Magic Falcons! Volume 2: Assault on Aincrad

by Wilmont220

One month into the death game Sword Art Online brings about more destruction, death, and tests for Magic Falcons and the rest of the players to overcome. Can Kaita keep her wits about her as her strength is tested in more ways than even her wild brain can imagine, or will she succumb to the trials of this world and be forced to admit defeat? Only one way to find out...

10. Whole Story

Magic Falcons!

Volume 2: Assault on Aincrad

CHAPTER 1

"Oh man, I'm going to be late again!" I say under my breath as I drive around construction that seems endless. Seriously, it doesn't seem to let up, even a little bit. "There's not even anyone working here!" I yell, frustrated from such a long detour. Finally, after what feels like a week of driving I've found my way around, meeting a huge traffic jam. There is no doubt in my mind this time I'm definitely going to be late.

I arrive out of breath as the receptionist asks for my name and hands me the paperwork to fill out like always. "A bit early today, aren't you?" she says, glancing at the clock behind me. I whip my head around to see my appointment isn't for another hour.

"I-I swear," I begin, as I stare at the clock, still trying to catch my breath. "I swear the clock in my car said it was 10:30," I say, confused. She just looks at me with a knowing, pitying smile as I take a seat across from her.

I have a new problem now. Although I understand the individual words, I can't quite seem to grasp what the questions on the paperwork are asking me. I do this literally every time I come here, why did they change? I'm about to ask the secretary when my name is called. I look at the clock again as I stand up, noticing an hour has gone by already, yet I feel like I just sat down.

"Tell me what have you been up to lately?" my therapist, Dr. Post asks. I just stare into those piercing green eyes, trying to read what they are trying to tell me; they are just begging to read my thoughts.

"I-I uh," I stammer out, my eyes darting around the room, unsure where to begin. Surely she must know of the NerveGear incident and that I was part of it? Is she just humouring me? Getting my spin on the tale? Perhaps she doesn't believe it's real, I know there are times I don't.

"Have you found the first floor's dungeon boss yet?" Dr. Post asks.

"Yes, awhile ago, why?" I hear myself answer. That response was strange and automatic, almost like someone else spoke it for me.

"And you're currently," she lifts up her papers to read something on the back of her clipboard, "in a place with rolling hills and farmyard animals? Is that correct?"

Currently? What does she mean by that? "Yes, we're fighting through the dungeon. It's already been a month and it doesn't feel like we're making any progress." Again, it's like someone else is answering for me.

"Why are you still playing it? It can't be healthy for you," Dr. Post says.

"I don't have a choice." I feel a look of horror appear on my face at these words and I jump up out of my chair very quickly and mumble "I have to go," heading for the exit. I can hear someone calling my name as I run towards the door that doesn't seem to be getting closer. All I can focus on is what's on the other side of that door! If I can just reach it, just open it, just get one foot through it, I know I will feel better. I feel Dr. Post put her hand on my shoulder just as I reach the doorknob. I turn around slowly to see a man in a red cape, his face hidden by a hood, and a cold, piercing laugh coming from underneath it.

"Kayaba Akihiko," I hear myself whisper in terror. He lets go of my shoulder then pushes me out the door, where I'm falling down an endless tunnel. I awaken with a jolt, breathing heavily, as I glance at Masao and Ryuichi playing cards at the kitchen table, both looking very shocked.

"Sorry," I manage to blurt out between heavy breaths. "Bad dream."

"You gonna be alright?" Masao asks. I just nod my head and lay back down.

"What time is it?" I ask from under my blanket.

"Nearly 7," Ryuichi responds cautiously. "Sai and Suzu ran to the weapons dealer to have their swords serviced. Kozen's out back getting some food for breakfast."

"You should probably get up now, those guys'll be back real soon and breakfast will be ready in a few minutes I'm sure," Masao suggests, unable to hide his excitement. "First day for floor two's dungeon ya know!"

"Heh, yeah," I manage to mutter as I sit up with the blanket wrapped around me like I'm a burrito. I'm shivering but I don't think it's because I'm cold.

"Here, take mine too," Ryuichi says, wrapping his blanket around me. I glance up at him to say thank you with a smile, but the second I make eye contact those piercing, green eyes of his give me a moment of terror. They look just like Dr. Post's did in my dream. Come to think of it, I don't think Dr. Post has green eyes. Her long silver hair that is always in a ponytail matches the blue-silver colour of her kind, knowing eyes. I think Ryuichi noticed my facial expression flash terror for a moment because he sits down beside me, looking at me with a curious expression on his face. "What was your dream about?" he asks gently.

"Just stuff going on in the real world," I reply, not wanting to seem crazy or anything. It's not a total lie, I guess.

"I, personally, enjoy interpreting dreams, especially the absurd ones," he says, the wonderment in his voice shining through. "For example, I've had dreams where I'm driving but I'm also the passenger, the perspective changing every time I turn a corner. I think it means I need to know when to take control and when to give it to others. Or I could have just been really craving a good car ride, seeing as how my music was blaring the whole time," his voice trails off, now lost in thought. I give him a half smile, wondering where I can get me some of whatever he's on. Must be nice to lose yourself in your thoughts without it becoming drowning anxiety or crushing depression.

"I usually don't remember my dreams," I admit. "Maybe some vague scene, or something I was feeling while dreaming, but it's rare I can tell you what I actually dream about."

"That's interesting as well, I wonder if there would be a way to see your dreams while you sleep? Or perhaps a way to train your brain to remember them, causing them to become semi-lucid or something." I look at Masao, who is just staring at us with his jaw hanging open. I can't help but laugh at his expression, clearly not a man of philosophy like Ryuichi is.

"We're back," I hear Saiun say as she walks up the front steps.

"Thank god, man! Suzu, can you get in here and translate for me? I don't speak Ryu!" Masao shouts.

"Who does?" Suzu laughs as he enters the living room.

"Breakfast's ready!" we hear Kozen shout from the back door. He walks in sporting one of my favourite dishes: a fruit salad. My mouth is watering just thinking about it as we all take a seat at the table. Even if the food doesn't taste exactly like it does in the real world, the fruit around here is still delicious.

"So Sai, what should we expect in this dungeon?" I ask, stuffing my face.

"You said you like Zelda, right? The second floor dungeon is a lot like a Zelda dungeon. It has a room-by-room design that has plenty of logic puzzles with some combat sprinkled in. If I remember correctly, the dungeon starts in a room with a bunch of branching paths and a quest to collect some stones to open a door. And unlike the first dungeon, you won't meet other teams. Every team has to make it through on their own, unless you pair up outside the dungeon. And no mazes this time," Saiun reminisces.

"Time to flex that brain muscle then," Suzu remarks.

"What kind of monsters should we expect?" Kozen asks.

"Last time there were wolves, electric slimes that will stun you, skeletons like in the last dungeon but they sport shields, some rams that are slow as molasses but hit like a tank, and the odd giant bat that can be a hassle to kill without ranged attacks." We sit in silence for a moment, thinking about our upcoming expedition. I can't wait to get back into the action, not because I'm excited to risk my life or anything, but it feels like we've been sitting around doing nothing, expecting others to finish the job for us.

"I hear some people are talking about forming an assault team full of frontline fighters," Saiun says as we make our way to the dungeon. "That Agil guy asked me and Suzu if we'd be joining them and I told him I'd have to talk it over with you all before deciding. If you're interested, there's going to be a meeting about it in a couple of days." Immediately my brain is protesting this idea. More people to get close to, more people I'd need to learn to trust, and, ultimately, more people I'd be in danger of losing. I keep my face as neutral as possible while the others decide what to do.

"It could really speed up the process of clearing dungeons," Kozen reasons. "If we are all in constant contact we wouldn't have to hold meetings to discuss every little thing."

"Might mean we can ask for help too," Suzu says. "You said today's dungeon is all about puzzles and that we won't see another team, so if we get stuck we could ask others what they did. And vice versa of course."

"Do you think a lot of the floor one fighters will be there? They've already proven they can fight," Ryuichi says.

"Probably," Masao shrugs. "I just hope that Kibaou asshole stays away. Had enough of him for a lifetime."

I suppress a sigh, conceding defeat. "I guess it'd be no different than any other raid party in other MMOs."

"Great! I'll message Agil and tell him we'll be at the meeting then," Saiun says gleefully. I really hope this plan doesn't backfire.

We arrive at the dungeon entrance, Saiun stopping us just before entering. "These puzzles will really test your perception and problem solving skills. However, we do have a month of leveling to our names, three weeks longer than we had in the beta test, and might be a little over powered for this area. So, should we split up and make this faster? Or should we stick together for safety?"

I'm taken aback at the suggestion. The thought of splitting up seems disastrous right now, mostly due to the last boss fight. My anxiety is setting in, and I'm not hiding it well this time. I can feel myself hang my head, my eyes wide as my brain starts to overthink. I jump a little when someone puts their hand on my shoulder.

"Let's stick together for now," Ryuichi says. "At least until we're certain the dungeon is manageable."

"Very well then, let's proceed," Saiun says, some concern creeping into her voice. Ryuichi lets go of my shoulder as we enter the dungeon in our standard formation: Saiun and Masao in the front, Suzu and Kozen in the middle, and Ryuichi and I bringing up the rear. I'm so mad at myself for that little display, thankful I have people who can bring me back from the brink of a breakdown.

CHAPTER 2

I'm shocked at the size of the place. The entryway is a giant foyer with a high ceiling and a grand staircase that leads to a set of fancy-looking metal doors, a beautiful, intricate pattern etched on them. On the bottom floor are four dark, wooden doors each with different symbols carved into them: fire, wind, planets, and one looking like question marks. I'm in awe of the beauty of the place; the blue cushioned walls, the white, bleached floor, the dark green carpet running down the center and up the stairs all give me the impression that we are in a mansion or palace.

"Where do you want to go first?" Saiun asks us.

"Let's go in order, starting with that one," Masao points to the question mark door.

Small, colourful pastel tiles akin to a kitchen backsplash cover the entire room, giving the place a clean, pristine feeling, making me feel like it's a crime to bring any dirt into the room. The moment we set foot in the door, the lights on the walls dim, bringing attention to four numbered signs along the side walls. A bunch of short light posts each cast off a different vibrant colour, making the room feel much warmer, yet ominous. Saiun approaches the first sign.

"It says, "Seven switches hold the key to this place, first you must hit the left eye of the face. Next you must hit left of the nose. My left or your left? We'll find out I suppose." What does the next one say?"

""The tip of a dazzling smile, the bottom of a sad frown. If you lose, which would you choose? The left is up, the right is down."" Masao reads another.

"This one says, "The next switch has no rhyme, unless you count a two-letter object."" Suzu says.

""The one you shot second is also the last, player beware, you'd better work fast! Three tries is all you get, before the hints and the puzzle reset."" Ryuichi reads.

I notice two ledges that are too high to reach: one leads to a door, which I'm assuming is opened after we solve the puzzle and the other seems to be an empty ledge. I can hear my teammates trying to decipher the riddles but I decide to focus on getting up to that ledge. It wouldn't be there if it were pointless, it has to have some purpose. I walk around to the other side of the ledge and notice some faint pink tiles making an arrow pattern on the ground. It's subtle, you'd definitely miss it if you weren't paying close enough attention. I take a cautious look at the pattern before stepping on it to confirm what I guessed: it's an elevator, and it feels very strange to ride a moving platform as if this were real life.

"Anything up there?" I hear Saiun yell as soon as I reach the top.

I take a long look at the tiles on the ground, shifting my head around, trying to spot a pattern or something. I get my head in just the right spot and it clicks. "The light posts and tiles look like a clown's face, half sad and half happy," I yell back. "Message me the clues and I'll see what I can figure out from up here."

I study the face, the light posts making up its eyes, nose and mouth, which is half-smiling, half-frowning, giving it a distorted S shape. I read the clues very carefully, glancing at the face after every sentence, but that first clue is throwing me off. It says seven switches hold the key, but there are only enough clues for five hits, and there are fifteen lights. "Guys, look around the room for more signs!" I yell back excitedly. The subtlety of everything in this room so far makes me think there is at least one more clue. "Look for patterns in the tiles," I tell them as I ride the elevator platform back down.

"There's no wall here," I hear Masao say loudly after a few minutes, his hand phasing through the middle of the back wall. He walks through it, the wall rippling a little as he does so, and a pattern in the tiles glows for a split second, looking like an orange question mark. "There's a sign in here. It says "You found this sign, your senses are keen! Yellow then blue before the last green.""

I picture the clown's face in my head again as we make our way to the high ledge.

"Figure it out yet?" Suzu asks.

"A little," I respond slowly. I take a moment to gather my thoughts before I explain my findings. "The smile and frown are opposite directions from that second clue. Thus the "my left or your left" part is referring to the clown's left, his left. So we should shoot the right eye first, instead of the left?" I ask, unsure. I can see them pondering it, eventually nodding in agreement. I continue on with more confidence. "And there isn't a switch to the left of his nose, so next we'd shoot the one on the right side that's closest, which is also the last one."

"Top of the smile or bottom of the frown next," Kozen says. "I'm assuming the frown, as it answers the question "if you lose, which would you choose?" People don't generally like to lose." I nod my agreement, starting to write down the order in my menu, confirming the colours as I go. Right eye is purple, the right one closest to the nose is green, the tip of the frown is red, then the last three are yellow, blue, then green again.

