Grave

"That's unfortunate. It's hard to accept such a large guild falling into obscurity." Grave smiled at Hirru. "Guess we're in the same boat. Though I've been away so long, I don't even know what guilds are around anymore." Grave materialised the <<Gungnir Shard>>, its metallic shell falling gently into Grave's palm. He peered at it curiously and tapped it with a single digit. The shard unfurled, like an iron flower, and from within sprouted a platter of savoury and salty treats. He plucked a slab of what appeared to be ham, considered it a moment, shrugged and chowed down on it. As he feasted on the salty slice of meat, he felt bolstering energy rush through his body. His skin felt tougher, like a layer of iron settled just under it. He went to take another piece from the platter, but a warning box popped up. <<You have already consumed your share of this item!>>. Well that sucked. Now Grave was even more hungry, knowing he couldn't have any more. He tapped the metal flower again and it snapped shut, seemingly folding the platter back inside. Cardinal was a mysterious creature. He handed the flower back over to Hirru. "I guess I give this back to you now."

Grave's eyebrows shot up. "You were Vice for a second there?" Grave cupped his chin in one hand. "I'd say 'congratulations', but it sounds like it was less than glamorous. I'm sorry that pressure fell on your shoulders." Hirru's head was on a swivel, obviously using his high <<Search>> skill to scan for threats, and Grave turned to do the same on their other flank. "I've been off the frontlines for so long. It sounds like it's been hard on everyone. Most people fighting up there are just regular kids and adults in the real world who wanted to play a game. How could Kayaba expect anyone to risk their lives every damn day to try and beat this game?" Grave sighed. "You're one of Aincrad's heroes, and I wouldn't blame you if you never set foot on the frontlines again. No one deserves to face danger and watch friends die like that."

At the mention of Jacob's Ladder, Grave tilted his head. "Never heard of them. They must have popped up while I've been gone. So you're not part of the guild, but you're staying with them. How is that for you?" he asked.

Grave turned to face the cavern ahead. He wrapped his arms behind his back and slid them into the black iron gauntlets attached to his waist. He flexed his clawed fingers and slammed the knuckles of one gauntlet into the other with a resounding clang. "Hell yeah I'm ready. I'm just itching for a fight." Grave led the way forward, his <<Search>> skill still active to catch any potential attackers. The path was quiet, however, save for the pair's footsteps echoing off of the black stone walls. Finally the cavern opened up into a large chamber, an enormous pair of iron doors, lit on either side by a flickering torch. Before them stood a pair of armoured figures, longsword planted into the ground before them.

"I'm assuming a 'please' won't be enough for you to let us in?" Grave asked, a clawed hand on his hip. The knights stood stalwart, silent. "Good. I didn't want to be diplomatic anyway." Grave glanced at Hirru out of the corner of his eye. "You got my back, partner?"

Grave followed closely behind his friend, unsure of his own footing on this floor. He'd never spent much time up on the ninth floor, so he wasn't yet adapted to the changing pathways that populated the volcanic landscape, but Hirru seemed to find his way well enough. He was always great at scouting and analysis, and it seemed those talents hadn't faded with time. Grave trusted in the Jade Hunter and stuck close to him as he finished the rest of the dry bread. He pulled open his menu and retrieved the <<Immolation Potion>>. Would this be good to wash down the ration? He swirled the stoppered, bulbous bottle, upsetting the sunset-orange liquid within which a wispy, golden, flame-like mist danced. He guessed it was better than nothing and uncorked it.

He upended the bottle into his mouth as he listened to Hirru recount Mack's disappearance. The warm, tingly liquid washed away the dryness of the ration and filled him with fiery vigor. Wait, no, it wasn't just a 'fiery vigor', he could literally feel flames burning through his digital veins and expanding out into his armour. He gasped and wiped his lips on his sleeve, the bottle shattering into blue fragments as he dropped it. "So it sounds like he's still around and working, but hasn't shown his face in a while. Weird. I wonder why he's been hammering away in the forge." Grave pondered. "Trying to keep his skills sharp, maybe? I sort of did the same thing with my Martial Arts out in the mountains," he suggested. 

