Starting With a Bang [Open, Research]

[Ramon]

Ramon sat cross-legged on the grass, staring at the assortment of ingredients in front of him. Part of him was still trying to accept that yes, he was stuck here, so he had decided to do some busy work to keep his mind occupied. Pharmacist was his subclass, and he had a feeling that potions would be in high demand as more people started venturing outside the city.  Except that he hadn't the first clue as to how to actually create something. Oh, the interface system was always an option, but if this was real life now, he didn't want to use the system - it felt too much like cheating. Not that he had a lot to work with, either. Some of the more adventurous players had sold him various materials they had picked up fighting monsters, and the rest came from the shop. "It's a start, anyway," he muttered, scanning the items again. Picking up an empty flask, he dropped a herb in it and then carefully added a few drops of solvent. A puff of smoke rose up from the rapidly dissolving herb, but aside from turning into a dark green paste, nothing else happened.

Frowning at the result, he looked at his ingredients again. "Water, maybe? Or one of the drops from the monsters...?" He didn't really know what he was trying to create, so consulting the interface wouldn't do him much good. "Monster drop," he decided, reaching for the bottle of slime he had been sold. Uncorking it, he sniffed at the contents, then slowly spooned some of the mixture into the flask. The dissolved herb started to hiss and fizz, and Ramon leaned closer in anticipation of a reaction.

BANG!

A loud bang echoed off the nearby buildings as the potion exploded in a cloud of green smoke. Coughing and scrambling away from the site, Ramon sighed at his failure and glanced around. No doubt the unusual noise had attracted some attention, and that meant another adventurer was probably hurrying towards him. Rising and straightening the robe he wore, the young man walked back to where he had been sitting, mentally crossing that ingredient combination off the list of things to try.

[Okami]

One would not say, hurrying, persay. Okami was, by the set definition of 'hurrying', always in a hurry. Unable to keep her-self down to one spot for too long the Fox-Tail would frolic and run and cartwheel her way across the field; so one could not call it hurrying, only 'normal set of distance covering expectations for this crazed sorcerer'.

Or something likes that.

So when Okami skipped her way through the wreckage and green smoke, practically leaping through the air, head bobbing to the side and arms swinging wildly, it was nothing more than average for her. The explosion, she'd have admitted, got on her nerves. These new ears were far more sensitive than a human, and such a loud BANG was making them ring. but on the other hand, explosions meant people, and people meant new friends for her to dra- escort her everywhere. So she was feeling fairly giddy at the thought of boosting her friend rooster.

Okami only took a second of examining the field before spotting her target. Her ears perked, and her tail swished excitedly as she skipped up to received-to-have-caused-that-explosion young man. He was a fairly handsome individual, she'd thought, quite openly looking him up and down. "Hi!" She started, offering one of her award winning smiles, "Was that you that made that BOOOOOOMM?" She asked with an entirely straight face. It was a fair question, the Sorcerer thought. Did you make explodey things? Yes? No? Certainly a simple question and answer to follow!

And maybe she could get him to explode things again for her! Ooooh!

---

Word Count: 264
OOC Notes: Your gonna get friend'd.

[Ramon]

Yes, he had expected other players to come running. But Ramon was not prepared for the pink-haired fox-girl who raced up to him even before the smoke cleared. Rather, fox-woman, since she appeared older than him. He had seen a few of her class around the city, even talked to one, but she seemed somehow...different. Perhaps it was the hair. Or perhaps it was her wild arrival. Or just maybe it was her careless attitude towards the small explosion he had caused. "Um...Hello," he replied, staring awkwardly at her afterwards. He was never very good when it came to conversing with strangers, but luckily the other adventurer saved him by asking a question of her own. "Uh, yes, that was me." Ah, so she wanted to know what he had been doing! That he could talk about easily.

"I was simply experimenting with various ingredients, seeing what  I could make," he explained gesturing to the materials still laid out on the grass, "And I must have mixed something wrong, because everything exploded in my face." He clasped his hands behind his back and was about to wait for a response when he realized he hadn't introduced himself. He normally wouldn't do so, but this was technically a game, so...

"I'm Ramon. What's your name?"

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

Icyferno was walking through the streets, glad to be away from the areas where many other players were either panicking or complaining. Whatever had happened which caused them to be placed in the bodies of their game characters, it had already happened. Besides, he was never really the studious type, he wouldn't miss school at all. At the same time, as an avid gamer himself, being in a game world was, in it's own way, a dream come true. After he had walked far enough to stop hearing the panicked cries of some of the other players, he sat down on what could have been a bench and tried opening his menu. After several failed attempts, one of his random hand motions gave him his desired result.

