Sword Art Online

After The Incident

Chapter 24 – Deathguns awakening

I took a deep, raspy breath and swallowed my fear along with my spit as I stared up at the massive looming stadium. I was sure that, as a witness to the events that was about to unfold, the stadium would be as welcoming as ever. Warm food stands and ticket booths with shouting sales clerks was standing everywhere, offering hot-dogs, popcorn, or hot deals on tickets for whoever would watch the tournament.

As a contestant however, the building couldn´t have seemed more scary. I knew that, inside, a few rooms would be filled to the brim with happy and excited people that looked forward to see the qualification matches for the BoB tournament begin. But I also knew, that most of the space inside would be used to safe-keep the participants, until it was time to get out there and kill each other, for contesting.

I didn´t like the thought. Asuna and I had both been scarred by that last battle against the remaining pieces of the Laughing Coffin murder guild. Asuna maybe not as much as I, but to some extend. We had both sworn never to kill again after that. And even though I knew I wouldn´t be killing for real, the mere thought of me sending bullets through a virtual body seemed incredibly cruel and unnatural.

Even for me, who had killed several people in order to protect the people I cared about and loved. It almost seemed like I would be getting used to it after a while, seeming I had killed in total about 5 different people, and accused of the reason of the death of several others. I had seen so much death around me, and yet I still agreed to go in here. It seemed like a crazy idea now, even crazier than it had back then.

I stared up at the looming building with a mixed feeling of fear, anger and regret mixing in my abdomen. My nervousness and fear was beginning to make me feel sick, almost at the point of puking, if my avatar body actually had had any internal fluids to even empty itself of.

As a reliever, I began thinking how much Sugou had hurt my family. Had hurt me. For years now he had haunted me, he had literally tortured me for months, until I was finally released from ALO. Then, out of the blue, he of course had to turn up again, threatening not just me, but my family, my friends, my whole reason to exist at their lives.

He had inexplicably brought so much pain and suffering into the lives of both of our families, and worry into the lives of our friends. We had promised them that this soon would end, and that we wouldn´t endanger ourselves. But, it seemed we had to break the last promise to keep the first.

Just the thought of his smug face as he would inflict pain on me or someone I loved sent a chill of dread down my spine. But it was then immediately warmed up by an intense anger, that slowly began eating up my nervousness. I forgot everything about fear. And looked up at the stadium with a serious expression.

I knew this tournament only served for Sinon to prove that we could trust us. But, at the same time, it could help us with Sugou. If we advertised enough for ourselves, and put our names on the blackboard, Sugou might be so stupid that when he noticed us, he would try an attack.

And when he would, we would be ready. I would be ready to pay him back for all the pain over the years he had brought upon my family and myself. I could no longer stand around and do nothing, that much I knew now. So with one last encouraging and deep breath, I squeezed Asuna´s hand tight as we followed Sinon inside the massive and crammed stadium.

As we walked inside, I was slightly intimidated by all the angry glares and stares that was sent our way. I admired Sinon for her way of just plowing straight through it all, without paying attention to a single of the other contestants glares. I however, noticed every last one of them, and I got more and more nervous from the glares intensity alone.

When we finally reached the changing rooms, me and the girls parted way so we each could get our privacy. I sighed silently as I sat down on a bench in the boys changing room, looking down at my menu with a nervous expression.

The numbers in the menu said it all. To be honest, I didn´t have anything to be nervous about. I had some of the rarest and strongest equipment I could get with my standards, which would most likely protect me from any kind of danger. Even if I would die in the game, I wouldn´t die in real life, and even if my body´s reactions became too much, I knew that Aki would pull us both out of the game right away.

So technically, I had no reason to be so nervous. Everything was checked and cleared, this dive was idiot proof. And still, I couldn´t shake off this feeling that something would go horribly, horribly wrong. I kept telling myself it was just nerves, but… I was never really able to convince myself.

I sighed silently as I checked my equipment through, to check everything was in place. As I had checked everything, I stood up and took a deep breath, before exiting the changing room with heavy footsteps.

I had stood in the lobby for around 10 minutes when the girls had finally ended checking through their equipment. I smiled silently as Asuna stepped out of the changing room, in her new battle outfit and a machine gun around her neck in a strap.

Even in an army game she managed to put everything perfectly together, not only in a practical way, but she had also somehow managed to make her outfit look stylish and cool. She had apparently equipped a dye on her clothes, since her shorts and jacket was white, her tank top was red, and the strap and her heavy army boots was red with small sword imprints.

