Disclaimer: I appreciate and honor the fact that you are taking the time to read my story. I thank you for any reviews, follows, and favorites. Please enjoy this story after the following disclaimer: I do not own Sword Art Online, nor do I own any of its characters. Sword Art Online belongs to Reki Kawahara, ASCII Media Works, and the SAO Project. Please support the official release.

Character Ages

Kirito- 16 (October 7th, 2008)

Asuna- 17 (September 30th, 2007)

Sinon- 16 (January 17th, 2009)

Jace- 17 (February 13th, 2008)

Chapter 5

Tuesday, December 11th, 2022. Continent: Ianides. Asfos.

Jace groaned as the bright morning sunlight crossed his eyes and illuminated the small suite in the «Auberge du Asfos» from the curtains. He glanced at the clock to his left and saw that it was only 8:00. He grumbled again and turned over, pulling on his covers. It was a rough night; he deserved a good night's nest. On top of that, he and Sinon had only been able to get one room with two beds at the French-styled inn.

He glanced over at Sinon, who was sitting up in her bed, staring at the wall. He liked the way her blue hair looked; he usually hated when girls died their hair. But with Sinon, the Celeste-blue hair dye worked wonders. It attracted the eye and held its attention like a Venus Fly Trap, and he was a fruit fly, buzzing lazily around in his bed.

Jace pushed himself up slowly, hearing the bed creak slightly under the weight being suddenly distributed. Sinon heard it as well, and whipped her head around to look at the source of the noise, eyes showing how startled she was. When she saw that it was only Jace, she sighed and leaned back against the bed's headboard. "Good morning," the girl said, closing her eyes.

"Morning," Jace responded in a groggy voice, getting up slowly. "I don't think I thanked you for saving me last night. I don't know how he dodged all of my bullets–"

"It dodges automatic fire," Sinon said cutting him off. "I figured it out as soon as it started dodging your bullets. It hadn't done that when I was shooting at it in the tunnel, even when its HP was down. It couldn't have been the attack pattern changing either; it had the same amount of hit points. The only variables were our gender and the type of guns we were using. My guess was that it would raise the difficulty or something."

Something in the back of Jace's mind stretched, as if waking up after a long sleep. Something about what Sinon had said had raised an alert in the back of his mind, but he couldn't quite voice it yet. Whatever it was, Jace told himself that he would give Argo the information about the changed difficulty level of the mission.

"The Clearing isn't until tomorrow," Jace yawned, stretching his arms high up to the sky. "So unless you want to scout the clearing, we can just take a day off today."

Sinon cocked her head in confusion. "A day off? You mean we're not going to the front lines or experience grinding at all for a whole day? What would we even do?"

"Well it is a Wednesday, so everything will be less busy," Jace thought aloud, getting up and opening his menu to where his day clothes were. "We could just have hang out around town and have dinner somewhere nice."

For a moment, Jace thought he saw Sinon's cheek turn rosy, but when he looked back to check, she still looked nothing other than confused. "We never take days off," she said, her voice oozing with suspicion as if expecting for Jace to tell her that it was merely a prank; that he had some rigorous training exercise to complete. But when Jace merely shrugged and continued equipping his day clothes, she nodded. "So will we be staying in «Asfos» then?"

"Well I need to stop by «Ashley's» and get a new outfit that's a bit more… casual," Jace told her with a frown as he fixed his pants to a comfortable position on his waist. "I love the «Sky Coat» and all, but it makes me stand out a lot."

"Rivaling with Kirito, huh?" Sinon asked, rolling her eyes.

"No, there's a big difference between me and Kirito," Jace explained. "Kirito is known as the «Beater» here, but nobody on the streets recognizes him because he just wears all black. There's nothing… flamboyant about him, so he can remain anonymous as long as he doesn't reveal his title. Then, on the opposite side of the scale, there's me. I have this coat that's unique in every way, so I stand out in people's memories. And in Aincrad, that can be a good thing or a bad thing."

"Alright, Mr. Paranoia," Sinon scoffed, rolling her eyes. "After «Ashley's» shop, where will we go?"

"That's the best thing about a day off," Jace said, finally equipping his signature long-coat which fell around his form in a flourish of white and blue. "We don't have to decide where to go or what to do. We just do what we want." He then turned to the girl with a smile and winked. "You ready?"

Sinon looked down and turned, opening her menu to get dressed. She then looked over her shoulder and looked straight at Jace. After they both stared at each other, she huffed angrily. "Well? Turn around! I'm not changing in front of you!"

Jace felt heat rising in his cheeks and he turned around, staring at the wall. After a few seconds and a few pearl-like beeping sounds from Sinon's menu, Sinon told Jace he could turn around again. When he looked back, Sinon was in her commando suit from «Ashley's». Jace felt something in his stomach, his hand moving instantaneously toward it.

"You okay?" Sinon asked the boy as he gripped his stomach.

"Yeah," Jace said with a nod and a wave. "I'm fine; just have to go to the bathroom. Do you want to figure out places for us to go?"

"Okay," Sinon answered as she pulled up a map of the towns they'd been in in the past. "If I find anything I guess I'll let you know."

Jace nodded, then walked into the bathroom and leaned against the wall. His stomach was churning. It felt like he had had a bad meal, but there was no status effect that could have caused it near his HP bar, and he hadn't eaten anything that wasn't suitable to eat in at least a week. He figured the feeling would go away after he took the few steps it took to get to the toilet and sat down for a moment.

)-0-(

Jace walked out into the halls of the «Auberge du Asfos» late that morning. He and Sinon had gotten a message from Argo to meet her that night in her tent before the Clearing started at midnight. The girl had heard something about the Sky Coat and needed to see Jace to determine whether or not the information was true. So they made a plan to meet at 10:00 that night–giving the duo about six hours until they would have to leave for the city of Babel.

As the two stepped outside of the hotel and into the surprisingly warm December day, Jace looked around the city. «Asfos» was truly a beautiful city, full of exciting people and events. Even walking down the streets made him feel like he was in a small town on a vacation. And today, that was exactly what was going on.

