Golden Ticket

Roland tried to force the grimace off his face as he pushed through the rotting brush that surrounded the Norfova border. He hated this zone, it reeked of death and seemed to be mostly a desolate wasteland. It wouldn't be as bad if there were an interesting treasure to find, but so far his investigations had only found him the golden egg. The egg itself had actually been born from an odd fruit shaped like a heart growing nearby. He had thought it had something to do with blood magic, spilling his own as he grasped hold of it. However, as the egg took form he was worried he had made a mistake in doing so, concerned it might badly affect the unborn creature. In the end, it didn't cost him much beyond whatever creature that was growing inside had been stillborn. As a consequence, he was given a slip of gold that stated one free admission. There were no other clues as to what it was for on the item itself, however, the in the game description just gave vague coordinates.

Luckily Roland hadn't been the only one given the ticket, as @Jack Anders had received one as well at the same time. While it would be nice to have someone to travel with, especially a high-level healer. Roland couldn't help but feel apprehensive about this after the Dormont incident. He wasn't sure if he had agreed with the decision to turn on the Faldern forces, nor with the decision to turn the zone into a player run area instead of just merely handing it over to Yladia. The results had left Roland second guessing his membership within the guild, but it seemed all the main guilds had come to the same conclusion as Yulan. This had left Roland rather bitter about the entire situation, as he had begun to listlessly wander the game's various areas. Pushing such thoughts aside he eventually, he made it to the meetup point, a small outcropping of stone slabs near the border of Astoria left behind by some unnamed civilization. Without knowing how long it would take Jack to arrive, Roland set to make a small fire on which he began cooking one of his various brews. Might as well try to have fun at least.

@Kit

 

With the aftermath of securing Astorea’s borders for their own, Jack had found himself buried neck deep in a plethora of trivial affairs that he wished to wash his hands free of. Perhaps from an outsider’s perspective, the man was a victim of circumstance. That couldn’t be any further from the truth. The idiom that fit most appropriately was something along the lines of “you reap what you sow.”

The man had instigated the entire situation through some impromptu maneuvering and negotiations out of a spontaneous desire to test the game’s limits. Wanting for a castle of their own, he had planted the seeds of doubt in both the opposing guild leaders’ minds while framing it in such a way that they’d each find it most agreeable. And now? He found himself suffocating from the avalanche of work and logistics that needed tending to.

In all honesty though, the dark haired support was fairly content with the situation despite his voiced grievances. Having discussed various new settings that had appeared in his companion’s interface, new machinations had already been designed in the good doctor’s mind. As a whole, he could soundly that say things had progressed in a good way for both the denizens of this world and the new players that found themselves working within its constraints. With a newfound awareness of the demon threat to the north, potential corruption seeding deep within their neighboring human kingdom to the south, as well as their new found powers to tamper with the realm through land acquisition… the future result would serve as both an interesting method to alleviate boredom and stand testament to the positive boons adventurers could bring. All that was needed was a bit of time, energy and commitment. After all, things took time to grow and blossom, no?

Of the dissenters to his schemes, Roland had found himself upon the list. Though so far verbally silent, his demeanor was enough to indicate his stance on the matter. Coincidentally enough, the two had unfortunately stumbled across the same golden ticket, indicating that both of their eggs had been defective and non-compatible with life. Not one to let such an opportunity slip by, the support would easily take the man up on his offer to explore Norforva in search of the true nature of their admittance slips.

Having arrived minutes after the arranged time, he’d shoot a message to the familiar figure sitting off in the distance near a brimming flame with a small cauldron and some brew stewing atop it.

Jack Anders

Man, we need to buy some mounts or something soon. These treks are killing me. Almost there! Is that your campfire in the distance?

After sending the short blip, he’d wave cheerily at the distant figure. Hopefully he hadn’t mistaken the person over yonder for someone else. That’d be awkward…

@Roland Rutledge @Kit