Tricks of the Trade [Mentor/Apprentice]

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

The sun beat down harshly on the valley below, scorching Alvina's face as perspiration ran down her forehead and her neck, occasionally dripping into her eyes as she blinked rapidly in a futile attempt to spare them the stinging pain of contact with the salty liquid. Despite the full blown heat of noon, a gentle breeze seemed to come in from her right, bringing with it the smell of humidity and moist grass. Nonetheless, it was greatly welcomed by the Enchanter, for at this point in time she'll have taken any sort of relief from the unrelenting heat above. It was times like this, when the weather in Elder Tale was so realistic that she wondered if she was perhaps not merely stuck in game, but embarking on a journey in a new world. Regardless of whatever sort of climate it was, the mobs still roamed about their usual spawn spots, for which the Foxtail was rather grateful for. This way she could start farming up those levels that she desperately needed. In fact, this time, she had prepared a farming strategy beforehand. Alvina used Keen Edge on her staff, drawing the attention of two moss colored Dull Green Slimes, a level one and a level two respectively. Quickly, she cast Astral Bind on the level two monster, keeping herself just out of range of its regular attack, but close enough such that a swing from her staff would clip it just at the edge. Grabbing her weapon with both hands, for the first time she utilized its two-handed aspect to its full potential, giving the stick a great cleave and striking both slimes simultaneously. The damage dealt to both was minimal, due to both her low level as well as her main class's heavy disadvantage in melee attacks, but at the very least this tactic should theoretically increase her farming speed by two times. Every 10 seconds or so she would jump back, readjusting her positioning and recasting Astral Bind on the stronger of the two monsters, and after a minute her efforts finally bore fruit as both slimes burst into glimmering pixelated shards, ascending upwards as they faded into the background, a holographic notification of her rewards popping up in front of her vision. And, exactly as Alvina had expected, it was twice as much experience as she would have gotten if she had chosen to auto-attack a slime solo. Overjoyed, for though such an improvement did not seem like much, it made gaining levels a tad bit easier, not to mention it gave her the feeling that she was spending her time productively. So the Enchanter did what she used to do in real life: she hollered. "It worked! I can't believe it actually worked!" It was only when her voice resonated within the area she was in, carrying, no doubt, over a fair distance, did she realize the magnitude of the mistake she had made. This wasn't the real world, where she would be sitting in a corner staring glued to a screen, surrounded by fellow gamer friends who would rush over to her side to find out what she had managed to accomplish, who would congratulate her for obtaining her goal. No, ever since the Catalyst, the tables had turned. Now she was trapped inside the game, which was starting to seem less like a leisure activity and more like a second life every minute she spent within it. This time, she was completely and utterly alone, surrounded by monsters that aggroed not just on sight, but at the slightest whispers of sound. Mobs that she had just, regardless of intent or purpose, handed an invitation to attack her on a silver platter. Pivoting to the side, Alvina slowly backed up, keeping a 360 degree view all around her as often as possible. Surprisingly, there was nothing approaching her area. Perhaps it was because of her steadily increasing familiarity with her Pathfinder abilities, giving her the means to not just spot monsters 10 meters away or further, but to also see their full status bar above their digital bodies, but when she noticed the creature approaching her, just scant seconds before it erupted out of the grass less than half a dozen meters away, she was shocked stiff, her muscles, fake as they might be, freezing up in fear as the serpentine blur sank it's fangs into her calf, before releasing and rearing its head beside her, preparing itself for another attack. With a sinking heart, the Foxtail got a good look at the monster's stats: it was a Garden Snake, stated to be at a grand, unbeatable level of 9. Not only that, but she had lost more than a third of her total health in that one basic attack, with a poison debuff chipping away at the remainder that she had left. By this time, all the Adventurers trapped within the world that felt and looked so much like the Elder Tale many were familiar with already knew that death was far from the end, but even though Alvina knew that she could never die, not here, where her soul was practically immortalized in a body that should never have existed, that primal fear of oblivion, the desire to survive, was still very much a part of her. No matter if there were no consequences known so far, she did not want her HP bar to hit the zero point. However, she made a mistake, and now she had to pay for it. Honestly, she had no say in whether she lived or died now, for she did not think she would be able to defeat the monster almost 10 levels higher than her even if she tried. If she was in the right state of mind, a simple cast of the spell Astral Bind could have given her ample opportunity to flee, but panicking as badly as she was, her normally decently sharp mind did not even think of that possibility, let alone being able to implement it. And so, having already given up, Alvina raised her staff up in the classic position of defense, the pose of one backed into the corner and was simply fighting for the sake of it, and squeezed her eyes shut, her heart beating in trepidation for what was to come.

• 1055 words • HP: 59% || MP: 72% • Hirosame • notes:

♥︎

[Hirosame]

A foot kicked the ground, disguised by the sound of small rolling wheels on the pavement of the city's streets. His skateboard carrying him closer to the gate of the city, Hiro adjusted his hat a bit to better cover his eyes from the sunlight. It was a bright, and admittedly warm day today. Even though winter wasn't all that long ago, having ended about a month ago now, it got warm pretty quickly. Not that he minded the concept, since he was a summer-type of person anyways. A light smile was on his face as he cruised his way through the city from where he had stayed the night before. Usually, he would have been out in Moon Dance Forest, in his personal home, but some guild matters needed to be attended to, so he had to stay here in the city. Yet another thing he didn't mind, staying in the city every now and again, since he probably should get back to working on mechanic-related things soon enough. Having just completed a separate project a few days back, he wanted a little break, but even that break wasn't necessarily well deserved. Chuckling admittedly to himself, he kicked the ground again.

It wasn't all that long before he had reached the gate to the city, seeing it as busy as it normally is. Weaving through the people that were there wasn't that much of a problem for the red haired monk, as it was practically routine by now. Having made his way through the people, he continued along the path on his skateboard, until the pavement-like road ended, and the dirt path began to form. Slowing down to a stop, Hiro picked up the skateboard, and flashed it away into his inventory. From here, it'd be a bit of a walk before he got to the forest again, but he didn't want to go back quite yet. So, he started to think of things that he could do while out here in the field, before going back to the village. It was a nice enough day, which he would have preferred to not squander before it was gone. Then again, the next day was probably going to be just as nice, but wasting a day wasn't his favorite thing to do. As he had made it a good way away from the city by now, he heard a voice cry out in victory just a little ways away from him, causing him to look over and smile a bit at the sight that he was made to behold.

It looked like a lower leveled girl was enjoying her time fighting some monsters in the area, most likely Dull Green Slimes, and the girl had just killed, maybe, a few of them in one instance. Chuckling a bit to himself, he continued to walk a bit further, before turning his head back to the road. It was nice to see people enjoying themselves on a day like today, even if the thing they are doing would be considered pretty mediocre. A low leveled player fighting some low leveled monsters wasn't anything to get super excited about, but perhaps it was something rather intense and rewarding for the person involved. In that case, good for those who take pride in such accomplishments. Thinking about such things gave Hiro an idea, to which he put his hand to his chin. Maybe he could go out and fight something, too? Not something high leveled, but maybe medium-leveled, like some monsters in Moon Dance Forest. That's entirely possible, but the only monsters that would qualify for such things would be the Lesser Oni and the Amaterasu monsters. As he thought about this, he looked back over to the girl, causing him to stop in place, eyes widened.

She had her staff up in the air, as if she was giving up or something to that degree. Why? She was so happy and excited just a few moments ago! Something was obviously wrong here. Was she being attacked by something? Was she being threatened by a higher-leveled player? Whatever it was, it wasn't good. Instinctively, Hiro activated the skill Eye of the Tiger to give himself a decent speed boost, and he rocketed off towards the girl. If the problem that she had was the latter, then the least he could do was stand there and make it look like he was going to defend her from the attacking party. If it was a mob or something, then it would be even easier to get rid of. As he got closer, though, he noticed that the girl was being attacked by a snake, of a level considerably higher than her's. He quickly deactivated the skill, and lowered his level down to 15. He had a plan here to help the girl out, in a few ways. Having taken note of the amount of damage that she snake had already done, he needed to act fast. As soon as he got close enough, Hiro stopped right behind where the snake was, and grabbed onto it with his right hand, grasping its torso.

