It's been about a year and a half since this nightmare began. Christmas has come and gone without either of us thinking about it. We noticed there was still some resentment between experienced MMO players, and a growing group of "new-to-mmos" players in the front. The majority of the frontline players started to call out some groups that Maj and I knew were made up of mostly experienced MMO players as nothing more than selfish people who knew to keep any and all information to themselves. There was no reason for this crap other than to just cause drama. But Maj and I started to suspect it was to cause instability in the ranks. And after recent events, we wondered if there was a big group of PKers behind it.
So Maj and I tried to be as flashy as possible to get the vets to hate on us. We were the first and only ones to come out and say we were smarter than everyone. The more hate on us, the more the front runners will see eye to eye since they all have a common hate, which would make them get along more and in turn, move the front faster. Gamer logic at it's finest.
In our drive to be flashy, that inevitably led to Kirito and I racing each other to the Last Attack bonus of every fight, as his goal was to also be flashy to cover the beta testers. He had good intentions and I could admire his resolve to accept being alone in this world... But god dammit he was fast.
In the process of trying to keep heat on him and not other beta testers, Kirito also found himself at the center of quite a few controversies. I think this was mainly because if people had serious issues that would put the fate of the frontlines in jeopardy, someone dropped their pride and asked him to help. I had been trying to keep up with his deeds.
His track record so far went like this:
He brought two NPC's to the third-floor boss fight, a Duke and a Knight from a campaign quest.
He was part of, if not led, a secret raid to get the guild banner.
He took on the red player guild, Titan's Hand, single-handedly no less. He sent them all to BlackIron
The worst was the Moonlit Black Cats... The first, and only, guild Kirito was a member of. They were leveling in a high level dungeon to get money. Problem was, they got trapped in a trap room. They all died, leaving Kirito as the only survivor because he was clearly hiding his level from them, and was well above the requirements for the dungeon.
Not a lot of people knew about that so we decided to keep that to ourselves.
I thought about seeking out Kirito after that, to at least let him know he wasn't competently alone in this messed up world. He clearly wanted some kind of companionship, so if he rolled with us he could at least have that and not have to worry about hiding anything. But I wasn't sure how he would react to that, so I let him be but kept tabs on him. Honestly, I was worried about him. He seemed pretty young, so to go through something like that and then be alone can't be good on the mind.
Meanwhile, Majiku and I were making ourselves faster and stronger. Majiku still wielded any massive two-handed sword he could get his hands on, but he leveled in such a way that he could keep up with the fastest one-handed sword user with no problem. As for myself, I like to think I was on par with Kirito's speed. He only beat me to those last attacks by maybe a second. There was no way I would ever surpass him, but I could come pretty damn close.
Majiku and I were making a name for ourselves too. Word on the street was people would call Majiku the "Crimson Cannon", and they would call me the "Blue Blur". I thought it was stupid, mostly because I couldn't figure out who started it or why. I got my answer when I paid Argo 2500 Col to tell me.
The story is that when people see us fight a large monster that has a weak point out of jumping range, they saw that Maj would launch me from either his shoulder; or more recently, using his sword as a springboard, up to the weak point to hit it, hence the name "Cannon". My name came from my speed. To the outside person, I was so fast when Maj launched me that I was only a blur of my navy-colored coat and the blue glow of my sword skill flying through the air. Combined that earned a collective name for both of us.
The Cannon Brothers.
Even better, Argo was the one that was spreading the name with her papers... And by better, I mean royally annoying. I suspected that she was actually the one that came up with the idea in the first place, but the cost to know for certain was way too much to even consider.
When I heard this I wanted a refund, which Argo, naturally, refused. It was dumb, mostly because I didn't want a name, besides my own. But I suppose I asked for it, making those flashy attacks for everyone to see and acting like a know-it-all.
Majiku was loving the fame. "I personally like Crimson Cannon. Makes me sound badass." He said while we were all hanging out one day.
"It makes us sound like something that belongs in some Fourth of July celebration," I groaned.
"God bless America to have me as their cannon."
"Shut up."
"Least I make a killing off of just giving reasoning for your names!" Argo chided.
"Both of you..." I groaned.
Even with the ridiculous names, our plan was working. Most people seemed to be getting along, former testers and vets alike. We just got funny looks when we entered a town.
"Oh man, it's them!" Some would say, waving like we were celebrities.
Some would scoff and say: "Ugh, it's the showoffs." Which earned them a glare from either Majiku or myself, if not both.
There was another rumor spreading that I enjoyed a little more after a certain incident. One time a tough group of people ambushed us outside of the town's safe zone.
"We're gonna knock you both down a few pegs. And prove that what happened on 2 was all a lie," a stocky dude said.
"Yea, we gonna show everyone that you two are just showing off. And prove that bitch Argo is a lying cheat," another said.
We weren't sure what their motives were, but them talking about Argo like that was pissing me off more than it should. I normally didn't care about what others think, but Argo worked hard to get good Intel and distribute it to people who need it. Her reputation as the Rat only comes from the people that she "cheated" because the info was no good to them.
I stepped forward to tell them all off, but Majiku reigned me in, keeping my rapidly deteriorating temper in check.. Maj and I stood back to back, not even drawing our swords.
"What's the matter? Too afraid to fight real players?" The stocky dude said.
Maj twisted his head to look at the stocky dude that was in front of me out of the corner of his eye. "Nah, brah. I just don't wanna hurt delicate flowers such as yourself." I smacked him in the back of the head for being so goofy in a serious moment.
Apparently, the group took that motion as me reaching for my sword and rushed us. There were about 5 of them total, all in mid-level gear. I jumped as high as I could, while Maj drew his sword and slashed in a wide arc all the way around him. It knocked all 5 of them down but didn't kill them.
I zeroed in on the stocky one as being the leader in all of this. I looked down at Maj and he seemed to figure out the same thing. He raised his sword above him. I used it as a springboard and launched myself at the leader. I kicked him to the ground and shoved my blade next to his throat while he was still on his back.
"Call 'em off. I really don't want to have to hurt you or them," I said in the deepest tone I could manage. He got the hint and squirmed out from under my sword. He waved for his men to follow him and they sped away. "Well, that'll probably help our image," I said as I sheathed my sword.
"Yea well, maybe people will think twice about trying to fight us," Maj said walking up next to me.
Turns out it did help our image, In more better ways than I thought. People really did leave us be. I made the mistake of telling Argo and she went and posted it in her next newspaper.
"Why didn't you get me a screenshot?" Argo complained as she was writing the article...
"I'm sorry..." I said sarcastically. "I was too busy KICKING ASS!"
"As if 'Blue Smear'! You couldn't kick a kindergartner's ass!"
"Ok... But why would I want to kick a kindergartner's ass?" Maj stepped between us, trying way too hard not to laugh.
"Easy you two. You aren't at the arguing stage of the relationship, yet."
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT, YOU ASS!" We both shouted simultaneously.
"Damn..." I face-palmed myself and Argo hid under her hood. This was enough to make Maj literally roll on the ground laughing.
After that, people either gave us a wide berth or praised us. We kept on getting stronger, trying to clear the game as fast as we could...
Which was agonizingly slow.
