[F1-PP] A New Start <<Earning a Living>> (Asteria)

[Ratatosk 0]

It had been a while since Ratatosk did the Earning a Living quest, the last time he did it was with Nikodemus, and that proved helpful since the potion he got from him saved his life. "Guess I'm going to do it again, not that I really need a profession anyways... Just maybe I could help some newbies or something. I don't know, I feel like I haven't been in touch with people lately." Every single day he spent here sparked up a new idea in his mind, a new theory as to what this world really was. "The NerveGear is the reason we are in this game, so if you can cut off the nerves, or use an electromagnetic pulse to disable the NerveGear, then maybe... Or what if the battery died? I didn't see any [censored] solar panels on that [censored]."

[Aster 0]

Aster filled her lungs with a deep breath of air. The small girl stared at the message sitting in her inbox menu for a few seconds before closing the interface and shaking her head slightly. She still felt like she had just barely figured out the controls of this cursed game. In an attempt to psyche herself up for the social encounter she was soon to have, Aster felt a bit of pride for her courage in messaging another human being in this place.

A couple of days ago she finally admitted to herself that she couldn't do a profession quest alone and decided to put out a request for assistance on a town messaging board. It didn't take long for someone to send her a message, and she agreed to meet this person named "Ratatosk" to start the quest.

Aster stopped at the proper NPC to accept the quest and headed for the East gate at the edge of the city where they agreed to meet.

[Ratatosk 0]

"Huh? Is that Asteria?" Ratatosk looked over, and saw a girl with orange hair and glasses. "Yup, that's her, hey Asteriiaa!" He shouted to her and had his hand raised up high, waving at her. "Ready for that quest?" The blonde slightly blushed, that was one of the many symptoms of the disease called, "Girlphobia" something that haunted the boy when he was a kid. "Oh, and while we're out hunting for some materials, be careful of some uhh... Yeah, monsters. Of course, I'll take those out so you don't need to worry. C'mon, let's gooo!" His impatient and impulsive nature would make almost anyone want to slap him, good thing there's a person here to do just that.

[Aster 0]

((OOC: I wasn't able to choose the name for my account, but if you wouldn't mind, please refer to my character in game as Aster.))

Her body tensed as a voice cut through the thinning crowds nearby. Aster heard someone shouting for her, causing her to turn in surprise to find the source of the voice. She quickly calmed down, reminding herself this must be the person she was meeting. She put on a small, polite smiled before speaking "Oh, hello! Yes, I already accepted the quest I need." The boy mentioned monsters and the thought had her nerves crawling back. "R-right. Thank you for your help!" By the way the boy was acting, she thought she may be coming off too formally. In the middle of her thanks, she saw him practically leaving the city already and hurried to follow after him.

[Ratatosk 0]

It would appear that Aster literally read his mind, he actually thought she was being way too formal when she talked to him. Midway while running, he gave another shout, "You don't need to be so polite! You can talk any way you'd like with me! Just don't do it to the higher ups, some of them are jerks and won't tolerate it..." His legs came to a stop as he slouched and stared at the dirt with a disappointed look on his face. "Yeah, anyways, let's get back to hunting some monsters! Oh look, I can already see some, catch up with ya' in a bit"! Ratatosk unsheathed the Anneal Blade and sliced forward at the boars, but before that he used the extra skill he got, <<Disguise>>. Killing monsters was easy, at least it was for him. "Sweet loot!"

ID# 56453

Battle 6 (3+2 (Acc) + 1 (Disguse)

Mob 5 (8-2 (Eva) - 1 (Disguise)

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 4/18 Energy, 18 Mit, 2 Acc, 2 Eva

DMG: 1 (Base) + 4 (Skill) + 3 (Weapon) x 7 (Sword Art) = 56

Boar: -11/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

Boar: -11/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

Boar: -11/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG, Dead

Boar: -11/36 HP, 9 Mit, Dead

ALL REWARDS HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED OVER TO ASTER:

+4 Mats to Aster

 

 

Edited April 17, 2016 by Ratatosk

[Aster 0]

Aster fidgeted with her hands, increasing her pace to keep up with Ratatosk. She felt a bit embarrassed as his words echoed her thoughts, but she kept quiet for a bit while he stopped and came across a tight pack of boars. She hadn't seen the creatures up close before, and she wasn't eager to. She kept a fair distance as the boy drew a sword and approached the monsters with no hesitation. She watched the fight intently, and her eyes widened a bit in surprise as it turned out to be more like a slaughter. With a swift movement he cut through four creatures at once, draining their green health bars in an instant.

