Hello everyone! Here's to an early Christmas! Time for a new story! Hope you enjoy!
"This is talking." This is thoughts.
I only know my OC, whom you will meet in a little bit.
Sword Art Online: Rise of the Phoenix
Chapter 1: First Steps
Video games have become a major part of today's world. They have always been able to rapidly change; from simple pixels to HD, three dimensional worlds and characters. Now, in the year 2022, video games have reached a new height. Thanks to the genius of the graphic designer and my hero, Akihiko Kayaba, people can enjoy video games in a new way: the Virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, or VRMMORPG. Kayaba developed this new system with the introduction of the Nerve Gear, a special helmet designed to create a virtual world of a video game. And on November 6, 2022, the first VRMMORPG was about to be released by the internationally acclaimed Argus: Sword Art Online, commonly known as SAO.
My name is Daniel Fenikkusu. My dad is American, my mom is Japanese, and I have a fraternal twin sister, Hana. We lived in the United States until I was 13, which was in 2019, and then we moved to Tokyo. 6 months before the launch, I was luck in being selected as one of only a thousand beta testers for SAO. There, I had met a guy who quickly became a good friend. We, along with some of the better testers, made it to the eighth out of the hundred floors.
Now, it's November 6th, and as a beta tester, I was able to get the full version of the game before it was released, which came in handy since there were only ten thousand copies made. At 10:23, I turned on my Nerve Gear and got ready to start the game.
"Start." I could see the multiple beams of colored lights rush past me as the Nerve Gear was activated and launched me into the game. I was able to access my beta data, and after that, I was in the SAO's world: Aincrad.
Everyone starts at the same place, the Town of Beginnings. Already, the town was flooding with players. I was able to recognize some of the layout of the town: the marketplace off to the left, a nice restaurant to the right, and a massive water fountain and the teleportation portal in the center.
I walked up to the water fountain and gazed at the appearance of my avatar. SAO's customization process was top of the notch. My avatar featured longer red hair, red eyes, and a tall, muscular build.
As I looked around, I noticed a character with long black hair run towards the marketplace and recognized him. I sprinted after him and caught up to him in an alley.
"Hey Kirito-kun. Long time no see." He turned around and smiled.
"Daniel-kun. It's nice to meet you again." Kirito's avatar had a rather simplistic style: longer black hair, black eyes, and a light build. I noticed the sword on his back, which always confused me. Although swords were the most weapon in the beta, everyone always used a shield, including myself. Kirito only used the sword, which made him unique in his own right.
"Alright, ready to find the best hunting spots?" I asked him.
"You know it. Let's go."
"Wait!" We turn around and see a guy with maroon hair and a red bandana. He took a moment to catch his breath. "Ya'll two are beta testers, right? You both seem to know the layout of the town."
"Yeah." I respond first.
"This is my first day. Would you mind showing me the ins and outs of the basics?" I looked over at Kirito and motion him to respond.
"Well…" He almost responded, until the guy bowed his head and clapped his hands together.
"Please! I'm begging!" Crap. Why does he have to beg like this? This is my weakness, people who beg for help. Then he tilts his head back and smiles. "The name's Klein. Nice to meet you."
Kirito sighs and then smiles. "I'm Kirito."
"Daniel. We'll help you out." Klein looked at me puzzled.
"That your real name?"
I laugh. "Yes." I can see why he asked. Though there are a few, not many use their real names in games. I thought I would try something new, especially since I am in a world where I could actually be a part of
"Cool. Ready to go?" Klein runs down the alley.
"The exit is this way." Kirito and I shout back at him. He does a sharp u-turn and follows us out of the Town of Beginnings to the West Field.
"GAAAH!" Klein flies back and grabs down to the family jewels. Unforunately, he missed his chance to finish off a boar that Kirito had weakened and I had redirected towards him. We both sigh at him.
"Critial hit to the crotch," he groans as he rolls around in the grass.
"Come on, Klein. This is virtual reality, which means…" I start.
"…You don't feel any pain in this world. Right?" Kirito finishes.
Klein stops rolling in the grass. "Oh, right." He rolls onto his back and jumps in the air so that he can land on his feet.
I look at him, and notice that his health meter had dipped into the yellow range, meaning his health had dropped to at least 50%. "You still aren't executing the initial motion input correctly. Without that, you can't land a blow on an enemy," I say to him.
"I get that, but the thing keeps on moving." We all look at the boar, which had turned its back to us and started to eat some grass. Kirito picks up a rock and gets ready to throw it at the boar.
"Well, if you do the motion input correctly, and then combine it with a sword skill, the system will ensure a connection." The rock in Kirito's hand began to glow, due to the motion input. He threw it at the boar, which left a red mark on the boar's butt. Also, it serves as an excellent attention grabber.
"Motion input…motion input." I heard Klein whisper. The boar charged, and that's where I came in. I equipped my shield and blocked the boar.
"It's kind of like an explosion. Add a slight pause, then when you feel the technique activate, let it explode."
"Explode?" Klein, apparently started to understand it, shifted his feet and moved his knife so that he could slash down. When I saw the yellow glow, I knew that he was ready. I rapidly moved my shield upward and kicked the boar's back, causing it to rush at Klein. Klein lunged forward and thrust the dagger along the boar's side. The red digital gash stretched from the boar's neck to its tail, and after a few seconds, the boar exploded into digital fragments as the exp and col (money) was displayed.
Klein acted like he had just defeated the game. "Alright!" He threw a double fist in the air.
"Way to go." "Nice job." Kirito and I say as we high five Klein.
"However, those boars are really weak." Kirito says.
I nod. "Yeah, their equivalent to slimes in others RPGs."
"What?! I thought it was a midlevel boss." Klein said shockingly.
Seriously? I think to myself as I start laughing. "No way, man. Look." I point to a nearby ridge, as a few more boar were randomly generated.
Klein brought out his knife and started to do some practice thrusts and slashes. "I heard there were a lot of skills. Like blacksmithing and cooking?"
"Yeah. I've heard that there are an unlimited number of skills." Kirito replied.
"However, there is no magic in the game." I add.
"An RPG without magic? That's a crazy decision." Klein remarked.
"I don't think it's necessary, with how effective the combat system is anyway." I tell Klein.
"Also, it feels excellent to actually move your own body for combat," Kirito says as him and I take out our swords.
"Ready to go?" I asked. Kirito and Klein nod at him as we ran towards the boar.
Several hours later, after good grinding of exp and col for Klein, we all rested and started at the sunset.
"I still can't believe that, no matter how many times I look at this, we are just in a game. Whoever made it is brilliant. This is truly amazing. I'm so glad to be born in this time." Klein says.
"You make a big deal out of everything." Kirito says.
"But it's not necessarily a bad thing. Just goes to show some of the enthusiasm he has." I counter. Kirito shrugs as Klein gives him an annoyed look.
"It's my first full dive!"
I look at him. "Sword Art Online is your first time playing with the NerveGear?"
"I rushed out and bought the hardware just to play SAO. I got lucky, getting one of only ten thousand copies. But, both of y'all are ten times luckier. I mean, both of you were beta testers. Only a thousand were able to get in." Kirito rubs his head as I smile.
"We just got lucky." I reply.
"How far did you make it in the beta?"
"Over a couple of months, just to Floor 8." Kirito responded.
"However, we can do it in a month this time around." I include with a big grin.
"You two are really into this aren't you?" He asked us.
"Of course. This is an incredible game. I stoked to beat it." I say.
Kirito pulls out his sword as he says, "During the beta test, the only thing I thought of day and night was SAO. With one sword, you can go anywhere. This is a virtual world, but I still feel more alive in here than in the real world." This concerned me. I'd be careful, Kirito. Those who aren't connected to the real world are likely to lose sight on what the real world is.
I had been sitting down, so I jumped up onto my feet. "Ready to go get some more bacon?"
Klein turned around. "Heck yeah, but…" Then I heard his stomach growl. "…I'm starting to get hungry. I'm going to log out."
I sigh. "You know, if you eat the food here, it only makes you think you're not hungry."
Klein hopped up to his feet. "That's why I already ordered a pizza for 5:30!"
"So prepared," observed Kirito. I laugh.
"Anyway, I'll be back after I finish eating."
"Alright, I guess we'll see you later." I look over at Kirito to make sure he would be here. He just nodded his head.
"Oh yeah, I going to meet some buddies from another game. You can friend them if you would like." Klein looked at us with anticipation.
"Sure. I'm game." I reply.
"Ummm…" Kirito just seemed confused, or maybe he is just not as social.
"You alright?" I asked. He just shrugs.
"Hey, if you don't want to meet them, that's fine. Maybe another time?"
"Yeah, sorry. Thanks." Kirito, what's going on in that head of yours?
"Hey, that's my line! I'll pay you back later." Klein walked over and put a hand on one of our shoulders. "Mentally," he adds with a wink.
"I'll be looking forward to it." I throw a wink back.
"Honestly, thanks again, both of you." Klein turns and walks a few steps away, then swipes his hand down to open his menu. Kirito and I turn to walk away, thinking that everything was fine.
"Huh? Where's the log off button?" We both turn back and see Klein starting at his menu in confusion.
"Are you sure you just didn't miss it? Check again." I tell him.
"…No, it's not here, man."
Kirito starts to walk towards him. "At the bottom of the main menu…" He opens the menu and looks for it. Then he gasps when he apparently couldn't find it.
"See? There's nothing there." Klein pushes a few more buttons and then pauses. I swipe my hand down, just to triple check behind them. Under the Settings, and…Oh my gosh. Where the log out should have been, there was just a blank button. What's going on?
"Klein, call a Game Master. Maybe it's just a flaw in the program. It is the first day out of the beta tests." I command.
"I did, but no one is responding. I bet the server people are freaking out." Klein responds.
"You will be too, in a second." Kirito chimes in. "It's 5:25." Klein looks at him confused then suddenly realized.
"MY TERIYAKI MAYO PIZZA AND GINGER ALE!" He throws both of his hands on his head.
"Teriyaki Mayo Pizza and Ginger Ale? What is this, Fear Factor night at your place?" Klein ignores what I said and grabs my shoulder.
"Is there another way to log out?!"
"Unforunately, no. There's no emergency log out. You had to go through the menu," Kirito says.
"Come on!" Klein backs up a little."There has to be another way!" Then, he starts to do random poses as he yells, "Return! Log out! Escape!" But it yield no result, besides making him look like an idiot.
"There is only one in-game log out for the game, Klein. That won't help."
"I know! I'll just rip off my NerveGear!" He tries to remove an imaginary NerveGear off his head.
"Your body doesn't move while you are in the game. The NerveGear is designed to intercept any nerve communication from our brain to the rest of body. As a result, it copies that communication to our virtual body." I explain.
"Are you serious?" Klein was really starting to freak out. "So we have to just sit here until the bug is fixed?"
"Or someone on the outside removes the NerveGear for us." Kirito throws in. I nod in agreement.
"But I live alone. How about you two?"
"I have a mom, dad, and a twin sister."
"I live with my mom and a little sister. They'll probably notice something is wrong by dinnertime." Kirito seems deep in thought when Klein suddenly grabs him, shocking Kirito and myself.
"H-How old is your little sister?" Seriously?! We are in a crisis and you're asking about his sister?!
Kirito backs up as he trys to collect his words. "She's on a sports team, and she hates video games. She doesn't want anything to do with people like us."
"That doesn't ma—" He never had the chance to finish, because Kirito knees him in the crotch.
"Ouch! That hur- Oh, wait. Virtual reality, no pain." Klein then turns to me. "So Daniel…"
"Ask, and I cut off your arm." He quickly stops.
