July 9th, 2031
"Kirito!" Eulsam said as he approached. Kirito and the others had arrived on the southern shores of the Black Bog. "We've only got so many ships," he told him. "We'll be loading them up to capacity, but we'll be pretty vulnerable on the water. I'll follow your command as I promised, but I have to say… this isn't the best plan. We've fought them back. Why do we need to go all the way to their home base?"
Kirito nodded to him. "I know it seems like overkill, but there's something important out there. I can't tell you with so many players around," he said. "But it's part of our primary objective in ending the game."
"We can trust him," Michiko said. "I don't know what he's up to exactly, but I know we've got someone pretty high up looking out for us."
"The same person who cleared the Red Hand bases before we reached them?" Eulsam asked. "For an unknown variable to have that kind of power… it worries me. As long as it's in our favor, I suppose I shouldn't question it. And we won't be alone, either." Eulsam had a menu opened, and was readin an in-game message from Klover.
Kirito got a copy of the message, and smiled, clearly happy at what he was reading. "Hey guys!" he called his group over. "Good news. Sinon is okay."
"She's alive?" Klein asked. "Where is she?"
"Better than okay," Eulsam said, shaking his head. "I don't believe it." Leafa looked at Eulsam, and the group all waited for him or Kirito to continue. "Klover tells us that she's not only alive, but that she's brought about another hundred players to our side… as the Alpha of the Big Bad Wolves."
Kirito nodded and chuckled. "Sinon converted a whole player-killer guild. Maybe we should have left her to her own devices the first time she got taken. That's incredible."
"And there's more," Eulsam said. "The Black Flag has joined the cause. The combined forces of our western division, the wolf pack and the Black Flag took control of another player-killer home base… Savage Shores. They've got ships, and they're heading out now. Looks like we'll all be converging on Paradise Island." Eulsam looked ahead as a horn was sounded. "That's their all-ready."
With that, the group started heading down towards the coastline. "Asuna," Michiko said as the players started to walk towards the boat. "Did Kirito pitch my idea to you?"
Kirito went pale, and stepped between the two of them. "No ideas need to be pitched here."
"Xaela's down for it."
"Did you actually ask Xaela?" Kirito said.
"Nope, but she loves me, so she's down for anything I ask her to do," Michiko said.
"I saw your messages, Michiko," Asuna said. "No offense, but could you step off? Kirito and I are engaged. We have a daughter. I don't like you flirting with my fiancé."
"Is this really the best time—" Kirito started to object to the whole conversation, only to be cut off.
"Oh, I'm not asking you to be unfaithful in any way," Michiko said. "There's never been anything wrong with a little free love, right? I mean… you guys pretty much did that up and down over the past few months."
Asuna stopped, and went behind Kirito to pull Michiko aside. "We got back together like… yesterday, okay? I don't think we need the tension of some big swinger's party on our relationship. I don't mind the joking around and all, but now is really not the time to try and step between us, okay?"
Michiko sighed, and nodded. "Okay, I guess I'm getting a little carried away," she said. "I'll go back to leaving you alone." She walked on ahead of the two of them, and caught up to Xaela.
"Asuna," Kirito said after Michiko went on ahead. "You don't have to be so uptight about it. Michiko isn't going to come between us like that. Could you just try to be nice to her?"
"I'll be nice once we're out of here and I can see my baby girl again," she said.
"I know, but… she's our friend, and an ally. And we're about to invade a murder guild's headquarters. We should all be getting along. Like… I haven't had any issue with Eulsam since we've gotten back together. I guess I'm just trying to say that… you're acting jealous, and it's not necessary. It screams insecurity about our relationship."
"Okay, I'm being jealous. So what? Don't I have a right to be jealous? You were screwing her, after all… Every time we're together, you're doing something with me that you picked up from your time with her." Asuna blushed as she thought about it, glancing back to Michiko as she went down to the shore. "It's a little embarrassing."
"What is?" Kirito asked her.
"We went off and had our flings, and you brought something back to show for it. It's like you went to the University of Michiko and came back with a degree in the erotic arts. Where did she learn all that stuff?" Asuna started to wonder how the other girl, who appeared to be quite a bit younger than herself, could have gotten so much experience.
