[F1 PP] <<The First Few Lessons Are Free>>

[Vincent Cain 0]

Closed to Cordelia and Ray

 

"Alrighty now Vinnie..."  The young blonde mused to himself as he stood in the center of town.  "Where to get started on our graaaaaand adventure..."  He chewed his lower lip somewhat anxiously as he scanned the crowd.  Things had started to slow down around these parts, and a great deal of people had moved on to higher level floors.  Not Vincent, the pale skinned, blonde haired prettyboy had waited very patiently and watched from afar.  He'd been wary of the whole "Die in the game and you're dead for good" thing going on.  He couldn't PROVE it was true, but he also couldn't DISPROVE it either, and with his life on the line he didn't really care to find that one out.  So when a bunch of idiots went running out to the boar slaughter only to end up being boar fodder, well...Vince was glad he'd stayed his hand.  But now...

Well, Vince had perhaps stayed his hand too long.  He'd gotten complacent to just sit around and bullshit with people, relying on handouts from other people and running the occasional oddjob on higher floors as a gopher for other people.  He'd let himself get caught up in watching their stories unfold, and not his own.  But that was all going to change!  Right Now in fact!  He held his head up high and donned his oh so usual cocksure grin as he cracked his neck.  

"Oh right" A though dons on him as he quickly opened up his menu. "The old man's quest" he muttered with a sagelike nod. "The Quest given to me by the old man" He paused for a moment, hovering his finger over the UI to look over the details again.  "The Old man gave me that quest so that I...could do it for him."  He glared down at his stubborn fingers that refused to press the button.   "I guess...that is as good as a place to start as any unless...oh damn look at the time!  It's almost noon!  I should get lunch first before I go out to the woods and look for those quest materials, for that quest, the one the old man gave me..."

He grimaced a bit as he stared uselessly at his feet.  To be honest, the idea of taking this leap out there terrified him, and he'd seen the monument of life.  Countless people had died to boars, okay maybe not THAT many but there were at least two!  He didn't want to make a third....

"Common Vince, it's just a fetch quest..." he slapped his face as he looked to the town outskirts.  "How hard can it be?"

Edited February 27, 2020 by Vincent Cain

[Cordelia 0]

"You look like you're having a mid-life crisis," the platinum-haired girl commented as she sipped on a small cup of coffee. Honestly, she shouldn't be surprised at this point. She was pretty sure that most of the people who still resided in the Town of Beginnings were on the verge of insanity, and honestly, if she was still living here, she would already be bat[doo-doo] insane, especially after more than two years of being stuck here. 

"And are you talking about the Tutorial questline?" She asked, transferring her cup into her inventory as she tilted her head curiously. "First Few Lessons are Free or something like that?" Surprisingly, she had never done that quest before. Maybe it was because it seemed like an absolute bother or that she didn't want to be coddled by NPCs like a child. Or she just forgot about it, that too. 

Yeah, she probably just forgot about it.

She probably should've done it. Apparently, it had given a bunch of experience to newbie players, which was something she desperately needed right now, but too bad that she had exceeded the level cap for the quest. Too bad.

[Vincent Cain 0]

Vince's eyes shot to the silver haired woman like sapphire bullets, a slight frown forming on his lips.  He'd been so caught up in his own pity party and self loathing to realize he'd been putting on a show for all to see, Emperor's New Groove memes and all.  Something about her looked familiar, but he couldn't quite place it.  Perhaps he'd seen her before?  Vince had made a habit of people watching so chances are he might have seen her somewhere, after all he had a thing for pretty girls.

"More like an end of life crisis, but yeah."  he quipped back coolly.  "Figured I'd give this whole uh, questing thing a shot, but the whole uh...monster thing is a little scary..." He nervously ran his right hand through his blonde mane and assessed the woman casually.  Looking at stats was kinda tricky since the whole frickin HUD moved with your vision, but he was pretty sure he could see her level...oh.

Oh my.

"I don't suppose I could...convince you to help me out a bit?  I'm a super low level but I swear I'll pay back the favor with dividends when I catch up." He paused, realizing he had perhaps broken the most sacred of social faux pas, "Oh, but where are my manners.  My name is Vincent Cain, a pleasure to meet you ma'am."  He didn't care if their names might be hovering over their heads or whatever, manners were manners.  

[Rayleigh 0]

The ping of an incoming message shot Rayleigh out of her dream and into reality. After a fleeting attempt to bring Hugh Jackman back, the brunette grumbled obscenities into her pillow. "Someone is about to die," she snarled, rolling over to stare at the ceiling of the tiny room. With a a flick of her wrist, Ray summoned her HUD, blinking back sleep before squinting against the bright light.

