Ten Swords

by Plasma Knight

What would become of the 6,147 players of Sword Art Online had Kirito fallen to Heathcliff on the 75th floor? Obviously, they would need to find the courage to press on, even without him. If a single sword can get you anywhere in Castle Aincrad, how far can ten go? For there were indeed ten unique skills. This is the tale of those ten swords.

8. Knights and Knaves

The following is a non-profit fan-based creative work. Sword Art Online is owned by ASCII Media Works, Yen Press, and Reki Kawahara. Please support the official releases.

---

Although Seriyuha said that she wanted to set up a guild around the three of us, she didn't advertise the guild on any player boards. For a while I thought she was just being selective with her membership decisions, but I eventually realized that didn't make much sense. She could afford to be pickier if she had more people to choose from. Just what was she after?

Seriyuha still stressed us not get involved in floor clearing even though Kibaou's guild was making a name for itself by doing just that. By then, Chigusa and I were used to her strange plans, so we decided to trust her. In the meanwhile, she continued to ask Chigusa to lead us to areas where only beta testers would know to explore first. At first I just thought that she wanted an edge over other players, but over time I began to wonder. Chigusa was sometimes mistaken about how efficient certain parts of the map were for grinding or finding items, but Seriyuha never seemed bothered by that.

By the time we reached the seventh floor, Seriyuha's behavior began to change. She was starting to lead us further afield, and became less worried about taking risks. Something told me that we'd soon learn just what she had planned.

I suspected back then that it had something to do with the fated arrival of the tenth floor. Once we got there, all bets were off. The testers never went any higher then that.

But it was wrong. I'd learn the truth behind her plans sooner than I expected, and it would all start with a simple treasure hunt.

---

As he stepped through the teleport gate to the Eighth floor of Castle Aincrad, Shirou's gaze was immediately assaulted by a wave of green.

Trees, trees, trees. Nothing but leaves, branches, and trunks as far as they eye could see.

Gaping, he stepped off the stone gate and onto the wood plank that surrounded it. He was standing on a man-made platform built around the sides of thick tree trunks. Everywhere around him was a massive forest, and the central town of the floor seemed to have been built somewhere up its understory. Rushing for the nearest edge of the platform, he looked down. And immediately felt his stomach hit his feet.

Where he expected to see a dense forest floor, he instead saw a vast lake - several yards down. The lake seemed to spread all across the underside of the forest. Just as trees were all around him, so was water everywhere below him. He couldn't see the bottom of that lake, but luckily – at least in his opinion – he couldn't see anything swimming across its surface either.

"Careful," Chigusa called to him from the gate. "Falling into the drink here is a pain in the ass."

Shirou immediately stepped away from the edge. "You can fall in?"

"Yeah, but I don't think you can drown. You do have to find a ladder to climb back out though," said Chigusa.

Shirou scanned the lower areas of the forest for these ladders, and saw none nearby. Grimacing, he resolved himself to avoid that drop at all costs. "Is there anyting down there?"

"Not during the day."

Shirou was a little reassured - though he didn't like the ominous notion of what it might be like at night.

"Another forest floor, huh," Seriyuha said quietly. Turning her gaze from the forest and onto Chigusa, she said, "Where to first?"

"Well I definitely wanted to try the forest treasure hunt event in the Forest Depths in this floor," Chigusa said instantly. "In a fairly close part of the forest there's one of those classic Lost Woods-type areas where your sense of direction gets all screwy, and there's limited-time treasure chests in it. If we're lucky we might get some good loot before others beat us to it."

"How far away is it?" asked Shirou.

"This floor isn't very big across, but it makes up for it with going up and down these trees in some places," said Chigusa. "But it shouldn't take us more than a couple hours. It's not far - it's just about finding the place."

"Do you remember where it is?" asked Seriyuha.

"I should be able to get us there," said Chigusa. "This floor's annoy – looks annoying – but I'll do my-"

Somebody – a blond player dressed in light gear and muttering to himself – bumped into Chigusa while walking past her, and continued angrily on his way. Chigusa stared at him, and Shirou smiled, knowing what was coming.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" she screamed at the man.

He ignored her as he continued on deeper into town.

"So," Seriyuha said pointedly, "where's that-"

But to Shirou's amusement, Chigusa was actually storming after the man, Seriyuha glaring at her back.

"Hey, you jerk, mind where you're going!"

"Hinoka, forget about it!" Seriyuha cried after her.

Ignoring the older woman, Chigusa reached the man and grabbed his shouder, and he spun around furiously on her. Even with the slightly-taller men glaring her down, Chigusa stood her ground against him, hands on her hips.

"Look, you trash newb," he said quickly, "I don't have time to listen to you blaming me for everyone's problems, I'm-"

Chigusa stared him right in the eye. "So what, that doesn't mean you get to just shove past me! And I'm not a trash-"

"I don't give a damn. I'm late getting here thanks to the stupid ninja girl and now-"

Shirou and Seriyuha advanced on him at the same time, causing him to take a few steps away from them, his hand straying to his rapier.

"Was her name Keh-keh?" asked Seriyuha

The man crossed his arms and turned on Seriyuha. Despite his attitude, Shirou felt a little for the man; it looked as though Keh-keh was being a busy girl again.

"Let me guess, you ran into that little brat too?" the man asked, his tone mellowing slightly.

"Twice," said Chigusa.

"She stole an item from me and challenged me to meet her in the Depths to get it back," he said slowly. He turned his glare to the forest. "It was my side-arm that she took. It's my own stupid fault, she acted impressed with my fencing when she saw I could dual-wield. I let my guard down."

Shirou stared at the man, not sure he'd heard the words properly. An off-hand weapon in SAO?

"That's impossible though," Chigusa said flatly. "If you try-"

"I know, I know," the man said impatiently, "the system assistance won't work, but I don't need that. I can fence in real life. I know a thing or two about handling swords."

Shirou's eyes widened, and he stared at the man as if seeing him in a new light. He seemed to be about Chigusa's age - he didn't look like a teenager at least - but at first glance he didn't strike Shirou as being the fencing type.

Mostly it was the sandy blond hair.

But if he was telling the truth, then he was one of the types that wasn't bound by the system's limitations. In other words, one of the people that Chigusa had said could be the strongest in the end.

"Impressive," said Seriyuha.

Shirou grinned sidelong at her, wondering if the inevitable, "let's work together" pitch was coming.

"I don't suppose we could trouble you to tag along?" she asked.

The man narrowed his eyes at her and asked, "What's in it for you?"

"We were heading that way anyways," said Shirou, "and we'd like a chance to show her up for once." Seriyuha shot him a glance, but he didn't return it. He suspected he could bring the matter up a little better than she would.

"We definitely would," muttered Chigusa.

After a pause, the man smirked at Shirou and nodded. "Count me in. You can call me Lyle."

The trio introduced themselves.

"Then it sounds like we're a team for now," Lyle said as he and Seriyuha shook hands.

Seriyuha nodded. "Let's hope we get what we're looking for."

"Oh, and," he started slowly, throwing Chigusa a brief glance, "sorry about the trouble earlier. I'm having a bad day."

Chigusa laughed quietly and smiled at him. "I won't hold it against you. I've been in your shoes with her."

"What'd she do to you?" Lyle asked, frowning.

"Kill-stole a quest boss and ran off with its loot," muttered Shirou.

Lyle rolled his eyes. "Classic dick move in online games. Well we'd best go prepared; catching trolls is never easy work."

"Couldn't agree more," said Chigusa, "we'll meet up at the south end of town in a few minutes."

The quartet split for a few minutes to explore Frieven, the city built among the treetops, and prepare for their journey. Built around massive tree trunks and far off the ground as it was, Frieven had multiple levels and spanned around and between several of the high trees. It seemed to Shirou to be larger than any city he'd seen so far - aside from the Town of Beginnings, of course. This was somewhat inconvenient; it took him a little over ten minutes to find the NPC blacksmith, but at least the city was far from crowded. That wasn't to say groups of players weren't to be found congregating here and there, and Shirou occasionally picked up some hints of their conversations. Most of the players just seemed to be chatting eagerly about the new floor and planning their adventures in it, but rarely did talk about the Forest Depths come up. It sounded like the only other players they were likely to run into were other Beta Testers. A nice and secluded romp in the forest, then.

Unless they ran into Kibaou anyways.

Once he'd repaired his gear, checked upgrades, and stocked up on consumables, Shirou headed toward the south exit of the village. Lyle was already there waiting, and nodded to him as he approached.

"Hear anything interesting in town?" he asked once Shirou was within earshot.

"Not really, just some chatter about plans for the day."

Lyle chuckled and flashed a rueful grin. "You just have to know where to go to pick up the juicy stuff."

"How do you mean?"

Seriyuha was approaching, a curious look on her face.

"The shadier parts of towns - the lowest level of this village for example - are great for picking up rumors or looking into the dark side of the player market," said Lyle.

Seriyuha frowned. "You mean stolen goods?"

"Yeah," said Lyle. "I thought my sword might end up there, but no luck."

"Did you hear anything else?" asked Shirou.

Lyle frowned. "No disappearances on this floor yet," he muttered.

"That's good news," whispered Seriyuha.

Shirou felt a chill run up his spine. It wasn't so long ago that he'd first heard rumors of players being cut down by other players. It was bad enough that the monsters might kill you. He'd had wanted to believe that the circumstances everyone found themselves in would somehow bring out the best in everyone and not resort to player-killing, but...

Well, griefers and assholes existed in every online community. And the situation they were all in could easily drive players to extremes. Luckily, reports of player-killings were very far and few between.