"What does the third clue mean do you guys think?" I ask. I don't even know where to begin with that one.

"Anything on the face that suggests a two-letter word?" Ryuichi asks.

Eyes, nose, smile, frown, all one word. Any alternative words for them I can think of such as lips or grin all come up as just single words in my head too. And why doesn't the sign rhyme when all the others do; not to mention why would it bring that up at all? Surely we'd notice it didn't rhyme. So that is definitely an important part of the clue. We know by the fourth clue that we can shoot switches twice, so it'd be a one in fifteen shot if we just guessed. But we only get three tries. I look at the lights again, stopping at the nose. "ORANGE!" I accidentally yell, then get immediately embarrassed. "The word orange famously doesn't have a rhyme to it," I explain. "But what does it mean by "unless you count a two-letter object?""

Saiun suddenly bursts out laughing. "Door hinge," she manages to get out through her gasps for air. It takes her a few seconds before she's composed enough to talk again. "My boyfriend used to write poetry. He wasn't very good, but he enjoyed it, which is what counts. I remember him having a debate with another guy over whether the words "orange" and "door hinge" were close enough rhymes to use in poetry. The guy was all, "sure, but where would you ever use those two things in a poem together?" So my boyfriend wrote what was by far his worst poem that week just to spite the guy." She pauses for a second trying to stop herself from laughing again. "H-he wrote a love story about an orange and a door. It was so bad that the cafe framed it and hung it on the wall with the other bad poems they'd heard. He was so proud of its awfulness."

"Sounds like my kind of guy," Masao laughs.

"Yes you two would have gotten along swimmingly I'm sure," Saiun says with a beaming smile. I can tell she's still trying to hold back laughter.

I shoot the switches in order, after which comes a fanfare and a staircase rising from the ground, leading to the door. Inside it is a little pedestal with an orange gem shaped like a curved teardrop. Saiun takes it and we walk back to the foyer. I take one last glance at the tiled room, noticing all kinds of patterns and symbols I didn't before and wonder how many secrets we could uncover here, if we just took the time to look.

The next room is one long, narrow hallway that is as tall as the foyer was, a glass wall running all the way to the ceiling with a huge vertical pipe maze on the other side of it. At the very top of the maze we can see some polished metal balls floating above or sitting on the pipes. They give off a faint light, most of them glowing a very subtle pastel red, with two balls glowing more green. The place has an industrial feel, reminding me of old subway stations, with seven large, metal, tined switches that look like they belong in a power plant and a big, red, metal wheel above the middle switch that wouldn't look out of place in a sewer.

Kozen walks up to one of the switches and flips it down with a satisfyingly loud clunk. A couple of the balls change positions, one of the green ones turning red. A giant timer appears on the wall, giving us three minutes to solve the puzzle. Red text appears on the wall above the wheel: RESET. He then turns the wheel all the way to the left. The balls quit floating, and when he turns it to the right, the balls and the one switch are all reset to their original positions and the timer disappears. He then stares at the balls for a moment, closing one eye and tilting his head.

"The green ones are floating at the same height," he says to himself before turning back to us. "Everyone grab a switch. Kit, work those two in the middle. I think we need to get the airflow in these pipes the correct strength to get all the balls floating at the same height. Seven switches to flip up or down, that means there are 128 possible outcomes," he assesses.

We get into position and he starts shouting commands. "Flip them all down first." As I suspected, all the balls stop floating and the timer reappears. "One at a time, flip them up then down again. I'll take note of which switches affect which balls." I watch Kozen process the information, his intense eyes giving me the impression that his brain is calculating every possible solution as quickly as he can, just like a computer.

"Sai, Ryu, and Suzu, flip yours up. Kit, flip your left one up," Kozen instructs after a long period of silence. Four of seven balls are now green, and we're down to two minutes on the timer. I silently cheer Kozen on as he goes quiet again, reassessing the puzzle.

"Sai, flip yours down." One ball turns red, a different one now green. "Kit, flip your right one up," he instructs. Five green and one minute remains. "Masao, flip yours up. If they aren't all green, turn it off again." Six green with it up, still not enough. Kozen approaches his own switch, flipping it up to make six green again, ten seconds left on the timer. "Kit, flip your right one down. Masao, flip yours up again," he commands quickly. The moment that last loud clunk rings through the room I watch all the balls turn green and the timer stop at six seconds. The room that was collectively holding its breath a few seconds ago lets out a cheer for Kozen as the fanfare plays, making it feel more like we just defused a bomb than solved a puzzle. The wall at the end of the hallway lowers into the ground to reveal a white gem on a pedestal.

"Halfway there!" Suzu says excitedly as we head back to the foyer.

The light in the next room is blinding after that dank, dark hallway. The small room is entirely white and looks like it's made of shiny plastic, not a seam to be hand on any of the walls or the floor, giving the corners and creases a slight curve to them. It reminds me of an old science fiction movie, a completely sterile room used for experiments or something. There are some metal cubes looking like polished chrome scattered on the ground, each about half a meter long, wide, and tall. A big red button sticks out of the far wall, and the only other thing in the room is a triangle in the middle of the floor looking like it's made out of duct tape.

"Hey, you can't move these things," I hear Masao grunt as he tries to pick up a cube.

"What does the button do?" Ryuichi asks, looking at Saiun.

"I don't recall a puzzle like this in the beta. Give it a press and find out," she says, her voice dripping with curiosity. Ryuichi elbows the button and it turns green and retracts into the wall. The feeling of my stomach dropping into my feet takes hold in under a second as we are lifted into the air, now floating in zero gravity. The cubes float too, and the outline of the triangle starts to glow with an eerie black light.

"Magic Falcons!" I hear Masao exclaim under his breath as he laughs. He hits the cube that was close to him and it goes flying to the other side of the room, Masao starting to spin from the momentum. Ryuichi hits the button again, the gravity coming back on slowly, allowing us to gracefully land on our feet while the cubes land with very heavy sounding thuds, unmovable once more. The button turns red again and the triangle stops glowing.

Saiun studies the triangle for a moment. "We have to get them in the triangle, that's obvious, but it looks like we may have to stack some. They won't all fit in such a small space."

"So the trick here is going to be controlling momentum," Kozen thinks for a moment. "There isn't really anywhere to anchor ourselves except the walls." He stops for a moment, pondering the situation.

"What if we use each other?" Suzu pipes up excitedly. "One of us goes around the room and tosses the cubes to the center. The other five will line up and keep each other at arms length. Then we should be able to catch the cubes and keep them in position above the triangle."

We all get into position next to the button as Kozen approaches the closest cube. "Ready when you are," he tells Masao.

"Rodger," he says, pressing the button again. Since I'm expecting it this time, the zero gravity doesn't throw me off nearly as much. I could almost see myself enjoying some time fooling around in here. Kozen gently tosses the first cube to me and I catch it, feeling Saiun's grip on my hips tighten a little. Masao pushes the button again and the cube lands in the triangle with a loud "ding!"

"Eleven to go!" Suzu says excitedly.

By the time we have the fourth cube in the triangle, Kozen isn't landing as gracefully as the rest of us, looking a little disoriented. "You can trade me jobs if you need," I say. He just holds up his hand and shakes his head, then gets into position beside the next cube. They are starting to get very far away from the center.

Half-way done and Saiun has to put her foot down after Kozen nearly topples over. "Kozen, switch me places. You're clearly getting motion sickness!" He looks like he's about to vomit. "The last thing we need is puke flying around in zero gravity!" she says, half concerned, half joking.

"Fine, fine, take over," he relents.

Saiun walks around the room for a minute, sizing up the situation. Finally, after taking her merry time, she positions herself against the wall instead of beside the next cube. "I'm going to launch myself from the walls. Get ready to catch the cubes Kit, this'll be quite fast. Don't turn the gravity back on right away either. Ready when you are, Masao." She launches herself at the nearest cube and throws it hard enough to put me off center, causing Kozen's grip on my hips to tighten as he tries to keep me in position. She manages to stop her spinning when she lands on the opposite wall, crawling along it as best she can to get into a good position for the next throw. With only three cubes left she finally asks Masao to turn the gravity back on, and even then I think it's more for our sakes than her own. We all land gently, the cubes with loud thuds accompanied by nine "ding!"s. The cubes even now look like they defy gravity with how they're stacked; the pyramid I've tried to make should fall over under normal circumstances.

Saiun takes a while to find a good position along the wall. Finally, after about five minutes watching her pace around the room and calculate angles in her head she picks a position right in the far corner and aims for the cube to her left. "Ready, Masao. I should be able to get all three from here." Watching her fly through the air is like watching a trapeze artist at a circus. As I catch the last cube and Masao presses the button one last time, I wait in anticipation as we float back down, listening closely to count the "ding!"s.

"That's all twelve! Masao shouts as a fanfare plays. The triangle opens up like trap doors and the cubes drop into a large pit. It's a few seconds before we hear them land heavily on the ground below. Then, up from the depths a pedestal rises with a black gem on it, the trap doors closing with a heavy thud.

The last room looks like we are inside a giant horizontal pipe, or maybe more like a giant, hollowed-out tree log, given the natural-feeling aesthetic of the place. Across the room we can see a red gem on a pedestal behind some metal bars and right in front of us is a stick leaning up against a lit torch. Between these two are five more unlit torches, three on the walls, one on the ceiling, which we definitely can't reach.

"Obvious what we have to do here," Ryuichi says, picking up the stick and lighting it. He takes aim and throws it at the torch closest to us. The room rumbles as parts of it spin clockwise, putting one torch on the roof and one on the floor. He lights the one on the floor and the room spins again, putting the floor one on the roof and one from the roof on the left wall. "Looks like they each move two of the five sections of the floor." He proceeds to light all the torches but nothing happens. I look around the room and notice five red buttons on the wall.

"This button thing is starting to get old," Masao comments as he presses all five. The puzzle resets, each torch being snuffed out and put back to their starting positions. "I assume we have to guess the order? Maybe?"

Kozen opens his menu. "Light them each one at a time again, I'm gonna take note of which ones move which sections." I can see his brain working furiously to figure out this puzzle as each torch is lit then the puzzle reset. "What do you guys think the solution is?"

I think for a second. Why do the torches rotate if it's just a matter of figuring out the pattern? "I bet they have to be in certain positions," I say. "Like all on the floor or something."

Kozen studies his notes for a long while. "Bet that's why there's five buttons too, because we probably have to put some out to light them again later." He makes notes in his menu while the rest of us sit and wait. "Do me a favour and press the buttons one at a time so I can see which ones they snuff," Kozen asks us. More notes. More waiting. That's when I notice the stick we are using to light the torches is getting very short.

"Kozen, we're on a time limit," I say, pointing to the torch. "I bet the order resets if we have to reset the torch. And," I say, glancing around the room once more, "I don't think there's a way to put it out."

Masao jumps into action. "Let's start experimenting then! Even guessing at it might get us the correct result."

"Okay then, light numbers three, five, and two, then snuff three, then light one, and three again. That's about all I've got, the fourth one is stumping me," Kozen instructs. Suzu proceeds to light them, Masao snuffing out three when he has to. "Four puts itself on the ground if lit last, but moves number one to the left wall." He walks over and resets the puzzle.

"Just try putting four inbetween each of the other steps for now," he says, turning back to the notes in his menu. By the time Suzu and Masao have tried three more options, the torch has completely disintegrated. A button pups out of the wall above the others, the word "RESET" written on it.

"Do you think we'll have time to try again?" Suzu asks.

"We have to light the torch right away or else we won't know what moves what, so the time limit should be the same," Saiun says, frustrated.

"We may not have to restart," I say, pulling up my inventory. I take out my bow and arrows, grabbing the last few wooden ones I had from my old bow. "I've only got a few and I assume they disappear after lighting them on fire so we have exactly one shot at each torch. Make it count," I say, giving Kozen what I hope is a determined, hopeful look.

"You remind me so much of my little sister kiddo," Masao says, patting me on the head. "Full of determination and drive, and sharp as a whip." I feel a warm smile form on my face. I half fight the urge to give Masao a hug, then decide it would be worth it, smooshing his huge frame as best I can with my short, chubby one.

"Thanks Robotiger, your sister sounds awesome," I joke. "Also, pretty sure I'm older than you."

"Would you prefer I call you granny?"

I shrug my shoulders. "Respect your elders sonny," I say in an imitation of my grandmother, pretending to brandish my bow as a cane. I suddenly feel embarrassed. Guess it's the first time I've really let my guard down around these people without thinking about it. I do my best to keep it off my face though, a technique I'm getting better at.

"Okay I think I've got it figured out. I was on the wrong track the first time, but this one should work. The order is: fourth, second, snuff fourth, first, fourth again, third, then fifth," Kozen says, looking both exhausted and pleased with himself. I give him a curious smile, to which he replies, "My brain hurts."

There's a problem with my plan. I have to light six but I only have five arrows. "Which one is going to be on the ground first?" I ask.

"Hitting second will put first on the floor first," he replies.

"Hmm, not going to work," I say. "Just explain to me when each torch is going to be on the ground."

