Hey everyone, in regards to the last chapters poll question, you have until chapter 4 is published. Things are going to heat up pretty quickly! Also yes, Kirito has a female avatar. For simplicity, I'll keep her name the same though. I'm a very sad panda right now. I was going to get Silica's voice actors autograph but the line cut off RIGHT in front of me. So sad...

Email Exchange in the real world

From: ?

To: Kayaba

Subject line: Blank

There's going to be repercussions for this you know.

End message

"Jeez this city is as large as Tokyo..." I said half in awe half in complaint as I had been walking for 30 minutes in one direction with no sign of approaching the city outskirts. The need for keeping this all a secret is becoming really old really quick.

With the sun high in the sky and starting to feel really warm, I decide to get out of the sun in to one of these buildings here where I might be able to glean some information about where I need to go to get out. Unlikely but definitely possible. Seeing a building ahead on my left that has 3 attached shops in it, I enter in the one in the center without looking at the sign.

It just so happened to be a bar of the stripping variety. There appeared to be 8 or so patrons at this point in time making the area close to half full. Walking to the corner in the left beyond the stage in the center and the bar hugging the right wall, I sit with my back to the corner and begin to wait in the hopes of eavesdropping something useful. Starting with the two guys closest to me...

"Did you hear how the new boss Zereon carries epic grade armor?"

"Really? Epic Grade? Would it even be worth the fight for that?"

"Dude, I checked up the top 25 players and they're all trying to get it- except for that sniper chick Shino"

"No way... With all them going for it it's going to be impossible to get anyways."

"No man I'm telling you, the opportunity for-"

"Were you wanting a drink gunslinger?" a friendly guy with a beard and baby blue eyes asked me, stopping my eavesdropping and startling me. I ended up getting a chocolate milkshake before realizing I would have to un-equip my helm in order to drink it.

As he left to go get the drink presumably, I put aside my lack of forethought and focused on the next group- 2 guys and a girl.

"I swear this game is too hard" the one guy was complaining.

"Don't be such a big baby! This is your first time playing a VRMMO." the other guy stated reassuringly.

"He's not going to get anywhere if he keeps panicking upon entering a buffer zone in between here and the town outskirts." said sort of quietly by the female who was resting her head against her hand which was propped up by her elbow on the table.

"Here's your drink, that'll be 7 credits" came the bartender out of nowhere again.

"Tha-thanks" I stutter while palming the menu in front of my face to transfer my funds to the (hopefully NPC) bartender. Taking off my helmet I begin to sip my drink and try to look lost in my thoughts while desperately trying to tune in and make sense of that conversation again.

"You're impossible!" spoke the one who was trying to reassure the agitated guy. The other guy was nowhere to be seen.

"It's the truth though! If he can't handle a simple zone transfer by himself how do you think he will hold up under fire. If he can't take the uncertainty he will be horrible at this game" she declared angrily before getting up and walking out the door. Before she left the door she turned her head and said coldly "You know where I will be- at least for the next 2 hours if you want to continue training with me."

While they were talking, the other group that I hadn't paid any attention to had left leaving me with no more options here. Finishing my drink and re-equipping my helmet I get up and sit beside the remaining member of the group of 3. "I overheard some of your conversation, do you want to talk about it?

He sighed before saying "I just wanted my best friend in real life to meet my best friend here and have a good time. However my friend had never played a VRMMO before, and something happened to him in the transfer between zones and he chickened out. Now my friend from inside the game is making me choose between her and him and it's a choice I really don't want to make."

"Well..." I stalled trying to think of something. I couldn't help but notice how pale he was with his skin tone and white camo clothing. "How about we meet up briefly with your newbie friend and if we hit it off I can show him the ropes of being in a VRMMO? Then you could join your female friend and worry less about the other one?

He appraised me, or perhaps my armor before calmly saying (with a hint of a smile) "You don't look like you have much experience in these games... miss right?"

"Sigh... I do have experience, I transferred from another game. My gender is not important. You can address me as Kirito. We can try to solve your problems now or you can sit here and mope. Regardless I need to be going now."

After letting that sink in for a second, I get up and leave without looking back. Taking a left I continue in the direction I was originally going before entering the building. About 10 seconds of walking later I hear running footsteps behind me.

"Kirito! Let's do it!" he said rather excitedly.

"Alright, what's your name?" I asked.

"I'm called the Pale Rider."

"Lead the way to your friend then, Pale Rider" yielding control of where we are going to him.

20minutes of small talk and searching later

"Your friend is remarkably good at getting around. You're positive he's still online?" I asked again.