Chigusa was the last to arrive, and after a brief planning session between herself and Lyle, the quartet struck out into the forest. The large man-made platforms continued as they left the village, but the sturdy plank walkways built between the platforms was quickly replaced by wood rope-bridges. The bridges swung and wobbled uncertainly underfoot, but they held. The flora rapidly became less tamed as they party moved on, with dangling vines and bushes creeping onto the walkways. A rather more extreme example of plantlife gone wild eventually presented itself in the forms of "Entings" - wooden creatures clinging to the trees.

Shirou almost missed the first of them - they were made of wood, after all - but as the party approached the creatures moved so fast to intercept them that their natural camouflage was rendered useless. Leaping from the trees and onto the walkways, they stood a little over six foot tall - and in the way of Shirou and his companions. They had vague facsimiles of eyes and mouths carved into the bark of their "heads", and their disproportionate limb lengths lent them a clumsy and awkward stance. Three of the monsters leaned in toward the party, propping themselves up with their gnarled limbs and making strange, throaty, growling noises from where their mouths would be.

"These things don't matter," Lyle said as he strode forward, rapier in hand. "They like to throw rocks at range but up close they're clumsy."

Grinning, Shirou shot a glance at Chigusa, who shrugged and said, "What he said, basically."

Lyle darted forward, rapier held ready. The closest of the enting trio gave a roar and lifted its misshapen arm, and suddenly a basketball-sized rock was there in it. It threw the stone in Lyle's path but he darted to the side before it was even in the air. The other two made to throw rocks of their own as Lyle came upon the first Enting, but he only had eyes for his main target. It raised its arm to dash Lyle against the walkway, but he thrust his rapier into the wooden monster's mouth before ripping it out roughly, causing the creature to jerk and its strike to hit the ground harmlessly. Another jab into its eye socket did the diminutive monster in. Without pause, he leaped into the air, and the two rocks thrown by the remaining Entings hit the ground beneath him.

"Not bad," said Seriyuha.

"There's plenty for all!" Lyle called back to the others.

Thus invited – if not challenged – the others dove in to Lyle's side. The girls reached the remaining two first; Chigusa struck from outside the reach of their arms with her long spear, and Seriyuha casually smashed their wild blows aside with her kite shield. Lyle watched, grinning, as the remaining Entings were struck down without incident.

"Hey, thanks for joining in there," he said, "I was starting to think you were gonna let me let me have all the fun."

"Well it's not often I get to watch a fencing master at work," Chigusa said, smirking.

Grinning, Lyle pat his sword by the pommel. "Believe me now? Once I get my swordbreaker back from the brat I'll show you what I can really do."

"Then let's get this show on the road," Chigusa said as she gestured southward.

They continued on like that for over half an hour, battling Entings as they came. Meanwhile, the plantlife around them slowly changed, with the creeping vines giving way to giant blooming flowers from under the walkways. Shirou paused to take a long look at one of them, taking in the vibrant blues and reds, and gave a long whistle. He almost thought he could see the pollen drifting from within the core of the flowers. He never could quite get used to the ways SAO continued to impress him. Looking onward, he saw more and more of them growing along the paths ahead.

"So what's up with these?" he asked. "How're they going to try and kill us?"

Laughing softly, Lyle said, "You catch on quick."

"So the flowers are deadly?" asked Seriyuha.

"Not the flowers themselves," said Chigusa, "but you know what you usually see where you find flowers?"

Shirou stared at her, but Lyle answered his unasked question by pointing at one of the flowers - specifically, near its center.

Bees. Giant bees, with stingers so large he could make out the barbs, even from a few yards away. He instinctively shrank behind Seriyuha.

Unlike her younger companion, Seriyuha stood and faced the fuzzy threat calmly. "Are they poisonous?" she asked.

"No, and they're not that aggressive or dangerous," said Chigusa. "Just mind the hives."

Smiling, she shot a dirty look at Lyle. "Someone over there is trying to scare you two."

"Of course there'd be hives," Shirou muttered under his breath. He could only imagine how huge they would be - huge and teeming with murderous giant bees.

"We're going to avoid any of them we see, then," Seriyuha said firmly.

Chigusa turned and gave her a glance. "Wait, you're not thinking Keh-keh would try to set them off, do you? I mean actually try to kill us?"

"She's used monsters against us before," said Shirou. "I mean, so far she's only been annoying, but she only has to go too far one time, right? Better to play it safe."

"Stealing from other players is a small murder in this world, anyways," muttered Lyle.

Chigusa gave a small shudder and continued after him.

They maneuvered carefully through the bridges and platforms that criss-crossed the floor, careful to avoid the (huge, as Shirou expected) bee hives that appeared here and there. Unfortunately - yet unsurprisingly - they were often to be found looming over the most direct paths to their destination, forcing the party to detour through walkways and bridges that were infested by other enemies. After another hour of walking and killing giant bees and Entings, they came upon a four-way intersection in the forest walkways. Nothing stood out either north or south, but the east-going planks (the group having approached from the west) were shrouded in a dense fog. As Shirou tried to peer through it, he caught wisps of color dancing in the mist.

"Is that the way into the Forest Depths?" asked Seriyuha.

"One of them," Lyle said as he leaned on his sheathed rapier. "There's a few different ways in, which makes the area more confusing. That little brat said to come this way, though."

"Why here? Are the rewards different in different parts of the forest?" asked Shirou.

"I don't think so, I didn't hear anything like that," said Chigusa.

"I'm pretty sure you can get anywhere from any of the ways in, she probably just said this way so she could follow us more easily," Lyle said quietly.

"BINGO!"

Growling to himself, Shirou looked up, and saw the unmistakable little girl (now in mottled brown gear) sitting in a tree branch far above them. She was grinning down at them, her knees tucked in against her chest. In her hands was a small dagger. Unusually, it had several grooves cut into the blade, just large enough that another sword could be caught within one of them. She was dangling the weapon on her outstretched index finger, making no effort to conceal it.

"Hey Sword-lord! I see you've finally made some friends!"

"Get down here and we'll get friendly with you too!" Chigusa screamed up at her.

"Calm down," snapped Seriyuha. "Keh-keh," she continued - more pleasantly - "give Lyle back his weapon, you're only causing trouble for everyone – yourself included."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure he doesn't know how to climb trees so I think I'm good," said Keh-keh.

"I'm not the only person you've pissed off, just be grateful I don't associate with player-killers," Lyle said to her quietly.

Keh-keh gave a double take as she turned to look down at Lyle, her eyes wide. Then she gave a laugh, though there was a very slight crack to it. "You can bluff better than that, you know!"

Lyle glared up at her quietly, arms crossed.

Keh-keh's mouth twitched into the briefest of frowns, before she stood up on her branch. "Anyways, if you want this knife back, you gotta do something for me first!"

"What, dare I ask?" snapped Lyle. "Bring you all the treasure in this forest?"

"Nope, just explore.

Lyle cocked an eyebrow at her. "What?"

"Bye!" She leaped to another branch, and then another, and was quickly out of sight.

Lyle just shook his head and swore, but Chigusa stared after Keh-keh, leaving Shirou to wonder for a few wild seconds whether she was considering chasing the small girl into the forest. Finally however, Chigusa heaved a sigh and turned toward the others.

"She wants us to do all the legwork for her," she grumbled. "This is the same trick she pulled on us at the white spider lair."

"Is there a major boss in this forest?" asked Shirou. "If it's just stuff in chests she can't steal our hard work again, can she?" Something wasn't quite adding up, but he wasn't sure what it was just yet.

"Not without attacking us directly," said Seriyuha.

"She can do whatever she likes," Lylle muttered as he began striding toward the entrance. "I'm getting my swordbreaker back."

He turned to the others. "Are you still in on this? You can keep anything else we find on the way in. That's the least I can offer in exchange for your help."

"Not at all," said Seriyuha. Turning to him, she smiled. "Getting caught up in this... silly distraction isn't a problem."

"Hanging out with so many ladies isn't half bad either," Lyle said. He winked at Chigusa and Seriyuha - both suddenly and utterly stone-faced - before he led the way into the fog.

Laughing quietly, Shirou patted Chigusa on the shoulder. Then he quickly said, "Dad always was saying you need to find a boyfriend!" before he took off after Lyle.

Chigusa's profanities followed behind.

Shirou slowed as he neared the fog, and took a moment to catch his breath. After another moment's mental deliberation, he took the first long stride into the fog, and was immediately enshrouded by it. Unable to see more than a few feet in any direction, Shirou tightened his grip on his sword and strained to listen for approaching footsteps, snapping foliage, wingbeats, or anything else that would hint at approaching dangers.

But he didn't hear anything, at least aside from the footsteps of his companions.

After a few more steps the fog lightened so that he could see a few yards around him, but thick mists still obscured what lay in the distance. That didn't bother Shirou much; he'd walked in the fog before. No, what truly troubled him was the noise - or lack of it. The forest was too quite – quieter by far than the rest of the floor had been. Before he'd heard the sounds of water sloshing below, or the wind on the leaves, or birds overhead. But not there, not in the Forest Depths.

Shirou couldn't shake the feeling that something was lurking in the mist. Lurking and watching.

"Isn't anything going to-"

"Ah, more greedy humans have arrived."

At first Shirou was certain that it was Keh-keh again, but the voice rang out from all directions at once, and had a musical edge to its tone. He looked to his sister, and saw her staring into the woods, her eyes narrowed and her spear drawn. His heart beat a little faster. Not even Chigusa knew what was going on?

"Many have tried to seize our ancient treasures, but they've been sealed away by the Spirit Queen. You won't have them so easily."

