Author's Note: 47 is here. The hero is beaten. What will our daunting Sith Lord Asuna do now in the wake of her victory?
Also, I do not own SAO or Star Wars.
Chapter Thirty-Seven - Bringing Balance to the Force
Asuna's knees almost fell to the ground. Her face was even more pale than before, and her eyes were so wide the yellow on their edges was now trimmed with white.
Yui's hologram did manage to collapse to the ground, and started to wipe away a small tear from her eye. "Mommy...you remember me?"
"No..." Asuna admitted through her slightly mechanical voice. "I don't know your face...I know your voice. You were in a vision I had with Kirito on top of a mountain..."
Yui wanted to smile, but still showed confusion after watching her surrogate father die before her eyes. "I'm...I'm your daughter...with you and daddy. You found me in SAO, and adopted me as your daughter."
"You're virtual...and we adopted you from a virtual world?" Asuna's mind had no way of fully wrapping all of this up. She tried to grasp on to anything she could. "H-How could I hear you in the real world...in my dream from..."
"Mommy." Yui stopped Asuna, and looked the conflicted Lord of the Sith right in her evil eyes. "You're their only hope now...you're the only hope of getting everyone out of this world."
"Me?" She almost shouted back. "Why am I the only hope?"
Yui went to say more, but suddenly the T7-UE unit that projected the holographic girl smashed inward like an aluminum can getting smashed by a hand. Parts went everywhere, and the little girl only had time for one last plea.
"MOMMY!" She cried with tears running down her face. "PLEASE! SAVE DADDY'S LIFE!"
Asuna took several loud breaths, and slowly turned to find Lusac had finally stood from his chair, and looked down to see her victory. He stayed at the top of the steps, but yelled down to his victorious acolyte, and raised his arms in celebration.
"Darth Rosario! You conquered your greatest enemy, and defeated my father's weapon, Kazuto Kirigaya! You will forever be known as the greatest Hero the Sith Empire has ever seen!"
"Why did you do that?" Asuna's conflicted eyes started to draw water, and her shoulders squared up with the looming Sith Emperor standing high above. "She said she was my daughter!"
"I know..." Lusac told her with foresight. "I saw her coming, and was hoping she'd send Kirito off balance. Luckily, she didn't need to, because you had already done that yourself!"
He lowered his arms, and gave one final command to his dark apprentice. "Now, fulfill your destiny. The boy is still alive. Strike him down once and for all, and help me defeat my father and claim this world as Master and Apprentice."
Asuna glanced over at the fallen body of Kirito, and noticed despite the wound she inflicted inside his chest, the strong Force-wielder continue to breathe.
She turned back to her Master. "Why did you take me?"
Lusac's eyebrow raised, and he looked down with a stern expression as Asuna tried to repeat herself.
"Why did you make me join the Sith faction? I don't ever remember logging into this game. Why did you choose me as your apprentice?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Lusac tried to sway her mind. "Because of your potential. I wanted it on my side, not my sister's!"
"Your best friend was the lead combat developer of this game. Your father hand-picked Kirito to be his successor to this game. Why did you pick me of all the people in the world to take under your wing?"
Lusac was no longer amused. He put a hand on his belt, covering a dark black metal lightsaber hilt, and stared down at his disobedient side kick.
"You are becoming unbalanced. Kill the boy, and end this once and for all."
Asuna violently ripped off the life support metal from her chest and neck and tossed it to her side. Her skin was sill pale, but apart from a little scarring underneath her chin and around her collarbone, her original face had impressively stayed in-tact.
"I'll kill myself right here if you don't start talking. I won't let you keep me alive and trapped in this game if you don't tell me why I'm here in the first place!"
Lusac sent a small cloud of Sith lightning underneath his feet. It trickled down the steps of the throne's plinth, but dissipated once it reached Asuna's position. He looked down at his apprentice with angry red eyes, and gave her his rage.
"I am your Emperor. You are mine. Do as I say, and kill the boy, Kirito."
"I am not yours." Asuna dropped her curved lightsaber, and stood her ground defiantly. "I am not your plaything...some puppet to use however you'd like. I've done too many terrible things in your name...but it all ends now."
