A New Life: Cataclysm || ƒeral x Denna

[ƒeral]

Solar panels and nuclear energy and hydraulic electricity - too little, too late. The world humans knew and loved was ravaged by the fury of nature scorned. In the far-off galaxy, light years away, Earth laid in ruins. But human ingenuity knew of no bounds, surviving even the death of a planet. Fleets and fleets of sturdy spaceships, small but self-sustaining, were launched one after another during the final dying breaths of mother-Earth. To seek, to colonize, to start anew on new planets in the distant galaxies.

With a travel time estimated in the hundreds of years, the designers of Project A New Life knew they had to entertain the ship's inhabitants and groom the future generations they would sire. With space and supplies being extremely limited on the ship, a virtual diversion was formulated, linked with each ship's central AI. A "game," with consequences far beyond. Intended to prepare and socialize the ship's inhabitants, achievements accomplished in game can translate into real-world currency and prestige. All in-game characters are technically anonymous, but one look at who's doing the grunt work of ship cleaning, and who, relaxing in their chambers (and gaming more), spelled out all the difference.

Generations came and went on the ship, and with each, constantly shifting meta and the the development of new strategies. While the first generation hardly explored a quarter of the map, each additional generation broke more ground, came up with better and cleverer strategies, established and solidified alliances and factions...In short, A New Life accomplished its designer's aim of socializing its future settlers, teaching through the most hands on of lessons. As to be expected in a system like this, there were those who thrived and those who barely survived. Those who failed at the game were given the most menial of jobs on the ship, deemed incompetent for the goal of future settlement, and sneered at by their peers. And those who excelled were hailed as legends, their stratagems discussed in the mass halls, their builds copied. In short, the winners created the meta.

Raine was a winner, the winner, even.

She didn't flaunt it - no one on-board knew precisely who her in-game avatar was, but there were guesses, whispers. The fact that she never worked. That her latest dinner was freshly grilled jumbo shrimps and served with desserts. That she had one of the nicest rooms on the ship, more lavishly decorated than even most of the well-established adults. There was speculations. Perhaps she was Chaos. Or Queen. Or Lancaster or ||Wing||. But speculations were merely that, lacking evidence with the player herself remaining silent.

Who was she truly? Only one person on the ship - her step sister - knew.

Raine's current character was Zel. Even the wilder guesses didn't place the young twenty-two year old as being the leader of Venture, one of the best-known guilds around. After all, Zel had held that post for six years, and most expected her player to be at least middle-aged. In addition for being famed for simply surviving that long in a game where death equaled deletion and new character creation, Zel was known for her fiery flame mane and equally intense personality. The leader of Venture was perhaps best recognized by her vibrant, nearly glowing viridian eyes and the thin scar that marred her left. A tribal tattoo of faded black ink, as well, traversing the expanse of her left side, stretching from breast to hips. She usually wore leather, and preferred to duo-wield curved blades too large to be considered daggers and too thin to be swords. A deceptive appearance, all things considered. The game was designed to give players options in customizing their appearances, and while dropped or crafted gear had a set look, it cost relatively little to transmogrify a desired look over one's armor. What appeared like a flimsy leather corset, stylized to be intentionally provocative, actually had enough defensive stats to make a full-plate tank jealous.

Given that one player could only maintain one character at a time, Raine had taken a painstaking amount of time personalizing Zel. Zel was only her third character. It spoke to the young woman's intelligence and understanding of the meta to finalize a masterpiece on her third try. And to keep it going, and going, undying and increasingly powerful with each passing day. In term of appearances, because of how young she was when Raine created Zel, the two looked almost nothing alike save for the color of their eyes. But whilst Raine's eyes were best compared to an aged forest, serene and calm, Zel's were glimmering and bold, complimented by the tilt of brows and the challenging curve of lips.

She wore a triumphant smirk, spinning a blade with lackadaisical gaiety, the other poised with razor preciseness over the throat of the idiot that dared challenge her to a duel.

"Yield,"

She demanded, pushing in a millimeter further to draw a line of crimson.

...

"What the fuck?"

Raine pulled off her virtual helmet, blonde hair spilling everywhere as she was suddenly and forcefully disconnected from the game. She sat up on her bed in confusion, blinking wearily and glaring at the helmet in hand. Did the game just malfunction? This has never happened before. What was going on?

"ATTENTION. ALL PERSONNEL."

Over the intercom, the robotic voice monotoned, the ship's AI breaking the silence in a rare announcement.

"A NEW LIFE WILL BE DOWN FOR MAINTENANCE FOR THE NEXT FOUR HOURS. PLEASE CARRY ABOUT AS NORMAL."

The blonde ran a hand through her hair, grousing loudly. Fucking maintenance. It wasn't the first time the game has been temporarily taken done to fix a thing or two, but those were usually scheduled, and over in the span of half an hour or so. What the hell was this?

She flopped back down onto her back, laying sprawled out for a few seconds longer. This was so stupid. This game was basically the only entertainment on deck, what was she supposed to do for four hours? Finally, with an aggravated sigh, she got up again, pulling her hair into a ponytail and heading to the door.

Maybe Celes could provide some amusement. She figured, heading down the hall and turning left, toward her step-sister's far more humble, but still nice cabin. At less than half the size of Raine's, it was still probably something Celes could have never afforded on her own, with her erratic strategies and haywire plans. But with Celes being her only living relative, Raine figured it was her job to look after the rambunctious young woman.

She pressed her fingers to the input panel, letting the computer scan her bio-metric signals and alert the younger to her presence outside the door.

 

[Denna]

Elayne lay on her stomach, crawling slowly through the slimy swamp mud. Her blonde-brown hair was a tangled mess, nearly green from all the mud and algae covering it. Her white tunic and blue courset were filthy, and her pants, oh, her pants! Once a pretty shade of light blue, they were now dyed a green so violent, she wanted to puke just looking at them. She would never get the stains out, and she could hardly afford her guild fees, let alone equipment maintenance. But she mustn't let that distract her. She was on the hunt,, and had been for over eight hours. This creature had evaded hunters for months, displaying incredible amounts of guile, along with excellent stealth and perception. Most relied on their combat abilities, and when stumped with challenges such as this, simply moved on to easier challenges. But not Elayne. She had spent nearly eight hours crawling through muck to reach the creature, and now she was almost there.

She was always on the lookout for unknown creatures, new dungeons, and anything unexplored. She loved the thrill of defeating the unknown. She didn't enjoy defeat. Unfortunately, she was defeated often. Thanks to that, she spent very little time improving the looks of her more recent characters.

This latest character was almost an exact match of her real self. Shoulder length golden-brown hair matched with deep green eyes. Average breasts, with a tight butt, and curvy thighs. Her face wasn't much to look at, and when others saw her, she looked incredibly plain. Most either made the most beautiful character they could, or covered themselves in expensive-looking equipment and jewelry.

Elayne wasn't like that. She wore clothes that were simple, but matched her eyes and hair. And while she was no great beauty, she stood out amongst others, intriguing with her own, mild beauty. She was like a daisy in the midst of roses, plain, but exotic. It caught the eyes of some enough to look a third time as she passed. But once they realized who she was, they ignored her. She was Elayne Briarheart, Champion of the Road, and Purveyor of Junk. The last was a nickname given to her by the player merchants, tired of her constant trade in seemingly useless baubles.

