"Seven hundred."
Although the sun was still high outside, the inside of the building was near pitch-black. It was an abandoned church located somewhere in the southern sector of «Pewter City», devoid of people, «Pokemon», and even lacking the usual random items hidden across the continent. It was, essentially, a useless place. Nobody would want to waste their time coming in there.
Which was why it was a perfect place for someone to meet another secretly.
"Out of the thousand that participated in the beta test..." She sucked in a breath through her teeth, shifting in her position in the corner of the room. "...seven hundred carried on playing through to the official release."
"..."
She was sitting in a small room leading off to the left side of the far back of the church, no more than a windowed closet. A bench lay across one side of the room, allowing her to rest her tired legs. There were two doors: one leading into the church's main sanctuary, and another leading outside. The inner one was shut tight, but a wire mesh window in the wood allowed sound to pass through.
Drawing back her left leg, she laid her hands, clad in black fingerless gloves, across her knee and rested her cheek on the newly created support. The supple leather felt both rough and cool against her cheek as she sighed, staring at the floor in front of the door.
Her throat felt raw; she quickly considered the «Fresh Water» in her inventory before deciding to save it for later. Instead, for now she cleared it with a cough before continuing quietly.
"As per your request, and of others... judging by the database I had compiled compared with the «Monument of Life», by this morning, a total of around five hundred have died."
There was an eerie lack of response from the man on the other side of the wall, just around the corner of the doorframe in front of her. Which was understandable; while she had been counting that morning, her own heart seemed to stop beating. The only sound was of his Pokemon, whom was making small scritching sounds as it sharpened some kind of blade.
She looked down at her arms, and the double matching «Pokelink» devices resting on each of them. Eyeing the one on the right, she drudged up the facts from within her head and spoke up again.
"Two hundred, including yourself, still live. In terms of percentage, that's a survival rate of twenty-nine percent... rounded up. Compared to the normal players, the ratio is far lower. That is mostly because-"
"Changes in the game. Differences between the official release and the beta test."
She heard rustling coming from the other side of the door. Slowly, she removed one hand from under her head and held it up in the twilight, rotating it and staring at it.
"Correct. Slight differences from time to time... but mostly missions and areas that have had their contents entirely restructured."
He didn't respond. She began ticking off the fingers on her left hand.
"New Pokemon. Increased levels. Some abilities were updated to be far more lethal. Extended areas. Secret traps. That and more. Beta testers entered in expecting something entirely different and prepared for what the old information said. Encountering something different, most of them were caught off guard and summarily killed."
"I've had that experience myself. It was rather nasty."
She nodded sympathetically, although she knew he couldn't see her gesture through the thick oak planks between them. "It is like learning all your life how to use a longsword and suddenly being forced to use a lance. The experience and information from the beta period has lead to most of our deaths."
"And yet, most of the masses are ignorant of these things." There was a thump from the other side, as the man had tilted back his head to look up at the church ceiling. "This afternoon is the meeting, and after tomorrow, we will commence the actual boss fight. You have placed the new boss pamphlets in the store inventories, is that right?"
"Uhn." She grunted in affirmation.
"I thank you for giving out the information... but if, as is expected, the parameters we gathered in the beta turn out to be different from the current boss, and someone dies because of it... the hatred towards beta testers will go out of control."
She remained silent. There was an audible sigh from the other side of the wall.
"I can confidently predict someone will speak up against testers this afternoon. Many people have lost a friend or family member, a close one, to this game in the early stages. They do not show it, but it is there. They will be inflamed against the beta testers for being 'heartless'. For not helping out the beginners." A thud rang out as he punched the wall in frustration. "It is an underlying resentment, but if it should happen, then that hidden hatred will grow into open hostility."
"Then I'll take the blame."
"..."
She leaned back against the wall, crossing her raised leg over the other and closing her eyes. Resigned, she continued, "The information dealer from the beta test, manipulating people from behind the veil of information, fooling even other beta testers whom didn't even know anything. Using people to expand her wealth of data, heartless, cruel, and greedy. Mixing truth with lies, honesty and deceit, just to achieve her own ends. Specializing in data manipulation, the worst kind of human."
She had already made up her mind several weeks ago. Should the time come, she would take the blame for everyone else.
"Argo the «Rat»."
"There will be no need for that."
Argo stopped short in surprise, her eyes flicking over to the wall beside her. The man let out a sad chuckle.
"You need to stay clean. You are the only one who can bridge the gap between the testers and the beginner players with your information distribution network. As for the hatred and blame... I'll take care of it."
"I doubt you can." Argo honestly spoke. "Even with leadership skills such as yours, you would be hard-pressed to contain the amount of outrage that will occur. Especially since you're one yourself."
"Well, nobody but you knows that right? And as for being a leader..."
The man trailed off and let the deafening silence of the cathedral take over the conversation for a minute. When he spoke again, his voice seemed a thousand times more weary.
"Well. I suppose I've gotten the information I've asked for, Rat-san, and we're starting to run late for the meeting. Please confirm the payment."
A glowing window popped up in front of Argo. She raised an eyebrow at the amount stated: it was twice as much as they had initially agreed on.
Well, we have talked about a bit more than just what we agreed on as well.
"Certainly." Argo tapped the «Accept» option and watched the money pile into her inventory. "Wicked beta information dealer or not, I still want my money."
"Naturally." An edge of amusement entered his tone as a loud creak came from the floorboards beneath him, indicating that he had stood up. Argo took that as a signal for the meeting to end and rose as well. "Ah, also..."
"Hmm?" Argo paused.
"Has anyone asked the same thing as me... lately?"
The memory of a certain black-haired boy flashed through her mind. Shaking off the strange feeling she always got upon thinking of him, she responded honestly, "Just one."
"I see. That's just as well." Another sad laugh. "Then I can relax a little bit."
Argo turned questionably to the wall as the man walked a few paces away and stopped.
"In the case of an emergency..." His tone had turned deadly serious, devoid of any traces of liveliness, although still, there was that lonely, sad feeling to it. "...there will be someone to take my place."
He began walking away again.
"Take your place?" Argo had a vivid imagination of that boy at the head of a hundred other players. It was faintly ridiculous. "I'm sorry to say it, but he's not the type to be a leader."
"A leader..." His footsteps paused again. There was the thunk of his hand on one of the pews as he grasped hold of it. The tone of his voice lowered to no more than a hoarse whisper. "I wish. No. In these circumstances, the role he will inherit from me is to be a scapegoat."
Argo digested the sudden information, all of a sudden turning just as serious. She felt her mouth move without her control, something that didn't happen all that often.
"Then you had better not go ahead and die."
"Do you care for him?"
"He's very dear to me."
He chuckled, a bit of life returning to his doomed frame. "Ah, youth. I will try my best."
And with that, his footsteps faded away, the echoing boom of the door closing shut behind him resounding through the hollow shell of the building.
Chapter 6: Translucent Conjunction
Sinon glanced around at the ornate columns she was leaning against: at least two feet in diameter, sculpted in Greek style, holding up a single curved bar encircling the entire amphitheater. Various «Flying» type Pokemon perched on it, either tucking in their heads for a rest or looking around for a target to drop a present on. The black-haired sniper caught the eye of a particularly nasty looking «Pidgey» and hastily moved away to a more covered overhang. Hecate looked up and had a glaring contest with the same bird for around ten seconds, before the avian suddenly froze and flopped off its perch before regaining its flight, flapping away in defeat.
With a soft thump, Sinon leaned heavily against a nearby pillar. Her eyes felt like they had just been through a sandstorm without protective goggles. She closed them, letting out a sigh through her teeth.
Internally, she didn't know what to feel.
Why.
Hecate only directed her gaze to look at her, because Sinon wasn't addressing the question to her. Despite the frosty gaze Sinon could feel, she could feel that over the link, the «Eevee» was worried.
Directing her attention to herself, she looked up ahead, as if she could see who she was talking to right in front of her.
"Why?" She quietly pleaded with herself.
Silence was, of course, her answer. A feeling of annoyance welled up in her, followed by rejection. After that, a multitude of indescribable feelings contradicted each other within her, clashing like two super powered beings in an anime.
Sinon could still see the face of that girl she had carried outside of the «Tower» after she had yelled at her. Frightened, confused, bewildered. Hurt. Scared. Even though she had been infuriatingly stubborn, it didn't warrant the amount of hostility she had shown.
