Emerath

Emerath wasn’t really sure what to do, but when Flints picked him up and ran off he was even more surprised. There wasn’t any immediate or obvious danger in the area, but there was also no way of knowing what lurked in the darkness. But Emerath was glad that Flints had taken him away from the plant. He wasn’t able to move quickly, or a lot, but he found feeling slowly returning to his fingertips and toes, and it slowly spread to other parts of his body. 

He tried to move his mouth, but couldn’t get out more than incomprehensible gibberish. He grunted and have a weak flail against Flints’s body as she carried him, trying to find something, anything to take back control of the situation, but the fact of the matter was that he was still too paralyzed.

Slowly, his eyes scanned the area around them, and as Emerath saw the other plants around them, his heart raced. Slowly, he found the strength to eke out the word: “Mi...ne...fie...ld...”

As Emerath ate the last bits of his meal, he looked to the message he had received from Neopolitan. Really, he should have expected something like that, but it still didn't make much sense. He wasn't sure if he should actually call her out on it. Though Emerath had no proof of his own, he felt like the Nervegear would allow someone with the inability to talk to be able to do so. And what would someone who can't do something want to do most? They'd want to do exactly that. Emerath had yet to meet anyone blind or deaf in this game, thanks to the NerveGear feeding input directly into their brain. He imagined that a mute would be the same, unless the person was mute by choice. That seemed to be Neopolitan's case. A personal vow of silence.

Emerath decided it best not to pry any further, but then he also wasn't sure if this conversation was going to go anywhere else. So, Emerath whistled, and Mist hopped onto his shoulder in response. The man stood, before opening a trade window with Neopolitan and transferring her some Col for the meal. "Well, I appreciate it. The answer and the meal." Emerath smiled at her, and then sent the woman a quick friend request, with the followup of, "And if you ever need a healer, I'm more than happy to help. I'm a wanderer by trade these days, so I don't get up to much besides the occasional surprise adventure. Oh, and potions. I make those too."

When Pinball had seemed to finally relent, and calm down a bit, Emerath had breathed a sigh of relief, and couldn't help but smile. He had gone from a nervous wreck looking over his shoulder, to someone who genuinely seemed to have a bit more purpose, and that was good enough for Emerath. He still hoped that Pinball decided not to kill again, but that wasn't really Emerath's choice. Emerath had done what he felt like the right thing to be, and hadn't condoned, but also hadn't condemned. He thought to his brother again, and he could see the scorn and rage that would have come from meeting an orange player, and then the severe condemnation that would have followed. No, Emerath wasn't like that. He was no white knight.

But when all was said and done, Emerath simply nodded at Pinball, the smile not leaving his face, and he was going to leave it there and take off, as he turned away once again. But then he paused, and thought a bit more about it. Without looking back, Emerath asked, "Pinball, do you need a healer? I know this is a bit arbitrary, but people are probably going to be gunning for you. One, if they see you travelling with a green, they might not think you so bad, but if they see a green healing you, well, that might just change everything. And lest you wonder, I am a healer. I'd be happy to join you for some adventures if you'd like."

Slowly, Emerath turned his head to look over his shoulder at Pinball to see what he thought of the offer.

@Pinball

Emerath was a bit surprised as Flints gave a yelp and fell over in front of him as he had gotten a bit lost in his map, using another match to look over it in the darkness, but careful not to hold the flame too close to the paper. That was when he looked up and saw Flints on the ground, blushing like crazy. She seemed to have tripped over some sort of glowing plant in the darkness. He cocked his head, and blew out the match before wetting it and throwing it aside. Quickly, he rolled up the map and placed it back in his satchel, losing all interest as the strange plant seemed much more interesting.

Emerath walked over, and bent down next to Flints and the plant, thinking it best not to mention the whole tripping over the plant part of things. Though Flints seemed okay, hurting her pride was the worst idea Emerath could think of. Instead, he looked to the plant, and he wasn't sure he had ever seen anything like it. "Well, this is a find," Emerath commented, as he reached out and took one of the glowing red leaves of the plant in his fingers, lightly. As he touched it, it seemed to glow even brighter. "I wonder if I can use this in my alchemy. I'm certain I would be able to, but what would I even make? Why do you think it glows like this?"

Emerath looked back to Flints, and then next thing he knew he couldn't move. His hand was still connected to the plant, but he couldn't move his neck, his hand, his mouth, nothing. His eyes widened involuntarily, as he realized he had been paralyzed. But he couldn't tell Flints. He couldn't speak. He just sat there, staring at her.