The front was on floor 55 now. Kirito had made a reputation for being the horrible Beater, also known as the "Black Swordsman". His rep was basically ours, It's a love-hate sort of deal. As for the girl who I didn't have much faith in, Asuna. Well, she floored me. She became the second in command of a pretty tough front-line guild called Knights of the Blood Oath. Her blazing speed destroyed Kirito in terms of sheer forward speed. She earned her nickname "Lightning Flash". She came up to me once, I thought she was gonna actually properly introduce herself. Not quite, she was trying to recruit Majiku and me into the Knights of the Blood Oath. We didn't need much discussion to decline.
That was it, she said, "OK," and left.
Quite the riveting conversation. We weren't keen on revealing EVERYTHING we have. And the KoB was huge, probably going on the biggest guild in the game. Information is hard to keep when in a group like that. Part of what made us so strong is knowing how to give information. We never kept anything to ourselves for long, but we ensured we got what we could out of it before we passed it on. We always stayed mindful of limited time spots, and what we took or how long we kept it to ourselves. I still stand by my statement of nothing is hidden if you're willing to look for it.
1
After killing the 50th lizard man and advancing to level 72 we decided to call it for the day. Majiku stretched and yawned.
"Jeez, I'm tired. How long have we been at this now?"
"Think this is day 4 now of camping out?" As soon as I said it out loud, my eyes got heavy. "We should head back. I think after this we've more than made up for being off of the front for half a month."
"Good, I'm getting sick of this grind." We fist bumped and headed back to town. I did the calculations in my head as best I could. We always averaged about 10 levels above the average frontline player, so the average player should be in the low to mid 60s now. The boss' are usually about 5 levels or so above the average. Maj and I like to be at least 10 levels above the boss. Which meant we still had at least 3 levels to go before the raid in a few days.
As we walked back we talked about the future. We were over halfway through Aincrad. But it took us nearly 2 years to do it. Did that mean we were gonna be here for 2 more years?
"Man I hope not. I'm gonna have the worst bed sore when we get back."
As soon as Maj said that, a heavy cloud washed over both of us. We talked about this before and decided to not think about it, but that became harder with each passing month. How were our real bodies doing? There was no way we would last another 2 years being kept alive by life support.
"On a lighter note," I said, trying to change the subject. "Agil and Liz both set up permanent shops. Liz in Lindarth on 48, and Agil in Algade on 50."
"Yea, I heard! That's cool... We should stop by. We have drops to sell, and I don't know about you, but my blade needs sharpening." Maj said. "And maybe tomorrow you can take Argo out for some dinner?" He got close and elbowed me softly. "Eh? Eh? How 'bout that?"
"How 'bout this?!" I grabbed Majiku's arm and flipped him over my shoulder, sending him crashing into the ground. I kept walking while he groaned on the ground.
Joking aside, it was agreed. Tomorrow we would rest... And alright, maybe I would ask Argo if she's free and wanted to do something. Then the next day we would head out to visit Agil and Liz.
As we walked back to town, I was thinking about my friends that were here, Sam and Kira. How they dived in to help and did a beautiful job at it. It was only with their help that Liz and Agil were able to make enough to get their shops.
Kira's smithing skill had gotten high enough where she and Liz took shifts tending to the shop, so they could each rest. To this day I don't think Liz's shop has closed.
Sam's appraisal skill was about on a level with Agil's. This lets Agil participate in boss fights more, which helped move the front faster. Agil was a crazy good ax user and can be very... Persuasive if people started squabbling before, during, or after a boss fight.
But all this still had me thinking. Sure there weren't a lot of American users in SAO. But most of my friends are pretty hardcore gamers. And a lot of them would have killed to play a full dive VR game of any kind. Was there a chance that someone else I knew was playing?
I pushed that thought out. After Sam and Kira came, I went to the Monument of Life in BlackIron Palace on the first floor. On the monument, listed every player in SAO, living or dead. I scanned that thing 5 times, and didn't recognize any of my friend's real names, or recognize any screen names that they used. Plus, I'm sure one of them would have seen us in the papers at least once. Argo's papers were pretty much everywhere now, and Maj and I were always somewhere in every one. It would have been hard to miss us.
There was no way that any more of my friends were here.
I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice we made it back to the Inn we were staying at. I walked in the door and noticed someone familiar sitting at one of the tables.
"Argo?"
She turned and tipped her hood like she would a hat. Her painted whiskers curled with her smile that almost showed relief.
"Hey there, Cannon Bros! Care to have a drink with me?" Argo pulled up a chair next to her and patted it.
Before I could speak up, Maj had to take the chance to embarrass me. "We would love to. Especially for our favorite info broker."
I was skeptical. A meeting with Argo normally ended with us being out about 1000 Col... At least... Each...
Majiku was quick to take the chair on the opposite side of the table, leaving the chair next to Argo open. I sat down next to Argo, not really giving it a second thought at this point since this happens every time the 3 of us sit down... EVERY time.
We all ordered some drinks. Out of habit, I ordered a slice of Argo's favorite cake, Strawberry Cream. 'Cause it had become routine that she would beg for cake whenever we hung out. So I figured I'd get ahead of the curb.
Maj looked at me and sneered. "Ah, buying your girl her favorite cake? That's sweet."
"You're a pain in my ass!" I planted my foot firmly on his shin, making sure I dug in. Surprisingly Argo just sat there. Instead of punching Maj or kicking him like she usually reacted, she just kept her gaze down and smiled slightly.
What was up with her? She hasn't said much and was keeping to herself. She's usually the most talkative of the 3 of us. But she hasn't said a word since we sat down, which was unlike her... Not that I would know how she normally acted. But it seemed like she had something on her mind... Maybe she was just tired?
The waiter brought our drinks and Argo's cake. This gave her a distraction and she dug in.
"So, I got a couple a' hot tips for you two," Argo said between her bites.
"I knew it..." I leaned forward and rested my chin on my hand. "How much this time?"
Argo frowned and set her fork down. She got a sunken look in her eyes like she was scared. I set my hand on her shoulder to try to calm her down. "Hey... I'm kidding. What's wrong?"
"I got a tip on another group of PKers, only these guys are slimy." Argo shuddered at the word 'PKers'. I don't think any of us had gotten over what happened on Floor 2. But we also never talked about it. "Word is they like to Monster PK. Kite a bunch of high-level monsters and bring them down on an unsuspecting group. When the business is done they clean up whatever gets dropped..." When she finished, I shuddered this time. Even though her eyes were downcast, I could tell she was about to break down.
"Argo did something-" I was cut short when I looked past Argo and focused on a group of guys sitting at the other end of the room, staring at us. They all had angry, hungry eyes. "We should take this upstairs."
"Brah, now is not the time to be bustin' mo-" I cut Maj off and motioned to the group. His eyes got wide. "Yea... OK, your room, let's go."
I put my arm around Argo to keep her from meeting the groups' gaze and lead her to my room, Majiku walking between me and her, and them. I made sure Argo's hood didn't fall as we quickly walked to the stairs that lead to the rooms at the inn.
We got up to my room. Which was set up like a living room, with a bed flush against the far wall. Two couches both facing each other. A table sat in the middle, and a chair sat at the head of the table. As I ushered Argo to the chair, Majiku checked the hallway to make sure we weren't followed. He shut the door and locked it. I sat Argo down, then sat on the couch as close to the edge, and her, as I could.
"Argo, did those guys follow you? What happened?" I asked, ready to go down and beat the crap out of every single one of them, one by one.
