Chapter II


Floor 73, Quarzi

I exhaled sharply, picking myself up from the ground. The wall that I flew into had a large crack in it, now a constant reminder of my existence here. Focus. I thought, determined to win. I lunged at the creature, sword hoisted in a battle stance. The creature brought one of it's many black, long and shiny talons to protect itself, but couldn't stop my powerful charge. I bashed the long nail out of the way with the simple flick of a wrist and continued my rampage. The creature's black eyes wavered, possibly in fear, as I thrusted my weapon into it's figure. A shriek of pain flew out of the creature's mouth, as the sword I wielded dug deeply into the torso of the towering Floor Boss. Three health bars left. I thought, trying to think of something positive. "Show me what you've got you big, dark sack!" I screamed, hoping my strange battle cry would spite the creature into charging. Surprisingly, it did so, the titan-like boss looming over me as it got closer.

It stuck out one of his large, fang-like nail to impale me, and I smiled a little on the inside. Perfect.

Puffing loudly and heavily, I brought the sword onto my shoulder to rest it, when in truth, I wanted to throw it on the ground. The boss got up forcibly, stumbling from the damage I inflicted, flailing on the ground. "Time to finish this!" I yelled at it, dragging my sword along the ground out of exhaustion. I reached the almost-dead carcass of the boss, and looked it deeply in the eye, before saying as I brought my sword slowly above my head; "You lose" I said, bringing the sword down on it's neck. The monster evaporated in a flurry of crystallized pixels, a message appearing before me:

Congratulations! You landed the finishing blow!
Rewards:
Coat of Unforgiving Souls
15000 Col

"I thought you were dead!" Nozomi screamed, a mix of fury and overwhelming relief. Banging on my chest, I took her by the arms gently, looked her in the eyes and said: "I'm fine right? Now could you please stop trying to beat me?" letting go. She stood back a second, before stepping forward. I cringed slightly, waiting for her to start her to unleash her rage yet again, but all that came were two arms wrapped around me, and a soft whisper; "I was afraid you'd died, please don't scare me like that again" A lump forming in my throat, I whispered back in compliance. I turned to the rest of the Raiding Party, most of the faces in unbelievable shock. "So, onto the next level then?" I jokingly called out to them. I tried to mask my fear, when the only face I could make was an awkward one.


Floor 55, Knights of the Blood Oath Headquarters

"You did WHAT?!" Screamed the Commander, scanning the battle report filed by our temporary leader for the raid. "You managed to take down a floor boss all by yourself? Do you have a death wish?" I sighed. The commander's office was rather large, the walls decorated with sculpted pillars, each depicting something different. A window looked out on the town, two banners holding the Knights of the Blood Oath strung on each sides of the window. The carpet was blood red, much like most of the furniture that was dotted around the place. The commander sat behind an Oak desk, an enraged and outraged expression painted on his face. "Commander, I was locked in that room. There was no getting back out until I had beaten that boss" I responded. Turning to walk out. "Wait!" called out the commander from behind his desk. I stopped, turning my head slightly to allow him to speak. "Join us" he spoke, trying to reason with me. "We need people like you, and you'd be a perfect candidate for joining. We'll even put you on the front lines! It pays well!" I turned to face him completely and began walking towards his desk. "Interesting. Well then, lets start the job interview" I responded calmly, pulling out the seat in front of me.

I walked out of the commander's overkill-size office and found Nozomi standing at the door, waiting with a foot tapping impatiently. "What did they want to talk to you about? Tell me!" She nagged. I proceeded to ignore her excessive prying and began to tread down the hallway, Nozomi hot on my feet to proceed with finding out what happened in the office. I turned sharply, placing both of my hands firmly on her shoulders, making her go suddenly quiet and a light shade of red in the cheeks. "You want to know so badly?" I said, ending the brief, yet awkward silence. She nodded without saying a word and I responded with; "We're on the front lines. We begin tomorrow" before taking my hands off of her shoulders and venturing down the hallway again. Once again, she caught up to me, beginning to question me about why we're going to the front lines.

I sighed, these are troubling times.


Floor 74, Suuaniz

Not exactly what I expected from battle hardened soldiers enduring the fight to free six thousand people from a death game. Nozomi and I were greeted with large smiles and pats on the back, congratulating us for making our way into the Front Lines Battle Group. Better yet, it was Battle Group One. I returned the odd smile and thumbs up to the soldiers, getting good looks at the people that inhabited the main war machine. It's a shame most of them will die. I thought, thinking of what will become of me.

"Gear up! We're moving out!" Screamed our new commander. "Heatrist, you'll go up front for this one, so get up there!" I responded with a firm yes, advancing to the front. "We're moving out to take on the boss, so keep up everyone!"

