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.

10. Into the Dark

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.

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Finally back! :)

No worries, there weren't any major emergencies, it was just a super busy time for me at work. Also, I realized I'd been doing this story for several months already and I could use a break. Hope you won't hold it against me!

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So uhh, to my extreme embarrassment, I realized while writing this chapter that I read the year wrong on the SAO wiki when I was doing preliminary research on Laughing Coffin for chapter 7. As a result, Laughing Coffin exists in my fanfiction an entire year earlier than they do in canon.

Sorry about that one, I'm usually better than this. Since it's too late to really CHANGE that, the handwave we're going with is that this is pre-Laughing Coffin.

So yeah, Johny Black went insane in SAO in record time!

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Looking back, I realize I underestimated just what Seriyuha's plan was. We ran into the people who'd later become members of the Summer Knights - Keh-keh, Samson, Lyle, Ashii - for a reason. Seriyuha didn't just want anybody to form the first members of our ranks; she wanted the ones who knew the game, or could learn it. Lyle was something of a fluke at the time, but we'd have probably run into him in the Forest Depths if we didn't in town.

And how did we run into then? Seriyuha was having Chigusa direct us to the places that a Beta Tester - or somebody who knew what they knew - would go. We weren't encountering them on accident. And it was only a matter of time until luck saw us brought together...

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At the first sign of sunlight streaming through the windows, Shirou rose from a night of slipping in and out of sleep. Valel appeared in his dreams just as he no doubt had in Keh-keh's. Finally having an excuse to get up, he turned in his bed to find Chigusa sleeping alone. Immediately bolting upward in alarm, he dashed for the hall to find Keh-keh, but his eyes fell upon a note sitting on the room's center table. He slowed. The note read, "I couldn't sleep so I went to find Lyle's place! I'll be back in a couple hours! Don't worry, I won't leave town, Seriyuha knows I left!"

Couldn't sleep.

Shirou grit his teeth and balled up the note. Somehow, this PoH and Valel would pay for hurting Keh-keh...

As he stepped out into the corridor, he saw the door to Seriyuha's room standing open, and he glanced inside. There he found the woman, sitting on her bed and reading the player guide she'd purchased the day before. She looked up as he approached and smiled at him.

"Just in case you or your sister got the wrong idea about Keh-keh," she said.

He let himself in and sat down on one of the table chairs, and Seriyuha turned her attention back on her book. "Are you sure it's okay for her to be wandering around alone in town?" he asked.

"She'll be okay, I made her pinky swear me that she wouldn't leave town," Seriyuha said without looking up.

He rolled his eyes. "You remember who we're talking about, right?"

"You'd be surprised, children take pinky swears very seriously."

He laughed, unable to himself, and Seriyuha smiled down at her manual. "She needed something to focus her mind on, and she's desperate to please us so we won't get rid of her. If she asks or tries to do anything for you, let her do it unless it's dangerous. And make sure to know you appreciate her, no matter how small it was."

"I understand," said Shirou.

Seriyuha closed the guidebook and stretched. "Well, we've got some time to ourselves until she comes back, how about we get something to eat? It's been a long time since we had a slow morning."

He nodded and was on his feet before he even realized it. She was right; they usually left early and came back with the sunset. Keeping busy was part of how a player survived in SAO, and weekends held no meaning to most - them included - in that regard. They woke Chigusa on the way - which took a bit of effort - before they continued on to a town eatery. There, they ordered and ate more slowly than the norm, while the other players nearby made plans for their day.

He sat there for a while, enjoying the white noise of the chatter nearby and the wind blowing through the trees. Then he remembered that their quiet day only came because Keh-keh was out working...

But then again, she wasn't having to endure SAO's tasteless food just then, so maybe it evened out. He couldn't quite decide.

They didn't speak much while they ate, and once their plates were cleaned, they spoke even less. He knew what subject he wanted to bring up, but he also suspected he wouldn't like what he'd probably hear. Seriyuha was reading from the guide again, and Chigusa was fiddling with her long-empty plate. He tried to pretend to be watching the leaves sway above. It actually was beautiful the way they flowed here and there in the wind, but...

"Do you honestly think we'll be able to keep Keh-keh safe if those killers come after her again?" Chigusa suddenly blurted out.

He flinched.

"It isn't numbers that would keep us safe," said Seriyuha. "They're going after her because she caused them problems. We just have to convince them that she - and us - aren't worth the trouble."

He stared at her. It sounded good, but there were steps missing. Crucial ones. "But how do we -"

"Bad news everyone!"

He jerked upright - Keh-keh was sprinting back toward them. Seriyuha pulled aside a seat at the table for her, which she leaped into with a quick "thank you."

"Lyle left this morning! He went out of town early with a couple other player-"

"Was it those killers!?" cried Chigusa.

"Would you keep it down?" hissed Seriyuha. Chigusa bowed her head, blushing.

"No, he left with those two guys we saw at the ruins back on floor two! They hired him to escort them to some ruined mansion in the north part of the forest."

He did a double-take. Those two again? Well, going to a ruin seemed natural for Lloyd (and Ashii, much as she was likely to grumble about it), but what were the odds they'd run into Lyle?

"Seems a bit convenient they ran into him."

"Uhhh, not really," Keh-keh said slowly, her eyes darting upward. "He DOES work for cor and he was probably trying to get some money to get a new knife thing..."

Keh-keh trailed off, and Shirou turned to Chigusa. "Isn't Ashii a beta tester? Why would they need him?" he asked.

"The north side of the floor is more dangerous, remember?" she said instantly. "Most of the beta testers aren't going to head that way just yet, so they probably decided they could use the help.

"Define 'Dangerous'," said Seriyuha.

"'Killer Plants shoot pollen and sap that attract the bees and entings... and at night I hear those creatures in the lake crawl up the trees."

He glanced through the gaps of the wood plank below, as if expecting to see the lake monsters look back up at him. It wouldn't happen, not in a town, but...

"We'll be fine if we all go together!" cried Keh-keh, a wide smile on her face.

Seriyuha sighed and placed one of her hands on Keh-keh's head. "That sounds good, but we don't need to be taking risks."

"She's not wrong, Seriyuha," said Chigusa. "The real problem is I have no idea where this mansion would be."

Seriyuha went for her guide book, but Keh-keh immediately said, "I already checked, it's not in there. Argo said she didn't know for sure where it was either."

"Ashii must have been there herself back in the beta," muttered Chigusa. "It was getting close to over by the time we got to this floor, so it's no surprise not much word of mouth got around about it..."

Nobody said anything, and Shirou was left to stare at the table and think over this latest revelation. He'd known from the start that Chigusa's knowledge had limits, and that once they reached the tenth floor they'd be running blind from there on. He'd always had the reassurance that they hadn't gotten that far yet, but it didn't even occur to him that the useful information they had would run out even before they reached floor ten.

They hadn't had much of a safety net to begin with, and it had just gotten smaller.

"A mansion's gotta stand out, right?" he said. It sounded dumb, he realized that, but somebody needed to offer a suggestion.

"We should save searching blindly for a last resort," Seriyuha said not unkindly. "There's no telling how long they'll be gone."

"Maybe we could just wait in town for him to get back?" said Chigusa.

"No!" cried Keh-keh, "Valel's still looking for me! We gotta get some answers from Lyle!"

"The longer we wait, the more dangerous things get for us," said Seriyuha.

"Yeah, they'll need to plan their next move before they attack again," said Shirou.

Chigusa leaned back in her chair, arms folded. "I guess, but that doesn't get us any closer to an answer," she said quietly.

With that, she stared off into the forest, frowning and playing idly with her hair. Shirou watched her for a possible solution to the problem, but none were coming. Looking across the table, he saw that Seriyuha was watching Chigusa too. He looked down at the table, his face burning. It wasn't fair that they were depending so much on Chigusa. She was just as trapped as they were, and she was being forced onto a pedestal. They'd grown too used to relying on her knowledge of the game, and now they were suffering for it.

And she was suffering most of all...

"Hey!" Keh-keh suddenly cried, causing him to jump. "We should go hire a mercenary too! Some players might have tracking skills, you know, so we just need to follow Lyle's trail!"

Seriyuha smiled at Keh-keh and patted her on the head again, earning her a beaming grin from the young girl. "If you don't mind cooperating with strangers, then I say it's a good idea."

Shirou privately agreed - nobody was offering better - and even Chigusa was watching Keh-keh with a relieved look on her face.

Still smiling, the girl leaped off of her chair and sprinted toward the lower levels of town, her older companions trailing behind her at a much less brisk pace. She'd moved so quickly that they all only had times to exchange surprised looks before they followed her. Working with a young player was going to take some getting used to. Following Keh-keh's high-speed lead, Shirou found himself once more standing in the shadowy underbelly platforms of town. While Keh-keh and Chigusa discussed how to search for the right help, he simply marveled at the fact that he was there once again, at the same place where he'd caught a glimpse of Lyle the day before.

"HEEEY, WE'RE LOOKING FOR A TRACKER!" Keh-keh suddenly screamed at the top of her lungs, making him leap for a second time that morning.

Breathing heavily, he rounded on the two girls. What was going on?

He found Keh-keh, her chest considerably puffed out. She was grinning at Chigusa, who was red in the face.

"There we go! Now everyone knows what we want!"

"And everyone thinks we're insane! What doofus will want to help us-"

"Hey, tracking right? I'm good at that!"

Chigusa threw her hands to the sky, not even looking at the individual who'd answered them, but Shirou turned and saw young woman standing before them. She looked around his own age, but slightly taller. She'd seemed to go for a cliche berserker look: leather and fur armor that showed her to be rather built (in more ways than one).

He blushed and forced himself to look her in the eyes, but she was beaming wide at them.

"Name's Elise," she said. With that she seized him by the hand and shook it. "Monster huntress expert. What beast do you need killing out there?"

"Excuse me?" Seriyuha said gently as she stepped forward. "Not to insult Razler, but it's me you're talking to."

Elise smiled up at Seriyuha. "Wow, you're tall, Lady. How'd I miss you earlier?"

"She does stand out," said Keh-keh. "So how come you aren't wearing actual armor if you go out fighting monsters?"

Elise opened her mouth to speak, but Chigusa rapidly said, "Beast hide gear sets offer the best boosts to strength in SAO."

"Yup, she knows her stuff! Just like the player guide said!" said Elise. "I'm why I'm always eager to try hunting new monsters so I can try different hides. So c'mon, what're we killing?"

"We're not hunting for monsters, we'd like to hire you to follow after a group of players that went up north this morning," said Seriyuha.

Elise's expression instantly darkened, and her gaze strayed from Seriyuha. "Eeehhh, if you're after the Most Dangerous Game, you'd better look somewhere else. I'm not much of an assassin."

