I suppose a fictional story would go here?

[The Dan]

It's based on Maplestory, obviously.

I'm giving you guys a taste. If you want the full thing, go here:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3014032/1/

[story quote]
"Take it or leave it, moron."

The anger inside me flared to a raging inferno, and I wanted nothing more than to let loose a string of shuriken onto this mage. I held my Meba at place, though; Tilting my head toward the ground and closing my eyes in frustration. I sighed once and looked up again.

"There is no way in all hell that I'm paying you eight and a half million mesos for a single set of Steelies," I said quite calmly, considering the situation.

"Look, you moron, I'm an accomplished Ice and Lightning Archmage," the magic-weaver said, pounding his staff to the ground twice. "These knives sell for like ten mil in some places, I'm doing you a favour."

I lost it then. "Agh! They sell for Seven Million mesos in town, I'm doing you a favour by even looking into this deal!" I exclaimed angrily, wishing to turn around. "The only reason I'm even considering buying these from you is because I don't feel like going back down to El Nath, nor to Orbis; Because I'm out of stars."

Indeed, it was stupid of me to use up the room in my pack with Scrolls and Potions, and even stupider to keep a spare set of Wolbis 'Just in Case'. The grey set of throwing stars was old and dull, and I might as well have been stabbing the Sentinels with a Coconut Knife...

The Mage returned the set of kunai to his own pack. "I should be selling these for Nine Mil, you homo..."

My eye twitched. "Such insults are immature and show so much stupidity that you just lost any chance of a sale," I hissed. "Have a good day sir."

The idiot jumped down from the platform we were using to safely talk, and I had to stop myself from following him. The annoyed shouts of a female bandit below told me that he must have been picking up the supplies and money that these robotic Sentinels often dropped.

Why we loved killing them, nobody was sure. It was a waste of potions and mana indeed, but the occasional stars that they dropped could make you rich. Well, that and the kind amounts of Experience they gave.

"I missed my chance at getting those damned kunai... Again," I chastised myself silently, sitting on the safe platform and watching the Sentinels near the platform float around aimlessly. I sighed and waited for my mana to fully return, checking my outfit and inventory.

I had plenty of Mana Potions, over 400. I also had 300 White potions; All of which I had found stored under the Bar in Kerning when I went to get my job advancement to Assassin... There was an archer coming when I was going, so I assumed the hidden pots had belonged to him. Of course, if someone is stupid enough to horde their expensive items somewhere public, they should assume that they're to be stolen. I had two sets of Kumbis which I used most often(both empty, the plastic containers useless in my bag), a set of Mokbis which I used whenever those ran out (also empty), a set of Tobis for powerful enemies (there were a few left but they'd run out soon enough), and of course my full set of useless Wolbis.

I also carried several ores and minerals with me. Though they were heavy, most were quite expensive. Often I would sit in town with a list of my ore and mineral inventory, and I'd make an average of forty thousand mesos per hour.

For some reason I had a very well-made Red Guiltain Mage's Hat that nobody seemed to want... It was useless to me, of course. I don't even know why I don't just sell it to a shop, I could get a good thirty thousand from it...

Of course there was my trusted Meba, the claw that took forever to get the materials to make; And was just as worth it. The bronzes, coppers and steels fit together perfectly, providing a great defense up and down my arm. But I bought it mainly for its weaponry capabilities. Anybody who's not an assassin always wonders why we require these glove-like weapons to throw shuriken; At the same time they wonder how we can fit so many as a thousand projectiles without having to stop and reach into our pack to pull another one. The answer is simple: There's a little slot on claws on the backfist where one can insert the stars they wish to use...

But the beauty of the Meba, that which made it so aerodynamic, was that the little insert slot was instead on the side. Unlike the other claws, there were separate parts for each finger. Between the index finger and the thumb was the insert slot, and the stars not in use moved back inside the claw, up to the forearm. It was spring released, so instead of having to tighten my entire fist (as I did with my old Garnier and my Bronze Igor), I only have to twitch my index finger, as if pulling the trigger of a crossbow, to release a star. I still have to swing my arm, of course, to create momentum to get the star moving with deadly force.

Along with the Meba, I wear a Black Guise, a Silver Black Stealer, Dark Silver Stealer Pants and my signature pair of Pink Whitebottom shoes. The shoes clash horribly with my Black-and-Silver clothing and my light-but-not-pale complexion, but I don't mind terribly. They were free, given to me by a rich man dressed in rags who was pretending to be a beggar. I had offered the man two million mesos and he was so surprised he told me of his little plan to cure boredom (dress up like a poor man and sit around begging while you let your accumulated wounds heal) and sent me off with a special pair of shoes. They were light yet thick, and made it very easy for me to jump around or move about.

I checked my Personal ID Card, a digital 4"x 6" touch-screen database of information. It usually stayed in my pocket, but I took it out to check any changes fairly often. Apparently someone had lowered my Fame, which was no more than a number that the population decided.

Every day every person with an Experience Level of more than Fifteen was given a new Fame to use as they wished. You could raise or lower anyone's fame with it, and they could do the same to you. Me, I preferred offering it to people who cared about it, or at least cared enough to give me fiver-thousand meso per Fame. Personally, I didn't care what my own was at, though it somehow managed to raise itself by at least 20 over the years... Kind people noticing my Charitable attitude who had nothing else to give.

The ID Card had a digital photo of my face as well as my Calculated Statistics. Those were numbers nobody really understood, which measured Strength and Intelligence as well as Dexterity and even Luck. They weren't terribly accurately named, of course, for though my Luck was over 90, I had not yet found a person who could tell me where to find a set of Ilbis. That and besides Dexterity (at 68) everything else was under 20. I had 14 Strength and yet I could throw stars for hours; Upon that my Intelligence was merely 5.

Insulting as it was, when I discovered only Mages had Intelligence levels of over 100 (the smart as well as the idiot ones) I've begun to believe that the people in charge are either fools themselves or the system has a large... Quite large... Malfunction.

Come now. With only five Intelligence points and a vocabulary like mine you'd be aggravated by the whole deal as well.

According to the ID Card my Level was at 33, with 66 percent done. After a few training sessions, it would become 34 and then I'd have a chance to change my Abilities.

You see, every traveler with a job has special abilities unique to their jobs: When I was a mere Rogue I used up most of my points with two skills called Nimble Body and Lucky Seven. Every level up, you got 3 points to use, and you sent in those points with your ID card. It sent back a note of information and using that information you were able to do new things.

