good." He walked up to her and put his hand on her shoulder. "Get her back to camp, get her a health pot and some rest." The two men nodded and began to turn to leave. Naomi perked her head and stopped them. "Wait, boss, take this, its dangerous out there and you know that Gladius is shit." She held out her sword. He remembered when she first got it, "The Wolfbane"* it was a two hand ed long sword and she always nagged him on his choice of not getting one and sticking to his short sword. He had leveled up his two handed mainly from training with her, but he had never used his skills in open combat. Nodding, he took the sword and attached the sheath on his back.

Turning to the 2 other men, he brought his gladius in to its sheath and spoke. "Lets go, we have a floor to clear." Falling in to step behind the IPF, he turned to wave at his wounded SIC as she was led away by his men.

He formed a list in his head:
1. Murder/kill that bastard GM
2. Get out of this hell hole game.
3. Find Namoi in the real world.

[Tracian Empire]

During the boss battle, among the many players and guilds fighting, a gray clothed figure could sometimes be seen. Fighting, helping the other players.. but not being there with them. He didn't seem to part of any guild or group, treating the players in the squad to which he had been assigned like nothing more and nothing else than people he had to fight with. Showing no fear and being pretty reckless, the player however managed to handle the situation much better than his squad mates. A year ago, that would have been followed by accusations of cheating. Beta testers. Cheaters. Beaters. Most of them died in the very first month. Out of around 700 who entered the official release of the game.. around 300 died at the beginning, felling prey to their own knowledge. Now, two years later, how many survived? Nobody knew for sure. There weren't many who openly admitted being beta testers, even know, when any kind of advantage the beta testers had was gone, but the guilt was still present. Not many, that was for sure. Almost half of the players which had entered the death game in that fatal day had died by know, two years after its beginning, with most of them dying during that infamous generated event.. <<the Night of the Long Knives>>, or at the hands of the red players.. the most optimistic assumptions of the frontline guilds were that only around a quarter of the original beta testers was still alive. He was certainly still alive though. More or less.

As the battle ended, Dremo leaned on his two swords, a little tired. The boss battles had become more and more difficult, and the constant arguments between some of the leading guilds about the exact tactics they had to use certainly didn't help. But this battle had been good. They had managed to defeat the boss, and with not many losses, although hell knew what the Knights of the Blood Oath had been doing recently... but wait. Wasn't that Heathcliff?

Completely taken by surprise, the black haired boy quietly watched as Heathcliff seemed to hover up towards the ceiling... before turning into something... into a GM. A. Damn. GM. Swearing in German, probably, the former beta tester tried to rush forward, and he would have tried to attack the GM if not for the mass of people between himself and the bastard... Kayaba. Kayaba Akihiko... the bastard who had trapped them in this death game... the bastard who was responsible for all of this... the bastard because of whom.. they.. they had died..


After Kayaba finished speaking, and disappeared, and as the other players mostly started to move towards the next floor, Dremo remained in a state of quiet anger and hate. He would have loved nothing more than to cut Kayaba's neck and slowly watch him choke on his own blood... but he couldn't. Not now at least. They had nine floors left. Nine floors. So much, and so little at the same time... and in this time, he had to fix his mistakes, and find those bastards. He had refrained from killing red players mostly, simply arresting them... but if he was going to catch even one Dark Paladin... he was going to make them suffer... he was going to.

But looking around in his quiet anger, watching the players as they were leaving... Dremo noticed someone he knew. A rather infamous red haired girl.. most people seemed to be scared of her, considering her to be simply insane.. but even if he was still a little scared of her, he did consider her as a friend.. and he was concerned. He had been right, something did happen.. She had been acting pretty strangely in the last time...and acting stranger than her usual behavior. He had tried to ask her a couple of times if anything had happened.. but she wouldn't answer. But no, something was definitely wrong. He couldn't just stand here and watch, even if he was really, really bad at it.

Sheathing his swords, and having healed himself, Dremo started to walk towards Noblemind, noticing that she was still covered in blood after the battle.. and suddenly, she fell to one knee.. and didn't even react.

Rushing to her side, the black eyed boy knelt down next to her, obviously really worried. "Hey.. are you alright?", he tried to ask.

