---

Holly heard Willow basically said she had to hunt down Prome to keep him out of trouble. She nodded in that and waved Willow goodbye. It took her a bit to keep pace with River traveling to the docks. She couldn’t help but sigh at the fact that Prome was always going ahead or disappearing on everyone. ”I do hope Willow keeps him outta trouble.” Holly thought to herself for a bit but than something distracted her from her thoughts. It was specifically something that pinged in her message box. She received two messages, while watching her steps because she didn’t want to fall on her face, which happened the first time on a path to a place in the first city.

The first message was about killing Chitters and bringing back their tails to Shaman Rania for experience and reputation. She heard River’s speaking about what are the Chitters. However, she never really enjoyed vermin in real life because her father usually had to kill them or hire exterminators. It was pretty much obvious she didn’t like when he mentioned Chiggers, because those are pretty bad. She shivered a bit at the thought but it wasn’t alike what she feared usually, which are spiders. ”I do hope they aren’t chiggers but they could always be worse I suppose? Don’t ever seen a mite with a tail though. But this is a game so they could be anything really. But my father usually got rid of any vermin with ease in my family’s mansion… Oh right… Whoops sorry River. But getting extra experience and reputation on this floor is always great.” Holly said, with a bit of a like, why did I say that look about her family’s mansion of all things. It’s like talk of bugs get to her a bit, which is usually the case and she tries to ask her father for help on that front. She smiled, however, trying to cover up how nervous she is when River said chiggers and giggled slightly.

Her thoughts were trying to keep on the whole thing. ”Why did I say that out loud? My father did always say talk through your problems. But I could never work through bugs they terrify me a bit too much. Even the smallest spider made me jump onto a chair...” Holly thought to herself, with a deep in thought look to herself. However, the massive guild message from no other than Cecilia got her distracted from what was worrying her. It was definitely a nice to thing to see about the Subclass Trainer’s name, what she’s wearing and the fact she’s a gambler. ”Uhh crap. I wasn’t that good with a poker face or really that good with dice… I always failed at Yahtzee.” Holly said, out loud with a bit of a gasp. It’s mostly because she embarrassed herself in front of River. She couldn’t help but to blush at what she said because its obvious to her that she’s not that great with gambling or didn’t really like to do it, since she sucks at Yahtzee of all things. However, she remembered seeing on a commercial before the game launched, Black Dragon Armor but it was a like once in a lifetime to see this beautiful armor set. She sent out a message to Ceci as a reply.

I have to thank you Ceci, for the information on the location of the Subclass Trainer. Elwyn Gage is a beautiful name for her. She must be a handful for Dracion Wildbron That’s nice to know that she’s at the River Run. I will try my best to win her over for my subclass.

I am grateful you shared the quest with everyone it is very good to say the least. There’s many other things I suppose I have to do to, I’m still with River at least trying to get his Subclass. I should probably try to learn on how to gamble probably.. don’t know if anyone in our guild is a gambler.

Many thanks,
Holly

Holly noticed a pop up on the screen, which was paying three copper to travel to the Shaman’s Hut. She decided to pay the toll to the Shaman’s hut since she basically didn’t want to get lost in this city without one of her guildmates near her. It was obvious she didn’t want to be like Prome. ”Let’s get your thing out of the way before I deal with my subclass trainer, River. Since you’ve been awaiting to get your subclass forever since you hit lv15. Don’t want to be a spoil sport and go my separate way right now. Kinda want to see hit your goal, River.” Holly said, with a gentle smile and a definite happiness about that whole wait is finally over for River. Since she could see his excitement on his face about finally becoming his subclass after all this time.

If she didn’t knew any better it is like that River’s excitement is contagious since she started to giggle slightly. ”River, I do hope you don’t tell anyone else about my lack of skill with dice because I think that would be highly embarrassing to say the least.” Holly said, with a bit of a tone in her voice of still being embarrassed about that exactly. It is a failing of her, she’s highly book smart but can’t really get simple games of chance that well down, which is why she picked Archer primarily it is pretty much straight forward enough. She wasn’t threatening River but it would be even more embarrassing than usual.

---

Aura sipped her own water as she pondered upon the options.
Large guilds tended to be one of the wealthiest and most powerful, but they also tended to have the corporate rank-pulling and pretentious newbie-squashing that came with management. And the last thing she needed was an entitled 12 year old ordering her around. Hunter guilds were also cutthroat and favoured offensive classes such as assassins and duelists - especially if they were going after red labels. Paladins, though covetted by many guilds due to their relative rarity, would not belong in such an offensive guild.
Last Genesis was, in theory, probably her best bet to a relatively trouble-free ride, save for particular...eccentricities. Hmph. She would probably regret this decision. Aura just hoped that they would bring as much firepower as they were loopy. And if they didn't, she'll simply have to duck her pride down and go to Heaven's Oath.

"Well, I'll give the Genesis a shot. Cheers for the heads up." Aura stretched, finished her water, and stood up to leave the inn. She nodded to Aleka with a smile. "Next time we meet, I'll buy you a drink. Hopefully somewhere drier." Taking out her menu map, she traced the paths that led out the inn. If they were going anywhere at this time, it would most likely be for the guild hall for subclass unlocks. Which reminded her; Aura also needed to unlock her subclass. She felt the tinge of fatigue weigh down on her eyes like uncomfortable contact lenses, but she shrugged and adjusted her armour. If she couldn't find the guild members, she would just receive whatever quest she needed to unlock the Battle Cleric subclass and peace it back to the inn. By the looks of it, the Last Genesis was going to stay in Troodon as well, and she could just catch them in the morning.

She looked up at the rain and squinted. Least I have a hot tub after this. She equipped her raincoat (stretching in protest against her armour), and made her way towards the Guild Hall. With luck, maybe she'll find a sane-er looking guild on the way, too.

