Chapter 14: Hell Calls Forth Its Demons
It had been three weeks since I had separated from Kirito and Asuna, and I had only seen them in passing at raids on the 75th floor as we grinded for experience and items. Since then, I had picked up a shroud to cover the torso of my armor that enhanced my speed along with an upgrade to my boots that allowed a significant increase in my Acrobatics skill.
On the family front, I had spent a ton of quality time with my wife and sister, getting to know them as well as they knew me. We gave up information about our real lives and histories, and I found I was actually fairly close to their homes in my university. We had our moments, but we were only human. Nothing could ever change that, and I quickly found myself falling into a rhythm.
Unfortunately, none of it was to last. I received a message from Kayaba during dinner on a Tuesday night. It read that he was planning to assault the 75th floor boss with everyone he could gather in a few days and wanted me to join. From the tone of the message, I gathered it would be a difficult fight, and I picked up on the hidden message. He was going to reveal his identity to the players in the party. "The bastard…" I muttered.
"What is it, Charlie?" Rika asked me, worried at what could have made me change moods so quickly. "Is it Kayaba?"
I sighed. Silica, or Keiko as we had begun calling her, lay a hand over mine. I smiled at her. It was the little things that mattered, and at this point we really truly acted as a brother and sister. "Yeah. We're going to assault the 75th floor in about five days or so. He's bringing everyone with a strong presence in the game, and I heard even Argo will be there. What's more, he's planning on revealing himself." My words struck my companions silent as they processed the information.
"H –He's going to show everyone his persona? What could he be thinking?" Keiko was shocked that Kayaba would even consider such a thing. We had told her about Heathcliff's relationship with Kayaba a few days prior, and I had no doubt of his intentions.
I sighed again and ran my hands through what little hair I had, stroking the black veins I had on my face in thought. That was a bad habit I had developed recently since I couldn't seem to grow facial hair… "I think he's bored, sis. I think he's exhausted his amusement with us and now he wants to end the game. He'll probably have Kirito fight him. Well, he'll try to have Kirito fight him. I won't be too amiable to that idea."
"I hope you know what you're doing, husband. I can't bear the thought of losing you to that madman."
I chuckled. "Don't worry, Rika, just remember the gift I gave you a while back and everything will be fine. Well, everything should go according to plan anyway." I stood and stretched. "Hey, what do you guys say to a vacation to the 22nd floor? I think it's time to rebuild some bridges with the locals." My family grinned broadly at me and I returned their smiles with one of my own. I couldn't wait to see the look on Kirito's face when I showed up in his home.
The next day, we dressed in civilian clothing and I teleported us to Kirito's cabin. It was early in the morning, so I doubted that he or Asuna was awake yet, so I temporarily equipped my armor so I could sneak in and play a joke on them; my first in three and a half weeks. I crept into their room and noted with a smile there was just enough room on their bed for me to curl up between them; I did just that, being especially careful not to jostle either them or the bed in the process.
Once I had settled into my position, I smacked my lips loudly and tossed my body overtop of Asuna's. She woke with a shriek and summarily startled Kirito onto the fall. I laughed uproariously at their faces. They simply couldn't believe I was actually there, and I grinned at them. "Wakey wakey, lovers! It's time to face the world!" Asuna glared at me; Kirito still hadn't processed my presence.
Asuna wearily checked the clock. "What the hell, Rok! It's only six o'clock!" I grinned wider. I knew perfectly well what time it was. "Ugh. I didn't get much sleep."
I took the opportunity offered me with her comment. "Hmm, were you too busy with… should I say… other activities to sleep?" I waggled my eyebrows; a terrifying sight on someone with my appearance. Asuna threw a pillow at me, blushing furiously. I caught it and lobbed it back, turning to Kirito. "You know, I'm done waiting for your lazy ass. Get over here, bro."
Stunned, Kirito only brought himself to a sitting position, still staring in wonder. I face palmed; shaking my head as I strode over to his position on the floor, I hauled him up and drew him into a hug. "Good to see you, bro. Sorry for my distance the last few weeks."
