[F22-PP] Teaching an Owl to Fly <Training Your Friend>

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah was waiting on the teleportation gate near the settlement of Coral on the twenty second floor of Aincrad. This was where she wanted to spend time training Snowball, her new snowy owl that she had tamed a week ago. She had spent the morning bring it to the guild headquarters to show him around some of the other familiars who happened to be there. It was a fun experience, especially watching her owl play with the other pets. Snowball had loved taunting some of the other pets that were there today. It seemed like they were getting along quite well, which would be very important.

She had sent a message to Star, who agreed to come along and help train her familiar today. They were not going to be engaging in combat, but Snowball would be the one to do it. She was hoping to train it to be smart enough to attack on its own. She had spent a week preparing for this moment as she had went through the guidebook on training a familiar, and the type of skills she could teach to her owl. A fighting owl always seem like the most realistic approach, since it would help her a lot in long drawn out battles, especially being able to get some additional damage applied.

She had gotten to know this floor quite well, the last few weeks, especially since she was running errands and had in person meetings at the guild headquarters. Rebekah finally was able to squeeze some time off today to get the training done.

Spoiler

Rebekah
Level 32 | P 10 | HP 740/740 | EN 86/86 | DMG: 23 | MIT: 98 | ACC: 4 | EVA: 1 | LD: 5
BH 40 | Survival +10% | Thorns 36 | EN -2

Tier 5 – Paragon Bonuses
Laurel Wreath
+ 1 LD for Looting, Searching and Opening Treasure Chests

Equipment:
Laevateinn II (T4 RAPIER) 3 [DMG]
 Silver Necklace (T4 Trinket) 3 [ACC]
Frozen Dress (T4 HA) 2 [MIT] 1 [Throns]

Skills:
Weapon Skill (R5) | 7 [DMG]
Battle Healing (R5) | 5% (37 HP)
Heavy Armour (R5) | 35 [MIT]
Searching (R5) | 5 [LD] 5 [SD]

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

Add-ons:
Ferocity | 2 [DMG]
Precision | 1 [ACC]
Stamina | 2 [EN]
Iron Skin | 15 [MIT] 60 [HP]

Mods:
Impetus | 1 [DMG]

Extra:
Survival
Disguise
Meditation

Profession:
Forager (R2)  - 50/149 EXP

Items:
Unbroken (T4 Shield) 2 [MIT] [Anti-freeze]
5 Golden Keys | + 2 [LD] on Chests

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

@Morningstar

[Morningstar 0]

Rebekah's call to train her owl was one that Morningstar had expected. He knew from the day she had tamed it that she would need to teach it how to assist her in combat. Since he was the one who joined her that day, it made sense that he'd tag along once more.

Star had never been to the twenty-second floor. It never interested him, for some reason. Maybe it was because it felt like a place you went to retire; the most peaceful place in existence. Monsters were few and far between unless you included the deer. It just seemed... boring.

He could not deny the beauty of it, however. Even the tiny town of Coral was pretty. The rustic cabins, the cozy glamour. A place he could retire. He stepped off of the teleporter and into Coral. Guards stood near the gate and other NPCs roamed the town, smiling at Morningstar as he passed. He wasn't sure where to meet Rebekah.

He glanced around, trying to spot her. Had she mentioned it in her message? With a swish of his hand, he opened his menu.

Spoiler

Morningstar | Lv. 18 | HP: 360/360 | EN: 54/54 | DMG: 17 | ACC: 4 | MIT: 24

Gear:

• Beginner's Straight Sword | Uncommon
  +1 DMG
• Beginner's Light Armor | Uncommon
  +9 MIT
• Lexa's Light | Perfect
  +3 ACC

Skills:

• Two-Handed Straight Sword | Rank 5 | Precision | Stamina | Ferocity
  +9 DMG
  +1 ACC
  -2 ENG per attack
• Light Armor | Rank 3
  +15 MIT
  -1 Stealth
• Searching | Rank 5
  +5 LD
  +5 Stealth Detection

Combat Mastery:

• Damage
  +6 DMG

Combat Shift:

• TECH Specialist
  +4 to multipliers
  +3 to ENG cost

 

Edited March 19, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

Star had finally arrived at the teleportation gate where Rebekah was waiting. As he was playing around with his menu, Rebekah walked over to him and added him to the party into an ongoing quest.

