May 8, 2017 19:02:27 GMT -5
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May 5, 2017 16:10:51 GMT -5
Post by gauntlet on May 5, 2017 16:10:51 GMT -5
 Loud pulses echoed through the leaves of the forest while short quakes followed behind them in the tree roots. It was common for a player to earn loot and coin by slaying low-level monsters, but this noisy beat defined something else. Punch after punch, the Bruiser crashed another 5 fingers into another nearby trunk. The foliage behind him already evaporated and respawned just moments after being ripped from the soil, but switching to new trees didn't bring his momentum to a halt. Timing meant everything, but even more so to a class like Brusier. Combos required basic attacks in succession. If he failed at hitting his target, he failed at producing damage. Maybe it was something better suited for live prey, but Gauntlet saw something lower within. He wasn't deserving of it, not yet. He'd bring value to his hands before putting it on the line, especially when the line had others behind it. Solo play was the one thing he had control over, but when it came to raids; it was an entirely different story. He'd continue his strikes on a tree until someone else arrived. @anyone
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May 6, 2017 13:55:52 GMT -5
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May 6, 2017 0:42:24 GMT -5
Post by GRUNGE on May 6, 2017 0:42:24 GMT -5
the beginner's longsword in darrin's right hand felt wrong. whether this was an intentional decision made by the game's coding to emulate the sensation of being an inexperienced fighter or a result of some unrecognized instinct he couldn't say, but it felt strange either way. earlier he'd put down a couple of neutral mobs just to see if it helped and it most certainly didn't. that didn't stop him from experimenting a bit more, though.
the sound of thunks and despawning objects had followed darrin throughout the faywood as he tried to make the weapon feel at home in his hand. he swung it at all kinds of angles, in all sorts of arcs, and with varying levels of weight behind it. killed rabbits, deer, and despawned more trees than he could count. nothing came of it aside from a sore arm. no more familiarity, just an itch in his off hand -- probably just the result of it sitting empty (the class hadn't come with a shield to accompany his sword).
when the soreness in his arm reached a frustrating level darrin let it and the sword it held fall to his side, but soon after found surprise in the form of continued noise. he'd assumed he'd be the only one out here. not that he could tell anyone why he'd think that, the world wasn't all that big, the game hadn't been going long, and there were only so many places a low level player could feasibly survive. either way the presence of another person peaked his interest and without much thought he started walking in the direction of the sounds he heard.
eventually he found himself looking at what he could only assume was a variation of what he'd been doing; a boy about his age beating on a tree.
"you're fighting a losing battle there. that tree's respawn cycle will be going long after you get tired," darrin smiled as he walked into the open, his longsword uncomfortably swinging at his side.
gauntlet
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May 8, 2017 11:58:00 GMT -5
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May 6, 2017 23:14:02 GMT -5
Post by gauntlet on May 6, 2017 23:14:02 GMT -5
Succession meant practice, and practice made perfection. This is exactly how his mind would tend to its own, though he noticed his peer much earlier than he would of let on. It was relatively easy when you're the only two cutting away at the forest, in miles. Sudden words cut a direct five-second pause into the bruiser's training, but only because he chose to. It was his way of humoring the defender for just a moment, before returning back to the trunk. One final God Breaker was released into the tree, knocking a few others behind it in cone-like shape behind the first.
“I'm not the only lumberjack out here...” His bandaged noise motioned at the sworn sword's position. “Did I take your trees or somethin'?” Gauntlet threw his fist into his other palm. The sound took to the power fist exterior with a metallic echo instead of one more meaty and fleshy. With the steam releasing on the outer vents of the giant gloves, it made the question seem more genuine and less of a threat. If he happened to be the nuisance, he wouldn't mind moving if that's what it took. It just added more to his plate in the long run.
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May 7, 2017 18:10:32 GMT -5
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May 7, 2017 18:09:44 GMT -5
Post by GRUNGE on May 7, 2017 18:09:44 GMT -5
this digital world was full of all kinds of interesting characters. darrin had realized that not five minutes into the post-announcement fervor that had reduced many to nervous wrecks, but built others up into all kinds of archetypes. would-be heroes, fast acting leaders, and a wealth of people that (like him) slipped off quietly to take care of themselves in whatever way they saw fit. though even in the group darrin fit in there were all kinds of subsets.
he was on his own because he couldn't stand all the whining and crying. he just wanted to play this game -- the mortal peril did little but raise the stakes and his interest in them -- but this stranger? he figured from the way he so adamantly responded that he was something else. it was interesting.
"seems a bit silly to have a lumberjack that punches trees instead of cutting them, but what do i know? this wouldn't be the first game to have that idea. there was some older title, 2000-something, can't remember it off the top of my head," darrin pushed on adamantly in his own way, grinning wide as he walked closer to the young man in front of him, "but no, regardless, you didn't take 'my' trees. i just heard some unknown thumping about and figured i'd come see if it was for a more interesting reason than my own."
