Akemi "The Guardian Angel"
Turning towards both the new arrivals, Akemi looked over each with a critical eye to ensure they remained seemingly friendly. The red haired one didn't give her a hostile vibe in slightest, which allowed Akemi to relax slightly. Though the other one she had seen made it quite obvious to her that there was something off. She couldn't really see any hostile intent in the man with a blue robe, but the way he carried himself made it seem quite like he thought himself above others.
Great. she thought to herself. While she was normally all for helping others, she knew that those who thought themselves superior or carried themselves with such an attitude could be quite the hindrance to deal with. Whatever, she'd cross that bridge when it came to it. Although the way Athel seemed to invite the strangers to the party without much of a hesitation made the girl raise an eyebrow. What was done was done, so whenever Athel began leading the way down the Hog's Beach, Akemi followed after her with the hilt in hand.
"In case any of you haven't faced <<Laughing Coffin>> before," Akemi suddenly spoke up, looking at the others.
"They are all very skilled in cunning, even the most basic grunt can and has likely killed. They favor running STR builds, but watch out for their AGL units. The STR players usually charge straight in and are heavily armored as well as armed. Their job is to cause chaos and distract you, then the AGLs come from the sides, hitting with light attacks and the occsional heavy charge. Do not get boxed in or they will destroy you. Remember, their tactics constantly evovle. So be prepared, the intel I have may already be out of date." she explained as they arrived at their destination.
The girl gave a reassuring nod to everybody as Athel gave her advice should they run into any PK'ers. Taking the time before anything arrived, she decided to get some grinding out of the way. With a shake of her wrist, the hilt in her hand suddenly lept to life. From it, an elegant longsword made entirely from red light appeared. The weapon shimmered as glyphs of some sword seemed to hang in the air along the 'blade'. Looking away from her weapon, Akemi noticed a hog charging towards her. Clearly it was the game's attack animation for a headbutt from the beast. A small grin could be seen on the girl's lips as she brought her sword back and light seemed to gather further around her arm. Allowing the systems in game to do their work, Akemi immdiately launched into an elegant dance of death. The sword came in low, running with its tip just barely touching the ground as she turned to the side for further reach. The weapon came upwards in a seamless arc, leaving a trail of red light behind it as it made contact. The hog charging bore a new red slash across its face and its health fell quickly as it flew up into the air. Continuing her spin, Akemi came around quickly went onto the toes of one foot to gain extra height. Her sword came from behind in a massive overhead arc, accelerating into a blur as it slammed into the hog and brought both careening into the ground. Upon impact the hog let out a death wail and disappated into holographic pieces. Turning around from her foe, Akemi felt rather pleased with herself for unleashing the combo she had just learned. Yet that feeling was not to last...
Isamu "The Solo Player"
More people? How large was Akemi's party supposed to be today? Isamu knew that his sister had gained quite the reputation, even among the clearers, but he had honestly doubted many would want to accompany her to some place as dangerous as land owned by <<Laughing Coffin>>. Casting a look towards his sister, and seeing her reaction to the two showing up, it became evident that these two weren't planned additions to the party. Although, Isamu knew that happened quite a bit to Akemi as well. People were always asking to join up with her, a side effect of her skills, reputation, and being found attractive by many, Isamu assumed. As Athel accepted the others into the party, Isamu wondered what the girl had in mind for all them. He watched her carefully, and found himself staring a bit longer than he had planned whenever Akemi popped him upside the head to get his attention. It seemed they were all moving out to hit the grinding area, a good option if one were to ask Isamu. As they were walking, Isamu stayed towards the rear of the group so he didn't have to be bothered by anybody and ensured he had all his best gear on. Afterall, this was very much so still dangerous territory, and Isamu wasn't about to be the guy who caused a party wipe. Once they arrived, Isamu looked around to see if he could find a ribbon hog, wanting the extra XP and money that the little shits usually would provide.
