Alphabet Chocolate, in spite of all her energy and eccentricities, found herself woven into the day-to-day life in Astorea with surprising ease. While it was true that the small nation had a brutal time slowly mending all the damaged infrastructure from the brief war, the people in it seemed livelier than ever. Depressing things had happened, yes, but it seemed as if everyone had that general feeling of positivity and optimism surrounding the future. And, inspired by the festivities that the Dark Harvest Faire provided, Alpha made herself at home in this fledgling nation-state, devoting her days to lazing around Finweald and Vintergard, engorging herself on the finest delicacies outside of the Sweets Emporium in Stokbon.

Of course, her home would always be in the Vermilion Manor but this was a nice temporary vacation spot. Good weather, good food, and a decent amount of gossip to stir her idle brain whenever she wasn't bashing monster heads in for gold and funsies. Thus, this was the state of Alphabet Chocolate following the untimely demise of several friends, a stranger, and her dog (although the last unfortunate death had occurred long before today's events). She was, in essence, lazing around like a cow nibbling on green pastures and enjoying the simplicity of life. Sadly, it was never meant to be. She was Alphabet Chocolate... and a simple, peasant lifestyle would never be enough to keep her sated for long.

So it was to be expected that when she heard juicy gossip about some sort of secretive meeting of the Lion's Pride, she was all ears. Alphabet Chocolate's curiosity was piqued: the war had happened not to long ago and rumors say that Falderen's Lion's Pride was helping with their little bandit problem. Now, that wouldn't do; even if the blondie was the head honcho (honcha?) of Falderen, Alphabet Chocolate still had a distaste for that place.

On the other hand, Alpha enjoyed a good adventure like anyone other run-off-the-mill thrillseeker. It would be a crime to sit this one out and, even if she didn't understand what it fully entailed, she knew she wanted to have a bit of fun. Plus, she'd get to mess around with them! Regardless of which motivation had drove her to do it, Alpha packed her bags (er, one bag) and headed off to Brisshal. Maybe she'd just camp outside their lair for a bit.

 

Emerath had been called, as one of the members of the Lion's Pride actively working to rebuild, to the dilapidated tavern once again to host their leader's first test. As he stood in the central room, eyeing the fact that the door had once again started to come loose, no doubt from Zeus' abuse of it, he grumbled before actually receiving the mission. Killing bandits. But not just any bandits, the King of Bandits, it seemed. Emerath wondered idly if this man was also a player, or not. It was getting increasingly hard to tell in this game which big names were real people. To this point, the only one he was sure of was King Astor.

Once Zeus was finished, Emerath made it a point to agree to show back up again, but not before taking a moment to tighten the bolts on the door once more before leaving. How was he to prepare? The only thing he could think of was practicing his Harmonic Magic, something he hadn't had yet to do since training it only a few short days prior. He wondered if he could actually perform with it, or if he would just have to stick to what he knew. He supposed he wouldn't know until the time came to test it.

But that didn't mean he shouldn't practice, as he pulled out his new lute and began to strum on it idly, while pulling up his palm menu. He had a few people to talk to:

Mail

Hey @Rodger Clemens,

I'm not sure if you've got the time or energy to come join me on this, but it looks like another adventure. I don't think we've talked about whether or not you've joined a faction yet, so I figured I'd give you a heads up, since my faction is apparently about to go to war with some major bandits. Should be a good time, either way, yeah? Let me know if you're coming and I'll send you the coordinates to show up at the headquarters. We're meeting up the day after tomorrow. Look forward to if you can make it!

Sincerely,
Emerath Katou

Mail

Hey @Kaëda Flints,

Have you had the chance to look into any of the factions? Looks like one of them is about to go to war with bandits. I know you don't really know a lot about me. You probably don't trust me. And you had mentioned that the next time we meet it should probably not be something dangerous. But you know what, danger is the name of the game. You want to get somewhere? You go to some danger. So do you think you can join me for this? Let me know if you're interested. I'll send you the coordinates to the Lion's Pride headquarters. We head out the day after tomorrow. Hope to see you there!

Sincerely,
Emerath Katou

And so, as Emerath strummed a few chords and got the hang of the assist mode on playing music, he smiled. Zeus couldn't be mad at him for not telling his friends at least.

