AN: Thanks again to LordsFire for beta-ing this one. For all power-level related comments about FiF, please wait until after this chapter and read the AN there before deciding on your opinions.
Disclaimer: I do not own any series, regardless whether it is SAO, ZnT/FoZ, or any of the other fictional works referred to in this chapter.
Chapter 12
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Duchess Karin Desiree de la Valliere was forced to march down the main road from the Faerie Lord's Mansion, her arms shackled behind her back by the magic-negating Thorn Manacles. Her Adamantium armour had been changed yesterday into a lighter set of Cold Iron plate armour, which allowed her movement but still drained away her ability to cast spells. Instead of a prisoner in Chains at the mercy of the Faerie Lords, she was a captive that walked with her head held high; a fact that many of the Salamanders didn't like, angry looks coming at her from all sides.
As before, it was Eugene's presence that held back the more aggressive individuals among the fae. However, instead of the crimson-clad warriors that escorted her previously, two white Alviss had Karin's arms gripped in their hands as she walked. They were the 'World Tree Guardians' that Mortimer talked about, the soldiers of Fairy Queen Titania. Standing a third taller than a grown man, the strength of the constructs was beyond that of humans as well; their grip actually slightly dented the metal armour Karin wore, resulting in even more discomfort for the ex-Captain of the Manticore Knights. A dozen more of the Guardians accompanied Karin and Eugene, wielding an eclectic selection of weapons, and made sure nobody could rush her if they wished her harm.
The Salamander Faction Leader had left for the Capital the faeries called 'Arrun' the previous day in order to attend a meeting with his peers, along with a sizable amount of their troops and citizens within the desert fortress. Of the 3,000 Guardians the Fairy Queen had sent Mortimer, a thousand of those accompanied the convoy and escorted them back to whence the Alviss came. Eugene's brother evidently took the safety of his people seriously.
Prior to Mortimer's departure, the Faerie Lord had met with Karin one last time:
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Two days prior:
"Brilliant news," Mortimer said with satisfaction, dismissing the pane of light next to him with a wave of his hand. Like in their previous meeting, Karin was seated within a set of Adamantium armour on the ground, and Mortimer towered above her. "Titania had finished preparations for Gatan's restoration. With the reminder of your attack removed as if it was never there, hopefully it will quiet the calls for war among the Salamanders for the time being."
"What are you talking about?" Karin asked, suspicious of Mortimer's good mood; whenever he was content it normally meant he was on the verge of making her, or Tristain's, life more difficult. "Do you mean the Fairy Queen is going to send you materials for the rebuilding?"
"It would be faster to show you," Mortimer made a gesture with his left hand, and hexagonal screens lit up around him. His fingers danced over some of the glyph tiles upon it, and larger hexagons appeared in mid-air towards one side of the room.
"This is real-time footage from some of the Fire Elementals that act as the city's guards," Mortimer explained as the hexagons showed various high-up viewpoints looking down at the ruined district. "Watch."
Karin did so, with one corner of her mind thinking the images were equivalent to a mage using her familiar's sight; though a Halkeginian mage would not have multiple familiars, or be able to show what they saw to another party. That corner of her mind was stunned silent along with the rest of her however, with what came next:
Every fragment of rubble within the area glowed with a silver light, and rose up from the ground. Piece by piece, the pieces of debris restored themselves back into buildings, broken walls raising themselves back into wholeness and gashes left upon walls healing up as red dust flowed back into them. From the windows, she could hear rumbling as stones grated against each other, so it was unlikely to be a mere illusion – or if it was fake, it was an elaborate trickery. In only a few moments, the reconstruction ended as if the Capital was never attacked by the ex-Captain.
"So… 'Titania' is responsible for this?" Karin's mind processed what she had just witnessed, even as distant cheers could be heard from outside the building. "Is she here in this city right now, then?"
The person responsible for instantaneous reconstruction on such a large scale and precise level of detail would have been an Earth mage close to Karin's capability in regards to Wind magic. Manipulation of the myriad of materials that made up the buildings and storefronts however, ranging from metal and wood in addition to stone, suggested there was far more at work than Earth magic.
"Not quite," Mortimer said, changing the content of the screens into a map of Tristain. "Titania did all this from atop the World Tree, located here near the centre of this country. Thankfully the power of a GM has not been impaired, even after the Transition…"
Karin's mind disregarded Mortimer's offhand words, instead focusing on the fact that such a detailed work of magic could have been done miles away. Not even Karin herself, the strongest Wind mage within Tristain's history, if not the paramount mage barring the fabled wielders of Void in all of Halkeginia, could have done something like sending a portion of her power half way across the country. Judging from the casual manner Mortimer used to speak of the feat, the power that rivalled that of the 'Tempest' was but a mere shred of Titania's own capability. If the Fairy Queen used that power for destruction and not creation, upon one of Tristain's cities – or even all of them – Tristain could fall overnight without any chance of resistance. Karin hoped that the Fairy Queen's reach was not as far as she think this demonstration implied it to be.
