Morancrais (Sword Art Online)

[EpitaphQueen]

Sitting cross legged in her bed Tamara unwrapped her new game. The front cover only showed a picture of a tall broad swordsman with the words "Morancrais Online" across the top in shining red lettering. Opening the case she popped the disk into her gaming console and grabbed her new headgear. Slowly she slipped it onto her head and laid back on her pillow, this nerve gear was quite comfortable to be honest. "Link start." Tamara said, using the universal words to start the nerve gear, and her entire world lit up.



In a small Tavern she faced a short squat man. "Hello there Miss." 'So it recognizes gender? Cool!' She thought excitedly. "Please input your player name." A keyboard appeared in front of Tamara and she immediately input her usual username 'Katsu'. The screen glowed blue and a small ribbon appeared with her name and flew to sit above her head, showing her name to all. "It's nice to meet you Katsu. What class would you like to use?" Without even looking at any of the other options Katsu immediately chose neutral. It was obviously the best of the options. "Welcome to Morancrais. Please proceed to town Square for orientation. We hope you enjoy your stay." 'My stay?' Thought the newly named Katsu. 'An odd thing to say'.



Ignoring the oddness of the statement Katsu made her way to the square, watching as other people emerged from other buildings, some in pairs, but all quite excited. Her own excitement was muted for the moment as she made it to the square and took a place at the back.



Once everyone had arrived in the squarr the tall broad shouldered man from the front of the game appeared on top of the fountain. "Welcome to Morancrais!" He cried, and the crowd erupted into loud cheers. Once everyone had quieted down he smiled a dangerous looking smile and Katsu shivered. "I'm sure many of you remember a few years ago the research project that was Sword Art Online." A few murmurs began and Katsu began to feel uneasy. "That research was meant to collect data, but unfortunately that data was cut short. Thanks to the advancements in technology however, we can now finish that data." With this he paused and looked around. "With all of you." A few screams erupted in the audience and a few began to cry. Katsu's own heart was now racing and she felt a lump in her throat. 'Stuck in the game?' She questioned to herself. "Welcome to Morancrais, enjoy your stay." He mimicked the man from the Tavern and then disappeared.



After his disappearance a small ding sounded from each player signifying that they had received an item, most were too distressed to check, but Katsu needed to know what the item they had been given was. She opened her inventory to reveal a map of the world and a few potions that had been given to each player along with three thousand gold.



Leaving the square Katsu went straight to the nearest outfitters and bought herself some protective gear, next she went to the skills master and bought some skills, and then she ended with the blacksmith where she bought a sword with the remainder of her money. Katsu had acted fast, knowing that it would take others much longer to react to this news and buy their gear, meaning that supplies would run dry fast. Katsu equipped her new gear and pulled up her map, trying to figure out where the best place to go first would be.

 

[Ray C]

"Braden Blade."

"Welcome to Morancrais. Please proceed to town Square for orientation. We hope you enjoy your stay."

"Sure." Yeah right. Let the common man listen to a drawn out speech; Blade was going out to fight before all the harvest spots were taken. The first thing he needed was a sword. He didn't have one. Calling up his inventory showed he not only had no items, but was completely broke as well. "Hey, where can I get a sword?"

"You can buy a sword from the smith at the West end of town."

"Where can I get money?"

"You will be given a starting package after orientation."

Well, that was terrific. Apparently they were serious about having everyone listen. Blade didn't want to listen to the creators ranting about how amazing they were, but apparently he didn't have a choice. He found a place at the West end of the town square to listen from; the moment he received his package, he would be gone.

-----

Ariel had been incredibly nervous about this "Launch Day." Travis had been raving about how amazing it was going to be, and Ivory and Nina were both joining as well. This was her first real experience with games, so she was afraid she would do it wrong. That's why she'd spent several hours over the last week reading the beta testers' accounts. She'd already decided she would do best as a mage (that was actually Ivory's idea), so she'd read those extra carefully. Apparently the first step for a mage was to collect books of spells; without them, she wouldn't be able to do anything. But she could only have a few spells, as determined by her magic level; and there was a limit on skills she could have, too, and each magic branch counted as its own skill; but combining different branches could lead to different and more powerful spells.

It was all too confusing to understand! She'd done her best to memorize anecdotes and tips for players, but until she was actually playing it wouldn't make any sense. Case in point, she had told the person her name was Arielah and that she would be a magess, and then she'd looked around and found herself standing in a small bookstore of some kind. It confused her that some people might join this game just to read the books, but she let the thought pass as she was instructed to go to the Square.

Arielah stepped out of the bookstore and looked around. There was a large plaza in front of her where a lot of people were standing around. Arielah was hesitant to approach them--she'd been told about all those types of people you might meet online--so she turned down a side street and started wandering, trying to find the Square.

Several minutes of wandering later, she found herself back in the large plaza. Now, though, there was a horde of players standing around. The fact that this was the largest area she had come across, and all the other players were here, she had to assume that this was the Square that bookstore owner had talked about. Her next embarrassing revelation came when she saw the bookstore she'd come out of--and the sign on its front that read "Magic Shop." Her cheeks turning red despite nobody being there, Arielah walked to the magic shop and sat down on the bench in front of it, trying to pretend she wasn't a clueless beginner.

"Welcome to Morancrais! I'm sure many of you remember a few years ago the research project that was Sword Art Online. That research was meant to collect data, but unfortunately that data was cut short. Thanks to the advancements in technology, however, we can now finish that data. With all of you. Welcome to Morancrais, enjoy your stay."

As far as opening speeches went, that one sucked. Blade liked that it was short--definite plus there--but the guy was a psychopath gloating about the crime he'd just gotten away with. There was nothing more to it. The entire speech was "You're all suckers! I fooled everyone! They thought this could never happen again, but I'm too smart for them! Neiner neiner!" Blade could concede that the makers had to be smart to get away with it; VR had more restrictions and safety tests than airlines. He also had to admit that they were all suckers.