As the boars shattered into pixels, Aster remained in a stunned silence. She frowned only slightly, picturing herself trying to attack something like that. She took a few steps forward before spotting something out of place near her feet. Curiously inspecting a large flower, a dialogue box suddenly appeared above the plant, catching her off-guard. 'Dahlia - Crafting Material' it read, and she cocked her head in curiosity. Reaching out towards the flower, it disappeared when she touched it, another dialogue box appearing that claimed she received the item. Aster smiled, a small sense of pride filling her.

Gathering Attempt

 

• ID#: 56454
• LD: 18 (Success) +1 crafting material
• Total rewards: 5 crafting materials

 

Edited April 14, 2016 by Asteria

[Ratatosk 0]

Ratatosk huffed, and puffed, and blew down a little piggie's home sheathed his sword. "Well, that was a good fight. Time to wait again I guess, at least now it won't be so boring, I have somebody to talk to now." He walked over to Aster and stared at her hair, but mostly the glasses. "Vision impaired? I used to be like that too...Until someone hit my head really hard, and then I started seeing stars." Of course, he just had to bring up that subject. It made him seem dumber than he actually was. "Anyways, there's something that I wanted to ask you..."

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 5/18 Energy

Edited April 14, 2016 by Ratatosk

[Aster 0]

Aster looked up as the blonde boy walked over towards her, and she straightened back up. He asked about her glasses, and the girl grew a bit flustered, not expecting the question. He continued on with casual conversation and she offered a light smile. "Ah, yes. I had to get them when I was little, but I've always liked them." Ratatosk mentioned he wanted to ask something, and she immediately grew curious. From their interactions so far, she expected him to speak his mind at any time. "Hm?" She inquired simply, waiting for him to speak again.

Edited April 14, 2016 by Asteria

[Ratatosk 0]

"Well, I was wondering if you saw a samurai guild around here, some of them wear metal armor, but they all wield katanas and carry with them a banner of the rising sun." Ratatosk looked very serious and a bit grief stricken when he asked that question, it gave Aster a hit that someone might have died. "So uh... Have you?" His arms shook nervously, awaiting the response. It has to be no, it has to be! Those samurai told him that they finally reached level twenty five and they farmed at Taft, so if they were back down on the first floor, it meant something was seriously wrong.

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 6/18 Energy

Edited April 14, 2016 by Ratatosk

[Aster 0]

Aster's eyes narrowed slightly in both concern and confusion. "Samurai guild...?" The sight of something like that marching through town would have surely caught her attention. She slowly shook her head, "No, sorry." She couldn't help herself from prying, curious as to what could have prompted such a specific question. "Are you looking for those people?" Since she had hardly ventured outside of the Starting City she was rather naive about not only general game knowledge, but current events or goings-on outside of the city walls.

[Ratatosk 0]

"Phewww!" The blonde exhaled in relief when he heard that, "They were a guild called The Rising Sun, most of them are Japanese, but a few aren't. Helped me with a few quests a while back, I just wanted to know if they're okay. Those guys relocated a little while ago, you can see their dojo in Taft if you look hard enough." Ratatosk was thankful of the news, it meant they were safe and sound. "Anyways, let's get back to material gathering." He unsheathed his sword and placed it on his back. "Not long till we get you tons of materials."

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 18/18 Energy

Edited April 14, 2016 by Ratatosk

[Aster 0]

Aster cocked her head once again, intrigued by the new information and making a note to remember the name. She wondered what she should do if she ever happened to see those people around town. Ratatosk took out his sword once again and prepared for another combat. Aster simply nodded, admittedly a bit eager to finish her quest and explore the secrets of alchemy. 'I still wish this game had magic...' She thought sourly, recalling how upset she'd been when she found out she couldn't become the most powerful wizard. Shrugging off the thought, she took another look at the grassy field around her, failing to spot anything else of interest.

Gathering Attempt

 

• ID#: 56463
• LD: 6 (Fail)
• Total rewards: 5 Crafting Materials

Edited April 14, 2016 by Asteria

[Ratatosk 0]

Ratatosk nodded at her and thought about the magic thing, "Well, that's why we have sword arts. If there was magic in here though, I'd be spewing fire out of my ears, nose, and mouth." At first, he thought SAO would be exactly like that, but Kayaba proved him wrong. "Alright, back to hunting for some materials, I'll be back in a bit." The blonde picked up his blade and sliced forward at another group of boars, they died instantly since he used his strongest AoE sword art. "Whoo, that was easy."