"With this, the physical damage you have dealt to Gatan has been mitigated," Mortimer continued to speak. "Titania has done what she could, even if she wasn't able to help the ALO players to cope with the fear and terror you have struck in their hearts. All that's left is to hope for human resilience in the face of tragedy to prevail, and that maybe everyone will be able to put this behind them eventually."
"'Human' resilience?" Karin asked dubiously. "Your people can hardly be called human, considering the physical and magical attributes your kind possesses. Don't tell me you were a human a lifetime ago, or something as absurd as that."
"To many of us, it probably does feel like a lifetime ago with how much things have changed," Mortimer remarked thoughtfully. "However, it was only a few days ago that we were still humans of flesh and blood…"
Mortimer then told a fantastical account – by Karin's standards, at least – about how the faeries used to be humans, commoners at that, with no innate magic and from a world with only one moon. They played pretend at being mages and fairies, admittedly with many among them escaping into dreams rather than face their hardships, before they all somehow got transported into Tristain through no fault of their own.
"Do you truly believe, even with your word that you speak only the truth, that I will accept something this ridiculous?" Karin said incredulously. It seemed to Karin more like an inexpert attempt for Mortimer to stand on the moral high ground in regards to her attack on his city, attacking defenceless civilians despite appearances otherwise instead of ready warriors. Never mind the absurd insinuation that it was Tristain that brought these fairies down upon themselves.
"Believe what you want," Mortimer shrugged. "But that doesn't change the truth. Ask any faerie, from any of the nine races, and you will hear this account retold.
"If it makes you feel better, that truth doesn't change our current situation; we are here, faeries versus humans, and most likely will compete over available resources for our respective survival. We want to return to our homeland, of course, but I need to plan for contingencies in the worst case event that this is not possible. Tristain has wronged us, with your attack on Gatan without needing any particular reason other than 'because we're here'.
"What use is a call for peace when the other side doesn't seem like they're particularly interested? I find negotiations with hostile parties such as yourself to be unreliable, even if we somehow ironed out a peace treaty."
Mortimer leaned forward, and said to Karin in a quiet voice:
"Still, if the chance for peace is possible and reliable, despite expectations otherwise… I am obliged to work towards it, for the sake of everyone that had elected me as their Faction Leader. I promise you, Duchess, that if you and Tristain work with us fairly I at least will respond similarly. Even if doing so may lead to me being ousted from my current position of 'Faerie Lord', I have no wish to force teenagers that only signed up for a place in a fantasy into becoming murderers. I have no intention of trying to imitate Kayaba Akihiko.
"As the saying goes, 'the ball is in your court', Duchess. Whatever path Tristain chooses to pursue, the Salamanders will have a suitable response ready."
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Present time:
Karin was jolted out of her reminiscence as her foot stepped upon stairs. She was marched up them, ending up on top of a platform alongside Eugene, who was addressing the rest of the Salamanders. A thick metal pole was placed behind her from above, between the Thorn Manacles upon her arms and her back so the Duchess could not step away from where she stood. The World Tree Guardians released her arms then, and stood placidly at her sides. From where Karin was placed, she could see a tide of the crimson-clad faeries out filling the clearing, with more standing on top of nearby buildings observing the proceedings.
"We're just going to let her go?!" A hothead with a flamberge roared out from among the crowd. "She messed Gatan up, we should return the favour and mess her up!"
"Mortimer has decided to return the Duchess back to Tristain, as a sign of goodwill," Eugene replied, foregoing the use of a Sound Amplifier he held to shout down the naysayers. "And I agree with him; it's better for us in the long run to initiate negotiations from a position of strength, rather than jump straight ahead to open war. Tristain will pay for what the Duchess has done to Gatan, that both myself and Mortimer can guarantee all of you."
"Well Tristain can pay in blood!" Another Salamander, a spear-wielder, yelled. "You must have seen the news on the public message boards, General; over 30 serious cases of brain injury as a result of her actions, and that's only the confirmed ones so far! We might not be able to die, but that doesn't mean we can't be hurt! They need to know they can't get away with things like that!"
Shouts of approval came from the crowd, even as others tried to shout down that point of view in their support for a rational decision over that of an emotional one.
"And they will know," Eugene rumbled, finally using the Sound Amplifier to make himself heard over the furore. "After I'm done here I'm heading over to the Valliere Manor personally to extract the price; supplies to last the Salamander Faction for three months, and not including only food. This is estimated to be costly enough to push the Vallieres close to the verge of bankruptcy. Also, we have free reign in regards to Mob-hunting within their territory, and first pick over the Mob drops from the Valliere's own raid teams. Ranging from Terrorantula silk to Wyvern hides, the loot alone will be enough to fund the upgrade of any ten Salamander guilds into Jotunheim raid-worthy levels. Not to mention the hefty price we'll get from capturing Mobs alive and handing them over to the Cait Siths for breeding programs, considering Mobs no longer respawn at a rate where we can farm them for drops the old fashioned way."
