Morningstar

He was a tad astonished that she hadn't favored the portal. "Exploration's kind of my whole thing," he admitted, following her up the stairwell. He wondered if others had explored the rest of the castle before them, or if they were the first to think of it. In any other game, it might have been a given. When lives were at stake, it was logical to take what you came for and get the hell out, without wasting time or energy. But that was boring. His eyes widened dramatically and his mouth formed a perfect 'O'. "Wow," He shook his head at her lack of confidence in his acting abilities. "

He shrugged, tumbling below another loose fireball. "I don't want to be the dog. I didn't want to be the scarecrow either. For the record, I auditioned to play the wizard." Between his attacks and NIGHT's, the Wicked Witch of the West fell, melting at the sting of their swords. His memory was a little foggy but that part of the story evaded him. What did Dorothy use again? He was pretty sure it was not a sword. A portal opened up at the base of the stairs, circular and filled with a kaleidoscope-esque pattern. It would take them home, he figured—or rather, return them to the Forest o

He followed her through the courtyard, passing stone statues and fountains and evading the assault of the flying monkeys. They tucked inside the castle, and the door slammed shut behind them. They dove head-first into the belly of the... witch. At the end of the main corridor, dim flames spat from candelabra, and a black chandelier hung from the ceiling. At the top of a wide staircase was the famed Wicked Witch. She wasn't as Morningstar expected. He had pictured a longer nose, for starters, and maybe worse skin. She cackled, launching a series of fireballs at them, hitting nothing but th

"Okay, okay," Morningstar chuckled, swinging back into action. He had stored up just enough energy for a single attack and cut past Nari, deflecting a blow intended for her and sinking his blade into the pirate leader's arm. It flew through the air, cutlass still within its cold grip, shattering when it reached the ground. Weaponless and with no where to run, the two players had Ulric Drell cornered. He sneered and with a pirouette, disappeared. Left behind was a dark coat and a crowd of lesser pirates, wary of approaching but nevertheless unfriendly. Their route back through the platform

Morningstar chuckled. "I'm the same way. I normally keep to the quieter parts of town. This place is rambunctious," he agreed. She took the gelato, eating it up quickly while they walked. The change in environment as they passed out of the market square and onto a side street was as clear as the ocean at Raitoborou Bay. Only a few people hung out around the nearby shops and buildings. One player relaxed on a bench, taking in the warm waves of the first floor's sun. It was a niche street, full of businesses that didn't fit within the category of common professions. Some were merchants, sel

With no more real danger lurking from within the dungeon's dark tunnels, Morningstar felt an insurmountable weight release from his shoulders. Wulfrin was alive. They were all alive. With that, Freyd opened up the option to continue grinding in the dungeon while it was still there. Never in his life had Morningstar seen or experienced a Cave of Wonders, and so it felt like a one-time opportunity. If the rest of the team was willing to run through the cave, so was he. He wouldn't have turned it down for the world. "I'm in. Maybe we'll find some decent loot while we're here. Anyone get anyt

"was it in a middle-school play?" "No, Broadway," Morningstar said casually, and without a proper explanation. Her comment about skipping acts made him think. "Yeah, you're right. They missed out on a lot of the cast. I'm surprised we haven't fought any Kalidahs," he recalled the half-bear, half-tiger mutants from his childhood. "If they were going to skip anything, why not the tornado?" Reaching the castle had been a simple feat. They snaked up the winding path, crossed the stone bridge and hobbled up to the front gate. It creaked open slowly and ominously, as if they were expe

There she was. After what had been Morningstar's worst flight, the pair reconnected, the silhouette of the castle in the distance. "You missed the perfect chance to say 'I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore,'" he replied. "I'm familiar with the story. I played the scarecrow once." Sometimes he felt like the scarecrow, with straw where his brain should have been. Maybe he had been type casted. NIGHT was right, though. An update to their quest objective had appeared and hunting the Witch of the West was included in the requirements, alongside a billion flying monkeys. He was

Ulric Drell, thankfully, fell for Nari's howl bait, ignoring Morningstar piling all of his attention on the purple-haired girl. She could take it, he thought. Her health bar would drop for a moment (albeit, only slightly) before rising back up as her battle healing took affect. She had proven to be an effective wall. Unfortunately, all Morningstar could do was watch while Drell struck and stabbed at Nari. His energy recovered slower than he was comfortable with, but there was nothing he could do to speed it up, aside from praying for his armor enhancement to do its job. "Yeah, keep i

At no point did he think he could outrun a tornado. He made it five—maybe seven—steps before his feet no longer touched the soft grass of the forest. They spun, twisting and tumbling in a spiral until a loose tree branch flicked him in the face and his vision went dark. Later, he awoke with a full health bar and a dark coffee stain on his coat. At first, he was calm, his eyes dancing around each star in the sky. It was twilight. When had it gotten so late? He looked at his wrist, a silly habit he had picked up. There was nothing there. An effortless sit-up and he was back in the land

morningstar: same as before. find the book. but i found it? Was it just him or had it the wind picked up? The trees rustled gently at first, gathering momentum the longer he watched. It was nothing, probably. NIGHT appeared from the woods with coffees, as promised. "Monsters? Maybe. But what kind? I read the book; it didn't tell me anything." "There were a lot of potions, actually. Maybe we need to craft some?" He sipped his coffee. It was hot and bitter, precisely how he liked it. "Mm. Thank you for this." Before another word could escape his lips, violent crashes boomed from b

