Chapter 13 - Air Temple
"Bosses and players do not just have their name floating around their head like nothing. Rather to find out the title or name of an individual, the one who is trying to learn, must have a high [Observe] skill level. When in a party, only one individual has to state the name which was previously hidden and everyone gets access to the same information; as if a veil is lifted off the object." ~ Seven Kingdoms Online: Observation and Names
A heavy mist hovered just above the damp ground, silvery and white like grey cotton as it slowly rolled across the floor, hiding many things from view. Sitting on a nearby log was General Ko, his wakizashi held gingerly in his open palms as he took care of it, maintaining the blade with a sharp wetstone. The sharp ring of grinded stone against metal rang throughout the clearing like a knife through water in this silence. General Arashi leaning against a tree across from him, various others from the army of [Seido] stood whilst waiting for the two who had ventured in. The famous storm warrior had both his arms crossed in front of his chest, a soft worried scowl forming across his face.
They had successfully repulsed the Caeduces with no casualties from their end, many had fallen before the blade of the Guardians as well as the blade and power of Kirito. The single crack of a dead branch snapping in half alerted them to the presence of another. All their heads swivelled to look at the two newly equipped Generals. Their forest armor making them stand out strong and powerful in the shades of black, green and grey with the pulses of faded green illuminating the area around them softly, blades sheathed along their body whilst they walked side by side towards them, as if it had been pre-synchronized and planned.
"Heigun? Shukaku?" Ko asked, his eyes wide and mouth slightly agape; like the rest of the group.
"What in the blazes of ten suns happened here?" General Arashi inquired, pushing off the tree he had been leaning on using nothing but his back and shoulders; his hands gesturing wildly to their clothing.
"Blazes of ten suns?" the figure of Heigun asked. A confused expression, and equally confused tone, displayed on his face like black paint against a white canvas. His mind trying to reel and understand the implications of such a statement, "What?" he asked very confused.
"Nothing." Arashi quickly replied, a wry grin forming across his face, "Just an old saying of mine from RL." the chuckle vibrated through his chest and out, slowly infecting each person with a smile of their own.
The sound of many boots crunching against the ground, the sound of metal clanking against metal, echoed out in the humid fog like toiling bells. They slowly appeared, golden and white armor brushing past the background invisibility to stand tall and proud, radiating light as if they were some kind of lamp themselves. The Guardians, they stood in a semi-circle around them, each focused upon any possible movements the two returned Generals could make. Swords were pointed at them and each pulsed with golden sunlight that arched along the blade like sun flares that raided the surface of stars.
"Woah. Woah. Woah." Heigun said as he raised his hands into the air in the universal form of surrender, showing his two empty palms to stop them thinking he was a threat, "What's going on? Why are you pointing those swords at us?"
"Have you been contaminated by darkness?" Val-Shor asked them directly, both his hands gripping his blade tightly as he brought the hilt to his cheek, resting slightly against it. It was a testimony to the upper body strength of the Venator to be able to keep the blade steady, straight and pointing at an opponent whilst using nothing but his shoulder muscles. His hands twisted a little as he took a single step forward, the other Generals of [Seido] reaching for their weapons as what seemed like their allies suddenly turn into their enemies, "Gal-Hadun what do you sense?" he asked another Guardian out from the corner of his mouth, his eyes never leaving the two stockstill figures.
"They are … not contaminated." the man, referred to as Gal-Hadun, answered the Venator quickly and efficiently, only stopping to check if he had his answer correct in the right place, "I can sense darkness lingering around them, but it fades like snow in the midday sun." Gal-Hadun lowered his blade, and so did Val-Shor, as well as the rest of the group.
"My apologies." Val-Shor immediately apologized, "I have seen far too many men return from expeditions unknowingly corrupted by darkness; only to turn and murder everything during the night." the leader of this strike team bowed at his waist, his torso suddenly becoming parallel with the ground. The golden righteous blade had been returned to its place, sheathed at his side. His actions spoke in volumes, an apology straight at the returning two.
General Ko shook his head, sitting down back on his log and returning to sharpening the wakizashi in his hand. He remembered when Kirito trained him, remembered what had inspired him to learn the forms he learnt, to fight the way he fought. During the time where Kirito was taking them through the various Forms of combat, Ko had remembered a small little passion he use to have as a child. He had an absolute love for Star Wars and immediately upon this opportunity gave himself over to become like Grandmaster Yoda. The little green fighter who astonished people by his skill and speed with the lightsaber, power over the Force and wisdom beyond his years. Ko aimed to be like that. A little green smurf, not blue. Green.
"You are forgiven Val-Shor. We understand." Heigun said, the cool diplomatic mask settling over his face once more even despite the fact that he was talking to a mere NPC, a [Quest] NPC for sure; but still just an NPC.
Ko would never really understand that man, then again he was just a 'young teenage child' as according to Kyojin; a scoff escaped his lips at the mere thought of such an audacious claim. He was young that was true, and it was a fact that he gladly accepted. Youth did not mean foolishness. For most it did mean a lack of experience regarding what most people would consider 'the real world'; a notion that found itself entirely unsupported and irrelevant. A mere shield and mask for those who considered themselves more experienced in matters of life. No one area of society, or of life, is more 'real' than the other. One cannot claim that the business world was more of a 'reality' than perhaps working with a charity organization. Being youthful gave him an outlook on life, one of innocence and naivety that the adults, or more 'mature grown ups' had forgotten. They had forgotten what it meant to simply be loose, be free, be imaginative and let yourself go wild. To him, they were the foolish unwise ones. For all their experiences that they claimed were drawn from 'real life', he saw them as no different than simply being the flipside of his version of life.
"You from [Seido] are strong. However this battle against the darkness is not over. We could use your help for longer." the voice that resounded within their heads clear and loud with each and every person, "There are two more points of darkness. Will you assist us?"
