[Many Months Ago, Sword Art Online, Aincrad]
[No One's POV]
No one could've anticipated it. That the moment we logged on, our fates were sealed that day.
~{-It is important that you remember the following. There is no longer any way to revive someone within the game. If your HP hits zero your avatar will be deleted from the system, forever}~
~{And the Nervegear will simultaneously destroy your brain}~
There were One-Hundred floors, and we already lost hundreds to the First.
I... was part of a small guild, nothing fancy, if we wanted, we'd could've joined the frontlines, but we kept to ourselves. It was nice, despite the threat of death lurking over our heads everyday.
A long dirt road led through the forests on floor 21, a small party of three travelling through undeterred by the giant mantises and other large insects that roamed the Sunlit Forest. They were mid-level players trying to work up to the high ranks like the frontrunners. A greatsword user, a mace and shield user, and lastly a spear user. Two with heavy armour, one running light leathers.
They were unaware or their search skill was far too low to detect the two players knelt on the branches above as one player came stumbling out of the bushes to the left, shaking his head. "Ow... stupid bugs," His eyes were a deep shade of emerald with tousled strawberry-blonde hair. He blinked up at the taller players in surprised. "Oh, sorry, didn't mean to startle you,"
"You alright, kid?" The spearman asked, looking off to where the shorter boy came from. "Did you come out here alone at this high of a floor?"
"Not alone, my party's near, I'm just scouting out loot," He replied honestly, his lips curling a bit. "But thanks for asking - though, gotta say I'm sorry too,"
"Huh - ah!" From behind, both the Spearman and Mace user went down, two knives embedded in their backs, inflicting a high level paralysis, leaving the third to scramble for his weapon, looking up to see two bodies fall to the ground, drawing a scimitar and a katana, their cursors orange.
"You brat! You set us up!?" He yelled as the younger boy shrugged apologetically.
"Relax, we aren't gonna kill ya, just hand over your drops - and don't lie, your the leader, you're carrying the loot until you're back to town, right?" The Greatsword user's face twisted with anger while the boy's smile grew as he tapped his hands together. "Sorry~"
"Nice work, you've gotten better," A man ruffled the young boy's head from behind, his face obscured by a crimson knight helmet, the rest of his attire much the same with the underarmour a mix of whites and greys. "Now-now, you heard the young man, hand over your goods, we'll leave your equipped gear, and we both move on, not nice to trick the same people twice,"
The Greatsword user lowered his blade while his friends struggled to stand, eyeing the red knight bitterly. "...what the hell is your game? Why not take everything?"
"Because we don't, why are you moaning about it?" A katana prodded the man's back from a woman as she eyed him carefully behind a black hood.
Before long, the man gave up their drops and the group of four fled the scene, leaving behind two antidote potions to get the paralyzed players back on their feet. The incident clearly left them bewildered over fury for a time, just long enough for their attackers to flee.
Despite that, we weren't good players, we'd often extort others for Col or items, not enough to leave them for dead, just the drops they got.
[SAO, Floor 16 Wolfsbane Thicket]
"Meru, switch!" The katana user of their group, Pix, threw herself back, her black, white, and light green ninja garb fluttering in the wind as a crimson blade swung from a sheath, severing the head of the undead solider with Vertical Arc, dispelling the polygons as the red knight, their leader ArcSol, cleaved the area in front of him with his greatsword, flinging the mobs into a scimitar's twirling arcs that streaked across their backs thanks to the most hunter-like of their group, Mystfit.
In the eternal nightlight, Meru closed the gap to one of their 'targets', pushing them away from a rusted sword as its skill dispelled across Meru's longsword as it cast itself in gold, his hips twisting to cleave the undead in two rising arcs, then he spun to deliver two horizontal strokes, completing the Horizontal Square.
"Why... d-did you save me?" The man asked, fearful and confused as Meru huffed, drinking a health pot.
"You're all trying to survive, like us, we just have a different way of doing it," With a shrug, he tossed one to the man while his companions were offered aid too.
If a group were in a tough spot, we'd step in, take a reward, and that was that.
