Neo

Neo slowly looked up at the girl, sincerely surprised at the fact that she forgot physical pain wasn't that much of a thing in SAO. He so badly wanted to laugh, and to say it was all a joke, but seeing the raw emotions on her face and the fact that she was so embarrassed as to pull her hood over her face made Neo refrain from doing so. He didn't want to make her look like a fool in the middle of the plaza. Plus, she seemed very fragile at the moment, as her first couple words to him were a hurried apology. So, Neo decided to just go along with it, and stumbled upward, pulling himself up with the help of Saige's hand, saying "T-thanks, I appreciate it." Neo dusted the remaining snow off of him, patted his supposed injured spot and replied in a more cheerful tone, "Nah, I'm fine! It doesn't hurt anymore. SAO's pain system has so that all forms of pain don't linger very long." He fibbed a little bit on that statement so the girl wouldn't feel any worse than she probably already felt. Neo looked around the plaza, taking note of some peoples eyes lingering on them or people pointing at the two and laughing. An annoyed expression glazed over his face as he stared at them, eyes telling them to move along. The people who had been staring at them and laughing suddenly quieted, and hurried along to wherever they were supposed to be. Neo let a scowl escape onto his face, irritated at the fact that people would laugh at someone they didn't even know. He quickly plastered back on a more happier expression and turned back toward the girl, saying, "Sorry about that, I just don't like it when people stare at me like that. Gets me a bit riled up." Correction, HE didn't like it when people stared at people like Saige like that. But, to try and make her feel better about the situation, Neo tried to make it seem as if all the attention was on him, not her. Neo quickly looked over the girl once he had a face on view. She was a lot shorter than himself, about five to six inches really, and her expression showed both frustration and utter embarrassment. His facial expression showed one of guilt instead of relief for a split second, but then Neo regained his composure and put back up the relaxed look. He wanted to get to know the girl more, perhaps make her feel a little bit better about the situation, so Neo asked Saige, while pointing at the center of the plaza, "Well, I don't feel like standing here all day, so how about we go grab a bench at the middle of the plaza?" 

Neo really didn't wait for an answer as he began walking toward the center soon after, hands pocketed, head turned upwards at the sky. If she didn't begin following him, he'd turn around and say, "Hey, you coming?" Neo then would turn around and continue his walk toward the center, hoping she wouldn't just flake out on him and run away while he wasn't looking. She genuinely interested Neo. As he finally arrived at the center, he chose the bench nearest to him. He brushed the snow off of it and sat down, sighing. Neo would turn to look at Saige, patting the spot next to him, motioning her to sit down next to him. When she eventually (hopefully) sat down next to Neo, he'd quickly open up his inventory and equip his hat and overcoat. Neo then turned his head upward once again, staring at the sky, while asking Saige, "So, what's your story?"

(Appearance now: )

 @Saige

Neo really was quite the trouble maker, wasn't he? Even after the whole situation he had fallen into with Ruby, he still decided on doing another snowball war of sorts. After forcing himself to wake up this morning, Neo quite simply just walked out the door, grabbed a clump of snow, and threw it at the nearest person near him. They, didn't have the greatest reaction, and after about 15 minutes of running from a couple crazed guards and angry bystanders, he found himself in a dark alleyway, regaining his breath. He decided to this time plan a much more coordinated attack, more over by the towns entrance/exit. Neo leaned against a nearby brick house's wall and thought long and hard. If he were to start his gigantic snowball war here, he'd probably end up with a town full of people whipping snowballs at each other. Which was really what he was aiming for. One thing he was a bit worried about was if anyone were to snitch, and tell all the guards positioned at the town after the war that Neo was the one whom had began all the nonsensical chaos. He knew many tricks to deal with them, but he didn't want to be marked as some kind of super villain or something. 

He was just a guy who wanted to lighten up peoples moods.

So, Neo began looking around, trying to find the most depressing looking person out there. Or just the most dejected looking. His eyes fell upon a young girl. Well, he was being hypocritical, she was actually seemingly near Neos age. Her silver hair nearly made her blend in with all the snow around her. But Neo could see the bored-out-of-hell look in her eyes. He couldn't let someone act so sad on Christmas day! Sure, there were a bunch of reasons to be sad, but that doesn't mean you should be! He began walking up to the player, slowly, not wanting to attract any unwanted attention to himself. After closer examination, he saw that she was about to take out a piece of paper of some kind. A to-do list, Neo assumed as he bent down and began balling up two clumps of snow in each of his hands, smiling mischievously. As he took aim, Neo made sure to throw it right as she began taking out her list of sorts, so he wouldn't be caught by her under any circumstance. He threw the snowball a bit over her head so that the snowball would in theory hit her back. Instead, Neo smacked the girl right in the back of her head. Seriously, he could hear the impact from where he was standing. Neo made a worried expression, and was about to run over and ask if she was okay right when she regained her balance. He stopped himself from speeding forward to help her, and instead stood frozen like a statue right behind her. The girl turned around and pulled off her hood, scanning the area until her purple pupils landed right on Neo and his guilty expression. Thankfully, the girl didn't seem TOO annoyed, but then her eyes shifted down toward his other hand. His expression then turned from one of relief to one of fear. He slowly looked down at his other hand and saw the other snowball he had made. Neo began raising his arms in a surrendering way, trying to stammer out an explanation, but it was far too late for apologies now. Soon after, the girl made her own snowball and threw it right at Neos face. But, because of both karma and her lack of aim, gravity pulled the ball lower than expected and hit him right between the legs. Now, usually all other parts of the body don't feel as much pain, but this part still hurt Neo pretty bad when hit. So, in response, he covered his hands around the injured spot and just fell face first right onto the ground, groaning. "Oh, God.." He muttered as he convulsed and wiggled around in his bed of snow, making a demented looking snow angel under him. "Why..there..?" Neo asked in a whimpering, high-pitched voice as he turned over to look at the girl, eyes full of suffering.

Neo thought he was being a bit too dramatic, but might as well mess with her a little since she dared to hit him there.

 @Saige 

Looking forward to bumping into you in some threads soon!