When nothing came, when no blade struck the man down, and everyone else just seemed to awkwardly shuffle around Emerath's little display, he lowered his arms and sighed. Then Zandra apologized, and Emerath realized that he really had lost his head, and he felt a bit terrible for the scene he caused. Emerath supposed he had been a bit too wary, but the samurai and Zandra herself in particular had seemed really menacing. Not to mention the orange masked player. And sure, Emerath knew Zandra, but he had known her as a level 15 up and coming martial artist, and now here she was, an incredibly powerful Frontliner. And she had made such a big deal about Emerath and his mask.

Emerath's face was filled with remorse as he slowly opened his inventory and equipped his coat, trinket, and handwraps once again, returning to his normal travelling attire and gear. He didn't put the plague doctor costume back on. No real point in it now. Thankfully, the samurai seemed nice enough, Zandra had relented, and the orange player didn't seem to wish to cause any actual damage. And the others, while notable, had caused no fuss. Just Emerath, in the end. Most likely the weakest player here, and the loudest. His face turned a bit red, and for a moment that was the only reason he might have wanted his mask back.

But he shook it off, and he managed the best smile he could for Zandra. "Yeah, we'll... we'll discuss it later. I'm sorry I let myself get so out of hand. Nobody has ever asked me to take the mask off before. I didn't want to assume it was a trap... but this game is dangerous. I hope you can understand that much at least." He accepted the unique presented to him from Zandra, and nodded, before placing it in his inventory. "I'll help you with the quest. I've never done this one, to be honest," he explained, as he considered how best to balance the unique with the rest of his gear, but he'd decide that as combat started.

He would follow behind Zandra, somewhat closely. He didn't really want to look at anyone else out of a bit of embarrassment, but he wouldn't ignore them either if they approached him. "And hey," Emerath mentioned as they would walk, "sorry I called you a player killer too. If it's not fair for you to call me one, it's not fair to have thrown it back at you."

Emerath looked to the name on the pad she had offered after his question, and nodded in response. "Nice name," Emerath said, before cutting another piece of chicken and continuing his meal. Not much left. Emerath had to think of something to continue this conversation, but Neopolitan had gone back to cleaning and organizing. It made Emerath think of himself in his shop. Certainly if the meal he had gotten was this good, something might be of use for him to take on the road. Though, unfortunately, cooks and alchemists were very similar in their stat based creations, so he wasn't sure if any of it was actually necessary. But perhaps he should be polite anyway. At the very least he'd probably end up taking dessert.

As he looked back to his meal, finding only small scraps left, Emerath sighed. "You know, this meal was lovely," Emerath admitted, "and I'll certainly recommend this shop to anyone I meet." Then he looked at Neopolitan tending her store. "Okay, so I'm going to be honest here," Emerath said, as he tried to consider his words very carefully here, lest he seem like a complete jerk. "Your... being a mute. It has me very interested. While the food is an absolutely pleasant surprise, that was actually what made your shop stand out against the many of others that I could have come to," he explained.

"Now, I understand if you think this is completely rude, but I'd like to know more. But I'm not one to pry into terrible things if you think it so. So, is it taboo, or perhaps will you indulge me my curiosity?" Emerath said, mustering his best awkward smile at the terrible way he approached all this, unsure of how he could have even done better.

@Neopolitan

Once he had finally gotten a response, Emerath stared at Pinball for a long moment. No matter how he tried to process that response, there was only one thing that kept coming to Emerath's mind. Something he finally voiced after a strange silence took over the shop. As if the lady preparing the sweets herself had begun holding her breath. "Are you sure?" Emerath asked, finally breaking the silence. His voice almost felt booming in the wake of no sound for such a long moment. But yet he continued.

"There are many people who say that a death row inmate doesn't deserve to live. For taking the life of another person. For making that choice. But how can any of us be so certain that the person did nothing to deserve their death? We weren't there. We didn't live the lives they did. Nobody is ever truly innocent. Perhaps in killing the person you did, you saved the life of another, even countless others. Sure, maybe as you knew them they weren't going to kill anyone, but then did you ever think you would either?"

Emerath sighed, and shrugged, "It's certainly a skewed argument, and it's imperfect, but it's at least fair enough to make you consider, I hope, that sometimes what seems like the right decision, or the right thing to do, isn't always." Emerath put a hand on Pinball's shoulder and gave the young man a stern look, grasping his shoulder tightly, "I never had the courage to take matters into my own hands. To be honest, I probably would have died if I did, but I should have at least tried. You can't stop living your life just because you made a decision that other people don't like. I did for a long time. That doesn't mean you have to like what you did, but don't stop living because of it. Take it from someone who has."

