[OP--NK-F2] Friendly Competition and Humble Dances

[Macradon 0]

Sitting in his room, Macradon looked through the inventory, looking for the different kinds of clothes he had, or the lack there of. "I've been walking way too much around in armor, I don't even need common clothes anymore ...  should probably get some, all these social events ..." he thought, looking through it all. He would don his uniform armor and would take his green and black robes and cover over his armor. It was quite the combination, but it was working. It looked less Frontline and more casual hunting. He would keep off his helmet as that would just make it more uniform and stern armor. He would try something new from now on, only using his sallet helmet against bosses, and having his face and hair exposed to everyone when it wasn't anything special. Looking at this event that would be on the 2nd floor, Macradon would walk out of the inn.

He would walk towards the first floor's plaza where he could access the warp plate. As he stood upon the middle of the plaza, Macradon would utter the words "Warp, floor 2". He would be engulfed in a bright blue light. Transported from one point to the other, Macradon would stand on the second floor's warp plaza and would walk out from the city asap. Getting out of the settlement, Macradon would head towards the event's placement. Looking for a mass of people at what seems to be like a good party, Macradon would go there. As he arrived, he would notice may familiar faces. Some that he has seen a lot of times and some he has seen a few times. Though what he was certain about, was that he knew a lot of the people present. He would walk over to the others and greet everyone he knew in one long sentence "Hey there, Rin, Itzal, Oikawa, Gotz, Bidie, Seul and Hirru. Nice to see you all" he said with a nod towards the person he mentioned. Nearly all of the names were the only ones present, which did seem like a big chunk of those he knew.

[Birdie 0]

As @Gotz revealed his name, the girl took a mental note and nodded in acknowledgement. "Gotz - got it. I understand how you feel, my shop is pretty much the only place where I can feel all my worries wash away. As for your store though, I can't say I've heard of it.. I'll have to come by some time and see what you have." She thought a for a moment, "Do you forge Rapiers by any chance? The one I have now is nice, but.. I think it's starting to blunt a little."

@Beatbox's words made sense to the bluenette; there wasn't any sense in entering a tournament if you didn't have a real chance of winning. Still, the event seemed as if it was all in good fun. She feigned any further comment on the contest, instead listening as he spoke to her again. "You were resting out in these fields? Aren't you scared that PK'er could come along and.. well, you know?" For the most part, she was too scared to step out into the wilderness on any floor higher than the first five or six. To know that somebody would calmly take a nap with the possibility of monsters nearby was intriguing, if not a little confusing to her.

[Lowenthal 0]

Lowenthal slid into the part. Rumour of a combat and dance tournament. Lowenthal had little interest in the fights, but the dancing! Now that was something he could sink his teeth into. He had already gotten a song picked out from a performer, and a new set of clothing. As Lowenthal slid into place, he lost his footing and tumbeled over. "Damn shoes, gotta get used to them." Lowenthal wasn't wearing his normal combat gear this time, he had gone ahead and made himself a nice set of dancing gear just for the event. Standing up, and brushing the dust from his jacket he could see many faces that he recognized, and some he couldn't. He placed his hand behind his head and took a quick walk around, a large smile beaming across his face.

[Itzal 0]

Itzal paused as he noticed players approaching and watched the crowd grow at an incredible rate.  When he noticed Oikawa in the distance, Macrodon, and several other players he laughed aloud.  "Oh man never mind!  I can't enter the contest now, I'd get pwned!"  He shook his head and although he hated to admit it, it was true.  Until he reached a much greater level he would end up being destroyed by players of Macrodon's level.  Hikoru had made that clear when he struck at Itzal from the shadows and nearly dealt over a quarter of his health, not to mention applying the status effects.  Itzal's build was meant for scouting, not combat.  So now that all these combat orientated players with high levels were approaching, he stood no chance.  The only option would end up being...  Dancing.  He shook his head.  The only reason he would dance would if it was with Kasier, and even then he needed to get some practice before dancing with her.  He didn't want to be a klutz when they had their first dance.  He noticed Beatbox and Birdie and waved at them with a smile.

