Alkor

He scratched at the back of his head and appraised the area around them. There was no use in pressing the issue too much. When she brought it up and sought his perspective, that was one thing; but to drone on and on about how he disagreed was both disrespectful and ultimately a waste of breath. He placed both hands in his pockets and rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. The search for this bear's spawn point was a lengthy ordeal, and he didn't really want to get in Setsuna's way. She seemed like a much better tracker than he was.

"Glad to hear it," Alkor said in regard to her vested interest in continuing. "I really didn't want to have to deal with these quests alone, because I don't know all that much about them."

There wasn't much more to be said. He did watch how she moved and got a feel for what she was attempting, but Alkor got the sense that if he didn't invest the points of have the proper equipment, no matter how hard that he tried he wouldn't make much ground. In terms of scouting and reconnaissance, Setsuna was in her element.

"You must enjoy exploring," he said after a few more moments of silence. 

It felt wrong that someone so young could clearly say such things. Alkor had to consider that Aincrad had instilled perverse values in everyone, such that they would never have learned in the normal flow of their life. Children became radicalized just like this out of necessity. Setsuna was a victim just like all the rest of them. 

He listened to her words, such clear and simple condemnation over something so basic. For Setsuna, the world really did seem that simple. It was a sin that someone so young and impressionable was allowed to be part of the Sword Art Online tragedy. With no proper guidance, she assumed that a tag given by a system for anything between a minor infraction and murder itself was just cause. 

She went further to condemn others by name, whether through reputation or firsthand knowledge he couldn't say.

"You should be more careful about following colors in a game as a pretext for morality," he said. "You can turn your cursor yellow by punching someone."

He stood himself upright and glanced around. "So, what, we find the spawn point for the bear and that's it?" he asked. "Seems pretty simple and straightforward." Alkor stretched out his arms and back, cracking his knuckles over his head as he reached toward the clouds. "I'm actually thinking about following this chain a little further. They said there's more than one roaming enemy to fight and rewards for all of them, but you have to collect them all to benefit from them."

He didn't know how true or false it was, just that apparently other Players had done the quests and now reaped said benefits. There had to be some truth it it, or the vendors wouldn't sell that information. "What about you? Done after this?"

Alkor level 47 

960/960 HP 104/104 Energy

14 DMG | 12 MIT | 3 EVA | 4 ACC | 24 BLT

Blightsteel [T2 Demonic (2 DMG/1 BLT/ CRS)] Cowl of the Wandering Warrior [T2 Perfect (3 EVA)] Eye of Osiris [T1 Perfect (3 ACC)]

Rank 5 Curved Sword / Rank 3 Light Armor / Athletics / Precision / Ferocity 

Finesse (rank 3) / Fighter Familiar (rank 3) / Survival / Energist / Extended Mod Limit

"People say that justice is blind," Alkor said, the irony not lost on him. "I can't. I can't see another human being and disassociate that from my actions. Regardless of what someone deserves, I have seen people loving their lives and suffering around me since I was a kid." He hated them, if he was being honest. Thom hated all of the people around him who were truly living their lives, enjoying the everyday things that in his childishness, he'd eschewed. Games became his reality, and the only conduit he had for social interaction. He hated all of those people because he envied them. If his parents had reached through and pulled him out of the pain he'd been in, maybe things could have been different. Maybe he wouldn't have just wanted what they had. He would never know what would have happened. Alkor could only know what was. "They make their choices. Some of them are glorious, others are tragic. That doesn't give us the right to make decisions about their fate. We're not gods."

He looked to Setsuna with a heartbroken, soft gaze. "This world has filled you with hate and rage," he said. "But that's not what justice is, Setsuna."

The swordsman closed his eyes and bowed his head. She asked what might have happened; but the sad truth is that they would never know. Alkor had robbed Uriel of any future. 

"Killing doesn't end killing," he told her, "because for as many of them as fall, there will still always be one killer left. Can you live with yourself, if they all die and you're left, the one person in the world with blood on their hands?" He thrust a thumb to his chest. "Where does it end? Do you kill anyone who's taken a life, or just the ones you think deserve to be killed?" Alkor was staring at her now, eyes like liquid fire. "That's a heavy cross to carry."

"...it's not easy," he admitted. "There's plenty of times where I go to dark places. Extremely dark, so dark that I can't see the light."

Everyone had their darkness. Alkor had lived in it so long that it became comfortable, and he had no desire to turn back. At least, that was how he had lived. For years before Aincrad, some of the sadness that came from solitude had festered in the cracks left behind by his Father leaving, and his Mother choosing to simply move on from the life he'd known. Alkor was a child then. He resisted change, and when change came anyway, he lost the desire to fight against it. The path of least resistance became his reality, to the point where he cast aside friends, family, and anything else that hurt him. He didn't think the pain was worth it.

He learned from suffering in spite of his desire not to. He realized inside this world that there were some things you couldn't stop, no matter how far into the sand you buried your head. Now when he thought back on his Grandmother, it hurt; but that pain was proof that he had loved something. It was a validation, in a sick and masochistic way, it proved that he had lived. In spite of the deep, all-consuming darkness, Alkor had survived. And now, Alkor set himself ablaze to be the light for others who couldn't see. It was the only way he knew how to give back.

"When you think everything is hopeless, when there's no more reason to move forward, that's when you'll see the light that guides you home."

Home was a relative thing. It wasn't a singular place. Home could be a person, an abstract concept- for Alkor, home was his purpose. In this world, and beyond it. There were people who depended on him. There were things that only he could do. Home for Koga might be something entirely different; but one day, Alkor had faith that the man would find it. He'd even be there to help light the way.

"I think she'd be glad I finally got my head out of my ass," he said with a laugh. "Grandmom watched me for a long time and I can't imagine she was proud of the person I was." With a shrug, he reached into the folds of his cloak and produced a pipe. When he brought it to his lips, the sensation of smoke entering his lungs gave him a brief taste of the old world. He closed his eyes and languished in the flavor, in the memories of his grandfather and the dinstinct tastes of the American South. When his eyes reopened, they were on the sunset.

"Honestly, Koga," he said, "you're still breathing. That's more than most people do when they lose everything. As long as you survive, you're fighting. I'm pretty sure that your loved ones would be proud of you for that."

Alkor readied himself for another pass. Lessa was more than capable of holding the beast's attention, and they would easily leave room for the newer Player to get some experience. In theory, at least. In practice, that was not how things transpired at all. As the token male of the group turned to prepare for the next round of traded blows, Lessa struck out with her newly found might. It proved to be more than equal to the task of holding aggro. Indeed, the Steel Rose of Aincrad not only beat the creature backward, she ran through it like it was nothing at all. The field boss erupted in a stream of data, and Alkor slowly turned his gaze on the woman.