The skill called Dark Sight allowed me to see any natural shadows, and with my supple body I can slip into those shadows and use them as folds of invisibility. Even if I'm in the middle of fighting a smart enemy, if I use Dark Sight I become completely transparent. It uses a good amount of mana, though, so I don't use it terribly often.

Lucky Seven, though, only used fifteen mana points... It allowed me to speed my body and throw two stars at once. I have to swing my arm incredibly fast, though, so though it weakens my mana each star does more damage to an enemy than it would normally.

Nimble Body was completely different from the rest, which seemed to either slow down time permanently or speed my metabolism... It became easier with every point to sidestep any enemy and throw stars at their backs. Even the Zombie Mushrooms, who never stood still for a second, could never find a way to dodge my shuriken.

Ever since I upgraded myself to an Assassin, though, new skills have become available. One was Critical Throw, which sent a large block of text on certain enemies' weak spots. For example, if one aims under the cap of any mushroom it does far more damage that the main part of the cap or on the body.

Another new skill was Javelin Mastery. Along with information on the advanced mechanics of throwing stars (after reading them and applying it, I felt I could throw so much better), the people in charge sent new containers for each of my stars. It's more space-efficient, so it seems every time I give an Ability Point to Javelin Mastery, I could hold 10 more stars per container.

Presently, I was intrigued by an ability called Haste which allowed me to move faster and jump higher, by showing the essentials of aerodynamics. I follow the directions, finely tuning my mind and meditating if I ever need to drastically boost my metabolism.

...At any rate, my Health points had almost reached their maximum of 1173, and my Mana points were nearly half-full at 317. I stood and took out my Halfmoon Zamadar (a gift from an old Chief Bandit friend) and put away my now-useless Meba, cutting my way through the floating spherical robots on my way back up to Orbis.

---------------------------------------------------------------

"Buying Dark Crystal Ores!"

"Trading Fame! I don't Scam people!"

"Level 45 Cleric looking for a Party to train with Jr. Pepes!"

I stepped out of the portal to several cries of other people, looking for adventure or Experience Points. Or just money. This was something nearly everyone did: Jump around a crowded place yelling your prices for certain items or promising whatever to whomever would give you an elusive weapon or such. I did it sometimes, if rarely; Usually when I was looking for a new set of throwing stars or if I find rare equipment that doesn't work well with me. I peeked inside my pack for a second and added my own shout to the rest.

"Selling Over-Average Red Guiltain, accepting offers...!" I yelled half-heartedly, lazily strolling through the marble city. All of Ossyria was beautiful, but if I ever wanted to settle down and buy a house it would be located in Orbis. There was a huge assortment of different people: Fairies, normal humans, soldiers, scientists, beefed men, kids all about, even a large dog everyone called Moppie. An assorted orchestral group played all day in the town square, and personally I've found that their music never seems to get old. Vines grew everywhere, but they were obviously trimmed and controlled. There were floating platforms placed around the higher parts of the city, and though I'm terribly afraid of heights I didn't mind these. Since I've obtained Nimble Body and Haste, I can twist myself around in the air so I land more peacefully.

It's still scary as all hell to slip, though.

Nobody seemed to want the hat, so I sped up my pace to normal. My destination was the General Shop, and after a bit of a walk the smell of Potions mixed with food overwhelmed me. I closed the door behind me, savoring the near-silence. The music could still be heard, through hidden speakers in the shop, but of course I didn't mind that at all. In fact, I decided that once I was done with exchanging supplies I'd wait here for my mana to come back to normal.

I sold the metal shellpieces that Sentinels dropped, and asked that the woman behind the counter refill my weapons' packages. It intrigued me that though they carried large amounts of every throwing star, they were near-impossible to carry. In fact, the most intuitive thing I had ever seen was a high-level Hermit who had asked that the store-owned fill his Pumpkin Basket with Ilbis. It seemed to work fine for him, though he couldn't use a claw to throw them. As we all know, in order to insert the stars or knives into a claw, you need to fit in the plastic case. The spring mechanism holds the small weapons and releases the plastic case, but nobody knows how to insert the stars manually.

So this guy reached into his Pumpkin Basket and had to pull out a star and throw it between his fingers. I'm not sure how that went but fighting in such an old-fashioned manner can't be worth 40 Ilbis...

I didn't really need anything from the store besides the stars, so I walked to the side of the store and sat on the floor near the wall, relaxing. After a few minutes, another guy walked in. He had spiky purple hair and sunglasses, a large intimidating Maple Staff and a long black Robe. He nodded to me and did his biddings with the Shop owner, then sat next to me and began to apply a powder to a long gash on his leg.

"Leatties," he said with a smirk, noticing my gaze. "They're painful little fuzzies."

I snorted, holding a hand to shake his. "Well met, mate. I'm Dan of Kerning."

"Hideval of Ellinia," he replied, shaking my hand and finishing his work. I couldn't help but notice his uncovered hair.

"Oi..." I muttered after a second. "Bychance, you interested in buying a Red Guiltain? I've had this thing for ages, it's overaverage but I've had the worst luck in selling it."

"Eh," he grunted, looking at it uninterestedly. "It'd be good to have for a few levels from now, but I'm only level 36. Anyway, I don't really like wearing Red." He handed it back and I couldn't help but yelp out a "GAH!" He laughed and shrugged.

"I swear, I'm just gonna sell it for 30,000 mesos," I said dryly.

"Don't go and do that, mate," Hideval said, putting his hand on my shoulder. "They'll sell for plenty if you have the right buyer. Just be patient."

I knew he was right, and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, I know," I mumbled.

"Like, I've had this set of Steelies for about a month now. I hear they go for about six million mesos, and-"

"Seven million!" I gasped, moving my pack in front of me. "I need a set of those, I'll buy it for Seven Million Mesos in cash."

He took out the plastic case with a smirk. "You carry all that money with you?" he asked.

I shook my head. "It's all in my account, I've got about half a million on me now," I explained. "We could take a short walk to Teeny and I could withdraw it in person, or we could do it all digitally."

"I'd rather the latter," Hideval said with a laugh. "As I'd probably just put the money into my account anyway."

