The Oncoming Storm

L

Laggy Lagiacrus

Guest
Original poster
Many tales had been spread abround Aincrad of many players. Players who were valiant, ones were criminals. Ones whose skill was phenomenal, others who had items with a value that could buy one of the grandest houses available. Solo players always stood out – people who had no need, or want, to join a guild. To dabble in group affairs. They were the ones who put themselves in danger the most, but the rewards were all the sweeter when nobody was there to share them.

One such person was… Well, he had no name. No visible one, at least. Shrouded in mystery, he would seem to always appear where trouble struck. A group of player killers, a group of enemies giving people grief, even someone threatening to commit suicide. To his enemies, he was known as the Oncoming Storm. To the people who considered themselves his allies, he needed no name. But what did he call himself?


Some people questioned his taste in pseudonyms, but nobody questioned his ability. You could always tell when he was coming. First, there would be the sound of his weapon being drawn, and ground upon the floor. A constant, rhythmic tune, one that had been engraved into the minds of those who opposed him, and had become like a heavenly chorus to those he had saved. Then, his figure slowly appearing. Draped in a black cloak, he would approach, his ink-black tricorn tipped downwards, disguising his true face. Then, he would speak. What he said was dependant on the situation – him advising a retreat, a threat, even just him telling a group to stay put. But, preceding these snippets, he would always introduce himself.
 
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Tyra Okami. That was her real name though those in her guild would just shout out 'Ty!'. Yes, her guild.. Dark Cloud was the name. Those outside of the guild would use an alias though, Shadow. That's who she was aswell.. The Shadow of the Dark Cloud, an upcoming warrior class fighter who had yet to learn the ropes. Of course, little respect came with the title, but that would change. The members in the group of warriors were few. Only five total members, but didn't all guilds start out that way? It didn't matter, Tyra was satisfied with her small party of people she trusted and truly loved. She'd even come up with an in-battle system that made it possible to share her hard earned experience points with them, though she kept the armor and weapons for herself. In truth her level was supposed to be much higher than its current state, a mere 35. Even so, she was content battling through the front lines of the lower levels. They were a family in every aspect. They ate together, fought together, and lived together on a puny manor based back on the 20th floor. Truthfully they wouldn't have it any other way.

The band of misfits in Dark Cloud was just that. First up there was Shane, her right hand man. That cool kind of guy you call on in a tough spot. In fact he thought he was too cool for armor and wore cloth and wool instead. Somethin Tyra repeatedly nagged him about. With his dark hair, menacing height, and brown height he was just too cool.. in his head. Even so he was handy with a sword and slightly less than noobish for a level 28. Also.. He was her best friend. Next up was Mika, she was their strength behind the scenes, a level 23 archer and almost as pretty as Ty too. She had long blonde hair and an attitude to match, a loveable one. Sadly, Mika would much rather spend time picking up cute clothes than strengthening her skills, but it couldn't be helped. There was their enforcer/lancer Denny. He was a lazy older guy (Smewhere in his 20's). He was about 6'5 and clad in armor. His level.. 25 A huge sheild and lance were his preferable weapons. Basically he was a gentle giant. Then.. Their was Rin. A small fragile girl with short pink hair and dark brown eyes. She wore no armor and had a single dagger to her name. Rin was shy aswell as scared, which is why he didn't fight. But she was family too.. And she wouldn't be abandoned. Even if her level really was... 11.




"Ty! Ty! It's over here! I found it! I really did!". Rin yelled out from across the dimly lit cave. The group were going dungeon spelunking, searching for the obsidian blade. It was a legendary sword melted into black obsidian stone and was rumored to be incredibly over powered. Most of all.. Tyra wanted it, that's why they were here, and wy shepushed them. Tyra's armor clanked and the echo was heard as she hastily made her way over to Rin's bright green health bar. The rest of the group followed with joyous screams. Rin pointed to a hole in the ground... Literally a hole in the ground! "That wasn't there before..." Tyra mutterd suspiciously, brushing her long dark hair from her eyes. "Who cares Ty! Rin found it!" Shane answered back. "The blade! The blade!" Rin jumped around happily, satisfied at the fact that she finally helped out. Excitedly, the entire group jumped in feet first and dissapeared. "Guess its too late now." Tyra jumped in last.

