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Haseo      Atoli gets a short mail from Haseo. Like a typical short mail from Haseo, there's not a lot of fluff to it.

>meet me at shrine of adversity in real world

     Surprisingly, they're not meeting up in the game. Maybe it's a play date. A play date at a place with a very foreboding name!

     However Atoli chooses to find her way there, one thing is clear now though. It's not a play date. He didn't specify it specifically, but given the fact that one of the places main draws is a training area, one is more than safe to assume that's the reason for this meeting. As if to specifically crush Atoli's hopes and totally not because he forgot to mention his reasoning, she gets another shortmail shortly after arriving.

>training area btw

     Reaching the training area, /probably/ doesn't have to do much to find the training room that Haseo reserved if she bothers to talk with some receptionists. She doesn't even have to pay a fee either, because Haseo was a good boy and spotted her.

     The inside of the training arena is well... The Arena. Though the isn't an announcer and there's no crowd to speak of, it's clearly designed after the Arena in The World. In the center, stands Haseo, cellphone in hand as he remains oblivious to his surroundings.
Atoli     A shrine!

    Atoli spent the entire way over wondering to whom or what the shrine was dedicated. Some god or goddess she never heard of? Oh, maybe a weird religion from another world! A king or a queen? A great person who changed the world for the better? Only nice people get shrines, after all.

    She even put a nice coat on! She likes fancy clothes, and she couldn't be constrained to her game avatar for THAT long. Look at that nice green one-piece dress with a white coat-jacket over it. Look at those nice white boots that Sakaki probably bought her. She looks stellar!

    Then she gets there.
    'Training area'.

    Oh, is it like a gym?! That could be fun! It's important to keep healthy even if they're game data now, right?

    It's the Demon Palace.
    Atoli's smile slowly cracks as she approaches, and then suddenly beams to eleven before Haseo can notice. Hopefully.

    "Hello Haseo! How are you doing? Oh, what game are you playing? There's so many new ones lately!" Keep it about him, it'll work.
Haseo      Haseo grumbles as Atoli talks, flipping his phone shut as he pockets it away.

     "Do I really need to spell it out for you? God damnit..."

     He waves his arms around in an attempt to emphasize the arena they're in.

     "I'm. Going. To. Teach. You. How. To. Fight. We. Are. Training. Do. You. Get. It?"

     He even slows his speech in hopes to get the point across even more. Isn't he a nice guy?

    "Anyway, look. Just... Take your dumb wand and hit me as hard as you can, alright? I'm no Antares, but I'm sure I can teach you how to not wet your pants by the end of this, yeah?"
Atoli     All her hopes and dreams, crushed.
    She didn't even find out what game he's playing so she can download it and play it with him. Atoli INTERNALIZES HER SUFFERING which is to say she smiles as widely as she can.

    "I understand! It's like those times we went training, but without monsters! Um... w-well, I don't really like PvP, but... I do want to be able to help you when the arena opens again. Winning was... kind of fun," she admits, giggling meekly in a way that indicates self-control.

    Because her reaction at the time was anything but.

    "B-But it's not a wand! It's a staff, Haseo! I'm not a Shadow Warlock, you know?" They use grimoires, not wands, but they're like... grimoires on wands. It still counts.

    Begrudgingly, Atoli changes into her game avatar outfit, complete with flowery staff and dumb hat. She raises it high, and light washes over both of them!

    ... is that a full suite of buffs and a regen?

    "Please do your best, Haseo!"

    Then she swings her staff.
    She has a damage buff up, so it's deceptively punchy, but it's also not really, and clearly not the move she should have gone for. But he asked her to!

    She makes sure not to aim for the head.

    That'd be rude.
Haseo      What kind of person asks what game they're playing in the middle of training anyway? He chose the Arena, shouldn't have been obvious they were going to fight. Unless she was asking what game he was playing on his phone... But who the hell would care about that?

     Ignoring her explanation and trying very hard not to lose his cool that Atoli just HELPED her opponent, Haseo draws a pair of daggers, brining them up to deflect the staff with ease and- Or not.

     The Adept Rogue is thwacked solidly in the chest, causing them to make an annoyed grunt as he staggers a few feet back. He's clearly winded and confused. Is he underestimating her or is she actually secretly really good at combat? He's hoping it's the former, though technically the latter would allow him to gloat to Eggman that she's more than capable of taking care of herself.

     Well, whatever it is, he's done enough thinking for now. Crouching on all fours for a brief moment, Haseo propels himself forward, aiming his blades at the Harvest Cleric's center as he aims to cut her down. Unlike her, there's clearly no holding back. He's aiming to kill, if only because he knows he can't.
Atoli     Wandering around with Sakaki to help revive dead players has done wonders to keep her level up! Kind of. Really, he did all the fighting, and she just kind of... sponged the exp.