Neo nodded, not bothered at all by the lack of work Erin put into her profession. To be honest, Neo hadn't even started that quest yet, just because the prospect of rummaging through forests looking for some well hidden items doesn't seem to turn him on in any way. He then walked over to where Erin was, rolling his eyes out of amusement when he had saw that she was nearly up, and dropped the pile of kindle a couple feet away from Erin. Neo then grabbed two nearby stones and began clashing them together, hoping for a spark to alight the pile of kindle. He grunted with frustration with each clash, his irritation rising to unsafe levels. He kept crashing them together, but nothing happened. Neo, after staring at the rocks for a couple seconds, threw them up into the air with a scoff of damaged pride. He then sat back down, raking his hair through with his hand fervently. Neo then turned toward Erin and said, in an embarrassed tone, "I-um-well-I-uh-I haven't gotten the hang of making fires yet, hehe." He then turned back toward the kindling, thinking. Neo then snapped his fingers after finally thinking of a solution. He unsheathed his sword and picked up one of the rocks once more. Before putting his plan to action however, he'd turn to Erin and ask, "Weapons don't break this easily, right?" If Erin answered no, he'd continue on without a second doubt. If Erin said probably, or a similar vague answer, he'd mutter, "Oh lordy, please don't let my literal only weapon break from smashing it against a rock like a damn neanderthal."  Neo would then take a deep breath, and then smash the rock against the sharpest edge of the blade. When they had made contact, sparks did fly into the kindling and begin to light it, but he had sliced the rock in half and cut into his own hand. He grimaced from the slight dull buzz of pain he had gotten from his injury. Neo sighed and laid back onto his back, saying to no one in particular, "Was it worth trading my hand for a damn fire?" 

He already knew the answer was no.

Neo then opened back up his inventory while on the ground next to Erin. He scrolled through the items for a couple moments and then pressed a button, which covered both of his hands in white dress gloves. Good thing there's no blood from wounds in this game. Neo thought as he tightened the glove on his injured hand, the left hand. He then looked back over to Erin, smiling, and would ask, "Anyways, got anything else to share? I'm all ears."

(Yeah, I'm kinda feeling we should end this thread and use the ending as a lead into another thread somewhere else so I can use a bit more imagination and improvisation from the new details in the next thread, but whatever you want to do!)

 @Telrenya

Neo looked over at Erin, laying beside him in the soft bed of grass. He laid there, staring at the girl who had found peace and serenity in her spot. She looked like someone he had seen before, but he just couldn't put his finger on it. He decided to explore this, but only after a couple more moments of small talk, calming silence, and trust gaining. After a couple more seconds, Neo finally spoke, in a quieter tone than usual, saying, "You know, my real reason for coming this close to the forests' end was to grind out some monsters, just like you." He turned over slightly towards Erin, to get a better look at her, and continued, "But, my point is, I'm pretty glad I ran into you. It's been a while since I've relaxed with anyone I actually liked. Times like these make me feel as if I can make it back." He clenched his fist and stared at it, saying in a hopeful tone, "That real life is only a hop, skip, and a level up away." Neo then looked upward, and smiled one of his most sincerest smiles he had in a while, since he ever entered this hellhole of a game. Neo then finished his point of by saying, "People like you make me feel as if we all do have a chance to make it." He then turned away, back to even sitting so that he was staring back up at the stars. The cooling air brushed his face and made his hair wave in the wind. He raked his green tinged hair, his eyes beginning to feel heavy and his mind blurring. Neo needed to take a break, but he couldn't just make Erin get up and go.

So, he simply just decided to wait for when Erin was ready to move on and tough it out.

To speed it up a bit more, however, he began to sit up, shaking his head fervently to hopefully get rid of the feeling of exhaustion infecting him. If Erin attempted to follow his lead, he would raise his hand in protest, telling Erin to just relax and let him take the mantle of control for a little bit. He then got fully up, stretching himself out. Neo then walked over to their abandoned weapons and picked them both up. He put away his Katana, the satisfying clanging noise filling the air. He walked back over to Erin, and knelt at her side. He slowly returned the rapier to her sheath. Neo then got up and walked over to a open space a couple feet away. He then started plucking branches from the ground, supplies for a fire, since he assumed they were going to stay there a bit. To break the incoming awkward silence, he called out to Erin saying, "So, you got a profession or something you do other than fighting? Someone like you must like to be busy and useful, right?"

 @Telrenya

After Erin pulled away, Neo felt just the tiniest bit more joyful. He had helped regain Erins composure, and that's really all he wanted and needed to know. He really couldn't stand looking at her in such sorrow like that. He couldn't stand to see anyone really in such a weak form. So, of course he had to do something. When Erin tried to apologize to him, Neo shook his head, wiping away his remaining tears with his jacket sleeve, saying,' "No need to apologize, Erin. Nothing was your fault. It was mine for acting that insensitive to you. If anything I should be sorry." He took one long deep breath, and just sat down right next to where Erin was standing. He ignored the notification, which chimed its loser tone for Neo, as he had been declared the loser for the least amount of health between the two. Nothing really mattered now. It was just him, Erin, and the rest of the world was a blurred out picture of trees, dimming skies, and far away landscapes. As he finally began to feel the effects of both physically and emotionally spending himself, Neo slowly began to lay down onto the ground, staring right back up at the now dimming sky. The sun would be setting soon, in which would follow the stars. Along with that, however, came the nighttime monsters, which happened to be much more capable than the simple ones that stalked the woodlands during the daytime.

But he couldn't just ask Erin to come back with him. Not in this condition. He wanted her to at least be in slightly better spirits before they returned to town.

So, he simply just laid there, eyes closed, his hair blowing in the wind. Neo would, after a couple more moments, wave at the spot next to him, gesturing to Erin to lay down next to him. To refute any argument Erin had against it, he'd say in a soft tone, "Just lay down here, okay? Just for a little bit. You don't need to talk. Just rest and calm yourself along with me." Neo would then turn back towards the sky, a dreamy look now painted across his face. Not an expression of one emotion, but of infinitely many possibilities. He just laid there, and just waited until Erin said or did otherwise.

 @Telrenya

Neo stared back straight at her, a stern glare unbreaking even under the fury of Erin. He calmly got up from his seat on the ground, and slowly walked toward Erin, eyes still holding their glare. He then took her by both shoulders and looked at her dead in the eyes. Neo saw hate, frustration, loss, guilt, all the things that had been in his own eyes once. Oh yes, he knew damn well how it felt. But he had managed to break away from his past and move on, not giving it a second thought. Erin on the other hand, seemingly used it as a motivation. Loss can be a great motivator at times, but in this way?

It only leads to weakness and weakness leads to injury, which only leads to more loss and more hurt.