The idea of an area quest was not out of the question, but it didn't sit right with Star. He sipped from the teacup he had been handed and soaked in the warmth of the bitter drink. Magistrate was a familiar title to him. Both the guards and Sally had mentioned a magistrate. He imagined that whoever that was controlled the city. It seemed logical that they were behind the day's events. "I had one but it got left behind on my way here. We could go back to the alley where Freyd and I split up. If it hasn't already been cleaned up, then some coats will be there," Morningstar frowned. "Of cour

morningstar: black is fine. morningstar: book is ancient-looking. found in bush. no update to quest. He sent his location and closed his menu, peering back into the book. Filled to the brim with information specific to alchemy, it was mostly undecipherable to Morningstar. He flipped the pages, casually skimming through the material while he waited for NIGHT to arrive. There were instructions for spells and recipes with ingredients he had never heard of (what the hell was a duckbilled bat and what was so special about its hair?). Vague and unspecific quests bugged him. It bothered h

NIGHT asked a valid question. What quest had he invited her on? He followed the quest objective to the end of the forest path. It led him to a patch of undergrowth, which confused him for only a moment before he scavenged the bushes. He felt his fingers brush something leathery and rectangular. Digging it out of the leaves and foliage revealed that it was a book. No title was engraved on its face, and there was nothing to identify its subject matter or author. It was ratty and damaged, as if time had taken a toll on it. morningstar: not sure. found an old book though? morningstar: never

Etherial was a mouthful, but no shorter alternative stood out to him, so he sucked it up. "Good to meet ya, Etherial," he said, trying his best not to annoy people while standing in the busy street. He concluded that it was an unideal place for a conversation as a big-framed fellow bumped his shoulder, scowling behind as he passed. The rest of the shops in the market were presumed duds, and he would only waste his time if he spoke with each of them. He had intended to begin Scents of the Wild later in the day, but perhaps there was no time like the present to start a quest. "Do you have a

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The girl's apology was unnecessary. Bumping into her was one hundred percent Morningstar's fault; however, he did not press her for it. Instead, he held out a hand, positioned awkwardly in the crowd. She looked new to things, so he opened himself up as a potential ally. "People call me Star," he told her, acknowledging that a single person opted to call him 'Morning' instead. "If you're looking for gear, I'd avoid some of these merchants. They're greedy players, mostly," he hushed his voice to not draw the attention of said greedy players. "Stick to the tried and true shops if you can."

Morningstar did not bother introducing himself; it seemed that Foyle already knew who he was. How much Freyd had managed to communicate with his contacts was left unclear, so he spared few details. He started from the alley, skipping the irrelevant parts prior and going straight into the action. "The safe zone turned off for some reason. I don't know if it was only for us or if it affected everyone in the city, but suddenly, we were fighting thugs in the middle of an alley." "They were wearing these coats, too. They didn't disappear like most items do when the wearer dies. It was almost l

Quest Morningstar generally avoided the Forest of Memories. Historically, he had encountered unpleasant things there, and his track record for reacting sensibly to them was poor. He had once seen his mother in the mist and chased after her, only to discover that it was an illusion, and she had not, in fact, joined him in the game. Another time, he saw a duplicate of himself, the Gemini he had killed not long ago. Today, he had stepped past two tall oaks and into desert ruins, a recreation of a memory he longed to forget. He had not come to the forest by choice; instead, he lacked directio

"Respectfully, four thousand col seems a little bit steep," Morningstar squinted at the blade, using his experience as an appraiser to examine it. The enhancements it carried were by no means bad, but with some luck he could have found his own for three quarters of the price. "Two slots of static," the merchant crossed his arms, "and a slot of bleed. Hard to come by." Maybe for you, the blonde thought, refraining from voicing his undesirable opinions. While the jewels were pretty, the sword itself was overvalued and a waste of his money. Gently, he placed it back on the merchant's co

22/3/24 unique Name: Belmont's Chestplate Your Profession: Appraiser Your Rank: Rank 5 Roll ID: 220557, 220558, 220559 Roll Result: 13, 16, 6 (Unique found! BD: 10 CD: 9 LD: 6) Item Type: Heavy Armor Tier: T4 Quality: Perfect Enhancements: Thorns, Mitigation, Bloodclot Description: The chest armor of a warrior said to have survived a spear to the heart. Red gems are encrusted below the neck, forming a ring. Link: URL Acquisition ID: 220318a 23/3/24 unique Name: White Dwarf Your Profession: Appraiser Your Rank: Rank 5 Roll ID: 220590, 220591, 220592 Roll Result:

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Morningstar pushed his muscles to work for him, cutting Ulric Drell one last time before his energy levels reached a critical point. No matter how hard he tried, forcing another sword art was impossible. "Sorry but that's all I've got in the tank. Give me like," he paused as if running the numbers in his head, "a minute and a half. Maybe two." Both numbers were estimates without any mathematical basis. If he was lucky, he would need even less time to recover. Everything was dependent on luck and numbers; at times like this, it frustrated him. He could see Drell's weak spots and he could i

Nari and Wulfrin pummeled on the Avatar of Avarice until Persi's stun was replaced by another. Desperate to end the fight, Morningstar joined in, occasionally peering up at the mob's shrinking health bar and observing their progress. Wulfrin would survive after all, if things kept up as they were. Morningstar was glad. Relief washed over him, albeit far too soon. He had seen it before, a statistically weak player entering a dungeon far above their skill level and suffering the consequences. He had been that person once and did not wish to recreate such a traumatic experience after so much

huge junk sale: tl;dr total col return: 242,000 For Ciela For Wulfrin Morningstar's Personal Junk Sales