[F5|PP]<<The Traveler>> Coarse, rough and it gets everywhere

[Scarlet Firefly 0]

Firefly pulled her hooded shawl over her head and made sure it was tightened down enough that a gust of wind wouldn’t slide it back. She then knelt down to Myst to make sure her tiny shawl was on tight enough to keep her safe from the kicked up sand. Seeing the discomfort in her new companion, she’d decide to pick the feline up and carry her under her robes.

Soon, Star and her would convene near the quest start location. She was actually excited to be going on another quest with him, but all this sand was harshing the vibe pretty quickly. “Guh. Sand is awful, I hate it.” The girl would complain, her familiar giving a meow in agreement its tiny head poking out to observe Morningstar. “Perhaps there are some places I don’t really want to explore too much.” It hurt to admit because she wanted to see as much as she could before all went dark again.

”So, a quest to do. Lets get this done with before my shoes are filled with more sand.”

---

Scarlet Firefly | HP: 69/69 | EN: 24/24 | DMG: 9 | MIT:6 | ACC:3 | EVA:2

Spoiler

Name: Scarlet Firefly, The Blinded Light True Tier: 1

Level: 3

Paragon Level: 0

HP: 69/69

EN: 24/24

 

Stats:

Damage: 9

Mitigation: 6

Accuracy: 3

Evasion: 2

 

Equipped Gear:

Weapon/Armor/Trinket:

- Butterfly Cross-Blade - T1 Str. Sword | DMG III

Armor/Trinket:

- Emerald Cape - Tier 1 Light Armor Perfect | EVA II; MIT

Shield/Armor/Trinket:

- basalt - T1 Trinket Perfect | ACC III

 

Combat Mastery:

-

 

Combat Shift:

-

 

Familiar Skill:

-

 

Custom Skill:

-

 

Skills:

- Straight Sword R3

 

Extra Skills:

 

Inactive Extra Skills:

 

Addons:

 

Mods:

 

Inactive Mods:

 

Battle Ready Inventory:

- Starter Healing Potion x3

 

Housing Buffs:

 

Guild Hall Buffs:

 

Scents of the Wild Totem:

 

Wedding Ring:

 

Crafting Profession:

 

Gathering Profession:

 

Edited January 15 by Scarlet Firefly

[Morningstar 0]

It wasn't as bad as Floor 9, but Morningstar wasn't a fan of 5 either. Floor 4 was a winter paradise, so of course the designers would follow it up with the driest desert imaginable. The worst part wasn't the heat. It was the memories. He didn't mind helping a friend, no matter the quest they needed doing, but Firefly had picked the Traveler. To detest it was warranted.

When he found his guildmate, he feigned pleasure. "A walk in the desert will be nice," he said. How he had made it as an actor was beyond him; he was far too pleased to be slick with sweat and chugging back flasks of water as if he'd die without them.

This quest was trickier than their last one. It wasn't because the enemies were stronger or more difficult to play around, but because of the sandstorm. Escort quests were tough on the best of days. Inside the meteorological phenomenon, maintaining control was impossible. Things happened, and sometimes they weren't preventable.

Other times, they were. He had lost people during a Traveler run. He didn't intend to repeat that here today.

"Just a joke," he said. "Walks in the desert are never nice. If you're ready, let's go find Zamek."

| MORNINGSTAR  | Lv. 74 >> P. 40, Lv. 34  | Status: [ // ]  Notes:  Assisted | Tier reduced from 4 -> 1