"SILENCE!" He shouted off with a violent energy from the Dark Side, and allowed a small black cloud to swell over his mighty head. His eyes were shining like rubies now from where Asuna was standing, and quickly enough, he made one step forward to shout off his orders.
"You are mine. All mine. You are Sith."
Asuna never blinked, and stared this horrible menace down with all the energy she had left in her bones. Kirito had fought the controlling belief of the light side for the entire game, and challenged all players who tried to call him a hero, or a pure Jedi.
Now, in this moment, Asuna had a similar strategy come to mind.
She raised her hand, and pulled a fallen lightsaber from Kirito's side with the Force. Powering it on to its totally brilliant form, the mint green light pierced through the rest of the darkened room, and stood as a beacon in the hands of its new owner.
"I am no Sith." Asuna made her declaration, and stood ready for whatever fate awaited her then.
Emperor Lusac's eyes were split wide open now with uncontrolled anger. He grabbed the saber at his belt, and powered on a totally black lightsaber blade outline with a small film of white, and delivered a twirl before meeting his former apprentice down at her level.
"So be it. You will die, either way."
Lusac jumped from the tall steps at the end of his throne room, and leaped out toward his disgraceful apprentice in rage. He was trailed by a large cloud of black smoke, and several streaks of white lightning.
Asuna jumped high in the air, and propelled herself forward to meet the enemy head on. Her new mint green lightsaber rang against the unique blacksaber that was held by the Sith Emperor, and they both fell to the floor of the hall as they hacked and slashed at one another to try and earn and edge in the fight.
Lady Rose switched back and forth from using one and two hands. As she tried to lean in for an attack, her left hand would go out to her side, and her stance would mimic the legendary "Lightning Flash" of Sword Art Online as she jabbed at Lusac like a world class fencer competing in the Olympic Games. However, this was the mightiest foe she had ever faced, and when leaning back to take a more defensive posture, her left hand would come back in to support her right, and both were used to hold the now straight-hilt saber dropped by her beloved Kirito.
To be clear, Asuna still did not remember the face or name of Kirito from the real world, or from SAO, or from anywhere else in existence. She only knew him from her time spent in the Old Republic Online, and from everything she had heard from both him and others. Her thoughts of Yui were the same, only they meant even less because that purple hologram projected by the bizarre T7 unit was the first time she ever laid eyes on her incorporeal daughter.
But both of their souls, their eyes, their emotion. They both clearly meant something to Asuna. Moments ago, without blinking, she tore off her only life support for her injured respiratory system, and tossed the metal scraps aside to combat the true Dark Lord of the Sith. She then picked up the fallen Jedi blade of Kirito, the boy in grey, and challenged Emperor Lusac to a duel for the ages.
Asuna stepped forward, and spun around rapidly to deliver three piercing jabs at the center of Lusac, but the employee of Immortal Gaming was so swift with his skills, he dodged all, and lunged forward to confront her with his own blade.
"Agh! It seems I trained you well…my dear apprentice. You could have made out to be the greatest Sith player the game had to offer!"
"Urgh!" Asuna's back was straining backwards as her arms were about to give out from holding out to his immense strength. Their blades were locked together, and the Sith Lord was slowly leaning over the weakening girl. "Stop acting like this world is real! This is only a game! All of your players have figured that out! Even the ones using the Holocrons!"
"This world is no longer a reality when I SAY it's no longer a reality! I have full power and dominion over this galaxy! All one thousand units logged in using my father's Holocrons will bend to my will! I will be their ruler!"
"That's what I can't allow to happen!" Asuna broke her block, and slid out of the way as Lusac almost tumbled forward. She brought her blade up to swat at him from behind, and the powerful Emperor telepathically grabbed her neck by the Force, and tossed her into the towering staircase.
Lusac stood back at the center of the room, then whipped his hands around to summon all the blue fiery beacons from around his throne, and created a giant stream of hot white and blue flames. The fire that ran down at Asuna like a serpent came at a quickening speed, and forced her to roll out of the way several times to avoid getting hit.
She held her hand straight over her head, and caught the front of the fire trail as it came down to engulf her, and as she closed her fist, the front of the hellish band of flames bent to her will. She tossed the column over to her former master, but all he had to do was hold his hand out to have it fade away.
