[PP-F10] Sins

[Mari 1]

Mari took a deep breath and shook her head. "There...isn't anything to say." She looked up at him and gave him a weak smile. "I'm...just an idiot - to think anyone would actually want to be with me. To think all those words in the past were truth when they were nothing but a falsehood uttered by someone who just said what they thought I wanted to hear." Mari shook her head. "It's my fault." She slowly pushed herself to her feet. "I cannot fault someone else for my foolish emotions and desires."

"I don't know how I'll leave here though - Bahr took my weapon... and I have no teleportation crystals." Her voice was shaky but Mari tried to steady it with each slow breath. "I had so little, now I have even less." She shook her head. "Macradon... I don't...know how I am going to do this quest...I feel like it's a death sentence. But..." She managed to give him a weary smile. "At least I can say I died trying to redeem myself, rather than withering away in isolation, right?"

@Macradon

[Macradon 0]

He shook his head in displeasure of what Mari told him “Getting out of here shouldn’t be a problem, I have a spare teleportation crystal you can have, I’ve never actually had to use it … I’ve never been in immediate danger to use it.” he said and handed over the blue prism to Mari for her to use to get out of here. “Also … if I REALLY try hard, I think I can scrape together a strong Tier 3 team to help you … but I’ve lost more and more confidence after this ordeal with Bahr.” he said somewhat defeated but continued “But don’t say it like you’re already finished, you still have a chance. I like your idea with a poster, anonymous or not, we can probably gather a small party to help you with the redemption quest, I could even set up a “bounty” for helping you, it has worked for me for quests before, so why not now?” he said with a bright and hopeful smile.

[Mari 1]

Mari took the crystal in her hand and twirled it around - watching the varying shimmers that bounced off its surface. A faint reminder of her profession...how proud the woman used to be when she crafted these. How with each success Mari felt a wave of exuberance wash over her, and the failures? They only drove her to better herself with Alchemy. "Thanks...Again, I appreciate it..." Came the womans soft whisper.

Her blue eyes lifted to face Macradon. Even with everythng that transpired - he still looked so....happy and hopeful. In a way, Mari envied that about the white-haired man. "About what Bahr said...It's...not an act but I mean..." She shifted her gaze away from the man. It hurt. Everything hurt. Alkor had been acting when he told her he loved her. Even when she thought he was dead...she still held onto the hope that she had been wanted, earnestly loved by another - but now that had been ripped away from her and it left the woman feeling helpless. Despite everything Mari had never once 'acted' or lied. She was always one to be honest, brutally so at times. "But if you feel any trepidation or unwillingness... I Understand. Besides..."

Mari took a few steps to the side, gently bending down to pick up the stool she had toppled over earlier to sit in it. "It's going to be harder now." Mari said, shoulders sagging. "Bahr... took my weapon and he kinda stormed out without giving it back...even if it was a vanity item....I'd want it back, it's special - but - heh..." Mari gave a dejected laugh. "I suppose I can't even have my own things, can I? I'm a Murderer. We don't have those luxuries." Mari clenched the crystal tightly in her hand. "You're so positive Mac...I'm envious of you. I want that strength - but right now I'm finding it very hard." Her freckled face scrunched up as she tried her best to stop herself from getting emotional.

"Bahr means well. You shouldn't be mad with him. I guess I could always attempt to punch the quest to death..." Mari added with a nervous laugh.

@Macradon

[Macradon 0]

Macradon shot a warm hearted smile at the redhead “You’re very welcome.” the knight replied. The scarlet eyes of the Imperial Topaz locked onto the blue of Mari’s as he kept his focus on what was going on, trying not to have his mind drift away on every other “Ooh, a spark.” he thought as he eyes swayed a bit over at his furnace, like he had forgotten to turn it off, or that he had left it at a low heat. Closing his eyes, he tried to focus again and looked at Mari “Oh … I can ask him to get it back for you, if you want, I’m pretty sure he’s not the one who wants to be known as a thief.” he said with a chuckle “And if you want, I can craft a new weapon for you, just as a loaner until you’re ready to really get your hands upon some better equipment.” he said and walked over to his furnace to check on it “Yup, low heat, probably best to just shut it off.” he thought and closed the air intake so the cinders would die out. 

