[F01 - PP] Finally, a well deserved breather. (With Zuel)

[Rithe 0]

(Stability: 99%)

On their way there, she turns her head when he asks her his question, answering while continuing to walk. "I after a one of the tutorial quests on the first floor. It was really irritating, so I needed somewhere to focus." Now that they had arrived, and Rithe had taken her seat, she is able to reflect on the fact that she loves everything about this place. All of her senses were enamored with this place. The scene was beautiful to look at, the waterfall was calming to listen to, the wildflowers were wonderful to smell, and the perfect temperature of the water was enormously satisfying. She was almost tempted to go swimming but knew better. The jacket would likely not help with staying afloat. She was humming a strange tune to herself when she hears some leaves rustle behind her. She turns to look. 

Dez wasn't having a great day up to this point, they would certainly be looking for him if he couldn't prove himself. He quickly opened his menu and sent the names of the two players to their representative. So that they'd have proof when their names showed up crossed out on the wall at the Town of Beginnings. He was so excited to finally join their ranks. He had hoped his orange cursor would be enough to guarantee his spot, but was unfortunately disappointed. He crouches low, and makes his way toward his targets ever so slowly. He deduces that the man would likely be the more dangerous one and thus the most logical to take out of the equation first. He stands slowly and prepares a sword art, gray energy swirling softly around his axe. He launches the attack, discovering far too late that the girl had noticed him and not being able to redirect his attack, he follows through. 

 

"Zuel, move!" She says, springing into action. She pushes him out of the way just as a supercharged axe attack sends her to the other side of the lake, landing her in the deepest waters. 

Spoiler

Rithe: 104/240 HP 24/24 EN

(!!! Attacked by another human being with the intent to kill: -45 % Mental Stability !!!)

(Multiple level drop!: Shock Level 26%)

She was suffocating. 

(!!! Drowning: -12% Mental Stability !!!)

The attack had left her stunned and no matter how hard she tried, her arms would not respond to her commands.

(!!! Drowning..: -8% Mental Stability !!!)

Her command to keep her alive, fails over and over again. She sunk deeper into the depths, beginning to breath something other than air for the first time in a very long time. 

(!!! Drowning...: -6% Mental Stability !!!)

Her mind is in shambles as it tries to make sense of what just happened. She feels numbness beginning to take hold. 

(!!! Drowning.......: -3% Mental Stability !!!)

(Stability: 25%)

Spoiler

Rithe: 64/240 HP 0/24 EN

 

Edited October 11, 2018 by Rithe

[Zuel 0]

The sun would be beating down on them as the weather was perfect for a day by the lake. Zuel would watch Rithe as she was enjoying herself by the lake as he would smile trying to relax himself a bit himself closing his eyes. It would all be silent for a second before hearing Rithe scream for Zuel as he would see a random player with a giant axe right over him ready to attack. Before he realized what was happening he was pushed out of the way of an attack as Zuel would witness Rithe being attacked by the player falling into the water as his eyes would widen at the sight. "RITHE!!!" Zuel would be shocked for a second as he began to keep his focus on the player trying to keep calm but Zuel would show rage for the first time as the player would charge at him again. Zuel would draw his blade swinging it as he came in range knocking his axe out of the way as Zuel would grab him by the throat pinning him to a tree his sword at his throat his deep - set piercing eyes staring right at him. The player would begin to freak out. "Wai..wait wait wait. You are ...running out of time if you want to save her. She is drowning, killing me won't give you enough time to save her." Zuel would grit his teeth as he would release his grip on him quickly jumping into the water quickly swimming seeing Rithe in the water almost unconscious. He would swim quickly catching up to her, pulling her up and getting her back to shore. He would lay her on her back and shake her trying to wake her up. "Rithe! RITHE Wake up!" 

Edited October 9, 2018 by Zuel

[Rithe 0]

Dez, wounded, retreats slowly as the man goes to save the younger girl. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea. He could run from them, but if he continued to press the attack, he would certainly die. He grits his teeth, scowling. He coughs, noticing his decreased health bar. If that man could cause that much damage just by choking him, it was time for him to leave. He limps over to his axe, and leaves the forest behind. The problem now is that he won't be able to sleep in the same place twice for the rest of his life. 