Grave continued to listen to the series of events that followed after his disappearance. The changing of leaders, Hirru joining the frontlines and leading the charge. Then Lowenthal's death. Grave cocked his head. "I'm not sure that I ever had much to do with Lowenthal myself, but I know that the players respected him, and not just those in the guild. He was a veteran frontliner. It's hard to hear that we lost yet another hero from the frontlines." Grave's mind immediately took a turn into the abyss, settling on the first time he heard of Opal's betrayal and took the lives of two players. He shook his head to clear such drab thoughts. "So I guess the Knights aren't really around anymore, are they?" he asked rhetorically. "What about you? You joined up with a new guild since then?"

Hirru removed his helmet and let that familiar green hair flow out. Grave looked upon his old friend, his brother-in-arms and bit back a sob. He wasn't expecting reuniting with an old mate to be such a punch to the gut. It was Hirru alright, but his eyes were different. They were dull, they didn't have the same spark of life as before. He'd seen it before.

"Things have been hard for you, haven't they?" he asked, his grip on Hirru's armoured shoulder tightening. "I'm all ears if you want to talk about it." Grave looked away. "Yeah... I disappeared without telling anyone. It was selfish. I should have talked it out with my friends, I get that. You said more people disappeared, though?" Grave cocked his head. "What do you mean? Who disappeared?"

As he awaited Grave's response, he flicked through his menus and produced one of the items the Jade Hunter had handed him. The <<Field Rations>> appeared in his hands. It was like a box of dry bread. It didn't look very appetising, but he supposed nothing with any kind of stat boost really needed to. He took a bite and felt the moisture vanish from his mouth. He chewed on the ration, unimpressed, but watched as a small box under his health bar started to fill up.

"A 'on a'uly 'em'mer," Grave said with his mouth full, then swallowed. "I don't actually remember. I bounced not long after the meeting for the fight with... Leonidas? I think? That was the last big gathering I remember going to. Then everything just... felt like it froze."

“If you’ve done this quest before, that should make my life even easier. I’m glad you bumped into me when you did,“ Grave sighed appreciatively. “It is strange how much things have changed though. The NPCs feel more alive, some enhancements and skills have changed. Aincrad just feels… different. Do you know why that is? Did something happen?“ Grave tapped his chin. “They don’t still have developers dropping hot fixes or anything while we’re all stuck in here, do they?“

The player’s offer of consumables temporarily distracted Grave from the names at the top of his HUD, and he stared at the knight blankly. “Well, if you’re sure.“ Grave reached a hand out to take the consumables offered to him. Why was the player’s voice so familiar? Now that he heard him speak more, there was definitely something recognisable about it. “It’s interesting that you’ve heard my name, I’ve been… alone for a few years now,“ Grave muttered as he stored the items.

Once he was done with that, his eyes flicked to the top corner of his vision and he gasped. He reread the name two, three times, then looked at the knight. “Hirru, you son of a bitch!“ he laughed and clapped a firm hand against his old friend’s armour. “How long did you plan on playing me like a fiddle? How’ve you been?“ As he spoke to Hirru for the first time in forever, something swelled in his heart. He had been on his own for so long that he almost forgot what it was like to be around his friends again. Before Hirru even had a chance to respond, Grave was flicking through his menus and throwing his comrade a friend request.

Grave received:

“Ahoy there!  Fancy some help?  I may not look it, but I'm a decent healer.”

Grave turned to face the newcomer, whose muffled voice echoed over the crowd. In his momentary confusion, he didn’t recognise the voice, and probably wouldn’t even if it weren’t so muffled. Grave’s eyes lit up as they came to rest upon his literal knight in shining armour.

”Oh my god, yes, please. I was actually just having a bit of a panic attack. I’ve been off the field for a long time, and my mortality dawned on me all of a sudden as I accepted this quest,” Grave blabbered. “I would appreciate the help. Having a healer around should somewhat lower my sudden fear for my own life. I promise I’m not always so whiny.” 

Grave tapped on the green cursor over his mysterious saviour’s head and went to shoot him a party invitation, but his finger stopped short of the HUD. “Just realised I should let you know what we’re doing. I’m taking a quest called <<The Iron Guardian>>, is that okay with you?” he asked the knight, before tapping the ‘send’ button and watching the top left of his vision for a second name to appear beneath his.

<<The Iron Guardian>> Quest Description

Grave mopped up the sweat pouring down his virtual face on the sleeve of his jacket. Leather wasn't great for soaking up fluids, and in fact, it sucked to rub against his face in the Floor Nine heat. He never liked coming up here. He was much more used to rainy old London. For the sake of a quest that could scratch that itch for a fight he'd been unable to sate since returning to society, though? It might just be worth it.

