[SP-F5] A Lonely World <<Feeding the Enemy>> .:COMPLETE:.

[Creius 0]

Nathan teleported into the fifth floor that day with a specific mission in mind. He had taken up a quest so that he could make his lonely life a little more bearable. He looked around the desert town of Amarillo and sighed. It had been a long time since he had last been in a desert and he was not entirely sure he enjoyed it. He looked up at the blazing sun which could kill a man just as easily as the many animals that lived in this ecosystem. He wanted to be done before the sun got too low so there was no point in wasting any time. Immedaitely he set out and headed for the market area of the floor with a specific type of shop in mind that he had to visit. As he walked down the roads he could feel the insufferable sun beating against his back and began to slightly regret his decision on what type of familiar he wanted. Quickly he shoved that thought aside, doubt and regret had no place in his mind. They slowed people down. Instead he focused on finding some food shop where he could pick up scraps.

It did not take Nathan far too long to find the shop he was looking for, some small booth with a large NPC selling various types of meat. Nathan approached the booth and beckoned for the NPC's attention. The NPC looked at Nathan and did not seem particularly pleased to see him, "What can I do you for?" Nathan scowled back at the man, knowing full well it was just a part of the rough atmosphere that came with a desert. "I will take a large portion of what ever scraps you have. I'll pay 33 Col for the bunch." The butcher nodded and prepared a bag for Nathan, throwing a bit of everything that would not be sold into it. After the bag was rather full the butcher turned to Nathan and handed him the bag. Nathan took the bag, sending it to his inventory, and paid the promised 33 Col to complete the transaction. Now with some bait he could move onto the real quest. Nathan turned on his heels and headed towards the edge of the town and into the desert.

-33 Col +1 Bag of Bait 

Edited May 31, 2016 by Creius

[Creius 0]

Nathan walked out of the town and into the desert and looked upon the barren landscape that few creatures called home. Even man had found no convenient way to survive the desert, it just devoured anything. With a sigh Nathan pushed onwards, not letting himself reflect on anything. He was only here for one reason and one reason only, to get a pet to have around. Nathan began the long trek that would take him to El Perdido where he hoped to find his pet. As he walked Nathan looked around and hoped beyond hope that there would be something to harvest in this land but knew that the probability was slim. It was only after a few minutes that he realized searching would be fruitless. No plant that he wanted to use in his work would live in such an ecosystem. Thus Nathan resigned himself to a long trek with little to nothing to do besides think to himself with the sun beating down insistently.

[Creius 0]

Nathan found that he was greatly disliking simply thinking to himself. After he had confronted his past in the quest <<Calming the Soul>> he had troubling thoughts. His mind always reflected on how the final ghost had prophesied his fall back to what he used to be and that scared him. He could not go back to that, would not allow it. He would fight with every fibre of his being to prevent it... However, the ghost had made it seem like fate. Nathan shook his head and simply could not believe himself. He was believing the words of a character made in a game about his destiny. Even the great Kayaba was not a prophet so he really should not let the words bother him. This game was made to kill and mess with people, it was innately evil and Nathan should keep that in mind. Still, there was that small part of him that held concerns over the words that the game had chosen... 

[Creius 0]

Shoving that train of thought as far back into his mind as he could Nathan kept walking forward, sweat heavy on his brow. He had forgotten how draining the sun was over all the years. It had been so long since he had felt such an intense heat. Even an artificial sun had the powers of sapping all the energy that a man could have and that was just amazing. Nathan wiped his brow and looked up, trying to gauge how far he had gone. It was hard to tell but however far it was most definitely not far enough. Lowering his head once more he started walking again, already feeling exhausted. He could not have been out here for more than a few minutes and already he felt like he was completely out of energy. This would not do at all. He shook his head and wiped his brow again and forced himself to go on. Consciously he took each step, walking deeper and deeper into the desert.

[Creius 0]

Nathan kept walking on, the ever-persistent sun beating down on his back the entire time. His mouth felt parched and his limbs felt weak and kept getting worse as time went on. He was not entirely sure how long he could last out here in the full sun and he had yet to even make it to El Perdido yet. Already he was thinking about how hard making progress through this desert was but he was not about to give up, no matter how hard it seemed. He was not going to fail just because he got a little thirsty. He accessed his inventory and took one of the waters he had gotten from the beginning of the game. He was already out of bread but the water he had made sure to ration out carefully but now was a perfect time to use it. He sipped it slowly, making sure to keep the skin sealed and in the shade of his body whenever possible. The water lessened some of the effects of the desert but the oppressive sun was still a mighty obstacle to overcome when it came to travelling across such an environment.

[Creius 0]

As time went on Nathan's thoughts became a bit more distant from his present self. He began thinking about the real world and his life there. At the moment there was nothing special about it. He was just the average kid living an average life. He was intelligent but did not excel at school, preferring home projects over what ever work they gave at school. He especially liked anything involving plan making. That was the area where he enjoyed himself the most. He had always been able to design a plan and put it into action, making sure it succeeded. That was what had made him such a valuable asset back in his old country. Quickly he turned his thoughts away from there but it was hard to derail the track completely whenever there was nothing better to do than think about such things. The sun quickly wore away at the barriers he had thrown up to try and avoid that subject, weakening his resolve ever so slightly. These were just the effects of the atmosphere though, it was hard to stay strong in any way.

