Complete Private Eastern Brisshal Whoa, this is so pretty... Aaah!

[Chako]

Chako was having fun walking around the woods.

There was a lot to see. Way more than she could have ever seen on her own in real life. She just felt happy. The plain and simple act of walking around and looking around on her own was bringing her more happiness than anything she did in her daily life.

Until an idea came to her... "Wouldn't it look much better from high up?"

Chako quickly got to climbing the tree that was nearest to her. Something she saw other children do often, yet something that she could never do herself.

It was... Much harder than expected. She fell a few times. Slipped a few more, but... Hey, it was fun anyways. It's part of the process, isn't it?

Eventually she got on top of somewhat tall tree branch that gave her a good view... "Whoa... This is really amazing... It was worth the trouble to get here, alright!"

Chako got mesmerized by the view for a few seconds... Which made her forget how to put proper strength on her legs.

"Huh? Wait, a-aaah!" Chako started falling. As she approached the ground, she wondered if it really was a good idea to keep the pain limiters off.

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

There was nothing better than the forests of Brisshal, as far as Bluebird was concerned. The fresh breeze and gentle birdsong was ever a balm on her soul, especially after the stresses of life. It had been so long since she'd truly been able to play, but these moments were enough.

She had taken to the ground for once, talons tapping through the soil as she hummed to herself. It was a song to keep the forest's threats at bay. The last thing she wanted was a wandering wolf to ruin her day...

"Whoa... This is really amazing... It was worth the trouble to get here, alright!"

Bluebird paused, wings spread. That had been a voice, coming somewhere from... above? She looked up, and spotted a shape among the leaves...

"Huh? Wait, a-aaah!"

A shape that was rapidly approaching her.

"Ah, let me-!" She stepped back slightly, hands clasped together as her stutter shifted into a warbling whistle. At her command the wind began to swirl, rising up towards the falling felis and slowing her fall. It wouldn't be enough to stop the fall entirely, but it was at least enough to keep her from being too injured.

@Chako​

 

[Chako]

Let me!? Let me what!? Chako couldn't quite get what was happening for a second.

But then, "Whooooa!" She wasn't falling. Or at least not as fast.

Chako was able to turn herself mid-air and not fall on her head, but instead... Well, Chako's plan was to fall on her feet, but she fell on her butt. "Oops! Spinning mid-air is hard!" Chako felt some pain from the fall, but she figured it was better to just ignore it. At least keeping those pain limiters off let her move herself more freely, so it was worth it.

Chako turned her face towards the miss that just helped her, "Hey, bird miss, that was pretty cool! Thanks a bunch!" Chako tried to hurriedly get up to shake the miss' hands, but she instead tripped and fell face-first on the ground.

"A-ahahahaha..." That was embarrassing...

Chako figured it was best to just sit up for now, then offer her hand to the miss, "I'm Chako!"

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

Bluebird let out a sigh of relief once Chako had safely landed... more or less. The felis seemed far clumsier than her appearance suggested. She took a moment to catch her breath, drained from the relatively brief moment of song. "Oh, my apologies! That was a harsher landing than I hoped it would be."

Bluebird smiled, taking Chako's offered hand and giving her a little tug to help her upright. "Hello, Chako. My name is Bluebird."

She released the hand quickly and then folded both hands behind her back. Her wings fluttered as she began to circle Chako, head tilted as she looked for any signs of injury."Are you hurt? If you are, I can help - I know quite a bit about the healing arts." She finished her pacing back in front of Chako and looked at her expectantly.

"Only if you allow it, of course. I would not wish to overstep!"

@Chako​

 

[Chako]

"Ah, that was on me! I should have gotten on my feet properly..." Chako's tone went lower as she spoke... More like she shouldn't have fallen in the first place, but she was happy enough that her first death in Terrasphere wasn't from something as silly as falling headfirst from a particularly tall tree.

Chako then made use of the tug to help her get up, though she still stumbled a bit, almost falling back down again, before she finally stood still in one place, "N-nice to meet you, Bluebird!" She felt like that was such a wacky username, but... Well, she figured it wasn't her place to talk when she just stole hers from a random novel she read.

Well, she was certain this was no NPC now at least. Chako just couldn't imagine the devs putting this name on a character they made. Like... Color + Animal? That's soooooooo lazy! Even she could... And then Chako once again remembered that she stole her username from a novel, so she decided to stay quiet.

"O-oh no, I'm not hurt!" Chako waved her hands in front of her, "My butt just aches a little, but nothing that won't pass with time... Probably. I mean, it should pass, right? Or does this game's pain settings keep on hurting until you get healed?" Not like Chako had her UI on to see her health bar, since she felt the immersion without one was nicer, but she figured she could have taken some damage from the big fall.

