29

December 21st, 2022

Floor 1, Trevica

"It feels like it's been ages since we've duelled." Jae smiled as Israel parried his spear thrust. "I miss our battles."

They were standing in the courtyard of Trevica, the teleport gate humming with energy about twenty feet away. Scarcely more than a flat patch of dirt and weeds, the wide and open courtyard was the perfect place to hold a duel.

Israel swung Silverthorne in a horizontal arc towards Jae's neck, his brother's face flashing in alarm as he ducked underneath the blow.

"Are you trying to kill me?"

Israel advanced a step, lunging with his sword. "We can't play around. Fight me as if I was really trying to kill you."

Knocking aside the sword with a twirl of his spear, Jae arched an eyebrow. "That masked man really scared the shit out of you, didn't he?"

"Part of the reason I would've lost against him," Israel said as he lifted Silverthorne into a high guard. "Is because I wasn't used to fighting real enemies. He was. We've spent almost two months in SAO killing NPC monsters with set attack patterns and abilities. We've forgotten what it's like to battle real people. We're rusty." He brought the sword down in an overhead attack.

At the last minute, he pivoted on his left foot and instead swung downward at Jae's ribs. Such a feint would have worked against a sword armed opponent, but spears had reach no sword could hope to match. Seeing the sword's tip now flying towards his side, Jae released the spear with one hand and allowed the shaft of his weapon to fall vertically from its overhead position down the length of his body, just in time to meet Silverthorne.

The fields rang out with a sharp crack as steel crashed into tempered wood.

Israel looked on in surprise as Jae grinned at him, obviously pleased with himself.

"I don't get rusty."

Disengaging, he followed up with a furious series of blows, each faster than the other as he twirled his spear endlessly. Israel blocked some, dodged others, and countered where he could, but soon realized he needed to reposition. Grudgingly, he retreated several steps.

"Good, that's what I want to hear." Israel smiled wickedly. "But now you can't get mad when I fuck you up."

Running forward to gain momentum, Israel forced himself to think of Jae as a mortal threat, one that needed to be eliminated. With a cry of rage, he lunged for his brother's chest.

Spinning the spear to the side, Jae batted aside the blow effortlessly. But that was exactly what Israel had wanted. Using the force of the impact to power his sword, Israel swung at a backhanded angle. The tip of his blade connected with Jae's shoulder, slicing through the skin.

Wincing in pain as his health dipped slightly, Jae responded with another furious assault. This time, Israel was ready. Swinging Silverthorne in a weaving pattern before him, he charged to meet the attack.

Their weapons were a blur as the two brothers fought. Using the reach of his spear, Jae stayed farther back as he spun the weapon in his hands with deadly grace, launching multiple attacks almost simultaneously. To get past the disadvantage, Israel never once stopped moving. Utilizing the finesse and speed from his days in the real world, he disengaged, sidestepped, and attacked in one swift pivot or sudden turn. Forced to counter such flanking, Jae attempted to pin Israel down with blistering rushes and attacks from all directions.

Up and down the courtyard they fought, kicking up so much dirt from the fury of their battle that a small cloud of dust seemed to hover permanently around them. Never stopping, never slowing down, the two players fought with strikingly different styles; while Israel thrived on rapid movement and complicated footwork coupled with new angles of attack at all times, Jae excelled at straightforward, head to head combat with little need or desire for repositioning beyond that of the relentless advance.

Each blow Israel landed, each pivot and turn performed, were based on calculation and strategy. To him, duelling was like physical chess: a complex series of moves thought out well in advance of the acts themselves. Even when reacting to attacks or pushed onto the defensive, Israel chose which blocks or evasions were tactically superior and could be used to his advantage. Jae, while by no means any less intelligent in how he thought, adhered to a far different fighting concept: instinct. Relying only on his gut feelings and years of hard earned skill, Jae kept his mind clear as he fought, his only thought being to win.

