The ringing sound of steel on steel filled the training arena, punctuating every second with an offbeat rhythm. Taiki failed to block a strike in time, feeling the tip of Amber's sword punch into his right pectoral. She waved her sword with a flourish and stepped back to a starting position to get ready for their next bout. With no functioning duel option in his menu, they were sparring until first strike while inside the safe zone. Within the walls of the Starting City, neither was in any danger, and their weapons would only rebound off any successful strike. The only things getting hurt were their weapons' durability and a bit a Taiki's pride.
He'd felt like he'd made real progress practicing against the NPCs, but Devlin had insisted he spend time fighting real people, reasoning that otherwise he'd only get used to the trainers' attack patterns. It was the same reason he was sparring with Amber and not Devlin; sharpen yourself against one opponent too long and you only get used to each other. They'd been at it for almost an hour and a half, with Taiki scoring one point to every four of Amber's. Still, he was noticing a steady improvement.
She gave a short bow, signaling her readiness for the next bout. Taiki returned the bow and took a defensive stance. He glanced to the side at Devlin, sitting on the wooden fence that encircled the ten meter diameter training area. The red cloaked figure studiously watched the two, serving as referee when needed.
It had been three days since the two of them had joined the Wayward Pact. Chie had told them their group had just gotten done with a string of quests, and wanted to give them some time to relax before launching the investigation into Taiki's past. He didn't mind; it gave him time to acclimate to the group, and time to sharpen his skills. It also let them try and think of how they would even approach his unique issue; lacking a name, health bar and icon, as well as having a menu with several greyed out or missing options.
Amber held her sword high and made her approach, launching her attack once she was in range with a downwards strike at his head. Taiki raised his shield to catch the blow. With his shield fixed to his forearm, it was held closer to his body; he realized almost too late that blocking the strike obscured enough of his vision to not see Amber punching her more standard design heater shield at his gut. He swept his shield arm down, intercepting the attack. Taiki tried to follow with a strike with his sword at her neck, but was parried by her bastard sword. While he was still open, she playfully tapped the flat of the end of her blade on his cheek. The two moved back to their starting positions when Devlin spoke up.
"First hit is good and all, but it's not everything." He spoke up. "New rule: round ends when one of you lands three consecutive hits."
The two of them nodded and held their weapons at the ready; Taiki with his falcata, and Amber with her bastard sword. Deciding to go on the offensive, Taiki advanced first, swing his sword in a wide upwards arc. Amber leaned back just out of reach and stabbed her sword out, glancing off Taiki's shield. Hiss counterattack met nothing but air as Amber ducked under a slash and prodded his gut with a quick stab. A second strike landed on his right thigh before he could break the chain with a horizontal strike to her shoulder. Not wanting to lose her momentum, she made another stab at his chest. Taiki swept his shield to the left, knocking her arm aside and stepping forward. With his shield arm wound up for a punch, he made a fist and starting swinging forward in a haymaker. She blinked, flinching, seeing it coming and unable to block it. Taiki hesitated, faltering. His softened blow was slow enough that she was able to duck under it. She made no attack to take advantage of the opening, stepping back and giving them both some distance.
"You're going easy one me?" Amber asked like she might have been offended.
"No, I," Taiki lowered his sword, "I just thought I might hurt you."
"Well, you can't, even if did manage to hit her." Devlin chided. "If you're going to hold back and take it easy, it defeats the purpose of sparring. She's been kicking your ass the last hour; now show me what you can do."
"Gimme your best shot." Amber nodded with a smile. "I can take anything you can throw at me."
Taiki nodded back and took a deep breath before signaling his readiness with a short bow. She returned the bow, and Taiki prepared his weapons. He stepped to the left, and Amber followed suit in the opposite direction. The two circled each other for several seconds before Taiki charged forward. There was a rapid series of exchanged blows both blocked and evaded as the two fought it out. Amber would land one or two strikes before Taiki could break the combo with one of his own. Knowing he couldn't match her speed, Taiki let a stab catch him in the thigh, following with his own stab into her throat. While the blade couldn't damage her health, the force of the hit could still compress her windpipe. Coughing, she took a step back, covering her retreat with a slash at Taiki's left ribs.
Getting into the moment and letting loose, he swung his shield down and to the left heavily, batting the weapon aside. Telegraphing his attack, he slashed his sword at her head. She ducked down under the swing at the same time Taiki brought his shield arm up in a vicious uppercut, snapping her head back up. Something plinked off of Taiki's armour as she staggered and fell onto her back. Taiki stepped forward to complete the combo, raising his right foot to deliver a stomp to her gut. She raised her shield and winced, anticipating the coup de grace and holding her breath. Taiki paused; she was missing one of her front teeth. He stood there a moment, foot raised over her. She stared back at him, trying to read his expression.
"What're you waiting for?!" Devlin shouted from the sidelines.
Amber curled both of her knees to her chest and kicked her feet at his left shin. It scooted out from under him and dropped him forward onto her. He could hear the breath whoompf out of her as he landed on her. It might have been a charmingly clichéd scene, if it weren't for his chin glancing off the top of her head, and if he weren't large enough to smother her completely. Amber's legs pattered against the ground while she tried push him off of her. Taiki's right arm was pinned between them; he made to lift himself with his left to untangle himself. His palm pressed unknowingly into the side of her breastplate. Thankfully, Amber's armour made no effort to accentuate her less than bountiful proportions, and his hand slid off the edge of the plate to find better purchase on the ground. Once free, he rolled off her and onto his back, unaware of the embarrassing scene he'd narrowly avoided. He scrunched up and stood to his feet, brushing himself off. He held a hand down to help Amber up, who accepted to offer.
"That's enough for now." Devlin hopped down from the fence, walking over to them. He stooped down to pick something off the ground and tossed it to Amber. "Think you dropped something."
