[PP-F11] Just Another Wonderful Fantasy

[Sey 0]

It has been so long since he saw his favorite Blacksmith in the game. They both made deals and he loved her business-lead mind with the mixture of ambition that she possessed, it's something he regretted bailing on for a while. But why not check up on her, see how she was doing? Sey recently sent over a PM towards this player in mind to see if she was interested in coming over for a cup of tea or perhaps a free meal on him. Awful for business in the short-term train of thought, but there was always a method to his madness.

Spoiler

From: Sey
To: @Teion

"Hello love, it's been quite a while since we've last talked. Care to come meet me on the eleventh floor to catch up? I'm sure a lot must have happened after we last met, so I'd love to catch up. Let me know when you'll arrive if you do take the offer. Cheers~."

If she did take the offer, he would make sure to prepare whatever she had requested if at all. Otherwise, it never did hurt to make a bread basket with some hot cocoa, even if the weather did not suggest that he should be making such a drink. Melted chocolate was perfect for anything as long as it was no the fifth floor.

Edited April 5, 2019 by Sey

[Teion 0]

"Hm?" There wasn't many people Teion received messages from these days. Her withdrawal from the participation in boss raids was a selfish and cowardly choice, but she had never been so much of a foreground player that her absences would have drawn much attention at all. To the curious hum that sounded over her shoulder, Teion smirked. "No idea." She replied while her finger scrolled through her menus.

Opening up Sey's simple message, Teion's brows raised. "Huh. Sey wants to meet up. Maybe he needs some new gear?" She thought aloud. Despite the friendly innocence of the words he had typed to her, she couldn't help but dig deeper as she wondered what might have prompted his contact. Ryo would smile, hardly recognizing the name, but happy that it was one she knew. He'd give a nod of his head and encourage her to go, saying it would give him plenty of time to work on the surprise he had in store for her. After a bit of back-and-forth, playful squabbling between the two, Teion had sent off a simple reply:

Quote

Lucky me, I'm already on the 11th. Outside of Taft though, should I head over to the teleport gate?

 

[Sey 0]

Sey tilted his head when he received the reply, just after he finished washing his hands, he would flick it open before finding her reply interesting. The teleport gate despite her already being on the eleventh floor? Mmm, okay! No reason no to, and he gets to spare his materials as well. With that, he would then reply to her so that they could both meet up. What a lovely time to hang today.

Spoiler

"Sounds like a plan to me, see you then!"

Send that little message out and he was done! Time to bail out and move over towards the teleport gate. "Come on, Kyu! We're going to meet an ol' friend today." Sey ordered, the white wolf heeding to his request by climbing up his leg, his upper body, then finally landed on his shoulder where she usually stood. And off they would go towards the gate.

---

There he stood at the teleportation gate. Upon arriving, nothing seemed too out of the ordinary, players coming in and out every now and then with the exception of one. A small blonde child with a smaller health bar, suggesting that she did not go on quests very often. By the looks of it, she was approximately seven or eight years old, so it was expected that there be some guardians to pick her up. Not that this mattered at the moment, for this seemed ordinary and no business was involved with her. Yet.

And so he would wait with his hands in his pockets for his favorite businesswoman.

[Teion 0]

Teion chuckled and stood up from the spacious couch she had been lounging on. Her arms lifted up into the air, and she raised onto the tips of her toes while she took a long, satisfying stretch. "Well, guess I'll see you soon." She exchanged a short goodbye with her love before getting what few things she might need together and heading out.

The trek from Ryo's mansion well past the outskirts of Taft into the city itself was a fair one, but the walk was always rather nice. The sky was overcast, but it wasn't yet raining, and the well-worn trails were free of monsters and other such nuisances that a player might encounter outside of the safety of the city walls.

