Prologue
"WUOOOO..." Kirito yell trying to defeat the last boss, Kayaba Akihiko, after he had found his identity in the 75th floor. The other players still paralized and layed on their previous position.
Asuna, his wife in the game, shout desperately as she watch her husband, Kirito's body had the sword pearched through it.
"KIRITO-KUUUUN..."
The other players that had known him in personal also shout but not as loud as Asuna.
Feeling need to fulfill his promises and because of his guilt, the dead Kirito appear as a translusent ghost from his shattered polygons particles though it's continue to shatter. It shocked them all, including the creator. It never happened before.
In dazed determination, Kirito stabbed the still dazed Heathcliff with the unbroken sword that he grab in his hand. It end his life. Both of them disappear in bright light.
When he open his eyes, Kirito found himself standing in the sky that showing the sunset. He's confused as he thought he had died and his soul will disapper with his body. He don't have to wait for a long time, as his answer come as soon as he had asked them.
"Where am i?"
"This is a place i created as i want to talk to you, Kirito-kun. Perhaps you can call it… a metaphorical rendering."
"Talk to me? What happened?"
"Currently, the SAO mainframe that's stationed in the fifth basement floor of Argas headquarters is in the midst of erasing all data from its memory banks. In another ten minutes, this world will be completely erased."
"What about the people who lived there… what happened to them?"
"There's no need to worry. Just a moment ago-"
Kayaba moved his right hand and took a glance at the window that appeared.
"All of the remaining 6,148 players have been successfully logged out."
Then this meant Cline, Egil, and all the other people whom he had come to know during these two years had managed to return safely to the other side.
He firmly closed his eyes and allowed his tears to flow before asking "What happened to the ones who died?"
"Life can't be recovered so easily. Their consciousness will never return. The dead will disappear— this fact remains true in every world."
"Why—did you do this…?"
Kirito could feel Kayaba smile bitterly. After a long silence, he finally spoke:
"Why— I had forgotten a long time ago. Just why did I do it? Ever since I found out that a FullDive system was being created—no, even before that, I had wanted to build that castle, a place that exceeded the limits set upon the real world. Then, in those final moments… I saw even the rules of my world being surpassed as well… "
"Why?" he ask in sad tone, as if couldn't understand and won't believe.
"Don't we all have many dreams since the time we were kids? I have already forgotten how old I was when the image of a steel castle floating in the skies began to enrapture me… it was a vision that didn't fade from my mind no matter how much time passed. As I grew older, the image became more and more realistic, more and more expansive. Leaving the real world and flying straight into this castle… that was my only dream for a long time. You know, Kirito-kun, I still believe— that in some other world, this castle really does exist—" Kayaba said while he watch the sunset in calm.
Kirito think about his wish to have a normal life with Asuna in the forest house they had bought. He think he could understand what he means. In bitter smile he answer "Ahh..." in agreement.
Just as Kayaba about to go, he felt something wrong in Kirito's log out process "Then, this is... Kirito-kun?"
Kirito whom had understanding gaze before now in daze and slowly his body disappear.
"This isn't log out." He shout in surprise. Then he manage the windows making what ever taking Kirito's counciousness couldn't touch him as he couldn't prevent it. "At least you're safe for now. This is the least i can do for the trouble i had caused."
Kayaba watch the place where Kirito stand a few seconds ago "I don't know what happened, but i hope you could solve it. Good luck, Kirito-kun." And he disappear with the world he created.
Chapter 1
It's been two months since the SAO players released. 300 players still in coma state. One of them is the hero, Kirigawa Kazuto. He's still sleeping in the hospital. Asuna whom had checked and obtained where he's hospilatized, come to visit him every time she could. The longest is once a week.
As she continue to visit Kazuto, her relationship with Suguha, his sister, improve. They share things about Kazuto that they knew.
"In there, he's a loner. Always do something by himself."
"Eee... Still the same oni-chan. He's always play online games and seldom go out with his friends. If he has any."
