Miryu

            Miryu's search continued, while the other two seemed to begin having trouble. Kylissia was looking but had not found anything other than that one herb, and Almina had ended up looking at the sky and slipped on a material that then shattered. She wasn't very lucky, was she? Miryu looked in front of her to find an odd bloom, same color as the grass around, but was definitely a closed bloom with possible alchemical uses. Miryu gripped it with two hands and pulled it out. Wulfrin remarked about being less picky, that any material will suffice for the quest.

     "Who knows, what can help may even seem out of sight or mundane at first." Miryu chimed in, examining the closed green blossom. "But there's a use for it somewhere, somehow, even if we don't even realize it yet." She added. That was now...about three materials? So now she only needed to find two more, right?

ID# 222874 LD: 11(Found 1 Material)

Materials found: 3/5

             Miryu had some mild confusion as to why Wulfrin thought that a worst case scenario would be something jumping out and trying to kill...but if hostile monsters could appear in those locations, why would Miryu have possibly taken the time to take a screenshot of the area? Did it really make any sense?

    Regardless of that, he seemed to hope that answers to Miryu's amnesia would be found in those locations. Well, that might be possible...if Miryu was the one to come along, that is. What could random locations even mean to someone who's never been there before? Miryu didn't recognize the screenshots either, so perhaps she'd received them from someone else? The whole screenshot topic wasn't making any sense, what could it all mean?

     After plucking that first material, Almina failed to find anything useful from the common flowers, and Kylissia found a medicinal herb. Miryu walked a few steps, then spotted a simple plant attached to some kind of brown lump. When Miryu pulled at it to investigate, she ended up pulling out not simply a plant, but a plant with a thick, complex root. The plant shattered, but the root remained. That's another material. Three to go.

ID# 222068 LD: 20(Found 1 Material)

Materials Found: 2/5

       Kylissia and Wulfrin both suggested that Miryu should avoid deleting the screenshots for the time being. Wulfrin also asked for copies of the screenshots, but this confused her. What use would he have for these? These were landscapes, city locales, biomes of many kinds...exactly what even is this situation? Miryu blinked. "What could you possibly be able to do with them, even if I sent them to you?" Miryu asked, confused and tilting her head to the side.

               With the trip to the locale being surprisingly peaceful, Miryu felt somewhat at ease, even if Wulfrin did not. Now that the players were at the gathering location, now it was time to search for alchemical materials...like that patch of flowers, one of them stuck out a bit, being of a different shape, pattern and color than the rest. Miryu looked at it from a few angles, circling it carefully and moving slowly and cautiously as to not trample any of the other flowers accidentally. Miryu then shrugged, grabbed the plant at the base, and pulled it right out. The plant shattered, leaving the flower behind...suggesting that only the flower itself had alchemical properties.

Well, that was one down, what's next?

ID# 220664 LD: 15(Found 1 Material!)

Materials Found: 1/5

                      Kylissia took Wulfrin aside, and after some awkward silence, Almina decided to help Miryu figure out her menu. She seemed to recall how to work the menu, despite having forgotten it even existed. Was it some kind of 'second nature' or something? So much for her to figure out...

           Almina would explain the functions of the message and screenshot systems, and with the tap of a button, *Click!*
    Almina would recognize that Miryu had taken a screenshot out of button curiosity, and help her to view it, saying it could be seen at only the tap of a button.

               As she accessed her screenshot view, what neither player expected was the sight that entered both players' vision.

                               Miryu already had screenshots. Did they make sense? Absolutely not. A strange feeling stirred in Miryu, but nothing that could help her at this moment...and this was only the first page of screenshots. Miryu decided not to go any further, and simply closed her menu, dumbfounded at what it was that she just saw.
                   When Kylissia and Wulfrin returned, Miryu had only one thing to say. "Apparently I have screenshots...problem is, I can't make heads or tails of them."

