Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online; all credit goes to Reki Kawabata for creating this series.
She stood alone in a grassy plain as the wind attempted to blow into her face. She was wearing a red hooded cape at the moment. There was a look of dissatisfaction on her face as she continued to wander alone. She had a desire to grow strong, but the speed of her attacks just wasn't enough in her opinion. She needed the ability to pull out consistent critical hits since her rapier wouldn't give her any strength boosts. However, she wasn't able to gather the materials needed to enhance her weapon's stats since the boars refused to drop anything of use to her.
She turned around when she heard a boar snarl from behind. A health bar appeared in the center of her vision as the words «Enraged Boar» appeared over the tusked beast's head. The girl let out a quick smile before taking out a thin sea green saber with a dome shaped guard. She pointed the blade at her target before disappearing completely. The computer generated creature could feel a gentle breeze that felt soothing. It couldn't have possibly realize that it was about to witness its death in a split second.
At that moment, the girl reappeared in the beast's line of sight and stabbed it four times in around five seconds. Multiple shards of light shattered around her as the hood fell off her head, revealing brown eyes and long chestnut colored hair. The word congratulations appeared over her as the number thirteen changed to a fourteen in the upper left corner of her vision. A smile appeared on her face as the item Hardened Tusk» appeared in her inventory. The girl would be able to increase the «Wind Fleuret's» speed stat plus five now.
Those were the beginning days of the journey of «The Flash», Asuna.
Chapter 1: Zephyrus Flora
"You are all trapped in my world. I wish you all the best of luck through your endeavors in this world."
The words of Akihiko Kayaba echoed in Asuna's mind as she wandered through the town of «Ailily» located on the fifth floor of Aincrad. Three months had passed since the launch of «Sword Art Online» occurred and eleven hundred deaths had been reported so far. After clearing the first floor's dungeon, the group of players that decided they would be the frontline of warriors that would clear the game were on a pace of clearing two floors a month in order to not exhaust themselves. However, they had reached a roadblock when they entered the fifth floor's dungeon.
Much like the girl, many of the warriors christened as «Clearers» were training relentlessly in order to improve their armory and weapons to their fullest potential. However, two groups that had become the leaders of the Clearers began arguing about which one of them should be in charge of the attack. The Holy Dragon Alliance consisted of players that believed that the quality of players mattered more and thus the seven or so members of the group should be the ones giving commands during battle. They were led by a man named «Dragon» that thought people died in the first dungeon's clearing lost their lives because the survivors weren't good enough to handle the difficult boss battles, which conflicted with the second group's leader's views completely.
A player named «Kibaou» led his own group known as «The Army» with the belief that the larger the group, the more powerful the group would become since they could train them to be even stronger warriors as time went on. Sure people would end up dying because of this training method, but it would have been worth the effort in the long run since more top players would bloom by the time they reached floor twenty. His idea, similar to Dragon's, stemmed from the fact people died in their first dungeon raid. Unlike his rival however, Kibaou's philosophy came from the fact that he didn't want the commander in battle to die because the survivors weren't honorable until the end. He refused to let his group go down in any other way unless the original leader of the Clearers would have approved of it. The only way Kibaou would accept his death was if he had the same amount of honor «Diabel» showed throughout his life.
To be frank, Asuna didn't care about either player's viewpoint. All she did care about was that their argument was causing delays in clearing the floor. No one except a select few that were willing to go through the dungeon without the help of either group, but five people just wasn't enough to clear a floor. Being short handed was actually a common theme as a whole when it came to SAO. There were barely any merchants in the towns, so players were often short on healing potions or the recently discovered «Teleporting Crystal». As the people continued advancing further up Aincrad, they began realizing that the amount of usable buildings for lodging was actually really limited, so it would be better to advance as quickly as their ability allowed them.
The city of «Ailily» was booming with activity since it became the base for Clearers and players that have become comrades. The fifth floor was the first one where the ability to form guilds was activated, so around eighty percent of the population migrated to the city in order to gain money from joining with adventurers seeking glory or Clearers seeking help. The sounds of a Japanese city rang in Asuna's as she finally arrived at her destination, a small shop with the name «Forge of Fire» that housed the best blacksmiths the frontline could muster up for now.
The girl took a deep breath before opening the door in anticipation of males rushing up to her. She was used to the attention by now, but she still was always annoyed when people tried to hit on someone they never met instead of focusing on the most important thing...«salvation». That was the only thing people should care about while trapped in SAO. Camaraderie and romance wouldn't get them out of this game and she knew that. The only things she could rely on were her cold metal blade and her own strength.
"Welcome to Forge of Fire. How can I be of assistance?"
That oddly feminine voice shocked Asuna enough to make her lose her train of thought. When she looked up, she noticed that the only person in the shop was a girl that looked to be around the age of fourteen. She had brown hair that reached her chin as well as well as dark pink eyes that looked calming.
"Oh," the girl with chestnut colored hair replied, suddenly remembering what her purpose for coming here was. She brought up an inventory menu and hit something with her right finger, summoning Wind Fleuret and a bag filled with tusks. "Is the person in charge of this forge here right now?"
