Sacred Blight

It had been a while since Lucia made the change in her life, something she felt was a great deal more important to her then any alternative. There was a certain free feeling she'd had since that revelation, since that change. Even now she still remembered the white haired girl's silent stare, the unique sweater she wore that could only be found in reality, the destitute loneliness she exuded. All of it was crystal clear to Lucia every time she closed her eyes. That woman was the source of Lucia's inspiration to change. It made her heart warm to see something others normally wouldn't, to be someone that could pull such a figure to glance at her when no others would have been able to catch a glimpse. While it might have just merely been good timing, or perhaps a passing fancy, Lucia didn't interpret it that way, ever since the Raid, she'd found what made her special... Even if she didn't understand what it was-- couldn't see it for herself, it had to be there for that figure to look her way. 'Something' had to be there for a goddess to see her.

Unfortunately though, she lacked the ability to communicate with the figure. The Mute Goddess couldn't reach out to Lucia with words, and Lucia's own words wouldn't be able to reach the heavens. It made her sigh every time she thought about it, she had the means to help solve the girl's loneliness, her isolation, but reaching her was the problem Lucia couldn't overcome. In the end she could only try to increase her achievements, in both her old magic, and her new magic to try and reach her.

It was this that prompted Lucia to come out into the deep woods to practice. Her grimoire was open, her iconic bow and arrow bag was no longer there, instead, she seemed to have a more unique air about her, a demure atmosphere and tenderness that clashed with her Sly and Aggressive nature. The reason was her new magic, clashing with her old, it created a very bizarre balance within her that made her feel much more peaceful and optimistic. Flipping through her Grimoire, she knew it would need to be upgraded eventually, she would have to get something better then her terrible newbie tool, but in the end it wasn't the tool that was important at this time. Her magic created a black fog that billowed out over the grass corrupting and corroding it. Plant life began to twist and churn becoming darker, faded or dying. Those that didn't die though seemed to flourish, becoming stronger by feeding on the remains of the other plant life around them that didn't make it as their vitality seemed to grow stronger. It was the result of Lucia's attempt at fusing her distinctly different magics.

Her Dark magic blighted the land, corrupting and killing, but the light magic allowed those that survived to prosper, to grow stronger and more capable after the initial struggle. She was blighting the earth, slowly but surely as it spread from her position at the center. The black fog spread first, but a shimmering purple light shined brightly on the few plants that could still be seen. "I think I'll call it Sacred Blight-- A Fitting name I think." She mused turning the page in thought, glad that she'd managed to come to some conclusion regarding her magic and it's fusion possibilities. She felt reassured that her decision wasn't false, that she'd done something well and proper. "If I can get closer to Synra this way, things won't be so bad." She mused with a sweet hum, a bright grin spreading across her face at the thought of meeting that NPC again. She remained oblivious to any possible damage she might've been causing as she continued allowing the spell to reach and expand by feeding it more and more energy.

 

@Dempsey Fabijain

 

Dempsey had been stalking Lucia unseen and unnoticed for some time now. At first it started out as a simple training exercise that slowly devolved into a simple game to pass the time. after following her for almost two hours, she realized that the woman would never notice her presence unless she willed it to be that way. For a good while, she maintained to herself that the exercise was still training, refusing to admit that she took a certain strange pleasure in the voyeurism. She was fascinated by the feeling of empowerment this gave her. She didn't care about anything as pedestrian as watching the woman bathe or make love; there was nothing sexual about this. Instead she took a different kind of pleasure away from it all.

Knowing that should she choose it, she could silently close the distance and mortally wound the magician; a kill so perfect that the victim would realize that they were taking their last breaths before the even understood that they had been stalked and set upon by an unseen assailant. Dempsey was, of course, not a murderer, and even if she was, she wouldn't take an innocent life simply for the thrill of the hunt. To her this had become an exploration of her newfound fascination. She watched the woman going about her business, basking in the false illusion of seclusion and privacy as Dempsey watched her quietly from concealment.