Neo needed to get that through her head, along with a number of other things, before he could continue helping her in any other type of way. Once he snapped back to reality after a few moments of silence, he spoke in a controlled but annoyed tone, "This isn't just a game that focuses on numbers! It focuses on both Skill and Power! Too many people seem to think that either numbers or skill determine what the hell kind of player you are! I don't define people by that. I define myself and others by my skill, level, and my strength, not by just damn numbers on a screen or being able to trip someone in a damn SPARRING match. You need to learn that also. But It can be a weakness at times, yet you don't seem to understand that. I came here to help you, not by numbers but by strengthening physical skill and mental dexterity. Even with that though, without the power to back it up, it becomes damn near useless. So don't you even try telling me you being here doesn't make any difference in the whole scheme of things because it does." Neo looked down for a moment, taking a shaky breath, and continued, his own tears forming in his jade green eyes, "You don't think I've seen loss? Death? Somewhere in which I could've helped but didn't?! I wanted to, but I couldn't. You know why? Because of damn numbers and stats." He then dropped his hands from Erin's shoulders for a moment to grip them into tight white balled up knuckles, saying, "Skill and level go hand in hand, neither one can operate without the other. You're wondering why I can bypass the system like this? This is only the fraction of amount of skill I can possess with this kind of level. If I was a higher level like you I'm assuming, I probably wouldn't even be here right now. I'd be on the front lines fighting alongside people who also follow that philosophy. Do you really wanna know why I avoid teaching people I don't know well this method?" he stopped for a moment and then looked straight at Erin with a pained expression, saying, "The very small amount of people I had trained? They all had immediately ignored levelling up from that point on. Once they felt as if they have perfected this technique, they ignored level guidance systems and warnings and moved on to just fight the most powerful mobs or bosses there are at the time. I've seen it time and time again, both in SAO and in other games, how people just ignore the level system and end up dying." Neo then turned back toward Erin, he had his back turned to her for most of the time he had been talking to her, and then said in a softer, more fragile tone, "Point is, I've seen loss. I've made mistakes. Mistakes that could've been fixed with a higher level or more stats. You being here makes me happy. Relieved even. Relieved that you're willing to buff up both your numbers and your skill in order to be able to fight. So," Neo then looked straight into Erin's eyes, his jade green pupils speaking a thousand more words of care and concern for her than he could ever say, and then finally spoke, "Never think that any act of progression, whether it be in skill or level, be in vain. I don't want another person I know and care about dying from carelessness or by being unprepared and thinking that they'll just think of something during the heat of battle." 

He then did something very unexpected, but undoubtedly could lead to a very awkward situation if refused, and slowly tried to pull Erin into a comforting hug. Whether she accepts it or not, he would still say the same thing, "Like I said, I'm here to help. So, let me help you. Please. Don't be another one of my failures. I can't see someone else die again."

(Sorry if mistakes start appearing more often in my posts, lol. I've been tired for the last couple days and mistakes just slip right by me sometimes.)

 @Telrenya

Neo stood there, literally just staring at his inventory. He was trying to decide what to wear today, as he was planning on taking it easy. He had undergone multiple flashes, signaling many different outfit changes. Neo then settled on a casual bit of wear, a simple suit coupled with a black over hood. Similar to what he's wearing in his journal entry. He was about to head off elsewhere, probably to teleport to the Town of Beginnings, but then he heard a voice calling over to him. Oh lord, what kind will it be today? Neo asked himself mentally as he turned around to greet the newcomer. The guy was about as tall or maybe a little taller than Neo, but definitely showed signs of an older age than he was. His body and face were more aged and refined, built with experience and years of doing whatever the heck this guy did. He had slight blue hair, albeit it looked a bit more black. Neo greeted him though with a warm smile and replied to him, "A quest you say? Sure, why not. It's not like I was doing anything else today." He extended his hand toward him, saying, "I'm Neo, what's your name stranger?"

Weapon skills:
»One Handed Curved Sword Rank 1 - +1 Damage (5 Skill Points)

Inventory

Weapons/Tools:
»

• Perfected Hailstrom [T1 OHCS - Rare] - Enhancements: Damage / Damage / N/A 
• (3) Starter Healing Potions (Heals 50 HP)

 @Taka

Stats:

• HP: 20
• EN: 2
• DMG: 2 Damage
• MIT: N/A
• ACC: N/A
• EVA: N/A

 (If I did anything wrong, please tell me! I'm still pretty green when it comes to this role play battle mechanic!)

Neo panted, dropping both weapons to the ground with a metal clang, the sound filling the momentary silence of the forest. Neos expression fell, and his usual relaxed face returned, albeit with a bit of pain mixed into it. He clutched his shoulder, wincing slightly in pain. Damn, she got me good, he thought as he let his body fall to the ground in a damp heap of small drops of blood and sweat. Neo didn't have to move that much ever since, well, that was a story for a different time. Point was, Neo was extremely impressed with Erins growth in just the couple of hours they had been practicing and sparring. Neo personally thought she had a knack for fighting, although she might feel the opposite. He did notice a few things that were unusual during the ending of their spar, though. Her face showed an expression of, what was it, anger? Frustration? Fear even? Her body language gave hints as well, her fists had balled up in white knuckles as he had taken over the battle and ended it. Something I did? Or was I somehow reminding her of something of her past? Neo thought as he brushed himself off. Or maybe just plain frustration of losing, not too uncommon, Neo thought as he took deep long breaths to rejuvenate his stamina and energy. His ears perked up at the sudden question of level. His face gave him away, solemn and slight disappointment showing true. He hadn't really done any true grinding for the whole time he had been here, only a couple player duels and those didn't give much exp. Only thing he gained from that was a better understanding of peoples behaviors and movements during battle. He had always relied on his skill to carry him out of situations, not just solely based on level. Sure, have a high enough level in this game and you're untouchable. But, power without skill was useless.

Still, having power along with skill would help his ass in some situations a helluva lot.

He looked up at Erin, while scrolling through his menu, and said in a frustrated tone, "I'm only level one. Its complete and utter idiotic how weak I am. I'm disgusted at myself for not taking leveling up more seriously." After his little rant, he got back up and put his foot under his Katana, kicking it up from the ground and catching it in his strong hand. He used the tip of said Katana to pick up Erins rapier, offering it to her in his left hand. "Here, I think this is yours," Neo said in a comedic tone as he tossed it back over to her, hoping she'd catch it before it smacked her right in the face. He then slithered all the way back down to the ground, sighing unhappily. The topic of levels was always a touchy one, no matter what MMO it was. People always thought of level being the only means of being good at a game. Neo tried breaking that stereotype multiple times, in multiple games. But, every single time he tried, he either was refuted and humiliated by higher levels who never even gave him a chance to battle, while others called him a damn beater if he managed to beat someone a higher level than him. Neo then looked back upward at Erin, saying, "Okay, one, I'm no exploiter or hacker. It's taken me a couple years to develop the kind of mind and coordination it takes for me to fight at the level I am at. Two, now I bet you're wondering a couple hundred things about me, or just what the hell did I do to get this kind of level in specifics, or maybe just some random stuff about me, whatever. Now is the time to ask. Go ahead," Neo gestured to Erin, saying, "Ask me anything."

