[center][h2][color 3ed1c2]Darren[/color] and [color firebrick]Matt[/color] versus the psychotic bitch[/h2][/center] The fight began and concluded soon enough and as expected, Matt didn’t really need to participate. He didn’t want to anyway. Combat was never the drawing point of this game for him and he rationalized that he would need to learn how the enemies worked here first, before charging. He had advised Darren to do the same. The merman agreed, easily, so they watched together. Afterward, they had gained a week of free time until the next event, which Matt accepted with a yawn before logging off to bed. He logged back on the day after and made his way toward the flower field where Darren said he wanted to explore. As if on cue, the vibrating book at his hips told him that his friend was logging back online. He smiled, sending Darren a quick message and his location. The sound of sloshing water accompanied the teleport and Darren soon floated his way over, yawning and blinking slowly. "[color firebrick]Hey.[/color]" -Matt waved enthusiastically -"[color firebrick]Ready for some fun?[/color]" Slow nods. And for a moment it looked like nodding off. "[color firebrick]Well, you don't look ready.[/color]" "[color 3ed1c2]I'm just...a little sleepy. Work, you know?[/color]" Darren gave a half-smile, trying to wave off the fatigue as a passing issue. "[color firebrick]Mkay.[/color]" -Matt raised an eyebrow, but he decided the drop the issue, curiosity and promise of loot overpowering any other concerns -"[color firebrick]Let's go then.[/color]" Without much hesitation or caution, Matt turned and walked into the flower field, assured at the sound of water slowly following him. The sun was already low by the time they arrived there, bathing the place with a gentle warm glow of early dusk. The sky, sullied not by pollution, a painter's pallete, swirls of brilliant colours, red, orange and blue, complementing the yellow and green of the sunflower fields. Sunflowers, true to the name, dominated the area, but there are gentle rolling plains of green and smaller flowers, upon which their only path lay, unless they saw fit to crash through the sunflowers, which grew tall and large, trying to outgrow their neighbors for sunlight. Their peaceful walk was only interupted by the fairies playing, laughing and flitting amongsts the flowers, moving through them without even disturbing so much as a leaf or a stalk. A few had already taken interest in them, gawking at their strange attire, with one trying to swim in the ball of water Myosotis generated. In the distance, a small farmhouse was the only noticable thing amongst the sunflowers, though there was a path that lead up to a tall hill as well. Darren laughed at the small fae splashing in his water orb, moving aside to make a bit more room while the creature paddled happily along the surface. Matt, meanwhile, was examining the flowers. He reached out for one, but eventually decided against picking any. No need to burden himself with useless junks. He turned to the farmhouse in the distance. "[color firebrick]I'm checking it out.[/color]" -He called back to Darren, then moved toward the building. "[color 3ed1c2]Hang on, I'll take the lead. You don't have very good damage,[/color]" the merman argued, swimming quickly ahead of Matt and gliding towards the building. The farmhouse in question, was undeniably truly a farmhouse, with several chickens roaming the yard. A small field had been tilled by hand it seemed, with long stakes for whatever that was planted there. The owner of the place wasn't too hard to identify either, considering she was the only one there, sitting on an outdoors table having her tea. A well built woman, with short wavy green hair, wearing red striped long pants and a simple white blouse accented by a small yellow scarf. Her eyes were blood red, but her expression was friendly as she looked towards the newcomers. "[color f7976a]Ah, good evening.[/color]" She looked towards the spread on her table, a small bowl of tea biscuits, a teapot, but only one teacup. "[color f7976a]I apologize, but I was not expecting visitors.[/color]" The woman paused for a moment, her eyes lingering a bit too long upon both of them. "[color f7976a]The free spirits that... took over that shopkeeper's place, yes? Would you like to join me for tea?[/color]" "[color 3ed1c2]...I'd rather you just tell us about the location,[/color]" Darren replied, staring back at her. "[color firebrick]I wouldn't mind tea.[/color]" -Next to him, Matt only grinned -"[color firebrick]Miss...?