Chapter 9: Academy days in three hours
(A/N: So sorry for making you all wait! I had to go and move and I had zero internet the whole time. Hope this long chapter makes up for it. Thanks a bunch for all your patience!)
Kazuto, Asuna, and Yui all stood together in a big grey room. Yui looked around and gripped her father's arm, "Daddy, where are we?" She asked, slight fear in her voice.
Kazuto smiled and put his arm around her, "Don't worry, this is the avatar selection room. It's where we decide who we're all gonna be, and how we're gonna look." He said making Yui relax. Just then, each one of them were presented with a window that had four symbols, "Welcome to Star Trek Online. Please choose your allegiance." The game's overhead voice said. Kazuto looked to the two girls, "You both remember the choice to pick?" He asked as he pushed the regular Starfleet symbol.
Asuna nodded, "Of course! You told us like a hundred times before we got in here." She said as she too pushed the symbol as well.
Yui nodded, "Yeah, it was getting annoying." She said as she pushed the button.
Kazuto groaned, "Sorry…Guess I was just excited…" He said glumly.
Yui saw this and realized she hurt his feelings and hurried over to him, hugging him tightly, "I'm sorry Daddy. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings."
This brought a smile to his face and he hugged her back, "I know you didn't mean to. It's ok."
Then, three more windows appeared with the Starfleet badge and three colors, red, yellow, and blue, "Next, please choose your class. Tactical, Engineering, or Science." The overhead instructed.
Kazuto wasted no time, "Tactical is all about combat, so that's me." He said proudly and hit the red button.
Asuna smiled, "Then you'll need someone to keep you from dying in every quest, so I'll be the healer. Which means I'm a Science Officer." She said.
Yui noticed something strange about her window that her parents didn't have, "Daddy, what's this fourth option?" She asked.
Kazuto looked over to her window and noticed a grey color option, "Computer. What's this grey badge mean?" He said, using his master controls, "This player is recognized as below 16 years of age, so she can play as civilian player, but can change classes later, either when the player reaches 16, or when the player chooses." The overhead said. Kazuto hummed, "Must be a new factor of the game." He said to himself.
Yui looked up to her dad, "Daddy…I don't really wanna fight, I just wanna be able to spend time with you and Mommy like before." She told him, hoping he would be ok with her choice as she pressed the grey button.
Kazuto smiled, "Of course, I understand, I want the same thing." He told her. Asuna walked up to them, "Yeah, we'll be a family in here, same as always."
The game pulled up another window, this time with their reflection, except it wasn't moving, "Now, choose your appearance, and name." Said the overhead speaker. Kazuto first input 'Kirito' as his name, Asuna and Yui used their real names as their screen names. Yui just hit the 'confirm' button, not wanting to look any different than she does now. Asuna was debating on her hair style. She knew she wanted it to still be long, but she wasn't sure if she wanted it to be done up like she normally does, or have it in curls.
As she debated, she heard Kirito call for her, "Hey Asuna, come over here. I want your advice on something." She smiled and walked over to him, "What is it?" She asked. He pointed at his avatar, "What do you think?" He asked her. She took one look at it, and couldn't help but laugh, "Are you serious?" She asked in disbelief.
What she was looking at, was basically a buffed up, ripped version of Kazuto. "What's so funny? I thought you would like it if I had a bit more…build…I guess…" He told her.
Asuna giggled, "Aw Kirito. I don't want you to be any different than how you are. After all, I didn't fall in love with that Kirito." She said, pointing to the avatar screen, "I fell in love with this Kirito." She said, pointing right at the real him. Kirito smiled, "Thanks Asuna. That means a lot." He said as he and Asuna shared a quick kiss. Kazuto then reverted his character appearance to mirror his own again. And Asuna decided to do the same, choosing to use her normal hair style. Just then, Asuna and Kirito were put into Starfleet Academy uniforms, and Yui was wearing casual wear that's appropriate to the series.
"Now, choose the leader of the group, the person you choose will decide the name of the Federation Starship you will be assigned to." Asuna and Yui looked at each other and smiled before pointing to Kirito. He smiled at them and was given a pop-up that asked him for the ship's name. He thought for a moment before typing in Aincrad.
