Mari

Mari grinned when Quinn found another Material. "Yeh, see? Sometimes its not you. So don't be so hard on yourself. Mostly, its just a bad spawning area. I don't do it much, but back in the day I used to go hunting for materials all the time. Now I don't even bother with my crafts, let alone hunting for ingredients." The ginger haired woman plunged her hand down into the water and wrapped her fingers around some reeds before pulling them up, shaking the water from them. "After this, I got one more to go. Once I have all five I may as well give them to you." Mari shrugged her shoulders. "I can't do the second part of the quest, since it involves me going into town..." Mari trailed off, watching Quinn. She missed the towns, she missed the hustle and bustle of people. Mari used to hate mundane things like that, but now, she found it was those small, bothersome things...that she missed most. As much as she wanted to jump on in and face Redemption she felt she was not ready. Nor was the world. She couldn't just wash herself free of the colour that stained the crystal above her head. "I need to ask, you seem quite timid - and I ain't got no issue with that, but you know what an orange crystal means right?" Mari asked. She was genuinely unsure if Quinn knew of the status. "It means I'm a criminal. You okay with that?" @Quinn ID# 136125 LD:19 =Success 4/5 Materials collected

What in the? Mari tilted her head with a brow raised in confused curiosity. Did he take her jest seriously? Mari may not have been good at social interactions, but she thought she had made it fairly clear she was joking. He kept flip flopping between answers which made Mari suspicious. Why couldn't this guy keep his story straight? Did he want to fight the boss? OR did he want to collect materials? Now it sounded like he was after the same item she was. Right after she mentioned it. When he had no mention of it before. She inwardly grumbled. This whole 'being nice to others' thing was becoming a bit of a pain. She wanted to try, and she wanted to give the benefit of the doubt but it was shady. Mari didn't trust him. "Mmm...." Mari thought, did she really want him around? She could easily do this on her own - but having two people would be quicker. She didn't trust that he'd just give her the item - not after that whole spiel of wanting it for himself to settle deals and bonds or what have you. "If you want." Mari said finally. She wouldn't tell him to go away. "I don't get how calling someone sweetheart is poking fun." Mari said earnestly. "To me, its a term of either endearment or condescension. I can't tell you how many times I was called 'sweetheart' in the office by men below their and my pay-grade because I was a woman." Mari said as they began to walk, wanting to explain why she didn't like the term. As he told her to lead the way, Mari stepped past him, following the map. "It's really not too far, once we hit the wastelands at the forests edge - we'll be able to see it." she turned to glance at Gladiator and offered him a wry smile. "I doubt either of us would miss a giant f**k off skull like that." @Gladiator

Mari was waiting just outside the main settlement. She hadn't exactly dressed warmly, but she did have her long scarf, albeit a little torn. Mari was used to the chill that the floor bought. She spent most of her free time here, and now her home was on the floor. If she needed, she had a warm, thick white coat she could throw on, but she preferred to move without it. Mari caught sight of Macradon as he was leaving the main settlement. She waved him over. "Hiii Mac~" "I've kinnda been busy." Mari said with a grin. "Check it out! Level 53 now!" She gave him a nudge with her elbow. "Give me another few days and I'll be level 60 - just you watch." Mari gestured to Kohaku, her Koi fish familiar. "Oh, and this is Kohaku. After today - I'll be training him to deal damage. I thought about what you said, and decided I wanted to stay with my dagger. But I wanted to increase my damage output sooo - yeh." Mari blinked, almost forgetting - "Oh! I uh..." She scratched her cheek as she kicked at the ground. "I uhm...kinda got a house too. I could only get the one room and don't have the Col to expand...so I don't even have a bedroom yet, hahah...but Baldur kinda convinced me to get it - oh I met him too." Mari said with a sheepish grin. It had only been two days but she had been through so very much. It felt like she hadn't stopped. "My house is on this floor actually, that's how I made it here so quick." Mari left out the part where she still hadn't slept in her house just yet. "So, What kind of dragon are we fighting today? How have you been?" It seemed like the one other thing Mari forgot to mention was the change in her appearance, her attire was no longer limited to a single black v-neck shirt and jean shorts. Instead she wore an orange outfit with black shorts, boots - and red rope around her forearms. It felt...more fitting for someone who would be returning to the frontlines. She couldn't exactly go there in her pj's or something, right? RIght? Note to self; ask Macradon if it would be possible to fight on the frontlines in PJs. @Macradon