It seemed my brother had finally regained his senses, apologizing almost instantly. "No, it's me who's sorry, Rok. I was out of line back there all those days ago, and I've been meaning to come apologize but I've been so – so – so busy," he finished in a whisper, winking at me. I snickered; he had finally picked up on the innuendo from me. I had finally corrupted his humor.
"Anyway, what are you doing here, Rok? This isn't a social call, is it?" I laughed internally; I was about to prove all those classic movie script clichés wrong with my next statement.
"Actually, it is social. I brought the family along for a much needed vacation. Hope you won't mind us taking up your guest rooms for the next few days.
Us? I saw Kirito and Asuna mouth to each other. Rika and Keiko took this moment to slip in unnoticed. "Hey Kirito! Hey Asuna!" they cried in unison. They had developed a habit of doing that that frankly scared the shit out of me. "Nice to see you again!" My most recently minted family swiveled their heads to me.
"T –T –There are two of them?! Rok, why is Silica with you?" I grinned at Asuna's question.
"Why, I should think that would be obvious, Asuna dear! Silica here," I slapped my hands on her shoulders and smiled down at her, "is my adopted sister. She's been living with Liz and me since the accident."
They nodded in understanding and we soon found ourselves speaking of trivial things. After moving into our room, the three of us followed our friends (family, now, I reminded myself) into the forest towards the lake. It seemed that Kirito had taken up fishing as a hobby.
When we entered the clearing, here was an older man sitting on the edge of the dock. "Yo, Nishida," Kirito greeted familiarly, and my eyes widened.
"Wait, Nishida? You're the Nishida?" I laughed. The man looked at me strangely.
"You've heard of me, son?" he asked, curious as to where I knew him from.
"Well, you interviewed me for a position at Argus before all this started. I was looking for an internship for some experience, and you said to meet you in the game after my interview. However, when all this started I forgot about you!"
Nishida's face dawned with revelation. "Oh yeah, you're that American student! Nice to see you, man! Well, relatively speaking, anyway." I laughed, and we quickly got to talking about all sorts of topics regarding programming.
At the end of our day, I received another message from Kayaba. Two days, was all it said. I sighed and climbed into bed with Liz. It was only a matter of time now.
The next day and a half passed in a blur. Kirito pulled up some deep-sea monstrosity from the lake in Nishida's fishing competition, and Asuna had killed the land fish before too much destruction had been caused by it. That night, I had lain awake in bed, afraid of what would come the next day, but soon found myself falling asleep in my wife's arms.
Halfway through our day, Kirito, Asuna, and I received simultaneous messages. I sighed and met Rika's eyes, transitioning quickly to Keiko's. I nodded at each of them; Kirito and Asuna said nothing as they geared up. I turned to them. "Hey, could you guys wait outside for a minute or two? I've got something to say to Liz and Sili." They nodded in acquiescence and I embraced my girls.
"Just remember the plan, alright? I'll see you in the real world if all this actually works. If it doesn't, well, I'll have tried anyway, and you know the failsafe, Rika." She nodded with a tear in her eye.
"Be careful, love," she murmured, and I kissed her lightly. Turning to my sister, I embraced her and planted a kiss on the top of her head, stroking Pina all the while.
"I have to go. I'll see you guys later, alright?" I said, pulling away and making to leave. Before I could get too far though, I found myself turned around and lip-locked with Rika.
"For luck," she whispered, pulling apart and letting me leave, breathless. I smiled softly and donned my armor minus the helmet, making my way outside to my rightful place at Kirito's left.
"Ready guys?" I asked, putting a hand on Kirito's shoulder while Asuna did the same. We all knew what was coming next, though I had a better idea than most. With a flash of light, we left the 22nd floor, heading directly to the 55th for the briefing.
Once we materialized in front of Heathcliff's council room, I put on my helmet and drew my dagger, twirling it expertly between my hands. It had received a few upgrades since I had last used it, including an extension on the hilt that turned the lower half into a quarterstaff when slammed against an enemy's skull.