Yeah, I added him to my friend list. He's in this district of the city no doubt about it. I've set him to my favorites so it notifies when he goes on and offline." he replied calmly..

We had drifted to a much seedier side of the city. There were higher buildings around but everything around screamed of neglect and of poverty. I couldn't help shivering as we walked down a dark alleyway with several big guys down it further. Even knowing its a game, I walk just a slight bit quicker- and closer to the Pale Rider. Fortunately, he didn't notice.

Speeding up, we turned the corner and saw him finally, sitting against the wall with his head tucked inbetween his knees. He looked unharmed fortunately (was combat allowed in the city outside of duels?) and we approached him unnoticed. Pale rider nodding me to stand a little ways back, ran at a 90 degree angle from him, right at the walls of the alley which seemed to loom overhead. He reached the wall, jumped up off it to the wall that his friend was against before repeatedly doing the same to get some height. As he started to shrink he abruptly did a short hop and plummeted at the ground, landing smack in front of him like a meteor, probably scaring the hell out of him. I was impressed by the physical prowess demonstrated.

He definitely was surprised. He screamed.

After a good 3 seconds of pure terror, he managed a "what the fu-" before he was interrupted by Pale Rider "stop wallowing. You knew this was going to be hard and I can't having you giving up on the first day. Remember when we started playing instruments in school and the roles were reversed? You can be totally bad ass in this game, hell you can be whatever you want in this game." he started this aggressively but was really affectionate by the end of it.

"Sigh. You're right. I can't deal with her right now though."

"Fair enough, I'm going to keep her preoccupied while you learn."

"How?"

"Well... I will train with her and I have a tutor for you to get the basic handles from which I will build on!"

I took this as an opportune moment to step towards him; the movement catching his eye, and his attention.

"You're not going to do this yourself? Wow..." he put his head briefly down back to his knees before getting up and saying "I understand now, let's get this done sooner rather then later."

Pale Rider took this as a dismissal and said "Kay bye!" before zooming off comically into the direction we came from without introducing each other.

"Sigh. So typical of him to forget social necessities such as introductions." the forlorn boy said while getting up from sitting down. "My in game name is Ganamoto. I want to specialize in a fluid fighting style that can react to most anything, a lot like my friend who ran away, Pale Rider. Since you are my tutor, what would you suggest we do to get to this point? Also would I be able to get your name unless you want me referring to you as Sensai only?" he suggested awkwardly while approaching me.

"Sensai would be the best for right now. If this does end up being a longer engagement, then we can go to a first name basis." I stated cooly, keeping a distance between us and the helmet for anonymity.

"Uhh, ok. Sensai where should we start?" he looked rather nervous/excited I couldn't tell which.

"Start by showing your sense of direction and leading us to the outskirts. Then after we will go into the hostile zone, no ifs, ands, or buts."

"But..."

"What did I just say?" I ask impatiently.

He breathed deeply before saying "Let's get going then."

10minutes later on the way out

"So sensai, what weapons do you use in this game?" Ganamoto asked after we had gotten over the initial awkwardness.

"I have a laser sword and a pistol. Do you have any idea what weapons you want to aim for using at this point in time? I do not plan on teaching you about the varieties of weapons, I will leave that for your friend. I'm going to evaluate your mental fortitude as that's the base for everything and we will go from there."

"Err... is that really necessary? I just want to be able to keep up with him."

"Do you think that's possible when you can't get through a loading zone? That indicates to me a large fear of the unknown and more importantly, uncertainty in oneself. That can cause others depending on you to die." As I was saying this, more heat/agression was being added to my voice. Distancing myself again, I say cooly "You need to know what you can do and what you can't so you know whether to fight or flight too. I don't think you are capable of this even right now under no pressure let alone a battle situation."

"Alright Alright. Lets do this your way" he sighed good humorously raising his hands in the air in mock defeat. I couldn't help but let out a small smile, he had an endearing way of expressing things.

"So how close are we to the exit Ganamoto?"

"You should know! It's right in plain sight ahead to our left! I don't get lost" he confidently boasted.

"Haha I will try to test that!" I laughed out. "Now for the first real test, going through the loading zone. We are going to go through separately and meet up just on the other end. You first, then Private Message (PM) me through the system once you're on the other end. There is nothing to fear, just remember you are playing a game."

"Oh. Kay." he mumbled distractedly while looking at the proximity menu that had popped up for the transfer point into the next zone.

"Relax, you aren't going to die in a loading zone. Hell, even if it was possible you'll just respawn. You have nothing to lose besides your dignity which is already sullied." I quietly say as to avoid attracting attention from the other people leaving the city.