Without a second thought, Hiro whipped the snake up and over his head, then back down onto the ground, slamming it with the force of the whiplash. He then quickly threw it up into the air a little ways, he activated Wyvern Kick to jump up and into the air, before plummeting back down to the ground with the snake underneath his foot, crushing it. While having made sure to surprise the snake greatly, he also made sure that he didn't kill it. It only had a few more hit points remaining, before it would disappear into the dust-like particles into the air. Keeping his foot down on the monster's head, he turned to the girl, concerned. "Are you okay?" He asked immediately. She took a pretty big hit from the one attack, and he figured that she was probably still pretty shocked by the whole experience. Having never died in this game himself, he knew exactly how the girl felt at this moment in time. Taking one look down at the snake, then offering a soft smile to the girl. "It's alright, this guy's not gonna hit you again." He spoke, trying to be as reassuring as he could. "Here, he isn't dead yet. Since he hit you, you should still be able to get some good experience from combat. Why don't you deliver the last blow?" Hiro offered, trying to stay as calm as possible. The snake, on the other hand, wasn't quite as calm, as its body wriggled a good deal. Hiro would try to help the girl out, if she needed to head back to town, afterwards, but for now, calming her down was the objective.

[1138 Words]
Tag: Alvina

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

With her eyes shut, nothing but darkness cloaking her vision, the wait for her own death was agonizing. Alvina wondered how it would feel like---would she be aware of absolutely nothing, only to wake up in the Cathedral in Londinium, her HP back to full and spotting no evidence of what had transpired? Or would she feel pain, a stretch of perennial agony as her avatar slowly stitched itself back together? Whatever death was like in this world, she was inevitably going to experience it now. As such, one could imagine her surprise when, instead of having sharp fangs ripping into her skin, she heard someone rush in front her, slamming a heavy body---presumably the Garden Snake---on the ground. Her eyes flew open in wonder, gaze landing on the Adventurer in front of her before focusing on the snake struggling beneath the his foot. In the time since she logged on into the game just before the Catastrophe till now, everyone had been so busy minding their own business or pulling in all their efforts into recreating a semblance of civilization both politically and technology wise that few players actually when out of their way to assist others, especially the lower-leveled players. At least, none that she saw. Then again, she had been pretty isolated until very recently, so one could say that being helped by someone in this new world was almost a novelty to her. When the Enchanter heard his query about her condition, she gave a small grin, nodding her head once rather firmly. "Yeah, I think I'm fine. Besides, it'll take more than one measly snake to put me down." Perhaps the last statement was a bit too shameless of a bluff, for her plight had been obvious enough that a complete stranger viewed the situation as dire enough to intervene. Nonetheless, what she said was mostly true: she was out of immediate danger now that the threat had been neutralized, and she was more than capable of taking care of herself. The terror that she had previously felt was fading away now that there was no longer any chance of dying, and the Foxtail was getting a grip back on her emotions. The only problem was that her HP was hovering at an all time low, especially when high-leveled monsters roamed nearby in this zone, as shown by the untimely appearance of the snake. Still, as a level one character herself, her health, being of such a small amount of begin with, should heal fast enough for it not to be much of a bother, and at the very worst it would hinder her progress by half an hour at most. Without the stranger, however, she wouldn't even be having that half of her HP bar remaining, and her day of farming the small camps around the newbie spawn spots would have been prematurely ended. Nope, she would definitely have been a goner for sure. "Seriously though, thanks for the help. I don't think I would have made it otherwise." The snake's health was low enough that it was down to the double digits, and Alvina didn't want to imagine the concentration and skill it took to lower the monster's health by such a deliberate and measured amount. When the player mentioned taking the experience points for herself, she hesitated, unsure of the proper course of action to take. On one hand, it was such a kind offer, for even though she herself wouldn't be the one who dealt the most damage, the AP gained from killing a level 9 mob would be more than sufficient for at least one level up. But the stranger was the one who practically defeated the snake: if anyone, the kill and experience belonged to him and he alone. Besides, a level fifteen, according to his profile, could still make pretty good use of the kill, since the level difference wasn't really that big as to render all rewards moot. "I...I can't possibly take something that should be yours." she acknowledged, biting her lip in mild embarrassment. Though she knew that the player only wanted to help, his offer, though well-meant, was starting to make her feel like a charity case. "After all, you were the one that inflicted the most damage. And it's not like you don't require the experience at level fifteen. So you ought to get the full share of it." "Not to mention that you were the one who aided me," the Foxtail reminded, giving a short laugh. "If anything I should be the one doing you a favor." Not that there was anything she could do of worth to someone so much stronger than her. At least, she didn't there was. Looking at the player in front of her, other than his appearances, gender and capability of saving damsels in distress, Alvina realized that she knew next to nothing about that person, though said guy just saved her life and more. Perhaps it was a desire to get to know the Adventurer better, or maybe she simply wanted him to recognize her as more than just the girl he pulled out of the frying pan, but she found herself giving an introduction. Reaching out her arm, palm upwards for a handshake, she smiled, sending him a rather languid wink. "Hey, name's Alvina, level one Enchanter, the girl whose ass you just saved. Nice to meet you and all." Hopefully, this way, he'll introduce himself back. "Once again, thanks for that. I really needed it. Honestly, I had no idea what I was doing." Admitting that was hard, but despite being pretty familiar with the game already, what with four years of experience under her belt, this was one of her first times fighting in her own body rather than controlling her avatar with her keyboard and mouse, and it was disorienting to say the least. She knew how to fight and cast spells on paper, but in practice her spells were simple, her attacks clumsy. What made it worse was that the Unfounded Kingdom was different than the US server, the monsters foreign, and Alvina knew nothing about efficient farming spots, monsters to watch out for, or nearby towns where one could stock up on items or rest in this new reality of theirs.

• 1051 words • HP: 55% || MP: 92% • Hirosame • notes:

♥︎

[Hirosame]

Hiro let out a sigh of relief, when the girl opened her eyes back up. A good sign, too, as it looked like the girl was calming down a bit more. Obviously a Fox-Tail, what with the tail and all sprouting from the back and the ears, this girl didn't look to be very combat-oriented when it came to her main class. Judging by the ever-obvious staff in her hands, he figured that she should be a caster of some sort, but perhaps not a combat-related one, like Summoner or Sorcerer. He would't jump to conclusions, though, since he figured that assuming things would only cause him more confusion later on, as well as possibly a smack to the face for getting someone's main class wrong, whether intentionally or by accident. When she responded that she was fine, and then her comment about being too tough for a single snake to take her down, Hiro couldn't help but chuckle a bit. At least she was well enough to have a sense of humor. One thing to put his mind at ease a bit further, for sure, was the presence of people's humor, and how it can quite easily spring back without a moment's notice.

Hiro looked down at the snake, which seemed to have accepted its fate, and relaxed a bit more. Maybe it was trying to find a way to burrow out of harm's way, which likely isn't going to happen. He then turned to the girl's health bar, seeing how much damage it had taken. But, he was quickly distracted by the girl's voice once again, looking her in the eyes as she spoke. Another smile on his face, Hiro nodded to the spell-caster. "No problem. Don't think anything of it." He responded. Looking around a bit more, he wondered what exactly the girl was out here to do, but figured that it wouldn't do any good to ask her about it. It was her business, anyways. Besides, he figured that someone of her level was probably looking to fight some weaker monsters to get some levels up. While that isn't the best way to go about it, in his opinion, to each their own. Hiro wasn't going to judge somebody's methods, based on his own methodology. Instead, he just let it pass by. Soon enough, the girl responded to the remark Hiro made about killing the snake. To his surprise, she had turned down his offer. His eyes widened a bit for a moment.

