[F1-SP] The First Lesson is Free...

[Frank 0]

Frank woke himself up. The dawn was starting to poke through the soft clouds off to the west, though the city was still quiet. It had been a strange night, filled with stranger dreams. Perhaps that came from sleeping on the ground, in a small tucked-away alcove where he was off the beaten-path for most city residents, but Frank was used to sleeping on the ground, so that wasn't it.

No, Frank surmised it had been a strange night not because of the night, but because of the news of the day before. Stuck in a virtual reality game. Not just a game, but a game of life and death. These were the words he remembered from yesterday, though they sounded incredulous as he thought about them. Still, the worry on the faces of the denizens had seemed real, and so had the players who suddenly collapsed, presumably from having their headsets tampered with in the real world. Frank could only presume that everything he had been told, had been true. With that being the case, he knew he needed to learn more about this game, after all, Frank was no gamer, not by any stretch of the imagination.

[Frank 0]

Though he wasn't a gamer, Frank wasn't incompetent either. He had read the manual before firing up the game, and he did know about the basic functions of using the menu, interacting with the world, and so on. The manual had mentioned an in-game Help Menu which would go into further detail, and Frank motioned his hand to open the System Menu, and from there, found the sub-category Help. Once open, Frank spent some time browsing the various informational categories, such as Healing, Stats, and most of all, the section 'Combat'. Thinking how all of this was well and good, Castle still knew what he needed more then anything else what a proper run-through. It was here, in the Help menu, where he founded an option labeled, 'Tutorial Quest'.

Ok, let's go on a quest, Frank thought to himself. Delicately, his fingers danced across the choice, and he chose the green 'Start' option which appeared.

[Frank 0]

After confirming his choice, the next dialogue appeared with a series of instructions,

Background Information - An old NPC man, dubbed 'Zackariah', is in the Town of Beginnings. He plans on helping the new players of SAO by helping them understand the basic's of Sword Art Online.

After reading through this information, and following the tutorials instructions to pull-up a town map, Frank began navigating his way through the city to the location marked "Zackariah's Workshop'. The Town of Beginnings was certainly not a small place, and as it was, Frank had been on the far-side of the city starting out. Not one to stick to the main roads, Frank made his way down side-alley's, up crooked avenue's, and across small foot-bridges under which ran clear, flowing water. Taking in the early-morning sights, the sounds, and the smells of the town as he went, was a great opportunity for Frank to continue learning. He watched as some younger players purchased sweet rolls, no doubt hungry after the long night, and he observed others browsing the armors and weapons of street vendors.

 

Finally, after some time, Frank came to the workshop which sat on the outer-most-ring in the circularly-architected The Town of Beginnings. With only the slightest of pauses before a courteous knock, and after a feeble reply of 'Enter', he made his way inside the small workshop..

[Frank 0]

Inside the workshop, strange vials brewed over small flames, casks and beakers were filled with bubbling liquids of all different colors and thicknesses. A large, dusty book-case lined the wall of one side of the room, and on it were large, equally dusty manuscripts. Raising the vials in the center of the room was an old man, Zakeriah, and he tore himself away from his work long enough to wave Frank in. Turning back to his work Zakeriah slowly creaked out, 'Soooooo, you've come to learn the basics then? Well, I've got a few tasks for you. Their will be rewards, but first work must be done.'

Frank quietly stood and replied, 'I'm not afraid of work.'

'Good, good. I'm glad to hear such a thing. Your first task will be to head out into the wilderness, and collect me several crafting ingredients. Here's a list to make it easier. Now come, come, wouldn't want to be out past night-fall.' With that, the old man led Frank to a door opposite the one he entered from, swinging the door open, Frank could see that it opened directly into the open fields surrounding the Town of Beginnings. Silent as ever, he stepped forward and left the town, for his first time ever.

[Frank 0]

It felt strange being out in the open. The grass ahead of Frank blew with the slight breeze, and off in the distance he could see, and hear, a stream running at a steady-pace. Their were mountains past the stream, and a world beyond that. What it may be, it didn't feel virtual, no, it felt real. It also felt strange. Inside the Town of Beginnings you were always in a hustle-bustle of activity, with players and NPC's always coming and going. More then that, you were always, always surrounded by the giant stone architecture and the stone walls of the Town. But here, there was nothing but openness.

