Chapter 6: Superhero

Titanus' alarm was set to go off at 5:30 every day. He got up and walked out to the teleport gate on the 12th floor, which had been beaten 2 weeks after Heruseus' return. "Teleport: Town of New Beginnings!"

Titanus opened his eyes on the familiar 1st floor town. He walked over to a flower vendor. "Good morning Titanus, the usual amount?" the vendor smiled.

"Yes," Titanus smiled.

"Are these for your girlfriend?" The vendor pushed.

"If only. They're for my fallen comrades: Josh, Amber, Beth, Algernon, Ezdeath, Roy and Firestone," Titanus smiled sadly.

"I see. Have a good day Titanus," the vendor handed Titanus 7 roses.

Titanus walked on his own to the Monument of Life, a large stone engraving with the names of every player. The dead players' names were crossed out. Today I should actually look for their names to verify if they're really dead, or if they made it away. Titanus scanned the Monument. Osra…Roy…Ezdeath…Firestone…The Sacred Panda… wait…where are Algernon and Beth? Beth's handle was Soundwave right? Nope. Soundwave is… Oh my god! Soundwave isn't crossed out! Neither is Algernon! But, they aren't on my friend's list… Where could they be…?

Titanus' train of thought was interrupted by his message indicator.

Heruseus started a chat with Titanus

Heruseus: Where are you?

Titanus: Just paying my dues. Hey, I think Al and Beth are still alive!

Heruseus: What are you on?

Titanus: No! I'm here and their names aren't crossed out! Come check it out!

Heruseus ran quickly through the streets of the Town of New Beginnings until he reached the Monument. "What's going on?" He gasped for breath.

"You're fast. Check for yourself," Titanus pointed out the un-crossed names of Algernon and Soundwave.

"Oh my…god! What the hell?!" Heruseus cried out.

"Yeah. I come and pay my dues this early while you're out in the labyrinth. Which, by the way, Dragonstar won't be happy if she finds out you were training out this early, or rather training alone at all, she'd kill you," Titanus warned.

"Which is why no one will tell her," Heruseus warned back.

"Yeah. When do you leave and why?" Titanus asked.

"I leave at 3:30 and because I kinda miss soloing. Back on track! Where could Al and Sound be?" Heruseus muttered.

"Beats me. We'd have to search all the 12 known floors of Aincrad. When could we try that?"

"Not today. The floor 12 boss fight is today,"

"Damn. How'd we find it so fast? It's only been 3 days right?"

"Yeah, I had something to do with that,"

"Of course you did. Have you been going out every day?"

"Yes,"

"Jeez. What level are you?"

"37,"

"What the hell?! 7 levels higher than me!"

"Yeah, come on, you know me, I'm a levelholic,"

"Yeah,"

"All right, let's head back, its 6:00. People are gonna start waking up soon. Oh, and Titanus?"

"Hmm?"

"Don't tell anyone about Soundwave or Algernon,"

Titanus went to cut him off, but Heruseus held up his hand. "Because I don't want them to gain false hope in case it's just a glitch or something,"

"Fine," huffed Titanus.

The two of them walked back to the teleport gate in silence. The two of them returned to see a very upset Dragonstar. "Where the hell were you two?! Heruseus, I know you went leveling with Titanus!" She screeched.

"N-no ma'am! I swear we were just mourning the lost ones! I swear!" Titanus screamed.

"Pfft. Nah, I was leveling alone. Titanus, do you mind, we're gonna go outside to have a bit of a… debate," Heruseus said seriously.

The pair went outside and Dragonstar screamed, "What the hell!? You can't just leave at 3:30 in the freaking morning and go fight monsters alone, in the labyrinth! You could have died!"

"I managed to find the boss door…" Heruseus murmured.

"I don't care! You could have died!" Dragonstar slapped him.

"Can't you just trust me? I swear, you people need to trust me more! I promise I'm not gonna die!" Heruseus screamed.

"It's not just that!" Dragonstar replied with a fierce look.

"What the hell else should you be worried about, if anything at all?" Heruseus fired back.

"You leaving us again!" Dragonstar screamed.

"…I won't ever do that again. There's only so much I could do against BS and BES…" Heruseus murmured.

"Who the hell are they?" Dragonstar yelled.

"BS is Black Serpent, A.K.A. Shinigami's guild. BES is The Beater Elimination Squad," Heruseus sighed.

"Beater?" Dragonstar asked quizzically.

"That's what they call me and about 10% of the beta-testers. It's an epithet unique to SAO, a combination of beta-tester and cheater," Heruseus explained.

"Ok, well, be more careful, don't need you dying on me-" Dragonstar was cut off by a black shape slamming into her.

"Heruseus shoved off the shadow. He gasped. "I don't need that on me either… Wait…Justin?!" Dragonstar laughed.

"The one and only. But, if you please, my name in Aincrad is Talon," said the shape.

