Gundam Build Divers: Rise of the Crimson Seraphs
Chapter 4: Defeat and its purpose
Groaning as he reached for the joystick the young man couldn't believe how painful it was, being in an online world he assumed things like pain or fatigue wouldn't matter. Clutching at the joystick as if his life depended on it he pushed it forward, because it had taken so much damage it was understandably slow to get back up. After what felt like an eternity but in reality was only five minutes the unit finally stood upright, getting it to move in this state would be difficult and fighting was going to be impossible.
"Dude we can't possibly beat him." Vincent grumbled as his machine groaned but eventually stood upright as well, even if they'd been at 100% percent fighting someone that powerful was at their current skill level useless. Much as it painted the young man to admit it his friend was right, suddenly a risky idea popped into his mind.
"I'll distract him while you make a break for it, if you can get away you finish the mission and get some experience." Xepher explained as the machine slowly marched forward, the young man was about to use his beam saber when their friend's machine held up their palm stopping him.
"Actually you have the faster machine, if anyone could get past him it's you." Vincent explained as the opponent's mobile suit merely watched them, it was almost like the pilot was saying he didn't even need to bother finishing them off. Despite knowing his friend was correct running away left a bad taste in his mouth, unfortunately it was really the only viable choice. Before he could argue his point the Dragon Gundam rushed at them, moving with an nearly blinding speed it managed to not only pin his machine but also disarmed his friend's machine. Any chance of fleeing or counter attacking was gone now, soon the claws would rip through his Gunpla and the mission would end in failure.
"Seems you both have potential, unfortunately that means almost nothing if you don't have experience in battle." A gruff voice explained as his machine released its grip letting them go, enemy units wouldn't have done that so both players knew it meant he wasn't an npc. When they'd finally recovered the young men both opened a new command window, according to his player information the machine belonged to a guy named SoulFang. Cringing as he read the name out loud it sounded like a bad O.C. Though in some regards his wasn't much better, much as it pained the young man to admit it he wasn't all that creative when designing his own characters.
"Well excuse us for being rookies, shouldn't guys like you be off fighting more experienced players?" Vincent questioned as the machine stood in front of them. Arms crossed the machine resembled a contemplative parent, even if the guy didn't like hearing it the young man had a point. Studying his player information their player level was a great deal above their own, attacking weaker players didn't make any sense until a horrible thought flashed across the newer player's mind.
"Wait a second this isn't another one of those crappy games where veteran players can wait and kill newer ones is it?" Xepher questioned as their friend sighed at his comment, even if both of them hated it some people claimed it was a valid strategy.
Despite forming several complaints against the last online game he'd played they never really cracked down on it, several months later campers were practically running the game. Before long they were actually offering gear unique to player vs player, this only made it even worse as people began actively stalking new player training grounds. After one particularly nasty event involving a character of a much higher level the young man had finally given up and left the servers, according to one of his friends who still played it the conditions hadn't gotten any better.
Assuming the players were capable of doing such things in this game it could ruin the experience, then again if you didn't include some form of player vs player it wouldn't be much fun. Balancing the idea of letting players fight each other but making sure they harass new players was a tricky subject.
"Officially there's no rules against it but that kind of behavior is frowned upon." SoulFang explained as they both stared at his machine. Anyone who'd put that much effort into their machine didn't need to be messing with inexperienced players, readying himself for another strike the young man was surprised when their opponent instead offered their hand.
Much as the young man wanted to accept it there was something that just didn't seem right, if he was really their ally why did he just massacre them. Directing his attention onto the fallen enemies laying nearby he couldn't help wondering if this was a setup, most people didn't offer help just because they were nice. Despite wanting to believe his offer was genuine it just didn't make sense, before he could even finish his thoughts his friend's mobile suit grabbed the outstretched hand.
"Don't let your caution become mistrust." SoulFang explained as the young man nodded in agreement, reaching out with his own mobile suit it grabbed the blue machine's outstretched hand. After getting back up he was surprised just how detailed his opponent's machine was, even if they were a higher level that didn't necessarily mean they were skilled in building.