After some carefully thought out hand gestures, he was able to access his subclasses. The reason he had chosen Pharmacist as his subclass was because he knew that potions would be very important in the game, more so now because they were trapped and most people were afraid of dying despite knowing that they can revive at the abbey. At the same time, it never hurts to be prepared with his own stock of potions, in case other players tried to scam him.

His train of thoughts were disrupted by a loud bang from just round the corner of another building. Both irritated and curious at the same time, he strolled over to what he believed was the source of the noise and saw what appeared to be a cloud of greenish smoke dissipating into the air. In the center of that smoke sat a male player who appeared older than himself and a female player, this one older than the male player, was hovering around him excitedly. His first thought was that he should leave, he didn't want to be bothered by these people. However, he knew next to nothing about the crafting system in the game, and while the guy was certainly no expert, he, at least, appeared to know what he was doing, shown by the variety of ingredients near him.

Mustering up his courage, he strolled forward to face the two players. As he came closer, he realized the ingredients laid down near the male player looked like herbs. Bingo, he thought, a pharmacist just like me. Maybe I can learn something from him. "Hey there," he called out, carefully choosing his words so that they wouldn't think he had any bad intentions. Not that he actually had any, but sometimes people could interpret him wrongly and he'd have to spend a lot of time clearing up any misunderstandings, more so because he was a stranger in a foreign land. "Are you, by any chance, a pharmacist?"

Completely ignoring the woman hovering over the male player, Icyferno asked the male player: "What are you making? I may be a pharmacist myself, but I don't really have any experience in creating potions yet." Inwardly, he silently prayed that the female player, whose name appeared to be 'Okami' based on the status bar he could now see because he was closer to the people in question, would, at the very least, leave him alone. However, his gut instincts told him that it was unlikely and he mentally braced himself for the onslaught of attention.

~

Word count in this post: 553
Total word count: 553
((OOC: Halfway through, I realized I couldn't decide how I would go and grab some materials of my own without some interaction on your part, Ramon. First time RPing again after about a year, hopefully I haven't gotten rusty yet. On the contrary I think I've improved a little.))
[EDIT] Some minor changes to the text, a few extra words here and there. Btw, if you want to describe my character, the first impression would be 'lazy' due to his unkempt appearance, in case no one reads the profiles. I know I don't...

[Okami]

"Experimenting?" Okami tilted her head to the side, ears twitching in curiosity. As the man explained his attempts to not make things explode, Okami listened in earnest, having a mock sober expression on her face. "I see, I see." The Fox-Tail commented, crossing her arms and nodding sagely. As if she actually understood how tempering with such base materials could lead to, well, carnage and explosions. The classes provided a fairly basic understanding of the occupation chosen, which improved with the classes level increase. But Okami was an Alchemist, herbs and medicines were out of her skills jurisdiction. So if he were to ever ask her opinion on the matter, all the Fox-tail could do is grin and shrug helplessly.

And then he introduced him-self. "Oh? That's a nice name!" Bowing with a swoosh of the arm, the sorcerer kept her head up to smile at the boy. "I'm Okami! Sorcerer, Alchemist, the cutest-most-fluffiest tailed Fox-tail in Elder Tales! It's nice to meet you!" Straightening her back, Okami looked straight into the eyes of the druid. They glittered with mischief. "Hey, hey." She started, skipping right into the personal space of the pharmacist, casually slipping her hands around one of his arms, "You should join my friends list! Then we can go to places together and hunt boars and explode things and I can be the greatest housekeeper and we'll get to be the bestest of best friends!" Okami's speech to try and recruit to her future victi-friends list had just gone a tad off spiral. But she meant what she said.

Okami offered him another bright smile.

Then they got a new arrival, another handsome young man. A bit of a mess, and rather skinny, but still fair in complexion. Not that any of this mattered to Okami. "Oooh~" Her eye's lit up again, tail swishing behind her. Another sucke-friend to add to her ever growing list! So when he approached them and...proceeded to completely ignore her, Okami did not take it well. Letting go of Ramon's arm, the Fox-tail marched her way right up into the swashbuckler's personal space and essentially jammed her face into his. Standing with noses just inches apart, up on her tippy-toes, fists balled, Okami beamed her pouting at him. "Hey, that's not nice! I'm here too you know? Ignoring a lady, how rude!"