Tyra eyes, slowly opened. Sounds of weapons clashing and amors behind peirced rung through her ears. It was so loud she could barely capture her thoughts.
She slowly rose to her feet, vision blurred and the next thing she heard was. "MOVE!" Denny jumped in front of her, sheild first, defending an attack from a red sword. Red knights.. Tons of them cramped into this small room that held no charateristics except for white tiles, exerything else was dark. On cue her senses shot back into place. She saw an exit behind the crowd. Quicky, she pulled her weapon from her side. The large "Oblivion" blade. "The exit!" She souted in anger that she had fallen for a trap. Denny led the way plowing through the enemies, The shane as his short broad sword almost buckled under the knights. Mika's reflexes saved her hyde as she ducked and weaved trough the crowd. Then.. Tyra stopped. "Rin!" She shoued in search of her friend. She pulled up her home screen for a second. Rin was.. directly in front of her. Before she had a chance to look a knigh swung down on her, forcing her to block dual handed. During the clash Tyra peered over is shoulder just in time to see Rin, impaled. A Silent scream fell from Rin's lips as her health bar became nonexistent and.. she faded away. Losing all of her dtermination in one fell swoop Tyra dropped her weapon and went to her knees, ready for the knight to finish her. The other were only alive because they were stuck in a corner, behind Denny's sheild.. It was over.. She waited for the Knights to finish her, so she could be with rin once more.
 
A grinding noise filled the air, mingling with the various other sounds.
The kind of noise only one person could make - after all, nobody else had a custom sound pack like that installed.
In a burst of glowing blue, the most immediately threatening foes were dispatched, their corpses shattering like glass, the pixels then dissipating into thin air. Amidst a crowd of enemies, who now detected a more dangerous threat, was the man himself. Or boy. With his face hidden, not just by a tricorn but also a matching cloth around his mouth and nose, it was difficult to tell just what this mysterious stranger was. However, who he was was known far and wide- tales of him were common, though the concept of him was far-fetched at best. His sword glowed dimly in the darkness, having only just been drawn, but it was still a distinctive item. Even underneath his cloak, all he wore was black - a uniform colour, one designed to have him recognised as someone to fear when you were against him.
"I am Knight," he spoke, his voice muffled slightly by the mask - ruining potential chances to associate his voice with another's, "And I advise that you make haste towards the exit."

Having said this, he pulled his arm back, and burst forward - utilising a sword art. His hand was encased in electric blue, as was his sword, the glow becoming increasingly stronger as a throng of Red Knights were turned into lost data by his blade, a path now clearing towards the exit. Many attempted to kill him, but he evaded and parried with such form and efficiency, that it seemed to just be unnatural for a mere human to do it. Any checks on him would show he was not under the influence of any potions or herbs - it was purely his own ability. To decimate such hordes with such speed and power... He was likely a vastly higher level than Tyra, or anyone in her group. What did matter, was that a legend had arrived, and he now fought to save the remaining guild members. He had seen Rin die - and he had cursed himself for not being able to arrive quickly enough to save her. But, he had to focus. He was supposed to be the legendary Knight, who was rumoured to not even be human. It certainly seemed this way, as more and more enemies were drawn to him, as opposed to the guild members.
 
Tyra's eyes remained closed as she waited for the final blow. She sat on her knees, head hung low until an unfamiliar sound rand through her ears. By the time her eyes opened and scanned the room. Nearly half of the originl enemies had vanihed, along with her temporary executioner and those nearest to Danny, Mika, and Shane.

Now, insteadof a red knight someone or something else stood in front of her. The figure was clad in black and as mysterious as it gets... Even in sword art. He or she didn't even show their face.

Finally he spoke. Yes, definetly a "he". Then it registered. 'Had he defeated half a room full of knights in mere seconds?' Impossible,there wouldn't b any players that strong down here, never. Tyra listened to his words very carefully. For a few seconds she stood there, frozen, speechless, and in complete awe of her savior. If it weren't for Shane's voice she probably wouldn't have moved anytime soon.

"Ty! We're out of here! Let the glitch deal with em"

'The glitch?' She thought as she weaseled her way through the group of knights. Oddly enough without much of a fight. It was as if they onl saw "him" Her savior. The knight clad in black. The red knights payed absolutely no attentionto her. As she ran to the exit path she could hear a sword art being activated. Too bad he was to scared to looks as she heard weapons clashing in th backround.

A couple minues later, Dark Cloud regrouped, well what was left, not too far from the knightmare they recently enrolled in. Tyra patiently waited for her guild to catch their breath and finish sobbing over Rin (Something she partook in aswell)

"W-We... We have to go back" Tyra mumbled.