 

Roland tapped his fingers as he read the message before him. It seems the leader of Lion's Pride was finally going to make his move. Since the guild had suddenly appeared on Roland's radar, he had grown suspicious of its intentions and had moved to try and get more information about them. He had even gone so far as to send his name into their registry so that he could spy on them from the inside. Now that the first die had been cast Roland looked at the message with a puzzled glare. It seemed, to straightforward, a frontal assault against a well-known enemy of the player base. Even further, many of the players likely held a grudge against the enemy due to alterations in the past.

It's this man's goal to have the majority of the player align with him, but to what end?

As Roland spoke, he turned to his maid, Agatha, who stood dutifully nearby. She had been the first to receive the message, which had been sent to his manor and had taken upon herself to read it before bothering to inform Roland.

Perhaps you are looking to far into this, and the man is just as blunt as he seems, My Lord.

Agatha's words came with venom, as she blatantly tried to talk down the Duke's thought process on the matter. Roland shrugged it off, having become immune to the woman's insubordinate attitude. Still, she had a good point. It was possible that Zeus was merely a blunt object and was just wielding his authority as one. If that were the case, there would be nothing to worry about in the long run. On the other hand, however, if he was up to something Roland needed to act before he drew to much favor.

What's your in end game here...?

Though Roland spoke mostly to himself, Agatha snorted loudly at the comment before turning to leave his chambers. Roland raised he hand as if to flag her down, before deciding against it. If this were the real world, he'd have her draw up a variety of correspondences, but within the game, he could do that quickly on his own. Suddenly his hands went to work tapping the floating keyboard visible only to him and sending the following message.

Mail

@Alric Stalwart, @Aalam Abungu, @Comet, @Kanashimi

It seems the lion's intended to move and eradicate a shared enemy. It is in our best interests to aid them in any way possible.

ps, if you know of any other groups involved with this event, let me know as soon as possible.

-Duke Rutledge

With a smile, Roland stood up calling for his horse as a plan slowly began to form.

 

Oh, this Zeus fellow was a riot! A declaration like that was undoubtedly what was to be expected of the Guildmaster of Lions, the Proud Leader of the Pride. A baldfaced announcement of their intentions to utterly decimate the Bandit King’s ramshackle territory, plundered from the Golden King’s land? With shadowy mischief in the horizon as the Black Wolf himself would no doubt be opening up his coffers of gold to draw forth mercenary sources against this war like faction?

Yeah, there was no way in hell he was going to pass up a chance to see just how this mess panned out.

Humming a happy little tune, Cain twirled about in Vintergard, eyes closed as he listened to all the chatter around him. The first faction event in the history of Terrasphere? The first large combat encounter in a fair while? Composed almost exclusively of players and NPCs that he didn’t give a shit about? Ah, and a wonderful chance to see just what the Lions were made of, whether or not they were men and women forged in flame or built in sand. To withstand this trial that risked the reputation of their still nascent organization, or to crumble and be scattered to the winds by the shame of their failure! A pirouetting aberration on cobblestone streets, the midnight haired muse giggled at just how fun it was going to be! Oh, the absolute ecstasy! Time to witness the birth of legends, the corruption of heroes, the madness of avengers, and the agony of the vanquished, all over again!

If it was just a war of NPCs, it would be nothing to laugh at. If it was a conflict that cost the lives of innocents, he wouldn’t be looking forward to it nearly that much.

But if it was a closed off conflict that engaged a faction composed largely of players, against a plundering horde of criminals who had sought to only cause trouble to the residents of this verdant nation…why, it was the best excuse to go all out and blow off some built up steam!

A casual, eloquent flip brought him up onto the rooftops as he pulled out his magical little mailbox system, the words flowing out like a bolt of lightning, divine inspiration.

“Time to start a fire,” Cain chimed, before pressing the ‘send’ button.

Mail

Time to show the fruits of your training, @Seigi !

You weren’t around for the War against the Army of the Light, right? So sink your fangs into this! The grand battle for Astorea’s freedom from the fangs of the Black Wolf, the Bandit King that had Plundered the Northern Land and made it his own! Beside you are a hundred other hopefuls, and against you are the insidious criminals that had burnt a dozen villages to the ground for nothing but perverse pleasure! Though you may find former friends amongst the ranks of thine enemy, supporting their lawless acts for the sake of the aureate prize, do not falter!

The path of a hero is a solitary one, for it will be you alone who paves the way to a ground future! Display the splendor of your heroic might to all present, and carve the name of the Sunset Sage of Seven Strikes into keystone of history!

Let’s Rock and Roll, Partner!