Shirou stared hard into the fog, determined to find the source of the voice. Though he listened hard, it seemed to be coming from everywhere at once. But then, he caught sight of a purple wisp of smoke drifting as if on a breeze - a breeze he couldn't feel. He nudged Chigusa gently and pointed toward it, and the siblings watched the smoke as it flew through the sky. It twisted this way and that, and then joined other, similar-colored trails of vapor. The smoke grew denser and denser, and then coalesced a foot or two above the bridge directly ahead of them.

Floating there was what could only be described as a fairy made of purple mist. It had all the right (or cliché, one could say) features; a tiny figure, disproportionately lithe limbs, and strange otherworldly eyes. It was unusually large however - somewhere around four foot tall by Shirou's guess.

"I keep the secrets of this place! Prove yourself to me and I might aid you. Fail, and wander in ignorance!"

"Well this is new," muttered Lyle.

Seriyuha stood before the fairy, a calm look on her face. "How shall we prove ourselves?" She asked.

"You seek power, but it takes wisdom to wield it! Show yours and be reward!" cried the spirit. "Seek me out!"

The spirit collapsed into purple vapor and flew – this time far more quickly – down one of the walkways into the woods, leaving behind a wisp of vapor behind it - vapor that changed colors just as the spirit had.

Seriyuha, her expression curious but untroubled, turned toward Chigusa and asked, "Should we follow?"

"It's like Lyle said, this didn't happen in the beta," said Chigusa. "How this place worked in the beta is that there were spirits – like the one that just yelled at us – floating around and they'd try to mislead you by shining will-o-the-wisps at you. Sounds like they reworked the event to be some kind of puzzle game. The event musta gotten poor feed-"

"Definitely a puzzle event," said Shirou. "'Show our wisdom.'"

Realization hitting him, he laughed. "So that's why Keh-keh brought us here. She probably got stumped!"

After a moment's pause, Lyle shot him a smug grin. "I do like the sound of that," he said as he set off to follow the spirit.

They caught up with Lyle soon after, and continued along the path the spirit had gone. Shirou had already noticed that Forest Depths were devoid of sound or wind, but he soon realized that they seemed empty of enemies too. He couldn't help but shiver occasionally as he stared into the fog before them, expecting to see pinpoints of light in the distance at any moment.

But he never did.

Where were the enemies? He wouldn't have minded seeing some; anything was better than waiting for attacks to suddenly come.

The walkways through the Depths were far more winding than those they had previously traversed, and they seemed to defy physics, often making wide curves between trees with nothing to support them, or suddenly going on corkscrews or twisting vertically. It took a lot of persuading from Chigusa and Lyle before Shirou and Seriyuha agreed to walk up what seemed by all accounts to be a wall, but their feet somehow kept the walkway just the same. The strange pathways would probably have quickly gotten the party lost, but they still had the spirit's trail to follow.

After a few minutes of exploring, they finally came turned a corner and saw the spirit floating on the path ahead, just at the opposite end of another four-way intersection. It waited there as they approached, a thick curtain of the omnipresent fog lingering just behind it.

"So, you've found me," the spirit said as they drew near. "Now you shall be put to the test. Answer truthfully:"

"What has a mouth but does not eat, has a bed but does not sleep, it always runs and never walks?"

Shirou stared for a moment. He'd guessed a riddle, but... He glanced this way and that, searching for inspiration. What has a mouth but doesn't eat?

But then Seiryuha said, "A river."

The spirit glowed blue for just a moment. "Well done. The correct way is open..."

The spirit collapsed once more and flew onward, the mist fading behind it just enough so that they could see the path beyond.

"So it is a riddle game," said Lyle.

"Oh, I've got it," Shirou said, smiling. "Bed – river bed, mouth, always runs. Nice job, Seriyuha."

"That was an easy one," Seriyuha said, though she still allowed herself a grin.

"I figured it out too," Chigusa said quietly.

Shirou saw that his sister was actually glaring at Seriyuha's back, and had to stop himself from laughing. Continuing on after the fairy, they came into a part of the forest where wisps made of the same colored smoke could be seen lazily flying among the branches around them. Shirou watched them as they passed through, wondering whether an attack was coming. Lyle halted the group for a moment, but when the floating wisps failed to respond to the party's presence, he pushed on.

"Why aren't there any enemies around here?" asked Shirou.

"There were some in the beta," said Chigusa. "Maybe we'll run into them when we get a question wrong."

"Look sharp, we might find out soon," Seriyuha said as she pointed her halberd forward.

There again was the spirit, waiting for them as it had before. As they approached, it repeated its declaration of a test and posed its question:

"On Monday, I planted a magic tree that grew twice its size that day. On Tuesday, it doubled in size again. For each day of the week it grew twice its size. By Sunday, it was full-grown, but when was it half-grown?"

"Okay," Chigusa began breathlessly, "If we count Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday – because it doesn't grow on Sunday – that's six days. So after the first three days – Oh, I know, it's-"

"Saturday," said Seriyuha.

"No, dumby, it's obviously-"

"Well done. The correct way is open..."

Chigusa stared at where the spirit had been floating, eyes wide and mouth agape. "B-but what? Saturday's only the day before!"

"It grows twice its size each day," Seriyuha said as she began moving again, "so the day before the final day, the tree will be half its final size."

Chigusa paused a moment, during which time Shirou could almost see realization settling in, before she just glared at Seriyuha's back some more. Shirou patted her on the shoulder and gave her a rueful smile as he passed her by.

For about another ten minutes they followed the spirit's glowing path, during which time the walkways seemed to curve in increasingly-crazy ways, and the ambient fog slowly thickened. Before long, they ran into the spirit for a fourth time...

"What has roots that nobody-"

"A MOUNTAIN!" screamed Chigusa. "Hah!" she added to Seriyuha, who rolled her eyes.

The spirit glowed red. "Such rudeness, not even letting me finish. Typical human. You must tread the winding path now."

The spirit exploded into vapor that went every which way, and the fog that lay behind it darkened rapidly.

Everyone was quiet for a few long moments, before Lyle stepped forward. He was frowning, but not at Chigusa to Shirou's gratitude.

"Well, I'm not sure that was the right thing to do," he said. "And I don't wanna test this smoke, either."

Chigusa was on her knees, a dead look there in her eyes. "Sorry," she moaned.

Sighing, Seriyuha took one of the side paths. Lyle shrugged and followed after her, leaving Shirou the task of helping his sister up. The siblings followed Seriyuha and Lyle down one of the walkways and into a part of the forest where the mist was thicker still. Coming upon their first intersection, they ultimately selected a route entirely at random. There was no indication which way might be the correct one, and with the way the passages kept curving in bizarre directions, trying to head in any particular direction was a fool's errand.

On they went through a virtual M.C. Escher painting, all the while Shirou hoped that Chigusa wasn't beating herself up too badly about the situation.

Eventually they came across new glowing shapes, and Shirou's heart leaped at first before he realized he wasn't looking at the spirit that had been showing them the way. These new spirits were similar in basic appearance, but their forms were larger and shifted more chaotically. They moved across the bridges slowly, their limbs moving erratically and appearing to have difficulty settling on where their joints should be. "Lost Spirits".

"Well that's new," said Lyle.

"They look like ghosts," said Shirou.

"Back in the beta the Depths were patrolled by Rogue Fairies," said Lyle. "These things look like enemies, but I can't even tell if they're solid."

"Only one way to find out," Seriyuha said, halberd at the ready.

She dashed over to the nearest Lost Spirit and swiped her halberd across its midsection. Like with any other enemy, the halberd carved a red path through its victim, but the spirit turned toward Seriyuha and gave an otherworldly howl. Its reaction completely void of apparent pain, it seemed more angry than anything. Every other nearby spirit flashed red and began to charge on Seriyuha with newfound grace and speed in their movements. Shirou and the others were quick to join her. Enemies like these - ones that shared their aggressive states - were not to be taken lightly.

The spirit closest to Shirou raised its right front limb, the end of which suddenly looked quite solid and edged, and it jabbed straight, only to catch its appendage on Shirou's shield. Taking advantage of the opening, Shirou stabbed at the creature's midsection. He grinned in satisfaction as it roared, but it retaliated with a lash to Shirou's shoulder without pause. His breath caught in his throat as his hp fell a not inconsiderable amount, and he struck down the spirit with another slice to its head.

He winced, his hand over his shoulder. Pain wasn't a thing that was felt in SAO, but the thought of a shadow's sharpened limb plunging into his body still sent chills through him.

But even worse than that...

"Be careful, these things don't flinch when you hit them!" he cried as another spirit came upon him.

"Already figured that one out," said Lyle. He had killed one, and was starting on another.

Shirou finished a second specter off, and turned to another only for Chigusa to run it through. He paused to catch his breath as Seriyuha killed the last spirit. In that very moment the forest's deep and eerie quiet resumed, as if the fight hadn't even happened.

"We should be careful of these in the future," Seriyuha said quietly. She quickly drank a health potion before continuing on; her hp had fallen to the halfway point.

Shirou lingered just a moment longer, watching Chigusa. She was following behind Seriyuha as if normally, but her eyes were low. He could already imagine that she was blaming herself for the new peril they'd landed in.

They went on like that for nearly an hour, trying to work what paths they could through the insane twisted walkways of the Forest Depths. Nobody said anything, and the oppressive silence of the forest settled on them like a leaden weight. How long was it going to be until they found the spirit again? How were they supposed to get out if they couldn't find it? Shirou peered over the edge of the walkway, into the forest lake below. Would falling in there eject them from the quest area? Unless the floor was truly gigantic, the Forest Depths couldn't have shared physical floor space with the rest. In fact, it would almost make more sense if it didn't.

