"Hey, Kirito!" He heard her shout from down the hallway as he and Asuna were about to enter their quarters. Yuuki came to a stop, taking a moment to catch her breath before continuing. "Just got a message from one of the scouts..." She said, still panting. "We... we found the boss room."

Kirto felt his heart suddenly begin to beat faster. He wanted to face Kayaba; to beat him in the name of everyone who had died because of him, as well as to finally free both himself and Asuna. Yet, at the same time, he dreaded it. He had plenty of experience in PvP, but he'd never faced an opponent quite like Heathcliff before. Someone who not only likely rivaled Kirito in rank and skill, but also was the person who had literally constructed this world from scratch. In essence, he would be fighting the god of Aincrad.

Kirito didn't realize how long he had been silent until Yuuki spoke up again. "So, uh... when do you plan on fighting him?" Asuna wanted to hear the answer as well.

"Soon, I know that much. Better sooner anyways; we've been in Aincrad long enough." Kirito paused for a moment. "I'll fight him in the next day or two probably. Where is he located, exactly?"

Yuuki pulled up her map, pointing to a location that looked to be at the base of a mountain. Kirito marked the spot on his map. Asuna did, as well. "Well, I guess you guys are going to bed soon. See you tomorrow." She said as she closed her map and began walking back down the hallway.


Kirito laid in bed, Asuna resting on his chest. For one of the few times in Aincrad, he found himself too anxious to sleep. For a moment, he tried to take his thoughts off of the fight. He simply looked down at Asuna; feeling her comforting warmth as well as the soothed rhythm of her breathing. Her arms were wrapped snugly around his torso. Something about her was always so... reassuring. As long as he knew she was by his side, he felt truly empowered.

However, even that sense of empowerment wasn't enough to overcome his aching fear of facing Heathcliff. Before he'd shifted his focus to Asuna, he had stared blankly at the ceiling, thinking of possible strategies and tactics he could use in his fight for what seemed like hours, even if it had in actuality only been around thirty minutes. Kirito had since concluded that his greatest advantage would likely be his speed. Heathcliff used a substantial shield as well as a longsword large enough to look like it would be better wielded with two hands. With all of that, in addition to his heavy plate armor, his movements were sure to be hindered.

Kirito, on the other hand, was only moderately armored and wielded two blades about the size of normal bastard swords. Surely, he would outmatch Heathcliff with swiftness and offensive capability. Of course, Heathcliff had a defensive capability to match, but if Kirito could get past his shield, even for a split second, all it would take would be a single well-placed thrust at his upper chest, neck, or head. It may not kill him, but pain and bleeding damage would certainly take care of the rest. That is, assuming he allowed the pain and bleeding functions to affect him the same as anyone else.

Not only that, but Kirito also had one other small advantage. A smaller stat he'd first overlooked when he equipped his armor, was that it greatly reduced bleeding damage. It didn't entirely nullify bleeding damage, but it was enough that it would allow him to potentially take a few more hits. It would hurt, but he'd still be alive, and that was what mattered.

He felt his eyes becoming increasingly heavy. Now in a slightly more relaxed state, he looked down at Asuna again. At some point, she had shifted herself to be practically on top of him. He welcomed the feeling. Now fighting to keep his eyes open, he simply placed one arm over her, and let sleep take him.


Kirito, Asuna, and Yuuki stood outside of the doorway at the base of the towering mountain, seemingly mentally preparing themselves for what could lie ahead. Asuna and Yuuki both agreed to more or less escort him to the boss room, in spite of Kirito's minor attempts to dissuade them. However, the only way to get to the final boss area was through the mountain, and the only way through the mountain was through a twisting cave than ran through the center of it. The scouts had warned them that the path was lined with many hostile mobs. It was inconvenient for them to say the least, as most common mobs were very little to any of them, though they could still prove to be troublesome in larger numbers. On their way to the mountain, the three of them had deduced that they had likely respawned.

"So, how many do you think there are?" Asuna asked, drawing her rapier.

"All they said was that it was enough to give them a little trouble." Yuuki replied.

