Katagawa

Hokori let Ryo be and searched around the nearby area for any materials she could use. There didn't seem to be too much that she could use. She still did her best to see what did and didn't work. After careful experimentation of, she had her results. Nothing worked. A glance was spared to Ryo, who seemed to be staring towards the sky at the birds in the air. They were nice to see up there, flying majestically above the floor. In reality, they were probably just a 2d sprite textured to the top of the sky-box. Hokori kept quiet about it though, no sense ruining someone else's immersion in this game just so she could show off her knowledge. She did enough of that already just to prove she was worth something to everyone at the university. There was plenty of other ways she could try and show that she knew what she was doing. Perhaps she would keep trying to take out enemies while gathering materials. or perhaps there would be some sort of chest for them to find.

@Ryoko

Hokori continued to look for some materials, though did come over to Ryo when she fell to the ground. They were certainly doing quite a bit of fighting, though it was the only possible way that she could think she would get the materials needed at this point. She sat down next to her and let her vent as she wanted to. SHe noticed her flipping through her friends list, and realized she had never checked her own. She had sent a couple friend requests, but could never find the list when she wanted to. The entire UI of the game was terrible, though it otherwise would've been a great game to play. "I don't really mind whether or not you like me. It's nice to hear, but I guess I've never really been after that. Just needed the approval of my parents and that was fine with me." Hokori got up again. "I'll let you recover for now, I still need to find more materials before you're already making your way back."

@Ryoko

As the two grabbed the quest and started to walk towards the cave, Hokori noticed that Rithe let her take the lead. She decided not to talk so much about it, as it was likely a point of insecurity for them. Her short hair wasn't moving much in the wind, though there was still a hint of breeze through her hair. "You could probably go for a support build. Grab some healing skills. I haven't really done my research but I bet you can still get some damage from that while being helpful to others. I'm thinking of doing something similar, taking the hits for players. Of course, I'm not really sure if there is much use if I just stand in front of others. I'll need to figure that out some more." As the two approached the cave, Rithe introduced herself, and Hokori returned the greeting and smile, "Katagawa, people call me Kat." With that, she drew her large sword and prepared to head into the cave. There may be some issues with creatures inside of it, though if it was the same one then they would probably be fine.

@Rithe

With Ryoko still attacking the wasp, Hokori quickly brought down her sword on its head, severing it with no mercy. It shattered into millions of particle effect pixels, and left behind nothing for them to grab. There was little that she could do but sigh, still frustrated that she couldn't get any materials. "Sorry for dragging you along for this. Was really thinking it would go a little bit faster. We can rest up for a bit here, though I'm going to keep looking for materials. You're already at 4 and I'm still at none." she didn't want to rub salt into the likely guilt Ryo was dealing with, but she was getting a little frustrated at how poorly she had been doing. Perhaps venting a little bit would help turn things around. Regardless, she wasn't going to get any materials just by sitting around doing nothing. For all she knew there was one waiting right in front of her nose.

The wasp seemed to be doing much better than she would've thought it could do with just the one wing, but that didn't deter Hokori from pressing her attack. As it came in for another attempt to spear her, she decided to retaliate. Being careful not to hit Ryo with her attaacks, she began spinning around once more. The wasp wasn't ready for the counter attack and was caught by her blades, once more being slammed into the ground. She managed to chip its stinger as well as knock down its health a fair amount. "Get it now while it's still on the ground!" This would be the best way for the two to strike it. If there was any lucck in thiss world the wasp wouldn't be able to move out of the way of Ryoko's fists and kicks. She was more just hoping that the wasp would die a bit quicker.

Hokori watched as the wasp continued to dodge their attacks. It came after her as well, but it ended up missing of its own accord. She was actually hoping to take the damage and deal some back to it with her armor, but it was anticipating a dodge instead. Swearing underneath her breath, she turned towards the now reasonably angry Ryo. "Just make sure it stays on me. We may not be hitting it, but I can take aany hits it does deal for a while. If worse comes to worst, you run away first and then I'll disengage from the fight. I don't think it will be able to keep up with us that well with the gimped wing." It was the best plan she could come up with on the spot, but she did know that this thing shouldn't be able to hit too hard. As long as her armor could hold up to the attacks she would be fine.

