Calling All the Monsters[Saber]

[Nala]

Stretching forward, Nala's tail fluffed up slightly as she got herself loose. She had managed to sneak out in the evening from the broken old house she called home for the moment with her brothers. It was a real fixer upper, but it kept them safe and warm. Leaning back, she pressed her hands into her sides and leaned backwards, looking behind to the tree that towered over her routine. Straightening up a few minutes later, she wheeled her arms around in a couple circles before finally declaring herself finished with the stretches. The area around her looked to be clear of any players for the moment, and the only monster or animal... animal monster?- around was some sort of rabbit. It wasn't often that the fox tail came into the forest, or out of town for that matter, but today she wanted to practice one of her skills.

The last time she had been outside town was to explore the swamp with her brothers, she got had gotten lost then found by a monk named Rei. While she had knowledge of the dancing skill she had, she hadn't actually used it until the fight with some sort of goblin type monster. Now curious to test it out on her own, she had fled to one of the most remote locations she could think of; the forest. "You won't tell anyone I'm here will you?" The question was directed at the rabbit-type thing, but it just looked up, wiggled an adorable nose then looked back down to munch on some grass, "I didn't think so~"

Pulling the rapiers she used as weapons from her sides, Nala held them straight out in front of her before taking a deep breath. Slowly, she started to draw the dual weapons through the air, taking long strides as she danced around the tree with them. At first, the nearby creature grew captivated by her skill, Pacifying Dance, but the effect wasn't meant to last long on targets. That was find with her, that's why she was here, dancing in the forest like some crazy sword woman of the wilds. She was practicing her skill to try making it last longer, or gain enemy attention more easily- in what she thought was only the company of a wee wabbit.

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Word Count: 384

[Saber]

A low gurgle escaped the empty stomach of the hungry player who was walking patiently down the main path which led back to the ruined, ancient looking city of London. It was starting to become dark and the player who was walking back had decided it was time to scrounge for some food. He had left his home out in the forest much earlier to hunt and level up some, but he decided to stay out a little later for some personal grocery shopping of sorts. The Non-Player Characters would be closing up their street shops soon so he would have to be quick if he wanted to get some more of the fresher foods. If he could catch them open in time, then he would most likely buy in bulk and carry it all along with him rather than just buy a few apples and oranges. Last time he bought only a handful of fruit, he starved all night. Eating the food that people made was a last resort and so far Saber found no reason to do that. The game didn’t hinder him because he didn’t eat, but it was uncomfortable to have the rumblies all the time. If he paced his eating and had several more small meals during the day and one larger one at night, he would be fine.



For now, that was all Saber could do to keep from becoming immobilized due to his stomach dying in his gut. There was no known way to increase the taste of food and it all tasted the same; bland and like dust. Saber hadn’t taken any time to try an alternative route to getting food so he was forced to rely on others. In addition to his lack of action, Saber also didn’t have a cooking skill as he didn’t have the Chef Subclass picked out. He planned on switching to it eventually, but for now he had to worry about his primary pairing of Assassin and Tracker. Those two would be what Saber needed to be higher up. He could switch back and over between classes later on when he was certain he could handle himself in battle. That time was not now as he barely trusted his skills against rabbits and pigs.



After several days of training, Saber was still having issues with his bow and arrow usage. He could shoot a target with ease but when it came to the actual hunt, he missed more times than he wanted to. If he had to count and do the mathematics, Saber most likely had an accuracy rating of sixty at his current level. Due to his real life experience, hours of in-game practice, and several hunts under his belt, he was already fairly potent with the short bow on his back. However, the game still hindered him and kept him away from perfection. He still considered himself a novice compared to how he was in reality, and it irritated him slightly because he knew he could do better. He had seen himself do better. Although he wouldn’t complain to the point where he was angry or felt hatred towards Elder Tale, that would be unnecessary.



Elder Tale was a video game, not reality. Everything in the game is numbers and code. A handful of actions had predetermined scripts and attacks had limitations placed on them in order to keep things fair for everybody. If someone like Saber entered the game without limitations on what they could do with their weapon then he highly doubted fairness would be in the same universe as this world. Having his ability stripped down was understandable and Saber wouldn’t speak out against it. For what it was worth; Saber enjoyed having his skill limited. It meant that he had to relearn the basics and would be able to put himself to the test again. He hadn’t held or used a bow in two years, as he had been away from home for that long, so going through the same paces he did as a child made him smile. It made him feel young again and that was something he would never whine or cry about. During his morning practice, Saber could feel his father beside him or looking over his shoulder, telling him how to fix his stance or that he wasn’t breathing right. He could sense the older man staring him down because he missed the tree by half an inch or because he hit the target, but not the center of it. Yes, Elder Tale was a game and it wasn’t reality, but it was bringing Saber closer to his real self.



The city of London wasn’t far from where Saber currently was and he could see much of it. He could even see the clock tower of Big Ben in its aged glory. The clock still worked though, which was a surprise because of how worn down the building looked. Still, as long as the clock worked, people could continue to use it and the building wasn’t useless like many of the others. Though, Saber used the tower more as a perch to see the city from or a reference point to navigate with. Time was something he kept track of, but he was becoming more comfortable with using the sun as his clock over the tower. After living in the forest and only having the sun for a clock, Saber was practically forced to live his life by the sunlight; unless he needed food. When he needed food, he didn’t care about the sun. He would walk back to London in the middle of the night if he was dying of starvation.



Out from the left corner of his eye, Saber saw a handful of bushes move. Due to his skill, Silent Move, Saber’s footsteps were inaudible so he doubted the movement was in response to his steps. However he was not invisible so something could have seen him and ran in response to that. Saber considered giving chase but a growl from his stomach told him to do otherwise. The hungry man complied and ignored the little creature whom had appeared. He had other worries, until of course the bastard shot out into the middle of the road thirty feet away. That was when Saber finally ignored his rumbling gut and pulled his bow off his shoulder. The animal was a rabbit, and it was on the move. Thankfully the creature was heading back towards London, almost guiding Saber back to it until the animal turned right off the path.



