Chapter X: "The Hunt Begins"

December 13th, 2032

"Hwaah…."

Soft chimes and woodwind instruments jarred Kirito from jumbled dreams, of elven cities, real-world skyscrapers, and one blonde knight in golden armor. Drawn back to his current reality by the ethereal song of Wolkenfelder Castle, he yawned and stretched. By now, he was used to sleeping in Moondancer's cramped cabin, even with the narrow cot and the company….

Thump-thump. Thump… thump….

Adrenaline flooded his veins, and Kirito sat bolt upright, almost hitting his head in the process. He clutched at his chest, eyes wide, as he realized he was feeling more than just his own heartbeat. The others weren't quite in his chest, but he could feel them all the same.

It took a moment for memory to rush back of the previous day's core crystal awakening, and the unsettling after-effects. They hadn't even tried to launch the ship after that, he finally remembered, as even Kizmel had been too worn out by the whole thing. We thought it might go away overnight, fade like it did last time. I guess not. Oh, man, this is so weird.

Kirito could tell he wasn't the only one feeling it, either. Across the cabin, Asuna woke with a gasp; he could feel the lighter, faster beat accelerate as the brunette's eyes snapped open. She looked around wildly, before her eyes met his. Then she seemed to remember, too, and she sank back into her pillow, breathing heavily. If there was a faint blush on her face, well, he certainly wasn't going to comment.

"This so strange," he heard her whisper.

The stronger, slower beat picked up just a little, as Kizmel's eyes fluttered open. Looking just a little unsettled herself, the elf girl carefully pushed herself upright, briefly distracting Kirito with the way one strap slipped off a dusky shoulder. "My," she murmured, bringing a hand to her chest, "this is going to take some getting used to, isn't it?" She took a deep breath—he felt her heart steady—and turned a hesitant smile on the two humans. "Maer arduil, Kirito, Asuna."

"Maer arduil," Kirito returned, echoed a moment later by Asuna. Funny, that's starting to feel more natural than "Ohayo". Think I'm even starting to get the hang of that "l" sound…. "So. Um. How'd you girls sleep?"

"Well enough, despite my dreams being odder than usual," Kizmel replied, smile turning more natural. "I suspect this place has left an impact. Asuna?"

"Weird, but okay," the musketeer said, her own heart finally slowing. "I think you're right about the Castle being part of it." Stretching, she swung her legs off her cot—momentarily distracting Kirito with the sight of those bare legs; he hastened to look away before she noticed—and sighed. "Speaking of which, it's probably about time we left, huh?"

"Probably," Kirito agreed, nodding. "I'm sure we've barely scratched the surface, but there doesn't seem to be anything else we can do for quests here right now. The raiders must be close to ready to hit the Skywall Tower by now, and we need supplies before the boss fight."

"And if possible, I should like to contact Moonshadow," Kizmel put in. "Though the trail of the Forest Elves' ship has doubtless long gone cold, Captain Emlas may know something."

There was that, too. The Elf War quest was going further off the rails by the day—as Kizmel had expected, the Lapis Key had been on the Fourth Island in the beta, not in a human castle over the Second—and any chance of re-railing it was one that Kirito figured should be taken. Following Kizmel's lead seemed to be the best idea.

"So, back to a town for supplies," he said, bringing up his menu. "Maybe try and find out what Argo's been up to with the surviving Fuuma. And try to figure out where Moonshadow's gotten to. That about cover the start of the day?"

"I know I'm low on potions after what we've been through lately," Asuna agreed ruefully, checking her own menu. "Not to mention maintenance, especially after that swarm of Nepenthes."

"That, as well." Kizmel smiled suddenly, one of the coy smiles that always made Kirito very nervous. "We should also look into… bath supplies, while we're in town."

What that meant, Kirito couldn't guess, and from the sudden flush on Asuna's face, he thought he probably shouldn't try. When she glanced down at her nightgown, and over at Kizmel's matching attire, and gave him a pointed look, he hurriedly jumped off his cot and left the cabin.

Two minutes later, the three of them fully dressed in long coat, leather tunic, and armor, they took their positions in the pilothouse. Moondancer was sitting properly in the isolated cradle now, her hull and wing-sail were properly healed, and the one battered propeller had been bent back into good enough shape to fly. With core crystal fully recharged and supplemented, they were finally ready to leave Wolkenfelder Castle.

It's a shame to leave, Kirito mused, as Kizmel fed power into the lift field. That library's got tons more than I ever imagined, and I know Asuna and Kizmel liked the bath. But we've all got missions, and we've been stuck here too long.

Moondancer rose out of her cradle, with a thrum he could feel at a level deeper than bone. Asuna pulled in the landing skids, while Kizmel put the engines into a gentle reverse, leaving Kirito to turn the wheel in a careful turn to starboard as soon as they had enough altitude and momentum. He made a mental note, as the bow swung a little too close to the tower, to look into getting the ship balancers when they found a deck gun. Being able to use lateral thrusters and turn the ship in place would make maneuvering so much easier in tight places.

Soon enough they were pointed away from the Castle, and Kizmel shifted power into forward thrust. She trimmed the wing-sails, Kirito turned the bow toward what passed for civilization on Niian—and Asuna inhaled sharply, staring down at her own readouts. "Barometer's dropping, guys!"

Good thing they were already going away from the Castle. Kizmel shoved the throttle forward, letting Moondancer leap away before the worst of the blizzard from nowhere could catch them.

It was briefer, this time. When it passed, and Kirito risked a look back, he wasn't at all surprised to see that Wolkenfelder Castle, along with the floating mountain it was built into, had completely vanished, as if it had never been there at all.

Asuna sighed dejectedly, and a quick glance at Kizmel revealed a wistful smile on the elf girl's lips. Guess they really did like the place as much as I did. "Don't worry," he assured them, gently turning the wheel back and forth as the last of the storm winds buffeted them. "After everything, I kinda doubt that was the last we'll see of the place. We'll be back before you know it."

"Yeah," Asuna said softly, leaning back in her chair with another sigh. "I'm sure you're right. And this way, we won't be tempted to slack off."

"Indeed," Kizmel agreed quietly. Then she smirked, turning a sly look on Kirito. "We'd certainly better come back. I don't believe Kirito was done with the library, any more than we were."

Remembering the books he still had in his inventory, and the research he was still doing into what the Wolkenritter knew of Integrity Knights, he could only nod silently. That place had the answers I wanted. I know it did. Some of them, at least. …But right now, we need to get supplies, and hope Captain Emlas can tell us where to get a deck gun. I think we're going to need it, soon.

The stop in Urbus for supplies was thankfully brief. Asuna found herself less comfortable with crowds by the day, and the town closest to Niian's outer edge was still a magnet for tourists from Einsla. On the one hand, good, it meant more players were at least willing to look beyond the starting city, but on the other… brr. Too many people, too much noise.

And when we walked into town, I could've sworn I felt static at the gates. I don't think I imagined Kizmel's ears twitching under her hood, either.

Kirito had gone off to pick up potions, chased away by the deadly words "girl talk". That had given Asuna and Kizmel time to themselves to hit a completely different kind of store, and get supplies the elf girl deemed essential. Asuna couldn't decide it she was pleased Kizmel thought enough of her human companions to be serious about compromising for some group bonding time, or mildly scandalized by the Knight's ultimate choice of swimwear.

Her choice, though, and it's technically modest enough. …Wish I had half her confidence.

An hour of separate shopping, half that getting their gear touched up by NPC blacksmith and tailor, and Moondancer was back in the air. Kizmel had sent a quick signal from the ship's comm gear, and by nine the morning they were moored against the far side of the Skyfalls—carefully away from prying eyes. Even Liberator's.

Finally, watching Moonshadow's black hull spiral up to join them, Asuna realized why she was still tense. "You won't be in trouble, will you, Kizmel?" she asked. From the steady beat of the other girl's heart—and wow, was it still weird to feel that—Kizmel wasn't worried, but still. "After what happened at Wolkenfelder Castle, I mean."

"Worry not, Asuna," the elf girl assured her with a smile. "Truth be told, outside the Pagoda Knights themselves, only the High Priest and Queen Idhrendis herself have the authority to do more than complain about my performance, where this mission is concerned. Besides, few could deny I had no way at all to know the Lapis Key was even there." Standing, she stepped over to lay a comforting hand on Asuna's. "No, this should be nothing more than a brief exchange of information. With luck, Captain Emlas has even found clues to our next destination."

"There you go with 'should' again," Asuna said, but she smiled anyway. "Okay. We'll wait here, then."

Kizmel nodded firmly, stepped out onto Moondancer's deck, and nimbly leapt across to Moonshadow. In a moment, she vanished into the other ship's bridge.

"I wish I had the courage to make a jump like that," Asuna muttered, slumping back in her chair. "I'm not afraid of heights, but still…."

"If Kizmel hadn't reassured us she'd be fine, you'd have made the jump anyway," Kirito said, smirking. Dropping into Kizmel's usual chair, he leaned back and propped his head on his hands. "And then you'd have fought off anybody who tried anything, and hauled her back here. Right?"

"Oh, and you wouldn't?" She sniffed. "I'd be following in your crazy wake, Kirito-kun, and you know it."

"Well… maybe."

No "maybe" about it. You really don't stop to think when a party member is in danger, Kirito-kun. And I think I know why.

The silence that fell after that was a little uneasy. Probably, Asuna thought, because it was just about the first time she and Kirito had been alone together since around the first night they'd spent on Moonshadow. Ever since then, though she'd occasionally been alone with Kizmel, there really hadn't been any time when it was just the two Swordmasters.

Not that I mind his company. It's… comfortable. He may think he's awkward, but a little friendly quiet can be nice, too. Maybe it's just… I don't know anything about him, IRL, and he doesn't know about me. Everything we've shared, really, has been about this game. She felt a little pang at that. I should talk to him. About why I'm here to begin with. If we're going to be partners, with or without Kizmel, he should know.

It was hard to find the words, though. Asuna couldn't help but smile, just a little, at the irony. When it came right down to it, maybe she wasn't much better socially than he was.

There was something else nagging at her, though, that she couldn't quite put into words even to herself. It was Kirito who finally did, giving her a lazy expression even she could tell masked concern. "…You're still shaken up about what happened to Isuke, too, huh?"

Blinking, she slowly nodded, realizing that was the source of the tension that had been in the back of her mind for the last three days. "Yeah," she admitted, looking down at her console. "That was… the first time I ever saw someone die, you know? Three thousand people have died so far here, but Isuke's the only one I've seen. And I never saw that for myself… outside, either." She glanced at him, sidelong. "It really brings it home, doesn't it? That we really can die here."

"Yeah, it does." He sat up, leaning toward to clasp his hands over his knees. "And… I feel helpless, honestly. Like six years ago. I mean, Isuke wasn't a friend or anything, but then Alice didn't actually die, either. Watching that was…." He slowly shook his head. "I think I'm going to be having nightmares about that for awhile."

