[PP-F2 Earning a Living: Performer]

[Mari 1]

Gotcha

Mari was finishing off her bread roll; people watching. The expression on her face growing bored, so far the only thing she was met with was chaos; it would have been exciting if she came across someone who wasn’t screaming or crying. Then, just as though fate had read her mind, he came.

He was taller than her, and his crimson trestles flowed elegantly behind him in the soft breeze. His strong jaw focused ahead, unfaltering saphhire eyes framed by messy bangs of hair. The man had a spear hoisted up and over his shoulder. A ranged fighter.

 He was one of the few people who weren’t crumpled on the ground crying, lamenting his predicament. He looked well travelled, perhaps he had been here longer than her, explored more. Or he could have been one of those Beta Testers. Whatever the case, Mari knew she wanted to use him, there wasn’t much she could do on her own. She needed to gain some sort of profession, or skill set.

Mari pushed herself off the wall, and began to quietly follow him - a small, pale hand reached out to grasp a billowing black trench coat. Mari gave it a light tug, “E-excuse me…” She made sure to put on a timid voice, allowing it to shake, “U-uhm..Sir…I need help.” She tugged again at the darkly robed man. Raising her head to allow her bright blue eyes to stare into his angular face.

“Uhm..p-performer…profession…uh…” She stuttered, glancing away, biting her lower lip, quickly uttering the next sentence in a string of rushed words. “Thatisifyou’renottoobusy”

She wanted to play the part of the confused, innocent girl; and Mari believed she was acting the part flawlessly. She'd gain this profession, play a few lilting tunes to gain some money, and move on from there.

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan was browsing the city, with absolutely nothing to do. He had recently left his studio from doing some recording with a piano, so was just perusing. He found whatever thoughts that preoccupied him though out the window when a small, but mature faced girl approached him. Through his years selling video games to people as a manager, he was starting to pick up the age of people, regardless of their size. She was definitely an adult, though against his age he could not make out. Only a medical expert could say that.

 

He was approached about what just happened to be his exact profession. He unequipped the spear he walked around with generally for being able to walk around easier.

"Most certainly. As one of the Guardians of Aincrad I'll happily help. If you come with me, we can go to my studio on Floor 2. Be aware though, there may be some mobs on the way there, seeing as its on the outskirts of the Floor 2 city. You still up to it?"

He gave an honest smile, one hand relaxed to one side and the other on his hip as he relaxed his weight onto one leg and regarded the woman.

[Mari 1]

She was greeted with a calm, warm smile, Mari returned the smile with a small one of her own. This was almost too easy, and what luck. The man had a studio. The woman wasn’t aware that was a possibility in this game. Wasn’t it a medieval themed game? How could a studio exist in such a place?

He spoke, unfortunately forgetting to introduce himself, or give a name. Rude. Despite the disdain Mari felt for the man she continued to smile sweetly up at him. Blinking her blue orbs, she gave a sigh of relief as he said he’d help. His voice thick with warmth and kindness, the man stated he was part of a guild and their destination was on the second floor of the city. That didn’t bother the girl. The crimson haired youth relaxed his composure. Resting a hand on his hip.

Mari promptly shook her head, cotton candy coloured bob swishing from side to side. “N-no, that’s fine!” She let go of his cloak and clasped her hands over her chest. “T-thank you s-so much Mr- Uh….uhm…” Mari gave a mock pout, “I uh…D-Don’t…name…” She mumbled meekly, lowering her head and kicking at the ground with her foot. With her head still lowered she mumbled her name, “I’m M-Mari…” Mari slowly rose her head to meet his soft gaze, peering up at the man through her fringe. His demeanor was so relaxed, she second guessed her decision, thinking a smarter person would not have given anyone the benefit of the doubt. However, that kindness that he extruded; it was uncommon and she had to concede that whilst it was not one she favored, it was an admirable trait.

“N-Nice to meet you, sir.”

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan chuckled lightly with a smile. "I suppose I did forget myself. A pleasure to meet you Mari, I'm Tristan."

He started walking towards the city teleport, which would lead to the second floor to the city centre there. The city of beginnings was, as per usual, rather busy. A lot of players stayed here and made a living, rather than attempting to conquer floors that could risk their life. Seemed reasonable enough to do as well, he wasn't going to blame them.

