___

She touched the door with her hand, expecting to have to apply a lot of force to open the massive doors. However, upon her hand making contact with the door, they began to creak open. It sounded as if they hadn't been opened in a few weeks as they slowly, but surely, created a large enough entrance for her to enter. She walked inside and as she fully entered, the doors slammed shut behind her, locking her in so that there was no escape. From the shadows emerged a large figure, though only about eight meters in actual height. You must be the Queen... It's a lot smaller than I imagined, but it's still pretty big in person.

Upon approaching the entrance to the next chamber, everything went silent. The constant humming of the hive members died out and not a sound was to be heard. At least, not until a few seconds would pass and the whole hive began to tremble. She could hear the flapping of a massive pair of wings picking up speed until a roaring hum took over the entire hive. She took a gulp in fear, knowing full and well what was waiting for her in the next chamber. The Queen must be resting in that chamber... She didn't look forwards to having to fight it, but she needed to find out herself whether or not the Queen was real.

She made her way up a pathway, though it did bring a thought across her mind. This looks so unnatural... The pathway winded around the hive, going up a few floors, into another chamber of the hive. Wasps didn't have a reason to walk and she was certain that the wasps could fly from birth, "I guess this is a part of games. Some things just aren't meant to be realistic." Of course, if she considered the fact that she was fighting oversized wasps, walking in an oversized hive, and looking to fight a Queen wasp that was nearly eight floors tall; it was something that shouldn't have really sparked her curiosity.

Taking her invitation, she began walking towards and eventually into the hive of the Queen. It was pretty huge, just like she had expected, but it probably wasn't big enough to fit the dimensions of the Queen that the boy had described. A giant wasp that was over forty meters high and only one group had encountered it so far? Yeah, that definitely sounded like some top of the class exaggeration. She entered, expecting to be swarmed by a bunch of wasps, but it was quite the incredible sight. They were busy bees, as silly as it sounded, that were constantly working on expanding the hive.

She wasn't quite sure at what to do once they dispersed, considering that they were attacking her just a few moments before. She thought back to the story that the boy was telling the crowd, "Well, I guess he was right about this after all, but..." Things didn't really add up at all, unless there had been some changes to the event. He and his group claimed to slay at least a hundred wasps before the next stage picked up so, unless he had a total of twenty members in his group including himself, then there's no way that she should have been able to continue after slaying a measly five wasps and the knights.

Wolf 1: [7306] 2

Wolf 2: [7307] 1

Wolf 3: [7308] 2

Wolf 4: [7309] 7

All the wolves would attempt to attack, but not even one would be successful enough to actually hit Kosan. They simply ignored the girl that couldn't even manage to hit a wolf that had been caught off guard, it was quite clear who was the dominant member of the two party group. Of course, the wolves weren't quite strong enough to inflict any damage upon Kosan. It'd take nothing short of a critical to inflict damage upon Red, but it appeared as if the wolves hadn't considered that factor.

[7502] 1 - 5 - 20 - 2

It wasn't too awkward for their trip through the forest, though they both remained silent during the venture. She found it to be quite peaceful, not having to worry about saying the wrong thing, even if she had been walking with a guy. It gave her the chance to take in the scenery around her, especially since there were no wolves around. The one that stood next to her for the duration of the walk had more than twice her health so she didn't have to worry about fending for herself. If she could take on the Queen and its hive, then the two of them together could take on some measly wolves without lifting a finger. Speaking of which, "I hear them too," she informed Kosan as she unsheathed her rapier and turned on her heels. He easily whittled down half the HP of the strongest wolf in a single hit, doing more damage than Red could do with a critical hit. Wow... I've got some catching up to do. She went to finish it off, but ended up missing as the wolf scurried away from the pain of Kosan's blade. How embarrassing...

Kosan 33/33

Red 15/15

Wolf 1: 7/15

Wolf 2 : 13/13

Wolf 3 : 12/12

Wolf 4 : 8/8

Red smiled, she was glad that the new girl liked them. It was important that players played it safe in this game, even if they were experienced in previous games. Red hadn't played anything of the sort prior to SAO, but she had came within an inch of her life a few times fighting the weakest of mobs, "Sounds good, I'll accept the request. My name is Red- I mean, well..." She had forgotten about that accursed feature, though it hadn't proved to be too troublesome as of yet, "My username is three underscores." She pointed up, allowing her name to be seen, "It's a little silly now that I'm stuck here, but I just go by Red." The girl let herself out after saying her farewells, but not before she had the chance to say them as well, "Okay, Luci. See you around then, good luck!"