"Well, that was unexpected," he quipped, more amused than anything. In truth, the Amphis Serpens was a bit stronger than the mobs he would have chosen to introduce Snow to anyway. If she was dealing damage, it was negligible, and that too had its own subtle effects on the psyche. It would have boded ill to teach her to think that doing very little to no damage was completely average in Aincrad. "Ah, don't worry about it," he assured both of them as he spared a glance toward the lower leveled girl. "The only way to go from here is up, so honestly, think of this as a good way of setting a benchmark. This creature was a bit stronger than what you should probably be fighting anyway."

While he knew that his words weren't very likely to have a strong effect, it was better than just letting her get the impression that he thought she was useless. There were many people he'd said that to before. Many people that he could not just go back and apologize to. Some of them were probably even stronger than he was now. That was a difficult pill to swallow. 

"So, what do we do from here?" he asked to no one in particular. They'd finished much more quickly than he anticipated, and now they had free time to kill. Would they just separate? 

He took a seat when Setsuna did, reclined against one of the many trees that flecked the area. While Setsuna set about sharpening her blade, he let his head crane backward and closed his eyes. The moments where he allowed himself to relax were precious and few in number, but this was an opportunity to do just that. It seemed serene in its own way, until the girl asked an unexpected question.

What was he to you?

It was a common thought, honestly. People assumed prior knowledge when it came to murder. A killing born out of ire, or passion. Most people didn't just kill others. That was as true for him as it was anyone else. That only made the words harder to digest.

"...nothing," he admitted, "he was no more than a face in the crowd. I killed him less than minutes after meeting him."

It sounded bad when he said it that way, but that was how Alkor remembered it now. With a clear head and absolved of the belief that anything he did was really "right," he couldn't try to justify the taking of a life with pretty words. But he could tell the story, the way it happened. 

"Uriel was someone that a friend knew from outside the game," he explained. Much of this tale wasn't his to tell, in truth. Mari would doubtless not appreciate one of her most difficult secrets being shared without her consent or knowledge. "I'm still hazy trying to remember the details of their relationship, honestly. It was all very much a blur." That much at least was true. Several years had passed since then, and he didn't want to misremember anything as he recounted the act..

"The man had knowingly forced a child- her child- into this world. He knew there was no way out. He knew the ramifications for dying, and he chose to subject a little girl to that." Alkor was staring now, up at the sky. His eyes reflected a dim light, one that looked almost like a flame on its last legs. The sorrow in his voice echoed in his ears as he spoke. "He antagonized her mother, using her as a tool for his sadistic mind game. I'm not even fully sure of his motive anymore. There's so much of it that had nothing to do with me. But I was there, and I saw it happen. I saw her mind break. I saw the insanity that overcame her when faced with the reality that she couldn't protect her child, and..."

No. He couldn't repeat that. It was too much, the image of the woman killing her own child. His rational mind still rejected it. Everything that happened that day should never have..

"He tormented her," Alkor said flatly. "No one else helped her. No one was there. I told myself, this man is evil. This man can't be allowed to continue to do this, I won't let anyone else become his victim."

He looked down now at his hand, wondering if there was a god, and if there was, if he would forgive him. Alkor laughed at himself for that thought. How childish.

Even at the most intense of moments she was stoic. Alkor couldn't hope to match the ice floes in the girl's veins, not even with his brightest sentiment. It was pointless to push back any further than he had, largely in part because Setsuna was doing just fine.  If she had fallen to pieces or shown any sign of weakness, he might have taken it as leave to speak more frankly. She gave him nothing to work with. All signs pointed to the girl being completely fine with the things she was saying.

He knew better than to try to help someone who didn't want it. Lessa and him had that kind of dynamic, once. She wanted to change something about him that he just didn't see as a problem. Because of that, he grew confused and the fragile grip he had on his reality splintered.

The endgame of that had been less than desirable, but it was a path he had to walk to get where he was. Resigned to the fate that lay ahead of Setsuna, he gave a slight shrug. "Alright," Alkor conceded. "You lead the way. I'm just the sidekick on this adventure," he said with a subdued laugh.

It was clear that the mission came first. 

Alkor followed Setsuna quietly as he slipped the curved sword away, secure at his side where it lay in waiting for a time when he needed it again. "If the Intel I bought is any good, there's a pretty big area where it could spawn. You sure you wanna case the whole place?" he asked.

He heard those last words spoken as Kumatetsu closed on him, and Alkor closed his eyes. This world wasn't real. She was trapped in a place that had given her hope and taken it away in the span of a breath. Life wasn't fair. Not for a young blind girl, and not for a man who never learned how to be a functioning member of society. It was against that kind of injustice, and no other that he railed. Good, evil- subjective points of view were wasted on Alkor as he gripped his weapon tightly and took hold of his resolve.

Blightsteel glittered a faint orange color as he readied his sword art.

"There's a world beyond this, Setsuna," he said, loud enough that anyone listened could hear. "And even if you don't have eyes to see with, you have a life ahead of you. There's a bright future. That's what I fight for."

The swordsman didn't open his eyes as the creature fell on him; instead, Alkor ripped forward in a flash of speed that beggared belief and his sword ripped violently through the beast time and again. Streams of red data surged forth from newly opened wounds as the darkly dressed man stepped passed the massive bear untouched. 

He turned slightly and glanced back toward Kumatetsu, no sign of Setsuna apparent. It didn't matter. Even if he couldn't see her, he knew that she could hear him. 

"You'll find something to live for, even if it isn't in the past. The future is vast, and you won't know what lies ahead until you get there. Everything in between... is right now. Its beautiful, and its worth protecting."

He hesitated, then added. "Well, for me it is."

 ID# 183122  Battle: 6 MOB: 4

(15×11=165-50=115)

Kumatetsu: HP: 185/300 (-115) DMG: 75 MIT: 50 ACC: 1 EVA: 2

[H:1] Alkor - 960/960 HP 96/104 (-8) Energy 

[H:0] Setsuna - HP:900/900 | EN:84/90 | DMG:21 | EVA:5 | ACC:6

He felt bad for her, but not the way that she might expect he would. Most people would hear about the life of a blind person and sympathize out of pity. Thom had never thought of any person as less because of their struggles. The truth was, Thom had never really connected with anyone strongly outside of Aincrad. Most people in his life he'd simply pushed away. Loneliness was a world he understood, implicitly.

So, it was that more than anything that he empathized with. No one understood... because no one ever tried. And when you lacked the resources to bridge that gap, you were trapped on one side of an insurmountable distance with no hands held out to pull you across.

There were no welcoming arms to comfort people like them. 

