Floor 10 - Chapter 3 - Over the Hills...
Racing after the rest of Fuurinkazen, the samurai and the journalist had reached the last large group of monsters in their paths, atop a rock formation high up in the valley connected to the rest of it by means of rope bridges on all sides. Though they weren't going to be delayed for much longer, Strea thought, her blade slamming through the first of the Orochi soldiers, vertically bisecting the monster as it did so. For the briefest of moments, Klein felt a pang of guilt - this wasn't a fight, so much as it was a training session for Strea as she defeated another Orochi near to the bridge they'd need to cross. That was, until another Orochi attempted to do the same to him, and received a sword through its gut for its troubles.
Deciding it wasn't going to go out without taking its victim with it, it hissed, spewing a fine mist out at Klein. Staggering back, as the mist reached his eyes, he lost sight of his enemy and began to lose track of his surroundings...
Moments had passed, feeling like minutes as they did, and Klein suddenly felt a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time... the sensation a person gets when they go a little too fast over a humpback bridge, or when they fall off the edge of a rock formation. In that split second, he felt a slightest bit disappointed - he'd hoped they'd all make it through this alive, and here he was, about to plummet fifty foot to his death...
...Or he was, until he hit a shuddering and almost instantaneous stop, a force pulling on his collar as he did so.
''Gotcha!'' A familiar voice shouted, straining to hold on. ''Any... time you... want to... help!'' She strained, an arm wrapped around the handle of her blade, which had been jammed into the rock above to provide a tethering point. Even with her ever increasing strength stat, a necessity for a blade the size of hers, she was clearly struggling to hold on...
The effect of the mist began to wear off, and Klein was soon able to get his feet back on solid ground, and pull himself back onto the rock formation. Back on the formation, he took a moment to recompose himself, as Strea pulled her blade from the ground, giggling slightly as she did so...
''What's so funny, Strea?'' He asked, his voice a mix of confusion, and slight anger at her amusement towards the current situation.
''I'm not laughing at you, don't worry. Just... this, we're fighting monsters that could cut us in half at any moment... and we both could've just gone splat. Bit anticlimactic, don't you think?''
Klein now looked even more confused than before. He had nearly died after all and here she was, almost making light of the situation. Her attitude really didn't make any sense to him, no matter how hard he tried to understand... ''Uhh, I suppose so, yeah?''
''Come on, the rest of the guys are waiting for us...''
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A few minutes later, and the pair had made it to the field they needed to. Curiously, none of Fuurinkazen were there, only a single young woman in traditional Japanese garb, with light brown hair and an NPC cursor above her head. It didn't take a genius to work out that she was the girl they were going after, especially as she looked skittish, almost ready to take off at any misstep they'd make...
Klein, knowing how strong of a personality Strea was, chose to go first, walking slowly towards her, giving a respectful bow as he stood before her. To his surprise, she spoke first... ''He told you to follow me, didn't he? I don't have anything to say to you other than... Leave. Me. ALONE!''
''Ma'am, you can trust us. We're just travellers who wish to free your town from the grasp of the Lord of Senja Castle. We had heard rumours of your disappearance, and what trouble you may well be in, and so, we wished to help. We'd like to hear your side of the story, if that's okay?''
''Are...are you saying that you plan to defy the Lord of Senja Castle?''
''A fair bit more than defy him. We plan to stop him dead.'' Strea, for once, wasn't bragging. That was their objective, and they weren't going to stop for anything...
''I wish I shared your confidence. I've heard the same thing many times, from many powerful warriors... who never return.''
''We're... let's just say, we've seen our fair share of conflicts before.'' Strea's expression dropped from one of confidence, to one of regret and remorse.
''She's right, we've fought our share of tough monsters before, and we've lived to see another day. A few snakes aren't gonna be too much trouble... Trust us, we've got this!''
''You are... rather strange, I'll admit, but perhaps you will allow me to tell my story?''
''Go ahead.'' As Strea spoke, a quest marker appeared above the girl's head. Just behind her, two players rushed through the thicket and pushed her aside, desperately trying to get to the young woman. ''Outta the way! Ha, looks like I got here first... so beat it!'' The male player shouted towards the female player, who finally noticed the other players already there...
''I think they beat us here, you know...'' The female player commented, a smarmy tone of self satisfaction in her voice as she did.
''Yeah, yeah, whatever. You're doing the snake quest, right? Could you hurry up, yeah, you're holding up everyone else...''
''Sorry guys, but we've decided to handle rescuing the girl ourselves, so if you could just back down and and pull out of here, that'd be great!'' Klein asked with a jovial tone, trying to be as polite as he could to avoid insulting them...
