"Let's see," Farsider flipped open his inventory, retrieving the letter he had received detailing his current quest. Skimming it as he walked, sword bouncing at his side with each step, he hummed to himself. Apparently he was expected to guard some miners as they did their daily work. Simple enough, he couldn't think of anything at the time that could cause him much trouble, especially with a group of working men being his charges.

As he approached the mines he gave a half-assed wave to who he assumed was the boss, a man with a mining cap and big bushy beard. The samurai really wanted to touch it as he approached, but he kept his hands to himself. Looking towards the tunnel's entrance, however, he saw someone he'd maybe have a harder time keeping his hands to himself around. Lucky for her she wasn't an NPC. He squinted, checking her nameplate from afar. It read 'Papilion'.

"I'd assumed this would be a simple enough mission that they wouldn't have need for more than one player. I'll count myself lucky that I get to spend the better part of a day with such a pretty face." He smirked as he approached the woman, tipping the hilt of his blade and giving a bow in introduction.

"Had a chance to do any recon?" As he rose from the bow, his flirtatious demeanor had already shifted. His eyes were cold, and he was instantly prepared to absorb any information given to him. If Farsider had learned one thing about survival in Gargantua, especially with his chosen class, it was that he'd need to be ever at the ready during these quests lest he end up like the countless other fallen players.

Closing his eyes, the samurai focused on the sensations around him. Smell, sound, it all felt so real here even knowing that it shouldn't be. There was faint waft of dampness in the wind, a sign of the beasts that had traveled through here earlier in the morning. Enemies, especially groups, tended to travel from their spawn points at times when the system knew the player population in the area was low. It helped the immersion, but also gave players an advantage on level grinding and finding much needed loot if they could figure out these telling signals. Sadly, with no real world reference to go on for time of day, Farsider was left with no means to log for exploits. He nearly chuckled at the reminder that this wasn't his home.

"Wolves, huh?" He opened his eyes once more and patted the head of the mining crew on his shoulder once, hand quick to return to his sheathed blade, "With two of us here, we'll likely make short work of them. Just lead the way, old man." Queuing the NPC to continue with the allotted quest, Farsider turned his attention to his fellow player.

"So, gotten used to being stuck here yet? Surreal right?" He chuckled and followed the miners through the entrance, not bothering to actually draw his weapon just yet. He was in a good position and within proper distance to use Sawagi and instantly pull out his katana if something tried to get the jump on one of the current party members. Honestly, completing the quest wasn't even the main reason for being here. Sure, the reward was great and would further his goal of actually beating this damned game... but he didn't want another player dying if he could prevent it. His and the girl's safety were top priority.

---

NOTES: I don't really think there's too much to worry about in regards to how we go about doing the quest. As long as we get from point A to point B and finish the prompt given along with the required number of posts, we'll be fine. ^^

"Yeah... That'd be nice." Farsider smiled at the thought of getting home and actually meeting some of the friendlier people he'd met through Broken War Online. Then thoughts of the state of his body upon returning home crept up on him. Just how long had it been since he'd been trapped in this digital realm? He'd lost track, days blurred together. Would he be bedridden upon achieving freedom? He shook the thoughts from his head and pressed onward, determination still strong. If he was still here, he was still there. He had to remind himself of that simplest truth.

As he hardened his stride, however, he found himself bumping into the miner in front of him. Whispers of something nearby caught his ear, and the samurai worked his way around to the front of the group, motioning for his pink haired companion to follow. The bearded NPC had sweat lining his brow as he pointed upward. Following his finger with his eyes, Farsider let out a quiet sigh. Of course. Bats.

Twenty or so of the small beasts hung from the ceiling, waiting for any sort of prey to walk beneath them. Drool dripped from their mouths and their fangs just barely glistened in the lamplight. Though these were small by the game's standards, they were still much larger than any bats back on Earth.

"Alright, let's get to work."

As he unsheathed his blade, an audible spark slipped through its sheath and signaled the beginning of battle. Three of the winged monsters sprung from their roost, flying at the miners. Their bites would not meet their targets, however.