How far did they have to go...

They fought Lost Spirits that appeared in their way, traversed along corkscrewing paths, and went up walkways angled at ninety degrees. Shirou's concern for Chigusa and her worries grew by the moment, but then finally they rounded a bend and caught sight of a familiar shifting light. Shirou laughed in relief, and even Lyle gave a noticeable sigh.

"I see you stumbled your way here, humans, would you like to try once more?" it asked. Shirou became annoyed at the spite that laced its tone, and he had to stop himself from attacking the annoying thing.

"Answer truthfully:"

"The rich need me. The poor have me. If you eat me you will die. What am I?"

Shirou automatically turned to Seriyuha, who was looking at the spirit with her eyes narrowed. Surely she knew this one?

Lyle shrugged and muttered, "You got me."

"Answer me, humans! I won't wait long!"

"Seriyuha?" Shirou asked, his heart pounding.

Seriyuha grit her teeth and shook her head quietly.

Damn! What was it? Some kind of poison - the spirit said it would kill somebody who ate it. But why would rich people need poison?

"Uh," went Chigusa, "I think the answer is 'Nothing'."

The spirit glowed blue and said, "Well done. The correct way is open..."

Shirou sighed in relief, his knees weak. They were that close to meandering around in the forest again...

"Nicely done," Shirou said breathlessly.

"I'd say that makes up for that 'mountain' blunder," Lyle said as he smiled at Chigusa.

Beaming, she walked right past Seriyuha and through the fog. Seriyuha watched her go and glanced toward Shirou. Grinning, he shrugged and followed behind her. After only a few more steps through the fog, they came upon a simple wooden chest. The walkway ended there; no doubt they'd found their reward.

"I think you've earned this one, Hinoka," said Lyle.

Shirou agreed (emphatically), and even Seriyuha nodded.

Smiling, Chigusa tapped the chest with the shaft of her spear, causing it to slide open slowly. A window appeared in front of her, and her eyes shot wide.

"Yeeeeeeeees!" she squealed.

"What's in it?" asked Shirou. There was no telling what might get her so excited.

With the press of a few buttons on her menus, her spear popped out of existence and was quickly replaced by a new polearm. Laughing, he grinned uncontrollably as he recognize its curved blade and handguard. "Spirit Naginata."

"Hey, 'grats on finally getting a naginata," he said as he clapped Chigusa on the shoulder.

"Took long enough," she said, smiling at it.

"So what now?" asked Lyle.

"That is but one of the treasures left behind by the Fairy Queen, and one which you have proven yourself worthy of bearing. Seek out my sisters in the other corners of the forest if your greed compels you further."

The spirit had appeared behind them one last time. Its quotes finished, it burst into smoke once again, but the smoke spread and thickened instead of dissipating. Unsure what to expect, Shirou stepped back, but his vision was soon completely obscured. After a moment or two of not being able to see anything, the smoke suddenly and rapidly cleared, and he found himself somewhere new. The treasure they'd opened was nowhere in sight, and they were standing in the middle of a four-way intersection.

"Where are we this time?" asked Seriyuha, a hint of irritation in her voice.

They were definitely within the Depths - the continued presence of the thick mist was proof of that – but the fog was lighter, and the general pressure of the place was lessened.

"I think we're back where we started," said Chigusa.

Looking around, Shirou could only nod. It made sense, though he could barely remember one section of walkway from any other.

"So are we going back in?" he asked. A part of him wasn't eager to get lost in the Depths again, but it sounded like there was some valuable loot to be found.

"No, we need to find that brat already," said Lyle. "I need my swordbreaker back..."

"Okay Lye-lee, no need to cry about it."

A certain someone was watching them from above again.

"How does she keep standing on branches, shouldn't those be unwalkable?" he whispered to Chigusa.

"There's very few areas that are truly marked as invisible walls in SAO," she answered back, "but it's still super hard and dangerous to get up there. She must have high agility. Or she's good at climbing trees in real life."

Lyle glared upward. "You had your fun, now give me back what's mine!"

"Not yet!" Keh-keh said, smiling back down at them. "Come back here tonight and I'll tell you what else you can do to get your little knife back."

"Oh, so it's moving the goalposts now?" Lyle said quietly.

Razler stared him, a chill running down his spine. He would have expected him to be mad, but Lyle sounded almost calm. Chigusa was also watching him closely, and the siblings exchanged looks.

"Yeeeeeaaaah. So come back to the Depths at around 8 pm and I'll give you your knife back. This time for realsies."

Keh-keh flipped out of sight again as she had before.

"She's such a winner," muttered Chigusa.

"Yeah, and I've had enough of her," said Lyle.

"What're you going to do?" asked Seriyuha.

"I'm not playing games with a kid anymore," he muttered.

Instead of heading into the Depths he turned and made for the exit back into the forest proper. Just before he was engulfed in the fog, he turned back toward them. "Oh, but thanks for trying to help me out. It's just too bad things didn't work out any better."

"Is there any other way we could help you?" asked Seriyuha.

"No, at this point I don't want to bother with this any more, and I've taken enough of your time already," he said quietly. He raised his hand to them one last time in farewell before he continued on.

"Best of luck!" Seriyuha called out to him.

"You're not gonna try recruiting him?" whispered Chigusa.

"Not now," Seriyuha said - quietly. "He's too busy worrying about his weapon..."

They simply watched Lyle go, nobody saying anything to stop him. And then the trio were alone once more, and silence took hold. Shirou stared at nothing, not sure how to break the quiet. Their quest hadn't exactly ended on the most satisfying note...

"Think we should try coming out here anyways?" he finally said.

"How would that help?" asked Chigusa. "Lyle's right, she's just going to make up new things for him – and us – to do."

"Yeah, but I don't wanna just leave things hanging like this," said Shirou.

The siblings turned to Seriyuha for answers, and found her frowning at the ground.

"You both have good points," she said slowly and quietly. "I'm not as worried about Lyle – though I WOULD like his help in the future – but Keh-keh's becoming a problem."

"She's just one troll," said Shirou.

"But we keep running into her," Chigusa said to him.

"True," Shirou muttered quietly. She was definitely being a pain, and there was no telling when she'd go too far with her pranks. Children weren't exactly known for their restraint. "Well," he said, looking toward Seriyuha, "we know she'll be here tonight."

Seriyuha, arms crossed and eyes to the ground, didn't look up. "If she's telling the truth, that is," she said quietly.

That wasn't necessarily a "no", and Seriyuha probably could guess what Shirou was thinking. "How dangerous is this floor at night?" he asked Chigusa.

"This floor's a little different," said Chigusa. "Back in the Beta, there were less enemies at night, but because of all these trees the moonlight can't shine through to our level, so it'll be pitch-black out here."

She jerked her head toward the edge of the walkway. "And with how winding these paths can get, it gets easy to fall in in the dark."

"That doesn't sound so bad, we just have to-"

"There's," Chigusa said slowly. She paused to glance into the water below, and shuddered. "Dwellers down there at night."

Despite himself, Shirou looked over the edge as well. The water was placid, as it always was when he checked. Somehow he'd never stopped to wonder if anything was living down in there. He thought he saw a ripple in the water, and looked away, heart hammering.

He didn't know how to fight in the water... He wasn't even sure it was possible. He decided not to ask Chigusa whether it was.

"Well," he said, his stomach still writhing, "I don't think she's trying to kill us... Maybe just scare us?" he asked, looking to Seriyuha.

"We can't rush into this," she said with a slow shake of her head. "I think we need to go back to town and think this over. How do you two feel?"

Shirou looked back into the Depths, frowning. "After all this, I don't really feel up to going back anyways." He felt bad for Chigusa, but the whole thing felt like a weight in his gut.

"That's cool, I'll defer with the majority on this one," Chigusa said with a smile. She, at least, wasn't coming out of the forest empty-handed.

Nodding, Seriyuha quietly led the way out of the Depths, Shirou and his sister trailing just behind her. Their trip back to Frieven was largely without incident – save for a few short encounters with monsters. As they crossed under the wooden archway into town, Shirou began to suggest they find an inn for the floor, only for Seriyuha to dart off in the direction of a cluster of npc shops. The siblings hurried after her, and caught her at a store made for handling and dispersing player-made materials. They were often used to sell cheap items or excess gear; they were effectively player mercantile boards from other games.

Seriyuha was already in the middle of a transaction with the storekeeper NPC when they arrived. She pulled her new item, a plain and small notebook, out of her inventory without pause. Shirou recognized it after a moment: it was the same manual that Keh-keh had used a few times at the Dragon Ruins.

Catching sight of the book, Chigusa noted, "One of those guides the other beta-testers made."

"We should have picked one up back at the second floor," Seriyuha said as she made for one of the benches that lined the platform.

"Whaaat, you don't trust me anymore?" Chigusa asked with a smile.

"Of course I do," Seriyuha said as she began opening the manual, "but Keh-keh relies on these things for her information, and knowing what she knows about this floor couldn't hurt."

"Nice thinking, Boss," Chigusa said as she took a seat on top of the bench's back rest

Seriyuha's mouth jerked into a self-satisfied smile as she opened a window that bore the contents of the booklet.

Shirou sat down next to Seriyuha, and tried not to get too close as he read the book along with her. Seriyuha rapidly scrolled through the pages of the guide, until she finally came upon the chapter dedicated to the eighth floor. From there she skipped a little slower until she first found mention of the Forest Depths. All three then began quietly reading. Chigusa's memory of the event space had mostly been correct; there was no mention in the booklet about riddles or the ghosts they'd fought there, and indeed the perils during the time of the beta had mostly been centered around misleading and confusing players within its boundaries. Information was pretty sparse aside from what loot could be picked up; it seemed that the beta testers hadn't gotten very far with the Depths.

