A/N: Sorry for the delay! A warning before we start. I hate myself for writing this, I hate myself for posting this, and I hate this chapter completely, but I have a really big block and don't want to dwell on it for too long. So excuse my sucky chapter after so long, and I hope to just progress with the story. Thanks!
~Chikage
*Disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online, only the plot and my own characters. The cover picture is not mine either.
Chapter 9: Secrets and Weaknesses
Metal blades clashing with clanging noises and flashes of colors moved throughout the ring, and Misaka found herself gripping her sword tightly out of reflex.
Fast…well, I guess you would be if you knew what was coming next.
And then, suddenly, she saw the club coming in from a blind spot in the back.
Without thinking, she instinctively kicked off the floor and rushed forward, drawing her sword. "Look out!"
"Misa-chin, don't!" Argo yelled after her, but it was too late.
As Misaka leaped in the air to defend the monster's strike, Tsubasa turned at the same time, his purple eyes looking as if they didn't see her at all, and swung his sword across at full speed.
It was a feeling she couldn't identify—as she felt a golden white light pierce straight through her body.
SAO: Phantom Blade
She thought for sure that she had died. But she opened her eyes not minutes later and found the Argo staring down at her with anxious eyes, and Tsubasa in the back with his sword held casually over his shoulder.
"Wha—" She tried to move but found she couldn't, so she looked up and saw a paralysis symbol next to her cursor and frowned.
"Misa-chin!" Argo exclaimed in relief, pouncing her. "That was so reckless!"
"What happened?" Misaka turned her head. "The monster?"
"Tsu-chan defeated it," Argo replied, looking over her shoulder at the boy. Their gazes never met, and she turned her attention back to Misaka.
"You're lucky I saw you in time to switch to a paralysis Sword Skill," Tsubasa said without looking at her. "I was about to kill you, you know."
Misaka didn't care about that, evidently. As long as she was alive, it was fine. "There's no such thing as a paralysis Sword Skill."
"Yeah, there is. It's in a quest on the first floor available to everyone."
At Misaka's confused look, Argo added, "Only about six people have passed it though. It's a skill called «Illusionary Impact» that deals paralysis to players. He's used it on me too." She looked slightly embarrassed as she said that.
"Yeah, 'cause both of you are jumping into my line of fire," Tsubasa commented, sounding annoyed.
Misaka decided to choose this time to ask. "So if you're not a beta tester, then how do you do it? There's no way a normal person can calculate something like that so accurately."
Tsubasa sighed, sitting down on the ground and sheathing his sword like it was going to be a long story. "First off, what's normal?"
"True," Misaka agreed without answering the question. She found that she was able to sit now, so she did.
"Well, I've been doing it since I was little. My old man was a professional fighter, and I've been watching fighting since I was little."
"That doesn't—"
"Shut up and listen."
Misaka's eyebrow ticked a little at his rudeness, but she stayed quiet.
"Anyway, he's been teaching me since I was little to try to read others' movements. And as you know, the younger the child, the easier it is to imprint something in their minds. So I've been doing that with people for a long time. And like he kept telling me, if you want to be able to read it better, then get to know your opponent."
It almost seemed like he was talking to himself, as he never once looked at her. But Misaka was listening closely, frowning. She still didn't get it.
"But every monster here is different. How does that—"
"This is a virtual reality. It's not the monsters—it's the gaming system."
Realization dawned on Misaka. "Oh. You mean—"
Argo nodded. "I watched Tsu-chan."
"That's creepy."
"Shut up! Anyway, for the first two months, all he did was quests on the first floor without any analyzation. Just pure instinct fighting."
"There's no other way to do it," Tsubasa deadpanned. "But like everything, there's two weak points I have with that."
"Weak points?" Misaka asked curiously.
Tsubasa shrugged, standing and stretching. "You just saw one."
Avoiding the question, he left the room. Misaka looked to Argo next, and the information broker stiffened before sighing.
"All right, I'll make an exception…Tsu-chan's first weak point is that he can only focus on the battle in front of him. He can't watch his surroundings. So if you just suddenly jump in like that, he won't notice until you're directly in front of him. It's already hard enough for him to think about so much at a time, after all.
