Sorry for the wait! A lot changed in my life since the last time I updated. Moved across the country, and had to get settled after one of my worst mental periods of my life. I'm now safe and happy with my partner though! Things are looking good for once and I felt like this story needed an update finally. Enjoy!
I made a small edit to the previous chapter as well.
A huge exhale left Akemi as she stepped through her portal, the release of tension making her fall forward and feel a bit faint. Her fall was stopped by two pairs of arms, and one against her chest. "I never... want to do that again." Akemi grumbled as she collapsed with her three closest people.
"Then don't! That Thing was so creepy..." Ana grumbled, dusting off the slightly taller Kitsune woman, before hugging her again.
"Agreed...Thank you though.. for asking about my daughter..." Kyouko said and looked into Akemi's eyes to properly convey that.
Akemi flushed at both those women being so.. close to her. She hugged Hannyuu tightly as the kitten had wrapped around her right away. "Its alright you three.. Its over with. Now.. Lets go get comfortable..." She said with folded ears.
Ana and Kyouko nodded but looked confused. Hannyuu was too distracted keeping her mother close. "I told you I would tell you more about me when I got back right?" Akemi offered with a sad smile.
Beep Beep Beep Beep
The Neutral alarm app began to ring inside of the head of a tiny figure in bed, occasionally being matched by the beep of the health monitor attached to their arm. It took a few minutes for them to stir even as the sound was directly transmitted into their brain.
"Come on.. get up.. Its the day..." They whimpered to themselves and pried off the blankets. It took a few more minutes for them to fully sit themselves up on the side of the bed, and another to pull themselves into the electric wheelchair next to their bed. They carefully moved their monitor onto their chair and wheeled themselves carefully through their small living space to the bathroom.
After getting their morning routine out of the way they peered into the dirty mirror and sighed "Last login... last day.." They mumbled quietly as they saw just how tired they were. Dark circles rimmed the entirety of their hazy blue eyes, and their entire androgynous body looked skeletal with the bones jutting out of their skin like they were on death's door.
They wheeled into their tiny kitchen area by the living room and pondered "Could I even stomach it..? Water it is.." they grasped a filtered water bottle and greedily gulped, feeling a bit refreshed. The Iv drip was one thing, but it didn't help their dry throat. They stared up at the tubes of nutrient paste, the last of the food they currently had, or really could eat... "There isn't much point, would just make me nauseous anyway..." they placed the tube back and sighed, there was no avoiding things...
They grasped the box further on the counter and unpacked it. Inside the medical packaging was a simple large bracelet, nothing fancy about the design besides a large button in the center of it on the outside, almost like a watch without the time piece. They began to read the papers that came with the box, though they had already read them a few times days prior
~Koichi-kun, I'm sorry but the board of health has decided with the lack of future treatment options in relation to your financial assessment that the most we can be allowed to do for you is give you a humane exit as stipulated in Humax Co sponsored bill 1179. Even with current treatment the most it might give you is a year or two, and the pain would only increase. When you feel you are ready, place the device on your wrist tightly and hold down the button for 10 seconds. A needle will extend to deliver a chemical compound to induce a deep sleep for several minutes, after which will it deliver a drug that will induce heart failure. I'm sorry that there is no more we can do for you, but the board decided there was no future profit in treatment without insurance. My hands are tied. -Dr Motonishi~
It was such a cold decision, but not surprising... Though they wished they hadn't continued to use that name "My name isn't Koichi...I told him to call me Akemi..." Honestly, one of her biggest regrets was that her few family members who might remember her would only remember her with that name, a boy's name.
She sighed and set that box down, that would be for later, after her business was concluded. "I can at least go out with a bang!" She told herself with as much enthusiasm as her tired body could muster.
It wasn't unexpected, she knew her treatments were a stop-gap measure for incurable genetics and had accepted the end of her tale. While there was gene-therapy, it was far beyond the monetary means of even her semi-wealthy family, assuming they hadn't disowned her for being her...living was a pain anyway.
"Lets get to it, the raid is in an hour..." She muttered and wheeled herself towards a large chair in the center of her living space, connected to her computer by an array of wires.
