10
There she is, standing in the garden she made with her own two hands. The lavender flowers. The hummingbird. When she turns and smiles, all the noise-all the distractions-turns mute. I'm lifted into her soft arms, a warm embrace, and even closer to her smile. It's brighter than the sun. I want to freeze time.
Scenery changes.
Monitors. A hospital bed. There he is, face covered under the headset. The room is gray. His arms are bones. The pulse monitor is a steady metronome beating to a time-bomb in my chest. No, that's my pulse. I see her again, praying by his bedside for him to come home.
So much noise.
Mylo
Arimoto residence: August 3rd 2026, 8:00
It's morning, and sunlight strikes through the window. Eiji left the curtains open.
I look around the room. His bed rolls' tucked away already. I didn't sleep-in again, did I? Last night took a lot out of me; today probably will too.
I drag out from under the sheets. The room's warmed from the tail-end of summer and all that direct sunlight. My toes curl and relax on the wooden floorboards. I'm lucky to start today with the coziness of home. The mission starts soon.
I look to the corner of the room. The dresser looms there, where my NerveGear is tucked away. Should I have put it on back then? Could I have made it as long in SAO as Dad, two years in? Or do I have it all wrong?
Still so much noise.
I don't want to see it this time; I'm getting tired of regrets.
Umbra
Arimoto residence: August 3rd 2026, 8:05
Footsteps creak from upstairs. Here comes Mylo's lazy butt. Great. How am I supposed to focus on monitoring ALO message boards if he sets himself up for a roast?
Eiji cocks an eyebrow at me from across the table, sipping tea.
"What?" Am I that transparent?
"Oh, nothing." Eiji sets down his cup.
Smartass.
"Good morning." Mylo yawns as he appears downstairs. He's got morning glow. Happens when you sleep-in, I guess.
Damn nightmares.
Back to these message boards. Let me refresh. The tablet Julia lent me, plus the feed going through my Augma isn't the best set up, but it works. The original page still has the countdown: 28 hours now.
It doesn't make sense.
If that A.I.'s holding the winning hand, why won't he just play it? What are we missing?
"Umbra?" Mylo butts into my thought process.
"Oh, good morning, I'm a little busy, but Eiji put on some tea." Shoo.
"Help yourself." Eiji calmly sips.
Honestly, I expected him to be a bundle of nerves without his better half. Yuna left with Arimoto and Julia about an hour ago, and, out of us all, Yuna has the most risk diving into SAO. The three of us can recover from a depleted health bar, but Yuna? It's an unknown. Eiji knows that.
"How—are you guys doing?" Mylo asks like he's tip-toeing a minefield. Eiji sips tea, but he's holding up the cup for a while—whatever, I should be focusing on these boards—It'd be rude not to respond though.
"We're trying to spread the right information right now." Thanks to Sanji's parents. That writer they met for MMO Today really came through too. The information on real risks for the high-output scan are doing numbers.
Unpopular opinion about the AUGMA and High-Output scanning
Why the MMO Today article is fake news.
DON'T TWEAK YOUR AUGMAS.
Mods, please either pin all of this to a mega-thread or…
Hopefully, it mitigates some damage in case we fail.
"Everyone's status is green then for the mission?" Mylo asks.
Eiji finally puts down the cup and gasps. Was—was he just hoping to avoid the question?
"Eiji?" I prod.
"Yuna will be fine; it'll be fine," Eiji says, definitely more to himself for morale. His hand tremors as he lowers his cup.
"Everyone's feeling the nerves," I admit. The message boards were a good distraction but—What else can I do? And against the government? What a joke. At least Kayaba gave us a fighting chance in SAO.
"I'm nervous too," Mylo uncharacteristically admits.
"Huh?" Eiji and I both tilt our heads.
"What?" Mylo takes stock of our reactions as he stiffens his shoulders. "I was just admitting how the situation makes me feel."
"Yeah, but—"
"You never do that," Eiji finishes for me.
Mylo smiles, a humble and soft curve there. I'd almost say he seems—gentle, at peace? Did our current crisis just cross his fight or flight circuits? He grits teeth though, that familiar rage is still lurking.
"People are counting on us, now." Mylo finally takes a seat and joins us at the table. He stares into his cup of steaming tea. "Arimoto-sensei also once told me," He starts. "That pursuing Kayaba my way was a Warpath. I want to believe that I can change that, focus more on the present lives at stake if his plan succeeds with the high-output scan."
I sense a but coming.
"But-I can't pretend that I've changed overnight," Mylo continues. "My father, and now my mom—I want to catch Kayaba more now than ever." He earnestly glances at me. I believe him. "I'm not strong enough on my own, but together…"
That's right—his Mom. Apprehending Kayaba might save her life, but I'm not sure how feasible that will actually be.
"Yuna's better at pep speeches," Eiji scoffs. He wears a cocky grin on his face now. "Look, we'll do what we need to do, and that's all there is to it."
"Well, you suddenly got all confident," I tease. It's true though; His hand's stopped.
"Anyways!" Eiji coughs and detracts. "Yuna left me with data on the accounts we'll transfer into the SAO server. We can form a strategy to subjugate Kayaba's pet A.I. when we find him."
Strategy.
I'm confident in our shared experience and skills. But still. It feels like we're missing something big. Maybe it's just nerves on the heels of a fight.
Yuna
Ministry of Defense: August 3rd 2026, 8:05
"Are you comfortable?" Julia pampers with more questions about our portability. It's sweet. It reminds me of how overbearing Papa could be too. It's been awhile since I've seen him.
What a weird thing to think about now of all times.
"Yuna?" Arimoto turns from the steering wheel and towards "me" in the backseat of their car.
"Yes!" I put on a smile for them since they both seem nervous. The rigidness in their jaw lines, the silent communication between their shared glances, and the repetition in reviewing the plan all the way to the front entrance of the Ministry of Defense. The government office space is a domineering but modest pair of neutral-colored buildings lined with conservative green strips of paint along the peaks. The warm summer air feels colder now that grey clouds are rolling in.
Arimoto sighs in the driver's seat. He puts another hand on Julia's belly. "I still don't like this," He reiterates. "I should go in."
"You gave up your status in government to teach Shakespeare, remember?" Julia teases.
"Psychology and Shakespeare. Molding young minds is for the greater good." Arimoto defensively huffs.
"Of course it is honey." Julia reaches over and kisses Arimoto on the cheek. "Yuna and I will be fine, don't worry. Right, Yuna?"
"Right!" This time I salute with confidence, anything to dispel the tension in here. I've never broken into a government facility before.
I look out the window. The guard post is just around the block. Cars drive up to the checkpoint booths, waiting for security to clear them. We're really going in there. My nerves are the same as that day, and just like it, others are counting on me. We have to do our part.
"Remember," Arimoto recites. "You shouldn't need to physically find the server, just find a way into their secure network for Yuna to latch onto. The SAO server is still on, so if its connected to one of the networks inside, Yuna should be able to access it locally once inside. You just need the password to get her started."
"Easy enough." Julia opens the passenger door, and I feel the avatar body pulling me towards her orbit. My vision is still through the windshield, but I'm also on call with Julia from a wireless earbud. My senses are split. Arimoto turns to me.
"Watch her back, please," He pleads.
The grey outdoors is still in my peripheral. I can't feel the weather, but I can read the atmosphere, the stillness in the air. Julia starts down the street in heels. She looks so official—black business suit, shirt and tie, slacks, and a stoic makeover to her usual cheery expression.
