A/N: This is my first crossover fanfiction. Hope you all enjoy it.
It was a busy night at Dicey Cafe. A bunch of customers stormed into the cafe and ordered drinks and food most of them were workers that just got done their shift. The owner, Andrew Gilbert Mills, he's the bartender making the drinks and the food. He usually runs the business on his own but got himself a waiter. The waiter was a young boy with white hair and red eyes. His name is Bell Cranel. "Hey Bell, can you take this to the table by the jukebox," said Andrew.
"You got Mr. Mills," said Bell.
He takes the drinks and pizza to the table full of teenage girls. "Here you are ladies, your drinks and pizza." he smiled at the ladies.
The girls started blushing, and some even began flirting. "Aren't you a cute little rabbit?"
"Yeah, he sure is cute I could just eat him up."
He can't help but blush. One of them was about to grab him until Andrew called his name and he went back to work. A few hours later they closed shop and Bell headed to his apartment.
"Man, it's always busy at night, but it was better than having two jobs. I can see how Heista felt when she had two jobs. Today was also fun. I see why Syr loved her job," said Bell.
Back then he not only worked at the cafe but at another place. "Before getting this apartment, I used to live with Mr. Mills."
He then remembered the day he first met Andrew. On May 31, 2020, it was a dark night at a playground. Bell was just lying there, not knowing what to do. He was weeping, wondering if he would be able to return to his world and see all of his friends. He tried asking for help, but the people either just ignored him or took him as a cosplayer. He just kept weeping until he heard a voice. He looked up and saw a muscle African American man.
"Are you okay?" he asked Bell.
Bell couldn't tell him he comes from a different world, so he didn't answer. Andrew didn't know why, but something told him to help this kid. Andrew took him back to his place and gave him some food and a place to stay. His wife Trish knew he was always looking out for others, so when she saw him bring Bell, she wasn't too surprised.
The next day Andrew went around the neighborhood to see if anyone knew Bell, but no one did. He even went to the police to find some information but sadly came with nothing. He tried everything to help this boy. Bell even noticed it. After trying for weeks, he let Bell live with him and his wife. He even gave him a job at his cafe but Bell felt a little guilty having to rely on someone but Andrew always tells him it's fine. Bell later gets a second time so that he can get an apartment. After renting an apartment, he returns to having one job.
"I can't believe it's been two years," said Bell.
When he first came into this world, he didn't know a thing about it. Everyone spoke the same language as he did, but the writing was different compared to his world luckily Trish taught him writing. It took some time, but he eventually adapted to this world.
"This world seems strange at first, but it's quite fascinating as well. I've grown interested in novels that are just like the ones from my world and books with pictures called manga. I also play what this world calls video games. I mostly read and play games that take place in fantasy since it reminds me of home. I don't know how long it'll take, but I believe one day I'll return home. I wonder if he is here too?"
On November 6, Bell saw something in a store that caught his eyes.
"This is one strange helmet."
"That's the NerveGear," said a store employee.
"What's a NerveGear?"
The store employee explained the NerveGear to him. This piqued his interest as he purchased the helmet. He also bought a game that came out today. It was called Sword Art Online. He went straight home and set it up by his bed, placed it on his head. He then lay down, shut his eyes, and said, "Link start."
Everything was white then he saw a bunch of colors flashing his eyes then saw five circles. Each one said touch, sight, hearing, taste, and smell.
Select langue: Japanese
He makes an account, customizes his avatar, and enters the game. He looked around and saw the environment looked a little similar to his world. He started walking around the area to this virtual world. Then he went to a blacksmith and purchased a dagger. He was about to head to the field until…. "Bell?"
He heard a familiar voice, slowly turned his head, and saw a black-haired boy with dark green eyes, wearing a dark green tunic, and black boots. "Ryu?" Bell mumbled. He gave him a hug.
"It's really you, Bell. It's been a while."
"I'm so happy to see a familiar face." Bell burst with happiness.
"I see."
Ryu understood why Bell was so thrilled to see him. He then asked what happened. Bell told him how he got transported to this world.