"So «Ashley's» first and then where?" Sinon asked Jace, interrupting him from his thoughts.

"You really don't get the purpose of a day off, do you?" Jace answered with a sly smirk. "We get to do whatever we want! We don't decide it yet, we decide it whenever we get done with something and just go from there."

Sinon grumbled a response that sounded like "yuck Jew, face" with certain consonants reversed and walked ahead to the store–which wasn't very far, considering the tailor's shop was only a few blocks from the hotel. She walked in about ten seconds ahead of Jace, who caught the door just before it closed.

Ashley greeted Sinon immediately with a large hug and a string of French sentences. "Bonjour, mon cher! Avez-vous apprécié la tenue?"

"Yes, I did enjoy the outfit," Sinon grunted as she pushed the other girl away. She dusted herself off before continuing with a gesture to Jace. "I'm not here for myself though… This is Jace; he's looking for something a little bit more casual."

Ashley frowned and walked over to Jace, eyes still pointed to the girl. "Has he seen the saucy–?"

"Ashley!" Sinon barked as her cheeks tinged red. "Enough about that!"

"I see," Ashley sang with a sly grin. Then she turned on her critical eyes on Jace's body. Something about the way they seemed to look first at the small scar just above his chin before analyzing the boy's waistline and chest. "He is a bit scrawny, no?"

"I prefer the term lean," Jace grunted, stepping back. "I've got enough muscle to do what I need, and more could make me slower."

"What do you want?" Ashley asked as she rolled her eyes. "I'm a busy woman; I don't have all day."

"Do you have white jeans?" Jace asked, more than slightly annoyed.

"Do you have any knowledge of fashion?" Ashley answered with a snort.

"Ashley," Sinon asserted. "He's a friend of mine. Cut him some slack, will you?"

Ashley huffed at the unintentional pun and opened her inventory, scrolling through a long list of clothes. She eventually pulled out a pair of jeans and a selection of white dyes before turning to Jace. "I will be back in a moment. What shade of white?"

Jace picked up the dyes one by one, examining each one closely. After a while he handed Ashley one of the bottles back. "I like this one the best," he announced, handing it back to the tailor. "Ivory."

Ashley nodded and walked back to one of the counters. She laid the jeans on the table then and tapped the dye. A circle lit up around her fingers and she dragged it across the denim as an artist would use a paintbrush on a canvas. Every stroke left a streak of white in its wake like an airplane cutting through the sky trailing white smoke. After a brief moment, the woman held up the pants and observed her work. Then, seemingly content, she nodded and walked over to the boy. "Here you go," she said then, unceremoniously tossing the pants into the boy's arms.

Jace held the pants up in front of his legs and looked in the mirror. The pants matched the coat quite nicely, and Jace thought they looked good. "How much for them?" He asked the girl.

"I'll give them to you for 500 Col," she said, opening a trade menu. "You may find them expensive, but–"

"Deal," Jace responded, cutting her off mid-sentence. "Pleasure doing business with you."

Ashley blinked, surprised by Jace's response. But sure enough, the boy put five hundred Col in the box for her and Ashley accepted the trade. After all, she was richer at the cost of some dye and a pair of jeans. "Is there anything else you'd like?"

"Yeah, do you have any white jackets?" Jace asked. "I like this and all, but it's a bit flashy for me to wear all the time."

Ashley nodded, diving back into her inventory. After a moment of searching, she retrieved another item called the «Wintry Coat». It was simple in design, blue and lined with white fur. It looked like it would be tight and cozy, which Jace was sure he would be able to confirm after equipping the item. It came down to his waist and hugged him tightly, like a small child who hadn't seen her father in hours.

"This will cost more, considering it's made out of very rare materials," Ashley explained. "I only use the best fabrics, so these come out to about 1,250 Col. It offers a lot of protection, since it's made from the hide of a Field Boss near Nefaria, and it's really durable."

"I like it," Jace told her, paying her in full. "It's just what I'm looking for."

"Pleasure to do business with you," Ashley said with a nod before walking back to the counter and sewing together fabrics. "Come back any time." The tailor watched them as they walked outside of her shop until they were out of sight, hidden behind the wall just past the window.

"So where do we go next?" Jace asked Sinon.

"Is there a park?" the girl asked. "I kind of feel like going out in nature."

Jace nodded, pulling up his map. "It should be on Amanite Way, about forty meters north of here," he said, pointing to a small street in front of the duo on the floating screen. "If we take a right, we'll get there quicker, but it's still a little bit of a walk."

"That's okay," Sinon sighed quietly, continuing forward. She was walking slightly faster than Jace, about two feet ahead of the boy when she slowed down and turned to him as they walked. "Tell me about yourself in real life, Jace."

"There's nothing to tell, really," Jace sighed. "I'm just a pretty average high school student. School, part-time job, and my family is all I really have time for… Well I guess had would be the right word now. Now all I do is fight aliens and monsters. But what about you? What do you like to do?"

"Well, I don't really do much," Sinon said, putting a hand to the back of her neck. "I go to school and hang out with my friend, Kyouji, but that's it."

All of time froze as Jace threw her a glance from the corner of his eye. The way Sinon was holding herself suggested that she was anxious about something. The arm was a giveaway, but there was nothing that she should be anxious about. Unless there was something about Kyouji that made her uncomfortable, there was no reason for her fidgeting and downward glances.

"You seem uncomfortable," Jace said quietly as he turned right down Amanite way. "Is there something about Kyouji that you don't like? Is he a stalker?"

Sinon frowned and shook her head. "He's the only friend I had in the real world. He actually suggested that I get into VRMMO's. He said they would help me overcome some of my fears." Sinon then laughed dryly. "Instead of curing my fears, it gave me a bunch of new ones. I guess that's not exactly friend material, but he never teased me at least."

"Why would someone tease you?" Jace asked. "What would they even tease you about? It's not like you're unattractive or stupid."