Well, what little kid hadn't fantasized about living in a fantasy world? He was only eight when SAO came out--too young to be interested in it--but after that, when VR games became big, Joshua had wondered about what it would have been like to live in one completely. As misfortune would have it, he'd just been given the chance to find out. He was ticked about it; yet a very small grin pulled up the corner of Blade's mouth when the man disappeared. Maybe now he wouldn't have to face that insufferable boredom.

Panic was setting in fast. Everyone who was familiar with SAO understood the situation clearly. Some of the people here were probably survivors, even. Blade was going to be one by the end of this, of that he held no doubt. A small ping announced the arrival of his starter kit. It was like the gunshot for the start of a race. He turned and ran to the blacksmith, checking his inventory as he went. Three thousand seemed like a lot to start, but he did have to buy a complete set of gear for himself. His first priority was his sword, though; a good sword would handle everything at these low levels. Arriving at the smith's, he bought the best, level one, single-hand, double-edged sword the man had for 800 gold. Next was the tanner's for some leather armor he could move in, and then the skill trainer with whatever was left. Along the way he could find people to join him--anybody already gearing up would be useful.

-----

It was really a short speech. It didn't make much sense, either. Arielah felt a little uncomfortable about the idea they were gathering data on her, but part of being in a game was that the owners could watch, right? Her thoughts were interrupted when a quiet sound went off in her ears. Arielah jumped, then realized it probably meant something had just happened. The end of the speech, probably. That must mean it was time to start playing. She stepped inside the shop behind her and approached the cashier cheerfully.

"Hello. What spellbooks do you have for mages?"

The girl behind the counter just looked at her, then looked over her shoulder at the shelves of books, then looked back at her. "The level one section is right there," she stated, pointing right behind Arielah.

"Right. Thank you! I'll just... look through them, shall I?" That was embarrassing. Arielah pulled out the first book on the shelf. "Fireball, lvl 1." She put that back. There were many more fire spells on that shelf. Next down was water, then earth, then air on the very bottom (a silly idea, in Ariel's opinion). She knelt down to pull out one of the air books. "Sparrow, lvl 1." That was a title that caught her attention, so she tried to flip it open. The cover wouldn't move.

"You have to buy it to read it," the girl at the counter called. Arielah blushed. That made sense, of course; otherwise, anybody could learn everything without paying. She picked out three more with interesting titles--"Stone, lvl 1," "Wind Cutter, lvl 1" and "Quake, lvl 1"--and brought them over to buy them. A small ding sounded in her ears again, but this time she didn't jump. She picked up her books, thanked the girl, and returned to the bench outside to begin reading them.

Outside was a disaster. Some people were on the ground sobbing, others were still screaming every curse they knew at where the man had been standing, and more were already dashing about the shops in a frenzy. If all games were this chaotic Ariel was a little glad she hadn't joined any before now. Maybe it was just because this was the first day?

Well, the confusion would die down eventually. For now, Arielah opened up "Sparrow" to read. She was disappointed with its contents. What looked like a book was only two really thick pages. Parting the two revealed her spell.

Sparrow, level 1
Summon a wind-element minion. Capable of scouting an area and recording what it sees. Cannot attack; dies easily.

Well, that... could prove useful, right? Not in a fight, but maybe for something else? Or maybe she'd just wasted one spell slot. Hopefully the others would prove better.

The book in her hands vanished. Arielah was stunned for a moment. Could she use the spell now, then? How could she check? "Um... Sparrow!" Nothing happened. What had the beta reviews said? 'The nerve gear reads how focused you are on the spell; you really have to concentrate.' It sounded ridiculous when she read it, but now it was worth a try. She raised her hand and focused hard, picturing a little bird in her palm. The brown feathers, the white tummy, the black highlights on its wings and face...

"Sparrow."

Arielah felt a strange rush flow through her. It was as though she had just sprinted across her front yard: her breath grew a little heavier and her limbs felt slightly tingly. And in her hand was a small sparrow. She jumped up in joy, cupping both hands around the small bird. For a moment, her surroundings were forgotten; after all, she had just magically created a small bird! The moment passed and she realized people were looking at her strangely. Many were glaring, as though she should not be happy for her achievement. She sat back down, cowed by the atmosphere, but sulked about it. Even if it was a small achievement, it was still unbelievably cool. She set the bird on her shoulder, then sped through her other three books as well: a basic earth attack, a basic wind attack, and an earth attack that hit everything around her. Those would be what she used to fight. She didn't try any yet, but as each one disappeared she felt confident that she would be able to use it later.

Two spells was the level 1 limit for a magic skill. But she would earn a lot more as she leveled up her magic skills. That meant there had to be a way to keep track of them; the creators wouldn't expect everyone to just remember several hundred spells. It took some experimenting, but finally Arielah found out how to open her menu. It didn't take long for her to find her inventory, her character screen, and her spellbook. Finding that was a huge relief. Now that she knew where she stood, Arielah felt more confident. Another thought struck her then, one she was embarrassed she hadn't considered before: she needed to open the menu to log out. If she hadn't found it, she could have been stuck here for a long time. That would have been a nightmare.

Looking through the menu, though, she couldn't find it. There was no "log out" button. That was worrying. Sitting there on the bench outside the magic shop, Ariel didn't know how to get home. Maybe somebody else would know? Ivory would know, surely. Arielah said a silent prayer, asking for Ivory to find her soon. She needed her friend.

 

[Reanimator Buns]

"There there my fair young lady, there is no need to fear! After all, you have a saint to look after you now." Nononnononononoonononononononnoononnononoonoononononnonnononononononononononnoonnononnono!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Quite the man he is. even in a state of pure fear and horror, this young fellow, by the name of Seijin currently could still woo a girl into his arms. In truth he was perhaps worse off than the young girl he was comforting.

"R-Rineto?..."

"Eh?"