We both took out our personal ID cards and made the transaction, then he handed me the case. We thanked each other and left, him going up to the Jr. Cellions and me going back down to the Sentinels. I inserted the new Steelies on the way, their weight feeling very different from the flat Kumbis I was used to. On the way down, I tried out a Lucky Seven on a Jr. Sentinel. It was broken after one Lucky Seven and one normal throw.

Ecstatic, I picked up a Luck Ore that it dropped and continued my way to the lower levels, wondering if today would be a good day after all.

-------------------

Roughly an hour into training, I was firing away at a normal Sentinel, not bothering to use Lucky Seven. My mana was down and it healed slowly. Since I had plenty of time, as this area was generally empty, I never bothered to use any healing potions or anything.

I was just about to kill an enemy when lightning struck it from above. I turned angrily, knowing that the experience points that the robot held would now be split between me and someone else.

That someone had no hat, but his purple, spiked hair fit well with his black robe.

"Hideval!" I said in surprise. "What brings you down here...?" For he was level 36, and it was no place to be training for a Mage of such a level.

"I need Wisdom Ores," he explained. "I was on my way down to the Ice and Fire Sentinels and there you were. Sorry for stealing that kill."

"It didn't drop anything important, so I don't mind," I said with a laugh. "Sometimes there're Cape Scrolls inside them, but yeah." Scrolls were magical objects that were used to make armors or weapons more useful. By reading the Scroll you gain a huge amount of mana in your body, and the next thing you touch that applies to the scroll) becomes the target for the power. The mana is released into it and voilÃ*, a more powerful item.

"That'd be how you get all your money, then?" Hideval asked. "It's not normal for an assassin to be carrying so much."

I silently agreed. It was indeed costly, this job. Mana and Health potions, as well as buying and recharging stars. Also, the armors and claws asked for much more than they were worth.

"I've got a few friends," I explained. "One Chief Bandit who retired to work with his family, he gave me all of his old stuff. A really cool Hunter who calls himself The Just Owner, he helps me out with quests. He's kind of slow, but charitable. A couple other guys, high-leveled... A sarcastic Cleric who's easy to like, a caring Warrior who prefers giving to taking."

"And of course the scrolls."

I shrugged. "Yeah, mostly the scrolls," I laughed. Some people in town will pay one-and-a-half million for a 60 Scroll for Cape's Intelligence... Maybe they'll think it'll make them smarter. I still don't know.

"Anyway," I continued, shifting my pack and opening it to my side. "I've got a few Wisdom Crystal Ores in here. I'll give them to ya for cheap, but I still need money-"

"Of course, of course!" Hideval said as if I was insulting him. "Never would I ask for charity, It's not like you owe me anything."

I shrugged. "Well, there's four here that I've picked up," I said. They were useless to me, mostly stuff that others have dropped or that I've taken and made in my rare encounters with Ice or Fire Sentinels. "So how many do you need?"

"Three, one for my brother and two for me."

"Okay," I said, calculating. "They go for 85 thousand, usually. So I'll cut off 10 each. 225 thousand for all three sound good?"

Hideval lost his balance. I faltered, but he looked up with a grin. "Uh," he muttered. "How about two for 150 thousand?"

I paused for a moment, befuddled, before laughing. "What'd you do, spend all your money on scrolls?" I asked, not malevolently. "I just gave you seven mil!"

Hideval blushed. "One of my friends helped me out with all of my equipment," he said, looking to the side. I stopped laughing. "At least, I thought she was one of my friends... As soon as she'd given them to me she gave me a receipt. I owe her twelve million for all of my stuff. She just walked away and told me to bring the money to the bar in Kerning in a month. She said that I'd regret it if I swindled her out of her money."

"How long ago was that?" I asked. I'd heard about this kind of thing happening, especially near Kerning. This did sound serious, but it could turn out that Hideval was the con artist here, and that I was the victim.

"It was a day and three weeks ago, I have until next Monday. Eight days left."

I thought for a second, jumping onto a rope and hanging there while the Sentinels floated aimlessly below me. They would never attack except in self-defense, and as long as I didn't fall on them I could hang here all day without a worry.

"What'd happen if you tried to run away, you think?" I asked, leaning off the rope casually.

Hideval killed the two Sentinels with Ice Magics, ignoring the broken metal shellpieces that clattered to the floor, dead.

"I'm not so sure I want to find out," he said through gritted teeth, glaring at the shellpieces. "She was a part of a Guild."

All was silent for a few seconds. I didn't even need to ask.

"The Maffiya Guild," we said in unison, and my eyes widened as I gasped. At the same time he looked down, to the side. It wasn't for dramatic effect but anyone watching would've thought so.

The Maffiya was notorious for luring people into their sordid deals or loans. Often they would render an upcoming Warrior or Mage useless, stripping them of any money or power through contracts and deals. Hideval had probably agreed to paying this girl without realizing it, under watch of another Maffiya member. There had been appeals in the past, but the Officials knew that there was nothing they could do. Lawfully, they had the right to do most things they did, even if it was morally evil.

"...Take them," I said, pitying him. He pushed my hand away, and the Wisdom Ores dropped to the ground. I picked them up irritably, swearing at him. "...Just take them, please, damn it. I don't need them and you do."

"I refuse to accept any charity."

He glared at me and I knew at once that this man would not be swayed. I smirked.

"Okay," I said. "150 thousand for two."

He nodded his thanks and reached into his bag, pulling out the necessary wad of cash. I handed him the four ores as he handed it to me confusedly.

"These are worth 85 thousand each," he said, annoyed. "And you can't-"

"I'd drop them anyway," I said, fitting the forgotten shellpieces into my bag. "I had no room for anything because of those, and I need these-" I quickly killed another Sentinel and stuffed the money and Shellpiece into my pack as well. "I need these for a quest," I lied.

He saw through it, I'm sure, but I'm sure he gave up then.

"...I'd just drop them anyway, really," I reassured him.

He smiled and thanked me one last time before bowing and falling to the lower levels, landing gracefully next to a large group. He took them all down with a few waves of his staff and picked up all of the money before going below again.

I gazed after him, wishing I could do more. But his soul was strong, and he would make sure that he wouldn't accept any more charity from me. I frowned, closing my eyes in thought.

---------------------------------------------------------------

I trained for a quarter-hour, using up half of my Kumbis and a few potions. The whole while I was running on auto-pilot, attempting to think of ways to get Hideval out of trouble. I could only pull blanks, it seemed; Every idea was worse than the next.

