A Forging We Will Go

    The clanging of a forge is probably the first thing really noticeable out in the city. The forges might have been a bit quiet. But now they are filled, inbetween hammering, with a variety of cursing in Japanese as they work out items for the adventurers in the city.

    Said reason for cursing is one large, obvious Were Fang. His outfit having been mostly stripped to show that the well muscled look isn't just for show on the avatar he chose. And he seems to be using the crafting system to do so. Currently a large box sits off to the side.

    The latest piece, a perfectly fine if ordinary sword is chunked into the box full of swords, axes, maces, bows, and probably a helmet or armor piece or three judging by what's hanging off the pommel of a sword.

    All and all, it's early in the morning, and the forging Were Fang is looking annoyed beyond belief. Dusting off his hands from his latest attempt, he turns to take a step outside of the forge and grab a large flask of water to sip at. "What the hell? I've tried every single item I can think of and not a single uncommon one pops up." He says out loud.

It hadn't been long since the Apocalypse had occurred, leaving a good chunk of the playerbase stranded on the island, and there had hardly been an hour between before the marina was bogged down with far more people than it could hope to cater to. Worse still, the Landers had remained steadfast in their decision not to go above a certain threshold, which in turn created something of a queue among the players -- a queue they were willing to fight over, as it turned out. There had been more than one instance of people "cutting in line", so to speak, with actual cutting involved, although the more chaotic elements had settled by now once people had truly decided just how far they were willing to go to escape.

L'Anya, for her part, had been early to find the marina, and just as early to leave once the violence began -- opting to wait rather than get involved in that mess. But waiting safely required a trip back to the city, and even then required a room and board... which cost money. Money she didn't have, in fact, with the vast majority of the Duties offered to rectify that problem oftentimes just as beyond her means as the confrontations at the marina had been.

But it wasn't hopeless. With the activity at the forges sprung a need for metals and ores, and with a need for metals and ores came a need for people to search for them. Which is precisely why a white-rat Were Fang was carrying a picnic basket -- the least expensive and most convenient method of transport she could find -- full of various ores she had collected some distance from the town, robe caked with dirt and fur likely tinged with sweat as she half-carries, half-drags the gatherables closer towards the forge to turn in for the night's rent.

    Looking over at the sound of something dragging, Giganpor shakes his head before he moves to help, "Hey, no need to hurt yourself, miss. Bringing materials in for the cash, I take it? Can I offer some assistance getting it the rest of the way?"

    Giganpor's a giant of a man by most standards, the height slider probably maxed out somehow. Yet he moves pretty easily. And he does show concern pretty well. Someone half-carrying, half-dragging something like that isn't a good thing after all!

    Not to mention he's got a forging apron on as well. The definite thing, however, is that he's a Were Fang in human form. That tattoo on his neck's hard to miss.

L'Anya is similarly a Were Fang, although dissimilarly in her were form at the moment, which serves to undermine her small frame at a glance. She'd certainly be considered quite large by rodent standards, but she's barely above five feet, much less the six plus of the man approaching her; she's considerably smaller by comparison, all the more so half-slouched from the basket's weight as she was.

The rat had been putting the most of her focus on the basket and just trying to walk properly -- the forge wasn't so far, after all, just a bit more -- but that basket falls to the ground with a muffled clang when she looks up and sees Giganpor's approach. Her fur bristles, her body reflexively shrinking back for the briefest of moments before she catches sight of the apron, and the visible unease she had been displaying shifts first to uncertainty, and then cautious relief. "... I would appreciate it," she mutters with a bit of reluctance and more than just a small amount of embarrassment, her hands moving to idly fidget with each other as she steps back just a bit to allow the man to snag the basket, although she can't help but to look towards the basket with some trepidation.

    Giganpor nods, then moves to pick up the basket, although it's obviously heavy even for him as he lifts it off the ground, "Wow." The strain is definitely in his voice as he lifts the basket.

    "That's a lot of ore... which forge you heading for?" Yeah, he probably can carry it there, but he's not about to run off with it. That much is obvious. Then he seems to get an idea and sets the basket back down for a moment. A yellow hued summoning circle appears beside him as he points a hand at the ground, "Come forth, Granit!"

