A/N: I think I'm going to stop saying that my life is about slow down out loud, because every time I do, something new comes up! In any case, here is the new chapter I promised like a week ago... Enjoy, and please leave a review!
Insurmountable
The combined guilds made their way up to the floating castle of New Aincrad immediately after Yuuki explained the situation to her teammates. None of the Sleeping Knights wasted their breath on arguing now. If they were going to have any kind of help, now was the time to use it, before any other players could mass up to defeat the boss.
Unfortunately, when they got to the boss room entrance, they found a group of nearly fifty players already there. The Sleeping Knights all showed emotions ranging from outraged to depressed. Mataras sighed at the sight of it.
"Maybe I should try to handle this one more… delicately," he said as he started to walk up to the man who looked to be in charge. Sinon sniggered despite her attempts to do otherwise, causing Mataras to turn around with his eyebrow raised. "What's so funny?" he asked.
"Sorry, I just never thought I'd see the day where you didn't want to beat up a bunch of idiots in front of an adoring audience," she giggled.
"Don't put words in my mouth," Mataras sniffed as he strode forward to come face to face with the leader of the massive party. "Good afternoon," he said in a conversational tone. "Might there be any way you could let us through? We wanted to have a shot at this boss ourselves, if you don't mind."
Off to the side, Sinon rolled her eyes and said, "One day…"
The gamer snorted derisively and attempted to shove Mataras back as he said, "Get lost." It was only natural that he be surprised by the fact that Mataras did not budge. And what was even more unsettling was the slow, wicked grin crawling its way across his face.
"I believe that there is a way for you to let us through, actually," he said as he made like he was going to turn around. "You all will just have to die." What happened next was too fast for the other players to follow, but the Sleeping Knights' jaws dropped and the Cats grinned as Mataras spun in a reverse arc to smash the heel of his foot into the man's jaw to send him sprawling. He ended this movement by drawing his sword with lightning speed and staring down the other forty-odd players.
"So," Kirito grinned as he and the other Black Cats drew their weapons. "Who else wants some?"
"You wanna fight all of us…?" another player said, confused. "By yourselves?"
"They're crazy," said a girl. "Let's just kill 'em and hit the boss already."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Sinon said as she took aim with her bow at the girl that had spoken. "These guys are the real deal- SAO survivors. Messing with them is the last thing any gamer should want."
The small army considered this for a moment before the man that Mataras had first attacked got up and said, "Right… Like we'd believe that… Those cowards would never put on a full-dive rig again."
"I'd just as soon reconsider your stance, completely and immediately," Mataras growled. "Tell me- do you know of the Red Swordsman, also known as the Toa of Aincrad?"
"I've heard of him," the other player snapped as he drew an axe. "What of it?"
"He is said to wield the Dragon Blood, making him the freest of beings in the virtual world," Sachi said quietly. "He is not confined by the sword skills' system. It gives him free range of motion."
"For instance…" Mataras said just before he threw his sword and impaled the leader with it, draining the last of his health and causing him to shatter into pieces, much to the shock of his comrades. "Like so." He darted forward and picked up his sword even as Sinon shot at the girl that had been talking back to them, taking her in the head and shattering her avatar.
Kirito finally unleashed his dual wielding in front of the Sleeping Knights, and their eyes widened in shock as they saw the amount of power that his twin blades radiated. Asuna's rapier shot ahead of her and skewered a lancer that was about to take a stab at her husband. Sachi moved to stand back-to-back with Yui, who was wielding twin knives in her child-like avatar form. Litrosh was everywhere, distracting players with flame bursts and causing damage with his teeth and claws.
The Sleeping Knights were in awe, even Yuuki. Never before had they seen such a display of unity in a team. Not even they could claim to move so well together. The closest that they could ever recall such a thing happening was when their numbers had been seven, and only two of the members had showed such coordination.
It wasn't just teamwork- it was almost… an art. "The art of the sword," Yuuki murmured. "So this is what the world of Sword Art Online created…"
"What's that, Yuuki?" Siune asked.
"Nothing," the girl said as she shook her head in a negative motion. "C'mon, let's help 'em out!"
"No!" Mataras roared as he back flipped over a sword that glowed red. He landed a few feet away from them and shouted, "Get through to the door, and leave these degenerates to us!"
"Degenerates?" Sachi said as ducked a burly axe man's attack and then took him out with a five-hit combo. "That seems a bit harsh, Brother."