He suddenly went flying across the court yard. It seemed the girl he was comforting had divined his true identity.

"Ah, that sting... What the Hell! Why'd y-CHIHIRO!"

Once more he was punched, this time in the crotch. He fell to the ground writhing in pain.

"Get up, you asshole! It doesn't even hurt. Now would you tell me why the hell you were trying to hit on me at a time like this?!" No more than one minute ago this girl, Chihiro, now Kerra, was on the floor crying, but it seemed this young man's attempts to get her to open up to here only managed in setting her flame afire. "Know what, forget it, I don't care. Now hurry up and help me find a way to get out of her so I can kick your ass for real."

"Ahhh, but Chihiroo~...-GAH!"

"Cut it out you baby! It doesn't hurt! And don't call me that! I hate that name... Its too helpless sounding to me."

"But that's what I-" "I'm stopping you right there before I legitimately kill you. Now lets find some people to travel with."

 

[Verin]

"Cerberus." Watching the NPC that took care of naming with a deceptively blank stare, Mason couldn't help but feel boredom baring it's ugly face. All games had these long winded introductions, and there was no skipping here... Oh well. Upon the question of what class he wished, he immediately responded with a fervent "Warrior." After being dismissed and told to go see the orientation, he stepped out to find a place to listen to the orientation, hand found a spot conveniently near the smithy.

At the short, yet life- changing announcement, cold fear bit into his nerves and traveled throughout his whole body. "If I want to live... Better get started." Making his way quickly to the smithy to gather the sword and shield he intended to use, he then set out to go begin what had rapidly changed from a game to a rush for survival. Quickly equipping the purchased items, he sprinted from the town as he consulted the map. He would survive this.

 

[Grondo]

Ani looked over the man that was apparently managing the character creation, it was just as most of the characters she saw thus far a NPC. He asked her for her name and she thought about it for a while, she previously created male characters..not because she liked it, but because it seemed that every guy in a game would always try to hit on every girl he could confirm, it was just creepy to experience and see. She didn't group up with anyone this time and it seemed that her choices for character creation were limited, 'what a shame' she thought while typing her usual nickname. A mix of her name and her sisters name Ani Yondo and Anika Yono, basically the "si" part of it was personal preference, Aya sounded too boring for her after all. So her name was set, 'Ayas' she giggled and walked outside, her character looking almost exactly like her in the real world, she figured if she already had to make a girl, make a pretty one at least.

She was told to listen to a speech at the start of the game, this was not unusual for the start of MMO's, but VRMMORPG's usually had a special shot at that. A huge event or some great starting kit were usually what they got, she was about to check her inventory as she realized that she didn't put a lot of attention into the class she picked. "Ugh...really? Ranged DPS? I'm dumb..." she cursed as she realized she accidentally picked the archer class, it was ranged as she liked it, but she hated being just the person to shoot, also the archer class in this game seemed rather boring, skills would be acquired by leveling her stats, such as aim, concentration and her control with the weapon of choice, a longbow it would be for her, she loved bows, she was in the archery club of her school and won a few trophies, but that's also the reason why she didn't want to play the class of an archer, it was basically what she had in her real life and she wanted to get rid of that in a game, not get more of it. Ayasi would probably just create a new character at some point, if that was a possibility, she didn't know too much about this game just yet, she just read about the different classes and the interface beforehand.

Why anyone would read about the interface you might ask...well rather simple for her, she didn't feel comfortable at all with not knowing where to find her stats, items or other things, she felt unwelcome in a game that she didn't know how to use the interface, therefore she always read about the interface beforehand and learned where to find what button, even though interfaces became rather easy to understand after she started playing with the nervegear.

Her eyes went to the man that seemed to have the welcoming message for her and the other players, hopefully he would also explain how she would be able to fight anything without any armor or weapons.
"Welcome to Morancrais! I'm sure many of you remember a few years ago the research project that was Sword Art Online. That research was meant to collect data, but unfortunately that data was cut short. Thanks to the advancements in technology, however, we can now finish that data. With all of you. Welcome to Morancrais, enjoy your stay." Upon hearing that she stared at the man shocked, he just told them what was going to happen here and she fell on her knees, her eyes didn't go teary, but she knew all too well what happened with Sword Art Online previously, it was a horrible thing and many of the people caught back then either died, had horrible problems afterwards or are just crazy by now.

'Great joke...right? This is a joke! I mean who would do that...how would it even be possible...' she thought as she just looked at the man, he vanished now and she just heard a sound, indicating she got a message, she opened it, still with a pale face and saw what she got, this was what she would've been happy with, just the started kit, no new surprises. She got up and took a deep breath, she read a lot about SAO and she knew how to handle the situation in theory, but her heart was racing and thinking straight wasn't exactly the easiest thing right now. "Okay okay...what to do...I have to get equipped and get to find a group to level with...that's what they wrote back then..It was just theory though..I hope...it works here too." She took another deep breathe before she walked towards the shops, getting the weapons and armor she would need for her class, she would have to find a group, but probably not inside the city, it would be easier to go outside and meet the persons that were calm already, just talking to a random person here would probably lead to nothing.

This was what she had in mind, but it was just what she thought, she ran to buy the armor and just walked through the city aimlessly as she got a little more scared, so many other people went crazy about this and got so scared about the situation, it just got to her after seeing it so much and she fell on her knees once again, trying to calm herself. 'Okay Ani, you can do this...you've read about this in god knows how many books and you've watched tons of documentations about SAO, so get a grip!' Another deep breath and she managed to get up once again, she now walked towards the exit of the city, her journey may have just started, but she already felt like she got through the worst as she finally got out of the city and fell against the wall, onto the ground and started to calm herself, it felt like her heart was beating like crazy, but she probably didn't exactly feel that, it was just her imagination or another function of the new nervegear, but she was scared and she didn't know enough about this game to pretend to be the strongest of all.

