The Ace of Spades

Chapter Two: Lightning versus Light

A/N:

Sorry for the delay, guys! But I guess you're used to that by now, huh? My updates are few and far between these days… but hey I rarely get a second chapter out for any of my stories, and when I do, it usually signifies that I mean business with said story.

But yeah, I'm really on an updating spree, aren't I? Just so you know, the next update will either be for The Kendo Club: Playing for Keeps, or this story. They'll most likely come out at around the same time, since I'm on a roll with both of them.

Well, I guess that's it for the top note! Have a good read, and I'll see you at the bottom!

The Ace of Spades walked up to her, a broken smile on his face. His eyes were no better, making him look as if he had done something horrible, something he, with all of his tremendous power, couldn't fix. When he reached her, he said began speaking in a sorrowful tone, one filled with regret.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered, his smile disappearing, with a regretful frown taking its place. "I'm sorry for everything, Yuuki."

"How… do you… know my name?"

The last thing the Queen of Hearts, otherwise known as Yuuki Konno, saw before falling into unconsciousness was the sight of Kazuto walking towards the room's exit. However, just before she lost consciousness, her vision of him changed to that of a ten-year-old boy, one with ebony hair and a thin frame. In her hallucination, the boy turned around just before leaving, showing his bright smile and stormy-gray eyes.

No… don't go… you can't leave again…

Those were the last thoughts Yuuki had before finally slipping into unconsciousness.

10:35 P.M.

This was the time the Ace's watch said when he looked at it for only a moment. Once he saw the time, he turned his head up to the sky, watching the lightning streak across the thunderclouds in the sky.

Good… it's going according to plan. Soon enough, we'll have a full-blown storm.

The lightning continued to race through the heavens, with thunder eternally chasing after it. The loudest cry of thunder so far resounding, the cloudy night sky began to release small droplets of water into the evacuated city streets, signaling that the storm Kazuto predicted had begun.

But did he really just predict it? Or was there more to it than that?

From Kazuto's current viewpoint at the edge of a massive skyscraper, the lights of the city, which had been evacuated by the police so that there would be no possibility of collateral damage in the form of lost lives, looked like tiny pinpricks of color, like the stars hidden by the clouds due to the storm.

If any normal human were to jump from his current height, they would be dead as soon as they reached the ground. However, Kazuto was by no means a normal person. As soon as he saw them coming en route to try to intercept him, he planned to jump down and immediately begin laying waste to their men, so that only he and the secret weapon remained. Then, the real fun would start.

But of course, nothing ever goes entirely according to plan. And so, just as he noticed a large group of people in government uniforms come into his line of sight, he heard a strange sound from behind him. When he turned around, he was greeted by a blinding white light, and when it subsided, he was greeted with the sight of a familiar fair-skinned, white-clad girl. He recognized her, but he knew she wouldn't have a clue who he was.

The girl in question was clad in somewhat revealing white and red clothing, which surprised Kazuto slightly. When he knew her, she wasn't exactly fond of such clothing. Covering her chest was a lightweight, white metal chest plate, which looked to be made of a synthetic, bullet-reflecting metal that was produced by the Schuberg Corporation.

Her long, flowing chestnut-brown hair, soaked from the rain, made the bangs go over the girl's glowing white eyes. Wait, glowing? Kazuto thought, his expression changing to one of curiosity for the faintest of moments before the glow in her eyes died down, revealing their true color, which matched her hair.

Kazuto's expression changed once more, becoming much more confident. He knew exactly how to catch her off guard, and it might even be enough to end the fight within seconds, depending on her reaction. "I assume that you're the so-called 'secret weapon' I've been hearing so much about from my boss?" Kazuto queried, a crooked smirk on his face.

"That's right," the girl replied, a brief lightning flash illuminating the almost-intimidating glare on her face. "But you can call me Asuna. It doesn't really matter, though, since you'll only live for a few more minutes. I'm here to kill you, Ace."