The opening lines for a [Quest Continuation] were obvious, and if any of them had missed it the pop up notification box certainly could not be dismissed. All of them pressed down on the [YES] button, letting the small invisible box collapse on itself before zooming away to their right and disappeared into thin air. Then again, could what which could not be seen disappear? It was an interesting thought that floated in Ko's head as he continued to walk along. His was not a mind of what was, but what could be, what was the possibilities; what was possible. However he was forced out of his wandering mind as the collective [YES] from everyone in the player group resulted in the next stage being activated; they were once more about to start moving.
"A single gift for all of you." Val-Shor suddenly announced after everyone had gotten ready, "It is one that I think you will all find beneficial."
A quick gesture of his fingers called over another Guardian. This one walked with the strides of confidence born only in either the arrogant or the powerful, the six slits on the mask pulsing with golden light as the being faced him. The voice that echoed forth from its speech was harmonious, smooth and pleasing to the ear as it wrapped around them like a cocoon, infiltrating their minds with the gentlest of breezes.
"We gift you the ability of [Blind Soul]." the voice evidently pointed towards a female, the smooth voice screaming of a woman's touch like a gentle carass across their faces, "It will render the telltale colors of what you call Sword Skills to be entirely nullified. From now on your blade will only shine with a color of your choosing." a wave of her gloved right hand, palm facing them whilst a golden glow shined forth, was all they saw before being captivated by the new sight before them.
Arcs of golden light streaked around them, striking the ground before suddenly deviating and striking a tree beside them. Thousands caging them, spinning around them like the intricate designs of a spider web; a tool perfectly crafted for capturing its foolish prey. Yet this was not designed for death, no when the light started to wrap itself around them; first one strand that lightly looped around an arm or a leg. The sense of a warm breeze flooded through them like the breath of God. Soon all, besides Kirito of course who stood there staring in amazement, were covered in the golden strands. Within minutes each and everyone of them looked like they had been wrapped like mummies, but in golden glowing strands all coming from a single beings open palm.
For Ko he could see nothing more than a golden glow that surrounded his world. It was warm, like a summer breeze that swirled around him in a tornado but arcs of the golden strands fluttered across his skin like the soft touches of wind. Slowly a single golden strand dissolved into his skin, he jerked his arm with eyes wide as he stared incredulously at what had just happened. But then another one wrapped around his other arm, the warmth turning from a calming breeze more into a hot wet towel being tied around his bicep. Then they started rushing at him, strand after strand circling his body and disappearing into his being with the burning warmth of lit coal. When they disappeared Ko stumbled forward a little, his breath coming in gasp as he drew in the cooling air. The very air touching his raw warm skin was like ice being dropped down his back, goosebumps rippled across his being as the hot and cold met in a deadly dance, each seeking dominance over the body of Ko.
"Let us depart. We have much ground to cover before nightfall." Val-Shor stated, cutting through the recuperation phase that had settled over all of them. His voice cold like the chilly air and yet warm like the previously glowing golden cocoon which had pressed in on them from every side.
The group set off with crunching under foot as the dry dead leaves were crushed, the group fanning out into a single file as they started their climb up a narrow pathway through the mountain. Ko looked at the ground as he placed on careful foot after the other, gloomy grey lightning surrounding them like a never ending choking fog. The bulging stones, along the winding narrow path that zig zagged up the mountain face, were extremely slippery from the moisture of the fog. The path was steep, already Ko could feel the slight burn in his calf, the tensing of muscles as they moved in tandem to keep him walking forward. He knew that soon they would become extremely hard as the muscles tensed up beyond belief, this would be followed by the feeling of someone threading barbed wire through his calves and then pulling it repeatedly. Later when they stopped for a break there would be this tight sense where someone seemed to be grabbing his calf and tightening its grip slowly. The joy. He was entirely ecstatic. He would pull out his wings now, however they had a timer on them and he did not want to be without wings when the going got even tougher later on.
He reached out and grabbed a low hanging tree branch, grunting as he pulled himself up to the next step; giving his calf muscles a little relief amidst an ocean of amounting pain. Each step heavier than the last, each step sending shockwaves through his body like as if an internal earthquake was occurring throughout every molecule of his being. A sigh escaped his lips before refreshing air filled through his lungs, coldness sizzling down his throat spiking against the back of his throat and sending pings of slight pain into his brain. His wakizashi hung loosely at his waist, the cool hard metal bouncing against his clothed thigh, Ko placed one hand on the hilt, feeling confidence and comfort flowing through him as the feeling of the familiar hilt touched and coursed through his arm.
"Hey Ko." the voice of Kirito spoke out from behind him, his breath not even a little hitched nor phased; Ko wasn't even sure if he was feeling any muscle burns.
"Yeah?" came his reply, calm and composed despite the internal whining that was taking place. His eyes took in the detail of another dulled grey tree, the bark curved as it dipped over the large drop on his left; one slip and any individual would go flying down like a rock.
"The next temple will be yours and Arashi's to deal with."
Silence for a few heartbeats as Ko took a little while to process what he had just been told.
"I just finished speaking with the Venator. Hints from his dialogue state that the next temple use to be the home of air denizens. Knowing your style, maybe you'll find something you like there." Kirito reasoned to the fourteen year old teenager. Ko could find nothing wrong with that, it was nice to actually have someone else think about him. From the first time Kirito had found him as the last survivor of his group, the other man had always taken care of him.
The first time the two met was after an experience that still gave Ko nightmares. Ko had gone out with his party, a bunch of people he knew from real life that had logged in together. The sky had been sunny that day, bright and blue with few to little clouds dawned upon the great heavens. They had approached a forest tree line, a few kilometers away from the small outpost they had stayed at, to start the day of grinding and farming. It had started well as they hunted a few [Flying Snakes] as well as the few [Wild Boars] they could find. The party had consisted of twelve people with the oldest being fifteen and the youngest thirteen. They had been trudging through the forest, much like they were right now, when out of nowhere an invading force of [Seiyari] jumped them from the shadows. Their spears had descended upon them like rains of death, immediately three had died to the advancing wild spearmen. Oh how they had fought back after the shock wore off, at which time another two had perished into the bright heart wrenching light as the sound of glass shattering became the wrenching sound Ko would hear for the next ten minutes. Finding that fighting was futile after their best player had fallen they fled like cowards, running away from the advancing warriors as their wings buzzed in the only hope they had; only to find themselves being impaled through the back one by one.