ID#56467

Battle 10

Ratatosk: 68/72 HP, 4/18 Energy, 18 Mit, 2 Acc, 2 Eva

Mob 6

DMG: 1 (Base) + 4 (Skill) + 3 (Weapon) + 2 (Critical Hit) x 7 (Sword Art) = 70

Boar: -25/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

Boar: -25/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

Boar: -25/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

Boar: -25/36 HP, 9 Mit, 3 DMG Dead

LD: 17

ALL REWARDS HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED OVER TO ASTER:

+4 Mats to Aster

+720 Col to Aster

 

Edited April 17, 2016 by Ratatosk

[Aster 0]

Aster's lips curved into an amused smile. When Ratatosk quickly went back to cutting his way through more enemies, she assumed her role as a gatherer, looking a bit farther out for similar flowers or lootable foliage. She couldn't help watching his swift combat as he ran four more boars through. It was both scary and amazing.

When he passed the materials on to her, she looked inquisitively at the trade box. "Col? Oh, is that the currency?" She vaguely recalled encountering the term before. "You don't need to give me that as well." She said with a bit of a pout.

Gathering Attempt

Spoiler

• ID#: 56571
• LD: 5 (Fail)
• Total rewards: 720 col, 9 Crafting Materials

 

Edited April 15, 2016 by Asteria

[Ratatosk 0]

"It's just that I umm..." He blushed when she told him not to give her everything, "It's just that I wanted to help people... Back when I was around level one, someone helped me, and I want to do the same!" The words he just spouted out would make him seem to be selfless, but Ratatosk was the exact opposite of that. Everything he did was for his own sake, and maybe a little bit for other people. It was only until now that he felt something from helping others, but he also questioned his own motives. In exchange for helping people, he receives emotions.

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 5/18 Energy

 

[Aster 0]

Through her pouting face, Aster couldn't help but take a half-glance at the very obvious beginner clothing she was wearing. Her protests turning to slight embarrassment, she accepted the col. 'I guess I can understand.' She thought, recalling her initial ability choice. She picked First Aid because she wanted to be able to heal first and foremost, but doing so early on put her in a massive disadvantage for combat. "What kind of lane First Aid can't even be used on yourself?" She muttered.

[Ratatosk 0]

"I wouldn't exactly call First Aid lame... But uh, since you can't use it on yourself I guess it is." He took in a deep breath, who knew sprinting in SAO actually made you tired. "But it's the reason that some players are still alive in SAO today. I've noticed a new trend lately, and I'm not liking it." Ratatosk saw it before in anime, the healers would always be girls while the tanks were guys, not only that, but guys were also the main dealers while the girls would stay back and heal. That annoyed him the most, why couldn't there be a female tank, or a male healer?

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 6/18 Energy

[Aster 0]

Aster frowned at his statement. What was wrong with being a female healer? Now that she took a moment to think about it, male nurses were few and far between. Perhaps the same stereotype existed in video games. Regardless, she wasn't going to be dissuaded. Her expression changed with a small smile and she couldn't help poking some fun at him. "Well, why don't you learn some healing skills?" She joked.

Getting curious, she awkwardly waved her hand in front of her a couple of times before her menu opened up. She navigated to the quest pane and checked the requirement of her task. "Oh, I think I have enough now actually. Do you want to head back to town soon?" Admittedly, she'd gotten accustomed to spending her days in the safety of the Starting City.

[Ratatosk 0]

Right when Aster joked about him learning a healing skill, his behavior, eye color, and voice suddenly changed. "You know what, I think I should do that." He sounded a lot softer, and less energetic than before, something was off. "Oh, and sure! We should get back to town soon cause it's going to be dark. If you want though, I can gather one last batch of materials." Ventus's (Ratatosk's) energy was back up, he could kill one last horde of boars if he wanted to, all that needed to happen was for Aster to give him the command.

Ratatosk: 72/72 HP, 18/18 Energy

[Aster 0]

Ratatosk's sudden change in tone caused her to mentally shrink. Assuming she'd said something inappropriate or offensive, the girl immediately followed suit. "Oh, uh," Her words were less sure as his energetic nature seemed to wither. "Go ahead, if you'd like to. You've helped me plenty already." She wasn't sure if she was being too polite or stiff, but she definitely didn't want to feel greedy. Past the awkward encounter, she had a feeling of eagerness inside of her, being so close to finishing the quest and trying her hand at whatever alchemical experiments the game would allow. With all of her thoughts squirming around inside of her, Aster's fingers fidgeted slightly as she kept her hands busy fiddling with the hem of her shirt.