Kirito drew his swords and readied himself, opening the door slightly. "Shouldn't be a problem for us, right?" He said with a confident grin. The moment he got inside, he was greeted by a few zombie-like mobs sporting tattered leather armor and wielding weathered swords and cracked shields. Just behind their open helmets were hollow, dead faces. They were quicker than Kirito expected, though not near enough to catch him off guard. Even as Yuuki and Asuna entered a moment later, Kirito was already down to one enemy. He thrust his Elucidator into the chest of the last remaining one, then proceeding to pull out his blade by kicking off the corpse.

Now that the mobs had been killed, Kirito took notice of the cave's interior. The pathway was very roughly carved and littered with wooden support beams. The occasional lit torch provided just barely enough light. Continuing ahead into a larger carved out room, the three of them were met by a significantly larger group of the same mobs they had encountered moments ago. There had to have been at least ten, likely closer to fifteen, but regardless, they were defeated in mere seconds. Kirito once again took out the majority. "Hey, save some for us, will you?" Yuuki said playfully.

"Sorry, just figured I might as well get a good warm up." Kirito smiled as the three of them continued into the cave.


The mobs turned out to be so trivial that Kirito could put very little effort into fighting them and focus on his thoughts. As he was a few minutes away from facing Heathcliff, and likely returning to the real world, his heart was beating gradually faster. This fight would be it. All or nothing. Either he lost and failed thousands of people, some of whom he'd come to deeply care for, or he would be victorious, him and Asuna could enjoy their lives outside a virtual world, and everyone could be free at last after more than two years of being trapped. So many people would finally see their families... people they had been forcefully parted from.

"I guess that's really what I'm fighting for..." Kirito muttered to himself as he slashed open the gut of another mob. Yuuki thought she heard him say something, though she quickly disregarded the thought.

Asuna thrust her rapier through what appeared to be the last remaining mob; the tip of her blade protruding out the back layer of the mob's thin armor. She swiftly kicked the mob off of her blade.

The three of them proceeded, finally coming to yet another doorway, this one easily twice as tall as Kirito. The iron door was vaguely shrouded by thin wisps of fog. Kirito clenched his fists, taking a deep breath. Yuuki faced him, smiling. "I... I guess we'll finally get to see each other for real."

Kirito saw tears welling up in her eyes. "You too." He whispered, hugging her.

She leaned in ever closer, whispering softly in his ear. "Beat him. For me... for her... for everyone."

"I will." He calmly replied, slowly releasing. He turned to face Asuna, who also looked like she was on the verge of crying. The two of them warmly embraced. He whispered so softly as to ensure Yuuki wouldn't hear. "You know, we can get married in the next year or two. So... would you like that?" It took even him a moment to realize he had just essentially proposed to her. He wanted to take it back immediately, but it was already out there. "Besides...", he thought to himself, "...do I really want to take it back?"

Asuna wrapped her arms even more tightly around him. After a brief moment of tender silence, she gave him an answer. "Yes... yes I would..." She whispered, actively trying to hide her sheer joy. "I can't wait for our marriage... Kazuto."

The two of them kissed. It was brief - hardly a second - yet to both of them, it was perhaps the greatest kiss they had ever experienced. The two of them released, both of them silently yearning to hold each other longer, as Kirito turned towards the doorway. He placed his hand on it, opening it slightly. A notification on the door appeared eye level to Kirito. The notification read: 'Beyond this door is the final boss of Sword Art Online. Are you certain you wish to proceed?'. 'Yes' and 'No' options hovered below.

Kirito glanced back at the two of them. Then, without another moment of hesitation, tapped 'Yes'.


AUTHOR'S NOTE:

First, I don't know how many times I've stated this in the past, but thank you. All of you, from the very bottom of my heart. Feedback from you guys is what keeps me going. Anyways, the final chapter is now upon us! That's right, the next chapter will in fact be the final one. It's been long and one hell of a ride, but it's finally coming to an end. Not too long from now, I'll be marking this one as 'Completed'. Be sure to let me know your thoughts in the reviews, and have a blessed day!