[SP- F8] A Natural Begining

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

  The sounds of a near-by creek trickled while surrounding birds called out to each other, Kai felt at ease in the 8th floor's forest as she continued her stroll for ingredients. She pondered how such a pretty setting could be a part of a mad man's world bent on killing innocent players, then decided such dark thoughts could be best saved for later when she spotted a patch of plants surrounding a massive tree trunk. As she plucked the leafs off the stems fond memories came to mind of her childhood friend and the times they'd spent at the neighborhood park. A drop of water fell on her hand causing her to realize she'd been crying. "Damn" Kai rubbed the tears away and went back to work. She disliked crying when she didn't have to and especially when she was busy, satisfied with the number of herbs gathered she continues down a path. "Ryuji, would you please not pop up into my thoughts for no good reason? I'm trying to work here and get back to you and everyone else as fast as I can!"  Echoes of her voice bounce through the trees and Kai let out a sigh. She missed her family and friends but Ryuji most of all. Using the ache in her heart, Kai pushed forward

ID: 93913  LD: 9(Nothing) 

Edited January 15, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

  Kai let out a yawn, she had gotten up early for her venture today and forgot how she wasn't much of a morning person. For school, Ryuji would get her up with just enough time to throw on clothes and run to class. Kai would always bark at him for not waking her up earlier for breakfast but he'd turn around with "If you want time to eat you should wake yourself up" this response made her grumpy but she’d shut up because of how right he was.

  ‘He was right’ Kai thought as she made her way over a fallen tree. She continued following a creek and kept an eye out for promising looking plants. The thought only brought up more memories of her best friend. After they had graduated Ryuji became distant, afraid she'd done something wrong to anger him Kai tried to give him his space. It took Kai several months before she broke down in tears in front of him asking for forgiveness for whatever she did.

ID: 93936  LD: 7(Nothing)

Edited January 15, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

The reunion was a little awkward at first but Ryuji let her in to try and calm her down. His response was serious and to the point “I haven't been avoiding you. I've been working a second job to help pay for college.” Shame washed over her and a flood of apologies came after. As a means to make up for her blunder, she’d made it her goal to buy the hottest game on the market. It took lots of convincing to her parents to let her stay home during the holidays so she could work up enough money and connections to get a single copy of SAO only to get herself locked inside. 
 Just as Kai was about to dismiss a patch of grass she caught a glimpse of color and made her way to the clearing. With closer inspection, she could tell the plant had to be something useful. Or Dangerous. In a squatting position, Kai looked the flower petals over. They gave off an icy blue color that just tempted Kai to pick it. Without any more thought, she plucked the stem close to the roots as possible and dropped it into her inventory and went on her way back to the creek. 

ID: 93938 LD: 18(Materials Found)

Loots:

 1 Material
 

Edited January 12, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

As Kai continued her search she let her mind wander back to Ryuji. Even after a several month absence, they were able to pick right back up from where their friendship had left off. However, Kai could sense a little more was there 'was Ryuji being nicer to me so that I wouldn’t leave again?' This thought brought tears to her eyes. “And then I go and leave again. He’s really going to hate me now!” Due to a lack of vision, she was brought to a stop and she let her feelings pour out. Echoes of her wailing bounced from the trees and were then returned with the sounds of mobs that were closer than she liked. Not wanting to get into a fight Kai rubbed the tears from her eyes then quickened her pace. Once Kai felt safe she slowed back down and with a quick review of her surroundings, she had managed to separate herself from the creek. Kai let out an exhausted sigh "And not a flower in sight."

ID: 94101 LD: 5(Nothing)

Edited January 15, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

Kai took a deep breath. 'No need to panic, I just need to use my head' She closed her eyes hoping to be close enough to hear the creek. After a minute with nothing she gave up and looked for a different method.  “Guess I’ll have to climb up” Kai found a tree with short enough branches to reach and hoisted herself up. From the new perspective, Kai noticed a large and beautiful lake. The view was so pretty it lifted her spirits “I’m going to make it out of here alive. I’ll see them all again and give them my best apology.” Taking her eyes away from the pretty sight she was able to spot the creek just a few meters away. Kai took advantage of the high ground and looked for more flowers. With no such luck, Kai took note of the direction she needed to go and half hazard swung down the branches. The drop was a little more than she anticipated and landed roughly on her rear end. 