 @Telrenya

Neo made a concerned look as Erin explained her slight confusion to him. He nodded to himself, understanding that all knowledge comes with time, experience, and practice. So, he’d say before Erin went to her battle pose, “It’s alright. I know it might be hard to understand at times. But you’ll get it eventually. Just gotta keep practicing.” As soon as she began walking around him though, his mind went into a flurry of calculations and possible outcomes. Perhaps an attack on the ankles? Maybe a dash turnaround, and she uses her speed to propel herself around me and attack my front? Neo thought as soon as Erin stopped right behind him. He would begin to turn, his Katana swinging back with him, but then his eyes caught a glint of metal soaring toward his ankles. Out of Instinct, not of thinking, he tried to kick the blade out of range, hopefully also throwing Erin out of balance, open for attack. But, out of Neos surprise and frustration, she rolled out of it, turning to his blind spot and seemingly about to get a hit off on his back.

He swore audibly, and nearly twisted his ankle in trying to counter her attack and refute it, giving him time to refocus. But, Neo was only able to block the blow, the rapiers tip nearly making contact with his face before his Katana was able to intervene and block the blow. He struggled for a moment, unable to fully refute the blow, and after a few still moments, the rapiers point broke through his weakly made defense. The sword shot right towards Neos face, and he only had time to tilt himself slightly right in order to have the blade pierce his left should instead of making a kebab out of his face. Neo grunted in pain, the rapier making dull gut wrenching thud when it collided into his body. His eyes momentarily flared in anger, but he managed to regain his composure after he reminded himself that it was only a friendly spar. Erin might have thought she got the upper hand, but Neo wasn’t about to accept defeat yet. “You see,” Neo said as he used his free right arm to brandish his Katana so that it pointed seemingly right at Erin’s hand. Then he finished with a tone that displayed an air of authority, saying, “Sometimes to have to take some hits in order to deal the final blow.” Neo then shot his Katana right into the handle of Erin’s sword, not however causing any harm. The actions purpose was to hook his Katana onto Erin’s rapier. He then pulled backward, using his Katana to hook into the rapiers handle and probably rip it right from Erin’s hand. Neo pulled the sword out of his shoulder with his left hand, and held both so that they were crossed by Erin’s neck.

Neo, with suitably more visible exhaustion, said, “Nice try though. Your speed definitely helped in that situation.”

 @Telrenya

Neo grinned, satisfied with the reaction he had gotten from Erin. He knew this was her first time facing him, but he wasn't about to let the girl get off easy. She was no stranger to combat, but was definitely one who was not knowledgable to his own kind of spin on it. Neo would extend out his hand to help the girl up, sword kept in a defensive like position. He didn't want her to pull one of those cliches where she stabs him right through the chest or something saying 'never let your guard down' or some crap like that. Neo didn't operate that way. If you were down, you were down. Taken out of the fight, KO'd. You shouldn't be allowed to do something like that. It wasn't like you'd do that during a real fight, right? As Erin hopefully took his hand, he pulled her up and began dusting off his coat. "You alright, Erin?" Neo asked as he began to check over his equipment and gear. He immediately began seeing problems in which his type of clothing might hinder his mobility in combat and lead into unforeseen consequences. Neo then reopened his inventory, and swapped out the coat for a more jacket like article of clothing, which was dark green in color, and sleeves that ran up all the way to his wrists.

"If you couldn't tell by now, which I hope you have, I really like the color green. I think it suits me," Neo added as he adjusted the coat to his perimeters and shape. He dusted off his pants and boots, and after adjusting his new coat he turned to look back at Erin and began critiquing her fighting style. "Now, although you have speed and the gift of being more versatile and bendable than most male avatars, you lack a way of being able to use it as a strategic advantage, not just an attribute advantage. Speed, power, and even knowledge is useless without careful planning and skill. You've gotten the skill down quite well, but not the planning as much. Do you realize how often and how many players might use that feint hit combo on a daily basis?" Neo asked as he looked over his sword, checking its quality. Whatever her response may be, he would nod and continue on to say, "Well, for me after watching a whole lot of players and monsters fight, it's pretty safe to say that a lot of people use it. It's too predictable in real time battle. Any advanced player with a high enough level probably knows this. Now, I will say this though, being super predictable may catch a player off guard sometimes, as most do tend to over evaluate actions and movements and therefore ignore even the possibilities of the simplest moves. But, if you want to get to a point where you can be unpredictable without having to risk being really predictible, you should start with using your speed to your advantage. How about, I dunno, doing multiple fake outs instead of just the standard one? What about going for the feet and ankles like I told you? Perhaps maybe even disarming me before the real fight could even begin by going for my wrists? These are the outcomes you must be thinking about."  As Neo leaned backward and got into a stance in which he held his Katana in a dagger-like way, he added one more piece of advice, "I know this is gonna sound cheesy as hell, but you gotta expand your horizon. Look at the bigger picture. Think outside of the virtual box." He then waited for Erin's first move, his muscles relaxing to offer a more intensive response time and to make Erin think as if Neo was letting his guard down.

 @Telrenya

Neo, still examining his Katana, nodded in reply to Simbas question. He looked up, sheathed his Katana with a sharp and quick thrust, and said, "Yeah, well, I have. Enough to know that to me it seems like a finicky thing to deal with in battle. I've played lots of mmos, and never have I once seen something like the Sword Arts."  He then turned back toward his menu, and equipped his default clothing, which was the one he's wearing in his journal and the one he wore to most battles. Neo tightened his collar and straightened out his cuff-links, and then walked over next to Simba, keeping at his pace. He looked at him, getting a better look at him than on the bench. 'Damn, he really is Snow White ain't he?' Neo thought as he looked over Simba as they walked side by side. He then looked over at Abyss, who was walking alongside Simba as well. He immediately turned away. He couldn't force himself to look at him for more than a couple seconds. As they exited the town, Neo took a breath of the fresh, uncluttered air that had awaited him. He had stayed way too long in that dingy old town, more then he would've usually allowed himself. Neo then opened his inventory, checking through it one more time before returning to the group. He waved his Katana over the fields that were in front of the three and asked Simba, "So, which way?"