For a few moments there were subdued mutterings as the crowd in general tried to calculate exactly how much the concessions were worth, going through facts like the area of the Valliere lands and local prices of food products – the latter was from meetings between fae delegates and Tristain Merchants, which Karin had heard they had met the previous day. The overall consensus seemed to be one of newfound respect for Mortimer, driving a hard bargain and making the Duchess to accept it.
"And of course, compensations will be given directly to the players that died once or worse instead of going to Faction coffers," Eugene went on, no longer needing to magically augment his voice given the hushed crowd. "The game system is still advanced enough to know who had died at what time, and where, despite the Transition. Titania will be making that data public as well, so no-one will be deprived of their rightful retributions."
Cheers went up at Eugene's declaration; unsurprisingly, where there was great personal gain involved for the average person, opposition to authority was vastly reduced. Karin suspected Mortimer wrote out the script for the majority of Eugene's replies; the General was never so eloquent during their limited interactions.
"But when you leave, you're taking the majority of the World Tree Guardians with you!" The flamberge wielder called out stubbornly, refusing to be bought by the General's promises. "What's going to protect us if someone else like 'The Tempest' attacks us in your absence, huh?"
The crowd began to mutter once more, though mostly in annoyance at the person that refused to give up challenging Eugene's authority. Still, there was an undercurrent of unease running through them, given that their best bet to countering further incursions wouldn't be present to do so.
"I'm glad you asked," Eugene smirked, which made Karin certain of Mortimer's involvement in the General's action; no-one unrelated to the Salamander Lord could pull off a shady smile like that and still appear absolutely competent. "While it's true I'm taking three-quarters of the remaining World Tree Guardians stationed here and two squads of Salamander Elites with me, in our place would be something far stronger than all of these forces combined."
Eugene raised his right up into the sky dramatically – and conveniently, beyond the sight of most of the crowd he used his left hand to tap at a summoned small screen of light – and then shouted:
"Rise, Phoenix!"
White hot flames began to gather atop of the General's raised palm, and then levitated high up into the air. The sphere grew quickly, with wisps of fire appearing around it and then added to the growing flames. Heat seemed to be absorbed out of the desert air around the area, leaving a chill in the atmosphere that Karin was sure wasn't related to her suit of Cold Iron armour.
Then, analogous to a chick breaking out of its eggshells, the sphere of fire burst when it reached the size of a small house. In its place however, was not something as infantile as Karin's metaphor, but instead a majestic firebird facing the crowd. The broken shell of flames was absorbed back into the Greater Spirit, for that was the only thing Karin could have described it as. Oppressive heat rolled off of the huge avian, along with a sense of great power. Wide wings flapped once, and the sheer presence of the Spirit surged out from it in an overwhelming wave, with the crowd below flinching back in tandem almost as a precursor to its contact with their bodies. This close, Karin could see individual feathers thrusting out along the edge of the wings, each glowed a brilliant white. As the feathers moved inwards to the Phoenix's centre of mass, they gradually shifted into a deep red like that of the setting sun, except much more vibrant. The crown of the fowl's head was that of yellow flames, and a near-imperceptible aura of blue-white flames swathed the firebird's entirety.
The Phoenix gave a sharp, keen cry, which seemed like it could have cut down a mage twenty mails away. Then, it turned its head half way around, in a manner typical of lesser birds, and looked at Karin with one eye.
The Duchess understood then, at an instinctive level at that point why Greater Spirits were negotiated with, instead of being hunted down by humanity. There was simply a gulf of power that separated the two existences, too large to be bridged. Even as powerful as 'The Tempest' was at her full strength, she held but a mere fraction of the power within the Spirit. Any attempts to fight it would be akin to trying to dispel the heat of the entirety of a desert at high noon, quenching a fire so intense mortal magic could only grasp at the edges of it in terms of raw strength. No matter how powerful an individual was, she alone could accomplish nothing against the Phoenix, the Embodiment of the Desert, and Defender of the Fae.
The eyes were said to be windows to the soul, and through it Karin saw the alien intelligence that governed the Phoenix; its values didn't match her own, nor did its priorities. The Phoenix ruled over Fire and Life, and could snuff out either as easily as breathing came to living beings if crossed; and attacking the Fae most definitely qualified by its standards.
"Given the attack on Gatan, Titania felt it was necessary for all of the Faerie Capitals to each now house a Guardian Spirit," Eugene began to say, breaking the stunned silence of the gathered Salamanders. The Phoenix turned its attention over to the General, and withdrew its gaze from Karin's captured form. "By ALO standards, you have more of a chance soloing a Jotunn than being able to defeat one of these Spirits; I should know, I've tried doing the former myself."
Nervous laughs came from a few people below, though humour in the face of such a presence quickly dried up.
"By local standards, our Guardian Spirits easily are a match for what they call 'Greater Spirits'," Eugene continued. "Such as the Water Spirit in the Ragdorian Lake to the south would be able to drown Tristain under its domain given time, so too can our Phoenix reduce this country to ashes. However, the true advantage of these Guardian Spirits does not lie in their awe-inspiring fighting ability!
"Phoenix!" Eugene called out to the massive avian. "Please, grant me your strength!"