Mari sighed as she tore through another Boar Pup, it gave a feeble and slobbery cry before erupting into a flurry of data. Leaving behind absolutely nothing. "Haven't been very lucky with these last few boars..." Mari mumbled. "Yanno there are items to increase your loot drop chances? Maybe I should have picked up one of them - we still have two bloody quests after this!" Mari kicked at the ground. "Man, forcing lower level players through this gauntlet is torture." She turned to Kendre who... was carrying the Boar Pup. "Omg you....shouldn't you put that down and...." Mari face palmed. He had gone and named it...bloody Kevin Bacon of all things. Jeez. "Fine, keep it, whatever- but it's gonna keep attackin' you ya know." She chastized. "There's a quest for you to find and tame familiars - you could find a different pig doing that." She doubted he'd listen, but hey. At least the information was out there now. Kendre then went into a small speech about how she wasn't really a bad person. Mari shrunk into herself. She wanted to scream at him, tell him to f**k off because he had no idea who the hell she was and what she had done. Instead she offered Kendre a sheepish grin. "I guess I'm slowly workin on trying to get out of my own head. It's a little hard though." She tapped her temple. "The me in there seems to be stuck, know of any ways to get the little voices inside your head out your ears?" She tried to joke. His speech made her feel a little better - and she knew she had to stop hating herself. But that'd take time. @Kendre MARI LV 51 | HP 1050 | ENERGY 102 DAM: 11 | EVA 3 | MIT 25 | ACC 4 | ID#136032 BD: 5+ 4 = SUCCESS LD: 2 = fail BOAR PUP | HP: 5/5 | Drops Tusks on LD 11+

(just bumpin' this along) Basuke, (or was it BAh-soo-keh?) Mari wasn't sure, but either way - the kid was definitely Korean. Mari inwardly flinched at her inability to understand. To be able to be fluent in every language That'd be amazing. But, that was a fantasy and this was the real world - or as close to it as they could be right now. Then there was that Tanoshi kid. ....Damn, they were all kids weren't they? Just enjoying a night out under the stars. To be so carefree....Mari missed that. A rueful smile broke her freckled face as blue coloured eyes shifted to the ground. She appreciated the sentiment some of them shared. They were apprehensive, yet willing to let her join. "I do appreciate it, I really do." Mari said. "But I don't really have anything aside from a few stories to add to your little camp out." Tanoshi?" Basuke repeated, trying to commit the name to memory as he put a hand to his face. So he was Japanese, then? The name sounded familiar enough. "Tanoshi, nice to meet you!" She wasn't one for sweets, at least not in the form of marshmallows. "Yanno, I am hungry." Mari said with a little more energy as she took a step toward the fire. She shifted her gaze to @Basuke "But I'm not really one for sweets. So don't worry, I'm not gonna steal your marshmallows or whatever." She shifted her eyes up to the sky. "I used to.... go camping that is." She had gone a few times with her bastard of an ex husband, of course....back then it was all smiles and smoked meats. Mari couldn't help but smile at @Andromeda as she walked around the fire and sat down - clearly excited for the sickly sweet treats to come. "Alright. How about this..." Mari proposed - still keeping enough distance from the fire an the others, to give them space. "If some of you help provide me with a savoury meal, I'll let each of you ask me a question. Anything. I've been around a while - and am a returning frontliner. Information is very, very useful in this world. More so than some scraps of food. Right?" @HoaxDemon @Tanoshi

REWARDS Mari + Macradon +2 SP (1 Quest, 1 page) Mari + Macradon 425 Col Each (Quest rewards + Page rewards divided by players) Mari + Macradon - <Ghidorah’s Opal> [Vanity Quest Item] : 1 of 9