Ko would never forget the look on the NPCs face as they did this, a face of pure gleeful joy as if killing others was nothing more than a game to it. The wide spread grin gave the hard looking face a feralness to it that screamed beast instead of man. He remembered how the NPCs arm had been cocked back, long spear in its arm as it took aim to impale Ko straight through the heart; just like the pain that had embedded itself within him as the sound of his friends death carried across the winds alongside their blue polygons. It had been at that moment when the face had seemed to come closer to him, looming ever larger like the face of a demon; only to actually hit him in the face and bounce off, flesh meeting flesh in the virtual world before tumbling down into the forest floor below, glowing bright white and blue as it did; and exploding upon contact with the hard ground. Behind the exploded body of white had been Kirito, his blade outstretched in the final swing as the silence of the forest surrounded them once more, not even a hint of the screams that had permeated the air mere seconds earlier. Kirito had not said a single thing as they looked at one another, simply reaching out with one arm and holding an open palm before whisking Ko away into a world that was completely different. A world where he could be strong enough to protect those around him. A world where he actually felt safe despite the death game, a world where there was hope in the midst of a sea of chaos. Stability in futility. A world parallel to the depression, guilt and suffering. Mere inches away and yet at the same time entire galaxies apart.
"Sure. Thanks Kirito." Ko replied, brushing aside the rush of thought that swirled in his mind like a raging hurricane that blew away thoughts of anything else. Whilst they were on this trip Kirito had enforced that if they did not call him by his name, he would not respond. There was to be no formality during this hunting party.
LINE BREAK
It was late night by the time they finally reached the second destination, by this point the entire team had been walking for over 5 hours. The stars twinkled overhead in their winking presence, illuminating the night sky as the group settled down into a clearing near the edge of a cliff. Trees curved away in a circular shape leaving a nice little opening, a safe haven almost, out from the [Silent Forest]. The ground was hard, made from compacted dirt and stone with roots sticking out in odd places. The bustling from their group as they set up some tents, bedrolls, a campfire and some cooking utensils, seemed to echo emptily against the absolute silence that came from the forest. But over the edge of the cliff, looking straight down one would only see endless darkness, whilst looking up to find the tree tops. Where the cliff edge ended, the [Silent Forest] extended deeper into its depths.
The campsite was soon split into two sections. One for the golden armored beings and one for the players, the two sections could not contrast each other more. One was bare of anything beside strange golden crystals that had been embedded into the ground at various locations, each pulsed softly and slowly; almost as if it was the heart of someone who was asleep. Contrary to this the players had set up a few tents and bedrolls, as well as scattering quite a few flame torches around the clearing to give off a soft dim light. However in the middle was a simple clearing with a relatively wide campfire. Very quickly there was a pot over the burning orange flame that had been started by one of the Guardians, as well as the delicious aroma of herbed stew.
Ko watched from a relative distance as Exota stood before the pot, shadows flickering around her as the flames ate into the sky. She threw in some strange long herb or vegetable, bending over slightly to take a wiff from the pot and nodding. He was leaning against a rock face that extended out and created a wall, a barrier that held off the trees from the forest line to the edge of the cliff. The stone was black as casted from the flames of the campfire and cold against his back despite the woolen cloth that adorned him. The fog that had previously been surrounding them all day had finally dissipated an hour ago, and for that the General was grateful.
"I hope she isn't planning on poisoning us." Arashi whispered over to Ko as the General pushed himself off the wall and started walking towards the middle ground.
"Who knows." Ko replied, "If Kirito was cooking I don't think he would even have to try to poison us. It just would be toxic already."
A short bark of laughter escaped Arashi's mouth as the two Generals reached the back of the line of others. Exota always expected them to be in a strict line or she refused to serve them food; this had been seen on more than one occasion and both male Generals were hungry; at this point even if they had to beg on their knees they probably would do it. That is after the torture of climbing this mountain they could still kneel of course.
"True that." Arashi chuckled, "True that."
Eventually it arrived to their turn, each second of waiting, each step closer to the pot, had been absolute agony. The smell of delicious stew had mixed into the air and resulted in the rumbling of stomachs as they were so close, yet so far away, from the food source. The flickering dancing flames casting strange shapes against their bodies that leaned into the ground and disappeared into the forms of shadowy monsters. Ko watched the tall broad back of Kyojin as he hunched ever so slightly, keeping his large hands steady as he held the bowl of stew, the dark brown curved little utensil nestled in his palms.
"Come on Ko, we don't have all day." Exota chided him, causing him to shake his head a little as he stepped forward.
Warm air rolled over him like a thick blanket as it flowed forth from the flames and danced along the air, weaving, ducking and twirling around him like an exotic dancer. The flickering beauty hypnotized his eyes. He could feel the sudden heat rushing into the wooden bowl that he had, warm and refreshing enough that it broke him out of his musing as it slowly swirled in. The piercing marble white stare of Exota hinted to him that he should move, and move he did; stepping well clear of Arashi as he did so to not spill his dinner.
Settling down on the damp floor near the other players, as they lingered not too far away from the campfire, Ko slowly brought the bowl closer to his face. He placed it against his lips, lightly tipping it and hesitantly sucking in a small morsel of the stew. The heat rushed through his tongue and into his body, the slight bitter taste of herbs lingering in an undertone as an overwhelming mix of saltiness, sweetness and the light tang of herbs rushed past his artificial taste buds and into his mind. Already around the gathering of players the satisfactory sighs could be heard as they took sips from the hot stew. Ko took another sip, feeling the warm liquid seeping throughout his body, easing aches he had accumulated from the hike as it worked like magic through his system. At that moment he was extremely glad Exota was on the leadership team, it was a blessing in disguise with the food she could cook.
