Guild Emrin

[Sampson]

Very good. Your only problem seems to be more grammar-oriented than anything else, though (sometimes you forgot to stick an apostrophe where it was needed), but that doesn't detract from the story.

[Emrin]

[AppleInject]

In your prologue about the boss battle, did your character Tera... suicide?

[Emrin]

“If an adventurer and her comrades fall in the Labyrinth but
no one is around to see them, do they leave a legacy?”

Why is it that humans are always unknowing? They are unknowing about everything and nothing. They aimlessly walk themselves into their own deaths and when it's upon them, they act like they didn't even see it coming. Take me for example. I was unknowing of what really lied in the Labyrinth but I still went into it. Each day, I endangered my life and the lives of my comrades but I didn't seem to care one bit. We continued until we reached our death: the 25th floor. That's where the final door stood. Behind that door, the secrets of the Labyrinth would finally be revealed to us.
By the Chief of Etria, we were told to turn and head back to town, but as a humans, we didn't listen and we opened the final door. We unknowingly walked into our own deaths. But maybe it wasn't unknowingly. Maybe we were just stupid. Maybe it wasn't OUR fault but mine. I mean I am the leader of the team so why didn't I turn back? Why? Because one of my human natures got the best of me. Greed. I wanted to know what it was that lied behind that door and I was willing to risk it all. But I didn't know that risking it all included my life, my friend's lives, and the lives of many other innocent people.
I opened the door. I honestly didn't know what to expect. We had all made assumptions. Ezikiel Flechter, our teams Survivalist, thought that their was gonna be another big monster at the end and after we killed it, another stratum. Eric Riker, our Dark Hunter, thought that it was gonna be the forest folk again. Because he was terrified of them, he hated them. Our Medic, Hazel Avery, wanted it to be “something good for once”. She was just ten and still very innocent but she pulled through so many times while in the Labyrinth. Going in made her different. It made us all different. Our last teammate, Brandon Vark, our Alchemist never actually told us what he thought lied at the end. He just stood their and kept quiet as always. As for me, I wanted fame and fortune. I was stupid to want that.

[Emrin]

Upon opening the door, we find, to our amazement, nothing but an area with different colored flowers. Yellows, reds, blues, all of them releasing the same smell: the smell of blood. We walk forward. Before us stands an open area. Big in both height and width. Sadly though, we find nothing although we had seen the Chief walk in there. We scan the area and Ezikiel uses his Owl-eyes but detects no FOEs in the vicinity. We turn around and prepare to leave. Suddenly, I begin to get a nasty feeling in the pit of my stomach. It beckons me to turn around but I fear for what I might see. I'm terrified. I begin to get very nervous and Ezikiel asks me what's wrong. None of them appear to have felt anything. They don't seem to be disturbed by the great force behind us. He begins to move towards me, but then whispers to me “At the count of three jump to your right okay?”
I tremble and he begins to count. “One. Two. Three!” We all jump in separate directions just before a giant branch smashes into the ground we were standing on. We quickly get to our feet and my eyes fall on an enormous monster. A huge, tree-trunk looking thing with many sharp branches stood at the far end of the room. The biggest monster I had ever seen in the Labyrinth. As I try to look at the whole monster, my heart jumps. In the center lay a person. Someone we trusted. Someone we looked up to. Someone we all knew. The Chieftain of Radha Hall. He looks at us with a devious smile. He laughs and looks at us again. He tells us everything. Everything from the beginning to the end. Everything about Project Yggdrasil. We stand their looking at him. Listening attentively with fear, anger, and sadness in our eyes. A part of me felt sorry for him but that all changed soon. Then he ended his story and the final fight ensued.---1

[Emrin]

No descriptions of the people are necessary at the moment. I did it like this on purpose. They will be known later on.

[Emrin]

“Why do some of the simplest of things never
cross our minds in times of despair?”