"At least have the manners to introduce your-self!"

---

Word Count: 398
OOC: Professional Personal Space Invader.

[Ramon]

"Y-Yes, experimenting," he repeated, keeping a close eye on the other player as she absorbed the information. Her sudden bow made him step back quickly, but he did nod his head in return. Yes, this woman was very weird. "Nice too meet you too, Okami..." Ramon trailed off as she skipped into his personal space and latched onto his arm, all thoughts of asking her about alchemy fleeing from his mind. Scratch that, she wasn't weird. She was creepy. And she wanted him to agree to be friends. "Um...I'd rather not, if you don't mind..." Wondering what he had done to attract this particular sort of player, the Druid breathed a sigh of relief when another player called out to him.

"Hello!" he called back as the younger player approached and asked about his sub-class. Perhaps the new arrival would distract Okami. "Yes, I am a Pharmacist, although I'm still working out how the make things." Probably not the best way to sell himself, but it was the truth. Looking at the spot where his potion had blown up, he sighed and said, "I was trying to make a potion that exploded on contact with an opponent, but I think I'll focus on something simpler. Like a regeneration health potion or something."

It was at that point that Okami let go of his arm, but the relief he felt didn't last as she marched up to the new player and got just as close to him. "Aaah, Okami, there's no need for that!" Ramon said frantically, darting over and doing his best to draw the Fox-Tail's attention. "He wasn't being rude, he was just curious as to what I was doing. Right, Icyferno?" he asked, using the name that appeared in the player's status bar as a guide.

OOC: I just wanted to let you two know that another person is going to join this thread soon.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

The guy sitting on the grass was first to speak. "Hello! Yes, I am a Pharmacist, although I'm still working out how the make things. I was trying to make a potion that exploded on contact with an opponent, but I think I'll focus on something simpler. Like a regeneration health potion or something." Before Icyferno could say anything, the one called Okami, who was pretty much glued to the guy, marched up to him and started pouting at him. "Hey, that's not nice! I'm here too you know? Ignoring a lady, how rude! At least have the manners to introduce your-self!" Icyferno took an involuntary step back as he wasn't really comfortable dealing with girls like her. He was just thinking about what to respond with when the player called Ramon stepped in to save him. "Aaah, Okami, there's no need for that! He wasn't being rude, he was just curious as to what I was doing. Right, Icyferno?"

His first decision was that he should settle the more pressing issue with the fox lady first. From first impressions alone, he could tell that the pharmacist trying to make a potion was a lot more likely to be able to help him learn how to utilize his pharmacist subclass more effectively, even if he had failed in an attempt since he was, at the very least, honest about his inexperience. Taking in a deep breath, Icyferno said, "I apologize for not introducing myself. As you can probably tell from the status bar, my name is Icyferno. I am a pharmacist just like Ramon here, although I am still a lvl 1 novice in the subclass."

Turning towards Ramon and trying to ignore the fox lady in his face, which was easier now as he had stepped back from her earlier, he replied, "Yea, I heard an explosion over here so I wanted to see what was going on. An explosive potion, huh? Shouldn't those kinds of potions be left to alchemists? It seems to be right up their alley actually, I'm not too sure if pharmacists can even make something like that. A regeneration potion seems easier to make though."

Immediately after that, he groaned mentally as he realized he hadn't yet purchased any crafting materials for his subclass. Sure, he had some money on him, but he didn't know how long it would take to get some materials to start with. He would feel bad for Ramon if he used Ramon's ingredients though.

He quickly analyzed the situation. Since it was a potion, he would definitely need to get a solvent of sorts, although he wasn't really familiar with the different types of herbs yet. He could ask the shopkeeper about the herbs, since the People of the Land are no longer just NPCs, from what he could tell. Surely, they could point out some basic healing herbs as well as recommend a low-level solvent to start with. In fact, water should be a good starting point, he thought. Ivor said low-level herbs are slightly toxic even though they have healing properties. The water will be able to dilute the toxic even if it diminishes the healing strength of the potion, so it's a good start.

Having made his mind up, he continued, "Actually, I haven't got any ingredients yet. Let me run over to the NPC stalls to buy some, I'll be right back." Without waiting for a reply from either player, he began to walk in general direction of a few NPC stores, thankfully finding an excuse to get away from the fox lady for a while, even if he had left Ramon to his demise.

