Hello, hello! I am back to Aincrad for another chapter!

Went to go see SAO:OS. Holy Hell was that a good movie or what? The animation was flawless and the action was juicy as ever! Everyone got some shine time in the film, Klein and his guys, Silica, Liz, Agil, Sinon. Hell, even Yui got to have a badass moment or two!

Without further ado, let's get right into the chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter 10: Girl of Morning Dew

Title Song: Longing by Sakaya Kanda (AKA Yuna from OS)

Floor 34: Menagerie

"Man, we needed this," Ion grunted, stretching back in a deck chair.

"You know it!" The girls nodded together, also in chairs of their own.

The three had earned a vacation from their impromptu boss raid, and also to relax for a bit, therefore, they decided to rent a pair of suites on the beach level of Aincrad, allowing them all for some R and R.

Ion was wearing a white tank top that left his arms bare, and a pair of black shorts. A blue pair of sunglasses were over his eyes.

Angel was wearing a purple crop top that left her stomach exposed, and a black skirt that went to just before her knees. She had decided to cut her hair, reducing it to just past her shoulders.

Silica was currently wearing a red summer dress with golden trims at the sleeves, collar and base, her hair was in a single ponytail instead of her usual look.

Aurora and Pina both agreed, resting beside their respective masters.

"Why don't we go visit Kirito and Asuna in a bit?" Silica asked.

"That sounds like a good idea," Angel nodded. After the incident with Kuradeel, Kirito and Asuna got married, and left the frontlines as well, for some much-needed relaxation, they had bought a cozy little cabin down on floor twenty-two, the lake district equivalent in Aincrad.

"I'm down with that," Ion agreed.

The three headed out of the inn, and headed along the seafront up to the Teleport gate, as they walked, they watched all the different activities happening on the beach, including volleyball, surfing, kite flying and all sorts of other games.

Stepping onto the gate, they all nodded. "Teleport! Coral!" And vanished in a blue glow.

Floor 22: Coral

Kirito scratched his head, glancing down at the sleeping child that was resting in the armchair. On their way to the lake yesterday, he and Asuna had found the girl passed out in the forest. Cancelling their adventure, the couple brought her back to their cabin.

Then, this morning, she had finally woken up, and revealed she had no memories other than her name, Yui. "So. What do we do?" He asked.

"I don't know, it's like she's reverted to a baby…" Asuna frowned.

"You're right, she's a blank slate. No memories…" Kirito nodded.

They kept thinking until they heard a knock at the door, Kirito reached for Elucidator, which was resting nearby, and opened it.

"Yo, I hope you weren't planning to use that on us," Ion smirked. Angel and Silica both stood at his flanks, and Aurora and Pina were on Ion's shoulder and Silica's head respectively.

"You guys? What're you doing here?" Kirito asked, putting Elucidator down.

"Can't some BFFs come visit our pals now and then?" Angel asked with a raised eyebrow. Silica just waved with a smile.

"Sure, come in," Kirito nodded, and moved to let them in.

Ion glanced around the small cabin, "Cozy," he commented. "I could get used to this place."

"Don't forget it belongs to Kirito and Asuna," Silica reminded him.

Angel spotted the child in the chair, with black hair and a snow-white summer dress, "Who's the kid?" she asked. Then her eyes widened, "Don't tell me you-?"

Asuna was quick to answer, "N-No! We found her in the forest on the way down to the lake," she said.

"Huh… Wonder who she is then?" Ion asked, his eyes then softened at the sight of her.

Silica was first to notice, "Ion? What's up?" She asked.

"She looks exactly like my sister did when she was ten years old," Ion answered.

Everyone felt sympathetic to the Arctic Swordsman, "Then you can be the uncle until we sort this all out," Kirito chuckled.

"Huh?" Asked Angel.

"She's calling us Mama and Papa," Asuna clarified.

At that moment, the girl seemed to stir, waking at the sound of new voices around her. She saw the new faces in the room and turned to Kirito with a puzzled look.

"Yui, these are our friends, Silica, Angel and Ion," He said, pointing to each one in turn. Aurora hopped down onto Yui's lap from Ion's shoulder, and looked up at the small girl with a happy look.

"Puppy," she giggled, stroking her fur.

Everyone smiled at the adorable act. Ion turned to Kirito, "What's the plan then?" He asked.