Even though his stomach was begging for him to keep running straight towards London, Saber turned right and followed the little rabbit into the forest. He wasn’t far from the front gates after the short run so he had some time to spare. Albeit he didn’t have a lot of time but he had just enough to hunt down one more little target for the day. The rabbit was quick and nimble like the rest the hunter had come across so it came as no surprise when the animal started to react to the footsteps behind it. The creature tore to the left, hopped rapidly over some brush, and then darted to the right towards some thicker undergrowth. Saber on the other hand ran along the rabbit’s left side, forcing it to turn to its right to the extra grass. He wanted it to go that way and he grinned when the animal complied. It was at that moment the rabbit broke into a small open space. Saber stopped a good distance away and waited, watched as the rabbit stopped running in the middle of the small zone.



At first, the player wanted to get it over with and was going to fire an arrow from the long distance in an attempt to get a feel for such a long shot at a small target. Instead, he elected to use his Tracker skill, Silent Move, again. The skill wasn’t exactly a passive skill, but after a few hunts, Saber had come to realize that he never had to access his skill list if he wanted to use them. He simply had to say them, or take a skill-relevant form. To activate Silent Move, Saber simply crouched down and moved quietly. After taking one or two steps, his feet became silent. He was restricted to only moving slow and his movement speed dropped dramatically, but that was fine with him. The rabbit remained still and began to nibble at the ground as Saber moved through the forest, carefully inching closer to the edge of the clearing.



Before he reached the edge and the spot he wished to fire from, he noticed some more movement. Off to his right another player appeared; a woman who seemed to be of another race other than human or elf. Saber cursed at the situation in his thoughts and lowered himself to a knee as he began to analyze what was going on. The woman had appeared after his rabbit had entered the zone, most likely either because she wanted to relax here or because she wanted to kill his rabbit. Now, Saber wasn’t selfish and she’d give her the kill, but he wasn’t going to just let her waltz up so easily. The world wasn’t kind to thieves, and he wasn’t going to let her steal his kill without confronting him. Yet, maybe she wasn’t after his kill.



After entering the small clearing, the woman suddenly began to stretch. There, in the middle of the clearing with a rabbit not even twenty feet away; this woman was stretching her body. In a game where physical ability only meant strength and not much else, stretching was something Saber had never considered. He had never come across any issues so far so he didn’t see any reason to actually perform such a ritual. Though, his morning routine of physical exercise and archery practice could be considered “stretching” if someone really wanted to call it such. Though, he didn’t do anything like what he was seeing. The fox-like woman stretched her back and did arm circles to stretch out her avatar and it was difficult to actually comprehend the sight. Yet, Saber wouldn’t laugh or question her. Everyone had their quirks.



What he did question was when she started to talk to the rabbit. The little animal seemed to ignore her and kept chewing away at the grass in front of it. It continued to nibble even when the woman finally drew her weapons. It was that moment that Saber finally pulled out an arrow. He narrowed his eyes on the woman and nocked the object against his bow’s string. The player silently moved to his right, positioning himself just behind one of the nearby trees as he leveled his shot. From there, he waited. His black clothing would help keep him concealed and it didn’t seem like he had been spotted yet so he pushed the time until contact off as long as possible. When the woman crossed the encroachment line, the rabbit twitched and looked over at her. Saber tensed up and sucked in air. He steadied his shot and focused…



“Atrophy break…” The tip of his arrow gave off a dark purple, soft, watery glow as the skill activated and infected the projectile. A moment later, Saber released. He was only ten feet from the rabbit, making the shot almost impossible to miss from where he was standing. Upon impact of the arrow, a small collection of phantom chains burst out of the rabbit’s shadow and pulled it to the ground, locking it to the floor. The creature’s health bar dropped to nearly a half from the physical damage, and that was enough. Saber drew another arrow and quietly stepped out from beside the tree he was hiding behind, letting the moonlight illuminate the lower half of his body, as well as his weapon.



“What are you doing out here this late at night?” Saber said just loud enough for his voice to echo into the small zone. He had his dark grey scarf over his face, covering up the lower half of it but he didn’t have a hood yet so he couldn’t cover his hair just yet. That would come with time and there was no real reason for him to hide all of his face because of the lack of players he encountered, especially not at this time of night. It was strange to see someone beyond the boundaries now, so Saber would have to be on his guard for the moment.


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[Nala]

Without bothering the small creature, it didn't bother her in return, both just minding their own business in the quiet woods. Oh the privacy of it all, the tranquility, the peace- the arrow... Oh god the arrow! Letting out a scream when the cute little rabbit suddenly took an arrow in front of her. At first, Nala tried to rush to its side and get it out, not even thinking about where it might have come from or if it was done on purpose; she merely wanted to save it from its position stuck to the ground. A second later however, another arrow beat her to it, taking the creatures life before she could even get close. Crying out again at the death blow, she started to continue to make her way over to where it had fallen in a lopsided battle, but once again came up short at what could only be called as a suspicious entry by a mysterious person!

Going ridged, Nala paused for a second, looked to the ground, then turn tailed and fled back behind the tree that had been watching over her. Tearing up, she kept her body hidden behind the trunk, her tail poking out on the other side as she flailed an accusing arm at the stranger. "R-R-Rude!" At first, this was the only word she could manage after the startling arrow out of nowhere. Just looking over the situation it was all too suspicious, like in the movies! The girl goes off alone into the forest at night, minding her own business she takes a stroll and gets lost -or goes dancing in this case. Then, out of the shadows the suspicious character suddenly strikes! He leaps out, takes the girl, then ransoms her off just to traumatize with who knows what(she skipped such inhumane scenes) and kill her once he has the reward! "NooOooOooo!!" Holding her hands together tightly, she just couldn't help but vocalize her rejection of such a thing, even if it was all in her head at the moment.

The man hadn't even jumped out at her to tell the truth, just sort of strolled out and asked her a perfectly sane question. She was the one with the over active imagination, making up comparisons about things that aren't even all that similar. Sure, by the bow he sported under the moonlit night it was clear he killed roger rabbit, but everything else probably had as sane a reason as his question. He was likely out late hunting for food or just didn't want to be bothered by the usual daytime traffic that might scare off game while they were rampaging through fighting monsters. That might just make her the suspicious one out here, just lollygagging around without a particularly good reason. 'ohmygoodness, am I the suspicious one?' Maybe, though she could also just be the crazy one for yelling no at him for no reason that he might understand... or both.

