[PP - F5] Sayonara, Sahara! (Lessa!) [COMPLETE]

[Takao 0]

“Floor Five!â€

 

A bright flash of light engulfed him, and as the effects settled, he was gone. He left the first floor behind him and, as his eyes opened, examined the fifth floor. It was a bit out of the way for somebody of his level, but the quest he'd overheard some players talking about seemed like a good, easy way to earn some experience.

 

“So, all I've gotta do is just walk through a desert and find some loot, huh? Sounds like eaaaasy experience!†Takao said with a slight sing-song tone to his voice. He glanced down to his side and smiled at the sword that rested in the scabbard. The Impravidor, his sword in both name and design, and to a lesser extent in creation as well. He had a hand in it, after all!  Takao shifted his attention back to the fifth floor as he stepped down from the teleportation pad. There weren't very many players around, and already he could tell why. The heat coming off the virtual sun was dreadful. He definitely felt like he was in a desert already, and he couldn't wait to bail out and head to nicer pastures once this quest was done.

 

“Sooo... I'm looking for an NPC in a cloak, huh...†He clicked his tongue and repeated the word “cloak†a few times under his breath. With no such being in the area fitting the vague description, he huffed out a breath and headed into the town. “They'll have to be around here somewhere. Maybe in a tavern or something...â€

[Lessa 1]

"Help me, please."

Lessa's heart plummeted, the pounding in her ears growing impossibly loud. Slowly, she turned to face the source of the plea. The relief that washed over her upon learning it was only an NPC was immense. No one else will die today.

The elderly woman was draped in rough fabric that resembled burlap. Her entire body was covered in this strange cloak, save for her leathery face. Deep wrinkles crisscrossed her troubled brow as she peered up at the blonde. "Please," she continued, her voice and body trembling in unison despite the level's hot sun. "I'm very sick."

With tired eyes, Lessa regarded the questgiver. "What do you need me to do?"

Her response, it seemed, satisfied the old lady. A weak smile curled the corners of her chapped lips as she replied, "find my cargo. It was lost in the desert, but I'm too weak to retrieve it."

You have no time for such trivial quests, reminded a voice in the back of her mind. But the look of desperation in the NPC's dark eyes pained her, and she struggled to tear away her gaze.

"Will you help me?"

"I'll try." But what good is it? She rarely engaged in questing, as they were often below her ability level. Half-heartedly, she turned to scan her surroundings, hoping to find a player who may benefit from the woman's offer. She was startled to find another player only a few yards off.

"Hey," Lessa called, instinctively holding up her hands to show she meant no harm. When the man glanced her way, she added, "would you be interested in taking this quest with me?"

[Takao 0]

Takao rubbed the back of his head as he scoured the desert city of Armadillo, watchful eyes scanning each corner diligently in search of one quest giver in particular. His efforts had not bore fruit yet, but he was a long ways from just giving up. At any rate, he could go and grind away in the desert for a while if finding the quest didn't work out.

 

“Hey,â€

 

He heard a voice from behind him and turned to glance over his shoulder. When his eyes settled upon the two women, he noted that one was clothed in fabric that fit the vague description he'd been going off. Takao's gaze shifted to Lessa as she addressed him.

 

“would you be interested in taking this quest with me?â€

 

“Huh?†He pivoted on his heel and approached the two. As he neared, he noticed the iron floating above the NPC's head that designated it as such. He glanced back to Lessa and offered her a friendly smile.

 

“Sure! I think this is the quest I've been looking for, actually. Overheard some guys talkin' about it on a lower floor.â€

[Lessa 1]

His broad, easy smile caused her breath to catch, but she recovered quickly. Few players moved through the game with such a graceful innocence. In fact, she struggled to recall the last person who had offered her such a genuine smile. For a fleeting moment, she found herself reflecting on the way she had carried herself upon entering Aincrad. She had been a very, very different person then. Time and experience had warped her into a woman who would beat the death game, and not simply a girl who would be lucky to coast through.

Still, the eagerness that was painted across his face was hard to ignore. A smile of her own blossomed, and though it was not nearly as large, it felt unusual and strangely forced. "You're ahead of me then," she informed him as he slowed to a halt at her hip. "I had never heard of this quest. Stumbled upon it accidentally. Glad you were here to take it with me, or else I'd feel a bit bad about the whole thing."