Cecilia flashed her teeth at Gaius, less a smile and more a challenge. "No one saw it, so feel free to distrust me, but I got here after dodging lightning. I hope your bullets are half as fast as that, darling."

Well, nevermind the fact that she had to burn through a metric ton of MP for that particular feat.

17 people made for a prime number, but it wasn't anything that was wholly irreconcilable. It would be nice, of course, if they could get another, but as it stood...a round robin tournament with seventeen rounds. Sounded exhausting, actually, but perhaps people dropping out from exhaustion would work out too. A test both of martial skill and endurance? Exciting. Or maybe timed rounds instead? It wasn't even 10PM yet, judging by the system clock. Unless these people were weenies who followed their bedtimes to a tee (unlikely, if they were jumping about in the Guild this late at night), Cecilia suspected that a tournament going up all the way to 11PM would still be fine. Five minute rounds to see who can get the other person to the lowest HP value, before victor is declared and everything is reset? Paladins would probably love the set up, considering their Even the Odds. Maybe that'd require a ban...

Yeah, that sounded good.

Stopping in front of the tower that was Reliquia's Arena, Cecilia pulled out her spear again, flourishing the lightning-enchanted blade in the cloudy night. She turned to face the small crowd of aggressive battlefreaks before her and said, "Alright, listen up, cause I'm only gonna say this once, ok? The pot will be collected and entrusted to whichever NPC manages the Arena. Form up into pairs, and once we're inside, spread out to form battle rings across the Arena. The odd one out will stand off to the eastern side. Each round will last five minutes, and the winner will be the one who ends up with the most health. If we can find another NPC to tally up everyone's win-loss ratio, that will be great! If not, I'm fine with going with the honor system here. Once the round has concluded, everyone rotates to their right, switching sides or with the odd one out if necessary. Easy enough to understand? If not, it's also easy enough to understand after you see it in action."

She clapped her hands together, a blindingly lady-like smile emerging.

"Now, good luck, have fun, and pay up!"

With that, Cecilia pushed open the doors to the Arena, marching up right to the receptionist there with her unorthodox demands. Would be funny if Prome dynamically entered here too, hm? Or maybe...

Ding ding ding~ Ceci here with more hot takes on the coolest Reliquia stuff...NOT!

Hey, Kira, I'm hosting a Banquet of Bloodshed and Pride at the Collesseum of the Stormy Swamp, up against the Storm-Stricken Sheer Cliffs beyond the Hall of Hallowed Guilds. Alas, the wretched cowards within the Hall appear wholly disavowed to joining such glorious events in great numbers, and we tragically have accrued only seventeen brave souls for this ritual of vainglorious combat. Care you to appear and rise up as the eighteenth? Or have you too become naught but a yellow-bellied cur, too obssessed with gathering new strength that you see not the value in sharpening your original might?

Hugs and Disses,
Lycanbane, the Warrior Untouched By Heaven's Wrath

---

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River winced a little as Holly mentioned how her father would exterminate vermin from her mansion. A part of it was the feeling of sorrow for some of those critters that were just trying to make a living on their stolen land. Squirrels, Opposoms, Racoons, even Rats were all subject to the ire of the ill informed and wealthy. The other part was due in fact to the pang of emptiness in his pocket. He wasn’t exactly well off in the real world, and was hardly much better off in here. Pinching penny’s and even going a day or two without food in order to help those animals he housed, was not something abnormal to him. Hell, it make week one of this game more bearable as he was already no stranger to hunger pangs and lack of money. Thankfully for him, the conversation quickly moved back away from the subject and on to a new one of subclasses, more specifically how she may get hers. It appeared that there was a chance Holly would need to win in a game of chance, or at the very least put up a challenge enough to impress her trainer. River wasnt exactly skilled in such things but he at least knew how to play Yahtzee.

River chuckled as she flustered with her words, thinking of how she would have to beat her trainer no doubt, while also accidentally spilling the beans on her extraordinarily lack of skill in such matters. ”Maybe you wont need any dice to play against them? See if you can get her to play a game of Black Jack. Pure RNG save for card counters and cheaters, and the rules are quite simple as well. I’m not even sure if you need to develop a poker face for it since most of the cards are laid out on the table for all to see.” River got into the boat with Holly following suit. ”Either way I’m sure that you can get her to teach you your subclass, but since we are stopping by my trainer first, perhaps she can have some insight for you on the best approach to yours, or maybe a weakness of hers that could help win her over.” As the boat glided against the water, River summoned out Pepper who looked worse for wear, having been pummeled by a goblin army for her hide was surely not the best thing. He held her close to his chest and cast Full Heal Monster getting her back up to full and then allowing her to perch on his head as they watched the view. The rest of the ride River would spend using Meditate till his mana reached full once more. ”Thanks for coming with by the way, I really appreciate it. Never really got the chance to grab my subclass on the last floor between the Red Players, dungeon crawling, and then floor boss...made it almost impossible. It’s nice to have a small break on this boat just to grab a long awaited treasure.”

Items:


Asroth has had a very long path as a solo player thus far. He has stayed out of the way of others avoiding red players at the risk of death or murder. His fear was replaced with confidence after the first kill. This is a dangerous and insane place to find yourself in and he was finally becoming a custom to it.

The rain was falling strong outside and he needed to find somewhere to go. "damn these status effects, this is going to take forever" he said aloud to himself knowing no-one was around. Just when he was running out of hope he came across some light and as it started to get closer he was able to see a horse stable and he picked to stop for the night and dry off. This was becoming a ridiculous adventure. The life of a solo swordsman was not easy and he needed to quit before it killed him, but how would he ever find anyone.

