(PP-F1) Simple Beginnings (Audacity)

[Ayumu 0]

"Some believe that it is only great power that can keep evil in check

But that is not what I've found.

I found that it is the small things. Everyday deeds by ordinary folks

That keeps the darkness at bay."

- Gandalf

Ayumu was tired. After doing a little hunting to train in combat, she trudged back in the direction of the Town of Beginnings. The sun mercilessly beat down upon her and all the other players there, burning them up with it's menacing rays. She stopped for a minute, then deciding not to go back to the small town, went to find a tree to provide shade instead. It only took her a moment to find such a tree, and sitting at it's base, leaned back against the huge trunk with a content sigh. Philomena, the phoenix she had recently tamed as a familiar, decided to perch atop Ayumu's head. The fire bird clawed at the girl's hair, trying to get her attention.

"Stooop!" she laughed a little, gently scratching the phoenix's head a little, "that's annoying! What do you want anyways?"

As if to answer her, Philomena fluttered down, and landing on her arm, scratched at her hand...the hand she used to open her menu.

"Dude, you just ate a few minutes ago. I'm not giving you more." Ayumu groaned, shaking her head and pulling her hand away. Looking ahead, she spotted someone walking along in the vast fields of the floor, looking rather tired from the heat. It was girl about her age, with bright pink, curly hair. Frowning a little, Ayumu stood, deciding to go over to her. Maybe she needed some water, and was out of it in her inventory. Allowing Philomena to sit at her usual place on her shoulder, she walked towards the other player.

"Hey," she greeted, "you look pretty tired. I still have some water in my inventory, if you would like some." she offered.

 

[Audacity 0]

Aching muscles pulled - rather miraculously - a young, exhausted woman towards the city where she'd be permitted to rest and perhaps nap just long enough for her vitality to become fully restored. Today, of all days, the sun had decided to shine its brightest and released the harshest of heat waves upon Floor 1. If this world allowed such features than the pale pinkette would've been crispy as bacon by now. Her pastel eyes were drooping slightly - even falling now and then if she lost her focus. A sharp mind now dull continuously reminded itself of how it'd miscalculated the distance of the daily morning walk. That'd be the last time she'd attempt a route that differed from the normal grass paths she followed. Even with an Eidetic memory she'd failed, that hurt her more than it should.

Curls cascading over lazed shoulders and down a - definitely not something normal for Audacity - slouched back. She turned to view the sudden voice reaching her ears, refraining from jumping though her heart jump-started as the approach was rather startling. Had her guard really been let down due to a bit of tiredness? Instantly her sensitive senses picked the pace back up as she turned to meet the mystery female. "Tired? Yes. Thirsty? No." After licking her rosy lips, the young woman stuck out her tongue to reveal it was the perfect color: no dehydration, no need for water. "Besides, I have a hefty collection available in my inventory as of now. The offer is appreciated, however, that's generous for a stranger to offer. I suppose my fatigue is quite obvious, then." With a sigh she straightens her curvaceous body to its full height. "Excuse my misuse of body posture." She straightens out the top and cloth chest plate of her armor before speaking again. "How does the exchange of names sound? If we could do so while journeying back to town, that'd be lovely as it's unbearably warm." Hands reach up to pull a length of curly hair over one shoulder to free her neck of the warmth it generated.

[Ayumu 0]

"Alright then," she nodded, then waving away her apology for poor posture, "eh, don't worry about it. Today is probably the hottest day that I've experienced on this floor. Personally, I've been slouching and sweating like a hooker in church. Stuff like that happens when people get tired." When she mentioned heading back to town, Ayumu eagerly agreed, "yeah, that sounds good. We might find some good shade too in the plaza, or maybe in the garden even." and with that, she led the way back to the Town of Beginnings. "Well, as for introductions, I'm Ayumu," the red-head said as they walked, "I'm nothing special - your average low-level player, and that's about it. Unlike most people here, I've only just started to focus on leveling, training, and possibly working my way to the front lines at some point. Hopefully I can get there pretty quickly...since I'd like to escape this game as soon as possible."

As she was giving the pinkette her introductions, they had already reached the town. Thankfully, as she had hoped, there was a shady spot for them to sit once the two players entered the plaza. Ayumu sat on one of these benches under the shade, and patted the spot next to her, inviting the other girl to sit next to her.