 

He noted that while she may or may not be honest with her bashfulness, it was heavily exaggerated in many ways. If she were as skittish as she was playing out to be, she'd running in fear or hiding, not from the get go of starting the game already be wanting to start a profession. Nevertheless, he decided not to make anything of it, which seemed like a waste of time to do so. There was no fear to be had from her, for she was regardless clearly too low level a player to even attempt to PK him.

 

"First time on a teleport may feel slightly nauseous, just so you're aware."

He stepped on the platform, spoke "Floor 2" and they both teleported. Tristan used to the feeling from the flights and boats and long car journeys, but he wasn't sure about his new found comrade on the matter. In any case though, they were teleported to the more block like city of Floor 2, where plains rolled and had mountains in the view. He had a memory of scaling those mountains early in his SAO career.

"You have reached your destination. Now, anything you want to get before we leave the city?"

[Mari 1]

Tristan.

Good, she finally had a name she could put to that calm, friendly face of his.

Tristan lead her to the teleport, his stride confident and powerful. Mari noted that he most definitely had been playing the game longer than she had, or at least – had more experience with similar games. Mari had to quicken her pace to keep up with him. She made light conversation to pry more information out of him.

“S-so I’ve been here a number of days-but haven’t left the city...” Mari began, “But it looks like you’ve left lots of times. Doesn’t that scare you?” She placed emphasis on the word scare, most people were frightened. Perhaps the more stalwart population had already left for higher floors.

Stepping onto the teleport Tristan warned Mari about the nauseous feeling she might encounter. Similar to what she had when she had first logged on no doubt. As soon as her companion had spoken the words, she felt a rush, as though she had fallen through an unseen hole.

Floor 2

The floor quickly caught up with the small framed girl, she faltered, falling off of the pad and onto her knees on the cold, hard ground. That…unfortunately wasn’t an act. Mari felt slightly dizzy and had tripped whilst trying to regain her balance. Her brows furrowed in honest frustration as she puffed out her cheeks, which were turning a rosy blushed colour. Mari balled up her fists and slammed them against the ground. “DAMMIT!  Ow!”

“Huh?”

Mari looked up at Tristan, blinking in confusion, “What would I need before leaving?” It was a frank question. She didn’t think she needed anything. She had a starter weapon. “I don’t have anything to h-heal me..but that shouldn’t be a problem…” Mari trailed off as she pushed herself off the ground, dusting herself off.

“Right?”

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan replied as they were on the pad with "No, not particularly. I've been out and about quite a bit. I'm going to be doing a boss fight later too as a matter of fact on the snowy fourth floor. I'm honestly more anxious about how it will be, seeing as it'll be my first boss fight."

He had already someone lined up to do it with, so he was confident he was up to the task and would complete.

 

When they teleported, he found Mari on a heap on the floor. This happened on his first time, so wasn't quite sure how to react. He decided to go with the gentlemanly route and helped her up, which looked rather odd when he was far taller than her. He also noted she was clearly feistier than she had originally let across with her proclamation of annoyance.

"No you should be fine. You automatically heal slowly after a battle. So as long as you're careful, we should be fine."

He brushed some of her hair aside that was made into a mess from the teleportation, confident she was looking better now.

[Mari 1]

Tristan tried to help her up, but Mari was already on her feet, meticulously dusting herself off – going over her drab attire three times over, ensuring that as she patted herself down no extra dirt shook off. This might be a problem. Mari didn’t like being dirty. She was quite meticulous when it came to her appearance, the woman gave a low grumble as she dusted herself off till she was clean.

Mari froze when she felt the tickle of Tristans’ fingers and the slight warmth of his hand as he lightly brushed her fringe back into place. Hannah had to use all her conscious strength not to push the man away and cuss him out. That was another thing she disliked; people invading her personal space. Instead she gave a slight sound of discomfort, taking a few steps backward. “A-Ah, I’m fine.” She gave him a meek smile.

Mari glanced around, nothing in their immediate surroundings shouted out ‘hey look at me I’m a recording studio in a medieval game!’  She gave a sigh, turning to Tristan. She had hoped that he would take the lead a little more, she didn’t know where the heck she was going. If she was of a higher level, or more experienced she’d probably go off on her own. But Mari being Mari, couldn’t do that right now, and, with the role she was playing she couldn’t simply demand him quicken his pace and take her to where she had to be.

Oh why did Mari choose to attempt the performer profession again?