"Are you the one that accepted the quest to kill the Guardian?" someone asked, and Grave turned to the hooded figure that approached him.

"Why yes, I believe I am," he panted, struggling to keep himself together in his sweltering leather jacket and armour. "My knuckles have a date with a certain knight, just point me at him." The hooded figure, named the <<Mysterious Broker>> by the tag that now floated above their head, smiled beneath their hood.

"Before I tell you, let us talk business." Grave groaned and slapped a palm against his forehead. "You will give me a portion of your earnings. Say, twenty per cent?" Grave wasn't looking for the kind of a fight where he bartered with an NPC.

"Fine, god, yes, just tell me where he is." The Broker nodded and pointed into the distance.

"Head west. There is a grotto that leads to the Guardian's throne. You must fight through his knights to get to him."

"Sounds like fun," Grave scoffed and cracked his knuckles. Then his face fell. It was then, as the quest registered in his system, that a crushing dread set in. This was his first time back to fighting. He had no idea how strong this quest boss would be. How much had Aincrad changed since he'd been away? How much stronger had the monsters gotten? Maybe it would be a good idea to call for backup.

But what backup was there? He'd cleansed his friends list, and so far, had only added Jevi back to it. He looked helplessly around the coal dusted streets of Yōgan, scanning the faces of NPCs and players alike, a silent scream for help.

Grave looked up from the notepad that laid in his lap so he could take note of his material and item stock before he got back into the swing of business. The chime in his ear tore his attention away from his motonous task and he brought up the message from NIGHT. With a smile, he stood up from the floor of his shop and whistled with two fingers. Hikari leapt onto his shoulders and curled around his neck like a scarf. He headed for the teleporter to take a trip down to the Town of Beginnings.

The Evening Star's bell twinkled as he stepped in once more. "I've come to pick up the circlet," he announced gently, this time looking to the table rather than the counter. "I trust my payment was sufficient?" he asked as he took the paper-wrapped trinket and peeled it back to take a look inside. It was stunning. He almost put it on right then and there, but he wanted to see his whole outfit come together, so he'd wait until he was home.

Grave stood back as Jevi went to work. When she turned to head back into the forge, baring her arms to the world, Grave could see just how strong she was. He would say he wouldn't want to get on her bad side, but he'd already been on the receiving end of her fury more than once already. He leaned against one of the walls and shut his eyes, zoning out to the ringing of metal against hot metal.

Grave was startled out of his nap when Jevi returned with the item, her breathing ragged. She'd put the last, determined drops of her energy into this, and it showed. They were brilliant. Jevi stated her price, and before she could finish, Grave opened his mouth. "How about we account for inflation and make it six materials, hey?" he suggested with a wink. "Thank you so much for your work, these are impeccable pieces of equipment. I knew I made the right choice in coming to you," he said with a sincere, warm smile. "I only have one more stop to make to finish kitting up. I'll see you around, we should head out on a quest sometime."

Grave eased open the door, the little bell tinkling ahead of him as he finished playing with the beam of light that danced along the front doorstep of the shop hidden in the alley. For being placed out of the way, it had a beautiful exterior that begged to be admired.

"Greetings!" he called into the shop as he shut the door behind him. "I caught word that I'd find an artisan here. This is the Evening Star, correct?" he asked to the abyss behind the counter. He swept his eyes across the room to spot the storekeeper sitting at a round table. "Oh, my apologies, I expected you to be at the counter." He turned to face her. "If it's not too much trouble, I'd like to make a request for an accessory?" He asked. He flicked open the menu, accessed his funds and retrieved 1400 Col, which materialized into a neat little bag in his palm. "I'm looking for a circlet that goes around the back of my head. Evasion and accuracy, the best quality you can produce. Will 1400 suffice?"

"You sure?" Grave asked, blinking at Jevi blankly. "I guess if that's what you want, I'm happy to owe you a favour instead." Grave smiled and ran his fingers over the rose again. "I'd find it hard not to think of you, wearing this into battle. I'll take great care of it." Grave tapped on the Black Rose Breastplate, bringing up its item information box, and accepted it into his inventory. He swiped through his menus, dragged the armour over his empty body slot and in a flash, the dark iron wrapped around his chest, the bands snapped around his arms and the pauldrons fell gently over his jacket. He rolled his shoulders and was shocked by how easily he could move under the pauldrons. "Woah, a lot lighter than I expected, but it's perfect."