[/color]" A shadow flitted across her face for a moment as Darren replied, but only for a moment. "[color f7976a]Yuuka Kazami. Yuuka is fine. Please, have a seat. I'll get more teacups for you two.[/color]" She stood up, dusting herself off, then went back into the house, presumably to get more teacups for the two of them. "[color firebrick]Well, what do you think?[/color]" -Matt dropped down onto a nearby chair, picking up a biscuit and examining it closely. "[color 3ed1c2]She never answered my question. So I don't think she's all that welcoming.[/color]" Water dropped around the small table, hiding in the grass as Darren squinted suspiciously at the food. "Wish we had something to test the food on. Don't want to be taking weird DoT damage if she turns out to be an enemy NPC." "[color firebrick]Let me talk first. Maybe we can bypass this encounter or whatever.[/color]" -Matt crumpled the biscuit in his hand, tossing the pieces toward the roaming chickens. The chickens swarmed greedily towards the biscuit crumbs, jostling each other while trying to eat as much as they could. Yuuka returned at that point, shooing the chickens away gently as she brought two more teacups to the table, before filling them both up and offering them to the two. Filling her own cup, she started eating one of the tea biscuits, before sipping from her own cup. "[color f7976a]So, to what do I owe this visit?[/color]" "We--" Darren half-started before shutting up and letting Matt take the lead. It didn't sit well with him to actually play along with the in-story behaviors of the NPCs and usually he had no inclination to, but Matt had hung around longer than anyone else had and he didn't want to burn another bridge that had just formed recently. "Sorry," he mumbled, backing away from the table and into his bubble. Matt glanced briefly at his friend, but he refrained. There would time for that later. "[color firebrick]We were just passing by, really. The field is very... scenic.[/color]" -He turned back to the NPC with his brightest smile -"[color firebrick]As you know, some of our companions have just recently 'taken over' a place nearby. We did not take part in that ugly bussiness, and frankly, we do not plan to. Just getting that out of the way.[/color]" "[color f7976a]Oh? Is that so?[/color]" Yuuka took another sip at her tea. "[color f7976a]Will you not drink the tea? Or perhaps, some of the biscuits? Do not worry on my account, I have plenty more to go around.[/color]" "[color firebrick]Sure.[/color]" -Matt agreed easily, sipping from his cup and reaching out for another biscuit. This time, he devoured the whole thing in one bite -"[color f7976a]Excuse my friend, though. He is...well...in a bubble. And half fish.[/color]" Nodding approvingly, Yuuka finished hers. "[color f7976a]I've not heard the details, only what that bird told me. But I find that hard to believe, especially with the fish's rather rude first demand. Even if you say you did not take part of the incident yesterday, you did allow your companions to do so. Now..[/color]" There was a slight crinkle under her right eye as she paused. "[color f7976a]Tell me what you are doing here, again.[/color]" "[color firebrick]Flowers. Prettiest things I have seen in a while.[/color]" -Matt stayed put, showing no sign that he was readying for combat -"[color firebrick]Like I said before, just sightseeing.[/color]" Yuuka closed her eyes for a moment and sighed. "[color f7976a]Finish your tea and go home. I will not suffer fools and liars in my home.[/color]" "[color firebrick]I'm sorry to have spoiled your evening, Miss Yuuka.[/color]" -Matt looked genuinely apologetic as he lifted the cup and finished off his tea -"[color firebrick]We will take our leave.[/color]" As he stood up, however, he squinted into the distance behind Yuuka, then his expression was a look of pure horror -"[color firebrick]No.[/color]" -He mumbled in disbelief -"[color firebrick]They're here![/color]" Whipping her head around, she turned towards where he was looking, starting up from her chair. "[color f7976a]What!?[/color]" Matt quickly grabbed the teapot on the table and swung it at her head with all the strength he could muster. Ready to fight since the start, Darren poisoned the water he had settled around the table, pulling Matt backwards as the toxic green vapor rose around the woman. "[color 3ed1c2]Move somewhere else![/color]" he shouted, shoving Matt out of his path as he readied to spread more poison in the nearby water. The teapot crashed against her head, with barely any effect. Poison vapours rose around her, and yet, she seemed unaffected even as the damage ticked upon her healthbar. "[color f7976a]You come into my home, drink my tea, lie to my face, and now you have the audacity to use this sort of tactic on me?