The Phoenix gave a small screech in response, and the Blazing General burst into flames. Unlike when he chased after Karin however, the colouring of the fires this time held more white than red, and tinged with blue at the tip of the flame.
"You there," Eugene ordered one of the nearby World Tree Guardians. "Attack me with your strongest move."
As soon as the last word from Eugene was uttered, the Alviss blurred into action. Swinging the claymore sideways, the large blade swept towards Eugene like a lumberjack felling a tree.
Cries of warning had barely left the lips of some of those below the platform when the blow connected. The General was bisected at his midriff, and flames splattered in the aftermath. Just as the yells turned from warning to shock, the flames reformed and Eugene was whole once more.
"The purpose of Guardian Spirits is to guard us from harm, after all," Eugene spoke into the speechless crowd. "And the Phoenix's Blessing does exactly that; instantaneous Resurrection and Regeneration with no cost to our MP. No pain from wounds taken while we are in this status.
"And also, power," Eugene directed one palm outwards, and solemnly cast a spell with only a single word. A small red fireball appeared in his hand, before it ballooned into a larger ball and unleashed a stream of blue flames in the direction Eugene pointed his palm at. "Five times above what we have normally. Enough to burn away any opposition foolish enough to attack us given our new situation.
"I will now be going to the Duchess' stronghold, seeking reparations that are owed to the citizens of Gatan; in my stead to protect you all for the time being will be the Phoenix and its power. Our Guardian Spirit will rise up against any foe that assaults Gatan, and the Salamanders shall be no more easily defeated than it is to extinguish the sun!"
Cheers went up from the crowd, though to Karin's ears it sounded more like an overwhelming call for war. The Phoenix added its voice to the ovation, and every single one of the Salamanders within the Capital transformed into similar blue-white silhouette as Eugene was at that point. As the single mortal in a den of immortals, Karin admitted reluctantly that the sight of thousands of faeries gathered around her, glowing with power was truly a terrifying sight to behold. Their supposed immortality aside, the kind of raw magical might they held was truly beyond that of most humans', and facing them would be a real terror on the battlefield.
"We Fly!" Eugene bellowed as he and his chosen troops took off into the air, joined by the hundreds of World Tree Guardians positioned around the rest of the Capital. Karin was taken up along by the other automatons, who somehow bound an additional pole horizontally onto the one she was chained to without her noticing earlier, allowing them to carry her airborne by holding onto the horizontal pole instead of crushing her arms. While she was preoccupied with the Phoenix's presence, it appeared they also managed to bind the Chains back onto her so that she wouldn't slip off of the poles. "Come War or Peace, the Salamanders of Gatan shall be ready to face anything we encounter in this world!"
Thunderous approval from the red-stoned fortress sent the Blazing General and his troops off on their departure. Karin, restrained and taken along as nothing better than luggage, much like how she arrived, felt arguably even worse than when she was weighed down with enchantments only days prior.
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All of the players within the Throne Room were speechless, after seeing the events in Gatan play out on a screen Titania called out. Like Mortimer was able to access the sight of Gatan's guards, so could Titania with her authority over Alfheim.
"… You wrote all of what Eugene said, didn't you?" Pieter asked in a dull voice. Mortimer nodded silently in response; The Salamander Leader was the brains, the planner of the Faction, while Eugene was the charismatic one along with being the main fighter. "Mortimer, you can be an absolute monster when it comes to manipulation."
"I know," Mortimer sighed, regret in his voice for what he had planned. "This could easily backfire on us and lead to total war; however, better that than a one-sided massacre on them than on us. Not to mention this will quieten down the idiots that might ignore Eugene's orders and head off doing who-knows-what, dragging us into a bigger mess."
The worst part was that Mortimer was sincere about it, in Sakuya's view. It might have been better if the Salamander Leader was a deluded soul convinced he was right, since that way he might still be able to be convinced otherwise. Mortimer however was acknowledging all the possibilities and consequences of his choice, and chose his path despite them. It sickened the Sylph's Faction Leader that someone, a VRMMO gamer not that different from her, could make choices like that – or maybe she felt that way because he had to make choices like that? Sakuya didn't know herself, but she felt now she have a higher sympathy towards what the SAO Survivors might be feeling during their time in the death game.
"Your personal feelings aside," Titania said with a frown, as if she was perplexed by everyone's reactions. "With the Phoenix in Gatan, and other Guardian Spirits planned for the other Capitals, we currently hold a good chance of defending the Alfheim Online players from the locals. Judging by the locals' rash actions and fear of the faeries due to our similarities with this world's elves and other non-human intelligent races, I have concluded going down fighting would be preferable over being exploited by them as prisoners."
"This is going too far!" Sakuya exclaimed before her mind caught up with her mouth and emotions. Undeterred by her outburst and embarrassment, the Sylph Faction Leader ploughed on: "Showing strength equivalent to theirs would be the best way to get their cooperation, as it would be preferable to mutual destruction; so relations can be reached between equals. We don't know Tristain's true military capability for sure, but if we go too far with our preparations and end up above theirs it would be worse for diplomacy than if we appeared weaker. Wouldn't it be best if we held off on strengthening the other Capitals for now? Gatan is one thing due to having been attacked, but going further may be disastrous. It can push them into a corner and press them to choose to attack over negotiations, especially considering we appear as what they called 'Firstborn' races that are hostile to them."