It made sense that she sought shelter in those people who gave her a sense of belonging. Even he understood that desire. "If you'd never told me, I'd never have guessed," Alkor answered after a moment of introspection. "But then, you've had plenty of time to learn to live with sight, now."

Perhaps it was insensitive to verbalize the observation, but it rationalized things for him. A girl living in a world he could never reach... it seemed somehow tragic as much as it did poetic. 

When he saw her face, he felt himself smile without permission. Alkor didn't often give people genuine smiles. They were easy to force- the method acting came with time. Even when he didn't understand, he knew when to smile, or when to just walk away. With Setsuna's trust came the realization that he didn't need his apathetic defense mechanism, either.

"Rare is the man who doesn't realize what he's doing," Alkor said softly as he let his blade rest against his shoulder. "This world stripped away the laws and constructs of society. It left the floodgates wide open for the worst kinds of people to unleash their basest, most vile desires and visit them on everyone. Even the most gentle of us. You're a kind person, I can see that now."

He wasn't going to tell her not to trust them. That was her decision. Alkor found that trying to convince people inevitably led to fights he wasn't going to win. He was tired, so very tired of fighting those. 

"You say that you don't have time," he said, "that you can't waste anything on sentiment. That's ultimately your path to walk, not mine," Alkor turned away from her. "But that's the real tragedy, honestly," he spoke a bit more loudly, both to attract attention from further away, and so that she could hear him even with his back to her. 

"There are things in our world that are horrific. Dying children, perhaps, the most abhorrent," he spoke over his shoulder without looking at her, deep in his own thoughts. "but those things which rob them of the right to live out their childhood are the most heartbreaking of all. Everyone should have the right to know that their emotions are valid. Even the things that seem the most vapid."

It was in that moment that the beast chose to attack. With a mighty roar, it erupted from the treeline and rushed toward the two Players.

ID# 183119  Loot: 17 <Kumatetsu attacks!> (Of course he does!)

Kumatetsu: HP: 300/300 DMG: 75 MIT: 50 ACC: 1 EVA: 2

Alkor - 960/960 HP 104/104 Energy

Setsuna -

 

@Setsuna

He listened carefully and considered her words. The way she framed it made it seem like she was a bit skeptical as well, though Alkor wasn't going to press that issue. He'd already said too much that could easily be construed as inflammatory. It was lucky that Setsuna didn't seem to take things personally, because things could have descended into a one-sided argument and the bear could have found them at the most inopportune time. Unlike many people he'd met in Aincrad, this girl was mature when it came to admitting her faults. When she took a knee, Alkor glanced at her thoughtfully. What a strange thing for someone so young to take to a world like this one so naturally. It was probably a survival mechanism, and undoubtedly there were many things beneath the surface that she did not want to bring to light. That wasn't for him to tackle, though. Setsuna probably only barely trusted him enough to work together with him. He wasn't about to jeopardize that by impinging on her personal life.

"Yeah, you're pretty grown up for your age," he said appreciatively. She was, what, early teenage from the look of her? Maybe a bit older, given that they were scanned into Aincrad several years prior and any signs of advancing in age would be lost. "Most girls in your age group think they know everything, I've learned," he laughed dryly, though he did not mean it offensively. "Not to be patronizing. It's good when you don't make a fuss about every little thing. But it's okay to get mad about things sometimes," he winked in her direction.

It was the way she called the others her masters that gave him pause. Was that her own decision, or had it been the way they chose to be referred to? Alkor disliked how it felt. He met Raidou once, they finished a quest together. He never struck Alkor as the type of person who was altogether interested in ruling anyone. Numbers, figures, infrastructure- the guy was a businessman for sure, but he wasn't the most personable one Alkor had ever met. In terms of social aptitudes, they were about the same. Which made him question Freyd more- that guy was an enigma, and his name didn't come up all that often. Alkor knew even less about him than he did Raidou, and if he was in charge of something like the way things operated, he functioned more as the hand where Raidou was more akin to the brain. It made Alkor reach up and scratch his head thoughtfully. 

"That's a lot," he said, "and it all sounds very convoluted. Those are the kind of people who see the world as something that they can shape, and they're the kind of people who take the reins of a world once there's a system to be controlled. If they're trying to create something like that, they're both a lot more subtle than I am," Alkor told Setsuna bluntly, "and a whole lot more manipulative. But that's not really my problem- just something for you to think about. Be careful with that, Setsuna."

Alkor turned his gaze back toward the grove and skimmed it for any sign of movement. Their talking was loud and drawn out- surely something would take notice by now?

Roll to find Kumatetsu: ID# 183117 Loot: 6 <fail>

Threads:

 

Chapter One: Waking Up

Awake

Numb

Haunt

The Coldness that surrounds

I was just trollin''

Bee Sting Blues

Imagine Dragons

The Bowl of Embers

Dragon Tales

Obsidian Invasion

You're not alone

Raven Hollow (School)

Lost in the woods

She's back for more

Tanabata Celebration

An End, and a Beginning

Do you wanna build a snowman?

Chapter Two: The Path Forward

My Serpentine

The fish wyvern again

Back at it again

Feeding the enemy

The Cult of the Dragon

Nobody expects the Spanish Vangaurd (Event Boss)

Aye Aye Cap'n

What he can see

A Reflection (Exchange of the Recluse)

Lazy Lion Days

Absolution 

Fishing for sport

Burn it down

Into the Howling Dark

Storm of Shadows

Ironclad

A Chamber of Bone

Face my Fears

Weakening Steel

Rumble in the Jungle

Rage against the Machine

Drowning

Down the Rabbit Hole

The First Sword

Nature's Treasure

The Ladonian Rebellion

Catching up

Disturbing one's slumber

Wuxing

Profile

 

Username: Alkor

Real name: Thom 

Age: 24

Gender: Male

Height: 5’8”

 

About: 

 

History/personality: Born on the Eastern Coast of the United States, Thom was part of a third generation Japanese American household. His childhood was turbulent, as his father was a strict traditionalist and his mother hailed from a very Southern styled caucasian family. Because he did not have the same values as his father, he struggled to relate to the man, and in turn his father often shunned him for not adhering to the nuclear family values that he saw above all else. By the time Thom made it to Elementary school, his father had left with the resolution to go back to Japan and seek life more in line with his viewpoint.

This put strain on his relationship with his mother, who was extremely burned by the way that her former husband treated them. She reasoned that Thom should be fostered by a stepfather who was more loving and who doted on him and his sister. Thom was disgusted with both parents, one for not attempting to work things out and the other for simply accepting it and trying to move on. He became closer to his grandmother, who took him in and allowed him to live and go to school from her home.

