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. 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, 2006)
Asuna- 17 (September 30th, 2005)
Sinon- 16 (January 17th, 2007)
Jace- 17 (February 13th, 2006)
Chapter 8: The Cyclonic Crypt
Tuesday, January 2nd 2023. Continent: Ianides. City limits of Stormcall. User Jace
Snow was the worst.
The snow in Aincrad was pointless. If it was picked up, it burst apart in the animation that signified durability depletion and vanished. It acted like regular snow otherwise, slushing around Sinon's feet as soon as she stepped in it and sneaking into her socks before melting, leaving her with a chilly feeling below. But soon, Jace and Sinon would be out of the cold snow.
"Dammit," Sinon growled as she shot repeatedly at the lock on the metal grate with her pistol, trying to get it to open up. Her attempts were worthless, the bullets just bringing up purple hexagons proclaiming the grate's status as an «Immortal Object»– meaning its durability could not be depleted.
"You need a higher «Picking» skill to open it," Jace explained, opening his menu and pulling out a strange device Sinon had never seen before. "Mine is of… fair level, so I'll open it."
"What is that?" Sinon asked her partner.
"This is a «Hacker». It's used for opening locked doors and chests," the blonde explained. He tapped the screen twice to activate the device and stuck the metal picks into the grates lock. Then, with rapid taps and strokes, he began typing out strings of code. After a few seconds, the screen turned completely green and there was a soft click. "It's unlocked now."
"Why didn't you just use that in the first place?" Sinon grumbled.
"You were intent on shooting it open," Jace pointed out. "I tried to help at first but you were sure you could do it." He then paused for a minute before adding with a smirk, "It was also really funny to watch."
"Just because we're a team doesn't mean the next bullet won't go in your calf," Sinon growled at him. The blonde instantly shut his mouth and they went in together.
"Ugh, I hate sewers," Jace complained. "Couldn't «Ghillie of Babel» have been in a forest or on a mountain?"
"What's wrong with sewers?" Sinon asked, stepping in a pile of rat dung without a second thought. "Are they too untidy for the great Jace?"
Jace blushed and looked away as she stared at him. "It's not about the mess," he explained to the wall. "It's about the lack of space. I can't stand the underground."
"That's not true at all," Sinon said, spinning her partner around to face her directly. "You don't mind being in tight spaces because you were fine in the alleys during the Clearing of Miriam. And you didn't mind being in the «Lunar Mine» for extra time. You insisted that we mine that «Iridium Ore» for Lisbeth; you were even singing while we were mining. It's that you can't stand being in a sewer, you girl."
Jace looked at her with a sneer. When he looked forward again, the two realized that they had reached a curve in the tunnel. At the end of that turn, the tunnel ended, opening up into a massive underground cavern. The walls curved together at the top and there were rows and rows of filthy sewer canals, sidewalks sporting a dull gray, cement color. A notification popped up in Jace's vision, marking the area as the «Cyclonic Crypt.» This was the only place they could possibly find a monster in Stormcall, as the rest of the city was a safe zone.
Sinon turned to Jace with a sad smile. "Alright, Jace," she said. "Go back up above ground now."
Jace looked at her with confusion. "Why?"
"You don't want to be here," she said honestly. "And anyway, I have to complete this mission alone. It's telling me to disband my party."
Jace frowned. "No way," he said, shaking his head. "Kayaba didn't make «Ghillie of Babel» a solo mission because it was nearly impossible to do solo. I had to use an SMG just to get to this Boss alone and then I had to hide on a perch and get help because I ran out of ammo for my weapons."
"Would you mind trading me some ammo for the rest of my equipment for now, then?" Sinon asked. "I should only need Sniper ammunition, and I can take everything back once I get back from this dungeon."
Jace's frown deepened. "I don't want to leave you," he said. "Tell me it's some kind of a joke; I can hardly leave you to do your job during the Clearings, and now you're going to be facing a «Monster Class Boss.»"
"Well, give me all the information you know," Sinon said.
Jace sighed and leaned against the edge of the wall as he began trading off his items to Sinon. "The «Beast of Stormcall» is the common name for «Torclone, Beast of Winds.» He lies in the heart of the Crypt, sleeping until people enter the area called the Heart Chamber. When they arrive, he awakens after ten seconds. Ten seconds is just enough time to get from the ground to the ledge in the northeast corner. If you snipe from there, his ranged attacks can't hit you, and he can't reach high enough for a physical attack. And be careful when you go in; the tunnel closes."
"Thank you, Jace," Sinon said, taking his hand in hers for a brief moment. Oh god, how she wanted to keep him with her. But as she removed her hand from his grasp and opened her menu to disband the Squadron that she had made with him, she knew that she had to be strong and fight the pang of fear in her stomach. She would be okay without the blonde for one fight, so long as she had enough ammo. Her rifle was of high enough quality to take out many monsters in one hit; she had gotten it upgraded after her fight with the «Slenderman» in the «Black Forest.»
"Sinon," Jace whispered. "Just promise you'll come back."
Sinon nodded and turned away from her partner. She leapt down from the tunnel and vanished from Jace's sight. Then, with a loud, metallic squeal, the entrance to the crypt shuddered shut.
Jace frowned as he stared at the closed door. There was nothing he could do but head back. He slowly made his way out of the sewer, finally stepping into the snow with a sigh. Flurries brushed across his face as he looked up.
"It's sure coming down hard today," Jace said to himself thoughtfully. It had snowed often since his Christmas with Sinon, but the blonde hadn't seen it snow this hard in months. In fact, he hadn't seen the snow falling so hard since he had been in the «Ethereal Highlands» with Sinon, right before she had defeated the «Slenderman» and taken on the mission to become the «Ghillie of Babel» months ago.