Once that group were sent back to town, ArcSol ran a hand against his metal chin. "It appears we'll need to move up floors again, the risk is great, yes, but we'd accelerate our progress,"
"But if we cause too much trouble, we could kick the hornet's nest," Pix reminded him, arms crossed with a furrowed brow. "I don't like it, but that's your call,"
"I'm fine with whichever," Mystfit shrugged, not minding a little danger.
"And what say you, Meru? How should we proceed?" Now all attention thanks to their leader was drawn to the youngest by two years as Meru stood up straight, scratching his head.
"U-um, lemme think..." He squinted a bit, pacing as he did. "Can't keep dealing with small fry but there's more of 'em to exploit, but if we go higher, better loot but high risk of drawing a frontrunner or either of the big guilds to us if they aren't too fixed on the floor clearing..."
"Seems we're in a pinch," Pix agreed, looking around the ruined village that was awfully quiet, enough for her to draw her blade. "...but first - come out,"
All of them stood on edge as a figure shifted out into view between two buildings, his cursor was green, like theirs, but Meru felt nothing but shivers at his appearance. His features were mostly obscured by a leather poncho, but his distinct facial features and blue tattoo over the right side of his face were distinct in the jagged shadows cast by the stars. That grin of his made Meru's blood lose its heat. Like a snake tight around his throat.
"Guess I'm not as careful as I'd have liked, as to be expected of a couple oranges," He remarked, strutting over with a hand to his chest. "I feel the same as you, easier to exploit players for better gear than to risk your life until you're ready; caution's a must nowadays,"
"Who are you?" ArcSol asked firmly. "While your cursor is green, the way in which you speak suggests otherwise,"
"Haha, right on the mark!" He clapped, giving them a toothy smile. "I'm like you, why risk your life in a dungeon when others do the work for you? I see that as a win-win, both parties walk away alive, isn't that great? I came here to discuss something, just a friendly exchange,"
The man spoke with a silver tongue, but none of them could hear it as ArcSol motioned to the man. "You are correct, however, what business to you want to discuss exactly?"
"Straight to it then; very simple, on floor 20, there's a small guild just like yours in numbers, heading deep into a dungeon there on a secret quest, meant to give out a big payout," The man explained, pulling up a map of that floor, pointing to a location not marked like other locations. "You grab what they find, split the way for the intel, and we all walk away happy; sounds fair?"
Pix narrowed her eyes a bit, "Arc... I don't trust this, not with intel coming from a man who stalks in the shadows," Her glare shot to the mystery man who grinned, holding up his hands.
"Take it or don't, doesn't really matter to me, always someone wanting to indulge in their greed,"
"Hm... this may provide a boon to our efforts, but yes, I must admit this seems far too good to be true," ArcSol replied as the man nodded in understanding, his frown a false guise.
"If you agree, consider me yer escort straight to them, then I'll leave the rest to you - can't back out if I'm thrown into the same pit," That offer tempted them, Meru still eyed the man without a word, feeling like he was paralyzed on the spot.
"...when is this guild hitting the dungeon?" Mystfit asked.
"Tomorrow afternoon, I can send you a time," He replied simply. "So? Getting cold feet?"
"I will give you my answer tomorrow then," ArcSol answered, giving the mystery man a reason to smile again, clapping a little.
"'Wonderful'!" He chimed in perfect English. "Oh... my manners; call me, PoH,"
The very moment that man spoke to us, I couldn't breathe or move a muscle. Like he had his hands gripped to my throat, crushing me tightly if I even so much as uttered a word. I tried to say something... but I was too scared to speak.
[SAO, Floor 20, Echo Chamber]
Dusk had fallen over the floor by the time the guild of four arrived to meet with 'PoH', despite the promise of a good reward, Meru was on edge, the man in the black poncho had left an awful feeling in his head, that cold smile or the fact his eyes were anything but friendly, like a façade a mercenary would wear to shower others in charisma, luring them in.
As they wandered through the mountainside trail, the eerie winds sweeping through the peaks, Meru spoke up from the middle of the group. "Arc? I... I dunno know about this; that guy, he... really unnerves me,"
"He does have a sinister aura about him, I agree," ArcSol replied, shaking his head. "Nevertheless, we will rendezvous with him soon,"
"I'll be using my Search skill to keep an eye out encase this is a trap," Pix added on, patting Meru's head. "Don't get too fixated on this, if worse comes to worse we'll handle it,"
"Have a little faith in us, trust," Mystfit smirked under his cloak.
