[IC] Side Quest - Sword Art Online

[Zelosse]

@PyroDash888

Delcastle happily accepted the trade to the fox girl. Giving up a single set of armor was a small price to pay for the potential gains. A fox player merchant? Fanboys would flood her shop, and serious players would do the same if what she sold was quality gear. Him and Bulwar alone, with the right incentive, could easily stay with the level cap per area to farm materials for crafting. The problem was they needed someone selling what they made and that was just time lost if one of them stopped the farming to do it.

Almost at once he felt those plans crumble a bit. Another fox person! In a maid costume?! Despite the obvious eroticism of the situation, Delcaatle barely hid his disdain. He couldn't be sure if it was the newcomer touching the tail, as he desperately wanted to, or the hassle of getting what he wanted delayed over and over.
His sigh was heavy and heartfelt, his sudden annoyance showing. "I can get you materials and armor in quick time. I'm part of a strict resource gathering team.." He flicked open the screen and sent the shopkeeper a friend request, an attached message (market gatherer) "when you're ready to do business give me a shout." He gave a shallow bow and walked away without another word.
If the fox girl wasn't interested he would find someone else.
He always did.

[LadyTale]

"I would if I could, but I can't, so I shan't." Kip answered, shrugging. "It's good cider, though." She took another gulp. "All the same, curse whoever thought it was a good idea to make the NPCs incapable of selling alcohol to minors. I think I could really use a drink." Frowning, she rested one elbow on the table and placed her chin in her hand. "Not that I would know, really." She muttered.

[Sif]

@LadyTale @pockets

Bulwar saw the girl jot something down in a journal, then putting it away with a sigh. Hmm.. lost someone, perhaps? He slid his chair back when the two ales were brought over to him; picking them both up and walking over to the table with the girl and her companion, offering them both a drink. "You two new to bulls run? Me and my brother know most of the regulars in town." He sat down at their table with a grin. "Name's Bulwar, how about the two of you?"

[LadyTale]

"Kip Omega." Finishing her second tankard of cider, she offered her hand to the newcomer. "Nice to meet you, and yeah, we're new." She really would rather be left alone right now, but that likely wouldn't be healthy. Don't spend your days mourning the dead until you join them; live for them until your time comes. That was a saying Kip had heard somewhere. For some reason, it had stuck in her head. With that in mind, she accepted the mug from Bulwar and took a cautious sip. To hell with age restrictions. For the first time, someone she knew had died. The law could go hang for all she cared.

[Tracyarmav]

Cin wandered the market a little more, and found himself looking for a higher level halberd, not that he could use one much higher than he had right now, but he wanted to know how much it would cost him. He noticed there were none to be had in any of the vendors, it seemed the more exotic weapons had to be player made past the first ten levels.... Well, it would give him something to do I suppose, and it might enhance his value to any future guilds. He remembered that there was a foxy girl with a wagon in the group he'd seen earlier that day. He wondered if she'd have any higher level Halberds.

It didn't take Cin long to find the girl... except there was another, and this one in a maid's outfit... Cin pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Well, this was a virtual reality, as real as it was, so oddities were to be expected. He considered finding the girl again tomorrow, since she was already dealing with two... well, one customer and one... "admirer" that's the word we'll use. But then the customer seemed to complete his business with the girls, and Cin decided to at least try and find the answer to his question tonight.

He approached the two and bowed slightly to Sapphira, indicating his interest in doing business, and waited for her to respond at her leisure. He doubted she was fond of being frisked, even by another foxy like herself, and was prepared to wait for her to sort the social blunder out to her satisfaction, before seeing to his request. Cin nodded and smiled briefly at Nentalev, so as not to be rude, but then turned his attention back to Sapphira's cart until she had the time and desire to service him.

