Hades beckons.
There was something about those two words that sent chills down his spine. James didn’t know why; maybe it was because he really hadn’t heard a sentence that was used with the word ‘Hades’ in a while. Mainly, it was because he really hadn’t heard something like that in ‘The World’, not anything quite like that. He could only stare at the words and twist his expression in multiple ways, trying to figure out what exactly it was trying to smash into his brain. He didn’t know if he really wanted to come forward or move back, but the thing seemed excited enough. He was strong right now, ready as ever, yet something in his stomach told him that when EA was going on, he hadn’t been exactly ready for it…
His thumb slid to his palm, his fingers wrapping over it to form a fist. He couldn’t help but wonder who was going to meet there and what would occur. He knew that he’d be going with a group of people, as no one just went into the pits of Hell all on their own…right? He was tempted to log in at the moment, tempted to sign himself up for the event and then race around Mac Anu trying to gather stuff up. Right now, he had a grunty that he could actually ride, so that was good, right? He wanted to get it ripe and strong for the upcoming event, just so he could ride it into battle with a somewhat heroic look. Yet he still didn’t know whether or not he’d even enter the event…ugh, this was so frustrating to him, even if it was a simple decision.
The boy pushed his chair out of the way of the desk and got up to stare out the window. He rubbed the window and stared out into the rain-filled afternoon, a frown on his face as he watched cars go by, splashing the grass with water. At that point in time, he remembered something back from when he was in middle school and had remembered ever since. It was a strange thought, but he remembered faintly how his friend had told him to never step into a puddle after a storm. He had told him precisely this: “You don’t even
know if that’s water.” At that point, they had been running and so James had tripped over a root at the saying. It was slightly embarrassing with the fall, but the statement stayed true to its word…in a bad way.
James rubbed his sore legs, staring at the form of his cat that lay curled up on his pillow, taking a ten-minute nap. Its eyes flashed open a moment later, its gaze falling upon him like a light flashing onto a robber in the middle of the night. It purred and got up, letting its paw slide back to its back ones. Her back arched up like she was a camel and then she stretched forward, her claws sliding back into place. Her eyes drooped forward and so she fell asleep once again, as if nothing had happened. James frowned and crossed his arms before spinning back to face the open laptop in front of him. His parents were supposed to be out for a few hours, and what was he supposed to do…? The feeling in his stomach told him to go get a snack, but another told him to start playing ‘The World’. Crap. That was the worst decision.
James, seeing as he was too lazy to go down the stairs and grab a pair of chips, chose the easy thing and rolled up. He let out a breath of air and let the mouse slide across the bare surface. Then, once the clicker was over the icon, he clicked on it and opened up the screen. A moment later, his fingers were dancing across the screen in a frantic attempt to type his username before the gut told him to do something else that he’d instantly do. He hated how his mind could change so swiftly at random points in time… Black hair fell over brown eyes, only to be brushed away and get replaced by something cold. Straps wrapped around his head and then, his fingers found something even colder: a controller. He couldn’t help but grin at the fact that he was about to start playing the absurd game once again.
“Welcome to The World,” James muttered, letting his mind drift into that of the games.
***
A shower of golden rings fell over the bright city of Carmina Gadelica, followed by two emerald eyes opening up to look into the beautiful city. It matched the beauty of Mac Anu, and the lights that hung over the city, along with its eternal night feature made it so beautiful for those who would usually have to wait until night to seek out the stars in Mac Anu. There was always light in the city, and plus, there were quite a lot of high-level players hanging around the streets. He felt like he was a freshman going into high school once again…it was such a bad feeling, but also a good one that he was progressing into the next part of the game. He could only wonder if there were any more cities beyond this one; it seemed impossible, but then again, the max level went far beyond where he was now. Despite the lights, some parts of the city were relatively dark. He had been in the alleys and found that you couldn’t see anything unless you were quite close to the city lights…it was like they were underground and were the only light for leagues upon leagues.