"One panicked attack has already struck the players of Alfheim," Titania countered. "Without overwhelming strength known to them as deterrent, they may still attack anyway. Going this far is necessary for our protection.
"Additionally, the effects of 'faeries' having vastly superior military capability over the locals, if it turns out that way, should not affect negotiations excessively; the merchants who traded with us mentioned in passing the elves hold a similar position of dominance militarily, so our position will not be surprising. Further supporting my point, supposedly the elves of this world have held this position over the local humans for thousands of years, and there were still regular Crusades and calls on this continent to retake their 'Holy Land' the elves conquered in ages past; if holding vastly more powerful fighting capability still results in such a response by the locals due to their enmity to non-humans, imagine what may happen if we lack that level of strength but appear similar to the elves."
"That's…" Sakuya struggled to argue against Titania's points, but failed to find the words to express her feelings.
"History – Japanese history, no less – have taught us that one side having overwhelming destructive power with no way of retaliating will force the weaker side to sue for peace," Mortimer pointed out. "The United States dropping a nuclear bomb onto Hiroshima comes to mind, if I remember my history lessons correctly. The crux of all this, of course, hinges on our various resources are indeed vastly superior over than that of Tristain's, not to mention the rest of this continent they call 'Halkeginia'. Though given all of our encounters thus far, there isn't enough information to prove this is the case and this isn't a 'Death World' of some sort; because if it's the latter, we're all in over our heads."
"If we do end up having a war on our hands though," Alicia came to the aid of her friend. "How would that protect the players? Shouldn't we be avoiding anything that could lead to open conflict, given the uncertainty in how our forces compare to Tristain's?"
"There are plans in place for the players' protection in that situation," Titania responded. "The World Tree Guardians will be the bulk of our forces, along with any players willing to volunteer for combat that can comprehend what they are getting themselves into. Nobody will be forced to fight against their will, and anyone unwilling to fight will be evacuated into safer locations. This will be the case if the Faction Capitals are defeated, presuming even the Guardian Spirit activated in defence has failed its task. Borrowing from the game mechanics of Sword Art Online, the City Square of the Faction Capitals holds a teleportation nexus that allow players to travel directly from their city to another during an emergency. This function, unfortunately, would not be available outside states of emergency due to the power-intensive nature of teleportation on the Yggdrasil's Energy Stockpile.
"At the moment only Arrun, or rather Yggdrasil, holds the option of acting as a safe haven for the players if Alfheim comes under sustained attacks," Titania said calmly. "Other Capitals will eventually have back-up plans to act as a sanctuary for the players, though out of all the contingency plans only Yggdrasil has the capability to hold all 61,340 players in one place; the current plans for the other Capitals only have room for the players of the Faction themselves, in the unlikely possibility Yggdrasil has been toppled. This is mainly due to a matter of space constraint as most Capitals can't hold that many people; places like Nissengrof and Everdark might be able to tunnel out more space underground, but others such as Freelia and Parasel lack the space to expand.
"The World Tree can be modified to hold every player if necessary, and if Tristain does hold the ability to severely damage the final bastion of Alfheim we still have the option of fleeing. Though rather than something like the floating castle Aincrad, the resulting structure of the airborne Yggdrasil would be closer to 'Laputa'."
"'Laputa'?" Pieter frowned. The Puca mage gave a thoughtful hum. "You mean that city from the story in 'Gulliver's Travels'?"
"Considering a giant tree is involved, that movie by Studio Ghibli might be a better fit here," Sasaki commented, similarly lost in thought. "The one called 'Castle in the Sky'?"
"Indeed, the latter was more in line with the current plans I have," Titania concurred. With a gesture from the Fairy Queen, the blank screen in mid-air next to her activated once more.
"In the same way the other Capitals lack options the World Tree has, only Yggdrasil, if forced to that point, holds the possibility of striking back safely without endangering the refugees," Titania went on. She gestured to the screen, and said: "Here is an example of what you might be able to expect from the airborne Yggdrasil."
Upon the screen, a clip from an old classic animated film began to play:
"I thought I would show you an example of Laputa's power, as we are about to celebrate the rebirth of the Laputian Kingdom." A man in a suit, named Muska as Sakuya recalled, began to speak. Sakuya remembered the scene herself when she watched it some years back, and judging from the reactions of others present the ones who had seen the movie outnumbered the ones that hadn't. Surprisingly, Mortimer hadn't seen that particular movie, judging from his politely curious face. Similar expressions were on Sasaki and Pieter's faces. Rufus, on the other hand, mentally jumped a few scenes ahead and smirked in realization of how the clip applied to their current situation. The Leprechaun Leader's face held excitement, in stark contrast to that of Alicia's and the others who held apprehension at what the ensuing scene might mean for the ALO players.