"Second puts first down, snuffing fourth will have third and second down, shooting first will put fifth on the ceiling but fourth on the ground, then…" I stop him talking.

"Okay I've got the solution then, thanks," I say, trying not to sound too impatient. He looks a little angry with me. "I only have five arrows, I need to shoot a lit one at two torches in a row," I quickly explain sheepishly. Then quietly I mutter, "Sorry."

As I suspected, the arrows burn up in a few seconds, the double-shot barely making it to that second torch before disappearing. As the last arrow hits the fifth torch, bringing it and the second torch to the ground and causing the room to rumble once more, we hear a chime and the gates slowly lift. I feel the ground rumble again; it can't be from the room moving this time. Masao reaches out for the red gem that has appeared, hesitating for a second when the ground rumbles yet again, much more violently this time.

"That gem looks different," Kozen says, pulling the orange one from his inventory. "It's curved the other way."

We all look at each other for a second, the ground rumbling a third time. "Well we won't make any progress just standing here staring at it," Saiun remarks.

"Maybe they moved the miniboss?" Suzu questions. "But if we leave now we may have to do the puzzle over again." Kozen looks a little exasperated at these words.

"It's not like we don't have the health and energy to do this," I say, trying to sound more confident than I feel, the ground shaking yet again. This time I can hear a slight roar, and begin to think of all kinds of monsters that could be waiting for us on the other side of that room. No wonder it was behind bars, super easy to trap people in there then.

"Right, let's get our equipment out and get ready for a fight!" Masao says, sounding excited. Once we all signal to him that we are ready he picks up the gem, which unsurprisingly bursts into pixels in his hand, and the bars behind us slam shut. The back of the room opens to reveal a green dragon with curved horns, not particularly huge but definitely an unwelcome sight, with his three full health bars and a name reading "Verechelen". Right off the hop he blasts a huge fire breath attack that has unbelievable reach, then gives a great roar that shakes the room and forces us to cover our ears. Saiun signals for us to get into our battle formation, Masao for the block, she and Suzu for the attack, me for any hits I can get in at a distance, Kozen and Ryuichi flanking the sides and back.

"CHARGE!" she yells right after the second fire attack. I shoot an arrow, managing to hit the dragon in the head. He stunned it for a very short time, giving Masao, Saiun, and Suzu a little more time to approach. Luckly, Masao's shield is effective against fire. He blocks the third breath attack, pushing his way closer as he does so. Saiun and Suzu are right on his heels brandishing their swords, ready to jump in the moment the dragon stops. Ryuichi and Kozen are now in position on either side, doing their best to avoid it's tail that's whipping around wildly with deadly, sharp spikes sticking out all along it. I take shot after shot, trying to shorten any fire breath attacks and give Saiun and Suzu more time to attack.

It doesn't take long before his first health bar is completely gone. Definitely harder than anything we fought on the first floor besides the boss, but our month of grinding makes us very overpowered for this fight. Saiun manages to get close enough to hit the dragon upside the head with her shield, giving a loud clang and a crack, stunning the dragon for a second while Masao goes to town with his axe. "Suzu, switch with me! Kit, keep him off us while we switch! Masao, keep blocking, let Suzu do the damage," she instructs with heavy breaths. I notice Verechelen only has one health bar left; Masao's axe must have done a ton of damage. I grab three arrows in my hand, and shoot them in very quick succession at the dragon's head, two landing their target, the other landing in an eye. The dragon is smart, though, and even half blind continues to put up a fight, whipping his tail at any place he can hear movement. When Kozen manages to get close enough to slash his face, the ancient, cracked wings spread and the dragon is airborne. He doesn't have very high to go but it's enough to get out of everyone but my and Ryuichi's range.

Ryuichi throws his spear with a loud grunt, catching it in the left wing. "The spear and arrows won't do much damage," he yells, running to retrieve his weapon. "Let's try to get it down and finish it with heavier hitters! Aim for the wings!" Piece of cake. They're like shooting a large canvas from a few meters away, way easier than aiming for it's moving head. The trick comes when the dragon catches on and starts flying more quickly and doing all kinds of evasive maneuvers to avoid our shots.

"This might not work," Masao says as he steps forward, "But I'm gonna try anyways. Get ready to attack, both of you," he yells as he throws his axe as hard as he can. Verechelen gives a mighty wail as it manages to catch him in the arm, stunning him and allowing me and Ryuichi to both get a hit in on his left wing. The wing is almost ripped to pieces and he is unable to keep himself airborne any longer. He lands clumsily as he tries to keep his balance. Masao runs to retrieve his axe which is now stuck in the arm of the dragon.

"WAIT! Saiun orders. He stops and turns around. "He doesn't have much health left, just focus on blocking, we will take him down. Kit, keep hitting when you can. Ryu and Kozen, flank. Suzu and I will get in close.

The dragon has one last attack up his sleeve. With a bit of a strange movement he manages to get in a full 360 tail whip attack, knocking everyone but Kozen over, who was fast enough to jump out of the way. I watch the health bars of my teammates drain into the yellow, still above half, thank goodness. Verechelen winds up for a second tailwhip and Kozen and I make eye contact as I take aim at his face. He jumps in the moment my arrow makes contact, his daggers digging deep into the side of the dragon. The tail tries to take him down but Kozen slides under it as if the floor were covered in ice. Masao manages to retrieve his axe and backs up for a running start. With a great cry and a leap in the air that would be hard but not impossible in real life, Masao decapitates the dragon. His health drains completely and the body and head burst into those shiny, triangular pixels then dissolve into nothing. A big "Congratulations" message is written in the sky, followed by a pedestal rising from the ground with the real red gem on it.

I pass out healing items to everyone, taking one last look around the room out of habit to see if there is a bonus chest or something. "We are definitely done for the day," Masao remarks, as he sighs in contention. I take a seat while we wait for everyone's health to regenerate.

"Did you get a last attack bonus?" Saiun asks Masao.

He gives her a jokingly suspicious look. "I thought we agreed, no disclosure rules," he says smugly.

"Unless it's a weapon," she reminds him. He opens up his inventory and shrugs. "Just some dragon hyde, says here it's a material."

"Don't suppose I could have it." Saiun tries to be nonchalant, but I saw the split-second excitement flash on her face before she spoke. Masao gives her a sly look. "It'd be good for upgrading my sword."

"Should I keep it for my axe then?" Masao asks.

"I dunno, might be quite a few upgrades needed before you need dragon hyde. I'm sure we'll see lots of dragons. It's a rare material but not super rare like his wing or tail would be."

Masao looks at Saiun for a minute, her face changing from pretending to be uninterested to a cute pout. "Fine, take it. But you owe me one."

"Do you guys want to see what's behind the metal doors before we leave?" Ryuichi asks as we return to the foyer and head for the exit, his voice dripping with curiosity and wonderment.

"We can do like we did for the floor one boss and just have a peek," I reason. "Might be a good idea to know what's next."

"What does the guidebook say?" Masao asks Saiun, who pulls hers out.

"I remember the miniboss last time was an ogre but it was easier than that dragon we just faced, so I assume the dragon was the new miniboss." She flips to the page on the floor two dungeon. "Says here the boss is supposed to be right after this room, up a couple flights of stairs. His name is Kek, an ancient, undead soldier. He uses two giant cutlasses for weapons and spawns spear-wielding minions. He looks like a ghost brought back to life," she remarks.

"Can't hurt to look," Ryuichi reasons. Kozen takes the gems from his inventory and lines them up in holes on the large metal doors. They creak open and we are shown a hallway that looks exactly like the labyrinth of the last dungeon, right down to the bright white floor, the natural-looking dark walls, and the neon lines running along the walls. Ahead are three staircases, and my heart sinks as I realize we have to get through another maze.

"Guess we'd better prepare for a long day tomorrow," Suzu says, giving a defeated sigh.

We make our way back to our house, fighting some low-level animals, mostly wolves, rabbits, and foxes. Kozen makes some amazing rabbit stew with some sort of grey carrot-looking things he picked up on the way back home that taste like a combination of onion and celery. I can sense a dark cloud hanging over us, or maybe it's just me, anxious to get lost in yet another maze. Hopefully it doesn't take us another month to beat floor two. At that pace, we'll be here for over eight years.

CHAPTER 3

No one talks much in the morning as we eat breakfast then make our way to town to replenish the healing supplies we used yesterday. Even Saiun's usually unbreakably happy demeanour seems toned down. I'm guessing she's remembering trying to trade map data with other players last time.

"I-it won't be as bad as last time," I mumble and stutter, trying to convince myself more than my team. "We-we're stronger and we've already done a lot in the dungeon. Plus the meeting tomorrow. If we can form an assault team I'm sure we'll all work through it together," I say, unsure I believe my words.

I hear a ping and see a notification pop up in front of Saiun. "Agil sent me the contact info of the guy holding the meeting yesterday," Saiun says as she opens up her messages. "The guy's name is Heathcliff and he asked about our dungeon progress this morning." She quickly reads the message. "Looks like it's some data on the upcoming maze. It says here only four teams have made it through the foyer so far, guess we're one of them. Looks like there's about 15 forks figured out already. Well, that ought to speed things up, nice timing Heathcliff."

We make our way through the mapped part of the dungeon, back to taking turns fighting low level enemies, and arrive at the end of the map data only fifteen minutes into the dungeon. Kozen pulls up his menu and begins mapping as we guess which paths to take, managing to hit what feels like 100 dead ends. In reality, it's probably only been at most ten.

"Do you guys think the boss door might be hidden like last time?" Masao asks, fighting a skeleton with such ease he's barely paying attention to the fight.

"It's a possibility," Suzu says as we watch the skeleton burst into pixels. "Let's just hope not."

I sigh as we hit yet another dead end, frustration getting the better of me. Even though it's a completely different area from the first floor maze it feels like we've never left, never made any progress, and are never getting out of it. At least the puzzles yesterday were a fun challenge, and a good way to take my mind off of other things. I can feel the weariness growing in my team too; walking slower, talking less, definitely giving less effort, although that may be because the enemies are so easy. After about three hours into the maze we decide to call it quits. All through the journey home and well into the evening I can feel that cloud still hanging over my head, mostly because I want to help my team feel better but I don't know where to begin. I am very bad at sugar coating things, and I'm not even completely sure that it isn't just me feeling low. I know what I'd normally do in this situation, something I did many times on floor one: spend some time alone outside. I stand up after supper and head for the front door, muttering "I'm going for a walk," as calmly as possible. And without listening to or waiting for responses I walk as slowly as I can manage towards the door, and break into a sprint the moment my feet hit the grass.

I head for the nearest town, Bullheed, but decide to continue past it and keep exploring. Agility is one of my highest stats and I'm able to run way faster and way longer than I could ever hope to in the real world. As I listen to my virtual heartbeat pounding in my ears I can't help but wonder if my heart in the real world is racing too. I don't know what I'm scared of, what I'm running from, what I'm headed towards, but I know I'll know it when I get there. Finally, I settle on a small, rocky alcove at the base of a hill. It's tiny enough for just myself, comfortable, or as comfortable as rocks can get, and I finally let my guard down.

"Sometimes, when we are so overwhelmed with emotions, it can spill out as tears or frustration, anger, hurt," I hear Dr. Post say in my head. I just sit there with my head on my knees, arms wrapped tightly around my legs, and stare off into the distance, frustrated tears streaming down my cheeks, trying to focus on something to ease my worries, and the sky eventually catches my attention enough. One thing this floor has over the first is the sunsets. You can see way more colours, the vibrancy is unmatched, and when the sun finally does set, you can see more stars. The only stain in the distance, still in view from where I'm sitting, is the tall tower of the dungeon, just waiting for us to pick it clean. Once again, the reality of the situation is weighing on my shoulders. I could die. We all could, at any moment. Diavel's face flashes in my mind and my heart skips a beat. And I realize, it wasn't just the maze that had me feeling down today, it was the idea of forming another raid party, of fighting another boss, of losing more people in another battle.

I sit there wide awake until dawn, my head full of unformed thoughts that swirl around and keep me paralyzed, unwilling to move even after my legs have fallen asleep, my butt gets sore, and my eyelids feel like they weigh a thousand pounds. I debate skipping out on the meeting today, but I know it will be worse to stew over what could have been if I miss it. I don't know where it is, what time it's at, or who is going to be there, and the sight of a fox starting its morning hunt reminds me that I can't stay here, it's not a safe zone. So as I make my way back to the house, I hope for three things to happen: that no one asks me about my time away, that the meeting isn't until later this afternoon, and that I can get some sleep before it starts. Luckily, everyone is asleep when I arrive, so I send a message to Saiun, which she'll see when she gets up, asking her to wake me up for the meeting. I take my place on the couch and fall into a deep, comfortable sleep that seems like it will last forever.

To my surprise Saiun doesn't wake me up. Instead I'm woken by the sun hitting my eyes through the very small gap in the curtain on the front window. I quickly check the time in my menu: 12:27, and I wait, listening for voices before sitting up. Silence. "Hello," I say raspily, clearing my throat afterwards. Kozen walks into the living room from his bedroom.

