{F5-PP} Lost Cargo (Grave)

[Jevi 0]

Jevi stepped out of the small dome hut leading to her forge. She had a long night of failing craft after craft, keeping her up late and removing quite a few hours of sleep from her usual schedule. With a light groan, Jevi placed her hand in front of her eyes, shielding them from the hot sun that was beating down on her. Her lack of energy made the weather feel even hotter than usual, and she was usually used to this type of heat. Opening up her inventory by poking at thin air in front of her, he unequipped her orange gi top, leaving her in just her black, sleeveless undershirt. She also equipped her Bandit Scarf, which fell into place on her shoulders and around her neck. She figured a nice walk around Armadillo might wake the girl up.

The walk was just what Jevi needed to breathe life back into the purple haired girl. However, now she was at a loss of things to do. She refused to go back into her shop just yet.. Failing another craft so soon may cause her to throw things.. Maybe she would ask someone to hang out. She opened her friends list and thought about it. It was a short list sadly.. She scrolled down until she came up to Grave's name. With a nod, she opened up a private message and sent it to the man, asking him to meet her on Floor Five. After sending the message, she decided to wait in place for her friend to arrive..

"Excuse me, may I ask a favor of you?" 

Jevi turned around to see who was talking to her. The figure wore ragged robes with the hood up, their face visible. any of the clothes seen under the robes looked almost gypsy looking. ~"Hm? What is it?" She crossed her arms and looked at the woman.

"I need your help. I had a caravan moving through the Eastern desert. During the trip, we were hit by a major sand storm. We did not notice it at the time, but some of our precious cargo fell off the wagons. Please, could you go into the desert and find it? Im afraid that, within two days, it will be lost forever.."

Jevi did not know what was going on.. why couldn't this woman go out and get it herself.. Just then, a small gray box popped up in front of her. <<The Traveler>> with the words, 'Accept Quest?' under it. Now it made sense, this woman was an NPC giving Jevi a quest. She nodded and accepted, ~"Alright, I'll go find your stuff."

[Grave 0]

I awoke with a start when a familiar ringing filled my ears.  I took a deep but sharp breath before shaking my head to clear my grogginess.  I sat up and swiped open my menu to view the message I'd received; Jevi had sent it.  That was a name I hadn't seen in ages.  I yawned as I read through it.  Apparently she wanted to see me on the Fifth Floor.  Hadn't been there yet, so I didn't see why not.  I traversed to my inventory and equipped my shirt, but not my coat; the Fifth Floor was apparently desert.  I exited my Diner, Hikari wrapped around my waist like a furry belt.

It took a small amount of scouting around to find the familiar head of purple hair, and she seemed to be talking to an NPC.  When I arrived within range of the quest giver, I unintentionally received the quest pop up and smirked as I caught what Jevi was saying. "No, we'll go find her stuff." I corrected her, placing a hand on her shoulder and accepting the quest.  I stepped back and gave the girl a friendly smile and wave. "How's it going?  You look rather nice today." I complimented her, placing my plated fists on my hips, and Hikari popped her head up to greet the girl.

[Jevi 0]

Jevi turned her head when she felt a hand on her shoulder and a familiar voice correct her 'I' to 'we.' She saw it was Grave, who seemed to arrive on the scene with precise timing to get the quest as well. She smirked at him, ~"Maybe I wanted to do the quest on my own" her tone was sarcastic and playful. She looked back towards the NPC, who was already walking away from the scene.. Odd... but whatever.. She turned her body around to face Grave. She shrugged her shoulders, ~"Getting better. And nice? Psh." she rolled her eyes and shook her head, looking him in the eyes afterwards with a soft smile. ~"Anyways, since it seems you got the quest too.. we might as well do it together." She opened up her menu and sent a party request over to the gray haired man.  

[Grave 0]

"Whether you wanted to do the quest by yourself or not, you're stuck with me, because you were the one who messaged me in the first place." I shut her down, forcing myself to keep my lips in a straight line.  Knowing me, that obviously failed and the corners of my mouth curved upwards in a grin. "I'm not joking, you look very pretty today.  Nice to know that your dress for the occasion looks so good on you." I gave it another shot, knowing I'd still get shut down in the end.  I quickly accepted the party request and opened my menu, viewing the active quest.  So, we were to venture into the desert, get a lost wagon containing supplies and stuff, before bringing it back... and we had to accomplish this in two days?!  My grin dropped a little, but I still managed to keep up my gleeful mask as I dropped out of my menu. "Well, lead the way... and please, tell me what's new." I requested, my ears ready for what she had to say.

[Jevi 0]

~"Well I messaged you before I took on the quest, if you are so interested in knowing" she closed her eyes with a smirk, crossing her arms. She did not remember why she messaged him honestly.. just a spur of the moment thing she presumed. She turned her head slightly away, her cheeks flushing a very slight pink ~"Oh s-shut up. All I did was take off my orange shirt" she gave him a little punch on the arm. ~".... But thanks." she said, her eyes shifting back to him. 