Well, she did used to work with Kikuoka and Arimoto.
"Yuna," She says. She can't see me since the augma's back in the car, but she can hear. "Once we're in the building, we won't be able to talk back and forth, but I'll do what I can to get the password to their network."
"Just don't overexpose yourself." I can still do most of the heavy-lifting once we're inside.
"Don't count me out just yet." Julia smiles as we approach the first guard checkpoint. "Going dark in 3…" The rotation of armed security stands at attention just outside the gate arms. "2…" A group of 3 strut towards the guards. One from the approaching party twirls a coil of flaming red hair. Wait—red hair—Eiji mentioned someone like that from the last debrief. Is that…?
"1. Going dark."
"Wait!" I plead, but Julia's already removed the bud and dropped it by the wayside. She can't hear me now as we stop at the security checkpoint and her pat down starts. They won't find the communication piece, and I'll stay connected through her cell, but she can't be warned. The group that abducted Umbra is here, possibly the ones who shot Sanji too.
Arimoto can't run in either.
Up ahead, that group moves past the checkpoint and into the compound, dressed in suits. Maybe we're lucky Julia came along instead of Arimoto. They don't know her; she can't be spotted.
The red-haired one turns around, eyes Julia and what feels like me for a pause. She continues with her group.
"Will you need any assistance ma'am?" The guard politely addresses Julia.
"Can you point me in the right direction? I'm honestly a bit lost." Julia humbly asks, playing dumb.
Yuna
Ministry of Defense: August 3rd 2026, 8:10
I'm seeing through the phone's camera now: this building—it's surprisingly natural with all the smooth wood paneled walls, not the cold office you'd expect from seeing it on the outside. Suits and fatigues move along the lobby. Their footsteps echo across the otherwise empty space. I don't see that same group from earlier. Maybe they went to a different building on the campus.
"You'll have to leave your phone with the front desk, ma'am." The front desk attendant adjusts his security cap as he checks Julia's credentials behind the check-in counter. "Security purposes, of course."
Julia hesitates for a moment, but we went over this before. It'll be ok. I may be stuck to it for the moment, but once she finds the password, I can freely move around the building and find the server.
"Of course." She forces a smile and sets "me" down on the counter.
"Have we met before?" A voice over the keyboard clatter. I can't see over the counter now.
"Hm, I don't believe so?" That one's Julia.
"Must just be my imagination." The voice asks. "But you're not a regular, right?"
They're asking a lot of questions.
"No, I'm actually here for a tour of the campus." Julia answers.
"A tour?"
"Yes, I'm considering a transfer," Julia says.
"Oh? A transfer from where?"
A lot of questions.
"Internal Affairs and Communications." Julia's voice sounds firm.
"Oh! So much going on with the VR division these days. You have tight job security there, why would you want to leave?"
"Isn't there just as much in security itself?" Julia redirects. "Unless we've already achieved world peace?"
A hearty laugh. "One can dream. Vice minister Morikawa."
What?
"I know very well who you are, sir." Julia laughs along. "A pleasure."
"Would you like to begin the tour then?" He invites.
"Wha—you? Yourself?" Julia stammers. "I couldn't take up your precious time, sir."
"Well, why not?" The Vice Minister scoffs. "I want to leave the best impression of our Ministry. Who better than to show you how things are done around here?"
"I'd be honored, sir." Julia agrees.
This is bad. Does he suspect something's up? First his agents and now the man himself? That can't be a coincidence, and I'm sure Julia's thinking the same.
What do we do?
Julia
Ministry of Defense: August 3rd 2026, 8:13
Not good. Really not good. Sure, some healthy skepticism makes sense, but the Vice Minister himself? They must feel something's off. The real question is by how much? They would've apprehended me, and especially Yuna, right away if they knew everything.
The Vice Minister gives an obtuse grin—he's good. He's used to smiling while stabbing others in the back. It's an even worse air than the kind Kikuoka gives off.
Signature aura of a shady arms dealer. How is he even still in office?
"Is something the matter, Ms. Julia?" He turns his bulldog figure and glances at me over his shoulder. He's watching, closely, while trying not to look too guarded. I guess he has experience in that.
"Sorry, I just-" Think. "Sometimes I have to pause for a second, take a breath." I rub my belly to drive home the point. Even a snake will have second thoughts about a pregnant woman, or a man who just doesn't understand how pregnancy works.
"Oh! I apologize! I apologize!" The Vice Minister bows. Every movement is rehearsed, in the way he digs his entire body into the pose—the deflation in his voice. It's perfect showmanship. If I didn't have to deal with Kikuoka from time to time, I might even fall for it. This man doesn't care; he wants to extract intel.
"Are you still able to go through with the tour then?" The Vice Minister pulls himself up. He wears a pig's grin burrowed behind that cordial smile.
"Well, I did come all this way." I'll just have to play along. I need to get access for Yuna, but I think asking here might be too suspect—especially if the Vice Minister already thinks something's fishy. I'll have to get away and asks someone elsewhere.
"Right this way then. We'll move at your pace." He curves his lips and ushers me. A set of elevators are just up ahead. I can't turn back now. Those kids—everyone—they need us now.
Yuna, wait for me. I'll get it done.
The elevator bell rings as the double doors reveal the empty carriage. I take initiative and step in first—for all I know, he might just stab me in the elevator and scrub evidence. The Vice Minister hobbles in next. Whether or not it was his order, he got a child killed. My hand instinctually feels around her. I understand Ari's conviction to purge snakes like him. The doors shut and the elevator rides up. There's a plaque above the controls, probably some kind of proverb.
"How far along are you?" The Vice Minister peers down at my belly. "Sorry!" He plays flustered. "Is that all right to ask?
Play along. "No, no, it's fine, really! I'm expecting in September."
"Congratulations," He obliges.
"Thank you." I smile. "Do you have children of your own, Vice Minister?"
"You can just call me Morikawa." He tries lessening the distance between us.
"Oh no, I could never." I should keep up the formality with a sense of feeling flustered. Trying to come across as amiable might raise his suspicions—like I'm trying to earn his favor.
"It's fine, really," He grins.
"Very well." I concede, now that he knows I've put up the effort.
"And I have two, actually. A boy and a girl." The Vice Minister reminisces with a distant smile.
How can he have a kid killed then? "Any advice?" I continue the small-talk.
"Keep a steady hand when they're young; it'll pay off in their teens."
The elevator stops. A ding. The doors slide open to a soulless hallway with dim glint, probably a distant window.
"We'll show the office suites first. Obviously, for security reasons, we won't be able to go inside, and we don't want to disrupt their workflow." The Vice Minister steps aside, wanting me to step off first.
The halls are grey, much like the outside, and it's dead quiet. Unsettling. Soundproof offices? I hear the Vice Minister's oxfords step off behind me. I try to suppress the goosebumps spiking from the feeling of having a murderer to my back. Even if he didn't have that child Sanji killed—this is still the same man who took a bribe with the Ocean Turtle. I want to create some distance.
"We have a viewing area where we can see a mockup of what the suites will look like for your routine office-space. That way—"
I rub my belly and hunch over, playing at being exhausted. I feel his hand on my back, and as I look up, his façade finally cracks—he can't force himself to smile, just a blank gaze as he analyzes me, maybe as he runs out of patience early-on.
