Hello everyone! I'm back with a new chapter! Chapter 3! I hope everyone will enjoy this chapter and without further ado, let's start!
Normal POV
Everyone stared in disbelief as Aichi removed the rapier from Kirito and he fell to the ground.
" Too bad. Looks like you failed to fully lower his HP to zero. Try again." Kai chuckled
Aichi raised his rapier again as Naoki and Shingo quickly grabbed him.
" Aichi, what are you doing?! Are you crazy?!"
" Kirito-kun!"
Asuna ran towards him as Kirito got up.
" Kirito-kun!"
" I'm fine... I just need the potion..."
" But your HP bar is red!"
" I'm really fine... More than that, Aichi..."
They looked up and saw a metal headpiece with a black jewel at the center appearing.
" So that's it..."
" Then that's what's controlling him?"
" Might be... We just need to remove it..."
" Sinon-san! Fire an arrow with enough force to destroy the jewel on the crown!"
Sinon nodded and loaded her arrow. She fired it as it surrounded with fire but just before the arrow could make contact with the jewel, it got deflected.
" No way!"
" You think we wouldn't take precautions for that?"
" You little...!" Naoki growled
" Aichi, hurry up and come here."
Aichi's Psyqualia flickered again as a bright light shone around and he disappeared.
" He disappeared?!"
" No, this is teleportation...!"
" Then..."
" No choice... Sinon! Fire an arrow in Kai's direction!"
" Got it!"
She fired another arrow as a barrier blocked Kai this time and Aichi appeared.
" That jewel is bringing out more powers...! We have to hurry and get him back...!"
" Asuna!"
They turned to see Misaki running out of the school.
" Misaki-san?! Is everyone in the class alright?!"
" Yeah. I saw what happened and came out here after double checking their safety. But that's not why I came out! That power is not just teleportation! If it was, he would've appeared before Sinon even fired the arrow!"
" Then... Invisibility?!"
" Probably, but I can't be sure. Aichi's power is still slowly evolving. At this pace, that black jewel will drag more out. We have to hurry before it gets out of hand."
" But how?"
Kirito managed to recover his HP during the conversation as he stood up to think.
" Yui! You have his full dive program, right?!"
" Yes!"
" Give it to him!"
" Huh?!"
" But Kirito-kun..."
" Maybe... Maybe we still have a chance... That jewel might only be controlling his real body but if we drag his consciousness into the full dive program for his avatar, he might just snap out of it."
" Are you sure?"
" I'm not 100% sure but there's only this left."
" Alright. Yui-chan! Do it!"
" Yes!"
Yui quickly flew over to Aichi while avoiding Kai and the others as she used the orb on Aichi again. Aichi's eyes slowly opened as he looked around.
" This is..."
" It worked!"
" What?!"
" What was I doing...?"
Aichi turned behind as he gasped when he saw Kai.
" Kai-kun?!"
" Aichi, hurry up and get back here!"
" Y-Yes!"
Aichi ran past the Reversed fighters when another portal appeared and another monster came out.
" Skull Reaper?!"
" No way!"
" You really think I'll let you get away that easily?" Kai chuckled
" We'll leave Aichi to you. We'll deal with the other fighters."
" Do whatever you want. I just want Aichi."
" Hmph! You should be glad to be able to fight him!" Kamui scoffed
They dispersed to battle Naoki and the others as Kirito and the others got ready to fight again.
" Sinon, this one is fast so get as far away as possible before shooting!"
" Yeah!"
" I'll support everyone!" Aichi shouted
He was about to try to run past the Skull Reaper when Kai grabbed his arm.
" You're not going anywhere."
" Let me go!"
" Aichi!"
Kirito was able to barely dodge Skull Reaper's attack after trying to help Aichi.
" Seems like if I lower your current HP bar, you'll go back to normal."
" Go back to normal?!"
" That's right. This current form is just a layer on your real body. Even if it's a virtual one currently. And that is very convenient. All you need to do is stay still and just feel a bit of pain."
" No! If his HP goes down to 0, he'll die in reality!" Yui warned
Aichi looked over to her as she signalled that it was false and Aichi nodded.
" Oh? Is that so? Then that's too bad."
Kai let his hand go as Aichi cautiously ran away from him.
