Open Eastern Brisshal Charon Crossing

[Cadmean]

Quincy was kneeling in riverbank muck, picking up and counting coins. This was not how she had expected or wanted her day to go, but here she was. Her fingers shook as she recalled the events of just a few minutes prior. The war cries echoing in the main chamber of the temple where she had found herself waking up in. The defiled altar, that long and sonorous chanting-

No. No, stop. "Stop," Quincy said firmly to herself. Because she could feel the chants swirling around in her head, meaningless vowels repeating ad nauseam. To try and turn her mind away from the ominous goblin chanting, Quincy refocused on counting her coins. She didn't have very many on her to start with, but she absolutely needed to make sure she had all of them. Every single one.

"Nine, ten, eleven," she continued, picking them up and stacking them neatly on a flat rock where she could see them. All in a stack like this, her little bronze coins didn't seem so small, so forgettable. That was good. Very good. She could deal with this. Once she had all her coins, then maybe she could start looking for the rest of her items. Still unaccounted for was the battered crossbow she'd been given out of charity, as well as the small case of bolts that came with it.

If the past day was any indication, she felt like she would really, really need them.

 

[Harukami]

From a short distance down the river, Harukami was surprised to see a woman kneeling in riverbank muck. She seemed to be collecting something- though, Harukami couldn't tell what- and it made the mage ever curious. She wanted to help, and, despite her timidness, ran down the river to where Quincy was kneeling. Now that she was nearby, she could see what the woman was collecting: coins.

"Oh no! Did you lose your stuff in the river?"

Haruka began to look around nervously, spotting from afar what appeared to be something shiny, and ran to check it out. It was... a bolt for a crossbow? Then she found another, and another, and another again. Finally, she spotted their case, partially opened from when it landed where it sat earlier on. Most of the bolts were still inside- though Harukami had no idea how many there were supposed to be in the first place.

Drying the bolts of murky water on her skirt, Harukami took the bolts she'd found along with the case of remaining ones, and walked to Quincy. "Are these yours as well?" Harukami smiled gently, offering to hand over the case and bolts. "Though they're not that helpful without a crossbow, are they...?"

 

[Nyancy]

River fishing was a completely different beast from pond fishing. The movement of the watermade things more exciting especially when the fish were swimming upstream, not to mention the flow of the cold water between the toes was exhilarating.

Nyancy sat at the river's edge on a rock, toes in the water, enjoying her day.

Well, ain't this the life. A nice day, feet in the watah and soon enough a couple ah fish in my tummy.

Suddenly, Nyancy felt a hard tug on her fishing pole.

I got sumthin'!

Placing both hands on her fishing stick, Nyancy tested the line.

Ain't no fish though. I just caught somethin' on tha hook. Well, let's see what we got. Maybe all this fishin' and the Gods finally have blessed me with some fishin' treasure ah something.

Pulling the line out of the water carefully so as to not lose her prize, Nyancy quickly realized that what she had caught was a crossbow.

Well, ain't that that cat's pajaymas? A crossbow. Can't use it nuthin' on account ah my skills, but I guess I've fished up weirdah things in the watah.

Suddenly, Nyancy heard some commotion coming from further upstream.

Uh oh, sounds like someone might be in trouble. I guess the likes of little Nyancy should go investigate. Guess I'll take tha crossbow with me just in case.

Taking her fishing pole and the crossbow, Nyancy readied herself to travel upstream.

Alright, good opportunity hea to test my speed technique.

Taking a four-point stance, the small Felis dug her hands and feet into the ground.

"Grip tha earth, annnnnd go!"

Shooting off like a rocket, Nyancy made her way upstream in the blink of an eye suddenly spotting two women, one of which seemed to be in distress.

Nyancy stopped a few feet away still carrying the crossbow and her fishing pole.

'Ey! You two alright? Get attacked ah sumthin? Need some help?