Red looked at the items in her display cases, where a measly three items sat. None of them were perfect crafts, which meant they were less likely to fly off the shelves. Especially with all the competition that was on the other floors, "I-I uhm..." She thought about it for a moment, it certainly sounded like a good idea, but there wasn't anything like a contract in this game. However, she had been helped out more than enough that she figured she should return the favor. Both Kosan and Tyger had helped her out tremendously, how much could a few pieces of armor bother her business? She coughed, "Well, I guess I could." She pulled out the leather tunic and leather boots, then placed them on the counter, "They're not the best in the game, but they should help out so early on."

- Feather Feet (to Lucifer)

- Light Leather Armor (to Lucifer)

Red peeked out from her crafting room, she hadn't been very successful at all today. Granted, she had made two rather pretty articles of clothing, but that was far from what she wanted. Clothing wouldn't sell nearly as well as armor that had enchantments on it, "Oh, well... Better luck next time." She picked up head back up as she approached the counter, "Hi there, welcome to Pins and Needles. How may I help you?" She claimed that she needed some gear to get started here in SAO, "Well, I could craft some wares for you. Perfect crafts costs 1000 Col, while Uncommon gear is 500 Col."

[7250] 1/22 - 10 - 9 () -

[7251] 1/22 - 11 - 8 () -

[7252] 1/22 - 12 - 2 () -

ID: 7250

Shop: Pins and Needles

Item Name: Dark Mask

Item Type: Mask

Item Quality: Common

Item Description: A simple black mask that covers the face of the user. It has no enchantments.

ID: 7251

Shop: Pins and Needles

Item Name: Cerulean Silence Mark

Item Type: Armband

Item Quality: Common

Item Description: An armband with the Cerulean Silence emblem, signifying members of the guild.

Red sighed, of course it wouldn't have shattered. She looked down at the crystal, it looked like it would shatter. She moved it around in her hand, it feels like it would shatter. Obviously. She slumped her shoulder in shame as she tagged along, knowing that she was still as socially awkward as when she first joined the game. The kept walking for some time until they encountered the town gate, where he would show Red what the plan was, "I hate wolves..." She rubbed her arm, remembering how she can within a hitpoint of dying back when she encountered them for the first time. She intended to mutter it, but it might have been audible enough for Kosan to hear. She looked back up at the blacksmith and nodded, "Let's get things started then."

Ariel was the first to speak up about Red's strange username, even though Bradley was also curious about it. It hadn't even occured to her that the only one she had spoken with about it was Raeyliff prior to the meet up, "Oh, you can just call me Red." She rubbed the back of her head, "I didn't expect to play for more than a few minutes so I went with that." While it might be unclear why anyone would pick up and play an expensive, brand new game and stop after a few minutes, Red was in a situation where that was the honest truth. Raeyliff suggested that they all gear up and prepare for the quest, though she already had her rapier at her side and buckler equipped. I guess people aren't always prepared after all... She led the way, she wasn't too fond of the dark and even more so for night time in this unusual place. There was no telling what came to be once the sky turned black, but she had always been in town when that time hit. "Let's be on our way then." As she began walking, Bradley proposed a question, "It's a pretty easy one, so I've heard. We just have to make it across the desert and touch the tablet at the Sol Shrine."

He grew even more embarrassed from her thanks causing her to giggle a bit at the sudden change of tempo, though not enough for him to become even more flustered from it. It was amusing and she felt a little more comfortable knowing that she wasn't the only one falling prey to the same troublesome emotion, "Well, looks like you're getting some more customers. I guess I should head out then." She stood up from the chair and headed towards the door, but not before pulling up her menu and adding his name to her friends list, "Thanks again, Kosan. For everything... I really do mean it."

