Banshee
Aeternus || Nexus
Town Center
Affected Players: Moon234, Ares, Alessia, Aurora

Perfect, the kid was talking up her reputation on his own! This was exactly what Banshee had in mind, and she was surprised it was working out so smoothly. "So, these are your friends, Moon? I was right to imagine that they'd be quite tough." She wasn't quite sure where to proceed from there. She needed a way into this group without stooping so low as to ask for it. Maybe if she worded it just right, she could invite herself along. "As the boy said, I'm keeping an eye out for a party worthy of my skills. Only the best can benefit most from what I have to offer." She shot Ares a knowing glance. She could see he was level 5 already, and that was no joke at this early stage. A lot of folks were still traumatized by the situation they were put in and couldn't bring themselves to risk training so readily.

---

HP: 100%
SP: 100
Level: 1
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x10

Prince
Aeternus ll Nexus
Town Gates
Affected Players: Maximellio

"Bring it kitty." Prince smirked, his eyes watching as two of the strange man appeared, surrounding him and pushed him. Being a agile and quick individual, he landed on his hands and front flipped into a standing position before bolting after his target, only pausing a few times as his status effect held him in place briefly. Still there was a mistake the thief seemed to have forgotten.

Whistling loudly, the white wolf pup bounced out from the hat and latched itself upon the stranger's face. Snarling and scraping its paws against the person who dared disrupt its beauty sleep. This gave plenty of time for Prince to catch up. His body never slowing down as he lept with his feet out, heels digging into the mans back to make him fall over once again.

Casually, Prince dusted his white coat off before snatching his hat and placed it on top of his head, before snatching some of the coins from the mans purse. "You know what they say, takes a cat to catch a cat burglar!" he purred as he lazily twirled the purse on his index finger.

He didn't take it all however, only the money that was stolen from Vick. Prince wasn't a thief nor did he really want to leave this man with nothing. Even if he was a little bit of a jerk, he was still just human. Even if a tiny small part of him wanted to rip him apart.

Grinning he whistled to the wolf pup whom bounced over to him, tipping cutely as Prince picked the pup up. "Good puppy! You caught the big bad kitty cat!" he cooed, earning a sloppy lick to the cheek. The red haired man flinched again as static ran through him. Damn, he was tired, paralyzed and all he really wanted right now was a drink at the bar and a nice good sleep. Mhm guess rest would have to wait.

Too bad Ares, or some justifying individual couldn't take his place at the moment.

---

HP: 40%
SP: 20%
Status Effects: Paralyze
Level 4

Inventory
HP potions: 6
Sp potions: 9
Wooden Harp: 1
Cinnamon Cookies: 5
Gold: 62
Wolf Pelt: 1
Wolf Fang: 2

Enemies



Mystic
Aeternus ll Nexus
Town Square
Affected Players: Rose, Prince, Sorta Maximellio

Face instantly brightening as she leveled up as well, dancing a little in place in her excitement, she blinked as Rose bought another sweet and traded it for hers. Smiling gleefully at now having a full treat, she eagerly gulped it down. It was delicious! And she had been quite hungry, she had forgotten last she eaten. Maybe breakfast when Fluffy came over to cook for her..

"Thwank you!" Mystic mumbled as she rubbed her mouth to rid of the sticky leftovers, giggling a little as she saw that Rose had just about done the same in devouring the bun.

Curiously tilting her head toward the commotion, standing on her tip toes in a attempt to see what was going on, she rubbed her head a little with her left hand. "Cat? Well she wasn't back home... But she did like cats and she sometimes moved and felt just like one." the little girl answered as she tried looking to where Rose was pointing.

Then, two men came bursting toward them, a tall red haired man wearing a white cloak with long furry ears and a red tail, chasing down one. Blinking, she squinted her eyes closely. This person was wearing a eyepatch, but by mere features, tallness, colors of the eyes and hair... It must be Fluffy.

"FLUFFY!!!" Mystic screamed loudly before bolting toward the tall figure, almost falling flat on her face a few times thanks to her dress.

---

HP: 100%
SP: 150%
Status Effects: None
Level 1

Inventory
HP potions: 5
Sp potions: 10
Gold: 50 Gold

---

Both

Prince blinked as he suddenly heard a familiar voice, his ears witching as he glanced to his left to see a charging small figure. A little girl? Squinting a little, he soon froze as he instantly recognized his neighbor from back home.

"Ally?" Prince murmured before stumbling a little as he was tackled by the little girl, her face faceplate he into his lower stomach. Blinking, a mixture of emotions started to form on his shocked frozen face. Terror, surprise, and absolute rage.

Despite how he wanted to start yelling, he kept his composure and returned the hug. "Ally what are you doing here? I told your parents not to let you play this until I safely tested it out." he said softly, though grumbled a bit about idiotic parents.

Mystic looked up at him and tilted her head curiously. "Fluffy why is your voice so deep? You look more like a boy before. Did boys infect you with cooties? Did you turn into a boy because they touched you too much? Don't worry I still love you! We will give you a huuuuge bath!" she started rattling off until Prince covered her mouth since it was apparent she was not focusing about the question he asked.

"Ally, I'll explain later, but right now I need you..." Prince started until the wolf pup was snatched from his grasp.

"Puppy!" Mystic chirped as she gently hugged the white wolf pup and rubbed its ears, making Prince give a sigh but smile slightly before looking at Maximellio with a look that said 'if you dare try anything with her... I'll do worse then kill.'

Daedalus
Aeternus II Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Ares, Alessia, Moon234, Banshee

Approached the small gathering with a confidence that demanded outright punishment, his frosty gaze observing the array of players in a way that one would gaze at Ornaments; obsessively and somewhat creepily.

Turning towards whom he perceives as the leader, he declares in Ares' direction "Whom amongst you would deem yourself the most experienced warrior?"
With this blunt statement, the rotting ghoul which had been summoned hours before, came to rest at his side; armoured down to the bone; literally, I believe It's possible to see It's Pelvis, underneath the overlapping metals.