I smiled silently and waved at them shortly as I saw them exit the changing room, sighing silently as I looked up at the news bulletin. Apparently I was in the first battle, against some guy named Kyouta. I frowned silently from worry, the bad feeling getting more intense by the second.

"Kirito, you ok?" Asuna asked as she snaked her hand into mine.

I closed my fingers around her hand and nodded silently as I smiled apologetically.

"Yeah, I´m fine Asuna" I mumbled as I looked into her eyes "I´m sorry I make you worry all the time"

"You can´t do anything about it" She said with a smile "It´s part of being your partner. And I wish to fulfill that roll fully"

I nodded silently and sighed a little, my nervousness having dissipated slightly. I smiled and squeezed her hand as I kissed her cheek.

"You´re always the responsible one" I mumbled as I wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her close.

I was kind of longing for her to be close to me right now. My nervousness made me a little clingy sometimes, and it was a little embarrassing. Lucky me that I have such an understanding girlfriend as Asuna.

She smiled silently as she pulled me close as well, wrapping her arms around my neck in a hug.

"I know dummy" She whispered in my ear.

Suddenly a screech was formed over the speakers in the roof, followed by a female voice.

"Would Kirito, and Kyouta please get battle ready? The fight starts in 15 seconds. I repeat…"

I sighed silently as I gave Asuna´s slender body a small squeeze as I parted away from her.

"I guess it´s me first" I said with a smile "Root for me ok?"

"I will handsome" She said with a smile as she kissed my cheek "Good luck"

As I turned away from Asuna I frowned slightly from worry and nervousness as I stared up at the monitor featuring the stage for the fight.

"…3…2…1…"

As my teleportation was complete, and the light around me vanished, I looked around me with a curious expression. It seemed like I had arrived in the middle of some kind of ruin, maybe from what was supposed to look like a lost civilization. I looked around for a bit, until I heard some rustling of the grass, and quickly dived behind a crumbled wall for cover.

I closed my eyes and listened intently on any kind of clue to where my opponent was. I focused on blocking out any kind of sound coming from outside, the only things I heard for a few moments was only my own heartbeat. Until I heard some rustling of grass, and something that sounded like a recoil on a gun being pulled back.

I growled silently and drew both my new plasma sword and my pistol, charging towards the place I had heard the sounds. True as it was told, a tall guy was walking around between the dense trees, trying to figure out where he was.

As I charged he panicked a little and began firing at me with his machine gun. I dodged to the left and reflected a couple of bullets with my sword, jumping into cover behind a tree nearby. He growled silently as he switched magazine and ran to the opposite side of the battlefield.

I took a couple of quick and deep breaths to calm myself down. I understood why people liked this game. It was so immersive that you couldn´t help but feel that distinctive adrenaline rush flow through you. The fear would mix into excitement, and before you knew it, you would be so immersed that you would never stop playing again.

Though, I still didn´t like the thought of killing my opponent. Even though I knew he wouldn´t die for real, I still felt a sickening sensation along my stomach and throat whenever I would think about it. I swallowed my fear and stepped out from my hiding place, scouting around for my opponent.

Not long after I stepped out of my hiding, my opponent did the same. He growled aggressively and emptied his magazine in his attempt in killing me, and he was pretty close a few times.

I dodged the bullets I could as I used my sword to my advantage. I growled silently as I forced my way through the storm of bullets, the melody of steel against plasma loudly filling the air as I deflected any lethal bullet out of the way with my sword.

The guy soon ran out of bullets in his magazine and rushed to reload, but I didn´t let him get the chance. AS soon as he dropped the magazine out of his hands, I rushed forward, readying my sword for the finishing blow. I charged forward and let out my infamous battle cry, about to impale the poor guy with my sword, when he suddenly pulled out a hand gun from his belt.

He had caught me by surprise, and managed to hit me once in the abdomen and shoulder, and strafe my side a bit with his third bullet. I moaned slightly from the slight irritation I felt from the bullet wounds, and jumped back into hiding.

"Damn…" I mumbled silently as I watched my hp bar sink to the low yellow line "I guess I have to surprise him somehow. Charging recklessly get´s me nowhere!"

I could hear his heavy footsteps approach, so I hurried to move away from my current location. The fact that he hit me so much earlier had made him cocky, which in this situation worked for my advantage. He got so cocky he completely forgot anything about stealth, and I could hear him walk around and make noise anywhere he went, which gave me the perfect chance for a counterattack.

I smiled silently to myself as I picked up a rock, and threw it into a couple of nearby bushes, right nearby my opponents feet. He freaked out and immediately fired into the bushes, but of course he hit nothing else but bush.