" This Skull Reaper is huge. Yui-chan, any read on his movements?"
" Its weak point is the back. It doesn't have that far a reach to its top, so it should be possible to do huge damage there."
" But it's too high..."
" Don't worry. All ALO avatars have wings."
Aichi managed to get his wings out as he looked at it.
" How do I use this?"
" Well, for starters, there's a support controller. Just grab it with your left hand."
Aichi did as told as the controller appeared.
" Pull it towards yourself to fly upwards."
" L-Like this...?" Aichi ask as he pulled a bit too much
He was shot up into the sky as he screamed.
" A-Aichi!"
" K-Kirito-kun, handle it for a few seconds!"
Asuna flew up after Aichi.
" A-Asuna?!"
Asuna reached high above the clouds as she looked around.
" Aichi-kun!"
" Help!"
She finally found him going around in circles as she quickly went to stop him. Aichi heaved a sigh of relief as Asuna quickly taught him how to use the wings without the controller. Aichi nodded after understanding and the two flew down to help Kirito.
" Kirito-kun!"
" That wasn't a few seconds!"
" I'm sorry!"
" Look out!"
They dodged the attacks from the Skull Reaper as Aichi quickly flew onto the back of it and started using some of his sword skills.
" It's working! Let's keep going! Use all of your sword skills!"
" Yeah!"
All four attacked together as Skull Reaper disappeared after that.
" We did it!" Asuna exclaimed
" That was tiring..."
" That was fun... But let's not do that too often..." Aichi said
" Agreed..."
But just as they said that, more monsters popped up as they got up.
" This is the worst...!"
Suddenly, blasts came from above and destroyed the monsters as they looked up to see Leafa and the other flying towards them.
" Onii-chan!"
" Took you guys long enough!"
" Sorry! It took us a little longer to find here after people started acting weird."
Sinon walked back to them as they saw Kamui and Maki being unReversed. Miwa and Kourin had went back to Kai.
" Seems like we underestimated the lot. Let's retreat for today."
" Hmph."
The three left after that as they heaved a sigh of relief.
" Oh! Aichi, that avatar suits you!" Klein said
" Thank you very much. But... I'm still not used to this light feeling..."
" You'll get used to it soon."
" I guess so."
" Is everyone alright?!" Liz ask
" The students in the school are just fine!" Misaki replied
" What a relief!"
" Aichi, for now, don't log out from this avatar."
" Huh?"
" We'll explain everything once we head to the clubroom. But first, we need to communicate to the whole school. Just in case the monsters pop up again, we need them to stay here. Until this mess is settled, we need to keep them safe."
" Okay."
" Uh... The only way to do that is from the Student Council Room..."
" Leave them to me." Asuna said
" Don't go berserk."
" I won't!"
" Berserk?" Aichi ask
" She's nicknamed the Berserk Healer in our ALO world."
" Why?"
" Well, to sum it up, she goes on a rampage sometimes."
" Kirito-kun... You're cruel for saying that!"
And before he knew it... He was attacked by an angry Asuna as she left soon after giving Kirito a beat up.
" See...? You see why she's called berserk..."
" Y-Yeah..."
They headed towards their clubroom after hearing the announcement made as they sat down to explain their situation.
" I'm sorry! I didn't know I was being controlled!" Aichi exclaimed, bowing in apology
" It's fine. Besides, we knew. Your real body is still being manipulated so we took a risk to change you into this avatar. Luckily, it worked so don't worry about it."
" I'm really sorry..."
" It's fine, really."
" But this is a problem... If Aichi doesn't get back to his real body soon, he'll end up like us when we were stuck in SAO."
" That's true... But if that crown hasn't activate for so long until Kai showed up then... Let's try it once. Log out of this avatar."
" Huh?!"
" B-But..."
" Don't worry. Yui will hold onto the program just in case you go berserk again. So try it just this once."
" T-Then I'll try it..."
Aichi opened his menu screen as he logged out. The others waited as Aichi fully turned back to normal as he slowly opened his eyes. He looked around and at himself.
" I'm okay..."
" I knew it... Unless Kai commands you, the crown won't activate."
" I see..."
Aichi tried to remove the crown but it wouldn't budge.
" It won't come off..."
" So it's the same as being unable to destroy that jewel..."
" How naive."