"I hope he'll wake up soon."
"Umm..."
On a big golden cage, a beautiful girl floating dazely. Her long black hair that almost reach her buttock, sway softly as the wind pass. Her white skin and long black gown looks beautiful. Her black wings spread beautifully. The only flaw is her blank dazed eye that always stare blankly at far away if opened.
Behind her, the cage door opened with a loud voice but ignored. A man enter the room. He flys towards the girl and lead her to the bed.
"Ahhh... It's a pity that i catch the wrong person. But i could never thought that a boy will looks so beautiful. A real pity." He lay her in the bed and try to open the upper part of the one piece gown that's above the flat chest but blocked and a warning appear.
"What did you have? This king Oberon look foward to have it, Titania. Iaaa... Kirito-kun."
The man laugh crepily before leave the girl... no boy... on the bed of the big sized golden bird cage.
It's a nice day. Asuna and Suguha are relaxing in one of the cafe in the mall. They're planning to visit Kazuto later after lunch. While they're chatting, Asuna's phone ringing. A message had been received.
Absently she open it. It's from Egil, with a short message 'see this' and a file attached to the mail. When the see the attachment, her eyes went wide and shout in surprised "Kirito-kun?" earning attention from all customers and staff in the cafe.
Suguha whom stil in front of her, shocked and ask hesitately "Asuna-san?"
"Suguha-chan, can we visit a place first?"
Not knowing what to answer, she nod in agreement.
As soon as they finished eating, which is hurried by Asuna, they go to a small cafe called 'Dicey cafe'. Quickly, Asuna go in and ask as soon as she saw the bartender.
"Egil, what's the meaning of this."
"Oh, you're fast."
"Egil." She shout in annoyance and hurried.
"Hai... Hai... Calm down. Sit down first."
"Where did you get this picture?" showing her phone that show a beautiful black hair fairy in a big golden bird cage.
"In an online game." Showing them an online game case called 'Alfheim online'.
"Alfheim?" both girls ask.
"Emm... It's from an attempt to reach the top of the tree of life."
"Ah, the attempt of lauching from the shoulder of the lower players?"
"Em... They couldn't reach the top, only the lower branch. But from the zoomed pictures they taken, this showed."
"Are you sure it's oni-chan?"
"I'm quite sure. After all, Kirito-kun has quite feminime face." Both girl has to agree. Suguha remembered their mother had tried to put a dress on him once when they're little and it's quite cute and beautiful. As he shut himself in his room for a week after that, she never try it again.
"Suguha-chan, sorry. I think i'll skip today's visit. I want to check it."
"I am coming too. I had played Alfheim for a year. I'll help rescue oni-chan."
"Then let's meet there." They say their good bye and go home.
At Yuuki residence, Asuna is staring at a ring like machine, the amusphere. Her hands trembled but finally she resolved herself and put it on. Then connect to the game she had gotten from her dad, she shout 'LINK START'
She input all the needed data and choose undine as her race. When she's awakened in the beginning town of the undine that she remembered she never make up a set point meeting with Suguha or know which one is her character. Feeling so stupid, she log off and try to call Suguha.
After an embarassing conversation about their mistake, some joke and awark laugh they agree to meet in one of the neutral country and log on.
While both girls on the journey, up in the golden bird cage, a dazed eyes slowly regain it's focus. The boy that laying in the bed, slowly sit up. After fully focused, he inspect his surrounding. He's surprised that he's in a kind of cage in night sky background.
Thinking that he's still in SAO as the last thing he remembered is speaking with Kayaba Akihiko, he try to open his menu. But as he slash down his right finger as usual, there's nothing happened. He try a few times but nothing happened.
Frustated, he slash down both hand and a menu windows appear. There are status and saw some of it are question marks. He's confused and try to open his items. All of it are question mark except one that write 'MHCP001'.
Curious, he click it and it appear. It's a cristal drop that looks like the 'Yui's heart'. Hoping it is, he touch it gently and forced to close his eyes when suddenly it give bright light.
