Sword Art Online: Desert Army

Heated

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Hot, really, really hot.

Kirito pulled at the collar of his coat, seriously considering actually un-equipping it today. The sun above beat down on the sand dunes around him, scolding its surface and emanating heat waves from the landscape.

His boots pressed firmly into the sand, heavy steps due to the heat fatigue debuff blinking frustratingly next to his name in his HUD.

There has to be a way to counter act this, anything… anything at all would be awesome. Kirito grumbled as he opened his mini-map.

The screen blinked open after a few taps and he zoomed out from his current location. Here and there were a few red dots that he could sense, enemies in the desert. He ran into a few, but overall not many. Last night there was a lot more heavy resistance, but in the end, it was good practice anyway.

Now though, after five hours of sleep, things seriously calmed down. The only real threat was the heat.

It was barely noticeable when they first got here, but after a day, it seemed to increase in effect the longer you stayed in the sun.

To the east, half a kilometer away was the city of blacksmiths. He scrolled over to it and looked over all the emblems again. Sword shops, magic shops, inns and a few bakeries. Lots of armor merchants. But among them, off to the side, was a small water droplet emblem.

Water? Or is that just a well… huh. Either way, I think I'll check it out. Just in case. Kirito flicked his menu closed and headed off for the walls in the blurry distance. Far behind him shimmered a sandstone obelisk, flickering in the dancing lights of the desert sun and it's enchantments.

"Hyah!" Kirito grunted, dragging his onyx sword through the neck of a Sand Serpent that got too close. Its entire head became severed and detached from the body, both soon exploding in a storm of more golden particles.

Beyond the flickering flurry of color, a dark blur dashed through the darkness and began attacking a lone Sand Serpent mid-dive. The bright moon was the only illumination for the vast open desert, and its pearl shine glimmered off of the obelisk at Kirito's flank.

The enemy was just a large snake, but its scales were dusty and sandy, tan in color. Across its back was thin bone-like plating, each one over-laid to not restrict movement. The head seemed like a cobra's and its tail had spikes protruding out of the appendage. Its fangs were sharpened, and it's beady red eyes glared maliciously at its assailant.

"Uh… how yah doing over there?" Kirito asked, not really sure what phrases to use; or if it'll respond at all. It was fighting head to head with a cobra twice his size.

…

No response, the blur just kept slashing and dodging attacks from a second and a third serpent that seemed to home in on them.

"Okay then." With a sigh, Kirito opened his menu and navigated to the skills tab. Scrolling through that, he found his 'Shadow Companion' ability. He tapped it, wondering if there were any extra options behind it.

The tab branched off and opened more sub menus.

"Ahah, knew it-"

His menu shattered as the spiked tail of a sand serpent crashed into his gut. The sharpened appendage pierced his coat and sent him reeling into the obelisk behind him. "Whoa, where'd you come from?"

With a quick parry and a roll to the side, Kirito jogged around the tall chiseled stone and kept the obstacle between him and the mob at all times. "So, uhh… I guess my Shadow Companion's busy?"

The serpent only hissed at Kirito, its full green health bar giving the answer he was searching for.

Alright then. Kirito looked over to see his shadowy doppelganger sword-locked with the fangs of another enemy. He really sucks right now. Kirito sighed.

His summoning skill was at an impressive… level 2 now. Great. How do I even level that up? If that increases, my summon's strength increases as well. And eventually I'll start unlocking perks in the skill tree.

Right now, his only skill under that new tree was the 'Mana Conservation' perk. All it did was half the cost it took to summon a companion. That was about it.

Keeping his eyes bouncing between the serpent he was still avoiding, and his companion, he slowly hoped that his shadow would kill off its prey and begin work on this one.

The sound of shattering glass echoed off the dark sands, and immediately afterward a pop up message appeared in front of Kirito.

«Summoning Now Level 3!»

Dual Companion Skill Unlocked

«Confirm»

Cool, so this obelisk really does work. Kirito thought happily. He heard from some of the magic merchants here that there was a stone that granted the fairies around it a buff in a certain branch of magic. After an hour of searching, in the air and on the ground, he found it.

He realized pretty quickly that its 'buff' was for summoning. It granted him +15% Summoning Experience.

But going by the rumors, it only activates under the light of the moon. So, he decided to stay up for a while and hone his seriously lacking skill.

Dismissing the level up message, Kirito quickly re-entered his inventory and spent a perk point on unlocking his new ability. With a quick glance, he read off that he could now summon two companions at once.

