F17-pp <<Interior Decorating>> - Challenge of Olympus: Engineer

[Sin 0]

Challenge of Olympus

A strange invitation had appeared in Sin’s inventory. Multiple, actually. But they just seemed like a lot of work. A myriad of ordeals, all centered around her newly-acquired Professions. Most were locked. Tailor, Blacksmith, and Artisan required that she reach at least Rank 2. And, that was certainly doable. Appraiser and Engineer though? Those were totally free. Problem was, she didn’t know if she wanted to bother. After all, she was doing well enough without whatever benefit that the invitation promised. She had more Mystic Essence than she knew what to do with and more coming in than was necessarily going out.

So she just didn’t see the sense in bothering.

Besides, she had more important things to worry about. Her office was depressing. It was dark and mysterious, sure. But it was certainly NOT Sin. It screamed Oscar - maybe a little Warren - but it definitely didn’t fit her aesthetic.

Quest Objective Cleared: Invitation Received

Spoiler

"Name: Sinnamon
True Tier: 4
Level: 32
Paragon Level: 0
HP: 660/660
EN: 102/102

Stats:
Damage: 22
Accuracy: 4
Evasion: 2
Battle Healing: 33
Loot Die: 1
AA 
FLN: 16

Equipped Gear:
Weapon/Armor/Trinket: 
  - Aftershock | T4 Perfect Straight Sword | Absolute Accuracy, Fallen II
Armor/Trinket: 
  - Accelerant | T1 Perfect Trinket | ACC II | EVA I
Shield/Armor/Trinket: 
  - 

Combat Mastery:
  - Combat Mastery: Damage R3

Combat Shift:
  - AOE Shift

Familiar Skill:
  - 

Custom Skill:
  - 

Skills:
  - Battle Healing R5
  - Energist
  - Straight Sword R5
  - Unhindered

Extra Skills:

Inactive Extra Skills:

Addons:
  - Ferocity
  - Precision
  - Stamina

Mods:

Inactive Mods:

Battle Ready Inventory:

Housing Buffs:

Guild Hall Buffs:

Scents of the Wild Totem:

Wedding Ring:

Crafting Profession:

Gathering Profession:
"                                                                                                                            

 

[Sin 0]

Sin was all about sun and sand and skimpy swimwear. Sex on the Beach followed by sex on the beach. But somehow she figured the mystique of the Blackbook would be broken if any potential customers entered her office and it screamed tropical cabana. Like Alice stepping into Wonderland, it would be more than a little off-putting. She needed to find a way to combine the two. Light and dark, relaxation with decadence.

And to that end, she assembled her crack squad of advisors. Lysette and Warren. Lysette had the eye for fashion and Warren had the juice to make whatever alterations to the space she required. Oscar had left the keys to the tool shed in Warren’s hands. The two sat across from her desk. Lysette shifted uncomfortably as Sin peered over the pair with folded hands. Warren, on the other hand, had his same disinterested expression that he-

 

[Sin 0]

-always had.

She loved Lysette. The girl was bright and lively and an absolute terror in a fight. Despite what her size and bright, wide eyes might tell you, the girl had many talents. A polymath of the highest order. It was frustrating how it all came so easy to her. She never really seemed to struggle with much. Other than the chip on her shoulder and her rising hatred for the “family” she had back home. The girl had often said that she considered their rag-tag Guild more of a family than her real one.

Which was kinda sad.

But Sin always wanted a sister.

Warren, on the other hand. Well, it wasn’t that she disliked Warren. They just avoided one another whenever possible. He thought she was too ostentatious and she thought he was so incredibly dull. But he’d never made a pass at her. Not even the-

 

[Sin 0]

-slightest attempt at flirting. So Sin couldn’t be terribly upset with him. Though he was quick to make jokes at her expense, that didn’t mean that they couldn’t get along when they absolutely had to. Besides, once you cracked that cold shell, he was kind of a nice guy.

Very demure.

Very mindful.

“What if we tried some neon? Bring some color in here,” Lysette remarked.

Sin spun in her chair, to the empty wall behind her. Was that the secret? Was she simply lacking in decor. She brought her thumb up to her mouth, biting at her nail as she considered with her mind’s eye what such a thing would look like. Some post-modern abstract number with big swooping curves in loud colors. It could work. But she wasn’t sold on it.

