[Mentor] Go With the Flow

[Deleted]

STATUS

Keeping the Day Job

HP: 100% MP: 100% - EQUIPMENT - Midnight's Edge (2H) Pride of the Jade Dragon SKILLS - Tongue of Nature - Words: 663 Tags: Ares Notes: So the adventure begins. Let me know if something needs fixed or is just hard to reply to. ^^;

Despite the usually cloudy weather that often plagues the European area, the sun was shining brightly today. The rays of the sun reflected brilliantly off the water, specks of light dancing across the rushing current as if they were stones skipping across its surface. Bits of gravel crunched underneath Oxford’s feet as he walked along the edge where the woods’ greenery ended and the beach began, carrying a small bucket of bait in one hand and a fishing rod in the other. On his shoulder rode his furry companion, Omoshiroi (or Omo for short), his pet Briar Weasel who kept peering into the bucket that the guardian carried along with him. “Oi boss, what’s wit all da grubs? Don’t tell me this is yer lunch, izzit?” said the weasel, the [Tongue of Nature] skill translating the weasels chitter into intelligible words for Ox. “No, Omo,” Ox replied with a laugh. “This is the bait. I’m hoping we could maybe snack a fish or two, see if we can find a chef somewhere to cook it up for us or something.” For some reason, the image of a certain pink-haired flashed in his mind’s eye as he said this. A slight smile curled the edges of his mouth upwards as he set the bucket down, moving a hefty rock onto the sandy beach. Don’t worry, he’ll put it back once he’s done with it. As he did this, Omo sniffed around the inside of the bucket. Putting his paw in, he managed to fish one of the many grub-like worms out and ate it. “Mmm, these things ain’t half bad!” he shouted out as he fished for another one. “Hmm? What isn’t too ba—OMO, STOP. THOSE ARE FOR THE FISH.” With a quick grab, he pulled the bucket away from his pet and placed it on top of the rock. Of course, Omo easily jumped on top of it, giving Ox a hit with his big, ol’ dark eyes. The juxtaposition of this gushingly cute gesture with Omo’s gruff Scottish accent rendered it ineffective against the guardian. Should anyone else have seen the weasel right now, they’d probably would’ve already been captured by his captivating fluffy wiles by now. A couple of seagulls flew overhead as Ox affixed the grubs onto the fish hook, casting it out into the Thames’s current. Despite not having the Fisherman RP class, Ox was still determined to try to see if he could manage to land something. Minutes trickled by, and not so much as a nibble was felt on his end. The red-and-white bobber bounced lazily in the river’s flow as he heard Omo munching every now and then on the bait, slurping up some of the grubs like they were wriggling strands of spaghetti. “Omo…cut it out, that sounds nasty…” he groaned as he reeled his line in. The soggy worm dangled off by the hook’s tip, falling to the ground where the weasel immediately pounced on it. “Ugh, mate…tell you what, don’t drown ‘em before you feed ‘em ta me,” Omo said with a shudder, spitting the fetid bait into the river. “Blegh, downright ‘orrible, it was.” With most of his bait eaten already eaten by this point and no hope of catching fish anytime soon, Oxford went ahead and tucked his bucket and fishing rod back into his inventory. When that was all said and done, the guardian decided to take a walk alongside the beach, maybe fight off a couple mobs or so while he was at it. The riverside was actually a pretty scenic area to walk around in, so there was no telling what he’d find in this area today. Adjusting his jade-colored armor and hefting his giant two-handed blade, he gave a whistle to his pet and together, the two set off in search of glorious adventure. Despite not knowing what the day held, he had a feeling that today would turn out to be a pretty good one.

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[Ares]

     Had Ares not been aware of the fact that this was part of a game, she might've thought that the sea in front of her was the real thing.

     She'd always loved the ocean. Though her family hadn't lived by it, they'd taken trips before, and she'd always requested that they go to a beach at some point. Those who had known Ares back in the real world would have recognized this as odd for her - most of the time, the timid girl had avoided going anywhere that may have been potentially crowded. It seemed to be one of the few places that she would've braved, however, if only to experience the waves that crashed against the surf, crawling up the sand only to slink and be replaced by others.

     The redheaded samurai couldn't help but feel grateful for the fact that the coastline didn't appear to be crowded today. It made traveling along the shore a far more relaxing experience for her, which was a nice change. Ares had been rather tense since she'd begun wandering about in search of Nat, and it certainly didn't help her progress any. The swordsman found that she needed to stop quite often in order to give herself a break, her emotional difficulties causing her more difficulties than any physical ones ever could. It was frustrating for her, but not entirely surprising. Ares knew better than to push her anxiety too far, as it would often simply cause her to require extra time to recover if she overexerted it.