She caught it on reflex. It was her tooth. "Oh, wow."
"Sorry, you okay?" Taiki asked.
She poked her tongue in the gap. "Mmfine. Nothing permanent. Good combo; why didn't you follow through? You looked more scared than I was."
"I don't know." Taiki sheathed his sword. "I thought I hurt you."
"Well, as Amber was good enough to show." Devlin gestured to her. "You hold back from the killing blow and they'll just strike back."
"'Killing blow.'" Taiki parroted. "I don't want to kill anyone."
"Doesn't hurt to sharpen that skillset." Devlin replied. "Time might come where it's either you or whoever you're fighting. Better to be good at it for when that happens."
"It's not just people, but monsters." Amber offered. "If it makes you feel bad, think of it as practice for killing mobs. They're bound to happen, and they're guilt free."
"You're right." Taiki said to both of them. He glanced at his clock; it was nearly three in the afternoon. "So, what now?"
"Now we head back to your little base." Devlin answered.
"Little?" Amber gave a light huff as the trio started on their way. "Housing's expensive for six people."
"Yeah, and apartments are a perpetual bill." Devlin countered.
Taiki let the two talk, walking between them, slightly behind, looking skyward. It was a pleasant enough day on the first floor, with a light smattering of clouds and a beautiful blue sky. He cocked his eyebrow as he studied what he was looking at. Past the clouds and beyond the sky he could make out the ceiling to this floor. Above them was also the sun. The glare around it kept him from seeing the ceiling behind it, but it was clearly the same sun he'd seen back on the fifty first floor, despite being below the ceiling. His brow furrowed as he tried to solve this conundrum.
How does that make any sense? He thought.
It wasn't like there were a hundred suns, one rising on each floor, and he couldn't see through the ceiling. He puzzled over this for a few minutes before he recalled Amber's comments on tugging at the loose threads, and tried to put it out of his mind. The world worked however it needed, whether it was possible or not. He was still trying not to think about when they'd made it back to the Wanderer's Den. Taiki and Devlin entered the apartment while Amber went next door to retrieve Brenda and rejoined them a moment later.
Inside was Chie and Cedric; Mamoru and Haruki were somewhere else around town. The surly woman had made a point of steering clear of the new additions to their guild, often bringing her husband with her, though he had been friendly enough. Cedric had regarded Devlin with caution, and Taiki with curiosity. Chie, for her part, had gone out of her way to make it clear they were a part of the team. The guild leader was seated next to the window, reading a book. She looked up to them and smiled as they entered, shelving the book and standing. Taiki could hear Cedric pacing slowly in the next room.
"Welcome back." Chie said. "How's the training coming?"
"Getting better." Taiki replied.
"Relatively." Devlin quipped. "He thinks too much and acts too little."
"Better than too much of the other way around." Chie countered with a smile. She turned to the bedroom door. "Cedric, we're all here. You coming?"
"Just a moment." Her second replied from the other room.
"Shall we start?" Chie gestured to the table, where a steaming pot of the tea she seemed to like so much sat with five cups waiting. She took a seat. "First, thanks for being patient."
"No, thank you for even offering in the first place." Taiki took a seat across from her. Devlin took the spot to his left while Amber took the one to his left. "I needed the time, too. Now I feel a little less easy to kill."
"Let's try and avoid testing that." Chie doled out the tea to the lot of them, filling the hagi ware cups with the herbal blend. It had a deep, faintly floral aroma. She glanced back at the bedroom door. "Let's just give him a moment."
On the other side of the door, Cedric paced slowly back and forth between the two beds, staring at his inbox impatiently. His right hand was cupped to his chine, with his left hand under his left elbow. He gave an agitated huff, but despite his best efforts to call forth a message, nothing appeared. He poked his finger into the compose button in his mailbox and typed out one of his own.
[Are you awake? It's been three days. Has something happened or can you not analyze that poison?]
Cedric was about to send it when a quiet chime that only he could hear announced incoming mail. Cedric waved away his draft and opened the PM from Otto.
[Sorry I couldn't reply sooner. Busy day here today. Just had a group of five that wasted fifteen minutes trying to haggle. Idiots thought I would price match someone else's less potent stock.
Anyways, I still need more time, but when I'm done I'll be sure to let you know.]
Chie called to him from the main room. He replied with an "I'll just be a second."
He poked his finger into the reply button and updated his previous draft.
[It's been three days. Can you analyze that stuff or not?]
He sent the message, and a minute later its response arrived.
[Look, not gonna lie, but I couldn't. I took a crack at it but it was too high level for me to get everything out of it. All I could get was half the ingredient list. I got another guy I know to do the rest in exchange for one of the knives, and I already sold the other one for a pretty nice sum, so I can't really give you a refund. He's good, though, just busy. Once he tells me, I promise I'll let you know. Not my place to ask, but why do you want to know? You're not in any kind of trouble are you? You cross the wrong people, or something?]
Cedric gave another disappointed huff and typed out another message. [No, we're fine, it's just important. When you can, I want to know everything about that poison. The ingredients and price, as well as the manufacturer.]
[Ok, buddy. Will do.] Otto answered. [I get the feeling that this is a 'just between the two of us' sort of thing. This better not cause any problems for me, but I'll keep this quiet.]
[Thanks.] Cedric typed.
[Np.] Otto answered simply.
Cedric waved his menu closed and returned his right hand to his chin. Though he didn't know the specifics, Zahnri had clearly placed a large investment into that poison coating. For someone that relied on robbing others for most of their income, it wasn't normal to spend so much on a collection of one-shot weapons. He'd asked the Chronicler about Zahnri, but she couldn't recall ever meeting him. The girl's memory was impressively impeccable, so if she couldn't remember meeting him, he trusted her answer. Not that bandits were the type to visit her, but it didn't hurt to ask.