“You need a bigger office, frankly,” Warren said. “And I’m guessing that’s why I’m here.”

Sin spun-

 

[Sin 0]

-back around, eyes bright as they locked onto his. She gave him a cheeky grin and nodded.

“Absolutely,” she replied. “You got the keys to the castle. Need me to beg? Poor Lysette might get uncomfortable.”

Warren sighed. “No, no. That’s fine. Don’t beg.”

“Aw… Guess you prefer when the women take charge?”

“I prefer when the women aren’t obnoxious,” Warren snapped back.

Rude. But fair. Sin let the exchange slide, giving Warren the win this time.

“It’s just so depressing in here. Doesn’t really fit my vibe,” Sin admitted. “Like… It makes sense to be all dark and broody for the dance floor. But back here? Where we’re supposed to be setting up the ‘Visionary Shop?’”

Warren nodded. “No, I agree. It’s very difficult to fit all the crafting stations you need in here. What I really think you need is some windows.”

Windows. Inspired.

“-And like Lysette said-

 

[Sin 0]

-some color wouldn’t be a bad idea. This place looks like a spacious storage closet.”

Damn, he really did go for the jugular.

“Which is my fault, I think. I was rather hasty trying to get everything together before the Grand Opening. Locked in more on the dance floor and my own space than anyone else’s. Shouldn’t be too hard to correct.”

Sin tilted her head to the side, surprised by Warren’s admission. He wasn’t one to have a massive ego, but neither was he one to show anyone a whole lot of vulnerability. Even a justifiable shortcoming. She was impressed and a little touched by the display. Relaxing into her chair, she rested her head against her hand, giving Warren a soft smile.

“No, no. Don’t beat yourself up. We were all focused on the Grand Opening. Didn’t expect that office space would be a priority.” She sat back-

 

[Sin 0]

-up, reaching for the heavens as she stretched out her back. Once she had limbered up, she sank back into her chair and began to ambly spin around. “Windows and color. And we need enough space for the crafting stations. Shouldn’t be too hard of a puzzle to figure out.”

“Not at all!” Lysette drummed her fingers on the arms of her chair excitedly. “Actually, Warren and I talked before we got here. We think we got some rough idea on where to go with it. Why don’t you let us work on it while you go relax a bit?”

“Least I can do for mucking up your office,” Warren added.

“Guys…”

It was true. She didn’t get a whole lot of leisure time nowadays. Between crafting and Field Bosses and Guild Business, there had been less and less time for brunches and girl talk. But at the same time-

 

[Sin 0]

-she wasn’t really sure that she wanted to shove the responsibility off to Warren and Lysette like that. There was a pounding at her door before it was thrown open. Abellio never waited for an answer.

“Why is she still here?”

Lysette looked back, smiling at her fiery-haired beau.

“We just told her to take a day off while we worked like three seconds ago.”

Abellio strode into her office and grabbed the back of Sin’s chair. He pulled her from behind her desk and rolled the chair out into the hallway. Before she could protest, he spun her back round and grabbed the arms of the chair. The man bent down, getting right up in her face. Blue clashed on blue as their eyes locked. 

“You go have a nice, fun day. We got this.”

And before she could protest, Abellio had stepped backwards into her office and slammed-

 

[Sin 0]

-the door behind him. A purple hexagonal interface appeared in the middle of the door.

LOCKED.

Well then.

She didn’t quite expect that the entire project would have been ripped out of her hands. What was a girl to do with her unexpected time off?

Quote

To Ash, Lisa:
Hey, you ladies down to hang? It’s been a while. Let’s catch up.

It was a knee-jerk response to finally having some time to herself. Coffee and pastries and fun stories to kill the time. How long had it been? Weeks? It had been damn near every day at one point. Before Oscar got her roped into his new venture and his new Guild and his… everything. Sin couldn’t shake the feeling that they might be feeling some type of way about the silence. She headed for the door, biting her lip as she watched her inbox. God, why was she so -

 

[Sin 0]

-nervous? She’d not made it two steps out the door before the first chime came in.

Quote

From Ash:
Usual spot?

Another chime - as that look of concern began to stretch into a smile.

Quote

From Lisa:
You’re paying.