Hiro was actually a much higher level than this girl knew, since he had lowered his level down to 15. Actually, the act of doing so was kind of a pretty unimportant thing, since he would have done that anyways. Hiro gave a soft smile to the girl for a moment, as she looked to be kind of embarrassed by him coming to help her. She probably didn't enjoy having a guy show up to save her, like some damsel. Granted, Hiro wasn't a fan of it, either, since he wants people to be strong on their own. His thought process, though, was cut short by the girl outstretching her hand, and introducing herself. Hiro kept the smile on, took her hand in his, and shook. "Hi, Alvina. Call me Hiro." The girl mentioned her level and class, to which Hiro wasn't sure if he should do the same. It might be a little intimidating to announce his full level right now. Either that, or it would make him look like he pities her, and only came to help because he was such a high level, comparatively. "Monk, myself. A pleasure to meet you." He continued, leaving out a few little details. Letting go of her hand, before long, he looked around again for other mobs that might be there.

This is when he remembered the snake underneath his foot. He probably should take care of it. "One second." He said to Alvina, reaching down to the snake's tail. He grabbed hold of it, lifted his foot up, and wound his arm back. Throwing the snake as far as he could, away from them, he watched as it made an arc from the sky down to the ground. After a few seconds, a small dust of particles appeared in the distance. Putting his hands on his hips for a second, he laughed a bit. "That's gotta be a record." Hopefully, the girl would laugh a little bit, too, and help relieve the tension. "Maybe I should make a new sport: Snake Hurling!" Continuing the joke for another second, he turned back to the girl. "In any case, though, I'm glad you're alright. And, don't think that you owe me anything, alright? I try not to..." He stopped what he was saying, thinking about his words for a few seconds. Having a sudden lull in conversation was probably kind of strange for Alvina, but his thought process was definitely going somewhere he liked. He slowly started to smile a bit more, innocently, forging a plan. He looked her in the eyes again, bright with an idea that he couldn't let go.

"Actually..." Hiro began. "Why don't you come with me for a little while today?" He asked. Before things got any further, clarification is needed: He wasn't going to bring the girl into any bad situations. So dirty thoughts, begone! "First, let's head back into town, and get that poison-status taken care of. After that, I'll have you help me out on a few things today." It killed him inside to make it seem like he was trying to get the girl into indentured servitude, but his intention was to bring her into the town, get the poison taken care of, since he didn't have any antidotes on him, and then bring her over to one of the quest boards nearby the entrance to the city. There's an apothecary just inside the city's limit, where they can easily get a few antidotes. Afterwards, Hiro would like to go along with this girl on a quest or two for lower-leveled players, and help her farm up experience and gold that way. This was his preferred method of leveling: Questing. It's much more rewarding than just fighting mobs, and seeing how it goes. Also, from what Alvina said, she didn't really understand what she was doing, but he figured that by her victory against whatever she fought earlier, she had a basic idea. Helping someone new out today: Perfect way to spend the day, in his opinion. "So, will you come with me?" Hiro offered again, waiting her decision.

[1103 Words]
Tag: Alvina

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

After introducing herself, the Enchanter waited for a reply to come from the player's mouth---or, more precisely, that of his avatar's. Though she supposed, with the world as realistic as it was, as far as she knew their characters practically were their new bodies, just stronger, more enduring, and immortal, especially in the case of the higher leveled players. Talking about levels, Alvina wondered what exactly had brought an Adventurer like him to such newbie zones---unlike her case, the Windsor Greatwood, or this particular part of it, was a pretty inefficient place to grind some levels for one above level 10, and there was pretty much no other reason for a player to loiter around this part of the game. Either way though, she suppose it was very fortunate that he was here to help, regardless of actual reasons: goodness knows what would have happened to her if he hadn't been around. She had first realized this when she made her decision to turn down his offer for the free experience, for his very statement made it more than clear that he was not in this valley to grind levels. But, if so, what could he be here for? In the end, she gave up trying to wrap her mind around the situation, writing off his motives as nothing but a harmless urge to do some strolling within such a scenic area. So his name was Hiro, huh? Surprisingly, he chose to reveal his main class, yet kept silent about his level, not that Alvina didn't know it already. Perhaps he simply thought that information unnecessary to be said out loud, since one could access it off a player's status menu. Watching him dispose of the snake was almost fascinating, in a way; it was one thing to see such feats of strength on a screen, back when Elder Tale was still a game, and something completely different to see it happen right before your own eyes. Such power could never be achieved in the real world, yet in this one, Adventurers were pretty much limitless, with the only restriction being the universal level cap. As a support character, she would probably never come close to matching such physical prowess, not in this character's body, but it was still enlightening to realize that one day, if she leveled up high enough, she would come to a point in time where she'll have exceeded the abilities of her former self by far. Hearing the joke he made about the grand sport of Snake Hurling, the Foxtail burst into small giggles, her cat-like ears twitching slightly in a subconscious manner, for despite finding it a tad bit on the lame side, it was more than sufficient to break the slightly awkward atmosphere that had hung between the two of them ever since Hiro arrived to save her. She wasn't exactly completely at ease being around him yet, for introductions aside they was still practically a strangers in every sense of the word, but at least there wasn't this uncomfortable tension that lingered whenever they tried to make small talk. The sudden interlude in the midst of conversation broke Alvina out of her musings, however, and brought her attention back to what the Monk had said. His pause half way through his own speech would suggest that he did indeed have something that he wanted to ask of her, and was probably thinking it through right at that moment. Well, she'll give him some time to pull his thoughts together: the Enchanter was just glad that she could possibly be of use, as unlikely as it was to someone who had such a giant level advantage over her. When Hiro mentioned following him back to town, and assisting him for some time after, all Alvina could do was blink dumbly, giving him a blur stare as she considered his rather...unusual request. No, it wasn't his request that she was nitpicking over, it was more of the untactful way in which he phrased it. The bright eyes and innocuous smile of his did reassure her though, and the fact that he offered to accompany her back to town just so that she could get rid of the poison debuff was remarkably kind of him. And in the end, she supposed, she was the one who offered her assistance in the first place. So, without putting much thought behind it, she beamed, accepting it without question. "Sure, whatever you want to do, I'm game. Besides, it doesn't look like I'm going to be making much progress in my AP grinding attempts today anyway, so I might as well help you with your stuff." Let it never be said that she refuses to repay her debts. Still, she wondered what he needed to accomplish that he had to request help from a level one player. They were in different subclasses, so it could be related to crafting. He could also require support spells in combat, she supposed, even though there were much better options out there. Anyway, she'll find out for herself soon enough. "Are...we leaving now? There's no time like the present," she said to the Monk, brushing off the metaphorical dirt and grime off her robes. It was, like a lot of her other subconscious actions, a habit from the real world that she never really bothered to get rid of, despite how redundant it might seem to an observer. Adjusting to her new body had taken a lot of time, however, that she had no choice but to pour into during the first few days of the game. Because she never anticipated being trapped in her own avatar, her character was several centimeters taller than she was in real life, and while that didn't seem like much of a difference, keeping her balance while running or fighting could sometimes be a chore, especially during the beginning period of the Catastrophe's aftermath. The hardest thing to adapt to by far was her new racial features: the fox tail and ears, to be precise. They were, for the most part, completely instinctive---even now, she couldn't consciously control their movements one hundred percent of the time---and honestly, her tail could sometimes be a pain in the ass during battle, considering the fact that she had to pay attention to it while in combat at all times. As she started walking in the general direction of Londinium, she directed a question towards her companion. "I know this might be a bit too personal of a query, but how challenging was it for you to get accustomed to this new world?"

• 1104 words • HP: 51% || MP: 100% • Hirosame • notes: I couldn't insert much material due to the restrictions on godmodding, so feel free to drag Alvina back to the city inside your post as well as decide on the quest, if you like. I don't mind if you take control of her for a bit, especially if it's a neccesary evil for story development (like assuming she followed Hiro back to the city, for example). Hope this post was okay!

♥︎

[Hirosame]

Victory: Alvina laughed at his stupid joke! Either she thought it was funny due to how stupid of a joke it was, or she was pitying him for making such a joke, but that didn't necessarily bother him all that much. What he cared most about was that she was probably more likely to spark conversation with him now, since a bit of the silence was broken. Perhaps he could get some interesting talks going with her, as he hadn't really planned all that much for today. Maybe a day with a new person? Who knows how long they would be together today, but Hiro was going to make the most of it. All that being decided beforehand, it looked like Alvina was willing to come along with Hiro to, at the very least, get the poison taken care of. Thankfully enough, the poison status wasn't strong enough to cause her HP to continuously drop, but more likely take a little tick off every so often, and then her HP regeneration would take over. That's all well and good, but one can't stayed poisoned for too long, as it just becomes a nuisance after a short period of time.