As he got comfortable he noticed a tavern the Tipsy Troodon the sign read. He brushed him self off and headed inside in hopes of a nice warm fire to set himself in front of.

Health: 2100/2100
Mana: 2000/2000

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"I seek the knowledge to create massive engines of power! Wonders beyond comprehension!" Prome began, a strange sort of manic clarity in his voice "To forge a path ahead, through mountains, oceans, forests and even battlefields, to the ever distant utopia. Yet as I am now, I lack such means. As such, I have to to you to be taught the way to craft such miracles"

---

Holly couldn’t help but be embarrassed when River chuckled at her for what she exactly said, about not being that good at Yahtzee. She was blushing a little bit because it was made her flustered about her insecurities of the skill or lack there of. However, with what River said made her a bit happy at that suggestion in using a different gambling method to beat Elwyn Gage. ”Hmm… River that’s a nice suggestion in trying to use Black Jack instead of my lack of skill in dice. It’s probably the reason why I am always a bit amazed when my father gets Yahtzee more often than not. But his luck and willingness to gamble big usually helps his chances in getting those things. Guess that’s why he’s great at his job as a weapon’s dealer for the government without getting hurt in dangerous situations.” Holly said, with an appreciation that her father is still with her family. She just enjoys talking about her father since he had many different ways of telling it as it is and with a charisma that is second to none. She kinda never got the luck as her father though, which is usually why her skill with dice games are very bad, while anything with a role to play alike a RPG is more up her alley.

Holly was sitting right across from River in the boat to River’s subclass trainer. ”Oh yeah, my father always says, ‘Get to know your enemy better than themselves’ or something to that effect. But in this case that doesn’t really work like that but learning something of Elwyn Gage from your subclass trainer is a great idea. Since yeah… I don’t really want to lose and not be able to become a Ranger since I picked that as a subclass before I joined this game. Father helped me pick my class and subclass since he knew much about ranged weaponry since that’s what he primarily deals with. He enjoys strategy games more than Roleplaying games since he likes to keep his mind sharp.” Holly said, with a smile. She giggled slightly when River summoned Pepper out, which was an adorable summoned creature he had. It was obvious she enjoyed Pepper, which was a baby dragon of cuteness. She smiled happily when River said basically what he had said. ”No problem, River. It is nice we finally get a chance to have downtime compared to the alternatives of fighting the Red Players. You waited the longest for that subclass, it seems longer than most. But at least the wait will finally be over. Therefore, congrats in getting your subclass after an entire floor’s worth of wait.” Holly said, basically happy to come with River since she wanted to see him get said subclass anyway.

She had a strange thought on her mind, since it was a peaceful boat ride towards the Shaman’s Hut. ”Many things have changed but our guild is definitely nice and unique. I like the smallness of this guild. Better to make friends with people who talk to you as a person and not a number… like those larger guilds would have. I will never regret in picking Lost Genesis as a guild as long as I live.” Holly thought to herself, with a big smile on her face. She looked around as the boat was traveling slowly and was awed at the view. ”This view is wonderful, I must say.” Holly said.

The general din of the inn had settled a little as people’s adrenaline highs wore off and the alcohol and the warmth started settling in their bones. People chatted much more pleasantly, a pleased buzz running through the room, and Anu was chatting with Drash but turned around when he gave a nod and a wave at the newcomer’s entrance. The girl beamed and made her way over.

“Welcome to the Tipsy Troodon.” Anu said cheerfully. ”You lookin’ for a meal, a room, or both? We got a seat open at the counter if you’d like.”

---

---

The town was still quiet, most of its NPCs turned in for the night. A few guards patrolled the area, throwing wary looks at the new adventurers but otherwise leaving them alone so long as they weren’t too rowdy. The clouds had mostly disappeared by now and a full moon and a black sea of stars shone down on Reliquia. Here in the dark of the forests, the entire sky was flooded with speckles of light.

Approaching the bridge that spanned the mouth of the river as it deposited into the delta, Aura would see another girl standing on it and muttering irritably as her fingers danced in the air. She was likely messaging someone. A closer look would show her name Whispering Willow < Last Genesis >.

---

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The man accepted both person’s money happily and rowed them across the delta. It was a short trip but what had originally been a small island rapidly grew into a large piece of land and the word hut was rather misleading. The circular building took up almost all of the land space, a few shamans outside staring at the sky. They made no move to greet the new arrivals as they would pass by past the animal skins that hung in the doorway.

Inside, a bonfire dominated the center and its smoke curled up through a hole in the domed ceiling. Various people lounged inside, some weaving baskets, some telling stories, and a few passing around a long pipe. A hummingbird zipped past the pair that entered and shimmered, shifting into Rania who looked at them curiously.
“Why have two bothrian made there way here?” The woman’s posture was calm and collected but her tone held an edge to it.

---

---

“You may need to consider refining that vision, my boy. Saying you wish to produce things of grandeur and actually creating something are two entirely different things.” Alfor proclaimed. “But of course I shall guide you on your path! But you’ll first need an idea, a base from which your inspiration to grow and shape, to expand outside your own mind and take on a life of its own!”

---

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With Cecelia’s proclamation, the group she gathered burst into the Arena behind her and the sound bounced around the vaulted ceiling. The Arena dominated the majority of the tower’s height, a large pit covered in a thin layer of sand dug a bit below sea level and tiers of seating rising almost as high as the ceiling. Hundred of cut gems glowed with near natural light, illuminating the space perfectly. There were few shadows available for those who’s magic relied on them.

The NPC had no issue agreeing to hold onto their coin, procuring a small pot from somewhere in the Arena for everyone to put their coin in. 1700 Renn clinked as she carried it around after she sealed it with a wooden top and several feet of rope. She called in a few other guards, all eager to see some of the new arrivals show off their skills, and no one complained when they were asked to take positions around the arena to make sure they could catch all the bouts.

