Sword Art Online: The Red Baron
Book 1: The Hero Behind the Scenes
Chapter 1: Happy Birthday!
May 6, 2022
The time has come at last! SAO is finally on its way to perfection! Those were the thoughts of a young Joshua Altman who is earnestly following in his late father's footsteps. While his youth and inexperience in the workforce caused several members the SAO team to doubt his abilities to contribute to the creation of such an enormous project, Josh's brilliance in advanced computer programming as well as his creativity and organizational skills allowed him to gain that respect from his co-workers as a game developer rising from the shadow of his father. As much as he was grateful for the support that his fellow co-workers had given him throughout his time in Argus, Josh was more concerned about pleasing his boss and family friend, Mr. Akihiko Kayaba.
Josh had never forgotten his 14th birthday. It was perhaps his most important birthday in his life so far. Of course, it is natural for people to question why a 14-year-old kid would work at a prestigious gaming company instead of going to school like a normal person. His unfortunate turn of events from his childhood compelled him to carry on such important responsibilities for himself and his younger siblings. Josh's birthday was another ordinary day at work with some pleasant moments. There were a lot of "Happy Birthdays" from his co-workers and Mr. Kayaba ordered an extravagant birthday cake just in time for the team's lunch break. Still, Josh had an amazing day at work feeling proud of the major accomplishments he and his team members have made up to this point. It was the end of a hard day's work and Josh had just finished up an important section of programming for the Cardinal System when Mr. Kayaba motioned him into his office. Most of the team was already out the door leaving Josh, Mr. Kayaba, and a few others who stayed behind to help close up shop. Josh nodded and said his good-byes as he made his way over to the office to see what Mr. Kayaba needed.
"We sure got so much done today, haven't we?" Josh asked rhetorically. Without waiting for his answer, Josh continued. "Is there something that you need from me?" His light brown eyes fixed on Mr. Kayaba as he stood in front of his desk.
"Oh, nothing in particular, young man. Please take a seat while I go grab something important," Kayaba replied as he stepped out and into the closet outside of his office. He then came back a moment later carrying a well-wrapped box with a bow on top. "Happy birthday my good sir!"
Mr. Kayaba grinned as he handed the gift over to Josh who gave him a not-so-worthy look. "Oh Mr. Kayaba, you didn't have to-"
"You deserve it Josh," Mr. Kayaba interrupted him as his smile brightened. "It's your birthday and besides, your hard work and dedication is really making all the difference for this game."
Josh graciously accepted his gift and opened it carefully revealing a brand-new Nerve Gear still in mint condition. "No way! Is this one of those rumored 1st Edition Premium Nerve Gears?"
Mr. Kayaba chuckled out loud. "Not only is this a 1st Edition Premium, it's also one of the first ones ever made aside from the prototypes, of course!" He answered as he grabbed a tote bag. Josh's face beamed with happiness and excitement.
"This is incredible!" Josh praised out loud. "This edition is not even released to the public yet!" Suddenly, it hit him. "Mr. Kayaba, what about your Nerve Gear? Don't you have one too?'
Mr. Kayaba maintained his proud smile. "I made my own custom Nerve Gear apart from the ones I will be selling," he explained. "I will also be sending 2 more with the official game to both of your siblings as a gift from me as well."
Josh's eyes widened in shock. "Wait, are you sure about this? I mean, my Nerve Gear was expensive enough, right? Are you seriously planning to send me 2 more with the games included?"
"Of course, Josh," Mr. Kayaba replied as he turned around to face him again. "Like I said earlier, you have worked so hard in your father's place, he would be so proud of you. Believe it or not, your father would've given your little sister and brother a full set as well." Kayaba paused as he opened the door to the development room. The two of them walked out and made their way towards the main lobby when Mr. Kayaba continued. "So, your siblings are looking forward to the game, am I right?"
"Yes of course," Josh answered back. "Liz and Ken are always looking forward to hearing the updates I have on the game. They'll be ecstatic when they see the Nerve Gears in the mail!"
"I'm pleased to hear that," Mr. Kayaba concluded with a subtle smirk on his face. He sat on one of the seats in the waiting room of the lobby and motioned Josh to sit next to him. "I also have another present for you."