Elayne was never one to rely on established methods, but rather tried new and exotic paths, finding pleasure in the few gems she found in the muck. And she hoped she was about to find just that.

She inched forward, peering between a small bunch of green water-reeds. There it was. Long and thin, with a whip-like tail. The illusive swamp kobold. Renowned for it's lack of combat skills, but excellent camoflauge and quick wits, swamp kobolds were notoriously hard to catch. It didn't help that it offered next to no loot. Rumor had it that it was worth a few achievement points, but none came forward to prove true. Not that Elayne cared. She just wanted to see if anything interesting happened after she had hunted every known variety of kobold. She had recently killed all 10 varieties of goblins, and had been given a special achievement, earning a handsome ( By her standards ) reward from one of the NPC guardsmen. Now she hoped she could duplicate the same if she killed this last kobold.

Her hands reached low into her pocket, pulling out a small green rock. She had been told it would summon a great lightning bolt, capable of slaying most low level creatures in a single hit. She had purchased ten of them. She had focused solely on learning the varied arts of weaponry, and their vast forms and uses, but had neglected her base stats, leaving her a Jack of All Trades, Master of None. She had a weapon for nearly any situation, and could fail spectacularly attempting to use them. Her low stats mean low damage, low health, and weak resistance. Her poverty left her with basic equipment, with only a single magical item. A ring that could summon nearly any mundane weapon imaginable, for a brief time. She had gotten it for a pittance. Who would want access to a variety of weapons, when one could focus on one or two styles? And the weapons themselves were mundane, no magic or skilled crasftwork, they were little better than training weapons. But she loved it. She could have any weapon she could imagine, and she had some wild ideas. Her latest was a crossbow that would launch pebbles. An oversized slingshot, by all accounts. And that was the weapon she conjured now.

She slowly loaded her miracle stone into the crossbow, and took aim. She waited for the kobold to step into the water, hoping to catch him walking on poor footing. Then she would strike. The kobold slowly made it's way through the swamp, eyes peeled for danger. And then he took that fateful step. The water must have been deeper than the kobold expected, for he lost his footing, struggling to right himself. Elayne fired. The small green stone flew towards the kobold, and struck him clean in the forehead. Elayne shouted for joy, jumping up from her hiding place. She stood there, waiting for the lightning to strike. And waited. And waited... And waited...... Nothing. No lightning. Just a lightly bruised kobold, now calling out curses and threats.

It didn't work, why didn't it work? The old lady had sworn they worked! ' A sure fire way to kill a low level. ' She had said. She had also laughed heartily after Celes had purchased ten. She realized the true meaning of the old woman too late. The low level that would die was her! The kobold came racing after her, flint spear in hand. It had considered running, but this foolish girl had angered it. ' How dare it shoot shiny pebbles at it?! Shiny pebbles were for keeping safe in den! ' thought the kobold. Celes stood there, dejected, as the kobold came rushing to end her.

Then she was in her room. She had been disconnected from the game. ' Had she died? No, there was no death screen. Then what-? '

"ATTENTION. ALL PERSONNEL."

Over the intercom, the robotic voice monotoned, the ship's AI breaking the silence in a rare announcement.

"A NEW LIFE WILL BE DOWN FOR MAINTENANCE FOR THE NEXT FOUR HOURS. PLEASE CARRY ABOUT AS NORMAL."

She was saved. But that cursed old woman! She had sold her phony magic items! Elayne was furious! Oh wait, she meant Celes. Celes was her real name. Her in-game name was Elayne Brairheart. And she was proud of the name. She had come up with it herself. ' Brairheart, like a thorny heart. Almost like a rose. Roseheart.... wait, wouldn't Roseheart sound better? Drat! ' Celes cursed herself, thinking of a better name for the hundredth time. But she was Celes Brairheart. Every character she had made was named Celes Brairheart. From the Staff Dual-Wielding Priestess, to the great Fish Summoner. All amazing ideas, all dead and buried. She cherished every one.

She was distracted with thoughts of past characters when her door announced a guest.

" Raine requests entrance to Celes' Room. Will you accept? "

" Yes. " She called out.

She jumped off her bed, incredibly excited to see Raine. Raine was her best friend, her step-sister, and benefactor all rolled into one. And she was gorgeous! Just one look sent her mind reeling with thoughts that left her breathless. But Raine had no interest in her. Raine had a girlfriend. ' Stupid Riane, aren't I good enough? ' Thought Celes. But she was used to these thoughts. She would just have to settle with being Raine's friend. That, and mooching off her success. Raine was always good for a little mooching.

 

[ƒeral]

The metal door glowed with intricate patterns, parting at the room owner's consent. Raine didn't wait for a greeting before striding inside, chin held high and moving with military precision.

"Hey, girlie,"

She greeted after Celes bounced to a stop, reaching out and ruffling dirty blonde hair. The specific term varied, but she always picked something similar, asserting her age at every twist and turn. In truth, Celes wasn't that much younger than Raine, but if the two stood side by side, the differences were quite pronounced. Raine was taller by a good three inches or so, hair a paler, regal shade and features rivaling even carefully crafted in-game characters. Everything from her model-esque legs to sharply defined jawline to full, plump lips made her stand out, and even in spite of the scowl she commonly wore, her suitors still could easily line this room.

She was quick to rebuff them, of course. She had a girlfriend, Avaline, but, in spite of how much the girl begged and pleaded, Raine refused to reveal her in-game persona. Avaline knew better than to press the issue beyond a certain point anyway. Raine, with her good looks and fortune, was easily one of the most eligible bachelorettes on the ship. And just as a rose was not without its thorns, approaching her from the wrong angle could end up with a bloody prick or worse.

She had no patience for those who earned her ire, save for Celes.

Already the stern lines creasing her forehead faded away, and her features softened. She removed her hand after the brief display of affection, paced over to one of Celes' more comfortable looking seats, and flopped down, making herself right at home. Her legs were spread immodestly, arms draped over either sides of the armrests, back losing its rigidity as she positively sunk in, looking so utterly relaxed and lazy that if anyone else saw her, they would scarcely believe that it was the same Raine. Celes tended to have that effect on her. There was just something so soothing about the younger girl, be it the carefree smile or the pleasant chime of her voice, that made Raine drop her guard and simply unwind.

"Come 'ere," she beckoned with a curled finger, eyeing the discarded helmet on Celes' bed. "I'm gonna guess you got kicked out too? What a bother. I was in the middle of a duel. There goes my PvP points." She drawled, but nothing about her tone indicated that she cared in the least about a few lost points. Zel hardly needed those. Defending her title in the arena was only a matter of principle.

 

[Denna]

Celes jumped up to Raine, ecstatic to see her friend. She blushed faintly as Raine pointed out their age difference. " Raine~! Call me Celes! " Celes protested weakly, eyes closed in pleasure as her hair was ruffled.

She admired Raine, who was always so strong and beautiful. No matter the pressure, Raine was always Raine, protecting those closest to her. Celes wished she could be like that, but she detested the way Raine went about it. Always so stiff and formal, never having any fun. It was Celes' job to get Raine to relax. Quick with a joke, funny or not, she loved bringing a smile to that stern face.

Celes let out an imperceptible sigh as Raine moved away. She watched Raine's behind as she strode to her seat. Her legs were so perfect. ' I'm not jealous. And I wouldn't want to have so many lined up to court me, either. ' Celes thought. She smiled as she saw Raine relax, and enjoyed the view of her, sprawled across the seat.

