Day 1 Floor 1 (Town of Beginnings)
A lone player leaned against a building listening as it was announced that the game, was no longer a game. He appeared to be in his early twenties. He stood approximately six feet tall with dark, disheveled hair, piercing, green eyes, a body honed to a razor's edge lifting weights, and he was adorned in a dark suit of heavy armor with a battleaxe strapped across his back. He perked up as the speaker continued on to explain that all were trapped until the game was cleared and should their headgear be removed or their health reach zero they would be killed as the headgear would release waves of energy and fry their brains. Suddenly, the player began laughing wildly.
"Well, it looks like things just got a lot more interesting," Slayer remarked as he pushed off from the wall and headed off into the plains of Floor 1.
Day 82 Floor 17
"Damn it all to hell! Why the fuck does this quest have to be in the form of a cryptic poem anyways!" exclaimed an aggravated Slayer. He had received a quest a few days earlier and after some subtle inquiring had found that he was apparently the only person with it. A strange creature he had encountered on Floor 19 had dropped the quest info. Now he was determined to complete the quest and to do it alone. He stopped to consider the poem one final time before continuing his search.
"Slay the demon hidden on the seventeenth floor, to obtain his instrument of ultimate gore. His cave is located in the south, hidden within a flaming mouth. If you fail he'll steal a bone, and then you shall adorn his throne," read Slayer aloud as he contemplated the meanings of each line. "I still hope the first line is referring to a battleaxe, but I'm sure any unique weapon drop will sell for a fine price if nothing else. The second line I'm almost certain is a reference to the volcano located on the south side of the map. The last line though, I just hope I'm misinterpreting."
He was still contemplating the meaning of the final line when he heard a scream. He decided to see what was happening and soon came to a small clearing. He could make out two players standing back-to-back in the center of the clearing with four monsters slowly circling them as they closed in. It was fairly obvious that the two-player team was no match for the small band of monsters in the mere way they held themselves, as though without the other to support them they might fall to the ground. He considered continuing on his way and letting nature take its course, but at that moment one of the monsters noticed him and charged, leaving him with only one clear option.
"I'm going to flay the hide from your bones for wasting my valuable time!" Slayer shouted as he quickly brought his battleaxe to bear. He was soon engaged in one-on-one combat with the monster as its three companions continued to circle and attack the two players they had trapped. Slayer remembered well his time on this floor and the creatures that inhabited it so he was more than a match for the monster. After defeating the creature's initial combo he went on the offensive. With hardly a thought he soon had the monster defeated and the trapped players seemed to rally around their impromptu savior.
As the two players finally seemed to regain some life, Slayer decided that the quest could wait a few minutes, for at that moment his battle lust had yet to be quenched. Slayer let out a howl and drew the attention of two of the three remaining monsters. As the two players faced off against their remaining monster, Slayer met his two head-on with a harrowing combo. He reveled in the battle as he took hits and returned them tenfold. It wasn't long before he was swinging his battleaxe high over his head, lodging it deeply in the skull of the last of the monsters, and smiling as it shattered into nothingness.
He turned to see the two players regarding him warily. After a moment to clear his head, he strapped his battleaxe back across his back and assumed a non-threatening posture. He did a quick once over of the people he had saved and was about to go on his way when one of them finally spoke up.
"Thanks, I'm glad you happened along when you did. Anyways, my name is Zach. What's yours?" as he finished he offered his hand in a show of friendship.
"None of your fucking business. Now how about you go down a couple floors where you'll be able to fight your own battles without a miracle coming to your aid," Slayer growled as he began perusing what little loot the monsters had dropped as he realized that they intended to talk a minute.
"Hey, just because you saved us doesn't mean you can talk to us like that!" said Zach's fiery-headed companion.
"Calm down Beth, I'm sure he meant nothing by it. I doubt I'd be in a very good mood if I had to rush to aid someone whom I did not know, and potentially at the cost of my own life," Zach was quick to put in, in an attempt to calm his volatile teammate.
"We could've handled them without his help. Besides, we could've used the experience," claimed a somewhat placated Beth.
"What you could use is a damn brain! Last time I checked the headgear only fried us if someone attempted removal or our life hit zero. Has something changed?" asked a very sarcastic Slayer.
"I'll get you for that!" Beth exclaimed as she rushed at her party's savior, but at the last moment he merely stepped aside and tripped her. She landed flat on her face in a heap a few feet away.
"So are we done here? Look, I wouldn't even be wasting my time here, but I've got a quest to do. Now if you are both fine, and by your fiery friend's claims, you are, then I'll be on my way," with that Slayer turned to leave.
"Wait!" Zach shouted. "Perhaps we could both benefit from forming a party. We could certainly use a tank of your stature, as well as some experience, and you seem like you could use a party to help in your quest. After all, only a maniac or someone with a death wish would attempt a quest alone."
"First, if I needed help, you would not be my first, or even fifth choice. After all, I just pulled both your asses out of the fire. Second, as you just said, I'm a tank, and I have dedicated all my time to cultivating the necessary skills to be the most effective tank possible. Lastly, I've prepared myself for this quest and the trials ahead, whereas you have done nothing. You have no knowledge of my goals or of the upcoming battle. I may be a maniac to attempt this alone, but you'd be the suicidal ones to come with me. Besides, as far as I know, I'm the only one who has the quest and I intend to keep it that way," stated Slayer quite calmly.
