My name is Arashikage Ametsuchi. I was one of those fated ten thousand who was in the death game Sword Art Online. I may not be as famous or as well known as Kirito and the others but I was there to help them out when they needed it. There was something different about me then the other players. Kirito and Asuna could account for that, but I will enlighten you dear readers on that later. For now... lets start from the beginning. Before I started to try and account for my actions in the written variety. Please also note I will be now writing this as if I was an outsider looking in on my endeavors.

Ametsuchi paced around his room. It was only a few minutes until he was gonna lay down and get ready for the first and biggest virtual Reality Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, VRMMORPG, Sword Art Online AKA SAO. Ametsuchi sighed and put on his NerveGear. He signed in like normal and started to customize his character. He knew he couldn't be a female like he normally is in RPG games he plays. It would be weird and he tried it in the Beta test. He had to suffer through it all as a female because he wasn't gonna lose his first days progress. So he was learning from his Beta mistake and decided on being a male. He tried to make his avatar as close to what he looked like in real life. Ametsuchi had short black hair with red tips. It was unusual hair but it was his hair. He never knew why it was like that but it worked for him.

When he was done making his character he finally got in. It was just as amazing as he remembered it was. His first order of business was to get farther then what he did day one of the Beta. He set out to go do that as he had all day. At the end of the first day of the beta he was already a higher level then the other testers and already to the next town over by mid day, so he planned on being the highest level by day 2 and furthest along adventure wise again. He was fighting boar after boar and wolf after wolf to get his exp and level up. When he got to the next town over and a little past it to fight more enemies it was getting near the end of the day and he was about to hit level 12, but then a blue light surrounded him as he was teleported.

As the light faded Ametsuchi looked around and what he saw made him furious. He was all the way back at the starting town. All that work to get ahead of everyone for nothing. As he was looking around he seen what looked like blood seeping from polygons from the sky. Then the blood started to form into a person with whom started to speak.

"Attention players. Welcome to my world." As the figure was speaking I was half listening and half trying to get out, but that sentence and the next one stopped me dead in my tracks. "My name is Kayaba Akihiko." Ametsuchi knew he had to be bluffing. "As of this moment I am the sole person who can control this world."

Someone near Ametsuchi scoffed and said "You wanna bet Kayaba. I will break your game."

Kayaba continued, "I'm sure you've already noticed that the logout button is missing from your menu." Kayaba raised his hand and showed where the logout button would be in the menu showing it was blank. "but this is not a defect in the game. I repeat... It is a feature of Sword Art Online. You cannot log out of SAO yourselves. And no one on the outside can shut down or remove the NerveGear. Should this be attempted, the transmitter inside the NerveGear will emit a powerful microwave destroying your brain thus ending your life."

There were more audible gasps of shock then when he first said his name. The guy near Ametsuchi laughed softly, "Now this is getting interesting."

"Unfortunately, several players' friends and families have ignored this warning, and have attempted to remove the NerveGear. As a result, two hundred and thirteen players are gone forever, from both Aincrad and the real world." Kayaba raised his hand to showed some news reports and video footage. "As you can see, news organizations across the world are reporting all of this, including the deaths. Thus, you can assume that the danger of a NerveGear removal is now minimal. I hope you will relax and attempt to clear this game, but remember this clearly. There is no longer any method to revived someone within the game. If your HP drops to zero, your avatar will be forever lost. And simultaneously, the NerveGear will destroy your brain."

Ametsuchi laughed a little. A game that will kill him if he looses. This sounds like a lot of fun but difficult at the same time. The guy near him looked like he was thinking the same way. Ametsuchi knew he had to make friends with him later on in the game if they survived that long.

"There is only one means of escape. To complete the game. You are presently on the lowest floor of Aincrad, Floor 1. If you make your way through the dungeon and defeat the Floor Boss, you may advance to the next level. Defeat the final boss on Floor 100, and you will clear the game." There were people clambering about clearing the game and thinking Kayaba was tricking them or the whole situation as a joke. Ametsuchi knew better.0

Kayaba continued, "Finally, I've added a present from me to your item storage. Please see for yourselves." Ametsuchi looked around and decided to bring out the gift. It was a mirror. He pulled it out and looked it over. It was a normal rectangular mirror. Then a blue light that was almost like fire enveloped him and others around him. He looked around when it died down and everyone looked different. He put two and two together and knew they made everyone's avatar look like their real selves. The NerveGear combines the fact it covers your head in a high-density signaling device that can tell what your face looks like, with it making you calibrate it when you first use it. He looked back up at the figure in the sky wondering why he was doing this.

"Right now, you're probably wondering, 'Why? Why would Kayaba Akihiko, developer of Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, do all this?" My goal has already been achieved. I created Sword Art Online for one reason... To create this world and intervene in it. And now, it is complete. This ends the tutorial for the official Sword Art Online launch. Good luck, players." With that Kayaba started to pixalize and smoke spewed out of him with the old dial up tone. Ametsuchi looked around and after a few seconds people started to panic. He ran out and sprinted as fast as he could to keep ahead of everyone. He knew he should make bonds/friends but that could come later. For now, he was considering only one thing... His survival.