"I'm in a bad mood," Mataras growled. "Regardless, do as I say!" He blocked a sword slash coming at his backside and then used his free hand to backfist his opponent. "We'll cut a way through for you and then hold them off."
"Okay…" Yuuki said, not entirely sure that even the combined might of the Moonlit Black Cats could get them unscathed to the boss room. Nonetheless, she chose to have faith in the strange young man, known to this world as the Red Swordsman. "Group up, guys!" she ordered her guild.
"Arrowhead formation!" Kirito snapped. "Yui and Litrosh, guard our flanks!" Together, the Cats formed a rough triangle around the Sleeping Knights, protecting them from all angles. As one, they charged into the fray, dashing aside anyone that dared get in their way. Half of their opponents simply fled down a side passage out fear of the death penalties that would damage their equipment and cause them to lose some items in their inventory.
Not to mention the very glare from the two leaders were downright frightening. The one dressed in black met his enemies with golden eyes, hardened in the fires of pain, rejection, and isolation. The one dressed in red struck with the wrath of a dragon, his eyes blazing silver with his utter hatred of the world, the howling tempest that only peaked out over the horizon oh so rarely these days.
Before the Sleeping Knights knew it, they were facing the boss room's door. "Go ahead," Sachi said over her shoulder as the Cats turned to face the original raiding party, which was regrouping like so many scattered leaves. "We'll at least hold them up long enough for you to finish your task."
"Thanks, Sachi," Yuuki grinned as Jun and Tecchi shoved the massive doors open. "We owe you guys one."
"Go," Leafa grinned as she waved at the other girl. "We expect to see you guys flashing us a big victory sign when we next see you."
"Fight hard, and more importantly, fight smart," Mataras said as he turned to look at the Knights with a rare, genuine grin. "Go and be what we could not."
Yuuki wondered at the Red Swordsman's comment- after all, it seemed like the Moonlit Black Cats were the ones that the Sleeping Knights should be emulating. Then the doors swung shut, and as they boomed, Yuuki's eyes widened as a recent memory surfaced.
"So the question I ask is: what are you hiding from?"
Yuuki locked her red eyes on his dark ones through their masks and said, "Pain."
Mataras stopped advancing on her and lowered his sword. Then he nodded once and said, "Is it the same for the others, then?"
"Yes," Yuuki nodded.
"Very well," Mataras said as he sheathed his blade. "I understand."
At the time she had understood that he too must have suffered greatly in his life, and this was the place in which he found solace. But now she understood completely. It wasn't in the other world that he lost his dream, she thought in a rush. It was this one. And he doesn't want us to lose the dream that we share like he did.
The boss room lit up and Yuuki readied her blade, new resolve in her heart. The next time we meet, Mataras, I'll want to know what the dream was that you lost. And I want to know if the dream we have is really so similar to your own.
The Moonlit Black Cats were all backed up against the door of the boss room, with little room to maneuver. The remaining players from the raid party numbered nearly forty, and the guild from Old Aincrad had already collectively lost a quarter of their health.
"I don't like these odds," Asuna said as she raised her rapier into position.
"Yeah," Sinon grinned cheekily. "They don't stand a chance."
"How about we save the smart comments until after we've won?" Kirito snapped. "Assuming we do…"
"Please, the Gleam Eyes was tougher than this sorry bunch," Mataras said cockily.
"We had maxed out half our skills," Kirito countered.
"That thing had a sword that could cut a horse in two," Mataras shot back.
"It had programmed patterns!" the Black Swordsman said hotly.
"The sword skills are all pre-programmed, too!" his brother shot back.
"Both of you, stop it!" Sinon shouted as she swung her bow to aim the arrow at her fiancé and his best friend. "Make nice!"
"Okay, okay!" Kirito said as he raised his swords in defense. "Just be cool! We're all friends here…"
"Drama queen," Mataras sniggered.
"She put an arrow in my face, man!" Kirito argued as he rounded back on his brother. "I'd say this is an adequate amount of drama!"
"It's not the first time she does that," Mataras shrugged. "Not for me, anyway."
"That doesn't make it better!"
Sinon looked at them in bewilderment, as did everyone else in the hallway, including the enemy players. They were faced with imminent defeat, and here they were arguing like children? Had they gone insane?