    Out pops something like a waist high (for her) bipedal gorilla looking thing made of mostly stone. "Hi, Granit. We need help carrying this basket. Follow her, please." The gorilla beats it's chest in response, then moves to more easily lift the basket and turns to her. With some help from Giganpor, it even moves it up to balance it on it's shoulders and upper back so it can move along easier on a large fist and two legs.

The Were Rat's eyes remain fixed on that basket -- and Giganpor, by extension -- as the latter moves to pick up that basket, although his word of surprise causes her to glance away with a bit of embarrassment anew. "... It looks like the marina will be tied up for some time, and I don't know how much time I have before other people start picking up jobs like this, too," she explains with a trace of apology in her tone. "So...."

She trails off there, letting the rest go unspoken -- yes, it's quite a bit of ore. Her embarrassment only deepens when he sets it back to the ground -- taking it to mean he had given up on the prospect -- but her eyes flick back up with confusion when the yellow-hued circle begins to appear. She steps back just a bit farther, her eyes open fully as they take in the sight of the magic, until the gorilla-like summon appears right before her eyes. She blinks, then blinks again, utterly transfixed and not moving even a muscle as the creature takes shape and seems to so casually pick up that basket, and it actually takes several moments of just staring before she realizes that Giganpor had told it to follow *her* -- ergo, she was supposed to lead it. A nervous chuckle escapes from her while she wrings her hands, before she begins to head towards the same forge Giganpor had come out from. "This one, I think it was...."

    Misa makes her way into the part of the city where she believes the forges have been set up. They were quiet on the first couple nights. But she's heard tell of some crafters moving in to make use of them. That's why she's here now. She's looking for one to assist her.

    Misa spots a couple of people, along with what is probably an animal summon. A gorilla is an interesting choice. Not that it matters too much to Misa. She proceeds to head in that direction.

    Entering the same forge that Giganpor and L'Anya are in, Misa coughs quietly to notify them of her presence and then says, "Please excuse me. But I'm looking for someone to restore the durability of my weapon. Might one of you be a smith?"

    Giganpor looks over at Misa as she asks about being a smith, "I am, but I do not know if I will be able to. Was it one of the ones effected by the Black Wave?"

    The large man's earth elemental companion gives a grunt and a nod as it follows L'Anya towards the forge. The basket of ore balanced on it's back with one hand as it moves. The Were Fang marking on his neck is obvious, and he has a forger's apron on at the moment as he moves to follow after L'Anya and the elemental.

    He looks over at Misa, "If it is, I might not be able to help much. Tried to restore my own and it's still a level one, if a sturdy and durable sword. Thing was a raid drop, too, so I doubt I'm gonna get a replacement any time soon."

Truth be told, Jazz hasn't really found a place to sleep yet, which is how she'd wound up, tucked a quiet nook somewhere in the city, her hat dropped over her face for a little shut eye.

It was quiet.

... quiet, right up until those forges started working and hammerig and making all kinds of ruckus. It was to be expected, of course. She takes a moment, roused, to stagger to her feet and look down at herself.

"Still here, I see," she says, morosely. Tucking her hands into the pockets of her coat, she strolls out onto the street and in the direction of the activity. If she can't sleep, she might as well see what some of her fellow players are up to and how they're assessing and handling this particular insanity. The active forge isn't long in drawing her attention. She tucks her oversized coat a bit closer against her. "I suppose I do need, like... a dagger or something, I guess," she adds aloud to herself before she groans. "Fuck me I can't believe that's what I sound like." If one could imagine the High Most Twee of anime voice actresses delivering her dialogue, you would not be far off. Thus, she is pushing through the door a scant moment after Misa does.

L'Anya, for her part, steps just a little bit more quickly than she otherwise might with the earth elemental following after her, the rat Were glancing back every now and again with traces of genuine curiosity now that the initial shock had faded. Still, she came here for a reason, and once she reaches the Lander in charge of the more general-purpose forges, she lifts the basket up off of the gorilla's back and sets it at the Lander's fore. "Here to fulfill the request," she explains with just a little bit of breathlessness, the momentary strain of tugging the basket and the heat within the forge working at her fur-covered body.