"Thought you were going to sleep all day," he says a little gruffly, looking concerned. I give him a wide-eyed look, silently begging him not to ask me about last night. He just sits down beside me and pulls out a wrap. "The others went to the dungeon. I asked to stay behind to look after you," he says gently, handing me the food. I nod and look down at my feet as I take a bite of the delicious lunch.

"You should start selling these." My pitiful attempt at humour falls flat. There's no real conviction behind my voice, it just comes out deadpan and depressing. Kozen just gives one of those amused huffs but doesn't say anything. "What time's the meeting at?"

"4:00 in the Town of Beginnings, same place as the first one. We're going to meet everyone there," Kozen says, getting up off the couch. He faces away from me, arms crossed, then drops them to his side. "I wish you would talk to me instead," is all he says before heading out the back door. I can hear him picking plants as I lay back down, opening my menu to read up on some bow skills I should practice to take my mind off everything. Soon I can hear him shuffle around in the kitchen preparing food, the tension in the air not heavy, per say, but definitely downcast. I know I'm not taking in a word of what I'm reading so I close the menu and join Kozen in the kitchen, focusing most of my attention on not overthinking everything. Again.

We say nothing as we make sandwiches and pack them for the trip. Silent still as we head out of the house for the first floor dungeon that will teleport us back down to floor one, and just a few words commenting on battle as we fight our way through the fields towards the Town of Beginnings.

We're some of the first ones there. Only about ten other people have arrived, all seated in or near the front row. I recognize Agil. There's a hooded figure sitting beside him, and behind them are Kibaou and his team. I glance at Kozen for a moment wondering how he feels about Kibaou being here. He's just staring off into the distance, deep in thought about something. I recognize a lot of people from the first floor boss raid, including the remaining members of Diavel's team, all looking extra heroic in their knight-inspired armour. I want to walk up to them, apologize, give them my condolences, whatever, but I know they don't know who I am and I definitely know they were too busy fighting Illfang to notice that I saw Diavel disappear. I close my eyes gently, trying to stop the memory playing in my head. "Just picture the park in Glenfell," I think. The waterway, the trees, the stars at night, a small yet effective distraction.

"Sleepy much?" Masao asks, plunking down beside me, giving Kozen a wave. Saiun, Ryuichi and Suzu all take seats around us.

"Yeah, a little," I mutter, trying my best to muster a convincing smile to match his infectious beam. I look around again, purely to avoid awkward eye contact, noticing a lot more people have arrived. I recognize a few more, including the long-haired redhead that helped Kirito beat the boss on the first floor, I don't remember if I ever heard her name or not though. There's now close to seventy people here, and all I can think is, "where were you all when we were in danger the first time!"

"Greetings, everyone!" a cheerful and authoritative voice says, bringing my attention to the front. "Nice to see so many of you here on such a fine day in Aincrad. My name is Heathcliff, leader of Team Alpha." Team Alpha? I don't remember them being at the first boss fight. "As I'm sure many of you are aware, we've lost some good players over the past week, and I'd like to start by giving them a moment of silence. May they always be remembered as the brave heroes they are." I bow my head along with the crowd, saying a silent goodbye to everyone we've lost so far, thankful it's not me or my teammates.

"Now, let's get to business! I've called you all here today in an attempt to form a collection of teams to make a large guild; an assault team, fighting on the front lines to tackle the dungeons faster and more efficiently than the first. For those of you not in the know, there have been six teams to make it through the first part of dungeon two as of this afternoon. I'm going to have my operations manager Asuna step in and explain where we're at in the dungeon." To my surprise, that redhead girl steps forward while Heathcliff takes a seat in the front row.

"The second dungeon starts differently than the first, and is different from the beta test," she says resolutely. She's definitely the type to get right to the point. I feel like she would be a strong leader, and I already know she's a strong player. She gives a brief synopsis of the foyer's layout and gimmicks, pointing out how the puzzles differed from the information in the guide book, then starts to talk about the maze. "With the information gathered this morning, we are now about one hour into the maze. Each of you who signs up with our assault team will receive a map of the dungeon free of charge and will be kept up to date on any progress made." She gives the crowd a short nod then sits back down.

"Thank you, Asuna," Heathcliff says, standing up once more. "Our plan is to fight through the maze together to locate the boss's room. Where is the team that found the first floor boss's room?" Heathcliff asks, looking around. Agil and a few others turn to point to us, as I point to Kozen and scoot away a little. He is beet red and looking more than a little embarrassed. "Your name sir?" Healthcliff asks with a winning smile.

"Kozen," he says. I'm surprised he said it so clearly, not the angry mumble I'd expect given the look on his face.

"Tell me, Kozen, how did you find that hidden hallway? What was it about that fake wall that made it stand out to you?"

"I used my detection skill. The wall was slightly off-colour and sounded hollow. But it was my teammate here," he points to me, "Kaita, who found the switch to open it." I give a little wave, embarrassed but trying to hide it. Kozen's giving me a smug smile; meanwhile all I want to do is smack him.

"All teams should be on the lookout for similar fake walls, especially at dead ends," Heathcliff says, smiling at us. "Now then, down to business. To all who are willing to join my guild, I'd like those who have made it through the foyer to help teams that have not. Then, starting on Thursday we will all meet up outside the dungeon and file through the maze together." This lifts my spirits a little and the crowd starts to cheer. It's so nice to have a plan in place so early on this time. And we won't be wandering around like lost little children. "So team leaders, please take a moment to discuss with your team if you are interested in fighting on the front lines with us. Then, if I do not already have your information, please come give it to me and I shall send you a guild request. I'll give you one hour, then we will resume the strategy meeting." Heathcliff bows himself off stage and goes to talk with Asuna. A moment later Saiun receives a guild request from Heathcliff to which she looks to us for confirmation.

"Do it, we can always leave later if we don't like it," Masao says.

"It was our plan anyways, fighting on the front lines. Am I right?" Suzu asks. The rest of us nod and Saiun accepts the request.

"Want to go eat supper while we wait?" Kozen asks. I didn't realize it was nearly 6. I wish we were in Glenfell instead of The Town of Beginnings right now; less crowded in the plaza, plus we could go to our park for supper. Alas, we settle on a table outside the milkshake shop that Saiun, Masao, and I tried on our first day here, ordering drinks for everyone while we eat the delicious supper Kozen and I made. It feels so normal, like a supper date with friends feels like in the real world, except for the fact that we are discussing battle tactics, reminding me of the many voice chats I've been part of in other MMOs. At this moment, I wouldn't trade it for the world. But I might trade it to leave this one.

When we return to the meeting place I'm a little bummed to see only about half the people stuck around. By the time Heathcliff begins speaking again, there aren't more than 40 players present. Still, at least it's more than last time. "Magic Falcons, Furin Kazan, and K, you three are the only teams present that have made it through the foyer, besides my team. We need each of you to group up with one of the other teams who haven't. You may have to split up. Either tonight or tomorrow we must get them all through to the maze." The teams scramble to join up with each other as Heathcliff looks at his menu. "Miss Saiun, can I talk to your team for a minute?" Saiun points to herself, Heathcliff nods, and we make our way to the stage.

"You were a former beta tester, correct?" Heathcliff asks in a low whisper. Saiun nods. "Can you accompany K as he helps a team through the foyer? Asuna tells me he might be the most hated man in the game right now. She wants to help him, but I can't spare her this time. You are the only other beta tester who has made it through so far that we know of, and I don't want someone ganging up on him if they figure out who he is. He's here to help us; in my opinion, that should be enough to trust him." Saiun just nods. It's almost terrifying, being in Heathcliff's presence. He gives off such a strong leadership vibe it makes it hard to disagree with him.

"Wait, he made it through the foyer on his own?" Masao asks, sounding shocked and impressed.

"Yes, and he was the one who had most of the maze mapped on that first day too. I don't know what we'd do without him. Take one or two of your other teammates. The rest of you can help a different team." Saiun nods again, Heathcliff smiling his approval.

"Masao, you can be in charge of the team while I help K," Saiun says. "Kit, I want you to come with me," Saiun finishes authoritatively. It's clear she got a little confidence boost from being called on by Heathcliff.

"You taking anyone else?" Masao asks.

"I think Kit will be enough. You four go and have a guy's afternoon or something."

"Who is this K guy anyway? If he's going to start trouble or get into it I'd like to go with you to be safe. We'll be in a dungeon, not a safe zone remember," Suzu says, sounding like an overprotective parent. The thought of other players hurting one another never even crossed my mind. I glance at Kozen, remembering how he punched Kibaou in the last dungeon and I notice his cursor is back to the standard green, no longer the orange colour it became when he attacked another player.

"Really, Suzu? You can't guess who K is?" Saiun asks sarcastically. Suzu just shakes his head in confusion. She sighs and rolls her eyes. "I'll tell you later, go find a team to help before Heathcliff starts talking again."

The team we end up helping is only four players, all a little younger than us, but they have good gear and are just a bit under our level. The hooded figure I saw earlier comes to sit with us. Saiun gives him a warm smile I'm not sure he sees due to him hiding his face. I catch a glimpse of black hair as he sits down, flashing a memory in my head of the final blow for Illfang. "Kiri…" I start saying, but Saiun stomps down on my foot then gives me a pointed look. I lift my hand in apology. Thankfully Heathcliff interrupts before I know if my little slip has any consequences.

"8 am Thursday morning. That is everyone's deadline to complete the foyer. Anyone who fails to do so will not be allowed to join my guild. Are there any questions?" No one makes a peep. "Good. I wish you all the best," Heathcliff finishes, he and his team climb the stairs out of the theatre, reminding me of a drill sergeant or something.

"What time do you guys want to meet up tomorrow?" Saiun asks the team we'll be helping.

"Eight," the team's leader commands.

"Eight it is then. That alright with you K?" The hooded figure nods. "Great! Make sure you bring your best problem solving skills and get plenty of sleep tonight." Saiun and the team leader exchange contact information.

The trip home seems to take more out of me than anything that's happened the last few days. It's clear I'm very tired, even asking to bow out of fighting when possible. For a change, my mind is blank, nothing really going through it other than looking forward to getting back to the house and having a good night's sleep. Maybe, just maybe, if we can streamline the process of clearing the dungeons, we'll be able to go home soon. And that is all the hope I need in this moment.

CHAPTER 4

We arrive at the dungeon entrance a half hour early, yet we're not the first ones there. Kirito comes out of the dungeon, pulling his hood over his head. He freezes the moment he sees us, then looks like he's about to run away. "C'mon man, we already knew who you were," Saiun says.

"Did Heathcliff tell you?" he asks gruffly, covering his head and face with his hood.

"Kirito, we were at the first boss fight. It would be hard to forget the face of the person who beat the first giant beast encounter in this game, not to mention all the stuff that went down afterward. Plus I saw you a few times during the beta test, mostly at boss raids again." Kirito jumps slightly at this. Saiun smiles as she shakes her head. "I don't think these guys are going to recognize you, take off the hood for a day. We won't see anyone else in there. And if they try to start a fight, I'd love to see the team that tries to take you on!" she says, punching his shoulder lightly.

"Fine. I will, but only after we enter the dungeon," he says a little more calmly.

"That's the spirit! Here, have one," Saiun says, grabbing a breakfast bun from her inventory and handing it to him. "It's sort of like bacon, egg, and cheese, my chef made it this morning," she giggles.

"Don't let Kozen hear you call him a chef, he'll kill you," I mumble under my breath.

"Thanks," he says, taking the sandwich. We all just sit in awkward silence until the team shows up.

Once inside, we try our best to let the team work out puzzles for themselves, only giving clues when they ask us. The puzzles are the same, but besides the zero gravity room, the solutions are all different. Truth is, this team probably didn't need our help at all. They work well as a unit, much more disciplined than our team is. They even ask us to stay back when it comes to the dragon fight. For only four people, they do an amazing job bringing it down. "Show offs," I hear Saiun mumble under her breath. But she's smiling so it's not very convincing. Finally, after about five hours, the last stone is put in the doors and they creek open. We say our goodbyes, Kirito deciding to search the maze on his own and the other team returning to the first floor. We decide to head back to the house.

"I'll message Heathcliff," Saiun says as we walk through the field. I do my best to keep my eye out for monsters while she's busy. I spot a rabbit heading towards a grove and I tap Saiun on the shoulder. She nods and we go hunting, hoping to find more. We walk slowly and quietly, maintaining a good distance, watching for him to return to his burrow or something. Jackpot. He leads us to a group of about 10 rabbits, all eating or drinking at a very tiny pond a small ways into the trees. We hide behind some trees, then Saiun nods at me to start shooting as she gets her sword ready. I take a deep breath and aim for the one furthest from us, hoping to scare them into running right at us. Just as I'm about to let the arrow fly I'm pushed over from behind, the wind knocked out of me. I hear a loud yell and see that a man has Saiun pinned to the ground and is stabbing her with a short dagger, laughing maniacally and calling Saiun a dirty beta tester.

Instinctually I grab three arrows and shoot the man in the head, the last one landing in his chest instead as he tries to get up and run towards me, the red cursor above his head telling me he's done this before. When Saiun doesn't immediately get up I start to panic but manage to push it down well enough to concentrate on fighting this person. I take one more shot at him, catching him in the shoulder as he tries to dodge, before attempting to knock me over again. As he grabs my midsection to tackle me to the ground, I elbow his face and quickly grab the knife from inside my jacket. Before he can recover I sink my knife right into his chest and manage to kick him off. One more headshot from my bow and he will be finished.

