So, I've finally decided who Skull will end up with. :D It's all gonna be hush hush for now, though, so feel free to speculate. XP Also, after this we'll probably finally get to the Arcobaleno. This is a sort of in between chapter detailing what happens during the week before the meeting.
Elioenai: Everyone loves trolls as long as they're not the ones being trolled by them. XP And, yes, Skull will have his moments to shine...eventually...maybe...somehow...
yvonna: Spoiler alert: He will most likely never figure out the Luck thing. XD Or at least not for a long, long, long, looooong time. XP
To the guest who asked me about making a fic about Skull training Tsuna. I had a hard time understanding if you're talking about this fic or making a different one one, but I'm not going to do that for three reasons. 1) This fic is Skull-centric, it's not about Tsuna. 2) There are waaay too many fics about Tsuna already. 3) There's already a fic like that. It's called Cumulonimbus. Great fic, go check it out. :P
Belphy: Skull is ironically the most normal yet strange person in this fic. :P Seriously, just think about it. And, as stated when they were talking about his Cloud Regeneration ability, the way Skull uses his flames is purely instinctual. Kind of makes you wonder what he'd be like with proper training. :O
Yukio00: ...Hey, Skull, someone thinks you're cute!
Skull: Wait, seriously?! o.O But all I do is curse and run away... Um, thanks, I guess. *is flustered*
Sorry, Skull's not used to compliments. XP
Guest: Yay, my characterization is good! :D And there are too few fics with Skull as the protagonist. Yet, at the same time, there are too many Skull-is-Harry fics as well... Nothing against those fics, I just don't want them to be come the whole "Naruto neglected" situation where everyone likes the idea and wants to write their own but just ends up copying and pasting from others so much that you can't even tell which one was the original anymore. :P I mean, the current Skul-is-Harry fics are pretty good, but it's only a matter of time. :/ Well, whatever, the more love for Skull the better. :P
Other Guest: Yep, Skull is fun to be around. We all wish we had someone like him in our lives, be honest. We would never need any other form of entertainment. XD
LlamaLamb72: It feels like Skull will just run out of Nope eventually. Especially with Tet around. XD
Ddragon21:
Skull: Being the weakest Arcobaleno sucks. :(
Tet: ...What the heck are you talking about, Skull? You've reached the level cap! You're basically the strongest person on the planet now!
Skull: ...Wait...WHAT?!
XXX
Restart and Try Again
Chapter 5: Grinding
XXX
"Thank sweet merciful crap that's over with!" Skull shouted in relief as he burst out of the portal and landed on his stomach on the soft grass.
You've successfully made it through your first dungeon! For a second there, I thought you were gonna die and that I'd have to find someone else!
'Truly, your concern for me is staggering,' the future Arcobaleno huffed before sitting up and turning back around to look at the glowing portal. "So is this thing just gonna...stay here?"
Yeah.
'Isn't that kinda dangerous, though? I mean, what if some poor bastard accidentally walks into it?'
No worries. Unless they're actively in your party, no one other than you can enter a dungeon. Plus, no one can see the portals except for you.
'Convenient.'
I know, right?
Skull stood up off the ground, eyes still focused on the vortex of blue light. 'I know I complained a little...'
A little?
'Okay, a lot. But this was actually kinda fun.'
Really?
Skull gave a small smile. 'It was like being in a real RPG!'
That was the intent! I knew I did a great job~.
'Yeah, don't break your arm trying to pat your own back there,' Skull rolled his eyes and started to walk back towards the forest entrance. 'By the way, you said you sent me back one week before the meeting, right?'
Yep. Exactly one week. Why?
'Well, I was just thinking, the other Arcobaleno are probably all at, like...level one hundred or something!'
Probably. Maybe even higher.
'That's what I thought... So, I'm really gonna need to grind before the week's up.'
True. You're pretty much a weakling right now. It's really sad, for an Arcobaleno I mean.
'Hey! I- ...Okay, you're not wrong. But, anyway, I have to grind as much levels as I can before I meet them all again! I refuse to be their lackey this time around!'