                     There was nothing left to discuss, so it was time to head for Zachariah's shop. Miryu hesitated before opening the door, but once she did, the smell of alchemical brews and ingredients would nearly assault Miryu's senses. At least it was a fairly pleasant scent. “Oh, hello," Greeted the shopkeep, who must have been Zachariah. He glanced over to the party as he continued. "Are you here to order something? I’m sorry, but I am currently swamped with orders, and I’m running out of supp...lies.” He trailed off as his gaze soon fixed towards Miryu. His eyes narrowed somewhat, his expression somewhat confused. "...I'm sorry, have we met before?" The man asked. Miryu blinked, not sure what to do. "Um...have we?" She asked, clueless. Zachariah got up from his work station, and walked over to Miryu. "Just a moment, let me get a good look at you..." He requested. He brought his hands to her face, tilting her head around as if he was hoping to jog his memory. after ten awkward seconds of this, he stepped back, a puzzled look on his face as he stroked his long, snow white beard. "My apologies, I must have been mistaken, either that, or it's not coming to me yet...nevertheless, I'd like to request something of you, if you're fine with it. Would you gather a few materials for me? Flowers, herbs, rare woods, whatever you can find outside the city walls. I promise I’ll help you fill your order as soon as you return. In fact, I would be willing to show you how to do it yourself.” Came his words. Miryu nodded her head. Maybe, if this NPC knew something, he might be able to help.

                                 Almina asked Miryu if she was ok and if she saw anything. "Yes...there was this armored person...thing? But they were suddenly gone the moment I blinked." Miryu answered.

                   The remainder of the trip was uneventful, so there would be no further interruptions. Wulfrin spotted both of what Miryu needed to find, and opted to stay put unless necessary. Miryu nodded in understanding, and with the other two players she went inside the building.

                   Two men were talking. One older and one younger. "You're sure you haven't seen anything strange happening near our town's borders, Carter? Walled as our home may be, we must be ready and vigilant if anything unusual becomes a potential threat to it." The older man spoke. "Other than that odd spire-like structure I found after that tremor several hours ago, I assure you I've seen nothing else. If you're concerned about the town's safety, why don't you ask the Captain of the Guard?" Came the younger man's response. The older man seemed to understand the response, though he would add, "I appreciate what intelligence you were able to give. I've already asked him about it, but he knew absolutely nothing. Maybe I'll consider asking him to investigate this structure if I have any time." He paused for a few seconds before he had something else to ask. "By any chance, you haven't seen any Travelers passing by, have you? I could use an extra hand, I've got far too much to do, especially with what's been going on lately." The older man asked. The younger man looked and saw the three players. "You mean like those Travelers over there?" He pointed out, seeing that he didn't not recognize any of them as population of the town. "Hm? Ah!"

             Upon recognition of the players, the older man would make his way over to them in long, purposeful strides. "Pardon me, ladies, but I am in need of some assistance, and you appear quite capable."  The man heaved a quick sigh, adjusting the monocle over his right eye. "My name is Dorian, and I am the mayor of this town. As part of those mayoral duties, I issued a small loan to a member of the community a few months ago. Well, the time to collect had come around and I-" Flustered, Dorian systematically ran his fingers over his mustache. "You see, I've forgotten who it was I loaned the money to. Terribly embarrassing, I know, but I am a very busy man, and I cannot keep track of everything that happens. I'm sure you understand." With a wave of his hand, Dorian continued, "Should you be willing to track down the loan recipient for me, and collect the col, I would be eternally grateful. Just, maybe don't let anyone else know I forgot who the loan went to?" He requested. A quest prompt appeared in front of Miryu as she nodded with a smile. Oh, she was supposed to respond systematically. She then pressed accept with hardly a second thought afterward. Dorian nodded his head, appearing to be relieved by Miryu's swift agreement to help him out. "Excellent, I knew I could count on you! You might start with Zackariah, the alchemist. He's often doing projects for the town, so it may have been him that borrowed the money." He noted. "I've got good hopes for you three. Farewell and good luck!" And with that, Dorian sped walked, nearly dashing off to his next task.