"It's worse than that, Flastor..." Argo finally let out the tears she was holding back. "That's them. They're the PKers."
Without thinking, I got up and kneeled next to the chair, placing my hand over Argo's which was resting on her leg. Majiku was leaning on the door.
"Watch the hall. Make sure they don't come up and try to listen in," I said to him. Maj nodded and walked out. "Argo, start from the beginning, what happened?"
"I was out with a party here on 55. I was following a quest for the info. The party was nice. I've rolled with them in the past. So I figured it would be OK." She took a deep breath. "Everything was going well. They were all good, strong people. They let me tag along and I offered to pay them for helping me get the info." Another set of tears streamed from her eyes. It infuriated me, but I forced myself to remain calm.
"OK, so what happened?" I asked.
"We were heading back to town, careful to avoid the cemetery with high-level skeleton mobs."
"The one that needs a raid to get through?" Judging by her expression, I had nailed it. Maj and I ventured in there. We handled the skeletons OK, but if you aggroed more than one at a time you were a goner.
"Yeah. We had gotten past it fine. But somehow we attracted a whole group of skeletons, maybe 4 or 5 of them... At least I thought it was us..." The story was becoming clearer.
"It was them... They tried to kill you?" Rage made what was supposed to be a regular question into a growl.
"Yeah... I noticed some of them hiding in the bushes when the skeletons surrounded us. The leader of the party I was with gave me all the info he had written down and told me to run. I said no but he wouldn't have it. So I ran... I could hear the screams of the party as they..." I put my hand on her shoulder to try to calm her down.
"And those guys chased you all the way to town?" I said. She nodded her head.
"I didn't know what I should do... So I came here because it was a safe zone, and... I knew you two were staying here." Her face reddened when she said that. Normally, I'd question how she knew that, but I'm glad she did. "I thought they'd leave. But they just sat down and waited for me to leave. That was about an hour before you two came in."
Argo let out a sigh like she just dropped 100 pounds off her shoulders. When she finished we just sat in silence. I couldn't hold my anger anymore.
They made her sit here in fear for an hour... Just staring at her like animals waiting for prey to become vulnerable...
"Right... Pardon me... I have anger to vent." I rose and started for the door. "Bastards... I'll make them sell their gear and send them back to The Town of Beginnings with their tails between their legs. They won't pick up a sword again after I-"
Argo shot forward and grabbed my wrists, meeting my eyes for the first time today, without the shadow of her hood hiding them. Golden brown eyes that were darker than usual and full of worry bored into me.
"No! Not now. They looked like they could be on par with you and Maj. I doubt you could take them," Argo said, pretty much begging me to listen.
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," I said, trying to sound calm and nice.
"Sorry... They have to be tough enough to handle those mobs. I just don't want to see you-I mean you two get hurt, or worse." I realized what she was getting at.
"OK. No maiming, but we still have to get you out of here." I thought of what to do. "Do you know if they leave this floor?"
"I doubt it, they have their system well oiled. They won't leave until they're called out on it," Argo explained, finding something to keep her mind busy.
"And we can't just call them on it... We need some proof," I thought for a minute. "Ok..." I walked to the door and knocked. "Maj, get in here." The door opened and he stepped through. He looked at Argo, who was wiping her tears away.
"What's going on then?" He asked. Walking to Argo. "Are you OK?"
"I'll be fine, just a really crappy day."
"We have to get her to Agil's shop. Those guys down there are the PKers." Majiku started putting the pieces together. I could tell he was getting pissed. He looked at Argo, then me. After a moment he motioned his hand to Argo.
"Did they try to?" He didn't need to finish. Our faces must have said it all.
The bad thing about my brother and I is that we have a nasty habit of passively fueling each other's anger. So with me being extremely pissed at the moment, I almost expected him to snap.
But luckily he was slightly more level-headed about it than I was. He took a shaky breath to calm himself. "Ok. We leave now. I'll let Agil know we're coming. He's got that room above his store that we can use to lay low."
"Tell him to keep an eye out too." I said. "Once they realize who we are, they may set up there." Agil always tried to stay biased in the eyes of everyone. But it's also super obvious that he gets a lot of his rare items from players like us. I walked to Argo and offered my hand. She took it and got up, but didn't let go. Instead, she wrapped her arm around mine and got really close.
I walked to Maj and said. "Alright, let's get the hell out of here before I go postal on them."
2
I half expected at least one of them to be in the hall as we stepped out. But to my surprise, it was empty. As we walked downstairs we situated ourselves so Majiku walked in front of us, Argo and I were right behind him. Even though we were in a safe zone, we didn't want to take a chance.
When we got to the Inn lobby we spotted the group of guys, 5 of them, still sitting at their table. When she saw them, Argo buried her head in the back of my arm so she couldn't see. I had never seen her this scared before, even when someone had a knife to her throat. And I felt an extremely strong urge to not only protect her but also pummel the ones responsible for this. I pulled her hood over her head as far as it would go to try to cover her face.
As we walked out, the group tried to stare at Argo, through me. I shot them a look and conveyed.
"Follow us... I dare you..."
They must have caught on because they turned and faced forward. We walked out and turned to the center of town. Walking as fast as we could.
Argo had picked her head up but still clung to my arm, like she still felt like she was being watched. Sadly, I had the same feeling.
As we walked by I saw a familiar face. A girl with long, chestnut hair, a white top, and a red skirt. A silver Rapier hung at her waist.
Second in command of the Knights of the Blood Oath... Lightning Flash Asuna herself.
Normally I would just ignore her, but this was important. I tapped Majiku's back and pointed to her.
"You really think she'll help?" He asked.
I was equally as torn. The last time we talked was at a boss meeting, and it was only to discuss strategy, no other small talk. It was almost like she hated us. But I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.
As we approached her, something told me to look behind me. Sure enough, the group had changed their minds and were following a distance back. I looked forward and hoped she was in earshot by now.
"Asuna!" I said, quick but loud.
She looked over and saw me and Maj. Her face turned into a scowl like our very presence annoyed her. But when I stepped to the right far enough for her to see Argo clutched to my arm, her face softened to concern. I motioned her to follow as subtly as I could. She obliged and fell in next to Argo.
"What happened? What's going on?" Her voice was stern but soft to accommodate Argo.
"PKers... We need to get her off of the floor. We're being followed." Asuna looked back to see the guys tailing us. "Just walk with us, make yourself noticeable. They may back off with all three of us in one place."
"Also keep him from doing something stupid like attacking them," Maj added, parting the crowd for us. "If he snaps right now, I won't be far behind him." Asuna nodded and walked as tall as she could.
I looked back to see what the group thought now. They must have recognized Asuna, and in turn, finally recognized us after putting two and two together. I saw one mutter "Flash" to the lead guy, another mouthed "Cannon".
They stopped but didn't take their eyes off of us. I faced forward and motioned everyone to peel off to the plaza.
We finally got to the center of town where the teleport gate was. I looked at Maj and chuckled. "For once... I'm glad people know who we are..." I faced Asuna, who was glaring at me like I was a troublemaker. "Thanks, I owe you one." She put her hands on her hips and puffed her cheek in annoyance.
"You owe me an explanation! You see what you get when you hang out with him?" I realized she wasn't talking to me, but to Argo. Argo just leaned her head on me and sighed like she was about to pass out.