    The buffs help a lot.

    But they don't help enough to deal with Haseo, because dealing with Haseo requires actual combat knowledge and experience that Atoli doesn't have. He's so fast, and he's coming in and--

    More by instinct than skill, she raises her staff, putting it in the path of both knives at once. The impact is enough to knock her back half a dozen feet, tumbling about until she straightens herself back up.

    "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to hit that hard!"

    THAT'S what's on her mind?
    Not the fact he hit her that hard right back?

    "I-I'll do better, I swear!"
    Yes. She swears.

    A ball of green light shoots at Haseo.
    It's a heal!

    Of course it is.
    And then water gathers around her staff, and she twirls it forward. "Rue Kruz!"

    The water disappears!
    A red circle indicator travels on the ground from Atoli to Haseo. A few seconds later, it erupts into a pillar of water. It's inconvenient at best.
Haseo      "Can you just PLEASE focus on keeping yourself safe rather than proving that Fat Bastard right for FIVE MINUTES!?"

     Haseo can't take it anymore. Sure, maybe if her life was in actual danger she'd behave differently, but it still doesn't change the fact that she's as naive as they come. Despite the face, she's still nothing like Shino. She's the exact opposite, really. How many more times is he going to reach this conclusion anyway?

     While he can't really dodge a heal, he does his best to roll out of the path of Atoli's spell, though he's still knicked a bit despite this, causing him to wince.

     He's not stopping yet though, he's going to get Atoli to treat this seriously even if it kills him. Emotionally kills him that is, he's not going to actually keel over for this girl.

Holstering his daggers into their hammerspace, they're swiftly replaced as Haseo pulls out a massive toothed broadsword from behind his back. Much like a chainsaw, the teeth surrounding the blade begin spinning, creating a rather distressingly loud noise as the Terror of Death closes in, swinging the sword as he attempts to bring the entire flat of the blade against Atoli in hopes of breaking through her guard and setting her off balance.

     "If you don't do something, you're gonna wind up DEAD!"
Atoli     "I-I am focused!" Atoli stammers out.

    It is pointedly untrue. She doesn't regard this as a life or death scenario, it's clearly some organized sparring match with no consequences. And Haseo is a friend! He'd never do anything to her. Despite appearances right now. Right?

    Lack of experience, at least, can be filled in by knowing what Haseo is capable of. She knows, for example, that the nasty grinding of the sword's teeth locks Haseo into an offensive stance until it's finished!

    She grips her staff tightly, and from it shoots out a dome of white-green light, like a shield. The sword slams into it, Atoli visibly struggling to keep the barrier up.

    "Why would you say something like that?" she asks, suddenly confused by his tone. "I'll be alright! I have Sakaki, and I have you, and I have the rest of the Moon Tree... you can't always be on edge, Haseo! You have to..." She stops.

    Slow down and enjoy life.

    She recalls the last time she said that and winces a bit.

    "P-Please forgive me for this! LEI ZAS!"

    A BOLT OF DIVINE LIGHTNING attempts to smite Haseo.
    Hopefully before her guard breaks. It won't last.
Haseo      Haseo's blade slams against the barrier, bouncing off and nearly sending him off balance from the suddenness of it. He doesn't fall over though, managing to regain his footing as he prepares himself for a second attack.

     "What if someone jumps you when me and Sakaki aren't there, huh?! You can't lean on everyone to get you through things you know? At the end of the day, the only person you can fully rely on is yourself, so stop your moping and start carrying your damn weight!"

     It's kind of hard to tell if he's angry at Atoli or if he's genuinely concerned, though he doesn't really give Atoli the time to think about it as he's on the move again, sprinting fast enough to avoid the bolt of electricity as pockets the broadsword in favor of his daggers again.

     "Gale Blade!"

     Haseo unleashes a two quick and precise slashes at Atoli, pausing briefly for the last strike as he jumps into the air to spin around before letting gravity deliver the final strike.
Atoli     "W-Why would someone do that?" Atoli counters, suddenly not so sturdy on her legs at all. "We've been helping people this entire time! I don't have any enemies, I'm not like you!" Oh is that a sudden, brief flare up of voice?

    Is that the sound of Haseo slamming FACE FIRST into the THICKEST SKULL any human being could ever have?

    The first slash shatters her guard - the second nicks her shoulder. Haseo comes down for the last, and she puts her staff up straight, the knife slamming into the shaft of the flowery weapon and making that patented grindy noise The World weapons like to make when they lock.