"You traveled the dungeon to see the Xenos, then found a tunnel in the dungeon, so you entered it, then a flash of light came out of nowhere and suddenly you're transported to here."
"That's right."
"How long have you been here?"
"Two years. What about you?"
"Only a month. It must've been tough."
"It was at first. To be honest, the whole situation reminded me of when I first came to Orario. Nobody helped me. I was alone until I met Andrew."
He then continued on how he got a job, then eventually got his own apartment.
"I'm glad to see you're doing fine. What do you think of this world?"
"It's amazing there are some things similar and different between this world and my world. I love the stories this world has."
"Let me guess most of those stories involve a character becoming a hero."
"Yeah, especially fantasy stories."
Bell was smiling but felt a little sad, Ryu noticed. "I can send you back," said Ryu.
"Huh," said Bell.
"I can open a portal and send you back home."
"Will I be able to come back here?" said Bell.
"Eventually, yes."
"To be honest, I was hoping to find you here."
"Really."
"Yeah. Now that you're here and knowing I can return home and come back here, I'm so thrilled. I can't wait to show everyone this world."
Ryu grew a little worried, so he told Bell that he can't just spread the word to everyone, but only to those they trust.
"What do you want to do?" said Ryu.
"I'll stay here for a while and maybe I can introduce you to Andrew later," said Bell.
"Sounds like a good idea. Let's head to the fields. I have someone waiting for me there."
The two head to the fields where they see a short black hair boy waving to them. When they got close, Bell noticed how handsome the boy was.
"Sorry I'm late," said Ryu.
"I actually just got here," said the boy.
"Ryu, who's he?" Bell asked.
"This is my friend Kirito. We first met when this game was a beta."
"It's nice to meet you, Kirito. My name is Bell," said Bell.
"Likewise," said Kirito.
The two shake hands. "Looks like you guys know your way around."
"Oh, so you're new to this game," said Ryu.
"Yeah, I purchased the game today," said Bell.
"Don't worry, we'll show you the ropes," said Kirito.
"Thanks."
The two boys watch Bell fight the Frenzy Boars. Kirito was impressed with how Bell dealt with the boars. "You sure you never used the Nervegear because you're pretty good at fighting," said Kirito.
"Nope, it's really my first time using one."
"Seems like you're a natural then."
"Hey Bell, check this out." Ryu pulled his sword out and looked straight at a boar. He charges at the boar. The blade glowed blue, then he sliced the boar from top to bottom. The creature shattered into polygons.
"What was that?" said Bell.
"That was Vertical, a Sword Skill,"
"What's a sword skill? Are they like special attacks?"
"You could say that. There combat movements supported by the system. If you do your initial motion right and activate the sword skill. The system guarantees you always hit your target." Kirito picks a small rock, and it glows red. He threw it at the boar. The boar charges at him. Kirito puts his blade between its horns.
"Initial motion?" Bell was confused.
"Here's a simple way to look at it. Right after you start your move, wait for a bit. When you feel the skill activating, drive it home."
Bell was still confused.
"You know how you feel when you use magic like a firebolt? Just imagine you're using magic, but apply that to your weapon," said Ryu.
He didn't understand it at first but gave it a shot. He draws out his dagger, then bends his arm close to his side. He saw the dagger glow blue.
Both Ryu and Kirito noticed it. Ryu nodded at Kirito, giving him the okay. He nodded back and got the boar to target Bell. Bell charges his dagger and places his arm out in front. He slices the boar out. Its health reaches zero, and it shatters into polygons. After defeating the boar he earned 24 EXP, 30 cor, and two items.
"Well done," said Kirito.
"Excellent performance," said Ryu.
"Thank you, guys. What sword skill did I perform and how many sword skills are there?" Bell smiled.
"Rapid Bite. It's one of the sword's skills for a dagger. From what I heard there are unlimited sword skills," said Kirito.
"What about magic?"
"Sadly, there's no magic in this game," said Ryu.
"Really, no magic. I've never played a game that had no magic."
"There are plenty of sword skills to learn and other skills as well but we can talk about that later."
"Agreed. I'm ready to fight some boars," said Kirito.
"You ready Bell?" said Ryu.