"Do you need something to eat, a chance to rest, maybe?" He fails to shed even a sliver of concern. There's the killer.
"Just the restroom, maybe." I pretend.
"Down the hall." He points the opposite way.
"Thank you." I scurry in the direction. I see the women's signage as I barrel in, pretending to hurl as I hold my mouth and gut, but I hear sink water whining. Someone's here. I look at the row of sinks on marble counter. A redhead gapes at me as water runs over her hands.
"Ar—are you ok?" Her Purple eyes squint at me, reading me up and down. She immediately whips her hands to air dry and hurries by my side.
"I'm just feeling a little queasy." I lean against the wall.
"Here, let me help." She leads me to a stall and sets the seat lid down so I can sit. I take exaggerated deep breathes.
"Sorry, the baby's just kicking a bit." I lie.
"Is there someone I should call?" The woman asks.
Call? WAIT, THAT'S IT!
"Yes," I reply. "Could I please borrow your phone? They confiscated mine at the front desk."
The redhead reaches into her slack's pocket. She passes off her smartphone.
Disconnect wi-fi. If this building is so secure—just as I thought! There's no cell-phone data entry from the outside. I dial Ari's number, just for good measure. No service.
"Hmm," I exaggerate. "I can't get a call out."
"That shouldn't be a problem," the redhead replies. "The wi-fi should still let you."
"It says it's disconnected." I show her phone to her.
"Huh?" She takes the phone back and turns to fix the settings. I look over her shoulder.
2zfLHS8h
Sheesh! That's a tough one, but I've had worse during JSDF missions.
"Here you go." The redhead returns her phone to me.
"Thank you so so much." I immediately type the password. Yuna will be there to receive it. I even dial the number.
"Julia?!" Yuna's voice chippers from the other end.
"I'm ok." In both ways. "But, I'm feeling a little winded. Do you think you could bring me something to eat?"
"Bringing the feast!" Yuna practically sings. Well, she is a pop-idol after all.
"Thank you." I nod along and hang up. I hand the phone back to the redhead. We're in. "And thank you, Ms.—
"You can call me Rosalia." She smiles. "Anything to help."
Yuna
Ministry of Defense: August 3rd 2026, 8:20
It's time. The draw of gravity dissipates as the Ministry's network opens like a luminant series of tunnels in the building's walls. I surge in, phasing through them and surfing onto the network, through the binary and the electromagnetic noise in the form of light streams passing by. More light tunnels.
The SAO server—feel for it. It should feel familiar. It's where our code comes from after all. I feel a new orbit tugging me. That's the way. I veer onto a new path in the Ministry's network.
I can feel him too as I get closer. The A.I. hasn't moved since I spotted him last. Why?
We're close now. I slip into a security camera's feed overlooking the room. The SAO server is lowly lit blue. The machine rumbles in the confined space, and its hooked up to some sort of console—it looks like a pair of workers are sifting through that. They're wearing military fatigues too. Looks like Arimoto was right about the Ministry hoping to mine through it. That's probably why I couldn't grant new access to the server remotely.
But I bet I can grant the others access through the console.
Our form zips out of the camera wiring and into the console.
Analyzing…server privileges…extend?
[yes]
Initializing…Please input users:
[Nautilus]
[Umbra]
[Mylo]
Acknowledged…administering server access.
Yes! Now It's time for the welcoming party!
Link—Start…
The kaleidoscope of pixels and lights flash. I can feel my avatar gaining a sense of weight as the server room dissipates and fills with the ocean of cardinal code, and finally, the fresh wave of reality washing over as the familiar simulated sun peaks in the sky and reflects against a bright red spire. I land in my boots on the stone path leading there. The Ruby Palace of floor 100. That A.I.'s inside. A trail of that malicious red code lingers from the main entrance.
It won't matter. Focus.
The code—that's right, I'm a part of this system too, the information pouring in, it's a bit overwhelming, but—
Initiating…Cage protocol.
New code runs alongside the infected, my own personal touch. It's not much, but it should restrict his ability to log-out as long as he's inside the palace.
I feel a new presence from behind.
Blue light spirals behind me in the rough figure of Umbra, Naut, and Mylo. A breeze blows through as their avatars materialize. Umbra finalizes first, her black half skirt and thigh-high boots, but the addition of a breast plate over her hooded top, and armor over her shoulders and knees—a cross of her SAO and ALO gear? Her shoulder-length hair falls with her shoulders with just a fringe left to partially cover her left eye.
Mylo spawns next, his high boots and black trousers, his bandaged left arm with the armored shoulder pad. The pixels flow past his black sleeveless tunic with the indigo hood as it flaps in breeze. He hangs his Sonic Buster over his right shoulder.
Naut's last to spawn in. I was wondering if he'd bring over his ALO or SAO appearance. His white Knights of Blood Oath cloak flaps in the breeze. He brought over his SAO appearance, but without the boyish features of his old avatar. His knightly one-handed sword dangles by his waist.
Lastly, I'll make a change of appearance—shifting our idol appearance to before—the cloak, the feathered hat, the dagger at the waist. I do a twirl—weird, still black and red. Probably subconscious input from my A.I.
Well, I did want some input.
Right.
"Yuna, you're all right?" Naut stops in front of me. Here, in this world, I can feel his physicality, the air he gives off, that tingling feeling when he's close. I miss it.
I smile, probably with a blush. "I'm all right," I reassure him.
"Where is he?" Mylo steps forward and cuts to the chase.
Right, game time. "In there." I point to the Ruby Palace entrance, looming over us.
"Well, that's not ominous at all," Umbra quips.
"Is that—" Naut pauses, probably taking it in.
That's right, the only time I was here was back when I was just a bundle of memories, back with Kirito during the Ordinal Scale incident. Besides that, no SAO player ever made it this far.
"The Ruby Palace." I finish for him. "The final level of Sword Art Online."
"What a perfect place to finish this." Mylo brings his sword to the waist side. "Lets not keep him waiting then. We're on the clock."
We start running.
Eiji
Sword Art Online: August 3rd 2026, 8:30
The Ruby Palace—Yuna's been here before. There's only lit torch lanterns down these dark hallways, and our steps are making a lot of noise because it's so empty. This all feels—too easy?
"I don't like this." Umbra speaks my mind as we run forward. "No ADDS? No mini-bosses?"
"No security." Mylo emphasizes.
"It's like he doesn't even care if we find him." Umbra scoffs.
"He is cocky," Mylo grumbles. "In ALO, he let me cut his arm just to get in a punch on me. That pride let us catch up to him now."
It's hard to imagine someone with more pride than Mylo, but he is the only one of us that faced him directly besides— "Yuna?" Asking for her thoughts.
"I'm still reading that he's up ahead." She turns from the lead to face us. "And I only see him."
Ruby light shines from the chamber up ahead-the boss room. It's all too poetic—the A.I. has to be there. Blinding red lights eclipse my sight-we race out of the shadows and into an echo chamber. The ceiling looks endless, and stained-glass windows refract all kinds of colorful light into the empty room. It's all focused on one spot though—in the center of a spiral throne, on which Sanji's likeness sits, clad in a red and white cassock, and head rested on the arm of his seat. He looks bored—and waiting.
"All of you?" 'Sanji' reclines further.
We were expected.
"Stop the countdown." Umbra speaks up first.
"You don't even know what it's for." He leans from the throne and chuckles. "What do you care?"