"Hey Kirito." Heigun spoke up halfway through the meal, "When are we going to get to the next location?" it was a simple question that was something on everyone's mind no doubt. The soft grunt of exertion and then movement next to Ko meant that Arashi and Exota had come into the group as well. They shuffled a little on their buts, wiggling to the left then the right, in attempts to give the two remaining Generals some space.
"According to the Venator it's only fifteen minutes away." the Executor said with a shrug as he sat next to Argo, their mask retracted at the moment as they partook of the meal. It was only the Generals who knew what the Executor actually looked like, besides the Empress of course. This was no new accurance as one of the first things that had been asked of Kirito had actually been 'What do you look like?' asked by none other than Kyojin who challenged the authenticity of their leader. Of course it came to an absolute shock at the youthful appearance of Kirito after that and the big oaf had challenged him; only to be promptly beaten over and over again in a one on one duel.
"So ..." there was a little trail of silence as Arashi looked at Kirito expectantly, as did the other Generals, "Why don't we go now?"
"In a [Hell Zone]? During the night? While everyone is tired?" Kirito asked the three questions in rapid succession, each one hammering through the Generals like a cold iron that was slammed in with three strikes from a strong powerful hammer, "I will not risk your lives in this game just because we are impatient." his glance around the clearing stared down each and every single one of the Generals in the eye, "I do not want a Leroy Jenkins here do you all understand? Do not forget that if we die here, we die in real life."
A soft chuckle ran through the crowd at the wry grin that Kirito had chucked at them when he mentioned the meme famous RPG celebrity for his stupidity in charging straight into danger. Despite the reminder of the death game they now lived, gamers would be gamers and would always find the silliness of that one man a humor to be immortalized.
"Alright. I think they get it Kii-bou~. No need to be mean to them." Argo teased him with a slight smirk adorned on her lips. They had slowly gotten used to the way the two interacted around in a more private setting. The first time it had happened the Generals had gasped at the way their leader seemed to belittle the Empress, who could well exile him on the spot. They had held bated breaths when she gasped and stared at him incredulously as if she couldn't believe what her ears had received. Then she had placed both her hands, in fist, on either side of her hips and cocked it to one side before returning with a sarcastic bite that could probably burn ice. The Generals had starred in silent shock as the two continued to playfully bite at each other. Now it was a common occurrence that the Generals were normalized towards.
Ko could have sworn he had seen a quick glimpse in both of their eyes of what could only be worded as yearn, or desire. It had disappeared quicker than it had appeared and he only thought he caught a glimpse of it. If the two ever did get into a relationship none of them would be surprised, each had their own theories and bets on when it would happen. Ko had placed his in the timeslot relatively far into the future; but would earn a huge amount of Col from it if he did actually win.
"Argo." he growled playfully as he half heartedly glared at her; or, Ko thought, would it be more accurately described as no heartedly glared? He had no idea. The two of them jived together too well for him to actively and accurately guess anything in all honesty.
"What? I didn't say anything!" she exclaimed as she glanced up innocently at Kirito, batting her eyelashes a little. The group laughed at his expenses when he let out a groan and slumped, placing his head low enough that his chin touched his chest before letting out a huge sigh. Ko found a laugh vibrating through him as he shook his head, shoulders trembling as he looked upon the sight of the Executor being conned down by the Empress. The strongest blademaster in their Kingdom taken down by a few words and bambi like eyes. Kirito was so whipped by this girl; no matter what he said.
The rest of the meal was relaxing, jokes thrown around the circle like bolts of laughter. More than once someone had choked on the stew as they caught themselves laughing at what someone had said whilst also trying to down the delicious meal; the hot liquid going down the wrong throat pipe. Ko had never laughed so hard in his life before, a few times he had keeled over in laughter, his head pressed up against the damp ground when Mizumi explained a situation where he had gone fishing, only to catch himself on his pants and then flipping into the lake. The sight of the mysterious like General being so, mundane, simply made it even funnier.
"Once I was playing this game with a friend of mine from school." Ko said, as they all had eyes on him now, slight smiles on their lips as if they were ready for another round of laughter, "And so we joined a public dungeon run. We bumped into this other player by the name of Lumos and you know, considering the name I thought it was some young teenager; and I guessed it was a guy too I mean what girl would name themselves Lumos right?" Ko slapped both his hands against his head in a gesture of exclamation like he couldn't believe it. A round of chuckles had already circled in the group as they found this slightly worth laughing at.
"Excuse me!" Exota exclaimed, "Lumos is not a guy name!"
"What girl would name themselves Lumos Exota?" Ko asked, "Yeah, hi my name is Lumos and I'm a girl! Ah! Much beauty. Such amazing." the youngest General said with a slightly higher pitched voice whilst he flipped imaginary hair away from his neck and flung his head to the other side, as if he couldn't even stand the sight of Exota. He smacked his lips like he had eaten something sour, the sound loud within the small group and resulted in the roaring laughter of the other Generals. Even Exota had a smile on her lips.
"Anyway! Back on track." the young General said with a chuckle as he returned to his story, "Right so I don't know why but that night my friend and I ended up talking about how, you know, girls did certain … stuff. But here is the catch, the player from the pub turned out to be an eight year old girl who had no idea what er … masturbation ... even meant!" Ko finished with a sheepish grin and wide spread arms up into the sky in a grand finale to his tale. The group bursted out laughing, a few actually rocking back and letting loose a loud roar of laughter into the night sky; twinkling silver and white lights dotted in the high heavens like lights of a far away city. The warmth from the flickering flames seeping into their clothes and keeping the colder night at bay.
"You ruined a little girl's innocence! You pervert! Cradle snatcher!" said Exota between biting gasp of air due to her vigorous laughter.