Aichi gasped after hearing the voice. He clenched his head after that.
" Aichi?!"
" Did they really think I'll leave so easily? Now, Aichi... Hurry up and come to me."
" N-No!"
" Yui! The program!"
" Yes, Papa!"
Yui was about to activate the program when red mist surrounded Aichi and threw her back.
" Yui!"
" I won't let that happen again. Now, Aichi... Come."
" N-No..."
Aichi started to fade away.
" Onii-chan!"
Kirito turned back to them after retrieving Yui as he gasped.
" No! Don't let him disappear!"
" Aichi!"
" E-Everyone..." Aichi thought
As soon as Kirito was about to touch him, he disappeared. Outside the gate, Aichi appeared in the back seat of a car, unconscious, as Kai smirked.
" We can go now."
The secretary nodded as the car started up and drove off. When the car arrived at the building, Kai carried Aichi out of the car as many Reversed fighters bowed as Kai rode the lift.
" You're popular, Aichi. Well, that's expected. After all, you'll be ruling Link Joker soon and I'll be by your side at all times."
The lift arrived at a floor as Kai walked towards a room and opened the door. Inside was a room with a bed, table, chairs, a royal sofa and bathroom. Kai laid Aichi down on the bed as he caressed his cheek.
" Aichi. Open your eyes."
Aichi groaned as his eyes opened but they had no light in them.
" Now Aichi, take it all off."
As if understanding what Kai meant, Aichi started to take his clothes off but then Kai stopped him when he was about to remove his underwear.
" It'll be fine till here. Lie down again."
Aichi laid down on the bed as shackles with the chain wrapped around the bed frame appeared and Kai shackled Aichi's wrists up.
" That's a good boy. Now, awaken."
Light suddenly returned into his eyes as Aichi's eyes widened.
" W-What?! What is this?!"
Aichi struggled as Kai placed his hand on his cheek.
" Exactly what you see here. I thought that we should have fun together. It's more fun to see your expressions."
" S-Stop it!"
" No, I won't. There's still some time before preparations are complete. Now, Aichi..."
Kai pulled down his underwear as Aichi continued to struggle.
" Let's begin."
" NO!"
Two hours later, Aichi was panting as Kai wore his clothes on. Once he was done, he wore Aichi's clothes back on before answering a phone call while caressing Aichi's cheek.
" Hello?"
" I see that you've finally ended your fun. Bring him over." It was Reversed Takuto
" Yes, yes. Don't need to be so impatient. I'm coming over now."
He put down the call as the shackles were released. Kai carried Aichi while feeling him wincing as he chuckled.
" Sorry, was I too rough? Then just rest."
" Why are you doing this...? The normal Kai-kun won't seek for power..."
" That me is already gone. I'm a better version of that. I won't let you go again."
" You're wrong... I know the Kai-kun I know is not gone yet..."
" That's where you're wrong."
" Please... Don't do this... You can still turn back..."
" And go back to being my weaker self? I'll say no."
They arrived at the room as the door opened and Reversed Takuto was there.
" You didn't put him under mind control?"
" He's far too weak to resist. There's no need for the control."
" Do whatever you like."
Kai sat Aichi down on a throne with a similar black crystal on the top.
" What are you going to do to me...?"
" Just a little test drive."
The crystal on the throne glowed as Aichi's crown reacted. Aichi held in screams as the glowing stopped. Aichi panted as Kai carried him again.
" That's some strong imaginative powers. It's more powerful than I'd imagined. I'll need to keep looking into this."
" Didn't you find a book related to this already? What more do you want to research on?"
" Yes but there's many things that still remains a mystery. For now, let him rest. I still need him to give me a few more information after that."
" Alright."
Kai carried Aichi out again as Aichi's Psyqualia activated.
" Please, Kai-kun... Go back to normal..."
" I won't repeat myself again, Aichi. It's no use."
" Please..."
They arrived back in the room as Kai laid Aichi back down on the bed when Aichi suddenly used his remaining strength to lunge forward and kiss Kai on his lips. Kai's eyes widened as Aichi released the kiss and fainted.
" What was-!"
A sudden surge of pain hit Kai as he winced while holding his head in pain.
" Toshiki Kai. Are you going to betray your one and only loved one, the only one you have left to call that title? Are you going to betray everything that both of you have attained up until now? Release yourself from this false power and find your own true power."