"I would request, that you accompany me elsewhere." His grasp tightens around Keleroth, the Black rune blade humming in agreement to his innermost thoughts; despite his outwards appearance of complete insanity, he merely waits for someone to challenge his statement, the menacing armour which surrounds him seems to flicker, as If it were alive.

Removing a flask from his belt, which contains his last HP Potion, he empties the contents into the slit which leads to his mouth; the silver skull shrouding his facial features convulsing, leading to the supposition of the armour being alive as true.

HP 100%
SP 50%
Status effects: None
Level 1

Inventory
SP Potion x1
Gold x13

Alessia
Aeternus II Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Ares, Daedalus, Moon234, Banshee

Alessia had remained quiet throughout the conversations, deciding instead to take notes of key details as she observed those which gathered around her. The women who was introduced as Banshee seemed to have... intentions. But to what they might be Alessia couldn't say for sure. Between the introductions and conversations Alessia would occasionally tune back into the other players which walked by, attempting to pick up on anything out of the ordinary both in what they were saying and general behaviors. Not that they were in any danger while in Nexus, but that didn't mean there weren't scouts looking to make a plan based off what they could observe. Before Alessia could continue this however, a new arrival joined the gathering group, requesting that he speak with Ares. He looked, well... like a friend to the Grim Reaper himself, but that was beyond the point right now, as she had seen his grip tighten on his weapon. Alessia didn't like that and so she gripped the hilt of her own sword, keeping it on her back and simply moving the blade to a position she could draw it faster. Her eyes focused on this player, making her intention obvious if his movements progressed anymore than that. Of course she would stand down if Ares called for it.

Daedalus
Aeternus II Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Ares, Alessia

Turns his head towards Alessia, the grip upon his blade relaxing as he winks from within the Metal faceguard; despite him believing the movement was entirely normal, to the observer It would seem that the head had snapped around, the metallic skull grinning.

"Such a pointy sword, but would you ever use it on someone so..unfortunate as me?"
Releasing his Runic weapon, the ghoul beside him crumples to the floor; the sound of bones breaking and rotten flesh tearing quite evident, despite this Daedalus would look onwards; his right eye focused upon Alessia whilst the left would still be turned upon Ares, creating a somewhat deranged look If it were possible to see his face.

"I'll make an agreement, If you let go of that blade--I wont throw the remains of a rotting carcass at you until you succumb to exhaustion."
As If to make a point, he brings up a boot, crunching down upon the Ghouls leg he removes It with a swift tear, waving it about "I'm not afraid to."

Shai watched as a man came up and took the girl he was talking to away from where they were speaking. She didn't say a word, just left with the man. Shai only wanted a friend. Somebody to talk to and hang out with, but it looked like she wasn't going to be his friend. He sighed and stood up, Shai pulled his hood back up hiding his eyes and hair. He began to walk away. Shai went over and bought some food and ate it quickly. He missed the real world and the smiles of others faces. All it seemed like in here was tears, death and people giving up.

Shai walked over to the virtual water of the fountain. He looked in and saw his reflection. He quickly turned away and walked away from the crowded streets, he made his way into a dark alley way. He wanted to take a break from the crowd of players pushing every where. He pulled out his scythe and looked at the curved blade. The black handle he thought it was beautiful. the blade had a big round circle with a ruby in it. this part held the blade and connected it to the handle. He rubbed his handle across the flat of the blade, over the ruby then down the handle. Shai smiled then made his way back into the crowd.

Ares
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Alessia, Moon234, Banshee, Daedalus, Aurora


Emerald eyes widened at the bizarre sight of the female player’s extraordinary appearance. “What the hell is this?” Ares asked, keeping his voice low so as to not show any hint of uneasiness. “Just who are you?” The female player looked just like Aurora but that wasn’t possible, was it? Lilith was Aurora, right?

Ares sighed. “We’ll talk later, Aurora.”

Before the Dark Knight could press any more questions, a second female voice shook him from away his confusion. It was Moon’s companion – ‘Banshee’ as she was introduced. From what Moon had said, she was a formidable player. The male with the fauxhawk did not bother questioning Moon’s judgment; the boy had gone through enough. He decided further questioning would only serve to bring the kid’s morale down and that was not something Ares was about to be responsible for. If anything, he admired the boy’s disposition. “I’m gathering a team of only the best to clear this nightmare; if Moon can vouch for you, it is all I need, Banshee.” Ares flashed one of his exceedingly frequent glowers – a sullen look that lightly touched his lips and shot his eyes to his right periphery. “I will not ask what I, myself, am not prepared to do but if you want to survive, you will meet me before the break of dawn at the Beggar’s Inn – consider this an invitation to the Hellion Knights.”

He hated doing this – connecting with people, putting them in danger by asking them to follow him into the unknown – but everything seemed to spin beyond his control and that was what alarmed him the most.

At that moment, a second revelation emerged manifested by a ghoulish player. To the point, Ares thought as his eyes caught Alessia’s challenge to the new arrival’s morbid movements – asserting his decision in her appointment. When no one responded, Ares shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve seen a few things here and there, nothing that would qualify me beyond what it is you seem to make of me.”

Ares raised his hand gesturing for Alessia to stand down. There was no real damage the player could do if those were his intentions; Nexus disallowed PvP unless a duel was agreed. Ares did not bother equipping his armor and rather took a less combative approach; he wanted to gage the player’s intents. “I suggest you don’t threaten anyone anywhere near me otherwise our conversations will go differently for you…” The Dark Knight warned; his eyes becoming sheer cold and void of emotion. “Speak and do not waste my time.”