[Creius 0]

Nathan had used to live in a desert very much like this. It was scorching hot during the day and then at night you forgot the heat as the freezing cold began attacking your body. It was a harsh environment that built harsh people. That was why he had come out here, he wanted a memoir to the resilience of his home land. Something that would represent well his early years, which had shaped him most. He figured that the familiar he wanted most would be a scorpion. Something small that he could take around with him as a reminder of his past. He knew he had to confront that part of his life, even if he did not want to, and he was sure that would be a nice way of easing into it. He had to make it to El Perdido first though and find this scorpion before he could tame it. With this thought Nathan buckled down, finishing off that last bit off water, and began jogging.

[Creius 0]

Nathan jogged down the road quickly, not wanting to waste anymore time. Time wasted just let him think about things that he really did not want to. While he jogged he was truly able to focus on what he needed to, such as how to capture this scorpion. He had never really tried taming anything, not even a pet. He was so desperate for some sort of company though, and humans would not do, that he was willing to seek out said company on his own and make it his. As his breathing became more heavy, the sun bringing fatigue faster than usual, he planned out what he could do. Maybe set out so bait right in front of him and offer himself to the scorpion? A trust test might work for bringing the scorpion close to him. Then he would just have to keep trying to feed it until it just accepted him. There was not much of a plan there but it was better than nothing he figured.

[Creius 0]

At last, after quite a bit of jogging and consuming of water, Nathan reached El Perdido. He could tell it was the large expanse of desert because of how empty it was. Even for a desert it looked... Dead. There was no sign of life besides the occasional cactus that dotted across the landscape. It was just sand dune after sand dune. Nathan knew though that there was an entire ecosystem below the sand where it was cooler and much easier to survive. Nathan began walking through the empty expanse, scanning the endless sand for any signs of a scorpion nest of some of some sort that he could bait a small scorpion out of. The sun had only grown hotter as time had gone on and now it was insufferable, making Nathan's life worse as he searched for a small companion to claim as his own. He persisted though, not letting himself have come that far only to fall short.

[Creius 0]

As Nathan stumbled through the endless dunes in search of a nest that he could use the sun finally passed its apex in the sky, now falling. Time was running out to where Nathan could search before it would be too dangerous. He might be stronger but he did not want to test his mettle against enemies a few floors ahead of what he knew he could take. That put too much up in the air. So Nathan hurried his searching, scanning every square centimetre of sand that he could while moving at such a brisk pace. He noticed a few holes in the ground but guessed them to be homes to snakes and the sort so he passed by him. Rather he looked for rocks laying within the sand since those were most likely to be the shadow shelter of the critters during the high noon hours. He checked them carefully, not wanting to test the possibility of them having powerful poison as they did in real life. He must be insane for wanting one of these things but he did and he was going to get one, one way or another.

[Creius 0]

The sun continued to fall and the desert was already cooling off significantly compared to the high noon heat. No longer did Nathan have to continually wipe his brow so he could see past the sweat. While this might seem like a good thing Nathan was dreading the coming night. He wanted to be well away from here when the predators came out to feast, knowing he would have difficulty fighting at this level. His searching became quicker, more and more land being covered by it. Finally he came across a promising rock, there was obviously life beneath it and he just hoped it was scorpions. He unsheathed Bloodletter and used the tip of the blade to flip the rock over. Sure enough an entire swarm of scorpions ran out, scattering in the dying light. Nathan smiled as they reestablished a home under the overturned rock. The easy part was done, finding the small critters. Now came the hard part, figuring out how to keep one without getting killed.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Creius

[Creius 0]

Nathan walked a few metres away from the rock and sat down on the sand, amazed at how much it was cooling off already. He knew it cooled off quickly but it still amazed him that something that had been so hot could get so cold. He accessed his inventory and grabbed the bag of scraps and took a bit, setting them out in front of him. He just hoped that the scraps seemed like something the scorpions would eat, he had no idea what the meat actually was. With the bait set out Nathan sat back and relaxed, intent on waiting however long it would require for one of the critters to crawl out from beneath that rock and become his little pet. Looking up at the falling sun he sighed softly, hopefully this would not take too long.  He really was running out of time.

[Creius 0]

It was taking quite a while but Nathan understood why. It was still rather hot out, too hot for anything to go hunting yet. In fact, it was still hot enough that he grabbed another water and slowly sipped it down, doing his best to make it last. He looked over at the pile of scraps, glad to see they had yet to be touched without his knowing. After inspecting the pile of scraps he looked up at the sun and saw that it had fallen a considerable amount. It would not be too long before the smaller predators went out and began hunting to try and get food before the larger animals started their hunt for the night. That was the fact that Nathan was banking on, the fact that he would get one of the smaller scorpions while they were coming out for the early hunt. That was still a bit off from now though since the sun was still just a little too high for the heat to dissipate completely and allow for safe hunting.

