[PP-F22] Star-Spangled Mess <<Event Quest: Night About the Galactic Lake>>

[Dazia 0]

Dazia would find it somewhat difficult to get herself moving around the lake, but as long as she could have chances to gather some gold stars on the lake. When she got a look around her, it was as if she was on a boat that was floating in space. This place must be popular with the stargazers. Whatever the case, it was a good thing she had a net in her inventory. She would place said net in the water, and when she pulled it out, there were nine gold stars in it. At least the method seemed to work. She counted up the gold stars she'd collected...and she facepalmed. "Why...couldn't the system have just given me eight or ten? Why this?" She muttered. Dazia's sister, Valna, would have loved seeing such a value, but since this was Dazia's total, she would need to get some more, and fast.

ID# 162721 LD: 9(found 9 Gold Stars)

Dazia's Current Total: ....69.

Edited August 2, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Vigilon saw that Elora and Dazia were already out on the water, and some other players were getting boats and taking them out to the water...actually, there were quite a few players out there. However, Vigilon didn't think he needed to worry. By the time he reached the boathouse, those other players had already all set out on their boats, but in a different direction than the one Elora and Dazia seemed to be taking. Vigilon spoke with the NPC...and the results were quite shocking. Vigilon didn't see any boats. Not on the land, not floating on the water, tied to any poles or docks...uh oh. So he spoke with the NPC again. "Hey, uh, where are the boats?" He asked. "They should be over at- ...huh. that's new. Well, in that case, you've got a few options, most of them including waiting. Shouldn't be long." The NPC noted. Before the NPC could continue, Vigilon took matters into his own hands. He dashed for the waters, and jumped in.

 

He would be swimming through the water's surface, hoping to reach the two boats that Elora and Dazia had taken. Hopefully, one of them wouldn't mind sharing. He felt something strange on his left arm all of a sudden, but he guessed it was some kind of lake weed, or just the water. Either way, he kept going until he reached Dazia's boat. He grabbed onto the side of the boat with his right hand, and took a moment to breathe, panting from the exhaustion of seemingly swimming through space and water...and holy crap, it was cold on a night like this. "Guy somehow ran out of boats." He explained, in a voice that both players could easily hear. "Dazia, even if it's only temporary, you don't mind me playing stowaway, do you?" He asked, before climbing onto the boat anyway. It was then that he noticed a rather oversized Koi, and that his left hand, and half of his left forearm, was in said Koi. "What the heck??" He called out before falling into the boat itself. He pulled the fish off of his arm, and two gold stars fell out of its mouth. Vigilon decided to shake it out like a stuffed bag, releasing about twenty more gold stars. The koi appeared as if coughing or trying to keep something down, so Vigilon decided to risk it and shake it out again. The Koi would then vomit out an ingot of metal. That's new. "How the heck did ya even get that down without being weighed down to the lakebed??" Vigilon Exclaimed, confused as to how an oversized Koi would eat an ingot and a bunch of gold stars, and yet still want some more.

ID# 162724 LD: 20+2=22(found 22 Gold Stars, Gatherer activates), CD: 5(one T3 material)

@Elora

 

Vigilon's current totals:

Gold Stars: 77

T3 Materials: 4

Edited August 2, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

Elora's oar caught some resistance as she rowed, causing her to pause and inspect it. She pulled it out from the water along with an extensive trail of mangled seaweed that had spun itself into an intricate knot around the paddle. Gold stars were tangled within the heap like the clams and snails that could typically be found suctioned to the underwater vegetation. Elora began the meticulous task of unwinding and freeing each item from its clutches. Momentarily, she lifted her sights just in time to see Vigilon hauling himself into Dazia's boat. She couldn't help but laugh beneath her breath. "You know, I would have waited if I knew that you weren't able to get one", she called out to him, "Was it a refreshing swim at least?"