The three of them watched the video explaining the current war that Starfleet is in, which scared Yui and had her hide her face into Kirito, who picked her up and comforted her through the video. Once it was over, they were inside the quad of Starfleet academy. Kirito patted Yui on the back gently, "You can open your eyes now Yui. It's over." Yui cautiously looked up from her father's shoulder to see that he was right, and instantly relaxed.
Just then, a large pop-up appeared, "Welcome to Star Trek Online! Today is graduation day and soon you will be embarking on your training cruise where the bulk of the ship is manned by cadets like yourself." Then the pop-up disappeared.
"Yo! Guys!" Klein said, as he ran up to them, "So did you keep your name from SAO or what?" He asked Kirito. He nodded, "Of course. But I wasn't expecting you here. I thought you preferred fantasy over sci-fi." He said.
Klein nodded, "Yeah, but that doesn't mean I'm not willing to try it out. And it's not just me here. The whole gang is logged in, and we're waiting for you to get assigned your position for the training cruise." Just then, an AI officer walked up, "Cadet Kirito, Captain Taggart wishes to speak with you."
Kirito walked up to the door of the Captain's office and rang the doorbell. After a brief moment, he heard, "Come." Kirito opened the door to find Captain Taggart at his desk. Taggart turned to face Kirito, "Cadet." He said.
Kirito nodded, "You asked to see me sir?" He inquired, "I did. I've been following your progress here at the academy, and I must say I'm impressed."
Kirito smiled, "Thank you Captain." He says happily.
"I'm just looking at your final test scores," Taggart says as he scrolls through something on his monitor, "but I don't see your results for the advanced phaser training program."
Kirito, choosing one of the prompts that appeared as his answer, said, "I know that program is advised for tactical officers, sir, but I thought I had more time to take it."
Captain Taggart gave him a stern look, "I want everyone on my senior staff to run that program, and I want to see good results. No exceptions."
Hearing this, Kirito blinked, "Did you say 'senior staff'?" He asked in disbelief. He thought he'd get put on security or something.
Taggart nodded, "I did. Like I said, I've been following your career here at the academy. If you complete that program, I can put you on my bridge. I'll ask my tactical officer to set it up." He said as he typed something on his computer.
Back in the quad, Klein watched Asuna and Yui return from getting her assignment, "I'm gonna be working in sick bay." She told the man. Klein then received a notice to meet cadet Kirito to help him with his assignment, "I gotta go give your husband a hand," He said, making Asuna blush, "so I'll see you guys at the docking bay."
Kirito tilted he head, "Your tactical officer, sir? Who is that?" He inquired, "Another fine cadet like yourself. His scores were almost as good as yours, but his record has a few…blemishes. Still, I'm sure cadet Klein will settle down and make a fine officer someday. I'll tell Klein to meet you out in the quad. Talk to him to start the phaser training, and I'll see you when you're finished. You're dismissed cadet." Kirito saluted, "Yes sir!" And walked out.
Kirito walked out to the quad to see Klein and Yui. Said girl waved to him, "Hi Daddy!" Kirito smiled and waved back, "Hey there, where's Asuna?" He asked.
Klein pointed to one of the study halls, "Taking a self-assigned cram study."
Yui nodded, "Yeah, she's going to be working in something called sick bay."
Klein eyed the girl curiously, "Don't you have like all the data on this game, like you do in ALO?" he asked her.
Yui tilted her head, "Huh? What are you talking about, Uncle Klein?" She asked, startling both Klein and Kirito, "She must not remember now that she's no longer forced to be an AI." Kirito whispered, "For now, just don't bring it up."
Klein nodded before smiling at Yui, "Nothing kiddo, I was just getting you confused with something else for a minute there." Yui nodded, accepting his answer.
"By the way, I take it you're happy with your assignment?" Kirito inquired.
Klein nodded, "You bet! I got the tactical officer spot! Just where I wanted! Where did you end up?" He asked.
"Captain Taggart says he wants me on the senior staff, but I have to pass advanced phaser training first." The former beater explained.
Klein blinked, "You didn't do that? I thought you were prepared for anything! Everyone knows that Captain Taggart expects all of his people to pass that program." He explained. Kirito looked downcast, "Now you tell me…"
Seeing his saddened expression, Yui went up to him, "It's alright Daddy! You can do it! I know you can!" She said as she hugged him. Hearing his daughter say that gave him back his smile as he hugged her back, "Thanks Yui, I needed that."
They were then interrupted by a new voice, "What's this? Don't I get a hug?" All eyes present turned to see Asuna standing there, slightly out of breath. Yui ran up and hugged her mother, "Of course you do Mommy!" She said happily, causing Asuna to giggle in delight as she picked up the young girl.
Kazuto placed a hand on her shoulder, "What have you been doing? Your HP is nearly out." He said, noticing her health bar. Asuna sighed, "I just came back from the advanced phaser training. It was a close call, but I barely managed to pass it."
Kirito gaped before hanging his head, "If even you had trouble with it, what chance does that give me?" He asked. Klein chuckled, "You'll be fine. C'mon. I'll take you to the holo-deck and set it up." He said.
"And we'll come along too, so we can cheer you on." Asuna added. Kirito nodded before looking at Klein, "Lead the way."
The four of them walked casually through the quad, talking about assignments, whales, and the Boothby hologram before arriving in front on the main building. Klein started pressing a series of buttons on the console, "Setting up the training program now. I hope holodeck 2 is your lucky holodeck!" He said, giving his friend a thumbs up. Kirito grinned, "Have any advice for me? I want to pass this." He said. Klein shrugged, "Shoot stuff, don't die. Pretty basic, really." He said, making Kirito roll his eyes, "What kind of tactics can I expect." He asked his in-game wife, "Pretty standard from what I read in the archives." She said.
Klein nodded, "Yeah, it runs a variation on MACO assault training." Yui tilted her head, "MACO?" She asked.
Kirito nodded, "It means Military Assault Command Operations." He answered, "By the way, I'm gonna need a phaser."
Asuna unequipped her phaser, "You can use mine. I'll get another one when we go on the training cruise anyways." Kirito smiled at her, "Thanks honey." He said, making Asuna blush slightly, she wasn't fully used to his nick-name for her.
Kirito walked up to the holo-deck and was about to enter when Asuna grabbed his arm, "Kirito, wait." Before he could answer her, she gave him a soft kiss, making Klein block Yui's view with his hand. After a brief moment, they separated, "That's for good luck." She said.
Kirito grinned, "If it's as hard as I think it is, maybe I need a little more luck." He said teasingly. Asuna laughed and playfully slapped his chest, "Don't push it big guy, I still remember floor 74 clear as day." She said as she turned her back to him with a triumphant smile on her face.
Kirito hung his head and sighed, "How long are you gonna hold that over my head? I said it was an accident." He then shook his head, "Well anyways, here I go."
He slowly entered the holo-deck and gripped his phaser, "Start program." He said. The environment then changed to the inside of a Klingon Bird of Prey.
He entered the bridge to be attacked by three Klingons, "Kill the Federation Petaq!" Said the, supposed, captain. The other two fired phaser beams at him. Kirito back-flipped to evade the attacks, then fired at one of the consoles to distract them. During the small explosion, Kirito rushed to the Klingon on the left and hit him with a phaser blast in the stomach, disintegrating him. Just then, however, he was blasted by two simultaneous shots fired by the remaining Klingons.
Yui, who was watching at the entrance, became worried, "Is Daddy going to be ok?" She asked fearfully.
Asuna smiled at the child, "Don't worry, solo-playing is what he's best at. He won't lose." She said confidently.
"I certainly hope so." Said Captain Taggart, who had just walked in. Asuna was surprised to see him here, "Captain. I wasn't expecting you." Taggart never averted his gaze, "If I'm going to have a new number1 then I'd better make sure I know how reliable he is."
Kirito was pinned down, stuck behind a console he was using as cover, "I can't get a clear shot…time to finish this. Black swords man style." He fired at a nearby pipe, making a fairly long pipe hit the floor, he then switched his phaser to his left hand and picked up the pipe and charged.
