Tailpin heard the call from behind but only turned long enough to spot the source of the noise. While he'd been involved in the fight and did his best to help he really wasn't a part of any group yet. He had made his contribution to that fight but he wasn't sure it was enough to make him a desirable party member. He kept scanning the open field on either side of the road, spotting numerous monsters wandering about aimlessly. They were probably level two, maybe a few level three. There was nothing like those war-bears and dire foxes. They could hunt this field easily enough.

Mai'lo had stopped walking but Tailpin continued past him. There were no threats on the road or close enough to it to be a threat so there really wasn't a reason for worry but he was frustrated and tense. He spotted a monster that had strayed close enough. He stopped, took his bow in hand, drew an arrow and pulled it back. He took careful aim and yielded the arrow to its flight. It flew true and struck the small wild dog. Its hit points fell deep into the yellow and it turned, beginning to run in an effort to close the distance. His second shot struck before the dog had covered half of that gap and it dissolved into glittering shards. True to form as a level two monster, it didn't even try to dodge and charged in a straight line. That was an easy target. The rewards popped up and were also true to form, a little money and experience with a small scrap of 'Torn Dog Hide'. It looked like a very low end crafting ingredient. But, one thing stood out about those rewards. There was a little more money than he expected for a level two.

He pulled up his inventory and looked closely. He had little money, even after those two high level kills he still didn't have enough to get a better set of gear. His bow would probably be good for the next several levels but he was using level one arrows. He would need about half again the money that he had. He had enough for the arrow upgrade but not for any better armor afterwards. He had to get more money, better gear and more experience. He couldn't stay behind like this. But, the sun was going down. It would be dark soon.

He called out to the others. "Almost there, everybody. It looks like the hunting will be profitable around here too. These dogs have more cash than other level twos." His voice wasn't so harsh anymore. He had recovered his composure. The look on his face and in his eyes hadn't changed though. Then he managed a feral smirk and shouted. "Last one to the first inn covers the tab!"

He started running for the town gate. They had to get into town before the sun set. Monster behaviors could change after dark and he wouldn't be able to cover them as well at night. Hopefully, this little trick would get them all moving. As for him, he had no chance out here after dark. He didn't stop until he hit the safe zone boundary.

He was planning on getting better gear and going back to that hollow once he hit level three. The others knew how to handle the war bears now and he could focus on the foxes. But, he'd need a partner to cover him in case they tried to ambush him. Actually, he needed someone as close as possible to his level. The first person to come to mind was Iris. They hadn't been introduced yet but she would probably be the best candidate. That hollow could be the best training spot for quite some distance. In fact, since they were still on the first level of Aincrad it was amazing that there were level five monsters here at all. It was an expensive discovery, but one that they couldn't afford to leave alone. They needed the boost in power that training there could give them.

There wouldn't be much time before the shops would close. He ran past stall after stall, looking for one specific thing. He paid no attention to whether there were other players or not. In fact he passed a couple girls, one that would have been familiar, but didn't notice. There it was. He ran up to the NPC vender and quickly priced the quivers and arrows in stock. The quiver he had now had unlimited 'training arrows'. The better quivers had limited numbers of arrows that could be regenerated if he leveled up the relevant crafting skill. The best in the store was only a level three quiver but it required level three to use it so it was unavailable until later. He settled quickly on a level two with the largest available capacity and purchased it. He'd have thirty arrows with this quiver and the arrows could be purchased cheaply enough.

But, most importantly, the damage bonus would help bring down anything above those level two dogs and keep things safer. It wouldn't be enough to kill with one regular shot but he needed to learn another skill as soon as possible anyway. Impact Sidewinder would only be useful sometimes. He needed either a damage skill or an immobilizer, if there was one. But, he had looked at the skill list. The skills for bows were all concealed. They had to be discovered and unlocked and they didn't show what conditions had to be fulfilled.