Because of her personality, his grandmother was kind- but perhaps too kind. She allowed him to distance himself from others and ultimately develop reclusive tendencies, even to the point of losing friendships because he never socialized with the children who had been close to him when he was younger. Fueled by anger and depression, Alkor slowly and gradually shirked his studies and failed out of school, whereupon he entered the workforce and started to live life as a shut in.

Games became his greatest source of social interaction, with people who did not know him closer than arm’s length. Those people he was close with were friends who accepted that he had no interest in their lives outside of the RPGs, and who were happy to oblige him in that context. The only real exception to that rule was Tobias, his best friend, who attempted to get him out of the house at any given opportunity.

Unfortunately, even that friendship became strained when Thom’s grandmother fell sick with Dementia. In her most lucid of moments she did not know who he was; and this led to Alkor withdrawing from anything other than going to work and coming home. As her live-in caregiver, he succumbed to deep depression and stopped eating. He heard about Sword Art Online around that time, and decided that a virtual world would be the perfect opportunity to escape from his hellish reality.
 

Virtues:

The First Sword of Aincrad: There are a multitude of people who take on the task of Tank, people who stand vigilant in the defense of the other Players and soak damage at the risk of their own lives. Alkor wields his sword very differently. His desire to end the game transcends himself: he wants to protect others from losing their lives, he wants to preserve their sanity, and he wants to make sure they get out alive. He will gladly put himself in harm’s way to protect another person, but he won’t settle for Self-Sacrifice. He understands his own worth now. He throws everything he has into the pursuit of growth, seeking to hone his skills as a swordsman in hopes of becoming the strongest there is. Every failure is a flame that hones his steel, every mistake is a learning experience. His downfall on the Ninth Floor was a death that preceded his rebirth. While he may struggle with the consequences of his actions, he has resolved never again to give in to the darkness.

The Insight of a Hermit: Because he spends a great deal of time outside of social circles and interaction on the fringe, Alkor has a different perspective on most things. The guilds and raids, parties and market are something he only uses out of necessity. Therefore, because he isn’t saturated, he can see things differently from other people. In addition, because he spends a great deal of time leveling and improving, he also has a good idea of how mechanics work and has a handle on how to approach encounters. He’s a resource for new Players and an asset in a party, even if he doesn’t frequently interact with either.

Brilliant Flame, Soothing Shadow: Alkor’s persona is in stark contrast to the person he was once. He throws himself headlong into everything he does. He seeks to be present and helpful for anyone who needs him. He literally burns brightly to light the way for others in a time of great darkness. At the same time, because he chooses to burn, the shadow he casts is intended to give others comfort. He fights so they might not have to, and chooses to blaze a path forward so that they can eventually be free. He will never turn anyone away, and he strongly believes that the enemy is in front of them, not at their side. He’d rather see someone turn from the path of evil than simply rob them of the choice; and if they don’t want to make that decision themselves, he still doesn’t believe death is the answer. He will gladly burn for anyone, in their brightest day or their darkest night.

 

Flaws:

Social Ineptitude: Alkor has never really gotten better at talking to people, he just learned to put in more effort. He strains to read any room he’s in, and if there’s a confrontation, he tends to back off rather than engage it directly. His anger is still an issue, though: if someone gets in his face, he’s prone to snapping and shouting back at them rather than trying to resolve an issue amicably. Alkor has none of the qualities that make a leader.

Distant: Because he struggles with the emotions of others and relating to them, Alkor seems aloof. People tend to avoid him because of his past actions, and those who don’t are still outside of his ability to reach. He tries to impart what wisdom he’s gained where he can, but ultimately he’s blunt and at times too direct. Once, NIGHT said of Alkor that he was like Batman- they laughed, but he realized that the woman wasn’t wrong. He is part of the society, but not really part of the community. He isn’t necessarily upset by this, but he knows it is harder to help people when they don’t trust him.

To Suffer Alone: Alkor’s weaknesses with other people cause him to bear most of his burdens in silence. While he will readily help others where he is able, he often takes on too much. This causes him to become avoidant and to not speak up when he needs a hand. The people who he considers friends often will note that he falls out of contact for long periods of time and he spends that time in solitude, working through his thoughts alone. It can be problematic for his interpersonal relationships, and while his outlook is vastly improved over before the calamity on Floor 9, he can still be unreliable or absent when he’s in the throes of a mental and spiritual low.

 

Profession: --

Vitals:

920 HP 136 EN

Base Damage: 9 Mit: 170 Acc: 4 Eva: 0 Blight: 32  In addition, a target afflicted with Blight loses 20 Mitigation for 2 turns Bleed: 48 Paralyze Battle Healing: 92/turn 8-10 Critical chance 10% increase to healing received

• Total EXP:  272,145
• Total SP: 205
• Current Level: 33
• Paragon Level: 50
• Unlocked Paragon Rewards:
  • Lv. 5 | Gain additional col equivalent to 10% of EXP earned in that thread.
  • Lv. 10 | +1 LD to looting
  • Lv. 25  | Free Skill respec
  • Lv. 50 - (1) Gleaming Scale, (1) Demonic Shard, x3 Paragon Tier Up Tickets, Custom Skill

Inventory

Equipped: 

Item Name: Witchfang
Item Tier: 4
Item Type: OHSS
Item Enhancements: CURSED / BLIGHT / BLEED / PARALYZE
Description: "Forged from the fang of a massive Black Dragon slain by a nameless hero in ancient times, it was given
as offering to placate a Sorcerer intent on bringing low the Kingdom. He struck a deal with the hero, in exchange for
a reprieve in his generation, the fang would return to haunt their world one day. Witchfang promises ruin to those who
are struck by it. The weapon's edge is fashioned of Obsidian and invested with myriad afflictions. 
One of Aincrad's Cursed Weapons, its very presence inspires fear and invokes the chill of darkness."

Item Name: Titan's Ward
Item Tier: 4
Item Type: Heavy Armor
Item Enhancements: Mitigation 2, Taunt
Description: very long 

Item Name: Eye of Osiris
Item Tier: Tierless
Item Type: Accessory
Item Enhancements: ACC III
Description: A pin fashioned in the style of Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, depicting the eye of the god Osiris.

Consumables: 

Imugi's Inspiration | MASS HP RECOVERY [157448]

Fruit Infused Tea | HP Recovery III [158815] | [158819] | [158822]

Spyglass (2 uses) - Effect: Use to reduce the number of posts required to search for a dungeon or familiar by 5 posts. Effect lasts for one thread. Item is destroyed once all charges have been used..

Galaxial Water Snake x1

Tier 1 Unique Consumable

Provides +1 CD when rolling to train familiars in <<Taming your Friend>>. Can also be used to change a familiar’s appearance to a starry sky’s form of itself. Single-use item. CD buff lasts for one thread.