She dared not get too close, as the woman was recklessly throwing dangerous spells in whatever random direction struck her as being correct at the moment, enjoying the equally false illusion that her spells and magical fetishes could offer her safety and protection. For the first time since she'd started playing, she was genuinely glad she hadn't made the mistake of choosing magic over physical prowess. she could hear Lucia speaking softly to herself as the woman thought out loud, smell the soap and shampoo she'd bathed with this morning, and when the forest was silent enough, she could even hone in on the soft sound of the woman breathing.

Dempsey hadn't chosen Lucia at random though. They had been comrades in arms at one point, tackling the blood red mountain tucked away in the south east corner of the strange new province. She'd tried to say hello a few times, but she'd been snubbed out of hand. Then there was the time she "accidentally" shot Dempsey with a poisoned arrow. All in all, she had every reason to want to follow the woman, and find out what she was all about.

Today was the first day she had acted on these feelings. Hours ago now, she had seen Lucia in passing on the street and had again gone unnoticed. On a whim, she decided to simply vanish, and follow her somewhere less crowded so she could properly introduce herself, and go through the routine of recruiting yet another dear friend and ally. The act had become worn thin and repetitive by now, but she had it down to an art. People were either drawn to her for her impressive skill set, or her physical beauty. That in and of itself may be why she felt annoyed by the dismissive attitude of the other woman; Until her, she hadn't had to cope with experiencing rejection, and until Lucia, the idea seemed like an abstract thing that simply didn't happen to her in this new world, with this wonderful new form.

Eventually, she decided to end the game for now, and set in motion her original objective. She retreated a safe distance before allowing others to detect her presence once again, and put on her best innocent and curious expression as she strolled casually through the woods now, her trademark bright eyes, warm smile, and swaying curves on full display as she spoke up "Hello there? I thought I heard something going on and came by to have a look. Is everything alright? I'm Dempsey! Don't worry, I'm not here to try anything, I just thought I'd say hello!"

@Lucia Mierz

 

Lucia had indeed been very focused on her magical skills, the prospect of combining opposing elements was always difficult; magic and physical, dark and light, fire and water, it was always complicated and difficult. She'd been spending a great deal of time trying to perfect this new strange twist on her abilities. It was something that required a depth of concentration, but not exactly all of it. Instead, with a dry smile, there would be times when she'd feel something familiar. If there were techniques to hide, there'd naturally be techniques for detection, though previously it wasn't exactly her forte, now things were drastically different for Lucia.

Understanding the push and pull of light and dark was difficult, but she'd always had an affinity for darkness. Since catching a glimpse of that divine figure during the Raid though, she'd considered trying to expand her repertoire with light as well. Sensitivity to 'souls' was a natural course she'd ended up taking since no matter whether it was her light or dark magic, they were both learned for the sake of corruption and the undead. While being vigilant 24/7 was impossible, there were moments where Lucia couldn't help recognizing what was going on around her; if for no other reason then the reality that one couldn't abandon their spirit and soul unless they lacked one from the start. That said, it was hardly perfect, but in the end, that figure didn't act, so Lucia really had no reason to bother them in turn.

Being watched was odd, but something she grew used to when she thought of the Goddess; She couldn't speak, so even if Lucia had some sort of divine prowess to reach her Lucia would never hear her words or will. Lucia often liked to wonder what Synra thought if she was watching; player? NPC? It was a curious thought thinking that there were people out there watching, but at the same time it was motivation to try harder. The Goddess was, after all, one of those that Lucia wanted to welcome into her heart. It was for that reason she tried to adjust to being watched, thinking that it would come in handy later when she was a bit more empowered to reach that kind of lofty level.

Practicing her magic to create a favorable terrain for those with her skill set, when she watched Dempsey approaching, she blinked briefly before her smile cramped briefly. Wasn't this the same soul watching her? The same one following her? Her HUD certainly indicated that, each soul was unique after all, they came with an unintelligible number that Lucia couldn't really digest or follow. Without her knowing their identity, it would just forever remain some anonymous serial number, but it wasn't hard for her to recall the spirit of someone who'd been following her somewhat persistently. Those few souls that appeared around her persistently weren't hard to remember, particularly during such a critical moment as her transitional period.

