[IC] Side Quest - Sword Art Online

[DestinyStar]

ScarletRain
Day 17 - Morning - Lvl 15
@Tracyarmav@BlackPanther

Scarlet immediately tensed up again as the masked man approached her. She didn't know these people, and she found their encounter from yesterday a bit fuzzy. They had saved her, that much they knew, but they seemed strong; that simple fact was enough for her to feel wary of being alone with them. Unlike some of the more innocent players, she knew how cruel people could be and did not want to fall for any traps. She flinched a little when he touched her face and gazed into her eyes. Something about his own eyes was very calming, and it made her body subconsciously relax just ever-so-slightly. At least, enough for him to address the problem.

It caught her off-guard to feel another breeze and she glanced down immediately to find herself covered with new bandages. What the heck?! So he had a good speed stat... Not to mention he seemed polite enough. Their eye contact hadn't broken during the change, so she figured he hadn't done anything terrible while she was unconscious. He didn't talk much, and Scarlet sort of felt more at ease because of it. She wasn't one to communicate with others in real life, so she bonded well with people like this. He stated exactly what the situation was and left it at that - short, sweet, and to the point. It wasn't a good point, but she appreciated the business-like demeanor.

"Thank you..." She murmured quietly. Then she noticed the other, more stocky gentleman. The sight of him immediately made her blush and she quietly wrapped her arms around herself and glanced away. He... He grabbed me... These things happened, she understood. However, it felt like a corny anime show situation, only more embarrassing. How were you supposed to look a stranger in the eye who had done something so inappropriate, even by accident? She shifted her thoughts back to her eye. Although she rubbed it and blinked several times, nothing changed. It's no use... I can't see out of it, at all. Her heart ached a little with fear as she glanced back at the two of them. Edgar, huh... Wonder who the masked guy is... and the dog.

Shifting slightly, she leaned a bit tiredly against the wall. "I remember falling... and then a lot of pain... blood... not much else beside that." Scarlet placed a hand over her injured eye, thinking back. "I remember being carried, but I don't remember getting here... You gave me a potion though, right?" She looked at Reaper, a painful expression in her eyes. "I remember the warm feeling of it. That should have healed everything, even my eye, right? This is just a game, after all...!" Her heart rate rose a bit as she nearly panicked, again. "Why can't I see, then? A special potion? That's not how games fucking work!"

Once more, she began to get defensive. The dog-creature-thing was standing in front of her axe, and with the situation she was beginning to feel trapped. I can't see, I can barely move... That thing is blocking my weapon. The last thing I remember is that potion. That potion... Something clicked in her mind and she slowly moved into a guarded stance. "What the fuck did you give me...?" Her eyes glared hard at Reaper as she asked this, occasionally glancing to Edgar as he spoke. "'Fell into' your party? Like hell I did! I'm a solo player. What the fuck are you planning?!" They seemed strong enough, maybe it was a setup. Now that she was in their party, she was extremely vulnerable to them. This was bad. She could end up dead, if they wanted. Nobody would believe they were trying to kill her if she ran - not if she were in their party. Scarlet was exhausted and traumatized and frightened, she could only believe that they had mischief planned.

[BlackPanther]

@DestinyStar@Tracyarmav
Ikons opened his mouth to speak to Edgar when he finds it shutting again when Scarlet started speaking. His eyes widen as he realizes what she was implying he slowly lifts his hands. He snaps and Anubis stands walking away from the axe before laying down at the foot of the bed. He then focuses back on scarlet and with a flurry of motions opens up his inventory. He holds a potion in one hand and bandages in the other then holds them out in front of him. "A general healing potion....and these" He lifts up the bandages. "I make them" He then puts them back in his inventory. He takes a small breath and backs up a bit so that he can look at them both.

"You were severely injured, you managed to accept my party invite so I could" he gestures at her. "I don't have a strong enough potion for your eye....What I am finding is that in this particular game you can develop scars or major injuries that would remain...in game" He tilts his head. "Don't ask how I know....Dont worry though I didn't do anything to anyone else" He gives a small smile before lightly turning to edgar. "You passes out." He looks back at them both and exhales. "I used a loop hole. Basically...I tied scarlet to Anubis making the game think she was part of him...and I carried edgar...and used my teleportation crystal." He glances at Edgar. "You...are not light...at all" He shrugs. "I do not have any alternate plans....I will not harm either of you...and I hold no ill will" He shrugs again. "I play as i go" Slightly re thinking the choice of username...damn cool sounding name...oh I can make my character look cool with a cool username. This is why...no point in thinking of real life. Ikanus gestures to Anubis. "And that is Anubis...my Jackal...hes....hes a rare" that would give away him being a beta tester...no doubt.

[Tracyarmav]

Day 16, Midmorning
Edgar_Walther
@BlackPanther@DestinyStar

Edgar blinked at ... whatever her name was, he glanced over her head to read the name there, ScarletRain... oddly fitting, actually the whole thing was rather ironic. She was pissed because she decided to live up to her name, and because we happened to care enough to make sure she survived it. Oh, I passed out? Well isn't that embarrassing... Well of course I'm not light, I like my starches and proteins thank you very much. And I hadn't exactly planned on dropping, though I really should have paid more attention to the broker's warnings. I wasn't ready for the gorge yet, and there were plenty of other ore deposits that weren't guarded by mobs twice my level. I was rather amused by the whole thing, this woman, who had solo'd the gorge was terrified of a misfit that could barely take care of himself for all his helping others, and a beta tester that spent his time learning to better heal injured players... Edgar started chuckling, it boiled up into full blown laughter.

Edgar stepped over to the lady's ax, picked it up, and examined it, his laughter fading to a simple grin. Shaking his head, he spun the ax around his wrist, so that he was holding the head in his right hand, and offered the haft to ScarletRain, with a simple truth.

"If either of us intended to harm you... well, simply put we'd have done it by now or at the least taken the time to bind you. More over, you would not be in an inn, in a town, a safe zone where we really can't do more than throw threats at you anyway. Also, I'm pretty sure you can equip your gear again if you're missing it, it won't bother bandages but it does make applying them difficult. Last and least, your welcome ScarletRain for having at least one more day to enjoy here, however you see fit. I'm going downstairs for some breakfast, if you care to join me, I'll buy. It's the least I can do to repay you for ... well earlier. Which was an accident by the way, just or the record. Reaper thanks for getting us back here in one piece. Let me at lest buy you breakfast as recompense. And I'll see if I can't find something for Anubis in town today."