... Chako then realized this would be a very very awkward conversation if this was an NPC as she just brought up stuff like pain settings... Chako figured she should not mind it and just assume it's a play anyways. It's the less embarrassing option, after all.

"... Would anyone be against being cured though? Like... Why would someone be?" Chako tilted her head for a second, before she took a sudden step back, "Wait, it's not a lewd healing process or anything, is it!?" Chako suddenly started wondering if she came across a wandering pervert... Only to feel like facepalming a moment later when she remembered Bluebird just stopped her from a particularly painful headfirst-potentially-deadly fall.

Stop being stupid, Lisa. Stop being stupid! Stranger danger doesn't apply to people who just saved you... She told herself.

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

Bluebird listened quietly as Chako began to ramble. Everything about this girl made her seem young - certainly she'd helped raise her share of people like her once upon a time. Better to let them get their thoughts out before responding to them.

Still, some of what came out of Chako's mouth was... interesting! Very different from what she was used to. Bluebird giggled a bit as Chako finally finished her train of thought.

"You have so many questions! You are new to Terrasphere, then?" She half folded her arms, tapping her cheek with one finger while folding her wings back. "I shall start at the beginning, then. Pain will pass with time, just as it does in the other world, but healing will quicken the process. I've yet to meet a Starcalled against being healed, but some of the Landers in this world do not care for us or our magic."

She dropped her arms back to her sides and tilted her head with a bright smile. "And none of my healing is... 'lewd', as you put it. I do not dabble in the profane arts - my magic is of song and the stars. Here, allow me..."

Bluebird folded her hands and closed her eyes. She hummed a soft melody, gentle as the sparkling wind that began to swirl around Chako. It was only for a moment, but it was enough to ease whatever pain the felis was feeling.

Once she was done, Bluebird opened her eyes. "See? There is nothing to worry about!"

Chako​

 

[Chako]

Chako wasn't too happy to see Bluebird giggle at her, but she kept that to herself when considering she just made the lewd accusation...

"Oh, yes! I just started playing today!" Chako nodded.

Chako then listened and felt relieved to know that pain did fade on its own, but... "Why would some Landers not care about magic?" Chako tilted her head, "Are they unaffected by magic or something?"

Never mind the fact she didn't know what a Lander or a Starcalled was, she figured they were just some races or something... Maybe Landers were golems or something? It would make sense that they wouldn't care much about magic in that case.

"Oh, Song magic!" Chako's ears perked up as she heard Bluebird's words. She wasn't sure what to expect when considering how many types of music are out there, but Bluebird didn't feel like the kind of person that was planning on starting rapping or something in front of her, so Chako was a bit excited to hear it.

And Chako was not disappointed when she heard the melody that came out of Bluebird's mouth... It was a short, but very sweet song, "You sing well!" Chako smiled, "Kinda wish I had a harp with me. I could play something as you sang!" It did feel like a bit of a waste to spend in-game time playing the harp when she could do it back at home, but... Well, Chako didn't know many people who knew how to sing, so it felt like it would be a pretty nice experience.

Alas, no harp available, so that would have to be left for a future opportunity.

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

"Just today? I see!" Bluebird clapped her hands together with a wide smile. "Then let me be one of the first to welcome you to this world!"

The smile didn't last, however. Bluebird seemed to darken at the mention of landers, wings folding tight against her head. "Oh no, the Landers are quite skilled with magic - some even better than us mere Starcalled can dream!"

Quietly, Bluebird began tapping a claw against the ground, a subtle tap-tap-tap that was enough to weave some magic into her next words. A echo of sorrow, a subtle promise of trustworthiness. Harmonics, meant to stir the heart, too subtle to detect unless one was skilled in the same school of magic...

"No... it is us they do not care for. For our kind have sinned against them, and now all of us must atone for their crimes of the few." Bluebird kept her hands clasped, closing her eyes and bowing her head as if in prayer.

It wasn't far from what she was actually doing.

But then the moment passed. Bluebird lowered her hands and brightened, wings fluttering as if to wave away the dark words she'd just spoken. "But please, do not let such things darken your time here. You mentioned desiring a harp - do you also practice music, Chako?"

@Chako ​

 

[Chako]

"Thank you! It's being quite fun so far!" Chako smiled.

Then Chako started listening about how the Landers were actually quite skilled with magic, and how Bluebird's kind had sinned against them... And there was something special about those words. Chako couldn't quite get how, but the way Bluebird spoke it as she tapped the ground made Chako feel like something really sad had gone on there.

Which was... Very wild when considering what she knew so far about those groups, "So like... The Landers are some kind of Arcane Golems that were hurt, and the Starcalled are a group of bird people that did something really bad?" Chako asked as she thought. It made sense. Bluebird did say that her magic was of the song and of the stars, so Chako figured that this must be a special group of bird Beastfolk that are connected to the stars in some way.