Raine's beckoning finger almost caused Celes to leap forward, eager to obey. But not today. Today, she had lost her target, been conned by an old woman, AND had seen Raine and Avaline together at the mess hall. Today was not a good day. She flounced to a different seat, most definitely not pouting. " Yah, stupid AI. Why does it have to go updating right as I'm about to catch my prey? " Celes glossed over the fact that SHE was about to become prey, and not the other way around. " And for four hours? What kind of update could it be? It can't just be maintenance, or it wouldn't take so long. Could it be.... New Features!?! " Celes jumped up and stamped her feet in excitement, ecstatic at the thought of something new to explore. " Oh, I hope they add some new low level areas! The grind for new players is growing so boooring~! "

Celes started on a rant about how streamlined the low level grind had become. Hell, most guides left you jumping off walls and cliffs to save those precious few minutes. Most didn't even go through the Main Gates, not wanting to spend the time interacting with the NPC guards. Celes always greeted the guards, and knew most of them by name. She'd even been invited to a dinner by a sergeant once. Got a free meal out of it, too.

 

[ƒeral]

"Oh? What kind of prey is it this time? Wait wait, let me guess," the elder of the two paused deliberately, wearing an insolent smirk. "A rare-colored butterfly? Another one of your weird-looking goblins? A particularly large slime?" Raine chuckled, evidently amused by her own joke. Her tone was not cruel, and the glint in astute firs made it obvious that she was only teasing. It was an usual routine between the two of them, Celes rambling about whatever latest thing caught her fickle attention, and Raine, half-listening and half-sleeping.

While Celes ranted on about newbie rituals, it was obvious by the way Raine's lids began to droop that the younger was losing her over to Nyx's embrace. Truthfully, she had no interest in this particular topic, haven't been anywhere near a newbie zone for ages. That and, given the unique structure of the game, many of the newer players were actual nine and ten year olds. Raine disliked the noisy little bastards even when she was a kid, much less now.

Venture, by design, was not a large guild, acquiring its players by horizontal mergers rather than raising a homegrown batch. Every Venture member was a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield, and she preferred it that way. It was much simpler running through content with an elite squad than trying to teach bumbling newbies about the proper spell rotations and aggro juggling. Raine was a fair guild leader, but she was also austere. An improperly placed healing circle or a crowd control applied one second too early was quick to earn a glare and sharp rebuke. Birds of a feather flocked together, the saying went, and thus, Venture had a reputation for not only its impressive slate of achievements, but also elitism. Only the most goal-oriented players joined. And those who wanted to simply explore content found like-minded players elsewhere. To some extent, Raine frowned on those types. Fucking casuals.

But even though Celes was as much a "casual" as they came, Raine found herself unable to regard the dirty-blonde with the same disdain. Celes was just...Celes. The elder was well aware that Celes has got a good head on her shoulders, even if she was rather...frivolous when it came to applying her wits. She knew Celes could understand and emulate the meta if she wished, and excel at it too, but she also knew that pigs would fly before Celes submitted to what she considered utter ennui.

Meanwhile, her step-sister was still rumbling on, something about NPC guards at the gate now? Raine watched the unceasing lips move, the words going in one ear and out of the other. Celes had such supple looking lips, she marveled, staring through lidded eyes. Very kissable... Unconsciously, she licked at her own lips, wondering with increasingly slowed thought process just what Celes would taste like. Would feel like. Without even realizing it, Raine drifted off, long lashes sealing her lids and head lulling to the side, falling asleep in the comfort of a room that smelled entirely of Celes.

 

[Denna]

Celes continued her one-sided conversation. She knew exactly which conversations bored Raine, and which stimulated her into conversation. Celes had four hours to wait until A New Life was back up, and she intended to use her time to the utmost. She continued her rambling, focusing on topics Raine had no interest in, lulling her into a pleasant sleep. And while she had ulterior motives, Celes enjoyed having an opportunity to rant, for she was most certainly ranting, on the lack of exploration and experimentation in the latest meta.

Celes loved talking with Raine. Though Raine was a dirty meta-user, she was also a pioneer. She was on the front lines, exploring the latest in high-level innovation. She stuck to general themes, but at least she was experimenting with something, and Celes was always aching for high-level experimentation. Celes never managed to reach the level of the average fourteen year old, and was so far below the average user level that she had almost lost all hope of ever seeing a raid, let alone participating. But she would not yield to some half-assed guide with no imagination, even if it meant staying in the low levels. She would one day find her diamond in the rough, and soar through the ranks with ideas none had even dreamed of! Celes nodded to herself, satisfied at her own self-assurance.

Celes had been so caught up in her monologue, that she had squandered a good ten minutes of Raine Sleep Manipulation Time! What was she thinking?! Celes hurried to Raine's side, careful to not wake her. Leaning gently against her shoulder, she whispered into Raine's ear. " You love Celes. Celes is your bestest friend. You want to sleep with Celes. You want to give Celes an extra helping of dessert tonight. " Celes continued to whisper these things into Raine's ear, firmly believing that it would be effective in converting Raine to the dark side. ' And besides, what's wrong with a little extra dessert? I have a tough job, and the calories won't stick. Much. ' So Celes thought.

She continued to whisper dark things into Raine's ear, blasphemous things. " You will try using Parry and Riposte combined with Hamstring to slow an enemy that has lost threat, instead of a taunt. It's more energy efficient, and you'll still grab threat because of the extra time you'll have to damage the target due to the slow you'll apply. " Dark, horrid things, that would leave most players cringing in terror.

Celes spent nearly an hour whispering in Raine's ear, and she was soon parched. Her soft, pink lips grew dry, but she didn't yield. She didn't stop for a drink, knowing her chance to manipulate Raine was limited. But she soon grew exhausted, and instead, sat on the arm-rest, and cuddled against Raine's chest. ' I'm sleepy, and Raine stole the good chair. This is only fair, right? ' was Celes' line of thought, as she slowly drifted to sleep, dirty-blonde hair tangling with Raine's gorgeous blonde locks, as Celes cuddled against her neck.

 

[ƒeral]

Whatever Celes might believe of sleep hypothesis was her own concern, Raine was simply enjoying her beauty sleep. And she slept well, for a time, warm and comfortable in a dreamless slumber.

"ATTENTION, ALL PERSONNEL."

The sudden blaring announcement shook Raine out of her nap, and she jumped, flinching awake with a sudden upward jerk. "Wha-" A confused, half-asleep mumble, blinking wearily and nearly knocking Celes out of the chair in the process. That, she didn't allow. Even while still half asleep, her prone arm thrown over the sofa-chair's arm snapped to attention, preventing Celes from being thrown during her jerky awakening.

"MAINTENANCE HAS CONCLUDED AND A NEW LIFE IS UP AND RUNNING."

"Oh, guess I must've drifted off," the blonde mumbled, blinking the weariness from her eyes and addressing the comment to no one in particular, before tossing an indulgent glare Celes' way. "You know what I've said about sleeping on me," she lectured, but voice lacking a certain sternness to back up her assertion. "Anyhow, I'm gonna head back now." She added, extricating herself out of the mess of limbs, almost regretting the loss of the warm body against hers but showing no sign of it. "May fortune smile upon you." A customary greeting spoken by the crew. Her tone brokered no room for argument, and just as suddenly as she visited, she was gone, leaving behind only the lingering scent of her signature perfume, a muted blend of sandalwood and bergamot.

