[SP-F1] Pointy Sticks of Dreams (complete)

[Him 0]

He walked into the smith shop, seeking the assistance of the young woman that was busy hammering away at a weapon. He took a seat in front of her, obviously overstepping the zone of personal space that most people would expect, but this was an NPC. She continued, hard at work as the man in the mask watched her. She was very meticulous in her work, working out all the little kinks in the shaping of the sword. After a few minutes of sitting in silence, he broke it, "Excuse me, would you happen to be the one named Sai?" She perked up as if she had been waiting this whole time for him to talk, "Yes, that would be me. How may I help you today?"

[Him 0]

"I would like to accept your quest, if you may." She raised her head, fully aware of what he was talking about, "Well, I've come across a problem. I really need some materials for my shop and it's kind of hard for me to go out of town, I'm sure you know why. I'll give you a weapon of your choice as a reward for your kindness." He nodded, the majority of the NPCs here were incapable of leaving the perimeters of the safe zones, which meant it was difficult to obtain materials, "I would be more than willing to go, though might I ask if you have any particular preferences?" She shook her head, "No, anything will do. Just be safe and hurry back, I'll need them soon!" He stood up and left the shop.

[Him 0]

Walking downtown towards the outskirts of the city, he observed the goings on of everything around him. Players were steadily flocking towards the shops, seeking the bare necessities of the daily grind. Female NPCs were chatting amongst themselves, sharing stories of the old pervert looking inside the window while their husband was away at work. Familiars or animals, perhaps a combination of the two, were scattered amongst the town as well. It was quite the lively experience, the vast majority of which was coded by a man at a computer, "This is simply fascinating, it is a wonder that one man can start by taking a mere concept and bringing it to life in such an outstanding way."

[Him 0]

[5935]

Him: 5/5

Boar: 2/3

 

He kept his musings to himself as he departed from the town and winded up in a large meadow, filled with both strange and familiar wildlife. The only thing that appeared to be specifically out of place was the scenery in the background, appearing far more like a fantasy than the realistic facade that was right in front of him. He noted the flaw, then proceeded to complete the quest, "I have a lady awaiting me, no man would dare take his time and make her wait." Of course, it was a measly NPC, but it was amusing in his eyes. He took a few steps towards the nearby boar, maintaining his composure as he poked it in the butt with his pointy stick, "En garde."

[Him 0]

[5936]

Him: 5/5

Boar: 2/3

 

The pig snorted in fear, striking Him in the leg with its own leg. It didn't cause any sort of harm to Him, but it certainly did leave a fair bit of dirt on his pants leg, "Oh, it appears you've sealed your already compromised fate." He lunged his stick out towards the big oaf, but didn't quite have enough range to poke him as it ran by, "Stop squirming around, little one. Come here." He had to pick up the pace and run after the animal, it wasn't getting away now that it had the nerve to ruin his quality of attire for this casual stroll in the wild. He could run at a faster speed than the oversized pig so it wouldn't be long until...

[Him 0]

[5937]

Him: 5/5

Boar: 0/3 - 1 Material
 

Poke! The beast flopped over on its side and despawned, having shown absolutely no power over the mighty being that was - a stick. It was one of the greatest tools known to man, having served a way for cavemen to survive along the years, tribesman to hunt using bows, cavalry to aid the front lines in close warfare, and now Him. When determining his starter weapon type and design, it was a clear given that he would take whatever class would permit him to use such a strange weapon. While it was strange, it most certainly was efficient whenever it came to performing, "None shall stand tall against the tip of the stick."

[Him 0]

[5939]

Him: 5/5

Boar 2: 1/3

 

He wandered off some more, ever so slowly drawing closer to a near boar. All monsters had some form of loot to drop and, besides the one hundred percent chance of obtaining material, it was completely randomized. According to some sources, it was roughly a fifty percent chance to receive any rewards at all from defeating a monster. That was a pretty low statistics, especially considering that those statistics only accounted for the lowest quality drops that could be retrieved. Nearly repeating the same process as the boar's fallen cousin, he took the sharp end of his stick and rammed it up the monster's buttocks.

[Him 0]

[5940]

Him: 5/5

Boar 2: 0/3 - 1 material

 

It was highly effective in scaring the ever living censored out of the pink mound of flesh, sending it dashing a few meters forwards before it even considered turning around to see the culprit behind such a heinous act, "Oh, I'm sorry. Was that not pleasurable for you? I'll try not to be so rough next time." The boar didn't understand him, which he was full well and aware of, thus it decided simply to follow that natural instincts that was coded into the game. It ran towards its aggressor, only to find that the sharp stick that had poked him from the back would now poke him from the front, "Too much? Forgive me.."

[Him 0]

[5942]

Him: 5/5

Boar 3: 1/3

 

You know how the old saying goes, Third times the charm! With how well he was getting along with the boars, he would need that lucky charm for picking up this porker. Learning from experience, he knew that he had what it takes to show these things the end of the rope, but the big trouble was getting them to notice him. Obviously, the whole 'poke them in the butt' idea was working in gaining their attention, but it wasn't really winning him any favors. This time, he approached the boar calmly, "Come around here often?" He decided not to poke it in the butt until after he had gained the attention of his target.

[Him 0]

[5943]

Him: 5/5

Boar 3: 0/3 - 1 material

 

Unfortunately, he didn't seem like the real picker upper as this one squealed just as loudly, if not louder, in terror at the thought of something infiltrating its behind. Sure, it might not have been the best looking boar around, but by no means was it asking for this sort of treatment, especially from some lousy good for nothing player. It shook its head in a bewildering rage as it began charging towards Him, "Oh, I should've known it wouldn't have lasted. Farewell." He ended the life of the animal, taking everything that their short term relationship had left him with - a mere material.