@PyroDash888@KabenSaal

[Zelosse]

@Sif@LadyTale@pockets

Delcastle strolled through the town with purpose, hitting a few more player merchant stalls that had cropped up in search of materials to make his brother a new shield. Bulwar was the backbone of the operation, an unbeatable wall that championed the needs of both brothers. Delcastle made sure he was always the first one looked after when it came to items, food, gold. As a soft damage character he was the most likely to die if something went wrong.. Delcastle wanted his brother taken care of when if it happened. A laugh escaped his lips at the thought of his death.
Him die? Nonsense. The brothers never tempted fate with stupid antics. They lived comfortably and warmly. They appreciated hard work and just rewards. They wouldn't risk each other for something as foolish as money.

It wasn't long before he gave up the search for materials and made his way back to the Inn, swinging the door open with a soft groan as he scanned the crowd for Bulwar, but didn't see his burly brother sitting down alone somewhere as he had assumed. He did a double take and found him sitting with a few others and smiled. Never the shy one.
Delcastle gave a whistle and a wave before coming over. As usual, he was polite and inviting. "Friends already? you surprise me again." He crossed his hands behind his back and gave a deep bow to the pair before taking his seat beside his kin. "Apologies if I am intruding," a waitress slid a steak in front of him along with an ale, Bulwars doing obviously, to which he promptly passed the ale to Bulwar. "Name's Delcastle. Big guy here is my younger brother." Delcastle sat quietly and absorbed the atmosphere, youthful optimism and a hint of general dread. The steak tasted overcooked but wasn't unpleasant.
As the group talked, he brought up the menu and quickly sent Bulwar a private message.

FOUND A SHOPKEEPER I THINK. FOX GIRL OR SOMETHING.
WE MIGHT BE IN BUSINESS SOONER THAN WE THOUGHT.
IF NOT, I'LL KEEP LOOKING. PARTY WITH THESE TWO?

Delcastle smiled as he ate and waited for a break in the conversation to get involved a little more.

[Sif]

@zelosse @LadyTale @pockets

Bulwar shook Kip's hand with a smile. "The pleasure is all mine." He said, looking over at the door as it rang open to see his brother walk in and sit down almost simultaneously with the food being brought over. He took a moment to take a bite or two and assess the flavour. Could have been seasoned a bit better and cooked a little less, but what can you do in a public inn. He knew she wouldn't really want to talk about it, but he was somewhat accustomed to trying to help people that were going through loss in this game. "Pardon my bluntness, but you seem to have a dourness to you that's all-to-familiar nowadays in this game. Did you lose someone close?" He asked in a gentle tone, not wanting to offend the girl.

While talking he got the ding of a private message and pulled the menu up under the table and quickly scanned the message from Delcastle before shooting back a reply.

WHAT KIND OF QUALITIES DOES SHE HAVE? IS SHE EXPERIENCED?
ANY RL SALES OR OTHERWISE WORK? I'LL HAVE TO MEET HER FIRST TO BE SURE.
AND THESE TWO SEEM ALRIGHT SO FAR, BUT LET'S KEEP THEM TALKING.

[Ookawa]

God, Sapphira was so popular, so much so even, that she started to lose focus. Slowly she shook her head as she checked what she had received from the trade and then moved her attention towards Ken, the player she had saved with her shield from the bear a few hours ago.
"Well, I planned to move us all to the inn. I basically pretty got gifted enough money to house basically all of us and more for the night."
She shrugged. "I think that's gonna be all for the day... kya!"
Suddenly, out of the blue, Sapphira's tail was grabbed and hugged. At that, she had to squeal in surprise and she turned to face her assailant.
Yet another surprise awaited her there, though, as Sapphira could finally see the girl, who had grabbed her precious new tail. It was a fox-girl too...
"What... how...? Why do you have a tail, too? That all makes even less sense now..." Then she grunted in annoyance. "Could you please let go of my tail..."

[pockets]

Mai'lo looked up from his tankard as a second was placed in front of him and he pushed the empty scabbard aside to make room for their guests and additional plateware and mugs.