The lightspeed letter shot skywards, as Cain sat down atop the ramparts of a tower, looking down at all those who wandered about peacefully, not a worry on their face as Vintergard healed and grew. Yes, this was the types of battles that should be fought, where only adventurers had to carry the burden of the battle.

War was only preferable to peace when it didn’t impose upon it, after all.

 

The fuss was enough to send Astorea's player base into upheaval. It began with the Lion's Pride guild of Falderen and quickly infected the rest of the population. Whether or not you championed their cause, by now you knew everything about it.

They talked about "glory," and "service," but neither of those things fattened his wallet, and therefore paid no bills. In order to travel, and to engage in more distant, thrilling hunts, he needed capital.

There was only one language he spoke that these foolish Pridelings might understand. "Hail, friend!" greeted a hearty looking steward as he strode into the Hall. "Are you here to inquire about joining the Pride? We have a long history of-"

The Swordsman held up a hand and offered a shake of his head. "Just looking to see about a job," he answered. "I'm a mercenary, and I heard you're in need of able bodies. Who do I need to speak with?"

Without another word, the Steward pointed him toward his final destination: the Guild Leader of Lion's Pride himself.

 

Majolica kicked her feet comfortably as they dangled over the barstool. As she sipped her cocoa extra sprinkles she received her message directly from Zeus. Reading it through Majolica giggled.

"Hehehe! Finally! Time for Majolica's Witch Ops to shine! The only things that will be a laughing stock are all the stupid bandits that I'm going to turn into frogs! Hehehehe! I like the way this Zeus guy does things, straight to the point! Hehehe, time to show the world what a grand witch can do! Prepare yourselves, dummies! The Grand Witch rides!"

Majolica finished her drink in a gulp then bounded out the door. She needed to prepare.

 

Seigi was able to ignore a call of simple... talk. If she was able to do good instead. Even if it meant ignoring the majority of the Pride members in a prior event. This, however, was different.

The mass mail of Zeus himself. @Cain Darlite's invitation. And the prospect to bring these bandits to proper justice. After all, Seigi Ling Ling had been part of the entourage.

Seeing Zeus in person was simply... just how she imagined him to be! Full of spirits. Full of gusto. Exactly the kind of person Seigi wanted to be herself. Lifting her hand up into the air after Zeus little speech she couldn't but use her own punchline. "With Guts and Effort!" Before messaging the only other person she could think about into getting this.

Mail

My heroic apprentice, @Valdrada!

The time has come to brighten your shine and do proper JUSTICE against EVIL FORCES. I'll obviously participate in this, too. Let us kick some bandit butt!

With Guts and Effort,

Seigi Ling Ling

Sending one mail off, Seigi actually wrote a second one.

Mail

I am five steps ahead of you, @Cain Darlite!

I already fought this criminal scum before and this time, I won't let them get off so easily. It's time to set an example of JUSTICE! It's time to show not just them, but all criminal scum of Terrasphere that they can't just do whatever they please! No matter how long it takes. No matter how often I have to stand up again. I won't stop until justice is served.

With Guts and Effort,

Seigi Ling Ling

Even inside the game the crimson-hair realized she wasn't all too much into writing letters. Bluergh.

 

“Aw hell, now what is it…”

Mail

Yo DESTINY ~

There’s some rad shit happening north of Vintergard with my faction the day after tomorrow! If you’re nearby, you should come! We’re gonna be fighting some bandits or something and taking out their HQ. Zeus, my faction leader is here but I kinda missed what he was saying exactly. Come on! The Lion’s Pride needs HEROES! (And you can come too)

It’ll be easy, just come give me moral support!! (You’re my +1, ok?)

Crane (Russell)

PS. Did you ever figure out the marketplace? Anyway meet you there! Please come!

Des closed her palm menu and let out her breath in a tense sigh. She’d just left that area, for christ’s sake, and now she had to go back? Sure could use a horse right about now, she thought dryly. Or a helicopter, even better. Hell, she was no fantasy history buff, but Astorea in general wasn’t in the best shape right now and she liked to try and steer clear from places like that in game-worlds. It was just begging to get roped into some house-rebuilding quest that would take her all day with nothing to show for it but a bunch of blisters and some weepy lady NPC’s gratitude. Or so she figured, anyway. So far she’d done such a good job of avoiding people who wanted to throw their gold at her that she still hadn’t made a penny since she’d started playing here.