Otto had a point asking why he'd even requested this information, but when you run into a group that tries to kill you, it makes sense to him to try and find out who they were. Best case scenario, he can get the identities of the bandits and add them to the watch list or circulate a warning for others. PK hunters would probably like the addition to their hit list, too, though he'd rather not dwell on that too much. Still, something told him this was not a normal group of roaming bandits; he just needed more information to be sure before he did anything. He put it out of his mind and returned his attention to the people waiting for him in the next room. He opened the door as Chie was about to call him again and walked over to the table. With all four seats claimed, he opened his menu and summoned his own wooden chair he always kept within his inventory.
Cedric placed it to Amber's left, across from Devlin and sat down, accepting the cup of tea when his commander offered it to him. He inhaled the aroma deeply and took a sip.
Flavour of the day…He pondered a moment. Black tea with raspberry leaf. Jasmine for aroma. Bistol leaf…no, root. Honey added. Odd combination, but not bad.
"Okay, let's get started." Chie said. "Let's cover what we know and work from there. Tell me again, what's the first thing you remember."
"Falling. Off of some plateau." Taiki placed his elbows on the table, leaning forward.
"The boss arena for the fifty first floor." Cedric clarified. "Do you remember what knocked you off, or anything you saw while you were up there?"
"No, I woke up already in the air." Taiki answered. "Then I blacked out and woke up again on the beach."
"Okay, let's think this over." Chie leaned back in her seat. "What could've caused you to black out? From the sound of it, twice."
Taiki shrugged. "I hit my head on something? Isn't that how knockouts and amnesia usually work?"
"Remember, game world." Devlin chimed in. "Head trauma won't do it. Same with strangulation or drowning. Only way to end up unconscious in SAO is going to sleep. That, and bashing your head here won't scramble your brains in real life, so memory loss due to blunt force trauma isn't really a thing here."
"Okay, first mystery;" Chie said. "What else might affect your memory in SAO?"
Cedric cupped his chin. "Maybe not head trauma, but trauma of another kind. Maybe repression? You mentioned seeing a few other people falling that died. Survivor's guilt when your friends died?"
"You think he's repressing his entire life?" Devlin asked incredulously.
"Just throwing out whatever I can think of." He countered. "Any other possibilities?"
"Dementia?" Amber offered. She looked Taiki over. "But you're, what, mid-twenties?"
Taiki didn't like the idea of it, but gave voice to it anyways. "What about some kind of brain damage?"
"I don't think so." Devlin fidgeted a bit before continuing. "Any knock to your noggin hard enough to harm your brains would've damaged or removed the nervegear, which would then kill you. If that were the case, you'd either be dead, or logged out, though I suppose they're the same thing, really. You wouldn't be here for us to have this conversation."
"Safe to say we can shelve that idea. Best not to focus on the real world; it's out of our reach." Chie said. For a long moment nobody else spoke. "Okay, what can you tell us about the people that you saw die?"
Taiki thought hard. "There were four. One woman and three men. I can't remember their faces, or anything. Some huge creature killed them."
"Tracking down someone while they're alive is tough enough." Devlin downed the remainder of his tea and poured himself another cup. "Finding four dead people with just that to go on is impossible. What were you guys even doing in the boss arena?"
"Presumably fighting the floor boss." Cedric pondered a moment. "The boss was cleared about a week before you were there, but floor bosses have a respawn time of two days. Another guild killed it two days after the clearing group; it would've been back by the time you're talking about. Maybe you and the others were part of a larger party."
"Still nothing to search for them on." Devlin drummed a couple fingers on the table a moment.
Cedric pulled a piece of paper from his breast pocket. "I checked with the Chronicler. Nine people died the day you blacked out. Pretty uncommon that happens. Got a list of names."
He passed the note over the table. "Any of these look familiar?"
Taiki read the names a few times and tried to remember. He shook his head, passing the note back "No. None of them."
Cedric pocketed the note. "They might have all been there with you, or some of them could have died in completely unrelated events on the other side of the world. No way to really know for certain."
Taiki pointed over his shoulder at where his health bar should have been. "Since we've got nothing there, any ideas why this is missing?"
An even longer silence answered him as everyone present tried to think of something. Amber cleared her throat, and everyone looked her way expectantly. She sheepishly coughed and refilled her tea.
"Not a clue. Same with your missing menu options." Chie said. "Glitches are rare in SAO, and even then the system usually corrects them in a short amount of time. Going to have to chock that up to mystery two."
"What clues do we have about you?" Cedric asked.
Devlin leaned over in his chair, looking across Taiki. "That's the sword you woke up with, right?"
"No," He answered. "I woke up with an empty sheath."
"But you didn't buy that after." Devlin clarified. "You pulled that your initial inventory. Lemme see it."
Taiki unsheathed his falcata and handed it over. It was the sword he'd first pulled from his inventory. Ornate red filigree like vines snaked its way down the silver blade.
Devlin studied it with his eyes a moment. "As someone with an uncommon sword, I can sympathize with how hard it can be to find less than popular weapon types. I can't say I've seen many people with recurve swords."
Devlin attempted to appraise the falcata. "Bone Cleaver…this is a fine sword. Considering this wasn't even your primary weapon, I think we just figured out where you spent all your money. Anyways, this is custom; player made. Can't say who, though. Anyone got any smithing skills?"
Chie reached out a hand, and Devlin passed it to her. "None of us have any real crafting skills."
She tried to appraise it, then passed it to Cedric.
"Sorry, no." Cedric shook his head. "But we can certainly rule out any lower level vendors; this is pretty high grade. If we're lucky, it might be someone that specializes in uncommon weapon types or high level gear. The average vendor has no reason to keep records of their customers, but someone with a higher clientele or a niche consumer base might keep better tabs."
"Great." Taiki smiled, feeling hopeful. "How do we find that out?"