But I hesitate, realizing what this will mean, the second thoughts coming and going in a flash. "We should just run away," I think. If Saiun were up on her feet that may be an option but I can't drag her out of here and get away from this maniac. Saiun could be dead already for all I know, her health draining to the last drop until she disappears. With a tear running down my face I bury the final arrow in his cranium, and watch as he gives one last gasp for air then bursts into pixels. I run over to Saiun, my tears now blurring my vision as I fumble through my menu for a healing item. "He-heal!" I cry as I kneel down beside her and hold the crystal up to her chest. I glance at her health bar and see she was down in the red zone. I bury my face in my hands, weeping like the coward I am. It takes a few minutes for the healing crystal to work but it feels like hours to me.

"Raiden?" Saiun says shakily, causing me to drop my hands. She is very weak, her eyes closed, her orange health bar slowly climbing back up to the yellow zone. My hysterical crying has stopped, and I just take her hand, rubbing it gently, willing some of my life force into her. Finally, after her health bar hits the green area her eyes flutter open weakly and I let out a huge sigh of relief. I resist giving her a big hug, realizing she might feel a bit weak at this point, bringing to my memory how I felt after being attacked by that boar: a little shaky and definitely a lot embarrassed. "Let's just get back to the house," she says, sounding much stronger than I expect her to. If this were real life I'm sure I'd have to assist her back, her using my shoulder to walk steadily or something, but she moves as if nothing happened.

But I stumble around slightly, trying to hide it, as the barrelling thought train comes to run me over. "WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!" I scream at myself in my head. My body starts to shake as I imagine what consequences there will be for killing a player. For murdering a human.

The moment I can see our house on the horizon I want to run. The last thing I want to do is explain what happened to the others. So I think up a strategy to avoid the topic: lie through my teeth, blame my strange behaviour on lack of sleep, and just hope against hope that Saiun doesn't say anything. Not until I'm ready to talk, at least.

Seconds after opening the door I realize I won't be able to lie. What were greeting, friendly smiles turn to looks of horror as if in slow motion, their eyes darting from my face to something above my head. I can feel my entire face droop as I hang my head, confused for a moment. Then I realize my cursor is probably orange, possibly red. I turn to run but Saiun blocks the door, giving me a serious look that feels angry with me but I know it's just my brain misinterpreting it from panic. I burst into full-on panic mode, my hands covering my eyes, heavy breathing, fast heartbeat, hysterical crying, and eventually falling to my knees again, noticing afterwards that I had slipped out of someone's grasp. I can feel someone rub my back but no one says a word, or if they do I can't hear them. "Ta-talk." I whisper at first. "TA-TALK PLEASE!" I scream. Silence is too deafening.

Saiun explains what happened up until she passed out, with me sobbing through the whole story, my attention split between listening to her and focusing on my thoughts. It takes enormous effort for me to hear what she's saying, each sentence taking almost a minute to comprehend. I'm calming down a very small amount. One or two people gently lift me to my feet and sit me down on the couch. I feel someone put their arm around me but I shake it off, shaking my head vigorously, still covering my face with my hands. Silence once more. I'm guessing they don't know what to talk about and are too shocked to try anything for fear of upsetting me again. So I take a few shallow, shaky breaths and lower my hands before speaking again, refusing to look at anything other than the floor.

"Who is Raiden," I ask, much more aggressively than I mean to, but that's the only way I can get the words out.

"My boyfriend," Saiun says slightly fearfully. After a moment she continues on, starting to sound a little more like her usual self. "He and I live together in a flat. We met through mutual friends, and we enjoy taking care of each other." She pauses for a minute. "We, uh, we got into the beta test because my parents are advertising executives and their company was in charge of marketing for the NerveGear."

"That's so awesome Sai," Suzu says too gently for such a casual topic. I wish they'd talk like their normal selves; their change in tone is making me more uneasy. And I feel guilty for causing it in the first place.

"I hardly see them, they are always travelling, but it makes those times when I do see them and my siblings a lot more special." I can start to feel the warmth of her words, easing my mind ever so slightly.

"How many siblings do you have?" Masao asks, his voice slightly shaky.

"Two brothers and a sister, all younger than I am. That's right, I'm the old codger in my family. Those tikes are still in middle- and highschool," she giggles. "You mentioned you had a sister too, right Masao?"

"I have two, both younger as well. I never get to see them together anymore though." I wear a questioning look I doubt anyone can see, my first facial expression that doesn't cast pure misery in the atmosphere. "They don't get along. Life's a competition to them with yours truly stuck in the middle. My parents are both retired, happily enjoying life near some hot springs," he trails off.

There's more heavy silence. I navigate the blurry thoughts in my brain until I can come up with another question. "How do you two know each other?" I ask Suzu and Ryuichi, glancing in their direction as quickly as possible, sounding much calmer this time, albeit very hollow.

"We both live in the dorms at the art college we attend and got assigned to live together the first year. I'm trying for a fine arts degree and Ryu's a music student," Suzu says, sounding the most calm and happy. Like his usual self.

"Music?" I ask, still very out of it. "I love music," I say. What a dumb thing to say, who doesn't love music?

"Yes, I play the piano, and a couple more instruments," Ryuichi says, matter-of-factly, not a hint of boastfulness in his voice. I'd guess he's feeling shocked.

"He won a scholarship for his excellent piano skills actually," Suzu pipes up. "He's really good, I could listen to him play all day."

"What about yourself Kaita?" Kozen asks gently. It takes me a second to think. How would I describe myself? At least the effort it's taking to think is bringing my foggy, groggy brain back from the brink of the panic attack.

"I don't have any siblings," I start off, taking a long pause. What am I willing to share with these people? "I don't really have anything else going on in my life," I admit truthfully.

"That's perfectly okay," Ryuichi says. I look at him, attempting to smile, but only managing a neutral face. But it's relaxed, and that's more than I can say for a minute ago. Just like that, these new friends of mine manage to pull me up from the sickening depths of my own brain, each a support under my heavy mind, taking the pressure off my head and the weight off my shoulders. For now.

"I can't undo what I did," is all I say. They hurry to reassure me that I didn't have a choice, that I saved Saiun, that I'm a hero, not a villain, and I'm sure in time I'll come to believe it too, but for now, I'll settle for the help and support they've shown me today. But I can't help but wonder what will happen when we return to the real world.

CHAPTER 5

Exhaustion; that is the only thing I feel the next day. Despite sleeping well, every bone and muscle in my body is crying for a break and I haven't even gotten off the couch yet. Then I realize what day it is, and I get what I like to call a ghost emotion: it's definitely there, but it is so overpowered by exhaustion or some other emotion that it's never at the forefront of my mind. Today, it's excitement. 40 people all gathered together to get through this maze as quickly as possible gives me some hope for a shorter life here. I decide to open my eyes and sit up, surprised when my body doesn't scream in protest at the movement. Guess that only happens in the real world.

Kozen and Ryuichi are both sitting at the table eating. I give them a very small smile, avoiding all eye contact as I approach the table. It's no use, I can't sit across from them and not eventually look at their faces. I can feel Kozen avoiding eye contact too, but Ryuichi has me in a death stare, concern written all over his face. I wish he'd stop, it's making me feel guilty again.

"Good morning," I hear Saiun yawn as she enters the kitchen from her and Masao's bedroom. "Whatcha make for us today, young chef?" Saiun says with a smirk, winking at me.

Kozen just shakes his head slowly with his eyes closed. "Cracklebush pancakes," is all he mumbles, pointing to the oven. She grabs a plate and plunks down beside me. I jump a little, didn't realize I'd been holding my breath. I have to stop and think about my reaction for a minute, realizing it's because I expected Saiun to be a little more downtrodden after nearly dying yesterday. I feel like asking her what her secret is but I have a strong feeling it's because I'm depressed and she isn't. Still, a run in with something like that you'd think would shake her, even if just a little.

"Mornin'" comes the sleepy voice of Masao, emerging from the bedroom. Suzu joins us from his and Ryuichi's bedroom at the same time, giving us all a cheery wave. I just stare at my pancakes, unable to eat them anymore. "What's the plan for today, boss?" Masao asks Saiun.

"You've got a few minutes to eat and get ready, then we'll go meet the rest of the assault team." She hesitates for a second, then says in the gentlest tone I've ever heard, "You should stay behind and rest. Please." It takes me a moment to realize Saiun is talking to me.

"I'm going too!" I yell at her.

"NO!" Saiun demands. I slowly turn my head towards her, my expression seething with rage. "You take the day off and recover, Ryuichi will be joining you. It's clear you're not yourself this morning!" she pleads with me.

Kozen looks me dead in the eye, as serious as I've ever seen him. "You need to give yourself time to heal," he says gently but firmly.

"I don't need time, I need to help!" I yell desperately. They have to understand, I need to be there! I can't be sitting back all day while they're in the thick of the action, risking their lives!

As if reading my mind Ryuichi pipes up. "It's not like they're going to fight the boss today. Also, the dungeon was really easy for us, remember how boring combat was?" he says in his whimsical voice.

"Here." Saiun says, opening her menu. "Take some col on me and go do something to relax and take your mind off things." I'm about to argue again but she cuts me off. "If you do not stay and recover you will no longer be a part of this team!" she yells as she stands up. "I'm the leader, what I say goes," she chokes out, then quickly whips away from my view. I hear her whimper once before she clears her throat. "And thank you, by the way. For saving my life."

I shut my eyes tight fighting back tears. "What did you expect me to do, watch you get killed?" I laugh hysterically, bitterly, the laughter never reaching my still open eyes. She whips around to face me again and we stare at each other angrily. Why am I angry though? Ryuichi's right, they aren't in danger today. And if I'm being honest with myself, I agree with her assessment of me. I'm not myself this morning. My expression softens, my clenched jaw and pursed lips relaxing as I close my eyes for a few seconds. "I give," I say, holding up my hands and letting out an audible, defeated sigh. "I'll take the day off."

"Here then," she says pointedly, handing me some col, "don't spend it all in one place. C'mon you three, let's get going before we're late." She sounds disappointed, making me think that she isn't ready to re-enter battle yet either.

"So what do you want to do," I ask Ryuichi as we watch the team disappear into the horizon, disappointment and exhaustion very heavy in my voice.

"Come with me, let's go somewhere new," Ryuichi says. "We've barely explored this floor at all! I need some new inspiration."

"New inspiration?" I ask, my curiosity piqued.

"Oh that's right, you haven't seen. Bedroom first, then," he says, leading me awkwardly into his and Suzu's bedroom. Propped up against the wall is a half-finished painting that looks like an interpretation of the park in Glenfell.

"That's amazing Ryuichi," I say, awed at his talent.

"I did start this game specifically looking for art inspiration and here it is! It would look better if I had real world materials but I make do. I also made this." He pulls out a crudely hand-carved wooden flute. It's so tiny it fits in the palm of his hand. "It's not great but what's a guy to do without sandpaper?" he ponders.

"Play me something," I say excitedly.

"Maybe later, it's not complete yet," he says, setting it next to his painting and escorting me out of the room.

"What did you have to do to get good at something like that?" I ask with genuine interest.

"Blacksmithing," comes his casual response. "Woodworking is a huge part of it. I want to get better at metalwork too. I hope someday to build more than a small flute."

I give a half nostalgic half longing sigh. "I miss playing the piano."

"Oh you play too do you?" he asks as we leave the house.

I can feel my cheeks grow red and look down in slight embarrassment. "I used to," is all I say, remembering how much I loved it before I quit playing. Ryuichi gives me a look filled to bursting with curiosity. "I mean I doubt I'm as good as you are."

He looks towards the horizon. "So?" comes his nonchalant response. "Bet people would still like to hear you play." He pauses for a moment, glances at me, then looks back at the horizon. "I know I would," he says quietly with a small smile.

"Only if I can hear you first," I mumble, embarrassed. "If you won a scholarship for it I bet you're really good."

He just shrugs his shoulders, that same whimsical look on his face, the half-smile making him look dazed.

I hear the growl beside me before the beast jumps in front of us from the bushes. A rather large, deadly looking wolf is snarling at us. I back up a few paces while I get my bow ready, Ryuichi already swinging at it with his spear. It's an easy enemy though, going down with like five hits from Ryuichi's swings and one arrow straight through the eye to finish it off. As I watch it burst into pixels all I can think about is the same thing happening yesterday to that man. Because of me. "Woah, steady!" I hear Ryuichi yell as I drop my head and waver a bit. I resist the urge to fall to my knees, catching myself at the last second.

"My god I'm weak," is all I manage to say, secretly thankful I'm too exhausted to panic.

"Kaita, hold my hand please," Ryuichi says gently. "I can help guide you today, you can just... enjoy the ride."

I look into his eyes, unable to change the strange, pitying smile I wear when I'm embarrassed but trying to hide it. "I'm okay, really," I practically whisper, declining his offer. I clear my throat. "Shall we?" I ask, gesturing towards our destination. He just looks a little concerned, and maybe a bit disappointed?

"At the very least maybe leaving the fighting to me today," he says as we continue on. I nod, happy to have an out. It's going to take a lot of energy today to try and clear my mind before another barreling thought train runs us both over.