"How are you doing today?" Rebekah asked. "I have been busy all morning with guild stuff. Now I finally get to take some time off to teach Snowball here how to fight."

Snowball had quickly gave Star a greeting before flying off ahead. Rebekah had managed to teach her owl to fly into the skies to scout for danger already. That was something that she had been trying to do lately. Her owl can fly ahead and then report back to her if she needs to be careful up ahead.

"Let's head into the forest. We need to find something small for my owl to attack." Rebekah said. Being one of the smallest settlements so far on all twenty seven floors, it did not take them long to exit he small town of Coral. This was where Snowball was waiting for them as the snowy owl landed back on Rebekah's shoulder. There was a raccoon up ahead. It would make for a good target. Rebekah began instructing Snowball to quickly fly towards the raccoon and hit it with its sharp beak than fly away safely.

The Snowy Owl nodded its head and began to fly. Luckily, there were in a forest clearing where Snowball was able to maneuver around with ease. It then charged directly at the raccoon, using what Rebekah would call is "Take Down". Snowball charged right at the raccoon, who was smart enough to dodge the attack. Snowball was unable to turn fast enough to hit the evading raccoon.

ID 206467
CD = 6
(failure, CD requirement drops by 2 from 7+ to 5+)

Edited March 20, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

Morningstar spun around, surprised. Rebekah had been in his blind spot the entire time.

"Oh, hey," he said, accepting the party request. "I'm doing well, thanks. I just had coffee with a friend but aside from that, it's been a slow day for me."

He peered up at the owl, who'd flown up into the sky. Evidently, she'd picked a name. Star thought it was fitting, although he was a bit disappointed that she hadn't played into the role of Harry Potter and named it Hedwig. His hand touched his forehead, forming a visor to block out the sun.

"Sure," he said in response to the girl's request to move to the forest.

When they arrived, Rebekah ordered the owl to attack a wild raccoon. It missed. Morningstar thought it was pretty close, though.

"What kind of guild stuff were you doing? Anything fun?" He asked, slipping his hands into his pockets.

Edited March 20, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

"I been in a lot of meetings this morning. If you consider that fun." Rebekah replied. "So it is nice being able to get outside and not waste this beautiful day on floor twenty two."

Just as Snowball had landed back towards her, Rebekah began to give some detailed instructions to her owl, who had just missed his last attack. She knew that while it was close, Snowball needed to tone down the power a little bit. She was trying to find the perfect balance between power and accuracy. After all, there was no use having all the power in the world without being accurate.

Rebekah wanted it to charge a little bit slower so it can be able to maneuver against a small and mobile target. She knew this would not be an issue in any of the boss fights since bosses tend to be giant and massive monsters, and had a tendency to take the hit instead. Animals on the other hand would flee or dodge if they decided not to fight.

The owl hooted as it told her that he understood everything that Rebekah had said. Snowball flew back up into the air waiting for Rebekah's next command.

She turned back to Star and asked, "I think it was a good first attempt."

[Morningstar 0]

"I guess that's not very fun," Morningstar chuckled. "I don't come up here much but I admit it's very scenic. One day, when I'm like ninety years old, I'll buy a house on this floor."

Judging by the owl's hoot, Snowball appeared to be a quick learner. Even after making a mistake, he was immediately giving it another shot. They made a good team, Rebekah and her familiar. "I agree," he told the woman, "It won't be long before he's battle-ready."

He let out a gasp, noticing something from the corner of his eye. "Oh!"

Hidden under the green leaves of a bush was a mid-sized log. It was brown on the outside, as usual, but the inside was a deep black. It almost looked like it had been painted but Morningstar knew better. His knowledge of rare wood was almost uncanny and completely random.

"This is blackwood," he said, picking it up to show Rebekah, "it's pretty uncommon. I wonder how it got here."

He glazed over the log, looking for any flaws. It was perfect. He put the material in his inventory for later.

Spoiler

ID: 206530 LD: 18+5=23
Material found!

 

Edited March 20, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

With Rebekah paying very close attention to her owl, she was unaware there was an a random log nearby. Rebekah will have to wait until after her owl was trained to think about collection. "It is the first time I seen it on this floor myself, and I have been here quite a lot recently." Rebekah commented. "Do you think you will find more? We can move to a new location once this racoon is killed. The racoon is not strong enough to survive one hit from my owl."