From it, a girl with a closed eyes appear. Treambling, he call in small voice "Yui..."
The girl open her eyes. She quickly descend to the boy "Papa..." and give him a hug while crying.
"Yui."
"Papa. I miss you."
"I miss you too." they hug and in silence for a while until Kirito break the silence "Yui, is this SAO?"
"Wait a moment, papa." She close her eyes while sitting in Kirito's lap. A few momments later, she open it. "It's similar. But not the same cardinal system. Papa, where are we?"
"I don't know. I just woke up here." He also looks confused.
Yui feeling something wrong, frown "Papa, let me look at your data." She close it for a few moments before said in confusement "Papa, why does you data has... Papa? PAPA." Kirito who just sit in the bed in confusement before, now dazed for a while before fall down to his side.
Yui quickly set him in a more comfortable position, laying on his back. Yui looks worried and decided to looks for help. She change to her other form provided by the world, a navigation pixie and fly away trying to search for help.
Just as she flew down towards the town, the cage door opened and the man that had claimed himself, Oberon walk in. He walk towards the sleeping boy.
"Hmm? Nothing changed? I thought something happened here." Feeling need to cut the connection from outside, he created a barrier in the lower branch. It appear just behind Yui's back but in her haste, she ignore it. He had wanted to create it when the attempt almost reach the lower branch, but feeling it's not to important, he didn't set it up. After all, no player will ever reach this place. He had set it so himself.
Just now, he had a notification that said something happened in the cage. So he had come and saw nothing changed. Feeling need to be cautious, he set the barrier up. After all, he hadn't get what he wanted from the sleeping boy. Until he get it, he'll be his prisoner. Even for his life. Nothing mattered if his experiment could be completed.
While Yui go around the town, thinking how to help her papa, Asuna and Lyfa are flying to their meeting point. It's quite far from their starting point. So they spent almost a day time just to meet. When they arrive, it's already morning. They have school and others activity so they had to log off which they do unhappily.
They try to do their job quickly so that they could log in. Alas, they there's a strong rain that disconnect the power for whole night. They had grumbled as they want to rescue Kazuto as soon as possible.
While the power are off, Kirito open his eyes once again. This time, he knew that he's in a cage and locked. He sigh in defeat before once again look around. To his surprise, the door opened not closed. It seems someone had forgotten to lock it. Quickly he run outside.
He had run aimlessly, just following the tree branch for a few minutes until he saw a bulding. When he's inside, he saw the building all white and a map in the wall. While he's inspecting the map, he saw a room that marked as 'experiment room'. Feeling curious, he decided to check the room first. There's no one around... right?.
When he had arrive at the room, he's shocked to see many hologramed brains. Inspecting the nearest one, he's schoked. It's seems they had been observed as an unhuman experiment. It'll never approved in the real world. It seems someone had do it in the VR with the somehow attained subjects. He suspect they're VR players.
He's inspecting the room and saw a flying box. Nearing the box, they saw it's a console. He's operating the console trying to log the subjects and himself out. He's so imerge in operating the console that he didn't notice the snails that had emerge until it's almost too late.
He manage to jump out it's grab but it separate him and the console. He try to dodge the tentacles while occasionally operating the console. It went for a few minutes. The snails began to lose their temper with the chase and went silent. Kirito take the chance. He's operating the console quickly trying to log them out.
He's searching for the log out menu when his feet draged away. Desperately he try to escape but failed. His finger manage to click a button on the console before the card in the console smaked and dropped. The snail give him electric shock to knock him uncouncious.
"Finally. What should we do with her?"
"This girl seems like the one in the bird cage."
"Let ask Sugou-san."
"Don't bother him. We had shocked her uncouncious right?"
"Em. So what?"
"He had been waiting for her to wake up. And now we had shocked her uncouncious when she had finally wake up..."
"Ah. It's best not to tell him. Let put her back before he come back."
"Ah, the code. If she could escape, she must know the code."