His face immediately dropped. But… I can only use my Shadow Companion once a day. He sighed and took a step to the side, letting said companion fly past and pierce its blade into the throat of the serpent he's been keeping at bay.

"Well that sucks."

As Kirito went to close his menu, he noticed a notification flashing in his skill tab. Weird. He thought as he quirked a brow. He switched over to the flashing emblem and sifted through his skills. Right below his 'Shadow Companion', under the summoning category, was the reason for the flashing icon.

«Wolf Familiar»

"…huh?" After a short pause, Kirito realized he had apparently unlocked a new skill.

Absently, he selected the ability and it gave him a simple two-word phrase to read off. He looked it over, and double checked his mana. The blue bar was maxed out, so hopefully he had enough to summon this thing.

The spriggan held out his free hand and read off his newly learned words, "Lýkos… Sýntrofos."

Two golden words snapped into place at his front and flashed, sending a swirling orb of black and purple into the ground in front of him. The energy swarmed and grew, spiraling in a wide sphere of darkness before it flashed white.

Holding his hand up and looking away, Kirito wasn't expecting the sudden flash. After a few seconds and multiple blinks, he looked back and met the dark eyes of an Arabian Wolf. Its fur was mostly tan; with a few worn patches of white and a small amount of black on its lower back.

It tilted its head, looking back at Kirito. All he did was meet its gaze and kept staring. It… looked just like an average wolf. 40 pounds, around 26 inches in shoulder height. I guess it's just a simple summon.

"Uhh…" Kirito realized he should probably give it a command. Finally breaking eye contact, he took a breath and checked his menu again. This time, he had plenty of time to check out the sub menu that opened from the summoning skills tab.

"Let's see… here we go…" Kirito closed his menu and looked back to his wolf. "Sentry Mode."

The familiar barked once and bolted off, ducking past his shadow companion and gnawing into the side of its combatting sand serpent.

A drifting streak of wispy purple trailed behind it before dissipating into the cold night air.

He noticed an additional icon up next to his name. It had a small eye, like a wolf's eye, as an image. Beside that was a timer that seemed to have started counting down from five minutes. I guess I'll have to spawn another one when this one de-spawns. He noted as he watched the health bar of their targeted serpent slowly diminish.

Alright, so now I have two companions. Does that mean double xp? Kirito watched his experience bar for the next thirty minutes. It wasn't double xp, but it certainly was a bit more efficient. Even if his companions had drastically different attack powers, the two of them worked like a somewhat oiled machine.

So, he guessed it was better than just his shadow duplicate.

After another two hours, he began to realize things were getting pretty boring. Grinding has always been a tedious task. Any gamer will tell you the same.

But Kirito? He's the king of grinding. He's been able to do it for as long as he wanted, whenever he felt like it.

So, if he was getting bored, then something needs to change. I guess watching my summoned companions fight isn't very interesting. Kirito extended his arm into the air. He was currently sitting on top of the obelisk, legs dangling over the edge.

Maybe he could…

Aiming his open palm to the ground, he summoned another wolf. But his previous one just disappeared, and seemed to reappear in the spot of the new summon. I wonder if that gets me more experience.

A few more spammed spell tests later, and he realized it wasn't much of a difference. In fact, companion kills net him more, so he stopped.

An hour passed by, and he was beginning to get sore. Sitting in one place for so long was getting tiresome, and his growing drowsiness wasn't helping either. Maybe I should just go and sleep…

He shifted his weight to slide off, but something new caught his eye. Looking up, he noticed another fairy nearby.

Not an NPC, or a mob, an actual player. Out and about at this time of night.

Kirito watched as the fairy killed a sand serpent and walked over to where he sat. They were the first to talk, "Hey." She said with a small wave.

They were a girl, from what he could tell. It was pretty dark though.

"…y-yo." Kirito eventually responded, sliding fully off the obelisk and landing silently. He straightened out his coat and looked around. His continuous stream of mobs seemed to slow down. Guess this would be a good time to stop.

"So there are other people here after all." The girl commented, sheathing a katzbalger styled sword onto her waist.

He couldn't make out the details, but it looked pretty cool. Its blade was shorter than his own, a bit wider too, and its hilt had an 'S' shaped design to it, maybe even a figure eight. The rest of her clothing was black, as far as he could tell. Spriggan maybe?

"Yeah, I really wasn't expecting to see too many people yet." Kirito responded, taking a look over to his familiar and shadow. The two stuck around for a few seconds before homing in on another serpent that wandered too close.

"Are those familiars?" The newcomer asked, eyeing up the two entities that dashed by her.