It was funny, he thought as he closed his eyes; he had completely forgotten about his brief time in the same area back in the beta during August. It was snowing almost as hard then as it was now with Sinon, but somehow he failed to recall the events that transpired on that same road. Was it because so much time had passed since the beta? Or had it been more? Had it been that he wanted to forget?
Closing his eyes, Jace knew the truth as he thought back.
)-0-(
Saturday, August 27th, 2022. Continent: Ianides. Snow Valley. User Jace
Weather was certainly a strange thing on Aincrad.
The winter seasons were the only ones that had accurate weather–it could snow at virtually any time in reality, so during the preset days of winter, the planet would get snow that was randomly generated–unless it was too warm, in which it would begin to rain. The AI system that ran the planet–called Cardinal–would also generate the duration of the precipitation to match whatever was happening in reality. In effect, winter would have realistic snowfalls all over the planet.
In every other season, though, weather was predetermined by miniature biomes. For example, the «Ethereal Highlands» located in the center of Ianides had an area around the mountains shaped almost like a figure-eight, called the «Arctic Belt.» There, it snowed every single day–even on a day like today, where the weather was tropically warm just a few kilometers south of the area's border.
As «Diamite» was by far the rarest ore discovered at the time–which meant nearly nothing, as the Clearers had only reached the third Major City on «Ianides»–it was fitting that it was discovered in the heart of the map in an area only possible to reach by climbing a mountain.
"From this point on, the snow gets worse!" Jace shouted to Jackal over the sound of a howling blizzard. "If we stay out here in the cold much longer, we'll get frozen like popsicles unless we bundle up, but we still need to find a cave soon! The Highlands are riddled with them!"
"I can't hear you!" Jackal yelled from two meters away as he fought the wind to take a step forward.
"We need shelter!" Jace screamed. "There should be a cave about two hundred meters from here!"
"Oh! I understand now!" the redhead shouted back.
The two players rushed forward, activating their «Sprint» skills to surge ahead against the winds. They made it, eventually, but the cave wasn't much warmer than the outside was. Jace took his hands and scooped out a medium sized ditch of snow near the mouth of the cave. "Cold air sinks," Jace panted after he was done. "The ditch will catch a lot of cold air, despite its size–or lack thereof, I suppose."
"How about we make a fire? Just until we finish getting warm," Jackal suggested.
Jace thought for a moment. He hadn't heard of any monsters in the caves of the «Ethereal Highlands» during the beta, but he didn't want to risk exposing himself so easily. "I don't know, Jackal," Jace said quietly. "There could be creatures in here."
Jackal looked deeper into the cave, half surprised to find that it continued deeper inside. "It goes on? I didn't know there was a cavern system in the «Arctic Belt.»" The redhead punched Jace's shoulder lightly. "What say we do a little spelunking, eh?"
The blonde frowned as he thought. There wasn't much real risk involved either way–they find a monster, lose, die, and respawn. "I guess a little bit of exploring couldn't really hurt," he said cautiously. "We might find a way up without having to go outside."
Jackal smiled and walked deeper into the cave. "Alright, spookies! Let's go!"
Jace glanced back at the mouth of the cave behind him, shivering as he turned away. And for the first time that day, it hadn't been because of the cold. With that, he began walking up the slight slope of the tunnel that led up to the top of the mountain, watching the light fading away with each step he took.
The trip through the cave was rather creepy, as Jace hadn't levelled up his «Night Vision» skill to quite the level that Jackal had. Jackal, of course was a weaponsmith, and his time in the mines to gather materials for orders had naturally levelled up the skill. But the blonde still felt like his temporary partner was showing off, waltzing over nooks, crags, and crannies as if they weren't there at all.
The trip up was all but noteworthy. To Jace's surprise, there were no mobs that attacked the group as they ascended to the top levels of the cliff. That stunned the blonde in and of itself; on his trip through these same caves, he nearly had to dodge mobs. Maybe someone had taken the same path an hour prior, and Jace and Jackal were just lucky. Jace, however, did not believe in luck.
The two reached the top of the mountain unscathed. The view was as incredible as it was on his last journey; he could see for kilometers and kilometers into the distance. He was even able to spot the town of Asfos just to the mountain's southern side. The cottony white clouds stretched lazily across the azure skies, as if crawling to their destination without any regard to speed. The snow, when he focused on it, resolved into tiny crystalline flakes, similar to the ones he used to cut out from sheets of paper as a child.
Jace thought about how much technology had advanced in his lifetime. When he was about four years old, the Nintendo 3DS had just come out. Now he was fully immersed in a virtual world. And though fine details only came out when his eyes focused on a certain area to keep the graphics engine from breaking down, the world seemed unbelievably real to his eyes.
And it wasn't just his eyes that were tricked into thinking that this world was real, it was all of his senses: the cold snow against his skin, the smell of the winter breeze, the sound of the howling wind and crunching snow, the taste of «Slimy Stagwiches» left in his mouth from their breakfast that morning. The Nervegear sent the exact signals to his brain to make him believe that he was experiencing every sensual feeling of this pseudo-environment, while he was truly doing nothing but laying on his bed, eyes closed and breathing as though he was in a coma.
Jace shook his head before he started thinking about the philosophical topic of consciousness and looked across the peak at Jackal. The redhead was staring down the side of the mountain, as if he were looking for something. A mob perhaps? Or maybe it was another player? At any rate, before he could guess what the boy was looking at, he shifted his gaze back to Jace.
"We have to hurry," Jackal said. "It'll be dark before long, and if the temperature drops much lower, we'll get a «Frost Effect» that will kill us slowly."
Jace frowned. The look in Jackal's eyes was one of dead seriousness, the likes of which the blonde had never seen from him before. A shiver ran down his spine, but he tried to ignore the fear that was forming a stone in his stomach. "Alright," he said, his frown deepening. "Let's get going."
