A soft whistle cut through the air, brushing her light-blue hair into her eyes once more. There was a small laugh as she brought a gloved hand up and pushed the strands back to the sides of her face. The girl laughed quietly; she had initially started setting her hair like this as a joke amongst her friends, but she found that she actually liked it and left it alone. Her dark blue eyes turned to the small creek that ran through the middle of the Sunshine Forest on the twentieth floor.

Over four thousand people were gone from this world already… How could they survive another eighty floors at that rate? Lily Hendricks had been trapped in the floating castle of Aincrad nearly seven months ago, but it had been relieving that the death rate dropped significantly after the first several weeks. The other players in the death-game still knew her as Lily as she had never been one to like using a username over her real one. She was the result of an American father and a Japanese mother, having taken the former's name, and had faced devastation at the moment of Kayaba Akihiko's announcement. However, she had come to actually relish the liberation that came with a new life in Aincrad and, despite her desire to return home and see her loved ones again, she didn't want to forget that reality is what the mind perceives it to be.

Lily placed a hand on her hip as she felt a chill run down her spine. "Who is it?" She asked sharply, turning her head over her shoulder.

"Calm down, Lily, it's just me. We have to get back now or the others are going to wonder where we've been," Replied the voice of another girl who looked nearly identical to Lily, except she had straight brown hair that fell to her shoulders with an amethyst barrette fastened to it.

"Oh, Rose… Don't do that," Lily shook her head with a small laugh and joined her sister, "You know I get jumpy…"

"But it's fun," Came the retort and a playful push. "It's Hana here… How many times do I have to remind you before you start to do it?"

"As many as you want, I'm not calling you by anything but your name unless there are other people around," Lily waved her off as she typically did, causing Rose to simply roll her eyes and continue their walk back to J eroh, a small city on the floor where they had been staying since its discovery.

"… now I have finished the official tutorial for Sword Art Online. Players – I wish you luck." The voice faded away as the cloak fell and Lily stared ahead of her, dumbfounded. The only administrator in the entire game had appeared before them, informed all ten-thousand players that they were now gambling with their lives, and he vanished once more.

What? No, seriously, What? It was a video game… How could somebody think that this was even a remotely good idea? As Lily's eyes glanced to her twin sister, she could see the girl was on her knees, staring at her empty hands in disbelief. She shook her hand and crouched down, putting a hand on Rose's shoulder, "Hey… C'mon, don't, Rose – we'll be okay," She said; despite the fact that Lily could barely believe her own words, she seemed to convince Rose a little bit. There was a nod and a nearly-defeated motion to stand up. Lily put her arm around the other girl – they just had to get away from the chaos of that crowd.

Lily watched as tiny groups began to stick to one another in the mass of people – all of them looked either experienced and serious or terrified. The former would all quickly leave the town square and then, soon after, the Starting City. The others would either be too afraid to leave that forsaken town or slowly get used to the idea of this game becoming life.

Author's Note: Hey, guys – this is my first story I've written alone in a very long time. This account is fresh, as I've matured a lot in my writing and in general since I last published on this site, so I wanted to get in fresh. I really want reviews – I love hearing what everybody has to say and feedback is highly encouraged. If you have questions, comments, or concerns (or you just want to talk) feel free to e-mail me or Private Message me here. My e-mail is on my profile page, I'm always open for whatever you guys need! Please, don't be shy and let me know what you really think. ^^" Can't improve unless you guys tell me what needs improving.

For a little bit of background on how much canon there will be here... There will be almost no canon-play. Kirito, Asuna, Silica, Lisbeth, Agil, Klein, and nearly every other character known from Sword Art Online the anime/light novel/manga will be completely non-existent. Heathcliffe will likely still be a part of the story, but I will not have him appear often, simply because I don't like to take a character made by somebody else and use them. Sadly, he/Kayaba Akihiko are both important to Sword Art Online's general progression. Luckily, I won't have to use him/them often. As far as Aincrad is concerned - I plan to use whatever is known about the world (or as much as I know/can find) in order to maintain the setting properly. Questions? Message or e-mail me and I will happily answer them!

Please, no flaming or wasting of posts in the review section here. I don't tolerate it. However, I still appreciate feedback - positive or negative - just don't be rude. Be grown-up about it, that's all. ^^ Otherwise, I hope to read what you guys have to say or receive some messages at some point throughout the story.

Keep climbing,

~ Scout