[Beatbox 0]

Beatbox streached his arms and yawned again as Birdie asked him if he was worried if a PK'r would get him with the resting that he does, he grinned and told her "Honestly with the progression that I have seen with this game, I am sure that with what I want to do I'll be killed either which way... so in all honesty I'm not worried about death right now, but it sure would suck if that did happen..." he said with a grin. He looked around again to see that a couple of other faces were present that he hadn't seen before. One was sitting over in the distance with some one else, a blacksmith that he had bought his sword from, and a guy with probably the best dancing clothing he has ever seen in this game to be honest. Beatbox's fox finally came back to Beatbox and jumped on his shoulder and rubbed his furry body against the side of his head. Beatbox smiled and started to pet his familiar "Hey Ocarina, where have you been buddy? Did you find something you liked?" he asked his familiar with a wide smile and a giggle.

[Seul 1]

His gaze shifted away from the crowd up toward Hirru before offering a smirk at the fellow knight. "Like I would pass up the chance to show off in some duels. But yeah, I suppose there isn't really a rush to get things started around here." He figured it was just to give other players the chance to show up and get settled first since explaining how things would work could be annoying if done multiple times. 

Macradon also made an appearance, which he responded to with a wave, as well as Lowenthal... Though he seemed to be more interested in getting his groove on than anything else based on his attire. Seul on the other hand wasn't that great when it came to dancing, so that portion of the event would remain foreign to him.

"You going to enter the tournament too, Hirru?" He would ask while turning his attention back to the hunter. 

Edited October 1, 2016 by Seul

[Hirru 0]

"Macradon!  Lowenthal!"

The hunter waved his leadership over before sitting down on the other side of Seul.  A few more had appeared for the event, but most seemed to be within the lower end of stats.  Though, one could not tell that easily without further knowledge, and that's one thing that the hunter didn't have.  He was hoping to gather some statistics from some of the lower tiered players, and follow their progress.  Some he knew, but had little info about, others were completely foreign to him.

Seul asked if he was going to participate, as well.  From the sound of it, Seul really was going to join in.  The hunter nodded before speaking,

"It's a high possibility that I will, but we may need to put some handicaps on for some of the lower leveled players."

He said before giving a little laugh.

"We may need to enact the 'Crimson Rules', so that the newer players can compete, as well."

Edited October 1, 2016 by Hirru

[Rin 0]

Rin gulped nervously as she began to spy even more players showing up that she recognized she hated being like this but she wanted to break free from the current crowds she looked over toward the food once more. She was feeling a bit awkward among the crowd being dressed as one of the few hostesses as she saw a rather strange masked figure who was now approaching the punch. Something was ominous about her as she now heard the groups all talking about how they were preparing for the tournament. She winced uncomfortably thinking about how people would want to fight to show off or because they enjoyed it. The only good news being that at least a few who saw the higher players were already backing down or giving up on it. Although when she saw Lowenthal dressed for the dancing competition she had some hope for this as well perhaps people were going to enjoy the competition she was helping set up as well.

She hummed happily now watching as the two who approached her grew more distracted by the crowd, waving rather shyly to @Itzal and @Arc as she now made her way over. Perhaps a drink was really what she needed as she began to grow closer to the mask figure who was having the same issue she had when she dressed up in her Katz costume she had created to disguise herself. This might have proved to be a conversation that she would enjoy to talk about, maybe she could learn something of concealing herself or feeling less ashamed in a Maid outfit.

"Umm hello there miss ... or if you are somehow a sir I guess ... "

Already she felt herself coming off on the wrong food as she didn't think it would be possible for her to be anything but female but she did know of some strange potions and the like.

@Opal

[Opal 0]

Opal turned her attention to the figure dressed in a maid's outfit? Under her mask she smirked and looked the girl up and down before she took a step backwards, somewhat in an focused state, "Is this that same girl from the dungeon on floor five? Hello." the woman said in respect to the female before her. She didn't say anything else but the tilt of her head was accompanied by examining her further.

"Are you dressed like that for a purpose?" Of course Opal was one to speak, she already looked plenty shady with this disguise on herself. At first glance and because of the possible nature of player killers and the rumors aplenty of how they dressed in cloaks and hoods to hide their faces, seemed more and more like a less than desirable idea she had fathomed. In respect, she was not here to kill anyone at least. But that didn't stop her from looking around and scoping out the competition. The woman before seemed rather nervous and fidgety as well. 