" My own... true power...?"
" Believe these words or the consequences of using this false power will become dire. Now, which will you choose? Drown yourself deeper into this false power or rise up on your feet once more and protect the one you hold dear?"
" I... I..."
Meanwhile, Kirito and the others were still frustrated over what had happened as Kirito hit the table.
" Damn it! And we took so many steps so carefully! Why did this happen?!"
" So the crystal on that crown is what connects Kai's voice to controlling Aichi... But I wonder who's the mastermind behind this...?"
" If we can figure that out, then everything will be clearer."
There was a sudden ground tremor as they looked outside to see more monsters popping out.
" All of them are weak monsters from different dungeons! But why are they here?!" Leafa exclaimed
" Let's go clear them out first! We need to make sure the safety of the school! Split up and eliminate any strays that entered the school!"
" Yeah!"
" You guys stay here!"
" Y-Yeah!"
Kirito and the others spread themselves around the school and eliminated all the monsters as they gathered at the front gate.
" Look!"
There was a figure in a black mantle staggering towards them as it suddenly collapsed.
" Hey!"
Kirito ran towards the figure as he removed the hood and gasped.
" Kai?!"
" What?!"
The others ran towards them as they saw an unconscious Kai under the hood.
" What's he doing here?!"
" Onii-chan! Look!"
Kirito lifted up the hood a little more as he saw someone else and removed the mantle. They gasped as they saw Aichi still unconscious in Kai's arms.
" He brought him back?"
" What's going on here?!"
" Bring them in for now!"
" Right!"
Klein slung Kai on his shoulder while Kirito slung Aichi on his shoulder as Asuna picked up something that was on the ground.
" A book?"
She opened the book and read the contents before gasping.
" This is..."
They ran back to the clubroom and laid both Aichi and Kai on the floor as Sinon inspected the mantle.
" This mantle is... No doubt about it. It's Death Gun's."
" That same mantle, huh..."
" Did they escape?"
" Maybe. The crown isn't there anymore. Although, we can't be certain."
" Yeah."
Kai groaned as he suddenly opened his eyes and shot up. He held his head in pain again as he winced for awhile.
" Kai?"
Kai opened his eyes again after the pain subsided as he sighed in relief after realising he was in the school.
" Aichi... Where's Aichi...?"
" Beside you."
Kai turned to his side and saw Aichi before sighing in relief again.
" What happened to the both of you?"
" I..."
~ Flashback start~
After Kai recovered from the splitting pain in his head and the voice had disappeared, he staggered a little after standing before walking over to Aichi.
" Aichi... Wait for me... I'll get you out of here soon..."
He walked out of the room as he headed back to where Reversed Takuto was to see him analysing something on his screens. Mustering as much strength as he can to act normal, he slowly made his way to Reversed Takuto.
" Takuto."
" What is it? I'm busy here."
" I want to see the book. There's something about it that I can't put my finger on. I want to look into it."
" And it's important?"
" Yeah."
" Fine then."
A book came out from one of the glass and flew onto Kai's hand as he exited the room. The moment the door closed, Kai leaned on the wall for support.
' Damn it... The drain that came from the pain still haven't left my body yet... I'm getting tired... No... For Aichi's sake, I have to keep moving...!' Kai thought
Kai started to move again as he made his way back to the room. He walked over to Aichi again and removed the headpiece before discarding it to the side.
" We're getting out of here... Don't worry, Aichi..."
He grabbed the black mantle and carried Aichi on his back while carrying the book. He carefully wore the mantle around the both of them as he closed his eyes while letting the Reverse aura around him leave his body. The mantle became invisible along with them as Kai made his way back to Miyaji High. Once he was arriving, he felt weaker as he slid Aichi off his back to carry him in his arms and arrived at the front gate where the invisibility wore off and Kirito and the others arrived just as he blacked out.
~ Flashback end~
" A voice spoke to you?"
" Yeah... I don't know why... Right after the voice started talking, my head started to hurt really badly..."
" What did it say?"
" It said something about finding my true power by saving and protecting Aichi... I think the voice came after Aichi did something to me when his Psyqualia activated again..."
" His Psyqualia activated?!"
" Yeah... I think I did see it..."