"She learned it from being a sex slave," Kirito said, quite bluntly. "And that's why she acts the way she acts. She was broken down and subjected to some pretty harsh punishment. Something like that would change anyone. Please remember that she's been through a lot, not just in last three years, but in the last ten. Her sister finally woke up from Sword Art Online, only to be killed in the first month of gameplay here right in front of her eyes…"
Asuna thought about that for a moment. "I get it," she said. "She's suffered more than either of us have, and so I need to cut her some slack. How old is she anyways?"
"I don't know… she never wanted to tell," Kirito said.
"And it doesn't make me any less jealous, Kirito. You'll have to teach me how to be an amazing lover now to make up for it."
Kirito shrugged, and started walking down to the shore. Asuna followed. "I didn't learn much about pleasuring men," he said with a chuckle. "Maybe you should consider her offer and take a trip to the U of M too."
Asuna blushed and pushed at him playfully. "I will do no such thing!"
"Why not?" Kirito asked, joking. "I wouldn't have any problems at all watching you with another girl. Sounds pretty fun…" She shoved at him again, and they pushed back and forth as they approached the boats.
"Stupid Kirito," Michiko said. It was the first thing she said when she caught up to Xaela.
"I thought you said you trusted him about the plan," Xaela said.
"Not that…"
"Oh," Xaela looked down and then back to Michiko. "About the other thing, then?"
"Yes, the other thing." Michiko sighed and looked up at the ashen sky. She held her arms crossed over her breasts. "It's stupid… now that I can't have him, I want him even more." Xaela looked back down at the ground, not saying any more. Michiko realized what she said, and pulled the girl into a hug. "Sorry, I didn't mean it that way… I love you."
"I love you too," Xaela said as she hugged back. "I wish you would just stop caring about him. Aren't I enough for you?"
Michiko nodded. "Yeah… I mean… I guess so. I don't know. While I was with him, I felt like I was missing something, and that that something was you. Now that I'm with you, I feel like I'm missing him. But there's nothing in particular about either of you that really makes me feel fulfilled. I just have something missing."
Xaela pressed her head into Michiko's shoulder. "You talk that way a lot. It makes me feel like you don't love me. You say you love me, but you don't make me feel loved sometimes."
Michiko leaned back against her. "If we get some time alone on the way to Paradise Island, I'll show you all kinds of love."
"Were you like that before?" Xaela asked.
"Was I like what before?" She stood up straight as she kept walking. "And before what?"
"Were you always more interested in sex… the physical manifestation of love… than you were in actually connecting with people on a personal level? And before as in… before… before when we first met. I've talked about it with you now, but I don't think I've ever heard you talk about it."
"There's not much to talk about. I put my freedom on the line for the greater good, and I had to go through some pretty shitty things before it all worked out. I sacrificed, and after my sacrifice, I went back to my normal life."
"Normal?"
"Well… normal for here. It feels like forever ago."
"Was that your first time?" Xaela asked. "It was my first…"
Michiko shuddered, and nodded. "Luckily, I'll wake up a virgin. They can't take that away from me in here. You will too, then. We get to hit a reset button on ourselves. Won't that be nice?"
"You think we're going to wake up one day and forget everything bad that happened, and remember all the good." Michiko didn't say anything about that. "Michiko, that's not going to happen. We're going to wake up, I'll still be without a family, and your sister will still be dead. We'll both still be murderers. None of that will change."
Michiko stopped, and looked at her. Xaela stopped with her, and looked back. "I know that," she said. "But my sister is alive. You saw her too!"
"That doesn't change the fact that her body has likely already been buried," Xaela said. "This… right now… it's not a dream. We won't just forget it. But I want to know… were you like this before we met… before your sister died… before this game?"
Michiko shook her head and kept on walking. "No, I was younger then. I grew up here, no different than growing up in the real world."
"Except you grew up a vigilante who cut the heads off of murderers and subjected herself to sexual torture. When we get out of here," Xaela said. "We'll both be in for years of therapy. The damage done to our very souls will never be undone."
"Not I," Michiko said. "This world made me strong, not weak."