He manages to kill another couple of enemies as we walk towards the next town. I have my bow loaded and ready in case he needs help, but he never needs it. I squeeze my eyes shut every time one of them bursts into pixels until the burned image of the man dying leaves my vision. Ryuichi taps me lightly on the shoulder and despite me seeing him do it I jump a mile in the air.

"Do you want to go back home?" he asks, as serious as I've ever heard him, giving me that same stare he was giving me at breakfast.

"I'm going to have to get back to fighting at some point," I say. I pull up my map of Aincrad's second floor. "We're almost to Oasikai anyways," I say, attempting to walk in the right direction. Ryuichi doesn't let go of my shoulder and as a result I almost knock us both over by accident.

"It doesn't have to be today," is all he says after staring at me for a long time.

I gently guide his hand off my shoulder. "I'm okay, really," I repeat, like a broken record. "Just tired, and maybe a little jumpy." I give him the most reassuring smile I can muster.

As we continue on, I do my best to look "just tired" instead of anxious and exhausted. I manage to resist closing my eyes whenever an enemy dies, only succeeding because I force myself to zone out on an object nearby when they burst into pixels. My god I hope that goes away soon, even if it just fades a bit. By the time we make it to Oasikai it's almost lunch time.

"I know you're probably hungry but just let me check out the view from atop, er, someplace first okay?" Ryuichi asks me.

"Someplace?" I ask a little groggily.

"Hmm," he says, looking around the small town. "Maybe a rooftop? Do you think it's possible to get on one?"

I smirk. "It is a video game, after all, where's the fun if we don't try?" Exploiting games to get places you aren't meant to be can be so much fun. And I bet it feels better in this world than anywhere else. "Not like we can get hurt much," I mutter, more to psych myself up than anything.

"That awning looks very climbable," he says, giving me a cunning smile. I nod and we walk quickly to the building. I try jumping first, knowing I will go higher than in real life, but it's not quite enough height. My fingers just brush the overhang. I back up for a running start, able this time to get a grip on the edge of the awning but I don't have enough strength or a good enough grip to pull myself up. Ryuichi taps me on the shoulders and points to some crates laying in the alleyway beside the little shop. I nod and get one in position. This time I launch myself off the crate and manage to get my arms up, then feel Ryuichi push me up by my feet, practically throwing me against the wall. I turn around to see him in position and I nod. His jump is much more graceful than mine and he manages to get his upper body on the awning before I come and pull him up the rest of the way.

"Now what?" I say, looking at the barren wall. There isn't anything to grip onto here.

"Let's try the windowsills. They aren't very prominent but with good balance we should be able to hop on them if we do it quickly."

"O-okay," I say nervously. I look at the six windows above us, two across, three up. The closest window isn't very high but we still have to jump to get a good reach on it.

"What's your strength at?" he asks me, pulling up his own menu. "Mine's at 19."

I look at my stats window. "Mine says 14. Doesn't take a lot of strength to wield a bow and fight from the back," I shrug.

"Then you go first. Try jumping off from my hands here, and get a grip on the top of the windowsill. Then find your footing on the bottom of it. After that it's just like climbing a really steep ladder. But hey, no harm if we fall," he smirks.

"It's almost like you've done this before," I say cheekily.

He pauses for a moment. "Perhaps," comes his casual response. I giggle at his expression as I back up for a short running start. Launching off his hands sends me flying, almost high enough to grab at the second window but not quite. I fumble getting a grip on top of the window, the edge only jutting out a few centimeters. One hand manages to grip it but my momentum pulls my grip loose and sends me falling, landing on my back and knocking the wind out of my lungs, but otherwise unharmed. Ryuichi approaches me looking embarrassed.

"Maybe a little less lift, huh?" I wheeze out. He just laughs. "Once more, from the top," I giggle. The second launch manages to get me right where I need to be, my fingers holding on for dear life while my feet find the bottom edge. Standing on less than ten centimeters of a windowsill, my feet turned sideways against the window, I bend my knees and launch myself a small ways into the air, my fingers leaving one sill and grabbing the next in under a second. I can hear Ryuichi cheering me on, a small crowd now gathered in front of the awning, watching with anticipation for me to succeed. Or fail. I take a deep breath and launch myself for that last windowsill, almost losing my grip, but my feet manage to save me this time. I quickly pull my body as close to the window as possible and get ready for the last leap.

I look down to see Ryuichi on that first window, a stranger climbing back down the awning. I look up and judge this jump to be higher than the windowsill ones. I bend my knees until I feel the energy flow through my body and leap up to catch the roof. My arms and upper body are over the edge of the roof, my feet catching the top of that last windowsill by their tiptoes, the crowd now cheering loudly for my success. One last little hop to get the rest of my body up and I turn around to watch Ryuichi ascend, thankful that I'm not afraid of heights, thinking only of my mother who is, and would be soiling her pants just watching that display.

Just as Ryuichi is on that last little hop I reach over the edge to help him but he shakes his head. "Don't want you having all the glory," he grunts, pulling himself up the rest of the way. The small crowd claps and cheers, Ryuichi and I giving them friendly waves and smiles before turning around to get a look at the stunning view.

"You're a madman," I say quietly, smiling and shaking my head.

He looks at me with the same smirk as before. "Perhaps."

Using the mapping feature he draws a crude outline of the farmlands beside the town. I may not be one for rural areas but you cannot deny the beauty that comes from the calm atmosphere this floor brings. Even with a couple of people engaged in combat and a few herds of animals and monsters down there, the place seems very peaceful, and I let out a contented sigh, happy we get to witness this, happy to achieve even something as small as climbing to the roof, and happy to finally think about something other than death for once.

CHAPTER 6

"So then what did you do?" Saiun asks excitedly, the two of us chatting alone in the backyard.

"Just went for lunch and checked out the town's merchants," I respond contently.

"Sounds like you two had a fun afternoon," she giggles.

"Thanks to you," I mutter, getting embarrassed at my behaviour this morning.

"My teammates' survival is my number one priority," she says with the voice of a leader. "And my friends' happiness is second," she says a little more gently.

"Did you guys get anywhere today?" I ask.

"Actually, believe it or not, we found the boss room. Kirito spotted it after only a couple hours, although it wasn't hidden this time," she says excitedly.

I spit out my water. "What? Already?" I ask, getting nervous and excited. "It's only been a week!"

"We checked, the boss looks the exact same as the beta test, but we can no longer fully trust the combat information," she sighs. "We held a meeting for battle tactics right in front of the boss door and are fighting him tomorrow." She looks at me and hesitates before speaking again. "Are you sure you're ready to fight again?" Saiun asks me seriously.

I pause for a minute, unsure whether I want to lie or not. But I'm almost certain she'd see right through me. "I don't know," I admit. "I can always leave if it gets too hard…" I trail off. I actually have no idea if I can leave during a boss fight. It didn't come up in the first one.

Saiun pulls up her menu and pulls out a teleportation crystal. "This should work, it did in the beta test at least, even in a boss room. Just hold it up and say "Teleport Hoover" to get back here. If I don't see you after the fight we will all head straight here, okay?" she says gently, handing me the crystal.

"You have no idea what a relief this is," I say, putting the crystal in my inventory, making sure it's at the top of the list.

"By the way, the strategy is basically the same as last time. Your job is to shoot the boss whenever you get a chance and help pick off the minions. You'll be on Team F and their leader is named Winston. If you hear him yelling instructions, follow them. And heal people when you can. Heathcliff and the other teams gave me a large supply of healing crystals to give to you." I nod as she hands me the supplies and we make our way inside to turn in for the night.

As expected, sleep doesn't come easily for me. Even though I read it earlier I decide to have one more look at the information in the guidebook about this boss. His name is Kek the Undead and the minions are called The Tyrants of Kauket. He uses two cutlasses and has lots of double sweep attacks, meaning higher jumps or heavy shields will be almost mandatory. The strategy is to attack and defeat his arms which stuns him for a short time, allowing players to attack his head, the weak spot. Should be easy enough, the strategy practically writes itself. One thing's for certain, if his head is the weak point my arrows will definitely come in handy. When his last health bar is half gone he uses something called the phantom arms: ghost-like, detachable arms that are immune to all attacks. They will try to fight the players and protect the head when necessary. Definitely need good defense and blocking strategies, Masao will be a huge help on that round. And speed and ranged attacks will be necessary to get anywhere. The phantom arms can cause paralysis, only about a 30% chance they will. But that sounds deadly enough.

I study the picture of the boss, his red eyes standing out of a sunken face, a nose that looks like it could pierce metal, and long, flowing robes definitely make him look like a fallen soldier. The blue armour he wears under the robes looks exactly like the armour I've seen some on the front lines wearing, top of the line and heavy on the defense. I'd guess attacking the body would be almost pointless.

The minions are like faceless mini versions of the boss without the phantom arms. They carry spears and shields, able to do shield bashes and parrys, and also have a paralysis attack. According to the book, if you see their weapons turning purple that's when the special attack happens, but only a 20% chance it will stun you. I put the book away and rehearse the information over and over in my head until I'm finally granted the ability to sleep, wishing it was a skill I could strengthen in this game.

Breakfast, the trek to the dungeon, and the long walk through the foyer and maze all go by in a flash and I remember almost none of it. Focusing on the boss's and minions' attack patterns and my strategies help take my mind off monster combat enough for me to push forward and not panic when I see an enemy burst into pixels, even if my heart does skip a beat almost every time it happens. I can't tell if I'm excited or scared for this one, given what happened in the last boss fight. "There's more people, we're over-levelled, we have more of a strategy," I keep repeating in my head. I'll continue to repeat it ad nauseum until I believe it will help us win.

"Get into your positions," Heathcliff announces, taking his stance at the front of the pack. He opens the doors and Kek appears, followed by torches all around the room lighting up the battlefield. Heathcliff gives us a glance over his shoulder. "Ready, CHARGE!" he yells, the boss giving a huge, high-pitched yell at his words.

I manage to sink an arrow in Kek's head as he's calling his minions to battle, watching a tiny sliver of his health disappear. He may have the same amount of health as Illfang did, but his defense is definitely higher. Twenty or so minions appear around his feet and the sideline teams and I attempt to agro them while the five frontline teams attempt to rush the boss. "Team A, flank the left arm. Team B, the right, Team C block!" I hear Healthcliff yell instructions, briefly reminding me of Diavel, only this guy is way more authoritative.

"Team F, get those four closing in on the frontliners!" I hear Winston yell. I rush forward, three arrows in my hand, ready to shoot at them. We manage to agro them away, taking me only four shots to kill a minion, and less than five seconds to recover from panic at his death. Still too long if I'm going to be safe, so I just try to focus on anything else.

"I gotta get me one of them!" a teammate yells at me, his sword only doing about 5% of a minion's health. With him having to dodge the long range of the spear, his fight is slow, but I'm too focused on keeping the minions away from the main fight to help him.

I hear Kek give a loud roar and watch him fall to the ground, shaking the room with a loud crash. "Teams D and E, NOW!" Heathcliff yells, running towards the boss to get in a few good slashes. They manage to do a quarter of a health bar's worth of damage, proving just how over levelled we are for this floor. "SWITCH!" Heathcliff yells. The teams get back into their first position.

Three more knockdowns and almost all the minions killed takes less than five minutes. I have to force myself to look away any time a minion dies, just keep repeating to myself that they are models in a video game, not real people. When I glance away from one I kill only to see one someone else just killed I feel myself give an involuntary whimper and feel my chest tighten. I squeeze my eyes shut tight for just a moment before I turn my head towards the main fight and beg it to distract me somehow while I mindlessly load my bow. The boss is still recovering from his latest knockdown and as I watch his first health bar disappear I find myself making the decision to stop fighting for now.

I sprint around with healing crystals, as do some other sideliners, using them on anyone in the low orange or the red zone, focusing on everything and anything around me that isn't dying. I watch the team that includes Masao shield block a sideswipe from Kek. I see Kozen and Ryuichi flanking the right side, waiting for the attack to finish so they can attack the arms. And strangest of all, I see Heathcliff rooting around in his menu while the rest of his team continues to attack the left. I'm not close enough to see what he's actually doing, but I can't fathom a reason why he would need to be in his menu. I brush it off as a side effect of the hyper focusing I'm forcing myself to do. Maybe he's looking for a boost item or something.

I get knocked back by a spawning minion's shield bash, right into the line of attack for the boss. One horizontal hit from Kek's cutlass sends my health falling into the orange zone, just below half. "H-heal," I spurt out, holding a crystal next to my chest. The second cutlass comes at us so fast almost no one has time to dodge it; it swings right over my head, the wind from the strike sending a cold chill down my spine. I stand up as quickly as I can and take a couple dodging jumps backwards, looking around for anyone who might need me to heal them. Luckily they all seem to have more health than I do, most of them still well into their green zone.

