Chapter 1: A Dark Life

Click. Click. Click.

With each small sound, the image in the scope grew larger, magnifying the dark street below. A chilling wind blew through the building, whistling as it came through the open window. It made the sniper pause, having to shake powder-blue hair from her eyes and pull her muffler above her chin to ward off the cold. She had been sitting there for over an hour, waiting for a certain something to arrive at the building across town.

"Sinon." A voice crackled out of the radio beside her. "Any movement?"

"No." The girl, apparently named Sinon, answered, putting her eye back to the scope, her irises a startling indigo. "Nothing yet. But it should happen any second now."

"If our information was right."

"You know that our information is never wrong."

"True, but I like to think that our employer has at least a few flaws."

"You and me both." It was silent for a moment. "You know, you don't have to be here. I could just do this myself."

A sigh sounded from the radio. "That would have been the case a year ago, but now they've tightened up security. The cars are most likely bulletproof, and even if you were able to get them out of the car, they would have force fields up or something. You need someone on the ground to clear a shot for you. Besides, where would the fun be if you just sniped and that was it?"

Sinon smirked at that. "Why must you love making things more difficult?"

She heard a soft chuckle. "That's just how I am."

It was silent after that. The sniper spent the time searching for her target along the busy street, scanning the traffic coming from the north. And suddenly she spotted a black limousine.

"Kirito, approaching at your nine o'clock."

"Understood." The radio replied. "Intercepting. Watch my back."

"Always."

Down on the street below, a man dressed all in black poked his head out of an alley to look down the street. He could just see a black limo coming his way, a caravan of police cars surrounding it. He quickly pulled his head back inside the small space between buildings and pressed a button on his watch. Immediately, his appearance changed. Before, he had short, black hair and onyx eyes, but afterward, a dim light seemed to pass over him and his hair became long, his eyes turning iridescent red like an animal's.

The light had barely faded before he slipped onto the street.

It took a while for people to notice him, but as soon as they did, screams filled the air. People pointed at him, faces contorted in horror. Some people ran, while others stood frozen until he looked at them and they scattered.

As the cars came closer, Kirito reached up and pulled a black sword from the sheath on his back. Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he strode carelessly onto the street. The cars began to swerve, trying to avoid hitting the man that had just walked into the road, but Kirito just stood there.

As the limo sped towards him, he calmly sidestepped and slashed his sword along the length of the vehicle. It cut through like it was butter. Metal screeched, tires squealing as the limo skidded to a stop several meters away. Kirito looked back at it almost indifferently before turning and walking toward it. The police cars had stopped now, lights flashing brightly in the night as people scrambled out of them, trying to organize a defense. Though, honestly, it was pointless.

A man was staring at the figure striding toward them, his face pale. "It is him! The Black Swordsman!"

Kirito chucked darkly at the exclamation. He found his title quite fitting actually.

The guards immediately began shouting orders, but it just made Kirito roll his eyes. Humans could be so pitiful. He approached them calmly, letting his sword tip scrape ominously against the concrete, relishing how panicked it made them. That's when they began to shoot, a fatal mistake.

Kirito raised his sword, the flat of his blade facing his opponents. Bullets ricocheted off the steel with a high-pitched shing, some hitting the concrete, others embedding themselves in the flesh of those who shot them. The swordsman listened to their screams of agony before he descended upon them.

Inside the skyscraper, Sinon was still surveying the scene through her scope. She was just watching Kirito as he dealt blow after decisive blow. She scoffed, "show off," her finger resting gently next to the trigger, waiting for just the right moment to pull. There were still too many obstacles in front of the target and she would risk missing if she shot now.

Soon, bodies littered the ground, their blood beginning to form a large pool. Kirito's boots splashed as he walked toward the remaining police officers and the man that he had been hired to kill. The officers formed a barrier around the man as they shot round after round at Kirito, but he deflected effortlessly. When he was merely a few meters away, he dashed forward, almost too swiftly for the officers to see. Before they could react, however, they were a bloody mess on the ground.

The man remaining stared in horror at the scene that lay before him. Then, as Kirito stepped closer to him, the man crouched down in fear, screaming his plea of "Don't kill me!"

Kirito smiled down at him, the gesture not reaching his eyes. He knew that he would never get the chance to kill the man anyway. He could hear the police reinforcements. They were firing at him now, from atop buildings and the street behind him. He couldn't see where the gunfire was coming from, so he couldn't do anything to stop it at the moment. Instead, he withdrew, disappearing into the shadows of the alley he came from.