The other girl shook her head with the same smile plastered on her face. "I'm the only one running the shop for the next month. Any weapon needs leave to me."
"Are you sure? You look like just picked up blacksmithing and can't handle upgrading my sword."
The shop manager's smile quickly disappeared and turned into one with rage as she quickly snatched Asuna's bag of materials and sword. "I'll have you know that my blacksmith skill is already at two hundred. I'm by far the best player blacksmith in the entire game since most blacksmiths just reached one hundred. I'm more than qualified to improve it. In fact, I'll make you a completely new sword."
"I don't want a new..."
The blacksmith wouldn't let her finish her sentence though. "Using this Wind Fleuret as a base...I'll create a sword that will cause gale storms whenever you thrust. If I can't make a sword that you would be proud of, I'll do whatever you want. However, you'll have to do me a favor if I can do that."
"How did this even happen?" Asuna muttered before nodding in agreement.
"I'll put all of my pride into forging the perfect weapon. You'll be the first client of Lisbeth, the great blacksmith that will create the entire armory for the Clearers someday!"
Asuna left the forge confused yet satisfied. In her entire time in SAO, she had met only one other person that had the determination to get something done no matter what. People like Dragon or Kibaou claimed they wanted to clear the game as quickly as possible, but the reality was that they were arguing just so they could get all the credit for saving everyone trapped in the game. Neither of them really had the same sense of «honor» that Diabel showed throughout his time in the lead group. She knew that neither of the two heirs would give their life if they ended up doing something greedy or use their life to give someone else a second chance.
Lisbeth and that other player were different though. They both were willing to sacrifice something that could prove valuable if it meant that they would clear the game. She was determined, but not even Asuna would be willing to do the things they did since she felt she wouldn't have the strength to go through with it. Lisbeth was willing to give up on her combat skills in order to support people she never met and would probably only see once every couple months. She looked like a determined girl that wanted to focus on her work and get better and better no matter what. It reminded Asuna of her real life...something that seemed like a distant memory now. Maybe that was the reason she didn't snap at the blacksmith when he prized weapon was yanked from her hand.
The other player that showed the will to clear the game no matter what was also different from a vast majority of the players, but in almost every possible way. He was a man that was fully capable of leading the Clearers by himself, probably the strongest swordsman in all of Aincrad. He just wasn't meant to be a leader though because of his background. He gave up pretty much any opportunity to befriend anybody or join a guild in order to defend a certain group of players that wouldn't back him up in the first. He became the most hated player in all of Sword Art Online so that the wedge between beta testers and normal players would disappear once and for all.
Asuna smiled before putting the hood over her head again. She was one of the few that knew that the man's cold address towards the Clearers was nothing but an act and was very proud of the fact. She recalled the last thing he told her before going their separate ways.
"If someone you trust asks you to join a guild, accept that invitation. You can become a strong player…but you can only get so far as a solo player."
"Join a guild huh? Well there's only two so far and neither of them are worth my time," the girl muttered. She started heading towards the inn in the town to rest while waiting for her weapon to be completed.
«Ad Libitum» wasn't a large or luxurious inn. In fact, it probably was the smallest resting area Asuna had stayed in during her entire stay in Aincrad. The main lobby of the inn was a simple room with one two pieces of sofa and a simple coffee table. The walls were decorated with two or three paintings of forests and lakes. The only thing that rested on the ground was a blue carpet under the table and couches. It had the comfortable feel of a traditional Japanese house.
The only other person currently in the lobby was a boy with ash brown wavy hair and green eyes. He was wearing a grey long sleeve shirt under a brown leather jacket. A simple light blue blade with a black hilt lied across his lap as he was casually taking a nap. His gentle snores got on Asuna's nerves since she interpreted it as him not working hard to get ready for the next raid. She eventually was fed up enough that she walked over to him and punched him upside the head and caused him to moan.
"What was that for?" The youth questioned, covering his mouth before yawning.
"Eugeo, don't just lie there doing nothing. The fifth floor raid is going to start eventually."
"Yeah yeah. For now though, I'll be on standby." The boy looked over to the couch and attempted to sit down before being pulled back up by Asuna.
This was Eugeo, one of the few players that weren't involved with either of the major guilds that was a part of the Clearers group. He first talked with the chestnut haired girl on the third floor when the beta tester she admired didn't appear for the boss battle for the first time. She feared that she couldn't participate in the fight since she refused to battle alongside any member of the «Holy Dragon Alliance» or «The Army» on the battlefield. That was when the swordsman appeared by her side and agreed to handle the boss' minions. Much like her, he chose to not fight alongside the guilds since they wouldn't need him in the first place. He jumped on the opportunity to handle the small fry in order to help someone similar to him.