The water droplets that landed on her told her it was probably more like a freezing swim. He was probably going to be shivering the rest of the night unless they got to a fire somewhere. Thinking this prompted a question to pass through her mind, Does the game automatically dry you off after awhile? I wonder if you could just change outfits in the menu so you wouldn't be wet anymore.

Spoiler

ID#: 163482 LD8 (58 Golden Stars Found)

Edited August 6, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Dazia quickly pulled out her net, and managed to get about seven gold stars. Well, there was that, at least. Then she heard something, the sound of movement in water...that wasn't involving boats.

Suddenly Vigilon grabbed onto the side of Dazia's boat, and climbed in, saying that even if it was only temporary, he needed to "play stowaway". "Vigilon what the hell are you-? He then found an oversized Koi on his left arm, and pulled it out to realize that it had eaten some gold stars. Dazia was not too happy about Vigilon getting the fish to spit out the gold stars it had eaten. "What the f-" But the straw that broke the camel's back was Vigilon persisting to shake the fish, until it vomited out an ingot of metal. Dazia glared at Vigilon with both anger and disgust from under her cowl as he collected all the items. when he finished, that was the time. Dazia moved closer to Vigilon. "Get the hell off my boat." She said as she pushed him off the boat, and back into the water. "Forcing a fish to vomit out its garbage...disgusting." She thought. "He should have carved it instead."

ID# 163484 LD: 7(found 7 Gold Stars)

Dazia's Current Total: 76

Edited August 6, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Vigilon would toss the oversized Koi back into the lake, then collect the gold stars and the ingot that it spat out. Once he did, however, he was in for the unexpected.

"Get the hell off my boat."

"Eh? WAAUGH!!!" Vigilon found himself getting pushed off the boat and back into the water by Dazia. He struggled to get himself moving, then he thought he saw something. When he descended a bit to investigate, he realized it was nothing...so he decided to resurface. After he resurfaced and gasped for air, the first thing he did was look over to Dazia. "What was that for?" He asked. Whatever the reason, he clearly couldn't get back in her boat without getting pushed back out again, leaving only two options: Try to stay afloat, or ask for help. the course of action would be obvious. He placed his hand onto Elora's boat. "You...don't mind if I get onto this boat, do you?" He took no further action, as he was going to wait for a definitive answer this time. He lifted his left arm again to see that the oversized Koi had inhaled it again. "What the- are you kidding me, again??" He exclaimed at the sight of the fish being on his left arm.

ID# 163486 LD: 3+2=5(No chest found)

@Elora

Vigilon's current totals:

Gold Stars: 77

T3 Materials: 4

Edited August 6, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

 

Elora reached out to offer the player her arm before hesitantly retracting it to instead extend it toward his free appendage. "Sure thing, I don't know if you're gonna get any leverage without a second hand though -- er, well, a third I guess if you're counting mine" The wake created by her boat caused ripples to crease the surface of the lake. Flickering lanterns bobbed from the disturbance and twirled in and away from one another in a mesmerizing dance. One of the paper cylinders floating above them grew faint before gracefully drifting downward and into the canoe. Aw, this poor one couldn't stay lit..., she said with a sympathetic tone. As she held up its crinkling exterior, many tiny gold stars poured out onto her lap, then fell to her feet. "Hmmm, maybe these things were just weighing it down, actually" Just then, Elora happened to catch a glimmer of something streaking across the celestial void above them. "Was that a meteor?"

 

Spoiler

ID#: 164538 LD15 (73 Golden Stars Found)

Edited August 9, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Dazia huffed when Vigilon asked her why she pushed him off the boat. "Because you don't just make a fish vomit out its garbage onto a boat that's not yours, or that someone else is using! Next time, just carve up the damn fish instead!" She would tell him sternly. Vigilon would then try and attempt to get onto Elora's boat, asking her for permission this time. At least he was willing to learn from his mistakes. Elora then noticed that some of the lanterns were being weighed down by gold stars. Now that was kind of peculiar. Dazia noticed one floating nearby, bobbing up and down in the air as the light dimmed and grew, then dimmed again. Once the lantern was overhead, Dazia drew her weapon and used the Sword Art known as Rip Ravine on it. The lantern would tear into three pieces that shattered, and four Gold Stars would drop down and onto her boat. Guess that was one way of getting her hands on these things.