@Quincy @Harukami

 

[Cadmean]

"Thirty-two, thirty-three--"

Quincy blinked in surprise as a purple-haired woman raced up towards her. She tensed instinctively, but it was quickly apparent that @Harukami was offering assistance. Still a bit jumpy from her harrowing experiences at the wrong end of a goblin raid just a few dozen minutes ago, it took Quincy a while to relax, even as she intellectually knew that Harukami meant no harm.

In fact, the other woman had even helped her find her things! Quincy eagerly reached out for the proffered case and crossbow bolts, nodding gratefully. "Yes, thank you! Those were mine, thank you so much!"

Coins, case, bolts, mostly accounted for. Quincy slid the bolts back into the case and tucked that into her belt, standing up. She was absolutely caked in mud from the waist down, the sticky sensation causing her to grimace in distaste. Maybe she could find somewhere in the river to try and get cleaner after this. Or maybe-

"Aaah!" The inexplicably sudden appearance of a cat-eared lady with an equally inexplicably Brookyln accent caused Quincy to fall back down in surprise. It took everything in Quincy's power not to flinch as she realized that the cat-eared woman was just asking after the two of them.

She licked her dry lips. There was nothing to be afraid of. Surely not. Both the purple-haired lady and the mysteriously appearing cat woman before her seemed friendly enough. So why was it so hard to form words? "I- uh, is that... Um," she stumbled across her words, her tongue feeling leaden in her mouth. "Um, no, we're fine. I think? And um... S-sorry, but I think that's mine?" she said, gesturing at the crossbow in @Nyancy's hand.

 

[Harukami]

When @Nyancy came, startling Harukami with her rather sudden insert into the situation, it took a few moments before Harukami remembered what crossbow bolts were for. She'd known what they were instinctually when she picked them up, but she wasn't really sure what they were for until now. Now that she knew, she clapped with joy- well, once @Quincy took her ammunition and case out of her hands.

"What a striking coincidence! That the miss here would, well, find your missing bow. They say things come in threes... And in a group of three, we found all the lost items! I mean we did... Didn't we? Are you missing anything else?"

Harukami spoke rather awkwardly fast, stumbling on her words along the way. "Oh! I'm Harukami," She soon stated, wanting to stop being strangers with these two women. She wasn't sure why, it was just what she wanted. "I'm glad you got all your items back. I should be careful not to lose any of my own possessions... Not that I, uh, have any right now really. Hehe."

Scratching the back of her neck nervously, the young woman glanced at the other two, waiting patiently to hear their names. Eventually, she bowed to them either way. "I forgot to say... Nice to meet you..."

 

[Nyancy]

Ah the crossbow is youahs? Lucky I was fishin' down stream then. Caught it in the watah as it was floatin' past. Hea ya go.

Nyancy handed the girl back her crossbow that while wet, looked to still be in good working condition. It seemed the two women Nyancy had just encountered were not in any real trouble which Nyancy was grateful for. She had been training to become stronger recently, but if things actually got down to a fight with a bear or something of that sort, she wasn't extremely confident she would be able to protect anyone.

It looks like everythin's alright ova hea. I just heard some shoutin' and thought theyah might be some trouble ah whateva. Glad everyone's okay.

Nyancy turned to Harukami and smiled.

Nice tah meet the two of yas. The name's Nyancy. I guess I'm sumthin' of an adventurah type ah whateva, though mostly I do a lot of fishin'. Like I said, I was just fishin' down stream when I heard the two of yas.

Nyancy looked to Quincy concerned.

"Yah sure ya alright? Yah look a bit shook up."

@Harukami @Quincy

 

[Cadmean]

@Harukami. Four syllables. Ha-ru-ka-mi. Ha. Ru. Ka. Mi...

Quincy shook her head quickly, feeling herself unable to stop thinking about that name (harukami). The series of quick snappy syllables seemed to etch themselves into her brain (harukami). "R-right," she said. "Um, could I call you Haru? I'm Quincy, by the way."