Idiot. Goddamn Russell.

She had to go, of course. She wasn’t fool enough to go joining some Lion’s Pride even if “Crane” asked, but it was worth a day of backtracking to try and watch him play hero against some ragtag bandit crew. Somethin’ sounded fishy, though—why was a whole faction going after some petty thieves all at once like that, and inviting dates to boot? He’s gotta have some details wrong.

Des ground her teeth, having already done an about-face and striding back away from Adecus Forest. Well hell, wasn’t looking forward to the woods anyway. Can’t believe I made it out last time without more than a couple scratches. She’d been wanting to “bond” with some kinda animal, but had ended up getting chased high and low with nothing to show for it in the end. Still hadn’t found a bow or nothin’, but go figure. Maybe she’d run into a handy-dandy marketplace before she met her damn roommate over at the Lions’ tavern for his so-called “easy” headquarters invasion. Christ, that was a loaded sentence.

 

Aalam woke the beeping of a message rousing from his sleep, rubbing his eyes as he got up. It was lovely morning there wasn’t anyone around to both him for the closest town was at least five miles in the direction behind him. Trying to get the sleep out of him, there were only a few people that knew him well enough to send a message like this, and he could count them on both of his hands. Getting to his feet and calling his screen into view so that he could check to see who needed him this morning. The message that played was one that surprised him as he read it seemed the duke wanted them to help Lion’s pride assist with a mission.


Well, then it would be time to work it seemed, rolling his shoulder and getting ready. Grabbing his cloak off a tree beach and strapping his quiver to his side. Letting out a whistle that echoed in the surrounding wilderness bouncing off the silence until he heard the flapping of wings. Sticking out his arm as the shape got closer until a weight was rest on his arm, turning his head to look at king. He had healed up well from the last mission, but the scar would remain under his feathers for a while. Feeding him a bit of jerky from his pocket, it wouldn’t be the best breakfast, but it would do until they were able to hunt later. “I’m going to need you on overwatch King, the eye in the sky.” The caw echoed for a few second before he sent her back up. It was time to get to work; he would have to start now if there was any hope of getting there in time to have anything to do. Opening his map as he set out the border was marked, and he would be able to make it here in a day or so if he pushed himself. Taking a swig from his flask as he felt that incredible burn run down his throat before he set out. Starting off at a jog, if he kept up the pace he might not miss too much

 

Valdrada sighed as she stared at the message she got from the leader of the Lions group that she had gotten dragged into. It sounded like fun! It sounded like exactly what she wanted out of this game. The chance to be a hero, to do stuff, to be cool!

And there were a lot of people here too. She missed the first meeting, which was extra embarrassing because she promised to be there (but that one wasn't her fault! Her brother had taken the VR set back because of some stuff on the news that she didn't really care about, and it had taken forever for her to secretly save up enough pocket money and little contest winnings to be able to buy one on her own). But now here she was, ready and pumped up to do some adventuring!

...Aaaand then the big old guy just tells them to get ready tomorrow instead. Well, fine. She'd be ready for tomorrow. She was ready now, so obviously she'd just be doubly ready for setting out the next day.

There were a lot more people around than she expected, so the little ping notification that told her she had another message was almost lost in the sound of the crowd of moving players. Luckily, the persistent red popup at the corner of her vision was not so easily ignored.

Huh. Looking over the message, that sounded like @Seigi was actually here too. Val's ears perked up in interest at that. All right, that was good. Val started glancing about the area more intently. The other girl wasn't that hard to pick out from a crowd, but there were a lot of others here, so she probably missed spotting Seigi earlier while she was sulking about not being able to go out that very instant.

Oh, there she was! Brightening, Val began walking over, a clanking little figure in metal armor. "Seigi!"

 

Corvella have been putting her head down on a table in the Lion's Den for a few minutes. For the last few days, she would going around the town running errands while promoting Lion's Pride. Sales and Marketing is actually hard. Well, at the very last the door's now okay since the last meeting, and with funds running now further tavern maintenance is underway. She was going to doze off a little more before a notification rang in her head "What now?" Opening the palm menu revealed a mass message, telling the Lions to assemble as soon as possible in the main hall at the command of Zeus.