ID# 164605 LD: 4(Found 4 Gold Stars)

Dazia's Current Total: 80

Edited August 11, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Elora allowed Vigilon onto her boat, though she believed it would be difficult to get on without three appendages. "Well...I'll try." He decided. He pulled himself a bit higher using his right arm, then he got his left elbow onto the boat and would try to pull himself in with his right hand, his left forearm pushing on the boat as Vigilon was getting in, most likely with Elora's help. During this, Vigilon felt some tingling in his left forearm, which probably meant that the fish was biting due to the force Vigilon had placed in its side. What? Fish do have teeth, they simply tend to be smaller and therefore not easily noticed. Once Vigilon was on Elora's boat, he pulled the oversized Koi off of his left arm and tossed it right back into the lake.

Elora would find some gold stars in a lantern that was weighed down to the point of losing its flame. Vigilon checked his inventory for some things, just in case. "Hey, Elora, do you want to try relighting the lantern? Chances are, I might have something that could help..." He asked. As he asked this, his left arm was over the water. When Vigilon heard a splashing sound and felt something on his left arm, he looked over to said arm. Lo and behold, there was the oversized Koi again...except it felt heavier. Maybe it had snacked on some things while it was still in the water. If that were true, it must have been one hungry Koi. He pulled a bucket out of his inventory, and pulled the Koi off his arm. He would shake the Koi out towards the bucket, knowing that it was a bad idea to do so without. Two ingots and ten gold stars fell out of its mouth. "Personally, I'd say you need less metal in your diet." Vigilon said to the fish, before tossing it back into the water and retrieving the gold stars and ingots from the bucket. He noticed a lantern heading his direction. Low, but not on the water. When the lantern was close enough to him, Vigilon gently moved the lantern over to where he was. it was barely capable of floating, most likely it would simply just drop down into the water... Vigilon then noticed something was off. The flames were now barely lit at all, and something seemed to be blocking it. Vigilon pulled a stick out of his inventory, and connected the tip of it to the dying embers. The tip of the stick caught the fire just before the lantern's embers died out, and Vigilon would move the lantern in various directions, and nine stars would fall out of it. Vigilon then used the stick, still burning, to relight the lantern before releasing it to the sky. Vigilon then offered the stick to Elora, in case she wanted to relight the lantern she had and return it to the air.

What Elora asked next confused Vigilon, so he turned hie head over to the sky for a few seconds, before shifting his gaze back to the stick in his hand, still being offered, as the tip was still aflame and something might go wrong if he left it unattended. "Maybe, I didn't manage to see it." He admitted.

@Elora

ID# 164606 LD: 17+2=19(Found 19 Gold Stars, Gatherer Activates), CD: 6(Found 2 T3 materials)

Vigilon's current totals:

Gold Stars: 96

T3 Materials: 6

Edited August 10, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

Elora was unsure of what Vigilon would be able to offer to assist with relighting the lantern. Nevertheless, she nodded in agreement, "Sure, let's give it a shot" Not long after, he was able to ignite the end of a stick, which was whittled down to look more like a twig at this point. She accepted it and hastily began to transfer its flame to the wick of another candle. 

Just as she had begun to do so, several streaks of bright light caught her attention from the corner of her eye. She shifted her gaze briefly to see that a bunch of golden stars were falling out of the sky, and directly toward their boat!

"SH*T!", was all she could yell before they barraged the two of them. The force of one hitting her hand was enough to cause her to release the torch. It clattered as it fell through the seats' planks, then rolled across the haul. Elora frantically picked up her feet to avoid being caught on fire. It was already too late. The canoe erupted into flames in a matter of seconds. Damn, that wood must have been dry! 

The green haired player dove off of the pyre and into the water to douse the edges of her boots and cloak, which had already begun to burn. 

