[PP-F1] A Moment of Silence

[Aster 0]

Aster found herself in an unfamiliar part of town, coming as a surprise with how many times she'd circled the massive city since she'd been trapped here. Many of the times she'd see players crying as they entered or exited the large stone building. The place had a very somber atmosphere, even from the outside, and anyone around it had serious expressions. Her curiosity finally compelled her, and the orange-haired girl took a small breath before approaching the entrance. As she passed through a large archway, she squinted to adjust to the change in lighting. Rays of sunshine spilled in through high windows, and she could see a large circular window letting in more light in the middle of the high curved ceiling. The small building reminded her slightly of a church, and she looked around quietly at the stone pillars and detailing on the walls.

Aster's attention was finally drawn to the center of the room. A large stone tablet was the only thing on display here, causing the girl to tilt her head in curiosity. She approached slowly, surveying what looked like a few grief-stricken adventurers nearby. As she got closer to the dark stone to examine it she could finally make out words engraved into the surface. 'Are these names...?' She wondered, unable to recognize anything that was written.

[Takao 0]

The first floor was a location that he seldom visited without reason. His desire to explore the gargantuan settlement had long since waned, and only a few venues remained as points of interest. The Black Iron Palace was, perhaps, the most notable; although it would've been more accurate to say that the Monument of Life residing within the Palace was where his interest laid. The soles of his leather boots echoed quiet, hollow thuds with each step taken across the polished stone floor. Jade eyes set about examining the dour scene, briefly glancing over the few scattered players who lingered in the room. Even though the recent atrocities on the front lines were what brought Takao to the Monument of Life, he didn't seek out either of the freshly slain players' names. 

Instead, he approached the portion of the monument where the listed names all began with "T". A fleeting glance over his own name lead to a lingering gaze at another name, Tatsuya. It was crossed out, and a short note citing the details of the player's death accompanied the name. His own was within eye-shot of Tatsuya's, near enough to each other that he mused it'd been what felt like years since they'd been so close. The thought brought a brief smile to appear on his face, but it faded just as quickly as it grew. He turned away from the monument and slowly descended the first few steps of the dais, before he ultimately lowered himself to sit on the stairs. He couldn't bring himself to stare at the letters digitally etched into the stone, and he couldn't bring himself to leave. Lingering on the staircase felt like a fair compromise.

[Aster 0]

Aster continued to examine the monument, still unsure of its purpose here. Her eyes narrowed slightly, as if she had expected reading and re-reading unfamiliar names engraved in stone would help her understand. Noticing they seemed to be listed in alphabetical order, she couldn't help moving her attention to the section of 'A' names. Every so often her gaze ran across a name here or there with two lines through it. She was searching now, going down the list of names. Surely enough, she came to a stop at the name 'Aster' etched the same as the thousands of other names around it. The girl practically felt a chill run down her spine, still not fully understanding, but getting the feeling this list was something very important.

Taking a break from her studying, Aster glanced around apprehensively. There were a few other players here or there, but nobody looked to be in the best mood. She started feeling her nerves get the better of her, but her mind wouldn't allow her to leave this place before she found out its purpose. Swallowing what was left of her pride, Aster meekly approached the nearest player, a man clad in green resting on the steps below the massive wall of stone. "Ah, excuse me..." She started, hoping that her newbie appearance might excuse her ignorance. "Can you explain this place to me, please?"

[Takao 0]

Takao drew out a slow breath as he leaned his head into his hand, his eyes unfocused and staring forward. Just a few more minutes longer, he thought. That would be an acceptable amount of time to brood in public; it seemed like as good a way to kill some time as any on his self appointed day off. He had just tensed his legs to stand when a voice cut through the melancholic silence, forcing his attention back into focus. His head pivoted without leaving the support of his hand, and jade eyes settled onto Aster. She inquired about the purpose of the Palace, or perhaps the room they were presently occupying.

"Y'mean the Black Iron Palace?" He asked in response, gaze shifting over his shoulder to settle on the wall behind him. "Or uh... Well, this room 'ere is called the Monument of Life. The names of all the players trapped in the game are written on that wall there. The ones that're crossed out are players that... well..." His voice lost its volume toward the end of the sentence. "They didn't make it."

"Whatever happened to 'em shows up beside their name afterward." Takao finished his explanation and fixated his gaze back onto her. Two thousand names had found a line through them mere months after the death game began, and since then hundreds had followed suit. Some names were detailed with the efforts of their bravery and heroics, the tales of their demise spun with simple words. Died fighting the Hydra, or died fighting Rohk. Others weren't so lucky, and their legacies stained by words like "Killed by a boar".

