Nari-Lanreth

Spinning back the way they were headed, Nari let the melody fall for a moment as she took her bearings. She knew that the final room lay somewhere nearby, but she couldn’t quite remember exactly how far. Deciding there was nothing to it beyond simply following the path, she continued her singing – an activity that she was finding far more enjoyable here, than she had in the real world. Especially with the singular audience. “From the shores through the ancient mist, You bear the mark of my elven kiss. Clear the way, I will take you home, To eternal bliss.” Another pause as she glanced aro

With NIGHT having finished the three in her consecutive strikes, there was nothing more for Nari to do but sit and watch. She let her spear roll back into the crook of her elbow as she lowered her shield. The heat of the tunnel suddenly returning, she gave a slight cough as the other questioned her speed, making Nari cock her head. Bringing up the message she had received, she scanned over it quickly. As usual, it was from the redacted source – something Nari had been meaning to ask around about, eventually. “Looks like my sources say it needs to have all three alive, but lowered…somethin

Her first strike had been about as effective as most…which was to say, not very at all. She barely registered as NIGHT shifted around and over her, slashing across the three hounds in an arc before falling back – managing to avoid most of the counter attacks that the hounds attempted. Still, a single landed upon her, and Nari felt a sudden shift in herself, moving in response towards the hounds. Bringing her spear up, she let her shield falter slightly as she began her slid towards the right side. A sudden shift in her weight drawing the eyes of the wolves. Letting her left foot spin arou

The message caught her by surprise, pulling her attention away from the piano she had been attempting to tune. The thing had come with the transition of her profession, but she had felt that the sound of it was off since it had appeared in her recording studio. To: Nari-Lanreth From: [redacted] Message: New intel. Town of Rig under assault by large creature. Supposed two-headed snake. Figured you’d love. Best of luck, and stay alive. Will forward anything else we find later. The messages were also short, concise, and to the point. Closing it, she wondered again who exactly within

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The morning sunshine spilled through the windows of the recording studio, drapping the entire area in a luminescent glow blue hues. Taking a deep breath and casting her gaze across the area, she hovered for a moment - enjoying the silent bliss that seemed to hover over the auditorium. The stillness in the air, unbroken save for her own presence, was almost peaceful and welcoming to Nari. For a time, she did nothing but savour it. Realising the day was slowly passing her by, Nari set the crystals to be used in today's sessions before her, quickly preparing herself before activating the fir

She watched as NIGHT shifted her gear around, taking in the white cleats, the blade behind her back. She cocked her head, eyeing up the new outfit. Or, part of a new outfit, rather. She wasn’t quite sure it could be deemed as an entire outfit change, but a change nonetheless. Smiling at the offered hand, Nari clasped onto the forefingers, giving a slight tug into the tunnel that led towards the lair that Cerberus was usually hidden away in. She hummed a tune that she had listened to many years ago, one that had stuck with her. As she walked, she felt the song slip between her lips – a cle

She was still considering her response when the two made their way onto the teleporter pad, her normally witty retorts held back by the sudden forwardness of NIGHT. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of it, other than the fact the she was clearly settling in well. Cocking her head as she glanced at the girl, she called out to activate the teleporter. “Floor Nine, Yōgan Village.” A slight shimmer – Nari shutting her eyes tight against the bright light – and then they were stepping off onto the overwhelming heat. At her side, Yuki gave a hiss of distaste – both at the heat, and at having to

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Her first session in the recording studio had been…well, horrible. Horrible was the only way to describe it. She had to admit, this was nothing like her blacksmithing trade – there she had been able to at least craft something. But here…well, vocals were always a difficult skill to possess, let alone master. Sighing to herself as she entered the small auditorium she was using to record herself, she glanced around – immediately spotting NIGHT hanging out in a corner, clearly waiting to watch her work. Flushing in embarrassment, Nari tried to ignore the girl as she went about her practice r

She tilted her head to the left at the joke, debating on whether she should respond to it or not. It was somewhat out of character for NIGHT – or perhaps she was just starting to get more comfortable. Either way, Nari wasn’t about to complain about it – it had been amusing. Stifling a giggle in response, she instead decided to comment on the second question, her ears reddening slightly on the tips. “Yeah, Cerbi. Short for…well, you know what it’s short for. And it’s not closeness. It’s just…a cuter name.” She glanced up at NIGHT from below, sticking the tip of her tongue out in response.

“Yeah, that’s about all I’ve got as well. Seems like there’s very little known about it, beyond the fact that she recently started appearing…guess we’ll find out once we arrive-“ Her words were cut short as the teleporter activated, a white haired girl appearing on it, and freezing in place the moment she spotted Koga and Nari. A ding from Koga drew Nari’s eyes away from the scene, the flashing icon clearly showing that he had a message. Returning her gaze to the girl on the platform, it took her a second before she managed to word her question aloud. “Uh…someone you know? A fan, or

“I’m bored. We should go do something.” Nari rolled over on the couch, nearly tipping off the edge as she turned to face NIGHT, staring at the other with what she hoped was a pleading, demanding looking. They’d spent the morning relaxing, enjoying the company of one another. But Nari had begun to grow restless, wanting to get up and move, not simply lay about the couch. “Hey…want to help me get some more tech skills? I know there’s two I’m missing.” She quickly brought up her menu, swiping through the options until her eyes fell upon the two outstanding quests. She read over both of them