Emerath let go, and he gave another heavy sigh, before admitting, "That was why I bought the sweets for you. Everyone deserves to enjoy something. Even death row inmates get a last meal of their choosing. Even death row inmates are still human beings in the end."

@Pinball

Emerath was glad to see Flints returning back to her normal self. He smiled and stood back as he watched her move forward. Emerath wasn’t a child in her eyes. That was a bit of an important distinction. As someone who had spent so long trying to earn her respect, only to be scorned by her, him trying to live his life. Him helping her let go of the past, had finally gotten him the respect he desired.

“Well, fighting things on this floor probably isn’t a good idea,” he mentioned, as he followed after her into the darkness. “Kinda goes against the whole living thing. Hold on, let’s look at the map for this floor and we can decide what I haven’t done yet,” he explained as he pulled the map out of the satchel once again, and unfurled it for them. “We can look for treasures, but that has it’s own degree of danger. Or we can simply survey the land and draw what we find that doesn’t match what I have drawn. What do you think?”

Though nobody could see it, Emerath’s eyebrows raised in shock of what Zandra was saying. As a point, Emerath opened up his inventory, and one by one, began to unequip his costume, his coat, his dueling hand wraps, and his trinket, and stood there in nothing but a basic suit and tie, red hair flowing freely around his head now that it wasn’t trapped within his hood and mask.

”You want to accuse me of being a player killer? The same goes for you and your green cursor. I don’t care how powerful you are, and how high and mighty you think you are. You aren’t the same person I helped become a martial artist so long ago. You have this offer of help, but apparently I’ve forgotten that nothing in this life is free. God forbid I try to protect myself in a game where someone could just as soon kill me as well as look at me. But fine, you want to prove a point, then here. I’ll stand here as unequipped as the day I started this game. Prove to me how badass of a frontliner you are for being afraid of some little low level that came in hope of getting something that would help people. That would heal them. Did you even look at the item I wanted? I’m a first aid user. What kind of player killer invests points into first aid?” Emerath fumed, while holding his arms out, waiting for Zandra’s next move. 

”Make your decision. Give me the item or don’t. If this is some stupid trap, then kill me now. Mask is off, armor is off. And don’t you ever dare call me a player killer again. I at least have the courage to look someone in the eyes if I were going to kill them. I’m no coward.”

Emerath hadn't gotten far out the door, when Pinball caught wind of what was up, and next thing he knew he was being ushered back into the store. Emerath raised an eyebrow to the young man, before turning and walking back to the store. Once inside the safety of the four walls once again, he was met with Pinball frantically looking to repay Emerath, to which Emerath simply folded his arms and frowned.

"You know, that's now how this works. I didn't do that for something in return, I did it to be nice," Emerath explained, "Because you're right, I didn't have to do it. But I did. Sometimes people do nice things for others, even strangers." Emerath wouldn't accept anything from Pinball. He would make that clear. It wasn't even that he doubted that Pinball had the money, or that he needed the charity. Hell, he was an orange player. He had clearly taken the life of another. If anything, based on that ideal alone, he deserved nothing nice. But that wasn't the way Emerath's mind worked. That was Endilix's logic, not his. Emerath was no white knight.

Emerath continued to frown as he gave Pinball a final, "No, I will not let you repay me, not in the form of items or Col. I have most of what I need already in this game, and I'm an alchemist so even if I didn't I can make a lot of what I need. I'm not worried about that." With that said, Emerath turned to begin walking back out the door again, but paused, before slowly turning back to Pinball.

"If you want to give me something back, just tell me something," he said, after another moment of looking at the young man. "Just tell me, did you kill them in cold blood? Are you some horrible psychopath? Or am I right, that underneath the fear, paranoia, and aura of uncertainty that you give off, there's someone who regrets what they did, even if only because of the consequences and burdens it has placed upon them?" Emerath slowly turned back to Pinball to await an answer.

@Pinball

Emerath couldn't help but let a small smile play on his lips as the girl actively made the choice to grab a pad to write on, before writing the username out for Emerath. "Ah, Neopolitan. I suppose that fits, what with the hair and all. Fits better than Emerath does. That was just a name that my friends came up with in high school, and it just sort of stuck somehow," Emerath gave a chuckle, before his mind thought of Teion, and the laugh caught in his throat. He coughed out the last laugh, and then cut another piece of chicken, before thoughtfully popping it in his mouth.