Yet, his demand of her being there was still rude to her, so she didn't change her answer and apologize. He was a rabbit murderer and scared her to death in process after all! So she just looked at him, defiantly keeping her distance from the male because of his weapon, and of course because she was still a bit scared of him. "Y-You should at least introduce yourself first before interrogating someone!"

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Word Count: 571

[Saber]

    It seemed that his sudden appearance did more than just frighten the fox woman. He had expected her to simply freeze up in her tracks or turn around flee as fast as possible. Instead, she let out a loud yell at the sight of the arrow piercing the animal in front of her and when the chains bound it to the floor, Saber watched as she rushed to its side with an extremely concerned look. It was a strange sight, and Saber felt a little remorse for entering the scene the way he did. He realized that he probably shouldn’t have shot first and then asked his question. It was a little rash to do so, but then again; she didn’t exactly acknowledge his presence when he did walk out into sight. She seemed far too focused on the condition of the rabbit than her own safety, which did give have a chance to just turn around and walk back the way he came. If he did that, he could act as if he had no ties to the situation and could simply pass it off as a dream if he was contacted by anyone asking around. That would have been an easy solution, but one he decided not to take. Well, one that he was unable to take. By the time he even finished thinking that plan through, the rabbit’s chains came undone and he was left with a hasty decision. He chose to act.

    Working off instinct and adrenaline, Saber swiftly raised his bow and yanked back on the string, pulling it taut. If the woman wasn’t going to take his warning or even look over at him then he was going to finish his hunt as he had previously planned before the encounter. Saber took in a deep breath, focused on his aim, and then released with a heavy exhale. The second arrow flew through the air and impacted the rabbit hard in the side of its neck, digging deep into the virtual flesh due to the short range of the attack. Saber’s bow wasn’t extremely powerful but he was learning to be more accurate with it, and he was beginning to feel the elements around him. His arrows flew fairly straight when there was little wind, allowing him to make fairly difficult shots without fretting too much anymore. Although, those factors weren’t a current problem for him because of how close he was to his target. If Saber had been another ten feet away, he probably would have aimed at the rabbit’s wide breast instead of the smaller head.

    As the rabbit burst into items, Saber lowered his bow and watched as the reward screen appeared in front of him, notifying him of the experience he gained. He gave the screen a soft touch to dismiss it and then looked up at the woman across the space. She seemed to be extremely upset by the death of the rabbit, and that was a bit strange to see. Once again, she performed an action that was different than he expected. In all of his days playing the game of Elder Tale and a handful of others like it, he had never seen someone cry over a monster being killed, even the little ones. Players ravaged the lands in their attempts to level up quickly or get an advantage over other players around them without any care for the repercussions of doing so. There was no sorrow, no remorse, and no feelings for the little beasts that were slaughtered by the thousands. Saber was no exception and was guilty of the lack of feelings as well. He spent several days and long nights playing Elder Tale without pause as he tacked kill after kill onto his already massive count, all so he could level his character up quickly and become stronger. Even now, he felt no regret as he looked down at the pile of items that sat a few paces away from where he stood.

    The woman approached the dead spot and looked down at it with two large, saddened eyes, staring at his items where the rabbit had fallen. Saber reached to his quiver and drew another arrow, just in case she showed signs of attempting to steal from him, but after a moment of standing there he learned that the woman was far too focused on the rabbit to be of any threat. When she finally looked up at him, Saber could see the turmoil that was going on within her mind. It hit him like a train and his stomach twisted from it. No, wait, his stomach didn’t twist because of the sadness he felt; it twisted because he remembered that he was dying of starvation. Oh the irony. He killed a rabbit that he could have used for food if he knew how to actually catch and cook the thing.

    However, before he could think too much about how empty his stomach was, the woman turned away and fled from the spot. Saber patiently tracked her with his eyes, watching as she ran behind the single massive tree that sprouted in the middle of the open space the two players were in. Electing to remain in the shadows, Saber remained still by the edge of the forest, carefully wiggling the arrow in his right hand as he watched. The woman hid behind the large tree, making her body invisible to him as she cowered behind it, but he could still see her tail; how comical. Strange was probably the wrong word to label this woman with but Saber had no other way to categorize her. She was, simply put, a weird person to encounter at this late in the evening. Yet after watching her embarrassing dance for a few seconds, he could understand why she was out in the middle of nowhere all by herself. Saber wouldn’t want to be caught dead doing any of that weird stuff either.

    “R-R-RUDE!”

    “What?” Saber eyed the woman as she labeled him with such a name, and it irritated him. Though, he didn’t openly respond to her shout. Saber remained silent and continued to watch the fox woman as she now seemed to be confused. Then after a short time; she screamed again, rejecting some sort of imaginary question or a thought that she had. This woman was definitely not your ordinary, run of the mill, character that you would encounter during a normal day. Saber couldn’t help but feel as if she was a powder keg of emotions that could change from passive to aggressive at any moment and decided that it may be best for him to grab his items and leave. He would have to be careful though as to not insight her aggression.

    Keeping that in the back of his mind, Saber carefully returned his arrow to the holder on his back and made his way out from the edge of the forest to the spot where his items rested in the short grass. He pushed the concerns he had about the woman attacking him out of his mind and focused on escaping the crazy encounter as fast and easily as possible. So rather than open his mouth and say anything, he simply knelt down and picked up what belonged to him. He had made it nearly halfway through collecting his keep when the woman shouted again, this time she was asking for him to introduce himself. Saber looked up at her in question and stared from where he was kneeling. As he thought about whether to answer her or not, Saber flexed his jaw underneath his scarf. She had been mostly silent except for her few outbursts and Saber had only asked a single question. However her outbursts included screaming because of the rabbit, calling him rude, and shouting “No!” at some random invisible voice. Now she wanted him to introduce himself and give away his identity simply because he asked one question? After she had given him a demeaning label and yelled at him thrice? The thought processing of this person was absurd, and Saber was even more concerned for his own safety now because of it.

