Morningstar

Cigarette smoke plumed through the dimly lit room, invasive as it infected the air. A hot breeze crept in through an open door and a black cat slumbered outside on the deck. The rhythmic ticking of a clock forbade silence and yet, not a soul at the table found themselves distracted. Through opaque sunglasses, East scanned his hand. His frown was telling; he held nothing of value. To his right, South puffed on a long pipe. He was older than the rest, and far more experienced. He played a careful game, making few mistakes. When he did lose, he did so calmly, and always showed respect to his oppo

Morningstar raised a brow. "You don't have a weapon? Seriously?" He didn't mean to sound so judgmental, and so he continued. "We can change that. I know a guy on Floor Twenty-two. His name's Wulfrin and he's a blacksmith. He owns a shop called Sentinel Armaments. Mention my name and I'm sure he'll hook you up with a weapon, and maybe some armor too. If that's what you like." "And there are staffs. And ranged-weapons too, actually. You've got room to experiment," he smiled. He lifted what he thought was a rock. It was revealed to be a giant beetle. He jumped, kicking it like a footbal

He dropped the two halves of string into Henry's jar and sealed it tight, placing it on the counter where Foyle had found it. He dropped to the floor, leaned against a large wooden cabinet, and sighed. It wasn't relief, nor was it sadness. It was exhaustion. Mentally and physically, Morningstar was drained. He listened and waited for the guards to pass them by. He could feel their heavy stomps through the floor boards as they raided Henry's shop. "Too close is right." Guards catching on to them was the last thing they needed. They were safe, for now, from the horrors of Glyndebourne.

Zackariah laughed. "Oh, yes, of course. I will have a reward prepared for you!" Off they went, leaving Zackariah and his alchemy shop behind. The old man seemed different from the last time they had met, but Morningstar could not place his finger on why that was. Maybe he'd had his hair cut or something. "He's nice—nicer than Dorian, anyway. A little bit forgetful, I've noticed. I don't think he knows who I am." Morningstar shifted through his menus, coming to his inventory. A few taps and his sword materialized at his waist. The boars were weak but frankly, so was Ty. It was wo

"Sure, let's do your place. I don't think I've been yet," Morningstar smiled, curious to see the spot they had picked out. If he remembered correctly, they were looking on Floor Twenty-two. Or was it Floor 11? He guessed he'd find out soon enough. Ciela caught him off guard with the sudden gift. The envelope was beautifully made. He wondered if she had crafted it herself. "What!? You're getting married!?" Morningstar was visibly shocked by the news. He probably should have seen it coming. "Congrats! And thank you! I'd love to come," Morningstar took the invitation graciously and hid

Quest | Previous Thread Floor Eight's forests were deep, dark, and full of danger. They arrived at night. In Morningstar's hand was a torch, small and light enough to wield alongside his sword. In a radius around the party, it lit their surroundings. It was plenty for them to see what was ahead. Etherial lacked Night Vision, and so Morningstar opted for an archaic light source instead. A day had passed since they had met in the Town of Beginnings. The girl agreed to accompany Morningstar on his quest in spite of the peril it put her in. He saw it as bravery. Perhaps it was foolishnes

Glad that she had chosen to accept the quest (and ultimately a bit surprised), he led her to Zackariah's shop. He had taken the route many times before, and knew it rather well. "Now, I'll warn you. This is the first of 3 'lessons,' I guess you could say. There's a bit of work to do before you can find Dorian's money. It's fun though. Probably," Morningstar shrugged. He tapped twice on the wooden door before pushing it open. The inside was just as he remembered it. A variety of different scents, coming from herbs and flowers, filled the room. They were strong, but not unpleasant. The old

Paragon Level 25 - (1) Gleaming Scale, (1) Demonic Shard, Free Skill Respec Current EXP: 158,032

"If you've got any bright ideas, I'm all ears right now!" Between the screaming raider and the groaning of the ship, Morningstar was barely able to process what Nari had shouted. He looked at the hole left behind in the floor and wall up ahead. It was jumpable, for him anyway. He wondered if it would be more difficult to Nari, considering her armor was much heavier. Outside, he noticed a cylindrical object toppling from above. His eyes lit up. "Escape pods! Somewhere higher up!" He yelled back, hoping to break through the excessive noise. With a firm kick, he knocked the Skyrat Raide

"I don't mean to be nosey," Kent chuckled. The man took a long sip from his mug, giving Morningstar the opportunity to look him over. He was not a player, and this surprised the swordsman. By the way he talked, dressed, and acted, Morningstar would never have guessed that he was an NPC. Lately, they appeared indistinguishable to him. He could have a conversation with an NPC and it would feel as though he were talking to a real life human. Sometimes, he thought it better. "Or, maybe I do," Kent said, setting the mug down. "Taft's not the safe place it once was, you know? What, with the mis

"Tanks and supports are the real carries. Us DPS players would die without y'all." Morningstar watched as Nari lit the man ablaze, following suit with an attack of his own. With no room for a long swing, he jabbed at the pirate, who was in no position to counterattack or parry. Before he could get close, however, the aircraft shook violently. Morningstar was pulled off balance. He clung to a pipe on the wall, shimmying across to a spot close enough to reach the Skyrat Raider. The raider flailed and screamed, his health bar ticking slowly as if the game was torturing him. The flames