The way she spat out his nickname as if it were venom would have been enough to scare most people into running away, especially if they had just saw her teleport right in front of them. But, as you know by now, Kazuto was far from normal. It had the reverse effect on him; it only fired him up, made him want to fight her. But first…

"Those are your reinforcements, correct?" Kazuto queried, looking over the edge of the skyscraper and down onto the streets, where a group of exactly fifty-two government officers were running towards them. Without waiting for an answer, he pointed his left hand at the group, putting his thumb and middle finger together. "Watch this."

Before the girl could stop him, Kazuto snapped his fingers, causing… nothing? A quick look to the sky was all it took to completely shatter that notion, however. In the sky, the clouds had begun to get brighter, brighter, brighter, until finally—

Exactly fifty-two lightning bolts rained down on the poor souls below, each one hitting one of their heads. As fast as they had struck, all of the bolts dispersed, leaving the fifty-two bodies of the government officers to fall to the ground limply. That's right…

Each and every one of them had been killed with a single strike.

Looking back to the girl before him, Kazuto smirked when I saw the horrified look on her face. "This is the power you're facing," he said, looking to the sky. "Thunderstorms increase my power exponentially, and I just so happen to have to power to create them!"

"You… you just killed fifty people in an instant…" Asuna whispered, lowering her head.

"Fifty-two, to be precise," the Ace of Spades replied. "But the number doesn't really matter, does it?"

"How could you…?" the chestnut-haired girl asked him, voice trembling. "How could you kill so many people at once and not even feel remorse?"

Kazuto decided to see how far he could take things before she completely lost her composure and attacked him. "The lives of nobodies like those mean nothing to me. I'm incapable of developing new relationships with people I don't know from my childhood, so I feel nothing for anyone new I meet. Thus, it doesn't matter who they are, I won't hesitate to kill them if I need to."

"Why…?"

This response surprised the young Ace; he had expected her to snap at his remarks. He had expected her to attack him. He had never predicted that she would ask for an explanation. Even so…

Kazuto tightened his hands into fists, listening to the sound his fingerless, black leather gloves made. I can't go easy on her. I can't let my guard down. I have to beat her!

Faster than the girl could even blink, Kazuto disappeared from his spot across from her, appearing only centimeters away from her. Her eyes widened for a fraction of a second, before she felt an incredible surge of pain coming from her stomach. When she looked down, she found his fist coming upwards, towards her chin.

The uppercut hit its intended mark, sending the girl flying into the air from the sheer force. She twisted in midair as she fell, landing gracefully several meters away. However, by the time she landed, he had appeared before her yet again, hitting her with a powerful left hook, followed by an even stronger right punch that sent her skidding a few meters from the edge of the skyscraper.

"How…"

"Do I keep sending you flying back with my punches alone?" Kazuto finished for her, smirking as he held his fists out towards her. "These gloves are specially made by my employer. They're called, 'IT Gloves: Level Shifter.' IT stands for Impact Technology. These gloves have three levels, and they advance in level by hitting living things and sapping their life energy. At their current level, level one, they can send you flying back several meters if I punch you hard enough. However, if you survive long enough for them to manage to reach level three...

"Well, let's just say you would be totally screwed."

"So, in other words," the Ace's chestnut-haired opponent said. he instantly knew where she was going with this, but he also knew that she wouldn't be able to do it. "I just have to keep dodging, right?"

"Easier said than done, I'm afraid."

Yet again, the Ace of Spades moved faster than Asuna could follow, appearing before her in an instant. However, she had seen a pattern. And so, as he began his assault with his right fist, she moved her left arm to block with equal speed.

The hell? Kazuto thought as his fist made contact with her arm. How did she move that fast?

The force of the Ace's punch still sent Asuna skidding back to the very edge of the skyscraper. I could just hit her off of the skyscraper, but I'm not done with her yet. This hasn't even been fun, and I want to see everything this girl's got.

"You know, it'd be nice if you'd stop holding back," Kazuto said cockily. "Otherwise, this won't be any fun."

"You… think that fighting… that killing… is fun?" Asuna queried, voice dangerously low. Kazuto took note of this, smirking as he answered her question with one of his own.

"And if I do?"

Mere milliseconds after he finished his question, he found a fist planted firmly in his abdomen. Blood spurted from his mouth at the incredible pain, making Asuna smirk in satisfaction. He had finally done it… he had broken all of her mental restraints. Now, all that remained was to determine who was truly the stronger of the two.

"I'll eradicate sick trash like you from the face of the earth with my own hands!" Asuna shouted, her chestnut hair gaining a white glow as it began to levitate.

The Ace of Spades jumped back, wiping the blood from his mouth with his sleeve as he landed gracefully. When his arm moved away from his face, it revealed a devious smirk. "That was one hell of a punch," he complimented, looking at Asuna with hungry eyes. "I hope you're prepared to take responsibility for your actions and make good on your word. But trust me…"

He held his right hand level with his head, then reared it back as blindingly white electricity started to emanate from it. The electricity began to take shape as a long, white object, which then expanded until it held the shape of a double-edged sword. Kazuto suddenly closed his fingers around the handle of the lightning blade, making all of the electricity stop and reveal its true form.

The blade shone a gleaming white color, one that would temporarily blind any normal human. Its edges looked sharp enough to cut anything in the world, which would soon be put to the test.

"I won't go down easy."

With those words, Kazuto charged at his chestnut-haired opponent, putting the flat of his blade over his left shoulder in preparation for a powerful rightward strike. Asuna took notice of this, ducking under the strike just as Kazuto swung.

Big mistake, Kazuto thought smugly, his icy blue eyes gleaming with the satisfaction of knowing his feint was successful.

As soon as Asuna was far enough below him, Kazuto hit his adversary from above with his left fist. The ground below them immediately caved from the impact, causing Asuna to fall through three floors of the skyscraper before the momentum finally stopped.

Kazuto had jumped into the air just before the ground directly under him caved, allowing him to flip in midair and land on the top of the skyscraper once more as he watched Asuna fall. He smirked in satisfaction as he watched her struggle to get out of the rubble.

Jumping down to the level that Asuna had stopped on, Kazuto slowly turned around, coming face to face with a clearly-exhausted Asuna. He smirked. "Just give up, little girl," he said, blue eyes starting to glow with an ethereal light. "I've been fighting ever since I was ten, and with every fight I win, every person I kill, I get stronger. You're out of your league! I've never even lost a fight after my powers awakened!"

"Awakened…?" the chestnut-haired girl whispered, looking at Kazuto with wide eyes. "Are you… like me? A Project?"

Images of a boy with ebony hair, steel-gray eyes and a gentle smile flashed through her mind, and she looked up at Kazuto in shock. "It can't be… the generation two Project failure, said to be disposed of…"

Putting on an impassive expression as he slowly walked up to Asuna, Kazuto said something into the rain, just loud enough for her to hear. "You're wrong. The Kirito you knew is dead. He died the very same night that my powers, the powers of the only first generation Project, awakened."

Kazuto moved his left hand in his adversary's direction, putting his middle finger and thumb together. "Now then…" he said, slowly pressing his finger and thumb together as sparks began to emanate from them. "Goodnight, Asuna."

With a single snap of his fingers, lightning erupted from his hand, shooting towards Asuna in a one giant, super powerful attack that enlarged as it moved closer. It made contact with her entire body, the force of the blast sending her flying back into the rubble, which promptly disintegrated upon being hit by such a powerful lightning strike.

When the lightning finally dispersed, the glow in Kazuto's eyes faded, and he fell to his knees, panting furiously. That last attack had drained too much of his energy, and his vision had become slightly hazy from the brightness of the lightning.

"I think I… overdid it…" Kazuto panted, slowly staggering to his feet as his sword disappeared in a flash of light, showing that he no longer had the strength to maintain its existence. "But… even still, I have to keep moving… I have to get her back to Kayaba's lab."

He whipped out his phone from his left pant pocket, walking under the remains of the ceiling so that rain didn't drop onto his phone from the giant hole above him. He found himself dialing a number he committed to memory, one that led straight to his employer's phone.

"Hello?" Kazuto said when he heard the line pick up. After a few seconds of silence on his end, he began speaking once more. "Yeah, I kind of overdid it in the fight against their secret weapon… yeah, she's still alive, just unconscious. I need a ride to the lab, since I'm too drained to just use Lightning Travel."

After a few more minutes of talking, Kazuto hung up, having secured a ride to the lab. Now that he was off the phone, Kazuto could finally be alone with his thoughts.

That couldn't have been… no, I'm sure of it. That wasn't her full power. She had no restraints up until I revealed a bit about my past, but after that, she didn't try to fight back, or even dodge my last attack. It's like…

Kazuto's eyes widened at the next thought that entered his head. It's like she figured out that I was lying about my identity! I told her that the old me died… but maybe she didn't believe me.

"Well, it doesn't really matter," he said, finally deactivating his powers. His snow-white hair returned to its natural ebony color, and his icy-blue eyes reverted to their original steel-gray hue. "I'll probably never see her again."

Suddenly, the shadows in front of Kazuto began to take shape. In an instant, he knew what it meant: his employer had sent the Queen of Hearts, who could use Shadow Travel, to pick them up,

Kazuto quickly looked around, trying to find a place to hide before Yuuki fully appeared. After finding a wall that had been halfway broken down, he ran over to it, sitting down on the other side.

The past needs to stay in the past, Kazuto thought, casting his sorrowful gaze to his lap. And if that means lying to the people who called themselves my friends, then so be it.

"Hey, Ace! Where are you?" he heard the Queen of Hearts query. "I heard that you overdid it in the fight with the secret weapon."

"Don't worry about me," Kazuto said, revealing his presence. "Just take the girl and go. I have something I need to do, so tell Kayaba that I'm alive, but I need some time alone."

"Got it," Yuuki affirmed, oddly compliant towards the person she hated most. Kazuto heard her pick up Asuna, and he smiled.

"Thank you, Yuuki," he said, inwardly cursing himself as soon as her name left his mouth. When they worked together, he never let on that he knew her name.

"That reminds me," she said, walking towards Kazuto. "How do you know my name? I never told it to you before you left the Trump Cards."

Why is she being nice to me now? Kazuto inwardly inquired, his eyes widened slightly. She should still hate me. Unless… the Electric Influence I used on her is beginning to wear off. But that's impossible… I used a great deal of power when I made it so that she hated me just before I left. Even if she… me before, the effects of my Influence should still be working.

"Sorry," he finally said, laughing drily. "But I can't tell you. The past needs to stay in the past."

Yuuki, starting to catch on, quickly ran to the spot where she heard Kazuto's voice. However, just before she got there, a bolt of lightning struck right where the ebony-haired boy had been sitting, making him vanish with the light of the strike itself.

"Ace of Spades…" she whispered, eyes widened in shock. "Are you really him? Are you really…"

Yuuki looked up into the sky, watching as the storm clouds slowly started to clear up and make way for the crescent moon.

"Are you really Kirito?"

A/N:

Okay, that wasn't exactly easy to get out. I had been stuck at twenty-four-hundred words for weeks, maybe even a month, and I only picked it back up again today. Well, at least I updated, right?

… Right?

Anyway, I should probably inform you all that this story will have little focus on romance. I mean, even less than the usual for me. I finally planned out most of this story yesterday/today (it's one in the morning for me right now), and there's little room for romance. That isn't to say that there won't be any, it just means that the moments will be as sparse as my updating pace for most of this story's plot. Sorry about that.

I guess that's all I need to say for now. I'll let you all off the hook with a disclaimer, and then we can all go our separate ways until the next update!

I don't own the Sword Art Online light novel series, any of its adaptations, or anything/one I use from them!

Ciao!