--

Zel was not amused. Concerned emeralds narrowed to a sliver as she gazed into the mass of similarly disoriented players, having been kicked to the human racial city upon log in. In the distance, dark, rolling landmasses loomed, accompanied by crackles of lightning and booming thunder. Was this some kind of sick joke? While it wasn't previously unheard of for the AI to add a new mob type or a quest, this was an expansion of previously unheard of proportions.

A player spawning next to her elbowed her on accident, and she growled at the poor soul. PvP in cities is strictly forbidden and enforced by the NPC guards, but that didn't prevent the poor gal from squealing and all but turning tail and running. Large as the ship was, a limited player base meant that certain characters were almost universally recognizable, and Zel's sanguine mane and dual blades were practically a symbol.

The Venture guild leader herself found no humor in pursuing some newbie around the city, lips pressed into a thin line as she peered around, looking for any new NPCs or announcements of what was going on. Finding none, she opted for the nearest mailbox. A guild meeting was in order.

 

[Denna]

Celes was sleeping contentedly, snuggled close to Raine. But her bliss was soon interrupted. With the AI's announcement, she was nearly thrown off of Raine as she jerked awake. Grabbed at the last second, Raine saved Celes from tumbling to the floor. Celes clung to Raine for a moment, hair frazzled, eyes wide and wild. Celes muttered non-commitally to Raine's lecturing tone, but she let go of Raine, letting her shift Celes around until they were seperated.

"May fortune smile upon you. " Celes responded in a weary voice, stiff from her awkward sleeping position. But it was worth it. Raine had none of her usual sternness, and though she may not have noticed it herself, but her eyes had a small sparkle in them. At least, Celes thought that was what it was. Though it may just be the excitement of the new patch.

' THE NEW PATCH! ' Celes' mind scattered into a thousand trails of thought. ' What new areas could there be? Will there be any changes to previously released content? What about modifications to abilities? Would there be access to new races? ' Celes couldn't hold back her excitement, rushing to her bed, and almost slamming her headset on.

The login process was relatively simple, automatically detecting who you were, and what avatar you had. There were no passwords, no login screen, no patch notes. If you wanted to learn what was new, you had to figure it out yourself. If there were new abilities, you had to find them, though most were available at various trainers. And if there were any large new areas, NPC explorers would usually hint at where they might be located.

She realized almost too late the situation she had been in before the patch. She frantically rallied her mind, preparing for a daring escape, with a dozen different retreat plans. Her mind prepared to grab at her pouch, and pull out a bag of Black Smoke, and the moment she logged into the world, she pulled it out and threw it on the ground.

She realized where she was too late to stop herself. An explosion of black smoke and bits of ash shot from the bag, covering nearly a dozen feet in every direction. Users that were just logging on themselves were caught in the blast, shouting and coughing. Elayne quickly and quietly made her escape from the crowd, hoping no one had noticed who had thrown the bag.

 

[ƒeral]

"A new expansion--" A cheerful catgirl, a good two feet shorter than the average human, singsonged.

"Say something we don't already know." The bearded barbarian grunted, cutting her off curtly whilst slamming his battleaxe into the ground.

"Kruger." Zel warned with a narrow of her eyes, seated at the head of the table, arms crossed over her bust and looking just as troubled as the rest of them.

"New dungeons!" The catgirl chirped again.

"Not just that, supposedly, there's a new city. Nay, cities, springing up in every cardinal direction." A cool voice of indeterminate gender chimed, the owner wearing a smiling fox mask and looking altogether too nonchalant.

"We must explore!" Catgirl again.

"Serena can you shut the fuck up for two seconds?" The barbarian was not amused.

"Enough." The flame-haired guild leader did not raise her voice, but the sharp inflection alone was enough to silence the both of them. She stood, sublime features twisted into a scowl, a hand slammed down on the table and the other hovering ever menacingly over the daggers sheathed by her waist.

"Kiera, continue to assess the situation and report back." She laid down the order coolly. "Serena, assess interest and capacities; give me a raid list by sundown." The catgirl pouted, but nodded as she was told. "Kruger, go put your excessive energy to good use and stock our supplies. And don't forget invisibility potions this time. Irene, assist Serena. Zero..." She continued to delegate, and everyone in Venture's Inner Sanctum had their mission for the day.

"Dismissed."

Zel was the last to leave, too agitated to sit, she paced instead, peering over the reports already submitted again and again. This didn't make any sense. New lands masses the size of continents springing up? Why was all this new content being released at once. Where did the ship AI even generate so much expansion in such short notice? There was no point stewing over inadequate information, and so she forcibly shoved her irritation down, leaving the room to go examine her own armory.

But of course, everything was already in perfect order. Two sets of armor and weapons, potions and scrolls a plenty. Nothing was amiss with her skills either. Her math, as always, flawless. All she had to do was Parry and Riposte then Hamstring if -- she paused, frowning. That sounded like something Celes would say. Where the hell did she get that absurd notion from? She shook the thought but couldn't help follow it to its logical conclusion. Where was Celes, or Elayne, currently doing anyway? This exploding mass of unexplored seemed just the kind of thing to make the girl swoon and chirp excitedly.

"Where are you atm?" She inputted via private chat to her step-sister. "Hopefully you haven't fallen off a cliff yet in your excitement? I could practically taste it even through this message..." Snarky as always, in-game or out.

 

[Denna]

Elayne dodged through the crowd, and headed to her favorite part of town, The Garden Quarter. Not many people went to The Garden Quarter, thinking the NPC's there were all garbage, and had little use. But she had been playing low level quests for so long, and had befriended enough NPCs to be given special access to three unique NPC's. David, a beggar who always knew the latest shift in NPC politics. Ryan, a trainer who had access to nearly every low level ability. And Rachel, the baker.

Rachel made the most AMAZING pies. During one holiday event, a special quest had offered a single pie as a reward. After people had tried the pie, they became frantic to find a way to get another. Some even began to ambush those who had just completed the quest in order to get access to the pie, available only through a once-per-day quest.

Only Elayne had ever learned who made the pies. Who would have expected that a normal baker could have made such an amazing pie? Everyone had gone hunting in the new areas, completing every new quest, in hopes they would find some rare creature who had made the pie. But no, it was just the baker in The Garden Quarter.

Elayne's thoughts were as strange and random as ever as she headed to Rachel's to buy a pie. Since almost nobody visited her store, Rachel always had time to talk with Elayne, and LOVED to gossip. Apparently there was talk about a large number of immigrants coming soon. Elayne nodded along, expecting as much. There were usually new NPC's after an update. The AI knew that giving new, harder quests to older NPC's was difficult, as they would have to offer bigger rewards, be stronger, or be in different locations. This would change how you accessed older content, and would just make a mess. So new NPC's were a given.

Elayne enjoyed her delicious pie, and headed to David, hoping to catch the latest political scandal. She went to a back alley, filled with level one rats. You had to avoid killing a single one in order to meet David, who had a fondness for the rats. Apparently they were his main meal, and any poaching was frowned upon. She hopped nimbly between the feeble attacks of the rats, not wanting to accidentally step on one, and inadvertently kill it.