Chie took the sword back and returned it to its owner. "We bring it to someone that can tell us."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The entire collected party made their way down the stone paved road. They'd come to a town on the forty eighth floor called Lindarth. It was built like a medieval styled village, with a large collection of single and two storey houses spread out over a wide area. The largest structure was a church bell tower in the town center. Unlike the packed in storefronts of the Starting City, everything here was spaced out and had plenty of room to breathe, with large trees planted frequently along the stone roads and walkways. The smell of herbs and fruit wafted on the gentle breeze from a collection of farms to the east of town, irrigated by a nearby river.
The river had also been directed and split into a spider webbing network of canals that wound their way all throughout the town. Most of the buildings situated next to a canal had a water wheel, some more than one, powering whatever machinery was contained in the workshops they were connected to. Due to the picturesque landscape and abundance of water driven machinery, the town had become a popular place for players with a focus on crafting. Lindarth had one of the highest concentrations of player run manufacturing shops, rivaled only by the Town of Beginnings and a few other, more industrialized cities. Lindarth was larger than average, covering an area over a kilometer wide, but was spacious enough in its construction that there was more open air and ground than buildings.
Due to the scarcity of buildings per area, and the demand for a spot here, the price of land was quite above average. Any crafter that could afford to live here had proven their skill, further bolstering the reputation of the town as a whole. Living and working in Lindarth was an achievement; a mark of status, and a gateway to a higher clientele than the average vendor. Anything made and sold in Lindarth was likely costly, but worth every Col.
Taiki enjoyed the open air and pleasant breeze on their walk to the store they were here for. It was a two story rectangular house perpendicular to the road made from bleached stone and wood beams. It had a thatched roof, with the end closer to the walkway sporting a peaked tip and chimney, from which a thin trail of smoke wafted. Under the windows were baskets full of flowers and along the walkways around it were knee high shrubs.
Between the building and the road was a smaller, cylindrical structure with a red shingled roof and a pair of iron smokestacks. A water wheel connected to the side beside the street, dipping into the canal that ran along it, contributing to the town's perpetual ambient soft splashing and creaking wood as the wheel turned. It was connected to the back of the shop via a short wooden walkway. The canal made a sharp turn after the building that was likely the workshop, running along one side of the estate and continuing onto the neighbor's shop; a bakery, by the look and smell of it.
The party crossed a short wooden bridge over the canal and stood in front of their destination. At the top of the stairs leading to the entrance and under the front door hung a thick bronze disc bearing the store's name and an armoured knight's bust in profile. To the right of the entrance was a pair of large trees full of plump apples, covering the area in shade.
Haruki crossed her arms and looked the place over. "Doesn't' look like much. There a reason we had to come all the way here to do this?"
"It's a blacksmith; they don't need a castle." Devlin replied. He was standing on his toes, using the hook of his khopesh to snag a few of the fruits from the tree that were otherwise out of reach. "It needs to be functional. This actually looks like a prime spot."
"Stop that." Chie chided. Devlin hooked one more apple and sheathed his sword. "Higher level gear takes higher level craftsmen to appraise it. Besides, this is where I buy most of my weapons. She knows me. There's a good chance the guy we're looking for is probably somewhere around here, anyways."
Once Chie looked back towards the shop, Taiki nudged Devlin with his elbow and crouched down, springing upwards and snatching a pair of impressively large apples from its branches. He landed with a resounding thud, drawing Chie's attention and Haruki's ire back their way. He tossed one of the fruits to the party leader. She caught it, looked it over, and added it to her inventory without comment.
"A favour from a friend is cheaper than what someone else might charge, right?" Taiki asked.
"Not…really how I'd want to put it, but yeah." Chie conceded.
"You probably don't need us all crowding up the place." Mamoru said, noticing his wife's apathy. "Mind if we take a walk? Do some shopping?"
Chie gave the go ahead, asking that they not wander too far out of town, and the two made their exit. Haruki did nothing to hide her appreciation for the escape. Not wanting to make a conversation of it, Chie led the way to the entrance and entered the building. Amber instructed Brenda to wait outside, leaving the NPC standing at the end of the stairs, looking up at the apple trees. The ground floor was mostly one large room with wooden tables topped with glass display cases running around the perimeter. In the center of the room was another large glass covered waist high table. Filling all the cases was a wide assortment of weapons; mostly one handed swords of hand axes. On racks along the walls above the tables were larger armaments ranging from spear to halberds to some impressive great swords. At the far end of the room was the counter, a deep stained oak desk with a yellow clothe with a pale orange border draped over the side, almost reaching the floor. On the wall above and behind it was a disc identical to the one handing over the door outside, albeit made of iron.
To the left of the counter was a door, leading to the walkway to the workshop and presumable a set of stairs to the second storey, where the living quarters were likely situated. Behind the counter stood a female NPC dressed in a red blouse and skirt. She gave a canned greeting as Chie approached the counter. Taiki's eyes wandered over the selection of weapons as she asked to speak to the owner of the shop. The NPC, Hanna, he thought, bowed and exited the back door to fetch her handler. He was just about to reach for a great sword when the door opened again and the proprietor entered.
He cocked an eyebrow as he turned towards her. The smaller girl was dressed in a dark red knee length skirt dress with long sleeves, and was about five feet tall. She wore a white apron tied in a large bow on her back and a white top, by the looks of it to accentuate and draw attention to her bust. It was working. On the top button of her blouse was a red and yellow ribbon tied in a bow. Her footwear was a pair of tan boots with laces than ran all the way up to her knees. The girl appeared to be in her mid to late teens, with pink hair held in check with a white pin and a soft, pretty face. She looked less of what he'd expected of a blacksmith and more like a waitress.
Her face lit up and she broke into a smile as she walked up to their guild leader. "Chie, how are you? It's been a while."
