Alright! It's the start of Chapter 12. I'm glad that everyone who has stayed with me thus far has PM'd me and has given me support in making this Fanfiction, I just want to say I appreciate it a lot. Without delaying you any further please enjoy the new chapter. :D

'Again with the same old scenery. Once again, my vision is black and I can't move that well. It's to be expected since I have once again nearly died trying to do something stupid. Not that you can blame me though. I don't want to be separated from my brother ever again. He doesn't deserve this fate. If anyone is at fault it's me. I'd rather be the one to pay the price of this hell than anyone… Serah… I'm so sorry. If only I was stronger. If only I had been faster and less of a weakling I could've saved you but instead I'm still the same weakling that you know me as. Please, if you ever find it in your heart…'

"Please… forgive me…" I finished my thought aloud.

"Oh? Is he awake?" I heard a voice to my right.

I wasn't sure where I was but it was reassuring to hear a voice from a player. My body was still in shambles from the feeling I felt in my core… It felt like my body was finally coming to life again though. I could feel the sheets on my body and the nice soft bed beneath my back. The only thing that was misplaced though was my heart. I felt so awful that I couldn't protect my friend. A single tear I could feel was sliding down my face.

I felt a finger swipe the tear from my cheek and I soon felt a warm soft hand on my face. It was a small hand, rather slim and tender. It felt feminine and almost familiar. I wished it was Serah's hand but there was no such luck in this world. I saw her health bar reach nothing. She was dead and there was nothing I could do to bring her back.

'Wait a minute.' I thought trying to analyze my memory. 'I only saw her bar reach empty… But I never saw her shatter…' I tried my best to recollect what I saw when she landed against the wall. Her bar was definitely gone but who's to say that she didn't have just 1 or 2 hit points left? It was a long shot but it was still plausible. I didn't see her shatter so the outcome could be true!

I placed my hand on top of the hand on my face. I soon followed the hand up the arms of the unknown figure and I may have accidentally brushed against what I now identified as a chest so the person was definitely female. Regardless I went further up the female's body until I finally reached her face. I didn't know why I was doing this it wasn't like I could tell who the person was just by touching her face but it felt reassuring nonetheless.

"Se… Serah?" I asked trying to figure out who this enigma was.

"Yea, it's me. You know you touched my chest right?" She said going straight to the point that I accidentally molested her.

"Y-Yea… My bad." I said trying to hold back my laughter. Granted it wasn't exactly the right time to laugh since she might try and break my hand in three different places but hey, I was happy that she survived. It then brought up my next question.

"How?" I questioned her trying to get my head around the fact I saw her health drop to virtually nothing.

"Well…" She began. "It turns out that I have a passive skill called «Undying Will» and it allows me to survive with 0 hit points for roughly a minute. It only works 15% of the time and it only works once per day."

"Regardless of how you got that ability… please don't put yourself in that position again. If you died I don't know what I'd do." I said trying to hold back tears.

It's not that I had any real feelings for her but I felt that if she died, something I held dear would die with her. She was someone I didn't want to lose. She was someone who I had taken under my wing and I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to her… 'Would that constitute as love I wonder?' I gave it a moment for the thought to set in. 'Do I actually love this girl?' I thought again before finally my thoughts became apparent.

"Hey, your face is red. Are you okay?" She moved her forehead to mine and held it there for a second. "No. Nothing. Then again it would be weird if you could get sick in a game like this… wait didn't we have a conversation like this earlier?" She started to ramble on.

I couldn't really take much more. I felt so tired and exhausted from how much I had fought. Before I started to fade away I was able to get out two more questions. "W-Where is my brother? Is he alright?" I asked before finally fading into the nothingness of my subconscious.

Usually when a person sleeps, thoughts come to fruition and morph into objects that can be interacted with. It could be scenery or a person or an event that you have to watch and be a part of and you usually have no control of them. In SAO, this was no different. The game took the thought processes of the brain and made it become real to the best of creator's ability. I was actually rather impressed when I had my first virtual "Dream".

I was back in my bed staring at the ceiling. I could still see my favorite porn actress doing a strip tease on my poster. I could smell the fragrant air fresheners filling the room with an appealing aroma even though in the corner of my vision I could see my dirty clothes piled up in a decent mound in the corner of the room. The sun had just started to reach its peak in the sky and the light was shining brightly on my right eye making me shift slightly to the left so it would no longer bother me. The dull paint on the walls still looked the same as it always did and the hole in the wall still remained from where I exerted my frustration.

All in all, it looked just like my room. I hadn't been here in the past six months since I decided to live out with my "brother from another mother". It was good to see that nothing had really changed. I looked out the window to get a better grasp of where I was and when I looked out I saw that it was nearly fall. The leaves on the trees were starting wither to their brown dead states only to fall off and be crushed on the ground. The breath of nearby kids playing in the streets could be seen due to the cold weather that we were having. The sun was slightly behind the clouds in the sky and the Thanksgiving posters could be seen everywhere.