When @Nyancy introduced herself as well, Quincy quickly leapt on that train of thought. Nyancy was a nice, quick name. Cute, but more importantly, short. "And nice to meet you, Nyancy. Thank you for finding my crossbow."

When Nyancy asked her if she was all right, Quincy bit her lip. Well, to be frank... no. Quincy really was not doing all right, but she couldn't just come out and say that to two people who were only just barely not strangers. She tried to summon up a smile. "Oh, no, I'm fine, really... I think. I'm just having a little bit of trouble with... some things."

She glanced down towards her hand, trying to make the gesture to open her palm menu. Still nothing. She had been hoping that this was just a temporary glitch with the game, but it looked like it was something far more serious.

 

[Harukami]

Harukami watched as @Quincy seemed to be thinking deeply, soaking up her name. "Ah, um, yes! H-Haru is fine." She let out a soft giggle after answering. Haru was what people called her in real life, too. Mostly her sister. It was funny how easily a nickname could come to be when your username was your actual name with an extra syllable, wasn't it?

"What is it you're having trouble with, miss?" She spoke, her words not botched at least for the moment. "Is there... A way I-I can help?" Haru had a strong desire for two things: to learn, and to be of use. To learn about others was a crucial part of making friends- and surely, Haru wanted to do that. But most of all, she wanted to be helpful to the woman that seemed so lost in thought.

Without asking, Harukami took Quincy's hand and held it gently. "It's okay, you can tell us what's wrong. M-Maybe we can help you, even... I-I mean, if you'll let us...." She glanced to @Nyancy and gave a soft grin. "You want to help too, don't you?"

 

[Nyancy]

Help? Yeah, shoah, that's why I came ova hea. Thought theyah was big trouble ah sumthin' and lately I guess I'm been helpin' othas out in the fahrest a bit hea and theyah so yeah, yah know, it's whateva. But if tha young lady... ah excuse me, if Quincy say's she's alright then I take it she is. At least I hope so.

Nyancy nodded at Quincy and turned to Harukami.

Nice tah make ya acquintance, Haru.

Nyancy used the nickname that Quincy had to refer to the woman.

So the both of ya new around theas pahts? I've been hea a while personally. I was around foah years ago before the whole lockout business stahted but didn't do much 'cept fish and sleep. Like I keep tellin' people, not a bad life but ya know this time around I think I want tah do moah than just relax.

Nyancy stopped for a moment.

Anyway, I guess what I'm tryin' tah say is that I knows a thing ah two about the world so if ya got questions ah need directions, hea I am.

Nyancy gave a smile and a thumbs up.

@Harukami @Quincy

 

[Cadmean]

@Harukami and @Nyancy really both were so accommodating. Quincy smiled a little, some of her anxiety easing in the face of their friendliness. After all her recent bad experiences with the game, it was nice to run into pleasant people. Of course, however, that obviously meant that Quincy couldn't bring down the mood with her issues. She'd sort this glitch out on her own.

She took a deep breath, and nodded in agreement with Nyancy saying that everything was fine. "Yeah, everything's okay! Now that I have all my things back, everything should be fine," she said, smiling.

"And thank you both so much. You've really both been very helpful to me." Her gaze traveled across the surrounding area, taking in the forest and the river. Though maybe, she might have to ask for one last bit of assistance from them...

"Um, and if it isn't too much trouble, would either of you know how to get to the closest town? I'm not exactly sure where I am..."

 

[Harukami]

Harukami smiled back pleasantly. She was so happy, having been helpful to someone- and she felt like she was getting better at this 'socializing on her own' thing, too! Now if she could just stop stuttering and tripping over her own words half the time, that would be great. But she'd figure that out later. For now, she had other things to do- like pointing in a specific direction.

"I-I, um, found a little town t-that way earlier... W-Wait, I think it was that way... Or was it... Um..."