Now it was quite dark in the Imperial throne room. Asuna's teal green lightsaber was the brightest thing remaining, with the exception of a few soft yellow torches on the outer walls, and the small white film surrounding Lusac's black lightsaber blade.
He changed that fact quickly, and sent a stream of white Force electricity at Asuna's chest. She held her saber down, and shot her own streak of purple lightning at the attack, and both met in the middle with a horrible screeching sound that nearly shook the building to the ground. Asuna was growing deaf from the horrible noise, and screamed through her defense as Lusac laughed maniacally from the other side. He pushed his arm forward, and cut off his stream of energy, running at her while also raising his saber over his head.
Asuna caught the electric flow with her off hand as it came racing her way, and shot both purple and white power back at the menace. Lusac kept running for her at break neck speed, but suddenly split his body into two clones mimicking the exact same move.
This happened again, and again until there were now eight full copies of Emperor Lusac surrounding the confused rogue Sith Lord. Asuna held both hands on her blade, and took several deep breaths that her damaged windpipe barely allowed her to have.
Asuna stood still, and concentrated on all eight figures for a brief moment. Simultaneously, they all spoke to her at once.
"Give yourself to the Dark Side, and kneel to me now!"
Asuna raised her hand over her head, and shot a large volt of Sith energy high in the air. A purple cloud of Sith lightning shot out, and eight bolts of electricity rained down on the phantom figures of the Sith Emperor. Seven of the shadows faded into nothing, but one to her right ran forward with his saber held like a katana.
Asuna brought her blade out like a knight's longsword, and beat his weapon aside, catching it again with a second slash from Lusac as they now inter-locked in an epic sword duel once again. Black and green sparks flew into the darkness around them as they danced around in a waltz of evil energy, rage filling both their veins, and fueling their hearts more than the air in their lungs.
"You see?" Artificial shadow was swarming Lusac's body as he now threatened the space around Asuna. When it combined with the natural darkness left in the room, it nearly made the scene pitch black for the young girl's wavering eyes. "You say you're not Sith, but you always fall back into the path of wrath and anger. Kazuto Kirigaya was such a unique fighter. He could sway between patience and anger no matter the scene, and still return to a balanced state."
He pressed forward with his blacksaber, and marched Asuna into a wall on the edge of the room. "Unlike you. All you know is the ways of the Dark Side…the ways that I have taught you."
Asuna could feel her arms starting to bend, and was worried that her strength would give out at any second. She felt tears of pain forming under her eyelids, and tried to rally her last remaining strength to challenge her foe.
"I know more than hate! Kirito said it himself…I'm not like the other Sith!"
"Quite right!" Lusac gave her enough, and jumped back to create distance between them as he continued his bizarre monologue. "You are the most unique Sith player in this game. Even standing beside me, the Emperor. You played the path of the Sith Warrior, but can channel such powerful swells of the Dark Side to summon lightning energy, a talent only bestowed to Sith Inquisitors in this game. You also hold no sub-class, and have found a way to blend all four Sith play styles to your whim and command."
Lusac held his blade down, and looked at her with his burning ruby eyes. "Asuna, the reason that you're the most powerful Sith player in my ranks, is because I combined all four Sith playable classes, and put them all into your character design."
"No…" Asuna had no idea how she never noticed, but for the entire game, she had managed to channel all the different types of attacks from both Sith Warriors, and the Sith Inquisitors. Even their subclasses. "That's insane! Why would you try to control me like that!?"
"Search your feelings, you know it to be true!" He mocked her with the famous line, and tried to voice his emotions. "Trentyn played as a duel-wielding Sith Marauder. I hold the title of a legendary Sith Sorcerer, although I have the power of the admin on my side, so I find ways to cheat now and then…even Kirito had to check in at a Republic space station to claim his package for a sub-class play-style to earn his duel-wielding capabilities. You are the only player in the game who truly played to your own free will…the free will of your dark, twisted heart. I was the one who gave you that power…you should be happy!"
"I've heard enough from you!" Asuna jumped into the air, but saw Lusac hurl a large cloud of black Sith smoke at her with both of his hands. Instantly, she fell to the ground, and tried to fight off the swarming Sith shadows that enveloped her to the floor.