"Oh yeah, definitely need some gauntlets. Name your price and I'll pay it. I'm thinking one slot of paralyze and two slots of bonus damage, if you can. The paralyze is the most important one." Grave motioned to his arms. "Something heavy that  goes most of the way up my forearms. Maybe bring a little of the old Grave back and get some dragon claws on the end or something."

Grave stared blankly. "Wait. So I didn't need to almost die to get here?" he groaned and slapped a palm against his face. "I've never been the greatest at thinking through things, to be fair." Grave looked around the small shop set into the mountainside. "It's a beautiful little place. I really should try and upgrade to a bigger workspace myself, that tiny cylinder gets cramped after a while."

Grave stared at the dark breastplate that Jevi brought over, the same rose embroidered on his jacket hammered into the metal. He scanned its surface, ran his fingers over the gold trimming. He forgot to breathe. "This is amazing. It's perfect," he gasped. He looked up at the blacksmith. "How much for it?" he asked. "I might have been away for a while, and I might have lost my materials, but I still have a fair amount of Col in my pocket."

Grave pushed through the door to 'Amorous Armours and Armaments' and wheezed. "God, I thought the mountains on the second floor were rough." He leaned against the doorframe and caught his breath. "You couldn't have picked a less 'climb-y' location to move shop to?" he groaned and stumbled into the store. He stood there for two seconds, three seconds, and stood up straight, running a hand through his messy white hair, pushing it back into its familiar wave. He flashed a smile at Jevi, as if he hadn't looked like he was dying a moment ago.

"I've come to request that gear I've been meaning to commission from you," he announced finally. "I've done some thinking, I'd like a couple pieces of plate armour, just some shoulder pads and a chestplate to go over this," he requested and pointed at the leather jacket he wore, stitched with purple thread and embroidered with a purple rose over his heart. "Maybe some metal bands around the arms too. Plated with something gold, if you don't mind."

Jevi made a face while sipping on the milkshake, and Grave froze. Had he said something wrong? Was that not enough? Was it too much? He looked away and chewed on a thumbnail. Of course it was too much. What good does him being here now do? He was such an idiot. He was late, that was the problem. He should have just kept his mouth shut, then maybe...

"Why don't we find out together? Lets see if this new you holds a candle to the old Grave." Grave looked back up at Jevi. She smiled at him. It was a mask, Grave could see that. He smiled back. "Even if it doesn't, this is me now. We can workshop it together if there's a screw loose somewhere," he said and knocked himself on the top of the head with his knuckles.

He stood and straightened his coat. Hikari slipped around his waist and wrapped around him like a belt, nuzzling into her own tail. "Once you're done with that, how about we take a walk to your shop? I'd love to get some gear commisioned, if that's okay." Grave rubbed his knuckles. It had been a long time since he'd worn anything over his hands, it was going to be hard to get used to again.

Grave watched with apprehension. He knew he was a good cook. It was his profession here in Aincrad, after all. But there was something different about watching Jevi try a dessert prepared just for her, without any mechanical benefits. Just a treat to help lift her spirits. Something gnawed at the pit of his stomach. What if she didn't have as much of a sweet tooth as he did? Did he put in too much icecream? Would it be too hard to drink?

All that melted away when Jevi closed her eyes and leaned into the straw. A quiet whistle slipped past his lips as he released his bated breath. "I provide only the best," he claimed with a dramatic bow from his seat. "I'm glad you're enjoying it. Please make sure to leave a review," he requested with a laugh.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We've all got sad shit to talk about. I'm here to listen to it." Grave flashed Jevi a wide smile and leaned back in his seat. "You're stuck with me now. I'm always here to help whether you like it or not," he said. He looked down at his hand resting on the table and started to tap his fingers against the wood in a steady rhythm. "I'm still learning this 'new me' as well. I feel like I've gotten better, but who knows? I might not be as great as I think. I'm just winging it and seeing who I am."

Grave smirked and grabbed a tall, bell-shaped glass and a bottle of fruity syrup and spun them both. "Coming right up," he announced. He bumbled about the kitchen, sliding the glass onto the countertop and drizzling a few rings of red syrup around the inside of it, almost to the lip. He flung open the cold box and whipped out a tub of ice cream and a bottle of milk. Two large balls of cold cream fell to the bottom of the glass and a stream of milk cascaded around them, the syrup infusing into it and turning it from white to a gentle pink.