"Anything to do with your boss is suspect." Mylo answers monotonously. "And with all that showboating about High-Output scans—you're coming with us."
"I don't think so." The A.I. reclines back on the throne with a smirk. "How is it any of your business what people want to do with themselves? Would you deny them the ability to choose for themselves how they'd like to live? To escape the hell they call reality?"
"It's not your place!" Umbra seethes. I turn to her. Tears are welling under her eyes. Sanji. "Especially when you'd lie to accomplish your end result. He didn't know what he was getting himself into."
"Oh, you mean him." The A.I. sighs with disinterest. "Doesn't that fall more on the Ministry of Defense than me? Aren't you misdirecting your anger?"
"You know, you seriously piss me off." Umbra angrily smiles like she's bearing fangs. Golden glyphs already spiral at her heels, prepping a spell. "Running around and wearing his face while you say that."
"Would it help if I wore a different one?" He asks callously. For a moment his face distorts into pixels, contorting into a sharper jawline, pointed nose, and round spectacles. Based on Mylo and Yuna's debrief, that looks like—Grimlock? The A.I.'s face distorts again, this time to a maidenly form, soft round cheekbones, long flowing brunette hair, green eyes. Again: an angular face with long black hair in a ponytail and malicious brown eyes under a scowl.
I know that one—that's—Kuradeel, from the Knights of Blood Oath?
The A.I. waves a hand over his face, switching back to Sanji's likeness in a wave of pixels.
How can he replicate their forms so perfectly? "What are you?" I utter.
"A culmination of the saved emotional data from SAO; a ghost of the system." He stands and begins descending down the steps. "And now, the orchestrator of Akahiko Kayaba's final directive to bridge the two worlds. You may refer to me as the Failsafe."
"Releasing the high-output scan won't bridge the gap between us and artificial fluctlights." Yuna pleads. "It'll just kill thousands."
"You can help me fix that." Failsafe's footsteps loudly clack in the empty chamber.
No, that's what this is really about. "You were waiting for Yuna." I realize. Was the timer to draw us in?
"Well, I figured only 3 days to make your move would rush her to me along with some form of guard." Failsafe stops mid-step. "And you've brought her to me with no time for hesitation. With understanding Yuna's functions, we can increase the success rate of the high-output scan and limit casualties. 1 in a thousand becomes 1 in a 100, and that's just minimum."
I turn to Yuna, she should get out of here. She looks back at me, shaking her head and refusing to turn back. It's a look that says: 'I have a job to do.'
My heartbeat flops. I thought I'd gotten past this fear, but I'm feeling the paralysis in my legs. We've come so far; I can't let this be it.
"You won't have to worry about that because there won't be a scan." Umbra's golden glyphs are surrounding her whole figure now. She's holding on casting a spell, but it's ready. Why isn't Failsafe stopping her?
"The bravado!" His slow claps echo through the chamber as he continues stepping down. "But you know, this is bigger than any of you no-names. Would you offer a better solution to grant rights to artificial fluctlights?"
"Not like this." Yuna argues.
"Yuna." Failsafe echoes. "You have the power to curb deaths when our work is complete. Won't you come with us?"
I turn to her as sweat beads down her chin. Her hand tremors over her dagger sheath.
"Go ahead," I speak directly to Yuna. She turns my way with a nervous expression, the furrows in her brow, the grit in her jaw. I smile back at her, even through the fear. We're united, and we have to stop him here and now.
Yuna takes a deep breath. "I'm not going anywhere with you. Your lie will kill innocent people."
"What if I simply told them the truth then? If they still chose to get the scan, then would you agree?" The faker negotiates. "Who are you to take away the choice for them? Where's your line?"
"There is none!" Yuna draws her knife now.
"Your done with giving human lives a numerical value!" Umbra shouts as golden glyphs dance around her. "One is already too many."
"Nonsense." The faker's form distorts, the ruby palace too around him. "It's not your place."
"Confused?" I draw my blade. Gulp down the nerves. This is our stand.
"Maybe that's not your fault," Mylo quips. He rears back his Sonic Buster for a first swing. "That's something your master never really got either."
"Don't." Failsafe's cocky air dissipates into a deep scowl. "Talk down on him!"
"Where is Kayaba?" Mylo cuts in.
Failsafe regains his smile. "Wouldn't you like to know?" He snaps his fingers.
"The code!" Yuna shouts.
The entire chamber glitches, and suddenly blue pixels fill the ground floor we're standing on—he's loading something, bodies? Black pools bubble from the floor as figures molded in it arise. Skeletal warriors and undead figures, skin peeling, spawn all around—and their level bars—99? How many have spawned so far? 50? 100? Red lights encircle and fill the entire chamber.
"Form up!" Mylo shouts to all of us. We form a circle with our backs turned to each other.
"You haven't trapped me; I've trapped you." Failsafe smiles. "Now, either Yuna comes willingly, or I'll dissect her after I scatter her code, and yours!"
The horde of undead finish populating the ground floor. Failsafe stands above them on throne steps. His form is pixilating. The figure of Sanji is dematerializing, like an illusionary effect degrading, his face becoming a jigsaw of Sanji's and others—more than likely more deceased SAO players.
"Eiji!" Mylo's calling me back to attention. I glance out the corner of my eye and see him twirling his Sonic Buster. Right, one thing at a time. We're surrounded by a horde. We can't get to Failsafe until we clear a path, and we're not letting them get Yuna.
"Umbra, are you done?!" Mylo shouts. The horde of undead closes in.
"Don't rush me, philistine." Umbra darkly grins.
The golden glyphs dance and fill into an immense dark sphere building in size and levitating higher and higher into the chamber. The glyphs round its circumference as the center oozes a dark shell like an eclipse climbing. The amount of MP—Umbra's insane.
"Cover her!" Mylo shouts. The first wave of enemies draws into our circle. I raise my sword to block as a skeletal warrior in dregs swings down—use your agility and turn the block—into a parry, and then a slash through its neckline! It's head cleaves clean off. Another immediately fills its place as a shower of sword jabs lunge for me. Dodge the first set, block with the flat of the blade on the second—another set jabs through my shoulders in red cuts. I need to be careful. We won't have healing for a while until Umbra recovers MP after her spell.
Suddenly I notice icons appear under my green health bar, and a wave of energy surges through my limbs, and I hear Yuna singing. Strength and speed buffs.
"Now that's more like it!" Suddenly, I can see their moves clearly, almost in slow motion, and my body—It feels lighter. I can take them like this! My blade's weightless as my sword arm swings faster and with greater intensity as it dispatches the wave of enemies that stabbed me. A flurry of blades come down on me, but I can block them! I raise my sword high to block, and I have the strength to hold them all up. Another set of blades are coming for my exposed under-side—I parry the downward strikes away—good, that's an opening. I cut horizontal at the skeletal warriors coming for my torso, cleaving body after body in a straight row. I spin on my toes in stance to block again the downward strike again.
"First wave!" Mylo shouts over the clanging of clashing steel.
Good, it'll create a breather.
"Reverb: Repulse!" A pulsing wave knocks all the surrounding enemies back, making more of a clearing between them and us.
I take a breath before raising my blade again. I've gotta keep this up.
"Look out!"
That sounded like Yuna's voice—a glint of steel is suddenly swinging in my periphery. Shit! I can't make it! A great shield appears midair between the sword and my head. The skeletal warrior swinging recoils back.