"Ignore it. Just pretend we don't know and never saw her. If she really know the code, she'll try to run again. At that time, we'll catch her only and tell him."
"Really good idea."
"Come on. I think Sugou-san will come today."
They take the uncouncious boy to his cage, put him in his bed and lock the cage before go to the lab once again.
What they don't know or aware, Kirito had pressed the copy button and the card had hit the transfer button while it dropped. And somewhere in the forest a figure from Spriggan race began to emerge slowly from the data.
Asuna and Suguha finally manage to log in. They're awake from the inn they had left their avatar the day before. They sent message to each other for their location and find that they're in the same town. They're just met when suddenly Recon message Lyfa that Sigurd had sold their leader, Sakuya to the Salamander.
Conflict come to Lyfa's heart. She want to rescue her brother, but she couldn't let this go. So they had rushed toward the meeting place after Asuna said her ok.
"I know that you want to save Kirito, Lyfa. But you couldn't let this happen right?"
"Asuna-san."
"Besides, i think if Kirito is here, he'll also help you to save your leader. Let's save her."
"Um.. Thank you."
They fly as fast as they could. Fortunately, their meeting point isn't too far from the meeting place. They pray that they make it in time as they fly.
Meanwhile, a certain Spriggan in the forest finally able to fly freely. He doesn't has any memory besides his name and the infos that could be accessed from the menu that he coincidently found while swinging in frustation.
"So my name is Kiri and i am a Spriggan. Finally i can fly." He recite what he know and his condition. It seems the copy process isn't complete but he doesn't knew that he's a copy. He only knew that he has no memories but quite high skill that he could use. He had spent few hours to check what he could and couldn't.
"Bdw, where am i? A forest?" he looks his surrounding and found nothing. Finally, he decided to fly up and saw that there's a fight not far from where he is.
He fly there just to witness that a fairy in red about to attack the other fairies. His reflex make him charge to help them.
"What a springgan doing here?"
"Who are you?"
"I am Kiri, just passing by."
"Then go away."
"I couldn't. You shouldn't attack another without reason."
"There's nothing wrong with it."
"It is. Life is precious."
"Huh. Then why don't you take their place?" one of them began to charge him. As he had lower skill, he's easily discharged and soon become a fire.
"Fire?" Kiri ask in confusement before fly to touch it. But it disappear before his finger could touch it. The others just stare gasping at him. He has quite high skill but seems doesn't understand the game.
"Interesting. I'll fight you next."
"Why? Couldn't we just talk?"
"No, If you win, i'll let them go." Kiri seems thinking for a while before give his consent.
They duel in the air. It seems Kiri is losing. But at the end, somehow Kiri is using dual sword that's seems familiar to Asuna and beautiful to the others. At last, Kiri win with the general, Eugene, become a fire before revived by Sakuya.
"Quite strong. Are you Springgan's secret weapon?"
"I don't know. I don't have any memory. And what i know is all that in this." Showing them his status.
"You got lost with amnesia? Is it possible in this game?"
"I don't know. This is a game you say?"
"Of course. If not how could we, human, fly? Ah wait. You don't have memory."
"Thanks for stating the obvious." He said in annoyance.
"We'll retreat for now." And the salamander fairies retreat. Sakuya then banish Sigurd from the Sylph teritory.
"Thank you for saving us."
"Kirito? You are Kirito, aren't you?"
"Who are you?"
"I am Asuna. Don't you remember?"
"Sorry. I don't know. I just wondering around trying to recall my memories."
"Why don't you log out? The system error could be fixed from outside. It's impossible to lose memory in the game right?"
"Log out? How?"
"Why don't you call your menu, Kiri-kun? It's on the end of the menu?"
"On the end? There's nothing there."
"Impossible." They all check and true. There's no log out button on his menu while their's have.
"How could this be?"
"It's like in the Aincard. No log out button at our menu. Are you..."
"What is Aincard?"
"Nothing. So, where are you planning to go?"