After taking all of this in, Frank looked down at the list still in his hand. With this list, searching for materials was going to be much easier then it normally would have been. The old man, Zakeriah, had laid out exactly what he wanted, and how much. He had even included some notes on where to look! Frank decided to tackle the first item as he could already see it! Just ahead, were giant flower patches, with an invitingly beautiful aroma drifting up from them. Walking into the patch, Frank knelt down and plucked a yellow flower. One down, four to go...

 

ID 110894 | LD 14 - +1 Material!

Edited December 25, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Stepping forward, Frank continued moving through the flower garden, though not as quickly as he did before. The colors and the aroma, it all brought back memories of his wife. She had loved to garden and kept flowers on the window-sill. She had asked Frank what his favorite was, and he had told her he didn't have a favorite. Hers had been roses though. Now Frank quietly admitted to himself, that the roses were his favorite too. When he finally got out of here, he was going to buy her the biggest bouquet he could find.

As he went on his way, he followed the small stone path that had been laid between these wild garden patches. It was all very deliberate, very-organized, Frank wondered what that was all about. Was it just scenery, or was their some deeper meaning even here? Finally finding the next set of flowers, this time Frank bent down and retrieved a blue one. Two items, marked off the list...

 

ID 110895 LD 19 +1 Material

Edited December 25, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

The next item was listed as 'Weed of the Water Lilly'. Standing back up, Frank took a long look at the river off in the distance. Moving out at a slow jog, he cut back onto the green grass, and then realized just how far away that the river really was. Surely though, he might not have to go all the way to the river? Water Lilly's only needed enough water to grow. Seeing a shadier, most spot on the edge of the flower-bed, Frank moved closer for inspection. Getting down on his hands and knees, he carefully overturned stones and pushed through weeds looking for the precise one. He allowed himself a bit of patience while he was searching, making sure to be a meticulous in his efforts. Unfortunately, it did not seem to be here. Standing back up, Frank turned back towards the river and resumed his way.

 

ID 110896 LD 6 - Nothing

Edited December 25, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

It's water flowed swiftly, as if they would never be stopped. Looking down, one could see the stones lining the bottom of the river-bed, some of which sparked in reply. Kneeling down to the edge of the river-bed, Frank ran his hand under the cool, swift stream and felt the water rush past. Every now and then his eye would catch sight of a fish quickly swimming it's way upstream. Frank had never considered fishing to be a possibility in this game, but it was beginning to seem like everything in this game had a reason, perhaps the fish did too.

After taking a few silent moments of simple observation, Frank began to sort through the edge of the river-bank and carefully looked for the weed he was interested in finding. Their were many types, once you looked close enough, but sadly, the Water-Lilly Weed was not one of them.

 

ID 110900 LD 2

Edited December 25, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Moving just a bit farther down the stream embankment, Frank listened to the soft wrrrrhhhing of the nearby insects. The noises were reminiscent of crickets, but were in fact, more a longer, drawn-out sound rather then the typical high-chirp. Frank thought back to home, or rather the thought pressed it's way into the forefront of Franks mind in an all-consuming fashion. He was suddenly sitting not near a digital river, but near a river in a much different environment. The workers in the nearby town had come out to tend rice-paddy fields, the water of which was supplied by the very river Frank was now in. Their had also been other reports about the villagers, that some were violent militia hiding weapon caches in the rice-fields. Frank carefully observed each villager, looked at them closely seeing their clothes, their open-toe'd sandals, and even the amount of dirt on their faces. He looked into their eyes from his hiding spot....

Suddenly Frank snapped back to the present moment, pushing the thought out of his mind and continued to search for the weed, finding nothing.

 

ID 110901 LD 5 - Nothing

Edited December 25, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Becoming more aggressive in his searching Frank began turning over stones and moving the earth beneath his hands. The mud was soft, and slightly damp to the touch, feeling it move between his fingers, Frank frustratingly slapped it back down and returned the rocks to their positions. Clearly the weed wasn't here, on the shoreline of the river. Frustrated, Frank was acutely aware that he was neither a herbalist nor was he aware of where this Water Lilly Weed might happen to be. Standing back up, he turned his attention to the stream again and resigned to taking a few moments to stop and recollect himself. Further reflection over the water would do him good. It wasn't just the weed he wanted to reflect on, but he had yet to really stop and reflect on this game itself. On being trapped in a virtual death game. Staring back over the water, Franks eyes were hauntingly far away.

