Sword Saint

Disclaimer: everything belongs to their rightful owners and it is not mine.

Prologue

Percy Jackson was one of the many odd students in a rather out casting normal American school system. He didn't hang out with the cool kids, played any sports, or was popular by any means. Although athletically gifted, he didn't see the fun in participating in sports. His hobby or rather pass time was playing video games.

He looked on his computer at the newest Virtual Reality MMO Roleplaying game that was set to release. A game called Sword Art Online. It was supposedly only released in Japan but he himself was a beta tester as he was given an open release but obviously closed to the public.

Generally, the game was fun to Percy as he realized the generally excited and excellent acclaim of the game proved to be correct and its long testing was bearing its fruit as the first batch of games were made and sold within minutes. A copy Percy himself managed to get.

Now his friends, if you could call them that, weren't exactly into the gaming scene as they saw it as more fanatical or nerdy thing to do. Something which aggravated Percy greatly. Seemingly no one being able to understand or perhaps share his wonderous love of gaming.

However, the game grew larger and larger as the game brought the audience of thousands of gamers from all over the world. It was still in testing to fix any bugs or rather glitches that could be manipulated.

Percy tested it out and realized how realistic it was. This would be his fantasy, an escape from the harsh real world. He could feel hunger and fatigue in the game which was attributed to the Nerve Gear that the game required to use for the virtual experience. He could smell touch and feel pain, it was surreal and realistic.

"Percy get off the computer would you, I need your help setting up for dinner." Sally Jackson hollered from the kitchen trying to detach her son from the computer screen as he continued to read. As he read that the full release would be later in the night for him.

"Mom, but the full release of the game is today. You know full game experience and all. Like there aren't any restrictions, we could go to all floors of Aincrad. We get to recreate our characters to our liking. Supposedly they're going to look exactly like us –"Sally put her hand on her son's mouth as he continued to babble through her hand.

Sally loved her son so much. However, he proved to be high maintenance in terms of academics. He wasn't overly great in school and as such was deemed a lost cause by his teachers something that caused her sadness. Her son also didn't seem to like school as he was expelled from over five different schools which didn't help her cause in finding a school for him to transfer to mid-way throughout terms.

"Alright, Alright. Just set the plates will you. Even though your sixteen you still act like such a child." Sally jokingly said to her son who could only smile in return.

"But you'll always be my baby." Percy was enveloped by her in a hug as she closed her eyes and took the scent of her son who smelled salty and strangely like the sea breeze, perhaps the new cologne his father sent him.

"Alright let's eat. Today for dinner is Lasagna." Sally grabbed the lasagna out of the oven as Percy eagerly waited to eat.

After dinner Percy began awaiting the time slot in which the game would open, full release, no glitches, no bugs, and just overall the full experience he had been craving. In Japan, the full game would be open to all the players who had boughten a copy at 9:00 A.M. Which for Percy who lived in New York and on the East Coast time zone was 8:00 P.M.

He eagerly looked at his digital alarm which signaled that the game would launch in only a few minutes. He put on his nerve gear and proceeded to wait for the alarm to beep for the signal that the new hour had arrived, and he did indeed hear it.

Percy warped through the continuum of true reality and into the virtual reality. Percy noticed that he had to recreate his character and also noticed that unlike the beta and testing phases of the game, the full release required the players to look like their actual selves. As he looked at himself, he noticed that he looked exactly how he looked in real life. Right down to the odd and rare color of his sea green eyes. His black locks messy and uncontrollable, yet the hair seemed to fit perfectly for his face. His tan and crafted face looking the perfect size, his body slim yet packed with muscles.

His apparel was a blue light tunic with brown leather breeches and knee length leather boots. He had decided that he was going to specialize in one handed handiness in swordsmanship. Without a shield because when had tried through the different specialization he realized it provided the best balance for him. He like the speed, power, and even slight defense it gave even though it wouldn't be the same as those with heavier defense specialization. He decided to stick with his actual real-life name for the game.

As he continued throughout the interface, he decided to allocate some skill points in fishing, foraging, and looting.

Percy spawned where he expected to spawn in the Town of Beginnings. He noticed thousands of players begin to converse with each other, most likely friends from school or perhaps even family members. He knew that he would have to start grabbing quests from the First Floor to make sure he could be the highest level when they would have to take on the first boss Illfang the Kobold Lord. Of course, many wouldn't know who the actual boss would be, just those who had been beta testers.

