"A-Adam!?" Godot said in exaggerated fashion.

Turnip raised an eyebrow, "So, he didn't tell you his name, or…?"

The situation was getting increasingly confusing for the armour-clad player. Kagome made some miffed comment, then Lucina offered Godot a sandwich.

Surprisingly for Turnip, Godot smiled and said, "Thanks, Lucy!"

Turnip recoiled slightly, "Lucy? Ah, hell, I'm missing something here. Is he a- but why-?"

"I don't think we are ready," Kagome said, bringing Turnip's attention back to the conversation, "You're going to fight me. Right now."

Kagome drew her sword, advancing towards Godot. Could this get any more damn confusing?

"Fight?" Turnip was surprised, "We're right outside a boss room. That's honestly one of the most moronic things I've ever heard."

It didn't look like either of the two heard Turnip, and it didn't even look as if Godot had heard Kagome – the girl, it seemed, had noticed this.

"DON'T IGNORE ME!" She screamed.

"Uh… don't ignore me? Hypocrite." Turnip knew that shouting was probably the only real way to get noticed in this sort of situation, but he rarely put the effort in. They still hadn't answered his question about what Kagome had done to Lucina. They'd hear him if they listened, but it was more to satisfy himself than anything else.

"I'm not convinced that you're going to survive this!" Kagome continued, "I heard what you did for Princess, you're far too willing to die!"

"Yeah, great, or you could just let him do what he damn well pleases…"

"You underestimate these guys," Godot said, calmly. "Lucina, Robin, and Princess are stronger than you make them out to be, and they won't need my protection."

"Uh, yeah, and me. I am also here…" Turnip continued to mutter.

Kagome, still angry, stormed towards Godot. What in hell had provoked this? She pulled her sword from the wall and slashed Godot across the stomach.

"Woah, what the hell?!" Turnip readied his sword and moved up, cautious not to interfere too much, "Put the sword down, you moron!"

Kagome didn't seem to be listening, and she was… crying? Turnip stopped a decent distance away. Maybe this wasn't such a dangerous situation.

"Your words are cheap," Kagome said, still entirely focused on Godot, "You don't know what it's been like for me! My brother has gone missing and, for all we know, he could be dead. You're the only brother I have in this world, and you don't even understand yourself or your worth!"

Turnip's shoulders slumped. "Really? This is what it's about? Get a damn hold of yourself."

"Do you really think I don't know how strong these people are? It's not me that doesn't, it's YOU, and I don't want to lose you because you think everyone is some helpless puppy!"

"He doesn't." Turnip said bluntly. "He literally just explained how they don't need protection."

"Can't you, just for once, take yourself into consideration? CAN'T YOU FOR ONCE THINK ABOUT YOURSELF?"

Turnip just sighed at this point, and visor-palmed, "Ugh, dammit, no-one cares, I don't care…"

Kagome said something quietly, and Godot disarmed her, then held her tightly.

Turnip shook his head, "We just find the boss room, and this is what happens? This is why we can't have nice things."

Kagome started to bawl, "I-I miss Alistair!" She cried between sniffs and stutters. "Don't leave Godot, you're all I have left! I think about Alistair everyday, and I couldn't stand losing you as well."

Turnip had just had enough now, and began to walk to the other side of the doors, throwing his hands in the air in frustration, "Alright. I'm done. I don't have to deal with this crap." He sighed, "I'm seriously going to murder someone in a second."

The armoured figure slumped with his back leaning against one of the two doors, crossing his arms and placing his sword between his armpit. He understood that Kagome was grieving for this 'Alistair' person, but to bring it up before fighting a boss, in front of strangers, slash a teammate, break down completely – it was just plain stupid, and demonstrated a complete lack of emotional control. He hoped that Godot – who seemed very level-headed and reasonable, though that might just be in comparison to Kagome – would realise that Kagome would probably be unfit for fighting this boss. Turnip was well aware that an extra sword-arm would be useful, but he also wasn't sure if his tolerance for the girl would keep up.