)-0-(
Tuesday, January 2nd, 2023. Continent: Ianides. Kingsreach. User Asuna
Asuna was finally happy.
Asuna's life until the release of GWO had been just about a living hell. She fought with her mother constantly–most often about whether or not she would allow herself to be put in an arranged marriage. The only person she found comfort from was her brother–who was in a way responsible for trapping him here.
Her brother, Kouichirou, had gotten a copy of Galactic Warfare Online–their father had been a part of the company responsible for its release, so he managed to get his son one of the twenty-five thousand copies–and raved about it endlessly. Asuna began to grow curious, so when her brother was called overseas for a business trip on the release date of GWO, he gave her permission to try the game.
It was a world that she'd never imagined before. She could feel the sun on her skin; she could taste the food that she ate; she could be anyone she wanted to be–not just "that rich Yuuki girl." She was finally free, free of her responsibilities from being the daughter of a rich family. Aincrad was a place full of possibilities where anything could happen. It wasn't long before she actually wished that she could live within this world.
And then, all too soon, she was.
When Kayaba had made the announcement that changed everything, Asuna broke. Any mistake while she was training could mean her imminent death, and the fear that she would never return to Earth consumed her. She crumpled into pieces and holed herself up in an inn room, crying there in a ball on the bed for weeks. This world, though just a game, that had been so bright and promising, now would be her demise.
But Asuna could only stand to grovel over her misfortune in that one week. She mustered up her courage and went out to level as hard as she could until she was accepted into the Clearers. She fought day and night, on a strict schedule. She would never be the same if she stayed in a hotel room for the entirety of the game. In her mind, the only way that she would stay herself was by fighting the odds and defying Kayaba's plans. She didn't even care if she died–if she went down, she was going to go down swinging.
When she met Kirito in Nefaria though, she began to see more clearly how false her outlook on life within the game was. It was as if something clicked within her, and everything began to make sense. She couldn't simply live without a care as to what her life meant. Kirito was fighting for his life and the lives of all the other players. If she didn't care about her own life, how could she care about theirs?
They had an incredible working relationship; in their first fight together they had been so in sync, she thought that she might have been linked by mind to the infamous Beater. She even felt oddly comfortable with him, though she hadn't ever really trusted a boy other than her brother before. She chalked it up to the way he looked at life, though.
Then, when they met again in Babel, she had asked Kirito to join him in a Squadron. Kirito seemed as though he didn't want to, but eventually the Black Swordsman accepted her request. It had been three weeks since then, and the effects of training with a better player were already beginning to show on Asuna. She was growing by the level so fast that she wondered if there was a limit.
Today, they were taking their weekly break from gaining experience and levels. They had come to Kingsreach to get new supplies; they were running out of «Energy Cores» for their «Mobile Teleporters» and–of course–they needed ammo. So they went to Kingsreach, one of the larger Major Cities.
"Kirito, how hard is it to use a «Plasmid Sword»-type weapon?" Asuna asked her companion.
"Well, it's fairly easy," Kirito answered absentmindedly. "You just have to have good «Dexterity» stats. The rest is keeping the blade in front of the «Prediction Line» and not getting yourself hurt."
"How much do they cost?" Asuna continued.
"Well, they vary," Kirito said, only now truly listening to her; she had asked many questions about his sword before, but usually they just seemed like empty conversation. "Mine would probably be worth 18,000 Col, give or take, without upgrades, so with all the upgrades, it would probably be worth about 35,000 to 40,000 Col. Why do you ask?"
"I'm thinking that I want to use mine," Asuna said, glancing at a nearby NPC weapon store as she shrugged her Light Rifle into a more comfortable position. "They're much lighter than these and we could train together more easily."
"I don't know, Asuna," Kirito said slowly. "It's really dangerous to use «Plasmid Swords» without proper training. I died a lot back in the beta before I finally got a hang of it."
Asuna huffed at him with a glare. "I'm not a little girl," she said grouchily. "I can take care of myself. I just want to use a «Plasmid Sword» to do that now. That way, we'll be able to train easier, too."
"We'll have to only hunt near Base Camp and Babel for a while," Kirito explained. "It would lower our levelling in the short term, as well as the potential long term. If you really want one, we could look for one, but even then, you would need to find which weapon suits you the most; you can't just pick up a one handed sword and swing it around, you have to feel comfortable with it. You might prefer to use a two-handed sword, or an axe as opposed to your rapier."
"Well who could we see to find out?" Asuna asked in frustration, slightly put out as she crossed her arms over her chest. "It's not like there are any experts on how to use swords! Who the hell even uses swords in here anyway?" Then, noticing the look of half offense on Kirito's face, she blushed and waved her hand as if to dispel his thought. "Not like that, I mean."
"Well, the «School of Swordsmen» are pretty good at teaching swordsmanship," Kirito said, looking as though his pride still hurt a bit. He opened his menu and began typing out a message as he carried on speaking. "I could ask one of them for me; a few of them owe me a favor for helping them in the beta test."
"Would we be able to get it done soon?" Asuna asked curiously. She wasn't very educated when it came to the game, but she knew that the «School of Swordsmen» was an Army that was very busy–they had to spend a lot of time levelling and studying the mythology and culture of the planet. They were almost clones of the Jedis from the movie, Star Wars.
"There's usually at least one of the Swordsmen in the big cities," the raven-haired boy reasoned as he sent his message and closed his menu. "If we can't find one here, then it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to just head to the Spatial Rift and teleport over to their base in Politik."
"Let's go then," Asuna said.