It was now time for Snowball to try again. Rebekah could see that the raccoon had not wondered too far away, and was still in the clearing. Rebekah instructed Snowball to try again, at his attempt of Take Down once again. Snowball began to fly up in the air before diving right down with speed towards the raccoon once again. This time, as Snowball closed the distance on the raccoon, he stopped flapping his wings to get more speed. He was listening to Rebekah who had told it to be ready for any sudden movements that the Racoon may make.

This time the Racoon could see the owl the entire way and made sure to dodge right at the last second. Snowball completed missed again as it could not change directions fast enough. It was very close but Rebekah knew that was not good enough. Still, Snowball was gaining valuable experience right now as he looked determined to take down the racoon.

ID 206564
CD = 3
(failure, CD requirement drops by 2 from 5+ to 3+)

Edited March 21, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

Morningstar knelt down, searching for more of the wood in the bush. It didn't seem like there was any more of it. Odd, he thought. What was the random log doing there? He stood back up, dusting off the front of his pants. "Doesn't look like there's any more."

Snowball once again missed the raccoon. Or rather, the raccoon dodged Snowball's attack. The owl was close enough for Morningstar to give it some credit. "I'm jealous. I still haven't gotten around to getting my own familiar yet. Soon, though," he chuckled.

He reopened his inventory, swiping through for a while before reaching the items he was looking for. "Care for a snack?" He asked, withdrawing two blueberry muffins. They materialized in his hands within the span of a few seconds.

"They're from a bakery down on Floor One. A little place owned by an old NPC woman." Morningstar said, holding out a muffin for the girl to take.

Spoiler

ID: 206595 LD: 8+5=13
No material found.

 

Edited March 21, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

Star asked if Rebekah wanted a snack. She agreed and accepted his blueberry muffin. It was not the first time they had ate snacks on their journey. They had ice cream last time. The muffin was freshly baked and Rebekah knew that it would be a waste to eat it later, so she began to eat it. "Thank you for your muffin." Rebekah said.

Just as she was eating, Rebekah instructed her owl to turn around and try again to hit the racoon with the same move called Take Down. Snowball did as he was told, and immediately found some space to turn around completely before charging back towards the racoon. This time, Rebekah was hoping that the attack would land.

Snowball charged directly at the racoon who was not paying any attention. Therefore, it did not notice the owl coming until it was too late. The racoon died instantly and exploded into the familiar blue pixels. As the owl landed back on to her shoulder, Rebekah gave the owl an owl treat for its reward.

She turned to Star, "Let's go. There are no more monsters around here for Snowball to attack, and no materials for you to pick up. Do you want to try going closer towards the lake?" Rebekah asked.

ID 206604
CD = 5
1/3 Successful

Edited March 21, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

"Sure, let's try the lake."

Morningstar's experience with lakes was short-lived; in the real world, he spent most of his time by the ocean. He'd gone once or twice when he was young but always preferred saltwater to fresh. The beach was like a second home to him. They trekked through the forest trail and Morningstar scanned the ground for materials the entire way. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be anything. Eventually, they arrived at a clearing. The lake was beautiful in the sunlight. The water shimmered angelically and he could see fish hopping in the distance.

He nudged Rebekah, pointing out to the spot where they had breached. "I'd be impressed if Snowball could catch a fish as it jumped."

Star stepped down to the edge of the lake, where water met land, and knelt down. He touched the cold water with the tips of his fingers. It definitely wasn't a swimming day.

Spoiler

ID: 206719 LD: 8+5=13
No material was found.

 

Edited March 22, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

The lake was not too far away from the forest as the lake took up a significant land area on this twenty second floor. As soon as they arrive at the lake, Star was still searching for materials, but he could not find anything at the moment.

Snowball must had heard Star's comment as he immediately jumped off of Rebekah's shoulder to try to catch a fish like an eagle watching the salmon runs in the river. Snowball had failed miserably as it was hard to find a big enough fish to swim to the top of the lake, but that did not deter the snowy owl from trying. Of course any fish would able to notice an owl trying to dive towards the surface of the water and naturally avoided that area.

After a while, Rebekah called Snowball back since she did not want it to tire out ahead of the next target. Rebekah began looking around for another animal that Snowball could try attacking this time. There were not a lot of animals living by the lake today, however she did spot a beaver not too far away on the land. Perhaps a beaver would be a target before it managed to retreat back into the safety of the lake.