He briefly considered getting something to eat but decided against it and instead accepted the mug of ale with a nod of thanks and took a deep drink.

"How've you two been holding up?" He asked of Bulwar. "It hasn't even been a day in here yet and we've already seen a death."

[LadyTale]

"Not that close... I'd just met him." Kip shrugged and took a larger sip of the ale that she had been given. "It's just, no one I've known has ever died. And I was too busy looking after myself to help him." Her words ended with a bitter tone; it was fairly evident she blamed herself.

[DestinyStar]

Cinera was still unable to find any good weapons in this town, so she decided to simply buy a few health potions to keep with her for battles - they were going to become a scarce item in this town, very soon (considering the impending doom that came with letting your HP hit zero). With that being done, she began her hunt for food that she could bring back to the group. A local tavern had the cheapest (edible) bread, so she thought that she would just buy as much as she could and bring it back to the group. They didn't need to eat like kings, they just needed to survive... and everyone was probably running pretty low on funds, this early in the game. That was the only useful thing she had gotten out of being a beta-tester: She knew where all of the good hunting spots were.

The tavern was bleak and quiet, save for a couple people. Many of the players had yet to reach this town, and she doubted they would before morning, with it being so dark outside. As she walked into the tavern, Cinera took down her hood and shook out her long, bright orange hair. The NPC took the small pouch of coins she had and in return gave her 12 loaves of hot, fresh bread. That should be more than enough, right? So far, she had only seen maybe four or five people in the group... This much could last them a couple days. Cinera stashed half of it in her inventory to preserve it and carried the rest in a bag that the NPC had given her. She was so excited to be part of a group, already! It was a wonder that they has even accepted her. Well, even if only Sapphira had... It sounded like the rest of the group wouldn't mind! And they all looked like such strong people. She just needed to get back there and talk to them.

However, as she turned to leave in an excited rush, her foot caught on the edge of a floorboard, propelling her forward. She proceeded to land face-first next to a table where four people seemed to be seated, talking about something serious. But more important that possibly interrupting their conversation, the six loaves of bread she had carried were now scattered all over the floor around her. "Ow..." Cinera mumbled, sitting up and rubbing her aching nose. That fall had really hurt... And now the bread was ruined. Her eyes flickered around at the terrible scene around her before filling with tears.

I'm doomed... What the hell was I even getting excited for? As soon as they find out how weak I am in this game, I'm going to be left on my own to die... I'd just get them all killed, even if I did stay. I'm going to die... A sense of doom and frustration with her own inability led to her doing the unthinkable: She began to cry. Just like a child, she sat on the floor of that inn and covered her face with her hands, allowing all of the frustration and fear and loneliness that she had been holding in to flow out in the form of salt water. She did not wail too loudly, but it was enough to draw attention from a few annoyed players sitting at the bar. Cinera knew how irrational and stupid it was to sit here and cry over spilled bread, but she just couldn't take it, anymore. She was already so sick of this damn game. I just want to go home...

[Zelosse]

Delcastle assumed something had gone wrong to result in the death of a player and his smile fell off his face. Death was something he and Bulwar had accepted as a serious situation and resolved to "Get going, when the going got rough" as they put it politely. Monsters had an aggro range and a pre-determined chase range. They would only go so far before giving up and returning to their predetermined path. Delcastle was a beta player and knew most of the low level areas by heart so it stood to reason he had a good idea what the ranges were. Bulwar would always follow his lead.

"Sorry for your loss." Delcastle bowed his head and put down his fork, placing his hand over his heart to silently pray for the lost souls already gone from this harsh world. Something like this was unforgivable but all they could do now was play along... They intended to live in style till someone risked their lives to end this farce once and for all. For now? It was just a big fantasy game. "My brother and I are starting to collect armor and weapons. If you have need in the future, I will make sure you are well armed. We must all stick together."