Asuna walked with Kirito further into the city, marveling at the many sights and scenes that unfolded in front of them. Just like in most other large cities, people were buying things from street vendors. There were lovers sitting together and holding hands. Shady characters walked around, looking as though they were sizing up targets. All in all though, it was a peaceful place, and Asuna was thoroughly enjoying it–though Kirito had told her that there was not a single person in the town that could help her. And as they reached the center, they reached the «Spatial Rift.» Soon they reached the center of the city, where a dark violet portal swirled ominously
The «Spatial Rift» was a fast travel system that teleported players from one area to another. Technically, this was already possible through the use of «Mobile Teleporters,» but the personal machines only worked with the help of items called «Battery Packs.» The packs charged the small watch-like teleportation devices, but they could only be purchased at very high costs. For this reason, the «Spatial Rift» was worshipped by fellow players as a gift from the gods–or as some people had begun saying, a gift from the Oblivia–due to the lack of expenses it required.
As Asuna looked at the «Spatial Rift,» she realized she had certainly chosen the right word: ominous. Though it appeared to be nothing more than a platform, the inner area of it was a shade of dark–nearly black–purple. There were parts that were lighter and darker, and they all swirled around each other in a hauntingly beautiful, yet eerily terrifying waltz.
Asuna crept a bit closer to her companion. "It looks…"
"Creepy?" Kirito finished. "I agree, but once you use it a couple times, you start to appreciate it more." Then Kirito reached a hand over and took hers in his own before stepping forward. Asuna followed closely as he spoke the code that would send him to the bustling city of Politik.
Within an instant, Asuna lost all feelings of… well, feeling. It was almost as though her soul was floating away from her body, drifting away in time and space. Her body was gone and she was soaring across space to be dropped off at her destination. At the last possible second, she regained feeling in her legs and managed to catch herself without stumbling too much. Kirito, however, landed as if he had never moved. The journey through the «Spatial Rift» did not affect him whatsoever. Without a word, he began to trek forward, to the eastern exit of the city. Asuna barely had any time to recover to catch up to him.
There was something very different about the city of Politik than the other cities. Similar to Glasswater's western theme, their current location was themed. The city was very medieval-looking, with cobblestone streets and braziers mounted on wooden stands every few yards, the coals red and waiting to be reignited as the sun went down.
Soon they arrived at their destination. About twenty-five or so meters into the city was a small building that looked like a house. Asuna guessed by the sign out front that it was the base of the «School of Swordsmen,» as the sign had two swords crossed in front of a book etched into the wood.
Asuna felt uneasy. This was a massive risk, changing her entire style on a mere whim. She thought that the rewards would be phenomenal if she could pull off the adjustment, though. With a deep breath, she grasped the plain doorknob. She could do it. It wasn't like they would throw her into a dungeon with different types of swords. She opened the door slowly and peeked inside, Kirito at her back.
The walls were made of dark wood with sconces that held torches every few feet that dimly lit the room just to the point where it was easy to see. The floor was made of black stones cemented together with some sort of lavender material. They were unnaturally flat, but they had just enough of a curve to seem almost real–though Asuna hated to use that word in regards to Aincrad, as nothing was truly real in this world. In the corner, a man stood behind a black desk guarding a curtained door.
The man was dressed in a black, hoodless cloak. He had a thin smile on his lips, but his eyes were filled with a dark fire that frightened Asuna. He had silvery gray hair that looked almost white and a beard to match, but he had almost no wrinkles–only a single laugh-line was engraved on his right cheek. He was blocking the only entrance deeper into the building with his body as he stared intensely at Kirito, as if the boy had come in and knocked over several tables for the fun of it.
"What is your purpose of coming here, Black Swordsman?" the man asked, his eyes surely burning holes through Kirito's black long-coat. The boy with messy raven hair seemed nonchalant as he answered with a confident smile to the old man.
"Is that any way to treat your best student, Katsuo?" Kirito asked with a slight bow. "I've come to redeem a favor I've been owed. My friend, Asuna, is currently searching for the Plasmid Weapon she is most suited for. My request is that you guide her through the process and teach her which weapon will be best for her needs–as well as helping her train three times a week with the new weapon."
Katsuo turned to look at Asuna. "This boy says you wish to be instructed in the art of the «Plasmid Sword.» It is not an easy road to follow, nor is it particularly rewarding. You will most likely not be recognized as a skillful player, but as reckless instead. This training will take you months to get to your current skill level in whatever weapon you have at the moment, and the selection process itself will take at least a week. If you truly wish to be a wielder of the «Plasmid Sword,» this is what awaits you. Do you accept the challenge?"
Asuna looked from Katsuo to Kirito. They both appeared to be some of the strongest players she had met, and she had only known Katsuo for two minutes. The old man was sizing her up coldly even now as she hesitated for the slightest fraction of a second. This frustrated Asuna, who frowned and crossed her arms in a display of confidence.
"I, Asuna, accept the challenge of the «School of Swordsmen.»"
Katsuo nodded and then stepped to the side as he pulled up the curtain, revealing a door. Asuna entered slowly and was immediately taken aback by how large the area was. It was a massive dojo with floors made of dark wood, where many people clad in black cloaks were practicing slashing and stabbing. Some were even sparring with each other, attacking with confidence and barely flinching as the plasma blades seared into their skins. The old man then stepped behind her and put a hand against the small of her back, causing the girl with chestnut hair to stumble into the dojo.
"Enter, Asuna, and be trained in the most noble of arts: the art of swordplay!"
)-0-(
Tuesday, January 2nd 2023. Continent: Ianides. Cyclonic Crypt. User Sinon
Sinon was definitely lost.
Originally, she had decided to only follow the right wall. It would ensure that she reach the heart of the maze. But it was a process that took a lot of time, and about fifteen minutes in, she abandoned it and tried to begin heading back the way she came.