When the boss fight began, the two learned that they worked together as well as Asuna did with her partner in the first floor. They were able to easily eliminate «Determined Bats» and gather «Bat Venom» to craft their own healing potions which came quite in handy when they teamed up again for the fourth floor's dungeon. The two once again showed great coordination and were even able to defeat the boss itself using their teamwork. This led to the two agreeing to become a team for the next twenty floors since they were the only ones that they could rely on…or were suppose to anyway.
When they were preparing for battle in the town, Eugeo was completely different from his swordsman persona. All he ended up doing was sleeping and listening to the town's theme while just letting the days pass by. He didn't bother training his body to the absolute limit or sharpening his sword skills. He was completely satisfied with the fact that he was a level twelve and lowest leveled member of the frontlines.
"You probably could be the second strongest player in the game if you actually applied yourself. You know that right?"
The brunette just let out a small smile before scratching the back of his head. "Yeah, you've told me that a lot last floor too. I'm sorry; I just don't think I have it in me to be a leader."
"Whatever. Have you heard anything about the stupid argument ending yet? People are getting restless and want us to move on already."
The boy nodded his head before grabbing his sword and strapping it to his back. "They said be at the labyrinth's entrance in ten minutes. We're killing the boss today, one way or another."
The look on Asuna's face grew serious at that moment. This was what she was waiting for. They finally were going to make progress on clearing the game. "Come with me then. There's someone that I need you to meet. Something tells me you'll get along great with her."
"Are you setting me up with a date?"
The girl was sitting in the guest chair in Forge of Fire in anticipation for her sword being completed. To her left looking at the display case for weapons was Eugeo with a red slap mark on his right cheek. All he had was a stupid smile on his face as he gleefully pointed at swords inside of the glass. He didn't notice the sounds of a hammer hitting metal or a simple flame in the hearth of the lobby. He didn't even realize that he was in such a hot shop right now. All he cared about were the swords being protected right now.
Asuna was tapping her foot impatiently while looking at the arch that led to the workshop part of the store. They only had a few minutes before they had to leave and she would be forced to use her vanilla «Steel Rapier» that she didn't like that much. The stats being much weaker than Wind Fleuret was one of the reasons but it wasn't the one that made her so adamant against using it. It was the first sword she was rewarded with after a very lucky drop from a monster back on the first floor. She loved it very much, as if it was the first teddy bear she received when she was a little girl. It was the first thing in this nightmare she could rely on. She just couldn't bare the thought of abandoning it for some weapon she had no connection with at all.
At that moment, the blacksmith from before emerged out of the workshop, with a sword inside of a white sheath slumped over her shoulder. She had a huge grin on her face as digital sweat was beating down her head. She was now wearing black pants and a simple long sleeve red shirt. Her brown bangs covered her eyes despite the fact she was wearing a white bandana. She looked like she was hard at work for the entire time her customer wasn't in the facility.
"Presenting…Zephyrus Flora. It's a sword that increases the player's speed plus eight as well as improving their critical rate chance by forty percent, but in exchange the player's individually attacks won't do as much damage as before. The wind calls you."
Asuna looked closely at the sheath of the «Zephyrus Flora» before taking it very cautiously. She took the rapier out of its leather case and began observing that as well. It was as thin as her previous weapon but now it was light orange in color and the hilt was green, as if it was pretending to be a delicate flower. It was the same weight as the «Wind Fleuret» so it wouldn't take that long getting accustomed to it. The most important part though was the fact she felt comfortable using it. She could feel her partner's soul resting inside of this new sword.
"So, doing anything after this? I got a raid to attend, but after that I'm…"
Asuna chestnut colored hair blew in the wind as she stood outside the entrance to the fifth floor's labyrinth. Lying next to her was a sleeping Eugeo with a red hand mark on his left cheek in addition to the one on his right. He looked relaxed for someone that was hit twice for getting Asuna mad very easily. The dungeon they were about to enter was once again located in a cave, but this time it was located behind a waterfall in the center of the «Forest of Hope». The yellow leaves were beginning to descend from the branches. The sun's rays were being blocked by trees that still had all of their leaves. The waterfall's crashing sound allowed the girl to focus on her weapon and her weapon alone.
"I'll wait until you actually use it in battle. I'm not accepting payment if it's not something you're proud of."
Asuna looked closely at her new orange rapier one last time. This was going to be her new partner for at least the next ten floors. She couldn't let it down, and «Zephyrus Flora» couldn't let its new master down now either.
"Yo."
She wasn't expecting that happening. She looked up to make sure she wasn't just hearing things. Sure enough, a man with neat black hair and eyes of the same color. He was wearing a long sleeve blue shirt under a white breastplate and dark pants. The most distinguished part of his attire though was a black trench coat called «Coat of Midnight». His sword rested on his back as his signature coat blew in the wind. The «Coat of Midnight» was a last attack bonus from the first floor's boss and bind to the person who first equipped it, so this could only be one person.
It was the «Beater», Kirito.
Next Time: Formation Assemble
A/N: Thanks for reading my new SAO story. I decided to right this story since SAO II is approaching Mother's Rosario and that's my favorite arc…so I figured why not write this project sooner. If you have any questions, just ask in a review and what not. See you all next time.