[Charlia]

But looking around in his quiet anger, watching the players as they were leaving... Dremo noticed someone he knew. A rather infamous red haired girl.. most people seemed to be scared of her, considering her to be simply insane.. but even if he was still a little scared of her, he did consider her as a friend.. and he was concerned. He had been right, something did happen.. She had been acting pretty strangely in the last time...and acting stranger than her usual behavior. He had tried to ask her a couple of times if anything had happened.. but she wouldn't answer. But no, something was definitely wrong. He couldn't just stand here and watch, even if he was really, really bad at it.

Sheathing his swords, and having healed himself, Dremo started to walk towards Noblemind, noticing that she was still covered in blood after the battle.. and suddenly, she fell to one knee.. and didn't even react.

Rushing to her side, the black eyed boy knelt down next to her, obviously really worried. "Hey.. are you alright?", he tried to ask.

Oh.

It was Dremo.

Again.

Honestly, she wasn't sure whether she wanted to scream at him to leave her alone, because he couldn't help her, or if she wanted to just give up and accept his attempts to help. She could use a friend.

Then again, when she had nothing to live for, having a friend would be far too costly.

"...I'm... fine," she managed to say between gritted teeth, trying to stand back up and then falling again. "Just... tired, that's all."

Too tired to even stand up? Come on. Just admit it, you're tired of surviving and you're sick of this endless fight.

"Why... are you bothering with me?" she continued. "You get seen with the crazy girl, people are going to think you're crazy too..."

Just go away and leave me to die. You won't even notice I'm gone, I'll bet. Only nine floors left anyway, it's not as if anyone would even remember I existed once they got out of here.

Well... He would remember. But then... of course he would. Why... Why can't I even kill him? What good am I if I can't even...

"...Just let me die," she mumbled. "It'd be less of a hassle for the both of us."

[Parcia]

Aterro

As he and his men, Leon and Mic, walked behind the IPF they passed around a set of health pots, replenishing their heath. Aterro gazed around them as they walked, letting his legs go in to auto pilot mode. He would propose to her when they got out, they already knew where they lived, and he was going to drive to her place, open her door, and hand her a ring. As he daydreamed, the sound of some one in distress reached his ears and his head snapped to attention.

Fallowing the sound, he saw the two, a man and a women (who possessed oddly familiar red hair). Pointing them out to Leon and Mic, the three broke off and walked over to them. Flanked by his two men, he approached them slowly. She seemed to be upset at him for something and he looked to be grabbing her. Well, it is what the legion was originally mean to do, help those in need, even if its cliche as all hell. Putting his hand on the pummel of his gladius, he spoke.

"Excuse me miss, is this guy bothering you?"

[Charlia]

Aterro

As he and his men, Leon and Mic, walked behind the IPF they passed around a set of health pots, replenishing their heath. Aterro gazed around them as they walked, letting his legs go in to auto pilot mode. He would propose to her when they got out, they already knew where they lived, and he was going to drive to her place, open her door, and hand her a ring. As he daydreamed, the sound of some one in distress reached his ears and his head snapped to attention.

Fallowing the sound, he saw the two, a man and a women (who possessed oddly familiar red hair). Pointing them out to Leon and Mic, the three broke off and walked over to them. Flanked by his two men, he approached them slowly. She seemed to be upset at him for something and he looked to be grabbing her. Well, it is what the legion was originally mean to do, help those in need, even if its cliche as all hell. Putting his hand on the pummel of his gladius, he spoke.

"Excuse me miss, is this guy bothering you?"

"...Oh, no," she muttered darkly. "Another one. What is this? A 'save the distressed damsel' festival? I hate fairytales. And I don't... need... your... help!"

She forced herself to her feet, grimacing at the effort it took to stay upright. "Everyone shows up now," she mumbled to herself. "What is it with these self-proclaimed defenders of the weak and their punctuality issues?"

Somebody please just kill me...

[Parcia]

Aterro

She's not angry...shes tired. He felt for her, but he was tired him self. He guessed her to be a solo-er, and that she was at the end of her rope. What pissed him off was that she gave off the attitude that she was having the worst of it. As he thought more of it, if got him more and more angry. He had lost 24 of the best line soldiers because of some shadowy dick and his goons who didn't have the balls to fight him head on. Where the hell did she get off!?

He watched her leave and spoke, mostly with out thinking. "Jeesh, not like its been an easy ride for the rest of us...damn solo player." He turned back to the convoy of players, it having moved on for the most part with only the tail end still visible on the stairs, and started to walk.