Even their greatest, and often finishing, blows were different. Following his concept of speed on the battlefield, Israel was especially skilled at sudden and brutal thrusts aimed at the chest or stomach. While the stab appeared simple in nature, it was easily parried unless timed and executed perfectly. Keeping the blade perfectly vertical, and launching it at lightning speeds past enemy weapons and armor, all while being attacked every step of the way, required a level of skill beyond that of the average fighter. In contrast, Jae's area of expertise was in the counterattack. Often deliberately setting up feints or allowing himself to fall back on the defensive, Jae would more than make up for lost ground with a withering and unpredictable counter blow after the first onslaught left his opponent vulnerable.

Thus, the two brothers fought in styles that differed greatly from the other. Yet somehow, Israel and Jae had proven time and again in the real world that their skill was almost equal. Each of them were formidable opponents, and every time they clashed, it proved a truly titanic struggle. And this time was no different.

Israel's shirt clung to his chest as sweat coated his skin. His sword darted almost as quickly as his eyes as he blocked, parried, glanced, lunged, and slashed again and again against Jae's spear. Their breathing was growing more ragged, and their fierce battle all along the courtyard was quickly stomping the weeds out of existence.

Both faces were fixed with rigid determination, broken only by the occasional gasp of pain as they exchanged small cuts. They were in a safe zone, so ordinarily dealing wounds would be impossible, but Israel had insisted on a formal duel. Under the conditions of duels in SAO, players involved could fight anywhere. Duels themselves consisted of three categories. There was first strike, in which the winner was determined based on whoever dealt the first serious blow. Then half health, in which whoever reached half HP first lost. And finally, to the death.

They had agreed on first strike.

Israel deflected a swing and went for a lunge, Jae parried and launched a counterattack, and on and on the fight raged. At times one would push forward, and then the other, while all the while the blows continued to rain down.

Israel was exhausted, but he knew that Jae had to be as well. With that in mind, he stepped back as the duel continued, their weapons beginning to slow down as strength ebbed on both sides. Sensing victory, Jae pressed the assault, driving forward with ever more relentless fury and every last reserve of energy he could muster. Nearing the end of the courtyard as he continued to fall back, Israel finally seized the moment.

Pivoting on his right foot, he sidestepped at the same moment as he lifted Silverthorne for a final overhead swing.

He saw Jae's grin as he realized what was happening. Spinning around, his brother began lifting his spear. Israel swept the blade down with renewed speed, desperate to complete the strike before he was blocked. The end was at hand.

And then a message screen appeared in front of Jae's face.

"Pause!" Jae shouted blindly.

Digging in his heels, Israel forced the blade to a standstill inches from his brother's head. Jae's spear was also mere inches from the attack, so it was unclear who's weapon would've completed its journey first.

"What the fuck, man." He said angrily. "I told you to turn of messages before the duel."

"My bad, I forgot." Jae's eyes skimmed over the message as Israel muttered in annoyance. And then he beamed excitedly. "Dude!"

Israel dragged the end of Silverthorne through the worn dirt. "What is it?"

"I set the system activation on alert for when the house I saw is officially open for sale."

Israel heaved a sigh. "What house?"

"An epic place in a town called Favrast on Floor Three." He closed his message and fixed Israel in a hopeful gaze. "We have to go."

Israel threw up his free hand in irritation. "And buy a house I've never even seen? No thanks. I have better things to do with my money."

"Bro, come on. If we don't act now someone else might take it." He rolled his eyes at Israel's unenthusiastic face. "At least let me show it you. We can decide on it together."

Israel opened his menu to check the time. What he saw shocked him. "Damn, we've been fighting for over an hour." He glanced back at Jae's impatient gaze. "Fine, I guess that's more than enough practice time. Show me this house."

Jae twirled his spear back into the latches at his back. "Awesome. Thanks man."

Israel shrugged before giving Jae a ghost of a smile. "I would've had you anyway. You were done."

Jae scoffed. "Please, I had more than enough time to react. You're not as fast as you think. I would've blocked and then in the same move counter lunged at your exposed stomach."

"I guess we'll never know who would've won."

Jae extended a hand to the teleport gate. "After you. I really think you're going to like this place."

