[F10:SP] Weariness <<Feeding the Enemy>> COMPLETE

[Seul 1]

[ID# 70426 |  LD: 20 (16 + 4) | +1 Mat]

Seul decided to take a seat on the river bank to try and recover some of his lost health and energy. He had not fought that hard in a long time and without his holy blessing equipped he was able to remember what it was like to not have instant healing in a fight. He sighed, sifting through the sand with his fingers and letting his thoughts take hold. Was that what all the other players felt like when they fought? The fear of death had been present the whole time but growing accustomed to a set way of doing things was becoming just as deadly it seemed. He needed to remain focused in everything that he did otherwise one slip up could be his last. Maybe that was why the familiars never seemed to be in his favor. He needed a way of awakening the power that lies dormant inside one

Edited November 8, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Honestly what was he doing wrong though? Other people had zero problems when it came to taming familiars with buffs. Most of the frontliners seemed to sport one that helped them in battle, so why was his luck so low when it came to getting one? Maybe they were just incredibly rare and not everyone was allowed to get one. Though he hoped that really wasn't the case. The random nature of the game world drove him crazy at times. Only the extremely lucky prospered in such a place while everyone else scrapped to get by day by day. Being on the higher end of the level spectrum was good at least. Lower level players could see his equipment and know not to mess with him and that earned him at least a little value when it came time to party up. He was still far from being the strongest though.

[Seul 1]

People like Calrex and Takao were in a league of their own and nearly twice his level. They had unique skills and demonics at their disposal, but was that the only source of their power? He would have to ask one day. Seul wanted nothing more than to be like them as prominent players in Aincrad. Someone who people knew was reliable and able to get things done when needed. One day... One day he would be able to stand with them as  a proud fighter. But until then he would need to take his time and do things right. Get better equipment, increase his level, and complete more quests.

"I'll definitely do it. I will." He said before laying back to look up at the darkness. Anything worth having didn't come easy in this world. That was what set apart the strong from the weak. The strong had the determination to keep going when things got tough.

[Seul 1]

That was enough resting though. He had to continue onward and look for a monster that would make a suitable familiar. The last one being a bust was a somewhat of a disappointment, but he was going to press on in hopes of a second chance. If he failed again he would just have to bring along someone with a higher luck rate than his own.

Seul walked alongside the river, careful not to actually fall in again after the traumatic events that unfolded earlier. He wondered what Legna thought during his last moments of life. Did he use his dying breath to curse the fool of a player that led him to his grave in the first place? He hoped not, but it wasn't like there would ever be a way of knowing. The small dragon was gone now and once something died in this world, it was lost to the ether seemingly for good.

[Seul 1]

Seul continued on his walk along the river, mulling over the death of his dear companion and pet dragon. Now that he thought about it, he never really was one to get attached to animals back when he was in the real world. To him owning a pet was more of a hassle than it was worth. Feeding them, grooming, being tied down because they’d be helpless otherwise… It wasn’t what he wanted to do.

But here, Legna was more than just a pet. He was the only one that was there to keep him company from the moment the dragon was tamed. It wasn’t a secret that Seul wasn’t very popular among the other players. Part of that though was from his own doing. He never stopped to connect with anyone anymore. Everything was about getting stronger and survival, so friendship just wasn’t part of that equation as he saw it.

[Seul 1]

Still, it was a lonely existence without allies to have by your side. In this world where anything was possible, the best adventures were those experienced with others. Things would be meaningless if there was never anyone around who could understand the things you have been through. After this quest he would go and try to make a few connections.

…

Glancing around the area proved to be somewhat pointless since the darkness that covered the tenth floor reach this place as well. It was at times like this when he wished that he had the night vision mod on his search skill. Maybe one day in the future he would be able to acquire it, but for now it wasn’t one of his top priorities. Building up his current skills before moving on to buying anymore seemed like the smartest path since he only had his weapon skill grandmastered.

[Seul 1]

In truth he wasn’t even certain what to make of his build anymore either. He had switched from being a tank in order to pursue a more damage oriented build, but was lacking in both departments as a result. A few of his skills also had nothing to do with combat at all and were only there to make things easier for him in the long run. He wanted to be at least a little independent and not have to turn to others for everything. Whether it be dungeon hunting or combat, he wanted to be able to do it first and foremost. Not only would it make him more valuable as a player, but it would allow him to go where he pleased and do what he wanted without the permission of other people who possessed similar skills. That was the ideal goal he was striving for. Now he just needed more skill points to get the skills to a useful level.   

