Andromeda

It took her a good few moments to realize she was only paying attention to what was in front of her. And when she did, she was whirling around and raising her rapier to defend - oh, what good did a flimsy weapon like a rapier have to do in defending against something than... other rapiers? - as a horde of zombies took notice and charged her, jaws snapping in hunger. Oh jeez, oh man. She knew she had the MIT but--

The head of an axe slammed down on the ground between them. Mishiro appeared at her side, swinging her weapon and disabling another. It gave An enough time to breath in an recover, pulling herself away from the horde and into relative safety. As the horde's attention snapped to another group of players, a very red-faced An mumbled, "...thanks."

And she allowed herself to be pulled along, only tugging herself free halfway through to evade another horde of creeps. 

She was starting to owe this emotionless girl more favors than she thought she was paying back by joining her in this battle.

***BINGO BOOK

Alright, Harriette. An stood, poised, with her hand clutching at the golden hilt of her rapier. They look gross, but that thing's at a sliver of its HP. One hit from you will kill it. Just. One. Hit. 

She would rather not dirty her rapier's pretty, pretty blade but she already promised they wouldn't be disappointed in her. And she wanted to return a favor. She'd feel extremely guilty over it otherwise. So guilty that it'll be the only thing plaguing her thoughts for an entire week. With a feeble battle cry, An surged forward and slashed its neck.

A clean hit! She swore she could have felt her blade cutting through the skin so--

Why the hell was it still alive?

"Wh-- Eeee!" The silver-haired player had to throw herself backwards to avoid the zombie's sudden movement. What was this, some sort of sick joke? Some mechanic that rendered it invincible to basic attacks? Mishiro killed hers just fine earlier. An backed up a little bit more, and she nervously kept track of how far she was getting from the other two. "Why is it still alive? Did I do something?!"

***BINGO BOOK

"Okay!" An saluted cheerfully. "I promise I'll try not to disappoint--"

Three zombies fell. Another one bit the dust shortly after.

An was trying and failing not to show her obvious distress. So! It turned out the little girl was wayyy stronger than her. She had to be about less than five feet and yet she was out there, wielding a freaking scythe that was even larger than her person like it was nothing. The little girl had felled three mobs in the process; mobs An would have taken forever to kill if she even tried to take them one on one. An was a reckless person. But An at least knew she couldn't - absolutely couldn't - make an enemy out of this person. Following quickly after was the girl with dull eyes - Mishiro, her name on the status bar said. She was less impressive. But even she had a huge freaking axe in her hands.

She trailed after the two of them, holding onto her unsheathed rapier and grinning sheepishy. 

"Uhhh, congrats on the kills!"

An was useless and dreadfully out of place.

***BINGO BOOK

There she was!

Her starry crimson gaze had finally fixated onto the kind girl earlier. She didn't know what got them separated earlier, in fact, everything that came after the zombies arrived was a blurry confused fearful haze she would rather not dwell on. But! Seeing the players teaming up and killing the zombies that appeared with their combined efforts was awe inspiring! An thought it had banished her fears at once, and thus, hooked the teleport crystal she had been about to use to her belt.

She really didn't have any business. But part of her was curious as to the origins of these undead and why this event was happening in the first place. There had to be an entire storyline to this, right?! And... the thought of leaving the girl who paid that extra 500 Col for her and then handed her a teleport crystal and guided her to safety... all alone...

Oh, wait, she had someone with her.

But An couldn't stop now, she was right in front of them! 

"Hey! Heyyy!" The silver-haired player quickly sent them a party join request. She mainly addressed the girl she kept earlier but she politely made eye contact with the smaller girl beside her. Both actually looked kind of strong. Holy crap. "Remember me? I'm Andromeda, but you can call me An. I want to help! Umm... don't mind my level, but I at least have the armor to outlast their blows. Please accept me into your party!"

***BINGO BOOK

"H-hehhh? That's... too much!" An felt her face turning red at the sudden kind offer. The girl who'd approached her wasn't having it though; she walked straight up to the tent flaps and paid double the amount. When she turned back around and gestured for An to come in, laying down a very loose set of terms, An felt as if she was staring up at a literal angel. "Thank you! Thank you so much! I promise I'll pay you back..." She met the girl's stony gray eyes and for a second, something clicked. "Ah, hold on a sec. Don't I know you-?"

The line of players behind them demandingly pushed her forward and past the tent flaps. 