"Ah, Hello Hello." Lucia welcomed, a dry chuckle coming from her when Dempsey felt the need to deny being up to anything. Wasn't that just clearly and cleanly admitting that she was going to make a shot at something? "I remember who you are though-- from the raid right?" Lucia added, keeping a hand on that grimoire that was pumping out a strange pair of magics to propagate the sacred blight magic. It's upkeep was something she had to test after all.

 

She nodded casually, and observed the woman working on her spell casting. It was interesting to see how differently different forms of magic functioned in Terraspehere, but that isn't why she'd stepped out of the shadows and revealed herself. As with her previous actions, she didn't really have a set in stone plan besides learning more about Lucia, In the back of her mind, the notion that she'd been shot on purpose persisted, and she had to find out why. At the same time, Lucia was absolutely beautiful, and the voice that emanated from an entirely different set of organs provided quite the internal conflict.

"Yeah! I remember seeing you there, but we didn't get much of a chance to talk. I tried to say hi a few times that night we were camping by that big weird door, but... well... It wasn't exactly a 'meet and mingle' kind of atmosphere. I didn't know you could use illumancy. Did you respec?"

A re-spec would explain things perfectly, or be exactly what a liar would tell her. She struggled to keep an open mind in light of things but the pieces just fit too perfectly in her mind. She kept asking herself over and over as to why the other woman would want that when for all intents and purposes they were complete strangers. The question buzzed in her mind as she did her best to appear friendly and amenable.

"So, How have you been? I haven't seen a lot of you lately." she smiled brightly, figuring that a bit of cheerful discourse may be just what's needed here. Regardless of what she ultimately decided to do, acting out of sorts would only tip the hand that she herself didn't know how she'd play, and put the other woman on edge. She chose to simply sit where she stood, cross legged and chipper.

@Lucia Mierz

 

Lucia nodded back, the camping situation was particularly rough on her, she spent a great deal of the time treating her injuries from the lightning strikes. It had been hard for her to participate in a lot of the talking while being so debilitated. Though she wasn't the most injured, it was her first time experiencing such bone deep pain. Even if it was weakened because of the game, it was still enough to make her shudder. Keeping her thoughts focused and nod reeling was hard alone! "It was a little difficult-- yeah." She admitted with a wry smile thinking back to the raid, not exactly her most shining adventure, but at the same time she had done well in other respects. When asked about respecing though, Lucia's smile spread into an enchanting grin, proud of herself as she spoke about Illumancy. "Oh? You noticed? I respeced-- yeah." Lucia admitted a little sheepish about it still.

She did want to be a ranger, using hexed and cursed arrows to take monsters out from afar. The raid showed her something though, the temples she happened to spend time at before she got her bag crafted to sleep in had taught her a lot about the game's divinities. After seeing the Death magic in the Raid, after associating with Synra, Lucia resolved herself to try and become a priestess instead of just a strong dark mage, she wanted to try to become a staple in the field. Naturally becoming the best would require the Death Goddess's help, so Lucia tried to take on a more pious role when she saw the chance for it. "This was my answer to the raid, this way I'll be more valuable, the things I want to do will be a little easier. There'll be a better chance of things going well too." Lucia nodded in thought, feeling that her choice would ultimately benefit her.

In the Raid she'd been strong, but power could only change so much, a great deal of their encounter couldn't be solved with power alone most of the time, this was why she decided to try something different. Something more flexible even if it came at a bit of a cost, she still felt it was a worthwhile change. She had something that made her special and unique at least, it was what she wanted. A fulfilled and proud feeling was inside her from the transition, but seeing the girl acting chipper, she couldn't help being a little leery. Was this really a place people came to chat?

