[F1-PP] Relearning First Steps <First Lesson>

[Rebekah 0]

It had been a long time since Rebekah had visited the Town of Beginning. These days it was not as crowded as it once was. In the beginning, the streets was packed with players, but with about a quarter of the game cleared, and two thousand dead. It was not as lively as it once was. Still, that's not to say it was not busy.

Rebekah had been approach by a NPC who was asking for her for help. She thought to herself, I have never seen this man before, so it must be a brand new quest. She had kept detailed track of all the quests that she had taken since, and she distinctively never remembered this NPC.

As she sat there complementing whether or not to take the quest, she wondered, she was free today, and she was not planning on taking a quest, but it could be fun. There is always stuff that she can learn. Besides, she was too strong for this quest so it would not be very hard.

Maybe there was someone who is planning on joining her on this quest today.

Spoiler

Rebekah
Level 32 | P  6 | HP 660/660 | EN 84/84 | DMG: 22 | MIT: 48 | ACC: 4 | EVA: 1 | LD: 4
BH 36 | Survival +10% | Anti-freeze | EN -2

Equipment:
Laevateinn II (T4 RAPIER) 3 [DMG]
 Silver Necklace (T4 Trinket) 3 [ACC]
Unbroken (T4 Shield) 2 [MIT] [Anti-freeze]

Skills:
Weapon Skill (R5) | 7 [DMG]
Battle Healing (R5) | 5% (33 HP)
Searching (R4) | 4 [LD] 4 [SD]

Combat Masteries:
Evasion (R1) | 1 [EVA]

Add-ons:
Ferocity | 2 [DMG]
Precision | 1 [ACC]
Stamina | 2 [EN]

Extra:
Survival
Disguise
Meditation

Items:
N/A

Guild:
Trading Hall
Treasury | + 5% mobs + 10% treasure chest

Laurel Wreath - Earn 15% Bonus Col equivalent to Rebekah's EXP earned in Thread

 

Edited February 27, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

Cleo, a long-time patron of the Town of Beginnings, was out on a brisk jog through its sparsely populated streets. She jogged when something bothersome was on her mind or when she needed to blow off a little steam, as it always helped her cool off a little and organize her thoughts. It was a little bit of both in this case, and she decided to spice things up by taking a new route that led away from the center and toward the outer quadrants of the settlement.

By now, so long into the game, she was familiar with most parts of town and knew how to make her way back to the marketplace from just about anywhere. Feeling confident that she couldn't get herself lost, Cleo made the ballsy decision to split off into an alleyway which she was sure would lead her near to her favorite café.

Crash!

She turned into a blind corner at top speed and sprinted straight into a cabbage wagon, creating an explosion of beach ball-sized vegetables that wreaked havoc on the surrounding area, with one cabbage hurtling toward an unlucky bystander. The trader NPC yelled in exasperation at the chaos before venting his frustration on the offending player. "What do you think you're doing, ruining an old man's business!"

"Ow, wha?" Cleo lay, dazed, back bent out of shape by a cabbage beneath her.

@Rebekah

 

Stats and Equipment:

Spoiler

Them
Level 3 | HP 60/60 | EN 24/24 | DMG: 4 | MIT: 5 | ACC: 0 | EVA: 0 | LD: 0

Equipment:
Rusty Dagger (Vanity - Dagger)
Leather Duster (Vanity - Overall)
music box. (T1 - Perfect - Trinket) (Loot Die III)

Skills:
<<Dagger>> - R1 (4 SP)
<<Cloth Armor>> - R1 (4 SP)

 

Edited February 28, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah had heard a giant crash in the same street where she was talking with the NPC. Just as she turned, she saw a small green cabbage launched towards her. Rebekah did not have time to react or dodge. The cabbage had hit her directly on the head, but luckily it was just a cabbage. That could have been a lot worse. She was also inside the Town of Beginnings, so she would not be able to take damage. Even if she did take any damage, she suspected it would not have been a lot.

She looked over to the blue haired girl who had crashed. She did not see what had happened but based on the words the angry NPC was yelling at her, it seems like she had ran into the cart or she did not get out of the way in time. Rebekah walked over and decided to help her out. She reached out her hand to help her get up.

"Are you okay? I was standing over there and I heard a loud crash." Rebekah said and pointed at the NPC who she was about to accept the quest from. "Oh before I forget, my name is Rebekah."