"We're not trying to kill them, just find them," Seriyuha said quickly.

The huntress narrowed her eyes at the older woman. "Why're you so worried about finding them? They've gotta come back to town eventually."

"It's because I stole this knife from him!" Keh-keh cried, Lyle's swordbreaker on full display in her hands. "I was just playing a prank on him but it went too far, and now he's trying to earn money to replace it!"

Elise looked taken aback, but Keh-keh moved up until she was only a few feet away and looked right into her eyes. "Please, I just wanna make-

The mercenary instantly broke out into a deep belly-laugh, and Shirou and Keh-keh gaped at her.

"So you're the little demon that stole 'Sword Lord's' knife? Nice, about time somebody knocked him down a peg," she said after regaining control of herself.

After a moment's recovery, Keh-keh grinned up at her, some of her older self showing through for the first time in hours.

"You know him?" asked Seriyuha.

"Yeah, he showed up at the hiring hangouts about three floors ago and it's been noisy ever since," said Elise. "But man, to steal from him? I got into some dumb stuff when I was a kid, too, but that takes the cake. If you're just trying to give him back his weapon, then why not!"

She turned to Seriyuha, arms crossed, and nodded. "So yeah, I charge three-hundred cor a day for work, but I'll wave the fee for the day if I get any cool skins. Only thing I want from you guys is to share your camp if we stay out of town overnight. Normally I charge extra for work in dangerous areas but I've been itching to go looking up north anyways, so this works out."

"If you get two skins, will you pay us?" asked Chigusa.

Elise winked at her and said, "Nice try."

Shirou grimaced and automatically went to check their accumulated cor. They could afford her fee for a few days, but she was still asking for a pretty penny. Renting two rooms at the inn cost less than that per day, and upkeep on their equipment and consumables was a thing. Buying a permanent home was something Chigusa sometimes talked about - and it didn't sound bad to him either - so anything that set that goal back wasn't particularly welcome.

"That's just how it is, take it or leave it," Elise said. She grinned at the quartet, her hands folded behind her head. "But I can tell you this; almost nobody wants to be the first person to explore up north. They're all waiting for the testers to go that way because everybody's saying it's super dangerous. The only mercs who'll go there now are the fearless or desperate ones."

He almost smiled. Lyle was the former, Elise the latter. He wasn't sure if she even noticed that herself.

"You've already convinced us," said Seriyuha. "Do you mind if we leave right now?"

"Not at all!" said Elise. "I was just looking for something to do. So he was going north, but what leads do you have on where Swordo might be going in particular?"

"There's only one gate leading north from town, we should start there," said Chigusa.

"Sounds good, lead the way!" said Elise.

The party ascended back out of the black market district and into the main part of town, Chigusa leading the way to the north gate. They saw only a few players on their way across the town - most were out in the field by now - but Shirou still kept kept a careful eye on their surroundings as they went. The killers might have already been watching them. He didn't see any shadows moving about in the corners of his eyes, but he noticed Keh-keh looking this way and that as well, which brought him some relief. If she didn't see anything, there was probably nothing to worry about.

The gate loomed in front of them after only a few minutes. It was almost identical to the gate they'd taken (twice) the day before, as was the forest path that lay beyond it. Shirou looked out ahead, wondering how the dangers of the forest might present themselves. He didn't expect to see a marked change just beyond the town border, but his curiosity was hard to control either way.

As they arrived, Elise began looking around with a thoughtful frown on her face, Keh-keh standing right behind her. Elise would go this way or that, her hand to her chin, as she looked at the floor, Keh-keh invariably bounding right on her heels.

"So how does tracking work anyways?" Keh-keh asked after a particularly long lull in Elise's moving around.

Elise turned to her, smirking. "Aren't you a rogue-type player or something? You're trying to figure out the competition, aren't you?"

Keh-keh chuckled and puffed her chest out. Elise stared at her a moment, and then laughed.

"Well, players and enemies leave footprints behind as they go," she said. "With 'Tracking' activated you can see those footprints, up to a certain time. Monsters usually show what kind of species left the prints, but players are trickier. My tracking skill's pretty good, but I don't see Lyle's footprints anywhere. He must be leveling up his Sneaking."

"Try searching for prints left by a player called 'Professor Lloyd'," Chigusa said instantly.

"That's not Lyle's player name," said Elise.

"No but it's the name of one of the people who went with him," said said. "His Sneaking skill will be rock-bottom, I guarantee."

Elise nodded and messed around with one of her skill windows, and then her face immediately lit up. "~Gotcha~!" she said.

"How'd you remember Lloyd's login name?" asked Keh-keh. "We were only with them that one time."

"I friended Lloyd and Ashii before we left them," said Chigusa.

Seriyuha frowned at her. "Then why not send them a message to get word through to Lyle?"

"You have to be really close, both in town, or actually in a party with somebody to pm them," Keh-keh said immediately.

"Right," said Chigusa, "and we'd have to be in front of Lloyd and Ashii to party them."

"Huh, sounds like a garbage system," muttered Elise.

"So you said you had a lead on Lloyd's trail?" Seriyuha said pointedly.

"Oh right," said Elise. She marched out ahead of the group, rubbing her hands together. "Follow me, everyone! And I get first crack at any weird beasts we see, remember!"

He rolled his eyes and fell in step behind Seriyuha, who was following directly behind Elise. Keh-keh and Chigusa brought up the rear, both together and behind him.

"Keh-keh, think there's any chance we can avoid being tracked out of town?" she asked.

Keh-keh frowned. "I doubt you guys have any points in Sneaking."

He frowned at nothing. The skill had never seemed too necessary. And since he usually didn't travel alone, he wouldn't get much mileage out of it anyways. They'd never had a cadre of murderers hunting them down before, after all...

"Keep an eye out behind us," he said quietly.

"I will," said Keh-keh.

Chigusa hovered nearer to the girl and knelt a bit lower. "Don't be scared. You can trust in us."

Keh-keh said nothing. Shirou didn't dare look at her; he was sure he wouldn't like the look on her face.

He forced himself to keep his eyes forward.

The forest paths - and the enemies on it - were much the same as the parts of the floor they'd explored yesterday, but Shirou soon noticed there were considerably more branches in the paths. Elise always chose her way without hesitation - but she didn't always lead the party straight north. It slowly occurred to him how ridiculous his idea of randomly searching the forest would have been. They soon came across the first of the "Killer Plants" Chigusa had promised - immobile giant plants that grew from the sides of trees and didn't seem to have any ability to move. He stared, not remembering ever seeing an immobile enemy before.

The murderous plants whipped and thrashed their petals, which were thick and looked far more leathery than anything. He was reminded of carnivorous specimens he'd seem pictures of throughout his life.

Naturally.

Another fact that caught his attention were the coiling, thrashing, tentacles that sprouted outward from the central body of the plant, easily reaching and twisting about over the very walkway they were trying to follow. Obviously that was mostly how the monster would be trying to attack them.

"Yup, this is one of those plants I was talking about," said Chigusa. "They're really good at knock-"

"Diiiiiiiiie!"

Elise was charging ahead, a broad-bladed battleaxe raised high in the air.

"-ing Leeroys around," muttered Chigusa.

Shirou and Seriyuha were the first to start running to Elise's rescue. She brought her axe down in a wild double-handed swing on the nearest tentacle, and the weapon cleaved straight through the fleshy appendage. The plant immediately stopped passively waving its feelers around in the air, and it began to writhe in obvious rage and pain.

And Elise looked up at it, laughing without an apparent care in the world. "Come and get me, ugly!"

Shirou and his leader were at Elise's side just as the tentacles began swinging her way. Seriyuha stepped forward, shield raised and ready, but Elise leaped toward the nearest tentacle and gave it a wide two-handed swing just as it came within range. Again her axe cleaved straight through the plant's sinews, sending the tentacle hurtling over the edge of the walkway and into the lake below. The plant's health dropped, but another tentacle shot forth from the creature's central mass.

"Hey, it keeps growing more of these? That's cheating!" cried Elise.

At Elise's side, Seriyuha raised her shield toward the waving tentacles. "It's health dropped," she said, "we just need to-"

One of the whip-tentacles slammed into her shield and forced her back, but the force of its swing carried it on - and around Seriyuha. The fleshy mass pinned her arms to her side, but Elise's axe swung hard on it before it could get a firm grip on the knight, and the appendage fell harmlessly around her.

"Don't worry, I gotcha!" Elise said as she swung for the next tentacle. Seriyuha said nothing.

The plant withdrew its tentacles briefly, its beak-like central body convulsing - and what seemingly puckering up.

"It's going to call killer bees to help it," said Chigusa, who'd joined the fight alongside Keh-keh. "Keh-keh and I will take care of them, you three keep the tentacles busy."

She narrowed her eyes for a moment in Elise's direction. "Though you seem to have them pretty well under control."

Elise turned and winked at her, saying, "Gotta earn my Cor!"

Chigusa turned away.

He heard something like a wet grinding noise, and turned to the plant just in time to see a thick yellow mass soar into the air. At first he thought the projectile would come back down on them, but it flew toward the canopy and slammed against another tree. The ball splattered, smearing yellow across the bark and into the air above. It didn't rain back down - it drifted and wafted in the breeze.

Pollen?

"Ladies, not to interrupt, but I think we have incoming," said Shirou.

And indeed, a thunderous buzz began to reverberate throughout the forest. The plant's tentacles gave another peaceful wave or two, and then began to writhe aggressively again.

Reprieve over.

Instead of approaching the party as one confused mass, the tentacles divided themselves by halves and swung at them from all around. Shirou turned to one side, and zeroed his attention in on the tentacle closest to him. Behind him, he could hear Elise enjoying herself profusely on the fight. Blocking hadn't worked for Seriyuha - their mercenary obviously had the right idea.

Bringing his sword back around, he waited for the tentacle to come within range and unleashed a sword skill on it. He left a deep cut - nearly severing the tentacle cleanly - and was carried by his skill past the swing. With more approaching, he quickly backed up toward his allies - but then the tentacles exploded, as did the entire plant. He stared in bewilderment for a moment until he heard Elise whooping in celebration behind him.

"Well, that was easier than I expected!" she said, beaming at the place where the plant once sat.

"Yeah, there's a reason for that," muttered Chigusa.

Keh-keh tugged at Shirou's sleeve, and pointed further in the direction they were heading. He could see at least five more of the plants scattered across the trees - though thankfully no two of them were close together. Elise stepped between the two, looking onward.

"Oh!" she gasped, "they're common enemies around here!"

"Yeah," said Chigusa, "so we-"

"This forest is great!"

Chigusa groaned - and even Seriyuha rolled her eyes.

