[F01 - PP] "A Body in Motion" <<The First Lesson>>

[Salem 0]

Regarding Elora as she teetered down the hill, Salem took note of the way her boots seemed to sink into the unusually spongey soil below. With care, he descended the hill at a diagonal so as to soften the precarious decline. He had nearly reached the bottom before an especially precarious patch of topsoil slid out right from under his boot. The displacement of one leg dominoed onto the other until he found his back smacked against the side of the slope. Slippery mud quickly sent him toppling toward the basin, where he soon floundered to a hault. Releasing a groan of pain, he hissed sarcastically, "Yep. Like a total natural."

The unintended joke sent his green-haired companion into a fit of laughter. Lips buzzing and all, Elora lurched forward and seized her stomach as a means to suppress the outburst. Salem couldn't help but laugh himself as a gloved hand raised to smear an accidental helping of mud across his forehead. "Ok -- I get at least ONE free pass, alright?" Accepting her hand, Salem found himself surprised at the amount of strength she offered in assisting him up.

 

Spoiler

ID: 214577 LD4 Fail (2/5 Materials Found)

Edited August 21, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"Sure, I'll let it slide.", she cracked with a complimentary grin. "Don't know about that though --", she remarked before spitting into her glove. Lifting her hand, she moved to suds away the remaining soil that had splattered across his face.

"Ack -- Gross!", Salem protested, swatting away her hand, "I'll get it myself!" Unequipping the claws from his sullied hand, he attempted to wipe the grime from his skin. Elora watched in amusement as the concentrated droplets were smudged from one side to another, then combed through his hair. Only a matter of seconds would pass before the sludge solidified into crusty, shit-colored steaks.

"Yeah, you got it", she reassured convincingly. "Now!", she said, clapping her hands together, "We just gotta harvest some materials from down here. And by 'we', I mean you, because I can't actually help for this quest -- aside from offering my emotional support." With hands on her hips, Elora offered a reassuring wink.

 

***

ID#: 215528 Failed to find a Treasure Chest

Edited August 21, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

Wait... "If you can't actually help me with the quest, then why did you bother coming along?", he inquired through narrowed eyes.

With a nonchalant shrug, Elora replied, "It's not fun to do these things on your own, besides, someone's gotta keep an eye out for you so you don't get killed by a stray boar."

"As selfless as that sounds, I'm sure I can handle killing a low-level mob. It's not like this game would put anything stronger outside of where I just started." To Salem, the logic was sound. He'd never played a game where he and the other players were immediately thrust into anything but an exhaustive tutorial.

"You'd be surprised...", she suggested somewhat ominously, "People have died from baby boars, mini bosses -- player killers."

"PVPers are always a pain.", he groaned as his eyes searched for the aforementioned materials, "They're always fun to play but some of them make it impossible to get anything done."

 

Spoiler

ID: 214578 LD8 Fail (2/5 Materials Found)

Edited October 30, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

Elora shifted uncomfortably as she began to imagine all of the ways that an orange could have 'fun' with their killings. Her mind recalled a rather grotesque scene, one of a manic pixie-type carnie carving through carnage with the blade of her axe. Even the products of this world deserved more than such cruelty.

"They're like cats -- ", she finally remarked with firmer features, "Playing with their food -- mangling people and discarding carcasses as if they were nothing. They rarely do it for survival." Nearby, Salem seemed to have halted his forage to regard her comments.

"What?"

"You're taking it too seriously.", he said with a half-hearted laugh.

"I'm not --", Elora snapped back with more frustration than she would have liked. She could have gone off, if not for the confused expression that overcame Salem's face.

He doesn't know.

"You...ok?", he slowly asked, clearly taking note of her growing concern.

"Yeah...Umm -- So did you not, like, get a notification, or something?", she tried her best to inquire as a finger quickly became twirled in a lock of hair.