It doesn't take long at all before the rat Were has secured a decent chunk of change to serve as her rent, and she tucks it carefully into her clothes before dipping away from the Lander and back towards Giganpor, stopping only when she catches sight of Misa already capturing the man in conversation. Her ears perk and her words go silent, and she shifts herself slightly off to the side at Giganpor's back, not so close as to be a part of the discussion or to make it difficult for others such as Jazuhanzu to enter the forge as well, but not so far away as to... well, as to not be able to eavesdrop.

    Misa looks over Giganpor. He certainly fits the typical appearance of a smith. She nods in understanding, "Yes, I'm aware that attempts to fix the actual levels of such weapons have so far been unsuccessful. But they still need to be maintained as their durability decreases and their effectiveness with it."

    With a few swipes of her finger, a large menacing scythe appears in the air beside Misa. She takes the weapon in one hand and holds it out for Giganpor to inspect. Like his own that he described, this one is also a rare raid level drop that was caught in the effects of the Apocalypse.

    While Misa waits for the smith to look over her weapon, she steps to the side as another person seems to arrive at the forge. While doing so she catches sight of L'Anya providing the nearby lander with what looks like raw ores. Misa makes note of it, before looking back at the Undine. She then offers up a sincere, if not quite enthusiastic, "Good morning."

    It's when L'Anya actually returns that Misa speaks more, asking, "What is harvesting like at the moment? I expect there's a lot of competition given the Adventurer population on the island right now."

    Giganpor whistles a bit as he looks at the scythe. He makes a few motions for a menu to come up, and takes a moment to read over it before he looks considerate. "Hm... pretty rare. Calamity Hurts, the Death Scythe. Wish I could've seen it before the Wave now."

    He considers, then looks over, "Granit, thank you. Here's payment." He pulls out a small bit of leftover ore and puts it in the gorilla's hand. Who puts said ore into it's mouth before disappearing in a yellow circle. That extra bit of action has Giganpor staring for a moment. Then he looks at the other three, "I always wondered what he did with the leftover ore scraps for spell payment." He shakes his head before looking back at Misa's weapon.

    He glances over at Jazuhanzu, "Eh... give me a moment and I'll be with you."

    Looking over the scythe, he hits a few buttons before the scythe glows and the durability restores to full. Giganpor scratches his head as he looks at the results. "Huh... normally that gives like a sharpness bonus or something else... and I thought the whole stuck at common and uncommon forging was nuts."

When the scythe just appears right there, Jazz squeaks. Of course she does, she's caught off guard. "Oh! Uhm, yeah, hi." She offers, her gaze turning towards Giganpor for a moment to just stare at the gorilla. It's a real gorilla, at least from her point of view at the moment, and it's /right there/. "Welp, that's the closest I've ever been to an actual gorilla. I mean, even if its a virtual reality gorilla." She puffs her bangs out of her eyes, head-tentacles-a-twitchin' restlessly.

L'Anya had expected to be passed over when she took her position behind-but-not-quite-beside Giganpor -- the kind of position and posture one would take when beseeching a professor or teacher who was currently busy with someone else -- and so there rat Were actually blinks a few times when she's quite clearly addressed. "Ah..." she utters rather unimpressively at first, although she catches herself well enough with a light scratch at the back of her head and neck. "It's reasonable right now, but I don't think it will last." It was the reason she'd been so adamant to collect as much as she had the first trip around, after all.

Although her eyes remain on Misa, she can't help but to shift her attention ever so slightly now and again as Giganpor goes to work on the scythe -- watching with what would no doubt be rather visible curiosity if one could read the facial cues of rodents -- but her tone doesn't falter or skip as she continues. "It seems like most people want to make up for their lost levels and took up the combat-oriented Duties and jobs, first, or tried to get off of the island. But with the marina as it is... people have started trying to make the most of it." There's a bit of ruefulness to her tone there, given her own inclusion in that. "Maybe... five days, or a week for the common and easily found items. Then gatherers will have to start searching more dangerous areas, or get lucky with a rare find."