She made quick work of accepting the quest prompt, and shooting her new partner a party request. "My name is Lessa, by the way."

[Takao 0]

He glanced over her once and noted her equipment before changing his attention to settle on the NPC. He maintained a small smile as he read through the quest window that appeared in front of him, though it wasn't directed at the information he perused. It seemed very simple and very straight forward; some precious cargo was in need of acquisitioning. He finished reading and accepted the quest, then looked back up at Lessa and studied her expression. He was eager to get started on the expedition, but her countenance brought him to a momentary pause.

 

Takao was well aware of how strange his behaviour seemed to most sane people. Most often he was seen as immature, unable to fully grasp the treacherous and potential fatality of the situation at hand, but he did. As he saw it, sulking about wouldn't bring them any closer to getting out. He had the choice to be either depressed and sad or upbeat and positive, so he chose the latter. Takao hadn't mentally placed her into that group just yet, not yet under the impression that she had arrived at that opinion just yet. The thoughts were shaken from his head as the party invitation appeared before him. He accepted it without hesitation.

 

"Sounds like it's all workin' out in our favour then!" His eyes navigated their way up to the top left side of the screen and read her name just as she said it herself. "I'm Takao. Nice t'meetcha'!"

 

He swiped open the menu and gave the map a quick glance, exhaling a soft whistle when he realized how far they'd have to go. "Looks like we've got a long walk ahead of us."

[Lessa 1]

The blonde glanced over Takao's shoulder at the map, and came to the same realization as he mentioned the long walk. Inhaling sharply, she fought to surpress her disappointment. The fifth floor was one of her least favorites, and she did her best to avoid it when she could; she had only been there that morning to visit a couple of shops in Armadillo. She was incredibly sensitive to the heat. It zapped all of her energy, and made her sweaty and irritable. But another look at the boy's excited expresison reminded her to keep her disapproval in check.

"Alright," she replied with a small nod. "I guess we should get moving then. I'd hate to be stuck out there when it gets dark." She began to walk, and the crunch of sand underfood let her know that Takao was following close behind. For few moments, they walked in silence. Though it was not uncomfortalble, Lessa found herself lost in thought regarding her new companion. Every glance that she chanced his way revealed that his excitement had not waned. It intrigued her.

She spoke suddenly. "So, what have you been up to?" It was a casual question, and one that did not seem quite appropriate considering the dangers that lurked around them, but it was the first thing that came to her mind.

[Takao 0]

Takao looked up from the map as his new traveling companion started walking and started following behind her. The gump still hovered in front of him as he checked various other parts of the town that were marked. The teleport pad and some points of interest, mostly shops, were given icons while various other buildings were unmarked. When he finally closed the map and paid more attention to where he was going, the sight of a vast expanse of desert laid before him. The mountains in the distance looked massive even from a distance, the flat plains were broken up by dunes of sand, and the entire excursion seemed like it would be rather miserable. Well, it didn't seem that way to Takao, not exactly.

 

“Oh, y'know, the usual low level MMO stuff. Questin', grindin', and gearin' up.†The friendly nature of the question didn't phase him in the slightest. He gave his collar a tug and glanced down at the shirt he was wearing. He rolled his shoulders to feel the blade that rested on his back. However simple they might've been, they were the fruits of his labour thus far.

 

“What about you? I mean, you seem pretty tough, so you probably get to see all the cool places, huh?â€

[Lessa 1]

"Cool places," she echoed, thinking over exactly what that included. Sure, she had done quite a few amazing things since putting on the nerve gear a year ago. "I mean, I guess I have." The long, bowing grasses of the High Fields of Crossing. The shimmering constellations of Starglade. The endless blanket of milky-yellow dandelions outside of Delilah Village. She shrugged before allowing her mind to wander any further. "But really, at the end of the day, my mission is the same as yours. Work harder, become stronger. Make sure those around me are doing the same, assuming they're among those who want to leave the safe zones." Raking a hand through her sweat-slicked blonde hair, Lessa added, "I don't mind if people wish to stay where it is safest. I can't blame them for that. But if they do decide to come out here, they need to make sure that they're prepared." With a small sliver of a smile, she added wistfully, "I suppose I've made it my duty to see to that over the past few months."