"We'll see."

Together, they stepped into the portal. "Teleport, Favrast!"

The town of Favrast was essentially a series of logger's cabins interspersed throughout a large clearing in the endless woods of the Third Floor. The narrow streets were made of birch, and therefore a lighter color, but other than that most of the place looked the same as the Floor's main city, Zumfut.

"You know I've never been a big fan of wood themed houses, right?" Israel said as they walked out of the teleport gate.

"Just shut up and wait until you see it."

Israel rolled his eyes in answer.

After several minutes of walking, Israel began to realize that the town was actually huge. In fact, he wouldn't have been surprised if it was the same size as the Town of Beginnings.

He glanced over at Jae. "Just curious here, but how long is it going to take to get there?"

Jae kept his eyes on the road of wooden planks, occasionally observing the various sized cabins on either side. "The house is on the other side of town, so it'll be a bit of a walk- but it's worth it." He added quickly.

Israel couldn't help but smile as a thought crossed his mind. "You know, this reminds me of those walks we used to take across Virginia Beach."

Jae grinned in turn. "You're right. The two of us wandering the streets for hours. We always drew attention to ourselves by singing too."

The two brothers exchanged brief looks, knowing exactly what to do next.

"I tried so hard!" They sang together loudly, "And got so far! But in the end, it doesn't even matter!"

Stopping at a corner near the end of town, Jae motioned for Israel to turn. Following his brother's gaze, Israel saw the house.

Shaped like a rectangular tower, with narrow slits for windows and a large balcony roof, the house more closely resembled a defensive outpost than a living place.

Which was exactly what Israel liked about it.

"This place looks-"

Jae held up a hand as he approached the door. "Don't say anything until we get inside."

Entering the house, Israel was taken aback.

Used to the small and simple confines of their room back in Trevica, Israel had to blink several times at the vast open space within. The living room was huge and came complete with large shelves lining the walls for books or other objects, a massive oval table in the center with three chairs, and at the far end nearest the next room was a large hearth,

Behind the living room could be seen the kitchen, embodying two sinks, a counter top, an oven, nearly a dozen cabinets of varying sizes, and a rectangular cooking table lining the center of the room.

Stepping towards the kitchen entrance, Israel saw a hallway breaking off to the right. Jae followed his glance.

"That leads to our rooms, and the stairway that goes up to the roof."

Israel's eyes widened. "Our own rooms? That's something I'll have to get used to again."

Jae nodded excitedly. "Each comes with it's own bed. And each one is bigger than that room in Trevica."

Israel began walking quickly down the hall. "Well come on, I want to see this balcony."

Jae opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment a message notification popped up.

Halting at the sound, Israel turned to see. "Don't tell me it got sold already?"

Jae shook his head. Finishing the message, he hurriedly closed the screen. "The Assault Team has found the Boss room. They're calling a meeting right now."

Israel crossed his arms. "Oh."

He and Naomi had finished charting and detailing all of Floor Three two days ago, but it still felt incredibly soon. That the Assault Team were pushing themselves at a breakneck pace was an understatement.

Jae flashed a determined look. "I'm going to this raid. This is important to-"

Israel waved away his brother's words irritably. "I know, I know. Go ahead. I'm not stopping you."

Jae hesitated. "You know I'd feel a lot better with you covering my back."

Israel shook his head staunchly. "I was serious about what I said, man. I'm not doing anything to help them."

After a brief moment of silence, Jae sighed. "Fine."

He began walking back towards the front door.

Israel took a step towards him. "Wait. What about the house?"

Jae ran a hand over the oval table affectionately. "So you like it then?"

"I mean I haven't quite decided yet. What if it gets sold while you're gone? Maybe you should stay."

Jae chuckled. "Of all your excuses to get me not to go, that's probably going to be the worst. I'll pay a fee to the NPC mayor to reserve the place until I get back or you decide. His house is on the way to the teleport gate."

He reached the door.

"Jae." Israel said quietly.

"Yeah?"

"Be careful."