    There's a hint sparkle in Misa's eyes as she says, "It used to sing as it sliced through the air and mobs alike. Whenever I used a Sword Arte, it would glow a sickly red." The sparkle is quickly gone though as she reaches into her jacket and pulls out several silver coins. She looks at them in her hand, "It used to cost hundreds of gold coins to maintain it..." Misa drops the silver coins onto the table for Giganpor. A reasonable price for a low level repair job, "Now it's little better than one of the starter weapons."

    Misa takes the scythe back, giving it a few test swings. It definitely doesn't look as impressive as Misa had made it sound. But she says, "And yet, I still can't stop using it. I can only hope we find a way to start restoring these items." Hopefully someone is working on that.

    Misa returns her scythe to her inventory, then nods along as she listens to L'Anya, adding, "I've only done the one duty, myself. To see how it might have differed compared to before the Apocalypse. So far, there doesn't seem to have been a change. Instead my guild has been focused on scouting out the first floor of Aincrad. We're making progress... Slowly. Slower than we had expected, or would be normal for a normal game." But this is no longer a normal situation.

    Giganpor shrugs, "Perhaps. My own used to augment my summoning's attacks. As it stands, all I have with any tricks is my cloak."

Giganpor smiles, "Don't worry. We'll figure it out. " He turns to look down at L'Anya.

    "So, what is it you're wanting? And don't try to pay me for the help. I'm good. And I don't mind helping other people when I can. The combat oriented Duties are also rougher now. There's one about some goblins along the road to the port. Myself and another had to retreat from it. All we got was a bag full of coins, but they were still goblins." He looks annoyed at that one.

    Then he looks over at Jazz, "Actually, he's an elemental. If the lighting was better, you'd see the fur's all rock. My profession of Monster Rider meant I used to be able to ride him when he was higher level, not so now."

"Oh hey, you're right. I should more clearly blink the sleep from my eyes."

Jazz reaches up and rubs her eyes, pointedly, and then pauses. She looks down at her hands. "...why do my eyes get grainy?"

A pause.

"The weird dedication to simulationism continues! Uhhhh, yeah, anyway... I just figured maybe I should arm myself too. Like, a good knife, you knoww? For the inevitable times I'll wish I had a knife instead of a wand." She pushes her hat forward on her head.

"Whenever you've... you know... got a minute. No rush." While her Japanese is perfect thanks to the translation, her modest American accent remains present when she speaks.

L'Anya has a pretty decent poker face when it comes right down to it, and it doesn't change much when Misa mentions the tower or going into it... but that doesn't spare her the rest of her body's response. Her body stiffens every so slightly, barely perceptible, but the slight bristling of her white fur is far more easily to see, and her hands begin to wring against each other at her waist. "... Right." It takes a few moments for her to respond, but -- to her credit -- her tone doesn't waver, even taking on a slight hint of nonchalance as though talking about *the* dungeon was just a normal every day topic. "It seemed important. And slow progress is better than no progress, right?"

And then there's Giganpor's question. Her eyes shift from Misa up towards the man, offering a momentary blink as though she'd forgotten and didn't actually know what he was talking about, before her head dips with embarrassment anew. "Ah. I just wanted to thank you, is all," she admits with just as much embarrassment as her frame implied. She's quiet for a few moments -- simply letting his words sink in to get another bit of information from someone who'd experienced it -- before she begins to shift her posture, angling more towards the exitway. "... I should probably try to gather some more while I've time. Thank you for your help."

    Misa nods in response to Giganpor. No doubt there are more Adventurers out there in a similar situation. That means a high demand for an answer. And many eyes searching.

    As the request for a weapon comes up from Jazz, Misa is interested to see what Giganpor might be able to offer the apparent magic user. But while that conversation goes on, Misa watches L'Anya begin to leave. Misa thanks for a moment, before exclaiming, "Wait!"

    The uniformed womans walks over a little closer to L'Anya, studying her for a moment. Although it's more accurate to say she's considering something. Misa then nods, saying, "If you choose to sell what you gather to my guild, we'll give you fifteen percent on top of what the lander would pay. For as long as you choose to remain in this area."