(I apologize for the lack of length.)

 @Simba  @Abyss

Neo's eyes slightly narrowed as Ruby decided to explain the concept of SAO to him like a child. He was no child. Hell, Ruby was only an inch or two taller than Neo. And age was just a number. But, not wanting to draw any more attention nor hostility to his person, he decided against protesting against his child like treatment. Because, if he was truly being honest with himself, he was acting similar to a child. Neo did, however, reply in a more relaxed, go-lucky tone when Ruby offered Neo to get him some food, saying, "You'd buy me food? Really? No, it's alright. I can pay for myself. I don't need it, I can provide for myself. It may not look like it, but I can.'But the fact that she would offer to pay for his food really did surprise him. Perhaps he had just gotten off on the wrong foot at the start and just need to slow down a bit. Yeah. That was probably the case. It would've been helpful to know that earlier, he thought.  Neo then called a waiter over, who reluctantly began to take Neos order. He got a simple fried-rice bowl, with an iced tea as his beverage. Any sugar would just make him more irritable and more likely to boil over into an argument, as sugar always got him a bit more hyped up, even if it was a virtual game. He still seemingly felt the effects the same as if it was in real life. Something Neo really did not want nor need right now, not with this lovely ray of sunshine sitting right across from him. As he waited patiently for his order, he said to Ruby in an apologetic tone, "Okay, just for the record, I'd like to thank you for this second chance and the offer of a meal. I'm not trying to be disrespectful by refusing it, I just don't wanna be anymore of a burden I've already been to you for the past, oh I dunno-" He quickly pulled down his in-game timer with a simple flick of the wrist, and then swiped it down to hide it and continue on, "-about ten minutes. I sincerely hope you listen to me when I spout off my numerous explanations. This time," he then looked upward at Ruby and say in a hopeful tone, "Maybe without getting interrupted from snowballs this time." While waiting for his food, he began organizing his side of the table, unfolding napkins and setting utensils while asking Ruby, "So, what do you want me to start with? Its your choice, I mean, I did put you through all this crap."

 @Ruby

Neo's eyes showed amusement as Erin didn't call herself a swordsman. He laughed under his breath, and looked closely at her when she slipped on her silver mask. He didn't see anything suspicious about it, no effect, no glow, and seemingly no stat increase. Just a mask. He exhaled and muttered a thank you to himself. Lots of players already had a bunch of enchantments on their armor and various weapons, which added unpredictable spins to their combat strategies and patterns that sometimes threw Neo for a spin. He didn't see anything immediately concerning when he saw Erin first fight, so he decided to just fight as if she had no enchantments. Neo, right before Erin began to go forward, said in a much more serious tone than before while tightening his gloves, "Well, miss Telrenya, I'm not just another swordsman either." His eyes narrowed as Erin exploded forward, surprising him with her extreme expulsion of speed. He really should've expected it, as female avatars in SAO had a overwhelming speed over most male avatars, being able to cover larger distances over a smaller distance over time. Neo kept his eyes on her, immobile and analyzing her movements and body movements to predict multiple different outcomes of which where she would go. He began to put one stratagem into action when Erin went for a feint hit starting from the right then swiping into the left, her rapier aimed directly at the center of his chest. Neo predicted this as one of the most likely outcomes, and adapted to it as such, albeit with slight difficulty from the amount of speed she had mustered up through her charge. He dug his Katana into the ground, narrowly dodging the blow and his hair being clipped as a side effect of a near late reaction. 

Neo was getting just a tiny bit lazy.

He had dodged the poke from her rapier by using the sword as leverage to pull him to the ground easier.The ground he dug into with his boots made a rough digging noise, then Neo slid right under Erin, making sure to cover his eyes to avoid looking like a perv with his non dominant hand. A lot of his combat attacks led with him sliding under players and monsters alike, so he had gotten used to covering his eyes. As soon as he had slid completely under Erin, he used his right hand to dig the Katana into the ground, deep enough that it would provide suitable leverage to suit Neo' weight. Then, once he had integrated the Katana into the ground deep enough, with a power filled grunt, he spun and swung his legs in a sweeping motion, attempting to catch Erins ankles and to trip her to the ground. Then, Neo would kick back up, taking a moment to take his Katana out of the ground and point it at the girl whom he had tripped to the floor, panting slightly. Not taking his eyes off her, he said in a matter-of-fact tone "Impressed yet?"

(First time doing a combat scene outside of another roleplay I do, in which combat is completely different. Did I do the do right?)

 @Telrenya

Neo laughed along with her, enjoying the fact that she was indeed comfortable around him. Most people wouldn't or just choose not to be very comfortable around a solitary solo soldier like Neo, so it was a refreshing turn of events. As the option popped up into his menu with a cute little 'beep', he stared at her username for a couple seconds while raising one eyebrow. Telrenya, the message read, would like to duel with you! He looked up at her, eyebrow still raised in slight confusion, and asked, "Erin seems a bit far from Telrenya, doesn't it? Any story behind it that I can pick at for a little? Or is it just a nickname you and your friends came up with while you were out hunting or something?" Neo accepted the duel request and while Telrenya, he liked the name Erin better, probably began to answer his question, he twirled his Katana again and stretched out a little bit, his Katana tucked between his shoulders and his head behind him. As he stretched, he said to Erin, "Well, since you're getting ready to fight, I might as well too. I don't fight other players often, whether it be under controlled conditions or real combat, but when I do, I'll give you one warning." He then took his Katana from behind him and adjusted it so the tip was pointed toward the ground, as if he was one of the knights of the round table like in the old fairytales.

He then continued, saying in a serious tone, "My fighting style is going to be like none you've ever seen before. So, just be prepared for anything, as I adapt to the situation as it progresses and do moves that most people who call themselves 'swordsman' wouldn't even think of using." Neo then opened up his menu again and chose his intimidating preset, and after a quick flash of light around his clothes, he now stood there in quite the different outfit than he once started out with. Now, he had a long, jade green overcoat with an upturned collar, and his pants and boots were a sleek obsidian black color. His sleeves ended short, and his hands were now covered in finger-less gloves. He flexed his hands and adjusted his collar, saying in a slightly embarrassed tone, "Well, looks like I forgot to change my coat color. The coat itself isn't anything special, just me adding some finishing touches to it to make it look more important than it actually does." He then re-assumed his fighting pose from before, took a long deep breath, and then motioned with his hand at Erin to come right at him.

