"Relax" Asrial told himself as he he waited for the catapult to sling his fighter into the deep void, the indicator lights slowly ticking down to the launch mark. "Just relax and it will be alright." Breathing deeply, he held his breath and whent slightly slack in his seat just as the counters hit their low point. AS he was slammed with the G forces of the sudden 0 to several hundred of meters per second acceleration, Asrial slowly let his breath bleed out and his body be pressed into the seats.
As the fighter transitioned into the void, Asrial ditched the relaxed posture he had maintained, and put his head on the swivel to take in his surroundings and mentally mark the positioning of his squadron mates. Nudging the throttle up, the armored Aranok couldn't help but let out a pleased rumble that echoed that of the ship as it accelerated to match the speed of the other fighters. His hands moved with familiarity, softly pressing on the controls to coax the fighter into an odd banking turn that was angled up as well as to the side, matching direction with the other's, just at a slightly higher elevation.
"All right, boys and girls. Split into two groups; three in close escort to Eagle Eye, four of us in two pairs in a wide spread ahead and on either side to intercept anything coming in. Olarin, Mallory and Wallon, stick with the Claymore. Hel'Kayik and Cavernmaw, you're together. Miles, you come with me. Keep your eyes peeled, everyone. We know there's something weird going on out here".
Clicking his own com to signify his receiving the order, Asrial tightened up his formation with his two wingmen. "Babysitting duty aye." The muttered to himself, only after ensuring that his com was off. And for the most part he was right, it was a long slow process of tailing the larger Claymore craft. In fact it was boring enough that Asrial found himself humming to an old tune that popped into his head as the com came to life once more carrying the authoritative voice of the commander to his ears. His humming stopped dead as she railed out the sighting of the new contacts, and the barking of various orders. A rush of adrenaline cleared his mind as he thumbed the safety off his guns.
"Olarin, Mallory, Wallon; eyes to the rear. I think they're trying to bushwhack us, over"
Gritting his teeth under his helmet, and forcing a smile Asrial responded in an clam and even voice, "Understood lead, taking up defensive posture."
Though he was anxious to get into the thick of things, he knew his place and it was most certainly not questioning orders at the start of an engagement, besides he had a gut feeling things were going to heat up here in any case. Flipping on his maneuvering thrusters Asrial spun his Saber sideways, pointing his nose towards the incoming contacts, letting his previous momentum carry him in a side slide, keeping up with the Claymore. Touching his coms the radioed over to Mallory and Wallon, a grumble of satisfaction in his voice "How about a friendly wager? First one to score a hit, I buy a drink, deal?"
Annwns head rested against the stone pillar he had sat in front of and propped himself against, with a slow rhythm he began to tap the back of his head against the virtual stone. Resting in his lap was the small form of the albino rat that was Gnash, it just sat there unmoving and unblinking, a hallmark of the non-combat pets which in retrospect didn't do much other than offer what was essentially a mobile set dressing. Still Annwn found he had grown attached to the little thing ever sense he picked it up off of one of the back pages of the cash shop, a last chance fire sale they had said. His mouth twisting into a smile Annwn reached out to stroke the rat's back, a meaningless gesture, but one he would be happy to share with the uncaring program as its world ticked down its final seconds to oblivion. "Whelp it been a fun run eh Gnash?" he said, expecting no response in return, an expectation which was met in full. Still he petted the rat and mumbled to himself as the last seconds drained away "It really has been one hell of a time."
Annwn sighed, he kept up what he was doing almost subconsciously, just waiting for the shutdown. Yet he remained, his armor pressing against him like a familiar second skin, the warmth of the small body that was now nestling in, enjoying the attention, a small comfort, the...... Wait. All of Annwn's thoughts vanished in a snap of the fingers, the weight of the armor, the warmth of Gnash, these were things that should not be happening unless he was hallucinating, and speaking of Gnash was it moving on its own? He glanced down quickly to the rat, who met the doppelganger's gaze with an almost indignant look at the sudden cessation of the attention.
Gulping down a bit of apprehension Annwn sat up straighter and scooped up Gnash in his gauntleted hand, before depositing it on the floor next to him. With that done Annwn stood up slowly, never taking his eyes off the rat, who made quizzical look towards it's keeper and moved forward towards him. Taking a step back Annwn kept his eyes focused firmly on the animal, who kept advancing, finding no alternative Annwn's mind flashed to the first thing he would do in a situation like this in Yggdrasil. Reaching out with an ease that was more akin to a second nature than a power, Annwn suddenly found himself on the top of a couple boxes, a thin vapor trail the only indication of where he once stood. "That was... what the... alright I have no idea what is going on anymore."