"Just let him go. We'll be fine and I have no desire to spend any more time around this asshole," Beth said as she finally managed to stand and compose herself.
"That is the first rational thing I've heard you say. Now, goodbye," and so Slayer left them and continued his trek into the woods. He couldn't have cared less if they heeded his advice or not, but he still hoped they took it. Not out of concern for them, but merely because he wanted no more delays on his journey. Soon he had left the two players far behind as he searched for his destination.
He soon arrived at the foot of the great volcano. He assessed the side of the volcano for a moment before he began to pick his way up the easiest way he had managed to discern. After much climbing, he finally reached the top of the volcano. He walked around the lip of its opening a few times, and he managed to spy what appeared to be a ledge several feet down from his current position.
"Well, here goes nothing." he said as he stepped off into the mouth of the volcano. He landed heavily and was pleased to see that not only had he survived, but that there was indeed a cave located there. He ventured inside and waited for his eyes to adjust to the gloom.
He'd only walked a few feet when the wall rose up behind him and shut off his only source of light and escape. After walking a few yards he came to a large cavern lit with several torches. Set against the far wall was a large throne that appeared as though it had been fashioned from the skeletons of various creatures. He could make out several markers and soon discerned them to be pointing to various bones hanging from the throne.
"So I'm not the only one to have received this quest, I'm just the only one left alive," mused a somewhat solemn Slayer. "As for the markers on the throne, at least it sheds some light on the meaning of the last line. However, I suppose today is as good a day to die as any." Slayer shrugged, took a small potion to restore what little health he'd yet to regenerate from his earlier encounter, and stepped fully into the room.
Now that he was in the lit chamber, he could fully make out the monstrosity that was the demon. It sat atop its macabre throne with a large battleaxe resting comfortably across its lap. When it spotted the intruder to its lair it rose up to its full height of almost ten feet and hoisted the battleaxe over its shoulder. Slayer could not quite tell what the demon was feeling, anger for the intrusion upon its home, or delight over the arrival of its latest victim.
"If you hand over your weapon I might just let you keep your life. That is, if something like you can even be said to have a life," Slayer offered as he measured up his newest opponent. However, the creature seemed to have other plans as he lowered the battleaxe and slapped it across his open palm in a show of strength. "So be it. Prepare to be my bitch!" and with that Slayer rushed out and performed a simple attack routine in the hopes of gauging the great demon's fighting prowess and strength.
The demon roared and met the attack routine with uncanny speed and agility for a creature of its size. They continued back and forth, trading minor blows, until Slayer managed to knock the creature back for a moment. He had not lost much health, but the demon didn't seem to be missing nearly as much as what he had expected. Before he could further question it though, the demon rushed back in with its own powerful combo. He barely managed to dodge the first attack and get his weapon up to block the second.
They began their deadly dance again. Battleaxe met battleaxe in what seemed to be an endless struggle. Finally, Slayer saw what was happening. With each blow the demon landed, it seemed to be converting a small portion of the damage into health. Instead of becoming disheartened, Slayer pushed on with renewed vigor for now he was more determined than ever before that the treacherous demon would fall and the weapon would be his to claim. He managed to disengage from the demon long enough to drink a potion and restore his health before it was on him again, but this time Slayer knew exactly what to expect.
After several more combos the battle finally turned in Slayer's favor. After having fought the demon for so long, he now began to discern its combos and overall attack routine. He carefully avoided blow after blow as he picked his carefully so that he could pick away at the demon without having it regain what life it was losing. Finally, the demon was low on health and it began its most devastating combo, a brutal three part routine that finished with an overhead chop much like the one that Slayer had used to dispatch the last of the small band of enemies earlier. Slayer carefully parried the demon's initial slash, and dodged aside of its thrusting attack.
Then, with a roar, the demon lifted its battleaxe over its head and slammed it down with all of its considerable strength. Slayer quickly back-stepped the swing and when the battleaxe slammed into the ground in front of him he quickly leapt atop its handle. He rushed forward and with a roar to rival that of the demon he performed his own overhead chop, burying the blade of his battleaxe deeply, right between the demon's eyes, stealing from it what little life it had left. He smiled as the demon began to glow and then shattered into several fragments. That smile only grew as he regarded his latest acquisition.
The battleaxe was solid black and made of the finest materials. The blades were in the design of giant, leathery demon wings, each adorned with a spike atop it. At the top of the shaft was the depiction of a horned demon's head, inset with rubies for eyes. He marveled at the brilliance of the design, for one could either wield the battleaxe normally or impale their enemies on the spiked wings and demon horns, a maneuver he recalled all too well from the first time the demon had utilized it and nearly skewered him before he'd managed to move aside. At that moment, he knew that though it had been a foolhardy move to attempt such a quest alone, the risk had been well worth the reward.
"Well, Unrighteous Reaper," for that was the weapon's name, "let's go have some fun," and with that he activated his teleport crystal and returned to the front lines where he could continue doing what he loved.