0. Prologue
Spoiler! :
Death
…I picked up Asuna’s silver rapier, and with the last vestiges of my strength moved forward into a final thrust, lunging for the centre of Kayaba Akihito's chest. Kayaba didn't move. His expression of surprise had already disappeared— a sad smile stretched across his face, and I couldn’t tell whether I had succeeded or not.
For a moment, we simply stood there, with swords that penetrated each other’s' bodies. I used the last of my strength to force my head up and look at the ceiling. From somewhere, I could hear Asuna calling.
Kirito…
Is this enough...?
I could see a HP bar hovering above my head. The gauge was almost empty, save for a few dots.
Is this the end…?
Whose HP bar was it? My vision was fading now, and I could barely see. Using the last of my strength, I held my head in position.
It’s…it’s not mine.
I could feel myself disintegrating at this point, the remains of my virtual body fading away into a shower of polygons and light. From somewhere far away, I could hear the others shouting out, but their cries merged into a meaningless wave of words.
But regardless, their meaning was clear. In the last few moments of my existence, with my body almost fully erased, only the merest hints of my head remained. My lips moved, barely forming words that anyone could hear. I wasn’t even sure if she would hear them.
But I knew she would.
“I’m sorry…Asuna.”
And then I died.
.:.
Silence.
Heathcliff, or rather Kayaba, remained standing. It seemed as though an eternity had passed, and yet Kirito’s last moments were over in a matter of seconds. Slowly, Kayaba reached for his chest, and with a minimal amount of effort pulled out Asuna’s rapier, grunting slightly in the process. The tip finally exited from his body, and with a clatter he dropped the weapon onto the floor. It clattered uselessly against the ground, rolling around in a spiral before eventually stopping.
Kayaba turned around and headed towards the stairs. He stopped in mid-stride, coming to a stop before the grand pathway. He opened his mouth to speak, and uttered his last words as an ally to the congregation littered across the floor.
“I’ll be waiting.”
He started to ascend the staircase, allowing a single tear to fall down his cheek. As he climbed he took an object out of his inventory and looked into it. A blue light surrounded him, hiding his features. Reaching the top of the staircase, the light faded, and a young knight could be seen taking one last look at the group of clearers that he had led since the 25th floors. His face was identical to the chiseled face of Heathcliff, and his hair was cropped short in a cut which was identical to his hair in the real world.
Stepping out into the scattered lighting of the 76th floor, he spoke to the air, enunciating his words clearly in a commanding tone.
“Teleport, Ruby Palace.”
And then the scientist known as Kayaba Akihiko disappeared in a flash of light.
.:.
Phantom Blade
As soon as Kayaba had been spirited away, the effects of paralysis wore off.
Slowly, as the shock wore off, many of the players collapsed to the floor, trying to process what had just happened. The 3 strongest players in the entire game had just been taken away from them in a blurred series of lightning fast events. One of them had died defending another. One died fighting for all. And the last was the creator – no, the god – of this godforsaken game. How were they supposed to fight now?
An air of despair fell down upon everyone that was gathered there, trying to figure out what they were supposed to do now. They had beaten the 75th floor. But the cost of that victory was so great, it seemed as though they had already lost the game. They would never be free now. Free of this accursed game, which they had been trapped in for 2 years. Free to live their lives, away from this game of death. Free.
Slowly, their spirits broken, they got to their feet one by one. Many of them were slumped over; and with their backs crooked, they dragged their feet towards the stairs leading to the 76th floor. But none of them had any will left to fight the overwhelming despair that hung above them all. Slowly, they left the boss room, until a single figure was left behind.
His face lit up with a grim smile as he squinted closely at the stats screen hovering in the air. He looked from the screen to his weapon, studying it closely as though this was some kind of trick. Then he opened his inventory, materialised a weapon and equipped it on his loadout screen.
No one knew this player. Indeed, he hardly ever appeared anywhere, endlessly grinding levels far from the prying eyes of other players. But this was not to say that he was out of touch with the news that’s travelled around «Aincrad». Namely the black swordsman, Kirito, with his «Unique Skill» «Dual Blades», and the leader of the «Knights of the Blood», Heathcliff, with his «Unique Skill» «Holy Sword». These were assumed to be the only two players that possessed «Unique Skills», and so far no others had been discovered. If they had been, their owners must have kept them a closely guarded secret.
But looking at his screen, he could not believe what was in front of his eyes. He remembered, when he had acquired his «Extra Skill» «Katana», the elation he had felt. This feeling was similar, and yet it went beyond any feelings of achievement he had before.
The figure finally grunted, pulling himself up to his feet, and turning around, left the room.
…I picked up Asuna’s silver rapier, and with the last vestiges of my strength moved forward into a final thrust, lunging for the centre of Kayaba Akihito's chest. Kayaba didn't move. His expression of surprise had already disappeared— a sad smile stretched across his face, and I couldn’t tell whether I had succeeded or not.
For a moment, we simply stood there, with swords that penetrated each other’s' bodies. I used the last of my strength to force my head up and look at the ceiling. From somewhere, I could hear Asuna calling.
Kirito…
Is this enough...?
I could see a HP bar hovering above my head. The gauge was almost empty, save for a few dots.
Is this the end…?