The man left on the ground looked up, filled with joyous relief. He scrabbled to his feet, sprinting toward his saviors.

That was also a mistake.

Just as he took the first step, Sinon calmly pulled the trigger.

Kirito yawned as he walked inside the door to his apartment. He dropped his duffel bag to floor, craning his neck from side to side to stretch it out. He was back to his normal appearance now, his short, black hair slightly ruffled and his dark eyes slightly dull due to his lack of energy.

Suddenly, a voice tinkled throughout the apartment. "Welcome home, daddy!"

A small smile appeared on Kirito's face. "Hey, Yui. I'm home."

As soon as he finished speaking, a small girl wearing a simple, pale pink dress came around the corner and sped toward him, her hair swishing at her waist. Kirito held his arms wide and the little girl jumped right into them without hesitation. He swung her around a few times in a tight embrace before setting her down on her feet.

"It's your turn to cook today," a voice said from behind him.

Kirito sighed and turned to look at the girl standing behind him. "Do I have to?"

She smirked. "Yes. I cooked yesterday."

"Mommy!" Yui called excitedly, before running toward Sinon.

Sinon laughed as she caught the little girl in a hug. "Hi, Yui. I see you missed us."

The interesting thing about this little girl was that she wasn't even a little girl at all. She was the operating system that was provided by Kirito and Sinon's employer. Her program was installed into their apartment, but there was a mobile unit she could control, and so she could walk and talk like she was human. It was quite amazing actually, you could barely tell she was a computer. Technology in this day and age was truly something. Yui was so advanced that she could feel actual emotions. That was how she felt close enough to Kirito and Sinon to call them "mommy" and "daddy," and not because she was programmed to say that.

That was another weird thing though, Yui called Sinon and Kirito "mommy" and "daddy," but they weren't together. They were best friends sure, but they didn't like each other that way. Besides, Kirito couldn't really see himself as a father because of his line of work and the fact that he was only seventeen.

"Now, about dinner," Sinon began as she looked back up at Kirito.

The boy sighed. "If you cooked yesterday, doesn't that mean we can have leftovers? I'll cook tomorrow."

Without her own holographic disguise, Sinon's eyes and hair were dark, almost like Kirito's but not quite. Her hair was black, tied away from her face by a white ribbon on each side. Her eyes, however, were a little harder to pinpoint. They seemed to change with the lighting, and sometimes it was hard to tell if they were black or gray or a dark brown. Now, they were a dark gray, fixed on Kirito after rolling in their sockets. "Fine. We can have leftovers. But you won't get out of cooking tomorrow."

"Alright," Kirito grumbled.

Sinon stepped inside and toward the stairs that led upward. "Can you warm it up then?"

"Yeah," he sighed.

As Sinon unlocked her door and stepped inside, he could hear her yell at him. "And don't forget to put your gear away."

"Yeah, yeah!" Kirito hollered impatiently. Then, he slipped off his shoes and picked up his bag again before walking to the stairs that lead downward, Yui at his heels.

He had long gotten used to living with Sinon. Their employer kind of required that they live in the same place, so there was really no choice, but they didn't mind. Besides, this particular apartment was provided by their employer himself, and it wasn't too shabby.

After Kirito opened the door into his room, he plopped on the ground and opened his bag, sighing as he viewed the contents. That was just great, there was blood all over his favorite leather coat and boots. He would have to get those cleaned.

Yui sat down next to him and snuggled against his arm. "Your clothes are dirty," she said. "Would you like me to clean them for you?"

"That would be great, Yui. Thanks," Kirito answered. Usually he would do his own laundry, but he couldn't exactly throw leather into the washing machine. Yui would be more successful at cleaning these particular items than he would.

Placing those articles of clothing on the floor in front of Yui, Kirito opened another pocket and pulled out his long, black sword that was appropriately named "Elucidator." He slipped that, and the bag, under his bed before getting up to leave. That's when he remembered he still had his gloves in his pocket. He pulled them out and examined them quickly. Satisfied that they seemed to have escaped being tainted, he tossed them on the bed before opening his door and leaving his room, Yui right beside him, clutching his clothes to her chest.

He had just put the food on the stove when Sinon came down the stairs. Kirito glanced at her and saw that she had changed, now wearing an over-sized light blue sweater that dropped off one shoulder, shorts, and her usual pair of glasses, which she only wore when not on a job. When she was working, she wore contacts, since it was easier to look through her scope.