Nozomi had a troubled look on her face. And she was looking at me. What could she want? She finally noticed me looking at her, and she whipped her head away quickly, a tint of red flushed over her face. I shrugged it off, and watched the path ahead of us for any signs of hostiles. "Look out!" Screamed one of the soldiers on the flank. Unfortunately, it was too late, as a giant spider-like creature leaped off of a pillar and landed on one of the people leading the party. The creature sunk its sharp nails into the guy, his screams filling the area, making most cringe. I was the first to act, bringing the bow I had equipped level with the mob, and firing an arrow directly into its eye. The spider leapt back in pain, crying out in agony as the arrow entered it's eye. I pulled out some newly-bought throwing knifes, and lined them up, each one hitting the target. By now, the others had joined in and were screaming war cries as they swung and shot at the creature. I turned to face the fallen man, whom was already being treated by a member of the party.

The mob was felled with ease, and we began our approach towards the boss's stronghold.

The journey towards the stronghold was met, unlike my previous encounter, with heavy resistance, with our raiding party having to stop multiple times to treat the wounds of our teammates. When we finally arrived at the two large doors, the team was exhausted. Nozomi, on the other hand, was standing outside the door, determined to beat her own boss. I walked over to Nozomi, to try and talk her into waiting. "Nozomi, maybe you should just sit down for a sec-" "No! I will be the first to best this stronghold, even if I die in it!" She responded sharply, her eyes flaring with determination and anger. Slowly taking a couple steps back, I turned and headed towards the group nearest to me. "Lady troubles, my friend?" Said the man next to me with a grin. "You have no idea" I responded. "The name's Akira, hows about yours?" He asked, a hand stretched out to shake. "Tomasu, nice to meet you" I answered in a respectful tone, shaking his hand as I responded. "Alright, breaks over! We're moving out!" Announced the party leader. "We'd better get going then" i said indirectly to the group of men, as I started walking off.


Floor 74, Suuaniz

"Alright kid, here's your pay" Said the Quartermaster, the bag dropping into my hand, and evaporating into crystallized pixels. Reminds me of... I thought to myself, flashbacks invading my mind in an unbearable rush. "Dammit!" I screamed out loud, attracting the attention of passerby's. I looked around, and saw Nozomi running towards me. I brought a hand up to the side of my head, a mild headache entering my brain. "Tomasu! Are you ok?" Asked Nozomi between breaths after rushing to my side. "Yeah... I'm fine...Thanks" I responded, quickly recovering. "G-Good, wouldn't want you to get hurt!" Said Nozomi, giving me a playful punch in the arm. Putting on a brave face, we walked to the warp pad.


Floor 55, Helmsburg Apartment

"GAAAH!" I screamed, jerking up from under the loose covers. "What is it Tomasu?!" Asked Nozomi quickly, turning on the light through her menu. "Sorry, just another bad dream." "You've been having quite a few bad dreams lately" responded Nozomi with a suspicious look. "Do you have a girlfriend back in real life?" She questioned, looking away from me to ask. "No? Why?" I said, getting suspicious myself. "I Already told you I don't" Nozomi turned to me. "Honest?" "Honest." I laid back in bed, and rolled the other way. "Goodnight" I said, pulling down my menu and turning off the light myself.

"Yeah, what is it?" I murmured, rolling over to face Nozomi. The lights were still out, but I still had my eyes shut. "C-Could it be p-possible I-if I could" Nozomi stuttered. Even without the lights on I could still see her blushing. "Yes?" I responded patiently waiting, but half falling asleep again. "C-Could I please SLEEP WITH YOU?" Nozomi yelled. My eyes fell wide open. "I think I might've heard you wrong, did you just say you wanted to sleep with me?" I questioned, completely confused by the situation. "Y-Yes" She said silently. I sighed out loud; "Alright, hop in" I responded, too tired to argue. Lifting up the sheets, Nozomi slid in next to me. "Goodnight again" I said, returning to my previous state of mind.

"...What are you doing..." I started, trying to collect myself. Nozomi let go of my shirt, and looked up at me. "Hmm? Whats wrong?" she responded, as if nothing were wrong. "Well, first of all, you're lying on top of me" I said. "And second of all, you're naked". Nozomi tilted her head slightly. "What;s wrong with that?" She said, rubbing her breasts up against my slightly. "There are several things wrong with being naked!" I exclaimed loudly. Nozomi just gave me another innocent look, getting closer to my face. "Whoever your girlfriend is, I'm better than her" She said slowly, approaching my face with her lips pursed. I brought my hands up to her shoulders, in a desperate attempt to slow down her advance. It still didn't work. "OK, very funny, you can stop now!" I said quickly, trying to make her stop. She halted quickly, her hair falling down onto my chest. "Got you, heheh" She said slightly awkwardly, her expression questionable.


Floor 74, Suuaniz

"Listen up everybody, we have arrived at the stronghold" Announced the party leader proudly. "We will be entering the dungeon shortly, so check your gear!" Almost as if on queue, the sound of inventories opening to check what they had. I opened mine and checked for everything. I felt a rough hand wrap around my shoulder, and I tuned to meet Akira, along with some of his friends. "So we heard your the one who slayed the boss" Spoke Akira, with various murmurs in agreement from behind him. "So you'd better not die!" He finished, letting out a large laugh. Akira was the only one to laugh, his companions with a stern face. Thinking nothing of it, I walked off, giving him a suitable farewell and leaving him to his companions. I walked up to the commander, as his face looked troubled. "Whats the matter?" I questioned, awakening from his trance set on the door. "This stronghold has the same mechanism as the stronghold you fought in" he responded in an oppressing voice. "What does that mean?" I asked politely, fairly learning of this new mechanism. "Only ten person can go in".