"You ok? You look like you might have a panic attack at any moment right now. This Punch is pretty good at least, perhaps a little moonshine will help relax you as well?" The woman moved to her inventory where a small silver flask appeared in her gloved hand. Taking a moment, she stepped forward and drained the contents into her own cup, before making another and handing it to the woman. "Drink up, you'll feel better. Cheers." With a light tap of her cup, Opal shifted her mask, the white Geisha paint along with the lime green lips appeared from underneath as she drank the tainted punch. 

"Alcohol makes everything taste better in this world. And the people less annoying." Opa's hand shifted once more over her mask and took a moment to look over her surroundings. "This get together has created quite a bit of a turn out. I wonder how things will play out from here. I heard there was a dancing competition as well. I am actually quite eager to see how that is planned out."

The woman shot the maid girl ( @Rin) a look and laughed beneath her mask, "I had yet to introduce myself. Excuse the disguise, if people knew that I was here...I'd probably end up creating a mess of the event. For now you can call me Lotus."  

Edited October 1, 2016 by Opal

[Ashrah 0]

Just as quickly as he'd met the two players, they dispersed. Well, that counts as the easiest social interaction I've ever experienced. He watched as the man, @Itzal moved away toward a group of players nearby, among whom were people he actually knew. His eyes flicked first to Beatbox, the man who  had accompanied him on a daunting test of courage into the tenth floor's wicked darkness, then...

Arc blinked several times as he noticed Birdie talking to the others, and he gulped. How should he approach the situation? He didn't want to make things awkward in front of other players, and well... he was already pretty bad in large groups.

He settled on joining them and listening, which he did at a slow walk. Itzal spoke up and greeted the other two, Beatbox and Birdie seemed to know the man from somewhere, and Arc felt a bit out of the loop. 

He was definitely a fifth wheel.

"Maybe the fighting will start soon," he hoped with a grumble as he finally joined them. His hand moved with obvious insecurity through his hair as he looked across the gathered players.

There were so many faces. Some he knew, others he didn't, but none of it spurred him to speak much. "Hey, folks," he muttered, almost unintelligibly in greeting. From the sound of things, they were all a part of some group or something.

And here he was, largely a solo player.

[Rin 0]

As the figure glanced over toward her she blinked a bit startled, she was a bit frightened by the geisha mask perhaps it was her own inner-self though she seemed comfortable around this masked stranger. Perhaps it was that attachment they had of concealing their identities to those that the others might have not normally understood or agreed with. She then looked down and covered her uniform rather flustered from realizing what she was asked for the purpose. A rather awkward mewl escaping her pursed lips as she shook her head back and forth repeatedly now as she was slowly forgetting to get herself a drink.

"N-no I'm not ... I mean I am, but it's not because I normally enjoy dressing like this see I'm not good in parties and t-this is definitely getting larger then I would normally be comfortable with. And I'm not comfortable wearing maid outfits. I-It's like a coming out of my shell experience I-I -"

She began to stammer and shake more not enjoying her attempted explanation, if she wasn't leaning into a full on panic attack she would have really wanted to know what classified as one as she was now shivering. She then hung her head down as she shook her head no that she wasn't ok when Opal now asked if she was. It was reassuring that at least the caterer's food and drinks were good. She then glanced back up hearing that she was offering her a drink that was a bit stronger than the ones that would be open to the public. The girl reached out hesitantly taking the supply she bit her bottom lip before nodding and glancing to the punch. What was the worse that could happen she just assumed with alcohol in her system she would just be liable to pass out or start seeming songs like other silly drunk people she witnessed.

The glass now being filled by her hand with first a ladle of punch and then the rest of the alcoholic content as she eyed it. She quickly snapped back her head with the drink and squealed out form the burn. Rin wasn't use to that sensation while drinking and now drooped over reaching a hand out to stabilize herself. Hopefully grabbing only onto Opal's arm in attempts to not collapse. This was the first time she drank and she already felt a bit odd as she shook her head now reaching the glass out to @Opal.