Why? She gritted her teeth and cradled her head in her hands.
Images flicked by her. Some were of that day. The visage of the girl flashed for a moment. A string of words making up a cracked sentence. Fallen bodies. Blood on her outstretched hands.
Monster.
That was what she was. All she did was harm people she met.
I must grow stronger... to protect them from myself.
She remembered how easily she had switched, unable to resist at all. How quickly and sudden she had changed. Remembering how powerless she had been, she felt like a stranger in her own body, a servant in control while the master was out.
...I can't... I'm too weak.
Her fingers tightened around her skull, her knuckles showing up white against her skin.
Too weak.
Sinon.
She looked down at the Eevee, who was watching her neutrally with the calm, frosty air of an ice queen.
Never think that you're weak. She said seriously. Her tail swished back and forth. You can do it if you believe in yourself.
Sinon let out a morbidly amused snort. The problem is myself. If I believe in it that means I'm hoping I'll become weaker.
You know what I mean. Believe in yourself. Not Sinon, you.
Sinon blinked, her gaze focusing on Hecate. Her face was curiously emotionless, her mouth slightly open as she thought about her words.
Being linked with Sinon's mind and helping support her mental state, Hecate probably already knew what was wrong with her. She probably even knew the reason behind it, given Sinon's lack of mental control when distressed.
...I don't ever want to hurt anyone else again.
That's something you can strive for, then. Hecate nodded her head towards the entrance behind her, which several players were heading into. It's time. We should get in.
Sinon lowered her hands, but hesitated. I can't.
You can. Don't be a hypocrite; you told that girl to attend, don't you get cold feet as well at the last moment.
I don't want to hurt them. I have to stay away from them.
You don't need to. You won't, so long as you believe in yourself.
...
Two minutes later, she tripped and nearly fell down the flight of steps leading through the seats surrounding the amphitheatre. Though Sinon managed to avoid making a spectacle by rolling onto one of the stone benches, several people still noticed and quietly sniggered.
Forcing down the blood rushing to her cheeks, she hunkered down on the cool marble and scooched over, trying to sit as far apart from everyone else as she could. Ever since the incident she had always preferred to sit alone, sitting in the back of the classroom, eating lunch in some deserted corner of the campus. It was no different here, though she did have Hecate sitting down by her side.
Looking up, Sinon surveyed the area. The meeting area was essentially a giant pit with a large podium situated at the bottom. A small backstage was hidden behind an ornate stone carving of Pokemon set at the south end of the podium. From every direction barring the side facing the south, rows of marble benches encircled the stage like a set of bleachers. Stairs reached up from the other three cardinal corners, allowing easy access to the seats.
The said seats were occupied by a variety of different people. As far as she could see, though, all the occupants were male. Most of them wore normal clothes, as in pants and a shirt, since actual armor was scarce in the earlier stages of the game. A few had reinforced shields on their arms, and a few wore combat helmets. Beside some of them sat their Pokemon: one man had a «Paras» perched on his shoulder, another was yawning next to a curious «Jigglypuff» looking at the world with wide eyes. A «Spheal» rolled around, balancing itself on the bench, before scampering away as a rare «Scyther» looked up from its seat and gave it the evil eye. Looking up, she could see a «Rufflet» hovering around, not wild as it circled around a certain trainer's head.
The glow of blue caught her eye, and Sinon watched a «Riolu» silently meditate next to a man with silver-gray hair. The «Aura Pokemon» sat crosslegged with its hands together, an azure haze surrounding its hands.
She scanned the audience, but after a minute of searching, even with Hecate's assistance, she had to admit she was the only female there. That girl hadn't come.
Which was fine. Sinon didn't want to meet her again, especially after what had happened earlier.
She did notice, however, a rather burly man wearing a skirt. Sinon wisely chose to pretend she had never seen it. At the beginning of the game, she had seen some people wearing clothes of the opposite gender after Kayaba had reverted their appearances, but she didn't know some of them had stuck to that type of clothing up till now.
On the subject of clothes, she looked down at her own attire: A light green combat jacket over a simple dark gray T-shirt and pants of the same color. Nothing too special, though the jacket had been quite costly. It did provide a nice «Defense» and «Special Defense» bonus to her stats though, so she felt it was worth it. She had never found the need to make herself look attractive, as being so would simply attract unwanted attention. Sinon couldn't remember the last time she had chosen to wear a skirt or dress, or something other than her school uniform or jacket.
She checked the time on her «Pokelink»: 3:07. Perhaps the leader of the raid group was still preparing for something. Looking down over the podium, Sinon could see a few people massed there, discussing something important, by the looks of their faces. There was one with aqua-blue hair and a similarly colored cuirass wrapped around his torso. The armor looked like solid medieval steel plating, but according to ingame «NPCs», it was enhanced during forging with new-fangled scientific methods and the rare ones were also equipped with mini-shield generators to increase the defense.
From the looks of it, he appeared to be the leader. His face was contorted in a frown as he listened to a man moving weirdly in front of him, flailing his arms as he attempted to pantomime whatever he was talking about alongside his words. Sinon watched the vaguely amusing spectacle for a while before turning her attention back to the crowd. Other people were slipping in late, glancing around in relief as they saw that the meeting had yet to start.
Sinon.
Hecate called Sinon's name, causing her to look over at the Eevee. The Pokemon in question was lying down almost lazily, although her head was tilted up to stare at the nearest flight of stairs.
Sinon tilted her head. What is it?
There's someone you know on the stairs. East stairway.
She whirled around. On the east staircase, a familiar black-haired swordsman was stumbling down the steps like a sleepy drunkard, followed by a cloaked figure. The cloaked figure behind him seemed to be laughing, a hand stifling the giggles against his mouth.
Her heart dropped out like it had tripped into a pitfall. He's here too?
It had been a month since she had first met and last seen Kirito, but she knew it was him. Having declined his friend invite after partying with him and running away awkwardly, she hadn't looked forward to meeting him again. Thinking back on that moment over the previous month, she had comforted herself by telling herself that the world was large, and that they would probably never meet again.
But then again, this world had only consisted of ten thousand people to begin with. It was a far cry from the population of Earth, which numbered eight billion.
He hadn't caught sight of her yet, but the way she was sitting, all out in the open on the upper stands of the amphitheatre, he would see her the moment he did a quick sweep of the area. Sinon glanced at his companion, who was already looking over the area. The shaded hood and cloak concealed the figure's identity, and suddenly Sinon wished she had thought of using one too.
Whaaa-... what do I do? I, uhhh...
She froze like a cat caught in headlights, unsure of whether to run or hide. A random trainer's «Swablu» flew down and perched in her hair for a good four seconds before sensing the confused emotions in the head below it and fluttering off.
Finally her mind came to a conclusion, forcing her legs to scooch her over to the nearest group of players to her right, her eyes still riveted on Kirito and ready to make a break for it if need be. Thankfully, he was still preoccupied with his sore behind and bruised ego as he muttered something to his still-amused companion. Hecate followed along, tiptoeing down the bench along with Sinon.
Her hand moved out over thin air, and when Sinon looked over, she had reached the edge of the bench, sitting next to the north staircase. Below her was a large gaggle of players, chatting and passing around some kind of beverage. A few parties sat on the seats above her as well, and she felt sufficiently camouflaged to let her guard down. Her shoulders relaxed as she watched Kirito scan the benches, breathing a sigh of relief as his gaze passed over her.
They immediately stiffened again as someone tapped her shoulder. She whirled around instinctively, drawing back-
It was just a boy. Not Kirito. Small, skinny. Round, youthful face. Messy coffee-colored hair draped over his forehead. His eyes were the same color, innocent looking. A gray scarf was wrapped around his right arm. Next to him, a sleek-looking «Absol» watched Sinon and Hecate carefully with piercing crimson eyes. The quadruped «Disaster Pokemon» idly ruffled its pure-white fur and looked back at its trainer.
He looked rather young. Same age as Sinon, but unhealthy-looking shadows under his eyes caused him to look older, scarred, and serious, as if he were a veteran of a crusade to hell. The appearance twinged a chord of memory in Sinon's mind.
When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice was soft and timid. In addition to that, he had lowered his voice so that no one else could hear him.
