Miaki

Nikki Styx introduced herself offering her hand in greeting which Miaki shook then leaned forward and kissed the back of her hand. "A pleasure to meet you Nikki. My name is Miaki Murakami." Removing his hat, Miaki took a small step back, placed is right arm across his waist, and returned with a bow.

"I can't say I've seen you around before... You must have been great at keepin out of sight"

Miaki placed his fedora back on his head. "Hahaha, well I will admit to having had a slow start in here. In fact it wasn't until recently where I started getting myself away from this floor. I'm trying to get leveled up and ready for the front lines. Now you my friend,-" He said pointing at Nikki. "I'm sure that I'd remember seeing you before. Do you live around this floor? Or do you live on one of the other levels?"

He's breathin' alright! Buut he fainted." She gave him a thumbs up and was all perky and cheerful.

A sweatdrop formed for a brief second as he heard the obvious told to him. "Oh of course." He tried to say this in a non-condescending way and he hoped that Haine didn't think she was insulting her. He got up and walked over to them. Back in the real world, Miaki had gained some experience in first responding and CPR. He looked at MacGrath breathing steadily which was very reassuring. Aside from the fact that he was passed out, there didn't seem to be anything else wrong with him.

Miaki was always told to watch where he was going. His mother would scold him for his habit of reading and walking telling him that he would hurt himself or someone else. His father would insist that Miaki wasn't paying attention when he was biking and using a bluetooth to talk on the phone. Even some of his friends would tell him to mind his surroundings otherwise beauty would pass him by and he'd be fully unaware. Beauty like what he saw before him. Seeing as most of the time things like this were his fault, Miaki automatically came to the assumption that he'd just walked into this woman.

"I'm really sorry bout that." She said, sitting on the ground still.

Miaki stopped immediately and reached down to help her up. "Oh no, the fault way all mine. Are you alright my lady?"

Highschool DxD Opening 1 (full)

DLC? This is the first I've heard of anything of the sort. Was there an announcement or are you assuming there will be?

"Teleport! <>!" The shimmering blue light enveloping Miaki started to dissipate as he returned from one of the upper levels to the starting city and the acting main hub for players in Sword Art Online. Because no housing was available for players to purchase yet, most of them took up residence in the various inns and taverns scattered throughout the <>. With the last of the light now vanishing, Miaki saw the familiar sights of the towering buildings. The city was, as usual, busting with activity as players and NPCs interacted with each other. Buying, selling, starting quests, turning in quests, and many of the other various things players can do in SAO.

Stepping off of the elevated arch known as the <> which took players between the various floors that had been liberated so far. A gentle breeze tugged away at Miaki's light-brown jacket, which he liked to keep open to allow the wind to rustle it about behind him. Underneath this he wore a olive green tunic over a long sleeved white button-up shirt. His khaki pants had a small layer of dust over them as well his brown leather boots. His glasses shined off some of the sunlight overhead, bringing a slight glare to his eyes. He reached up to adjust his light-brown fedora, blocking the sun from his face. What else was there for him to do today he wondered.

Miaki sat up hearing Haine shout. He looked over and saw Haine shaking MacGrath, who had feinted, wildly.

"ARE YOU ALIVE MISTER?!" She looked frantic. Thats when the other voice was heard.

"Well of course he's alive. Keep on shaking him and you might give him a brain damage." Miaki saw behind her the white wolf. With this sight he jumped up in surprise. How did he not notice this familiar before?

"What the?" He stared at the white wolf in awe then back at MacGrath, still passed out. "Is he breathing?"

Bombshell Blonde - Owl City

^ Video was created by a friend of mine.

Finishing up his sandwich, Miaki thought back again to how quickly he rattled off an emotionless post to the social media bidding them farewell and that he'd be back at the point which he couldn't see straight. Well, being in SAO for over 24 hours and that had yet to happen to him. He cracked a small smile. "Well, my vision is still fine, guess it's not time to log out yet." After saying this he thought about his situation anew.