Hide contents Morningstar | HP: 860/860 | EN: 105/105 | DMG: 13 | EVA: 4 | ACC: 5 | BH: 47 | LD: 6 | REC: 2 | FLN: 4 | AA | PARA-V equipped Dying Sun FLN II, AA, PAR VEN Inner Focus EVA II, REC II Sapphire ACC III, EVA I battle-ready inventory Magdalyn's Cuckoo skills   Hide contents mod count: 4/5 STRAIGHT SWORD | RANK 5/5 precision, stamina, ferocity shift: tech MARTIAL ARTS | RANK 5/5 precision shift: aoe COMBAT MASTERY: DMG | RANK 3/3 SEARCHING | RANK 4/5 (5) night vision, detect, tracking, reveal BATTLE HEALING | RANK 5/5 UNHINDERED ENERGIST CHARGE extra (active) SURVIVAL FORGOTTEN KING'S AUTHORITY LADY LUCK DISGUISE data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== buffs   Hide contents statue # consumables Dear My Friend x5 | Instant HP III # paragon Lv. 5 | Gain additional col equivalent to 15% of EXP earned in that thread. Lv. 10 | +1 LD to looting. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== sword arts   Hide contents en cost matches multiplier unless stated otherwise. shift underlined. ST | x12 -> x15 | x20 AOE | x15 -> x18 | MA TECH-A | x16 | STUN | 13EN | SS TECH-B | x16 | DELAY | SS TECH-D | x16 | SHATTER | SS TECH-F | x12 | AOE STUN | SS TECH-G | x16 | BURN | SS data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== misc/housing buffs   Hide contents Dimensional Backpack | +2 Battle-Ready Inventory Slots. Well Rested | -1 energy cost for the first three expenditures of each combat. Squeaky Clean | The first time you would suffer DoT damage in a thread, reduce damage taken from DoT each turn by 25% (rounded down). Filling | Increase the effectiveness of a single food item consumed in a thread by +1 T1 slot. This can exceed normal Cook enhancement caps. Ex: A perfect T2 MIT food gives 35 MIT instead of 30. Tasty | Turn 2 identical food items (same quality, tier, & enhancements) into a Lesser Feast. A Lesser Feast contains 4 portions of the food items sacrificed. Lesser Feasts created this way cannot be used outside of the thread they are created. Limit 1 item created per thread. Relaxed | Increases out-of-combat HP regen by (5 * Tier HP) and decreases full energy regen to 2 Out of Combat Posts. Multipurpose | Gain +1 to LD, Stealth Rating, Stealth Detection, or Prosperity to one post in a thread. Can be applied after a roll. Skylight (Searching) | +1 Expertise to declared utility skill.  fishing # data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==   data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAPABAP///wAAACH5BAEKAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw==

 

[Scarlet Firefly 0]

Firefly ensured to protect her new friend’s eyes from the dust winds the best she could, ultimately deciding to keep the critter covered in her hooded shawl. Thankfully the little critter was small enough to sit on her shoulder without much problem. Morningstar would also comment on the harshness of the weather annoying him. “Yeah, the beauties of Aincrad are vast and not entirely wasted to this desert… but not my favorite of beauties to uncover.” She would re-solidify before following behind him.

Zamek, the elderly quest giver, approached them the moment they got close. He obviously noticed they were a cut above the rest, not that Firefly would use that phrasing to describe herself. “Would you please help me? I need to reach a chest buried by some rocks whose contents are special to me. Would you mind escorting me there?”

The newbies face lit up. Helping people with jobs like this was at least one of her favorite jobs as a player so far. Perhaps that would outweigh the annoyance of sand. “We would be glad to sir! You’ll be safe with us for sure.” She smiled to the NPC. She knew they were just a digital copy of a human being, but that went out the window when she spoke to them. Who’s to say they aren’t real to the players if they’re what help bring the world to life. Also she typically just forgets.

[Morningstar 0]

He wasn't surprised that Zamek hadn't recognized him. The man was old. Not only that, but he was a quest NPC. They tended to forget things, especially related to the quest they were bound to. It was a topic that interested him greatly--the learnedness of some NPCs while others stayed stagnant. Many things within the game seemed to evolve and change with each passing day, but Zamek was a relic that seemed to sit outside of time. He traveled through the desert to find his hidden treasure over and over again, never wavering from his path.

It was almost endearing, actually. As odd as it sounds, Morningstar appreciated that there was some consistency in the world. The further up the castle they went, the harder things became--not only on the top floors, but at the bottom as well. They weren't plentiful, but strong enemies were appearing on lower floors more frequently.

Star nodded, agreeing to help alongside Firefly. Zamek led the pair along a path he had taken a thousand times.

In the desert, it was hard to think. His brain was foggy, weighed down by the burning weather of the biome. What thoughts did pop into his head were along the lines of "how much further?" and "sandworm?". He didn't particularly like sandworms.

He dreaded what Firefly was going through. Even with survival, it was difficult for him to travel under these conditions. For her, everything would have been double.

"I have water, if you need any," he offered.