                          Next was the younger man. "Any of you have some business to settle here before you head over to Zachariah's?" He asked. His knowing grin seemed to suggest that Dorian's embarrassing secret was at least safe with him. Miryu's eyes lit up. "Ah, I do!" She blurted out, before speed walking right up to the counter. "Someone in another town suggested that there might be something wrong with my map, so I thought I'd have it checked here." She explained. The system handled the map transfer in Miryu's stead, for it suddenly appeared before the NPC, who would take it and examine it for a short moment. "This map..." The NPC began. "It's...why, this map couldn't possibly exist. It looks similar to the land around us, and yet..." He scratched his head as he continued to assess the map and its anomalies. "And it's stained with all these dark spots...cold to the touch...exactly where did you get this map?" He asked. "I'm not sure." Miryu answered. "I guess I've just...always had it?" The NPC studied the map just a little longer. "Well, here's what I can do for you. I've know that you adventuring types tend to carry maps different from the rest of ours, and they're not exactly replaceable, from what I know. However, I've recently come across a way they can be...fixed, so to speak." He began, as he gestured to the map in his hand. "I don't know if you heard, but there was a tremor that shook the region several hours ago. I was making my rounds scouting out the local area for anything new or different, and then I found this uh, small tower-like thing just sticking out of the ground. I honestly don't know what it is or what it's for... but I've got a map of the area that's a bit like yours that I can give you...because when I saw an odd-looking surface after climbing to the top, I placed an empty map there and it just...filled itself in! I have no other way to explain it, but..." The NPC nearly trailed off, his confusion apparent and highly visible. "Well, maybe you can fix your map there. I'll hand you the one I'd gotten from the experience for now, but if you happen to find any of those elsewhere in the world, just keep that in mind." He finished, as he handed both Miryu's map and another map to her. Upon accepting both, a message from the system appeared before Miryu: "<<Map Updated.>>" Miryu nodded, grateful for the NPC's help. "Thank you, I'll return the map you loaned me if this works." She thanked with a smile, before leaving with the other two players.

                           Miryu looked to Wulfrin, ready to tell of the results. "We've got the quest, and apparently there's a way to fix my map." She explained.

                                        Kylissia's remark to Almina about a "second life" stuck in Miryu's mind. Not that she could try and bring something back up with it, but it was something worth keeping a mental note of nevertheless. Kylissia then asked Miryu a question in regards to her memory.

                Miryu entered a state of realization as her expression darkened. Waking up wasn't just the last thing she remembered...it was also the first. "No...I don't..." She revealed. It was a troubling scenario indeed. "Second" life or no, this was currently the only one she knew. She should have known a before, yet she did not manage to recall one. At least her origins might be similar to those around her, despite the fact that she wouldn't be able to remember.

                        Wulfrin would explain the scenario the four were all in, that everyone here was in an artificial world through mysterious devices known as NerveGear, and that their original lives were inexorably connected to the fates of these "second lives" within this other world...this would leave Miryu at a considerable disadvantage, considering that despite the fact that she still had some knowledge from some point in her life, she'd lost her memory of both lives altogether, and was probably starting over on her second as a result. This disadvantage would stem from the fact that anyone could use the information of this world that Miryu lacked to either help her or harm her, to the point where it might all just be luck, a roll of the dice, so to speak, that determines her fate, whether she finds herself able to understand both worlds, or if she is doomed to find both lives ending in this second life's respective world.

               Things slowly began making more sense, but there was still far to go. Wulfrin slid something across the table over to Miryu, something he knew to be a Teleport Crystal, an emergency consumable that could take someone to a safe zone they had been to before on the chance that things would get dire. She would give a nod of thanks as she accepted the item.

                     Wulfrin seemed to be muttering things under his breath as he escorted the three. Miryu wasn't going to question him in this moment, it was probably for the best to save the thoughts for later at the very least. Miryu looked to the side to see a pair of wolves, but they seemed to show no interest in the party...in fact, they seemed to suddenly look somewhere else. Miryu stopped walking, and looked to the other side immediately, where she saw what the wolves had spotted. It was a bipedal figure, fully armored and geared for battle and welding a shield and morningstar, though there seemed to be tusks poking out from the helm, not to mention the hooves in place of feet, and the claws instead of fingers. Miryu found no memory of this creature, but at the sight of the menacing beast, Miryu felt as though she needed to fight or run...but the moment she blinked, the figure was gone.
                         Miryu began to wonder if it was even there at all, or if it was just a fragment of memory lost in the form of a figment of her imagination. Shaking her head, she then ran to catch up with the rest of the party. Surely they would reach Tolbana soon.