With Elise proving impossible to disappoint, they simply went along with her. The second and onward plants went down more easily than the first, but each one managed to eat up to two or three minutes before going down. Shirou hoped they'd be replaced as common enemies soon. At first he thought his wishes had been granted when the familiar entings and began making re-appearances, but it as soon apparent that they were simply joining the plants, not replacing them.

Elise was making no effort to hide her excitement with the enemies and the north side of the forest, but Shirou's other female friends followed behind her with long faces. Keh-keh in particular was constantly checking over her shoulder, and while she didn't announce seeing anybody following them, Shirou would be relieved when the killer plants stopped slowing them down so badly.

After a while the path Elise led them on began to drift away from the others that they could see in the surrounding forest, and eventually they stopped seeing forks in the walkways altogether. That could only mean...

"Ooohhh, I think we're getting somewhere," Elise said.

He privately agreed. Hopefully this would mean a change in enemies.

A dark shape loomed in the path ahead of them. Shirou caught Keh-keh's attention and asked what it was he was seeing, and she simply replied, "Really big trees up ahead."

She was soon proven right: something close to a solid wall of trees, all standing tall and in tight proximity of each other, soon came into clear view ahead of them. The walkway made no sign of curving away from them.

"Definitely looks like an area divide is up ahead," said Chigusa. "This mansion's probably in a completely different part of the forest."

He stared ahead, eyes narrowed at the trees. "So, how do we get through those, then?" he asked.

"I don't suppose all that strength-boosting gear would let you chop those trees down, would it?" asked Keh-keh.

Elise paused for a moment, looked to the nearest tree, and then gave her axe a thoughtful look.

"I never thought of trying!"

"I was joking."

Seriyuha shook her head slowly and began walking on. "If they went this way, then there's a way through," she said.

Chigusa followed directly behind her. "They wouldn't design this walkway only to have it go nowhere."

He looked to Elise, shrugged, and carried on. The axewoman quickly overtook the party and resumed her spot at the lead, hands folded behind her head. The walkway continued on straight without turn or fork, which naturally made it impossible to bypass enemies along the way. Along the way they fought through a half-dozen of the killer flowers, all the while the trees ahead drew closer and closer.

He'd thought they were big.

He'd underestimated them.

Even compared to the large trees around them, the ones that stood in their way were gigantic. The canopies shot above the rest of the forest, spread for miles around, and even seemed to brush against the bottom of the floor above. They definitely guarded something big; maybe even the labyrinth? They also eventually saw that a large passage of sorts was cut into the side of the tree, and the walkway was headed straight into it. It was an uneven and slightly misshapen hole, several meters high and wide, and dug a hole through into the tree. Shirou couldn't see inside clearly, but he could make out the soft glow of something bio-luminescent within.

"OOohhhh," said Elise, "spooky hole up ahead. No telling where that goes, but they definitely went that way!"

"Do you see anything inside, Keh-keh?" asked Seriyuha.

"Nothing hiding," the little girl said without hesitation. "I do see something moving though. It's a ways in, so I doubt you can see yet. I can't really see what it is from here."

"Think we can kill it?" asked Elise.

"I dunno, they look pretty axe-proof."

Without missing a beat, Elise began looking through her windows. "Hang on, I probably have my starting cleaver somewhere around here."

"She was kidding," muttered Chigusa.

Elise rounded on Keh-keh, who gave the axewoman an exasperated looking. Frowning, Elise turned back around.

No other monsters lay between them and the passage into the tree, so the players picked up their pace, and stood at the mouth of the hole within moments. Now standing before it, Shirou saw that the way into the tree was framed with engravings in what he guessed was some in-game language. Lloyd probably held Ashii up to examine the writing. Shirou grinned at the idea of it.

"This way descends into the darkness," said Seriyuha.

"You can read this!?" Shirou asked, rounding on her.

"This sign, yes," Seriyuha said calmly, gesturing to a plank sign attached to the bark in front of her.

Chigusa frowned and peered into the tunnel. "Sounds like it heads near the... well, 'floor' of the forest. That's probably why those lake monsters will attack us."

She shivered, and turned to Elise. "Are you sure they went this way?"

"Absolutely."

For once, she spoke without mirth.

Once again, Shirou looked over the edge and into the lake below. He didn't see any way it could get much different down there, but... He couldn't see around the trees either. The tunnel tore into the massive tree and wound this way and that, the walkway blending seemlessly into it. The floor's sunlight couldn't find its way inside, but the walls of the wooden passage were lined with glowing fungi.

And then the fungi shifted. A mass of the mushrooms came around a bend, and began moving about in the tunnel. He couldn't make out any clear features but he could easily tell that whatever it was, it was bulky.

"Is it just me or are those mushrooms in there alive?" asked Elise.

"Of course they're alive, they're plants," said Keh-keh.

"That's not what I-"

"Standing around bickering won't get us anywhere."

Seriyuha stepped into the darkness of the tunnel - though with her halberd and shield raised and at the ready. Shirou and Elise were the first to follow her, Keh-keh and Chigusa bringing up the rear. At first he couldn't make out anything but the mushrooms surrounding them, but after a few moment of groping about in the darkness behind his leader, his eyes adjusted enough so that he could see the path around and before them.

The inside of the great tree was almost totally hollowed. What he'd taken to be tunnels were actually rope-railed walkways caved from the innards of the tree itself, with the glowing mushrooms allowed to grow freely along both the natural and man-made sides of the paths. At certain points the walkway branched off into side passages, but always it seemed to angle gently ever downward.

Chigusa was right about the location of their goal.

"I've got some torches, want me to light one?" asked Elise.

"No, we don't need them thanks to these mushrooms," Seriyuha said instantly. "Also, making more light would make us easy targets. We'd stand out like sore thumbs."

Elise nodded thoughtfully - and then her hand strayed for her axe. The large glowing mass had returned on the path ahead.

Much like the Entings, the creature - a "Myconid" - was vaguely humanoid and quite tall, but it was broader by far, as if it had the physique of a bodybuilder. It also moved with a strange and almost fluid grace. The bio-luminescence of the mushrooms that made up the Myconid's body lit up only the outer portions of its frame, and did so selectively near its "head" to give it something approaching eyes and a mouth. And those "eyes" turned and glared in the direction of Shirou and the others.

Seriyuha stepped up, shield raised, while the Myconid thrashed its arms against the ground in a silent rage.

"Better watch out," said Elise, "he probably has some weird-"

The Myconid thrust its arm outward - and it immediately stretched out to Seriyuha, striking her shield with a decidedly-solid punch. Seriyuha stood her ground against the attack with ease and her health didn't even drop, but the Myconid's fungal matter splattering and adhering to the surface of the metal. And that's where it remained - and hardened, if Seriyuha's struggle to rip it free were any indication. The Myconid pulled back its other arm to strike, but Elise's axe struck through the one that was fixed to Seriyuha's shield. The broad blade sheered the fugal matter and ripped it in two, and what remained attached to Seriyuha's shield immediately collapsed into a liquid-like texture.

"Hah, I knew they weren't axe-proof!" she cried.

The Myconid reared back in pain, and Shirou and Chigusa darted in to strike it.

"Wow, you're not doing well with that defense," Shirou could hear Elise saying behind him.

"Shut it," growled Seriyuha.

The Myconid's glow dimmed, and the creature's form began to collapse in on itself, and Shirou breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well, that was easi-"

"SHIROU!"

Something hard struck him from behind, and his face struck the hard wet wood below. He lay stunned, until he heard Chigusa scuffling with something about him. Chigusa! He forced himself on his feet. After getting his hands on his shield and sword, he stood and turned to face his attacker. Chigusa's naginata was twirling this way and that as she fought with a human-sized glowing shape, a glowing shape that bore the distinct curves of a woman. But the game still called it a Myconid, and its health bar looked the same as the brute they'd been fighting. What was going on, had it trasnformed? He couldn't remember an enemy that could do that.

Chigusa swept wide with her naginata, but the Myconid leaped over the attack - and failed to come back down. There it hovered, leg poised high above its head, and it dropped, bringing the limb down on Chigusa. She raised the shaft of her naginata to block the blow but she was driven to her knees, the Myconid suddenly quite solid. Shirou ran forward, but Keh-keh darted in ahead of him and slashed at the mushroom-woman's leg with her knife. Spores and fungus were shredded into the air, and the Myconid floated back. The creature then brought its hand up to its face and thrust it out toward the women. He was immediately reminded of the act of blowing a kiss, but a thick cloud of purple vapors blew forth from the creature's "mouth". Keh-keh immediately leaped away, and Seriyuha pulled Chigusa out of the cloud's path. Elise ran past him, axe held to her side and a wide grin on her face.

The Myconid hovered in Elise's path. Remembering the creture's earlier agility, he prepared a skill. Elise swung, the mushroom creature hovered over her, and he struck it as it descended. The Myconid melted just slightly, lost its color, and shattered.

He turned to find his team smiling and congratulating him - minus Elise, who was grumbling about kill-stealing.

"That creature was a common foe in this tree?" Seriyuha asked as she brushed the dust and spores off. "That was almost as bad as those damn plants outside."

"I told you guys nobody was coming up here for a reason," Elise said as she hefted her axe back over her shoulder.

"Kayaba sure had a thing for evil plants, huh?" said Keh-keh. She glanced around, probably looking for more nearby.

"Well, we are in a forest," said Shirou.

"Can't he let us kill some forest elves or something?" asked Keh-keh.

He, Chigusa, and Seriyuha exchanged glances.

"We kinda sided against the dark elves," said Chigusa.

"Man, you guys suck," Elise said, her smile undimmed.

After taking a moment to catch their breath, they moved on again. They made good progress for a while, until Keh-keh suddenly called for the group to stop. She gestured at the floor in the darkness, where a two-foot glow was moving about against the less-mobile mushrooms. It seemed the Myconids came in more forms than bruiser and bombshell. Seriyuha thanked Keh-keh for her observation and made a quick plan of attack against the creature, but Shirou couldn't help but notice Keh-keh watching the party's rear throughout the short briefing.

Their second Myconid was defeated more easily than the first, as was the norm. Elise (at Seriyuha's insistence) led them more slowly through the pathways that wound around the inside of the tree after that. Shirou lost all track of time as they went on, but he couldn't help but think that the air grew colder the further they went. They fought several more Myconids along the way, until at last they found a path leading back out hidden beneath a curtain of ivy.

Elise indicated that their marks had gone that way, and then planted her axe into the wood and declared they'd take a short break. Everyone else exchanged awkward glances.

"Shouldn't we make more progress before we stop?" asked Keh-keh, speaking for the rest of them.

Elise shrugged and lifted the ivy, revealing near-total darkness behind it. At first Shirou through he was looking into an underground cavern, but the faint and fleeting wisps of sunlight filtering from above revealed the truth. They were simply far far below the canopy. And judging from the undulating motions he saw from the "ground", along the surface of the lake.