Gold Star Stickers x1

Tier 1 Unique Consumable | Charges: 1/3 | Untradable.

+1 DMG, +1 LD or +15MIT for one thread. Stacks on top of other food/alchemical consumable buffs, but does not stack with Scent of the Wild totems.

Milky Way Rail Blueprint x1

Tier 1 Unique Consumable

+1 CD to a day's worth of crafts or item identifications.

<<Lightning Rod>> Grants a weapon a one turn paralysis effect on a critical hit. Lasts for one thread. Takes a post action to apply.

Cerberus Soul: Adds 12 Burn damage for two turns to a weapon on a Natural BD roll of 8-10 for the duration of the thread. Does not stack with the Burn Enhancement.

Memory of Battle

Double the bonus from Scents of the Wild totems for one thread

[170465] Well done steak [Protein 2]

[164405] Lemon Berry Palmiers [+3 LD]

[167323] Liquor of Light [+3 DMG]

x3 Demonic Shard

x3 Gleaming Scale

Equipment:
 

Not Equipped:

Ki'Raion's Tail (OHCS/T2): ACC/ACC/PARALYZE

Zero Degree Icicle (OHCS/T2): Freeze/ACC

[T1E3] Wayfinder (1)

-- [ Loot Die III | +3 LD. ]

"TRINKET: A star-shaped charm made up of various translucent teal-coloured petals, framed with silver and held together with taut strings. At its center is a stylized metal heart, and at one of the petals' ends is a loop tied with a knot, so that the charm is capable of being hung or locked around another object. The item calls back to a foreign myth, representing an unbreakable connection between holders of these charms."

Craft ID: #150874
 

Story Thus Far: Inside of Sword Art Online, Thom initially decided to distance himself from his real persona. The idea that he could die at any time did not bother him. Instead, he sought comfort in the desire he had to be a hero in a fantasy world. He created the persona of Alkor, a man who sought justice and stood aloof from others in its pursuit. As an arbiter and force for good, he believed that he could protect the other people trapped inside of the game by sacrificing himself if necessary.

Unfortunately, everything began to slip when he started to form real friendships. Friendships with people who weren’t just characters inside of a game, and who accepted their reality. The bosses who took lives weren’t just killing party members anymore. Aincrad was murdering flesh and blood people. Alkor wasn’t just a Hero of Justice. Thom was blurring the line.

When he met Lessa, the confusion became more intense. She was a friend, someone who cared about him and hated to see him acting like some cog in the machine. Her feelings reached him, but they made him hate what he’d become. He hated that he was trapped and that there was no way out, and that he couldn’t disassociate the two personas anymore. Lessa was the first to engage with Thom as a person, even though their initial interaction was violent and toxic.

That was when he began to develop a relationship with Mari. Understanding the lessons he learned from his friendship with Lessa, he attempted to give Mari what she wanted- not just a shoulder to cry on, but the concept of love, which he was far from ready to engage in. He slipped into the persona of Alkor once more, thinking that if he only played the part he could save Mari from the darkness that threatened to drag her down.

When he killed a man for Mari, he realized that he was far too deep. Trapped inside a hell of his own creation, Alkor threw himself deeper and deeper into the Frontline effort, edging the abyss with his well-being. He didn’t care if he survived anymore. It was his firm belief that even if it cost his life, if the others were a step closer to freedom, his sacrifice was not in vain.

The Hydra on Floor 9 ripped Thom out of that darkness. In the seconds before his life was ended, he remembered his grandmother and the life he had outside of Sword Art Online. He struggled and flailed against fate, and with the help of a Teleportation crystal, he put the encounter behind him. Stranded on the ninth floor as the others finished the boss battle, Alkor fell into a coma and was forgotten as the Frontliners left him in the dust.

Two years later, Alkor awakened. 

Resolved to make amends for the mistakes he made, Alkor met with Lessa and Mari, and attempted to resolve things. Mari, still believing that Alkor loved her, did not take his apology well at first. She wanted things to go back to the way they were; and so, Alkor distanced himself from her in order to give her time to come to terms with things. Lessa had moved forward and learned that Alkor was not a healthy friend for her the way he had been: she said that if he wanted to be her friend, he would have to prove that things were different, and that he wouldn’t treat her the way he had before.

Armed with value for his own life and a desire for repentance, Thom decided to seek the mantle of Hero in earnest. As himself, not someone else, and with respect and understanding of other people. He hopes that he can make his grandmother proud, even if he never gets the chance to say goodbye. She gave him the tools he needed to grow into a man, and the best he could do now was put them to good use.

Previous Journal found here

Directory Index

"We don't have that kind of system in place, Setsuna," Alkor explained as he stood upright and glanced over the newly exposed glade. There were marks evidencing that a large mammalian creature had been through the area, but there was no bear in sight. They were on the right track, though. "There's no law and order in Aincrad but for the flimsy market. People can price things however they want, and NPC Vendors compete with even that. Because of the rarity of that information, it necessitates treatment as a service rendered. What you're talking about, society helping those in need, that's fundamentally an aspect of government. It's them taking money out of a collected pool and allocating it to a group in order to fund it. If we had that, the system that seems predatory to you would fundamentally disappear, annexed into a cog in a machine that we never see, but interact with daily." In all honesty, Alkor would have preferred that. The idea that they could come together, that they could find common ground among everyone and advance as a society to the point where they created their own form of governance just made sense to him. But there were too many inexperienced people trapped in this world. They were young, and they wanted to do things in the way that they believed was best. Raidou had the closest thing with Firm Anima, but even that was just a Guild that exploited the nature of the market for profit. The people in it did seem to thrive, to the point where they did their daily tasks. Though, as Setsuna proved, she was acting outside of parameters set by Raidou.

Her very own actions were proof as to why the Brokers functioned the way they did, and why it was unlikely to change. 

"That said, its not like I think you're wrong for wanting to serve a greater good," he said as he walked further into the clearing and made himself a very prominent, visible target. If there was a bear nearby, he was being loud enough that it would make itself known. "I just think you're a bit naïve in your approach. And that's just my opinion. Everybody's got one, right?" he smirked back at her over his shoulder. He was sure she wouldn't like what he had to say, and yet, none of that made her any less in his eyes. People were born into a world filled with conflict. Conflict was natural, and resolving it was part of becoming an adult. The inability to resolve conflict was a sure sign that a person had a long way to go. 

"I... used to think that things were that easy," he said reluctantly, his eyes moving away from the girl. "It's okay to be wrong," he said, a bit more reserved. "As long as you're not satisfied with staying wrong forever."