 @Telrenya

Free stuff?!

AWESOME!

not like I’m gonna win anything anyways though, I suck at these~

Whatever though. Have a jolly Christmas you guys!

Neo, realizing his blunder, blushed a soft shade of red and said in reply, “Yeah, that was pretty dumb of me. Sorry.” He should’ve known not to push that kind of idea without thinking about the consequences. Of course a player would turn orange if they had attacked another player! A newbie mistake on Neos part. He also knew he hit a sensitive topic when Erin for a moment seemingly froze from the idea of hitting Neo. He should’ve asked more about her Player V Player background before even thinking of the idea of letting her hit him. God, his impulsive side was showing bright and true today, wasn’t it. Neo did have the immediate idea of initiating a duel after rethinking his idea. If they initiate a duel, then Erin wouldn’t have to worry about the repercussions of attacking him, and he could also while in the duel show her a couple of combos that would lead into a near guaranteed critical. Plus, some practice of battle patterns and such. But as soon as he was about to suggest the idea, he noticed that Erin already had her menu open. Neo grinned and said, “Great minds think alike, am I right? Go ahead and send the invite to me whenever you’re ready.” After saying that though, Neo more carefully examined Erin’s body language and expression. She seemed, fearful? Or was it, conflict? It covered her expression, and along with it doubt and guilt. What could she have lied about?

Then it hit him. The silver mask, the feeling of a familiar face staring right at him when they spoke, of course. It all made sense. Or, maybe it didn’t? Neo only had a slight idea of what was going on. To soothe Erin though, since she looked as if she caused someone’s death recently, he said, “Hey, Look. It’s alright. I understand your motives for hiding or doing whatever you did that made you feel guilty towards me. I’m not the one to hold a grudge. Don’t know if you know this, but I’m a pretty trustworthy guy. I’ll keep any secret that you need to keep, and talk about anything you need to talk about if you need someone. I mean, I don’t mind if you kept anything from me. Everyone has their reasons. Plus, it’s only an invite. I can just invite you if you want and just close my eyes for the entire duration of the duel if you want me to, if there’s something that’ll show up that’ll make you feel uncomfortable or guilty if I found out. It’s fine, really. You can tell me anything, and I’ll keep my mouth clamped shut.” He stopped for a moment, to regain his breath and composure, and finished by saying, “It’s your choice. Always has been, always will. So, what can I do to help?”

 @Telrenya

Neo didn't mind the interruption. He had been pleasantly surprised by this, as this meant Erin was beginning to understand the subject of what he had been trying to teach. In a fairly quick manner as well. Quicker than when he had started for sure. It took him a full hour long session online in a Skype call from one of He grinned at her and said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Oh, don't be worried. I know a simple way of teaching you the categories. Although, I think right now I wanna take a break from patterns and focus on a more straight-forward skill that would help you in battle more when it comes to needing quick thinking." He then took out in an unnaturally quick motion Perfect Hailstrom, and pointed right at where Erins liver would be. Neo raised his hand in a calming matter to dissipate any alarm and said, "Now, I'm going to teach you places where critical hits have a higher probability of occurring. No, I'm not going to use you as a pincushion. I'm just going to point out some places by using your body as a kind of guide, okay?" He waited for her motion to continue, and if she agreed, Neo would continue. But not before standing up and asking Erin to do the same. Once they were both up, Neo would begin from the bottom, pointing his Katana at her ankles. "For two out of three of the categories of monster I will teach you later, the ankles are where most of them don't care to protect much, as many of those whom claim to be worthy DPS's always go for either the front or back, thus those same two categories of monster always have their back and front usually covered. Save for a few sore thumbs who stick out of course. But, once again, that'll be easier to catch up on later. If you manage to get a hit off at the ankles, it makes the AI lose its sense of balance and have to take a literal two or three seconds to regain it. Which-" Neo looked back at Erin, serious expression painted onto his face, and said, "-is all that's needed to make the difference in life or death situations." He stopped for a moment, just in case he had hit a sensitive spot in her life. If she seemed fine, he would continue, saying, "Taking out the ankles also leads to mobility loss, and could take them out of the fight for an easy kill. Literally breaking their ankles. They'd be lying on the floor, and the AI would be going crazy trying to find its footing, but it would never get up again. Well, only if it couldn't regenerate it. If the monster has regenerative properties, then you shouldn't really go for the ankles as much as the other parts I will show." Neo would then pause for a moment for any questions, and then would move on.

The tip of his Katana slowly drifted upward and then stopped immediately at where Erins hip started. Neo drifted the tip slightly more upwards, and then a bit to the right. The Katana would be pointed where in real life her liver would be. Neo then began talking again, saying, "Another place in which criticals spout up more is around the liver. SAO does implement some real life physics and damage calculators in their combat game play, and in real life, regular people and even fully trained soldiers can't take a hit to the liver. So, the programmers decided to put this into the game as well, the critical probability higher there than any other part of any monster's body. But even without the critical hit, it is still a very good place to aim for, as it still deals a higher damage output than it would if you were, lets say, going for its chest." He then put his sword down for a moment, unbuttoned his shirt a little, and then moved his shirt over to point at where Neo believed his liver was. "Now, for an example, I would like you to hit me in this spot. To show how much damage it could really do." He'd then stand there, waiting for the incoming blow. "Go on. If you're going to need to be better in quick thinking and battle readiness, you have to be accurate as to where critical spots are. So go ahead. I don't mind, really."

 @Telrenya

Neo noticed the expression of confusion stuck on Erin's face as he finished his explanation. Perhaps he should try a different approach next time? He waited as Erin talked about how some of the monsters in game were similar to ones in real life, and how most common ones are beast-types. Neo nodded and said in reply, "That's a way you could categorize them, yes. But there is a much more simpler way to categorize each separate monster in the game which we will discuss later." The way he did it was the way he was gonna teach Erin how to do it. Sure, it took him a while to memorize such things and even he struggled even though he had experience, but judging from what he's seen so far of Erin, Neo thinks he'll be able to handle it. She'll be able to learn it fully in a matter of a couple days, a week or two even if it went a little over. As Neo pondered his schedule, he realized that he really had nothing to do. No where to go. No one to hang out with or be obligated to some sort of outing with.

Another upside to being solo he guessed?