"Well, let's just say we were both insufferable pricks back then, eh?" Mari said with a bemused smile. She didn't want to make light of what happened in the past, but being able to talk to someone about it, like this. It helped. It helped put things into perspective, and make her realize not everything was her fault. She had two of her closest friends betray her, she had an entire guild out for her head ; even going as far as to ban all its members from the frontline battle - just in hopes that Mari, and any who followed her would die and fail...despite clearing and finding the boss room after that, she was threatened - that if she were to ever show her face again she'd be killed. So many things. So very many, very terrible things had happened. But things...felt a little brighter. A little lighter, Macradon wasn't exactly the brightest person around - but hey, neither was she. He certainly had been the most friendliest. Mari gave him a wry grin. "Maybe we should get some MAC and cheese - with little crunched chips on top." Mari said with a sprinkling motion of her hands. "Yanno, potato chips? Sea salt potato chips are the best. IT gives the pasta a salty crunch." Her smile faded slightly as he posed the question of finding a place for her to eat. "Ahh... I suppose such a venture should wait till I am able to complete redemption aye?" Mari shifted her eyes to the sun, it was getting late, but they had made a lot of progress. Three dragons in one day? That was nothing to poke a stick at. "Hey, I know you gotta be running off, but message me soon so we can complete the quest, yeh?" Mari said with a small wave. "I'll see you soon." @Macradon

"Well, I guess its probably a good thing we didn't meet when you were too full of yourself." Mari said with a mirthful chuckle. "I probably wouldn't have been able to stand you." She shrugged as she kicked at a small rock. "Then again, you probably wouldn't have been able to handle me. I ...ahh.... hate to admit it, but I had a pretty bad break down, I wouldn't have been a very nice person." She sighed as she knelt down, picking up a small flower. She twirled it to and fro in her fingers. Mari didn't like talking about her past, she didn't like thinking about it - because she was not a good person back then. Realistically, she probably wasn't a good person now. She guessed it was best not to dwell on such things. Mari crumpled up the flower and stood back up. Macradon talked about some sort of Medallion, Mari peered over his shoulder to get a better look as he talked. "Probably, yeh." Mari said bluntly when he said it was the step toward the power trip. "But you're self aware, and taking steps to fix that, so that's better than a start to me. Heck, this makes me wanna maybe have a different weapon to dagger. It just has no AoE and I feel a lil' left out." Mari said with a light-hearted laugh. "Anyway...." Mari said as she dusted off her hands. "Maybe we could go out for that pasta, I trust you - but I'm not sure I trust your cooking." @Macradon

Mari gave the young girl a small smile. "See, you did it!" She said, offering words of encouragement. As Quinn knelt down and started foraging for more materials Mari couldn't help but take note of how small she was. It was still difficult trying to pick her age, but Mari knew better than to ask. Especially here, where it was difficult to tell how much time had actually passed. Quinn seemed like the kind of person who would break down easily. Mari pushed herself up off the ground and reached out to Quinn, helping the smaller one to her own feet. "Right. Follow me." Mari said as she quickly glanced around the area; no sign of boars - or swans. Good, she lead them to the nearest lake she knew of, it wasn't very big, nor deep. She could easily wade right into the center of it and still have her head above water, albeit only just. "Here we are." Mari said as she headed toward the waters edge, kneeling down - "You find find materials in and around the lake," Mari said as she picked up a glimmering translucent stone. She pocketed it and dusted her hands off. " I'd prefer not to get wet so I won't wade in - but if you want to I'll keep an eye on things around here." Mari quirked her lip up. "Just in case a love struck swan makes its return." @Quinn ID# 136023 LD: =18=SUCCESS 3/5 Materials collected

