Vol 2 CH 9 - Setting the Stage


High above the World Tree, Asuna's cage stood unchanged. So much so that If one were to look at the hidden camera manned inside of it, one would see her form, her back towards the feed, silently looking outside.

However, it was a ruse.

Because Asuna wasn't even in there.

Having learned of the locked door's access code, she snuck out of the room. What was being seen by the feed was nothing more than a fake created by Strea - a small image positioned in front of the camera, creating a forced perspective.

Beyond the doors, Asuna ventured towards the World tree. Once she reached the base of the branch, she noticed a circular door made out of modern material.

"Strea, what should I do?" She thought.

A speck of light hovered near her. "There's a circular panel on the side. Place your hand over it." Strea replied wordlessly, her voice directly reaching Asuna's mind.

She approached the door and After she placed her hand, the door suddenly slid to the side, and she instinctively darted to the side to hide. Then, she slowly peeked over the door and spotted a brightly-lit hallway.

"Slow and steady, Asuna. I don't know what's beyond these doors, so be careful. I can see what you see and hear what you hear, and more, so I'll be able to tell you if anything is coming. Our best case would be that we can find a console and log you out, but let's keep an eye out on anything we can use."

"Okay. Here goes…"

She slowly traversed the winding pathway, resisting the urge to shiver as her bare feet touched the cold floor. She kept close to the wall, hoping that it would provide at least a little bit of cover.

Eventually, she came across an object mounted to the wall.

"A map…" She muttered as she took a closer look. "Where do you think a console would be…"

"Hang on. Let me check with you."

They silently scanned the map's details. There was no legend, and the labels were mostly nondescript, with only letters, numbers, and colors assigned to most of the areas. However, one labeled area caught her eye.

"Experiment hangar…" She muttered as she started to feel her stomach sinking. "Sugou…"

"I'd advise against going there." Strea spoke up. "It's the only labeled area here, and considering its title, security over there is high."

"But I have to know what Sugou's been doing."

"Which is what we'll do once you get out. It's too risky here."

"Then, where do you suggest we go?"

"For now, try one of the nearby rooms. There's one not too far from here."

"...alright."

Asuna chose a random nearby area and followed the map's direction. Eventually, she found a door with the area name plastered on its front. She turned the knob and pushed.

In quite the contrast to the other areas, this area was a typical modern office room. There was a long desk that housed numerous workstations, complete with paper documents and some computers.

"What with this room?" Asuna thought out loud.

"I believe that it's set this way to simulate a real-world office environment for those who prefer it. Humans are weird like that. Anyway, go to one of the computers. You can try to use that to log out."

Asuna approached the desk and sat on a chair in front of a computer. As she got closer, she noticed a small, rectangular object peeking from under the keyboard. She lifted the keyboard and inspected it. "What's this?"

"...Oh wow. That's a card that grants admin privileges. Just sitting there like it's nothing."

"What? How'd something so important just be here?"

"Hey. In the real world, some people leave a sticky note of the company software program's login credentials, and paste it right in front of that computer. Massive security risk because someone can't be bothered. Regardless, it's for stuff in the game but not for logging out, so we don't need that right now. "

She accessed the computer. It booted instantly, showing her a bunch of options. Her eyes widened when she saw the option to log out. "There it is!" She exclaimed. "What should I do?"

"Go ahead and log out."

She almost did from her excitement, but stopped. "But what about you?"

"I'll be fine. And before you say stuff like 'I'm not leaving you here', think of the bigger picture, alright? You log out, tell everyone how this maniac imprisoned you, and extract me from your NerveGear. That'll happen sooner or later, so do it sooner."

"...okay. I'll see you soon, Strea, I promise." She said before she pressed the button.

Access Denied. Reason: Executive Authorization Needed. Was the reply.

Despite herself, Asuna found herself chuckling. "Or not." She quipped. Hanging around with both Kirito and Riwet must've warped her sense of humour.

"Sugou must've tacked this on. Only someone with high enough authority can log you out. I'm not even surprised if only he can do that. I'm sorry, Asuna."

"...so, what now?"