"Well, hopefully not forever. But yeah, that makes sense to me." Dorian looked unamused at Ty's questions. Morningstar wasn't sure that anyone had confronted him so directly about his poor accounting skills. "Well..." Dorian stumbled on his words, "I have a few ideas. You might start with Zackariah, the alchemist. He's often doing projects for the town, so it may have been him that borrowed the money." Morningstar tapped his finger, practicing patience while Dorian exhausted his dialogue. He didn't want to spoil who the real money borrower was, and it wasn't because he thought Ty wou

He was just an NPC. He was just one of thousands of NPCs. And yet, he had saved Morningstar's life. Morningstar cursed, scanning the room for the red thread. He caught a glimpse of it tunneling under a shelf, before it popped out again somewhere else entirely. Foyle moved proactively, getting in its way and flicking it back to Morningstar. A furious swing crashed down upon the table where the string lay, both severing it and smashing the wooden table beneath it to bits. In the same fashion as the jacket it came from, the string did not vanish. Curiously, it laid in the rubble, unmoving. M

"Honestly, I don't even differentiate them from us anymore. We're too alike; apart from the fact that they're from here and we're just visiting," Morningstar looked at Dorian, who's luck had run dry while handing out quests. He turned back to the girl. "Shouting is optional," he played into her joke. "The quest includes some gathering, potion brewing, hunting, blacksmithing, and fishing. Exciting stuff." It was a sarcastic statement, but the quest really was worthwhile. He had done it twice; once alone and once as a guide. One more time wouldn't kill him. "I'm Morningstar. Star is fine."

People-watching was becoming boring. Nobody was stopping for Dorian, nor were they doing anything aside from walking. It was disappointing, until a girl started shouting. It pulled Morningstar out of his lulled state, catching his attention. Dorian looked shocked too. He choked on his words, flustered by the sudden string of irritated jabs. "Now, you listen here! I'm the mayor of this town-" "Ok, ok," Morningstar cut in, rushing to their aid. He gently pulled Dorian away from the frustrated girl, guiding to another section of the courtyard with a push. The mayor quickly forgot about the s

Quest Note: All players in this thread will receive 2x EXP (recruitment drive bonus) It wasn't often that Morningstar peered through his journal at the past. He had entries filled in from the very beginning—more accurately, a week from the beginning. There were a million things he had forgotten, and looking back reminded him of them. He stumbled upon familiar characters; people important to him. He hadn't forgotten them, of course, but they felt so distant now. Years had passed and he had moved on. He laughed reading about the time he'd nearly been run over by a merchant's caravan

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The earth quaked and heavens shook as the last of the Blightbound Monstrosities met its end. A black mass shifted and grew, beating like an enlarged heart. It skulked across the dead grass, consuming everything in its path. Morningstar was closest to the Blight. He hadn't the chance to move before its gelatinous form had crept past him, trapping him and Doom. The undead horse's attempts at freeing itself were in vain; the Blight was like glue, or quicksand, or The Blob (1958). Nothing could escape its hold. His HUD updated with a new quest directive: "Activate Armageddon." Simultaneously,

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Kat's succession of "no's" worried Morningstar about as much as Freyd's erratic, silent movements. He almost called out to his friend, but saw it pointless and focused on doing what he could to help his party instead. He reined his horse left, swerving out of the way from the incoming Faceless Lord and charged at the Blighted Monstrosity on the opposite end of the battlefield. Despite never wielding a scythe, he twirled it effortlessly, as if it were made for him, and sliced the mob across its chest. It sunk to the ground in a pile of dark, muddy goo and disappeared like the rest. He coun

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thread closing Morningstar receives: 2,195 EXP (Word Count (4,037/10*6*0.7] + Quest [500]) 329 col (1 page [0] + 15% P5 Reward [329]) Nature's Tablet | Quest Item <<Scents of the Wild>> Questline Etherial receives: 782 EXP (Word Count (4,037/10*6*0.7] + Quest [500]) 400 col (1 page [400]) Nature's Tablet | Quest Item <<Scents of the Wild>> Questline

His expression remained neutral while he grappled with the idea of bringing her along with him. She would be little use to him against Kumatetsu, but the experience would be good for her. Eventually, he smiled. "Alright then." He skimmed through his journal, looking for the page on Kumatetsu. Maybe it would have been a good idea to bring along a waiver for Etherial to sign, ensuring that he could dodge liability in the event of an accident. He had no such thing, however. Extra caution would be required. Coming to the journal entry, he cleared his throat. "Seven quest bosses to defeat

The moose, Owij'be, tossed its antlers to and fro, unable to settle on a specific target. Muddy fur over decaying skin smelled of rot, catching Morningstar off guard every time he got too close. The forest canopy caged them in, like a demented WWE spin-off. Swishing blonde locks from just above his eyeline, he dove headfirst into the wild fight, moving just behind Mina and delving his blade into the beast's hairy back. It was a beefy opponent they had encountered. It shrugged off attacks that lesser foes would crumble beneath. Shatter activated on impact, shredding an insignificant ounce