Twinblade and Angel of Death

by WaterBendingQueen88

When SAO becomes a death game, many players take up their weapons and fight to escape. One of them is Taicho, a young man who wants to get back to his family for answers, and another is Haruza, a young girl who seeks redemption for herself after a real-world failure. This is their story.

5. Songstress of Aincrad

I thank whitworth5274 for helping me.

Nautilus gasped for air as the boys finally caught up to the girls. "Don't go so far ahead! We can barely even keep up!"

"Calm down. Haruza's just giving me tips on how to fight right now."

Haruza nodded and pointed to Yuna's dagger. "Yuna's sharp, and she's got a good grasp of the fundamentals too. I don't know much about daggers, but I can at least teach her a thing or two about utilizing her strengths to cover her weaknesses."

"Swords are great, but I'll probably stick with daggers for now. There's actually another skill I want to try training too."

"Oh, that instrument skill you keep talking about?" Nautilus asked.

"You want an instrument skill, too?"

Yuna nodded. "Yes. I love music in the real world, so when I found out there was a skill in SAO I had to pick it up."

Nautilus seemed to disagree. "You never know what's going to happen in battle. Why not choose a defensive skill instead? Well, that's what I'd like to say, but Yuna's always loved music, so I can't stop her now."

"It's not just that, though... Look! Over there!"

Taicho looked in the direction Yuna pointed and immediately drew his sword. "That NPC's surrounded by monsters!" The group ran over, gaining the attention of the NPC as he ran towards them.

"Ahh! Travelers! Please, help me!"

"There's so many of them… I'll draw away the monsters! Yuna, keep your eyes peeled and head somewhere safe!"

Yuna sighed but decided to obey Nautilus. "…Fine."

"Haruza, stick with me and we should be able to handle the ones that go after Nautilus," said Taicho.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After a short fight, the party regroups around the NPC. Taicho helped the man to his feet and he dusted himself off. "Thank you for saving my life. Is there any way I can repay you?"

Yuna smiled. "There's no need for that. I'm just glad we made it in time."

"How kind… If I was as strong as you lot, I would have fought the Valiant Salamander…"

"The Valiant Salamander? What's that?"

"It's the leader of all the monsters running amok around here. They usually stay within the Scorched Rock Grotto, but sometimes they come to human settlements to attack anyone armed. It appears that they're merely testing their strength as a display of power, but their victims could not withstand the attacks… I didn't heed the warnings and was surrounded because I brought even the minimum amount of protective equipment."

"You've got to be careful out here, even with the minimum," Taicho said.

"Indeed… Can you vanquish the Salamander that dwells in the grotto for us…? We'll give you the village's treasure if you can successfully defeat it."

Taicho looked at the rest of the group. "If there aren't any objections, we'll do it."

Nautilus nodded and faced the NPC. "Where's the grotto?"

"It's at the eastern edge of the Distant Wastes. It's somewhat far, but it shouldn't be a difficult journey for fine warriors such as yourselves. I'll be sure to inform the guide. I wish you the best of luck, travelers."

As the NPC departed, Taicho checked the quest log for the quest details. "The eastern edge, huh? That does sound pretty far. Before we head out, we best take five and make sure we're ready. If we need to delay and head back to town, that's fine."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Once everyone was ready, Taicho and Haruza informed Yuna of their finished preparations. Ready herself, the young girl looked to her friend who sat alone on the ground. "Hey, Naut! We're leaving!"

"Wait up! It looks like an argument just broke out." The others looked a few meters to the distance, where two parties were engaged in an argument...seemingly about who has the right to hunt in the area.

Haruza sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I would have thought this issue would have resolved itself by now. I get wanting to hunt at the most efficient hunting grounds, happens in any game like this, but still."

"Yeah, sometimes high-level players would monopolize areas on lower level floors and keep killing all the monsters there… That makes it hard for all the other players to level up. On the other hand, there's also players who risk fighting mobs on higher level floors when they don't meet the level requirements yet…"

"You mean like you, Yuna?" Nautilus added on.

"Hey, if I want to leve—Wait! I'm here to look after you and test my ability! That's totally different!"

"A friend of mine, Sachi, she and her party went to a floor that was too high for them, and it was a total disaster. If it wasn't for another friend of ours, who is at our level, they'd probably be dead." Haruza remembered.

Taicho looked at Nautilus. "Yeah, us front liners don't have it easy ourselves. If those are mid-level guys, wait until you hear how DKB and ALS bickers, and soon the KoB will be swallowed into it."

