Disclaimer: I wrote this chapter on the Notes app of my iPod Touch 4. I then sent it to my email, put it on my computer's Wordpad, edited it, and then uploaded it. At 1 in the morning. Whilst listening to Yuki Kajiura non-stop. So no, I do not yet own Sword Art Online. Give it time.


A common misconception that people get from the box art of Sword Art Online is that it is fantasy game. Which is understandable, considering the picture depicts an oversized man holding a giant hammer helping an insanely hot girl wearing battle-lingerie battle a green leopard-octupus-thing. Not to mention the lack of badass-looking guns. In actuality, SAO is a science-fiction game.

This is clearly expressed by the Main Hub of the game.

According to in-game Lore, the Heathcliff, a massive deep-space ship, was built for the sole purpose of colonizing new planets after humanity had exhausted the resources of Earth. For players, it was a place to take a break from the hostile world below, stock up on weapons, med-kits, and to participate in a hidden side quest that involved a monkey, a pervert, a generator, and launching the aforementioned pervert into a black hole in order to save monkeys all over the universe, whilst fighting a scantily clad woman from Antarctica. When the Heathcliff is observed from the outside, it was a giant hulk of metal that appeared to be part of the sky itself. Unmoving, unwavering, and as intimidating as hell.

Of course, no one really bothered to look up at the Heathcliff, due to the fact that in order to do so, you'd have to take your eyes off your surroundings. Something even a newbie player wouldn't be willing to do in a game as hardcore as SAO. But I wasn't a newbie. Far from it.

In an MMO, it's considered suicide to venture out on any of the planets without a party. In fact, playing Solo was seen as an incredibly ballsy move in the Beta. Fortunately, I managed to do just that. On all eight planets thus far.

You'd think with over three months of beta testing a game, you'd be able to unlock more than just eight out of a hundred planets. But in all fairness, the universe of Aincrad was friggin' HUGE. Once the game officially released, it would take forever for me to see all 100 planets. I'd have to be plugged in all the time for that.

These thoughts and more ran through my head as I casually parried another blow from yet another player.

To celebrate the final day of the beta, the game masters decided to throw one last Tournament. The top three contenders would receive a premium copy of SAO one day before the official launch. The Game Masters weren't willing to spill what the premium version would conclude, so almost all of the 1000 beta testers were participating, myself included.

There were three main events, each with their own variations and rules.

One-on-One Duel was, well, exactly what it sounded like. Two players of roughly the same level would compete against each other, either until one had completely ran out of HP, or the timer reached zero. No Tower Plays, no Minions, and no Launchers.

The Battle Royale event boasted the most players, and was sure to end over quickly. Over 600 players crammed into an average sized map with the ability to deploy Auto Turrets, Healing Stations, and use the destructive War-Meks? Yeah, A LOTof people were gonna get GO'd. If you counted the Minions all the players would be using, a total of 3000 combatants were going to be dukeing it out.

The final event, Flash Mob, was considered the hardest, but only required you to play once. You would be placed inside a pre-selected map, with no Minions and limited Tower Plays. The system would then send mob after mob in an attempt to deplete your HP. Whoever lasted against the onslaught the longest would automatically become one of the three winners.

Now, I'm all for the chaos and carnage. That attitude comes with playing the game for weeks-on-end. But the biggest chance I'd have to win the premium copy was dueling, something the game's biggest info broker assured my I was stupidly good at. I was more accustomed to plain sword fighting anyway, most likely due to the kendo training my grandfather had ingrained in my skull.

Another parry. Block, sidestep, slash, block, feint left, thrust, slash, back pedal. My opponent was surprisingly mediocre.

Maybe that was why I had been burying myself in this game? Here, I was not berated for every mistaken foot pattern, and instead, I adapted. If I made a mistake, I would simply respawn at the nearest Grave Mark. If an opponent got to far out of reach, I could just pull out my Launcher, and in the next second a building would be where my opponent was. Here, in the universe of Aincrad, Kirigaya Kazuto the kendo prodigy became Kirito the Black Blur.

Once again, my opponent attempted to ready a Sword Art. I closed the distance between us and slashed at her upraised arm. Flinching at the interruption, she rapidly back pedaled in order to regain her composure. Not having any of that, I prepared my own Sword Art, the Devil's Whip, and rushed forward. Crouching low, she swiped at my feet, but I jumped over her prone form and unleashed the Sword Art. My sword turned into a ray of light, light as air and deadly as tempered steel. My system-enhanced blade became a mere blur as it repeatedly slashed away, large chunks of my opponent's HP disappearing.

Back pedal, block, parry, slash upwards, thrust.

Perhaps it was the natural rush that came with fighting an actual person. Well, not an actual person, but the Nerve Gear could render objects so realistically to the point you couldn't tell the difference between this reality and the next.

My opponent had a look of panic on her face. In desperation, she prepared one last Sword Art. Before she could unleash it-

Time up. Winner: Kirito.