"Are you insane!" Shane retorted.

"He saved our lives!"

"It's just a glitch in the system idiot!"

"No he's not! I can tell.. coward" She whispered the last part to herself.

"What was that? You just got Rin killed and I'm a coward?"

The rest of the group fell silent, Tyra aswell. He was right, this was her fault. She hadn't an argument to give. With a tear and a solem shake of the head, she turned from her friends and made her way back to the room were "he" was fighting, and hoped that he was still in one peice.
 
By the time Tyra had arrived, the last of the Knights had been impaled upon Knight's blade, causing it to seemingly shatter, then evaporate. A huge number of red Knights, plus ones the trap was still spawning when he arrived, had all been fought off. A seven-nation army was sometimes ruled insufficient to take him out, but there was usually no need. There was the odd bit of collateral damage, but aside from that, he rarely left behind anything. Yet, if one saw what Tyra could, they would have had something left with them that would remain embedded into their memories. There was the brief glimpse into the left eye - a cold, grey affair, that revealed nothing, but the fact he was human. And then, there was the small stitch running below his eye. Maybe there were more - maybe not. The point was, was that somehow, upon his defeating the last enemy, he seemed to teleport from there to nowhere.
Presumably, another emergency.

((Sorry, I can't do multi-paragraphs. I'm sleepy.))
 
(Don't worry about stuff like that. I feel the same way sometimes :D)

Tyra scurried into the room, running as hard as she could. away from her friends... Away from the truth. As she entered the white room once more she half expected to see "him", wait he called hiself Knight right? Anyways she expected him to be lying half dead on the bright- tiled floor, with a flurry of red knights looming over him.
She was utterly mistaken. Instead what she sawwas a lone figure clad in back,once again seemingly as mysterious as the midnight moon. Tyra was lucky enough to catch but a glimpse of his features. The paleness of hiseye and the stitch that ran under it almost made her wince. For a moment, she was speechless.

"H-"It was too late. Just like that, her savior was gone without even a word. "Thank you..."She whispered knowing full well herwords fell on deaf ears. "Knight...Knight..."She kept saying over and over, drilling the name into her head. "I will find you". That was her new purpose, to once again reunite with her saviour, even with the resentment of her dearest and only friends riding on her shoulders. Her Long dark hair blew far passed her rosy cheeks. Almost as if to call out her stupidity. It wasn't as if she cared at the moment. She was determined to gain strength andhis acceptance.So, she set off.
 
Knight, as he had been known, never followed a linear path. Granted, there may have been a pattern in there somewhere, but analysts were yet to discern anything of note. That aside, he was an anomalous player - someone who did not fit in with the rest of the crowd. His face was always hidden, his form barely revealed. He was never sighted in public areas, unless he was doing his job - if it could be considered one. Though the game did not have a job system, he would have been a perfect vigilante. A sense of unshakable justice, the tendency to show up whenever trouble got too much for the victims, and no ties to anybody else. His power was insane - rumours said that he had managed to get a boss down to half health by himself, and only retreated when another group arrived, so they could take the loot. He was a strange, strange person - people had every right to want to investigate and unmask him.

As it so happened, a duel between two two guild leaders was taking place nearby, nothing more than a friendly competition. However, the crowds they drew had their fair share of unfriendly people - particularly those who picked on the stragglers, and the loners. One such person was being held to a wall in an alley, a sword to her throat - the guild tattoo his guild would have given her aggressor was hidden, and it wasn't Laughing Coffin. This did not change the fact that he was robbing her. And this did also not change the dark figure looming on a roof above, or the grinding sound that he had shrugged off as a mere coincidence. The sae grinding sound that made her eyes flit about, in the desperate hope she wasn't hearing things.
 
It was getting irritating. How long had it been? Tyra had spent much too long on the front lines and not even catch of glimpse of Knight. Someone that strong had to be literally living on the front lines right? Maybe on a higher floor? Either way Tyra was taking a day off from her search. She and a friend were due to meet up in the arena to watch a duel in which guild leaders were taking part. How exciting! Ty pulled up her friends list. It seemed as though her friend Amy were aleady in the arena, which meant she was late. Even so, Tyra took her sweet time checking out blacksmiths and bakery's on her way.

As she walke around the base of the arena in search of an entrance, she heard a scream. Casually, she made her way to the souce of the noise, still keeping a safe distance and staying out of sight. "Damn, not good" She wispered with an oh so feminine expession plastered on her face. She crouched behind a barrel as she saw the robbery occur. She took a moment to think before slipping a dagger from her thigh. She curled her finger around the base, ready to throw and scared to miss. The blade began glowing read as she readied a sword skill just in case.
 