"…Yeah, I guess you're right."

"Well, no point in wasting time watching. Let's get to that grotto."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Eventually, Haruza's party made it to their destination to challenge the Valiant Salamander. However, they were told by the NPC dungeon guide present at the volcano that they've come at a bad time. Recently, the volcano's been showing signs of activity, so she couldn't allow them to pass at the current time until the volcano settles.

Having knowledge of prior events on lower floors, Haruza suggested looking for items to give the dungeon guide to allow them access. Nautilus asked the NPC for a quicker way, who told them to gather 10 Quelling Tears from nearby Magma Elementals. That would quell the volcano for about half a day, more than enough time for them.

"You know, it's kind of fun questing together with everyone," Yuna excitedly stated as the party left the dungeon guide. "Most of the mid-level quests were outlined in Argo's guidebook, so they didn't pose much of a challenge."

"…Sorry I wasn't there to quest with you," Nautilus apologized.

"Huh? What are you apologizing for? You're trying your best to honor our promise, right? And now we get to explore together! I'll catch up to you before long, and maybe even leave you in the dust!"

Nautilus looked away from Yuna. "…Yeah."

Curious, Haruza questioned the pair. "'Promise?' What promise?"

"N-Never mind that. Let's go beat those Magma Elementals."

Taicho chuckled as Nautilus sped up in gait. "Yo, Naut, the mobs aren't going anywhere."

"Yuna calling me that is already annoying enough! Now you too?!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After gaining the 10 Quelling Tears, Haruza's party returned to the dungeon guide and turned in the items. As they now waited for the tears to do their job, they waited outside the dungeon. Haruza and Taicho talked amongst themselves when a familiar figure approached them. A grey-haired man of tall stature, at least one and a half to two decades their senior (in her opinion), with a sharp face and even sharper eyes greeted them. "I thought I recognized some of you from a distance… Haruza, Taicho, we meet again."

Haruza waved. "Heathcliff. Are you doing the Valiant Salamander quest too?"

Heathcliff shook his head and gestured to the sea of white and red behind him. "No, my party was just in the middle of training before we head for the labyrinth."

"So the labyrinth's been scouted out now. Great. Haruza and I will be there."

Heathcliff nodded. "I'll see you later at the labyrinth."

As Heathcliff led his red and white army in the direction of the Celestial Tower, Nautilus scampered over to his party mates and pointed his thumb towards the leader of the Knight of the Blood Oath. "Was that guy also a member of the Assault Team?"

Haruza nodded. "Yes. Leader of the newest guild to join the front, the Knights of the Blood Oath. But unlike ALS or DKB, it's much harder to get in. Heathcliff personally selects his followers."

Yuna awed in understanding. "So, he hand-picks some of the best players for his guild, huh…? He did seem pretty strong."

"Though he did seem completely uninterested in me."

Yuna patted the dejected Nautilus' shoulder. "Then you'll just have to get strong enough that he'll ask you to join."

"…Of course I will. I still have a long way to go, though…"

Taicho smirked and looked at Haruza. "You know, I thought they were similar to those two, but now that I'm hearing them… In an opposite but similar way, they also remind me of Kirito and Asuna."

"I see that as well."

"Who are these people you keep referring us to?" Yuna asked.

Taicho answered. "Friends of ours that are part of the Assault Team. Just a couple of people who have been a big help in clearing the previous floors."

"Wow… I'd like to meet them too."

"Yuna, are you really planning on joining the Assault Team?" Nautilus asked Yuna. "I mean, I'll be there to protect you, of course… But if anything ever happens to me, I won't be able to do that anymore."

"Come on, Naut. There's no telling what's going to happen in the future. I might end up having to protect YOU!"

"Yeah, yeah… But I'm the one who's stronger right now. You should go back to the safe zone and stay put once we finish this quest."

Yuna pouted. "Fiiine. You're such a worrywart, Naut."

"Hey, I actually do worry about you. It's not just monsters I'm worried about. Didn't you hear about how more and more PKers are showing up lately?"

PKers, short for player-killers. As named, they're players who hunt down other players. In a normal online game, and well within SAO's gameplay, players could attack each other; however, since death of the avatar means death in the real world, engaging in player-killing was equal to murder. A player who attacked another was registered with an orange player icon in place of the usual green, but to differentiate those who simply attack from those who kill, the player community has categorized the latter as red players.