“So uhm.” Mari began, inching back toward Tristan, wrapping her arms around her waist. “Where do we go err..g-go from here? H-how long do you think this will take?” She bit her lower lip. “Being away from the ah…safe zone is daunting We should uhm…h-hurry.”

Mari paused, then let her tiny waist go, bringing her hands out in front of her as though she just said something insulting, she again, shook her head back and forth and spoke quickly;  â€œonlyifyouwanttothatis!”

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan laughed lightly, his deep british voice resonating, brushing aside a tear. He was never quite sure what exactly she was feeling because of this mask she always had up. In polar opposite, he didn't hide his feelings by any means. He found it simply a pain to do so and was far more honest with himself and the world around him. 

"Just follow me. Over here in the town is actually safer than out there. Let's us not dawdle any longer."

 

Tristan began walking, re-equipping his spear more for general comfort as he walked quite casually to the gate of the town to the outside. He span around half a circle so he faced the girl as he walked. He knew the road so he wasn't about to start walking into anything.

"Also you should be more honest. I can't tell a thing about you because you have more layers of protection or such over you than an onion. It makes it harder for me to tell what you're actually thinking."

 

He spun back around and continued walking, passing the gate to the outside onto a small brick road. They were reaching a cluster of houses and shops, however a group of three boars covered the path towards the shop. It was three of them with 5HP. Great. Boars. I'm starting to get sick of them at this point...

[Mari 1]

Boars
 

 

 

The boars health bars  bounced above their heads;

The first, lifted it’s head and sniffed the air; turning its head toward the two it narrowed it’s beady dark eyes and with a grunt charged toward Mari. 
 

 

• Rolled a 2 on the d10 (mob) dice-combat manoeuvre fails
  
  
  The Boar seemed to trip, loosing its footing just metres from Mari. The boar gave a high pitched squeal as its face hit the ground hard, its frontal charge skidding to a halt just in front of the blossom coloured girl.

 

[Mari 1]

Mari gave a small nod, ignoring his obnoxious laughter. She couldn’t really blame him, if she saw someone sincerely acting the way she was – she’d probably laugh at them too. Silently, Mari followed closely behind, perhaps next time she’d just chance it alone. Death be damned. Tristan gave an off handed comment about how she should be more honest, that he couldn’t tell a thing about her.

Mari scowled at his back, of course – that was the whole darn point of her charade. He was naive, foolish. He was the type of person whose true emotions and intentions were plastered all over his face. Tristan’s attire, his hair – the bone structure of his face – all pointed toward a more serious persona. However, Mari couldn’t judge someone on looks alone.  The scorned look on Mari’s face quickly disappeared as she noticed him turn on his foot to face her, she replaced it with a cautious smile.

Tristan called her an onion. AN ONION  What sort of small talk was that? Did he expect to win some sort of favor? Have her giggle and brush it off as a joke between friends? Oh no. No, no, no. That was not the way Mari did things. She made a mental note to somehow repay him for his remark.

Inwardly fuming Mari gave a light laugh, “I’m just n-nervous. This whole, uh – situation is so…unexpected you know? I’m not sure w-what to think, or how to act.”

 

 

 The two wandered down a brick road, and Mari took this silence as a chance to look around. The two were surrounded by grassy plains, the soft cool breeze alleviating the warmth of the bright sun, Mari took a deep breath. Noting the scent of the grass, “Trapped here huh…” she mumbled to herself, it didn’t seem that bad, to be trapped in such a life-like place. She didn’t understand why so many people were panicked.

 

 

 

Tristan must have stopped, because the next moment, Mari found herself walking into him.

“Omfph!” She stepped away, wrinkling her nose, “Hey!” She was about to ask why he stopped, but her question was answered for her. There were three boars in front of them – blocking their path.

Little red diamonds floated above their head; meaning they were aggressive mobs. At least toward her, and her current level, one charged forward – which shocked Mari. She stepped back, attempting to equip her dagger- the menu interface wasn’t one she had gotten used to.

Mari thought she was going to get hit; she had only just managed to equip the small dagger before the boar was on her, luck was on her side. The girl flinched, shutting her eyes and covering her head – dagger in hand. Fully expecting to be head butted – but she felt nothing, instead, she heard a anguished cry from the monster.

Opening her eyes Mari saw that it had stumbled, landing in a mess in front of her. Mari laughed at the predicament, and at her own cowardly foolishness. She steadied herself in a clumsy battle pose; wanting to strike the boar down.