Edited April 18, 2016 by Takao

[Aster 0]

Aster listened intently at the man's explanation, her eyes trailing up the tall pillars on the other side of the room. His tone began to change, causing her gaze to drift back, and as he finished speaking a hand instinctively raised up to her mouth. "Oh! Oh..." The gravity of the stone tablet--the Monument of Life--and the whole room weighed down on her. "I-I'm sorry." Her words felt unsure as she found herself at a loss. She turned her head back towards the monument and took in the ten thousand names written upon it. How many were crossed out? How many people had already died? How long would they have to live in this prison?

Thoughts were swirling around in her mind, but after a moment she looked back to the man on the steps with a small, sad smile. "Thank you for explaining it to me." She replied simply, along with a small bow of her head. Her curiosity was sated, and despite the unpleasantness surrounding it, she was glad to have learned about this place.

[Takao 0]

A small smile grew on Takao's face as he faced forward once more, eyes setting upon the sparsely populated room. She seemed to have innocence and inexperience, two factors that he found himself sorely and inexplicably missing in himself. Ignorance was bliss after all, and he could use a bit of bliss; perhaps he'd just put too much thought into the saying. "Nah, don't worry about it." He responded, forcing his tone back into the warm, amiable cadence that was much more typical of him.

"You're welcome," Takao said. He leaned forward and rested his arm across his knee, head turning to face her once again. She was providing him with exactly what he needed: a distraction. "So, you just stumbled on this place then?" He asked, eyebrow arching curiously. The Monument of Life was the largest room in the Black Iron Palace, so he could only imagine that it must've been her first time seeing it. Considering the size of the Palace itself, he thought the notion to be an interesting oddity. "Oh, uh. I'm Takao, by the way." He added in, the thought to introduce himself having momentarily slipped his mind.

[Aster 0]

"Oh, Aster." The girl replied with a small curtsey after getting the man's name. She smiled, a bit more genuinely this time, but looked a little sheepish as she answered his question. "Ah, that's right..." She felt like she had been avoiding this place for some reason unbeknownst to her until now. Perhaps the atmosphere itself was enough for her to decide against investigating, although she hadn't the slightest idea what changed her mind today. "If it wasn't obvious, I haven't really left town very often. I guess you could say I'm not very adventurous." The words left her rather slowly, as if she was choosing them carefully, though she still couldn't hide her embarrassment. Surveying Takao, he seemed to be on the opposite spectrum from her. Aster couldn't see his level, but she assumed it was far higher than her own. Past his initial somber tone, he seemed more outgoing as well, although compared to her that wasn't very hard to accomplish. With a light shake of her head, the girl attemped to clear her mind. "Anyway, sorry if I'm interrupting." 

[Takao 0]

"Nice t'meet you." He responded simply, acknowledging her small curtsy with slight nod of his head. Jade eyes wandered over her again and observed her general appearance, which confirmed the notion that she hadn't done much exploration beyond the Town of Beginnings. Having opted to wear his hunting gear, sans his sword, Takao was in stark contrast. "Well... Can't really fault you for that one. Have you gone to the safe zones on the other floors though?" He asked, curious enough about her lack of exploratory inclinations to press his inquiry a bit. An audible breath of amusement left his nostrils and he shook his head. "Interrupting? Nah, I was just broodin', I guess." Takao said, chuckling dryly at the confession. It felt doltish of him to acknowledge it out loud, and he picked up on that fact almost immediately. "I appreciate the interruption, actually. I needed something to take my mind off... y'know. Stuff."

[Aster 0]

Aster stepped down to take a seat on the stone steps as well, folding her arms over her knees as the pair continued to speak. This person was easy to talk to, compared to some of the outspoken, colorful characters she'd encountered in Aincrad so far. Aster shook her head in response to his question. "No, though I probably should. This town has everything necessary to make some sort of a living, I suppose." Her tone held a bit of self-pity. The girl had spotted the Teleport Gate in the city early on, but never took the time to investigate or try using it. It felt like something she was putting off indefinitely. She'd become complacent long ago, holing herself up in her shack of an Alchemist's shop. She liked it that way, or at least she'd convinced herself that she did.

She felt as though she owed Takao an apology, even though they'd just met. It was clear to her that he was an adventurer, one of the players fighting so hard for not only their own freedom, but also the rest of Aincrad's. She branded herself a coward, unwilling to put herself in danger like so many others were. The wall behind her listed ten thousand names, hundreds, if not thousands, of which had already been crossed out.