Ayasi looked up into the simulated sky and it calmed her to see it, it may just be a simulation, but it felt like it was real, in some ways at least. She got a grip of herself once again and walked back towards the gate, hoping to catch anyone else leaving the place, hopefully joining up with them and getting out of here, she had many things going on in her mind right now, she knew that as an archer her ammunition was important and she bought a ton of standard arrows, but she would have to learn how to create new ones, the arrows that would let her use specific skills as well. This were things for the future though, nothing she could worry about now, she focused back at the gates, hoping to find anyone leave the city and group up with her to survive this horror.

 

[Ray C]

Blade wasn't the first to react. As he geared up with the very basic leathers, he noticed a girl run past who already had her armor on. A small spark lit up in his eyes; he wanted to be the first one to the field. Now it was a race. He made for the Sword Master at a full sprint, purchasing two passives and a pair of active skills he could use. The first skill Blade bought was a passive boost to Agility; the second, Damage. He purchased the active Parry next--there was no way he'd enter a fight without being able to block with his sword--and used the last of his Gold to buy Slash. It was the most basic of basics, a slight damage increase to a single attack, but that was all he could afford at that point. He was now flat broke.

Time to earn some cash back, Blade thought with a grin. The girl was still going, too; he needed to beat her to the gate. Taking off at a sprint again, Blade pulled his map out just to see if it would be useful. It really wasn't, not yet. The map showed towns and terrain, nothing more. He would have to fill in all the rest himself: monster spawns, dungeon entrances, campsites, resources--all the useful information that beta testers would probably already know. Lucky suckers.

He put his map away just in time to run headlong into a girl looking at her own. Blade crashed into Katsu, but wrapped one arm around her and twisted as they fell. He hit the cobblestone and she landed on top of him. That was when he made a terrific discovery: there was pain in Morancrais. He'd estimate it at 25%, but that was pain nonetheless. Terrific.

"I suppose that was my fault. Looking for a party?" he asked the girl on top of him. He couldn't find any signs of a class, so he assumed she chose neutral. When he had first seen the option, Blade had almost laughed; it might seem powerful at the start, but a neutral would never be the best at anything. Now that the most important skill was not dieing, though, neutrals didn't look nearly as stupid.

-----

Arielah was surprised when a boy landed not twenty feet to her right. She looked to see where he had come from, finding the likely suspect as a girl punched him once again. The pair seemed to be friends, as best Arielah could guess. Sitting by herself was just making her nervous, so she stood and jogged to the pair before they could leave. "Excuse me!" she called after them as she tried to catch up.

"Um... Hi! I'm Ariel...ah." She almost forgot to use her game name. "Arielah the magess." And to emphasize her point, she raised her palm for the sparrow to hop into and held the small bird out to them. "Can I come with you for now? I have some friends here somewhere, but until I find them I'd rather not be alone."

 

[Reanimator Buns]

That voice! Such beauty. Why there was no way he could resist her. As he turned to face this beautiful specimen, he pulled free of his captor. She did not like that one but.

"Arielah... Ah! A name fit for angels! And a face and voice to go along with such a name! Why it is too much for any man. My dear Arielah, I as a Saint shall devote my life to-muphguphragh!"

The shorter girl pulled him down and held her hand over his mouth, quelling his words. She turned to the girl, and smiled.

"Whoa boy calm, down. Please excuse this moron. He isn't a friend, just a beast, and I the one who can tame him. He is Seijin, and I am Kerra. I am a Rouge, and the Play Boy here is a Cleric ironically. We were heading to get our equipment. You can follow if you'd like. But try to ignore the beast. He has a way with words making him all the more dangerous.

"My lady you wound me!"

"I really will if you don't shut up! Now hurry up and talk to the High Priest so you can get your skills." Kerra bought her skills from her class specialist, Throwing, alchemy, and sneak, as well as her weapons. Seijin bought three spells, Heal, Light Bolt, and Refresh. Certainly he would be necessary for their survival. "So, who are these friends of yours we're looking for?"

 

[Ray C]

Arielah followed them, relief flooding her now that she had company. Buying their gear was an interesting process, as Seijin never seemed to give up and Kerra would never let him finish. Arielah was largely distracted by finding an outfit she liked, though; far too many outfits marked for magesses were "sexy." Finally she found an outfit she liked: the shaman gear, not at all revealing and covered with liberal amounts of beads and feathers. It felt a little silly when she first put it on, but after walking around for a bit she came to like the jangles. Checking it in the menu, she found it was beneficial for magic and boosted Familiar Affinity--and while she wasn't sure what that meant exactly, she could guess it was good for her sparrow.

Arielah couldn't help but giggle while watching her two companions. She couldn't help but make an observation before answering Kerra. "Seijin is quite the flatterer, isn't her? But at least he's a good one; that was one of the best pick-up lines I've heard. I'm almost curious to see how Ivory would react to him. Ah, but that isn't her name here; I don't know any of my friends' game names. I'll know them when I see them, though!"

 

[EpitaphQueen]

Katsu was intent on her map. It seemed that the next town was on the second level and she would have to make it through the first floor dungeon to find the stairs upwards. Sighing she zoomed in on her location. That knight who she assumed was the creator hadn't been very specific about having to beat a certain level so she assumed that she would have to beat the game, something that would be hard to do without a party. Just as she was about to close her map Katsu felt something strike her from the side and was barely able to register the boys face before she landed on top of him with a hard thump. She lay stunned for a moment before she lifted her head to glare at the boy who had knocked into her. He was obviously a warrior based on his gear. "I suppose that was my fault. Looking for a party?"

Sighing Katsu stood and offered her hand to the warrior. "I'm Katsu. If you're looking to party then so am I, but we better get on the move and get some leveling done or we'll never get out of here." Opening up her menu Katsu sent a friend request to Blade and then a party request on top of it. "We better go. Maybe we can find some others looking for a party out in the field."