I could start a donation fund...? We'd just get poked fun at by the richer bastards.

I could definitely try to lend him some money, but there's no way he'd agree to it. I don't think I have that much in my account anymore, anyway.

Prostitution?

I nearly laughed out loud at myself, re-railing my train of thought back onto the Sentinels. I could kill these for a day without using any recovery potions whatsoever, yet today I'd already used an Orange and two Blue potions. That was unacceptable for me, as I needed those for the stronger enemies.

I concentrated and released two stars in one throw at a Jr. Sentinel, and released a third star behind that. The first two hit perfectly, bashing up the metal sides. The third flew horizontally into the center, slicing the kinetic scientific impossibility into two. Behind it was another one, which I released four stars into in quick, mana-reserving succession. A third Jr. Sentinel smashed into me from behind and I was thrust forward; Turning as I landed to release Kumbis into the thing. With textbook precision, I threw two horizontally, again leaving two halves of the now-useless robot.

By now I wasn't thinking at all. Just smashing through these things, picking up dropped coins and shellpieces and every now and then minerals or ores. I imagined my Experience Bar rising with every star I threw, though I only checked the ID Card when I stopped to rest.

I was about to finish off another when magic in the form of a blue, physical Claw burned itself into my retinas. Someone was attacking the Jr. Sentinel, and I could vaguely see him running by to pick up a Luck Ore that it dropped.

"Oi!" I shouted. "I wanted those, don't do that!"

"Nobody's around to stop me," a female voice said from the left. My vision cleared and I turned towards her, still half-glaring.

"No," I agreed, "But I'd think you'd feel some remorse, at least. You're a Mage, you don't even need those."

She shrugged. "They sell for a hefty price. Thanks anyway, luv."

I glared for a full second before jumping onto a rope, climbing up a bit to reduce the natural swaying. I wrapped my arm around it and turned to her as she leapt onto a safe platform, looking to me.

"If it means that much to you, by all means it's yours," I said gruffly. "But I really don't like this kind of thing. I'd rather you not attack anything I, or anyone else, is working on. Okay?"

"Sure, babe," she said dismissively, playing with her dark hair. "I wasn't all that bothered about training up here anyway. I'm on my way to Ludi."

"Ludibrium's miles away, you need to take an airship."

"Yeah, sweetie," she said irritably. "I'm no moron, I'm aware. But I wanted to check down here first. Never know, some of my cooler friends could be here. Maybe some of my Guild Members." The way she said it, braggingly, made me curious.

"And just what Guild would that be?"

"Depends, what guild are you in?" she looked at me suspiciously.

"None," I replied honestly. "I never have found one to my liking."

She rose an eyebrow. "You just don't have a money, don't lie to me. Assassins are always poor."

I casually reached into my bag to exchange my near-empty Kumbi container with my new, full, set of Steelies. Once it was in, I carefully released one of the knife into my other hand and tossed it to her. The kunai landed at her feet and she kicked it away, smirking.

"You stole a thing of Steelies?" she asked incredulously (I rose an eyebrow but she didn't seem to notice.). "Maybe I should extend an invitation to our Guild."

"Doubtful that I'll be interested," I said, honestly, not bothering to correct her yet. Better for one to think that you have quick hands instead of one thinking that you're loaded with cash, especially when dealing with people like this.

"So you're not interested in joining The Syndicate?"

I laughed. "That Maffiya-poseur Guild? You must be kidding."

The Syndicate originated from the same blood as The Maffiya Guild, a brother and sister formed either. The little sister, who I'm pretty sure is called Cassie, was a low-level but rich Cleric. She formed The Syndicate to rival her older brother Barry's Maffiya. Both were big-time Guilds, each with at least fifty members and more than a hundred people connected to it. Supposedly The Syndicate was more underhanded, but oftentimes a member would be cornered and mugged by several Maffiya members. Cassie herself has been put into debt by her brother.

"It's not," the annoying mage said. "The Syndicate is pretty famous-"

"I'm aware."

"-Especially in its valiant efforts against the Maffiya's power-"

"One can't control the masses with the Maffiya in power."

"-Except we run with honor and we-"

"Bull."

"-Run all of our quests and missions with honor, so-"

"Very bull."

"-So ...You're really annoying, you know that?"

I nodded and shrugged with my free shoulder. "I'm really, really not interested."

She was stubborn. "We can offer protection and money and popularity."

I couldn't help but laugh. Really, I tried not to. I held by breath and bit my lip for a good few seconds before my internal dam broke, gushing out sobs of laughter like water from the aforementioned metaphor. I laughed so hard I nearly fell from my perch, twice, and then I actually did fall, right onto a Jr. Sentinel. I could only continue laughing, even as they painfully prodded and poked my body.

She killed the annoying things, pretending to be worried. "Are you okay?" she asked, not even giving the courtesy to leave the money on the ground next to the metal corpses.

"Yes," I said cheerily, ignoring the sharp jolts resonating from where the Jr. Sentinels hit me. I'm pretty sure they actually managed to bruise a few of my ribs, but I did heal myself later. "Yes, I'm absolutely fine. In fact, the only way I'd be better is if you'd get the hell out of my sight and never to bother me again." I waved a mock-goodbye, still smiling.

Her eye twitched and she flicked her hair, walking past me to climb the rope I occupied seconds earlier. I sighed and sat up, rubbing my chest and crawling over to the edge of the platform. I stood and leapt, but my legs were still hurting from the Sentinel-gangbang. I nearly missed the safe platform, flying into it stomach-first. My throbbing ribcage protested further but I managed to pull myself all the way up. The collected effort rebounded upon me once I centered my balance and laid down, and I groaned to myself.

Usually the Sentinels didn't even touch me, and if they did it rarely even twinged. But I hadn't been paying attention to these and this rendered my thin armour useless. It felt as if I'd been tied down and pegged with baseballs for a few minutes.

Wearily I laid there, checking my ID Card. It said my Calculated Health Points were at 13... Less than 2 of my total. I groaned again, promising to spend more money on Orange Potions in the future. How long had it been since I used one...? How much damage had my body sustained in the past half-hour? I could die out here, and nobody would even notice, let alone care. Maybe a few of my friends would care if they caught wind, but it was doubtful that'd even happen... Of course, it was possible that once I reached my bodily limit and hit 0, someone would move my unconscious body to let it rest and I'd regain consciousness.