@Them

[Them 0]

After verbally berating the player on the floor, the trader scrambled to recover his goods which were now scattered far and wide.

The clutz was still in a haze when she saw another player approach. The world was just coming back into focus for Cleo, and, noticing the offer of a helping hand from the woman, she stood up from the ground with help, proceeding to dust herself off. "I think so. I was running through an alley, and then there was this corner, and then after that... cabbages?" She stared at the chaos before her in confusion and, shaking her head, tried to dismiss it.

"Sorry, this is so embarrassing. It's nice to meet you, Rebekah. I'm Them, or Cleo. Most people call me Cleo. It's easier." She smiled awkwardly and then noticed the NPC that Rebekah was pointing to, who she knew to be Dorian, and realized that the woman was probably about to start the First Lessons questline. She figured she'd shoot her shot by asking to tag along— worst-case scenario, the woman would say no. "That's for Dorian's quests, right? You want a hand with them?"

@Rebekah

 

 

[Rebekah 0]

"Nice to meet you, Cleo. So his name is Dorian? I have never taken a quest from him before." Rebekah said. "Yes, I would like some help with that quest. Perhaps, you can give me some guidance on what to do." She never turn down anyone willing to accept her with a quest. No matter how simple the quest may be, it is always safer in a group.

Rebekah pressed a few buttons on her display and had sent Cleo a friend and party invite. She waited for her response before walking back to Dorian. Dorian began to explain the details of the quest. After listening to Dorian ramble on for what felt like a very long time, Rebekah saw her quest log update. It said to visit someone by the name of Zackariah in his alchemist shop. "Do you know where I can find Zackariah's shop?" Rebekah asked.

It had been a long time since she was wondering around on the first floor, so she would need some help trying to locate where she should go next. As they began walking towards Zackariah's shop, Rebekah turned to Cleo, "So, how did you come across the game Sword Art Online and decide to play it?"

@Them

[Them 0]

To Cleo's delight and utmost surprise, Rebekah accepted her help. "Cool! There's a spot outside of town with a lot of materials. I'll take you there." It was a safe assumption that the other player didn't require assistance, as most players were strong enough to take on anything the first-floor could throw at them, but she was more than happy to lend a hand.

The party invite came through, which she accepted, and she noticed Rebekah's name and health come into view. 

Instead of sitting through Dorian's dialogue about the loan and Zackariah, she busied herself by helping the cabbage trader clean up the cabbage catastrophe, which he seemed grateful for, and made it back to Rebekah before she'd asked about the alchemist's shop. As she recalled her attempt at the quest, she opened a map and pointed out a street nearby, setting off toward it. 

Rebekah had asked about how Cleo came to be into the game, to which she replied, "It was a gift from my dad." In the past, she would've been less willing to share, but they'd been stuck in the game for a long time now, and she had long enough to come to terms with the decisions that led her there. "There's not much else to it. I thought it was neat that you could immerse yourself in a whole new world, but I'm not a big game person, so I wasn't as excited about Sword Art Online as others." She laughed, "I didn't even leave the town plaza when I tried to log off. And then after that, well, you know what happened." She turned to Rebekah. "And you? What made you play it?" 

@Rebekah

[Rebekah 0]

Cleo had asked her about how did she end up joining this game. The truth was very simple, "My brother and I each got the game and nevergear to play. However, he was busy studying on the release day, so I decided to log in first and wait for him to join. However, I never know if he ended up coming or not." Rebekah said.

Rebekah continued, "I have searched everywhere for him but I have never been able to find him, so I assume nobody has ever seen him."

They were finally over the alchemist's shop. They quickly listen through to the dialogue with Zackariah, until he asks whether or not they want to be able to help him collect materials just outside the city. "Just five materials? Okay got it." Rebekah responds.

Rebekah then politely declines his offer of showing her how to collect materials.  Rebekah accepts the quests, and begins to leave the shop. She was glad that any materials would suffice and she would not have to be stuck hunting a specific material. She turns to Cleo, "Do you know the way out of the city?"

It had been ages since Rebekah been in this city, and Cleo seemed like she knew where she was going. She could have chosen to open a map but it was easier to ask someone than to figure out directions on a map.

@Them

[Them 0]

It was her first time learning about another player's origin story, of how they came to be in the game, and it was a somber one. To never know if your sibling was trapped inside the game with you, or worse, if they had already perished, had to potential to be torturous. She made as reassuring a smile as she could and responded, "I'm sure he's okay. The news about Sword Art Online would have traveled pretty quickly. He could have heard about it online before turning the game on."