"Is that what you will tell yourself every morning as you look yourself in the face, and see the last face that so many players saw? Will you not see the face of your former self, bloody and beaten into submission? Won't you look at yourself, and give yourself the look that you gave to your worst enemies?"
As memories raced through her head, Michiko went silent. After a few moments, she said "No," and kept walking onwards.
"I have nightmares," Xaela said as she kept up with her. "I have one where I wake up next to you, and you're dead, and my right hand is painted red. I have another one where I'm trapped in that room, and I'm being told to stab you over and over again until you die. There's one where I am being dragged around in chains through blood, and when I get out of the pool, I look behind me to see that I have dragged you with me. But the scariest one I have is the one where I am kneeling down before you, and you cut off my head."
"I would never—" Michiko started to speak, but Xaela stopped her.
"I remember when what you said to me was that you promised you would kill me," Xaela said. "And now, when we talk, it's like you've forgotten. When you think about Kirito, and when you think about me, and what you're missing… you are missing a piece of your soul that you left behind the first time you killed someone. I know because I lost the same piece when I went into that room and left you nearly dead."
"Shut up," Michiko said as she went ahead of her. "I love you, I would never hurt you. What I promised doesn't make any difference."
"You'll never fill that hole in your heart," Xaela said. "Not unless you break down. You broke me down and you helped me start to fill that hole back up, but you're the one who fills it. I need you to love me… Otherwise, I feel empty."
Michiko pulled Xaela over and pushed her against a tree next to the shore. She pushed herself onto her and forced her into a kiss. Xaela pushed back against her. After it was over, Michiko looked up and down her body. "I love you…" she said. "Why don't you believe me?"
Xaela looked at her, and then relaxed, in a state of defeat. "Do it," she said. "Take your revenge on me for what I did to you… if that's what it takes for you to see that this… is not love, then so be it. Do you want me to fight back?"
"Uh, Michiko?" Kirito said. He and Asuna had caught up, and were watching them with a strange sense of fear. "Are you okay?"
Michiko looked at Xaela again, and then to her own position. Xaela was up on her toes and Michiko's hand was holding her up by her jaw. Her other hand was pressing rather hard into her chest. She let go, and stepped back. "Go away," she said as she turned and started down the sand towards the ship. She pulled her famed helmet from her inventory, and put it on, her name changing to Mokatso.
"Xaela," Asuna approached her. "Are you okay?"
Xaela nodded, and rubbed her throat before taking a deep breath. "Michiko has unresolved issues," she said. "I can handle her…"
July 17th, 2031
When Kirito's eastern fleet approached Paradise Island, the battle had already begun. Ships were scattered around the island, fighting a naval battle, but that paled in comparison to the siege that an army of dragons was laying on the town.
"Did we miss all the fun?" Klein asked as he looked out over the water. Kirito and Asuna stepped up to the front of the ship to watch the battle they were closing in on.
Lisbeth flew down from the sky, and landed next to the group. "Welcome to the battle, guys. How nice of you to join us."
"We came as fast as we could," Asuna said. "I guess dragons fly faster." She looked out in the distance. "Has the invasion begun, or are you just firebombing them to death?"
"We've been waiting for you," Lisbeth said. "There's still like fifteen hundred Red Hand combatants on the Island, which is fortified. Klover let Zeeka take command of the fleet, and she's circling around and doing as much damage as she can while waiting for you to show up."
Eulsam moved up to the front with them. "Then I suppose it's time to commence the invasion," he said. "Kirito…"
"You're the strategist," Kirito said. "What's the plan?"
"Have Klover divide his forces in two. They will each attack the back edges of the island, and push inland from there. We will attack head on, moving straight into the largest part of the city. I want Zeeka and the Black Flag to land their troops, and cut a line between the two ports on the Island."
"We've seen their main docks before," Asuna said. "We'll know how to make our way towards the stronghold at the town's center."
"Good. We'll have Sinon and her wolves meet us there." Eulsam said. "Lisbeth, have the dragons finish off their ships, and then lay down suppressing fire on the town while we approach. Once we land, have them drop down and fight with melee attacks. We don't want our guild getting caught by friendly fire." Lisbeth flew back up into the sky, and started to organize her dragons.
