[PP-F2] A Step Forward or Backward «Breaking the Unbreakable» (Piera)

[Lee 0]

Spoiler

To start the quest, the player must first find the quest NPC that has taken residence in a hut near the summit of an exceptionally high mountain at the southern edge of the 2nd Floor. If the player accepts the quest, the NPC takes the player outside to a 2 meter-high rock with a diameter of about 1.5 meters and almost as tough as an Immortal Object. There, the NPC reveals that the player must split the rock into two using only their fists and then proceeds to paint whiskers with quick-drying paint on the player’s face, claiming that the whiskers cannot be removed until the rock is split. If the player does manage to split the rock, they are rewarded with the Extra Skill.

The teleportation plaza came to life as the light would shine to show the arrival of another player into the town of Urbus. The appearance of an armored player with scruff over his face and an stare that seemed to show that he was angry at something or another but no one other than the man would know the answer to this. He had come to the second floor for a few reasons though they would all follow behind finding a single NPC somewhere to do a single quest that he had been told about for a skill he didn't even care about. He took a few steps away from the platform and would take in a deep breath as he would turn back and look at the area where he had just appeared from. He awaited the arrival of a spesific player and if she did not show, he would have to bring her kicking and screaming.

[Piera 0]

The heavily armored man very nearly had to make good on his inner threat, but just before he was about to act on it, the teleportation plaza lit up as a woman in full heavy armor complete with black and dark purple cloak materialized front and center. Her metal cased arms were awkwardly crossed though from her expression it wasn't from anger, but discomfort. Green eyes shifted warily to and fro behind her oval glasses before settling on the scruffy man's form, causing a slight relaxation on her part as she walked up to him.

"So....what are we doing out here? You never said."

That was a bit of a kind statement. He told her to be here around this time fully geared and ready to go, though where or to do what wasn't explained. He just made clear that if she didn't show, he would have to physically make her. No need for things to get messy after all. But after so long of just being the two of them, she felt...exposed out of their home and regular floor. The armor she was wearing made it even worse for some reason. Clunky and unfamiliar after going so long without needing or wanting to wear it.

[Lee 0]

Lee would let attentions fall toward whatever would move out of instinct rather than any need to actually see any specific individual. Though, this broke as the appearance of Piera come into the picture. The scowl would persist but it would be lessened in a more sincere way, at least in whatever way she saw it. He usually had a more upbeat demeanor but during his more quieter moments, he would seem rather irked though now-a days, he did have a chip on his shoulder.

"We are going to find an non-player character to get a quest. A much needed quest that I think I will benefit from and you are coming along for the extra benefits and because motivation." He would let a plated finger come to rest square against her forehead and press it in a kidding manner. "We need to make a small trek to the outskirts of the southern area and up a mountain."

[Piera 0]

Her brow creased in mild confusion and curiosity as her partner explained, at least until it was poked. Brushing his hand away, she rubbed her forehead as if to rub the poke off her pixelated skin. "Who needs motivation when I have you, dear?" She smiled almost convincingly innocent. "Extra benefits hm? I guess." Shrugging her shoulders, her arms relaxed and a hand reached for his before their armor clanked together, causing her to sigh and give up on the venture before she even truly started.

Following Lee as he mentioned a small trek, she frowned but then her brow shot up towards her hairline when he mentioned it was up a mountain. "Up a mountain?!" She echoed with incredulity before groaning rather dramatically. But then seeing his expression, she attempted to school her expression and disgruntlement with a small sigh and nodded. "Okay, lead the way..."

[Lee 0]

The plate covered man would let the corner of his mouth creak upward into a smirk of sorts at her comment of motivation "I know right? Truly baffling." He wasn't trying to selfish in every aspect thus why he wanted to have her join him on this particular quest. It was free of monsters and fighting but it still would help them both in the end but he wasn't sure if it would in the long run but it couldn't hurt either....hopefully. As she took hold of his arm, he would glance down only slightly as she repeated what he said to which he would raise his free hand up and rest it top her own, as if to lock it in place in case she were to run.

"Oh it won't be that bad. The main objective is at the top....or at least, close to the top. It'll probably go by faster than you think." He would look forward to the pathway they would take that began its way across the ground and would start its winding way up the mountainside. It would be lost farther up but it was something he wanted and needed.For her, he hoped it would also be a sort of solace as well.

[Piera 0]

Seeing Lee smile, she felt a sense of accomplishment and the corners of her own mouth twitched upwards steadily before she chuckled at his comeback. Maybe...this wasn't such a terrible idea after all. She still just felt so...vulnerable after what they'd been through. Maybe this would be good for them.