 

ID 110902 LD 3 - Nothing

Edited December 26, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Behind the empty eyes was a cold anger, an anger Frank pushed back down inside of himself. As his eyes continued to scan the water, his sight line lowered, lowered until he was staring down and into the depths of the stream. There, in the murky depths, were patches of green staring back at him. Curious, Frank knelt down to the stream-bed and plunged his hand into the icy-cold water. It disappeared into the mud-swaddled depths. After the sediment settled, Frank could see the tufts of weeds underneath the waters surface. The groups of weeds lined the bottom of the river, it was there where they poked up between the stones and shells which also called the bottom home.

The weeds felt slimy, even under the surface of the water. Grabbing a handful, Frank pulled and felt the ground give-way to the roots being uplifted. After breaking the surface of the water, Frank could in-fact see the weeds were slimy. Adding them into his inventory, he pulled his list back out and began looking at the next item to retrieve.

 

ID 110903 LD 13 - +1 Materials!

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

The next item on the list was 'Fur of the Murphumple', and next to that was a hastily hand written note, 'Bites!'. Frank didn't have the slightest idea of what a Murphumple was, or what color its fur was. Still, he had a good idea that it was something which was going to be in this general location. Following that very straight-forward chain of thought, he took a look around and tried to find any wildlife, as it was occurring to him that since he had been out here, he hadn't actually seen any other living creatures. The grass blowing the wind, the sound of the breeze itself were the only things Frank was aware of. So clearly the beasts weren't in this area, undeterred, he decided to move onward, over a group of hills and see what may lay further from the town. Putting one foot in front of the other, he set off.

 

ID 110946 LD 7 - Nothing.

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Reaching the top of the series of hills he had seen, it was a pleasant view out over the grass. Still, Frank could find no murphumples. No murphumples here, no murphumples there, no murphumples anywhere. Trotting down the hill, Frank continued to look off in the distance at a patch of trees. Perhaps murphumples were wooded creatures, he pondered. Or perhaps they were creatures which burrowed and only came at out at night. Keeping his eyes on the ground, Frank looked for any odd distortions of dirt, or mounds which might indicate a creatures burrowing hole. Finding nothing however, Frank continued traversing the series of hills, he would have to remember this place, it seemed like the type of place which might lend itself to good coverage in the case of a fight. You could set-up on the high-ground, have excellent observation of the area, and descend easily to engage in combat.

 

ID 110947 LD 2

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Crossing the next set of hills was no trouble, and on the other side Frank could see that the valley opened up into a nice, level, series of plains. The plains were filled with slightly longer, slightly more-worn grasses. From this aerial view, Frank could see small creatures moving about, creatures about the size of a small dog. Moving down the hill, he was careful to watch his step for poor footing and finally at the bottom, he felt solid on his own two feet again. Moving towards the area where the creatures had been, was now much easier. Once he reached this area, he could see the peaceful-looking creatures as they bound, scampered, and hid between the lush grasses.

Several of the creatures were eating the longer stalks of grass, and so Frank decided he would catch one of these creatures and see if they were a murphumple. Creeping up on the creature, Frank reached out and grabbed it by its hind legs. Of course, he didn't want to kill the thing, not if he didn't need too, so instead he looked at the in-game menu which came up. It did indeed identify the creature as a murphumple, and all the other nearby creatures now had hovering display-names which matched. Also on the menu, was an option "Harvest (Non-Lethal)". Pressing the option suddenly added a material to his inventory, and it was "Fur of the Murphumple". His task now complete, Frank let the scared creature go.

ID 110948 LD 12 +1 Material

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Looking back down at the list, Frank could see that it asked him to retrieve yet another "Fur of the Murphumple". Luckily, he had many to choose from. The peaceful creatures were covered in a slightly pink fur coat, and they really looked like a rodent more then a small dog. Large, buck-teeth, no doubt made for consuming the grasses the herbivore ate on a regular basis, lined the front of the creatures jaw. Their eyes were beady and black, very tiny when you look at the rest of their face as a whole. In contrast, the nose, really more of a snout, was the predominant feature of their face, and it extended away from their eye sockets by a few inches. Reaching down, Frank picked up the creature by its hind legs, as he had done before, and this time once again ran though the menus until the material was added to his inventory. Turning, now having five of the materials, Frank made his way back towards town where he could see Zechariah again.