"Do we have any ice-based mages here?" Eulsam asked. The group shrugged. Eulsam stepped back down to the main deck and shouted to the fleet. "Ice mages!" he shouted. "Front and center!" A few of the players moved ahead, separating themselves so Eulsam could see them. "We're going to attack the main docks. Cover the fronts of the ships in ice and snow so we can use them like battering rams, and crash into the shore before they get a chance to fire at us. Water and wind, get us some speed going! The rest of you, prepare for battle!"
Eulsam moved back to the front of the ship, where Kirito and the others stood. "Are we ready for this?" Kirito asked after sending the orders out to Klover.
Asuna drew her spear and shield. "No," she said. She activate her Valkyrie State, and grabbed Kirito's hand. She flew off and towards the island, the two of them together would lead the charge.
Asuna landed with Kirito on the docks, where Red Hand were trying to move heavy weapons to their boats. Immediately, they began to fight, the two of them knocking enemies off the docks and cutting them down as they made their way forward.
"That was not part of the plan," Eulsam said as he watched them fly off. "Everyone, get these ships moving, now!" The spell casters acknowledged, and started forcing the ships to move faster. Ice armored the front of the vessels, and they barreled through the water. While they were on the approach, Red Hand ships started to turn to attack, but one by one, they were laid to waste in a rain of fire and death, courtesy of the flying reptiles over their heads.
The ships crashed into the docks. Some of them tore right through them, and ran right into the ground. Players stormed from the boats, and started moving up towards the main part of the city. The sky started to become devoid of dragons as they dove down, taking the fight to the surface.
Lisbeth, Sampson and Silica joined Kirito in the battle. As Red Hand players approached to fight, Lisbeth started using every limb to lash out at enemies. Sampson went into a Bull Rage, and started to cut down the army. Silica roared out loudly, as she started to change shape, transforming into a super-sized bear.
Asuna turned her Valkyrie state off, and Kirito stepped back as the three monsters of players wiped up the trash of Red Hand soldiers. The two of them moved forward behind them, collecting the ones who managed to slip past the rampaging players, killing them as the charge moved up the city streets towards the fortress on the side of the small mountain.
The players that hit the shore were moving up fairly quickly, and Eulsam mounted a horse to charge through the streets and meet up with Kirito and the others. Klein, Leafa, Michiko, Xaela and Doc followed behind.
While the battle raged on, Sinon and her crew landed on the shores, and started to move in, catching up with the others. Bull led the group on. Many Red Hand came at him, but with his heavy armor, shield and halberd, they were child's play. He slashed about with his weapon while shrugging off most of the incoming hits.
Dane took on a few players of his own. He had donned heavy armor, like Bull, and wielded his shield and bastard sword. He might have been the least effective fighter there, but he was enough. Sinon picked off oncoming targets while Sasha moved forward, slashing through enemy targets with lightning speed, the same ability that Klein had, moving from dead player to dead player. Nytefly was with them, and would hop between Dane and Bull, using a katana to deliver lethal killing blows.
While Destiny was in control of Sinon's body, she killed relentlessly, mowing down enemies with arrows. As always, each loosed arrow killed its target. Sinon watch from right behind, unable to do anything about it, and counting the number of slain players her alter ago was adding to her body count.
Soon enough, Silica was turned back into a human, and Sampson reverted to his normal form as well. Asuna ran back to the front of the line, tanking side-by-side with Lisbeth. Eulsam donned a sword and shield, and joined them as a tank after dismounting. Kirito, Sampson and Xaela stayed near the front, killing the majority of players who were mostly stopped by the three tanks. Silica, Michiko and Klein watched the back, Michiko acting as a pseudo-tank and Klein using his Quickdraw abilities to score quick and easy kills. Leafa and Doc were in the middle of the group, dishing out heals while they moved.
"How's your mana?" Kirito asked the party.
"Mana at seventy percent!" Leafa shouted.
"Forty percent," Asuna said.
"Sixty percent," Lisbeth spoke after.
"Sixty something spirit remaining!" Doc shouted.
Kirito fell back to the middle. He stopped fighting to send a message to Klover. He got a response back shortly after. "Lisbeth!" he shouted. "Turn on your Paladin mode and charge on ahead. Take as many with you as you can. Eulsam!" Kirito looked at Eulsam, only to see he was ahead of him. Eulsam pulled out dual swords. "Asuna, Valkyrie! Fly with Lisbeth. Everyone else, we're making a break for the keep!"