Chuffing in amusement as he firmly locked her arm in place under his own, Piera looked sidelong at him as they started their way. At his rather unconvincing explanation about the distance, the healer tried desperately not to roll her eyes.

It did go a bit faster than she thought, but while SAO didn't fully make players feel physical taxation as they would normally, they still felt some. Enough to whine over just a tad. "There better be like...a thousand kittens and puppies waiting for us at the top of this mountain. All fluffy n fuzzy n nuzzly... Oh!" Piera suddenly gasped with wide eyes, clapping a metal hand over her mouth as she let out a sharp laugh. "Lee! Lee, Lee, Lee, Lee!" Once she had sufficiently gotten his attention, jumping up and down slightly as she grasped his arm with her other hand with a wide smile as she continued to chuckle through her explanation, "C-Can you imagine how fuzzy your face is in real life?? I mean, how long have we been in here! Do you think someone shaves you?? Ahhh I hope not. I wana see how fuzzy you've gotten! I wonder if my hair is like....super long now. That wouldn't be so bad."

Sighing from going so long without breathing and the long trek combined, the bespectacled woman squinted ahead and asked teasingly, "Are we there yet?"

[Lee 0]

As they began the trek up the mountain trail, Piera brought forth the objects that better be held at the top of the mountain to which he would give way to pause and then nod his head "Yeah, totally. Thousands of em'. Like, everywhere. A field of them, swaying like flowers in the wind." The mental image appeared in his head and it was...odd to say the least. A little further on, Piera would then begin to repeat his name over and over to which he replied "You know my name, I get it, what you want woman?!" She would then begin to put forth the idea of his real life body and the hair that it would have surely accumulated to this point. He would let out a short burst of laughter and then reply.

"Dear God! So much hair everywhere! Like, just a body of fur from head to toe. I bet you it just kinda grows together in a giant mess. Gonna need gardening sheers to get through that mess." He would snicker at the thought of Piera wearing welding goggles and wielding a pair of sheers above a patch of massive hair. After what seemed like hours upon hours, maybe days upon days and having to force Piera to continue and through the complaining, a hut would begin to come into sight

[Piera 0]

Piera was slightly doubled over and using the armored man as a balancing pole to lean on as she snickered. "Or a chainsaw!" She merrily agreed before her expression became mildly disgusted while still amused, "Ewwww, I bet it's merged with your hair hair ewww and your chest and armpit hair! Oh! You've become Cousin It!" Petting his scruffy cheek fondly, the brunette announced, "We'd have to keep it in that case. Bet Hollywood would scoop you right up then. ...Or Guiness Book of World Records. Maybe we could donate it if you really wanted it all to go though. I feel sorry for all those poor cancer kids that get stuck with a wig of your hair though hehe."

Her mood didn't stay high sadly as the journey continued and continued, accompanied with her nagging for Lee to slow down to accommodate her much shorter legs and stride. Her voice had taken on a slightly whiney tone as she brought up, "Honey, I thought you said that it was near the top? I swear we're nearly there already..." She could tell as she made her boyfriend walk closer to the edge of the path and refused to take in the (while most likely beautiful) very high view. Squinting behind her spectacles, the spearwoman asked aloud, "What's that?"

[Lee 0]

Piera would then begin to paint quite the picture of hair upon hair upon hair and all of it intertwined with one another. She would then compare him to the famed fuzzy creature thing from the Adams Family. She would add that someone would find this to be fascinating and it would be a race to the finish on who would get said hair, be it famous individuals or possibly poor kids. He would then nod his head in the direction of the hut and answer "Hopefully the place we need to get too."

As they came closer, an old man whom sat upon a circular cushion with a long gray beard that went down his chest and circled around in his lap. As they closed in, a menu would appear before Lee informing him about the quest and if he would want to partake in it. As he selected the Accept button, it would disappear and the man would react almost instantly 'Hone your skills, you have come. Follow, you will.' The old man would stand and lead the tower over to a large rock and would continue 'Split the rock you will. Your face, marked it will be till you do.' In the same instant and with blinding speed, the old man drew a long brush and before the two of them knew it, cartoonish-like whiskers were drawn pon them and the old man's cackling laughter could be heard inside the hut as Lee counted to touch his face and rub the paint or ink away but to no avail.

[Piera 0]

It did turn out to be the place they needed to get to. Or at least she assumed so. She wasn't entirely sure what quest Lee was doing, but she knew that she hadn't done it yet. She didn't think she would herself if it involved this much hiking!

When they approached the hut, Piera ribbed her partner as she saw the long beard of the elderly man meditating (or napping) out front. She tried to get a glance at the quest menu when it popped up but Lee accepted it too fast for her to read anything. Glancing at the NPC as he spoke, she wondered quietly, "I wonder if Kayaba Akihiko's a Star Wars fan..."