" What did he do after it activated?"
" Uh..."
Kai went silent after remembering the kiss as he blushed slightly pink while turning his head away. Kirito took some time to process before coming to a conclusion.
" Oh... Now then, since both of you are back, we have nothing to worry about for now."
" Kai, you brought this book with you, right?"
" Yeah..."
" What's that book, Asuna?"
" It's a book about Cray. Mostly its history but there's something that catches my attention."
" Wait, wait, wait! Then Planet Cray really exists?!" Naoki exclaimed
" Yeah."
" Wow..."
" So what caught your attention?"
" This. It's about Psyqualia."
" Psyqualia?!"
" It's basically what Takuto told us back at the space between Cray and Earth. But there's this Psyqualia that exists as well... But it's supposingly an ancient one that never came out for a few hundred years now. It matches Aichi-kun's Psyqualia perfectly and it doesn't stop there."
" An ancient Psyqualia?"
" But it hasn't shown up for a few hundred years, so why now?"
" Because it senses whether a future great chaos will happen and finds a suitable user to possess its strength. That's the premonition but more stronger than the one Aichi keeps having."
" When Psyqualia was first given to Aichi, it was almost two years ago if I wasn't wrong. So he's had this for two years and the Psyqualia already foresaw the danger?" Misaki ask
" Maybe even more in the far future. But this is one of them for sure... That's why it's still with Aichi-kun."
" But why Aichi?"
" Light brings out the best of its abilities... The real Takuto knew that and tried to warn us but... Link Joker got to him first and he couldn't relay the danger... That's why Link Joker wants to taint his light to darkness... That ancient Psyqualia will easily fall into Link Joker's hands if Aichi's light is tainted..."
" Is that all?"
" I removed that crown he had before we arrived so that Aichi won't get controlled again... If there's anything else, we need the real Takuto to tell us..."
Just as he said it, the door opened as they got on the defensive and when Leon, Jillian and Sharlene stepped in, they heaved a sigh of relief before going back to their original positions.
" Hey, Leon. What's with the mirror?"
" We overheard just as we were arriving here. I have the real Takuto with me."
" Where?!"
" In here." Jillian said
" The mirror?"
" Right now, Takuto's soul is trapped in Cray by Link Joker. His only way of communicating with us was by Psyqualia through the mirror. But only people with Psyqualia can see and hear him."
" Is he here now? We need to know."
" Yeah."
Leon turned to the mirror and nodded as he slowly turned to Aichi. A glow surrounded Aichi after that.
" Don't worry. Takuto's scanning his memories for something."
" His memories?"
" We will show you what I mean by taking a look into Sendou's memories. It's the start for now."
Leon turned towards Aichi's direction and nodded.
" It's starting."
They were immediately in a black space with a single image in front of them.
" Is that..."
" ... Aichi as a baby?"
" Earlier you theorized that Psyqualia was given to Sendou two years ago but that's not true."
" Huh?!"
" Look closely."
While watching Shizuka carrying the baby Aichi, a swirl of energy was seen entering him for a split second as baby Aichi suddenly started wailing.
" No way..."
" Brother Aichi already has Psyqualia as a baby?!"
" That's right. The ancient Psyqualia had already bestowed its powers to him from the day he was born. And you know what that means."
" It predicted this far into the future... And already clinged itself onto Aichi's light!" Kai exclaimed
" Why?!"
" Because it knows his great involvement in all of this and his past life."
" His past life?"
" To know that, we're going to look at something beyond his current memories."
The scene quickly changed as Naoki and the others immediately recognized the image.
" This is... Cray!"
" Cray?!"
" Well, we never really played the game much, so the image of Cray is still quite a blur." Kirito said
" True."
" Why is Cray in the memories beyond Aichi's current one?"
" Right now, we're looking at what Sendou sees in the past. Why he is there will be told soon."
The image started moving as a temple was shown in the distance.
" A temple?"
Hands opened the door to the temple as a giant unit waited further ahead as the image continued moving towards it.
" So you have finally arrived. I am very pleased to meet you again, Prince." The unit said
The others gasped at the sentence.
" P-Prince?!"
" You have grown tremendously, just as your warriors relay to me. And they've also told me of your problem. I am truly saddened for your loss in the war but won't you say a few words?"