[Audacity 0]

"I'm glad you understand how I feel." She nodded with gratitude. With that the two were off, striding side-by-side, headed towards the same place with the same goal in mind: get out of the damned heat. "You may call me Audacity. Or Audy if that's easier for you to pronounce. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Ayumu. Now there's a name I'll remember." A joke, really, since her memory never faltered but she also had slipped in a compliment towards the other woman's username of choice for the game. In all honesty it was the first one she'd heard of that was almost as pleasing to the ears as her own. But the small fact that she'd given up a nickname her mind conjured not too long ago was a good sign. Her heart had taken a liking for this slightly younger woman. "I know all about that life. I refer to our kind as the adolescents of Aincrad: right in between the beginner stage of newb-ism and mature stage of actually making a difference." Not too long after encountering a pink-haired teenager by the name of Shizuka she'd thought of ways to tag those among the game appropriately without hurting feelings. Not because she minded what others' thought, but more so because she didn't want to be the target of mockery when being called one of those titles herself.

"Agreed. Reality is much, much more enjoyable than this world will ever be. Perhaps my opinion would be different if I were given the chance to explore and discover with the option to log out of this game at will; to take breaks and return whenever. But now I certainly won't game again after such an incident." Audacity felt this new person had already made a positive impact on her life. Surely Ayumu wasn't dumb, lazy, unrepeatable or uninteresting in any way possible: those were green flags. "I've been thinking a lot lately about my future on the front-lines. Out there you'll see me as a Support. Though I'd prefer to be strong and lead everyone, it's an effective and important build that's needed for those who are more skilled than I. Around the fields, however, I've decided to fall back and take the secondary build of DPS." She paused to take a sit next to the red-head, crossing her legs and sitting with a straightened back while hands were rested in her lap. "Do you have anything in mind that'd contribute to your future - on the front-lines, of course - in the game? Or perhaps you're a wild one?"

Edited November 22, 2015 by Audacity

[Ayumu 0]

"Nice to meet you as well Audacity," Ayumu nodded, "I probably won't forget your name either. I like slightly uncommon words." She grinned. Then, as Audacity talked about reality and being trapped in this game, she nodded, "yeah, no kidding. That's why most of us got the game anyways, right? For fun, and log out whenever IRL calls. But its different when its like this...I don't know if I'd abandon games altogether after this, but I probably won't play another VRMMORPG." With interest, she listened to the other girl as she described her plans for the front lines. Answering the pinkette's question, "We pretty much have the same plans. I haven't decided yet whether I want to be a Support or DPS, but definitely one of those two. Whatever I pick, I think I'll solely focus on that, choosing the skills that will make me the best that I can be in that area. Besides that, I'm rather unsure of what I'll do besides the front lines. I'm planning on setting a Blacksmith shop up, but that's all I've thought ahead to so far. Honestly, I'd rather not be distracted by anything and fight my way out of here, but what can one do? I guess I can't be miserable...but I don't want to lose sight of my real purpose, and what I have waiting for me at home." she sighed heavily. She enjoyed talking with Audacity, and felt as if they were friends already. By her speech patterns, she seemed extremely well educated, and Ayumu respected that. For some reason, her judgemental side didn't kick in and perceive this girl as haughty. In the real world, whenever she talked to someone like this player, that would probably be her first impression. She was glad it wasn't in this case though. This older girl seemed nice, and might make a great close friend somewhere along the road. As she was musing on all of this, Philomena, her attention-hog phoenix poked at her cheek with it's beak.

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten that you exist." Ayumy smirked, scratching the familiar under it's beak.

Edited November 23, 2015 by Ayumu

[Audacity 0]

"Likewise." Even with an advanced vocabulary Audacity refrained from using odd words very often just for the sake of others' not being able to understand. Perhaps that would be different with Ayumu. The corners of her mouth twitched downwards slightly to form a very subtle frown of sorts; her memory brought back one of the biggest mistakes she made in life. "Not everyone." She sighed, still not able to cope with the fact that she got something wrong for once. "I was gonna take the headgear apart and study it since I'm not very skilled with technology but instead I decided to explore Sword Art Online instead." A hand ran through curly pink locks that bounced back into place even after flattened by a palm. She shrugged and had made up her mind long ago about games. "I hadn't played anything but board games since the day all of Aincrad got trapped." When the news reached her ears and had been accepted in her heart, Audacity immediately felt disgust and shuddered whenever players' around her spoke about their liking of video games. Never again would she be able to view the form of entertainment in the same way.