As her thoughts lingered, Aster stared as the smooth stone floor below them, practically hugging her knees close to her now. She turned her attention back to Takao and offered a half-smile. "What is it like out there?" She asked simply, a spark of curiosity lighting in her eyes as she looked at him.

[Takao 0]

"That's true," He admitted. He slowly leaned back and rested his elbows on the polished marble staircase, jade eyes staring forward. "But, I mean, it's all pretty bland 'innit? Overcrowded, cheap food 'n stuff..." Takao said, catching his tongue as he cast a brief glance in Aster's direction. His intention hadn't been to mock her living conditions, but he hadn't been doing a terribly good job of showing that. Another change of topic was in order!

"Er... Well, anyway, depends on where you go. The second and third floors are nice; I actually live on the third, it has nice fields filled with flowers. A lot of people like the fourth, it's full of snow. There's this really cool spot too in the woods that a lotta' people like. The fifth..." He paused and chuckled dryly, shaking his head. "That's where I got my familiar. It's a desert. I try to avoid it whenever I can. Sixth is a big ol' jungle, seventh is a bunch of really nice mountains, eighth is a giant forest... Ninth is a gigantic volcanic range, tenth is some spooky cave." Takao's rambling about each of the floors did wonders to take his mind off what had brought him to the memorial. Of course, he had just given her the abridged versions. He could speak at length about the floors and spend hours mulling over the goods and bads, but he doubted that her interest in the inquiry would extend to those lengths.

"...Aaand anything past the eleventh floor isn't worth mentioning. They all fit under the description of dreary, depressing, or... blegch." He chuckled lightly and let the slight inward laughter fill the silence that followed. A slow breath flooded his lungs and he exhaled. "But uh... y'know, it isn't like, hard or scary to live on some of the upper floors. Some of them are really nice. Like Delilah, that's the settlement I live in on the third floor. There's this NPC café on the west side where you can watch the sun set over this big ol' field of flowers, it's really nice."

[Aster 0]

Her amber eyes drifted across the polished marble walls as she listened to him speak. She didn't mind his summary of the first floor--put in perspective, he wasn't wrong. Everything had grown more boring over time, but it was just her reluctance that kept her holed up here.

A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as he gave a brief description of the higher levels. It sounded like each one had an exclusive one or two biomes--which sounded a bit cliche--but compared to the eternal spring calmness she'd resided in sounded different and interesting. She frowned in thought as he stopped after the tenth floor, wondering if it was really all that bad. Surely the higher they reach, the more magnificent the areas would be. It wouldn't surprise her in the slightest if there had been a handful of levels designed specifically to scare the wits out of the players. And with the world being so much more real now...

She shook her head lightly to bring herself back to the topic at hand. "Hmm..." She mused quietly, resting her chin on her forearms. Perhaps it was about time for her to push herself out of the comfort zone that she'd grown so accustomed to. "So, that teleport gate..." She began hesitantly, glancing at Takao from the corner of her eye. "Will it only take you to towns? Safe zones on the other floors?"

[Takao 0]

To say that the past few floors were unpleasant would be an understatement. Takao found himself thinking about them often, and wondering if they were a common theme that the vanguard had to look forward to for the remainder of their journey skyward. It wasn't a necessarily scary thought, nor was it worrisome, just something that kept him thinking at times. The game had consumed so much of his life so far, forcing irreversible changes in both himself and so many others that he knew, some he was close with. At the very least, a few pleasant floors that offered a spot of respite and relaxation here and there couldn't be too much to ask for.

His steadfast gaze finally faltered and jade eyes glanced sidelong to Asteria. "Yep," Takao said in response. "All you have to do is say the floor number and the town name, so like... Floor Eleven, Taft. From there, you'll usually be dropped off in the floor's main settlement. Totally safe, no danger unless you go past the guards." He had manually placed a reassuring tone to his voice, one that should've come quite a bit more naturally to him. He mused that perhaps the events of recent had been changing him in ways he hadn't immediately realized.

"There're a lot of neat places you can't get to through the warp platforms too, but they are safe zones. There's one on the second floor called the High Field of Crossing. The fourth floor has one too called the Starglades. That one's hard to find, but it's really nice, 'specially at night. I guess you could probably figure why that is." He commented, gaze shifting forward again.