To no one's surprise, she reached an unfamiliar crossroad. She didn't recognize it because there had been so many intersections, so Sinon decided to stop and check her Map Data. The files were not working–she was in an area that forbade the use of Map Data. But instead of keeping her cool and continuing on the same side of the wall–which was now left–she headed to the right, and soon found herself lost, turning about this way and that in hopes of finding the true path.
Soon, her hopes disappeared as she realized that she was truly lost and unable to use her Mobile Teleporter. The batteries were dead, and she was unable to switch them out due to a «Location Based Restriction.» Her only hope was to find the beast in the center, defeat it, and then pray that the labyrinth would crumble away with its death–after all, that was what was said to have happened in the «Gardenial Glade» near the town of Donquix.
She continued walking for what felt like hours until she arrived at a small room-like area with a chest in the center. It appeared to be locked, in much the same way as the grate that had almost blocked her entry into the crypt. Luckily, Jace had given the girl his «Hacker» just in case she found something like this. She pulled it out and began to try and fiddle with the lock. After several minutes of slips and curses, she successfully unlocked the chest and sat with bated breath. What was in it? Was it some kind of monetary treasure? Was it a rare item? Or was it a trap that would surround her with mobs or shoot darts at her? Sinon wasn't sure, but she was excited. Still holding onto her breath, she opened the lid cautiously.
Inside was a large spool of golden thread that was huge, as though it had enough length to go on for hundreds of meters. Sinon found herself recalling the Greek myth of Ariadne and Theseus and pondered for a brief moment on just how similar the Xylotian Mythology and Greco-Roman Mythology were. As Sinon picked up the spool, she wondered if Kayaba had been intrigued by Greek culture when he was young and had created a world modeled after their legendary tales.
As she looked at the thread in her hands, it began unraveling, shooting off in a direction Sinon hadn't traveled. Logically, it should be pointing her in the right direction–unless it was an item made to intentionally confuse the players. But as the room had only two entrances, it seemed unlikely to the sniper that the item was made to get players even more lost. So, taking the risk, she followed the string.
Left left right left right straight right left. Then, straight right straight right left straight left right left straight left. Right left right straight right left straight left straight right.
The whole way, she didn't come across a single mob, but at the same time, she felt like she was being watched. Once or twice, she even turned around and could have sworn she saw a shadow darting into one of the crossroads she had passed, or even a glowing pair of red eyes peeking around a corner. Of course, her «Perception» skill told her there was nothing close to her. The only living thing in the crypt that she knew of was waiting for her now about two hundred and sixty feet into the cave. And from what she could guess, it would be an insane match to face.
Soon, Sinon reached the entrance of a massive central chamber, taking in a full view of an enormous sleeping beast. She very quickly felt like she was facing a certain philistine giant who went by the name of Goliath.
«Torclone, the Beast of Winds» was the biggest mob she'd ever seen. It looked like a giant, wingless dragon with milky white skin and legs the size of redwood tree trunks. Its spine had yellow spikes sticking out from it like thorns on a rose that traveled from its horned head to its long, spiky, club-like tail. As it opened its mouth in a lethargic yawn, the sniper noticed that each of its teeth were as long as her legs–except for its canines, which were as tall as she was–and how they tapered off into points sharper than a pencil tip. It must have weighed at least as much as a two tractor trailers–maybe three, Sinon thought as she noticed all of the skeletons around it and wondered how much it ate–and it exerted an unmistakable aura of death. Much to her distress, she couldn't even tell how powerful it was compared to her; the monster she was facing would not show any sign of its stats until she aggroed it, which wasn't something she was prepared to do just yet. Jace hadn't been kidding when he said this thing would be impossible to kill solo.
And so she began to plot her attack.
Sinon was many things, including a coward. But she was by no means a quitter. She had started this mission, and the only way she was going to get out was by either killing this massive beast or by letting it kill her. And, though she wanted to believe that she would wake up in some hospital room if her HP reached zero, she knew that it was far too long into the game for Kayaba's Speech back on that November day to be a lie, and she didn't want to die. So instead, she vowed that she would bury every last bullet she had into this thing, if need be.
Dragons were a moderately popular part of Xylotian Mythology. They were known as the gatekeepers to the underworld and were infamous for their lethality. It was rare for the Xylotes to try to kill one, but when they did, it was out of necessity–mostly because attempting to kill a dragon was a waste of time. Their scales were thirteen times harder than diamonds, and–according to legend–they were used as material for the armor of the Oblivia. The only chance to kill one was somehow shooting one in the eye or by attacking spots where the scales had worn away to reveal exposed flesh. After a quick scan of the beast, Sinon found one spot just like that on «Torclone;» right over the dragon's heart was a patch of vulnerable skin. She would have to place every bullet in there that she could shoot, or else she'd–
Parcel received from Jace.
Sinon opened her menu curiously and opened the gift. In the menu the parcel brought up, she saw three items which made her smile. Putting the items in her inventory, she vowed to thank the blonde later for his gifts. She knew that they would help immensely.
Sinon took a deep breath and began dashing forward into the room. The ledge Jace had told her about wasn't very far away, she knew, but since she only had ten seconds before the beast woke up, she might as well have had no time at all. By the time the blue-haired girl climbed over the ledge, she felt tongues of flame in the air where she had been just a moment ago.
The sniper took out the three items and waited until she could no longer feel the heat from the flames before standing up and facing the monster. It was even more terrifying awake than it was asleep, Sinon thought as she threw the items at the beast before its mouth unhinged like a cobra.
Sinon was thankful that she dove back immediately after.
As soon as she hit the ground, purple plasma streamed towards her perch, searing the very air above her. The edge of the ledge was as black as tar from the purple inferno. Knowing that she had to use the items now, she pulled out a rectangular device from her inventory and pressed the button on its GUI.