The desert seemed to stretch before them forever, endless and barren, one of the most unpleasant scenes she had laid her sights on since entering SAO. Far off, great mountains loomed, dark, hazy beings that did not seem quite real. Save for those landforms, there was nothing else to break up the monotony. Lessa, a girl who preferred trees and hills, felt utterly exposed.

But the last thing that she wished to do was reveal her thoughts to Takao, as it may make him regret questing with her. So, instead, she continued along the same topic they had discussed before. "What about you? Where do you see yourself ending up?"

[Takao 0]

Emerald hued eyes stole a sidelong glance at her as she spoke. From his quick look he'd come to the conclusion that she was thinking; perhaps reminiscing about places she'd been as a result of his question. Or maybe the memories weren't so fond, it was hard to tell from a single glance. He turned his gaze forward. His expression had eased away from smiling but maintained a positive air, as was the norm for him. She didn't explain much in the way of what exactly she'd seen, but Takao wouldn't fault her for that either. He listened in silence on his part as she began to speak at length, and a small smile returned to his face. At the very least, he imagined her speaking meant he hadn't dug up any unpleasant memories.

 

"That's very noble of you," he said, his words laced with sincerity. "I haven't met many players that pay attention to others. Outside of their own circles, I mean. Wish I'd of had you around when I was getting my butt kicked by boars." A light chuckle escaped as he exhaled, recollecting the rather unpleasantly close call when he'd first started. As the two progressed further into the desert, the increase of wind had become apparent. It wasn't very noticeable, but the open area provided little to nothing in the way of protection. Takao imagined it might eventually become an issue.

 

"Well, once we all get out of here, I'm thinking about getting into hardware development." He always did that sort of thing, prefacing those kinds of questions to reaffirm both his own hope and the hope of others that they would eventually free themselves. A little motivation never hurt, after all. "But for now, I think I'm going to work on going to the front lines. I bet they could always use a hand up there."

 

 

(Figured we've gone far enough into the desert to start doing those crafting rolls.)

»ID: [23230]

»CD: [7]

 

«Takao»

» [[HP : 17/17]]

[Lessa 1]

Slowly, the girl expelled the air that she had inhaled at his mention of joining the front lines. It was irrational of her to grow so concerned when other players mentioned the assault team, and it was detrimental to encourage them to reconsider. The front lines needed all the help that they could get, and she would be doing the entire cause a great disservice by stealing their young blood. Furthermore, she could not fault players for dreaming of helping to clear the floors and beat this game. As she thought of Takao, she was again reminded of her own naive dreams. I'm a damned hypocrite.

"Front lines, huh?" Lessa replied. "That's definitely something." She turned to him long enough to offer a small, encouraging smile. Then she faced forward once again. "Keep training hard, and you'll get there, I'm sure." She hesitated, before adding in a tone slightly softer than before, "I'm sure that they could use some of your positivity up there."

The further into the desert the pair ventured, the harder the wind began to blow. Razer-sharp shards of sand swirled about their feet, and occasionally buffeted their exposed skin. To keep her mind off the changing weather, she prompted her companion once again. "Hardware development sounds interesting."

{[23239] CD: 3}

[Takao 0]

The winds were present but still steady and weak, not yet reaching the point that they would become an issue. Truthfully, even if they did pick up to unbearable speeds, there would be no place to take shelter. He glanced around and found that they were still in the middle of a flat expanse, and from the looks of it, they would be for a while. Takao's attention settled back on their destination, or rather, the direction of their destination. He was sure they wouldn't be seeing their actual destination for a while. He cast a sidelong glance at Lessa as he stretched his arms out and placed his hands with fingers interlocked behind his head.

 

“Yeah... It's still a pretty big decision to make, y'know? I'm a good ways off from it, so I might end up changing my mind at some point.†Takao fell silent shortly after speaking. Why had he mentioned the front lines anyway? It wasn't something he thought about... well, ever. It was better than admitting he hadn't the slightest clue what he was doing at least. It wasn't necessarily a lie either, he'd certainly work on progressing at the same rate regardless. It was just the destination that was a bit hazy. After Takao felt that the silence had gone on for too long, he looked her way.