     This was nice though. Ares wasn't sure if it was the scenery or the fact that she didn't have to worry about the difficulties that came with socializing with others, but her tension was at a minimum right now, and she was quite appreciative of that fact.

     As her feet sunk slightly into the soft sand, Ares found herself wondering if it was possible to swim in this world. There was a part of her that wanted to make the attempt, but she doubted that would be a wise move - the samurai didn't want to do anything that would end with her reviving back at the cathedral. Perhaps if she could muster up to courage to talk to other players, she'd be able to ask someone else if they knew whether or not such a feat was possible - most of the MMOs that she'd played didn't include an ability to swim, and many wouldn't allow a player to even enter the water, but so much had changed now. Perhaps it was possible.

     The redhead's mind wandered along with her feet as she moved along the shoreline. She'd been trying to get her levels up until now, and the girl wondered if there was anything to be gained from the area that she found herself in now. Ares couldn't imagine that there was anything by the ocean that would help with her class leveling though - if there was, she certainly wasn't aware of it. Still, it would be best to explore the area as much as she could - perhaps the girl would find that she was incorrect, and that there was indeed something to be gained out here. The only way to find out was to familiarize herself with the area.

     It was only when she noticed another person walking along the beach that Ares' train of thought was interrupted. Glancing up, the redhead caught sight of the form of a young man dressed in a rather striking set of jade-coloured armor. It was a beautiful colour truthfully, and Ares couldn't help but admire it as she wondered if, perhaps, she would be able to craft something like that one day once her blacksmith class had been leveled enough. It made her own starter plate feel so unimpressive by comparison. Despite the fact that they were probably just going to pass by each other without a word, Ares couldn't help but feel self-conscious - she really needed to work towards upgrading her gear to something better.

     As she adverted her gaze, not wanting to be caught staring, Ares' eyes fell upon something else - a small animal that appeared to be following the other player along. A weasel? It appeared to be tame, so perhaps it was a pet of sorts - it was certainly cute. Ares had never been a very feminine girl, but even she found herself somewhat captivated by adorable animals, and it was there that her gaze remained as her steps slowed slightly in order to continue watching the little creature.

     Y... Y-You're w-weasel's um... h-he's c-cute..." Even as the words slid past her lips, the samurai felt her cheeks reddening, wondering if that was an odd compliment to give to another player. The redhead always worried about saying something stupid and making herself seem foolish - hopefully, the other player wouldn't be irritated by her comment.

Tagged: @0x1dea
Word Count: 812
OOC: It was fine! Thanks for the starter again! <3 Let me know if anything about this doesn't work~

[Deleted]

STATUS

The Sands Carry Many Tracks

HP: 100% MP: 100% - EQUIPMENT - Midnight's Edge (2H) Pride of the Jade Dragon SKILLS - Tongue of Nature - Words: 727 Tags: Ares Notes: If this one ends up being hard to write a reply for, let me know. ^^

It was pretty quiet along the beach as he walked along the sand, noticing the barbed fins of a couple young Sanhaugin warriors poking up in the water. Luckily they were out in the deep end, so unless you wanted to get soaking wet to nab some measly experience (to him, at least), it wasn’t really worth it. He kicked a couple of pebbles as he walked, watching Omo run after them and pick them up in his mouth as he brought them back. “Why do you do that?” he asked his friend as he came running back for the fourth time. “I can’t help it! It’s in me nature as a weasel. It’s instinctual, ‘n I wish yu’d stop exploitin’ it be’cuz it’s really startin’ ta—be right back,” he said, chasing after another pebble that Ox nudged along. He let out a laugh as his friend brought the stray rock back and dropped it as the two moved along, Omo climbing up on his shoulder in one swift, practiced motion. As the two walked along, Oxford noticed an unmistakable shade of red as he walked along the sandy coastline. As he walked closer, he realized that it was in fact another adventurer, a lower-leveled at that judging by the starter mail that she wore. He felt a small wave of nostalgia hit him as he remembered when he first began his voyages into the more ‘hostile’ realms of the game. Now that he thought about it, why didn’t he first come here when he started his level-grinding journey? The visibility was higher when you didn’t have trees and plant life surrounding you like the Windsor Greatwoods did. Had he been able to see better in there, he probably could’ve avoided getting chased by boars all the time, but noooooooo, Ox had to go traipsing around in there like a Disney princess or something. The woods were not as friendly and passive like the ones back in the real world he used to go walking around in, and he ended up paying dearly for it: it cost him a night without sleep. Seriously, for someone who was busy working on leveling and keeping guild duties in check, sleep was invaluable to him. Anyways, minor flashback over, Ox couldn’t help but notice her staring, as if she was staring at something right over his shoulder. Or on it, in this case. The guardian slowed his walking speed as he found himself walking closer to her, slowing down to a stop when he saw the young, blushing samurai woman comment on Omo’s cuteness. Omo’s ears pricked up as he examined her with a tilted head, Oxford letting out a small chuckle at his pet’s reaction to the red-head’s compliment. “Why, thank you…oh, and Omo thanks you as well,” he said when all of a sudden Omo jumped onto her shoulder and nuzzled her cheek with his soft fur. Just in case the physical contact of a weasel wasn’t something that she desired, Ox had his menu open, ready to de-summon should things get out of hand. “However, if you heard him talk, I don’t know if you would consider him as cute as you see him now,” he said, giving a sly wink to his pet as he gave him a pointed look. “I like dis girl, boss! She’s as nice as th’ otter ladeh we helped out. ‘N both of ‘em like what they see!” said Omo as he puffed out his fuzzy chest. Ox just shook his head in mock defeat, raising his head to face the samurai directly. He adjusted his glasses as he tried to think of a good question to possibly start a conversation. A quick glance at her stats showed that she was still a level 1 player, but as to whether she had any experience in combat or not, there was a good chance of her getting into trouble real fast. “So, if you don’t me asking, what’s a level 1 player like yourself doing all the way out here? Out looking for some mobs to grind to get some EXP?” he asked, giving her a friendly smile as he did so to help settle any unease within her. “Oh, and before I forget, my name’s Oxford,” he added, extending a hand to her for her to shake if she so desired.

