Disclaimers: I do not own Sword Art Online, I do not own anything related to the intellectual property. This is done in the spirit of fandom as a tribute, not rip-off of a thoroughly enjoyable work.


A/N: I would like to apologize up front for the amount of material in this chapter that comes from episode one of the anime. Direct quotes are used for my own benefit, as they help me find the voices of the characters. This chapter will stick mostly to canon, with the exception of the inclusion of Sinon. The next chapter will still follow closely, and by the end of the third chapter the stories will diverge completely.

This story will focus around Kirito, Sinon, and Asuna, but as of now is firmly Kirito x Asuna.

Constructive criticism is welcome and appreciated. This is my second fan fiction ever and I make no pretense than I can't improve. Thank you all in advance.

Due to the very rough nature of this chapter, this chapter has been revised as of 12/29/14.


Kazuto Kirigaya sat in his room, his Nervegear in his hand, a magazine in his lap, and the television tuned to coverage of today's launch of the world's very first VRMMO, Sword Art Online. He decided to focus on the television for a moment, and saw coverage of a group of people who had waited three days just to get a chance to pick up copies of the game. He smiled. He had gotten pretty lucky, being one of a mere thousand people who had been selected for SAO's closed beta. Still, he couldn't believe that anyone would be willing to wait in line for three days just for a video game. You would wait a week, it'd still be there.

Kazuto heard a knock on his door, followed by the voice of his sister. "I'm going to practice now, see you later, okay?" He looked at the door, but didn't move from his seat. Part of him wanted to go. But he'd been unwilling to ever since he'd found out he was adopted, that Suguha was really his cousin, not his sister. His uncle had beaten him for it, but he still hadn't gone back. He felt guilty for not being much of a brother to her since then. He knew she'd been pushing herself so hard since he'd quit, He'd never told her. Never really did much with her or for her anymore, save help her with her math homework.

He heard the door close and knew she was gone. In a way, she was going off to do the same thing he'd be doing. They'd both be playing with swords, both going to their sanctuaries, the scenery was just different. He made a promise to himself to fix thing between himself and his sister next time he had the chance. Things had been like this for too long. He might go with her next time. it was the least he could do as her brother. He sighed, pushing the thoughts from his head. He smiled. It was launch time. He put the Nervegear helmet on his head and lay down. He closed his eyes, his mind emptying of everything but what he was about to do. He was excited. He and the other betas had cleared eight floors in one month last time around. Surely they could do better this time.

It was with that resolve that he gave the order to his Nervegear, "Link start!" and the world burst into streams of color.


Asuna Yuuki was staring at the Nervegear in her hands. She had no idea what to expect. She'd never played any MMO's before, but the prospect of one that had a true virtual reality had finally been appealing enough for her to let her brother talk her into trying it. She owed him for letting her use his Nervegear while he was away instead of leaving it in the box, waiting for him to come home. He'd known she'd need something to distract her from Mom. She'd have to make it up to him when he got back. She was looking forward to being anonymous for once. There was some appeal to not being identified as a Yuuki by everyone around her. It had made it hard for her to make real friends. Her family had money, but she wasn't given that much to work with. She didn't want for much, but her allowance wasn't much greater than that of most people her age. A lot of people lost interest in her after that. At least she'd be able to avoid that in Aincrad. And she'd be able to get away from her mother for a while. Asuna was so sick of her trying to sell her off to whatever well off suitor she could find that week. Had she already forgotten what it was like to want to fall in love? Asuna wasn't sure, but she knew she didn't want to marry for just money. There wasn't any happiness in that. She sighed, shaking her head in frustration. She looked back down at the helmet, relishing the escape it would provide for her. She put it on, smiling, giving the command as instructed in the manual. "Link start!"