Neither Haruza or Taicho encountered player-killers personally, but two of their friends did on the previous floor, saved by Heathcliff and the Knights of the Blood Oath. For Nautilus to know, this meant information has spread rapidly within the game, though it shouldn't surprise Haruza. Her personal source of information, Argo the Rat, was fast in her gathering and spreading of information, but she wasn't the only information broker. ALS and DKB must have their own number of sources, but Haruza found Argo to be the most reliable.

And the most expensive.

With nothing better to do but to wait, the party decided to take a break before entering the Scorched Rock Grotto.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When the grotto cooled off just enough that it wouldn't fry them, the party of four began their trek within. After clearing the mobs in their path and mapping out the scorching dungeon...

Nautilus stopped. "Everyone, wait here. I'm going to head inside and scout things out."

"Are you trying to keep Yuna safe?" Haruza asked.

"If it's that obvious, then don't bother asking."

Taicho stepped forward and patted Nautilus' shoulder. "I'll go with you, just to be safe."

Nautilus nodded and glanced back at the girls. "We'll be back once we have an idea of how strong the mobs are. Later."

As the boys departed, Yuna took a glass bottle of colorful candy. She handed one to Haruza, who silently accepted a round, pink candy. It was hard, so instead of chewing, she sucked on the lemon-flavored candy. Yuna smirked as she popped one in her mouth. "Hehe, pretty good, right? I happened to see someone selling it back in town. But that's not all I've got. Let me show you this skill I've been working on lately."

Yuna opened a window and summoned a small, slender lute into her hands. The music that rang out as she lightly strummed the instrument has a simple yet familiar sound to it.

Haruza gasped excitedly. "That's the instrument skill. I haven't seen anyone else with it. I have the flute myself."

Yuna held up her lute. "I first decided to try SAO because I heard you could play instruments in the game. But that's not the only musical skill I've been training." She closed her eyes and began to sing as she played her lute. So warm and beautiful was her voice that Haruza easily forgot she was in the middle of a potentially deadly combat zone. The song tugged at the heartstrings of all who heard it. Even the NPCs couldn't help but close their eyes and listen. Haruza slowly began to pull out her flute and began to play with Yuna. As Yuna finished singing, the last few notes that trail from her voice turned into balls of light and lingered in the air. An air of calm and peacefulness filled the vicinity.

"…The end."

Haruza lowered her flute. "I haven't heard that song before."

"It's one I came up with myself. I haven't given it a name yet. The lyrics aren't finished and I'm still learning how to sing. This is actually the first time I've let anyone else listen to it."

"I wish there were spells or something special with instruments like my flute. But SAO doesn't have magic at all."

Yuna giggled. "Hehe, if only it did have some magic, then it'd actually be a useful skill to have. You see, the singing skill doesn't offer any special abilities aside from boosting the precision of any accompanying music."

"You're pretty good at it. A natural talent."

"I… guess you could say that… Like I said, the singing skill and instrument skill don't actually help with fighting at all. But I still can't give up my music. I wouldn't be who I am without it."

Hearing that reminded Haruza of her mother, whom she hasn't thought much about since the beginning of the game. "You sound like me and my anime collection. If your parents know of your music, do they approve of it?"

"Yeah. I joined the music clubs in school, and will probably go to a college for the arts. Maybe make it as an idol, haha. What about your mom?"

Haruza sighed and placed her flute away. "My mother doesn't. I don't talk much about life before Sword Art Online, but you're the third to know. Everyday I fear, when the game is over, she'll take everything I love away from me. Sometimes I feel like she uses me as a tool for her reputation."

"Yeah, that is a problem, I see why you'd be troubled. I don't know if I have much experience in that regard, but the best thing you could do is talk to her. I'm sure there's an underlying reason to why your mom is as she is."

"...You think that'll work? I've never done it before, but that's because it's hard for me to have a normal conversation with my mom without her criticizing the grades of my gymnastic performances. But I'll give it a shot...if we make it out of here."

"When we make it out of here," Yuna states firmly.

Haruza nods in agreement. Yuna is right. Twelve floors ago, the possibility of escaping Aincrad was a fever dream. But now, with all the progress they've made, the chance they will leave the game alive and Haruza will see her mother again one day. "Thanks, Yuna."

"Of course! I'm just happy to help! Oh, but don't tell Naut or anyone else about my song, okay? I want to surprise him with it once I feel good enough."