 

“So, how about you?†His arms dropped back down to his sides, swaying back and forth with each step he took. “I mean, you don't have to say if you don't want to. I know a lot of people don't like talking about their lives offline, which is totally cool with me.â€

 

»ID: [23258]

»CD: [10]

 

«Takao»

» [[HP : 17/17]]

[Lessa 1]

She lifted a single eyebrow at his question. Takao did not wish to know about her time on the front line, how much damage she was capable of, or what had happened to her friends six months ago. No, he was interested in her life before Sword Art Online. When was the last time someone had asked me about that?

"No," she answered, "it's fine. I've never had a problem talking about what I have waiting for me back home." An expression of nostalgia painted her features as she added, "actually, I really enjoy it. Helps me remember what I'm fighting for. Sometimes, when I have nothing else to go off of, it's the only motivation I have." Lessa wondered if Takao knew what it was like to have no source of strength except for what he could muster from deep within. No friends, no guild, no other purpose. She hoped he would never have to.

"I'm from Michigan. I know that not too many Americans made it into the game, but I bought a bootleg copy online so that I could play before my brothers did." The foolishness of the whole ordeal made her laugh softly. "Since I'm the only girl, and I have three brothers, I ended up pretty competitive. Anyway, I live with my parents, and I'm saving up money to buy my own apartment. I also work at a local school, teaching middle school history." As the memories flooded back, she commented suddenly, "I have a lot to get back to."

{[23259] CD: 6}

[Takao 0]

The corner of his pursed mouth pulled to one side when he noticed her raised eyebrow. He didn't have any doubts that it was an unusual question, most people preferred to keep their offline lives private. It was a perfectly acceptable decision that Takao had no problem with, but getting to know a person on a personal level was just one of his preferred methods of interaction. After all, people could only bond so much over numbers and statistics. The nostalgic look on her face reassured him that he hadn't pressed a matter he shouldn't have.

 

“Michigan, hm...†His jaw set as he tried to remember where exactly Michigan was on a map. He'd never really paid too much attention to Geography. “You know, you're right actually. You're the first American I've met so far.†He was rather surprised that she had managed to get a bootleg copy of the game, but with how big of a milestone Sword Art Online was in the world of gaming, the surprise didn't last for very long. “Three brothers, huh? I bet that must be tough.†Despite being the younger sibling of his family, he recalled the unrelenting goading his sister had been subjected to by his own doing.

 

“You're a teacher then? That's cool! I mean, I have to admit that history isn't really one of my favourite subjects, but still.†He chuckled lightly and hooked his thumbs around the belt loops of his pants. “I live in Japan. Osaka to be specific, the city part.†Living in the second largest city by population meant that it was quite the tourist destination, which also meant that his English wasn't half bad. “I don't have much else goin' on besides school. Well, besides the whole death game deal.†The last part was added lightheartedly in a joking tone.

 

»ID: [23260]

»CD: [5]

 

«Takao»

» [[HP : 17/17]]

[Lessa 1]

Her smile grew. "It was very hard, yeah. I don't think that a day went by that I wasn't being picked on for one thing or another. It didn't help that they were triplets, so I was even more of the odd one out." But the lightness of her tone revealed that she was not especially bothered by the way her siblings had treated her. To further emphasize the point, she added, "I really think hanging around with them made me a stronger person." This time, she let loose a soft peel of laughter at an old memory. "If I can handle their relentless teasing after my first date, I can handle anything. Though, of course, I can't really blame them for the teasing. I did come home in tears, and covered in cocktail sauce."

"And don't worry about not liking history much. With the way it is taught these days, most people don't." Her blue eyes shimmered as she turned to him, clearly finding joy in the topic she had so much passion for. "It's hard enough to get kids to care about a bunch of old, dead guys. Forcing them to memorize and regurgitate dates and names isn't going to make them hate history any less. It's a real shame, actually. There is such a huge movement for differentiation in instruction, and helping students learn in whatever way works best for them, but then we fall back on standardized tests and multiple choice questions to assess what they've learned. It's ridiculous."