[Charlia]

Aterro

She's not angry...shes tired. He felt for her, but he was tired him self. He guessed her to be a solo-er, and that she was at the end of her rope. What pissed him off was that she gave off the attitude that she was having the worst of it. As he thought more of it, if got him more and more angry. He had lost 24 of the best line soldiers because of some shadowy dick and his goons who didn't have the balls to fight him head on. Where the hell did she get off!?

He watched her leave and spoke, mostly with out thinking. "Jeesh, not like its been an easy ride for the rest of us...damn solo player." He turned back to the convoy of players, it having moved on for the most part with only the tail end still visible on the stairs, and started to walk.

At this, she turned her head slowly, her eyes blazing.

"Oh, I'm sure," she said in a dark tone, her voice ringing of death, "that you've had such a hard time. Who are you to complain? You've only had to watch people die, after all."

Her strength was back now, and she lunged for him, grabbing him by the shoulder and turning him around before lifting him by the collar, staring up at him with completely dead eyes.

"You have no idea what you're talking about, and you probably never will. So don't give me any crap about how hard it is to watch your friends die. Try watching yourself die, and then come talk to me. Until then, stay out of my way."

With that, she dropped him, and turned her back so she was facing Dremo, folding her arms in contempt.

[Tracian Empire]

Quiet, Dremo watched Noblemind's attempts to say that she was fine and question the reasons behind him trying to help her, yet again. They had went through a similar routine every time he had tried to help her, he was already used to it. Maybe someone else would have given up long ago, but it simply wasn't like him to give up on someone he considered to be his friend. Especially someone who really, really seemed to need help. Noblemind was dark, and mysterious, and rather insane usually, it was nothing new. But she seemed.. exhausted. Defeated. Something had happened, and he was going to find out what.

But then, they were rather rudely interrupted by some other players, members of the same guild from the looks of it. And they..

"You're thinking that I'm bothering her?", Dremo asked, rather angry, letting the usual disgust he had for players who were in guilds take over. Noblemind got rid of them in her usual.. weird way though. But as they left, the guy who seemed to be their leader managed to say something that really, really angered the other solo player in the near area. Under normal circumstances, Dremo would have loved nothing more than to either punch the guy, or to challenge him to a duel, or both. But he had other pressing matters at hand right new.. a red haired girl who seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

"Damn arrogant guild players, more likely.", the black haired boy turned around, trying to control his anger, and looking at Noblemind again, he started to speak. Now again..


But then, the situation kinda got out of control, with Noblemind.. being Noblemind. Dremo could still remember when she had lifted him by the collar, looking at him like that, so even if he disliked this guy.. he felt somewhat sorry for him.

"Okay... firstly, let's calm down. Calm down."

[Parcia]

"You have no idea what you're talking about, and you probably never will. So don't give me any crap about how hard it is to watch your friends die. Try watching yourself die, and then come talk to me. Until then, stay out of my way."

He was mainly two things: Surprised she could lift him, and mostly pissed off that this...brat had the Gaul to tell him that he had no idea what he was talking about.

He stood up and spoke. "I have no idea what i'm talking about? Its quit obvious to me, my dear, that you have never had to lead a unit before." He took a breath.

"You sit here and talk about "Watching your self die" and accuse me of not knowing what that feeling is. Well guess fucking what princess!? you get the same damn feeling, dare I say a worse one, when your are in command of people, people with whole families to go home to, people who put their vary lives in your hands, and you are fucking powerless to watch as they die one by one! Don't fucking talk to me about loosing friends when I have lost people I consider fucking family!"

"The difference between you and me, though, is that unlike you, I haven't thrown in the damn towel because I have watched people, people I am close with, people I would vary much die for my self, die before me." He took another breath. "So i'm sorry if I don't share your dark look on life right now, and you wan't to know why!? Its not to see my family in the real world! I don't have any fucking family in the real world, I keep on because of the family I have made here!"

He was in full rage mode, bellowing like his old drill sergeant. Leon and Mic both stood ready to grab their commander should he launch him self at this girl. While his men did take notice of the other guy, they made eye contact and both shook their heads, trying to give him the signal to back off.