-Miryu accepts the offered Teleport Crystal

                                                         Miryu was confused.
                                        There was so much that she was hearing, and not all of it made sense. Tolbana actually being a Town? Ok, that was understandable. Creatures that could potentially be hostile? That was also believable. It was the fact that the current environment was referred to as "a game and not reality" that began Miryu's confusion, and what is this GM that Wulfrin spoke of? Some of these things all felt familiar, but they didn't appear to be familiar. If this was indeed a game, it would explain the information within Miryu's vision that normally wouldn't be within real vision...but then, why was everyone here acting as if everything was real? Did something happen? Miryu simply blinked in bewilderment. This was all so much to take in. Something had to make it all make sense, but she hadn't the slightest clue for like...anything. She didn't even know how she was added to Wulfrin's party just now, which caused three names with their corresponding green crystals and mysterious colored bars to appear under Miryu's. Wulfrin had introduced herself, then Kylissia did, so the other pink haired girl must have been known as Almina.

             But of course, not a single name or action just now had helped Miryu understand anything at the current moment.

                              Wulfrin led the three girls to a nearby tavern. Once the three were seated, he fiddled with some flat apparitions and pulled out one particular that seemed to be a map of some kind. Miryu attempted to repeat this, but when she began staring at the map that appeared before her, nothing came to her mind...but she was confused at how it differed from Wulfrin's in several aspects. It was then that a passing NPC then stopped, before looking to Miryu and saying, "Excuse me miss, but I do believe that map of yours has a number of things wrong with it. You might want to get a new one. I've heard there's someone in Tolbana who specializes in Cartography, maybe he can help you."
                  Wonderful, something was wrong with Miryu's map.
                                          So that meant she had no map that could help her, unless she replied on someone else's. Now that she thought about it, how could her map possibly differentiate from everyone else's? How could it be wrong? She got the feeling that it wasn't supposed to be wrong, but if it indeed was, she'd have to get that taken care of. Wulfrin asked for a show of hands for anyone who hadn't taken the First Lesson.

                                         Of the three girls who all raised their hands, Miryu was the last to speak. "I don't remember doing anything in this land, so that leaves me to assume I haven't taken it...The last thing I recall was...-"
              She trailed off suddenly, as she realized her memory did not go very far at all. "...Was...waking up in that...what would I even call that...?" She didn't know what she was doing in that strange thing before she woke up, she didn't even know how she ended up there in the first place. "Is something wrong with me?"
          With how knowledgeable everyone else seemed to be, she couldn't help but feel a bit stupid.

                               The person began showing Miryu around the town, pointing out key locations, rather than explaining the entirety of the place. The most "key locations" in this explanation so far, however, were in an alleyway with an aesthetic or upkeep that reeked of moral ambiguity. Maybe certain people, like the owner of the Evening Star, felt at home in such a rotten joint of the town, or perhaps they were some kind of light in the dark? She considered asking about the concept of "player", but by the looks of things, it may be a term surrounding the people who had those green crystals. Given that logic, it would apply to Miryu as well if it held any water. When the person asked Miryu a question, something happened before she could attempt to answer.

                 A girl seemed to have an odd stumble that ended in her crashing into a tree, front first. Miryu was unsure of what to do. While she seemed fine, other than being somewhat disoriented, she quickly got to her feet and greeted the two players. Before Miryu could attempt to answer the man's question from earlier, yet another person entered the scene. A tall blonde stepped in, asking about the situation, which the man would explain, then about possibly something to do, specifically, a quest.

                                   The man introduced himself as Wulfrin as he explain the scenario. Miryu blinked. "Tolbana?" She asked. "Who's Tolbana? How do you think they can help me?"

                        Miryu could see the bustling activity around her. Perhaps the local market was having an upsurge of sorts, but for some reason, she could hardly place a name for whatever it was that was going on here...

              Then someone appeared.

      Miryu turned around to see the person greeting her. Unlike most of the people here, he had one of those rare green crystals hovering over him, similar to the one that hovered beside her own name within her vision, though she couldn't recall why her vision was so strange, as if seeing a name beside a crystal, time, a mark filled with green under her name, with a smaller mark filled with blue directly under that, wasn't supposed to be in her vision unless she was in front of something specific. It felt familiar yet alien, but why? Curious about these strange crystals popping up above people, she decided to see if they could be caught. "...One second, you have something floating above your head."