---

Hellion Knights Guild Master
Level: 5
HP: 100%
SP: 120
Inventory
Gold x202
Wolf Pelt x2
Wolf Fang
Wood Club x2
Raptor Claw
Marble Beak

Alessia
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Ares, Moon234, Banshee, Daedalus, Aurora

Alessia raised her eyebrow at the little show the skeleton put on after noting her gesture. Of course neither of them could hurt each other but then it was all symbolic, it threatened what should happen when they left the safety of the Nexus should she discover ill intention. "A threat, how predictable..." she replied in a slightly bored tone to his offer of an agreement. It wasn't until Ares raised a hand that she returned the sword to it's upright position upon her back, she'd made her message clear anyway. She turned her head slightly as Ares spoke, regarding him as he mentioned how far this players threats would get him if he continued. She then looked to the others, deciding to bring back the subject about meeting them at the Beggars Inn at dawn while Ares spoke with the newly arrived player. "I would suggest those of you who intend to join us stock up on items while you can, there wont be time in the morning and we wont be waiting if you're late" she announced softly, looking between each of them to ensure they all understood her, "And try to get some rest if you can, it's important everyone is alert and ready to start the day" she finished, giving a small polite smile before she opened her display, checking her own items to make sure she had everything she needed.

Soul Story Online

Rose
Aeternus || Nexus - Lantern Festival
Affected Characters: Mystic, Prince, sorta Maximellio


Rose stepped back instinctively as the red-haired cat person and the colorful man shot past, the former acrobatically planting a kick on the later and sending him to the ground. She almost moved to intercede but caught herself, seeing that this was not a real fight but rather something more personal. Trapped in this death game and these children still waste time on pointless tiffs... She thought with an annoyed shake of her head.

A moment later and little Mystic let out her surprised shout, confirming that the red-head was indeed her friend 'Fluffy'. A... she? Rose didn't voice this thought for though this person was clearly a boy (or maybe a very bold and flat-chested girl) it didn't really fit that Mystic would lie about such a thing. "So you're the friend this one has been searching for?" The knight said hesitantly as she approached, careful to position herself between the two and the colorful person. "Is everything alright here?" She muttered to 'Fluffy' with a nod in the other's direction.

---------------------------------------
HP: 100%
SP: 100
Level: 2
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x4

The Imagineer
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Wandering Fool

---

Being so close...She wasn't used to treatment like this. Suffice to say, she was a nice cherry shade by the time he had taught her the aiming part. He eyes glanced down the barrel of the fake rifle as the orbs swarmed out, a frown coming to her lips as frustration set in from her missing the first few shots. ...She wasn't following right...A shake of the head, and the soft sigh that fell from her lips made her eyes close until Ying nudged at her arm and she lifted her head up once more, rifle resting on her shoulder and legs spaced out as he instructed. Her eyes finally focused, a deep breath taken...

BANG.

One down.

BANG, BANG, BANG.

Three more down.

She turned to as the orbs swished to the side, landing two more hits, three more, four....Ah! Seven more in total! And then...?
"Time!"

The NPC called it, the remaining orbs slithering back en masse into the dispensers they called home. As the score was tallied up, Imagine turned around to Wander and held the gun out, that determined look gone and replaced with a sudden shyness.
"A-Ah...I wanted to get the grand prize so you could have a nice, warm room to sleep in...I'm sorry, that was my first time...B-But, at least...I thik I won somthing with 11 shots, right?"
...Ah? That's what it was?...

Yeah, it was indeed. She had started shooting so well, aiming as best she could, just because she wanted to get first place for him. A genuine, honest goal, and one that left her blushing like mad as she cleared her throat and turned to place the gun down.
"A-Anyways, what do I win for that, Mister Vendor?"
Now she was the one trying to mask up her own embarrassment?! It was a back and forth to the fullest, with Imagine eventually moving her right hand over to the opposing arm to rub it a bit. Not quite good enough...Oh well. Maybe next time...? Anything to make her accompanying date happy -- that was the goal.

---

Status
Hit Points: 100%/100%
Sanity: 150/150
Level: 4
Status: RESTED

Inventory
Health Potion x1
Sanity Potion x2
Gold x204
Pellet x10

Black Thought Result

Wandering Fool
Aeternus || Nexus
Lunar Festival
Affected Players: The Imagineer

---

Fool was content to lean on the counter of the booth and watch her miss a few times before she settled into the weapon. It was nice to rest and cool down, even if just for a moment. He tilted his head as he watched Imagine concentrate. What makes this different from a real date? It’s the same people, same sensations… same emotions. Why couldn’t I ever do this in the real world? The thought was sobering. Jeremy looked down at his hands, rubbing his hands together and inspecting the palms. I might die in this body. He looked up at Imagines face, slightly flushed, and full of concentration as she took her last shots. She could die here too. The thought made the noise and lights of the festival seem distant for a moment. Was everyone here just putting on a false face before they went to their deaths?

Imagine turned to him and held up the gun, looking a bit abashed. Her comments made him smile, though not as much as it would have before his mind invaded. “Even if you had gotten the grand prize, no gentleman would take a soft bed from a lady.” Jeremy gave her a low bow, hat off and flourishing his cloak. Behind, the vendor was retrieving the prize, a red necklace thing. Fool blinked as he recalled what she had mentioned.

Shiinen said Ah, they have little plush toys...Can we get a matching pair?

He sighed, not much for it then. Fool hugged her again, this time a bit more tightly- and met the vendors eye’s over her shoulder. “Stuffed Animals.” He mouthed it at the man, who looked confused for a moment. Fool gestured as much as he could at one of the fish, and then made a squeezing movement with one of his hands. For a moment he returned his attention to Imagine, “Thanks for thinking of me, but this is a festival-” meanwhile behind her, the Vendor was making a slow squishing movement with one hand, looking thoughtful. Fool would facepalmed if he could. He pointed at the red necklace, and snatched his poor fish out of the air, pointing at it awkwardly behind Imagines back. The mans face lit up, and he nodded, pulling out one of the plushies she had wanted. Fool held up two fingers and the Vendor shook his head. Fool wanted to growl, but instead continued, “-and we should both enjoy it.” Jeremy let her go with a wide smile and stalked over to the vendor, the moment his back was to Imagine he stealthily held up three coins, holding up two fingers. The Vendor shrugged, pulling out a second stuffed animal thing and handing it to him. Fool slid the coins across the counter in the same movement as he snatched both toys from the counter and turned, proffering one to Imagine.