Lisbeth went first. She glowed orange, and ran ahead, hitting players with a smack of her wings or her tail, and carried a horde of Red Hand with her. Asuna flew on towards her after the charge began, and with her Lightning Flash ability, she attacked the mass of players from behind while she moved on up. The rest of the group ran behind them as fast as they could, killing stragglers as they made their way to the gates of the Red Hand headquarters.
When they reached the gates, they tried to break through, but were stricken with powerful magic that knocked them back. "The gate's been enchanted," Doc said. "I can break it if you can hold them off for a few moments." Doc went forward, and pulled out a bucket of what appeared to be black paint. He dipped his hand in it, and started drawing a symbol on the doors.
The rest of the players turned around. Eulsam pulled a shield out again, and the three tanks each positioned themselves around the players, prepared to guard them. Dozens of Red Hand were on the approach. "We can take them," Eulsam said. "Hold your ground…"
"We may not have to," Michiko said, pointing towards the distance. Sinon's group was fast on the approach, taking out Red Hand and meeting up with the party.
"Bull!" Sinon shouted. "You got this?"
"I got this," Bull said, turning and acting as the group's primary tank and holding his ground at the middle while Lisbeth and Asuna each took a side. Eulsam went right back to his dual swords. The added firepower the group had helped them keep Doc safe while the Red Hand charged in on them from three directions.
During the fight, Klover, Stomper, and a few of the Arctic Army all charged in to help. With their reinforcements, fighting back against the Red Hand was easy.
A few moments later, Doc stepped back from his work, and started speaking a non-existent language, holding his hand out to the door. There was a bright flash. The air around the fortress suddenly appeared as a large bubble, and it was deteriorating quickly.
"Lisbeth," Kirito said. "Have a few dragons clear the courtyard." She nodded, and flew up into the sky. A moment later, a wave of dragons flew over the fortress, and fire fell from their mouths to the ground. It was followed by loud, panicked screams. After that, the players all barged into the courtyard, and fanned out.
At the other end of the courtyard, a very dumbfounded Talia shivered in her boots as she gripped her sword and spear tight with fear. The players started to charge for her, and the few guards she had remaining. They looked at her, and she at them, and then she fell to her knees, dropping her weapon, and threw her hands up. "We surrender!" she shouted. "You've won, it's over."
The players slowed and then stopped their charge. Kirito kept walking, approaching Talia. He held his two Elucidators out to her. "Open your player menu, and send the news out to your guild. Tell them to lay down their arms, drop to their knees, and raise their hands to the sky." Talia nodded, and did just that.
"Now," she said. "The conditions of our surrender."
"Unconditional," Kirito said. "Paradise Island is ours. Everyone in the Red Hand is now a prisoner of the Champions of Vearth. Any slaves you have on the island are free as of now." He stopped for a moment, and then turned to his group. "Restrain them…"
Michiko was the first to move forward, and then the rest of the players all went and bound the surrendering players' hands behind their backs. "Where do you want them?" Michiko asked.
Kirito shrugged. "Honestly, I don't know. I didn't think they'd give up."
"Where is your guild commander?" Sinon asked. "Talia… we know you're the second in command. Where is your commander?"
"I don't know," Talia said. "He was in Newberg last I heard from him. He probably died in the shattering."
"If that were the case," Asuna said. "Then you would have automatically been moved up in rank."
Talia got a message. She had yet to be bound, and Kirito nodded to her. She opened her player menu and read it aloud. "From Guild Commander Taravel: Talia is stripped of her rank. Any Red Hand who surrenders will be uninvited from the guild, and be made to suffer later. Keep fighting. Paradise Island must not fall."
"If anyone fights," Sinon said. "Kill them! Wolves, clear the citadel." By now, many of the other heroes had entered the courtyard. The Big Bad Wolves all gave a cheer and a few howls as they stormed inside to clear out the command structure.
"My men," Klover shouted out. "Clear the city of any more fighting Red Hand. Anything you find here, if you want it, take it. Harm no surrendering red-handed player, but from those who fight, take whatever you will!"