That didn't work quite as well as he'd hoped, as both players turned to him, enraged at the perceived implication... ''Look at this small time guild, thinking they'll save the day and become the MVPs. Leave it to the pros...'' Strea burst out laughing as they said that, much to their anger and Klein's wincing as he expected the worst... ''What do you find so funny?'' The girl from the DKB ordered her to answer, reaching for her weapon as she did so...
Strea, in between laughing fits, turned to face them... ''Pros? You lot are barely amateurs! I've fought in battles alongside your lots before, and half the time we'd have been better off without you! You wanna leave it to the pros, I've got some bad news for you... that ain't you. That's us...''
''What makes you think you're better than us...'' The ALS member demanded to know...
''I was part of only eight of us who fought the fifth floor boss, as was he.'' She pointed towards Klein, ''We all survived, because we knew how to work together... had your lots been there, it'd have been a massacre.'' Strea stated, staring down the man as she did so and watching the hints of anxiety on his face increase dramatically as she did so. ''So do the smart thing - walk away.'' Strea asked, before becoming more demanding... ''Now.''
The two guild members were at least smart enough to see the writing on the wall, and make a tactical retreat... at break neck pace.
Klein looked toward Strea, who gave the samurai a look that simply said ''What?'', before she turned back to talk to the girl. In place of the young woman, all she saw were some rocks and grass, where the woman had been. Strea sighed, assuming that the confrontation must've scared her off again... this was going to take forever!
''Ah, there you two are!'' The pair looked around, to see Thinker and Yulier running up from just behind them. Both had evidently been running a fair amount, given both looked absolutely exhausted, but their weapons were both stowed, so they definitely hadn't been fighting.
''I'd catch your breath, if I were you...''
''Why?''
''We're going after an NPC... again.'' Strea rolled her eyes in frustration. If those idiots at the guilds hadn't gone and shoved their big noses where it definitely didn't concern them, they'd already have a decent start on the quest, Strea thought to herself. She hadn't failed to notice the look of concern that Klein was giving her, especially after her outburst at the dimwits, either. Just one more thing to discuss, she thought...
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The search took them further through the gorge, through yet more Orochi Soldiers, and Black Guardians, and yet more rope bridges. Whoever designed this floor really must've loved rope bridges, Strea thought, as she'd seen more of them on this one floor than she ever had before in her life...
Eventually, after a few hours of searching, the group found the young woman, sat under a tree and talking to a small white snake. Barely the length from her elbow to her hand, the snake was the smallest, and very arguably, the closest thing to ''cute'' that a snake would ever get in her eyes. Whilst it wasn't on her brother's level of phobia, she wholeheartedly agreed that snakes were not pleasant creatures to look at, nor be anywhere near... and that was coming from someone who lived in a country where wild snakes weren't exactly dangerous. This one though, barely looked strong enough to move, let alone attack anyone...
''You're persistent, I'll give you that.'' She stated, barely looking up to see the four of them. ''I don't want to go back to my father... please don't take me back.''
''If he makes you feel uncomfortable, we won't. Family only means so much, sometimes...'' Strea's look suggested she had first hand experience on that topic, and Klein made a note to talk to her about it once they'd finished this quest.
''Oh, we never introduced ourselves!'' Klein remembered, sitting down before he continued, ''I'm Klein, that's Strea...'' The purple haired woman gave a slight wave. ''... and those are Thinker and Yulier.''
''My name is Hatu.'' Strea watched as Klein began to embody the stereotype of almost every man she'd ever been friends with.
''That is a beautiful name...''
''Stop it...'' Strea looked towards her guild leader, a sense of exasperation rapidly building as the conversation carried on.
''A long time ago, Senja Castle was the home of a fine, upstanding lord. He was kind, and wise, but he suffered from one vice in particular - he was scared. Scared to die. Some time ago, as the lord began to show his age, a sorcerer appeared before him with a promise, that with the lord's help, they could attain eternal life and could assure the lord that his biggest fear would never come true...''
''Let me guess, it wasn't that simple...''
''It was not. The sorcerer wanted a fruit from the Sacred Tree of the Elves, a crime punishable by a fate worse than death, not that the lord was aware of that. As you are already expecting, the sorcerer had betrayed him, hoping to take his manor for himself. The moment that the lord so much as touched the Sacred Tree, he and his descendants were cursed, turned into unholy monsters as a divine punishment for his foolishness...''
''If that was the punishment for foolishness, I don't want to know what they'd do for hubris...'' Strea muttered as she shuddered at the thought. Klein nodded in agreement, before they let Hatu carry on.
''The sorcerer attempted to take over, but was fought back by the snake god, Ouroboros, who fought to protect its people. It fought valiantly, but the sorcerer was powerful. Despite his demise during their battle, Ouroboros was robbed of its powers, and reduced to the form of a white snake...'' The small snake slithered back underneath her sleeve in a display that made Strea especially uncomfortable, as it disappeared from sight, reduced to merely a wrinkle in Hatu's clothing... ''Every part of its energy has been spent guarding the people who have dedicated their lives to protecting this shrine. It may look aggressive, but it truly is a benevolent and kind god. I remember it protecting me when I was attacked by the sorcerer's demonic lieutenants, but Ouroboros' continued presence on this plain has taken what little power it still had left, and reduced to the size you have seen...''
