[Steel]

“There’s no mistaking it, this is the world of Gaia Reborn.” Yuuto Hayashi, now in the body of the avatar Steel said to himself, having just confirmed this information via the menus and his own appearance. “Of all the times it had to happen, it had to be when I used a new alt account in Italy...” As a veteran and even high ranking player of Gaia Reborn, he of course had a powerful account that represented that. Unfortunately he was using a new account while he was exploring the Italian server before waking up in this new world so he couldn’t make use of his high level. He didn’t even have the advantage of knowing the area since he’s from the Japanese server. His eyes narrowed as he thought about his next move. Panicking was not an option. He had to switch his mind to work mode to keep cool. “For now, getting stronger and getting money takes top priority. I won’t be able to get anywhere without either of those things. I’ll have to go to the beginning forests for now.” He wasn’t some martial artist or sword master so he had no experience with the gear at his disposal or even the skill set of his class. Steel would simply have to get used to it. With no other thoughts coming to mind he stood up and left the abandoned building he had woken up in.



It didn’t take him long to reach the Ciminian Forest, one of the beginner zones for the server. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t know whether it was a good idea for him to go alone. His skills were better suited to protect rather than direct combat after all. Then again, too many were panicking, there probably wasn’t many people ready for combat so soon. The only reason he was ready was due to being in work mode and that he knew the general game inside out. “Alright then, it’s monster hunting time.” He drew his weapons out as he saw a couple of goblins nearby. Three of them to be precise. Steel noted that the Italian goblins looked slightly different from the Japanese ones. “They should act the same though. Now how does this work? I got no keyboard so my controller is my own body. Voice commands, possible.” He faced the unsuspecting goblins and bent his knees, ready to leap. “Vanguard Dive” He whispered. His body began to move on it’s own into a large leap, higher than a person with armor should reasonably be able to do and landed on one of them stunning the rest with the ensuing shockwave. He jumped back and prepared his next skill to keep them from running away. “Dragon’s Roar!” For some reason, he felt like putting in some spirit as he let loose an aura of intimidation that kept their attention. He appreciated the defense buffs cause he would need them. He took a small glance at his MP, keeping track of his usage.



First target, the one with the bow. He rushed towards the only goblin with any form of range. “Draco Strike!” He shouted as he thrust his glowing red sword forward. The goblin’s face contorted rather realistically from the pain. Its comrades came over to strike back with a short sword and club respectively and Steel was forced to defend with the shield. The damage was minimal thanks to the buffs but that damage could build up. “Wyvern Bite!” He thrust at the one with the club so he could get some breathing room. It was the draconic aura that came from the skill though that hit the goblin and make it shatter into particle effects. “One down.” He said with a pant as what damage had been dealt to him was healed up. He swiped at the third goblin with a short swing of his blade before sucker punching him with a shield to the gut. He then got stung in the back by the bow goblin that got back up and started shooting at him. He immediately turned around and held up his shield to fend off the arrows as he charged in for the final blow. “Draco Strike!” Another red covered slash later, another goblin dead. That just left the one with the rusty blade. Said goblin was already charging right at him, forcing Steel to put up a shoddy attempt of a block which barely made it on time. “Haa…. haaa….. Wyvern Bite!!” With one more shout and a draconic thrust, the last of the goblins was defeated.



“That was more difficult than I thought…” Steel said, sticking his sword in the ground to use as a support. He decided to rest for the sake of his mental state before moving again. All in all, he didn’t lose too much health and he still had a good chunk of MP left but it was mentally draining. The only reason why he won was because he kept a cool head and it was as if his body knew what to do. “What the heck is this avatar body of mine? What happened to my actual body?” That chilling thought alongside his break period was cut short when heard a howl. “Wolves?” Steel immediately went on red alert and got into a fighting stance. His eyes scanned the trees around him and it seemed he was surrounded by five wolf monsters called Roamurus. “You’ve got to be kidding me…” He said under his breath as prepared for combat, all the while looking for an escape route. “Well, worst thing that could happen is I could die and respawn. So bring it overgrown mutts! Dragon’s Roar!”


Words: 951
Total: 951
Aminatu

[Aminatu]

HP 92% | MP 54%

Paladin - Cavalier - Blacksmith

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Sounds of Heliopolis filled the bazaar of the market place in Romalia. Bards played upon the Oud and Rababa, while dancers swayed their hips to the tune Heliopolite drums and flutes from the tribal tent set up in the crafting district. The people were adorned in robes and turbans of many exotic colors, but also some wore white silk and cloth of gold embroidery and adorned themselves in gold jewelry. Kohl marked their eyes in dark eyeshadow to reduce the glare from the sun. In contrast to native Romalians, the Heliopolites were of darker pigmentation in skin. Various hues of tanned or brown hues distinguished them as foreigners of the land of Romalia.