Having returned her ax, I walk over Anubis and squat down to pet him and scratch behind his ears a little, before standing and heading for the door. I open the door and walk out into and then down the hall to the stairs, my steady, heavy footfalls fading as I moved farther away from the room. I grab a small table with four chairs and order a hearty breakfast, and some coffee, despite the fact that it's well past time for breakfast. Sitting at the table, another thought occurs to me, and I disband the party, so that should they decided they'd rather not join me they're free to stay or go as they see fit. And if Reaper wants to go back out and finish what we started, he can just ask for a new invite, or send me one of his own, if that's his preference.

Then he sat quietly, staring at the center of the table, wondering how he'd ever explain any of this to his friends and family outside the game. Tom would ask how she felt, and I'd punch him, mostly playfully, and ignore the question as best I could while my cheeks burned. Willy would laugh and tell Tom to lay off, though part of him would want to know too. Though he'd ask about something else, like the food here. Sarah would roll her eyes and rant about boys not being able to behave themselves, as she always did when Tom tried something similar. Edgar, decided this might be best forgotten. Especially if the other two decided to cut their losses and seek their fortunes elsewhere, as would be prudent of them. Edgar didn't notice the tears until they were rolling down his cheeks, he quickly tried to wipe them away hoping no one had seen them, He hadn't realized just how much he missed everyone back home until today.

[DestinyStar]

ScarletRain
Day 17 - Morning - Lvl 15
@BlackPanther@Tracyarmav

Scarlet lowered her stance a bit as the masked man made the jackal move away from her weapon. She now had clear access to it, which made them feel like less of a threat to her. Her gaze flickered to the bandages and potions as they were shown, and then to the names listed under hers in the upper left-hand corner. So this guy must be Reaper... and the dog-thing is Anubis. I don't trust that name, but he seems to be more of a healer than anything, even if he looks like a threat... She tensed up once more as Edgar picked up her axe with ease. But this one is strong... strong enough to lift my weapon. They've got both speed and strength. I don't know if they realize how strong their party is, together...

She blushed a little, embarrassed by her reaction as Edgar handed the weapon back to her. They really had seemed like a threat, and she only barely woke up with very little memory of what had happened, before. What did he expect? His reaction seemed a bit harsh as he left the room, and she stubbornly decided not to apologize. After all, he had been the one to grope her while she was still unconscious! Something about him pisses me off... Realizing she was left alone with Reaper, she turned her attention back to him and relaxed, a bit. Although she didn't trust him entirely, he had more of a calming presence that made her feel at ease.

"Actually, I'm not sure I believe you," she stated plainly. "I don't mean to accuse you, but this all seems a little too... coincidental. Needing special potions to heal my eye - an injury that was caused BY the game? And random strangers risking their lives to help me? This isn't a game anymore, really, which means it must be reality. And things like that just don't happen in reality." With the biggest threats now gone, Scarlet felt okay to put the axe into her inventory. Then she blushed a little. "I... I-I need to change, so just... turn around, okay?" Reaper seemed to serious to be a pervert. Once he did as she said, she changed into her non-fighting outfit; it revealed more of the bandages around her stomach, shoulders, and arms than the battle armor did, but this was more comfortable. At least for now, she decided that it might be best to walk off some of the soreness and figure out what to do with her eye before going out to fight. After all, she couldn't go into battle with only half her vision; it practically took twice as long just to change clothes. Unless she focused greatly, a lot of things around her seemed fuzzy. It was extremely irritating.

Once she slipped on her boots, she sighed and headed to the door. However, she hesitated as soon as her hand touched the door handle. "Uhm... Thank you." She turned to look at him, a light blush on her cheeks. "Y'know... for helping me n' all. And I'm sorry I got suspicious. It's just hard to trust people in a game like this." Having now shown Reaper her vulnerable side twice, and feeling thoroughly embarrassed, she turned her bright-red face to the door. "S-So anyway... If you don't mind, I think I'll be joining you both for breakfast..."

Now back to her tough persona. Scarlet swung open the door with vigor and proceeded to stride straight forward, only to bump into the doorframe and hit her shoulder. She winced as her hand reached up to it, and blushed heavily as she kept walking. This was so frustrating to her, being so helpless here in front of these strangers. She had no doubt that she would probably cut her own arm off trying to use her axe in a battle, right now. Level 15? That meant horseshit if the game decided to fuck with your necessary physical abilities. Tears stung at her eyes as she walked down the hall to the dining area of the inn. Not only did she feel useless, but her pride was hurt a little. She didn't want to be indebted to these two... She wanted to escape into the fantasy world she used to know and love.

After stumbling a bit on the stairs, Scarlet made her way to the table Edgar had grabbed. She approached from behind, so it was easy to see as she got closer that he was crying. Ah, shit... Now she felt bad. He had saved her life, after all, or so she was told. If he really did fight off a monster for her, she shouldn't have treated him like she did. Quietly, she walked up to stand beside him, her cheeks bright red as she clenched her fists tight. "U-Uhm..." She stuttered, not sure what to say. This guy had gotten on her nerves, but she knew she had done wrong so she apologized as best she could. "It's... It's Scarlet." She corrected him in a determined manner, gazing straight into his eyes even though her own painful expression showed how much her pride was stinging. "Just Scarlet. And... Look, I'm sorry, okay?" Scarlet sighed and looked away from him as she rubbed the back of her head. "You don't have to buy me breakfast or nothin'. I just... just don't be upset, okay...? I can't stand it when men get upset..." She nervously glanced at him after that, as if to say, Please forgive me?

[BlackPanther]

@Tracyarmav@DestinyStar

Ikanus watches Edgar. His thoughts unknown...hidden within those blue eyes. He would most likely take him up on his offer....weirdly finding the entire oderal beneficial in finding these two. Thinking through it....they would make a good team. Even if he wanted to remain solo...he can't do everything solo. His focus goes fully on scarlet. Listening more then responding. Feeling that she needs to vent.

When asked to turn around he does so with no hesitation. Once she finished changing he slowly turns back around. He gives a nod. "A game that became something else...it's understandable for you to not trust me" he gives another nod. "Of course." He then watches as she bumps into the doorway. Wincing as she does it. Once he is alone he looks down at he pet. "What do you think? Think I found our dream team?" Anubis yawns. He shakes his head and opens his inventory. Getting out leather and other various things along with red dye he creates an eye patch. Once finished he leaves heading for the group, his cape back on.