I focus my attention on the new minions, weakening any I can see but unable to kill them anymore. The image of the man I killed creeps its way back into my mind, burning itself to the inside of my retinas, making me unable to hide from it, even with my eyes closed. I can feel hot tears streaking down my face as I look around desperately for anything else to focus on, battle tactics, healing, a rock on the ground, ANYTHING! That's when the boss gives a loud cry that freezes everyone in place and seems to all but blank my mind, sounding like it came from a deep, black void. Two more solid arms appear above his first two and another twenty or so minions materialize, overwhelming the sidelines. I feel my body unfreeze just as the boss gives a very fast quadruple swipe with all four of his cutlasses, one right after the other, knocking down anyone who didn't realize they could move again. "If I don't start killing again, we're going to lose this," I think to myself, noticing we're outnumbered by almost three to one.

I watch in horror as one of the low health minions goes to stab a frontliner who is knocked over, and without even having to think about it I shoot him. His dying animation almost sends me spiralling again, until I watch Kozen get to his feet, now completely focused on taking out the other minions around him. I'm reminded of the last boss fight, the moment I saw Diavel burst into pixels, and Kozen's words, "Focus on the fight, we'll deal with it later!" With all the determination I can muster, I grab more arrows and pick off as many minions as I can, putting all my effort into jamming those emotions down, "because if I don't, more people will die," I keep repeating to myself.

I chance a glance at the main boss fight. Kek's second health bar is half gone now, but he hasn't been knocked over since spawning two new arms, and now I know why. Dodging four cutlass attacks, one after the other, proves to give the ones flanking the arms almost no time for attacking. "REGROUP!" I hear Asuna yell from the front of the pack, one of the few fast enough to both dodge and attack the arms. In almost perfect unison I watch everyone change teams, every team now having two heavy shield users and two light sword users. The ones with heavier weapons and lighter shields wait around for the boss to fall. With one exception. Kirito is in the thick of the action, attacking the top right arm with speeds that should be impossible with his heavy sword. And no shield.

"Idiot!" I think to myself. "Did he learn nothing from the last fight!?"

The first two arms are down but Kek doesn't fall. It must require beating all four arms now; what's more, a cooldown bar is sitting above the downed arms' health bars, something I've seen on some enemies in this dungeon. If they don't defeat the other two arms in time, I'm certain the boss will regain the use of his first two arms.

I pick off a few more minions, their numbers drastically decreased now. I don't see any clear shots, and no one needs healing at this time. It's not a matter of surviving this time, it's a matter of speed. "I'm going to help Heathcliff!" I yell at Winston, who just nods his approval. "Heathcliff," I yell, running towards him. "Give the teams a signal somehow and I'll shoot the arms! My bow is strong and can stun the arms for a longer attack. That should bring them down before the other two regenerate!" I shout as quickly as I can.

"Left first," he yells back. "Wait for it to finish its attack!"

I watch with anticipation as the top left arm brings down a vertical slice. I aim and wait for the split-second pause the boss takes before bringing down the right swing. "LEFT! DOWN!" I hear Heathcliff yell and I watch as everyone on the left ducks as I shoot at the boss's arm, stunning it in place long enough for an attack, some players catching on right away and swinging wildly at any piece they can damage. The arrow hit itself takes a good chunk of the arm's health.

I do the same for the right arm, hear Heathcliff yell out the same instructions to the right team. I see Kirito and a few others pop up quickly this time, getting in a few good hits, almost putting the arm out of commission. But the timer on the other two is running out fast, I don't think we have time to wait for another attack from each arm. "I'll try the head!" I yell at Heathcliff, hoping hitting the head will stun him for a second too. I watch for both arms to be low enough for player attacks and shoot Kek's head. The stun isn't as long as when I hit the arms, but it's enough for some major damage to the left and takes out the right completely.

"ONE MORE!" I hear Asuna yell, getting her team ready to join Heathcliff's team for attacks on Kek's head. I shoot his head, Masao gets one good, heavy hit in on the left arm, and down the boss goes. It's too crowded in front of his head for me to shoot so I wait for him to get back up, looking around for healing opportunities and minion battles.

The boss stands back up, giving a pained cry in the process. I shoot at the arms and the head as often as I can, having to retrieve arrows around the battlefield as my supply completely runs out. That's when I see a minion throw his spear, watch as it lands deep in the chest of a sideline player, who falls to the ground, paralyzed. I try my hardest to rush towards him, breath caught in my chest, a healing crystal in my hand, but another minion stabs him while he's laying on the ground and he bursts into pixels. My heart gives a loud thump that seems to stop time, both the image of this man and the man I killed on full display right in front of my eyes. I see my team leader look at me with horror on his face as I crash to the ground, completely caught off guard by the minion's spear that planted itself in my back.

"MOVE!" I scream at myself, the only sound escaping my lips a very loud grunt. I feel another stab in my back, and another, my brain turning to fog as my health dips into the red zone. My teammates' smiling faces all flash through my mind as I genuinely wonder what it will feel like to die in this world.

CHAPTER 7

"Ugh, I wish they would quiet down!" I think to myself as I switch over the laundry. Why do the extra noisy rooms always seem to be above my head? My headphones are on full blast, but the rumbling and constant loud bangs are enough to even drive out the sounds of all the washers and dryers being used at once. I let out an audible sigh, wishing I could kick them out of the hotel.

"BANG!" comes the next stomp, so loud it shook the building and knocked me off balance a little. What could those people possibly be celebrating? I squeeze my eyes shut tight and make a very angry expression to let out my frustration, but when another even louder bang shakes the building and knocks me to the ground I let out a very frustrated scream.

"She's awake!" I hear someone yell. If my boss heard my outburst I am definitely in trouble. I snap my eyes open quickly, ready to apologize and beg to keep my job, and am shocked to see a torch-covered naturalist-looking room rather than the bleached white everything of my workspace. In an instant the memories come flooding back to me, the world coming back into focus. I can hear people are still fighting, I see Kek get to his feet again, and I jump to my feet, fully ready to use that teleportation crystal and get the hell out of this dungeon. Something stops me from opening my menu, and it takes me a second to realize there are a lot of players laying on the ground, some health bars are well into the orange zone, and a lot of minions are running around throwing spears at anything that can move. I catch sight of one of the boss's cutlasses taking out at least three paralyzed players. I'm the best hope at taking out those minions quickly, and I promise myself, if I just do this one thing I can leave right afterward.

"We have to take out those minions, NOW!" I yell, getting the attention of some of the frontliners. I see a handful of people, including Ryuichi, Kozen, and Suzu join me and the dwindling supply of sideliners. Seeing my team, their determined faces, knowing that at least they have survived thus far, it's enough to keep me going for now.

"Get all the arms' health low, then we'll do finishing blows to take them out all at once," Heathcliff yells to the remaining frontliners, blocking an incoming slice from a cutlass as easily as if he were blocking a punch from a small child. I fight as many minions as I can, keeping an eye out for anyone with paralysis, managing to save a few from deadly blows and healing them in the process. The minions' numbers slowly diminish until there's less than ten left. The extras rejoin the assault on Kek just in time for him to come crashing down once again, his second health bar now completely gone.

The teleport crystal is in my hand. But a glance from Heathcliff, who seems like he's about to ask me to use my bow again, and the face of my teammates that were present in my mind before, all make me abandon my plans of retreat. My bow and arrows are the best chance we have at beating this boss, I can feel it in my gut. Kek seems to be getting more ruthless, his attacks coming faster, his window for damage much smaller, and more and more paralysis on the battlefield making me question the info in the guidebook. Above all else, he hasn't even spawned his phantom arms yet; an invincible force that may prove even more difficult than the beta.

Without waiting for instructions from Heathcliff, I get into position to stun the boss again, yelling, "SHOT!" just before I shoot his head each time. With these latest two strategies we take out his third health bar and are almost halfway done with the final one in record time. The phantom arms appear, completely detached from Kek's body, and 20 more minions join the battle. I can feel more desperation and determination behind my movements than ever before, focusing on saving everyone I can.

While Kek is still using his solid arms, the phantom arms roam around the battlefield, aiming mostly for the sideline fighters. "Team C, split and block those phantom arms!" Heathcliff yells, blocking a solid arm's attack. I watch as two heavy shield users pursue the phantom arms, saving countless players from deadly blows while I sprint around and heal, yelling and taking shots at the boss's head when I get a chance, using up the last of my healing crystals in the process. The moment the boss falls, the phantom arms disappear and reappear in front of Kek in a split second to do a double-sweep attack on the frontliners. The only person who manages to duck in time is Heathcliff, the other players all getting massive amounts of damage. I panic, my heart racing, banging in my ears, my head hoping against hope that other healers have enough crystals left for the downed players, while I try to rush in and at least pull them out of the line of attack.

The phantom arms rise into the air, bring the cutlasses together like closed scissors, and do a vertical drop to finish off the downed frontliners. As if in slow motion I watch Heathcliff block the entirety of the attack with his huge shield, the cutlasses breaking in the process. He then takes a large overhead swing at the boss's head right before the boss gets up again, doing half of what was left of Kek's health. "Everyone fall back," he yells. "Find a healer and take care of the minions! Kaita!" he yells. I'm a little shocked he knows my name. "Take aim at the top left arm, shoot when I say!"

I load my arrow, aim for Kek's arm and wait with heavy anticipation as he attacks with his right ones first, Heathcliff almost lazily blocking the attacks. "Get ready!" I hear him grunt as the top left arm telegraphs an attack. Heathcliff bends his knees, watches for the strike to get low enough, the yells "NOW!" I hit the arm, stunning it almost directly beside Heathcliff, who jumps up onto the arm and rides the rest of the attack back up near the head. Kek notices and tries to shake him off, but between my arrow stunning him and Heathcliff launching himself from the arm to do a multi-hit combo attack on Kek's head, the boss is finished. Finally. Heathcliff jumps down, landing on the ground in the most superhero-like pose I've ever seen a real person do as Kek falls over, then bursts into pixels like everything else in this damned game. A large "CONGRATULATIONS" message is written in the sky above Heathcliff's head, the last of the minions disappearing from battle. A loud fanfare deafens me as I back into a wall and slide down it, completely zapped of all energy.

Everyone cheers for the victory, all looking bruised, battered, sliced, bloody, and especially exhausted. "Good job team," Heathcliff gives us a winning smile. "Everyone will get a cut of the loot with the biggest cut going to expenses for the guild. Keep an eye on your messages for any news of the next floor's dungeon and boss. Floor three has some heavy hitters, focus on increasing your defense and try to recruit more shield users. In the meantime, enjoy the spoils of victory!" Everyone cheers again, elated at how quickly this dungeon was taken down, happy to move forward in the quest to free us from this terrifying prison. I just stare at the far wall, my brain now completely paralyzed with too much panic, all the deaths playing in my mind over and over: Diavel, the man I killed, the ones I watched die today all blind me to the bustle in the room as I pull my knees up really close to my face, my bow dropping to my side. Winston and a few other sideliners approach me with some arrows from the battlefield, thanking me, congratulating me, smiling, nodding, all of it my brain just ignores.

I see Saiun and Heathcliff talking to each other, Saiun gesturing in my direction, Heathcliff shaking his head. I start to panic even more when they both make their way over to me, fearing I may be in some sort of trouble. "Kaita," Saiun says slowly, gently. I twitch at my name and stare into her eyes, begging her to forgive me, whatever I did. "Heathcliff was just asking about what happened the other day." My eyes dart up to my head and back again.

"Sounds like you've had quite the ride this week," Heathcliff says in his most charming voice. "It is important to me that the morale of my guild remains positive. Any way you spin it, today was an absolute victory, much of it thanks to you. Overall a very impressive run miss Kaita, or do you prefer I call you by a different name?"

I stutter trying to answer. "You can call her Kit," comes a voice to my right. I nod at this, not taking my eyes off Heathcliff.

"We thank you for your bravery Kit. Where can I get more of you?" he smiles at his joke. I manage to lift one side of my lips a tiny bit for a split second. He salutes us all, which everyone but me returns, before returning to his team, Asuna watching us closely.

"Good thing you stuck around until the end. We might have had a much longer battle if you and Heathcliff hadn't saved the day!" Suzu says, patting me on the back as we make our way out of the dungeon. I just continue to stare into the distance, my brain done screaming but utterly too exhausted to do anything else but move my feet right now.

"How are you feeling?" Ryuichi asks. I slowly turn my head towards him and surprise even myself when I actually respond.

"Like an empty shell of a human," I reply, emotionless. I had the crystal in my hand. I almost fled. "But you didn't, and that's what matters," comes a tiny voice in my head. That's when I feel the burning hot tears start again, flowing down my cold cheeks to my clenched jaw.

I feel someone pull me in for a hug, surprised to find out it's Masao. "You did good today. I watched you running around, fighting for the stunned players, healing the wounded, you saved so many lives." The rest of the team piles on the compliments, bringing a halt to the depression that was comfortably settling into my chest once more.

"You guys did good too," is all I manage to say. I don't know how to tell them how much they're helping me carry on, even when it's hard. But they know the power they have, I'm certain of it the moment I look at each of their understanding, inviting, friendly faces. And that evening, as I move my bed from the isolating environment of the living room into the bedroom that I now share with Kozen, all I can think about are their faces, and I am grateful to have the type of friends I haven't known in a very, very long time.

CHAPTER 8

The days go by so quickly now. There's barely any time to explore floors as we unlock them in quick succession, some taking less than three days to finish. Kozen was right from the start, time is helping me heal. It's not much better at first, as I want to flee almost every encounter that poses even a modicum of threat, but by the time we make it to the boss fight on the third floor, I can stand combat again, saving the panic for later, discovering that sometimes it doesn't even show up later. Time may be helping me, but my friends fighting by my side is what is really healing me.