~

Word count in this post: 610
Total word count: 553 + 610 = 1163
((OOC: Noted. My character will be back in a few minutes, or basically when Ramon and Okami talk a bit. Should I get the ingredients from the NPC store now[forum NPC shop] or get them in the RP only and buy it from the NPC store later, if that makes sense.))

[Kris]

BANG!

A loud sound of an explosion, followed by a smoke signal formed of green smoke, rose from one of the nearby buildings. With nothing better to do, Kris strolled forward to take a look at what had occurred to have such an effect. After all, green smoke appearing right after an explosion isn't something that happened everyday, so he might as well check it out while he had time on his hands. Walking over, he could see a couple of people gathering already. He brushed past a young guy with similarly messy hair as himself, though without the spectacles, and presumably a swashbuckler from his dual weapons, who didn't say much as he appeared to be making a quick getaway from the area. Now, what could have happened? That thought dominated Kris's mind as he walked forward toward the origin of the explosion. As he neared the scene, his steps came to a slow stop.

"Ah, the girl who was riding the boars that day!!" Kris exclaimed, slightly surprised, but not completely expecting Okami not to be at the scene of such a wacky, out of place event, before regaining his composure and turning to the other player, Ramon. "Oh, I'm Kris, by the way," said Kris, introducing himself quickly, "Was that explosion your doing? It was pretty cool, so do you want to record the recipe down somewhere? I'm a Scribe, so I can provide the writing materials required for you." He paused, realizing that Ramon was either a Pharmacist or herbal expert, judging from the array of herbs around him, "We can do some mutual exchanging, if you'd like."

Since Elder Takes was a game that heavily relied on co-operation between players to be successful, players of past would often trade things for mutual benefits. A classic example would be if someone needed materials, but was too busy or low leveled to obtain it, he or she could offer a trade-off with another player to get the ingredient for them in exchange for something. It was the essence of trade within RPGs world-wide, and even more so ever since the «Apocalypse», where players had to band together to survive.


Word Count: 362

[Okami]

She hadn't really been paying attention to Ramon's frantic calling for her to not be, you know, the personal space invader she was. All Okami was really paying attention to was the young man who'd had the gall to ignore her. Cheeks puffed, ears twitching, the sorcerer eyed the swashbuckler in annoyance.

"I apologize for not introducing myself. As you can probably tell from the status bar, my name is Icyferno. I am a pharmacist just like Ramon here, although I am still a lvl 1 novice in the subclass." and like that, her entire disposition changed. Like a blink of the eye, she'd shifted from angry woman scorned to bouncy fox-tail, hands clasped in front of her and smiling cheerfully. "Hehe, I forgive you~. I'm Okami~ Lets be friends~." The Sorcerer was a little too sunny for someone who'd just been so pouty, but emotional whiplash was Okami's prerogative.

As he went on to discuss pharmacist gibberish, at least gibberish to her, Okami giggled to her-self while rocking back and forth on her feet, hands clasped behind her while she watched the two talk. Yeeesss, two new friends for her listings for future adventures. Today was going to be a good day. Then he dropped a line about needed to go gather some ingredients and sprinted off towards London's market. Okami saw him off with an energetic wave. "Bye Ferny!"

When he was finally out of sight, the sorcerer hummed contemplatively to her-self before turning to Ramon. "I think he ran away Rammy." She placed a finger on her chin, head tilted in thought, "I can't imagine why though."

This thought was completely forgotten when a familiar summoner showed up in the area. Okami's eyes lit up upon seeing Kris. "Krisy!" She squeed, immediately running over to Ramon and grabbing hold of his arm again, then proceeded to drag him towards the blue-hair. "Rammy, this is my friend Krisy!" She said, completely ignoring Kris's self introduction, "He's a summoner! You should be friends with him too."

---
Word Count: 337
OOC: All friends, or not friends, or those inbetween shall be nicknamed. No exceptions.

[Ramon]

Ramon sighed in relief as Okami calmed down, mentally making a note to never obviously ignore her in the future. He then nodded as Icyferno explained who he was and why he had come over here. "I'm also a level one Pharmacist," he admitted, "but I figured I had to start somewhere." He paused at the point about exploding potions being out of his class' area of expertise, then nodded in silent agreement. He would have to consult with an Alchemist about that, preferably one who wasn't Okami. Given her hyperactive personality, explosions were the last thing he wanted her to be around for.