"Hey! I didn't know okay!" the despaired look on Ko's face just sent the group into another round of laughter as they shook their heads.
"Well I don't know about you but I'm headed for bed. This laughing has gotten me tired." Kirito spoke out as he stood up, stretching and arching his back like a cat. The golden blazing lines bright against the darkness around him, and the dull dark colors of his armor, "Good night everyone."
That was one of the things Ko loved about Kirito. He did not treat them like children, despite being the strongest player in their Kingdom and also their leader. He trusted them to make the right decisions and only pulled his executive command during moments of need. For example his choice of making them lay here for the night was logical, as well as in all honesty beneficial in the long run. But even now during the late night, he did not command them all to get to bed, instead he trusted them to do so themselves. To be independent and self thought instead of just blindly following a leader. A mere glance around the group circle saw heads nodding in respect towards their leader as Argo and him slowly disappeared back to the tents, before their eyes flickered back amongst the group. Slowly one by one the Generals began to excuse themselves and head for bed. Each standing up at various points after finishing a conversation before turning in for the night. Eventually none remained but Ko. He stared emptily at the bowl at his feet, black shadows pooled within it like as if that was the substance waiting for his consumption. Sighing he too left and before he knew it sleep shrouded his mind and he was lost in the black embrace of rest.
Ko realized that he was not the first to wake up when the sound of chattering started to slowly pierce through his veil of sleep. He grumbled under his breath, still mostly encaptured within the grasp of rest, and turned over whilst letting his consciousness disappear back into the depths of unconsciousness. But yet that small moment of disruption had caused slumber to falter its hold on him, the darkness was slipping away; only to be replaced by dim morning light of the early rising dawn. General Ko let out a sigh of displeasure as he groaned, sitting up and feeling his body protest from how sore it felt. The little circular opening above them showed the sky turning from its black, to deep dark blue, to the purple and pink hues of morning; all in one area. It would have certainly been stunning if for the fact that he was not so tired and wanted nothing more than to just go to sleep.
He looked to the right, and immediately stilled himself. Sitting off the edge of the cliff was the black cloaked back of Kirito, the material pooling around him as he sat with feet dangling off the endless black darkness. However that was not what had shocked him into stillness, it was the fact that right beside him was the figure of Argo. Her brown cloak pooling over his, lapping on top like two waves, one brown and one black; they merged and tumbled like the open oceans. Her head was tilted up by a single black gloved hand, her head a little bit to the left, whilst Kirito's head was tilted towards the right. Both their eyes were closed in silent bliss, her brown auburn hair flowing down her back beautifully like a waterfall that slowly rippled in the soft breeze around them. Her lips softly meeting his over and over again. Pressing herself into his lips, only to slightly back away and open her mouth; to once more dive back in and capture his again and again. It was not the rushed, passionate kissing that was done whilst in heat, but rather the gentle loving one that communicated feelings in ways that words could not.
Ko blushed as he looked down abashed, his cheeks burning bright red as he quickly laid back down on the ground swiftly and quietly. His back straight and arms firm by his side he simply stared at the open air above him before shutting his eyes hard and pretending to forget about everything he had just seen. Girls were still a little bit gross to him; they were interesting and he had sudden urges to kiss one, but for now they remained in the zone of 'looking' but not 'touching'. Funnily enough, after that great shock that had no doubt shaken him awake, Ko fell back into the grasp of sleep as if it had parted just to poke its head out and see the event unfolding and then laying back down with its grasp firmly on him. His mind disappeared into the black space of rest and he forgot all he had seen, his mind putting it down into a dream.
"Ko." a voice whispered out from the darkness, it bumped into his mind and sort of stayed there, fluttering in space as it tried to grasp him; failing.
"Ko." a nudge this time, physical too, harder. It shook his body and the darkness that surrounded him slowly started to recede. But he didn't want it to go, it felt nice to be in oblivion. Ko could feel the very edge of his left hand and raised it, trying to find whatever was the issue and pushing it away.
"Ko!" the voice said, annoyed now in the tone. It was shaking him even more roughly, and the darkness retreated even faster. He didn't want that.
"Ko!" a large push turned him over from his side and on to his face. The sudden hard ground pressed up against his nose caused him to jerk up, pushing off the compacted dirt and stone with his hands and whirled around, glaring at whoever had done that.
"What do you want!" the teenage boy growled, glaring harshly at the acute and sharp angular face of Arashi. No doubt his eyes were smouldering with anger for being awoken from his slumber, especially after that strange and weird dream that he had of Argo and Kirito kissing.
"It's time to get moving man." Arashi laughed in his face, a wide grin splitting his mouth as he laughed at Ko's misgivings. The disgruntled boy glared back at the older teen before grumbling about 'unfairness' and 'stupid timetable'. He quickly shouldered his pack, brushed his right hand against the hilt of his blade, and shrugged his clothing to a more comfortable setting and nodded once, still glaring at the Generals around him for awakening him.
"Let's get moving adventurers!" Val-Shor roared, causing a few players to chuckle as the group began to move in an instant. Ko could not believe these people. It was bloody eight in the morning! How could they do this to him! The young General sighed, shaking his head and clearing his thoughts as they began their supposedly fifteen minute journey. Knowing their luck it would probably turn out to be a fifteen hour journey that he would then scream bloody murder.
The ground was uneven from the get go, rising at incredibly steep angles in one section, then dipping so far down that they could not even see the end of the darkness that swirled at the bottom. It was like they were climbing over different mountains the entire way, a walk that was certainly tiring out the players to the extent that if any ambush team were to arrive right then, the fight would be hard pressed as players tried to stay alive. Ko grunted as he stepped gingerly down a single step, grasping tightly to the branch overhead as he stabilized himself, easing off the aching muscles.
"I hope we get there soon." Ko said breathlessly, groaning slightly as he pulled himself up once more on to the steep step made from even further compressed earth like as if a giant finger had just decided to come and press the ground in. It was even more compacted than the normal dirt they walked on, and thus made it all the more painful to fall down, which served as a great dissuader for going fast and losing your balance, "Because my feet are about to die."