[Him 0]

[5944] 1 material

 

He figured that he would take a moment to relax and take in the fresh air or at least what appeared to be fresh air in this artificial world, "I wonder if it's the mask, these big lumps of meat don't seem to show any sense of compassion." He pulled a flower from the ground and began plucking the petals from it, "It's almost as if they were beasts with nothing more than an animalistic instinct to eat, sleep, and kill." He tossed down the bare flower and pulled up another, placing it into his inventory, "If that's the most that these things can do, then what's there to hope for in the NPCs. A severe lack of depth and emotions, coupled with an instinct to flee from those that they deem dangerous?"

[Him 0]

[5945]

Him: 5/5

Boar 4: 3/3

 

He stood up, "I don't come off as dangerous, do I?" He was only carrying a measly stick, not some incredibly sharp sword or lengthy spear to overcompensate for something. Was it too short for anyone to heed him any mind? Did it come off as pathetic? He thought it was a sign of passive aggression, showing that he meant no harm unless it came down to a matter of necessity. Granted, that necessity might be money, time, material goods, or voluntary services, but necessity nonetheless. As such, he decided not to show any mere sign of aggression to the next boar, but rather an overwhelming degree of support. He whistled, capturing the boar's attention, "Come on, baby. Over here."

[Him 0]

[5946]
Him: 5/5
Boar 4: 3/3
 
The wild beast ran towards Him, barely missing as if they were some sort of cross-starred lovers that were never truly meant to be, the differences in their origin too vast for them to ever make it to a happy ending together. One of these lovers was bound to die, but one of which was quite the swinger, hitting on other boars in the neighborhood. It was clear which one had been obviously cheating on the other, seeing as the other one was enraged by some natural fury driven by the purest hate from deep within the heart. Of course, it wasn't a heart. It wasn't pure hate and it wasn't true love.

[Him 0]

[5947]
Him: 5/5
Boar 4: 3/3
 
The boar obviously had no end in mind, hoping to ruthlessly ravage the fragile, young body of Him. It was quite the impossibility though for he was no mere mortal, death was an exception to him. It was quite a true statement to say that Him and him got along pretty well, like a pair of old friends. For he was a daredevil, seeking the thrills of risking his life for his moment of truly experiencing what it was like to be himself, but often times overstepping those boundaries and receiving a few close calls. Like just now, that boar could have struck him down, but he had that verbal contract between him and death. Not that it was real, in fact, it was quite imaginary, yet it most definitely happened. A daydream or a lie had its own setting, after all.

[Him 0]

[5948]
Him: 5/5
Boar 4: 3/3

 

It whizzed by again like a comet that had lost its way, gently orbiting around the planetary figures that were nearly as notable as Him. He was tiring rather quickly of these cat and mouse games, the former being him, so he'd give one last chance for the poor little creature to give up its neverending war against the players. Unfortunately, he realized that even an extended amount of patience amongst these primitive beasts wouldn't be enough to convert them to a more civilized and peaceful comprehension.

[Him 0]

[5949]
Him: 5/5
Boar 4: 0/3 - 1 material

 

He whipped out his pointy stick, goring the creature and instantaneously killing it, "I gave you an opportunity and you failed to seize it, perhaps your descendents will learn the lesson that you couldn't." He spun the stick around on his finger and proceeded to leave the vicinity since he had an extra two materials more than what the short shop owner had requested he find, "Well, that just about covers that." There was still quite a long ways to walk and he was becoming rather tired of his way of thinking today, just a measly side-effect of him not having someone to talk about or break down.

[Him 0]

He didn't waste any time getting back to the town, walking past the countless civilians along the way as he showed little to no interest in anything that they were doing. He had snapped himself back into his normal personality, quite disappointed that he had gotten caught up once again trying to pretend he was something that he was not. Was this man a psychopath? Perhaps, but he certainly wasn't a nutcase or crazy. He knew perfectly what his qualifications were and, since he was also a psychoquack, he could prescribe himself as such.

[Him 0]

He entered the shop owned by Sai, whom happened to be working on another fine piece of metal once again. Just as he did before, he didn't introduce himself or interrupt her attempts at forging the sharp blades of steel. Instead, he simply sat there watching as if he would be required to meticulously craft his own sword shortly after her performance. He was quite interested to see the tools of choice, "Why a rock, might I ask? Most smiths would typically use a hammer, such an peculiar preference."

[Him 0]

She perked up her head, delighted to be able to answer such a question, "It's just as fine to use an outdated tool as it is a modernized tool if it has no effect on the outcome of the product." He snickered, that was one of those concepts he had always agreed with, "You're quite right, which is why I've been fighting with a mere sharp stick. It's much like the blades of the modernized world, but has been efficient for thousands of years beforehand." He lifted his stick and stuck it on the table, along with the three materials that she needed him to retreive, "What do you think about creating an improved quality?"

[Him 0]

She was more than happy to oblige, "Sure thing, it'll be just a moment. Sorry." She took the weapon and examined it for a few minutes, quite surprised and impressed by his stick, "It's quite durable and does the job, let's see what we can do." She ran towards the back with the materials, creating a loud mashup of clanging and banging in the meantime. After approximately twenty minutes of in-game time, she returned with a new stick that looked like a carbon base duplicate, "Impressive, thank you for your business, Sai." She bowed and said her goodbyes as he left the shop.