Trailing behind the two men as the shorter one lead the way until they stood in front of a rather large boulder. Wondering if said rock had any special significance, the brunette glanced over at the elderly NPC before spluttering as she felt something on her face. Looking at Lee with shock, her hand then reached to touch her face when she saw the whiskers inked on his cheeks. "No... That little bastard!" She whirled around to yell at the NPC (especially considering she wasn't even participating in this quest!) but he had already disappeared into his hut. "Ugh! Wait, did he tell you to split this thing?" Gesturing to the boulder in incredulity. "Man if only you'd gone like warhammer or two handed axe... Do you think it'd mess up your sword if you tried to use it? Maybe the point of your shield would work?"

[Lee 0]

Lee would glance down at Piera as she would speak of Akihiko being one for star wars and it took him more than a moment to get the reason why she brought it up. "Well, it is a worldwide craze, even now. Can't really do much without coping something." As they had been drawn upon, Piera was quick to anger but with the old man gone, it was directionless. Lee would raise a hand up to his mouth as he chuckled at Piera's new look to which he would comment "But honey, you look so adorkable doe." He would then look to the tall boulder and noted that it was taller than he by a good couple inches, maybe a foot. The brown haired woman would bring up how a weapon might help though if he had picked a two-handed one, it would be easier to which he would simply shrug. Lee would move his hand to his side and withdraw his sword from the scabbard on the back of his shield. "Well, let's get to chopping and see how this goes." He drew the sword high and right before he let it fall, the voice of the old man broke through the air 'Use Weapons, You May Not! Cheating, It Is! Nothing Gained, Is What You Will Get!'

Lee, as if on command or out of sheer fright, let the sword drop from his grip onto the ground before him and his head would turn ever so slightly toward the hut as he could swear he heard laughter but it could also simply be his own mind playing tricks on him. "Okay...." He would take in a deep breath as he would drop his shield and then draw back his right fist and then let it thrust forward, crashing into the ground, forming an ever so small crumble of loose rock from the top to roll down and hit the ground with seemingly little else done. "Son of a bi*ch this thing is sturdy."

ID: 79548
BD: 9

Rock: 50-1-1(CRIT)= 48

[Piera 0]

Smiling with just a faint blush as she was called 'adorkable' and retorted pathetically, "Yeah? Well...takes one to know one! Yeah..." She nodded as if she made some killer comeback, shuffling her feet and fingering her cheek as if she could feel the drawn whiskers somehow. "These better go away once you finish this..." She had no wish for it to be permanent.

Piera braced herself as the sword was raised, certain it was going to give an awful sounding clash, but it never even got to touch the rock before a voice rang out to stop him. Snorting at the comical sight of Lee dropping his weapon like it'd become a hot potato, the brunette hid her smile behind her armored hand. But as he dropped his shield, her smile quickly fell. Jeez, he really was supposed to punch the thing to death? Wincing as he began to do just that, the healer said aloud, "I'm assuming outside help is also not allowed... Not that I wana punch the rock with you anyway."

But then one of the pieces of gravel rolled to her feet and out of curiosity and boredom, the young woman picked it up, rolling it around her hand before her eyes widened behind her glasses. "This...this is an alchemy material! Oh my gosh, honey keep punching! Yer gonna make me rich! In mats at least, heh."

ID: 79693
LD: 17
+1 Material

Edited March 17, 2017 by Piera

[Lee 0]

Lee would give way to a pause as she spoke about the whiskers being permanent to which he would then reply in kind "Well, they wouldn't kill you. Me on the other hand, that will kill my intimidation factor. I can't curse up a storm and then feel threatening. It'll just be sad." He would draw back his fist and shake it off as if to regain feeling.

It was a solid punch and something he wasn't rightly used to doing in the world of SwordArt Online. She would then speak about this being a singular training exercise and that she wasn't too keen on the idea of punching a rock herself. "To each their own." He would turn his attentions back to the boulder and draw his fist back again and as he let another strike out, Piera would burst out about how a material come from the rock to which he would hit the stone but not with as much force as he had previously

"Well, that means that you really do get something outta this. Which is good because I haven't any idea how long this is going to take."

ID: 79710
BD: 8

Rock: 48-1= 47

[Piera 0]

Piera tried and then failed miserably to contain a few giggles as she pictured Lee cursing up a storm and attempting to be intimidating with those cute whiskers drawn on his face.

Nodding happily when he said that he was glad she got something out of this quest, her cheerful expression then became reproachful at the ending statement. "Well that doesn't sound foreboding at all... Is this one of those 'seven days and seven nights must pass', kinda thing? I don't think I'm that patient. ...Can you be that patient?"