LINE BREAK
Arashi had heard the complaint of Ko relatively easily in fact, considering that the older teen was only a step ahead of the younger child. However the reason he did not bother to reply was because of the view before him. Clearing the last hill ridge had set them high at a peak looking down into a valley that was filled with the green leaves of treetops, the sloping angle slopes of the mountains covered in what seemed like green hair. The drop from where he was standing, alongside the rest of the Guardians, as well as some of the faster Generals, went straight down for kilometers, disappearing into the thick foliage of tree tops as if they were the grass off the floor instead. But what had really caught their attention were the three giant constructs rising forth out from the tree tops like mountains themselves. They were situated in the center of the large circular valley, the green leaves parting before them like commoners before royalty.
Each had a central rectangular building that reached high into the sky, it was surrounded by smaller towers, spirals of what looked like staircases on the outside rounding around them like snakes. At the tip of each of the central blocks were tall pyramids, their peaks pointing into the sky like fingers of the earth accusing the air for its corruption. Other buildings surrounded each of them, some small, some large, some short, some tall. Each in their own special design that was a shared theme between the three towers. Their arches, even from the distance, were absolutely beautiful and breathtaking, curving like the arc of a person's back, as they supported the old structures. Absolutely breathtaking.
"This is amazing." Exota whispered under her breath as the last Generals stepped into the sight of the valley and stayed still from shock. Her white marble like eyes tracing every visible detail from this distance, flickering from one corner to the other like a dashing dancer; beautiful.
Arashi suddenly turned around, his blade being drawn in the split second needed as the sound of rustling and growling could be heard from the screaming silence of the forest. All the Generals had turned around, and so had the Guardians, their golden pulsing hues standing invisible against the sudden shining light of the rising sun. From the tree line emerged a horde of skeleton like creatures crafted from wood. Branches interwoven together to form their bones that crackled stiffly upon movement, fingers that were long and gnarly, sharp even to the untrained eye, merely finished the look of a demon as it's back bristled with long, hard and sharp branches. A swirling black mass could be seen oozing out from beneath its ribcage, pulsing like a heartbeat as it pushed against the restraints. The glow, or rather the darkness, could be seen spreading to the head and flickering forth from its hollow eye sockets, or what was supposed to be eye sockets, like black flames. Out from their skulls came a clicking sound, when started by one sounded nothing more than drumsticks hitting against drumsticks; but then one by one they all joined it till it swelled like a giant tsunami about to consume them. Their clicking advanced before them, causing the Generals to step back at the sheer number that came forth, the terror debuff rolling off them in waves as it assaulted their minds.
"[Corrupted Tree Denziens]." Val-Shor grimaced, letting out a thought that sounded grave within their minds, "We will hold them off. You will cleanse those three temples and save us. Good luck."
That was all they had before the monsters suddenly dashed forward. Of course with their awkward limbs it was not a very successful dash, but for those that fell down another simply climbed over them. It looked like a sudden rolling mass of dry branches that screamed murder, screamed a thirst for blood along with a demonic darkness that grinned lewdly at the thought of death and massacre. But sudden blazes of bright molten golden light, that arced between the Guardians and the oncoming horde, shocked the Generals into action as they turned and activated their wings, blowing off the cliff edge like arrows from a bowstring leaving nothing but the roars of warriors behind them as they faced off a nightmarish hell.
But for the Generals, the air howled around them, gripping at them as they pushed through it with wings buzzing and ablaze. Arashi grinned as the feeling of the air rippling through his hair set his mind at rest, he spread both arms out before doing a little twirl to the left, barrel rolling, and letting out a holler of ecstasy. He was the second most natural when it came to aerial combat, he was the most natural flier out of all the Generals. Not including Kirito of course. But as he thought of this, as he let his mind wander like a carefree child in the great feeling of weightlessness that surrounded him, the gut wrenching feeling of having his stomach somewhere far away, the adrenaline that coursed in his veins; he noticed a flicker on their left.
"Incoming!" Kyojin roared as he readied his blade, weighing it carefully in his left hand as he readied himself. When the approaching figure neared him the giant of a man suddenly lashed out, rolling over to gain even more strength for mid air combat and slashed right through the attacking hostile like a hot knife through butter, or in this case a glowing red hot cleaver through a pork leg. His blade trailing crimson red the entire way, like as if blood clung to his blade and trailed off behind it like the lives of those who had opposed him.
"Hurry!" Kirito yelled, his voice carrying the concern he felt for his Generals as they flew high above the tall treetops. Arashi believed no doubt that if one were to look at them from the distance it would almost seem like as if they were a group of pixies from Peter Pan, with their translucent wings and trailing shining particles. But even if they did indeed look cartoony, General Storm could not deny the fact that they were indeed fast. All of them were capable of keeping up with each other's speed. Of course he knew that Kirito and Argo were holding back to fly alongside their Generals; but that was besides the point.
"I'm flying as fast as I can!" Arashi yelled back to be heard over the winds, both of his swords held loosely within his hands as they hung out behind him like a third pair of cold steel wings that wouldn't hesitate to immediately cut into anything that crossed his path. His eyes narrowed as a figure approached him, "This one is mine!" the General claimed as he dove down to intercept the rising beast.
The mob that was quickly reaching them was large, it was about the size of a bus with a pair of grey leathery wings raised upon its back. It had no arms, no legs and looked like a giant flying grey snake, except its head was more compacted. It opened its thick wide mouth in a roar that got carried away by the rushing wind, rows upon rows of sharp teeth flashing as light reflected off it. The strangely looking human like tongue whipped out in the air as if it was attempting to eat the very space around it.