Talon was short, chubby boy with black hair in a buzz cut. He had some kind of Asian accent so his l's sounded like y's. Talon got up from the ground and picked up Heruseus and Dragonstar. "Uwah!? What are you doing?!" Heruseus said, startled.

"Sorry, but we got to dash. My Strength is just high enough to carry both of you and my Agility is higher so we can dash out fast," Talon said quickly before launching his body into the air.

The trio was sent flying. Talon landed them on a rooftop were Heruseus could see their enemy. "Shit… Speak of the devil, that's-"

"The Beater Elimination Squad in the flesh. They think I'm the Black Swordsman," Talon cursed.

"But you use those," Heruseus pointed at the claws equipped on Talon's hands.

"They think it's a cover up," Talon muttered.

Dragonstar finally got a good look at Talon's gear. He had black leather armor and claws. "Damn, is that Milliant's Armor?" Heruseus asked excitedly.

"Yes, it was so hard to get man," Talon groaned. "And now we got to move out again,"

Talon jumped again and from 500 meters away, Dragonstar saw the spot she had just been standing at.

"Jeez, how high is your Agility?" Dragonstar gulped.

"543/100," Talon said proudly.

"How?" Dragonstar gasped.

"I did a lot of jumping," Talon muttered sheepishly.

"Gotcha," rasped a voice.

Heruseus felt a cold, sharp dagger on his neck. "Dammit Crater, didn't you learn your lesson back on floor 6?" Heruseus turned.

The boy with blue hair and green eyes cringed. "No…Heruseus?!"

"In the flesh," Heruseus grinned slyly.

"Damn it! I won't you live this time!" cried a gruff, masculine voice.

The owner of the voice was a player with very spikey blonde hair and grey eyes. "Hello Goku," teased Heruseus.

"Damn it Heruseus, you know my name is Lavaridge," growled the masculine player.

"Calm down Lava," said a new, feminine voice.

The voice came from a female player with ginger hair and blue eyes. Lavaridge sighed, "But its Heruseus, Alex! He always ruffles me up!"

Alex patted Lavaridge on the head. "It's ok little brother, big sis is here now,"

"Don't treat me like I'm a little kid!" shouted Lavaridge.

"You sure sound like a little kid, Gohan," Heruseus teased more.

"S-shut up!" Lavaridge stuttered.

"Nope, got to dash, bye!" Heruseus, Talon and Dragonstar ran.

"Get back here," sighed Alex.

"Fine, but, take it from me, this is gonna hurt," Heruseus sighed, stopped running, and drew his Blade of Grass (4Q4S).

Alex laughed. "Sure, whatever you say kid," she laughed as she drew her Blade of Grass (+4A4D).

Crater drew his Black Knife (+4S4D), Talon unsheathed his Tiger Claws (+4S4A), Lavaridge drew his Knight's Mace (+8D) from his side, and Dragonstar notched an arrow from her Fairy Bow (+ 4A4S). Heruseus let loose a primal scream and then charged. He launched himself at Alex. Alex held up her sword and blocked the blow. Crater launched himself at Heruseus. Heruseus caught Crater's dagger in his teeth. Alex gasped and her grip on her sword loosened. Heruseus pushed his sword down harder and Alex's sword went flying. Heruseus flung Crater with his teeth. Lavaridge screamed and charged a sword skill, Crash Blow, and launched himself at Heruseus activated a martial arts skill, Flash Blow, and knocked the Knight's Mace (+8D) back. Heruseus held his sword up to Lavaridge's throat. Lavaridge slammed his mace into Heruseus' head. Heruseus' HP didn't drop, because they were in a safe zone, but he had extreme nausea. Lavaridge brought down the mace once more and Heruseus dropped to the ground like a rag doll. Lavaridge spit on his back. Talon launched himself at Lavaridge. Crater recovered from his launch and blocked the blow. He brought the knife across the chest of Talon. Talon flew across the roof. Crater was knocked off the roof by Dragonstar's arrow. Alex kicked Dragonstar in the back. Heruseus struggled to his feet. Lavaridge knocked him down again. Heruseus let out a primal scream and the very air around him rippled. Lavaridge stumbled and Heruseus grabbed him by the throat and brought him to the ground with a slam! The ground below flashed a purple window that said Immortal Object. This was given to objects in the environment to protect them. So, for example, unless the specified a tree and Lumber-Useful, it couldn't be cut down. Lavaridge choked under Heruseus grip but Heruseus wouldn't let up. Heruseus dug his hands deeper into Lavaridge's throat until he saw what he had done. He loosened his grip and Crater came back up from the ground-level and struck him. Heruseus was knocked out cold. Alex had knocked out Dragonstar and Talon was struggling to regain balance. Lavaridge brought up his mace and brought it down on Talon's head.