Quote

To Ash, Lisa:
Deal.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like her new acquaintances. Quite the opposite. She fucking adored them. But her girls? They’d been through a lot together. Too much to really get her arms around. Hook-ups and break-ups and just so much death. Sin hadn’t always rolled solo. She’d joined up with a pretty solid Guild early on. And for those first few months and those first few Floors, things were solid.

But everything got more dangerous. The game got more deadly. Mobs got smarter. Old tricks stopped working. Ash and Lisa and Sin were the last remnants of those days. Only because they dipped before it all went sideways. There-

 

[Sin 0]

-was a time where she would have followed that old Guild Master to Hell itself. But all the dying got in his head. He kept making shit calls, each one getting another person killed. It had been Lisa’s close call that had cinched it for them.

On the good days, she could forget all about it.

But there was always that cloud that hung over them. An unspoked vow to just wait it out. To never join a new Guild. They never talked about it. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was walking to her own trial. Did they know already? If they didn’t, they would by the end of the conversation. As her feet carried her ever closer to their usual spot at their usual restaurant and their usual table, Sin wondered whether it wouldn’t be a good idea to just turn back.

“SIN!”

Ash had risen-

 

[Sin 0]

from her seat, leaning over the table to bellow across the plaza. She was beaming - Lisa was too. Once again, Sin had proven to be her own worst enemy. With a smile on her face, she jogged over to the pair. Three coffees were set upon the table, one still steaming in front of an empty seat.

“Hey guys,” she said, doing her best to keep her tone level. She sank into her seat, taking a small sip of the hot beverage in front of her. Why the fuck was she so nervous?

“Hey Sin,” Lisa said with a chipper air. “Where have you been? You’ve missed like… so many brunches.”

“Yeah, I know. Oscar’s kept me busy.”

Lisa and Ash exchanged glances.

“Not like that!”

Their heads turned toward her in unison.

“Okay, okay! A couple times.”

They tilted their heads to the side.

“Honest! Swear on my mom.”

 

[Sin 0]

-Something of an in-joke, that. Sin hated her mom. And she would certainly never swear by her. They knew it, and she knew they knew it.

“Sin,” Ash said. “Come on.”

Sin froze, mouth agape. Finally she let out a heavy sigh and hung her head. It simply wasn’t possible to get anything by these two. She picked up her cup, crossing her legs under her chair like a proper lady. She took a long, deliberate sip. She placed it back gingerly onto the small saucer and gave her girls a smirk.

“He already did.”

Ash and Lisa blinked. Sin was the first to crack. Bracing herself against the table, she burst into a fit of laughter. Ash and Lisa followed suit, the trio cackling loudly. It took quite some time for the trio to recover. Every time they thought they had, one or all of them would fall back-

 

[Sin 0]

- into their fit. Sin laughed until her throat hurt. Tears stung her eyes. Why did she ever think that they would be upset with her? Once they had finally recovered, the conversation flowed freely. It was mostly about what Sin had gotten up to. Picking up her professions. Acting as Visionary’s treasurer. The beasts they fought, the dungeons they conquered. But the conversation eventually shifted.

“Hey you’re being careful, right Sin?” Ash still had a smile on her face, but there was a worried glint in her eye. “You - we - don’t have the best track record with Guilds.”

“Of course! I’m not out here trying to get myself killed,” Sin replied.

“Well we weren’t either but… It ended the way it did.”

“They know what they’re doing,” Sin said, holding up one finger to start a count. “No one gets into anything without a Teleport Crystal, prep is always done-

 

[Sin 0]

- to the nines. It’s crazy how much they bust out for something that doesn’t even get to move.”

“Still-”

“Look if you trust Oscar in the bedroom, you can damn sure trust him out in the field. I’ve seen the man work. He’s crazy good.”

“At least promise that you won’t get yourself killed? I’m tired of reading my friends’ names on that dumb fucking rock,” Amy said.

“I promise. I’m not going anywhere. Besides, we need a girl’s night. No way I’m missing one of those.”

Whatever sour mood had fallen on the trio disappeared as soon as she uttered the words. Ash and Lisa’s eyes lit up.

“Speaking of,” Lisa said. “We went to the Blackbook for the Grand Opening. Looked all over for you. Were you busy with something?”

Sin’s mind flashed back to her entanglement with Iris. That had been a fun evening. She shifted in -

 

[Sin 0]

-her seat, face suddenly feeling hot. Just thinking about that evening. 