Sinon stopped dead in her tracks, looking at the boy. Her head cocked slightly and Jace thought he detected a slight rosy tint on her cheeks. She opened her mouth and asked a question without words before vocally asking again: "Did you just say that I was attractive, Jace?"

Jace coughed and turned away, cheeks burning radiantly. "No, I said you weren't unattractive. Like you're not ugly. You're just there."

"Oh," Sinon said, sounding slightly offended. "I thought I looked good in this, but I guess I was mistaken."

Jace turned back to her and opened his mouth to speak, but shut it as soon as he realized that he was fighting a losing battle. But as Sinon sniggered, he realized she had been messing with him. "That's not funny, Sinon," he pouted.

"That's what you think," Sinon said with a smirk before glancing along the street. "So where is this park you're talking about?"

"It's right around this corner," Jace said, turning left at one of the street corners.

At the end of the street, the city ended and a park began. The patch of land was covered in grass, with trees sprouting here and there. The greenery didn't end there; foliage littered the lofty and low landscapes. About halfway into the park was a sandy shore by a lake that spanned nearly a kilometer. It was serenity in its most natural form: pure nature.

"I'll race you!" Jace whooped as he tore down the street, leaving Sinon choking on a cloud of dust that turned blue as burst apart as it got farther from the ground, no longer becoming part of the ground but rather a low-durability entity.

"No fair," Sinon groaned as she ran forward trying to catch up with the blonde. "I wasn't ready!" But Jace had already begun climbing a tree at the edge of the park, hanging from a branch by his legs.

"Hey there, kiddo," Jace laughed. "How's it hanging?"

Sinon rolled her eyes with a smile. "You're a nerd, you know that?"

"But you wouldn't put up with it if you didn't like me," Jace teased, sticking out his tongue. Suddenly, Sinon grew an evil smirk and the blonde knew he was doomed. Sinon reached out a slender hand to the boy's chest and held it there for a moment before shoving forward. It only took two seconds for the boy to hit the ground and three for the icy blue warrior to fall back against the tree, her body shaking with laughter.

"You should have seen the look on your face when you started falling!" Sinon snickered, holding a hand up to her mouth as laughed hysterically. "They were the size of baseballs and your mouth was so…" It appeared that the last bit was all she could manage before she fell to the ground.

"Well it looks like I'll just have to get you back!" Jace shouted, jumping up and poking a finger into each of the girl's hips. Sinon squealed a loud noise of disapproval and writhed under the Jace's fingers as he tickled her. She flung herself off of the ground and sprinted away, shrieking as she barreled through the brush. Now it was Jace's turn to laugh as he chased her through the woods.

After a few laps around the lake, the two settled down on the shore. Jace pulled a large blanket from his inventory and spread it across the sands of the beach. Sinon gave him a questioning look as he continued scrolling through his inventory, but Jace ignored her, pulling out baskets and plates from his inventory.

"A picnic?" Sinon asked, eyes sparkling. "I've never been on one before!"

"Well there's no time like the present," Jace chuckled, "and I suppose we have to do some fun things every once in a while, else we remember we're trapped here."

Sinon glanced at the quilt on the ground, tracing a spiral design with her right index finger. "We are stuck here for a while, aren't we?" Sinon murmured.

"If we keep moving at the rate that we're moving though, it shouldn't take more than four or five years," Jace guessed, adding up figures in his head. After all, it had taken almost six weeks for them to get to the second major city; they would probably clear it before the seventh began. "But we'll get better as we go along. It could be two years and then we're out. Unless the next continents pose completely different threats, we should be fine."

"You know, at first the news that we'd been trapped here was terrible. I was convinced that I was going to die right after Kayaba spoke," Sinon admitted. "But starting about last week, after we beat «Illfang» in Nefaria, everything started seeming a little less hopeless. I guess I've just been enjoying living here… even though it's not real. Is that weird?"

Jace looked up at Sinon. She was staring at the quilt on the ground, still tracing the spirals. Her cheeks had a light rosy tint that popped out wildly from her icy blue hair. Suddenly, Jace could feel another writhing in his stomach, and he reached out slightly, putting his hand near hers. "It's not strange at all," Jace explained quietly. "It's good, in fact. That way we don't have to think of this game as a death trap. We can just work through it and go back to our real lives."

Sinon glanced at the boy's hand and looked away, darting her eyes to the side with an uncontrollable grin. "The company helps, too," she continued unable to look into his eyes. "If it were the first guy I met I'm sure I wouldn't have been happy."

"What was he like?" Jace asked, feeling his ears growing warm. "Probably short and fat with a high voice or something, right?"

Sinon shook her head, drawing a chuckle from her companion. "He was a redhead with eyes that were just black. He was a bit of a meathead, really. Lunky and unintelligent looking. He called himself Jackal."

Suddenly Jace stopped laughing. He remembered that name. "Jackal?"

"Yeah," Sinon confirmed, taking note of how Jace's reaction was one of a person that had just seen a ghost. "Is something wrong?"

Jace closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyelids, his irises which had been so green and warm came back stony and colder than an arctic blizzard. "This would have been before the tutorial, correct? Before we were given the mirrors."

"I had just logged in," Sinon peeped lowly, eyes bright with fear. The only time she had seen Jace afraid before had been in the «Black Forest,» and while the look in the blonde's eyes was not frightful, it was indeed grim. "What's wrong? Did something happen between you two?"

But Jace could hear nothing, he was being sucked into a vivid flashback.

)-0-(

Saturday, August 27th, 2022. Continent: Ianides. Fort Kronos.

In the Beta Test of Galactic Warfare Online, Jace knew there were three types of markers that had been placed on the maps apart from roads, and all of them were types of settlements.

There were eleven red crosses on the map of «Ianides» that signified Major Cities–for example, those of «Base Camp» and «Nefaria.» All of them were connected by a maroon road that trailed across the single continent of the Xylotian world. These towns either had to be cleared or were cleared by the players of their previous inhabitants with the exception of Base Camp (which was run by the «IGAF» from the start). Many homes could be found in these areas, as well as a few quests and NPC run stores, but the number of player run stores was few.