"Enough of the unpleasantries though," He looked to Mai'lo as he spoke. "Our time has been pleasant enough. I was a beta tester so this is already familiar territory for me. I assume both of you got swept up in the hype... so terrible." Delcastle shook his head at the thought of this game once more trapping everyone in it. "I can only hope our adventures go smoothly here on out!" Delcastle ordered a round of drinks for the group and raised his cup. "To the lost ones. May they be avenged."
After the toast he sent another PM to Bulwar before speaking up again. "We will be returning to the wilds early in the morning. If you both are interested, we could use the company!"

UNSURE OF PREVIOUS BUSINESS. CROWDED THOUGH.
INTERRUPTED BY CRAZY FOX MAID. UNPLEASANT.
GAVE HER CONTACT INFO AND A GIFT TO GET US STARTED.
NO WORD BACK SINCE THEN.

The crash beside him warranted a look. Another player had fallen, spilled food, and was evidently quite done with the whole situation. Poor girl. Gonna be a hard time adjusting.. he put down his fork and knife and got out of the chair and offered his hand to the girl. "Well well. Tables fillin' up fast." The bread crumbled to light, having been wasted on the floor, and Delcastle just sighed. "The game is so picky.. Listen, come have a seat. Promise we don't bite." Everyone needed help sometimes and the brothers had gained a solid early advantage. They could afford to share.

[KabenSaal]

The girl's squeal as Nena grabbed the tail was so dam cute! The Fox-Maid just wanted to take her new friend home and keep her there and never let anyone have her and go all super obsessive like she had never done before. But then, when the girl turned around and spoke about letting go of the tail, Nena blushed softly and did as she was told. Her own tail swishing merrily behind her as she did.
"Sorry, I just got exicted. No idea where my tail came from, and i have never seen another person with a tail, so I just got really super excited" she explained. Then, scrabled around her maid uniform, looking for something specific. And then, producing a rock, and handing it to Sapphire. "Here you go, as an apology. It's a rare item, the Mithril Pebble of Pig-Smiting" Nena exclaimed. It was unclear if the rock was actally rare, or if she just believed that.

[Ookawa]

Skeptically Sapphira eyed the item. It certainly seemed valuable at first, but at closer examination, she noticed, it was pretty impure. It was only a pebble, too, and so one would need a few more for just a single ingot. Although still, mithril was worth a lot at this low level. As such, Sapphira had no idea whether it would actually fetch a good price on the market. It could very well prove to be a huge pain in her arse. Now she had to calculate whether the risks were actually worth it...
"Nah, sorry... it's not worth the risk. I'd need... about 9 more to be actually useful. But then you can smelt it into a mithril ingot, which will be worth a good amount of money."
She smiled.
"Don't take it personal, I'm a merchant, I have to weigh the potential profit against the risk and to gain any profit from it, I'd need 9 more. To gather 9 more at this stage of the game is probably pretty tricky..."

[KabenSaal]

Nena looked at the pebble, and then back to the woman as she rejected the weapon, in the vein of 'Ohh, I'd need twelve more of them awesome Dragon-slaying Ultra Swords of Doom to make my own sword that might be able to poke my own eye out but not really do much else'. The Maid-Fox stared incrediously, looking backwards and forwards multiple times.
"You, don't smelt it down! You throw it, and it hits things, and they die, and you loot them!" She exclaimed, like she was explaining how to play the game to the woman. "See, this is called a 'weapon'. You use it against the random monsters you see roaming around. Once you hit them enough, the explode into pixels, and this screen comes up, and tells you that you have looted some stuff from that monster. And then you go and kill more things, and eventually, you get enough kills to buy stuff, and then you buy stuff and kill bigger things" She intoned, before frowning softly. "Put like that, MMOs are really boring. Why does anyone ever play them?..."