"I don't know. May be the big tree?"
"Big tree?"
"The one that you could see even from here?"
"Yaggdrasil?"
"I feel like i should... no i must go there."
"Are you going there alone?"
"May be."
"Why don't you join us?"
"Could i?"
"Of course."
"We'll join you when we have the fund."
"Ah. There's nothing much, but..." summonning a large bag of money "I hope this could help."
"Hmmm? Thank yooouu. Quite heavy. Emm? Sa...Sakuya."
"Hmmm? This could give you nice house or castle at the most expensive land avaiable. Are you sure?"
"Emm? I still have half my money. I hope it could help you. You're going to the tree too, right?"
"With this, we have half of the fund."
"Thank you. Good bye. I'll waiting for your return , Lyfa."
"Bye bye. Remember to visit. I'll throw party for you."
The Sylph and Cait Sith had gone away after it. They go back to their own country.
"Ahhhh... Finally we arrive."
"It's my first time."
"Me too."
"It is my first time, but alow me to welcome you to the netral city near" suddenly a white thing fall to his face "Wuaa... what is this?"
Kiri take the thing that had collapsed in his face only to find it is a pixie that has a swirl in her eyes. Asuna and Lyfa look at him when he yelled.
"What? A pixie?"
The pixie regain her composure and looks around. When she looks at Asuna, she happily tackle her "MAMA..."
"MAMA? ASUNA-SAN?" they're surprised
"Eh? No way, Yui?"
"Em... Yui yo, mama." Yui seems happy and tearly. Then suddenly she began to panic "Mama, daihen. Papa... papa"
"What's wrong with Kirito-kun?"
"Eh? Oni-chan?"
"Papa is up there." Pointing to the upper part of the tree.
"Eh? So it's really oni-chan? So we have to fly there?"
"It's quite high. May be a few sequence launch?"
"I'll check the distance." Yui close her eyes. She try to calculate the distance. She find that there's a barrier set up, the one that isn't there few days ago. Then a data caught her attention, it's the same as her papa though only partial. Her papa's data is still in the cage and complete.
"It has barrier there now, mama. We have to go through the only door. And why does papa here too? He's in the cage up there."
"Kirito? Where?"
"Kiri-san. He has papa's half data. Status, level and skill is the same."
"Then, Kiri is Kirito's copy data?"
"Not exactly. Kiri-san has a few control admin data."
"Nee... who is this Kirito?"
"Our friend. He's in the cage up there. We're trying to safe him."
"Ah. Papa is wearing a dress and has a long dress. He's pretty."
"Eh? How come?"
"Do you have his picture?"
"No. I can access the map and detect players only."
"Eh? You don't have the admin previlage anymore?"
Yui shake her head "Sorry."
"Doesn't matter. As long as you're ok it's ok."
"We'll save oni-chan."
"Let's go."
Just then, there are maintence announcement forcing them to log off. They had rent a room in an inn for their avatar to rest. Kiri and Yui whom can't log off just wondering around the town trying to gather data.
Kiri has the same personality with Kirito make Yui at ease with him. Kiri had heard that he's a copy data of a player with an id name Kirito. It seems somehow he's standing there active while the Kirito onlyl lay uncouncious in the bed in the big golden cage. May be he is the councious?
Asuna, Kiri, Lyfa and Yui standing in the front gate.
"Are you ready?"
"Emm."
"Let's go." Kiri open the gate and they enter.
They had fight with the guardians that always come endlessly as if they had spawned much more once destroyed. They fight with the best of their ability and almost defeated when an unexpected help come.
The Sylph and Cait Sith has come and help them. The battle make an oppening enough for Asuna and Kiri with Yui in Kiri's pocket to enter. Lyfa want to enter too but her speed is not fast enough to enter as she's separated from them by the guardians.
'Please, safe oni-chan, Asuna-san, Yui-chan, Kiri-kun."
In the room that contain the gate, Asuna and Kiri try to open but failed. Yui checked the gate and found that it's locked by admin. They had sigh in defeat at that and guardians began to enter the room.