Mist, seeing the pseudodragon go to Neopolitan must have felt left out, as she gave a small hoot from the chair, before deciding to fly over and sit on Emerath's head as he chewed his food. Emerath nearly choked in surprise from the sudden weight on his head, and he coughed after he managed to force the piece of chicken down, and reached up to grab the owl. She gave another hoot, and flew backwards, hovering behind the man, making him grab nothing but air. Oh the sight he must look all of a sudden. Like a bad slapstick comedy. He turned to look over his shoulder at the wily owl, before sighing. "Really? I'm in the presence of a lovely lady who just cooked me a wonderful meal, and we're having the most pleasant of conversations, and you're making me look like a fool? Some wingwoman you are, Mist."

Emerath got nothing more than another hoot as she landed on a nearby chair. Emerath grunted back and shook his head, before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small jar. He took the lid off, and set it on the counter near the owl, who then went to town eating the worms inside. "This is Mist. She's my lovely owl companion. What's the name of your dragon? Also, if I'm bothering you at all, feel free to let me know. Or just, walk away I suppose. I'll try my best not to take it personally," Emerath said with a joking smile. It was a good thing for him that he was really good at basically holding a conversation with himself. Having someone mute to talk to wasn't as easy as one might think.

As Emerath watched Flints take the envelope, watched it burn, he felt his chest tighten. He had felt the same way with the Avalanche quest. The idea of something being gone forever. If he had ever wanted to know what was in that envelope, that would have been the time. What if Flints had written some sweet letter that he had never written? What if there was a memento that would have made all his anger seem pointless back then? But did it matter? No, he supposed it didn't. Not anymore. In response to her asking how she could pretend it didn't happen, how to forget, Emerath simply said, "We never truly do, honestly. But what's the point of sitting all alone, or running away, when it's always going to be there? Even if you can't forget completely, thinking about it does nobody any good."

Once all was said and done, and Flints seemed to come to grips with what just happened, she seemed to come back to her normal self. The Flints that Emerath had come to know best. "Well, I don't know about you," he explained, "but I'm going to keep exploring. Another floor is about to open. I'm not really one to fight on the Frontlines yet, and maybe I never will be, but that doesn't mean I can't still live my life until this game is over." Emerath looked at the ground, "Floors below us, countless people are living their lives as if nothing ever happened. Living, loving, losing, dying. just like in the real world. Making do. While I sat in a shop and wallowed in my own self pity and hoped that the day would come when I could just go back to school and pretend to be living. But I realized that the real world isn't much better. Sure, monsters don't run around, but am I any less capable of dying? So, I figured why not live life to its fullest until I have to go back to being a simple student or worker bee with less way of impacting the world than I do here. Rather than fighting against billions of people for time in the spotlight, I only have to fight against the less than 10,000 left alive here. The odds are better, at least."

Emerath sighed. It was odd, explaining to someone why he did what he did. Why he felt the way he did. So few people actually understood the concept of how this game mirrored the real world. Everyone just focused on the fact that they could die. But as they sat here in this game, their bodies lay motionless in the real world, most likely wasting away, even with hospitalization. Who knew how much longer they had before they just stopped ceasing to function. Life was actually shorter here doing nothing. Like a patient with a terminal illness. "So in my opinion? We just live. That's all anyone should ask of us. If someone told you that you would die tomorrow, would you want to spend it crying, or laughing? I know what I would choose, at least now. I spent that time crying. I don't want to ever do it again."

Emerath sighed. He had hoped his friendly demeanor would get through to Pinball, but instead he just continued to close up. As the girl behind the counter slid him another tart, Emerath opened his menu and paid the woman as she continued to ready Pinball's lengthy list of sweets. Emerath picked up the tart, opened his inventory, and it popped out of existence as it was safely stored away for later consumption. "Well, then I suppose there's nothing left to do but leave you be. It was a pleasure meeting you, Pinball. You don't seem like some terrible psychopath out to kill everyone you meet, so I didn't feel like I had a reason to worry, but perhaps you are just really good at hiding that, and are trying to protect someone like me. But hey, even that wouldn't make you so bad, yeah?" Emerath shrugged in answer to his own question, before standing up, stretching and giving a yawn, and walking towards the door.