Unfortunately, the boy didn't have enough to cover the expenses of it as of right now, "Oh, what a shame." She had been really hoping to get some more business going, especially with how successful her crafts and the shop itself had been so far. However, he did have the suggestion of placing an order in advance, which she had already done once, "Oh, that's perfectly fine. It can take a few tries before I make the perfect item for my customers so that's usually how orders are placed." She sent him an order form through her menu, giving him the chance to fill it out with the exact details, "Just let me know what you want and I'll get to work, it'll probably be ready the next time you drop by." She smiled, hoping he wouldn't feel too down about being short on Col, she knew the feeling.

= = = = =

The girl mentioned that she had a perfect buckler with the right combination of enchantments, "Oh, wow. That sounds delightful, I'd like that." However, before she had the chance to try it out, the customer would first try on the armband. Of course, try was the word to emphasize there, "Oh, I've never heard about that before. Is that how games usually work?" It made no sense that she couldn't equip it, but she'd understand if the enchantments didn't work. Luckily, she didn't seem too troubled by it. In fact, she told Red to keep it and the shield that she had crafted, in exchange that she come over to her shop, "I-I don't... I mean, you don't..." She wasn't sure of what to say, but she had to express her gratitude, "Thank you, I really do appreciate it. It's lovely." She planned to visit the girl's shop soon and expects it to be something promising.

+ 1000 Col (from Rebekah)

- Light Armor Set (to Rebekah)

+ Red Fish Shield (from Tyger)

He looked far more confident this time around, "Hi, Kosan." He seemed to be lacking the gear one would typically taking on a quest like this, but he was quick to make it known he was aware, "Uhm... Yes, I am." He exchanged out his normal looking clothes for some torn and worn armor, though she wasn't too sure that it was an improvement. She thought she had to always be prepared for the worst so she just wore the same thing every day, the same old hood combo. It's not like people stunk in this game and needed baths and such, but it never occured to her that some variety would be a good thing. While she was lost in thought, thinking about the simple fact that she was a tailor and had never thought of such things, Kosan tossed her a crystal. She reacted a bit to slow and juggled it for a bit before having to dive for the catch, "Phew..." She hopped back up and brushed herself off, "Sorry about that, I-I... I guess I'm ready whenever you are." Things couldn't be going any worse, she thought. Great... Just great. We haven't even started the quest and I've made an even bigger fool of myself.

He stuttered, she tilted her head, He's getting embarrassed? She hadn't thought about it, but she had no idea how long he had been in the game or what level he was, just his name and his profession. She hadn't spent a fraction of the time it'd take to learn his actual personality so it bothered her that she was so harsh in her judgment so earlier on. In fact, he was even going so far as to supply her with some armor that he just finished crafting as well, "Oh, well... I-I don't know what to say..." She couldn't wear heavy armor and benefit from the stats, but it was a gracious gift and she couldn't so no to him after all the help he had given her so far, "Thank you, Kosan." She examined the armor, it was as high a quality as her rapier and he expected nothing in return, "It looks really... fancy." She'd find a way to return the favor, but she figured it'd be better for it to be a surprise, much like today was.

[7041] 5 - 11 - 17 - 9

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp Knight] 0/7 ... +1 material, +35 Col

The wasp flew upwards, damaged and powerless in this one-sided battle, but between the humming of the wasp drones above and its duty as a knight of the hive, it flew back downwards. That would be grossly understating the attack though, considering that it was diving stinger first in Red's direction. All it would take was a simple side step for the wasp to miss and get stuck in the ground for a moment, allowing Red to finish it off. As the knight disappeared, the humming became slightly hushed and the rest of the wasps around went on their way. She had obtained their recognition as a notable fighter.

[7039] 5 - 2 - 1 - 4 and [7040] 10 - 7 - 5 - 2

[___] 12/13

[Wind Wasp Knight] 2/7

[Wind Wasp Knight] 0/7 ... +1 material

The tables would be quickly turned as the wasps flew in for another 'attack from both sides' strategy. She took a small leap fowards, stabbing the first wasp and destroying the thing in a single hit, "I guess that armor was just for show, huh." The second one backtracked by turning around and attacking from a different angle, but she took this leap backwards, creating a promising opportunity that she took up on. With one out and the second one down to one last hit, it would be pretty easy to continue on to the next part of the hive. She didn't want to spend too long doing it though so she had to finish him off soon.