Pix was blunt and to the point, but she cared for Meru since the beginning so he felt safer with her acknowledgement, "...okay," He smiled a bit, keeping one hand on his sword. "I just hope it won't come to that," But he kept that to himself
Approaching a cliff that overlooked an old stone temple carved into the mountain face, the team saw the familiar player waiting nearby as he leaned off a tree. "Guess you're in, shouldn't be long now,"
"What's the party like?" Mystfit asked.
"Leader's the heaviest, most HP with a greatsword; then there's two sword and shield boys, and one two-handed ax user, pretty solid team too, hence why we'll wait until a choke point in the dungeon to make our move," PoH explained briefly, smiling under his poncho. "Play this right and we'll all walk away with smiles on our faces,"
"Sounds as though you've had this party on your radar for a while?" Arc suggested, to which the mysterious player shrugged, chuckling a bit.
"Have me figured out? Guilds are too closely knit and jobs like that take longer to orchestrate, but small fries like them?" He motioned down the main path where a few shadows grew across the rocks. "Now that's much more exciting, wouldn't ya say?"
The group below never even gave the ridge they sat on a second glance as they discussed something in their menus before proceeding into the dungeon. PoH led them on once the group were inside, clearly, he had an idea of the layout himself so ArcSol chose to let the man lead while Pix kept her eye on PoH alongside Meru, the two nodding to one another silently.
The depths of the Echo Chamber were dark and damp like a typical dungeon. But lighting was handled by strange strips of light embedded into the walls, coming to life when a person passed. Every surface was made of cracked smooth stone, the occasional etched pillar that marked corners and doorways that slid open in two diagonal halves, grinding against the floors.
Unlike the monsters outside, the halls were stalked by Undead Wanderers, rotting corpses in rusty armour forged from oxidized gears and cogs like steampunk machines, carrying spears of the same make. In chambers were Discarded Golems, large creatures made of the same materials as the dungeon, marked with red accents for their singular eye and cores, arms like clubs, their bodies blocky and thick.
Their group stayed several paces back, allowing the party ahead to clear the chambers as they followed. PoH, despite his chilling attitude, was smart, he knew where to hide and how to avoid the players if they back-tracked. To Meru, the man was a shadow, constantly at the enemy's back at every turn.
Eventually, one stairwell past old steel bars led into what was named the 'Testing Grounds'. The party made their way down, shadowed by ArcSol's team as the chamber opened up in a tall square room the size of a meeting hall. The way down was unclear, but a doorway remained sealed in the arena floor to the back, pillars at the corners of the elevated platform that surrounded the testing grounds.
"Seems they only got one way," Mystfit whispered, drawing his scimitar before a hand held the blade down. "Boss?"
"Steady... let's see how this puzzle works," Arc replied just as softly.
"Look at those symbols between the pillars," Meru pointed just as the leader of the team they followed did the same, clearly, they had the same idea. "A 'Shield', 'Moon', 'Axes', and 'Sun'? I think they need to hit those to open the doorway,"
"Hm, cleaver," PoH hummed, rubbing his chin. "I don't suppose there's a risk if ya trigger the wrong ones?"
Meru shrugged. "In a dungeon, if there's a puzzle that requires a sequence to be correct, it usually spawns monsters or triggers a trap if the input is wrong,"
"Kid's our puzzle master," Mystfit patted Meru's back roughly, making him wince. "Don't leave home without him,"
"I'm not a pair of keys, you know," Meru deadpanned as Pix wacked Mystfit across the head. "Thank you,"
"Of course," She nodded, her bandana hiding her smirk.
"Then how do you think the sequence goes?" ArcSol inquired as they moved behind the pillars, seeing that the drop the players took was roughly eight feet deep.
Meru thought about it. There wasn't a story to be told but maybe in pairs? Sun and Moon were celestial bodies, or just associated with space in general. While Axes and Shield were obviously attack and defence. So perhaps you struck one pair at a time? It wasn't very clear.
