Chapter 1

Author's Note: Well, I'm SpiritCaravans (bonus points to who can name the reference). This is my first fanfic ever. I was a bit of a fan of the Sword Art online anime, but felt that the first series was kinda rushed (what with both the Aincrad and Alfheim Online story arcs crammed into only 25 episodes), so here is my attempt to add a little meat to what I felt was essentially bones, but had major promise. In case the description wasn't clear, this is a Lisbeth x OC story, and rated M for a reason. If you don't like, don't read. So, here are the first three chapters. Reviews, feedback, and constructive criticism are much appreciated. I will update every Friday evening or Saturday morning, depending on feedback and my schedule. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

November 6, 2022 12:00pm

He slowly entered the elevator in the hospital's main lobby, shifting the package in his arms as he pressed the button for the fifth floor, hospice. As the elevator slowly ascended, he went over everything he had to do. Set up the laptop. Download the game to the hard drive. Download the Nerve Gear settings. Put it on her. Activate the gamer console interface. Then link. That would be the most important part. If the link didn't take, she wouldn't be sent. He would waste hours, or even days, looking for her. He didn't want that. He wanted…what did he want? To talk to her? Laugh? A last hug? A last kiss?...closure? He supposed he wanted them all, but none so much as the last. He needed to know that, even on that day, she still loved him. He wouldn't be able to move on without that.

The elevator dinged, bringing him out of his thoughts. He stepped off and made his way down the hall as he had done so many times in the last year. The nurses registered his presence as they had for months now, with sorrowful looks accompanied by friendly hellos. Nobody even bothered to question the packages he carried. He was a known face here, in what he considered the valley of death. The hospice wing. The place for those waiting to die. It sickened him that she was here. She wasn't dead. Not yet. Not for him. Her brain told him otherwise. The slightest bit of activity was enough for him to try this crazy plan of his. Besides, what was the harm? If the equipment didn't sync, would her brain get any worse by having what was the equivalent to a plastic helmet on her head? With steel plates replacing the majority of her cranium for over twelve months now, he thought not.

When he reached room five hundred and one, her room, he hesitated. Pain, sorrow, and regret, his old friends over these last agonizing months, sunk there claws deep into his chest. It was always like this when he visited. Opening her door was the hardest part. Despite the reassurances from her parents, he always felt as if it wasn't his right to be here. It wasn't right for him to try to assuage his guilt by visiting three to five times a week. It wasn't right for him to be forgiven. Still, he felt that if he could just contact her somehow, things would be alright. He could tell her he loved her, that he would always love her. He could tell her he was sorry.

Taking a deep breath, he took hold of the handle. Opening the door, he stepped into the dark room, the only light coming from the machinery lining the far wall. In the middle of the room was a bed, its sole occupant hooked up to countless tubes and wires, yet having the sleeping face of an angel. He didn't want to walk in farther, feeling as always that he brought with him a sense of violation. He suppressed the feeling for now, intent on what he had to do. He slowly walked over to her bed, and saw with disgust that the flowers on the dresser at the foot of the mattress were dead. Probably days dead by now. What made him angry was that they were flowers that her parents had brought her the last time they had visited. Two weeks ago. It made him sick. Even before this, they had hardly paid attention to her. Their jobs and social life took precedent over their daughter. The fact that they hadn't bothered to visit in, what seemed to him, such a long time cemented his rather low opinion of them.

He forced himself to stop his line of thinking before his temper flared beyond his control. He seemed to be having more and more trouble with that lately. He breathed deeply, letting her scent calm him. She was always able to do that, even with just her presence. It kept him out of a lot of trouble in the last few years. And kept him on the straight and narrow, as well. For the most part.

He walked up to the head of the bed, staring at her beautiful face that seemed to be in a deep slumber. Gingerly, he reached across the bed and ran the back of his fingers across her cheek. He nearly flinched from the lack of response he received. Not even a twitch to let him know she was still alive. That she was still in there. Somewhere. It was all he could do to choke back a sob. He knew there was no way he would ever forgive himself. He pulled back his hand with a deep breath. He needed to be strong. For her, if not for himself.

He walked back around the foot of the bed to the desk that held a vast amount of machinery. Setting his burdens on the floor, he carefully cleared a space large enough to set up the laptop. When he had done that, he set up the game adapter, making sure all the connections were functioning properly. He then connected the Nerve Gear helmet to the adapter when all systems read in the green. With a last nervous breath, he opened the disk tray and inserted the game, and began the process of downloading the program.

After five tense minutes, he heard a feminine voice announce "Welcome to Sword Art Online".

Retrieving the disk and putting it away, he tapped a few keys and quickly used the manual interface to create what he thought would be an appropriate avatar for her. He then keyed in her user name: KIKO. He smiled. Her pet name was something they used only between themselves. Not even their friends at school called her by it. He then lifted the helmet and carried it gingerly to the head of the bed, almost as if it was an offering to the gods. Carefully, lovingly, he lifted her head slightly with his left hand, just enough to get the helmet past the back of her head with his right. When it was on, he made sure all of the cables were properly connected. He then walked back to the computer and activated the helmets external mic, setting the receiver for max range.

"Link…start," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Link Successful," he heard the voice say

He sighed with relief. Almost done.

He walked back over to the bed. He thought she would look worse with more machinery attached to her. It surprised him how much the helmet seemed to…blend in. It only served to make him feel worse. Taking one last look at her, forcing himself to try to remember all of her features, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

"I'll see you soon," he whispered gently into her ear.

He turned and walked out of the room without a backward glance, not seeing the error message pop up on the computer screen, and all the lights on the NERVE GEARS status plate turn red.

November 6, 2022 3:00pm

"Welcome to Sword Art Online," the feminine voice said as he uploaded the game to his own impressive hardware setup he had in his bedroom. What his parents lacked in parental interest in him, they more then made for in material possessions, so long as it kept him occupied and away from them. He didn't know anyone else that had anything close to the systems he was currently running.

He pushed himself back from his desk, more determined than ever to see this through. He picked up his Nerve Gear helmet that lay on his nightstand as he made his way to the bed, feeling anxiety rise in his stomach as he walked the twenty feet across the room. He took off his shirt, pants and socks, stripping all of his articles of clothing until he was left only in his boxers. He planned to spend a good twelve hours in the game and wanted his body to be comfortable. Laying down, he folded his clothes and set them by his bedside before he finally placed the helmet on his head. He rested against the pillows, ready to begin.

"Link…start," he said.

He immediately felt the unpleasant sensation of every one of his nerves feeling as if he had passed through a field of static electricity as the helmet blocked his central nervous system from sending impulses to his brain, and vice versa. Even though his eyes were closed, he saw bright lights as the game server kicked in. He then found himself in a white room, and the same feminine voice said:

"Welcome. Please wait a moment as the Nerve Gear software scans your dimensions. Please touch your body in the indicated areas to assist with this process."

He did as instructed, taking his hands and tapping the various parts of his body as instructed, then waited impatiently for the scan to complete.

"Thank you for waiting. Please create your Avatar."

He decided to go with a generic version of himself based on what the game had scanned of his physical body. He had no qualms regarding what he looked like, and simply didn't see the point in hiding behind the mask of a custom Avatar. All he wanted was to get in the game as soon as possible. He clicked affirmative on the holographic display presented to him.

"Thank you. Please enter your user name."

He quickly typed in SIREN in the panel and clicked affirmative, expecting to quickly find his Kiko and spend several blissful hours with her.

"Welcome, Siren, to the World of Sword Art Online."

And as he faded from this world to the virtual, he couldn't have imagined that his life would never be the same.