"And you brought company." She looked over the group, taking a moment to peer up at Taiki. "Thought you didn't care much for drones. Where'd you find this one? You shave a bear? He's like, two of me, and a half."
"I'm human." Taiki spoke up as Devlin snickered. "But…thanks?"
The blacksmith blanched and gave an embossed bow. "Sorry, I didn't notice."
She looked him over again. "Wait, but where's your…um…"
Taiki raised a hand to address the query. "It's no problem, I get this a lot."
"It's why we're here. We're hoping you can help us with something." Chie said. She gestured between the two of them. "Taiki, this is Lisbeth. Lisbeth, meet Taiki."
Chie gave a slimmed down explanation of Taiki's situation to an increasingly intrigued Lisbeth. She left out anything she didn't need to know and focused on his memory loss. She didn't introduce Devlin, partly due to keeping the lecture short, and partly due to him leaning one elbow on the counter and giving the girl a lopsided smarmy smile that could be seen through his mask. When Chie's speech concluded at the present, she nodded to Taiki.
He drew his falcata and placed it on the counter. "I was hoping you could tell me who I got this from; who made it."
"Not a very common blade type, but this shouldn't take long." Lisbeth didn't pick it up, appraising it where it lay. Half a minute later she had her answer. "Looks like this is one of Geordi's."
"That was fast." Cedric commented.
Lisbeth cocked her head and grinned. "I'm good at what I do."
"You know him?" Chie asked.
"Never met him, but his customers swear by him. I don't think he gets out much; keeps himself cooped up in his workshop. Hardly a social guy." Lisbeth pushed the sword back across the counter to Taiki. "Deals mostly with over engineered, overpriced items and custom builds to order. Specializes in some of the less popular weapon types; niche stuff."
"You know where we can find him?" Taiki sheathed his sword. This had been easier than he'd expected.
"Sure." She pointed to her right. "His shop's on the edge of town that way. On Dwemer street, maybe. South of the town gate."
"Thank you." Taiki was trying not to get too hopeful too quickly. "Thank you so much."
"Don't mention it." Lisbeth said. "Just remember me if you ever want some new gear."
The party was almost to the exit when she spoke up again. "Oh! I almost forgot. Everyone says not to stare at his leg. He gets a little sour on that, I guess."
They thanked her for the warning and set off to their next destination, pausing to let Amber fetch Brenda, who had wandered under the apple trees and was sitting in the shade. A trip to the edge of town and they found what they were searching for. It was certainly hard to miss, having a completely different design than any of the nearby buildings. The estate sat at a crossroads, and was comprised of three joined single storey structures. Up front, nearest the walkway was a building the same size as Lisbeth's store, but made of deep red bricks with a dark grey tiled roof. Sunken windows made of stained glass with inlaid shapes of weapons and armour ran around the outer perimeter.
Behind it to the right was a house made from stained red cedar with small round windows like portholes of modest size with a roof made of curved clay shingles. It had a side door with a ramp instead of steps leading to its porch. To the left was the workshop; a building made from iron and steel that looked like a fat, squat silo. It was twice the diameter of any in the surrounding area, and boasted a pair of water wheels. Each structure was only a single storey, and was connected to the other two via enclosed iron walkways. The collection formed a walled in triangle around a peach tree standing in the very center of what might have been a personal garden.
"Forget what I said." Devlin commented. "I guess some of them do want castles."
Taiki looked to the sign near the entrance; a massive heater shield that came up to his shoulders was embedded lopsided in the ground at the start of the sidewalk to the shop's door. The shop's name was painted across its face, with the words written under it 'To whom that can afford, nothing is impossible.' Taiki read the name out loud.
"Geordi's LaForge?" He looked to Devlin. "What's a LaForge?"
Devlin shrugged. "Maybe it's French. Le Forge?"
Absolutely nobody got the reference. Taiki stepped up to the front door to the shop. He noticed that, instead of stairs, there was a softly inclined ramp leading up to the entrance. He pulled the door open and passed through the threshold.
Like Lisbeth's store, glass topped display cases ran around the perimeter of the room. The gold gilded cases here were smaller, each only holding one weapon. The items contained inside sat nestled in rich red satin cloth. There were no weapons racks on the walls. Instead, there were hanging tapestries with detailed depictions of armaments, advertising their price and expected stats if ordered. Free standing racks holding singular items stood in font of every window, as if they were basking in the light filtered through the stained glass.
The hardwood floor was covered in thick red rugs with gold trim. The counter in the far end of the shop was made from cherry wood, with a five centimeter thick steel slab forming the counter top. Beside it, on a small table sat a gramophone, softly spinning its record and filling the room with a quiet symphony. Behind the counter was the NPC shopkeeper; a dead faced man with short cut black hair that was dressed like a butler. The atmosphere was almost abrasively posh.
"Welcome to the forge." He said, deadpan. "How may I help you?"
Taiki crossed the room over to him. He spotted a falcata identical to his own resting in one of the displays.
"Hello," He leaned forward over the counter to read the name tag affixed to the NPC's chest, "Brent. I'm looking for Geordi."
"I am sorry, he is busy at the moment." Brent replied flatly. "Do you have an appointment?"
"No." Taiki glanced at Chie, who shrugged back at him. "We just need to talk to him."
"I am sorry, he is busy at the moment." The steward opened a book on the counter top and grabbed a quill from an inkpot. "Would you like to leave a note?"
"Is he here?" Cedric asked.
Brent mechanically turned his head towards the boy. "Yes. He is working on an order, and dislikes being bothered while working. He will likely be occupied for some time. Would you like to leave a note?"
"Tell him I'm a returning customer." Taiki said.
"I am sorry, but that does not change that he is busy at the moment." Brent said, as if that was the obvious end of the discussion.