"Excuse me... um, is your name, in real life, Asada Shino?"
Sinon blinked in surprise, recoiling instinctively. Her first thought in response to his query was "Stalker." Her second thought was "Creeper!".
Then she realized she knew this boy. She focused on his face: The hair, the eyes, and the haunted look; she knew him. Her muscles relaxed somewhat, but she still remained on guard.
"Shinkawa Kyouji." She said slowly, neutrally. It wasn't a question, nor was it a statement, but it got the message across.
The boy's eyes lit up upon hearing his name. His demeanor became visibly more enthusiastic.
"Shino! To think that you played this game as well- To meet someone I know well in real life, what a coincidence!"
"Know well" was a gross overstatement, Sinon reflected. They were in the same grade and class in her most recent high school, and he sat quite close to her desk, but that was about the extent of the relationship between them. Sinon, as Shino in real life, had never interacted with anyone in her classes. Even in group projects, she had opted to work alone. He had indeed asked for her help for several of those projects and invited her to work with him for others, but she had declined every time as a rule.
In short, they were just mere acquaintances. Sinon was starting to feel slightly uncomfortable with Kyouji's enthusiasm, as he leaned over her too close for comfort.
"Well, I think we-"
"How have you been? Since when did you play this game?" Kyouji was excitedly asking her all these questions, but her mouth stayed shut tight. She shifted as he continued to deluge her with inquiries, finally holding up her hands in an attempt to stem the flow of questions.
"Slow down, slow down, wait-"
"Ah." For the first time, he seemed to realize he was overreacting and making a fool of himself. "Sorry."
"I, so..." Sinon struggled to remember the questions. "I started-"
A month ago. Hecate suddenly said, an urgent tone in her voice. One month. Start of the game.
"...since a month ago, Kyouji."
"Me too, Shino!" Kyouji nodded fervently, visibly a lot more subdued to avoid making Sinon uncomfortable. "What a coincidence. I know I said it already, but such a small world this is! I'm really baffled."
His Absol's gaze finally left Sinon and it sat down, looking around at the rest of the bleacher's occupants.
Indeed, Sinon felt baffled by the recent turn of events. To think she'd meet someone living quite near her own house in a game after a whole month of isolation was near unthinkable. Out of the ten thousand people playing «Pokemon Universe», only around fifty to sixty were present for the boss meeting. It was really the chance of finding a needle in a haystack.
However, having someone she knew in real life know who she was ingame was problematic for her.
In addition...
What's wrong? Sinon asked Hecate over the link. The Eevee's muscles were tensed up, as if she were about to pounce. Why all of a sudden-?
His aura flared. Hecate watched Kouji's happily ranting form seriously. The moment you started to answer, some emotion jumped up inside of him. I couldn't sense it clearly, but it felt negative... be careful.
"...just so happy to see you here, Shino. Oh, don't call me Kyouji here. Ingame, my name is Spiegel. Are you alone?"
She didn't respond.
"Um, Shino?"
Sinon blinked, refocusing her attention on the boy. She nodded cautiously. "Oh, Spiegel? Okay. Um, and yes."
He seemed taken aback at her answer. His eyes widened and he took a step back. "This whole time? The whole month? All alone?"
"Yes." She felt queasy. "Is there-"
"Why don't you join my party?" Kyouji- no, Spiegel- suddenly asked. "We've looked out for each other this entire time. Really, I wouldn't be alive here if it weren't for them. We distribute all the loot equally, and also make sure no one's left behind."
Sinon's mouth flopped open in confusion. "Eh?"
"Join our party. That way, you won't have to be alone anymore." Spiegel reached out with his right arm , looking at her face with his usual innocent expression and a light smile. "I'll be there for you too! I'm sure the party leader would let you in, especially since you're my friend, I'll ask him. I would be able to protect you."
His outstretched arm took hold of Sinon's hand.
"What do you say- wah?"
Sinon had immediately snatched her arm out of his grasp, holding it to her chest and recoiling, moving away from Spiegel. Her limbs tensed up as she instinctively tried her best to stay as far away from him as she could.
The boy froze. "Um?"
She looked down at her hand, staring at it.
Cold.
His hand had been ice cold. Colder than even her memory of the grip of a gun. In that short instant of contact, her temperature in her hand had dropped to below zero; it was now covered in a layer of cold sweat.
Isn't this Kyouji, or Spiegel, assuming too much? Hecate commented. From the bits of thought you're throwing out over our link, I can tell he's not much a friend to you.
...his hand is ice cold.
Just then, another hand patted the top of her head in a teasing, friendly manner. Her body knew who it was even if her brain hadn't caught up yet. Every muscle she had locked up even further, if that was even possible.
"Hey! Long time no see, Sinon."
The voice sent a feeling of dread running through her, even though she hadn't heard it for a month. She let out an involuntary "eep", a slight flush of embarrassment creeping into her face. Goosebumps popped up all over her neck.
In the end, he had still found her. She now consciously knew who it was even without turning around, but her head moved against her will anyways to see Kirito's smiling face looking at her. Fully flushed now, she hung her head and squeezed her eyes shut. Sinon really, really didn't want to meet him again after she had left him on such an awkward note last time.
"...umm... hi..."
Kirito tilted his head at her reaction, confused.
"What's wrong?"
"Ah..." Sinon fumbled with her words and muttered some unintelligible babble. It seemed he wasn't too concerned about how their last meeting had ended, and as she slowly grew aware of that, her apprehensiveness started to subside.
Still, it did nothing to quell the strange heated feeling in her cheeks and the tight iron band around her heart. The organ struggled like a trapped bird.
"I... nothing. It's nice to see you again."
Kirito nodded lamely, still not completely understanding, patting her on the head in a friendly manner, not noticing Sinon's embarrassed state. Behind him, a faint grin appeared on what could be seen of the cloaked figure's face; from the shape of the head and the way she carried herself, Sinon guessed she was a girl. There were two more figures behind them: Kirito's «Ralts», whom Sinon remembered was Raphael, and an unknown black long-haired girl who apparently was having a silent argument with the «Psychic» type Pokemon, both of them watching each other without uttering a word. Upon noticing Sinon looking at her, she waved in a familiar way, although Sinon could not remember ever meeting her before.
The black swordsman seemed to notice Spiegel for the first time. "Is this a friend of yours?"
"Oh. Um..." Sinon glanced back at Spiegel/Kyouji. "Just a classmate of mine from real life."
"Oh?" Kirito's eyes widened. He held out his hand to Spiegel. "Nice to meet you, mister...?"
Spiegel on the other hand, was looking at Kirito with an unreadable look, periodically switching his gaze to Sinon's face and back. As she watched, his face seemed to be straining to keep his friendly smile, and he gave off a hostile air. Kirito sensed it as well and stepped back a bit, his arm dropping slightly.
The Absol looked up and over to Sinon, and she could swear the «Disaster Pokemon» was trying to yell "Run!" at her with that face. Hecate was watching Spiegel's movements with a tight-lipped face.
"...mister...?" Kirito repeated with an awkward face.
The blaster-user's face was like an ornate stone mask as he politely asked a rude question, "So who are you?"
"I'm... Kirito." The black swordsman was obviously confused. Sinon tried to shrink, shying away from either party.
"How do you know Shino?"
"Shino? I don't know anybo- ah." Kirito stopped, realizing who Spiegel was referring to. Glancing at Sinon with a sympathetic look, he honestly replied, "We partied together for a quest about three days after the start of the game. Haven't met since, so I was pretty surprised to see her here." He held up his other hand in a gesture of surrender. "I swear. Nothing else."
The tension seemed to seep out of the air as Spiegel's strain faded. His face relaxed as he nodded, still watching Kirito suspiciously. Hesitatingly, he reached out and gingerly shook Kirito's still outstretched hand.
Quietly, the cloaked figure standing behind Kirito watched the exchange without moving an inch. Hecate relaxed, her fur un-ruffling. The only one who didn't change was the Absol, who still watched his trainer without moving an inch.
The coffee-haired boy bowed his head in a small apology. "...Kirito. I'm... Spiegel."
Kirito accepted the proffered olive branch. "Spee-eh-ghel. Sino- Shino's friend, right? I'll be sure to remember that."
"Spiegel!"