"Let me be the first to admit, I'm not the best company to keep. But we'll explain later. For now, I need you and anyone you can get together." I said, keeping Argo from having to talk.
"Awfully bold, asking me for a favor directly." Asuna said.
"This is important." Majiku shot, cutting through this second-in-command righteous mentality she has. I think us not 'respecting her authority' is what really ticked her off the most. "You know the cemetery with the high-level skeletons?" Majiku asked.
"Yea, what about it?" Asuna asked, clearly annoyed.
"We need you to keep people away from it... Far away. Those guys are monster PKers. They're kiting the skeletons out of the cemetery to kill players who get near," I explained.
Asuna looked skeptical at first, but then started putting the pieces together. Her eyes finally grew wide in realization and her stern face softened.
"Argo... Did they..." Argo nodded to confirm Asuna's suspicion. Asuna's face grew stern and determined. "Got it. I'll round up some of the guild members and see what we can do." She looked at me like she was about to tell me off. "Take care of her," she ordered
With that, my first meaningful conversation with Asuna was over. She walked to the gate and commanded: "Teleport: Granzam". Light enveloped her as she was teleported to the Knights new headquarters on the front of Floor 55.
"Well, we picked a hell of a backup, huh?" Maj asked. I nodded and led Argo to the Teleport gate.
"Algade, Ok Argo?" She nodded.
We all commanded: "Teleport: Algade."
Only when we were sure we weren't followed, did Argo finally raise her head from my arm.
"Thank you..." She looked exhausted. I tried to lighten the mood with a stupid joke.
"When was the last time you slept, girl?" Argo looked at me and managed a weak smile.
"3... days ago..." Almost on cue, she started to fall.
"Argo!" I reached out and caught her. I gently turned her face so I could see it. What I saw I couldn't believe. She was freakin' asleep. "Woman, I am gonna give you a piece of my mind when you wake up." Maj helped secure her on my back and we continued to walk to Agil's shop.
When we got there, a sign was on the door.
Closed for a special event.
Agil normally used this sign when there was a boss fight to be won. But he hasn't used it since Sam started helping him. We opened the front door and Sam was standing behind a counter cleaning up under it.
"Sam! What's up man?" Maj asked walking over to shake his hand. Sam leaned up and smiled, not noticing the passed out Argo on my back.
"Hey, guys! Agil told me you would be stopping by. He said you needed the room upstairs for something?" I turned to show him Argo on my back. "Oh." Then he smiled like he busted me.
"Don't..." I said way more harshly than I meant to. He looked somewhat hurt. "Sorry, long day... Even worse for her." I didn't realize how tired and worn out I felt. The adrenaline that I didn't realize that was running through me was dying off. Sam lightened up and nodded.
"Right, this way." He led us to the stairs to the room Agil had above his shop. It had a bed, but he never used it. As I got into the room Sam helped me get Argo from my back, onto the bed. I carefully laid her head down, then sat down on the bed in front of her. Sam and Maj sat on the floor in front of me.
"So what's the story, man?" Sam asked.
"Brace yourself, it isn't pretty," Maj said.
"PKers tried to kill Argo..." I said flatly. The anger rising in me again. Sam turned pale, no doubt remembering his own encounter with PKers. Majiku filled him in while I looked down at Argo.
She was breathing steadily and looked really peaceful. Without thinking, I set my hand on her head and she smiled sleepily. When Majiku finished up, Sam was mortified.
"So that's why she's wiped? Damn, that's insane. I'm glad I stayed down here." He said, crossing his arms. "So what's your plan?"
I made sure Argo was still asleep. What I was about to say would invoke every form of wrath she had... And I was in range of every single one.
I couldn't tell if she was faking it, but I just hoped.
"We're going back to 55..."
"She'll kill you and you know it," Maj said, crossing his arms.
"She'll do worse than that, but we have to keep any more people from getting hurt," I said. The fact that Argo didn't react meant I was safe.
"We already have Asuna on it man, let her handle it while you stay with her." Alex replied. "Plus I'm beat, and so are you. We aren't in good shape to be going PKer hunting. Even though I want to, badly."
"You got Lighting Flash to help?" Sam asked. He looked at me, somewhat annoyed. "Bro, if she's handling it, they have no chance."
"I know... I just want to bust them myself. For her... Plus, I won't be able to sit still knowing the only one I can trust to get it done is her. Who knows about the guild members she brings..." Maj and Sam didn't have a comeback for that.
We sat in silence except for Argo's breathing. She had a slight snore, which I thought was kinda cute.
...I did not just think that...
I shook my head to clear my thoughts and looked at Sam. "Did Agil leave the corridor crystal?" I asked.
"Oh yeah, it's down behind the counter," Sam said.
"Good, did he give a price?"
"He said, and I quote," Sam brought his voice down as deep as he could. "'The price is a full explanation, a time to get drinks and catch up.'" Agil was a good guy, he knew when to charge and when to let it slide. But still, I pulled out 500 Col.
"Give this to him anyway. Just in case." I looked at Maj and he nodded.
"This is huge. If we get mixed up with the players and the skeletons both, there may not be an out." He said, rising.
"Yea well, what else is new?" With that cheerful thought, I got up from the bed. "We should go before she wakes up. Sam, let her sleep for a while, yea? If she asks, tell her I'll be right back. Make something up." Sam gave me a concerned look.
"You know she won't believe anything I say." He said.
"Do not let her leave here. They know her face, they will be hunting for her." I demanded. I had an idea. "Get her some strawberry cake. That should distract her." He contemplated for a minute and smiled.
"Right. I know a place to take her for that if she gets restless. Get her mind off of it."
"Good. Do that." I said, turning to Maj. "Come on bro, we have heads to smash." He smiled and placed his massive sword on his back. I turned to look at Argo, still passed out. "Be right back, girl." She didn't respond, but her smile returned to a resting frown as I turned away.
3
We returned to 55 to find someone unexpected waiting for us. Kirito, standing with Asuna and 5 other members of the KoB. I expected Asuna and the knights, but what was Kirito doing here?
"I knew you two would come back..." Asuna said smugly, crossing her arms.
"You have a knack for causing trouble," Kirito added.
I pointed at Asuna. "You... Bite me." I pointed at Kirito. "You can't say anything about causing trouble, you walking bad juju magnet." Kirito chuckled. I offered a handshake, which Kirito returned without hesitation this time. "Good to see you, Kirito."
"Likewise," Kirito said, shaking Majiku's hand after mine. "Asuna told me you were being tailed by PKers. Let's talk, quick." The KoB members stood guard to ensure we weren't being watched or eavesdropped on. While we sat we filled them both in on the full situation. After we finished they both looked pissed. "Damnit Argo," Kirito muttered.
"It must have been terrifying..." Asuna looked at Maj. "I owe you two an apology..." She looked at me and smiled... Which I had never seen before. "You in particular, Flastor. I treated you so badly when you were protecting her. I'm sorry..." She seemed to be in a lighter mood when Kirito was around.
"It's OK. We didn't give you much to go on when we met up," I said. "Plus I am a known trouble maker around here."
"Our specialty is poking the bear. I'm sure Flastor was glad to have someone like you sticking up for Argo, Asuna," Maj said looking at me out of the corner of his eye.
"I hate you so much right now..." I sighed and shook my head, then propped it up on my arm. Asuna looked confused, then realized the hint, and laughed... Wait... Asuna, the Lightning Flash is laughing? I wasn't sure if that was relieving, or scary.