Either way, I promised myself to be more careful. It would be out of my hands if I ever hit 0-

"Hey..."

Another female voice snapped me from my thoughts. This one was not as arrogant, smaller, more obviously shy. I turned my head to view its owner. Some raven-haired brown-eyed archer, her clothes meant that she probably wasn't higher than Experience Level fifteen. He crossbow was loose in her hand, but I didn't recognize it by name.

"Hey," I said weakly. "What's up?"

"I'm... I'm okay," she stuttered. "Are you in pain?"

"No," I lied, letting sarcasm drip.

"Oh..." she said quietly. "Sorry... It's just, I saw what happened and it looked painful."

I turned my whole head toward her. "I was kidding," I said, half-exasperatedly. "Yes, I'm in pain, I'm in very much pain right now."

"Why don't you just use a potion?"

I closed my eyes and turned my head back toward the ceiling. This was not a conversation I needed to be having in my present state.

"Because there's no reason to," I explained tonelessly. "I could use the expensive White Potions I have, but they'd be gone in a few days. It's more financially secure to just wait it out. The human body is an amazing thing."

"Oh..." she said again, walking over and sitting next to me. I could have groaned again, but I decided to at least try to be polite. She didn't seem like a bad person, there was no reason to be rude. "Can I sit here?" she asked, surprising me.

"Uh, yeah?" I said. "It's a public platform. I don't care."

Be nice, my conscience snapped at me. You're just in stress and in pain. Don't let it cloud your thoughts or actions.

"So, eh," I mumbled. "You got a name?"

"Allie," she replied, blushing. "Sorry, it was impolite not to tell you earlier-"

"It's no big deal," I said quickly. "Dan of Kerning, at your service."

"Sorry, Dan," she said sadly.

"Wait, for what?" I asked, worried now.

"Uh..." she muttered. "For not telling you... About my name, I mean."

I sighed. "You need a backbone."

"But..."

"I mean you need to stop apologizing for yourself. Have some confidence."

"Oh, okay, sorry."

I sighed again, and Allie seemed to shrink into her shoulders.

What's up with her...?

I let a minute or so pass before breaking the silence. "So what brings you here?"

"Uhm... I heard this would be a good training place."

"Who told you that?" I asked, incredulously. This place wasn't good for training, not in the way she meant it. It was good if you needed money or just wanted a place to get some experience while staying near Orbis, like I did.

"My brother, he's a really strong Hunter," she said. "He says he used to come here and beat up all the robots really easily. But I've been having trouble... Maybe I'm just weak..." Her voice got smaller and smaller throughout her explanation, so much so that I needed to lean in to her to hear the last part.

"Your brother lied to you," I said bluntly. "You'd want to go do Party Quests."

"I tried those," she said sadly. "Nobody wanted me, they said I wasn't aggressive enough."

Honestly, I could see that being the truth.

"Did you try the Blue Mushrooms near Henesys?" I suggested. "They're strong, but slow. Easy targets."

"They hurt a lot..." she complained. "I'm sorry... But they just plow right through me. I followed my brother to the Hidden Street, the one East of Henesys...?"

I nodded, I knew what she was talking about. I used to train there myself, it was a haven of the Blue Mushrooms.

"Yeah... I went with my brother and they just completely surrounded me. My brother was able to drag me out of there but he never let me follow him to train after that."

I frowned. As a brother, he should have watched her more carefully. Furthermore, he should have helped her train to become stronger, so she could hold her own. Or at least, he could have helped her pay for better equipment. She was obviously a higher Experience Level than fifteen.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, to the point where I felt strong enough to push myself into a sitting position. My ribs still sent flashes of pain before my eyes, but I tried my best to ignore them. At the time, I was sure they must have been fractured, perhaps shattered. I gave in to myself and drank an orange potion, allowing the spell-infused liquid to do its work inside of me.

"Have you ever killed anyone?" Allie asked hurriedly, as if he had been meaning to for the entire conversation.

I rose an eyebrow and stared at her. I considered being sarcastic again but was afraid she'd believe me. Instead I said, questioningly, "No?"

"Oh," she said, looking disappointed and relieved at the same time. "I'm sorry."

"Uh... Why?" I asked, still staring.

Allie sighed. "Well, you are an Assassin," she mumbled. "Assassins are paid hitmen, I thought..."

"No," I said, a bit insulted. "That's a generalization. Classes like Assassin and Bandit only describe the way we fight. The people who are classes as Assassins like to use claws with throwing stars, along with light armour. We move quickly and enjoy to hide in the shadows, so our cunning and ruthless way of killing enemies from behind makes people connect us to Assassins. I'm sure there are Assassins that will accept money to steal a life, but I don't think there are any more of those than there are Mages or Warriors of even Bowmen. Understand?"

"But that's what I mean," she said quietly. "I know not to generalize, but you guys aren't called Assassins for nothing. The way you guys specialize in fighting is also the best way to kill a sentient person. It's only logical that there will be more Assassin-hitmen than, say, Warrior-hitmen."

That answer completely threw me off and surprised me. I stared, now gaping, at Allie's apparent intellect.

"I'm sorry," she said, and I laughed again. She couldn't figure out why.

"Come on," I said, a second later. "We're gonna go to Orbis, you need a fashion makeover."

------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So why'd you ask if I was a Hitman?" I quietly asked Allie at the end of Orbis Tower. "Need something done?"

"Sort of..." she answered quietly, saying no more.

We walked again in silence, until we reached the entrance to Orbis itself. "So anyway," I said, curious, "Why is it that you wear that outfit? Surely some of the higher-levelled stuff would help you."

This part confuses a lot of people, so I'll take it slow. The government who runs the Monster-Control System (of which I and just about everyone are a part of anyone who has a Personal ID Card ) has made it so that certain clothing will release their magic unto the wielder. A Thief's Ghetto Beanie will make anybody Experience Level Ten (or higher) much stronger. However, anyone under that level or anyone who is not a thief will find the hat useless. Every class has their own large set of equipment, and there's usually a different set of equipment for every five levels.

Allie was wearing the Bowlady's Level Fifteen equipment, but since she was in fact Level Twenty-Seven. I intended to lend her money into buying her some better Equipment, or at the very least show her where to get some. It seemed like she didn't know her way around very well.