The girl paled as she realized she didn't remember which way the town was. She knew her memory wasn't the best, but was it really that hard to memorize where towns were? Yes, yes it was.

"@Nyancy, d-do you, um, know where it is? Or where one is? M-My memory is kind of, um, well... My brain farted." She blushed as she said such an embarrassing term, but it was something her sister often said was what Haru's mind did when she forgot something so suddenly. "I-I'm sorry, @Quincy, I can't recall well..."

 

[Nyancy]

No sweats, I know tha way. Yah know, lately I've been helpin' out a lot ah people tryin' tah get through tha fahrest. I guess I've sortah become suthin' of a guide without even realizin' it? It's whateva though, nuthin' wrong with helpin' othas, in facts ya rackin up good deed points when ya do. Not tah mention yah meet a lotta interesting people that way as well. Lotta new people have been poppin' up recently ya know. It's like everyone's back all of a sudden.

Nyancy pointed in the direction of Honeyhome.

Look at me blatherin' though. Nearest town is Honeyhome, which is that way. It's a real nice place and I think the two of yas is really gonna like it. Most people do, real serene like and a good hub tah get stahted in the woyld. I'll lead ya theyah, like I said, no sweats.

Nyancy waited for the two women to gather their things and when it looked like they were ready, began walking towards the town.

So where'd ya come from Ms. Harukami? Yah new hea too?

@Harukami @Quincy

 

[Cadmean]

Quincy quickly gathered all her things and tucked them away: coins in her pocket (and she was sure that was all of them, she had definitely made sure not to let any of them out of her possession), bolts and case tucked at her pouch, crossbow... well, she hadn't actually had to carry it around before, and didn't quite have a place to put it, as it had always just disappeared and appeared whenever she needed it previously. For now, she just held it in both hands as she got ready to go; perhaps in town she could find a place to purchase a sling or another belt that she could use to carry it with.

With @Nyancy leading the way, Quincy listened attentively to what she was saying. She did her best to look around the indicated direction, searching for any landmarks that might help her mark the location of Honeyhome town.

"That sounds great!" she said eagerly, chiming in as Nyancy explained her ad hoc guide duties. "That's really kind of you to help out, I'm sure everyone you've helped really appreciates it! I do too!"

At Nyancy's question to @Harukami, Quincy tilted her head. Was Harukami also new? She certainly seemed like she had everything put together much more than Quincy did, at the very least. Maybe Quincy ought to learn from her example...

 

[Harukami]

When @Nyancy asked her where she'd come from, she frantically looked around her, trying to remember which way she'd come from. Her brain was in a frenzy, firing in all possible directions as her memory seemed to fail her again. Instead of the proper answer, she decided to slightly dox herself. "I-I'm from Japan," She finally stated, blushing. "I, er, don't remember which way I was g-going." She seemed to stutter more admitting this, mostly because she was embarrassed by her poor memory. "I-I'm sorry. I'm not much help, am I?"

She shivered in her boots. Normally, she had her sister beside her to remind her things- and to talk to people and answer questions she was too timid to do so. But, when asked if she was new, she smiled eagerly. There was nothing shameful about being a newbie!

"I started y-yesterday," she sputtered, grinning. "It's really fun here so far."

As she noticed @Quincy carrying her crossbow, Harukami had a slew of questions to ask- but she kept her mouth shut. None of them felt proper to ask so early in meeting someone. Instead, she gently pat the faerin's back, smiling softly. "I agree with you. M-Miss Nyancy is very kind to show us the way. But you seem quite kind yourself. I thought you, um, should be aware. B-But um, if you ever need help, help that I can give, please tell me... Okay?"

 

[Nyancy]

Ah, not good with directions? That's no botha. Plus it's easy tah get lost in the fahrest, specially if ya new hea. One ah the things I try and tell newcomers, besides welcome! Ah, actually I guess ya should be welcomed properly.