Arashi eyes narrowed as he got closer to it. Twenty meters. Fifteen meters. Ten meters. Five meters. Just before the two were about to collide the General banked his body to the right, brushing past the beast. It was close enough that he could see the individual scales upon the length of its body, slimy goop like substance disappearing off its back in droplets. Black beady eyes rolling in their sockets as they locked on to him, the head whipping around as it tried to follow the closest prey. Arashi flipped in mid air, using his wings to push him just high enough that as the creatures rushed past, it completely missed him; the sound of clopping jaws as it missed the target. However this position placed him in a perfect time slot for a second, he could see where both its wings met its body, and without even thinking; in a motion so second nature, the young man swung his arms from low to high; adding in a spin for both dramatic effect as well as practicality. His twin blades flashed like bolts of lightning, cutting through the bone filaments that held the wing to the creature's body, streaks of a sky blue light following his blades. He was off, not even bothering to see how the creature fell, not bothering to see how its mouth opened in a scream of silent terror, the roar disappearing as it was stolen by the wind.
"Come on!" Ko yelled to him as he approached the group once more, blue skies sparkling above them that seemed so far, so detached from the horror of war that was going on around them. As if nature itself was mocking them as it stared sparkling down against the world, watching them contempt for they were nothing more than mortals. The younger teenager motioned with his hand, waving him to them as the group rushed forward, still trying to get to the temples without dying against the mass number of [Hell Zone] mobs.
The treetops underneath them flashed by in a blur of green and brown, like a wavering sea that slowly waved forth and fro with the currents. The feeling of air ripping at his clothes, swirling through his hair and flowing between his fingers was a feeling that Arashi never wanted to let go, it made him feel so alive. The first temple appeared ever more closely in front of them, growing larger and larger with each passing second as they rushed towards it like meteorites falling forth from the sky. He could now see the rough inscriptions amongst the stone walls, huge carvings that dug meters into the yellow stone, that spiralled as if they had been engraved not into solid rock but into water. Elegant swirls that spiralled into interactions that left a sense of wonder from simply looking at it, one could only wonder at how talented the author of these sigils had been for they were too beautiful to have been carved from the hands of man.
A slight tilt towards the left changed their trajectory incredibly as the small change in movement took them from moving straight to curving around the temple. Circling it like birds of prey as they slowly descended in a tight orbit, one that would bleed away their speed so that when they landed they wouldn't break their backs or legs. In a place like this [Silent Forest], that was a terrible thought that sent shivers down their backs just from thinking about it; essentially a death warrant. The lower they got in their descending orbit, the darker the air became, colder and a primal scream that echoed in each and every person that death waited for them. Hidden in its own large shadow was the entrance to the first temple, cloaked within the darkness that surrounded it like coils of a sleeping serpent whose flickering tongue caused the air to whip around them.
They stood nearly twenty meters away from the door, another few hundred meters behind them as the group stood in a clearing before the door. Something, a small part of all of them, had told them to step. They were frozen in their positions, muscles tense and weapons ready in a circle as they waited like what seemed forever. Tension and suspense filling the air like gelatin to the point that even a blunt spoon could have cut through the atmosphere. There was no more sound, no more monsters that rushed at them from the treetops, none of their terrifying screeches that had been carried away by the wind anyway, none of their long slimey twisting bodies. There was no sound, even the breathing of the Generals were controlled and soft; the only thing giving this away as reality and not some picture was the fact that the wind blew softly around them.
Arashi glared in the darkness, his grip upon the twin blades in either of his hands tightening. All he saw were the faded peach colored slabs of stones that made up the entire temple complex; the walls that were made from this, the floors, the doorframes. He could see the minute details of these stones from his sheer concentration, small particles of broken off stone that rolled aimlessly from their descent. Their detail becoming more and more obscured as his eyes travelled to the darkened areas that oozed forth an uneasy feeling. It was like as if they were standing in the shadow of a giant beast, a giant dormant beast that had yet to be awoken; and once awake would rage havoc upon all things. Arashi's eyes flickered over to the left, skimming across the darkness like a surfboarder as he attempted to find something that would explain the cold anxious feeling that weighed down inside of his stomach like a sack of frozen bricks. It seemed to have nestled itself in between his intestines, twisting them into knots and cramping them together; the fear had begun to spread into his chest like vines of corruption slowly spreading throughout his body. He gritted his teeth, muscles bulging on either side of his jaw, whilst his eyes flicked to the right, trying to find something once more.
Suddenly the world slowed down for Arashi, suddenly everything became super acute in his vision like as if he was seeing the world through the eyes of a hawk. The rustling leaves in the background seemed to have slowed to a snail pace crawl, like almost as if time itself had turn into jello that was holding them all captive. But what had caught his attention, what had caused his eyes to widen so much, was the bulge along the top of the doorframe. This was an ancient temple made out of giant slabs of faded yellowish peach color stones that were easily twice the height of Kyojin in terms of length and height. Yet here, for where the world seemed to almost stand still, four of those pieces were being pushed outward; like as if there was a great force pushing in on the middle contact point between them. He was already in the motion of jumping back, Arashi could feel his leg muscles expanding as he pushed off the ground, his wings slowly beginning to flutter and buzz to give his leap even more power; something that he had done completely unconsciously. His mouth had opened, probably in an attempt to warn his comrades of what was going on, but his mouth opened slowly like as if he was an old man trying to chew down on a particularly large piece of steak. Yet his mind was processing everything that was happening at such high speeds. But before anything else could continue, whether it be thought trains of movements or a yell, everything was silenced when the beast smashed through the wall and appeared screaming with a thunderous screech that blew them back.
The world tumbled for Arashi, thrashing around and becoming strange. Up became down and down became up for more than once as the sheer appearance of this creature threw him back. Everything finally settled back into place when got his bearing, skidding across the ground as he slammed both blades into the stone, scratching the surface as his attempt to slow him down actually worked. Arashi stared at the sudden black hole in the giant construct, and felt his heart seize up at the sight before them. Its head was huge, just by itself as it easily reached the size of a bus.