[/color]" Yuuka had not moved, but even as Matt moved out of range, a hand grabbed his arm in a vise grip, putting an uncomfortable amount of pressure on it with the battlesytem on. If this had not been in VR, he would have this feeling he would be screaming blue murder right now. Another Yuuka, similar in all ways to the one standing in the poison vapours, having an expression of not hate, but disgust. With alarming ease, her grip broke his arm, sending the limb into that red fuzzy state to indicate injury, before she threw him to the ground like a ragdoll. Both of the Yuukas pointed towards the merman, a small beam of light shining upon his chest as they did so. He'd figured the enemies in the new zone would be high level, and he hated being right about that as he watched a chunk of Matt's health bar disappear in one attack. Darren threw water from his orb directly onto the women and fled backwards, poisoning more of the water as he did so and hoping their attacks wouldn't kill him immediately. Respawning was such a massive pain. Meanwhile, Matt quickly got back to his feet, the broken arm was useless at his side as he rushed toward with the intention to tackle the Yuuka that broke it. Even Matt's entire weight did not move her, with her only reaction was to point towards his face instead of Darren's chest. Considering both was in a bad position, they both would perish in a gigantic beam of light, Matt from point blank range, and Darren from midrange, due to moving backwards. But.... Instead of finishing her channeling, and casting the massive beam, both of the Yuuka flipped upside down suddenly, identical yelps as they hit their heads on the ground. A small figure jumped in, grabbing Matt and Darren in both her arms, before flying quickly away. "[color f7976a]Ahaha~ You two are crazy, challenging Yuuka like that. From that new phantom group, aintcha?[/color]" A girl in white, with black, red streaked hair, grinning wildly as she shifted their weight. As a merman, Darren had never experienced VR flight aside from system travel and the strange sensation of being lifted from his bubble and soaring through the skies left him quiet enough that he didn’t protest the stranger who had saved them. For the moment. Whatever event they had triggered at least saved them the respawn trip. "[color firebrick]Yeah.[/color]" -Matt grumbled, still trying to get his bearing -"[color firebrick]It's a game. You gotta play like you wanna win.[/color]" -He glanced at the rapidly shrinking terrain beneath them, the sudden height made his stomach uneasy. "[color firebrick]Who are you again?[/color]" "[color f7976a]A game huh? I like that. Gotta win all the time.[/color]" She started slowing down, once she was sure Yuuka wasn't pursuing them. From up here, they had a good view of the flowerfield behind them, as well as the large sprawling Forest of Magic. There was a small speck of a flag in it, though just barely recognizable as their flag. To the north was a large mountaineous region, and on its feet further away from the forest, they could see the human village, seemingly busy from the specks moving about it. "[color f7976a]Seija Kijin. Who are you two?[/color]" "[color firebrick]Tourists.[/color]" -Matt mumbled, trying very hard not to look down -"[color firebrick]I'm Matt. Fish man is Darren.[/color]" "[color firebrick]Thanks for saving us, I suppose. Why though?[/color]" She guffawed unellegantly at that. "[color f7976a]Still trying to keep that up huh? I heard. Well, most everyone heard by now due to that bird, but I also heard. A buncha free spirits up and ousted that fake youkai from the Forest of Magic. Sounds like my kinda thing. If you're going up against them I want to join in too. 'Spect more people will be frowning on you more too after that last one. Man that was good, you done cracked her own pot on her head. Hahaha~![/color]" "[color firebrick]I'm just trying to get a piece of that bitch for my friend here.[/color]" -Matt admitted, frowning slightly at the memory. Not his best idea, the teapot. They could have just stolen a chicken or two -"[color firebrick]Wait, what do you mean 'them'? There are sides?[/color]" "[color f7976a]Course there are! Whole of Gensokyo is in an uproar after what you lot pulled off yesterday. Fractured to bits with all the little factions.[/color]" She landed neatly in the clearing where their flag was. "[color f7976a]Oh jeez its empty. So this' your place, huh? Ain't much to look at.[/color]" "[color firebrick]Whose side are you on?