Sapphira giggle-laughed. Unwillingly even, perhaps, this girl managed to tug on her heartstrings. In her, Sapphira seemed to see a lot of herself, which was a little bit awkward, sure, but it made her interesting.
"'s okay, we're all kinda loopy at the moment." Her ears flicked again and her tail slowly curled around her feet signalizing her calmness.
"What was I doing in town?" Sapphira grinned from foxy ear to foxy ear as she let a bag of coins materialize in her hands and vaporize again.
"Making lots of money!" Queue the evil laugh. "Hehe, this game is pretty good for a merchant I am planning to be. Ya know ya don't have to fight in this game? You can easily work behind the lines, like I am going to do."
Sapphira scratched her chin. Yes! That was a great idea! "Say, you don't seem to me like somebody who would want to fight. How about you become my apprentice or a master crafter?"

*Ikanus had watched the announcement with disbelief then as soon as he could he left the large black and gold canine trotting beside him. He knew that Anubis would make him obvious as a beta and a beast tamer and he knew that would either make him popular or a target. how could someone do this. why would someone do this..... no matter I must continue... keep my level secret and try not to get killed... For now i will go to the next town keep my stocks full he continues walking his scythe braced behind his neck with his arms thrown about it this weapon wasn't going to help him blend in either so no real point in trying. as he walks a large bear intercepts him causing Anubis to attack and him to swing into action the long curved blade slicing in a curve then going through the bear then as he spins he holds for an extra second the blade turning blue as he does a double attack causing the bear's health to go extremely low. Then Anubis leaps and locks his jaws onto the bear's neck taking the rest of the health. Anubis trots back to Ikanus and sits. A menu pops up and he receives a small amount of money and a bear hide. Excellent i can save this for making more clothing later... He gives a satisfied look and walks into the town his scythe once again braced behind his back with both arms over it Anubis walking by his side. Most likely he walks by the fox earned girl and the orange haired girl his hood up and what is visible of his face is covered by that mask*

The tiny Sapphira tried to hug the girl who, according to the nametag floating above her head, was called Cinera, but noticed her own head only went up to Cin's belly and so she didn't actually try it. Nevertheless she vowed to do it someday.
As such Sapphira resolved on just smiling and shrugging.
"To be totally honest, no. No I am not scared at all nor do I actually have any kind of notion to actively seek the exit of this game."
She paused and her expression took on a serious tone.

"First of all, I know that, if I should actually try to get out here, I will be killed in the process and I want to enjoy this as much as I possibly can and as long as I possibly can, so death would be a major bummer there."
A cheeky grin found its way onto her face before becoming solemn again.

"But secondly, and most importantly, when I put on that helmet this morning, I didn't plan to remove it for a long, long while. My real life sucks, so much so, that I am actually afraid of life itself."
The usually happy and joyful look on Sapphira's face had completely vanished, replaced by an expression that could easily be interpreted as depressed or even mourning.

"I'm the second daughter of a pretty rich man, in my case one would assume me to have a happy life, but no. I never saw any of dad's money, nope. All went to my older brother, who will inherit dad's company, whereas I get nothing. I had to work all day after returning from school, but in school itself nobody actually believed me. You know, why would the daughter or a rich father not have any money at all. So, of course, I got targeted by everybody any anybody who wanted to squeeze out a few bucks from my family by doing all kinds of nasty stuff to me."

One could clearly see not sadness in Sapphira's eyes now, but anger, very strong anger.

"Just about two weeks ago I was kidnapped again, this time by somebody who really wanted to force a lot of money out of my family. Naturally my father and my brother didn't care about my fate in the slightest. And right now, I am in the hospital while this game got gifted to me by the maid of my father's house, who was quite angry at my father for kicking me out as soon as I was able to work."

In the time she had needed to tell this tale, Sapphira had sat down on her cart her feet becoming unable to carry her anymore right this moment.
She looked up at Cinera, her face being a vile grimace.

"I guess, my story was a little bit counterproductive, eh? Well... now you know why I am not scared at all."

After a long drawn out sigh, a smile managed to creep back onto Sapphira's visage.