"On three. One, two, THREE!" With that, Kirito pushed open the doors with a flourish, striding in confidently. Asuna followed slightly behind and to his right, and I picked up the tail, still juggling my dagger and walking leisurely but silently. It took us but a minute to approach the war map, and once there we noticed the crowd had parted for us to have a spot at one end. I grinned beneath the helmet.
Once we reached the table, I flipped my dagger into the air and slammed it blade down onto the map, impaling the corner. "Ah, perfect," I sighed in amusement. "Another boss raid. And I was so enjoying my vacation, too!" The other players gazed at me out of the corner of their eyes with some concern; I had grown to be a figure of questionable sanity and enjoyed every minute of it. "So what's the deal, Heathcliff? How are we handling this one?"
I enjoyed the attention my casual disrespect for the Commander garnered, and shrugged, gesturing for him to begin. "Well, I ought to start with the back story. A week ago, we sent a recon team of 10 highly trained players into the boss room. After five minutes, the doors opened again to reveal absolutely nothing. No boss, no players, nothing." A few players gasped; the KotB recon teams were especially well known for their ruthlessness and efficiency in battle. If they couldn't handle something, it was bad.
"Anyways, I made the decision to gather you all here today because you're the best this game has to offer. Our strategy is simple. With me at the head of the charge will be Kirito and Asuna. Behind us will be Sarok. Behind him will be everyone else in order of level and strength with sword, shield, lance, and other weapons in that order. Now, is everyone ready?" Receiving nods from around the table, Heathcliff nodded solemnly and pulled a Corridor Crystal from his inventory. "Let's go, then. Corridor, Open!" he commanded, opening a portal to just outside the boss room.
Once the entire group passed through, we assembled out formation. I stood slightly behind Heathcliff-Kayaba. "Hopefully, this is where it all ends," he murmured, just loud enough for only me to pick up. In a rare show of support, I put a hand on the psycho's shoulder.
He stared inquisitively at my appendage for a moment before yelling for us to march forward. It was time. Without another word, Heathcliff threw open the doors to what would be the final boss in any hopes, and we entered the room, the only sounds coming from hundreds of boots on the stone.
Once everyone had entered the massive room, the doors closed with a bang, startling the players in the back. Looking around, I didn't see any boss, before I had an epiphany. "Look up!" I cried, diving out of the way just in time for a massive skeletal centipede to slam into the ground where I had been a second ago. The boss roared as five health bars came into being next to it. Its name was Skull Reaper, and I sighed at the simplicity of it. Kayaba really had no imagination with his names, even going so far as to steal from other games, as my armor indicated.
I didn't have too much time to ruminate, however, as the boss instantly swept its arms, which were giant scythe blades, through two unsuspecting players. Before our eyes, they disappeared in polygons, and I frowned strongly, my determination peaked. There would be only one more death today, and it wouldn't be a player's.
Once again, the blades came down, but fortunately for some downed and shocked players, Heathcliff blocked the strike with his shield. Expecting the boss to agro on him, I was certainly not prepared for it to shunt him out of the way and end the lives of the players. Screaming in rage as I watched their lives extinguished, I took to endless transport between the creatures legs, stabbing, slicing, and attacking it every time I regained my vision. The other players took this as their cue to join me, Kirito and Asuna taking on the scythe-arms with Heathcliff.
It seemed Kayaba knew what he was doing when he decided to bring so many players; within minutes , its health was in the red, and I heard Kirito charge up his big hitter, Starburst Stream. Finally, with one last hit from my brother severing the Reaper's head from its body in a sick twist of irony, the boss blew up in a blast of polygons.
The players cheered, but Kirito wasn't finished yet. He took a swing at Heathcliff, too fast for him to notice, and was stopped by a purple barrier. I sighed; of course it had come to this. Luckily, my plan wasn't entirely ruined. I could still save things. Subtly adjusting myself so I was directly behind Asuna, it came as no surprise to me when the paralysis hit. I had planted my feet on the ground in such a way that I wouldn't be knocked down from the shockwave, and made every effort not to fall over as Kirito so=poke with Kayaba.