Whose HP bar was it? My vision was fading now, and I could barely see. Using the last of my strength, I held my head in position.
It’s…it’s not mine.
I could feel myself disintegrating at this point, the remains of my virtual body fading away into a shower of polygons and light. From somewhere far away, I could hear the others shouting out, but their cries merged into a meaningless wave of words.
But regardless, their meaning was clear. In the last few moments of my existence, with my body almost fully erased, only the merest hints of my head remained. My lips moved, barely forming words that anyone could hear. I wasn’t even sure if she would hear them.
But I knew she would.
“I’m sorry…Asuna.”
And then I died.
.:.
Silence.
Heathcliff, or rather Kayaba, remained standing. It seemed as though an eternity had passed, and yet Kirito’s last moments were over in a matter of seconds. Slowly, Kayaba reached for his chest, and with a minimal amount of effort pulled out Asuna’s rapier, grunting slightly in the process. The tip finally exited from his body, and with a clatter he dropped the weapon onto the floor. It clattered uselessly against the ground, rolling around in a spiral before eventually stopping.
Kayaba turned around and headed towards the stairs. He stopped in mid-stride, coming to a stop before the grand pathway. He opened his mouth to speak, and uttered his last words as an ally to the congregation littered across the floor.
“I’ll be waiting.”
He started to ascend the staircase, allowing a single tear to fall down his cheek. As he climbed he took an object out of his inventory and looked into it. A blue light surrounded him, hiding his features. Reaching the top of the staircase, the light faded, and a young knight could be seen taking one last look at the group of clearers that he had led since the 25th floors. His face was identical to the chiseled face of Heathcliff, and his hair was cropped short in a cut which was identical to his hair in the real world.
Stepping out into the scattered lighting of the 76th floor, he spoke to the air, enunciating his words clearly in a commanding tone.
“Teleport, Ruby Palace.”
And then the scientist known as Kayaba Akihiko disappeared in a flash of light.
.:.
Phantom Blade
As soon as Kayaba had been spirited away, the effects of paralysis wore off.
Slowly, as the shock wore off, many of the players collapsed to the floor, trying to process what had just happened. The 3 strongest players in the entire game had just been taken away from them in a blurred series of lightning fast events. One of them had died defending another. One died fighting for all. And the last was the creator – no, the god – of this godforsaken game. How were they supposed to fight now?
An air of despair fell down upon everyone that was gathered there, trying to figure out what they were supposed to do now. They had beaten the 75th floor. But the cost of that victory was so great, it seemed as though they had already lost the game. They would never be free now. Free of this accursed game, which they had been trapped in for 2 years. Free to live their lives, away from this game of death. Free.
Slowly, their spirits broken, they got to their feet one by one. Many of them were slumped over; and with their backs crooked, they dragged their feet towards the stairs leading to the 76th floor. But none of them had any will left to fight the overwhelming despair that hung above them all. Slowly, they left the boss room, until a single figure was left behind.
His face lit up with a grim smile as he squinted closely at the stats screen hovering in the air. He looked from the screen to his weapon, studying it closely as though this was some kind of trick. Then he opened his inventory, materialised a weapon and equipped it on his loadout screen.
No one knew this player. Indeed, he hardly ever appeared anywhere, endlessly grinding levels far from the prying eyes of other players. But this was not to say that he was out of touch with the news that’s travelled around «Aincrad». Namely the black swordsman, Kirito, with his «Unique Skill» «Dual Blades», and the leader of the «Knights of the Blood», Heathcliff, with his «Unique Skill» «Holy Sword». These were assumed to be the only two players that possessed «Unique Skills», and so far no others had been discovered. If they had been, their owners must have kept them a closely guarded secret.
But looking at his screen, he could not believe what was in front of his eyes. He remembered, when he had acquired his «Extra Skill» «Katana», the elation he had felt. This feeling was similar, and yet it went beyond any feelings of achievement he had before.
The figure finally grunted, pulling himself up to his feet, and turning around, left the room.
Spoiler! :
So, some of you may be wondering about the weird as title. Well, this story originated as several separate one-shots. But I kinda made links between the different story arcs, and started re-writing them to complement/fit in with each other. One was based on “What if Kirito died in the duel?” which diverged into “He dies and a new hero is born.” and “He becomes reborn.” Then the reborn became “Reborn with a vengeance because he lost Asuna.” and “He finds Asuna and Kayaba above the clouds. (Like the anime).” And then there is the ‘Phantom Blade’, which is a «Unique Skill» that was inspired by a character from a game I play, «Dota 2», which I plan on introducing in the next chapter. (Imaginary cookie for whoever guesses where I got the inspiration from!) :P
Actually, the above is a whole load of bull****. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IM WRITING. I WAS BORED. I WAS THINKING, "WHAT IF KIRITO DIED?" *ahem*
Anyway...thanks for reading all of these words...
~BB11, 08/09/13
(DD/MM/YY - Because I'm Aussie)
Actually, the above is a whole load of bull****. I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IM WRITING. I WAS BORED. I WAS THINKING, "WHAT IF KIRITO DIED?" *ahem*
Anyway...thanks for reading all of these words...
~BB11, 08/09/13
(DD/MM/YY - Because I'm Aussie)