Immediately, it dawned on her what had slipped from her mouth. "Whoa," she muttered sheepishly, cheeks growing even redder beneath the unforgiving floor five sun. "Sorry about that. I get a bit riled up sometimes, and I guess it has just been too long since I've had a good rant." She took a deep breath before asking, "are you in any clubs or sports at school?"

{[23353] CD: 12 (Dang, I should have been crafting something!)}

[Takao 0]

Takao fell into a comfortable silence as she started speaking. He nodded along and smiled to make it clear that he was listening. He didn't seem to mind her talking at length in the slightest. His hand wiped his face of the sweat that had accumulated, and his gaze lingered on the glove. The depth of Sword Art Online truly knew no bounds. Personally, Takao was more accustomed to humidity than he was dry heat, but he wasn't finding it unbearable.

 

"Maybe that's what my problem with it was? But then again, I rather liked my math courses, and that's just memorizing formulas and such." He glanced over her expression, noticing the joy that came from her passion on the subject. "I guess I must not have had a very good teacher." He turned his gaze to the sky. The day was droning on, and they still had quite a way to go. Oh well, he thought, that just left more time for the two to get to know each other. He chuckled lightly and waved his hand when she apologized. "No worries. I like hearing about a person's passions. Makes me a bit envious, y'know? I haven't found that thing that I'm passionate yet." Not the full truth, but again, not quite a lie either. He had his passions, but they weren't exactly things he could capitalize on. They were better left as hobbies, which was a nicely relevant segue to her question.

 

"I was in a HEMA club for a while, I liked it too. Western martial arts really aren't that big in Japan though." A small frown appeared on his face at the thought. He was born on the wrong side of the world to fuel his interests easily, but that didn't stop him. "My friend had a dojo that we practiced in after, so it wasn't all bad when the club was dissolved. But hey, I've got the best place to practice now!" His smile returned as he held his arms out, gesturing to the expansive desert before them, though his gesture was aimed more toward the entirety of Aincrad.

 

"Say, what made you want to start teaching?"

[Lessa 1]

"Passions can be funny things," she replied with a gentle smile. "Sometimes, they can linger for your entire life, the way my passion for teaching has. I aways wanted to be a teacher, from the time I was very little. I used to set up a little classroom in my basement, and teach my younger cousins their numbers, and how to draw in the lines. But other times, passions can come into your life later, catching you off-guard, and consuming all of your time and your energy. And then the passion can just disappear, and you'll wonder why you spent so much of your life on that thing" or that person "anyway." She reached back to scratch her head; her skin was growing more irritated by the swirling sand, and as it clung to her hair, it only got worse.

"I was that way about writing for a while," she continued, looking out over the vast desert as the memories played out before her. "I decided I wanted to write a historical fiction novel about the Titanic. I spent all of my time planning my story, researching, finding old photographs..." She grinned. "And then the urge just disappeared. I just wasn't as passionate about it as I used to be, and that's why I have a very detailed outline and three pages of a novel hidden in my desk back home."

She glanced over to make sure that he was still with her, and that she had not lost his attention during her verbose lecture. "Long story short," she concluded, "don't stress about not having a passion. It will come, and when it does, it will be a good one. Better than my half-assed attempt at becoming a published author, I'm sure."

Realizing she had all but answered his question about teaching, she decided to return to the matter of his hobbies. "HEMA, huh?" Though she would never admit it to the boy, Lessa had no idea what that entailed. Her school had been a very small one, and it certainly had not had a HEMA club. But the context, at least, gave her some idea. "I was never much of a martial arts girl. Sort of wish I had been, though. Probably would have helped me a lot here in-game."