 

She accepted the explanation at face value for the time being. For an archer to leave her bow and quiver at home when going out into the field was bit of a stretch, even for a paranoid conspiracy. She decided to drop it for now, and elected to make benign conversation. Perhaps enough chit-chat would get this Lucia to let her guard down. Also, she didn't particularly want to dwell on those kinds of things either right now. She probably had just as few fond memories of the adventure as anyone else who went there, though she did bear a bit of resentment for some of the magic users who were content to lurk in the rear eschelon and let a small handful of those present take all the risks.

"Yeah. So... yeah. that was a thing. Great learning experience though, I guess. I switched things up a little myself after the raid and took alchemy and got Mudras as my fourth. I'm actually out here practicing both myself. I was in a bad spot a few times, and I learned that you cant trust people to throw you a heal after things go south. Ungrateful fucks. See if I lift a finger next time they get blown up and bounced off of a statue."

she did little to hide her displeasure with how events unfolded, but that was all in the past now, and like most of them that were there, she was stronger and wiser for having endured that particular trial. She hadn't ran into many of that group since, and had gone out of her way to avoid most of them. She felt like the person she was today was much more versatile and prepared for the challenges this world presented, and in that sense she identified with Lucia in their apparent shared desire to compliment their core strengths with skills that would expand their versatility.

She stretched and let out a long yawn. Dempsey hadn't yet decided whether or not she was sold on Lucias innocent act, but acting paranoid and asking tons of questions wasn't going to get her anywhere. she decided on the long con; She'd act as friendly and as innocuous as the situation called for, and then strike when the opportunity presented itself, once she trusted her, and felt safe.

@Lucia Mierz

 

Lucia only nodded back, it certainly was a learning experience, Lucia'd simply been far too lax in particular. With her repertoire expanded, she felt a lot more optimistic. Surely she felt, Dempsey felt the same, healing with potions alone was difficult, surviving was a lot harder then one might think. It was much easier if you had your own means of surviving and keeping yourself fighting fit. Lucia hadn't been worried before with her drain techniques, but she'd learned that she was overconfident. Her drain only worked on organic creatures after all. When she encountered something inorganic, she would have to struggle and would feel a great deal of pressure. Now with Illumancy she could smite those inanimate cursed objects while her malefimancy could deal with and curse things that were already alive.

"I'm sure, it was pretty tough without a dedicated healer-- everyone seems to take care of themselves. I guess we both had the same idea to become more self-sufficient." Lucia mused in thought, but still felt she got the better end of the deal. Lucia felt it would at least let her support where others chose not to, and with her limited capabilities with only one type of magic, she was now a bit more qualified to threaten more people. "It happens though, everyone has their own goal or method right? We can only hope it forms a coherent team afterwards." Lucia spoke, a sweet laugh coming from her lips at the thought. After all, despite how disjointed it was, they'd managed to do quite a lot. Lucia felt her own gains were particularly important regardless of the result so she couldn't say it was a failure.

"Alchemy then, you would know a lot about pills and things then?" Lucia mused, the concept seemed pretty interesting after all, when it came to alchemy it was something that had it's own dao in chinese mythology, that meant it would no doubt have a strong effect in game as well. Lucia's own techniques were originally more mythical and western in origin, she could only forcefully try to change that with her respec to try and change her theme little by little in hopes of becoming something more that could one day achieve her grandiose goal.

"How does that work with fists though? Wouldn't having a sharper weapon to be able to use every facet of it be much better?" Lucia asked curiously wondering how Dempsey used the poison and toxic portion of alchemy without a sharp weapon.

 

Dempsey paused for a moment, stopping to consider how forthright she wished to be with Lucia. She reasoned that being secretive now would tip her hand completely, and do more harm than good, so she joined the conversation with curiosity and interest matching Lucias own.

"Not going to lie; I'd love to just be able to use healing magic, but I just don't have it in me to commit to learning a formal school of magic. See, All of my skills have a common theme, which is understanding the workings and limitations of the human body, and using this knowledge to surpass those restrictions."