It was good to see that I was finally free from my virtual hell but something just didn't seem right. It was too peaceful here. I didn't hear anything throughout the house so was it that late in the day? It seemed strange that my mother wouldn't wake me up and let me know that they would be going out. I decided to head downstairs to see where my family went and noticed that I was alone. The tables were cleaned off, the TV was turned off, the dishes had been cleaned and put away, the laundry wasn't running, the floors had been vacuumed, the sofas were completely refurbished and the windows didn't even have a speck of dust on them. If I didn't know people were living here, I would have expected this house to be on sale for some reason. It was far too odd and I started to worry what world I had gotten myself sucked into.

"Hello?" I started to say throughout the house. "Is anyone here? Mom? Dad?" I couldn't hear anything from anywhere. It was silent throughout the house.

I decided to quickly head out the door and see if anyone had seen my family leave from the house. The only problem was that the second I opened the door, I was greeted with a pitch black abyss with one foot out the door. There was no bottom, there was no top and there was no horizon at the end of my vision. It was just a pitch black nothingness that seemed to fall down forever. I quickly closed the door and tried the back exit. Again the same thing happened. There was nothing that could be seen. I went upstairs to the window and saw that it was the same scenery. The same kids were playing in the street and the same ball was getting tossed back and forth as if it were in a 5 minute loop on a cassette tape. I opened up the window to no avail. The same blackness greeted my eyes.

I went downstairs and sat on the sofa. I didn't know what to do. I knew this wasn't my reality and that I was now trapped in the confines of my mind. What would have happened though if I decided to fall down? Would I wake up? Would I die? Was there really any way to get out of this prison to begin with? I didn't have much time left. I could feel it in my bones. Something was coming and it wouldn't be long before I would have to act. I started to pace back and forth using all my brain power to think of a solution.

"Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit. Damnit!" I kept saying to myself. I knew there was no point in me cursing myself to oblivion but it felt like it was helping.

My brain started to hurt from all the thinking I was doing and noticed that if there was a way out it would be staring at me dead in the face. "Why was I here?" was the only question pounding through my head. Why in the hell would someone put me here to have me sit like a doll in a house with nothing here? It made no sense to me whatsoever… My family was gone. My Mom, my Dad and even my Sister. No one was here. I was all alone trapped in a prison with no way out.

Something then started to pound in the back of my head. It was so annoying a frustrating. It felt like I was dehydrated but I didn't feel the need to drink anything. I didn't feel tired since I had been sleeping since past noon or, at least what should have been noon. It frustrated me so much that I couldn't make sense of this headache. It almost felt like a sign, like I was missing something, someone, some event or even some purpose in life. Again the question popped up in my head… "WHY WAS I HERE?"

It kept ringing throughout my head over and over again. If it kept up much longer I thought I would go insane… as it turned out that's exactly what happened. Before long I was starting to tear the place up. I had to find out why I was here. "Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?!" I kept repeating to myself getting steadily angrier as I threw everything all over the place. I was searching for something anything to give me an answer, and explanation a reason, a purpose in life, something to give me a direction in which to go.

I soon found myself upstairs next to my room. I was breathing heavily, almost hysterical. I was standing right in front of my door looking at myself in the mirror trying to figure out why this was happening. I could see my reflection in the mirror but something felt off… I could see another image slightly behind me. He had similar facial features as me and he had the same sort of build as me. The only thing separating me and him from being almost identical was the color of his hair. It was as white as snow. It was rather beautiful for a male. I didn't even know that anyone in Japan had hair like that…

"I must be going insane." I said to myself.

As I said this I heard something hit the ground behind me. I turned around slowly and noticed that there was now another door in the hallway. 'Was that door always there?' I thought to myself. I didn't know what to do. What I should do is more like it… If I was to open this door, I wouldn't know the outcome. I could probably die if I was to open up this door that remained invisible until now. Then again, what other choice did I have? I pondered opening it for another few moments before I built up the courage to open it.

Inside it was just a regular room. There were several books lying on the floor and a couple on the computer. Most of them were books about computers and how to make gaming graphics as well as how to use the NervGear system console. There were two computer monitors with a single keyboard as well as a NervGear helmet on the desk. What was weird was that there was nothing else there. Literally there was NOTHING else there. There was no bed, no couch, no TV, just nothing.

I was at first confused as to why this room seemed to be so off from the others I went into… then again it was apparent that wherever I was it was anything but normal. I took a longer look at the NervGear before I started to feel an attachment to it. Like this was the one object I was trying to find for the longest time and now I had finally found it. The question though was why did I want to see this thing so badly? It was just a game, nothing more. It wasn't like I was a major gamer and it really didn't have that much of an affect on my life but for some reason I felt the compelling need to have it with me. It was almost as if the NervGear was telling me that I needed it to proceed with my life.