"Klover, Sinon…" Kirito said. "I hope you don't intend for them to take things too far."
"The Red Hand are rapists, slave drivers and murderers," Michiko said. She had no objection to Klover's order. "If after all of this, they choose to fight, then they deserve everything that comes to them."
"I wish I had the resolve to share your mercy, Kirito," Klover said. "But mercy is not something that my guild has ever known, especially not when facing players like those in the Red Hand."
"I only remain in control of the wolves if I give them some leeway, Kirito," Sinon told him. "Besides… it's like Klover said. Fuck the Red Hand."
"Mercy is what makes us different from them," Kirito said. "If anyone is harmed unnecessarily, I'm holding you responsible for the actions of your guilds."
"Do whatever you must," Klover said. "We are banded together now, but know that if it came down to it, I have more soldiers and support than you. Let me command those from the Arctic Army as I always have, and there will be no such confrontation."
"It's not a time to argue over the little things," Eulsam said. "Kirito, isn't it about time you told us what's coming next?"
Kirito nodded to them. "Soon," he said. "Gather up a hundred of the highest level players, in addition to those in my core party. Have everyone else leave this courtyard, and we will meet here. Our next objective is going to be far more straight-forward than fighting a war against players."
As Klover and Eulsam starting going through their guild members lists, the rest of the players began to disband from the fortress's courtyard. While that was happening, Valkyries started to fly in, landing around the courtyard. Lilly, their commander, approached Kirito. "Sorry we're late," she said. "It took us a little bit longer to clear out the surrounding islands than we thought. Looks like you did fine though."
"How many have we lost, waiting for the dead to save us?" Klover asked.
"That won't matter," Lilly said. "You'll just have to trust us on that. We're here now, and soon, our master will arrive."
"Your master?" Klover asked.
"Hai," Kirito said. "Heathcliff, or as you may know him better, Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of Sword Art Online."
Klover looked at him. "Kayaba… is alive… and he's on our side?"
"It's a long story," Asuna said.
Not a moment too soon, a portal opened up, and through it stepped Heathcliff himself, followed by Sachi, Diabel, and a small troop of the Angels of Aincrad. "Have you begun to assemble your forces?" he asked Kirito directly. Klover and a few of the other players from his own inner circle all looked at the man, stunned. Eulsam and the rest who hadn't yet seen the Angels or the Valkyries were also shocked.
"Yes," Kirito said. "We're sorting out our top one hundred as we speak, and we are awaiting your final briefing."
Heathcliff nodded to him, and started to move towards the keep. "Those who are the most trustworthy… your inner circles… come with me, and I will explain everything to you. Have everyone gathering who is not one of those most trustworthy stay here. Kirito will offer them a dumbed down version of what I will say to you in private."
Eulsam took a deep breath, and calmed his nerves. "Who are you all?"
"We are the Valkyries of Vearth," Lilly said. "We're the ones who cleared out the Red Hand from the mainland for you."
"And we," Diabel said, looking directly at Eulsam. "Are the Angels of Aincrad." After a moment's pause, Diabel smiled. "How has it been, old friend?"
"I've managed," Eulsam said. "It's been hard working with these noobs, though. They're nothing like you and the others from our beta guild."
Kirito blinked, and took a step back. "Noobs? Beta Guild?"
"Yes, Kirito," Diabel said. "I probably should have mentioned the first time we met, but by the time you worked out that I was a beta tester, I was already dying. I was in the beta test guild that made it to the tenth floor. Eulsam was my second-in-command and chief strategist." He pointed back to Eulsam.
"Oh?" Kirito said. "I assumed Eulsam was the leader of that guild."
Eulsam shook his head. "No… I was a strategist at heart, but Diabel was the one with the real leadership qualities. Everything I know about running a guild, I learned from him."
"Didn't learn too well," Diabel said before laughing. "You're a great leader, but perhaps a little on the harsher side of things. I remember watching your first meeting with Kirito. If you learned properly from me, you would have made friends then, instead of enemies." He started walking towards the building. "Now let's get going. Don't want to miss the briefing…" With that, Kirito, Eulsam and Diabel walked into the central structure, behind the rest of the players who had gone ahead.
