[PP/F1] Stepping Stones <First few Lessons are Free!>

[Xylis 0]

How long had he been sitting within the beginner town? How long had it been since he had been trapped in this hell hole with everyone else? It felt as if Xylis had been trapped inside of the digital program for an eternity. Nights blended with days, and reality soon became undeniable... For the first few months, he thought of it as a joke, continuing to mess around and talk to the few people he had made allies of. Only to see that everyone began to disappear, never to be seen again after venturing out. At first the horror bound his body.

It was as if a metaphorical chain had been wrapped around his arms and legs. Binding him to his position within the beginner town of Aincrad. Growling slightly to himself, the white haired male was slowly and begrudgingly making his way throughout the city... He needed to start, he needed to find out what made this game tick in every which way possible. There was people fighting and struggling to get out, while others crawled upon the ground, relying on the support provided by those that continued to put their lives in danger... He hated it, despised it.

How did he a twenty so year old male, come to rely on others like a child locked in time out. Awaiting his release from parents, or the adults that was watching over him. A grimace appeared upon his face, as his golden eyes had a small sneer upon them. First thing was first... He needed to learn, he had to learn in order to grow correct? He needed to find someone that could help with the advancement of his... Looking for a skilled adventurer shouldn't be that hard right? After all... They came back to check on the people.

They always came back to see that the peace had remained, and that the others hadn't begun freaking out on one another... It was as if they where treated as guardians when they came back, Xylis felt sick thinking about it, how he would always look out towards them, wondering what it would be like to join them... Why he was still crawling around on his knees. "AHHHH TO HELL WITH IT! I'm just repeating myself..." He would say aloud as the man rubbed the back of his head. "God... I should of just taken that beginner book when they handed it out... I wouldn't be stuck wondering around like a moron."

@Kirbs

[Kirbs 0]

Many things scared Kirbs. The dark. Balloons. Babies, oh, how she shuddered at that one. But, of course, good ladies and gentlemen, a loud noise-- one of the reasons why she hates balloons-- surely tops the bloody cake! Kirbs jumped at the sudden and oh-so-very-loud shout that rippled through the town. They were already two years in-- how could someone be going crazy now? She's had her fair share of lunatics, but damn, she wasn't hoping to find another one so soon. She whipped around in search of the voice and nearly unleashed a giant sigh of relief when she realized that the person who shouted looked very normal indeed. -Or she hoped, at least. 

He looked frustrated, that's for sure. Ah, how nostalgia hit her like a damn brick. She remembered how she was nearly pulling her hair out at this stage of the game. Pure and utter joy. She shuffled over to the new-looking player and laughed nervously as she gave him a once-over. "Shouting like that is going to grab someone's attention, you know. Just be lucky it was me and not some PKer out of blood!" She said eerily before breaking out into a goofy grin. "So what cha' up to, ya good chap," she winked, multiplying her regular accent by a hundred.

[Xylis 0]

Xylis stood there fermenting in his own inability to do what he needed... that was until he heard someone speaking to him. Looking around for a moment, to find the perpetrators voice, she would soon be met with a rather stern and deadpanned glare... Before Xylis allowed a small quick breath of air to escape from him. His mood slowly shifting and calming down. She was right to a degree, just shouting out like that would evidently draw him attention, that much was for certain. Her accent however was pretty thick, especially when she began to ask what he was up to.

"I'm debating whether to go out and feed myself to a boar... Or to finally get off my lazy arse and attempt to help the people trapped within this game... I should be able to do that... I went to school for designing things similar to this game... But I barely have any idea on how to work the controls within this game." He said with a small sneer. Not aiming towards her, but his attitude and his voice was evident he had been completely defeated. He was grimacing over his own incompetence relying on the others support.

[Kirbs 0]

The girl simply smiled at him, trying her best not to slap his deadpanned face. Couldn't a girl have a little bit respect in here? "Ah, I see," she clicked her tongue, casting her eyes downward to the cobbled road as she thought. She eventually did turn her head back to him after a few moment of thinking and shrugged nonchalantly. "It's not that hard. You'll get used to it, I suppose. What are you having a problem with? I'm by no means a front-liner but I know enough to get around," she blinked, tilting her head. She laughed quietly to herself. Boy, she was just as lost as him back when she was level one. The glory days! Slaying boars and gathering flowers for the greater good! 