Then he opened a trade window with the woman preparing Pinball's order, and he sent her the Col that Emerath had calculated for Pinball's somewhat ridiculous order. Well, he overshot it, he was certain. But he didn't care. The woman gave a bit of a surprised gasp, and Emerath just smiled to himself as the bell dinged from him opening the door and walking out. "Maybe if words don't mean anything, then actions do," Emerath muttered to himself. If nothing else, he hoped that whatever Pinball decided to do with himself, it wasn't kill anyone else. That was all Emerath could really hope for.

@Pinball

Emerath cocked his head, and folded his arms, his face contorting a bit into that of confusion. "You know, I've tried to make sense of it all. But, really, that just ended up hurting a lot. I sat in my shop for so long by the firelight. Asking myself why, how, and what I could have done differently."

Taking a step back, and then over to a nearby edge, he looked out into the darkness surrounding them in the underground space. At the ruins barely visible without any sort of night vision. It was suffocating, but also oddly calming. Emerath had explored Floor 23 only a few times in his long absence from home, and he hadn't once ever worried about getting lost, or being afraid of what lie in the darkness. No, what had scared him the most was his past. But he had since moved on from that.

"Honestly," he said, out into the nothingness, "we can't change what happened." He put his hands in his pockets, and stared into the distance. "We look for ways to change the past, the one thing we can't. Only the future can be changed. That's what we have to focus on. That's what I'm focusing on. If you can't let go, then I'm sorry, but I don't know what to tell you. Usually you'd be the one beating me over the head with the idea that I should just get over it, but now you're lost in the same trap I was."

Emerath paused for a moment. He had expected Flints to run away, to attack him, or to simply ignore him. He hadn't expected this remorse. She wasn't the type. But he supposed from what he knew of her failed relationship and marriage, and the fallout that had come with her decisions, that even the most stubborn person could be weighed down.

Emerath thought about him burning the page with his story about the Avalanche quest. About him erasing it from his past, and moving on. How he had saved the other pages. How they had been important in some way. But how that one piece of his past just... didn't matter to him anymore. Slowly, he drew his hand from his pocket, and he held in it a wedding invitation. One he had never accepted or attended. He turned to Flints, and then also produced a matchbox from his other pocket. He turned to Flints with both in hand, and then drew a match from the box, before striking it. The small flame lit up the space around them like a beacon. Small creatures that had been hiding in the darkness scurried away.

"Sometimes, it's best to let go and pretend it never happened. Some things just can't be gotten over, but they can't ever be changed again. They are set in stone, but our future isn't," Emerath said, as he put the match to the wedding invitation. He would hope the symbolism wouldn't be lost to Flints, as he watched the colorful envelope and paper go up in flames. The seal had never been broken. Emerath had never needed to look at what was inside. He had never wanted to. And now he would never get the chance to. He held the burning invitation out to Flints. "Maybe it's time you let go like I did. You can put out the fire, and live in the past, or you can take this from me and just let it burn. The choice is yours."

Emerath's eyes scanned Flints, as she looked over his maps. It was clear that there was still turmoil boiling within her soul. Emerath had tried to move past it. Living in the past was a painful thing, he learned. So was not living at all. Emerath decided to do neither of those, and explore the world, his life, and all it had to offer. If he was going to be stuck in this game for the rest of his life, he would at least make the best of it. Flints hadn't made that decision though. She was running, and though Emerath wasn't chasing, that might be what it felt like.

As Flints finished looking at the maps, Emerath would neatly roll them up and put them back in his satchel, before looking back to her. "Honestly, I don't know how Endilix has been. We lost contact shortly after we went on a couple quests together. I messaged him too, but never received any reply. To be sure, I checked the Monument of Life, and he's still alive. That's how I knew you were still alive too."

Emerath rubbed his neck, "I don't know if exploring is anything to be proud of. I didn't do anything but walk around a lot. I ate a lot of different foods, met many different players, seen all sorts of shops and items. It's kinda like traveling in the real world. Just as aimless and unproductive. But it has been fun at least." Emerath smiled, "It helped me come to terms with everything. Just, SAO. The people in it. I feel like I can make all new mistakes because I learned from the last ones."

As the last to arrive, Emerath would get the last to pick, which was fine. Honestly, even if what he got was crummy, he'd probably just sell it off for Col anyway. But much to Emerath's delight, there would be only one item left. The Plague Doctor's Leather. It was almost as if it had been made for him, and perhaps fate had deigned it so. He looked at the enchant, mending, made for a healer. Emerath hadn't spent much time lately healing, but perhaps it was time to change that, after all.