The attars that the men and women wore had rich scents of frankincense, myrrh, lavender. Kyphi incense burned allowing rich scents to tantalize the nose of the customers that perused the tribal ship’s wares that came from the caravan. Fortune tellers from the sands often caught the eye of a curious soul as they wished to unveil the mystique truths from behind the curtain of their futures. Women in veiled robes used tarot cards as they spoke with each other over topics of divinations. The weapons that adorned the blacksmith shop held a prominent feature. There were many curved swords. Mostly due to the nature of how it was the favored blade of the Heliopolite people. Scimitars and Khopesh swords from the sands were on full display and caught the intrigue of disciplined warriors.



Aminatu wore a turban with red and orange hues and a red khilat robe as she cleaned her Khopesh sword and read the letter that was attached to it. The weapon was a gift from someone close to her and she took great care to maintain it properly and honor the blade as she was instructed to do. As she gazed at the blade, the reflection of a Romalian merchant appeared. The pale skinned man twirled the corners of his moustache as he set hungry eyes upon her sword. “Oh my, such fine ornate designs! I simply must have it for my collection! I am willing to open my coffers and pay let’s say….”



“Not for sale.” Aminatu interjected roughly as the swordswoman polished her blade, not once looking up to acknowledge the merchant.



“But, you haven’t even heard my offer! I’m a very rich man and I’m willing to pay you handsomely”



“I will not repeat myself again.” The Desert Nomad responded as her wings opened wide in response while she sat cross legged. Her voice was firm, but her patience was not boundless.



The stubborn merchant contorted his face in disgust and his low frustration tolerance emerged as his face began to grow pink with anger. “Pftt..pathetic sandrat barbarians...don’t know why I even bother with you rodents…”



In response to the agitated merchant, the tribal Huntsmaster rose to her feet and the towering woman rose an entire two feet over the potbellied merchant. The burning gaze of the golden orbs highlighted by the wadjet Eye of Horus upon her face settled upon the merchant as her golden jewelry danced in the process. Her elevated stature and beauteous wings gave her a grandiose nature. The ebony markings upon her skin in henna marked out hieroglyphic symbols that were a tribute to the Heliopolite pantheon which she served. As she rose, her blade rose with her and she picked up the massive steel tower shield that rested by the corner of the tent. “Out of my way, Ahmaq…” She scowled as she walked past the abrasive noble.



She made her way to the stables to find her black and beauteous Frazier warhorse, Anhur. Her mind was swimming with thoughts of annoyance of the people. She ensured that her traveling gear and gathering equipment was secured to the back of the humble steed as she mounted the large stallion. The dusky skinned cavalier gripped the reins and with a light kick of her legs to the beast’s thigh, she cues for him to gallop towards the western city gates.



As the mercenary encroached upon the deeper Ciminian forest, she kept her horse at a steady gait, evading Roamurus along the way due to her advanced mobility. The swift steed eventually slowed down as Aminatu tugged on the reins, hearing the sounds of battle in the distance. Her honey hues eyes danced about the forest as she continued to focus on the sounds source. The shouting echoed through the forest over the sweet song of nature. Her vigilant nature enticed her to investigate the cause of the disturbance as thunderous hooves charged towards the sounds of battle.



Anhur leaped over shrubs and the swordsman raised her Khopesh sword and tower shield as the golden glow of her eyes peered at Steel as he slayed the last of the goblin horde. He seemed to keep shouting as he attacked which the desert nomad found strange. A quizzical brow raised as she observed him while he kept repeating the same things as he attacked. A grimace came as she watched the warrior stab his sword into the ground of all things. Her brow trembled in agitation as her militaristic nature became disgusted at the perceived lack of discipline. Yet it seemed he survived and she had no idea how much stamina the man had or experience he had in battle.



It seemed that either the noise or smell of blood drew out vicious predators of the woods and in his condition, Aminatu assumed he may not last long on his own. With a swift decisive shout of rage, the warrioress unleashed her malice as she eyed the five roamarus closing in on Steel. “Give glory to Anhur, stranger, your dance with death ends here!”



[Crusader’s Path] activated and a white sword icon marked one of the Roamarus in the center that persists for thirty seconds. If one examined the effects of the mark through their UI, they would learn that it gave a low movement up and low defense up as long as they moved toward the marker. The cavalier’s mobility was already boosted due to her horse and the Cavalier talent, but the tenacity of her warhorse’s charge was amplified by the buff as her. With yet another vicious battlecry, [Verdict of War] was activated and as the giantess vehement wrath cursed the wolves, her rallying cry granted her allies within fifteen meters a low healing up and accuracy up while enemies were frightened and suffered a low attack, magic attack, and movement down. “The tide of battle has turned! With me!” She shouted out in a thick Heliopolite accent that may be recognizable as an ancient Egyptian accent. Her [Dominating Presence] was toggled on and Steel received an average aggro down.