Suddenly Yui yell "Kiri-san, your data has control admin data. May be."
"Yui, please try."
"Hai. Kiri-san, please touch the door."
"Like this?" he touch the door and Yui touch his and and the door.
"Copying data. Done. Door opening." They had become transparant and transported to a white place.
They had transported to a white corridor. Yui's leading the way and sometimes break walls. They're running when Kiri saw a map. He stop and inspect it. When he saw a room that labeled as experiment room, he curiously said it loud "Experiment room?"
This caught Asuna's attention. Her father's company manage this alfheim. If there's an experiment in it, she has to see it.
"Let see it first."
"Mama?"
"We have to see what the experiment about. My father's company manage this."
"Let's go."
They walk and find that the experiment room. Imagine their surprise that it's an unhuman experiment done to them. They try to find way to log them out. They saw the console in form of floating box and operate it.
They're trying to log the unconsent subjects out when the 2 snails come in and saw them.
"What? Another one?"
"No. It's different."
"Sugou-san won't like this."
"Sugou-san? He's the master mind behind this?"
"Who are you?"
"We're Sugou-san's friends. He give us consent to tour this place."
"We never heard it."
"We should catch them first. This time together. The last one quite difficult to catch."
"Hai... Hai..."
They had fight for few minutes. It's quite easy as they had been prepared and the snails are weak and only have their tentacles as their weapon.
"Arggg." Is the last voice they made before disappear.
Then they proced to log the subjects out. After finding every subject has log out, they continue their journey to Kirito's cage that located just above the lab but on the out side. They had to turn many rounds before saw the cage.
They had arrive at the cage and about to open the gate when suddenly Yui stop and warn them about the evil feeling that had approach them before gone. Then slowly their surrounding freeze and only them and a person that call himself Oberon could move.
They had try to fight him. But as Oberon that later revieled as Sugou is the GM and cheated, they're lost. Kiri is impaled to the ground and Asuna is sexually harrasted by Sugou. Kiri had become angry and depressed at his weakness until he heard a voice.
"Do you give up?"
"He's the GM. I am just memoriless player. I couldn't do anything."
"Thought like that disgrace our battle."
"Our battle?"
"You doesn't remember it? Weird." A few moments of silence "Ah. Only the memories isn't copied to you. And the counciousness is tranfered to you. Very intereting."
"Never mind it. But Kirito-kun, you have proven that even the GM could be beaten. Our battle in the Aincard showed that."
"Aincard?" he then saw flashes of memories and finally remember who he really is.
"Stand up, Kirito-kun."
Slowly he stand up. Sugou saw this. He leave the paralized Asuna, thinking he could finish the annoying bug. What he didn't expect is that Kiri's next word
"System login. Heathcliff. Password." Unknown id and password pass through Kiri's mouth and around him appear the GM windows.
"System command. Set Id Oberon administrator previlages to level one." The GM windows around Oberon disappear.
"What? How could it be? I am the god. No one is above me."
"No. You're just a coward thief king."
"You brat. System command. Object Id Excalibur generate." He yell in desperation but nothing happened.
"System command. Object id Excalibur generate." A golden sword materilized in front of Kiri. He then threw the sword to Oberon. "Only a command to materilize the legend item. How convinient." He say in sarcasm.
"Brat..." Oberon than attack Kiri aimlessly only to be repelled easily. It frustate him more and attack more wild and blindly. Finally Kiri has enough and finish him off. He disappear with a girlish scream as he had been cut in 2 before stabbed in the head. Now he regreted to set the pain absorber to 0 before he lost his administrator previlages.
Kiri stand alone in the white platform in the timeless alfheim. Kayaba Akihiko had come to confront him.
"Good job, Kirito-kun."
"Kayaba Akihiko, you still alive?"
"You could say so. But i am mere an echo of his mind. An after image you may."
"I'll never understand you. But thank you for your help."