"Nooooot sure we wanna jump right into that," said Elise. "As far as I know mobs don't cross their territory, so the lake things probably won't wander in here."

"'Probably'?" demanded Chigusa.

"Probably."

Grumbling to herself, Chigusa sat against the side of the tree.

The party talked for a while - Elise doing more than her fair share of it - and ate, and in general rested in the semi-darkness. In the middle of it all, while Elise was telling the story of her first one-on-one fight with a giant frost bear, Keh-keh suddenly began looking through her menus. Shirou watched her out of the corner of his eye, until a window suddenly popped up in front of him.

"DO NOT REACT, we're being followed. They're trying to hide. Probably work with PoH."

Shirou's body went numb, and he had to fight his immediate instinct to grab his weapons. What the hell would they do now!? It had only been a few hours since his encounter with the assassin and already his friends had tracked them down!

Another message appeared.

"Don't panic. We're continuing on. Going back is too risky now and they'll have a harder time following us up ahead."

It was from Seriyuha. Looking up, he saw that windows were hovering in front of Chigusa and Seriyuha. Elise was watching them quietly, before a sly grin overtook her face.

"Oooohhh, sending secret messages about me behind my back, are we? You're just jealous that I killed a giant bear."

"Actually we're trying to figure out how to pay you," said Seriyuha, "I was hoping this would only take a day but now I'm not so sure."

"Oh, c'mon, after saving your butt twice you're still mad about the price?"

Seriyuha forced a smile. "You'll learn to be frugal when you get as old as me."

"Well, if you're so worried about cutting corners, then we should get moving, eh?" Elise said as she leaped to her feet and reached for her axe.

Keh-keh was the next up, and nearly at Elise's side in a second. "Yup, let's hurry on, everyone!"

"See? Even the grumpy snarky shrimp is excited!"

Shirou was a little slower to stand, his heart hammering as he expected to feel a knife in his back at any moment. Hopefully their tail would hesitate to track them into a dangerous-looking area... Or at least they'd struggle to follow them.

Hopefully...

Elise stepped through the ivy curtain, Elise and then Shirou and his lady companions following after. As he'd noticed before, the section of forest they were in now was very dark, though less so than the forest up above had been at night the day before. And the lake water was there, just below the walkway. Sloshing about, hiding who-knew-what. He remembered hearing the lake creatures slamming against the trees the night before.

His stomach lurched.

Luckily, his eyes were adjusted to darkness enough that he could easily make out the walkway from the lake water, but he still hovered near the center of the path, directly behind Elise.

"The forest underlevel," said Chigusa. "We're way below the canopy here. This is one of those areas in SAO that count as night time no matter what time of day it is. Only good thing is it doesn't get any more dangerous than it is now."

"Yeah, it's pretty dark down here, do you guys wanna light torches now or do you think we're good?" asked Elise.

"Lighting torches increases enemy aggro range against you, especially in darker areas," said Chigusa. "Since it's not too dark to see the walkway, I get the feeling torches are meant to be a trap."

"Why do you say that?" asked Seriyuha.

"Like I said, the lake enemies can aggro us and climb onto the walkway down here. If we light torches it might draw a lot of them."

"So we're surrounded!" Elise whispered, relish in her voice. "Well I can see the tracking footprints even without much light, so I can keep us on the right path."

"I can see in this just fine, so I'll let you guys know if anything's com-," said Keh-keh.

A loud tearing noise echoed through the lake - a few miles back south.

"-Though I can't see underwater," mumbled Keh-keh.

Shirou groaned and kept his hands ready on his sword and shield. Hopefully this stupid trek through the dark would throw off pursuit, one way or another.

Unsurprisingly given their surroundings, their progress slowed considerably - even moreso than when they'd been inside the tree. Elise or Keh-keh held the party up at nearly every noise that didn't seem to be local ambiance, and once or twice they heard something move in the water nearby and froze for nearly a minute. Nobody there wanted to fight an unknown enemy in the dark, not even Elise. It seemed even her eagerness had a limit.

Adding to their speed but also their uncertainty, there were no apparent enemies in the forest underlevel. They heard the sounds of things creeping in the darkness far away, but no Entings, wasps, or homicidal plants attacked them. Was there nothing down there but the creatures from the lake?

He was forced to consider a few SAO lore questions that he felt he was better off not thinking about.

After a few more minutes, they heard a deep growl from the depths of the lake - right under them. Something splashed in the water ahead. A hand with claws that glinted in the minimal sunlight reached out of the water and onto the wooden walkway, and a large shape hauled itself quickly out of the water. It stood before them, a shadow against the deeper darkness around it, with only its claws, eyes, and teeth clearly visible. Shirou couldn't make out any specific details, aside from the fact that the creature had a moderate build and stood a little over six foot.

"Depths Demon," was what the SAO designers had chosen to call it. The creature gave a throaty roar and suddenly lunged forward, raking Elise with its claw and throwing her off her feet. Shirou caught the axewoman before she fell into the drink while Seriyuha stepped forward to face the monster. It lunged again, but its attack was driven back by her kite shield. She jabbed at the monster with her halberd but it leaped to the side. From there it lowered itself quickly back into the water, caught the walkway with one hand, and flipped itself back onto the path on Seriyuha's other side, all in a single fluid motion. Before she could turn to face it it plunged its claws into her back, but Chigusa and Keh-keh both stabbed the monster from behind before it had a chance to react.

It turned and crouched low, one claw raised behind it, and it leaped forward with a shriek. It only barely managed to catch Chigusa on the shoulder, but she was sent tumbling toward the edge of the platform, her health dropped by over half. Shirou pushed past Elise, time almost seeming to slow down as he watched his sister fall toward the water.

Desperately, he threw out his hand, barely catching Chigusa by the wrist. He immediately planted his feet on the walkway and pulled her back toward him. She landed against him with a crash that nearly threw him off his feet as well.

"T-thanks," she gasped.

"Don't mention it," he said.

Behind him, he heard the Depths Demon's death cries a moment later, and found its shattering polygons surrounded by Seriyuha, Elise, and Keh-keh. The older and younger ladies just sheathed their weapons in relief, but Elise laughed victoriously.

Shaking his head, Shirou handed Chigusa a health potion and went to collect his weapon.

"See? These creatures aren't so dangerous when you just gang up on them!"

Growling from ahead and behind. Splashing as clawed hands reached up to the walkway. Two more of the Demons were coming to fight.

"Seriyuh and Razler, split up and hold them off on either side," Chigusa said tiredly. "Everyone stay close so they can't leap between us again."

Everyone did as told.

"Oh, and Elise?"

"Yup?"

"We're implementing a Talk Jar system off your pay until we get out of here."

"Awww."

It wasn't an easy fight, but they managed to take down the additional demons together. As the dust finally settled, the team collapsed and paused to catch their breath. Shirou's health had been brought fairly low - lower than he'd remembered it getting in a long time. He was doing the worst off, but Elise and Chigusa had taken a few good blows of their own. Only Seriyuha and Keh-keh remained at near-full health, though both for opposite reasons. The injured ones helped themselves to a health potion each and spent a few minutes waiting while the healing effect ticked away. They weren't attacked again in all that time, though they heard the unmistakable sounds of large creatures swimming in the water nearby.

They were definitely doing something to avoid detection - or not doing something, rather.

It must have had to do with noise. The creatures probably had strict detection parameters - it was the only thing that could justified their strength. Not daring to voice his theory out loud, he instead sent private messages to his party. Chigusa replied almost immediately, agreeing with him. Seriyuha took Elise aside and - quietly - strongly advised her to be quiet from then on. The younger woman simply nodded seriously. The demons must have gotten to her as well. Shirou shuddered, but forced himself on his feet.

They moved slower than ever after that, everyone freezing at the first sign of noise nearby. Nobody dared to say a word. It was one of the most tortuous moments Shirou could remember ever since he'd gotten stuck in SAO. Every second he expected to get swarmed by the monsters they'd only managed to beat through superior numbers so far. And there was no telling how far they still had to go either...

What the hell were they doing wandering around that damn lake in the first place? Surely there had to be a better way to catch up with Lyle.

He shook his head, and shut his eyes tight. Getting upset wasn't going to help... He'd done this to help Keh-keh. He had to see his decision from last night through.

He couldn't stop the shaking of his legs, but he pushed them onward just the same.

They went on like that for over an hour or two. Occasionally, their luck failed them and they were forced to fight, but they managed to pull through each time one of the Demons clawed their way onto the platform. The first time they fought he hadn't made the connection, but after the third time the Demons came up in waves, he realized that the noise of them fighting off one group of Demons would usually draw the attention of another.

The forest underlevel seemed to become more dangerous by the minute. He could only hope the dangers would ward off their pursuit.

At some point in that long, torturous slog, Keh-keh suddenly whispered, "I see a building! It might be that mansion!"

Shirou could nearly collapse from relief. Was it really possible that the trip was going to be over already?

"It's off in that direction," Keh-keh went on, pointing in the distance. Shirou wasn't sure which way exactly; he couldn't tell north from south. It didn't really matter.

"Yup, the footprints are headed that way," said Elise. "Might be right."

"Don't let your guard down," Seriyuha said sharply, though quietly.

Shirou privately agreed; dying within sight of their goal would be as terrible as it could get. Carefully, they continued on. Within a few minutes He could make out a much deeper shadow set against the darkness of the underforest. Yet again, Keh-keh's vision was top-notch. The lake began to give way to land as they went on and appeared to be coming upon an island of sorts, the walkway beginning to slant upward to meet it. Eventually, they were standing over lovely semi-dry land, the lake reduced to little more than criss-crossing streams of water flowing downhill. The mansion had been built on an island of sorts within the lake. By then, even the less-gifted members of the team could see the building set against the foliage.

It was a huge, two-winged fantasy-esque home, surrounded by the corroded and crumbling remains of a wall and inner garden. Very little remained intact but the main building itself, but even that had exposed sections in the walls, and it was almost completely covered by plant growth. What could Lloyd be interested in here?

He began to voice his thoughts, only for Seriyuha to quiet him.

"Save it for when we're inside. There still might be Demons lurking around."

Not wanting to push his luck, he obeyed.

The mansion's great front double-door was already standing ajar when they arrived, and team let themselves inside. Within, they found a foyer would surely have been great in some long-forgotten time, but now the signs of decay were everywhere. The tile was worn and peeling, the walls crumbling and rotting away, the left-wing stairway had collapsed completely, and a large hole had worn through the roof.

"Phew, glad to be out of that lake for a little while," Elise said loudly - the first time she'd raised her voice since the first encounter with the Depths Demons. She strode out to the center of the foyer and looked around, her hands on her hips. "Who'd wanna come out here though?"

"We're not sure, the guidebook didn't say anything about this place," said Keh-keh.