“I think I’ve already claimed this dance first.” Gauis slid right up to Cecelia, a 3 barreled steel flintlock pistol in hand and a smirk on his face. “Let’s see if I’m as fast as lightning.” Off to the side, a woman in heavy robes and a staff leaned against the wall, waiting her turn.

Items:


Asroth gave a small smile and stepped inside "thank you" he uttered softly as he walked over to the counter. He didn't have much need for food or drink at the moment and he wasn't sure about the bed. For now he just wanted out of the weather so his clothes could dry. "knew I should have bought a f-ing rain coat" he said aloud to himself, a bit annoyed by his own frivolous spending. He sat contemplating his room and opened his inventory to assess his items.

Asroth looked at his special sword and smiled it was a unique one of a kind find and he was lucky to have it. He closed the screen and looked up "I'd like to pay for a night" he said in his small timid voice "please"

Woah, this was certainly different from the coliseum-esque setup back in Genesis. Lighting through magical gems was certainly sublime, and Cecilia was already thinking about asking the receptionist where such jewels could be obtained; they’d be a marvelous addition to her next outfit. Her feet shifted against the sand gently, feeling how easily the terrain gave away, while her lungs drew in that slightly salty, slightly humid air. A kaleidoscope of color reflected off her polished spear, and she drew a grin at the design of Gaius’s gun.

“Cerberus? Nice taste, my Gai.”

An easy compliment, as she swapped out her equipment to be more combat-friendly. There was no reply from Kira. Had the great demon retired to her bed so soon? The frown that emerged at that thought quickly disappeared, and Cecilia raised her voice again. “Alright, I’ll be counting down now! 5...4...3...2…”

Her legs coiled, power that could rival the strike of lightning gathering in.

“1!”

And with that, Cecilia shot forwards, a small explosion of sand behind her. In her hands, the Steel Spear spun, a blur as she flourished it.

“Cerberus? No.” Gaius chuckled, back pedalling as she advanced. “Meet Witty Retort and Break a Leg, my own inventions!” He drew a second gun, another triple barrel pistol and grinned. The girl seemed confident and he couldn’t wait to knock her down a peg.

Spear still spinning, Cecilia bounded onwards, chasing her quarry down. With a sudden burst of speed, she closed what distance remained, the sand exploding behind her as she dove in shield-first.

With that, she was in, her spear driving into Gaius, lodged into his body. Drawing in a sharp breath, the Lancer used her entire body as a spring, the wooden shaft of her spear flexing as it snapped upwards, lifting, and then tossing him straight up into the air.

The second Cecelia made contact, everything went fuzzy. Gauis struggled to blink the fog from his head but a sudden flare of pain and his stomach dropping out from under him did it instead. His vision cleared just in time to find himself hurtled up in the air and a volley of swear words ripped from his lips as he brought up Break A Leg and fired after a few seconds.

“Shouldn’t swear in front of a lady,” Cecilia replied with a wink and a smile. Her buckler was too small to completely absorb the gunfire that rained down below, but the pain was negligible, the deflected bullet piercing into her shoulder but not hitting the bone. As Gaius fell, the lilac-haired warrior decided to help him. The Steel Spear shot outwards like quicksilver once more, catching onto the falling man’s ribs before pulling him downwards.

"Already proved I'm faster than lightning though." Gauis smirked through the pain of being slammed into the ground. She was a monster on the field but he had a few tricks up his sleeve of his own. He didn't invent these guns for nothing. He brought Witty Retort to bear against her, triggering it's special ability as he fired.

But close range was Cecilia’s domain, and this close, it was much easier for her to get out of the way of the barrel. The three-barreled pistol roared out, its bullets slicing through her hair as Cecilia pulled off to the side, her body twisting out of the way. There was definitely some ridiculous power packed in those shells, huh? The lancer let out a low whistle. None of her counterattack passives triggered, but that was fine.

“And looks like I’m faster still.” She reciprocated his good-natured smirk. This Cecilia enjoyed someone who could exchange verbal jabs too.

"As much as I hate to admit it, you don't get cred-" He let out a help as he was thrown skyward again. Maybe he shouldn't have been quite so cocky but he gritted his teeth, throwing his weight to control his spinning and let out another shot with Break A Leg, the bullet clocking Cecilia right between the eyes for a critical hit."You know how to build a man up, don't you?"

Cecilia’s head snapped back at the critical hit, stars bursting in her vision. If this was real life, that’d have been a killing blow right there. But it wasn’t. And she wasn’t nearly so fragile that she’d call it quits right here! Swinging her head back, her smile turned feral as she crouched down and...charged. Not horizontally, but vertically, shedding the chains of gravity as she shot up to meet the airborne Gaius.

Guias grunted as the spear pierced him, hit health practically vanishing before slamming to a halt at 1 HP. He slammed into the ground, panting as he stared up at the girl grinning ferally. He groaned, covering his eyes at the system announced Cecilia the winner of this duel, and struggled to his feet as Health, Mana, and Cool Downs were reset by the Arena system. He sheathed his weapons and stuck out his hand.

“Good match. Though I’ll admit, I got my butt handed to me.” He grinned impishly, a twinkle in his eye. “When I level up some, I expect a rematch!”

Cecilia laughed, clasping his hand for a firm shake. "I'll look forward to it," she replied, boisterous and confident, "Just keep in mind I'll be leveling up as well, friend, and adjust your expectations accordingly."

With that, she stepped away from the impromptu ring, her golden eyes sweeping over to the rest of the combatants. Though it wasn't a serious enough occasion to warrant the obssessive analysis that some of her classmates would be down for, Cecilia wasn't satisfied with a single victory. The prize money may be attractive, yes, but what she wanted more than that was recognition and fame. Let the audience bear witness to her valor and technique, and let that word spread. What better way to gather more reputation than to be seen as strong and approachable.

