Elora

"Shadow's...? Was that the name of...whatever caused all of this?", she managed to mutter as her weary conscience struggled to string the information together. "There was nothing I could do...We were barely holding on, ourselves...", he continued. She listened, absorbing his accounts as he carefully wiped the tear-streaks from her cheeks. He saw me...did he see them all? Everyone who was swallowed before them? He said that where they were was the last place to be submerged, does that mean...?" "I'm... so glad... that you're still here." She nearly brushed the sentiment off as wo

"You're here. You're safe." A sharp inhale wavered before Elora broke into dissonant sobbing. She collapsed into him, clutching the folds of his cowl between the knuckles of her trembling fingers. Shoulders fell and rose sporadically as uneven breaths coursed through her diaphragm, and she succumbed to despair. "I - I - I -- was s-so scared", choked Elora as best she could, "T-there was -- so many people d-died -- I didn't know what to do - I t-tried to help, but then I -- I was pulled under, a-and --" Burying her head face into Freyd's shoulder, she struggled to snuff out the sounds of

Elora gulped dryly, the lines of her lips flattening as she set her jaw into place. "Yeah", she vaguely agreed in response to all of her friend's observations. "Food sounds nice", she added after a prolonged stretch of silence, "And...actually...wasn't there a place that we were gonna go together? To see at some point?" The heels of her boots scrapped across the splintered floorboards of the inn as she shuffled and searched for the answer. Finally, she snapped -- or at least, she tried to through the thick fabric of her gloved hand. "Cherry blossoms! Didn't you mention that you got Hanami some

♪ Islands Under Eyelids ♪ Elora instinctually threw her arms up and into a defensive maneuver, suddenly sensing that Freyd might unwillingly strike her out of sheer surprise. A stupefied inquiry indicated that he'd at least partially been able to process that she was standing before him, and that an attack would no longer be warranted. "El... Elora?", she heard him speak her name and began to lower her guard. "I...", they both sputtered as crimson eyes met with irises flooded by a cobalt ocean. "You're alive!", he shouted. She bit her lip and turned away. "I'm sorry --", sh

"Ye ken howfur he is, glaikit dunce. Guid luck, Eddie." "Thanks, Quip", she smiled, trailing off with a sigh as she parted ways with the woman and started to slink down the series of stone steps. They somehow seemed less slippery than before, or at least, in comparison to the sludge she had just finished trying to wade through. It was a nice change of pace, though Elora couldn't help but wish she'd met more resistance along the way -- an occurrence that could have convinced her to turn back. Despite her waning spirit, she arrived at the shores of the silent pond. Beside it rested a recog

"Now let's just. Be happy for a bit ok?" "How do you figure we'll do that? We can't even get drunk here", chuckled Elora with great effort. She still felt so exhausted, so melancholic. "How are we supposed to return to normal when we don't even know what normal is anymore?", she found herself proposing against her better judgement. It was probably best not to think about. "Eh, whatever. Honestly, any reason to distract ourselves from what just happened is good enough for me. Let's go." Slowly extending her limbs, she uneasily forced herself to depart from the ground. "I don't know t

It's -- Oh, it's one of the Australians, Freyd's friend who works at the shop, decided Elora as soon as the whirlwind of shock subsided enough for her gather her bearings. "Yergh --", she started unsuccessfully through the filter of a hushing hand. "Edwina?!", snapped Elora as soon as the woman granted reprieve. She winced upon realizing that she'd neglected to heed to the aforementioned agreement. Sighing, she continued with a stifled whisper, "Come on, at least I had the curtesy to remember your name. We can skip the introductions..." "Ye kin fill me in aboot Freyd 'n' a' his non

The sickening sound of the ground's sludgy surface suctioning to Elora's shoes made the player's stomach swirl with a nervous nausea. It had taken all morning for her to muster the courage to confront the worries that had been gnawing at her conscience for days...perhaps weeks even... It had all been a blur, from the moment that she awoke in the tavern, to now, as she trudged through the mire that would lead her to Angel's Point. What am I even doing?, she found herself reconsidering, He hasn't even tried to come see me. A sharp sting of regret pierced her chest in an instant. He tried to reac