The swordsman nodded, "Yeah…" He wasn't too sure if he should stick around for a while longer, but in the end… he was still getting tired. Sleep would be nice, he's been grinding for a few hours now anyway.

"Cool! So you've already grabbed some new spells from the new update!" The girl suddenly commented.

Update? Kirito couldn't help but think. Usually when there's an update, it'd kick everyone off in order to install it into the game database. "When did the game update?"

Through the dark of the night, he noticed the girl give him a confused look. "The game updated today, it was a little sudden. Actually, it was quite a surprise. There was no hype for it at all, then suddenly… the game updated. I'm not sure if it kicked anyone off this time, but I'm pretty sure the admins are posting something on the forums about it."

Seriously? Did they even know about it? And does it have anything to do with this island? Kirito was sifting through his thoughts, wondering why the admins never sent out any potential concept art or trailers for new content.

This was just all too weird. First, a mysterious island shows up out of nowhere without a peep out of the admins. Then, this new skill tree opens up for magic users. Is this the Cardinal System's doing? Could the system update the game on its own accord?

Well, the Cardinal System inside ALO is the same system that ran SAO. But, not even SAO could self-evolve without the game developers doing something. It just ran the game, it didn't control it.

Everything Kirito thought about that system changed however when he got Excalibur, and the mission he had to do to get it. So, this was entirely possible. This could just be a massive new quest zone, and the developers are just using it as a source for a new 'update'. Is this even called an update then? Or is it just extra content that the system whipped up to keep itself fresh on quests?

"You're being seriously quiet…"

Kirito snapped to the sudden pair of light purple eyes staring into his own. When did she get so close?! He gulped as the girl lifted her finger, and then poked him in the chest.

"Did it shock you that much? I thought it was pretty obvious. All the information brokers know about it by now." The brunette, he now figured out what color hair she had, tilted her head and leaned back; moving a comfortable distance away again.

"R-right, sorry. I guess I never noticed." Kirito admitted as his excuse. He'll definitely need to check out the forums to see what's up. Maybe he'll get a better idea for what this island is really about.

"Fair enough. I think only the people who check the forums often know about it." She sighed, crossing her arms and looking past Kirito. He turned to see his wolf disappear in a wisp of purple smoke, just as his shadow finished off its enemy.

"Okay, good point." Kirito checked his in-game time and realized how late it was. It was also a rude reminder on how tired he was actually feeling. Today he's supposed to go with Sinon on a solo run.

It's nearly three, I've been up for way too long. "Well, I'm going to log out. This is a nice spot for grinding if you're interested. I'll… see you… around?" Goodbyes really weren't his thing, let alone conversations with strangers.

"…Alyks." The girl stated with a smile, "And yeah, I guess I'll keep a look out for you. Maybe, you seem pretty boring though." Alyks stuck her tongue out at Kirito and flashed him a 'V' sign. "…and you are?"

"Kirito. The name's Kirito. And you haven't seen anything yet, this is just me trying to level up my new skills." Kirito placed his hands on his hips and used a proud tone in his voice. "I really need to go though. See yah."

Kirito gave Alyks a nod and spawned in his wings. Surprisingly, his shadow companion sprouted its own wings as well and followed him into the air. The girl waved to the two as Kirito took off toward the city, flying his way through the brisk air at an average pace.

She was… unexpected. I wonder how many people have found this island now. In a few minutes, Kirito flew over the newly upgraded walls of the city and made his was over to the Golden Dragon inn they were staying at.

He quietly touched down on the roof and entered the stairwell, logging out inside his room soon after.

I wonder if that water will help get rid of this heat fatigue. Kirito briefly considered taking flight, but he had used up his flight time getting to the obelisk anyway. The reason being, he wanted to see if the enchantment really was just a nightly thing.

It was.

Its effects were non-existent when he checked it out a few minutes ago. So it really was just something that happened after the sun went down.

He really wasn't planning on being on for long. Just log in, check the obelisk, log out. But this heat is starting to be a huge problem, and could definitely get in the way of what he promised to do today. Seriously, sometimes… the 'reality' senses mechanic in this game was a bit too realistic.

Maybe today's just really hot? Hmm… doesn't matter. Flicking open his friends list, he noticed no one was online yet. So, he still had a bit of time to check it out.

After another 20 minutes of walking, he made it into the city and started navigating his way through the streets. The merchants were already opening shop, and other players were slightly more abundant than the days prior.

Looks like this place is really starting to go public. Looking around, Kirito noted about fifteen or so other players shopping in the market district.

He walked passed them and turned a corner, at the end of that street was what he was looking for. Right above one of the shops on his map, was that water icon. Here we are… Kirito opened the heavy door and headed inside.