Quote

To: Rayleigh

I'M GOING ON AN ADVENTURE RAY!

From: Vincent Cain

"No, no, no." The young woman's face hardened as she quickly blasted back a reply.

Quote

To: Vincent Cain

No you aren't.

From: Rayleigh

Then another.

Quote

To: Vincent Cain

STAY WHERE YOU ARE. I'll be right there.

From: Rayleigh

Like a bullet from a gun, Ray shot from her bed. She equipped her cargo pants and t-shirt even as she burst out the door and into the hallway of the inn.

"Miss, is there something I might help you with?" The NPC inquired as Rayleigh tore down the steps and across the tavern.

"Nope," came Ray's easy answer. "Just an idiot being an idiot."

If the barkeep had a response, Rayleigh missed it as she shouldered her way through the front door and exploded into the warm sunlight. Her combat boots pounded the sidewalk as block after block blew by. The cheery storefronts blurred as tunnel vision took hold. She could practically see Vince waving a sword in the air, giving a speech to make a Paladin proud, then throwing himself at a boss. That was so like him. And while she wouldn't admit it to him, she really didn't want to lose the only friend she had in Aincrad.

Cheeks flushed, chest tight, Ray spotted him across the street. "Vince," she roared, a lion sound from a mousy woman. "What are you doing?"

[Cordelia 0]

"Yeah, that's reasonable," she grinned, placing her knuckles on her hips. If she had a nickel for everytime she heard something even remotely close to that, she'd be rich! Well, even more rich. "Don't worry though, it happens to everyone," she reassured him. 

Cordelia blinked before shaking her head with a chuckle. "There's no need for that. I'm happy to help you for free," she chimed, giving him a warm smile. Plus, she wasn't really sure if she actually needed something at the moment. She was pretty set and set as of right now.

"Ah, pleasure to meet you as well. I'm Cordelia," she exclaimed.

The player nearly jumped out of her pants as someone nearby shouted loud. And I mean loud. She slowly turned her head to an unfamiliar women with a sweat-dropped. "Ah, someone you know, I presume?" She asked Vince before turning to give the stranger a nervous smile and timid wave. 

[Vincent Cain 0]

Vince yelped slightly as the roar filled the air.  Monsters?  Already?  This far in town?  Nope, it was even worse.  Ray.

What had he done this time?  His mind raced through all of the past interactions he'd had with her in the past twenty four hours, searching frantically for what could have possibly set her off, completely ignoring the blinking icon tucked away at the bottom of his HUD.  "Is this about what I said about that one pair of pants?  Because I swear it was with a PH, not an F."  An age old adage rang through his head, something about shovels...? And how you could beat them over the head with it?  "But where are my manners!  This is Rayleigh Aston, my best friend in the whole world!"  Vince motioned to the rather angry looking brunette across the street.  "And this is Cordelia!"  Vince absentmindedly grabbed Cordelia's hand and dragged her along with him as he strut across the street to join the Brunette, taking her hand and quickly matching them together in a handshake.  

"And we're now a party!" He added with a flourish as he worked through his HUD at a breakneck speed to shoot them both a party invite.  "Because we're going on an adventure!"  Any trace of doubt that had once been lingering in his heart had melted away in a matter of seconds, all that remained was a sunshiney ball of charisma of humor.  

[Rayleigh 0]

Ray scowled at Vincent as he scampered across the road, dragging another player along by the hand. No, not just another player. A beautiful player of the female variety. Eyeing the runway-ready woman, Ray felt herself tense. But why? Was that jealousy? Disgusting.

Hearing him refer to her as his best friend did soften the blow, and she slammed the door on the friendzone train of thought before she could start over-analyzing. It was far easier to build up her walls, donning emotional armor before proceeding. "I never asked you for your opinion of my pants," she growled back, rolling her eyes before settling them on Vincent's flushed, cheery face. "You just wanted to look at my ass and give your feedback, because you're a pervert."

Knowing the introductions were a necessary step, the brunette looked at the bombshell. Looked up at her. F*ck, she's tall too? Of course she's tall. The tiny woman's jaw worked, green eyes hardening to emeralds before she jutted up her chin. "Hi," was her only reply to Cordelia. She could have done better, if she'd put her mind to it. But she didn't.

Finally, Vince's words registered, and Rayleigh turned back to her friend. "Tell me what this adventure is."