Soon after, Rebekah had accepted the quest from Zackariah and asked if she knew the way out of town. Cleo nodded. "A few of 'em, yeah. The nearest exit's a couple of minutes away." And so, with the quest accepted, they set off toward the border of the city.

A little ways from the edge of town, Cleo led the two players to a stretch of path rife with bushes, flowers, piles of lumbers, and a whole host more of material sources. "This is where I gathered things for the quest." She spotted a fancy-looking fungus by a nearby tree in record time, almost certainly a material. Before reaching to grab it, when she searched for the quest in her active quest log, she realized that the <<The First Lesson>> was missing. "Huh? That's weird." Confused, she inquired with the other player. "I don't see the quest on my list thingy. Is that normal?"

@Rebekah

Edited March 1, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

As Rebekah followed Cleo out of the city, they quickly made it to where she had collected materials for The First Lessons a while ago. However, Cleo's quest was missing. "I think this is one of the few quests where you cannot repeat it." Rebekah said. She knew that this was rare, most quests will allow repeats for partial rewards as some of the major rewards can only be claimed once.

"Why don't you collect with me?" Rebekah suggested. It would not help speed up the quest, but Cleo would be able to keep whatever she has earned separate from her due to the parameters of the quest, or at least that was what she thought.

Since they were in the forest, Rebekah began to search for materials. She will leave the fungus tree for Cleo since she spotted that one first. She looked around, and found an apple with a sparkle. This was clearly a material that had dropped from the nearby apple tree. Rebekah picked it up and she has collected one out of her five material that she needed for this quest.

ID: 204435
LD = 11
+ 1 mat

@Them

Edited March 2, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

"Oh." Cleo drew her lips into a slight pout and dismissed the quest log menu. "Bummer." Upon Rebekah suggesting that she still look for materials anyway, she agreed and set her attention back to the funny-looking fungi. "Sure, might as well while we're out here." Being so confident that it was a material source, her disappointment was immeasurable upon reaching it and realizing that it was, indeed, just a plain old patch of fungus on a tree. She prodded it with a finger and, disappointingly, received naught but some slimy residue in return.

After shaking off the goo from her hand, she joined back up with Rebekah, who looked to have copped an apple. Cleo felt curious about most people she'd met, and the pink-haired player beside her was no exception. She initiated casually. "So, what brings you to the first floor? You get to know people's faces when you've stayed in the Town of Beginnings long enough, and I don't think I've seen yours before." There was the flip-side that she was wrong,  of course, and what she'd said had come off as smug arrogance, but it's a risk she willed to take.

ID: 204441
LD = 5+3
No mat

@Rebekah

Edited March 2, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

Cleo had tried collecting that fungus that she pointed out earlier, but she was unable to collect anything. "Perhaps, we got here a little too early?" She suggested. Rebekah had acknowledged that was a potential material that could be collected but it would not show up in her inventory.

"You are right. I do not visit the first floor often. This morning, I was visiting the monument of life. One of my friends passed away several years ago on this day, so I thought I would go visit the monument to pay my respects." Rebekah added. She remembered the day when his name disappeared from her friend's list one day. It was a surprise since he was one of the strongest friends she knew. That said, it was time to continue searching for materials. Rebekah spotted a few plants growing in the forest in front of her. She wondered if any of these materials could be collected, she would have to walk over there to find out.

"Do you live on the first floor?" Rebekah asked, as she tried to collect materials from the cluster of plants. She was unable to collect any of those materials.

ID: 204444
LD = 2
(failed)

1/5 Materials

@Them

Edited March 2, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

Immediately, she felt terrible for bringing the question up. "Oh," the Player started, searching for words to follow, but none came so quickly. "That's... I'm sorry again. That makes sense. It's important to remember the ones that helped us get here." Though she sympathized and knew that many other players had fallen, she was one of the lucky ones who hadn't experienced loss in SAO. It was an eventuality that everybody would lose somebody in the long run, and the thought terrified her, having never dealt with significant loss even before the game.

She busied herself by searching a nearby hollowed-out log. Thankfully, a material hid within, and she added another one to her inventory. When Rebekah posed another question, Cleo crawled out from the hollow tree. "Yup!" She pulled herself out and up from the log. "Since the start of the game. I'm one of those weirdos that never left." Making a smile at her self-deprecation, she followed up quickly. "Until recently, I mean. I'm thinking of taking this whole reality seriously now, trying to level up and help get us all out of here." She plopped down on top of the fallen log. "Are you one of them? What are they called? 'Front-liners'? We don't see a lot of those down here, I guess because they're so busy up top and all."