When the Enchantress had mentioned that she wasn't going to gain much experience today, Hiro had half a mind to say to her immediately, I wouldn't be too sure of that, but he kept his mouth shut, and let her think what she wanted to think. But, it wasn't much longer after that that the girl asked if they were leaving now. His eyes widened slightly, but then he remembered the poison state. She probably wanted it gone immediately, which was sensible enough to think. She obviously wasn't trying to rush the day away, so it would make sense that she just wanted that to be taken care of, and then see whatever help Hiro needed. "Alright, let's get moving, then." The monk responded, before turning to head towards the town, with Alvina more than likely following him. The apothecary in the town wasn't too far from the gate, as he planned out how to go about doing things. He had two ideas of what he would try to do, in order to get this girl over to some other quests that would warrant her some decent experience, as well as help her learn how to fight in this world. Feeling a tinge of guilt over not telling the girl his actual level, he pressed on.

As if knocking him out of his state of mind, Alvina asked him a very well-timed question, having wiped the guilty thought out of his mind. Hiro turned to her for a second, then back to the path ahead. They were getting pretty close to the town by now, and it wouldn't take long for them to get inside. "Challenging?" He started. "I can't honestly say that I had trouble with it." Trying to be as honest as he can, he took into account all of the bonuses he had from the old world to this one. "I mean, I've done my fair share of fist-fighting back in the real world, and this character isn't all that different, height wise, from how I am back there. Hell, I pretty much look the same." Throwing a little smirk at the girl, he continued. "Although, I'm a much snappier dresser in this world." Hiro chuckled a bit, looking ahead a bit. "All joking aside, though, I remember having to take at least a few days to get myself fully situated into this world, but that just may be the transition from the real world to this world." He probably hadn't answered the girl's question with that, since she was likely looking for some kind of advice on the matter. Thinking that that's probably what she wanted, he spoke again.

"It'll take a little time, but it isn't that hard once you get into the swing of it. It's like riding a bike: Once you learn, you never forget. It just kinda becomes part of you." Hiro and Alvina were now inside the city, and just a few meters from the apothecary now. "But, what'll really send you for a loop, is the use of skills mid-combat." He laughed at the thought of having to get used to fighting here. "That shit's tough, when you're in melee range." He quickly closed his mouth, eyes widening slightly, and he turned to the girl for a second. "Sorry for the curse there, that's just how I talk sometimes." He wasn't sure if she was okay with him swearing occasionally, which was more than likely a thing that would happen maybe once or twice more today. Finishing up with what he had just said, Hiro went into the apothecary, and went up to the counter. There were only a few other people within the walls of the building, since it looked like today might be a rather slow day for the business. All this aside, though, Hiro was in need of an antidote for Alvina's poison, so the less people in the building, the better. Hiro walked right up to the counter, and spoke to the man, grabbing an antidote from him immediately.

Walking back, he offered the vial to Alvina. "Already been paid for. This should deal with your poison status quite easily." Hiro was about to leave the building again, but stopped himself really quick. "Oh, and don't worry about paying me back. Think of it as paying it forward for your help today." Hiro waited for the girl to drink up the antidote, before heading back outside of the building. There, on the other side of the path, he saw the quest board, with likely a few Mentor/Student quests on there. "Hey, c'mon over here for a minute." He motioned for Alvina to follow him, heading over to the board. He stopped in front of it, and started looking through the quests, inquisitively. Of course, this was all a sham, as he was trying to get her to wonder what he was doing. "The thing I needed help with today was this: A Lander nearby helped me out with something, and I wanted to pay them back, so they asked me to pick up one of these quests and do them. It's nothing too big, but these are piling up, so they need to be done." Taking his eyes off the board, he turned to her. "Why don't you go ahead and pick out whichever one you think would be more enjoyable for us to do, and let's clear it out. Just sign your name under the 'Student' portion, and I'll sign the 'Mentor' side, once you're done." Hopefully, his bull-crap meter wasn't too off the charts with this one. While he could probably be seen through right now, perhaps he wouldn't get in too much trouble if Alvina went with it for now. With the hopes that she would just take this request for what it is, Hiro waited for her to choose their quest for the day.

[1182 Words]
Tag: Alvina
Notes: Your post was fine, and I appreciate the ability to control Alvina a little bit, which I may have usurped. And don't worry about possibly doing the same to Hiro, I'm cool with whatever you want to do. I don't think you'll have him jump of a cliff, so I trust you. XD In any case, you choose what we do~ I leave this in your capable hands.

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

Moving at a brisk pace, she listened to her companion's words, caught in her own musings as she considered what was being said. It would have been pretty fortunate, indeed, to have chosen a character build that coincides with the skills one knew in real life. An Enchanter made use of spells. They were a type of magic that was so very fundamentally different than the smoke and mirror kind one could practice at home. Wielding the elements, healing...if it weren't for the classes, HP and MP system, as well as the various other MMO settings, there would be literally no difference between the game and one of those fantasy worlds that she frequently browsed through in the Japanese manga that she love. She was a secondary school student, about to graduate this very year, if not for the Catastrophe. Having never paid attention to any of her lessons, barely passing many of her exams, what skills could she possibly claim to possess prior to entering Elder Tale? There were none she could think of. All she could do was game, and this world was hardly that anymore, isn't it? Snappier dresser, her ass. Giving a quick glance over Hiro's attire, Alvina noticed that he was wearing a pretty generic armor piece: while it seemed to offer speed and comfort, it wasn't anything overly fancy or sharp-looking*. "Fist fighting?" she asked, curious about the past of the male whom she was assisting. "Don't tell me you were like, in a gang or something." she teased, only half joking. Honestly, no matter what the guy's past was, she wouldn't have been too bothered by it. After all, all sorts of people have the right to play online games, not to mention that she knew too little about her companion to be able judge. "So, are the Monk skills any different from the techniques you use IRL? How does combat differ in the game?" According to Hiro, it took him some time to get adjusted to this new environment. "Well, hopefully I'll get the hang of it soon. The tail can be a pain in the ass sometimes, especially in solo play. I swear I stepped on it at least once or twice!" the Enchanter gave a laugh, her tail flicking at the rather painful memory. It had hurt a lot, as if she had stepped on one of her own limbs. In fact, her tail seemed to be more sensitive than her other extremities. "Hopefully I'll be able to dapple in more party work in the future, goodness knows that I'm not cut out for anything melee ranged. Thanks for the advice though; I'll keep it in mind." Looking around, the Foxtail suddenly took in the change in their location. She had been so immersed in the conversation as well as her own thoughts that she hadn't noticed that they had entered the city already. Time flied when one wasn't alone, she guessed. Compared to the valley, the place was teeming with all sort of characters, ranging from both Adventurers to People of the Land. Ears twitching from the cacophony of noise that assaulted them, now that she was paying attention, she found Londinium not dissimilar to her school's cafeteria during lunch break, and felt a slight pang of homesickness. She loved this new world, probably more than she would ever the real one. Still, sometimes she missed it. Would she ever be able to return? Not wanting to completely destroy the good mood that had settled around her, Alvina dragged her attention back to the conversation at hand. Until Hiro pointed it out, she honestly didn't notice the curse that must have slipped from his mouth. "It's fine, I go to a public school, I'm used to this sort of shit. There, I curse too, sometimes. See?" She smiled brashly. Following him up towards a building of sorts, she entered right behind him, pausing to take a look at her surroundings. So this was the apothecary? One glance at the owner's status bar showed that he was a Lander. Well, the poison status she was plagued with was a pretty low leveled one, so it wasn't like they needed any specialized player-crafted potions to get rid of it. Choosing to loiter near the entrance rather than explore the near-empty shop, she waited as Hiro conversed with the shopkeeper, watching as he grabbed an antidote and walked back. "Thanks," she mumbled as she drank it down. Like many mass-produced Lander crafted items, it had a taste much like water. Or more precisely, the lack thereof. Still, whether it was palatable or not wasn't its purpose, and, opening her menu, the Enchanter was pleased to notice that the poison debuff had vanished from her status bar. She was about to offer to pay the Monk back, but his words stopped her. Very well then. After all, she was helping him later on. To her surprise, he turned to the opposite side of the street, heading to what looked like the quest board. Wait...so he wanted help on a quest? Jogging to catch up, she reached the list of quests about the same time as he did. He began explaining his reasons to her, and she turned to look at him as she paid attention. Sure, helping a Lander wasn't that far-fetched, but why would he require her assistance in the first place? He was more than 10 levels higher, and could tackle hostilities much better than she could. She brought her gaze back to the quest board, quickly skimming through the list for something that would at least offer a slight challenge to Hiro, and yet be doable for herself. Whatever his reasoning, she did agree to help, so she was going to follow through no matter what. "Here," she said, jabbing a finger at a quest somewhere in the middle of the list. "Apparently a trading carriage was to pass between Windsor Greatwood and Sarum Frontier, but was stopped by a Goblin attack. There has never been Goblins spawning naturally above ground in these areas before, so there's probably a group of them camping, and we're to kill at least 20 demihumans---either Kobolds or Goblins, as well as the leader, if any." It had a recommended level of 9, but between the both of them, Alvina was pretty sure that they could accomplish it. Picking up one of the quills provided, she scribbled her name under the 'Student' portion, as advised. The quest kind of reminded her of a game she used to play a long time ago, but she couldn't put her finger on exactly what game it was**. As she had no items to be placed in the bank, she turned back to her companion to check if he was already prepared. "You ready?" The quest was situated back whence they came, just further back where the higher leveled mobs spawned. It was going to be a long walk back, for she had no mount whistle to use nor any spells that provided a movement speed buff. Materializing her staff, which she had placed back in her inventory a while ago, she started trekking along the main road that would lead right out of the city. "So hey," she said, looking up at her companion. "Does this make you my mentor, or something? After all, you were the one who signed under than column." SPOILER: Click to show When they reached the edge of the valley, Hiro promptly threw himself off a cliff and died. ;)