"I only lock your data as reward of your success in defeating me. But this time my help isn't a free one."
"What should i pay?"
"I'll entrust this seed to you."
"Seed?"
"Seed of the world. That world." Kiri flinched and Kayaba noticed it "But if you still have something other than hatred to that world, please keep it. You could do what ever you want. Delete, forgot, or plant it. Your choice."
Taking his silence as yes, Kabaya say his good bye before disappear "Then, i take my leave. May we meet again in the future."
All problem finally finished. Oberon had been defeated and killed. It'll took a while to respwan. But seeing Sugou's personality, it'll took very long time. After all, he himself has set the pain absorber to 0 and had been cut several times after it. It'll be a shocking experience for him.
Asuna and Kiri now standing in front the cage. Yui whom had appear in the cage try to awake Kirito but failed. She finally open the cage after sensing their presence and crying in Asuna's arms.
"Don't worry, Yui-chan. Every thing will be fine." Asuna try to reasure her as well as herself.
Kiri just stand near Kirito's avatar. His previlages still on "System command. Unlock protection Id Kirito. Transfer data id Kiri to Id Kirito." And disappear in before Kirito's eyes slowly open.
"Kirito-kun?" "Papa?"
"Asuna? Yui?"
"Kirito-kun." "Papa." They both tackle them in happiness.
"Waaa..."
"I miss you, Kirito."
"Yui glad papa is safe."
"Kirito-kun, could you log out?"
"Let me check." Kirito check his menu and found the log out button. "Emm."
"Go log out. Sugu-chan is very worried about you."
"Sugu?"
"Hmm. She had helped us to get here but."
"But the guardians stop her."
"How could"
"Kiri's memories data transfered to me. Thank you."
"Let meet again later." Yui said happily. Both parents nod and smile. Kirito log out after giving them a hug. Asuna soon follow after kiss Yui in the forehead.
In the real world, the eyes that had been hiding for 2 years and few months finally open it's shelter and go out. Slowly it regain it's focus. The owner of the eyes finally could see the dark room. Antiseptic slowly attack the nose.
'Hospital?' is the first thought of the figure. Slowly he sit and put both hand on the helmet he's wearing, pulling it off. Even the simple thing had made him tired.
Before he could do anything else, the door to his room had been opened. He expected to see Asuna or Suguha as Asuna had promised to meet him before he log out. But to his surprise, a man he doesn't know stand there. His face has the insane looks and without any warning has charged foward. His big hand squeze his thin neck.
Kazuto had been asleep for too long. He has no muscle and very weak at the moment. So he could only struggle weakly and thought he's going to die as his vision began to darken.
Before he fell uncouncious, he heard the door opened once again and someone shout his name in worry before the man tackled off him and his vision become completely dark as his councious loss.
Asuna and Suguha had just arrive almost at the same time from their house. They finally regain permission to visit Kazuto from the front office. They open the door only to see someone squeze Kazuto's neck.
"Kazuto." "Oni-chan." Quickly they run to the man and separate him from Kazuto that had lost counciousness.
Worried that something happened to him as he's still weak after just awake from coma, Suguha quickly hit the nurse button and try to call him while Asuna hold the struggle man but her eyes in Kazuto and Suguha.
"Stop struggle. It's no use." She tighter her grip.
"Asuna-chan." The man trying to plea.
Recognising the voice and recalled what the man had done to Kazuto in VR and real world, Asuna said in disgust "Sugou, you don't have the right to call me by my first name."
Soon the nurse had come. They immeadiately make a fuss and shove Suguha out the way while Asuna had taken Sugou to the wall and squeze him tight in the wall. Soon the doctor come and help the nurse.
One of the nurse had noticed their awark position and ask "What happened?"
"This man had try to choke Kazuto-kun. We saw him squeze his neck and manage to held him off."
"How is oni-chan?"
"He should be ok. But the doctor still examining him. I'll call the police." And go away.