"The only option we have right now would be for the players to finish the Grand Quest and come here and see this for themselves. That'll make enough noise for an investigation. Sugou gets his credentials taken one way or another, and you go free."

"All we can do now is wait?"

"Well, since we're here, let me try something real quick."

The speck of light hovered in front of the computer. The screen changed into a torrent of symbols, reminding Asuna of the Hollow Area's Administration Area Console. "What do you see?" She asked Strea.

"...bad news. I've researched what the players will have to go through, and it's not pretty."

"What? What are they up against?"

Strea started to explain, but her face froze. Change of plans. Come back to the cage, right now." She said urgently. "And bring that card with you."

"What? What's happening?"

"I'll explain everything later. Hurry!"


Loading...Complete


"Fuwaaa~" With a yawn, Yui got up and stretched. She was in her human form - one of the few times she was able to do so without much scrutiny was in the privacy of a room.

She turned to her side and saw Kirito's avatar still asleep right beside her. His mouth was slightly ajar and the side of his face was slightly squashed by his pillow, making for an amusing sight. She chuckled and resisted the urge to poke his face.

When they entered the inn last night, the innkeeper informed them of an ongoing deal with regards to their premium suite - a large room complete with three king-sized beds, a bathroom, and a balcony with a view of the World Tree. Yui suggested that they rent that room and have a sleepover.

She spotted movement on one of the beds. It was her brother, Riwet, slowly sitting up. "..." He rubbed his eyes with his hand, and stopped. Looking closely, Yui could see her brother's dull but hard gaze as he stared at the empty space in front of him.

"Onii...chan?" Yui asked.

That seemed to break the trance. He straightened up and turned to Yui. "Yeah?" He asked.

"Are you...alright?"

He quietly stared at her for a second before he turned to look at his hand. "...sometimes, I'll wake up in the middle of the night, feeling sad and angry. I can't say that this never happened to me before I was trapped in SAO, but it's been happening quite a bit after I got back to the real world."

"...did you dream about something sad?"

"I don't remember." He shook his head. "Every time it happened, I tried to...but I couldn't. I can't...even now."

Yui nodded. She went to him and sat on the side of his bed, asking more questions that probed at his emotions. After a moment of back and forth, she concluded that he legitimately did not know what was bothering him.

As an entity who was formerly tasked to maintain players' mental health, Yui had the drive to understand what a human being was feeling just by observing them. But all of these were just hypotheses. Mental therapy was a two-way street, and it required the patient to open up to them. Without that, the therapist could risk coming up with an incorrect solution.

"Onii-chan…" Yui went towards him and held his hand. "If this becomes too much, then be sure to tell us." She said. "It doesn't have to be me. Onee-chan...your family...I know that we still have something to do, but after all this...alright?"

Riwet smiled. "Sounds like a good plan. I promise to do that after all this is over."

The two shared a moment of silence before Yui let out a bright smile. "Onii-chan, can you lie down?"

"..." He wordlessly nodded and complied.

"Eeei!" She glomped onto his chest and nuzzled her head. "Ehehe~"

"Heh. Well someone's making herself comfortable." Riwet said.

"I'm glad I got to meet you again, onii-chan!"

"Me too, Yui."

The two stayed like that for a while. Yui acknowledged that she would need to talk to her brother more, but they still had something to do. After all of this is over, Yui promised herself that she would do her best to figure out how to help Riwet.

"Must be nice…" Kirito muttered. Unbeknownst to the two, Kirito had already logged and was quietly watching them from his bed.

"Ah, Papa!" Yui leapt from one bed to another and embraced him with a smile. "Good morning, Papa!"

That was all that took for Kirito's mood to brighten as he returned the embrace. "Good morning." He replied with a grin.

"Good morning, Papa~!" Riwet mimicked Yui as he also jumped from his bed. "Comin' in hot!"

Kirito felt a chill run down his spine before he felt Riwet's shoulder hit him square in the chest. "Guh! Hey, Riwet! Never call me Papa ever again, you hear me?!"

"Hahahaha!" Riwet and Yui laughed together as they squirmed around in Kirito's bed.

Leafa silently watched the scene with a smile on her face. It had been so long since she saw her brother like that.