• 1237 words • HP: 58% || MP: 100% • Hirosame • notes: I finally posted, so sorry about the wait! To any mods reading, I disregarded anything in the spoiler tags when taking the word count. Also, everything written in the spoiler is not part of the actual post. * Since the gear that Hiro is currently equipped with is for lvl 20 and above, I took the liberty to assume that he was in his lvl 5 Windsor Antiqua armor. I kept the description generic enough (hopefully!) such that it could apply to both sets of armor, just in case. ^^ **I totally stole that quest for a game called Istaria, fyi. I couldn't think of anything creative, myself.

♥︎

[Hirosame]

Hiro put his hands up and behind his head, as the two of them walked at a steady pace back towards the valley where they had come from, a questioning look on his face. "Mentor, huh?" He began to wonder if that classifications for one to become someone's mentor had been fulfilled in this regard or not, since it was likely not the case at all. Then again, here Hiro was, trying to get this Enchanter on a more difficult quest for the sake of increasing her level, as well as trying to hide the fact that his own level is that of a much higher one. He wasn't doing this out of pity or sympathy, either, so the more he thought about it all, the more it actually did seem like kind a mentor-like scenario. But, he had yet to reveal to the girl that she was dealing with a level 81 player, instead of the 15 that she is currently dealing with, and for that reason alone, he could not classify it as a mentor situation. Once again, he didn't want to tell her his actual level right now, as that might scare her off, or make her think that he's just helping her because she's a lower-level girl, and aiming for that whole 'Notice me, Senpai!' effect.

He had to think back to just a few minutes before, as the two were entering the city. He couldn't help but chuckle at the comment she made about her tail, as well as the sudden curse that she blurted out, and the rationale behind that. Hiro had only gone to a private school, thanks to his foster parents and their status, as well as their daughter. To keep up images, really, he was put into the same school that his older sister was, but he made his own way through life, and picked up on the casual things as he spent his time outside of the school. In due time, though, he assimilated himself into the society that thrived on gaming and all things Otaku, much to his family's dismay. His thought process was interrupted as Alvina began to thank him for the little lesson about the party ethics, to which he only nodded and smiled. After the trip to the apothecary, Hiro had asked her to choose a quest, and within a few seconds she already had. To his surprise, it was a fairly tough quest, for her standards. His eyebrow only rising a bit at the display, he remembered that she thought she was helping him out, so she wanted to pick a quest that would be suitable.

His mind returned to reality, after thinking about all the things that had brought them back into the valley area. "Nah, probably not." He answered her, finally, after a few good moments of silence. But, then he started to think about it again. Maybe he actually was, by her rationale. He did sign underneath the mentor section, and she signed under the student section, so it was possible that he could be considered her mentor. "Well, I guess, think of it like this. A Student is only a student to one that they wish to learn from. A Mentor is only a mentor when they have someone who wishes to learn under their guidance and supervision." A very roundabout thought, but it has a point. "I guess, what I'm trying to get at is, I can be your Mentor, if you want to consider me your mentor. Just so you know, I think it would be kinda fun, in all honesty." He thought back to the time he and Valerie had gone on a quest together, as he was her mentor for the evening. He chuckled a bit at the memory, before looking back to Alvina. "You seem like a pretty cool person, Alvina. I wouldn't mind it at all if I was your mentor."

As corny as it seemed, he spoke with a smile on his face. All in all, though, he was glad with how relaxed and laid back Alvina was, as it's kind of a nice thing to meet someone else who is willing to let things happen as they come by. It's refreshing, if anything. "Oh, right." Hiro remembered, suddenly. "You asked me a few questions earlier that I never answered. Sorry about that." He turned to Alvina, ready to give a few replies. "Yeah, I used to get involved in a few fights every so often, but nothing too major. And, no, I wasn't in a gang." He chuckled at the thought of a Hiro that lived on the edge in a street gang. "Just some kids in the school thought they were tough shit and picked on a few of my friends. Anyways, being a monk in this world isn't all that different, except for what I said earlier about the skills." He looked forward to the road again, continuing. "Normal fighting has been no problem for me, but it's just that skills needed to come into play somewhere, so I had to adjust eventually." He looked down at his hands, clenching them for a second, then turned back to the road.

"It's not that difficult being a monk, though. From what I've gathered, it's basically just like fighting normally, but with the inclusion of skills every now and again to gain the edge in a fight." His place that he had gathered most of this information of was, of course, through his own interactions with monsters and fighting such things. "Now, I have only seen others use mage-classes, so I can't really say much on that regard, but I feel like you'll pick up on it all easily enough. I mean, first of all, you've got spells. There's range in those. As a melee fighter, I gotta get up and close in the action. So, you will probably have the benefit of not being aggro'd quite as quickly. Also, when you and I get to the quest location and start fighting those monsters, I'll likely draw a lot more aggro than you will, so you just need to keep an eye on your surroundings, just to make sure that you aren't about to get jumped." Keeping an eye on one's surroundings was definitely an important thing to consider. This was yet another painful lesson that he had learned while in the field, specifically during the fight with the Stonehenge boss monster. The smaller golems proved to be a real pain, but nothing that the capable group of adventurers couldn't necessarily handle.

Eventually, though, the two had walked their way out of the city, and were just now getting back into the valley area. It would still be a bit of a walk, though, since Windsor and Sarum weren't necessarily quick places to traverse through, or to travel to. If they followed the road, then it shouldn't be that big of a deal, and it wouldn't take them too long to get there. But, if they get attacked while on the road or something of that matter, it would probably take a bit extra time. He turned to Alvina, a question in his mind. "So, what caused you to pick the quest you chose? Was it just the higher level that was required, or something else?" The road is much more easily traveled upon when talking with someone. It helps pass the time. But, as much as he wanted to spend the extra time doing something productive and generally pretty fun, he was also quite curious as to the reasons why she had chosen the quest for them to do that she had. His earlier thoughts on the matter didn't necessarily flow well with the other thoughts that were beginning to form in his mind, and he couldn't really hold back the interest to know. Maybe she wanted to test herself, for real, as well. Or, maybe she had already figured out that Hiro wasn't the level that he had portrayed to be. That being said, Hiro knew that he would likely have to boost his level back up, at least a few levels, if a number of monsters attacked them simultaneously. While still mentally preparing himself for the possibility of such a thing happening, he waited for Alvina's reply.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}
Without even realizing it, as he waited for Alvina's reply, he found himself walking off the edge of a cliff that suddenly materialized where it was not a moment before. However, he didn't realize such a thing happened until he looked back towards where Alvina was standing, at the end of the cliff. He looked down, noticed the steep drop, and looked up towards the reader, holding up a sign that said "Help" without saying a word. As soon as this was done, he began to fall.