"This one's not too bright." Amber said, looking the steward over. "For such a ritzy store, kinda weird to cheap out on the assistant."
"I am more than capable of what is required. I am 'bright'." Brent said, addressing her. He held the quill out to her. "Would you like to leave a note?"
Taiki wiped a hand over his face in frustration. "Tell him…tell him I want to make a complaint on his shoddy workmanship."
Brent stared back at him for several seconds. He noticed the NPC hadn't blinked since the conversation had started. "Please wait here."
The steward excused himself and exited through the back door. A moment later they could hear the door to the workshop roughly close and the NPC returning with his master. Taiki's ear perked, listening to the odd sound and cadence of the approaching footfalls. There was a heavy step, followed shortly after by a pair of metal clinks closer together. Step, clink-clink. Step, clink-clink. Step, clink-clink.
The reason for the curious sound became apparent when Brent reentered, holding the door open for his master. Geordi was revealed to be solidly built black man just shy of six feet tall, still wearing his leather smith's apron over his work clothes. At the moment, he was also wearing a decidedly irritated expression. He had short shorn hair and a set square jaw.
A long straight scar ran from the left side of his upper lip to just under his eye. Another, more ragged scar started above the eye and made its way over his temple, etching its way through his hair. He walked, or rather, hobbled over to the counter. His right leg ended well above the knee, and the pant leg was folded up and clipped in place. Whatever the cause of his injuries, they predated Aincrad. He leaned heavily on a pair of thick iron catchpoles he was using as a set of crutches.
"Which one of you called my work 'shoddy'?" He demanded. His voice was deep, with a drawling accent that suggested that Japanese was not his first language.
Taiki slowly raised a hand.
"You're either lying or wrong." Geordi stated. "One way or the other you're full of shit."
"You had it the first time." He replied, trying to form a decent apology. "I'm very sorry, but it's important I speak with you. I didn't mean to insult your products or question your fine craftsmanship, but it was the only way I could think to grab your attention."
"If you're gonna kiss my ass, you can do a better job of puckering up." Geordi gave a sigh and sat down on a stool behind the counter, leaning his catchpoles against the wall. "Lucky for you I'd just started my work, so I've yet to lose anything but my good mood. Now, what kind of weapon are you looking for and what's your price range? Custom order, or has something caught your eye?"
"I'm not actually here to shop." Taiki admitted. "I was hoping you could answer a few questions."
Geordi's frown deepened. He turned to his assistant. "Brent, go and keep the furnace fed, this shouldn't be long."
The NPC took a step back, gave a slight bow, and exited the building to follow his orders. Geordi leaned forward in his stool, resting his elbows on the counter top. He did not look happy. The gramophone reached the end of its record, drawing the ambient music to a close.
"Well, now that we've determined the only thing being spent is my time, kindly try not to waste it." He snapped his fingers at Cedric, who was standing closest to the music player. "You there, miss, can you reset the record?"
"I'm a guy." The pony-tailed bishounen replied.
Geordi gave him a once over. "Call yourself whatever you want, but will you restart the music?"
Cedric gave a deep, agitated frown, but placed the needle back on the record. The soft sound of violins filled the shop.
"Can we get this started?" Devlin asked.
Geordi turned his attention his way. "No masks in here."
"'Cept for mine." Devlin quipped.
"I'm not joking." He insisted. "Either take it off or get out."
Devlin met the blacksmith's stare with his own defiant gaze.
Taiki elbowed his friend. "Please just take your mask off."
After a couple seconds, Devlin blinked and looked up at Taiki. He held his hands up in mock surrender and started towards the door. "I'll see myself out. Good luck with this guy."
Once he was gone, Geordi looked over the group again. "Now, what do you want?"
"Ooh!" Amber suddenly said. "I get the store name. It's-um-like that show. That old TV show. With the space ships."
Geordi swiveled in his seat towards her, and his expression softened slightly.
"Y'know." She tapped her right hand under her left collar. "Beam me up O'Brian."
Geordi took a deep breath followed by a long huff, leaning back on his stool. He gave a slim smile. "Well, you're the first. I'm more impressed you somehow got the quote wrong, but in a way that applies to the correct series. Didn't think anyone here in Japan watched that show."
"You're not from Japan?" Taiki thought out loud.
Geordi gave a sharp, bark of a laugh. He gestured to his darker complexion. "What tipped you off?"
I guess I said something dumb? He thought innocently. "You said, 'here in Japan', so I...guessed you weren't from Japan."
Geordi stared at him quizzically a long moment; his reference to his colouration apparently going over the head of the taller man. "Uh, yeah...I moved here from the States. What did you want again?"
Taiki placed his sword on the counter, eager to get back on topic while the blacksmith was still is his somewhat better mood. "You made this, right? Can you tell me the name of who you sold it to?"
Geordi picked the weapon up and looked it over. "My Bone Cleaver series. Not my best work, but I've sold a few."
He gave Taiki a suspicious look, noting his lack of health bar. "Before I answer that question, you can tell me how you got it. You obviously didn't buy it."
"I…" Taiki tried to think of a decent answer, "don't know."
The next several minutes were much a repeat of the story given to Lisbeth, but with the added details of why he was searching for its owner's name. The owner was quite likely Taiki's real name. Within ten minutes explanation, Geordi had slowly switched from impatience to something approaching vaguely interested. By the end, Brent had returned from the workshop and took a spot to the left of his master, standing, standing stock still and awaiting further instructions.
"Well, I've made eight of these. This is the…" Geordi held the falcata up, closing an eye and peering at some detail on the bottom of the hilt Taiki had never noticed, "fifth one. Forged this a while ago; I'm pleased to see you've liked it enough to keep it upgraded and maintained."
He glanced over his shoulder at his assistant. "Brent, run and fetch me my log book; the one on recurves. Be quick about it."
