Ashrah

"Not at all," he shook his head, "I like your voice. And I couldn't hope to replicate that accent, so I don't mean any offense." His words were quick, as though he realized his mannerisms were rude and had slipped from the chivalrous demeanor he strictly conducted himself by. It was obvious that he shifted from it a bit with familiarity. Markedly, he seemed a bit relieved when she mentioned she wasn't altogether uncomfortable. "Oh- good," he sighed. "That's good." Ava met his gaze and he gulped down, then managed to lift his drink. "I don't think it's weird to know people in the slightest. I'd wager that knowing your friends makes the friendship more real than just going out all the time, never really talking about life or problems."

He took a small sip and turned his head to look out at Taft's scenery, and noticed droplets of gilded sunlight spilled out across the river's surface, a perfect mirror of the pastel-painted sky. Orange, deep violet, and vibrant yellows cast the warmth of daylight's death down on them, and all he could do was nod in agreement. Tobias had always enjoyed the late day sky, and with his attention drawn to it, the man was helpless to say much else. The colors melted in his gaze, their dichotomy abolished when reflected in his green eyes. "I reckon this is my favorite place in Aincrad," he murmured.

Tobias began to slice off another sample of meat as she turned back to him and spoke about her fears- the dangers of higher floors- and the possibility of a house. He lowered his half-raised fork. "Eventually," the man nodded, "I would like that. Once I've put a lot of money together, and I can support the cause a bit better." The player reached up to scratch the tip of his nose. "We've got some time before the Frontlines, and so, I figure by then we might laugh about financial issues."

Tobias took a healthier sip from his wine this time. "I think you won't even need to worry about dangers for that much longer," he confided. "You're in a guild, and they'll help you out in a pinch, right? And I'm always a message away if they don't hop to. Not to mention, you're stronger every time I see you, so you might not even need my help much longer." His eyes had shut as he spoke, and he smiled, but his heart sunk. The idea of her not keeping him around hurt more than he let on. "If you do get a house, I'd love to see it," he spoke in a much lighter voice, genuinely.

The mercenary woke well before dawn. The sounds of cooking stole through the room as he stirred, and he found a woman already tending to the morning's duties. "Ah," she said quietly, "you're awake. The young master waited for several hours, but you were out cold. He's gone back to training outside."

Arc bowed. "Thank you for your hospitality," the man spoke evenly. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"No, not at all," she chuckled and waved a hand. "It is nice to have guests every so often. It gets lonely, what with Master Setanta rarely around during the day." Arc wondered at what kept the man out of his house so frequently, but he refrained from inquiry. "Have you taken up the spear?" she asked him.

"Yes," he smiled, "I took to it immediately. He has been a wonderful instructor."

The NPC smiled warmly. "I am glad," her voice was softer now. "The young master does not often make friends, but the spear is an important part of his life. You will doubtless become very close."

Arc blinked. What did she mean by that? "Ah, I've spoken out of turn. I apologize," she bowed. "Please, be a good friend to Setanta."

"Of course," Arc nodded

"The way I see it, you can throw blame any which way you like," Arc replied, "but in the end, that won't change anything. You can dwell on things, or you can work toward effecting an actual change. Whether that's in yourself or someone else, it doesn't really matter."

He turned back toward their original direction, and in the distance he made out the vague beginnings of a dim light. "I think I see something," he told Beatbox. "Stay alert, I can hear movement nearby, too."

The subtle sounds of howling and chattering became more prominent as the light was made more substantial. A low flame, it still did its work of giving them something to go off of. The light filtered down onto a body of water, and once they got close enough, other flames began to ignite along the shoreline. "Because that's not ominous," he muttered.

"Whatever happens," Arc told the other man, "we'll make sure you get back to your friend," he managed a smile. "And I'll find my way back to Miss Birdie, like I promised."

As they walked along the river, he pointed out into the distance. "Can you see it?" he asked. "The mouth of Tartarus?"

"Mmmm, I would definitely say that it's not a sisterly type of affection," Arc tried not to laugh, but failed. The chortle escaped his lips quietly. "No, I do like her, I'm just not at that point yet where I feel comfortable saying there's more to it than there is. I don't want to get ahead of myself and start imagining feelings and overcomplicating the relationship between us before I can actually develop something genuine. I think she would appreciate that on my part, at least." He lowered his head. "I want to give her a real friend, not some guy who's just a part of the game experience," he spoke softly. "And if I'm going to fall in love with her, I think it's only right that I do it for real."