Godot seemed to be ready, now, and Kagome looked less… crying. A small crowd of players assembled as the doors began to open. Godot began to open the doors, and Lucina started helping, pausing for a second to throw off… her hood. Unless that was a ridiculously feminine face and all of the compiled tell-tale signs didn't mean anything, then Lucina was a girl.

Another surprise? Really? Turnip thought to himself, Ugh. I don't even care. I've had enough of these.

Turnip started to help pushing on the doors, and before long they were opening even faster. He saw Kagome amongst the players moving in, so turned to Godot and spoke quietly to him.

"So, I take it Kagome is alright to fight now? Sorry for asking, but recent events haven't exactly put me in the best confidence."

"Don't walk inside when it's open, you can't run away once you do." Lucina warned as the doors started to move a little. "Taking on that monster all alone is foolish...!"

Turnip turned again, "Oh, and Lucina; I take it your name isn't Adam. I don't know why you lied about your gender, but I honestly couldn't care less."

From his tone of voice, you could tell that he was slightly miffed, but telling the truth. It was the lie that was annoying, and the subject of the lie didn't bother him one bit. Gender wasn't something he particularly cared about, least of all in videogames.

Lucina noticed something through the widening crack in the doors before she could react, saying, "Guys...! Look...!"

She pointed through the doors, and Turnip looked. There it was; the boss – like some massive badass kangaroo, it stood tall and glared down at them with glowing red eyes. In front of it, a message was suspended in the air, reading; "Announcement: The boss room has been located!"

Thanks, game. I think we realised that.

The time has come. It first seemed impossible that anybody could be this game. That is, until Robin's group successfully locate the entrance to the first boss room. This proves that it is possible to beat this game.

Godot is the first to step towards the large door, & Kagome suddenly stops him in his tracks. She claims that they are not ready to face the boss, & Robin feels offended by this yet he chooses not to say anything. She continues speaking by challenging Godot right now. Robin wonders if there is something personal between the two, thinking he might have to intervene. That is a possibility as Kagome slashes Godot across his stomach. "Hey!" Robin reaches for his sword &, just before he could intervene, glances at the small drops coming from Kagome's face. This questions Robin's thoughts, as he could not figure out why she was crying. She does start choking out her pain.

Robin learns that Kagome once had a brother who also came to this world. She lost her brother at some point, & now views Godot as her own brother. Did her brother really get lost, or simply become another victim of this cruel game. Kagome bawls the rest out. Robin couldn't understand her, but he knew enough. He never considered how his own life affected others around him. If he dies, how would the others live? He wants to protect all those he knows & loves, but he doesn't want them to think differently of him if he dies. It's tough, but he has to consider his own life in battle.

A few minutes later, the whole ordeal is over, & everyone can get on with their goal. Godot & Lucina slowly push the doors open. Something becomes visible inside the room, with red eyes glowing bright. That was no doubt the first boss. It is possible to beat this game. "Be prepared," Robin repeats cautiously, eyeing the inside of the room. As the doors open more, Robin takes his first steps inside.

On the first step he takes inside, Robin runs immediately into the boss room. It was a huge room like no other. The others should be piling in by now. The boss is strong looking, named Illfang the Kobold Lord. Three Ruin Kobold Sentinels appear alongside the boss. Robin positions himself with his sword out. This boss, is the first of many. They either beat the boss, or die trying. "I'll handle the underlings..."

Ghost
Level 15
Health 100%
Floor 1 Rendezvous

Ghost sat against the tree looking around wondering if he'd show. Ghost looked at his timer to see only two minutes remained on it. Ghost shook his head in disapointment thinking the guy was not going to show. So Ghost began standing up streching out his muscles. Ghost looked around one last time where he then spotted a figure in the distance. This could've been Nirvana but they were too far to tell. Could that be him. I know I set a strict limit of thirty minutes, but the faster I get this done the better. Ghost knew he couldn't wait longer he needed his weapon. The one he had made him look to weak for him to accept. Ghost feel back on the tree as the figure slowly closed in. It took about 5-10 minutes for the figure to reach Ghost were he was then easily able to identify it was Nirvana. He arrived only mentioning the Inn Keeper stunt as well asking about what I want him exactly to do.