That first attack was barely anything. I mean it was fairly easy to doge. But his strength was immense, beyond that of all the monsters and FOEs we had fought before. But one thing was for sure: he wanted to kill us and he wanted to kill us with a passion.
The first part was easy. All you had to do was dodge the huge-killer branches. A quick dash to the left. Then the right. Then jump. Duck! Attack! It was all casual for us. I mean these things were fairly easy to dodge. Then Etreant got smart. He began targeting us one by one. He would send all of his branches at one of us. First off was Hazel. He didn't give much of a reason of why it had to be her first but we all tried our best to help her out. When we would get wounded, Hazel would quickly come to our aid and heal us. It was a walk in the park yet again. Then Etreant came up with another plan. He began using the thorns he had hidden in his branches. The thorns were a major nuisance. They would cling to our clothing and then begin to wrap around us. We fought them off once again. But we needed a plan. Anything to at least get some good hits on Etreant. Ezekiel would try to shoot arrows at him but to no avail. They would always get deflected by the branches.
Then we separated into two teams and thought that we could strike him from any side. Me, Hazel, and Eric and Ezekiel and Brandon. We ran towards Etreant, dodging all the branches we could. On occasion we would get hit but we kept on pushing forward. Then Ezekiel stopped running completely. He stood there with a look in his eyes. He was probably smiling but I couldn't tell, his scarf was in the way. He turned to Brandon and told something to him. Brandon didn't say anything but did what he was told. Ezekiel prepared an arrow. One of the many arrows he had tried to hit Etreant with before. “Trueshot!” he called. He shot it but then Brandon raised his left hand and yelled out “Fire!”. The arrow quickly turned in a burning red arrow and as it flew threw the air, it went right through all the branches it came in contact with. It missed Etreant's head by only a few inches. He looked at us with a surprised look on his face. We now knew his weakness and exploited it any way we could. Why I hadn't realized that before, I still don't know even till this day. I mean he was pretty much a tree. Tree+fire=bad news for Etreant. I guess I never really put much thought on fire before. But now, we would turn this whole battle around.

[Emrin]

Every branch that came close to us or Brandon would quickly get scorched. With Brandon's help, I would use Blazer and Ezekiel would shoot fire arrows. It was all perfect for a time. There were only a few branches left when Etreant played a new card. He could apparently use fire too which was bad news for us. “Inferno!” is what he said. Then a circle or fire appeared around us. Don't ask me how, but it just happened. But I'm guessing he forgot that Brandon knew how to manipulate ice because Brandon quickly extinguished the fire wall with Freeze. Etreant was running out or tricks so we decided to try to get much more serious and end the battle yet again. Ezekiel used his Multihit and Brandon fused them with his Fire spell and not even his protective skill Twigs could help him. Out of three hits, two landed. One on his right arm and the other in his stomach. He wasn't done though. He pulled both out and continued. But it was over. He said to us “Do you have any idea how this feels? For once did you ever think about Etrea itself and how it prospers thanks to the fools who come from far away places to try and discover it's secrets. Do you have any idea how many of them I've had to kill in order to stop them. But you won't be any different. I must say though, great job on getting this far. You too will die here and now. I'm done playing games. If I have to kill each time a Guild sets foot in this Labyrinth then I guess I'll just have to kill them all in one single blow!” With that, he gets his branches around him and he begins to store immense amounts of power. I try to run to run towards him but I don't get very far. He finishes and his branches each puncture the ground. With each one digging into the ground, a quake was felt. He screams and says “Your all done! Now things can begin anew and never again will the Emrin Guild exist. With a clean slate I'll govern Etrea and make sure no one remembers any of you! Good-bye Emrin Guild!” A huge quake is felt and the ceiling begins to fall. We all scream in fear of what was occurring. Everything seemed like a nightmare.---2

[Emrin]

“When we know that our death is upon us, why do
we begin to realize the most absurd things?”

In those last few moments of despair, when we are looking Death right in the eyes, we slowly begin to lose it.

Our hearts pumping, our minds racing, everything seems like a distant dream. If anything a nightmare. We can't wake up, we can't run away, we can only fight. What little hope we had left, completely perishes. Then Death becomes inevitable. We slowly come to the realization that its time. That we will soon perish just like our hope did.

Terrified. Angry. Saddened. Betrayed. Used. Alone. I felt it all.

Suddenly things changed. Then I thought to myself, “Dying isn't so bad.”

I began to think differently. For starters, if I died, I wouldn't have to relive those moments. I wouldn't have to watch my comrades die before my very eyes. I wouldn't have to suffer anymore.

This becomes the turning point. Acceptance. As Death becomes clear, we begin to change. Something begins to swell deep inside of us. First its a small, minuscule feeling. Barely noticeable. A passing thought? A soft goodbye? A dying wish? Something. Then it gets stronger and stronger, until it bursts inside of us and then begins to take over us.

I ran to them. I tried to dodge everything that was falling around me. I tried to save them. I tried the best I could but I couldn't get to them. They were farther away from me than I thought. It was all over.---3

[Emrin]

“When you think that it's all over, when you begin to accept
things as they are, why do they always change?”