[1387 Words]
Muse: Encounter - DJ Okawari
Tag: Alvina
Notes: You sonuva- You went ahead and did it. XD I hope you enjoy the post, though. But, I hope even more that you're doing better. Don't worry about posting for this yet, as I had made the post with the intent of you having something to read for a little while. Cool use of the quest in a game, though. You may not have created the quest itself, but thinking to use it for this is creative, in and of itself.

As Alvina mentioned before, to any mods who are reading this, anything that happens in the spoiler tag does not actually happen, nor did I consider it part of my word count.

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

Blinking twice in rapid succession, both to remove the perspiration from her eyes as well as highlight the rather bemused expression on her face, Alvina turned to her companion, noticing the seriousness etched into his brow as he pondered about the question that she had asked. When she mentioned the faux mentor and student relationship between them, she had meant it---mostly---as a joke, a way of teasing the Monk that had asked her to tag along on a task that he could handle just fine on his own. Contrary to what she expected, however, instead of laughing it off, Hiro seemed like he was actually considering her query. That...escalated pretty quickly, she thought to herself as a flicker of amusement gleamed in her eyes. The Foxtail bit her lower lip, ears turning outwards and flattening against her forehead as she considered her own statement in a more serious light, wanting to give the same amount of thought to the topic as her companion was currently doing. It was true, indeed, that they both signed under the respective sections of the quest; but that was only logical, especially since doing so gave an AP bonus to the parties involved. And a mentor-ship...that would imply that he was giving her help, and not the opposite way around. Before she could think to much about it, Hiro's voice broke her out of her musings as he gave her her answer. His way of thinking was certainly unique, though it held merit, after she gave it some consideration. "Yeah, that's a nice way to think about it," she said, after a few seconds of silence in which she took to gather her thoughts into something coherent. "I supposed the answer's based on perspective, after all." His last statement threw her in a bit of a loop, however. Alvina didn't mind his company; in fact, it was very much enjoyable, especially when compared to the abject dullness that was solo grinding. She had expected her day to be filled with nothing but rinse and repeating as she fought tooth and nail for scraps of AP, but attempting a quest---a rather complex one, for her level, to boot---was an opportunity that she didn't regret grabbing earlier on, when Hiro made his offer previously after saving her life. The Enchanter never thought that he viewed her company in the same way, though. And...it would be kind of entertaining, she guessed. She had definitely learnt a few new things when talking to him, and right now, they were going questing together, weren't they? So, smiling, she turned towards the monk, having to crane her neck up slightly in order to look at him in the eye. "Why not?" she agreed. "You're quite badass yourself; and you're right, it would be rather fun. Besides," she added, mirth evident in her expression. "You just offered me free help. It would be kind of dumb not to accept it, no?" Hiro was right, though. Sooner or later she would have to adjust to this world and it's own fighting style, if she wanted to be able to survive. They were Adventurers, and that very title already carried a connotation of strength that she would have to uphold if she wanted to fit in. How hard could it be? Like he said, she'll be at the back of the party, supporting the front line, out of range of all but the largest area of effects. Unlike the real world there would be no minimap to assist her, and battle always felt so much more realistic when happening in front of your face. But she would be far from the actual action, and the least she could do would be to assist those that are in the thick of it all, like the Monk walking beside her. And it's not like she would be completely without help, herself: she had a mentor, after all. Shaking her head, she corrected the last sentence that he said, not quite agreeing with his point. "No. I can't just watch my surroundings---I have to keep an eye out on you too. You're going to be drawing much more aggro than me, especially since you're of a much higher level. Our formation can't function if you get jumped on, since you're the only one tanking. I'll have to actively CC and provide sustain where applicable." If he were to die...Alvina gave a slight shudder. There was no way she would survive what he did not, and the Enchanter wasn't looking forward to experiencing her own death anytime soon. There was every chance of that actually happening; the quest wasn't an easy one, after all. Talking about the quest, Hiro threw her a rather well-timed question, and the Foxtail took a while to formulate a reply. Honestly, she didn't really know why she chose that particular quest: it could be the familiarity, for it reminded her of the kind she used to play, a long time ago. The difficulty was definitely a factor, and finally..."It seemed the most useful," she said at last. "You wanted to repay a favor to the People of the Land, right? So we should do something that would actually matter. These Kobolds...they can and will injure, maybe even kill some Landers if they aren't careful. Clearing their aboveground camps' a lot more meaningful than farming for a certain item or ingredient, don't you think? I mean, the level's a bit high, especially for me, but I'm sure we can do it. Regardless, I'm not gonna back out now," she added the last part in a murmur, a wry grin twisting her lips upwards just slightly. Sure, she didn't want to risk dying, but she didn't want to give up either. Sooner or later they started to approach the quest zone, having bypassed the area where Alvina was fighting the snakes, and venturing on into higher-leveled depths. Still, their location didn't often spawn mobs of anything more aggressive than the 'Wary' nature, so the two Adventurers were left alone, for the most part. The road was surprisingly clear, empty of both monsters and travelers, with the occasional tracks left from footprints and wheels marking the ground. It was only after they walked on for a bit more than she spotted a large mess in the distance. Breaking away from her mentor's side, she started to jog a bit faster, before rushing forward in a hurried sprint as what looked like broken wreckage came into her view. "Oh my god," she whispered as she halted right in front of what had to be the remains of the trading carriage mentioned in the task sheet, though it was stripped to the bone and almost unrecognizable to her untrained sight. The quest didn't mention anything about the Landers involved getting out dead, and---a quick glance confirming what she thought---despite there being no bodies at the scene, that didn't offer much consolidation to the rather distraught Enchanter. "You got to be kidding me. What the f*ck." Kneeling down on one knee, Alvina could only stare at what remained of the wooden contraption, at a lost of what to do. Seeing it upfront was so much different than looking down at mere pixels on a screen, and the weight of the reality of this world hit her again, for the second time. She looked around, almost helplessly, trying to find some guideline that would help them accomplish their task. "I...I don't know where to start," she admitted, closing her eyes, "There's no walkthrough or tutorial and...how do you even do stuff in this world?!" Yeah, she was a casual gamer, and frequently depended on resources to complete her raids and such. Now though, having to work on little to no information was certain something new, and the fact remained that, well, "There are actual lives at stake, aren't there? As in, depending on us to complete this. Not us, per say, but Adventurers at a whole." True, the level requirements were extremely low, especially in player standards. To the People of the Land, however, how many of them were actually of this level to begin with? They...in this world, they could die.

• 1373 words • HP: 100% || MP: 100% • Hirosame • notes: OMG this is finally done. I'm quite proud of it, even though I took like, forever and a day to get it posted. >.> Thanks for patiently waiting though, and I got over my flu, so I'm ready to get back to RPing! /o/ Yessss. Anyway, I can't wait to see what you'll write next! EDIT;; Eeeks, I didn't realize that there was a censorship filter thing on the site. Oops. ._.

♥︎

[Hirosame]

Hiro turned a bit to Alvina, a smile forming on his face. "Me? A badass?" He questioned aloud, chuckling a bit at the whole concept. "Nah, nah, there's plenty of reasons why I shouldn't be considered a badass, in any form." He put his arms back behind his head once more, looking up into the sky above. "But, I appreciate that you're willing to consider me as a mentor, in any case." He liked helping people out, whether they realize he was doing so or not. Much like in this current scenario, he didn't really like getting credit for aiding others. He just liked doing things to make others lives easier, if only for the sake of feeling good about himself afterwards. Sure, no matter what, if he helps someone out and they appreciate it without saying anything, they will mention it to others. Having a good name that follows your actions is definitely something he liked to have, but that's more on a personal level, when interacting with others. Hiro put his arms back down, without realizing it, and turned to the road again. "Mentor, huh?" He muttered, a smile still upon his face.