Without even waiting for Blade Katsu took off at top speed towards the gates and out into the field, watching as other players who wanted to get a jump on things began to fight the minor monsters in the field, headed towards the cave that was the dungeon. Drawing her sword Katsu began to run towards the dungeon wanting to make it there first and get the next level opened. Maybe the stronger she was the more people would want to party with her, that's what she assumed though.

 

[Ray C]

Blade had to literally pull the girl from her course. He could guess where she was going: she wanted to start on the first dungeon. She wanted to beat the game in five hours. He wouldn't rescind his offer now, but Blade cursed his luck at having an emotional partner. As badly as she might want to get out of here, she needed to hold on to her reason. Blade made use of his slight agility boost to grab Katsu by her arm and spin her around to face him, halting her progress.

"We train first. Then we enter the forest with level five monsters. Then we find the dungeon with level eight monsters that is inside that forest. Then we enter with a cleric and a cartload of potions. Use your head--unless you want to die. Just like that idiot that didn't even wait to buy armor." Blade pointed to his right.

A player was fighting a boar. It looked to be a simple enough fight, but the player didn't notice a second charging him from behind. Just as Katsu turned to follow Blade's gesture, the boar crashed into the player's back. It's tusks dug into him, piercing two holes in his body and likely puncturing a lung. The player's scream rent the air as he discovered, in a manner much more violent than Blade, that pain was real. His sword slipped from his grasp and the boar he had been fighting charged from the front. The entire death was less than five seconds from the moment Blade pointed to him--too fast for them to have done anything even if Blade felt a need to.

The body dissolved into nothing--though, oddly enough, the dropped sword remained where it had fallen. Blade eyed the two boars and those nearby, judging his chances. Alone, slim; with Katsu, strong. "I am Braden Blade, and I will beat this game. No matter what, no matter how long. Now cover me; that sword is valuable loot, and I'm going to claim it. I'll take the full health boar; you handle the one he already injured." Blade drew his sword to give it a few practice swings. It was heavier than he expected; after a few light motions, he clamped his left hand on the handle as well. Using both hands on a one-hand sword wasn't flattering, but until his muscles grew accustomed to the weight he would put up with that.

 

[Reanimator Buns]

"Alright. We should check outside the town. They might be waiting in a wider space so you can spot them better." Kerra dragged Seijin along as she walked with Arielah. Suddenly, she had an idea.

"Hey beast?"

"Yes my lady?"

"I want you to smooze up some of the girls outside, in search of this Ivory that Arielah was taking about." At those words, his eyes light up. That was the best thing he could hear. He could hit on beautiful girls, and not get punched in the face? This was his dream! With out a word, he had ran off and was already speaking to several girls.

"He's like a blood hound, that guy. You ask him to find a girl, he will find her. Its a little disturbing really..."

 

[EpitaphQueen]

Katsu sighed pointedly when he stopped her, but she had to admit it had been a reckless idea. Sheathing her sword she turned just in time to watch a boy with no armor on pierced by the tusks of the boar and the weight of the situation really hit her. "We really will die if we aren't careful won't we?" She questioned solemnly, thankful for her partner now.

Snorting when he told her to take the weaker boar she raised her eyebrows. "Isn't that a bit of a sexist remark? I'm just as strong as you are Blade, but if you insist. Let's just get this done with and retrieve that sword." Drawing her own sword Katsu approached the boar carefully, aware of every movement before she was charged.

Katsu raised her sword and the boar ran straight into her blade. With a cry she felt the impact shiver through her arm before she lifted the sword and brought it down upon the boars head, whereupon it shattered into crystals and a small ding sounded, signifying that she had leveled up.

 

[Ray C]

As Katsu's boar dove at her sword, Blade sprinted around her to reach the dropped weapon. The boar still stood nearby, but it was looking the other direction for the time being. He could make use of that. Pulling his sword out right, he brought it across aggressively, engaging Slash at the same time. The boar's health dropped significantly, almost to the half, but it reared and rounded. Blade let his sword's momentum carry him to the left, stumbling slightly as he tried to pull it back to his body. The board leaped at him, and only with great strain did he get the sword back to his right to bat the tusks away, doing only the tiniest bit of damage to the boar but saving himself.

The monster cantered a few steps away, then turned to make a solid charge. Blade pulled his sword up high, then chopped straight down. He'd overestimated how quickly he could accelerate the blade; it bit into the boar's back, nearly killing the thing, but the boar's head rammed into his chest. He'd thank the armor he wore for saving his life, just as soon as he wasn't his life was actually saved. Blade was launched backward, crashing onto his back. His sword fell out of reach, his chest had all the wind knocked out of it, and his health dropped by a half. He almost could have swore.

The boar was coming for another charge. Blade couldn't move to dodge, nor could he reach his sword. Fear and desperation sent adrenaline coursing through his body, and he reacted on instinct. Forcing every ounce of energy he still had into it, he twisted his body just enough to lift his foot and kick the boar just as it reached him. That last sliver of health vanished, and the boar disappeared with it. Blade lay there unmoving, watching the last of the small crystals evaporate, for the moment not even caring that a single boar had earned him a level.

It took Katsu behind him to remember himself. Forcing air back into his lungs, Blade hauled himself to his feet. He reached up with one sleeve to wipe the cold sweat off his face. Life would continue, but for a minute he thought his declaration would fail in the face of a single boar. Stooping to retrieve his sword, Blade finally noticed the level he had gained. "What a sick joke," he muttered. He sheathed his blade, then went to retrieve the other sword. "One boar makes a level? One level practically doubles HP? It's like they're trying to weed out the failures--saying, 'if you can't beat one boar, you may as well die.' The first five or ten levels will be a breeze, then it'll take a day for eleven, then a month for forty."