Gloved hands pulled the heavy fabric of his cloak together, concealing his ocean blue jacket and most of the pockets that held his weapons. He had such a variety nowadays… He didn’t walk forward quite yet, but rather just took in his surroundings. There were all sorts of players excitedly walking around, just like in Mac Anu, along with a lot of groups. Groups weren’t exactly his favorite thing, but it was nice to see that most of the groups weren’t the ‘Let’s murder all the new players now!’ type. He tilted his head and started to shuffle forward, his boots clicking against the smooth, stone surface. The population of the city wasn’t quite like Mac Anu’s, but it was a lot bigger than Dun Loueriug’s (I don’t know how to spell that…and I’m too lazy to find out…) population. Maybe it was that the Lambda Server was a fantastic place to sightsee and the Theta server wasn’t…or something like that.
He found that it was a bit eerie around there. He was so used to shuffling through the crowds of Mac Anu in order to find out some mission, but right now, he was just walking around to explore. He was sure there’d be a mission sometime, but just so long as he used his time wisely, he’d have time. He could only hope Kai was feeling generous today and would let him off a few of the missions that would obviously come by. When did this guy Vann take a break from informing them anyway…? Maybe it was some sort of machine, yet he highly doubted that there would be a mission controlling a player. Rather, just informing them of things that would come by in some strange way that he didn’t know about.
He still kept everything hidden, though, for some strange reason. It wasn’t like he hated revealing things, but rather he didn’t want the cloak billowing in a strange manner that gave players the feeling that he was trying to act like a hero, which he kind of was… He stopped as two turns presented themselves, each holding more players and shops, not to mention the grunty stables. He smiled and moved off to the left, in the opposite direction of the grunty stables. He’d go and see Blue in a moment, but he would rather just head off and see a few shops before he got carried away. The Fist Fighter moved off, looking left and right to the multiple shops, silent all the while. Every once and a while, he’d move off to the left or right to peer into the shops, but otherwise, they were full of people that he really didn’t want to encounter. Not like he knew them from some bad experience, but they just seemed like the sort of people that if you bumped into them, they’d raise their weapon and try to kill you.
Shenmock, seeing as not a whole lot else presented itself that was of his interest, turned around and moved back in the direction of the grunty stables, where he spotted Blue instantly. He had grown quite a bit in the past few weeks…he had bought him and then fed him almost a month later. Now, after spending most of his money, he found that Blue was huge, able to move quickly. He had also received the Grunty Flute from the man, so now he could call him in when he was in dire need of his assistance. Not like Blue could travel as fast as a dragon flying through the skies, but he’d do when it came the time. He stopped at the front of the gates, staring at the multiple grunties that lounged around, their eyes drooping and their faces droopy as if they had come from pudding. He jumped over and sat on the fence, staring into the eyes of his grunty.
Blue stared at him, as if it would do anything he wanted to when he said to. He let his hand drift over to its head and so he petted the grunty, giving it the love that he had given his previous dog before it had died of old age. He smiled lightly at how it grunted and then jumped happily, letting its lick slide out and whack him across the face…or was it a lick? Saliva dripped down from his cheek, making the grunty give off a sort of smile to him. He wiped it off and laughed, yet inside, his insides screamed to pounce on the grunty. It was ready to do whatever he wanted, and right now, it looked ready to ride. He smiled slightly at it and let himself fall to the ground. He couldn’t let it wander through the streets, but he sure could go to a field and let it go wild there…maybe that was what he’d do right now. Go to a field and relax a bit.
The boy slid off the other side of the fence, making Blue pout momentarily. He waved at the grunty, winked at it, and so he was off into the streets of Carmina Gadelica. It wasn’t like he was never going to see the grunty again, but some sort of friendship had formed in the past few hours. It had grown from a meager pig to a full-grown one…not like a big pig was any better, but it was his stead and a partner that he would have in battle now…or whenever he needed. He thought about so many possibilities while making his way through the streets towards the Chaos Gate. When he stopped before the mix of blue and gold, smiling, he inserted three familiar words that would form a hopefully familiar field in which many things took place…only this would prove a bit harder.
Bursting…Passed Over…Aqua Field.