After Grave accepted the party request, she nodded and turned to walk towards the Eastern exit of the city, being the NPC said the destination was somewhere in the east. ~"Whats new? Well I opened up a shop here on this floor actually. I'm a blacksmith now." she smiled, proud of herself. ~"Still learning how to do it, but I have made a pretty few awesome weapons, if I do say so myself." She was, in fact, sporting her newest creation on her waist band, the Scorpion Slicer. It was a black, curved sword, the edge of the blade a lighter gray. There was no guard, only one side was slightly pointed out more, the same type of point at the back end of the handle. The grip was wrapped with red cloth in a similar design to a katana. ~"Other than that.. I haven't really done much. What about you?" 

[Grave 0]

"Well, I also set up shop down on the Third Floor.  I'm a cook now, and I've made myself about three perfect items, among some others." I gave her a light nudge. "Drop by some time and I'll treat you to something nice to eat.  It's the Crimson Diner, graciously named after..." I left the sentence for a moment to build up tension. "The guild I'm in!  I'm Grand Officer of the Crimson Blades, the new and already growing Mercenary and Contract guild." I explained, hoping I might persuade her some to think about it.

I raised my fists and slammed them together, emitting a few sparks as the plates collided. "I also picked myself up this sweet <<Martial Arts>> skill, and these gauntlets, Warvan's Sons, were made as a commission from my Guild Leader.  Oh, and also..." I patted Hikari and she unwrapped from my waist, before crawling up to my shoulder and leaning in to get a closer look at Jevi. "Meet my pet Weasel Mage, Hikari!" I introduced her.

[Jevi 0]

She placed her hand on her stomach when she thought about the idea of food. She was not too hungry since she had already eaten.. but just being offered food as such made the girl want to eat. ~"I'll have to take you up on that and stop by some time." she said with a smirk. ~"That is, if its even any good" she teased the man, letting out a light laugh. ~"In a guild now huh? Thats pretty cool to hear. I never really thought about joining a guild before.." she put her finger to her mouth, thinking about it. ~"I think I may still keep it that way.. at least for now." 

~"Martial arts skill? Thats the one that makes your unarmed combat better right? I've heard about it.. never really looked into it though. Good to hear you're making use of it though. And those gauntlets look like they make your punches even stronger." she said, poking at the metal plates on his hands. After that, the man revealed what looked like a belt, was actually not a strange fashion statement, but a living creature. The weasel climbed up Grave's shoulder and looked at Jevi, who could not help but smile ~"Oh you got yourself a familiar too!" she gently reached her hand out to pet the small animal on the head.

By now the two were on the outskirts of town, just about to exit the safe zone and into the desert. Jevi had noticed, while in the town still, that there was a slight breeze picking up.. and it was slowly getting stronger. Once they began to walk into the desert, however, the winds were becoming quite strong, picking up clouds of sand and throwing them in all directions. Jevi stopped before stepping forward any more, ~"Damn.. looks like we are gonna have to cross through a sandstorm to get to our destination..." she unwrapped her khaki colored Bandit Scarf and readjusted it, this time the cloth wrapping her neck, covering her nose and mouth, as well as around the top of her head a couple of times as well. Hopefully, this would slightly protect her from inhaling too much sand with the impending storm. ~"You ready?"

[Grave 0]

When Jevi asked if I was ready, I couldn't help myself. "Jevi..." I began, flicking through my inventory as I did so.  I materialized Crimson Cross, a mask of red and gold, the red cross transparent for me to see through. "I was born ready." I finished, my voice sounding somewhat metallic through the mask.  Although the weather was rather hot, I kept the coat on to keep my flesh from being attacked by the dust.  I stepped out into the gathering storm, my vision clear through the scarlet glass.  I could feel the sand belting my coat, but none did any harm to me.  The storm wasn't what I was worried about though: it was what lurked within the sand.

---

ID: 30435

CD: 7 = Safe

[Jevi 0]

Jevi slowly raised an eyebrow as the crimson and gold mask materialized onto his face. What was with this mask? She had never seen it before.. She smirked, ~"Red and Gold huh..? Heh.. Not enough black to suit you." she shrugged her shoulders, not helping but to let out a little laugh. ~"Alright Mr. Roboto, lets go." 

The two began their trek through the deserts of Floor Five. She looked down at her boots as they shifted the sand underneath her. It made her wish she was on a beach of sorts.. ~"Grave, I know you haven't been to the higher floors.. But any idea if theres any Floors with a beach on it?" she smiled slightly, but it could not be seen past her scarf, only the way her eyes looked signaled she smiled. ~"All this sand is making me want to find such a place." She giggled, ~"Probably a lot more serene and safe than this place..." 