Floor 74, Suuaniz

"They've arrived, clear the way!" shouted out someone. Everyone moved to various sides, eventually creating a clear path to the dungeon doors. There was silence, but I could then hear two sets of footsteps. Everyone up ahead of the line gasped, and I asked the nearest person next to me. She shrugged, clearly as confused as I was. Eventually they passed us, and the woman standing next to me gasped like everybody else. They reached the doors, and began to speak in hushed voices. "Only one person can go in!" I called out to them. They both stopped talking, and turned to face me. They made a quick glance at each other, and begun to walk towards me. I held up my hands in a defensive gesture saying; "I just thought I'd let you know". Eventually, they reached me, and everyone standing next to me backed away quickly. By now, I was completely confused, before the orange-haired begun to speak with an innocent look. "It's ok, we already knew!" She said, her face enlarging with a bright smile. The black-haired one remained silent, but then spoke; "Are you the one who slayed the boss on floor seventy-three by yourself?". By then I realized what the fuss was, and various murmurs washed over the crowd, some with surprised and shocked faces. Oh. So that's what this is about. I thought. "Yes..." I responded with a slight cringe. I did not need this attention. "Well then" he spoke again. "Show us what you've got" He said, gesturing to the two marble-clad doors. "I'm Kirito, and this is Asuna" He said, giving a small point at his apparent companion. She responded with the smile she was wearing previously.

I could hear a commotion coming from the crowd, and turned to see Nozomi appear out of a gap in the lines of people. "Don't do it To-I mean Heatrist!" She said, clamping onto me in a hug. I gave her a slight shove, lifting her off me, and looked her in the eyes, saying: "Wish me luck". She didn't respond at all for a small amount of time. "Don't die", she said, as she followed me in.

I always thought real life sucked, but this is probably tops real life. The doors creaked shut, then slammed as the group was descended into darkness. Instead of torches, Crystals lit up, providing the room with enough light. I narrowed my eyes, in search of my prey. Suddenly, I felt an overwhelming force drive me into the nearest wall, my bones feeling like they were cracked. I pulled myself up, and looked at my health bar. Almost yellow. Yet again, I was flung across the oval-like room, and smashed into the wall with an unbelievable amount of power. I glanced at my health bar yet again. Yellow. I looked in the center of the room, and a dark shadow began to take form. I used a health potion, then picked up my sword. "You've pissed me off now!" I screamed, clearly enjoying fighting too much.


Floor 74, Suuaniz

Even the two that arrived at the dungeon were in pure shock when I walked out of the twin doors. "How did you-" began the black-haired boy, but was cut off by Nozomi. "It's official, you are no longer going in dungeons! We're going home!" She said, clearly uninterested. She begun to pull me towards the direction of the warp pad, but a hand wrapped around my arm. "Wait." said the orange-haired girl with a stern face, very different from the previous encounter. "My name is Asuna, and that is Kirito" She said, pointing to her apparent companion. "Once you've had a rest, visi-" She began to say, but I couldn't hear her, as I begun to slip out of consciousness. "Heatrist!" I heard someone say. I didn't care. All I could think about was rest. I was really tired.


Floor 55, Helmsburg Apartment

"He's...Dead?" I asked, a small lump forming in my throat, but I withheld it. "Yes, I'm afraid so" He responded, his face a vision of sadness. "T-Thank you for notifying me. W-Will that be all?" I asked politely, barely maintaining my normal facial expressions. Obviously noticing my emotional pain, he nodded, and turned from the door. I slammed the door shut, and looked up at the ceiling. My Brother is dead. I thought. Dead.


Floor 55, Helmsburg Apartment

I awoke from the dream, this time not in shock, or pain, or anything to be honest. I needed to come to terms with it. Nozomi did. I tried sitting up, but my head forced me down, a spiral of shock bashing around my head like a hangover. I couldn't properly see anyway. I felt a form wrap around me, and begin to squeeze me. "Nozomi?" I called out. Around my chest area, I could hear light breathing, and sometimes a snort, that would be muffled by the sound of my shirt. "Being on the front lines is hard" I said again. I pulled down my menu, and selected Heathcliff, and begun to type my message.

After sending the message, I checked my mailbox. I eyed a recently sent one from Asuna: Turns out, that the news of you slaying the boss on floor 74 is false. The boss has somehow re-spawned. I saw another message, and as I was about to open it, I realized who it was from, and I closed my inbox quickly. I closed my inventory, and wrapped my arms around the body that sat on top me. Slowly, I felt Nozomi begin to snake her arms around my back, trying to weave in between the object I was lying on and my body. "Can you please turn on the lights?" I asked as politely as I could. I sensed her shacking her head in the dark. "Well, can you at least tell me where we are?" I asked again. "The bedroom" she responded. The gears turning in my head, I realized where we were lying. "Oh" I said, before continuing my questions. "Erm, I don't mean to be rude, but, why exactly?" I asked as politely as I could.