Still, no bear appeared.

Roll to find Kumatetsu: 

ID# 183115 Loot: 12 <fail>

"Freyd, huh?" Alkor didn't know the guy, but he didn't necessarily like that he "approved" of Setsuna's methods. Allowing someone to do something was different from condoning it. Alkor wasn't going to stop her, but he didn't have to like it either. He glanced sidelong back at her as she spoke. Setsuna really did the world in a childish way. He could tell there were no gray areas in her subjective from the way she noted other Players in such cold regard. Were they lesser because they were different, or just foolish? He couldn't quite tell what she thought on the matter just from hearing the words. Not that he'd dismiss them readily, or accept them either. Sometimes it was alright just to leave things the way they were. Setsuna had her own path to walk, the same as he did. 

When she said that she wanted to circumvent the info brokers, Alkor had to laugh aloud. What a wild fantasy that was. "The info brokers have to survive too, you know," Alkor smirked wryly back at her. "A lot of risk goes into the work they do. They get paid for things that they put their necks on the line for, or expend hard earned money to learn. You can't call that extortion, honestly, it's no different from paying a tax. You give up a necessary amount of money in order to pay for a service." 

Every member of their community was vital, down to the lowliest newbie on the first floor who hadn't even taken a step out of the Town of Beginnings. It was easy to think that one person or the other was the problem, but everyone had to eat. Some people didn't have the strength to face the Frontlines, and that was fine. Other people didn't want to move forward at all, and they couldn't help but to be afraid. All of them were valid. "But what you want to do," he said quietly, smiling all the while, "that's noble in its own way, too. Some people can't afford the info, and they have the right to survive, just like everyone else. So I can't say you're wrong either," he turned his gaze back toward where they movement had occurred and sank into a combat ready stance. He exploded forward without another word, the blade between Setsuna and whatever enemy stood ahead of them. 

Alkor would protect them all by vanquishing the enemies that threatened their existence. He shot through the underbrush with his blade first, seeking to carve through anything that might be waiting in hiding. The bush sundered, the top half fell away and vanished in a stream of pixels. There was nothing there.

"Maybe I was a little too ambitious," he laughed dryly.

Roll to find Kumatetsu: ID# 183113 Loot: 9 <fail>

He sighed. Setsuna was extremely mechanical in the way she approached things. It made it easier for him to understand her, because she wasn't subtle. She just said what she was thinking, and explained the process set out ahead of her. On the other hand, she rarely said what she was feeling. It was hard to read her intentions on a personal level. He could certainly empathize with that. There was a time when Alkor was not dissimilar. "Guild tasks, huh?" he said absently. Unlike Setsuna, Alkor was never a very good guild member. During his time in Lessa's Guardians of Aincrad guild, he was a warm body, someone to exist simply so the Guild stayed together. He was a bad friend and rarely went to social events. It seemed like this young lady was very consistent and even did the tasks that her Guildmaster assigned diligently. They were definitely very different in their approach to solitude. "That's good," Alkor said softly, "I owe Raidou a solid anyway, I'm happy to help you out."

When she described the antics of the quest mob, Alkor felt something in the pit of his stomach churn. People should have known better than to wander far from the safe zone without direction. They'd come this far in Aincrad surviving on what they knew, and carefully avoiding the unknown when they were not prepared. The Frontliners and mid-tier Players cleared things and provided the Info Brokers with knowledge that they in turned gave to weaker Players in order to keep them alive. But then, that made sense. It was probably exactly why Setsuna was here now. "I see," he muttered discontentedly.

It was a problem. If this thing kept respawning, and it roamed openly then it would happen upon weaker Players no matter what they tried. If they knew the actual spawn point and had an idea of the parameters of the roaming grounds, though, they could give the Brokers a good idea of what the boundaries for its wrath were. Alkor took the lead she offered with a thumbs up. Neither of them was especially a talkative person, but some things were implicit. Setsuna preferred to move quietly. Alkor was fine with being the center of attention in a fight. 

That was about the only time when he was fine with it.

"Looks like we have a winner," the swordsman said absently as they moved toward the source of the disturbance. Shuffling flora brought Alkor to a pause. "I'm up," he said beneath his breath as he drew his blade into his hand.

He was almost to the point where they'd said it usually roamed when he heard something like a twig snapping behind him. If he had more invested into his search skill, he might have taken it as evidence that someone was lurking nearby; unfortunately, Alkor had no interest in hidden Players and most of his time and energy went into honing his skill with the blade. If someone did try to sneak up on him, he would make them regret it. What did surprise him was when the voice cut through the fog of war and it seemed to know who he was. The darkly dressed swordsman shifted his gaze in that direction it had come from, away from the task at hand.

"Who's there?" he questioned. There was more than one Player who probably wouldn't mind attacking him, though he'd done nothing in recent times to warrant it. Most of them forgot he was alive, or never knew that rumors of his death had been greatly exaggerated to begin with. No, this was someone with a distinctly feminine voice. That narrowed it down to several people in his mind, but when he saw the mist break and Setsuna appeared, he seemed visibly relieved. "Oh hey, Setsuna," he greeted her with a smile. "Fancy seeing you here."

It did seem a bit uncharacteristic that the younger woman would happen to be in the same place as him at the same time, but the likelihood that she wanted to handle the same quest abated any questions that arose. "You looking for the bear too?" he asked in an attempt to clear the slightly awkward air. Maybe it wasn't awkward for her, but in spite of many strides he made toward being more approachable and social, Alkor was still weaker than most people in communicating his thoughts and feelings, and he wasn't great at reading the room. "If you want, we can look for it together?"

In all that time, he hadn't thought to draw his weapon. Action came after words now, no matter the situation. Striking another Player was nowhere near the forefront of his mind, and it showed in how he spoke and carried himself.

Scents of the Wild - Ferocious Foe

 

Many of the more prominent damage dealers he'd met told him the same thing. In order to reliably increase your output, you had to hunt down every resource available to you. Be it food, potions, weapons, armor, or even quest rewards. They only hinted at the last of these things, but some delving with the Info Brokers unearthed the truth behind those prompts. A chain of quests, available from the eighth floor onward that yielded various rewards that bolstered various statistics permanently, for as long as they were in use. This seemed like common sense to him, though he was certain there was more to learn. In order to do this, he resolved to begin with the first quest in the chain. Once that was over with, he might find a more concrete solution in the reward.

His resolution didn't make the Eighth floor any less simplistic to navigate. Regrettably, if he had started this quest a long time ago it would have been more formidable. That didn't mean anything for the latter portion of it, but it did mean that the starting off point and several subsequent quests would be an absolute, grindy slog. "If only I didn't have to go it alone," he moaned audibly as he trekked the distance from the teleporter toward where the quest mob was known to spawn. "But I guess that's pretty much how it goes," he amended. Alkor had started out as a solo Player, and even now, he had grown more isolated from others. Even his attempts to bridge that gap were met with previous understanding of who he was and how he'd acted.