    Giganpor shrugs, "I'd say go for it, but I don't know her Guild that well." He says in response to the deal. Then he looks at Misa, then over to Jazz.

    Giganpor looks her over. Then hums. He turns to rummage in the box before he pulls out a rather simple dagger, offering it with the sheath to Jazz. "Give this a few tries. It's a simple one, but one of the things I can say as a melee caster, you want one that fits your preferred style. I'm a Dreadnought myself. We got some skills we can use with shorter blades. My preference is the longer blades."

    Then he looks over at Misa. "And you. What's your aim in asking her? Bad enough you got some crazy guy wanting to take over the economy."

A slender hand reaches for the dagger and accepts it once she has it in her hand. The obvious newbie turns it over in her hand and lets it rest there. "The feedback is amazing," she admits, still marvelling over how real the virtual world feels. "I mean, now. It was weird before but now it's just..." She trails off, looking discomfited. "This will do," she mumbles.

Then her eyes flit towards Misa when Giganpor speaks to her, and when he mentions someone wanting to take over the economy, there's the audible smack of her palm into her forehead.

"Of /course/," she groanbs.

L'Anya had shifted in place and started walking towards the exit -- skirting more along the outer edges of the makeshift grouping with just a little bit more haste to her step than when she'd first walked inside -- but she freezes on the spot when Misa gives such an abrupt exclamation. She adjusts her attention and, sure enough, the woman is approaching her, causing the rat Were's fur to bristle up once again, her body shrinking ever so slightly back. She's not *quite* panicked, but she's not far from it, and she finds a way to look upwards towards Misa with her slight slouch despite being of relatively similar height.

Misa's offer is met first with silence, before a bewildered "huh?" comes instead. Her fur begins to steadily draw back down even as she looks to the uniformed woman in utter confusion, and -- sure enough -- she actually glances to Giganpor for a brief moment before he offers his own take on the matter. Understanding slowly begins to dawn on her, and her attention returns to Misa anew, hands wringling slightly against each other in quiet thought before she speaks.

"I... I suppose?" There wasn't really a reason to *refuse* something like that after all, was there? Although after a few more moments of silent thought, she adds, "I, ah, is this an exclusivity thing? Or a counter offer?" Another pause, this one with a slight fidget. "And I... ah... I don't actually recognize you or your guild, so..." her voice drops to something closer to a whisper, "... I don't actually know who I should go to, or where...?"

    Misa turns to look at Giganpor, a hint of confusion on her face as she asks, "Who?" She considers who he might be talking about... Then, "Oh. That one who put out all the fliers? I recall hearing about him... Her? Whatever... On my kingdom chimlink... They are not a member of, nor affiliated with the Aincrad Liberation Front." It's true. She explains, "My reasoning is simple. All the resources we had were lost in the wave. It seems a waste to sell newly harvested mats to an NPC. It'd be put to far better use in our hands."

    Jazz's forehead smack also draws a look from Misa. But she then turns back to L'Anya, watching her. She recognizes the awkwardness the Were Fang is displaying. It's something she's seen in a number of her students in the past. She sympathizes with the L'Anya, but doesn't draw attention to it. She simply replies, "Not an exclusive thing, no. If you get a better offer, then feel free to take it. As for who to go to... Hmmm..." Misa seems to consider it for a moment, then shrugs, "Let's make it easy."

    Misa swipes her finger in the air a few times. Then a friend request appears in L'Anya's view. Misa says, "Feel free to contact me whenever you wish to sell something. If I can't make it, I'll organize someone else who can."

The look in her direction earns a sheepish smile from Jazz and a helpless shrug. "Sorry," she mumbles. "Yeah, so uh... what do I owe you, anyway?" she asks Giganpor, rooting around in her pockets for the coins she earned earlier. "Like, I owe you something, right?" She has no idea how much she might owe.

Hey, she's new, right? It couldn't be more obvious than if she had a blazing beacon or a weird sprouty-beanstalk next to her name or something. A prink frilled sleeve is visible briefly as her coat's arm is pushed up.