An ungodly screech rang through Sinon's ears as the «Nuclear Detonators» went off. Their blast radius was only fifty feet, so Sinon was safe, but the dragon's HP immediately started dropping, eventually taking off a full two bars. But the battle was far from over. Just because a dragon was susceptible to nuclear energy didn't mean that it would be damaged nearly as easily by bullets.
The odds never mattered to her, though, Sinon thought as she raised her gun and aimed at the spot of exposed flesh on the dragon and watched her Aiming Circle shrink. She didn't care how long it would take; she was still going to beat it. She was going to grow stronger. There was no obstacle that she would allow to stand in her path. Even if it was a person, she would take care of it by any means necessary… even if it meant that she would have to relive that incident…
Her Aiming Circle pulsed.
At first it just seemed like it was getting stuck. Then Sinon realized with a start that it was growing. Her shock only made the circle grow more until her whole field of vision was green. That face was coming back into existence in the front of her brain; that man in the post office. His black pistol of death gleamed with a sinister light in her mind's eye. His lifeless eyes, the blood spurting from his forehead, the very image that had traumatized her all these years was coming back to her… and it had all been her fault…
Shino threw herself down and began dry heaving–vomit had not been implemented in Galactic Warfare Online–even as eerie plasma flared over her head. Her blue eyes dilated and her breathing came in ragged, violent bursts. She groaned in terror. It had only been self-defense; why was he still haunting her!
But in the midst of her darkest hour, within her consciousness, within her soul, she felt a hand touch her arm softly. It was the hand of her partner, Jace. He was strong. And though she would bet money that he had never killed anyone, he was possibly the strongest person she knew. She had to overcome her weakness to become like that. She had to!
With a growl, Sinon stood from where the weak girl, Shino Asada, had been lying down. Fury in her eyes, she whipped her gun up and aimed down the sight, the scope homing directly into the center of the exposed fleshy spot. She flipped her gun, activating a «Weapon Skill» and fired a seven hit combo known as «Wrath of the Viper.»
The first bullet lodged itself deep within «Torclone's» chest, the next two spiraling around the first in a double helix. Then the next four made a plus sign out of the first bullet. They all reached the same depth before burying themselves deeper all the way into the heart of the beast. It drove the beast's second HP bar down by about four percent.
Sinon huffed a strand of hair from her face, now fully back in control of her body, though the beast showed no signs of calming down. This was going to be a long battle, she thought as she ducked under yet another stream of purple death. It would be a long battle indeed.
–o–
It took her several hours and all but four bullets to fell the beast, but eventually she did manage to kill it. It had burst apart into tiny fragments of blue polygons with a shattering sound as any other mob would, but the rewards she got from it were incredible. She had acquired 750 Col–a substantial amount for a single mob, even a boss–and 3000 experience points. That wasn't even counting the items.
As she went to look at her loot, she saw two items that she'd never seen before. The first was an equippable armor item called the «Ghillie Gear»–a Ghillie suit. When she took it out, she saw that it matched the sewer walls, with small amounts of plumage that might have been moss dotting the surface.
Sinon decided it would replace her Commando outfit. While she did kind of like her old suit, she hated being ogled by the other players in the frontlines like she was an ultra-rare weapon on display. She opened its menu, almost shocked at the description that lay inside.
"The «Ghillie Gear» is a piece of equipment that Mangyrst made for his Champion in the First Tournament, before Beasts were used. It maximizes the champion's Accuracy and camouflages the bearer by taking the data of the surrounding biome and reflecting the results on the surface. Use?"
Sinon was surprised to find that the white dragon had been one of the Champions. Weren't the Champions supposed to be humanoid Xylotes? And weren't the items they dropped supposed to be long-coats? She mentally resolved to ask Argo about her find later, though she didn't know if she was supposed to keep it a secret like Jace had. On second thought, maybe she should go to Jace first…
The next item was called the «Urn of Olympus», and it was made of pure gold. Embossed and engraved in the gold–almost like a story–were many hieroglyphic-like drawings. Sinon could only imagine that they were telling the tale of the last «Ghillie of Babel,» though it seemed odd that there could have been one in the game's past.
She didn't bother to look at the item's description; she could find information about it if she truly wanted to later. But as it was, it was simply a means to an end. She couldn't sell or drop it; it was a quest item, and the system didn't allow the loss of quest items. It was said that even after death, the items stayed in the player's inventory, though they could not be removed.
No, she thought as she closed the mob's dead GUI. Her primary concern right now was escaping the crypt. She glanced back to where she entered the chamber and saw the string that led her there. All she had to do was follow it back to the last room and use it to climb the wall and find her bearings. Her escape would be fun indeed.
)-0-(
Tuesday, January 2nd 2023. Continent: Ianides. Emmix. User Spiegel
The city of Emmix was one of the lesser known towns on the massive continent of Ianides. Part of this was due to the road system that spanned across the rounded square-like land mass. The main road, affectionately dubbed as the Royal Road by the players, went from the center of the southwest up to the «Ethereal Highlands» and then around to the west of them, tracing about fifty kilometers from the edge of the continent in a clockwise motion. Then it stopped at about two o'clock and made a U opening towards the west, before heading in a straight line to the southeast. All of the major cities were along this road, so the highest leveled players stayed on it for the most part–though it was the only route in the beginning of the game anyways.
Halfway between Nefaria and Asfos, though, a smaller road appeared, forking off the side of the Royal Road. It led to many Forts as it webbed all over the southwestern half of the continent. One of the southeastern cities, along the south beach, was Emmix.
When mid-level players found the small cities, Heathcliff relinquished a small force of about twenty Clearers to help and make sure the cities were safe to invade–though many found the action unnecessary, as some of the towns were small enough to be cleared by medium sized Armies or even large Squadrons. The path to these cities was much easier to clear than the Royal Road, and one observant player even found that Xylote level was determined by distance along roads from Base Camp. The only differences were on the south road to the last city and the road eastward from Soaroff in the middle-east, which were guarded by Xylotes at higher levels than their distance from the front line would suggest, effectively stopping the mid-level players from progressing past the frontline.