Rolled a 9 on the d10 (battle) dice. Critical, +1 damage

Mari's actions were clumsy, and she was clearly not suited to battle - but the boar had taken a dive which left it open and vulnerable. "YAH!" Mari cried, thrusting the dagger directly into the boars heard. The boar yelped, grunting. Mari, gripping the dagger tightly was flung to and fro, till the boar shook her off- Mari landed with a thud a few feet away from the monster. She grimaced, landing on her cossack, it hurt. 

Boar -2 HP

It hurt

Mari blinked, rubbing her lower back with her free hand - she sat on the grass, shoes scuffed, hair askew and she was in mild discomfort. This was all real, not just the smells, nor the tickle of the spring air, but the pain, the exhaustion. Mari grinned. Oh how exciting this was.



 

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan wasted no time. He got in an all too familiar stance with and over handed grip on the spear, then let it fire out towards the boar which had been cut by Mari. After all, they should finish them off so that they had less boars to deal with.

[Rolled a 5 on the d10 (battle) dice. 4 damage]

The spear dug straight through the boar, then it disintegrated into pixels. He didn't leave time to rejoice though and instead put himself in a position in front of Mari, so that he would take the brunt of the boars instead.

After all, he did say he would help her. To do this much seemed only reasonable.

Tristan 15/15

Mari 9/9

Boar 1 DEAD

Boar 2 5/5

Boar 3 5/5

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Boars:

The second boar charged forward in retaliation to having a fallen comrade. It was pissed and they ran in a straight line towards Tristan.

Seeing as the way he was positioned, he was the only one hit and he took the brunt of the blow.

[Rolled a 9 on the d10 (battle) dice.]

The boars tusk did a cut alongside his leg, then ran back around to join the other boar. Tristan did not phase at all though, his stance stalwart and ready to deal with them.

Tristan 15/17

Mari 9/9

Boar 1 DEAD

Boar 2 5/5

Boar 3 5/5

[Mari 1]

BOAR 

 

 

Boar 3; dust shot from the other boars wrinkled snout. It opened it's mouth in a mighty roar; spittle dripping from decaying teeth. The boar dipped its head, kicking off and running around in a semi circle till it was behind Mari, who had turned around to face her adversary. The boar scratched the ground with its dirtied hoof before dipping its head for a charge.

 

Rolled a 6 on the d10 (mob) dice. Success
 

Charging, it aimed for Mari - who attempted to doge the attack; she avoided the tusks however the hard skull of the beast hit her directly in the chest. Causing damage. The boar grunted, taking a few steps back readying itself for another charge.


Mari 8/9 HP

[Mari 1]

The girl pushed herself up off the floor, wiping her dirtied hands onto her clothes. Mari had to admit she was mildly surprised when Tristan, quick to act, made a human barricade using himself as some sort of living shield. She rose an eyebrow, skeptical of his noble actions and appearance. Tristan made short work of the boar that Mari had already managed to damage – it exploded in a shower of pixels, ceasing to exist. It’s brethren became angered at the loss of their kin. One rushed Tristan, grazing his leg with its tusk. The other trotted around, till it was behind Mari.

The girl turned on her heel, she’d rather have her back to the boar than to another human; but she figured he would be busy with the second boar- he had placed himself in the line of danger for her sake, so it seemed counter intuitive for him to attempt to attack her from behind.

 

The boar charged, Mari was hoping luck was on her side again, and that the stupid beast would topple over just as the first had. Sadly, that wasn’t the case, her blue eyes widened as she stared at the grunting, salivating beast – it’s sharp tusks aimed straight for her torso. Mari stepped to the side, avoiding the ivory weapons but the beasts skull still collided with her. Mari felt as though the wind was being knocked out of her, she gasped as she stepped back – clutching her chest. Mari gasped for air, lower lip quivering from the shock of being hit with such brute force. This was something she'd have to get used to, Mari almost enjoyed it. She gulped, straightening and tightening her hold on the tiny Dagger she held. 

It was painful

It was dirty

But oh was it exciting, it was fun

She almost didn't want it to end.

Mari kicked off, charging toward the boar, dagger held close to her body to gain a precise strike. 
 

Rolled a 7 on the d10 (battle) dice. Success

Success!

The boar screeched, she didn't deal a lot of damage, a disappointing single HP hit; but it was something, and if anything it meant the battle would go longer.
 