When Talon came to, Heruseus was being slashed at, while Crater was talking to Dragonstar. From Talons perspective, Crater was crushing on Dragonstar. She kept turning her head in refusal. Alex strutted over to Talon. He soon noticed that there were lots of other players standing on the sidelines. "Well, well, well, it looks like sleepy head finally woke up," Alex smiled cruelly.

"How long was I out, where am I and when will you stop attacking Heruseus. His HP is in the red zone," Talon grumbled.

"You were out for six days, you're in a floor 13 dungeon's safe zone, our current hideout and we'll stop attacking Heruseus when you listen to our terms," Alex responded with a sigh.

"And those terms are?" Talon said impatiently.

"1. Heruseus hands over his rare loot. 2. Heruseus dies. Crater suggested this one, 3. Dragonstar stays and marries him. And finally 4. I want you to stay and marry me,"

"Not gonna work with me. Heruseus could hand over his loot. I need him alive. I swore to Josh. Dragonstar has a thing for Gaia, so sorry Crater. And I'm not gonna marry somebody I just met. Plus, you're not my type," Talon finished with a smirk.

Alex sighed. "Fine," She snapped her fingers. Crater smiled and put a dagger in Dragonstar's stomach. Dragonstar began to cry.

"Stop!" Heruseus growled.

"You stop struggling and die," said Lavaridge with glee.

Heruseus broke free from his bonds that held him down and just as Dragonstar's HP dipped below 50%, Heruseus activated a Martial Arts skill on Crater. His eyes had gotten that animal look. Dragonstar stopped crying and looked up. She saw Heruseus eyes and he used the dagger on the ground that had belonged to crater to cut her bonds. "Heruseus… Why do you still hang around me? I'm mean to you in the real world…Why? Why do you still hang out with me!?" She cried, her voice ragged.

"…We must stand together," Heruseus replied quietly.

"What?" Dragonstar asked.

"…For a long time, your words hurt. I was ready to call it quits on the world," Heruseus said, even quieter.

"Wait…Like suicide?" Dragonstar gasped at what she had done.

"…Yeah. But then, Josh gave me some solid advice. 'Just because someone stops caring, doesn't mean the world does. You have to fight on with hope. Because if there's one thing I've learned: hope never dies. You shouldn't have to die. I love you little brother and I know you'll make the right choice.'" Heruseus began to cry himself. "I remembered all those who loved me. I had to fight. For Austin, Max, Westin, Justin, Caleb, Axel, Jamie, Cesar, My Mom, My Dad, Henry, Eliza and Josh. So, I won't let anyone affect me. Not you, not the bullies at school, not Shinigami, not The Black Serpents and especially The Beater Elimination Squad!" Heruseus roared.

"Oh…my…god…" Heruseus heard Lavaridge mutter. "You've been through the same as me," he said as he ran to Heruseus.

Lavaridge threw his weapon aside and hugged Heruseus. He began to sob uncontrollably. Heruseus, who's on tears halted by the moment gave a tender smile and hugged back. "I just don't know why I still let you live," Alex sighed and stabbed her brother.

"What-" Lavaridge cried before shattering.

"Why!? Why would you kill your own brother?!" Heruseus screamed.

Alex laughed maniacally before responding, "That little boy was always so weak. He hung to emotions way too much. I just want him to die already. I've been leading from the shadows. He's been too weak-willed to do any real attacks,"

"You sick bastard!" Heruseus charged and Alex struck his sword. It shattered. Not her sword. Heruseus' beloved Blade of Grass (+4Q4S).

Alex stabbed Heruseus multiple times before his HP was so low, you could barely see it. Heruseus pulled out and item wrapped in cloth and a health potion. He popped out the stopper on the potion and before the stopper had landed on the ground and shattered, he had already drunk most of the potion. He began to unwrap the cloth. He produced a long slender sword with a lock and chain around it. The blade itself had a slight curve. Its sheath was an even shade of blue with a green cloth wrapped around so it could be carried on the back of a player. Talon gasped, "Heruseus, that's a-"

He was cut off by Alex's laughter. "That weapon is locked. You can't use it!"

Heruseus smirked. "Wrong. I can't draw the blade itself. And the finish what Talon was going to say, yes, it is a katana,"

"What will you do with basically a hunk of wood!?" Alex laughed.

Heruseus rushed forward and struck Alex in the side with incredible precision. "I can do that, and more,"

Alex coughed and struggled to get on her feet. "That was dirty trick,"

"So was stabbing your brother in the back when he was crying. But hey, I'm not gonna judge too much," Heruseus said grimly.

"Shut up," growled Alex.

Heruseus shifted his grip on the sword so his hand was on the hilt of the sword. He held it two-handed and with his legs a shoulder-width apart. "What's he doing?" Talon asked.

"I remember this! It's that Japanese sword fighting he used to do in real life!" Dragonstar laughed.

"Oh! That's right! That's a kendo stance!" Talon said.

"Goodnight," Heruseus said before making the final blow.