    “If it will get you to calm down Miss, my name is Saber.” The man kept his voice calm and relaxed. He was careful to not raise it to match the yelling of the woman. If he had done so, or if he had shown any sign of irritation, then he could safely assume the situation would only become worse. Remaining passive would be his best route to take for now.

    Though, part of him wished he had taken the flight route earlier and just left his items in the middle of the field for the gremlins to deal with. Being in an awkward situation with a woman like the person in front of him was a tough one to handle, and his mind was drawing a blank on what he should do. He was used to talking to people in reality and could converse with anyone without any problems, even rich folk who were to stuck on themselves to worry about anyone else. In game though, he always felt detached somehow. He never felt as if he was talking to a person but felt as if he was talking to a character or lie. It bothered him to no end but he knew full well everyone wore masks on the internet. Very few people acted the same way they did in reality simply because they used the games they played as a relief mechanism, or a way to explore another side of themselves. He had seen many people, who were kind souls in reality play games and become the meanest, evilest people imaginable. On the other hand, he knew people who were the opposite; mean in real life but kind souls when they sat behind a screen. Saber chose to do neither of the two. He preferred to act as normal as possible in as many situations as he could to keep himself from becoming too distant from his own mind. That of course changed when he became trapped inside of Elder Tale. Rather than act like the kind and gentle man he enjoyed to be, Saber decided to escape from all of that and pulled on his own mask. He would return to his normal side and did not plan to leave his real self behind, but he first needed to get a footing in the game. He wouldn’t let himself be taken advantage of in this new world simply because of his kindness. Though, he wouldn’t let anyone take advantage of others either.

    As he acquired the last item on the ground, he released a heavy sigh and shut his eyes for a long time. At that moment, he realized that he most likely looked like the bad guy in the eyes of the female off to his side. Saber had tracked the rabbit form the shadows across the forest and it scampered out into the open space while Saber remained out of sight. Then, the strange woman appeared and most likely considered using the rabbit for practice just like Saber used the trees around the lake. If that was the case then there was no way for her to know that he was nearby. In her eyes, and probably the reason she reacted the way she did, Saber was the aggressor. He appeared out of thin air, shot her rabbit, and killed it right in front of her eyes without any sign of mercy. Her screaming was most likely due to the sudden attack and she fled because she probably was frightened by him. Saber could almost guarantee that was how the situation actually went from an alternative perspective. Being a nice guy and trying to remain friendly meant nothing if one’s first impression was a sour one. There was no way to truly save face after performing such a violent action either. Following through with taking his stuff and leaving would most likely be his best course of action.

    With his items picked up and his reason to stay now gone, Saber slung his bow over his chest and leaned over where the rabbit had vanished. He may be leaving and may have had to escape quickly, but that didn’t mean he could skip his ritual. He had killed an animal and that animal was gone, dead by his hand. Its soul had dispersed and there was no doubt in his mind that Saber wouldn’t be seeing it again. The afterlife was the rabbit’s next home, and he had been taught to recognize its importance. As such, Saber gently placed his right hand down into the middle of the grass where the rabbit had lie before vanishing. He closed his eyes and relaxed his body, letting his own remorse leave with his breath.

    “May Gaia guide you.” Saber whispered before slithering his hand back and forth a few times over the grass, wiping away the remaining signs of life that may have lingered behind. The prayer was short and sweet, and Saber was back to his feet not a moment later. He felt bad for the animal, but it had to be done. Everything had to be done in order for progression in life to occur. Ascension was one of those progressions. Next on his list was dealing with the woman, and it was something Saber wished he could push it away for a little longer. Yet, he chose to get it over with. Saber looked over at the fox and considered different ways to speak to her, but he decided on only one for the moment; distance.

    “You shouldn’t be out alone at night. There are dangerous creatures lurking.” With that, Saber turned about his heels and started to make his way back the way he came. Yet, he only made it two feet before his stomach painfully twisted in his stomach again, causing him to stop in his tracks. He grimaced and shivered as he looked over his right shoulder towards the city of London that was at his back.

    “Crap… food is the other way…”


 
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[Nala]

As a matter of fact, learning the players name did calm her down as well as tell Nala a few things. He at least wasn't the kidnapper she thought he was. What sort of kidnapper kept a calm distance as well as told you their name... well, a crafty one, but that didn't cross her mind thankfully. Ears leaning back against her head, she felt a little bad now for crying out 'no' to him when it was apparently her fault for misinterpreting the situation now. Sniffling softly, she hid further behind the large wooden object, laying her hands against its erect trunk as she felt small against its sturdy nature. The tree anchored and protected her while she went through the situation in her head. It was true, she had let her emotions get out of hand, gushing out at the stranger like that was uncalled for. Sure it was late and she'd been spooked, but she wouldn't give herself any excuse for not having more control over her mouth. In any normal situation she would have kept quiet and actually appeared normal, that may not be plausible now.

Keeping her own distance as much as the Saber person did, she carefully watched him, trying not to squirm so her cloth clothes wouldn't get stuck against the ridged trunk she refused to come out from. Whatever he had got from the rabbit slaughter had been retrieved and stored away in his inventory. The odd thing was, he actually returned to the exact place of death as she had done before trying to save the poor creature, laying his hand over the grass to rub over it gently. She couldn't hear what he was whispering from her current distance, but he looked like he was relaxing himself whatever it was. Then, just as quickly as it had happened, the man was back on his feet and looked back to her, causing her to jump slightly, her tail fluffing up at the surprise glance for a brief second. “You shouldn’t be out alone at night. There are dangerous creatures lurking.”

Blinking a few times, she was genuinely just as surprised by his words as she was by the sudden look. Of course she knew that being out alone at night was dangerous enough on its own. She could get lost, lose track of where she was, get attack by the monsters he mentioned, or even a group of PKers looking for an easy kill. Her solution to each issue, however, was that she could always flee the scene and send a quick message to her brothers for help. They would be mad that she kept sneaking out without telling anyone, but not having the experience of death was better than a scolding. Speaking softly, she shook her head as Saber turned to go, "It's okay.. I'll be alright, thank you."