As he scrambled through the pantries for ingredients, he called back over his shoulder to Jevi, "Well, I think you might find I'm a little more reserved now. I've learned a little lesson in respect... and self-respect." He listened to Jevi reacting to each of the names he had listed. "Good to know Hirru's still around. I'll have to check up on him at some point. He helped me grandmaster <<Martial Arts>>, did you know that?" he asked. "Yeah, Mac's a frontliner. Was. I imagine he's probably still fighting the good fight."

Jevi's tone fell, and Grave slowed as he topped the milkshake with whipped cream. He set the piping bag down gently and sighed. He tapped a glass jar over the top of the cream and thin, stick-like sprinkles of various colours fell into it, and he finally topped it with a bright red cherry. He picked up the glass, slipped a spoon and a straw into it and walked it around the counter and to Jevi's table. He set it down in front of her and took a seat opposite her. "Hope you like strawberry milkshakes," he said in a very light voice. "I'm sorry you feel like you don't have any friends left. When a guild breaks down, it can be hard to keep in contact with everyone. Let's make lots of new friends together, hey?"

Grave thought for a moment, then grinned from ear to ear. "How cool would it be if we could actually talk with our familiars?" he asked, slamming his hands against the counter in excitement. "Like, Hikari understands me, but I'm not sure she actually knows what I'm saying. Same way I recognise a couple of her squeaks. But what if our pets could actually talk?" Grave leaned back and looked up to the ceiling. "Cardinal, if you're hearing this, let me talk to animals!" he roared to the digital, omnipresent digi-god of Aincrad.

Grave laughed and looked through his cabinet again. "Yeah, I'm still pretty full myself. I can get you something to snack on? Or a drink? I can do drinks too," he offered as he picked through the items in the case for inspiration. From his crouched position, he leaned to the side and poked his head around the corner of the case to look at Jevi. "Oh yeah. I never made you anything, did I?" He sighed and rested his forehead against the wood edging of the case. "You didn't even get to try my cooking before I up and left."

Grave stood and looked at his stovetop, then swung open the pantry to look at his ingredients. His face fell. Most of the good ones had vanished, likely reaching the end of their durability. The few that were left would be enough to make a simple meal, but it wouldn't give any buffs. He needed to do some material hunting. He rifled through the pantry to see what exactly was left, and called out over his shoulder to respond to Jevi. 

"Well, there was Hirru and Macradon. Mack too, of course. Beoreson. Oh, Xion too. There was a kid named Koumori." Grave gasped. "Oh my god. I said his name properly this time. Why the actual fuck did I struggle so bad before?" he laughed and slapped a palm against his forehead. When Jevi teased him for making friends with 'all the pretty girls', he turned and frowned. "Hey now. I only really hung out with you, Opal and Zandra on the regular. That's not to say I didn't happen to go on adventures with other girls, but they were all incidental," Grave grumbled and turned back to the pantry.

I have some really old food items I need to get re-evaluated!

OLD:

NEW:

Grave stared at Hikari for a second. "Yeah. Some jerk probably would have kicked her. It was safer in here than anywhere else," he concluded and gave her a little scratch under the chin. Jevi greeted the weasel and said the two of them could have talked about how much of a jerk he was, and he gave a little embarrassed laugh, lifting a hand to scratch the back of his head nervously. "Yeah, if Hikari could talk, I don't even want to imagine how much you two would have to say about me," he confessed shakily. "I'm sure you both have plenty of secrets to spill about me."

Grave reached into the glass case, crouching down to get a good look at the menus that popped up when he tapped at the empty space. Some of them had... changed? He knew the Cardinal system was meant to be an advanced AI that would make alterations to the world over time, but this was new. Did something happen to trigger such a huge change to the system?

Grave stood and peeked back over the counter at Jevi. "Alright, if we're in agreement, then I guess..." Grave swiped his fingers down through the air to bring up a dialogue box and navigated to the shop section of the display that only showed up while inside the store. He went to the store name, opened the box, removed the name and typed the new one in. He tapped the 'confirm' button, and a glittering sound played outside the front door as the sign changed to reflect the new name.