But - and Shirou suspected this was what Seriyuha was most interested in - the booklet didn't mention any changes at night that were specific to the Depths and its events. Ultimately and unfortunately, the book didn't seem to offer much insight of what Keh-keh had planned.

Finally, she closed out the booklet and stretched. "Well that's that. This book's supremely unhelpful about the Forest Depths," she said quietly.

"The only players who should have gotten there so far are the testers and people who've read these books," said Chigusa, "so I don't think she could have heard anything we haven't."

"Maybe that's why she wants us to come back tonight?" asked Shirou. "She used us once already to learn more about the riddle event."

"It's probably something like that, yeah. Only way we'll find out is if we go there ourselves," said Chigusa.

"I hate to say it, but I agree," Seriyuha said quietly.

Keh-keh had some sort of scheme, that was for sure.

A grim look on her face, Seriyuha stood and turned to the siblings. "Here's where we stand. I'd like to finish our business with Keh-keh, or at least get her out of our hair. I think we're best off taking her bait and heading to the Depths tonight. Needless to say, this could be dangerous. We haven't made a habit of wandering around at night before, and for good reason."

Chuckling, Chigusa leaped off of the bench. "Taking risks isn't like you, Seriyuha!"

"I think you're a little too excited about getting that spear," Seriyuha said, frowning at Chigusa.

Shirou agreed with his sister, though he wasn't quite as amused about it as she was. They did need to do something about Keh-keh, but wandering around the forest at night just because she'd asked them to didn't strike him as a good plan.

"What do we even do when we find her?" he asked.

"Scare her straight, of course," Seriyuha said, grinning mirthlessly at her. "Do you remember Lyle's implication about player-killers? While we're on the way to the forest, I'd like the two of you to split up and enter from other ways. We'll let her think she's being stalked when the two of you go missing."

"And what if something actually happens to us?" asked Shirou.

Seriyuha's smile faded immediately. "Of course I want the two of you to be extremely careful. Break off the plan at the first sign of trouble and come back."

"Sounds like we're winging it to me," said Chigusa, "but I'll trust you on this one, Seriyuha.

"There's a map of the floor in this guide," Seriyuha said, offering it to Chigusa. "Be sure to study it before tonight."

They did as Seriyuha asked while she went and picked up another copy for her own use. Shirou expected her to be back after only a few minutes, but soon half an hour passed and there was no sign of her. Both siblings seemed to realize their leader wasn't in a hurry to come back, and they exchanged worried glances.

But ultimately they decided against looking for her. Seriyuha could take care of herself.

They spent a few hours together, doing some planning and a lot of talking. There was no telling exactly Seriyuha had planned, and while Shirou didn't really want to think much of what they'd be doing in a few hours, he didn't want to go in completely unprepared. Besides, spending time just sitting with Chigusa and talking was a welcome change from the usual of spending all day running around virtual fields, killing monsters, cheating death, and growing stronger. It felt a little like a normal day with her for once.

The wind blowing through the leaves and the feel of the sunlight filtering through them was a nice break from the oppressive weight he'd felt in the Forest Depths, and he almost managed to forget that they'd soon be returning as the sun slowly set.

Almost.

Seriyuha finally returned just before seven, and the trio broke for a short while to make final preparations. She explained that she'd gone to wait around the shady parts of town to listen in on rumors, obviously having. With their appointment drawing near, the trio broke to make their final preparations. Shirou decided to take Seriyuha's lead and descend into the lowest level of the village himself. He wasn't sure what he might have expected, but it was still rather more ordinary-looking than he felt it would be. It was really just a purely-comsetic bottom tier of the village area meant for npc homes, in which several players had decided to gather, exchange information, and sell items. There weren't any more shadowy corners than there had been elsewhere, and nobody seemed to be trying to hide their doings.

Guess wretched hives came in all flavors.

While he pretended to peruse the player sale board, he listened in on conversations happening nearby. One party was discussing distribution of loot they'd picked up, while another was making plans for their next day. Mostly they seemed to talk about what they'd done in the forest that day or would do the next day, but nobody was talking about going back out into the forest that night. It seemed even the shadier players were careful sorts. Eventually he gave up and ascended back into the city proper. Up in the more reputable parts of town, most of the players were congregating in the town inns and eating dinner. He sighed, a mirthless grin on his face.

Only they were dumb enough to go out into the field at night.

Turning toward the city gate, he caught sight of someone familiar out of the corner of his eye – Lyle. The swordsman was moving in a hurry, and in the opposite direction Shirou was. Shirou paused for a moment and calling out to tell the older player of their plans, but decided against it and hurried for the south gate. It was probably kinder to wait until they had results - Lyle had been disappointed enough times for one day.

At last, he rejoined his sister and their leader at the town gate. Both were already waiting for him. Seriyuha nodded to him as he approached, her expression more of a mask than was usual. Chigusa looked a little whiter than normal to him - but that might have been his imagination.

Looking out into the forest, he found himself unable to see more than a few feet beyond Frieven. The village itself was cheerfully illuminating by the suspended city lanterns, but beyond that there was only inky blackness. Chigusa hadn't been kidding about how dark it would be at night.

Luckily, the three of them had lanterns at the ready.

"If either of you aren't comfortable with this, you're-"

"All we're doing is sneaking around a pitch-dark forest at night to scare a resourceful little troll girl," Chigusa said, grinning. "What's the worst that could happen?"

Seriyuha frowned at her. "Try to take this seriously, would you?"

"Okay okay. We do need to be careful of monsters in the Depths at night," said Chigusa. "Those Lost Spirits from earlier today could be wandering for all we know."

She leaned forward toward Seriyuha, smiling, but the older woman just staring at her with a particularly stony face. "That acceptable, boss?" asked Chigusa.

Seriyuha heaved a sigh and shook her head. "Well, Hinoka's obviously not the least concerned about this. How about you, Razler?"

"I just wish we had a better plan," he said.

Seriyuha smiled mirthlessly. "I'm with you there. Worst case scenario we just have to do whatever dumb game she has planned, but there's no telling where that would end."

"Probably somewhere very annoying," Shirou said as he fell in line behind Seriyuha.

The trio walked out into the forest for the second time that day, their lanterns aglow and banishing the darkness around them. Even still, Shirou couldn't see more than a few feet in any direction, and he didn't dare let his eyes wander when the path under his feet might suddenly change direction. He could still remember Chigusa's warning that "natives" lurked in the vast lake at night, and it took all the self control he had not to try to look over the edge of the platforms.

The forest was quieter than it had been during the day, but not so eerily silent as the Depths had been; Shirou could still hear occasional breezes or night critters nearby. However, the forest held the same unnerving lack of enemies that the Depths. The entings and wasps that plagued them during the day were nowhere to be found at night. Chigusa had said it would be like that, but it still made him unneasy.

"Where's all the enemies?" he whispered to Chigusa.

"I told you there wouldn't be any," she whispered back.

"I know that, but why?"

"Oh. Well Plants and Flying Insects usually sleep at night," she replied just as quietly, "and the enemies in this part of the forest were those. Back in the beta goblins would appear, but they'd keep falling into the lake and causing server lag with all the ones that had to die and keep respawning, so they just got rid of all the nocturnal enemies. I hear the northern parts got pretty-"

A loud grinding sound – a crunch like something slamming against bark – echoed from below, and Shirou nearly jumped out of his skin.

"Sounds like those lake creatures you mentioned are up and about," Seriyuha said quietly.

"Y-yup," said Chigusa.

Shirou kept closer to his sister and Seriyuha from there. He tried not to imagine what kind of creature could make that noise. He didn't dare ask Chigusa just what it looked like either.

Though his heart threatened to escape his chest with every step of the way and his ears strained for sounds of the creatures below, Shirou eventually realized - as they came across a familiarly-gnarled tree - that they were progressing faster than they had during the day. It wasn't long at all before the mists of the Depths danced by the light of their lanterns before them.

"Okay, you both know which way to go," said Seriyuha. "Be careful. Please."

Chigusa and Shirou exchanged glances and turned away from each other, leaving Seriyuha alone on the central path. Their plan was for her to enter the forest slightly after they had. Then they'd cause a ruckus to fighten Keh-keh. Shirou moved along, alone, his feet feeling heavier than he could ever remember them feeling during his time in Aincrad. It wasn't long before he passed beyond all sight or sound of his two companions. Now alone and guided only by his own lantern light, Shirou walked carefully on the path to his own section of the forest.

The quiet around him seemed to go from normal to overwhelming, especially now that he didn't even have the footsteps of his friends to drown it out. He could hear every rustle of the leaves far above, and every slosh of water below. Perfectly ordinary ambience suddenly seemed to him to be danger lurking at all sides.

Crrrrcckkk

Heart hammering, he shined his light in the direction of the sound, but he knew it came from far below. The lake creatures that dwelled didn't climb up the trees - at least not in this part of the forest. Chigusa had said that. And he and the others would have seen the monsters already if they did. His legs shaking just a little, he forced himself to turn and continue on. Their plan would be ruined if he got himself lost...

Left, right, straight, right.

He and Chigusa had gone over his directions until he could recite them by memory while she was trying to distract him - they'd both wanted to be sure nothing would happen out in the dark. He only had to make sure he didn't get turned around. Fortunately, the paths were still clear. The ents and wasps were still sleeping peacefully – they were the lucky ones.

Finally, the misted path leading into the Depths came into view, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Now he only had to go inside and wait for Seriyuha's message.