***
The golden rings took place, and what followed was the materialization of a boy that held a lot of memories to the place. This was his…what…fourth time here? Well, he was definitely not in the same place as before, but rather a place that held strong monsters that would prove formidable opponents to him and…his partner, to say. All Shenmock could hear was the faint breeze that passed, sending his hair into a tangled mess and making his cloak billow about as if he were on top of a mountain. He had a rather straight expression on his face, one that showed no fear, but also showed a lot of boredom in the anticlimactic field. He let his hands slide out of the crack in his cloak, smiling as he eyed the first portal amongst the many scattered about. He was sure that one or two would do the trick in helping him get acclimated with a trusty stead.
Slowly but surely, the former Long Arm pulled out a steel flute with a few holes meant for calling the grunty. He sighed deeply and then activated the motion. His lips brushed across the holes, playing a melodic tune that seemed more like a lullaby than something to call out a pig. Moments later, his lips brushed across the final hole and he pulled his face away from the flute. He tucked it back in his jacket pocket and looked at the blue sky and the puffy white clouds that drifted lazily about. He smiled slightly as he heard the pounding of his grunties’ hooves…or whatever you called them. It came in front, its gray armor gleaming and a spear out and ready for battle. It looked quite different from its original appearance in the stables. He almost couldn’t even recognize it with its shiny armor and spear pointing out to tackle any monsters that dared come by.
It slid to a stop in front of him, looking up with continuously shining eyes. He smiled at the sight of it, knowing now that he’d definitely be using the grunty a lot more than he expected. His fingers ran across its gray armor for a moment, his lips instantly forming a smile. Without further ado, Shenmock jumped onto its back and made himself comfortable, knowing that he’d be riding for quite a bit. Maybe he could think of some tricks, but otherwise, he knew he was going to be on Blue for a while. He grabbed the reigns, whacked its ribs, and so they were off as if the grunty was a horse. It was a bit of a rough ride, but other than that, they were able to travel twice as fast through the field. The grunty galloped down the hill, its armor clanging about and Shenmock laughing a bit while holding on for dear life. At a lot of points, he almost slid off of it, but otherwise, he held on like the reigns were his lifeline.
The portal was a little off to the right and at this point, they were already going so fast that in a few seconds, it’d be a bit hard to turn without slowing. He tugged the reigns to the right and patted it lovingly as it moved off to the right in the direction of the portal at top speed. Multiple times during the turn, he almost fell off, but because he held onto the reigns, nothing was wrong…or was he just some lucky chap that rarely fell and made a big fool of himself? The boy tried to laugh as they approached the golden portal, but it came out to more of a forced scream. As they approached, he slowly started to pat it as if he wanted to slow down. The grunty started to slow into more of a trot as they approached it, and then, the portal gleamed its brilliant light to release the monsters that would try desperately to kill him at all costs…that wasn’t very comforting.
The grunty stopped as a single monster dove out: a Phoenix Queen, by the looks of things, and he sure hadn’t seen anything like the monster before. It was one of the bird monsters that he really hadn’t seen before. It dove out with such gracefulness that he was dazed for a moment. Not until the grunty let out a sneeze did he break out of his brief trance. The grunty looked up and whined as it dove down at the two with surprising speed. He smacked it right there and then, and so the two were off, racing through the plain and away from the Phoenix Queen as it came up and started forward in the direction of them. With a pull of the reigns, the two veered off the right, avoiding yet another close call as the phoenix dove forward, trying to get them with its talons. The boy, seeing that it was coming towards them once again, cawing as it did so.
The boy, seeing as it was pointless to run any longer, pulled the reigns and made the grunty make a sharp, U-turn. It slid on the ground and then it was off in the direction of the monster. His lips curled back in a snarl, the boy pulled out his Meteor Hammerchain. The chain was swung about over his head like a lasso before he launched it at the monster, his emerald eyes flaring. The hammer at the end smashed against the wing, making it caw out in pain before letting its talons rip into his back. He winced, but didn’t scream, seeing as it was already pulling itself around for another attack. The grunty, sneezing once again as feathers danced around in front of it, moved off to the left. It went in large bounds, clearing the distance between them in seconds.