About half an hour later, the police had come and take away Sugou. They want to take one of them to the office, but Asuna and Suguha refuse to leave Kazuto so one of the officer stay.
"Please tell me what happened. Do you know who is that man?"
"That man is Sugou. He's one of the worker that manage the online game, Alfheim. He had taken Kazuto-kun and about 300 players from SAO hostage at the game. He had conducted experiment on them for who know how long, but we manage to stop them today. Now he want to revenge. He want to kill Kazuto-kun."
"How could you know this?"
"I am one of the SAO players that manage to escape. I had receive information that someone looks like Kazuto-kun in the Alfheim."
"Coincidently i had played the game so we had go in to verify this. Turn out it's true. Oni-chan is held in a big bird cage."
"Hostage? Bird cage?"
"It's not important where. The point is he's taken hostage. We had finally able to locate and try to free him. We had coincidently saw the other 300 players that experimented. We had try to log them out but his compliences had try to stop us."
"Who are they?"
"We don't know. They had a snail as their avatar. I think it's the coworkers. They had know him and able to log in. We're able to stop their inhuman experiment."
"He want to kill oni-chan after we manage to stop him. That evil man."
"But earlier you said Kazuto-kun had taken hostage too."
"I don't know how, but oni-chan's data had been copied and helped us in stoping his insane experiment."
"We'll process this. Thank you for your corperation." The officer then left the 2 alone with the still uncouncious Kazuto.
The doctor had said that he's ok and stable. Nothing dangerous. He still has to process his mental health when he's awake, which he estimated tomorrow.
"Oni-chan." "Kazuto-kun." Each girl hold one arms and squeze it to asure themselves, he's real and ok.
The next morning, Kazuto had awake once again. This time, Asuna and Suguha were there to greet him. They had talked and Kazuto was being checked by the doctor. Around lunch time, Midori come with their lunch. They had forgot to tell her about Kazuto's wake. She's so happy and hug her boy that she had jokingly call the sleeping prince of the family.
After that, Kazuto does the therapy and slowly gain his muscle and weight back. Slow but sure he's back to health and soon discharged from the hospital with notice to come back to continue his theraphy.
After he had discharged and deemed well, he had been given the amusphere by Asuna as she want to play Alfheim with him. And now after all that happened, Asuna, Kirito and Lyfa could be found happily flying and playing in the Alfheim.
Omake
Kirito is doing group homework with his friends so the girls minus Suguha are the only one left in the canteen with the other students from the SAO incident. They're talking rather randomly until suddenly Asuna think aloud uncounciously
"I want to see Kirito-kun in dress once again."
"Asuna, it's Kazuto. It's againts the rules to use chara name here."
"AH. Sorry. It's just i sometimes forgot that we had come back to reality."
"It's ok. Just try to not forget it often."
"Then what is it? Kazuto-kun using a dress?"
"He's using a dress when we rescue him. He's quite preety i may add."
"Well... He has quite feminime face."
"I want to see it."
"Me too."
"But he won't wear it."
"We could do it ourselves." The girls thought for a while before they smile rather evil scaring the nearby students.
"Than it's settled. Let's meet tonight."
They met in a neutral country. It's quite a sight as their avatars are cute and preety, not to mention famous in their own way. Lyfa had somehow join them, not that they could refuse her.
After few hours of planning and shopping for the dress, they're prepared. So they began to search for Kirito. Coincidently, he's in the forest not far from their meeting spot. They found him napping in one of the three branch.
It took them hours of chasing and conering him. But it's worhted as now he's wearing the dress. They had their time never thinking about the consequenses later. After that they log off happily.
The next morning, when they met at school, they greet him like usual. But he ignore them like they don't greet him. Just a nod and gone.
They tried a few times before they had enough and call Suguha to ask what's wrong. It seems she also received the same treatment at home, completely ignored.
They think it's just the real world. But they're wrong. They also ignored in Alfheim and he went solo. They could only sigh in defeat and wait for him to cool down.
Lesson noted. Never put Kirito in a dress without his consent.