The emergence of such a portal had a profound impact on the researchers at RATH. Screw the development of combat worthy artificial intelligences. A portal that spontaneously manifested and transported matter was much more important. It happened as they were starting up their STL device. The representation of the boy's, Kirigaya Kazuto's, soul itself was made manifest in their machine yet when he interacted with it his physical body too was spirited away. Philosophical implications aside, these were mostly military researchers mind, there was a huge commotion about this heretofore undiscovered feature in their STL technology. Project Alicization was put on hold, the current state of the Underworld suspended until further notice and all their computing resources were directed at analysis. Taking apart the video frame by frame and video by video, the scientists hoped for a way they could replicate the portal and study it.

However, for Yuuki Asuna, it there was nothing else that she could do. She stood in the room that Kirito had occupied until he was whisked away once again by the cruel hand of fate. It was the same as if he died. He was where she could not reach. If she was at all interested in the portal, it was because she did not know where it led, let alone if Kirito survived the trip. Perhaps he could not cheat death a third time. Old arcade games of an age long gone usually started the player with three lives after all. For now, she felt trapped at the Ocean Turtle, less like a prisoner and more like someone who did not know where else to go. Kirito had set on a path before their parting, a path she was willing to accompany him on.

Besides, so far, most of the scientists had agreed to keep their discovery a secret for now. They wanted it to be low-key until they could determine that it was all not just a bad case of mass hysteria. Asuna too had seen the video footage, had seen the frame by frame analysis of the portal, the seemingly distorted green mass yielding no clues at all.

Wait.

Distorted.

It was a distortion.

It was something the researchers had yet to try. She had rushed back to where Kikuoka and Koujiro-sensei were stumped over a conference table.

"It's distorted," she said.

Kikouka gave her a look.

"Why not? Pass it through a few filters and maybe it'll start making sense," another voice, Higa, said and went to work.

"We already spent the better part of the week looking for patterns, might as well do something different," Kikuoka seemed to agree.

"Well, would you look at that," Higa finally concluded, "Looks like it was a gravitational distortion of light after all."

Asuna stared at the screen as the image became clearer. It was tinted green but the surface was unmistakably pockmarked. It looked like a flat surface had been subjected to some weathering impacts. Judging by the craters and gullies, she was probably looking at a picture of the moon. No, not the moon, this was the surface of a moon.


-Author's Notes-

"When in Rome…"

I honestly didn't think I'd dabble in this kind of stuff but I've already broken a taboo I set for myself years ago so I think the transition towards actually posting here would be a logical development. Anyways, first time publisher here. Glad to see I picked up some readers who will agree to accompany me but that's the way the site works I suppose. Some reviews were helpful as a good kick in the arse is meant to be. Others were as useful to me as a handjob. It sure makes me feel good but ultimately accomplishes nothing of import. The rest were silly. Before I go any further I should probably also mention, RIP Yamaguchi Noboru. Hopefully he won't rise from the grave to enact unholy vengeance upon me, not that I am not going to go hell anyway.

Astute readers will also have noticed that while I started at volume 1 of ZnT, I decided to pick up Kirito at around volume 9, if the Project Alicization wasn't a dead enough giveaway. The reason for this is because I have a plan, a poorly thought out one but a plan nonetheless. If I were to use a simile, the story is a train that has left the station and will eventually come to stop. Whether it ends up as a flaming wreck or not still remains to be seen. This obviously ties in with my finding some reviews, which masquerade as a plot suggestion than an actual review, silly. Astute and cynical readers will also posit correctly that I chose this crossover specifically because there has been no "pure replacement" crossover and that I felt it somehow necessary for me to be the first figurative lemming of this particular cliff. Astute readers who have combed this website will correct me as someone has indeed beaten me to the punch except it is only one chapter long so that clearly doesn't count.

In any case I'm hoping there will be some following at the next volume's conclusion, granted they forgive my attempt to shoehorn interaction between the two verses. That and doing as Romans do because apparently a lot of authors like these little notes of theirs. I like to think I'm a bit more reserved, if not a bit pretentious at times.

Regards,

The Author