“Looks like you did win a matching pair.” Despite his smile, his fish, floating past behind her head, almost seemed to roll its eyes. “I chose this one, why don’t you choose what we do next?” He was going to need some time to think. I always realized that I was trapped here, but I never considered what everyone else thought. Her first date? What if it’s her last? What about everyone else? The thoughts had cooled his emotions, letting rational thought take over again. Suddenly he understood the festival. He wanted to lose those thoughts.

---

HP: 63%
SP: 70
Level: 4
Inventory:
Gold: 132
Deck of Cards
Dice & Cup x 10
Bread x1
Flint & Steel
Whetstone
Canteen (Empty)
Wood Club
Pellet x10
Stuffed Animal

---

Silver Soldier
Aeternus || Afriel
Mystic Woods
Affected Players: No one.

---

All his starter money gone, for this. The Silver Soldier looked up from his map of the forest, a fierce smile lighting up his face, torch light danced in his eyes. Before him were six other players. The party of seven stood at the entrance to Afriel, near the wagon load that had just been delivered, each person holding a Lit Torch, as per requirement. Each should also possess at least one health potion. Konrad rolled the map up and stepped forward, he had waited for the last man to appear before starting. This let the others talk a bit and get to know eachother. All of them had gathered here for a common thing though; gold.

“Alright! We are going to set out in a few minutes-” Konrad paused for a moment, to let the conversations die off, ensuring quiet. “But first, we need to discuss what is going to happen.” His ice tinged gaze moved around them all, a constant smile tugging on his lips. “You all know the basics of why we are here; this is a hunt. The personal payment promised to each of you is 15 gold on completion of our outing. In the case that you should die, your items will be sent on to the user you specified in your private messages to me. If you wish to change, I suggest you send the appropriate messages now.”

Konrad paused for a second, looking at the players assembled. He had sorted through the applicants to find these- not carefully, he hadn’t had the time- but carefully enough to find the serious players. The people here were the first ones that showed they understood just how screwed they all were. “In the case that I should fall, I have given all your salaries to the local shopkeeper, and she will know if I fall in battle, and how.” Now for the good part. “As you all know, this game has robbed us of precious overhead maps, and using the HUD will take time and possibly cost you a precious second of reaction time. Because of this, I will be directing everyone to keep us safe. It will require everyones help as well. Everyone here will need to switch their settings so that messages from me will open off to the side instead of a regular Message Received! notification. You should message me as little as possible in order to keep the group sending clear, but for every enemy sighted I would like a report.” The Silver Soldier halted his speech again, and looked around, watching everyone work through their settings, except for one man. An… Konrad frowned in distaste, an Eliminator.

“You there, is there an issue?” The man glowered at Konrad when he was called out. “Why should we follow your orders? This is an MMO, not a fricken first person shooter.” Conrad reached up and dropped his hood back, exposing his face fully, tatoos rolling from his forehead, down his cheeks, and disappearing under his robe.. “Oh really?” He spoke quietly and stepped forward. “This isn’t a game, this is life. In this life, dying means you stay dead.” The other man stepped up to go toe to toe with him.

“Then my question is even more important. Why should we follow your orders?” The Silver Soldier smiled coldly before responding. “Leave.” The other man immediately looked surprised, backing off a bit. “Hey, wait a second-” Konrad looked past him and addressed the group. “If you can’t do exactly what I say, without question, you do not belong here. I do not intending on letting anyone here die, but that means doing what you are told, without question.” He ignored the sputtering Eliminator, and decided to wrap the meeting up, there was hunting to do. “The pairings will be simple. White Knight with Sorcerer as group A, Healer with Champion as group B, Shieldman group C, you will be positioned between the two groups as a stand alone, but do not worry, you will have support. If we get separated, coding for calling out enemies quickly will be ‘w’ for wolf, ‘r’ for raptor, and ‘t’ for troll. Directly after the letter put a number to show how many are present. Alright, head out- I will tell you your positions on the way there.” Konrad stowed the map and moved towards the forest path leading back to Nexus, but a hand on his shoulder slowed him. The Eliminator.

“You can’t be serious, your health is too low for any kind of serious questing! Guys, open your eyes!” Konrad glanced at the others, seeing a bit of uncertainty. He turned and shoved the Eliminator back roughly. “You have little room to talk, assassin boy. Go find a real combat class before you complain to us frontliners.” The Silver Soldier left the user with his mouth open and lead the group of torch-bearing players into the forest.

---

The group was crouched on the road in a circle, gazing at the rolled out map. The Shieldman was on guard duty, watching for both road traffic and enemy ai. “This wasn’t a cheaply made gaming system, so its unlikely that enemies just spawn into the world at random- there has to be reason to it. I believe that there may be a limited number of ai in an area at a time, which means they have to be somewhere. Ideas?”

The White Knight pointed at a cave noted on the map, farther out into the forest. “That is the logical place, if I was a GM.” Silver nodded, looking at the others, “More opinions?”

“What about here?” The healer was motioning to a section of the forest closer to the road, east of the cave. “I ran into wolves right around here before I arrived.” The sorcerer nodded, and leaned over thoughtfully to put his finger on the map closer to Nexus, still near the road clearing his throat. “I sensed some wolves when I used Life Sense about here, but they were coming from Afriels direction, not Nexus’s, and not from the cave.” Silver nodded, a smile growing on his face. So simple.

“Good, we will position ourselves… here.” The others looked at him with some confusion, his finger was seemingly positioned in the middle of no where. The look on his face was one of determination and… glee? Within moments, they were on the move.

