[PP:F1] The Hunters of Emerald - Dragon Anthology Part One (Teayre & Calrex)

[Teayre 0]

She’d made her way to a farm, that she had often visited back before she was a player killer. She was scheduled to meet an info broker, it’d been this way for a while. She’d kept up on a variety of news this way and was now waiting for the latest information. Taking several breaths Teayre looked over at the pig pen, where a small hairy pig rolled around in a mud. A light chuckle came from her lips as she smiled gently. Walking over to it, watching it play and frolic, all the while keeping one hand on the hilt of her blade. Just in case. She didn’t want to risk having to fight, what she didn’t want was more players to join in and try and attack her. If they did, Teayre knew she didn’t have much of a choice. Turning around the red head watches the NPCs going about their business, keeping themselves to themselves as she checked the time on her menu.

The girl began to drum her fingers along her arm. “Seriously where is she.” She mutters under her breath when the sound of a pebble being thrown against the tree she was leaning against. “Well now. It’s been a long time since you’ve asked for my help, Teayre.” The voice that carried over towards the red head was filled with loathing. The tone like a whip, leaving a sting on the red head as she moved her back shaking her head for a minute.  Clenching her left hand tightly she turns to see the hooded player. “Seren.” The crimson maiden greets the broker, “So what have you got for me?” The girl didn’t move, her eyes locking with her broker’s. “Come now, you know better than to stall don’t you?” Taking a step forwards Teayre smiles placing a hand on the girl’s shoulder. “Don’t fret, I’m not going to hurt you.” The smile turned to a wicked grin, “If you tell me what I want to know.” Gently the crimson maiden squeezed tighter on Seren’s arm.

Quest Taken:

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

"Alright, well that's another down. Guess I should keep moving.

As he made his way across the fields of the first floor the bluenette gave a small sigh, glancing down at his left gauntlet as frost still slowly continued to wisp off of it. It wasn't long before that had the Ultramarine Knight had tangled with the new quest, Avalanche the Absolute Zero, and slain the gigantic construct another time. He had fought the original form at least three or four times now, but this upgraded version being another tally on that count. Of course, one of those upgrades was a Freeze effect, and while the mechanical properties had been removed, the vanity effects appeared to take time to remove. Taking his other hand he scraped off some more of the frost, part of the gauntlet how reflecting in the light.

"Now why was it I came back to the first floor again? There's no new quests here, and I didn't think about stopping by any of the shops still stationed in the Starting City. Guess I just let my mind wander and my avatar just ended up here."

Stretching his shoulder Calrex looked at the sky, right as he saw his blue peregrine falcon familiar, Roc, move from his usual circling pattern overhead, seeming to dart to the left, "Huh, wonder where he's off to this time. Usually it's in search of prey."

Looking in the direction Roc soared in he noticed that it was towards a small farm, something that he had not seen on the first floor before, "Well...definitely a new sight. Guess I might as well check it out."

Putting his left hand in his jacket pocket the bluenette swung his right arm to the side, triggering his Quick Switch mod. The gauntlets surrounding both arms vanished in a flash of light, being replaced by the Grand Blade II, which appeared in his right hand. Simultaneously the sheath for it appeared on the back of his hip, the bluenette sliding the sword back home within it as he continued towards the farm.

@Teayre

[Teayre 0]

Seren's hair flicked around as the crimson maiden pressed her advance, leering at the infomation broker. A flash of blue came up and Teayre raised her head to avoid it hitting her. "Now. Now. We can't have that can we?" Smirking at the girl a loud cry came from above. Glancing up Teayre saw Roc. "Tch. Of the the god damn times." Looking at Seren her girl shoves her back and releases her. "Tell me and hurry it up." Tears were streaming down the white haired girl's face, as she sobbed out "Dragons... at the far corner of the floor. A bunch of whelplings one much bigger than the rest and bright green... More on other floors.." Gently placing her hand on Seren's head Teayre smiles at the girl. "Now that wasn't so hard was it you pitiful girl. Run along whilst I deal with the interloper."

Without waiting Teayre turned and began to walk out of the farm in the direction that she had seen Roc come in. A familiar bluenette not to far away. Quickly inhaling and then letting out a slow exhale the red haired girl begins to walk forwards to meet her husband, calming her face. "Cal!" She calls out raising a hand. "I've found out about another quest on the first floor, that goes up the floors." She glances back to the farm a flash of green and white could be seen moving about. "Why hasn't she left yet?" Furrowing her brow she ends up turning to face the farm.

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

It wasn't a far walk before Calrex began to make out the features of the farm, seeing that his familiar was now circling overhead. However, before he could approach further his eyes recognized Teayre as she made her way over. Roc had decided to circle back, now following the redhead as she made her way over. In the past he probably would have instinctively used <<Reveal>> in order to confirm if any possible threats were around, but with the changes that had been made some time ago he had lost that skill, "Not so sure it will be of much use to me now, although Takao appears to have been making good use of it."