{[23492] CD: 1. Lessa loses one point of health.}

Lessa: 57/58

[Takao 0]

She had his undivided attention as she spoke, his interest clearly piqued by the subject and his face was showing it. “I've had those ones, the ones that just kinda fade away after a while. When I was a bit younger I wanted to learn to play the guitar, even managed to convince my parents to get one me one. I think I've played it maybe... three, four times in my entire life?†A soft laugh escaped as he remembered the feeling. “I was really just interested in the end result, I think. It's kind of funny to think about now. Sitting down and playing it for hours on end seemed like the worst thing in the world, I'd always get frustrated when I couldn't get the notes right.â€

 

A fleeting pause allowed him to take a breath. “But when I was in the club, I'd sit there and spar for hours on end. It didn't matter how many times I got knocked around.†He cast a sidelong glance to her that lasted a moment, then went back to watching where they were going. The dunes that seemed so far away earlier had suddenly gotten much closer. “Y'know, I haven't read anything you've written so I'm a tad biased, but I definitely think you'd make for a better teacher.†A sincere smile followed his words.

 

The topic shifted to hobbies again and he laughed. “You'd think it would, but it's so much different here. The practice with footwork definitely helped a bit, but like...†He struggled to put his thoughts into words as his excitement grew. “You can do so much more acrobatically and athletically even without any experience. Stuff like flips and jumps that would never work offline. I mean, I've got this one move where I jump and flip with my sword, right? I've never even done a flip in real life! It's really out of this world.â€

[Lessa 1]

When he assured her that she was a better teacher than a writer, Lessa snorted. It certainly was not a dignified sound, but she was having an increasingly difficult time stifling her laughter. Though she did not realize it at the time, she was beginning to let her guard down for the low-leveled stranger.

"I'm not even offended," she assured him with a lighthearted wave of her hand, smirking to fight a nasty case of the giggles. "Can you imagine anyway? If I'd kept writing without any of that passion? I would have made it half-way through and just written 'well, you know the rest, it sinks, you don't need me to tell me that.'"

Shaking her head, she wiped the dust from her eyes with the back of her hand. "You're right though, there are some crazy things we definitely can't do in real life. To be honest with you, I'm not an athletic person at all. I'm strong, but far from athletic. I don't think I'd still be alive if the game didn't help me out in that department."

{[23491] CD: 10}

[Takao 0]

Even though their interaction together had been short, less than a day even, the snort had immediately caught Takao's attention. He looked over to see her suppressing laughter, which made it hard for him to hide his smile, though he hardly ever did hide a smile anyways. "I read something ages ago about how when you write, you should to just power through it to the end even if you think it's terrible. 'cause then when it's all down on paper, you can see all the errors and how to fix them." He wasn't sure where he'd heard it, possibly a blog or something similar. The statement barely held relevance to the conversation as it was, he just felt like throwing the fleeting thought out.

 

The winds that whipped against him were actually rather welcomed now. Even if they were blowing the dry heat and, more often than not, a fair bit of sand into his face, it was still better than the unfiltered heat he felt on the back of his neck. "It gives us an awesome edge for sure. 'n that makes two of us, really. Most athletic thing I did was HEMA, and even then that wasn't much. I can't really say that I'm strong though." Takao cast a lingering glance her way, examining the equipment she was carrying. His hand raised up to rub his chin as his gaze persisted. "Say, if you don't mind me asking, where'd you get your equipment? It looks pretty good, and I've been meaning to upgrade for a while since mine is just some low level stuff from monster drops."

[Lessa 1]

"Hmm," the young woman mused in a voice just above a whisper. "Keep pushing through, even if you're convinced it won't work out in the end. The final product may be better than you expected, and even if it isn't, youll be able to fix the problems." She nodded thoughtfully, then added, "I like that a lot. It's a good lesson, and I think you can apply it to most things. Writing, teaching, even this game." Both hands moved behind her head as she collected her hair in her hands. She had no way of securing it on the top of her head, but holding it there provided some relief; even the wam breeze worked to cool her sweaty neck. "Honestly, I'm not sure that I would have had the courage to leave the safe zone when I first got here, had it not been for a few caring players pushing me to do it. And once I was outside the walls, I was so afraid of making a mess of things, but I pushed through anyway, because I had to dive in head-first if I wanted to improve." She smiled. "I did dive in, and I did improve."

"Anyway, my equiptment, yeah." Lessa glanced down at her armor as she transitioned onto her favorite topic. "My sword was crafted for me by a very dear friend. But the breastplate and the gauntlets I made myself." Pride swelled in her chest and in her voice as she spoke of her profession. "I have my own forge. If you need a weapon, or any heavy armor, I'd be more than happy to make it for you."