[PP-F1] A Chance Meeting (Complete)

[Teion 0]

In the City of Beginnings, Teion sat on a bench in the middle of an open area, her shoulders slumped and her elbows to her knees, holding her head up. A bored look was stuck on her face as her mind wandered, mulling over recent events. She was trying not to think about the real world much anymore--it was proving to only cause her more anxiety and distract her from survival. With a light sigh, she picked her shoulders up and leaned back against the wood, pulling her arms back to rest against the backing and crossing her legs. Her head leaned back to look up at the bright blue sky and a light breeze brushed her face. At the least, she could be grateful that this world was free from the hustle and bustle of suburban life.

Closing her eyes, she wondered just how many people were stuck in this world with her. She had no idea just how vast this place was or how many people it could hold. Just then it occured to her--she hadn’t thought about anyone she knew being here as well. She first made a mental check that none of her family members had showed interest in the game. Luckily, she couldn’t imagine any of them playing a game like this. She moved on to other people she knew, skimming over a few other before thinking, ’He wouldn’t be stuck here too...would he?’ Teion shut her eyes tighter before lifting her head forward and shaking it firmly. ’Stop thinking about it! I’m better off just forgetting about all that.’ Her efforts proved fruitless as she just couldn’t put the real world behind her yet. She placed her face in her hands for a moment, rubbing her temples. ”How nice it would be if I could just stop worrying for five minutes…” She mumbled, drawing in a sharp breath.

Edited September 3, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

After the announcement had been made, Emerath honestly hadn’t spent much of his time doing what the vast majority of other people were doing, and that was power-leveling, grinding, and setting themselves up to take on the biggest of the bads. Besides, it was a game, the monsters would come back, and he could always grind it out later when they wore themselves out.

He also knew his brother was here, and he’d probably make him do the “dirty work” as usual, while he reaped the rewards. Emerath was more interested in the professions system, and the thought of making lots of Col for himself. He searched the shops, markets, and NPCs for something that would suit his needs, mulling over what exactly he would want to do with his time. Plenty of other players were already starting to learn from other NPCs and were creating their items. Emerath sighed and made his way out from the markets to clear his head a bit. He knew there was a nice park nearby, and perhaps seeing other people socializing and gathering would give him ideas. Not that he actually wanted to talk to anyone. Just see what others were comparing, discussing, and showing off. Yes, that was it.

As he wandered into the park, he made his way over to a bench, so that he could people watch for a while. It wasn’t until he sat down that he realized that it was occupied. He snuck a glance at the occupant, but turned away quickly, keeping his mind on the task at hand.

[Teion 0]

The slight movement and feeling of weight shifting on the wooden bench caused Teion to uncover her face and look around with a start. She realized another person had sat down on the same bench, and his proximity wasn’t close enough to bother her. She was just about to go back to mulling over her thoughts and feelings until she was forced to do a double-take. From the side, she initially wasn’t sure, but as she stared at the person next to her, her eyes went wide. ’Wha… No, that’s...’ In that moment, she decided. She had gone crazy without even realizing it. She finally snapped, and her mind was creating hallucinations to help her cope with the loss of her old world. Her mouth opened slightly, as if to speak to this person she wasn’t sure was real, but no sound left her. She couldn’t bring herself to utter a word, but just stared at the person in disbelief.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

Emerath was watching a party show off some crystals and potions. The crystals looked pretty shiny, and the teleport crystals in particular seemed fairly useful. Health potions were always a must, especially in a game without magic. Yes, Emerath could use that. He was starting to like the idea of alchemy. That was about when out of the corner of his eye he noticed that the other occupant on the bench was gaping at him like some sort of fish out of water. He slowly turned his head and raised an eyebrow at the girl sitting there. "Miss...? Can I... help you?"

[Teion 0]

Teion blinked, her thoughts trying desperately to come together. Her brain registered that the person had turned and spoken to her, obviously confused at her expression, and she quickly closed her mouth while thinking of what she should do. This person definitely seemed real, ’I think...’ She couldn’t make sense of the situation. If this was really who she thought it was, why did he look at her like that? Like a stranger? ”D…” She practically had to force the words from her throat, which started to feel like it was burning. ”Dael…? Is...that you?” Her words came out slowly as she tried to control the tone of her voice.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

Emerath’s eyes grew a bit wide. “D-Dael?” he stammered, as if the name wasn’t one that was actually incredibly familiar to him. The name was his twin brother’s real name, and if this girl knew his brother, that must mean that it is someone close to him. He groped for words, and couldn’t seem to recall this girl though. She seemed distant, but familiar. “You know Dael,” he said simply, unsure of how else to respond. He thought it rude to ask this person who she was, since she so obviously knew of his brother.