He stopped himself and shook his head, laughing again. "Listen to us, talking about love like it's some kind of rational thing, and like we have any control over any of this."

The green eyed boy wiped a tear from the edge of his lashes. "Look, man," he said as Beatbox seemed to grow disconcerted. "I get it, people go through rough times. Don't let life sour you for yourself." He turned all the way around and almost bumped into his new ally. "I had my best friend to die in the ninth floor boss fight," he revealed, "and it's taken some time, and I might never really get over it... but..." Arc shrugged, though Beatbox most likely did not see. "...you can't live like that, soaked in things that you can't control. That's why people jump over the edge."

When the man seemed to get angry, he tilted his head. "We've come a ways," Arc replied. "Ought to see something soon...."

Tobias opened his menu and slid his finger across the item in question. When it flickered in his hand, the two handed spear materialized for the woman to inspect. It earned a look of disapproval from the waiter, but the man placed the food down in front of them both without a word. "I wanted to do something different than a sword," he explained. "And the spear seemed... way more my style."

He dismissed the weapon to his inventory once more, then closed his eyes and cut a sliver of meat away from the main course. While he gnawed on it, the girl began to talk about her mother's drinking problem, and her own fear of falling victim to alcoholism. "I did," he said quietly, "fall into that trap, and so I can't blame you for wanting to avoid it. Thom and me both. His grandfather passed, and we spent a week straight getting pissed. I can't remember anything emotional, or even really anything at all about those seven days. That's how bad it got. That was around the time my parents got divorced..."

His eyes had turned away from her as he spoke, and they looked distant in their half open state. She began to eat her own food, then sipped more of the wine as if to dismiss his worries over being inconsiderate. When Arc glanced back her way, he was smiling.

"I hope it's not too weird," he said with a laugh, "after all, I'd hate our first date to go down in the books as a strange experience. What'll you tell your friends?" He made a facetious face and emulated an effeminate voice, albeit mangled, high pitched, "I did meet this guy, but he took me to this place and it was strange." He let his eyes fall to the table, then move back up to meet hers.

"In all seriousness, you don't have to drink if you're uncomfortable." He gestured toward the glass in her grasp. "I'm more interested in you having a good time than anything."

"This thing is infuriatingly hard to find," the merc muttered as he waded through the sea of tall grass. Thankfully, nothing had popped out of hiding since the last enemy, and he had some breathing room. His Extra Skill, <<Survival>> procced when he exited combat, and his health regenerated to full within seconds. His stamina had depleted to a small degree, but several seconds would dispel even that disadvantage. The numbers were a huge factor in Aincrad. If you got them high enough, there was virtually nothing outside a boss encounter that posed a threat to you.

That was the running theory, at least. Arc watched his point pools rise idly as he looked toward the sky. It was a calm day on floor 2, and the sun was shining brightly. A cool breeze washed over him as he let his blade rest at his back, and he trudged about seeking more wasps. Always more mobs. "At least they die quickly," he murmured. "If these things were actually difficult to kill, this quest would take forever."

Arc: 355/355 HP 27/34 E

Birdie touched his arm, and he put his hand over hers. "No way," he shook his head, "you don't have to apologize for that one. My friends and I always called each other jackasses in the most endearing way possible." He looked around. "That makes us sound pretty odd, I reckon." Tobias nodded slowly in her direction. "I know it's easier said than done, but I'm trying to get more comfortable around you, so I hope you can eventually do the same."

Anything to see that smile, he replied in his mind when she said "you had better be" and smiled at him. Then, she asked about his training. "Uh," he blushed a bit and his eyes trailed away from her. "I- er- that is..." he knew he couldn't keep a secret from her if she pressed him for it. His lips pursed and he bit the lower one gently. "I... decided to change weapons," he said in a quiet voice.

 Arc tested the flavor of the wine, and found it more than satisfaction. The robust body was definitively Chianti, though it was more fruit forward than any varietal he had tasted before. It was almost as though this wine was specific to Taft. He gulped down the sip before replacing the glass on the table. She quipped that she might be the sort to, in fact, come to bother him at work, and the Merc grinned a bit more broadly. "Hah, I knew I liked you."