Taggart was stunned at what he was seeing, "What is that cadet doing?" He asked. Klein smirked, "Don't worry Captain. He's got it under control." Yui nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah! Daddy's gonna win!"
Kirito hit the second Klingon with his pipe with a diagonal strike, he then did a backwards dodge roll to distance himself from the Klingon and opened fire. With two Klingons dead, only the captain remained. The final Klingon holstered his phaser and pulled out a dagger. Kirito grinned and did the same with his and clashed with his holographic enemy.
Taggart watched how Kirito responded to every attack. The current clash between Kirito and the Klingon was in dead heat, neither side having the upper hand. Klein was glued to the scene as well, but as a spectator, not a judge. Asuna had a look of worry on her face, because the last time she saw him struggle this much against an enemy, it was against Heathcliff. Yui watched on with firm conviction that her father wasn't going to lose.
The captain Klingon finally succeeded in breaking Kirito's pipe and kicked him into one of the chairs, "Surrender, Federation dog!" The Klingon said. When no answer came, he threw his dagger at Kirito. Kirito's eyes widened, "Finally!" He slammed himself on his side to the floor, pulled out his phaser, and shot the Klingon in the head.
When the simulation ended, both Kirito and Asuna let out a sigh of relief. Kirito stood up and gave everyone a thumbs up. Yui and Asuna ran up to hug him, "I knew you could do it Daddy!" Yui proclaimed, "Yeah, but maybe next time, you won't cut it so close, alright? I was worried." Asuna told him.
Kirito chuckled and put his forehead on hers, "Sorry Asuna. I didn't mean to scare you."
Captain Taggart walked up to the family, "Well done, cadet. You're not going to break academy record, but your results were more than satisfactory." He said.
Kirito stood in front of the Captain and smiled, "Thank you, Captain. Do you have an assignment for me now?" He asked.
Taggart nodded, "Absolutely. I have a new First Officer." He stated, stunning everyone, "First Officer, sir?" Kirito asked.
"Yes. You should be proud of your accomplishments here, cadet. You have a promising career ahead of you in Starfleet."
Kirito smiled brightly, "Thank you sir. It'll be an honor serving with you." Once the Captain left, Asuna threw herself into Kirito's arms, "That's amazing Kirito! I'm so proud of you!"
Klein patted Kirito on the back, "First Officer! Way to go! Just a little jealous, I'll admit. At least now you can boss us all around." He said with a chuckle.
Kirito smirked at Klein before looking back at Asuna, then down at Yui. He sighed, "It's a lot of pressure. I hope I'm up to it." Asuna smiled and kissed his cheek, "You'll do fine. It's not that different from being second in command of a guild. And trust me, that's not as hard as it looks." Asuna told him, speaking from experience. Klein nodded, "We should head up to the shuttle bay. Everyone is waiting there for the ceremonial send-off toast."
The small group went into the turbo-lift and Klein said, "Shuttle-bay." Activating the turbo-lift. As they waited, Yui started to look concerned, "What's that?" She says to herself.
Asuna notices the look on Yui's face, "Is something wrong, Yui?" She asked, making Yui blink out of her thoughts as she faced her mother, "Uh…no Mommy, I'm just not used to this game yet." She lied, hoping to convince her.
Asuna eyed her for a moment before smiling, "That's fine dear, you can just relax on the ship when we get on board. Ok?" Yui smiled and nodded before returning to her thoughts, "I don't know why…but I feel like something bad is about to happen…"
Soon, they arrived at the shuttle-bay. Just before they all departed, Klein faced them, "Ok, all of the senior staff is waiting by the bar. I'm sure everyone's a bit nervous, this being our first real quest and all. So I'm expecting an inspiring speech out of you." He says to Kirito, "Something heartwarming. Enough to make a Vulcan cry. This mission could determine the rest of our careers."
"No pressure." Kirito adds mentally.
"I'll meet you out there." And with that, Klein rushed on ahead. As the trio walked out of the turbo-lift, they went to acquaint themselves with the senior staff, which was all familiar faces. The first to greet them was Agil as a Klingon that looks similar to Worf, but with Agil's facial features, "Hey guys." He says. Upon seeing him, Yui makes a slight 'eek!' and hides behind Kirito, who smiled, "It's ok, Yui. That's Mr. Agil." He told her.