The world was losing its color as she fell in her liquid abyss. She could only think of how disappointing she was. And then it dawned on her. 

My parents torture me because I'm a disappointment. Because I'm a mistake. Because I'm... 

For a brief moment, she sympathized with her parents. Seeing herself from their eyes. At some point she fell unconscious. She wasn't sure of what happened next, dimly aware of a temperature change but not much more. 

(Recovering...: Shock Level 17%)

Spoiler

Rithe: 24/240 HP 0/24 EN

From Zuel's perspective, it was hard to tell if she was breathing. And her heart-rate... Well, it certainly wasn't improving her condition. 

[Zuel 0]

Zuel would wait a bit before deciding he needed to do something as Rithe's health bar was depleting quickly. Zuel would pull out a health potion and use it on her watching her health bar slowly recover but wasn't sure how it would react on her. Zuel didn't think it would safe to leave her here while that guy might still be around so he would lift her up and rush her back to the inn. Getting to the room he would lay Rithe on the bed giving her another Health potion as he health would slowly continue to recover but she still wasn't waking up. Maybe it is something else keeping her unconscious. Zuel would pull a chair by the side of the bed as he would sit there waiting for something to happen not sure what else to do as he would wait for some time as it would turn to night time. Zuel would lay his head on the bed next to her falling asleep not being able to stay up any longer from waiting and worrying about her but feeling a bit relieved that her health bar wasn't in the red anymore.

Edited October 9, 2018 by Zuel

[Rithe 0]

Rithe lay motionless on the bed, breathing very faintly. Despite her HP bar being restored, she had still not woken up. Her mind was in the process of restructuring itself, trying to make itself more accommodating for the incoming changes. When conscious thought finally breaches its way back into her head, it is simple and fragmented. Air. Rithe's body twitches slightly on the bed, her fingertips curl gently. Breathe. Another twitch runs through her body, her hands clench slowly into fists. survive. Survive. SURVIVE.

 Rithe's eyes snap open. 

(Recovering...: Shock Level 3%)

She coughs, violently. Trying to expel water that isn't there. For a few seconds she thrashes about as if she were still drowning before calming down and staring at the ceiling. She doesn't seem to recognize Zuel's presence. In fact, her eyes seem to be focused on open space, as if she were sleeping with her eyes still open. Her brain was running through a series of 'boot-up' sequences, analyzing the change of mental environment. 

[Zuel 0]

Zuel would awake suddenly as all he saw was Rithe wildly coughing as he would be a bit relieved that she had woken up but still a bit confused as she didn't seem to notice him there as he leaned in a bit closer to take a look at her. "Rithe?" He would try to put himself in her field of vision to see if she was okay. She looked almost like she was auto pilot not really focusing on anything but where she was staring at. "Rithe are you okay?" Zuel would place his hand on her shoulder to try and snap her out of it. Zuel wasn't really sure what was going on since her HP was full he was sure that she should perfectly fine. Maybe the whole experience scared her a bit. Still getting no response Zuel would shake her a bit more trying once again to snap her out of it not sure what else to do seeing as her character had no abnormal status effects to give him any cause for worry. With little options left Zuel just waited patiently as he watched over Rithe until she recovered a bit more. 

[Rithe 0]

(..Fully Recovered from Shock..)

She doesn't hear anything that her friend says, in fact she doesn't even feel his hand on her shoulder at first. When he shakes her, something clicks in her brain. She snaps, shuddering as if cold before harshly grasping Zuel's hand and removing it from her shoulder. Memories come flooding in. Quiet. She thinks, silencing the memory. She turns to look at her companion, frowning. "Don't touch me." She says sharply. Something was different. Her voice had taken on a different tone, her expression had become more 'displeased', and her eyes... Her eyes were completely foreign. The color had not changed but something about them felt alien, as if she were looking into you rather than at you. She looks at Zuel somewhat coldly, a slight hint a malice to be seen in the way she observes her surroundings. She remembers the player who attacked them, and suddenly she bristles up with aggression, scowling. "That player..." She didn't have to say more than that. Her simple words and her general demeanor gave away what she wanted to do to Dez.