He was trapped inside a game, one that was insanely realistic. Isn't this what any gamer dreams about? To live out their adventures in a game. Here he was with this ideal and he was complaining. So long as he didn't die, which he refused to let happen, he'd see his friends and family in the real world again. Taking the last bite of his meal, Miaki felt that he just might be able to handle this new reality. If he was going to be stuck here, then he'd better get used to it.

The guy, who Miaki learned was named Alex, told him about a quest involving the gathering of materials for a special weapon called the <>. Miaki had heard of the weapon before from Kirito but had yet to complete the quest himself, the <>.

The quest itself was about a lady in the forest who was I'll and required an item called the <> which is suppose to be some sort of medicine. Recalling to the conversation he had with Kirito, once the item was found, via item drop from a plant-type mob, and is then taken to a lady near the forest who is I'll from some type of strange ailment. Once that was done, she would reward players with the <>.

After a quick stop at one of the shops in the <>, in which Alex got himself some gear, the two set off to start the quest.

Miaki lead Alex to the northeastern part of the first floor where he was told was the place you officially started the quest. But he was a little fuzzy on exactly where. Miaki stood on a sandy beach, close to the water examining his map of the area. Unfortunately, his version of the map, painstaking mapped out by players like himself, didn't have the location of the NPC they needed to find in order to start. He took off his fedora and scratched his strawberry-blonde hair in annoyance. "I know she is around here somewhere. The question is though, where." He closed the map and put his hat back on then adjusted his glasses. Now facing Alex he said, "Have a look around and see if you can find her. I'll keep checking this map and looking around here. I think she was located close to the lake. Maybe in some cabin or lake house."

Miaki was excited to be meeting another American, and a film student on top of that. Something that Miaki, back in the real world where he went by a different name, really thought of pursuing before starting college.

Well, I used to say that playing video games was a hobby of mine, but I guess it's more like a career now, haha!

"Yeah no kidding!" Miaki added and joined in laughing at the irony of their circumstances. "I also spent a little time in Japan myself a couple of years ago for a summer internship. A friend of my family is the CEO of a small company that has an office in Tokyo. Japanese is actually the other language that I studied for several years."

Miaki was confidant that the three of them would get along just fine.

I've been playing this game off and on now since the game released but for one reason or another I have still yet to beat it, I've made it rather far though and have collected much of the hidden things in game. My "Commander Douchebag" the Jew is such a boss. This game has been fantastic!

Miaki approached one of the quest hubs in the city. Some quests were started by random events the system would give out when a criteria was met, others were started by finding a certain NPC and talking to him, but today Miaki was hitting up the quest board. As he approached the hub he noticed a small crowd of players running back and forth starting and ending quest lines. He noticed one player run into another, practically running him over to start a quest.

Excuse you! The one said. This made Miaki chuckle. He stopped and watched the player stand there for a second then start toward the one who hit him. Could I come with!! The player said then hesitated for a second. Please? Miaki used this moment to step in.

He gripped his <> between his thumb and two fingers on his right and walked up behind the player. "Don't think that guy will be of much help to you. He seemed a bit single-minded if you ask me. Perhaps I can help you out. Which quest was it you wanted to start?"

It was another great day in Aincrad. Miaki had woken up in his room in one of the many city inn's on the first floor. He'd been in this death game called Sword Art Online for quite some time. How long had it been for him he wasn't quite sure. But this didn't matter to him. Throwing open the window he saw the starter city <> lay out before him. He took a deep breath of the air and smelled the fresh air breezing into his room. The other day he'd spent time with some of the new friends he made in SAO; Kane and Kirito. They'd spent some quality time together learning about each other and having good fellowship between them. But Kirito had returned to the front lines, something Miaki was still preparing for, and Kane was off enjoying himself without a doubt.