I let out a sigh. Even though I had not taken a single point of damage during the duel, it took a lot out of me in order to dodge all those attacks. I stepped forward and shook hands with my opponent, who now wore a sheepish look. Even though in Real Life we would bow to each other, western customs were, for unspoken reasons, more easily accepted in the game.

Stepping out of the Arena, I was greeted by the sight of a single player.

"So, ya did pretty good in there. Was that a new Sword Art I saw? Give ya a 100 coll for the name."

Argo the Rat was the biggest info broker in SAO, and also one of my few acquaintances. She was also known throughout the game as a greedy coll pincher. I didn't know what she really looked like, but in the game she wore a brown cloak that obscured most of her body. I happened to know from personal experience that she kept a pair of very sharp claws under it. Her avatar's hair was bright green, and had purple eyes with with six whisker marks on her cheeks, probably to better imitate her namesake.

"No deal, Argo. Besides, I don't need anymore coll, it's the last day of the beta. I don't think our items will carry over."

She put her hands on her hips and pouted. "Whatever. I just came to tell ya that the Battle Royale is almost over." She started walking to the giant monitors situated in the center of the Heathcliff's hull, and I followed without question.

Adjusting my coat sleeves,"How many players are left?"

Argo shrugged."Dun know. Give or take, fifty or less." She scratched her head. "None of 'em have any Minions left."

"Any Tower Plays?"

"Nah, its actually gettin' pretty boring. Just some guys running around gettin' lost in the map. Wanna go hunt some Minuhtorz one last time?"

I rubbed my left arm in phantom pain. "Uh... no thanks."

Again, she shrugged. "Your loss. How many matches ya got left?"

"Actually, that was the last one. I guess I won the event. They'll probably announce it at the end of the Tournament."

As I walked on, I noticed Argo had stopped walking and fallen behind me, her eyes downcast. "Argo?" In a blur she was up in my face, standing on her toes to reach my artificial height.

"Kirito. You. Have. To meet up with me once the game launches." From this close, I could almost see a faint sparkle in her eyes. "Kay?"

Something told me this wasn't a request. "Um, okay, I guess?"

And just like that, she was rushing to somewhere else, no doubt to tell her fellow info brokers that she knew what the premium copy of the game came with. Which was a total lie. Then again, she would eventually know, as there was no way I could keep the information secret once I met up with her again. So in a twisted sort of way, it wasn't a lie.

I stood rooted to the spot, unsure of where to go. Now that Argo had went off to who knows where, I had no sense of direction. It suddenly occurred to me that the purpose of an MMO was to interact with other players. Other than Argo, there was only one other player I interacted with on a somewhat daily basis, and HE was someone I'd rather not think about.

Having nothing else to do or anyone to see, I decided to Log Off. Taking one last look at my surroundings, I smiled. In a month, I would come back to this world, ready to take on the challenge that was Aincrad. And then, I would be able to see more than just eight planets. Bringing up the menu, my finger lingered over the Log Out button, not wanting to push it.

Looking back, that was the last time I ever saw the Log Out button. Funny, how much I had taken something so small for granted.


Waiting in the Real World was painful. Unlike in SAO, you couldn't just bring up your inventory and fiddle with it while you were waiting for something. No, you actually had to wait as time slowly crept by, second by second. The only person I could even consider talking to has Suguha, but that option was out, as she was at the dojo with her friends at this time of the morning. As much as I longed for a release from my boredom, I would never willingly step foot into a dojo with Suguha.

It wasn't as if I didn't like my cousin. Rather, I was afraid it was the other way around. Every timeI got in the vicinity of a dojo with her, she would always suggest that we participate in a friendly little spar. And by "Suggest" I mean drag by my ear. And by "Friendly" I mean furious. And by "Spar" I mean... I think my point's gotten across. Anyway, I would always beat Suguha in a kendo match, which would make her furious, seeing as how I didn't even practice. And so she had dedicated herself to the sport, while I buried myself in my video games.

So it was that I had holed myself up in my room, curtains drawn and computer screen at full brightness. Had anyone else come in, I suppose they would have labeled me as a weirdo. I was looking through a small opening in between the curtains, awaiting the mail that would bring to me my premium copy of SAO. Again, I guess I really didlook like a weirdo.

Being shut out of a world you've grown to love gives you a fresh perspective on things. For one thing, I had been annoyed more than once by the mailman's inconsistent schedule. In SAO, all notifications were sent the minute they were written, and Special Events took place on the dot. I could understand being a few minutes late, but an entire half-hour? I was beginning to think the mailman did this to me on purpose.

Stepping away from the curtains, I decided to make myself breakfast, as it was nine o' clock. Another one of my daily pains.

After carefully avoiding the wires strewn across the ground ( if you want a half decent computer setup, you're gonna need a lot of outlets), I opened my door and stepped out. Closing it behind me, I took a few steps towards the stairs.

