Post by Dieter on May 12, 2016 11:17:31 GMT
" There is only alone thing that makes a dream impossible; a fear of failure""
| Dieter’s coral-hued lips parted ever so slowly, allowing his tongue to peak out as it gingerly ran across his lower lip, catching a stray droplets of sweat that had trickled down the side of his face; the training regimen given to him by a veteran pole-arm wielder proved to be more cumbersome than he’d imagined. Fortunately, Dieter’s efforts weren’t for naught though as each movement helped him familiarize himself with his weapon. Each of Dieter’s coordinated steps were swiftly followed up with a quick thrust or a hasty retreat; still each of his movements screamed inexperience. Alas, Dieter continued on with the monotonous routine, engraving the foundations of his combat style into the back of his mind. Somehow, this brought a brief smile to his lips, the nostalgic feeling he’d grown accustomed to as he practiced a gymnastic routine crept over him. Dieter’s smile was short lived, replaced by a look of indifference as he recalled the gravity of his situation. Truthfully, it wasn’t that much different than performing a drill or a ceremony in the ROTC Program, when he performed during a Gymnastic competition, or even when he was on the final stretch of a cross-country run; the critical difference is one mistake could cost him or someone else their life. Dieter’s fiery red tresses danced wildly behind him, caressed softly with each passing breeze that swept across the vast expanses of the The Great Plains . His train of thought shifted briefly as his muted emerald eyes scanned the horizon, taking in the sight of wide expanses of the cerulean sky, the vibrant green of the grass. His gaze settled on the giant, cocoon like mass that loomed over head, within it existed ninety-nine more floors that they needed to clear in order to escape this never-ending nightmare. His thoughts turned bleak as he recalled the monolith that had been placed near the center of town, every couple days another name suddenly appeared on the polished stone, which signified the death of another player; over four-hundred names currently decorated the memorial obelisk. How many more would be lost before they finally managed to clear the game, earning their freedom and returning to their everyday lives? How long would it be until they saw their friends and families again, would they even make it that far? These thoughts weighted heavily on the minds of everyone trapped in Sword Art Online, even if everyone was hesitant to speak about it. Dieter’s head craned to the side, listening to the distant sounds of a parties’ shouts as they celebrated their victory over a small pack of Dire Wolves . Dieter plunged the blunt end of his spear into the ground, using it in a fashion similar to a walking stick as he stumbled up the side of a steep hill. He peer down at the group, watching them as they exchanged high-fives and passed the loot between one another. A brief feeling of envy crept through Dieter, how lucky they were to have one another. He saw one of them wave in his direction, returning a curt wave before he pivoted on his heel and descended back down the hill-side he’d just climbed up. Dieter clenched his left fist, digging his nails into the meaty part of his palms as he attempted to cement his resolve. Meanwhile, Dieter’s right hand gripped his spear as he prepared himself to engage a lone boar in battle. Aforementioned boar had its back turned to Dieter, blissfully grazing on the plentiful grass the covered the field; completely aware that it was being hunted. Dieter exhaled deeply though his nose as he crept up behind the boar, taking care to transition the weight from his heel and the gradually rolling it to the balls of his feet. Dieter’s spirits plummeted as he got closer to the boar, inwardly regretting accepting a quest from one of the Town Of Beginning. It was a straight forward quest, it was to hunt down ten of these boars, ten of the little Nepenthe and return for a reward. Even though the Boar was only a level one, it seemed like an impossible boss monster; perhaps it was due to Dieter’s poor choice in stat distribution. Dieter had settled on being an AGI-type support fighter, supplementing his low STR stat by having a higher DEX, AGI and END; he’d been in the mind-set he’d do more damage with a flurry of quick blows versus one strong blow. Sadly, this meant that in this particular situation, he was merely drawing out the battle, which in turn created more chances for him to get injured. Dieter’s focus shifted back to the Boar as he anchored his right foot to the ground, lowering his center of gravity as he lunged forward. His spear tip sunk into the left flank of the boar causing it roar out in pain. Dieter’s leg muscles tensed instinctively as he shifted his weight backwards, pushing off the ground to propel himself backwards out of the Boar’s hind-leg’s reach. Dieter’s hope remained at an all-time low as the HUD displayed that Dieter’s attack had only taken out roughly one eight of the Boar’s total health. Dieter hastily transitioned from the offensive to the defensive, bringing the shaft of his spear horizontally across his chest as he lunged to the side. The boar’s tusk had grazed his side, which in turn caused a pang of pain to radiate throughout of his trunk. Dieter’s emerald eyes grew wide as he’d been caught off guard by just how much that had hurt. However, fortunately due to his high END and the fact it’d been a glancing blow it only managed to inflict marginal damage; his own HUD Display was still vastly in the green. Dieter’s hands clumsily shifted on the shaft of his spear, spreading further apart as he made an impromptu lunge. The tip of his spear grazed the Boar’s flank once again. However, Dieter’s assault didn’t stop there as he pulled the spear back towards his chest. His center of gravity shifted lower to the ground as his legs spread a little wider than shoulder width, plunging the tip of his spear into the Boar’s side. It squealed in a mixture of annoyance and agony. Dieter didn’t idle as the Boar turned and attempted to impale him. Dieter’s took two quick hasty steps back, narrowing avoiding being gored in the stomach. Dieter’s spear draped across his chest as the Boar did a sudden charge. At the current distance, Dieter was unable to dodge the attack, but instead used his spear to take the brunt of the damage. Alas, Dieter’s plan only partially worked as he still took knockback damage from the charge and some extra damage from where the boar’s dusks grazed his arms. His eyes shifted hesitantly towards the upper left side of his vision, glancing at his health which had gradually begun to creep towards the yellow. Dieter ground his teeth together as he ignored the pain that had assaulted his senses. He quickly twisted his spear, disengaging the weapon lock he’d created, slamming the blunt side of his spear into the center of the boar’s skull, which produced a nice hollow thwack. It let out an annoyed squeal, which was cut short as Dieter’s fingers nimbly twirled his spear, the tip of his spear grazing the Boar’s face. Dieter’s lips curled up into a smile as he realized that the Boar’s health had plummeted sharply, indicating that Dieter had managed to score a critical hit; his current damage had twiddled down roughly two-thirds of the Boar’s health. Dieter’s eyes narrowed as the Boar recklessly charged him for the final time. Dieter made no efforts to avoid the Boar, instead he merely changed his stance. A brief flare of light seeming to pulsate over Dieter’s form as his right foot anchored itself to the ground and his left foot shifted roughly a pace and a half back. His spear launched forward, finding refuge within the Boar’s snout, rending it asunder as he pivoted his left foot. His entire body spun, narrowly avoiding the Boar’s right tusk as he slammed the blunt end of his spear into its side. The boar gave one last pitiful squeal before its entire body exploded in countless blue pixels, they danced around for a split second before fading into nothingness and a small panel appeared in the corner of Dieter’s eyes, reminding him of the loot he’d just earned and a small progression bar was visible under that. Dieter exhale from his mouth before crumpling to the ground, wiping a few beads of sweat from his brow as he caught his breathe; who knew that battle was so exhausting. |