He stuffed the extra sword into his inventory, then turned to Katsu. "Fights will be easier now, but experience is on a steep curve. Five boars... no, seven because their value decreases as we go up. It will take seven boars for next level, or four of whatever the next monster is--though frankly, I don't want to find them yet. Or we can go back into town to spar, since our ability to use our swords is more valuable than levels." Blade looked back at the town. People were beginning to pour out the gates to begin hunting, creating a stampede of EXP hungry players. And the chaos still inside the town would be even worse. "Or maybe not. Let's pair up on boars; find one that's alone and we'll both attack it together. EXP is shared by anyone who has attacked, so it'll take more before each level; but we'll both go up together. And hopefully we'll avoid damage."

Blade shook his arms out. He had an adrenaline rush right now, but he couldn't go very long swinging his sword around. It was only two kilos, but all that weight strained against the muscles in his forearms every time he swung it or even held it aloft. A cleric with "Cure Fatigue" or whatever it may be called--that's what Blade wanted. That could prove to be the most useful spell, even more than healing. Ironic, considering he thought it useless just an hour ago.

This game was violently correcting many of his misconceptions. He wasn't sure if he liked it or not.

-----

"Well, um... okay." Arielah watched him with a certain amount of amazement as he approached girl after girl. She didn't know what he was saying, but she did see how they all reacted to it. Several girls slapped him, some blushed crimson, some just laughed and walked away--but Seijin was never discouraged, no matter how much his cheek had to sting.

The show was interrupted by a high-pitched wail coming from the street behind them. Arielah turned and found a child standing alone, crying loudly. Arielah walked to him and knelt down in front of him. "What's wrong?" she asked the boy gently.

"My sword!" he cried. One hand lifted to point at the roof of a nearby building. A black bird stood on its peak, a child's wooden sword grasped in one talon. "Papa just gave it to me for my birthday!" he wailed. The boy buried his face in his hands as he sobbed.

"Hmm." Arielah eyed the bird, then looked back to the boy. "Hey. What's your name?"

"Tim," he replied, stifling his sniffles for a moment.

"Tim, I'm Arielah. I think we can get your sword back, so don't cry. Okay?"
"Can you really?" Tim gazed at the magess with wide-eyed awe, even through the tears and runny nose.
"Yep! Just watch." Arielah stood and faced the bird. She whispered to her sparrow, and the little bird hopped off her shoulder and flew up to be level with the rooftops. The black bird eyed the little sparrow hungrily. It hesitated for a few moments, but soon jumped from the roof and rushed its prey--but didn't drop the wooden sword.

Focus. That was what Arielah needed. But she was afraid for her little bird, so she didn't take as long as she had for the first spell. "Wind!" she cried, not realizing that wasn't the name of the spell. Nevertheless, a sharp, crescent, wind blade shot from her hand and intercepted the attacking bird. It squawked, released the wooden sword in its surprise, and turned to fly away. Arielah called her sparrow back to her as she watched the injured bird leave.

"Wow! You're really cool, miss!" Tim's voice pulled Arielah's gaze back down. He was tightly holding his beloved sword. "Thank you!"

"You're welcome, Tim." Arielah smiled brightly, as happy as the boy that he had his sword back.

"Here! I want you to have these!" Tim dug around in his pocket before producing a pair of earrings, presenting them to Arielah. They were small and simple--a sky blue topaz set in a silver frame--yet very beautiful.

"I really don't need-" Arielah started to protest.
"You have to! Papa always says that if someone does something nice for me, I should do something nice for them. And you're really nice, miss, so I think Mama would want you to have them!"

She couldn't say no to that. Arielah accepted the earrings, putting them on right away. "So? How do they look?" she asked Tim.

"Perfect! They look super good on you! I've gotta go home now, though. Thank you, Arielah!"
"Thank you, Tim!" she replied as he ran off.

She turned back to find Kerra staring at her. "What?" she asked, totally clueless. Unknowingly, Arielah had just completed an NPC's quest that gave her EXP for two levels and a pair of earrings that significantly boost magic as the reward. And though it was likely there were similar quests spread out over the city, nobody else would be able to help Tim now.

 

[Reanimator Buns]

The very fact that Arielah was now a few levels above them mad it all the better to have her with them.

"Level Three eh? See if you you have any skill points or job points or whatever this game uses. As of now, we are stick by you. We could use a person a few levels above us so we don't die immediately. I need a few levels too." She shouted to the Cleric as he continued his search. "Hey dog! We're going to grind. I sent you a friend invite. You should be able to find us easily that way."

After being rejected by another girl(Note that it was not the one he was looking for) he looked back at his friend. "Of course my dear. I shall continue my search for now."

There were a few boars around the area. Good thing people hadn't killed them all off yet. "Right, lets see how this works." She tried to use one of her skills. She pulled out a smaller knife, and aimed at the boar, before pulling her arm back and releasing the knife. It managed to graze the boar, knocking away a fourth of its health. However it was now mad, and began charging. She pulled out her melee knife and prepared for it to come. She managed to dodge the first attack, and got its side with her own knife. Its health fell once more, now less then half. It charged again, and she prepared for the same strategy, but she was too slow thins time, and the boar knocked her to the ground, and stood on her, preventing her from getting up. It kept banging its tusks against, her and she was unable to get her dagger close enough. Her health bar was draining rapidly. Right before her health had reached zero, she managed to jam her knife into the side of its head.

"The hell was that... That was not your average starting enemy... That felt like a first dungeon ambush monster..."

She quickly opened her inventory, and drank a health potion. She only had a few to begin with, so obviously she would need to learn to make more. She turned to Arielah.

"They are serious here... I don't think they really expect people to survive this... Its sick, really..."

 

[Pyralithia]

Ivory

Ive was excited, and nervous, and confused, but that was all normal with starting a new game, right? She loved gaming but every new game had its glitches and bugs, she just hoped she wouldnt be the first one to find one. Well time to find out how the world of Morancrais is, she slipped on her head gear laying on her bed before taking deep breath. "Link start!" Within moments Ivory was facing a woman in some kind of bookstore of sorts, maybe a magic shop? That was most likely where all magic users started out. When the NPC asked her to input her name and class she hesitated a moment before typing in "Soteria, Cleric". The NPC nods and her username appeared in a ribbon form to float just above her head, smiling she heads out of the magic store looking around. Following her instructions she heads to the Square that was already full up with various different kinds of players, it was so exciting! She wondered what the GM would tell them, she never expected what happened next.