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[Ares]

     Ares heard herself let out a breath as the other adventurer responded with a chuckle, and couldn't help but be relieved by the lack of annoyance in his tone. If anything, he seemed amused by her comment, which was better than the reply that the redhead had been expecting. Then again, Ares had the habit of picturing worst-case scenarios, no matter how unlikely they were to actually happen.

     "O-Omo, huh... ?" A mere second after the weasel's name had slipped from her tongue, Ares was surprised to find that the furry creature had jumped from his owner's shoulders to hers. The sudden movement caught her off guard, and the samurai felt herself jump a little in a startled response, but the reaction was fleeting. Honestly, the samurai was nervous about physical contact when it came to other people, but animals were a different story. Had this been a untamed creature, she may have been a little more cautious - it was clear, however, that Omo was a companion to the other player, and there probably wasn't anything to fear from the little creature unless one was an enemy of his master's. He certainly seemed like a friendly little guy if nothing else, and Ares was reminded somewhat of the dog that her family had kept back in the real world. Bishop had always been a good old boy...

     "I d-dunno, he... he s-seems s-sweet..." Her timid expression turned to a soft smile as Omo nuzzled against her cheek, and Ares didn't hesitate to reach back and scratch the little creature behind one of his ears. Perhaps Omo wasn't a real animal, but he acted enough like one, and Ares had met very few creatures who didn't like having their ears scratched - perhaps she should've taken an animal trainer class instead of a bodyguard class. At least then she'd be able to have a companion who wasn't human, as her anxiety had never been particularly bad around animals.

     Violet eyes returned to Omo's master, not wanting to appear rude. It certainly wouldn't be polite for her to only pay attention to his pet, after all - her hand didn't stop moving though, and it slid down from Omo's ears to scratch at his neck instead. The other adventurer was obviously far more experienced than she was, and though she didn't know his level, Ares wouldn't have been surprised if his was far more impressive than her measly level 1. As he posed his question, the samurai became all the more convinced that this was the case, and she gave a small nod in response.

     "I'm, um... I-I'm A-Ares. I-It's nice to m-meet you, O-Oxford..." She admittedly hesitated for a moment when Oxford offered her his hand, but tentatively accepted the gesture, again not wanting to appear rude. Her awkwardness and discomfort with contact often confused others, and Ares didn't want to put him off by refusing - besides that, it wasn't as if he'd grabbed her. Generally, it was contact like that which made the redheaded samurai the most anxious. Oxford seemed to be quite relaxed, however, and that (along with his furry friend) helped to ease her nervousness a little.

     "T-That was the p-plan, yeah." Ares confirmed after a moment, her gaze sliding off to the side after a moment. She'd never been particularly good at keeping eye contact, and her timid demeanor probably didn't reflect what one would expect from someone who'd taken a tanking class. Ares had never been expecting an experience like this when she'd initially chosen her character's build, however; had she known about all of this, the girl might've picked something more fitting to her nervous habits.

     Then again, if Ares had known that she was going to get sucked into a game, she probably wouldn't have done it at all - on top of that, she certainly would've warned Natalie to not join. Not use in complaining about it now though. "I'm... I'm k-kind of t-trying to g-get the h-hang of e-everything, and... I n-need to get my l-level up as s-soon as I c-can. I t-thought... m-maybe c-checking out an a-area I h-hadn't been to y-yet would h-help me a-along..."