Once he was inside, the familiar spirit creature appeared and recited the same accusatory message it had delivered back during the day, but he ignored it and found a tree to sit against. Still, it was nice to know he wasn't completely alone, even though his only companion was a xenophobic npc forest spirit. Once he was situated in a corner of a platform and with a tree to his back, he dimmed his lantern. He'd be safer blending in with the darkness. To his surprise, the mists of the Depths glowed faintly, allowing him to make out the path from the plunges into the lake once his eyes adjusted. It was still too dark to see very far or make out details, but he could easily tell what was solid from what was a drop into the lake.

At least he'd know where it was safe to stand.

Breathing out slowly, he tried to calm his beating heart as best he could. There was a chance it would be several minutes before Seriyuha sent her signal that it was time to begin the plan. The quiet that had plagued him earlier put him at ease now that he wasn't making noise himself. At least he could be sure nothing was moving nearby. He grinned into the night. In a strange way, the darkness that concealed threats also concealed him from them. He only had to listen carefully for anything approaching.

Whoosh

Speaking of.

Shirou leaned closer against the tree and struggled hard to control his breathing. Had a monster found him? Was it part of the event?

"HIYA!"

A black shape suddenly dropped down right in front of him. Keh-keh. The girl spent a few moments giggling to herself, hands behind her head, while Shirou struggled to find words.

"D-dammit, you little fucking brat!" Shirou eventually managed.

"Sorry, but you looked so lonely hiding in the dark out here!" said Keh-keh. "So why'd you guys split up? What dark schemes have you got cooking for me?"

Shirou growled as he got to his feet. Of course she'd manage to trip them up somehow.

"You followed us all the way from town?" he asked, hardly believing that she'd be so thorough.

"Nah, just from that last fork in the path. I decided I'd wait out there, see if you were going to pull anything shifty on me," she said, grinning toothily at him.

"So why'd you follow me?"

"Well you guys made it super obvious I was supposed to talk to the older lady and the other lady would just scream at me, so I chose you!" She grinned, her hands on her hips. "Aren't you lucky!"

"Why don't you just cut this garbage and give Lyle back-"

Keh-keh suddenly whirled around, her hand held back to silence him. Shirou crouched, his hand straying to his sword.

"Someone's coming," she whispered.

"Probably just-"

"No, different footsteps."

"Make this easy on the both of us and come out."

That was definitely not Chigusa or Seriyuha. It was a man's voice, but not one Shirou could remember hearing before. It sounded like it belonged to an older man - somewhere around Samson's age. Somebody else had followed them!?

"I can see through your Hiding skill clear as day, little girl, and don't try climbing in the trees either unless you want knives in your back. Make it easy on yourself and stay put."

Shirou could see it now – something moving through the mist down the path he'd come from. They were too dark to make out any details - probably they were wearing black. All he could see was the glint his two-handed sword cast off the mist.

This was bad: he couldn't tell a thing about how dangerous this man would be without being able to see him. He couldn't even see the man's player diamond until he was able to see the man in full.

Something solid and soft backed into him, and he nearly jumped, but it was only Keh-keh. He was suddenly very relieved to not be completely alone, but then Keh-keh kept backing up, as if to push herself further into Shirou.

And she was quivering.

"Who is he?" he whispered.

"He – he -" her voice was shaky, her tone uncontrolled.

"Don't play dumb," said the man. "You know what this is about: PoH and Johny Black want you dead. You've toyed with the wrong people, little girl."

This was bad. Who the hell were PoH and Johny Black? Who had Keh-keh gotten on the bad side of!?

He was practically shaking, but Shirou gently moved Keh-keh out from in front of him and stepped forward. He couldn't just let a child get murdered right in front of him.

"H-hey, cut her a break," he said. "She's just a stupid kid. Look, I'm sure we can work something out-"

"You have five seconds to get out of my way."

Shirou was half-sure he could see the man's eyes gleaming in the dark. He could still only make out his rough shape.

"You have no idea who she is or the enemies she's made. Don't be a fool and throw your life away, kid."

Shirou could barely breath. He was staring down death. For the first time in SAO, his life was in actual peril. This was different from the dumb monsters he'd killed by the dozens in his time in the game; he'd never fought another player before. He was against a foe he couldn't even properly see, and his enemy didn't seem the type to back down.

His whole body shaking head to toe and his vision tunneling, he moved to sheathe his sword with his fumbling hands. Nobody could hold it against him if he ran... Right?

Chigusa would be happier to know he'd kept himself safe. Seriyuha had told him to abandon the plan if it looked dangerous. The whole thing had nothing to do with him. He had to stay alive - for Chigusa and his father, if not for himself. They were waiting for him to come back.

He... had to survive...

Shirou heard somebody sobbing nearby - very nearby. Who was there? He wasn't alone?

"Mommy... Help me..."

He shook his head, his vision clearing.

He couldn't. He wouldn't just leave Keh-keh to die.

"I won't," he said, leveling his sword, "let you hurt her."

"That's a damn pity, kid."

The man raised his sword, and Shirou immediately brought his buckler up, expecting an attack. None came. Shirou held his his buckler and sword ready, but his heart was beating out of control. The man was standing there, poised to strike but not moving.

What was he going to do!? This was insane! He didn't know how to fight a player!

He needed some kind of plan. Keh-keh was still cuddled against his leg, quivering and sobbing. She was in no condition to fight, but she could still help.

"I'll hold him off, go find my sister and Seriyuha! Get help!" he snapped quietly at Keh-keh.

She just sat where she was, shivering and whimpering.

"Keh-keh!" he hissed, "get a hold of your-"

The assassin's strike came so fast Shirou almost couldn't see it. One minute he was standing there, and the next the light of his sword was suddenly approaching. Shirou barely raised his shield in time, and the force of the man's charge drove him back into the tree. With barely a second's delay, the man swung viciously at Shirou's chest, giving him barely enough time to duck. Grabbing Keh-keh by the collar, Shirou leaped away toward the center of the platform just as the assassin swung low at them. Shirou's lantern was sent tumbling onto its side. At least he wasn't completely blind without it...

Shirou set Keh-keh down and stood, shield and sword ready.

"Get up, come on, get up!" he yelled at the girl. Keh-keh was openly sobbing and pleading for her life.

The man charged again, but Shirou caught his charge with his shield. Pushing forward, Shirou swung at the man's midsection, and was rewarded with a shallow swipe of red that lit up the assailant's body for just a moment. The man growled and swung an overhead strike at Shirou, forcing him to leap back, but the man's swift followup swipe caught him across the belly, instantly bringing his health to half.

Shirou stumbled backward, gasping. He couldn't feel the pain of the blow, but seeing how much damage he'd been dealt in a single strike made his heart beat even faster. Not only did he have to keep himself alive, he had to protect Keh-keh while doing it, and he was already outclassed by his opponent.

He gnashed his teeth.

"You aren't bad," the man said quietly, "but you're out of your league. You're going to learn that there's no heroes in this-"

"I thought the hero always showed up late?"

The killer made a sound of disgust and moved to the edge of the platform, out from the centerpoint between Shirou and the direction of the new voice. Whoever the new arrival was, he wasn't one Shirou recognized, and he couldn't see him properly either. All he was sure of was that the figure was smaller than his attacker – and probably a little shorter than Shirou himself.

"What's with you people crawling out of the woodwork to interfere with me?"

"I thought I'd finish up some grinding with a treasure hunt. Then I overheard you."

"Who the hell grinds out in the field at night – alone?"

Shirou privately shared his attacker's opinion. This guy was either kidding, or insane.

"It sounds like you're pretty set on this, but I've got some pretty nice loot from earlier that I wouldn't mind-"

"Tried that, didn't work," said Shirou.

"It was worth a try."

Shirou heard metal sliding free from a sheath. The attacker turned a little more toward the newcomer, and Shirou saw his opportunity. His heart pounding in his throat, Shirou remained as still as he could, determined to lose the killer's attention. Once the assassin was occupied fighting the new arrival, Shirou would attack the guy from behind. Everything had changed in an instant!

"Hey, mind keeping out of this over there?" the stranger called out to Shirou, as if reading his mind. "You're in pretty bad shape and I can take this guy alone."

"That's enough!" the attacker cried as he dove in for a third time that night.

His strike met only air. Shirou could see from the mist-light glinting off the sword of his savior that he'd stepped out of the way of the attack at the last moment. The mysterious player stepped forward, his evasion flowing into an attack in nearly one motion. It was almost so fast that Shirou missed it. The assailant did too; the blade struck him cleanly from behind. He gasped, stepped forward, and turned, swinging wide as he did. The newcomer parried the blow and lunged, barely missing the attacker.

The newcomer was fast. Possibly faster than Lyle.

Uttering a sound of disgust, the assassin took a long step or to back, back toward the very way in that all three men had taken that night.

"Another time, girl. There's too many meddlers here tonight."

Shirou, hardly believing it was already over, stood motionless and shaking as the attacker's footsteps signaled his retreat. He was gone just as suddenly as he arrived...

"Well, good thing I made it in time."

Snapping back to reality, Shirou sheathed his weapon, and found his lantern being forced into his hand. Whoever it was that had saved him, his tone had shifted to complete ease in seconds.

Shirou could properly see his savior by the light of his lantern now; a young teenager, with a plain (if slightly feminine) face, simple black hair, and wearing almost casual-looking black clothing.

Someone like this had fought off that assassin? He was even younger than Shirou himself!

But Shirou restrained his disbelief and offered his hand. "I'm Razler. thanks for saving Keh-keh and I," he said.