There were twenty-one teal dots that marked «Towns and Minor Cities» like «Asfos» and «Glasswaters.» They were connected by grey roads that stretched out like tendrils from the main maroon road, and though a few of them were on the main path, they were significantly easier to clear than Major Cities and nonessential for the clearing of the game. They did have many more missions and houses than the major cities as well, and were popular with players that wanted to enjoy the game without worry of reaching the second world, but they still lacked many shops–player run or otherwise.

Finally there were fifteen other settlements marked by orange dots called «Forts.» These were walled settlements with many NPC troops that guarded the edge. If a cursor signified that someone was an orange, red, or even a yellow player, they would not be allowed to enter the fort's limits without being attacked relentlessly by soldiers. There were also many quests in these areas, but there was nowhere to call home or even to sleep. Forts were created sheerly as places businesses could be run, making them very popular tourist destinations.

Jace had come to Fort Kronos to upgrade a piece of armor, the «Grieving Gauntlets.» The item's durability had gotten low, and the boy was not pleased with the idea of them breaking in the middle of combat. Though armor didn't provide protection from combat damage, it did raise a player's Armor Points, which were useful for protecting oneself from environmental damage and «Status Effects» such as «Burns» and «Poison.»

Normally, Jace wouldn't have been too concerned about «Status Effects» as he focused mainly on his AGI stat and could dodge most attacks, but he was working on a mission in a town to the north called «Aroboth» that involved clearing a nest of «Willowasps.» The mobs weren't difficult to deal with, but in swarms they were a force to be reckoned with–even more so since they could both induce «Status Effects» that could kill even the strongest of players. Jace had died twice trying to complete the mission with an Assault Rifle, and in the last run, his gauntlets had made the pinging noises to signify the decline in durability.

And so Jace found himself standing outside of the walls of «Fort Kronos» in search of one of his close companions, a high level player-manufacturer. To get in, however, he had to get past the NPC guards. There were only two and he only had to speak to them, but Jace tended to get incredibly frustrated when talking to NPC's, as they had a very limited sense of AI. Because of this, he tended to talk to one that was programmed with a higher INT stat.

One of the two was a short and stout tank, bearing a high level LMG, black and hefty looking. He shook his brown hair as his blue eyes scanned the landscape ten feet in front of them–ten feet was all they were programmed to look–as he guarded the main gate to the city. Jace guessed that this was the less intelligent of the two guards by the way his eyes seemed almost dead.

He moved onto the next one then, glancing up and down his body. He was tall and sleek, and he carried two pistols using the «Akimbo» perk in the Secondary Weapon's skill tree. They were a twin set, dark with wooden grips on the handle. His dark brown eyes swept the landscape vigilantly, taking note of every disturbance the eye could see–at least ten feet in front of him, that is.

Jace approached the sentry and spoke clearly in front of his face. "I would like to enter Fort Kronos."

"On what terms: business or pleasure?" The NPC asked with a friendly smile.

"Business; I need to get a weapon repaired." Jace answered, feeling slightly silly about talking to an NPC. "I'm looking for a high level player-manufacturer."

"Welcome to Fort Kronos," the NPC said kindly as he opened the door. "Enjoy your stay!"

"Thank you," Jace said, cursing as soon as he realized that he had reached the end of the NPC's dialogue. It wouldn't cause him to have to answer all of the guard's questions again or anything, but it was embarrassing to continue a conversation after it had reached its end in the blonde's mind. Without giving himself more time to dwell on his blunder, the boy continued through the opening gate.

Like all other forts, Fort Kronos was a bustling town with shops as far as the eye could see. There were a lot of players browsing through the various shops, as the settlement was known primarily for the players there that made high caliber weapons. But Jace was looking for one player in particular: a player-manufacturer named Jackal.

After a while of using his «Perception» skill to track players, he found the small shop called «The Alpha's» where the player-manufacturer was reported to have worked–at least according to Argo, who was virtually never wrong. And so Jace walked into the store, door creaking open as he took his first step inside the busy shop.

"Hey Jace!" the redhead greeted in his high, airy voice as soon as he walked into the door. "I wasn't expecting you! What brings you here?"

"My gauntlets are running a bit low on durability, and I heard great things about this place," Jace explained, bringing a hand up to his neck. "How much will a repair and an upgrade cost me if I give you the materials?"

"What material are the gauntlets made of?" Jackal asked.

In response, Jace took the armor off of his forearms and clacked them down on the counter top. The white arms braces clattered loudly and Jace answered quietly. "They're a mob drop, but I think they were made from «Diamite Ore.»"

Jackal's eyes widened and he leaned in closer. "You're kidding me. «Diamite» is the rarest material on Ianides! Did you fight some kind of boss?"

Jace shook his head. "The only boss that I know of is the «Slenderman» in the North. This was a drop from a mob in «Snow Valley,» about a click and a half to the southeast of there."

"I'll do it for free if you take me to where those mobs are," Jackal offered, unintentionally grabbing Jace by his shirt collar in an aggressive grip. Jace frowned and pried the manufacturer's fingers from near his neck. "If they drop armor made from «Diamite,» they're bound to drop some raw. Just take me there and both the repair and upgrade are yours free right now."

Jace didn't enjoy working with anyone and would much rather have just paid, but as it was he was short on cash. It wouldn't take long, he knew… but he would have to babysit a manufacturer that didn't leave the city frequently in an area with high level monsters. There weren't any major risks involved other than a level or two and a few minor items, but Jace was a cautious boy. But, since it appeared to be his only option, Jace reluctantly agreed.

And so, his slow nod would set off a chain reaction of events that would lead to tragedy.

)-0-(

"Jace?" Sinon asked. "What happened?"

Jace shook his head as he snapped out of his flashback. "Nothing," he lied. "I just knew him from the beta test. Did you want a sandwich?"