A man's voice rang out, and all three of them, in addition to the fourth person, all looked over to see a man with a ridiculous cactus-shaped hairstyle waving to them from a seat near the podium, with a strangely appropriate «Cacnea» sitting on the ground beside him. Opening his mouth, he swung his arm around to attract their attention and bellowed, "Come on! Spiegel! We need you over here!"
Kyouji, or Spiegel as he was known ingame, nodded curtly to all of them, looking at each of their faces in turn before he left, trotting down the staircase. It might have just been Sinon's imagination, but she felt his eyes lingered on her a bit longer than they did on Kirito.
The Absol stood up and nodded in the same manner its trainer had to Sinon before following him.
An awkward sort of silence fell upon their little group.
"Nyahahah, is he your clingy ex-boyfriend?"
A surprisingly soft and cutesy voice came out from under the hood of the cloaked girl, startling Sinon. The girl in question swept off her cover and shook her hair free: Thin auburn curls framing a small face, large brown eyes, and most prominently, three reddish-pink lines drawn across each cheek in the manner of whiskers.
Her eyes glinted mischievously as she grinned at Sinon. "Well? Is he?"
Sinon frantically shook her head in response, not trusting her mouth. The cloaked girl's grin grew only wider.
"Then, perhaps a devoted follower-"
"He's just a classmate of mine!" Sinon burst out, cutting off the mousy-haired girl's guesses. "Just an acquaintance! Stop laughing! Stop, darnit!"
For indeed, the girl was choking out guffaws. The other black-haired girl slapped her on the back, trying to help clear her airways. Kirito also began to chuckle, the infectious laughter spreading. Even Raphael looked vaguely amused.
Sinon glared at the mousy-haired girl indignantly. "It's not that funny!"
"Nyahah- cough- but it is!" The girl swallowed down her mirth and compressed it into another grin. "Let me guess- Love triangle! He's got a crush on you but you-"
Sinon's hand shot out and violently plugged the girl's offending mouth.
Shrugging her cloak around her tighter, Asuna glanced both ways through the corners of her eyes: two groups of talkative males, one discussing some kind of bee Pokemon, the other comparing weapons. Satisfied that no one was paying any attention to her, she hunkered down on the bench, the cool marble surface draining the heat from her behind.
Under the rough cloth, she could feel Hope squirming a bit in the nook of her arm as well as complaining loudly in her head. She loosened her grip, allowing the «Eevee» to poke her head out from under the cloak and stretch out.
You need a shower. She muttered. It stinks under your cloak.
Unfortunately, there hadn't ever been a chance to take a proper bath that Asuna had seen. In Virtual Reality, the system applied various non-combat debuffs to a player's avatar if they didn't take care of their hygiene. Foregoing a wash caused the character to progressively stink more and more, although it was hardly noticeable unless one had an enhanced sense of smell or was actively looking for it. Most early «Pokemon Centers» were only basically equipped, which meant no shower stalls or bath tubs. Taking a bath in a random river or pool was also unadvised due to wild Pokemon.
In addition, not brushing your teeth caused them to progressively yellow, the speed of which was determined by the food one ate. Asuna at least had managed to keep up with that, purchasing a mug and a toothbrush from the local marketplace.
Asuna could still remember, vividly, the feeling of water rising up around her from the last bath she had taken in reality. The steaming hot water, the feeling of her muscles relaxing in the heat, had been gloriously comforting to her.
That had been a month ago. The memory of that time turned her mood sour.
Bear with it. Asuna thought back in a monotone. You stink too.
Hope fluffed up the ruff of fur around her neck with childish pride. Less than you. I clean myself every day!
Don't boast about that when you complain to me about hairballs every time you do it.
Hey!
Asuna idly shut out Hope's protests as she looked around at the crowd from the anonymity of her hood. Although everyone appeared to be relaxed, there was an underlying tension under everyone's actions. Asuna could see some people fiddling nervously with their weapons, calling them out and then storing them back into their «Pokelinks» repeatedly. Others were glancing back and forth between their comrades and the stage.
The very atmosphere of the amphitheatre was thick with anxiety. They were about to challenge the first boss, after all.
...why am I even here?
Asuna scratched Hope behind the ears without paying attention, and felt slightly more at ease when the annoying Eevee ceased complaining and gave in to the pleasure, her ears twitching.
After sitting stunned for about a full half hour under that tree after the strange girl had ran away, with Hope worrying away at her for being unresponsive, her body had suddenly stood up all by itself. Her entire memory of their conversation was hazy, especially the part where that girl suddenly changed attitudes, but several words from that conflict had stood out.
"Today at 3:00 there's a whole group of players meeting together in «Pewter City» to discuss the plans for the first boss fight."
And so there she had went like she had been stuck in a trance, finally awakening from her stupor upon reentering the city and realizing she didn't know where the meeting was actually taking place in the city. Hope had showed her a memory of her wandering down the road towards the town like she was sleepwalking, even scarily dispatching several random Pokemon with her sword with a blank face. Asuna personally didn't remember any of it.
What was new was that Asuna felt some kind of an infuriated feeling in her heart, leading to her feeling irritated. She didn't understand why, but she felt she had to prove something. Her hand spasmed, pausing.
...so I'm here. She looked up to glare at the sky. Now what?
Just be patient. Hope suggested, lazily stretching in her lap.
Asuna sighed, still wondering why exactly had she decided to come here. She cast her gaze over the opposite benches while searching her mind for the answer, but failed to come up with anything.
She blinked.
Argo?
The «Rat» was sitting on a bench near the outer edges of the pit, together with several other people. She looked up at the same moment Asuna caught sight of her, as if she sensed Asuna's gaze.
A clear grin could be seen on Argo's face as she waved to her.
Asuna timidly waved back. They hadn't met for over a week, and Argo was probably the only friend Asuna ever had, but for some reason Asuna didn't want to talk to her at the moment. She always asked Asuna what her answer was every time they met, and while she usually answered dully with the same thing each time, this time she felt uncertain.
To not regret a second time.
Fight on and die satisfied.
The words that she had repeated to herself before now seemed as weak and as flimsy as paper.
"CLAP!"
The loud sound of two hands clapping together rang out. Once, twice, thrice, and four times in total. The sounds of chatter faded away as everyone turned to face the source of the noise: a blue-armored player who stood at the center of the podium. After most of the audience's attention was turned to him, he raised his voice and began to speak in with an impressively loud volume.
"Hello, hello? Alright!" He waved around. "Players of «Pokemon Universe», thank you for coming! Thank you for accepting my invitation here today!"
The man had aqua-blue hair, long enough to reach his chin. His face was well-sculpted and could be called relatively handsome. What set him apart from most other players, though, was the armor he wore. It appeared to be a pretty rare piece, a simple cuirass dyed the same color as his hair and layered over with a silver breastplate. The sun glinted off of the corners as he turned to face all of the audience.
Next to him stood a small humanoid Pokemon. Its head was encased in a rounded red and black helmet with a short but fat blade extending out of the front. Four extra steel spikes jutted out of its torso, and more blades replaced the ends of its hands. It was a pretty rare Pokemon; at least, Asuna had never seen it before.
"My name is Diabel, comrades." He jutted a thumb at himself. "And, if we were to speak by old RPG standards, I'd call myself of the «Knight» and «Hero» class!"
Being predominantly gamers, most of the surrounding players got the joke and chuckled, clapping once or twice. Asuna didn't understand the reference at all, and simply tilted her head.
The man seemed impressive enough. He excluded a powerful aura of leadership, like he would suddenly march off to fight a war and everyone else in the amphitheatre would follow him simply by instinct.
"I apologize for us starting ten minutes late, so I will cut right to the chase." Diabel raised his arm and pointed towards where the «Tower» was, obscured by the high walls of the pit. "Two days ago, my party and I discovered the boss's, or «Tower Leader's», lair. In other words, we now have its location and can lead a raid group to engage."
Asuna's interest sparked.
The first boss...
"One month has passed," Diabel's gaze took on a serious light as he caught the eye of several random players, making sure his message was going across. "and many players have died. Many more have lost hope, and are, even now, huddled in the «Starting City», either desperately awaiting rescue from outside or resigned to a terrible fate. We must, I repeat, we must-" He raised his fist. "-spread this message. That this game, will, be cleared!"
Everyone was utterly silent, drawn in by his words. Asuna leaned forward despite herself.