As the two continued their walk, the wind picked up more and more until visibility was beginning to be cut off with sand blowing around them in every direction. She grunted, ~"What the hell! How do they expect us to find anything in a storm like this!?" She shielded her eyes with her hand as she continued to walk forward, the sand pelting her in the face. She mover her hand for just a moment to see where she was going, only to have a a plethora of grainy particles smack into her eyes. With a yelp, she flinched and stepped backwards. ~"Gah. Dammit!" she rubbed her eyes, trying to remove the sand so the two could continue. 

ID: 30439
CD: 1 ((-.- nice way to start))

Jevi: 30/31 

((Im gonna say lets not do the +1 to HP out of battle until the night time when we have the resting phase, make it more interesting.))

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

I pondered for a moment.  Floor Seven and above I hadn't heard much about... "Sorry Jevi, unsure.  Six is the highest I know of, and that's a sweltering hot jungle.  Ask Piera, she can attest to that." I told her, disappointed that I couldn't assist her.  Soon enough, I heard Jevi make sounds of pain and annoyance. "Damn... Jevi, you okay?" I asked as I dropped back to help her.  I looked at her closed eyes.  The sand wasn't too bad, but would provide quite some irritation. "Hold still for a second..." I commanded softly as I used my thumb to gently brush away the sand from her eyelids.  Finally done, I tapped her shoulder as a gesture to keep moving.  At that rate, it was going to be one long trip.

---

ID: 30445

CD: 10 = Safe (If this was battle, I would have healed XD)

[Jevi 0]

Jevi, feeling highly annoyed by the sand smacking her in the face, was not much in the mood to be touched. As Grave went to wipe sand out of her eye, she knocked his arm out of the way. ~"I'm fine Grave. Really." She ran her fist over both of her eyes, as if wiping tears away, before looking up at him squinting. ~"Lets keep moving." She trudged through the sand past Grave, continuing on their walk towards their mission. Feeling slightly bad for forcing past Grave and denying his help, she figured she should try and make more small talk, ~"So, who is that Piera anyway? Do you think she'd know more about the higher floors?"  she looked over her shoulder towards Grave as she spoke, keeping her hand up to block sand from going into her eyes again. 

ID: 30449
CD: 6

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

"She's a girl who became my second client in my diner, and turned out that she knew a few of my guildmates." I explained, sticking close to Jevi. "Turned out she was an alchemist, and we went material hunting together... But I'm not sure how high up she's been." I finished.  I should probably have asked her... Or maybe she told me and I forgot.  The other players I knew who had traveled to higher floors didn't tell me much about them.  A beach though... That really would be a nice change, and not to mention it'd be bloody awesome to see the women-

*ehem*

the ocean, I mean.  I hadn't seen the ocean much in the real world.  We either never had the time or it was too bloody cold to go.  So yeah, the beach is a tantalising notion in Aincrad.  I turned my head to the purple haired girl. "Even if it's just for you, I'll find that beach." I told her, the only signs of my smile being my raised cheekbones.

---

ID: 30450

CD: 5 = Safe

[Jevi 0]

Jevi nodded, not really knowing if that was any help in the slightest. ~"Well I guess its a start.. If I ever meet her or one of her friends , I'll have to ask." There he went again, mentioning food... which of course made her feel hungry again. She shut her eyes forcefully and shook her head, trying to get the thought of eating out of her mind. She sighed heavily, ~"Lets just get this quest over with as quickly as possible." After a moment of silence, Grave told Jevi he would find the beach just for her. She lightly shook her head and chuckled at the response, ~"Thanks.. but I'm sure-" her words were cut off by a low rumbling sound beneath them. She stopped in her tracks, ~"Did you hear that....?" Out in front of her, the sand seemed to explode up like a fountain, knocking her back off of her feet and into the sand. From the explosion came a giant, brown skinned worm, with hundreds of teeth circling its open mouth. ~"W-What the [censored] is that?!" Jevi yelled out, her eyes wide open staring up at the beast. 

ID: 30454
CD: 3 

HP:
Jevi: 30/31
Grave: 37/37

Sand Burrower: 19/19
(Base dmg: 2)

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

(We'll want to bring the worm's HP up if we want a shot at getting loot. Also, I'll leave the MD to you)

I barely had time to react when the worm erupted from the desert sands.  Jevi and I were thrown back from the explosion and skidded across the heated sand. "Bloody hell, that was quicker than I was expecting..." I muttered as I stumbled up.  I turned my vision to Jevi. "You flank the bastard.  I'll take him head-on." I commanded, before launching myself at the slithering monster.  I could tell I was going to miss... But I felt the mask almost lock onto the worm, and my fist was guided into the monster, sending it skidding across the sand slightly.  Man, that accuracy was handy.