[Charlia]

Quiet, Dremo watched Noblemind's attempts to say that she was fine and question the reasons behind him trying to help her, yet again. They had went through a similar routine every time he had tried to help her, he was already used to it. Maybe someone else would have given up long ago, but it simply wasn't like him to give up on someone he considered to be his friend. Especially someone who really, really seemed to need help. Noblemind was dark, and mysterious, and rather insane usually, it was nothing new. But she seemed.. exhausted. Defeated. Something had happened, and he was going to find out what.

But then, they were rather rudely interrupted by some other players, members of the same guild from the looks of it. And they..

"You're thinking that I'm bothering her?", Dremo asked, rather angry, letting the usual disgust he had for players who were in guilds take over. Noblemind got rid of them in her usual.. weird way though. But as they left, the guy who seemed to be their leader managed to say something that really, really angered the other solo player in the near area. Under normal circumstances, Dremo would have loved nothing more than to either punch the guy, or to challenge him to a duel, or both. But he had other pressing matters at hand right new.. a red haired girl who seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

"Damn arrogant guild players, more likely.", the black haired boy turned around, trying to control his anger, and looking at Noblemind again, he started to speak. Now again..


But then, the situation kinda got out of control, with Noblemind.. being Noblemind. Dremo could still remember when she had lifted him by the collar, looking at him like that, so even if he disliked this guy.. he felt somewhat sorry for him.

"Okay... firstly, let's calm down. Calm down."

"...I'm calm," she said, sounding eerily detached as she looked back from the guy she'd just dropped. "Was there something else you wanted to say, Dremo? This should be interesting," she continued as if to herself. "And funny. It's always funny when someone tries to fix me... You don't know what you're trying to fix, so give up! There's no point in trying. In fact, the best way to make me feel better would be to take out that sword of yours and stab me right through the heart. I'll only feel better when my health bar is empty," she said with a tiny smirk, leaning forwards as if to challenge him. "Go ahead. What are you waiting for? I'm right here."

"You have no idea what you're talking about, and you probably never will. So don't give me any crap about how hard it is to watch your friends die. Try watching yourself die, and then come talk to me. Until then, stay out of my way."

He was mainly two things: Surprised she could lift him, and mostly pissed off that this...brat had the Gaul to tell him that he had no idea what he was talking about.

He stood up and spoke. "I have no idea what i'm talking about? Its quit obvious to me, my dear, that you have never had to lead a unit before." He took a breath.

"You sit here and talk about "Watching your self die" and accuse me of not knowing what that feeling is. Well guess fucking what princess!? you get the same damn feeling, dare I say a worse one, when your are in command of people, people with whole families to go home to, people who put their vary lives in your hands, and you are fucking powerless to watch as they die one by one! Don't fucking talk to me about loosing friends when I have lost people I consider fucking family!"

"The difference between you and me, though, is that unlike you, I haven't thrown in the damn towel because I have watched people, people I am close with, people I would vary much die for my self, die before me." He took another breath. "So i'm sorry if I don't share your dark look on life right now, and you wan't to know why!? Its not to see my family in the real world! I don't have any fucking family in the real world, I keep on because of the family I have made here!"

He was in full rage mode, bellowing like his old drill sergeant. Leon and Mic both stood ready to grab their commander should he launch him self at this girl. While his men did take notice of the other guy, they made eye contact and both shook their heads, trying to give him the signal to back off.

Now she turned back, tilting her head in a way that it should not have been able to move. "Oh, are you still here?" she asked sweetly. "No. I've never led a unit before. I was in a guild for a while, once, though. They're all gone now, and I'm still here. But I've never lost a friend. I don't have friends, and I don't have family. I've never lost anyone except myself. And that is a feeling that you don't understand. I can tell just by looking at you that you don't know what it feels like. You don't know what you're talking about, and you certainly don't know what I'm talking about. Oh, do you want to kill me?"

She spread her arms as if inviting him. "Go right ahead! You can't really kill someone who's already dead, but at the very least you can get rid of this empty shell, right? So go ahead. Do it. I'm waiting..."

[Tracian Empire]

Even if Dremo did notice the "back off" signal the two other guys tried to give him, he certainly wasn't going to. Noblemind had been in a bad enough situation before this guy appeared, and if she was in such a state..he was a little concerned about the guy's survival. He certainly had no idea with whom he was speaking, raging around and behaving like one of those drill sergeants from movies. But the red haired girl was also crossing a limit.