Normally, Rebekah would not mind going for a swim but today she knew that she had to focus today to make sure Snowball was trained ahead of the next major event.

[Morningstar 0]

Much to Morningstar's surprise, Snowball swooped past him. He soared towards the center of the lake but the fish stopped their leaps. After a few failed dives, the snowy owl flew back to Rebekah. He commended him for the effort, finding humor in the fact that the familiar took an order from someone other than Rebekah.

He turned his attention back to the water. Small ripples flowed over his fingertips as he played with small pebbles, smoothed by the lake. Tiny fish swam nearby, curious of what Morningstar was. When they were satisfied with what they had seen, they disappeared deep into the water. A glimmer of red peeked out from beneath the sand and rocks. Noticing it, the blonde stuck his hand in to dig it out. It was a polished, red gemstone. Completely spherical. He wondered if it was a natural object or if some artisan had crafted it and lost it there. It was beautiful.

He raised it up to show Rebekah. "Found something!"

Spoiler

ID: 206744 LD: 10+5=15
Material found!

 

Edited March 24, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

As Rebekah was beginning to instruct Snowball to dive and tackle the beaver, her focus was somewhere else. Star had waded into the shallow water and was heading somewhere. She was confused at what he was doing, but it made a lot more sense when he turned around to show her the gem that he had found in the water. He had seen something in the water.

Rebekah now turned her attention back to her owl as he flew up into the air and began circling the beaver before taking a very steep dive towards the beaver. Snowball began to level off at the last minute to avoid hitting the ground, and flew parallel towards the beaver. The beaver did not know what was coming and Snowball struck the beaver from behind. The beaver immediately died and exploded into pixels once again.

It had been two successes attacks for the beaver. Snowball flew back towards Rebekah and she began inspecting Snowball for damage or cuts. The owl was fine and frantically flapped its wings to tell Rebekah to stop fussing over. Rebekah pressed on and began looking for each feather on the wings to make sure they were all intact.

ID 207094
CD = 11
2/3 Training Successful

Edited March 25, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

Morningstar's gaze was stuck to the gem. It was similar in shade to the gems he had found on the Paradise Islands; however, unlike them, this one stayed intact even after being ripped from the earth. Ideas for a blade filled the man's mind. The crystal and the blackwood he'd found before could be used for a hilt of a sword or the shaft of a spear. Perhaps an ornate dagger.

Thoughts like this had been appearing more and more often. It seemed as if it were the time for him to begin his blacksmithing quest and open a shop of his own. He stashed the gem in his inventory for save keeping, sticking his hands back in the water to search for more.

He dug through the gravel and sand until he was sure there was nothing left, rinsing off his hands in the lake when he was done. His attention shifted from the water to Snowball as Morningstar noticed the owl's success. The bigger the target, it seemed, the easier it was for him. The beaver fell instantly and the familiar returned to its owner. It had only been a short time since Rebekah had found Snowball and she already seemed so protective of it.

Morningstar smiled, taking a seat at the edge and looking back out at the lake.

Spoiler

ID: 207117 LD: 5+5=10
No material was found.
Total materials: 2

 

Edited March 25, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah looked around and there was no animal nearby. However, Star was still digging in the gravel and sand nearby, so she did not want to leave this location, especially if he was so close to gathering another item in the wild. While waiting for him, Snowball instructively flew in a circle trying to scout for any wild animals that it could attack from above.

It did not take long but both of them had spotted a wild boar at the same time. Without saying anything, Rebekah looked at Snowball who was still flying in the air.. Snowball looked back at Rebekah and began to process and think what the girl wanted. It took a few more seconds but he had hooted in understanding. Snowball began the all too familiar dive towards the boar that was very unlucky to wonder towards the lake to get water.

This time after so many failed attempts, Snowball struck the boar, and killing it upon impact. The owl was successfully trained on the rending skill. This was a successful day. Rebekah turned to Star and asked, "Did you find anything in the sand?"

ID 207145
CD = 3
3/3 Success - Familiar Trained

Edited March 26, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

"Not much," Morningstar said, meeting Rebekah's eyes. "Although, I did find a cool gem."

He turned back to the lake, giving it one more look before giving up on his search. "Two materials should be fine for now, I guess," he chuckled.