She reached the end of the alley, and sitting on David’s barrel was a small, crumpled note. Elayne picked it up with two fingers, and let it fall open. " Dear Elayne, I’m a bit busy right now, and I won’t be around for a few weeks. Heard 'bout some new cities n such, gonna go catch the latest gab. Tell Rachel to hold off on her special Rat Pies, the population needs to grow a bit. “ Elayne started at the note for a long while, before slowly glancing at the pie in her other hand. Small slivers of meat, covered in creamy sauce and delicious vegetables filled the pie crust. “ No…. It… it can’t be… “ Elayne was interrupted by a sudden IM from Zel.

"Where are you atm? Hopefully you haven't fallen off a cliff yet in your excitement? I could practically taste it even through this message..."

Elayne just stared at the pop-up window, still trying to wrap her head around the fact that she had been eating Rat Pies nearly every day for the last two years.

“ Zel, remember those special pies from the holidays two years ago? The ones no one knew came from, and started a huge ruckus? I remember you had a few saved for a special occasion. Sell them. Now. “

Elayne lacked any and all of her usual cheer, sticking to a terse, plain message. She trudged through the alley, not bothering to avoid the rats. She needed to beat someone up. Ryan might do the trick. She slowly wandered to Ryan’s training yard, small rodents nomming on her boots the whole way.

 

[ƒeral]

'???'

She snapped back, in true, terse Zel-fashion. Elayne, in-game or out, was always so non sequitur, for the lack of a better word. It never ceased to puzzle her how a message of whereabouts get turned into a warning about pies. But strange as the girl could be sometimes, Zel would also grudgingly admit that she was right sometimes, at least about these strange little nonsenses like holiday pie. Since she was looking through her storage anyway...Zel listed the half a double pies she had left on the public auction. They were delicious, but in a weird sort of way she couldn't name anyway.

She would have left her message at that, but...

'Try to keep this character alive for more a couple days, ok?' She added, sarcastic in the caring way only older siblings were capable of being. 'Supposedly there's a lot of new content. And I know you are going to go explore the unknown zones even if I told you no, so just this once, I'll let you tag along with Venture's raid provided you stay far, far back and do as I tell you to.'

Zel hesitated over sending the message. It felt like such a poor idea, having a completely underleveled and undergeared character tagging along on her raid, but Celes was her step-sister and Raine didn't want to see her make yet another character this month.

Oh what the hell. Maybe it was Celes rubbing off, but Raine figured she was entitled to her ration of impulsive decisions as well.

'Are we clear? East Gate, tonight at 9pm. Tell no one.'

And with that, Zel signed off. Just because Raine didn't have work didn't mean that she wasn't human, and her grumbling stomach let her know that it was definitely time to eat. And she planned on a trip to the ship's gym and shower afterwards. A New Life was nice, but she was about to develop a round bottom from laying on her bed all day. She's got an image to maintain and a little sister type to wrangle.

 

[Denna]

Elayne trudged through the streets, rats chewing at her heels. She stirred from her depressed trudging to view Zel's messae.

'Try to keep this character alive for more a couple days, ok?' She added, sarcastic in the caring way only older siblings were capable of being. 'Supposedly there's a lot of new content. And I know you are going to go explore the unknown zones even if I told you no, so just this once, I'll let you tag along with Venture's raid provided you stay far, far back and do as I tell you to. Are we clear? East Gate, tonight at 9pm. Tell no one.'

Her spirits were immediately lifted by the prospect of joining a high-level raid. Who cared if she was almost guaranteed to die, this was her dream! But she had time, so she picked up her pace, jogging excitedly to Ryan's practice ground.

Ryan hailed her as she approached, gesturing with his wooden practice spear. " Hail, Elayne! I've learned alot since you were last here, care to see my new moves? " Elayne nodded, as this was Ryan's normal way of teaching new abilities. No tomes, no sudden skill-gains. No, that was boring and anti-climactic. Ryan beat you up with a new ability until you either learned it, or thought of a way to counter it. That was the best way to do things.

Elayne made her own practice sword with her special iron ring, and prepared herself. Ryan took a single step forward, wooden sword thrusting straight for Elayne's gut. She moved on instinct to intercept, but his sword seemed to flow right around hers, and smash into her shoulder. She jumped in surprise and pain. She was usually on par with Ryan, at least in terms of skill. Had he gotten stronger because of the new update? Or was he using some new skill? Elayne, excited at the prospect of learning something new, prepared herself again, watching Ryan's knees and shoulders, hoping to see his next move before he made it.

Ryan took the same step forward, and the same thrust towards her. Elayne again moved to intercept, but her eyes tracked every movement Ryan made, not caring if she failed to block. She wanted to know what new ability Ryan might be able to teach her. Ryan's sword shifted at the last moment, just barely skirting her own sword, and slammed into Elayne's other shoulder. She winced at the all-too real pain.

She always had the pain setting on, it made things feel more real, more important, more like a fight should be, two people fighting for supremacy. She knew how to deal with the pain, and instead of stopping after being hit, let her sword continue in it's trajectory, turned slightly to aim for Ryan's head.

Ryan took a single step back, sword moving fast enough to leave goosebumps on Elayne's skin. He seemed to know exactly what she was doing, and deftly knocked the sword from her hands. Elayne starred at Ryan, dumbfounded.

Ryan grinned at Elayne. " It's all about knowing how your opponent fights, and what weapons they have at their disposal. If you know how they fight, and what they use, you can know what they will do next. Follow your instincts, and you will be able to fend off any attack, and strike through any guard. " Elayne nodded slowly, understanding the general idea. If she knew how another fought, she could come up with counter-strategies. But Ryan had never given her such general advice before. He always gave advice on a specific ability she could learn.

Did that mean the ability to guess what an enemy will do was a new ability? Drool began to pool at the corner of her mouth at the prospect. If she knew how an enemy would strike, it didn't matter how much damage it would do. She could just avoid it or block it. But how would she learn this skill? Normally, she practiced the movements made by Ryan until she understood what he was doing, then the skill would be learned. But this? How would she learn this skill?

Celes' stomach rumbled, alerting her to her real life needs. Elayne sighed, waving down Ryan, who was prepared for her next attempt. " I've got some other things to do, Ryan. I'll be back in a bit. " Ryan just nodded, still watching Elayne warily. She grinned at him. He knew her too well. She had used those same words before to lull him into a false sense of security, then nailed him in the face with her quarterstaff. He had been wary of her ever since.

Celes logged off, and let out a soft groan, stretching on her bed. She wanted to see Raine. She had only talked with her for a few minutes before Raine fell asleep. Though the cuddling had been nice. Celes, clothed only in her undergarments, hugged her pillow, and began plotting ways to lull Raine into coming to her room, and cuddling with her. She pulled out her mobile computer, and sent Riane a message.

" Super excited for Raid tonight. Learning an amazing new ability, and might have some info on those new cities in a bit. Know anything about a mass of immigrants coming to our town? Bring extra dessert, and I might be convinced to share my secrets. "

 

[ƒeral]

'I'm going to the gym after. See you at 9, sharp.'

Her reply was terse and snapped back from her digital watch. Raine might show a softer side to Celes on occasion, but she was still Raine. Doggedly stubborn and yet possessing a feline independence, she followed her own rigid schedule and catered to no one. Her tenacity and steadfastness was unquestionable, but along with that came unshakable pride and rigidity. It was her way or the highway. Raine did not follow, only led.