She was expecting him to continue on his way to leave the forest along with the crazy woman he'd encountered behind, forever forgotten. But no. He was just full of surprises today as he stopped dead in his track, shivering while he looked back to her, or more accurately, over her. Fidgeting slightly, she followed his gaze to look back as well. That was the way back to London... which made sense, he was probably going home now that he had his kill. As much as she wanted to get out of his way for the man to have a straight path back, there was no way she would come fully out into the clearing in order to move behind another tree. Besides, she felt safe here. Pulling back to fully hide herself out of view of the man, she slid down to sit her butt on the cool ground, pulling out her menu and taking out some of her ingredients she had brought for a nightly snack. She couldn't make much with her low level, but she had enough experience to cook up the stew she had made last night. Having the leftovers back out in her hand, they steamed in the cooler air, still as fresh as when she crafted it.

Pulling out a spoon, she went on to eat her own food, hoping that Saber didn't mind going around her as long as she wasn't looking at him.

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Word Count: 720

[Saber]

    A painful tug made Saber groan sadly as he forced himself to turn around. For the first time in a long, long while, Saber didn’t have anything tasty to eat. In reality, he cooked a lot of his own meals when he had the chance and was used to having a full refrigerator that he could access at any point during the day. There was no such thing as a refrigerator in Elder Tale though, forcing him to rely on the NPC stores if he wanted food. What was even worse was that everything aside from vegetables and fruit tasted horrible, hence why he had planned on buying only fruit. They were tasty, filled with energy, and light enough that he could fill up a quarter of his bag with enough to last a long time if he paced his eating. However, pacing his hunger was difficult to do and he seemed to end up over eating. It was a horrible habit but considering how much energy he used; Saber found eating a lot of food worth it later on.



    With that being said, Saber finally forced himself to start walking back towards London. He watched as the woman stayed near the tree, slinking down to the base of it as she returned to her own life. Saber shrugged it off and adjusted his quiver and bow. There wasn’t much he could do now aside from continue with his own life as well. There wasn’t any reason for him to remain in the clearing and there wasn’t any reason for him to bother her anymore. He had already stuck around long enough that he ended up revealing his name to the woman. That meant he had outstayed his own personal welcome. Staying away from others was his initial plan and coming in contact with this woman went completely against that plan. He never asked her name because if he did, he knew he’d be thrown into a story he would be stuck in. He didn’t question her dance because he didn’t want to get into a fight. And he didn’t question the soup that she made appear even though it smelled delicious oh god she had food.



    Saber stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed on the fox woman’s new item that she held in her hands. He couldn’t pinpoint what type of soup it was but that didn’t matter. The warm, delicious scent flowed deep into his nostrils and went straight to his empty stomach. The fist sized organ wrenched down on his mind and seemed to cut it off from any other thought processes that were currently going on up there. All Saber could think about now was the food, and more specifically; the soup that the fox woman was getting ready to eat. He wanted it. All of it. He didn’t care if it tasted horrible; Saber wanted that soup because it made his stomach already feel fuller from just the smell. He started salivating and caught himself losing some of the liquid over his bottom lip. The man quickly wiped it up and made his way quietly over to the fox woman. He didn’t necessarily mean to, but it seemed his Silent Move skill was forcing him to slow down, and it was irritating as it made the walk take twice as long.



    Stopping a few feet away from the fox woman, Saber swallowed his mouthful of saliva and cleared his throat. He stared for a moment, his eyes unable to move away from the sight of the steaming and delicious looking liquid. He could see the vegetables she had added floating in the murky and thick base, causing him to start to salivate again. He kept the overflowing amount of liquid under control this time though and swallowed hard again, forcing his mouthful down and out of his worries. The incident with the rabbit had most likely hurt Saber’s reputation with the woman already, but there was no harm in at least asking, was there? Maybe. He had killed the creature right in front of the woman and essentially threatened to shoot her if she got to close because of how he held his weapon. In the end, the worst thing that could happen would be the woman telling him no. That would just mean he would have to return to London for food. He planned on going anyways so it would simply give him more reason to head back due to him still being hungry.



    “Excuse me, Miss. Would you mind if I joined you…? I’m a little hungry myself… and I don’t have anything to eat…” The words almost came out in a mumble as he felt embarrassed for asking if he could eat with the woman after what had just occurred. He personally wouldn’t blame her if she said no to him, and he would not throw a fit because of It. Saber knew he was wrong and he was quite content on facing that fact. If the woman despised him because of it, then he at least he knew he tried. That was all he could do anyways; try.



    Without trying and asking about the food, Saber may have walked away without any chance of getting food because of the gates crumbling or because of being trapped in a dungeon somewhere. If he didn’t ask and didn’t know what the woman would say, then he would never know what her answer may have been. Curiosity as well as his own stomach had got the better of him and he now found himself at the mercy of a person he had just almost nearly shot at. The night was slowly become more and weirder as it went on. Saber could only imagine how much stranger is could really become at the pace he was currently moving at.



    “If I’m bothering you, I do apologize. If you would prefer if I left, I shall take my leave and let you be.” In a show of respect for the other player, Saber crossed his right arm to his left breast and bowed his head lightly. It wasn’t extremely necessary to do such an action, but Saber felt as if he should get on the woman’s good side as quickly as possible if he wanted to eat her food.


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[Nala]

Curling her tail around her legs, she made herself as small as possible while trying to keep herself from looking over to the man she just knew was coming closer to her hiding spot to head back to London. Her eyes kept flicking nervously in anticipation to where he would appear. It was more difficult than she imagined to be patient while waiting on something a bit frightening to move past. Well, perhaps frightened wasn't a very good word to use anymore, it was more like she was wary of the killer. He was able to stay perfectly calm while faced with an out of the blue situation -unlike her- free enough with conversation that he would tell her his name, kind enough to be worried about her safety while she was in the woods alone, and a bit strange the way he petted the grass. Blended together she came up with the impression that he was more normal than she first thought. Suspicious still, but more normal.