Edited October 29, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

"Yeah, plenty.", he replied as his hand plucked a reed from beside the stream. It's tapered stock gently transitioned from rutabaga-purple to a verdant green. A complimentary chime indicated that this material satisfied the quest's requirement. "There was stuff on basic lore, mechanics, and I chose which package I wanted to start with."

Elora seemed dissatisfied with the answer. In a nervous gesture, she cleared her throat and began to inch towards him. "That's -- yeah, makes sense. Nothing -- anything about -- umm -- dying, though?"

Salem could feel constriction in his chest, an instinctual indication of underlying wrongness. "Not...that I can recall.", he said, searching for whatever it was the woman was getting at, "Just the usual 'Don't run out of HP or it'll be game over'."

"Oh", croaked Elora. By now she was standing before him, anxiously twiddling her thumbs. "So, actually -- you might want to sit down for this one."

Cocking his head and folding his arms across his chest was enough to imply she may as well continue.

 

Spoiler

ID: 214579 LD16 Success (3/5 Materials Found)

Edited October 30, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"So, basically, we're trapped here --", she admitted with palms opening outward, "Uhh -- and if we die here, we die in real life --" Reading Salem's face, Elora couldn't tell if he had even registered the gravity of their situation. "So yeah", she started to add, "It's not great -- lots of people have died, lots of people are trying to escape -- It's a whole thing."

"Huh", came a underwhelming reply as Salem found his way to a seat on the bank.

Elora stood for a moment longer, than quickly scrambled to assume a comforting crouch beside him. "But don't worry!", she raced to reassure him. "The dude who made this game -- I think it was Kaiba -- he said that if we beat our way through all a hundred floors, then we can go back."

With eyes fixed on the stream before them, Salem appeared even more reclusive than before.

"I know it's a lot to process.", she sighed as a gloved hand made its way to offer two awkward pats on the back of his shoulder.

Edited October 31, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

"How long has it been?", he spoke up after a long stretch of silence. His throat felt horse, his voice more shaky than before.

"No one knows for sure...", Elora admitted, "Some say it's been two or three years now."

Years..., the realization slowly began to settle, All of that time I spent loading in... "Is that why you seemed so surprised earlier?", asked Salem, his eyes turning to regard her, "Have I been asleep this whole time?"

Her mouth opened to answer him, then suddenly closed, its reply replaced by a hesitant nod.

"Damn...", he wavered as a hand lifted to cusp his forehead and cheek.

"...Most woke up right away...", explained Elora, "Some of us a bit later..." Her hands combed through the rocky shore. "Others are still sleeping. We're not sure why..." Freeing a stone from its place between others, Elora began to run her fingers across its smooth surface.

"I thought this game just had a shit loading screen.", he cracked, his laugh a mixture of humor and pain. 

 

Spoiler

ID: 214580 LD9 Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

Edited October 30, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"I think you'll find it's shit for a lot more reasons than that", Elora quipped in an attempt to maintain the light-heartedness, "But also...there's a lot here that's not so bad." Adopting a distant look, she recalled her many adventures with Freyd and Katoka, the festivals she'd gone to, and the battles she'd won. "I guess", she started again, "I try and think of it this way -- We never knew when we were gonna die in real life. Any day out there could have been our last." Flicking her wrist, she cast the stone to skim over the surface of the creek. After a few sporadic hops, it plummeted into the rushing current below. "Here, that reality almost feels -- well -- more real. We can't kid ourselves anymore. Each fight, each attempt to flee -- it could be the end."

Salem seemed to shift in response to that observation.

"Can't say I feel the same.", he replied as his hand lowered and began to search for a stone in turn, "Maybe for you it was easy. I didn't really have that outlook."

Edited October 31, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

Clasping an especially red-looking rock, he raised it close to his face to inspect its features. "When you come close to death, it becomes all you think about. At least, for a little while.", he continued, "Sometimes it moves to the back of your mind. Most of the time, you're left to think about the 'what if's'." Turning over the stone revealed a spiderweb of scarlet veins. They coursed across its surface, eventually scattering in dozens of directions. "I wondered about my parents, my friends...all of the experiences I'd never have." 