In the spur of the moment, she blew a kiss towards the onlookers, before her gaze settled once more on the other ongoing matches, looking for other outstanding individuals.

---

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River placed Pepper on his head as his genie stood behind him hands crossed. A smile beamed from ear to ear as he watched Rania switch from a hummingbird into herself right before his eyes. ”Bothrian, I’ll have to assume that means outsider or adventurer or something to that nature. I didn’t take the language skill so my apologies for not knowing a few words. My names River, and I’m a trainer who wishes to gain the skill of shifting. I feel that by becoming the creatures which I posses, I can better understand them. After all, it does everybody good to walk a mile in another’s shoes now and then right?” He approached her slowly, noting the others who were on the island as well as the massive structure that took up most of it. ”This here is Holly, she’s one of my guild mates who accompanied me here for moral support, as well as to ask you for something herself, though its not quite the same as what I’m asking for.”

Health: 2100/2100
Mana: 2000/2000

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Prome almost punched the 'yes' button, but managed to merely press it "Yessssss..." he began to cackle "I can see a mighty mount. One that could carry me across all manner of terrain, and see me through any battle! From atop it, I shall lay waste to my foes, and will definitely not almost get killed by a rain of magic bolts!" He rubbed his hands together with a manic smile on his face "Yes...the monsters of this world shall learn my name and tremble!" If someone listened hard enough, they would have been able to hear the faint sound of thunder as he said 'tremble'

---

Holly was looking at everything that the Shaman’s hut had to offer in terms of its location, local, etc. It was unique for a building built on an island away from the town, which definitely felt a nice and relaxing place. However, what caught her eye was a humming bird, which turned into Raina. She awed at the transformation from a humming bird back into a human, which definitely looked complex and something up River’s wanting to do. She noticed the tone in the woman’s voice, which felt a bit guarded or some such. ”Transformations are neat, I can see why River wants to become a Shifter. I think that’s what it is called… since that was a beautiful transformation by this shaman.” Holly thought to herself, with a smile on her face. She heard what River had said both times and continued to smile but stay slightly back since this is River’s time to shine. However, the woman did ask them a question, which it would be rude not to respond to it.

”It’s nice to meet you by the way. As what River had said, I am Holly. The moral support I give is always needed. I am here to ask do you have some insight on Elwyn Gage? That I might win her over besides playing dice… because I am not that great with it. It’s a limitation of mine after all.” Holly said, honestly even though she was a bit embarrassed in admitting it a second time. However, this time was with an NPC rather than a player alike River after all. She always like being honest with things even if sometimes it embarrasses her a bit here and there. However, this definitely embarrassed her since saying she’s not that great with dice or those types of games is embarrassing. ”God… I hope I don’t admit this in front of my other guildmates… it would be highly embarrassing.” Holly thought to herself. She somewhat dreaded the day that would happen since they might laugh at her even though they are good friends after all. In terms she gave out a small sigh because she was highly embarrassed at this moment but was keeping herself calm enough.

The insight she hoped to gain, will probably make it easier to learn the necessary abilities to become a Ranger, like Elwyn Gage. She always wanted to be a ranger in any game that allowed it, however, most of the games she played never did or had differences of what it is. It did help that her father did try to become a US Ranger before deciding to become a weapons dealer instead. However, modern day weapons are so much different from a bow and arrow. ”I have never really asked how much Ranger Training my father did before decided to sell weapons instead. I should really ask that, because that sounds alike a bit of a lengthy process to decide one day to make money instead of protecting the country.” Holly thought to herself, with a thoughtful smile on her face. She stares at Pepper, which is on River’s head. However, it made her refocus herself to make sure she hears Rania’s answer to her question properly, while smiling kindly. It would’ve been a smart idea in taking a language skill, but she definitely wanted what she picked for her skills, however.

“Sounds like a plan! I’ll go grab a key.” Anu zipped away, picking up an empty tankard and dropping it off behind the counter before returning with a room key. “3 copper for a night or buy a week for a silver and eight copper and you only pay for 6 nights. 4 copper for hot bath water if that’s you fancy. Always fixes me up when I’ve had a rough day, especially if you pick up an herbal sachet from the market. The Baby Blue sachets are so expensive since they’re a pain to kill but the medicinal qualities are amazing.”

---

---

“I see.” Rania’s demeanour soften slightly at the mention of Shifter, nodding at his request. “Knowledge is a right owed to all. If you can prove your dedication and resilience, nature itself will reward you but if you falter, you may find yourself stuck as what you become.”



“Elwyn Gage.” Rania’s face twitched in irritation. “I just explained to another girl that she recently fled from our realm in an attempt to hide from our head warrior. If she is here, she’ll be off gambling her night away before she does on her next hunt. If for some reason you wish to curry the woman’s favor, a Bird of Paradise bloom should suit your needs. She’s quite fond of it. She grows them in her own gardens in Raltra. But if you can’t make it to the other side of the island where they grow, slay a few blue bells and you should be able to get enough of their pollen for the woman to use.” A menu popped up in front of Holly as Rania explained,

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“This is good and all but it's late. You can plot your machinations with my husband on the morrow. Now leave us be, preferably before more new arrivals demand our attention.” Rowina snapped impatiently, holding the door open for the new Mechanist. Winston laughed, walking over and placing a fond kiss on his wife’s temple.

“I’ll have to agree with the lady. I’m on her poor side often enough as is. Come find me in the morning if you need help with your design!” Alfor offered.