"You're not wrong," She began, hesitating for a moment because with her next words she'd be performing the act of a hypocrite. "but everyone should at least try and enjoy at least one moment or two here. Emphasis on try..." Her tone deepened and voice became hushed because she suddenly realized during this moment that she had only been thinking about becoming stronger, spending every moment preparing or fighting unless sleep took over. "All I desire is to stand in front of my family and embrace them like I never have before. But I'm absolutely positive at least one of them is hoping and wishing that I'm not having a horrible time here, working myself overtime as always." 

As she spoke her pink eyes stared at the horizon before the two, so when she heard those few words confusion filled her mind. "Hm?" She turned her head to meet Ayumu's gaze only to notice her familiar for the first time. "Isn't that odd? I hadn't even noticed your pet until now. What's its name?" Grateful for the subject change topic, she returned to presenting a serious expression and unwavering tone. Her insides churned at the thought of home and death among numerous other things that she tried her best to forget. Pleasant, amusing moments like these provided inner serenity that took over painful nostalgia.

OOC: Darn sexy signature gif you got there ^//^

Edited November 23, 2015 by Audacity

[Ayumu 0]

(OOC: Lol...I made each pic on paint too, making it look cheap on purpose. XD I have a weird sense of humor)

Ayumu lifted an eyebrow when she mentioned using the Nerve Gear to learn about technology,

"Well, that's one way to do it...I don't even know how one would even take that thing apart. That thing was seamless!" then after a slight pause, "don't let the fact that you're not really gamer discourage you. I mean, I don't know if it is, but still. You'll make it out of here alive, I'm sure of it." Her countenance fell a little with sadness as their conversation turned to more somber things. Most everyone had friends, family, and pursuits back at home that were left behind and neglected...all because of SAO. In the beginning, Ayumu had wanted to escape this place in only a mere month. As she quickly discovered, it wasn't that easy. Just because of a silly game, everything that she had put any time and effort into: relationships, school, sports...all of it was slowly wasting away. Of course, she didn't know Audacity's predicament, but Ayumu was sure she also was leaving a lot of important things behind, with no say in the matter whatsoever. That melancholy moment ended abruptly when the other girl changed the subject when Philomena made herself known. Sighing with relief to focus on something not so serious,

"Oh, this is Philomena. She's a phoenix I tamed as a familiar while doing the <<Feeding the Enemy>> quest. She doesn't have any buff or supports, but she's a good little companion. Honestly, I was surprised I was even able to tame her at all. If you're not careful, the familiar you're trying to tame during the quest might attack you. Thankfully, that didn't happen."

[Audacity 0]

With a quiet, personal laugh of sorts she shrugged. "I would have found a way. The gear wouldn't - and definitely won't - be safe from me." Now that she had a personal grudge against the technology there'd be a reason behind her taking it apart other than for knowledge and studying. Honestly she wasn't one for games ever, even when she watched her siblings and friends play them, unless those games were on boards. Thus she really had no idea about "RPG's", "Builds", "Skills", and any other basic game-dictionary worthy words. "A little experience may have helped but luckily I caught on to the system and such rather quickly." Shizuka, the first player and only other pinkette she'd met, had assisted in the choosing of her build and refresher of beginner's guide information. Though Sword Art Online was far from difficult to understand she would have been better off knowing the in's and out's of games rather than being a newbie to the systems that ran it. 

"Eesh. Just when you'd think they'd be grateful to be taken care of." Audacity joked. "I wouldn't want a Familiar unless they came with some kind of benefit but at least you've got company whenever it's needed." Being completely honest she voiced her opinion. The young woman thought of the animals as food-wasting, time-consuming masses of coding unless they were there for a reason. This was simply because she hadn't actually had a pet as a child and knew nothing of the bonds that could be created. Not to mention she couldn't care less about a virtual thing - whether it be an NPC, mob, or Familar. "Is that name spelled with an F or PH?'

[Ayumu 0]

"Hey, more power to you," she smiled, laughing a bit, "that would be a feat. And that's good, with the fact you caught on quickly. I struggled a lot at the start, and I still do sometimes, I guess. There's a lot to functioning here in Aincrad. Levels, skills, and all that nonsense. I don't know about you, but I'm glad real life doesn't work that way. That would be a daily struggle," then, as the topic went back to familiars, "yeah, no kidding!" she smirked, "it would be nice to receive something in turn for taming and feeding them. Maybe one day I'll try that quest again...I think one can have two or more familiars, but only one of them can have buffs and supports. Perhaps I'll get lucky next time," she shrugged, "and yeah, its spelled with Ph, kind of like the greek word phil or philo."