He was grasping at straws, and he had to be honest with himself, it was the best he could do given the circumstance. But as he debated with himself just what the hell was going on, the small white shape of Gnash sat down, its eyes transfixed on where Annwn used to be. It sat there for a moment before letting out a high pitched squeak, that somehow sounded mournful.
Turning his head towards where the rat sat, a good few meters away, Annwn couldn't help but feel a twinge of regret for the poor thing. Cursing himself slightly Annwn jumped off the boxes, a fluid motion and landing that was unlike anything he could do outside Yggdrasil "Good to know my Agility score still works" he thought to himself as he slowly worked his way over to Gnash.
As he got close Gnash turned it's head to peer at Annwn, who swore he could see it's tiny eyes light up. Gulping slightly, Annwn bent down and held out his hand, which Gnash began to slink towards. "Its alright, were just confused. Well im confused, I dont know about you, still I would- Hey!"
Annwn was cut off mid sentience as the rat suddenly bolted up his arm, only to stop at his shoulder, which it began to grip as if for dear life. Still it seemed comfortable and Annwn wasn't going to try to move it. "Alright you go there good to know now. Still- Annwn's voice trailed off as a message entered his mind.
"This is Kirishima to any guild members within the Palace of Whispers. If you can hear this, please do not be afraid. We have gathered within the Throne Room and are here waiting for you. Please come here as soon as you can, we have much to discuss about our current situation."
Now normally Annwn would be slightly miffed at all the recent interruptions, but he was in no place to be very picky, and it was very very good to know that he wasn't alone. "Well that sounded... final. Shall we?" Annwn asked the rat on his shoulder with a tilt of his head. Gnash let out an enthusiastic squeak, and looked mighty pleased. Shrugging his non occupied shoulder Annwn started off in the direction of the throne room, at a quickened pace "Who am I to argue with a response like that?"
In truth he wasn't that far away and would probably arrive as the others did, even if he didn't hurry.
Asrial was not a morning person on the best of days, a fact that was shown most presently by the Aranok's slow shuffle out of his bunk. Yawning wide enough to pop his jaw, Asrial waited patiently to get his food and fix of caffeine in any form. When he got his turn at the food he loaded up solely on bacon, a couple donuts, and a cup of a sludge that used to be coffee before it was diluted with sugar as well as a couple other caffeinated drinks that were part of the display. Sitting down he grunted a 'good morning' to the rest of the squadron, settling in he began eating what seemed to be a sandwich made from the donuts and bacon he took, accompanied by large gulps of his drink. As the captain began her briefing Asrial turned his near total attention to her, his eating slowing. With the introduction of the new addition, Asrial's response was a simple glance in his direction as he took a slow bite from his amalgam of a breakfast, before returning his attention to the captain.
As they were dismissed, the Aranok placed his dishes in the cleaner and returned to his room to rummage through his bag and pull out a worn and yellowed paperback that had lost it's covers from repeated use. Opening it to a familiar spot as he found a place to put his feet up he passed the time with some measure of a quiet peace.
When the time to gear up he stashed his book and proceeded to get prepped for the launch, going through the motions with a slightly practiced hand, the bulky Aranok variant armor fitting on him like a second skin. As he was on his way to the hanger he also pulled on his helmet, securing it down. Inhaling slowly he tasted the filtered air that ran through the suit, a familiar and welcome taste.
Lowering himself into the cockpit, Asrial belted himself in and began the startup sequence with almost machine like motions. As the canopy hissed, sealing the pilot inside, Asrial gave the thumbs up as all checks came back green. Sighing heavily he tried his best to relax as the fighter was pulled into it's launch tube. As the thunk of the locks resounded across, Asrial's voice rumbled onto the comms
"Received and understood Lead. This is Wyld Fire one, all checks are green and the tires have been kicked, im ready to go."
I would first like to apologize to you all, I was blindsided by work and life for a good long while there and didn't notify you that my post would be delayed. For that I am sorry, I am also sorry that I seemed to disappear for a while with no reason, that was not my intention and I didn't want that to happen, but it did and I'm sorry. However, it seems the various factors are all returning to a normal state and so I can resume posting again, which brings me to this. I have not lost interest in this RP, not a single shred. So if you would have me back I could even get a post out today as part of my return to normal posting. But if you decide that I am no longer suited for this, I will understand and bow out graciously.