"A-another?"

[Birdie 0]

Birdie waved at Macradon as she heard him speak her name amongst others, her lips wearing a friendly smile.

"Hm, that's a pretty mellow way of thinking about it.." she responded to Beatbox's initial comment, though she stopped herself from going on - the girl could rant for days about why players should maintain their will to live. A cute little furball made its way over to the blonde, and she had to physically restrain herself to not go over and give it pets. "She's adorable - or uh, he? - it's cute either way! How long have you had it for?"

She returned the gesture to Itzal, waving over to the scout leader. "Hi Itzal!" she called out to him, unsure of whether he was engaged in conversation with another group or not. It was strange to see so many recognisable faces in one place - one stood out among the rest though.

Be calm Birdie - there's guildies around.

She looked over to the merc as he greeted a bunch of people, sending him a warm smile. "Hey Arc." The girl took a few steps towards the green eyed man, stopping just before she went to hug him once she realised he might not be fully comfortably with her whilst others were nearby. "Small world? It's great to see you again, I uh- I really enjoyed our time in Taft the other day."

Edited October 1, 2016 by Birdie

[Ivory Lotus 0]

Ivory happily skipped along on her way towards the dance competition/fighting tournament. Of course, her whole build was based around healing, so she wasnt going to participate in the fighting, and she had never really danced before, so she doubted that she would be able to do anything in the dance competition. Still, she wanted to meet new people, and maybe even see Onion-san again. She came upon the group a moment later and smiled happily, seeing the large crowd. She glanced around, looking for people she knew, and finally saw Onion-san. She made her way over to @Rin happily, waving. The young woman was chatting with someone. She smiled happily and hugged Rin enthusiastically. "Hello Onion-san!" She said, one of her cat ears twitching with excitement. She was so ecited to meet all of these new people who she would hopefully be working with in the near future. She couldnt wait to help them all.

[Opal 0]

Opal quirked a brow under her mask as the change of stature of the young woman before her. She seemed to wobble after drinking a bit of the alcoholic beverage that was mixed in her Punch, "Yeah, no. I think that will be enough for you. The point is to get a light buzz going so you are more open to others. It'll calm down the anxiety a bit and put the edge off. But getting trashed and wasted is not exactly what you should be doing, is it?" The woman gestured as her arm moved around to show off the many people who attended. 

"I think your limit is one drink for the day, haha. I remember being such a light weight back in the day. Frat parties change that pretty quick." The woman adjusted her mask accordingly, but was now running out of things to say. The woman before her was attempting to make it out into the 'real world' so to speak, and Opal exactly wasn't one for interactions, but she felt a duty to help this one out and get to mingle with some people. 

The woman noticed @Itzal, a player she had met at the Lakeside Event not too long ago. She respected the male, but was unsure if he truly continued to live that way of life he so deemed. Opal placed a hand on the woman's shoulder, " @Rin, was it? Yes. I remember who you are. You'll find out who I am soon enough. Come, let us do this socialize thing together. Its easier when you go into it with another." 

Almost as her hand touched Rin, there seemed to be an explosion of intimacy between two women. Opal took a moment to take a step back as the girls collided into one another. Saying not a word, Opal watched on as the two seemed to know each other at least decently well to be able to hug one another, though she could not see Rin's expression from this point of view. Opal sighed through her mask, "Wait. Did she just call you an Onion?" Confusion now settled in. 

[Kasier 0]

Kasier had been wandering around the second floor aimlessly. The day had been light for quite a while now but Kasier had searched the entirety of the first floor for any materials, which can be used by her only to fail at obtaining any at all. With a sigh, she slowly made her way to the second floor where there would surely be more materials waiting for her to grab since this floor was less inhabited by other players. Still, material gathering would be just as much of a challenge. As she made her way to the outskirts of the safe zone, she soon spotted a numerous amount of players grouped together, interacting with each other near a beautiful body of water surrounded by a sea of green and flowers. She had been here before, but the High Field of Crossing never failed to impress her no matter how many times that she had been here. Obviously, the players here were enjoying it just as much as she was. Kasier’s black hair flew in the wind as her ears twitched in curiosity. The day had been boring so far, but it seemed that something was interesting here… Interesting enough for her to enquire more about what was happening. Kasier groaned as she ran down the hill before seeing Itzal amongst the crowd. She would have definitely joined him but it seemed that he was currently occupied with interacting amongst other characters… It was to be expected though; she couldn’t expect him to always stay with her no matter where they go. With a sigh, she scanned the surrounding area. To her surprise, there were quite a variety of different players nearby, and it seemed that everyone was excited about something. What is happening here? She wandered, her eyes continuing to wander about the area.