[Creius 0]

A little bit later Nathan could feel the significant change in temperature. It was cool enough that he believed himself safe to sit there without drinking water constantly. That of course meant that other things could come out without fear of dehydration now too. The early hunt would soon begin. He picked himself up and looked over at the rock that he had overturned and stared at it intently. His eyes did not move from the rock for a few seconds and he was rewarded. He saw a slight movement and then another and sure enough, the scorpions were leaving the rock to go get food. Nathan watched as they meandered about and saw one in particular, probably the alpha male of the small flock since it was around the size of his hand and much bigger than the others, take notice of the pile of scraps. It moved slowly towards Nathan's bait and began inspecting the food. Nathan slowly scooted forward, closer to the scorpion, and prepared to reach out for it.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Creius

[Creius 0]

ID#60073   LD:3   Not Interested

Nathan reached forward towards the scorpion but the scorpion just seemed to turn away from him. Nathan was utterly dismayed by this. "Oh no you don't!" Nathan took Bloodletter and blocked the scorpion's path with his blade, making it have to stay within a small radius of him. He had walked way too far too allow this. Screw any other predators that might come after him, he was getting this scorpion even if it was the last thing he did. He kept tracing circles around the scorpion, being careful not to damage the small thing at all. He just kept circling the scorpion around until it just did not move around so much and just stuck close to the pile of food.

Edited May 30, 2016 by Creius

[Creius 0]

The scorpion was still rather active, even if it remained away from Bloodletter. It scurried around on its legs back and forth as it tried to decide what to do. "I think I'm gonna name you Jason. He was a pretty awesome hero." Nathan reached forward, unable to help but talk to the object of his quest. That's what he wanted it for anyways, to talk to. He needed something else besides the persistent loneliness to occupy his time and he was still uncertain on how he felt about people so they were out of the option. "Though, he did die a pretty pathetic death. I would hate to be crushed by my own ship. That would be a pretty sucky way to go." Nathan began laughing, a whole bunch of tension releasing with the insane laughter. For months he had been struggling in this game all by himself and see where it had gotten him. He was sitting in the middle of a desert, almost on the point of time where the most dangerous predators would come out, and he was talking to an insect. He really must have snapped.

[Creius 0]

The scorpion decided to try and make another attempt at escaping and Nathan, now fearless with his recent snap, just reached over and grabbed the scorpion's tail. "Nope, you are staying right here until you decide to be my pet. Neither of us are going anywhere." Nathan then dropped the scorpion on the ground by the pile of bait. "Is that enough food for you? Here, let me get you some more." Nathan accessed his inventory and took the bag of scraps, dumping the remaining amount onto the pile and then discarding the bag, it dissolving into pixels. With a nod Nathan watched the scorpion as it climbed the mountain of food and took a nibble. That was some progress, at least it was not running away anymore. "Though, what idiot would just give up free food?" The thought went through his head and he realized once more just how insane he must be going. He needed some friends pretty bad.

[Creius 0]

Nathan poked at the scorpion, at which it reacted violently. It snapped at Nathan with its pincers and stabbed its tail forward, trying to poison Nathan. Quickly Nathan withdrew his hand and tsked at the pesky little bug. "No, no, no Jason. That is a bad scorpion. You don't poison me. I'm going to have to teach you some manners." Nathan sat there, just messing with the newly dubbed Jason the Scorpion. Now that he though about the name some more he found that he did not really like it. He would have to put a bit more thought into the name of his new pet. It had to be something epic and awesome that made people shiver in their boots. "The Greek heroes are pretty cool. I am sure one of them will have a fitting name for you, Jason."

[Creius 0]

The sun had now fallen quite a bit further, the land actually becoming a bit dark. It would not be long until the coyotes came out and started being a pester. Nathan cared little though. He was sitting there and playing with Jason, whose name was in question currently. Though, playing may more accurately be called torturing at the present moment. Nathan just kept messing with the large scorpion, not letting it really move anywhere from the pile of scraps. He would poke at its pincers, just asking for some trouble. The tail though he was still retaining enough sense not to prod at it unnecessarily. He did not have a death wish quite yet, a pinch he could probably survive but who knew how deadly that poison was in this game. 

[Creius 0]

Nathan sighed softly and lay on the cooling sand and looked at the scorpion upon its thrown of food. "You know, I have done so much by myself and I am starting to think it is affecting me. I mean, look at me! I am talking to a bloody scorpion! There is no way I possibly retain any sanity!" Nathan rolled onto his back and looked up at the darkening skies. The skies were a beautiful shade of pink and purple as day turned to night, right before twilight but still not quite day. This had been his favourite time of night back when he had lived in the desert. It was just so beautiful when you could see the stars but it was still bright enough to see your way around. He shivered slightly as the cold hit him and he rolled back over, looking at Jason the Scorpion.