There was a time when I could walk through this house and have a sense of familiarity with it. After drifting away from my "parents" and Suguha, I had spent most of my time in my room. As I walked down the stairs and through the halls, it all felt new to me, like I was a stranger in someone else's house. Which was ridiculous, of course, but still, I couldn't shake that feeling. In the kitchen, I was greeted to the sight of miso soup and rice, accompanied by grilled fish and an omelet. Courtesy of Suguha, no doubt.

It took only a couple of minutes to eat breakfast, and even then, I still felt empty. Maybe I should go out to the supermarket and pick up some groceries? No, that would take too long, and I didn't have any money. I could go to the mall, where everyone my age normally went to hang out. But I was never the social type. Back to my room? That sounded pleasant.


Two hours? Really? That's the Japanese mail system for you.


For some reason, the mailman acted like I wasn't supposed to be pissed at him being so god damn late. Of course, I didn't show how angry I was, instead just smiling and saying I understood. Jackass.

Normally I would actually be pretty mellow about something like this, but EIGHT hours is where I draw the line.

In my hands I held the Premium Copy of Sword Art Online. I hadn't yet opened it, and didn't plan to until I was safely back in my room. Sprinting past Suguha and the two friends she had brought to house, I rushed up the stairs and slammed the door shut behind me. Snatching up my Nerve Gear, I leapt onto my bed. Tearing open the brown packaging covering my game, I stared in awe at the new box art. Sure, it still had a huge guy with a huge hammer and a hot chick wearing hot armor, but now they were fighting a leopard-octopus-giraffe-thing. In space.

Kami, I'm a sucker for this game.


As I've previously mentioned, waiting sucks.

The servers for SAO would start at exactly one o' clock, and I was anxiously waiting. Again. Right now it was seven in the morning, and I had a while to go. I briefly recall being flat out bored when I waited for the beta version of the game to come out. That was a mistake.

Glancing at my Nerve Gear, a fond smile crept on my face. It had taken an entire six months allowance and getting a part-time job, but in the end I possessed a brand new Nerve Gear. A device that I was sure would help me escape reality even further. Suguha had berated me for spending my money on something so frivolous, and in return, I scolded her for buying all those antique kendo swords. As if her collection was more important than mine?

A knock sounded on my door. Hesitantly getting off my bed, I cracked open my door two inches and saw the frowning face of Suguha.

"Kazuto, what are you doing in there? Your gonna be late for school."

"Um, I'm having trouble finding a pair of pants. I'll leave in a bit." I had no intentions of doing such. I was sure just one absence wouldn't harm my permanent record.

Suguha frowned. "Okay, but don't be late. Also, I'll be back a little later than usual, so you're gonna have to cook your own dinner for once.

You say that like you don't like cooking, I thought. " Alright, See you later. Have a nice day."

Those were the last words I would say to Suguha for quite some time.


Two minutes. One hundred and twenty seconds untill the servers started up.

In order to pass the time until I could log on, I had completed several Sudoku puzzles, watched a few episodes of my favorite anime, and even cleaned the house. It was then that I decided that as soon as I had more money, I would invest in an iPhone 9xL. Apparently the games on that thing were amazing, though not to the extent of the Nerve Gear.

I was ready. My Nerve Gear was warmed up, with SAO already inside. Coffee and soda were on my nightstand, I was already munching on a piece of toffee, microwave pasta was ready to get heated, and ( just in case) even more coffee and soda cases were under my bed. All I needed was an epic chorus as I put the helmet on. Kami, was I ready.

I slid the Nerve Gear on laid down on my bed. All I had to do was say the magic words.

"Link Start!"


As I was a beta player, I didn't need to go to the character creation screen. Nor was I dropped off at the tutorial Planet of Hades. Instead, I found myself dropped in the familiar hull of the Hades.

Welcome back, KIRITO.A notification appeared on my HUD. As one of the beta testers for this game, you will automatically be given 99 experience points.In the right corner of my HUD, I saw the Lvl. Bar almost completely fill. We here at Argus industries thank you for your patronage.

The notification dissappeared, only for another to pop up. Congratulations, KIRITO. As the winner of the Premium Package, you will now receive the Lvl8 Anneal Blade, a Lvl5 P-Shield, and Lvl5 Minions. In addition, you have received a message,a video box with a lock on it appeared, from the creator of Sword Art Online, Kayaba Akihiko. It will be unlocked once you unlock certain parameters. Also, a deposit of 5000 coll awaits you on the Third Planet. Good luck on your adventure, and enjoy the game.

A message from Kayaba Akihiko!? I idolized the guy, and I got a message from him? Not to mention all that stuff and the coll. The premium package really gave me an unfair advantage, but...

Out of a thousand players, I DID win one of the three. So since I won it, I could do whatever I wanted, right?

With that mentality in mind, I sprinted towards the drop-pods that would launch me to the First Planet below.

Little did I know, that the Death Game had begun.


AN: Finally, its done. At first, I wrote this chapter in third-person, but then I accidentally deleted it. So this is the rewrite, which is not only longer, but in my opinion, better. Not to mention I fit a gigguk reference in there. 'Till next time! Now go listen to Yuki Kajiura.