"In the end I was fighting back to back with Setsuna from the guild, we... We went down together." "Did you see it too --?" , asked Elora as Katoka uttered another apology. She paused and shook her head, regretting the interjection. "I'm sorry", she started again, "I'm -- well -- it was almost more of, a lot of feelings, than a sight. There was a moment where I thought that I could still feel you, then I just -- everything started playing out so quickly. I felt so heavy, like all of my regrets and all of the things that I regretted never doing, were dragging me down" Elora took a moment t

Elora fumbled in Katoka's embrace, releasing the thorny trinket as the two of them fell to the floorboards. The marigold menu that had shielded Elora from the new world swiftly shattered into diamonds that danced around them in the daybreak. "I-I tried to g-get you out", began Kat as she desperately clung to her friend for comfort, "I-I'm so sorry." I called for you, I hoped that you would save me, she wanted to admit. Instead, she found herself raising her arms and slinging them around Katoka's neck, trying desperately to draw her closer, suspend them both in this fleeting moment.

Light...warmth...stinging...pain.... Elora's senses slowly began to reawaken as a patch of sunlight drifted to rest between her eyelids. The...other side... Then, an obnoxious high-pitched chiming. Her alarm clock? No...It was...a sign -- a menu? The blurs between lapsing blinks gradually sharpened to reveal more information: System Update Complete. Welcome to 3.0. Please take the time to consult the update notes before allocating your refunded skill points. I don't... thud. thud. thud. Thud. Thud. THUD, drummed the anthem of worried footsteps as someone sprinte

Current Level: 34 Current SP: 114 Link to SP Tracking: [See Spoiler Below] Item Upgrades: N/A Notes: No items are being upgraded.

♪ Lost Souls ♪ "ELORA WHERE ARE YOU?!", she heard Katoka cry out as her body plunged into wintry darkness. "I'm here!", she tried to scream without respite. "Katoka - please - PLEASE HELP ME!", her mind raced as her lungs began to sting from the impending asphyxiation. Waves of panic rushed through every fiber of her being, sending clear visions through the static of her blurring sight. They were of...they were of her future -- a life that she would never experience, and a potential she would never be able to fulfill. She imagined it all: finally having the courage to become

"Hold onto me! I don't want you falling off!" Elora had the best of intentions to follow her comrade's commands. Her legs, however, found it difficult to find traction against the slippery surface of the stallion's rear, which was saturated with the liquid that resembled the appearance of sullied oil. "Wait--!", she had just barely managed to call out to Katoka before a blue bolt of lighting crashed beside them, sending the horse rearing in fright. Elora flew from the steed's back, one of it's back hooves planting itself firmly into her torso as it brayed and sprinted up the mountain

Elora shook her head, brushing off the suggestion of mounting one of the horses. "Horses are stubborn as all hell, and I'm not about to ride one after what it saw me do to the others. But someone else can...", her voice trailed off, Is there even anyone else left to save? Just then, a plea for help rang through the frigid air, practically responding to her realization the second that it crossed her mind. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me", she sighed as she teetered onto her feet, then broke into a half-hearted sprint, it was more like a sloppy jog, really, toward what was left of the player

As Katoka did her best to make sense out of the chaotic scene and attempt to command the attention of others, Elora assessed their surroundings, surveying what little remained visible of the mountainside to see if there was any new information to be gained. The valley below them was submerged in darkness, flooded completely by the thick obsidian liquid that continued to pelt between powerful bursts of wind. The only way is up, she agreed conclusively. How many lives had already been lost? How many lives had yet to be lost? Elora's entertaining of the thought was curtailed by the discorda

"If something happens I want you to keep going ok? You can't give up." "Why would it matter, Kat? Why would it make a difference if I joined you or if I survived to live for just a few more minutes? Do you really think that I would be able to save anyone else in that amount of time -- in something like THIS?" Elora didn't want to make Katoka cry anymore than she already had, but unlike her friend, she was not able to command her nerves or stop the panic from taking over. So what if she didn't see the point? Maybe her life wouldn't be worth living if she lost the people she cared about, or

