Kalas

Sword Art Online

Crimson Guardians of the Asylum HQ, The Spire of Othe, Floor 35

Mez hadn't slept. Last night's execution had taken its' toll, as it always did, on his normally stalwart mind. Images of the man's face and, more notably, his twisted smile kept him awake during the early hours. It was nothing new, however. The longer this game went on, the more he found himself struggling to sleep. 'Just another thing to add to the nightmares.' He thought. Sometimes he'd wonder if he truly was doing the right thing but then he'd think of the scores of players who had died unfairly due to someone else's choices. When it came to the executions, those people had already made their choice, they knew it would end that way.

His musing was interrupted by a knock at the door to his chambers. "Come in." He said aloud. A few seconds went by before the door opened and through it walked a Guardsman, the same one that had been posted to guard his door during the night for protection. The idea hadn't been Mez's of course, but that of the other Eleven. They had deemed him a rather big target ever since he had decided to confront the PKers. Mez wasn't crazy about the 24hr protection but he wasn't about to dismiss the concerns of his Councilmen.

The guard, Virgil was his name, shuffled forward a few steps before speaking. "My apologies, Lord Mez, but I have been ordered to inform you that there has been a murder on this floor. As recent as last night, taken place inside a tavern not too far from the Spire." The guard looked at the floor, obviously nervous. This had been the first time the guard had actually spoken to him.

"Thank You, Virgil." He began. "For bringing this to my attention. Have some men sent to the Tavern immediately and begin inquiries into what happened. No one in or out until I get there."

"Soldiers have already been sent to secure the location. They are awaiting your arrival." Mez was pleased at this. His council had saw fit to act immediately, rather than rely on his go ahead. He stood up from his bed, still dressed from evening prior. A murder this close to the Spire was serious, there hadn't been one for at least a month. Hygiene would have to wait.

"Then what are we waiting for? I assume you'll be accompanying me?" Mez replied.

"Well no, Sir. I am to stand guard at your chambers, My Lord." Another nervous shuffle.

"You would guard an empty room? Nonsense. You'll come along with me, I'll need the company. Besides, if you're going to be guarding me whilst I sleep, I'd prefer it if I knew you as a friend than just another subordinate." Mez had donned a large cloak by now and had affixed his massive, sheathed Greatsword to his back.

"Of course, My Lord, if you say so." Replied the guard, bowing his head.

"Which means you can drop the 'My Lord' crap. I'm no more of a player than you are."

"Yes, Sir. I understand, Sir."

"That too."

"As you command."

Mez sighed, "We're gonna have to work on you." Mez then strode out of the room, followed closely by his bodyguard.

Tavern, Floor 35

Mez walked into the tavern, which was now teeming with Crimson Guardians. He walked straight toward the bar where two Guardians were questioning the barman. Mez could tell he was growing frustrated. "Barkeep!" He exclaimed aloud. Players within the tavern turned to look upon him. Every member of the Crimson Guardians saluted in unison, all barring Virgil of course, who was following just a few steps behind him. "Two pints of your finest ale, please." He then turned to Virgil and asked, "Have you eaten?" Virgil shook his head. "And maybe something to eat, if you'd be so kind." The man's face eased slightly as Mez closed in on the bar, recognizing who he was and happy with his appearance in his inn. "And could all Crimson Guardian members please leave the tavern. I will be heading the investigation from here and will only require two of you to stand guard outside. The rest of you are dismissed."

The atmosphere within the building instantly seemed to calm as the Guardians left the inn. They had been far too overzealous with their investigations it seemed. Mez then regarded the other players who had stayed within the tavern for the night and who, up until now, were being unduly questioned by his subordinates. They, also, looked none too happy. "My apologies, Ladies and Gentlemen, for my over-eager guildmates. It has been a while since there was a murder on this floor. Please, sit down, enjoy some of this establishment's fine food and excellent ale, courtesy of the Crimson Guardians. I will try to make this investigation as short and as painless as possible."

With that, Mez placed a bag of coins on the bar and swooped up one of the ale glasses that the barman had just placed out in front of him. "So then," He said to the owner, leaning on the bar as he did so and taking a swig of the bitter liquid. "About this murderer..."

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Just a shout out to let people know that you can join my character's guild if you want. Just shoot me a PM.

You can decide whether you want to be apart of the Frontlines section of the Guild, which includes clearing levels and fighting bosses or scouting the top levels for information to compile into the Advanced & Free guides. Or you could be a part of the Policing part of the Guild, which includes investigating murder scenes, tracking down PKers and arresting them and preventing future murders from happening by going on protection missions.

You'll have free reign of whatever you want to do, except for killing other players, even PKers, since that is the most sacred rule of the Guild. (Eventually this rule will be lifted but not straight away)

Also, if you want a character to be one of the Twelve Guardians, you can apply for that as well. However, I won't be accepting just any CS to fill those roles.

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"You may call me...Tiffany!"

"Tiffany huh? That's a pretty masculine name."

"Shouldn't be, it's a woman's name!"

This killed me. XD

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Jedly said
Anyways, Aerandir, am I free to post in the IC?

Aerandir said
Both of you are accepted along with ff fan, of course, as well as jedly. Go ahead and make your posts.

