[ PP - F05 ] Friend or Foe? <<Feeding the Enemy>>

[Spangie 0]

Spangie looked around Fortaleza warily, she could feel the artificial sun beat down on her face. How can the game creators make it so hot? This is pure torture! She exclaimed in her head, groaning with each step. After a few more minutes of walking lazily, she found a bench that looked part wood and part sandstone. "Oh thank god, I need to sit down," she muttered out loud and sat on the bench, a sigh of relief escaped her lips as she felt the bench support her exhausted body. Why am I even here again? She thought, a frown forming on her lips. Darnit, I forgot again. Stupid heat isn't letting me think straight. She face palmed herself, Stupid, stupid, stupid! She shook her head quickly, looking up. That's when she met the blank eyes of an old lady. "Wah! Who are you?!" she yelled, almost falling off the bench.

The old lady gave her a toothy grin. "Hello there young one!" the old woman said, her gray hairs sticking out from her bun. She's an NPC, Spangie sighed in relief. No one this old would be playing SAO. The old NPC was wearing multiple layers of clothing, all different colors and was as short as can be. Oh come on, you could've at least made her cloths more logical. 

"Ah, hello there! You gave me quite a scare!" She forced a laugh and gave an automatic smile. 

"Yeah, yeah. Now come closer," the NPC said. Spangie reluctantly swerved her head closer to the old gypsy. "Closer!" the woman said, making the blonde bring her face even closer. "Did you know, if you feed monsters, they can possibly be your ally?" the lady whispered, making Spangie's eyes go round.

@Shin

[Shin 0]

It's way too hot... Shin said in a somewhat irritated voice, irritation being one of the few emotions he showed somewhat often besides his normally expression of indifference. If I had known, I wouldn't have come here... He had been told by an acquaintance that there was a place with some good food, one of the few things he actually enjoyed nowadays, but with all this heat, he was beginning to think it was too bothersome to continue searching for it. He'd rather just go back to the first floor which was much cooler and eat something there. 

It was then he noticed something in the corner of his line of sight. It was just an old lady, probably an NPC, talking to a girl who seemed to be a fellow player. Nothing odd there. But he felt something familiar when he looked at the girl. Her face reminded him too much of his past before the accident as he began to recall some of the times a girl around his age kept trying to impress him with paintings. It looks like even here, I'm reminded of that idiotic painter. He said as he walked past them.

Edited February 19, 2018 by Shin

[Spangie 0]

The young woman stood there gaping at the old gypsy. "Wait? What? You can?!" To even basic players, this was no new news. Spangie however was intrigued to her fullest potential. Woah I want one! Imagine having around a creature with me everywhere I go! She could feel herself shaking with excitement. "Really? Wait, ho- I want.. uh.." she found herself at lost for words. The heat was nothing compared the the warm glow that was radiating from her. Maybe I can find something beautiful! Oh, how I would give to draw something right now! She shrieked in her head, even though knowing that it was never going to happen.

The gypsy gave a dull laugh at her reaction and leaned in to whispered once again. "You see, its a quest. It's called 'Feeding the Enemy'. You want it?" she asked in a hush voice.

Spangie nodded her  so fast that she had to stop herself from getting dizzy. "Yes!" she paused, giving an apologetic cough. "I mean. Yes, please," she gave a kindred smile.

"Its yours then," was the last thing the woman said before walking away. Only soon after a small pop up appeared in front of her. 

You Have Accepted The

' Feeding the Enemy ' Quest !

Spangie gave a high pitched 'Yes!' and pumped her fist into the air. She dismissed the notification and looked around. I'll definitely need help for this. She told herself as she looked around her area. Her eyes locking onto a certain male player with black hair who had just passed them earlier. She ran after him, waving her arm yelling. "Hey you there!" she came to a stop next to him and asked. "Hey there, I was just wondering if you..." her voice trailed off as she got a good look at his face. Then she shrieked. "Minato?!"

@Shin

[Shin 0]

"So loud." Shin said before finger flicking the girl in front of him in the forehead out of nowhere. As it was not regarded as an attack nor would it have done her any damage in the first place, the barrier that would have normally come up for an attack didn't appear and let his finger land a direct hit. "So it was you after all." Minato said with an air of indifference. Though it wasn't as though he didn't care. It's just that a reminder of the past all of sudden appearing gave him some mixed feelings which he tried to keep under his normal mask. "It's been 7-8 years I suppose Kanaria. I knew that face looked familiar." He said with a bored expression and his voice equally matched it. "So? Why were you going around trying to talk to strangers in a death game?" He asked with slight concern tinged in his normal monotone. He was already aware that being overly trusting in this situation where they could die was fatal but Kanaria seemed to not know of that. Even though it ended up being him, she did try to ask him before she realized who he was.