Miaki went down to the first floor of the inn and ate a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, and potatoes along with some nice coffee. He was finishing the last of his coffee thanking the heavens that the creator of SAO, Kayaba, decided to put coffee in this game. He finished his meal, payed for the meal, and left the inn with the motivation to get something done today. Maybe he'd try the labyrinth. That was something he'd been wanting to do. Or maybe a quest. Wasn't there one that Kirito had told him about not long ago? The reward was some type of blade.

Trying to remember the details that Kirito shared with him when they were last together, Miaki stepped outside the building. He waved open his menu and equipped the attire he grew a liking for on this floor. Standing at 5'4 he wore khaki colored pants, brown leather boots, a white long-sleeve undershirt with a green tunic worn over that, and a light-brown jacket he wore open so to let the breeze blow through the air allowing it to flap. He adjusted his glasses and to add the finishing touch to his attire, he materialize his matching light-brown fedora. "I wonder what today may have in store."

It was another great day in Aincrad. Miaki had woken up in his room in one of the many city inn's on the first floor. He'd been in this death game called Sword Art Online for quite some time. How long had it been for him he wasn't quite sure. But this didn't matter to him. Throwing open the window he saw the starter city <> lay out before him. He took a deep breath of the air and smelled the fresh air breezing into his room. The other day he'd spent time with some of the new friends he made in SAO; Kane and Kirito. They'd spent some quality time together learning about each other and having good fellowship between them. But Kirito had returned to the front lines, something Miaki was still preparing for, and Kane was off enjoying himself without a doubt.

Miaki went down to the first floor of the inn and ate a full breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast, and potatoes along with some nice coffee. He was finishing the last of his coffee thanking the heavens that the creator of SAO, Kayaba, decided to put coffee in this game. He finished his meal, payed for the meal, and left the inn with the motivation to get something done today. Maybe he'd try the labyrinth. That was something he'd been wanting to do. Or maybe a quest. Wasn't there one that Kirito had told him about not long ago? The reward was some type of blade.

Trying to remember the details that Kirito shared with him when they were last together, Miaki stepped outside the building. He waved open his menu and equipped the attire he grew a liking for on this floor. Standing at 5'4 he wore khaki colored pants, brown leather boots, a white long-sleeve undershirt with a green tunic worn over that, and a light-brown jacket he wore open so to let the breeze blow through the air allowing it to flap. He adjusted his glasses and to add the finishing touch to his attire, he materialize his matching light-brown fedora. "I wonder what today may have in store."

Miaki went searching around for some vendor with food. He poked his head in a few places and didn't find anything of interest, he didn't even know what it was that he wanted to eat. He finally found place that made various types of sandwiches and he got himself one with various meats and cheeses. He chose to sit down on a bench that was close by and eat. When he found one he began to watch players go back and forth. Most people had the same if not similar expression on their faces. Grief, depression, despair. It was hard to believe that just yesterday everyone was so excited and running around full of energy. Now it was a whole new atmosphere. As he started eating his sub he tried, for the first time since hearing the GM reveal to them their new reality, to relax.

After everyone made their order, Miaki order himself a large burger, a plate of fries, and a strawberry shake. Hearing everyone make their comments about the food and place. It really was nice to have some fellowship. Sure there were those he met out in the field but here. This was social time and it was nice.

"So you two... You got any hobbies in the real world?"

There it was. The "elephant in the room" as some players put it. For some this was a taboo topic. Most people didn't even want to remind themselves of being stuck in here. But Miaki didn't care. A while back this would've been grim too. But not anymore. Miaki looked looked between Kane and Kirito.

Well before this I was a college student in the States studying languages and society, dream of becoming a professor one day. As far as hobbies go, I was into filming and gaming. But the rest of my hobbies fortunately can be done in here like martial arts, once I earn that skill, rock climbing, swimming, and exploring. He grabbed the wrapped up utensils on the table and pointed between the two others while having his elbow on the table. "What about either of you? Anything you did before coming in here?"