He gave a calm smile as his wife closed the rest of the distance, raising a hand in response to her wave. With the warmth of the floor the rest of the frost that had remained on his avatar had already misted off, returning his avatar back to its normal appearance. "Another quest huh? Sounds like a good thing to check out."

"Guess even more quests are being discovered as a result of the floors being unlocked. I wonder if these are in some way a kind of mechanic designed to assist people just starting to adventure keep up with the pace. Although I guess the ones without a level cap might be a different story."

As he continued to look forward the bluenette made note of the quick change in expression as Teayre turned her head, eyebrows furrowed as if in frustration. Something was definitely out of place for her, and the fact she had turned back to face the farm only added to the strange behavior. Glancing upwards at Roc the blue peregrine falcon appeared to recognize his partner's unspoken command as he changed direction once again, flying in the direction of the farm. Of course the bird of prey wouldn't be able to directly convey what it had discovered, but with all of the adventures the two had been on there was a form of unspoken communication they had established.

That being said it wasn't like the Ultramarine Knight to do things that would be more secretive. After all, he wasn't a stealth-like character, and wasn't really one to do things underhandedly. Looking over at the redhead while she was still turned he gave a calm breath, beginning to step in front of her towards the farm, "Something about that farm bothering you?"

@Teayre

[Teayre 0]

“Nothing…” Teayre replies to her husband quietly her eyes failing to meet her husbands she stepped forwards gently resting her head against the coolness of the Ultramarine Knight’s armour. “I was just thinking of Meokka…” Her eyes flicked to look at the farm her reveal skill activating, what she saw caused her sentence to end abruptly.  A flicker of white hair can be seen coming towards the duo. Turning Teayre presses the thumb to the hilt of her blade for a moment. Her eyes narrowing, her breathing shallow. “Seren.” She whispered under her breath walking towards the girl, Teayre her blade fully. “I thought I told you to go the other way.”

The hair on the back of Teayre’s neck stood on end, the girl shivered before turning to face her husband. Her eyes, full of fire, met his. “Sorry Cal.” She said whimsically waving her hand at him. “Go on ahead I’ll catch up.” Dismissing him with both her words and actions, Teayre turns to face the white haired girl in front of her. Raising her sword placing it on her chest, the crimson maiden’s eyes narrow as she glares at the girl.

“Go.” She whispered as a single word to the girl before turning on her heel and walking past her husband. Her eyes moving to the side keeping contact with his before she strides past him, head held high. “I am Teayre Muramasa the Crimson Maiden… No matter what he says, I am who I am.”

Her lips quiver slightly, before rolling up into a grin. Flicking her hair over her shoulder as she swipes down in front of her opening the menu, she selects Akuma’s Vein and equips it. The blood red armour encapsulates her giving the image that she moves shrouded in flame and shadow. The girl turns suddenly off the trail, looking at the location that she had acquired earlier from the from the info broker. Sliding her weapon back into the sheathe the girl leans her head back letting the sun bask on her face stretching out her arms and rotating.

@Calrex

[Calrex 0]

It was as if a single breath released from his lips advanced time by double the speed. A single raise of simple concern for his wife appeared to accelerate, especially when a young girl emerged from the farm that Roc had flown towards. From there things got turned to eleven, as Teayre drew her blade and pointed it to drive the player off, "Something's not right about this situation..."

As the redhead moved ahead of him for what Calrex could only count as the "nth" time it happened, he gave a small sigh, looking down at his right hand for a moment as he clenched it into a fist, the same motion he could perform in order to activate <<All Might>> when he was using his Martial Arts weapon skill. Looking forward after his small respite he could see that his partner had gotten a decent distance ahead, muttering under his breath, "Geezes if you were going to lie to my face, do a better damn job about it..."

Normally, if he were the type to be more external with his emotions, the Ultramarine Knight might have done something like drawing his blade and swinging it full force through a tree, or maybe swapping to Martial Arts and cracking a tree's trunk with a powerful and well-placed punch. But after training with Baldur, and learning more about keeping his emotions under control until the proper time to utilize them, the most that occurred with him was a deep calm inhale and exhale, recentering himself before performing a small jog to catch up.

He could see the flames licking off of the Akuma's Vein, but at this point in his "career" as a player, nothing in terms of special effects had as strong an influence on him as in the past. He didn't feel a single tinge of fear, and if he looked back, a lot of the players he had seen who attempted such things were performing something closer to a cry for help than an attempt to show off. "Maybe my sense of reality is starting to gain more precedence over my thoughts than in-game knowledge. Glass armor, flaming equipment, striking from the shadows, flashy maneuvers...they're all really becoming reduced to gimmicks in my mind."

"In any case, you said that this quest line starts in this floor. What is it we're fighting this time? Not a bunch of boars, I hope."

@Teayre