From the corner of his eye, he could see Elora fold her arms and draw her knees to her chest.

"If we really are trapped here...what does that mean for them?" Instead of hurling the rock, he simply slid it into one of the pockets of his trousers. Salem couldn't help but imagine the sadness of his family. Are they still holding out hope?

A reply from Elora cut his speculation short.

 

Spoiler

ID: 214581 LD6 Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

 

Edited October 31, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"I don't know. I try not to think about it.", she admitted, "But at the same time, a part of me almost doesn't care." The glimpse of a raised eyebrow prompted further explanation. "I...didn't have a lot of friends, honestly. And my parents were, well, kind of shit --" She stewed on that remark for a moment. Was it really them, or just you? "I feel the worst for my brother --", her voice cracked as quickly as it had raised, "If he's actually worried about me -- I don't want to get in the way. He has actual potential, going to university and shit -- He got a grant, you know. Did well enough to be invited into his program."

Salem seemed statuesque in appearance, offering little input aside from a fervent stare. "So, you know", she hurried to suppress her emotion, "Yeah, it's hard."

After a prolonged sigh, Salem assured her, "I understand how you feel." The solemn player leaned back in the sand and turned his gaze to the clouds above. By now, the sun had begun its downward dip towards the distant horizon.

Edited November 8, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

"My sister and I were fairly close. She was definitely the responsible one. Had a way of sticking to schedules and doing what we were told." He shot Elora a knowing smirk. "Sounds like your brother was the same way."

She returned the smile with a brief nod, "Yeah, but we were nothing alike. Aside from what we got up to -- that's what comes from overbearing parents." Elora's face lit up for a moment as she seemed to recall a fond memory. Within a few moments, her features sagged back into a sorrowful expression. " 'Cept he always managed to get away with it.", she muttered beneath her breath.

"What's that?", he prodded curiously.

"Nothing", she dismissed. Sitting up straighter, she released her arms from around her knees, raising one hand to curl beneath her chin in an equally inquisitive manner. "What kind of trouble did you get up to?"

Salem spat in a joking matter, his eyes evading her's until he realized that she was serious. "I'm sure you can imagine.", his hand reached into his pocket, brushing past the rock he'd only just collected.

"They're not here --", she laughed before adding, "Shops sell a substitute, but it's nothing like the real thing."

"Actually --"

Spoiler

ID: 214582 LD6 Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

Edited November 8, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

Elora opened her UI, scrolling diligently until she spotted a lingering item. Summoning it to her grasp, she reached out and slid the faux-cigarette between Salem's fingers. "I've long since given up on them. It's the same with the alcohol -- a lot more of a habit than an actual feeling." Her quest mate nodded in thanks, raising the already-ignited tube to rest between his lips. "Still, once in awhile...", she added with fingers tapping nervously across her knee. In another gesture, a second stick had swiftly materialized into her hand.

"It can be nice to do something familiar."

The two of them sat for awhile, enjoying the faint warmth emitted by the halo of embers. Drawing in a deep breath, Elora could feel its heat sink through her chest. Along with it came a sense of longing. Had she actually missed the absence of such an unconscious ritual?

"You're right...", Salem's voice interrupted her reflection, "That's pretty shit." With a flick of his wrist, he cast out the butt. For several seconds, it remained aglow, eventually despawning across the surface of the sand.

Edited November 8, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

"So, you said we needed to beat one hundred floors.", he recounted aloud, "How far have we gotten?"

"Twenty six -- NO, twenty seven!", she declared with a snap, "Floor twenty eight is up next. That's the raid I'm gonna be helping with."

"Barely a quarter...", he let slip beneath his breath.

"It's slow work.", admitted Elora, "And knowing that makes it all the more discouraging. Why even try when it's already been so long? It's so much easier just to step away and accept things for what they are."