Hokori was wandering abotu the various floors, wanting to gather information aas well as check out some of the player shops. She was discontent with going for the usual tank build, but was still wanting to be that point guard for a team. There was probably another way of doing it, but it wasn't coming to mind. Oncce she foudn the shsop, she just wandered in and looked around. Theere wasn't much currently in the store, but there was one thing that caught her eye. It was a small charm necklace that was actually quite pretty. It had a radiance of quickness about it, something that could assist her. Her mind was made up, she could dodge attacks instead of soaking them. Grabbing the necklace, she took it to the person running the shop and paid for it with a sense of gratitude. This would be an interesting way to play the game, but what wasn't a little bit of fun. She could use it desperately while stuck in this death game.

Item Bought:

@Ennakai

Hokori backed off a little bit as Ryoko charged in with an attack of her own. The wasp had gotten up though and was already dodging the attacks. "Don't worry about missing, but I suggest you get out of the way." Letting the blade charge up again, she unleashed her spinning strikes once more. THough the blade didn't connect, that wasn't her intent. She was just trying to split the wasp from Ryoko to make sure that she was the focus of attack instead. Once it had its attention focused on her, she shouted to Ryo. "Now!" Hopefully the distraction would prevent the wasp from being able to dodge the next attack coming at it from Ryo.

I really need to sstart making better strategies than this. If I do want to be taking damage for others, I need to make sure that I can actually guide them into being able to take things down. If not, I'll just end up dead like the rest of the crossed out names on the Monunment of Life.

Hokori was already scouting while she waited for Ryoko to ready herself up. Surprisingly, it was she who had found the enemy first. It was a rather large wasp. She had heard about wasps led by a queen on this floor, but had honestly chalked it up to rumor. Apparently, they weren't lying after all. "Stand back for a little bit, I'll grab its attention." Bringing her sword off of it's strap in the back, she held it in front and let it charge with blue energy. Deciding that a horizontal swing would be too much knock-back, Hokori twisted the art into a vertical spiral. The wasp was caught completely off guard and she managed to slam it into the ground and damage one of its wings. It seemed she had also gotten the prov off of her weapon and the wasp was staying down for a little bit. It wouldn't be long, but it would be enough.

"I'll come with you. I could stand to get better at using my weapon anyways. It always feels so awkward to me, but I'm hoping to get used to it. If not, I may have to start working towards a different weapon instead. Not sure what it would be, but hopefully it will be something I can actually feel comfortable with." She didn't mention it, but it seemed as though the player did actually know what they were doing, just had waited a while before doing the quest. There was still apprehension in their voice though, so it was quite possible they would still need help. She did her best to make idle chatter while they came up to the NPC. "So, what build are you working towards? If you don't mind me asking, of course. I'm still unsure exactly what I want to do, but I do want to help take the damage off of others." They were still doing the quest, so she figured they wouldn't have a complete build, but they were likely to have already started to give it some thought.

@Rithe

The rest of the walk to town was relatively quiet, which suited Hokori just fine. She hadd never wanted to really talk more about the sbject anyways. Once there, she just took whatever was available from the smith. She had no intention of using it, so she just stored it in her inventory to give to the next low level player she saw. Maybe she could sell it to a merchant so that she could get some cash for it. Either way, she didn't particularly care what she had on the item, it was not something she would use. Dustin faded into the crowd, and she wondered if she'd ever see them again. Perhaps she would, and hopefully then the reality of their situation would truly strike them. They may have said that they were already acknowledging they would die if they continued to be a hero, but she didn't think it had truly sunk in yet.

@Dustin (Write up the thread summary and I'll close the thread here once I can. Idc what enehancements you put on my gear, I won't be using it)

Hokori continued her search for materials, still unable to find any, and would've continued onwards if Ryo hadn't stopped her. By her question, it seemed that she was showing a bit moer emotion than she anticipated. "I'm fine, just thinking on the situation we're sstuck in is all." She didn't want to worry Ryo any more than she was with her fear of heights now. Perhaps she could tell her about her family one day, but that is yet to be seen. "Still no luck for materials for me. Looks like I'm ready to fight again though, so just let me know when you're ready and we can go for it." Flashing a smile, Hokori made sure that all of her gear was in place. The heavy aarmor was starting to feel a little burdensome, but maybe she would get used to it one day. Maybe she could switch over to light armor, but that woud sacrifice her ideals of protecting others.

@Ryoko

Hokori had to stifle laughter as the player talked about them fighting on the front lines. She was very flattered that they thought she was so strong, but she made sure to set the record straight. "I'm not actually that high of a level, and I haven't gone above the second floor. I spend most of my time down here helping people. I figured that so long as I am still fairly low level that I can help people and still get a decent reward from it myself. As for where Hannah is, she's just this way." She led her towards where Hannah was and waited for her to continue the quest. "I've already done the quest, but I'll help you along as best as I can. You'll need to be able to do some attacking of your own though, not sure if it will let me help you with all of the objectives."