Before I know it, we are already making our way to the boss on floor six, the roles in the assault team ingrained in our brains by this point. With almost 60 members now, clearing dungeons and fighting bosses turns into a breeze, not entirely effortless, but definitely efficient. And with Commander Heathcliff and his team leading the charge, the entire atmosphere in the game has changed from dread and despair to cautiously hopeful.

"I just realized something," Suzu says as we walk through the dungeon. "It's Christmas eve."

"Think there will be any special quests for the holidays?" Masao asks, getting out his guidebook. "I'm not seeing anything in here."

"First time for everything, maybe we should explore a little after the fight," Saiun suggests.

Standing outside the boss door, waiting for the stragglers to arrive, I recite the boss's strategies in my head like I have every other time. I seem to be the only person still anxious for these fights, everyone else in the room standing around having casual conversations with each other while I think of counter moves and attack strats.

"Some things never change," Saiun whispers as she taps me on the shoulder and points to a hooded black figure, sitting alone in the corner.

"How has he not joined a party yet?" I ask quietly. "He can't seriously think he's still an outcast from that first fight, can he?"

"I'd guess he likes being alone. Should I ask him to join our team again? Third time's the charm, right?" Saiun giggles quietly.

"I think there's about as much chance of that happening as there is of us clearing the 100th floor today," I smile smugly.

"Ah well, there's not really room for him in our house anyway," she shrugs.

"Alright teams, into your positions!" comes Heathcliff's commanding voice from the front of the pack. As if we were an army, everyone goes to their spot and prepares for another fight, all completely unwilling to back down to the challenge.

Not even one hour later, everyone emerges from the boss's room, victorious, with zero casualties, just like the last two fights.

"That was a great fight you guys," Asuna says to the rest of my team, who unlike me, actually attack the boss alongside her. "Got any plans?"

"It is Christmas Eve, maybe we should have a party in Travers Town," Saiun suggests as we leave the dungeon.

"I'd be up for that," Ryonheart, a tank from Heathcliff's team, comments.

"I'm not really up for a party but I can send out a mass message if you want," Asuna smiles.

"That'd be great, thanks! Tell them to meet at Selma's Tavern. It's right in the town square, big sign, can't miss it. Let's say 9 pm, gives people time to have supper."

Asuna gives us a thumbs up as she writes the message. "Have one for me, okay?" she asks Kozen, who nods politely but doesn't smile.

Saiun looks down at her armour, the same white shirt, light-green cloak, brown pants, and black boots combo we've been wearing since that second day. "I think it's time for some new clothes, what do you guys think?"

"Sure, but let's not buy it this time. Let's instead ask that info broker, um what was her name again? Maybe she knows of a good sidequest or drop for some," Suzu says.

"That's gonna cost ya," comes a quiet, mousey voice behind us. I jump a mile in the air, Argo the Rat laughing at how easily I scare. "It hurts that you don't remember my name, Suzy," she teases.

"Any massive drops enough for six people? Or any repeatable quests we can do?" Suzu asks her.

"3,000 col. But since it's Christmas eve, how about 2,000 for some of my best customers?"

"I assume that's a yes," Saiun says, pulling the funds from our collective account.

"There's supposedly a first-time event happening tomorrow. A new NPC that wasn't there in the beta is wandering around down in your favourite park, and someone spotted him wrapping presents under his shop counter. Real nice guy, sells ninijs in Glenfell. Better go tonight though, I'd educate a guess he's not going to be around anymore tomorrow."

"Thanks," Suzu says, wearing his thinking face. Argo gives us a casual two-finger salute and walks back towards the dungeon. "We can teleport straight there from Travers Town, it's the closest," Suzu says, looking at his map. The trek takes us a half hour, as floor six is huge with rocky terrain and a giant mountain in the center. It's a little hard to walk on, but taking the trails would take a lot longer. I take a deep, calming breath in the moment we step foot in my favourite place to be in this entire world: the park in Glenfell.

"Look, there he is," Masao says, pointing to the very large ninij stand.

"Oh, now I know why this is thought to be a Christmas event," Ryuichi laughs. The long, white beard, tiny, circular glasses, and chubby face give the old man an uncanny resemblance to good old Saint Nick, minus the hat and coat.

"Good evening!" Saiun says, extra jolly. "How much for a ninij?"

"Red are 30 col and the green are 25 col," the man responds.

"I'll take 10 of each!" Saiun says excitedly, slamming down the money on the table. The man's smile is so warm and inviting it's infectious. "They taste just like a much sweeter apple," Saiun says, handing them out.

"Well nothing's happening, guess we need to do something else to start the quest," I shrug.

"This guy's based on Santa Claus, right? So what would you say to Santa Claus if you wanted something from him?" Ryuichi asks.

"Give him a wishlist?" Suzu suggests.

"Worth a shot," Masao says. "Hey, sir, we were hoping to get some good armour for Christmas, can you help us out?" he asks the old man.

"I'm sorry, I don't know how to help you with that," comes the automated NPC response we've heard a thousand times by now.

"Maybe we're looking at this from the wrong angle," Kozen says. "Maybe we should try to be Santa's elves. Giving is the spirit of Christmas, after all."

"Sir, why do you have such a big stand if you only sell ninijs?" Kozen asks boldly. When the old man gives us a raised eyebrow instead of the automated response, we know we're on the right path. "We heard a rumour that you may have some gifts under the table. If that's true, you must have a hundred or more under there," Kozen says, much kinder this time. "Why don't you let us help you with them? If they're for Christmas tomorrow we can help get them wrapped and delivered tonight."

The old man laughs exactly like Santa Claus. "What kind souls! I'd love some help with delivery, I'm only one man, after all, and all the kids should get presents for Christmas morning, don't you agree?"

"100%," Kozen smiles.

"Then come back in two hours, the presents should be ready for delivery by then," he gives us a great, jolly smile once more.

"I hope this pays off," Kozen says as we make our way to the crepe shop for supper.

It may only last a little more than an hour, but it is so peaceful to just sit in Glenfell's park, watching the water flow, the other players going about their business, and the plants and trees blow in the slight breeze. I take this time to reflect on all the progress we've made in just a month: four dungeons in fifteen days, a record I hope we beat someday. And I bow my head, out of respect for the ones we've lost. I feel someone put their arm around me, to which I look up at her and smile.

"It's the first time we've really slowed down all month, isn't it?" Saiun asks. I nod, completely lost in thought, all the major scenes of the past few months flashing in my head, giving me hope, making me actually start to believe we are going to leave this place. Someday.

"Here you are, good luck," the old man says, handing us 100 presents to be delivered on the first floor.

"Glenfell, Town of Beginnings, and Redriver are the only destinations. If we split up we should finish this before the party starts. We have one hour, so pick your partner," Saiun says.

"I'll go with Kit," Kozen says first. I smile and nod. "We'll take Redriver, I know it well enough from gathering food around there."

"I'll go with you, Sai," Masao says. "Suzu, you and Ryu know the Town of Beginnings better so we'll tackle Glenfell."

"Now's the time to use these," Saiun says, handing out some warp crystals. "Get to where you need to be then warp back here as soon as you can."

"Teleport, Redriver," Kozen and I say in unison, holding our crystals in the air, then arriving in the market square, the main hub of the town. We pull out our map and get to work, each taking 15 presents.

I thought maybe we'd have to find the children's parents and give it to them but each spot has a blue, glowing brick right beside their front door, making the quest very easy. But it wouldn't be easy if there weren't six of us doing it. There's a nice little chime each time you set the present down, reminding me of the one that played in that zero gravity room with the chrome cubes. I get such a pleasant feeling inside me every time I hear it, imagining some cute little child being excited to open their gifts Christmas morning. "Teleport, Glenfell," I say after I'm finished, arriving back in Glenfell with only twenty minutes to spare. I'm the last to arrive.

"We're finished!" Saiun says happily to the old man.

"Thank you for the help, please take these as a reward," he says, sending Kozen a digital present.

Kozen accepts the gift, a big grin on his face, trying to hold in a laugh. "Thank you," he says to the old man. "Let's get to Travers Town, we're going to be late for our own party."

"What did he give us, armour?" Masao asks suspiciously.

"You, um, could… say… that," Kozen says slowly. "I'll show you when we get there."

Standing outside Selma's Tavern, my jaw hits the floor as Kozen hands us the reward. Masao and Saiun burst out laughing, even Ryuichi is giving a giggle. "There is no way I'm wearing it," Kozen remarks.

"Oh c'mon, it'll look cute on you," Suzu laughs, putting on the "armour".

"These stats ain't bad either. Heavy on the speed," Masao remarks. "And very breathable."

"Kozen put it on or I'll kick you off the team," Saiun teases. He gives a frustrated sigh, then changes.

"Excuse me, sir, would you mind taking and sending me a picture?" Saiun asks a passerby way too innocently.

The guy just stares at us with wide eyes in a stupor and I have to hold back my laughter. He agrees and we all get into the funniest elf poses we can and yell, "Happy Holidays!" I'm staring at the photo, unable to stop laughing at all of us dressed in green onesies with red trim, a big, round red collar with bells at the spiked ends, elf shoes that curl at the toes and have bells, and to top it all off, each of us has a traditional red Santa hat with white fur trim and white pompom at the end. I'm going to keep this forever, no matter what it takes.

The reaction in the tavern is as expected, people stare, laugh, a couple cheer, some look embarrassed for us, and all I can do is laugh more, not even making noise at this point, Masao doing his best to show off, Saiun and Suzu explaining how they got the outfits, Ryuichi examining his suit, and Kozen already at the bar, probably wishing he could drown this entire experience from his memory.

"Glad I came after all," I hear a familiar voice behind me. Asuna is standing there giggling. "You're going to look magical battling in that thing!" she yells at Kozen.

Kozen looks her dead in the eye, a serious, almost angry look on his face. "Not. Going. To. Happen," he growls, then turns back to the bar, putting his hat away.

"HEY ARGO!" I hear Suzu yell to the opposite corner. "Guess you know what the quest reward is now," he shakes his head. It's been nearly half an hour since we arrived and I still can't stop laughing.

I see Saiun hit the side of her glass with her spoon. "A toast! To a great guild leader! To Heathcliff! Hazah!" she yells, the rest of the bar toasting him, even though he isn't here.

"Okay, I'm removing this get-up. The bells get kind of annoying," Saiun tells me as we sit at a table with the rest of the team.

"What a way to enjoy the holidays," I joke. I look down at my outfit for a second. "I think I'm keeping it on a little longer. It's comfy." I say.

"Why don't we sing a Christmas song?" Ryuichi whispers to us, pulling out his flute. "It's ready for a field test."

"I'm in," Masao says immediately, too loud for my liking.

"Why not?" Saiun says. "Maybe we can get others to join."

"Play Jingle Bells," Kozen says, surprising me. He looks around at our suspicious faces. "What? I like to let loose sometimes too," he grins.

The music from the flute fills the tavern in ways normal conversations never could. While it's true you can hear music in boss fights, dungeons, and sometimes in certain parts of towns, there's something more to hearing a small, handcrafted, wooden flute play Christmas music. More people join us in singing than I thought would, the entire tavern filled with song after song. You can tell people are starved for entertainment.

"One more," Ryuichi says after almost an hour, playing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". As the song finishes, the crowd cheers, and Ryuichi takes a bow, I start to believe that I can make this world a temporary home, grasping onto that feeling and holding it as tightly as I can, maybe even thinking I don't want to return to the real world. At least here I have the strength to fight, every day, with a purpose, and a clear goal. At least here I can start anew, as one of the people working hard to free us from this world. Here I feel useful, wanted, important. What I do makes a huge difference, I can tell by the joy in the cavern, and not just because it's Christmas Eve. And best of all, I get to do it with friends like I have never known. I give a contented sigh as I look at the picture of us in our elf costumes, pinning it to the top of my photos tab to remind myself that it's okay to enjoy this world once in a while too.

-TO BE CONTINUED-

AUTHOR'S NOTES

I hope you enjoy this short story based in the world of Sword Art Online! Please note that this is a sequel to the first volume titled: Magic Falcons Volume 1: Tales from Aincrad. I just want to preface this by first stating that I am only basing my story on information found in the first season of the Sword Art Online anime, but this story features 6 all new, original characters (and some extras) that are of my creation and should not be used in other works. Other sources, such as manga, novels, games, etc. have little to no influence on the plot of my story. Also, please note that I have changed around some things that take place in the anime, so if that kind of stuff bothers you then this may not be a good read for you, but I try to be as accurate as possible where necessary. These stories have taken a lot of effort and I've put a lot of work into them so I hope they come across as good stories and faithful to the source material. Please leave a review, give me a follow, and, above all, I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it! More volumes to come!

I'd also like to give a giant shout out to all my friends and family for helping me improve this story, giving me some much needed feedback and insight, and extra special thank you to Majiczenith and Pixxielatte for letting me advertise these short stories on their Discord channels and in their chats. They are both variety streamers on Twitch and I highly recommend you check out their loving, welcoming communities. Thanks again guys, much obliged!