Job Level: Assassin 10 Shadow Dancer 15(a class that is based off of quick combat and single strikes, mixed with specialized blink magic. In combat it often times looks like they are dancing around the battlefield with deadly grace, disappearing and reappearing seemingly from the shadows, hence the name.) Sword Dancer 10 Weapon Master 5 Swarm Caller 15 (A relatively uncommon spell casting class, due to its lack of direct damage output and low effectiveness in a direct forward fight, instead relying on summoned swarms to deal large amounts of indirect damage) Plague Bringer 10 (A higher form of the Swarm Caller job, and even more rare. The Plague Bringer focuses on summoning “plague creatures” (rats/bats/diseased animals/etc.) as well as calling upon various poison and disease spells to add some direct/indirect damage)
Abilities and Powers: A terrifying mix of a lightning quick skirmish fighter, an indirect damage mage and a psychological warfare expert, Annwn in combat has been described as an animalistic dervish of fear and blades. A description that fits well, all things considered. Annwn begins a fight by observing a target, the longer the better, and waits for the perfect opportunity to strike from the shadows, seizing on surprise and the sudden confusion to aid his attack. If surprise is not an option Annwn opens with a torrent of illusions and summoned swarms, to sow both fear and chaos into the foes ranks and mind, before engaging.
His normal combat stance is a hunched over animalistic look, a look that is reinforced by Song often times twitching behind him like a sinister bladed tail.
Active and Passive Abilities (Optional): Ring (causes a high pitched sound to emanate from a certain point, causing discomfort to and debuffing the ability to resist mind affecting spells/skills to all those that hear it) Rat's nose (Allows Annwn to literally see sent trails) Illusionary copies (creates multiple copies that all act and speak like Annwn, even going so far as to fight like him. But a single good hit and the fakes vanish in a poof of thick smoke) Cleanse (Purifies the body of most toxins and poison) Razor cloud (creates up a wide swirling cloud of razor wire) Razor cloud: Toxin (a variation of Razor cloud that is coated in various potent toxins) Razor cloud: Burst (oddly enough the best way to describe this variation of Razor cloud, would be to replace the razor wire with detcords, that are coated with high explosives) Confusion: single target and mass (causes a bout of severe confusion in a single target, and mild confusion in an AOE. Both however have similar side effects such as, those affected lashing out in a fit of rage, those affected attempting to flee from some unknown thing, forgetfulness, and a temporary degradation of fine motor skills, which in severe cases turns into a temporary loss of fine motor skills) Plague wind (Annwn breaths out a large sickly green cloud that chokes anyone in its area, as well as causes boils, blisters, and other sores to appear on any exposed skin) Hearts Fear (A powerful illusion that causes those affected to see a smoky, shadow, of their worst living fear to apparate in front of them. The apparition deals no damage, and receives no damage as it is a trick of the mind, however frightening) No more suns (A massive AOE that bleeds the color out of its effective area, turning ones sight greyscale. While being unsettleing, the spell also has the effect of lenghening and deepining shadows, which plays into Annwn's shadow dancer ability's) Those of Secrets (summons a sizeable number of disembodied red eyes appear and seek out threats and targets within a set area. When they find something they pursue it, reporting their location to Annwn via a telepathic link) Calling the Hungry (Summons a large swarm of spectral rats. They appear suddenly, pouring out of any opening into the room like a flood of small bodies, or by appearing from an inky black smoke. They will attack any living thing in their sight range, save for Annwn, and will consume any corpses already present or those they drag down with a voracious appetite. It should also be noted that the more the rats consume, the more rats continue to appear. They have no set health and therefor cannot be slain for extra health) Rat Guard (Summons a pair over-leveled, armored, spectral Dire Rats that protects Annwn)
Over Rank Magics (Optional): Blighted Earth (powerful magic rips up from the ground, creating large fissures that emanate with power and cause massive damage to those in the affected area. What it leaves behind is a wasteland, a grey sheet of torn earth and rocky crags, save for a single white flower that grows at the center of the AOE) Omega Shift: Avatar of the Plague (not really over rank magic, but it is an ability that follows the same rules and regulations as over rank magic)
Bonus Abilities (Optional, heteromorphic characters only): Perfect Copy (Due to his being a greater doppleganger, Annwn can perfectly copy any humanoid down to the most minor detail. He even gains a percentage of their skills and power on top of his own) War Shifter (Annwn can change his form with little to no concentration in the midst of combat, negating the usual penalties for shifting mid combat)
Special Skills (Optional): Shadow Blink/Slashing Blink: SD (A shadowdancer base skill/spell. Shadow blink is an at will spell that covers the caster in a thick smog like smoke, which rapidly dissipates only to form where the Shadowdancer has blinked to. Slashing Blink allows Annwn to deal damage, equal to one to three hits, if his blink path intercepts any person or monster along the way. Slashing Blink however is considered slower in speed, leaving behind a vapor trail, and has a shorter range than Shadow blink) One with disease: PB (the skill learned by the plague bringer class. One grants Annwn with immunity from sickness and disease based attacks, as well as a resistance to various poisons)