It was… quaint; small, natural, and a lot of canteens and canisters. They were everywhere, and looked to be made of some sort of leather or scales. The shelves were made of wood, and there were fake leaves placed throughout the store. At its center looked to be a well, and to his right was the NPC selling the goods.

"What's in stock?" Kirito asked casually, walking up to the old woman. She scrunched up her eyes and gave him a small smile, gesturing to the wall of canteens behind her. As she did so, an item list opened up just above the counter.

The spriggan walked over and began scrolling through the large assortment of water canisters. As he sifted through, he realized the prices were pretty fair. And the most expensive ones gave at least +30 Hydration on each canteen, as well as having +10 Capacity. These will totally help out.

"Yo, Kirito! Guess what we stumbled across during our tour last night." Klein called out, opening the door to their shared room.

Kirito looked up from his inventory; seven new items taking residence in his player storage. "Let me guess, a bowling alley?"

Klein lifted his finger and opened his mouth, a large smile crossing his face. "Yeah… no, but that would be awesome. We found a hot spring man! And there's a festival going on in the city!"

"A… hot spring? And what's with the festival?" Kirito repeated.

"Yeah. The hot spring's out back, and I think it's fairy-made. It's not really natural, but it's still cool. The festival is probably to celebrate the safe zone or something." Klein ran a hand through his hair and threw some sort of cloth object at Kirito.

The spriggan caught it and spread it out in his hands. It was black, with shiny white trimming designs sewn into its silky threads. "A kimono." As soon as he said it, a trade window popped up in his face. Under the items offered was exactly that, a black kimono.

"Oh just accept the trade and equip it. We're all doing it." Klein said, jerking a thumb over his shoulder and into the hallway. "They're all getting ready."

Kirito nodded and accepted the trade, standing up from his position on the bed. He stretched his arms and stalked over to the low seat on the ground. There were three more in front of him, all of which situated around a small table.

"Got'cha. Sounds like fun." The swordsman responded as he reopened his inventory and called out his Eostryder; the ebony blade spawning in his hand with a passing sheen of reflecting light.

"Oh come on!" Klein suddenly sighed, stepping fully inside and closing the door. "Don't tell me you don't even know the weight of the situation?!"

Weight? It's just a bunch of kimonos then some bathing suits. "We've been to the beach with them before. What's the difference?" The water's just hot, that's it. No difference. Kirito shrugged it off as he unsheathed his blade and laid it out on the table with motherly care.

He's already attempted to read the text on the blade, but it dates back further than anything he's ever heard of. The letters, or characters, or whatever they may be called were ancient. Really, really ancient. He doubted it was even Japanese, but his current language could have branched off from whatever it was inscribed into this sword.

It has to be something involving its lore. It has to be. It can't be anything else… Kirito thought as he tapped the item and sifted through the revealed information for the umpteenth time.

In the background, Klein was left hanging with a befuddled expression on his face. Does… does he really not know? The samurai thought, eyes locked onto the spriggan sitting calmly at the table.

"…hahhh." Klein let out a long breath and strolled over, sitting himself down on the soft seat opposite Kirito. He kept one leg bent at the knee and the other crossed beneath it, leaning back on his hands as he looked toward his friend.

"Okay, let me ask you something. Have you ever seen an anime before?" The man asked.

Kirito looked up for a second before leaning back, giving Klein a confused smile. "Of course I have."

Hmmm… then why doesn't he… "Okay. Then, you must know what a 'hot spring' scene turns into… right?" The slightly older guy continued.

This time, Kirito looked away and broke eye contact. "Yeah, of course I do." He looked toward the door for a few seconds before returning to Klein, "But come on, this is reality… sort of. There's no way that'll actually happen."

"I beg to differ!" Klein suddenly exclaimed, slamming a palm down on the table, "This is a video game. Therefore, this is not reality. And so… this is entirely possible!"

I seriously doubt a game, loved by thousands, will mix up times at a hot spring. It doesn't make sense. Kirito shook his head in thought; he really didn't think Klein was onto anything. Anime can have their fun and all, but it's all just fiction in the end. It's some sort of fantasy dream.

"Further more!" Klein stuck his hand into the air as if he was reaching for the stars, "This is also a fantasy game. Come on man, the signs are all there. You just need to know where to look."

"Only you see the signs man." Kirito chuckled as he reached forward and put his sword back into his inventory.

"They're everywhere, how can you not see them?" Klein asked in confusion, falling onto his back. For some reason, his tone of voice sounded like he had just witnessed the failure of the world.