The chaos continued for a bit more before they had to catch their breath. "Well, that was fun." Kirito chuckled. "But it's about time we get going."

Riwet rolled out of the bed, hitting the floor with a grunt. "Yyyyyyuuuup." He accessed his Player Menu, and by the time he stood up, he was wearing his usual armor.

The rest of the group followed suit.

After that, they slowly made their way on foot towards the tree. Kirito took note of how detailed and structurally consistent the city's design was. Riwet hunched slightly and made himself as inconspicuous as possible. Leafa looked around her and was amazed at how racially diverse its populace was, with players from different origins just enjoying the moment.

However, when they reached a certain point in the city-

"Ah?!" Yui shot up from Kirito's pocket and yelped.

"Yui? What's wrong?" Kirito asked.

"Mama...mama's here."

The group tensed. "Where?"

"I don't have the exact coordinates, but she's right above us!"

Kirito looked up and glared at the top of the tree. He gritted his teeth and spread his wings, preparing to kick off and fly.

"Wai-" Leafa started to say, but another player was quicker on the draw.

Kirito found himself almost rooted to the ground as a gauntleted hand grabbed his shoulder. "You shouldn't start a ruckus." Riwet said calmly.

Almost overcome by his emotions, Kirito almost lashed out, but stopped as soon as he saw what kind of expression Riwet was making - a cold, distant frown that brimmed with killing intent.

Despite his terrifying visage, Kirito couldn't help but chuckle. "Look who's talking." He quipped. Out of all the things that would snap him out of his rage, he didn't expect that to be the one.

Riwet cleared his throat and removed his hand before he looked away. "Sorry."

"Don't be. You're right." Kirito took a deep breath and rubbed his shoulder. "For now, let's gently go up the tree so we don't accidentally piss people off."

The other three nodded, and they slowly ascended upwards.

Being this close to the World Tree in broad daylight, the group took in its massive size. Its spiraling trunk was so wide that it completely blocked the horizon, and so tall that its first branches were way up high and obscured by both the distance and the clouds.

Eventually, they were stopped by something. At first glance, it didn't look like anything was there, but upon closer inspection, the spot that made contact with them let out a rippling light as if they disturbed an invisible body of water.

"A barrier…" Kirito grimaced, fighting off the urge to punch it.

"They didn't want a repeat of that leaked picture, eh?" Riwet added. "Yui, anything?"

Yui forced her eyes closed and focused on that sensation she felt. She didn't need to do much to confirm her suspicions. "Mama's over there. I'm sure of it. Even if I close my eyes and can't see anything, I can feel her presence. I can't pinpoint where she is, but all I know is that she's at the top of that tree, still way up above." She let out a sigh of relief, realizing that held her breath for the longest time." "Wait...there's one more…"Her brows furrowed. "...Strea?"

Kirito blinked once and nodded. "Strea…we did put her in Asuna's NerveGear..." At least she wasn't alone out there.

"Who's Strea?" Leafa asked.

"She's an AI, the same as Yui. Her data was relocated to Asuna's NerveGear." Riwet explained.

Meanwhile, Yui was "Mama, Strea...can you hear me?" Yui muttered fervently, expecting a response. "Talk to me, please…"

After some time, a response was made, in the form of a small object gently falling down towards them.

"A card…?" Kirito muttered, reaching towards it. Once he had it in his hands, he took a closer look. It seemed to be an access card of some sort, something that was out of place considering ALO's medieval fantasy setting. He tried tapping on it to open a detailed window, but no response. "Yui, what do you make of this?" He said before reaching it over to her.

Yui placed her hands on the object and concentrated "...! This object contains an access code for System Administrators."

Kirito's eyes widened. "Can we use this to exercise GM authority?"

She shook her head. "...no. At least, not here. We need to find a console that accepts this card."

"I see. But still, there has to be a reason why this fell down. This is probably..."

"Asuna or Strea dropped it." Riwet spoke up. "They've heard you, and that's their answer."

Kirito closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. "Asuna…"

"Just for kicks, maybe try placing it towards the barrier?" Riwet suggested, breaking the silence.