But as Zandra had asked for Emerath to remove his mask, something stirred within him. A bit of anger, in fact. Nobody had ever made it a point to make Emerath remove his mask. He opened up a trade with Zandra as he stood in front of her and Anise, making sure that his back was to the remaining party members. With his hood still low over his head, Emerath unhooked and pulled off the mask, revealing his face and red hair to only the two in front of him. "There, I hope this will suffice. You need to understand, you asked me to come to a place with strangers, where there was a promise of something free that could have just as easily been a trap. It still could be, for all I know, for the only person I know here is you, Zandra. I would say it should have been enough for you to recognize my name, but I suppose you'll have forgotten me by now in all your glory. I can't say I blame you."

With all that said, Emerath replaced his mask and finished the trade with them for the item. "Now, with all due respect, you have asked me to remove a piece of my combat armor, so I'm going to leave the mask on, from this point forward," Emerath's voice rattled forth from the mask, "You have seen my face, and can verify who I am. I would ask that we politely leave it at that from here on out."

Emerath had expected the woman to speak, to find out that the previous adventurer's statements about the odd woman whose service included no dialogue was nothing but a silly made up thing. That he'd have a good laugh as the butt of someone else's joke. But no, here she was, quiet as a mouse. She gave him hand gestures, and Emerath was figuring that she was saying to wait on payment. It was too bad he had never learned sign language, but it was clear she wasn't deaf so he wasn't even sure how much good that would do him. Emerath also couldn't think of a situation where the game would keep a player from talking. No, this probably wasn't the game. The girl had taken some sort of a vow of silence, he assumed.

Emerath cut another piece of his chicken, and popped it into his mouth. He wasn't ready to sit down. Not yet. This girl, being exactly as described, was an interesting point for him. He wanted to find out more. After he was done chewing and swallowing, he said, "You know, I haven't introduced myself. I'm Emerath. The person who recommended this place didn't give me your name. Would you mind if I asked for it?"

Emerath was going to respond, but the wolf wasn't about to let him. Instead, Emerath found himself covered in wet kisses from the animal, and Emerath laughed and had to slowly push the wolf off of him before, pulling a towel out of his inventory and wiping himself off. As Emerath found his feet again, his hands instinctively scratching the wolf's back end, Mist landed on his shoulder again and gave a concerned hoot. Emerath gave the owl a pat on the head to soothe her worries, before turning his attention back to the woman.

"Well, I should have expected that. I didn't, but I should have. Better than you turning and running your spear through me though, I must admit," Emerath explained, as he thought to what she had said before he was lovingly assaulted by her familiar. "Worry me? No, no more than you were probably worried about me. Which I can't imagine was much. We've always been able to take care of ourselves, really. Even standing here, on the Frontlines, are either of us ever that worried about danger?"

"Though I do have to ask, better for who? Certainly not Antillian. Just look at his cute little puppy face and how much he missed me," Emerath jested, petting the wolf's head. "No, I figure it was just better for you. I haven't really been looking for you. Not specifically. But you set me on the path I am, at least. I've been exploring, searching the world, and living in the wild. Just like you have. It gave me a new perspective on life. On this game. I made a whole bunch of maps!" Emerath excitedly pulled one out of his bag, a rolled up sheet of paper to show.

"Honestly, I just followed any wolf tracks I saw. I figured one day they would lead me to him, and then you. But when that day came was a mystery, until now," he admitted.

Emerath had been following the tracks for some time, but they kept going. But they certainly seemed more and more fresh. Whoever they belonged to, they were traveling, though in Emerath's favor, not quickly. That was when Emerath heard a sneeze. It didn't sound human. The wolf he had been following, perhaps?

As Emerath rounded the corner, he got his answer. A hooded figure, and a wolf. But not just any wolf, a wolf with horns. "Antillian," Emerath breathed, giving himself away immediately. He didn't care. He knew the wolf tracks would lead here eventually. He knew he'd find her if he just explored, if he just went looking. If he had just lived. "I tried messaging," Emerath explained, "but I got no answer." The wolf turned to look at the man, and Emerath smiled, "Oh, not you Antillian. I didn't message you. That would be silly. Though, if you could message I'm sure you would have gotten back to me much sooner."

Emerath chuckled, and then looked to the hooded figure with a smile, "It's been a long time, eh?"

He'd seen them many times before. They were just tracks in the dirt. Yet each time he saw a set of tracks, his heart skipped a beat. Could it be? This time, maybe it was.