However, before anyone could proceed to further explore the First Floor of SOA, an announcement was made through a hologram that was being broadcasted to the general player population.

"Attention fellow gamers. I humbly thank you for taking part in my game." A figured seemingly appeared from red robes and was masked unable to show the face of the voice.

"I'm known as Kayaba. Most of you haven't probably noticed that you can no longer log out of the game. That is no glitch or bug. You are actually trapped in my experiment. How your mind will grasp such concepts that there is no escape except completing the game or death." The hooded red figure continued.

"Some individuals in the outside world have attempted to displace the nerve gear off the users head, they have come to a startling realization that the players who had once had the nerve gear had died from the highly radioactive waves emitted from the Nerve Gear itself." Gasps could be heard throughout the ten thousand captured and trapped gamers within Sword Art Online.

"I also alluded that this game is going to have the real aspect of death. If you die in the game, you will be dead in the real world. Those that die in this game will have their brains fried and exploded from the radioactive waves." Kayaba emphasized as players seemingly also exaggerated.

"Some of you have had the audacity to alter your appearance from your real life look so I will now proceed to alter your appearance to your apparent look. Courtesy of the Nerve gear being able to outline your height your looks, your pigmentation, even your speech patterns." Kayaba explained as players began to alter appearances.

A young man who had been hugging a female player came to a startling realization that the female player had in reality been a grown man. "You're a catfish!" the men yelled in realization.

"Now you will see that things aren't what they seem. The only way to be free of such capture is to clear the One Hundred Levels of Aincrad including the final boss. Until then fellow gamers." The blood red sky ceded to the bright sky-blue skies full of sunshine and clouds. The red hooded figure of Kayaba was no longer the center of attention, vanished into oblivion just as he had come into existence.

As Percy watched he could only feel his heart sink at the words of Kayaba, that there was no freedom and escape until all hundred floors of Aincrad had been cleared. Furthermore, his heart sank even deeper hoping his mother hadn't panicked enough to remove his Nerve Gear and perhaps end his life source and existence.

Percy was so deep into self-pity and a nervous breakdown he almost failed to notice dozens of players' eyes turn glossy and their players began to fade and vanish from the game. Adding onto the players who had already lost hope and began to launch themselves from the first floor of Aincrad. His brain starting to comprehend trauma as he saw people willingly end their lives without a second thought.

Continuous murmurs and panic could be heard throughout the courtyard of cobblestone. Players trying to find their friends or anything that could keep the sustained and attached to life. Various players had seemingly looking resigned to such fate as their battle-hardened brains seemed take over as they began to group up and plans things further ahead.

Percy could only feel emptiness and solitude. No one approaching him or giving him a second glance as individuals continued to cause mass hysteria on their predicament. No friends, no family, no comforts of home were in Sword Art Online. He came to the startling realization was it even possible to clear and complete the game. Of the ten thousand players he had no doubt at least fifteen percent of them wouldn't make it past the first twenty levels.

"Hey" A fellow player called out.

Percy looked at him but realized he was talking to a player behind himself. Both players friended each other as they partnered up together and seemingly joined a bunched group of players trying to figure out how they could clear the first level.

Percy seeing that he would have to complete this alone continued through the empty side streets and into the darkness. He knew where NPC's with quests would be located. He would start there, leveling up was the first thing he had to do if he even wanted to survive. He continued through the walkways into the shadows, empty, nothing scaring him any longer. After all the worst thing he could do was die, and even that didn't seem to scare him. In his mind he expected to happen sooner or later, and just like he commenced the game alone he would die alone. Perhaps that was meant for him. He didn't know but he knew damn well if he was going to get out of the monstrosity Sword Art Online had become, he would need to be the best player, the battle-hardened warrior, a leader. Something he was unsure of he would become.

Authors Note: Another crossover for my profile. I guess I'm only gonna be doing those on this profile. I actually enjoy meshing Percy Jackson into everything. I guess I should really read other books, I guess. Anyways this is an alternate Universe so some storylines might not be canon. For the most part I think It will be just Percy's third person POV but yeah. But idk let me know.

Tell me what you think of the story.