[Tracyarmav]

Cin listened to the two foxes chatting, keeping this thoughts to himself, though his mind continued to throw out it's own opinions for him to muse over. Why the tails? Clearly someone on the design team liked the idea of getting to play with some foxy ladies. Cin only hoped that the extra coding was purely visual, and didn't actually effect them as people. His cynicism doubted it was entirely visual and wanted find the perv who thought this would be a cute joke, and see how he, or she, liked being forcibly rearranged.

Cin shook the thought off, there would be enough death here, he didn't need to add to the list of lives lost. Even twisted individuals had family that cared for them, and they didn't deserve to loose their loved ones anymore than the families of these two girls did. Cin's family deserved every conceivable pain known to man kind, but that was neither here nor there. He heard the maid asking why people even played MMO's. The answer was easy for Cin, and people like him, to get away from the real world, and finally make friends and build something that no one else could take away, a community of people, who have their quirks sure, but they all care for each other and wanted the best for each other, no matter what happened.

Cin wondered who he'd be playing with as things settled down and players began working together to increase the chances of clearing things quickly. He planed to stick with Tsu, he'd been a lot of fun to play with and his style complimented my own... or it did any way, now he was off to find a new weapon, it'd be interesting to see what he chose. Cin considered picking up a new weapon himself, just in case he needed a second weapon or needed to deal with things that the halberd wasn't suited for, and wasn't able to enlist the aid of another player. Perhaps the merchant fox would have something good for him to pick up, when she was done chatting with her new friend. He waited patiently, leaning back against the cart while he waited, staring off into the sky, wondering what his family was doing right now...

[pockets]

Mai'lo nodded when Delcastle talked about getting swot up in the hype. "I bought the game because my ex-wife moved away with our kids. I was hoping that after the initial run I could get them copies and we could meet up in the game to play. Not the same as seeing them in person but I could still hug them and talk to them about their day. How school was going and all that, you know?" He sighed and leaned his elbows on the table in front of him.

"Now, I miss them more than ever. But I'm so glad I wasn't able to get them copies off the game right away. I wouldn't want them trapped in here with me."

He jumped when someone suddenly fell right next to their table and his hand dove into his pocket. Before he could attack he realized what had happened and shoved his hand back into his pocket after pulling it half way out. Not before a flash of light glinted off something metal in his hand though.

Delcastle helped the girl up before he could stand so he only offered her as reassuring a smile as he could and settled back into place. As big as he was, he had frequently been told that a smile from him was sometimes a frightening looking thing. He didn't get it but he understood smaller people tended to be afraid of him, so he always tried to be as calm and polite as he could in public situations. Just to put people at ease.

"You alright?" He asked.

[Ookawa]

Skyra burst out into laughter.
"I am pretty sure bashing this stone onto an enemy's head does absolutely minimal damage."
She was still laughing at the girl's silliness when she noticed she was being stared at by some other dude.
"My name's Sapphira, by the way, if you couldn't tell by the handy floating bar above my head." She giggled.
"If you would excuse me for a second?"
Gingerly she removed herself from the fox-maid's presence and moved to the waiting person.
"Oi, whaddaya want? Want to shop, order something?"

[KabenSaal]

Nena watched Skyra laugh, and then cocked her head, and as she moved, grabbed for the ears.
"Do these work?!" She demanded, groping them roughly. "I said throw, not bash. THROW! Th-row. It works for baiting a monster out of a group, and does more damage than you'd expect with the Thrown Weapon Proficiency. This, is a super-rare item that was hidden amongst a thousand other rocks, and only my magnificence could find it" She exclaimed, her heart on fire!

[Lightbox]

@Haeo@BlackPanther

"So basic nighttime farming then? Yeah i can get behind that i guess." Emperor said following the group. He scratched the back of his head and looked around "We'll need to be careful we dont get separated by any mobs or whatever... considering how dark it's getting. So we gotta cover each others backs since we won't be able to run away from tough enemies as easy."