"She does talk about you quite a bit when we hang out," Asuna said to me. I looked at her and raised my eyebrow. Kirito smiled and nodded.
"Oh come on, you too?" I asked him.
"Yup. Anytime I ask for info on any powerful players, you're always top on her list," Kirito said. "She'll start talking about you before she realizes she hasn't been paid. FYI, your info is worth about 500,000 Col to her." I could feel my face start to burn.
"Geez... Anyway back to the problem," I said. Closing my eyes to rest them. Surprisingly, that actually helped in situations where you still need to play but you're reaching your limit.
"Well we got a tip that the group left town about 5 minutes ago," Asuna explained.
"I was able to scout them a bit," Krito chimed in. "Their gear isn't much, between the 4 of us we could easily take them. The problem is their Aggro rate. As they were walking, they attracted the attention of every monster in a 50-yard range. So they must have a ton of health to take that kind of beating. And a ridiculously high hide skill to lose that Aggro all at once."
"So that's why I brought the toughest tanks from the guild. They will be able to draw any monsters away while we handle the players." Asuna finished.
"That's cute, you two finishing each other's thoughts," I said, getting my revenge.
"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!" They said in unison. Asuna's face went as red as her skirt and Kirito stammered.
So that's what Argo and I sounded like... Crap.
"Sound familiar bro?" Majiku couldn't help it, he cracked up. I laid my head on the table while Asuna and Kirito tripped over their words. Then a thought occurred, and I quickly opened my eyes...
"Wait, we gotta go. They would have gotten to the cemetery by now." Everyone realized the situation. Asuna stood up.
"Right, let's go. Knights!" She put on her commander's face as the men all fell in. "You've been briefed on the situation. If you pull this off, I will personally see to it you are all in the rotation for the next boss fight." The men looked over Kirito, Majiku and me with disgust.
"With all due respect ma'am..." Asuna raised her eyebrow at the knight. "I can understand why the Beater is here... But why do we need these weak-" I didn't give the guy a chance to finish. I dashed next to him and put my hand on his shoulder.
"What was that?" I said in a sinister tone, letting some of the anger that has been welling in me all day slip. "Go on... Speak up..." I could feel him shaking in his armor.
"No-Nothing sir. Happy to have you along," he said, shakily.
"Yea... That's what I thought..." Kirito grabbed my shoulder to calm me down. I must have looked a lot worse than I meant to if he was the one holding me back and not Maj. Asuna took the moment to regain control of the situation.
"Right, they're here because they tipped us off, and have a personal attachment to this case." I wasn't a fan of how she used 'personal'. "While we are in the field, you are to take their orders as if they are my own. It might save your life," she finished. "Now, let's move out."
The 5 men saluted Asuna. "Yes, ma'am!" They fell in behind the four of us as we made our way out of town.
As we walked people parted ways for us. I thought it was just for Asuna and the Knights. But their gaze was to the four of us. Maj, Kirito, Asuna, and myself. It took me a minute to realize why everyone was staring.
To them, the 4 most powerful players in the game were all in one place, and there wasn't a boss fight to be fought. I guess you could compare us to a military tank rolling into a quiet neighborhood for no reason.
Everyone had a worried look like something bad had happened. The matter was fully driven in with Kirito actually being with a group larger than just himself.
It felt weird getting more attention than usual, but at the same time I brushed it off and focused on the task. We were about to go into a dangerous fight, depending on what we face. The knights kept a wary eye on Asuna and the alleys that came up like they were expecting an ambush in the safe zone.
Soon we were far out of town, and close to the cemetery. As we got closer I couldn't shake the feeling that something was really wrong. Then my Detection Skill went off. Judging from the looks Kirito and Maj had, they had their Detection Skill on max too. I opened my map and noticed one green icon on the edge of the map. A player, running towards us.
"Get ready!" Kirito shouted.
We all drew our blades. Me and Majiku standing shoulder to shoulder, Maj kept his massive sword behind me. Kirito and Asuna stood back to back, facing where the cursor was going to come. The Knights all flanked us and readied their weapons as well.
I watched my map and soon there were 5 red dots behind the player. It had to be the skeletons, but why only one player cursor? As it hit me, the player came into view over the hill in front of us.
A girl, wearing a purple and white tunic that came down to her knees and black leather pants, came dashing over the hill, screaming.
"Go! She's a victim!" I said.
The 4 of us dashed away so fast, the Knights were left in the dust. As we got closer I noticed the girl had purple hair to match her outfit, and looked slightly familiar.
"Jesus, HELP ME!" She yelled, seeing us.
Then the skeletons from the cemetery crested the hill, maybe 10 feet behind her. I counted 5, no more than that. The PKers had to be close, but they didn't show on my map. I closed the screen and readied my sword, the others did the same.
"HIT THE DECK!" I shouted to the girl.
I was happy she caught on. She got to her knees and got as low as she could.
"Oohh! I love this part!" Maj held his sword behind us, it was long enough for Kirito and I to use as a step off. Kirito and I jumped and planted our feet on his sword. Maj yelled and swung his sword as hard as he could, sending the two of us flying to the skeletons.
Asuna stopped herself short to cover the girl while Maj advanced.
Kirito and I had both learned a new skill that he helped me perfect, and it was perfect for this kind of scenario with multiple monsters, Horizontal Square. We both approached the first two skeletons and activated it.
I stepped to the right and slashed the skeleton, the system took over and spun me, though I added my own speed to it. After I had spun a complete 270 degrees I was lined up to strike again. I repeated this until I was in front of the skeleton again, leaving a trail in the shape of a square extending from the center. Kirito completed the skill a second before me.
"Glad to see you haven't lost your touch," I said smiling.
"I see now why you like that. Let's take these bastards!" Kirito said. Majiku had appeared to my right, smiling like an idiot.
"That was sweet looking, you two!" He said. "Now it's my turn." There were 3 left. I knew his plan, so I turned and shouted over my shoulder.
"Asuna! Advance!" She understood what we were planning. She had seen Maj and I pull off this move with a big group of minions in boss fights all the time. Kirito and I stepped back so we could get a running start and Maj stood in the center of the 3 advancing skeletons.
"You want some Crimson? I'll give you Crimson!" He shouted, swinging his sword in a wide arc. He repeated this twice, then he activated Cyclone, a spinning attack that added 2 more heavy hits. Maj finished his spin facing us, and got down on one knee, holding his sword out flat. As soon as Majiku's skill ended, Asuna had gotten even with us. All three of us dashed to a skeleton.
We all jumped over Maj. Kirito, and Asuna using his shoulders to jump up; and me, using his sword. We all shouted defiantly and drove our swords into the skeletons. I was worried it wasn't enough. But the three shimmered and disappeared in a mist of crystals.
I wished Argo was here. That would have made a killer shot for her next paper. I faced Majiku.
"Really? 'You want some Crimson?'." I waved my hands as I said it. "Think you're some kind of badass?"
"Hey, I'll admit it, not one of my best taunts." Maj defended. Then I remembered what was going on.
I did a 360 looking for the group and didn't see any of them. I knelt to the ground and punched, just so I didn't punch Majiku or the air. One could end in a retaliation punch and the other would make me look like a lunatic.
"Damn it, they must have gotten away," I said.