Emmix was arguably the most beautiful of any of these towns, with its close proximity to the beach's shoreline, but the fact that it was so small made most players not want to visit it. After all, there were few players that would want to come to a town like Emmix that would be filled more with tourists than space. Ironically, it was exactly that philosophy that kept it from becoming such a tourist spot.
And so for Spiegel, it was a wonderful vacation spot.
He brushed his brown hair back with his hand, his yellow jacket flapping behind him in the gentle breeze. Unfortunately, he was wearing dark jeans, and he was getting hot. He looked around for players and didn't see any, so he slipped into the doorway of a small shop nearby. Then he stripped to his yellow boxers and into his swimsuit–a pair of yellow trunks with black stripes down his outer thighs.
Spiegel was a hard worker, sure. But due to recent run-ins with the «Aincrad Liberation Force»–the Army he had joined with his friend Kibaou back in the first weeks of GWO–he found himself along with Kibaou on mandatory vacations for "the safety of the other players."
Spiegel thought it was unfair that he was being sent on temporary leave; he merely co-commanded with Kibaou on the mission to send forty newbies on a mission to the «Hollow Grove» to scout for a boss. They hadn't found one, just a forest maze that in fact turned out to be a very high-level dungeon. They had made it out alive of course, but a few of the recruits were left behind. The only reason they even knew they had died was the Monument of Fallen Soldiers in the «Black Iron Palace» marking off their names.
Long story short, Thinker–the Commander of the Army–had sent them to separate towns to "split up the dream team" and "give everyone some breathing room."
"Whatever," Spiegel grunted as he opened his menu and grabbed a towel before lying down on it, idly wondering about his love, Shino Asada. He had suggested that she get a copy of the game when it came out and found her traveling with that freak, Jace. He didn't know how she could possibly go with someone as rude as him, but they had already been making a scene when he first found them. He knew it would be a bad idea to bring up the topic of joining them, especially if she said no–although he couldn't imagine her doing so; they were best friends in the real world. There was no way a stranger like Jace could possibly hope to come between them.
Spiegel looked up with a start as he realized he had just received a message. He opened his menu and navigated to his private messages. There was one new message from Kibaou, who was still enraged that Thinker had sent him off and relieved him from his duties for weeks.
Kibaou: Hes a f*cking idiot. I dont no who he thinks he is, but im the leader of the expedition force! I take care of all of the operations in the clearings and I take care of all the leveling partys.
Spiegel sighed and began to type his response. He liked Kibaou a lot–the man had helped him greatly by taking him under his wing. Kibaou had apparently been through combat training in the Japanese armed forces, but after a year he had been thrown out for throwing fits very similar to this one. When he wasn't mad though, he was quite enjoyable to be around.
Spiegel: Well, he's technically the Commander, even if he's just a figurehead. Plus that news is sure to have gotten out with that one noob who switched to the Red Dragons of War. He had to do something, and though it was stupid it was probably necessary.
Kibaou's response came in just a moment afterward.
Kibaou: Shut the f*ck up, Spiegel.
The brunette's eyes widened slightly but quickly calmed down, as he was used to the outbursts that the Vice Commander of the «Aincrad Liberation Force» often displayed. He closed his menu and rolled onto his side, thinking about other things like his stats.
Kibaou and Spiegel were a team, much like Jace and Sinon had become as of late. Spiegel served the same role as Jace as the Stormer, but Kibaou was quite different from Sinon. His role was to unload bullet after bullet into larger mobs and weaken them to the point where they could be easily dealt by Spiegel's SMG.
They were an AGI/STR combo, which wasn't at all unusual. But somehow, fighting mobs came much more easily to Kibaou than it did to Spiegel. Spiegel chalked it up to Kibaou having a massive gun. Spiegel may have been very fast, but he was seriously lacking in STR. The light machine guns that Kibaou used were far too heavy for him to wield. Somehow, he felt like Kibaou came up on top with the better half of the deal.
He shook his head. They couldn't both fight Warlord style; the heavy gunner needed a speedy hit and run man to take down the quicker opponents. It was simply a matter of body type making sense. Though Kibaou wasn't large, he wasn't as small as Spiegel, whose smaller frame was much harder to hit than Kibaou's would be with the same AGI stat. Kibaou's size also made him a better tank, so the added STR boost made more sense on the spiky-headed Warlord than the tall, thin Stormer.
He received another message from the fiery soldier and opened it, reading it briefly before typing out his response.
Kibaou: Im sorry. That was uncalld for.
Spiegel: I understand the frustration. I do not agree with Thinker, I can only see where he's coming from. You don't want everyone on your hide, do you?
Kibaou's response was a simple one: No.
Spiegel: Then make sure you act calm throughout this whole ordeal. The easiest way to get back into the swing of things is by making Thinker think that you're responsible, and the easiest way to do that would be to take this punishment and swallow your pride.
Kibaou didn't respond for a while, but when he did, it drew a light smile on Spiegel's face.
Kibaou: Your not too dumb for a stormer.
Spiegel rolled his eyes and closed out of his messages before turning away and looking across the beach. As long as he wasn't allowed back to Base Camp, he might as well enjoy his temporary leave on vacation. And what better of a place than here, where the waters were crystal blue and the white sands were just the right temperature–warm enough to keep his feet nice and toasty without burning them.
Spiegel rolled over on his towel, staring off into the distance in the other direction. The waves lapped gently at the shore, the only noise that could be heard for hundreds of meters around. He sighed and began to hum quietly to himself, enjoying the briny breeze on his brow. His eyelids slowly began to grow heavier and heavier until they shut delicately and his breathing evened out.