It was then that his mind had fully caught up to what else she had said, about not only keeping an eye on the surrounding area nearby herself, but also keeping an eye on the supposed tanks of the group. In this case, that meant himself. He turned to Alvina for just a second, and an interested grin formed. He looked back to the road, and it looked like she was figuring out what exactly it meant to be in a party. "There ya go." He said, after looking to the path once more. "What I said there was a ploy, and I'm glad you caught onto it. You're right. I'm gonna make you watch my ass, too!" A fake maniacal laugh burst from his mouth, before he went back to his normal being. Maybe another thing she would have laughed at? He was wondering about possibly making a joke about how she had decided the quest, as well, since it seemed like a very simple reason to pick a certain quest based off of one's own personal knowledge. He also had to admire her persistence with taking on this quest, no matter what the cost. If they were going to do this mission, they were going to kick its ass in the process.

At least, that's until Alvina noticed something in the distance, that Hiro had yet to see himself. As she jogged up ahead a bit, he could see her visibly becoming more worried, causing his joking-nature to very quickly disappear. Following up shortly afterwards, Hiro noticed the destroyed carriage. His eyes averted for just a moment, before looking back at it again. He slowed his movement to a halt, a little ways behind Alvina, a somber expression filling his face. As he looked over the carriage, picked clean off the bone, so to speak, his mind went to the darkest of places. Perhaps the purpose of this mission was to clear the way for future endeavors into the area, and not to help those who had already passed. Growing more and more pained at the view that was before them, he had to turn his eyes away from the wreckage. What if the Landers had actually been killed? What if they were just too late? Could anything have been done to help them at all? What if they had moved quicker? No, the carriage must have been here for a while. Otherwise, the carriage wouldn't have been picked as clean as it was. That, and the blood would have...

"...Wait." Hiro stopped himself, and looked over at the carriage again. "Where's the blood...?" He quietly asked himself, walking over to it immediately, in a hurried fashion. Upon further inspection of the wreckage, there didn't look to be any blood on the ground at all, dried or otherwise. Even looking onto the carriage itself, no blood was found anywhere. Despite all possible thoughts, it would stand to reason that the blood, if it was even splattered on the carriage itself, would have dripped down to the ground. It didn't look like there was any, anywhere. Since Adventurers were basically data, it would make sense that blood, or at least traces of a battle would be seen anywhere. But, it looked like there wasn't even that. Hiro came to a conclusion: The victims were not killed. They were taken away, alive. Looking around the area, he could see not only Kobold and Goblin footprints, but also those of human characteristics. Bigger feet, and even some smaller than the feet of the monsters. There wasn't any killing done here, but if they don't act fast, there might be. Right now, though, he turned to Alvina, still in a shocked state of mind. He had to help her, first.

Walking over to the girl, and kneeling down, he put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, Alvina." Hiro said, as calmly and as reassuringly as possible. "There wasn't anyone killed here. There's no trace of a battle anywhere, and there's footprints of human-like people going along with the footprints of the Kobolds and Goblins." Hiro put his other hand on her other shoulder, a stern look forming in his eyes. "But if we don't do anything soon, there might be some casualties. We have to stop them now, okay?" Now wasn't the time for any consoling hugs or anything of that nature. Now was the time for action. Hiro stood up, took a step back, and held out his hand for the girl to take. He would help her up, if she accepted it, and then he would point over to the footprints, making his way over to them. "It looks like they were heading up along the path a little ways, while a group stayed behind to loot the carriage. It didn't take them long to clear it out, but it wasn't an accident that had happened recently. I'd say, maybe an hour or two ago." He put his hand to his chin. "If they're forming under a leader of sorts, as the quest suggests, then that leader might be wanting to make some kind of demand for their release."

Hiro turned back to Alvina for a moment. "We'll need to move fast. This quest we accepted may be the initial recovery team, to see if we can save them, first. If that fails, then the required deal would be met, and they would be freed regardless." He braced himself for a moment, before continuing. "Goblins and Kobolds will kill any Bargaining Chips, if they find out that the ones they are bargaining with aren't willing to fulfill the deal immediately." He probably didn't need to say much of anything more, as the girl's sense of right was probably taking over at this moment. Turning around, Hiro began to run towards where the footprints lead. Unsure as to whether or not they would make it in time, he kept in mind that the situation has changed. Real lives were at stake now. He would keep his level 15 for now, but if things got too hairy, or the Landers in question were being physically threatened, his guise would very quickly drop. Hiro had absolutely no desire to even allow the Landers to be hurt any further than they have been already, no matter what he cost. He would apologize to Alvina later for not being truthful about his level, or the reason why he wanted to partake in this quest with her, but this isn't something he wanted to screw around about. Hiro will not allow anybody to die. Not if he can stop it.

[1301 Words]
Tag: Alvina
Muses:
First and Second Paragraphs: Another Sky - DJ Okawari
Third Paragraph: Train Graveyard - Final Fantasy 7
Fourth and Fifth Paragraphs: The Spy - Final Fantasy 8
Sixth Paragraph: The Hanging Edge - Final Fantasy 13
Notes: See PM

[Alvina]

sang - at - you

If you knew, knew what the Bluebirds

"You kinda are, though," she argued earlier on, while they were still walking towards the quest destination. "I mean, you did the whole serpent throwing thingamajig---that's got to count for 'cool', at the very least. It's not something you see every day, after all." That was true; Alvina hadn't met much high leveled players after the Catastrophe, and something like that wouldn't have happened in the real world, not in a million chances. Since being stuck in Londinium the player had been exposed to so many different kinds of people that just thinking about it left her feeling slightly overwhelmed. Everything she saw here and now, in Elder Tale, was something to behold, and they were all 'awesome' in their own way, to her. "Besides," she said, "that's up to me to decide, so you don't get a say in whether I think you're badass or not." Hiro's words about being a mentor, and the tone in which he said them, brought a wistful smile to her face. In her past few games she had to figure things out by herself, or by scouring through the internet for useful guides and tips. And, when everything was over, she would be at a level of experience that made getting a mentor a rather preposterous idea. So she ended up being the one to help others instead. Not that she ever minded, still, in this foreign place, it was nice to think that she had a source of guidance to help her this time around. Even if it only lasted for the period of this quest, it was much better than having none at all. The demented laugh that her companion gave shocked her out of her thoughts, and she turned her head around to give him a rather bemused look. "...Nah," she said at last, as if after giving it some consideration. "I change my mind. Your ass isn't quite nice enough to merit watching." Making sure she maintained eye contact, one eyelid drooped down in a slow, languid wink, before a small twitch of her lips broke the mock serious expression that she had donned. It was fun to have Hiro around---much better than being alone, if she said so herself. It reminded her of old times, when she had gone adventuring in other games, in another world. And now, she stared at the wrecked carriage scattered across the ground, broken beyond repair, and though she felt the urge to weep the tears refused to come, leaving a clogged up feeling stuck in her chest. Oh, how the mood had changed. From her position on the ground Alvina had never felt so impotent in her life. She...she should have done something. Anything. Like, if they had reached the city faster, maybe...but no, it was unlikely that they would have reached the scene in time. Caught up in her own self-pity, she only half listened to what Hiro was muttering about, but one word stood out: blood. With a glance around, her vision not quite focused, she noticed that he was right---the place around them was surprisingly clean. Still, that didn't say anything. Did People of the Land bleed? In fact, in this reality, did Adventurers? She had never been placed in a situation where she suffered from anything other than scrapes and bruises, so the Foxtail couldn't say. Well, if Hiro said that there should have been blood, then there probably should. Even then, however, she had been playing an Enchanter for long enough to know that there would be one exception to that rule. "No," she whispered, tilting her head up by a bit to look at him. "Not if they used spells." To be honest, she had no idea if demihumans could wield magic or not, but there was always a chance. Her brain felt fogged, muddled, and she couldn't really think of anything other than the heavy melancholy that weighed on her very bones. She felt a hand, followed by another, rest on her shoulders, and she spared him a look, lethargically dragging her attention to focus on what he was saying. As she registered his words, she forced her brain to clear up, feeling a flicker of hope. They...they could still be alive. She...she needed to think, or she'll never be able to save them. Shaking her head, she pulled her the stuff in her mind into something decently coherent. Kneeling catatonic on the ground wasn't going to help matters, but if she got a grip of herself---well, at least she's able to do something. Grabbing the extended palm, she pushed herself to her feet, using her free hand to snag the staff which she had left on the floor. "Thanks, for all of that." she muttered. Standing up, Alvina could see the trail of footprints too, continuing on the road for a while before veering off into the surrounding forest on the right side of the path, just as he said. Something seemed a bit off about his theory, though, and she found herself asking, "Demand for release? Kobolds can do this kind of thing?" She had never met a Goblin before, but she had kind of assumed that they were much like the other mobs around the valley. 'Demihuman' implied a lesser intelligence, no? "I thought that they were dumb." Maybe the leader was a smarter version of them? Or perhaps the 'demi' portion wasn't referring to their intellect, but rather a lack of moral integrity. Nonetheless, even with her confusion, she never once doubted the accuracy of his statements. He had quite a bit more experience than her, after all, to talk like he did. "Or maybe," she said, "the Landers are food, or an offering of sorts, to give to their leader. There's no guarantee that the goblins are going to keep them alive. For all you know, they could be cooking them right now, and we could already be too late." Despite the negativity of what she was saying, she had already begun trekking beside the footprints, following the trail onwards. Yeah, chances were, the 'hostages' were goners. But Hiro's idea was the best case scenario, and for now she would cling to it until proven otherwise. With lives at stake, they had best hurry. Moving into the forest, with it's dense woodland and foliage, there were a few moments when she would loose the trail, only to pick it up a few minutes later as she came across a sandier patch of land. They were making good pace, but she could almost feel a sort of timer at the back of her mind: an hourglass where you know neither the amount of sand gone, nor the amount of sand left---all you can perceive is the feeling of lost, and that time was dripping through your very fingers. She felt herself rushing forward, her sense of urgency driving her, and she stopped paying as much attention to her surroundings, her eyes focused solely on the forest ground. It was only until she heard some sort of rustling, like something pushing through the undergrowth, that she paused, rapidly swinging around to face the general vicinity of the noise.