Allie continually tripped on our little trek through Orbis. Twice she bumped into other people; One swore at her (a quick incident, nothing compared to what happened later). The other hit on her...

"Careful babe," the Spearman had said, as Allie apologized sincerely. "Or you may find me bumping back into you."

"I am so sorry, sir, it won't happen again..." she squeaked, frightened.

"It seems you've jostled me a bit," he said, as I watched from out of his line of vision. "I think you may have scratched my spear. This thing was costly, mind you."

"I'm so sorry... I don't have much money..."

"You know, you're not bad looking. You can pay me back in full if you let me take you to the back of the Inn for a little bit of-"

"Allie," I interjected, stepping in between them. "Allie, you need to follow me closer. Come on."

"Hey, man," the Warrior interrupted. "She put a nick on my spear, I need some repayment."

I stared at him for a few seconds. He may have been taller than me, and heavier-built, but an Assassin's glare isn't usually something that one could stand without quailing a bit. However, he didn't shrink back... It was no matter, though. Intimidation techniques never worked well with me. I turned to Allie and said, "Do you want this bastard to lay you in repayment for that little damage?"

She said something completely inaudible, eyes wide in fear. I guess I couldn't blame her... It was a big guy and he could have probably thrown her over his shoulder if he decided to. Maybe even me...

"I'll take that as a no?" And she nodded.

I turned back to the guy, irritated if not angry. "You'll have to live with that spear how it is, then."

The rest happened in... I'd wager a guess at less than four seconds but more than two.

He aimed to strike at the back of my head with the blunt end of his weapon. It would have knocked me out and he'd have probably taken advantage of Allie or whatever. But he missed and my left shoulder got the brunt of it. The strike added to the momentum of my turning back to him, so I was a bit overspun... Quickly I thrust out my clawed fist, aiming just next to his head. The momentum carried me through and I backfisted him just below the eye on the right side of his face. Still spinning a bit, I brought up my left foot and roundhouse kicked the same spot, knocking him over.

Dazed, he grabbed at my legs to try and take me down, but I was much faster than he. Quite accidentally, I actually stepped on both of his hands in attempt to evade him. I'm sure his broken fingers crushed his spirit, and I would have stayed to say something clever, but Allie was gone. Turning left and right, I saw a flash of raven hair and cast a quick Haste on myself.

Before a crowd could immerse themselves on the bloody Spearman, I was off the scene.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

My shoulder ached, but I didn't want to risk losing the trail of Allie. She wasn't a brave person as it was, and for all I knew that event could have very well traumatized her.

I wondered vaguely what she hoped to accomplish by running so far. Did she think the guy would come after her after I struck him in the face?

No matter the reason, she was running, and I had little choice but to follow. I was catching up at a good pace, but though I called out her name she seemed to be unable to hear it. Through the backstreets she ran, nearby the weaponry shop...

"Yo," said a familiar voice, standing in front of the door.

A dark-skinned archer in black stood there coolly, and Allie stopped to look.

"Allie, hold on!" I called out for the umpteenth time. "He's out cold, we're fine!"

"Well met, Dandan," the archer, my old friend Conlan of Henesys, said laughingly. "What'd ya do, get yourself in a Guild war?"

"We're... Thanks," Allie said quietly and breathily. "I didn't... He just-"

"It's no big deal," I lied to her, and answered Conlan. "We met a moron who decided he was going to bed with my friend," I replied with a grin, coming to a stop near the other two. "Allie, this is Conlan. And vice-versa."

"Pleasure," he said with a bow, which she hastily returned with a curtsey. "So, bud, what's new?"

Dan blindly pulled out his ID card. "Still level thirty-three," he said ruefully. "Er... Bought some Steelies, met some people, made some money, lost some money. The works. You?"

"I met someoooooone," he sang. "Her name's Lyo, she's brilliant."

"Really?" I asked, surprised. "What line of work's she in?"

"Same as us, Monster Control. But she's a Mage, a Cleric."

"Lucky girl, a mage..." I sighed. "Oh, what I'd do for some magic spells. So much better than steel or iron or... Arrows," I finished, gesturing to Allie and Conlan's weapons of choice.

"It's not as easy as it looks, she always says," he muttered, surprising me. "You need to spend a lot of your childhood getting to know yourself, and your world. That's why Ellinia isn't such a huge town... All the Magicians who govern it recognize and respect the life force in the trees and wildlife. Which, in turn, is why it grows so much. All the up-and-coming magic wielders go there to be with those same trees."

"What, do they leech power from wildlife?"

"Nah," Conlan smirked. "It's complicated, forget it."

"You'll explain it to me later," I said grinning. "Anyway, we were gonna take a walk to the armour shop for Allie. She's actually Level Twenty-Seven."

"So why don't you wear the Twenty-five equipment?" Conlan asked incredulously. "Or at least the Twenty stuff, the Shivermail. It's not too expensive, is it?"

"It's... Showy," she said quietly. And I rose an eyebrow, trying to figure out what she meant. Then I looked (And I'm proud of this: For the first time, mind you.) below her neckline and everything that didn't use to make sense fell into place.

"Why, you're just full-figured," I said honestly, half because I was noticing for the first time and half because it was good advice. "It's not a big deal to wear skimpy stuff, especially since it doesn't matter much... It's all about the magic infusion, right? Oh, and for the record, I had to deal with the Sneak armour for five levels. It was like walking around in a bondage uniform."

Conlan burst out laughing. "I have GOT to have a picture of that somewhere, Dan, I know it," he joked, but it worried me all the same. I mean, I wasn't exactly built and I knew it. Toned, perhaps. Strong, yes. But wimpy. Without a doubt. Wimpy and short, that was me.

I rolled my eyes, pretending not to care about his little threats. "Come on, Conman," I said, holding Allie's hand and leading her gently towards the Armour Shop. "We're gonna get some stuff here. I want your input."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Allie was taken to the back by two girls, about mine or Conlan's age, to be fitted for Bennis Chainmail. We both took seats in the lobby, exchanging conversation and helpful items.

"I swear, Conman, you should look into keeping these," I said as we traded my arrows for his collection of dropped Monster Cards.

"I still don't see why you bother carrying them around, Dandan," he replied, stuffing the arrows into his quiver. "But no matter. Who is this girl, anyway? It's not like you to pick up random girls."

I shrugged. "I got attacked by a huge mob of Sentinels, and she was there."