Shino Asada wiped her mouth with tissue paper and tossed it into the toilet before flushing the thing away. Her heart was still pounding. She was so weak. She'd just opened the drawer. She hadn't even picked up the gun. A fake, plastic gun, and she couldn't even look at it without throwing up. She shook her head, frustrated at herself. She could be stronger than this. She had to get stronger. She glanced at herself in the mirror. Murderer. Murderer. Murderer. She couldn't get the echoes out of her head. She looked away, unable to hold her own gaze. She had to be stronger. She would become stronger. She left the bathroom and sat back down on the bed, staring holes into the cover of Sword Art Online. Would this really help? It was just swords, not guns. She knew the answer, though. She would make herself stronger. Fighting in a world where she wasn't a murderer in anyone's eyes but her own. Fighting players, monsters, whatever she needed to. She would make herself stronger.

Her resolve restored, she placed the game into her computer, set it up, and set it to run. She let thoughts of guns and death slip to the back of her mind. This game had helped the first time. Today was just a bad day. She knew she'd have those. Her breathing was coming easier now. She flicked off the lights and plopped herself down on her bed. Her resolve had return. She'd find some of her old friends from the beta, and they'd get started hunting right away.

"Link start!"


Kirito's worries all vanished as soon as he set foot in this familiar new world. He was back on Aincrad. He ran through the streets, letting it all come back to him, ready to start farming again, to get himself back to where he was a few weeks ago. He ran through the streets, dodging around players, excited to finally get to play the real game.

"Hey, bro, wait up!" an unfamiliar voice called out after him, causing him to do just that. Kirito turned to see an unfamiliar man wearing a red bandana chasing after him.

"What's up?" He asked the newcomer, confused as to why he'd been flagged down.

The man caught up to him, put his hands on his knees and started gasping for air. "You act like you know your way around here. You were in the beta test, weren't you?"

Kirito, letting his surprise show on his face, could only muster "Um. Yeah."

The other man kept going, having caught his breath, approached Kirito, putting one hand on his shoulder. "Cool. Today's my first day. So, could you give me some tips on the lower floors?"

"Uh, I don't know. . ."

The other man cut him off, clasping his hands in front of his face, "Please, I'm begging you." Then, changing tone without warning, "Look, my name's Klein, good to meet you."

Kirito finally gave up. This guy was weird, but he seemed nice enough. Besides, he was planning on going hunting anyway. May as well show some of the new players the ropes. Ninety percent of the people here were first timers. "Alright, I'm Kirito. Come on." With that, they both started down the path Kirito had been on before.


Kirito had brought them to the open field around the Town of Beginnings, not expecting the boar to be of any challenge to either of them. Klein was in the process of reminding Kirito not to make assumptions about anything. He tumbled backward after being charged by the boar, yelling as he did so. Klein dropped his sword on the way down and lay there clutching himself for a few moments, writhing in pain. Even the boar seemed so embarrassed for the man that it turned and went back to wandering the field.

"Oh come on, seriously? You can't feel any pain," Kirito finally reminded Klein.

Klein immediately stopped his squirming. "Oh, yeah, you're right. Sorry. Habit."

"Remember what I said? The first move is the most important," Kirito reminded him, trying to put the previous moment behind them.

"That's easy for you to say. It won't stand still." Klein responded, showing his frustration. The boar snorted at him, in response.

Kirito picked up a fair sized rock and began tossing it up in the air. "If you do your initial motion right, and activate a sword skill at the right time," he paused here, holding the rock near his face, ready to throw, to emphasize his point, and slung the rock right at the boar. The boar, finally realizing that one of the two players could hurt it, turned and glared at Kirito. Kirito finished, "The system pretty much guarantees you'll always hit your target." The boar's eyes glowed red for a moment, then it charged at Kirito.

Klein just stood mystified, "Initial. . . motion?" He picked up his sword regardless, ready to go at the boar again.

The boar charged at Kirito, who dodged it easily, "Here's an easier way of looking at it." The boar came back at him, locking its tusks with his blade, "Right after you start your move, wait for a little bit. When you feel the skill start to activate it, drive it home!"

Klein just sighed. "Drive it home?" Then it finally dawned on him. He adjusted his stance, put his blade on his shoulder and charged the boar, who Kirito had redirected towards him. Klein and the boar met, and Klein left a long, red gash along the boar's flank. The boar dissolved as its health finally hit zero and Klein roared in triumph.

Kirito waited a moment, letting Klein soak in his victory. "Congratulations," he gave the man a high five before continuing, "But those boars are about as weak as slimes in other games."