I stepped closer to the gaming system before images started to pour themselves into my mind. I was witnessing an avatar with two blade slicing through enemies and shattering foes in the blink of an eye. I saw him nearly die to the hands of supernatural beings and come back with insane combos with determination and fierce killing intent in his presence. Then I noticed something as I was being flooded with these images. He held a sword the same way I did. He had the same type of fighting style that I had when he was given a katana. It made me wonder who exactly this person was. Why he looked so much like me and how he was able to do such amazing things.

The images got more and more vibrant and extraordinary as I neared the NervGear. I felt an overwhelming compelling need to put it on and try it out. It was like an irresistible pleasure that wouldn't be satiated until I would put it on and use it. There was something holding me back though. It felt like the world I was in was trying to warn me of a consequence at the use of the NervGear. The consequence was so terrible that it felt like the gravity around me had increased tenfold with every step I took. By the time I got to the desk the weight around me felt almost crushing. My body felt heavy and my bones started to creak. My mind started to get foggy and my thought processes went out the door. I tried to lift my arms to pick up the item I wanted most but they stayed at their sides.

I stood there, just looking at it and what wonders it may hold when I would put it on but my body refused me to wield it. It was like showing a kid a piece of candy but keeping it just out of hands reach. Needless to say the need was agonizing. It took me what seemed like an eternity before I felt a slight twitch in my right arm. I used this as a sign that now was the time to act and that I had to go back.

'Go back where?' the thought rang through my mind. 'Where did I have to go back to?' It was such an odd thought. Why did I have to go back to somewhere? Was I somewhere to begin with? These philosophical questions ran through my mind like I was Albert Einstein. I was starting to wonder why. As my hands finally touched the NervGear my mind finally set focus on a single word.

Brother.

"That's right…" I said, realizing the purpose of everything I had done thus far.

Without any more thoughts on the matter I used all my strength to hoist the NervGear onto my head. With two simple words I would once again delve into the death game that my brother was in. I had to get him out and I had to do my best to make sure he would get back. With a renewed resolve I started to fall backwards towards the ground. Before I hit the hard floor I muttered the two words to start my journey again in Sword Art Online.

"Link… START!" I shouted with all my might.

My body fell through the ground and everything around me started to shatter into polygons. I saw several lights start to envelop my entire body and before long I was now looking at a mirror to notice I was now my avatar. He was smiling at me as if he welcomed me back from the land of the dead. Before long the mirror disappeared and the pillars of colors and lights encased my vision. It wasn't long before I found myself staring again at a ceiling like I was in the dream, only this time I looked up in the top right and noticed my health bar and instead of a plain old ceiling it was a wooden cabin.

I gave a sigh of relief and got up to get a good feeling of my surrounding. My body still hurt from before and my vision was still a little blurry. I walked out of the room and entered into the main living room where I found Serah sitting talking to a girl I didn't know. Next to her I saw another large tan man with a bald head and muscular build. Again, it was someone I didn't know. I looked farther down to notice there was someone else sitting around the small coffee table. He was slightly smaller than me. He had black hair and cerulean eyes. He was armored in some pretty crappy starting gear but I noticed he had a reliable katana on the side of his chair. Above his health bar I noticed his name and gave a smile.

FlameofHeaven.

This person was my brother. He was the reason I was here and I had finally finished part of my glorious quest to get him out of this world. I walked further into the room to gain the attention of the group.

"OH! Kira! You're up!" Serah said excitedly.

"Hey, how long was I out?" I asked trying to get a feel of the situation.

"For about 36 hours Kira-boyo." The small girl who I didn't know said.

"Yeah, we were worried you were never going to wake up." Said the larger man in a laughing tone.

I gave a look of confusion as I looked towards Serah.

"Oh! That's right you haven't met these two yet. They're two of my good friends. The larger man is Agil-kun and the smaller one is Argo-chan, or better known as Argo The Rat." Serah explained trying to get me up to speed.

"It's about time you woke up there Kira-boyo. Glad to see that you got your brother out of that mess. So, how about my reward now? You've been holding out on me for nearly 3 days now so I expect some compensation… lets settle with 10,000 col." Argo said with a sly grin in her face as well with what I could've sworn should've been money signs in her eyes.

"Ah! Argo-chan you can't do that to him he's been through a lot!" Serah tried defending me.

"Time is money Ser-san. I had to take 36 hours out of my time from making money to help Kira-boyo out. Do you know how much money I could have made in 36 hours? Let me tell you it is certainly a lot more than 10,000 col. He's lucky he's getting off this lucky and…" She started to trail off nearly chewing off Serah's ear.

I was honestly caught off guard. I didn't know what to do in this situation since I was out for the past 36 hours. I just put my hand behind the back of my head and started to rub it and laugh slightly as I took my seat around the coffee table. With a few more pleasantries and an exchange of information and hard-earned col with Argo (I still owed her quite a bit…), both Argo and Agil left. Silence soon filled the room as I looked over towards my brother who was still intently looking at me. Why was I so uneasy? I came here with the best intentions so I was hoping he might have been a little happy with what I did for him.

Boy was I wrong.