She followed the girl out of courtesy and also having literally no one to hang out with, and seated herself at the middle row. Pretty soon, the show began. And what an entrance act it was! An sat in her seat, completely oblivious and starry-eyed. They even spawned zombies to chase after NPCs to make it seem even more real! And... they were... chasing after players too? She watched, dazed, as a player unsheathed their sword and engaged with one. And her crimson eyes lifted to notice the orange indicator.

Oh crap.

The girl beside her had already moved and she was thankfully dragging An along for the ride. An clumsily fumbled with the teleport crystal thrown her way before finally grasping it tightly in her hand. "Head for the safe zone? But we're already in the safe zone!" she yelled over the erupting chaos. That was probably the smartest thing she was going to say today, because honestly, what would you expect from a player with zero combat experience in an event that's 100% combat? Climbing onto a chair of her own, she followed after the girl's trail, zigzagging past awakening zombies, until they eventually reached the stage. 

She took as much as she could from the treasure chest, even the buffs a smaller girl tossed back into it.

...

...

...

And she headed straight out into town, a specific place already in mind.

***BINGO BOOK

A Halloween event!

The starry-eyed player had locked onto the newest object of her curiosity. She didn't normally stop to check the bulletin boards in town - the requests taped onto them had nothing do with her - but today, there was a colorful flyer placed smack dab in the midst of the plainer request forms and wanted posters. It was just what she needed to add some life to her otherwise somewhat-boring day.

There wasn't much of note in the designated site other than the large striped tent in the middle. In front of it stood an unusual-looking NPC - dressed for the occasion, An guessed. Smiling like a little kid in a toy store, she shouldered past the players gathering in front of the man until she ended up somewhere in the front rows. 

A limited time, a special event. The silver-haired player was all prepared to follow the rest in until -- 

500 Col?!

That was a fourth of her starting value! Okay, it's been two-something years so that part did not matter now, but checking her amount, An found that she still didn't have the Col to spare for the entrance. 500... She watched the others pay the fee and enter the large tent. A few turned back and left but An paid them no heed. I don't even have enough for 500...

Her eyes sort of glazed over. 

Yeah, Harriette. That's what you get for slacking off on your stats. Now everyone's going to go in and have fun without you. You dumb-dumb lazybutt.

[ooc: Payment handled in a later post.]

An hummed a happy little tune to herself as she decided what to grab next. Definitely not any of the weapons - if she was going to be identifying them later, she wanted to at least be able to use each of them and then she would choose based on the enhancements she got. She already had a weapon and she wasn't going to replace the rapier she was quickly growing fond of anytime soon.

She heard the series of rough high-pitched yaps before a small figure appeared at the rock shelter's opening, casting a shadow over the silver-haired player. Uh-oh. As a big fan of RPGs, she would recognize that distinctive speech and it wasn't difficult to narrow it down when she remembered where she was.

"Uhhh," An smiled guiltily, "I'm just taking three, then I'll be out! So let's be nice and--"

Goblin No. 2 charged forward and raised its wooden club with a shrill cry. Caught unprepared, she attempted to charge a Sword Art but the enraged goblin got to her first, bashing its weapon at her with vigor.

Things were not looking good.

The unfortunate goblin disintegrated. 

Wait. An blinked once. Twice. She looked down at her rapier - a simple weapon with a golden hilt appropriately named Dawn. Did she just...? With one hit--? The silver-haired player stared at the spot the goblin had previously occupied, baffled. Seconds of stunned silence passed by. Then she pumped a fist in the air and cheered.

Yesss!!

Combat was a piece of cake after all! An didn't even know what got her so worried earlier. Grinning, she checked her loot drops - a fair amount, considering her level - and entered the cave. Sweet, sweet loot. Goblins seemed to have no sense of order: everything - from weapons, shields, vials of unknown substances - was all just stacked on top of each other haphazardly. But stars were shining in her eyes nonetheless. Going out with directions from her friend, defeating a gate guard, then finding a cave full of treasure... this felt like the ideal first adventure she'd always been looking forward to!

An picked a shield off the pile. 

Things were looking good.

An went alone.

And boy, did she feel guilty. She did look around... as she was readying her equipment by the town gates. Not one player passed by unscrutinized, but luck would simply not be on her side today. Low levels already in teams, and players with flashier equipment who couldn't be bothered were the only ones she saw heading out by themselves. Yeah, no. An wanted this done as soon as possible. An wanted progress!

Go to the location, defeat the guards, grab the unidentifieds. Easy-peasy.

She listed off the objectives in her mind as she left the safe zone and walked, pushing her concerns over breaking the small promise she made to Leah aside. Bad idea. However, it was always more comforting to forget about a problem she couldn't avoid than to overthink! ...until the consequences were thrown right in her face anyway. 

