|Sword Art Online, Floor 71, Northern Outer Walls|
|July. 13th 15:12|
The labyrinth sat perfectly center with the floor, surrounded by a giant wall made from an ultramarine stone, carved with intricate, white streaks to form overlapping arches which extended into massive, sword-like spires spaced out every several meters. Bracing the northern side, the land descended in sharp drops to flatland and plateaus, some connecting floating islands to obelisks in the area. The land also had strange, dark, violet-blue stone and pine-shaded grass.
Another mighty gust of wind ripped through the land, blowing several members of the Frontrunners off the cliffside, they were safe but the fall did take a chunk out of their health. Others hid behind boulders and trees, or took to standing behind their tanks as cover against the gale-force winds, waiting for them to die out.
A final burst of wind, similar to that of a vortex within a tornado, and the light gleamed across the viridian scales of a sizable wyvern. Membrane an ash-grey with a silvery underside and talons, complete with large, backward-facing horns and a strange tail curved like a scythe. It roared down on the players, eyes bright red whilst it licked its fangs.
/NMSonic Wyvern - Lv. 120\
Three levels higher, and with the strength to match. Through the gale's fallout, a single, sapphire ax drove its polearm into its chest, having used Tecchi as a springboard. Daora stunned the great wyvern, sweeping in a trio of slants, scarring its underbelly, grabbing a horn to avoid a bite to swing himself overhead, dragging its neck back, eventually riding the beast, laughing as it flailed to throw him off.
"Now, while it's distracted!" Ran compelled those close to her, leading the charge, drawing back her snow-white sword that glimmering an ice-blue, preparing to unleash Phantom Rave.
Yuuki and Asuna advanced ahead, dodging either side when Sonic's tail began to turn a deep green, even while mounted, it swung itself into a vertical loop, using a Scythe skill, Harvest, cleaving back then same way into two horizontal spins, the girls ducking, alongside several others, the wide-spread arcs decapitating nearby trees, sending bark and leaves flying.
Through the haze, Yuuki's body blew by its back legs, Sonic screeching in pain when Howling Octave tore up its legs, lowering it into Asuna's range, drawn high with the momentum from Quadruple Pain, leaving the beast momentarily stunned, Daora still holding onto its horns with both hands, keeping those breath attacks at bay.
"Haha, nice Asuna! You're up, sis!" Yuuki flicked a thumbs up, sailing back onto the grassland.
"On i-" Ran took a single step, sword over her right shoulder. But that foot forward felt as though it sank into the dirt, wobbling. It came rushing forward in a sickly tide of vertigo and nausea, the world twisting and her limbs felt heavy. Did she get hit? No, this was... something else. Phantom Rave fizzled out, hand over her mouth, feeling she was about to throw up.
"Ran!" Yuuki realized something was wrong immediately, forgetting the boss entirely.
"What's wrong!?" Lind called to, the winds thrown harsher again around the field boss that broke free of Daora's mount, twirling in the air to slam its scythe-like tail through his gut, Harvest tearing through his flesh and sending him careening into the wall surround the labyrinth tower, health dropping by roughly 30%. "Damn, formation G, before it launches another tornado!"
But Sonic began to spin, curling its wings in on itself, with Ran stumbling directly in view, using her sword as a crutch. Yuuki sprinted toward her, grabbing her shoulders when a shadow fell over them, followed by a powerful blast of wind, but their health and bodies weren't torn and shredded. Blinking through the harsh gale to find Tecchi and Artorias combining Ward to part the wind together, holding the line, even as their health was chipped and their feet inched back.
"That all you got!?" Artorias challenged.
"Just a light breeze...!" Tecchi huffed, veins bulging across his arms.
"Someone stun the boss, hurry!" Lind yelled through the howling wind, barely able to keep an eye cracked open. But, just enough to spot a blob of black swoop by. "Huh!?"