"It'll be our little secret."

"Thanks! I appreciate it!"

"We're back." Yuna and Haruza turned to see Taicho and Nautilus returning from deeper in the cave, standing upon their arrival.

"Oh, hey, welcome back! How do things look inside?"

"The mobs themselves shouldn't pose a problem at our current levels. However…"

"We've got a lava problem." Taicho finished. "As expected from the dungeon's name, it's everywhere."

"If anyone fell in that lava, they'd take a massive amount of damage. It might even instantly fill them."

Haruza groaned. "That's gonna be a pain. Wonder how the Knights in Blue are doing with it."

Taicho shrugged and turned on his heel to walk back to the depths of the cavern. "I'm not trying to demoralize us or anything. Let's watch out and be careful not to step in the lava."

"If this were a normal game, it wouldn't be such a big deal if we messed up, but I'd personally rather not burn to death."

"Don't worry, Naut! If it looks like you're about to fall, I'll pull you right back up!"

Nautilus sighed. "It's not me I'm worried about, Yuna… Please don't do anything reckless in there, okay?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Huh. it's not as hot in here as you'd think," Taicho stated as the four players trek through the heated depths of the cavern.

Yuna, full of energy, bounced on her feet as she replied, "I'll say! Talk about weird!"

"That's because if it was like real lava, we'd take major damage just standing nearby, so it's balanced to make things playable."

Haruza brushed aside Nautilus' analysis and said, "Our target for the quest is the dungeon boss, the Flame Lizard Warrior. Being a boss, it will be a tough fight, so be prepared for anything. Let's go!"

After an hour and a half of exploring the cavern and beating the sturdy Lava Crabs and golem-like Magma Elementals in their path, Haruza and her friends finally came up to the pair of obsidian doors. Taicho touched one of them with the back of his hand. "Looks like this is the boss room."

With a silent nod to everyone, he pushed the doors open, revealing an open, rocky area, lit by the molten lava surrounding the platform. In the center of the room, a winged lizard clad in armor stands casually in the room. It glared with contempt and arrogance at its new challengers.

Nervously stepping back, Yuna said, "It looks really strong…"

Haruza placed a hand on her sword and responded, "Don't worry. You've got me, Taicho, and Nautilus here. We'll be fine, right, Nautilus?"

Nautilus nodded and turned to Yuna, "…Don't leave my side, Yuna. I'll keep you safe no matter what."

"O-Okay… I'll do what I can to help, too!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After a lengthy fight, the Flame Lizard Warrior's health has been brought down to about 45 percent. Haruza will admit that she thought the battle with Nautilus and Yuna would be harder given Nautilus' desire to protect her, but Yuna played the support role well.

"Great! We've got it on the ropes!" Nautilus called out. Finding itself backed into a corner, the lizard retreated from the players. It spreaded out its wings, flapping them hard to rise into the air.

"Think you can escape?" Taicho yelled as he chased after the lizard, then assumed a position. "Not if I have anything to say about it!" His sword glowed green and he leaped into the air. The sword skill got him close enough to the lizard very quickly, and Taicho slashed the right wing of the beast. It roared in agony and anger as it began to plummet to the ground.

"Did we kill it?!"

"…Oh no, get out the way!"

Still very much alive and very pissed, the Flame Lizard Warrior retracted its wings as it began to dive-bomb the party in a rapid descent. Standing directly in the path of its outstretched, red hot claws is none other than Yuna, her eyes wide open.

Nautilus noticed this and in a panic, called out to the monster's target. "Yuna!"

But it was too late. Yuna's hesitation was all the monster needed to swing its claws and slashed the girl's body. "AHHH!" The blow from the boss's attack sends her flying straight into the wall, her HP bar quickly dwindling. The NerveGear's settings might prevent a person from feeling pain, but the brain has other ways of making that sequence feel realistic. The feeling of being slashed and having the wind knocked out of you is enough to cripple the strongest player for a moment.

That's why Haruza ignored the battle and ran to Yuna's side, the latter slumped against the wall.. "Yuna!"

"Haruza, catch!"

Having landed safely away from the lizard's attack, Taicho threw a potion towards Haruza. She caught it, removed the cork with her mouth, and immediately brought it to Yuna's mouth. "Yuna, you're going to be fine. Drink this."

Her health restoring with each sip of the red liquid, Yuna turned her head towards the proceeding battle. "How's… Naut? Is he… okay?"