She had quickly left the glade behind after her last look, making her way back along the path towards the settlement she had left – this time intending to make her way back to the teleporter pad, and home, without any distractions. The walk itself had proven quick, the jungle presenting little in the way of actual obstacles to her, as if the system knew she was in no mood for grinding any mobs at the current time. The settlement itself had seemed unaware of her departure, and her eventual return. Nari had breathed a sigh of relief to find the normalcy of it all, finding comfort in the fac

She wasn’t quite sure how much time had passed when she finally realised that she was still sitting next to the pond. She had let loose all of her grief, her anger, her despair. She had screamed until her throat felt raw, releasing everything into the air and not caring who heard. Yuki had slipped from her shoulders and into her lap as she had collapsed to the ground. Out of habit, she had begun to stroke the fox’s fur, taking comfort in the feel of her companion, and the support that it provided by just being there. “We should head back soon, Yuki. Before everyone starts to worry. W

Left alone with her thoughts, she found herself drawn to the small pond that took up the majority of the area out of the trees. She had barely noticed it when she had first arrived, noting only that it would make for a hazard if things had turned sour during the encounter with the Gemini. Now, as she glanced over it, she realised that it was completely imperceptible – the surface too dark to see beyond, but a perfect mirror. In that mirror, she saw her own face. Filled with the same fear it had held nearly a year and a half ago. She could see the emotions roiling behind it; the frustratio

“I thank you for sparing my life, then. I will admit to surprise. I had not expected such actions from you. I have been watching you for some time now.” The figure bowed, before making its way towards the path that they had followed to enter the small pond area. Stopping before the treeline, it turned back to Nari, something in its posture seeming to hint that it had more to say. “You have defeated me, this time. But I shall continue to train, just as you will. And perhaps the next that we meet, there may be a different outcome to this conflict.” She could only stare in response as the fi

“Is that so? Then you spare me my life?” She could’ve sworn there was doubt in the tone of voice, as if it didn’t believe this was truly occurring. She considered her response, before speaking up. Trying to determine if she was truly going to let this thing live, if she was truly changing her ways. “Yes…and I hope that I won’t regret the decision.” The words were forced through closed teeth. She felt herself shiver at the decision, knowing it was a change she would have to continue to drive towards. It was also one that she knew was right. She couldn’t deny the anger she felt, towards Car

“No.” The single word was a whisper, and at first she was uncertain she had even spoken it. Her eyes remained locked on the being before her, the mirror image of herself. Something about it stayed her hand, forcing her to halt her bloodlust. Something about it reminded her of the humanity she was slowly losing in this insane assault against a system that was doing nothing more than what it was designed to do. “No? But you have fought to hurt Cardinal for so long. To retaliate against it for what it has done to you. Isn’t that right? Isn’t that why you fight, why you continue to destroy as

Her most recent strike had devastated her opponent, and she watched as it fell to its knees, losing the strength to fight. Feeling an air of caution, Nari waited, watching it from a distance as she tried to determine if the action was meant as a trick or feint to draw her in. She wasn’t willing to let her guard down until she was sure it was defeated, until she was sure the fight was over. “Well, what are you waiting for? Don’t you want to finish me off? To end me? To end a part of Cardinal?” The words echoed something within her. So similar to something she had said, not long ago to anot

“Not what you were expecting?” She growled as the Gemini figure slid around to her side, showing a reluctance to get close to her if only for the moment. She pondered her situation, knowing that only her only advantage here was keeping the Gemini unaware of what she was going to do. ‘Which means I need to focus on not doing what I would normally do. Changing up my habits, taking risks…everything that is not the focus of a tank.’ She scoffed in her mind, knowing it was far easier in theory than in actual practice. She had taken to staying safe for so long, that now that she was forced out

The up and down movement of her health was starting to worry her. Even though it was still well into the green, she had rarely had this much loss in the very beginning of a fight – and it seemed like they were only just getting started. Her continuous failures to connect with the other self, was starting to cause her concern, and she wondered if she was truly in a dangerous position now. As the Gemini moved forwards again, Nari decided to try something outside of her usual styling. Letting her shield drop, she winced as the spear of her opponent struck into her right shoulder, forcing her

Her twin slowly traced a path around Nari, eyeing her as it moved towards her right, trying to draw her towards an opening. She recognised the movement, something she had done many times against the creatures she had faced during her time in Aincrad. She followed the movement, making sure to keep her shield between herself and the Gemini. “It won’t work. I know what you’re trying to do. Using my own moves against me won’t get us anywhere.” She knew that trying to rattle the artificial intelligence was likely to have no effect, but the words were given all the same. In truth, she was watch

Almost as quickly as she had recovered from the assault of her twin, the Gemini figure gained momentum against her. The spear, so similar to her own, lashed out towards her again, catching her in the left shoulder and forcing her backwards as it once again drained her health bar. She tried to pull the spear out, finding the action harder than she had expected as the other figure fought to drive it in further. For a few seconds, the two seemed to be at a stalemate, the weapon not moving at all as Nari fought against her twin. Then, almost as suddenly the NPC gave up, letting the weapon sli