Emerath stood on a precipice overlooking the vast underground networks. It was dangerous for Emerath to be here, he knew. This was the Frontlines, the highest and most recently unlocked floor. But, if he knew her, that's where she would be. So he came here occasionally, braving the dangers that this place had to offer. At worst case, he had a Teleport Crystal if he was ever in too much danger, but he hadn't yet found anything he couldn't at the very least outrun.

But what he found today, surprised him most of all. A set of wolf tracks in the hard underground dirt. Wolves weren't known to reside underground. Perhaps it wasn't impossible, but it certainly would be rare. No, this wolf belonged to a player. Maybe it was someone he knew.

Emerath dared not get his hopes up. What was even the point of seeing her anyway? It would probably just do more harm than good, but to be entirely fair, that had never stopped Emerath before. So, he straightened his tie, fixed his coat, and whistled for Mist to follow, as he jumped off the small cliff that the tracks trailed off of, and followed them to their destination. After all this time of exploring the floors, of living like she had, of trying to find something to live for, something to strive for, maybe he would find her again. Maybe, just maybe, she'd accept him again. Or he'd die. That was just as likely.

@Flints

Emerath smiled, as he turned in his chair, glad that the young man had opened up a bit more to him. Emerath was trying to be as genuine and nice as he could be, but the orange player was still incredibly wary. With good reason, Emerath knew, but it still killed him a bit inside. Must be a fresh orange, Emerath thought to himself, as he rolled up his map, and placed it in his satchel with the others. He leaned on the desk as he sat sideways facing the man who was now waiting for his order, and gave him a nod. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Pinball. So, does that mean that you eat your sweets as meals then? I suppose it's a good thing the game doesn't make avatars gain weight. You'd be in a lot of trouble in that case," Emerath chuckled as he finished his sentence.

But, the more Emerath thought about it, the more he supposed he should probably acknowledge the elephant in the room, especially before Pinball ran off or got the wrong idea. "So, Pinball, I need you to know. I don't really find you that threatening. If you were worried about it. Trust me, if you were going to come to murder me, there's much better places than a sweets shop. Besides, shops are safe zones, so if you want someone to talk to, I wouldn't mind it. You seem a bit like you could use the company." Emerath gave Pinball his most genuine smile, before ordering another tart from the shopkeeper, whether that be for the road or to sit and chat.

@Pinball

It had been quite some time since Emerath had spoken to Zandra. He remembered it way back when he had done the Breaking the Unbreakable quest to help her become a proper martial artist. But since that day, it had been a lot of radio silence. However, he had caught a post on one of the bulletin boards of unique items up for grabs, and recognizing the name and woman, had sent a message to get more details. Much to his delight, one he could use had turned up available, and he had been sent the coordinates to meet here. Emerath was always a bit wary, and thanks to an old friend, he often spent his time climbing trees and buildings to get a better view of just what he was getting himself into.

From a nearby rooftop, Emerath saw that there was a crowd at the location where he was told to meet. Plenty of people, none of which he seemed to recognize, not even Zandra. Time changed a lot of things, he supposed. Not wanting to take too many risks, Emerath opened his inventory, and equipped his Plague Doctor costume, before leaping off the building and walking up to the gathering from there. "Good evening, everyone," Emerath's voice rattled forth from his mask, "I've been invited to gather here for uniques. I'm Emerath, the Plague Doctor, and it is a pleasure to meet all of you, I'm sure."

With a light bow to the group, and the pleasantries out of the way, Emerath folded his arms across his chest, and waited for the next steps.

As the young man denied the tart, Emerath shrugged, and then scooped some more of the custard onto the tart for himself. "More for me then," he said, as he turned away. The young man seemed wary of Emerath, and that was understandable. An orange player daring to venture into a town was not easy, let alone something you did without caution. Emerath wasn't entirely certain he could figure out how to keep the man calm. At least it seemed like the shopkeep wouldn't give him any trouble. Probably because she knew she was safe and that it wouldn't be any trouble. To be fair, that was a lot of the reason why Emerath wouldn't have worried as well.

As Emerath finished his second tart, he tuned in to the man ordering an oddly lengthy list of sweets. It felt to Emerath like he might be waiting a while for all of that, let alone to eat all of it. He didn't think there was a limit to how much one could eat in this game, but he was certain that there was a point where Cardinal made people feel "full". Emerath began to wonder what it would be like to eat past that point, and how Cardinal would react then, and before he knew it, he was lost in his own thought experiments again, with the list going on and on in the background.