"Good. Now that you're here I can explain a bit more. You already know I already need you to kill somebody. This somebody though just happens to be my wife, and it just so happens you know this person. Her name is Frost. She just happens to have something I need, but I can't exactly just take it without her noticing. I need you to kill her at this exact location. If you agree I can bring her here in about two hours where I will then leave her and let you do the rest. If this is done I will either reward you in some of the items she carried that I don't need or in col. The choice is yours if you accept." Ghost explains to Nirvana.

William Danielson||Godot & Kagome
Lv. 12||Floor 1​

"So, I take it Kagome is alright to fight now? Sorry for asking, but recent events haven't exactly put me in the best confidence," The mysterious warrior said to Godot, quietly. He couldn't good and well disagree, she did show signs of unreliability and instability on an emotional level. Would she be okay in battle? He peered back at her to see her staring coldly in his direction. They were eyes that said, "I know what you're thinking, but don't you dare even imply it." The whole "knock out and fight" strategy wasn't going to work. She then walked up to him.

"I didn't manage to get here out of weakness," Kagome said to Godot sternly. She then softened her expression and said, "I trust you, now. I want you to trust me." Godot looked elsewhere with a hint of melancholy. "I guess it's a lot to ask of a big brother, but if you care about me, you'll let me fight."

"And if I were a good brother, I wouldn't let you fight," Godot retorted, looking back down at Kagome. However, she simply kept the same sweet expression. Godot clicked his tongue and said, "But I trust you. I just hope you know that I wouldn't-" He was interrupted by a hand covering his mouth, leaving intelligible words in its wake.

"I don't want to hear it. You're always worst case scenario. Can't you ever look on the bright side?" She said earnestly, latching onto his arm. Godot chuckled, rubbing the underside of his nose, and said, "It's because of you that I always consider the worst." Kagome looked away and said, "Oh, I see, daddy's little girl..." Godot laughed louder this time.

"Godot... Such an unusual name as well," said a voice not far off. It was the man from before, the one whom Godot wanted to have his sword resting between his eyes. He found it strange that Saito hadn't heard Godot. Had he not heard of Waiting for Godot? He made some misogynistic comments and then proposed the use of a sacrificial strategy, while the others proposed a diversionary tactic. Lucina tore him a new one, and the others told him where he could put his strategy. Godot felt like he was missing out.

"That guy called me a cosplayer..." Kagome said in an almost downtrodden but mostly curious manner.

Godot raised an eyebrow. "Wait, aren't you a cosplayer, I thought you said that you were?"

Kagome thought for a moment, as if she were trying to remember a far-off memory, and then responded, "Oh! That. I was just referring to my name. My hair's naturally like this, so my friends would call me Kagome. They said I looked like her." Godot seemed slightly annoyed, thinking that it wasn't really cosplay if it was only in name. Though she did have her face. "By the way," Kagome said, speaking quietly into Godot's ear. "I like your girlfriend, she's got a lot of spunk."

Godot looked over at Lucina, whom Kagome was eyeing. She seemed to be chastising Robin over his going further in. "Yeah, she does." He could have denied the whole "girlfriend" deal, but he felt it would be a waste of breath. Besides, it was a nice thought.

The two of them walked closer to the others. "So, shall we get prepared?" She opened her Equipment Menu and unequipped her sword, replacing it instead with an incredibly large Heavy Sword. It was basically a Buster Sword, though its curves and shape were far more manageable. He'd seen it before when he first met her, though it was probably weaker at the time. She changed from her normal armor to a heavier set, before double thinking and returning to her previous sword. She turned to Godot and said, "Bro, I want you to use your fishing pole for this fight."

"What?" Godot said, taken aback. "Why?"

"Well, not necessarily exclusively. You're fast, right? I think, for a monster as strong as that," Kagome pointed towards Illfang with her thumb, "we could use the headshots. I'm sure you know how to quickswitch, right? You need to swing into the air and attack his face, that way we can deal some major damage." Godot gave her a dubious look. "Don't worry, I'll make sure to protect you if you end up drawing aggro." She turned to Turnip, Robin, and Lucina, and said, "You guys think you could help provide aggro support on the ground?"