The two boys laughed while staring up at the sunny sky. The sheer detail of the world around them was enchanting to the eye. The rolling fields and forests around them with the spots of villages and cities further than that. "Well for now let someone else take care of them. I'm tired from that last one." He said lazily watching the clouds go by.

Miaki looked to wear his wristwatch would've been. "Oh, right." Forgetting that he couldn't check the time like that anymore. That's when he noticed in his peripheral vision the time read out in the upper right corner of his immediate sight. The time read <<16:37>>. Did he really take nearly two hours to get back? He thought about just how far he must have ran yesterday in a blind mix of emotions. For now though he was emotionally drained. He realized he hadn't had anything to eat at all since yesterday and decided that that was the next thing to do. With a goal now in mind, Miaki went out in search of a vendor to get some food from.

Miaki stabbed the earth with his sword and dropped to one knee. Panting having put more energy into his last two attacks then was probably necessary. Miaki just knelt there.

"That was something else, eh?"

Miaki rolled and fell on his back. "I'll say. That thing just wouldn't die." Taking a deep breath Miaki slowly started laughing.

Miaki eye'd the health bar of the boar as MacGrath made contact. "Come ooooon." He thought and the health bar dropped. It then settled on <<1 HP>> and held there. "Oh for the love of-" Annoyed Miaki skipped charging another sword skill and jumped in the air with his sword trailing behind. "Drop you blasted animal!" He shouted as he brought his blade down on the boar.

Boar: 1/5

Battle Dice:

0-2 Miss

3-5 Boar dodges

6-8 Hit (1 Damage) (Killing it)

9-10 Critical (2 Damage) (Killing It..... with style?)

The three new friends made their way towards the western style restaurant that was run by an NPC. They were laughing nearly the whole way there. Anyone passing by wouldn't have guessed that they had only just met each other moments ago nor that aside from their names they hardly knew anything about each other. Miaki was enjoying this moment and completely forgot that they were in fact in a game. Even with the oddity of using semi-transparent menus to access everything from appearance and messaging to quest logging and journal entry Miaki took it in stride. Before he knew it, they were entering the restaurant.

The interior was had wooded floors and ceiling but the was were made of stone. Not the grey stone walls of medieval times but something tan, resembling of sandstone. It looked the same as most of the other buildings but this one seemed different. Maybe it was just him being in the company of two new friends. "Nice place." He remarked as they found a seat.

Starting to get a little frustrated at how their last two attacks both missed, Miaki huffed and planted his feet into the earth. "Is he playing with us?!" Yelling at the boar he charged up another attack. "Why won't you-" His blade glowed bright green. "DIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!" He charged full speed at the boar, yelling as he ran forward.

Boar: 2/5

Battle Dice:

0-2 Miss

3-5 Boar dodges

6-8 Hit (1 damage)

9-10 Critical (2 damage) (Killing it)

Frustrated and confused, Miaki found himself passing through a hub in the city where players seemed to gather. He saw many players scattered about. There were several massive sized groups with players listening to someone likely in the center of the group. Whether it was an NPC or some random player was anyone's guess. Other smaller groups seemed to be more social with each other. Maybe these were people that had partied up and were doing their best to stick together. Or maybe they were random strangers. Who knew. Then he saw the players together in couples, some seemed really close to each other based on how hard they were clinging to one another. Did they think that if they let go that they would never see each other again?

Slowly Miaki's frustration started to simmer down. Atleast for the time being. For the moment he felt completely alone.

Walking through the city gates, past the NPC guards Miaki's mind was still focused on the situation he got himself in. "Why did I get this damn game!?" He shouted to no one but himself. "If I had waited for but maybe 4 or 5 hours, I would've known that this game was a death trap!" Taking a random alleyway that was an offshoot from the main road in the city, Miaki saw a barrel standing up. Happy to have something else to kick, Miaki gave the barrel a swift kick which knocked it over on its side. "Damn it!" He screamed at the sky. "What is it you want?" He wasn't sure if he was yelling at Kayaba, God, or something else. He simply wanted someone to direct his anger to.