It took a few minutes for her to swing herself up into the seat, already she felt like she could sleep a day or two more just from that exertion. She strapped her body into the chair tightly, aligning the neural port on her neck with the protruding adapter from the padded chair.
Slipping her arms into wide ports in the armrests, she let her visual field flood with information directly into her brain from the implant. It was all normal. Her vitals showed up and seemed to barely be within acceptable means to allow a full immersion game like Yggdrasil.
It had taken a few emails and a letter from her doctor to get customer support to grant her special exception to normal vital requirements to play, she guessed they might have taken pity on her...She was thankful though, being able to play let her escape her wretched body for a while, and her IV drip let her not have to log out for water and food like most who would get booted for those values being too low.
She mentally navigated the menu before taking a look at her own body, cringing at how skeletal she looked, it didn't feel like her body any more... Her virtual avatar felt far better, even with the lack of certain senses...Some more modern DMMO-RPG had basic sense of smell input, but something about Yggdrasil still drew her in for the years she played...
With a few deep breaths, Akemi braced herself. Selecting the icon to dive into the game she closed her eyes, feeling her senses leave her crippled body. The lack of pain that was normal for her was a wonderful thing in itself, the absence perking up her mood considerably, she loved technology for that...
When she got over the vertigo of her senses being muffled and shoved into her avatar she opened her eyes. Looking over her slender female form she smiled, this is how she truly should be...taking her first pain free steps she checked her inventory.
Her inventory was well stocked with items for the upcoming battle/war that was approaching. She equipped her battle outfit and confirmed all her stats, reminding herself of the strategy she thought up.
Akemi felt strong, ready for the challenge in front of her that day, her last day. She opened the door of her private room in the guild hall and activated her guild bracelet.
De mundo, omnes nos venire, ut mundus nos omnes reditus was engraved on the band, making Akemi trace over those simple words, contemplating them before teleporting. "From the world we come, to the world we return...Suppose this will be true of me soon.." She spoke with a bitter smile.
With a small flash of blue flames, Akemi stepped into the armoury. "Who is ready for the party? Its time to make Prominence cry!" She said with a grin, looking around the room at her guild mates. The core members of the guild, the leadership all stood around her decked out in their Sunday best. She supposed not everyone was be able to fit in that one room...They were one of the most populated guilds at over 500 players after all, it wouldn't be possible to get to the 2nd most powerful guild otherwise.
"Damn right! Arrogant pricks!" Shouted one of the thirsty or so in the room, soon gaining a chorus of affirmations. Morale seemed good to her, she would need to answer their hope.
She looked to her best friend, a Paladin and her guild master. "Roseta, are you ready?" Akemi asked as Roseta stared at her with worry creasing her forehead. Despite being in heavy white and gold armor, she looked rather fragile as she held her folded arms close, not seeming to feel the cheer and excitement in the air.
"You.. sure this is the best plan?" Roseta asked as they began to walk deeper into that hall lined with all manner of equipment. "Once you do this you know what happens... we don't need to be number one. You sure you are okay?" Her friend asked the small Kitsune woman as they reached a blank wall.
"Yeah, I'm alright…I need to do this, I'll be too.. busy to make it to the game's end like I said. Let me do this…" Akemi put a hand on her taller friend's shoulder.
With a sigh Roseta placed a hand on that empty wall "Includere haec peccata in terra, sepelire lumen eorum oculis." She spoke, her golden guild master only guild bracelet glowing as that wall seemed to turn to a wall of leaves floating away, swirling about the newly opened dark hallway in the wall.
They both started walking down the light-less corridor until a thick and hollow pillar in the center of a larger room erupted in flames. The flames swirled upwards to light up the cylindrical room, filled with floating platforms and hollows in the walls, almost like a large library. Instead of books in these shelves, an item was stored instead, either of high monetary value, or emotional value to the guild.
They both knew that what they sought wasn't in those shelves, and walked closer to that flaming pillar. With zero concern Roseta reached into the flame, grasping something before pulling back.
In her hand was a spear. Gold serpents swirled up the thick shaft of wood from the world tree, according to the lore at least. Those decorative snakes seemed to combine into one at the end, with a golden blade jutting from it's mouth, with a smaller blade at other end. Double ended in both form and power.