Before the youngest could voice his opinion, the group below had given the puzzle a try themselves, causing a deep noise like a horn to erupt from the dungeon as the two struck symbols, Sun and Axes turned red briefly. That's when a blue flash appeared, and several smaller variants of the Discarded Golems appeared... all with Dark Red names. Their levels were ten above everyone present!
"How are they so high?" Mystfit gawked, flabbergasted. "And not in the fun way either..."
"Looks like we'll need to assist them," Pix drew her katana slowly.
"Yes, before they trigger a false combination; Meru, I need you to figure the combination out for us," ArcSol asked, grabbing the hilt of his greatsword.
I... never realized it... how much fun this was for Him.
"Right!" While Meru was busy scanning the symbols and their surroundings, he failed to see the shadow behind him and the others, nor see the hidden door that was closing behind them to seal off the stairway.
A toothy smile of a devil grew under a black cowl. "'It's Showtime!'" PoH's foot promptly slammed into Meru's back, throwing him into his friends that then toppled the red knight over as they fell into the same arena as the players trapped with several Golems.
Shaking his head, Meru turned to gasp as PoH gave them a pleasant wave, his cursor turned orange. "That bastard!" Mystfit growled, throwing a dagger toward the man only for a large cleaver to swing out from his raincoat, deflecting the blade with a small laugh.
"Be seein' ya, or maybe not, I'll be sure to come back for yer drops!" With a tip of his cowl, PoH fled behind the closing door as the group became sealed inside, the rafters then spawned a horde of Undead Wanderers to fall into the pit, the two parties forced together.
"Who was that guy!?" One of the sword and shield members asked as he recoiled from a club smash, his health dropping sharply.
"A snake, had us all tricked!" Pix grunted, carving two diagonal lines through an undead as its health fell to around half as it shambled forward.
"Focus for now! We need to get out of here!" ArcSol yelled over the chaos as one of the other party's members screamed, his body shattering into Polygons as he was caught by a spinning club strike, throwing him into the horde of undead. Everyone was briefly stunned in silence but quickly composed themselves to defend for their lives. "Meru, the symbols!"
"I... t-they're pairs!" He managed, avoiding a slam but not the slash of a spear across his right shoulder as he lost a quarter of his health, but he drank down a potion while slashing the undead with Horizontal Square, damaging it enough for Mystfit to finish with Fell Crescent. "Hit Moon and Sun at once, then Axes and Shields, that should stop the spawns and open the door above!"
"Fight, get to the pillars!" The leader of the other team, the greatsword user, screamed as he and Arc combined a dual Avalanche, the impact blasting the way for Mystfit to rush forward, taking two hits to the side as he vaulted atop a Golem and slashed the Sun symbol while Pix caught the Moon.
She landed only to be caught by a backswing from a Golem, sucking a health pot as her health recovered, Meru butchered an undead close to her with Snake Bite while she reacted in turn, puncturing the core of a Golem with Ripple Thrust, the green and orange contrails bursting around them as they moved back toward the group, a Scimitar driven through the back of a Golem's head before two large swords cleaved it in half by the waist.
"Look out!" Mystfit grabbed Pix, throwing her into Meru as he grunted, being punctured in the stomach by a spear as another sunk through his back and out his chest. He gasped from the shock, his health falling into the red. "Tch, like hell I'll die like some piece of meat on a stick!" His scimitar took on a harsh blue light, and his body twisted and tore the spears free to slash the air in a rising corkscrew of slashes, defeating four weakened undead at once.
"No, heal already, quick!" Meru begged as he watched Mystfit down a potion, saving his life as he attempted to parry a Golem's club strike only for it to be a perilous strike, breaking his guard and shattering the small amount of health that had recovered. "No..."
"Myst!" Pix and ArcSol cried out.
The man's face twisted in pain, holding a sharp smirk. "Damn... guess that's it, huh?" His body shimmered as he cast one last sword skill, swinging his arm forward to skewer the golem that tore the last of his HP away. "Go to hell..." The golem lost only a small amount of HP, as Mystfit was reduced to particles in the air.
Another from the other party soon screamed in terror as he followed Mystfit, dying before their eyes. Now, only five remained, all surrounded by the endless swarm of mobs. The Moon and Sun symbols remained alight in a gold aura, meaning that Meru's guess was right, all they had to do was strike the last two. But in doing so, they were left exposed to over a dozen high-level monsters.