Well, she's already right here. She tried to grab a mug of water in front of her, sipping it slowly with a blank stare towards the doorway while waiting the others come. The rest of the Lions were suddenly there, led by none other than the towering Zeus, who burst through the door causing the hinge to came loose. Oh no, Emerath's not gonna be happy when he found that out. Now that all are here, let's see what this all is about. It turns out that the work came from the throne of Astorea itself. That's interesting. Black Wolf bandits... she had never heard of them but based on that the crown needed Lion's Pride and handful of volunteers to wipe them out, it's not going to be easy even for powerful players. Well, nothing is ever easy, isn't it?

The speech ends with Zeus telling the members to get as many people as they can and to get ready tomorrow. "Tomorrow? That sounded like a state of rush." There's not much people outside of the Lions that she could contact. She haven't seen Gwyn lately, so she might be off busy to something dangerous, knowing her. Without further thinking, Corvella typed a message to another archer huntress that she knew might be interested.

Mail

Greetings, @Comet

Sorry I haven't had the chance to catch up with you lately, with all the faction business and stuff. Anyway, Astorea is requesting the Pride's service to wipe out a bandit group named the Black Wolf. Rang any bell? The catch is, judging from the scale of the assault more people might be needed, even from the outside of the Lion's Pride. We've been told to get everyone we can to get ready tomorrow. Who knows, you might find hunting bandits satisfying. How about it?

Corvella

 

Seeing that @Corvella had awoken, Seraphy shuffled back to her table to continue fussing over her like a mother hen.

"Did you sleep well? I'm sorry that I haven't been able to finish cleaning out the debris from the infirmary/sleeping quarters... Ooooooh are you sure water is okay? I really think it would be better if you drank something warm... Please at least take this bagel!"

Quickly placing a freshly baked bagel down on the table before @Corvella along with a little dolling of cream cheese, Seraphy hurried off before the young woman could protest. Returning to the kitchen, Seraphy began to decorate the doughnuts she had just baked. Seraphy had assumed that the beautiful iron woman likely preferred 'tougher' foods, so she had toasted her a bagel instead.

"Yay~! Finished~!"

Seraphy applied the finishing touches to the honey-glazed doughnuts. Outside the window, Seraphy had seen what she thought was a very young vagrant girl camping in front of the tavern. She didn't know the young girl's circumstances, but Seraphy assumed that approaching the girl with food might make her easier to help toward a more permanent solution. It was a bit how one would treat a stray dog...... but Seraphy's intentions were purely honest. She was concerned!

In her apron, Seraphy flew out of the tavern and out into the neighborhood square area where she had seen the youngish girl camping.

"U-uhm! Excuse me Miss! (@Alphabet Chocolate). Are you in any sort of trouble? Is there anything I can do help? I brought you some honey doughnuts in case you're hungry. So please, help yourself to them. That building right over there is The Lion's Pride Tavern, we're like a charity organization. If there's something we can do for you, please don't hesitate to ask okay? I shouldn't be saying this because I live here but, uhm..."

Seraphy crouched down and leaned in close to whisper.

"This isn't the best side of town crime-wise..."

Rising, Seraphy smiled, but her eyes were full of worry.

"So please! If you need any sort of help please do stop by! Sorry, I'll stop bothering you now, I really didn't mean to meddle. But please have a nice day."

With that, Seraphy turned back towards Lion's headquarters while hoping that the girl would stop by. That is, unless she was stopped, or if this thread allowed more than one post... *twilight zone music*

 

Mail

@Roland Rutledge

Thanks for letting me know, Roland, I'll help in any way possible if it means something to me. We might see each other soon. Just tell me the time and place.
Not sure about any other groups but I'll keep my eyes open. Frankly, I've barely been integrated into my own so far.

~Comet~

Mail

@Corvella

Long time no talk! I'm actually glad you messaged me since I wasn't sure if you were interested in ever seeing each other again. Hunting happens to be one of my favorite hobbies. Maybe it'll be more fun with a fiery friend like you around to watch my ass? I'll catch you sometime tomorrow; your face and armor are hard things to miss, so no worries.

~Comet~

From the comfort of Dunnstads familiarity and homeliness she answered one message rigidly, and the other giddily. Roland's meeting had provided a ton of opportunities for her thus far as a player more than anything therefore maintaining a presentable, pleasant tone was important to her. As for Corvella insecurities and curiosity had been wiped within a second of receiving the blonde's message. It'd been a while since the two came into contact. Worry plagued Comet's heart in regards of being so completely unsure about the other's feelings. But things were alright now, she readied herself for combat. For the sake of preparation. For paving the path of becoming a somebody one day.