[OP-F1] Much Ado About Something

[Flanna 0]

It was about time that Flanna got off her butt and started doing something. Though she hadn't exactly intended to, she'd stayed around the starting area, the first town on the first floor, for far too long. "I can just start making progress tomorrow," she'd tell herself about every day, though in truth, it was just an excuse to stave off the risk of death that every encounter in SAO had. It seemed so out of character for her, to hole up in a safe place rather than go out into the world that thousands of others were fighting in. Of course, if it had been a regular video game, Flanna had little doubt she'd be right up at the front lines, fearlessly charging into boss battles and raiding dungeons. And dying a lot in the process. But she couldn't exactly do that here. So, what now? Flanna glanced around the mostly empty tavern she was sitting in. There was one other player in the room, who seemed to be going through their menus, as well as the bartender NPC. How exciting. 

With a roll of her eyes, Flanna stood up in her seat and barged out the door, back into the streets of the first town. The common sight of different players bustling around at least helped Flanna know she wasn't the only person to stick around in the area's safety, though that didn't ease her guilt terribly well. All these people were slackers. She was too, but it was about time that changed. The mobs just outside of the town had to be easy enough, right? Her equipment wasn't terribly impressive, but she had a good feeling it was enough to get the job done. The young woman made her way through the bustling crowds of the town, her eyes darting back and forth between its many stone structures and unfamiliar faces until she eventually reached the edge of the area. 

She hesitantly looked out into the open, green fields of the first floor and found herself stuck in place. As much as she wanted to, as much as she knew she should, she just couldn't bring herself to leave the safe zone. Now that she thought about it, she'd come to this same position several times before: determined to set foot in the dangerous parts of the world yet too daunted by the risk of death. This was even the exact same spot she'd stood in on multiple occasions, trying and failing to push herself to start grinding up the levels and quests and make her way toward the front lines. Could she even catch up to the strongest players at this point? Flanna sighed, and her gaze dropped down to her feet. Maybe she could do it if she had someone else to help. That usually helped bolster her work ethic in the real world: having someone to compete with. Were there any players nearby who would be willing to help? Flanna lifted her gaze and began to glance around the area, searching for anyone who looked like they would be willing to party up.

[Vigilon 0]

Vigilon, in short, was most definitely tired of his habits of bench crashing for the sake of saving col. First, it was just to save col for until a bit later, then, it was also to save col in order to make up for the extra expense he pays for getting his familiar something sweet. If he didn't start his shop soon, the bench crashing habit and the extra expenses from those nice cold sundaes were going to weigh on him. "Did you really have to eat that much, Veriost? Did you?" The small white frost dragon just rolled her eyes at him with a "Hfff.", like she didn't care much about or notice his little budget issue. "Yeah, yeah, you keep doing that, things will get better. They will, whether they still hold sweets for you or not..." Right now, he just wanted the rest of the day to either go smoothly, or possibly meet another player. He soon spotted a player just standing there at the edge. He thought for a minute, then walked up to ask, "You look like you could use some help. Are you starting off or anything?"

@Flanna

[Flanna 0]

As if to answer her concerns, a young man Flanna had not seen before approached her and asked her just what she needed to hear. She turned towards him, and was a bit surprised to see just how short the man was, but thought it best not to comment on that out loud. Besides, stats were what made a strong player in SAO, not physical brawn.   "Oh, yes!" she eagerly responded, and gave the other player a quick bow of her head and a friendly smile. "Well, sort of, uh, yeah, I guess starting out is the, um, proper term for it, I think," she quite rapidly stammered. She didn't completely consider herself a newbie, but she most certainly was in terms of her experience with the world. And her stats. And her equipment. Alright, maybe she was a newbie.

She took a deep breath to calm herself, then more clearly added, "Yeah, I'm just starting out. I've been meaning to for a while now, but uh, well, the whole 'death' thing has been keeping me too nervous about it. So, um, if you're free, I wouldn't turn down a bit of help." Now that she'd calmed her nerves a bit, she took a closer look at the young man who'd walked up to her. She noticed something... Peculiar. "Uh, pardon me for asking, but what is that thing?" she asked, in reference to the small dragon-like creature with him. She hadn't seen anyone else wandering around the Town of Beginnings with anything like it, so the sight of it caught her a bit off guard.

@Vigilon

Edited December 8, 2017 by Flanna