"Klein, come on. This is just a delusion you've whipped up. It simply won't happen."

Lifting an arm into the air, Klein opened his mouth to retort but just sighed instead. "…you're helpless."

Moments later, a knock came from the door.

"That's probably for you." Baka. Klein added mentally as he pointed toward the door.

Kirito got up and made his way over. Maybe the girls are ready. He opened the door and was a bit surprised at who he saw.

"Yo," The woman gave a small wave and a wink, smiling at Kirito as she looked past him. "I'm looking for that hot salamander."

There was a loud thump and shuffling from behind, and what sounded like a wooden table tilting and crashing to the floor. As Kirito looked over his shoulder to see what Klein just did, he saw the man standing rigid and staring in disbelief right back at him.

Behind him lay a tipped over table.

"Yeah, he's here. Why do you ask?" Kirito questioned, And why do I get the feeling you're not an NPC anymore… crap. She's not an NPC… is she…?

Yang shrugged her shoulders, twirling a strand of her golden hair around her finger, "What? He seems like a nice guy, pretty funny too."

Again, she gave Kirito a big smile and crossed her arms.

R-right… Kirito turned around and eyed Klein. The man was literally still standing there, frozen. Is he lagging? "Yo… Klein! Yang has the hots for you."

As if the spriggan had just smashed the reboot button on a computer, Klein seemed to snap to meet Kirito's gaze before opening his mouth to say something.

It closed immediately afterward though. Perhaps his language settings got messed up in the forced reboot?

"I think I broke him." Yang commented with a laugh, peaking in next to Kirito.

The teen could only nod in agreement.

"Hey, where's Klein?" Sinon asked as she waved Kirito down. The girls were currently standing around in the lobby, all of which fitted in colorful kimonos.

Kirito walked up in his own and shrugged, "He's probably out in the city with Yang or something by now."

The words seemed to trigger some sort of slow-motion head turning synchronized routine…

"W-what?" Asuna was the first to speak up.

"I-isn't she an NPC?" Silica asked.

Kirito shook his head, "I'm not really too sure anymore. She acts human, and there's no way to tell if she is or isn't inside a safe zone. You all know player names and icons don't show up in towns. Not unless you're in a party."

It's probably to reduce the information being read from everyone's individual HUDs… either that or to not confuse the players with hundreds of player icons and an overwhelming sea of names.

"Good for him." Leafa smiled; glad that their shared friend might finally find someone. You know, unless he blows it of course.

"Yeah, Klein's finally getting some action!" Liz laughed, fist in the air. "So anyway, aren't you going to say anything, Kirito?"

Kirito looked at her and lifted an eyebrow in confusion, "Say what?"

He seemed to get no reply for a few seconds. The girls just looked at each other, then to Kirito, before they silently gravitated to looking at Sinon; causing the cait sith to blush.

"W-why me?" She whispered to Asuna, but the girl didn't give her a response.

Sinon kept looking at her friends, wondering why she was elected, but otherwise realized she had just lost this battle. With that thought, she turned to Kirito and took a breath, "W-we want to know… what you think o-of our kimonos?"

She gripped her arm with her other hand loosely, breaking eye contact as soon as the words left her lips. The rest of the girls seemed to wait in baited anticipation.

"O-oh…" Kirito reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, giving the girls a once over before giving his best smile, "You all look great."

Unfortunately, his eyes lingered on Sinon for one too many seconds and caused her to blush even more; gripping her arm tighter and adverting her eyes completely. She wore a light blue kimono with white snowflake patterns throughout. The light material hugged her figure nicely, as did the rest of the girls' kimonos.

Asuna wore a white kimono with red cherry leaf tree designs intricately sewn into it. Liz wore a similarly white and pink one; however her leaves were a light pink rather than a deep red. Leafa stood idly in her misty green kimono, golden trim glimmering in the light of the lobby.

Beside her stood Silica with Pina sitting on her soft hair, the cait sith wore a red kimono with black flower patterns throughout it.

"Yeah, you all look really pretty." Yui commented, flying her way from Asuna's shoulder to the center of the group. "Daddy's looking pretty cool too!"

Kirito gave a small smirk to the little AI and placed his hands on his hips, "It's just a black kimono." He dismissed, his kimono revealing a few pure white trim designs as well.

"Oh don't be so modest. You look pretty cool in that thing." Liz interjected, causing a few of the girls to nod in agreement.

Why are they making this so awkward? "So? Klein said there's a hot spring here, I'm assuming you all want the first time table slot?"

The girls traded looks and a few shoulders were shrugged, "Actually, Liz and I were thinking of checking out the festival." Leafa spoke up.