After the chaos that ensued and was still going on after that horrible announcement, Ivory stood in a stunned kind of state, trapped? No....Blinking she shakes her head clenching her fists at her sides, this wasnt the time for that, she had to find Ariel! She hoped her newbie friend was okay, they should of started this together but Ivory had to finish her chores first. Rushing to the magic store she scans through the books, finding what she needed to start with she quickly purchases them with the gold she'd been given. Placing them in her inventory she decides to buy and equip her armor first before learning the spells.

Walking around town she soon found the armor and weapons shop, entering it she found suiting armor for her, it wasnt great seeing she was only level 1 but it held a few attributes that boosted healing and spells. She found a decent staff too and purchased it, after equipping it all she felt better. Being armorless in a game where you could actually die was a very bad idea, especially for a healer with little HP. Walking outside the shop she checked her gold, she was down to 500g now, oh well she'll get more when she starts questing, after she finds Ariel that is.

Before she could take two steps though a blonde man(Seijin) approached her in a rather flirtatious way, blinking in surprise she blushes her shyness getting the better of her nearly instantly. "Umm hello" her voice is light and airy but quiet her gaze turned towards the ground slightly.​

 

[Pyralithia]

Taz Okami

Taz was amped up to get this game started, it was suppose to be so real that it was hard to tell it apart from reality. Grinning he looks around at the kind of tavern place he "popped" in at, already logged into Morancrais. When the older looking man NPC tells him to put in his name and class at the same time a keyboard appears in front of him he knew instantly what he wanted to be. Typing in "AkumaxAstron, Neutral" Whats the fun in being just one class? He liked variety, plus it complimented his skills. After his name rises above his head in a ribbon he follows the instruction the NPC gave him jogging out of the tavern and into the square. He stood away from most of the crowds, leaning against a far wall his arms crossed against his chest as he observed his surroundings with his piercing azure eyes. As the announcement proceeds his eyes narrow, his large hands clenching into fists. Not again....Why did bastards like this have to ruin the fun for everyone? It was gonna be just like SAO, after that hardly anyone was willing to try out any virtual game involving Nerve gear, imagine how bad its gonna be after this game...

Rolling his neck he lets out a heavy sigh, looks like this game was gonna be his home for awhile. He should get started before all the good quests and mobs were taken. Taz rushes out of the square heading straight for the armor shop, now that he had the gold he wasnt gonna go bare backed and empty handed. After looking through the items the NPC vendor showed him he grins a wicked glint coming to his eyes, oh ya that would fit him perfectly. He quickly purchased his armor, after equipping it he stretched his arms testing how it felt on him. It felt really realistic, he had to give the creator credit this was a awesome game so far, even if it was a game of death.

Exiting the armor shop he made his way to the blacksmith, quickly browsing his goods he found a suitable pair of dual swords and purchased them, equipping them at the same time. Now that he was satisfied with his gear he headed for the skill master, picking a few skills that most would find peculiar to go together he purchases them. "Alright looks like im good to go!" Adrenline was now pumping through him, he was ready for his first battle. He jogs out of the city seeing people were already ahead of him either killing monsters or questing, well that wasnt gonna do. He spotted another player just out side of the gate that seemed to be alone, a girl one at that. Judging by her armor and bow for a weapon she seemed to be an archer, well that would go well with his duelist skills. Deciding his leveling would go faster if he partied up he approaches her with a friendly smile though his fierce demeanor was still there, but that wasnt something he could really help, it was just natural for him.

Running a hand through his sky blue hair he remembered that he left his helm off for now, stopping in front of the archer, he towered over her due to his height and muscular stature. "Hello! Would you like to party up with me? If I'm correct and your an archer I think our skills would go well together, I'm melee mostly." His voice is deep and smooth with a light Irish accent, he holds his gloved hand out for her to shake hoping his friendly actions belayed his fierce aura. ​

 

[Grondo]

Ayasi saw a few players run past her, she was trying to approach them, but she simply was too scared of the entire situation, she wanted to find a group, but she didn't want to be rude and just walk up to a group of players and bother them with herself. "He..." she tried to speak to the group but they just passed by her and she looked down, silenced by her own scared attitude towards the game. "I guess I will just go alone then.." she looked down and was just about to make a step as a voice came up behind her, quickly she turned around and saw the person that was now in front of her, it was almost scary how tall he way compared to her, she got a grip of her bow and looked at him.

"S-sure" she spoke in a small voice, this is how she felt right now, she was all ready to go and didn't expect to be stopped by the fact that she would be unable to find a group, it was indeed her smallest concern at first. "Eh...I will invite you then." she smiled and as she opened the menu she used the time she took to invite him to calm herself. "I'm Ayasi, nice to meet you, I didn't expect that there was someone else all alone here, it seemed like everyone had found their parties inside already." She turned around and looked over the field. "Shall we just go and level here? I didn't exactly prepare myself too much for this game as I didn't expect it to end up...like this."

Once again she remembered the opening of this world, how they would be trapped in it for quite some time. Her eyes focused on the group that was already there, leveling up, she was still level one and she just now got her motivation back to actually go on and not just stay in the city and start with some job and wait for some hero to save everyone. She would probably be a smith at some point, she always enjoyed crafting and gathering in games and maybe she could even make her own shop in this game, she grinned at the thought and relaxed a little. "Alright let's get going." she smiled at him, now she had a goal in mind, she wanted to get high enough in level to start gathering all the good items and then she could probably help out in her party or her guild with all that.