[Aster 0]

Aster found herself torn. The hook of adventure and exploring the unknown tugged at her, but her reclusive nature forced her still, her rationality deeming the risk too great. Takao's words tugged at her further, and in response she took a slow, deep breath in through her nose. Her gaze had been staring a hole into the smooth concrete floor ahead of them for a while now as the argument continued inside of her. Breaking away from her still position, she felt herself twist and look back at the towering monolith behind them. Her eyes traced over the thousands of names neatly carved into the slab.

Aster's grip around her knees loosened, and her body stood up, carrying her back up the steps in front of the monument. A third voice had whispered to her, overpowering the thoughts of knowledge or safety. 'You have to help.' The faintly glowing letters stared back at her. Biting her lip, she swallowed whatever pride she may have had left, turning and taking a couple of quick steps to return next to the brunette. She sat again, but held herself more openly than before. "If I can ask you for one more thing," She started, an earnest look in her eyes. "Please, tell me what I have to do. I want to make up for the time that I've wasted."

[Takao 0]

"Wasted-... What? Uh..." Takao asked, his eyebrows raising in surprise. The notion that people were wasting their time if they weren't actively hunting and leveling up wasn't something he agreed with, especially considering he had fit that exact description once upon a time. Only after the floors had met double digits did he find himself climbing the power ladder, and it surely wasn't an experience he would want to force upon the unwilling. He watched her thoughtfully for a moment, and considered their similarities. He had been scared into inaction before, and the feeling of knowing that there were those risking their life for him-- whether it was their intention to or simply by proxy of his presence in Aincrad... It had stirred his restlessness and brought him to action. He could tell that Asteria hadn't progressed as a result of laziness. Perhaps she was just being rational and using her common sense; combat in Sword Art Online was an unpleasant undertaking and boasted the ultimate consequence for failure.

His mind drifted as he mulled over her question. The simple answer was... well, it was just that. Simple. He could tell her to get a profession and to supply the vanguard, or he could tell her to start hunting regularly and doing quests whenever she came across them. Either option would suffice in answering the question, but he didn't think they would solve the problem. "Are you afraid?" He asked, only realizing after the words left his mouth that a bit of context would be necessary. "Of fighting, or the monsters 'n stuff. I won't judge you if y'are, 'cause I was. I locked myself up in an Inn for months and months when this whole thing started 'cause I was... scared. It took a while for me to work up the courage to actually leave my room. Er... Sorry. That doesn't really answer your question, I was just curious."

[Aster 0]

Averting her gaze a moment, Aster breathed deeply before speaking, the words leaving her slowly as she thought them over carefully. "At first, everything outside of the city walls was frightening. It's...difficult to convince myself that everything here is just data--that I won't actually feel pain if I get hurt." Her fingers intertwined, thumbs rolling across each other absently. She frowned, looking down at her hands as she continued, "I know my strengths, but here they feel useless. I suppose I'm totally out of my element." She looked back up with a small smile to keep herself from feeling too discouraged. Facts, figures, and other bits of information that she had spent the majority of her life learning and memorizing were thrown out the window in Aincrad. At times Aster had tried applying her knowledge to the world around her, but there was a single glaring consistency that always posed a problem: it was just a game. While the world around them was realistic and seemed to obey most laws of physics and so on, the key word was most. The time she had spent learning everything there was to know about bats would become totally useless if the game's programming decided to make a giant bat that could spit acid.

"But," She added, "If there's one thing I can do, it's learn." The girl spoke confidently again, squeezing her hands slightly. "I decided a long time ago that I wanted to spend my time helping people. If I don't try to do the same in this place, I'd just end up going back home a total failure." She chuckled with a wry smile

[Takao 0]

Takao smiled faintly as he listened and closed his eyes, nodding along. "That whole no pain business was so hard to get over, man. For three... maybe four months, I swear I was feelin' real pain." He commented, allowing his thoughts to wander for only a moment before he refocused. It was a conscious effort for him to pay attention lately. He leaned back against the stairs and idly rapped the marbled surface with the knuckles of his offhand, staying silent while she spoke to give him an opportunity to mull over her words. There was another similarity he found between them, that they had strengths in the real world that fell short in their digital prison. In a way, he imagined it'd be possible find that same similarity with nearly anybody. In his case, the martial skill he boasted in the real world had been more or less useless with the application of sword arts. They took control of his body upon being used and they dealt the most damage, regardless of how silly or nonsensical they were. It was a frustration he had thought he'd long since gotten over, but found it occasionally flaring up when he thought about the matter too much.