"If you don't know what to do right now, you can follow me to the inn, where we can surely rent a room at least for this night and I can introduce you to my comrades. I plan to form a guild as soon as I possibly can, you know."
Sapphira winked at her and stood up again motioning Cinera to follow her.

Emperor looked as some of the group just walked on ahead without paying him too much heed. He then turned his attention back to the man in front of him "Yeah sortin' stuff out in town makes sense. If it's any help I ain't chosen quite what to specialize in yet so like I can take up whatever the group might be in need of."

He looked around at the people around him, unsure as to whether many of them had noticed him or were perhaps ignoring him. He figured things would probably be easier to discuss in the safety of a town so it made sense if people weren't too talkative just yet.

*Ikanus pauses hearing the girl with the fox ears talk about her plans to make a guild. He seems to be thinking as if considering it for a brief second then he shakes his head he would stay solo for now. And of course this is when Anubis decides to start barking.* "no no no" * he now has the scythe in one hand his inventory menu open as he scrolls through quickly with the other. the canine continues barking until it is quieted by Ikanus then Ikanus starts looking around wondering who noticed the loud barks of the jackal*

Delcastle / Bulwar
Double Trouble

The wolves sniffed around the den entrance, cautiously looking for what had come into their aggro range. They couldn't see the prey so for now they remained on high alert like any other video game character. Four of them in total, each about the same level as Delcastle and his brother Bulwar, but numbers didn't really matter to the duo. With a roar of his own the younger brother Bulwar made the first attack. The den was at the bottom of a small hill, and Bulwar had jumped off. The big mans shield slammed into the wolf with devastating force. The other wolves prepared to jump on the shielded one with a second figure crashed down atop another wolf, the tip of a spear turning a wolf into shattered glass as it was defeated. A quick shove of his weapon sent the other in a tumble as Bulwar regained his footing.
Delcastle jumped away from the fourth wolf in the grop and turned his back to it, focusing on the third that his brother had been facing. The hammer end of his Lucerne crunched its muzzle and interrupted its attack as it tried to attack the shielded fighter. The tip of the spear shattered it too.
All that was left was the fourth wolf, eyeing the two combatants with a growl. Larger than the other two, it was likely a den mother. Unlike the other wolves it likely wouldn't go down with a single blow.
"It's all yours." Delcastle whispered to his younger sibling.
Bulwar answered by taking the second shield off his back. With both tower shields firmly in front of him the young brother met the beasts attacks head on with his own powerful shove. Both shields clanged into the den mother with a thud as its bulk was easily tossed away. Again and again the wolf tried to break through the defense and again was brutally smashed backwards by the shields. If Delcastle was a cannon, Bulwar was a fortress. After a few more passes the moment finally came.
Rearing up in rage, the Den Mother let out a roar and charged head on in an attempt to leap over the shields and attack the flank. Bulwar grinned as it took to the sky.
Only to meet Delcastles hammer head mid-air, shattering it like the rest.
Routine and efficient was a great way to describe the complimentary hit and run style of the fighters.
As the wolves were quickly bested, the brothers began their process. Leather was of great importance to Delcastle who preferred light leather armor over the heavy plating that Bulwar favored, organizing the drop loot into who needed what. Bulwar was given a majority of the money earned while Delcastle handled any crafting materials. Random gear drops were negotiated with who needed what more but usually ended up being sold to vendors.

"Another clean fight. We're on a roll!" Delcastle smiled as Bulwar put both shields onto his back and crossed his arms with a grin of his own.
"We keep this up, we'll have enough Materia for a new set of armor for you. After that we can work on getting some new shields. These ones are solid but can get kinda heavy." Both nodded and looked to the sky. "Suns gettin' low. Head back to bulls run?" Delcastle nodded and they both started back to town. They had gone a fair distance out but it was all part of a routine. They had gone through the area to get exp and coin from random drops and continued to sell the crafted goods they made to other players. The return back to the inn at bulls run contained a few more encounters with the mobs but that was just more loot to be split.