He focused back on Icyferno as he said he was going to go get some ingredients. "Ah, alright. We'll wait here," he answered as the other Pharmacist walked off. He then looked at Okami, slightly dreading the idea of having to try and converse with her until Icyferno came back. Then she spoke, and his jaw practically hit the ground. Ferny? Rammy?! "I...I don't think he's run off," he stammered, trying to recover from the shock of suddenly being nicknamed. "He'll be back soon, you'll see." Why he had some much trust in Icyferno to return after witnessing Okami's behaviour he didn't know, but he had seemed eager to help create potions with Ramon.

Yet another player arrived then, and the Druid turned his attention towards him, grateful for his arrival. A magic-user like himself, judging by the gear, and a friend of Okami's as well. He seemed calmer at least, which was a good sign.

"Ah!" He yelped in surprise as the girl grabbed his arm and dragged him over to Kris, his name appearing in his status bar just as he introduced himself. "H-Hello," he said haltingly as he recovered his balance. "I'm Ramon. A Scribe, you say?" He hadn't met very many of those yet, and he wanted to trade! Ramon's expression brightened at that, and he nodded eagerly. "A trade of materials sounds good. Hm...if you write down the ingredients used to make a successful regeneration potion, I'll give you one or two in exchange for the recipe." That seemed fair enough, at least to him.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

---Ivy's Refuge, NPC Market---

Icyferno breathed heavily as he entered a herbal store ran by an NPC. He had pretty much ran the whole way as just in case that fox woman had changed her mind and wanted to accompany him to the store. As he caught his breath, he looked around and surveyed the shop. There were a few NPCs browsing the various types of herbs here, ranging from leaves to roots to what appeared to be the tentacles of a tentacle plant. The tentacles were caged and there was even a warning sign to be careful when near the cage. As he was watching, a female customer got too close to the cage and a small tentacle squeezed through the gap, reaching out for the flesh it craved...

Only to get sliced off as a wizened old woman appeared out of nowhere with a sickle to cut the tendril. It thrashed violently before sliding back into the cage. The female customer was shaken with thoughts of what could have almost happened and thanked the old woman profusely, notably further from the cage. The old woman held up her hand and nodded to her, then noticed Icyferno's presence. Nodding once more to the customer to show that her thanks was noted, the old woman hobbled over to him. It was only now that he realized that her sickle was actually a scythe, and that she was using the scythe as a support for her to move around.

Her dusty grey robes with the shop's emblem on her sleeve indicated that she was working in the shop, possibly the owner judging from her age. Bowing slightly, he greeted her politely. "Oh my," she responded. "It's rare to see an adventurer come here. Usually they would rather spend their gold on either potions or weapons. How may I help you?" her voice was slightly hoarse, as though she hadn't spoke for some time.

He began by asking for a few low-grade healing herbs as well as any solvent which could dilute the toxicity of the herbs while still allowing the herbs to provide sustained healing.

"Aaaah, a healing potion, eh?" The old woman chuckled for a while, then hobbled over to an opened box where a bunch of herbs resided. She picked up a few of them and skillfully tossed them onto the counter top, where a cushion was conveniently placed for such a purpose. She then repeated the process for a few different herbs, all the while pointing out certain herbs which were not well known but were actually useful for making different types of potions for different situations.

At the end of it all, she stopped by a box filled with vials of liquid and scooped a few up. "For most low level potions, pure water is fine." she said, this time walking over to the counter instead of hurling the liquids across the shop. Well, I guess not everything can be thrown, he thought. Still, this was a very interesting trip. I learned a lot. At the counter, Icyferno found himself paying for not just the ones he needed, but others as well so he could attempt to work out potions of other natures. He thanked her for her guidance and exited the shop. As he walked back, albeit more slowly than usual because he was hoping that Okami had already left, he pondered about his conversation with the shopkeeper. Her reactions were so life-like, so... human. For a brief moment, he wondered if the only thing separating the People of the Land and the adventurers was their strength as well as understanding of modern concepts.

Then he shook his head and let his thoughts return to Ramon. He didn't really know why he wanted to work with Ramon, maybe it was just comforting to know that there was someone almost like him, or maybe he didn't want to feel alone all the time. He had gone out to fight in the forest alone before, but it was somehow more comforting to work with someone. Although in this case, it was more of a joint effort to invent a potion than something more dangerous like a battle.