Yui slowly looked up at Agil, still shaking in fear. After a minute or two, Yui relaxed as she realized it really was him. She walked over to him, "Hi Mr. Agil!" She says.
He smiled down at her, "By the way, my name's Otar in this game." He told them.
Asuna smiled, "So how are you a Klingon? I thought that Starfleet officers couldn't play as Klingons."
Otar shook his head, "Actually you can, it just costs real world money. I thought it would be good, since I was gunning for the Security team." He explains. Kirito smiled, "And since you're here with the senior staff, I'd say you're chief of Security?"
Otar nodded proudly, "You bet. So what are you two posted at?" Asuna smiled, "I'm chief Medical Officer, and Kirito is First Officer."
Otar's eyes widened, "Really? I thought for sure Asuna would get that position."
After finishing with Otar, they met up with a Bajoran in a yellow cadet uniform. It took Asuna almost no time at all to recognize the player, "Liz?" She asked.
Said Bajoran turned around, her pink-ish hair spun as she did so, "Asuna!" She exclaimed as she hugged her best friend, "And it's not Liz. Here, I'm Nurma." She said before smirking at Kirito, "How ya been Kirito? Fallen off the bed lately?" She said as she and Asuna tried to contain themselves laughing.
Kirito, however, looked at Asuna, "You told her?!" He asked. Asuna calmed her giggles, "No, of course not…I showed her the video of it that I took." She said as her giggles regained their power over her.
Kirito groaned, Nurma laughed, "Hey, at least you didn't pull another floor Sevent-."
"IT WAS A FREAKING ACCIDENT!" He screamed in frustration, earning stares from every player and AI present in the room. Kirito face-palmed before walking over to a chair to sit down.
Asuna sighed, "Ok, I think that he's had enough. From now on, no one teases him about that." She said, making Nurma whine, "Aw c'mon! If I can't date him, I should at least tease him!" She said before she could realize what she said, "What?" Asuna asked.
"What?" Nurma replied. When she had first heard about Kirito and Asuna getting married in SAO, she decided not to let Asuna know about her secret crush on him, in fear of losing her friendship.
Asuna decided to just let it go, "Anyways, what are you at?" She asked.
Nurma smiled, "I'm the blacksmith of the future, the Chief Engineering Officer." She said proudly, "And don't worry, Commander, I'll make sure the ship purrs like a kitten through the whole journey."
Asuna chuckled, "Glad to hear it, but I'm not First Officer. Kirito is." She said, pointing to her in-game husband as Yui dragged him back to the two. Nurma was surprised, "Really?" She asked in disbelief. Kirito simply rolled his eyes.
After Nurma, they noticed that they had met everyone on the senior staff that they already knew, "Guess I better make that speech now." He said. Asuna nodded, "Right, come along Yui, let's get go find everyone." She said as she took Yui's hand and guided her into the group. Kirito took a glass and faced the whole crew, and prepared his speech.
"May I have everyone's attention?" He then waited a moment until all eyes were on him, "We are the Senior Staff of the U.S.S Aincrad. Each and every one of us has trained for the task at hand. And we are ready. I have the utmost faith in each of you. You're the best the academy has, and together, we can do anything. But we will go forth boldly like Starfleet has trained us, putting to use everything we've learned here." He then raised his glass, "To Starfleet Academy! To the Aincrad! To her crew!" Everyone raised their glasses as a roar of cheers could be heard.
After a brief moment, Asuna ran up to Kirito, jumping into his arms as he spun her around, "That was amazing Kirito! I didn't know you had it in you."
He blushed at her compliments, "Uh…actually, I was just reading the prompts that were labeled 'inspire the crew.'"
Asuna then pouted, "Don't tell me that~! You ruined the effect!" She said, Kirito couldn't help but chuckle, "Sorry. My bad." He says, Asuna smiles and lightly shakes her head, "It's fine, but don't tell that to Yui. She's over there bragging about how her daddy is 'the best first officer in Starfleet.'" Kirito smiled as he and Asuna walked over to Yui to get themselves onto their own starship.