Seeing what happened to them, something snapped in Meru's gaze. He was shaking so bad he was so scared. But that look in Mystfit's eyes, it made his blood boil. "...No..." Gripping his sword lightly, red light erupted from its form as he drew it arm back. "Vorpal Strike!"
With blinding speed, his skill tore through the mobs toward the wall where the Axes symbol lay just out of reach. The post motion left him exposed as the blunt force of an arm threw him into the wall, taking half his health away as it fell to the red. Shaking off the recoil, Meru glowered at the golem... the very same that killed Mystfit. It raised its arm again, striking the ground as Meru dove between its legs, striking an undead with Water Moon, a roundhouse martial arts skill that flung the mob high.
Casting his sword in emerald, Meru swung with three strong slashes, etched the Arabic '4' into its chest, stomping atop its form to bring the golem down atop three Wanderers with fury in his eyes. From the right, an ax swung in a wide arc, a blast of air pushing several mobs back as the whiplash tore the last of the golem's health away.
"Kid, switch!" It was the ax-user. Meru rolled as asked, avoiding two spears while the man swung wide, striking with a loud clang across the mobs' sides, flinging them into ArcSol's warpath. "The girl's got the final symbol, jump up, quick!" He knelt down, offering his hands for Meru.
"Thank you!" He pulled himself into a sprint, leaping with the man's help to slash the Axes symbol, causing it to glow gold at the same time as Pix's Shields. Instead of a low horn, they got a softer sound akin to a wind chime. Above, the door they came from slowly unsealed itself, but while the mobs were still spawning, they had their escape.
Meru turned to the ax-user, only for a look of horror to cross his face as a spear punctured his arm, then the slam of a golem's fist struck his other arm. Meru ran to give him a potion but it was shattered in his hand by a spear, forcing Meru to block the follow-up thrust while chugging one, unable to look as he heard the same, horrific shatter of glass, cutting down the Wanderer as he sprinted back to ArcSol's side with a recovering Pix, her right hand severed with red particles.
"The way's open, we need to go, now!" Meru yelled as Arc poured a healing potion down the gaps in his visor, his health steadily recovering while he blocked two spears with his sword.
"I cannot leave him to die like the rest," Arc eyed the survivor of the party, the leader who was swinging wildly to keep the golems and spears at bay, but his own health steadily fell into the yellow. "Go, I will clear a path forward,"
"But... w-what about you?" Meru asked but the towering knight simply stepped forward, holding his sword over one shoulder as it burned molten orange. "Arc... Arc!"
"This place... is not for you to die, you have stomached our sins long enough, Meru," Arc announced as another spear tore into his breastplate as he defended the pair, Pix clutching her sword close as her right hand hadn't regenerated. "Cascade!"
With a flowing surge of light, a great wave of energy tore through the head of a golem, the air pressure tearing apart the Wanderers with the AOE blast that followed. He led the charge, mowing them down with simple swings or just by slamming his shoulder into them. His health fell, but not once did the red knight buckle or yield.
They made it to the wall as the horde closed in on them. "Go, climb, hurry now!" He swung his hand back to them as Pix leaned against the wall, allowing Meru to climb quickly to escape the pit, his fingers curled around the lip as he pulled with all his strength. He then saw Arc swing his greatsword with Avalanche, blowing apart a golem while more spears prodded his armour, forcing him back one step, but he did not let them through.
"Give me your hand!" Meru called down to Pix as she shakily reached out, gasping sharply when a spear was thrown and jabbed her lower back. She grit her teeth, her face exposed now as she leapt up and caught Meru's fingers. He trembled, but pulled as hard as possible, seeing how Arc fought as he blocked and countered every spear or arm that swung in his direction.
He slammed his blade down on a spear, kicking the monster back before grabbing the face of one behind him, throwing it into a golem only to slash both with a rising sword skill, he followed the skill motion into a downward chop, blocking two more spears while another dug into his leg.
Pix huffed as she threw her leg over the ledge, hoisting her body over as Meru helped her stand, both staring down into the pit that two players fought endlessly to survive. "We... need to go... now," Pix coughed to Meru's horror.