"so, lumberjack, what's up?"
gauntlet
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May 8, 2017 12:05:57 GMT -5
Post by gauntlet on May 8, 2017 12:05:57 GMT -5
This was the first real conversation he would encounter since the game's release. Everyone was too busy with their own charades to deal with the fear, or new ways to bide the time. They had a whole new world live in, with new rules and new ways of doing things. Conversations were something Gauntlet saw as a thing of the past. Life was too short to spend it on someone else, even if it was just for a moment. It was nice to discover someone who carried a similar etiquette. Someone who enjoyed training far from any near town or player. “Just workin' on my aim,” A sign of obvious sarcasm was focused on the trees beginning to respawn in the background. The brusier gripped a piece of his right shoulder with a single glove as his arm began to rotate in a circular motion. Pain in the game wasn't anything like the real world, but it felt normal to repeat these mannerisms anyway. Stretching of the forearm followed afterwards while Gauntlet sought for something to continue the conversation. “What's up with you?” The attacker released by ceasing the stretching of his arm.
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May 8, 2017 18:30:40 GMT -5
Post by GRUNGE on May 8, 2017 18:30:40 GMT -5
the strangers answer earned a chuckle from darrin. practicing aim on still targets, that was funny. sarcastic, blunt, and giving nothing away but the obvious. he felt like he could have some fun talking to this man. whether his curtness was out of desire to be alone or a genuinely sharp wit darrin didn't care. As long as he kept it up he wanted to be around to witness it.
"yeah, right," he responded to the man's answer before watching him for a moment. the way he stretched was nostalgic. it was an iconic move, mostly because it was a genuinely good stretch, but darrin couldn't tell if the lumberjack was doing it out of genuine muscle memory or for show. he decided to pretend it was the latter. it was always more fun to assume the world was working to entertain you.
"what's up with me? not much, i'm boring," his voice was coy, lilting with his motions as he walked around the stranger until he was standing on the opposite side of one of his respawning targets, "my sword felt weird in my hand so i decided to swing it about. see if i could figure out what made it feel so. i didn't."
"so why are you out here by yourself?" darrin followed his answer with an instant question, voice still peppy and playful.
gauntlet
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May 9, 2017 12:02:47 GMT -5
Post by gauntlet on May 9, 2017 12:02:47 GMT -5
The young man was good with his words. He nearly single-handedly constructed a conversation of pleasure and relaxation in a just a few words. One could define it manipulation, but one could also blame it on the conflicts enforced by their new world. Conversations like this were a rarity. People like this were a rarity. Where he felt relaxed, he also felt defeated in a way. It was a simple bond, but one unlike anything the bruiser had ever experienced in gargantua. “I guess you could say I'm training. Y'know, working on my swing.” Gauntlet tapped on the top of one of his giant fists with another. The sworn sword's question appeared a bit persistent after answering it. A conversation could easily become a battle of wits if one would let it be. The sole question now rested within the boy's intentions. Just as the bruiser examined his options, a sudden burst of sound shot out from only meters away. Sounds of leaves waving about followed by a short gallop of hooves that revealed three or four different units. Wild boars. Gauntlet's eyes hunted the sound first before turning back to the sworn sword. It was unlike him to wait for another, but maybe they both could make a competition out of the wildlife if both attackers would agree.
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May 9, 2017 16:24:58 GMT -5
Post by GRUNGE on May 9, 2017 16:24:58 GMT -5
darrin couldn't say so with any level of certainty, but he could have swore the young man was starting to warm up to him. there was less curtness in his second reply and the way he seemed to work his answer in line with the one darrin had offered almost deserved another laugh. if nothing else he could feel the energy had shifted a bit.
"ah, so you're just as boring as me. that's okay," the way his words rose and fell played at a faux comfort, "condolences" for the stranger's equally mundane exercise, "maybe we can break up each other's monotony. it could be fun." darrin spoke with a less coy, more genuine smile than he'd had before. the prospect was almost genuinely exciting -- especially with how the other man seemed to be opening up.
almost on cue their conversation was broken up by more "natural" sounds. tree branches being trampled, hooves doing the trampling, and snorts ripping through the air over both noises. wild boars. darrin guessed they were hostile mobs if for no other reasoning than the narrowness of their eyes as they inspected the stranger and himself.
"hmm, they seem a bit grumpy," he answered the other man's look with words, "convenient too. i think we should be about ready for moving targets. i know i am."
as he spoke he rolled his sword in his hand. it still weighed strangely in his grip, but he already knew that that wouldn't hurt him any in a fight.
gauntlet
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May 10, 2017 11:23:25 GMT -5
Post by gauntlet on May 10, 2017 11:23:25 GMT -5
Gauntlet didn't ignore the sworn sword's advances and labeling. His mind just did all the replying for him. Particularly, he didn't enjoy being listed in the same group as boring, but he would take the verbal blow as they both went down with it. He found the young man delicate with his words, but waited for the inevitable all the same. Eventually his new friend would want something more from this conversation, and this was more than Gauntlet had to offer. Or at least, this is what skipped through his mind. Nobody did anything for free, not anymore. “I was waiting for you to say something.” He replied as a grin stretched over his face. A challenge was a challenge, and a challenge was something that made the bruiser shine. Friendships were one thing, but rivalries presented something near evolution. A means where two people could better themselves just by competing. It was the perfect window for someone willing to train his heart out. He tapped on his metallic knuckles, again, to confirm his enthusiasm to his new training buddy. “Try and keep up,” and like that, the fighter rocketed from his position to his designated target; the boars.
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