This man, Hope commented, is a good man. I can feel it.
"We will be the ones to clear the tower, and begin to advance our efforts towards completing the game!" Diabel swung around to address the rest of the players present. "I understand that we have not yet defeated the first boss. That this territorial war the man who trapped us here spoke of has yet to begin. Some of you might say I am getting ahead of myself, but I am confident we will eventually prevail and attain our freedom. That is our duty, for all of us, the highest-leveled players in the game."
Many of the spectators were nodding, including Asuna. A few began to applaud.
"Wait just a second, Diabel-san."
With a grunt, a player hauled himself off of his front row seat and jumped up onto the podium with a loud crash. Straightening up, he stomped over to Diabel and pointed his right index finger at him. Hope raised her head to take a better look at the man.
The man appeared to be in his mid-twenties, with a strange spiky cactus-themed hairstyle. Since appearance customizers weren't available in the game yet, it must have been his actual hairstyle in real life as well; Asuna couldn't imagine someone actually walking around with it. His face was strongly muscled, and a tiny baby of a goatee sat under his lip. His attire consisted of a reinforced brown vest over a baggy shirt and similar pants. From his appearance, Asuna envisioned him to be a really "gruff" kind of person.
You aren't too far off. Hope sniffed, her little black nose twitching in the cool air.
Behind him, another boy climbed up onto the stage in a less dramatic way, hauling his body off of the ground and using his leg to boost himself up. This boy was much younger, with messy coffee-colored hair and haunted-looking eyes. Thin and wiry, he wore a threadbare combat jacket together with khaki military-issue pants, as well as a heavy, woolen scarf wrapped around his left arm.
Asuna frowned.
What are they doing?
Shhh. Just watch.
"Hrm?" Diabel turned to the duo without a hint of annoyance in his face. Nodding, he gestured for them to proceed.
The cactus-head cleared his throat loudly before growling, "Before we act all lovey-dovey with each other, I have something important I want to say."
Behind him, the other youth was nodding. Diabel cricked his neck and inclined his head in acceptance. "Opinions are welcome. But first, could we have you and your companion's names?" He put on an apologetic smile. "Rather hard to listen to what you have to say without knowing who you two are."
"Hmf." The cactus-head placed his hands on his hips and tilted his gaze up to study Diabel's face. Due to the height difference, he had to tilt back quite a considerable angle. "I'm Kibaou."
"Spiegel."
The other youth spoke his name in a voice that barely made it to Asuna. Hope's ears twitched and swiveled towards him.
Diabel took a step back to give both of them the center stage, to which Kibaou stepped forward to occupy. Whirling around, he pointed an accusing finger at the audience, sweeping it from left to right.
"Alright, you cowering Beta Testers!" He roared in a voice that would have sent an elephant scurrying for cover. The echo of his words, nearly as loud as the original, bounced back and forth in the amphitheatre in the short pause that followed. "Show yourselves! Come on!"
Asuna reeled backwards in shock, completely not expecting the sheer volume. If the man lacked in courtesy, he made up for it with powerful vocal chords. Hope's ears flattened down as she instinctively squeezed her eyes shut. All around her, people were reacting in various ways in surprise, some of them falling clean off their seats.
Wha...? Asuna shook her head to clear her ringing ears. What's he talking about? Beta testers?
Wait.
"I know you're out there! There should be quite a few of you leeches in this group!" Kibaou bellowed, swinging around. His hand curled into a fist as he shook it, Spiegel following his lead. "Be honest, and show yourselves! You selfish bastards!"
The audience began to shift. Several people spread out evenly throughout the benches raised their fists together with Kibaou's, but an equal amount of people looked apprehensive, whispering to each other behind hands. A young-looking youth sitting across from Asuna was nodding and cheering on Kibaou's words, even as a man in his mid-thirties sitting a few rows below Asuna leaned over to his companion and quietly asked, "Is it really okay for him to be doing that? What's he going on about?"
"In this month," Kibaou lowered his volume from ear-splittingly loud to megaphone loud so as not to burst people's eardrums. "this past month, the Beta Testers, they hogged almost all the resources in this game! They took the best hunting spots, the best quests, and went off on their own. They had information on the game from the beta test." He stabbed his finger down to emphasize his next words. "A thousand five-hundred people died because of your selfishness! Get down here, right now, and apologize for their deaths! Apologize to those deceased!"
One player stood up from his seat and yelled out, "My brother died two weeks ago because of you guys! Yeah! You stupid Beta Testers! "
Asuna stared as his buddies slapped him on the back and stood up to stand with him, bewildered.
She knew the Beta Testers had been the select one-thousand players who had played the game before the official release, but she had a hard time understanding how Kibaou could have come to this kind of logic.
Just because they had the power to help, doesn't mean they were obligated to... Asuna frowned. It's not fair to blame them for that. Those people died because they were caught by Kayaba Akihiko's death trap... it wasn't the tester's fault.
Some people... Hope hesitated. Just want others to suffer alongside them. Someone to use as a scapegoat.
"Not only that," Spiegel spoke up, adding onto what Kibaou had started. "but Beta Testers have gone as far as to kill other players for their own benefit!"
Dead silence. Everyone displayed features altered by shock. Diabel, who had been standing to the side with a decidedly neutral mask, now had a frown on his face. He stepped forward now and flagged Spiegel down.
"Killing other players? That's going a little too far for mere conjecture. Do you have proof?"
Spiegel turned to face Diabel, calmly standing up to his query. "I am the proof. A beta tester tried to kill me just a day after the start of the game."
At once, the amphitheatre exploded into heated discussion. People stood up and shouted in outrage at the Beta Testers, while others shouted foul at Spiegel. Asuna bit her lip and glanced over to where Argo was sitting: the Rat was watching the proceeds with a sad expression on her face.
Diabel raised both his arms and held up his hands for silence. Once most of the chatter had ceased, he turned back to Spiegel. "Continue." he curtly ordered.
Spiegel obliged. He pulled back the scarf encircling his arm, revealing his iron-gray Pokelink. He jabbed the single lit button, and the usual summoning circle opened up in front of him. A white-furred, four-legged Pokemon hopped out of it, landing lightly on the stone floor of the podium. A large crescent blade was mounted on the side of its head.
Asuna had never seen this Pokemon before, but many of the players around her reacted in surprise. Some of them took sharp breaths, so apparently it was quite a rare species.
"As Kayaba Akhiko had told us during the tutorial," Spiegel started, "when a player dies, his or her Pokemon are released on the spot, and count as wild Pokemon from then on. They can be recaptured, and that was what this beta tester wanted to do to Crescent, my «Absol»."
He exhaled, then wiped his forehead.
"His name, or username at least, was x1337. Yes, I know it's not very creative, but it was his username. He approached me on the second day of the game, when I had just been about to head out on my own, and offered me help on the grounds of being a beta tester. He certainly was one, as far as I could tell, because he knew a lot about how the game worked." Spiegel grimaced. "He told me about the stats of this game, a bit about how the game could be cleared, and facts about my Absol. To gain my trust."
Then he raised his hand.
"But! But, then, he never told me how to summon my weapon, never told me how to spend my skill points, never told me about the link, and even advised me to apply all my skill points into «Speed», telling me that it would help tremendously early on. All of them, no «Attack» or «Defense»."
This was when most people reacted. Asuna tilted her head, not quite understanding what was so bad about it.
Speed is a good stat, Hope pondered to herself for Asuna's benefit, but focusing entirely on it isn't good either. His attacks would have done next to no damage, his defense would have been paper-thin, and speed doesn't do much at low values. You don't see any real difference in quickness. He essentially wasted his power.
"I did that." Spiegel gestured at his wiry frame. "Then, he offered to take me on a mission to obtain a rare «Weapons Chip», and I accepted. He lured me to a forest somewhere to the north of Starting City... and he suddenly disappeared. Something happened, I don't quite recall, but he set a whole group of mobs from that forest after me using some kind of move, or item."
There was a collective gasp. Spiegel raised his voice to be heard over the din.
"Now I know that the method he used is called «Monster PK». When someone lures a victim into a secluded area filled with deadly mobs, and somehow gets all of them to aggro onto him. A despicable way of murdering someone without pulling the trigger themselves!"
He paused, listening to the murmurs grow.