[Seul 1]

A short distance away he could see something moving from the corner of his vision. Another monster perhaps? Instinctively he drew his blade and turned to face toward the movement, only to be met with a ghastly sight. A ghost-like creature that was wrapped from head to toe in bandages. It seemed like something straight out of a horror movie, but it wasn’t like Seul faced off against more frightening things in the past. Oddly enough though it didn’t attack right off the bat. It watched the player’s movements, waiting to see what the Lodestar would do.

Seul was not exactly in any mood to fight anything else. After going through two battles previously in a such a small span of time, he simply wanted to tame something and get the hell off of the tenth floor as soon as humanly possible. “I guess this one might be able to do…” He mumbled while lowering his sword.

[Seul 1]

Seul approached slowly, not wanting to startle the monster and subsequently cause it to run away. He placed the sword back in its scabbard and instead went into his inventory to look for some spare food he could offer to the monster in trade for its allegiance to him as a familiar. The ghost did not move but also did not show any signs of wanting to attack him either. Was it preparing a trap of some sort that he was just blindly walking into? Even if it was he was not worried. He already proved he was capable of killing them, but what actually made him nervous was the idea of another potential familiar getting away or rejecting him.

His attention briefly shifted down toward his pocket where the lucky coin resided and as a good measure he clutched it tightly in on hand while extending the other with a piece of bread in it. “Please accept this offering and join me as my familiar.”

Edited November 20, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

ID: 71069 | LD: 19 (15 + 4) | Familiar Taming... Success! 

The ghost reached out one of its bandaged hands and took the bread, unraveling its face to reveal large rows of teeth where its mouth should have been. It ate the bread in a single bite before wrapping itself back up and in the next moment it placed its hands on Seul’s shoulders.

“W-What’s going on?” Had he failed again. For some reason he seemed to be in a state of paralysis. Things were not looking good, but before his eyes, the ghost started to disintegrate into a black haze. The smoke poured into his body through mouth, ears, and nose and when the last of it finished entering he couldn’t help but feel like he was going to die.

Through choked gasps he clutched at his chest, but then was surrounded by a dull light. Was he… Possessed? The taming worked and the ghost was providing him with some sort of protection by possessing him it seemed.

Edited November 20, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

The light faded and Seul was left standing there; partially confused but mostly overjoyed that the taming went over smoothly. He rushed to open his menu to see if any buffs were provided and a smile grew across his face as he did. There were indeed buffs. He was already starting to like this thing more than Legna in that regard. Now he just needed to give it a name. He thought for a while but nothing really fitting came to mind when he did. Then it hit him. Providence. It seemed appropriate given it was a protector type. Providence would keep him from suffering harm in battle so he was determined to never lose it like he had his dragon.

With this stroke of good luck the trip wasn’t an entire waste. Although he lost his friend to the river’s waters, he made a new companion… One that was difficult to see. “Providence, can you come out?”

Edited November 20, 2016 by Seul

[Seul 1]

Calling the ghost’s name seemed to be pointless at first. There was no sign of Providence anywhere, but after a second attempt at summoning the monster it rose from his back as black smoke before taking shape into its bandaged up form. It was only protruding from the torso up, with its legs still buried somewhere inside his body. It would take some getting used to, if he was putting it mildly.

“I just wanted to thank you for actually deciding to join me. You see, I just lost my other familiar in an accident a little while ago. But hey, with you here I definitely don’t think I’ll be feeling lonely.” He said with smile. It was difficult to tell what emotion Providence was expressing though considering it didn't have a face to emote with. That led him to wonder if providence even had emotions to begin with. He was sure it felt something, but maybe it wasn’t as cut and dry as being happy and sad like humans tended to be.

[Seul 1]

Seul gazed toward his incorporeal companion waiting for some sort of response, but Providence simply tilted its head toward his words. “I’m sure the sentiment got across to you.” He said with a shrug before starting to walk further down the river bank. “While we’re out here we might as well go try to find a treasure chest. I heard they’re supposed to be kind of a rare commodity here in Aincrad, but I have the picking skill so if we do find one maybe we’ll get lucky.” He was on a roll after all. Keeping the streak going sounded like a good idea to him given how much success he already had. Even if there wasn’t a chest anywhere nearby though, he would benefit from the experience of going to look for one so it was really a win-win situation. “I’ve never seen a treasure chest before though so I wonder what it’ll be like if we do see one.”

