About a month and a half of play, the 'Red Sky' as it was dubbed, came back. There was no dramatic reappearance of Kayaba, nor was there any new items or quests or anything at all really. In fact, since it came at 3 a.m. local time, barely anyone knew about it. Only a few, those who were out leveling or questing, or engaged in other activities with their friends, witnessed it. A few, lucky ones, noticed that during the red sky, the monsters froze. Those who were killed during it died, and dropped normal loot. Players tried to take advantage of the lapse in attacks, but an unlucky few found themselves almost through the monster when the sky cleared.
As the Red Sky dissolved, the moon came back, and after a brief wash of static, the monsters regenned fresh. What was nearly dead was now back at full strength, with all of its abilities and powers and items still in play. Precious few died; sacrifices to learn of a risky opportunity. As no players actually died during the Red Sky, it is unknown whether or not a player who dies during it will also regen. Later, a small forum grew where some commented that things felt different, a few bugs were phased out, a few minor tweaks in XP and item drops. They figured it was a system patch. They would not be wrong.
The phenomenon came again a few more times. It was rare, and it always seemed minor. There were no new quests, no new items or locations that they could tell. There were only small tweaks and fixes. There was much rejoicing when the sleep PK was eliminated by a verbal agreement as well as a physical one. They had just cleared the 58th floor when another Red Sky happened. Some weren't happy that it waited until after the boss was defeated to spawn, others couldn't care less. This time however, was different. For one, it lasted much longer than any of the others before. Rather than being up for a minute or two, it lingered.
Most of the exhausted clearing team walked up the stairs, went through the teleport gate, sent off their reports, and summarily fell asleep. One special swordsman drudged his way home, flicking through teleport gates and quietly sprinting through silent, yet eerie towns. The normal streets looked far more sinister with red glowing off of every window, and no sounds whatsoever to be heard. Idyllic views turned nightmarish by the system working. The raiding team had started around seven local time, and it was now four in the morning. Kirito finally stumbled his way to his shack- er, cabin, and lay down. He had only just closed his eyes against the harsh red when it faded away, revealing a bright moon that was, of course, shining in his face. He rolled to the side, and fell asleep.
The next morning, he had a few notifications. Asuna was worried, having not heard from him since the raid crew broke up. Agil wanted to appraise his loot (and get the choicest pieces, bloody pirate). Klein had sent another guild join request, which Kirito denied immediately. He closed the window, believing that would be all of them. After Silica and Argo, there were no others who would send him messages. But, the midnight swordsman was wrong. The annoying orange notification exclamation point was still active in the corner of his eye, blinking slowly. He opened his menu again, searching for the notification.
New Quest: Anubis Fury
Description: A group of 'jackals' have disturbed the God-king's rest on the 60th floor. Rectify this error by eliminating the uproar. He will not rest until they are silenced. They reside in the Graveyard of the Damned, floor 19.
Rewards: EXP, Cor, Reputation increase
Kirito paused in his tracks. This was something new. Something strange. He hadn't run into anything like it in the beta, and no one had ever heard of a quest quite like this. Nor had he ever seen a reward like that. Successfully completing the quest would turn even a red player's tag green. A green one like his own… may even jump to silver. Silver icons were a legend, a tale told by players around fires deep in dungeons. It was said that a few had done enough good things, had helped enough and been such good influences, that their icons had changed to reflect their increased trust. They were not only good to others, but were exceptional.
They say that one such person is a man who runs supplies to the front lines. He isn't too high a level himself, but he gives out healing items to those who need it, free of charge. Many players claim to have been helped by him. There is a collection point by each teleport gate that you can donate items or col to, in order to help. Kirito hadn't seen him, hadn't needed his help, and he didn't really care if the guy existed or not. It had become one of his rituals; each time he set out on a raid, he left behind a healing and teleport crystal in the box, just in case it was his unlucky day. They spoke of another as well, a lady in the town of beginnings who ran a hospital/orphanage. Many claim she has the silver icon too. But he was getting off track.
This quest was new, and by no means a simple one. Slowly, the reality sunk in. This quest was most certainly out of the ordinary. The location terrified him. Not because of the monster spawns, or the actual place, but because of its residents. The Graveyard of the Damned was home to the Laughing Coffin Guild. They had made it a fortress. A clearing team could likely wipe them out, but they would all be red afterwards. That's why the reputation increase was there! To counteract the 'murders' of the guild members. There was more that scared him than just that. This quest terrified him for one big reason: it referenced a player created guild. Which meant that somewhere, someone was watching the game- and they didn't like what they saw. Someone, outside of Kayaba, who he knew didn't care, was in control. He suddenly felt paranoid, felt watched. Who was in control? How far in control were they? Could they spawn something in a safe zone, create a monster that couldn't be killed? He put it from his mind. He had to have his loot appraised, and focus on clearing the next floor. Every floor was another step. He had to tell his sister what he had realized. He had to be honest. She deserved it.