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The Arena was full with sounds of fighting, metal crashing on metal, muttered incantations, and the thwap of bow strings as arrows flew threw the air. Missed shots and spells careened into the wrong duels, throwing players off balance in an ever growing pit of mayhem. A few players quickly shone through however: Wrinfell Nightbane, a thin looking marauder woman currently without a guild but nevertheless cackling as she laid waste with every blow she landed. Apollo Regalia, an officer of Heaven’s Oath and a brutal fire mage. Cecelia Tonitrus, the graceful lancer of Last Genesis eagerly knocking her opponents around.

At the end of it, Ceclia placed third behind the other pair. Wrinfell quickly proved a difficult match against Cecelia, her high Stamina and Champion’s Pelt armor making it difficult to stun or disable her and the absurd rotation of self buffs and auto attack healing keeping her coming back for more. Her fight against Apollo had been absurdly close, less than 100 HP difference between them. Unfortunately, the Burning DoT ticked just before she landed her attack and the duel ended. The Arena emptied quickly after that, leaving just the three after a few minutes of congratulating the top three.

“And what a way to work off the stress!” Wrinfell boomed, her voice much louder than her stature suggested. “That was a nasty little trick with the DoTs and the wind. If I couldn’t heal myself regularly, I think I would have been toasted. And you are a fun thing to fight Cecelia, aren’t you?” The grin she wore was wolfish as she addressed the other woman.
“Cecelia was a great match. Thank goodness for Burn or I would have lost.” Apollo laughed, clapping Cecelia on the back. “You both should join Heaven’s Oath. You’d rise in the ranks pretty fast with your skill set.”

Third place wasn’t the best, especially when she had been so close to getting second place, but Cecilia was satisfied with it. A little more sustainability would have gone a long way in this case, and while she certainly performed well against melee fighters with small weapons, the same couldn’t be said against tanks that could endure her own DPS and chip away over time. She lacked the defenses too to simply ignore the raw damage that mages could output, leaving her vulnerable to DoTs that’d doubtlessly grow only stronger as everyone rose in levels. She could only lifeleech off of normal attacks, but her style encouraged constant usage of low-AC actions. And yet high defenses were more effective in weakening a flurry of blows rather than a singularly powerful strike. Things to consider, for sure. She needed versatility to switch between swift combos and singularly powerful blows, and now, she had homework to do.

The 100 Renn she ‘lost’ was simply the lesson fee for such.

Blinking out of her contemplation, Cecilia grinned lazily at Wrinfell as well, spinning her spear in fanciful circles. “I do pride myself in style over substance, though, alas, such inclinations often ensures that my fangs fall short of reaching heavily armored fellows like you. Good fighting though. The Marauder in my guild only had 200 MP max, so I basically never experienced so many techs firsthand.” Which meant that next time, she’d be prepared.

Though Marauders got hella survivability regardless of how prepared she was. Maybe it was time to purchase a new spell…

“And hey, Apollo, it’s not like I coulda done any better against you considering the situation. You handled yourself disgustingly well for a mage in close combat, and I didn’t even get the drop on you with Light Speed Escape, so I bet you’ll be set once you transition into Battle Mage.” Cecilia laughed. “While the offer’s tempting though, I’d rather you two join Last Genesis. Heaven’s Oath got like, over a thousand players, right? Pretty sure there’s no niche that’s not taken at this point, so how ‘bout you two head on over to my guild instead? We’re hiring for tanks and magical DPS, after all. Please?”

The lilac-haired lancer batted her eyes charmingly, her hands clasped behind her back as she leaned forward towards the two, but there was no serious intent behind it. Simply due respect, for individuals with enough skill to become keystones of any party they joined.

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River stared in excitement as the window popped up telling him his quest had begun and then immediately completed. A prompt then asked him if he was sure about this decision, stating he couldn’t take another subclass if he hit yes, but what other class could possibly entice him as much as this one? River eagerly hit the button, gaining the subclass of Shifter.

Analyze Accquired. Shift Accquired. Forget Accquired. Memory Accquired

”Thank you so much Rania, and thank you again for the information on Hollys trainer, its greatly appreciated. If you don’t mind however...could I look at the list of spells available right now?” A menu appeared before him with a list of spells that he could learn in addition to the ones granted to him by the quest itself.

Recall: Can only be used while Shifted. The Shifter refreshes their memory, keeping the shape they shifted into rather than losing it. 300 MP
	Action Cost: 5 - Cool Down: 5 Minutes

Expanded Memory: The Shifter gains 1 additional Memory Slot. Requires Monster knowledge 50.

Altered Memories: The Shifter’s understanding of monsters evolve, allowing them to develop theoretically advantageous traits in them. Choose one when purchasing this passive: STR, AGI, INT, STM. Whenever the Shifter uses Shift, the chosen new stat will be increased by 3 points for each level between the original monster and the Player’s level. Requires Monster Knowledge 60

Practical Application: Due to the Shaper’s intimate knowledge of monster workings, the Shaper can more easily identify monster traits. +25 Monster knowledge. 

Expanded Memory: The Shifter gains 1 additional Memory Slot. Requires Monster Knowledge 75

Altered Memories: The Shifter’s understanding of monsters evolve, allowing them to develop an additional advantage trait. Choose an attribute from the previous list that wasn’t chosen already. That trait gains the same effect as the first, except it only increases by 2 rather than 3. Requires monster Knowledge 90.

They all appeared to be from a tree line called Shaping, it seemed that the subclasses branched out into three different lines, each complimenting the other in some fashion. The shaper line seemed to focus on the actual act of transformation like what Rania had just done. River purchased the only two spells he was able to from there, Recall and Expanded Memory, allowing him to have a larger repetoire of animals he could become, while also letting him keep the shapes he had just used. He flicked over on the menu to look at the next set of spells, this branch called “Monstrosity” which focused on enhancing the Shifted forms strengths while the other branch “Majesty” focused on debuffing enemies and buffing. The choices were so difficult. Finally he settled on the Majesty route and picked up three more spells, quickly depleting his Renn. He would need to do some questing and fast.

