Prepared Player- A Sword Art Online FanFiction
RING RING RING RING I pick up my phone. "Hello?" I ask. "I have that game you wanted. The sword one." The voice responded. "We'll meet as we planned, I'll see you soon." BEEP They hung up.
I grabbed my coat and zipped it up on the way down the stairs and ran out the door onto the vacant San Francisco alleyway behind my house. By the time I reached the spot behind a pile of dirt and garbage I had become paranoid and was gripping the 750 dollars in my pocket tight, I have to get that game, I thought, but while in thought I ran into the person who was selling me the game. I stepped back and looked up, they weren't that big, in fact if I wanted i could have taken them down if they weren't holding a gun. They were wearing a mask so I had no idea what they looked like and their bagged clothes hid any way of identifying a gender. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you." I looked down and away from his gun.
"Are you Iris?" They looked down at me and spoke with a distorted voice.
"Yes, I am." I looked up trying to see under his mask but all I saw was darkness.
"You're younger than you said. You said you are 18, but you look nine. How can I trust you have the money?" They showed no emotions in their voice or actions.
"I'm older than I look and I have the money!" I said back in the same, but higher, cool ,and threatening voice. I pulled out the 750 dollars and looked into his almost glowing red eyes. As they saw the game they pulled the game from a pocket. Sword Art Online, it was almost mine. "What about the nerve gear?"
"I want extra for that." They cheated me they said the deal was for both.
"What! No way-" I stopped as he put the pistol to my head. "Fine." I reached into my pocket and pulled out another 560 dollars. "This is all I have left take it or leave it." They pulled out a backpack and put the game inside putting his hand out for the money.
"The nerve gear is in the bag," I placed the money in his hand and reached down for the bag but they grabbed it. "Allow me," They then held it up for me. I reached for it but he grabbed my shoulder and turned me so my back was facing him. Before I could react they put the backpack on me like a parent with a small child. "Now run along brave little flower."They said in a soft voice. And at that I obeyed and ran to my dark house.
I ran up the stairs turned on the computer on my room, I didn't have any power in my home so it was plugged into an outlet that belonged to my neighbors that they didn't use. One week, the server was still closed for one more week. One week to prepare, I thought, But I need to get supplies so I am able to go under for long periods of time, maybe the person who gave me the game c-, no. The thought terrified me. There was no way I was going for them to help I'll look online. As soon as I looked up nutrient packs for comatose patients I found something. It was a watch that injected water and nutrients when needed for comatose patients. Wow, only 150 dollars, I then bought the watch and 1,000 dollars of refills, certified to last five years of use. They arrived the next day. I pulled them out of the box and set it up so I could go under for as long as I wanted.
A week later the server opened and I was the first one on. Entering the game I held my hands in front of me they were, my skin color from when I was a kid and got healthy sun, a light golden brown. I reached up to touch my hair and it was its natural thick curl. I walked over and looked in a mirror, my normally pale skin was the same color as my hands. My hair. It was black. My hair hadn't been black since I was a child. I looked like a child. I walked over to a building and was greeted by another chara- player.
"Hey little girl! Do you know where the towns square is?" A guy in black ran up to me then stopped. "You seem too young to be playing this game." He slowly walked up to me.
"It's just my avatar, it's a glitch." When I spoke my voice sounded the same but somehow wasn't. "And yeah follow me," I beckoned him then climbed up the nearest building with ease. "You comin'?" "Yeah," He then struggled to climb up but reached the top nonetheless.
"How did you do that?"
"I climb IRL." I looked up at him he didn't have a sword yet, neither did I. "We need weapons."
"I think we came with them in our inventory." He said opening his inventory list. "Yeah right here," He pulled out a thin black sword. "We got to design them before the game."
"I know but I thought we'd have to pick them up from somewhere." I them open my inventory and pulled out two thin chrome blades.
"How did you get two?!" He stared at me in shock and disbelief that I got two when he only had one.
"I was in the Beta test. While fighting I unlocked Dual-Wielding." I placed the swords in holsters by my sides. "I hope I can change my avatar."
"I think you can. We have to get to the Square before we're late!" he said urgently.
"Follow." Then I jumped to a different building then across the street to another to another to another. I stopped and looked behind me and he was there. "Fast. We're here." I jumped down and almost landed on someone.
"EEEEE!" They screamed his short hair gently waved as he fell down. "Be careful where you're jumping!"
"Be careful where you're standing!" I yelled back at him and smiled. "Nice bandanna. I want it."
"What?" Both the guy in black and the guy with the bandanna said. "Give it to me. Now." I held out my hand, but when he resisted I pulled out a single sword and yanked it off his head. I took off running. Everyone cleared out of my way as he chased me but then he stopped as I continued to run up step and right into someone. They were tall, about 15 feet or more but I stood my ground. He stared down at me so I simply stared back.