As the wolves that cornered them in turned tail, Aminatu circled around to cut them off on her speedy steed and uttered a Heliopolite incantation and a glyph of hieroglyphic symbology in blue and gold appeared upon the surface of the earth as the Eye of Horus appeared on the ground and a 5 meter area around Steel and Aminatu was marked as [Hallowed Ground] for fifteen seconds. All enemies that stood on this sacred soil would receive strong Divine damage over 15 seconds, and Steel and Aminatu would receive a below-average defense up.



“Feel the wrath of a thousand splendid suns!”



The divine flames began to cause three of  wolves damage over time as they entered it’s area of effect until the fear effects wore off. Murderous howls echoed out as all five enacted retribution upon the skilled swordsman.



Her large tower shield was able to block two of the leaping bites that came her way, but the the alpha of the pack unleashed vicious claw attacks and sinked their teeth into Aminatu’s leg as the giant woman gritted her teeth. “Group tactics. Stick close. Leave the two cowards. Focus one of the Roamarus on me, but leave the Alpha to me, sayyid! They will be blinded by the Lord of the Sun and we will be healed by the winds of Isis!”

INVENTORY

EQUIPMENT: Arm of Heliopolis, Starter Heliopolite shield, Heliopoilte Platemail
ABILITIES USED: Verdict of War, Crusader's Path, Dominating Presence, Hallowed Ground
TAGS: Steel
Word Count: 1350
Gathering results: 

template by caesar

[Steel]

Right as Steel was prepared to be defeated by the wolves, he heard a rather unique war chant. Something about Anhur or whatnot. Sounded Egyptian if Steel had to guess. He took note of a skill's usage on one of the Roamarus, marking it with a white sword icon. No voice command? Mental command possible. He thought to himself as he was relieved with the buffs he got from it. The stranger who activated the skill came in on a horse at high speed, boosted by the movement up effect. With a battle cry she turned the battle around in an instant, buffing up both of them and debuffing the enemy. She certainly seems to know what she's doing. High ranking player? Quest NPC? No, even if not a player, the People of the Land are much more expressive than how it was when this was a game. Game like quests not possible. As if to regain his composure, his mind began wracking his head with various deductions as the skilled woman used yet another skill that lowered the aggro he built up. The divine aura from the skill usage combined with her choice of weapon at least confirmed her class as Paladin, a tank class like himself. Another thing he noted was that this woman was very tall. She seemed to be at least 30 cm taller than his own body. I suppose that's how it can get when you can choose your own height. Either that or it's a normal thing for certain races. He thought after seeing the wings.

Then the woman shouted something about the wrath of a thousand suns as she let loose divine flames of retribution. Despite feeling awe at the sight, Steel couldn't help but think the wrath of an actual sun, let alone a thousand would be overkill here. This woman was either a Chuunibyou or a Person of the Land with the sun heavily part of her religion. Hearing Isis was giving more creed to that Egyptian thought. She gave orders to keep close and attack the non alpha wolves. As much as he wanted to get the Alpha off the woman's leg, he complied. "Understood." He replied in an almost militaristic tone. He was more used to giving out orders on the battlefield when this was a game but he would not let pride ruin coordination. To not throw off their formation, Steel had to be careful with his skill usage. "Draco Strike!" His sword began to glow with a red aura. Somehow, this avatar body of his could move like it was experienced in combat. Therefore, he made the logical decision to let the skill move his body for him.  He let loose a diagonal slash at one of the wolves, attracting its attention whilst knocking it back slightly. He was glad his current ally's skill was also dealing damage to it. That would make things a bit easier. The affected Roamarus then changed targets from the Paladin to the Vanguard and charged at him. Steel didn't let himself get scared. That would be the worst thing to do. He bent his knees, lowering his center of gravity and used his tower shield to take the attack on fully. By then, he already had the next skill, Wyvern Bite, subconsciously activated and ready to strike. The sword thrust became a dragon's bite that chomped down on the wolf dealing a good chunk of damage and finishing it off. 

"Enemy down. proceeding to next target." Instinct and habit took over as he reported and kept note of his skill cooldowns before he faced the next wolf. As the woman ordered, he didn't attack the Alpha.

Words: 615
Total: 951 + 615 = 1566
Aminatu