Josh gave him a confused look. "Another one? What more could you give me?"
"I would like to personally invite you to the closed beta for SAO," Mr. Kayaba answered proudly. "I will even pay you for all the hours you log for the test."
Josh beamed at the invitation. "You really mean it? That's awesome! I really appreciate that." The moment those words left his mouth, Josh immediately sensed something suspicious about the sudden invitation. "Wait a moment, what will you be doing while I'm logging hours? Surely, you're just overlooking the beta test and receiving feedback from the testers to make sure everything is running smoothly, right?"
Mr. Kayaba kept his smile as genuine as he possibly could trying to hide his smirk. "It's true that the closed beta test is basically the final product, but on top of the feedback from you and the other beta testers, I would also like to add a small special feature for the official game and make it a surprise for you."
Josh saw through his facade. "And you're sure that I will like that surprise?" He probed hoping that Mr. Kayaba would reveal more.
"Of course, you will, I promise," Mr. Kayaba reassured. "Besides, not only am I paying you, if you promise to get off my case, I will also give your account a permanent 3x experience boost which includes both level and skills. I know how much you love to play games. Just think of this as a paid vacation from yours truly."
Josh's expression changed. "You really mean it don't you?" He asked genuinely. Throughout his time in Argus, Josh knew that Mr. Kayaba is a man of his word. Whenever he promises something, he never goes back on his word no matter what.
Mr. Kayaba laughed loudly. "Now, now, have I ever broken a promise to you?" Josh already knew the answer. He smiled and laughed with him as they both left the building.
The walk back home was nice and relaxing. Josh was giddy knowing that he was finally able to play the game that his father started. With his Nerve Gear in hand and the night breeze gently blowing across his face, Josh made his way back home to his two younger siblings, Elizabeth (Liz) and Ken. who were eagerly waiting for his return. Josh had barely opened the door when both of them crowded him with big smiles on their faces. They immediately took note of the package Josh was carrying and took a peek like all siblings do. Once the two saw that it was a top-of-the-line Nerve Gear, there was no stopping them from pouncing on top of Josh wanting to use it first. After putting a stop to their endless pleas, Josh went into his room to put his nerve gear away so he could start preparing dinner for the night. After stashing his Nerve Gear in a special place where he knows his siblings can't find it, Josh made his way over to the living room to round up his siblings over to the kitchen for dinner preparations. After a delicious dinner, Josh let Liz and Ken on their own to play video games for a while as he made his way back to his room to test out his new Nerve Gear. His bed felt like a patch of fluffy white clouds now that he was wearing his prized possession. It almost made him forget to say the magic words.
"Link Start!" Josh exclaimed as his mind was sent into a flash of random colors. The 5 senses calibration labels appeared next and following that, he made his own username and password, Altinator. Josh then looked around and saw that he was in an empty room. A menu system appeared with a mirror in front of him showing his face. He had fair skin, sparkling brown eyes, and dark brown hair. He then saw his body: tall, athletic, and muscular. It was pretty much a splitting image of himself. Not interested in changing his looks, Josh left it alone and moved on to the controls.
Let's see now, system assist… check, main menu… check, good. He moved around for a while trying to get used to the controls and sensation of being in virtual reality. Looking at the menu, Josh noticed that there was an additional setup, but before he could activate it, he noticed the time and how late it was. Wow, it's almost 11PM. Guess it's time to logout. Josh logged out of the empty VR room world and stared out the window, hoping that the official game and the last-minute surprise Mr. Kayaba decided to add will make the game much better than the closed beta.
The months passed and the SAO project was entering its final stage before the official release. The closed beta server was finally complete and ready to open the following day starting at 10AM. Josh was more than ready to see the world that his father envisioned. Mr. Kayaba has excused Josh from reporting to HQ for work starting from the day of the beta launch until the closing day. Josh placed his Nerve Gear on and laid comfortably on his bed. His two siblings were watching him as Josh made his first dive into his blood, sweat, and tears.
"Link Start!" Josh shouted as he was engulfed into the flashes of different colors like he did before.