 

ID 110949 LD 17 +1 Material

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

Walking back through the door which had been a surprise exit out into the world outside the Town of Beginnings, Frank felt good to be surrounded by the walls and stone architecture. This actually unsettled him a bit, preferring the "safe" feeling inside the town compared to the open areas of the world; perhaps he would need to plan to spend time outside the city, even if it was risky and dangerous, to remind shake this feeling of preferring comfort. Once inside, the man Zekeriah was no-one to be found, it appeared he had gone out. With not much else to do, Frank decided to wait inside the small workshop. There were ample stools and chairs to sit on peppered through-out, and Frank chose one in the corner of the room near the bookcase. He had browsed the titles on the books until he came up with, "A Novice's Guide to Potion Creation, Volume I", and then he sat down to read while waiting on Zekeriah's return.

[Frank 0]

It wasn't long before the door at the front of the shop creaked open, and entered the old man, returning to his place of work. As Zekeriah entered he looked up at Frank and said aloud, "Good, good, reading is an important tool in the history of any good potion-maker. Why my master, he had book-case ten times the size of that one, a personal Library of Alexandria, if you will. But any good potion-maker knows that books are at most theoretical, the real knowledge of creation potions and baubbles comes from working with ones hands, working with the base materials to create something wonderful. Here, come and let me show you."

Frank rose and joined the old man in the center of the room, it was here Zekeriah explained the process of converting materials into chemicals, showed Frank how to properly use the open-flame burners and gave a run-down on which flask size was best suited to the different purposes. "Come now, come now, you have a great handle on this, and you are a quick study. Why don't you try using this knowledge to craft something yourself? Use those materials you collected. I'm sure you can do it my boy!"

Frank, was a bit surprised at this offer, but he had been paying attention while the old man was teaching, and he did feel like this was something he could try. Stepping up, he lit the burner and prepared the beakers, pouring and mixing, grinding and tearing, Frank attempted to craft a potion.

ID 110962 CD 8 - Success! Rare Quality Healing Potion Crafted!

Edited December 28, 2018 by Frank

[Frank 0]

"Oh, hohohohohoho! Look at that my boy, excellent work for your first time! I do say, you may just have the knack needed to become a master potion-crafter! Truly wonderful work! You did fine work, but I have need of this potion, an injured child you see? So I am afraid I must keep this particular potion. Still, this will certainly make that poor child feel much better, again fine work my boy." Why don't you spend some time reviewing more of the books I have on my shelves? It would be best if you took a look at "Beginner Potions and The Purpose of Potions."

Frank, was happy with his ability to produce a potion of strong quality; before this, he hadn't considered how useful the potion-making knowledge might turn out to be. But with the ability to create a variety of poultice and salves, one could help ensure a steady stream of life-mending materials. In a death game, keeping your HP above 0 was the most paramount of concerns, perhaps this would be something he would pursue more in the future.

[Frank 0]

After finishing the two manuscripts, Frank more knowledgable of the potions and their uses. As a non-gamer, he freally appreciated the depth of basic use knowledge he now possessed. Previously, he would have been in trouble had he been poisoned, or similar, but now he had the knowledge needed to know that their are antidote potions available.

"Well, you did a wonderful job today Mr. Castle. Now please, I have one more task for you. A simple one, if you don't mind. I require a package to be delivered to a blaksmith friend of mine, Tyle Tealeaf. He's on the North side of town, just on the edge of these cross-streets here. If you would please deliver this package, I would be very grateful. But ah, I can't just send you off empty-handed, please take these Quest Rewards, you've done a most wonderful job! You will always be welcome in my shop, or to study under my tutelage.", said the old man, smiling.

[Frank 0]

Frank accepted the gifts gratefully, and gathering the package into his arms, set-off to find the shop home of this Lyle Tealeaf. The sun was beginning to set, soon it would be dusk and the nightfall inside the Town of Beginnings, but for now the sun simply changed the colors of the sky. It was a most relaxing and calming sight, and as Frank walked through the streets he felt he had accomplished much over the course of the day. He had a long way to go, and hadn't even engaged in combat yet inside the game, but Frank was now set, he would work to help clear this game. One quest at a time, one day at a time, he would do his part, carry his load, bear this burden too.

As he made his way up the steps, he knocked on the old, wooden door that led into a large stone building. As another old man answered, Frank informed him of his delivery, taking the package Zeckeriah had given him and giving it to Tealeaf. "Thank you, young man. Say, would you mind coming back tomorrow to help me with something? I have a few tasks I need completed."

Thread Complete
Quest Rewards
+2 Skill Points
+5 Tier One Health Potions of Uncommon Quality (+40HP)
+1 Tier One Damage Potion. (+1 Damage)
+1 Tier One Over-Health Potion (+50 Temp. HP)