~

Word count in this post: 695
Total word count (Pharmacist): 553 + 610 + 695 = 1858
((OOC: Lol Ramon, you only get one free potion upon invention, why do you want to give it away))

[Kris]

Kris nodded after hearing Ramon's reply, already expecting the trade to go well. He raised his hand for a handshake, a universal sign of goodwill and trust, and in this case, a sign that the deal had acceptable terms and that both parties accepted it. It was pretty tough though, with Okami sticking to him so closely. To Kris's current knowledge, Scribes were needed to create paper and ink, as well as various other writing materials such as the quills that is being used to replace pens in the game word, and although it was just a theory at the moment since he had not tried it out, the ink should come with a ink bottle. A random concern, really, but not totally out of place. "Well, I've got the starter paper and ink, oh, and a quill as well here, for a start. It is pretty difficult for someone other than a Scribe to write on at the moment, so I'll help out in the recording of recipes for now, but as my Scribe sub-class level progresses I should be able to produce better quality paper and ink that would last much longer, and probably also allowing other people to use it with ease as well," said Kris, the deal being set.

As he took out some paper, ink and quill, he continued to speak, "Although ideally, I think a personal lab space would be much more effective in the creation of potions. That way, you can patent the potion, and probably earn quite a bit from the sale of it, as well as raise your own value among the Adventurers in this town. A pharmacist guild could be created in this manner, and you'll probably have lots of revenue. Then I could be your writing material provider. It's just an idea, though, so don't take me too seriously, ahahaha." He laughed as he blurted out one of his ideas for the Pharmacist sub-class, wanting to get the opinions of other people on the manner, as well as to judge if his train of thought was legit or not. At this point of time, he could still pass it off as a joke, but in reality, it was a shrewd idea that would be really effective, especially if one thought about it in a strictly business sense. After all, what better way than to pool talents together, and then research en masse to get results fast? The additional revenue and experience one would get from working with such a group would be quite beneficial for someone like Kris, who was still figuring out how to make the best use of his Scribe sub-class. It wasn't the type of sub-class to make ground breaking discoveries, nor was it the type to control the economy like tailors controlling the fashion industry or chefs dominating the food industry, but rather it was the type that operated in the background, the kind that appeared to be unimportant, but was indispensable in daily life. Hence, it was in places like this that connections to other players mattered. Not that Kris really thought that far though. This idea might be floating about in the back of his mind at the moment, ready to appear at any time, but currently he was just satisfied with solely making a new, reliable friend that he just made a trade agreement with.



Word Count: 563
OOC: Last post for the night. Guess I'll continue the rest tmr~

[Okami]

"Hmm hmm" Okami hummed in approval at them getting along, hands still clinched around Ramon's arm. The fox-tail seemed perfectly fine with clinging to the man all afternoon. Her clasp on the man's on wasn't iron grade strength, relaxing and stiffing on and off. The sorcerers tail flicked calmly, shocker, back and forth, though now it seemed less like a separate, spastic being of it's own like usual and more like the sway appendage of a predator ready to pounce. Her ears twitched with curiosity as she listened to the boys, or more specifically Kris, talk shop. The need to learn was, however snuffed and buried under her unyielding enthusiasm and energy, still a part of her. So as the summoner spoke of their now set limitations, Okami set personal notes for the situation at hand.

As Kris continued, Okami felt a 'click'. Not an actual, physical audio noise. Not even an imagined signal. It was simply Alana deciding that she needed to put aside her toy to focus on some rather nice ideas presented for her continued survival. The secretary narrowed her eyes at the growing list of future essentials. Yes, essentials. A personal space to experiment and improve her craft, growing social status and reputation to derive a higher reputation with adventurers, the eventual establishing of a guild of her own, or if not possible joining another. It was a easy enough fact to understand that in this medieval fantasy world, they were the economy. As adventurers grew in skill and imagination, as the competition got stronger, those unable to keep up - or simply could fend for them-selves out in the wilds - would be left to rot. Innovators were the future, and possibly salvation, of this worlds enslaved adventurers. But that wouldn't keep them from tearing out one another’s throats in the process. Alana's work had 'graced' her with chance to see such things happen in real life. And if it could happen in relatively stable, if not considerably peaceful time, then why not here in this foreign and dangerous world? During this time her tail had stopped it's useless flailing mid swoosh, and the moment she uttered her next words it gave a single agitated flick. "Fascinating." She breathed, sounding almost too quiet.