"Not quite, young man." Said a deep male voice. I turned to see that the knights had caught up. Somehow in tow, they had the 5 guys from the inn.
"We caught them trying to sneak back to town around you. Sorry for not being in front as planned, ma'am," he said, turning to Asuna.
"Are you kidding? Good work you guys!" She said. Then she remembered who she was talking to. "I mean... Nice work, men."
"I have a corridor crystal for the prison," I said, fishing it out of my belt pouch. I held it up and said the command "Corridor: Open." It disappeared and a doorway appeared between us and the PKers.
"Oh hell no!" One of the PKers lurched free of the knights grip. Before he even had a chance to run, I cut him off with my sword hovering over his throat...
"Don't... Piss... Me... Off..." I growled.
I pushed him back and the knight grabbed him again. The knights ushered the PKers through. As soon as the corridor closed I let out a breath I was keeping in.
Then I remembered the girl who was being chased. I looked at the Knights to see she was standing behind them.
I finally got a good look at her and nearly screamed. I knew I recognized her from somewhere. From the real world, it's just been so long I had to see her front and center. The name over her head read 'Willow'. I approached her, not realizing I was staring.
"Um... Do I know you?" I wasn't really sure what else to say. Her gaze was downcast as she was fiddling with the Scimitar strapped to her waist. Finally, she looked up and confirmed my fear.
"It's Sky..."
4
It took Majiku elbowing me to snap out of it.
"I'm telling Argo..."
"SHUT UP!" I punched him as hard as I could in his gut. I inspected Sky, trying to convince myself that I was seeing things.
"Seriously? Sky? From work?" Was all I could manage. She looked up like she was ashamed.
"Yea, it's me..." Sky looked behind me to others in a concerned fashion. I realized I was calling her by her real name.
"Ah, Jesus. Sorry, Sk-Willow," I corrected. "Let's get you back to town." I turned to the others. All 3 of them were eyeing me like I was a horrible person, it took me a minute to realize why. "Oh for the love of- I know her IRL, I worked with her, and she has a boyfriend. Happy now?" They all lightened up and laughed. I realized I only made my situation worse...
"Uh, did I miss something?" Willow poked her head out from behind me.
"Don't worry about them." I pointed to Asuna and Kirito to even the score. "Those two are head over heels for each other and don't know it yet." I pointed to Maj. "And he is still looking, but failing miserably." Kirito and Asuna started tripping over their words and Maj just looked defeated. "Yea! Shoe's on the other foot now, you jerks." I turned to Willow, feeling the dagger stares on the back of my head that I was getting from them. "We should get to a safe zone... Before they decide to kill me." I gestured to town and started to walk.
As we made our way back to town, Willow described her time here. Basically, she figured out the game and was just playing to survive. Not looking to be the best, but not the weakest either, just make it back to the real world. Still, with that kind of attitude and being on the front surprised me. Most people like her stay about 2 floors below the front lines, where all information was available somewhere. And her weapon looked a little worse for wear. It was just one of the stock swords you could buy in the NPC stores in the towns.
But she still must be doing alright to survive the front... Barring being chased by skeletons, they don't count.
We made it back to town without any trouble. When we got back to town we said goodbye to Asuna and her Knights. They had to go take care of preparations for the next boss, which, according to Asuna, was in 5 days.
"By the way, will we see you two there?" She directed the question to Maj and me. I looked at Maj and he shrugged.
"I'll shoot Kirito a message in a couple of days to let you know." I gestured to Willow. "Between her, and watching over Argo, I couldn't say for sure." Willow shot me a death glare like I offended her.
"If I am such a bother, then you can just forget about it! I've survived without you for this long, haven't I?" I held my hands up in surrender.
"Sorry! Sorry! That came out wrong..." I couldn't form a good recovery, but Maj saved the day.
"What he means is we want to help you get stronger, so you won't have to run from anything anymore." Willow's expression softened. She crossed her arms and looked away.
"Fine."
With that, I turned to Kirito, who was looking at me like he was thinking: '"Good luck with that". I knew Willow didn't mean anything by it. But to someone outside, it probably looked like she hated me. We all parted ways, Asuna and her Knights to Granzam, Kirito to... Wherever he went. When they were gone I turned to Willow.
"First thing. Let me see your sword." Willow unsheathed her scimitar and handed it to me. It was small, with brown leather crudely wrapped on the handle. One look and I couldn't figure out how she lasted this long.
"What's wrong? It's good, isn't it? It's the most expensive one on this floor," Willow said defensively. I took the most expensive sword on the floor and broke it in two like it was a toothpick. Willow's eyes got wide with anger. "What the hell, man?! You gonna pay for that?" She started to slap me, but I grabbed her wrist.
"First, if I could break it that easy, you didn't take care of it. Your next battle was gonna be your last..." She was still pissed. "Second, I'll do you one better. We'll get you a new sword that wipes the floor with that one." I motioned to the broken twig on the ground as it shattered. This caused Willow to calm down a bit. "Third, chill out... You're causing a scene." I let go of her wrist. I still got a firm slap square to the face. Then another one in the back of the head from Maj.
"You deserve that man," Maj was pissed. "Why are you being such a jerk if you know her IRL?"
I hadn't noticed it, but he was right. I felt the same way when I found out Sam and Kira were here. Just all around annoyed. I looked at Willow and sighed.
"Look, I'm sorry, OK? I was just hoping that I wouldn't find anyone else that I know here. That and I'll admit... I'm exhausted." Willow seemed to understand that I was worried about her, and her face softened. "Why didn't you come find me? We could have helped you sooner," I asked. Willow looked at me, half sad, half irritated.
"I didn't want to... I saw you were kicking ass from the beginning... I wanted to prove that I could last on my own. I guess I was wrong." Willow lowered her head in defeat.
"What do you mean? The fact that you're up here and out in the field is enough. You're doing well. Just let us help you do better," Maj said. Willow looked at Maj like he was speaking a foreign language. "I'm talking Assault Team better." Willow's eyes flashed with interest. She looked at me and I nodded in agreement. Then she finally cracked a smile.
"So I assume you two have a plan?" Willow asked. I smiled back.
"I never have a plan. I have something even better. An expert blacksmith, and a professional shopkeeper."
We got to Lindarth and made our way to Liz's shop. While we did, I quizzed Willow. Like I assumed, she was proficient in her sword skills and her armor was spot on. But she lacked when it came to weapons and weapon upgrades. So it was good that we would only need to visit Liz before training her.
We got to Liz's shop and I had to stop and stare. It was a beautiful building made of stone. A water wheel turned slowly on the side to power the forge. Maj tapped my shoulder and I snapped out of it.
"Man, that's awesome!" I said.
"I have to agree, she must be doing great," Maj said.
We walked in the door and I was greeted with a hammer to the face.
"Where the hell have you been?" Liz asked. Her fists on her hips. "We've been open here for almost a week and you just now pop in? What took you so long?" Kira walked up next to Liz.
"Hey, Flastor! Hi, Majiku! Liz, seriously you can't just hammer people in front of customers, even if they are friends." She turned to Willow. "Hi, welcome to Lizbeth's Blacksmith Shop! I'm Kira, the one with the pink hair is the smith, Liz." Willow looked nervous.
"Uh... Hi. You don't uh, always hammer your customers... Right?"