Keeping his body low, Kirito followed Nagi who brought his sword down in a flowing wave of flowers, unsheathing Divine Sakura in three, defining vertical slashes, parting the wind by force for a split second, allowing Kirito to dive through, sword poised back, the tip gently grazing over his left palm whilst he fell sideways, yet, his posture was sharpened like quality steel.
Drawn into the center of the rising storm, the wyvern had nowhere to run or hide, a series of brilliant, gold lacerations stretching across its scales, disrupting its once violent storm, lines intersecting into a woven mail of violent red scars. Kicking off its right wing, Kirito drew his weapon overhead, Phantom Rave crashing through its previous wounds, splitting and multiplying them, even as the Black Swordsman landed on a knee, the Sonic Wyvern erupting in a shower of polygons through the afternoon sky, dispersed into rings by its own, dying storm.
Many rallied for a cheer, some bemoaning the loss of the last attack bonus to the Beater once more, swooping in at the last second. A battle that lasted almost forty minutes was finally quelled, releasing the harsh clouds that had gathered, making for the third elemental wyvern to be culled since their arrival on the 71st.
Sheathing his weapon, Kirito glanced over to where Ran was knelt, Yuuki rubbing her back worryingly.
"Ran, what happened? You just dropped and nearly got minced by the boss," Yuuki didn't want to think of that outcome, instead, grateful it was over. "Thanks, you guys. You too Nagi, Kirito!"
"All in a day's work, I guess," Artorias shrugged, studying the paleness on Ran's face.
"I-I'm fine, I just suddenly felt dizzy, think too many long-winded battles, overworked myself," She smiled weakly, forcing herself to rise and look to Asuna and Lind. "I'm so sorry for the trouble, I botched it at the end there..."
"These things happen, just be sure to rest between battles like these, we're just lucky we had people to cover," Asuna reassured, Lind nodding in agreement.
"Good thing Kibaou isn't here, or we'd be hearing an earful," The bluette sighed under his breath, but a few heard and couldn't agree more for the blessing.
This didn't settle the worry on Ran's face, even if she hid it with a smile right after. Her hand was pressed tightly to her chest, her heartrate was abnormally high again, and she felt weak, weaker than simply fatigue. No, it was fine, she just need to sit down for a moment and collect herself.
"I'd say to 'get some fresh air', but that's been blown in our faces enough that they need four people just to peel Numbnuts from the wall," Artorias prodded a finger to where said players finally pried Daora from a... Daora-shaped indent in what's supposed to be an Immortal Object. "SAO continues to both impress, confuse, and irritate the crap out of me with its inconsistences..."
"Couldn't agree more," Kirito shook his head in agreement. "You sure you're fit to move?"
"Should be," Ran offered a smirk. "Really, guys, I'm fine, I just need to call it a day for a few hours, take things slow."
"There are side quests in town we can do for a slower pace," Tecchi offered.
"Yeah, let's kick back a little, we've been going at this floor like mad for days!" Jun encouraged their co-leader.
"If only for a day, you and Yuuki have been pushing yourselves a lot lately," Siune pointed out, glancing to Nagi. "This floor hasn't been kind, has it?"
"Quests, monsters, even Argo's having a tough time so intel for the guidebook's been drip-fed when she can," It was clear, SAO wasn't pulling its punches, he could only imagine what waits for them on the third quarter. Lowering his head from the sky, it was best to focus on what's in front of them. "We've got the floor boss chamber located, but we're still banking on the last bits of intel we can scrape together about it, if its anything like these field bosses, we're in for a rough battle."
"Saving grace is that this floor hasn't royally kicked out asses like 70, so hey, silver linings," Artorias brushed both hands either side, just relieved there's no rift-jumping gimmick.
"I still feel sick just thinking about it, ugh," Nori covered her mouth, almost turning a shade of green. "I don't think we can throw up in SAO, but I feel that'll be a silent patch at this rate." All couldn't help but grimace and agree.