Sensing where this quest was heading, Yulier spoke up first, ''Is there anyway that Ouroboros could regain its power?''
Hatu looked over towards the waterfall at the edge of the valley, before looking back, her head hung low as she did ''There is. The waterfall here is the source of its powers. It's said the flesh and blood of a pure maiden can return Ouroboros to its full power...''
As she spoke, the four looked to each other, anxiety evident on their faces as they did. She couldn't be thinking what they thought she meant... right? ''You don't mean that you intend to sacrifice yourself, do you?'' Thinker asked hesitantly.
''My life shall be forfeit, so that Ouroboros may rise again and protect us all... it is my final act of devotion to my family...'' Strea take a seat on the other side of the girl to Klein...
''Hatu, look at me. Whatever it is, we'll find a way so you don't have to sacrifice yourself. Besides, if this Ouroboros is benevolent, and has been protecting you, then what exactly would it have to gain by you offing yourself? It's been protecting you for a reason, and I doubt it's to let you end your own life for it.'' Ouroboros slithered down her sleeve, and appeared to nod to the group.
''There's... another way, I think. If the Lord of Senja Castle was defeated... Ouroboros might return to full strength, maybe.'' The way she said that was a pretty big indicator that she didn't fully believe that would be the case. Still, it was a better idea than letting a young woman throw away her own life, that much they would all agree on.
Klein, unsurprisingly, seemed the most enthusiastic about their new mission, and bolted back to a standing position as he spoke... ''Then that's what we'll do! Take down the boss-I mean, Lord of the Castle, and get Ouroboros here back on its uhh...''
''Tail.'' Strea finished his sentence, as he trailed off.
''Th-thank you so much... but I fear it may already be too late. Ouroboros tells me that, in his current state, it may not even make it to nightfall. If we still had the Demonblade, its power may provide you with enough time to defeat the Lord of the Castle...''
''Demonblade?'' Strea asked, wondering who came up with the names for these weapons. That one was particularly crap, in her humble opinion...
''Y-yes, it was stored at the shrine once upon a time, but it has long since disappeared, and was believed to have been stolen by the Captain of the Guard of Senja Castle. His lover was killed by the sorcerer, a twisted way to ensure loyalty by the men under him...'' Hatu spat the words out as if they had been tainted by the most toxic of poisons.
''Bastard.'' Strea mumbled, whilst the others wordlessly agreed with her succinct summary of the man.
''He believed that, with the Demonblade, he could defeat the sorcerer...''
''Considering we still have a sorcerer problem, I take it that he was a little bit overconfident?'' Strea asked, guessing where this was going. She wasn't a gamer by any standards, but this was getting just a little bit predictable... not that the samurai beside her seemed to mind that, with Klein seemingly hanging on every word of the story, and perhaps a little too eager to get going...
Hatu nodded solemnly, as she carried on with the story. ''Almost certainly. He was never seen again, and it is a local legend that one of the Orochi monsters now possesses the Demonblade, somewhere in the Bamboo Forest.''
''Sounds like a simple task, right?'' Klein asked, earning an annoyed glare from Strea for jinxing it already...
''Very simple, we've only got to go into a massive forest that all four of us nearly got lost in earlier, find a single monster that I have no doubts is far more powerful than the ones we've fought so far, and recover a blade that is almost certainly cursed. Missed anything?'' Strea commented sarcastically, attempting to be the voice of reason for once... a look she really didn't want to settle into!
''All true, admittedly. However, if we work as a unit, we should be able to handle it...'' Thinker stated, whilst Yulier did her best to hide a look that was halfway between admiration and a schoolgirl with a crush.
''See, they think we can do it! Hatu, stay put, and we'll be back as fast as we can!'' Klein gave his best impression of a noble warrior, dedicated to the fight for justice... one out of three could've been better, in Strea's eyes. As he finished, he turned and gave his attempt at a rousing one liner ''We've got a snake to kill...''
{Author's Comments}
I'm back! Life decided to be... awkward, so I've taken a short break for a bit, which I hope explains the brief break in the schedule.
Anyway, I've got another new story - Through the Looking Glass, an SAO and Doctor Who crossover, set during the Alicization arc of SAO, and the 2009 Specials of Dr Who.
I'm also on the SAO Fanfiction Discord server, so if you want to talk stories or just want to say hi, you're welcome to join : discord . gg / SrsdNgJPVR
If you're enjoying the story, follow and favourite it, and if you want to leave me feedback or your thoughts, drop me a review or a PM!
Signing off,
Midland 2541.