Klein's response was one of surprise, "You've got to be kidding. I thought that thing was a mid-level boss." Kirito could only roll his eyes as more boars spawned near them. Klein started jabbing the sword at the air around them, awed by the sword skills he'd just learned how to use. The conversation turned to the game, the skill system, the lack of magic. Both of them were eager to continue.

"Hey, Kirito, you still showing off?" A girl's voice rang through the clearing at them. They both looked up to see a light blue haired girl in a tunic a shade or two lighter than the grass they were standing on watching them from nearby. Kirito recognized Sinon immediately. They'd partied together a few times during the beta period.

"Whatever, Sinon, you know you do it too," came Kirito's response. He didn't notice Klein's wide-eyed expression upon seeing Sinon. She had, and was giving him a slightly confused look as she walked over to meet the two.

Klein finally regained control of himself as the two groups met. He bowed his head and offered his hand, "My name's Klein, I'm single and-" he began to motormouth, before Kirito shoved him aside and into the ground. Klein started to say something as he jumped up, but thought better of it. "Sorry about that. What I meant to say is, my name's Klein."

Sinon gave him a wry look as she sized him up. He couldn't be that bad, but he was definitely a little weird. "I'm Sinon, good to meet you," was all she said to him before she turned back to Kirito. "So what were you guys doing out here?"

Klein didn't give Kirito a chance to respond, just clenched his fist and shouted, "We're going hunting!" He paused, realizing his enthusiasm may have gotten the better of him.

Kirito's response was more level-headed, but not without enthusiasm. "Yeah, we're going hunting. Want to come with us?" Sinon glanced back and forth between the two. Klein seemed harmless enough, and Kirito and a few other beta players were the only other people out of the ten thousand she actually knew. She nodded, and the three ran off into the wilderness, swords drawn. For now, Kirito's guilt about his sister, Klein's worries about work and supporting himself, and Sinon's self-loathing were all forgotten in the joy of this new world.


Hours later, the three were admiring the sunset, looking out on the floating pools, the forested platforms, the silhouette of the dungeon pillar in the distance. It looked, felt so real. Klein was sitting down in the grass, his propped up on hands, with Kirito standing to next him, and Sinon standing next to him. He broke the silence that had fallen between them. "When I look around, I can't believe it. We're inside a game, guys. Whoever made it's a genius. It's amazing. Makes me glad I was born when I was."

Kirito's downer response was, "It's not that big a deal."

"Cut me some slack, it's my first full dive."

"You never used a Nervegear before today? This your first time ever?"

"Uh huh. As soon as I got the money together I rushed out and bought all the hardware I needed to play SAO. Got in line and score one of the ten thousand hard copies. I guess you could say I was pretty lucky." He paused for a moment, looking at the other two. "Although, you guys were ten times as lucky. You guys got to beta test it. Only a thousand people got to do that!" The other two shuffled in embarrassment. "Hey, mind if I ask how far you guys got in the beta?"

Sinon spoke up next, "We played for two months and we only got to floor eight."

"We can get there in half that time now, though," Kirito's boasting came back.

When Sinon didn't disagree, Klein grinned at them. "You seem pretty into this."

"Yeah, you could say that. During the beta test, SAO was the only thing on my mind. Day and night." Kirito pulled out his sword, gazing at it. " In this world, a single blade can take you anywhere you want to go. Even though it's a virtual world, I feel more alive in here than I ever did in the real one," he finished, sheathing his blade again.

Klein turned to look at Sinon. "What about you? What do you think?"

Sinon looked at the rune-rimmed sun, avoiding the gaze of the other two, letting her walls down for a moment. "I think. . ." she trailed off for a moment. "I think that in here I have control. That I don't have to be afraid." She gripped the handle of her sword, hanging at her side. "With this, I can be strong. I can be myself."

Klein smiled almost imperceptibly. This was the beauty of the internet. In a day, he'd befriended two people he probably never could have met in real life. And here they were, like three old friends.

Kirito finally spoke up, "So, you guys want to keep hunting?"