“I haven’t always been like this, once I had no emotions, once I had no reason, once I was a very different man, but things change, and that experience is what drives me for the better of this world, that’s why I stay positive, I have seen change happen and I believe change will happen if you try hard enough.” he said with an encouraging tone to Mari “If it ends up being you soloing the boss … that wouldn't be for the best since your build seems fragile, you would need a team, at least a tank or a healer, both would be preferable. The boss does huge amounts of damage and has a huge amount of health to boot. It will be difficult, but I believe we can get over this hurdle.” he said and clenched his fist “I know we will.”.

[Mari 1]

"That was a demonic dagger that was dropped by the 11th floor boss." Mari said with a tight voice. "You don't understand it's not something you can just casually craft again. It has meaning to me. Sentimental value. No offense but you can't craft that." She gave a defeated sigh. "I know....that being a PKer doesn't come with being well liked." She lifted up a hand to brush her short fringe up and out her face. Her hand sat tangled in her hair as she continued. "And it shouldn't be...I can sugar coat it however I want but I'm still someone who has taken lives, and should be punished as such but....in a world where I have so very little...I just wanted to hold onto that one item..." Her voice cracked as she lowered her hand to wrap both arms around her torso to hug herself.  "It'd mean just as much if it were a vanity trinket...yanno?"

Macradon went into a grandiose speech about how he wanted to better the world, it was...admirable. Mari watched in silence as he passionately told her that people change, so do things. He was so....optimistic. Mari really wished she could be the same but every time she tried to show that optimism...every time she had those small sparks of hope, they were snuffed out - just as easily as he snuffed out the low, burning embers of his forge. She couldn't share his ideals, she couldn't even begin to pretend to.

Still, Mari took a deep breath and tried her best to wear a smile on her freckled face. "I appreciate your words Mac, I really do. I guess..." Her sapphire eyes shifted to the wall. "I should start by trying to complete all the quests, and gain enough strength to solo the boss, considering worst case scenarios."

@Macradon

[Macradon 0]

Macradon’s hopeful expression quickly faded when he heard that the weapon Bahr had confiscated was a demonic “Oh … yeah I can’t craft Demonics, not even Uniques, I have a few myself, but probably not any that you have any use of …” he said and lifted his hand to his head to tap his temple, that was when he noticed he was holding a dagger “Oh … is it this one?” he asked and handed it over to Mari “I guess Bahr gave it to me and I didn’t really register ... “ he said, somehow it just flew over his head, maybe he wasn’t thinking straight, maybe he wasn’t focusing at anything, maybe his mind was just a blank when it happened, maybe he was too focused on something else, perhaps the embers, cinders and flames were distracting him as well, or perhaps he was just too stressed with everything happening that he couldn’t think, couldn’t remember, couldn’t register.

[Mari 1]

Mari gave him a dumbfounded look. "You had it this whole bloody time and you didn't even...." She wanted to say more, to cuss him out and call him a f**king idiot and every other name under the sun - but she didn't. Instead Mari took a deep breath, followed by a groan as she massaged a temple with her hand. "Really Mac....and you're the one that is supposed to be helping me? You don't exactly instill a lot of faith in me with that sort of attitude...yanno that?"


Mari went over and practically snatched the weapon from his hand. "Really...you'd probably loose your head if it weren't attached." She chided. Mari lifted the dagger up to inspect it, nothing seemed to have changed, and it looked like her dagger - and not some strange sort of mimicry, not that Bahr would have had the time to do such a thing. Still...one could never be too careful.

"I...should probably go now, the last thing you want is the town guard destroying your shop." Mari said as she pulled out the teleportation Crystal Macradon had given her a few moments earlier. "Also...Thanks. I don't say that often, so appreciate it." She said with a wry grin.

"Teleport - Alchemic Contagion 10th Floor."

And with that, she was gone.
 

[Mari 1]

REWARDS

ALL PLAYERS RECEIVE
1 SP  + 133 COL