The attack had passed, and Quinn was now siting on a chair sipping some apple juice. She thanked Mari, and speaking in French - a phrase Mari didn't know or recognize. "You're not trouble, really. I experience those things often. So I kinda know how to handle them, but everyone deals with things differently." Mari said. "Know what is trouble?" Mari said as she pointed to Macradon. "That." He held Kairi, moving to the dance floor. Leaving a trail of squishy strawberries and punch behind him. "That's gonna cause someone to slip up and fall flat on their face. And hey, we got front row seats to it, eh?" Mari said with a laugh. She was generally speaking, to both @Quinn and @Minako "You say you shouldn't have come, but hey, if you didn't you wouldn't know me, or Minako. Right? Aren't you just a little bit glad that you came to the eve-" Mari glanced up at the other girl who had approached. Why am I suddenly attracting all the girls at this bloody event? Mari thought to herself, it wasn't a bad thing, she just didn't understand it. Mari was not used to people approaching her. Avoiding her? Throwing daggers at her - much like Bahr - yes she saw him glance her way, if looks could kill she'd be dead. Hate, spite, caution - she was used to all those things. But people just casually walking up to her like Minako had and now this tiny blonde? Mari didn't understand it. "Uhm... this actually is probably a pretty sh**ty time to approach." Mari said honestly as she glanced over at Quinn. She was still recovering from a social anxiety attack, Mari wasn't sure the kid needed more people. But...she said she was lonely, and Mari wasn't going to tell someone to piss off without valid reason to. She also wasn't going to out Quinn like that and say why it was a bad time. She had to try and be sociable, she promised herself she would be. "But it's not my place to say." Mari placed a gentle hand on Quinn's shoulder, a sign to say 'Im here' "Names Mari." Mari said as she introduced herself, this time without the voice in her head telling her not to, thus far she had managed to introduce herself to three people without anyone knowing of her being the renowned PKer of the past. Maybe, that mantle was finally dead. @Astralin

"Hmm?" Mari turned her head toward Quinn. "Other skills. Yeh. You have the Gatherer skill which increases your potential for doubling or even trippling the materials you collect. Then there is the uhm, I think Search skill - which makes finding things easier." Mari reached out and pressed an index finger to Quinn's head. "You could be a Gatherer, or maybe a pirate, grab the lock-picking skill and plunder all the chests." Mari added in a joking tone. "You could ignore all that, and just get the fishing perk. Become a fisherman. Never once stepping foot anywhere near the frontlines." Mari shrugged. "There is so much pressure from people for us all to 'contribute' or 'help' everyone get out the game, but we've been here for years now. So much so that I don't even know how much time has truly passed. Who gives a flying f**k what you do. You could sit there and eat sweets for all I care. What other people do isn't my business." Mari realized she was going on a bit of a tangent. "Ah. I guess my point is, do something you wanna do. If anyone has an issue with it punch them. Or call me, I'll punch them for you." Quinn had missed her chance again. "Ah. Not having much luck huh? Don't worry too much, as I said, it took me several tries to get even one the first time I did this." Mari reached out and plucked another flower from the field. "We can move to a different area if you want - just lead the way and I'll follow. There are nearby lakes and flowerbeds. Or we can go as far as the forest." @Quinn ID#135894 LD:16 = SUCCESS 2/5 Materials collected

Lonely Ooof. Right in the heart there, kiddo. Mari meant touch - not feel as in emotions. Perhaps she should have been more specific. But Mari wasn't going to say that to someone who was trying to relax and calm down from an anxiety attack. "Right...I hear...." Mari closed her eyes. "I hear the sound of glasses being clinked together, and I hear people talking..." She opened her blue eyes and kept her gaze just above the girls head; so she was looking at her; but not staring directly into the other girls eyes. Mari knew how confrontational that could be to someone in such a state. "Let's see...I smell...strawberries and chocolate. I can feel the soft warmth of your hands." Mari tilted her head to the side and offered the girl a cheeky grin. "And I still taste strawberries too!" She glanced up at @Minako, feeling a touch guilty for not being able to entertain the other woman. But she hoped the redhead understood. This was a little more pressing than trying to find a date. Mari shifted her attention back to the girl. Ah...so her name was @Quinn and she had a French Accent, Mari guessed she was from France. Since....yanno, the whole language thing. It'd also explain her petite frame and face, maybe? Mari was never good at genealogy or the like. "Well Quinn, as I said. My name is Mari." Mari had no qualms with the girl knowing her name, she doubted this child had looked at the monument of life. "A drink, let's see..." Mari stood up and glanced around the table, there were wines. Nope that wouldn't do - although she had heard somewhere the drinking age in Italy was 16 - she wasn't sure of how true it was. Then, there were soft drinks. Colas and lemonades. Ugh. No. Too sweet, too bubbly. Ah. Mari found a jug of what looked like a sparkling apple juice. She poured herself a cup and drank a mouthful to confirm it. Then she grabbed a cup for Quinn. Passing it to the small blonde. "Here you go. Feeling a little better? Did you need to go somewhere more quiet?" Her eyes lifted up to Minako. "Did you want anything since I'm here?"