After helping Katoka onto her feet, Elora shifted her gaze to scan the horizon for anyone, anything that they could run to for sanctuary from the storm. If other players truly had survived the torrential downpour that flooded the valley below, then there was a chance that they could find one another, create a party to protect one another. Surely, there would be more safety in numbers. "I-it's ok, right? We're ok for now", she voiced to Kat as the mantra echoed in her head. Whether or not it held any substantial meaning or offered any actual comfort was beyond her concern. That wasn't the

Her instinct to survive consumed her once again. Elora's head throbbed as her sights spun to assess her surroundings. She needed to search for safety, to find something that would allow her to lower her guard and to ground herself back in reality. All of this had to be some sort of vivid nightmare. Yes, a nightmare, just like the one she had had before. In that one, there had been other players fighting beside her against a trinity of perfectly muscular beings. They -- It was then that she heard her guild-mate yelling at an inexplicable force that had begun to drag her down into the puddl

Before Elora could pinpoint the source of the thunderous rumbling sound, she felt a hand firmly wrapping around her wrist. Katoka yanked her backwards just as she began to feel the seismic vibrations of a landslide nearing their group. The absence of light made the scene that unfolded infinitely more terrifying. Screams and short-lived cries for help pierced through the pelting rain as she stumbled to safety. Then, there was silence. Elora clutched her chest in a futile attempt to steady her nerves as Kat held her protectively. "We have to stop meeting like this", she had star

Elora did her best to shepherd the stragglers of their party by gesturing forward with the length of her spear. Traversing the rugged path in such severe conditions made it nearly impossible for her to maneuver around its obstacles quickly and safely at the same time. Thankfully, she was already beginning to close the distance between her and her friend. It wouldn't be long now until they'd be able to walk alongside each other again. That was, until, underside of her boots lost their traction against the ground below. The slippery surface of the sludge-covered bedrock soon sent Elora teetering

"Right", agreed Elora with a resolute nod of her head. The tender touch of Katoka's hand was a striking and captivating contrast to her commanding voice and determined expression. She really does radiate the spirit of a leader -- but that doesn't mean she has to do this alone. I know that I can be just as strong. I have to be just as strong. There is no other option. "You guide us to somewhere we can hide. I'll make sure no one is left behind" Returning a firm squeeze, Elora released Katoka's hand, disappearing in an instant as she fled down the slope of the mountain in search of anyone

Wind funneled through the door and whistled shrilly as it wove between cracks in the cedar walls of the submerging saloon. Creaking rafters and the rattling of cups and cutlery revealed that little time remained before the building would give way under the blustery winds and pummeling rain. Katoka's right, we need to get out of here. All of us. Snatching a stein that she presumed to be full of beer, Elora raised it forward like a general would a sword as he commanded his troops to battle. "Grab your drinks and run like hell to the hilltops, everybody!", she called out before downing as mu

Pausing with the mug held only centimeters away from her lips, Elora gave a sideways glance toward the player who'd taken a seat beside her. Unable to make out any distinguishable features from the current angle, she decided to pivot so that she could -- "Oh my god!", she found herself yelling from surprise. "Jesus...", she gasped, raising a hand to clutch her chest, "You can't just greet someone looking like the f*cking -- the Creature of Black Lagoon" Taking a brief moment to steady her nerves, she continued, "Is that all from the storm?" She gestured to the vegetation that hung from his app

Closing the gap between them, Elora greeted Kiluia in turn, "Hey. I'm glad that I was able to find you. Everything's been alright with me, but how about you? You're getting MARRIED!" Her arms reached out as she gestured excitedly toward him with splayed fingers. "I'm actually kind of surprised Haine isn't here with you", considering for a moment, she continued, "Wonder if Katoka's taken her out to shop for a dress today. I heard they had plans for -- er, I don't know if I was supposed to spoil that --" Geez, I've been talking a lot, haven't I? I should give him a chance to say something.