Asuna felt a rush of guilty relief. Not that she wanted Kirito to feel bad, not at all. It just made her feel better to know that even the self-confident beta tester wasn't able to just push on through no matter what happened. If he felt that, despite having the confidence she so deeply envied, then she wasn't going to worry it would destroy her.

Abruptly standing, she walked over to the starboard bulkhead, where she could get a better look at Moonshadow. At the Dark Elf NPCs wandering her deck, and at the glimmering gold honeycomb of the Skywall. At the utterly fantastical sights that had become her everyday life, in the past month.

"Kirito-kun?" she asked at length. "Do you…." She hesitated, biting her lip. "Do you still think it was worth it? Putting on the NerveGear that day, coming to Aincrad? Even wanting to know why this world resembles your dreams… is it worth it to you?" Even knowing you can die here?

For a long moment, Kirito was silent, staring down at the ebony deck. She gave him time, knowing by now that sometimes it took him awhile to put his thoughts into words—or, she suspected, to gather the courage to voice them. Finally, though, he lifted his head to look at her. "If you'd asked me that the night we stumbled on Kizmel, I'd have said no," he said quietly. "I was scared. All I wanted to do was go home. Finding out the truth just didn't seem to matter anymore."

Asuna nodded. She'd felt much the same herself, that night. "And now?"

"Now?" He slowly shook his head. "Like I told Kizmel. After seeing Alice, after feeling what I did awakening the core crystals… I have to know, Asuna. I'd never be able to rest now, not knowing if Kayaba abused my therapy, or if there's something more going on here." He took a long, deep breath. "I know. It's crazy. But after growing up thinking of Aincrad as a second home in my dreams, and six years of trying to convince myself that was all it was… I have to know." He raised an eyebrow at her. "What about you, Asuna? Would you leave Aincrad today, if you could?"

She flinched as if he'd struck her with more than just a question. After a long pause, she whispered, "No. No, I couldn't, Kirito-kun. Because… because even if being trapped here hadn't destroyed the path I was on before, I couldn't go back to the way I was. It was so… so empty."

Following what her parents laid out for her. Learning all the right things, associating with all the right people, the only decision she ever made for herself being her desperate attempts to dodge the "partnership" her mother had decreed for her. And for what? What would I have been, in the end? Nothing in that life mattered. I would've been rich… and I never would've had anything that was worth it.

"I hate the life I was heading for," she said softly. "I don't know what my life will be now, but at least it won't be that. And…." She looked over to Moonshadow again, and rested her hand above the deep, slow heartbeat under her right breast. "I just…."

She couldn't find the words. Or maybe she just couldn't find the courage to say them. I guess I'm not so different from Kirito-kun after all, am I?

Kirito only nodded, though. "…I know what you mean," he said, very quietly, not quite meeting her gaze. "I…."

He couldn't finish, either, and she could feel his heart pick up. She had no intention of teasing him, though. She only smiled, and said, "Good." Then it was her turn to hesitate, looking again at the other airship, and the Skywall beyond. "…Kirito-kun. I know it's completely crazy. But… do you think this could be… real, somehow…?"

Anyone else, she'd never have dared ask the question. Her mother, she knew, would've icily told her to stop being ridiculous, and focus on what she needed to do. Kirito, though, only turned in Kizmel's chair to follow Asuna's gaze, a troubled frown creasing his brow. "…I don't know. It is completely crazy… but a lot of this shouldn't be possible. And I think, one way or another, we'd better find out."

Silence fell again, but this time it felt more comfortable. Asuna supposed it was from knowing they were both on the same page, more or less. Crazy as it all was, they were both determined to see it through.

Kizmel returned, a few minutes later. Jumping back aboard, she slipped into the pilothouse; before she spoke, she raised an eyebrow at the sight of Kirito in her chair, and smirked at his scramble to get out of it. "I see the two of you were comfortable, while I was out," she commented. After a moment of Kirito trying—and failing—to say something coherent, she sobered. "The bad news is, Captain Emlas has no idea where the Forest Elves may have gone. He did see them leave Wolkenfelder, but has seen nothing of them since."

Not good, but not really surprising. The patrol ship had been maddeningly elusive from the first time they'd run into it. "Any good news?" Asuna asked.

"Well, I'm not in trouble," the elf girl said, with another quick smile. "More importantly," she added more seriously, holding up a map, "Captain Emlas has not been idle. I know now where the Dark Elf outpost over Niian is, and how to access it."

As she handed Kirito the map, a notification popped up on Asuna's HUD for the first time in days: [Find And Explore Dark Elf Outpost].

"There is, however, more ominous news," Kizmel went on, settling into her chair with a troubled frown. "According to Captain Emlas, the Wild Hunt has been sighted the past few nights. We must be very cautious, indeed."

Kirito kept a close eye on the sky, and a firm hand on the wheel, as Moondancer sailed toward their next destination. He wasn't comfortable with it, not at all. The rogue island that held the Dark Elf outpost was over the northeast edge of Niian, all too close to the Skywall Tower. That made it all too likely some of the other raiders would notice them, which had too much potential to make things complicated.

More immediately, it was too close to the Minos Mountains' skyrift for his comfort. Even knowing where it was generally, picking out a skyrift by eye was tricky. Asuna thought another of the more obtuse readouts on her console had something to do with detecting them, but that was no sure thing, either.

On top of that….

"So… you guys mentioned this before, the first night out of Einsla," Asuna began, splitting her attention between her displays and her companions. "What is the 'Wild Hunt', anyway? I know a bit about the myths from our world, but I've got no idea if that's anything like what it is here."

"Scary stories, I always thought," Kirito told her, remembering a talk around a campfire nearly ten years before. He wasn't sure if the story or the memory spooked him more. "You know, 'behave yourself, or the monsters will get you'. Those kinds of stories. …Only creepier."

"Would that they were only stories." When he risked a quick glance to his left, he saw that Kizmel was watching the sky at least as intently as he was, and with just as much concern. "I… am not at liberty to discuss their nature," she added, with a shrug and an apologetic smile. "But I believe I can tell you that the Wild Hunt is exactly what the name suggests, a group of the greatest hunters Aincrad has ever known. Which is bad enough. Worse is that they may not choose to slay you."

Yep. Now Kirito remembered why he'd had the shakes that night. And every time he'd thought of the Wild Hunt afterward. Bad enough that he'd been having serious problems telling what was real and what wasn't, back then. The thought of what the Wild Hunt did when they didn't kill….

"I'm going to regret asking this," Asuna said after a moment. "But… what happens if they don't, um, 'slay' someone?"

"You join the Wild Hunt," he told her, trying very hard to focus on the less frightening possibility of being shredded by a skyrift. "Forever. And if the stories are right, you don't stay human." He could feel the Look she gave him at that, and reluctantly continued, "You ever see the Pirates of the Caribbean movies?"

She swallowed. "…Oh. 'Part of the ship, part of the crew'…?"

"I suspect I don't want to know exactly what you mean," Kizmel said dryly, trimming the wing-sails and easing the throttle forward for just a little more speed. "But the sense seems correct. Not everyone in the Wild Hunt began as the same race. They all are now."

And that would be why Kirito was less spooked by Integrity Knights. Before Alice, he'd never thought the Axiom Church changed anyone that way. Even after Alice, well, she was at least still human.

"Okay, that's all the questions I'm asking today," Asuna said after a long moment, and refocused on her displays. "Um. Kirito-kun, turn us a couple degrees more to the east, I think we're skimming too close to a skyrift… that's got it. Changing the subject!" She lifted her head long enough to point toward their destination. "I remember that rogue from the first night out of Einsla. That's the one with the crumbling old castle, right? You're sure that's a Dark Elf outpost?"

"According to Captain Emlas," Kizmel confirmed. "It seems it's concealed by a minor distraction charm, something that our ancestors knew. If they don't know what is there, most people will see it simply as a ruin, and dismiss it as unimportant. Getting close intensifies it to a conviction that they have far more important business elsewhere."

"Huh." Kirito eyed the island and its castle through the magnifying glasswood, and frowned. It did look like a ruin, but he certainly didn't get any sense that they had more important things to do, even as Moondancer closed in. "So… how come we saw the ruins from the start, but didn't just dismiss them out of hand?"

"Probably," the elf girl said, with just a hint of an Argo-like smile, "because you're a 'gamer', Kirito. To you, any ruin will be important somehow, and your interest spread to us."

Huh. That makes sense. Any magic will have its loopholes, at least if it's a well-designed magic system. And… and why is Asuna giving me that look? I can feel her staring at me, and I just know she's about to zing me….

"So what you're saying," Asuna said, dust-dry, "is that Kirito-kun is contagious."

"Mm… yes. Somewhat." There were teeth in that smile now, almost a full-on grin. Then it turned warmer, losing most of the teasing. "That has kept both of us alive, hasn't it, Asuna?"

I think the teasing was easier to handle, Kirito thought, warmth creeping up his neck at the elf's words and Asuna's soft sound of agreement. Okay, forget that right now… here we go.

He could feel the other two holding their breath right along with him, as Moondancer soared toward an invisible yet somehow tangible point in the sky. There was a crawling, tingling feeling across his skin—and then the view ahead shimmered, wavered, and snapped into focus.

Still a ruin, but nowhere near as crumbled as it had appeared from a distance. Kirito could see at least one intact tower, mostly whole walls, and a nearly undamaged port. A port that wasn't completely unoccupied, he realized, spotting an airship lying half in a smashed cradle, and a more intact one just beyond it.

"Well," Kizmel remarked, pulling back the throttle and pulling in the wing-sails, "I believe we have indeed found our destination." She nodded at the distinctive ebony hulls ahead of them. "Shall we land, and see what might be salvaged?"

Most of the time, Kizmel was able to avoid dwelling much on the worst events of the past month. As tragic as the losses to her people had been, she was simply so busy—and so seldom in the company of others of her own people—that it was easy enough to put it aside. To focus on the needs of the moment.

After Moondancer set down in an intact docking cradle, and she was able to take a good look at the airships already at the outpost, it wasn't quite so simple. The crashed ship was of an ancient design, but then so was their own Moondancer. She certainly wasn't so dissimilar as to not feel like a ship of Lyusula, even ages removed.

The ship's keel was shattered, with gaping holes leading inside the hull; part of the bow was outright gone, as if it had been blown off in battle before ever reaching the outpost. As she and her human companions circled the ship, Kizmel tried to picture how large it must've been when intact. "Perhaps a bit smaller than Moonshadow," she murmured, more to herself than to the others. "I wonder…."

"Do you know something about the ship, Kizmel?" Asuna asked, peering into the darkness beyond one of the hull breaches.