Main Equipment: Geri and Freki: Divine (A pair of twin Dussack Knives. Their design is relatively plain, with only a few scratchd on symbols adorning them. But despite their minimalist design, the pair hold true to their namesake (which translated means "the Ravenous"), as when one is cut with the blades the wound seems to be eaten away by an unseen force, stopping a few inches away from the wounded zone dealing death damage and giving the blades a stacking bonus to damage, penetration. If a target is killed with Geri and Freki, their body withers to a husk and grants the blades a massive bonus stack, equal to several normal stacks. As soon as the stacks grow beyond a fairly high number, Annwn can consume them to replenish health.) Song: Legacy (An enchanted Rope dart that is animated and is controlled by ones thoughts. As such Annwn usually uses Song as a third arm during combat, lashing out with it in blinding fast attacks, or for mid fight surprise attacks) Mask of the Snarling One: Legacy (Grants physical attack and resistance bonuses. Annwins breath through this one sounds like the low snarl of a beast.) Mask of the Laughing One: Relic (Allows Annwn the ability to track movement through walls. Annwn's breath through this one sounds like a chuckle) Mask of the Silent One: Legacy (Grants Magic power and magic resist bonuses. Annwn's breath through this one sounds like the empty breeze of a burned out forest.) The Armor Of the Rat King: Unknown level (A highly customized suit of light armor that was originally forged as a high level mundane armor and then reforged again and again until it reached its current iteration. A suit of high strength, resistance and surprising flexibility, the Rat king’s armor mixes both high level magic and master quality mundane armor, making discerning it’s level almost impossible.)
Personality (Optional): .
Background: Annwn first joined the world of YGGDRASIL a bit after launch, as part of the inevitable post-launch crowd that picked up the title after the gauntlet that was the public forum had a chance at it. From the get go the open world, shaped by the actions of players as much as by the developers, enthralled him. The result was many a sleepless night as he soloed through much of the lower rank challenges, preferring to be left alone for the most part. In truth he had a couple names on his friends list, but it was nothing too substantial, and no one of any real note. In any case he found that he rarely needed help, as none of the creatures, or even players posed that much of a threat.
That was until he reached level 15.
At this point he hit a wall, he was too weak to fight monsters alone, and his solitude (probably not helped by his being a monster race) made him an easy mark for higher leveled parties to pick him off in the wilds. So after a couple frustrating days Annwn dropped the game, moving on to other distractions as the wall he reached seemed insurmountable. Yet, after a couple weeks of separation Annwn logged back in and tried again to go at it, but as walls tend to do, it held fast and Annwn was on the verge of leaving once more, that was till he decided to try one last thing. Swallowing his apprehension, Annwn began to look for a guild to join. But, probably due to his choice of player race, he found that his choice of guilds that would take him slim indeed. Still he found one that he thought would fit him well, it was a small loosely organized group rather than a true guild, but with their help Annwn overcame his block and was once more enthralled with the game.
As time passed the ‘guild’ phased through multiple incarnations, as the old members would leave and the new members would take their place. A cycle that had formed with little to no actual input from the guild itself. It was during one of these transitionary times that Annwn came into possession of the Rat Mark. He obtained it during the "Dance of the Rat king" event. A unique nutcracker themed event that occurred near Christmas, it was a relatively straightforward event of go in, do the thing, kill the big guy, get the special treasure. Only the catch was that the person who scored the killing blow on the Rat King would be granted a unique treasure, and have his or her character soul bound to it. With most of guild wiped by the time they reached the boss, it fell to Annwn and a handful of others to finish the raid. After an hour or so, multiple close calls and more than a few potions, they finally succeeded in killing the boss, with Annwn scoring the last hit and gaining the Rat Mark.
The guild stayed together for a few weeks afterwards, until their growing power was checked by a couple of human only guilds that annihilated the members, and spawn camped them until they disbanded the guild.
Once more on his own Annwn wandered for a good number of days, until he came upon the reformed Seekers of fate. Happily joining their ranks he made sure to stand out as a unorthodox fighter and one of their better scouts and assassins. He lost track of how long he was with the guild, the hours of fun and comradery blending together and even now in the end of the game, he stayed with the Seekers, wanting to see the end with those he called friends.
Trivia: He has a non-combat pet rat named Gnash He will often change form based on emotion, so long as he is around those he knows. He bares the Mark of the rat (More like a slightly living Tattoo than an item, The Rat Mark is inked into Annwn's back and provides him with information like a permanent/fixed eye from Those of Secrets) His personal room in the guild hall is a bit odd (will explain later)