Still, Chako was amazed! So there could be rivalries between races even involving stuff like golems in Terrasphere!? It sounded awesome!

... And it was only then that Chako started to wonder why she was assuming that the Landers were golems... Alas, something much more important caught her attention, so this train of thought was promptly forgotten, "I do! I love playing the harp!

"Can't say I was planning on playing it here when I can play it whenever I want at home, but still, it's definitely my favorite instrument.

"I actually was hoping to try figuring out how to dance in Terrasphere, but it's been proving to be harder than I thought." And by that, Chako meant that moving her legs and not tripping and falling on her face was hard. Dancing being hard was more of a consequence of that.

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

"Oh, nonono! Landers are the people of this world. They come in all shapes and sizes, but they are as alive as you and me!"

There were people, she knew, who appeared as children but weren't in this game. But Chako seemed to be a true child - much like the ones she used to teach and care for when she was a child herself. Guiding her back to the truth was familiar. "And the Starcalled... that is what they call those like you and me! It's a pretty name, isn't it?"

It was nice, to be teaching again.

"Even if you can play harp in the other world, there is no reason you cannot play it here too. As you saw, music has a power all it's own in this world." She tilted her head, looking thoughtful. "But dancing, too, can be powerful. I have a friend, in fact, whose dances can weave magic as easily as my songs!"

It had been a while since she's spoken to her, though. Hopefully she was alright. "My dancing is also poor, but I'm sure with enough practice you'll excel." She tapped her cheek a few times, then clapped. "Perhaps one day I could introduce her to you!"

Chako​

 

[Chako]

Chako hit her fist on the palm of her other hand as she heard the explanation, "Oh! Landers are like, the NPCs, and Starcalled are the players! I get it now!" It did make sense that they'd had some in-universe name for it. Chako just hadn't given it any thought until now.

Though that also made her a bit sad... "What did the players... I mean, the Starcalled do to hurt the Landers?" It didn't feel right... It's not like Chako knew anything about the Landers, but she did hear that the AI of Terrasphere was super advanced, to the point they were basically unrecognizable from people... As in, wouldn't they basically be people, then?

Chako didn't feel like it was right for people to hurt other people... Especially not to the point it actually created a grudge between both groups.

Well, for now, Chako tried to stop the thoughts from getting to her head too much, "Yes, it is a pretty name.

"And uhn... It's not like I have anything against playing the harp here, just... Time is limited, yanno? Can't really do everything at the same time, so... I figured I'd focus on dancing instead of playing!

"Though well, I guess there is nothing wrong with splitting my time between things as I please." She smiled a bit as she thought back to her encounter with Ruby... It would be nice to get her own harp made here. Then she could get Ruby to autograph it later... She'd also need to get a feather and some ink for it though, but that shouldn't be hard to arrange.

"My goal is certainly to excel in my dancing! I want to make everyone smile, heal their wounds, protect them from harm, and do my utmost to make everyone happy!

"... I need to stop tripping and falling first though." Chako blushed a bit as she said it... It was kinda embarrassing to bring it up, "A-and I'd love to meet up with your friend eventually!" Chako wondered if it was common to see people use magic with the arts here.

First she met Ruby, now Bluebird who uses the songs, and her friend who dances too... It would certainly be nice if this was a common thing. Maybe they could even make a concert in that Honeyhome place that Ruby told her about eventually.

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

"Correct! You learn quickly." Bluebird smiled, wings spread wide as if to emphasize it. "But it is important to remember that they are not just "NPCs", as you call them. They are people with dreams and fears of their own, just like us."

Away went the smile again. Again came Bluebird's gentle melody, weaving feelings into her words. "As for the sin committed against them... it was not so long ago that this land found itself under attack by an army of automatons. Machines from the west marched across the land, consuming life and soul. Their leader was a cruel queen, intent on taking this land for her own."

Bluebird had not joined the final attack. The had been too many that needed protecting away from the front line. If she had, though... would things have turned out better?

"However, at the climax of the fight, they chose not to slay the queen, but spare her for selfish purposes. And in doing so, they placed this land in danger."

She remained quiet to let her last words fade, before smiling sadly. "That is why it is the duty of us now to repent, so that this world will see brighter days. And I'm sure that you can help make that happen."

Bluebird held a hand out to Chako. "Now... you said you were having trouble walking, no? Perhaps I can help you practice on the way out of these woods. There are much safer places for it."

@Chako​

 

[Chako]

Chako was a bit happy to hear she learned quickly... Had she ever heard those words directed at her for anything other than the harp? She wasn't sure...