[Zuel 0]

Zuel become a bit relieved for a second as her hand would touch his before throwing it aside. Zuel eyes would widen a bit as she would become a bit hostile toward him for seemingly no reason. Zuel could immediately tell the difference in Rithe's personality as something has definitely changed from the attack. "Rithe I know you are angry but you can't think rashly, we have to think carefully. Even I almost lost my temper back there as well so I know how you feel." Zuel tried to get through to her as she gave him a cold look not recognizing the person that was looking back at him. The day already became night as the moon and the lights from the outside would seem through the window barely illuminating the room. Zuel would sit staring at her for some time before giving her a weak smile. He attempted to pat her head as he always did to try and calm her down, reaching his hand out. "Everything is okay now Rithe."

[Rithe 0]

It's been years since I felt like this. It feels so good to let it out every now and then. I can't keep all my true feelings bottled up all the time. At this point, she had already dismissed Zuel, not noticing his shock at her reaction to him touching her. She doesn't register that he's talking to her until the end of his sentiment. She glares up at him, almost breaking out into laughter. "Zuel." She says, waiting for him to look at her. "Don't kid yourself." She growls aggressively. When did he become this annoying. She notices his hand coming towards her head and she frowns deeply, smacking his hand away before it can get to her. "Didn't you hear me? Don't touch me." She gets up slowly from her menu and opens her menu. "I'm going after him." She takes her handwraps out of her inventory and begins covering her hands with them. She softens up for a split second, and says "Stay here, and you'll be safe." before turning to leave out the door. 

[Zuel 0]

Zuel's eyes would widen again from being surprised at Rithe's sudden change in personality. It is like she had become a completely different person and Zuel wasn't sure how he should handle the situation. Did the experience at the lake traumatize her or did it maybe it brought out something that she was hiding. Regardless of what has happened Zuel couldn't just let her go after such a dangerous player alone when he would probably be with other players like him as well. Zuel would quickly chase after her after collecting his thoughts but she had already had a decent head start on him. Zuel would begin to check around the town to see if anyone had seen her getting the information that she had headed down to the more run down part of the town of beginnings. Zuel would run down a series of allys until reaching a hideout that fit the description that he got from the players in town. It could be dangerous to go in, Even if Rithe is in there, there is a chance we won't make it out alive. Is this girl really worth it? Zuel was conflicted with his new friendship with the young girl as he decided that he needed to follow her.

[Rithe 0]

Zuel could hear a conversation coming from inside the hideout. 

"Following me wasn't a bright idea. Did you fail to see how much HP I peeled off you in a single hit? You're obviously too weak to confront me." Dez's voice sounds nervous despite his words. "What's your name?" She says, the malice almost tangible. "None of your business. Don't move! They're gonna be looking for me! They'll be here soon, and they wanted you dead anyways." Dez lied, trying to buy himself time to look for an escape route. "Who wanted me dead?" She says interrogatively. "That's all they refer to themselves as, they don't have a name!" There's a brief silence. "I'm serious! I don't know the name! Get away from me! Do you want a repeat of last time? 'Cause it doesn't seem like your dad is around to save you!" This appeared to strike a nerve within Rithe. 

(!!! My father is not something to be discussed lightly: -10% Mental Stability !!!)

Warning. Rithe is now volatile.

"What did you say?" Something had changed once again, Rithe's voice went from hateful to murderous in the span of a few seconds. Some panicked scuffling can be heard from inside. "What exactly do you plan on doing anyway?! We're in a safe zone! Get away!" Dez's voice goes higher pitched as something appears to happen. There's a sudden, loud crash, as if something were slammed violently into a wall. There are a series of similar crashes after this. "Time to go for a walk." Rithe would walk out of the hideout pulling Dez by his hair, making a beeline for the forest. She doesn't seem to notice Zuel. 

(This all assumes that Zuel stands outside and listens. If he enters the room, Rithe will still progress through the same dialogue and actions. If Zuel tries to stop her she will instead leave Dez dazed after slamming him into the wall instead of 'taking him for a walk'.)