Bell nodded, and the three fought boars for a few hours after that they sat in the grass taking a break.
"Man, that was fun," said Bell.
"Yeah, it was," said Ryu.
Kirito was staring at the sunset and saw the two were talking. He was curious how the two know each other so he asked them how they met. Bell was hesitating, but Ryu made up a story by saying they met on an MMO but lost touch for a couple of years.
"Do you have any friends you play with?" Kirito asked.
"Normally I am around with my friends, but I haven't seen them for a long time and didn't know anyone here," said Bell.
Ryu knew Bell couldn't stop thinking about his friends, which explains why he played by himself.
"I understand how it feels being alone," said Kirito.
"What do you mean?" said Bell.
"I mostly played video games by myself. I was a solo player, but that all changed when I met Ryu."
"How did you meet Ryu?"
Kirito tells him the story of how the two met.
Flashback
It was August 15th on the fifth floor. Kirito was fighting in the labyrinth to get to the floor boss. While he was fighting the monsters, he saw another player surrounded. The boy had short black hair and dark green eyes. He charged in and sliced every monster through the opening he created quickly, was swallowed by the monsters. The two are back in back with their swords drawn out. "Looks like we're trapped."
"I'm sure we can fight through them."
Kirito liked the confidence this boy had. He nodded his head. The two fought the monsters, which took about five minutes to defeat all of them. The two were so tired they left the labyrinth and went to a restaurant.
"Thanks for the help back there," said the boy.
"Don't mention it," said Kirito.
"My name is Ryu."
"Kirito."
"Nice to meet you, Kirito."
"What brought you into the labyrinth?"
"I was just exploring until I stepped into a trap and many monsters appeared. What about you?"
"Heading to the floor boss room."
"I see. Why don't we work together?"
Ryu noticed Kirito giving a strange look on his face.
"I understand if you don't want to, but it's more fun when you're playing with someone," Ryu smiled.
"Okay, I'll join you," Kirito hesitated. "Does tomorrow sound good?"
Ryu nodded and the two parted ways until the next day the two swordsmen fought through the labyrinth and got to the floor boss and defeated it. After that, the two became best friends and played together for the rest of the beta and promised to meet each other again when the game became official.
"That sounds amazing," said Bell.
"I'm not really a sociable person, so that's why I play solo, but Ryu showed me how fun it is to play with another person," said Kirito.
"Solo can be fun sometimes, but personally I enjoy playing with other people. It makes the game more fun. You get to share the experience of having an adventure with your friends," said Ryu.
"I know what you mean," said Bell.
"Since the three of us first started as solo players, why don't we form a small party," said Kirito.
"I'm in," said Ryu.
"Me too," said Bell.
The three formed a party, then Bell went on about how fun of an adventurer they're going to have now that the three are together.
"I heard this game has 100 floors. What floor did you guys get to?" said Bell.
"We both made it to floor ten in two months," said Ryu.
"I think we can get there in a month," said Kirito.
"You're really into this," said Bell.
"He sure is," said Ryu.
" During the beta, SAO is all I can think of both day and night. In this world, a single blade can take you anywhere you want to go. And even though it's a virtual world, I feel more alive here than I ever did in the real one."
"Kirito. If you came to my world, you would be an amazing adventurer and my familia would welcome you," Bell thought to himself.
"Ready for more hunting," said Kirito.
The two boys nodded, and the three continued playing. After ranking up to level three, they hear bells from the town and are suddenly transported to the Town of Beginnings. They see all the players in the game were transported just like them. Everyone was confused.
"What's going on?" said Bell.
"I don't know," said Kirito.
"Look." Ryu pointed up in the sky.
Everyone looked up and saw a red block with the text "Warning". Then the entire sky was covered with red blocks with the text system announcement. Then blood was pouring from the sky. The blood formed into a giant red robe. It was the game master.
"Greeting players welcome to my world."
"That voice, it's Kayaba Akihiko," said Kirito.
"Who Kayaba Akihiko?" said Bell.
"He's the creator of SAO, the NerveGear, and the Cardinal System," said Ryu.
"The Cardinal System?"
