Here is the next chapter~

I wanted to include parts that I thought were missing in some SAO stories. It was never really said if they had their weapons from the beginning or if they had to buy them from merchants. So I decided to do it in here.

Kayaba's speech is taken from the subbed version of the anime, so it might be a bit different from what you know if there are different subs. The whole speech had around 400-450 words if I remember correctly.

The last part is also a bit rushed, since I wanted to finally get it over with.

Wordcount: 3761 words (without A/N)


Chapter Two: The Eagle and his Wife

"Link Start!"

Bright light filled her vision and streaked past her, as if she had flown through a rainbow. Several screens popped up rapidly.

«Touch-OK»

«Hearing-OK»

«Sight-OK»

«Smell-OK»

«Taste-OK»

It was checking if the NerveGear's VR features were loaded correctly. It confirmed that it could trick her brain and senses into believing SAO's environment was real. What she was already experiencing in the loading process, the bright light and sound of the screens, felt quite real. Argus and Kayaba Akihiko had created an amazing game and Tsuna couldn't wait to experience it's whole world.

The language select popped up as «Language- Japanese» due to her calibrations and settings beforehand and she felt giddy. Renji-nii-san had helped her prepare as much as possible so she could start the game sooner. Another screen popped up.

«Please log-in»

They had also created an account during preparations. Renji-nii-san had wanted to make sure she was not tricked into anything while doing that. Tsuna had wanted to use her account name as her character name as well, so she would remember both. She had used them during her time playing Elder Tales and other games. The log-in screen floated before her along with a keyboard. They were slightly see-through and glowed with a dim white light.

«Account: Benihime»

«Password: S3v3nL0tus»

Her password was usually the same. 'Seven' stood for her mother, while the 'Lotus' stood for Renji-nii-san's nickname. The numbers were added for security. While entering her data she had seen her hands, which looked like hands that could belong to anyone. They didn't have the scrapes and bruises she always had from tripping and trying to catch herself. As soon as she pressed enter, the screen changed and the keyboard vanished.

«Please select your gender

«Male» «Female»

Tsuna pressed the «Female» -Button and startled when a mirror appeared before her along with a screen on the right. The person in the mirror looked nothing like her, but very generic with dark hair and eyes. Like someone you would meet and quickly forget about. The screen on the side showed a list of different categories:

«Presets»

«Head»

«Body»

«Coloring»

«Voice»

«Name»

«Confirm»

Each category had several sub-categories to expand the customization of the avatar. Choosing a preset Tsuna created an avatar that wouldn't have looked out of place in a Shinto temple. The crimson hair was pulled back into a loose braid that fell down to the middle of her back and her eyes had the same amber color she had in pictures as a little child. Her features were more Asian than her own and looked more mature. She was taller than her 147 cm by a few centimeters and looked to be a few years older too. No one would think of her as a little child if she looked closer to sixteen than twelve. Her lips, which were now painted a crimson similar to her hair, were stretched into a sly grin as she arranged the strands of hair that framed her face and fell lightly over her eyes.

Yes, this was how she wanted to look like. Confident. Capable. Strong. This was who she wanted to be. «Benihime» would be different from Tsuna.

Still smiling she pressed the «Confirm» button.

White filled her vision.

~HnS~

The plaza she arrived at when she opened her eyes was wide, beautiful and filled with exited players. She could smell flowers in the air and feel a light breeze on her skin. Argus and Kayaba Akihiko did great work. It was as if the was in a real place.

Tsuna startled when a small screen appeared before her.

«Welcome to Aincrad.

To open your main menu please place the

pointer and middle finger of your right hand

together and move them in a downward motion.»

Curious Tsuna did as instructed and swung her fingers downward and smiled as the menu opened. Eyeing the categories she decided that they were easy to understand and selected her skills, which opened two empty slots. A different screen opened before her.

«Please select your initial Weapon skill»

Tapping the first empty slot a scrolling sub-menu opened. It listed all weapon skills available for her level and abilities. According to the blogs she had read with Renji-nii-san, some skills required certain skill levels in other skills. You had to level the One-Handed Sword skill before you could learn Two-Handed Sword.