"Sawagi!" In an instant he was in front of the bearded NPC, holding back the bats with his blade. Shreds of data flew from his arms as he took half of the damage in the miner's stead but as he followed through with his strike one of the creatures was cleaved in two. As its halves hit the cavern floor, they erupted into bright red cubes and binary which dissipated quickly.

With a smirk the samurai struck out once more, catching another of the bats before it could regroup with the others upon the ceiling. More of the same as before. The lack of gore was probably more disturbing than seeing it realistically would be, but it was a constant reminder of this just being a game. Just a game.

Just a game...

After Papilion touched his arm, the white haired samurai instantly felt the effects of whatever skill she had used coursing through his body. He swiped a hand in front of himself, bringing up his status screen and skimmed what statuses he was currently under. Unable to take damage. Immune to negative statuses. Nice.

He smiled and lowered himself, bending his knees before springing forward and striking at the first bat of the group heading straight toward them. The healing effects of his passive surged from the number of enemies now targeting him, and a notification popped into his peripheral. He smirked and turned in the air.

"Hayate!"

Performing a full 360 degree turn before landing, a gust of wind swept outward from his katana, hitting all of the bats. The elemental damage being enough to strike them all down, he frowned.

"Wow, what a let down. Nice moves though, Pap." Farsider snickered, realizing how fitting the nickname was for an on-touch support just after saying it.

Farsider stood at full height and smiled watching the girl motion for the miners to continue onward, waiting for them to pass before walking alongside her. As she complimented him on his swordsmanship, he looked away, an embarrassed expression following his face turning red.

"It's not that impressive, come on." He jutted his hands into his pockets and shook his head, blood draining back out of his face, "I mean, it's a learn or die situation. Besides, it's not like it'll carry over outside of the game."

Soon enough the group had reached the mine's inner cavern and the troupe of men set out with their pickaxes to begin their work. The samurai leaned against the wall and kept watch, trying to clear his thoughts. There were some things he was still curious about though.

"So, about meeting up after all this is over or whatever," The swordsman scratched the back of his neck, "What sort of stuff were you into before BWO? It's a silly question I know, but it helps to feel back home, even just a bit." He bit his tongue, feeling himself beginning to ramble.

"A model, huh?" He grinned. It wasn't every day you got to interact with someone so... out of your league entirely. On the inside he was having a major episode because of this, but he tried his best not to show it. Hopefully she wouldn't ask him about- And there it was.

"Yeah, well," he swallowed, mouth feeling dry all of a sudden, "I'm not anything special, really. Just an everyday normal guy, y'know? College kid, criminal justice major." He shook his head while running a hand through his hair. "I always wanted to be a private detective, ever since I was little. Comics and movies got me into it mostly. Guess now I'm in training to be a samurai in an era without need of them though."

Farsider chuckled and kicked a rock past the barricade separating them from the edge of the path down further into the mine below. Thinking back on it, maybe he was suited for being stuck in this game. With any luck it would give him some experience and bragging rights if he ever made it back to the real world. Maybe he could even be famous, like how Papilion dreamed of being.

Farsider smiled at the thought that he shared something in common with the girl, even if it was a stretch. The moment of bliss was cut short, however, as he felt the effects of Golden Touch course through him once more. The samurai drew his blade. Back to work.

"Everyone, get back!" He exclaimed, dashing forward before activating Sawagi once more, putting himself between the goblin and the miner it had targeted. As he made footing, however, another pair of claws tore through the ground, and yet another. Soon enough the swordsman found himself held in place by a group of the little green monsters. He chopped and sliced at them, but their armor and hide were strong, leaving him dealing less damage than he had to the bats. Hayate was prepared for use soon enough, but Farsider wasn't in an advantageous position to use the skill without it simply being a waste.

"Six seconds," he counted to himself, keeping track of how much longer his granted immunity would last. Hopefully Papilion had something else planned.