Health: 2100/2100
Mana: 2000/2000

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Prome bowed "You have my eternal gratitude oh wise sages of machines. I bid you adu, for I having planing and plotting to do!" He then left their home and ran all the way to the inn, cackling all the way. Once there, he got himself a room and locked himself inside to begin designing his new creation.

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Holly noticed Rania’s face twitched in irritation at the name of her trainer Elwyn Gage. However, the information, which Rania gave was definitely valuable information. It gave her a smile on her face, in hearing about a flower named Birds of Paradise or 3 piles of Baby Blue Pollen by killing blue bells will be helpful in currying favor with her trainer. ”I am definitely grateful for the information, you provided Rania.” Holly said, with a gentle smile on her face. She looked at her quest log and did notice the specific quest and decided to basically track it alike all the other mmorpgs she’ve played to make sure. It was pretty obvious she will try to get the Birds of Paradise bloom, which is on this island.



She was grateful this basically had the same feature as other mmos in terms of tracking your quests. It’ll be a pain otherwise if she wasn’t able to track all the different quests and she basically put the quest she accepted first and foremost. She heard River, about basically thanking Rania for helping her in question. However, when River said something about his list of spells for his subclass, she was intrigued about what subclass specialization he picked. ”Sooo, River what subclass specialization did you pick?” Holly asked, curiously and since she can’t really tell what subclass specialization he picked. But she did see on his status screen of Subclass Shifter, when looking at him. It was definitely going to be intriguing to say the least since she’ll have to get her specific subclass after getting the optional thing done first. Because always better to be prepared than not, which her father always said. ”I wonder how beautiful the Birds of Paradise are, since Elwyn Gage is very fond of it. I have a feeling it wouldn’t be great to pick more than one of that flower, they might be pretty rare.” Holly thought to herself, with her usual thinking stance.

Holly gets this way when she wants to see something pretty or remarkable, and logging into this game was definitely on the remarkable side of things. However, that was before it turned out to be a game of where you cannot escape from it. It’s the only thing that she as always enjoyed of certain mmorpgs or what not they are always outstanding with their graphics. Her computer, on one hand was top of the line since her family are rich but she was pretty much cautious with it. It’s been with her since she was 13 years old, so its definitely an old piece of hardware but constantly keeps on ticking because it gets upgraded every so often to stay relevant. ”I miss my pink desktop… since it usually helped me with homework and what not when I was younger and gaming on it was definitely nice. I usually called it the Pink Demoness because of the customized skin on it.” Holly thought to herself, with a slight nostalgic look on her face, which only other players can truly understand. However, she remembered specifically the one thing she kinda spaced out since helping River pick up his subclass. It was the fact she was completely out of arrows for her Ivory Bow, which would be slightly annoying to deal with. ”S-Shit… Guess all this excitement of getting your subclass River, completely spaced me getting arrows.” Holly said, quietly where only River could hear what she said.

Rania nodded at Holly but another NPC called her over, a scroll draping loosely over his arm. Fathil, Runechanter Trainer hovered over him and the few snatches of conversation the pair could overhear suggested he was annoyed with the scribe work of one of the apprentices.

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“No, no. No guilds for me! I prefer to be free to wander wherever my axe so takes me.” Wrinfell declined, a booming laugh echoing around the arena as she slapped them both on the shoulder again. “We’ll meet again, I’m sure. Maybe this time on the same side of the battlefield!” The Marauder made her way out of the arena, a spring in her step as she made her way to the River Inn, ready to drink herself silly.

“Too bad. We could have used you.” Apollo sighed. “Send me a PM when you want another one of these competitions. I’ll have our Guild turn it into a full event.” He sent her a friend request and waved as he made his way out. The guards started leaving, only a few remaining on duty for the overnight shift. From here, Cecelia could get underneath the stands through a large open door that seemed to lead further into the Arena where a few large empty cages stood and piles of dusty supplies litered the area. Few torches lit the gloomy area and one could barely make out a pitch black doorway in the back of the area.

Health: 2700/2700
Mana: 3550/3550(+450)

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“Where did he go?” Willow grumbled as she waited impatiently for a response. She should have followed him from the inn but she really wanted to have a single night in and she regretted it. Willow hadn’t heard from Cecelia since her last transmission about the sub-classes and that couldn’t be good. She takes her eyes off these people for one second and poof! They all scatter to the wind in a damn death game post death fight.

Aura yawned and went to scratch her head, but had a dull realization that she couldn’t scratch through her gauntlets and settled for a grumble as she continued down the path towards the bridge. It was late and had she simply turned in for the night, she would have probably been in the warm embrace of her hot bath. Instead she clumsily shook off the last cold raindrops off her armour. Useless raincoat. Thankfully, the rain stopped as Aura approached the bridge, clearing her vision enough to spot a lone woman on the bridge, presumably messaging guildmates. Wait - Last Genesis? “Evening.” Aura greeted with a wave, eager to take advantage of this chance meeting. “You’re part of Last Genesis, yes?”

Willow looked up at the question, looking confused as she cleared away whatever she had been typing on to give the newcomer her full attention. Willow didn’t immediately recognize the other but smiled anyways, the little crook of her eyebrows giving away the lingering confusion. “Um, yes? I don’t think I know you though. Are you looking for something?”

“Ah, sorry.” Aura said. Of course, Aura had always been a rather stringent member of the gaming group before Talrae, only filling in for a raiding group a couple times when there were certain sections that demanded a tank. It made sense that Willow would not recognize her, at least not within Talrae. “I should introduce myself. My name’s Aura, real name Ciara. I am currently looking for a guild to join and I was informed that Last Genesis was looking for a member? Perhaps you could use a defensive-oriented Paladin?” From Aura’s brief glance at the inn, most of the current members were offensive or utility. She could use defense as a selling point here.