Grasslands transitioned into a mountainous region. From there, it was easy to locate the spot Leah had marked down on her map earlier: a rock shelter that supposedly contained a haul of treasures and items that would have otherwise been registered as vanity if she never accepted the profession quest. A single goblin stood guard. It was about half her size but the wooden club it wielded made it appear just as menacing as she imagined.

It was also... not the most pleasing sight.

An unsheathed her rapier. She'd come all this way, she was at least going to come back with good results! Taking a stance, the silver-haired player poured her energy into the Sword Art. It manifested in the form of a weak golden glow, flickering like an old light bulb struggling to come to life. The goblin had looked up and noticed her by now, and it waved its club in the air angrily. 

It was going to attack.

An froze.

This was a bad idea. Very bad idea. Her weapon's aura fizzled out with a disappointed hiss. What was she thinking, heading out by herself? Leah wouldn't have made her promise without reason. Now that she thought about it, Leah rarely ever asked her to make a promise. 

Harriette, you dense, stubborn, air-headed little--

The goblin raised its club and charged forward with an incomprehensible battle cry - and An realized freezing up was not going to help. She'd be in the path of its attack at the very least. Now that she started it, there was no way out but to fight.

She steeled her nerves and steadied her breathing.

And her weapon ignited.

So that left her with no easy way to get those identifieds. She would have to go about killing monsters and hoping they would drop loot... which was not only tedious but also considerably hard for her, given her lack of combat experience. "Why wouldn't it be satisfied with any sort of material, anyway?" An puffed out her cheeks and speared a bit of steak with her fork. "I'm giving it exactly what it asked for."

"It's just how the game says it should go. No more, no less," Leah answered her complaints with a sigh. "If there's no conceivable way to change it, don't even bother asking questions. Spares you a load of headache."

"Alright..." An smiled uneasily. Let's try this again. What else could she ask of someone who knew the outside and the mechanics of the game better than her? Asking Leah to come along and help was out of the question. She had the strange sense her lack of combat experience would just mean... a lot of drill sergeant-like yelling. "Then, do you know of any place where unidentifieds could just be lying around and stuff?"

Leah frowned.

"Uh, or maybe I should just look for a treasure chest..."

An squirmed in her seat at the guild leader's unsettling lack of response. Then Leah raised her head and the silver-haired player realized her unlikely friend had just been thinking. 

"Actually, one of the guild novices found a cave the other day..." Leah began. "But before I say anything, you have to promise me you and your air-headed self wouldn't go skipping there alone."

"Thirty. Minutes," the woman in question pronounced. She crossed her legs and leaned back on her chair, posture straight and rigid as always. On the table in front of her was a half-finished steak and a drink. Wait, was that another steak plate to the side? And it was... empty? Oop- "I went through all that trouble shifting around my schedule for the usual and you don't even show up for half of it. Where the hell did you wander off to this time?"

An was visibly sweating.

"Uhhh..."

"Seriously, kid. Keep up that airhead act and you won't get anywhere in life. Take that from me--" Oh, An realized. The drink in front of her was beer. An airhead though? She refrained from commenting and smiled apologetically. Uneasily. "--So be more considerate. Whatever your excuse, people don't like waiting. Accepting a regular quest shouldn't even take that long. Got it?"

"U-understood, ma'am!"

"Don't call me that. I've already got enough of the novices doing so." There was a sort of rare warmth to her tone that had the silver-haired player feeling more at ease. "And you're no longer one of them, disappointing as that entire trial period was.

"It's just Leah for you."

And An looked at the woman who was now visibly more relaxed, slicing down on her steak with that sort of lack of enthusiasm that implied she'd already gotten sick of it after eating too much, and remembered that Leah had been her only constant companion these past few months - even if they did only meet on a weekly basis. That despite her rough edges, there really was nothing malicious surrounding her, and that she did show a slight hint of her softer side sometimes. And suddenly, her own question wasn't so hard to answer anymore. 

"So what have you been up to?"

An was a curious person. Nothing that came by was allowed to pass without her having some sort of question or two. Okay, correction: the things that held some value to her anyway. Her mentors had frequently advised that the key to learning more was being inquisitive. It was the second step in the scientific method, coming after--naturally--making an observation. Every discovery that's been made so far has likely been the result of someone pausing to ask a question, and while she wasn't currently so concerned with the grander scale, she thought it led to her understanding more about herself and the world around her.