"What is this? It's pure darkness?!"
"If you truly say that your heart is free from the Dark, then I'll just have to change that…hehehe." Lusac raised his hands, and began flooding the entire massive throne room with the putrid Sith smoke and shadow. The murky, thick haze of evil clawed its way through every inch of space in the arena, and Asuna only remained as a single hand outstretched toward Lusac, grasping for anything it could find.
"AGH!"
Then, he could hear her screaming with a resounding tone, and noticed a small purple light coming from her body. Waves of Sith electrical energy pulsated through the black streaking shadows, and soon Asuna was fighting off the evil energy with the own strength in her hands.
Quickly, the purple Sith lightning charging out of Asuna's hands turned to a sharp, scarlet red color, and this new energy became a new light in the empty void of total darkness that Lusac tried to create. She threw both hands to her side, and cleared the entire room of the thick black smoke with a pulsing rage of raw lightning from the Force.
Lusac looked appalled, and quickly changed to looking angry as Asuna simply collected her energy after the attack, and lowered her head to mediate her thoughts. He yelled at the top of his lungs, and charged for his feeble enemy with his blade sticking forward, but all Asuna did, was look up, and open her eyes.
Emperor Lusac froze in mid stride, while Asuna took a long, deep breath to collect her energy again. Then, the former wife of Kazuto Kirigaya drew the mint green light saber that had fallen from her beloved's arms.
"I will not defeat you with rage or anger. Only patience…patience, and the will of the Force."
Asuna ran forward, and cut Lusac's torso clean in half, unfreezing him from his stance, and allowing him to cry out in pain and defeat as he rolled along his own royal floor in a truly pathetic fashion.
"Agh…AGH! I can't…I can't believe it…did I lose?"
Asuna knelt down, and turned her lightsaber off as she grabbed him by the neck of his tunic. She pulled his upper half to her, and looked him in the eyes as hers faded back to a lighter shade of yellow.
"Not yet. I want you to tell me why you chose me as your apprentice. What was your plan at the end of all of this mayhem?!"
Emperor Lusac slowly shriveled into the pathetic boy, Luke Mathis once again as his eyes filled with fear and confusion. "I…I know you from another world…I knew you in the real world. You never met me, but I…"
Her eyebrow raised slightly, and her tense arms lowered him a bit back to the ground as Lucas carried on.
"I know your father…he got me my first job with his company, and I worked with Suguo Nobuyuki…the man that trapped hundreds of people into an illegal mind control state for the purpose of research. I helped him…try to take your mind before, in a game called ALfheim Online. He was trying to marry you, and take you as his, but when I saw you in that game, and then in the real world…I just wanted to…I needed to see you again…"
"Why?" Asuna's skin started to tingle as the hood slipped off the man's pale head, revealing a youthful, malnourished face of a boy in his mid-twenties. His hair was short and black, his eyes were fading from red to black, and his skin was returning to a color more normal for the real world.
Finally, Luke Mathis let a tear roll down his mighty, imperial face.
"I…I fell in love with you the moment I laid eyes on you Asuna. I wanted you to be mine."
He picked up the fallen black saber that he dropped after his defeat, and powered it on to cram the ignited black blade through his heart, and then dropped back in his final moments of death. Asuna sighed, and dropped his body calmly as she stood up and retrieved her own lightsaber handle, and his as well.
The Sith Lord turned to the Light made her way back to the entrance of the throne room, scooping Kirito's fallen body off the ground, and retrieved both of their other lightsabers as she made her way for the Emperor's personal transport. She had fulfilled her own destiny, and defeated the Dark Ruler plaguing her mind.
As her eyes fully turned back to their normal soft shade of brown and white, Asuna knew now that it was Kirito's turn. He needed to find Peter Mathis to end this war, and bring true balance to the world of the Force.
She would help him do it.
So Asuna conquers the psychotic Luke Mathis, and brings herself into balance. He was an employee during ALO, and tried to replicate the work of Sugou Nobuyuki, especially the bit about trying to brain wash Asuna again...eww just too creepy! I did really enjoy writing her character arc though!
Kirito and Asuna are left alone, and the Republic is victorious over Dromund Kaas. Only one more obstacle left for them to get over now...
Until next time!