---

It been going so well. Four wolves dead with not a single drop in health. The arrangement had been simple. Group A hid within some bushes directly to Konrad’s left, Group B to the right. The Shieldman was hidden directly behind him. Konrad himself was positioned in the center of a ten foot diameter circle of spaced Lit Torch items, stabbed into the ground. It had worked wonderfully. A wolf would come along periodically, and see nothing other than Konrad. Once aggroed it wasn’t aware enough to sense the others hiding in wait. Once it charged, it was a little matter for the group of six to handle. Konrad didn’t fight at all. Coming at him from the open end of the semi-circle, it was nailed by an ensnarement from the healer before it could even get close, then hit by a standard fireball from the Sorcerer. About that time, the White Knight and Champion had closed from both sides and finished the poor beast before it could even free itself.

After the fourth had died, everyone took positions again eagerly, but… it wasn’t a solitary wolf or two that came through.

…

Konrad turned with a roar, punching a wolf that was leaping through the air at him in its throat, unleashing Soul Punch, white light bursting for a moment with a concussive thump causing the wolf to fly backwards into the dark forest, out of sight. “Group A, rejoin B, rear to tree! Range center, flanking by Melee!” It had gone downhill fast. This apparently wasn’t an MMO where you could farm for experience off of a set movement path without awakening some nasty triggers. Wolves had suddenly come in a horde, and the worst part was that they couldn’t tell how many there were. A millisecond glance at the HUD was impossible, as wolves were lunging from the dark everywhere, at any time.

“C, report!” … … “C, report!” He didn’t have enough time to send a message, with his point position. The entire group had formed an obtuse triangle, a Melee class to form each of the points, and the wide base was the Rangers.

The wide end of the triangle was protected by a great tree, letting those inside use projectile abilities whilst shielded from the melee classes.

“Focus range forward, melee keep on flanks- I am going after him!” Konrad dashed forward and diagonally to the circle of torches, About ten steps past C’s last known position, he came across him. The Shielder had backed up to a tree, being hazarded by five wolves at once, darting in and back. The man had been doing amazing, holding them off with his spear and blocking with the shield, but nips and bites had built up over time.

“Six o’clock Wolf!” Konrad hit the ground as a large dark body of muscle and teeth flew over his head, and then kicked off to nail it with his shoulder as it tried to turn about, slinging it onto the ground for a moment. Two of the wolves on the Shielder turned to face him, but Konrad didn’t stop to square off, kicking one over out of a lunge as he passed, the other springing towards Konrad’s throat. It’s jaws locked around his arm instead though, its weight knocking him over to his side, just a few feet from the Shieldman. The wolf was mauling his arm, ripping through his flesh, and fire flared in his mind, resulting in a blow that blew the wolf off of him, ripping off a small piece of flesh with it as it crashed out of sight into the forest. The other wolves reared away in alarm at that, forming a small circle. Konrad stood with blood rolling down his arm, scratches on his face and arms, and chest heaving. The Shieldman made no move to help him, Konrad had had only 50% hp to start with, he was a goner in everyones eyes.

The blood suddenly evaporated, eaten by a white fire, drops burning away mid-air as Konrad’s wounds seemed to zip up by themselves. The Silver Soldier had a wide smile, and his eyes were wide with energy and excitement.

“C, take point position with A and B.” The wolves leaped for him, and Konrad unleashed Soul Warp with a wild laugh. The robed body blurred for a moment, and a series of concussive cracks split the air as all four wolves seemed to fly away from him, some slamming into trees and others tumbling through the underbrush and into the darkness. The Shieldman gapped at him for a moment. “I said GO!” Konrad roared at the man, getting tackled from behind as a wolf leaped onto his back, knocking him down. A precision fireball blew it away with a surge of heat, and instantly Silver rolled back to his stomach and crawled forward, the two ranged classes casting spells over his head. He reached his allies panting.


“When I shout, go to the torch circle.” Their positions had altered slightly, but not all that much. Konrad was back on point, but with the Shielder beside him, forming more of a trapezoid than a triangle. They were holding the wolves at a distance for now, but it wouldn’t last all night. “Get a torch, and all melee hunker down around the mages. Mages go back to back, use your magic conservatively. We will start again from there… GO!”

Everyone bolted. It was only about twenty feet away, but even that was almost too far. The Healer was almost dropped by a wolf midway, but the Champion tackled it off of her, kicking it away from him and scrambling into the circle to join them- it would have taken too long for him to stand. They regrouped, and each was holding a torch outward, brandishing them at the circling pack. The White Knight and the Shielder had stowed their weapons, favoring the torches and shields to the sword and spear. The torches at least seemed to deter them a bit, like real wolves. “How are we doing on soul points?” It was almost as important as health, at this point. The Sorcerer shook his head. “Almost out, I have maybe two or three good fireballs in me.” The healer bowed her head along with him, she sounded almost despaired. “I can probably heal around 40% at most, but then I am done as well.” Konrad’s thoughts were racing.

“Do any of the melee classes have a charging attack of any sort?” All three shook their heads, silent for just a second, and then the White Knight spoke up. “It isn’t a charge specifically, but I have a light-based shield attack.” Konrad nodded, “It’ll have to do, won’t it? Alright, lets all move towards the main road, at a slow walk.” It didn’t take much intelligence to realize that the first person to run would be the first to die.

And so they marched. It wasn’t really all that far, because of the size of the first area. The entire time they were surrounded by wolves, edging in and going for a bite. Each time, a swift torch was there to make a fiery swing for an exposed wolf head. It seemed like it took hours to reach the road, but in reality it was just thirty minutes of constant panic. The wolves had begun to grow more frantic when it came into view, and when Konrad caught sight of the tree fallen across the road, he knew. “They are going to swarm us before we reach Afriel, at any moment.” His voice was urgent, but quiet. Everyone glanced about, meeting their companion’s eyes. There were easily fifteen wolves that had kept following them, and all of them had at least half their health, if not more; no one had killed a wolf since that fourth one.