         She suddenly proceeded to attempt to climb up the stranger in order to reach the odd crystal, swiping her hand to grab at it, only stopping at the third attempt. "Oh, so it isn't a tangible thing at all..." She thought aloud. "My apologies for the bother." She let go of the stranger immediately. "Um, if it's fine with you, being shown around this new place would be nice...I don't exactly know what I'm doing, or what I even came here for." She admitted.

                       Water.

                   The first thing Miryu could feel was water...or, at least, she thought it was water. She wasn't sure, for there could be no possible way she'd have been sleeping in it, and for whatever reason why? She barely budged, but she knew that she couldn't remain still and silent forever.

                       Light.

                   The first thing Miryu saw when she opened her eyes, was light. A soft, blue light from what may have been a crystal or artifact of sorts, not that she knew what it was or why it was directly above her, as her vision was slightly blurred.

          As the water-like fluids began to recede, Miryu's vision cleared, and she then realized she'd been laying down, asleep...but why? Why was she asleep? Now that she thought about it, why was she here? Where even was here? What was she even laying down upon? Was there fluid around her because what she was laying down on and what was right above her had enclosed and trapped her very being here? If so, for what purpose?
                            Miryu looked around, confused and unsure of anything. She had so many questions, and she'd only just woke up...but there had to be answers somewhere. The best thing to start with, was get up and leave what she was once held within. The room she was within seemed to be made from stone, neat and smooth, with swirling carved design of some kind going along most of the room, and spiraling towards the top, where a glowing crystal was nestled in and lighting the room. Miryu looked for the wall the looked the least uniform, and saw where the waves of the designs seemed to clash. Placing her hand upon it, what turned out to be runes of some kind would then glow, and the stone door would then lower into the ground, granting Miryu access to the next room.
                    Within this room, there seemed to be a few items littering it. Namely, a Yukata draped over an elevated stone square that may have served as some form of seating, a sheathed Wakizashi attached to a belt simply laying down on the ground beside the "seating", and upon a pedestal to the right of the next door, an odd trinket that seemed to be glowing. Out of what may have been instinct, Miryu grabbed the Yukata without a second thought and put it on. Now she felt slightly warmer and more comfortable than she was when she got up from where she was sleeping. She then noticed the pair of socks and sandals that were hidden by the Yukata's placement, and she would proceed to put those on as well. She then grabbed the belt and the sheathed blade, putting on the belt and making sure the blade was ready at her side, should she ever need to draw it.
                                                   Miryu hesitated before walking over to the pedestal. There seemed to suddenly be a light swimming within the crystalline orb within the trinket, for about one and a half seconds, then it was as if nothing had happened, for it faded just as quickly. The core of the Trinket was the crystalline blue orb, held within what looked to be silver, in patterns resembling flowing waters. Miryu slowly picked it up, then brought it to the other side of her belt, and it would latch on, hanging from the opposite hip that her weapon did. The pedestal then lowered, and runes lit up on a larger door. Bright light shone into the room, nearly leaving Miryu within nothing but white light, until her vision adjusted. The Outside World was finally in view. Light swirled within the Trinket once more, as a voice seemed to sound within her mind...
                  "The White Seal has been lifted, the time has come for us to return. Time is of the essence, there is much you need to do, Miryu...you are needed."
         The voice then seemed to fade, leaving Miryu to look around her for something, or somewhere, to catch her attention.
                                       The sight of a town caught her eye, so she would make for it in all due haste.

                 She was nearly out of breath by the time she reached the Town's borders, and the guards seemed to let Miryu enter without any hassle of any sort. Now that she was in this bustling town, she found herself with yet another question. "What...do I do now?" She thought aloud. This time, there was no voice to answer her, leaving her to wander the city aimlessly.

Stats and Equipment:

Relationships:

The Tale thus far:

Roleplay Log:

Stats and Skills:

Inventory:

<<Miryu>>

Profile:

Username: Miryu
Real Name: Izumi Cho Jade
Gender: Female
Age: 19-21
Height: 5'3"(161cm)
Birthday: February 7

Background:

Personality:

Virtues:

Flaws: