Herro. This is my first story in awhile and the background behind this story kinda goes like this. I was playing Sword Art Online : Lost Song and yes, I always put Yuuki as leader cause she's my favorite character 3. As soon as her story arc began with the Sleeping Knights, memories of the Light Novel and Anime came back and I wondered, what if she could somehow ... live? *DING* *DING*
Welcome to Sword Art Online : Atarashi no Kisetsu
For those who still don't know, Konno Yuuki is the same Yuuki from the Mother's Rosario arc of SAO! (Scrubs, go learn from a Beater or two)
Chapter 1 : The First Day, Errors
It was one of the better days to be outdoors today. The sun was at the right temperature, not blazingly hot, but comfortably warm. A cooling breeze blew by, lightly shaking the leaves and flowers in the garden, rustling to break the silence of the calm garden. Under a large tree in this very garden sat two young girls, both aged twelve and their backs against the tree.
"Aiko! When is he coming?"
The younger of the two girls asked her older twin. The older twin smiles and reaches out with one of her hands, patting her younger sister's.
"Soon Yuuki. Doctor Naru never breaks his promises to us! He'll be here soon."
Today's date was November 6th, 2022. It was also a significant date for the world of gaming as VRMMOs would be born with the release of the new generation VR game, Sword Art Online. Created by the genius Kayaba Akihiko who also made the hardware necessary to play the game, the NerveGear, it is a must have for MMO fans and gamers. Plus, the experience of playing in virtual reality is uncomparable with the gaming consoles of today.
"Ah! He's waving us over!"
Aiko points to the exit of the garden and standing at the doors to enter to hospital was a man who was clearly a doctor by his attire, a white cloak. Doctor Naru gestures for the girls to come over and so, Aiko goes to her sister Yuuki, crouching in order to let Yuuki climb onto Aiko for a piggy-back. Slowly with Yuuki on her back, Aiko approaches her younger sister's wheelchair and seats her sister comfortably before taking the handles behind to push Yuuki.
"Doctor Naru! Did you manage to get it?"
Yuuki asks excitedly and the doctor smiles, taking out the hand he had hidden behind him revealing a disc holder. Inside had to be …
"Sword Art Online! Did you really get it Doctor Naru?"
The Doctor puts a finger to Yuuki's lips teasingly to stifle her questions and joy.
"Calm down Yuuki-chan or else everyone would want it! Did I ever break a promise to you and Aiko-chan before?"
He winks at the twins who both stare at him in awe. They weren't really expecting to get the game, Sword Art Online at all as they had seen the massive queues for the game at a game store near the hospital which was in view of the gardens which they regularly visit.
"H-How can we ever thank you Doctor Naru? We were joking when we asked you for the game!"
Aiko exclaims from behind the wheelchair.
"It's the least I can do for you girls." who are fated to die.
The Doctor leaves the last part unsaid. He watches their elated expressions with happiness and sorrow. Forced to stay in the hospital due to their deceased parents, the Konno twins were ticking time bombs but the timer was unknown to even the Doctor. When both twins were born, there was an accident which had required both of them to get a blood transfusion but the blood they were given was infected with the deadly virus known as the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). From then on, they thread a silver lining on their life, never knowing how much time they had left and fearing when they may suddenly die. Already, signs of worsening were showing in both twins, the obvious being Yuuki having lost the use of her legs.
"Is something wrong?"
The twins asked Doctor Naru, both tilting their heads as they watched him. The doctor shakes his head and hurriedly wipes a lone tear which was traversing down his wrinkled face. His eyes were moist and as he blinked, more tears threatened to exit as he saw both girls looking at him, curious expressions on their small cute faces. It was painful to think that their life rests in the hands of god. He smiles at them both again though it wasn't as warm as before.
"It's nothing. The NerveGears are already in your rooms so shoo shoo."
Aiko pushes Yuuki into the hospital after the doctor had both waved them away. They both return to their room on the upper floors of the hospital in a secluded ward for patients like them. The room was no longer the clean white room when they had first arrived two years and instead has seen much personalisation such as posters of games covering the formerly blank walls, assortments of colorful dolls littering the ground and now, two helmet-like objects which are the NerveGears set up for their use beside their beds.
"I'll go collect our dinner first! Don't start without me Yuuki!"
Aiko says as she stops her sister's wheelchair beside the bed and then helping her disabled younger twin climb into her bed. She then leaves the room towards the canteen to collect their meals.
It was too tempting however. The disc holder was still in Yuuki's hands and Aiko should have probably taken it. After a brief moment of installing Sword Art Online with the disc, Yuuki puts on the NerveGear and she lies on the bed, ready to get a headstart over her older sibling.
"Link … Start!"
The display of the NerveGear lights up, showing various colors of red, blue, green and many others. Yuuki no longer sees her room at all nor can she hear the sounds of the hospital outside her room. She was in virtual reality. Soon she will in Sword Art Online.
ERROR!
The bright colors suddenly vanished, leaving a black hole where there was once a rainbow. The red warning multiplied, circling around Yuuki's vision. She could feel nothing. Right now, she could not even see if she had a body. She could only wait for the darkness to reveal more to her.
DISC ID IN USE! PIRATE DETECTED!
The error warnings were replaced by this new message. Yuuki felt disappointment as she realises that the disc the Doctor had given them was a pirated copy.
"Guess I'll log out and tell Aiko the news …"
Yuuki says dejectedly and then she realises her problem. How does she log out? There wasn't a menu in site nor a clear way to exit the game.
"Log … out?"
She asks, unsure to the red messages floating around her. The glaring red messages vanished replaced by yellow letters slowly appearing as if being typed and it displays the message
"Welcome to Sword Art Online, ID 07284. I am Cardinal."