Brent bowed and excused himself again, fast walking from the room. While they were waiting, Geordi sat silently, drumming his fingers to the beat of his music. He made no effort to converse or asked any questions on their story. Not wanting to awkwardly stare back at him, Taiki let his eyes wander around some of items on display. Apart from the duplicate Bone Cleaver, there was an ebony shotel, a silver falchion with a jewel encrusted handle, as well as a heavy pair of gauntlets with small thin blades protruding from every knuckle. On one of the standing weapon racks was a full length war hammer with a spike on one side, and a cleated head on the other like a meat tenderizer. He was inspecting a blue steel curved great sword when Brent finally returned with a book clasped in his hands.
The NPC handed it over to Geordi, who placed it on the counter and flipped it open. He browsed through a few pages until he found what he was looking for. He poked a finger into the page.
"Ah, here we are. Person that bought this was under a guild account." Geordi said. "Group by the name 'The Bloodhounds'; PK hunters. Bitch bought it."
"Excuse me?" Taiki asked, sure he heard the name wrong.
Geordi closed the book. "The person that bought this; lady went by 'The Bitch'."
"Do you know what her name was?" Taiki asked.
"'Was?'" Geordi noted.
"She's dead, I believe." He explained. "I think my whole guild is."
For the first time Geordi's expression started to truly soften. "I'm sorry to hear that."
"Do you know her name?" Taiki repeated.
"No, she kept that to herself. I think their entire group ran with nicknames. Plenty of folks try to force some stupid title for whatever reason." Geordi answered. "Guy that opened the account was the guild leader, went by 'The Beater.' I think they might have had some theme going. They were PK hunters, so I guess they at least had a decent reason to use nicknames. Anyways, I didn't get his either, but they paid good and upfront."
Taiki looked over his sword again, muttering to himself. "So, now I need to figure out how I got her sword. Great, another mystery."
"As I recall, she said she was buying it as a gift." Geordi said. "Didn't I say that?"
"No." Cedric replied.
"Well, she did." The blacksmith looked over Taiki. "Not sure she chose well, to be honest. Standard length one handed sword might be a bit small for you."
"Is there anything else you can tell me about her or this 'Beater'?" Taiki was running out of questions.
"I think she might have been a bottle blonde. Yeah, she had this bleached blonde hair," Geordi placed a hand on his sternum, "about yay long. Beater is or was a really skinny guy."
Taiki gave a dejected sigh. "That's something to go on, I guess."
Geordi glanced at a clock sitting on the corner of the countertop. "Any more questions?"
"Just one." Cedric raised a hand. "You sold items to a guild based on their aliases, but insisted our...friend remove his mask. I'm curious as to why."
"Way I see it, red hunters have enough of a reason to justify hiding their names; anything to make it harder for the bad guys to get at 'em. We're all already using screen names and usernames anyways, but when they're done hunting, they're still one of us." Geordi explained. "But, anyone who feels the need to hide their face inside a safe zone has something to hide, and doesn't belong."
Cedric took on a thoughtful expression, as though Geordi's words confirmed something he'd suspected himself.
The smithy started to get anxious to leave them. "Now, anything else?"
"No, thank you for your time." Taiki backed away from the counter, drawing the interview to a close.
The blacksmith scooted off his stool and grabbed his catchpole crutches. "Then if you'll excuse me, I've got shit to do and orders to fill. If you need anything else, just ask Brent."
The NPC, for his part, still hadn't blinked.
He was almost to the door when he looked back over his shoulder. "If you ever want a top notch sword a little more your size, you know where to find me."
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Devlin hadn't wandered far; they'd caught him helping himself to the cherry tree in one of Geordi's neighbor's yards. After a brief lecture from Chie, the party was on their way to the town's teleporters to meet a waiting Haruki and Mamoru. Taiki updated him on what they'd found out; it was incredibly disappointing. He'd entered the store hoping to find his name, but all he left with was nicknames for other people.
Amber patted him on the shoulder. "Don't let it get you down. We didn't leave with nothing."
"If you were in a player killer hunting party, I'm curious how you all ended up in the boss room of the latest floor." Cedric mused, scratching at his chin. "Way too soon for people to be farming it, but PK hunting and floor boss killing is a pretty big jump in career paths."
"Explains your sharp senses." Devlin commented. "When you spotted that kid that was tailing us in the woods. Maybe something you've done before, but the other way around."
Taiki found the thought of that discomforting.
Chie pointed at the falcata handing on his hip. "That's a pretty fancy gift. Maybe this girl was someone special to you."
That's a depressing thought. Taiki frowned, placing his hand on the pommel. All I have left to remember her by is a sword and I have no idea who she was.
Cedric pulled the scrap of paper with the list of deceased. "Of the nine people listed, three had overtly feminine names, but that doesn't really mean anything. Some of these might have been men that started with female avatars, or she might have had a male avatar, herself. We'd need to consider all the names as equally viable.
"So," Devlin started, "out of nine people, we need to find out who this 'Bitch' and 'Beater' were, based on two nicknames and the guild name 'The Bloodhounds'."
"Unless they had some notoriety, I'm not sure how much that's going to help us." Chie commented. "Nicknames only mean anything to the people that are familiar with the person using it, and there are no system records that players can access for guilds."
Devlin nudged Taiki with an elbow. "Buck up, big guy. It's not much, but any step in the right direction is progress. So long as you keep moving forward, it's just a matter of time 'til you get where you're going."
He nudged his friend back. "Thanks."
The rounded a corner, spotting the teleporters and their remaining team mates. Chie waved, grabbing their attention. Mamoru waved back. The network of gateways could take anywhere in the world they'd already been, all you had to do was know where to go.
"So," Taiki started, addressing the entire group with him, "any ideas where we go from here?"