Tailpin had just closed his menus after equipping his new quiver full of level two arrows when he heard a distinctive giggle. It wasn't the most likely sound to hear so soon after that little revelation earlier. It drew his eye. The blue hair captured his attention. Then he proceeded to overhear some things that he probably had no right to know at this point. He remembered Sapphira from when Mai'lo introduced everyone in their group before that battle. He also remembered that she had rushed ahead to sell loot. He felt a brief flicker of anger at that memory. That boy hadn't needed to die but she didn't have to dismiss his death that way either.

Then he took a breath and calmed down. He was the last person who had a right to judge. After all, the things he said back there about killing Kayaba in the real world would sound pretty obnoxious to someone who knew the truth about him. Obnoxious and pathetic, those were the right words to describe him. He wasn't even all that useful in this world yet, never mind that one. Bah, those were depressing thoughts, worthless and weak. From what he'd seen, he was one of the oldest people out of all the players he'd met. He had to at least keep himself together.

Then he remembered what he'd shouted before running into town. For now, he'd just act like he hadn't heard anything. Though, it did seem that he'd found a kindred spirit of sorts. Neither of them wanted to go back. He was about to start walking toward them but stopped for a moment when he noticed barking. So, a pet that isn't from this area and one of the hardest to handle heavy weapons all on one player. That screamed beta-tester. It also opened up an opportunity. He left that matter alone for the moment. He had to take care of business first.

He walked toward Sapphira and her new aquaintance, raising his voice to announce himself. "Sapphira!" He stopped walking when he was within a good conversational distance. "I assume that you remember me from when we were introduced earlier but I'm Tailpin. I'm sorry to interrupt and I know it's a little presumptious to ask for a favor so soon after meeting but I'd like your help with a couple things." He took a small breath and swiped open his inventory menu, rapidly tagging a short list of items as well as most of the coin he had, and then opened a trade window to Sapphira. "I need you to use these funds to cover the group's expenses at the inn tonight, they should be enough. The crafting supplies and any leftover money can go toward building your business. Consider them payment for helping me out." Tailpin knew that this wouldn't make much sense but he did have a plan so he was quick to explain. "I made a bit of a bold wager before getting into town but something came up that I want to take care of so I'm going to be pretty late getting to the inn."

He had a feeling that she would accept, if only because it was additional coin for her business at no cost in time for her. She was probably going to head to the inn soon anyway. He kept the scythe wielder in the corner of his vision. He would need what was left of his funds to persuade that guy to help him out for an hour or two. He was going to train his spotting skill outside town at night, get mapping data for the surrounding area and get some opportunity kills if he could. There was no guarantee that he'd be able to wait for good lighting in a dungeon. Besides, he needed to make sure that he would be valuable and he was coming from behind so he had ground to make up. If he could get that beta-tester to help him then he'd have a front liner to cut the danger factor down.

If Sapphira took care of the matter as he'd asked and this other plan worked out then he'd be able to offer more than just his level two skills when he tried to get into her planned guild on the ground floor. It would just be a little bit of a wait until she was ready to start for real. That was when he could express interest and join up without revealing what he'd overheard.

*Ikanus grumbles at the Canine and closes the menu putting the scythe back to where it was. He gives a small glare to the canine who wags his tail* "I swear you do that to bother me" *Anubis woofs and flicks its large ears at the beast tamer. Ikanus opens up his inventory menu checking things now to make sure he had enough supplies. After checking his inventory he checks his stats and gives a small satisfied look at the level and at how the bar is halfway to leveling. Not realizing that he is being watched the entire time he takes down his hood. The mask now fully visible*

Mai'lo watches as people spread out, staring to make some new contacts, but he couldn't bring himself to do the same. He adjusted the empty scabbard on his back so it sat more comfortably and considered the fact that his decision to honor Matsuta had left him without a weapon.

"Well," he muttered. "Without a weapon I'm comfortable using, yet."

He turned to Visionary and Emperor. "I'm going to go get a new weapon." With a swore of his hands at the air in front of him he opened his menu and quickly sent the two of them party invites. "If either of you find an Inn just send us all a PM. Or I'll contact everyone when I get a room. We can all meet up and discuss things."