The gym was a perfect example of virtual influence. Even despite the facility being not heavily used, Raine was not keen on sweating away with the rest of the ship's crew. She had her own exercise room, bought with credit chips, and decorated with equipment however she liked. Sparse equipment, for that matter. There was enough machines in her life. In this, she simplified. Push-ups, squats, and some suicides to work up a sweat, before she cornered the bag in the center of the room. Jab, hook, high knee. She wasn't trained, no, but there was a rhythm to her moves as it a carefully choreographed dance, honed from years of experience. A healthy body led to a sharp mind, as she fond of saying. Suffice to say, any plans Celes might have had was foiled by Raine's hardheadedness.

--

It would be nine pm sharp when the Venture raid appeared at the East Gate, having assembled in its guild halls and teleported here. No one questioned her decision to include a tag-along, even if Zero had quirked a brow and smiled with too much amusement at her. Their party size was small, almost too small to merit the word "raid," but there was no question of their individual capacities with but a glance at their gem-studded gear and blade-edges polished to a shine.

They walked in an inverted 'v', with Zel at the forefront. The flame-haired blood tank was dressed in her typical leathers, but a discerning eye would be able to pick out minor differences. Her belt had a different etching, the handle of her blades a different shade of mauve, the studs on her bracer a different gem... the differences were subtle, but made all the difference. This was not the outfit she usually solo-missioned in, no, this one was all tank.

Behind her walked Kruger and Kiera. The former looked every bit the barbarian he was, nearly two feet tower than everyone else, sneering dismissively with his giant war-axe swung over bared, scar-laden shoulders. Kiera, the indeterminate character forever hiding behind a fox mask, was much lither by comparison, about equal height to the imposing Zel. Her build, like Zel's, could not be determined at a glance. Further behind followed Serena and Zero, the former a catgirl clearly ranged with her giant canon-like gun, and the later a swordsman of type, his expression cool and collected. Further behind, Grizzly and Clumsy. Both misnomers. The former was a petite cloth-wearing type, a priestess perhaps by the double-handed staff she held. And the later was clearly a huntress by the silent panther following her heels, her graceful stride marking just how ironic her name was.

Zel paused as she entered range of the gate, scanning around for her rambunctious little sister. Elayne had better not be late.

 

[Denna]

Celes pouted, hair spilling over the bed as she rolled around on her bed, clutching the pillow close. She had just received Raine's message, and was not happy.

'I'm going to the gym after. See you at 9, sharp.'

' Raine never does anything fun with me. She's always so.... independent. Always having things her way. Well, I'll show her. I'm going to learn from Ryan before 9 tonight, and show her how strong I can be! ' Celes cuddled with her pillow, thinking of what Ryan had said. ' It's all about knowing how your opponent fights. ' is what he had said. She thought about Ryan, and his normal fighting style. He preferred quick attacks to engage, inflicting light hits until his enemy showed a weakness. He'd follow up with the ability he was teaching, slamming it into wherever the target was vulnerable. Maybe there was something about his timing... Celes grabbed her headset, and logged in.

Ryan greeted her in his usual way, sword out and ready. Elayne summoned her own practice sword, and approached, intent on watching where and when Ryan would counter-strike. Ryan started out with his usual thrust, and Elayne tried her usual block. As expected, Ryan slipped past her guard, and struck her shoulder. She approached again, repeating the process several times. Elayne's shoulder was bruised and bloody by the time she managed to block his counter-strike, and her whole body was covered in bruises soon after, with Ryan shifting his attacks to other areas, making it harder to determine where he would strike. Then, it dawned on her. She was only moving to block after she saw where he would strike. What she needed to do was know where he would strike before he even began. Her practice had shown her what moves Ryan favored, and if she took the time to think, she could guess where he would strike next.

Elayne struggled to her feet, blood spilling into the gritty sand of the training yard. She was exhausted, but she had him now. Elayne thought very carefully about how she would block his first strike. The angle she would block at, and the small side-step she took to re-direct the blow, all of that was passing through her mind as she prepared herself. Elayne knew what she would do, and she thought she knew what Ryan would do immediately after. He would change his target to her leg, breaking her stance. She grinned at Ryan, prepared to block his blow, then strike him down.

Elayne stepped forward, blade already prepared to meet Ryan's. Ryan was grinning, and Elayne wavered, worried what he had planned. Ryan began his usual routine, nothing new but the small smile on his face. Elayne nearly froze, but she was determined to learn this ability before 9. She would not disappoint Riane. She met Ryan's stride, face grim with determination. Her blade flew to meet Ryan's, blocking his first strike. As expected, he switched his target to her leg, but she was ready. She almost missed her block as a strange red dot appeared on Ryan's shoulder. Elayne blocked Ryan just in time, then lunged forward, activating Blade Rush, a simple ability meant to deal damage, and set up for a combo. She struck true, and Ryan reeled back, staggered at having his stance broken. Several more red dots appeared across Ryan's body, pointing to further weaknesses in his stance.

Elayne grinned. This was what she was looking for. The red dots were openings in her enemy, spots where she had already thought might be good targets for a counter attack. The system seemed to show what she already knew, and Elayne was beginning to worry that the ability was a waste of time. How would red dots help her, when she already knew they were good targets? Elayne didn't have time to fret, as the red circles began to disappear while Ryan regained his footing.

Elayne rushed forward, blade slicing the air as she thrust towards Ryan's wrist, using Hamstring to slow his attacks with that hand. The red circle burst open, and a huge reduction in Ryan's attack speed was applied. Far more than her usual Hamstring applied. Elayne now saw what the red dots provided. If she saw an opening in the enemies' stance, she could strike it for additional effectiveness. No swinging her sword over and over to hack an enemy down, but thoughtful precision, aiming to strike an opponent at their weakest points. Elayne quickly backed up, not wanting to hurt Ryan too much. Training could still be dangerous, especially with Ryan. He grinned, nodding his appreciation. He whistled as he looked at his wrist, shattered and bloody from the single strike with a practice sword. Elayne imagined what she could have done with a real sword.

" You've got the technique down, I see. Now, you just need practice. " Ryan grudgingly acquiesced, bowing before moving to his table, and wrapping his injury in a salve.

Elayne giggled, thoughts spinning at the implications. She wanted to test the ability out more, to see just how useful it was, and how much of an increase it gave her abilities when she struck a weak point. She figured it would be best to stick to enemies she was most familiar with. A wicked grin spread across her face as she thought of a certain kobold who needed to be taught a lesson.

It was a minute past nine, and Elayne was filthy. She had struggled to find the kobold with a bruise on its forehead, and had to wrestle through grime and filth to catch him, but Elayne had triumphed, and her abilities had proven incredibly effective against it. Elayne had watched the kobold for so long, she knew all of its habits and fighting styles. It had proven almost easy to defeat, openings appearing all over its body, leaving ample openings for Elayne to exploit. Now, she was rushing towards the gate, bloody, filthy, and filled with excitement. She had learned a new ability, and was going on a raid with Zel!