Lucina didn't appear to take much notice of Turnip's comment, although perhaps that was for the best. Godot took notice of Turnip's question and peered back at Kagome, granting a cold stare from the girl in question.

"I didn't manage to get here out of weakness," She said to Godot sternly "I trust you, now. I want you to trust me. I guess it's a lot to ask of a big brother, but if you care about me, you'll let me fight."

Turnip didn't pay much particular attention to the rest of the conversation, but he'd take the general answer to be a 'yes'. He just hoped that there wouldn't be a breakdown in the boss fight that put anyone's life in danger.

And if there is, He thought, I'll bloody well kill her.

Drawn to activity in front of him, Turnip noticed Robin, Princess and a few others he hadn't seen before rush forward, attacking what looked to be kobolds. He looked further into the room and eyed the boss; Illfang the Kobold Lord – those other kobolds were sentinels.

"Kobold Lord?" Turnip thought aloud, "Kobolds suck. I hate kobolds. Stupid little yipping demons."

He suddenly remembered that rushing in and attacking the kobolds was a really bad idea, and was about to call out to the lot before he caught more activity behind him.

"Guys! He has four HP bars!" One player shouted, before being silenced by another. A large group of players had entered the dungeon, supposedly to help with the boss.

Another player addressed Turnip, along with those in his immediate vicinity, "You fine fellows look like you could use some reach here! I'm Taka! And I'm here to save the everyone!"

Oh, balls. Turnip moaned mentally, It's that bard from before.

Taka addressed Turnip directly, "HaHA! I knew that you wouldn't be able to stay away from me! It's time to share that adventure!" He laughed heartily. "I'm here to help! Where do you need me?"

"Uh… just this general area, I guess. And yeah, adventure. It's great. Love it."

You'd struggle to find any comments on adventure that were as completely devoid of enthusiasm as Turnip's were.

The silencer from before, Saito, spoke up, "You guys have a choice, you either join my group or you'll die trying to beat this boss on your own."

Turnip turned to the others, casually gesturing to Saito with his sword, "So who's this arsehole?"

Turnip doubted that this guy had any right to say that to them. Extra players would be good, but Turnip would die sooner than operating under orders from that massive clod-face. Even so, he looked for the truth in this guy's words. There were already plenty of people here, even just the ones that Turnip knew. What kind of level was this boss at if that many people couldn't kill it?

Damn Kayaba and his broken game. Turnip cursed, Bosses can be difficult, but everything should be possible to solo. Difficult, but possible. And this is supposedly insane, even with a group larger than the standard party size of six? Of all the games to be trapped in, it has to be one that's a load of arse. Don't tell me this is going to be more difficult than bloody Dark Souls. Hell, that's bordering on I Wanna Be The Guy level of difficulty.

Turnip, it seemed, had spent a while thinking, and had missed a few things. He looked back up to see Saito addressing Kagome.

"Girls shouldn't interfere with a battle for men, so stay here."

Turnip frowned. He was getting less and less fond of this guy as time went on.

"Is this guy serious?" Turnip asked no-one in particular. He then looked absent-minded, as if quoting (which he was). "Gender is an aesthetic choice, and will not affect your attributes in any fashion." He murmured.

Lucina seemed to have taken a more violent reaction to Saito's comments, but Turnip didn't blame her one bit. In fact, he was glad to see the prick jump out of his skin for a second. The other players, it seemed, also had waning respect for the guy, as they realised that his strategy was apparently awful. Thank goodness they had minds of their own; Turnip wouldn't have bared it if they all followed Saito mindlessly.

He turned behind him and called out to those who were fighting kobolds, "Uh, guys, you should probably get back here before you aggro the boss. We need to sort this thing out. Go in together."

Lucina, it seemed, had already noticed the same thing, and pulled Robin back from the fray. Kagome was on point, and was being surprisingly orderly.