Then, she nodded at Bluebird's next words, "Right. I heard of it. Like there is no way to differentiate an NPC, I mean, a Lander from a Starcalled. I'm actually looking quite forward to talking to Landers myself! I want to see them with my own eyes, yanno!?" Chako thought that would be nice. Making friends in cities and stuff... Though with how Bluebird talked about Landers disliking Starcalled, Chako wasn't sure if this was actually possible now.

And then... Chako listened. About how an army of machines, which weirded her out very much, but then she remembered that the 'Magia' race existed, so she figured she'd just have to deal with the fact machines existed in this fantasy setting.

Either way, she heard of how an army of machines attacked and... Their leader was spared...? Chako couldn't even imagine what reasons people would have to spare the leader of an attacking army, like... Sure, Chako didn't like the idea of killing anyone. She'd much rather help people than hurt them, but... If it came to the point of a war, where people were being hurt and getting killed, then soft-hearted decisions weren't simply possible anymore, right?

What was it again? There was no justice in war. No good nor evil. Only winners and losers... Something like that? Chako wasn't sure where exactly she heard this from, or if she heard it from anything in specific, but she had a vague recollection of it... Maybe it was just something she concluded on her own from playing enough war games.

Point was... It was hard to really care about morality in a war... Which is why Chako didn't want to ever get involved in one... So simply sparing the leader of an invading army like that, despite the wishes of the Landers... "That sounds horrible." Was all Chako could say.

"I can't say I can repent or anything like it, since I didn't do anything worth repenting for in the first place, but... If I can do something to help Landers look at the Starcalled better, you can bet I'll do it! This whole thing sounds like a big mess, so... Let's try our best to make everyone happy and get over it now that the worst has already passed, right!?" Chako smiled. She didn't know how feasible that was; she didn't really know any of the details involving it, or how hurt the Landers were by this sparing decision, but... Hey, she could at least try.

"Oh, I would appreciate some help! I did get directions to that Honeyhome place, but I figured I'd explore more before I went there, just...

"Well, perhaps it was not my smartest idea to climb up a tree to get a good view of the surroundings when I'm still tripping and falling regularly, right?" Chako gave out an awkward smile... Thinking back on it, that was really stupid... Though hey, she met a nice person out of it, and learned more about the world, so it wasn't all that bad.

About... The world...? "Say, what's this world's name anyways? It's not 'Terrasphere', is it? That would sound strange."

@Bluebird

 

[Bluebird]

Bluebird smiled pityingly at Chako, wings fluttering as she reached a hand out to her shoulder. "Little one, we are all guilty. For now our very existence brings the People of the Land pain. To repent is to do all we can to soothe that pain until they bless us with forgiveness."

For such a dark thing to say, Bluebird's voice was bright. She had always been fond of children, with their simple worlds and eagerness to expand those worlds. Teaching had been her favorite job, back Before, and she had been praised at her skill.

"As for this world's name... you stand in the forests of Eastern Brisshal, a land within the kingdom of Falderen. But this world as a whole?" Bluebird took a moment to tap her cheek, eyes closed in thought. "I cannot say I know the name of the whole world! But this land is known as Arcia."

Bluebird reached a hand towards Chako, gaze flickering between her and the forest. "Now, shall we go? The path isn't far from here, and then it will be an easy walk back to Honeyhome. I think you will like it!"

@Chako​

 

[Chako]

Chako's instinctive reaction to being called guilty due to someone else's wrongdoing was to scream 'No way! Are you crazy!?'

However, as Bluebird did save Chako from the most ridiculous death anyone could suffer from, Chako decided to actually think a bit on her words before answering, "I... Disagree. You cannot be guilty by what you didn't do. That's just victim-blaming. A girl that was born paraplegic is not being punished for the sins of her ancestors. She was just born unlucky. That's all there is to it.

"If Landers feel pain from my very existence, then I was just unlucky to join Terrasphere at the wrong time, but that doesn't make me guilty.

"I can try helping them and soothing their pain, but it's not something I'll do out of repentance or out of guilt. I'll do it because I want to make friends and make people smile." Chako stated firmily.

Landers count as people too, right? NPCs or not, human-like AI should basically count as people.

Chako wondered if there was more to say about it, but nothing else came to mind, so she settled at that, "Eastern Brisshal. Falderen. Arcia... I'll try remembering those." Though she did feel like it was a bit weird to not know the world's name... But well, maybe it just never came up, so Bluebird never heard of it. Chako should learn it eventually anyways.

Regardless of that, Chako took Bluebird's hand and nodded to her next words, "Thank you! I'm looking forward to seeing Honeyhome for myself!" She thought about exploring some more before going there, but... Well, going with company should be fun too. She could always explore later anyways.

@Bluebird