Anyways, Neo broke away from his train of thought and returned attention to Erin, who began talking about human-like fighters and creatures. She was right in the way that they were the most trickiest to calculate their actions with; they were based off of human unpredictability, which meant that their AI had a category all by themselves in Neos system. Most of their attacks however were based on either their passive skill or their weapon. Which Erin seemed to had gotten almost immediately after exclaiming that the human-like monsters with daggers always went for a backstab. Neo was pleasantly surprised, and applauded Erin a little on her efforts to see her first connection in battle patterns and the situation in which they can be predicted in. He really didn't know where or how she got the daggers from though, so he decided to ask Erin, "I'm glad that you're already beginning to see connections in which you can infer battle patterns from, but what's all this about backstabs and such? Have you fought a couple of bandits recently?"

 @Telrenya

Neos smiled had a mix of his skin color and pink as he clearly saw he flustered Erin a little bit. He didn't mean to embarrass her, only to tell her the truth about what he thought of her. He sincerely thought she was a wonderful person to be acquainted with, and he thanked fate for allowing them to meet. Neo hoped he was doing an average job at showing his feelings. He chuckled as Erin made her first wisecrack of the day, and that helped Neo relax back into a more happy composure. Neo, in response to her joke question, said, "Man, if my first impressions were as good as yours, I probably wouldn't have been a solo player to start out with!" He laughed a little bit, hopefully making the atmosphere a little less tense and more fun. He got into a more serious composure however when Erin more or less confirmed she was ready. "Alright, now that you're ready, there are a few basic things I would like to go over with you before we start putting them into action," Neo said as he found a comfortable seat on the grass where the light shined down from above onto him. He more or less patted to the spot next to him, gesturing for Erin to take a seat. Whenever Erin was ready and she took a seat, he looked at her again and began his beginners lecture, saying, "The three basic things that I'm going to teach you about will most definitely help you in the rage of battle and war. They're easy to remember and are probably three of the most important out of the vast amounts of knowledge that I have. First," He put up one finger and then continued, "Are the creatures battle patterns and habits."

"Now, back there where you were fighting the troll? It was about to strike you from your blind spot, the spot you were most vulnerable at. It won't always necessarily be the same spot every time. Sometimes it depends on what kind of monster you're fighting and what their attack style is. Attack style and attack patterns are different, but we'll go over that another time. Point is, if you want to get started on memorizing attack patterns and being able to predict a monsters movements easier, you're gonna have to group similar monsters into similar categories in which to classify them in, which simplifies the whole process. It's much easier to have a more general prediction of an attack pattern of a monster to memorize than to have to memorize every single movement or action it takes specific to its creature. You wouldn't be able to do that unless you were using exploits."

He stopped for a moment to regain his breath and to answer any questions Erin may have gotten during his little talk.

 @Telrenya

Neos mouth slid upwards in a half kind of grin. He definitely thought she was trustworthy. His doubts definitively dissipated a bit when she confirmed that she understood his motives. Neo knows too many people who would use this knowledge to further their own personal gain, and to make others lives like their own personal hell. Neo wished he could share the knowledge with more people, like a combat centered info broker. But he couldn’t, as he probably would get cornered somewhere and then tortured for more information of exploits, NPC glitches, best places to farm EXP and gain elite-tier items without working for it. He had to keep this secret. It was a burden for him, seeing all the innocent people die around him when he could’ve helped them survive by sparing just a little bit of knowledge. But he just couldn’t. Neo at the beginning of this already lonely road didn’t have anyone trustworthy to share information about with, and didn’t trust any players anyways because of his solo habits. But now, with the appearance of Erin, he could finally confide into someone things he had been hiding since the start of this eternal conflict. Neo appreciated the concern Erin showed though, as that finally put the case to rest of whether or not he could share this information. She was someone he could trust, most likely with his own life. If she can be trusted with that, Neo knows most definitely she can be trusted with some information about combat.

Plus, maybe today was the day he stopped being a solo player, and finally put his life into another capable persons hands.

Maybe it was time to stop worrying.

As Erin shared her concerns with Neo, he carefully laid his hand on her shoulder, shaking her a little. Once her eyes were on him, Neo would say in a confident and welcoming tone, “Those worries of yours? Yeah, you can go ahead and let them go now. These skills and slight exploits I guess? They’re just gained through a couple years of gaming experience. It’s no big deal. Plus, I do kind of feel obligated to tell you some stuff, since you know, the deal we made?” Neo laughed a little at his own joke, and then finished his point, “Look, you’re the most trustworthy and friendly person I have ever met so far in this godforsaken game. Everyone else were either just blips of good luck or downright horrible towards me. You, you’re special. You’re different. A good kind of different. And I want your kind of different to live on in this sick world. So, I will teach you, and I will make sure you survive. Do you understand me?”

Neo found that last statement ironic, since Erin seemed to be levels beyond what Neo was at.

 @Telrenya

Neo groaned. Holy hell, what kind of agenda did she have against Neo? He was only trying to apologize! But no, he just kept getting misinterpreted, making his efforts look like he’s trying to goddamn rape the woman or something. The more he thought about it, the more pissed off he got, and the more he wanted to give up. Well, he thought about for a moment, and then he sinisterly grinned. Might as well offer her some payback if she’s gonna put him like this. He decided to use SAOs convoluted reporting system to his advantage. Neo slowly straightened himself out and wiped his shoulder clean of remnants of a snowball and replied in a serious tone, “For the record, know that I really didn’t want to do this, and all I wanted to do was apologize for a misunderstanding.” He then pulled down his menu and filed in reports for both of the guards on behalf of harassment. Neo had sent a recording of a piece of dialogue with it, where they said that they were giving him the two options. The reports registered as a small offense of harassment, and then the two guards abruptly stopped in their tracks, apparently frozen.

This was how SAO dealt with breakers of the rules if you had evidence. Or could twist yourself some under some circumstances. Like now. If you were charged under small offenses, you’d be frozen in place for about 3 hours. Unable to talk, speak, or do much of anything to be honest. Neo sighed. This was totally not getting him any good points with anyone exploiting the system like that, but he had to use everything in his advantage.

Neo eventually walked into the restaurant, and before anyone could tell him to get out, he put his hand up and said, “Five minutes. Just give me five minutes to talk it out with the woman over there. There’s been a misunderstanding of sorts and I just wanna leave off on a better note than I have.” The employees, after a huddle meeting, reluctantly agreed to it, with Neo promising to leave afterwards. He slowly walked over to a table next to Ruby, pulled out a chair, and sat down right across from her, arms crossed and knees folded. He looked a lot more stressed and irritated than the first time they met, and Neo really was really irritated with the nonsense, so he wanted to end his quickly. Neo started off by asking with an edge of slight anger in his voice, “Did you really have to sic some random guards after me? They’re definitely gonna remember me after that little stunt I had to pull to even get to you.”