–o–
When Spiegel opened his eyes, he was not where he had been. He definitely had not fallen asleep in a cold, damp room. The sight made him jump and glance around quickly. The walls were made of stone, as well as the floor, and there were torches that cast eerie shadows on the walls behind him. He went to check his map but found it not working.
"Where the hell am I?" he wondered aloud, trying to get up. His hand stopped a few inches from its previous position as tried to roll himself over, and he realized that he was restrained by iron shackles–chained to a metal table. His voice rose slightly louder and higher in pitch as he spoke again in panic. "What's going on?"
Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw a door open slightly and heard the sound of it shutting. Before he could look to see who had opened the door though, a knife was at his throat. "You make one wrong move and I end your life, you hear me?" A high pitched but certainly male voice said quietly with a taste of insanity. "You're only still alive because Xaxa wants to talk to you. So be a good little boy."
Spiegel nodded and the knife moved away slowly, allowing the boy to see his captor. What he saw was far from a face. The man's head was wrapped like a ninja, with just his eyes visible, and even those were obscured by a dark, modern, hooded cloak that fell halfway down his calves. He wore black gloves and gauntlets, giving him the appearance of a hooded school shooter in America–though the hood threw off the look a bit.
"What is this place?" Spiegel asked timidly.
The man groaned loudly. "Why do you ask so many questions? You're supposed to be cowering in fear!" After a moment of silence, the man continued. "Well, this is a cave in a classified location. We to call this room the fungeon, though. Like dungeon, but it's fun… well for us at least."
Spiegel shivered as the man began howling with ravenous laughter. "Oh god I wish I had a «Holocrystal» so I could capture that face for the rest of the time we're in here," he gasped between cackles. "Oh god. You'll be real fun to mess with once Xaxa's done with you. I can't wait for it!"
"You will have no fun, Johnny," a deep voice boomed from the doorway. It was so odd, Spiegel was sure that he'd heard that voice before… Not on Aincrad or anything of the like, but before any of this happened. Before Aincrad… even since he was young. "Alright, Spiegel. You and I are going to have a talk."
"Sh… Shouichi?" Spiegel asked cautiously, trying to remember the voice.
A hand came from nowhere and smacked him hard across the face. Spiegel recoiled and came back to look up into a similarly dressed character's face–though he wore a different mask with a skull and gleaming, piercing red eyes. Xaxa spoke once more in a quiet but threatening tone that made the brunette's blood stop rushing through his veins and nearly freeze. "You should know better than to call someone by their earthly name on Aincrad. It's Xaxa to you here, even if I am your brother."
Author's Notes
Alright, so first thing's first: I edited the last chapter. Jace and Sinon are not in a relationship, as of Chapter 7. It felt like there wasn't enough fluff, and that there would be no option to develop their characters individually. While I do indeed think it's a good pairing, I don't think that it worked going forward as of this point.
Secondly: I have been asked a few times about when the chapters are coming out, and that information is on my profile, which can found by clicking my name right by the Story's Title. Usually, I can write 500-1000 words in one day, unless I get to a tricky part in a story. It should take me an average of two to three weeks for me to post a chapter. So don't ask, just look. I may be early, and I may be late, but I should always be within a week of the date posted on my page.
Third: The viewpoints were one of the main things that made me take so long getting this chapter out. I got grounded over spring break and I had to figure out a system that would work well (which ended up being roughly 2.4K words per viewpoint and 500 words of A/N), then I had to write each of the things. Then I realized the chapters were a bit short so I had to beef them up in order to make the 10K word goal. All this to say sorry that this chapter took so long and I hope that the future goes faster.
Now onto what you really care about: the notes about the story.
Jace will have a mini flashback in many of the following chapters in regards to his past with Jackal for two reasons: firstly, it allows me to get a fresh starting point in the story without having to change perspectives; and two because Jackal is just about Jace's foil. They're polar opposites–or will be by the time Jackal's character is fully developed. I don't know what you guys think about it, but I thought I'd address that because I feel like some questions will come in regarding the scenarios with Jackal.
Secondly, writing Asuna in battle is weird without a sword. Like unnaturally weird. So I added this minor plotline (calling it an arc seems a bit like an exaggeration, as I would barely call the Ghillie of Babel arc an arc) to make it a bit more canon. I get that this is an AU, but my writing style is to deviate from canon only when there is no material otherwise (unless it's a drastic deviation, in which case it can't ruin the story, but has to be like a character replacement or something). That's why I made Kayaba's speech and the First Clearing word for word what happened in the anime.
Third, the champion plotline gets a twist. Jace has three rivals/enemies: Kibaou, Spiegel, and Jackal. So since Jace's champion totem thing was a long-coat, it only seems logical that Kibaou's is a long-coat as well (and the reason for that is simply aesthetic and personal preference on my part). Sinon, however, is not a character who tries to be flashy, but more tactical. Therefore, her champion totem thing is a Ghillie Suit. It's more in line with her character, and it changes things up a bit. As for how it comes about to match their characters and all, that will be explained.
And last, we get to Spiegel.
Spiegel was a very weird character to write. Part of that is because I want Jace's sense of paranoia to be… well, exactly that at first. I think my plan for him is obvious at this point, with introduction of Xaxa in the last hundred words of chapter content. I will not say exactly what I plan, but as per the usual, I will not deviate from canon… yet. Anyway though, I try to portray him as we see him in the beginning of the Phantom Bullet arc–a generally good guy (though he happens to be in the wrong crowd here.)
Alright, I think that's all for this chapter. Please follow and favorite, and I would really love reviews. Can we shoot for five reviews this chapter? Is that too much to ask? Yes? Okay. *hides* Feel free to PM me with any questions about the story. I'll try to answer them if I can.
That's all for now! Artie Ross out!