While Tsuna knew she wanted to fight with a long weapon, like a spear, she was a bit torn between the Two-Handed Assault Spear and the Two-Handed Battle Ax. While the spear was quite fast, it did little damage. The battle ax, on the other hand, was strong and devastating but quite slow. So it was a question of speed or strength. A battle ax would also weigh more...A spear, Tsuna decided, a spear would be better.

Another screen popped up after she selected the Two-Handed Assault Spear skill.

«Attention!

You will be given one starter weapon

after selecting your first weapon skill.

Please be aware that this service

will only be available once!

Do you wish to proceed?»

Tsuna confirmed her choice and startled slightly when her new weapon appeared before her. She looked it over and tested it's weight. It was quite light. Hopefully not too light. It was called «Training Spear».

Looking around at other players, Tsuna saw many of them with harnesses on their backs and waist and tried to look over her shoulder to see if she had one as well. It seemed so. Biting her lip she swung the spear over her shoulder onto her back and heard a slight click as it slid into it's harness.

Taking a deep breath Tsuna closed her eyes to focus herself. She was really doing this. A giddy energy rose within her and she couldn't help but smile. Here she would be strong. Here she would be somebody. Exhaling Benihime opened her eyes and stepped forward.

She was ready.

~HnS~

Reading about the use of Sword Skills was different from actually using them. What counted as starting pose while fighting with a spear? It had taken Benihime a few tries to get it right and to really hit her enemies. She had also, after a bit of thinking, chosen «Blade Throwing» as her second skill. This way she had something to attack with when she enemies were still far away. And she could even try to throw her spear if she was really desperate. It sounded cool even if she would loose her weapon.

She had already been playing for a few hours, steadily raising her experience until she was halfway to level three by the time she felt hungry. Glancing at the time Benihime saw that it was already 17:13. Renji-nii-san would want to know about the game and would then ask her to try himself while she went to sleep. Mama start preparing dinner by now and be happy that she had had fun.

Opening her menu Benihime scrolled to the bottom and selected the «Settings» option and froze. There was a button with the typical emblem associated with «Log out», but there was no writing there and it didn't react when she still pressed it. It had been there earlier when she had explored her menu. What happened? She tried to contact a GM, but got no response. Strange.

With a strange feeling Benihime looked around. A few hundred meters from her were two other players fighting against monsters. Training. Keeping her spear (which she would have to replace soon, the durability was getting low) in hand, she ran over to them while also defeating monsters that were in her way.

"Excuse me?" She asked shyly. The players looked at her, a man and a woman.

The woman was a bit taller than her, with pale skin, short straight silver hair and piercing green eyes, which were unnaturally bright. She had a dagger in her hand, which she had used to defeat one of the boars around.

Where the woman looked a bit shady, the man was simply tall, muscular and scary. He was build as if he could lift cars, his hair was as black as his sharp eyes and reached his shoulders, while the scowl on his face made Benihime think of Hibari-senpai. A very territorial, extremely pissed off Hibari-senpai. She shuddered a bit.

"Yes?" The woman asked and looked at her with a light smile on the face. "Did you want something?" Her voice was light and quiet, but sounded really nice.

"I have problems with logging out. The button is gone and I can't get contact with a GM" Benihime explained. The man frowned his brows and Benihime felt weak again at his Hibari-like scowl. They looked at each other, seemingly communicating with each other silently, before both opened their menu and found the missing button.

"That never happened before" the man said in a deep rumbling voice. "I mean, there had been some bugs, but never like this. When did you find this?" He asked Benihime.

"Just a few minutes ago." She answered before bowing lightly. "My name is Benihime, by the way. Nice to meet you, even if the reason is a bit strange."

"You can call me Weaver" grinned the woman humorously and pocked the man's cheek. "And this great lump is Washi. Don't worry about his face, he just wanted to have this 'big scary protector' image, but inside he is a giant fluffy teddy bear."

"Give me a moment." Washi said distractedly. "I'll try to contact someone who might know more. If he doesn't know I have to ask Argo." He gave a deep dejected sigh. "She's always so expensive."