[Teion 0]

Teion was taken aback by the man's reaction, until suddenly a wave of realization washed over her. "Eru..." She whispered the name, shifting her body slightly as she realized that the conversation (if you could call it that) was immediately uncomfortable. She knew Dael's personality, but his brother was more...complex, and she certainly didn't know him as well. Realizing that she had let her guard down, she finally stopped staring at Emerath and brought her fist to her mouth, clearing her throat. "I'm, uh... Thea." At this point she hoped he remembered her from her first name alone. Now that she thought about it, it had been a while since the two of them had last interacted in person. She was avoiding looking back at him now, keeping her gaze in front of her and her eyes lowered.'How embarrassing...'

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

*Level Up! HP 5/5 -> 5/7*

Emerath blinked at the girl, taking recognition that she had used his first name. So at least this girl knew who he was. When she said her name, a bit of recognition came to him, and his eyes lit up. "Oh! Thea! You're that girl that works with Dael. The girl we sometimes play MMOs with, though you two usually lag behind me in terms of leveling or gameplay." The last bit sort of just, slipped out. He hadn't really meant to say it, but it was the truth. Emerath would often go rushing off and do everything he could to max himself out. The only reason he hadn't here was because death in this game was a bit more... permanent.

"I'm sorry I didn't recognize you. It has been a while since I've actually seen you in person, and you have certainly changed a bit." Was it just him, or did she seem taller? Maybe her hair was longer? Emerath shook it off and tried to smile, attempting to think of a good compliment to make up for the awkward situation. "You look, uh, pretty." Emerath's eyes trailed away from the girl as he said this, not really feeling that he could make eye contact after saying that.

He made another quick attempt to recover, "W-what's your in game name?"

Edited August 30, 2015 by Emerath

[Teion 0]

Teion stifled a chuckle at his comment about her and Dael lagging behind him. She couldn't argue that, he was always good at...well, everything. Except for conversation, apparently. At least she didn't have to envy him for that. Of course, she wasn't doing much better. She could tell he was trying to salvage the situation, and a light pink touched her cheeks at his compliment, which hit her from left field. She quickly caught herself, and smiled lightly. She had to admit, being able to talk to someone--while she felt miserable at it--was kind of nice in this world full of strangers. "Teion." She managed to glance over at him, shifting slightly again to calm her nerves. Her feelings were mixing around, and her thoughts swirled together enough to make it hard to stay focused on the person in front of her. Should she be happy someone she knows is trapped here with her? Or did that make her twice as terrified that he could also die here? And if Eru was here, what about Dael? She decided not to ask about him just yet. She wasn't very sure of the relationship they had, so she chose not to be the one to bring it up, although the question was starting to gnaw at her. "So, uh--what about you? Still Emerath?" Man, she sucked at small talk. There were a million other things she would rather ask and talk about, but she couldn't muster herself to bring any of it up.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

*Out of Combat Regeneration: 5/7 -> 6/7*

Emerath logged the name, and quickly turned a moment to bring up his menu. "I think I still remember how your name is spelled." He typed in the word "Teion" into the menu and sent her a quick friend request. "There, I sent you a friend request. At least I hope it's you and not some random person who has a similar spelling to your in game name."

In response to her question, he turned and gave a quick nod, "You shouldn't expect any different. Though, if you're going off past game names, you'll have a bit of trouble figuring out which one Dael is. Has he contacted you yet? If you asked about him, that must mean you believe him to be here as well. I set up his NerveGear when I got home, but he hasn't even sent me a friend request yet..." Emerath turned away, and the concern on his face was plain as he considered the thought that his brother might already be... no. Not even Dael was that reckless.

[Teion 0]

The Friend Request window appeared before her, and she pressed the small blue circle to accept, dismissing the window. When he spoke about Dael, she could plainly hear his worry, and she immediately regretted mistaking Eru for his brother. She shook her head firmly, looking down slightly as she spoke, "No, I... I didn't even think he would be here. When I saw you for a second, I thought... Sorry." Her voice trailed off weakly. Despite the two of them being twins, she usually didn't have trouble telling them apart, the few times she saw the both of them at the same time. They certainly had opposite personalities. At this point, she didn't know whether to hope Dael was actually here or not. Her shoulders dropped just slightly, and her mixed feelings stirred back up inside her. She was starting to think it might have been easier to handle being stuck here alone. Maybe not.

