Camping

[arisenfromashes]

Who: Asch, Jay
Where: Middle of the woods
Why: A behemoth has taken up residence near the World Tree, and someone's stupid heroic child has set out to slay it. Now it's up to Asch to rescue the child from this dangerous beast...and hopefully eliminate the threat while he's at it. Meanwhile, Jay has followed him out there to observe his abilities.

Comments

[iknowjj]

[Jay was somewhere in the woods, gathering even more valuable items from the monsters he had just killed. As he placed the gald and gels into his item bag, he perked up as he heard a loud roar in the distance. He could also sense something...that it was a powerful monster. He could also hear a man's cries...someone was fighting that monster. Better go see what's going on.

Moving through the woods, he eventually came upon the source of the commotion. It was Asch, fighting some large black monster. It certainly looked powerful, and it certainly looked like a losing battle for Asch. On top of that, he appeared to be guarding a small boy. Jay gasped softly.]

Asch...

[For now, Jay decided to hold back. He'd been wanting to see what Asch was capable of in battle, plus he also wanted to observe this monster's attacks and devise some possible battle tactics.]

(What is that thing? It looks almost like those fiends on the Legacy, enhanced by the black mist...ridiculously powerful, and even able to cast magic spells.)[As the little

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch extended his left hand as the behemoth lunged, this time, a scarlet sphere of energy appearing in his hand. Just as its maw threatened to snap off his good arm, he narrowed his eyes and thrust it forward

[iknowjj]

[Jay watched as the boy ran past him, down the game trail back to Blessenwood. The boy didn't seem to notice Jay at all. Jay smiled as he turned his attention to the God-General in action.]

(He's just as strong as I imagined he would be...and he can cast spells. Unfortunately, none of us on the Legacy have been able to use both iron and crystal eres...)

[But he could think of plenty of enemies on the Legacy with those capabilities. Jay shook off his thoughts and continued to watch the battle.]

(Go, Asch...)

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch sized up his enemy--sure, he could have used a Magic Lens for a more accurate reading, but his eyes worked fine, last he checked. It's not like he needed to know just how much it would take before it went down. Either way, he would have to hack it apart until it stopped moving.

The behemoth had sustained more injuries, and had shifted more of its weight onto its uninjured leg. Asch's breathing slowed as he felt a small wave of relief. He must have done some damage.]

(The question is, can I keep up? I don't even know if the kid got out of here safely...Damn it, I've done this much damage, and I'm still alive. If I don't kill it, I'll at least make sure that it can't cause trouble for a while...until someone can kill it.[That was Asch's first mistake. He should have taken note of his increasingly sore body and played the escort long enough to complete his quest. Unfortunately, his familiarity with a similar monster that dwelt in the Inista Marsh convinced him to stay. It was unsafe to let such a creature roam so close to

[iknowjj]

[Jay's eyes widened as Asch began to take the beating from the monster. He could feel his heart beating harder and harder, which prevented him from acting right away. He was on the verge of breaking down...but then the monster had pinned down the redhead with its foot. That's when Jay's instinct took over...the instinct to jump in and defend the people he cared about the most

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch had resigned himself to death when suddenly a small explosion shook the behemoth. Squirming, he tried to move out from under the it--he was struggling to breathe. Then, the angry monster hobbled off of him. He gasped as he felt the pressure leave his torso and fumbled for his item pack. By then, however, someone was at his side. He looked up, not entirely cognizant at the time.]

J-Jay...[He saw the apple gel.] Don't...Don't expect any thanks for interrupting my fight. [Despite this, he gladly took it.]

[After consuming the item, he felt the pain subside enough that it was no longer unbearable. Also, his head no longer remained in a fog. Struggling back to his feet, he was dizzy at best, but he forced himself to stop swaying. He had gone through worse and still emerged victorious.]

(That bastard is taking more damage from my sword than from my fonic artes...But I'm fighting with the wrong hand.) [He pulled out his only melange gel (he had splurged on it) when he noticed he was still bleeding

[iknowjj]

[Jay frowned, not too happy with Asch's choice of words.]

"Interrupting" your fight? It looked like that thing was about to finish the fight. I'm merely extending it for you.

[He was about to ask exactly what that thing was when the monster's movement caught his eye - it was back on its feet again. Jay moved away from Asch, keeping his eye on the monster. He now stood a good distance away from both Asch and the behemoth with his hands in his pockets, tapping his left foot, ready to do battle again.]