"That is reserved for jerks who don't visit their favorite smith when she opens her permanent shop," Liz said as she smacked Maj with her hammer. "OK, I'm good now. What can I do for you all today?" Classic Liz, fired up one second, sweet and innocent the next.
"Well, my friend here, Willow, needs a new Scimitar. Don't worry about the cost, just make the best you can. Put it on my tab," I said, pulling myself to my feet. Liz turned and looked at Willow, who wouldn't meet her gaze.
"Right! Come with me Willow! We have work to do." Liz ushered Willow to the back of the shop, where the smith was. Before she disappeared through the door Willow looked back like she was asking for help.
"Don't worry, she's gonna make you a kick-ass sword that'll dwarf the ones of the front," I said waving at her. They disappeared into the smith. Kira turned to me and gave me the same look that Majiku and the others did outside of town on 55, confusion with a hint of disgust. I rolled my eyes, but Maj helped me out.
"Knows her IRL, co-workers, she's taken. We've already been over it," he said chuckling.
"Oh, got it. Hey, speaking of that, Argo came by. She was looking for you," Kira said. My blood ran cold. "She looked pissed." Panic filled my body.
"One... Why was that a springboard for bringing Argo up?" I said, trying to play dumb. "Two... What did you tell her?"
"Um, the truth. We haven't seen you in forever. Why? Did you two have a fight?" She asked.
Maj started chuckling again. "No, but she might kill him whenever she finds him."
"I got a bone to pick with your man," I said to Kira. "He was supposed to keep her occupied, damnit."
"Well, we told her we would message her if we saw you." I widened my eyes, that's why Liz went to the back.
"Shit... LIZ!" I bolted to the back and flew into the smith. By the time I got to Liz she was already closing her message window. "You did not."
Liz gave me a wicked smile. "Oh, I did. Look, a reply! 'Don't let him leave'." Liz typed a reply. "'No problem girl, come get him!' Argo's coming to kill you and I'm gonna laugh while she does."
"Who's Argo?" Willow asked.
"Currently, my worst nightmare. I'm a dead man," I said, hanging my head. Willow's eyes flashed with a brief hint of excitement. I could only assume that she was thinking what everyone else thought about me and Argo... Great. "So did you actually get work done, troublemaker? Or am I basically paying you to have me killed?" I asked Liz.
"I was about to make her the best scimitar ever! Care to watch?" Liz asked.
"Why not? Since I'm about to die." Maj and Kira had appeared on top of the staircase. I looked at Maj. "Argo is on the way."
"Nice knowing you bro. Drop your Col would you?"
"Ha, Ha, very funny ass," I shot back to Maj.
"Seriously... Who the hell is Argo?" Willow asked me. "She sounds like fun if she can go toe to toe with you and you let her."
"I don't think you understand. When I say 'kill me', I mean quite literally... She... Is... Going... To... DESTROY me..."
"And I can't wait to see that!" Willow was seriously not getting the fact that I was only barely kidding.
"Shut up you all! I gotta focus. Ki, come give me a hand," Liz ordered.
"Coming!" Kira jumped from the top of the stairs.
I watched, mesmerized, as Kira and Liz worked. Liz would form the sword, while Kira worked on what looked like a sheath. After about a minute or so the shape on the anvil formed into a shining curved sword, with purple and white leather cords wrapping the handle, and a polished silver blade and guard.
"Alright, let's take a look." Liz opened the item window. "It's called MoonStruck Sabre. Pretty gnarly sword. Should do you fine, Willow." Liz handed the sword to Willow while Kira constructed a sheath. Willow took it and inspected it.
"It's beautiful! Thank you, Liz!" Willow said.
"Now that you have it, let's take it for a spin, eh?" I said.
She turned to me and smiled. "Hell yea! Let's do this." Majiku and I led her out to the plain in front of Liz's shop. "So where are we going? What monster are we gonna fight?" Willow asked. I pointed to Maj.
"That is the monster you're gonna fight. If you can break his defense, you can beat anything," I said. Willow looked nervous. But then straightened her back. Maj smiled and drew his massive blade.
"Alright, let's go-" Willow's taunt was cut off by a yell... A yell that I knew all too well.
"FFFLLLAAASSTTOORR!"
"Dead... That's audible death." I looked at Willow, trying to act cool without showing my panic. "That... Is Argo... And this is gonna hurt."
5
Something to note. A punch from Argo, running at full speed, takes me down to about 75% health. Who knew?
Well... My face does now.
Agro was running so fast, I had no chance of dodging. She planted her fist on my left cheek so hard I think my body in the real world bruised.
"What in the actual hell were you thinkin' you friggin' IDIOT?! Do you realize how worried I was?" Argo was firing off insults and rants while pounding on my chest. "I told you not to go!"
I glanced over and saw Majiku literally on the ground laughing so hard. Willow, trying to be nice, was trying hard not to smile, but failing miserably.
Argo was furious. She shot Majiku a demonic glare. "What the hell are you laughing at, asshole?!" She locked eyes with me. "You didn't reply. Majiku didn't reply." This turned Argo's attention back to Maj as she chucked the nearest rock at his head. "I thought yo- I THOUGHT BOTH OF YOU WERE FREAKIN' DEAD GODDAMNIT!" Argo finally buried her head in my chest and started crying...
Her acting like this really burns. I've never seen Argo show this much emotion. I didn't think she would even allow herself to break down like this. I hadn't noticed, but I did have about 5 unread messages, starting around the time that we beat the skeletons. Maj must have noticed this too because his laughter was replaced with a wave of grief.
It's moments like this when my awkwardness shines brightly. I was never good at consoling or calming people down. So I did what my mind thought was right... I wrapped my arms around Argo to try to calm her down. Argo squirmed because she couldn't hit me. But she didn't try to escape, even though I knew she could easily.
"Sorry... We had to take care of the PKers. We made sure they wouldn't hurt anyone else..." I was worried to say anything else. Finally, she looked up. Her face that was contorted with anger, got replaced with a face of relief. She buried her head back in my chest and said:
"Just... don't do anything that stupid again, alright? At least... Not without me there to slap you afterward. Don't you ever leave me in the dark ever again.. "
I patted the top of her head. "You have my word. Next stupid stunt, you'll be there to either scold me or laugh at me, or both." I said.
"Probably both," she said, laughing slightly.
I was convinced that she had calmed down, so I let her go. She took a step back, then turned to Maj and chucked another rock at his head.
"You ain't off the hook either pal! I oughta slap the piss outta you too." She said, her hands on her hips. Then she saw Willow for the first time and her face flushed. "Who's she?"
"She's uh... A friend of mine." I really didn't want to say I knew her IRL since it wasn't polite to talk about others' lives in-game. I clearly chose my words poorly because Argo turned to me, the anger returning to her eyes.
"A 'friend' huh?" She turned away in a huff. I realized she was pouting from jealousy.
"Oh for crying out loud, Argo..." I started to complain.
"Tell her," Willow said. I turned to her. "As long as it stays with us, I don't care if you and your friends know me." I nodded in thanks. I brought my attention back to the pouting Argo.
"Argo, she's a co-worker from the real world. She was almost a victim of those PKers before we got there." I could tell I struck a sympathetic chord with her, but she still had her back to me. "I brought her here to get a new sword after hers... Ah.."
"After he shattered it," Willow spoke up. Argo stifled a giggle.