"Prepare yourself, for the Thunder of Laputa," Muska spoke while Sakuya's mind wandered, and then one line of runes upon the monolith in front of him was lit up by his hand. Energy sparked around the eight spires on the underside of the Castle, converging and then slamming down onto the oceans below. The shockwaves from the resulting explosion could have been felt kilometres up above, even as a enormous hemisphere of fire burned atop of the endless seas.
"I am not speaking in jest about the comparison between Yggdrasil Citadel and Miyazaki's 'Castle in the Sky'," Titania spoke, ending the clip even as Muska likened Laputa's destruction capability to that of Sodom and Gomorra's biblical purging. "Should Tristain force the World Tree to rise up into the sky, we would be able to rain devastation down upon the land such as the video had demonstrated. At the risk of sounding over-confident, I highly doubt the locals have the ability to strike back against orbital bombardment.
"I would not have considered war as an option if we did not have a high chance to emerge victorious, with the players surviving unharmed as the indispensable prerequisite."
Someone among the Faction Leaders gulped audibly. Sakuya didn't blame them, considering how easily Titania spoke of massacring other people like it was of no importance. Wasn't there programming laws preventing AIs from being able to kill humans? The Sylph Faerie Lord herself was uneasy about kind of power being talked about, never mind actually planning on using them on other people.
"On the other hand, if we are forced to that point it may be unnecessary for the survivors to initiate retribution," Titania said insouciantly. "Through the hole left behind by Yggdrasil's collapse – or even only that of Arrun's – preparations are in place to lift up Jotunheim to the point the denizens of the realms below can roam above ground."
"What?!" Pieter exclaimed with wide eyes. Similar sentiments were expressed by everyone present. Even if the Faction Leaders hadn't visited the elite dungeon personally to fight the Mobs, Morgiana and Pieter aside, they had all at least seen various online videos of the boss fights there via walkthrough sites. It took a skilled raid team of elite players to bring down even one of the Jotunns or Beast Gods, if those were allowed to stray freely above ground they could cause untold damage – never mind the yet unseen Hrimthursar, the Frost Giants that might lurk deeper below. Things would be even worse if, as Titania had said previously, the mutation of native magic adapting the Jotunns into being no longer only data and able to act outside programmed responses; the various Evil God class mobs were powerful enough when the players knew what might be coming, without that limited foresight the difficulty in destroying them had increased even further. Or, Heaven forbid, the Jotunns started to fight together as a cohesive group rather than being isolated disasters…
"Not to be rude or anything, Titania-san," Morgiana said nervously. "But even for me this seems like too much of overkill…"
"I'd rather have the options and not need them, than needing to go this far but not having the options available," Mortimer said grimly. "It never hurts to be prepared, in light of recent events."
"Damn right," Rufus agreed, with more enthusiasm on his face than Sakuya would have liked for someone discussing the topic at hand. "I know I'd want to have countermeasures like these for Demnann, in case some other crazy mage tried to level the place. Besides, these things are only going to be authorized if our Capital is on the verge of annihilation, right? It's not like we'd be able to screw everyone over with a push of a button on a whim."
"Correct," Titania replied. "As specified in your own Medallions, even just activating the Guardian Spirit to defend your city would result in a re-election in three days' time, in order to prevent abuse of this function. Be prepared to risk your authority if you choose to summon the Guardian Spirit. If you were to activate the Last Resort for your Capital, an even more extreme action, consider it as your final act as Faction Leader. With such capability for damage, obviously the responsibility is just as potent."
"Um…" Simon spoke up hesitantly. "So all of the Capitals would have their own version of something as dangerous as unleashing Jotunheim upon this country?"
"Yes," Titania nodded. "I have something planned for each of the Capitals, though only Gatan's version at the moment is under development aside from Arrun's. I still need to spend some of my time fixing up the liveability of the various Capitals, and not just focus on a theoretical assault upon the players of Alfheim."
"If I may ask, what's planned for Gatan?" Rufus asked out of curiosity. "If it's not classified information restricted to only the eyes of the Salamander Faction Leader, of course."
"For the sake of further impressing upon you the significance of the kind of power you Faction Leaders possess, I believe you people should know," Titania said after some consideration. "However, I request that what all of you have heard here today be classified and not be released to the players in general – at most, only the Faction Leaders and the immediate Deputy Leaders should know. Possession of great power would only create problems in social interactions; though whether due to 'unfairness' that some players have access to powers others do not have, due to fear of threats to themselves or some other kind of reasoning I do not know exactly. For me, this is a non-issue as I do not plan on dealing with the masses of players on a regular basis – that is the role of you Faction Leaders, after all. If absolutely necessary, Kirito here would be my stand-in if my presence is needed for some reason."
Murmurs of agreement were given in response.
"Very well, then, I will explain what's available to Gatan," Titania spoke, taking a deep breath before continuing. "How familiar are all of you with the allusion to Sozen's Comet?"