[Chiana 0]

This wasn't really what she had in mind when she started out, a dance competition and a tournament were starting up in the middle of a flowery field. It disgusted the grey haired girl, even the hostess was dressed like a maid. She gagged from the sight of it as she now began to contemplate different scenery that could have been fitting for such tournaments. One in particular came to mind, the volcanic floor where a death royal could take place and the loser could act as the virgin sacrifice to be dropped into the volcano the only thing awaiting them was the melting warm of magma that would engulf those who proved to weak to move on in the rounds. Unfortunately she knew she was no match to almost anyone here minus the few exceptions to this rule. It appeared like a few lower levels were now taking part of this little event, probably spectators oppose to combatants. Most of the gamer groups weren't well known for their courage or dancing skill so she imagined that both of them would be quite boring to watch. Only the top players that showed up would prove to be of any worth here.

This was Chiana's time to find a possible recruit in helping her rise through the ranks. She needed someone willing to help her through some dungeons so she could eventually start back over and completing her own quests. She wanted every quest for her to be a major contributor to her victory or losses right now sadly she was no match even for the Drow that she had her sights upon. This gamed annoyed her to no end, she needed money for weapons and the only productive way was to fight monsters that would most likely slay her planting her upon the memorial of the weak. Her only options for death was to go out in a duel or to die from her own natural causes. The female grumbled uncomfortably with the truth. Even if she didn't have a death wish with the life style she took, her abuse of drugs and alcohol she would dig her own grave soon enough.

A rather hateful gaze now resting upon the scenery once more her heels dragging through the flowers to cleave the fresh soil and rip up the turf. The colors looked appeared like that of a painters pallet that was dropped upon a pristine carpet. Red, Yellow, Green, Purple? Any imaginable color appeared over this canvas as if she had just vomited an entire rainbow up after reaching another buzz. It was shocking for her to realize that she wasn't, it had been nearly six days since she had anything. No money meant no more abuse which was a disappointing thought to process. She was poise, her steps purposeful as each one was done to trample those budding flowers. "This gonn'a be a weird shindig now won't it." Speaking with a rather strange accent that she had developed from watching old western movies.

[Itzal 0]

OOC- guys I never said I walked away from you, don't put words in my mouth >.<

Itzal watched some players walk away and nobody responded to his sarcastic comment.  Just as well he thought, he sucked at jokes it seemed.  And besides, he didn't seem to be the best at social interaction.  Particularly with-  His thoughts were cut off as he spotted someone who made his heart jump.  His face lit up and smiled, waving and calling out to her before walking quickly up to her.  "Kasier!"  Still unsure of what he was 'supposed to do' as her boyfriend, he decided to give her a hug.  "How've you been?  And did you get the invite or just stumble onto the area?  A lot of people came so it's a bit crowded for my tastes but then again it's a pretty big event."  He recalled his thoughts on dancing earlier and how he would only do it with Kasier.  His cheeks reddened a little bit as he imagined them dancing with everyone else watching.  then he thought:  what dancing?  He had no clue how to dance and he was almost certain that if he tried he'd look like a complete klutz, idiot and everything.  He wasn't exactly up for that.  But then again with all these powerful players he stood no chance in the tourney.  So what else was there to do?  He decided that he would follow Kasier's lead today.