Willow blinked at Aura for a few moments, clearly confused. How did she know even know anything about them? They hadn’t even considered how to handle moving forward after the last battle and someone already wanted to fill their vacancies. She felt a harsh pang in her chest and she wanted to cry but she swallowed her feelings and blinked away the prickling feeling at the corners of her eyes. There were still so many of them alive and with Karuu… She shook her head. She shoved those thoughts right back down and gave the other girl a weak smile. She had to make sure the rest of them could survive and that meant getting someone more equipped to handle a hit.

“I’m not sure what kind of coincidence brought you here but we do need someone. I was going to gather our guild tomorrow and discuss but it’ll be easier just to see if they want to vote someone in then putting out advertisements. I’m not sure how well we’d compete with the larger guilds anyways.” Willow said.“Do you have anywhere to be? I would like to ask you about your experience outside of this hell hole but I want to pick up a few more spells since I have no idea where our Tinker ran off to. Walk with me to the Guild Hall?”

“There was a white-haired guy in Troodon who informed me of your guild…” Aura said cautiously. She could tell that the few moments of silence for Aura was not silent for Willow. Did she say something wrong? - No, she DID say something that hit a nerve, just what it was, Aura did not know. Perhaps they had another Paladin in their guild, and Aura’s suggestion had reminded them of their former comrade. Aura would have to tread carefully if that was the case; neither herself or the guild would want a simple ‘replacement’ to an old guild member. Aura would have to ask later, just not while she was a one-way stranger to these people.

Aura gestured in a ‘lead the way’ manner. “I was walking the same way. I wanted to pick up the subclass quest.” Well, she was actually hoping she could just return to the inn, but it would be better if she got something done in the meanwhile. Besides, Willow sounded like the most responsible one out of the group, if not a sane member. Aura would do well to get to know Willow first, especially if they were putting Aura’s entry to a vote.

“One of our other guild members ran through the lightning to get there. Apparently she dodged it which means despite ignoring town safety rules, we can at least protect ourselves against it as well. Supposedly it’s a wandering monster that looks like Godzilla from what she said. I’m curious how a fight like that should go if you’re getting pelted with lighting every minute or so.” Willow explained her thoughts as she led them towards the guild hall. “As dangerous as it sounds, I’m excited to find out. Doesn’t that make me sound awful? Sure, it’ll put people in a bunch of danger but I can’t help getting excited to take down something with such an intense mechanic. Thats what I get for raiding so long.” Willow laughed as they crossed the bridge, steadily making their way towards the guild hall. As they walked, a little creature zipped by outside. It couldn’t have been any taller than three feet but from the brief glimpse, it looked like a small dinosaur on two legs.

“So tell me about yourself Aura.” Willow asked.”How much hardcore content experience do you have? Not having any is fine but we’ll have to take that into consideration when we are looking at training and such.”

Aura understood Willow’s sentiment. A desire for disaster, perhaps. To be struck by danger, be beaten down to the very core of their instincts and tease out their truest moments, and then to claw their way back up and triumph over the apocalypse. It was a weird feeling, and a guilty one many people suppressed. But it sure as hell made them all human to want to be tested and proven. Aura herself thought that being trapped in a video game was a trial enough, but she understood how many would still pine for the coming of storm clouds. “If anything, that will make for one hell of a choreograph, but you should be careful not to give devs ideas.” Aura replied with a faintly amused yawn.

Aura lazily tracked the dinosaur, but didn’t care to chase after it as they kept walking. “As for hardcore experiences... well, I did get trapped in a sewer with a bunch of oversized gremlins once, but that hardly counts.” Aura laughed almost like a bark. Sure, it was something the villagers gushed about for a few days, but it was a once-off thing with enough luck to overdose a gambler. She sure as hell wished it would stay as a once-off thing. “Otherwise? I did a couple of raids but most of them failed. Random parties aren’t too coordinated you see. So just consider me relatively inexperienced.”

“Considering all the realism the devs decided to throw in here, that must have been disgusting.” Willow wrinkled her nose at the thought. She certainly would never want to jump in those. The stench would probably never come out. “We can work with inexperienced. Just don’t want to get you in over your head on the first few runs. Maybe I’ll snag a few people tomorrow and we can scout out a good training area nearby. Arena’s are all well and fine but nothing teaches you faster than having your ass knocked on the ground by a monster.” The guild hall loomed ahead, a small gathering of players surrounding Dracion that Willow bypassed as they spoke. Inside, a small line at the counter had the receptionists working hard as players picked up basic actions and spells.

“I’ll try to catch up soon, then. Genesis does sound like a frontier-type of group.” Aura nodded. Huh. Now that she thought about it, Aura’s motivation to join a guild in the first place was to be in the relative safety in numbers, plus the greater loot when participating in events and raids. If they were tackling hardcore content, then that effectively nullified the point of the greater safety argument, and she probably was better off in the bigger guild for the more loot, although she despised the idea of having to grovel for it.

Aura yawned, tiredness now grating on her a little. Hell. It was too late for Aura to duck out now. And if she had doubts about this group, she could just back out, no harm, no foul. Plus, Aura thought idly as she shifted her shield arm habitually, hardcore content would probably have better equipment anyway - at least, better than the mediocre replacements she got from the merchants. ”Looks like we’ve arrived. I assume you’ll be looking for your Tinker?”

"No, I'll get my line, pick up my subclass, and then go back and soak for a while. I'm worn out. I'll just lecture him tomorrow." She sighed as she got in line. She just wanted to relax and everything going on has been anything but relaxing.