 

(sorry this one is short! :c)

[Audacity 0]

Ayumu put a smile on Audacity's face with the way she spoke and what she said. She probably wasn't even trying to be amusing but the pinkette couldn't help the way her rosy lips continued to curl up. "Definitely. Life already throws far too many obstacles at me. I'd rather it not develop a system similar to this game. I'd give up if that were to happen." By give up she meant become lazy and forget hard work as it is but she also was joking around with the red-head. No way she'd give up all of her hard, dedicated work in the real world. Not for anything. But she did imagine the world with systems and such... that'd be a huge pain to manage no doubt. "I really never took a liking to animals. They're either gross, unmanageable, or too much in most cases. Makes me wonder what I'd be like with a Familiar.." She trailed off as her mind conjured up ideas and images of her wandering around Aincrad with an animal of sorts by her side. Audacity shivered. "I thought so. Spell the name with a PH and it appears much more pleasing to the eyes when written down. Either way you're going to end up with a name that means "love". Isn't that sweet?" She cooed at the end simply to tease Ayumu.

OOC: That's okay! I don't mind the length of your posts as long as I can respond to them ;)

[Ayumu 0]

"Give up? Nah, you don't really seem like the type to do that. I get the impression that you're the hard-working, persevering kind of person," Ayumu grinned slightly, "maybe the type that works too hard, but you gotta do what you gotta do, right?" Then, nodding as she understood the girl's view on Familars, "yeah, I get yeah. Unlike in the real world though, I'm pretty sure that a player taking the quest can turn their Familar into an item. That technically kills it, I guess...still, it's all up to the player." Chuckling at the pinkette's teasing, "yes, which is ironic since I don't always get a lot of love from this old thing. More like 'pay attention to me or I will annoy you until your brain explodes.' But that's only sometimes, so its not all that bad. Enough about all that though," she changed the subject, "so, what kind of player are you? Do you plan on going solo, or are you trying for a spot in a guild?" Ayumu asked curiously, "as for me, I'm rather conflicted with all of that. I don't really want to go solo - I plan on making friends, helping them with this game, and vice versa. On the other hand, I'm not too sure about joining a guild...at least not yet. I don't know what I'd be able to contribute. There's so many powerful players already...perhaps the guild's have already found their gems. I suppose I'll just take it as it comes: shaping my path as I walk along, rather than before I tread the road."

[Audacity 0]

"You caught my bluff." She speaks in an amused way which seems to contrast with her natural expression. Though luckily Ayumu hadn't tagged her in a rude mannerism as opposed to most people she's met before. Feeling as if she didn't need to reply since the red-head understood where she came from the pinkette continued listening. Her mind wouldn't change on the view of Familiars but if her companion preferred to have one than she'd respect that decision. A Familiar could provide buffs, and if Audacity could store the animal in her inventory whenever she pleased than perhaps she'd consider taking the quest. Alone, of course; when she was stronger and without anyone to judge her ways. 

"Allies - if you aren't an idiot - are forever. Guilds are not. I see players blinded by the opportunity of joining a Guild every day. Most of the time they haven't even socialized with the other members and find themselves regretting the choice in the end. But if you use your brain than picking a Guild can end up being extremely beneficial. I'd say first meet everyone and get a view of them from your perspective, not the opinions of others. When the dust settles and you've a choice then go with it." Friends on a player's list come and go as they please. However, an established ally will stick with you unless the deal is broken. That's what Audacity believed which is why she even socialized so much in the game. That's why she asked Shizuka about their future considering friendship. Her mind had been at ease knowing a powerful Support player was by her side, but curiosity tagged along with that feeling and wanted to know if they were truly friends or not. No; they weren't but at least she'd found out that this game happened to be the same when it came to relationships in reality.

"Solo's a silly option. Anyone who chooses that - no matter how anti-social they are - is out to pursue their own death. One mistake and there's no one around to assist you in combat. That's all it takes." She paused to straighten her now slumping body out. "I am different. I've already chosen my path, skills, and have made any possible decisions already. Now all I need to do is put myself to work. You seem far more spontaneous than I, yet equally intelligent, so I'm sure whatever happens will work out for you." Her pink eyes glimmered with admiration and confidence towards Ayumu. "Now tell me: If you could choose a Guild than who would it be? Or if you could form your own Guild would that be your choice?" In hopes of being entertaining the pinkette thought of a question that seemed amusing in her mind when thought about.