L'Anya listens to Misa's explanation of exactly why it is she would make such an offer, and the rat Were begins to visibly relax a little bit more as the pieces click into place, even her posture subtly and slowly correcting itself while Misa was looking elsewhere. There's only the slightest bit of flaring of her fur when Misa's gaze falls upon her anew -- visible, but not nearly so pronounced as before -- and the rat Were keeps her own gaze steady, listening closely to just what she might wind up agreeing to.

She had been expecting a location, maybe a few names; she had not expected a friend request. L'Anya blinks in response, standing still and just looking at the friend request in surprise for a few moments before she raises a finger and gingerly clicks on the accept button. "Do I... do I have to do anything else? Or is it automatically two-way?" she sheepishly asks, not exactly used to navigating through the menus or the social functions. "And, um, did you only want ores? Or, rather... what is it your guild wants to buy?"

    Giganpor looks down at Jazz, "New player, right? Most would've at least picked up a dagger or the like by now." He seems to consider, then shrugs, "One silver. If you can't pay now, find me later or pass it on to someone who can use it." Pondering as he looks at Jazz, Giganpor hms, "Well, first bit of advice... try your skills with it. See if you like it. While most won't realize it, different weapons have different skills and different speeds, forms, and weights. What's comfortable now might slip or go out of hand easily in the thick of combat. Especially if you're more used to magic than a weapon."

    The larger Were Fang looks considerate, then overhears Misa. He turns to look at her, "Did you just say your Guild's resources got hit by the Wave as well? That... doesn't bode well for mine. I'm from Grandeur. I think we were hoping to get a discount or something going to requip people once we got to the Guild Hall and could get the materials, but if all of that's wasted..."

    Misa is not surprised that L'Anya is new at ETO. She's seen a fair few newbies having a rough time. She forgets how it's a bit easier for the veterans, already having gone through the whole leveling experience. Misa actually manages a bit of a smile as she explains, "It's two-way. Now that you have me in your friends list, you can contact me at any time using the chimlink."

    At the question of which resources she'll buy, Misa moves a hand to hold her chin, glancing away for a moment. She then says, "Ore and herbs are probably the highest priority. For weapons and potions. After that, leathers and cloths for armor."

    As Giganpor asks her a question, Misa turns her head to look over at him, "Actually I just meant our personal inventories. We haven't been able to reach our guild hall to check its status, since it's on one of the higher levels of Aincrad Tower. And obviously we can't reach it yet." It really would be a problem if they were wiped out too...

    Misa looks back at L'Anya, "If you need anything else as well... Assistance finding better tools, an escort into more dangerous areas, let me know. We can work something out."

With Giganpor (and his elemental) demanding most of Jazz's attention, she does give him a nod.

"Yeah, I picked a hell of a day to stop drinking and start gaming again," she tells him, dryly.

There 's a pause, though, and she tucks knife and its sheathe away in her coat pocket for the time being, to be added to her belt another time. "I hve a few coins I got from a mission but I'd only been in game a couple hours before I got, you know, teleported like everyone else." She lets out a sigh at thhat, glancing down at her frame. "I knew I shouldn've just made my own damn avatar." Then back up to Giganpor, a handful of coins offered. More than enough to pay for it.

"I just figure it's good to have a knife even if most of what I've got doesn't really demand it. I'm some kind of enchanter-summoner hybrid, whatever that means. I didn't exactly get the chance to peruse a guide for ETO before I got here and now I can't log out to look." She lets out a brief, helpless laugh and then she puts her hands over her mouth. "Oh my god I sound RIDICULOUS."

L'Anya gives a very slight breath of relief at the mention she wouldn't have to fumble through menus in front of Misa to actually finalize the process; this, at least, seemed to have been relatively painless, if a bit of an oddity. She listens closely to the list of resources the guild was looking for -- ears twitching slightly with each addition -- before nodding at the last, even repeating shortly after. "Ore. Herbs. Leathers. Cloths. Got it, although the last two... I don't think I'd be able to get them anyway, unless I happened to find them on the ground," she admits. "Though I'll try to grab them if I see them. Just, I think that's normally in more dangerous areas, right?" Areas with aggressive humanoids who might wear cloth or leather armor, specifically.