"The guy we're tracking has an interest in old ruins," said Shirou, "maybe this was the only place on this floor that qualified, who knows."

"The part that actually matters is that they're here," said Seriyuha, "and we need to find Lyle quickly."

Elise stared at her. "Why 'quickly'? There's definitely no way they left for town from here, I'd have seen their footprints."

Seriyuha looked away for a very brief moment, before turning toward the axewoman. "The sooner we get out of here the better. I want to put distance between us and this pit."

The younger woman watched her closely for a moment, a curious look on her face. Shirou fidgeted, glad that she wasn't looking at him. She had to suspect something. Could she see through Seriyuha's excuse? But a moment later she smiled and turned back toward the foyer, hands on her hips.

"Then let's not waste time. Onwar-"

"What a surprise! The Lord truly is with me today!"

What.

Shirou was half-convinced that his ears were playing tricks on him, but he looked up and there was Samson, standing on a ruined balcony overlooking the foyer from the second floor. He vaulted over the guardrail and landed among them with a crash that shook the room. Shirou winced - he hadn't considered this problem. Now everyone nearby would know where they were...

"Just the guy we need for a quiet mission," muttered Keh-keh.

Samson held out his hand to Seriyuha, who took it after a moment to, Shirou presumed, process her surprise. He shook her hand vigorously; she simply came along for the ride.

"I can't say we expected to see you out here," she said.

"Me neither, the world truly is small," said Samson. "I read about this mysterious mansion in the guidebook and thought an unclaimed place such as this might be a worthy rock upon which to build my church."

Chigusa looked around, an incredulous look on her face. "It'll be hard to get converts out here..."

"I underestimated the danger, truth be told," said Samson, his tone quieting down. "My party and I - disciples to the work of the Lord - made it down here without too much trouble, but they lost faith and abandoned me on the way here."

"So your party got spooked and ran off at the first encounter with a Depths Demon, basically," said Elise.

"You are astute."

Elise crossed her hands behind her head and grinned at the large man. "I gotta be, mercenary and all. I guess you know these guys? They hired me to help them find someone."

Samson nodded at Elise, then turned to Seriyuha, arms crossed. "Obviously not me."

"Uhh yeah, they probably heard Samson making a ton of noise by the way," said Keh-keh.

"Then we aughta hurry!" said Elise. She immediately turned toward the right-side wing, the one opposite the way Samson had come, and led the party at a brisk pace.

They (Samson included, having apparently invited himself) hurried along after Lloyd's footsteps, through the rooms of the mansion. Dusty, cluttered with ruined furniture, and with the architecture crumbling all around them. Shirou couldn't help but feel like the mansion was the least church-like thing he'd ever seen in his life. Was Samson really so desperate for an empty building?

And speaking of empty...

He saw no sign of any enemies inside. The forest lake had been swarming with Depths Demons, and yet none had seen fit to crawl in? And for that matter, nothing else lived in there? But Samson dispelled his concerns immediately, reporting on slowly-respawning and weak Dust Ghouls that he'd encountered throughout the opposite wing. Presumably, Lloy, Ashii, and Lyle had cleared this wing already. The mansion was clearly not a place to grind in.

"We aughta catch up with them soon!" cried Elise, "his footsteps are going all ove - ahh!"

Elise fell forward upon reaching a doorway, something suddenly thrusting out in the path of her ankle. The moment she struck the ground, a bared blade came to rest on the back of her neck.

Shirou nearly leaped from surprise and reached for his sword and shield. Seriyuha and Chigusa readied their pole arms, and Samson assumed a combat stance.

"Okay, you slags, back off or your friend gets fried!"

"Do as they say, do as they say!" cried Elise. The axewoman wouldn't move to get up or to look behind her. Shirou could only gape at the complete reversal of character.

"Already caught up with us, eh bastards?" Seriyuha asked calmly.

Shit.

Keh-keh immediately backed up against him. He could feel her shake uncontrollably against his body. He gnashed his teeth - here it was, just like the night before. How did they catch up with them so fast? Now it all came down to the moment he'd been waiting for. But... whoever was holding Elise hostage were standing on the opposite side of the wall, hidden from view.

"Shut the hell up! Back off now-"

Samson suddenly gave a roar and charged forward, elbow-first. He slammed into the ancient wall the divided their room from the next and plowed straight through it. Shirou froze for a moment, surprised at the sight of SAO's geography being broken down. Was it even possible? But then he heard the sounds of a scuffle from ahead, and Seriyuha immediately ran. Shirou followed after her, and stopped as soon as he passed through the door. Elise was scrambling to her feet and fighting Lloyd over her fallen axe, Samson was trying to put Ashii into a full nelson, and Seriyuha and Lyle were staring at one another in disbelief.

"Woah, woah, stop, STOP!" Chigusa cried as she ran in behind him.

"Let her go, Samson, she's one of the ones we're looking for!" Shirou said hurriedly.

"You're the ones who followed us here!?" Ashii demanded as Samson slowly released her and offered awkward apologies.

"Jeez, you didn't warn me we were following a trio of doofuses," muttered Elise.

"What the hell do you expect?" Lyle asked as he sheathed his rapier. "And what did you guys bring Elise over here for?" Then his gaze fell on Keh-keh. "Oh great, her too. What a great day."

"Don't act so big, you ass!" cried Chigusa. "How could you hire those maniacs to kill Keh-keh just 'cause she took your knife?"

"The hell are you talking about!?"

"Those killers came after her last night! You hired them out of revenge, didn't you?"

Lyle immediately went red in the face. "I don't work with those bastards, you bitch!"

"Wow, what kind of messed up ride did you guys bring me on?" asked Elise.

"Everyone be quiet!" Seriyuha suddenly thundered. Everybody fell silent slowly, and looked at her. She paused a moment to catch her breath and compose herself. "There's too many people all talking at once," she finally said. "Keh-keh, you know what to do."

"R-right."

The little girl hurried over to Lyle and bowed, his swordbreaker held out before him in both her hands. "I'm so sorry for stealing your knife, Lyle! I was just having some fun, I didn't mean to cause so much trouble!"

"Well next time -" he frowned and took a deep breath. "Next time find a more harmless prank, would you?"

He took the weapon out of her hands and returned it to his inventory, where it appeared at his waist. "But thank you for finally returning it to me. Now what was all this about those player-killers?" he asked Chigusa.

"There's player-killers involved in this too!?" asked Elise. She gave Seriyuha a horrified look and demanded, "Why'd you bring me along then!?"

"We were trying to avoid them out here," said Chigusa, "we hoped Lyle might know something that would help us."

"Well I don't," Lyle said instantly, "I only heard rumors that somebody put a bounty out on this girl's head," he explained, gesturing to Keh-keh. "They actually tried to kill her themselves?"

Keh-keh's face fell, and she backed away into Seriyuha. She said nothing, and the older woman kept both hands securely on her shoulders.

Lyle stared at her, and he turned away. "Damn bastards..."

"Sounds like a rotten bunch," Samson muttered, his arms crossed. "I had no idea you've ended up in such danger."

Ashii immediately pushed past him and began walking back toward the foyer. "And you're going to bring it here with you. Lloyd, we gotta get the hell out of here before we get dragged into their mess."

Lloyd shrugged and joined, Lyle bringing up the rear a little more slowly. Shirou and the others followed at a relative distance, but Elise bounded up to Ashii's side, though the swordwoman gave no indication of her.

"Hey can I go with you guys?" asked Elise. "They didn't warn me they were being followed by player killers!"

"No, you're the last person we want to bring along when we're trying to run away!" cried Lyle.

Elise fell back to join Shirou, a pouty look on her face. "Fine, I didn't want to hear you boasting all day anyways."

Seriyuha shook her head and sped up to take her previous place. "We should stick together until we're back in town, moving alone is dang-"

Ashii laughed. "Being found with you is more dangerous," she said without even looking at Seriyuha.

Lloyd looked over his shoulder and caught Shirou's eye. The pair exchanged glances and simultaneously rolled their eyes, and he slowed his pace until Shirou, Chigusa, and Samson caught up with him. Ashii, locked in argument with Seriyuha, took no notice.

"Well, I wish I could say it's nice to see you again, but it looks like you're going to get us in trouble this time," he said.

"They do seem to be pretty skilled at that," said Samson. The giant gave Shirou a friendly pat on the shoulder. "But speaking of trouble, what brought you so far out?"

Without hesitation, Lloyd launched into the tale of his interest in ruins, and quickly proved Chigusa's theory about a lack of any other locations that suited his interests on the floor correct. Samson listened attentively as Lloyd went on before speaking about his own vocation, at which point Shirou and Lyle exchanged glances.

Just as Shirou was about to get the pair to quiet down, Keh-keh suddenly ran ahead of the pack, in front of Seriyuha and Ashii. Shirou felt like a block of ice had dropped into his stomach, and Chigusa was immediately hovering at his side. Seriyuha and Ashii halted their discussion and looked down at Keh-keh, and the little girl confirmed Shirou's fears.

"Some players have broken into the front room. They're not moving from there yet."

"Shit," muttered Ashii.

"No way out that way now," said Lyle. "Anybody got a suggestion? Like it or not, we're stuck in this one together if they mean to harm us."

"I say we fight," Elise said instantly.

"You wou-"

"Yes, let's bring justice to the wicked," Samson said as he smiled through his bared teeth.

"M-maybe if I apologized and promised not to bother them anymore?" said Keh-keh. Shirou could see her body shaking, but she was forcing herself to stand in the open just the same. He couldn't help but smile at her.

Seriyuha shook her head and knelt down in front of her. "That's brave, sweety, but it's not that easy. Adults can be complicated and the things we do don't always make sense."

Ashii stood, drumming her fingers against the hilt of her nodachi. "Just running away isn't an option, they'll keep coming after us," she said quietly.

Seriyuha looked up at her, eyes wide. "When did it turn to 'us'?"

Ashii scoffed. "If they're after you, they're not going to think very kindly of the rest of us. We're stuck together until we get through this."

"Keh-keh, how many of them are there?" asked Lyle.

Keh-keh frowned, her gaze dropping. "The last time I saw them there around a dozen. There's definitely a lot of players out in the foyer."

"Maybe they didn't all come?" Elise asked, her tone hopeful - if not pleading.

"No, we already sent one of them packing last night," said Seriyuha, "they'll come at us more seriously this time."

"Darn..."

"And there's not much hope that group have nothing to do with us, either," said Samson, "I heard nobody wants to come up here yet."

Shirou privately agreed. So it was likely twelve to nine. Shirou wasn't sure whether to be relieved or worried. They weren't that badly outnumbered, but not everyone was going to be willing to fight...

Chigusa sighed, arms crossed and her eyes to the roof. "None of us specialize in pvp either. Fighting our way out of this one won't be easy..."