Looping back to what Nagi said, Ran rubbed her chin. "Argo... shouldn't take long then, gathering the last we need? Including what we obtain after finding the last field boss, right?" Ran inquired, seeing her cousin give a short nod.
"That's right, so take things easy for a bit, we'll have what we need in a day or two," He offered a smile, ruffling her hair, which she tried to look annoyed but her breath came out a short laugh.
"Hey, stop!" She smirked, she enjoyed it when he did that, in a strange way, it felt more like he was some older brother than a cousin, but Ran deduced it was from their time fighting beside one another through SAO. Well, she'd hardly argue with the thought.
Though it paled in comparison to the thought that began to calcify in the back of her mind.
|Floor 71, Southern Outer Walls, Town of Corte|
|July. 13th 18:18|
A gentle tune accompanied the small town of Corte as night began to settle in, though, it was the largest town of the 71st. Street lanterns automatically flickered to life, turning the streets and warm, cosy glow. The buildings were a mix of chalky white and navy blue with grey tiled rooftops, all stacked on elevating heights in an uneven circumference. From any point of the wall surrounding the town, one could see either the shadow of the labyrinth or the many, floating lands beyond, some faintly glowing with their own lanterns.
Artorias wandered up its streets, keeping away from the busier ones where players flowed through, enjoying the quiet, 'Me time' as he liked to put it. "I'll have to bring Cupcake through here sometime, nice place..." Often he found those thoughts funny to consider, putting thought ahead of time into seeing those looks of wonder that overtook Yuuki's face. It were the little victories he enjoyed more than any boss drop.
Still, while he'd love to meander around without personal responsibilities, he had a reason for his journey. Heading up a slow incline that curved up toward a small park with a black railing, overlooking the city and wall beyond, only one person was present, lit by the warm, orange glow of lantern light. If he didn't know better, he'd have confused the player for a special, night-exclusive NPC.
A smirk curled at his lips. "You seem troubled, miss, whatever is the trouble on this fair night?" His awful impression of some noble knight caused a laugh to bubble up Ran's throat, turning on the wooden bench to raise a smug brow toward him. "What? Not good enough? Man, your quest prompt is a tricky one to trigger." He huffed, hand to his hip.
"Sorry, but this NPC has a much higher requirement to persuade," She turned back, eyes closed and chin up, or until she coughed a little, covering her mouth. By then, Artorias hopped over to sit on the other side of the bench, staring out at the night sky. If he squinted, he could catch the faint flashes of sword skills in the rough fields outside the safe zone.
"Then lemme try again... what's eating away at you that you sent a private message to me?" Artorias cut to the chase, Ran could only sigh slightly.
"It's... really dumb... like, Yuuki would even say its stupid, and then call me even stupider for suggesting it,"
"Yeah, that tracks- so, what ungodly plan has cropped up in that head of yours this time? It involves me, which just screams 'manual labour', so its definitely-"
"I want to defeat the floor boss, just one team." Ran spat out while she had the courage to speak it, completely derailing Artorias for several seconds.
...
...
...
"...oh," He found the word he needed, patting his knees in a quick pattern. Ran slowly adjusted her ponytail to the right side, tightening the bow. "So, are you crazy, or do you think I am?"
"I, Artor-" She tried but he turned to her firmly.
"Look, I understood your crusade way back when, the whole terminal illness thing, I get that now, hell, I did it just to piss off the rest of the Frontrunners- worth it, by the way," Clearing his throat, he threw his hand wide, specifically toward the very floor they were battling tooth-and-nail on. "But things have changed since the 50th floor, it was a gamble at best before, but we're talking about a calculation in the single digits of success."