"Hey, hey Rammy." Okami said, bright, golden eyes looking up at Ramon, tugging energetically on the Pharmacists robes like a child would for an adored parent, "Lets be in a guild together~" She eyed him in expectation, ears twitching happily, seeing it an utter possibility that he could say no. Why wouldn't he want to be in the same family as someone with such an adorably fluffy tail? "..Oh! Oh oh! Krisy! Join us too!" She said, smiling, before trying to reach her arm out to him, probably to wrap it around his. Finding him at a displeasing distance away, she gave off a "Fuuu..." before waving her arm a violently in the air, as if she could beat time and space into submission to allow her to hold on to the summoner as well. Finding her attempts in vain, and unwilling to give up her spot on Ramon's arm, her ears drooped and proceeded to whine like a beaten dog. "Kriiissyy..." she whimpered pitiably.

---
Word Count: 543
OOC: Awwww yeah look at that word count...but figures I'd have to bring in alana for anything that requires a dedicated attention span.

[Ramon]

Ramon was pleased that Kris had accepted the deal without any additional haggling, and so gladly shook hands with him. As Kris explained what was involved with his subclass, Ramon nodded in understanding. A dedicated Scribe to take down recipies and such would be a valuable person to know, plus exploring with another magic-user sounded fun, if Kris was up for it. He would have added the other player to his friend's list then and there, but he had a feeling Okami might complain if he added one and not the other, so he made a mental note to do it later. Ramon also would have sat down, but with the Fox-Tail clinging to his arm, he couldn't move around much.

Then the suggestion of a personal lab was brought up, and the Druid visibly brightened. Yes, a lab meant being around others more often, but it also meant his own private workspace where he could study and create at his leisure. It was nice working under the open air, but having his own space would be nice. "Oh yes, a private lab would be lovely!" he exclaimed, already thinking of the possibilities. "But aren't private buildings expensive? I'd have to work outside for a while before I could afford a place..." And then there was the guild idea. He went silent as he considered that, only half-noticing that Okami had gone quiet as well. He had been in guilds before, in other online games, but Elder Tale was much more than a game now. The players weren't just avatars on a computer screen, but living, breathing people. He'd always had trouble connecting to people face-to-face, hence why he loved video games.

"Hm? Be in a guild together?" Okami probably noticed him stiffen at her words, for the mere thought of being in the same guild as her made him uneasy. It wasn't that he disliked her...mostly. He just found her tiring to be around, and being in close proximity to each other might be bad for his health in the long term. "I'll...um...think about it, ok?" he said, hoping that would be enough to make her drop the subject.

"How about we get to work?" Sitting down regardless of whether Okami remained attached his left arm or not, he waited until Kris was ready and said, "The last potion I made - the one that exploded - contained one herb, some solvent, and some slime collected from a Dull Green Slime. Needless to say, it was a failure."

OOC: We do? Eh, I'm fine with giving it away. Ramon can always make another one.

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

Minutes had passed since Icyferno had left for the the alchemist shop, and he was almost back with all his ingredients in tow. He could already see the clearing where Ramon and the others were at, possibly discussing whatever they were doing. Speeding up so it didn't seem like he was dragging his feet because he was hoping Okami would have already left, he quickly covered the distance between them. Calling out a greeting to them, he plopped himself opposite Ramon with whatever was left of Ramon's flask between them. He hadn't heard whatever they were discussing just now, so he felt that he didn't need to know. Actually, he didn't even want to know what they were talking about, judging from Ramon's stiff face.

Opening his magic bag, he pulled out some of the ingredients he had bought from the stall. "Assuming we're trying to make a regeneration potion, I think we should try to increase the quantity of the liquid in the potion and dilute the concentration of the herbs. Thus this potion should require more solvent and slightly more herbs in order to achieve our desire healing effect." Without waiting for Ramon, he took out two bottles of solvent and poured both of them into an empty flask. He waited for the solvent to settle, then he looked up at Ramon and asked, "How many herbs should we add? Also, should we add anything else?"

He knew he was acting like a newbie; it wasn't something a veteran gamer like him should do. However, this game had replaced his real world, and his gaming experience simply could not help him even he encountered anything familiar. Going alone seemed like a good choice but this was no longer a game and death meant nothing, so he knew he had to start looking for friends or he might be in trouble later on. In the meantime, he only hoped his actions did not seem too offensive to those around him.