Once there he silently sits at the table opens his inventory and places the eye patch at the edge for scarlet. It's stats are surprising for something so simple....showing his skill in leather is highly improved. He then barely glances at them as party invites pop up for scarlet and Edgar. He remains silent through this whole process...as if trying to be polite to the two talking. Reality he feels that his actions should be speaking loudly enough. That and he really doesn't want scarlet to leave like that just yet.

[Tracyarmav]

Day 16, Midmorning
Edgar_Walther
@BlackPanther@DestinyStar

"Balderdash, you saw that huh? Well if it's consolation I wasn't crying because of you. I just realized how far from home I feel here. I used to spend my days wishing I could live in a world like this, and just forget my world and all it's difficulties. And now that I can... I'm terrified by how little I remember of the friends and family waiting for me on the outside. Bah! Don't mine me, just the long night getting to me. Please, it would be an honor to share breakfast with the heroine who made through the gorge and back all by her lonesome. I only just arrived at Bull's Run early yesterday myself."

I nod and smile at Reaper as he take his seat, by way of greeting, without breaking the conversation. I accept the invite, glad to have found someone as eager to help others as myself, even if it was in his own way. My food arrives and I fall to devouring the food at rather rapid pace, some how never quite reaching an obscene pace. Part of me wondered if Scarlet would catch the hint that I wasn't supposed to be in the gorge yet, by level anyway, since I'd only just reached this town the day before. She'd figure it out soon enough, most of me replied all to eager to sate my ravenous hunger. As I finish my hearty plate, I find myself well sated and happily so. I sit back, leaning the chair back on it's two back legs, as a long belch escapes my gut. I cover my mouth, apologizing, but not really sorry so much as aware it that it wasn't socially acceptable behavior.

"Pardon, my that's good food though. Almost as good as... well, never mind that. Anyway, I think I learned my lesson, I'll get back to the Gorge when I'm better prepared to face it's challenges. So what would you two like to do today? I'll gladly help if I can."

[DestinyStar]

Scarlet
Day 17 - Morning - Lvl 15
@Tracyarmav@BlackPanther

Something about Edgar's reply irked her. Here she was, opening her heart to apologize to him, and he wanted to mock her like that? Sheesh... It's not like I wanted your damn backstory... Is what she wanted to stay. "It's not like you did much better..." She mumbled to herself before quietly sitting down. This guy really knew how to piss her off, and she hated it. Still, though, he had risked his life for her and she couldn't hate him for that. Scarlet decided to order a big breakfast for herself. She had quite a bit of money saved up from the monsters she fought, and honestly she was starving! The thought of food nearly distracted her until she saw Reaper place something on the table beside her. "Hmm?" She looked at the object, realizing immediately that it was an eye patch. Her cheeks flushed red with a bit of embarrassment as her gaze shifted to Reaper. It was a nice gesture and all, but her pride conflicted with her on this... She didn't want to get used to living life without her eyesight. She wanted to fix it and move on! In reality, though, her cloudy eye was getting a lot of looks from the people around her. And it did look pretty cool...

Deciding to accept the gift, Scarlet flashed Reaper a smile. "Did you just make this?" She asked. "Thank you... I was starting to feel a bit embarrassed by all the weird looks." She then proceeded to equip the item, only to notice its incredible stats. "W... Whoa..." She murmured, her eyes wide in surprise. I only came down a minute or two before him... He made something with these stats in that short of time? Her gaze connected with his again, in a sort of silent inquisition. It felt better to communicate with him, this way, and once she understood that these stats were put in intentionally she placed the eye patch over her eye. The feel of the leather against her face was cool and comfortable, and she immediately felt more at ease knowing her current weakness was hidden.

The party invite was the next thing to surprise her. They... want me back in their party...? She looked at both of them, unsure of what to say. "Y'know, this is... kinda sudden and all... and..." Her stomach churned a little. Scarlet had never done well with people. Once they realized how naturally closed-off she was from other people, they would usually leave her. The thought of joining a party that might abandon her, one day, did not appeal to her. Even so... things were getting tough. Obviously, she couldn't always do things on her own. If she continued on this way, she might end up in the same predicament she was in at the gorge. The thought of her grandfather popped into her mind, and something in her chest tightened. That damn old man will never let me hear the end of it for partying up with strangers... he might get pretty pissed off. She shook her head, brushing the thought from her mind. What do I care, anyway? The old geezer can rot in hell for all I care!

"I... I guess I wouldn't mind traveling with others for awhile. It's kind of boring on your own, anyway." With that, she pressed the 'Accept' key and gave them both a wide, wild grin. "Just know you're both stuck with me now, okay?!" The food arrived soon after and she began devouring it,, hungrily. Edgar's feasting hadn't bothered her at all earlier because, as they could see, she clearly had no manners herself. Unlike him, she didn't even apologize for it. She simply responded to is question with a full mouth, "Mhrmph mrmph hrmrphmrph!" Which was supposed to be something like, "Let's go kill something!

[BlackPanther]

@Tracyarmav@DestinyStar
Ikanus looks at the two and chuckles lightly as they scarf up the food. When he gets his he eats in a sort of trance, those watching him could tell he was eating non messily, but the movements were rapid. Once finished he sits back and studies the two of them. His eyes peering at them, as if figuring something out. He then taps his chin then grins. The grin is more terrifying then anything else he could have done...especially since they haven't seen him grin...most probably think he isn't capable.

"Scarlet, you need practice...Edgar..you need leveling." He clasps his hands together. "We can do a bit of grinding now....and night grinding" he looks at them both. "At night the monsters change...their stats their patterns everything....so that will give the most leveling...while day time will give scarlet practice" He tilts his head. "If that is okay with both of you that is...I won't let anything happen." That last part has him looking at scarlet.

He then pauses. He opens up his inventory and produces a bundle of bandages putting them in front of them. "The gorge should wait..." He seems to be completely thinking out loud. As if getting a group completely opened him up. Weird guy. "Or we could always do my routine" The way that sounds somehow makes it sound harder then what he just talked out. "This is just me talking out loud...you know....suggestions" he then looks down at his clasped hands...back to his normal quiet self. He almost seems embarrassed about his thoughts. good job...now they are going to leave...ideas are bad Beneath the mask he is blushing...the red on his cheeks from the embarrassment. His past taunting him even now.