Salem's teeth ground together as he began to mull over his perspective. On one hand, he believed that strong individuals had an obligation to lead, to shepherd those who didn't know how to fend for themselves. On the other hand, he understood the virtue of selfishness. There was no glory to be gained in hurling yourself through a meat grinder. Better to protect what you already have., thoughts keenly reminded.

"I suppose it all comes down to what you're willing to die for.", he finally stated, "And whether or not you truly wish to escape."

 

Spoiler

ID: 214583 LD6 Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

Edited November 28, 2023 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

A brief stretch of silence eventually prompted her to ask, "Well? What do you want?"

"I'd like to escape.", he answered succinctly. Although, confident-sounding in his decision, Elora suspected there were further details that went unspoken. Just like everyone else., she mused to herself.

"And if all of that starts with this stupid little quest --", he began as knees swung aside, then carried him into a stand, "Then I think we'd best continue."

She issued a reserved nod as legs positioned themselves to do the same. "Can't say I've seen jack shit since we've sat beside this stream. Maybe it's time we check out another location." With a liberal swing of her arm, Elora's index finger fell toward a distant grove. "That way!", she confidently barked. Whether or not she'd decided the direction on random chance was hardly left to reason. In either case, the two of them now carefully made their way up the sandy slope to abandon their failures, and the fatalistic conversation among the riverbanks below.

 

Edited November 29, 2023 by Elora

[Salem 0]

"Seems like the day and night cycle is fairly short here", Salem found himself remarking absently. Within only a few hours, it seemed the oversized emission sphere had slumped just above the world's horizon line. 

"Oh, yeah, I've noticed that too. Most of the time I start a quest and don't have it finished until well after dark.", after a brief pause, Elora added, "Granted, I tend to wake up after noon."

"Suppose it makes things a little more interesting.", he commented with a shrug. Not a very accurate reading if that's the only way people keep track of time. "Where are you leading me, again?"

"Harunka village", she declared with a gleam in her eye, "It's where I did my first lessons' quest."

"And how'd that go?", he humored dryly.

"I nearly died."

"Actually?"

"Yeah, I slipped and fell into a river."

Salem couldn't place a moment previous when he had felt simultaneously dumbfounded yet completely unsurprised. That sounds like something she would do., he was careful not to say aloud. A glace in her direction revealed that she was already anticipating a response.

"And?"

"Well obviously I didn't die --", she continued with newfound sheepishness, "The guy I was with saved me. I don't know where his is now."

Salem's imagination flooded with scenes of a gruesome disappearance as the poor player was swept downstream, despite his heroic effort.

"But! We got all five items!", she resolved on a higher note. 

 

Spoiler

ID: 214584 LD1 Critical Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

Edited February 9 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

Silence soon blanketed the air in a way that Elora was unused to. It had been awhile since she spent time questing with someone so...reserved. Reminiscing, she supposed Salem wasn't to dissimilar to her early encounters with Freyd in that way. However, unlike him, he seemed to lack a certain levity towards life. Like some sort of sopping wet cat., she silently identified.

Elora did her best to match his stoic demeanor until a sequence of fidgeting prompted her to propose: "Why don't we race for it?"

"Race for -- the town?", his voice cracked in confusion.

"Yeah -- you gotta practice somehow"

"That's --"

"What? Worried you're gonna lose?" 

"No, I --", he huffed for a moment, a frustrated palm brushing back through his bangs, "Sure. Whatever -- Let's race for it."

A snarky smile curled from her lips. She had successfully egged him on. Now things will be more interesting. "Alright, first to the village wins. Shouldn't need a clearer benchmark than that."

Edited February 16 by Elora

[Salem 0]

Salem observed as the overeager elf stooped down to assume a ready stance. 

"GO!", she commanded as her heels sprung from the dirt. Dust billowed around them in patchy plumes as slender legs carried her forward with surprising agility. He swiftly followed suit, knees hinging with a certain stiffness he hadn't recognized before.

Each impact sent a dull shockwave from the base of his foot up to the root of his spine. This is more unfamiliar than I expected, he assessed rather robotically, I can feel my muscles contracting, the warmth of blood coursing through my legs.