“...What’s the plan?” The Champion spoke calmly. He sounded accepting of their fate. Some would make it in the mad dash to get back into Afriel, others would be dragged down. They all knew there was little that could be done. Konrad was quiet, and their group halted on the road. The wolves were braver, and louder. At the same time, every single person among them could make out the lights of Afriel in the distance.

“We will fight them.” Konrad looked at all of their bewildered faces with a blood thirsty smile. This was like a strategy scenario. A small, wounded and tired group, surrounded by a bunch of lighter but faster units. He could orchestrate it the same way as in a turn based strategy.

---

They broke into a run for the town, dropping torches and booking it- it was about as long as a hundred meter dash, but the wolves were much faster Almost immediately, the wolves caught those in the farthest back position- the Healer and Sorcerer. They both went down, shouting- and almost instantly a clash of light and sound followed as the two Users with shields spun and unleashed their shield linked abilities. The white knights sent out a blinding flash, just as the Shieldman’s stunned and knocked the wolves straight off of the Healers back, the wolves yipped and fell over eachother, jumping away from the lights and preparing to fight- only to find the players long gone, sprinting ahead.

The scene repeated several times, but as they neared the small palisade separating Afriel and the forest, the two had run low on health, and no more potions were to be found among them. In the end, just ten meters from the gate, their little group formed a tight knot, the men with shields were doing nothing else but attempting to hold back the wolves as they moved back step by step towards the gate, the sheer weight of the wolves leaping and clawing over eachother to get at them was pushing the three men almost to the ground. The Champion had managed to break through the gates- aided by the mages and into town, barely with their lives intact.

Conrad snarled and helped the other two men push back, then growled under his breath.

“Get inside the gates.” The men barely glanced at him. “Get inside. NOW.” Konrad activated Soul Gravitation as the others broke past him and bashed their way through to the gate, an almost waterfall of wolves falling forward onto Konrad. The weight of them just cascaded about him, and Konrad was lost to view for a moment, and then the wolves blew backwards as he knocked them back with a concussive blast of white light, striking out left and right with SP fueled punches to hold back the tide desperately. A bite on the back of the leg, another wolf clamped onto his arm, and the Silver Soldier could see his health began to drain almost immediately, which was almost certain death. Suddenly there was a flash of white, and his vision went strange, symbols and smoke dancing across his eyesight. Then he was yanked backwards.

---

“You should have taken me with you.” His next conscious moment was in Afriel, next to Baggle’s wagon, on his back. Above him stood the Eliminator from earlier. Konrad sat up shakily, looking to his health bar. He could only glance back at the Eliminator, and then at the others, some crouching, but almost everyone else in the group was laying on their backs, panting. Konrad laughed and nodded.

“I suppose I’m still paying you anyway.”

---

HP: 7%
SP: 0%
Level: 1
Inventory:
Gold: 0
Map (Mystic Woods, Detailed)
Compass
Lit Torch

Prince
Aeternus ll Nexus
Town Gates
Affected Players: Rose, Mystic, Vick, Maximellio

Prince's eye slightly widened as a woman clad in armor walked closer cautiously placing herself between him and the colorful man, only being a couple inches shorter then himself. Unsure how to take this situation he was currently in. It was more or less Mystic had spoken of his true identity, much to everyone else's thoughts.

"Mhmm yes we are neighbors, I babysit her often since her parents otherwise leave her home alone. I thank you for taking care of my dear little girl beautiful maiden, my name is Prince." he cheered, keeping up his act, though slightly more hesitant with the presence of Mystic, whom was thankfully distracted by his dear pet.

As Vick came closer, looking at him questionably, Prince simply grinned innocently. "Ah well it's quite a funny story but I often dressed up for her since I can be quite the crossdresser. She enjoyed when I dressed up like one of her Barbie dolls.... Now now cutie don't you go imagining me in a bikini or something you naughty little boy." Prince smirked though whispered that part in his ear teasingly before humming as he pulled away.

It wasn't a lie, he did really do that back home when they played together. It was easy for him to cross dress as a guy or a girl. Though honestly he looked better as a guy, he wasn't confident in his more feminine features due to being tall and pretty flat. Still Alison always enjoyed the dresses he put on for her so that was all that mattered. The things he goes through to please little girls.

"Anyways, I apologize for the commotion, honestly I rather be sleeping right now but this little brother of mine has decided to bother some of the booth keepers and steal my little cutie's money. Can't have that now eh?" he purred, flinching a little as another static of electricity flowing through him and he coughed a little.

Running on forty was hard work after all. Pain tolerance... Wonder if they have pain killers in this world? Mhm not likely.

---

HP: 40%
SP: 20%
Status Effects: Paralyze
Level 4

Inventory
HP potions: 6
Sp potions: 9
Wooden Harp: 1
Cinnamon Cookies: 5
Gold: 62
Wolf Pelt: 1
Wolf Fang: 2

Enemies



Mystic
Aeternus ll Nexus
Town Square
Affected Players: Vick, Rose, Prince, Maximellio

Mystic continued gently petting the puppy who yipped happily before looking up at Prince curiously before giving a cheerful smile as she recognized the name.

"Oh! Your playing Prince the witty kitty pirate! He's a funny person." Mystic said eagerly before looking up at Vick and pointing at him. "Is he your first mate?" she mused curiously before looking towards the colorful man before grinning.

"Oh oh! Can I summon something to catch him?" Mystic said gleefully, eager to try out her abilities with a soft huff, her bright purple eyes glowing with excitement.

---

HP: 100%
SP: 150%
Status Effects: None
Level 1

Inventory
HP potions: 5
Sp potions: 10
Gold: 50 Gold

---

Both

Prince chuckled at the little girl's words before looking toward Vick with a sly smirk. "Oh yes he is defiantly my first mate." he purred mischievously as if noting a double meaning to that but hummed a soft tune as he gently scooped up the little girl so she sat on his left shoulder.

"Now now no summoning creatures during festival time." Prince mused.