"But, if he is here, we can probably just go looking for him, right? I can't imagine he'd be too far, since we're both still getting started." She assumed, but taking another glance at Emerath's gear pretty much confirmed it.

[Emerath 0]

*Out of Combat Regeneration: 6/7 -> 7/7*

Emerath looked back at Teion, realizing that it was a simple case of twin mix-up. He supposed he had no reason to be upset at the girl. This had been happening to them their whole lives. Emerath considered her words for a moment, and came to a conclusion, "Well, if we're lucky, he never entered the game. He isn't trapped with us and heard the news and is protecting me and hopefully taking my body somewhere safe." Emerath considered the other possibility again. The idea that Dael had entered the game and was simply being careless in terms of contact.

"If he is here, however, he'd probably get distracted and go out and hunt. We should check outside the city for him. We can also take account of our surroundings at the same time, even if we don't find him." Emerath wasn't used to actually cooperating with Dael and Teion in terms of gameplay, unless it was an endgame dungeon in MMOs. The idea of leveling together was a bit foreign to him, and he hoped he wouldn't end up being too reckless in hopes of making a good impression. He shrugged and waited to hear what Teion thought of the idea.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Emerath

[Teion 0]

• Level Up! Teion's health has increased to 13/13

Teion listened to Emerath's proposal before nodding her head in agreement. "Yeah, at least we can get a few Col. She remembered how light her coinpurse still felt--she had been out and about, but hardly had saved up enough to visit the marketplace. Hopefully once she got her blacksmithing profession officially started she could start selling her crafts. Maybe she could even open up her own shop. She daydreamed a bit, wondering which floor she would get situated on, and what running a shop in this game would be like.

"Anyway, let's head to the East Gate. Getting out of the city will help to clear my head." That last part was mostly directed to herself rather than Emerath as she stood up and stretched her legs. She waited a moment for him to be ready before leading the way out of town.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

*Level Up! HP 7/7 -> 7/9*

Emerath nodded in agreement, as he stood up as well. So much for people watching, he thought to himself. Though he supposed he was watching at least one person right now. He wondered if that counted in terms of a success. He situated the rapier at his side, and the thought of actually using it seemed to actually be hitting him. "Are... are we planning on actually fighting things? Isn't that dangerous?" Emerath seemed a bit nervous by the thought. Moreso than he ever would have been if the situation wasn't so grave. Though he did take a moment to look over Teion's gear, and noticed that it didn't seem to just be the starter stuff.

"You've already been hunting I suppose? I guess it won't be so bad then." Emerath didn't seem to like the fact that Teion had a head start over him, but he told himself it would only be a matter of time before he caught up, and even surpassed her. "Shall we?"

Edited August 30, 2015 by Emerath

[Teion 0]

Teion led the way towards the East Gate. She wasn't sure if she was more determined to hunt for monsters or for Dael. The thought of him being here somewhere without her knowing...bothered her. "We can fight, but we don't have to if you'd rather not. Taking a look around outside the city is fine--a lot of the mobs here are passive, so we won't be in danger unless we start a fight." Teion felt odd trying to reassure him. She was certainly not used to being in this situation, whether it was in real life or a game. She noticed he was equipped with a rapier, which she found interesting. The choices for weapons in this game definitely seemed limited to her, but she was always interested in seeing which path others chose.

As they reached the edge of the city, the grassy hills were visible in the distance. At the gate they could easily see the low-level mobs, which consisted mainly of boars, scattered around, grazing and wandering in their programmed paths. Teion took a deep breath, placing her hands on her hips, unsure which direction to take. "Anything you had in mind?" She turned towards Emerath, still a not used to being the one leading between the two of them.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

*Out of Combat Regen: 7/9 -> 8/9*

Emerath scanned around, as they walked, nodding politely when it seemed prudent, though hardly actually paying attention to his companion. He was looking for Dael, though at this point he wasn't sure if he'd actually see him. When they reached the gates, he looked around at all the monsters and the rolling hills. He was momentarily filled with dread once again, the thought of his death being at the hands of these creatures. These things didn't exist in the real world. Not in normal places like this, at least. Or if they did they were hiding, and not out in the open. These creatures are supposed to be the prey of man, not the other way around, he thought to himself, looking at the boars.