It was as black as midnight with terror that came only from those of the deepest nightmares. Hardened bones protruded forth from its skin angling backwards, an underbite displaying its long serrated teeth. It screeched at them again, the long neck waving side to side like the body of a snake, twin pitch black wings slammed into the ground with claws at the very edge, leathery skin hanging between the arm bones to create dragon like wings. Rows upon rows of spines appeared in a rush down the middle of its back whilst its long thin black tail whipped around it like that of a cat. A purple glow emanating forth from its eyes as it stared at them before it reared its huge head backwards and opened its mouth, as if it were taking in a deep breath, instead violet wisp swirled around its mouth, dancing around the serrated sharp teeth like as if they were nothing more than a playground, a sharp whine filling the air like jet engines about to take off; a sound of death and a promise of pain.
A split silence warned all of them of imminent danger before their view exploded into a world of purple fire. It had launched a bolt right into the middle of the clearing, blasting a hole through the stone construct with the edges sizzling red hot, melted from the sheer heat of the dragon fire blast. Arashi crouched down, tensing his legs like a spring, before jumping into the air, his wings flaring as it caught a wind current and carried him easily. He watched as out from the dust cloud the Generals one by one appeared, streaks of gold and silver signs of the survival of Kirito and Argo. The Storm General quickly reached for his pouch, grabbing a [Health Flask] and downing it, he had lost 75% of his [Health] from the few seconds they had battled this boss. The feeling of air blowing around him caused his eyes to flicker to the left and to the right, seeing General Ko and Kyojin appearing beside him, the other Generals following behind their wake as they grouped up.
"What is that thing?" Ko asked, his voice tinged with awe and wonder at such a creature. His small form would seem foolish compared to the huge body of the boss.
"Looks like a wyvern." the comment came from Shukaku who was holding her dual khopeshes in either hand, their tips pointing down to the ground for the moment as she scanned the beast that appeared through the fading dust cloud as it settled back on the ground.
"It's name is [Savraera]." Heigun called out as his [Observe] skills cut through the hidden name of the beast and immediately revealed the same detail to them all, the Peacekeeper whistled when the [Health Circles] of the beast appeared in their view. Arashi had to agree as he gave out a particularly loud sigh, "The level is 1784."
The wyvern had twelve [Health Circles] and a huge, very huge, [Mana Circle] that pulsed behind it. Arashi let out a groan, it was going to take a long time to cut this thing down. Considering they were in a [Hell Zone], the level itself was way higher than any General here, exceeding even Kirito and Argo's level and no doubt was extremely powerful. The stats of this boss could probably be three or four times higher than those of normal mobs at this level, meaning they were efficiently fighting an almost divine like being. Arashi glanced at it, the boss was sniffing the ground as it tried to find where its prey had gone, lowering its head to the ground and trying to catch a scent. For now the Generals had time to train, but once the wyvern found them flying it would only be a matter of time before the battle would be taken to the air. Another factor to consider was the fact that the Generals wings had limited timed lifespans before they would have to return to the ground, none were like Argo or Kirito's which lasted indefinitely. But the moment they were stranded on the ground, they might as well be dead meat.
"Shizu, tell us the plan." Shukaku said, hovering there with her wings out and beating, as she stared at the one known as the Tactician.
"Ko and Arashi, I want the two of you to draw agro for the first few minutes." the sharp and cold voice of Shizu, the Tactician, spoke out to them like storm clouds that warned for a storm that was about to approach, one that would blow you away if you were not careful in a swirling wind of knowledge, "Kyojin, Nagawa and Mizumi; the three of you will aim for its wings in that time slot, get it to the ground or not we'll be dead within hours when our wings run out." Arashi shivered at that, the cold reminder of death awaiting them, but yet for now it was a distant thought, a vague theory and idea that sort of swam around his head; but never really interacted with him. Yet.
"The rest of us, we harass [Savraera]. Keep the agro separated once it's reached the ground. Whilst it's in the air aim for its tendons." The plan seemed simple enough, basically it was to just get the wyvern down to the ground, and then completely surround it and destroy it from there. The typical strategy of a beta tester against flying units, the type of strategy you would see in a fantasy world of dragon slayers, "Let's go."
Arashi turned around, breaking away from the group as he rose higher into the air alongside Ko, their wing trails disappearing in the wind as the winds increased their speeds the higher they went. The world expanded out in his view when he finally stopped, he was at the same height as one of the taller towers of the temple, the green forest tops looking like an endless ocean of leaves that rippled like water under the gentle caress of the wind. He twirled the twin swords in his hands a little, letting them swirl around him like the very air itself as he slowly began to angle his body into a descent, leaning forward slightly. Ko was doing the same beside him.
"Well. Let's have a little fun." General Arashi said with a feral grin that split his face suddenly, his eyes widening with excitement as adrenaline coursed through his body like liquid fire, heating him up and readying him, "Let's go Ko!" he roared as he dove down, the whistling of the air surround his ears and filling his world as everything became a sudden blur; only the wyvern stayed in focus of his eyes as the rest turned into one large mesh.
As he approached he placed both his swords upon his right shoulder, letting the storm blue color fill over the blade like a coat of air. He waited, feeling the power of the Sword Skill fill the blade as it yearned, and ached, to explode. When he was mere meters away from the wyvern's head, that had snapped up at his approach and had opened its maw whilst violet swirls appeared once more as it readied for another blast of hot purple flames, he unleashed the power of his blades, letting them carry him forward like the brushing winds around him. He spun, gaining kinetic energy and power as he dove forward, his blades arching down from his right shoulder before his body followed, allowing it continue its path of motion that soon turned into a pinwheel of action. He slammed into the boss with such power that it actually interrupted its charging Skill, snapping its mouth shut in an explosion of blue lights that crashed into it. Arashi unleashed a 'whoop' of excitement before grinning as he looked straight into the eyes of [Savraera]. His own smile could rival the predatory nature glimpse in the sparks of the wyvern's reptilian eyes.
Let the fun begin.