"Yes. I am Akihiko Kayaba." Heathcliff's voice rang through the silence. "I am curious as to how you found out, Kirito. Surely your friend Sarok didn't tell you?" Kirito simply laughed.
"No, but he helped. I figured it out about a week before this. Things hadn't been adding up about you. I knew there was something wrong but couldn't really tell what yet."
Kayaba took a few moments to finally make his offer. "Alright then, Kirito. I have a proposition for you. Fight me; here, now. If you win, I die and the game is cleared. If I win, however, the rest of the players here will find me waiting on the hundredth floor." Kirito considered his offer.
"Kirito, don't!" a half dozen voice cried out. Mine wasn't one of them. Curious, Kirito turned to me, and I moved my eyes up and down in a nodding motion. He turned back to Kayaba. "I accept, with one condition. Make it so Asuna can't kill herself right away if I die."
"No, Kirito, that isn't fair! That isn't fair!" My heart nearly broke at the sight of Asuna's tears, but I forced myself to be strong. Everything was proceeding according to plan.
"Agil, thanks for everything. I know you've been helping the low level players; that's why I never argued too hard with you about pricing. Klein, sorry for leaving you behind that first day." Agil stayed silent at Kirito's admission, a single tear rolling down the man's face, while Klein acted differently.
"No, Kirito, don't say that! Don't say that ever again! After this, you and I are going to get out of her and share a pizza on the other side, do you understand that?!" Kirito nodded with a sad smile; finally, he turned to face me.
"Sarok. My brother in all but blood. You've taught me so much these past two years. Thank you." With that, he turned to face Kayaba. I let the tears come, solely focused on my chance. I watched in silence as Kayaba deactivated his invincibility and prepared to duel Kirito. I wanted to interfere, badly, but I couldn't. Not yet.
The battle went on for what seemed to be an eternity, before Kayaba gained the advantage and prepared to strike the final blow. Unfortunately, I was so focused that I didn't notice Asuna had overcome her status until it was too late; she took the blow meant for Kiito and died in his arms. I grimaced. It was now or never.
"Kayaba, wait a moment." I said, catching the man off guard. "Kirito, catch!" I broke the paralysis that was never there and threw the Divine Stone of Resurrection to him; he caught it and immediately started chanting to return Asuna to the living as I charged forward, activating the true potential of my unique skill.
When I reached Kayaba, I had grown in height considerably. More so, I was jet black in appearance and had no visible face, only red eyes and a slight curve of lips. My wings had grown to massive size, and I had a crown on my head. "Did you forget about my skill, Kayaba?!" I bellowed, my voice rattling the chamber. "If I give up all that I am, I gain everything I was meant to be in this game: the most powerful player in existence!" My right arm was no longer a blade, it was a massive blood-red scythe.
Kayaba stood in shock as I approached. I stopped directly in front of him. "Hell calls forth its demons, Kayaba!" I spoke, laughing maniacally, "And let me say, I. AM. HELL. ITSELF!" With that, I thrust my scythe towards Kayaba's body. Unfortunately, it had hit his shield, causing me to recoil in pain as my health dropped dangerously low. Kayaba regained his senses and faced me, having realized I didn't have much fight in me.
"You can't keep up that form for long, kid!" he screamed, hammering at my defenses for as long as he could. I was laughing insanely the entire way; it was actually quite fun. When I reached the red zone of my health, I backed off from the man, waiting for my reinforcements to arrive. Just on time, I saw Liz rematerialize in front of me with a max heal crystal; she used it instantly. I knew that player-specific teleport crystal would come in handy.
"Ah, that hits the spot. Thanks, babe," I said, smiling at Liz. She nodded back and I cracked my neck loudly, facing Kayaba. He appeared too shocked to move, and I laughed. "Did you really think I wouldn't make good on my promise to kill you, Kayaba?" The bastard raised his shield half-heartedly. "It's really too bad that I'm not the one who's striking the final blow." Kayaba's eyes widened as two swords burst from his chest; Kirito's Elucidator and Asuna's rapier.