Kirito nodded and did just that, but there was no reaction. "Nothing…"

"Then this isn't the way. I think we have to go somewhere else."

"The Grand Quest…" Leafa muttered. "If I recall correctly, the starting point is inside the dome at the base of the tree."

"So that settles it." Riwet said. "We go back, we wait for the raiding team, we tear this quest apart, and grab Asuna. We didn't give away all that money so we could waste it."

Leafa nodded at him before she looked back at her brother. "Kirito-kun?" Leafa called.

"..." Kirito felt rooted on the spot. They were so close. Months of being stuck in time, desperately waiting for Asuna to wake up. To turn around and just wait didn't sit well with him.

Hang on.

An idea popped into Kirito's mind. He turned around and was about to say it out loud, but Riwet suddenly nodded. "Sure, let's go." He said.

The black-clad swordsman frowned. "Didn't know you can read minds."

"I don't have to, considering the face you're making."

"What? What's going on?" Leafa asked.

"The two of them decided to check out the Grand Quest without waiting for the Sylph and Cait Sith raiding team." Yui explained.

"I've read up on the Grand Quest's mechanics, and since the entrance won't close until after some time has passed, we can scout the place out and get out if things get too hairy."

"But is that a good idea? Won't you be exhausted just doing that?"

"We've had worse, so not really." Riwet cut in. "It's just a little scouting mission. If I recall correctly, the entrance gate on the Grand Quest would stay open for a good amount of time. The two of us go in and get our butts kicked while the two of you watch for enemy patterns and think of strategies. When the gate starts to close or if it's too much, we hightail it out of there. What do you say?"

Leafa thought about it for a bit, and she found herself nodding in agreement. "On one condition. Promise me that you would leave the second you realize that progressing would be too difficult."

The two boys nodded before the group slowly descended. "Let's go see what we're up against."


Loading...Complete


As expected, the two players couldn't clear the quest by themselves. They lasted a respectable amount of time, but there was nothing much a two-player team could do in the face of the hardest challenge ALO had to offer.

As for now, the party was standing by on the spot where they would meet the raiding party. It was a relatively sparse forest area with a river next to it, positioned close to Alne.

At the edge of the river were Kirito and Leafa with fishing rods in their hands. Kirito noted that fishing in ALO was identical to how it worked in SAO. That, and because his fishing skill transferred over, he had already caught half a dozen fish and was just zoning out and taking in the scenery.

"..." Beside him, Leafa had a fishing rod in her hand and was trying not to sigh in frustration. In contrast to her brother who made it look like the easiest thing to do, she still hadn't even had so much as a nibble. She started playing ALO because she could fly, and fishing was something that she hadn't considered doing before.

"We're back!" Yui greeted the siblings as Riwet and her returned from the nearby forest. Riwet was holding a bunch of loose branches while Yui was holding a basket filled with foraged edible fruits and vegetables.

"Hey. What'd you get?" Kirito came over to them and carried Yui's basket for her.

Meanwhile, Riwet piled the branches into the shape of a campfire. Then, he muttered an incantation, and lightly touched the center of the unlit campfire. Smoke came from where he touched it, followed by flame. It didn't take long before the campfire was fully lit.

"That's a neat little trick." Kirito pointed out.

"It's pretty handy, but not as much as turning into the freaking Gleameyes, though." Riwet said before he pulled out a simple campfire tripod and a pot from his inventory. "Now, let's get this thing set up."

Hearing the commotion behind her, Leafa was about to call it quits when she felt something tug from the other end of the fishing line. "I've got somethi-guh!" She called out, but she almost bit her tongue when her catch struggled with unexpected strength.

"Leafa Hand it over to me!" Kirito said as he ran towards her.

Leafa nodded and moved over to him. Kirito took the fishing rod and pulled hard.

There was a splash, accompanied by something breaking the water's surface and heading right towards Kirito. He instinctively raised his guard, but he saw Riwet's form dart in front of him.

A small sound of impact, and everything was still.

"I'm good!" Riwet said, breaking the silence. He turned around to Kirito, and Kirito could see that there was something stuck at Riwet's forearm.