He found one rather quickly and drew his weapon. An elegant blade, deep blue with silver outlines decorated both the blade and hilt of the weapon. Ornate designs curved along the blade and a deep blue jewel sat center on the hilt. Overall, the weapon was worth quite a bit of money, but Isamu jealously kept it to himself ever since he had earned it during a once in a lifetime quest early in the game. Looking at his target, Isamu decided to stick to his usual tactics against Hogs in this game. Once the beast began to charge, the boy lunged to side, but thrust back towards where he was with the weapon. As usual, the beast couldn't turn quick enough and firmly ate the stab to its side. As the beast was recovering, Isamu continued forward with his momentum before planting his foot in the ground. Using that to turn around quickly, he dashed back towards the recovering hog and slammed a shoulder into the animal. The attack did little damage, as it wasn't a formally recognized attack in the system, but still cause the animal to reel back. As it stumbled, the boy engaged in a flurry of blows that were so quick he appeared as a blur until the animal exploded into shards and he was rewarded with an XP screen. Nodding towards the deceased animal, Isamu walked over towards the other girl in the party, Athel.
"How long you think we got before the assholes show up?" he asked her, trying to make some conversation as he got ready to attack another enemy.
Great conversation starter, Isamu. You woo all the women like that? he grumbled to himself. Although before she could reply, Isamu received his answer.
<<Laughing Coffin>>
So there they were, the next prey to fall into the coffin. A group of five little whelps, just begging to be put out of their existence seemed to be gathered in their coast. Foolishly attacking the hogs, when the real threat lurked nearby. Watching the group and letting them have their fun for a few minutes, the man began preparations.
"Come, come my disciples!" he called to the group of five that sat waiting nearby. All of his band were the lowest level grunts, one of them a fresh initiate into the Guild. The Sergeant smiled manically to himself as he thought about the joy, pleasure that the initiate was about to experience.
"It seems we have an infestation in our coast! Don't you think it would be quite rude to leave our... guests out there without a proper welcoming party into our abode?!" the man said, followed by a fit of maniacal laughter as the others seemed to agree approach him.
"Then come, it is time to give them a surprise. They'll be dying with laughter." he said, chuckling as he grabbed the massive greatsword laying at his feet. In seconds it was slung on his back, the small party was assembled around him. The orange icons and formation they moved in hid his red icon, and evidence of there being a sixth person in the party at they grew closer.
Orders were given as they moved in, and soon everyone of the team knew what they were to do. The initiate, a heavily armed STR player, was to engage the one trying to be edgy (Enyo). The girl to his right, she was to take on the red haried man and seemed to be readying her twin daggers to engage the man (Varen). The boy to his left, another AGL build, was to ensure that everybody stayed within the killing radius. The other two STR builds were to engage the remaining trio, and thanks to their heavy armor along with their deadly weaponry; they were likely more than capable of dealing with these runts (Athel, Akemi, and Isamu). The man in the center would move in once the trap was complete, and then these pesky little clearers will be wiped out quickly. A twisted smile grew on his lips as they grew ever so closer, nobody breaking formation or giving any hint of their attack plans yet. Not until he decided that it was time, and by then... it would be too late for those little clearers. Oh, today would be a wonderful party, and he could already taste the reward that the boss would give him!
Seeing the group approaching, Akemi immediately knew what it meant. The <<Laughing Coffin>> had finally found them. Akemi moved to the front of the group, where she would be of the most use, then cast a look to either side of herself. Searching for the other STR builds to move up front with her.
"Everybody brace yourselves, <<Laughing Coffin>> inbound! Isamu, get ready to harass and ensure we can't be encircled! If any of you are also an AGL build, then get on the side. Your only goal needs to be keeping them off of us! Other STR builds, on me!" she commanded, the confidence in her voice showing that she had faced threats like this before and lived to tell the tail.
"If all else fails, we can hold them off and slowly retreat back to where Teleport Crystals work." she added, then flicked her wrist as the sword in her hand suddenly changed into massive lance of light. Akemi glared down the incoming enemies, ready to fight them off when they came for her.
Isamu glared at the <<Laughing Coffin>>, then cast a look towards his sister as she barked out orders and prepared for a fight. So it seemed like they would be fighting off the enemy again. Looking towards Athel, he shrugged briefly despite their lack of a conversation.
"Good luck." he said simply, to her and then to his sister. The boy then moved towards the outside and rear of the group. He took the time to check his loadout, and when confident began watching for any sign of movement from the enemy. If he had to guess, they were likely going to stay in formation for a while, then suddenly break into a full charge. Any AGL units would likely be on top of them in seconds. This thought in mind, the brought some throwing tacks out of his inventory and moved more to the side. Ready to stumble anybody trying to make a charge as they moved in.