ID: 204450
LD = 19+3=22
(Success!)

+1 Material

@Rebekah

Edited March 2, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

"I do not see a problem with staying only on the first floor. Sometimes it is dangerous to wonder about on your own, and especially if the rumors are true about it being a death game, you do not want to take any risks." Rebekah said. "I also like to stay on the fourth floor, but I do take the occasional journey to visit another floor."

As they kept walking, Rebekah kept her eyes peeled for any materials that may spawn within her vicinity. "I was a frontliner, a very long time ago, seven years ago." Rebekah continued. "I did leave the frontlines after floor 12. However, I have recently started to train myself again. I have not reached the point where I am strong enough to return just yet, but I am getting there."

It had been seven years and the party had only cleared 15 floors since her absence. This was a very slow pace, almost two floors a year at best, so this was one of the reason Rebekah had returned. She had also gotten tired of life in a town, relaxing or doing nothing. Therefore, Rebekah had decided to try to return. "The frontlines, that is a good goal to aim for. The easiest thing to do is to take more quests, so you can unlock a lot of the special skills or sword arts." Rebekah told her.

Rebekah had collected another material as she was talking to Cleo. She had walked into the path of a herb. Therefore, she was able to collect its leaves.

ID: 204467
LD: 15+4=19
+1 mat

Materials 2/5

@Them

Edited March 3, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

She felt vindicated after Rebekah reassured her it wasn't strange to stay on the first floor. It was the smartest thing to do given the hardcode nature of the game, and it was the exception rather than the rule to have the guts to be able to go out, day in day out, putting one's life on the line to edge toward freedom. She'd freely admit to not having those guts any day.

Then, the other Player confirmed herself to have been a Front Liner long ago. "No way?" She explained that, despite the hiatus, she intended to continue training to rejoin the battle. Cleo, almost feeling in the presence of a celebrity, found it admirable that Rebekah still had the drive to fight. It also meant the pink-haired woman saw many allies fall, most likely, and the Player stopped short of asking her original reason for quitting, intending to avoid a touchy subject. "Good on you for getting back into the fight."

It was her first time learning about 'special skills.' Interest piqued, she dug deeper. "I haven't heard of that before. What sort of skills? Like, ones that are useful during fights? I'm interested in anything that would help out a complete beginner." As she talked, she felt around the inside of a patch of tall grass and stumbled across a material as luck would have it.

@Rebekah

ID: 204506
LD = 19+3=22
(Success!)

+1 Material (2)

Edited March 3, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

As they kept walking, Rebekah continued explaining about the various skills, "Some of the quests will unlock special skills. The sword art I like the most is Tech-F. It is a very useful skill being able to hit multiple targets and stun them at the same time. The only thing is that does not have a high base damage." The skill was one of Rebekah's most common attacks, and often the first one she used when facing multiple enemies at once.

"The best part of that quest, is that it is completely safe. I mean, your hands will feel the sore the next day after punching a giant boulder all afternoon, but it is almost a 100% success rate. A lot of these quests usually require a party to take down the difficult boss but this is a rare one where anyone at any level can attempt." Rebekah explained. It can be found on the second floor. Rebekah had saw a flowers up ahead. The flowers look special, so Rebekah decided to walk closer. She wondered if these flowers could be used to create a potion, it was definitely something to try to collect. But it was not showing up in her inventory when she tried to pick it up.

ID: 204670
LD = 3 + 4 = 7
(failed)

2/5 Materials

@Them

Edited March 4, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

"Punching a giant boulder?" said the Player with an amused tone, if not one which also carried hints of disbelief. "I'll be sure to try that one out at some point. It might be a good way to blow off some steam, sure beats running around town and bumping into cabbage wagons," She pulled a smile, recalling the circumstances that they'd met under not long ago. If it were as easy as Rebekah had made it out to be, Cleo at least considered taking on the quest.

She stumbled upon a flower identical to the one that Rebekah found, only to meet a similar fate upon trying to collect. "Huh. I think we've cleaned this area out already." Turning to the other Player, she labored in thought for a moment. "Hm... shall we try by the river instead? The last time I traveled there, a friend and I found lots of materials. Worth a shot at least, right?" Lifting a hand, she pointed toward a nearby river adorned with thickets of flax and hollowed-out, fallen trees, bound to be rife with gather-ables.