"Oh, can I go with you girls?!" Silica asked.

"Sure thing, anyone else?" Liz looked around and saw Yui float up a bit.

"Oh, oh that sounds like a lot of fun!" She called out in a light voice. Yui glided over to Leafa, becoming the girl's temporary navigational fairy for now. She wasn't technically Kirito's official navigational fairy, so when Kirito and Asuna were on at different times, she found herself switching between their two inventories.

Now she could do it with just about anyone in their party.

"And the rest of you?" Kirito asked, looking to the rest of the remaining two girls.

"Hot spring." Asuna stated simply. "We want to see just how real it feels in a virtual reality game, and it's just so much more convenient too." She placed a finger on her chin and turned to Sinon. "What do you think, Sinon?"

Sinon seemed to snap back to reality, glancing to Kirito then to the person addressing her. "Y-yeah, sure."

Asuna clapped her hands with a grin and looked to the rest, "Well, you all have fun. We might join you when our shift ends."

"H-hey, Kirito? What are you going to do?" Sinon asked quietly, catching his attention.

"Me? Not really too sure…" He stretched his arms over his head and leaned back and forth, pulling at the muscles in his back. "I was planning to just wait until the hot spring opened up."

He dropped his arms and gave his shoulders a short roll.

Sinon nodded, finally getting the blush out of her cheeks, "I think each time table lasts for about an hour. So you have time to burn."

"You can always come with us while you wait." Leafa offered, gesturing to Liz and Silica behind her.

Kirito looked between all the girls and looked up in though. "Well… there was this one thing I think I need to buy." A bunch of mana potions. Oh, hold on… "Oh yeah, I need to give you all something."

He opened his inventory and distributed the canteens throughout the group. "Here, these are for that debuff you get on super-hot days." Kirito held on to Klein's canteen, he didn't get much of a chance to give it to the guy earlier.

"Yeah, I noticed that when I logged on today." Sinon said, checking the item in her inventory.

"So did I. Did anyone notice it yesterday?" Asuna added, the others shook their heads no to her question.

"Weird, do you think it's because we've been here for a while?" Leafa asked.

Kirito thought about it for a few seconds but shook his head, "No way, usually temperature effects are instantaneous. So the environment is probably just on a hot setting today."

"Well, there's that, but we all know that this island is different than what we're used to." Asuna added in.

"True." Kirito sighed, crossing his arms as he put more thought into it. "Either way, we should probably be careful out there. Those canteens should help, but still… don't go and give your avatars heat stroke or anything."

The rest nodded in understanding as Kirito considered going to Vel with his questions. This was just another one to add to the pile. But, today's supposed to be a day to enjoy themselves after what they went through to get here. I guess Vel will have to wait. He looked up just in time to catch a 'let's go' hand motion from Yui and the three girls, all of them on their way out of the lobby's front doors.

"Right, I'll be back for my shift. You two have fun, and let me know if the temperature's hot enough!" Kirito said as he jogged his way out of the lobby, giving Sinon and Asuna a small wave as he left.

Sinon sighed in relief and bliss as she sunk further into the steaming waters. The warm rocks soothing her bare back as she adjusted herself against the edge of the hot spring.

"You know, the developers did a hell of a job with getting this to feel just right." Asuna commented beside her, the undine sinking into the waters clad in a red and white bikini.

"Yeah, I wonder how long that took." Sinon responded, closing her eyes and resting her head on the rocks behind her; her own avatar wearing a bright blue bikini beneath the surface of the water.

Around them was a rather large garden of sorts. The boundaries were entirely fenced off, and all throughout the area was soft grass and stone pathways. A cherry blossom tree grew healthily a little ways away from the hot spring, and all above them were floating lanterns of numerous different colors.

"Hey…" Sinon started, opening her eyes and looking over to Asuna, "Who do you think is behind all this? The raids, the monsters, the damaged towns, who's capable of all this?"

Her question brought up some good possible answers to think about. But in the end, the real answer wouldn't be found until they reached that point in the quest. "I'm not sure, but they probably won't be an easy battle." Asuna replied, looking up at the lanterns.

Sinon hummed in response and relaxed again, the two falling into a warming silence as they relished in the hot spring.

After a little while, there was a bit of rippling in the water and Sinon looked over to see Asuna right next to her.

"Hey, now I have a question…" Asuna said, settling down next to the cait sith and keeping her eyes on her prey. "How long have you been in love with Kirito?"

"W-what?! T-that's not r-really a fair question!" Sinon replied with a blush quickly spreading across her cheeks.