    Atoli falls to one knee, because she can't handle Haseo's strength longer than a few seconds. But she's still guarding!

    "I'm not moping! I'm... I'm... actually living my life, Haseo! I don't want to have to look over my shoulder constantly, like someone is going to attack me for no reason! I don't want to live like the Terror of Death does, that sounds... that sounds...!"

    Another crackle of divine lightning.

    "It sounds awful!"

    A sudden, all-out blast of holy light, evidently not controlled and maybe a slightly higher level spell than the Rogue might have suspected she would have under her belt.

    Sakaki bought her the scroll, probably.
Haseo      "This isn't about me or how I choose to live you idiot! Do you honestly think that everyone needs a reason to be awful? That some of them just don't do it for fu- OH CRAP!"

     Haseo doesn't get to explain to Atoli that there are genuinely terrible people in the world as he's blasted by holy light. Where? HOW!? Well, considering she's part of one of the biggest guilds in The World, it probably shouldn't come as a shock that she has access to some high level spells.

     Though there's very little damage represented on Haseo's body save for some odd smoking, it hurts all the same. There's a brief moment as Haseo tightens and loosens his grip on his weapons to regain some feeling in his limbs other than pain.

     "You...YOU..."

     At first there's hints of genuine anger in Haseo's voice, but it quickly fades as he cracks into a sick smile.

     "Hahahahaha, /Finally/! We're finally getting somewhere! So this is how the old man feels huh?"

     Much like the smile he gives, Haseo's laugh is just as terrible, but at the very least, he seems genuinely happy. He coughs a bit, regaining his composure. Best not to scare the girl with his outbursts, probably, not that he really cares if he does.

     "Anyway...uh... good work. But let me show you what a real coup de grace looks like."

     An actual 'good work' from Haseo, that's probably something Atoli can write down in her happy memory's book. Unfortunately that word of praise is followed by an attack. Once again switching to his broad sword, Haseo rushes on over to the Harvest Cleric, sword raised overhead as her prepares his next skill.

     "Tiger Blitz!"

Haseo brings the sword down, the sound of buzzing filling the air as the teeth on the blade rotate, there's a brief delay as he lets the sword rest before he brings it back up, making a V pattern.
Atoli     Good work, Haseo says, as Atoli suddenly comes to her senses and turns slightly paler.

    "A-Ah, no, I... I didn't mean to yell, I... I-I'm sorry, Haseo!" Very sorry, obviously. She completely forgets this is a fight again and empties her MP healing Haseo, in fact! Delicious, delicious heals.

    Which naturally means she has not one ounce of guard up.
    Essentially, watch Haseo punch a puppy.
    A crying, apologetic puppy. Birb.

    The sword hacks twice, and Atoli yelps in equal parts surprise and (simulated) pain, which is real enough to induce a response. She hits the ground backwards, dropping her staff and losing her hat as it plops right off her head.
    There were two cupcakes in it. They were nice cupcakes too! One is black and red, one is green and white. Well, they're RUINED CUPCAKES NOW, so feel bad.

    "O-Ow! why'd you hit so hard? That felt really..."

    Real? She might be shaking a bit.

    "Um..."
Haseo      One step forward, twenty steps back. And here he thought she was finally growing a spine. Haseo sighs in disappointment as he stores the broadsword away for the last time, the weapon disappearing in a gold light as he walks past the shaking Atoli to pick up her hat and the cupcakes.

     "Bringing food inside a place like this? Pretty sure that's against the rules. If you wanted to eat you could have just-"

     Haseo cuts himself off, letting out yet another sigh as he looks down at Atoli... There's no point in kicking them while their down... Right? Hell, why does he care?

     "Well uh...You like cupcakes? I'm pretty sure I saw a bakery or something nearby, I'll treat you for doing a good job I guess."

     A little positive reinforcement never hurt anyone when it comes to training. It'll also probably help her not to run away crying. As he says this he walks back over to Atoli, placing the hat back on top of her head before offering a helping hand up.
Atoli     Everything is better because Haseo offers cupcakes. Or, at least, he'll have to assume so, because Atoli slaps her cheeks and puts her best smile right back where it belongs, on her face.

    "Oh, that'd be nice! Thank you, Haseo!"

    Yes, let's forget everything that just happened.
    The attention is too nice to pass up.

    "I-I'll do better next time, I promise!"
    She already said that earlier!

    Of course she takes his hand up immediatly, and even uses another moment to unsummon her staff and plop her hat back on. It's still huge.

    This turned out fine in the end!