"Go stand with the others." He growled, I then turned my back on him gripping one of my swords and walked into the crowd as he began to explain that he was the creator of the game and that no could leave the game and death in the game led to death in the real world. Gasps and tears fell all around me while I stood quietly, smirking. I only stopped when I started dematerializing in blue pixels. I looked down at my hands and then around me, I wasn't the only one. But once I was completely made of pixels I started to reform, but it wasn't the way I looked before. Instead of the light golden brown my skin was a almost white brown with a blue tint, due to being out only at night. I reached up and touched my hair which was flat and dirt brown. I looked around and everyone else had changed, but how? I had to do something about looking like I lived in a cave with little to no food. In order to hide this I tried to walk away, but realized that there was a force field.
"HEY! I'd like to wander now!" I yelled up at the creator. "I'm really bored and I don't like looking like a smurf!" He looked confused and let me go while he explained the rules to everyone else. I quickly ran into a building and wiped the dirt off my face. That helped, my face was now a natural color, for some reason the game thought that the unhealthy color of my skin was just dirt. I then left the building and walked in the street to find people crying everywhere. I was about to go back in when someone stopped me.
"Hey," It was the guy in black, he didn't change much. "I'm Kirito," He smiled at me despite the situation.
"I don't care," I turned to walk away again. "We could work together if you want?" He asked me sincerely. "I don't like people," I then walked away, "Bye." I walked in the building, went up the stairs, and onto the roof looking for a market. Maybe I could get a job. I then jumped from rooftop to rooftop the wind blowing through my flat hair. When I finally got to the market I had picked up a couple hundred coins from NPCs' garbage cans. I looked at the different booths and stopped at one that sold clothing.
"Hello Madam! What can I do for you?" Chimed the NPC. A screen appeared in front of my and I bought a black long sleeved shirt, black pants and shoes, along with a long black scarf and belt. The next place I stopped was the craft shop where I bought needles and black thread. After I tucked into an alley and sewed the scarf into a mask that would cover my head and all my face except my eyes and put it in my inventory. I placed my swords in the belt and went back into the shop and signed up for hire where if someone wanted they can hire me to do a job, if I accept it. For the first week no one hired me.
Then two weeks went by. When I was told to meet up in the market that night. I walked up and saw no one there.
"Hello brave little flower." A person wearing a cloak walked out, but this time they didn't wear a mask and I could see the outline of their face. He approached me slowly as I grabbed my twin swords, but before I could draw them someone grabbed me from behind, pulling my arms back, pulling me onto my knees. "I only want to ask a question."
"What?" I asked trying not to sound scared but my heart was racing and the person behind my could tell this and started to hold my arms tighter.
"I need you in my Guild," He looked down at me in the most crazed but calm way, I looked away. He grabbed my face and forced me to look at him, a tear fell from my eye, I hated being taken advantage of. "Oh little flower," He spoke softly and wiped the tear from my cheek. "I need an answer now." I opened my mouth to talk but I couldn't even breathe. "Let her go she's scared to death!' He yelled at the person behind me. As they let me go my legs gave out beneath me. "Now little flower yes or no," I remembered the gun he had pointed to my head. "Because if you don't I can make your life very short."
"I- I don't want to." I didn't want to. I wouldn't. I was a solo player and person.
"Fine but if you won't work with us at least work for us." He held out his hand to me and I reached up and he helped me up. "Get your sleep then we'll meet you in our Guild Headquarters, and don't worry about finding it."
I stood there in shock until I knew I was alone and then ran into my rented room. Once I got inside I pulled of my mask and curled up under the covers on the small bed in the corner. How did he find me? Why me? What is he gonna make me do? My mind instantly went to the worst things but none of them were as bad as I thought.
I woke up wearily to find a hooded figure outside the window. As he saw me wake up he motioned for me to open the window. I walked up, opened it, and stepped back as he stepped in. He then closed the window and the blinds. Hey," He lowered his hood and he was a she.
"I'm Asuna, and your Iris right?" Asuna smiled at me not seeming like the person who would work with the people in the alley.
"Yes," I did not return her smile knowing what she was going to lead me to. She frowned, "Place your hand on this," She pulled out a teleportation crystal and held it out. When I put my hand on it we teleported instantly to a dark room that looked more like a cave than a room.
"Hello little flower," His voice sent chills down my spine. "We need you to kill someone for us,"
"But I said we wouldn't do that! We aren't PK'ers! We kill monsters only!" Asuna yelled at him.
"Not anymore Asuna! We had a vote everyone in the guild wants you gone and me to be leader!" He shouted back.
She reached for her sword but then stopped and turned to leave. "If you want to live, do what they say." Not even a second after, she was gone.
"So we need you to kill this person," He handed me a picture of Kirito. "He's a threat."
"Consider it done," I mumbled.