[Seul 1]

Although Providence was not much of a talker, now that he thought about it Legna was not either. Most times the dragon stayed quiet or only spoke in a few syllables just to get a point across. Seul was going to miss the little guy, he honestly was, but he was under the belief that it was best if he moved on and looked toward the future with his new familiar at his side. Or rather, on his back. At some point along the way the ghost had faded back into his body, but even if he couldn’t see the monster he could still feel its presence. It was weird being possessed. His body was being shared with another entity, but he was still aware and in control of all his actions. Still, if the game was capable of harming their bodies in the real world, then he figured it was more than capable of doing something like this to the players.   

[Seul 1]

A small yawn escaped his mouth as he continued walking. Now that he thought about it, he was feeling pretty tired after everything that happened. He could probably curl up and take a nap right there if if he was not set on locating some treasure. The possibility of goodies outweighed the desire for rest, but pushing himself like this was not something that he wanted to turn into a regular habit. Knowing when to take a break was the mark of a good warrior as well and overworking himself was a good way of guaranteeing he see an early grave.

Ghosts probably didn’t have a need for sleep seeing as how they were already dead, but Seul wasn’t actually sure. Maybe Providence did rest from time to time to keep its spiritual energy in tact. Or something. It sounded good in his head, but he was probably just overthinking things again.

[Seul 1]

“Now if I was a treasure chest… Where would be…?” He asked while bringing his hand up to hold his chin in thought. Treasure hunting seemed like a tough business to get into. The conditions for a chest to exist had to be just right and a lot of it depended on being in the right place at the right time. If he brought someone along a with more training in the search skill it would most likely be easier, but he was determined to do it on his own so that he didn’t need to split the profit. The reasoning might have been a little selfish. But a lot of the higher level players got to where they were for selfish reasons. Besides it was his experience he was spending on picking, why would he need to feel bad about using it for his own personal gain? He just wouldn’t.

[Seul 1]

That’s right! He could do whatever he wanted with his skills. If he wanted to find treasure for only himself, then so be it. It was not like anyone else had to know about it anyway.

…

He had been aimlessly walking for what felt like hours. Where exactly was it that he wanted to go? This being the first time he tried finding chest, he was not even sure where to begin. Should he check the sand by the river or one of the nearby holes in the wall? What if he found one? What if he didn’t? He was lost beyond words. But then something struck him: He would just try to think of how any game in the past would have handled the placement of treasure chests. In older games the treasure would either be in a place one normally would not enter or in an inconvenient place that was off the usual path.

[Seul 1]

He looked around for anything that could match that description and saw a wall of rocks that lead to a high cliff. Perhaps a treasure chest would reside in a spot like that. He walked over to the wall, but noticed that it was a lot taller up close than it looked to be from where he was standing before. Did he really want to go through with this? Of course he did! There was the potential for treasure at stake! The only way to get ahead here was to take a few risks every now and then. With that in mind he began to feel the wall for loose stones before starting his ascent. He wasn’t afraid of heights or anything of the sort, but that didn’t mean he wanted to jump off anytime soon. He would simply just keep his attention toward the top of the structure rather than focus on the grim fate that awaited if he fell.

[Seul 1]

“Stay determined… There will be a chest at the top, don’t think about falling. Think about the sweet, sweet treasure just a little further ahead.” Talking was the only thing keeping him calm. The ground felt so far away now, but since he was already halfway there, it was not like there would be any point in giving up now. He wanted to become strong in this world. If he could tame monsters, he was more than capable of climbing a little rock.

“I’m going to see this game through to the end. Nothing is gonna beat me. Not a monster… And not gravity!” Wishful thinking, but the possibility of both happening was actually high. Whether it was in a fight or just scaling a  rock wall, everything had the potential to do him harm. But making it this far must have meant something regarding his fortitude in this situation. Many other players still haven’t stepped foot outside the Starting City and here he was on a creepy, underworld-themed floor looking for loot.

[Seul 1]

Eventually he reached the top and when he did he flopped over onto his back, gazing up at the ceiling and wondering if he just wasted his time with this little side mission. He was still tired and growing more so by the minute, but he needed to be sure there was not anything worth taking around here.

Once he caught his breath he looked around, only to be met with more darkness. It did not strike him as much of a surprise, but he knew better than to leave just yet. Looks were usually deceiving and knowing this world, if he wanted something he would need to do a little more extra digging to find it. So he began to walk, being careful not to trip and fall over the edge. Perhaps he would see something, but most likely he wouldn’t. An uneasy feeling filled the pit of his stomach though. He wanted to find a chest with something valuable in it. He had heard that sometimes unique equipment resided in them. Though he wasn’t counting on it, maybe his luck would be able to prove him wrong.

Edited November 20, 2016 by Seul