"Possibly," the Knight admitted. "Though if my suspicions are correct, Kayaba has been embellishing again. I doubt even he could know what my people do not, where this ship is concerned. I believe this is Dark Star, a Lyusulan airship that was lost several centuries ago. Consumed by the Cloud Sea, most assume; presumably Kayaba learned of her through his contacts with the Royal Capital, and put her here for… 'flavor', I believe you'd say."

"Dark Star," Kirito repeatedly thoughtfully. Carefully, he reached out to touch the battered hull—only to flinch, quickly pulling away. Kizmel could feel his heart jump, but he only shook his head. "Huh…. Is it just me, or do Dark Elves like to name their ships after astronomical features? Moonshadow, Dark Star…."

"Oh, yes," she told him, turning a smile on the young Swordmaster. "For all that my people typically make our homes underground, we have an abiding love for the stars. Indeed, a dark star is… hm, it would probably be easier to show you. If nothing else, you'll understand when you visit one of our cities."

She found herself genuinely hoping it was "when", anyway. How long she'd have with these two Swordmasters, Kizmel didn't know, but she very much wanted to show them her home. Trapped as they were away from even a facsimile of their own, it was the least she could do.

"It is, I can tell you, something brought to us by the Dominus Nocte. Who are themselves a rather long story…." Shaking off old memories, she turned away from Dark Star's wreck. "At any rate, this ship is of much the same make as our own. If her deck gun is intact, it should be no problem to move it over to Moondancer. In the meantime, I suggest we see if there's anything else in this outpost that might be of use to us."

Looting the outpost didn't precisely appeal to her, but Kizmel reminded herself it was long abandoned; the dead had no use for it any longer, and she thought they would've preferred what they left to be of benefit to the living. Besides which, she mused somberly, leading the way out of the port and its accompanying machinery toward the outpost's fortifications, this is very likely purely Kayaba's invention. Certainly I was never told of such an outpost.

Telling herself that didn't help as much as she would've liked, as she opened the door into the battered stone castle. Rundown it may have been, and built in a place her people hardly favored, it was still recognizably Lyusulan. The hallway just inside even had a fraying banner with the crossed scimitar and horn of her kingdom.

Kizmel was briefly distracted from that by Kirito stumbling. Glancing back to look, she saw him raising a hand to his ear. "Sorry, Argo's calling. Keep going, I'll keep up."

She supposed that was good news. She hoped. The Rat always told the truth, but whether that was pleasant, Kizmel had swiftly learned, varied widely from one day to another. Still, I hope she is doing well. And that she's making something of the Fuuma survivors. They seemed to have potential, if they could just learn a little caution.

At least Kirito had a distraction. Slipping through one dusty stone hallway to another, and then down a flight of stairs into the depths of the island, Kizmel couldn't help a shiver. Dusty, cracking, yet recognizable, this was the first Lyusulan stronghold she'd been in since leaving the camp on Sandoria over a month before.

The first since all the other Knights in my expedition fell. Passing a long-empty barracks, with nothing but rotting bedding and rusted armor, she thought for a moment she could almost see shades of Royal Guards resting there. She'd never thought herself superstitious—she knew that even if this place were modeled on something real, its dead had long since found peace, called back to the Holy Tree—but in that moment, it was hard not to be.

Then they found the armory, and Kizmel came to a sudden stop. This is….

"Yeah, okay, Argo," Kirito said behind her, sighing. "You be careful, too. See you… whenever. …Kizmel?"

She barely heard his words. Asuna touching her shoulder was more of a jolt, and she turned to see the musketeer looking at her in concern. "Kizmel? What's wrong?"

"Ah." Kizmel shook herself. "I was merely… I hadn't realized before, but this is not simply a Lyusulan outpost. This place once belonged to the Pagoda Knights, my own order." She nodded at the banners hanging across one wall: one of them the crossed scimitar and horn of Lyusula, the other the silver leaf and dark star of the Pagoda Knights Brigade.

Now she was sure this place was more Kayaba's creation than something copying reality. The airships at the dock were of ancient design; the racks of armor, weapons, and shields in the armory were of much the same style as what she herself wore at that very moment. She even saw, folded on a table, copies of her tunic, and a folded Mistmoon Cloak.

She started to turn away, preparing to brush aside her companions concerns, but one more thing on the table caught her eye. Beside the tunic and purple cape of a Pagoda Knight squire….

Kizmel stepped close to it before she even realized she'd moved, gauntleted hand reaching out to touch the robes of an herbalist. Robes she'd last seen over a month before, in the camp at Sandoria. "Tilnel," she whispered, closing her eyes. In that moment, she cursed the rules of the transitory world; she was sure, in her own realm, she could've held back the tears that leaked beneath her eyelids.

She was startled, then, to feel a hand on her left shoulder. The more so to realize it was Kirito's, the black-clad Swordmaster looking shy and uncomfortable, belying his usual confidence. "Kizmel?" He hesitated; she thought with a flicker of humor that it had taken most of his courage just to do as much as he had. "Are you… okay?"

She could've brushed it off. She was a Knight, after all, and Knights were not supposed to show weakness. Yet looking into his concerned eyes, and seeing the matching look in Asuna's, she couldn't help but remember the vulnerabilities they'd shown her, since the night they'd met. As strong as they had to be to be survive, they'd opened up to her.

And it is not as if my pain is as terrible as what they must push through every day.

"No," Kizmel said finally, managing a weak smile. "I am not. But I will be. It's just… this is the first time in some weeks I've really thought about the losses my people took, the night we met. Including my brother-in-law, scoundrel he may have been." She swallowed, blinking back her tears. "I… I'm afraid of having to tell Tilnel. But," she added, squaring her shoulders, "Tilnel is alive, and my mission is not over. There will be time to grieve later."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Asuna asked quietly, smoothly taking over for the fumbling Kirito.

"Not now," Kizmel told her, feeling her smile turn more genuine. "But… later, perhaps." She wiped away her tears, and turned away from the clothes and gear, resolutely forcing it back out of her mind. "For now, we still have much to do here. Kirito," she added, heading back to the door, "dare I hope Argo's news was good…?"

The Dark Elf outpost didn't have the unnerving feel of reality that Wolkenfelder Castle had. That didn't mean Kirito didn't find it spooky in its own right, over the course of their exploration. Spooky enough that he'd been proactive in his concern for Kizmel, when it was plain she was at least as bothered. Wolkenfelder had had a melancholy, abandoned feel to it. The Dark Elf outpost felt haunted.

He didn't think it was his imagination that his companions were as relieved as he was to settle in around a table in the tallest intact tower. With windows on all sides letting in the midday sun, even the dusty strategy room—or so he guessed it to be, from the huge map table—was easier on the nerves than the outpost's depths.

It was also as good a place as any to have lunch. Which, to their collective relief, was sandwiches they'd bought in Urbus that morning, not the tough, bland field rations they'd never gotten used to. Kirito wasn't the only one to make a sound of contentment, tearing into one.

His eyes weren't the only ones to turn to Kizmel; the elf girl even blushed as much as her dusky skin allowed, under the gazes of the two players. "About that message from Argo," she said, when she'd swallowed. "Is she doing well?"

Asuna stifled a giggle at the blatant subject change. Kirito only allowed himself a very quick grin, before swallowing his own first bite and taking pity on the Knight. "Well enough, apparently. She didn't have much news, mostly that the Fuuma are shaping up—kinda, anyway—and the guilds are closing in on the Skywall Tower."

"Oh, that should be interesting." Asuna nibbled at her sandwich, sighed happily, and slouched in her chair with little of her usual elegance. "Any idea who's going to reach it first? Liberator is supposed to be riding on that bet."

"According to Argo, it's neck-and-neck. Looks like it's going to be a tie," he clarified, when Kizmel raised an eyebrow at the turn of phrase. "Apparently they were delayed by some equipment issues, but now they're back on track, simultaneously. Which could be interesting, especially since she thinks Coper may be up to something. Apparently Liberator did a fly-by of Wolkenfelder just before it disappeared, and then took off like they were being chased. Sounds like Coper knows something about where Diavel got the ship."

Which had the potential to be all kinds of bad. Diavel had already gotten himself kidnapped by the Integrity Knights over it. Who knew what might happen if they decided Coper was up to his neck in it. No wonder he hasn't been seen off the ship since we started clearing this island.

That brought Kirito to the next point, which made him frown around his sandwich. "She also says the Legend Braves have dropped out of sight. Not dead, apparently, but definitely out of contact. According to what she's dug up, they haven't been seen since around when the Forest Elves betrayed the Fuuma."

Kizmel frowned, looking down at the torn map on the table. It showed Niian and its immediate environs; Kirito had already noticed with some unease that it showed neither Wolkenfelder Castle nor the very outpost in which they currently sat. "I wish I could predict what might be happening," she said after a long moment. "But as far as I'm aware, Kales'Oh hasn't allied with humans in the better part of a thousand years. They lack our tradition of working with other races. What they have in mind now… I simply have no idea."

Kirito wished he could've made a guess himself. If things had proceeded along the lines of the beta version of the Elf War quest… well, he wouldn't have known exactly what could've been gained from allying with the Forest Elves, but he was sure he could've bought the information from Argo. With the quest line having started a full two islands early in the retail version, he was as in the dark as the elven Knight.

Whatever it is, it's bound to be trickier than just assaulting a port or stealing items. That Forest Knight made it clear he thought the Legend Braves could be more useful than the Fuuma. …I have a bad feeling about this.

Still, it wasn't something he could do anything about right then. None of them could, really. So he focused on his sandwich, chased it down with a glass of fruit juice, and casually swung his feet up on the table. "Enough about that for now. If the raiders are closing in on the Skywall Tower, we'd better make sure we're ready. Dark Star has a deck gun we can use, right?"

"I believe so," Kizmel confirmed. She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table, chin on clasped hands. "If we need any parts that she cannot provide, I'm reasonably sure we can take them from the other ship, and there may be additional spares in the port's storage."

"I hope so, because there's something else I'd like to install, if we have the time." Calling up his menu, Kirito flipped through it to a tab he'd only noticed that morning, labeled [Airship Status]. A couple of quick taps there, and a model of Moondancer shimmered above the map table. "I don't know how much either of you know about airship combat, but I did pick up a couple things in the beta. For one?" He tapped the deck, where they'd soon be installing a gun. "Ships' guns have recoil. It's not too bad if you're firing at something directly ahead, the main engines compensate for that. But to either side?"

Asuna winced. "Rolling, right? That's… kind of bad. I'm still new to this, but every time we've rolled, it felt like we were losing control."

"Airships aren't really built to fly upside-down," he agreed wryly. "I think some craft might be, but not ships like ours." His finger traced lines along the image's lower hull, a bit below what would've been the waterline if she were a conventional sailing ship. "So if we've got the time and can find the parts, I'd like to install balancers—side-mounted thrusters. Honestly, we need to, long-term—they're important for both recoil-compensating and low-speed maneuvering."