She mentioned that her place of employment was a burger joint, his eyes lit up. "I love little holes in the wall like that. I'll definitely have to visit." He hoped that didn't sound as eager as he thought it did, but it was too late now to retract it. Tobias sat back in his seat and listened to her quietly.

He quirked an eyebrow when she said the taste was lovely, his disbelief palpable. "Don't force yourself, now," he murmured quietly. Her apology made him feel bad for making the order to begin with. "Ah, I'm sorry- I shouldn't have presumed..."

He listened to the words she said as the other player looked on as if anticipating the duel to happen; Arc waited patiently and calmly for all the chaos to pass. She leaned into his arm and thanked him, and he gave only a slight nod in response. If the girl felt threatened or endangered, any sort of verbal response was unnecessary. His body language clearly stated his intent.

With so many others present, Arc never noticed any newcomers. He kept his attention right where it was, since that was the most important thing going on right then and there. "Hey, yeah, I'll be fine," he assured her once she asked if he would be alright once she'd left. "I'm sure Glacia is wrought with distress from missing you by now," he let out a chuckle and turned his gaze toward the fights as they raged on the horizon. "I have some notes to take, so I figure there's plenty to do before I get going."

Arc turned back to her when she hugged him, and he wrapped her up in a warm embrace. "I promise," he told her, whispered for her alone to hear. "No crazy shenanigans today." When she pulled away, he smiled and waved back at her. There was no cause for worry, since they were in a safe zone and he wasn't about to take any duels. Barring some outlandish happenstance, there was nothing that could force him into a lethal situation in the here and now, and he made sure that she knew it before she headed off. "See you!" he called out. "Message me if you need anything." As @Birdie disappeared from view, Arc noticed @Domarus about to get into a fight of his own.

Huh... wonder how much better he's gotten. He decided to watch the other Merc-in-training for a bit, since there were so many fights to take in.

When the wasp spun at breakneck speed, Arc did not falter. He matched the pace as their speed increased to staggering. Both combatants managed to tag one another, evidenced by the red line that broke open on the player's arm. The difference in power was extreme, however. Tobias watched as his blow leveled the mob in a powerful stroke, more than enough to send the data back to Aincrad where it could tell Kayaba to suck it.

Arc stood upright and stretched his back out, shouldering his weapon as he looked around for the wasp queen. "Don't tell me I'm gonna need to kill another one," the merc muttered as he began to walk once more.

It was almost infuriating, the idea of fighting an enemy when it couldn't even be bothered to show itself. The wasp queen must really have been something to see, and part of him thought that if she wasn't duly difficult, he might even regret taking the quest. Field boss rewards being what they were however, it would prove to be lucrative in the long run.

In the end, he decided to bite the bullet and press on.

Arc: 352/355 HP 26/34 E

Wasp: Dead

On the next attack, neither of them managed to get any ground. The creature sputtered in disarray from the last strike, far and away from the mercenary's reach. Arc uttered several quiet curses and decided to wait it out, his mind blazing through tactics that would allow him to dismantle this opponent as quickly as possible. He wanted to get through the entire fight without taking much damage, because the less he accrued before the field boss, the better off he would be throughout the main encounter.

The best laid plans of mice and men, of course...

He ran along the floor beneath the wasp as it zoomed along crazily, almost as though it wanted to flee. Arc knew better. The further it got from him, the harder it would be to track and the more potential damage it could deal from creating momentum. Big hits like that were something to be wary of. He kept vigilant watch of his target as it went racing along the skyline and kept his breathing under control. It was only a matter of time.

Arc: 353/355 HP 27/30 E

Wasp: 4/10 HP

When the wasp dive bombed again, Arc threw himself out of the way. He rolled across the dirt and came to his feet in a crouch, mindful of where the creature came from. He dodged expertly away from another strike intended for his midsection, and he brought Levantine crashing down on the creature with a deft swing. "Gotcha," he muttered as his blade dug deep and data erupted from the reddened wound.

The sound of a garbled buzz emanated from the creature's body as it fluttered fearfully away, mindful of the player that had dealt it undesired damage. Arc smirked as he watched the creature flee, sure that it would come back for more. They had no sense of self preservation, but rather, they thrived on aggression and sought better ways to undermine and destroy their opponent. The algorithms on this floor were not all that nightmarish, but in terms of danger, it offered more than the first floor.