Sinon nodded and watched as Jace pulled a few «Slimy Stagwiches» from basket. She unwrapped the tin foil meant to keep the meat from spoiling and then went to town on the food, eating everything Jace gave to her. Their mouths opened more times to laugh then to take food into their mouths, and for Jace, that was a real feat.

Food was one of the wonders in this world. Jace couldn't believe how many senses were going crazy in his mouth compared to the food he usually ate. Usually, Jace ate only «Black Bread,» a common food that was dirt cheap–and tasted like it too. But the boy forced himself to stomach it, telling himself the money would be better spent on ammo.

The meat of a «Slimy Stag,» however disgusting it sounded, was a polar opposite. As his teeth tore into the tense tush of the animal, he could feel its succulent juice drip across his tongue. He was truly tasting a foreign delicacy; something he'd never tried before. And it was one of the best things he'd ever had to eat whether in-game or in reality. From the «Slimy Stagwiches» to the «Limon Juice,» from the «Limon Juice» to the «Stellar Salad,» from the «Stellar Salad» to the «Baked Porktatoes,» everything just got better and better.

After a while, the two finally finished their lunch and laid back to look at the sky. They gazed at the clouds, making pictures from their shapes for almost an hour before realizing that they only had two remaining before they began their trek eastward to the city of «Babel.»

"Crazy how long we've been here, isn't it?" Jace sighed. "It's a shame today's been flying by so fast. I don't want it to end."

"Why's that?" Sinon teased. "Surely you can't be relaxing? Don't you want to go back to mob grinding?"

"I'm just saying I enjoy your company away from the battlefield," Jace shrugged as he glanced toward the icy warrior. "Is that so weird?"

"Oh hush," Sinon huffed playfully, her eyes reflecting the clouds in the sky. She turned to face him and caught his eyes for a brief moment. As soon as their gazes locked, Jace felt his hair beginning to stand on end. His breath caught and for some reason, he felt a jolt of electric energy surge through him like a raging flood. Sinon seemed to notice because she snapped in front of his face. "Sinon to Jace, come in. You alive in there?"

Jace sat up quickly on the quilt, his heart a pounding sledgehammer. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just thinking about stuff." Was his face turning red? He hoped not. "We should probably get going on the road to «Babel;» I forgot that Argo wanted to meet up. That'll probably take an hour or so."

Sinon looked at the boy quizzically but decided to drop the subject, instead focusing on packing up the items on the ground to her inventory. As soon as she was done, Jace was already standing, fingers flashing across his open menu screen. After a moment he acquired the map data for «Ianides,» looking closely at the center of the continent.

"We're right here," Jace said, turning the screen to the girl and pointing at a small teal dot that lied a bit west of center. "It's about thirteen clicks southwest-west, so it would take just under two and half hours. But we have to account for mobs so it's likely to take about another hour. So if it's 2:00, we'd get to the «Clearer Camp» at about 5:30, 6:00 if we take a break. That would put us there right as the other troops are sitting down to eat. We'd eat for about an hour, and then «Clearing Training» would begin. That goes for three hours, putting us at 10:00. Curfew begins at midnight, so if we assume the meeting with Argo takes an hour, we would have an hour to get settled and get to our designated spot."

Sinon nodded and materialized her rifle, letting the heavy sniper drop into her hands. "Then I say it's time to get moving," she said seriously, the smile fading from her face. "Let's go."

)-0-(

The road from «Asfos» wasn't at all a hard trip. The weather on the road, though less than five kilometers from the snowy hills surrounding the «Ethereal Highlands» at any point in the trip, was clear, sunny, and only slightly chilly. Even when the path cut through the «Oaken Glade» where temperatures were supposed to be ten degrees colder, Jace could barely feel the cold nipping at his ears. Sinon, with her skimpy outfit was not as happy, but felt better after Jace gave her a coat.

The mobs in the «Oaken Glade» were hardly a problem. The highest level monster the duo saw was a level 6 «Gamma Gremlin» which took them by surprise and got a few weak hits in on Jace, almost completely depleting his energy shield. Sinon took it out with a flaming bullet to the temple, and it collapsed before shattering into millions of cyan prisms.

The duo arrived at the camp right at 6:00 as planned. It was laid out in concentric circles, about 400 meters in diameter. Each clearing party got their own plot of land sized by how many people were in each Squadron or Army.

There were nine notable Armies that had formed since the first Clearing. The first Army, the «Aincrad Liberation Force» which was sometimes called "The Army," was by far the biggest. Of the 20,000 players left in the game, the «ALF» had about 3,000. They were set in «Base Camp» and didn't focus mainly on leveling or clearing, but rather helping the players who struggled to survive.

The second Army, the «Knights of the Blood Oath,» was widely known as one of the strongest Armies. Much of this was due to their leader, an older man named Heathcliff, who had never been seen to go into the yellow. He fought with a «Pyrolith Vorpal Blade» and a «Photon Shield,» doubling his defense almost to an impenetrable point. All of the members were up in the high teens or low twenties.

The third Army that had been admitted to fight in the Clearing was a group of almost forty players called the «School of Swordsmanship.» They all fought with «Plasmid Sword» type weapons–whether swords, axes, or even lances–and were fairly skilled with the weapons, as most had practiced with them in the beta test. They all wore cloaks and looked almost comically like Jedis from the movie series "Star Wars."

The fourth Army in the Clearers was a small guild of five men called the «Black Sun Brotherhood.» Although each of the five men were info brokers that rivaled the very reputation of Argo herself, they were each proficient with any weapon of one manufacturer each. They were filthy rich and often spent money buying houses just to get rid of loose change.

The fifth Army that participated in the Clearing–and in fact was one of the most helpful in the battle against «Illfang»– was the «Order of Eternal Fire.» They were known as celebrities in the game, often going into dungeons and clearing them with trick shots. They had all nearly mastered the «Acrobatics» skill as well as their primary weapon skill.