"In the meantime, it might be better if we return to the Town of Beginning. It is getting a bit late, dear." Weaver suggested and grinned at Benihime. "I'm married to this big teddy bear. He was one of the BETA tester and pre-ordered a game for me as well. It's fun, isn't it? Like being in a different world, being someone else. Refreshing."

"Yes" Benihime agreed. "It's really exciting. How far are you two leveled yet?"

"Washi is level three and I'm just over level two." Weaver grinned. "A dagger isn't the strongest weapon against an enemy, but the fastest. Plus, I want to try and build this character into an assassin. You know, skills that are Shinobi like. Washi on the other hand uses a mace and shield. He's going for a tank build."

"B-Builds?" Benihime stuttered. She hadn't been aware there were builds in SAO. Thought if one was to think about it, it made sense. If you chose your skills with a certain picture in mind you could do that. "I haven't really thought about that. I had decided to use a p-polearm weapon before playing and Blade throwing for more distance." Did I do something wrong how I did it?

"None of my friends know anything." Washi grumbled once he returned from writing, much as if he had been on the phone. "Their freaking out to. It's not just us, no-one can log out. And logging out is the only way to leave the game."

Benihime opened her mouth, her breath caught in her throat as she thought Mama, please come to my room and take the NerveGear off, when a loud bell rang through the area and all three of them were surrounded by light.

~HnS~

Benihime blinked and looked around confused. She, together with Washi and Weaver, stood on the plaza she had arrived at. It was completely filled with other players in different stages of panic.

"What's going on?" Tsuna asked, no longer feeling strong and confident like Benihime, but scared like Dame-Tsuna. She stumbled a few steps to Weaver and grasped the edge of her sleeve, trying to feel a bit safe. Something wasn't right. What was it? There was something dangerous, she had a strange feeling. "What was that?"

"A forced teleportation." Washi said, who had also stepped closer and had taken Weaver's hand protectively. "Why would they bring us all here?" The bell had stopped ringing and the only thing you could hear were the voices of the plaqyers filling the plaza. Was this some kind of announcement? Why hadn't there been a message for that?

"Up there!"

Tsuna raised her head and saw a red blinking sign with «Warning» in the sky. Suddenly the whole sky was being filled with signs of «Warning» and «System Announcement» until it was completely red. Blood like liquid began to flow from the seams and Tsuna grasped onto Weaver's arm in her fright. She really didn't like this. The liquid collected in the air and formed into a robe. Tsuna recognized it. It was the standard robe of a GM, but there was no face and the space between the sleeves and gloves was empty, too.

"Attention, Players." The figure said. "Welcome to my world. My name is Kayaba Akihiko. I am currently the one and only person who can control this world. I'm sure that you've all already noticed that the logout button on the main menu has been removed. However, this is by no means a mistake. I repeat... It is no mistake, but a feature of the true Sword Art Online."

"You are all unable to logout of SAO, and nobody in the real world can remove the NerveGear or interrupt its operation." Kayaba explained. "Should that be attempted, a powerful burst of microwave radiation emitted from a transmitter in the NerveGear will destroy your brain, thus ending your life."

"N-no..." Tsuna muttered. "nononono... this can't be... He must be joking..."

"Washi" Weaver hissed to her husband. "Can that actually happen? It can't, right? This must be some sort of... some sort of event..."

"It might be possible" Washi muttered, looking shocked. It clashed with the image he had chosen for his avatar. "The signals of the nerve gear are similar to microwaves. But there is a safety build in. So it's impossible, unless... unless the safety was removed."

"Unfortunately," Kayaba continued. "it's certainly possible that a player's family or friends would ignore this warning and attempt to forcibly remove the NerveGear. As proof of this, 213 players have retired from both this world and the real one." Screens with news reports open around him and all players watch with horror, as pictures of deciesed and mourning family members are shown.

"As you can see, news of my warning and the numerous victims are being spread worldwide. Thus, it should be safe to say that the danger of removal attempts has become minimal." Kayaba clarified, as if it would give them any comfort. "I hope you will be at ease and focus on completing the game. But I'd like you all to keep this in mind. From this point on, all methods of revival in the game will no longer function."