@Rithe

Hokori left Ryo to herself, seeing that she had her own calming techniques for her fears. She had never personally dealt much with a fear. Most of her fears had to do with her position in life rather than tangible things. It was a strange feeling to have, worrying about people who were now literally a world away. She couldn't help them, and was worried sick about whether or not they were doing okay themselves. Looking around in vain for any materials, Hokori tried to get the depressive thoughts outside of her head. Thoughts of what others have likely had to go through while stuck in this game is what eventually brought her mind back to reality. There was no need to worry about what was happening to those outside of the game. What mattered now was the people that she could help here and now, and try to get them out of this game.

@Ryoko

It was another sunny day on the first floor, though Hokori had still yet to see a day here that wasn't near perfect weather. It was always a bit warmer than she liked, but that wouldn't really hurt in the end. She found herself walking through the garden where the local NPC artisan resided, handing out the third quest to players. As she was, she noticed a player walking with one of those parcels, seemingly a little lost as to where the artisan was. Approaching them, she kept a soft smile on her face and greeted them in a semi-formal matter. Her blade wasn't equipped, but she did still have her heavy armor on. "Hello! You seem to be a little bit lost. Mind if I help you out a little bit?" She was unsure whether or not she would actually be able to help with the quest itself, but she could at least provide a vanguard of sorts to make sure they weren't interrupted in carrying it out. Besides, she had always found having company on quests was much more useful.

@Rithe

With the boar defeated, Hokori quickly began to look around for more materials. She knew her energy would regenerate relatively quick, but still fridge same time risk it. That boar had been easy, but who knew what else the floor had in store for the two of them. Hearing Ryo give a small shriek, Hokori rushed over to her to make sure she was all right. Seeing it was just her fear of heights kicking back in from the lack of adrenaline, she did get best to console her. "Don't worry, the rocks look stable. Just stay away from the edge and you'll be fine." She had never really dealt with a phobia before, but she did her best to reassure their safety. "Look, let's hear over towards those hills," pointing into the distance. "They may be a little craggy, but I don't think there's anything cliffs."

@Ryoko

As soon as Ryoko was backing off of the boar, Hokori quickly placed herself between the two. The boar would have no choice but to attack her or give her an opening to attack. It went for the latter, and she quickly charged up a sword art that let her give a piercing slash into the boars running flank. As it dissipated into many pixels like the other monsters, she tried to search for some materials. Finding nothing but a little bit of Col for the two of them to split, she figured it might be best if the two of them rested for a bit. "Let's recover a bit here. Neither of us got hit, but I could certainly stand to get back some of my energy. I think we should go back to gathering in the meantime." Hopefully there would be no interruptions to their gathering, that could almost certainly spell doom for the both of them. It was possible that Hokori could take on another one of those, but she'd rather not have to test herself.

Deciding to take a break and continue to be vigilant over the battlefield, Hokori hefted her sword back on to her shoulder. "Don't get distracted by what's happening elsewhere on the battlefield. Only when you know exactly what is happening in your surroundings can you afford to look to others if they need help. Even if someone else is struggling, help yourself first. Better that they die and you survive than the both of you die." SHe was doing her best to give advice, but she didn't actually know too much from real life experience. Books may contain some of the information to be taught, but there was nothing except real world experience that would truly help in this pseudo-fantasy setting the game was in. Perhaps it was more of a low fanatsy in some people's minds, but regardless this game was not a depiction of real life. Actual tactics and abilities would not work that well, the only thing that someone would really be able to pull off is some basic tactics. The rest of the game was too different to apply things like the art of war.

@pureblade

With her little speech complete, Hokori just hoped that it would sink in. They seemed to get the idea, but perhaps they were more so trying to be a villain in this case. It would all depend on who won. "It's your life, though be careful you don't do something you'll regret one day." She knew that she was only able to kill things in this game because they were virtual. She wouldn't have the guts to kill another player. Incapacitate or maim, she could do. There was enough hardship in her life she could eventually resort to that. Killing was something she would never inflict on a living being. Death may be a part of life, but she wished not to speed nature's hand in their reclamation. It would be much better for her if she didn't see the life drain from their eyes.

But if I had to, would I kill someone? Could I get so bent on revenge I would swear to kill the killer? Could I stoop so low as to match their monstrosities?