"We take care of each other!" Yuna shouts.
Damn right. I duck low and slash through that warrior's torso as it scatters into red pixels. I turn. There's a great shield floating beside Mylo too. Yuna guards with her knife unsheathed in front of Umbra, still prepping her spell. The horde grows closer again.
"Second wave!" Mylo shouts before another sonic pulse knocks the wave back. I dash around our defensive circle with the speed buff, to me the vision's clear, but I feel like I'm moving in a blur. There's a few stragglers closer to our ring than the larger group that's been knocked back. I quickly slash through the ones still standing and return to my position. We're finding our rhythm. Mylo knocks the majority back; I'll clean up the stragglers, Yuna supports, and once Umbra's done—we'll figure the rest out from there.
Mylo slightly turns and nods back to me; he's on the same page.
"Sorry to keep you boys waiting." Umbra finally speaks up. Has her spell reached it's apex? It's pulsing high above—like it could spill out at any moment.
"Took you long enough." Mylo smirks.
"Don't rush perfection!" Umbra flaunts. She spreads her arms wide as a Magic glyph appears under the skeletal warriors. It's encased the entire room—a far-reaching AOE type of attack.
"Hellfire storm!" She shouts.
Suddenly the orb bursts into flaming chunks, umbral meteors raining down over the skeletal warriors as they catch fire and their HP drains. Swaths of them vanish in shattering red pixels. Any survivors have their limbs trapped in purple sludge oozing on the floor.
"Gross." Mylo observes.
"You're—welcome," Umbra pants as she kneels. Her MP bar is completely drained. Yuna kneels to her and passes an MP potion for her to gulp down.
"Eiji!" Mylo calls out.
I'm already ahead of him—clean up the rest while they can't move. Mylo shifts to solely defend Yuna while Umbra drinks potion. I feel my feet lift off—the buffs should only last a little while longer—but that's all the time I need. In full sprint—I'll cross between the skeletal enemies—chopping their heads and cutting their remaining health bars—it's funny, it almost feels like a dance with my blade with the ease. My agility lets me glide between them, culling the herd. All the meanwhile—I look up. Failsafe hasn't moved from the steps. He hasn't stopped smiling.
"Well, I think you've had enough warm-up." He lifts his palm in the air.
"Eiji!" Yuna shouts behind me. "COME BACK!"
I turn back on my heels and rush back to the others. I see it, in my periphery, the pixel shards whipping off the floor, collecting. I turn back as I run—all the red pixels are gathering into one form, something immense—a centipede-like figure, limbs extending all along its body–a boss, still just a red outline for now, until the pixels scrub away, revealing the long skull face, haunting red eyes, and scythes along its rib-cage and appendages.
I know this one from the survivor's account—the boss that slaughtered at least 14 players.
"The Skull-Reaper." Umbra murmurs.
There's just four of us.
"Now," Failsafe leaps onto the rear of its skull-head. "Shall we get started?"
Umbra
Sword Art Online: August 3rd 2026, 8:40
Bastard. "I'm good to go!" My MP's back.
Speed casting: Umbral blades.
The lightweight daggers fill around my palms and knuckles. None of my spells can crack that boss—I've heard enough about it to know that. How'd that bastard bring it here? Yuna did mention that he can alter cardinal code, but how far do his abilities extend to?
It hurts to look at Sanji's—wait, his face. It's distorted, like it's struggling to hold onto one likeness. Are the alterations messing with his coordination? Is there a weakness there?
Mylo tsks loudly, biting his lip. Eiji's legs are shaking along with his sword hand. They're hitting the same stonewall—we all know the truth, this thing took an entire clearing party to take care of, the best of the best, Kayaba included even. I stayed away from boss rooms for that very purpose—to keep Sanji and myself safe.
So what do we do? Why won't my legs move? There has to be a way—right?
"This isn't over!" Yuna shouts through the haze of doubt. She steps forward—before all of us, her tiny dagger clutched at her side. "Sanji, Mylo's parents., Julia and Arimoto-sensei, the survivors still fighting to re-join reality every day! It's not just about us anymore! There are lives counting on us—for both worlds now."
"You're right." Eiji's legs slowly step forward, stopping beside her. He clutches her hand. "Sorry, I've still got cowardly legs in situations like these."
Yuna shakes her head. "You're the one that gives me courage."
Mylo sighs. He steps up beside them. Me too. Seeing little Yuna as the sole person stepping forward—I have no right to hang back when the person most at risk is the one putting their all on the line.
"I don't intend on giving up here." Mylo holds his Sonic Buster at his side. "Like you said, people are counting on us."
"The A.I.," I say. "Doesn't he look like he's having a hard time keeping his form?"
"Huh?" The others look up with me, at the distortion.
"Do you have another crazy gamble?" Mylo asks me.
They're not crazy. Well, this one might be, actually. "I think if we take him—the boss will drop."
"How can you be sure?" Eiji asks.
"Just a hunch." I admit. But there's no way the boss will let us get to him unless— "But we'll have to split off, someone's going to have to keep the boss busy."
"I'll do it." Mylo volunteers. I'm surprised, I'd have thought he'd want to take Failsafe on for a rematch.
"Don't look so surprised," Mylo counters. He analyzes his Sonic Buster. "I'm the one who can turn offense to defense and switch between them fast. That's all there is to it."
It's a start, but—we'll need more than that—I turn to Yuna. I don't want to say it.
"I'll do it too, Umbra." Yuna agrees.
Mylo and Eiji quickly turn to her.
"What? No way!" Eiji protests.
"It's the only way to hold the boss's attention. She's the one he wants after-all." I understand. She also has the highest defensive skill here with her shields and buffs. Mylo can't take on the multiple attack angles from the Skull Reaper, even with his speed of attack and defense. Eiji's quick, but it wouldn't be enough with a basic switch technique. Yuna's the only option that works in this slim chance.
"Naut," Yuna grabs him by the cheek. She kisses him and lets go. "I'm doing this because I trust you."
"But—" Eiji protests, but the Skull Reaper gargles and charges as its sickle legs scrape against the floor with intense speed. Failsafe grins from the top.
"Mylo!" Can he get us up there?!
"Up and at em!" He draws his blade back. He nods at me to—hop on? I leap back, stepping on the flat of his blade as he hoists me up. Reverb: Repulse! The sonic burst propels me into the air, high above the Skull Reaper's reach. I launch in an arc, towards its skinny back—timing—timing. I hear another bass drop. Eiji? The skeletal back is getting closer, LAND! I tumble onto the small back—rolling—my legs nearly slide right off, but a hand grips my wrist. I look up as the motions of the Skull Reaver threaten to throw me. Eiji's grunting to pull me up through the chaotic motions.
I hear a sword scraping. I turn to the Skull Reaper's head. Failsafe drags a wide great sword as he inches towards us. I look Eiji in his light-brown eyes—he's going to toss me over; I can feel it. Maybe its instinct to know—our shared experience in SAO. It's just the right move.
Over his shoulder, I see Failsafe prepare a wide swing to cut Eiji down. Suddenly, the force of his toss throws me overhead and lands me at Failsafe's back. The A.I. suddenly spins to protect his rear.
My corporeal knives connect, but the force knocks me back a little—balance, balance. This thing is moving so fast, but it suddenly halts with a sharp ring and loud bass wave that follows. Hold out down there, guys.