Washi paled beside Weaver and Tsuna and cursed. Tsuna understood why. If you can't be revived and lost all your HP...

"If your HP hits zero, your avatar will perish for eternity," Kayaba said ominously. "and at that moment... the NerveGear will destroy your brain."

Tsuna felt cold all over. There was a chance she would never see her mother or Renji-nii-san again. Her hand trembled on Weaver's arm. She didn't want to die. She was scared. Her HP was also not full. She had been a bit reckless during her time training. A lot of times she hadn't really cared if she died. She would've been revived again. But now... Could she fight with her life on the line? Right now she felt every bit like Dame-Tsuna with no hope to ever be Benihime.

"There is only one condition you must meet to be free: the completion of the game." Kayaba announced and opened a 3D model of Aincrad's first floor that then changed to the whole castle. "You are all currently on the first floor, the lowest point in Aincrad. If you conquer a floor's dungeon and defeat the Floor Boos, you may continue up to the next one. Assuming you manage to defeat the final boss on the 100th floor, the game will be considered cleared."

"Dear" Weaver turned to Washi with hope in her eyes. "How far did you get during the Beta?" Washi sighed as he looked at her and her hopes dropped.

"Not as far" Washi grumbled. "We had reached the 10th floor at the end of the Beta. In this case it's nowhere near enough."

"And lastly," Kayaba added. "I've prepared a present for all of you in your item storages. Take a look."

Frowning Tsuna opened her item menu and scrolled through the items she had gathered through out her training session to find the item he meant. A quick glance at Weaver and Washi's open menus clarified it as «Handmirror», which Tsuna promptly materialized herself. Blinking back at her was Benihime, with her red hair, amber eyes and beautiful face. Why had he given them-?

Players around were covered in light and Tsuna covered her eyes. It lasted only a few seconds and she looked around. The people around her had changed... Less heroic men and less flawless beauties were around. Instead there were ordinary people bickering at each other about the other lying and deceiving them. Does that mean-? She looked back into the mirror in her hands and gasped at the face inside. Honey-blond fluffy hair, rounder face and more European features. She was Dame-Tsuna again.

"Benihime?" A voice asked her and she turned to the duo beside her.

"Weaver? Washi?" She asked in her childish voice, but already knew that it could only be them. Weaver had now tan skin, wavy blond hair pulled into a high ponytail and dark-blue eyes. She was a bit taller than before and more curvy. Washi no longer had the Hibari-like scowl on his face and was such smaller, but still taller than Weaver, and leaner. His muscles were no longer bulging out. His hair was shorter, too, and had a warm brown color. His eyes were still as sharp, but now possessed a yellow color.

"Benihime, your so... young" Weaver gasped and after exchanging a look with Washi, pulled her between both of them. Players around became more panicked and restless.

"Right now, you're probably all wondering, 'Why?" Kayaba guessed. "Why would I, Kayaba Akihiko, the creator of Sword Art Online and the NerveGear, do such a thing?' I have already achieved my goal. I created the world of Sword Art Online sorely for ma personal enjoyment. And now, the preparations are complete."

Kayaba spread his arms out. "This concludes the tutorial for the official launch of Sword Art Online." He finally declared. "Players, I wish you the best of luck." The Kayaba's robe loquified again and disappeared together with the red announcement signs in the sky.

Silence filled the plaza, no one moved or spoke. Most were still too shocked by his words. Suddenly, the sound of shattering glass along with a scream of "No!" echod across the soundless plaza and spurred the players into motion. They raged and demanded to be let free. Washi grabbed the hands of both Weaver and Tsuna and pulled them through the masses and through alleys away from the plaza.

~HnS~

"A mass panic could end badly." He explained when they had stopped at the inn near the edge of the town. "It could end badly. Are you okay?" He asked both of them. His voice was now lighter, but still deep and nice.

"I'm okay, dear" Weaver's voice was deeper than before and slightly husky. "God, this has to be a nightmare. How could he?"

"I'm okay, too" Tsuna muttered and played with the edge of her tunic. Why had he pulled her along? She was just Dame-Tsuna again. She could do nothing and was worth nobody's time.

"That's good to hear." Weaver sighed relieved. "If you don't mind me asking, how old are you, Benihime?"

"..." Tsuna didn't really want to answer. The recommended age for SAO was 14 and she should have been too young to play it, but mama and Ranji-nii-san had allowed her anyway. "I'm... twelve."

Washi durned to the blond who raised an eyebrow and both nodded. "Benihime", Washi began. "We had decided to head to the next town tomorrow and train to level six for the next skill slot. If you want, you could come with us."

"Or you can stay here in the Town of Beginning" Weaver offered. "Here your HP can't lower and you'd be save."

Tsuna looked at them with wide eyes. They didn't immediately send her away. She was always chosen last during PE because no one wanted to have her in their team. She was too slow and to clumsy. But... she realized, she hadn't tripped once in here. She couldn't. It was a game, where she couldn't tip.

"Wouldn't I be in the way?" She asked shyly. She didn't want them to die because of her.

"Don't worry." Washi assured her. "I would have the role of a tank here, that means I would be the one to have the enemies attention while you would attack them."

"Then..." Tsuna licked her lips and breathed deeply. Something told her to accept, to go out and fight for her freedom. She wouldn't die before she had seen her mother again. Looking at them with amber-orange eyes she decided. "I want to go with you. I want to be strong."

Both of them smiled and Weaver opened her menu. Seconds later a screen opened before Tsuna.

«Weaver send you a Party Invite.»

"That way we can better look out for each other." Weaver grinned, but her grin changed into a softer nervous smile. "We want to form a guild later too. If you want you can join then, too. You're just so young and... we want to help protect you." Both of them looked at her and Tsuna smiled brightly. They really wanted her. She wasn't last choice. The was the first!

Still smiling she pressed «Accept», with a feeling, that her life was about to change for the better.

She would be strong, she would fight!

And she would win!


[EDIT]: I have exchanged the Guild invite with a Party Invite. I had overlooked, that you can first form a guild on the 3rd Floor.

Phew, done with that! I hope you liked this chapter!

If you have any questiones, requests or find any mistakes, please leave a review or send me a PM.

Any change from Tsuna to Benihime was intentional. Tsuna is who she is and Benihime is who she wants to be, strong, confident, etc.

I hope you like Weaver and Washi, please tell me what you think of them. I had debated whether or not they had already founded Hoshi no Saiten, but I decided that yes, they did. (Weaver's physical appearance is actually based on Flavia from Fire Emblem: Awakening.)

While writing I always had my favorite MMO in my head (Aion, if you're wondering) and what aspects I might be able to apply to this story.

This story is still not Betad and was only send through the correction function of my writing program. If one of you would like to Beta read, I would appreciate it.

By the way, if one of you has read the Progressive Light Novel, please contact me with a review or PM. I have a few questions concerning some quests. (Why do they have different LN series for SAO? I bought the one without the info I need and I don't want to buy that one yet. I might buy it one day, but not now.)

What would you think of small chapters concerning the Real World? I mean, like if someone in Naminori wonders where Tsuna is or something like that. There are also two KHR charas I'm thinking about putting inside, but I'm not sure yet.

Answers to Reviews:

Tinnil: I'm thinking about putting Souichi inside. I'm not sure about Spanner.

Guest (April 6), marcoglas92, xenocanaan: Thank you!

Silencia20: Thanks! I read Online Famiglia for inspiration together with House of Cards.

ArtyRave27: My Spanish lessons sadly never stuck, but I used Google Translate to read it in English. Sadly, my update speed is not the best, but I will try.

Guest (April 7): I'm actually torn between both and whether or not I make him a 'bad guy' or just a very 'unlucky' one who isn't at fault here. Right now I tent to 'bad'.

yzayfreak: Thank you for voicing your critic, it helps me with my writing and plotting. It actually spawned an explanation, which will most likely be given during the KHR portion of the story. I know what you mean with stories that don't get updated after a few chapters, but I'll try to continue it.

Mare: There are going to be a lot of Ocs, since I don't want to 'copy' the entire story or simply 'replace' someone with Tsuna. I try to keep it a bit away from Kirito, but still at the boss fights. Klein might be there more than Kirito.