"And we aren't player-killers either," Samson said quietly.

Shirou's insides squirmed. He hadn't even realized it; they were dealing with other players who were willing to kill. Human beings. There was a very real chance he'd have to kill someone to survive this. Fighting monsters was one thing, but... His sword began shaking violently, making a light rattling sound. He couldn't control his hands - his entire body was quivering. Chigusa immediately closed her left hand tight around his right - the one carrying his sword - and he tried to take a deep breath.

"Shirou, I'll protect you from anything. Don't be afraid," she whispered to him.

If only his safety was the only thing he was worried for...

"You know what we could do at a time like this?" Lloyd suddenly spoke up, breaking up a discussion between Ashii, Seriyuha, and Lyle. "We should try leading them into the understory like I-"

"Lloyd, this isn't the time for that!" hissed Ashii. "We're leaving this place and we're not comming back!"

"That's not what I meant," Lloyd said quietly but quickly. "The corridors down there are winding, we can try to separate them in there."

"That's not going to work, they'll have the tracking skill," said Ashii.

"No, not all of them," said Samson, "the ones who truly believe in their cause will dedicate themselves to it, but the thugs - the scum among them - most likely won't."

"They're probably all scum, but you have a point," muttered Ashii.

Keh-keh's attention shot back toward the foyer, and she hissed. "They're starting to move!"

Seriyuha resumed walking that way immediately, the others following behind closely. "Then let's go, we don't want to get cornered."

"The entrance to the catacombs is behind a false wall in the foyer," Lloyd said breathlessly.

"Samson, Seriyuha, Razler, Lloyd," said Chigusa, "you four should be the last after us, you're the most durable. Ashii, Lyle, and I, will lead the way in."

"I'll yield to Ashii and you on this one, Hinoka," Lyle said quietly, "I'm not much of a leader..."

"That's fine," Chigusa said after a brief delay.

Keh-keh was right on Seriyuha's heels, and she said up to the woman, "Be ready, they'll probably try to ambush us when we get in there."

"Of course they will," said Seriyuha.

Keh-keh fell behind, but her gaze remained on the older lady.

They were only a few rooms away from the foyer, but Shirou's heart hammered and his legs felt like rubber every step of the way. How were they going to get out of this one? He only knew most the players around him a little, and some even less than others, but was he going to bid some of them farewell already? What if the worst happened to even Chigusa? His mind wandered into a dark place for a moment - to a world in which his sister wasn't there at his side - and he tried to force the idea out of his head.

He didn't want to go there. Not ever.

They passed through the last doorway back into the foyer, but no sooner did Seriyuha step through than a dart suddenly shot at her. Without missing a beat she raised her shield, and the projectile sunk harmlessly into the metal. Automatically she pulled the weapon free and held it up for the others to see. A small knife - like the ones Keh-keh used. Uttering a sound of disgust, she threw it against the floor.

"You'll have to try something a little better," she said quietly.

Seriyuha moved on until she was a meter or two inside, and turned to the entrance. There, at the opposite end, was a large collection of players wearing an assortment of dark-colored light armor and leather. Shirou swept his gaze across them and estimated around fifteen. He gnashed his teeth - it was worse than Keh-keh had guessed. Most of them were wielding light weaponry, and nobody seemed to be carrying the heavy broadsword he'd seen the night before. Where was the assailant from yesterday?

Shrill laughter broke out from the opposite side of the hall, from a man who was wearing a bag-like mask over his head. "Looks like we've got a real badass on our hands this time! This'll be fun!"

"Johny Black," Keh-keh whimpered.

"Poh and Johny Black want you dead." That's what the killer from the previous night had said. So this was one of the two bastards who'd set that assassin after Keh-keh.

The fucker.

Chigusa held out her arm, right in front of Shirou. Without looking at him, she shook her head.

"You saved us a lot of trouble by cornering yourself out here," one of them said - a much calmer-sounding man. Shirou guessed that his voice was coming from the center of the group, from a man who wore a ragged cloak that covered his face and head.

"Now, that little girl's been causing us trouble. If you could just hand her over we can all walk away from this a lot more easily."

Keh-keh, whimpering loudly, pressed her body against Seriyuha's leg. Seriyuha quietly pushed her gently but firmly toward Chigusa, to whom the young girl clung.

"That isn't going to happen," said Seriyuha. "So I'll let you decide how many of you are willing to die to get to her."

"Damn! We were gonna kill you all anyways, but you sure know how to play!" said Johny Black.

"That ends the negotiation, then," said the leader. A cleaver flashed into his right hand, and Shirou imagined he could see the man grinning from across the hall. "It's showtime."

Immediately, twelve of the players - all of those other than the three at the center of the group - drew their weapons and ran forward. Shirou instinctively took a step back; there were so many of them!

Ashii yelled something to Lloyd and stepped up beside Shirou, sword drawn.

"Stand your ground, Razler," she said quietly, "our only way out of this -"

The closest of the player killers used a sword skill, and shot toward Shirou and his friends. Immediately, Shirou raised his shield and blocked the strike, though the ferocity behind it jerked his arm upward. Before the assassin had time to recover, Ashii swiped his midsection with her sword, immediately bringing his health to critical levels.

"-Is through these bastards!"

"No, don't-"

Chigusa's naginata plunged into his chest.

The man froze in place, his expression stuck in horrified surprise, and he shattered.

Shirou froze, watching it. The killer simply broke into polygons, the same way the monsters did. It was that simple? Were the players no different from monsters to SAO?

"Actually, our way out is back this way! Now let's go!" cried Lloyd.

"You know the plan!" cried Seriyuha.

Ashii disappeared from Shirou's side, and he moved quickly over to Seriyuha, just as his leader was stepping backwards toward their end of the foyer. Shirou risked a glance over his shoulder and saw a door-sized passage behind them, with most of his lighter-equipped allies running into it.

The player killers kept up their approach, but their pace was slowed and none of them seemed to be making a move to attack just yet.

"Hahah, these guys might actually be fun this time!" cried Johny Black. He, the robed leader, and a third man wearing a skull mask were approaching, weapons drawn. "I can't wait until we make them beg for mercy!"

"Kill them already!" said the man in the skull mask.

"Let's go," hissed Seriyuha.

She turned and made a break for the open door behind them, Shirou, Lloyd, and Samson following suit. She turned and slowed briefly, allowing the men past her, and then sped up as she and the others descended into the darkness. Lyle and Elise were waiting just beyond the threshold into the catacombs, Ashii, Chigusa, and Keh-keh far ahead and fighting something Shirou couldn't quite see. He wasn't worried about the monsters; putting distance between himself and the killers was a more pressing concern, but their pursuing footsteps behind him sounded like they were slowing.

Why were they stalling?

There was little room in the hallways of the mansion understory. Only three or four people could fit comfortably standing shoulder-to-shoulder. That ruined the advantage the killers' numbers gave them, but it was still a very real possibility that Shirou and the others would be eventually brought down. But not without taking a few of the assassins with them.

That was one advantage of fighting players rather than monsters; humans were burdened by self-preservation.

As Seriyuha and her squad came near, Lyle and Elise turned and ran ahead to join the remaining girls. They made short work of the local monsters and led the way further in, Keh-keh taking point. The ocasionally torch lined the walls, but the basement was otherwise completely dark, and they were soon wholly reliant on Keh-keh's impressive vision to get anywhere. Shirou didn't dream that lighting torches was going to be an option.

A time or two he caught sight of the local enemies; shambling zombie-like creatures. It was the Dust Ghouls that Samson had described earlier. However they worked, Keh-keh usually killed them before anybody could catch up with her. Whatever sort of gimmick they were meant to have, Shirou wasn't too worried about it. They seemed easy to kill, and that was all he needed to know.

He wasn't sure exactly how long they ran, but eventually Samson seized him firmly by the arm. Seriyuha had stopped, and was sending a private message.

"I don't hear anybody behind us, stop running for a moment."

The same message appeared in front of everyone, and Keh-keh quickly came back to rejoin the others. She quickly confirmed that nobody was following nearby. While Chigusa called for a brief meeting, Shirou breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't begin to imagine why their enemies weren't chasing them, but he wasn't going to complain.

"So what's our plan?" whispered Ashii. "If those pond scum really did lose us we can probably wait here until they give up and leave."

"No way to know how long that could take," said Lyle.

"It's not like we can starve to death in here."

Shirou shuddered at the prospect.

"I don't like the idea of just hiding forever," Seriyuha whispered, her gaze downward. "Besides, we killed one of them, so there's no telling how far they might go for revenge."

"You've got a point," said Ashii.

"That was pretty hardcore, you two," Elise said, frowning. "Are you -"

Ashii looked at her, and Elise fell quiet. "You never considered the possibility that we'd need to kill other players? It's awful, but in this world it's life or death."

"I thought it over myself as well," Chigusa said quietly.

Elise moaned softly, her hands over her mouth. "That's just too awful though," she whispered.

"That's the situation we're in," said Samson. "All we can do is trust in the Lord to show mercy on those we kill. And on us..."

Shirou kept quiet. He looked to his sister, but couldn't see her expression in the dark. What was she thinking about right then? He wished he could tell...

"We have to come up with a plan quickly," said Lyle. "Stay here or move, we need to decide now."

"Before those jackals decide on a strategy of their own," said Samson. "We can't afford to waste much time."

"Right," said Seriyuha. "I don't think running from these people forever is an option. We need to make a stand and show them we won't be pushed around. Who's with me in this?"

"Casting judgement on the wicked is the work of the Lord and those who serve Him," Samson said quietly but instantly. "We can't let this group go around free any longer."

"These scumbags are only going to make it harder to clear this game," said Ashii. "What about you?" she asked Lloyd.

"I don't want to kill anybody, but I'll keep you safe," Lloyd said, smiling back. His hand slipped over Ashii's. "Repayment for dragging you around those ruins, I gess."

She smiled back.

Elise moaned, her hands so tight on the shaft of her axe that they looked white to Shirou. "I don't want to kill anyone either... Is this really our only way?"

"If you like you can stay back and watch our flank," said Chigusa.

"No way, I'm not gonna hide like a coward," hissed Elise.

"It's not about being brave or afraid," said Seriyuha. "I'm not going to doubt your courage after seeing you fight today."

"I'll - I'll go! I'll find some way to earn my pay!"

"Well, I can't sit back if Elise is going out there," said Lyle. He raised his swordbreaker in his life hand, and grinned. "Besides, I'd like to test their swordsmanship. Those jokers aren't used to picking on somebody who can fight back."

"And you, Keh-keh?" asked Shirou. She was the only one who was silent - Shirou and Chigusa's votes having already been given as early as the night before.

The little girl immediately turned to him, her face pale - or was that simply his imagination?