"Oh, it's completely fair. I'm just curious." Asuna laughed, poking fun at her friend. "So? How long?"

Sinon bit her lip and looked away, the heat suddenly feeling hotter against her pale skin. "I-I… ever since Gun Gale Online I-I guess…" She squeezed out in a sheepish voice.

Asuna smiled and scooted away a bit, "That long huh?" I wonder why he's able to attract the attention of so many girls… She thought for a little while, letting Sinon get over her blush and relax a little.

"I'm not very good at this." Sinon suddenly spoke.

"Hmm? At what?" Asuna asked curiously.

"At… this." Sinon looked down with a new blush and muttered, "This… girl talk stuff."

Asuna gave Sinon a warm smile and rested a hand on her back, "It's okay. No one's asking you to be."

Sinon nodded and smiled her thanks. But she still had a hint of contemplation in her eyes. Should I ask her? She thought, eyes roaming the water then back to Asuna. Her hands clenched beneath the waters as she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it again soon after. Rethinking what she was going to say.

"Okay, what's up? You obviously want to ask me something." Asuna pointed out, having noticed the girl's behavior.

Sinon's eyes widened a bit before she took a deep breath, trying to find the words she wanted to say earlier, "H-how…" She trailed off, but Asuna waited patiently for the cait sith to ask her question.

"How do I get Kirito to notice me?" Sinon asked shyly, a faint blush returning to her cheeks.

Asuna was a bit taken aback by her question, but out of everyone, she was the best person to ask. Sinon waited in baited silence, the anticipation for some sort of answer growing with the passing seconds.

"You want me to be honest?" Asuna asked, Sinon nodding subtly in front of her. The girl sighed and gave Sinon the best answer she knew… the truth, "I think he already notices you."

Sinon's eyes snapped to Asuna's own chestnut eyes, "I highly doubt that."

Asuna stretched her arms out in front of her and let her fingers rest just below the water, "Sometimes it's hard to tell, but I know he does. He likes to act dense at times, well, more times than not. But he's a smart guy, it's hard to believe that he doesn't see everyone's intentions."

"But, you still haven't answered my question…"

"Oh, well I've seen the way he looks at you!" Asuna said, turning to Sinon and giggling, "He acts differently around you. More so than the rest of the girls. He's probably just too scared to acknowledge it."

"H-how can you tell?"

Asuna smirked and pointed to herself, "I'm what you call an expert in what goes on in Kirito's head."

Sinon took a few moments before giving a brief nod, "Well… still, I don't really see anything different about him when I'm around."

Asuna sighed and reached over, flicking Sinon in the nose. The sudden thump caused the cait sith to flinch and lean back, cupping her hands over her face. "H-hey!"

"Stop being so stubborn!" Asuna laughed, meeting Sinon's blue gaze, "He's more open with you. I can tell. You just have to try to get through that thick skull of his. I'm not saying to admit your feelings to him, but you should at least do something to try to hint at them." Asuna waved at the air as if she was dismissing some of the details, "If that doesn't work, then you admit your feelings."

Sinon blushed and shook her head, hands still coving half her face, "I can't do that…"

"Of course you can!" Asuna gave Sinon her best smile, "You'll do fine, trust me."

The cait sith was still in denial, struggling to think properly right now but all she could do was wonder if Asuna's words were what she should really do. "I-if you say so." Sinon took a shallow breath, lowering her hands back into the water.

"I'll give you some time to think." Asuna stated, standing up and stepping out of the fairy-made spring. She walked over to a nearby table and grabbed a white towel off of it. She opened up the menu with her other hand and checked the time.

Their session ended about five minutes ago. Wow, where'd the time go? I'm so glad Kirito didn't show up right on time, or he would've… now that I think about it. A wide smirk slowly grew across Asuna's lips as she looked back to Sinon.

"You still have half an hour, so feel free to relax as much as you want!" She called out. The hot spring has the potential to be co-ed after all.

"O-okay, and thanks… Asuna, for the advice." Sinon's cat ears perked up as she peaked over the edge to Asuna.

"Sure thing." Asuna responded with a smile. She then walked back inside the inn, towel in hand.

Kirito walked through the halls with his inventory open, scrolling through his new potions he bought from the market. Most of them were weaker, but the rest were greater in effect. He had to go with the ones that were affordable after all.

"Oh, Kirito!"

"Hmm?" He looked up from his inventory and met eyes with Asuna, heading the other way. "Asuna. Hey, how was the hot spring?"

Asuna gave a crooked smile, "It was great. The scenery was good too. Careful though, it could get pretty hot in there." She informed with a wink.

