Elder Tales... This was a game right? That was what thousands of people had asked themselves on that day, the day they had come to know as the Apocalypse. An MMO like any other, with a pedigree that drew thousands upon thousands of players to it daily. It was your typical computer game, you sat in front of a screen, used your mouse and keyboard and controlled some avatar. The character was a portrayal of you, but it never really was you. Just pixels, a collection of numbers that the game generated. You never really got an idea of what your avatar might be thinking, or feeling, because you weren't attached to it in any real sense. But what would happen if you were? If by some hypothetical situation you could feel every single thing your avatar did? From the pain of combat to the environment, the fatigue of wandering around or training all day and the very weight of your gear upon your shoulders, what if you could experience that all first hand? Surely it wouldn't be that trying, even if it did ever come to pass. It was virtual, the items couldn't have any real weight. Numbers made up everything in the game so there was no way there could be pain, no matter what happened to you. It was just a game, right?

The Apocalypse proved everyone wrong in that regard, and it did so harshly. The first day most people were just confused and panicked. No one was considering going out and fighting as everyone was too busy trying to figure out what had happened. Pretty quickly people began to band together in an attempt to find support, both friends and strangers alike. Strength in numbers, right? The mystery of what happened, of how everyone had become trapped in Elder Tales, the fear and potential ramifications of what this meant was enough to bring people together. As the initial shock of what had occurred gradually waned people gained enough courage to venture out of the cities, experience the world for themselves as it were. Not only did players now have to experience what it was like to be their characters but they also had to endure playing the game firsthand. Gone were the usual interfaces, you didn't have a mouse to click and keys to hit any longer, you [i]were[/i] the controller. There were menus and all, and you could still access them, but much of what needed to be done was essentially through bodily motions. This made combat excessively difficult at first, and the fact pain was all too real didn't help much either. As days passed by people began to get a grasp on the new way of things though, and soon enough players were forming parties and going outside of the cities regularly, taking on the game as they had done so many times before.

The player base had shrunk drastically with the Apocalypse, and it was estimated only a few tens of thousands of players were in the game now. Players not inside the game at the time of the event could not get in it seemed, and those inside could not get out. Those who were in the game were the only ones that would be until something changed, and this was a fact the Guilds realized fairly quickly. Using their influence and size it was the Guilds that quickly took power, and through their power and influence they began to effect Elder Tales in ways never before. Towns were taken under the control of some Guilds, shaped into their design and sometimes even abused for their own purposes. In the case of Akihabara it would be a collective of Guilds that would take root, forming an organization known as the Round Table. All of the elite Guilds had decided to form an alliance and guide Akihabara as a collective, and thus far it had been fairly successful. In comparison with towns like Susukino which had been taken over by PKers, Akihabara was a peaceful haven for players. Slowly but surely thanks to an innovative take on food the city began to flourish and it became well known for its wealth and the freedom it afforded to its residents. Naturally players came here in spite of the Teleportation Gates not working, and pretty soon the city had become very lively.

In the face of all of this hustle and bustle there were still players who hadn't taken to the situation quite as well as others. Some people weren't as keen to form parties or join Guilds, they might prefer to be solitary. Or rather it was just easier that way, less stressful. Parties regularly departed on hunting expeditions and simple trips outside of town, but a few remained essentially isolated within Akihabara. A young samurai found himself sat at the Silver-Leaf Tree for yet another day, tucked away in the shadow of the large plant. He was a solo player, one of the few remaining in Elder Tales now. The dangers of playing a game which was now anything but kept him from venturing outside of the city, and his lack of any sort of friends or Guild kept him from participating in much. A bit ironic, a tank afraid to go into combat. It might be different if he had a team with him, even just one person. A few players had come along and invited him to join them, but every time he would either freeze up, immediately decline out of nervousness or remain silent until they left. He didn't do socializing well, not unless it was behind a keyboard and screen. Face to face interactions didn't serve him well at all, even if he was technically not himself. His avatar was an idealistic portrayal of what he wanted to be, and that ought to instill some bit of confidence in him, but it didn't. So the samurai kept to himself then, watching others go about their business. Maybe he'd join someone at some point, maybe not. It was easier sitting here, less stress.

Another party had come up to him not long after it had struck noon, a small team. They needed a tank, and naturally seeing one sitting by himself they had ventured a try at him. Much as Kosuke may even have wanted to accept their offer he simply couldn't, not without stumbling over himself like an idiot. After trying to explain he wasn't very good in a group he apologized profusely, enough so to the point the group called him a 'freak' before leaving him be, laughing at his expense until they were out of earshot. Sighing somberly to himself the boy pulled his legs up and wrapped his arms around them, resting his chin over his arms. Maybe he was being unrealistic thinking he would join a group, he couldn't picture himself getting into one. The best thing for him to do might well be just hang up his sword and wait for someone to fix this, then he could go back to feeling comfortable behind his computer like before.