"Wait a minute, doesn't this situation him off?" Kirito asks.
"Well, not really. Bugs do happen," Klein answers.
"I don't think so, Klein. This is a major setback to the game's future if the players can't log off." I respond.
"That's true, I guess."
"Either way, if the system managers had noticed this, they could turn off the server and log out everyone that way. But, there hasn't been a single announcement about that, which means…" Kirito is cut off when we hear a bell coming from the Town of Beginnings. Suddenly, we are all teleported to the center of the Town of Beginnings. We look around and see other players either already there or being teleported.
"An emergency teleport? I know there are teleport crystals, but why did the system do this?" I ask.
Before they could respond, I hear someone yell, "Hey! Up there!" We look, and there is a single flashing "Warning" sign in the sky above the town.
"Wait, that's…" Kirito says. Then, the sky is filled with either "System Announcement" or "Warning" signs. From the signs, red goo begins to seep out. The goo begins to concentrate into a single spot until a large human figure in a red robe appears. I hear people muttering stuff like "A game master?" "Is this an event?" "Surely this is just another part of the opening ceremony."
"Attention, players. Welcome to my world." The robed figure starts speaking. His voice is relatively calm, given the circumstances.
"His world? Wait that means that he's…" I start to say, but I'm cut off as the figure resumes.
"I am Akihiko Kayaba. Right now, I am the only person who can control this world."
No. This has got to be some sick joke. I could hear people muttering around me about the figure actually being Kayaba. The figure, who claimed to be my hero, continued.
"I am sure that all of you have noticed that the logout button has been removed from the main menu." He pulls up his menu to make his point. "I assure you that this is not a bug in the system. I repeat, this is not a bug. This is one of the features of Sword Art Online."
I could feel myself get angry. My hero, Akihiko Kayaba, has now made this game a prison to all of us. Why, you pig?!
"A-A feature?" I heard Klein just mutter, out of shock. I could hear other people starting to freak out because of this news.
Kayaba just continued like it was nothing. "You cannot log out on your own, nor can anyone in the outside world can power down or remove the NerveGear. If anyone were to attempt to remove or shut down the NerveGear, it would act like a powerful microwave, and fry the wearer's brain, ending their life."
This was where things were starting to get out of contol. I heard someone yell, "This is crazy! I going." Then, a few seconds later. "H-Hey! I can't get out! We're trapped!" Panic slowly began to set in. It was at a very precarious point. All it needed was just a feather to send it spiraling out of control.
Klein finally got my attention. "What is this guy babbling about? He's just off his rocker, right? Kirito…Daniel?"
Kirito started first. "It's true that the NerveGear's transmitter working the same way a microwave does."
I finished. "My mom works with Argus, and she showed me the result if the safety was disabled. Anyone wearing that helmet without the safety, they would be six feet under."
Klein started to realize the magnitude. "But if we unplug it –" I stopped him.
"There's an internal battery, which can last up to a week. After that…" I don't want to finish explaining myself.
"Unfortunately, several players' families and friends have ignored this warning, and attempted to remove the NerveGear." Images that looked like they were off news networks were swirling around Kayaba. "As a result, a total of 213 players are gone, forever. Both from the world of Aincrad and the real world."
"Two hundred and thirteen?" Kirito said.
"I don't believe, I don't believe it!" Klein added. I just stood there.
"Many news organizations around the world have picked up this story. This includes the death tolls. This will now ensure that the idea of the removal of your NerveGear is very minimal. I hope you all will relax and attempt to finish the game." I was utterly shocked. What if someone in my family had removed my NerveGear, believing that it was just a simple bug? Then that shock turned into anger. Akihiko Kayaba, my hero, a man whom I had met and had been told by him I had promise, now had the blood of two hundred and thirteen people on his hands. And he had the audacity to act as if they had just been something that could be thrown away. He is no longer my hero. He is now…my enemy.