Haruza turned back to Nautilus. The grey-haired swordsman looked beside himself with fury, rightfully so. His slashes at the lizard are fast but untrained, like a child picking up the sword for the first time. "What have you done…? What have you done to Yuna?!"

"Nautilus!" Taicho shouted out. "Don't fight it alone! Let's regroup!"

"Even without anyone's help, I can take it down myself! HYAAAAH!"

That idiot! It's one thing to get worked up, but even if the rage Nautilus displayed is understandable, letting it guide his actions will get him killed. Haruza turned in Taicho's direction and instructs, "Taicho, go back him up!"

Taicho did try to get between Nautilus and the Flame Lizard Warrior. However, it proved impossible. Driven purely by rage, Nautilus recklessly charged at the boss, who effortlessly blocked his attacks.

"Damn it!"

"Calm down, Nautilus!"

"Stay out of my way! It's… It's my responsibility to protect Yuna! Take this!" Nautilus wound up a sword skill as it seemed he got an opening in the lizard's defenses. But if he wasn't blind to rage, he'd noticed the one thing Taicho, Haruza, and even Yuna did: it was clearly a feint.

"Naut! Get out of the way!"

Yuna's words failed to reach Nautilus, and his attack failed to make the boss so much as flinch. Instead, it quickly brandished its claws for another attack. Stuck in his sword skill's cooldown period, Nautilus is unable to dodge the attack in time and loses half of his HP.

"Nautilus! Switch!"

Taicho's command went unheard…or so it seemed, Nautilus actually did try to back away, but it's as if his body locked up in place as he stared at the lizard in complete fright. "Urgh… Ngh… Ngh…" His legs were frozen stiff, preventing him from getting back to his feet.

In the meantime, Taicho switched in on his own, finally getting the lizard's attention with a sword skill strike from behind. "Hey! It's me you're fighting now, tough guy! Come on!"

Seizing the moment, Haruza helped Yuna to her feet. "Now's our chance, now that Taicho has it distracted! I'll join him and we'll deal with it together! Yuna, get Nautilus out of there and back away!"

"Got it!"

Hearing this, Nautilus' body returns to his control as his legs straighten out for him to stand. "Yuna… Yuna, no! Don't come near me! I'm fine, I promise. I… I can still fight!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The congratulatory pop-up signaled the end of the heated battle against the Flame Lizard Warrior. As they stared at the space where the dragon bursted into blue polygons, Nautilus was first to sheath his sword. "It's… It's over…"

Taicho nodded. "Could have gone worst, huh?"

"But we managed to win…"

Haruza, agitated, stomped in front of Nautilus and put a finger in his exhausted face. "Right. The four of us, we beat it. If you were alone, that move you pulled there would have gotten you killed! I won't ask why you threw yourself at the boss like an idiot because I'm sure you realize how dumb it was, but —"

Haruza's rant was stopped by Taicho, who grasped and lowered her hand. Letting her go and allowing her to step away, he turned back to Nautilus. "You wanted to protect Yuna, huh?"

"Naut…"

Nautilus sighed and turned his head away from the others. "She's… not the only reason I did that. I thought that after raising my one-handed sword skills so much, I had become just as strong as anyone on the Assault Team."

Haruza, feeling like she may have gone too far, groaned in embarassment. "Hey, Nautilus. That moment aside, you're a good player. Like, if I'm honest, you can hold your own on level with, if not better, than some of the Assault Team members."

"This must be the first time your HP has gone that low? Most one-handed, shield-less swordsmen are aggressive in their fighting, but you were on the defensive side of things. But that's not a negative comment. However, if your legs froze up like that if you were alone, maybe even in a raid, that'd be the end of you. Be more careful from now on, got it?" Taicho added.

"Believe me, I know. Rationally, I understand that, but I just couldn't move. It's true. That was the first time my HP had been so low, and the anxiety of it just… made my legs stop listening to me. I'm fine now, though. I can move again like normal. I'll make sure that doesn't happen again. I, uh… Thanks for saving me."

"You better, for her sake" Haruza said, turning on her heel to leave the chamber. "Let's get out of here."

"Right… Sorry, everyone…"

Haruza noticed there's only two sets of footsteps behind her. Looking over her shoulder, it is Yuna who remained behind, her eyes drawn to the stony floor. She lets the boys past first, then retreated to the other girl. "Yuna? Aren't you coming with us?"

"…There's something that's been bothering me about what happened to Naut back there. It's hard to put my finger on it, but I don't think the problem was just with his legs. It seems like his whole body was paralyzed. I've never seen him like that before."

"You…have a point. That was weird, now that I think about it. Definitely concerning."

"Yeah. Hopefully nothing more happens and it was just a one-time thing… If you end up fighting together with him in the future, can you do me a favor and make sure he stays safe? I know he'd hate it if he knew I asked you that. He always says how you shouldn't get into battles unless you can protect yourself. And he's always training so hard by himself to get stronger. But something tells me that if it's you, Haruza, he'll be more willing to turn to you for help when he really needs it. At least… I have a hunch he will."

Haruza nodded and held her thumbs up. "It's a promise. I'll watch over him."

Yuna smiled and threw her arms around Haruza. "Oh, thank you so much, Haruza!"

"O-oh, um… You're welcome?"

"You guys are taking so long," Nautilus said as he returned to them. The guys noticed the girls were lingering behind and waited for them, but Nautilus' patience wore out. "Have you been talking this whole time? The boss might be gone, but we're not in the safe zone yet. You still have to be careful."

Yuna released Haruza and smiled sweetly at her friend, leaning forward to him teasingly. "Aww, did you come to fetch me because you were worried?"

Nautilus clicked his tongue and frowned. "Of course. We've known each other forever, Yuna. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you. Taicho is waiting for us at the exit. Let's go."

"Right."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After they escaped from the cavern, Haruza looked over the rewards they gained for completing the quest: "So many rewards ftom completing that quest. Definitely more that I would have thought."

"Are you sure it was alright to split some of it with me?" Yuna asked, in which Haruza nodded.

"Of course."

"You did your share of the work as part of the party," Taicho added. "It's only right you get your share of the rewards."

"Oh… Hehe. Thanks, guys."

Nautilus cleared his throat and said, "Alright, I think we're going to head back down to the lower floors, now. …As much as I hate to admit it, I realize now that I'm not strong enough to fight on the front lines."

"We'll catch up soon enough, though! Keep at it, Naut!"

"I don't think you should be right there on the front lines, Yuna. It'd give me a heart attack just thinking of what you'd be facing.

Taicho shrugged. "Well, Yuna has the makings of a good fighter. She's brave enough to fight and has a good sense for it. Work on timing and distancing, and she'll be a force."

Yuna smiled at that. "You really think so? Hearing you say that is a real boost to my confidence."

"Yeah, but don't get ahead of yourself. You got things to work on, so only join the front lines when you;re ready. It's literal life-and-death out here, you know."

Haruza agreed. "Taicho's right. Even the strongest players aren't infallible; one mistake can be dangerous."

"I'm sure. Watching you guys during that boss fight, I realized what it really takes to be able to fight on the Assault Team. You've got to support your allies when things get tough and be able to quickly regain your composure so you can keep fighting. I hope one day I'll be strong enough to help someone when they're really in need… Just like you guys did for me when I got hurt."

"Yuna…"

"That's why I'm going to really train. I won't be able to match Naut, but I'll do whatever I can to get strong!

Haruza raised her thumb and grinned. "Then we'll wait for that day to come!"

Nautilus then walked up to Taicho's side and whispered, "Hey, uh… I take back what I said about sticking with what you can do just being an excuse for giving up. Sorry. Nothing good comes from trying to rush things and letting my emotions get the better of me."

"Oh…Well, I don't remember hearing you say something like that, but don't sweat it."

Yuna brushed against Haruza's shoulder, glancing at the boys. "Hey, what's going on? What are those two talking about?"

Haruza shrugged: "I don't know, probably some guy stuff like how to improve or something."

"Yep, that's Naut. Always such a hard worker!"

Nautilus sighed for what must be the hundreth time: "C'mon, Yuna, cut it out… But still, I'll catch up to you guys before you know it. And then I'm bringing Yuna back home to the real world. See you guys around."

Yuna grinned and waved as Nautilus turned away: "Thanks for everything! See you later!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

After Nautilus and Yuna are a distance away, Haruza lowered her waving hand and faced Taicho. "What an interesting pair, huh?"

Taicho smiled. "Yeah. I hope to see them again on the front line, and hopefully Nautilus can bring himself and Yuna home. In the meantime…" Taicho pivoted on his heel and faced the looming tower that is the labyrinth between the thirteenth and fourteenth floor. "We have a boss raid to conquer. Shall we get going?"

"Yeah! Let's get going!"