There it was - the familiar grinding, growing ever-louder, ever-stronger. From out of nowhere, the voice of an urban legend spoke.
"I am Knight. Feel my wrath, you cowardly scum."

Attacking someone in a town or whatnot does not make their HP drop, unless it is a result of a duel. However, the concept that you can be beaten and thrown indefinitely makes this quite a fearsome prospect. This was something two people used to their advantage -one person was the robber, who was constantly throwing the girl against a wall. The second, was Knight - who had seemingly descended from the heavens, to plant his boots on the robber's neck, though it was just from the roofs above. His heel was ground into the vagabond, his sword crashing down upon any attempts to struggle being shown. If any law enforcement came along, all they would find is a startled criminal, and no traces of Knight.
 
A flashback coursed through Tyra's mind as she heard Knight's all to familiar entrance. She remembered the first time that sound entered her ears, dreamy and completly unforgettable. She remembered his swooping down and doing what she could not... Protect her friends.

"Knight!" She yelled as loud as she could. She couldnt have him finishing his work and vanishing on her again, not again. Tyra re-sheathed the dagger and practically ran through the barrel she used for cover. Quickly, she approached Knight, watching as he practically crushed the robber with his heel. She paid no attention to that. Finally, her searchwas over. He was here again, right in front of her. As she looked up at him she became awestruck, totally at a loss for words. A moment passed as her long dark hair gracefully danced over her eyes,gleaming with hope. "Y-You remember me right?" She pointed an innocent finger at herself whilst simultaneously cursing at her self for stuttering in front of him. It wasn't as though she was some fangirl begging for an autograph. She needed a tutor, a hero, a friend.
 
Knight had been tempted to turn tail and flee, but there was something about how she sounded that got to him. Of course he remembered her - he made it a point to never forget those who he had failed to save, and those affected by the deaths. He had his reasons, but did not make any effort whatsoever to reveal just what these were. He turned to face her, still keeping his quarry subdued, but his tricorn obscured the top of his face - his mask the bottom. His eyes, nor his stitches, were shown anywhere at all. He seemed to survey Tyra, taking in every little detail of her, searching his memory banks for recognition of her. Finally, he placed her with Rin (though he did not know it was Rin), and spoke.
"You were the comrade of the little girl," he spoke, low and neutral, "The pink-haired one who lost her life. What do you want with me?"
He was blunt, and to-the-point. There was little point in beating about the bush, or so he reasoned, so elaborating further seemed a waste of time.
 
Tyra was admittedly intimidated by Knight's choice of words. They were rough and straight to the point though she highly doubted that he meant them in sucha manor. Before saying anything she scanned him oncemore. He was even more covered up than he was at their first metting. Truthfully she was hopiing to get another glimpse of his eyes, or maybe another mysterious stitch. "Yeah, That was me..." She heart sunk abit but her expression didn't falter. Memories of Rin surfaced for only a moment,a single moment. Either way it was damaging. "Well, I was never able to thank you for what you did back then." She gave a polit and formal bow. Even so, she could already tell that such a feeble reason wouldnt keep him near for long. So she got to the point aswell. "I want you to teach me-" She paused for a moment. " How to be like you. I'd like to be.., well a student to you. Your incredibly strong and more importantly i owe you my life. I... I hope this is enough." Tyra bowed once more. Only out of slight embarrassment. Shehadn't really thought this through.
 
Knight did not even need to think about his response - he shook his head, before kicking the criminal away. The man hurried away - only to run into two law enforcers, who had received the victim's pleas for help only moments ago. Needless to say, he was captured, and hauled away for further questioning. Meanwhile, the masked vigilante seemed to speak almost wistfully, losing his neutral tone a little.
"No. People have travelled with me, and I've lost them," he started, his hat kept down, "Lost them all. Never again."
It was a fairly obvious thing, that there would be an insane amount of danger always pursuing Knight. For starters, there were the murdering guilds, such as Laughing Coffin. He had been a constant thorn in their side for the duration of his stay in Aincrad, and he had always slipped through their fingers. Naturally, any companions that were caught alongside him would be killed just as mercilessly. There was also the matter of the constant want to unmask him. If people don't know something, they usually want to find out more, and everyone who knew Knight, wanted to have his mask removed. They wanted to know what went on behind the clothing - was he a glitch? A new patch implemented to fight illegal actions? Or was he what was most obvious - an extremely powerful player, who never revealed his face? Irrespective of what he was, it was what he was doing that mattered.
 