[Zelosse]

-Indominus- -Smarter'n'me-
Day 16 -> 17 / Midnight / LVL 16

[HP]100% / / / / / / / / / /[]
[HP]100%//////////[]

Indominus puffed out his chest as his blood pressure rose, a twitch in his eye clearly telling his annoyance as he realized this woman was 200% bat shit crazy. He took the food he was offered angrily and sighed, his anger deflating as his shoulders sunk along with the rest of his body. To the dirty ground he sat next to his long time friend Smart and just shook his head. All the events leading up till now had been a cluster fuck of activity he had been unable to concentrate on his own feelings. Here he had power, not just combat prowess but the damn capability to move without some joint or the other screaming for his bone bag of a corpse to just crawl under the porch and die already. Smart was the same way, but both were too proud to admit it. How many years did they both have left.

"Somethings been bugging me. A lot. Not the fox girl, not Scarlet, not the game.. You. Said you weren't interested in this game, Dan. Suddenly we stumble on each other in the gorge? What made you change your mind."

Dom thought the reason he had come was the old fool had gotten bored.

Smart had been disappointed. Ah well, it looked like he couldn't speak the crazy dialect of the rat eater after all. It was a bad sign when she checked his temperature. The crazy one shouldn't be the one worried about his health. He took a bite.

Then again, with food like this, maybe she should be. His face froze for a moment. Yes, it tasted more like food. But food for what became the question. Still, he had eaten worse with a smile in his younger days. That had been a long time ago, though.

He took another, smaller, bite as Dim-Dom sat down and started trying to think. Things never went well when Dimitri spent too much time thinking. But, this time he managed to hit something that wasn't total B.S. That sucked. Now he could try to lie, badly, or try to tell the truth, also badly.

He chewed slowly.

"Well... I got bored customizing your beard and replacing your porn stash with skeleton-vore fetish magazines."

"Take this serious, Dan. Why are you really here?"

"Word gets around the net pretty quick these days, Dim. It didn't take more than an hour or two for the first deaths to be reported online. You always kept that indie news feed up on your desktop, ya know."

"So you hop into the deathtrap knowing full well its a DEATHTRAP?"

"Yup." Smart said, taking another bite. "Wouldn't you?"

".. In a second. Been friends too long I think, if we're both this willing to leap headlong into death. But I fear our time is still runnin' short. Our bodies in the real world were frail to begin with. What's going to happen now.. Are we one day just going to fall over and die in this world too? No warning?"
"And that's different from being out there, how?" Smart waved his chunk of meat in a vague indication of the real world. "It's not like we're good bets on the futures market."

"Do you not get the feeling that maybe, just maybe, we won't be one of those who make it to the end and not because we were awful. Every moment we live people are going to think 'it should have been them who died instead of my friend'." Dom had been an officer of the law in his younger days, eventually becoming chief of police for a few years before retiring after a knee injury ended his career.

"We don't belong here, Dan. But we are." His thoughts went to Scarlett and felt a pain in his chest, the fear that something had happened. What would her father say if she didn't make it and the old windsack did.

"The only person who belongs here is that Kayaba. Alleycat-hairball-sniffing-scat-of-a-catheter-moth that he is. This is his litterbox kingdom." Smart had been a lawyer, well paid too, and he was far from being willing to put the blame anywhere else but where it belonged. "There were ten thousand copies and several times that number of fans waiting in line to buy them. Would you feel better with two more teenagers in here, finding out how lucky they are?"

"You make a good point. Still.. Can't escape that feeling of time running out." He looked to the stars and lost himself to the view. Normally he wasn't so sentimental but something was eating away at him.
Probably the rock meat he had cooked..

"At least we've saved two already. You know what I did for a living. I'd like to save more than one kid, myself, before this is over. And, you know... I don't much care how it ends for me."

"Strange as it may sound, I feel the same. I get the feeling we're in for a lot of rude encounters with the snot-nosed little mouth breathers here to cause trouble. Pickin' on younger or weaker players for the laugh of it." A familiar grin took his face as he glanced at Danny. "You remember in college when we used to put on the masks and go pick fights? Well how we're on the other team this time around."

"Well, the other team has to win sometimes. The bookies gotta make their money." Dan said with a smirk as his eyes drifted up to look at the faintly visible tower of the dungeon. Somebody would have to punch their way through that thing. "Besides, I'm tired of backing the big shots."

"I know the feeling. I got tired of listening to the lies and bullshit, watching families destroyed and killers walk free. Seen enough of that world. Maybe this time we won't need the courts or people like me. We can make a place where people can just.. let that shit out. Get it over with. In a controlled way."

"Frag it. I'm tired of telling the lies and pulling the heartstrings of stupid jury members who couldn't tell an orphan apart from a circus clown without three graphs and two experts." He sighed. "Idiots who can't figure out their own cactus-blowing problems should have their wattles punched."

"So what say we make a place for them to do that? Find a nice place on some upper floor and create some kinda PvP zone. Folks come and get physical, and others intervene before it gets... final. Maybe structured duels or something. Or maybe we run around punchin' things and saving people. Maybe we don't die and become what we always thought we were. Free."

Smart rubbed his bearded chin in thought for a moment. "Could work." Already thinking of the possibility.

A sideways glance at Nena had Doms eye raise in question.

"Problem now is what do we do with her. Crazys fine and all but she's outright nuts. Take her back to town or keep goin'? I was aimin' for the gemstone pillars abotu a days travel ahead. Take her with us?"

"Problems for the morning, Constable. For now, let's focus on sleep."

Before Dom could even think of sleeping he opened up the private messages, scrolling through his list of people to reach Scarletrain. A few swishes of his fingers and a message was off across the cosmos to his grandaughter, who he hoped was ok.

HOPE YOU'RE SAFE AND WARM TONIGHT, KIDDO.
WE PICKED UP A CRAZY FOX LADY AFTER YOU LEFT.
FOOD IS PASSABLE. DIGESTION-WISE.
DON'T HESITATE TO ASK FOR HELP.

Both of them shrugged, glanced at Nena staring at the fire, and layed down on their individual bedrolls. Dom had only laid there for a few minutes before that vague sense of chivalry got the better of him.