"Kirito," the boy said, glancing down at Razler's hand. It was a moment or two before he finally accepted, and Kirito was quick to end the shake.

Keh-keh's sniffling brought the attention of both young men to her, and Kirito knelt down before her.

"Looks like you're safe now, so cheer up."

Keh-keh stumbled to her feet, still sobbing softly. "T-thank you... you saved my life..."

"Not just me, thank Razler up there too."

Keh-keh looked up at him, and Shirou looked back, immediately not liking what he saw. He should have expected it, but he was still stricken by the look on her face. She was was pale, tears still in her eyes, and her mouth slightly agape in a crooked frown. Nothing remained of the perpetually smiling little troll... Keh-keh mumbled something amidst her sobbing, and he nodded.

"So," Shirou said to Kirito, "what can I do-"

"SHIROU!"

There was only one person who'd scream like that.

Chigusa and Seriyuha appeared, both running down a different path than the one Shirou and Kirito had taken. Chigusa was at a full sprint, taking the winding turns of the Depths walkways as if she were drifting. Shirou turned to his sister, half-formed placations uttered, when she tackled him to the ground.

"Shirou are you hurt!? We couldn't reach you, what were you thinking almost getting killed like that!?"

Shirou tried to search for the right apology to offer, but ultimately he settled on giving Seriyuha a pleading look. Their leader nodded and pried Chigusa off of him firmly but not roughly. Chigusa fought briefly to free herself and resume squeezing her little brother, but Seriyuha proved the stronger of the two.

"That's enough, he's okay," she said softly, "we should just be grateful for that."

"Well of course I am!" Chigusa screamed at Seriyuha, her face red.

"And I'd like to thank you," Seriyuha added, turning to Kirito. "You saved Razler's life, how can I ever repay you?"

Kirito waved her off. "Thanks, but don't worry about it."

"Even so," Seriyuha continued, "You must be a very strong player, and if we're going to leave this-"

"Sorry," Kirito said quietly. "I'm not interested in joining any guilds."

The briefest of frowns flickered across Seriyuha's face, but she said nothing. Shirou was surprised, having expected her to push her usual recruitment bid a little harder. Maybe she could sense somehow that Kirito was a lost cause.

"Well, I've still got a busy night, so if you'll-"

"Wait!"

Chigusa (after freeing herself from Seriyuha) rushed forward and bowed low to Kirito. Kirito briefly looked away, most likely stunned at the gesture. "Thank you for saving my little brother's life," she said. "I know you don't want anything as a reward, but what you did means the world to me. If there's ever anything I can ever do for you, please don't hesitate to ask."

Kirito smiled at her. "I have a little sister... so I understand how you feel."

But whether he meant anything more or planned to take Chigusa up on her offer, Kirito didn't say. He just gave a final goodbye and walked deeper into the forest, as if the encounter hadn't happened. He left just as mysteriously as he'd first appeared.

"Strange boy," Seriyuha said quietly.

"He was strong though," said Shirou. "I couldn't believe it myself."

"So," Chigusa said loudly, her normal air returning, "did you learn a lesson, shrimp?" she asked, kneeling down in front of Keh-keh.

"Chigusa," snapped Seriyuha.

Keh-keh had mostly sat quietly for the past few minutes, but she suddenly burst into tears again and grabbed Shirou's leg tight. Chigusa stood up straight, a bewildered look on her face.

"T-they'll come for me again!" cried Keh-keh. "You heard what Valel said! PoH wants me dead!"

Chigusa gave Shirou a confused look, but he shook his had and gently pulled Keh-keh's arms free from his leg. "This really isn't the place to talk about this, don't you think? Do you want to return to town with us?"

Keh-keh, her crying having subsided, nodded quietly. Shirou and Seriyuha exchanged quiet glances, and she led the way back out through the Depths. They walked back through the shadowed forest silently, Keh-keh clutching to Shirou's leg the whole way. She held just tight enough to keep from being separated, but she at least wasn't clutching to him like her life depended on it. He set his hand on her shoulder to give her some ease, but he said and did nothing else. He could tell from her shaking and occasional chokes that her self-control was teetering on a knife's edge, and she needed some quiet and time.

The forest was as silent as it had been on the way to the Depths, but Shirou was less afraid, which even he almost considered unusual. Surely he should have been a wreck, expecting the assassin or his allies to make another attempt on their lives? He'd had a near-death experience, and he wasn't even shaking... Maybe he was just in shock...

They returned to Frieven before he could manage to piece anything together, but without any second attacks coming their way. Shirou eventually decided that perhaps it was for the best.

They checked in to the Leafy Haven Inn, where Seriyuha led the way up to her room. Shirou kept his eyes on his leader, barely looking at the inn around them. It was warm and bright and seemingly safe, and that was enough for now. Once in Seriyuha's room, the siblings took seats while Keh-keh sat on the bed, sniffling and staring down at her feet.

Seriyuha knelt down in front of Keh-keh, her hands closed softly around the little girl's. "Keh-keh, would you mind telling us what happened out there? Why did that man attack you?"

"H-he's V-Valel," said Keh-keh. "He's friends with this... this scary guy named PoH. They were the ones who were killing other players. T-they..."

She paused a moment to choke out a sob. "They started off stealing from players. They'd threaten them for their items... I hate it when bullies like that pick on people so I thought I'd... I dunno, teach them a lesson. So I harassed them a few times a couple weeks back. But then Johny – one of PoH's friends – started sending me messages that they were gonna kill me, so I stopped bugging them right away -" she suddenly looked up "- but they sent Valel to kill me! They're gonna keep coming after me!"

Keh-keh slipped from the bed and onto her knees, where she began sobbing openly into her hands. Seriyuha edged away, giving the girl some space, but she didn't stand up.

"Please!" Keh-keh gasped, looking up at them, "I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble, please help me! I don't wanna be alone anymore, I can't stand it! I want my mommy..."

Shirou bowed his head and looked at his feet, unable to bear watching Keh-keh sobbing so helplessly. How had he forgotten it? She was a child. She shouldn't have ever been put into this situation. Death threats weren't something...

No!

"That's what we wanted to do from the start, don't you remember?" Seriyuha said softly. "Of course we'll look after you."

Shirou looked up in gratitude to her.

"I'm not your mother. I can't replace her, but I can watch out for you in her place."

"If you'll let me," she added, holding her arms up.

Keh-keh launched herself into Seriyuha's arms and began sobbing freely into her chest. Seriyuha sat quietly, holding her close. She said nothing while Keh-keh let out all her grief and fear.

Shirou echanged glances with Chigusa, and jerked his head toward the door. Chigusa nodded and the siblings quietly left, leaving Seriyuha and Keh-keh to their private moment.

Outside, they sat on the floor against opposite sides of the hall, not looking at one another. Silence took hold for nearly a minute, until Chigusa finally spoke, "She's pretty good with kids."

"Yeah," mumbled Shirou.

"All this time I was starting to think she wouldn't do anything if it wasn't pragmatic, but after that..." Chigusa made a sound. "I guess she's got more of a heart than she lets on."

"A kid crying like that would move anyone," said Shirou.

"I wonder what happens next?" asked Chigusa.

"I guess we have to dodge a cabal of crazed killers chasing us for the rest of our days..."

"Well, it was getting pretty boring around here."

Despite himself, Shirou grinned at the floor.

They spent a few minutes like that, sitting across from one another and saying nothing. Shirou almost didn't want to think about what might happen next. He didn't regret saving Keh-keh, but he had made things a lot more dangerous for them. Would they be so lucky the next time they were cornered by the killers? He shook his head.

Before long, Seriyuha stepped back out into the hallway and found them. "Thank you. You two can come back inside now if you like."

Quietly, the siblings stood and followed Seriyuha back into her room, where they found Keh-keh standing in front of them. She had stopped crying, but was staring at her feet, completely red-faced and with puffy eyes.

"I offered Keh-keh a place with us," said Seriyuha, "but I thought you two deserved a say in this."

"There's no way I could turned her away and live with myself now," Chigusa said instantly.

"I made my choice back in the forest," said Shirou. There was no doubt these killers would be coming after him too, whether or not Keh-keh was with them.

"Then it's settled," said Seriyuha. Turning to Keh-keh, she said, "it sounds like we're going to be working together for a while, would you like to say anything?"

Keh-keh "mhm'ed" and nodded, stepping forward. "Thank you for letting me coming with you after everything I've done. I promise not to cause any more trouble for you."

"Feel free to cause trouble for our enemies, though," Chigusa said, smiling at her.

Keh-keh giggled and instantly said, "Okay!" Then, with a shrill gasp, she opened her inventory. After going through a few windows, she produced a medium-sized bag of cor, which she practically pushed into Shirou's hands. "Please take this! It's to make up for stealing that giant white spider from you!"

The siblings exchanged glances, the bag feeling heavy in Shirou's arms. He almost didn't want to see how much money they'd been given.

"You don't need to worry about that, dear," said Seriyuha. "We mostly share our cor and items anyways."

"Oh yeah!" Keh-keh continued, producing a knife - Lyle's side-arm. "Please give this back to Lyle too! I only wanted to bug him a little, you saw how he goes around going, 'Oh I'm the lord of swords, aren't I cool?" right?"

Shirou screwed himself up in disbelief; Keh-keh had seen fit to attribute an exaggerated - and not to mention inaccurate - British accent to Lyle.

"I can't stand people like that," she continued, "so I wanted to teach him a lesson, that's all!"

Seriyuha frowned at her. "You're right that he's a braggart, but even so if anybody's going to give that back to him it'll be-"

"Oh, that's it!" gasped Shirou.

Everyone rounded on him, confused. Why hadn't he thought about it? He should have realized how strange it was that the killer had tracked them!

"Lyle must have told this PoH where to find you, Keh-keh!"

Seriyuha closed her eyes and looked away, and both Chigusa and Keh-keh gaped at him.

"W-what!? Just because I took his knife?"

Chigusa shook her head, and leaned in closer. "He wouldn't really do that, would he?" she asked, her expression grave. "Razler, what makes you so sure?"

"I saw him heading toward the seedy part of this town just as we were leaving," Shirou explained breathlessly, "remember how he said he'd 'take things into his own hands'? He probably decided to get a message off to those killers!"

"Razler, you're jumping to a lot of conclusions without evidence," Seriyuha said firmly.

Grimacing, Shirou bowed his head. She wasn't wrong, but he felt completely sure in his logic.

"He might know something we can use though," said Chigusa, "he made it sound like he knows a lot about the 'underworld' here in Aincrad."

Keh-keh gave a gasp and nodded exuberantly. "He hangs out a lot around the parts of towns where thieves and trolls do! That's how I knew about him! He'd talk himself up to get hired on by other players for jobs!"

"There's mercenaries in this game?" asked Shirou.

Ignoring Shirou, Chigusa turned to Seriyuha. "Then confronting him might still be useful. We have to do something. Those people are going to come after us now."

There was a delay for several seconds in which Seriyuha simply stared at the floor. Shirou watched, unsure what decision she would make. Was she worried about the risks of exposing them to Lyle now that they had a group of mad killers after them? But finally she nodded, though she frowned as she did so.

"You're right. We can't keep our distance without some information on them."

Sighing, she began to pace the room, her arms crossed and her eyes on the floor. "This is already dangerous enough, so if we're going to speak to Lyle now it needs to be on our terms."

Chigusa, her gaze following Seriyuha unerringly, said, "So we should probably corner him at his place or something."

"We don't even know where he's staying though," said Shirou.

Chigusa shrugged. "Then we just follow-"

Keh-keh was on her feet in an instant, bouncing on her heels in front of Chigusa. "I can do that!" she cried. "This sort of thing is right up my alley, I'll just hang out on the village bottom, wait for him to show, and then follow him back to his place, easy-peasy!"

Seriyuha turned to her, smiling suddenly, and patted her on the head. "Take it easy, you've convinced me. First thing in the morning you can get to work and then we'll confront Lyle."

Keh-keh looked up at her curiously, and asked, "but why not tonight? There's no telling how long he might be out tomorrow."

"I think you've had enough excitement for one night, don't you?"

"Oh," Keh-keh muttered, frowning. "Yeah." She glanced toward the window - Shirou suspected without meaning to - and shuddered. "Y-yeah that's - I'm..." She looked down at her feet, as if determined to keep her gaze on them. "I don't really... wanna go back out there..."

"I think you could do with some sleep right now," said Seriyuha. She suddenly looked pointedly at Shirou. "We all could."

"That sounds good to me," Chigusa said as she stood up and stretched. "This night has been messy enough already. Did you get me and Shi - Razler a room?"

"Yeah, it's next door, here's the key," Seriyuha said, offering Chigusa a largish brass key.

"Thanks, nigh-"

"Can I sleep with you guys?"

Keh-keh, her hands behind her back and her eyes on the floor, was tapping her feet. "I actually have my own room in town but-"

"Sure thing, sweety," said Seriyuha, "I've got another bed-"

"No, I-I mean with them," Keh-keh pressed, her cheeks a faint red. "With Razler and Hinoka, I mean."

"Oh," said Seriyuha. Her eyes darted to Shirou for just a moment, but she smiled and nodded. "Just don't stay up too late!"

Without further adieu, Chigusa and Shirou got up and made for the door, leaving Keh-keh to nod to Seriyuha and thank her once again for everything she'd done. Seriyuha brushed aside Keh-keh's thanks, but called for Shirou to wait up. Keh-keh passed him on her way to the door, her pace hurried and her eyes on her feet, and she and Chigusa were soon gone, leaving Shirou alone with Seriyuha.

Almost immediately she pointed toward the second bed in the room, and then sat down on her own. Feeling that she wasn't going to let him off the hook easily, he sat down as she wanted, though he kept his gaze on his hands in his lap.

"Razler, Keh-keh filled me in on everything that happened back in the forest," said Seriyuha.

"Will she be okay?" he asked. He hadn't had long to think about it yet - the night had been too confusing for that - but the sort of thing Keh-keh had been through could easily traumatize her, especially at her age.

"I really hope so," Seriyuha said quietly. "We need to be there for her over the next few days so she feels secure. It's horrible that a girl her age ended up trapped in this world without any friends or guardians to watch over her. Being with a group of older players should do her some good, but only once she feels more secure with us."

Shirou nodded, his hands gripped tight together. He wouldn't have been able to make it without Seriyuha and his older sister, and Keh-keh was both younger and had gone for far longer on her own.

"Also," said Seriyuha, "what you did at the forest was incredibly brave. Keh-keh barely even mentioned Kirito when she told me what happened; you were her savior tonight - to her."

His face flushed, he looked up, and saw her smiling. "I'd be filled with pride if you were my son - though probably also scared out of my wits. How do you feel?"

Frowning, her looks back at his feet. "Not sure," he muttered. "I needed saving myself, and Chigusa probably won't trust me to be by myself for months."

Seriyuha laughed lightly. "I'll talk to her about that later. But please let me or your sister know if you're having a hard time with anything," she added firmly. "I'm honestly amazed you're not panicking yourself."

"Me too... I'll be careful, don't worry," Shirou said, looking up to meet her gaze.

Seriyuha was silent for a moment, doubtlessly examining him, but then she stood. "Well, you should probably head off to your room now. I told Keh-keh that she needs to thank you again for what you did."

"You didn't have to do that," Shirou said as he began for the door.

"Oh yes I did, that girl needs to learn a thing or two about respect."

Shirou found one of the inn rooms a few doors down the hall already open, and inside were Chigusa and Keh-keh. Both were seated at opposite ends of the same bed and talking as he came in, but they quickly took notice of and greeted him. Chigusa excused herself right away, a big smile on her face, and she stepped out into the hallway. Shutting the door behind him, Shirou turned to see Keh-keh standing before him, her hands folded over her lap.

Well, Seriyuha did warn him...

"Uhm," Keh-keh began, her cheeks red and her eyes constantly darting from her feet up to him, "thank you so much for everything you did for me, Razler. I-I, I hadn't done anything to deserve you saving me, but i-it - it was so brave. If it weren't for you, Valel would have killed me for sure..."

"You're welcome," he said, smiling warmly at her. "And don't say you don't deserve to be saved. Nobody deserves to be abandoned."

Keh-keh's hands clenched tighter on her lap. "Mmm, y-you " - she looked up, her face beet red - "you're my hero! Thank you, Razler!"

With that she immediately turned and leaped back onto the bed, where she curled into a ball and buried her face behind her knees. Shirou walked over to his own bed and sat on the edge of it.

Well. So he was a hero now. Chigusa was never going to let him live that one down.

Chigusa returned a moment later, a big goofy grin plastered on her face, but she couldn't take her eyes off her little brother. She sat back here she was, where she began trying to - without success - coax Keh-keh out of her fetal position. They went to sleep not long after that, Chigusa and Keh-keh sharing one bed and Shirou on his own in the other. Keh-keh's soft breathing soon fell into a pattern that hinted at her having fallen to sleep, but Shirou could only lie awake and stare at the ceiling. He wasn't in any shape to sleep... He had too much to think about. The events of the night kept playing in his mind.

At one point in the night - Shirou wasn't sure when - he suddenly heard the sound of sobbing. He looked around, not sure whether he was sleeping or awake.

"Shh, shh, shh, it's okay, you're all right," Chigusa said soothingly. The sobbing became muffled. "It was just a bad dream, you're safe."

Shirou rolled over and punched his pillow. PoH, Johny Black, Valel - Whoever the hell they were, they weren't going to get away with the things they'd done. He wasn't sure how he'd do it, but he swore to it. Somehow, he'd make them pay for hurting Keh-keh - and the others they'd already killed.

---

Shirou's back to using a sword: this was intentional on my part. He'll eventually settle on a weapon he likes.

Looks like I didn't full characterize floor 8 properly. That's what I get for thinking the wiki would necessarily be right. At least I can't mis-represent the floors above 75, heh.

Funfact: usually when Chigusa slips up and calls Shirou by his real name, that's me forgetting to have her be calling him "Razler" (because of force of habit on my end. Alternating between their real and player names chapter-by-chapter is usually tough early in a chapter) at moments when she should be - usually because they're in front of other players - so I just edit her to call him the "right" thing on proof-reading but leave in the "incorrect" name-slip. In dramatic moments she's usually meant to be calling him "Shirou".

Keh-keh sure has stolen a lot of the limelight in this fanfic, so I made up for it by traumatizing her. Sounds fair! :)

The amusing thing is I just got a review from the previous chapter asking if Laughing Coffin would be involved in the fanfic. There's your answer! Except it's technically pre-Laughing Coffin since they don't form formally for nearly a year from this point.

Sorry to any Samson fans out there, I'll try work in some time for our favorite role-player in the future. The "modern day" chapters are more about the canon characters since the original characters are hogging the "flashback" chapters. Once we've finished up the actual founding of the Summer Knights that should ease up a bit.

This was Kirito's first appearance in the fanfic where he wasn't dead or dying, and he lives up to his canon self by saving the life of yet another girl (and Shirou). But wait, shouldn't Keh-keh be joining his harem right about now?

Hmmm :/