 

Spoiler

ID#: 164709 LD16 (89 Golden Stars Found)

Edited August 10, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Dazia watched the sky, there was a streak of light. Then another, and another. They rained down onto Elora's boat, and Dazia's was next. Dazia pulled out a shield from her inventory. It might not have had any enhancements, but it was really coming of use in this moment. She turned it to where it was facing her as she crouched down, and she held it diagonally. The shield's interior, while shallow, was definitely not flat. Thus, it not only defended Dazia from the impact of the lights, it caught most of them, too. They turned out to be gold stars. Dazia found seven in her shield, and five on her boat. She stashed both the stars and the shield into her inventory and saw that Elora's boat had caught fire. Elora jumped off of the boat, and Dazia assumed that Vigilon did, too.

If Vigilon was to approach Dazia about getting onto her boat again, Dazia's response, before he would even ask, would simply be, "No."

ID# 164741 LD: 13(found 13 Gold Stars)

Dazia's Current Total: 93

Edited August 11, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Just when Elora had relit the lantern, gold stars rained down onto the boat, barraging both the players and the boat. Vigilon managed to collect eight of them, but then the boat suddenly caught fire, due to the star barrage knocking the stick out of Elora's hand. "HOLY-!" It would seem that there was nowhere else to go but out if Vigilon didn't want himself or his gear to catch fire as well. He dove into the water as the fires spread across the entire boat, and when he resurfaced, he realized that he was probably gonna have to ask Dazia if he could get on her boat again... Vigilon felt something on his left arm, and it had happened more than enough times for him to automatically know that it was probably that same oversized Koi again. Did it think it was a shark or something? Whatever the case, he swam close o Dazia's boat, to be immediately greeted by the anticipated answer.

"No."

Vigilon had only one thing to say. "Yes I'm getting on, and Elora's getting on, too!" He responded.

ID# 164744 LD: 6+2=8(found 8 Gold Stars)

@Elora

Vigilon's current totals:

Gold Stars: 104

T3 Materials: 6

Edited August 11, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

Elora was starting to hate swimming in this game, as the weight of her armor and equipment always weighed her down more than she was comfortable with. Then again, maybe she was just an inexperienced swimmer. She hadn't had many opportunities to learn how to tread water growing up in a brisk climate. "Yeah, that would be--", It occurred to her that the boatman was probably waiting at the docks, anticipating the return of his treasured canoe. "Actuallyyy, the shore isn't too far from here, and I don't think it'd be much easier for me to try and climb up like this. I think I'll swim over to that bridge", she nodded in the direction of one nearby. Some players stood on it to release their lanterns into the sky while others used it to cast off fishing lines into the lake. On the shore next to it was a sizable bonfire surrounded by passerbys who were chatting and snacking while they rested between searches. That looks like it could be a good place to wind down before heading back home. 

 

Spoiler

ID#: 164851 LD5 (94 Golden Stars Found)

Edited August 12, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Dazia wasn't too pleased to hear Vigilon's response. Elora decided that she wouldn't get on after all, so it seemed that she would continue to handle this search on the water's surface on her lonesome, unless Vigilon was willing to try and keep himself afloat on the water's surface for the whole time. She looked back over to Vigilon with a scowl. "If you can swim all the way here, you can sure as hell swim all the way back, Vigilon." She noted. "So don't test me."

Whether or not she would push Vigilon away from her boat depended entirely upon whether or not Vigilon tried to get onto the boat anyway.

After Vigilon would be gone, Dazia would return to searching around the waters. She pulled out the net again, and managed to get herself five gold stars. It would seem that the gold stars might have been over-gathered, to an extent. "Maybe that's why they were raining down on us..." Dazia thought.