Her hands clasped behind her back as she gave him another signature smile. "My username is Kirbs by the way," she said, introducing herself. She almost slapped herself stupidly when she realized she had yet again, forgot about her familiar. I mean, how could you forget a ten pound snake-fox thing around your bloody neck-- constricting around your throat and making you incapable of breathing? Well, she did. She released her hands and gestured to the familiar around her neck. "And this is Scarfy, too, by the way."

[Xylis 0]

The small clicking of her tongue was a bit annoying to say the least, but at least she seemed to be a bit better equipped and used to this game than him. But she was starring at the ground with a rather silly smile on her face, it was actually strange to say the least... Did he run into a crazy one? Well only time would tell at this point, at least she didn't seem that insane, especially when she began to ask about the problems he was having. "Ahh... Well it's simply just getting the ball rolling mostly. I had joined with a few friends."

He said thinking it over for a moment. "They decided to go ahead and head out for a bit... But then their names seemed to slowly disappear to being offline... Strange for the most part, as I didn't expect them to be off so early. But then the event regarding the whole player database happened and it sank in... I've been stewing here in this town, without a single clue on what to do. I don't even know how to use this sword that my friends helped me purchase." He said motioning to the giant blade upon his back.

However when she introduced the rather large snake wrapped around her neck, and herself... All he could do was blink a bit, how had he not recognized the snake with her? How did he not even process the thing until now. "Uhhh.... Well nice to meet you then... My name is Xylis." He said blinking and taking a small step away from her and the rather large creature around her neck.

[Kirbs 0]

She nodded her head and scratched her chin rather dramatically. "I see. You'll catch on, even if you're slow or not, but mechanics are pretty easy to understand in this game. Are you taking the first tutorial quest right now? Even if it is a fetch quest-," she nearly gagged at the name. Fetch quests were by far the most horrendous thing game developers have ever made. "- it's quite easy to finish, really. Though... sometimes luck can be a bit of an arse to you," she sighed, laughing bitterly. "So, it's not always a sure win." Kudos to her! She was giving decent advice to someone for once! 

She smiled sadly at him and cleared her throat. "Don't worry, you're not the only one," she mumbled, shaking her head quickly. "But!" She piped up, "don't worry. Good ol' Kirbs is here to save the day! I'll help cha' out. Out there, instinct is really key. Go with your gut, but don't be stupid at the same time," she advised peering over to the sword placed firmly on his back. "Alright, a sword is pretty good. I would have my spear with me but I don't like having extra weight on me," she exclaimed, glaring at her familiar for s quick second before turning back to Xylis. "So I just keep it in my inventory."

[Xylis 0]

This woman in front of him had a very strange way of speaking, for one moment she seemed all eager in asking about what type of quest he was doing. The next she seemed to nearly gag on herself. AS if it was annoying for her to try and help him. However, she was slowly insulting him, which was slowly beginning to grate upon his nerves... However, if it wasn't for the fact that he had went through several jobs by now, in which he had to deal with flaky, or unreliable bosses he would of spouted off at the woman.

However, when Kirbs began to speak about assisting him within the perimeters of his quest he could only shake his head. "I di-" He stopped himself for a moment, he was about to turn down this rude girl, though she was seeming to offer a bit of help... How far could he go by himself? Perhaps having someone show him the ropes wouldn't be a bad thing. Taking a moment to close his eyes and release a small breath of air, Xylis began to steel his nerves. "I honestly don't know what I'm doing, however I did receive some information that the first foot steps was at some alchemy shop..."

He said shoving his thumb in a different direction than where the two of them had been standing. "I'm apparently suppose to talk to the man there, I can see up by my status bar, that I have a unaccepted quest there... Perhaps it should be where I start?" He said with a bit of a small chuckle in his voice. "After all, it's the only one I see currently."

[Kirbs 0]

She nodded her head. "Yeah, that's where my old chum, Zackiriah lives. He's a nice fellow, you'll love him. He does remind me of Santa Claus a little bit," she mumbled, scratching the back of her head. "But it's a nice place to start," she agreed, looking up at the sky. "We should probably start now before it gets dark. We really don't want to get caught by some wolves when we're out and about," she shuddered. Stupid pack hunters, ugh. She definitely did not want to be fighting multiple wolves, especially since the skill of this Xylis guy was still unknown. The last thing she wanted was a person to die in front of her, especially if she could've prevented it. She pointed towards the center of the town. "He lives somewhere around there. I think I remember what his shop looks like, anyway," she told him, already starting to walk off towards the alchemist's house. "Tis' not too far away, so hurry up!" She yelled, attracting a few unwanted stares, but she didn't really mind. Like, really. She could give two sugar honey iced teas.