That led into the finer details of what they might do with the ship, now that they were at a port meant for a Dark Elf ship. With the twin core crystals, the only real limitation was space, and they were in agreement that they wanted to be ready the next time they ran into a Forest Elf ship. Especially if it was something bigger than just the patrol ship they'd tangled with before.

When Asuna mentioned she'd spotted a ship's stove during their exploration of the outpost, they were completely unanimous about mounting that. All of them were tired of the field rations they'd been subsisting on most of the time.

"One thing I've been wondering about, though," Asuna said thoughtfully, when they'd settled on Moondancer's upgrades. "Most of Aincrad is what would be to us Medieval—um, wind and water power, mostly melee weapons and bows, that kind of thing," she explained, when Kizmel again raised a curious brow. "But then you've got airships, with—what's the term, 'steampunk'?—jet engines and electronic displays. Not to mention the cranes and stuff out in the port. That seems… schizophrenic, almost."

"Schizo—? Never mind," Kirito said hastily, realizing he was in for a lecture about his poor English. "I get the idea…. I always thought it was just gameplay contrivances. Kizmel?"

"I believe I understand the essential point." Standing, Kizmel walked over to the window overlooking the port, and the machinery Asuna had questioned. "It is said the machinery you see at the docks, and aboard airships, was more common before the Great Separation. Now, I am no mechanic, but my understanding is that it's a matter of power. The ships, and the port machinery? All powered by core crystals. Which, as you may expect, are a precious resource. Given how essential they are to simply traveling between the islands, they're mostly reserved for the ships and the machinery needed to maintain them."

Given her revelation the other day that elven core crystals, at least, were made from the magic of the Spirit Trees, Kirito saw the logic in that. It did leave the question of human-made Iron and Steel cores, but he figured those were probably similarly hard to come by.

Or, he thought darkly, restricted by the Axiom Church. I wonder if that's why the Wolkenfelder got a Spirit Tree from the Dark Elves? He wouldn't have put it past them, knowing the stranglehold the Administrator had on the Archipelago. Knowing what else the Axiom Church did without a second thought.

A cloud seemed to be passing over, dimming the noon sun. Kirito was darkly amused that the weather seemed to be matching his mood.

Asuna, though, was frowning more thoughtfully, having seized on something else. "Mostly?"

"Certain fortifications have them, as well," Kizmel acknowledged, giving the musketeer an oddly proud smile and nod. "Including Yofel Castle on the Fifth Island, and Moongleam Castle in the Royal Capital. We do have a few other methods, but they must be used carefully…."

As she trailed off, Kirito realized there was something off about the shadow passing by. Senses tingling, he jumped to his feet, Asuna only a pace behind him as he joined Kizmel at the window.

A ship, he realized, spotting the hull obscuring the sun. No. Two ships. Not Liberator, or…. "Forest Elf?" he hazarded, starting to back away from the window. "This is a bad time. Maybe we should hide; they might not've realized our ship is different from the ones already here—"

A glow, a deep violet he'd never seen before, lit up the side of the nearer ship, and Kizmel inhaled sharply. "That's not the Forest Elves," she said quickly, spinning away from the window. "Wild Hunt!"

The three of them leapt for the stairs leading down into the tower's interior. At the same moment, the half-dozen cannons on the airship's flank flared, and crackling black fire blazed over Kirito's back.

The Dark cannon fire came very nearly close enough to singe precious slivers off the lifebars hovering in Kizmel's vision; she wasn't entirely sure she was imagining the smell of singed hair that seemed to go with it. Yet they were alive, huddled in the stairwell, and as far as she was concerned that was a victory in itself.

"The Wild Hunt," Asuna gasped out, for once not seeming to even care that she was crushed up against Kirito. "Why are they here? And is it as bad as I think it is?"

"Easily," Kizmel said grimly, shivering at how close they'd just come to being struck by Dark fire. "Do not let yourself be struck by those cannons. The Wild Hunt uses Darkness magic; it will eat away at your very life, even if it fails to consume your flesh."

Her companions both paled at that. She didn't blame them. She herself had never had the misfortune of facing Darkness-aligned magic before, but some of her fellow Pagoda Knights hadn't been so lucky. I wonder, now, if it was the Wild Hunt that doomed the Wolkenritter, not the Axiom Church.

"Direct hit does damage, plus inflicts max HP debuff," Kirito forced out. "Regular potions aren't good enough—"

A crash from above made them all look up, just in time to see the trap door leading into the tower's top shake. Shake, creak—and start to cave. A dull thud sounded, followed immediately by the door denting further. An instant later, there was a muffled roar of cannon fire.

"I don't think we're safe here," Kirito said quickly, pulling himself out of the tangle with a lack of decorum Kizmel thought very much excusable under the circumstances. "We gotta get out, now!"

Needing no further prompting, they half-ran, half-tumbled down the rest of the stairs, just ahead of some truly ominous crashes and thuds. "I thought buildings were supposed to be Immortal Objects!" Asuna yelped. "That doesn't sound very 'Immortal' to me!"

No time or breath to answer that, not that Kizmel knew anyway. If they survived the next two minutes, she thought she might be interested in Kirito's explanation. For now, we need to get to Moondancer. We can't fight the Wild Hunt here!

Somehow, they made it to the bottom of the stairwell without falling headlong, just barely ahead of the upper floors collapsing. Despite the risk of direct fire, they had no choice but to race out of the tower and into the open, for fear of being crushed by falling stone.

Moondancer was two cradles away, past the wreck of Dark Star and the intact Dark Elf ship. With two ships of the Wild Hunt above, their only option was to charge into the open, and hope they could reach their own airship in time. Firing at targets below, at this close range, can't be easy, Kizmel thought, running as fast as her feet could carry her. If we're quick enough, we can get into the air before they can bring their guns to bear—!

A shadow raced on ahead of them. They were halfway between the two Dark Elf ships when the shadow swung around, and cannons boomed out again.

Kizmel had to hurriedly come to a skidding halt, pulling Kirito and Asuna to a stop along with her, before they could run headlong into row of black flames that erupted right in their path. As it was, they came close enough for her to feel the unnatural hunger of the Dark fire. Before they could turn back, another volley sounded, and more fire roared to life, blocking their retreat.

"That's far enough, Knight of Lyusula!"

The feminine voice, cold and vicious, boomed from the airship still hovering above the outpost itself. The other, Kizmel saw, was now hanging off the small island's edge, positioned to bombard them again at a moment's notice. Clearly, the Wild Hunt's cannons didn't have the delay the Forest Elf patrol ship's deck gun had had between shots.

We're trapped. For now.

Their opponent seemed to see the way Kizmel's teeth ground, from the way she laughed mockingly. "Yes, just stay right where you are, Knight of Lyusula. I am Kysarah the Ransacker, and you know why I'm here."

Kysarah the Ransacker. Kizmel felt her blood run cold, and could tell from the other beats in her chest that even if they didn't recognize the name, Kirito and Asuna recognized the threat quite well. She only hoped they truly did understand the danger they were all in. Greater danger than I have been in, perhaps in my whole life.

"You know why I'm here," Kysarah repeated. "So hand over the Jade Key—yes, I know you have it. Give it up, and you can run like the rat you are."She paused, letting it sink in. "Or you can die, and I'll take it from your rotting corpse. If I feel merciful enough to merely kill you, that is."

No small threat, that. Kizmel felt her knees shake, remembering the stories she'd been told of just what the Wild Hunt did to those it caught. She drew on every reserve of strength, of pride as a Pagoda Knight, that she had, squared her shoulders, and glared up at Kysarah's ship. "I would die before I abandoned my duty, hahlorkh!" she snarled. "I am a Knight! If you would take the Key, then chance what the protections you threw away will do to you!"

She heard Kirito and Asuna gasp, clearly understanding the implications. If Kysarah was concerned, though, it didn't show in her voice at all. "Your proposal is acceptable. Although…." Kysarah's voice took on a whimsical edge, like poisoned honey. "You humans. Swordmasters. I have no quarrel with you today, so leave if you like. Or… you could take the Key from the Lyusulan witch yourselves, and be well rewarded. What do you say?"

Kizmel stiffened, and couldn't help a quick glance to her left at Asuna, and to her right at Kirito. She trusted them not to betray her, after a month working together—after what she'd felt, awakening two core crystals with them—but the offer of escape…. I do not know if they have the courage to stand with me here.

I don't know if I want them to. Kirito, Asuna—I want you to survive. I want you with me, but please, I want you to live—

"Who the hell do you think we are?!" Asuna burst out, stepping in closer. Hood blown back, there was a fury in her eyes Kizmel had never seen before. "We'd never abandon her! And never for you!"

"I've seen your kind before!" Kirito shouted, with a vehemence that surprised her. Glaring up at Kysarah's ship, his Anneal Blade flashed out of its scabbard to point up. "You'd never stop with her—and I'll never turn my back on someone counting on me!"

They meant it, Kizmel realized, with a rush of warmth and fear. They truly meant it. Her war wasn't theirs, they'd been given the chance to flee—and instead they hurled defiance at a foe they had to know was all too likely to kill them in the next few moments.

They were serious, with what they said yesterday. …They have more courage than many Knights I've known….

"On your own heads be it, then," Kysarah said calmly. Then, "The hunt begins!"

Feeling the other ship's cannons warming up even from there, Kizmel took a deep breath, and turned to smile at her companions. "Thank you… my friends," she whispered—and hurled herself away, racing again for Moondancer. Refusing to heed her comrades' calls, she burst through the flames of the last barrage, darting in close to the docked Dark Elf ship.

If she could use it as cover, she had a chance to reach Moondancer. From there, she could—

Black fire erupted. Asuna screamed behind her, just as the Dark magic crashed into the docked ship. Kizmel had an instant to realize she'd miscalculated, before the Dark Elf ship detonated in her face.

When the docked ship exploded, sending debris in all directions, and engulfing Kizmel in flames, Asuna's heart leapt into her throat. For an instant, she could only stare, horrified, as the Knight who'd been her steadfast companion—in many ways, her role model—from her first night in Aincrad disappeared.

Ears ringing from both the explosion and the horror, she only vaguely heard mocking laughter from the ship above. She barely registered Kirito, standing utterly still, his heartbeat seemingly stopped. She could only watch as fire consumed the place her companion had been, and wonder what it was all for.

Then the ship that had done the deed fired again, its odd dark blasts lighting another line of black fire, blocking her and Kirito in. That, finally, snapped Asuna out of her shock. Rage flaring to life in its place, she spun around, and threw herself at the wreck of Dark Star.

This is the only way I can help Kirito-kun, she thought, leaping into one of the hull breaches. The only way I can help Kizmel. They're not getting away with this!

The ship was still alive, despite all the damage. It was faint, but the sense that had let her feel the Spirit Tree's power told her there was still a trickle of energy flowing through Dark Star's shattered hull. Racing through, ignoring the minor damage from sharp edges of snapped planks, she traced that feeble strength, climbing up through the broken corridors and stairwells to the upper deck.

The pilothouse was destroyed. The deck was more hole than wood. The keel was tilted at a dizzying angle. But the deck gun was still there: a twin-barreled turret, made of what she could only guess was mythril, with a scorched but intact gunner's seat. The energy she felt led right to it, and to the still-glowing controls.

Teeth bared in a snarl, Asuna jumped into the chair, hands falling right onto the twin grips. She'd never handled anything remotely like it, not in the real world and not in Aincrad, but it wasn't exactly complicated. Twin grips for triggers, pedals to rotate the turret, and a flickering, half-dead reticule right in front of her eyes.

She started to swing the gun around to target the ship bombarding them, only to pause as motion from above caught her eye. Kysarah's airship was hovering, seemingly unconcerned—except for the figures leaping off the deck, spreading their arms to unfurl some kind of webbing.

Wing-suits, she realized, recognizing them from things she'd seen IRL. They're coming down for the Jade Key. …They're target practice.

Yelling a wordless battle cry, Asuna pointed the turret as high as its mount would allow, centered the flickering sight on the descending enemy, and pulled the trigger. Brilliant green light, not so different from what had chased Moondancer only days before, leapt from both barrels, scorching the sky.

Any other time, she might've felt sick, seeing even enemies incinerated with no chance to defend themselves. In that moment, she could only feel burning satisfaction, knowing she'd protected Kirito, at least for a few moments.

Black fire roared over her head; the other ship, she realized, noticing and reacting to her attack. The shot was hasty, though, clearly snapped off in surprise. It gave her precious moments to swing the turret around, and face her would-be killer head-on.

It was head-on. For whatever reason, the Wild Hunt ship had abandoned the broadside engagement, in favor of turning bow guns on her. Maybe they were individually more powerful than the broadside guns; maybe it was just a bad angle for them. Asuna didn't know, and in the heat of the moment honestly didn't care.

I don't know who you are, or why you're doing this. But you've hurt someone I care about! You're not getting away from me!

Snarling, she leveled her sights on the approaching ship, stared down the glowing bores on its bow, and fired again. Emerald light connected Dark Star's wreck with the Wild Hunt ship for a bare instant, the impact briefly blinding her. A second later, her enemy fired as well; the shot burned past her, close enough to scorch her cloak—close enough to feel the drain Kizmel had warned them of—and an instant later she was nearly blown out of her chair by the concussion.

A quick glance back showed her Dark Star had lost what was left of her bow. Whipping her head around to her target again revealed she'd blasted several meters off the enemy ship in turn—not enough to cripple it, just enough to throw off the shot that would've killed her.

Not enough to finish the job. But enough to make a hole!

The enemy's bow guns seemed to need more time to recharge than the broadsides. That was all that saved Asuna's life, gave her a chance. She could see them flaring to life again, even as a flickering gauge she guessed was her own gun's charge crawled back toward full.

Time seemed to slow, in that race to see which gun would be ready first. In those endless seconds, Asuna could see the Wild Hunt's gunners, purple-skinned beings with demonic masks. She thought she could even make out pointed ears. She was sure she could feel raw hate, as they corrected their aim, and set themselves to fire the instant they could.

No. You fall!

Fractions of a second before dark purple could reach its brightest, a gauge shone solid green, and a high tone rang out. Almost before it registered, Asuna's fingers tightened, and pure emerald lanced out, straight into the hole her first shot had made.

The bow guns exploded, flinging the gunners off into the open sky, trailing crimson particles. The deck blasted away, flinging splinters in all directions, with a few more of the Wild Hunt thrown to the mercy of gravity. Secondary explosions erupted along the flanks, taking out the broadside guns.

The Wild Hunt airship groaned, and began to fall from the sky.

Asuna had only a moment to savor the vicious satisfaction of her first airship kill. Just a moment to compliment herself, and prepare to turn her guns on Kysarah's ship. Just long enough for that, before she realized airships didn't simply break into harmless polygons when destroyed.

Eyes wide, she could only watch as the Wild Hunt ship bore down on her, flaming, out of control—and about to explode right on top of her.

When Kizmel vanished in a fireball, Kirito could only watch in pure shock. He couldn't even move, couldn't do anything but stare at the flames that had taken her. His body just refused to obey, even if he'd been able to give it orders. Even when Asuna screamed, running away to do something, he… couldn't.

All he could see was the fire, and the memory of Alice being taken away from him.

It's happening again. Like six years ago, it's happening again. Like six years ago, I couldn't stop it. I can't… do anything…. My fault, it's my fault for bringing them here. All my fault….

Kirito had let himself care again. Six years, he'd shut everyone out, never knowing where he stood, never knowing when someone he did let in might be taken away from him again. His family wasn't who he'd thought they were. Alice had been taken away, the dreams had ended forever.

He'd thought it would be different this time. Kizmel was a Knight, not a young girl, she could take care of herself. She was safe, he'd thought. Safe enough that he could let himself accept the comfort she'd offered him and his impromptu partner.

I was wrong.

Green light flared above, hitting something he couldn't even guess. Black fire rolled past him, close enough to shave a couple of percent off his HP, and it didn't matter. He'd let himself care about Kizmel, helped her reach this place, and she'd been taken away. Because he, with all his beta knowledge, hadn't known enough about the Wild Hunt to realize they'd be after the Keys. Hadn't even thought to take precautions beyond staying out of sight.

Kizmel was gone. In moments, so would Asuna—

Asuna?

The loud, crackling boom of Dark Star's guns firing again jolted Kirito, reminding him to look. To see the lifebars still hanging in the corner of his vision, that in the heat of the moment he'd forgotten all about.

Asuna's was almost full. Kizmel's… was down by over a quarter, and gradually draining. But not empty. Nowhere near empty. In his chest, he even felt her heart, fast but deep, still beating. She's alive!

Warmth flooded back into adrenaline-chilled veins. His horrified paralysis broken, Kirito's fingers flexed, and his hand snapped up his Anneal Blade. If Kizmel was still in the burning wreckage in front of him, still suffering from the flames, he was going to get her out if he had to cut her free. I won't fail this time! Not again!

He was just about to leapt into the flames when one more crack-boom sounded behind him, and he whirled to see Asuna's latest shot strike one of the Wild Hunt ships from the sky. He was frozen again, watching helplessly as it smashed into the dock, obscuring Dark Star with its explosion.

This time, though, Kirito kept his head, and watched Asuna's lifebar. This time, his hesitation came from indecision, seeing Kizmel's HP draining slowly, but Asuna's taking a sharp hit, wondering which of them he should help first. Sheer panic at realizing he had to make that choice held his feet in place.

Kizmel was the Knight who'd given him shelter when he needed it most, and who'd connected him to a world he still couldn't decide was real or fake. Asuna was his partner. He'd taken her on to help a noob, to try and interact with someone for a change, and she'd wormed her way in through the same crack Kizmel had. She was from a different place in society from him, but she was a link to the world he'd left behind, and he'd gotten a sense that they shared a longing to find a place for themselves. That was a bond that mattered to him more than he'd ever imagined.

"I am a Knight," Kizmel's voice seemed to whisper in his ear. "Do what you know you must, Kirito!"

Her imagined words broke the deadlock. Praying silently that the elf girl would last just a little longer, Kirito flung himself toward Dark Star's wreck, boots pounding across the dock. Kizmel knew what she was doing; Asuna, he was afraid, might not know how to handle the status effects even a near-miss from such an explosion could cause. She needed him, and he would not fail her.

Five running, almost leaping steps took him close to the flames that marked the Wild Hunt's crash, and Dark Star's wreckage. Before he could take a sixth, something hurled itself out of the fire, and a scimitar carved a Sonic Leap into his torso and threw him back.

Kirito hit the ground rolling, and somersaulted back to his feet. Snapping his head up, he saw his attackers: three warriors in black armor, with purple skin, pointed ears, and red eyes that glowed from behind demonic masks. Walking out of the fire, they each carried a scimitar, already glowing with the aura of Sword Skills a moment from being unleashed.

Over their heads, even against the backlight of orange and black flames, he could see their cursors were a dark red. Not quite on the level of the Forest Elf Knights he'd fought before, but still more dangerous than he liked, especially three on one. Beneath those cursors, he saw the words [Fallen Elf Warrior].

Fallen Elves. The Wild Hunt… they're Fallen Elves. Now I get it… and I don't care. "Get the hell out of my way!"

Another Sonic Leap carried one of the flankers straight at him. The Fallen Elf missed completely, because Kirito had just launched his grapnel at the vanguard, and used the Warrior's greater stats against his target to reel himself in. The leaping Warrior flew harmlessly past, while mid-flight Kirito dropped the Anneal Blade into a high grip to his right.

It was awkward, trying to do that at the same time his left arm was outstretched with the grapnel, but it worked. With a snarl of wordless fury, he carved the downward slash of a Vertical into the Warrior's body. Combined with the momentum of his flight, it catapulted the Fallen Elf right back into the fire.

No time to see exactly what happened to him then. Kirito was caught in the split-second post-motion of his skill, giving the other flanker a chance to bring a Vertical down on him, taking off a good five percent of his HP with one blow.

He took immediate advantage of the Warrior's own post-motion, spinning to cut a Horizontal across his opponent's chest. The Warrior roared in fury as the Sword Skill drew a deep red wireframe gash across his breastplate, baring sharp teeth just barely visible behind his mask. As if in direct retaliation, he promptly unleashed a Horizontal of his own, catching Kirito in the right flank and throwing him backward.

The good thing was that it took him clear out of the way of yet another Sonic Leap from his first attacker, who sailed—screaming—into the fire. The bad news was that it knocked off another five percent of his HP,. On top of the Max HP debuff he was already suffering from getting too close to Dark fire, it was damage he couldn't afford to take.

Three on one is bad, Kirito thought, hitting the ground in another roll. But if I take even one out—if I can keep them busy long enough for Asuna and Kizmel to do something—!

Time to change his strategy. Even as he rolled back to his feet and readied his sword once more, he took stock of the situation, and what he'd managed so far. One Fallen Elf Warrior was mostly undamaged, aside from the fire he'd accidentally thrown himself into; Kirito's first target was still in there somewhere, burning and suffering from whatever damage his grapnel and Vertical had done. The last one was down about ten percent, clearly angry, and swinging his sword over his right shoulder.

Predictable. I was predictable—and so are they. Kirito's mouth twisted in a savage grin. Come on, then!

As if goaded by his very thoughts, the Warrior lunged into a Sonic Leap, crossing the ten meters between them in a flash. This time, Kirito was waiting, triggering a Slant at the same instant, and the two skills collided. The Fallen Elf had momentum on his side; the Swordmaster had solid footing. It was the Fallen Elf who was blown back, and by the time he landed on his feet, Kirito was just as free from post-motion.

No Sword Skill from him this time. He charged in, yelling, with nothing but his STR stat and his own wits guiding his blade. He drove it straight into the Warrior's stomach, until the point emerged out the elf's back. Not nearly as much damage as a skill would've done, but it allowed him to instantly pull back, with no post-motion delay, and sidestep the Vertical that came back at him. He took another gliding step forward, spinning on the ball of his foot in the process, gripped the Anneal Blade's hilt in both hands, and struck a diagonal slash down the Fallen Elf's back.

Kirito nearly lost both hands a moment later, to a Vertical that carved its way out of the flames. He only barely ducked back from it; an unexpected kick to his ankle stole his footing, and he found himself suddenly falling to the hard stone ground. He managed to curl into himself on the way down, and when his back hit he turned the momentum from the fall into a spin, flinging out his sword to slash at the nearest legs.

Then he was rolling away, both from a cursing, falling Warrior, and from the paired Verticals that tried to chop him into three pieces. Making a brief, crazy mental note to look into the Acrobatics skill, he managed to fling himself back to his feet, to find one Fallen Elf in a Tumble on the ground, and two others just recovering from post-motion.

Not good. I can predict one at a time, dodge and use their post-motion against them, but two… dammit, I have to move, or it'll be three all at once!

Horizontal, if timed right, could possibly have deflected both Sword Skills he could see heading his way. It would have been close, but it was possible. Or he could've tried to preempt them with a Sonic Leap, gambling on taking one out of action and eating the damage from the other….

This is a dock. The machinery here can move things from one airship to another. I'm thinking too small—!

Kirito's sudden idea came a split second too late. Even as he snapped his left arm nearly straight up, the Tumbled elf was standing up, and the other two were launching their own skills—one of them coming high with a Sonic Leap, the other low with what he recognized as a Rage Spike. He couldn't possibly deflect both, no time left to dodge—

"Kirito, switch!"

His grapnel fired, zipping up to latch onto a crane. He was immediately jerked up, above the Rage Spike, but still within the arc of the Sonic Leap—which was suddenly met by a shield, as a flaming figure charged into the space Kirito had just left.

Sailing up and out of reach, Kirito looked down to see Kizmel, trailing black fire, smash aside one of his attackers. Her cloak was gone, along with her breastplate and even her tunic, but she was alive, and she was angry. Spinning away from the Warrior she'd just stunned, she slashed a Horizontal across the other's chest. The vicious blow took twenty percent off the Warrior's HP, and broke his breastplate in the process.

The third had regained his footing, and with a furious roar raised his scimitar to unleash… well, Kirito didn't quite recognize the skill he was preparing, but it didn't really matter anyway. Kirito had gauged his ascent very carefully, and at the highest point he thought survivable, he released the grapnel, letting gravity and momentum take over.

Falling from too great a height in SAO caused fall damage. Fatal, if from too high up or with too little HP remaining. Being hit by something falling could be just as bad.

Kirito wasn't sure the Vertical he dropped on the Fallen Elf Warrior was even needed. The Warrior's stats were a bit higher than his, but with less HP remaining. Landing right on his back, from that high up, dropped the Warrior's HP right down to zero.

As the Fallen Elf shattered into azure polygons, Kirito had a moment to wonder about the two survivors' brief pause. Either these are higher-level AI like Kizmel, or Kayaba programmed in a reaction effect. …Doesn't matter.

That brief pause was enough for him to recover from both post-motion and landing, and in an instant Kirito was charging at one of the survivors, driving his sword straight at his back. Busy as the Warrior was with Kizmel, he had no time to switch targets, and the Anneal Blade punched right through him.

Not remotely fatal, but it kept the Fallen Elf busy for a moment. Long enough for Kizmel, just catching a blow from the other on her shield, to flash Kirito a fierce grin. "Well met, Kirito!" she called out. "Shall we finish this together?"

Even in the middle of the battle, his HP nearly down to half and hers just below, Kirito couldn't help but return the grin. One thing I'll say for classic fantasy armor, he thought, glancing at the Mighty Straps that had taken the place of the elf girl's usual plate. It's probably even tougher than what she usually wears!

Three on one suddenly reduced to two on two, the odds were suddenly more than even. The Fallen Elf Warriors, Kirito quickly realized, were only basic AI—no match for an equal number of fighters who could think. As damaged as they both were, he and Kizmel were able to dance around their remaining foes, trading off to confuse the Fallen Elves' attack patterns.

In less than a minute, the two were yelling dying curses, and shattering to blue dust. Then it was just Dark Elf and Swordmaster, tired, heaving for breath, but alive. "Kizmel," Kirito wheezed. "I'm glad… you're safe…."

"You as well, Kirito," the elf girl said, giving him a weary but warm smile. "Seeing you facing three Fallen Elves at once… I admit, I feared the worst." She shifted her saber to her left hand, raising her right for a high-five; only then did he realize her gauntlets had been destroyed, as well. "We still have Kysarah's ship to deal with. Let's regroup with Asuna, and—"

He wasn't sure how he knew. There was just an instinctive spike of doom flooding Kirito's very senses, and he flung himself at Kizmel just ahead the screech of a Sword Skill. Wrapping the elf girl in his arms, he took the blow that he was sure would've killed her on his own back, gritting his teeth against an impact that carved from his shoulder down to his hip—and flung the both of them off their feet.

Rolling uncontrollably, keeping his grip on Kizmel but losing his sword somewhere along the way, the only thing that stayed steady enough for him to see was his own HP, which suddenly drained down into the red.

Ice flooded Kirito's veins as he realized how close he'd just come to death—and that he and Kizmel had come to a halt only a meter away from the Dark fires that would've eaten what was left in seconds.

Holding the Dark Elf Knight in a death grip, he managed to lift his head enough to see their attacker, and swallowed hard. A tall, broad-shouldered man in heavier armor than the Warriors, bearing a two-handed sword. His cursor was darker than theirs, and beneath it was the legend [Fallen Elf: Captain of the Wild Hunt].

We're dead, Kirito realized, seeing the Captain stalk out of the wreckage of his ship, swinging his heavy sword back for what Kirito was sure was some kind of charge-type skill. I lost my sword, Kizmel's armor is gone—

The Captain snarled something in a tongue Kirito didn't understand and didn't want to. His sword glowed a deep crimson, and he set himself to leap.

Kirito, unable to watch the end, clutched Kizmel closer and squeezed his eyes shut.

Crack!

The Fallen Elf Captain's feet left the ground, and in the same instant the bullet slammed into the side of his head. Blunted by his helmet, it still completely threw off his attempted Sword Skill, and his controlled leap turned into a tumble well off to the side of his targets.

I made it in time, Asuna thought, giddy with relief. I made it!

The Captain wouldn't be down for long. She could already seem him gathering himself, and Kirito and Kizmel were both still downed. But there was a bit of breathing space now, and Asuna used it to take her own flying leap off Dark Star's wreck, sailing through the flaming wreck of the Fallen Elf ship quickly enough to avoid more than being singed. The moment her feet touched solid ground, she leveled her pistol again, and fired the second shot.

Though it ricocheted off the armor under his cape, it knocked the Captain back down again. That gave Asuna a precious moment to holster her pistol, draw her Wind Fleuret, and break into a run.

"Filthy human," the Captain rumbled, shoving himself back to his feet. "You will suffer for destroying my ship!"

"And you'll pay for threatening my friends!" Asuna shouted back. "Get away from them!" Pounding across the dock, she lowered her stance, pulling her rapier up and back. Linear was the most basic skill she had, but it was also the one she'd practiced most.

Right then, she needed every advantage she could get. She knew the Captain had the advantage in bulk and raw power, which meant she had to play up her own strengths: speed, and precision. Kirito and Kizmel are down. I won't let him kill them!

Her own cloak was gone, burnt up in the explosion. Otherwise, she was much better off than her teammates, and if that meant taking on a minor boss by herself, she would. Kizmel showed me what a true Knight is like. I won't let her down!

The Captain met her charge with a heavy, overhand Sword Skill. Asuna saw it coming in plenty of time, stepped sideways at the last moment, and drove her blazing Linear right into his chest. He rocked back from the blow, only to slam his knee into her stomach; coughing, she recoiled, and only narrowly ducked away from the heavy horizontal slash that was his follow-up.

Good thing that kick wasn't a Sword Skill, she thought, heart pounding, sparing an instant to check her HP. That would've really hurt! Swallowing her fear, she stabbed at the offending knee, driving the tip of her rapier into that thin crack in his armor. Not a Sword Skill, it meant she could take advantage of his flinch to immediately segue into another Linear, right into his gut.

This time the Avalanche the Captain threw back at her caught her before she could recover, and with a cry Asuna was flung away, almost into the still-flaming wreck. Desperately twisting in the air, she somehow got her feet back under her, her boots striking sparks against the ground as she landed in a skid. That was all that saved her, as the Captain recovered with astonishing speed and charged right after her.

Not even trying to attack in turn, she hastily stepped sideways and around, slipping behind his back as another Avalanche crashed down where she would've been. That gave her just enough time to check his HP, and her own.

She was down by fifty percent, between the explosion and the Fallen Elf's hard-hitting attacks. The Captain, she was dismayed to see, had lost only about ten percent from her blows. He is a boss, isn't he? …I don't know if I can win this, but I have no choice. I won't run away!

Even as the Captain recovered from his post-motion and spun around, Asuna was darting in again, stabbing at him as fast as her AGI would allow. Two thrusts to his back while he was still facing away, another under his left arm as he turned, and one more to the stomach as he completed the spin. He was obviously at a higher level than she was, his armor was tougher than anything she'd seen before, but she had to count on the piercing ability of her rapier to do something.

Piercing, and sheer agility. The Captain's blows were heavy, but slow; she was able to duck and dance around the next two skills he sent her way, and a quick sidestep gave her the chance to slash a Streak right across his face and hop away before he could respond. Snarling in rage, he drew his heavy sword back and low, in a pre-motion she didn't recognize but looked bad—

"Asuna, switch!"

The instruction came not a moment too soon, and Asuna leapt back farther than she would have otherwise—saving herself from a whirling attack that extended beyond the tip of the Captain's sword. The Sword Skill wasted itself, creating just enough of an opening for Kizmel to charge in, shield held up like a battering ram, and slam into him at full speed. Still caught in the backlash of his own wasted attack, the Captain was flung back.

Clear into the Dark fires of his own ship's last barrage.