Arriving in the European-styled settlement, Teion's brows narrowed into a squint, and she glanced over the smatterings of people that stood between her and her destination. Her searching gaze continued while she walked, until she was close enough to the teleport gate to spot a familiar head of snowy-white hair. The tiny wolf familiar perched on Sey's shoulder caught her off guard, but she was quick to suppose everyone had some sort of pet in this game by now. "Hey," She announced herself as she closed the remaining gap between them.

[Sey 0]

And wouldn't you know it, the woman with familiar purple hair made her way over to the familiar floor that matched his nationality quite nicely, though now she stood out like a sore thumb. Fortunately for her, that would not be the case for long. With a casual greeting given to Sey, he would calmly raise his right palm to wave at her back, keeping his lips in a small smile. "Hey there, thanks for coming to see me. It's been a while, eh?" Kyu cared too little, flicking her tail to the side and hopping off, more interested in trying to paw at Teion's shoes. Animals liked to observe and analyze new people to see if they were threats, at least canines did.

The blonde little girl would pace her way over towards Sey's direction from the side, giving his coat a gentle tug. It successfully brought his attention over to her, his eyes opened wide with curiosity to see what she would like. "Hey big brother... I need your help." She innocently explained with a soft and shy tone.

Sey was quick to raise his eyes even wider. Right in front of Teion, this random child just addressed him like a brother. Quickly looking back to Teion, he would aim to clarify. "I actually don't know who she is. I think she is mistaking me with someone else..."

"I am not!" She whined as she held close to Sey, arms around his waist with little intent to let go. Was he going to push her off? Not really... But she seemed intent on stayed until Sey listened. The question was if he should. Regardless, they should probably locate this girl's parents, right?

 

[OOC: The next action requires an LD roll if Teion wishes to assist the situation in any way.]

[Teion 0]

[Assisting: Diplomacy]
ID#: 114133 | LD: 15

Just moments after their greetings were exchanged, a small unusual figure had interrupted them. This little girl with short blonde pigtails falling over her shoulders was now clinging onto Sey with a pout forming on her lips. Teion raised a brow, her curiosity giving way to amusement for a moment while she held in a chuckle. Glancing up at the taller player, it was easy to see the conflict in his expression, and Teion was hard-pressed to let the man stand in awkward suffering for too long.

She frowned, realizing that their surroundings were a bit too crowded. The girl was probably an NPC, but without the yellow cursor floating over her head to confirm it, Teion was left to guess how best to deal with her. Her mouth twisted to one side in thought, and then she took half a step forward amid Kyu's curious sniffing and nosing. She placed her hands onto her knees and leaned forward a bit to better address the young girl. "Big brother and I are really busy adventurers." She started, hoping to dissuade a request that wouldn't be worth their time. "If it's really important, we can try to help you...but no tricks, okay?" She lifted a hand and held up one index finger.

[Sey 0]

The little girl would look over to the young woman before tilting her head to the side. In that childish mind of hers, it seemed like something was familiar about her as well. But after looking at it further, the girl couldn't put her face towards anyone familiar as well. No big sister gimmick for her today. For this though, the young girl felt protective of her older brother as well, looking up to him. Sey didn't know why she played along with it, but he was going to have to as well if they were going to get through with this.

"Okay... I'm sorry. I just... Mama and papa are lost and I... I wanna go home. Big brother knows where they are, right?"  She would ask with hopeful eyes looking up to him. Sey knew too little about being an older brother since he was a younger brother only. Reassuring words were hard to give as well, for that was a lie he saw little benefit for. "He doesn't. But... We can find them together. Do you remember when you last saw them, love?"

"You remember! In that cave! The... The one in the green plains where a lot of people with shiny rocks above their head are located!" With that, the little girl's strength around him tensed up, for it seems her worries were growing stronger. A lie would have been more suitable for this scenario. Nothing to be done now, but by that description... This girl knew about the first floor? Were they able to move through floors like that?

Looking back over to Teion, he would shrug his shoulders. "Sorry Teion, I didn't expect this to happen. If you don't wish to tag along, that's fine. I'm going to go with her to the first floor."