"She was down by the Sentinels? I'm surprised that she made it that far."

I winced. "Junior Sentinels," I clarified. He burst into laughter. "Anyway, we just got to talking. One thing led to the next, and now here we-"

"What, did you roll in the hay with her?" Conlan asked, never missing a chance.

"Not yet," I said with a wink, factually having no such plans. "But, you know, she does come onto you as a promiscuous one, no?"

"Doubtless!" he laughed. "We'll both have her carry our children!"

"I wanted twins, Conman!" By now, of course, we were merely talking to pass the time.

"Of course we can have twins, Dandan. They'll be two boys."

"A boy and a girl."

"Okay. We'll name the girl Arita. She'll be older by six minutes and have curly blonde hair."

"Yup, and the other will be named Santago. He'll be darker-skinned."

"Will he talk like a gangsta?"

"No, but Anita will. Santago will be a prodigy, and graduate from College with a degree in Thermophysics at age seven."

"Of course," Conlan answered with a wise nod. "And the two of them will team up with us and defeat the Pianus."

At the word we attracted more stares than normal. In fact, the shopkeeper told us to take our dirty language out. We left, of course, still chortling into our sleeves. Conlan settled onto a front step so I sat directly behind him, leaning back.

"I love this city," I said contently. "So peaceful in general. Always a different crowd, no two days are the same. You know?"

He nodded in front of me. "Lyo shares your sentiments, actually," he said. "though I still prefer the hustle and bustle of Henesys."

"Pah, hustle and bustle!" I crowed. "Try growing up in Kerning! Half the time in Grade School I couldn't sleep because of the PQ attempts going on out my window. I must say, I probably gained my more obscene half of my vocabulary from that."

Conlan snorted appreciatively. "You didn't have to walk half a mile just to get to the stores, though."

"Fair point."

We were interrupted at this point in our conversation by Allie stepping outside. She looked prettier, somehow. Must've been the shiny Chainmail, if not her changed pose. She was standing straighter now, a nervous smile pulling at her lips. She wasn't playing with her fingers, instead holding then clasped around her crossbow at hip level.

"I feel... Stronger," she said, her voice still quiet and shy. "But it's... It's still showy."

Again, for the first time, I took a quick glance down. Indeed, the chainmail was semi-formfitting.

"You don't suppose that it'll get in the way or anything?" I asked honestly.

"It has... Er... Support..." Allie blushed. Conman looked away, on the verge of laughter. I kicked him subtlely, to which he not-so-subtlely gawked and attempted to turn it into a conspicuous coughing fit.

"Well, nobody's gonna be looking," I said, ignoring him. "For one, we'll all be aiming at little floating 'bots. For two, it's pretty dark in the tower."

"And for three," Conlan said, sharing a brainwave. "We'll beat anyone's ass who comes to bug you." He and I nodded, and Allie couldn't help but snort and then laugh. We all laughed together.

"Witchu all rofflin' 'bout?" a thief dressed darkly asked.

I paused. "Waffling?"

"Rofflin'. Roffling. You know, Roffle? Are-Oh-Eff-El?"

"No, moron, go away!" Conlan said loudly and somehow kindly. He tossed the thief a golden coin and we were all on our way. Conlan met Lyo halfway there, though, and after a short conversation the two decided to go kill Junior Grupins instead. We bid him thank-you and goodbye, and he threw back a wave and a wink as he teleported off.

"So," I said, nearing the ladder to Orbis Tower. "You're all stocked up on Potions and Arrows, right?"

"Yup and yup, I think," Allie replied. I could tell she was excited to try out her new armour, and she was trying to use the excitement's momentum to keep her happy and hopeful. I nonverbally decided that it was a respectable attempt, and decided to help her with it.

"Well, then, Allie of Henesys," I said cheerily. "I got your back, you've got mine; Let's go kick some Sentinel ass."

She smiled and leapt down the ladder and as I followed her I realized two things: One, it made me glad to see her so confident about her abilities. And two, it's not a good idea to jump down a ledge when there's a ladder there. I mean, like, major pain on the ankles. And that's no good.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been a week and a half since that day. The day I got my Steelies, the day I met Allie and talked with Conlan. By now I was worried. I haven't caught wind of my archer friend or his significant other; nor had I seen anything about Hideval.

Allie and I had trained a huge amount, selling whatever we found. Between the two of us and charity from my friend, The Just Owner (who showed up for all of two minutes on his way to El Nath), we had managed to earn a total of six million mesos.

That was last Sunday.

"I bought my knives from him," I said, twirling a Steely around my fingers. "So we know he has at least seven mil."

"You're forgetting interest," Allie said grumpily, slumping onto the table. "If it's actually the Maffiya, we can be sure there's plenty of that."

"Even still, I'm sure we can trust Hideval to have scrounged up some currency on his own."

We were sitting in a rented room in El Nath... The trip down had taken at least an hour, but we needed to be here to sell the most of our goods.

"Fair point... That's what, uh...-"

"At the very least, thirteen million for Hideval," I said, the numbers fixating themselves in my mind. "Assuming, of course, we can find him by tomorrow."

Allie stood up and disappeared under the table. "I'm going back to the Free Market," she said, standing up again, but with her crossbow. "He had purple hair, right? If all else fails, I'll just ask around."

"I'll go as well," I offered, pushing my chair back. "He may have gone into hiding, and you haven't seen-"

"We had the security cameras checked, remember?" Allie quipped. "At the Orbis market. I know exactly what he looks like. Don't worry so much, and get us some food for my return." She checked her quiver and left the room satisfied.

I sighed again, but didn't make any move to follow her. Allie had changed with her newfound power and abilities, especially in my presence.

Yesterday, in the free market, she had slapped a guy because he was making very racist comments, and not even to us. The day before, when we were getting her job upgrade in Henesys, she explained how she'd argued with another archer during the examination. I mean, he started it, but I'm glad she at least defended herself.

But she hasn't gone through some miraculous conversion, mind you. If I'm not in the room or near her, she's not nearly as confident.

Simple explanation for that: Allie's comfortable around her friends. Though I'm sure Conlan would tell me I'm in denial about something. It's not like I haven't considered the possibility of something forming between the two of us, me and Allie. But anything like that would bring up more problems than would be worth it.

Whatever...

I started making a quick meal, just some macaroni with prepackaged sauce. Nothing special. I put the water on to boil and threw on a leather jacket over my new Green Knucklevest.