I smirked a bit as I crawled up behind him, putting my gun at the back of his skull. He immediately froze up, didn´t even dare to look back, but tossed his gun away and his hands into the air.

"Good game buddy" I said warmly, not trying to sound alarm "Just remember, cockiness can be fatal. Try stealthing next time"

He nodded silently and sighed as he grunted regrettably. He chuckled silently and turned around to face me, no longer seeing me as an enemy. He smiled a little and sighed silently as he looked down with a defeated expression.

"I have to admit, that was fun" He said with a smile "I hope we can face off again some time, Kirito"

"Me too Kyouta" I said with a smile "Here´s a friend request for you. And could you please give up? I don´t really think finishing off people like this is good for the health"

"Fair fight huh?" He said with a smirk "I like that. I have accepted your friend request. Let´s hang out some time, and discuss battle strategies.

He smiled a bit and pressed the give up button in his menu, a signal horn sounding in the distance to mark the defeat of Kyouta. I smiled and nodded at him as we shook hands, before both getting teleported back to the lounge area for participants.

As I arrived back at my seat in the players lounge, I sighed silently and stretched my arms lazily.

"Thank god that´s over" I mumbled silently "at least I didn´t have to kill the poor guy"

I sighed silently and looked down at the hilt of my plasma sword. It didn´t seem like I had had to take lives with this yet. Virtual or not, the thought of killing off a body still scared me. And to be honest I feared the moment I would have to use that sword for killing. I had thought that that would never be necessary ever again, but it seemed like I was wrong.

When I looked down at the sharp lines of the design of the hilt, I came to a question I had wanted to find an answer for in quite a while now. When I would finally confront Sugou, would I have the courage? Would Asuna´s presence be enough to let me finally finish him off, once and for all? Would I ever have the courage to move on?

"No, I have to" I mumbled silently as I gripped tightly around my sword hilt "If not for myself, then for my family. We can´t take much more of this fear"

I sighed silently as I clicked the sword hilt back into my belt and looked up at the various screens, each showing a specific match. As I was searching for Asuna´s however, I suddenly felt this cold sensation run down my back, like it would do whenever I had a bad feeling about something. Something big was coming up, I could feel it.

As if almost on que a dreading looking player walked through the automatic doors into the lobby. His face was obscured by a mech looking mask of some kind, and the rest of his body was covered with either normal military clothes, or his cloak. His arms up to his shoulders was wrapped in tight bandages, and the eyes in the mask was shining a bright red as he sat down nearby my seat.

He took a quick glance in my direction and I hurried to look away. Just his presence here seemed to make the atmosphere even thicker than before, and it wasn´t pleasant.

"Who the hell is that guy..?" I asked myself as I decided to shift my gaze back to the screens, leaving the creepy guy to himself.

~Deathgun´s POV~

As I stepped inside the mostly empty player´s lounge, I smirked a bit as I immediately saw my target sitting by a table by himself. I smiled silently and placed myself at a table a couple of meters away from him, glancing over at him every once in a while.

´Why is his hair so long?´ I asked myself as I glanced over at him again ´Well, it doesn´t matter. What matters is that he gets what he deserves´

I frowned slightly as I thought back at what he had done to my brother. My brother, who had been in The Laughing Coffin guild in SAO, had been killed by Kirito´s hand in battle, when him and some of the top notch guilds decided to raid the Laughing coffin headquarters. My brother and the others had known of their plan, and had set a trap for them, but sadly, three, including my brother, were still killed in the attack, and the rest imprisoned.

Somehow, I had a feeling that Kirito would put all the blame on my big brother. That since my brother had been part of The Laughing Coffin, it had been his own fault for getting killed, and that id had been justified. But my brother never knew that killing players in SAO, actually resulted in death, I´m sure of it. He had a habit of being stupidly naïve, and I couldn´t believe he would do stuff like that with bad intentions.

But now, Kirito had taken my brother from me. And I was going to get my revenge. Luckily it seemed he was going for getting into the BoB tournament later today, which gave me the perfect opportunity to kill him. I had already qualified for the tournament, so now, all I had to do was wait, for the best chance to get rid of him, once and for all.

I sighed silently after a while and payed the barman for the beer I had ordered, stood from my seat, and left.

"This is for you, big brother…"

A/N

And there you guys go! That´s a wrap!

Hope you guys enjoyed this weeks chapter! I had a lot of fun writing it, and officially including one of the creepiest characters of all GGO to it!

To be honest, I have been looking forward to including Deathgun as a villain, and I have a certain twist on how the story is going to roll forward with him, so please, look forward to next week ok?

See you guys then! Thanks for reading, and stay awesome guys!