@Dustin

Hokori listened as Dustin began to ramble on about his brother. She debated cutting him off, but decided to let him vent the steam he had. As he began to wind down, she gave him a bit more time to fully collect himself. She gave a rather blunt response, but didn't wish to have him live with his own preconceptions if they weren't informed. "Heroes die, it's what happens to them. There's no avoiding that." she didn't mind so much that she might be shattering his hopes, she hated to see someone who didn't know the whole picture. "You can become the hero and follow your brother, but know that one day you will die the hero. Once you're dead, that hope will slowly dissipate and people will eventually forget you. I know that if I keep trying to play the hero I will die and embrace that. I don't want you to go down this path if you do not understand the risks that it involves. Np oint in you losing your life because you thought all heroes got medals and a happy ending."

@Dustin

Hokori backed up as the girl came slamming down with her heel into the boar's head. It lay there stunned for a bit, but eventually began to get up. Realizing that it wasn't going to stay down for that long, she quickly charged up her sword art again. "Watch out!" Her sword slashed through the air, spinnig in four full circles. She did her best to follow the boar as she  knocked it back, but it still ended up a little ways from her. Raising her sword up to her shoulder she did her best to direct Ryo. "Keep doing whatever you're doing. Hopefully we can keep it down to the ground." It seemed as though there was some sort of cooldown on the boar's status bar though. It was just a symbol so she had no clue exactly what it meant, but it probably had something to do with the stun Ryo had dealt it.

Once the two of them arrived at the second floor, Ryo almost immediately began to hide behind her. From the sounds of her mumbling, it seemed she was afraid of heights. "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe." She meant it. There was risks in going up to a higher floor, but Hokori felt as though she could mitigate those risks, quite literally with her armor. Walking out into the fields and making sure Ryo didn't fall too far behind, she spotted a boar after a little bit. It was different than the boars she had seen on the first floor, it looked a whole lot tougher anyways. Whispering out of fear of the boar hearing them, Hokori relayed her instructions. "You can stay back from the fight if you want, but at least make sure that I have its attention before you charge in. I should be able to take quite a few hits before I'll need to back off, and I don't think that the boar will be able to keep up after that."

Approaching the boar, Hokori drew her large great-sword. She had never given it a name, but she didn't think it needed one. Instead she just hefted it up and began to spin, activating her sword art. It propelled her spin into four slashes across the boar's flank. It let out a squeal from the damage, signaling her hit. Hopefully that would be enough to grab its attention if Ryo wanted to jump into the fight.

Hokori gave one last look around the area before starting to make her way back towards the Town of Beginnings. There were no materials to be found. Here, so hopefully they could either get some off of the enemies that would drop resources or just find them from gathering around there. "Don't worry, I can guide you there. Haven't been up there for combat, though I have looked around." Once she knew that Ryo was following her, she quickly made her way into the teleporter. "Floor 2!" And she was whisked towardss the hills and plains of the second floor.

Let's just hope that I can actually take stuff on at this floor. I don't think we'll be in trouble, but if we get a bad streak of luck there might be an issue. It should speed things up for us though, we just need to be careful and efficient.

@Ryoko

Hokori watched as Pure took a hit followed by a quicck retaliation from him. "You're doing good, keep it up!" That's when she noticed one of the larger boars coming in from the side. Hokori stepped forward, going around pure and his fight to prevent drawing their aggro. The boar that was coming seemed to be more focused on charging ginto the fray rather than actually protecting itself. As such,, she was easily able to let it come to her. She brought her sword in a sweeping undercut, launching the boar into the sky. Letting the sword art take control of her, Hokori jumped up into the air just below it. Once at its height, she spun around and gave a spiraling downward cut, slamming the boar into the ground. As it lay there, motionless, Hokori fell towards thr ground in style with her large blade pointed into the ground. She landed in a cloud of dust and red pixels, the boar had been speared through by her attack and instantly shattered. It didn't leave any loot behind, but HOkori was just glad that it hadn't been able to interfere with combat. "Don't mind me, keep focusing on your boar pups." As flashy as she knew that looked, she didn't want Pure to take a hit because he was busy lookinng at her attack.

(OOC: Added the one ACC I forgot I had equipped)

With the threat of being attacked gone, Hokori was being able to relax once more. It didn't mean she had to watch out for Dustin opening his mouth once more. "There's no need for payment. You still holding your own life and learning from your mistake is all the payment I need." She didn't like sounding as formal, but it seemed to be the only way to communicate with people who were so social. She was much more used to the guy that couldn't speak in her presence. SHe followed him back towards the town, and listened closely. "Though having no hope is indeed a dire case. The loss of hope is what will bring down spirits the most. Always be honest about your odds. Don't make people think that they have more of a chance then they do." She knew it was going to be pointless to argue with them, but she would stand by her own statements.

@Dustin