Asuna hoped to never again hear the howl that burst from the Fallen Elf Captain in that moment. Pain wasn't supposed to be a thing in SAO, even for NPCs, but flailing amid the black flames, the Captain screamed like he really was on fire. As she watched in fascinated horror, his lifebar actually shrank, and the color left within it flickered as it drained away.

What's happening to him?!

Howl turning to a bass roar of pure rage, the Captain hurtled back out of the fire. "Filthy human! Lyusulan witch!" Cape gone, mask and armor cracked, what could be seen of his face was twisted with hate as he barreled toward them. "DIE!"

The Captain started to leap into the air, heavy sword taking on a strange, dark glow. Before he quite left the ground, a grapnel whizzed out, catching his ankle; the leap turned into a stumble, the light around his sword flickering.

Kizmel stepped quickly to the left, saber glowing bright blue in a Vertical that chopped his hands clean off. Asuna darted right into him, rapier glowing for one more Linear, and with a yell she thrust it straight into his chest. His armor, already buckling from whatever the Dark fire did to equipment, shattered, and the shining tip pierced the skin behind, straight into his heart.

Before the Captain's bulk could land on her, he was halted mid-step. Coughing, he hurled one last word that Asuna didn't understand but made Kizmel's ears twitch, and he shattered.

There was silence. Not letting her guard down, Asuna quickly glanced around, but saw no more Fallen Elves emerging from the wreckage; a hurried look up revealed none trying to drop in from above, either. The ground battle, it seemed, had been won.

Not quite relaxing, she turned her attention to her own elven companion. "Kizmel! Are you all right?" The Knight's armor was mostly gone, and her HP was down way too far, but she looked okay. Except… her lifebar didn't look quite as long as it should have….

Kizmel's weary smile reassured her. "Nothing a few potions and a little rest won't cure, Asuna. Thank you. Magnificent work… my friend."

Asuna flushed with embarrassed pride at the words—and then blinked, realizing she'd forgotten something. "Oh, no! Kirito-kun!" Sheathing her rapier, she rushed for the fallen swordsman's side, Kizmel only a step behind her. "Kirito-kun! Are you—?!"

Groaning, coat a bit frayed, Kirito pushed himself into a sitting position on the ground. "…I've had better days, but it looks like I'll live. I didn't get hit with the HP debuff, anyway…. GJ, Asuna, Kizmel."

"GJ," Kizmel repeated, smiling. "But," she added, smile turning to a deep frown, "we are not safe yet." Even as Asuna helped Kirito to his feet, the elf turned to glare up at the airship still hovering above them. "Kysarah! Leave this place! You've lost!"

"Oh, have I?" If Kysarah was concerned, it didn't show in her voice. "I do still have the high ground, Lyusulan. And you and your human pets are half-dead as it is. Tell me, what makes you think you can win?"

"Perhaps we can't," Kizmel said evenly. "But I can certainly make certain you lose." The Knight smiled then, a tooth-filled expression Asuna hoped never to see turned on her. "What do you suppose the Final Sacrament would do to the Key you want so badly?"

Asuna tensed, and it was apparently enough to even give Kysarah pause. "You're bluffing," she said at length. "You would kill your own companions, and you know it."

"I believe they would accept that price," Kizmel retorted. "Do you really want to take that chance?"

It might have been a bluff. Yet… as frightened as she suddenly was, when she glanced at Kirito, Asuna saw the same tense conviction she herself felt. I don't want to. But Kysarah said it herself. We're half-dead. If it comes down to another fight, we'll die anyway. Better to go out on our own terms, than to let her win.

"Still don't believe it?" Kirito called out, pushing himself to his feet. In that moment, Asuna saw, he wore the mask of the Beater again, a demeanor she hadn't seen since the very first time he'd donned his black coat. "Then go ask the Axiom Church, Kysarah. They can tell you what Swordmasters will do, when we're pushed to the wall."

There was silence for ten seconds. Twenty. Half a minute. Asuna wondered if Kysarah really would call their "bluff", and if they were all going to go up in a blaze of glory in mere moments. At least it'd be quick… right?

"Very well," Kysarah said at last. "I see I underestimated your skills and your willingness to die. Fine. I've waited a thousand years and more, I can wait a little longer. But know this, Lyusulan, Swordmasters. When next we meet, I will be ready for you." She chuckled, low and vicious. "At the least, you'll make a fine hunt…."

Finally, Kysarah's ship eased into motion, turning away from the Dark Elf outpost. Rapidly gaining speed, it spread wing-sails wide, soared into the distance—and, unnervingly, faded into the air itself.

[Find And Explore Dark Elf Outpost Complete].

Tension drained out of Asuna's muscles so fast she almost collapsed. Strong arms caught her, and she fell gratefully into Kizmel's embrace. We did it. We're alive. We won….

[Find And Explore Dark Elf Outpost Complete].

Kirito didn't think he'd ever been so relieved to see a quest completion notice in his life. That pretty much confirmed the battle was over, which meant he and his companions weren't about to die after all. Considering that was the closest his HP had come to hitting zero since the death game began, that had been a real concern.

Wearily trudging over to retrieve his sword, he thought the scariest thing of all was that he hadn't been bluffing, when he seconded Kizmel's claim that he and Asuna would be willing to go down with her. It was insane, going to such lengths for a quest that, in the end, had nothing to do with clearing the game, and he'd done it anyway.

Because it's not really a game anymore, is it? Digging into a belt pouch, he pulled out a potion and quickly downed it. It wouldn't help with the minor max HP debuff he'd been hit with, but it would at least get him out of the danger zone. Simulation or magic, there's real lives at stake here, and not just Swordmasters. I can't just turn my back on….

Looking up at the sound of footsteps, Kirito saw that Kizmel had released Asuna and was heading his way. Then, and only then, did he truly register the damage her equipment had taken in the fighting. During the battle, he'd taken an academic note of stats and whatnot, but not the other implications of it.

The Dark Elf girl was wearing an odd ring on her right hand, her armored boots, very tattered tights—and the Mighty Straps of Leather. All that covered her from the waist up was that pair of leather strips, which obscured just barely enough of her chest to be technically legal while in practice leaving nothing whatsoever to the imagination.

Her nightgown had left Kirito with a pretty good idea of exactly how generous a figure Kizmel's armor normally hid. Seeing most of that dusky skin exposed, he found himself struck with a stun effect far more powerful than the Tumble the Fallen Elf Captain had hit him with.

…I hadn't realized she was that athletic, the one coherent corner of his mind noticed, eyes tracing her toned abs and supple arms. I guess SAO really does a good job rendering… that….

Kizmel noticed his thunderstruck stare, and to his surprise grinned at him. "I suppose that answers my question from that day better than your words did then," she commented, casually folding her arms under her mostly-exposed breasts. "Fortunate that I still had these on hand, however, or I fear I might've struck you dead on the spot."

Kirito wanted to deny that. Unfortunately neither his eyes nor his tongue seemed to want to respond, leading him to wonder if he was suffering from some kind of Full-Dive Nonconformity. It's the adrenaline, he told himself. That's why I can't move, and why she's just grinning at me like that—

"For goodness' sake, Kizmel!" Asuna snapped, stomping over. "Put on a shirt! And you!" She stepped in close, and slapped the back of Kirito's head. "Stop staring!"

That loosened his frozen tongue, and he shot her an aggrieved look. "You two stared at me when I wore it!" he shot back—and instantly realized, from the steam coming out of her ears, that it was exactly the wrong thing to say. I'm dead. But hey, at least she's already feeling better from the fight, so, worth it?

Kizmel's bright, melodious laugh brought their attention back to her. "He has a point, Asuna. Certainly you were at least as tongue-tied that day, weren't you?" Asuna's mouth worked silently in response, and the elf girl grinned again. "Besides, I'm afraid I have no other tunic, and I think my nightgown would hardly be appropriate here, either. There were spares in the outpost's armory; I'll retrieve one later."

Asuna out-and-out pouted in response, to Kirito's bemusement. "…I can't argue with that logic, I guess," she muttered. Which part, he wasn't sure, and wasn't insane enough to ask.

The elf girl laughed again, before suddenly turning sober. "Kirito, Asuna," she said, raising a fist to her heart. "I thank you, truly, for what you've done for me. Without your help, I would never have survived the night we met, when all of my fellow Knights fell. Even if I reached this far, the Fallen would've been the end of me here. You have my deepest thanks, for my mission, and for me."

"Of course we helped you," Asuna said, her indignation forgotten in an instant. Smiling, she reached out to grip Kizmel's bare shoulder. "That first time, we may have been out to strengthen ourselves as much as anything else, but we couldn't leave a lady knight in trouble. And after that… well, we helped because we care. Right, Kirito-kun?"

Flushing, Kirito couldn't quite meet either girl's gaze. "Well, yeah," he mumbled. "Of course." He meant it, too. But honestly, it's not that easy to say!

"I know you do." Kizmel's hand opened, tracing over the right side of her chest. "I can feel it, now. And it means more to me than you can know." Smiling warmly, she extended her hand. "Kirito. Asuna. At this point, after everything we've been through together, I believe we are more than merely comrades, allied for convenience. We are friends, are we not?"

Friends. He felt himself seize up at the word. Sure, he'd had his share of people on his in-game Friends Lists over the years, from one game to another, but that wasn't really friendship. Just a gameplay mechanic, a way to stay in touch with the handful of people he found easy to work with. Like Argo, or….

He hadn't had friends in… longer than he wanted to admit. Not since it'd all been torn away from him, that horrible day in a world he'd thought was just a dream. But I… I want….

Asuna had no such hesitations, and quickly grasped Kizmel's hand with a brilliant smile. "Of course we are, Kizmel! After all this, how could we be anything else? Of course we're friends. Right, Kirito-kun?"

That smile made Kirito tingle, just as much as the look Kizmel was giving the both of them. Yet fear, the same fear that had gripped him when he'd thought Kizmel blown to bits, kept his mouth dry and his lips firmly shut. Even after a month of traveling with the two girls, the old fear and his bottom-tier social stats kept him from answering.

The musketeer's smile started to turn to a frown. Kizmel, though, only sighed, released Asuna's hand, and stepped closer to him. "Kirito," she said quietly, eyes soft with an understanding he couldn't quite bring himself to believe. "I have seen Knights that look as you do, so I will not chastise you. Pain and loss… I understand very well, what that may do to a man.

"So I will simply ask you this, as Asuna asked me."Her eyes locked on his, refusing to let him look away. "Do you want us to leave you? To be alone?"

For several seconds, Kirito's mouth worked soundlessly. Finally, though, he swallowed hard, and shook his head. "No," he said hoarsely, forcing the words out. "I… I don't. Being alone… it scares me. More than anything." The admission was hard, one of the hardest things he'd ever said, but Kizmel demanded honesty, and he couldn't refuse.