Artorias prided himself on many things; being smarter than most, a strategist, his skills with games, and Full-Dive in general. But each bold action seen as 'luck' or 'talented' was all down to calculations, predictions, and knowledge. They had enough intel on the floor boss, and when Argo's done, all of it would be known. But monsters were stronger, smarter, Anti-Crystal zones were growing more frequent. He could plan things by witnessing the battles as they played out, just like Lux could, but going in blind without back-up was a slim and slippery slope.
"I know that, okay!?" Ran raised her voice a little, hands balled up on her lap. "I wouldn't ask if I wasn't aware of the risks, our guild's taken those risks long before we met. And I know, things don't always go according to plan, but I... I'm..." Exhaling, Ran went quiet, but Artorias didn't speak, sitting back for a moment. "...SilentNight... was our inspiration, Yuuki mostly, but I admired your abilities, it didn't matter how slim-to-none your chances were, you always came through, you never lost, even when all odds were against you. I really wanted to be like that."
"But I did them for personal desire and gain, people were... tools, to be used, disposed of," It was clearly an uncomfortable feeling, one Artorias pushed back with a deep breath. "I'm... learning to accept that part of myself, its... difficult, I sometimes slip back, and I cut myself out immediately. You know that... which is why you're asking me to jump back into that mantle, because you know its the one thing we can make a gamble on."
"Pretty much- I know its selfish to force you be who you don't want to be, but I know who you are, Artorias. To our friends, to Nagi... and to Yuuki," Ran smiled softly toward that face that couldn't withhold the truth, not when it came to her sister. "She really admires you, every aspect of you."
"So I've been told," Chuckling, his cheeks tinged a little, sighing dramatically. "Man, you are really annoying at this, you know that?"
"I learned from the best," She retorted, earning a snort.
"Then I really am a terrible person through-and-through... Gods above..." It was stupid and irrational, but when has that been a problem for him? "Alright... you win, Shorty- what's your master plan then, so I can fully rewrite it, because its probably got enough holes to make cheese green with envy."
"My plans aren't that bad," She objected, turning to look at him sharply, only to see his stare flatter than a surfboard. Ran inwardly curled back.
Artorias spoke, slow and steadily, letting every word drip with sarcasm. "Let me guess, you wanted to get the strongest we got and assault the floor boss the moment we got the last bit of intel, that about right?" Ran didn't answer, only drooping when Artorias ran a hand down his face. "I keep forgetting you two are twins, when do either of you think this far ahead?"
"...point made..." Ran whined, only to feel him pat the top of her head, walking by.
"Meet me at nine tomorrow morning at a place called the Wyvern's Retreat, tell no one by Yuuki- later," With a flick of his hand, Artorias went back on his enthusiastic walk, only now, it was more like a marathon with what needed to be set in motion.
"Th-thank you so much!" Ran called out, sitting back to stare out at the floor again, smiling thoughtfully to herself, hand close to her chest, her head still felt fuzzy, but she smiled warmly, a part of her at peace. "Really... thank you."
|Floor 71, Wyvern's Retreat|
|July. 14th 09:00|
The building itself is constructed of smooth, white stone walls that seem to softly glow in the sunlight, most of the stone on this floor as this starlight gradient to it. The roof made from the same, black, slate tiles to contrast the white. Small dormer windows peeked from the upper floor. Swaying above the thick, wooden door was a sign of a wyvern of blue, the letters breathed from its maw like flames, 'Wyvern's Retreat'.
Heading in, Ran and Yuuki were surprised to have been joined by Kirito, Argo, Nagi, and Daora. All of them had been given the same message, to come to the inn and keep it hush-hush. Inside, the inn boasts warm, honey-toned wooden beams and floors, a large stone hearth at one end of the common room, and inviting, well-worn tables and chairs. Ornate lanterns hang from the ceiling, casting a warm glow over the cosy space, and faint music from a hidden harp fills the air, calming all who enter.
After leaving the front desk, they headed upstairs to Artorias's room, knocking before hearing the door unlock with a light 'click'. Like the rest of the interior, a scent of sweet lavender filled their noses, adding to the relaxed nature of the building. So far, this inn, despite being smaller and out of the way, was very inviting and relax-
"About time, I've been waiting for..." Artorias snapped his head to his menu, throwing up two fingers. "Two Minutes! Which, in all fairness, is an acceptable amount of time! Close the door!" Kirito did just that, startled by how frantic Artorias sounded and appeared, he was not relaxed.
"Uh... hey buddy, you, uh... doing okay?" Yuuki smiled sheepishly, looking around the room that was slightly dishevelled.
"Fine! Great! Fundamentally functioning... maybe, I dunno, doesn't matter, Irrelevant!" He marched over to what appeared to be an actual notice board with... the holographic ones they were used to, filled with information, bullet points... and little drawings of their heads in chibi form, funny enough. "Grab a seat, or don't, I don't care!"
"Did you even sleep last night?" Nagi questioned.
The Red Warrior spun back around, nearly falling over a table beside him, hand raised, and dark rings under his eyes. "Irrelevant! Not the point, shut up!" He punched the desk, running a hand up his face and through the bangs partially covering his left eye. "Look-look-look, little Shorty's plan needed some particular revisions, and I had a lot to handle to ensure everything goes according to plan- any questions- no, good, great, we're moving on people!"
Artorias stared at the table, then promptly kicked it out of his way, the rest still just keeping their distance as Ran leaned over to her sister.
"Has he ever gotten so... screwy?" She circled her right temple.
The purplette seesawed her hand with a slight sigh, smiling sheepishly. "I've seen it happen once or twice, he only goes without sleep when he's really adamant about finishing something, usually it takes a lot of convincing to get him to even take a nap."
"Don't think I've seen 'em still unstable since he was havin' that outta body experiencE," Argo clicked her tongue.
"We're not talking about that wretched, female body ever again, alright!?" Artorias jabbed back, rubbing his eyelids. "Uuugh, I'm seeing two of Numbnuts, and that's too much overactive stimulation for my brain..."
"Hahahaha, I knew it, now I finally have a way to beat you once and for all!" Daora pumped his fist.
"Please don't..." Nagi grimaced, he couldn't handle another Karma Restoration quest on such short notice.
Rolling her eyes, all watched warily when Yuuki waltzed over, procuring from her inventory a steamy cup of freshly made coffee. Taking it silently, Artorias sniffed and took a few, careful sips. Slowly, his eyes seemed to brighten up again, sighing deeply with both hands cradling the cup.
"Better?" Ever the saint, Yuuki smiled sweetly. "One cream, three sugars."
Humming with a nod, Artorias seemed to return to some level of normality. "You're the greatest person in this world, I love you..." She snickered at the compliment and lightly pecked his cheek, adding that additional buzz.
"Huh, ain't that impressive, some magic does exist in SAO~" Argo teased, nudging the girl's hip, seeing her cheeks rosy as she kept her silence. "Jokes aside, what's got ya goin' all melodramatic villain of the week, ArtY?"
"Right, yes, ugh my... senses coming back, gonna crash later too..." Pinching the bridge of his nose, he hated coffee, but Yuuki's didn't make him want to throw up, so they were a God send for these moments. "My mental breakdown was from several hours of work, appreciate my genius,"
Setting the table up again, he set his coffee down to address them. "As you've been informed, Ran here wants to pull off the biggest gamble in Aincrad and nab the floor boss with a single, top-of-the-line team, comprised of those in this room at my particular and meticulous planning."
Kirito raised a hand, leaning against the door to keep his Straining skill on alert. "Question about that, the risk's this high up are greater than when we pulled this stunt before. So I'm assuming you have a plan nailed down to broaden our chances?"
"Astute as ever, Blackie... basically, taking... whatever Shorty came up with," She whined at that, Artorias persisted, slapping a hand to the holographic board. "I've devised a strat to give us the highest probability of success. We've got no other options, either this or we're dead, less you can come up with anything better in the next two days."