"«Illusionary Impact»—That's the Sword Skill that Tsu-chan forced himself to learn in order to try to overcome that weakness of his."
"That does make sense," Misaka agreed thoughtfully. "Then the second?"
"I can't say."
"Why not?"
"I don't know."
"Oh."
Argo was annoyed as well, since she had been trying to find out for a long time now. Misaka finally changed the subject, asking instead, "So how'd the rest of the battle go?"
"Hm?" Argo blinked, the whiskers painted on her cheeks moving slightly. "Oh, that…"
…
…
…
…
"Misa-chin!" Argo cried, catching the girl as she fell. "Misa-chin, are you all right?"
"Hey, Rat!" Tsubasa yelled as he locked one of the spikes into a prong on his sword and forced it aside with a twist of his wrist. "Don't just sit there—there's a job for you!"
"Huh?!" Argo protested even as she stood and readied her weapons. She quickly put on a serious expression, though. "All right. What do you need me to do?"
"Look for an opening that won't distract me."
She narrowed her eyes. "…Right."
Argo's eyes scrutinized the battle in close detail. Tsubasa spun around again and clashed with the glowing green Sword Skill that pierced through the air, metal clanging. As the swords were engaged in a heavy deadlock (Argo had to admire his strength stats), Tsubasa suddenly flipped around over the two weapons and slammed his foot down with a golden flash.
«Crescent Moon»… Argo sweatdropped slightly. That Tsu-chan's already putting those Martial Arts Skills to use, huh?
The kick contacted at the base of the left horn, and the monster bent backwards at the sudden surprise attack. Argo saw her chance and immediately charged forward, pushing off the floor as hard as she could and straight up into the air. She initiated the Sword Skill «Acute Vault» once again, her claws glowing blue as she reached up as high as she could.
Reach it…!
Luckily, Tsubasa's battle senses were as heightened as usual, and he stabbed his sword downwards and straight into the Minotaur's body.
Argo felt her claws pierce through the monster, and the Sword Skill was executed perfectly, stealing nearly half of the HP. This allowed Tsubasa to build up time for a follow-up Sword Skill and pierce the entire monster in half with «Vorpal Strike»…
…
…
…
…
"And that's what happened," Argo finished.
"I see."
Misaka stood up, clenching her hand in a fist and watching the paralysis symbol disappear.
As she headed towards the door to find Tsubasa, Argo added suddenly, "Also, I'll confirm it for you. Tsu-chan isn't a beta tester."
"Yeah, I know that."
"But I can't say anything more than that," Argo looked at the floor guiltily. "It's against my policy to give out information about other players."
"Yeah, I know. Thanks, Argo."
Somewhere in her heart, Misaka knew that she had grown a respect for the boy seeking to grow stronger.
Though she'd never admit it or anything.
SAO: Phantom Blade
"Hey."
She found him sitting not far outside and pulled in her skirt to sit next to him, staring forward at the beautiful scenery.
"What do you want now?"
The breeze brushed his colorful hair out of his eyes, and his gaze remained on the setting sun.
"Well sorry for wanting something every time."
"Don't you?"
"Yeah."
Tsubasa finally turned to look at her, skeptical. Then he laughed. "You're really blunt, aren't you?"
"Just noticed?"
"Why should I have cared?"
"True."
They stayed quiet for a little while longer, and then Misaka directly spoke her mind once again.
"So about your ability—"
"It's really not an ability. It's just a habit now."
"It's impressive, either way."
"Whatever."
Misaka felt her ponytail lift in the wind as she stayed quiet in the sun dying the sky a crimson red.
If he didn't want to talk about it, she knew better than anyone to push it.
SAO: Phantom Blade
"That was pretty fun though, don't you think?" Argo shot a toothy grin towards Misaka.
"Don't remind me. This was all your fault in the first place," Misaka criticized, and the information broker sweatdropped.
"Well, it turned out fine, right?" Argo said sheepishly.
"That's true," Misaka mused. "We should aim for the boss fight next."
"That's a good idea!" Argo agreed. "All right, I'll dig up some blackmail information on Tsu-chan—"
"Oi, I can hear you, you know," Tsubasa deadpanned.
...
...
...
I'm just going to go cry in a corner now and die of embarrassment.
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I'm running out of ideas for battles.
~Chikage