L'Anya remains docilely in place while Misa turns her attention towards Giganpor, the rat Were silently picking up bits and pieces of more conversation -- as well as the one between Giganpor and Jazuhanzu. She looks to Misa with a bit of curiosity to see if there might be anything more, and when the list of items is joined by an offer for assistance as well. the rat Were is left blinking once more. There's a bit of genuine surprise in that, before her hand rises to begin scratching at the back of her head and neck and her expression turns complex. "Ahh. Thank you for that..." a pause as she looks at that friend menu and offers an uncertain smile, "... Misa? Then, ah, I'll be heading out now. Or everything will be gone and I won't have anything to pick and stuff." She shifts slightly once again, orienting herself once again towards the exitway, though she stops short of actually moving -- looking to Misa to ensure there wasn't going to be anything else.

    Giganpor considers, then comments to L'Anya, "What weapon do you use normally? I noticed you were struggling with that basket earlier, and the least I can do is offer that to help out." The overly large Were Fang looks considerate.

    Then he points at thumb at Misa. "She's already got hers. Part of what I consider a whole new player thing is helping them get accustomed to their weapons or showing them around."

    Then he turns to look at Jazz. "Enchanter-Summoner?" The man rubs his chin, "Mm... make you an Artificer. Huh... I don't know how that would play, but I can help on the Summoner part. I'm a Dreadnought. Summoner-Heavy Blade. Granted, I use mine more for defensive purposes and the occasional offense or distraction."

    Misa nods in confirmation to L'Anya, "Leather is common from beasts, while cloth is common from humanoid types like goblins. Both of which tend to be dangerous. But if you're not up for that, it's fine. Fighting has a bit more meaning and danger now. Thankfully the mining and herb picking can be safe enough." Provided you pay attention and don't get jumped by roaming mobs. But from what Misa saw earlier, she believes L'Anya has gotten that part down.

    As the rat Were signals her intention to leave, Misa doesn't seem to want to hold her up any more, "Of course. I should actually be heading off as well." Though it seems that Giganpor quickly wants to grab L'Anya. So Misa goes on ahead, "Have a good day, everyone."

"I mean, it's pretty useful as long as I have other people to stand behind, I guess. I dunno how well it'll work in the *long* haul, but I seem to do pretty okay."

Jazz lifts her shoulders in a shrug. "It's not something I'd have ordinarily picked but, eh, I'll be doing something else when all this nonsense gets sorted by whoever's gonna sort it." She looks wry.

The tentacles sprouting from the sides of her head twitch. There's a glance towards Misa, a polite enough smile and a little wave. L'anya gets the same, but she doesn't do anything to risk crowding someone so obviously anxious. She gives her her space.

L'Anya shows a bit of visible relief when Misa not only acknowledges the danger of finding something like cloth and leather, but even indirectly validates her caution towards it, and the rat Were is soon giving a wry smile once more. Although she'd started off more than just a little stiff and bristly, by the end of it she's not nearly so on edge, even if she does maintain the slightest bit of a bow to her head.

"Ah?" Although L'Anya had initially thought Giganpor was talking to Jazuhanzu, the mention of the basket reorients her attention back to the man, and her little habit of eavesdropping thankfully spares her from asking him to repeat himself. She grows silent and still while trying to recall what else she'd been only partially paying attention to, only to blink when Misa takes the opportunity to excuse herself first. "Ah. Yes. Have a good day, Misa," she replies with a nod of her head, and then focuses on the little issue in front of her....

"I, um, don't use a weapon," she eventually admits to the larger Were Fang, the words just a little uncomfortable. "I... don't really..." her voice grows quieter as it goes, and the final word -- 'fight' -- is all but inaudible.

    Giganpor nods, looking at Jazz, "Well, that's the thing. The summons are basically our party companions when we solo play."

    He smiles, then moves a hand to the side, "Come, Basalt!" What looks like a dog made of plant material with flowers for ears. It doesn't stand that tall, but still looks somewhere between fierce and cute. The thing looks up at Giganpor curiously before he crouches down to pet it. "Sorry, just showing you to a fellow summoner."