-][-
Standing in his place a few steps away from Titania, Kirito had been clenching his hands into fists for so long he wasn't sure he could pry them apart again – and given the words Titania was speaking, it was unlikely he would even want to attempt to unclench his hands any time soon. It was probably a good thing Yui wasn't present to hear such harsh plans from Titania using Asuna's voice directly; it would only be more emotionally burdening for Kirito's AI daughter. The Black Swordsman was glad Yui was down at the lower levels of the World Tree, checking over the SAO players' life signs for the duration of the Faction Leader's meeting, so that afterwards the SAO players could be released.
The chance for peace between ALO players and Tristain would be shattered beyond repair if what Titania was planning gets out to them; it was unlikely any side would still accept a peaceful agreement if the other side was in the process of amassing weapons for their destruction, regardless whether or not the other side intended to use them or not. Morgiana was right, what Titania proposed wasn't just overkill; it was several steps beyond that.
"Sozen's Comet, from its originating fictional work, is an astrological phenomenon that greatly boosted the ability of the fire-users," Titania explained to the Faction Leaders, since it appeared the majority of the people present hadn't seen the original series in question. The sole exception was Simon, whose eyes boggled at Titania's declaration and trembled at the thought of the reference being brought to life. "Skipping over the minor details, all the Faction Leaders here need to know is that all of the Last Resort plans such as this one involve empowering the inhabitants in the fallen Capital beyond all care for such things as 'Game Balance', in order to strike one last blow to the enemy when escape and rebuilding becomes impossible. I do not foresee any situation where this could come to pass, but given my expectations of our players not beng attacked by local people proven false I have decided to prepare for this scenario regardless.
"Once Sozen's Comet is summoned, Salamanders' Fire Magic will be boosted to the absolute limit that their bodies can handle, given current Real Life parameters. A beginner Salamander player at that point would easily be able to equal the attacking power a 'Mastered' Fire Magic user had within Alfheim Online, and an elite Salamander player will be able match, nay, surpass the feats Duchess Valliere has demonstrated to us. Fire and brimstone shall rain down upon the forces that can destroy Gatan in its entirety, if things have progressed to the point not even the powers of a GM can repair the Capital."
"Well, we'd have to hope our negotiation efforts will succeed and things will never come to that," Thinker quickly said, seeing Sakuya was going to interject fiercely once more. Apart from a few of the Leaders, everyone was trying to come to terms with the sheer lethality of Titania's plans. Thus far, many of the Leaders were trying and failing to incorporate the knowledge they effectively now have a button that for all intents and purposes could destroy a country nearly as absolute as a nuclear bombing. Even the large number of limits placed on the ability didn't put them at ease.
It might be naivety, but Kirito wanted to believe the locals wouldn't be amassing their countermeasures such as Titania was at the time – or rather, even if they were doing so Tristain was so far behind Yggdrasil's capabilities whatever they did wouldn't matter. If things did develop into a case where the locals were a credible threat, there was no way for the Faction Leaders to even consider letting Titania step down and they'd be forced to use every means they had at their disposal. At that moment, Kirito felt relations with Tristain, before only tangential to his priorities as part of the efforts to get Asuna back, now have a newfound importance to him, as even he wouldn't want open war to break out.
Despite that however, if asked whether to choose between Titania staying permanently, with the option absolutely necessary for the players' survival and Asuna unable to return to Kirito, versus the opposite of retrieving Asuna but leave everyone else in danger… the Black Swordsman wouldn't rule out how he might pick the latter and damn the consequences.
No, rather than 'wouldn't', it might be more accurate to say Kirito 'couldn't'. After the loss of the Black Cats of the Full Moon guild, after the loss of his first love Sachi, Kirito knew another loss like that would break him completely – that was how important Asuna was to him. The question to him wasn't 'Would losing Asuna to save everyone be worth it', but instead 'Would everyone be worth saving, if at the end of it all Asuna was no longer with him'. At the root of it all, Kirito was a selfish person looking out for himself and people he cared about, and he admitted it – as his experiences as a Solo-Player within Aincrad had shown adequately. Kirito's thoughts were constantly occupied by what, and who, he cherished, and it was only natural in his view for a human being. Not for the first time, Kirito desperately hoped the events that would never develop to the point it would force him to choose and confront what kind of person he had chosen to be.
For the answers revealed then, while true, would likely be cruel beyond his imagination.
"There are several limits on activating the Last Resort," Titania said, summoning a menu window and tapping at it. "You can look up the details yourselves later using the Medallion. Similar restrictions apply for activating the Guardian Spirit, among which is the Faction Leader needs to be physically at the Capital itself. The demonstration at Gatan is an exception to the rules for the time being, as it is a chance to show the Duchess what Afheim possesses and to test out the Guardian. Additionally, I realize Faction Leaders can't be at their Capitals all the time, and I have taken it into account."
Nine orbs of light appeared in front of each of the Faction Leaders, before fading away. In the place of each were blocks of rectangular crystals, each floating serenely in front of a Faerie Lord.
"Similar to how I have taken the teleporting mechanics for between cities from Sword Art Online, I have also managed to recreate the Teleporting Crystals. In an emergency, you can be returned to your Capital immediately by breaking the crystal."