"She could have come from the orphanage…" Angel muttered.

Everyone looked at her, "Orphanage?" Asuna asked.

"On Floor One, there's an orphanage for children who lost their parents or dived on their own," Angel explained. "Yui could have come from there."

Kirito nodded, "I heard about that place, sounds like a good place to start," He agreed.

Floor 1: Town of Beginnings

The Town of Beginnings teleport gate lit up, and off stepped the five frontliners. They all stopped, and glanced up at the sky, remembering back to that fateful day.

Ion remembered settling down in an inn for the night, before setting out the following morning.

Silica remembered her terrified scream that plunged the plaza into chaos.

Angel remembered grinding all night, getting up her level as high as it could go from the monsters outside.

Kirito remembered leaving Ren and Klein behind and going solo.

And Asuna remembered crying herself to sleep in an inn, unable to comprehend the situation she was in.

"Hard to believe this is where it all started…" Angel muttered.

"Yeah, it's been two years," Kirito nodded.

"Kayaba's still out there, watching…" Ion said.

"We'll get him one day," Asuna assured him.

Angel led the way to the church, "Hey, Kirito? How many players are still alive in Aincrad?" Asuna asked.

"About six thousand, and about half of that live here in the ToB," Kirito replied.

"Then don't you reckon the streets are a little… bare," Ion remarked with a frown.

"Now that you mention it…" Silica said, glancing around, there wasn't a soul in sight, only NPCs behind their stalls.

"Leave them alone!" A female voice spoke up. Angel stiffened, before summoning her spear and rushing towards the origin. Ion and Silica glanced at each other, before following, with Kirito and Asuna in pursuit.

Angel grit her teeth, spotting her old friend Sasha being blocked by a few ALF troops, "Sasha!" She called, running up to her.

"Angel?" The older woman asked. "Gin, Mina and Kade are over there," she pointed past the squad to where three kids were standing in fear.

The blonde's eyes widened, "You bastards will rob kids of all they own?!" she demanded.

"Hey girl, what's it to you?" One asked.

Another chuckled, "Yeah, you don't know them, so get lost!"

Angel sighed, before running towards them, jammed her spear into the ground, and vaulted clear over them to the kids' side. Ion, Asuna, Kirito and Silica all approached, leaping over with ease as well.

"Who the hell are you?" One goon asked.

"I got this," another walked up to the front. "You must be new in town, because we're the Aincrad Liberation Force and you do not mess with us!" He drew his sword.

"You guys are pathetic," Ion growled, reaching for his estoc.

"Ion, I got this, you take care of the kids," Angel said.

The leader looked amused by her glare, and her spear held tip up. "What?" He asked.

"Sasha, I'd move," Angel simply said, before her spear lit up red. The woman behind them nodded, moving to the side of the street, as Angel grabbed her weapon by the blunt end and spun around, her weapon shaft connecting with the front row.

"Get lost!" she growled, all nine ALF soldiers were knocked far down the alleyway, ending up in a pile of limbs at the far end.

They looked up at her, and noticed this almost… demonic aura surrounding her, and her eyes carrying a look of pure hatred. "Go back to your boss and tell him that if he wants to steal from children, he'll have to go through me," she said, her voice dripping with fury.

The ALF men all quickly got to their feet, and ran for it. Angel sighed, putting her spear back into her inventory and turning to Sasha. "They didn't hurt you at all, did they?" She asked.

She shook her head, "No, I'm fine, thanks to you."

"What's wrong Yui?" Kirito asked.

"Their hearts…" Ion and Angel looked back to see the girl reaching up at the sky. "Everyone's hearts are…"

"Yui?" Asuna asked.

"I… was never here in this place…. I was always alone… in the dark…" Yui muttered, clamping to Kirito. Then she jolted, looking terrified, and screamed, as a strange wave of static washed over the group.

Ion was about to cover his ears from the noise, but his eyes widened as he saw Yui falling backwards. "Yui!" He yelled, shooting forward to grab the small girl before she hit the ground.

She put her arms around him, "Uncle… I'm scared!" She whined.

Ion put a hand on her head, and stroked gently, "It's alright kid, you'll never be alone again, I promise," he said calmly. What the hell was that static? He thought, it couldn't have come from her… could it?

The following morning, the six met at the church doors, Ion noticed Yui was feeling a lot better this morning. Angel smiled, "Right, show time," she said, knocking in a specific pattern.