Through our training together, I'd gone up three experience levels. Allie, though, was now Level 32. We used some of our charity money to buy her new equipment, since it hardly dented the account.

"Six million mesos in a few days," I muttered, stirring the pasta into the pot. "If only it was like this every day."

Sighing, I set the wooden spoon next to the stove and slumped onto the couch. Lazily I took my Meba and slipped it over my hand, flexing my fingers to get that familiar feel. I expertly tossed a Steely straight up and watched it fall back into my waiting palm.

As it fell, I suddenly had a dizzy feeling. Suddenly smells spurted up that didn't exist. My fingers seemed to stretch out like inflating balloons, and the Steely began to inflate as well, even as it fell into my hand

Even though I hardly thought about the knife, my eyes instantly pointed out every imperfection in the projectile.

That angle is off by sixteen point three-six of a degree. The ribbon is off-center, thirteen degrees to my left. It has a chip that gives it a slight serration on the underside, causing a three point two-five estimated degree malfunction downward in a throw. The tip is sharpened perfectly, meaning there is a eighty-five point six-fourish percent chance of hitting my mark, assuming the target is bigger than one point five centimeters diameter...

My eyes slid out of focus and I threw the thing as hard as I could in disgust. It stuck with a 'thunk' in the opposite wall, but I wasn't paying attention. I had fallen off of the couch and onto the cold floor, clutching my head.

I knew I was the vision of 'weakling in huge amounts of pain'. I was very aware of that. But I didn't give a damn, right then.

I don't know how long I laid like that. I knew it couldn't have been a terrible length of time, since I got up to stir the pasta and it hadn't yet boiled over. I was supporting myself on the stove counter, afraid I'd collapse again.

That's the third time that's happened to me. I saw literally every detail of the Steely and if I stayed like that I would have began to see my claw, and then my entire body, and then my surroundings, and then... I don't know.

The first time that had happened, in a row of hunting with Allie by the Junior Grupins, I wasn't able to stop the visions. I did see everything, and if it wasn't for the kitten-like creature ramming into my back, I may have stayed like that until... Until...

Until I see what I'm fated to.

I mentally slapped myself. That voice... No, it was merely instinct. My prime intellect was merely creating a voice for me... And it was spinning out of control. The instinctual voice wasn't important. Right now, I needed to concentrate. It was easiest that way, I had discovered.

I couldn't help but look at my hand. Even though I knew it was only a hallucination, the recurring visions of my claw hand perverting the laws of physics continued to haunt me. Every time I... I saw that stuff, my hand had elongated before my eyes.

In fact, now that I thought about it, everything had changed for a few seconds. The Steely's ribbon wasn't red before I caught it, and the knife itself must have been the size of a small sword. I'm sure if I had looked at the walls or couch as well, everything would have been different... Changed in some sort of way.

Why?

I realized that I couldn't just drop the subject, so I embraced it. I tossed my Meba onto the couch and sighed, leaning onto the stove as I stirred the noodles.

Examine every symptom... There was that terrible smell. The nautiousness, and obviously those hallucinations.

...That's it. hallucinations. I'm hallucinating. The mind can send out faulty information to the nose and conscious mind as well as the eyes. Everything's a hallucination. Does that mean I'm going crazy or something? What is this, schizophrenia...?

Even as I thought that, I remembered the Voice telling me that I needed to 'See what I'm fated to'.

I squeezed my eyes shut, stirring blindly. When had all of this started...?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[/story quote]

Want the rest? You'll have to read the real thing:
http://www.fanfiction.net/s/3014032/5/
That's where you left off, at the first separator, halfway down the page. Sorry I can't be any more convenient than that.


-The Dan

[Citrus]

ok, first of all there is a guy here called "the Don" already so it kind of seems like you copied his name :shock: Second, that's so long that nobody with a life would read it. Turles, could you summarize it for me?

[TheDon]

I have a fanboy lol /endsarcasm

whats really funny is that his join date is almost a year after mine

[The Dan]

I have a fanboy lol /endsarcasm

whats really funny is that his join date is almost a year after mine

FYI, dooder, I've been using this name (exactly or similar) for about four years.

Yes, I noticed your username when I signed on, and I was pretty sure YOU copied it from one of MY works. But, hell, I'm not gonna change myself just for that.


At any rate, we're not discussing my (quite original, thanks)UserName, this a thread about the story I posted above.

Let's not stray off-topic, okay?

@Citrus: It's only, like 15k words. And plenty of people have read it already. Plenty of people with lives, even. Hell, I have a life and I had the time to WRITE all that.

No summary for you. D:

[krnboy1009]

I have a fanboy lol /endsarcasm

whats really funny is that his join date is almost a year after mine

its your long lost brother. congrats. LOL

[tHEeVILkItTY]

My name is Donny.

And my brother's is Danny.

You can imagine how confusing things can be.

Btw, nice story.

[TheDon]

I have a fanboy lol /endsarcasm

whats really funny is that his join date is almost a year after mine

FYI, dooder, I've been using this name (exactly or similar) for about four years.

Yes, I noticed your username when I signed on, and I was pretty sure YOU copied it from one of MY works. But, hell, I'm not gonna change myself just for that.


At any rate, we're not discussing my (quite original, thanks)UserName, this a thread about the story I posted above.

Let's not stray off-topic, okay?

@Citrus: It's only, like 15k words. And plenty of people have read it already. Plenty of people with lives, even. Hell, I have a life and I had the time to WRITE all that.

No summary for you. D:

nah, I've never heard of you in my life, billions of people on the internet ya know. I've been using this name for quite some time as well.

I'll read it when I get the time

[The Dan]

@The Don: Good man. b^_^d
And I didn't mean you'd stole it on purpose. That's be an outrageous statement, not to mention conceited. I figured, maybe, you'd seen it somewhere and your subconscious registered it? Or maybe the origins of the original idea of putting the first syllable of our names in third person were the same. *shrug*
At any rate, yes. At least read the first few sections. It gets a lot better as you get into it. Like... A hell of a lot better. I'm gonna redo the first chapter eventually.

@EvilKitty: I can imagine. Two of my best friends are 'Dan's as well. And thank you.

[TheDon]

Funny thing is, my name isn't Don. lolol

Don=Mafia Boss

[The Dan]

Ah well.

Me for the lose. D: