Hello, friends! This story was a shared idea between me and a recent Sword Art Online convert, whom I have developed a deep freindship with. So we decided to write this tale together; he writes the outline, and I piece it together (This also prevents us from taking full blame for killing or upsetting anyone :D). Anyway, full steam ahead!

Floor 78

"Just leave us alone!"

A dark figure strolled slowly along the narrow cobblestone street, his steps quiet and his expression intense.

"Taxation is a requirement for those under the protection of The Army!"

Head swiveling back and forth, he slowly stalked his way towards the sounds of commotion.

"You're not protecting anybody!"

His pace quickened. The voices rose in volume as the distance between them was closed.

"Failure to comply will result in your immediate arrest! From then on, we cannot guarantee your safety."

Rounding the final corner, the scene came into view. The oppressing player wore the garb of a low level grunt, most likely sent by the Army as an initiation mission. Beneath the shadow of the Army thug, another player attempted to fend off the advancing threat.

*Sssssssssnnk*

The sound of a sword being slowly and dramatically pulled from its sheath went unnoticed as the brute stepped threateningly towards the defensive player, a girl of approximately 14.

"You're all just greedy cowards!"

The tension snapped as the grunt raised a large hand and swung it hard against the girl's face, her head spinning awkwardly. Springing from the shadows, the black clad warrior smashed his fist into the nose of the girl's attacker.

Shaking off the surprise blow, the guild member barely had the sense to stand up before another jab sent him sprawling backwards. Blinking hard, he looked up, and was met with a frightening face... My face. Holding the heavy, black sword to his throat, I spoke very clearly, and made sure no word was left misunderstood.

"Do you know whose sword this is?"

Silence. The man looked from me, to the child shrinking behind me, to the sword in question.

"Huh," he finally asked.

"This sword," I replied, giving it a testing wave. "Do you know whose it is?"

"I-I don't know what you mea-"

"DO. YOU. KNOW. WHOSE. SWORD. THIS. IS!?" I shouted at him, and his eyes widened even more as he attempted in vain to identify the black blade.

"N-n-no! I have no idea! Just calm down, man." While we were still standing within the safe zone, I do not think it went unnoticed that I would not hesitate to drag him out of it. To him, I was just a bat-wild phsyco with burning eyes and a fierce scowl. I dropped my volume to a low, but easily threatening whisper.

"In my hand is the fallen sword of a very, very dear friend of mine. He was a true hero. He was the one who actually got up off his high horse, and did the so called 'protecting' you thugs claim to do. Every single string of BS that you spit is an insult to his name." Keeping him prone on the ground, I removed the edge from his neck and slid it into its sheath on my back. I quickly replaced its position with a pale blue rapier, it's tip pricking the bottom of his chin.

"Now, do you know whose sword this is?" I got an immediate shake of the head. "This is the fallen sword of the one whose name you insult every single time you think of the word 'safety.' Now, you're going stand up, and you are going to run back to your headquarters with your tail between your legs. When you get there, you are going to fall on the ground and insist that your guild disbands; because if it isn't by the time the sun sets, I will shake hands with every single member at the end of both these blades. Do you understand?" The man was kicking up a trail of dust before I even sheathed the rapier...

Asuna's rapier...

A silvery tear fell slowly down one cheek as I remembered her, and then my chest suddenly shook as I remembered Kirito's face as he stared up at me before leaving this world forever. Before I knew it I was on my knees, crying into the hands that wielded their swords. It had been two months since I watched their brutal murder. I did not deserve to be alive. I should not have survived this long. If given the choice, I would sacrifice my own life thousands of times over in exchange for their's. They were the ones that were destined to beat this game, hand in hand.

I collapsed on the ground, thankful no one could see my vulnerability; the girl had run off long ago. I lay there, contemplating for the thousandth time the freedom of ending my misery, right here and now. Yet I was interrupted as normal by Kirito's encouraging words. I could almost feel his hand on my shoulder, lifting me off the ground.

Survive until the end, please.

At the time, it was mostly a passing comment. Now, it held the same weight as one would treat a passing reletive's final wishes. I squared my shoulders and started back down the cobblestone path. A lot has changed within the 2 months since my disappearance. I've become stronger; my level now read 110. I was no longer the sappy, lovesick puppy that I used to be. The armor I now wore was a direct reflection of that fact. It's inky black scales gleamed and a tinge of red could be detected somewhere mixed in with it.

Complete with a short, dark maroon cape, the Phase II Dragonite armor set, complete with face-concealing helm, was nothing particularly significant. It's armor rating was far superior than that of most player smithed armors. However, the color and style were primarily the only thing it had going for it. It was a light piece, and didn't offer much protection if I got into an encounter with anything. But again, I didn't wear it for practicality. In a way, it was a reflection of Kirito's garb. Turning my mind away from those thoughts, I looked up to the two stone guard towers I had approached. Without a second thought, I entered the cave entrance that led into the labyrinth.

It was dark originally, and it took several seconds for my vision to adjust. I travelled onward down a rocky cave pass that eventually ended in a large, round cavern. Not ready to fall for such an easy and cliche ambush, I drew the hefty Elucidator from its sheath across my back. Just as predicted, the second I stepped foot into the open space, crystals spaced around the room illuminated the darkness as three Iron Salamanders dropped from the ceiling. Normally there would be higher level monsters waiting in the open expanse, this room had a,ready been cleared once before? I was just playing catchup. These salamanders were normal mobs that respawned after a certain timeframe had passed; nothing like the ones that would have been waiting.

Dispatching the fiends almost lazily, I carried on towards where the boss room was located on the map. I encountered a few pairs of random mobs, but none of them were too significant, and most died without the need or use of a single sword skill. After a while, I just started sneaking past them instead of bothering to waste the time it took to eliminate them.

There was one good thing about this armor; whoever wore it was given an additional 100 points of stealth to your already existing stats. Having leveled my stealth considerably in order to go unseen for my 2 months in self exilation, good ole' Phase II Dragonite allowed me to be virtually invisible unless I was in direct line-of-sight. The lower mobs stood no chance of detecting me.

Checking the map once again, I noted my position was three fourths of the way from the Boss room; however, checking the clock, I had to hurry if I was to make it in time. This floor's boss door was only open for a few minutes before closing for an hour. I quickened my pace, not willing to be left out after going through this dungeon. I travelled the remaining distance within a minute, and soon the large door was in sight-

No!

I was too late! The door had already shut. Great, another hour before it opens again. I sat down and checked the clock to confirm my tardiness.

Huh? I'm still two minutes early. The door shouldn't be-

Was that a scream? There was no denying it. There was definitely a stream just then, which means... there was someone already in there! Choosing a blade, the black Elucidator once again, I pushed against the door and felt it budge. Apparently, the timed lock did not apply if a fight was in progress, thankfully.

I was given only a couple seconds to size up the situation (pun intended). The half ape, monstrosity was over 20 feet tall, with scyth-like claws the size of cattle, and complete with a massive reptilian head. The attacking guild must have been there for awhile; many of the members HP bars were in the dangerous red and yellow ranges. The boss had only one bar left but a little more than at the halfway mark. The door was wrenched from my hand and was slammed shut by an invisible force as I stepped into the agro range of the incredible beast. At the arrival of a newcomer, the attention of the boss was immediately drawn to the door, and unfortunately my stealth skill did nothing against its piercing gaze. With its eyes trained on me, it's name pipped up above his head.

The Half Hunter, whilst distracted by my presence, was buffeted on all sides by a regrouped assault of battle-raged players. The HP of the boss dropped dramaticly, and it was forced to reassert its focus on the larger group. Seeing an opportunity, I sprinted into the arena, which I noted to be a large sand pit, with the door from which I entered set upon a raised dias. With the creature's back turned, I joined the attack, drawing the rapier from my belt.

I dove under the colossal, reptilian tail of the beast and laid a triple hit combo across it's legs. The combined force of the unceasing blows to every inch of its body, the boss collaped onto into a kneeling position. The guild retreated to heal up and regroup once again, but not me. I foolishly pressed the advantage. I dodged a large clawed swipe and drove the blade into its heart. The beast roared and sank lower into a defeated position. With the monster in a crippled state, I was sure that only a few more hits would bring it down to zero. I was wrong.

In a moment of recovery, the boss' special event was activated, and the eyes of the monster changed from red to ice blue. Materializing in its hand, a titanic halberd glowed softly before a black hue settled into its complete state. The boss roared, and sickly yellow smoke poured from its open jaws. Before I had the ability to retreat, I was slammed down to the ground with a heavy and formidable strike to my entire being by the black halberd. Even worse, it was a 7-hit combo move, and I was an easy target sitting in midair. The world went black

(X)

I awoke from a collapsed state to two faces peering down at me; one was a dark bronze color, the other was pale white with golden teeth. I didn't think much of it until I recognized the bronze one. I desperately tried to hide my own face, and tried to divert my eyes elsewhere in the room. But the room was empty.

Huh!?

The beast was gone! I scrambled to my feet, trying to locate the Half Hunter. Sure enough, it had been vanquished while I had been out; I cursed myself silently for being so weak. I noted a few more things, like the missing of four people from what I had counted to be twenty. Second, my health bar was in a red zone that I had not seen so deep in over a year and a half. I hastily drank a health potion, plus a regeneration potion. Third, everyone in the room still had their swords drawn, and their eyes were all locked on me.

There was a definite tension in the room as everyone stared with mixed intent at the weird black-clad man who had joined their fray out of the blue. Then, from behind the crowd, the face I had recognized made his way to the front and stood with his battle axe in a readied position. Agil spoke, but it was not with the friendly bark I had remembered. This new Agil held the tone of someone of authority, and with it, a tone of menace.

"Where did you get that?" He said it in such a threatening way, I overlooked the complete vauguity of the phrase.

"Got what," I said, refraining from using his name so as to keep my own identity to myself. I was foolish enough to have stumbled into this situation in the first place.

"That sword. Where did you get it?" He shifted his gaze to the Elucidator on my back.

"...a friend..."

"Interesting," he countered, "and what about this one?" In his other hand, Agil held up the pale blue rapier I must have dropped when I collapsed. I didn't respond.

"I know only three people who have ever held these blades before. Two of them I watched die, and the other died awhile later. So let me rephrase my question..." He stepped closer and raised his axe. "How long has it been since you killed my friend?"

Everything clicked at that moment. I had run away. I had deleted my entire friends list so no one could find me on the map. To the world, I had died a long time ago. I truly felt for Agil. He was grieving after finding out that another one of his friends had died. Still, not only that, he thought I had been murdered. That explains the drawn swords and the readied stances; he was going to avenge the death of his lost fallen comrade. I smiled for the first time in two months.

"I am honored by your actions, Agil." There was a voice of confusion as the stranger spoke thier leader's name. "However, your friend was not killed by my hands." I opened my menu and similarity my inventory. I removed the masked helm from my avatar, and my face came into full view. Agil's eyes locked with mine as they widened in shock and surprise. I could see the start of a small tear.

"I'm still here buddy."

(X)

Author's note: Whoa! This is the longest chapter yet in any of my stories! Sweet! Disclaimer: We, my co-writer and I, do not plan on using the cannon (Hollow Fragment) bosses and floors for this story. Everything from floor 76 and on is free game for us. Trust me, this is for the better. It will allow us to surprise you and make for a more interesting story. Love you all dearly, and may the Force be with you! (Wrong series!)