Finally, she saw him come around her tree... and stop dead. It was only out of the corner of her eye while she stared down to her food. She couldn't tell what he was staring at, but she knew it was in her general direction, so it made her fidget uncomfortably, a heavy amount of attention was not something she usually enjoyed. Trying to be as casual as possible, she non-casually snuck a quick peek at the man looming over her, seeing him reach up to wipe away a bit of saliva just in time. 'He... he's hungry?' Given that he was doing some late night hunting, she would have figured the man to have been hunting for himself for dinner the next day, not so he could eat so late at night. When had he last eaten? What was the last thing he ate? Did he usually go so long without anything? She couldn't help it, as soon as Nala figured the man in front of her was starving enough to drool at the sight of food, she automatically wanted to help. As much of a chef as she was before- even if a bit diluted because of the system- her first instinct was to feed someone who was hungry.

Still, he was still of the male species, even in her kitchen before the game, she was able to stay back to cook, not needing to deliver or interact with the other customers that ate what she made from the menus, male contact was kept to a minimum. Having him come up to her, even if slowly, made her even more nervous. Just as slowly, she looked over to get a better view of the man. When he came to a stop, bowing to her, she looked between him and the bowl in her hands that contained both meat and vegetables floating around. It was all she had to eat, but she could put off until she got hope, she wasn't so hungry that she would drool over such a simple dish. If it was a dessert though... oh goodness no, she would split that dessert, there wouldn't be any way for him to take all of that from her. Sweets were her weakness, even faced with someone who was starving.

Ever so carefully, Nala set the bowl on the ground, making sure it wouldn't spill on the uneven surface while she scurried away from it, almost as if she was sacrificing the food. With no where else that she could really go to hide, she just fled back around to the other side of the tree, getting on her knees so she could peer around at the man comfortably. While she remained quiet now in her nervous state, she wanted to see his reaction to her cooking. Depending on how it went, it could make or break her willingness to pick up a ladle again, chefs depended on their ability to create the delicious. Everyone back at her raggedy house enjoyed it, but this was a complete stranger to her, there was no bias to go off of, just a hungry customer looking for something to quell the rumblings in his tummy. Leaning around a little more, she tried to get the best view of Saber without letting him look back at her. "G..Go ahead."

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Word count: 727

[Saber]

    It didn’t take long for the woman in front of him to react to his sudden approach, but how she reacted was something he could expect; to an extent that was. Rather than run away or flee as she had previously done, she had remained still in her comfortable spot and peeked up at him occasionally as he lingered a few feet away from her and spoke. Saber was focused on the food at first but eventually he found himself stealing a few glances at the woman just as much as she was looking at him. He had not noticed it before due to how foolish he was but she was actually quite cute now that he wasn’t trying to push her away. Her long blonde hair was well kept and her blue eyes shimmered a little in the moonlight, making her almost glow. It was strange that physical proximity could change his perspective of someone so dramatically. Though, he was thankful for it. Saber had only thought of the woman as a threat to his earnings or a source of nutrition rather than an actual person like he should have. Now that he could get a better look at her, she was much more attractive than the food he was asking about. Of course, he chose to keep that minor observation to himself. If he had said anything now, he doubted he would really get anything. That was the bad side of his begging; Saber was actually trying to get something from another person, which meant he was doing exactly what he said he wouldn’t do. He was going to take advantage of the situation to get what he wanted. It made him think against lingering and he almost took off in the opposite direction so he could leave the woman to her well-earned food. However, once more, the woman moved before he could get his plan into action and Saber was left with a difficult decision to make.



    The woman on the ground set down her bowl in its entirety and started to quickly move away from it, leaving the food behind. Saber eyed her quietly for a minute as he found himself confused by her actions. She left the whole bowl of soup, minus a few scoops she had eaten herself, and then ran away? Was she going to give him the entire thing? No way, he couldn’t accept the entire bowl, especially after what he had done. If this woman was truly going to give him the entire thing to eat then there was definitely something strange about her, and Saber felt as if he should at least attempt to figure it out. Yet as much as he wanted to tell her “no” and give her the soup back so she could at the very least split it between them, Saber decided not to disrespect her personal decision. It was probably hard enough for her to have to deal with him again after he told her he would be leaving. He made a mental note to repay her later, as the food would be able to hold him over for a good amount of time. Taking it was going to make him feel terrible due to it seeming like he was taking the woman’s dinner, but he didn’t feel like getting into a potential conflict over the bowl. Instead Saber sucked up his pride as a Hunter and picked up the bowl gently with both hands. The bowl was warm, and the scent coming from the liquid within it was extremely deceiving.



    Carefully, Saber removed his bow and the quiver of arrows off his back and set them down beside the tree, leaning them up against the thick trunk so he could free up his back. The player then took a seat very softly down into the place the woman had been sitting before, nestling himself in so he wouldn’t slide. There, he made himself comfortable and glanced quickly over to his right. He couldn’t see the woman all too well but there was just enough room for him to know that she was there. He didn’t say anything to the blonde fox at first and just looked away from her towards the bowl in his hands. He stared at the small feast that was right in front of his eyes, troubled, and didn’t reach for the large spoon just yet. The man knew exactly how the soup was going to taste so he quickly had to mentally prepare himself for it. He didn’t take too much time though; overthinking the situation would have made the taste even worse. So rather than dwell on the coming doom, Saber grabbed the spoon the woman had left behind for him to use and began to stuff his cheeks with the first bite.



    An extremely vulgar, disgusting taste filled Saber’s mouth as the true nature of the dish he held onto invaded his mouth. The player felt sick inside as he gulped down the liquid and he almost started to choke but he held it down. He was battling death on the inside with every spoonful of the soup he took. Although, the player took extreme care to not let that turmoil leak onto his face. He looked up towards the distant night sky and scooped away at the bowl in front of him, using the stars to distract himself as he knocked on death’s door with a sledgehammer. From a distance, the soup looked and smelled delicious. It had been crafted excellently and there was no doubt in Saber’s mind that the soup would have been delicious in reality. The only downside was that Elder Tale was not reality. Saber was in a game and he was dying because reality had abandoned him in this place. What a shame.