"This doesn't feel like a game though. Games have controllers to interact with it, not your entire body." he spoke intensely, little more then a whisper.

"Then what do you call the thing you put on your head if not a controller? It's a device that allows you to interact with the environment you are deluded with. Doesn't that sound like a controller to you? Also this isn't your real body if you haven't noticed. Pain is minimal; something essential with a game of this genre. You are still laying down where ever you went and linked to the game."

"I-I never really thought of it that way... Well here goes nothing. See you on the other side!" Ganamoto exclaimed with a bravado that was a little bit surprising.

Well... this guy can improve at least I thought to myself while marking this point on my Minimap for further reference to exit the city. My original task to find the exit done, I settle down on a nearby bench to wait until I received a PM from him. The time on my clock specified that it was only 2pm, 6 hours of gameplay.

Meanwhile in Alfheim

"There's something bothering me about how my brother said his goodbyes" Leafa confided with Asuna. "He seemed distracted while telling us about this, and you know how singular his focus is when he does things full heartedly"

"I know... I also know though that the only reason he wouldn't tell me or Yui or about this is that he's trying to protect somebody from this- most likely all of us from having to be involved." said Asuna in resignation. "It's one of the reasons I love him though, so I can't fault him for that."

"I just wish there was a way we could keep updated on his status to act as backup if need be. Not knowing is the worst." she said dejectedly.

"Wait, Yui, are you able to find Kirito and act as a go between?"

"Only if he's using the nervegear which I was saved on for a while Mommy. I don't know if he had finished his modifications to it though. If it is in use, I can transfer to it because he didn't transfer all my files to Alfheim allowing me to move between the Nerve gear and the world it is interacting with, and Alfheim. I will check to see if I can find those files online. It will take a little bit longer to find them since he's not at home." Yui said seriously as she could while sitting on Asuna's shoulder.

"You're amazing Yui!" Shugo said excitedly.

"Hey, some help killing this Lizard over here?" Klein yelled in worry as his hp was dropping with him also being afflicted with several status debuffs.

"Coming!" they both chimed in unison.

Back to GGO

I hadn't been sitting for a minute before a notification appeared on the top center of my vision saying I had received a PM. While waiting I had been thinking furiously on how to learn the essentials without compromising myself and had a few theories on how to do so. Bringing up the menu with hand, I check the PM that read "Mission Impossible status: Complete. Subject is scarred for life." Laughing a little to myself at the hyperbole. I get up and walk towards the zone exit point where there was a group of 2 people just getting in. One had a sniper rifle and the other was referring to her as Shino in a manner that suggested he had feelings for her. Knowing it's none of my business I walk by her without commenting whilst still wearing my helmet for disguise.

I was past her when I heard her say, "-there's that nobody that surprised Tomohide earlier. Take her if you think you can but I think my bets on her if any of those rumours are close to true. I will defeat her if she really is as strong as people think.

Unnerved that I'm already being recognized on site and knowing who is talking about me (Shino who is a top 25 player!) I quickly pull up the zone transfer and hit confirm without reading it to just get out of sight, and hopefully out of mind.

I quickly black out and open up to find myself on a cuboid platform what looks to be overseeing the entire two zones it acts as a buffer to. All I had to do was look and my vision would become crystal clear on the area I was looking at, as if I was right there looking at that spot. I could see all the mobs within 500meters of where I would be spawning, which was marked by a upside down red triangle in the new zone (aptly named The Outskirts). I could see Ganamoto chilling on a seat a short walk from where I would be coming in.

I was so in awe of the current circumstances in fact that I didn't see the menu above me counting down from one minute until there was 18 seconds left on it. I quickly read that it said "Confirm Zone Transfer? Y / N" pressed the Y on the menu and proceeded to black out again before I appeared right where I said it said I would. Which means I have a 2 minute or so walk to where Ganamoto is. Deciding to not keep him waiting after his "victory" I jog over to give my congratulations to him while taking in the new scenery.

Essentially this area was barren, like a desert or a previous blast site that they decided to build a city in. Radiation is good for your health after all. I could see only to my left as to my right I have a huge view of the city in between me and what's ever on the other side, if anything. The ground was a dark brownish red that sunk under your footsteps and there was few plants in sight. Mostly small bushes that looked like they were on the verge of becoming tumbleweeds. However, the lack of vegetation did not mean there was a lack of life.

There's a few smaller animals/creatures here that are probably the equivalent of the newbie training/farming grounds and there is at least 4 different people/groups that are individually hunting them down systematically in sight. Should be easy enough to find a private spot to train both of ourselves as the area is full of small hills and valleys I thought cheerfully, at odds with the bleak surroundings.