@Rebekah

ID: 204689
LD = 11+3=14
(Fail!)

Edited March 4, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

"I agree let's head over to the river." Luckily, the river was not too far from here, it had seems like nobody was around here recently. That was a good sign. Rebekah did not want to go to a crowded place where there were lots of players nearby looking to do the same thing that she was, which was to collect materials. As they headed towards the river, Rebekah found a berry bush. "I am going to try to collect some berries near the river." Rebekah said.

It was the blue elderberry, it was often found near streams, or rivers. Rebekah began looking for ways to collect the berries, she decided the simplest way was to try to fill up a basket of berries and see if the game will recognize it as a material. After all, she needed to fill enough of a basket. Luckily, there were more than enough berries to fill up her basket. The game was able to recognize it and converted into a material. The berries were very useful for an immune system and potion making.

ID: 204793
CD = 16 + 4 = 20
+1 mat

3/5 Materials Collected
@Them

Edited March 5, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

"Go get 'em!" she cheered encouragingly. From past experiences, she found that the river was always a great place to come and look for materials. That said, it was likely her experiences were hyperbole and that there was an equal chance of finding something no matter where one looked.

Looking around herself for any materials, she decided to look around the same area she'd searched in the past. There stood a dry, withered tree stump, bereaved of its tree long ago. Alongside it lay a tree trunk, hollowed out by termites long ago, large enough for a Player to crawl inside. In doing so, a small, glittery snail shell converted into a material, and she crawled out from the hollowed-out tree and stood herself up, dusting off the dust from her bottoms.

Upon seeing that Rebekah had scored another material for the quest, Cleo's belief of the area being a prime spot for gathering solidified. In thinking of ways to pass the time, she turned to Rebekah, curious about the woman's experience with the higher floors. "So, what's it like on the floors higher up? I've never really been anywhere outside of the safe zones, besides around the Town of Beginnings, and never any higher than floor six. Got any favorites I should check out later on?"

ID: 205011 | LD: 14+3=17 (Success!)

+1 Material (3)

@Rebekah

Edited March 6, 2022 by Them

[Rebekah 0]

"I think there are some gems and some misses. It depends on the type of weather that you enjoy. For example, three of my favourite floors are 4, 22 and 24. Floor 4 is the snowy floor with the frozen lake and lots of flat snow. If you could imagine a ski resort without the downhill skiing, then you would enjoy it a lot." Rebekah answered as she kept looking for materials.

"In addition, Floor 22 is also one of my favourites. It has a nice fresh water lake and one of the most scenic places one can visit for fishing or swimming. Finally, if you are into hanging out all day at the beach, then floor 24 is also one of the places you can find me at. It is nice to relax once in a while and do nothing." As Rebekah began to examine a plant on the ground. It looked like a special flower, but she could not identify it.

"Of course, there are floors that I try to avoid if possible. For example, floor 9 is the one where there is a giant volcano and there are lava everywhere. It is a good place to find ores and rocks but it is also extremely hot." Rebekah was correct, it was a special flower as she collected.

"What type of weather/scenery do you want to visit?" Rebekah asked.

ID: 205017
CD = 15 + 4 = 20
+ 1 mat

4/5 Materials Collected

@Them

Edited March 6, 2022 by Rebekah

[Them 0]

With a plethora of suggestions to consider, each as enticing as others, Cleo sat on her thoughts for a moment before answering Rebekah's question. "Something new, not like this floor. Four is a strong contender. I live near mountains in the real world, so skiing was frequent for my family and me. Snowy weather's a bit blah, though. Had way too much of that in Norway." She sat down on a nearby fence to take a little break from gathering. "I think floor twenty-four might be more my jam. It would be nice to sit in the sun and think about nothing, what better place to do that than the beach?" Throwing a grin toward the other Player, she continued. "I think I'll try those two. A giant volcano does sound kind of cool, though, so maybe I'll visit floor nine if I'm feeling a little risky."

 

An odd thought struck Cleo and she posed a question to Rebekah, curious. "This is gonna sound strange. What's the 'weirdest' floor out there? As in, one that sets itself apart from others or has a really unique gimmick, or something else. This floor has to be the most basic one, I assume, so it would be nice to contrast that with something a little funky."

@Rebekah

Edited March 6, 2022 by Them