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Yarl stood in front of the door to his commander's chambers. It was situated in the very back of their base, with a large walnut door. He was not looking forward to entering. Yarl didn't see the home base very often, instead usually finding himself hunting alone with his pet, Sasha. The party's home was located on the twenty third floor; near the edge of the south east quadrant sat a small cavern. Its mouth was just large enough for two people to pass at once, but inside it expanded into a pleasant grotto. The majority of the space inside was water, but there was a path that lead to an island situated in the very center. Rays of light shone down from a large hole in the ceiling, illuminating the place enough that torches were not needed during the day, though it had long since turned to night. On the island sat the home base of Yarl's guild, tucked away where few ever searched.
By his side was his pet panther, tall enough for her head to reach his biceps. Sasha was large enough that he could probably ride her, if she wasn't programmed to buck anyone off of her. A mount in Aincrad would have been incredibly useful to a red player. Most people in his guild tended to look down on his for relying on Sasha during hunts, but not many would do it to her face. Yarl thought back to the message that had called him here.
If you haven't found them by now, there's no point in having you waste any more time out there. Return immediately. Shinjin wants a word with you.
If he'd been recalled from a failed hunt, he doubted it was for anything good. Still, he'd been summoned, and he was here. He hesitantly raised a hand to knock on the door when a voice shouted at him from the other side.
"Stop standing out there like a jackass and come in, already." His leader called. "And leave the cat outside."
Yarl did as commanded and entered the chambers. The living room was generously proportioned with a wide stone fireplace on the far wall. To his left was a cabinet topped with a few decanters of rich looking liquor, situated between a pair of bookshelves filled to capacity. A table set for two was beside that, with a game of shoji sitting in its box. In the far left corner was the open door to the bedroom, and to the right was the path to the kitchen and a hallway to whatever other rooms Yarl couldn't see.
In front of the fire place were two cushy chairs facing towards it. A soothing fire burned inside it. Above the mantle hung a crimson spear; Shinjin never used the weapon, but the person that tried to wield it against him had certainly tried. The floor had neither rug nor carpet, instead consisting of bare hardwood. In between the two chairs, farther from the fireplace and closer to the entrance was a desk facing his way. Behind it sat Shinjin, typing in his menu. He waved his menu away and looked up, smiling warmly.
"Welcome, welcome. Do come in." He said, bidding him forward.
"You wanted to see me, sir?" Yarl asked.
"Please, call me Butch." Shinjin had been trying to get that nickname to stick for a while now, to little success. Hard to propagate a title when you kill most of the people you tell it to, especially when it was just an abbreviation of a previous, more fitting title. "Do you know why you're here?"
Shinjin's smile was warm and friendly, but Yarl was familiar with how quickly that could turn. "I'm sorry I couldn't locate them…Butch. They're out of Sasha's range, probably on a different floor."
"Relax, you're not in any trouble." Shinjin walked over to his liquor cabinet and poured himself a glass of something amber. "Quite the opposite, really."
Yarl was puzzled. "Really?"
"Yes, really." Shinjin leaned against his desk and crossed one leg over the other, taking a sip of his drink. "You see, Zahnri went and got himself killed. Correction; blew a shit ton of our money and got himself killed. Then a couple more of my trackers chased after our quarry into a town like a pack of morons and got dead, too."
"Zahnri, coward that he was, was my top tracker." Shinjin held his glass up, pointing a finger at Yarl. "Now you are."
He hadn't been expected this kind of news.
"Think of it as a promotion." Shinjin turned his head to the side and shouted. "Keiko, are you ready yet? Seriously, woman, don't keep the boy waiting."
A moment later Keiko entered from the bedroom, still fixing her hair. She crossed the room to stand at Shinjin's side. He downed the last of his drink and stood back up, walking up to Yarl.
"You and Keiko will take a group of four and track them down. I don't care how you do it, but you'll have any of our resources at your disposal. She'll be in command; follow her orders as if they were my own." Shinjin placed hand on Yarl's shoulder. "I have high hopes for you. Get it done."
Yarl was just starting to return the smile when the grip on his shoulder tightened. Shinjin's expression turned stoney and cold.
"Keep in mind our time is limited." Shinjin's grip tightened further, his thumb pressing into the joint of Yarl's collarbone. "Do not fail."
As if to punctuate the order, Shinjin's thumb popped his collarbone out of its socket.
"I won't." Yarl hurredly said.
Shinjin's faced flashed back into his warm smile. "Good. Now, away with you."
Keiko and Yarl left the room after the former exchanged a quick kiss with their commander. He pressed his clavicle back into place and rotated his shoulder. That had not gone as expected. He rubbed at his collar; failing was something he was hoping to avoid. Instead, he tried to look on the bright side. Despite ending in complete failure, the hunt through the forest was the best time he'd had in a while. He was looking forward to hunting with more than just himself and Sasha. Traveling with a pack was much more fun. He whistled to Sasha, and she took her spot beside him as he and Keiko made their way to select their pack members. Today had been a good day.
Author's Notes: Hopefully I can show and progress through the mystery of Taiki's past and loss with an acceptable amount of competence. From here, I guess things really start. I've got what I like to think are some nice turns coming up, though more so I hope they don't give too much away too quickly. Thought we might check in with our pursuers for an update, as well.
I like to think that SAO, being such a massive world, would probably borrow from various other fantasy works. Add to that all the teen and twenty somethings playing it, and you'd probably end up with a world full of references and in jokes. Geordi's LaForge is probably the most ham fisted one I intend to make.
I guess I should explain a little about how I've been using the injury system. I've been running with the idea of blunt force attacks having their own effects. While a sword might sever a limb, a hammer might break or dislodge the bone inside. The overall result is the same (can't use a broken or missing arm), but with dislocated stuff being easier to pop back into place.
As always, thanks for reading this far. Reviews are always welcome and appreciated, since they let me know if I've screwed up anything royally.