Yuna
Sword Art Online: August 3rd 2026, 8:43
Umbra's assumption isn't wrong, I can see that same corrupted code surrounding the Skull Reaper, and its moving in the same chaotic flow as Failsafe. He's commandeering cardinal code.
Mylo and I switch again. My block, his Repulse skill. We don't have to beat the boss; we just have to hold out. There's an advantage there, and where there's a chance, there's hope.
A repeated scrape of scythes wraps around us as its slender body scurries back and forth, looking for openings.
Great Shield!
The twin shields spawn around us. Mylo clings his back to mine. We have to stay in tight formation. We're each other's defense right now. The Skull Reaper's appendages slice across the shielding. Mylo grunts as his form falters a bit, probably from blocking a strike.
"Ready!" He shouts. I turn. His Sonic Buster is glowing, another repulse ready.
The Skull Reaper raises one of its main sickle arms and strikes down as my great shield catches, but another pair of sickles on its tail end wrap around—it's attacking from the rear. I'll move the second shield—and it blocks the move. I suddenly duck as Mylo swings overhead.
Reverb: Repulse!
The Sonic wave knocks the Skull Reaper across the chamber, dragging its scythes to blunt the blowback. Mylo pants. This is taking intense focus—we can't make a single misstep, a single miscalculation.
But we can do this.
Umbra
Sword Art Online: August 3rd 2026, 8:45
Fast casting: Firebolt! A flurry of fireballs spiral from my fingertips and dart in Failsafe's trajectory. He raises his Great sword to block, but he takes burn damage—and he's not healing. Why isn't he healing with his ability to glitch the game?
Failsafe bounces back to build some distance. Eiji and I stand side by side. We have to get on either side of him, sandwich him between us so his defense can't cover us.
Eiji eyes me and nods. He swiftly sprints right into Failsafe's sword reach. Failsafe rears back to swing—Eiji's agility should afford him some leeway to dodge. Eiji sidesteps and slides under Failsafe, drawing his blade back with him and slicing under Failsafe's rib as he about-faces to Failsafe's back for another strike.
Fast casting: Firebolt! more shots ignite along my fingertips. The flames launch in Failsafe's face as he raises his sword to block, then backflips to avoid Eiji's lunge in the rear blind spot.
Back to two facing one. We have to keep him between us. I catch up to Eiji. Failsafe levies his sword at us while standing on the head of the Skull Reaper.
"I guess I should be complimented that it takes a two-on-one to take me," Failsafe remarks.
So why hasn't he balanced the odds? Does he actually have limitations to what he can mod? Maybe so, because aside from spawning enemies, he hasn't really made any game-breaking moves to wipe all of us. He's engaging us, and only using existing parts of the system to aid him.
He can't completely break the game.
The cardinal system still has oversight, even in here. He's a part of that system, just with more complex brain mapping from SAO players. He also might not be able to spread himself and his attention too thin. It's like if Yuna tried to be in multiple places at once. That's why he consolidated all the enemies into just one boss to have better concentration; That's why he didn't attack while I was charging Hellfire storm. He was busy controlling the horde.
"He has limits to his abilities," I tell Eiji. "Keep him on his toes."
"Right." Eiji charges forward. Failsafe rears back his blade again—but this time—I take my fingers out of the grip of my corporeal knife—flip it around, gripping its edge, and wind it back to throw past Eiji. The blade crosses over his shoulder and straight for Failsafe's torso. He blocks, but Eiji dives low and chops at Failsafe's waist, digging a deep red mark there.
And the best part—
Speed casting: Umbral blades. I feel a new dagger in my grip.
-There's more where that came from—again! The corporeal knife spirals in a wisp of purple haze. It's going straight for Failsafe's jigsaw face.
Failsafe knocks the dagger aside, and as Eiji lunges for another strike, Failsafe grips Eiji's wrist and wrestles Eiji's blade to the Skull Reaper's spine. Failsafe's rearing back his freed-up sword hand. He's going to try cutting Eiji down—not gonna happen!
I throw my other dagger, and it pierces Failsafe's sword hand.
"Gah!" His sword falls below the Skull Reaper.
A chance!
Fast casting: Umbral ooze! Purple ooze sludges from my palm—We'll restrain Failsafe here, while he's still struggling for Eiji's sword. I aim my palm at their feet. Eiji has enough reaction time to dodge. Eiji spots me while wrestling for the sword. He nods and jumps back.
Now!
The deluge fills around Failsafe's feet—his movements will be restricted. He tries lifting his feet from the swampy pool, but he can't fully pull away. I'm still pressing forward. Is it possible to still take him in? Should I cut him down?
Speed casting: Umbral blades
I feel the blades fill around my knuckles and grip. I'm almost there. He has no weapon and no mobility. I can't half-ass this. It's now or never.
Suddenly his face swaps—its closer to Sanji's likeness than ever before. The tilted glasses, the lanky frame, the eyes of terror. Blood slips under his nose.
"Umbra—senpai." He pleads.
He couldn't still be in there. This isn't him.
If his data was saved—
I've slowed down my charge, or maybe its moving in slow motion, but something rises out of the umbral pit, a new weapon in the form of a thinner one-handed sword, and I'm open. Did I—hesitate?
"Umbra, get back!"
Suddenly I feel a strong pull throwing me back, and I see Eiji's white cloak in front of me. The hidden sword swings upward and cuts cleanly through his arm, lobbing it off.
No.
Failsafe peels away from the Umbral pit, levying his new sword to cover his body. He's panting. He switches stance, driving the tip of the sword forward—running for a finishing thrust at Eiji.
Not yet! I feel the bony spine of the Skull Reaper as I hit the ground. I have to get to Eiji faster. We have to finish him now!
Speed casting: Umbral blades
I lob the first. Failsafe easily parries it and continues his charge. Eiji's defenseless, no sword and a missing arm. I don't have a choice; I'm rushing in as I throw the second—he blocks again.
Speed casting: Umbral blades
How much MP do I even have left? Will the daggers form in time? My agility isn't as high as Eiji's—there's still a couple feet between me and them. Failsafe's a foot closer to him.
Fast casting: Firebolt!
The shots launch as my blades form—slow him down, please! I won't hesitate again, just make this moment count! The volley connects and slams Failsafe a bit back, but he doesn't change form—just tanking the hit, but I'm just close enough-
I jump over Eiji, throw the first dagger to delay Failsafe's attack—he blocks, but I dive at him with both hands on the single remaining dagger, driving it down.
Failsafe spins around to Eiji's backside, dodging my attack—he's going to try again from Eiji's rear, but I won't let up.
I spin the dagger in my palm from downward to upward grip—keep rushing, stay focused. He's not him. Our blades cross. He has the reach, but—
Speed casting: Firebolt!
Another volley launches from my freehand directly into Failsafe. It's risky, but I charge through the smoke cloud still, clinging my dagger. An opening—anything. I spot his figure as the cloud dissipates—go low. He doesn't know where to swing his blade yet—he hasn't spotted my approach.
I move in, and I see a face closer to Sanji's real life likeness again. It's a perfect replica, the quiet thoughtfulness behind the eyes, the quirky tilt in his glasses' frames. The dorky haircut. He's smiling—fully alive in this world—his true face, the one I chose to ignore.
Because it meant I couldn't live in it.
Those are my best friend's feelings, my underclassman. Failsafe, you wear them well—maybe Sanji really is in there somewhere. But.
I won't hesitate.
"TAKE—OFF—HIS—FACE!"