Edited March 2, 2020 by Rayleigh

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia deadpanned. These two seemed like an. . . interesting pair.

"Oop," she exclaimed as she was forcefully dragged over to the storm. Here I go again. Her hands clasped around the strangers before she nodded to her. "Rayleigh, was it? Pleasure," she said simply, forcing a small smile. She had a sense that she wasn't very. . . liked by this one. 

She retracted her hand from Rayleigh's and sniffed. "Yay. Adventure." Fun. Exciting. An unexplainable emotion. 

Or was that dread and fear?

She gave the girl beside her a side glance and inaudibly sighed. Today was going to bumpy, no doubt. She honestly wasn't sure what kind of mess she had gotten herself into today. Maybe this is what she got for helping lower levels. 

"Right, this is Pacco, by the way," she exclaimed, gesturing her hand to her crow familiar. "He doesn't talk much. You'll probably forget he's even there," she shrugged.

[Vincent Cain 0]

"Wow, I didn't even see the bird if I'm being honest."  Vince exclaimed as hooked an arm around Ray's shoulders in a good ole fashioned christian side-hug.  If he had noticed any of the one sided tension between the two he ignored it as he began to spin his yarn with a practiced level of showmanship to it.  "Okay, so picture this right?  I wake up and I have my breakfast, you know, the usual.  Shitty ass oatmeal and buttered toast because I'm broke, so I'm thinking to myself that I need to go mosey on up to the higher floors and see if someone needs a gopher to do some grunt work or something, and then it hits me!  We're in an MMO!  The game PRINTS money!  All I have to do is grow the balls to actually play the darn thing.  So I decide to put my ear to the ground and sniff out how exactly one manages to get started in this game without getting killed and lo and behold I find the HOLY GRAIL!  A beginners quest that supposedly has no combat, teaches you the basics of some crafting, AND GIVES SICK STARTING LOOT!"  Vince's grin grew wider with each little bullet point on his list.  "So I go talk to this pleasant old man and all we have to go do for the first step is gather up some materials in the forest, I need uh..."  his eyes shot down to the quest log.

"Five T1 materials?  Whatever that means."  He shook his head and shot Ray a grin.  "Comeon!  With you here we can both get our start at the same time!  Vince and Ray!  The new power duo that'll SHOOT to the top and start chopping down floor bosses like Logging companies chop trees in the amazon!  We'll be LEGENDARY."

[Rayleigh 0]

Yeah, that sounded like him.

"No combat?" Ray echoed, eyes narrowing to slits as she turned the concept over in her mind. If there was no fighting, that meant no risk of death, right? Honestly, it sounded a little too good to be true. But as someone with absolutely no MMO experience, the woman had no way of knowing if these gathering quests were commonplace. She'd have to ask Vince, but not now. No use looking stupid in front of Cordelia.

After another moment's pause, Rayleigh nodded. "Alright, fine. I'll go with you, and help you pick up the T1 materials." The words were clunky on her tongue, evidence that she had no idea what a 'T1 material' was. But that hardly mattered, as she'd already committed herself to the quest. She would have to figure it out as she went, which was, fortunately, one of Ray's strengths. With plans A through Z, she was always able to problem solve her way out of a pinch. That was, if Vince hadn't already charmed their way out of it. That was his superpower. 

With that in mind, she couldn't help the small smile from forming as she studied her charismatic counterpart. He sure was a goofy one. "Deforestation reference. Cute."

[Cordelia 0]

Cordelia chuckled to herself as she watched Vince ramble on. These two were an interesting pair indeed. She wondered if they were friends back in the real world or something like that. 

"I haven't done the quest myself but I heard it's relatively simple," Cordelia said, "I can just accompany you two, perhaps like a bodyguard?" She asked, her head cocking to the side. "It can be dangerous out there, you never know what might happen," she shrugged. 

The girl's purple-gray tinted eyes looked back and forth between the two players and she couldn't help but think about how they reminded her of Bahr and Lessa. Hm, hm, hm. Was. . . what was it called again? A third wheel? Was she being a third wheel? Was. . . was that a good thing? Possibly. Not. 

"Alright, should we head out then?" She asked, gesturing her head over to the town's exit that wasn't too far away.