• 1200 words • HP: 100% || MP: 100% • Hirosame • notes: This took way longer than should be possible. >.> I need to stop procrastinating. Sorry to make you wait! Btw, I'll let you decide what that noise was. ^^

♥︎

[Hirosame]

Hiro would let his mind wander, as the two of them rushed forward in the situation that they had found themselves in. Having wanted to respond to Alvina's suggestive wink earlier, as well as make a joke about that beforehand, the time for that has yet passed. Right now, the urgency of their current task had taken a sudden massive leap on the list of priorities. As much as trying to keep his mind loose and free, thinking of all possible outcomes, it served to reason that he would need to worry about Alvina's well being, so that she doesn't face death in this world. Even if he didn't think that dying once is that much of a problem, she seemed to have a much different opinion on the matter. It wasn't any kind of white-knight-ism that he wanted to keep her from having to go through something like that, but rather make sure that the victims were safe at the end of it all. Then again, Hiro wouldn't really mind coming to this girl's rescue, should a situation rise. She was a pretty nice girl, and taking a quick look back, she was rather pretty, too. However, it was at this moment that Hiro's mind began to focus on the task once again. It had wandered maybe a little too much.

He had been listening to Alvina, as she gave different thoughts about what could be happening, or what could have already happened. She seemed to have calmed down a bit, since she had gotten back up from her place on the ground. Her thoughts were fluent, for sure, and a lot of them made sense, but perhaps she was thinking a little too much into the matter. So, Hiro began to reassure her of a few things. "Goblins and Kobolds are simple, possessive creatures. They like to have nice shiny things, and gold is quite shiny to them. However, if they are promised shiny things from a leader of some sort, a leader with a higher general intelligence, then they are more willing to follow said leader. Since the goblins and kobolds will work together, to an extent, to get what they want, they'll-" Hiro stopped his thought, as Alvina had whipped around in place. As they were running, Hiro had drifted ahead of her a bit, taking the lead in the small, two person convoy. Taking another quick step before stopping his forward momentum, he began to hear whatever the noise was. Squinting, he tried to see in the darkness of the woods nearby, but couldn't make anything out in particular. If anything, it sounded like wood, and movement... His eyes shot wide open, as a glint of metal had caught his eye, and his mind completely shut off after that.

Hiro instinctively activated two skills, in order to burst his speed up immensely. The Tier II skill, Eye of the Tiger, and the Tier III skill, Hellfire Drive. Hiro's eyes turned Orange, and the rest of his body became an outline of Red and White fire. His body seemingly warped  in front of Alvina, as he crossed his arms before his chest in preparation of an oncoming attack. As if on cue, a flurry of Arrows had been flung from the darkness. The burning mass that stood before Alvina had taken all of the arrows, but barely a tick on his health bar had been made. This was, of course, due to the fact that his full level had now been completely implemented. "Tch." Hiro clicked his tongue, before striking a battle pose. "Sorry about this." He said, apologetically, to Alvina, as he was more than certain the girl could see the 81 that was now emblazoned next to his Level marker. "I'll explain later." With that short comment having been made, the Monk crouched down slightly, as the Kobolds and Goblins that were hiding within the forest had begun to show themselves. Hiro forced his body forward to meet the oncoming opponents.

They numbered 6, against their 2. Hopefully, Hiro wouldn't have to get Alvina involved in this squabble, and could easily dispel the monsters himself. Not wanting to waste any time, Hiro had plunged his burning fist into the face of the nearest enemy, causing it to disappear without a second's notice. He flipped his body around, delivering a fatal roundhouse kick to the next opponent that had ran up towards his back. Hiro vaulted over that enemy, and came crashing down on top of the next with his elbow, performing an Elbow Drop on it. He spun himself around with his legs to get back up, as well as attack any opponents near him. Seeing as the number had quickly dropped to 3, the Goblin and 2 Kobolds remaining started to turn around, to which he flashed in front of them, thanks to the boost of speed from both his prior skills. Hiro grabbed onto the head of the Goblin, wound back, and threw it headlong into the ground, and activated the skill Megaton Impact with his right hand, charging it up. His left leg followed up with another roundhouse to the first Kobold, causing it to also disappear. The final Kobold, unsure as to what just happened, found itself facing Hiro's charged fist.

"HAAAA!" Hiro exclaimed, the attack meeting its mark. As soon as the fist-to-face connection was made, a burst of wind exploded from his fist, as Megaton Impact's effect took place, and the Kobold rocketed off into the forest, only to disappear into the nether with all the others of its kind. The Kobold hit a smaller tree, causing it to be knocked over, from the sheer force. The monk lowered his stance, as the two skills he had activated beforehand began to deactivate. His eyes returned to their usual green, although closed at the moment, and the fires that had enveloped his body began to wisp away into the wind. Signifying the end of the combat cycle, Hiro let out a long exhale, as his body loosened up a bit once again. Reopening his eyes slowly, he began to turn to Alvina, an apologetic look on his face. Hiro lowered himself to the ground, and bowed before the Enchantress, his head almost touching the ground. "I'm sorry." Hiro began. "I never fully divulged what my level was. I kept it hidden, so you'd be more willing to be in a party with me." He paused for just a second, before continuing. "I didn't do this because I pity you, or anything of the sort. I did this because you're a pretty cool person, and I'd hate to just walk away without getting to know you a bit better." Having explained about as much as he needed to, he waited for the girl to respond, before he'd make any more moves.

[1144 Words]
Muse: From Shadows - RWBY Soundtrack
Tag: Alvina
Notes: Yeah, there was no way for me to word that last bit without making it sound kinda weird, so I just kinda went with it. XD I hope your trip last week was fun, and that you had a good time. Glad to see you're back, safe and sound. o7 Don't worry about taking a while to post.