You can't breathe. You can't feel a thing. You don't want to open your eyes. You don't need to. Everything is quiet. Even Death is quiet. Are you dead? Everything that has occurred to you up to this point, was it all real? If you open your eyes, what will you see? Pain? Sorrow? Disaster?

Then again, why take those chances. I'm was fine there. But I kept feeling something. A strange feeling. Regret? Why? I didn't regret anything when I tried to run towards my friends. I only thought of them. Why regret? Was I missing something? I didn't feel a thing. No heart beat. No happiness. Just regret. When I crossed over, what did I lose? Maybe its not a what. Maybe a who. But who was it?

I slowly open my eyes. Before me stood a vast expense of white. Nothing but white as far as I could see. But then, a figure began to appear before me. At first dark, then the image became clear. A girl. Blonde hair, blue eyes. She was wearing a crown and a beautiful white and red dress with many valuable jewels on it. She also had gold and silver armor on her chest, arms, and legs. She had pink earrings and held a long staff with a crown and star at the top in her right hand. Her appearance ever so majestic. Who was she? An angel sent to guide me to my next destination? Or maybe she was a demon sent to kill me or guide me Hell.

Her voice, was so enchanting. It quickly calmed my mind.

"Tera. You don't remember who I am do you? But it's necessary that you do. In this place you find yourself in, there is only one way out. And that way is through remembering. I need you to remember everything about your past. Who I am. Who you are. Remember what you left behind. Remember what caused you so much pain as a child. Remember your real hair color, your real eye color. Your true ancestry. Remember what flows through your veins. Remember..."

She lifted her staff. The star on top of the red and black crown began to spin. I fall in a trance and everything begins to come back to me.

A girl. A blonde-haired girl. A throne. A castle. A kingdom. A royal lineage.

Fear. She thinks she can't rule an entire kingdom by herself.
Anger. She can't do anything about her pre-decided future.
Sadness. She had to grown up and not have a childhood.
Jealousy. She wishes she could be like all the other kids who laugh and play.
Happiness. She runs away to a small town and begins a new life.

That girl. That stupid, selfish, girl was me. Tera. No not Tera. Rachel. Rachel Rinnem. Royalty flowed through her veins but she didn't want that. I didn't want that. I was stupid. Now, I wish I had never ran away. But, I'm glad I did. I lived life to the fullest. I got to experience life the way I wanted. Happiness, pain, love, anger, stupidity. I went through it all.

And with those thoughts, I awoke.---4

[Emrin]

“Why didn't they escape?”

The fifth stratum was where it all began. The disaster, the pain, the many deaths. Lost Shinjuku fell into itself. The 24th floor fell into the 25th. Then the 23th. Then the 22nd. It went like that for 21 for floors. Up above adventurers felt the shake but didn't give it much thought. They all just marched on. Unaware of what was gonna happen to them.
The Sandy Barrens fell after Shinjuku. All that sand came down and with it the dead bodies of the forest folk. We had done that. With my own sword I had slain many of them. When I think about it today, I am truly remorseful to what I had done to them. Everything fell down. Trees and sand and bodies, all pouring out from a gaping whole over where the final battle with us and Etreant took place. It quickly filled around and then The third stratum came down too.
The Azure Rainforest. Thousands of gallons of water came rushing down. It mixed with the sand and made mud. Thick, gooey mud. Enough to suffocate anyone and anything. Treefrogs and ants and Cutcrabs and many more came falling down. They fell into the mud and tried desperately to escape but they suffocated. With them came the first humans too. Other adventurers who were taking their first steps into the fourth stratum. Then the Primitive Jungle fell too. Nothing but exotic monsters and plants and trees. There were also adventurers here too and they fell into the mud and were lost also. The Emerald Grove was no sanctuary either. New adventurers were everywhere trying to become stronger and finish quests. They weren't given much of a chance. They died as well. All this because of us. My guild. Because of the choices I made, many, many innocent adventurers died. I hated myself so much for that. All that burden cast me down for a really long time.---5

[Emrin]

Man I've been jumping all over the place with these parts. A few months ago, I lost my notebook where I had everything planned out of what to type up next. That messed me up so much. I had to start from scratch and I couldn't fully remember what I had written down. And I remember that it was good stuff too. But whatevers, I hope this turned out better though.

[Lord Mutton Chops]

Wait, so, is everyone dead? Unless your gonna pull some sort of "That was the future that flashed before Tera's eyes, but now she had to change it" kinda deal, It seems like the whole thing was kinda moot with the flashback/vision.

[Emrin]

[Kinokokao]

This is great! I went through and read the whole thing. I hope you continue :3