"Stop, both of you.", the black haired boy said, stepping in between the two. "You, take some deep breaths. Trust me, it would be much better for you and your health to stop right now and do something else. Visit a city, breath some fresh air.", he said to the unknown guild guy, trying to calm him down. And then, the former beta tester looked at Noblemind, clearly irritated. "I don't care what you say. Stop lying to everyone else and to yourself. You're not okay, and you need help.", he said to the red haired girl. "I don't know what happened, or what I am trying to "fix", yes. But that certainly isn't going to stop me. We're friends, and friends are supposed to help each other.", the boy continued, slowly raising his tone. "I don't care if people will consider me crazy for being near you. I don't care if there is no point if trying. But I'm certainly not going to kill you or let you die. Not now, not never. Just let me help you."

[Charlia]

Even if Dremo did notice the "back off" signal the two other guys tried to give him, he certainly wasn't going to. Noblemind had been in a bad enough situation before this guy appeared, and if she was in such a state..he was a little concerned about the guy's survival. He certainly had no idea with whom he was speaking, raging around and behaving like one of those drill sergeants from movies. But the red haired girl was also crossing a limit.

"Stop, both of you.", the black haired boy said, stepping in between the two. "You, take some deep breaths. Trust me, it would be much better for you and your health to stop right now and do something else. Visit a city, breath some fresh air.", he said to the unknown guild guy, trying to calm him down. And then, the former beta tester looked at Noblemind, clearly irritated. "I don't care what you say. Stop lying to everyone else and to yourself. You're not okay, and you need help.", he said to the red haired girl. "I don't know what happened, or what I am trying to "fix", yes. But that certainly isn't going to stop me. We're friends, and friends are supposed to help each other.", the boy continued, slowly raising his tone. "I don't care if people will consider me crazy for being near you. I don't care if there is no point if trying. But I'm certainly not going to kill you or let you die. Not now, not never. Just let me help you."

"..."

At this, she just started laughing hysterically, her voice pitching higher and higher until she could barely breathe from laughing so hard. "You can't help me," she gasped. "No one can. Not anymore. The best thing really would be just to kill me and get it over with... why can't you see that? It's not as if there's anything waiting for me outside this game except death anyway."

[Parcia]

His hand swung back and drew the long sword. Unequipping his sectum he readied the blade. If she wanted do die, then he would gladly do her the favor. Then he noticed the boy and his face changed.

"Wait, I know you, your one of the boss fighters who took on the demon king during...the Long nights of Knives..." His anger began to temper and he lowered the sword. "Good to see the thanks we get for covering your asses." His tone would be sarcastic and his face would match. Leon would put his hand on his commander's shoulder and speak. "It ain't worth it serg, come on." He nodded at the man's words and sheathed the sword. "She's cackling like the mad hatter, really ain't worth it." Mic said, casually standing there.

[Tracian Empire]

Even if Dremo did notice the "back off" signal the two other guys tried to give him, he certainly wasn't going to. Noblemind had been in a bad enough situation before this guy appeared, and if she was in such a state..he was a little concerned about the guy's survival. He certainly had no idea with whom he was speaking, raging around and behaving like one of those drill sergeants from movies. But the red haired girl was also crossing a limit.

"Stop, both of you.", the black haired boy said, stepping in between the two. "You, take some deep breaths. Trust me, it would be much better for you and your health to stop right now and do something else. Visit a city, breath some fresh air.", he said to the unknown guild guy, trying to calm him down. And then, the former beta tester looked at Noblemind, clearly irritated. "I don't care what you say. Stop lying to everyone else and to yourself. You're not okay, and you need help.", he said to the red haired girl. "I don't know what happened, or what I am trying to "fix", yes. But that certainly isn't going to stop me. We're friends, and friends are supposed to help each other.", the boy continued, slowly raising his tone. "I don't care if people will consider me crazy for being near you. I don't care if there is no point if trying. But I'm certainly not going to kill you or let you die. Not now, not never. Just let me help you."

"..."

At this, she just started laughing hysterically, her voice pitching higher and higher until she could barely breathe from laughing so hard. "You can't help me," she gasped. "No one can. Not anymore. The best thing really would be just to kill me and get it over with... why can't you see that? It's not as if there's anything waiting for me outside this game except death anyway."

"And how do you know that? How can you be so sure that nobody can help you, if you don't let anyone try?", Dremo said, already a little angry. "Yes, life is bad, life can be a hell. I may not know it as much as you do, but I know. But you can't just give up. Not if there are people who can and want to help you. Not if there is still a little hope." And the boy sighed yet again. "Just stop. I'm not going to kill you. I don't care if it would be easier, or if it would be the best thing to do. Even if it may be a mistake, I want to help you. So stop it already, stop thinking that you can't be helped anymore, and just let me try."

And then, the black eyed boy turned and looked at the guild guys. "Yes, I was one of the people who fought the bosses in that event. My deepest thanks for whatever help you have given us back there.", he said that, a little sarcastically. "Look, I know that she can be annoying at times, and she probably looks a little insane, but just don't anger her. Let me try to help her."

[Charlia]

"..."

At this, she just started laughing hysterically, her voice pitching higher and higher until she could barely breathe from laughing so hard. "You can't help me," she gasped. "No one can. Not anymore. The best thing really would be just to kill me and get it over with... why can't you see that? It's not as if there's anything waiting for me outside this game except death anyway."

"And how do you know that? How can you be so sure that nobody can help you, if you don't let anyone try?", Dremo said, already a little angry. "Yes, life is bad, life can be a hell. I may not know it as much as you do, but I know. But you can't just give up. Not if there are people who can and want to help you. Not if there is still a little hope." And the boy sighed yet again. "Just stop. I'm not going to kill you. I don't care if it would be easier, or if it would be the best thing to do. Even if it may be a mistake, I want to help you. So stop it already, stop thinking that you can't be helped anymore, and just let me try."

And then, the black eyed boy turned and looked at the guild guys. "Yes, I was one of the people who fought the bosses in that event. My deepest thanks for whatever help you have given us back there.", he said that, a little sarcastically. "Look, I know that she can be annoying at times, and she probably looks a little insane, but just don't anger her. Let me try to help her."

"...Because I have no purpose," she said dully. "I have no more reason to live. What good am I without the one thing I had left to cling to? Fine. Go ahead. Try to help me." She sighed, not bothering to look him in the eye, just staring at nothingness. "If it will make you feel better, then go ahead, do your best to fix me. If you won't kill me, then I don't care what you do."

[Serah]

Aterro

She's not angry...shes tired. He felt for her, but he was tired him self. He guessed her to be a solo-er, and that she was at the end of her rope. What pissed him off was that she gave off the attitude that she was having the worst of it. As he thought more of it, if got him more and more angry. He had lost 24 of the best line soldiers because of some shadowy dick and his goons who didn't have the balls to fight him head on. Where the hell did she get off!?

He watched her leave and spoke, mostly with out thinking. "Jeesh, not like its been an easy ride for the rest of us...damn solo player." He turned back to the convoy of players, it having moved on for the most part with only the tail end still visible on the stairs, and started to walk.

Lios inquisitively looked back, he saw Aterro.

The Legion, a bit like you, but with more people, less equipped ones at that.
Less skilled too. Alrick spoke sadly, after a while he saw the amount of suffering the game could bring, if it could even be called a game at that point.
It was more of an endless purgatory to some people.
Some people being Lios.

He wanted to speak to him, but didn't, his lips locked into place.
Nothing that he would say would help either way.
Coming up to him and saying: "Hey, I too have dead people in my guild, want to be colleagues?" Wouldn't really be a great way to start any sort of conversation, especially ones like these.

Instead, he looked further back and saw Noblemind.
He wanted to laugh, snicker, do anything.
Instead, it came out as a cough, a sickening cough that didn't hold anything except emptiness.
Ones that would come out of a sick man's throat.

'Was it necessary?' He thought, as he continued on.

Aterro

She's not angry...shes tired. He felt for her, but he was tired him self. He guessed her to be a solo-er, and that she was at the end of her rope. What pissed him off was that she gave off the attitude that she was having the worst of it. As he thought more of it, if got him more and more angry. He had lost 24 of the best line soldiers because of some shadowy dick and his goons who didn't have the balls to fight him head on. Where the hell did she get off!?

He watched her leave and spoke, mostly with out thinking. "Jeesh, not like its been an easy ride for the rest of us...damn solo player." He turned back to the convoy of players, it having moved on for the most part with only the tail end still visible on the stairs, and started to walk.

At this, she turned her head slowly, her eyes blazing.

"Oh, I'm sure," she said in a dark tone, her voice ringing of death, "that you've had such a hard time. Who are you to complain? You've only had to watch people die, after all."

Her strength was back now, and she lunged for him, grabbing him by the shoulder and turning him around before lifting him by the collar, staring up at him with completely dead eyes.

"You have no idea what you're talking about, and you probably never will. So don't give me any crap about how hard it is to watch your friends die. Try watching yourself die, and then come talk to me. Until then, stay out of my way."

With that, she dropped him, and turned her back so she was facing Dremo, folding her arms in contempt.

Then he heard those words.
The words he hated and always dreaded to hear yet always knew they would come.
At some point, some part of his being resigned to this treatment.
But instead of flaring red and going to end her, he simply turned around, his cape blowing in the wind, slowly, a hard gaze stared her down with nothing but dry, empty asymmetrical eyes.

Where the small flame once stood, only a blank void remained.
A blue and blank void, filled with nothing but bitterness.
He hated it to no end, but that was what the game had turned him into.

"And just who," He started, voice hard, stone cold. "are you to know this? For all you know, those people could've been family members. Cousins, parents.
It's not because you never had the luxury of having those that you are forced to bring it on others."
Even his voice had changed, it groveled deep, calmly, slowly, as if it crumbled down the words.

As he heard the other players have their own fit, he raised an eyebrow and turned around again.
There was no point in taking care of small squabbles anymore, especially those that hit so close to home.

With a few more steps, he continued his slow walk.

[Parcia]

He nodded. "I'll make sure to tell their families that, mean while, go stop by the wall of names and say hi to all 24..." He turned and made his exit. He was done with them figured they felt the same.

He needed to find a bar and what ever passed as vodka in this game

[Tracian Empire]

"And how do you know that? How can you be so sure that nobody can help you, if you don't let anyone try?", Dremo said, already a little angry. "Yes, life is bad, life can be a hell. I may not know it as much as you do, but I know. But you can't just give up. Not if there are people who can and want to help you. Not if there is still a little hope." And the boy sighed yet again. "Just stop. I'm not going to kill you. I don't care if it would be easier, or if it would be the best thing to do. Even if it may be a mistake, I want to help you. So stop it already, stop thinking that you can't be helped anymore, and just let me try."

And then, the black eyed boy turned and looked at the guild guys. "Yes, I was one of the people who fought the bosses in that event. My deepest thanks for whatever help you have given us back there.", he said that, a little sarcastically. "Look, I know that she can be annoying at times, and she probably looks a little insane, but just don't anger her. Let me try to help her."

"...Because I have no purpose," she said dully. "I have no more reason to live. What good am I without the one thing I had left to cling to? Fine. Go ahead. Try to help me." She sighed, not bothering to look him in the eye, just staring at nothingness. "If it will make you feel better, then go ahead, do your best to fix me. If you won't kill me, then I don't care what you do."

Hearing that, Dremo remained quiet for a few good moments, opening and closing his mouth a few times like if he wanted to say something, but had no idea what. He had been stopped like a ship hitting an iceberg at full speed. This whole discussion had been more in the impulse of the moment, he was thinking about how to convince her. But he never imagined that she would accept it so easily. And from the way she worded it, it seemed like she didn't care about it at all. It was a bored "do whatever you'd like." And after hearing that, the black haired boy realized that he never actually thought about how exactly to help her. He had never thought that he would reach this point in the first place.


"Well...", Dremo started to say, remaining quiet for a few moments. "I.. can't help you if I don't know what's wrong. You say that you have no purpose, no reason left to live for. I know that you're suffering. But I don't know why, or how. I'd say that I will protect you, and that I won't let anyone hurt you from now on.. but you'll probably think that they are just..empty words."

[United States of Indonesia]

90th Floor Dungeon
Virgil
Virgil stood there, beside Josua, during & after the battle. She fought on almost the same level as Josua did, albeit somewhat a little slower, but more delicate in a way. Her movements were graceful. It was like a dance. While there are some who utilizes this as the skill Blade Dance, she was one of the few players that possessed it without needing to get it. During the battle, she gracefully slashed through the mobs, spreading red "flowers" across the entire room, including the blood of the boss. Although she didn't took the final hit, she did cause somewhat severe damage to the boss.

After Heathcliff transformed & announced his true identity, she was hardly surprised. Though it would seem that she knew, she only had a hunch. She was present during the duel between the "Black Swordsman" and him. She noticed the strange thing that happened just before the "Black Swordsman" could land the strike. As a result, she wasn't that surprised by the announcement, though it did take her off-guard somewhat.

She stayed back for a little while Josua marched forward for the 91^st Floor. Seeing over the others after the battle ended & the announcement made, she only sighed over the argument that she heard from a bunch of players. She purposely shouted, "Seriously? That's it? Everybody here always have a sad past, not only you. I'm sure someone already told you that. But it's still annoying to hear your blabbers. You guys are not the only ones with a troubled past. So just suck it up & move on.", while walking towards the door for the 91^st Floor. Her tone was somewhat cold-hearted. She somewhat, in a sense, represented Josua's other side. While Josua was already hardened, he could still remain somewhat kind-hearted. However, she was the opposite of him. She was more of the "bad cop", while Josua is the "good cop". She then proceeded through the door, to the 91^st Floor.

Josua's was more sad. No one knows it but me.

[Charlia]

"...Because I have no purpose," she said dully. "I have no more reason to live. What good am I without the one thing I had left to cling to? Fine. Go ahead. Try to help me." She sighed, not bothering to look him in the eye, just staring at nothingness. "If it will make you feel better, then go ahead, do your best to fix me. If you won't kill me, then I don't care what you do."

Hearing that, Dremo remained quiet for a few good moments, opening and closing his mouth a few times like if he wanted to say something, but had no idea what. He had been stopped like a ship hitting an iceberg at full speed. This whole discussion had been more in the impulse of the moment, he was thinking about how to convince her. But he never imagined that she would accept it so easily. And from the way she worded it, it seemed like she didn't care about it at all. It was a bored "do whatever you'd like." And after hearing that, the black haired boy realized that he never actually thought about how exactly to help her. He had never thought that he would reach this point in the first place.


"Well...", Dremo started to say, remaining quiet for a few moments. "I.. can't help you if I don't know what's wrong. You say that you have no purpose, no reason left to live for. I know that you're suffering. But I don't know why, or how. I'd say that I will protect you, and that I won't let anyone hurt you from now on.. but you'll probably think that they are just..empty words."

"What's wrong is that I lost the only reason I had left to stay alive," she retorted angrily. "I had one thing left to do before I could die peacefully, but now I don't even have that. It was taken away from me like everything else."

Then he offered to protect her, and her eyes narrowed.

"You're late," she snarled. "Just like everyone else who wants to help is. You're too late to help me."

[Tulkomanistan]

Cloaked figure sheathed his weapon once the battle was over. No one knew who he really was but they didn't need to know. If they did, they would probably prison or kill him anyway. Even though he was helping them clear the floors, he was a red player. He wanted to give them a hand at first but as they progressed, his reasons changed. He wasn't really sure what was it now.

He spent his time mostly alone since that bloodied night. He lost trust of people who could actually trust or even befriend him during that night. He deserved it though. He went there in order to reduce the number of casulties but he just killed more. He just wanted to stop after killing a few red players but he couldn't stop. Something inside him pushed him forward and he started to attack eveything in his way. He even faught against his friends. For some weird reason, he felt determined to continue killing. Maybe that was what they called "killer instict". He kept his distance from others in case he starts to kill others again. The desire to kill stayed even he stayed away and even though he tried his best to hold it, he lost control from time to time. He suppose he killed more than 20 players so far. He would probably continue to kill unless he can find some sort of solution to it.

David was expressionless when Heathcliff turned into a GM. He sure was surprised but hating him now probably won't change anything. He didn't have time for planning revenge or any sort of thing like that. He had better things to do. He won't do anything today though. He decided to rest a bit. He was close to finding the HQ or at least suppposed HQ of the red guild he was searching for all this time. Going there tired probably won't end up good for him. He could always negotiate but he didn't know if he they would listen.

David walked towards to exit after seeing players heading to the next floor. He looked back one more time before leaving. He saw a few players arguing. Normally he would just ignore it and leave but when he saw who were arguing, he decided to watch. It was amusing to watch them argue. It looked like it was about to end anyway so he wouldn't lose much from it.