She pondered for a moment, considering an acceptable means of demonstration. inspiration struck like a hammer, and she resisted the urge to smile. The perfect demonstration; both a suitable visual and the change to take a seemingly innocuous dig at Lucia jumped into her lap. She turned and lifted her armor and undershirt, showing the place where Lucia had struck her with an arrow just days ago. Where her skin should have been badly damaged and bandaged, there was nothing but creamy white skin marked with a few downy white hairs laid over toned back muscles.

"One of the things I can do now is jump-start my own body to regenerate at an incredible rate by channeling concentrated energy from my root chakra to any point in my body. My research tells me that someone who has mastered the skill can even regrow lost limbs and regenerate missing or badly damaged organs, and that's just One of the things I can do.... Now, This took me a few hours of meditation to pull off, but still."

she turned back around, straightening her clothing.

"Neat, right? Alchemy is sort of the other side of the coin for me though. Everything has latent natural and magical properties, and with a little knowledge of both, you can extract these energies and harness them to your own benefit. now in laymans terms that means I can make neat potions and the like... Pills, I can't do. I can, but I don't bother. It's a moot point without modern manufacturing equipment... Here. have a look at this though."

She fished through her pack for a moment , then produced a small packet of paper folded carefully at the top and sides to make sure the contents don't spill.

"This is called mana salts. You charge a mixture of liquid with magic, then distill it down to the solids and grind it up. I mixed in a bit of painkillers too, just for shits and giggles. It's dangerous to take if you're already topped off, because having too much energy can be almost as bad as not having enough, but you've been going at it a while from the looks of it, and I made these as samples to hand out anyway. Marketing and all that."

She offered the packet with a curious expression. She hadn't mentioned that the painkillers were completely unnecessary, potentially dangerous in large doses, and also addictive if used too frequently. That was part of her 'marketing' strategy that she had chosen not to share with anyone besides her assistant at the shop whom she was beginning to believe was a genuine sociopath. She figured that after a taste or two, she could return the drug to it's original formulation before anyone got the worst of it, and earn some excellent word of mouth in the mean time.

"Or... did you have something more... recreational in mind?"

@Lucia Mierz

 

Hearing Dempsey out, Lucia listened in silence with a kind smile, patient, happily waiting. Even when the woman showed her back, Lucia's reaction wasn't particularly negative outside of a musing hum. As unfortunate as the accident was, it happens when the front line is making big moves along with the backline. There wasn't much coordination which was partly why it was such a the raid had so roughly. Seeing Dempsey explain though it was becoming clear this woman was getting the wrong idea a little, as if she were trying to lead the conversation somewhere else. Tilting her head only a touch, Lucia let out a soft hum looking down at what she was offered. Lucia didn't know much about alchemist items or how to use them, potions were easy since you just drink them, but this was a bit different; how to use salts? Like a bath? Or sniffing? It was different for sure.

"I mean things like poison-- really, recreational things." She couldn't help melodious laughter, the very thought of recreational stuff in a game that was meant to be recreational was amusing in it's own way. It made her curious about why, but not enough to try, that sort of thing was something she couldn't get behind. Having more then a single drink here or there was already a lot for her in her own mind she thought. "Wouldn't you have to apply it to a sharp weapon or tool or something to use it on people or monsters?" She asked with a shake of her head knowing or at least believing that it would be very difficult to use poison with a blunt weapon. There was just no way of getting it into the body without penetration power.

If what she'd said still didn't make sense exactly, Lucia would hum in thought trying to take out her grimoire to show Dempsey, since the girl was considering a demo there was no reason Lucia couldn't either right? "Like how I use magic through a grimoire, that way i'm not draining my own energy, it's supplemental, you'd use poison on a weapon to support your skills right?" She tried to explain with a hand gesture, a soft billowing black smoke came from the grimoire, it's pages marked with a variety of symbols and characters tightly packed together as a demonstration. Her energy didn't go down at all from that little display. "I've always felt like the masteries are supposed to be complimentary, not just support one but work together in tandem too. That would make them that much stronger right?" Lucia tried to punctuate letting the color the grimoire glowed change into a brighter lavender letting the sacred blight effect take place once more. Lucia nodded clearly pleased and happy with her ability to combine the two magics that normally clashed with one another, making it so they didn't clash or fight but supported each other was important.