"Longinus…" Akemi muttered, feeling the power of that lance as Roseta handed it to her. It had higher data level than her own Naginata by a fair bit for sure...It disappeared as she placed it within her inventory, the entire thing disappearing in that pocket space. "It won't go to waste. I'll bury this in Bachus and get us into first place." Akemi said as she felt the weight of the undertaking. She wouldn't let this mission fail.
"I know you can do it, we'll keep everyone else busy so you can focus. With it Bachus at least can't use World Savior on you.." Roseta noted as they began to head back, the room returning to darkness.
"Getting that out of his hands will be another challenge I suppose...But I got plans for that…" She noted, feeling fired up.
"I'm sure you do, I didn't make you the strategist for nothing." Her friend hip checked her as they walked, almost making Akemi fall over.
The forest around them was quiet, even as a battle raged on the other side of the tree line. Most of Akemi's guild Natura hid within, concealed within illusions to await the signal of the supreme commander of this operation.
Akemi watched from the sky above the forest with Fly, observing as Prominence cut through the third largest guild of Yggdrasil like butter. While they had nearly as many members as both Natura and Prominence, they lacked the quality of players that the number one and two guilds had.
Once the battle line had moved further away, it revealed Prominence's force's flank, she snapped her fingers, the sound echoing through the forest to selectively be heard by her guild. Once the forces below her began their charge and neared the line of long range archers and mages that Prominence had focused on other targets Akemi let her illusions drop, letting the mass of fresh troops tear into those long range fighters. She was thankful for the fact that the impending closing of the game was making guilds like Prominence lazy in their strength, their arrogance also showing itself in this battle.
Pulling out Ex Oblivion she began to search for Bachus among those battling below. At the front line was a warrior in all black platemail, a large one handed club in his hand and a crown of gold on his helmet-less head.
"Indeed.. Arrogance…" To bring one's guild item out of the guild is either the height of arrogance, or plain stupidity. Akemi leaned towards both of those options. She observed the power of that ordinary looking club. It was turning fully armored players, max level players into pixel mush… If the game showed that violence at all. Instead of blood, all that happened was a slight feeling of impact before the players that were hit disappearing, some gold and an item dropping in their place, ignored by the battle intoxicated warriors.
She checked her surroundings to confirm her plan before holding a hand to the mass of players around Bachus far below. [Maximize Magic: Nuclear Blast]!" She shouted, preferring voice controls to the digital console most players used, having to remember their spells by name being too difficult for many.
The entire battlefield was treated to an earsplitting roar at one of the strongest AOE spells that were not Super-Tier was unleashed. Akemi thanked the fact that friendly fire was not a thing.
The players that were lower leveled were either destroyed by the blast on the scale of a miniature nuclear explosion, or sent flying. The negative status effects wouldn't last long for the higher leveled players, and might only scratch a tenth of their hp for their top tier players.
Akemi flew downwards into the dust cloud below where she could sense Bachus still [Extend Maximize Magic: Prismatic Barrier]!" She shouted once she was just in range. The blast did what she wanted it to, isolate her target with the knock back, while her barrier trapped both of them together.
She wasted no time in casting a silent [Greater Invisibility] and [Greater Illusion Clone] to fly in close. Bachus had turned around once her clone came out of the ash and dust close to him. His club strike seemed to hit as the clone disappeared… just as a defeated player would. A feral grin was on his face as he seemed to kill his barely seen assassin.
That look of battle lust would change to surprise as his HP took another hit, a slice cutting into his back. Akemi gave him no space as she pressured him with another stab, which he blocked with his club. Impacting that world item was like hitting a brick wall, but she continued her strikes, dancing through the movements of her Naginata.
"Akemi! You Fox BITCH!" He shouted as he moved forward into the gaps in her attacks, swinging his club down towards her head, confidant that it had stored enough strength from his kills to one shot even one of worst enemies from past conflicts.
Akemi's face turned to fear as that strike came down at her, right until it impacted her shoulder.. and did nothing. His mind ran through possibilities of why she didn't seem to get hit. "You're damn Illusions!" He assumed as he swung towards the side. Distracting illusions were a tactic she had often used against him in the past.