"Why two days?" Ran inquired.
"Cause soon we'll have all the intel we need to launch a full-scale raiD," Argo pointed out, crossing her arms whilst leaning back on her chair, balanced on two legs to swing a little. "Bunch are on the last leg of a quest, after that, the last field boss located in the labyrinth somewherE."
"That in mind... plan can be broken up into three simple steps- no questions!" Artorias swung his arm sharply to cut off any other points, sipping his coffee again. "Ah... okay; Step One, gear enhancements, that's where Numbnuts here comes in," Gesturing toward Daora, he too perked up. "He's been aiding Reaper in her material gathering for ages, so he's got plenty of rare items we can use to bolster our equipment with Pinky, no questions asked,"
"Step Two, level grinding, already got a place jotted down after paying with a kidney's worth toward the Rat," No one missed the grunt behind his tone.
"Place is the real deal, you'll get yer money's wortH," She assured him, grinning and brimming with confidence over her boon in monetary value.
"Seeing as we can't simply throw ourselves into a kill box in a dungeon, since that, in my eyes, is a statistically bad decision," Artorias gestured to Argo and Nagi. He had considered the pit Laughing Coffin left them to die in, but kill boxes were extra cruel. Experience gains were cut in half, and only continued to drop as more respawned. So, slaying countless monsters would yield very little results.
"Step Tres, optional, once finished power-levelling, off to clear the field boss in the labyrinth if it hasn't been swept already, better to cover all bases," Artorias tapped the board, finger sliding down the panel to the final step, arguably the most important and difficult. Dubbed, 'We Ride At Dawn'. "Final Step, using a Corridor Crystal, we take on the floor boss with all the intel and prep we can muster. Most raids tend to start anywhere from 9 to 12, so we start early, we'll have a two-hour window to get this done."
Kirito crossed his arms, studying the steps. "We'll be on a time crunch, not to mention the complexity of the boss and its type are a problem. From the clues we've gotten, we'll need a buff to damage it, so our window is small."
"Don't even know its name," Nagi concurred, but stood up. "Well then, seems we have a solid plan, good work, Artorias, but... maybe take some time to rest too."
"I second that!" Yuuki raised her hand, leaving Artorias with his mouth open, shutting it with another, quick sip of coffee. Bouncing to her feet, Yuuki spun around to her sister. "It's a big risk, but that's what we've been taking everyday as Frontrunners, so let's do this, one last time!"
"All I have to do is use up my rare drops and I get to have all the fighting to myself? I'm in!" Daora stomped, laughing like a maniac to the ceiling. "We'll show them, we don't need fifty underlings to take this floor down!"
Dangerous, reckless, and the potential to end in failure. It was enough for Kirito to shrug with a slight laugh, pushing off the door, hand on a hip. "Guess it'll look bad to back out now, won't it? You asked for me, so I'll do what I can."
"Seems the crew's on board, Shorty," Ran's head turned back to Artorias who closed down the panels, arms wide. His head raced with questions, scenarios of the good and bad, probabilities rising and falling with the tick of a clock. It'd be a lie to say he didn't miss this thrill, of sticking it to this game a little more, it was intoxicating. "Alright-Alright-Alright! One last little question, to us Magnificent Seven; who's ready to screw with every top player one last time?"
[To Be Continued...]
[Author's Notes]
A new race has begun, a gamble with high stakes, all for the sake of a young girl's wish. The clock's ticking for this gang of misfits. If some of you don't recognize the design so far, this whole floor's based entirely off Bastia Gate Ruin's Area from Sword Art Online Hollow Fragment, love this area! I hope you enjoyed, I appreciate the support as always; see ya in the next chapter, Misfits!
104 -Greatest Plan In History (Maybe)
After bartering with Lisbeth, the team sets out to grind their levels to be as prepared as they can be for the battle ahead...