[Spangie 0]

"He-" she was caught mid sentence when flicked her head. "Ow!" she said rubbing her head out of instinct. Oh right.. I can feel anything. she said to herself, lowering her hand. "What do you mean its me after all? You should've talked to me or something," she said, giving a playful punch on his shoulder. She listened intently to his remarks. Yes, I guess it has been some time since I've last seen him. She told herself bluntly as she locked her gaze into his eyes. His eyes were bored, so was the way he was talking. She had almost missed his question if it weren't for a hint of concern in his voice. "I-I mean, my parents got me this game when I got home so that I could get some inspiration from the maps and s-stuff, and I was getting a quest so I wanted someone to help me..." she trailed off near the end of her sentence, her voice becoming audible.

She shook her head and clapped her hands together, something she would do often. "I mean, how are you? You moved away without a word, some people were worried about you!" She grinned at him, only to receive a bored stare back. He certainly is the same boy who teased my artwork.. 

@Shin

[Shin 0]

"On the chance that you weren't you, it'd be too much of a pain and it'd be a waste of energy to apologize for the mistake." He stated rather bluntly. Kanaria then started explaining her circumstances that lead up to her being stuck here as well. They seemed rather standard. Somebody, her parents, had gotten her the nerve gear and the game and then she got caught up in it. Then she explained how she just wanted somebody to help her. "So you decided to ask somebody you didn't know? You really are the idiotic painter from back then." Again, she didn't know before she got a look at him.

She then asked how he's been. "Could be better." He replied simply. "We're stuck in this death game after all." He said this in his usual monotone voice, intentionally staying away from the cause of him moving away. "How about you?"

[Spangie 0]

"Hey! I mean I'm desperate. But still, hey!" she whined, her face forming into those of a pout. "I might've been idiotic but I still had the skills, right?" she said gleefully, nudging him with her elbow. Her energy was beyond the roof st this point so she started hopping/jumping/bouncing in one spot. I guess I did ask a random person out of the blue.. But they might be nice anyways! She told herself as he replied to her question. He didn't say anything about why he moved, eh. He'll bound to tell me eventually. She shrugged it off and smiled happily.

"I've been super good actually, I made it to this good college and found this game, oh! And I found you too!" she said, counting the fingers and pointing them at Shin. He must be the slightest bit happy he knows in real life, right? "I mean even though it's a death game, you got to admit it's pretty cool. I mean have you seen the sights?" she told him, her blue eyes radiating with amusement. 

 

[Shin 0]

"An idiot is still an idiot." He's said this in the past but rather in a teasing tone like before, he just said this in a blunt tone this time. It seemed that didn't faze her as she was still bouncing around all excitedly. Just watching her was making Shin tired as she began telling him what she was up to. He already had some trouble dealing with her when they were children but now she was even more excitable. This is why he didn't talk with the artsy people so often. They tended to be rather flighty. "Trying to get out doesn't really leave time for sightseeing. Though I will admit they went above and beyond for the scenery. It's almost sickening that it was used for a death game." He said with a frown. "So what's this quest you're probably going to bug me about?" He asked with a sigh, remembering what she originally came up to him for.

[Spangie 0]

"But I'm a smart idiot," she gave an amused smirk. "Like that's totally possible," she chuckled. I feel stupid now, a smart idiot? Idiot! She gave herself a mental face palm. She listened to Minato's statements to the games design. I guess the wanted players to be more.. comfortable? She sighed, feeling even dumber. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean you can enjoy yourself once in a while," she explained, hoping to convince him that this more than just a game, its more like a virtual paradise. "Sickening isn't a word I would use either. Maybe unusual or unique?" It was worth a shot.

She spaced out up until he asked her about her quest. Her eyes went wide. Oh yeah, I've been too busy blabbering and forgot about my quest! "Right!" she clapped her hands together. "I got this quest from an old lady where I can get this pet familiar thingie so can you please please help meee?" she said unusually fast and stretching out the last word.

@Shin

[Shin 0]

Shin could only stare blankly at the girl's words which she clearly did not put much thought into. Yup, still an idiot. He thought to himself with a sigh. Some things just don't change, even after 6-7 years. "I don't really feel like indulging myself too much because of the situation we're in. While our virtual bodies won't wither away, our physical bodies will. There's only so much a hospital can do to keep us alive in the real world." He said in reply, reminding Kanaria of their situation despite how nice and pretty it looked.

She then continued the conversation from earlier and asked him to help her on her quest. Shin couldn't help but give a groan of annoyance. "You seem to still be in your starting equipment and you already want to go on the fields of floor 5?" He couldn't help but sigh at her idiocy. Though he knew he couldn't leave her alone, regardless of how big a pain she was.