Just to my left there was a semi hidden hole covered by some still living foliage. It looked big enough to hide in and I stopped abruptly. Looking around rather suspiciously, I walk up to the hole to investigate. It was indeed big enough to hide in but looking again around me I was dismayed by the amount of people in the proximity of myself. Wouldn't be a secret for long if I investigated further right now... Besides I need to get back to that guy..

"Hey!" a voice shouted. "Over here Sensaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii" exclaimed Ganamoto in unadulterated celebration. Instead of saying anything I just jog over to him and high five his (small) achievement while cringing internally hoping that he wasn't going to act like a beacon for people who may be looking for me.

Fortunately I didn't see anything while looking around nonchalantly while making small talk that I don't even remember what was about. "You are so distracted" he interjected randomly into the conversation.

I breathed out a quiet sigh "I was hoping you wouldn't notice. I have to hide from certain people or something very bad will go down. I apologize that I'm using you as a disguise, you are free to go if you don't want to get involved further."

He immediately lost his jocular attitude and took on a serious tone. "Is it real life or in game problems?" If this is going to cause in game problems I cannot help right now... But with some teaching I will help you as repayment."

Looking at his face to judge his intent, I noticed for the first time his avatar's eye colouring. It was startling in how vivid of a green yellow they were. Combined with his short hair shorn in a legion cut he was rather cute... wait what am I thinking. He looks serious enough and I could use the help but the danger I would be putting him would be suicidal if things turned south...

"I can't let you come with me." I stated without further elaboration.

He pursed his lips "I'm going to work hard to be able to help you regardless of whether you want me to or not if the only thing you are concerned is for myself. I know you are unable to see the depth of my seriousness but please try to understand.

"He's telling the truth you know" a familiar voice broke into the conversation calmly with a tone infused with a smile.

Ganamoto didn't acknowledge anything so either he didn't hear anything or I'm going crazy and hearing her voice.

"Yui?" I mouthed quietly barely moving my mouth. "Is that you?"

"Who else? By the way I'm currently replacing your cybernetic eye's AI which means only you can hear and interact with me. So accept his help and get moving, there is a search party being organized in town right now and they have a description for both you and Ganamoto. Your actions in town have limited eyewitness accounts but the duel quite clearly shows you."

Cringing at the bad news I look at Ganamoto who was beginning to misinterpret my cringe and to prevent misunderstandings "An update came through my cybernetic eye, you're in whether you like it or not. The people searching for us have both our descriptions. We need to move. Now."

Looking a bit worried, he pulled up the menu and said "It's 2:15 right now, I have about 3 hours until I need to log off for the day but I can be on all day tomorrow. When are you not going to be online?"

"I'm going to be online for sure when you log in, lets discuss it then" trying to brush off that question. Meanwhile I pulled his arm and started jogging out into the expanse to get some distance between myself and the town.

While jogging I discouraged conversation whilst focusing on Yui. "I know Mommy sent you here but why?"

"Mommy and Leafa were worried because of how Daddy was acting." she said sounding seriousy crossed- a first for her. By the way take a right up there by that outcrop of rock and keep running."

"Ganamoto! We're taking a right just after that outcrop of rock and keeping on the move!" strangling the words out from a lack of breath.

Whilst trying to take a deep breath, " I guess I should thank you for your help then. Tell me, is there anyway I can interact without talking to you under my breath? Also, I know you are residing in my cybernetic eye but what is the game classifying you as?

"You can interact with me by thinking about doing so. I am part of your body after all. I also have a speaker built in so I can interact with multiple people if you or I so should choose to initiate that. I am having to modify some of my core files temporarily in order for the system to not recognize me as alien. Most notably my personality files."

"Personality files? Are these changes permanent?" I thought to Yui.

"They're permanent for the duration of my stay here, it is only my GGO version of files that I am changing. The core of myself remains untouched in your nerve gear updated with memories of what's happening here every so often." Yui intoned impatiently before changing the subject. "At your 11 o'clock, you should see a mound. Run towards it, there is a scarcely known hide out with a hatch you pull up to enter. It's large enough to get acquainted with the mechanics of GGO for yourself and your partner."

"Thanks Yui!"

"There's a hiding spot close by! Follow my lead!" I gasped out as I'm pumping my legs quicker then his to keep up with him without going into overdrive, which is the game assist mode that exposes my (ridiculous?) stats to him.

He smirked at my obvious physical distress and mouthed the word "ok" as he dropped in behind me.