Elayne caught sight of Zel's strange group, and rushed forward, blue and white blouse stained green and brown. She left muddy footprints on the cobblestones as she ran. " Zel! I'm heeeere~! "

 

[ƒeral]

"You've got to be kidding me..." The forever angry barbarian grumbled under his breath, staring down at the charging female with a look that suggested he was toying with the idea of cutting her down. He wouldn't, of course, not with Zel here and at the gate, but if looks could kill, Elayne would be riddled with holes.

"New friends?~" The catgirl, Serene, mewed, waving her overlarge gun excitedly in reply.

"Niiiiice." Was the only word out of Kiera's mouth. The fox-masked individual leaned against Zel's shoulder, almost intimately, before the flame-haired woman shrugged her off with a glare. "Not a word." She raised a finger before anyone else could speak, and the cutting ice in those vibrant emeralds said it all.

She walked up to greet Elayne with a curt nod of her head, arms crossed as she examined her little troublemaker, rolling her eyes at the bruises and blood, and is that moss smeared all over her shirt? In comparison, Zel's armor was pristine, spotless. Even given her ragtag band, Elayne looked out of place with her simple armor and lack of a weapon. Zel knew about that little trinket Elayne was so fond of course. It was pretty much trash, but Elayne seemed to collect those.

"Well, you are alive, that's a start." She scoffed a bit, wiping a smidgen of dirt from Elayne's chin with her glove. "Alright, here's the ground rules. If you violate any of them at any point, I'll kick you out myself so help me god." She declared, narrowing her eyes as a cat would at its prey, staring Elayne down as she announced the rules. "One, you are going to stay at least 50 feet behind this raid ground. Any closer and I'll port you out. Two, don't even think about hitting a mob, ranged attack or not. Three, if you throw any weird potions or smokes or even scream too loudly, I'm going to end you. Are we clear?"

 

[Denna]

Elayne frowned at Zel's partners, jealous that they could spend so much time with her sister. She flushed as Zel brushed the dirt from her chin, realizing too late that she was filthy. She looked down as Zel issued her rules, shifting from foot to foot.

" Yes Zel. I'll keep back. I won't interfere with your fights, unless absolutely necessary. "

Elayne looked at Zel, excited to finally get a look at a real raid. And with one of the top guilds! Venture was amazing. They may be boring and meta, but at least they did new things. They were always the ones who explored the latest dungeons first. They had soooo many stories, and Elayne was determined to hear them all.

Elayne shifted a bit, trying to hide her bag of goodies. She had found some fun new toys before hunting her kobold. And none of them were potions or smokes, so she could technically use them. A rock with a spell to light up, dazzling anyone not used to bright areas. A vial that, if filled with alcohol, the drinker's skin turned slippery and hard to hold. And finally, a rope with half a dozen knots in it. If you undid a knot, the person you saw next would be lucky. She had made sure to try out each of these before purchase, and they all worked. She was excited to see what she could do with them, as they had used most of her remaining supplies fund.

 

[ƒeral]

"Not 'unless absolutely necessary,'" Zel corrected, "Never." Her way or the highway, evidently true in both worlds.

"Can we get going already, we are wasting time." Kruger grumbled. And he was right, every second was precious at changing times like this. It was precisely because Venture recognized this that it remained one of the pioneers in exploring content. Moving in a small, elite group, with no stragglers. Kruger was looking pointedly at Elayne, his message obvious. But Zel ignored it.

"Mount up. We are moving out." She motioned behind her with a wave of her hand, issuing her command coolly. Behind her, the Venture raid party each brought out their mounts, and for a moment it was monster galore. Horses, standard enough, but with horns? Was that a sabertooth lion Kruger summoned? And whatever that thing was Grizzly summoned was too weird for words. All of them, with exceptions, were winged. Purchasing the most ordinary mare from an NPC was expensive enough, and these were obviously anything but. If it wasn't clear already, each of the seven Venture core members were geared to the teeth.

A ring on Zel's hand glowed and she brought out her own mount. And as expect of someone with her particular aesthetic tastes, her mount was magnificent. Intelligent cerulean eyes stared unblinking at his owner, purring softly as Zel scratched his ear. Even standing on all fours, he reached almost her shoulder in height, and his coiled muscles were armor-plated, even his wings gilded.

Kruger shot a look at Elayne. "So, what's the holdup, where's your mount, baby girl?" The barbarian sneered, amused by his own joke.

Zel didn't move to defend Elayne, simply frowned and sighed. "I hope you have at least a point in riding..." She murmured, taking a step toward the shorter girl. "I'll let you ride with me. Zephyr's a nice guy, even if he looks intimidating. Here, I'll help you get on." She offered, standing by his side and looking as though she would help Elayne mount.

 

[Denna]

Elayne wilted as Zel correcter her. She had hoped to get away on a technicality, but she was caught. Elayne gaped at the amazing mounts, running up to each one, and naming them in turn. " Oh my god, is that an actual Karugan Sabertooth? How did you manage to get one? I heard they only released twenty, and they were all being hoarded by a single player! " Elayne gushed until Kruger sneered at her. Her hold body seemed to tense, like a cat with it's fur ruffled. " I don't need some stinking mount. They are burdensome, expensive, and all around annoying. I have my OWN way of getting around. "

Elayne thrust her arms dramatically into the air. " BY THE POWER AND CLEVERNESS OF GORDON THE TRANSMOGRIFIER, I CLAIM ACCESS TO THE ANCIENT POWERS OF KRUSBIN. "

With a brilliant orange flash, Elayne transformed into a small ermine. Angry chittering soon filled the air, with the little ermine's brown and white paws still lifted in the air. Another orange flash, and this time she became an even larger ermine. Elayne beat the ground with her tiny paws, glaring up into the sky, little paw shaking at it in anger. She chittered for a moment, before zipping under Kruger's mount, almost too fast to notice. Elayne snuck around to Zel's mount, and hopped up, chittering at Zel, gesturing to itself, head held high in pride. She watched Zel expectantly.

 

[ƒeral]

"...No."

There was a long silence, interrupted only by Serena's shrill scream along the lines of 'omigodit'ssocuteiwannahugeit,' before Zel spoke up again. The Venture leader did not look amused, not one bit. Her brows furrowed, and a slim digit lifted to massage her temple, as if Elayne's antics were enough to give her a headache even in the virtual world. Zel looked to the sky, then back at Elayne-ermine, then back at the ground. She seriously considered taking off without. But the girl had been on time and waiting, even agreeing to all of her terms. She supposed she couldn't be quite so cruel.

"Cancel whatever shenanigans this is, right now." She issued with a hint of a growl, staring at the ermine perched upon her regal Snowmane. All the while she mounted up herself; tall as the beast was, Zel threw herself atop it in one graceful leap, an agility impossible in the real world. Techniques were nice, and the Venture leader was a firm believer that raw stats > all. "You have five seconds before I throw you off and take off. Five..."

 

[Denna]

Ermine Elayne stared at Zel, obviously proud of herself. Her pride was shattered at the single word. " No. " Elayne stared at Zel, confused. She felt a little better that Serena liked it, but only a little bit. As Zel began to count down, Elayne scrambled to undue the ability. A flash of orange, and Elayne was back to her old self. She looked at the ground, depressed at being rejected. She thought she looked rather cute, but Zel had shut her down. There went another plan to gain Raine's favor. But Celes would not give up.