"Since you picked up alchemy, i'd thought you would have had a way to use the poison part of it too-- or maybe there's another way besides just coating to make it work... Hm." Lucia mused as if trying to help Dempsey. She wasn't sure how much thought the girl put into her change of careers, but she'd feel bad if she couldn't bring out her skills' full power after all.

 

Dempsey had a look of someone whom had just realized they'd massively misinterpreted a question. She laughed in spite of herself and shook her head. She withdrew the offered packet, assuming Lucia wasn't interested. All the same, she continued.

"Sorry, I just misunderstood. For that kind of thing, I have my katar. I've been using it less and less since I've been studying mudras, because i need both hands to use that skill, but I keep it around just in case. Most people assume body combat means no weapons, but we can use fist style weapons like katar and claws."

She watched Lucias demonstration and listened to her explanation, regretting the initial misunderstanding.

She drew the weapon from a neatly concealed sheath fixed to the back of her pack, and held it out for Lucia to inspect. the weapon was fashioned similar to a brass knuckle, but with three four inch long blades protruding from the knuckles. The weapon was simple and intuitive to one versed in hand to hand combat, but If wielded carelessly, the user could easily break fingers, or even damage their own wrist.

"There's all sorts of different ways to use poisons though, depending on the situation. If I want to kill quietly, for example, I can douse a rag and hold it over the victims mouth and nose. Or, I can formulate it to disperse into a cloud and just throw the bottle. For weapons, you have to infuse some kind of oil or gel, and apply your poison beforehand. You have to plan ahead, but in all honesty, the sky is the limit. Honestly though, poisons are boring to me. I have plenty of other ways to boost my damage output when I need to that are much less likely to backfire."

She snapped her small katar back into it's sheath and closed a fastener that would hold it there securely until she needed it next, then continued.

"I did put some thought into the skills I chose carefully. Alchemy makes me more versatile, and resilient. I can make potions that replenish health and energy, or enhance my strength, or make me resistant to magic. There are even elixirs that will let you become ethereal or breathe under water, though the most advanced ones are still beyond me. The point is that combined with mudras, Alchemy allows me to compensate for my lack of magic use, and even surpass the average spell caster in some ways."

She paused in her speech, curious as to how Lucia would respond to her claim, and more than happy to demonstrate, should the other attempt to refute her claim.

@Lucia Mierz

 

Lucia shook her head softly when Dempsey seemed flustered about the mistake. In truth she just didn't know a lot about the way Dempsey fought. In the time she'd seen her she'd been doing a lot of punching and tackling, she hadn't had a chance to really look at the girl's hands to see what she was using in the chaos. The only one who had really discussed their masteries and skills at the time to her recollection was just her after all, but those had even changed up til this point.

Seeing the Katars though, Lucia nodded back rubbing her chin in thought, it was much better then just fists she supposed. Though hearing her talking about throwing bottles, her brow perked a little in confusion. "Mm? Is that something you can do with these masteries?" She thought, Lucia was largely oblivious and unaware of alchemy and alchemical combat masteries, not knowing how they differed, but she hadn't seen any other alchemists her level throwing around concoctions in combat, typically it was all done very discreetly. It was certainly different from how she thought things would work with the mastery, at least, when she looked at it as an option for her own advancement. After all, she already qualified for a new mastery but was holding out until she got Synra's approval.