Considering how terrible your luck is, I kinda doubt that...
'...Screw you.'
XXX
The next day...
"This place looks kinda different now..." Skull said as soon as he came out of the portal and landed in the familiar, yet at the same time unfamiliar, Evergreen Woods. "And where's that Slime?"
Well, the dungeon changes each time you go in it. It'd get pretty boring and repetitive otherwise.
"Is that right? Makes sense I guess... Kinda disappointed I can't kill that Slime again, though..."
Why do you hate that thing so much anyway?
"Well, it's normal to hate a bunch of monsters trying to kill you, right?"
Yeah, but I meant why that Slime specifically?
Skull shuddered as he started walking through the dungeon. "Did you see that thing? The only thing I can think of that was scarier than that is Reborn... And maybe Verde."
They both sound unpleasant.
"They are... Well, in Verde's case, he's more creepy than anything else..."
What kind of creepy?
"Mad scientist creepy."
...Now I wanna meet him.
"...Why?" Skull asked back in complete disbelief as he entered one of the dungeon's various rooms. "I mean, he'd probably try to experiment on you or some..." He trailed off once he actually got a chance to look around said room. His eyes widened in terror at the horrific sight before him. "Oh...my...god..."
What's wro- Oh...
All around the small dungeon room, he could see nothing but the color orange. He could just barely even make out the grassy terrain or lush foliage underneath all the orange. Numerous pulsating crimson eyes turned in his direction.
"That's...a lot of Slimes."
It must be a hoard... Skull, you probably won't make it, so... It was fun knowing you.
"Now isn't the time to joke, Tet!"
I wasn't.
"...Shit! DAGGER BARRAGE!"
XXX
"I can't believe I actually survived that..." Skull mumbled, wincing as his wounds healed themselves up.
Me neither.
"Please, stop. You're belief in me is overwhelming enough as it is," Skull shot back sarcastically before sighing. "How many of those things did I kill anyway? I lost count after fourteen..."
I counted twenty-five. I think that's the highest number a hoard can be, too.
"You don't say..."
It's pretty rare to find a full hoard. I honestly can't tell if this was unlucky or lucky...
Skull let out a groan. "Would you please just shut the hell u-" He yelped when alert screen after alert screen appeared right in front of his face. "Jesus! That surprised me... So, any reason these are only appearing now?"
They don't appear during hoards in order to prolonge the life of the Ability User~.
Skull glared at the alert screens in irritation. "How fucking nice of you."
Don't ever say I don't try to keep you alive.
"My god, you are an asshole... Whatever. Let's see what I got."
Dagger Mastery increased +2!
You have unlocked the Title "Trainee of the Dagger!"
Level up +5! You've earned 15 Status Points!
You have unlocked the Active Skill "Bravery!"
"Oh, wow, I leveled up five times? This place is really good for grinding!" Skull said as he stared at the screen in amazement.
Don't expect that to last too long, though. You'll need more experience the higher level you are.
The violet-haired boy rolled his eyes at that. "Uh, yeah, I know. I've played RPG's before, you know... Now, what the hell is this title thing I got?"
Trainee of the Dagger: When equipped with a dagger or dagger-like weapon, your attack power increases by 2%.
"Oh, dang, that's pretty good..."
You're welcome~.
"...You know what? I'm just going to ignore you from now on."
Yeah, good luck with that. Ha!
"...Anyway, what's 'Bravery?'"
Bravery: Increases target's attack and special attack by 5%.
MP Cost: 50
"I get buffs, too?!" Skull gaped. "That's kickass!"
I know, right?
"But, how'd I get this from a dagger?" Skull asked, frowning. "I mean...it's a dagger."
Some skills you get by just leveling up normally.
"Oooh, I...guess that makes sense." He said, frowning and tilting his head. "Well, whatever. This is still really kickass! Now..." Opening his menu, he fiddled with his status screen for a few minutes. "And...there!"