"Well," Takao said, rocking his body backward and then forward, landing on his feet. Spinning on his heel, Takao turned back to face Asteria. "You've got two options, really. The easiest and 'prolly the most boring thing to do would be to pick up a profession and to supply the front lines however you could, or..." His arms folded as he spoke, glancing down at her slightly from his standing position at the base of the dais. "Y'can start questin' and huntin', and join up with the clearing parties when you're ready."

[Aster 0]

Aster listened patiently as Takao presented her with a choice. She thought his words over carefully, muttering under her breath before properly responding. "I suppose I could put those potions to good use..." The girl inhaled sharply through her nose, crossing her arms and nodding before speaking up. "I was afraid it would come to that." She said lamely with a bitter smile. She picked up a hand to nudge the corner of her glasses up out of habit, picking herself up as well before tucking her hand back into her other arm.

Aster had reached the conclusion she was trying so hard to avoid, but now that she couldn't deny there was no other option, her thoughts began to groan in frustration. Her fear was subsiding, replaced with both anxiousness and annoyance. She did her best not to convey the feelings to her company, instead settling for a thankful smile. "Well, I can't thank you enough," She said simply with another small curtsy. "Delilah, was it?" She asked, destination in mind as she prepared to gather whatever courage she could.

[Takao 0]

Takao nodded as his hands found their way to his trouser pockets. The choice hadn't been an easy one to present, and he knew that plenty of players had their own agenda. It wasn't uncommon for some to simply occupy their time with hunting and questing without the end goal of finding themselves at the vanguard, which was a rather dangerous way to pass the time. It seemed rather pointless to him as well, although he typically reasoned that it was like having a supply of reserves if the worst should happen to the present clearing parties. His jade eyes drifted toward the entryway to the Monument of Life. In the end, he had spent more time in the presence of the monument itself than he had originally planned. Pleasant company had passed the time and simultaneously done wonders to take his mind off dour subjects. Aster's voice had caught his attention again, bringing his gaze back onto her. "Yeah, Delilah. Third floor." He answered, one eyebrow quirked upwards ever so slightly.

"If you need help or somethin', don't be a stranger. Y'have my username, so you should be able to send me a message anytime." He offered, afraid that his answer to her earlier question might have inspired her to jump in headfirst. Potentially and knowingly sending a player into danger wasn't something he'd prefer to do often, if it could be helped. 

[Aster 0]

The girl gave Takao a genuine smile, catching a hint of what might be nervousness in his expression. "Thank you. Likewise, if you ever have a need for potions." Boasting her only current strength, she at least had confidence that she had a back-up plan in case the whole leveling up thing didn't work out. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to open her shop's doors and tidy the place up from the run-down shack it felt like lately.

Aster cast a glance back to the monument behind her. Luckily, her first memory here wouldn't have to be so gloomy. She only hoped she wouldn't find herself here again too soon, and under different circumstances. As if to reassure herself as well, she turned back and grinned, "I ought to go see that sunset tonight!"

The girl had nodded and started towards the entryway. Before exiting, she turned back a moment, offering Takao a quick wave. It might have taken a while for her to crawl out of her shell, but she hoped with all her heart it would be a decision she would never regret.

((OOC: Aaaand feel free to wrap it up. I can post the summary after yours and we'll be all done, right?))

[Takao 0]

OOC// I'll wrap up the summary at the end of my post here actually, so we're all good.

Takao returned the smile at her boasting and nodded his head. As of late, he'd taken notice that most Alchemists seemed to be closing their doors to the public for some reason or another, so it was a rather nice gesture. His gaze followed her's when it shifted to the Monument, yet his lingered on the stone for a while longer. The names were illegible from the distance he stood at, but he could still pick out the pair he was looking for. They never moved from their spots and he'd stared at them long enough to know right where they sat.

A slow breath left his nostrils and he turned back, waving to Aster as she turned and made way for the exit. "I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Seeya around." He said, his hand dropping back down and finding its way into his pants pocket. Takao turned back to the monument and stared for a bit longer, his eyes fixating on a single crossed out name now. He had intended to leave immediately, although he figured that lingering for a few minutes longer would prevent that terribly awkward situation of walking in the same direction after saying their goodbyes. When an acceptable amount of time had passed, Takao turned and departed from the Monument of Life, having spent well too much time in the presence of the stone for one day.

THREAD COMPLETED

REWARDS
1SP to Aster/Takao
200 Col to Aster/Takao

Edited May 11, 2016 by Takao