Slowly, Emerath brought himself back out of it, and by then it seemed like the list might have been over, and so Emerath turned to the young man. "I guess, it makes sense," he told him, as he swiveled in his chair, "you don't get into town much, so you make it worth your while. You have enough sweets on that list to last you a month, easy." Emerath chuckled, and gave the man a smile. He was trying to be friendly. There was no harm that could come to either of them within the shop's walls, and the city was a protected safe zone, as they all were. "I'm Emerath," he offered, hoping that maybe a name might ease some of the tension.

@Pinball

• Name: Renewed Inspiration
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109934
• Roll Result: 12
• Item Type: Potion
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Perfect
• Enhancements: Crafter's Respite
• Description: This light green potion smells and tastes of light mint and emits a light smoke into the bottle with a soft bubble that occasionally ripples across the surface. Drinking the potion makes the person feel refreshed, both thanks to the minty flavor and the effects of the potion, making them want to put their nose back to the grindstone and create many more wonderful things related to their profession. (Immediately Refreshes all Daily Crafts, One Use Per Day) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

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• Name: Crystalized Fury
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109936
• Roll Result: 10
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Rare
• Enhancements: 2x Damage
• Description: This orange crystal swirls with red tones beneath the surface, which when touched almost seems to follow your fingers. Just touching the crystal is enough to make you feel like hitting something in anger. (Gain +2 base damage. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

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• Name: Crystalized Anger
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109938
• Roll Result: 8
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Uncommon
• Enhancements: 1x Damage
• Description: This yellow crystal swirls with red tones beneath the surface, which when touched almost seems to follow your fingers. Just touching the crystal is enough to make you feel like hitting something in anger. (Gain +1 base damage. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

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• Name: Pushing the Limit
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109939
• Roll Result: 8
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Uncommon
• Enhancements: 1x Over-Health
• Description: This light green crystal emanates a white glow. Touching the crystal makes you feel as if you can survive just a bit longer when confronted. (Adds +15 to your maximum HP. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

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• Name: Teleport Crystal
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109941a, 109941b
• Roll Result: 12
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Perfect
• Enhancements: Teleport
• Description: This simple white glowing crystal teleports the user to a safe location of their choosing. **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

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• Name: Iron Skin
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109942
• Roll Result: 11
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Rare
• Enhancements: 2x Mitigation
• Description: This glittering silver crystal has the appearance of shining metal, and you can feel the power emanating in your hand. Activating this crystal will make attacks less effective against you, almost as if your very skin has hardened. (Prevent 10 damage from successful attacks against you. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by drinking.**
• Post Link

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• Name: Halo of Light
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109944a, 109944b
• Roll Result: 12
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Perfect
• Enhancements: Mass HP Recovery
• Description: This yellow crystal glows as brightly as the sun. Activation will surround the user and all their party members in a warm yellow glowing ring that washes away the pain of battle. (Heals you and each member of your party for (30 * Target's Tier) HP.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

---------------

• Name: Breaking the Limit
• Your Profession: Alchemist
• Your Rank: 5
• Roll ID: 109945a, 109945b, 109945c
• Roll Result: 10
• Item Type: Crystal
• Tier: 1
• Quality: Rare
• Enhancements: 2x Over-Health
• Description: This green crystal emanates a strong white glow. Touching the crystal makes you feel as if you can survive longer when confronted. (Adds +30 to your maximum HP. Effect lasts for one thread.) **A Small Fine Print Reads: Emerath is not responsible for any improper usage of this product, nor for any side effects caused by activation**
• Post Link

The day before, Emerath had managed to create a perfect craft. He had taken notes, studied them, and planned on replicating that success today. It should be simple. Just follow the same steps, receive the same results. And so, he fired up his burner, and put his materials in, and did just that. Same steps, same result, as expected. But that was the easy part. That was science. Now, Emerath was going to go back to his challenge. Making crystals. He knew he had to see success eventually, and with a Crafter's Respite potion in hand, he was going to make sure he stayed here until he saw it.

With each crystal made, Emerath took notes, and as he got about halfway through the day, he realized he was starting to tire, with nothing more than middling success. But that was what his potion was for. So he drank, and he could feel his brain burst with ideas, as he suddenly put his nose back to the grindstone, and put out not one, but two duplicate sets of perfect crystals. Quickly, he took notes on his successes, and what materials made them, and all in all felt accomplished. Now, the only issue was his dwindling supply of materials. Perhaps it was time for another visit to the bountiful garden.

**Daily Crafts**