Designing your own custom mobile suit was at least on paper simply creating the machine, when you finally started building it however then you ran into a different problem. Getting different models to fit together was complicated, if you weren't careful it would end up damaging the pieces.
Still his machine was impressive and it was pretty obvious he'd put a lot of care into building it, every piece looked as if they fit perfectly without damaging any other pieces. Combine that with his battle skills and it was pretty obvious this guy wasn't messing around, even if the young man didn't care for the mobile suit aesthetically their creator's passion was on full display.
"Okay boys your first mission is over, lets get outta here so we can discuss the next step." Sarenthia chimed in as both men looked over to a nearby hilltop, grumbling a little the dark blue Gundam boosted over to her. Jumping off her perch the young woman's machine landed with a thud, even if they didn't fully understand the reason for her little test she was convinced it was the right move.
"Both of you preformed admirably, unfortunately your instructor has a knack for pulling tricks on her students." SoulFang explained as they opened a new window and clicked a button, seconds later their machine was gone and he stood in front of them. Based on his avatar the guy must really like martial arts, everything about his character resembled something from an old kung-fu movie. Combined with his mobile suits affinity for close range weapons and it made for an interesting combination, opening their command screens both men clicked the finish mission button.
"As you can see just defeating your target counts as finishing the mission, even if you do get ambushed by someone else it doesn't mean you failed the mission." Sarenthia explained as both men sighed in relief, defeating common enemies was simple but other players could be far more difficult. Games that required you to defeat anyone that interfered before clearing the mission were annoying, it was that very reason which had kept the blue haired young man from joining any of the newer online games. Moments later the words mission complete flashed across their screens, clicking the image of his mobile suit it dissolved in front of him.
Studying the player in front of him the young man couldn't help feeling a little excited, anyone who could get a mobile suit to perform that elegantly would be a great instructor. Getting him to instruct them might be a challenge but he was fairly certain they could persuade him, if the girl's brother was any indication veteran players usually enjoyed sharing their knowledge.
"Wait a minute you knew about this, that's a pretty dirty trick considering this was our first mission." Vincent growled as the young woman held both palms up in mock surrender. Siccing a veteran on new players was a crappy move in any game, even if her intentions were honorable it didn't make up for the girl's actions.
"Kid's got a point, you should have at least given them a heads up." SoulFang explained as they both nodded in agreement, if a veteran player like himself found it sneaky then it probably wasn't a good idea.
"Okay message received it was a crummy move, tell you what as compensation how about you guys can both pick out a high grade model and it will be half price?" Sarenthia questioned as both men started nodding frantically, getting a new model at half price was a pretty sweet deal under any circumstances.
"Deal but next time give us some kind of warning?" Xepher questioned as the young woman smiled, it was a nice smile but not good enough to make him forget what she'd just done. Glancing over at his friend the young man gave him a don't buy it look, in his mind the blue haired young man was easily swayed by pretty women. Sure he'd done some foolish things in the past, maybe some of it was to impress a girl but that didn't change what he'd done.
"I didn't even notice it but that necklace you have is pretty cool." Sarenthia explained as the young man looked down at the medallion hanging from their neck, it was a beautiful necklace but it's value wasn't monetary. Consisting of three different colored swords each one had a different purpose, it was actually something he'd questioned importing onto his character.
"My grandmother picked it out several years ago." Xepher explained running a finger over each sword.
"I'll bet she's a pretty cool grandmother, was she a big part of your life?" Sarenthia questioned as the young man nodded, according to her brother their own grandparents were pretty cool but she'd never met them.
"Still is, although we don't get to visit as much as either of us would like." Xepher replied as his mind drifted back to his seventeenth birthday, it had been the lowest point of his life for several reasons but his grandmother refused to let it keep her from seeing the young man. Due to several life changes that he wasn't exactly keen on revisiting he'd been in a hospital, even so the woman had driven nearly four hours just to see him. Parents loved their children it was a commonly excepted fact, grandparents meanwhile spoiled their grandchildren but in his mind that visit was proof of her undying love for the young man.
"Anyways you've both shown great potential, with a bit of practice you'll be aces in no time." SoulFang explained doing his part in getting their attention back on track, normally he didn't mind talking about family but getting both players set up for their next mission was equally important.
