Nari-Lanreth

The tunnels seemed to close in around her as she continued on through them, constantly glancing down side stretches and cutoffs in search of any sign of the quarry they hunted. Mio trudged along beside her, appearing content to simply follow Nari for the time being. "You know...considering how big this floating castle is...I'm amazed at how many floors of it all focus on being underground..." She glanced down another side path, peering in towards a dead-end before continuing her trail of thought. "I don't mean to say that there shouldn't be any, but...I mean why not incorporate an above

As soon as they had exited the undercity entirely, Nari turned her attention towards their task at hand. Mio followed along behind her, glancing up at her every once in a while as she reviewed the quest information that now displayed itself on her menu. The foreman had given her three main options; hunt down and kill the Drakelings, lure them away...or destroy the nests. "Luring them away is the most humane...but I don't think that's going to get me what I need here. Although it is tempting...I think the best bet here is going to be to destroy the nests. At least this time around." She g

Their journey had taken them across the underground city, until they had finally found the individual in question - an older, grizzled looking individual who had clearly been working the mines for the majority of his life. Nari approached the man, giving a greeting as she came closer and listening to his request with a calm, collected expression. As soon as he had finished discussing the issue - a collection of Drakelings that were terrorising the miners, from the sounds of it - Nari was heading off, leaving the bright lit undercity behind in favour of the solitude that the caverns offered.

Nari watched as the girl attempted to pet the kitsune, the creature recoiling slightly and moving away - thankfully not biting out as Nari was concerned it would do. Turning her focus to the area around them, Nari took in the scenery. The floor was, as always, an image straight out of a near-perfect environment. Flaws could be found, if one looked...but they were not common. "Anyways...you've decided to get started in earnest now, right? So why don't we get your quest done so that you can catch up with those at the frontlines. Assuming that is your wish, after all." She smiled, a reassuri

Nari turned at the single word from Jomei, her rage broken for the briefest of seconds as she heard the man hit the floor. The cold washed over her, as she realised how out of touch she'd been - how driven by the anger. A feeling that caused her discomfort upon realising. "You good?" She called out to the ginger, nodding as he responded in kind. Cautious, the fire gone out from her earlier fury, Nari turned back to face the King. Just in time to see the blade descending towards her, the weapon colliding with her body and sending her flying across the room. She felt the impact as her body

The skeletons around her faded away as she approached the throne, a humming coursing through her body that seemed to push aside anything aside from the King in front of her. Nari barely registered Jomei behind her, barely considered that there were others in the room - her focus was only on the King, her awareness limited to her own movements and his. The images of the town were gone, although the fury remained. She had been bottling it up for far, far too long. The anger at being stuck in this place, at being constantly worried about every move, about the actions she was taking. What s

Nari paused for a few seconds after realising that Jomei had come to a stop, her question apparently having put the ginger into a state of consideration. She waited, patiently, as he seemed to think on his answer, before acknowledging what Nari herself had been feeling. The difficulty between differentiating, the concerns around losing oneself if they let themselves truly fall into the trap; and then the confirmation that either way - they weren't leaving this game in any shape that they had entered it. "Broken...or dead...not exactly a best seller." Her tone was hushed. Although she'd s

"You'd do well to keep that in mind...this is a game where you need to work together, if you want to survive in the long run." There was no anger in her tone, no emotion at all. A simple statement of fact. She'd never been engaged in a floor boss, had yet to help clear the battles known to be the most vicious and dangerous across Aincrad. Even still, Nari was well aware that when it came to the real fights, you needed to rely on those around you. No one could survive alone. "You're a quick learner, from the sounds of it though...so I think you'll do fine." Nari tried to make her voice mor

The afterglow of Jomei's strike seemed to bounce on the corners of Nari's vision, leaving the girl shaking her head slightly to clear it. The small group had been easy enough, and for a second Nari felt a smirk touch her face. "You know...these things are pretty easy. Do you think this king is even going to be a challenge? I mean...his forces are almost disappointing..." She bit her tongue as she considered the thought. It was never good to get too cocky, especially in this game. Surprises could be waiting where one least expected it, and the last thing she needed to do was walk into a di

Nari felt herself smiling at the sudden enthusiasm of the other player. They quickly listed everything they wanted to do, to incorporate, going so far as to bounce ideas off her and then immediately answer them before Nari could say anything. For a time, she let the boy speak, continuing their advance towards the world beyond the gates - making sure to wave at Merv as she passed the ever-vigilant guard. "Ideas are all well and good...but sometimes even the best of builds falters. That's why it's important to work together, as much as possible. Soloing this game will only get you so far,

Nari chuckled at the thought of the mobs running away. It would be nice if they would do that, but she'd yet to encounter anything in this game that showed fear beyond something reactionary, perhaps in its final moments. Cardinal didn't seem to consider surrender and retreat options, when it came to combat. Or, at least, not that she had ever seen or heard about. "DPS is always good...first thing you want to focus on then, is setting your equipment and skills up to focus on dealing damage. Seems intuitive, but there's always catches. Some skills will cancel out the effectiveness of your w

Jomei had rushed alongside Nari, moving even before she'd shouted out to him. His fluid movements making Nari feel shame at her own clunkiness - making her remember that he was by and far the more agile of the two. Still, she'd managed to snag a few of them, and even as she watched Jomei put down the first, and grab the last one that she had missed, she remembered again why they worked so well together. "Nice! Here...let me see if I can't score down this friend a bit more..." She gave her scythe a twirl behind her, turning her attention to the leader of the group. The thing seemed to sta