Lv: 42
Attack: 40
Defense: 45
Intelligence: 42
Special Defense: 42
Agility: 31
Vitality: 36
Dexterity: 34
Luck: 10
Do you have any plan with your stats, by chance?
Skull blinked. "...No. No I do not."
Meh, whatever~.I'm sure you'll figure something out eventually! ...Well, maybe...
"Ugh, great, something else to think about..." He grumbled, exiting out of the menu. "Whatever, let's just find the exit out of this place..."
I thought you wanted to grind?
"I just fought twenty-five fucking Slimes. I'm am done."
Aww~.
XXX
The day before the meeting
"You've been in an oddly good mood this morning."
Aren't I always in a good mood?
"Yeah, but today it just seems...suspicious."
Hmm~?
"...Well, whatever. Maybe I'm just imagining things," he mumbled with a shrug before going back to examining his various menus.
Lv: 46
Attack: 42
Defense: 47
Intelligence: 44
Special Defense: 44
Agility: 33
Vitality: 38
Dexterity: 34
Luck: 10
"It's getting a lot harder to grind of enemies here..."
That's 'cause you're getting too high-leveled for this dungeon. After we get out of here, you should invest some time in finding a higher-leveled one.
Skull sighed. "Great... Well, at least I'm a bit tougher than an above-average civilian now! ...Right?"
Yeah, yeah, that's... Yeah.
"You're not doing wonders for my confidence, you know..." He mumbled before switching over to his skills menu.
Dagger Pierce: A stabbing attack that is able to pierce through protective skills for a small amount of damage.
Power: 10
MP Cost: 20
"I've been getting less skills recently, too..."
Well, dagger mastery gets harder to level up as you go on, too. Plus, as you level it up there's a wider distance between the levels at which you'll get the next skill.
"So basically..."
It gets tougher as you keep going.
"Like life..." Skull mumbled as he reached the room with the exit portal. Sighing, he got his dagger ready. "Alright, bunny boss, let's do this!"
Hey, Skull?
"What is it?" Skull asked offhandedly as the boss started to appear from the portal. He narrowed his eyes. There was something...off about it this time.
There's something I haven't told you.
Now that was a cause for alarm.
"Wait, what do you mean by that?!" Skull asked instantly. "What the hell is going on with this boss?!"
Well, you see, along with the normal bosses, the game that is your life also features various special bosses.
"Special bosses?!"
There are multiple ways to find a special boss, and, well... One of them just so happens to be defeating a dungeon boss ten times~! They're also much stronger than regular bosses. So have fun with that~!
"YOU ARE THE WORST KIND OF ASSHOLE!" Skull shouted in anger and disbelief as the special boss finished materializing in front of him. Once his eyes returned to it, his mouth opened in shock. "That is not a bunny... It's... It can't be..."
What came out of the portal was, instead of the fluffy mammal of death that he was used to seeing, a mass of dripping orange slime with giant, glowing crimson red eyes.
"And of course it's a fucking Slime! Of-fucking-COURSE! I mean, why wouldn't it be?! Why WOULDN'T the world take this chance to fucking screw me over?!"
Skull, I hate to interrupt your little rant here, but you should probably focus on the giant monster that wants to kill you.
"Huh? Whoa!" Skull yelped and just barely managed to get out of the way as a glob of acid-like slime hit the spot where he was standing on moments before. Turning back around, his eyes widened when he saw the substance literally creating a hole in the floor. "Mother of god..."
Might wanna use that handy dagger of yours.
"R-Right!"
One handy thing Skull had learned during his first encounter with the Slime hoard (mostly thanks to Tet taking pity on him and telling him) was that, unlike Knife Throw, he didn't actually have to throw his dagger to initiate Dagger Barrage. This was a very good thing, as he didn't really enjoy having to pull his dagger out of the slimy creature in order to keep fighting. As one might imagine, he was very much pissed at the god for withholding the information.
Pulling out his weapon, he pointed it at the massive Orange Slime, which was slowly making its way closer and closer to him. "Crap... Dagger Barrage!"