"You guys think you could help provide aggro support on the ground?" She asked.

"Sure, I'll try and draw its attacks every now and then. If I've learned anything from Monster Hunter, it's dodging. Dodge like hell. Do a barrel roll."

Turnip glanced into the boss room. It seemed Saito had rushed in, along with some of 'his' group. Surprise-surprise, he'd managed to get himself bashed into a wall.

Turnip sighed, "I guess we've got to stop him getting killed."

It was pretty obvious from Turnip's tone that he really wouldn't care if the guy died. He turned to the group of players with him, feeling confident enough that these people were like-minded enough to survive.

"Are we going in, then? I'm kind of sick of waiting. Remember, rolling is your friend."

He then readied himself, prepared to enter the boss room and start fighting when the time was right.

One Sentinel charges towards Robin with rage in its eyes. Robin quickly ducks & slices through it. Pretty soon, Princess & her guild jump in to deal additional damage. Robin doesn't mind. This battle isn't about honor at the moment. This is about survival, & this game has no continues. You die, you die for real.

Someone suddenly appears out of nowhere. Some poet Robin has never heard of before, shouting that he'll save everyone with his, well, Robin ignored the rest. As long as he doesn't get in the way, they can still win this. He wonders though. How did this poet guy manage to locate the boss room?

It eventually hits him. The map was updated when everyone entered the boss room. That could be useful information, but as of now... Just about every player was now entering the boss room. Robin got worried about this. What if one of the players was killed in the process? Robin couldn't live that down. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a familiar voice. Saito was leading the players inside the boss room. He's such an arrogant player. He would eventually die if he didn't pay attention to his selfishness.

He gave out a plan for everyone to take part in, but it was too risky. One of the players suggested a plan where everyone groups up. A much better plan that Saito's idea, but he was too stubborn to agree. He let them go on with the plan anyway, but he didn't like it. He looks at the other players, including Robin. He didn't like Lucina or Kagome, & Lucina just took it to heart. She got so mad at him that she throws her sword at him & stops close to him. She whispers something to him but Robin couldn't hear, so he focuses on the battle at hand.

Before he could help against the Sentinels, Lucina pulls him back & lectures him about charging in when she specifically told everyone not to charge in when the opened the doors. Robin only replies with a sigh & a couple words, "This isn't the time for the past, but I will keep that in mind. There's no time for talking once in a battle, just stay alive." Robin swings his sword around once as he turns to the monsters again. He didn't get nervous earlier actually. This isn't time for fears, he thought. You must focus on the battle & ignore your fears, or else you won't survive.

Kagome calls out to Robin, Turnip & Lucina for aggro support from the ground. Godot would attack from the air. Robin knew this plan well. "Leave it to me," he says, charging at Illfang. He swings around his legs & cuts through his leg, swinging around again & cuts once more before retreating back. He runs forward, & with his delay skill, he does his best to delay any of Illfang's attacks.

William Danielson||Godot & Kagome
Lv. 12||Floor 1​

Godot and Kagome readied themselves for the charge. Godot switched out his Mammon's Fang for his Meister's Soul. Kagome looked over at him with a stern expression, but said nothing. After taking inventory, Godot returned his eyes to the Kobold. "Ready?" He said, keeping his eyes on his target. Kagome did the same and responded, "Ready." Godot allowed Kagome to take point, seeing that she was wearing heavy armor and was already slower than him. Both of them kept their eyes on the sentinels, to make sure that they wouldn't be attacked on their way there.

After a certain point in time, Kagome looked back at Godot and nodded in the Kobold's direction. Godot nodded and started to sprint at full speed, raising his weapon to the sky and swinging it round. He passed Kagome easily, and once he'd closed in enough, he thrust the weapon forward, causing the hook to lodge itself in Illfang's neck. Godot tried to run faster, as fast as he could. Speed was key for this whole process to work. A large movement from Illfang prompted Godot to jump, launching him high into the air.