"Listen, whatever your name is, it's gonna get cold. You want my bedroll or do you wanna share." If she asked for the bedroll he would give it to her. His armor was thick and there was a spare blanket.

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

-Delcastle-
-Afternoon / day 17 / LvL 12-

Delcastle slumbered peacefully throughout the morning, a rare event for the ever driven leader of World Walkers. Even on the lower floors he could not risk falling too far behind or they would all be in a lot of trouble. Others were already starting to form up farming groups for the sake of currency and security as Del had done with his brother Bulwar.
Groaning, Delcastle rose up from the bed and rubbed his eyes with a tired yawn, stretching muscles gone stiff from the night on the floor with Cinera.
The events of the night flshed by him as he looked around the room, noticing Cinera asleep on the other bed with Sappira comfortably sharing the small space. His heart was warm at how caring this girl was to everyone she came across, but the moment was stolen from him the moment his eyes saw the scarred ear again. Players had done that. Cinera was clearly struggling with the concept that people could be so cruel with a persons life on the line.

Delcastle walked quietly to the door and left the room, closing the door softly behind him, as he made for the streets. Hunger and exhaustion not slowing him in the slightest as he made progress through the streets, finding every vendor he could and making custom order after order. The opportunity to welcome his target from day one was so close at hand he could practically taste it. Even if she did not join him, the girl might just be indebted to World Walkers for helping her.

About a half hour after he had left he found himself in traders square with the trading merchants hawking wares left and right. A quick PM was rattled off to Tailpin when a courier arrived with the samples of materia that had been sent Delcastles way. Stowing those away for later he noticed the unread PM and smirked as he read it over.

"So you found the trail too eh. Good to know you've a sharp eye at dusk or dawn."

Delcastle replied,
PERSON INJURED WAS A SHOPKEEPER
FOX GIRL. MYSELF AND CINERA DISCOVERED HER AT TOWN SQUARE
TOOK HER TO INN FOR REST, THIRD DOOR ON THE LEFT
DISFIGUREMENT OF THE EAR, ATTEMPTED MURDER
BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR ANY INFORMATION ON A GUILD CALLED
GLITCH FIXERS
I WILL PAY ANY PRICE FOR INFORMATION
CURRENTLY IN TRADERS LANE

The PM was sent off with a soft ping noise.

Decastle bought a new set of cloth armor from a tailor in the square. He was not sure if Sapphira preferred a skirt or actual pants so decided to get both and spare himself the trouble. The armor he had purchased was a level 10 set, a simple affair that had been closer to what Sapphira had worn the first time he had seen her weeks ago. The only addition was a long cloak with a hood that he prayed would not be.. offensive to her.

[Tracyarmav]

Day 16, Midmorning
Edgar_Walther: Lvl 9
@BlackPanther@DestinyStar

But I'm not teasing... oh blast it all, I never could talk straight anyways, unless it was straight past the person I wanted to speak with. Figures, she seems to like Reaper well enough though, we'll let him do the talking thing then. Maybe if we pay attention we can get a few good pointers. I really wasn't trying to antagonize the girl, and wonder if I should compliment the eye patch, would it be to soon or would she welcome it as confirmation that they were trying to look out for her. Hell's bells, she already doesn't like me so there's not much to lose, I might as well try it. First I'll answer Reaper though.

"Yeah, I know. I spent to much time on my crafting, and not enough getting stronger. You wear that eye patch very well Scarlet. I'd probably just look like a dolt. Anyway, training it is then. Where should we start Reaper?"

Edgar drank his tankard of fresh milk, it was odd being warm and all, but it seemed to taste better than the store bought stuff, so he didn't mind much. He had hoped to be able to get some more work done on his smithing level, but he did really need to catch up in character levels. Maybe the snake Islands would have enough fun mobs without requiring Reaper and Scarlet to babysit him the whole time... On second thoughts, that's what I was saying about the gorge last night. Edgar decided he'd let Reaper and Scarlet pick the destination, he'd just tag along and be as helpful as he could. Which would mean being super cautious so Reaper could focus on keeping an eye on Captain Scarlet. Edgar smiled at that thought, she might like that nick name... nah, with his luck she'd just end up kicking him in the shin for trying to hit on her or something.

[KabenSaal]

Nena listened to her minions getting all morbid, and felt like hitting them and decrying their morbid tones. But, eventually, she decided against it, the meat needed watching after all, or it would sprout legs and become a Boss Monster several floors higher than they could manage. But, as she listened to her minions, she heard they had pretty good ideas, with the dueling and the helping at the not-dyingness. it was a nice thing to hear. She might even help them, when the meat was all eaten. It was a strange mob, one that was defeated by teeth rather than fist, and didn't give anything for actually beating it. Eventually, however, Minion A and Minion B stopped talking, and Minion A did something with his hand. Nena curiously copied him, and found a floating screen of shiny.
"Ohh..." she exclaimed, before hitting a few buttons to see what they did, and it came up with a message box. She had vague recollections of a week before, when she met a cute, ambitious fox girl. So, feeling nice and warm, she started to send her a heart-touching message about her adventures in the gorge up unto the point of getting minions, then she sent it. Maybe the girl was part of a large shop chain, and really super famous and rich like.

Then her Minion offered his bedroll, which was a clear minion mistake, but she didn't rib him, he was new, after all.
"It's only cold if you feel it, Minion. So you can have your minion rolls, I shall punch cold in the face, and laugh as it stares, slightly offended that I hit it for no clear reason"

[Haeo]

@Zelosse
Tailpin
Lvl 11/Day 17/Afternoon
[HP]100%//////////[]

After a leisurely breakfast and a couple hours of patient waiting it became clear to Tailpin that he wouldn't be making any progress just waiting around. He left the inn and began looking for any faint signs of persistent trails or tracks in town. Ultimately, he found none. But, even in real life, there wouldn't be many tracks left on dry cobblestones by dry boots. Besides, it might be something triggered by a skill. Other games had bleeding mechanics that only meant a little extra damage over time. This could be a version that makes it useful for enemies that run away. Maybe there would be game animals that you had to wound and track before you finished them off. He didn't know. For now, he headed outside town and started really watching what signs monsters left behind as they passed. There weren't any. It looked like the game wasn't that realistic. Either that or that feature only became available at higher floors or levels.