With a grunt, Riwet pried it off he struggled to pry it off. "Guh! Man, that was stuck in there." He took a look at the front of the fish and raised his eyebrow. "That's one hell of a face you've got there." He muttered to it.

"What did we get?" Leafa asked excitedly.

"Great Lamprey. Here, take a look." Riwet said before he turned the fish around and showed the group.

It was less of a fish and more of an eel-like, slimy monstrosity with rows of hooked, inward-pointing teeth that formed a ring around its front.

All traces of Leafa's excitement about finally catching a fish immediately disappeared.

"GrossgrossgrossgrossGROOOOOOSSS!" She yelled, her skin crawling.

Riwet muttered the monster's name displayed on top of it. "Well, another fish to eat."

"Wait, you're gonna eat that?!" Leafa asked.

"Well, it took a bite out of me, so it's natural that I did the same."

"That doesn't make any sense!"

"I want to taste it, too!" Yui spoke up.

"Me, too!" Kirito added.

"Yui-chan?! Onii-chan?!"

The group took a minute to calm down, but after that, they started preparing for a meal.

They finished setting the tripod and hung the pot on it and over the fire. Beside it were some of the fish - as well as the lamprey - pierced through with skewers and being cooked. Riwet was taking care of the stew while Kirito maintained the fire. After a short while, their meal was ready, and they dug in.

"This is really good!" Yui exclaimed. "I didn't know you could cook this well, onii-chan!"

"Thank you." Riwet replied. "The ingredients did most of the heavy lifting, though. Can't go too wrong with simple recipes and fresh ingredients, right Leafa?"

Leafa inhaled loudly. "...it was delicious." She admitted.

When the lamprey was being grilled, it started letting out a fragrant, tantalizing scent that made Leafa's stomach grumble despite her apprehension. Removing its head helped a bit since, without it, it resembled something like an eel instead of something she would call an eldritch nightmare made manifest.

"Man, that Grand Quest is something else, isn't it?" Kirito remarked.

"A single enemy didn't pose much of a threat, but their numbers would increase exponentially in proportion to our progress. I believe we got a little more than halfway before we were overwhelmed." Yui elaborated.

"What a soul-crushing quest design." He glanced at Riwet. "You feelin' alright? I seem to recall you taking half a dozen great arrows to the body."

Riwet smiled. "No problem at all. It's what the stats are for. If I'm the one dodging more than you, then that's a problem. Now we know that we've gotta wait for the cavalry."

"I wonder if that's gonna be enough..."

For a while, the only sounds present were the sound of the wilderness as the group silently continued eating.

"Hey, Riwet." Kirito quietly started.

"Yeah?" Riwet replied.

"Do you remember...my fight with Heathcliff at the 75th Floor?"

"I'd have to be a literal amnesiac to ever forget that. Why?"

"Do you think that I could pull that same crap out for this coming raid?"

"Yep." Riwet quickly replied, with no hint of hesitation.

Kirito frowned. "How can you be so sure?"

"That's basically you. When the chips are down, you're gonna make some magic. That's what happened with Heathcliff, and considering what's at stake, I've no doubt that you'll surprise us." He let out a smile. "Of course, just like always, I'll be there to give you a little bit more of a push. Me, Leafa, Yui, and the rest of the army."

Kirito smiled back. "I'm counting on it."

With that, the group lightened up and continued eating while making small talk.

After they finished their meal, a shadow flew over the group. They looked up and were in awe of the sight.

Numerous figures dotted the once-clear skies of Alne, hovering over them high up from the ground. Then, half of the figures descended and landed near the group in an orderly fashion. They were the Sylphs, all armed to the teeth and clad in matching pristine armor with green accents.

The other half also descended and landed on the ground. At first glance, they looked to be winged, lizard-like beasts the size of a large van. They were primarily blue in color, but plate armor covered most of their bodies. Upon closer inspection, the group could see that these beasts were being ridden by players. The Cait Siths, dressed in brown-accented armor, had arrived.

"Well, looks like we've got our money's worth." Riwet remarked. He spotted a familiar face as his eyes met Nairi's. He nodded to her, and she nodded back before she went to the side and checked in on her teammates.