That taken care of he turned and headed for the nearest weapons shop. He knew players could run shops in this game, but so early in he doubted anyone other than Sapphira had anything going. The ships would all be run by NPC.

When he finally found one he stepped inside, the door creaking noisily, only to find that the place had already been picked over pretty cleanly. The only weapons or were a couple of short swords and several daggers of varying lengths.

"Do you have anything else?" He asked if the shop keep, who appeared to be an old man.

"Only one other thing, to be honest. Don't display em cause no one seems to want em." He reached under the counter and pulled out a small box which he set on the counter and lifted the lid.

Two minutes later Mai'lo left the shop, his wallet a little lighter and his pockets a little heavier.

"Kay! I'll be waiting here for ya!", Sapphira yelled after Cinera and at that turned to face Tailpin. She looked at the offered amount warily.
"Excuse me if I'm too direct here, but I find this a little bit too suspicious. You offering almost all of your money for lodging of, more or less, strangers and a donation for my company fund? Way too convenient for me." The eye of someone who was always concerned about other people's ulterior motives scanned Tailpin from head to toe. She had gained a nice bunch of skills in figuring out humans over the last couple of years and such a gift sent her suspiciousness-meter tingling.
"If I may ask... what do you wish to achieve of this? There has to be something you personally get from it."
Sapphira tilted her head and glared at the player.

Emperor clicked the little box to accept the party invite nodding at Mai'lo. "Alright, I'll probably have a wander too I guess but i'll give ya a heads up if i find an inn or something." He looked around as the group began to fan out "I guess it might be easier to try and talk to them in small batches? Or wait till we're all at the inn... everyone might be takin' their friends death hard so i shouldn't pester just yet..." he thought to himself. As he began wandering he noticed the fox girl and the archer talking together. "Well they don't look like they're in mourning... maybe I can start gettin' to know this group? Would help my chances of being accepted in."

He then approached the two and called out "Hey there. Sorry to interrupt, I sorta met your group out by the woods just before the town. Mind if i chat to you both a bit?". As soon as the words left his mouth he instantly regretted them, what a dumb way to try and introduce himself. After all he might have run into the group but he hadn't exactly met more than two of them. Having exchanged words with only one of those two. He sighed and looked at the floor. He'd dug himself a bit of a hole but now he'd have to play it off anyway, ideally coming off less like a weirdo this time...

Well, that was a wrench in a hastily conceived plan. She had better developed instincts than he thought. Tailpin would have to level with her without actually leveling with her. Awkward... awkward and difficult. He looked at her for a long moment, leaving the trade window up. He did notice the more timid girl leave but had little chance to address her. Besides, he wasn't sure how involved she was going to be in the future of the group so he had bigger current priorities.

"As for that wager, it was an attempt to hurry everyone into town before the monster's behavior algorithms changed after sunset. And..." He paused briefly and looked like he was momentarily at a loss for words. "Paying for the inn is... a guy thing. The rest is because time has always been money and we don't know each other well enough for me to expect you to do it for free."

"As for what I get out of it personally, I'm a thirty year old trapped in a death game that centers on swords. I am level two with absolutely no aptitude for swords. A level one monster nearly killed me on my first day and I failed to scratch it until I switched to a bow." He drew his starter shortsword and held it out. "This might as well be virtual rubber. I have no ability to defend myself in close combat. I cannot fight a boss. I cannot do anything directly to free any of these people who don't want to be here or change the balance of power. My strongest skills involve long distance mapping, shooting, and spotting which are of greatest use in field zones like those around towns." His voice was flat and businesslike. "I need to be able to make a living at least. How would helping out a budding entrepreneur with seed money and possibly getting into her business on the ground floor as a supplier, when my skills can still earn a pretty penny quickly and have plenty of room to develop, not be in my favor?"

It was just at that moment that another person approached. It was the guy who arrived with good intentions too late to do anything. Still, he might be low enough level to profit from the plan as well. And, he was socially awkward. Still, possibly charming in the right company and undoubtedly better than Tailpin with a sword.