---

ID: 30453

BD: 5 + 1 = 6 = Success (4 DMG)

CD: 5 = Safe

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 1]

Jevi: 30/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 19/19 HP

[Jevi 0]

Jevi quickly hopped up off of the sand and pulled her sword out from behind her. ~"Got it!" She called to Grave as she took off running, moving herself around the worm as Grave drove his fist into it, distracting the monster. After moving as fast as she could through the thick sand, she found a good spot that seemed to be in their enemy's blind spot. She pushed off of her back foot and charged forward with her sword at the ready. Before she could get into range, however, the burrower dove up and back down into the sand.. hiding itself and preparing for its next attack. Jevi skid to a stop, making sure not to be pulled in by the sand being driven underground by the worm burrowing. 

ID: 30459
BD: 3 (miss)
MD: 1(miss)
CD: 6 

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 1]

Jevi: 30/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 15/19 HP

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

I raised an arm to my mask as the worm dove back into the earth.  Where did it go?  I could feel the mask scanning the sand, trying to track the monster's trail under the dunes.  Before long, I felt a rumbling right beneath my feet.  I jumped backwards as the sand erupted once more, and I launched forwards again as soon as I landed.  The mask caught the worm through the swirling grains, and my fist collided with the burrower once more.  Half of its body was still tucked into the dune, and I proceeded to stand atop the thick body near the sand.

---

ID: 30460

BD: 5 + 1 = 6 = Success (4 DMG)

CD: 4 = Safe

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 2]

Jevi: 30/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 11/19 HP

[Jevi 0]

She had it this time. Grave's punch managed to stun the worm for a short while, so Jevi would be able to approach the beast and get in close to land a hit. She ran straight towards her enemy, holding her sword in both hands. She was not planning on letting the thing get away so easily. Out of an act of desperation, the worm turned its head around to look at the purple haired girl, took a large inhale, and blew out a stream of sand right at Jevi. The force of the sand attack knocked Jevi back off of her feet and onto the ground, allowing the burrower to crawl into the sand once again. This time, however, instead of going deep down, the worm kept to the top layer of sand, looking like a shark just under the surface of the water. It made its way towards the male player, looking for revenge for the damage he dealt to it. 

ID: 30462
BD: 5
MD: 1
CD: 1

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 1]

Jevi: 29/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 15/19 HP

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

Damnit!  Come up and fight properly, you bastard! I cursed in my head as I watched the trail the creature was making.  My mask was still doing a good job at tracking it; without it, my past hits would not have landed.  In due time the bastard arose once more, and I was ready for it.  Right as it approached head height, my arm snapped out and delivered yet another blow to the worm, this time to the side of the head.  The creature collapsed and I retreated.  Paralysis would have been real handy.

---

ID: 30465

BD: 5 + 1 = 6 = Success (4 DMG)

CD: 10 = Safe

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 3]

Jevi: 29/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 7/19 HP

[Jevi 0]

Jevi glared at the worm as it circled around them, snarling at it. She continuously missed attack after attack.. making her look like a fool. She stood there, clenching her sword in her hand, rage building up in her eyes. The high winds around her were blowing her scarf around like a flag in a hurricane, slightly ripping the cloth at the ends. She flinched slightly as more sand pelted her in the face, pummeling her skin and making her HP drop ever so slightly. ~"Dammit!!" she yelled as she ran forward with her sword over her head. The battle cry giving away her position, the worm was easily able to slither around the girl as she brought her sword down. It easily could have gained the upper hand on Jevi and attacked her right here, but Grave was still its target. The beast launched into the air over the girl, knocking her slightly in the back, knocking her down. As the worm came down, it miscalculated its jump, passing right over Grave. 

ID: 30515
BD: 3 
MD: 3
CD: 1

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 3}

Jevi: 28/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 15/19 HP

Edited September 5, 2015 by Jevi

[Grave 0]

Poor Jevi... She must have felt like a fool for missing over and over, but I didn't blame her for missing.  The sand was obviously an impeding factor in her aim.  I prepared to smack the worm in the face once more - but the bastard leapt over me!  However, that only made it easier for me to hit it.  I swung around, my left fist crackling with golden electricity.  My gauntlet crashed into the side of the worm, and sent a pulse of electricity through its serpentine body.  I pushed my fist upwards and proceeded to sling the monster over my head, in between Jevi and I.  I called to her over the wind. "Free shot!"

---

ID: 30540

BD: 9 + 1 = 10 = Modified Crit +1 (5 DMG + Paralyze)

CD: 6 = Safe

Grave: 37/37 HP [HATE: 5]

Jevi: 28/31 HP [HATE: 0]

Sand Burrower: 2/19 HP + Paralyze (You keep forgetting to edit this bit XD)