[Spangie 0]

Spangles warm glow turned into a sad smile, "Yeah I know but it can't hurt it actually live once in a while,"" she said, slowly. Before long she was radiating with happiness. We'll make it out of here eventually! We just don't know when.. she thought with excitement, though it soon turned depressing. When Minato made a bitter remark on her equipment she smirked. "Don't you go judging my equipment, it's beautiful just the way it is," she said proudly, putting her hands on her hips.

She smiled and put her hand on her lips. "Shhh. You don't want a bunch of player killers hearing that right?" she said seriously before snapping back with her gleeful tone. "But will you help me? Please, please, please, please?" she clapped her hands together and pouted. Pleaseeeee. I really want to do this quuuuestt. She groaned in her head.

@Shin

[Shin 0]

Spangie was being over hyperactive and cheerful about all of this despite their situation. It made Shin want to hit her again. "Pkers wouldn't need me to say that. Most people could tell with a glance." He stated the obvious in his usual tone of indifference though there was some worry. And it just reinforced the idiotic painter image he had of her in his mind.

She then continued to pester him to come along and it was really getting on his nerves. "Too noisy." He said simply before hitting her on the forehead again, this time by knocking on it with his knuckles. "You're as annoying as back then. But I know that you'd go out there on your own even if I didn't come along. It's a pain but it looks like I have to come along." There was no way a level 1 by themselves could take on the fifth floor on their own. If he came along, their chances were better.

[Spangie 0]

"H-hey! What do you mean by that?" she puffed. Her eyes flaring. What a meanie. She pouted. It was until her called her nosy and  hit her on the forehead again she puffed again. "Stoppppp!" she whined, hating to feel defenseless and weak. Her gaze was burning when he called her annoying but she covered it with a forced and irritated smile. But when she heard that he was actually goi g to help her, she gave a genuine smile, reverting back to her old self. "Oh yay!" she said happily, wanting to run around. "Can we leave now? Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh?" she said, seeming to even annoying herself. Am I really this annoying? She thought worriedly. Haha, nah.. Just excited. She said, smiling to herself. 

"What kind of familiar would I even want?" she started casting her thoughts out loud. "Maybe a bird or some kind of cat or dog? Do they ever have those kinds of things here?" she blabbled carelessly. 

@Shin

Edited February 23, 2018 by Spangie

[Shin 0]

"Most anyone can tell what basic equipment looks like and yours looks like it." Shin said simply. He was surprised she didn't get that meaning the first time. Maybe she's actually that oblivious... Shin thought to himself with a sigh. After he said he'd help, she got annoying again. He wondered if she really wasn't doing this on purpose. "I'll change my mind if you get any more annoying. Let's get going." He said as he started walking with her to the gates leading out of the safe zone.

She began to ponder what sort of familiar she'd want. "I feel kinda doubtful they have anything of the normal variety here. It is supposedly a fantasy world." He replied in monotone. "If there is such a thing, it'd probably be fire breathing or diving into shadows. What makes you think you can tame a beast on this floor anyway?" He asked as they were reaching the gate."

@Spangie

[Spangie 0]

"H-Hey!" she pouted angrily and poked him aggressively. "My equipment is not 'basic', it is just very.. unique!" she perked. "Yay! Off we go to find a familiar~!" she said in a sing songy tone, following him out the gates of the city. Almost immediately after they stepped out the gates, she deadpanned.  I forgot how hot it was.. she puffed a devastating sigh and clapped her hands together after Shin remarked. "No! I promise I won't be annoying!" she said pointing up, crossing the other hand's fingers behind her back. No promises. she felt a little guilt but brushed it off.

"Yeah I guess you're right though.." she poked her cheek with her pointer finger. "But they must have something that's kind of like it right?" she tilted her hand and smiled brightly at him. "Yeeah, sure. I'd take almost anything!" she jumped walking a tad bit faster, her expression bubbly. "I mean, I actually don't know." she deadpanned again. "I think it's a good omen to do the quest on the floor it was given to you," she bounced excitedly.

@Shin

Edited February 25, 2018 by Spangie

[Shin 0]

"You crossed your fingers behind your back didn't you?" Shin said, still sounding bored. She had done that a lot during their childhood so he had gotten used to it by now. Also, she seemed the type to use technicalities to make sure she wasn't restricted. "Well, not that I care, just don't be too irritating." He said in a bored tone. He wouldn't actually abandon her and leave her alone but he had to get her to tone it down somehow.