This was one of those rare moments when he was actually trying to make an effort to communicate with others. Usually, he just couldn't be bothered to talk to others, preferring to let others do the talking. Unfortunately for him, he didn't know all that many players trapped in the world of Elder Tales with him, so even he wanted his friends to introduce their buddies to him, there were still large holes in his friend list, which was probably all his fault.

~

Word count in this post: 414
Total word count (Pharmacist): 553 + 610 + 695 + 414 = 2272
((OOC: Tbh I don't really know how a regen potion is going to work.))

[Kris]

Kris gave Okami a faint smile and said, "Well, I'll think about being in a guild when the time comes. No point pondering about something like that now, after all. We all don't qualify as a guild master currently in the first place as we are right now ahhahaha." He chose a diplomatic answer that would guarantee an open mind for himself when the time comes. He was not planning to be solo all the way, after all, but thinking about a guild when they were not so experienced was practically asking for a one way trip to hell, what with all the gathering of members, forming or buying a base, guild expenses, guild reputation, etc etc to think about and handle. Especially in Okami's case, it was likely that she would be some sort of "mascot" leader, who would leave most of the planning to her guild members. Kris was not sure if he would want to be part of something like that, interesting though it may be. He would watch and observe for now, and keep his options open, probably until someone invited him at the appropriate time, when he was higher leveled, he guessed.

"Affirmative," said Kris simply to Ramon as he took out various writing materials to write on. He quickly labelled the parchment "Experiments gone wrong" and wrote down diligently the ingredients used and the effects achieved, which was basically an explosion with lots of smoke, with the resulting solution turning into a dark green paste that could probably give off the "I'm poisonous and I know it" aura if it tried, though he just wrote "results: dark green paste with explosion effect observed". A simple yet effective way of describing the phenomenon, if he had to say so himself. Kris glanced upward as a Swashbuckler named Icyferno approached. He appeared to be an up-and-coming person, for he immediately got into the task by taking out various ingredients that were obtained from the store, and dished out a couple of suggestions that sound pretty practical for a start. His social skills could use some working on, though, maybe its because of a certain person here? noted Kris as he raised his hand in greeting of the Swashbuckler. "Hi there, I'm Kris. I'll be the Scribe taking down the experiments and stuff, so let's get along, okay?" said Kris, opting for a nice and simple greeting for the seemingly unsociable Swashbuckler before him. "By the way, what he just said sounds like a plan. You should give it a shot," continued Kris, turning to Ramon. He also kept an eye on Okami, who seemed to like Ramon's arm a lot. Well, good luck with that, thought Kris, thinking of how Okami was unlikely to let go for quite some time. She appeared to like skin-ship with others a lot, like seriously a lot, from what he could observe so far. Maybe she is just being in character or something, thought Kris, preferring not to delve too deeply into thought as he had "work" to do right now.



Word Count: 511
OOC: Sorry for the late post~ I never realized that it couldn't go on without the Scribe saying something lol :3

[Okami]

The little fox-tail woman narrowed her eyes at the man, feeling her ears shoot straight up, and wrapped her arms around Ramon a little tighter, pressing against the man. 'Maybe', he said to her. Did he not think this wonderfully, spectacular, fabulously intelligent vixen couldn't see what he was doing? 'Maybe' was a woman's word. It was like a really passive and nice way of saying 'no'. Like 'I'll think about it'. So when Ramon said 'maybe', she instantly knew he wasn't going to make the greatest decision of his life - joining the same guild as her! Obviously, the older woman realized, he would need some nudging towards the true path of becoming Okami's eternal victi- bestest best friend. So she stood there, 'fffuuuuing' at the man who'd had the nerve to reject her, making plans of wrapping him up in her shenanigans.

After all, that's what friends were for, right~?

At least Kris had been straight with her. "...Okay Krisy." She felt her ears droop back down again, disappointed. The sorcerer understood the logic behind his words, but that didn't mean she liked them in the slightest. But Okami would most definitely come back to cling and drag her friend into the same guild as her.That was a personal promise! Anything less would be unacceptable! As if agreeing with her self, the fox-tail crossed her arms as far as she could while keeping hold of Ramon's arm, nodding sagely to her own inner monologue.

When the man had unceremoniously dropped to the ground to sit with the others, Okami followed, happily falling to the earth and sitting next to him. She wasn't just about to let the man go just yes, humming to her-self as the boys started on their little crafting experiment. Her eye's looked over the materials and her ear's flickered with curiosity, hoping to examine how successful they were in their item making.

---
Word Count: 318
OOC: Sorry for the wait gais.