(Sorry for the strange format, typed from phone)

Neo nodded, delighted at the chance of being able to teach another person the tricks of the trade he had learned throughout the years of his gaming life. There was so much to choose from, analyzing player behaviors, taking health pool and level into consideration when predicting attack patterns, etc etc. Albeit there was a limit to what he could teach her and what he needed to keep classified, it was still quite the exciting venture. Neo always thought he would make a good teacher, and now was the time to show it. He’s never really taught anyone the skills, as he’s never trusted anyone enough to keep them a secret. But, he trusted Erin, and knew he was already on pretty good terms with her. Neo knew he could trust her not to tell anyone this sensitive information. Unless it were a life or death situation of course. Then, under those circumstances, may she share what he taught her. So, he stopped in his path and said in reply, “Sure! It’s only fair I do something for you if I want your help.” He reached out his hand for her to shake on the deal, Neo smiling warmly as always. But, he provided one more warning, saying in a serious tone, “I can’t have you telling anyone about this, okay? Unless it is a life or death situation. That’s different. But if anyone else was to obtain this information, it could easily fall into the wrong hands and just shoot us in the foot, basically halting progress until I could get it all sorted out. So, are you ready to guard this secret with your life?”

(Sorry for the extremely short post. I too have now been restricted to phone use.)

(Its alright. I know the pains of phone posting.)

Neos eyes widened as Erin mentioned this certain field boss. This so called item could potentially increase Neos Katanas power to a point in which he may be able to enchant it and add some magical effects to it. The thought of even more power allured and seduced him, to a point which he almost began staring off to space thinking about the potential attack bonuses and such. But he'd do that later, as he had a person with him, and he wouldn't want one of his only newly made acquaintances in this effing game to shrug him off for being a total klutz and spacing out in the middle of her sentence. He smiled back at Erin, saying in a grateful and excited tone, "Thanks so much! Floor four, huh, I never would've guessed. When we're down here and back in a public space, I'll go ahead and ask around about that. Perhaps you'd like to come along for the ride?" He left the question off like that and continued to listen to Erin, acting unconvinced when she said she wasn't that talkative. Neo slightly teased her, saying, "Are you one of those shy girls that go crazy when the moment arises? You sure look like one I'd like to get crazy with." Neo nearly blushed himself to death once he realized what he said. He made a quick apology and motioned for her to move on. Her vague answer to being around didn't surprise Neo. He assumed that those places were either filled with too much happiness to list down, or filled with pain and strife that she just didn't want to use to reopen old wounds, both of which Neo understood. Sure, he had never experienced loss before, nor had many super happy memories, but he understood that there were those moments in peoples lives. To him, he was completely average. Regular. His life was comparable to one of a side character might lead in a TV drama, like the mailman who just appears for one episode and then is gone. Then, for people like Erin, their lives were the whole damn sitcom. Which both can lead to Neo being jealous or just lead him into pitying to those who lead the sadder side of those lives. He hoped that he would never experience loss, but he knew that it would come soon enough. Like a crashing hurricane to tear down everything he had worked so hard to build.

Guess he would just have to try and lower the casualties then.

When Erin mentioned experience, his ears perked and his mind gears started turning. The mention of the front lines just gave him more food for thought. Now he was really interested in who Erin really was. If she was on the frontlines half of the time, why was she down here farming experience instead of up there tearing down armies of monsters with fellow guild members? He assumed that she was in a guild from the fact that only a few soloists managed to fight their way through onto there, and with Erin seemingly in the role of a DPS player, he assumed that she was paired with another DPS, a tank, and a whatever else they have up there. He yearned to one day have the strength and level to fight alongside fellow experienced MMOers or whatever they were called in the fight to return to the real world. But, that was gonna have to wait until he had mastered all aspects of the game. Returning back to the real world with a snap of the fingers, Neo said, "I could teach you the basics of planning and strategy. It could just be enough to help you keep those hits off you long enough for someone to help you." He then chuckled and said in voice that was dripping with sarcasm, "Oh, but don't mind me. I'm just a low level player. Why would you need help from someone like me?" He was kidding of course.

(oh f me in the a, I keep misinterpreting what you’re saying lol. Sorry about that. You can ignore the whole part about that Frontline stuff if you want.)

 @Telrenya

Neo shuddered, and it wasn't just from the cold weather. He could sense the tension between him and Abyss rising, near reaching a boiling point. Neo knew he would never touch him though, not with Simba in the way of his objective. For now, he needed to lay low in order to complete whatever he had in mind. But Neo was going to prepare himself before that day ever came. He would make sure of it. Plus, who would pass up an opportunity to learn more about this game's mechanics and such from an experienced player? Definitely not Neo. He's the one always going over statistics of game mechanics, probability and chance of how a monster would spawn or use its own special passive ability, and of course the battle patterns of both player and monster. He could analyze how Abyss played, while managing to grab some intel on the way as well. Neo grinned to himself. A brilliant plan. Perhaps not perfect, and with a couple of patches to fix and holes to fill in on the way, but it was good enough for him. He blinked, breaking back into reality right as Abyss materialized his broadsword. It was a simple one, its silver tip making the light shine off it as if it was a elongated flashlight. But he bet it got the job done. It wouldn't be the blade Neo would fall to though. That one would be reserved until a later time. Who knows? Anyways, he wondered if Abyss did have any battle skills to him. He acted as if he had the bite behind his bark, but he doubted he had the specialized skills Neo had gathered throughout his gaming career. 

He really doubted it.

Neo then got up and unsheathed his own weapon. His Katana, Perfected Hailstrom, shone in the white light, a blue glint showing off it. He then looked over to Abyss and replied, "Why not. It's been a while since I've gotten a good workout. Plus, you seem very capable, so I won't have to worry about you weighing me down." Neo, unwillingly to say the least, extended his hand out to Abyss and said in the politest tone he could muster, "You asked for a name, no? Well, doesn't matter, cause' you're getting one. The names Neo. I'm looking forward to the three of us taking down some monsters." He then, after hopefully shaking hands, would open up his menu and begin changing to some more armor-like clothing, while also waiting for the eventual party invite he would either get from Simba or Abyss.

 @Simba @Abyss