Again straight to he point. The lack of hesitation in his speech was both intimidating and admirable. Usually someone would at least give it a second thought, a moments blunder. But him? Nothing. Tyra tried to do the same as she responded but of course she faltered at the beginning. She was tense. "I-I don't care." She found the courage to look him in the eye, or where his eyes were under his garments, as she spoke. "I don't care whose come before me or how many of them were lost aswell. My mind has already been made up and I'm not taking no for an answer!" Her voice buckled abit at the end but she said what she felt. Tyra knew that she couldn't win this argument if Knight didn't want it so. Deep down she knew he was right but again.. She didn't care.
 
Knight shook his head, evidently displeased at Tyra's actions. He had seen and dealt with this kind of person before. At one point, he had outright refused them and had shoved them away before he ran off. Nowadays, however, he let them tag along, so he could hopefully have them scared off. Most of them - the sensible ones - left before they got seriously hurt. The others, however, had stayed, and had paid with their lives. He had a reputation about him - whenever disaster came, he was there, and left a storm in his wake. His companions, without fail, were left in it. Knight looked up slightly, exposing a thin sliver of skin just below his eyes. Even from this, it was easy to tell that something was wrong. No one person could have that many lines there, and they weren't wrinkles.
"If you can't keep up with me, that's not my fault. I will not be held responsible if you are left in the dirt."
 
Tyra gave a small victorious grin as Knight reluctantly approved. If such a reluctant response could be labeled as an approval. 'Finally!' She thought. It was cut short by the winced painfl expression she gaved after laying eyes on a speck of flesh on his face. A multitidue of eerie line lay in wait, that of which startled Tyra. They definetly weren't wrinkles but out of fear of scolding or aggressive answers she left the subject alone. Tyra took this time to message the friend she was due to meet up with earlier today. The message basically stated that she wouldn't be arriving today followed by an apology for keeping her waiting all of this time
 
With this, Knight clambered up the wall, using various ledges and holes in the brickwork as footholds. Though fluid, the movements seemed slightly strained - it was not something he would normally have done. Moreover, it was probably a skill he had acquired in-game, and was thus still a little hesitant to use it. Irrespective of whether or not he had the natural ability to, he was now standing atop a roof, waiting for Tyra to climb up to him. e was only doing it because he he felt she would have to experience his world, as opposed to being left behind from the get-go. He would, soon enough - when he sensed she was having enough. He couldn't keep her forever - he'd lost everyone, and he was going to forcefully eject her as well.
 
"Eh, No way.." Tyra gave a hopeless gaze as Knight awkwardly scaled the brick work. "Okay, nothing to it" She said prepping herself to mimick him. Tyra approached the wall and laid her palm on the nearet loose brick. She began to climb much slower than Knight had only a few moments ago. A multitude of huffs and gasps escaping her lips as she pulled her way up. She lost her footing to many times and spent a few seconds just dangling. Even so she eventually hunched herself over the top and took her plce next to Knight.
 
Knight, in response to her finishing her climb, walked away from Tyra, to the edge of a rooftop. It was there that he began to speak - and with a somewhat cold tone as well.
"I won't lie to you - I will not go easy on you. If you cannot swim, you shall sink. That's how life works, and how it always will continue to."
His words were not the nicest, but they rang true - in a world where even the most unscrupulous of people had a means with which to slaughter you, then the weak would have to be left behind. As if to illustrate this, Knight began bounding over the gaps between roofs, heading to his next destination - all the while, he did not bother to even try and wait for Tyra. If she wanted to waste his time, he would not have it.
 
Tyra patted herself down for a moment as Knight began to speak. "Yeah... I figured as much. Dosn't matter I'm here to stay." She spouted chilldishly.
Just then Knight began gaping rooftops. Before she even had time to breathe he was at least two buildings away. "Oh man, he's serious." Tyra began to rsent his tone of voice. Always cold and straight to the point, always serious. Even his vocabulary was strict.
No matter, these were all things she'd get used to in time.
Tyra took a full sprint and tried to mimick Knight's jumps, to no avail. Because of hisspeedy pace she barely made each leap, scraping the floor by a handful on inches each time. That wouldn't stop her. She kept pace, staying at least a rooftop or two away
 
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