He was surrounded by gently blowing grass at the top of a low rise when a ping finally arrived to tell him Delcastle's message had arrived. He pulled up the menu and read the message. Then he read it again. It could be her. She hadn't been very pleasant when they had first met, but if it had been Sapphira... He found inside himself a low flame of wrath that slowly stirred. He had no patience for traitors to their fellow players. Tailpin would remember that name, Glitch Fixers. It seemed that he might find out whether or not he could kill someone before this was all over. Still, for now, he had all the more reason to find ways to track prey.

His reply was brief and cold.

DELCASTLE,
ACKNOWLEDGED.
TESTING CURRENT ACCESSIBILITY OF TRACKING SKILL FOR NEW PREY.

A soft ping was a suitable send-off for the message.

Tailpin stood up from his crouched position and swept his gaze as far as he could in every direction. People in guilds would be unlikely to move alone. For now, he would keep an eye on the groups of players in the field and focus on tracking players. But, World Walkers might have to move on quickly. He would keep himself ready, on-call for when any need should arise.

-------------------------------
@KabenSaal
Smarter'n'me
Lvl 15/Day 16 > 17/Midnight
[HP]100%//////////[]

"Just let her beat up the cold, Dom." Smart said tiredly. "Maybe it'll leave us alone then." He sighed and rolled onto his side, facing away from the fire. "Either that or she'll be a proper vet, cold hands and all."

It had been a very long day. Even with a digital body, he was still too old to be keeping crazy hours after running and fighting and who knows what else. They would probably be taking the cute-as-a-batty-belfry girl along for their next adventure in the morning. Dom was pulling his old good-cop routine, letting his honor streak show. That meant that things would be interesting, but less fun, from here on out. Hopefully the dutiful goof would kick this mood of his by morning. Hopefully, he'd think that Smart had been lying about the mags and beard stuff.

"I'll keep to my minion roll. Maybe it'll keep the stones from migrating to my kidneys."

That was all he intended to say before falling asleep. And so, he began to serenade his two companions with his nightly rendition of "how to saw rocks in two with only your nose". It was a personal specialty that he could only achieve while asleep. Dom was intimately familiar with it by now. As for the rat-girl, she might have a problem sleeping.

[Ookawa]

A while later, Sapphira awoke. Slowly she noticed things around her again, including the presence of something heavy on her chest. A "Cute..." escaped her lips seeing the face of the sleeping Cinera on her chest. It made her forget all her troubles for now.
Watching her sleep like that reminded her of her real life troubles finding a girlfriend and her nightly dreams of her school crush sleeping on her chest just like Cinera was doing right now. Thinking back to her crush made blood rush to her face in embarrassment.
Hastily she tried to calm herself down to not wake Cinera up, which she had already failed at without actually noticing herself.

Luckily the quiet *boop* of a message arriving bashed her out of her out-of-control thoughts before immediately throwing her back in after dismissing Nena's message as spam.
'What the heck is wrong with meee!'
For somebody watching Sapphira's face, a pretty interesting facial cinema played out of blushing, then panicking, then blushing again.

[DestinyStar]

Cinera
Day 17 - Afternoon - Lvl 13
@Zelosse@PyroDash888

Cinera gently awoke to the sun shining through the curtains of the window. For some reason, she had felt restless in the night, and although she had started the evening next to Delcastle (the thought of which brought a faint redness to her cheeks), she had wound up too worried to leave Sapphira too far from her. So she crawled into the bed during the morning and held her close, hoping and praying that everything would work itself out.

Groaning a bit from the exhaustion, she rubbed her eyes and glanced around. Her gaze darted to where Delcastle had been sleeping and, much like what she expected, he was already awake and gone. Probably off to do some sort of business. He never seemed to want to rest, and it really worried Cinera at times. Her chest ached to think that he may have only slept a few hours that morning. What time was it, anyway? Wearily, she lifted herself up to get a better view of her surroundings, only to feel something soft beneath her grip. "Hmm?" Slowly, her gaze traced down her arm to see what she had a hold of, only for her face to turn crimson red at the sight. Quickly, she drew her hand back, only to fall off of the bed, clumsily. "Ouch..."

Wincing, she sat up again and looked at Sapphira, embarrassed. "U-Uhm... Good morning... or, afternoon..." She glanced at the window. Definitely afternoon. Cinera picked herself up and brushed away the dirt before sitting back on the edge of the bed, trying not to think about how she had just groped her injured friend. "How... How are you feeling...?" She looked up at her friend's equally-embarrassed expression (though she didn't realize it was also from something else) and gave the best smile she could.

---

ScarletRain
Day 17 - Morning - Lvl 15
@Zelosse@BlackPanther@Tracyarmav

Scarlet gulped down another huge bite of food before washing it down with a tall glass of cold milk. Hey, she might be stubborn but she was still a child, after all! Her food had caught so much of her attention, though, that she hadn't initially noticed Reaper's creepy smile. The sight of it made her spine tingle, and she froze a bit. He... might take some getting used to, after all... She slowly continued with her meal, now much more slowly.

At the mention of her needing practice, she crossed her arms defiantly. "Mrhmph hrmrmrph hrmphrmphr!" Her mouth was once again full as she replied, "I don't need practice!" She then swallowed as she continued, "I made it all the way to the back of that gorge by myself! I'm sure I could have taken on that dungeon if I hadn't run into that stupid wall!" Now finished with her meal, she dropped her napkin and stood up, hands pressed firmly on the table. "I think our stats pair well together, anyway. We make a strong team! Let's just go take care of the gorge! We could be the first ones to beat it! Besides..." She brought her hand slowly to her face, tracing the eye patch. "I heard a rumor, before... I didn't pay much attention when I heard it, but someone said that the reward can heal physical imperfections, not only here but in the real world! What if my blindness goes into real life, too? I need to get that reward before anyone else does...!"

After all, it might be a rare item. What if it was only one and it didn't respawn? Scarlet wasn't even sure if it would heal her blindness, but she wanted to take a chance. The vision issues were going to make surviving in this game difficult, and she wasn't the type to rely on party members. Together, with her disability, she felt they could defeat the dungeon. But if she had her full vision, she could take it all on by herself. "You just said you won't let anything happen to us, right Reaper? And you're both more powerful than you look... Let's just take a shot!" A sparkle shown in her eyes as she sat down, eager to go do something. Sitting around and planning with a group was something she was unaccustomed to. Even so, something about Reaper's gaze as he spoke about protecting them made her heart warm. Being in a party may not be all bad...