    Certain doom was expected and Saber could almost feel it coming closer and closer with each bite, but he fought back hard against it. He kept his expression flat as best as he could and continued to stare up towards the sky. It took a few minutes, but after some quick scoops and swift swallows; the spoon Saber held scrapped against the bottom of the bowl. The man looked down, amazed that he had eaten so much so quickly. He didn’t question it but was internally grateful for such a thing to happen. The player placed the bowl to his lips and drank up the last few sips of the soup while scooping up the scrapes of once floating vegetables and the few remaining pieces of meat. Due to being put into the soup, the bits had also become tasteless and Saber still had to fight to keep his stomach down. Once the bowl was finished, Saber was satisfied for the most part. He was still hungry but it was tolerable now. He could at least make it long enough to do some shopping before being forced to eat again.



    “That was good.” And that was a lie, but Saber still enjoyed the food even with the disgusting taste. His stomach didn’t yell at him anymore, nor did it pain him. He had achieved his goal of stopping that annoying ambient noise and was finally able to full relax some. He was tired, awfully tired. Before he could sleep, he needed to get back to London. Saber had a lot of shopping to do and the NPC shops were even closer to closing up now. If he could guess, the player probably had two hours to get back to London and complete his rounds.



    “Thank you, Miss. I owe you a supper the next time we meet. I promise that.” The man placed the spoon back into the bowl and smiled softly as he extended the silverware over towards the hiding fox around the other side of the tree. He didn’t turn or lean, but he simply extended his hand back and remained where he was lying. The woman was already spooked enough so there was no reason to rile her up because of his moving about.



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[Nala]

Nala made a face at the man's neutrality toward her dish, curling her fingers up against the tree. That wasn't a good sign at all, nor what she wanted to see in the reaction. Her heart dropped, but she continued to watch for any sort of further give away. Saber had an excellent poker face though while he stared up to the sky, it made things difficult for her since she didn't know if he found it too horrid for words, or was enjoying it in silence. The same thing went for how he scarfed the food down; she got that he was starving so his quick eating told her nothing since he would want to feed his belly no matter what. She tended not to get sick from anything she ate, even when surviving on the tasteless menu food alone, if he would just give her some sort of sign it would be so much better.

... The sign never came, but she did get the okay from him that her food was good. In no way what so ever did she trust this, actions spoke louder than words so she was under the impression that her food was bland because of his bland reaction to it. It wasn't the most horrible thing she could assume since the things she tried to make often came out bad at the moment, but it was a horrible time for her to bring something tasteless tonight. If she had known that there would be company she would have actually made something fresh and simple. Why did hungry company have to have such bad timing? Resisting a sigh, she drew back a little from her fruitless investigation of the man's opinion of the stew. Without enough body language to tell her how he felt, she didn't need to be so close to see him well.

Taking the spoon and bowl with a heavy heart, she smiled at him none the less, "Thanks for trying.." Even if it wasn't really good. "You don't have to though, I'll be alright." Having calmed down from the crazy episode earlier, Nala was back to her usual self, relaxed, and tired now. Leaning back so only her tail could be seen spilling out across the ground around the tree, she rested her head against the plant, curling in on herself. In a way she was glad for the cloth armor she wore, unlike the metal chain or plate, it was easier to fall asleep in and kept her warm. Maybe after resting her eyes for a little while until Saber should leave, she would get back up to practice a little more then head on home herself to lay down for a good nights rest. "Oh.. I'm Nala by the way. It's nice to meet you." She tried not to mumble so that he could hear her, yawning afterward as her body relaxed itself. Letting her eyes fall shut, she really did think that it was nice to meet the new person, even if their first introductions had been pretty bad. At least it made her grin now, hopefully if they did have a second meeting it wouldn't be so insane at the start.

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Word Count: 538

[Saber]

    As the woman took the bowl from him, Saber smiled happily and rolled up onto his knees, pushing off the ground to help him balance as he moved from his seated spot against the tree. The hunter needed to get moving soon. Time wouldn’t stop simply because he had met a new person in the forest. He had stayed in the area the safest amount of time to not be a bother, and maybe that was more than he should have so it was time to get along with his life. The woman had most likely come out to practice during the night when no one was around, so he would leave her to it. However Saber was still intent on fixing the wound he had caused to the faint relationship that had been sparked tonight. Being on anyone’s bad side was something he didn’t like and he would do everything he could to fix it. He didn’t like the way he went about the interaction here tonight at all, nor did he like the impression he probably left on the woman about him. If possible, leaving on a good note would be the best thing for Saber to do. Though, doing so would have been difficult if their interactions were flatter than they were. Yet, they weren’t. Saber had something to work off; food.



    Saber had appeared and hunted the rabbit after being distracted and taken away from his walk back to London for food. Next after the rabbit was killed, the woman pulled out the bowl of soup and was preparing to eat it when Saber approached her. Then after some begging, Saber was given the bowl and allowed to eat it. Food was the central item of the healing part of Saber’s interaction with this woman and it seemed to be working, to an extent. It wasn’t a perfect patch, but it mended the wound caused by the two arrows enough that the woman wasn’t running all that far from him anymore. She still hid herself away but she was only on the other side of a tree. The natural spire acted like a barrier, but that barrier wasn’t a very good one because of how open it was on the sides. The player didn’t plan on attacking the other, but he took it as much different sign than what the woman probably did.



    Raising his hand, Saber pressed down on the air gently in front of him and opened up his menu. At first he was left glancing over the imaginary buttons for a few seconds but then he located the inventory tab on the side. With a flick, he opened it and scrolled down the short list of categories to his food tab. With another touch, he opened it up to and was surprised see that he had a few items remaining in it. It wasn’t much and it was probably his emergency stash, but it seemed like this was an emergency more than anything else that could have been label such. He probably could have tapped into it earlier to avoid contacting the woman and looking like a creep, but where would that have got him? Without the confrontation about the bowl of soup, Saber would have walked out of the forest and left the woman to wonder about who he really was. Due to the incident with the rabbit, that wouldn’t have gone well and the woman may have begun thinking of some weird things that weren’t exactly true. The next time he ran into her after that, Saber would be certain she would continue to think of him strangely. It would be more difficult to change that then as there was a chance of her talking to others about him too. After everything, if he had gone that route; Saber probably would have been looked at sourly by a few people.