Kayaba continued. "It is imperative that you remember this. There is no longer a revival method within the game. If your health bar drops to zero, your avatar will be lost to both worlds forever. Because the moment your health reaches zero, the NerveGear will destroy your brain."
I was really pissed now. He is forcing us to find a way not to die…to find a means of survival. If we don't, we die. Plain and simple to him.
"There is only one way to escape. You must complete Sword Art Online. You all are on Floor 1, the lowest floor of Aincrad. If you can find and defeat the Floor Boss, you can move on to the next level. Continue to do this all the way to the hundredth floor, then you would have cleared the final hurdle."
People go nervous and panic rose up again. "What do you mean clear it?" "Is he serious?" "You're insane!"
Klein couldn't believe it. "Clear a hundred floors? That's impossible. The beta testers never made it anywhere near that!" Kirito and I looked at each other, and we both recognized the rage in both of our eyes. Anger at Akihiko Kayaba's actions, and anger at the fact that we were possibly the two best beta testers of SAO, and we only made it to the eighth floor.
"Oh, one finally thing." Everyone turned their attention back to Akihiko. "I've added a present in each of your storage, from me. Why don't you just see for yourselves?"
I opened up the menu and looked in my storage, and there was only one item under "Key Items": Mirror."
"A mirror?" I brought the mirror out and stared at it for a second. Suddenly, I saw Klein being engulfed in blue flames. "Klein!" More people, including Kirito, were being engulfed. "Kirito!" Then, it was my turn. I closed my eyes due to the brightness of the flames. The flames cleared out after a few seconds.
"Kirito, Daniel, are y'all alright." I heard Klein's voice. Then I turned to him and I was shocked.
"Who are you?" Then I looked over to Kirito, and then jumped a little. "Who on earth are you?!" Everything about their physical appearances has been completely changed. Kirito's face looked almost like that of a teenage girl; he had short black hair, black eyes, and almost no masculinity in his face. To top it all off, he was a lot shorter than his avatar. Maybe he was fourteen years old. Though Kirito's change was completely unexpected, I was ok with it. It was a lot better than Klein's changes. Klein's face definitely lost the cool factor: messy, short maroon hair, and short goatee. He looked like a Japanese Shaggy.
"And who are you?" They asked in complete sync. I looked in my mirror and lost my balance out of pure shock. The avatar I had created was not the face I was looking at, I was looking at my own face in the mirror. I had, for a guy, long black hair that reached down to my neck, red eyes (genetic mutation), and a typical American teenager's face. Also, I had a scar on my right cheek, from a kendo accident two years ago. Why am I me and not my avatar anymore? I could hear people realize that the people around them were not the same as their avatars. Wait, does that mean that?
"You're Kirito?" "You're Daniel" "You're Klein?" Me, Klein, and Kirito asked simultaneously.
"But, how?" Klein asked.
"The NerveGear uses a scan over your entire head," Kirito began.
"It uses a high frequency signaling device, enabling the equipment to see what our faces look like and how long our head is. But that does not mean that the NerveGear knows our height or body shape," I finished for Kirito.
Now it was time for Klein to explain something. "We had to calibrate the NerveGear the first time we used it right? We had to touch all over our body."
"Right! I forgot about the calibration procedure on the NerveGear. That's where the data on our height and body shape came from." Kirito nodded in agreement.
"But…Why? Why the h- would anyone do this?" Kirito and I just pointed at Kayaba.
"Knowing him, he's about to explain himself," I respond.
"Now, all of you are probably wondering why I have done this. Why would Akihiko Kayaba, the developer of the NerveGear and Sword Art Online, go to such dramatic measures? I have already completed my goal. There is only one reason why I created Sword Art Online…to create a world that I can play with. And now, it is finished." I balled my fists as I could feel the anger just grow inside me, anger that is directed at Akhiko Kayaba. "This now ends the tutorial for the official Sword Art Online launch. I wish all of you the best of luck." Kayaba's figure began to become pixilated and red smoke began to slowly poor out as he disappeared. After Kayaba had completely vanished, the sky returned to the normal sunset sky it had been.