Sasha opened it a moment later, "Angel, I've been expecting you, come on in," She said, letting them all past.

"Angel's here!" A kid called out.

"Angel?" Another asked, looking up.

"It is!" A third giggled. "It's big sister!"

Ion and Silica both were beyond surprised to see a small army of kids run up to their friend. "Did you bring any presents?" A kid asked.

"Mina told us how you beat up those nasty army guys!" A girl cheered.

Angel waved her arms, "Alright kids, settle down!" She laughed. "First, I'd like you to meet my friends, Ion, Silica, Kirito and Asuna," she said, pointing at each in that order.

"Wow, are you guys part of the assault team too?" A boy asked.

"I bet you've beaten lots of monsters!" Another grinned.

"Are those pets?" A girl asked.

"I didn't know they were in the game!" Another girl pouted.

Ion scratched his head, he loved kids, but this was weird.

Eventually, the kids settled down, and Sasha dished out breakfast with Angel and Asuna's help. Ion offered to help get the cutlery needed, while Silica got plenty of juice mugs out for them.

So while the kids ate together, the frontliners and Yui sat with Sasha at a table off to the side. Kirito and Ion both glanced around at the smiling innocence.

"There's so many of them…" The former noted.

"I know, it's like this every day," Sasha nodded, pouring some tea for her guests.

A child came over, and gave her bread to Angel. She took it, and patted the girl on the head, "Sasha's been running this place since she was with the frontlines on floor twenty-three. She found Gin, Mina and some other kids and decided that she would benefit better from taking care of all orphaned kids."

"A truly noble cause," Ion smiled, watching as the girl sat back down next to Mina.

"Just doing what I can," Sasha shrugged. She glanced over at Yui, who was in a cute pink sweater and blue skirt. "How's Yui this morning?"

"Well, she got a good night sleep, so I think she's back to normal," Kirito smiled.

"Has anything like this happened before?" Sasha asked.

Asuna shook her head, "We have no idea, we found her in the forest of floor twenty-two a couple days ago. Poor thing. She's lost her memory."

"Which is why we came to seek you out, recognize her?" Angel asked.

"I'm afraid not, I mean, I take care of a lot of kids, but Yui is a new one to me," Sasha sighed.

Everyone deflated, back to square one. At that moment, three sharp knocks banged against the door.

Sasha stood to go answer it, and Ion, Angel and Kirito went with her. The door opened to reveal a woman with silver hair tied up in a short ponytail, she was wearing the colors of the ALF, which made Ion wary immediately.

"Sorry to bother you, my name is Yulier," she introduced herself with a short bow.

"You may dispense with the pleasantries, grunt. After the crap we saw yesterday, my faith for your guild is gone," Angel growled. Ion jabbed her in the ribs, his head flicking to Yui and all the kids inside, several of which had paused to see what was going on.

"Calm down, I came here to thank you for putting those men in their place," Yulier said.

"What do you mean?" Ion asked.

"In fact, I have come asking for your help," Yulier admitted.

Sasha invited the woman in, and they all went into a separate room, with Silica, Asuna and Yui following along.

There weren't enough seats for the whole gang, so Ion just leaned against the wall. "So, what's this about?" He asked.

"When the guild was formed, we… or it was our leader, Thinker. He never wanted it to turn into the dictatorial organization it's become," She began. "At first, the mission of the guild was to share information, resources and food equally amongst as many players as possible."

"But the ALF grew too large, didn't it?" Kirito asked.

"Correct," Yulier nodded. "After much infighting, one man became very powerful. His name is Kibaou."

At the mention of the cactus head, Ion, Angel, Kirito and Asuna shared a glance of disappointment. "What did that complete... moron do this time?" Ion asked, choosing to use kid friendly words in front of Yui.

"Kibaou and his group became stronger and stronger, monopolizing all the best monster spawn points. They're out of control," Yulier explained. "They now extort players in the town, under the pretext of collecting 'taxes'."

Angel restrained a snarl, "This man is the one behind this town's dead feeling?! Why isn't he behind bars yet?" She demanded.

"It became evident that Kibaou had no interest in clearing the game anymore, and this made a lot of players mad. Knowing he had to do something to get back their good graces, he sent a legion of his highest-level men to the frontlines," Yulier said.

Silica gasped, "Corvats!" She realized. Ion nodded, thinking the same thing.

"Kibaou was denounced after spearheading that massacre," Yulier nodded. "That was when we started considering kicking him out of the guild for good. Now that he's scared and desperate, he's decided to eliminate Thinker."

Everyone leaned closer, interest peaking. "He set a trap, and stranded Thinker deep inside a dungeon," Yulier said.

Kirito and Asuna gasped, "Does he have any teleport crystals?" the former asked, causing Yulier to shake her head.

"Weapons?" Asuna asked.

"He didn't take anything with him, Kibaou said he wanted to talk, unarmed," Yulier sighed.

Ion resisted face palming, "A peace talk. That was held. In a dungeon."

Angel rolled her eyes, "Oh sure, come on out to my tea party in the middle of this minefield! Never mind the razor wire, we have crumpets!"

"Guys, stop," Kirito told them.

"Can't Thinker find his way out?" Asuna asked.

"The dungeon is the highest we've seen before, he can't get out. On top of that, I don't have the level to reach him, and Kibaou is forbidding the other guild members from helping me," Yulier admitted.

"Say no more," Kirito said. "We'll help you get Thinker back."

Teams were decided, Angel and Silica remained with Sasha and the orphanage while Kirito, Asuna, Ion and Yui (Who had insisted on tagging along) went with Yulier.

Angel had climbed up to the bell tower, and looked out across the city. She remembered how much of an ass Kibaou was back during the Illfang raid. Helios was an ass, but Kibaou was much worse, he blamed the beta testers for hording items and food, yet here they were, taking everything that belonged to innocent players.

She frowned, 'SAO has changed so many people,' she thought. 'Mom… dad… Kione… I wonder how you three are doing back home…'

Before she had unintentionally trapped herself in SAO, Angel was a martial arts expert and even helped teach a few classes at a local dojo. She sighed, those were the quiet days. Her mother was a jeweler, and her father was an armed police officer, someone that Angel always looked up to.

Her sharp hearing was quick to detect the sound of marching footsteps getting louder. Her eyes widened, as at least twenty soldiers all decked out in the ALF gear rounded the corner.

Not hesitating, she vaulted over the railing, and slid down the church roof to land before the large force of men, who were approaching the church door.

"That's far enough scum!" She announced.

A spikey haired man walked out from the middle of the brigade of troops. "You must be new in town, because I'm the guy in charge. These are my best troops, so move out of our way," he said.

"Shut that disgusting pie-hole of yours, cactus-head! Your dictatorship ends here!" Angel snapped.

Several of Kibaou's men snickered at the mocking. Kibaou himself was not amused, "The owner of that orphanage and her pack of rats have yet to pay this month's taxes, and they're long overdue. So we've got right to seize the building and arrest everyone here, if you do not move aside, you'll be coming in too."

Angel gave a snarl, "You think I'm going to stand down and let you kidnap my pack of rugrats? What kind of big sister would I be if I let them get taken by a slimeball and his army of grunts?" She said.

Kibaou grit his teeth, while he did, Angel settled into a stance, "If you want these kids, you'll have to get past me!" She snapped.

Silica appeared in the door behind her, Angel glanced back, "Lock the doors and don't let anyone in, or out!" She ordered. "I don't want any heroes!"

"Go men! It's just one girl! She's nothing!" Kibaou ordered to his men. A handful charged forwards, some reaching out with their hands while others reached for swords. Angel sidestepped the first goon, then kicked him in the back of the head. She then leapt off his falling back to slam her boot into the second soldier. She then bounced her leg off his chest, and the leg swept the neck of the third. All three quickly collapsed in a heap of limbs.

Another guy rushed up behind her and tried to clothesline her with his big arm. Angel ducked under the arm, and grabbed the soldier by his collar, throwing him up and over her before kicking him into another trooper trying to attack her.

Silica and Sasha both watched from a window, "Wow… I've never seen this side of her before," the former said.

"She's amazing," Sasha nodded.

Soldier number six ran at Angel with a sword, the daughter of darkness sidestepped, grabbing the man by his sword arm and pressing a nerve, causing the sword to drop. Angel then spun around, throwing six into a seventh man.

Number eight tried to sneak past, and move on to lock pick the door, but Angel kicked up the sword on the ground before punching it from the hilt towards the soldier, hitting him in the head and knocking him out cold.

Cheering could be heard inside the church, and Angel noticed that some of the kids were watching from the windows.

Four more men came charging at her. Angel blocked a punch from soldier nine and ten, then knocked both out with a retaliatory pair of punches that knocked both out, then she leapt up off them, carried out a front flip before landing with her feet in the faces of eleven and twelve.

She paused, looking at Kibaou, "Seriously? This is your most elite unit? I've fought worse foes in my sleep," she told him.

The remaining eight men hesitated to attack, and even more-so as Angel gave a petrifying glare their way. "Screw this! She's unbeatable!" One said, running off.

"Wait for us!" All the others cracked as well, running as fast as they could.

"Traitors!" Kibaou growled. He drew a large greatsword, and settled into a stance, "first I'll handle things here, then I'll go round up those cowards and throw them in the brig!"

Angel said nothing, just giving a challenge by beckoning him to attack her. Kibaou roared, and charged at her, sword lighting up with a sword skill.

His opponent took a stance, waiting for him to come to her. Angel then struck out as Kibaou's sword came down, jabbing several joints on his body, causing him to collapse in a heap.

"Hey! What'd you do to me?" He demanded.

"I hit all the nerves in your arms and legs, you won't be moving until I release you," Angel explained, kicking away the massive sword next to him.

"Let me go!" Kibaou commanded.

Angel crouched down to look at him in the face, "Fun fact, I don't listen to false kings," she said, and knocked him out with a punch to the face.

Silica and Sasha both pulled open the doors to see thirteen unconscious soldiers, one being the power-hungry man who headed them against the orphanage.

Angel pulled out a large coil of rope, "Finally have a use for the last of this stuff," She muttered. She turned to the other two, "Take some of this and tie them up."

The Town of Beginnings teleport gate lit up, and Ion stepped off, Aurora . Kirito and Asuna were still down there, but he knew they were both fine. However, when they had found Thinker, a powerful monster called the Fatal Scythe had attacked them.

Kirito, Asuna and Ion had been powerless against the monster, but Yui, who had revealed she was an AI, deleted the grim reaper with admin powers. But by doing so, she had gone against her programming, and against the system. The cost for her defiance was immediate termination.

Ion trudged back to the church, his eyes shadowed by his bangs. When he got there, he noticed several tied-up soldiers of the ALF, and Kibaou himself at the front of the group, also in rope.

Angel turned at seeing him return, "Ion! You're back!" She smiled, however, it faded when she saw the empty look in Ion's eyes.

Thinker and Yulier also saw the down-cast look. As Ion went into the church, Yulier turned to Angel. "Go. Be with your friend, we can handle the traitors here."

Ion sat on the window ledge in the back room, looking out the window. His hearing picked up the door opening, and Angel's and Silica's footfalls approaching. "Ion?" the former asked.

"Yui's gone," Ion muttered.

Angel's eyes widened, "What…?" She asked.

Ion turned to face them, his eyes leaking tears. "She saved our lives, but by doing so… she was deleted."

He explained to his friends about Yui's origins, how she was actually a mental health AI who had been broken by all the negativity in SAO, because she couldn't interact with any of the players as Kayaba had blocked her.

He also explained how she had used the admin console and deleted the Fatal Scythe monster down in the dungeon. And how Kirito had saved her data to his nervegear just before she had been completely deleted.

"I get it that there's a chance we'll see her again, but it's the sense that I watched a kid that looked like my sister vanish before my eyes," Ion sighed.

Angel pulled him into a hug, and rubbed his back, "Then we'll see her again, Kirito's a wizard when it comes to tech, so I have no doubts that he'll bring her back," she said.

Silica nodded, "Yeah, don't be sad Ion," She smiled sadly.

Ion wiped his eyes clear, "Sure, let's get back to the front. I've had enough of seeing all this death. Let's clear this game," He said, determination appearing on his face.

Ion: So I decided to do things differently this time.

Angel: Yeah, last time, you wrote the story from the rescue team's perspective.

Silica: This time, you wrote about the other team.

Kirito: You say that, but Angel was a full blown demon this chapter!

Asuna: I'll say, I sure wouldn't want to be on the recieving end of the punishment dealt out.

Ion: Meh, I guess I wanted to show that Angel is just as dangerous even without her weapon.

All: Next time: The Skull Reaper!