He got a strike down his chest after leaving himself open, as the Akemi he had assumed was an illusionary clone cut him deeply.
As the Curse status effect appeared on his bar he began to realize what was happening, his mind locking onto the only logical conclusion.
As a universal rule of the world, the only things that could block or negate a World Item, was another World Item. He rightly assumed then that Akemi must have one in her possession to be unaffected by the club, one of the Twenty possibly if it entirely negated his blow.
Akemi didn't seem to want to give him room to think "Stay back!" he shouted as he leapt back from another swipe of that blade he had the displeasure of being introduced to several times in the past. He kept having to back up and block with his now defunct weapon.
He took inventory as his battle rage began to simmer down and turn into a chill in his bones. His forces were under attack from Natura at the worst possible moment, his war on a whim biting him in the ass. He just wanted to have fun at the end of the game! He couldn't use World Savior to fight Akemi, he was at her mercy with the flurry of blows keeping him pressed back. His use of items was blocked by the Curse debuff that strike to the chest inflicted on him, likely a spell his nemesis cast on her weapon for this moment.
The most pressing was the fact he didn't know what World Item she might have! Was it an unknown one? There was too many unknowns as his ill-conceived plans seemed to fall.
If he swapped weapons World Savior would be destroyed, such was the weakness of any of the Twenty most powerful World Items.
"Told you in our last fight that I'm going all out! Aren't you having FUN?! I'm having a blast!" Akemi shouted as she forced Bachus up against the wall of her barrier, something he wasn't paying attention to in his panic.
Akemi as well also had narrowed her focus in their isolated battlefield, not noticing till that club was smashed backwards into her barrier! While her person was immune to World Savior, her magic construct was not.
The sound of shattering glass echoed, then replaced by pounding footsteps as the players that surrounded the barrier rushed in towards Akemi to aid their guild master.
Her grin turned into a grim flat line as numbers began to interfere. Her focus was drawn away from Bachus as his troops kept her busy in sheer numbers. She could defeat them one on one.. but these numbers were something to fear for her. It was within her calculations thankfully. The trick was in execution.
As she was tied up blocking two warriors blades with her long weapon, two more swung down behind her, slicing into her shoulders, making her cry out in shock. The next blade was from a fifth warrior, slicing sideways towards her head. Bachus watched the shocked face of Akemi as that blade cut into her neck, her digital head being removed, if this wasn't a game it would have gone flying… And she vanished like any other player, a critical hit like that almost always being extreme damage.
He knew she wouldn't go down that easily...He looked around "Keep your eyes out! She is still arou-" He told his men as one priest began to heal him.
"Too late! [Weapon skill activate]! [Fallen Down]!" He heard off to his side, then came her trump card, her Coup De Grace she had saved. It wasn't the first time he had seen the special ability of her weapon, storing of Super Tier magic, but it was the first time she had used a direct attack Super Tier spell that she hadn't absorbed in the fight itself. She came prepared with it this time...
The tip of her Naginata glowed before a pillar of blinding light erupted. No warning could be given as that Super Tier spell expanded outwards, ripping through his forces in it's brilliance.
Being a stored spell, it was essentially already cast, and didn't gain the bonuses of her positive karma, but it succeeded in causing damage to her foe with little warning. Her other foes seemed to have perished in the blast, but Bachus still stood "[Life Essence]" She cast. He was weak she knew, he wasn't a mage and didn't have [False Data: Life].
Bachus was in a bind, he was back i battle with an enemy his weapon couldn't touch. "Fuck you bitch!" He shouted in frustration as he had felt boxed in. The teleport tablet in his hand failed him as he thought it would, it was common sense to use [Dimensional lock], and he knew it was in her capabilities.
He had less than ten percent of his health remaining, and was getting warnings from the game that his heart rate was getting too high and risked being ejected out of the game, a universally hated safety measure.
Akemi rushed at him once again. He had been getting chip damage from her attacks throughout the battle, not always being able to block her blow without getting nicked just by virtue of his blocking weapon being so small! He was in danger of that last shred of health being deleted.
Bachus was a front-line leader, his strategist was his second in command but had left the game already. He would probably kick his Guild master's ass for what he was about to do.