After he punched again, the brunette waited expectantly but then frowned with a forlorn, "Awww...no Mat that time. You didn't hit it hard enough." She accused petulantly.

ID: 79716
LD: 7
No Materials

Edited March 17, 2017 by Piera

[Lee 0]

Lee withdrew his hand as Piera would speak of the seven days and seven nights to which she brought up the fact that they were not the most patient of individuals. "Hey, I can totally be patient if the situation calls for it. Also, hitting something makes things a little bit more lively, all things considered." He would look back to the rock and draw his hand back and was about strike again when she would speak about him not hitting it hard enough. "Oh, I'm sorry little miss sits-a-round-on-her-@ss-and-gets-free-sh*t." He would then strike the rock, this time, with a greater amount of force from the added bit of anger from her comment that, in all honesty, seemed a bit much. A more solid thud would come from the rock as more pebbles and dust would break from the strike.

ID: 79718
BD: 10

Rock: 47-3= 44

[Piera 0]

Piera's eyes widened at her partner's comeback before wincing as one of the pebbles soared from the boulder off of her head. "Ow..." Rubbing the spot where it had bounced off of before retorting with a dark expression, "What the [censored] is that supposed to mean?" Reading a bit too much into his comment than he likely meant.

Before he could even respond, the alchemist continued, "You know I don't just sit around and let stuff fall into my lap! I work or trade for everything I get!" Huffing as she crossed her arms and glanced away she added quietly, "Maybe you should try it sometime." She didn't truly mean her words, she knew he worked hard as well, both on leveling and in his shop. At least before...everything. But anger made one's tongue run away from them sometimes.  Frowning seriously, she already regretted her words.

ID: 79719
LD: 1
No Materials

Edited March 17, 2017 by Piera

[Lee 0]

Lee's fist against the rock seemed to grind a bit into it as he would twist his wrist slowly as she would throw her words at him. He would turn his attention toward the glasses wearing woman with an almost dumbfounded appearance with a burning anger following suit. She would go on about how she did not simply sit around and that he should do more for himself which, if one were there, would tell the instant change in the atmosphere as the dumbfounded appearance would be replaced with angered eyes and a stern stare. "Try it? You think I should try it? Try what Piera? What the hell do you think I'm doing?" He would hold his arms out as if to present the surround area to the girl "Because I thought that I was trying to do something. You wanna stand between me and this fu*king rock?!" He would then let his arm jolt back and slam into the rock, causing it to strike with the same powerful force as it had prior.

ID: 79720
BD: 10

Rock: 44-3= 41

[Piera 0]

The healer bristled at Lee's expression alone but even more at his tone of voice. Her shoulders raised slightly and hands tightened on her crossed arms. Even though he had every right to get mad, she still couldn't help but be defensive. She raised her voice likewise to reply to his challenge, "I could if I wanted to!" Sulking at how childish that sounded and attempted to explain herself. "I'm nearly double your level." Raising her head imperiously as she looked down her nose at her lover, the brunette stated, "I could take you." Though her tone was slightly less serious at that proclamation and the left corner of her mouth twitched upwards. "But you have a boulder to beat up."

Glancing down as another pebble rolled near her feet, Piera knelt down momentarily to scoop it up. "If it makes you feel better, I'll give you some of the mats too."

ID: 79722
LD: 16
+1 Tier 1 Material

Edited March 17, 2017 by Piera

[Lee 0]

The armored man would be taken aback by the statement of her moving herself in the way of his own punching. He would be so taken back as he would let his arm kinda flinch back and he went to hit the boulder but hit the air just before it. It did not even register that he missed the rock as he was aiming to process what it was she said more so. "Level? You're trying to pull a level card on me? You think I give a rats @ss about your level? I do not, I most certainly do not. You think I can't take you? You think I'd give a flying f*ck about your level? You'd go down without much a thought, much less a fight." He wasn't rightly sure where this was coming from or maybe he did and was just using it to fuel the anger of the fight. Was this something they needed to do? Was it something that they should do? That something that was up for debate and it was something they would have to come to terms with.

ID: 79723
BD: 3

Rock: 41-0= 41

[Piera 0]

Piera was full on glaring as Lee raised his voice and went on his rant, arms no longer crossed but clenched fists hung at her sides. "[censored] prove it. Numbers don't lie Lee. It doesn't matter if you [censored] care or not, you'll be the one going down regardless." Right about now she was kind of wishing she had a boulder of her own to pound, just to get rid of all of this indignation and fury coursing through her. She just wanted to show him, to make him see right.

ID: 79724
LD: 0
No Materials Found

Edited March 17, 2017 by Piera