She was concerned about many things, whatwith the outer-SAO and leveling nonsense she'd decided to jump into. But the most glaring one at the current moment...

--Had to be how she even became friends with one of the scariest people she'd ever met in Aincrad.

Seated across her was a tall woman who appeared to be in her late 20s. She had all the aspects that might lead to a few whistles on the street: long flowing locks of red hair, unusual crimson eyes that An knew people found endearing nowadays, and an uhhh- attractive figure. A simple acknowledgment from her could bring men to their knees, and they kind of already were... for the wrong reason. The perpetually stern expression on her face--like she was always angry about something, and considering they were stuck in a guild, it was kind of reasonable--and her demeanor and terrifying skill at wielding a spear and shield combo frightened more people than endeared them. An also heard a few whispers that she was probably into... stepping on people or something.

She was not going to test that hypothesis.

"No! I mean, yes!" The little blond kid spun around and gave its signature pout. Uh-oh. "I'm all out!"

A chance to leave early! An smiled in understanding. "So gather your items and I'll come back some other time?"

"Hey, I think you've forgotten I'm the one teaching you here!" Billy toddled after her as soon as she moved towards the door for what seemed like... the second time today or something. "So as your mentor, I say we keep things fair! An equal exchange!"

An had seen enough generic MMO quest lines to know where this was going.

"So..."

"Gather three unidentified items for me and I'll teach you how to identify them." Billy crossed its arms with a triumphant grin. It really was the smartest little thing, wasn't it. "Oh, while we're at it, you'll have to leave two of them behind once you're done. It's only a fair price for my teaching you, right?"

She had to grudgingly admit, it was actually kind of fair.

So in the end, she followed the little NPC back into the shop's inner room. An took one look at the small child's expression of triumph and her eyes sort of glazed over. Yeah, Harriette. After all that time spent telling it you did not want to be a merchant, you're just heading right back. You just lost to a little kid. You go, girl. Part of her wanted to spin on her heel and walk right the door, but that would mean all of this time spent here would have been for nothing and she would be coming back at a later date anyway now that this was the only profession she could ever imagine herself having, but she stubbornly wanted to walk out the door just for today so the both of them would have wasted time. It'd be fair... even though it was't exactly rational of her.

The silver-haired player expressed her conflicting emotions with a small sigh. She opened her menus with a flick of her hand and quickly sent a message to her waiting friend.

Meanwhile, Billy rummaged about its mess of items. It had taken a look at one conspicuously empty table when they reentered the inner room earlier, then scratched its head and started looking through the weapons, armor, and crystals scattered about. She drew closer and picked up an item herself, turning it over in her hands then tapping an option that revealed its stats. Already identified. An turned back to the NPC. "Problem?"

Entering the small stone building, the silver-haired player was greeted with an almost random assortment of items. On the shelves, some of the larger wares on the floor and propped up against the wall, and even a few laid out on a wooden counter near the back of the room. It seemed like an establishment of sorts, and at the same time, a secret base of a precocious child with a penchant for gathering discarded things which they thought still had some value - or simply wanted to keep as a pretty thing they could look at from time to time. Really, the sheer variety had her convinced of the latter. Weapons, shields, compasses, rolled-up scrolls, small sculptures, backpacks, boxes with labels taped to the side, crystals with duller glows than the usual, and various other knick-knacks. Even her childhood hobby of collecting pretty things didn't yield her as much in terms of quantity.

An was curious!

The NPC had opened a door to the backroom, prompting her to follow with a childlike grin. She beamed in return and carefully set down the small statue she had been inspecting. Her steps left a light pitter-patter sound on the floor as she walked after it and stopped by the doorway. "Ooooh." Starry red eyes widened in wonder. The backroom contained an even wider selection of items, ranging from herbs in small sacks to grains, crystals, and what looked like... ore? She strayed from her spot in the doorway to examine a leather armor piece. Turning it over in her hands, she blinked curiously at the semi-transparent options that now hovered in front of her as soon as she held the item upright.

"Now if you really want to be a merchant," began Billy. It had pulled on a silly little hat from a pile and quickly discarded it, ears turning red, as soon as she turned to face it. "You've got to be crafty and smart for this. You best know what you are doing."

An stared.

Oh, she knew exactly where this was going [because they were kind of there already]. This wasn't the fun adventure she had been hoping for; and she'd even marked it down as a possibility that it would be a quest related to one of the more mysterious-looking artifacts at the main shop. 

"A... merchant?"

It was one of those plain old profession quests.

Tier: 1
Build: DPS/Tank
Discord (Must have ID #): Blake Harris#3771