" Ok... if you don't like it.... " Elayne sniffled, seating herself on the Snowmane. She looked down at herself, only now truly realizing how filthy she was. She looked at her bag of goodies, then back to her clothes. She grimaced, before pulling out a small bundle of red and black clothes. She stared at them, obviously not liking the idea of wearing them. She stared at Zel, then the party, then finally back down at the clothes. She sighed, and began to strip off her filthy outerwear, mind not registering the fact that half a dozen people would see her undress.

 

[ƒeral]

There was common sense. Then there was Elayne.

"What the fuck are you doing." The urgent, almost angry whisper was all Elayne was privy to before a gloved hand seized the back of her collar, not unlike how a bigger cat might carry a smaller one by its scruff. Having pulled a shirt halfway off of her head, she had effectively blinded herself, and before she could even get a word of protest out, Zel had picked her up, bodily, and hefted her onto the regal Snowmane not unlike how she might handle a bag of potatoes. The younger was light enough, sure, but the amount of strength required for such a move was entirely inhuman. But they were a in a game, and Zel was a blood tank, and she sure was hell wasn't going to let Elayne give a strip tease, however clumsy it might be, to her entire raid group.

With a click of her tongue and the firm grip of her thighs, Zel signaled her Snowmane, and the great beast flapped its impressive wingspan, taking off with but a single powerful beat. Elayne, trapped as she was in a bundle of cloth, missed the initial take off. Zel considered it a punishment - Elayne was just so infuriating sometimes. She made the girl struggle a moment longer, trapped between herself and her mount, baffled by the sudden gusts of wind. Zel held the reins steady on either side of Elayne's torso though, she wasn't about to let her troublemaking little blonde plummet to certain death.

"You better thank me for this later." She grumbled, irritation lining her voice still. "I've let two people, two people, ride Zephyr. "And you are smearing moss all over him." She grumbled. When Elayne finally dis-tangle herself, Zel would fork a plain looking silver ring over to her. It didn't look like much, but it was very a newbie godsend. Full repair, including cosmetic damage, on unlimited use. The only drawback was there was a level cap on how high the equipment could go. A levelcap she doubted Elayne would reach anyway. Regardless, it still fetched a decent price on the AH, but Zel handed it off like it was nothing. "Get rid of the moss." She grumbled again, pretending at irritation still.

 

[Denna]

Elayne let out a confused cry as she was hoisted onto the Snowmane. Her breath caught, and she struggled feebly against Zel as Zephyr launched into the air on mighty wings. Elayne was frantic, not understanding what had happened, and tried to extract herself, only making things worse. When Zel finally let her free, Elayne looked around, realized what Zel had done, and let out an exasperated sigh, before berating Zel. " That's why I was changing , so I wouldn't get moss all over Zephyr. Jeeze, I'm not always paying attention, but at least I try. I was even willing to put on this horrendous piece of equipment just for you. It's ugly and Bind on Equip, so if I changed, I wouldn't be able to sell it. It's even a rare, low level set piece that I've never even seen before, so it must be from the new patch. But you had to go and stop me, so who is at fault for Zephyr getting dirty? " Elayne patted Zephyr, trying to comfort the poor creature.

She actually thought her new gear looked amazing, and wanted to show off for Zel, but she had been interrupted. She looked back at the others, still on the ground, rushing to catch up. She refused Zel's ring, and continued to strip, stuffing her dirty clothes into her bag of goodies. Elayne stripped to her undergarments, an incredible feat of dexterity, considering they were flying through the air at an alarming rate. She spent a moment, imagining Zel's arms around her, and how romantic it would be, before she shrugged the thought off. Zel was being uptight, and wouldn't brook any such nonsense, no matter how cute Elayne looked, with her hair flowing in the wind, pale skin bare and tantalizingly close to Zel.

Elayne prepared to put on her new equipment, admiring the dark, supple leather pants, stitched with red thread, with small, diamond shaped patches of red silk sewn down the side of the legs. The top was a tight fitting corset, black, with a loose white undershirt. It was simple in design, but the leather was smooth and warm, someone had obviously taken great care to craft it. She wiggled in excitement, obviously wanting to wear it, despite her earlier protests.

 

[ƒeral]

Zel didn't know where to look.

She grumbled under her breath and gnashed her teeth, and half considered wrestling the girl into submission, to stop distracting her with such a display of poor judgment. But they were already soaring through the air, Zephyr oblivious to his rider's inner turmoil, and Zel would never hear the end of it if they both ended up falling due to a mid-air scuffle. She herself would live, probably, but as much as she wanted to strangle Elayne at the moment, she wasn't actually going to kill the girl.

That left her at a conundrum, forced to simply try to shield Elayne's form from view from the riders behind, keeping both arms locked around the wriggling girl. The broad wing span of Zephyr helped, but they were still pressed way too close together for comfort. And Elayne... It was awfully un-creative of Celes to make her character look so much like her, a fact probably related to how many characters the girl had to make. But it was not without its appeal. Having someone who looked so much like her step sister, and indeed, was her step sister for all intent and purposes, wriggling in her lap. Stripping practically naked.

Zel growled with irritation. This was why she hated spending too much time with Celes normally. The girl, in one air headed display after another, was far too keen lounging around in next to nothing without the slightest care in the world, completely unconcerned of how that affected Raine. She was supposed to be Celes' caretaker, her reliable older sister, not some slack-jawed youth lusting after her younger, vulnerable sibling. That last part was perhaps somewhat unfair, Celes had shown herself quite capable at her job and other things, even if she sucked at this game. But that was how Raine perceived herself. Sister, caretaker, guardian. And none of those descriptions involved her getting hard over the careless youngster changing in front of her.

"Just stop talking and scooch forward." Zel demanded, practically growling, her arms tensing on either side of Elayne, keeping the girl trapped and unable to look back. Even as she spoke, her shifted her own hips back, careful to not press into Elayne. She bit at her cheek, chewed on her own bottom lip, and tried to think of the blood and gore associated with slaying a too large beast. Anything to will her stubborn half-hard erection down, the dumb organ not taking her obvious embarrassment as a hint, proclaiming its approval of the exposed expanses of skin in an all too prominent bulge in her tight leather pants.

 

[Denna]

Elayne smiled to herself. She would look super cute in this outfit. When she had first gotten it, she had thought it would sell for some serious cash, but then she really looked at it, and it was gorgeous. Elayne could have just copied the look onto another piece of gear, but she didn't like doing that. It was too boring, being able to make gear look different so easily. That, and it cost money.

Elayne wiggled herself closer to Zel as she asked her to scoot forward. " There's not enough ROOM. I need to get this stuff on. " Elayne began to do an elaborate dance, wiggling and struggling to put the equipment on, all the while flying through the air at an incredible speed. The only reason she didn't plummet to her death was Zel's careful hold.

Elayne frowned as she stared at her pants. ' How on earth am I going to get these on? ' She thought. It had been easy to slip OUT of her pants, but it would be really awkward to get a pair on right now. Always willing to try something new and daring, Elayne leaned back heavily against Zel, before lifting both her legs into the air, pale skin shining and bare. She shuffled around, trying to get the angle right to slip into the pants. She was unable to both hold the pants at the right angle AND slip them on, so she turned to Zel to help. " I'll hold the pants, you pull them up, ok? " Elayne grabbed one of Zel's hands, pulling it to her thigh, where the pants had been pulled partway up. Elayne was almost on her back, legs stretched to the sky, wearing nothing but underclothes and partly pulled up pants.