"It's the system that manages all the resources, processes, and events within SAO," Kirito explained to Bell.
They see other players looking confused. Then the game master told them about the logout button not being there, and it was designed that way.
"The logout button is gone? That can't be true," said Bell.
"It's true, look," said Kirito.
They look at their menus to see the logout button gone.
"What about the NerveGear can't we take them off," said Bell.
"You won't be able to. The transceivers block every movement to the brain," said Kirito.
"Can someone out there take the gear off or do force logout?"
"You can't logout and no one can shut or remove the nervegear from your head. If anyone attempts to do so, the transmitter inside the gear will discharge a microwave signal to your skull destroying your brain and ending your life. Unfortunately, two hundred thirteen players have been killed due to the nervegear being removed. Also, if your HP reaches zero, your avatar will be deleted from the system and the nervegear will destroy your brain," said Kayaba.
Bell fell down to his knees. He couldn't believe what he was just told. He was happy knowing he can return to his world, but now that hope was taken away from him. Ryu assures him that everything would be fine and they'll find a way out.
"There's only one way to logout. You must beat every floor all the way to the 100th floor beating the game," said Kayaba.
"Get to the 100th. We've only got to the tenth floor. Something tells me this won't be easy," said Ryu.
Kayaba tells them he left something for them. Kirito checks his inventory and sees a small mirror, then a flash of light starts appearing around the players, eventually the entire area. Bell looks around and sees Ryu. The two looked at each other to see nothing changed, but when they turned their heads to see Kirito. When Bell first met Kirito, he looked like a handsome protagonist from a fantasy story but now has a slightly long but neat hair and more of a younger face similar to Bell's.
"What happened to you, Kirito?" said Bell.
Kirito explains how there's a scan in the nervegear and it asks you to touch your body. "I don't understand why would he do all of this?" said Bell.
"We're about to find out," said Ryu.
"You might wonder why would Akihiko Kayaba, the creator of Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, do all this? Ultimately, my goal was simple. To create the fate of the world that I've designed and, as you can see, I've achieved my goal. This marks the end of the tutorial, the official start of Sword Art Online. Players, I wish you the best of luck." After that, he vanished.
While everyone panicked, some were crying, Ryu, Bell, and Kirito were processing the information they just learned.
"These people are experiencing what I felt when I came to this world, fear. I understand how they feel being trapped in a world you don't know about. I too was scared and worried I won't be able to return home, but that changed after I met Andrew and seeing Ryu again and knowing there's hope for me to see my friends again. I won't lose that hope," Bell thought to himself.
"It's not a game, it's real. Akihiko Kayaba created a virtual world and designed the NerveGear. He's a genius, so everything he said is true. If we die in the game, we die in real life. I would head to the next town and level up as much as possible, but I can't just abandon these people, especially Ryu and Bell. This marks the end of the tutorial, my ass. This is just the beginning," Kirito thought.
"Yumi, Takeshi, Mitsuko, everyone back at home I won't be able to return to home for a while but I'll fight my way out of here with my friends and as guardian-," Ryu thought.
"I'll help these people and show there's hope." Both Ryu and Kirito had the same thought.
Bell noticed the two beta testers passing the players and heading to the center of town. He follows them.
"Can we have your attention," Ryu shouted. Everyone went quiet and stared at them. Bell was with the crowd, watching the two boys.
"What are those two doing?" said Bell.
"You know those two?"
Bell turned his head to see a blond hair girl with a hood and whiskers on her face.
"I only met Kirito today but Ryu and I go back."
"I see. Do you know what's going on?"
"I guess we're about to find out."
They focused their eyes on the boys. Bell was wondering what they were about to do.
"Thank you, my name is Kirito."
"And I'm Ryu."
"And we're beta testers," the two boys said.
"What are those two doing," said the girl.
"What's wrong?" said Bell.
"Those two are exposing themselves as beta testers."
"Is that bad?"
"Don't you get it? Now that SAO has become a death game beta testers are going to be targeted."
"I don't believe that."
The two had different opinions, but all they could do for now was watch.
"Kayaba said the tutorial is over. In my opinion, the tutorial has only begun. We can't take your fears, but there's one thing we can do," said Ryu.