Clearing her throat, Nyancy stopped and turned to the two women.

Welcome to the woyld! I'll be ya host, Nyancy the adorable felix fah this leg of ya adventuah. Ah, by the way this fahrest is called The Fahrest of Brisshal! It's whea newcomers land, but it's also got some nice fishin'. Thea ah some dangahs in the fahrest though, so best tah keep ya guard up a bit, though overall it's a nice place.

Feeling should had done her part to amicably welcome the two women, Nyancy turned and began leading the pair to Honeyhome once again.

Yah know, it ain't so bad doin' this kinda thing so I don't really mind. Hopefully, I'll see tha people I played touah guide fah again. Be nice to see how they end up aftah spending some time hea ya know.

A lightbub went off in Nyancy's head.

Oh! if ya bad with directions, which like I said everyone is when they fahst show up, a good idea would be to buy yahself a map. They got some in Honeyhome, that way yah can get ya bearings straight.

@Harukami @Quincy

 

[Cadmean]

Quincy quietly absorbed the introduction that @Nyancy provided. Even those few brief sentences were already more warning than Quincy had gotten at all, when she had first accessed the game. She couldn't hide the little bitter scowl that crossed her face when Nyancy mentioned dangers in the forest. Yeah, Quincy would say that she had ample first-hand experience with that...

She subconsciously tightened her grip on her crossbow as she followed after Nyancy. The crunch of leaves and twigs underfoot was her sole contribution to the discussion for a while, as she stewed in her frustrations for a while.

However, as @Harukami addressed her, and also as she responded to Nyancy's question--how was she also new? She looked perfectly capable, competent, everything that Quincy was not, and that wasn't fair; at least Nyancy had been playing the game for a while, if what she said was true--and Quincy quickly plastered a smile to her face.

"Oh, I'll be fine! Especially now that we're going to town--is that it over there?" Quincy gestured at a few rooftops peeking through the trees. "A map would be a good idea, I'll look for one there. Thanks again, Nyancy."

 

[Harukami]

Harukami unwittingly started clapping as @Nyancy began to take on the role of welcome wagon. She knew she'd already introduced herself, but it made her feel like she had to again. And so she did. "I-It's nice to mea- er, meet you. I-I'm Haruka...mi." She'd forgotten the last syllable of her game name for a minute- she probably should have thought against using her real name as the base, but it was too late now.

"D-Do you two m-mind if um, I send a fire- no! I mean a friend... yes! Friend request?" She didn't actually wait for permission, however. After sending one to Nyancy, admitting she wanted to learn from the woman how to fish, and just liked the two enough to want to become friendlier, she got a confusing error message upon trying to send one to @Quincy.

"Q-Quincy, does your UI have a g-glitch or something? I c-can't seem to send a friend request..." She frowned, worried for her new acquaintance. She knew the rule of the world. Had Quincy already died three times? But that meant- No, Haru! Don't go there!. She told herself not to worry- yet at least. "A-Ah well. We'll just h-have to let our f-fates intertwine instead!"

 

[Nyancy]

Hearing the clapping, Nyancy bowed as a performer would.

"Haha, no sweats! go on and add me. Nyancy cat is always lookin' fah new friends in tha woyld!

Accepting the friend request, Nyancy thought it was about time for her to take her leave.

"Welp, I outta be movin' on. Lots tah see in the woyld and all. The two of yas be shoah tah watch out fah yaselves and be carefahl, not everyone here is as nice, cute, and adoyable as little Nyancy. That bein' said if the two of yas eva need some help feel free tah call me anytime. Nyancy always makes time fah her friends. Even if it's just ah simple question, it's all no sweats yah hea?

Being satisfied that the two women would be safe from harm. Nyancy believed it was now time for her to take her leave. Who knew who else she would run into in the forest?

[Exit Thread]

@Harukami @Quincy