ID: 94103 LD:8(Nothing)

Edited January 15, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

“Ouuuuuuuch” A stinging pain pulsed from her lower back to her tailbone causing Kai to wince as she stood up. With a quick glance at her health bar, Kai could tell she had lost a few points due to the fall. Deciding it wasn’t a significant amount she let it be and strolled back to the creek. “Could have been worse,” Kai recalled the time she had fractured her left leg, the pain was the worst she had ever experienced. During her recovery, Kai spent most her time playing video games with Ryuji. ‘Without him, I would've gone mad’ Her family was there to help but they tried too much and irritated her. ‘Love them to death but sometimes... ‘ Before her thought could be completed she spotted a delightful array of colors. Before she could get a closer look the colors seemed to flap away in a pretty cloud. The butterflies flew deeper into the foliage and out of sight. Guilt tugged at Kai's chest and she immediately felt bad for thinking of her family negatively when she so clearly missed them and their insanity.

ID:94457   LD: 9(Nothing)

Edited January 20, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

Thinking about her family made Kai’s heart heavy with guilt so she pushed the feelings into a small box in the back of her mind. Trying to distract herself from the sad thoughts Kai looked around desperately for any promising plants or flowers. When neither was in sight she became strongly interested in what she planned to do once out of the forest. ‘I think I heard that this floor has some pretty villages.’ When she had approached the portal to the eighth floor Kai caught bits and pieces of conversations. Some about simple visits and others about epic hunting trips through the forest. Ignoring the dangers of possible mob spawns Kai focused on the simple. ‘And where there are villages. There are shops and restaurants!’ Before Kai got herself too excited she opened up her inventory to check how much col she had and was pleasantly surprised that she hadn’t spent a single bit of her starter col. Just as she was about to close her inventory Kai felt a slippery surface under her foot. In an attempt to catch herself she threw her hands forward only managing to close the menu before falling into the creek she had been following.

ID:94522  LD:10(Nothing)

Edited January 22, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

 The cold water splashed Kai in the face. “Gah!" And for the second time, Kai was on her rear. She sat there for a little too long trying to process what had happened. Her pants absorbed the water, soaking from her legs up to her back. The front was dry, thank god, but as she stood she could already feel the weight of the soaked clothing pull down on her. “Gross.” Standing up caused Kai to cringe from the soggy feeling of her pants against her legs. With a huff, she opened her menu once more to her equipped outfit. Before pressing the unequip button Kai looked around the see if anyone happened to be near. Satisfied she removed her starter clothes and quickly re-equipped them. Dressed and dry Kai started to climb out of the small incline when she happened to lay her eyes on something in the creek's bed. It looked to be like a rock but different from the rest. In the water, it didn't look to be anything special but in her hand, the surface was smooth and in the center was a small ornate design carved into it. Curious how such a pretty stone wound up in a creek Kai looked for a description. The stone in question had no description but her menu informed her that it could be used as a mat. Pleased with her find Kai put the stone into her inventory and continued out of the creek.  

ID:94649   LD:20 (Materials found!)

Loots: 

1 Material 

Edited January 22, 2018 by Sweets Is Not Enough

[Sweets Is Not Enough 0]

~We gon' party like . . . Wow, fantastic baby ... Dance!~ The dip in the creek put Kai in a sour mood, so in an attempt to lift her spirits she began singing songs from her favorite playlist. She wasn’t confident in her vocal skills but that didn’t stop her from having fun. ~Click-clack botta bing, botta boom... bottle full o' Henny... Jennie~ Resighting the familiar lyrics accomplished more than just brightening up Kai’s mood. It also helped fill the silence of the forest. For Kai, being alone is nice as a way to recharge but she can't take being left with only her thoughts for too long. She blames this on her large family and being raised with such chaotic siblings. Still singing as she goes Kai made an effort to stop every few meters to look for anything that might be of use. 

ID:94716   LD: 7(Nothing)