"You do realize that you're marrying one of them in a few weeks, right…?" Sachi said with a heavy sigh.
Sinon turned to Asuna and asked, "How did you put up with that on a daily basis?"
"Sometimes I wonder…" Asuna sighed with a smile. "But as long as I remember how much of a man Kirito is under all that childishness, I can put up with his antics. Heck, sometimes, I join him."
"Okay, good," Sinon smiled as she aimed her bow at the players that were finally starting to charge. "I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't crazy."
"We're all crazy here," Sachi said with a slight smile. "Who else would fight a small army of players like this?"
Before anyone could answer, there were multiple cries of surprise from the rear of the boss raid party, accompanied by the sounds of some familiar battle cries and sword skills being activated. Yui used her Divine Eye skill to examine the new element before she broke out into a grin and said, "It's the Furin Kazan guild! And Silica, Lisbeth, and Mr. Agil are here, too!"
"Sounds like the party is just getting together," Mataras said as his sword flicked into position. "What say we add to the festivities?"
"I say we've done enough talking," Kirito replied. "I'll bet the Sleeping Knights have already got the boss' first health bar down by now."
"Then do it, Kirito," Mataras said just before he darted forward. Kirito smiled briefly, then followed suit, both of his swords glowing yellow.
When the boss doors opened again to admit the Moonlit Black Cats, Klein and two of his friends- three of them had fallen in combat- alongside Agil, the Sleeping Knights were all sagged on the floor with tired smiles, They looked completely spent to the SAO survivors, but they all raised their faces and their right arms to smile and flash a 'V' at their comrades.
Klein grinned at the two parties before excusing himself and his guild to go trigger then next floor's warp gate so that players from all over New Aincrad could revel in the beauty of the next stage of the virtual world.
"Well done," Mataras nodded as soon as the other guild had left. "You earned this."
"Gotta admit, that boss' attacks weren't as hard to dodge as Mataras' fire," Nori admitted grudgingly. "Thanks for the crash course, I guess."
"You're welcome," Mataras smirked. "But if anything, you should be thanking Sachi for our help." He turned to his little sister and put a hand on her shoulder as he said, "Had she not fought as hard as she had, Yuuki would not have been forced to respond in kind, and then our interests never would have intersected."
"Well, if you wanna put it that way…" Yuuki said with a grin as she stood up stiffly. "Thank you, Sachi," she finished as she bowed to the blue-haired girl.
"The honor was mine, Toa Zekken," Sachi replied with a gentle smile as she bowed in return to her once-opponent.
"All right!" Kirito grinned as the two girls straightened. "What are you guys gonna do with all that col you won?"
"We hadn't decided…" Siune said. "We were originally going to give the winnings to the person that helped our guild beat the boss, but now we're not sure."
"Why don't we throw a victory party?" Yui suggested brightly. "We all worked really hard to beat this boss, so we deserve to celebrate!"
"I think Yui's on to something," Asuna smiled as she gathered the little girl up in her arms. "And I know just the place to host the party at."
"Renting taverns out for events is usually kinda expensive, but with all our winnings, I bet we could do it!" Jun said excitedly.
"Actually, I think Asuna was wondering if you would like to have the party at our house on floor twenty-two," Kirito grinned as his wife clasped his hand warmly. "You won't have to pay a fee, so you could buy more food that way."
"That's really generous of you, but-" Siune was stopped by Yuuki's hand in front of her chest, prompting her to give her leader a confused look.
"That would be really nice," Yuuki said as she bowed again, this time to the Black Lighting couple. "Thank you, Mister Kirito, Miss Asuna."
"You're welcome, and don't worry about being formal," Asuna grinned as she moved forward to shake hands with Yuuki. "Let's all go have a good time, okay?"
"Yeah," Yuuki smiled brightly. Together, the Moonlit Black Cats and Sleeping Knights walked out of the boss room, with their goals accomplished, and their hearts full of satisfaction with their work. Everyone was smiling, and everyone was happy.
What a stark contrast that was in comparison to the tragedy that was to come.
Kirito: Okay, admit it, you just don't know how to end a chapter without ending it in a cliffhanger anymore, do you?
Mataras: Essentially, yeah.
Asuna: I predict some hate mail coming in for that...
Mataras: What do you want me to do about it?!
Leafa: Stop leaving cliffhangers!
Mataras: No! It's part of my style now, and you should all just-!