“Damn,” she muttered. She inhaled sharply and simply nodded. “I was certainly getting busy.”

“You and Oscar in between the kegs?”

“Nope! Found this cute lady and she rocked my fucking world.”

“God Sin,” Ash said with a laugh. “You’re such a fucking [censored].”

“Not the only one. Weren’t we just talking about you two busting out the stripper heels with me?”

“Hey Sin,” a familiar voice said from behind her. Turning, she clocked Warren approaching their spot. In his hand, he was carrying a small little creature. Mix between man and… goat? A satyr, right? “Found this thing in your filing cabinet. Keeps repeating that you’re being summoned to Olympus.”

“YES! YES! LORD ARES COMMANDS IT!”

Commands it? Sin’s brow furrowed. She remembered thinking about starting that Quest, but didn’t think she ever went through with confirming it.

 

[Sin 0]

“Who’s this guy?”

“Warren,” Sin said. “Guildie.”

Warren gave Lisa and Ash a wave. “How’s it going?” He then turned his attention back to Sin and plopped the satyr on the ground next to her feet. “Sorry to disturb, thing was in the way. Didn’t know you liked this spot though.”

Right on cue, one of the shopkeepers came outside and held a parcel out to Warren. A small bundle of food and a cup of coffee in a to-go cup. He gave Sin and her girls an apologetic smile and held up his items. “Sorry, lunch. I’ll see you later.”

He made his exit about as quickly as he came, walking out without a care in the world. It struck Sin as weird. Warren didn’t strike her as the type to like pastries and coffee. She turned in her seat, her gaze following him as he crossed the street.

 

[Sin 0]

He stepped up to a non-descript building, tapping on the door with his foot. Moments later, the door opened and out stepped a gorgeous blonde. She watched as he handed off both the drink and the parcel to the woman and disappeared through the threshold.

“Oh no way,” Sin said flatly, taken aback by what she just witnessed. “No fuckin’ wonder.”

“LORD ARES DEMANDS YOUR PRESENCE!”

“Fuck!”

Sin all but jumped out of her skin as the satyr had climbed onto the table and screamed at her. She turned her attention to Ash and Lisa, shaking off the shock before giving them an apologetic smile. 

“Alright, here’s the plan,” she said. “I’m gonna go handle… this. You two get ready for tonight. And no bitching out. I want to get fucking wild.”

Lisa and Ash nodded and the three broke for the time being. The Satyr guided her to the

Quest Objective Cleared: Satyr Guard met

 

[Sin 0]

Teleportation Platform, screeching at the top of his lungs that she needed to meet with Ares on Floor 17. So she teleported there. Once she arrived, the creature led her on a winding path up Mount Olympus to the Realm of the Gods. There, Ares waited on his throne. He launched into some monologue about making a tool of war. Ironic considering he was a tool that liked war. A glint appeared in her eye as she considered what to make. She got to work, pulling materials and parts from her inventory and quickly cobbling something together.

What she wound up making was a spiked mace on an arm that would automatically swing it upward at the touch of a pedal. 

“What is that?” Ares’ voice boomed through the mountain, clearly unimpressed with Sin’s submission.

“I call it the Cockwrecker 9000. For when some rude-ass god sends his fucking goat-

Quest Objective Cleared: Speak with Ares, Initiating Challenge

[Sin 0]

-to DEMAND I make something for him. step on the pedal and -” She gave a demonstration, slamming her foot down on the pedal. The spiked mace swung up sharply, detaching from its arm and flying through the air. It smashed into Ares’ throne just a few inches below his…

“Get it?”

Ares looked down between his legs, eyes wide at the woman’s audacity. The mace remained fixed into his throne. He looked up at Sin, a look of abject terror in his eyes. Terror and… something else. He let out a loud, boisterous laugh. Picking up the mace, he spun it over the back of his hand. The item began to glow, metal shifting. Less solid, more fluid. The metal was turned into a set of small golden shackles. Each manacle the size of a ring. Clearly designed to fit on separate fingers.

“You mortals never cease to amaze me.”

Quest Objective Cleared: Challenge overcome

Thread Summary

Sin | [Word Count: 3000/5 = 600] * [True Tier: 4] * [Group Factor: 1] + 500 = 2900 EXP                     
<<Ares' Chains>>