[Zuel 0]

Zuel considering his options again thinks about Rithe's saftey first and grits his teeth entering the building. Once inside he would watch as Rithe would completely lost control and attempt to interrogate Dez even going as far as threatening him. He would step in her path blocking the door so she couldn't leave. "Rithe look at yourself, what has gotten into you?" Zuel's face would be stern and serious not moving an inch. "If you plan on leaving leave the kid behind." Seeing the frustration in Rithe's eyes she immediately slams Dez into wall as it knocked him out. Zuel would shake his head as he would give her room to get passed him but followed her out. "Rithe can you just wait a second and talk to me. What is going on with you?" Zuel would be tired of being ignored by her as he would reach out grabbing her wrist and forcing her to look at him.  His deep - set piecing eyes looking right into hers as he had a serious tone.

[Rithe 0]

Her mission failed. This man following her was the cause of her lack of success. If she could get rid of him somehow, she could go back and finish that player. She's vaguely aware of some words being spoken but she doesn't process them and keeps walking away. As soon as her wrist is grasped she whips around towards Zuel. In the milliseconds before impact, Zuel would notice her eyes darting all over him scanning him for vulnerabilities. Her fist slams into his face, right at his very deep and piercing eyes. Without hesitation, she follows up her initial attack. Her knee snaps up quickly aimed for his groin, but changes target last second as a feint and executes a Taekwondo side kick to the upper chest, torquing her body to gain the power necessary for the kick. The combination does zero damage considering the safe zone, but would likely at least cause Zuel to stagger a step or two back. She growls low, and settles into an unarmed combat stance, deep red energy burning from her limbs, indicative of the Martial Art skill. 

If looks could kill...

She feels somewhat guilty after this, and relaxes her stance. She turns to leave her friend behind. "Don't get in my way." She says threateningly. She didn't want to kill him, but he wasn't making it easy for her. She was fully aware that Zuel might follow her, and so she taunted him by walking away slowly, as if she wasn't concerned. 

[Zuel 0]

Completely caught off guard by Rithe's sudden attack Zuel would stumble back from her kick feeling the pain but taking no damage from the safe zone as he would hold his side watching as Rithe began to walk away. Zuel would straighten himself out as he would continue to try to snap her out of it. "Listen to me Rithe, I don't know what happened to you but you have to snap out of it." Zuel would block Rithe's path so she couldn't get around him. "Are you honestly planning on fighting me? After all we have been through?" I don't know how to get through to her. "You have become important to me and I don't want to lose you like this." Zuel would take another step closer to her trying to reason with her. Not really knowing what else to do he walks over to her hugging her and embracing himself for any punches and kicks she may try to inflict on him while he holds onto her. 

[Rithe 0]

She knew it, this man just didn't know when to give up. She sighs, frustrated when he stands in front of her. She frowns and stares straight into his torso, refusing to make eye contact. She clenches her fists and shifts her weight in preparation for a brutal kick, but is caught off balance when he hugs her. "Get off me!" She shouts, pushing him away with all her strength. But it wasn't enough. His arms just tightened around her, making resistance pointless. "Get off..." She says weakly, the aggression fading slowly from her voice. My heart. What's happening? Zuel can feel her heartbeat accelerate as he pulls her close. Her breathing gets short and shallow, as she still struggles weakly and vainly. She starts crying, and her legs go weak. She collapses into him, a complete emotional wreck. She finally reciprocates and hugs him closely, bawling her eyes out. "Zuel..." She says faintly, her voice barely a whisper. When her gray eyes finally open, something has changed for the third time. (Despite still being at a lower stability) There was a strange depth to them, as if the very core of her person was visible in her pupils. She looks at Zuel as if he's the only thing in the universe. 

(!!! A well timed hug: +8% Mental Stability !!!)

[Zuel 0]

Zuel would loosen his grip on her as he would catch her and use a little strength to keep her up as he held her. He would give her a light smile as it seemed that she had came to her senses a bit. He would pat her head relieved that she wasn't trying to attack him anymore. "Sorry if that was ...inappropriate, but I wasn't sure what else to do." Zuel would look to her and then to her legs as it didn't seem like she could walk. "Can you walk?" Zuel with little options would pick her as he would begin to carry her back to the inn as they did still have the room. Wanting her to get some rest to calm down he would lay her down on the bed. As he would take his jacket off placing it on the chair turning back to her. "You should try to get some rest and we can talk about it tomorrow alright?" Zuel would hold his side a bit as he could still feel the kick she had given him before. "You really gained the martial arts trait haven't you. You really gave me quite a hit there." Zuel would sit on his bed as he would give her a smile.