It was a snap decision to toss that club to the side before pulling a greatsword from his storage. That club let out a shrill sound before shattering like shards of glass. Akemi grunted as she was blocked by an equal weapon this time. Her attacks stopped slipping by the larger weapon. They both leapt backwards after a few more blows.
Akemi had a strange smile on her face, like she hid a secret, putting him further on edge. He saw her muttering under her breath as they went back to clashing, his chosen weapon doing far better in keeping her at bay, and even returning her damage.
For magic melee hybrid fighter, she had not used much magic in their fight, further increasing his anxiety. He kept an eye on her hands to ensure she didn't pull out any items.
He felt his nerves go off as they moved to clash again. His next strike seemed to hit her blade early, before it should have, cluing him in to her illusion. "You really live up to your race, nothing but smoke and mirrors!" he shouted as he swung in a direction opposite of where Akemi was aiming, the sensation of impact making him feel a surge excitement and joy.
His sword was lodged part of the way into her side, and her weapon dropped to her feet. "Yeah.. Nothing but lies and falsehoods...Its funny you know? you'll be the last person I speak to." She must be at the very last bit of hp in his estimate, a jerk of his sword would finish it.
"What.. do you mean?" It was a curious statement with worrying implications. It threw him off his guard.
"Just what I said it means.. win or lose this is my last battle. I suppose Its fine to at least tell you.. Humor a tired girl?" and Akemi seem tired, even with the limited facial expressions of the game he could tell by their voice.
"Speak your piece before I send you off." Bachus said, his arrogance returning. "The game is ending yeah, but there is still a few weeks, enough time for a rematch."
"I knew you weren't such a bad guy, I enjoyed our fights, really I did. You pushed me more than anyone else, took me a week to think of these strategies. It didn't disappoint." She took a deep breath, at least in real life, her small digital chest barely moving. "I haven't told my guild, and I'm not going to… but I want to tell at least someone. I'm dying, I look like a skeleton honestly...After this battle I got a date with a long long sleep…"
"I'm.. sorry to hear...I didn't mean.. what I was saying in the fight…" His persona of battle raged warrior seemed to fade a bit. "It was fun while it lasted." He nodded. His guard entirely down, his grip loose, listening to her defeat speech sealed the sense of victory for him. It felt like a hollow victory though after listening to his enemy…
His eyes widened as he felt something piece him "Did you just..?" The time perspective illusion she still had on didn't give him a chance to notice something was off until it was too late. Her movements caught up, showing her quickly pull a golden lance from her storage and stab it into his chest.
"Sorry.. But you are coming with me...As the last person I'll ever see I'll have you guide me over the river." His console froze as he noticed the lance.
"Dammit..Right at the very end. Shit!" He remembered his crown he had on, and connected it to the item she had. "Longinus!? Really?! I take it back! Fuck you!" He shouted halfheartedly with a bark of laughter, he knew he was out played.
"Yeah...Goodbye Bachus." She smiled at him as both their characters began to crack, with light shining from those cracks, their digital bodies crumbling to dust; Bachus from the stab wound, and Akemi starting from the arm holding Longinus. Those remaining on the battlefield had to stop to see that light shining from them.
In the distance Roseta watched with a bitter smile. They won, but at the cost of one of her dearest friends...at least she had her actual phone number for after the battle.
That light faded, and so did those two. Every member of Prominence that was around stopped and looked shocked
[Prominence has been disbanded due to destruction of their guild item!] The system message rang in the now quiet battlefield. It would be spoken about in forums even after the game's ending, either in bitter rage, or sweet victory depending on the person.
Thank you all for waiting patiently… I know I am not a fast or verbose writer, but I tried my best with this chapter and hope you enjoyed it!
If you feel like it please review! They really let me know if the story is worth continuing and tie into how quickly I update!
I took a few creative liberties with some concepts in the game, making a verbal command system a thing as it just makes sense, it would also explain how Ainz was easily able to use the New World version. With like 2000 spells it would be hard for people to remember every name... and that sounds like an unreasonable number of icons to remember to push as well...
Akemi's items and skills aren't something I came up with on the spot, her weapon is very good due to the work her Guild did in helping her make it. Their thank you to a special member of their guild.