"My Absol and I tried to fight them off, but we were too weak. We were both underleveled, and I had a horrible stat distribution for early levels. I would have died, and Crescent would have been recaptured by that horrible tester had Kibaou and his party not found me and saved me." Spiegel nodded to the man beside him, who's grimace seemed to grow bigger. It was apparently the only expression he could make. "After we managed to scatter the mobs, we tried to look for the bastard, but he had vanished. We spent several days waiting there, but he never showed up."
Spiegel's features tightened as he recalled the incident.
"No doubt he's responsible for several other deaths by now. From what I heard, too, he wasn't the only one. All of them have no integrity. Tons of them, not just the one I knew, acted the same way, even amongst themselves. Kibaou lost a friend to one too."
"And that's only another reason why!" Kibaou roared, raising his fist. "Those darned Beta Testers should come up here, show themselves, and repent! Those selfish, cursed animals! Come on out NOW!"
For a long, tense moment, nobody moved nor spoke. The sheer reality of what Spiegel had talked about was weighing hard on their minds. Asuna personally couldn't believe it.
"Excuse me."
Asuna blinked and looked down: a huge, dark-skinned man had stood up from the front row of seats. Two large strides took him onto the podium, where he stood before Kibaou, completely overshadowing the cactus-head.
He was completely bald, but that only made him look even larger and even more imposing.
"My name is Agil." The man introduced himself with a nod to Diabel. The knight nodded back in acceptance, and Agil turned his attention back to Kibaou.
"Let me get this straight." His voice was a deep baritone, slow and sturdy yet inspiring confidence at the same time. "What you two are trying to say, is: The Beta Testers here should compensate for the beginners who have died in the past month because they did not attempt to help, and for the few of them who were selfish enough to go as far as murder to make themselves stronger?"
Spiegel was frozen, intimidated by the sheer size of the giant before him. Kibaou fared a lot better, gritting his teeth. "That's right. Those testers just left all the beginners who knew jack about the game at Starting City and took the best hunting grounds and easiest quests for themselves, not even leaving a warning about the dangerous areas or quests. The ones that resorted to killing are only an example of what kind of people those testers are!"
Agil was unmoved, only shifting his arms to cross them across his chest, increasing his intimidation factor tenfold. "Have you ever heard of a Beta Tester helping people?"
Kibaou opened his mouth to respond heatedly, then the words deserted him, leaving him with a feeble, "Ah?"
The giant lifted his right arm, swiping down the center strip and opening up his inventory. A thin book materialized above his hand and dropped neatly into it. Lifting it up so everyone to see, Agil continued, "Whenever I entered a new area or town, this guidebook had always been in the local «Pokemart», at the price of zero «Poke». It's free, and-"
Someone in the audience let out a loud spit-take, which echoed loudly in the silence. Agil's eyes flicked over in that direction, but, unable to locate the perpetrator, focused back on Kibaou.
Asuna squinted, recognizing the book as a copy of the pamphlet that Argo had given to Asuna two weeks before, the guidebook with the slogan, "It's fine. This is the Rat's strategy guide" written at the bottom of the cover in blocky letters. It contained all sorts of information on the game, including stats, descriptions of areas and quests, maps, hints, and pro tips. A true wealth of information.
"As I was saying," Agil continued as if there hadn't been an interruption, "it contains a huge wealth of information. Information on quests. Farming grounds. Traps. Combat tips. It used to be smaller, but the writer updates this every week. In fact, it had just been updated again ten minutes ago."
"Ten minutes ago..? For what?"
"It contains info on nearly everything before the boss we are about to fight. However..." Agil flipped the pamphlet over, displaying some words on the back. "There is a disclaimer. 'This information is from the original beta test. There may be discrepancies.' And the periodic updates are to fix these mistakes."
Agil tossed the booklet to Kibaou, who caught it out of the air and checked it, flipping through the pages.
"This information is too detailed. No matter how you look at it, it had to come from the beta testers. The writer, the Rat, I believe, is a famous information dealer. She must be a tester as well, in addition to some of her contacts. This is their gift to us, and those who had these can testify to its helpfulness." Agil's voice took on a steelier tone. "I believe some of those testers who helped out are in this crowd right now. Do not judge all of them by the actions of only one or two."
Kibaou and Spiegel were silent, looking at the booklet in Kibaou's hands. Spiegel's teeth were grinding.
"Many people died. That's true, but that was because most of them failed to exercise the necessary precautions when dealing with their lives, thinking SAO was the same as other, older MMORPGs." Agil fixed Kibaou with his gaze as he hammered his point home. "Also, half of the deaths are from suicides, people jumping off of nearby cliffs in hope of returning to reality. On the other hand, those of us who received this information are still alive. Saying that Beta Testers are all evil does not help us at all. In fact, we should be grateful that some of them gave us this information. They didn't have any obligation to, yet they did it."
"Agil-san is right, Kibaou-san."
All three of them turned to see Diabel moving forward, his arms on his hips. He now look far more relaxed than before, calmly stepping in.
"Diabel-san-" Kibaou began, then stopped as Diabel raised his hand.
"I understand your feelings, Kibaou-san. And yours, especially yours, Spiegel-san." Diabel inclined his head towards Spiegel, who stood there like a rock, making no move to show that he had noticed Diabel's words. "My heart goes out to you for experiencing something as horrifying as that... but, surely, isn't it the time to look forward? The Beta Tester's expertise would help us immensely with clearing the first boss."
"Diabel-san!"
Everyone turned to the North entrance, where a player from Diabel's party was running down the steps, holding a large booklet in his grip. He vaulted onto the stage and, breathing lightly, held up the papers.
"I found this in the local Pokemart's inventory!" He excitedly underlined the title with his finger as he said it out loud. "Rat's 1st Tower Boss Strategy Guide! It's 0 Poke, just like the other guide!"
"What?" Surprise registered on Diabel's face. "But we only just found the boss roo- ah. Please let me see."
For a good minute, the knight flipped through the pages, his eyes moving back and forth as he quickly scanned its contents. The whole audience watched the proceedings with baited breath.
Finally, he let out a large breath of relief. "This... will help our expedition immensely. The boss doesn't look too tough. Let us take a quick break to all get a copy for every-"
"Wait!"
Spiegel suddenly shouted out, grabbing the copy of the guide unceremoniously from Diabel's hands. He quickly flipped it over, scanning the back.
"This Rat... she's a beta tester. Are we really going to blindly trust a tester's information? Really?" He squinted at one of the pages before violently flinging it towards Diabel. "From what this says, the boss should be pretty easy. This is probably a lie... some of this might be true, but we don't know what isn't here! This Rat girl is probably just like the one tried to kill me. He promised me an easy, straightforward quest too. The first boss can't possibly be this easy, we've seen the horrors this game has. She must have left out some important details. This could just be leading us right into another trap!"
People started to murmur, looking at each other apprehensively. Spiegel's earlier story was still sticking with them, making them uncertain. Spiegel saw that and pressed his advantage, his face strangely alight with the fervor of someone holding a deep-seated grudge.
"If this information is true, then why don't they prove it to us? Shouldn't she stand up to vouch for the authenticity?"
The appeal seemed to make sense to a lot of players, as the chatter grew in volume. Something akin to fire had kindled in her heart as Spiegel started slandering Argo. She didn't understand what it was, but she began to feel irritated.
"I know her. I think I saw her entering the crowd today..."
People began to stand up, looking around.
"Did you? Where is she?"
"Come on, tell us this information is correct!"
"Why are you all so childish?"
Asuna couldn't hold in her irritation any longer and abruptly stood up, dumping Hope onto the floor comically. For some reason, her voice carried out far above everyone else's, effectively shutting them up as everyone's attention turned to her. A little bit of stage fright sent a chill down her spine, but she ignored it as she went on, fixing her eyes on Spiegel. The boy matched her gaze, staring back.
"Are you ten years old? Why do you insist on being so stubborn?" Asuna simply couldn't fathom their behavior, and her disbelief showed itself as it crept into her voice. "They are humans, just like us, unlike the boss we have to defeat. We have this data, why aren't we being grateful for it?"
Spiegel's face distorted as his eyes narrowed, struggling to come up with a response. He failed to do so.