No hobbies? Hell, even Mari had her hobbies and she was fairly flippant when it came to doing things like that. Rather, she didn’t have a few hobbies but just dabbled in whatever took her fancy at the time. Mari snorted at his comment. “Wow, you're so interesting Mephisto.” Mari scoffed. “I'ts a wonder you don't have any friends with all your skills." He mentioned his brother, again. Mari noticed that - he bought up his brother quite a lot, and whenever he did it was always about how sweet, innocent, or angelic the boy was. No young child was that sweet and angelic, but she supposed that was the way Mephisto saw him - and could she blame him? Especially if his brother was all he had. At least he had something he liked - instrumental music. Something was better than nothing. Which was what this snake of a man felt like he had. Nothing. No interests, no relationships, no skills. Zip. Nadda. Zilch. Just as he prompted her, Mari shrugged and aimed the pebble directly at his forehead. It hit him, bang! Dead on, and Kohaku followed suit, crashing into him and causing him to fall over as Kohaku grabbed the small rock and dropped it back into Mari’s open palm. “Hit you like that?” Mari asked with a tilt of her head. “You’re a bit of an odd one, aren’t you?” ID#135838 CD:11 -SUCCESS CD 7+ Required to succeed. 1/3 Times Trained.

Mari released her knees from her chest and threw the rock so Kohaku would give chase, it was a good exercise in keeping him interested in the shiny pebble. She briefly wondered what on earth Macradon would say to her having a familiar now. Not only that, but a fish that played bloody fetch. She leaned back, doe-eyed gaze watching the clouds roll over both her and Mephisto high in the sky. “Sorry.” She said. “That seems like a tough subject for you. My ex was an addict, and used a corrupt system to screw me over. So I hate anything to do with narcotics. It just rubs me the wrong way.” Mari rolled her shoulders. “I actually already have a violin. I often retreat to the 4th floor to play it, around where we met. As for my family? I dunno. Normal I guess? My dad died when I was around 20 due to emphysema and my mum remarried. But he was a good guy. Walked me down the aisle on my wedding day, although he hated my ex.” Mari scoffed. “Now I know why.” She glanced to the side as Kohaku dropped the pebble at her hand then nudged her shoulder. Was...the fish enjoying this? Mari quirked her lip as she shifted to a more seated position. “This is kinda nice... “ Mari admitted. “I admit, I’m kinda on guard...but it’s nice having aimless conversations like this.” Mari picked up the pebble. Tossing and catching it in the air. “Mmmm…” What to ask him. She didn’t want to bother him about his family, since it was a touchy subject. “Do you have any hobbies or anything like that?” She asked. That seemed like a relatively safe question to ask. @Mephisto

Mari pursed her lips. She wasn’t sure an Accuracy familiar was a thing. “I’m..pretty sure the three types are defence, attack and loot - but to be honest - I haven’t looked too much into it. "I wanted evasion, a familiar to distract and disorient. Sadly that isn't a thing - but helping my strike true would be. Thankfully." “Most of my damage is from long term effects like bleeding.” Mari tilted her head, still resting in the palm of her hand as she threw the rock. Blue eyes watching as Kohaku swam through the air to pick it up and bring it back to her. “There was a time where I wanted to do that, all status damage. Bleeding, fire damage, frost damage...compiling it all on over and over and it works - to an extent, but if I wanna use Sword Arts more effectively, I need to invest in a higher damage output, which my dagger just doesn’t do on its own. Mephisto asked if she had any songs she missed. “Mmm…” Her head tilted up to the sky. “I guess whatever my Grandpa used to play on the piano. I’d always accompany it with my violin, it’s a time I really remember fondly.” She missed him, and her grandma, but both had long since departed from the world. “I….didn’t exactly have a bad family, but my grandpa, he really was somethin’ else.” Mari shifted her eyes to Mephisto; she knew the question was probably a little personal, but she was feeling nostalgic. “Do you have any family like that? Or is it just you and your brother?” @Mephisto