"You better believe it!" A female voice called from behind. They turned around and saw the Cait Sith leader, Alicia Rue, jumping off her mount. "They're all equipped with the finest gear that money could buy, and then some."

Riwet stared at the two leaders. "You didn't get anything for yourselves? Besides the sweet-looking wyverns, of course."

"I've filled my bathtub with Yrd and bathed in it, so I'm good." She replied nonchalantly.

An awkward moment passed before she burst out laughing. "Nyahahaha! Just kidding, just kidding! That sounds quite gross. In all seriousness, I'm already plenty geared up even before your donations and I'm used to what I've got, so there's no need."

"I'm in the same situation as her." Sakuya added. "But rest assured that all our troops are beyond their peak conditions, thanks in large part to your contributions." Her gaze swept across them, and she nodded. "Now, shall we get going?"

They nodded back. The two leaders called for attention, and they started walking into Alne.

Inside Alne proper, the city was abuzz. Player bystanders gasped and gawked at the sidelines as the combined Sylph and Cait Sith army marched towards the World Tree.

Kirito and Riwet were at the center of the group, keeping a low profile so as to not stand out in the sea of green, blue, and brown. Beside them, Leafa attempted to do the same until a voice called from behind her.

"Leafa-chan!" She turned her head around, and there was Recon seemingly materializing out of nowhere.

"Recon!" She replied. "What are you doing here?"

"Hehe~ are you surprised? After I escaped from the Salamanders, I came looking for you. I asked around, and Sakuya-san was kind enough to let me tag along."

"Is he your friend?" Riwet spoke up. "The one you contacted when we first met."

Leafa turned to Riwet. "That's right. His name's Recon. He's got a tendency to run his mouth on things, but you can count on him."

"That's right! When it comes to protecting Leafa-chan, there's no one else who can compare against me-oof!"

"Don't get carried away." Leafa interrupted him with a smack on the back of the head before she gave him a party invite.

Eventually, they reached the entrance to the Grand Quest. The group was tense, with each member silently steeling themselves for the coming battle. Sakuya stepped forward and approached the gate, with Alicia close behind. The pair of stone statues moved their weapons to block the gate, and a notification window appeared in front of Sakuya.

You who have yet to experience the heights of the sky...do you seek passage to the king's castle? A disembodied voice was heard by the group.

Sakuya took a deep breath and pressed OK.

Then prove you are worthy of soaring the skies with those wings you bear.

The statues' weapons shifted out of the way, and the gates opened.

The true fight to the top was underway.


Loading...Complete


"Do you think they'll make it?" Strea asked.

"I have every faith in them." Asuna replied. "You saw how much they progressed even with the two of them. Now with all of those people adding to the fight, they've got it."

"Heh. Well, either way, there's not much sense to do anything else other than wait. If the worst-case scenario happens, then we find another way to get out. Until then, it's not over."

"You're right."

Strea elaborated as they went back. She had sensed Yui's presence, and they were very close. They took the card and threw it down for Kirito's group to receive. She did this for two reasons - the first would be to send a message to them that they are here, and the second is that the card could prove useful with regards to the Grand Quests…'gimmicks'.

Provided they know when and how to use it.

After that, she manipulated the image so that it would transition flawlessly to the real thing.

As far as they knew, they were not detected.

Currently, Asuna was sitting down on the chair, her head laying sideways on the table. She tried her best to look despondent while hiding her excitement.

Asuna let out a deep breath. "Thank you for being here, Strea. You've been a great help. Not just for all those stuff earlier, but also being another person whose company I can actually tolerate."

"You're welcome. Well, there's nothing to do but wait. Let's hope that they'll be done quickly. I don't know about you, but I'm overdue for a change of scenery."

Asuna let out the slightest of smiles. "So am I. I've been wearing these skimpy rags for far too long."


Chapter End


A/N: Sorry. Been a while, huh? I just wasn't feeling the drive to write so I had to step away. Hope all of you are staying safe.

Shit goes down next chapter, and hopefully, I'll finish it sooner in less time.

That's all for now. Thank you very much, and have a good one.