He remembered, all too well, the days—and nights—after Alice had been taken, and he'd been thrown out of Aincrad for good. Between that and the shattering revelation he'd found in his waking life, loneliness had become his life, even at home. For six years, his life had been empty of company.

Then he'd met Asuna, and Kizmel. The two girls filled a void he'd almost forgotten was there, and he was terrified of losing it.

Kizmel smiled at his words, warm and gentle—and abruptly pulled him into a hug. Feeling her near-topless body press against him, Kirito yelped, which only made her chuckle, low and throaty. Tightening her embrace, she whispered in his ear, "You will never be alone again, my friend. This, I swear, on my honor as Knight."

Not used to being hugged at all, let alone by a girl in Kizmel's state of undress, Kirito's brain nearly suffered a BSOD. Only the warm sincerity in her words, promising what he wanted most in the world, kept him at all functional. As she showed no signs of letting go, he even, very tentatively, reached up to return the embrace. Hands resting on the toned muscles of her mostly bare back, he got out, "Thank you, Kizmel. That… means a lot to me. Really."

"You are very welcome." She squeezed him just a little tighter, trapping him in soft warmth. Then, without any warning at all, she let go, and pushed him over to Asuna.

Not expecting the shove, Kirito stumbled, only barely caught by a wide-eyed, very surprised Asuna. To his surprise, she didn't push him away, instead gingerly pulling him into a hug of her own. "She's right, you know," she whispered. "And… I don't want to be alone, either, Kirito-kun."

"W-well," he said, returning the hug a bit more easily than with the under-dressed elf, "I did say I'd teach you everything I could about this world, didn't I? There's still a lot to tell you." He took a deep, shuddering breath. "I won't run away, Asuna. I promise. I… won't let six years ago happen again."

"I believe you." Her right hand slipped between them, resting over the heartbeat he knew she could feel as well as he felt hers. "We're partners, right? All of us."

Warm softness suddenly pressed in his side again, and it was Asuna's turn to squeak as Kizmel turned it into a three-way hug. "It is terrible," the elf girl said, leaning her head against theirs, "what was done to you. But I fear I can't regret that the two of you came here. The night I met you… was one of the best of my life." She laughed, quiet and happy. "I can't wait to introduce the two of you to my sister."

As frightening as the death game SAO had become was, Kirito couldn't bring himself to disagree with her. The life he had in the real world was a lot less dangerous, yet he had to admit it was also a lot less fulfilling than the past weeks had been. For every moment of sheer, howling terror, there were times like this. Now that he could openly admit they were his friends, he allowed himself to hope there would be more.

Hopefully without a fight with the Fallen Elves first. That was way too close.

After a time he wasn't sure was too long or too short, Kizmel broke the hug, though she didn't back off even a full step. "Now that we're agreed that we are friends," she said, with a smile that reminded Kirito a little too much of Argo, "shall we commemorate the occasion?" Freeing one hand to bring up her menu, she quickly materialized a single crystal.

The recording crystal Argo had given her back at Wolkenfelder, he realized. "A group picture?" He managed a shy smile. "That's not a bad idea."

He wasn't so sure of that just a second later, though, when Kizmel shifted the three of them around so that Kirito was in the middle, Asuna tucked against his right side, and the elf girl herself pressing way too much skin into his left. How he ended up with an arm around each girl's waist, he wasn't sure, but was reasonably sure wasn't his fault.

Thankfully, Asuna seemed to agree, the musketeer turning her embarrassed half-glare on the elf girl. "It's a good idea, Kizmel, but shouldn't you go and get a shirt first?!"

"Nonsense!" Kizmel said with a laugh, setting up the crystal and letting it float a short distance away. "It would hardly be genuine if it didn't capture us as we are in the moment, now would it?"

Asuna whimpered, but gamely turned a smile toward the recording crystal. Blushing, but unable to suppress a shy grin of his own, Kirito did the same.

Flash!

Not that she would ever have admitted it, even under torture, but Asuna didn't really mind being held close to Kirito for the group picture. After the harrowing battle they'd only just survived, it really did feel nice.

That said, when it was done, she turned an arched eyebrow on the elf girl. "Okay, we've got it, and I'm sure it'll be a nice picture to put on the bulkhead in Moondancer's cabin," she said sincerely. "Now Kizmel, will you please go get a shirt before Kirito-kun dies of a nosebleed?"

Not that SAO's emotional expression system seemed to emulate that particular anime trope, but still. The amount of skin Kizmel was casually showing off kept distracting Kirito, and she couldn't even blame him for it. Even she could tell the elf girl was a knock-out.

A shameless one, from the way Kizmel just shook her head and laughed again. "Now, now, Asuna, what is the hurry? A little skin between friends is no cause for concern." Her smile turned more serious then, and she finally released Kirito—whether the swordsman was relieved or disappointed, Asuna decided was his own business. "Kirito, Asuna. We've come this far together. I have no right to ask this—indeed, for your sakes, I probably should not—but I will do so anyway." She straightened, raising fist to heart once again. "Will you stay with me? Accompany me on my mission, to the very end?"

Asuna couldn't help feeling just a little proud, when Kirito beat her to responding. "Of course we will," he said firmly, even managing to keep his eyes on her face. "That's… that's what friends do, isn't it?"

"It is," Asuna told him, patting him on the shoulder. Smiling at the elf girl, she nodded. "We're with you to the end, Kizmel. Whatever your mission is." Her smile turned to a grin. "All for one, and one for all!"

"I will tell you soon," Kizmel promised. "And I will accompany you in turn, as long my Queen allows. Therefore." Bringing up her menu again, she materialized two rings—rings Asuna recognized with a start. "I name you both Athkaraye, friends of the Elves. You have acted with more honor and loyalty than I might've expected out of my own Pagoda Knights Brigade. I would have you take the Sigils of Lyusula, proof of your friendship with our Kingdom."

Eyes wide, just a little misty, Asuna took hers. Smiling—as much at the way Kirito nervously fumbled with his—she slipped it onto her right middle finger. It felt right, she decided. Tangible proof of the bond she'd built with Kizmel, and with Kirito.

The Knight wasn't done, though. Next she brought out one of the books they'd taken from Wolkenfelder Castle; then a piece of parchment, which she braced on the hardcover. She followed up with a fountain pen, and quickly wrote out… something. What, Asuna wasn't quite sure, but when Kizmel handed it to Kirito, his eyes widened.

"I suspect you are not one to join organizations, Kirito," the elf girl said with a wry smile. "However, I believe a Letter of Marque will suit you well. With this, Lyusula recognizes you as a privateer, allied with the Kingdom, with the right to call upon our ports and shipyards as necessary."

Blinking, Kirito stared down at it. "I suddenly feel like I should equip an eyepatch," he muttered, bemused. Glancing back up at Kizmel, he said, "Uh, Kizmel? Do you have the authority to do give me this, by yourself?"

"I am a Pagoda Knight," Kizmel replied proudly. "In the service of a mission as important as mine, I have considerable… latitude, you might say. Which means I also have the right and authority to do this."

She turned to Asuna, then, and the musketeer had a sudden feeling of… gravity, almost. Her senses buzzed, with the conviction that something important was going to happen. The very air seemed heavy with it, and Kizmel's dignified bearing gave her the countenance of a Knight, in spite of her indecent state.

"Asuna," Kizmel said quietly. "I know you're still flailing in the dark, searching for your place in this world, and in your own. I don't know if I can give you a true answer. But I believe I help you find direction, at least for a little while. Will you accept?"

Somehow knowing exactly what this was leading up, Asuna could only nod, eyes wide, mouth dry. Unprompted, she fell to one knee, even as the elf girl drew her saber.

"Swordmaster Asuna," Kizmel said formally. "As a Royal Guard of the Kingdom of Lyusula, I hereby confer upon you the rank of Apprentice of the Pagoda Knights Brigade." Touching the flat of her saber to Asuna's right shoulder, and then her left, the Knight pronounced, "From today, you are my squire." The formal facade held a moment longer, long enough for Kizmel to sheathe her sword. Then it cracked, and she smiled warmly. "My squire, and my precious friend. For as long as we are all in this world, together."

[Title Acquired: Apprentice. Title Acquired: Squire.]

Asuna hadn't known SAO had any formal provision for titles. In that euphoric moment, she didn't care, either, rising to her feet and lunging to catch Kizmel in a hug. She only cared that she had the glimmerings of a path, and friends to share it with. To laugh with, in moments like this. The battle of only a few minutes before was forgotten, blown away by excitement.

She even cheerfully helped pull a furiously-blushing Kirito into the hug. She had friends now, real friends, and in that moment nothing else mattered at all.

Kizmel laughed in their ears, warm and bright. "Well then, my friends. This is a Lyusulan outpost. Shall we retire for the day—and find the bath?" Her grin showed teeth. "All three of us, this time. I insist!"

Author's Note:

So… not quite as quick as I'd hoped—darned writer's block hit me hard about a third of the way through—but not my worst either, eh?

Hm. I have to admit, the first half feels kind of… I don't know, soulless? Not as bad as I thought at first, but something still feels a bit lacking. Honestly, this entire arc has felt a tad aimless. If anybody else has noticed that, I'm open to suggestions for improvement, as ever. I can say that next arc, I hope to focus just a little more on the clearing efforts as a whole.

Speaking of. For once, we end a chapter on a bright and happy note. (It was supposed to end on the bath Kizmel demanded, BTW, but I decided it was getting bit long. Watch for it at the start of Chapter 11!) Next chapter… gonna be some more explosions. Also more WAFF, but definitely some big explosions. About time for them to hit the Skywall Tower and everything, right? Not that that's going to go as planned, as anyone who's read Rondo of a Fragile Blade knows. Even if it's for very different reasons this time….

In case anyone is puzzled by "Wolkendecke" being replaced by "Wolkenfelder", I was informed that my German was not up to snuff, and "Wolkendecke" doesn't mean quite what I thought it did. Of the alternatives suggested to me, "Wolkenfelder" was the one that best balanced fitting the meaning I wanted and not being too [BLEEP]ing hard to type.

Credit, BTW, to Saerileth for pointing me toward the resources for the extra bits of Elvish used here. Not technically Tolkien Sindarin, I think, but the Sindarin I'd found before just plain didn't have what I needed for some of this. (And if anybody here hasn't read Saerileth's Symphony of Sword and Steel yet, I really do advise you to. Awesome Kirito/Kizmel fic.)

Ahem. For the record, I intend to do one more chapter of this fic, wrapping up the Second Island arc, before going back to Monochrome Duet for a bit. I know, that fic is hideously behind schedule, but it just doesn't feel right to take a break here until I finish dropping the bombshells of this arc.

As for this chapter's bombshells, well, I hope they were worth the somewhat meandering early scenes. Good, bad, die in a fire? Lemme know, and I'll see everyone next chapter. -Solid