---

Back on the ground, Kagome switched back to her Buster-esque Blade. She raised it so the sky and yelled, "Meteor Blade!" The blade turned black, but it gave off a red aura. The aura seemed to form an ethereal manifestation of the blade that formed at the handle, and grew by what seemed to be three times the blade's size. Kagome was very visible cracking down under the weight. She steeled herself, twisting her grip and clenching her teeth. She wound up, charging the sword over her back and struggling to maintain her balance. She tipped backwards, but stepped back and maintained a firm stance to reduce the recoil. She clenched her teeth hard as she raised the weapon from her back, and finally, hammered it onto the leg of her foe. Illfang howled in pain. It did some damage, but her real goal was to aggro him.

There was a problem, however. Rather than attacking her specifically, he started to thrash about. She quickly switched to her other sword and pulled back. Was it her attack that caused it? She doubted that as she noticed some large broken pieces of metal crash to the ground. It was definitely Illfang's armor, it must have been his helmet, as his face and cranium were now completely bare. She first assumed it was Godot, but when she looked up, he still had yet to attack. What had happened? Regardless, he was in a dangerous state at the moment and needed to be quelled. "Robin, Lucina, Mr. Poetic Justice, hold back until he stops his rampage!" She said this, but Taka seemed exhausted and vulnerable to attack, it was unlikely that he'd be able to dodge if Illfang were to have attacked. Kagome clicked her tongue and ran in with her Buster Sword in hand. He was pretty close to Illfang, which was bad for her. She ran in his direction, but kept her eye on Illfang. She finally reached Taka, and once she did, she freed one of her hands from the blade and carried him with it. This whole idea was bad, as carrying a two-handed sword, and a Buster Blade no less, was already quite the task. Couple that with the person she was carrying, the heavy armor she was wearing, and the fact that Meteor Blade took quite a bit out of her, it was unlikely that she would get away.

---

Godot had flown much higher in the air than he'd planned. Actually, if he missed his attack, he would probably die, either by Illfang or the fall damage. Though, the increased speed and weight would deal quite a bit, he told himself. Really, he wasn't too worried about dying yet, it seemed like a major improbability. He had some strong aggro support on the ground, so it was unlikely that he'd be attacked, and he liked to think that he couldn't miss a target as large as Illfang. He switched back to his Mammon's Fang and readied himself for the attack...but then, something unexpected happened.

A fireball shot down on Illfang, cracking open his helmet and having it fall to the ground in pieces. Godot was left in shock; he was fairly sure there were no ranged arts that large or powerful in SAO. But then, even more strange...the fireball spoke. "Yes, I did it!" It shouted, with the voice of a young girl. Actually, the voice was quite...no, very familiar, but the voice couldn't have belonged to who he thought it did, so he quickly dismissed it. That was, until the flames subsided and revealed that the fireball was actually a lost friend. "Sh-SHIREN!?" Godot yelled inadvertently. However, it wasn't long after her attack that she was knocked off of Illfang at blinding speeds. Godot's mouth and eyes shot opened wide, before contorting with rage. He was about to let it all out, when he realized that this was the very thing that Kagome wanted to avoid. He would only end up getting killed if he didn't keep his mind on the task at hand. He needed to be logical about all of it.

Illfang was thrashing about before, but he seemed to have stopped and changed his sights onto something. Godot looked down and noticed Kagome and a downed PC inching away from Illfang, who had them in his sights and readied his large sword for a fatal attack. He eyed the sword that was embedded in Illfang's head. It was Shiren's, and it was also their ticket to victory. He readied his blade and yelled, "Flurry Dive!" He hadn't noticed that he said "Dive" rather than "Dash!", but it seemed that was a move on the system's part rather than his own. Godot's flight towards Illfang accelerated to an incredible speed, and he became like a bullet. He kept his sword centered on Shiren's Katana, keeping his mind silent and devoid of expectations to keep him from straying. His eyes glistened, filled with both anger and excitement as he came close to the armored beast. When he reached the beast, it was if time has slowed to a crawl. It was no doubt an adrenaline rush, but Godot's mind wasn't on that at the moment. He kept the Shiren's blade centered in his sights, accepting her strength as his, and thrust his katana into her katana's pommel, sending it piercing through his body. This wasn't the end, though. He continued his flurry with eight more strikes, and when that was said and done, he continued his assault with fire in his eyes. He attacked again and again, with Illfang still recovering from the recoil of cancelled attack. Godot was yelling at this point, but he didn't quite know why. It may have been because he was so in the moment. His stamina spiraled down, until finally he plunged the sword into Illfang's skull for a final time, his stamina at 0. Godot held a firm grip on his weapon, but he was unable to move. He'd hoped the attack would be enough to kill the creature, but part of him thought that that was a naive thought. He was unable to see Illfang's health bar, so the fate of the beast remained unknown to him. His job was done, however, and the fatigue finally took Godot, leaving him unconscious on the head of the giant.