[/color]" -Matt raised an eyebrow as he staggered on his feet, grateful to be on firm ground once again. His arm was still useless though. He should have taken a healing spell. "[color f7976a]No one. Well, yours hopefully. I wanna join.[/color]" Seija hovered a little as she prepared to fly once more. "[color f7976a]Well, call me if you need me alright? Don't leave me out of any future plans. I'll go and do what I do best.[/color]" With that, she flew away, leaving Darren and Matt alone in the clearing. "[color firebrick]Hey! How are we going to call you?[/color]" -Matt called after the disappearing figure in vain. Knowing that he would never get the answer, he sighed, turning back to Darren -"[color firebrick]Well, that was a hot mess.[/color]" “[color 3ed1c2]Yeah—hey, um, I gotta log out. Just, uh, something came up, sorry.[/color]” The merman‘s head looked elsewhere, pausing a moment before the avatar disappeared. "[color firebrick]Fuck.[/color]" -Matt swore at where his friend used to stand. There went his plans for the evening. He then sighed, patting at his pockets to find the pipe. Maybe he would log off soon, too. Pointless to do anything without Darren here. [hider you don't read this i know] Darren dropped back into his room once he returned from cleaning the small trailer home, tucking his feet into the space that was barely large enough for a twin-sized bed and its bedside nightstand which pressed up against the sliding door. His mother had jolted him out of the semi-sleep state of VR and demanded his help with chores, though he could have sworn the house was clean and the sink clear when he had returned earlier. Still, he didn't have much right to protest so Darren had, as always, dropped everything he was doing to attend to his mother's wishes. He felt like he owed her that much for being the failure she had never wanted. Settled at last into bed, he pulled out the hand-me-down smartphone that his friend at the local electronics store had managed to snag for the small price of 50 dollars, offering it to Darren for free and refusing to hear otherwise. The messaging app was clear of notifications, his only correspondence either from work or Matt, recently. Tapping into the previous conversation, Darren quickly poked out an apology. >sorry for leaving you hanging i know we had plans to check out the new place but i had to do a few things really sorry A reponse came almost instantaneously. >it's fine >what are you doing >just chilling now, i can make it up to you tomorrow i don't have work >tomorrow, huh? >you know what, fuck it >i'll stay at home on a weekend >just for you >oh if you have plans its okay i can just craft >i never have plans >i mean if you want to go out im sure you have more fun things to do on a weekend >habits >not really fun, when you just do something over and over again >or someone >don't fret, you didn't pull me from something terribly important >just got a performance at Voyeur, but it's not that important >or interesting >i bet they let me on stage just cus i got a pretty face >you have a Voyeur where you live too? i didn't know it was a chain >no it's not >pretty sure it's the only place >oh...just coincidence maybe? lots of places can be named that >well, my Voyeur does a pretty mean hemingway and has a really shitty neon sign that should have been torn down ages ago >holy shit >does the sign have a broken V? >it does >lol >dont fucking tell me >...opens 5 - 4 in the morning and on the corner of hampshire and mckaw? >fuck >yes >omg >well, don't drink the manhattan >i'm pretty sure they water down the bourbon >ive never been there but sure thanks >lol >come by some time then >i'll buy you a drink >i'm serious, the hemingway is to die for >i cant id probably look weird there >its like the prime hotspot around here >no it's not it just likes to pretend that it is >but like, if youre some 40 year old neckbeard >i won't judge >promise >im 22 so no worries but >you know >i dont think id fit in >i dont really look like >nightlife type >nobody cares, darren >i sure don't >come on >i dont know >im bad with people you know >like awkward and shit >srsly, darren >i dont care about that >come >my next show is two weeks from today >i dont want to disappoint you you know >like if you were expecting something better and I show up >i'm not expecting anything >don't overthink >just come >free drink >...i dont know what to wear i just have sweaters mostly >i have seen a guy in here with an apron on >like, just an apron >so it's fine, wear whatever >i like sweaters too >...ill think about it >thanks >sorry again about today >don't be >see you tomorrow >see you [/hider]