That man, the inventor of the NerveGear and Sword Art Online, my hero, Akihiko Kayaba. I have met with him and even worked on a small project with him. Everything he just said was absolutely true. So this is what the situation he has left us in? Trapped in a video game, only one life. A hundred floors where the monsters can only grow stronger and stronger. A world where one step can mean the difference between living and dying. One false step means that a person no longer exists, neither in Aincrad nor the real world.
At first, it was really quiet. No one knew what to do at first. I heard a girl scream, then the chaos erupted. "Screw you!" Let me out! Let me outta here!" "I have to go to a meeting after this!" "Someone do something!" That's where Kirito stepped behind Klein and grabbed the back of his clothes.
"Follow me, Klein." Klein couldn't react fast enough before Kirito dragged him away.
"I'm right behind you, Kirito," I told him as I followed. We made it to the alleyway we had met in earlier before Kirito spoke again.
"Listen to me, both of you. I'm heading to the next town right now. I would like both of you to go with me. If everything Kayaba said is true, the only means to survive in this world is to grow as strong as possible." He pulls up a map as I say a few things.
"Everything Kayaba said is true," I hold up my hand to stop Klein from arguing, then I continue. "I met with on several occasions. I know he's telling the truth. And because of that, I know that the fields around this town will be bare soon. All because the resources within the VRMMORPG are limited, including money and EXP."
"Our best shot is to do this efficiently is tomove on to the next town right now. Daniel and I know all the best paths and where the dangerous areas are. Even though we are at level 1, we should be able to get there with ease. That is, if both of you come."
"Kirito, I can tell you know all that Kayaba said is true. We both were beta-testers. We started this together…" I stuck out my hand, "…so let us finish this together." He smiled and clasped my hand. After a good, firm shake, we both looked at Klein.
"Well, you know, I spent an entire night in line just to buy this game with my friends from the other game. And they are all out in somewhere in that plaza. I can't just leave them here."
I smile. "There is no one whom I would respect more than someone would stay with their friends. Why don't we bring them with us? That should be fine, right, Kirito?" Kirito just stood there, deep in thought. After a few seconds, I realized what he was most likely thinking. Kirito, you can't be thinking of leaving Klein's friends high and dry, can you? Before Kirito could say anything, Klein did something he was not expecting.
"Sorry, how could I have thought to ask both of you to do anything else? Both of you, go on to the next village." Though Kirito was shocked, I wasn't. I knew after hearing him mention his friends multiple times that he wouldn't leave them. That made him a good guy, a man I could trust at anytime.
Kirito seem unsure, so Klein kept on talking. "I used to run a guild in one of my last games. I got enough information from the both of you to make it by!"
"All right, then let's say goodbye here." Kirito turned to walk. I grabbed the back of his hair to stop him. "OUCH!"
"No, you idiot. This isn't goodbye. We need to say 'See you later.'" Kirito turned around, and after seeing my face, agreed instantly. "Anyway, shoot us a message if something happens, Klein." I smile, knowing we would, in fact, see him later.
"Will do!" Klein grinned and threw up a thumbs up. Japanese Shaggy, indeed.
"See you later." Kirito and I say as we turn to leave.
"Oh yeah, Kirito, you actually looked pretty cute. That was my favorite. And Daniel, you definitely look better with that scar." We both look at Klein, then each other and nod.
"And that unkempt face of yours definitely suits you ten times better than your avatar's!" We smile as we both run off, determined to beat this game.
We had made it out of town, and we both made an oath. It kept playing over and over in my mind. Two wolves appeared along the path and charged at us. We drew our swords; Kirito ready to thrust and I ready to slash. After a few seconds, the wolves disappeared into pixels. This affirmed the oath that we both had made.
I am going to survive, in this world, to make it back to the other. I will defeat this game, no matter the cost.
I hope you all enjoy the new story! I would like to have more reviews, so I will start responding to the reviews for all of my stories. So please read and review! See you next time!