It looked like Snowball's training had been completed. The owl's final kill was a boar. Morningstar stood up, dusting bits of sand off of his pants. It was sufficient to say that they'd both been successful that day. He looked back at Rebekah.

"Should we start heading back to Coral soon?" He asked, unsure of the girl's schedule for the rest of the afternoon.

He was, personally, okay with staying a bit longer. Coral wasn't exactly the most lively place in the game. That being said, there were plenty of other floors that they could teleport to. He smiled. "If you're up for the fourth floor again, maybe next time you can teach me how to skate. I could use the practice; you never know when a boss fight'll take place on an ice rink," Morningstar joked.

Spoiler

ID: 207296 LD: 7+5=12
No material was found.
Total materials: 2

 

Edited March 26, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah had looked at the gems that Star had found on the beach. "Let's head back to Coral then." Rebekah said. Their mission was done today, as she could now trust Snowball to help out on boss fights. They needed to make their way back from the lake towards the small town of Coral where the nearest teleportation gate could be found. As they headed back, Snowball decided to fly up into the air and scout if there were any animals nearby. There was none, as none of the monsters in the forest would want to mess with this strong party.

Rebekah was also looking for any shiny objects or gems that may appear on their path back towards Coral. However, she could not find anything that is valuable or worth any gold. She was not having the same luck as Star today. "What are your plans after this?" Rebekah asked. She was looking forward to taking the rest of the day off.

ID 207308 | LD = 1
Foraging - R2 = 53/149 EXP (+3)
(failed)

Edited March 27, 2022 by Rebekah

[Morningstar 0]

Rebekah agreed to head back to Coral and they trekked back down the beaten forest path that lead to town. He glanced towards trees and bushes in case there were any more materials for him to find. There weren't, however. Morningstar didn't complain; he'd found his haul and he was content with it.

"I was thinking about getting dinner," he said in response to Rebekah's question. "What about you?"

There was a restaurant on the second floor, in a lesser-visited part of Urbus, that he had been meaning to try. The establishment had supposedly risen to fame due to its popular Ox Burgers. "If you're not doing anything, you're free to join me," he said.

He felt a cold drop smack his scalp. It seemed it was beginning to drizzle, speeding up after a few seconds. "I thought that was rare here," Morningstar chuckled. "I'm not sure whether we're lucky or unlucky."

Spoiler

ID: 207446 LD: 4+5=9
No material was found.
Total materials: 2

 

Edited March 27, 2022 by Morningstar

[Rebekah 0]

Rebekah had no other plans for the day, so she decided to join Star to this burger joint on the second floor. It was a while since she had last visited the settlement of Urbus. She had forgotten what it had looked like, but quickly followed him through the busy streets to make it to the restaurant.

It did not take long for them to get seated. Rebekah looked for the waitress and asked, "What are your recommendations for sides and drinks?"

As a chef, she was always willing to try out something new. After all, if it tasted as good, she would like to experiment new flavour profiles in her cooking. In a burger, she looked for a well done burger. It was one of the things that she had always grown up eating. Where she came from, a burger must be fully cooked, and cannot be rare. She decided to order the classic Ox Burger without any pickles, with some sweet potato french fries and a vanilla milkshake.

She would have to think about the calories or working out tomorrow. It did not take long for her food to arrive, and Rebekah began biting into the food. It tasted delicious. She did not recall the last time she had Ox but she could feel it was similar to beef but there was a bit more spices and acidity to the burger. She knew that Ox was a little bit more gamey than regular beef, so it needed that little bit unami to get rid of the taste.

[Morningstar 0]

"Same as her. Chocolate milkshake for me, though," Morningstar added, ordering his meal.

The Ox Burgers came quicker than he'd expected. Even for a virtual restaurant, he was surprised that there was little preparation time involved with cooking. He took a bite of the burger before trying his milkshake and fries. The taste was far different than the burgers he was accustomed to. Superior, even. The condiments, whatever they were, mixed nicely with the spices of the meat, and the vegetables tasted fresh. "You're a cook, right? I need to stop by your shop sometime and try your food."

He'd been meaning to visit for a while, actually. Food was always better when it was a friend cooking it. He tasted a sweet potato fry. They had always been his favorite. The sweetness made them slightly more enjoyable than regular potato fries. In combination with the burger and the milkshake, it was a perfect meal.