[Teion 0]

Teion straightened her spine, standing back to her full height and placing her hands on her hips while she cocked a brow. She listened to the young girl's very vague description of where she wanted them to escort her. If it wasn't for Sey's insight, she wouldn't have had any clue where the blonde was talking about. "NPCs can move across floors?" She thought aloud, echoing Sey's skepticism. Almost immediately after she aired the question, she was reminded of one she'd much rather forget, nearly feeling her skin crawl as she realized just how creepy it was that a certain French-accented waiter would so quickly appear in so many different locations. But he was an exception, right? She pushed the unsettling thought as far out of her mind as she could manage.

"Oh, it's fine." Teion responded automatically to Sey's apology. Offering a shrug and dropping her hands back to her sides, she conceded to the spontaneity. "If she can make it through the gates, I'll come see what it's all about." She said, referring to the platform that served as their fast-travel between the levels of Aincrad.

[Sey 0]

The only other instance he knew of an NPC being able to move through floors was through the Arabian Nights quests, specifically, Ali. Sey knew that it wasn't technically impossible, but it was extremely unlikely. Moments like these were rare, but what even was this girl's name? Regardless, that was besides the point. It was easy for him to piece out what the "Rocks" above their heads were, Teion and Sey both had them too. The crystals, to be more precise. And only in the first floor would they be so plentiful.

"Let us make haste then." Sey nodded to Teion, a wave of relief flooding him in turn. Now he didn't have to face the future of this girl on his own. someone would be there to help make the choices he couldn't make. The little girl cheerily pumped a right fist into the air, eyes closed and a giggle emitting from her lips. "Let's go!"

And so she would charge through the gate swiftly, seemingly without a command either? With how quick she did it, Sey had to admit that this was mildly concerning. Part of him desired to leave, but considering her abilities, that likely was not going to be an option. Turning his purple eyes over to Teion, he would shrug once before looking back towards the teleport gate. "Teleport: Floor of Beginnings."

And then he disappeared.

[Teion 0]

With a shrug, the violet-haired blacksmith followed after them, stepping up to the platform and calling out the name of the same settlement before her avatar was whisked away to its destination.

She shook off the feeling of dropping eleven floors rather quickly, gaining her bearings just in time to see the young blonde child practically crash into Sey's arm a few paces ahead. She clung to his sleeve and started pulling him ahead, having already given them apparently all the information she intended to. The trio traveled for a short time, making their way to the eastern gate of the massive, sprawling city. With the wilderness laid out before them, the girl seemed to hesitate a moment, her brow wrinkling with nervousness until she quite literally swallowed the feeling down and made it a point to march courageously outside of the safe zone--with Sey in tow, of course.

"What's your name, anyway?" Teion, who had been following along largely in silence, finally tried to get some more details out of the girl.

"Beatrice." She answered simply while still looking straight ahead.

"Where do you live?"

"Next to the blue river."

Teion's eyes rolled in her head. Obviously such simple conversation wasn't enough to take the girl's attention away from the dangers that she expected to lie outside of the city gates. Or maybe Beatrice just didn't like her.

They walked and walked, the neutral mobs that roamed around the grasslands paying them no mind and the more aggressive monsters barely any more interested in the high-leveled players that escorted the girl. Just when the Town of Beginnings had become a far-off shape in the distance behind them, the trio finally reached what they could only assume might have been their destination. Before them stood a tall archway colored pale ivory that was well overgrown with reaching vines and spots of moss clinging to the surface. Almost embedded into the mountainside, the arch itself was rather intricately carved, but sported no identifying details. No banners, no insignias, and no clear indication of what lay on the other side. The tunnel was dark, but Teion could feel the cool breeze that brushed against her cheeks and tousled her long hair.

[Sey 0]

Poor Teion tried to make small talk with the girl, much to little avail. She was worried and such questions were bound to stress a little girl out. Even with her "Big brother" present, there was still danger that threatened her parents, so it was safe to say that anxiety would keep her answers brief. If there is a plus side for the violet-haired woman, it was the fact that they were at the cave, so such small talk didn't even have to be initiated. "All right, tread carefully. If... Our parents are in there, we need to be careful. Don't make a peep unless something comes up." Sey explained before treading lightly.