He caught a glimpse of Elora looking back over her shoulder, at least, her pointed ears had momentarily seemed to skew in perspective.

She isn't slowing down for me., he noticed . Little by little, he'd begun to increase his speed. An imperceptible breeze surged into a steady wind as cool air licked the surface of his forehead. Salem's heartbeat climbed into his ears, urging him forward like a pounding war drum. With a steady breath, his pace quickened.

Elora's form drew nearer, then tore behind him in a blur. By now, his legs were carrying him forward faster than he could control. It feels like -- as if I'm flying -- Muted thuds morphed into sharper clatters as Salem's shoes transitioned from earth to the stony streets of the forested settlement. It took more than a few paces for the exhilarated player to realize that he'd cleared the race's threshold. A ragged exhale released the adrenaline from his legs, gradually allowing him to come to a shaky stop.

Seconds passed before he began to hear his companion's approached.

"JEsUS --", heaved Elora, "D'you run from the cops, or what??"

 

Spoiler

ID: 214585 LD4 Fail (3/5 Materials Found)

Race to Harunka:

ID# 219069 BD: 6

Edited February 19 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"Something like that", the athletic player remarked with a semi-crazed grin.

Elora hadn't expected him to stay hot on her heels, let alone completely bludgeon the competition. Where she'd previously mired in the sting of shame, she now experienced the pangs of admiration. 

"Can't believe you left me in the dust like that --", she stammered to catch her breath, "Practice, my ass -- don't think I've ever seen another player run as fast as you."

The statement elicited an earnest chuckle from Salem who had already begun to dabble a procedural sweat from the arch of his brows.

Knocking caked mud from the canyons of her soles provided a few additional seconds to collect her wits. "Well, don't celebrate yet.", she began, "We'll soon have another victory on our hands. Just a quick scan of the flowerbeds should show us what we need."

A flick of her wrist coaxed him to accompany her. Within a few paces, the pair stopped beside a cobblestone-rimmed garden that laid beside the foundation of a weathered cottage.

"Lots of herbs and berries to be found. Practically the medieval medicine cabinet of whatever clinic is run outta here."

 

Spoiler

Race to Haruka:

ID# 219068 BD: 5

 

Edited March 20 by Elora

[Salem 0]

Salem carefully knelt down to pluck one of the many plants from the interactable flowerbed. Unlike many of his previous attempts, this item promptly left the patch of soil and entered the pockets of his digital inventory. Seems like we just needed to find the correct materials. That, or the system is being a prick and railroading me into "earning" my reward. "What's that? Number four?"

"Yeah, only one more to go.", Elora reassured, "It blows that this has to drag on for so long. At least now you know why I insisted to help."

"You can't even help."

"Well -- obviously, but it's better to have someone to talk to while you meander for hours in search of weeds. And again, to make sure you don't die."

He gave a stifled sigh before saying, "Thanks for looking out for me. It's gotta be a total chore for experienced players to play chaperone."

 

Spoiler

ID: 214586 LD15 Success (4/5 Materials Found)

Edited March 20 by SaIem

[Elora 0]

"Eh, yeah.", she agreed, "It is in some ways and not in others. Honestly, I worry a lot more about new players' emotional states than I do about their physical wellbeing." With arms crossed, she leaned back to rest against the mossy walls of the slanted construction.

"Hearing the news...a lot of people take it pretty hard. Some grow distant, some completely snap." She spared a second to consider him, reassessing his complexion for warning signs. "You never know what someone's gonna do, who they're gonna hurt --"

A shrill series of creaks encouraged her to create some distance between herself and the structure she'd been resting against. "I'm glad to see you'll be fine...you know how to handle yourself."

Salem seemed to grant a nod at that.

She hesitated for a moment, wondering whether or not it was worth sharing how the adjustment had gone for her. No, he has no reason to know how long I spent sulking in that inn. A thought occurred to her. If he'll be returning to the Hummingbard...

Edited March 20 by Elora