"Yea... That happened... Anyway, we were gonna help her train so she could join the Assault Team." Argo turned her head to Willow, still annoyed. Then I realized I left a base uncovered. "For frick's sake, she has a boyfriend, Argo."
Why did I say that? Instead of getting more angry, Argo turned and smiled. That was Hella relieving and worrying at the same time.
"Why would that be important, boy?" She asked. I hesitated, sure my face was the same shade as the sunset sky. I walked right into that one, but I also saw my chance to poke back.
"Why would that make you talk to me again, girl?" Before she hid her face under her hood, I saw it turn red.
"I.. Uh... Nothing." She recovered and regarded Willow officially to change the subject. "Sorry for all of this. Hi! I'm Argo, Info Broker extraordinaire." I turned my back to her because my mouth moved on it's own.
"And a major pain in my ass," I said under my breath.
"What'd you say?" I cursed Argo's good hearing. She ran and jumped on my back, latching her legs around my waist while lightly but repeatedly hitting the top of my head.
"Nothing, nothing, sheesh. I take it you slept well?" I asked. Argo jumped off my back and twirled.
"Yup, best sleep in a while. At least at first, then my dreams changed to nightmares..." Argo shot me a dirty look like it was my fault. She turned to Willow. "So what's on the training agenda?"
"Well, I gave her the task of breaking Majiku's defense. Told her if she did that, then she could pretty much take anything," I explained. Maj raised his sword onto his shoulder.
"Stop you guys... You're gonna make me blush this time," He chuckled. "Anyway, Willow. Are you ready? I won't go easy on you."
Willow smiled defiantly and readied her sword. "Good, It would stink to pulverize you without a fight."
With that, Majku smiled and readied his sword. Willow lunged with more speed than I anticipated, but Majiku easily blocked. Willow spun around Maj, thinking he would be too slow to get his sword around. But he kept up just fine by spinning in the opposite direction and meeting her sword.
"She has no idea what she's got herself into... Does she?" Argo said silently to me.
"Nah, I don't think so..." I sat down and leaned on a nearby tree. I felt like I had aged a few months all at once. I closed my eyes before I could even form another thought. Before I drifted to sleep, I felt someone sit down so close next to me they were basically leaning on me instead of the tree.
6
After about an hour and a half, I woke to someone shaking my shoulder softly. When I opened my eyes, Kira was kneeling next to me, Sam standing next to her. Liz was standing on the other side of me. I went to stretch but Kira stopped me.
"Careful, you're being used," she pointed to my other shoulder.
Sure enough, when I looked, Argo had situated herself to lean on my shoulder and had fallen sound asleep. She must have lied when she said she got enough sleep. My face burned a small bit, mostly because I was surprised that she was there.
I looked up and Sam was smiling, but not in a joking matter. Behind him, the sky blazed orange as the sun dipped below the horizon. Also behind him, I heard the ring of swords. Willow must still be going at it with Maj. Liz eyed me, playfully.
"We decided not to wake you two when I first found you. You looked awfully comfortable..." I couldn't help but smile. "Are ya hungry? We bought some sandwiches from town for everyone." Liz motioned to a sizable basket on the ground.
"Charitable today aren't we?" I chided, knowing she couldn't hit me without waking Argo. Instead of insulting me, or saying something witty, she smiled.
"You all have had a long day. Figured you'd like some food." My stomach growled like it heard her.
"You aren't wrong. Let's get Maj and Willow and eat," I said. Sam nodded and turned to walk to the field. I turned my head to look at Argo.
I extended my finger and poked her cheek. Nothing. "Hey, wake up." Still nothing. "I have cake." That got her to stir, but not quite wake up. Time to take drastic measures. "Oh Kira, what a cute little puppy!" Argo grabbed me and buried her head in my arm.
"For the love of all that is good, keep it away from me!" She squealed. When nothing happened she leaned up.
"Morning sleepy head," I said. Argo looked around in a panic.
"Where's the mongrel? Keep it away from me!" She said.
"Calm yourself. There's no dog, I couldn't get you to wake up, so I had to do something. Liz brought us some food. You hungry?" She looked around and saw everyone. Liz and Kira standing to the left and right of us. Sam, Majiku, and Willow walking up from the field. Argo realized she was still leaning on me and shot up straight.
"I... Uh... It's not."
"Don't worry about it. You've had a rough day," Kira said, smiling at her. "Let's just all hang out for a bit and eat." With that I heard a growl come from Argo's stomach, she looked down in shame.
"Sorry..."
"He already beat you to it so nothing to be sorry for," Liz said, motioning to me. I nodded to reassure her. Sam, Maj, and Willow all approached. Willow had an accomplished look on her face.
"How did she do?" I asked Maj.
"She's definitely fast. With a bit more practice she'll be mopping up the front-line in no time," He said. Clearly impressed with her progress. Willow smiled and regarded Maj.
"I still didn't break through his defense, his speed is near inhuman for a two-handed sword user," she stared off into the horizon. "We spared like crazy. I could feel myself getting faster. And with his guidance, it feels like I'm a completely different person than when I woke up today." She turned back and smiled. "I need to thank you, all of you. For making me ready to fight on the front lines for real."
"Don't mention it. We gotta get you back to your man." Which brought up a thought that had been nagging at me. "Hey, how did you end up here?" Kira stopped the conversation short.
"Let's get dinner set up before we swap stories OK?" She brought out a blanket that was strapped to her back. She rolled it out and everyone sat down around it. Liz brought out some awesome looking sandwiches with some chips, and drinks to go with it. As we dug in we all exchanged the stories that we were willing to tell.
Willow explained that she had gotten a copy of SAO after being interviewed by Kayaba. Kayaba had said he wanted players that weren't exactly die-hard gamers to add diversity to the world. I made a note to pound the crap out of Kayaba if I ever saw him. But I suppose at the same time, if none of this had happened, I wouldn't have met Liz, or Agil, or Kirito and Asuna, top of the list, I wouldn't have met Argo.
I looked at Willow and she looked depressed. This may have been the first time she thought of the real world out loud. Agro elbowed me to say something. though I wasn't sure how to word it.
So I did what I normally did when I had to cheer someone up. I improvised... Again.
"I know that it sucks being trapped here. Being cut off from what we all had in the real world." I began, sounding way less upbeat than I wanted to. "But we are here, now. That much is fact. So instead of feeling like we are losing days there, we should cherish the days here. Because they are molding us to be better." I wasn't sure where I was pulling this from, but I begged it to keep coming. "We should make the most of our time here, instead of dwelling on the real world. Because the more we think about it, the more split we will become. And the more split we feel, the longer it will take us to get back to the real world." I realized that everyone was watching me, and I was addressing everyone. "As long as you keep fighting, and try to live your life here, you have my word. I will fight as hard as I can to get us out."
"Look at you trying to be the hero!" Maj said, smiling at me. "Try this on for size. WE will fight as hard as we can." I nodded at him and smiled.
"Sorry, WE will fight as hard as we can to end this." This seemed to lighten everyone's mood. Expect for Argo, who, while smiling, had a downcast in her eyes. I put my hand on her shoulder, she looked up at me and smiled. We all ate and shared fun stories, either in-game or in the real world, as the day drew to a close.
While we enjoyed the meal, we had no idea that on the front, evil forces were beginning to show their ugly heads.
End of Part Three.