Agil could barely contain himself at some of the drops Kirito had collected; negotiations quickly fell in the swordsman's favor after that. Kirito walked out of the shop with a mostly fair deal. Fair in that he had risked his life for some of those items. His feet took him toward the teleport gate to the front lines. Floor 59. Initial reports said it was a watery floor, a lot of open sea with a few islands. The local information indicated the labyrinth was in a series of underwater caves, which flooded at certain times. It was certainly a challenging floor. Swimming and agility would be key. He prepared to activate the gate, but a body flew out of the pillars in a flash of blue light. The corpse? Collided with him, knocking both of them to the ground. Kirito quickly pushed the man off him, climbing to his feet, about to tell the reckless fool off, not even considering that he himself did the same thing on a regular basis. He opens his mouth to speak, but shuts it just as quick. The man is sprawled on the ground still, ugly words carved into his back.
-Who's laughing now?-
He was in bad shape. Kirito wasn't certain, but he suspected it was a message from The Laughing Coffin. No matter how he felt about the quest, he had to do something. He shouted at someone passing by to help him carry the boy to an inn. Together, they carried the unconscious victim to the inn. Kirito held back from using a crystal, as they were in a safe zone. The young man would heal, and there wasn't a risk of him dying, as there was no poison indicator. It wouldn't be fun for him, but it was more economical to save the healing item. Kirito composed a quick message for the man when he woke up, and went back down to the main floor.
"How much for the room?" Kirito asked.
"800 cor a night." The NPC replied in the annoyingly cheerful way they had. It wasn't a bad rate, but it could eat up his reserves if it took too long. If the boy wasn't better by tomorrow afternoon, Kirito decided, then he would move down to the first town. Kirito paid the cost and returned to the room, setting up a small tea set he had crafted by a craftswoman on the twelfth floor. It was simple, but with the right ingredients, produced some very soothing blends. He smiled when he thought of what the others would think if they knew that the legendary black swordsman brewed tea. It would be a shock, that the arrogant and violent master swordsman had a quiet and reserved side to him. What fools they were.
He sat quietly at the table, sipping his tea and watching the man. He-who-had-crashed didn't look like much of a fighter. The telltale signs of a sword or mace weren't there. The game was realistic enough that it developed your avatar in accordance with what you did in the game. Swordsmen normally gained muscle in their arms, shield bearers had the strap marks imprinted on them. Spear warriors grew to match their weapon. The boy wasn't any of those. He was thin, too thin for a heavier weapon. He lacked the calves for spear work. He was either a noncombatant, or something else entirely. Kirito shook his head amusedly and stowed his gear. He leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes. It would be morning soon…
A crash woke the swordsman. The window shattered into blue motes as a dark figure grabbed the still unconscious boy. Another figure broke down the door, quickly seized the boy and scrambled out the door and down the stairs. Kirito snapped awake, chasing after the duo. He grabbed one by the ankle, pulling him down. The other got away, running straight for the teleport gate. Kirito's captured man fought to escape, kicking at the swordsman. He dodged the kicks, trying to keep his hold. They tussled, but the captor got away once his pants lost durability, revealing an ominous, black boxy tattoo. The mark of The Laughing Coffin. They must have been torturing that boy, and he escaped. He made it here, but they tracked him down. Kirito sighed and let his head hit the street. He had tried to ignore the quest that had popped up. There were more important things to do. But, that kid was in danger. Worse, he owed Kirito money. Kirito's face twitched. The only person who could beat that kid until he paid up was Kirito!
"Get back here! I'm the loan shark! You can't have him until he pays up!" Kirito shouted, racing for the gate. Burdened by the unconscious man, the duo had only just started the teleport sequence when Kirito swung into view. He readied one of his skills, ready to tackle them, but they slipped out right before he hit. Kirito crashed through the inactive pillars, sliding through the dirt on the other side. He almost raced to storm the Dungeon, but held back. He would need help for this one. They were all sorts of levels in there, with some truly horrific abilities. He couldn't solo this one and maintain his margin of safety. Resigned, he opened his friends list and spammed a quick message down the list.
I need your help for a special quest. Meet me at my home. Just you.
P.S. Klein, I'm still not joining your guild!