So, now he had two possible nocturnal companions to keep his eyes on while having to haggle a budding merchant into accepting money to deliver money where she was probably going to go anyway. His head was starting to hurt. There was no guarantee that that beta-tester with the debonair mask was going to hang around long enough for a lengthy explanation. He had to make this brief.

"Sapphira, to make this brief. I have two people in mind for a brief nocturnal excursion and one of them isn't truly aware of my presence yet. I intend to help you and profit in turn, if you agree. I will need to rapidly improve my abilities if I am to help you keep up with demand." Then he turned to the new arrival. "You, hi. My name is Tailpin and this is Sapphira. I could actually use a blade to help me out for the next couple hours while I map the surrounding area after dark and test the nocturnal algorithms for the local monsters. See that guy over there with the scythe? I'm planning on trying to recruit him too since night fighting isn't going to be so easy for a level two archer in a level three possibly level four field, depending on what's outside the other town gates, and more blades are typically better."

So now he was waiting on two decisions and only had to keep one person in the corner of his eye. Sapphira wanted his intentions and he'd just spelled them out. The new guy wanted to chat but this was the time to take initiative. They could talk on the way. Then again, there was the possibility that Sapphira would want to come along too. Unlikely but possible. His contribution to the earlier fight had been limited and at long range. She might actually want to observe up close now that he had stated his interest in joining her business. Untimately, he just really didn't want to miss out on the chance to work with another beta-tester. He might even be able to convince him to join up long-term, not that he was getting his hopes up or anything. That guy could probably fly solo for awhile yet.

Emperor blinks his eyes rapidly as he tries to process the verbal assault from the archer. He then responds with confusion in his voice "Ermm hi... I'm Ha... err... Emperor." He then clears his throat "So ya need an extra swordarm? Well yeah i can help ya with that i guess."

*Ikanus gets out of the stats menu and sighs. He reopens his inventory double checking now since he wasn't sure as to how long he would be traveling so he needed to be extra sure that his stores were built up and that his gear was good. As his fingers fly through the menus he seems rather content. He almost seems as if he belongs in this world. He gets out of the menus again and looks around making mental notes of what he needed and where everything was. Somehow still unaware that he is being watched*

Delcastle arrived at bulls run with a grin on his face as usual. They had gone out from the town sporadically over the course of the day. Bulwar had always played a tank when they played MMO's and Delcastle had always backed him up with a solid damage character so this was all old and familiar to the two by this point. Every video game had surprises but they had teamwork and years of experience. So far they had already gained about 5 levels from their effort. Nothing spectacular, given this was still low level area. Any other game Delcastle assumed they could be halfway to a level cap by now!
But the thought of death, real death, was all too real for the pair. They'd taken it steady, plot a route, return with valuables to sell and make new starting gear with Leatherworking and Blacksmithing. Industrious folk, really.
"Bro, can you get to the inn and grab a bite? I'm starvin' but I wanna check out the vendors. I got some randoms to sell." They gave a brief hug and waved goodbye for the moment. They were still in a party so they weren't really going anywhere but.. semantics.

Not much later Delcastle had arrived at the crafting skill trainer and learned what he could. Leather armor, boots, green bracers, some other lowbie skills. He had material to make the bracers but decided not to, instead choosing to make the leather items with his spare material. Low-level characters were still in abundance and gobbled up this stuff like it was on fire. Fear of death made you worry about protection so that was kind of expected.
Walking gingerly down the road he almost walked right by her. A vendor with a tail? Adorable! Delcastle had always been a sucker for cats and foxes.
The crowd in front moved swiftly until finally it was just himself and a few other players. Rare NPC? Player? Only one way to find out. "S'cuse me Miss. Hate to be of trouble, but I'm looking to sell or trade some of my crafted items. I've got 3 sets of level 3 Leather armor in my inventory. Do you have any iron or steel?" His smile was pleasant but his eyes wandered down from the girls face over and over. Delcastle tried not to stare but couldn't help it. He wanted to grab her tail..

@PyroDash888