Nari smiled as the individual seemed almost excited to hit the fields - a drive that they exclaimed was focused on bringing more players to the frontlines. Silently, she wished them luck with that endeavour, hoping that he would succeed where so many others had failed. "I don't think anyone on the frontlines would...turn on other players. At least, not those who are focused on clearing the game..." She wasn't entirely sure on that statement, but it felt right to say in the moment. As if she were defending herself, and those she knew. "It would be nice to see reinforcements, however...espe

Nari looked up the mountain towards the shape of the drake above, the wings outspread in what she figured was supposed to be some sort of display of magnificence, and perhaps terror for those players coming across it for the first time. Nari, however, felt only a bit of disappointment. It felt typical, like anything she'd find in any other game - something written by a childish individual with no imagination. "It would be easier if it would fly down to meet us...doubt that'll happen though." She gave a soft sigh before beginning her climb in earnest, reaching back to offer NIGHT a helping

"Good! Keeping that fear will keep you alive...remember that." She chuckled as the boy declared his true feelings. She was glad to see he was able to realise that the fear of the entire situation had taken over him - it was far more impressive that he had realised it, and overcome it. If nothing else, Nari could empathise. She still felt that fear every time she walked into combat, every time she was facing down a threat. It didn't matter how small the creature was, how weak it was...sometimes, you simply lost. "Have you...ever fought anything before? In the game?" She pulled up her menu

Nari smiled as the boy seemed to muster up the courage to admit to the faults that they all felt - that fear of death, that came with this game. A game, sure, but one that had a finality - and not just for the avatar that was their body and soul since entering this place. She could understand that fear all too well, far more than she would enjoy to admit. "Worry? I worry about another name being struck into that Monument...about more people being lost to this game. Ever name on their is a loss...a fault on our own parts." Her smile seemed to counter the sadness behind the words - as if sh

The return question answered Nari's concern. The player was definitely new to being outside of their shell - whatever that shell came in the form of. Clearly, they had relied upon their group around this area in order to remain protected throughout all this time - something that Nari could commend. It took a lot not to jump feet first, to try and rush your way into the frontlines immediately. She knew a lot of people who had been lost that way. "Yeah...I've joined the frontlines recently." Her voice was hesitant, refusing to let any sort of emotion through. Once, she would've been proud t

Nari stepped aside as a white haired player hustled past, the boy appearing to be in a rush. She barely caught the words that he had uttered under his breath as he went by, his voice sounding somehow eager and scared at the same time - a sensation that Nari had begun to call the beginner's chill. That sound that newly integrated players, those who had begun their journey in earnest, all seemed to have - like a child seeing the entire world for the first time. She didn't believe it showed weakness in any way, in fact she found that it was likely an awareness and strength in many means. Mo

Nari squinted against the bright sunlight of the first floor, mumbling to herself in a manner that bespoke someone who had not come to terms with the early morning light. For the briefest of seconds, she had considered not coming here at all - she'd barely had any sleep, spending a large portion of her night travelling the twenty-seventh in something that she had later learnt didn't exist. "That is the last time I waste good col on info brokers outside of the hub..." She had been tempted to hunt the broker down, before realising it wasn't worth labelling herself as an Orange player just

Nari found herself giggling at the thought of someone being frozen to the throne, enjoying the peaceful moment. The image in her mind was likely far different from Jomei's own, perhaps even his intent, but nonetheless Nari found herself overly amused by the idea. A nice break from the cruelty they had encountered not that long ago, in the town below the castle itself. She hoped to one day have that scene erased from her mind, but she doubted that it ever would be. "Snow...looks like this place lives up to its calling, after all..." She trudged through the depths of snow towards the centr

Nari nodded at Hirru's request, turning to face the other creature. Already they'd managed to tear into the defences of the two, breaking them down ever so slightly without taking much in retaliation - a sign that things were going well, indeed. Nari wasn't foolish enough to assume that it would continue this way forever, though. She knew that they would need to continue to press their advantage, and she knew that would mean trusting those she was with. "One shatter coming up..." She muttered in response as she brought her scythe up and around, preparing to begin her assault against the

Nari was about to comment on NIGHT's optimism, to remind the other player that there was no way they were that lucky, when a voice spoke overtop of her. It seemed to rumble ever so slightly, and it took Nari a few moments to realise that it was coming from the form that had appeared from the shadows. The pearl coloured dragon spoke about the parents - the remains belonging to its father - and how the dragon's mother had left after becoming angered. Nari couldn't resist shooting a look towards NIGHT, her own expression one of reserved patience, but a clear indication that she thought the e

She could tell that there was something that NIGHT had wanted to say, a comment on the tip of her tongue - something that the girl had bitten back and kept herself from uttering. Before, Nari might have pushed for it, to hear what the other had to say. Those days were gone, however, and instead Nari turned her attention back to the area they had been passing through - noticing after NIGHT pointed it out, that they had arrived at a rather large cave. She gave her friend a single glance, before leading the two into its depths. The darkness quickly surrounded them, before being pierced by a

The girl had promised to let her know if there would be any assistance required, meaning that Nari need not do anything at this point. She watched as the two continued to dance around one another, continued to try and pummel and slash one another. The constant dance of conflict, that had become the life of Aincrad, their lives. Fae managed to land a blow, cutting the creature's health down ever so slightly - a small shimmer crossing its body in response as it seemed to brace itself afterwards. Something about it seemed...different, although Nari couldn't pin her finger on it immediately.