Klein jumped to his feet. "You know it! But the thing is. . ." he was interrupted by the sound of his own stomach, "I'm really hungry. I've got to log out."

Kirito couldn't help but grin at the man. "Too bad the food here only satisfies your hunger virtually."

"Yeah, for real, that's why I order a pizza to get here at five thirty."

"Wow, you're so prepared."

"You know it. Besides, the game can wait 'til I get my pizza on," he stood up, suddenly turning more serious. "Hey, I was going to go meet up with some people I know from another game later. I don't know what you two are up to after this, but, you know, if you want, you can friend them and hang with us." He looked back and forth from Kirito to Sinon. They both seemed reluctant. Sinon hadn't been particularly chatty most of the day. It had taken her a while to get comfortable, and even then she seemed content to let the two of them talk. "It's cool if you guys don't want to. We can try it another time. Anyway thanks for everything you guys did for me today," he said, making eye contact with one, then the other before continuing, "I'll make it up to guys someday. Virtually that is." He offered Kirito his hand.

Kirito took it, shaking it firmly. "If there's anything else you want to know, message me."

Klein offered his hand to Sinon next, she took it, tentatively. "Sorry about earlier," he didn't make any excuses. It was who he was. She nodded at him. He let go and walked away, opening the menu and looking for the log out button. That was odd. "There's no log out button."

Kirito and Sinon opened their own menus, scrolling to where they knew the button should be. "It's at the bottom of the menu," Kirito started, stopping when he found it genuinely wasn't. The three exchanged worried glances before starting to go over their options. Klein was sure there was an emergency log out system. The beta testers knew better. The stood there for sometime, debating on how to proceed next.


Asuna's day wasn't quite so eventful. In fact, for an MMO, she felt decidedly alone, like she was lost in a crowd. Everyone seemed to know where they were going but her. After spending a few minutes simply taking in the grandeur and scale of the game, she decided that she should explore the Town of Beginnings.

The sound of laughter permeated the air. She couldn't get away from it. The chatting, joking, laughing. It was refreshing to be somewhere that felt so alive. The whole experience was new. She'd never imagined SAO would be quite so big. This was her brother's game, after all. She hadn't played that many MMOs before this one. None of them for very long.

She eventually made her way outside of the city, ready to begin training, to get the feel of the Sword Skills everyone was going on about. She came across a boar within five minutes of leaving the city. It charged her, but it seemed so slow. Se sidestepped it and stabbed its side with her rapier. It turned on her, but she stepped deftly out of the way again. Its health had barely dropped a fifth of its total. She'd messed up her skill, that much was obvious. She caught it this time, she felt the skill working, and dug her rapier right through its snout. The boar dissolved into yellow light and she let out a cheer. She was getting the hang of it. She was smiling, beaming, as she turned to find more.


Kirito, Sinon, and Klein's discussion ended suddenly, as a blue light enveloped them and transported them back to the heart of the Town of Beginners. Asuna had just finished her hunting, and was ready to log off and attend to her studies when she found herself back in the central square. But it wasn't just them. Everyone. All ten thousand players were crowded into that square. It was buzzing. Was this some sort of ceremony? A rare quest to commemorate the launch date?

Then a red sign appeared in the sky. Warning. It spread, replicating itself until it filled the sky, each hexagon layer against the next. Warning. System Assessment. Warning. The sky had turned red. And then, to the surprise of everyone, it seemed to bleed. Red fluid seeped out of the cracks between the hexagons, pooling in midair above the crowd. It slowly formed a creature, then, a massive, faceless, red-cloaked wizard seemed to loom above them. The crowd was buzzing. What was this supposed to be?

"Attention players. I welcome you to my world. My name is Akihiko Kayaba. And as of this moment, I am in control of this world. I'm sure most of you have already noticed an item missing from your main menu: The Log Out Button. Let me assure you, this is not a defect in the game. I repeat, this is not a defect. This is how Sword Art Online was designed to be. You cannot log yourself out of SAO, and no one from the outside will be able to shut down or remove the Nervegear from your head. If anyone attempts to do so, a transmitter inside the Nervegear will transmit a microwave signal into your skull, destroying your brain and ending your life."