"H-Hello, Mr Cardinal-san … Can I log out?"
Yuuki asks the unknown entity behind the yellow words. The reply was almost instant.
"Under the orders of Kayaba Akihiko, players are not allowed to leave Sword Art Online."
There had to be some way to exit. There had to be! Yuuki thought desperately as she finishes reading the message. But there was nothing for her in this black void. Unable to see or do much, she can only see the yellow verdict. Minutes felt like hours in this emptiness. Yuuki shouted out to Cardinal with varied emotions. Anger, despair, hopelessness, pleading. Eventually after an eternity, a new message typed out before her.
"Previous owner of ID 07284, consciousness erased. Method of death : Attempted suicide by falling to death. Cerebum intact. Current owner of ID 07284, replacing consciousness of previous ID 07284."
"W-Wait! S-Someone died?!"
Yuuki shouted out with a voice cracked with fear but she could see no reply as the world illuminated. She raised her hands, or at least she tried as she had no arms in the dark world. But she felt her hands touch her face. Warm skin against her eyebrows. Slowly removing her hands from her eyes, the world of Sword Art Online unfolded before her.
It was more beautiful than the trailers and promotions she watched everyday. She looks up in awe to see structures which you expect to only see in fantasy books and a bright blue sky shining down.
"O-Out of the way!"
A person shoved past her, knocking her onto the ground. 'Ouch.' She thought and then widened her eyes in surprise. Her shoulder was slightly bruised from where she was knocked and her bottom hurt from landing on the ground. What gave her the biggest surprise though was her legs. She could move them like she had two years ago. There was feeling below her feet as she slowly got up.
"So this is virtual reality … Wait! I shouldn't be thinking about this now! Log out … log out."
Yuuki surveys the area around her, hoping to find someone to ask about it but in the street she was in, it was empty but there were signs a crowd had ran through here. Broken pottery and trampled groceries.
"Where is every…"
"Shiki-chan!"
A high-pitched voice pierced the silence of the street and before Yuuki could turn to face the sound, she was tackled onto the ground yet again though this time, a sobbing figure was embracing her tightly.
"Stupid … Stupid Shiki! W-We thought you died when you jumped! H-How happy we were w-when we saw your friend marker activate!"
What the crying figure said made Yuuki remember what the Cardinal had told her in that black room.
"Method of death : Attempted suicide by falling to death. Consciousness ...erased."
Yuuki muttered to herself. She had an idea of what might have happened. Her disc for Sword Art Online was apparently a copy of one owned by the person's avatar she is in, "Shiki" and from what the Cardinal had said, "Shiki" killed herself. Yuuki's consciousness has somehow been taken to replace "Shiki's." So Yuuki was now the person, "Shiki."
"Let my sister stand Maru-san."
Three more people came into view, all male. They might be teenagers due to their height and face but that might just be the avatars. Maru, the person on top of Yuuki rose, wiping the tears off her face with both hands. She like the other three also looked like she might be in her teen years. Above of their heads, Yuuki could just make out some words.
"Maru." "Lind." "Kiabaou." "Diavel."
One of the boys, "Diavel" extended their hand to Yuuki and when Yuuki took it, he brought her close into a hug.
"Don't do that again Shiki. You scared your brother here alot."
He whispered to her ear in a shaking voice. 'No, you should not be telling me this. I should not be here.' Yuuki could not feel embarrassed as an unknown person displayed affection for his "younger sister". Rather she felt sadness and hopelessness. She could tell the truth but that would probably cause complications for the group plus, maybe it was better to play as "Shiki" in this unknown world where she knew no one. Problem was … how?
"Shiki? You're unusually quiet … Are you okay?"
He holds Yuuki out in front of her, staring into her eyes. The rest of the group were also looking curiously
'Oh no. He's going to notice. What do I do?!' Yuuki thought anxiously but the brother's next words came.
"Wait … Yuu … ki? Why did your name change?"
Yuuki scanned what she could see in her view and saw found her health bar and mana bar on the top left hand corner. Beside a sphere with the number "1" likely indicating the level was her name. "Yuuki." Not "Shiki".
'Cardinal?' she pondered.
"Wait … Shiki do you know who I am?"
The brother waves a hand in front of Yuuki who finally has an idea of how she might get out of this situation.
"W-who am I?"
Yuuki feigned a scared, confused voice the best she can and closes her eyes to complete the act. It seems to work as the group seemed downcast and the brother shook his head and looked up, as if thinking. After a few moments, Yuuki felt a tap on her shoulder and she slowly opened her eyes and in her view was her "brother".
"I am Uchida Satoru. Your brother. You are Uchida Shiki, my sister. My friends, you know them by their in-game names except Maru of course."
They would all follow suit and give introductions about themselves. Maru's real name and IGN (in-game name) is the same just like how Shiki's real name and IGN was. Maru is the Uchida's neighbours and Shiki and Maru are good friends in the real world. Lind and Kiabaou were Satoru's friends from the real world but they never met Shiki in real life so there won't be much of an issue there unlike Maru and Diavel/Satoru whom Shiki were close to.
"Let's move out. We can try and fix this … side effect later. Right now, we should prepare to finish this game."
Diavel ordered his group and while there were a few protests, mainly from Kiabaou about letting the other players finish the game while they take it slow, Diavel shook his head and replied firmly.
"I'm not going to sit behind and wait for a miracle to happen. I'm getting my sister out of here no matter what. Plus, am I a person to sit this out?"
There was no answer required as Kiabaou raises both eyes to the virtual heavens before following the party as they moved off.