Asuna suddenly became aware of the many gazes locked on her, feeling a bit apprehensive. A shiver went down her spine as she suddenly felt very exposed, standing up near the top of the amphitheatre. She vaguely wished she had chosen to wear pants instead as she sat back down, shifting her cloak to hide her body from view.
The awkward feeling only grew as all the male players, as in almost all the players present, looked disappointed. Asuna wondered how males could be so outright with their interests.
Say something in advance, Hope grumbled as she hauled herself back onto the bench, completely unaware of the strange atmosphere, the next time you do that. Ow, my head.
"Exactly! The princess spoke true!"
Diabel's voice rang out, cutting through the awkward tension and effectively returning the focus of the crowd back to himself. He nodded to Asuna with a wide smile, ignoring the embarrassed flush on her face. "Our enemies are not our fellow players. Our enemy is this tower's boss! Right now, this information that we have..." He raised the Boss booklet high. "Is very valuable! I would like to thank all the Testers in the crowd who contributed to this."
With that, he began to clap.
The effect was slow, but steady. People, starting with Agil, followed his lead, began to slap their hands together as well. The sound spread across the entire amphitheatre until it rang with the sound of applause. However, Asuna could see Kibaou and Spiegel remaining still. Kibaou was just standing there with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, but Spiegel was clearly staring at Asuna with a hurt and disappointed look.
"Thank you, thank you!"
Diabel raised his hands for silence.
"We must band together to face our true foe, and that is the Tower Boss! We must move on! It's time that we all realize it: In a past that controls our present actions, there is no future for us there! Now, we must hurry." Diabel checked the time on his Pokelink. "We shall now form up into parties. Remember the limit is six in a group! Come register with me once..."
...uh? Parties?
"...adjourn afterwards and meet up here two days from now, at 1:00 PM. Is that clear?" Diabel started to head off to the edge of the stage. "Tomorrow we will be having an optional collaborative practice at the same time..."
Yeah. This isn't something that should be attempted alone. Hope pawed at her leg. Um, should we go join one? Like, really quickly. We might get left out.
Oi!
Asuna sat up with a jolt and looked around. Everyone was already clumping up into groups of six, trading invitations with people they knew.
"Hey, wanna join my party?"
"Okay!"
"Haha, we've got... five. Oh, and Takeru! That's six. We're done!"
It had always been like this. Even in school, although Asuna was the top in the class, people hardly ever formed groups with her, mostly due to her unsocial demeanor. She always ended up working alone, presenting alone. Although she usually preferred it that way, as her partner would usually do nothing while Asuna did both of their shares of work, she always wondered what it would be like to have a group of friends to work on projects together. Or what it would be like to have friends at all.
She flung herself off the bench and flew down the steps, Hope following close behind her. Voices wafted up to her from the crowd.
"Hey, you, need a group?"
"Leader, can we include her in our party? I don't want her to- Yes, I know we're full, but I'm sure one of our members would agree-"
"We need a tank type play- ah, nevermind!"
However, by the time she got down to the bottom of the staircase, most groups had already formed up and moved away to register with Diabel as a part of the raid group. She looked around frantically, twisting her head left and right; nope. Every gaggle of people she saw numbered six.
Just like before, she was left out. Hope looked every which way to help her find a team, but they stood there for a long time with no result. Every team that milled around was full.
Asuna sighed.
I guess I'm alone again...
Hey, Asuna, she's calling you over.
Ah?
Asuna looked up and over the the direction Hope pointed her into to see Argo sitting on one of the benches near the podium, waving and calling "Noob-kunnnnnnnn~ A-channn~!"
She was sitting together with two other people. One of them was a black-haired, feminine-looking boy who seemed vaguely familiar and decidedly uncomfortable, with a shaggy-looking black-furred dog Pokemon sitting on the bench next to him. The other-
Her stomach did a flip. It was the girl from earlier, the one who had saved her. She must have seen her earlier when she spoke up, though; her head was hung low, and she her face bore a painful expression that made death seem trivial. Her «Eevee» sat next to her, nuzzling her side supportively.
She didn't look like she was about to attack Asuna again, though; and Argo was there with her as well, so that probably meant something. Swallowing a large glob of saliva, she made her way over to them.
"It's so good to see you, A-chan~" Argo enveloped her in a big enthusiastic hug as soon as she got close. "It's good to see you, nyah. And you too, Hope." She picked up the little furball and squeezed her half to death as well. "How have you been?"
"Ah.." Asuna glanced over at the boy, who was studying her carefully and had a thoughtful look on his face. Then she switched her gaze to the girl she knew at the same time she looked up at her, and their eyes met.
The other girl immediately flinched, shrinking away. Asuna shrunk back a little as well, remembering how she had pinned her against the tree.
"I'm sorry..."
Asuna barely heard the whisper the girl let out, but Hope's ears twitched as she fed the sound to Asuna's mind. Her throat went dry, but she looked so timid and depressed that Asuna nodded. Turning back to Argo, who was still squeezing Hope, she cleared her throat and answered lamely, "Alright, I suppose."
The Rat followed her gaze to the other two. "Nyah, I guess I should introduce you then. This is Asuna-chan, someone I met two weeks ago." She dropped Hope and tugged on Asuna's cheeks, forcing her to make a horrible smile. "Say hi!"
Asuna tore her head out of Argo's grip, refusing to go along with it. The action only served to make Argo seem happier as she waved over to the other people.
"Anyways, this here is Sinon-chan. I just met her, but she seems to know Kirito-kun over there quite well. I call him Ki-bou." She added matter-of-factly, as if introducing her pets. "Hey, you two, look a bit more chipper, would you?"
She pointed to the girl, whose name was apparently Sinon, and the other boy, Kirito. Upon hearing their names, they both looked up.
Kirito scratched his head with an awkward expression. "Well... hello, Asuna. Nice to meet you. Do I know you from somewhere?"
"Um... nice to meet you too. And I don't think so..."
He frowned slightly. "You feel familiar."
"Is that so?" Asuna honestly had no recollection of ever meeting him, although she shared his sense of deja vu. "Uh, who is she?"
She pointed at the last girl, whom tilted her head in response to being gestured at. Kirito followed her gaze and his face lit up in understanding. "Oh, that's Zero. She doesn't talk."
"Eh?"
Argo spoke up all of a sudden, cutting off Kirito's response before it could even come out of his mouth, butting into their conversation with an unconcerned air. "I think you need a party, don't you Asu-chan?"
"Oh. Um-"
Without even waiting, Argo manipulated her menu to cause the invite to pop up in front of Asuna automatically and watched her impatiently. She stared at the pulsing screen.
Might as well. Hope suggested. We need a party anyways, and Argo's here. Better than a group of strangers, or going solo.
"Well... I guess."
She tapped the «Accept» option, and a small confirmation notice appeared reading, «You have joined Argo's party!».
"Perfect!" Argo clapped her hands together and looked slyly at Kirito. "Now with three of us cute girls here, you have a real harem, Ki-bou."
The boy fell right back out of his seat, his head cracking painfully against the stone benches behind him. Sinon's head shot up, her gloomy air immediately replaced by a scandalized look. Her finger twitched like she was pulling a trigger.
Asuna, reacting similarly, ominously reached out to grasp Argo's head in vengeance-
"Excuse me?"
Everyone turned to see the knight himself, Diabel, watching them apologetically. Kirito quickly climbed back onto his seat and acted as if he had never been on the ground in the first place.
"Are you a five-person party?" Diabel asked. Kirito shook his head, both to clear it and as a response.
"No, no... four people. She's not attending." He gestured towards Zero, who nodded silently before leaning backwards, staring up at the sky as if she hadn't a care in the world. Asuna suddenly noticed the minute movement of a small, bushy tail jutting from her tailbone, swishing back and forth.
That-
Hope had noticed at the same time as Asuna. She's probably not human. More like a transformed Pokemon.
Diabel bowed in acceptance, unable to see the strange appendage from his position. "Four-person party. If it's okay with you guys, could I ask you to support the groups fighting the smaller mobs that will spawn along with the boss?"
By this time, Argo had already drawn back and sat down next to Sinon, leaving Kirito the closest to Diabel. In this sense, he seemed to be speaking for all of them. Asuna was fine with that.
Kirito spent a split second to mull it over before nodding.