ID# 164852 LD: 5(found 5 Gold stars)

Dazia's Current Total: 98

Edited August 12, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Turns out, Elora decided not to get back onto the boat, and considered swimming back to the shores instead. That's...well, that was perfectly fine, but that would completely shutdown Vigilon's attempt to help. Looks like he would be leaving Dazia alone anyway. He would think for a moment as Dazia claimed that Vigilon should just swim back to the shore. Guess he would do that, too...but first...

"Ok, fine, you win this one... But can I at least hold on so that I can get the fish off of me again?" He asked. He would then place his left elbow on the boat, and try to pull the Koi off. Once he managed to do so(definitely with difficulty, but whether or not he had help he did not see), he tossed the fish a fair distance, and it landed in the waters with a splash. Vigilon then immediately made headway for the lakeshore, swimming as best as he could through the waters. The lake's waters indeed felt freezing, and with the nighttime setting, it really seemed to fit the whole space theme the lake's appearance was going for. After all, space is a cold place.

When Vigilon finally reached the lakeshore, he collected the cluster of stars he stumbled upon. Afterwards, he stood up, and stretched. As he did so, he heard a splash, followed by him feeling something on his left arm. He looked back to the Koi that had engulfed his arm again, with an irritated expression on his face. "Why do you keep doing this..."

@Elora

ID# 164853 LD: 3+2=5(found 5 Gold Stars)

Vigilon's current totals:

Gold Stars: 109

T3 Materials: 6

Edited August 13, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

Elora did her best to swim towards the shore, albiet somewhat sloppily. She wasn't exactly skilled in carrying out proper strokes since swimming wasn't very frequent during her formative years. Thankfully, her haphazard paddling had generated enough of a disturbance to prompt golden stars to float up to the surface of the lake. The system was kind enough to add the items to her inventory as she collided with them, preventing her from having to tow them onto the beach. 

Once she waded onto the sand, she began the ritual of rigging out her hair and every article of her clothing. So much for keeping my festival dress looking nice, she thought as she expressed an exasperated sigh. "I'm heading to the fire to warm up for a bit, then I should be on my way", she told Vigilon and Dazia, unsure what their next course of action would be. 

 

Spoiler

ID#: 165186 LD8 (102 Golden Stars Found)

 

@Dazia @Vigilon

Edited August 15, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Vigilon simply wanted to get the fish off of him first, using the boat as leverage. Dazia would be fine with this, as long as the fish didn't end up on her boat.

Thus, he was on his way, and Dazia returned to gathering gold stars. She managed to gather thirteen, and then...

The still-burning boat made contact with the one Dazia was on. She quickly turned around to put out the flames, but it seemed that the wood of her own boat was dry as well, as it quickly caught fire and spread faster than she could put it out. She proceeded to curse in Italian. The flames were getting closer, and now, it seemed, she would be forced to swim back. If only someone was around to divert the boat's direction so that it wouldn't have collided... "I can't believe I wasn't paying enough attention..." She muttered before she dove into the water.

Dazia didn't mind the fact that the water was cold, but she did mind the distance. The reason why was because her light armor started to get a little heavier as the water soaked in...thus making her swim more difficult, as if her small size wasn't enough.

When she finally reached the shore, Dazia heard Elora decide to warm herself up by a fire. "...What fire? I'm guessing it's not the one over in the lake, burning our boats down."

ID# 165340 LD: 13

Dazia's Current Total: 111

Edited August 15, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Vigilon pulled the fish off his arm, and tossed it back into the lake. It was then when he noticed that Dazia's boat had caught fire from the other boat, forcing Dazia to have to swim back. Vigilon didn't know if she failed to see it coming, or if she couldn't manage to stop it. Either way, it was happening. "Guess the boats would have been doomed either way, and we all would have had to swim back, regardless of what happened next..." Vigilon thought aloud. When all three players were around, Elora decided she was going to warm up by a fire, then be on her way. Vigilon somehow, felt like there was something missing... "Are you...sure that we're really done here? I feel like we're forgetting something..." Vigilon noted. And no, it wasn't the lack of a fire on dry land. It was something else, like...something else to look for...but what was it?