Mylo
Sword Art Online: August 3rd 2026, 8:46
Health bars in the red, and we haven't even knocked a single health bar off it. We can't hold out much longer. Yuna's healing spells and buffs are slowing down, so are my switches. The Skull Reaper's eyes beam red as hovers above us, sickle rib-cage oscillating. It spreads its jaw wide-open and roars. It's prepping for another attack phase. If it comes to the wire, I have to take the hit for Yuna—I might wake up in bed after, she might not.
Its appendages scrape against the ruby-lit floor, snaking toward us.
Brace the Sonic Buster at defensive position, both edges horizontal, ready to quickly switch from defense to parry. There's no charge left for a repulse, so I'll have to clash with it and risk the hit—
It stops in its tracks, suddenly rearing and groaning to the high-ceiling. Its form begins pixilating. Did they?
Off its back, Umbra and Eiji supporting each other as they dive back to the ground. Umbra has Failsafe unconscious and under her arm.
Holy shit they did it.
The Skull Reaper scatters like glass and fades into dust. Umbra and Eiji hobble towards us—he looks like he's in bad shape.
He's missing an arm.
"Naut!" Yuna runs past me as Umbra passes him off to her. Yuna catches him and lays his head on her lap. Glyphs surround her—a healing spell—with what limited MP she has at the moment. He'll be all right with her taking care of him. Now—
I turn to Umbra, she looks out of breath, but for the most part, she hasn't taken much damage. Her health bar's just a paler green. She's only slouching because she's carrying added weight. The A.I. has full-on impersonated Sanji—frail lanky form and all. He's more reminiscent of that scared kid I met in the dorms.
Umbra lays Failsafe on the ground. He's missing his hands—they've been severed. I kneel beside her and over him. She took him on looking like that?
"He can't heal." Umbra murmurs. "Now what?"
"We have to extract intel." He could know where Kayaba is. After that—it might be best to put him down if he can trigger the high-output scan. We probably won't be able to restrain again. We only got this lucky because he was desperate to capture Yuna.
Failsafe coughs up. When he opens his eyes, they take on an empty grey, just reflecting our images on them. He's still holding onto Sanji's form.
"U—umbra?" He murmurs. His arms move and he skips a breath, realizing that his hands are gone. There's blood pouring out of his nose too.
"You're not him." Umbra's disappointed tone lingers.
Failsafe only shakes his head. "Only his memories."
"How many others?" I probe.
"All of them." He stammers. Then, suddenly, his voice deepens. It's low but soft and full of humility and warmth. "Even for you, son." It doesn't match the face.
How dare you. I pull him up by the collar and shake him. Impersonating his voice. "Just try and imitate his likeness, and this discussion's gonna be very short."
"Mylo!" Umbra shouts me down.
I drop him back to the ground, on his knees.
"Are you the only one he gave instructions to for the scan?" I ask.
Failsafe coughs and laughs—his voice returning back to Sanji. "So funny—I bet that's the same face you used to stare down Sanji when you interrogated him." He eyes Umbra. "You know that, right? The last emotions your friend felt were fear—because of him."
"Yes." Umbra admits. "And because you sold him on a lie."
"Who are you to judge if someone wants more out of their reality?" Failsafe spits blood. "Who are you to deny the natural evolution of the human conscious? You would deny me; would you deny Yuna?"
"We don't deny the truth." Umbra scowls. "You wear the faces of our lost-loved ones for your own gain. You steal the agency from others' lives by selling lies of a dreamworld without risks. And, you cover for a mass-murderer under the guise of it being for the greater-good. What kind of future is that—one that's built on lies?"
Yuna and Eiji hobble to us. He's restored his arm, but his health bar is still in the yellow, probably the most Yuna could do with her drained MP. We'll fix that in a minute.
"Where's Kayaba?" I ask Failsafe again.
"And answer him truthfully this time," Umbra piles on.
Failsafe laughs. "No, I'm the only one he informed about the scan—It's my primary directive—in the event that his ultimate dream is threatened, the intersection of VR realities, and the birth of a new humanity." Failsafe looks us dead in the eye. Color returns to them with a scowl of conviction. "And it's a dream I would happily die for."
This is the most we're getting out of him. Umbra's corporeal knives wrap around her knuckles in a wisp of purple smoke—she's realized the same thing. She kneels to Failsafe's level and raises the dagger to his throat.
With him then, it ends.
And the trail once again goes cold.
But Failsafe has to go. There're more lives at stake than just Mom's.
I just wish I wasn't so helpless.
Footsteps lightly patter from behind, evenly paced, one pair.
"My, my."
That voice. I turn. A man who looks out of place. A man in a lab coat. He paces toward us from the chamber entrance. His gait is casual and unconcerned, but his gaze is laser focused on Failsafe's crumbled form on the floor. I feel every nerve ignite as his details become finer: sharp contours around his face, short hair, metallic eyes. I've memorized the details of that face countless times, in interviews, in debriefs; it's always seemed so distant and unknowable—so detached from a person that could still be real.
Kayaba Akihiko.
"I don't suppose I could convince you to let him go?" The madman stops a considerable distance from us. I can't get any read on his facial expression. It looks so—empty.
How did he get here? Or has he been watching the whole time?
"Commander…" I hear Eiji murmur from behind. Is he ok to fight? I turn back. Yuna and Umbra's MP is still restoring, Eiji's in the yellow, we're not in peak shape right now.
Stall.
I lower one of my blades at Failsafe's neck. "He's actively encouraging mass suicide."
"So that's a no I take it?" Kayaba remarks.
"That's a no." I respond.
"Even if it protects an entire civilization?" Kayaba probes.
"The artificial fluctlights?" Umbra catches on.
"That hypothesis is asinine." Engage him in the thought experiment. "If anything, it would isolate people from delving more into VR." That scenario had crossed my mind. It had to have crossed his—all his callousness in the world is still supported on logic, no matter how sociopathic.
"Even when their loved ones become a part of it?" Kayaba continues.
"You'd bet it all on the slim chance of the few surviving?"
"Slim is better than none." Kayaba shrugs. "You're quite confident, but have you seen how the government has chosen to handle the situation thus far? Do you really think it will get any better?"
He clasps his hands behind his back and takes a studious stance.
No, he can't catch us off guard. "Hands where I can see them!" My sword hand is tensing up, so's my stance. We have to be prepared.
"Tell me." Kayaba raises his arms to comply. "What happens if an entire generation is deemed unproductive? If they're seen as more interested in the VR worlds than the one they cling to? What happens if artificial fluctlights refuse to fill that gap in labor by asserting their own independence? Do you really think centralized government will accept that loss? That lack of control? That change?" His arms fall to the wayside—still visible. "It's not a matter of if, but when it all falls apart. We're just making the first move."
Eiji hobbles beside us while leaning on Yuna. He's still catching his breath. "You make it sound like a war," he says.
"Because it is." Kayaba furrows his brow. "You just waded into it without knowing."
"I see your twisted means haven't changed one bit." I seethe. Ghost or not, there's no doubt it's him. The sociopathic logic, the disregard for human life.
"Who are you again?" Kayaba frowns as those metallic eyes stare me down. "I don't believe we've met."
"Doesn't matter. You're coming with me." He might be able to help Mom. I can't let him leave.
"Unfortunately, I can't." Kayaba smiles. "There's still so much work to be done."
"Wasn't asking." I hiss.