"And this has been tested on living creatures before?" Mortimer asked, reaching out to grab the crystal in front of him. "Did Kirito get volunteered as a test subject, perhaps?"
"Unfortunately, this item is currently still untested with living beings as I have only sent World Tree Guardians through short distances in my previous tests," Titania admitted. "Which is why I recommend you to only risk your life with this only when absolutely necessary, as I still need to conduct more tests to ensure its safety. In exchange, for the time being the Faction Leaders are allowed to assign a representative in their Capital to hold the authority to activate the Guardian Spirit, though not the Last Resort."
Morgiana hummed thoughtfully at Titania's words, and pocketed the crystal she was given. "I don't suppose you can use this to Deep Strike your troops in if the Capitals are in danger, then? The locals might find suddenly appearing troops to be a bit less apocalyptic than the flashy Endgame Bosses damn near everywhere around their country."
"…" Titania paused, mulling over Morgiana's words. "I admit, the thought had not occurred to me that I can use this function so, mixing Sword Art Online and Alfheim Online mechanics so thoroughly," Titania acknowledged the feasibility of the plan. "Further testing is required to fine-tune the function, and there are also obstacles such as locating the coordinates prior to sending off the troops… but yes, this is possible. I am willing to place this proposal ahead of the creation of further Guardian Spirits depending on the outcome of my research; and using a phantom army that could appear anywhere, being a less heavy-handed approach may be a better negotiation card as Sakuya has suggested…"
"The current plan won't be scrapped completely though, Titania-san?" Rufus asked. "The Phoenix has already been announced and demonstrated to the ALO players as a whole, and a strong - if not overwhelming - military power has been impressed upon Duchess Valliere. It may be wise to keep developing the Guardian Spirits as our 'Ace in the Hole', so to speak. We have no real idea what Tristain is really capable of, too; as Mortimer has said, better to have the assets and not need it, than to need it and not have it. Preparations to our best possible ability should be the best way to go about this."
"Why would you want to stay on the previous path, Rufus?" Sakuya said, with perhaps a bit more bite than the Lady of the Sylphs intended. "Does the thought of lording over weaker people and harming others make you happy or something?"
"We're VRMMO gamers, Sakuya," Rufus shot back. "It's only natural for us to be happy at the thought of wielding power beyond what others have – we thrive on the respect and influence we have over that of other people's. Not to mention, ALO isn't exactly one of those games where you focus on teamwork across the entire player population and not just your own Faction, y'know. And even without that part of us as gamers, I'm only arguing for the best way for our survival as I see it."
"Enough," Titania cut off Sakuya before she could retort. "Argue about the correct dispositions for a VRMMO player in your own time. That does not concern me, and I do not wish to get involved in such talks.
"Onto other matters; the important updates to make the various capitals liveable are outlined in a document sent to your Medallions, take some time reading them and get back to me after consultations between yourselves and the rest of the players as you see fit. I would like to know if there are particular essentials players wish to have patched first over others, or if previous patches failed to address crucial details. Additionally, there is the discussion of how the responsibilities should be split between myself as GM and your Faction Leader positions, beyond the general divide of letting you all handle the interpersonal aspects among players…"
The meeting between Titania and others continued, with the AI present not tolerating any off-topic discussions. Kirito wondered briefly if he should ask Nishida to bring in some chairs, but then thought better of it; despite it now being Real Life, their constitutions as faeries allowed them better physical fitness compared to humans. Not getting physically tired in-game due to it only being VR and your real body not moving has been transferred over to a small extent. Besides, since everyone had gotten into the swing of things it might not be for the best to interrupt them.
Within hours, the first official meeting between Titania and the Faction Leaders came to a close, and Kirito was free to make his way down to the lower levels to start arranging the release of SAO players.
AN: Teleporting in WTGs to fight only occurred to me as I wrote out this chapter, even though I've planned the teleporting crystal existence bit since the start of the fanfic; this will add a bit more detail to later scenes, but doesn't change my current plans as a whole. Titania's WTGs to me now seem almost like Old!Necron-lite by WH40k Tabletop terms… ^^; (ie, teleporting in from nearly anywhere, shoots, and then teleporting out if able. Rinse and Repeat.)
In case people haven't noticed by this point, Titania subscribes to the idea of "there's no kill like overkill, it's the only way to be sure".
Sachi as Kirito's first love was confirmed in the 'WEB'/online fanfic version of SAO, before it got published as a LN series. I'm using this interpretation instead of the LN one where Sachi and Kirito didn't have romantic love and were "only fellow victims licking each other's' wounds". I'm personally not sure why I prefer the WEB version in this case; maybe because of more potential for Kirito suffering in this story?
For the record, this story isn't going to end up as a 'Versus' fanfic between Alfheim and Halkeginia, let alone a curbstomp. I've tried to say this over at my SpaceBattles forum thread, but long story short there's nothing I can say to convince people otherwise except 'Wait and See'. I'll let the FiF future chapters speak for me on this matter.