"Welcome to Grave Gourmet, what can I get for you today?" he called over to Jevi as he sidled behind the counter and leaned on it.

Grave laughed as Hikari moved and nuzzled up by his neck, still shivering and squeaking. "Hey now, it's okay. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere." Grave rocked his head back to look at the brunette who lectured him from above. She looked funny upside down. "Yeah, I know. I... didn't really deserve to see her again, but I'm glad she was here." Grave sat up and pushed a gentle hand against Hikari's rear to nudge her up and onto his shoulder. She snaked around his neck and drooped over his chest like a scarf.

"I wonder how long she waited in here. Did she go out to find me at all? Did she wander the streets? Or was she here the whole time?" Grave pondered, then roughly ruffled his hair and stood up. "I'm such an idiot." He turned to face Jevi, his hand going up to rub Hikari's head around her horns. Hikari perked up a little to look at her in the dim room. "You remember Jevi, right?" he asked the weasel, who gave a happy little squeak. "Yeah, you do." He turned away to start straightening tablecloths and neatening chairs. He swept around the counter and took a look in the case. Most of his food was still there and didn't look too worse for the wear. Thankfully time didn't take its toll on data the same way it did on real food. 

He peeked over the case at Jevi. "I've got you. I've got my companion. Looks like I can reopen my restaurant. Feels like life is kind of getting back to normal." He took a look around his shop. "This used to be called the Crimson Diner, but that was back when I was with the Crimson Blades. I feel like it needs a new name. Something like... 'Grave Gourmet' or something." He rapped his fingers on the glass cabinet while resting his elbow on it and laying his chin in his palm.

Grave cowered and covered his head as Jevi tore into him. "I know, I know, I'm sorry!" he whimpered. "I really hope not! I... don't think they do?" Grave turned from cowering to thinking, staring at the ground. "Do... do familiars need to eat?" He groaned and rolled his eyes. "Fuuuuuuuck..." Grave yelped as Jevi yanked him away from their spot and across the city. "I need to remember where it is, first," he mumbled. "It was in a courtyard, kind of to the side of the city," he deduced. Though Jevi was holding his wrist, he picked up the pace and walked in front of her, tugging her along using his wrist. He navigated down streets, past storefronts, down a couple short sets of stairs, and finally halted at the entrance to a huge, empty courtyard, save for the small, cylindrical building with the cone-shaped roof standing in the middle of it.

"Please be okay, please be okay," he whispered as he peeled away from Jevi and approached the singular door. It was open just a crack. Had someone managed to enter without his permission? Or did the sneaky weasel find out how to open doors? He gently shouldered it open and peered inside. It was cold and dark, and if this was the real world cobwebs would span the ceiling above. He tiptoed over to one of the stools, placed a hand on it to balance himself and leaned over the counter. "Hikari... you there, girl?" he called quietly, and before he could even finish his sentence a flash of orange streaked over the counter, barreled into his chest and knocked him to the floor.

The horned weasel whined as it curled up on his chest and shook. "Oh, sweetie. I'm sorry I left you all alone. I meant to come back and get you... and I just never did," he whispered as he ran a gentle hand along the length of Hikari's back and tail.

"Well, I'd be happy to be your first customer in a while, if you don't mind," Grave offered with a wink. "Oh right, I need to actually think about what I want. I'd want something heavy... big metal gauntlets that go up my arms. Get some paralysis, some bonus damage. I'll be a little more detailed once we start working on it." He scratched his chin. "And armour too... I'm using Light Armour now. It won't be as protective, so I'll want some utility to offset it," Grave muttered to himself, lost in his imagination as they walked. He was shocked out of his thoughts when Jevi's sharp elbow sank into his arm. "Ouch. You have bony elbows," he grumbled. "I'm sure you'll catch up to me in no time. I'm a little rusty, so I'm probably going to be a little slow to get back into things."

She asked him a question, and he tilted his head. "I guess it depends on what you want. I like to make sure I hit things, so I like my accessories to have accuracy on them, maybe a bit of evasion. Also good to have an extra on hand with material farming stats." Jevi lamented not having a familiar yet, and Grave stopped in his tracks. He stared at his feet. "Holy crap. Hikari. I... don't know where she is. She probably doesn't know where I am," he whimpered. "She might be back at my shop. Once I've found her, we should go get you a pet too. Hikari might like a playmate."