"And that's giving you all a chance to survive this game and hope. As of now, the tutorial of Sword Art Online begins now," said Kirito.
The two share their knowledge of the world of Aincrad, the mechanics of the game, how each floor has a boss that defends the entrance to the next floor, and how each floor has a different theme, climate, quests, and monsters. Kirito then explains the menu, the stats, skills, inventory, and many more. Ryu gave helpful tips. They went on for a few hours, mostly Kirito doing the talking.
"We hope this information can help all of you. We're planning to make a guidebook for those that want more information," said Ryu.
"It's pointless," said a player.
"Yeah, this isn't a game anymore."
"Not only that, when our health reaches down to zero we not only die in the game but in real life too. What's the point."
"What's the point?" Bell muttered. He can understand they're scared but couldn't let them say such negative things. "What about the families and friends there waiting for us in the real world."
"You with the white hair, why don't you come up here and tell us your name," said Kirito.
He joins the two boys. "My name is Bell. Like most of you, I'm new to this game. I understand all of you are scared I am too, but I agree with these boys. In order to beat this game, we all must work together."
He tells them how he met two beta testers and how they helped and taught him about the game. "I'm going to fight alongside them because I have a family that's waiting for me and that's worth fighting for."
"Well spoken." Ryu placed his hand on Bell's shoulder. "I couldn't agree with you more."
"Family," Kirito mumbled.
"What was that," Ryu whispered.
"It's nothing."
They continued to finish their speech.
"We can understand some of you are still afraid. It would be wise for those to remain in the city," said Ryu.
"We know this isn't much, but it's the least we can do for the time being. All we can do is adapt to the situation. I agree with Ryu about those remaining in the city but I recommend doing quests that won't get you killed. For those that want to beat this game, start leveling up so you guys can get stronger to fight the floor bosses," said Kirito.
Argo was surprised at first to see Kirito giving a speech. When she first met him, she took him as a quiet solo player, but after meeting Ryu, he changed.
"We want to get out of this game so we'll keep fighting until we beat this game. We hope some of you will join the fight," said Ryu.
"That concludes the tutorial of Sword Art Online," said Kirito.
Everyone was quiet for a while until Argo broke the silence by clapping her hands. Slowly, everyone began clapping, some even cheered. Bell was thrilled to bring hope to everyone, while Ryu and Kirito gave each other a simple nod.
"Well done, you three. I knew Ryu-bou would help everyone, but Kii-bou didn't think you would give a gracious speech. I was surprised you two would tell everyone you guys are beta testers but after that speech, I see there's nothing to worry about."
"Nice to see you again, Argo," said Kirito.
"You guys know her?" Bell asked.
"This Argo, she's a friend of ours."
"Nice to meet you," said Bell.
"Nice to meet you too, little rookie."
"What do we do now?"
"Everyone is going to want the guidebook. I'm going to start it right now. Argo, you think you can help me," said Ryu.
"I'll do my best."
"I was hoping we head to the next village," said Kirito.
"The next village?" said Bell.
"Everyone here is going after the EXP and Col. The town will be cleaned, so the best bet is to get ahead. We'll have it easy to collect resources and EXP. Don't worry, I know the paths and places we should avoid, us being level three, it should be easy."
"I guess Ryu is staying," said Bell.
"Don't worry, there are some places that can help me level up quickly," said Ryu.
"Leave the book to me," said Argo.
"I can't just leave all the work to you."
"Don't worry I've got a trick up in my shelve."
"Are you sure?"
"Trust me."
He looks at Kirito and Bell. "It's your choice," said Kirito.
"I'll leave everything to you."
"Good luck you three."
They leave the town of beginnings and head to the village. While traveling, dire wolves appeared. They drew their weapons and struck down the wolves.
"Goddess Hestia, Welf, Lili, Yamato, and Sanjouno, I'll be home soon," Bell thought to himself.
"This game won't beat me," Kirito thought.
"I promise, Bell, I'll get home," Ryu thought
A/N: I post this on another website and forgot to post it here. Let me know what you guys think and I'll see you in the next chapter.