[Rithe 0]

She maintained eye contact as best she could throughout the whole ordeal. She just wanted to look at him. And she really wanted him to look at her for some reason. She couldn't quite place why. She listens intently to his comments, glancing away from him for a brief second and mumbling something incoherent. Her heart skips a beat when he picks her up, and then accelerates well beyond healthy levels. She wraps her arms tightly around his neck while he walked, drawing herself into him. They get some funny looks from people passing by as they head back to the inn, but Rithe doesn't seem to notice. When they arrive and she is set upon the bed, she never stops looking at him. Why am I so... She thinks hard trying to find why she can't take her eyes off him. This is like back then... She frowns slightly, but clears the thought quickly. The instant that Zuel mentions his injury, Rithe panics and hastily gets out of bed and removes plain white strips of cloth from her inventory and goes over to him. Her expression is mostly inexplicable, the only thing shining through is an impossible amount of worry. "I'm so sorry..." She says, starting to cry again. She goes to touch his side where she kicked him. She wasn't really processing the fact that this was a videogame and bruises weren't a thing. "Let me help." She mumbles, sitting next to him on his bed and gesturing to her bandages. She then tried to say something, but was struggling with it immensely. Her face was remarkably pink and her heart-rate was well beyond the human norm. "uhm.."

[Zuel 0]

Zuel would look at her a bit suspiciously as she was giving him a much different look than she had before, although it was much better than when she had been staring at him with intent to kill him. He gave a slight laugh at her remarks about being worried about his side. "Its fine Rithe I am alrigh..." Before he could finish his sentence Rithe had already gotten closer to her trying to bandage the wounds. "Rithe I am okay really you know I am not actually hurt since we are in a city." She could hear her saying something but couldn't make out what she was saying as he leaned in to try to hear her. "What are you saying? Your face is red are you feeling alright?" He would place his hand on her head and give her a slight pat to try and calm her down. "You don't have to worry about me try and get some sleep alright Rithe?" She was acting strange again like before but was closer to how she usually was so maybe she just needed to sleep.

[Rithe 0]

She pouts a little when he refuses her help, but she wasn't about to give up that easily. "Let me see. I want to help." She says, looking up at him, giving another one of those looks. As he could only see himself reflected in her eyes. When he leans in closer Rithe's breathing tightens and becomes sharper, heart-rate climbing even higher. She looks at every inch of his face, absorbing in his presence. And then he puts his hand on her head. She melts almost immediately, her blush deepening. "I-I-I-" She stammers, thoughts failing to reach her. She feels weakness in her body again and leans into him, delicately avoiding where his injury was. As she settles her head on his torso, she smiles upon hearing his heart. She felt so warm, so... happy. Why? Why do I feel like this? She looks up at him, completely entranced.  "I'm so sorry." Let me spend the rest of my life making amends. Her mind was conflicting itself between logic and obsession. Who are you? Who am I? Does it matter? I don't want this happiness to fade. She didn't care. Not anymore. She had definitely missed this feeling.

 

 

and she wouldn't give it up for anything, or anyone.

Edited October 14, 2018 by Rithe

[Zuel 0]

Zuel felt his hand be pushed against as Rithe would suddenly lean into him as he would look at her curiously. What has gotten into her all of a sudden? Zuel's heartbeat was normal as he was trying to figure out what was going through her head. "Listen Rithe I am fine really I am more worried about you." He would put his hands on her shoulders trying to pry her off a bit so he could look at her properly as it took some force to get her a couple of inches off him. "I think maybe you should try and get some rest, I am sure you will feel better in the morning." Zuel was just guessing not really knowing what was truly going on with Rithe. He would look at her face as she was smiling and seemed genuinely happy about something as he would smile back at her. "What is it? How come you are smiling at me like that?" Zuel hadn't noticed that this young girl had gotten so close to him on his bed over all that has happen and didn't see Rithe like that until she started acting like this. Maybe she is affected by some sort of debuff? Still partied with her to check her status she was perfectly fine not giving him any answers unless she would tell him what was going on. "How about we try to sleep?"