[Rin 0]

OOC: True but Rin walked over to the buffet table so. XP @Itzal

Rin winced seeing that the supply was cut off, it wasn't a bad thing either she already felt awkward she just hoped to forget that she was standing around this place though, that unfortunately wasn't going to happen as she now heard an enthusiastic familiar voice. The buzz that kicked in now shakily expelled as she remembered that nickname she received, an event that she regretted. Why on earth did she ever decided to try those onions that were growing just outside of the second floor village where she met her. Anything else she did could have been a cooler name or action to be nicknamed after oppose to the onion she was chewing upon. Glancing back she regretted those darn scallions now as she squeaked form being embraced by the enthusiastic cat girl whom she was acquainted with, she really wish she wasn't dressed like a maid. This was all Hakai's fault for buying the outfit and insisting that she try and host a party for the crowds that were now attending it.

First @Opal had planted a hand firmly upon her shoulder causing the red-faced girl to mewl and now she was being squeezed tightly by @Ivory Lotus whom still didn't seem to remember her name even after their flower picking. She squealed weakly and squirmed not feeling herself growing any less tense as she wondered how she always dragged attention to herself. An aspiring introvert who always found herself in the company of people who wanted to tap into her awkward little world. A nervous gaze now shooting between the girl who was insistent of being her friend and Opal who had wisely stated she shouldn't get wasted today. The entirety of her mind though was begging to just go comatosis though right now as she was squished with glee from the girl. Although something was strange, this masked vigilante somehow remembered her. Who did she know prior to this that would have dressed in this fashion.

Opal's confusion was well placed as no one else would probably know the real meaning of why she was being named Onion by the excited companion till the story was told.

"She s-saw me on the second floor a few days eating an onion ... and she keeps forgetting I guess that my name is Rin not Onion-san."

She softly murmured feeling flustered.

[Ashrah 0]

He listened to the conversation intently, as though he were seeking a point where making a comment wouldn't be considered a social faux pas; obviously, Arc had not seen one or was just incredibly bad at finding them. He was aware of weaknesses in enemy ranks and armor, but he couldn't find a way to interject himself into societal gatherings at all.

Then, she took a step toward him and he smiled calmly at @Birdie. Whether she noticed his discomfort with the situation and sought to ease it by  bringing him into the conversation with a cue, or she just wanted to talk to him, it didn't really matter too much one way or the other. Tobias was extremely thankful, and he mouthed the words 'thank you' so that she'd catch that fact.

When she said she'd enjoyed their date, his expression bloomed into something much brighter. "It's always nice to spend time with you, ma'am," he told her. "We'll have to go out again soon."

She had come halfway toward him and stopped, and he'd come the other half- a bit awkward when he realized it- and they were mere centimeters away from each other. His eyes blinked several times in rapid succession, and he let out a nervous chuckle. "Whoops," he said quickly, "looks like we had the same idea, then didn't follow through."

Arc put an arm around her in a warm embrace, nothing too excessively intimate, just to ensure the woman wouldn't feel out of place. After a moment, he released her and fell into step at her side. "So... I feel like I'm in the middle of a bunch of friends, and I'm the random friend of a friend."

His eyes moved between @Beatbox and @Itzal, and he wondered what he was missing. 

[Teayre 0]

Teayre could see Urburus in the distance as she trawled along the edge of one of the mountains. The pathway just up ahead. Stopping her mind begins to race. Images, flashing back. She keeps her hand on her weapon steeling herself just in case. Flicking her red hair over her shoulder the girl steps forwards as the sound of laughter reaches her ears. Her eyes went wide before narrowing again. Of course she had struck her father down, he was no longer here. She pressed onwards up the mountain stopping at the edge of the High Field of Crossing look out over the people who had arrived.

Several people she recognised. Itzal, Kasier. She’d helped them but not seen them in quite a long time. Macradon and Lowenthal were there from the Knights. Shrugging Teayre turns to leave but a flicker of blonde hair catches her eye. “Oikawa.” She murmurs quietly. Her eyes focused on a curious figure. “Well who are you?” She ponders whilst walking slowly towards the heavily clad leather armour. The red head was finally close enough to catch a voice. “Did she just call you an Onion?”

Smirking to herself Teayre looks at the other players. “Itzal, Kasier.” She says in greeting nodding to them. “You in the outfit.” Waving a hand towards the figure in leather. “Fancy a spin?” Her left hand pushed the tsuba of her wakazashi, exposing the blade from the saya. “Of course, I’ll go easy on you, wouldn’t want to kill you in front of the weak ones.”