Grave cocked an eyebrow at Jevi as she confessed that she was lacking equipment. "Really?" he asked with a scoff. "I assume that would be your accessory slot? Best you get one soon then, they can have some cool abilities on them." When she admitted to not being great at games, he hesitantly reached out and ruffled her hair. "I'm sure you're not the only one. No one got stuck here on purpose. Some of us are pro gamers and streamers in the real world, some of us just wanted to try something new and suffered for it."

Jevi suggested she could potentially forge something for him, and he rubbed his chin. "Hmm. Well, I need some light armour and some gauntlets. I'll need to visit an artisan for an accessory, but do you think you could hook me up with the first couple?" He pinched at his clothes. "I'll also want to go see a tailor about some vanity clothing. I'm looking for something a little less 'punk' and a little more 'suave'."

"Once we've finished with anything you might be able to forge for me, maybe we can hit an artisan together, fill our empty slots?" he suggested.

There it was. That cheeky smile. That's what he was looking for. Jevi caught Grave mid-grin and he winced as the cold block struck right between his eyes, and he rubbed his face. "Ouch. Guess my reflexes aren't as quick as they used to be," he complained. By the time he opened his eyes, there was a prompt floating in the air in front of him. He glanced over the transparent box at the golden eyed girl who'd sent the request. "I'm not going to remove anyone on an impulse like that again, least of all you," he assured Jevi. He prodded the blue circle button, and Jevi was added to Grave's friends list. "We can be each other's lifelines. If we feel like there's no one else to turn to, we have a mutual understanding that we will be there, deal?" Jevi complained about falling off the questing wagon and Grave smiled. "If there's anything I learned while I was away, it's that it's okay to fall behind. You don't need to be strong. If you want to, that's fine, but from now on, we both go at our own pace. I'm sure we'll have plenty of time."

"Yeah... starting over. I think I'd like that," he said and stood from his chair and pressed his hands into his back, before patting off the seat of his pants. "Ah, shit. My butt's numb," he cackled. "I need to go shopping for some new gear. Wanna come with?" he asked Jevi as he pushed his chair in.

"Seriously? Is that what I look like?" Grave whined when Jevi told him he did, in fact, sound like a wildman. He leaned back and groaned towards the sky. "Mission failed, then, I guess." He sat back up and looked at her. What she asked next got him thinking, and he scratched his chin. "Hmm. That's a fair question. I think I got out of it what I was looking for... but in hindsight, I don't think going off alone without telling anyone was necessary. The little devil on my shoulder told me to do that, and I believed him. Having understanding friends waiting on the outside for me to come back might have been healthier for me." He folded his hands and rested his chin on them. "Either way, I think I feel better for it, but I could have gone about it in a... smarter fashion."

Jevi's words grabbed at Grave's lungs like a cold hand. When he first went off into the mountains, that was the idea. He would reach a healthier state of mind that would allow him to fight alongside his comrades on the frontlines without his doubt. But now... "I don't know," he said vaguely. "Right now? Absolutely fucking not. I need to learn to live again, I need to know that I'm still able to fight. I need to reach out to friends, let them know I'm okay. I need to get some new gear. I have lots to do before even thinking of rejoining the frontlines. And even then, it will all depend at the time." He sighed. "It isn't my priority, to put it simply. I will let you know if and when that changes." Grave giggled a little. "What? Jevi cares? Who would have thought that was possible?" he taunted her with a wink.

"I saw her. Not long after. I was arrogant enough to think I could talk her down," Grave groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's all hazy but... she was convinced she was 'doing something for the good of Aincrad', and she said something about revenge. She messaged me secretly during our meeting and told me that Laughing Coffin was watching her. She seemed like she was honest. But she up and died before she could prove I could still trust her." He shut his eyes and breathed calmly. "I just hope she managed to do whatever 'good' she thought she needed to do before that. Laughing Coffin activity seemed to dwindle, so maybe she had a hand in that."

"I stayed close to the Master Yunxiang when I first started my exile. I would occasionally stay at his dojo when the weather got nasty, but eventually I started to rough it," Grave admitted. "I went from seeing a single person almost daily to living on my own. I used a cave as shelter and I sort-of learned to meditate. I kept myself active with strength training and just took in the world around me until I accepted how much bigger than me it was." Grave flashed a toothy grin. "Don't go thinking I've turned into some hippie wildman, though. I'm the same old me, just a little less... volatile."