The knight heaved a sigh , a relieved smile on his face. "Thank you. Nearly all the parties want a main position in fighting the boss. We can't accommodate all of them, and some of them are being slightly unreasonable. We need some people to fight the mobs as well."
"It can't be helped." Kirito shrugged. "We lack two people, and a hard tanking Pokemon, anyways. We won't be able to do switching and healing."
Diabel cast a quick surveying glance over all of them and made and understanding expression. "I see that. Thank you for your cooperation."
"Don't mention it."
"And…"
He looked at the four girls out of the corner of his eye, and suddenly sprouted a wolfish smirk. Kirito froze like a rabbit in headlights. Draping his arm around Kirito's shoulders and leading him a few steps away, Diabel nudged the black swordsman in the stomach with a fist.
Asuna jumped when she felt a light touch on her arm, whirling around to see who it was. Sinon had scooched over next to her, her mouth pressed in a straight line. Her feet were apparently of great interest to her.
She struggled with herself for a moment before speaking.
"I… uh, I'm sorry. Asuna-san." She said quietly. "For earlier. I didn't want- didn't mean to hurt you."
"No… no, it's fine. I..."
In all honesty, she didn't know what to think or feel at the point. Compared to the monotonous, slow-paced wild Pokemon murder spree of the past month, the events of this afternoon had seemed like an instant. Her overall feelings about what had happened just hadn't caught up with the pace of events.
"…I don't know." She muttered truthfully, rubbing her forehead. There was a dull ache behind her eyes.
"Could you…" Sinon looked away. "Not tell him, them, about that? When I… went crazy. It won't happen to me anymore, I hope."
"Huh?" Asuna took a moment to remember. A shiver went down her back as she recalled the cold aura she had taken on. She suppressed the reaction and nodded, allowing Sinon to relax a bit. She gave Asuna a small smile of appreciation.
"Thank you… Asuna-san."
Does she have an illness or something? Asuna wondered.
"I see you're the handsome knight for all four of these princesses, eh?" Diabel was loudly whispering at a volume so everyone could hear, still grinning ear to ear. "Nice going, man."
Both Sinon and Asuna suddenly released raw killing intent into the air, both of their expressions looking like they were chiseled out of stone even as their cheeks tinged red. Kirito clearly felt the death awaiting him behind him as he began to sweat comically.
Argo and Zero on the other hand, giggled at all their reactions like they were just spectators.
"Ah." Kirito lamely tried to form coherent words. "Uh. Yeah."
Chortling, Diabel slapped him on the back once more and returned to managing the rest of the groups. Kirito remained frozen, unwilling to turn around. Or unable to: his limbs were frozen stiff. Argo had to pull him over after recovering from her laughing fit.
Two minutes passed before the two girls finally calmed down. Asuna was now confused, not quite understanding how she could have gotten so angry over those few words from Diabel, just sitting there and staring off into the distance. Zero was idly twirling her tail, raising an eyebrow at the shocked looks from Sinon, while Argo watched them with a sly look on her face.
Around them, everyone was beginning to leave as the sun began to dip below the horizon. Most were heading off to the nearby «Pewter City Park» for a small party, but several parties walked away into the various alleys of the city and vanished.
"So we're just going to cover the small fry?" Sinon asked in the same quiet voice as before. Her Eevee was curled up on her lap taking a power nap, giving a toothy yawn. The yawn traveled through the short space between them and infected Hope as well, as she also widened her mouth, exhaling loudly.
Kirito stretched his arms out, stiff after being mentally frozen by the girl's hostility. He glanced at both Asuna and Sinon to make sure they weren't mad anymore. "Yeah. Can't be helped. Like I told him, we're two people short and we lack a dedicated tank character." He studied the back of his hand. "We won't even be able to switch out and use potions in time if we came up against the Tower Boss."
"What's that?"
All eyes turned to Asuna. She blanched back in apprehension.
"I mean, I know what a boss is, but what's 'switch' and what's a 'potion'?"
"…" was their collective response. For once, Argo looked shocked instead of amused. Asuna felt slightly out of place, trying to ward off their gazes with a hand.
"I honestly don't know-"
"Didn't you finish reading my handbook, Asuna?" A testament to how surprised Argo was was in the fact she didn't use her usual nickname for Asuna.
"Ah… uhh…"
The chestnut-haired girl recalled reading it once or twice, but not in great detail. Once past the basics in combat, she had stuffed it to gather dust in her inventory.
"Asuna-san," Sinon spoke hesitatingly, "switching is where players rotate the aggro of a single mob while the players not currently in combat regenerate their HP with potions. Potions are the basic healing item of any game."
Asuna didn't understand a word of what was just said, standing there with a clueless face.
Kirito opened his mouth to speak, hesitated, and continued. "I guess, I could show you. There's a pretty easy quest that can be done that showcases the tactic pretty well, but it's only available in the mornings."
"You mean the one where we take down the «Lombre» and his «Lotad» minions from the «Moo Moo Farm»?" Sinon looked vaguely interested. "I need to do that one too. I'm out of cream."
"Cream...?"
Asuna was thoroughly out of the loop by this point. Argo patted her on the head sympathetically.
"Stop confusing A-chan, Ki-bou. What you girls say to meeting again here tomorrow morning? At, oh, about ten." Argo twirled her finger in the air, marking down the occasion skillfully in her Pokelink's calendar. "We have until the day after tomorrow free, so we can just get used to fighting alongside each other and teach A-chan some stuff for a while."
Nobody responded. Argo's fast-paced mind was a little too quick for any of them to handle.
"Alright! Problem solved. I have a client's appointment right now, so I gotta go- I'll see you all tomorrow! Bye A-chan, Sinonon, Ki-bou, Ze-wou."
And she was gone. Kirito scratched his head in the ensuing silence.
Without Argo, the atmosphere felt a lot less chipper. Asuna looked around to see that they were the only ones left in the amphitheatre- everyone else had already left.
Hope twitched in her lap, where she was sleeping rather soundly. Sinon drew in her legs and hugged them, staring at the ground. She seemed tense.
Finally, Kirito stood up. Zero stood up with him.
"Well, I had better go now. I need to catch up on sleep... see you two tomorrow."
Asuna shrugged neutrally. She still wasn't really used to interacting with other people. The only person she felt comfortable talking to was Argo, and she had just left. She didn't fancy being alone with Sinon again either, and by the looks of it, neither did her. The black-haired girl was watching Kirito through weary-looking eyes.
"Ughhh..." Kirito yawned and turned to go. Zero stretched and let out a cute sigh of relief. "I'll go take a bath when we get back. It would probably really help me relax-"
Two arms spun him around and independently seized his collar on either side, nearly dragging him off of his feet. He cried out in surprise, but the voice died in his throat when he saw both Asuna and Sinon, each holding one side of his collar, staring at him with a strange look in their eyes.
Both of their Eevees looked at them like they had just lost their minds.
"What did you just say?" They shouted in unison.
A bead of sweat ran down Kirito's forehead.
"Uhh... I'm sleepy?"
"No!" Together again, as if both Asuna and Sinon were being controlled by an alien hive mind. "After!"
"Uh, I'll go take a bath when I get back?"
"You have a bath!?"
The boy withered under the shining gazes of the two girls. "Uh... yes?"
Asuna couldn't think about anything but what Kirito had just said. Neither could Sinon, it seemed.
A bath... a bath? A BATH!
The events of the day were wiped away by the vision of a steaming hot tub. Unbidden, the forgotten memory of the comforts of a nice, hot bath came to the front of her mind. It was hard not to salivate.
"Can I use it!?"
Their voices didn't sound too bad, overlapping each other in a not unpleasant way.
Author's Note
23500 words in total if you combine this and the last one. One of the longest things I've ever written.
I really like the idea of Kirito, Sinon, Argo, and Asuna partying together. Imagine them going to town on random mob Pokemon! I do know their team is slightly imbalanced, though, with three thinly-armored close ranged fighters and a long-range support fighter. If only they had a tank...
Shinkawa Kyouji makes his appearance with the infamous cactus-head! I hope I portrayed him right, I had some fun writing his interactions. He'll be deeply involved with Sinon's story, if that wasn't obvious yet.
Please refer to the previous chapter's note for other notices. Also review! I neeeeeed the feedback to improve! Anything that's good or bad, please tell me. No flaming though please...
I do not own Sword Art Online or Pokemon.