When Edgar spoke, she listened and then responded plainly, "Well of course you would. Your eyes aren't injured." She was always one to speak her mind, and with Edgar it was oddly relieving. More like venting, but she felt like she could say anything to him. It was almost a little fun to try and irritate him. If there were ever a party for her, this was the perfect one - a great balance of reliable and enjoyable. Things could be interesting, traveling with these two!

As they debated, Scarlet opened a menu to check her axe's repair stats, only to see an unread PM from the previous evening. Grandpa... It was weird. The message had been sent around the time of her accident, and that had been when she'd called out for his help. Even when he wasn't nearby, he seemed to be always watching over her and there when she needed him... If she were to call out to him, he would help. Even if it meant helping them get into the gorge. But why would I want to spend time with that tired, old fart...? Even at this thought, her eyes reflected the deep pain she felt growing in her chest. It was warm, and sad, and before she knew it she was tearing up a little.

Huh? I'm not alone, anymore... at least not right now. So why... why is this feeling back...? Slowly, her hand reached up to open the reply box. Something in her wanted to communicate with him, to open up about all of her fears and pain and just cry to her Grandpappi like she used to. Then everything would be okay. He would make everything okay... right...? Her heart feared that he wasn't that same grandpa anymore, though, so in her stubbornness she only managed this message:

WHY DO YOU KEEP MESSAGING ME AT NIGHT?
IT'S ANNOYING.
I'M FINE.
I JOINED A PARTY WITH TWO OTHER GUYS...
WEIRD, RIGHT?
THEY SAVED MY LIFE LAST NIGHT,
SO DON'T KICK THEIR ASSES TOO HARD.
'KAY?

After a bit of though, Scarlet sent out another PM to her grandfather.

BY THE WAY...
I KINDA HAD AN ACCIDENT.
YOU MIGHT NOTICE I LOOK A LITTLE DIFFERENT...
I MIGHT... NEED YOUR HELP...
MAYBE. I DUNNO.
IT'S NOT LIKE I'M SCARED OR ANYTHING...
SO YEAH. BYE.

After all, he should at least know what had happened so that he didn't freak out when he saw her next. Though he probably will, anyway...

[Zelosse]

-Indominus-
Day 17 / Afternoon / LVL 16

[]HP[]100%//////////[]

Dom woke with to the harsh glare of the digital sun and the feeling of being cooked in his bedroll like a wrapped sausage, having thrown it off entirely in the middle of the night and simply enjoyed the cold weather. His leather armor had not been removed for decency sake, and because he wasn't sure how well it would work if a wandering mob found him tangled up and completely unprotected. Still.. Not much you could do about that at this point in time besides live with it. His groan turned to a sharp hiss as he placed both hands on the back of his hips and stretched until a loud SNAP ushered from his lower back. Hunched over he rubbed the sore spot with a groan and stumbled weakly off behind a bush and did his.. business.
Digital body he may have, but it was still a body and he was still damn old! Every morning like clockwork! A small bottle of water appeared from his inventory, which he promptly splashed a bit of it on his hands before pouring a tiny bit on his face. The cold water in the breeze woke him like a cup of coffee usually did. The rush of the nights events flowed through his mind like molasses uphill as his brain tried to remember what had happened. Glancing back to the small camp quickly revealed the truth of his day. Dan was there, snoring like a chainsaw striking rocks, and the fox-girl.. was not visible?

"Maybe she wandered off. Just my luck.."

Dom struck up his inventory and pulled up a piece of 'fresh bread', one of the few he had left that had not been consumed already, and munched on the plain fare in silence. If you could consider it that way, with the hellish torment escaping the nasal passages of Dans nose. Dom ate as he made his way to the sleeping form of Smarter'n'me with a raised eyebrow and a mouth full of food, hands in pockets and stood atop the slumbering form of his roommate and long time friend. With an unapologetic shrug, Imdominus lifted his leg back and kicked Dan in the jaw as hard as he could, knocking him a few feet away in a pile of tangled sheets and flying dust.

"THAT'S FOR BEDAZZLIN' MY BEARD YOU FICKLE PONCE!"

A grumble escaped him as attentions returned to his message box, a single unread PM from Scarlet. A smile crossed his usually dour face expecting good news of monsters slain and confirmation that the girl was in her usual high spirits, even if they tended to be a stormcloud kind of high spirit.
Doms hand clenched so hard the knuckles turned white as his eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.
Exploding into motion he frantically began packing up his camp, hastily tying up the bedroll and returning it to his inventory and dropping the bread to the ground forgotten and trampled by his anxious feet. Dom grabbed Smarts collar and hoisted him up one handed screaming in his face.

"STOP CLOWNING AROUND! SCARLET SLEPT IN A ROOM WITH A COUPLE OF BOYS! YOU GET YOUR PINK AND PRISSY ARSE UP AND READY NOW. THEY ARE IN FOR A WORLD OF HURT!"

Now there was no way of him knowing that Scarlet had actually spent the night with the two mysterious fellows. Or if they had done anything. Or if they were mature gentlemen or perverted scumbags. Or if Scarlet had been adventurous and desired the outcome that could develop from such a situation. But all these thoughts were a freight train of emotion and rage.
His fingers flew across the letters as he wrote a reply.

SAVED YOUR LIFE?!
WHAT HAPPENED
WHAT DO YOU NEED HELP WITH
DAN AND ME ARE ON OUR WAY
IF I FIND OUT THEY TOUCHED YOU
TELL THEM TO RUN. FAST.

Accident.. Look different.. Either that meant a new outfit of some kind or the girl had suffered a severe injury. Logic dictated that she was fine, she had sent him a message right? but she was explicitly asking for help. After the gongshow of the night before.

"I'm going for Scarlet. You in? Course you are. You find the Fox maid you send 'er on her way."

Indominus took out his teleportation crystal and waited for his friend to be ready.

[BlackPanther]

@DestinyStar@Tracyarmav
Ikanus nods to edgar before looking up at scarlet. He shakes his head. "Edgar isn't high enough yet...and you aren't used to fighting with one eye." He looks between them. "I can handle making sure one person doesnt get too injured, but two...I can do it but it'll take a lot more from me" He shakes his head again. "Scarlet...You are a high level and no doubt a good fighter but with that injury you'll need to learn how to fight differently" He looks up at her. "Give me two days and I can promise you you will be able to fight better...and edgar will gain at least two levels" If they agreed he knows exactly where to take them. A spot he used for heavy grinding to get skins. A place that will probably cause them to not like him as much but it'll be good for them. After all, he won't let anything happen and this place makes it easier then the gorge. That and theres a trick for this place that is both fun to do and rather terrifying when done.