[I'm skipping up to the battle, Scycke, if you want to tag along.]

Turnip ran into the boss room along with the others. He set his sights towards the boss, Illfang, glaring down at the players around him maliciously and striking out in anger. Turnip figured that, although Illfang wasn't the slowest enemy he'd seen, it was definitely possible to dodge – especially when the monster had several targets.

A kobold sentinel rushed him, and Turnip sideswiped it with his sword nonchalantly.

"Go away," he told it, "I don't like you."

The kobold having been knocked back and away by the strike, Turnip saw this as a prime enough opportunity to test Boomeraxe before using it on the boss. He removed it from his belt, then threw it directly at the floored kobold. The blade sliced clean through, killing it, and then, with a mind of its own and momentum from nowhere, curved back and flew towards its armoured owner. Turnip opened his gloved hand to catch it, and the hilt smacked comfortably into place. Turnip, however, fumbled and dropped the weapon with a clang.

"Oh, crap – uh, no-one saw that. That didn't happen." He muttered, hastily retrieving the axe.

The others seemed to be getting to work pretty well on the boss and his minions, so Turnip joined the fray, advancing on Illfang. He waited for him to go through his attack patterns before slashing at the beast's legs. He'd get a few good hits in, then roll out of the way when the Kobold Lord threw swings at him. Things seemed to be going alright: Lucina got hit, but took it pretty well. Turnip doubted this thing would one-shot anyone here – he hoped so, at least. Robin was getting some good hits in and dodging really well, Taka was clearing out the kobold sentinels, and Kagome and Godot seemed to be employing some kind of interesting tactic. Some player Turnip couldn't see also seemed to have dealt a particularly hefty blow to the boss' head, destroying its helmet.

Unfortunately, though, that hit caused the boss to thrash about, which made him a little unpredictable. The first thing to go wrong was that Taka took a hit from Illfang's thrown axe, followed by a knock to the back of the head from one of his sentinels. He slumped to the floor – brilliant.

The second thing to go wrong; someone a while to the side, taking on the sentinels, had fallen in battle. A saddening thought, and bad news for the fight as a whole – but focus was needed now, and the dead could be mourned when it wouldn't risk others joining them.

Kagome, who seemed far more stable on the battlefield than she had seemed off of it, went to help the bard – dressed in heavy armour and wielding a buster sword, which surprised Turnip. He hadn't noticed the change of equipment. Still, those two really needed not to be targets right now.

"I've got you covered!" Turnip called as Kagome picked up the unconscious poet.

Illfang's eyes centred on the vulnerable two, but he was stopped just before he began an attack. A flying axe sliced painfully through the side of his face, then flew back towards the armour-clad figure.

Turnip saw immediately that the Kobold Lord's eyes fixed on him. A Boomeraxe to the side of the face apparently got someone's attention pretty well. Kagome and Taka wouldn't be bothered, then. Illfang lashed out with a sideways strike, and Turnip readied himself to dodge.

Smack.

Turnip was put off when Boomeraxe, unexpectedly, came back, hitting him in the hip. He snatched out and just caught the axe on the rebound off of his left side, just in time for Illfang's axe to collide with his other. Turnip's reaction response kicked in, and he managed to maintain his balance, flipping once then hitting the ground with his hands and feet, sliding to a halt. Thankfully, the strike itself wasn't too off-putting. Still, about 26% of his health had disappeared, although if he could keep up his dodging then Battle Healing would do some pretty good work recovering it.