Army number six was called the «Strategic Assault Crew.» Though they had a terrible reputation for being sleazy and conniving, nobody could question the skills of these mercenaries. They often hired themselves out to lower level players to help them clear dungeons for a small price–often the Last Attack Bonuses from whatever mini-bosses were killed.

Seventh came the «Union of the Hunters.» Though they weren't the highest leveled players around, they were wonderful snipers that could shrink their «Aiming Circles» to less than the size of a grape. They had been influential in the Clearing of Asfos–something Jace was eternally grateful for.

The eighth Army was the equivalent of a biker gang: «Wreckingdawn.» Armed with massive LMG's, each of them had the firepower to take out a mid-level boss by themselves. The only thing that kept them from being the top Army in the Clearers was the fact that their boss was more concerned about money than training his troops.

Finally came the «Red Dragons of War.» They weren't really all too special, but they were often called to settle disputes; a type of gendarme in a way. Some called their Army by the affectionate nickname «The Police.» And all in all, they didn't mind too much.

Since they had gotten there a bit late, they selected one of the plots near the edge of the camp and began setting up camp. By 6:15, their tent was set up, their campfire was ablaze, and they were ready to head to dinner.

As usual, the solo players and small Squadrons were gathered at some of the many tables regaling each other with tales of recent fights and adventures. At the last meeting, Jace and Sinon had grabbed a table to themselves to avoid getting in anyone's way, but the blonde saw a familiar face.

"Hey, Kirito!" Jace called as he walked over to the raven-haired boy's table, Sinon in tow. "It's been a while! How have you been?"

Kirito shrugged. "I've been fine," he said, glancing off at another table. "There are getting to be fewer and fewer solo players. We're a dying race, Jace."

Jace followed the boy's gaze to find Asuna sitting at the table with the «Knights of the Blood Oath»–a surprise indeed. She even seemed to be one of those that spoke frequently to Heathcliff. And just past her at the table with the «Aincrad Liberation Force» was a person that shocked him even more: Kibaou.

Everything from the fact that Kibaou was in an Army to the fact that he was in «The Army» stunned him. What was a scumbag like Kibaou doing with all of them, the good people who were trying to save the under-leveled players? And beside him was that wild card, Spiegel, making Jace shiver again. What was with him?

Jace resolved to ask Argo about the cactus-haired soldier later. For now, he was more concerned with the food that was coming. Each plate had «Powdered Peas,» «Cryocorn,» a roll made of «Barley Bread,» and a rare meat called «Venader» that most players related to a veal steak. Jace's plate hadn't been on the table for more than about two minutes before it was scraped clean of even the juices left behind by the «Venader.»

"You're a mess," Sinon grunted as she cut up a piece of the meat and put it in her roll, making a fairly tall sandwich. "Even Kirito isn't done eating yet!"

"Actually, I am," the soldier in black interrupted, crossing his fork and knife over his plate. "It was delicious."

Sinon rolled her eyes and gave up with a groan. "Where's Asuna when you need her?"

"Apparently she's joined the «Knights of the Blood Oath,»" Jace said, dabbing at his lip with a napkin which soon burst apart into polygons. "She's talking to Heathcliff, too. Looks like they're kind of close, even."

Sinon looked over to the Army's table. "She looks pretty good in their uniform, doesn't she?"

Jace glanced over at the girl, noticing her outfit for the first time. She wore a sleeveless white shirt with red piping and a red miniskirt. She wore white thigh-high stockings with the Army's insignia emblazoned just above the knee and short boots. Her white gloves went up just below her shoulder and had red accents wrapped in yellow piping. Jace had to admit, she looked rather attractive, but he didn't find her particularly as alluring as Sinon made her out to be.

Kirito, on the other hand, looked like he was about to start drooling. Jace sent him a PM with the simple message, "Careful, boy. You're ogling."

Kirito read the note and blushed slightly, closing his slightly parted mouth.

Jace and Sinon stayed for a while, listening to the gossip between the other Clearers and socializing with a few people they remembered from the last fight.

Agil, the large black man who had stood up to Kibaou in the first meeting about the First Campaign, came up to them with a man wearing a red bandana. He was introduced to Jace and Sinon as Klein, but it appeared as though Kirito knew the man. He was also a familiar face from the last Clearing; Agil and Klein had helped then immensely in the final moments of Kirito's battle against «Sergeant Illfang» when the solo player needed to recover, and they sat down at the table with the other three promptly.

The group didn't take too much time before diving into conversations about recent events and missions. Klein mentioned something about leveling up his «Assault Rifle» skill. Agil mentioned a strange customer that ordered a massive stock of random times. Sinon told the others that she had learned a new 4-Shot «Sniper Skill» called «Falcon's Strike.»

Jace, however, stayed more on the quiet side, taking everything in as he heard it. He preferred to keep his information unknown to as many people as possible. Sinon was the exception to the rule, as she was a member of his Squadron. As such, Jace couldn't hide anything from her unless it was for her own good or protection. He would always simply tell the others that he "ground for EXP" or "completed a mission."

Kirito was the same way, but since he was a solo player he told no one anything. Even Klein and Agil, who could be considered his best friends, knew little about what the boy did with his time when he was in Clearings or Campaigns. All anyone could really agree on concerning Kirito were a few things, and even they weren't positive what they were.

First was that Kirito would always give enigmatic answers to questions about his activities and whereabouts. Second was that he had been a beta tester, and a good one at that. Third, none of them had ever seen him with a gun, only a «Plasmid Sword» in one hand. And finally, that he was a higher level than one needed to be to clear any city on the continent of «Ianides».

So when Kirito said he'd "completed a mission in «Snow Valley,»" none of the others were surprised by the lack of details. But when they all turned to look at Jace expectantly, they were shocked to hear about both the battle against the «Slenderman» and then about his taking the day off.

"But you never take the day off," Agil protested. "And more than that, how could you have faced a «Field Boss» by yourself?"

"I wasn't by myself," Jace said with a shrug. "Sinon took care of most of it."

Suddenly all eyes were on Sinon, who vowed to kill Jace in the morning.

"How did you manage to kill off a «Field Boss» by yourself, Sinon?" Kirito asked. "You usually shoot pretty slowly. Even if you have a sniper, it should take you about ten or so shots per HP bar. Doesn't the «Slenderman» have four?"

Sinon looked at her empty plate. "I can shoot faster than I could when we were facing «Illfang.» I was just a bit afraid during the First Campaign."

"The «Slenderman» mission is scarier than other places because of the horror themed area," Kirito argued.

Jace held up a hand in a closed fist, silencing the black soldier. "She obviously doesn't want to talk about it, Kirito. Focus on the fact that she cleared a boss; shouldn't we be congratulating her?"

A glance from Sinon told him that he would surely die that night.

)-0-(

At 7:00, everyone was sent from the mess hall to the practice range. Many of the Clearers began to watch the five players as they took out target after target. But most of the attention was centered on Kirito.

Kirito had been in the beta test and fallen in love with the «Plasmid Sword» type weapon. Back in the beta test, many players had used them, due to the adrenaline rush one got from fighting Xylotes in such close quarters. But ever since the announcement that death was permanent in GWO, only the Army called «The School of Swordsmen» tended to use them, and they were individually known by most of the players. But Kirito was not a member of said Army.

For many of the Clearers, this was the first time they had noticed the boy. The first training for the Clearing had been very tense, and no one was focusing on anything other than the target in front of them. Similarly, during the training for the First Campaign, everyone was concerned about facing the first Boss of the game. Furthermore, the actual Clearing and Campaign were much too hectic to focus on anything other than killing scores of Xylotes. Now, much like high school actors on the second night of a show they had the mentality of "we've done this before; we'll do fine." And so they came to focus on Kirito.

Most of those who had participated in the last Campaign were still largely hostile towards Kirito due to his Beater status. He was hard to forget, after all, and most just glared at him with contempt that masked their curiosity. None of the other Clearers wanted anything to do with him, let alone make conversation with the famed Beater.

Jace saw many stares directed at Kirito and figured they would eventually ask the boy what all but the blonde wanted to ask: Why a «Plasmid Sword?»

Jace didn't want to ask, he wanted to deduce.

Kirito was not one for flashy displays, from what Jace could tell. He was indeed skilled and would go all out if the situation needed it, but he tended to keep any information about himself as secret as possible. Judging by that alone, it was obvious that he didn't use them as a means to show off. That left only practicality, which meant he had used the weapons so much that it had become easier than aiming a gun and shooting.

In a way, Jace could understand why Kirito would take the risks as well. While attacking from a distance was safer, it wasn't as safe as whatever a player was most skilled with. After all, there was a variety of different classes within GWO; Snipers, Stormers, Warlords, Commandos, Riflemen, and Closers were the most ones a player could fight with.

Snipers shot from long distances and tended to find perches were they could have a wider field of view. They hid wherever possible and felt uncomfortable when they were without cover or at close range.

Stormers liked to rush in guns blazing and kill whatever was near them. They couldn't stand open spaces because they were unlikely to survive in such conditions as a well-placed shot from a Sniper could easily take them down.

Warlords were similar to Stormers in that they used many bullets to take care of enemies, but they sprayed from a mid-ranged distance. Often using heavier weapons, they were more susceptible to enemies with high evasion skills and felt out of place when there were many walls that an enemy could emerge from.

Commandos were the most balanced of all the classes and tended to shoot, take cover, and then shoot again. If an enemy got close they would roll to the next cover and continue shooting. But if they had no cover or faced an opponent who could shoot through their protections, they were less effective, though not as helpless as some other classes in bad conditions.

Riflemen and Closers were very similar in that they preferred to attack from walls, but both used single shot weapons. The only real difference between the two was whether they used long range weapons or short range weapons. They were both okay in mid-range situations, but if they ventured into the other's territory they were less efficient.

Though a weapon didn't entirely decide the style, it did tend to come into play. For example, one could hardly play as the Sniper class with a pistol and someone with a sniper Rifle could hardly be a Stormer. At heart, though he had more experience with sniper rifles in-game, Jace was most comfortable with the Stormer style typically used with SMG's. The blonde could only guess that Kirito felt uncomfortable beyond an arm's reach. Therefore, it only made sense for him to use a melee weapon in this world of guns, despite the danger it imposed.

The rest of training passed uneventfully–less the glares from other Clearers due to association with the Beater. The group was dismissed from training; he and Sinon were only moments away from meeting with Argo.

Argo's tent was set up at the edge farthest from the city. That was because she would be participating in the Clearing but heading back to her home in «Glasswater» immediately after. Truthfully, she wouldn't have come had she not found information about the «Sky Coat.» Her customers always came first, after all.

Jace and Sinon entered the tent and were immediately stunned by how dirty the room was. Argo had various items scattered across the floor in haphazard arrays, a bed roll thrown in a curve around the items. A small desk with stacks of papers towered high above even Jace's head. The girl was reading the «Newspaper,» which was mostly just a web page that nearly anyone could add articles to. And Argo was one of the main editors.

"Damn it, I told them to keep the drops from «Gamma Gremlins» secret!" Argo hissed, opening her menu to send an angry message with her right hand as she gestured the group closer with her left. "Come on in and sit, I don't have all day."

"Where?" Sinon asked." There's no room on the floor and-"

"Take my advice and don't finish that statement," Jace whispered before gently curling around a pile of items. He looked ridiculous, but Argo had an "organized mess that may be aesthetically displeasing," but that was also "inversely as effective." He then looked at Argo and spoke again. "So when did Kibaou get admitted into an Army?"

"Oh come on, socialize for a bit before business," Argo cooed with a mischievous smile. "Why don't we flirt a bit first, hmm~?"

Jace flushed a deep shade of baker-miller pink. "Get on with it!" the blonde complained. "You're an info broker, tell me what I need to know."

Argo rolled her eyes. "500 for the whole story."

Jace nodded and began writing a message with his debts to «The Rat.» "Go on," he said after he finished typing, his cheeks gradually fading in color.