True to her word, the hatch was there covered by some grime and foilage that led down maybe 30 feet down into the ground into what looked sort of like inside of a tank. There was some yellow light coming from incandescent bulbs in the corners which with the help of some curved glass and mirrors lit up the light sufficiently enough that there would be no tripping, albeit the shadows were eerily circling us in a very distorted matter. Making my way opposite to the hatch and ladder down into this area, I sit down against the far wall which looked to be thick steel plated walls with the floor being slightly uneven dirt with boulders extruding the surface to a height of maybe one and a half feet. High enough to be a considerable tripping hazard.

"Whoa what is this place?" he exclaimed in surprise.

"Yui if you want to take the floor on this, I'm curious too." I stated out loud.

"This place is an Easter egg put in the game since it beginning. It's supposed to be where the nuke that made this land inhabitable was stored. Currently there is no one who frequents this place and there has only been around 85 or so people who have found this area. It's deep enough that no sounds will penetrate to the surface and obscure enough that it buys you two a bit of time. There is old military corridors attached to this area that lead to two separate one way exits." Yui ranted off authoritatively to answer our question.

"Who, who is that?" Ganamoto said freaking out, not recognizing the voice.

"Ganamoto, meet the AI of my cybernetic eye, Yui. Yui already knows who you are." I calmly introduced.

"Woah. You have a robotic eye? I would have never guessed with that helmet on. Can I see?" he asked out of amazement.

"I'll show you after we train, providing you work hard." I stated.

"Oh come on! We were sprinting for like 10 full minutes, isn't that enough?" he complained in a semi serious manner.

Deciding to ignore it, I go on and ask "What is the most important things about combat?"

Putting his hand to his head and leaning back he awkwardly laughed and volunteered "winning?"

I couldn't help it. I broke out into a great peal of laughter stopping once after about 15 seconds. The resonation of my voice in this chamber made me serious again because it was so feminine and it reminded me of what my situation is and how it may be interpreted.

"Ok you got me there. In all seriousness however, I believe it boils down to these things. One, awareness of your surroundings. Two, the preparations you make for the former. Three, your reaction to changes in the environment." I listed off holding my fingers out as I said each point out loud.

Seeing him about to say something I gesture for him to be silent and start to elaborate. "First things first, is knowing your surroundings. This means knowing where people are likely to be hiding, and the most likely location you are going to be attacked from. Then the next step is to make sure if you are attacked, you are in as strong as a position as possible to ensure success or survival. And lastly, changing your strategy on the go depending on the surrounding circumstances. As an example, if you are in a party/squadron and some are pinned down from an enemy and you notice that if you don't interact to free them from the spot then they will be useless in the fight for some time to come which may cause you to lose the fight then the obvious course of action is to free them. Notice how none of these include any degree of skill. A smart player is a good player regardless of their combat skills because the positioning and understanding that I'm describing is much harder to learn then shooting accurately." I say with a small smile still on my lips.

He said nothing for a short bit, looking to be deep in thought which I appreciated for not immediately denying it without thinking.

"I think I understand. If this is true though, how will you be teaching me? You just said this is much harder to learn then shooting a gun." he said whilst looking into my eyes with traces of the worry I saw when I first met him in his face.

"Well... I've been a solo player for a long time so it comes naturally to me. Feel free to ask questions as we progress onwards and I will answer as thoroughly as I can.

2 hours of talking and instructing later

"Ok I think I've got the basics down. This definitely should lead to a more fluid style of combat" Ganamoto finally said after hours of extensive questioning.

I had to hand it to him, he learned theory quickly and asked good questions. Still, that didn't help ease my exhaustion and the growing sense of unease that was developing.

"I need a break" I yawned out.

"It's almost 4:30, I should probably log out for now" Ganamoto acknowledged my request. "See you tomorrow?" he asked kindly.

"Yeah, I'll be here" I promised.

Well that chapter is done. Apologies for the wait ^.^. Nonetheless I'm not dead, and neither is the story. I made this one over 5000 words for your patience, hopefully you liked. You're welcome for no cliffhanger. I had to write this chapter several times until I got an intro for Yui that wasn't terrible. Yui will be quite a bit different from the show/book cause I have no idea how to give voice to her personality accurately. As it is I have to find a way to make mental conversations between the two clear. Any idea for word formatting to suggest it/make it more clear?

Poll question!

Ganamoto only has a starting pistol right now (laser) as he's a complete newb and I have to decide on a main weapon for him to pick up. What will his main weapon class be? You've got until chapter 5 is published to get your input in!

2. Which person from SAO is most likely to transfer to GGO first, if at all? (No known deadline)