Unfortunately for them, they have made a mistake that they will not turn their backs on. Sey stepped until a pair of beady red eyes would glow in the dark. They were the size of golfballs, hinting that size of the enemy was not the biggest and that they didn't have to bring big DPS. "Damn it... All right, attack it before it gets the first strike!"

???/???

Ability: ???
Ability: ????

 

[Teion 0]

Teion felt her muscles seize up and she froze in place seconds after their foe had made their presence known. The crimson eyes that stared back at them further down the tunnel were imposing and hateful, the vague bits of the creature's expression that they could make out still making it very clear that they were not welcome here. Teion squinted against the dark, and her upper lip curled into a grimace. "We're on the first floor, yeah?" She muttered through her scowl, reaching a hand behind her back to retrieve her darkened battleaxe.

Hey eyes danced for a moment between Sey, Beatrice, and the creature that crept so quickly towards them. It's glowering eyes tilted and curved around the edges of the tunnel as it seemed to make use of the walls and ceiling to pull itself closer to them. The fresh wave of adrenaline had Teion's heart pumping, and her fingers tightened around the long handle of her weapon with nervous energy, but even so she pushed the soles of her boots against the dirt floor to urge herself forward. "Just don't let our precious cargo get hit, I guess." She thought aloud their objective for now, lightly shouldering her way past Sey with the curved head of her axe resting over her shoulder.

The low light strained her eyes, but Teion picked up her pace to meet the advancing creature head-on. With a large wind-up, the violette swung her axe across in an attempt to drive the blade between its glowing eyes, but it pushed off of the tunnel wall to evade her attack. Crouching at the opposite corner, a shrill sound reached their ears, and the beast's mouth opened to reveal a light of several warm hues. After a short wind-up of the creature's breath weapon, a white-hot chunk of earth shot forward at a blinding speed, crashing loudly into the wall across from it where Teion had stood. Instinctively, the woman let out a short scream. She had just yanked her weapon free of the rough stone, and the momentum had her stumbling to the side and catching herself just past the monster's flank. Technically speaking, they had it surrounded now, but without a real gauge on how tough or powerful it was, Teion grit her teeth and gripped her axe handle a bit harder.

[Sey 0]

Teion showed clear disapproval with... An understandable level of agitation. "I would hope we didn't stumble upon an event boss too early..."  As if that could comfort any, but he would hold onto the hand of the girl as they walked, she seemed the most comfortable with that anyways. In turn, he was heavily restricted in what he was capable of doing with the beast that they confronted. Fortunately, they had an adorable bodyguard in the form of a humble lady's body, and she seemed quick to raise an axe! Well, quick while provoked by the sudden ray that attacked her, but quick regardless.

Soon, they made a pincher, allowing Sey a chance to attack while the dragon hated Teion for being so nimble. Two fists of wind after his hand let go of the baggage that was the little girl and suddenly, the enemy looked much easier! A swift blur would coat his body before returning, a heavy palm slamming behind the back of the beast to inflict... Normal damage. Heavy damage, but no critical.

And that was their downfall...

A big number would appear on top of the dragon's head, but what could it mean? Nothing was identified yet, but they could see a nice red "1" on top of it's head. "Damn it, how is it still alive!? It's on floor one!" Sey clenched his teeth, little did he know that any words to come from his lips should be said now... Or he will forever hold his peace.

Silencio: 1/20 HP |

Silencio's Will: The HP of this unit cannot go lower than 1HP. Any attempt to do so will be rounded to 1.
Silencio's Judgement: Inflict "Silence" to all players within AoE radius. "Silence" renders all those who are affected speechless, unable to talk and PMs are completely locked. Ability triggers one post after unit's HP is lowered to 1.