    “It’s not much, but here.” The player summoned a small, finely carved wooden plate he had purchased from a traveling merchant. On top of that, he pulled out a pair of apples, an orange, and a banana. It wasn’t much, but that was all Saber had left. They weren’t enough to fill up a hungry person as a bowl of soup would have, but they would at least be enough to quench a small hunger. Fruit was all Saber ate because of his lack of the chef subclass. Cooking anything would probably leave it a burnt pile of mush.

    “It’ll hold you over for a while but you really should head back to the city. I won’t make you, but there might be others who aren’t as kind as I am.” The reference Saber made was to the player killers he had begun to hear about. They were a disgusting bunch, and Saber was intent on teaching them a lesson when he got the chance. However for now, he would keep to himself and remain a ghost. The woman who had called herself, Nala, was the first player he had come in direct contact with so far during his short amount of time in the game. If he could keep that up and remain in the forest without being bothered, Saber would certainly level up quickly from where he was to where he wanted to be.



    Turning about on his knees, Saber reached over and gently set the plate of fruit down close to Nala but he was careful as to not personally get to close to her. She may have still been frightened of him so he wasn’t going to push his luck. He simply set down the plate and then grabbed his gear. He strapped his quiver across his chest first and then slid his bow over his head after, nestling them both comfortably on his back. Compared to swords, his weapons we both light and he loved it. He also could do just as much damage with them without putting himself in danger. However, he chose a bow also because he wasn’t comfortable with being so close to another creature or player. Seeing the woman, Nala, use two swords made Saber rethink that, If she could do it, and if plenty of other women could do it, then he might have to look into getting a melee weapon soon. There was no reason for him to be so afraid. All he had to do was trust in himself, and his instincts.



    “Take care of yourself.” Saber bowed once more, pointing himself in the direction of the woman even though he could see her. Once he was standing back upright, Saber turned away and began to head back towards London. However, just as he reached the treeline the man paused. Saber grinned softly to himself and looked up towards the sky as he mulled over a thought. There would be no harm in it.

    “You should try dancing without swords! That might help you more!” As he shouted, Saber didn’t look back. He knew that if he did, he might end up looking at Nala’s face. That would have made him rethink his word choice. Yet once he had spoken, he didn’t linger to hear a response. Saber lowered his head and stepped over a small bush as he entered the forest, making his way through the greenery once more.


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[Nala]

For a little while, Nala heard nothing and she couldn’t help but wonder if Saber had made a silent escape without her even noticing. The way he wielded a bow, it was obvious he was an assassin that worked in ranged combat so it wouldn’t be beyond his power to get away from the Fox Tail without making a sound. Even if he didn’t have the skill for it, it may have been natural for him to keep his footsteps as quiet as allowed so he didn’t startle and prey. She was about to peek back to him to see if he was really gone or still there, or maybe even fallen asleep on accident, but stopped when she heard him speak up. That kind of gave her what she was looking for, the fact that he was still there.

She listened as he gave her another warning about the dangers of the forest. It was easy to tell that he was talking about players that killed for thrills, to steal, or other things her mind just couldn’t think up. Still, her answer for everything was that she had the power to take care of herself, no matter the odds or what was more likely to happen. She was always being taken care of through her life, she’d gotten away and loved it, but she also enjoyed being back with her brothers after a few years. Having someone you loved and trusted to watch your back- that was definitely something she missed once she lost it, the world could be cruel.

Looking over, she heard a bit of movement and saw something appear in the side of her vision. His hands set a bowl down, making her smile softly; at least he was leaving her something sweet, unlike her bland offering. Reaching around, she pulled the tiny plate over and picked an apple off of it, taking a bite out of the ingredient. Mm~ Oh yes, this was how food was suppose to taste, delicious, even if it was a little simple. At first, she had eaten nothing but ingredients, but that had gotten so old, she just couldn’t take it anymore. She had turned to experimentation despite how much failure often came with it.

Shaking her head, Nala looked around just in time to see him walking away then pause just before he would disappear into the shadows. Hearing him tell her to take care of herself was almost ironic. That was her plan from the very beginning and what she hoped to keep doing. The advice though, that was something she hadn’t considered. Putting on her thinking face for a moment, she thought about it for a second before pushing it aside for a bit. Standing up, she had to at least wave goodbye to the previous stranger. Yelling at him one more time, she smiled as she called out his name, “Goodbye Saber! You be safe too!” waving her arm, even though he didn’t turn around, she kept up the wave until she was sure he was long gone. The assassin that appears from the shadows and disappears the same way. Oh yes, this would make a great story for her brothers, of course there would be more flare added to it, maybe that she was captured by a giant fluffy monster when out of the shadows came an arrow from a mysterious stranger. She’d leave out his name, but would let him remain the hero who casually took away one of the bunny monsters adorable children to care for and raise with love. Yeah, totally out of proportion. She just loved anything that was romantic, mysterious, anything that was like it came right out of a fantasy book, which in turn fit their whole situation rather well.

With Saber now gone, Nala looked down at her weapons. At first, she figured that she should practice her dance with them because she would probably be fighting while holding them. It hadn’t occurred to her that her performance could be improved without them. Giving the idea a chance, she let the rapiers rest at her waist, letting her hands stay free. The best way to describe it was… amazing. She felt as light as a feather without the metal blades weighing her arms down. She danced, she flowed, she felt like taking flight and laughing all the way. So the game didn’t like the combination of dance and weaponry with her skill, Pacifying Dance? That- That actually made more sense, since it was meant to make the enemy passive and stop attacking.

Giggling after about another hour of practice, Nala started skipping his way back to town. She wanted to fly back to town, but that just couldn’t happen for obvious reasons. Everyone back at home was still asleep, her own small appetite had actually been filled by the few fruits Saber left for her, and she had a carved little bowl to clean up, shine, and stick by her bedside table. Until she was able to return it to the assassin, she would take it around with her, waiting to run into him again. She couldn’t wait until the next day to tell her exaggerated tale.

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Word Count: 869