"Awwwwwe!!!!! Mystic groaned loudly and pouted.

Prince laughed before glancing to Rose and whispered in her ear. "Keep my secret please?" he said in a soft gentle hum.

KK
Aeternus || Nexus - Lantern Festival
Affected Characters:




KK bounded cheerfully between the stalls, eyes huge with childlike wonderment at all the sounds, smell, and sights that the Lantern Festival had to offer. "I want one of those! And one of those! Ooh! Four of those! Six of those! AHH!!! And that puppy!" The NPC shop keeper following her simply maintained his stoney expression as he tallied the order on a small note pad. "Lookit hiz widdle fashe!" The small girl cooed as the tiny wolf pup gave an excited yap as she squished its cheeks together. She squealed in glee as it licked her nose, its tongue feeling just like its real world counterpart. Jumping onto the countertop with the dog in her arms, she jabbed a single finger to the sky and shouted loud enough for several nearby players to glance at her in alarm. "I MUST HAVE HIM!"

"Of course m'am, the shopkeeper mumbled in monotone. "The total comes to 156,329 gold pieces."

Kalimay froze in her triumphant position, calculating the amount of gold in her purse to the amount she required. This took her a lot longer than it should have. "I MUST MAKE MORE GOLD!" Giving the pet one final kiss, receiving a lick in return, KK stuffed the puppy into the startled NPC's hands and launched herself off the stall. "Gold? Got extra gold? Gold to spare? Where can I make gold?" She asked her questions in the face of every terrified person she passed though often didn't wait for a reply, until finally she reached the edge of the festival and just about ran out of targets.

In desperation she spotted a small group of players near the edge of things and one shining name bar above a dark-armored knight named 'Ares' showed something that made her eyes sparkle. Bolting up completely oblivious to the situation she was barging into, she slid into his waist and wrapped her arms around him, large eyes looking up at him. "You're level 5?! Please, you've got to spare me some gold! It's an emergency! AN ADORABLE EMERGENCY!" Her saucer-plate hazel eyes glimmered as if on the verge of tears to accent her over-the-top pouty face.

---------------------------------------
HP: 100%
SP: 100
Level: 1
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x10

Tempest

Aeternus || Nexus

Lantern Festival

Affected Players: -

---

Tempest was not a girl who would allow her level to deter her from doing what excited her. How lucky was she to have arrived in Nexus during the Lantern Festival event? An intense offensive gamer, Caroline McNamara always enjoyed a good battle, and that was precisely what she was seeking, trapped or not. How was she going to get out of this reality anyway if she didn't become stronger? The night was clear, illuminated by the flying lanterns, and several booths caught her eye. Among others, there was a challenge for wolf-racing, another for wrestling, and lastly, a gladiator-style challenge, complete with a ring, which had her full attention. Now that challenge was bound to be a real battling experience for her. She approached the stall, taking out the money she had.

Now this is something I'm up for! She thought as she smirked, drawing her scythe out as she dropped 15 Gold onto the table, pushing the coins towards the mysterious man sitting behind the counter, who studied her appearance.

"You sure you wanna go through with this? I fear that…" He began to say, implying something that Tempest did not want to bother knowing. Gerry hopped down from the redhead's shoulder and croaked at the man, ruffling his feathers. The raven had his companion's pride, that was for sure.

"Now listen, there's the fucking money, right there in front of you. Don't want it? Think I'm some pussy healer? Just save your breath for the next idiot who comes and doesn't know what she's doing. Now, take the money." The scythe wielder growled. She wasn't going to allow herself to be talked down by this man, that was for sure. Besides, it was not as if the challenge was a solo endeavor anyway, if that was what the guy was worried about….not that Carly was incapable of handling herself. Quite the opposite actually, based on her own stubbornness, if not the strength she knew she had.

"Fine, just don't go running out if you're hurt. You'll have to wait until you're assigned to a team of four though. I'm not allowing you to go solo. Challenge rules." The man warned as he took her money, before motioning for her to enter the inner chamber of the arena. Gerry flew ahead, perching himself on Tempest's forearm as she reached the door and walked in. Tempest grinned, eagerly awaiting the battle.

---

HP: 100%
SP: 75
Level: 1
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x5

The Imagineer
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: Wandering Fool

---

...! Eika actually responded quicker than before, her arms wrapping around his waist and her head nuzzling against his chest as he tugged her into a hug. It was so warm...Even if it was just virtual, it felt too real to deny, and that...

That scared her.

Excited her.

Enamored her.

This gentle touch of another intoxicated her mind to the extent that she was left without knowledge of the deranged motions that her date was making to the NPC behind her. Instead, all she was concerned with was listening to him for the words he spoke, each one cherished as an important detail to be remembered. Ah, he wouldn't take the grand prize if she had won it just so she could be comfy...Well, then the solution would be obvious!
"If I win any prize like that in the future, I'll share it with you. So if I win a free night in the nice inn, we can just sleep together!"
...She obviously did not know the alternative meaning of what she had just said, but that innocent look on her face just...Too much! Her eyes lit up like stars in the sky as he handed her one of the two plushies in his arms, blissfully ignorant of his having to toss up three gold for the toy as she nuzzled the small toy teddie.
"I'm so glad! Thank you for teaching me, Wander!~"

Ah? Picking the next event? U-Uhm...What to do-

Oh, right!