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch ignored Jay's words. Or perhaps he did not hear them. He had a violent beast to deal with. Much to his luck, the behemoth had yet to pursue him. As much as he hated to admit it, it was probably because Jay was the prey most likely to escape it at the moment. Either way, it gave him time to finish the spell

[iknowjj]

[Jay watched Asch's moves, somewhat stunned that the monster had not died yet.]

(This monster does not die easily, does it? I certainly hope there aren't any more of them, especially this close to Blessenwood. We'll be in trouble if there are.)

[Jay circled around the monster, still keeping his distance, until he spotted the wound in its neck. While it wasn't quite fatal enough, perhaps he could add even more damage to it and eventually kill it.]

Dagger!!

[He continued to throw more exploding daggers at the behemoth's neck wound. Normally he'd used a better variety of moves, but Jay knew that a beast like this should be faced with extreme caution. He eventually paused to see what would happen next.]

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch watched the behemoth stumble backwards, rearing up on its hindlegs, then swaying due to its injured leg. He inched closer, careful not to get in the way of its flailing and its lashing tail. ]

(It'll be over soon...There's no reason to hold anything back.[Asch's pace hastened as he drew closer. Sword raised and pointed at his enemy, he stopped thinking about anything other than beating this annoying monster. He was reaching his limit, as was the beast, and damn it, he would fight his hardest until it was over

[iknowjj]

[Jay gasped as he avoided the behemoth's thrashes with backwards handsprings. He wanted to call out to Asch to stop being so reckless, but doubted that he would actually listen. But then his heart seemed to stop as the monster buried its axe-like tail into Asch's side. The God-General seemed to stop moving at that point.]

Asch!!

(Damn...I should have done something!)

[He didn't have time to think as the behemoth now turned to face him, and then began to advance on him. Jay backed off wearily, feeling fear for one of the few times in battle. Lacking the ability to perform either magic spells or mystic artes, Jay knew that there was not much he could do. His short, swift attacks would do no harm, and it was still going strong, despite the powerful attacks it had already taken from Asch.

Jay continued to back off until his back pressed against a rather thick tree. Now he was stunned; fighting was futile, and he couldn't run and leave Asch there.]

(Think, Jay, think!!)[The behemoth lashed its tail out at him; Jay quickly

[arisenfromashes]

[Asch moaned as he drifted back into consciousness. Either the flickering firelight bothered his eyes or the throbbing right arm or the general ache he felt everywhere disturbed him as he was pried from his thoughtless, dreamless, painless sleep. At first, his grogginess left him to languidly blink away his bout of grogginess. Then, as the haze in his mind cleared, his eyes widened, and he shot up into a sitting position. Bad idea. He grimaced and clutched his side. Once he took in his surrounding area. His eyes widened slightly as they caught sight of the purple-clad boy.]

You...

[Asch might have said more, his mind was drifting...]

(Wait...it's night...I...The quest! I should have reported it by now! And the behemoth!Is it dead...? [Second later, he noticed a large furry corpse that disappeared into the shadows whenever the campfire flickered.] Oh. And...how long have I been out

[iknowjj]

[Jay knelt down by the fire, poking at it with a stick, while trying to shield his face from the burning heat. Then, as he heard the sound of Asch sitting up, he pulled back, coughing the smoke from his lungs and waving it from his face.]

Asch...you're awake.

[He spoke rather softly, but his voice was filled with relief. He went over to the wounded soldier and knelt down beside him.]

How are you feeling?

[arisenfromashes]

I'm fine. [He wasn't. He only knew that if he gave a true answer, he would compromise his pride and, worse yet, be forced to rest.] Now how much time has passed since the battle?

(...It's darker out than it was earlier...I'll have to hurry.)

[Asch moved to stand up, choking back a groan to accompany his wince as his entire body protested the action. This would be harder than he expected, but he had managed to move from the World Tree to Blessenwood with severe stab wounds. This was bad, but at least he was not mortally injured.]

[iknowjj]

[Jay stood up along with Asch and watched as the redhead slowly tried to limp away. His eyes widened, knowing that Asch could not pull off such a stunt.]

I-It's been at least a couple of hours. And what are you doing?!

[arisenfromashes]

D-damn. (I really need to hurry.)

[As if on cue, Asch lost balance and crashed into a heap on the ground. This time, he couldn't stop a startled cry as he landed on his arms.]

(...This is humiliating!)

I'm going back to town. What's it look like? [He hissed as he struggled to sit up again. He would have to wait before trying that stunt again--at least, until his surroundings stopped swaying and blurring.] I just need a couple of gels, and I'll be fine. [With that last comment, he reached for his item pouch and began to search for gels.]