"I'll help! These people are awful and they need to learn their lesson!"

"Just one thing," Seriyuha said firmly. She reached her hands out to Keh-keh, and the girl took them after a moment's pause. "You must absolutely promise me you won't fight any of them, no matter what happens."

"Why, don't you tru-"

"Killing isn't something that just goes away, Keh-keh," Samson said quietly. "You see how afraid Elise is?"

"It's not something I want you burdened with - ever," said Seriyuha.

Keh-keh averted her eyes, and her face fell. "I - I understand. I promise."

Shirou felt his insides writhe briefly. Would he be able to do it, if it came to it?

"Right," said Seriyuha. "So what's-"

"I can hear them moving around in the passages," said Keh-keh. She was staring into the shadows, focus etched on her face. "I think they split up. They're probably planning on calling for help when they find us."

"Splitting up in unfamiliar territory," Chigusa said, shaking her head. "These clowns really are amateurs."

"We'll make a break for the entrance and deal with anybody we come across," said Seriyuha. "And if we find their leader down here, even better."

"Oh," gasped Keh-keh, "the man in the center was PoH, and to his right was Red-Eyed XaXa. Them and Johny Black are the three in charge."

"Maybe we'll get lucky," said Chigusa. "Okay, Seriyuha will take the lead, and Keh-keh will be with her. Keh-keh, if you hear anybody, warn Seriyuha so we can stop and find a place to ambush them, okay?"

Keh-keh nodded vigorously, a focused look on her face. Next, Chigusa told Elise to guide the party back out with her tracking skill. She then grouped herself with Ashii and Lyle - to do the actual ambushing. They were the best three in the group at straight fighting. Finally, Shirou, Lloyd, and Samson were to bring up the rear and protect the team from attacks at the back of their formation. Shirou simply nodded. Chigusa's planning hadn't steered them wrong yet.

And, quietly, they began to move. Shirou couldn't hear anything around him save for the soft footsteps of his team, but for some reason he couldn't help but thrill at their situation. He wasn't even sure of himself just then; he aught to have been petrified, but he was excited. Maybe it was simply that they finally seemed to have a working plan?

Within moments of them setting out, Keh-keh suddenly grabbed Seriyuha by the sleeve and gestured forward. Immediately Seriyuha directed the party back a ways, into a particularly un-lit three-way intersection. At Chigusa's direction, Shirou and Seriyuha's groups hid further from the fork proper, while Chigusa, Lyle, and Ashii pressed themselves against the wall near the mouth of it.

The moments passed slowly, and Shirou for a while was left wondering whether Keh-keh was correct in her guess.

But she'd yet to be wrong, and sure enough he heard approaching footsteps, quiet and swift. How many sets of feet did it sound like? Three at least? Whoever they were, they weren't talking, but they weren't slowing down either. There was no way to guess whether they were wise to the trap before them. Then they came around a corner and under the light of a torch, and Shirou could see them. It was three of the men Shirou had spotted among the larger group, traveling together swiftly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Chigusa making a gesture to Lyle and Ashii.

Then she struck. Chigusa impaled the man in the center with a quick skill that carried her into him. Her naginata sank deep into his chest, and his mouth fell open. His health bar slid away to nothing in just a second, and he broke into pieces. The other two, eyes wide with horror, turned their attention to their dead comrade, and were taken completely by surprise when Lyle and Ashii struck. Ashii's victim fell to a single horizontal swipe of her sword, and Lyle's, to two quick jabs to the chest.

This was how easily players could kill other players in Sword Art Online? Were these men poorly equipped or leveled, or was it just about surprise?

And how could Chigusa, Lyle, and Ashii do it so easily? The only real consolation behind it all was that the slain left no corpses in that world...

The trio retreated to the shadows again the moment the dust settled. They all fell silent, but for naught; Keh-keh soon announced she heard nobody nearby.

"That was way too easy," Elise said, her voice shaking. "I'm not sure I'll wanna go out alone anymore..."

"Their gear was shitty and they had no chance to defend themselves," said Lyle. "That's all it is."

"Even still," Elise said quietly as she fell in step behind Seriyuha.

It went on like that for a while longer. They'd creep along the dimly-lit passages of the basement, all of them - though Keh-keh in particular - listening for nearby players, and they would fall back into the shadows when they heard the telltale sounds of any approaching. They prepared three more ambushes along the way, but two of those three times, their targets would turn off in another direction and avoid disaster. The third time resulted in two more of the killer players meeting their own ironic ends.

Shirou just stared at the floor, wondering how it had come to this while Lyle muttered something about the idiocy of splitting up a large group. How did it come so easily to the others? He shook his head and carried on. Eventually he noticed that the stone walkways were leading up very gently, which could only mean they were drawing close. He must have missed the slope on the way down. At the first sign of natural light peering around a corner, Seriyuha stopped.

"Is there anybody waiting for us ahead?" she asked.

"Yes, I can hear three men," said Keh-keh.

"Two guesses who those three are," said Lyle. He folded his arms, and looked to the others. "I don't know anything about PoH and Black, but Red-Eye showed up for a while at the 'black market' areas and passed himself off as a hitman. Eventually he realized nobody was really interested in killing anyone. No telling what he's been up to in the meanwhile, but he can't be a complete pushover if he wanted to fight players one-on-one.

"PoH's strong. I've seen him fight," Keh-keh said quietly.

"Okay, here's what we'll do," said Seriyuha. "I'll take PoH, Lyle can handle XaXa, and Hinoka will take Black -"

"What if that guy from last night is around?" Chigusa asked instantly. "Somebody needs to be ready to fight him."

Ashii shot her a glance. "I can manage-"

"Western broadsword into a katana? Sounds like a bad matchup to me. Besides, your fighting style is too aggressive, it only takes one mistake to lose like that."

Ashii and Seriyuha traded looks. "I don't mind switching," Ashii said quietly.

Seriyuha narrowed her eyes at Chigusa, but said nothing.

"The rest will stand by in case anything unexpected happens. Now let's get this over with."

They continued on, around the bend and up the final ramp, and they were again back in the foyer. Seriyuha, Ashii, and Lyle took the lead, and across the way were the three leaders of the killers. PoH was leaning against the frame of the front door, Black was squatting and playing with a small knife, and XaXa was examining his sword. PoH looked up and at them as they drew closer.

"So you made it."

"The guys we sent must have been garbage," said XaXa, "but we guessed you'd show up."

Black laughed giddily, and got to his feet. "We had a party planned for you!"

Footsteps began echoing up from the passage into the basement.

"They're coming from behind!" cried Keh-keh.

"I know! Stick to the plan, keep them from breaking into this foyer!" cried Seriyuha.

The three leaders drew their weapons and charged in, and so did their three opponents. Meanwhile, Samson, Lloyd, and Elise formed up at the mouth of the secret entrance. Shirou moved to join them, but Chigusa caught him by the arm. "Shirou, keep an eye on Keh-keh. I don't believe that-"

A crunch from above that sounded like splintering wood.

Reacting purely on instinct, Shirou grabbed Keh-keh and leaped aside, just as a dark shape dropped from above, putting itself between him and Chigusa.

"Valel!" shrieked Keh-keh.

"Shit!" snarled Shirou.

He didn't have time to think - he simply scooped Keh-keh into his arms and moved away. Keh-keh was Valel's target beyond all doubt, and he had to draw the swordsman away from interfering with the rest of the fighting. Shirou ducked into one of the side rooms, set Keh-keh down, and leaned against a wall. Off in the not-so-far distance, he heard Valel's heavy footfalls approaching fast.

His heart pounded in his chest. Now that it had come to it, his loathing for Valel had vanished completely. He had to focus on survival first.

"Give yourself up kid! There's only one way this ends!"

Shirou and Keh-keh were in the shadows at the moment, but that wouldn't last long.

"Can you fight this time?" he asked her breathlessly but quietly.

Keh-keh's eyes darted around uncertainly for a moment, but she looked to him, and nodded. "Yes! I'll be okay-"

More running footsteps followed Valel into the room. Shirou thought for a desperate moment that one of the three leaders had followed him, but then he heard Chigusa's breathing. Risking a glance, he saw that Valel had turned to her, and Chigusa was staring him down, her naginata ready.

She was smiling, but the look in her eyes chilled Shirou. He'd never seen Chigusa stare at somebody with such loathing before.

"So you're Valel!" she said. "I hoped I'd run into you."

"What's this?" asked Valel, "another damn hero? You people just keep-"

"Oh no, I'm no hero!" Chigusa said brightly, that look in her eyes not even remotely diminished. "I'm just a woman who ran into the gutless bastard that tried to murder her little brother-" her voice was suddenly thick with uncontrolled, raw, emotion "-I'm going to fucking kill you."

Shirou stared for a moment, not sure what to think. Then Chigusa suddenly barked, "Shirou, stay out of this. I want you and Keh-keh to keep out any interference."

He snapped back into reality. Let her fight Valel by herself?

"But-"

"Do as I say!"

Not once had her eyes strayed from Valel. The swordman's focus was wholly on her. The two were standing there, as if sizing the other up. Nodding to nobody in particular, Shirou took Keh-keh by the arm (though she moved readily on her own) and moved past the pair toward the door Chigusa had used, taking care to give them a wide berth.

"There, there'll be nobody else to get in the way this time," Chigusa said coolly. "That boy Kirito might've let you get away last night, but I'm dumping you in that lake once we're done."

Valel scoffed, but the point of his sword lowered just noticeably enough for Shirou to catch him. "Perhaps you'd be willing to work out a deal instead? PoH usually humors me when I ask him for things. Give the girl up and we'll leave-"

Chigusa unleashed a spear skill so quickly that Shirou barely saw her wind-up, and Valel only had time enough to raise his sword to block it before she ran him through. They clashed for a moment, the blade of her naginata against that of his sword. As she strained to push through his defense, she snarled, "Don't insult me you bastard - it's my place as an older sibling to protect the younger ones - I won't let you or any of your damn friends lay even one finger on Shirou or Keh-keh!"

Keh-keh's breathing hitched, and her body went stiff for just a moment. Shirou's heart fluttered briefly.

"Then we do this the hard way," Valel said quietly.

He pushed Chigusa back and followed-up with a horizontal slice, but she brought up the end of the shaft of her naginata and parried his blow.

"When I was a kid, my grandmother -" she brought the swing of her parry around into a long slice of her own, which Valel back-stepped away from "-tried to teach me how to be a proper Japanese lady!"

Valel used a stabbing sword skill that carried him past Chigusa, his blade catching her arm as she sidestepped past him, and he used the last of his momentum to swing himself and his blade around to slice her from behind

"She didn't really succeed, but I loved the stories I heard from her about the naginata!" She spun and blocked the wicked blow with the shaft of said polearm, and threw Valel off his footing. "So much so that I practiced with them for a while in university! History probably embellished it a bit, but these weapons are synonymous with the inner strength of a Japanese woman!"