 

 

 

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan took the blow, but failed to notice the other boar, which charged around to Mari. Cursing to himself for his lack of vision on it, hae went for the boar that was struck.

It was a simple stab which he timed to their run, so as to intercept them.

[Rolled a 5 on the d10 (battle) dice. 4 damage]

It was a success too, the spear blade ramming straight into the surprised look of a boar. However the visage disappeared as soon as it noticed the spear, the face exploding into smithereens of pixels.

Tristan readied himself to be engaged by the boar.

Tristan 15/17

Mari 8/9

Boar 1 DEAD

Boar 2 DEAD

Boar 3 5/5

[Mari 1]

BOAR

 

 

 

There was one left, one unimpressed lone, beady eyed boar. It wildly shook its head, stomping the ground with its hooves as it wandered back and forth in front of Tristan and Mari. A engorged grey tongue lolled out of the side of its mouth. Messily flicking up into its flared nostrils before darting back. 

Rolled a 7 on the d10 (mob) dice: SUCCESS!

Finally deciding on a target; the boar screeched, charging toward Tristan with its mouth open wide, gobs of saliva dripping from its gaping maw. 

[Mari 1]

Mari felt frustrated, watching Tristan take down the boar she was fighting; that was the second time he had taken her enemy – landing the final blow. Mari wasn’t sure if those who landed the final blow got any sort of bonus experience or special loot drops. Perhaps that was why he teamed up with her, and chose to play the part of the ‘hero’

That’s it, she had it. She wasn’t going to bother attempting to attack the second boar- it still had full HP, and if she did Tristan would just get the final kill again. Mari contemplated crossing her arms and sitting down in a huff – however right now she was playing the part of a meek, timid girl. Mari stepped behind Tristan, this time using him as the shield he so foolishly made himself out to be. Let him get hit, let him make the first strike; if Mari was lucky she may be able to get the final blow – worst case scenario – Tristan would kill it in one hit, and they’d simply be on their way.

The quicker she could obtain her profession, the quicker she could shake the male and be on her own, quiet, merry way.

 

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan had the monster charge straight at him and land into his same leg, as though they really hated his left leg. He wasn't quite sure why, but he didn't ponder on it. Now was not the time to.

Instead he counter-attacked by having his spear thrust forward into the boar, straight at the legs to stop its movement.

[Rolled a 10 on the d10 (battle) dice. 6 Damage]

The boar however was instantly killed, which Tristan was not expecting. He let out a large breath of relief, the battle over. He didn't expect to get hurt, but that didn't matter.

 

He turned around to Mari with a genuinely concerned face. "Are you okay?! You were hit earlier."

While Mari would receive loot, he was too high levelled to be eligible for it, however he went into the battle knowing this.

[Mari 1]

Well…

Tristan managed to kill the filthy beast with a single blow. Mari rolled her eyes with a soft sigh. What a bother, at least they could be on their way. She put the dagger away and started to meticulously brush down her clothes in an attempt to dishevel the dirt and dust that had settled on her pastel form. Mari muttered under her breath as she concentrated on the task at hand, not noticing that Tristan had turned to face her. She glanced up when she heard him speak; asking if she was ok.

The small-framed girl glanced up at him, his emerald eyes focused on her movement, his thin brows furrowed in concern. Genuine concern. Mari gave him a small smile, as she straightened out the skirt she wore. “Yes- I’m ok…” She began, “I was hit…and…” She paused biting her lower lip as her gaze fell downward. “It did hurt…it was a shock, I guess. I mean…I know we’re trapped here, but I didn’t think about how realistic it all would be.” She looked  back up to him. “It was a little scary! B-but I think I did well?”

She spoke in half truths, she was shocked that the pain had been so realistic, but she wasn’t scared, the fight earlier had excited her – it was so interesting seeing what this world had to offer.

“You were really brave, thank you!” Mari added with a delighted tone. Of course, what she said rarely was what she thought, she didn’t think he was brave, she thought he was foolish, brash. Frustrating, but right now, she couldn’t say such things. The man seemed to be naïve, and kind, she was going to use that to her advantage.

[Tristan Delaney 0]

Tristan chuckled awkwardly. "I don't feel I deserve the praise, since you were still hurt. Besides, unlike you, I'm too high levelled to get anything from killing them. On the other hand, you'll actually get loot from this."

Tristan scratched his leg, which was now healing again now they were out of combat.

"Well after you have your loot, let's be off."