Another New Beginning!

Paxilon whipped around faster than he should have to look at whomever had spoken out, "A pleasure, Areto! My name is Paxilon."

He realised almost immediately that he came off a little strong and took a breath to steady his excitement. Nodding to himself, he extended his hand out in gesture for a handshake, "Sorry, I'm just very excited about this game. It's been a long time since I've had my heart pound like this from just entering a world."

Paxilon looked around at the bustle of what he assumed were mostly NPCs and thought about what he should do. He had heard so much about this game already. Should he start trying to find some things to fight? Practice his skills? Maybe he should figure out how to craft items. There had been a game he'd played before that was secretly extremely rewarding for those who took the time to level up their crafting skills.

Suddenly recalling his brand new acquaintance, Paxilon focused his attention on Areto. They seemed to fit in more than he did, for sure. Doubtless, they at least knew more than he did. For this one time, he would swallow his pride.

"Would you mind showing me a couple things? Being a green horn isn't my favourite way to start a game, you know?"

Paxilon nodded to himself. He was lucky to run into this person first. If it weren't for the assuredly confident attitude that he saw in Areto, he'd have thought this was surely an NPC. Paxilon remained silent for a moment, allowing a slight smile at the light joke Areto made about this game being only about swords. He thought over the things he had heard about this game, and considered seriously, for the first time, what he planned on doing in this game. Certainly, he planned on being the best at this game, as was the case for any game his sister and he played, but the question was, best at what?

"Combat. After all, this is a game about swords, right?" he gave a little wink towards Areto before continuing, "That being said, I have a bad habit of trying to be the best at every game I play. With that in mind, what would you suggest I learn more about first?"

Paxilon looked around more seriously than he had before. It only occurred to him now how much of the crowd wasn't actually NPC fodder. He frowned for a moment, wondering if maybe no one had defeated the first boss yet. He shook his head lightly. Certainly, with so many beta testers, someone most have beaten at least the first boss by now.

He turned his attention back to Areto, "Seeing as you're probably more experienced than most players I can see from here, I believe I'm pretty lucky to run in to such a capable guide."

Paxilon beamed a proud grin and crossed his arms. Looking up towards the sky, he breathed in deeply once more. He just could not get enough of this game.

It only just dawned on Paxilon when Areto mentioned what kind of weapon he was using. Did he even have a weapon? He had a moment of utter panic, looking about his own body for where his weapon might be, grumbling to himself about how he could be so stupid as to not check for weapons on his own person. Luckily, he spotted the hilt pretty quickly, and managed to pull the sword out from its sheath. He thrust the sword out into the air and admired its lovely edge and . . . wait, no. This sword barely even had an edge at all. His mouth tightened at the sight of such a worthless piece of equipment.

"On the assumption that I can acquire better and different equipment in the future," he chuckled to himself, "I think I'd find myself more comfortable with something along the lines of a bostaff. Perhaps a polearm, even, if the former is unavailable to me."

Paxilon sheathed his sword once more and sighed. If this was how he started out, this game was going to be more difficult than he thought it was. Then, faced with the dauntless challenge, he began laughing to himself. It had been a couple years since any game had given him grief. He loved a challenge. The more difficult the task, the more he would enjoy himself. He took a breath to steady himself and grinned at Areto.

"My menu?" his face twisted pensively, "I heard something along the lines of how to use it. If it's anything like the other Nervegear games . . ."

Trailing off, he stuck his finger out instinctively, opening the menu with ease, "Perfect! It's so much easier than the last junk game they came out with for this hardware. Take at least 6 times to open that useless, three-button menu."

He scrolled through the buttons and sighed in relief. This was a game, after all. He was already beginning to feel like this was his real body. The game was so well made, he feared one day he might forget to log out.

Paxilon eyed Areto curiously as they pressed a few buttons. Something more difficult? He was excited, to say the least! He was caught between laughing and scowling, however, when the party invite popped up in front of him. Mockingly, Paxilon placed his fist on his chin, as if considering this problem seriously. It had been a while since he'd actually interacted with another player in a video game. Maybe he was being a little more sarcastic than he should have been, but it was an appropriate response in his mind.

"I think I have an idea!" he exclaimed, removing his fist from his chin.

He gave a thumbs up, and shoved his hand into the accept button, as if he were giving it some sort of strange, approval punch. He heard the light beep as the button actually registered as being pressed. He laughed as Areto's name appeared next to his own in the top left of his hud.

"I'm sorry," he gave a little coy smile, "I didn't actually think that would work. Now then! Lead the way, oh great, situational guide! I'm excited to see something new!"