The image seems to shake a little as the unit sighed.
" His loss in the war?"
" You've heard correctly. Sendou's previous life was as the Prince of Cray. And as you've heard, he actually lost his parents, the King and Queen, to a war with Void."
" Void?!"
" Due to that loss, Sendou was traumatised and stopped talking altogether. The castle warriors sought help in the Messiah Temple you see here. That unit you see there is just an astral form of a unit called 'Harmonics Messiah'. When Sendou was young as the Prince, he visited the unit plenty of times."
" What did Void do that time?!"
" Sendou has a power it seeks and once it found out, it started to invade the planet. They fought it off but in its last struggle to try to claim him before getting banished the first time, it killed his parents right in front of his eyes."
" Such cruelty..."
" Well, let's just keep watching."
They nodded and continued watching on as they were now in a room with a glass case on top of a pillar with something sitting in it.
" This is a memento from your parents. I kept it for you for their sakes because they wanted to make sure that there was someone who understood you like they do to relay this to you should anything happen to them. It holds the key to unlocking your true powers."
A crystal pendant was seen being tied around the past Aichi's neck as the image looked back up at the unit again.
" You'll find out the true meaning soon but for now... Always keep it with you."
The image nodded as they were back in the clubroom.
" That's all...?"
" Sorry. Takuto doesn't have enough energy to relay more images to you guys. He needs his original body if he needs to show you everything. For now, let him rest for awhile before we continue."
" Oh, right..."
Suddenly, there was a groan as they saw Aichi opening his eyes and getting up as Yui flew over to him.
" Yui-chan...?"
" Are you alright?"
" Yes..."
He looked around as he saw the others.
" Everyone... Why am I here...? Wasn't I...?"
" We escaped."
" Kai-kun...!"
" I guess I'll have to apologise for the trouble I caused, huh."
Aichi gripped his head as Kai held onto him before he could collapse.
" What's wrong?"
" No... It's nothing... I thought I just saw a weird image... That's all..."
He leaned onto Kai as he slept again while Kai sighed.
" You're sleeping again?"
He laid Aichi back down on the floor after that.
" Weird image? Is it possible that he saw what we saw?"
" Maybe, considering that we forced all those past memories out. He might've seen it by accident."
" But the question is... Where is the crystal pendant that the unit gave him?"
" It looks familiar though..."
" Kai?"
" I can't put my finger on it... But that pendant looks so familiar..."
" You've seen it before somewhere?" Klein ask
" I can't remember..."
" We need to know more. We need Takuto to show us more of those memories. Otherwise, we can't figure out many things."
" But the problem is... There's low and even high level dungeon monsters wandering around here... We can't keep disappearing to check out Aichi's memories."
" That's not much of Link Joker's problem, actually. Those dungeon monsters aren't under their control, only those boss monsters are."
" Huh?! Then they'll keep coming?!"
" I think so. Unless we defeat all of the boss monsters, those dungeon monsters won't disappear that easily."
" No way..."
" Let's rethink our plan. Link Joker will counterattack soon and we need to make sure nothing happens to Aichi until then." Kirito said
" Yeah!"
Meanwhile, at the Tatsunagi Corporation, Reversed Takuto was still watching the monitors as he heard a bellowing sound.
" So you're here, Void-sama."
" You said you have him. Where is he?"
" Unfortunately, Toshiki Kai got him out. He even removed the headpiece."
" You had Toshiki Kai in your hands. How did he even manage to get out of the temptation of Reverse?"
" That can be saved for another time. Don't worry. I had foreseen this and laid a tracker on Aichi Sendou. They're currently at Miyaji High. I'll send in the Reverse Army soon to attack it and retrieve him. So just be a little more patient, Void-sama."
" This is the final chance. If this fails, I'll take things to my own hands."
" Yes. And one more thing... I found a very interesting memory from the ones who'd fallen into this world."
The screen changed as Void seemed to think about it a little.
" What good will this do?"
" If I recreate it, I'm sure a very interesting effect will come into place. I just need a little more time to copy it."
" Alright then. Go on ahead. I'll be waiting for that prince to fall into my hands."
" Yes, I'll do it at once."
Void disappeared after that as Reversed Takuto continued his work.
And that's the end of this chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter and I'll see everyone in the next chapter!