Only Lessa was still really his close friend, and she still had an awkward relationship with him. His actions prior to his perceived death had done him no favors. The people now saw him as aloof, and while he had a pretty strong showing in certain circles, they were limited severely in scope. They only saw him as a reliable damage dealer, but not someone who they wanted to spend a great deal of time around outside of that. The few people he'd talked to since had a more favorable view of him, but only slightly. His experiences inside of SAO had given him new perspectives on things, both inside Aincrad and beyond it.

More recently, he'd visited the monument where his name once was thought to belong. It didn't, in truth, but seeing that for himself brought him some peace. He often thought that he did belong in a grave, and a shallow one at that. He'd been awful to people who called him a friend. Mari, Lessa... Arc... Corvo...

Alkor sighed.

"Stay focused," he told himself. Drowning in his shame and wallowing in sorrows served no purpose now but to chain him down and prevent forward momentum. If he wanted to be stronger, he had to embrace who he was and strive toward who he wanted to be. "Don't fall into that trap again."

With a soft exhalation of breath, he blew out all of his anxiety. When he inhaled again, the fresh perspective flooded his thoughts. He was ready for action.

"Now, to find this "Kumatetsu..."

@Setsuna

He could never fault someone for feeling that way. It was unfair, and it was disingenuous for him to do so. The whole reason his name was on the monument at all was because he had said the same. He had acted on it. The most he could do was feel his heart tearing in two when the girl spoke because he knew what lay ahead on that path. It was a trail blazed in blood and a destination that only had regret to offer. But perhaps for Setsuna, the only way forward was that path. Perhaps unlike Alkor, she had a true and dear reason to walk the bleak road of justice to its completion. In honesty, Alkor had far too much of a kind heart to ever do it again. He felt the blood in his fingertips, throbbing. His gaze had grown impossibly soft, prone, filled with sadness. 

To be fair, he'd already touched her once. He would not invade her space again to give her consolation. He already felt odd enough and out of place from the first instance of contact, and he knew enough about her to doubt she'd overlook it again. Still, he wanted to wipe the tear on her cheek away. It wasn't wrong that she felt different. It wasn't wrong that she felt someone had to stop it. He just differed from her in that he was certain there was a better way to approach things. But to say that to her demeaned her feelings.

She would have to come to her own conclusions, and he had immense respect for that fact. She was on a road similar, but not the same to the one had had walked before. He only hoped that Setsuna would not suffer the way he had.

"Animals can be caged," he said, "and muzzled. And they should be. There are many paths to tread. There is also putting them down... but a life is a life, even if they have to regard for that fact."

Alkor closed his eyes. "A man who does battle with monsters ought be mindful that he does not become a monster himself," Alkor paraphrased Nietzsche, but he went on from there to diverge from the Existentialist. "But the tears you cry prove to me that you are not and will never be like them." He reached into his pocket and summoned a handkerchief from his inventory, which he subsequently offered to the young woman. "If you want to bear those wounds, I will not disrespect you by asking you to stop. Just know, if you can't handle the pain, there's nothing wrong with stopping. And you can always talk to me if you feel like you're drowning."

@Setsuna

There were a collective of varied responses to his words, and even more excitement to follow when Macradon entered. The man had a lighthearted presence when they first met, and he was close with Mari. He offered a slight nod as he spewed some more dark humor. Alkor could appreciate the sentiment. If you couldn't laugh in the face of death, how would you lift your spirits up? There was a difference between jeering the reaper and spitting on the memories of the fallen. It was the newer Player who seemed bent about his comment. We're done. He's sorry. Alkor glanced sidelong at the man. He could have spat something acerbic back, but it wouldn't resolve the situation amicably. If they were done, then they were done. He gave a slight shrug as his gaze fell off the man like snow that had grown too heavy on a leaf.

That was when he regarded Setsuna, and her question about why he'd come. Alkor knelt next to the massive slate and took a moment to review several more of the faceless names. People he had never met, people he would never have the chance to. People he knew, people he would never know again. He couldn't force a smile. Aincrad was perhaps the darkest part of his life, and the years that he'd counted already felt like midnight. He let out a small sigh before he glanced back toward the girl with a neutral expression. He wanted to smile for her benefit, but there were some days when a person simply didn't have the power to do even that. His gilded gaze was not unkind as he finally spoke.

"All of them," he told the woman finally. "Every name on this slab is a tragedy, not a single one any better or worse than another. But for some of them..." he placed a finger over a specific name, that of Uriel. He still remembered the moment where it had come to blows. The grave offense of placing a woman and her child in a world like this, and the inhuman act of using a child for something so vile. Mari was driven to madness against her will, and all that Alkor could do was seek justice in his fool crusade against perceived evil. As the façade broke down, he came to understand the gravity of his action. The cost and weight of a human life, blood on his hands that an ocean could not wash away. If the girl followed the name to the cause of death, she would find Alkor's own name there. "Some of them have deeper meaning to some of us."

His eyes softened as he remembered how long it took to stop telling himself that it was okay. The need to justify it was gone now, lost to the abyss of time. Instead, the guilt and shame that he was too much of a child to stop himself had scarred over and become a precious, horrific memory. The knowledge of good and evil dawned on him. Alkor knew now that nothing justified killing. Not even the act of murder itself. 

"The best thing you can do for them is forgive," he told the girl softly, "because when it's all over, they have to live forever with what they've done. Don't share their burden by sullying you own hands." Alkor reached up toward Setsuna and took her hands gently in his, cupping them palm up. "If you want to do right by the people who have died, don't add more corpses to the pile. Make sure it doesn't get any bigger."

Alkor finally found a faint, weak smile that tugged at the edge of his lips as he kept her gaze for a few heartbeats.

Then he let his hands fall to his sides. 

@Setsuna

He stared hard at the monument.

There was a time when many people believed his name should have been on it. He came infrequently just to prove to himself it wasn't. At this point in his life, every day he was alive was a new experience. The person he was before Aincrad had died on the ninth floor. When he woke from that deep slumber and realized he had fallen behind, Thom was struck with the shock of knowing he wasn't able to shoulder the entire world alone. Aincrad was an enemy that could not be soloed. 

That didn't stop him from being solitary, but it had fundamentally changed his approach to the world. People weren't just something he could ignore or brush to the side. He had to engage, and he had to evolve. 