Hmm. Turnip thought, assessing the damage, Ah, well. This plate mail has to do its work sometime.

Turnip put Boomeraxe away, then looked back up to see a player – the one from before with the helmet-destroying attack – had been flung from Illfang's back and crashed into the wall, falling to the ground, out cold. Actually, wasn't she one of the lot in the dungeon yesterday? That little girl, Shiren. He hadn't seen her come in.

Turnip's eyes were drawn to Godot as he yelled something, then activated a sword art – funny, the guy seemed unnaturally high up. Huh. Although it seemed odd, it did seem to contribute towards the effectiveness of the attack, taking down nice chunks of the boss' health.

"Oh, hell yeah!" Turnip shouted in appreciation, taking cautious swings at Illfang's legs, "Nice!"

He smiled, but soon stopped when he noticed Godot slumped on the Kobold Lord's head, unconscious.

"Why is everyone fainting?" He cried, incredulous, "Seriously! Half of us will be asleep by the end of the battle at this rate."

In his peripheral vision, he could see that the bard, Taka, had regained his consciousness, which was relieving. Even so, there were still two fighters down and out.

"Ugh." Turnip moaned, "I guess that means more aggro support."

He sheathed his sword, and threw Boomeraxe at Illfang's face again – this time going for the underside. He'd aggro him with that, then he could dodge towards the boss and hit his arms with a Draw Steel. He caught Boomeraxe successfully, for the first time, then quickly placed it in his belt, anticipating an attack from the Kobold Lord.

The Delay skill worked. That gives Godot a chance to attack without worry for moments. Robin also took note of Illfang's health bars. He was down 3/4, victory was upon them. Robin watches how Lucina dealt with Illfang, taking tough damage. She comes back for payback at Illfang. Some players were also going after Illfang, holding out as best as they can against him.

Robin had to act fast on a few stuff. He quickly run past Lucina & throws her a healing potion for her to heal. Afterwards he takes another one out & drinks it himself. The poet gets knocked away by the boss, Kagome supports him. "Kagome!" Robin shouts as he throws yet another healing potion at her, so that she may heal the poet. Honestly though, it's really like he's in the way. Robin focuses on Illfang once more, eyeing a fireball that hits Illfang's helmet, & a familar voice appears.

Robin could never forget that voice. That voice of a little old...not friend, but girl. "That sounds like..." Robin's thoughts were answered when Illfang was thrashing around, making his moves unpredictable, & threw off the little girl known as Shiren. She hits a wall & lies unconscious. Robin couldn't believe his eyes. As Godot was dealing the rest of the damage on Illfang, Robin eyed Shiren. How did she survive? How is she alive? Is she a ghost? These questions were flowing through Robin's head, but he shook it off. He needs to focus on the battle.

"Lucina!" Robin calls out, "look after Shiren!" He faces Illfang, wondering where Godot is. If anywhere, he could be on his head. With the players giving aggro support, Robin could retrieve Godot, but he had to be quick about it. One slip-up, & he's history. He runs towards Illfang & slides under him, then around his tail, & finally runs up his back. Godot was spotted, Robin quickly grabs him & jumps up. Kagome was occupied with the poet. Princess, however... "Princess!" Her guild can take care of Godot. Funny though. They seem 1 short a member. Oh god...

Robin throws Godot towards Princess & her guild & looks down on Illfang from the air. Time to kick in one of his Sword Arts. Robin turns sideways & faces his sword down. His sword starts radiating a spiky blue aura. "Sonic Spin!" he shouts with all his might & speeds down, spinning with his sword at the end. Just above Illfang, he slices across his open face & upper chest, jumping away from him by placing his feet on the boss's stomach & boosting off him. Alas, Illfang's axe managed to hit Robin's left shoulder. Robin lands near Lucina holding his left shoulder. "Damn...!" He has to be more careful. He's already tired enough from this battle. If he hadn't healed earlier, he might've been dead.