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Aerandir said
There was slight blood in the anime which shattered to pieces a few seconds after it wasn't there all the time but it was and I'm ok with it.

Awesome, thankyou! :D And what of the head-mounty-stuff?

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Jedly said
Eh... I tend to write pretty large opening posts, as I guess I can be considered a "high casual" writer. Oddly enough, my normal posts can be large than my opening post. After a while, I just write for an hour or two on end and phase out of reality. I just sit there and stare at the screen. I'll wait a bit until I post, in the case that it needs to be reviewed by the GM.

I usually write opening posts which are double the size. I'm coming from Advanced and I haven't played in a Casual RP for a while, but even that is still longer than the average post size here. Unless, like you said, you're High-Casual. And I write exactly the same way pretty much. There have even been occasions where I've been writing a post for over 3 hours.

Raxacoricofallapatorius said
Epic post Kalas, though as I recall there isn't any blood in the game, when a player dies their avatar simply shatters into tiny data bits, same with beasts, monsters, and destroyed items *shrugs* I don't mind blood, if the GM ok's it instead of the traditional way of dying in SAO it could make action more intense.

Thanks man. And I totally forgot! Haha! I must've got carried away. I'll just edit it out. Plus that means I can no longer mount the guy's head on a spike.. :/

Maybe I'll wait and see what he says? :P

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Sorry for the rather long post, I tried keeping it short, haha! :D

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Crimson Guardians of the Asylum HQ, The Spire of Othe, Floor 35

The courtyard of the keep was in dead silence. A dozen guards stood at the ready against the four walls that surrounded the courtyard, each of them held a blazing torch to illuminate the area. Three more guards stood in the center, their hands held firmly on the pummels of their sheathed blades, next to a fourth man, although he wasn't a guard. He was, in fact, a criminal and, as such, was kneeling down in complete submission. He didn't seem to realize where he was, almost as if he'd lost his mind. The tattered rags that clothed him barely covered his shaking body. Mez wondered whether it truly was the cold that gripped him and not fear.

He walked, silently, from the large wooden doors that lead into the keep, other figures were filing out from the innards of the keep, there were eleven in total. The three guards in the center turned to face him and simultaneously placed a closed right fist over their left breast, just above the heart. Mez acknowledged them with a nod. His stride lengthened just by a little so that he may reach them quicker.

Execution was a nasty business. But sometimes there was no other solution. The kneeling man had been a prisoner beneath the Spire for just over three weeks. His crime was first-degree murder. He had stationed himself just outside of the Town of Beginnings and proceeded to prey upon the lower ranks. Slaughtering weaker players as if they were just another thing to be farmed. The man had managed five killings before a Crimson Guard had apprehended him. He was teleported to the Spire immediately to stand trial. His time was now up. The Twelve Guardians had reviewed his case and had granted him the most severe form of punishment. Death.

It had been Mez who initially introduced them all to the idea of policing the players who killed other players, otherwise known as PKers. This man had done it simply for sport, for his own twisted amusement, Mez felt sick just looking at him. They then had to take up the mantle of responsibility. He wasn't stupid, Mez knew that he couldn't completely eradicate PKing from this game, as long as it were an optional thing to do, but he could do his utmost to deter others from doing it. And so, as the Guild Leader, he nominated himself to perform all executions. It was a guilt ridden task but there was no one else stronger and more dedicated to the cause.

He loomed over the criminal now, his shadow dancing in the firelight, and looked down upon the husk of what once was a human being. A glimpse of a smile still etched upon the man's face. Mez, however, felt nothing but pity. "Secure him." He uttered. One of the guards held the man's top half against a chopping block, whilst another secured the metallic shackles that would keep him in place, his head was left hanging over the edge with a bloody, wooden bucket underneath.

Rhan had come to stand beside Mez by now, a worried look upon his face. "Are you sure this time, Mez. I can always..."

"No." He interrupted. "You know the rules. Only one of us may be red." He fixed Rhan with a stern look as he said so, then eased off and began looking at the ten remaining of the Twelve Guardians, their green diamonds floating proudly above their heads. He daren't look up at his own. Instead, he opened his inventory and, after scrolling through it momentarily, selected a weapon named Retribution +3. Doing so caused the one-handed sword to materialize in his grasp. He took a single step towards the criminal, soon to be relieved from this world and the past world. Slowly, his lifted his right arm, in which he held the blade, and pointed it toward the pitch black sky.

"You have been weighed. You have been measured. And you have been found guilty. For the heinous crime of multiple accounts of first-degree murder, I, MezmeriSin, Venerable Lord of the Asylum, grant you only that which you deserve most. May your descent into Hell be everlasting and your stay, even longer. I sentence you..." He paused, allowing the gravity of his next words to fill the air.

"...to death."

With those final words, he brought his sword down swiftly upon the man's neck. Crimson liquid sprayed for a while, after the man's severed head fell into the bucket, but it quickly died down. Mez flicked the blood from his sword and sheathed it at his side. "The deed is done." He announced. "Place his head upon a spike with the others." It was the last thing he said before turning back towards the keep and walking off.

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Raxacoricofallapatorius said
First time anyone's ever called me that, but I can work with it lol

Haha! Good to know. I rarely meet other people that watch Ao no Exorcist.

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Mephisto Pheles <3