His gaze snapped up when he heard several other people talking nearby, and the mood in the plaza heated up. They were going to fight, right in front of the monument to the slain? Alkor cocked an eyebrow and glanced toward @SketchSkirmish, @Setsuna, and @Recon as they threw different kinds of grease on the fire. One offended, another righteously indignant, and the last the apparent offender.

Alkor looked back to the stone and got closer, tracing fingers over the name of another human being. 

And the name of his killer.

"Alkor."

"Don't you think it's in poor taste to have this confrontation here?" he asked in a quiet voice. He knew Setsuna, and even wore a cloak she'd woven as they spoke. She was presumably an honorable girl, from what he remembered of her. Hopefully his words would strike the reasonable part of her mind. "This is a place for the names of those people who finally found peace," Alkor let his voice rise as he stood and glanced over the group. "I'll ask you again. Don't you think they deserve to rest?"

@Freyd - The Whisper in Shadows

The heads? Alkor registered Lessa's thought in an instant. His gaze snapped to the creature's elongated necks and immediately evoked imagery of one of Heracles' labors. The hydra-like appearance made a nauseous feeling bubble up in his stomach, and he suppressed it by lending all of his thought to a hasty reaction.

Instead of focusing on the strange beast, he flung himself forward with his blade and concentrated on attacking it. He shot forward and raked the curved sword along the throat of the beast, leaving a massive and gaping red wound in his wake. He did not activate a sword art intentionally, as this quest was intended to help Snow get stronger and simply slaying the mob without her getting her licks in did nothing to help her improve.

"Got it!" the dark swordsman howled out victoriously as he skidded to a halt behind the field boss. The sand weighed him down and dragged him deep to his ankles, but he managed to keep his balance. "Keep the rhythm going!" he encouraged. Every little bit counted, and when it came to stronger creatures that endured harder hits, that became especially true.

Now was the time for the newer player to become acquainted with hardships and the feeling of reward.

Aincrad had taught Thom some of the harshest lessons in his life. When he began his journey upward through floors, he thought to play a part. Alkor sought to see his way through the game as an avid role player, set apart from his actual persona and engaged with the scenario in totality. It began to slip the moment that the stakes were raised. The people he met weren't just faces behind a computer screen anymore. He wasn't just able to disassociate himself from the pixels. The avatar had become his flesh and blood, and if he was not careful, this world would be his tomb.

Something about her rhetorical question jogged those thoughts. They hadn't stirred recently, but now they burned and stung. He wasn't the same person who logged into Sword Art Online. The experiences he had in this world had fundamentally shaped him as a person, and in no small way brought him to appreciate the life he had. Unlike before, he had a reason to want to survive. He didn't just want to clear a path for the others. He wanted to see what was on the other side of it for himself.

Thom wanted to get there, and to truly live. 

"...it's not easy," he replied, "but it ain't all bad, either."

A cryptic answer for a cryptic question. Fairs fair. "That's a real funny way to look at it," he said honestly of her belief that a man lying to her face was only lying to himself. "But I can definitely tell you haven't seen the darkest side of this world yet. That's a good thing. I hope you never do."

There were some horrible people trapped in the game with them. Alkor had met some of them, and even brought his blade to bear on them. At least one life had ended as a result. He still felt the weight, even all these years later. Somehow, he knew that he would always remember. Still, he had grown from it. Good had come of it, and there were people who would live on and tell their own stories because someone else's ended. Deceptive, destructive people were bad for themselves, but Alkor believed that they were also bad for others. Or at least, they had the potential to be.

No person was inherently good, just as no person was inherently evil. The ones who were, though- he believed they had to be stopped.

"I'm definitely glad there's someone who thinks different from how I do," "because that means that there's always potential to find good in people. If it were my call to make, I don't think I'd look past the bad. This world needs more light, because so many of us are stuck in the dark."

They arrived in a few more steps, Alkor gesturing to the sign. He pushed the door open and held it for Kyra. "Here we are," he announced.

"Honestly, I don't come down to the First floor as often as I used to," he admitted with a laugh. "It kinda gets away from you, with all the grinding and leveling up, and..." he hesitated to say much more; if he admitted to knowledge of the Frontlines or battling Floor Bosses, how would she react? The woman didn't seem to be familiar with the harsher aspects of Aincrad.  She didn't even know the first thing about weapon skills. Alkor didn't want to unintentionally flex. "...well, you know."

The probability that she didn't know was high, but it wasn't really relevant. Instead, he shifted gears quickly and latched on to the topic at hand. "But when I used to haunt the Town of Beginnings, there was a quaint little dive near the edge of the residential area that made a nice hot drink in a pinch." He neglected to mention their menu included harder and heartier things as well, because his own proclivities were toward those. It wasn't what they were going for, though. "How about I show you the way there and we can let our friend here get back to work?"

The shopkeep seemed relieved to hear the conversation head in that direction, but he didn't chime in.

"It sounds like you have it pretty rough," he said finally. "People in general never really were my strong suit, so I wouldn't have the first idea about how to solve that problem you're having," Alkor explained as he slid out the door of the shop and held it open for her. "But with the protocols that deal with emotional distress offline, we really can use someone to help out with that kind of thing. You're doing important work," he praised.

"Ahahaha, you're probably right," Alkor smirked as he ruffled the back of his hair. It was odd for someone to ask him for help at all. He had some friends and they asked to quest from time to time, but this was different. "Maybe you can make something up." He gave a quick shrug as the Shopkeep sighed and went back to his business. Neither one of them was going to buy anything, and now they were loitering? Bah! Alkor turned back to the woman as she offered her thanks. 

"Oh, uh, I don't really need anything he's selling anyway, but I appreciate the thought," he said as the man gave a verbal snort to the slight. Alkor ignored him and offered the woman a more genuine smile. "I'm not really a coffee drinker, but I could go for some hot chocolate. I'm sure that's about the same." In reality, he missed days when it got blistery cold and he could indulge in a nice warm cup of cocoa. The last winter had gotten fairly cold, and he spent a few nights doing seasonal quests. Even built a snowman at one point. "But honestly, I wouldn't mind just... talking or something. It can get lonely when you're leveling up without a party." 

It was supremely out of character for the boy who had first logged into Sword Art Online to ever want to reach out to anyone. But Alkor wasn't that kid anymore. He'd grown, he'd made friends, and he had extended his comfort zone far beyond where he ever believed it could go. The man who got punched in the face for not recognizing why Bahr was upset with him now had empathy for others; and he wanted to protect them genuinely. He wanted to know how he could help them, and how he could forge bonds with them. Even when it hurt, even when he didn't know what to say or do, and even if he was powerless: Alkor would never give up again.

"I'm Alkor, by the way," he said as he extended his hand in greeting. "It's nice to meet you."