"Well," Kayaba scans around the ruby chamber. "I did notice that there seems to be some kind of program running parallel to Failsafe's in here. It lets you enter, but it won't let you leave." Then, he looks dead center at Yuna. "Failsafe informed me that you'd be valuable to our goals. I never imagined you'd be this valuable."
Eiji instinctively stands in front of her. The three of us do, forming a wall between Kayaba's line of sight and Yuna.
"Ah, is that little Nautilus I see?" Kayaba smiles. "You've grown. I take it you've overcome your FullDive Non-Conformity?"
"Come any closer and you'll find out." Eiji readies his sword.
"Is fighting me what you truly wish?" Kayaba asks. "I was hoping we could settle this and come to an understanding."
"You seem to misunderstand." Umbra hefts Failsafe to his feet and raises an umbral blade to his neck. "You're coming back with us, or he gets it."
"Go ahead." Kayaba calls.
Of course he'd leave him to die. Kayaba's MO is all about the big picture. Why would he value one A.I. when Yuna's right here to replace it? He doesn't even value his followers.
Disgusting.
We've run our discourse. We're going to have to fight. We—
Kayaba's vanished.
"Huh?" He was just there. He was just in front of us-
A red cloak flaps out the corner of my eye. A delayed aftershock follows. Red-white armor. Grey ponytail. Kayaba leans his longsword through Umbra's chest as her health bar plummets past red. How did he get from there to here so fast? Umbra's avatar glitches into pixels. Her shocked stare vanishes last.
A [Dead] waypoint over her avatar.
I didn't even have a chance to move—a pressure builds in my gut, the wind's getting knocked out of me, and I suddenly see his shield bashing in my chest. The force flings me back and across the chamber as I taste dust. My health bar's still in the red, not depleted, but shit it's close.
Get up. Get up. I look up. Kayaba's suddenly switched into the Knights of Blood Oath avatar I've studied again and again, and he's bearing his sword down on Eiji, the last line between Kayaba and Yuna, knife drawn.
"KAYABA!" I scream, willing my legs forward. I still have Sonic Buster; I've waited for this moment—dad, I'll avenge you here!
Eiji reflexively pushes Yuna back. His sword clashes with Kayaba's but the shield bashes into Eiji's gut, knocking him back and keeling over the shield face.
I'm almost there.
Eiji recovers quick—that's right his agility should help. He grips the edges of the shield with one hand and clambers on top, balancing before swiftly driving a kick to Kayaba's temple. Kayaba staggers.
Just in time. I draw the Sonic Buster and slide behind Kayaba, slicing at his back while momentum drives him to me.
Kayaba drives his sword behind and blocks. He thrusts his shield aside to push Eiji away. His path to Yuna is clear now.
Connect.
Kayaba spins and strikes at me; my second blade knocks into his with a brilliant chime. The chime. There's noise but no sword glow. It's still not ready.
His shield bashes into me. I double back as a second sword swing almost crosses through my handle, but I guide it up and away with my top blade.
Match his speed.
I cycle the bottom blade into a strike—Kayaba's shield blocks. Hold. Hold. We're locked in a clash, but I have Eiji as backup. I just have to hold out for him to catch up. Kayaba swings his sword again—I swing the top blade to drive his into the ruby floor. Dig it in there; don't let him bring it back up for another strike.
Move like Eiji.
I leap using the high angle of the blade in the floor as a pole-vault and swing a kick to Kayaba's face, he won't be able to cross his shield over his sword! I feel my boot crunch into his temple and knock him back. Kayaba's armor scrapes the floor as he doubles back. He's not smiling anymore. I feel a sharp one spread over my face.
Now that's more like it.
Still in the red though; can't let him get another hit. Kayaba stands there a moment. Those cold eyes study me up and down, they read over my weapon.
"Your strikes, that gaze," Kayaba comments. "You want revenge for something, don't you?"
Disgusting.
Behind Kayaba, Eiji's clambering to his feet. Now his health is back in the red too. Yuna's standing at the opposing point from Kayaba. We have him surrounded in a triangle, but I have a bad feeling-
"Eiji," I bite my lip to contain the tremors in my arms and legs. I feel a jolt spiking. "Take Failsafe and Yuna. Get out of here."
I might be able to capture Kayaba, but I can't risk Yuna's safety or ending Failsafe.
"Too slow."
The red cape is in my periphery suddenly. Kayaba's not standing in his previous spot. His sword's lunging straight for me—I can't block.
He's wearing a smile again. A revolting and mocking glance, like I've been sized-up. "A double-edged sword, how ironic."
The speed of a strike trips me backward. Suddenly I don't feel the tension in my sword, the equal weight—It's falling to both sides of me. And then I see: the handle split in half and both ends of the sword falling by opposite waysides. He cut through the middle; he cut it apart. His sword is glowing red for a follow-up sword skill-Sonic Leap to finish the job.
I see it coming too. And just like that day at the hospital—I'm powerless.
Kayaba frowns. "A better swordsman would still use both blades."
"Mylo!" I hear Yuna and Eiji scream.
I hear the health bar drop. My vision distorts as Kayaba quickly turns, readying his blade and dashing for Eiji, shielding Yuna with both body and sword. Twin great shields start appearing to cover for Eiji, but Kayaba's sword looks like it'll pierce. Yuna screams while readying her knife.
And then, everything bleaches white.
Mylo
Arimoto Residence: August 3rd 2026, 8:48
Sunlight again. My body feels heavier again—I'm back. I raise my arm and examine my hand as it sets in. Did we just fail?
"Mylo!"
Umbra. Her blue eyes wander over my view. They shut when she takes in the situation, and she sits back. I lean up from my bed roll. Eiji's back is turned and facing the window. Is he still-? He shifts.
No, he's back.
Yuna?
"E—Eiji?" I move the covers. Umbra sits beside me.
"Yuna." He immediately pushes away the covers, sitting on the cot, but still with his back turned.
"You got her out before—right?" Umbra asks.
Forget Failsafe. She had to have made it out.
Eiji says nothing.
No. Even if Eiji didn't see—she's still skilled on her own. She's held out against Failsafe and Grimlock on her own. Even with Kayaba's strength, there had to have been time.
"Eiji? Mylo?" Umbra musters.
"I—I don't know." Eiji slowly turns to us with a face of shock, his wide-eyes and lip trembling.
There had to have been time. "I'm calling Arimoto-sensei, right now." Him and Julia-sensei are probably already on their way back with Yuna right now. I slide through messages in the augma. Nothing there. My heart skips. I reach into my pocket and pull my cell. He may have already called. There's a preview of messages when the screen lights up.
Kurahashi: Your mother's condition has taken a turn for the worse. Please call.
Author's Note!
Hey, hey! First off, this chapter published way off schedule. I didn't account for how long it would be (double the length of the average chapter). I considered cutting it at Kayaba's appearance and splitting that confrontation into a part 3 to get part 2 out faster, but it felt unnecessary to create a whole extra chapter for the occasion.
After this, the regular week-to-week and a half schedule of publishing chapters should resume. If you've read along this far, I sincerely thank you and hope that the story can continue to entertain you as we make our way to the final beats of Specter Part 1. Stay tuned for even more familiar characters and revelations, and let me know if you have any suggestions for the story moving forward (promise I'm not as stand-offish as Mylo).
Until then, peace!
-EF
Next time, Chapter 11: "Before"