Violet lights shimmered around him before all forming into daggers and simultaneously turning in the direction of the boss. Without warning, they each shot towards it...only for the Slime to start faintly glowing orange and a barrier to appear before it, stopping each of them before they all disappeared in burst of purple light.
Skull blinked, startled. "...Okay, that's new." He grew more confused when the Slime suddenly stopped moving and closed it's gaping eyes and mouth. "What the hell's it doing now?"
Beats me...
"You made this game! Shouldn't you of all people know?!"
Like I've told you over and over again, I just made the game mechanics and how they work. As for monsters, skills, and all that, the game decides that by itself.
"Ugh, fine, whatever." He raised his dagger once again. "I guess I just gotta try aga-HOLYSHITWHATTHEHELL!"
The Slime's eyes had snapped open, glowing even brighter than before as it opened it's mouth wider than it's body should have been able to allow. Skull barely even had time to dodge as a bright light emanated from the inside of the monster before getting brighter and brighter as it zoomed towards him. Unfortunately, he was unable to completely dodge it and a good chunk of his arm took damage from the beam of light as it continued on past him.
Grimacing at the pain, he turned back only to stare in horror at the tunnel through the forest that the attack had created.
"Holy crap, it decimated everything!" He managed to say before gasping in pain at the intense throbbing in his arm. He quickly looked down at the apendage before immediately regretting it. Even though it was quickly regenerating, seeing the mangled...thing that had once been an arm was anything but pleasant. He winced in pain and disgust and quickly looked away. "Dammit..."
Um, just so you know, I'm not good with blood. Tet's voice sounded a bit queasy.
"Well, I'm not good with pain, but you don't see me complaining about it," Skull groaned as he got back up on his feet. "Besides, it'll be healed in a few minutes."
...I can tell that you're used to this. How are you used to this?
Skull arched an eyebrow and pointed at himself with his uninjured hand. "Stuntman."
...Oh, right.
"More importantly, though..." He turned back towards the Slime only to see that it's eyes and mouth were once again closed, preparing another attack. "Shit, not again! DAGGER BARRAGE!"
He watched as the multiple daggers shot towards the monster, only for it to use that same strange technique from before and stopping them with the orange barrier.
"Shit, I can't do anything to it!"
Skull didn't you get that sparkly new skill the day before?
"Sparkly new...Oh, that thing!" He said in realization, quickly opening his skills menu and looking over it again. "Where is it... There!"
Dagger Pierce: A stabbing attack that is able to pierce through protective skills for a small amount of damage.
Power: 10
MP Cost: 20
"So, do I have to throw it at him, or..."
Nope, you have to get close and stab him with it.
"...Well ain't that just fan-fucking-tastic..." Sighing, he glared at the boss. "Fine, whatever. I've survived too much to get killed by a giant ball of orange c-"
The Slime's eyes shot open and focused on him.
"-rap..." He finished, throwing himself to the side so as to avoid the second energy beam. He wanted to keep his bodyparts, thank you very much.
"Not this time, you bitch!" He shouted as he rolled back onto his feet and charge towards the orange abomination. "DAGGER PIERCE!"
He threw his hand forward and the dagger hit the barrier blade-first. At first, nothing happened. Then, slowly, cracks started to appear around the shield as the knife sunk deeper into it. Within a matter of seconds the previously impenetrable barrier shattered to pieces.
"Hell yeah! Now you-" The Slime's eyes snapped to him, shining brightly in rage. "...Oh, snap."
Without warning, a long, dripping orange tendril shot out of the Slime's body and wrapped tightly around his waist, causing him to yelp as he suddenly found himself held up in midair.
"SINCE WHEN COULD THEY DO THIS NOW?!"
Just stay calm! Use your Dagger Barrage or something!
"R-Right! Okay! I can do that!" He shakily held out his dagger at the Slime, who was opening its gaping mouth and slowly lowering him towards it. Skull's eyes widened. 'Oh dear neptune, it's trying to eat me.' "DAGGER BARRAGE!"