Sinon came to stand close by Kirito, staring out the panoramic window that stretched across the wall. From here, there was a good view of the city below. It was dark outside, and lights twinkled from the streets below, making the buildings a gentle gray. As the two watched, snowflakes began to fall passed the glass.

"Where's Yui?" Sinon asked absently.

"She went to clean my coat and boots."

"I wonder why."

"It's not my fault!"

"Yes it is. I think you went a little overboard. There was practically a river of blood on the street." When Kirito remained silent, Sinon just sighed. "You could have been a little cleaner."

The boy shrugged. "It's not as easy as you think, Sinon... but a little extra payment would give me incentive." Then, his eyebrows scrunched together as a thought struck him. "Hey, Yui?"

"Yes, daddy?" Yui's voice sounded from the speakers installed throughout the room.

"Has our payment been deposited yet?"

"Yes. Payment was deposited an hour and eighteen minutes ago, with a message requesting a meeting at 23:00."

"A meeting?" Kirito mumbled.

"You're probably going to get a scolding," Sinon said pointedly. Then her eyes widened as she looked at the stove. "Kirito, watch the food!"

Kirito whirled around, noticing the black smoke emanating from the pot. "Shit!" He cursed as he took a dishtowel and frantically swatted the pot with it. Sinon had trouble holding in a laugh, he looked so ridiculous. She quickly rushed over to his side and turned the stove down, simultaneously moving the pot off the burner.

"You're so scatter-brained," she chided before lifting the cover and checking the miso soup inside. "It looks okay. A little burnt, but edible. Did you cook rice?"

"Uh..." Kirito's eyes shifted to the side before he dashed off to put rice in the rice cooker. Sinon sighed and turned her attention to the soup.

About an hour later, Kirito and Sinon were sitting at their dining table, just finishing up supper. The two of them sat at the heads of the small table while Yui sat between them on the long side, swinging her legs back and forth playfully. She wasn't eating of course, but she liked sitting with Kirito and Sinon at mealtimes. She enjoyed the familial feeling that came with it.

They were just about to clean up when a message appeared on their panoramic window. The message read: incoming call.

Kirito and Sinon briefly glanced at each other before the former turned toward his "daughter."

"Yui, could you, uh..."

She immediately understood and gave him a bright smile. "Yep!" she said cheerily, before hopping off her chair and moving to sit on the couch in the living room. Meanwhile, Kirito and Sinon quickly shoved all the dishes into the sink before standing erectly in front of the screen. When they were composed, Kirito pressed his hand on the "answer call" icon that had appeared.

A face popped up, filling the screen. It nodded at them politely.

"Good evening, Sinon. Kirito."

"Heathcliff," Sinon greeted with a nod in return.

This was their employer, Heathcliff, otherwise known as Akihiko Kayaba. To Japan, and more recently, the world, he was known as the greatest mind and inventor of the age. He created weapons and technology that people had only dreamed of until he found a way to make them a reality. But he had another goal in mind to achieve as well: he wanted to end the war splitting Japan in two, and become the head of its new government. "Heathcliff" was the alias he wanted to be known by once that goal became reality.

"You both are looking well."

"Thank you, sir. You as well," Sinon replied. Kirito remained silent, allowing the girl next to him do all the talking. He didn't like Heathcliff that much—okay in truth he really didn't like anybody—and so he would only speak if he absolutely needed to.

"Thank you," Heathcliff said, though there wasn't a trace of a smile on his face. "Now, onto more pressing matters. I am aware that you completed the task I assigned without incident. I appreciate the work you do in an attempt to aid this country... Though, your methods, Kirito. I find them a bit unorthodox." The boy in question remained silent, so Heathcliff continued. "I understand that you are more battle-oriented than Sinon, but I believe that you could have been a tad... cleaner."

Kirito glanced at Sinon. She gave him a look saying "I told you so."

The boy groaned inwardly as he came to face Heathcliff once more. "That is the way I operate, sir. If you disagree with my methods, either increase my pay or hire another hit man."

Sinon's eyes widened slightly, and she almost elbowed Kirito to get him to hold off a bit. He was going a little too far.

Heathcliff eyed him for a moment before nodding. "Very well then. I will increase your pay." Kirito simply nodded, Sinon letting out a relieved sigh. "Now then. I would like the two of you to come in tomorrow afternoon. There is some new equipment that was developed that I think you will find interesting. But more to the point, you are aware just who your last target was, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Sinon replied. "He was the CEO of a large game system company who supplied weapons to the Union."

"Indeed. However, despite the fact that you 'assassinated' him, his company seems to be running normally. This has lead us to believe that the man you killed was a decoy."

"So what you're saying is you want us to find the real CEO and kill him?" Kirito asked coolly.

Heathcliff gave a nod. "Though, if the entire company came crashing down, then my hand may slip and add an extra zero to your next payment."

"Understood, sir. We'll look into it," Sinon assured him.

"Excellent. I will see you both tomorrow afternoon then."

As the image disappeared, revealing the glowing city below, Kirito sighed before making his way to the living room and plopping down next to Yui. The little girl cuddled close to him, pressing her face into his arm. The teen absent-mindedly brought his hand up to pat her head as Sinon came to sit on the other side of him.

"Kirito... you need to be more careful."

"I knew what I was doing. Besides, no one else in the world has our skill. It's not like he can replace us in the blink of an eye."

Sinon sighed. "I suppose."

There was a short silence until Kirito spoke again. "Yui, what time is it?"

"Currently, it is 23:13."

The boy stood up and stretched. "Well, it's late. You can power down for the night, Yui, but run a program and conduct a search on Mintendo Corporation during the night."

Yui stood up and gave a salute. "Aye aye, daddy!" she said, before sitting on a chair by the wall. "Good night!" Then, she seemed to fall asleep instantaneously, her small form curled up in her seat.

"Good night," Kirito answered. Then, as he began to walk down the stairs, he said "Night, Sinon."

"Night," Sinon replied, before going back to her room.

Kirito groaned as he heard the knocking coming from outside his door. It had been going on for a few minutes now, and Kirito had hoped that the person knocking would go away. But that obviously wasn't happening.

He groaned again as the knocking got louder. Reluctantly, he rolled out of bed, scratching his stomach under his shirt as he made his way to the door. He had planned to go out and answer the front door, which was why he was surprised to find Sinon standing in her pajamas outside his door when he opened it.

He blinked. "Sinon?"

The girl was looking down at the floor. "Hey, Kirito."

It was quiet for a minute, Kirito simply staring at her. "Do you need something?"

"Uh, yeah," she said quietly, lifting her head up to look into his eyes. "Can I... stay with you tonight? I had a nightmare."

If Kirito hadn't known Sinon as well as he did or hadn't understood what her nightmares were, he would have laughed and said that she was being childish.

Instead, he simply looked at her face for a moment before nodding. "Yeah. Of course."

Sinon gave him a small smile. "Thanks," she said softly, grabbing his hand and pulling him outside and up the stairs. He didn't complain as he closed the door behind them, allowing himself to be dragged. As Sinon reached the top of the stairs, she pulled Kirito's hand so that they were by the couch. It looked like she had already set up so they could spend the night. A few pillows and blankets were stacked neatly on the sofa.

The two of them sat there together, and seemingly out of habit, Sinon gently rested her head against Kirito's shoulder as he opened one of the blankets and threw it on top of the both of them. A pleasant silence followed as the two of them listened to the other's breathing. Eventually though, Kirito spoke.

"You're thinking about your dream aren't you?"

He felt her nod.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Sinon shook her head. "No. It's the same as always. The cages."

Kirito let out a slow breath. He still had that dream sometimes too, and it was none too pleasant. He grabbed her hand, which had been resting on her knee, and Sinon relaxed further, fingers curling around his.

"The world is a dark, cruel place, Kirito," she murmered suddenly. "You're the only thing that's good in the whole damned universe."

Kirito shook his head. "Don't say that, it's not true. I'm just as dark."

"No, you're not," Sinon insisted. "Humans are despicable, they do whatever cruel and twisted thing they can think of just to get what they want. But you? You're pure."

Kirito stayed silent. He had heard Sinon's views on humans before. Despite the fact that she was one, she hated them with all her heart, and he could guess why. He had just as much reason to hate them as she did. Maybe it was because she knew something he didn't or she had a personal grudge that he didn't know about, but for some reason, he didn't seem to hate them as much as she did. That didn't mean he liked them very much though. He was more... indifferent.

The only person he truly liked was Sinon herself. It was probably because of all they had been through together and the seven years they had spent as partners. They were best friends now, and Kirito couldn't imagine his life without her. It was the same the other way around too, he knew, and knowing these things made living this life bearable.

Edited: 01/21/18

Author's notes: Hello there! So this is an idea I've had for a while and I'm having problems with my other stories at the moment and this was on my computer so I thought "why not." Now this won't be my focus for a while because of my other stories so my updates won't be very regular right now, but I promise I will get to this. So please review and tell me what you think so far. See ya!

Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online or any of its characters.