[7036] 1 - 2 - 6 - 8 and [7037] 1 - 12 - 14 - 7

[___] 12/13

[Wind Wasp Knight] 7/7

[Wind Wasp Knight] 7/7

She chased the first one down, hoping to catch it in time, but the second wasp caught her in the side as she lost track of where he went. Then, when she went to lunge her rapier at the second one, the first one caught her in the back. Neither of them did damage this time, which meant that they could only land damage on a critical hit. She was learning, slowly but surely, the way of the game. It was amazing how important it was to know all this stuff and she wished she had someone to teach her, but she wasn't so sure she'd find anyone like that. Especially with the way she acted around people.

[7034] 1 - 11 - 18 - 10 and [7035] 1 - 8 - 7 - 7

[___] 11/13

[Wind Wasp Knight] 7/7

[Wind Wasp Knight] 7/7

Well, she thought that it wasn't going to be much of a difference, but that turned out to change rather quick. She wasn't going to be fighting these wasps one on one, but rather, one on two. They both were slightly faster than the regular wasps that she had fought before causing her to miss her hit on both of them as they circled around her. The first one to strike had actually inflicted two damage, much to her surprise, but the second hadn't inflicted anything even though it was a direct hit, "Well, I guess you guys aren't much tougher than the other wasps. Let's get this show on the road."

[7033] 9 - 2 - 5 - 10

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp] 0/7 ... +1 material

Without any hesitation, she lunged her rapier in the air, finishing off the weak willed wind wasp. By now, there were a good fifty or so wind wasps crowded in the air space, creating a solid and oddly calming hum. They turned towards the north, where the hive was as two armored wasps flew towards them. They had to be the next step to the Queen, but she had no idea if they were some sort of guard or royal knight, though she knew she had to beat them. She returned to her fighting stance and waited for each of them to fly down to their own demise, they shouldn't be too difficult.

[7032] 7 - 12 - 2 - 4

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp] 2/7

The twenty or so wasps that had gathered in the sky seemed to react with an uproar, creating an orchestra of humming as it encouraged their fellow hive member to defeat the intruder. It flew down and kept a bit of distance from the girl, being the first wasp to not attack so eagerly. She knew that this one in particular had to be pretty nervous about fighting her so she ran forwards, making the wasp start to fly back in an attempt to dodge her attack, but it wasn't quick enough. She poked her and slid underneath the stinger of the wasp, ready to strike once again.

[7031] 8 - 2 - 16 - 8

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp] 0/7 ... +1 material, +35 Col

She took the final strike on the wasp, ending it's life. That was four wasps down now, but there was far more than that hovering far above her head. She couldn't tell if they were going to strike her, though it was clear that they weren't going to leave her alone. She had just slain four of their hive's drones and, while it wasn't a truly significant impact by any means, it was still enough to catch there attention. She noticed one in particular was beginning to get antsy and began moving back and forth, almost as if it was hesitating to attack. She called out, thinking it'd understand the challenge, "Come on, I'm down here!"

[7030] 6 - 9 - 18 - 7

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp] 2/7

The next one was more than willing to get things started off quick too, successfully striking Red and doing absolutely no damage. She'd return the hit, of course, as the wasp fly back up. However, as he went high into the air, she noticed that some of the nearby wasps were spectating the fights. It wasn't anything like a swarm, but they were making certain patterns of movements, almost as if they were dancing. She assumed they were cheering on their losing comrade, but without a doubt, they were communicating to the other wasps around them that trouble was afoot.

[7029] 8 - 12 - 15 - 9

[___] 13/13

[Wind Wasp] 0/7 ... +1 material, +35 Col

Before the wasp had the chance to fly away, she'd lunge at it once again finishing it off. It was amazing to see how much of a difference that a little training could do. Just over a week ago, these things would have brought her down to her last hitpoint, while now, they weren't able to make a dent in her currently maxxed out health. The Battle Healing skill was definitely her favorite one so far, allowing her to remain in combat longer. It'd surely be able to help her out when she goes on some material gathering hunts and certain bosses and mobs like what she was facing now.