Her face brightened up, Ying ducking into her yukata as she took hold of Wander's hand and- ...actually didn't drag him. Instead, she'd wait, a confident smile taking its place on her lips as she motioned in a certain direction.
"Alright. I wanna get you some stuff you can enjoy!"
That notion, once he began following her, would be to take him over to the food stands and take out some gold from the small, decorative bag attached at her waist to pay for things. Takoyaki, chicken dumplings, red bean dangos, and a plate of kalimari. With chopsticks in hand, she picked up one of the dumplings to hold near his mouth with a delighted gaze as she spoke next.
"The food here does wonders for our HP and SP, and tastes amazing on top of it! Here, lemme feed you one! Trust me, it tastes amazing.~"

---

Status
Hit Points: 100%/100%
Sanity: 150/150
Level: 4
Status: RESTED

Inventory
Health Potion x1
Sanity Potion x2
Gold x204
Pellet x10

Black Thought Result

---

Cupid
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival
Affected Players: ALL

---

The time had come! Descending down in a flourish of red hearts and metaphysical concepts of excitement, the Love God held his bow in hand in order to shoot an arrow up in the air and create an explosion of sorts in order to garner the attention of all. Dozens upon dozens of girls would begin crowding the stage at which Cupid stood, his air of authority and enamor bleeding into the air as his voice rang out through the entirety of Nexus to make his grand announcement.

"LADIES! GENTLEMEN! THE LOVE GOD CUPID HAS ARRIVED! I hope you all are ready, for the annual Guiding Light Pageant and the Lantern Light Tournament are about to begin!~"

As if on cue, several stands erected to the side of the stage, NPCs filling in and setting up the sign-up processes in order to begin filling in the girls and boys rushing in. And the amusing part?

A new quest was now available!

Male-specific, this quest would show up on the HUD of every male present inside Nexus in order to make sure they didn't ignore it's contents:

Snow Wolfe
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival

Morgana
Aeternus || Nexus
Lantern Festival

Affected Players: Tempest

Unfortunately, the wolf quest had ended before either Stella or Tim had a chance to do anything. Mainly because Tim got too scared to move, and Stella had to calm him down. The two of them had since returned to town, just in time for the Lantern Festival. Tim was fascinated with the way everything looked. All the glowing lanterns were so pretty, and it was just so festive, that it was easy to forget that they were trapped in this death game. They even had vendors selling all kinds of delicious foods! The boy's mouth started watering at the thought. Seeing all this food was starting to make him hungry. He hadn't had a chance to eat before he logged in. Although he couldn't imagine what eating food would be like in a Video Game, if it was a realistic as everything else he had experienced so far, then

On the other hand, Stella wasn't interested in the lanterns, or the festival. Having missed out on the opportunity to earn experience from the wolf quest, she needed to make up for lost time. Thankfully, there were several booths all around Nexus. There was a challenge for wolf-racing, and another for wrestling, but none of those really appealled to her. Then she came across a gladiator-style challenge. The prize for defeating the monsters in this challenge were free weapons, that were rare and valuable. This opportunity seemed perfect. Stella was never one to turn down valuable things. So, with a goal in mind, she took Tim by the wrist, and went over to the stall, and took out her money. "Come along now Timothy. We have a challenge to do!"

Tim and his wolf companion Alice however, had been hungrily eyeing one of the food vendors when Stella dragged him to some scary stall to do a challenge he had no interest in doing. "B-b-b-but... food!"

Stella rolled her eyes as she the 15 Gold payment on to the table. "You will have plenty of time to eat later! First, we need to level up. How do you intend to survive when you're only at level one?"

"How do you intend to survive if you keep taking challenges that get us all killed? Tim mumbled under his breath.

"What was that?"

Tim's eyes widened, and he jumped up from shock. "Ah! Nothing!" The younger boy squealed.

"Good, that's what I thought." Stella smirked, then pointed to the table. "Now pay the man. Apparently, we only need one more challenger so we can get this started."

Tim reluctantly put his money on the table. He still wasn't sure if this was a good idea, but the last thing he wanted to do was get Stella upset. Then he followed Stella to the inner chamber of the arena.

When they got there, and Stella caught sight of the other challenger, her face immediately fell into a frown. She saw someone she really didn't want to see. Caroline McNamara, looking as tasteless as ever in what was essentially a black leather bikini. Stella attends design school with her, and had always wondered what the Dean of Admissions was smoking when she got accepted. She thinks It's quite clear she has bad taste (She comes to school dressed like some kind of gothic hooker. And don't get her started on the clothes she designs,) and clearly doesn't fit in the fashion world. There are rumors she tried to get into a cooking school, but failed the hygiene test. Judging by all the piercings, the fact that she smells of cigarette smoke, and that trashy tattoo, Stella wouldn't be surprised if that were true.

Stella immediately approached the redhead. "Oh Caroline darling, it seems your here too... Wonderful." She said in a sarcastic tone that was anything but friendly. "As if that lowborn boyfriend of yours being here wasn't bad enough already... Ugh..."

Meanwhile, Tim stood in the corner, cowering nervously and stroking Alice's head, who he carried in his arms. Why does Stella have to go and annoy the scary looking people? He shut his eyes, and took several deep breaths.

---

HP: 100%
SP: 120
Level: 1
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x5

Alice's HP: 100%



HP: 100%
SP: 150
Level: 1
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x5

Soul Story Online - Rose

Rose
Aeternus || Nexus - Lantern Festival
Affected Characters: Mystic, Prince, Vick, Max, S.V


Rose tilted her head curiously as he identified the colorful one as a thief, though she had seen him getting rather uppity with a stall keeper. She simply nodded and accepted his word for it, not fully understanding the situation. "You can call me Rose... And I'm just glad to see she has someone else to look out for her." Her thin lips curled into a smile as she watched the little girl play with the dog. It was something so... normal that it made it hard to remember they were trapped here.

It was then that Prince leaned in close, so close she could feel his breath on her ear. His secret? Her eyes flickered momentarily to the other boy who followed Prince and was wearing a rather concerned, or maybe confused expression. Rose really had no intention of telling anyone; it was none of her business; so she simply smiled back to Prince and gave a slight nod. Luckily, this exchange was mostly covered by the colorful chaps sudden revenge-claiming outburst. "I suppose with an outfit like that I'm not surprised he has a thing for the dramatic..." Her eyes watched him disappear over the rooftop with a cool expression.

---------------------------------------
HP: 100%
SP: 100
Level: 2
Inventory
Potion x4
Gold x4