     She'd have an easier time in her search for Natalie if she got herself adequately leveled, after all. It wouldn't do for Ares to die repeatedly and keep ending up back at the cathedral - her search would take forever if that was the case.

Tagged: @0x1dea
Word Count: 736

[Deleted]

STATUS

Sahaugin Sushi Shop

HP: 100% MP: 100% - EQUIPMENT - Midnight's Edge (2H) Pride of the Jade Dragon SKILLS - Anchor Howl - Words: 864 Tags: Ares Notes: Sorry about the delay. 3 Young Sahaugins came over for a sushi party. x3

Oxford gave Ares a nice, firm handshake, but not too firm as to where it would hurt her hand. His heart went out to her when he saw how timid she was when he and heard her stammering, remembering long ago from back in the real world where he couldn’t even get a word out when talking to someone unfamiliar. In his mind, he made a solemn vow to make sure that she felt comfortable around him to where she could be herself and not have to worry about anyone else’s opinions. Even still, those kinds of things still plagued the guardian, but his kinda-leadership role given to him by his guild leader helped him get used to talking with strangers. Breaking the fourth wall to get past all the interior monologue and obligatory flashbacks, Oxford pondered for a moment where a good place to start training would be around here. Since this was an area he had never thoroughly explored before, he wasn’t too familiar with the mobs or the areas around here, so trying to find a quest would probably be the best choice for helping the red-head some much-needed experience. He folded his arms in front of him as he stared at nothing in particular, his brow furrowing some as he concentrated on tasks that’d be good for teaching as well as he listened to Ares’s reply to his question. “Hmm, well, since you’re level one, we can always grab a couple levels just from fighting the random mobs around here. But then again, finding a couple quests to perform would level you pretty fast as well…,” he said as he adjusted his glasses, trying to find an efficient route that could accomplish both teaching/leveling objectives at the same time. “Before we start, we should probably go over what you know. You know the basics about tanks, right? Stuff like pulling aggro, tanking hits, and all that stuff?” he asked the samurai, ready to explain the basics of their class-type should she be unfamiliar with these techniques. “Oh, and are you comfortable using your weapon? Once you know how to handle your sword, it’ll be easier to use skills in combat as well.” After all was said and done (and possibly explained in the next posting round, here, lemme patch up that fourth wall again for ya), Ox’s biggest question still went unanswered: what kinds of enemies should they fight? A couple of seagulls cawed overhead as they flew over the river, drawing Oxford’s attention to the waters as they bubbled and churned in one spot before they resumed their usual ebbing flow. The guardian stared out at the water for a while, trying to figure out what was the cause of the disturbance before he turned back to face the crimson-headed samurai. Even Omo had turned his head to face the water, his ears twitching back and forth as the weasel stared at the current. Hmm, weird… Before he could open his mouth to ask Ares about the type of monsters she’d be willing to fight, a loud yell could be heard somewhere in the distance. It was a very masculine sounding yell, but yet still held the telltale tinge of fear as it echoed over through the trees and over the water. The guardian turned to face the new mystery as a strange form crashed through the limbs of the trees. It glistened with moisture as it ran at the pair of adventurers, its big beady eyes, scaly face and snaggle-toothed fish maw as it ran down the hill. However, Oxford already had his sword drawn and cut the creature in half, its parts disintegrating into a flurry of digital bits as it disintegrated into nothingness. At that point, a somewhat heavy-set Lander farmer came bumbling through the brush as well, with 3 Young Sahaugins hot on his trail as they chased after him. The Lander ended up stumbling on the ground before them, hastily getting back up to hide himself behind Oxford. “Thank the Elders, you’re adventurers!” he half-said, half-wheezed as he panted heavily to get his breath back. The man’s small bushy mustache quivered from fear and anger as he pointed one of 10 stubby digits at the steadily approaching the two. “Those vagrants besieged me and my produce wagon! I don’t know what’s got into these creatures, they never stray farther than from the riverbed!” he said, staring up at the guardian with pleading eyes. Without another word, Oxford summoned up the in-game menu and went ahead and level-synced himself down to 7. Once that was all said and done, he let out a roar as he went ahead and activated [Anchor Howl] on the assembly before him. “Alright, this should be a good offensive warm-up for you. I’ll maintain aggro while you get the hang of activating your skills,” he said back to the red-head as the fish mongrels began to come towards him. “Their levels might be a little high, but that means you’ll be able to level up a little quicker this way.” Once this fight was over, the pair could move onto lower leveled quarry to make things easier if need be.

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