"Please...scarlet" His eyes hold the plead, being wide blue puppy dog eyes now. If nothing else...he could refuse and help out edgar first. But that is his last resort and something he doesnt want to do. He saw her type out a message and briefly wondered who it could be to, but dismisses it. It isn't any of his business. What is is trying to get these two into better fighting shape so they can all handle the gorge easily.

[KabenSaal]

Nena had done well, punching the cold. At least, she thought so, but part way through the night she got bored and wandered off. Sleep had knives in it, and she didn't want to get stabbed after all. Plus, she needed more meat for the minions, and a few more reagents for her metal thingie that she hit with a hammer and made stuff. She stayed close-ish to the camp, and made sure to have healing potions so she wouldn't be in risk, and didn't really chase monsters done. Just wandered and killed what was in her path. Then, the sun rose and she decided to get back to her minions, which were not to far away.

As she got there, one of her minions was a flurry of activity, even having a vanishing crystal like those balless bastards that abandoned her here had.
"Minion! Do you not want to stay for breakfast at least? I don't have one of them stone things so I need one of them stone things if you are going to be going without breakfast!" she exclaimed, smiling and sending another message to her fox friend as she waited for a reply.

'MINION SEEDS ARE GO! DO NOT MOVE FROM THE OSTRICH'

[Haeo]

Smarter'n'me
Lvl 15/Day 17/Morning
[HP]98%/////////[]

Smart was dreaming of flying beetles that carried broccoli on their backs. It was a frustrating dream. They kept dodging his jello shots and calling him many, many, bad names. Even his dreams were full of bad jokes and long streams of insults. Then the dream ended with a sudden sense that he was no longer comfortable.

He opened his eyes. He wiggled his jaw. He twitched his fingers. Then he disentangled himself from his bedding and started trying to figure out why he was a notable distance from where he had gone to sleep. Also, why Dom-initrix was freaking out like a teenager who just got dumped five minutes before the prom. He heard what his friend screamed but it took a good couple minutes of him standing and blinking before it processed into something comprehensible.

His eyes narrowed and a few swift motions put his gear back into his inventory.

There were asses to kick.

And just then, as he was pulling out a teleport crystal, the belfry girl came back from... whatever thing she had been doing and started trying to stall them, get breakfast, or beg a crystal off of them. Smart was tempted to just use his crystal and let Dom catch up. But, the fox was cute.

"Here, Belfry." He said, tossing the crystal to her coining a nickname for her and pulling out another crystal. "We can get breakfast in Bull's Run. You know the magic words? If not, pay attention." He looked at Dom. His eyes said it all. The wretches wouldn't be able to run fast enough. Of course, he trusted Dom's word on this matter. It didn't matter that the girl and he had fought so recently. She was next to family as far as Smart was concerned.

"Teleport. Bull's Run." He said clearly, in a cold voice, and vanished.
--------------------
Moments later, in Bull's Run Central Square
--------------------

Smart appeared in a brief glow. Teleporting back to town at this point was a very rare thing due to the expense of the crystals so he attracted quite a few looks. The grim expression on his face soon turned them away. Nobody wanted to mess with a grumpy old guy in snake tights. Too many kinds of wrong for most people.

@Zelosse@KabenSaal

[Tracyarmav]

Day 16, Midmorning
Edgar_Walther: lvl 9
@BlackPanther@DestinyStar

Edgar smiled at Scarlet's outburst of eagerness and fearlessness. And her response to his little rambling comment. He looked to Reaper though for his response, and nodded with a little relief, when he politely refused. Edgar had survived yesterday, but only barely, and he was very well aware that his "duel" with the guard had been won mostly by sheer luck. He certainly wasn't eager to make any more withdrawals from that account anytime soon. Lady luck could be fickle, but she absolutely despised those who tried to use her for a crutch. Or at least that has been Edgar's experience. He wondered ... would ... well, never mind that, there would be time for that later.

"He's right, I only just reached my ninth level yesterday. I can repair most weapons and all armor straight through level 20 though. I can make most heavy and medium armor for players straight through the 20th level too. I guess I should take some time to make myself better gear this morning, since I leveled twice yesterday, and will soon be at least two levels higher, if Reaper is right, and he hasn't been wrong yet. While I'm at it, is there anything I can make for either of you, as payment for your helping me level safely and quickly?"

I address Scarlet, knowing she'd be the one who needed convincing. While I talk I fidget nervously, my hands balling and un-balling my cloth napkin in my lap. I wasn't used to being on the receiving end of so much help. I had, after all, been spending all my time up till yesterday helping other players as best I could. Last night had been nice, because I'd managed to be helpful again, after spending a day being pampered and kept alive, entirely by the will of another player. And now two players easily twice my level, would be wasting time helping me catch up. Scarlet would learn better fighting things closer to her level, not the weaklings I had trouble dealing with. Hopefully I would at least be able to make something for them to compensate them for their time.

[Ookawa]

"Gya!", Sapphira exclaimed as the careless Cinera's hands squished her chest. "Ya can snuggle there, but no touchy, yet!", she mumbled quietly. It was quite embarrassing thinking about trying to get a girlfriend and then being, involuntarily, grabbed by the breasts.

Quickly she gathered herself and sat up while Cinera got back up onto her bed sitting on the edge of said bed.
Uhm... I think... I think I'm okay. It's still... a little itchy... but the pain is more or less gone... What are we going to do... for the rest of the day?" She smiled back, but at the same time, she started to roll in negative thoughts.

'I'm so stupid... I actually started to think I might have a crush on her... just a fever dream. She's probably not into girls anyway.' She stopped her train of thoughts slightly as she analysed the situation she remembered when waking up after collapsing the first time.
'Wait... she was really buddy buddy with that dude... Oooohhh' A smirk sneaked onto her face. 'She seems to fancy that... Delcastle, was it? Ahhhhh, young love... wait... that includes me...'

An actual physical facepalm later, she smiled sheepishly at Cinera hoping she couldn't read thoughts.