    He looks over at Jazz, "This is one I called Basalt. He's one of my good offensive ones. Poison seeds, for example. There's other things that I know he can do, but I can't unlock. The summons get different abilities for each of our companion classes. I think, if I remember right, he might be one to seek out for Artificers. There's different variations all over the place, however. I've heard one guy summoning skeletons for example."

    Standing back up, Giganpor looks over at L'Anya. "You don't? Well... that could be a problem. You can only do so much with just gathering skills." He rubs the back of his head, "Granted, if you want to keep doing it, I'd say go for it. Since we don't know what all has changed, or if we might actually die instead of resurrect... best to be careful?"

'Basalt' draws Jazz's eyes. "Mmn," she says, "Cute... doggo," she says, after a moment.

"Yeah, yeah. So far, I've been able to make plants dance to my whim, but it all comes out as seaweed. Oh, and spray people with water. That was cool. I have some kind of heavy aquatic theme going. Surprise, surprise, right?" She reaches her hand up, grabs the tentacle hanging from her head, and holds it aloft to demonstrate. Then her brow furrows. "Waugh," she grimaces. "How does that even HAVE feedback?!"

The summoning does draw L'Anya's eye, her fur standing slightly on end as she looks to it with a bit of surprise and awe, although it doesn't last quite as long as the gorilla-esque summon had earlier. She listens rather intently to the lesson he gives to Jazuhanzu, her curiosity and interest considerably piqued, although the proverbial elephant in the closet comes trotting forward before she can really ease into the situation. Giganpor tells her not using a weapon might be a problem, to which she can only give him a helpless look in response. "Well... I can't very well not do it, can I?" she sighs, a bit of dejection and mild frustration settling into her tone.

"I can't just... not. I won't have anywhere to sleep. And --" and she stops, blinking with surprise, her body fidgeting slightly before she begins to actually step towards the exit rather than angle towards it. "Thank you for helping me." Still, her voice is sincere in this. "I have to go or I won't be able to collect enough things."

    Giganpor nods, "You're welcome, both of you. Definitely look into that summon thing." He says the last towards Jazz, then looks at L'Anya.

    Considering, he picks up a small sword, a mining pick, an axe, and a shovel. Then he walks over to offer it to her. "Here. I don't know what class or subclass you are, but most can use that if they have to. If you feel more comfortable with something like a staff or spear, bring a lot of wood over and I'll try to make the best I can. The shovel, axe, and pick are typical gathering tools."

    He turns to go back to the forge, "Hope it helps you two. I'm going back to trying to figure out why I can't do past greens or uncommons. Or I hope anyways."

"...that's mighty kind of you to help us out like that. I'll remember to pass it along if I meet anyone else who needs help," agrees Jazz, casually, a glance towards L'anya whose space she's doing her level best not to even slightly invade. "I mean, this is gonna be sorted out in a matter of days -- which is something that's bugging me. The day and night cycle. It was fast, but now it feels like, at least to us, it's moving in real time?" She looks between them, seeking clarification here. Like, she's not imagining that, right? But then she's backing up towards the door to head on her way, her brow furrowed in costernation.

"... so weird..."

Despite her maneuvering, L'Anya still ends up stopping when it becomes clear Giganpor wants to approach her for something, although there's a bit of an unhappy droop to her body. She looks at the offered items a bit blankly at first, before slowly reaching out to accept them, bringing them all into her arms with a tired sigh. " ... Thank you." She doesn't look directly at him, but more towards the floor, her tone resigned but genuinely appreciative once again, although the items are a touch unwieldy in her arms.

And so she stands there for a few moments while Giganpor turns back to the forge, adjusting herself and trying to find a proper way to set the weight before she nods towards Jazuhanzu -- the person she'd been eavesdropping on for the better part of her stay in the forge, even if she hadn't quite interacted with her directly until now. "I couldn't say why," she admits. "But it might just be we don't have an anchor anymore. We don't have 'real time' to keep us grounded, and our minds are synching to the day and night cycles." Her words are half-questions more than anything definitive -- her own postulations in regards to that -- before she heads to the doorway once more to head out and get some materials snatched.