"But what about Arc, and the other guy? We... we can't leave them," He tried to reason but she gripped her shoulder tightly with heavy eyes, her own conviction was shaking too, Meru saw it clear as day. "...Pix?"
"I'm sorry... but leader's orders," She closed her eyes tightly. "I... won't let you die here too,"
"Arc!" He yelled as loud as possible, catching the red knight as one solid strike to his helmet caused its durability to give out, revealing short black hair, and two firm blue eyes. He had a bit of a goatee with a scar down his chin. He held back, drinking his last health pot while eyeing his guildmates.
A dozen crimson names encircled him, but not an ounce of fear could be seen as he smiled back, holding up his thumb to them, raising his greatsword in both hands quickly as it glowed a brilliant vermillion. He had made peace with his choice, seeing them escape was all he could ask for.
"Come; I still have some fight left!" Arc bellowed, roaring loudly to overpower the odds stacked against him.
With every step Meru and Pix took, they heard the chorus of metal against metal, the whirl and wind-up of sword skills crashing and exploding against solid mass. Even as the sounds grew distant, the noises rang in their heads as both swallowed their grief, delving back into the dark halls of the Echo Chamber.
"Meru... put me down," Her voice was faint as she limped alongside him, taking the longer but safest route out of the dungeon, both vigilant encase PoH decided to finish them off. They kept moving, Meru ignoring her. "Meru, stop..."
"We're almost there, just give me a second to find a potion," He replied, but his inventory was empty, that fight had exhausted his Hi-Potions, not even low-level potions were found, and he didn't have the Mixing skill to make any. "Do you have any?" He saw it, her health was still draining from the spear that struck her, they must've had a lingering effect, and at this floor?
"No, all out, used it to fix my hand," She murmured, pulling his arm. "Meru, just stop-"
"I'm going to get you back to town, then the system will keep you alive, so-"
"Kazuki!" Her voice rose but broke a little as he finally stopped moving, helping her lay down against a wall, he checked, no mobs were spawning, the exit wasn't far now. In fact, he could see the stairway that led to the entry hall. Pix panted, brushing her white locks from her eyes to look at him sadly. "Oh, Pix, look at you... not your day,"
Her dry humour didn't lift Meru's mood as he shivered in place, trying desperately to keep his emotions bottled up. "Everyone else but us died in the first month, and what do I do? I drag Merida's little brother into this thieving mess..."
"You d-didn't," He tried to say but she smiled a little, flicking his nose.
"I did, I dragged you into this, made you steal and lie to help others like us get stronger when you could've been safe, maybe even be in one of the frontrunner guilds, better than with us..." Taking a breath, ignoring her HP as it dipped into the red.
"Don't say that!" His walls fell as tears caught in his eyes. It hurt to see her like this, to know that... there was nothing he could do. "You taught me how to fight and to help people, everything I am now is because of you, see!?" Bowing his head, he couldn't even look her in the eye. "...please don't leave me," Meru croaked.
Despite her fading life, Pix's hand came to rest on his cheek, caressing his face into lifting to her honest smile. "You'll be strong, you'll see to the end of this game, and someday, someone like you will need you too, be there, use everything you know to protect them... that's all I can ask of you; and don't forget to smile, you little brat,"
"...Seras!" He screamed as her body became glossy, breaking down until her smile shattered in his arms. Despite that, he tried to catch her, but her polygons dissolved in his arms, leaving behind only a katana in its sheath. Not a word escaped him, face stuck in a gasped horror with a hitched breath.
When footsteps finally approached from the entry. That of a Black Swordsman, a girl in white and red, and a short girl in a brown hood with red whiskers painted on her face. They stared ahead at the young boy who curled forward on the ground, sobbing with a katana in his arms.
[Present Day, Konno Residence]
[Malzeno's POV]
And that was it. My darkest, most shameful secret laid bear to the only person who knew aside from my Mom, Kirito, Asuna, and Argo, with a select few here and there. I was part of guild that stole from others, exploited them, all to give back to people who wanted to fight, or just to survive a little longer. In the end, it became our hubris.
I sat on a metal railing that stopped cars from driving down a path between houses, staring at Yuuki's home. She didn't speak for the entire story, I heard her make the odd shocked noise, telling me I hadn't scared her off. Which was surprising, I would've ran in her shoes. Just goes to show the difference between us.