"Story has it that the «Aincrad Liberation Force» was created by an older player named Thinker. It isn't an Army with the main purpose of leveling up, but rather helping the players in «Base Camp.» Pretty much a charity organization.

"Then Thinker makes the mistake of inviting Kibaou. Cactus-head decides that they need to focus more on leveling, but convinces another member named Kobatz that it's their duty to make the other players in the Army level up. So he gets Kobatz, loyal to Thinker up until this point, to get another guy named Spiegel in, and then the three of them started training a group called the «Warlord Division.»"

There was that name again; Spiegel from the inn. Jace felt himself bristling for an unknown reason and forced himself to calm down. After all, Argo wasn't finished.

"Currently the «ALF» is about to become the setting for a power struggle, and with over a thousand members in the Army, it'll change the face of Aincrad as we know it."

At this point, Argo seemed to be happier. "I also have information in regards to the «Sky Coat,»" she said with a smirk. "Two pieces, so you can add that to the total."

Jace nodded and added the numbers to the total in his feed with Argo.

"After examining the map data, Vector discovered a slight change in the shape of the mountain where you found Jeer-Lan," she explained. "It looked as if the peak had something written on it in small stones. It's an ancient dialect of Xylose so it'll take a while to translate, but as soon as I know, I'll message you.

"But who cares about what it says? The important thing right now is this: nine other landmarks have been altered since the beta test similarly to the «Lunar Mine.» That all but confirms our theory that there are multiple sets of these items. And while there are only six core stats, weapons have four which makes ten total."

"So then we should probably try to go after the other Champions," Jace said as if it was an obvious fact. But the look on Argo's face told him otherwise; she seemed to be incredibly uneasy about getting to the next fact.

"There's one last thing about the «Sky Coat,» rather, a new one," Argo grunted. "The second of the coats has been found, the «Earth Coat,» just off of the path from the main road in an altered area. It raises the DMG stat on all weapons owned by the player to ten upgrades above its actual level. In the wrong hands, it could be a deadly weapon... Which is already bad enough, considering the current owner is already a reckless psycho."

"Who found it?" Jace asked seriously.

The room was still, silent as a church on a Friday's midnight. Electric tension filled the air, and both Jace and Sinon's jaws dropped when they heard the next words fall from the girl's lips.

"Kibaou."

Author's Notes

You'll have to forgive me for the second half of the chapter's content. I was on a cruise this past weekend and was only able to write on my phone, which is much more limited than even my crappy laptop. The last quarter of the story was written on mainly the flights to the port and back home (~2700 words and some of this very A/N).

I have also downloaded all of the Sword Art Online Light Novels, so updates may slow down. Although I've watched the anime for all of the story arcs up to volume 7 (Mother's Rosario arc), I feel the need to read them all, not just the books in the Alicization arc. I hope you will forgive me for the slightly reduced speed.

Now onto the aspects of the story itself. First I'll start with Argo, then move onto the fighting styles, the day off, Jackal's reappearance, and finally Ashley as a character.

I find it incredibly hard to write Argo in character. The Argo in the manga/light novels (I didn't say anime due to the fact that she's only in one scene) enjoys teasing everyone and has a smart-mouth kind of aura. Here, I find myself unable to capture that over a lengthened period of time. To help her stay slightly in character, what I try to do is keep her joking nature outside of business, but as soon as figures come into play make her serious.

The fighting styles are a bit of an info-dump, I know. But I plan to actually use these, and it was better to implement it while the thoughts were all in my head. They won't just be there for this chapter though, I promise.

The day off was the thing took the most time of the chapter to write. The rest of it, I knocked out within a few days, but I ended up just trying to throw a bunch of stuff together to get through the day off. If it seems sloppy I apologize, but a rewrite is in this chapter's future.

Jackal's reappearance will be largely in flashbacks. Other than that, just wait and see.

Finally, we have Ashley. Ashley is a strange character to write because due to being one of the only people with a mastered Sewing skill, I feel that she should have a distinctive attitude. Due to her lack of being in the LN (that I have read so far at least), however, I don't know how her character actually is. Argo is a common theme in fanfictions, but I know of one fanfiction involving Ashley. Because of this, I have to make her my own and my own is a sassy, lofty French fashionista. I apologize if this is far from her character, but I simply have no way to know how she really is.

That's all for the A/N. Thanks for reading!

Jace's Game Data

Level: 22

HP: 1,300 (200+50xlvl=HP, where lvl=level)

Col: 53,614

MainEquipment

Isodex Specter- SMG manufactured by Isodex. Gunmetal black. Real counter-part, Spectre M4

Pyrolith Snyper- Sniper Rifle manufactured by Pyrolith. Real counter-part, M21

Isodex Pico- Small, easily concealed handgun made by Isodex. Real counter-part, Beretta Pico

Ivory Jeans- Durable Jeans handcrafted by Ashley.

Blue IGAF Shirt- Blue shirt with the IGAF Insignia on the chest

Sky Coat- White long-coat with blue markings and words written in Xylose. Maxes AGI stat to the wearers current level.

Mk II Crimson Wave- Mid-level Energy Shield available on Ianides. When depleted, emits a red energy field that paralyzes most Xylotes within a ten meter radius for fifteen seconds.

Skill Slots: 8

Skills (Basic 0-249 pts, Advanced 250-499 pts, Proficient 500-749 pts, Expert 750-999 pts, Master 1000 pts)

Sub Machine Gun- Makes the user more efficient in Sub Machine Guns. 421

Eavesdropping- Allows the user to listen in on conversations from farther away. 332

Searching- Allows the user to find people and tracks easier. 398

Hiding- Makes the user more difficult to detect. 351

Extended Weight Limit- Increases the amount of weight one can have in their inventory. 206

Regeneration- Allows the user to regenerate a set amount of HP every ten seconds. 328

Picking- The ability to pick locked doors and chests. 402

Sprint- Allows the user to shoot forward set amounts of distance at superhuman speeds. 121