Though when Dempsey mentioned how her masteries complemented one another, Lucia couldn't help a somewhat bitter smile. The kind of smile that didn't want to ruin someone's fun when she found a gap or hole. For a moment Lucia considered telling her that that wasn't really a 'combination' so to speak... but Dempsey didn't seem to be the type who liked feedback or advice. For a moment, she rolled her head wondering if she should say it before finally reaching a hand out to pet the girl's head softly, slender fingers brushing behind her ears softly as she spoke in a low soft voice. "You did well then, it seems like you worked really hard to get where you are. Well done." She answered Dempsey's words smilingly.

Seeing Dempsey's caution towards her during that brief moment of her explanation though, Lucia's expression only softened, feeling a little bad about scaring the girl. "Don't worry, I wouldn't do something so mean as trying to hurt you." Lucia admitted with a soft chuckle trying to reassure Dempsey that she didn't mean her any harm, hoping it would set her at ease. The poor girl seemed jumpy from magic at least, it was clear from how she seemed to emphasize it every once in a while.

 

She flinched slightly at Lucias touch, but tolerated it, and her words that could easily be mistaken as condescending. Had she not been inclined to earn Lucias trust, she would have rebuked the womans touch by swatting her hand away and sharing how she felt about people she didn't know touching her so intimately. Instead she fell back on her tried and true chipper farce which she used so often to disarm those around them. There were pros and cons to being thought of as a simple, happy idiot. Instead she just smiled and played off her initial reaction as nerves as she explained herself.

"Sorry.. I'm just not used to people touching me there. I'm... Our ears are sensitive.. Felis people, I mean. And thank you. I hope next time we have to explore a weird red mountain full of statues that want to murder us all, I'll be able to do more than just punch things. It'll be great, You'll see!"

She grinned brightly and folded her hands behind her back. She had to admit that she was excited for another real challenge in which to test her skills, but at the same time, she was apprehensive of being trapped in a dangerous situation with those same people again, and it looked like that's just about how things would almost inevitably end up. She saw new players every day, but few were committed to the advancement that would be required to catch up to her, and the rest of the people she'd undertaken the adventure with.

Even if the new players DID manage to catch up or eclipse them, they would still be a dangerous liability, likely as unprepared for a real challenge as the group she'd adventured with was. It was a tough situation to bein, but she figured she'd make the best of it. Also, with the new guild system finally being implemented, She figured that would foster some actual teamwork. the thought of guilds brought a new light to her eye though, and she leapt into a new line of conversation.

"Are you planning on joining a guild? I know this is kind of out of nowhere, but everyone seems to be dead set on starting one or joining one.. I think maybe I'm the only person on the server who just wants to wait and see how everything shakes out. It's a lot of money, and who even knows if it'll even be worth it in the end. I opted to spend what I had saved on a store instead."

She paused in her speech to effortlessly pull herself onto a nearby tree branch and take a seat before continuing.

"It's nice having a place of my own, and i hope that someday i'll even make some money too. It's not really big right now, but it's home. I just have to sleep in a loft in the ceiling for now, until it pays for itself and I can start thinking about buying an actual house. You should come by sometime!"

@Lucia Mierz

 

Lucia flashed a dry smile when her hand was batted away, was it that strange, most people didn't usually vehemently refuse her quirk of patting people. It was such a harmless habit she mused, but seeing her so bothered, she didn't want to continue only sliding the hand through her own hair at a loss. This girl was definitely strange, she didn't really seem to have the desire to get closer despite her effort seeming to hint at that from top to bottom. Lucia was having a bit of trouble on exactly how to approach this-- was there some sort of ulterior motive? Thinking about it, her gaze listed-- there really wasn't anything she had outside of her neat tools she'd gotten in the raid, but those wouldn't really have much value to Dempsey.

"Is that so? That's unfortunate-- you're the only one who seemed so bothered by it." Lucia admitted without hesitation, secrets after all weren't really her thing, there was a measure of loss in her melancholy in her tone. This sort of thing only seemed to prove she was right for not prioritizing people, even if it wasn't real, there were others in the game who wanted and needed her right? When asked about the guild, a small smile came to her face, at the very least she had a few friends in the guild who still needed or wanted her. "Yeah. I'm in a guild." She answered, it was a guild with a name pretty close to her own after all, there was no reason she'd turn down their friendship since all that was needed for it was money. GP was largely worthless to Lucia, nothing she needed could be bought with it anyway.