"I escaped, but when Kirito and the others went to find Arc and the other player... I was only one left," My voice broke slightly, swallowing my grief with my head low. "Mystfit... ArcSol... Pix... I failed them, if I had said more, begged them to never have met that murderer... then maybe..." I shook out a breath, hiding my eyes from her view. "...I'm so sorry you met-"
~It's okay~ She spoke up, cutting me off as I kept my eyes hidden, biting my lip. ~Kazuki... what you guys did sounds bad at first, but you were helping others, and no one got hurt, it sounds a lot like you~
I still refused to speak, so Yuuki continued. ~PoH, he was the one that did this, he tricked you, left all of you to die - how can that be your fault? Being afraid isn't failure, I... I know that feeling; like everything would've been better otherwise if you weren't, but that's not how being human works, we want to be exposed to feelings, even the ones that hurt us~
"I just felt... s-so powerless then," I sniffed, feeling my hand become wet as she spoke. Why would anyone accept me? I was a coward. "I didn't do anything - i-if it wasn't for Argo, I... I'd have wasted away."
~That's proof that you aren't powerless - I've seen who Malzeno is, the player that they wanted you to be, strong, reliable; but I can see Meru Zena in you too, selfless, kind, and concerned~ How did any of that describe me? Was... I really all of that to her? My head lifted a bit, as if she was sitting next to me, keeping me company with that smile she wore always. ~But now I know, both of them are just all of you; not Merida, but the person who helped me, who hasn't given up on me... Pix was right; you're the strongest person I've ever met!~
I lowered my hand, probably showing her how pathetic I looked as I sniffed, rubbing my eyes. "...you really think so?"
She giggled, ~Yep; you beat the death game, and even found me, you've had so much stacked against you, but you're still here; maybe you aren't strong physically but definitely in spirit, that's what Pix and the others wanted to protect!~
Is that why? They wanted to protect my spirit - no, who I was. They didn't want me to turn out a guilt-ridden mess for the rest of my life, or to die a pointless death. Since that day, I've kept going, I levelled up, worked beside Argo and even made it to the frontlines like Pix said with her katana. I made it back to my family, the same Merida left me to take care of in her place. And I met Yuuki, the Sleeping Knights. If I had died, all of that would've have come to pass.
A few tears crept out from my eyes, I laughed slightly, wiping my face as I heard Yuuki hum gleefully. "I dunno if I'm all that, but I think you're right - no, I know that's why they fought that hard," I stood up, clenching my fist to fight the pain in my chest. "It wasn't just for themselves, they died so I could keep living, to carry on what we've done since day one in that game,"
"It hurts... so very much," I swallowed the lump building in my throat, finding my smile again. "But now, I'll stay the course I've made, after all; God wouldn't put us through all this suffering if he didn't think we could bear it," I'm not religious, but no truer words have ever been spoken in his name. "Thanks for that, Yuuki, I... I'm okay - but, are you... okay? Knowing what I've done?"
~Heh, duh, it's why I'm still nagging on your shoulder, dummy!~ That was pretty obvious. Then her voice came out tender. ~You put up with my fears, and I got to see a life I never thought I'd have again... what bad guy would do that for me? So, I should be thanking you for everything today~
"All part of our deal, Cupcake," I smirked, eyeing the longboard in my hand. "Well, ready to go?"
~Where to? Don't you need to give this thing back to Kirigaya?~ Right, the ABCP attached to my shoulder. No wonder it's going stiff.
"Blackie will come by to tune it for tomorrow," My smile grew sheepish as I raised a brow. "Since you have no place to go... wanna meet my family?"
I think I went deaf in one ear after that question. What a long day...
To Be Continued...
[To Be Continued...]
[Author's Notes]
Man, that was a long one, hah! So there it is, Meru Zena's or Malzeno's backstory, or a significant event in his time stuck in SAO. PoH was iffy to write but I think it's alright for what it's worth, still a right lunatic. But the day between Yuuki and Kazuki isn't over just yet. Got some fuzzy moments left to show.
And if you couldn't tell by now, given up on 'small chapters' or until they're relevant, so yay, big chapters now! I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support: seeya in the next chapter, Players!