Dozens upon dozens of daggers materialized in front of him before all plunging downwards and into the Slime's mouth, disappearing into the darkness. The monster growled in agony as the tendril around Skull's waist loosened before disappearing completely, allowing him to fall hard on the ground.
"Oooooww... For the hundredth time..." He groaned as he forced himself back up.
You okay there?
"I'll live... More importantly, though..." His attention returned to the Slime, who was slowly starting to recover. "Let's just finish this thing off already! Bravery!" He shouted, causing a purple light to envelop him for a few moments before disappearing. "Alright! This is for trying to eat me, you asshole! DAGGER BARRAGE!"
As dagger after dagger plunged into the Slime's goo, fractures started to appear all around its massive body, growing wider and wider as parts of its body disintegrated into nothingness.
As soon as the boss had completely disappeared, Skull fell back onto the ground in a sitting position, letting out a relieved sigh. "Finally... Seriously, screw Slimes and everything they stand for..."
So... How's the arm?
Skull raised his completely healed arm and wiggled his fingers. "It's fine. Nothing I'm not used to. I had Cloud Regeneration from before I even met you, remember?"
Right, right. Either way, I'm glad you're okay!
Skull scoffed. "So you don't have to worry about finding someone else, right?"
Well, yes, that too. But you and I are friends now, right? Of course I wouldn't want you to die.
The violet-haired boy blinked slowly. "Wait... We're friends?"
Well, yeah. I mean, we're gonna be together for probably the rest of your life, so might as well, right?
"Well, that's-" Skull cut himself off, eyes widening in horror. "Wait, the rest of my life?!"
Of course! You're my first Ability User, so let's make our time together fun, alright~?
"Goddammit..." Skull groaned in despair, ignoring the alert screen that popped up in front of his face. "Well, it's fine, I guess... Never really had a friend before, though..."
...You are like the saddest human I've ever seen.
"...Well, thanks, friend," Skull shot back sarcastically.
I'm just being honest~.
"Screw you and your honesty," Skull muttered before finally looking at the screen.
Congratulations! You have beaten the special boss King Orange Slime!
Reward: Slime
The future Arcobaleno stared at it in confusion. "Reward...Slime? What the hell's that supposed to mean?"
Well, when you defeat a special boss, you get a special reward!
"Special, huh?" Skull said, getting rid of the screen and looking through his item menu. He frowned in confusion when he saw a strange, orange circle-shaped object labeled "Slime." "So, this is it? What exactly is it?" He asked, reaching out and pressing his finger against it.
Would you like to hatch?
"Hatch? Um, sure, I guess..."
There was a small burst of light as the object popped out of the inventory screen and landed in front of him before staring to shake from side to side. Skull arched an eyebrow at it.
"Hey, is it me or is this thing shaped kind of like an..." He blinked. "...Oh."
The object cracked open and a blinding light enveloped the room, causing Skull to squeeze his eyes shut until it passed. Opening them back up, he was greeted with an Orange Slime with glowing blue eyes staring at him.
Blue and purple stared at each other for a long, long moment before it opened it's mouth and let out a sound similar to a squawk.
Your first pet! Congrats~!
Skull just continued to stare as the Slime started wandering around the room, looking around in a curious manner while only straying a certain distance away from him. He then looked up at the sky in utter anguish.
"Why? Just why?"
XXX
Skull does NOT like Slimes at all. XD And now he has one as a pet... I actually almost feel bad for making him so unlucky. XD Rest assured that he will get better pets eventually. XP On the plus side, his and Tet's relationship has gotten slightly better...but Tet will still always troll him. Friendship~! It's magic, folks~!
Next time, the Arcobaleno's first meeting! Will their opinions of him be different this time around?! ...Most likely not. XD Probably the only difference (for now) is that they'll think is a complete weirdo. :P So, from now on, Skull's gonna have both them AND Tet making his life miserable. o.O I should probably be considered evil for making this happen. XD Aw, poor Skull...