“Come on, Blue, we can do it,” Shenmock whispered as they came up to it. He swung his chain around his head like a cowboy, coming up and mainly aiming for its neck. If he could get it around its neck, he could pound it into the ground and then pound it even more for some major damage. The boy pulled himself up into his full upright position and swung it towards the monster in front of him. This time, he only caught the chest, making him all the more disappointed as the hammer smashed into the grass, making them slow down momentarily. He pulled it up and dropped it back into his inventory, then pulling out his handaxes instead. All the while, he was struggling to keep hold of the reign and keeping one eye peeled as the monster came at them.
A plan came to mind. Sure, it was completely insane, but it might make his balance a lot better if he could master it. Any person would say that he should’ve tried it out beforehand, but right now, he felt like trying something new that would look cool…yet better alive than still cool, as a lot of people said to him in High School… The boy, still struggling to even stay on the grunty alone, pushed himself up from it, standing on his two legs. He was shaky at first, but at this point, if he could hold onto it with his left hand and throw something at it…he could do quite a lot of things. He smiled and pulled his right hand back, preparing the launch of his weapon. His boots slid across the armor, back and forth, back and forth… Shenmock avoided looking down at the ground and then, with a quick flick of his wrist, sent the weapon spinning forward in the direction of the Phoenix Queen.
Thunk! The weapon sunk into its side, making a blood-curdling screech escape its beak. The boy smiled at his accomplishment and went for another handaxe, yet he didn’t realize that he went for it with his left hand. A moment later, he was sent flipping off his side, face planting in the grass while his grunty bounded off, still thinking that he was on it. He spit the grass out of his mouth and stood up, wiping a tint of blood that was slipping out between his lips. The Fist Fighter stood up, staring at the monster that was now approaching…and fast. The bird cawed again as it came at him, its crimson wings being flung about, feathers dancing about in its wake. Instead of running to find his grunty, the boy instead pulled his hammerchain out. Spinning it expertly around his body, he brought it up to meet with its talons. The hammerchain smashed against its talons, making a loud clang occur. It cawed, its hit points depleting a bit as it did so, and then
grabbed the hammerchain with both talons. For a moment, he was lifted off the ground for a few feet. It was all a bit of a blur to him…
He hit the ground a second later, a groan following. He wanted to scream as his hit points dropped a bit, but instead stood up and raised his chain up in defense. A few more hits would do the trick…or a good combo. He smiled at the thought of actually performing a good combo to finish the bird off. It seemed impossible to him, but at this point, he had accomplished a lot of the things he had thought impossible. Dragging his weapon across the ground, he charged at the monster, stopping abruptly and then pulling his body around in a quick twist. His bulging muscles brought the chain and the bird found its beak cracked, the hammer having smashed against it. It was all in the body, as Kai had told him… He pulled the weapon back into his inventory and pulled the handaxes out a moment later. He laughed as he jumped and sent three of them forward, a vibrant aura already surrounding him. Two more followed, thumping into its chest, and then, with one last simple flick of the wrist, he sent the last one into its neck.
It merely cawed in return, its life having hit its limit and its hit points zipping back to the spot where he wanted it to be at: zero. Shenmock sighed and stared at the phoenix as it dropped to the ground, its talons scratching against the grass, throwing a few blades up into the air. It let out one final groan before it ghosted, lifting up to the sky and then disappearing as if it had never appeared. The Fist Fighter stared at the point in which it had disappeared, smiling lightly at its accomplishment. His grunty had probably disappeared and gone back to the stables by now…it was what he got for letting it go loose like that…and plus, since it had strayed so far away, it was bound to have teleported back.
Without a second thought about going to fight more monsters in the field, Shenmock rose his hand and clicked the option, ‘Gate Out’. He wasn’t sure why, but right now, he really didn’t feel like training a whole lot…yet somehow, he felt as if the brief fight had made him a bit more of an experienced grunty rider…or something along the lines of that.
Fin~
((OOC: Just armor and GP…I guess. @_@ There wasn’t a whole lot to it, and I feel the whole thing kinda sucked, since I did it so fast…sorry?))