Perhaps after this, the queen might see fit to grace him with her presence?

Arc: 353/355 HP 29/34 E

Wasp: 4/10 HP

"Hahaha, I don't know about all that," Arc laughed and shook his head. "Sword Art Online is hardly my idea of a love connection setting, and frankly, I think most ladies would be out of their mind to think about picking up guys when their life is in imminent danger." If there was a proper way that love worked, Tobias was certainly a stranger to it. In all the time he'd spent outside the world being a bum, he never once came close to anything like a real, emotional connection with someone else. The very idea made him want to laugh even louder, but he relented. There was no point in playing too far into the conversation topic. Domarus seemed unlikely to divulge anything further, and well, he'd proven himself resilient on the field of not giving anything up. Arc had conceded nothing of import, except that he might have vague interest in someone.

"Good armor, huh?" he asked with a mirthless smile. "That's good, Dom. It's important to have the ability to take hits." His eyes considered the man and his words about catching up, but he deigned not to seem too competitive about the notion. If this man was good enough to get that far, then they would see for themselves in due time just what lay ahead of them. "I don't mind working with anyone, provided they can keep up," he said. "I've been playing it close to the throat, lately, and I don't want anyone coming along if they're gonna be at risk."

"You're going to die," Arc promised Addel, his eyes jade fire. The other man released him with an admonishing look. It was a well-known fact that you didn't threaten people with death in SAO, even if they seemed to deserve it. "I'm going to bring you to your knees over and over, and I'm going to make you beg to be forgiven, and once you do, I'm going to watch your data fragment and scatter as you're deleted from existence. In this world, and the world beyond this one."

His voice was calm, rational, and utterly terrifying. While Lycan's rage was a monster in itself, Arc's was another brand of ferocious. The woman he had come to defend now grabbed on him and began to pull him away, but Arc gripped her tightly by the arm and flung her to the side. "You stay out of this," he snarled as she went barrelling into the bar. "You're lucky that you can't die right here, right now," the mercenary pointed toward Addel with a hauntingly stoic expression. "I gave you a warning, and you did this. You stripped someone bare of their humanity. You have no right to live, anymore."

Arc glared at Esther and spat on the ground before her. Whether or not the woman remembered him, if she came to the aid of this monster, she was a liability. He turned on his heel and followed as Lycan shouted the instruction to withdraw. They needed a plan.

As Addel and Esther shared their intimate moment, Arc watched with a calculating gaze. His movements were far slower than those of his ally. He was not hurt in the same way, and only one emotion mattered right now.

But...

As he walked out the door, Arc bit his lip. He didn't want to kill anyone. He didn't want to see the look on everyone's face when they saw his cursor change color, and he didn't want the heartbreak that came from people losing faith in him. Arc needed a better option. He needed to take command of that anger and channel it in another way. If he could terrify the wicked player into never coming near Esther again, he would- but he knew that would never work.

No... he needed to find a way to save Esther that did not involve his taking a life. There had to be a better way.

If you can save someone, that's more important than killing the bad guy.

Be a man that people can rely on.

Don't let this monster control your life.

You are more than your anger, Tobias.

Red.

An alchemist on the same floor with his tailor shop made perfect sense for doing business. It was a short walk, almost in the same vein as his own establishment; but for that simplicity, when he walked in it seemed that the shopkeeper's wares were just about as simple. If he kept them all in his inventory, how would he get people to browse his wares? Or was it that he planned to make his potions to order? That seemed like a plan that tended to backfire. If Alchemy was anything like Tailoring, there was a chance that he would take several days to fill an order.

He saw the proprietor in a somewhat heated conversation- at least on one end- with a blonde haired woman who seemed somewhat familiar from behind. "Don't think I'm gonna find what I'm looking for in here," he muttered, but Arc strode forward as the two players continued. You dislike sand, but you came to a desert floor? He glimpsed toward the woman as he came to her side, and he knew her instantly. "Lessa," he gave her username with a half smile as he offered the woman a wave. "Hey, it's Arc, remember? You made this sword for me."

The mercenary gestured toward the blade on his back. "Couldn't help overhearing you, but I heard you were searching for some training grounds? Floor five is almost totally desert, but there are a few gems that might pique your interest." He swiped open the menu on his HUD and toggled the map. He pulled the data into a trade window and offered it to Lessa with a grin. "Here, here, and here," he pointed, "these are regular dungeons on the floor that are either subterranean or oasis based palaces. The Sultanate that runs the floor has a few unsavory political opponents, and they make for interesting flavor quests, if you're looking for that sort of thing."

Arc scratched his head and glanced toward the alchemist with an apologetic smile. The man seemed less than personable, but that was his prerogative. When he glanced back to Lessa, the dark haired and green eyed man added, "the further you get from Armadillo, the more dangerous the mobs get in the respective dungeons. There are assassins and thieves in the den to the southwest, and they have some shifty moves. Hard to hit, and all that."

He stopped and considered. "I dealt with an information broker a while back who said something about a secret dungeon, if you're skilled at finding things like that." He folded his arms and shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not, but the data is consistent with some Egyptian mythology, about the god of disasters, Set." He glanced toward the entrance, then lowered his voice. "Something about the constant sandstorms being caused by his wrath, and the naturally occurring river that brings life being stalled as a result."

His eyes rolled. "But they're just rumors, right?"

The second of his adversaries proved much more cunning than the first. I swooped down from above and raked him with its poisonous blade, which caused Arc to stagger forward and twist his body around. His health dipped, but he could not manage to make his foe pay for the slight. His weapon whipped past in a frenzy as the creature flew overhead and caught nothing but air.

"Dammit," Arc cursed and he twisted into a proper, defensible position and tracked his enemy as it bobbed and weaved through the air. It would prove difficult to hit, but then, he would have it no other way. To get good at spearmanship, he would need to understand more complex attack patterns and the way his weapon moved with a finite number of vectors.

In a way, it was a different sort of difficult from swordplay.

Arc:353/355 HP 30/34 E

Wasp 10/10 HP

Arc entered the Grand Forge with a pensive look in his eye. The specs he'd given the man were specific enough, but he had no idea how the weapon would turn out. How would Oikawa have decided to shape the weapon he'd be using for the next few levels, that would help him become stronger? 

The Mercenary was most excited to see what the man would have for him. It was his first spear, and so, he would be thrilled with it no matter how it looked. Part of him hoped for a "cool" aesthetic, though. Not that it mattered, so long as the weapon did what it needed to.

"Good evening, Oikawa," he greeted. It had been several hours since he received the message. He wondered if the man was tired.

The moment she started to laugh, he let his hand drop from her and did the same. A rumble of laughter left him, and the dark haired man couldn't help himself. "Sorry," he said with a chuckle in his voice, "I just have never been able to say stuff like that. Always wondered what it was like." He glanced toward the establishment and bit his lip. "It's so god awful out of character for me. I admit- there was a time when I used to get joked for flirting and striking out with girls, way back when I was young... so, maybe I had some practice at acting like a jackass."

His hands dipped into his pockets in the characteristic, humorous sort of way that they did when he was embarrassed with himself, but he didn't mind so much. The mercenary oriented himself at her side and glanced into their destination with her. "Hey- even if I'm a bumbling idiot when it comes to words, I mean it when I say I think a lot of you." He gazed sidelong at her, and he smirked. "Don't worry, I'll try my hardest not to sound that goofy anymore, but I'll keep being your Tobias."

Both eyes drew forward now as their waiter- holy crap, there was a waiter? Tobias was blown away by that portion of the experience. Anyway, as he came out to them and offered to show them to their seats, he shook his head. "No," he said, "this is all new to me. I only showed up for a festival, once..." he chewed on his lip as he considered something else, but the merc wanted to keep that a secret for as long as possible.

"And for some training," he added. That wasn't a lie. He wasn't going to lie to her. "I hope you enjoy it, Ava."

When she described how it was almost identical to her former workplace, his eyes lit up. That was unexpected, but then, it was even better when she described this place as "perfect." He bowed his head a bit as they made their way to the table and were prompted for orders. There were a great deal of options, but he settled on a prime rib and Tuscan salad, which was rather plain considering where they were. "Aaaand... ought to pair it with Chianti, since it's regional..."

Arc picked the wine from the list and the bottle appeared in the waiter's hands. The NPC poured glasses for both of them, though Tobias wasn't sure she would drink it. He recalled her being partial to water in the bar on the second floor. Still, it was a gesture he didn't mind making given the atmosphere.  "I think I'd enjoy seeing that restaurant," he said, "I mean, you know," his eyes searched the table as the waiter took his time with their orders. "Obviously, I wouldn't go just to torment you while you were working." His eyes crept up to her as he wore a playful grin. "Just like I'd never expect you to walk up on me in a grocery store while I was stocking."

"Happy is a relative term for it," he mused in response, "but I would venture to say I'm content." Part of him didn't mind the idea of being where she was, but the other half knew it entailed other players and there was no telling how he'd deal with that. Such was the reason he wouldn't outright agree to anything. There was some measure of uncertainty in his words, of course- the mercenary couldn't say that a guild didn't strike him as reasonably efficient, and the idea of having people at his back in a world that was most certainly trying to kill him was definitely appealing.

Still, when he heard the notification and saw a duel request pop up, he initially wondered if it were intended for him. When he saw that it was not in front of him, but someone else entirely, his lips turned downward in a frown. How would she react?

Then, @Birdie looked to him for help, and he instinctively wrapped an arm around her shoulders and glanced to @Gotz, a leisurely smile on his face. "Ah, sorry mate," he told the man, "but I don't think the lady came out intending to fight today. Might be you'd have better luck elsewhere."

The mercenary's green eyes were only partly open as he looked at the man, but they held a seriousness that had every potential to turn menacing if the man decided to try pressuring the blue haired girl.

Her words infused him with a certain degree of happiness, one that he had not felt in many years. He never anticipated to find something so amazing in this world. When she leaned into his arm, he glanced over at her and smiled. She was affectionate in a way he truly enjoyed, and he wasn't going to stop her despite several giggles from the peanut gallery about how cute the couple was.

"What's she like indeed," he mumbled as he stopped walking, several yards from a restaurant that sported a deck overlooking the river. The sun cast a long shadow now, more burnt orange than golden as the day grew later. Arc placed a hand softly to the nape of her neck and stared into her eyes.

"She's like..." he wondered for a moment as his own gaze wavered down to her lips, then up to her nose, and finally her eyes again. He painted a picture of her in his mind, frozen this way to remember when things were difficult. This was worth fighting for. 

"I feel calm when she's there, despite how nervous or uncertain I am. I want to say things that make me feel silly, and even though I still do, I don't regret them." His eyes closed and he smiled. "And she's such a sweetheart," he added in a hushed whisper. "I love how beautiful of a person she is."

lmfao, we can get 23 pages off of just fluff while the PvPers do their thing.

The wasp attacked once more, but with Arc no longer fighting flat footed, it found itself unable to find purchase on his person. It gave a deft swipe of its stinger in his general direction, but the rogue dodged deftly to one side. He slapped the natural weapon with his own sword and brought the blade around in a powerful swing. It gave out a mangled buzz as it fluttered to the dirt, and Arc tilted his head.

"These are a little easier than I expected," he muttered as the creature exploded into frames of data and scattered back to Aincrad. He glanced up and looked around for his next target. The information was fairly vague on how many of them had to die to summon their fearless leader, but it seemed worthwhile to kill as many as he could. After all, experience was good, no matter how many things you had to fight to get it.

And his skill sharpened ever time he managed to score a hit. Arc learned a greater, deeper affinity for weaponry with successes. That was probably true for most players, but he felt encouraged to grow and show off what he had.

Arc: 354/355 HP 32/34 HP

Wasp: Dead

"I've found more and more that I don't mind taking a break from the workload once and a while, at least where..." he almost said 'she's involved,' but he stopped himself. There was no point in saying that, especially since the man seemed so adamant about love and relationships. Playing into that sort of talk was sure to get gushy, and he wasn't interested in going down that rabbit hole. Not in the middle of the tenth floor. "I mean, I like her a lot," he said, "but I don't really know what constitutes love just yet, or if I do, I haven't quite gotten a handle on it. I don't want to out and say one way or the other, because I definitely don't want to jinx anything."

He'd heard from other people in real life that people tended to move too quickly in relationships. He didn't want to fall into that trap. Rushing things wasn't necessary in the least. Getting to know the person, developing a stronger bond with them, and spending time together were all important steps in the process. "If it does go well, then I'm certainly not averse to saying I'm in love with her. She's a really great girl, and I could see myself with someone like that in the long term, but I've never even had a girlfriend before. I think that it's important to keep yourself grounded, especially when your head's in the clouds."

You say that, but when you're with her it's like you're walking on air.

He glanced at Beatbox when the conversation shifted a bit, back to the part about DPS roles. "I like to be in the face of my enemy, but not the way a tank does. I think DPS fits me more than anything because I've had anger problems most of my life. Channeling that into the fight, it's almost... erm..." he searched for the proper word. "Therapeutic, I think."

"Yeah," Arc replied, "I was pretty specific about being careful, though he was of a similar mind. It wasn't altogether difficult to convince him." Arc afforded @Birdie a genuine smile before she continued to ask about guilds, and he shrugged. "Alkor was the guildmaster, to be honest," he said. "A few of our buddies, the ones we drank with, we our healers and miscellaneous other combat roles. He was pretty good in that position, actually, for someone who didn't like to talk or be around people. He knew strategy and understood how we worked as a team... I dunno if I really know that many people in this game I'd be comfortable trying to harness that cohesion with."

He glanced around the area and took in some of the other people, then shook his head. "I'm pretty comfortable on my own, or with one or two people I know well." He looked back at her and pursed his lips. "If I were to find my buddies from the Black Brotherhood, I might start the Guild again.. but... there's no telling if they're dead by now." Tobias gave her a weak smile. "I'm sure they're fine, though. They'd never put themselves in actual danger. Josh, Ev, and Cans aren't dumb."

"But... I don't know about joining any other guilds. I just, I'm not sure if I'd fit in at all." He gave a slight shrug, then glanced to the notification from @Oikawa and flicked his fingers across the keyboard to reply deftly.

Quote

To Oikawa

Hahah, I hear that mate, I'm not lookin' to impress anybody, though. I get that there's an important element to it, but I just came here to log some build ideas and bolster my idea of what the Frontlines are like. I'm gunning to get there as soon as I can, but with the intensity of some of these fights- like that red haired chick and the shady looking PKer- I've got a ways to go yet.

Until I can manage to solo a heavy number of these quests I'm getting, I'm not even going to think about throwing myself into challenges and looking like a prize ass.

Anyway, thanks for the help. I'd like a spear with straight damage, something fit for a low level player. I won't be level twenty for a good few more days at my current pace, so I'd be stuck waiting on the upgrade for a bit. I'll definitely look you up for a higher tier weapon once I've made it into the next echelon of levels.

You're great, man. Really.

Love interest...? Arc peered back at the man when he used those words, and he gave a slight snort. "I don't know her well enough to use the word "love," he answered honestly. "I do like her, though, if that's what you're asking." It was the sort of admission that he was unused to making; and it seemed even more foreign now, inside of the world of Sword Art Online. He was happy to make that distinction, though. It made him feel a bit elated. "Enough to promise her I'd be more careful, which is more than I'd do for most people."

It was good to hear the man had a sense of self-preservation. That was important in Aincrad. At least one of the two of them could say that. "I don't mind it taking time," the mercenary said, "it's more that I don't like to deal with things that are stacked against me if I can help it. Fair fights are more fun."

Then, Beatbox admitted he was a DPS type. They had that much in common. "Yeah," Arc replied, "I'm into dealing damage, too. Don't care much about spending my time doing social stuff, really. Well, not so much as other players do. I like to fight it out, since that's the best chance we have at getting out of this world. We can talk all we want back on the other side."

The first of his foes came out of the woodwork almost immediately. It was not much, but the wasp buzzed loudly as it raced toward him at immense speed. If not for his system assistance, provisioned by the skills he had pumped his points into and several well crafted items, he might never have gotten his blade up in time.

It slashed across his chest with its stinger, taking out a sizable chunk of his health. Arc let out a soft curse as the red line was drawn on his torso and his health bar took a dip. "Quick little thing, ain't ya?"

His own blade had ripped deep into the abdomen of his foe, slicing it surgically open and dealing damage. In no small part, he thanked the maker that he was able to go blow for blow instead of simply taking abuse. "Next one'll be harder," he told the wasp. "I can promise you that."

The wasp continued to buzz indiscriminately.

Arc: 354/355 HP 33/34 E

Wasp: 3/10 HP