Though hearing Dempsey talk about her store, Lucia hummed a little putting some thought into the prospect of owning one. Lucia herself didn't have any kind of skills for crafting, but she did have a variety of helpful and beneficial skills. Maybe she could do something helpful with that she considered at least for a moment. Though hearing Dempsey talk about a place, she couldn't help feeling some small bitterness. She was invited to come over but not to touch her head? Lucia remained uncertain of what Dempsey wanted or why she approached her from the start, but she still tried her best with a bitter smile. "That sounds nice-- having a shop to sell products is pretty neat." She admitted, though not worried about her own accomodations she continued. "I have my own little place, it's small and mobile, but quiet, even peaceful." She started as she thought of her comfortable bag.

A small smile on her face, a hint of melancholy, she'd made her bag tent big once thinking it would be used to shelter a few people as they worked towards a home together. As if wanting to mock her previously optimistic self she shook her head at the thought of how she might become popular and liked and form a tight closely knit group that could share a strong bond. It was a silly desire-- probably her only one but it had been dashed so perfectly by her reality. Failure to help against the statue, failure to help with the witch, failure to help with the statue, most importantly, failure to catch eyes and keep them. That melancholy turned into a powerful sadness and sense of isolation, truly her and Synra were two peas in a pod. "I might come by some time to say hi. Even if it's the rafters for now, you'll have something nice some day, I'm positive." She answered with a delicate, even frail smile. Despite her melancholy and sadness being somewhat apparent in her tired gaze, she still encouraged and supported Dempsey with positivity and gentleness.

 

Try as she might, Dempsey struggled to maintain her callous attitude toward the woman. True, she had accidentally shot her, and she wasnt going to forget that any time soon, but still, something seemed to genuinely upset the other woman. She decided to try to figure out what that may be.

"I mean... I just wasn't ready for that is all. I barely know you after all. I mean, how would you feel if I just walked up and grabbed your boobs? It's... just the kind of thing you ask about first is all. At least that's how i see it. Tell me about your guild? I am shopping around for one after all. I might have to swing through and see what's what sometime."

She tried to lighten the awkward mood with more small talk, but for as talkative as she was, social pressure was one of her weakness. She was beginning to see that Lucia wasn't the monster that she'd made her out to be, and that something more than guild drama was on her mind. She didn't want to pry right away, but at the same time she wondered what the problem could be. She seemed to be doing well enough all things considered. when Lucia changed the subject, so did she, though she still noticed a slight tone of bitterness in her voice. Seeing this made her feel a bit awkward and self conscious.

"Look... so. I was just fishing for a customer with a lot of cash earlier, but I mean it. Come by sometime. It's not quite ready for the grand opening or anything, but I think we'd both benefit from getting to know one another."

This was a bit of an understatement. the sales floor was still liteered with empty crates, packing materials, and empty shelves that still needed to be arranged and stocked with goods. She'd made quite a bit of progress in the last few days, but nto ebing able to afford a trained helper meant that she had to invest most of her time crafting her stock instead of preparing the shop itself for buisness.

"For as long as I've been around, I don't have any actual friends, just acquaintances and a few noobs that want me to power level them and answer their stupid questions. It would be nice to spend some time with someone who was actually my equal for a while, and sleeping in a tent gets old once you have a place you can call home... Just think about it for a while. You don't ahve to answer right away."

She remembered the enthusiastic young man called Akino who was always hanging around the shop, constantly offering to work for lessons and sparring sessions. She admired his enthusiasm, but the fellow could be a bit much to handle at times, especially on days where all she wanted to do was drink responsibly and try to chase women. Amane was another one, while she was cute and often useful, she too had a habit of asking a lot of Dempsey.

@Lucia Mierz