To my immense surprise, Kayaba started chuckling darkly. As his HP dropped further and further, he opened his mouth to speak. "Yes, too bad indeed. I suppose it's also too bad that you didn't notice the failsafe I put into your skill…" His HP dropped to the red and I felt a deep burning in my chest. Looking down, I noticed my body had begun disintegrating. "Yes, you're going to die with me. Then again, so are Kirito and Asuna for killing me. Congratulations." With that, Kayaba's body didn't disappear but exploded in a flurry of sharp polygons, impaling Kirito, Asuna, and to my dismay Liz.
"NO!" I screamed as more and more of my body became nothing. "No, no, no, no." She was dead; my wife had died in my arms. It was rather appropriate now I thought of it; in order to fully lose my humanity I had to leave that which I held most dear behind as well. I fell to what remained of my knees in despair, staring at the spot that Liz used to be even as the last parts of my body disappeared.
After I died, I found myself overlooking the massive castle Aincrad as it fell floor by floor into the void. Next to me I found my wife Rika, my brother Kirito, and my sister Asuna. We couldn't see the floor; yet strangely, we knew we were safe. "Hey guys," I had said. "Feels nice to finally let go, doesn't it?" They nodded without speaking. We stood in total silence for another few minutes, our arms wrapped around each other.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" a new voice entered the fray, and we turned as one to see a young man in a lab coat and glasses. He had short light brown hair and a slight smile. I gestured for him to come over to us; I knew who he was and saw no reason to be hostile anymore.
"Kayaba," I greeted him distantly. "I suppose everyone's woken up by now, right?" He nodded, and I smiled, breaking off from my family to shake his hand. "Good work. You might be a bastard, but you're just as dead as the rest of us."
Kayaba stared at me in amusement. "I'd always wanted to see that floating city in the sky. Ever since I was a child I've dreamed of that place, that unassailable construct. I wanted to see firsthand the wonders and adventures that would be created, but I just didn't feel that the stakes would be high enough to truly enjoy existence there. That's why I made Sword Art Online the way it was." He looked at the sky and sighed.
"Kirito, you're probably wondering about the Dual Wielding Skill. You got it for having the fastest reaction time of anyone in the game. You were truly the paragon of strength and hope in the world." Kirito made no effort to respond. "Sarok, you received Devil Deal. That skill is… complicated. Its strength depends on the user's current level of sanity, his willingness to sacrifice himself, and the strength of his control. That you became so… perfect… to make a full transformation… I'm glad I gave you that skill." I frowned.
"But why was it given then?" I asked.
Kayaba considered my question for a moment. "Devil Deal belongs to you because of your penchant for darkness. While there were many other candidates, the system chose you not because of how dark you could get but because of how you used that darkness. Time and time again you saved with your blackness when you could just as easily condemn."
I was struck silent by the man's words. I hadn't realized the impact I had on others to the extent that he was making it out to be. "Thanks, then," I said, shaking his hand. "And Kayaba?" He raised an eyebrow. "Sorry you had to resort to this for some happiness, some contentedness. I feel for you." Whatever I was expecting from my empathy, it wasn't the tear that trailed the programmer's face. A few seconds afterwards, Kayaba turned away from us and walked away, disappearing into the wind not ten paces into his walk.
Impassively, I made my way back to my family and sat on the edge of the platform with them. Putting my arm around Liz, I watched the castle disintegrate floor by floor. Liz leaned her head on my shoulder and I sighed. "I'm glad I met you guys. You've been my family through all of this, and I've even found the one thing I've been searching for; love." At this, I squeezed my wife to me. "It's been a great run. Speaking of, Kirito, Asuna, what are your names in the real world? I never got around to getting them."
"Kirigaya Kazuto," Kirito said, even as Asuna said "Yuuki Asuna."
"You guys already know Rika, and I'm clearly named Charles Galat. Expect a call from me when we all get out of here." They nodded and we watched as the palace atop Aincrad fell to the system. Sighing again at the loss of my home for the past two and some years, I turned to my wife and kissed her lightly on the lips one final time in the game of Sword Art Online.