She wasn't a hero of the sort, she wanted to help the once that had more will to fight for everyone, she didn't like the spotlight either, she just wanted to help how she could, yet not being the little girl in the group that was only there because everyone found her cute, her thoughts drifted of a little, she really wanted to get going, fast and as far as they could, but she looked to the side and saw her level, the '1' was almost laughing at her or at least that's what it felt like.

 

[Ray C]

"Skill points, skill points..." Arielah had to think on that one. It took a few moments, but she did remember something. "Oh, right! In the menu... Um... inventory... skills! No, uh... profile! Here we go!" Arielah was happily reporting the entire process; it helped keep her calm. "Let's see... STR, PHY, AGI, INT, SPR, ACC, CHM, and LCK. Uh... give me a second, I read this... Strength, Physique, Agility, Intellect, Spirit, Accuracy, Charm, and Luck. Does that sound right? Yeah, that sounds right. So as a magess..." Spam the Intellect for the first five levels, then start spreading some to Spirit--that's what the advice said. But even if she did want more Intellect, she wanted more Spirit, too. And Charm, as well. And Luck; who doesn't want Luck?

When she tried to add a Luck, though, it didn't work. "Um... I guess Luck isn't something you can level up? Well, my luck is my highest number right now, so maybe it'll be fine..." A veteran listening to her could cry. "Charm, then?" Yes, she could add one to Charm. Then she spread the rest evenly between Intellect and Spirit, putting the odd one on Intellect. "There we go! Now I can..."

Kerra crashed to the ground, a boar standing atop her. Arielah cried out in surprise. She brought her hands up and tried to focus on casting "Stone," but two loud grunts on either side of her made her freeze. Two boars charged, and Arielah panicked. "Noooooo!" Stay away! Stay away! Stop charging at me! she thought desperately.

The ground shook around Arielah, causing the boars to stumble as they neared her. One tripped and pitched headlong into the dirt; the other had the ground crack beneath its hoof and it sunk, trapped by the earth. It was gradual, but the boars were losing health while they remained in Arielah's Quake. The spell ended at last, one boar trapped, the other laying flat, and both a third dead.

Kerra downed her potion and turned. Arielah was crouched, covering her head without looking at the boars. The free boar was only just starting to climb to its feet, yet Arielah didn't move. She didn't realize she had caused the Quake, so she was waiting for it or the boars to hit her.

 

[heliacalRebirth]

Persephi

[dash=purple]
His health was lowering quickly. A cold chill slapped Persephi in the face as the shadow beast consumed it's victim. It was one of the rarest monsters on the first floor, found in the alleyways of protected villages. What it dropped, she had no clue… but the danger was all too apparent.

"Help me, please! Miss, please…!" The boy shouted, immobilized by a snare. Her eyes widened. The beast was level 8, something a level 1 wouldn't even scratch. The mage clung to her apprentice staff, shaking her head slowly. Her heart pounded hard. The game had only begun… Another scream erupted from the boy, his health in the single digits.

Persephi ran.

Light grabbed the girl like a tether, pulling her out of the dank alley and warming her chilled body. She cast Cleanse, removing the crippling terror that took hold of her. A warmth spread through her body, replacing adrenaline with magic, blotting memories with the tinkling sound of the spell. Persephi blinked. She hadn't realized she'd been closing her eyes. Taking a look around her, she found herself in the Market District of the starting town. Her shoulders slumped, the vague recollection of the boy dying still trying to envelop her mind.

The town was lively, as any release date should be. Plenty of players walked by her, urgency and nervous tension following their footsteps. The announcement destroyed some people's spirits, and it threatened to crush hers.

But Persephi wasn't one to give up easily. Instead, she channeled her emotions into a single focus- determination. Her spells had been purchased and her profession chosen, all that was left was to hit the grinding. She scanned the crowd, cursing herself for choosing a mage. Leveling on her own would be tricky, and no matter how much she wanted to stay behind to pacify the broken souls crying on the streets she knew that the only way to save them was to beat the game.

<><><><><>
​

The questing zone was a lush green, covered with trees that bore alien fruits and ponds with fish unlike any that she'd ever seen before. Her eyes were cast downward at that very moment, staring at a particularly interesting fish.

"Noooooo!"

A scream broke her concentration. A ways behind her, a group attacked two boars. She jogged over to the action, worried about the player who screamed. The situation didn't look dire, but Persephi refused to watch another person dissipate into naught. Without thinking, she cast a polymorph spell on one of the boars, turning it into a piglet with an alarmed squeal.

"My attack spells aren't strong enough to kill it, but I'll keep it off of you as long as I can!"[/dash]

 

[Reanimator Buns]

Now there was a sight to behold. Such a beautiful face. It rivaled even Arielah. This was too much! It was his every dream answered in the form of a nightmare! Should he be happy or terrified? "Ah my dear, would you happen to be the one by the name of Ivory? If so, it is by the hands of fate that we meet now. An angel, by the name Arielah spoke of our meeting. It seems we will be by each other's side for a while. Best for us to get accustomed to it quickly." He continued with these pickup lines for a while, completely unaware that his friend were in a bit of trouble.

--------------------------------​

"I've got this!" Kerra was ready this time. She pulled out a throwing knife and managed to hit the other boar square in the face. It died instantly, thanks to the damage that Arielah had dealt with her spell. As for the piglet, she killed it well before it could change back into its boar form. Since all three of them had done a part in the battle they shared the exp. Kerra still had some points from when she first leveled up. No better time than now to use them. "Accuracy, Agility, Strength. Hm, that works well enough." With the boars out of the way she looked for her partner. "Heeeey! Doog! Get over here! We are like two levels higher than you! You need some training bub!" With her urge to yell at the smoother talker, he turned to the girl who came to help. "Thanks. Don't know I could have been able to get it by myself again."

--------------------------------
​

"Come now my dear there is no need to be shy." The words of his accomplice pounded against his eardrums. "Oh dear, my master beckons... So, shall you be coming along?"