[Vincent Cain 0]

"Alright then, LETS [censored] GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" 

Vince took what could only be considered a power stance as he boldly pointed towards the town exit and grinned.  Any doubt or hesitation gone, not even an echo of it playing across his face.  Instead it'd been blasted to oblivion with a smile that could blind if you looked at it for too long.  He took one exaggerated strut forward, untangling himself from Ray with the practiced grace of a man who knew how to navigate the most wholesome of sidehugs before his hands shot out like snakes, one snagging Ray's hand and the other Cordelia's as the second strut came with a practiced speed.  The third strut was way too fast for his own good, and soon he was barreling off into the distance like a Labrador after the most pristine of tennis balls.  His arms dangled behind him in perhaps the friendlies of "Naruto" runs as he dragged his two female compatriots alone with extreme speed.  

This is it. He thought to himself.  This is the start of my story, how Vincent Cain became the coolest man to ever grace an MMO ever.  

It took a matter of moments, but soon they were out of the town of beginnings, and just after that they were the farthest Vince had ever set foot outside of a town, and all he could do is pause and turn to look back to his companions, and back at the town in distance.  This was it, one more step and he really was on his way...

 

 

[Rayleigh 0]

I don't need your pity-help. The words sprang forward, but she clenched her jaw before they could escape. The truth of the matter was they did need help, especially with someone as carefree and daring as Vincent. He would happily throw himself off a cliff if there was "fun to be had," and in her current state, Ray just wasn't prepared to stop him. Or catch him, whichever way it went. "Yeah, sure," she finally answered, inclining her head in a small nod. "The help will be nice."

The words had hardly left her lips before Vincent snagged her hand, squeezing it fiercely with his own. She really should have seen it coming. The brilliant hundred-watt smile blazed as brightly as a green light on a race track. But she still let out a small yip of startled surprise as he yanked her off her feet. As she was clumsy to begin with, it took a few steps for her to get her feet beneath her. Until, then, she flapped like a rag-doll as the surprisingly strong man towed her toward the edge of the safe zone.

"He does this kind of thing a lot," she told Cordelia, slightly winded by the jarring transition. Besides, her short legs really had to pump in order to keep up with the blonde. Something caught her eye, and she thought it might have been one of those mats she was looking for. But as she squinted, she realized it was nothing at all. Good thing I didn't say anything.

Spoiler

 ID# 137443 results: Battle: 8 Craft: 5 Loot: 5 MOB: 9

No mat found.

 

[Cordelia 0]

"Alright," Cordelia beamed, "I'll do my best to help you, then."

She wasn't sure if she particularly liked this girl or not. She was pretty sure that Rayleigh was having the same kind of dilemma. Maybe she was just naturally. . . naturall. . . unapproachable? Cordelia couldn't really think of the word on the top of her head but she was pretty sure it was something along the lines of that.

She looked over to Vincent Caine. He seemed nice enough, maybe it was worth keeping ties with him, even if it did come in a package deal with Rayleigh. 

"I'm sure you two will be safe anyway-- oof!" She exclaimed, already being dragged away by the overecentric man again. Cordelia flopped against the ground in confusion for a solid second before she eventually regained her posture. "Thanks for the boost or something," she muttered quietly as her steps soon seemed to match up in his.

She looked over to Rayleigh and replied with a small shrug. "I wouldn't say this is the first time someone has done something similar to this to me," she replied back, and amused expression on her face.

[Vincent Cain 0]

Spoiler

ID# 138248 
 Battle: 7
Craft: 4
 Loot: 20
 MOB: 8
Ya boi found a t1 mat with his special eyes 

Vince turned to the other two, grin vanishing the moment he realized how rude he'd been.  He frowned a bit, his right hand shooting to scratch his head as he shook his head.  "My bad, I uh-" he paused to catch his words, his sapphire eyes darting away from their direct gaze and off to the distance as if to search for the right words to say off in the horizon.  "Got a little carried awa- oh would you look at that."  He might not have found words over in the distance, but he had found something cool to pick.  He took a handful of steps, bent over, and plucked a brilliant red flower.  He scanned a handful of tooltips and then nodded.  "Found one!"  He beamed and turned to the other two to display his prize before banishing it to the aether that was his inventory.  

"That being said, if I ever get too wound up you can always tell me to calm down...or give me a light punch"  his eyes shot to Ray as he resisted the urge to rub his arm from the phantom pain of her constant arm slugging.  A light breeze blew through, causing the grass to dance and rustle playfully.  He found himself brushing errant locks of blonde hair back into place as he spoke again.  "Should we spread out to cover more ground?  Or perhaps stay together to have many eyes look over one spot so we cannot possibly miss something?"  

Edited March 19, 2020 by Vincent Cain