The figure paused here for a time, allowing the crowd to take in the news of what had just happened to them. Klein and Sinon thought it was impossible, but Kirito assured them that the Nervegear does, in fact, have the ability to be used in such a fashion. Asuna, on her own, just stood there in shock.

"Despite my warnings," Kayaba continued, "the families and friends of some players have attempted removing the Nervegears. An unfortunate decision, to say the least. As a result, the game now has two hundred and thirteen less players than when it began. They've been deleted from both Aincrad and the real world. As you can see, international media outlets have around the clock coverage of everything, including the deaths. At this point, it's safe to assume the likelihood of a Nervegear being removed is minimal at best. I hope this brings you a little comfort as you try to clear the game. It is important that you remember the following. There is no longer any way to revive someone within the game. If you HP drops to zero, your avatar will be deleted from the system forever, and the Nervegear will simultaneously destroy your brain."

The silence that followed was palpable. This was no longer just a game. This was a madman's experiment. People had died. Everyone playing could die. What had started as innocent level grinding earlier in the day was now a matter of life or death. Sloppy play, one slip up at any point, and your game was over. Your life was over.

"There is only one way for a player to escape now. You must clear the game." He explained what that meant, but everyone knew. The point of the game was to finish level one hundred. Now they had no choice. The panic was beginning to grow.

"Now, last but not least, I've placed an item in the inventory of every player. Please, have a look." The crowd began pulling out the mirrors he'd given them. Then the avatars' appearances began to reset. One by one, the character they'd created was replaced with their own true body. The realization took a moment or two, but the crowd was beginning to grasp the idea. This was real now.

"Right now, you're probably wondering why? Why would Akihiko Kayaba, developer of Nervegear and Sword Art Online, do this? Ultimately, my goal was a simple one. The reason I created Sword Art Online was to control the fate of a world of my design. As you can see, I have achieved my goal. This marks the end of the tutorial, and the official launch of Sword Art Online. Players, I wish you the best of luck." With that, the figure finally dissolved, and the crowd erupted into panic.


In the moment of panic, Kirito didn't have time to think about his sister, or his friends. Klein and Sinon let Kirito drag them away from the main group. Sinon seemed to be taking it the worst.

Her mind wouldn't stop racing. The game had just become real. Life and death. Flashes of a gun burst into her mind. Her shooting a man. Her becoming a murderer. She'd come here to escape that. To become strong. Somewhere, far away, she heard voices. Klein and Kirito were talking. She could barely make it out. It didn't matter. Her body, her mind wouldn't let her move. No guns. No guns. There are no guns here. No people. She only had to delete animals. Creatures. The stress of the moment had cracked her shields, but she was taking back control. She was resolved. She would become strong. This was her crucible, and she refused to crumble. She snapped back into reality in time to see Kirito and Klein looking at her.

Klein repeated what he guessed she'd missed while zoned out. "Kirito's going to the next town. He wants us to go with him. I'm going back for some friends of mine. Can't just leave them like this." He gave her a half hearted grin.

"Sorry," she responded. "I have to go with Kirito. I have to get stronger." The was steel in her voice. Anger. Both of the men were taken aback. Kirito had known her for a couple weeks now, but as he looked in her eyes he saw something behind them. Purpose.

"Yeah, alright. I can't ask a couple of people I just met to risk their lives for total strangers. You guys get out of here. We'll meet up in the next town," Klein responded as he turned to leave. He stopped. "You guys look better like that. Your real faces suit you better. Sinon, that brown hair suits you better than the blue you had earlier."

Sinon had no response, but she did give a weak smile at the compliment. Kirito, however, said, "Yeah, and you look better with that scruffy face of yours." With that, the two groups separated. Sinon and Kirito, forging out into the night tackling this new problem head on, and Klein, returning to the chaos and pandemonium, towards his friends and Asuna, to try to help everyone move forward and stay alive.


A/N: The edit wasn't particularly sweeping, just fixing Kirito and Asuna's introductions into something I can be happy with. Asuna still sees very little screen time, but Klein's introduction ate most of the screen time, and Asuna simply didn't have much to do. Thank you, everyone for reading this. Your input makes it all worthwhile.