Emerath continued to scan their surroundings as he answered Teion's question, "As high up as possibly we can find, I would think. A good way to scan the area is from above. Find the tallest hill and head towards it."

[Teion 0]

Teion nodded, not bothering to think of anything else to say. She suspected Emerath was distracted--likely with his thoughts--or at least, more distant than she remembered him being. She looked around in the distance for a moment before deciding on a location in the distance and starting off towards it. She resisted the urge to pull out her axe. It felt a little strange walking around in these fields without it in her hands, but since they weren't planning on fighting anything she thought it would be silly to be carrying it around.

It took the two a few minutes to reach their destination, but eventually Teion stopped once they had climbed up a rather large hill. They were getting close to a mountainous-looking area, which she made sure not to get too close to. She hadn't traveled past the grassy region, and with a change of scenery would likely come a change of monsters, probably stronger than those right outside the city's walls. Teion stopped and surveyed the area, enjoying the small wind brushing against her face.

[Emerath 0]

*Out of Combat Regen: 8/9 -> 9/9*

Emerath placed a hand over his eyes to shield them from the sun as he stood next to Teion on the hill. He saw a lot of adventurers all running about, fighting this, or killing that. None of them looked to be his brother though. He saw some others with red hair, but they were stocky, or tall. Endilix would be this short athletic guy, and none of these guys seemed to be it. "I'm certainly not seeing him, Teion," he said, turning to her, "You know, it's entirely possible that he's at another gate or deeper in. I'm not sure when he would have started, if he even did." He left the rest unspoken, but the thought still crossed his mind. I'm not even certain he's alive.

Emerath shook his head, and looked out to the field. "We should take something back to the town. Maybe make a little Col while we're out here and get some materials to sell or use. Have you actually picked a profession yet?"

[Teion 0]

Teion frowned when he spoke about Dael again. As relieved as she would be to see him here and still alive, she had spent most of her mental efforts trying not to think about him being in this world. She would rather he be safe, in the real world, taking care of his brother or something, as Emerath had mentioned. Maybe she was being arrogant, trying to ignore the problem and hoping it went away. Unfortunately, that seemed like the best way for her to cope right now. She still hadn't decided if she was happy or heartbroken to know that Eru was here with her. Getting along with him was certainly going to be...interesting.

When he suggested doing some farming, Teion nodded in agreement, reaching behind her to pull out her axe. Firmly gripping the handle, she took a long breath to calm any remaining nerves. Taking a walk outside had definitely helped. "I suppose I'll get us started, then." She scanned the grassy hill below them for a good target. She figured with two of them, they could easily handle something closer to her level, especially if she started attacking first and kept aggro. "Alright, you ready?" She spotted an average-looking boar and started forward, descending the hill and running up to the monster.

Teion & Emerath vs. Boar

• ID#: 29497
• BD: 6 (Success)
• MD: 7 (-1=6) (Success)
• Teion HP: 13/13 -> 12/13
• Boar HP: 7/7 -> 4/7

Once she got in range, Teion let down a strong swing of her axe, cutting a large gash along the side of the boar's face. She dealt a significant amount of damage, which left her with a satisfied smirk. In retaliation, the boar squealed and thrust its tusks towards her, only managing to graze the side of her right leg. The cut it left on her skin was laughable compared to the shining red light burning on the boar's face.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Teion

[Emerath 0]

Teion & Emerath vs. Boar

• ID: 29521
• BD: 8 (Success)
• Boar HP: 4/7 -> 2/7
• Hate Generated: 0 -> 1

Emerath bristled at the thought of combat. He was pretty sure he had meant picking berries or mining rocks, and she had completely ignored his questions about professions. "W-wait!" he started to shout after her, but she was already gone down the hill, axe in hand. Emerath sighed and unsheathed his rapier with the scrape of steel against leather. Emerath held the thin blade out in front of him and closed his eyes, steeling himself, before making his run down the hill towards the beast.

His rapier glowed in his hand, this much he was familiar with in the online game. Once he felt that he was close enough he lunged forward, his rapier leading the way with a darkish red hue that flowed from the thin sword. He found himself shouting as he flew through the air, until he landed next to the boar, the point of the rapier shoved into its side, leaving a large digital hole in the boar.

As he watched the Boar's health bar drop, his eyes grew wide. "I-I did it!" he cheered to himself, before realizing that he was still training with Teion. He cleared his throat and pulled the rapier out of the boar's side, leaping backwards, "I mean, of course I did it."

Edited August 30, 2015 by Emerath