Lowering the point of her weapon, she thrust, very nearly running Valel through the chest. He managed to just barely deflect the point away from his center, and took it shallowly in the side instead.

"Beautiful design!" She stepped away from his retaliation swing and caught the tip of his blade against her handguard.

"The pole which compensates our shorter stature!" She took a step forward, forcing against him to bring the the blade of her weapon down the blade of his, toward him.

"The emphasis on skill over strength!" Valel awkwardly swung his sword to the side to deflect her spear -

"YAMATO NADESHIKO!" - but Chigusa deftly pulled the blade back, shifted her grip, and thrust the tip forward once more. Her spear pierced his chest, and slammed him against the wall behind him.

Uttering a curse, Valel thrust his hand into his pocket. A blue stone was clenched tight there in his fist, and he cried, "Teleport! Frieven!"

He began to fade. "BASTARD!" Chigusa screamed, and she thrust forward again, but her spear sank into the wood behind him. She cried out, and swiped bitterly at the air, but only succeeded in sinking the blade of her naginata into the wall besides her. He was gone.

There she stood, slightly hunched and breathing heavily, and Shirou stepped up to her side.

She flinched as he lay a hand over her shoulder, and he smiled at her. "Thanks for protecting me, Sis."

"I had no idea you were so cool with that!" said Keh-keh.

Chigusa sighed, and turned away. "I've seen Shirou use two-handed swords enough to learn a few things about them. I've been thinking about what I'd do in a fight with him ever since you told me about Valel."

"What was that Girl Power speech about?" the little girl asked.

"I guessed he was a coward from the way you and Shirou described him last nigh," she said automatically. "Running away the moment Kirito gave him trouble. People like that balk at a show of force."

"Oohhh, I get it," Keh-keh said, grinning, "show him you're a strong independent woman, right?"

"Yeah," said Chigusa. She began walking - in no particular direction. "I wanted to kill him. I wanted be the one to do it."

Shirou jogged alongside her, desperate to see her face. "Why?"

"Shirou," she said, stopping and turning to him. He was taken aback at the sunken look in her eyes. "It's my duty to protect you. Anybody who wants to endanger you is my enemy - somebody I have to destroy. Monsters, player-killers, even Kayaba himself. It doesn't matter. Please understand that."

"I..."

His gaze fell. "I don't want you to have to carry that burden alone."

Chigusa laughed, and her eyes softened. "Then stop getting in trouble, would you?"

He couldn't help it - he did too. "Okay. Pro-"

"Hey, notice how it's so quiet?"

Chigusa and Shirou both snapped to attention. How had they forgotten the fight just in the next room!? Both of them - Keh-keh following right behind - sprinted for the foyer, but they found their friends, all of them, largely unharmed and standing in the center of the room. Shirou gaped at them in relief, hardly daring to trust his eyes. Lyle looked up and called out to them as they approached, and everyone else turned to face them. Seriyuha rushed out to them, looking just as relieved as Shirou felt.

"We were trying to decide how to search for you!" she said, "we didn't know where you three had gone."

"We're fine, I drove off Valel. what happened out here?" replied Chigusa.

"The cowards ran off," muttered Lyle. "That mediocre swordsman XaXa took off at the first sign of trouble, and then PoH and Black had to do the same. After that the goons in the basement gave up and ran back in."

"We're also wondering whether to smoke them out or not," said Ashii.

Lloyd rounded on her, smiling, "I personally wouldn't mind heading down the-"

"Of course you wouldn't," she said, arms crossed.

"What do you think, Hinoka?" asked Seriyuha.

She looked toward the secret passage that led downward, and Shirou wondered for a moment if she'd decide the entire group of killers needed to be hunted down. Would she go so far? But she shook her head, relieving him. "Valel was carrying a teleport crystal, so the others might too," she said. "I say we get away from this place before anything else happens."

"Yeah, I've had more than I planned from this job already," said Elise.

"Same here," Lyle said quietly, though his hand strayed to his returned swordbreaker.

With nothing further to say, they put the abandoned mansion behind them, and relied on Ashii and Lloyd to see them all back safely to town. Nobody discussed splitting the party up just yet, but Shirou wasn't sure what to think would happen once they made it back. Surely everyone would go their seperate ways soon. For now, being surrounded by people he'd (relatively) come to trust in the time he'd spent in SAO was good enough. Just before the mansion dropped out of sight completely, he turned to give it one last look. What was the purpose of it? And its underground labyrinth? Perhaps he'd never find out. Just another mystery of the online world.

He couldn't have imagined all that would happen there...

They slowed a bit upon reaching the lake again, but they were less careful than they'd been on the way there. Once or twice they ran into groups of Depths Demons, but with their squad as large as it was now, they had little trouble in dispatching the creatures. The way up the tree was much the same. As Shirou stepped out onto the forest walkways at the top, he paused to smile at the sunlight. Who knew he'd miss it so much.

They stopped to rest at the entrance (or exit, from their perspective) to the great hollow tree, and made light talk to pass the time. One thing they didn't discuss was the pitched battle they'd just gotten into. Just as well; Shirou was in no rush to relive that particular point in his life any time soon.

Nightfall wasn't far off by the time they made it back to town, and the assembled group hovered together awkwardly at the north entrance. Was this where they would say goodbye? Shirou wondered how he might stretch the moment out even moments longer, but then Samson suddenly suggested the party go out for drinks to celebrate their success. Elise almost immediately approved the plan, and Lloyd was soon to follow. With nobody in opposition, they followed him to the establishment of his choosing: an outdoor tavern near the west end of the town. They took one of the outer tables and all sat together around it.

Surrounded by people he (sort of) knew, Shirou was reminded of family get-togethers, from days that seemed long ago now. Most of his family was safely outside the game, but at least Chigusa was still with him. That much hadn't changed. But how long would this moment last?

Samson called for a toast. Shirou joined, though the drinks they were served didn't taste like anything in particular and didn't seem to inebriate him - though he had no point of comparison. The food that followed didn't have much more of an effect. Some parts of celebrations, SAO couldn't simulate.

At some point in the middle of it all, Ashii said, "Well, now that we've sent a mob of mad killers packing, what should we try next? I don't usually get to have fun while I'm busy escorting Lloyd."

"We could try beating this game," said Seriyuha.

Those immediately around her fell silent and looked her away, and the rest soon noticed and followed suit. Shirou and Chigusa exchanged glances. The usual speech?

"We've all run into each other a time or two not by chance, but because we were meant to," said Seriyuha. "We all had the same willingness to learn this game and seek out the distant places that most players wouldn't go. And we worked well together today."

"Can't disagree there," said Lyle.

"Yeah, we kicked ass!" said Elise.

"You mean," Ashii said, quietly, "we shuld join a guild together?"

"Exactly that," said Seriyuha. "In cooperation lies our best hope in beating this game. We can accomplish so much more if we work together rather than go our own ways. What do the rest of you say?"

"Honestly," Samson said almost instantly, "I was planning on offering my services even if you didn't ask." He looked up at her, grinning toothily. "I need more disciples, after all!"

Seriyuha sat up straight, eyes wide. "But what about the last time we spoke?"

Samson waved her off, his smile turning into a crooked frown. "It's difficult to reach players in these parts. I tried watching over the flock on the first floor for a while, but I soon discovered that others shared my mind there. But none of them would ascend to the upper floors. I can feel that it's upward that the Lord has directed me to minister, but I'll need help to do it."

He looked away for just a moment. "And I'm tired of working alone, if I'm being honest."

Seriyuha said nothing.

Loneliness... That wasn't a demon Shirou had to face just yet. Chigusa and Seriyuha had been by his side almost the entire time he'd been in Sword Art Online. He'd been lucky, there... Others had been alone. He looked to Keh-keh, remembering her tears the night before, and shuddered. Samson, Lyle, and Elise as well...

"I'll join you guys," said Lyle. He was staring across to Seriyuha and the others, one arm on the table. "You guys really laid it on the line for me with my swordbreaker. I owe you more than one, and I always pay my debts. It's hard to find reliable types here."

Chigusa smiled at him and said, "We're not gonna pay you, you know."

Lyle simply rolled his eyes and smirked back at her. "The big guy's right. It's hard to get much done alone in this world, and I'd like some company I can rely on for a change."

"Same here," Elise said, a much feebler smile than seemed normal for her on her face. "I wouldn't mind hanging out with some friends for once. If you need a strong chick with an axe, I'm your girl."

Shirou wasn't exactly sure how it was happening. Did they really only need the first push to decide they wanted to join? The only ones left were...

"I'm not sure we can refuse after all that, Lloyd," Ashii said, her eyes on her partner.

"I would hate to give up the exploring life," he said with a look to the sky.

"I don't want to pressure you into anything," said Seriyuha, "and nobody will-"

"Oh, save it, I was sick to death of crawling around in holes with this guy anyways," Ashii said, not unkindly. "It's his turn to get strung along with me."

Lloyd laughed. "Guess I owe her that much. Besides, in about two more floors Ashii will make a pretty useless guide."

Ashii shot Lloyd a mock dirty look, and then turned to Seriyuha. "And that makes nine," she said.

Shirou almost felt like jumping out of his chair. Their ranks had swelled from three to nine in only two days. Had it really been that easy? Heh. All they needed was a gang of mad killers to try to murder them all.

"So we're working together now," Seriyuha said. She looked down at the table - Shirou wondered if she were trying to hide something - but then she looked up, smiling. "This really is a moment to celebrate! Coming here was a good plan, Samson!"

"Of course, I made it!"

"So uhh," said Keh-keh, "what happens next? We become a guild right? How do we do that?"

Seriyuha and Shirou looked to Chigusa, while Lloyd cast a glance to Ashii. Lyle stared hard at the table, arms crossed, and Elise's eyes wandered. Chigusa and Ashii shared glanced. Shirou could guess what that meant.

How did you make a guild in SAO? And what would they call it? Shirou could almost laugh, but instead he leaned back and looked up to the canopy. Maybe finding willing members was just going to be the easy part...

---

Summer Knights ain't quite formed yet, false alarm, people!

So yeah, "Lloyd" isn't his actual in-game name. Are you actually surprised? Although a few of the characters DO (in narration) just go by what their login names are (Hinoka/Chigusa, Razler/Shirou, and Ashii are examples of this), the ones that don't would be:

Seriyuha = SeriYuha

Keh-keh = KeH-KeH-XDDD (yes, her login is more annoying than you were led to believe)

Samson = JUDGE_SAMSON (in all-caps)

Lyle = The Lord Of Swords (Lyle being his actual given name)

Lloyd = Professor Lloyd

Elise = Elise the Huntress