ID# 165348 LD: 12+2=14(found 14 Gold Stars)

Vigilon's Totals:

Gold Stars: 123

T3 Materials: 6

Edited August 15, 2020 by Vigilon

[Elora 0]

"There is...?", trailed off Elora as she struggled to remember whatever it was that Vigilon was referencing, "I don't remember". The pointy-eared player made her way over the fire pit and began to search through her inventory for a set of clothes to change into. After all, she wasn't going to wait all night for the fire to dry them for her. Swapping out of her current attire and into her usual outfit, Elora's face adopted a look of comfort and satisfaction. She tucked her knees up to her chest and --

"A BODY!", she suddenly yelled out as her encounter with Shoji returned to her memory, "Wait, no no -- not a body -- clothes from a body! There were clothes we had to find!" She shot up from her seat and jogged over to the banks to scan its sandy surface for shirts, socks, or shoes. 

"Don't bother", a player beside the bonfire began, "We've been searching all night for something and nothing has turned up. If there was anything to collect, it's probably already been found."

 

Spoiler

ID#: 165349 LD6 (108 Golden Stars Found)

 

@Dazia @Vigilon

Edited August 16, 2020 by Elora

[Dazia 0]

Vigilon believed there was something else to look for, that there was more to be found. "I doubt that will be necessary, Vigilon." Dazia noted. Elora thought about the words Vigilon had said, then she came up with a thought, then another. "That's...oddly specific. I wasn't told to find clothing, I was notified to keep an eye out for anything...but I doubt there would be any real reward for turning in evidence of one's death, and from what I know, it's obvious that the NPC in question is dead." Dazia explained, just before a player over at a nearby fire suggested that there might have only been one item of evidence, and that it had probably been found already. Dazia would then look down to see several gold stars. Might as well gather just a few more before ending the search. She now had one hundred and twenty. A fair amount.

ID# 165483 LD: 9(found 9 Gold Stars)

Dazia's Total: 120

Edited August 16, 2020 by Dazia

[Vigilon 0]

Vigilon could hardly believe what he heard from both players. "So, wait, let me get this straight...you both are going with the pretense that the person is dead?" He questioned. Elora was frantically scanning the banks of the lake for anything floating around. Then another player, who had apparently started a fire, claimed that searching wouldn't be worth it, as if it could only be found once. "To say that would mean that you don't play a lot of MMOs. Such items, even if they're rare, or depend on chance to find, will never appear once only. So even if I don't find evidence that Yori's still out there, at least I will have actually tried!" Vigilon responded, somewhat sharply at the end. With that, he decided to help Elora in her search by going deeper...and by that, I mean diving into the lake again to find evidence within the lake itself. He would spend as much time as he could, searching this underwater area of the lake, dimly lit by starlight...but when the air he had was about to run out, he was forced to give up the search...for now.

He would resurface, and leave the waters. "Ok, minor setback, I didn't see anything down there... However, that doesn't mean I'll stop. Just because we might as well call it a night with the search doesn't mean all hope is lost. This little event, it goes on for a week? If so, I'm sure I'll be here tomorrow night. He's out there somewhere...I can't deny it..." He said as he walked out of the water, not even paying any attention to the fact that the Oversized Koi was on his left arm again, but that was probably because he didn't care at this point. Besides, he wasn't lying when he said he wanted to keep looking each night of the event...he wanted to prove that there was always something that the players should never lose sight of...

Hope.

ID# 165484 LD: 6(Objective failed...)

 

Summary:

Vigilon receives: 6 SP(2 Pages completed[2], Quest Completed[3], Quarantine Bonus[1]), 266 Col, 6 T3 Materials, and 132 Gold Stars

@Elora receives: 6 SP(2 Pages completed[2], Quest Completed[3], Quarantine Bonus[1]), 266 Col, and 107 Gold Stars

Dazia receives: 6 SP(2 Pages completed[2], Quest Completed[3], Quarantine Bonus[1]), 266 Col, and 120 Gold Stars