"Well let's not get ahead of ourselves, it was a good first mission but we need some help learning the more complex functions if we're gonna keep playing." Vincent explained as his best friend nodded in agreement, even though he wanted to be an ace it wasn't something that happened overnight.
Dedication and hard work could make up for their lack of skill right now but that mindset couldn't last forever, eventually they'd face a more difficult opponent. Realizing that he'd forgotten one of his machine's basic functions he was a little embarrassed, raising a hand like a school child the most experienced player laughed before pointing at him.
"I forgot my unit can transform, is there a special button for that or what controls unique mechanics?" Xepher questioned as both of his instructors looked at him surprised, everyone understood basic combat mechanics but he was showing an impressive level of insight most new players didn't exhibit.
"We'll go over that during your next login, it will give you another reason to come back." SoulFang explained as the young man sighed in mock frustration, maybe they were right about waiting until next time but it was easier said than done.
"Okay boys whenever you're ready let's sign out." Sarenthia explained before opening a window, placing her finger just above the sign out button it was ultimately their decision.
Glancing at each other both men nodded in agreement, clicking the button it displayed a thanks for playing banner. Accumulating their experience points both men went up about three levels, while both of them were eager to keep going they needed to long out and enjoy real life some as well. Seconds after pressing the button everyone was back inside the shop's backroom, lifting the headset up the young man placed it on a nearby stand.
"So what did you think, is it something you wanna keep playing or should we give up?" Jamey questioned knowing it was ultimately his friend's decision. Standing up from the gaming terminal he looked over at the young woman, since both of them were here it was a pretty obvious decision. Grabbing his rental model from its base he lifted the machine into the air, whoever made it was a great builder and he could feel it when using the machine.
"I think it's going to be a lot of fun." Travis replied smiling as they both sighed in relief, understandably they were both excited to keep going. After everything they'd just been through it was a little unsettling thinking he'd might've given up before they really even got started. Getting up from his chair the young man couldn't believe just how fun it was, with any luck he'd eventually learn everything the game had to offer.
"Sounds good but there's something we've gotta take care of first right buddy?" James questioned as both men looked at the young woman, she'd known this was coming but hoped to delay it long enough to speak with her boss. Sure they were family but he was still a business man who needed to make a profit, as such offering half price models without consulting him might be an issue.
"Actually if it's okay maybe we should give it a day or two, I need a little while to research what model I should get." Travis replied as the young woman sighed in relief, even though she was curious to see what they'd pick it was better this way.
She'd get enough time to speak with her uncle and they could make sure both men got the right model, choosing one was a serious matter and needed to be handled as such. Grinning as she nodded the young man began looking at the stores many different options, while neither of them knew exactly what he'd pick there was a pretty good chance it would be from either Seed or 00.
"Is there any particular reason you're holding off?" Carson questioned as he walked up behind the young men, surprised by the older man's arrival the older friend jumped a little. Much as it pained him to admit the young man was sort of a pansy when it came to being surprised, when he'd finally calmed down the older man raised both hands in apology.
"My ex and her best friend will be joining us, it will probably take a few days to get everything set up and that will make it easier for me to deiced on a mobile suit." Travis explained as his best friend raised an eyebrow questioningly, it wasn't like him to plan so far ahead without speaking to both girls first.
Knowing his ex she'd probably agreed once he explained she could pick a mobile suit from Gundam Wing, since their high school days she'd been obsessed with that series. Meanwhile her best friend would be a little more challenging, she loved anything Egyptian based though he didn't know of any right off the bat. Still it would be pretty cool if they enjoyed playing it as well, they didn't get to hand out in person nearly enough and this was a nice alternative.
Grabbing his backpack the young man looked down at his watch, if they weren't home before long it would be problematic. Jamey's place was a fairly long drive from the mall, since he was crashing at the young man's house it was better if they weren't out past dark. After saying his farewells he walked into the parking lot and stored his backpack inside the young man's car, smiling as he turned it on they were already excited for their next game. Driving on the highway it was pretty nice so he rolled down the window, before long they'd be at his friend's place and they'd be up all night discussing their plans.