"Let's go find a slime then, they're easy to find. We can go home faster then." Shin said in response to her saying she'd be fine with most anything for a familiar. "It's way too hot here..." He simply didn't like the heat which is why he wanted to finish this quickly. She then said stuff about omens and why it was good to do it on this hot floor. "And what makes you think that?" He asked, partially out of annoyance

[Spangie 0]

"N-no! No I didn't!" she crossed her arms. After a few seconds she sighed. "Am I that easy to read?" she asked in a whining tone. After he had said he didn't care she clapped her hands together. "Yay!" she spun around in circles. "I want something worth while not a blob of slime!" she whined angrily. "I want to go home just as much as you do, but I want to enjoy this," she said, her voice calming down. "It's been a while since I last you, y'know?" she smiled warmly and looked forward. Not until he asked in his annoyed tone did she finally talk back. "I believe magic happens where you first believed in it," she smiled to herself. "I believed I could get a familiar on this floor, so I promise you it will happen on this floor. No fingers crossed," she held up both of her hands with a grin. "Besides, the NPC gave me a bag with some sort of food I need to tame animals so I think we'll be fine," she smirked, holding up the bag she had gotten from the woman earlier. 

As both of them walked on, a small chirp could be heard around them. "What was that?" she whispered cautiously, looking around. In the corner of her eyes she spotted a small bird like figure, it was small and bright colors plastered on its feathers. "Oh my god, oh my god," she squealed quietly. The bird was a good two meters away from them, pecking a small rock. Probably trying to find some food.. Spangie immediately thought. She looked back at Shin and put a finger against her lips, then looked back at the bird. She slowly got low and approached the bird very, very slowly. She opened the bag slowly and sure enough, there was a handful of seeds in it. 

She edged closer to the bird, grabbing a few small seeds. "Come here.. bird.. thing.." she failed to think of a name for it and sighed. This however caught the birds attention, making it raise its head to look at Spangie, specifically what's in her hands. The tiny bird came closer and closer to her soft touch, eventually making its way to pecking cautiously at the seeds in her hands. "That's it.." she smiled calmly. After a few minutes of this happening the bird soon grew comfortable with her and edged closer to her. "Oh my gosh, you are so cute!" she squealed excitedly, petting the birds forehead. It gave a shrill chirp and poked her hand innocently with its beak. Soon after, a small notification appeared in front of her. 

You Have Tamed A

' Baby Phoenix ' !

This made her jaws drop and she looked back at Shin. "I did it.." she whispered. "I did it!"

Spoiler

ID : 97152

Roll : 15 + 3 = 18, Success!

@Shin

 

[Shin 0]

"At the very least, you're easy to read to me." Shin replied simply. "Even though we haven't seen each others for years, you still have the same habits. It makes you easy to deal with." And manipulate. He kept that last thought to himself as that may be taking it a bit far. She seemed really upbeat about all this anyway. As long as it didn't get too annoying, he'd rather not ruin her mood. She'd be more of a pain to deal with if that were to happen. 

They had begun just walking through the desert themed fields. Shin was surprised that they hadn't run into any monsters yet. Well, hostile monsters anyway. This was something he was glad for as they'd probably be wiped out if they did have such an encounter due to level difference. It was common knowledge for this death game to try and stay on floors where you are at least 10 levels higher than the floor number after the first and second floors.

It surprised him even more that they had found a monster that his childhood friend had become enamored with so quickly as well. It appeared to be a little bird of fire. Spangie went and tried to befriend it and it worked. "Congratulations." Shin said monotonously. "That was faster than I expected honestly.

[Spangie 0]

She blew a raspberry at him. "Sure, I'm easy to read," she pouted, her gaze sending dangers at him. What a jerk. She rolled her eyes and looked back at the small chick. "If it's a baby, do you think it would grow up?" she asked him, tilting her head as she scratched the chin of the small creature. The bird gave a shrill chirp and nuzzled closer to her finger. So.. cute! She beamed, grinning playfully at the tiny Phoenix. It's such a cute little bird. 

Her eyes went wide at a sudden thought. I haven't named it yet.. her? Looks like a her, I think it's a her. She furrowed her brows and looked back at Shin. "Hey, help me come up with a name. Make it a cute one too," she smirked as she sat down, her legs crossing. "And I told you it was a good omen, hah!" she chuckled evilly and went back to playing the tiny bird, who simply chirped happily. I'm not going to let him live it down. She grinned at the thought. "Hehe.."

@Shin

[Shin 0]

"I wouldn't know, I haven't met any other monster tamers." Shin said honestly though his voice still showed no emotion regarding this. He indeed had not met any other monster tamers so he wasn't aware of any growth system for tamed monsters other than leveling. "Well, it appears to like you."

"I'm afraid my naming sense is no good, especially with cute names. I would have thought you had a name in mind already so I'll leave that to you." Shin said in response. He heard her laugh evily and had an idea why. She always was trying to show him up in some way. "And I never said it wasn't a good omen. I was making sure your head was still intact. Regardless of omens and the like, the monsters here could easily kill us at our level." For once, there was a faint hint of emotion in his voice. He had a few flashbacks of people who were already killed on floor 1.