"Awesome, so it's plenty hot then?" Kirito asked.

"Plenty."

The spriggan nodded and looked back to his inventory, switching over to a new tab and equipping his swim trunks. "Sounds good, where's Sinon?" He said with a quick look around.

"Oh, she's off somewhere probably." Asuna responded with a finger on her chin, "Go have fun, I'm going to go join the rest in town." She smiled and walked past Kirito, giving him a short wave.

Well that was weird. It's not like Asuna to act like that. Kirito waved her goodbye and closed his inventory, making his way further down the hall after checking the time. Ten minutes after my time slot was supposed to start, damn. I guess I'm a bit late to my own party huh? He came across an entryway with a draped cloth falling down the frame as the door.

On it was a symbol. Hot Spring. Here it is… He pushed the cloth to the side and entered.

The place looked nice. There were tall rocks here and there, stone pathways leading into a grassy garden with a cherry blossom tree at its center. The hot spring had a weird shape to it, but it's obvious it was made to look natural.

Going based off of the steam rising from the water, it looked pretty alluring too. He took a step forward before freezing on the spot.

His blood ran cold as he noticed a pair of dusty blue cait sith ears rise over the rocky edge of the hot spring.

Sinon! Kirito didn't dare move, his face quickly flushing red as the girl slowly stood up. Please don't turn around, please don't, please don't, please don't-

Sinon turned around just as Kirito was about to turn high tail and sneak out of there.

Bright reflective blue eyes met onyx as the two made awkward eye contact.

Sinon's eyes widened as she tilted her head in mild confusion and ears flicking cutely, as if something just wasn't clicking. A few seconds later, a moment of realization dawned on her and before anyone could move…

…she drew her bow from her inventory and nocked an arrow.

"S-s-sorry!" Kirito suddenly sputtered out, then bowed his head quickly, face reddening even more so. The wind split a moment later and something sharp whistled by his ear. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a few strands of his hair shatter into a million pieces as an arrow struck wood behind him.

"K-kirito! W-why are y-you here?! Asuna said I had more time!" Sinon shouted, her face as red as Kirito's. She quickly drew another arrow and took aim.

Asuna?! She said… shit… "I-I can leave, b-but it's my turn! Look at the time!" Kirito yelled back, swiping open his inventory to show Sinon the time. Their HUDs both hidden by the effects of the hot spring buff blinking next to both their names.

Sinon's eyes widened further and her finger slipped, loosing her arrow involuntarily. She cringed as she saw it heading straight for Kirito's leg.

The blue arrow impacted moments later, and all Kirito did was stare down at it.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!" Sinon quickly apologized, un-equipping her black Bane of Shadows.

"I-it's… fine…" Kirito said slowly, a shade of fear shadowing his face. "I think I'll just go."

"No!" Sinon interrupted, blushing heavily as she hid herself in the steam. "I-I…" She took a deep breath and calmed her nerves as best she could, "I don't mind you being in here… with me…"

Kirito's mind was rushing frantically as he watched the arrow de-spawn from his leg. The wound fading soon after as one of his healing abilities kicked in. "A-are you sure?" Why did it have to be Sinon? Of all people? Here, in nothing but a b-bikini… great, now I'm stuttering in my mind. Watch me get a bloody nose- Kirito quickly reached up and checked, resting his hand beneath his nose. Whew, no blood.

"I-I'm sure." Sinon responded quietly, sinking into the water. She was blushing more by the second, and she dipped herself further down until the water level was right above her lips.

Kirito gulped and looked up, silently sighing in relief that Sinon was mostly covered by the water and steam. He slowly walked over to the opposite side of the hot spring and slid himself in, relishing in the magnificent heat coursing over his entire body.

"U-umm… thanks." He said, adverting his eyes from Sinon's general location.

Sinon didn't respond, she just pouted below the water's surface and blew a few bubbles. I can't believe I'm doing this.

Beta: demonic1556

Editor: Allix Stowe

You know, I can't even begin to describe how weird I felt while writing this. This was the first hot spring scene I've ever even considered writing. I hope it was okay, as much as it was awkward. I just hope it was cute.

Yeah, and sorry for the late update. I sort of put it off… decided to work on Flame… Anyway, new chapter done and the next will consist of their little 'date'. More of a solo run actually, but with each other and in an exploration kind of role.

This is still a side project of mine, so I won't be updating it too often. Trust me though, it won't be too long a wait either. It just might not be as often as my main story.

Review! You have no idea how much I look forward to reading what you all say. Favorite and Follow the story, lots more chapters to come.

Cya XD