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[SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT] [WARNING] [SYSTEM ANNOUNCEMENT] [WARNING]
Players, I welcome you all to my world. Right now, I am the only person who can control this world.
I think that most of you have discovered the fact that the Logout Button has disappeared from the Main Menu. This is not a bug. This is all part of <<Sword Art Online's>> system. Until you reach the top of this castle, you cannot log out of your free will.
Also, the discontinuation or dismantling of the NerveGear from the outside is strictly forbidden. If these things are attempted... the signal sensors of the NerveGear will emit a strong electromagnetic pulse, destroying your brain and stopping all your basic functions. To be more specific, dislocation from an outer source of electricity for ten minutes, being cut off from the system for more than two hours, or any attempt to unlock, dismantle, or destroy the NerveGear -- if any of these condition are met, the brain destruction sequence will begin. These conditions have been made known to the government and the public through mass-media in the outside world. On that note, there have been several cases where relatives and friends have ignored this warning and tried to forcefully get rid of the NerveGear. The result... regretfully, 213 players have already exited this game, and the outside world, forever.
There is no need to worry about the bodies you have left on the other side. As of this moment, all TV, radio, and Internet media are all repeatedly reporting this situation, including the fact that there have been numerous deaths. The danger of having your NerveGear taken off as already all but disappeared. In a moment, in the two hours I have given, all of you will be transported to hospitals and similar institutes and be given the best treatment. So, you can relax... and concentrate on beating the game.
But I ask all of your to understand <<Sword Art Online>> is no longer a simple game. It is a second reality... from now on, all revival in the game will no longer work. The moment your HP reaches 0, your avatar will be gone forever, and, at the same time, your brain will be destroyed by the NerveGear.
There is only one way to be freed from this game. You must get to the top of the castle, the 25th floor, and defeat the final boss that resides there. All players still alive at the time will be immediately logged out. I give you all my word.
Why am I, the creator of NerveGear and SAO, doing something like this? Is this a sort of terrorist attack? Is he doing this to ransom us?
These are not reasons why I am doing this. Not only that, but for me, there is no longer a reason or purpose in doing this. My reason is because... this situation itself was my reason in doing this. To create and watch this world is the sole reason I have created NerveGear and SAO. And now, everything has been realized.
And now, I have finished the tutorial for <<Sword Art Online>>. Players - I wish you luck.
Last edited by Narisomnia; 07-03-2013 at 12:07 AM.
Floor 1 | Outer Fields | Four hours before the GameMaster's announcement
Even though ten thousand players were logged on and active at the time, there was not a single soul within a kilometer radius of the North Bridge.
The blonde brought a hand up to her masked face, brushing aside a strand of loose hair. She loved the color of her hair and had no desire to change it when she entered the world of «Sword Art Online». In fact, her entire avatar was already a near replica of her material self. The only distinct differences were in her facial structure and height. In reality, she was of Russian and Ukrainian descent, but, in «Sword Art Online», she appeared to be of more Asiatic descent. That was the extent of it, though.
Her olive-coloured eyes glanced up at her HP bar, still at 100% even after several bouts with Level 2 «Wolves». Below the green bar was her screenname: Somnia.
Somnia; an Internet alias that the young woman used for online gaming and various social networks. "Somnia" was nothing more than zeros and ones in the binary world of networking, a sort of phantom that hovered from one site to the next. Now, she was a phantom in «Sword Art Online». Alone like always. Ignored.
Floor 1 | Outskirts of the Town of Beginnings | Two hours before the announcement
Somnia had sheathed her one-handed longsword quite a long time ago. Now, she was walking back to the Town of Beginnings. There was no reason to rush, so she took her time and admired the scenery from behind her Calavera's mask.
She looked up and stared at the setting sun. The orange light mixed with the pink clouds to form a calming hue in the sky. It looked real. This world, «Aincrad», could have been perfectly real. In other games, the sky looked as though it were a painted canvas. Sure, this was beautiful in its own way, but it can't even come to this.
«Aincrad». A virtual steel and iron castle floating in the air. A utopia that the players could use to get away from Life. Yet, it was all just data.
In the real world, «Sword Art Online» and the NerveGear had been the talk of the century.
NerveGear: one of the best inventions known to mankind. It tapped into your brain's circuitry and transported your being into a virtual world. You could feel, hear, and smell everything as though it were actually in your hands. The physically disabled would be able to move their arms or legs once more, the blind would be able to allow light to strike their retinas and see, and the deaf would be able to listen to birds chirp and people speak. At first, the NerveGear was used for these kinds of medicinal and therapeutic reasons; then, it was scheduled to become a player in the world's finest VRMMORPG.
Floor 1 | Town of Beginnings | One hour before the announcement
All was quiet in the Town of Beginnings. It seemed as though everyone was having too much fun beating up the various monsters in the fields. Sure, that was all fine and dandy, but this wasn't what Somnia desired to look at. No, she wanted to explore the Town, revel in the beauty that was once simple polygons and rough sketches. This entire world was magnificent, and she intended to find every little secret, every 'Easter Egg', you could say.
That was when she saw him: Crowe. Feared and respected by all. Before «Sword Art Online» had been sold to the public, Somnia would check different forums and blogs for information about SAO. She happened upon one forum dedicated solely for Beta Testing. That's where she read about Crowe.
According to some, he was a "well-respected and strong individual," but others had lesser opinions of him. They called him a ruthless murderer. There were countless stories about his schemes and shenanigans all over the forum. He was scary. That's all she could figure out. Scary, calculating, and an ill-favored legend.
Floor 1 | Outskirts of the town of Beginnings | Three hours before the GameMaster's announcement
A dark skinned beta tester lay comfortably on his back in a field on the outskirts of the town relishing a chance to be alone. Long wavy black hair. Hazel eyes. A strong and fit pixel body frame. Bronze skin (because it was an Asian game I wanted to look somewhat Asian even though I'm black). People recognized this avatar. The striking black outfit and tattered cloak made for a instantly recognizable uniform and more importantly it was intimidating. It was both famous and infamous already in the world of «Aincrad» thanks to his. . . impact on the beta test.
Crowe.
That was the legible name below my full green health bar. It was a name that struck both fear and admiration into other players who kept up with the SAO forums and blogs or met him during the beta. Being one of the more dynamic personalities during the beta had earned me a rather mixed reputation. It meant nothing to me really. The reason why:
I played this game my way.
And would continue to do so now that I'm in the real thing. I knew my avatar was a hot topic. And I knew what people said about it since I read the forums and blogs daily just to keep up with the news. Some said Crowe was a man to be respected and admired. Others thought he should be feared and avoided. Both were right. And both were wrong. What mattered was that my personal reputation actually meant very little to me in the virtual world. What did matter was being the best I could be.
Floor 1 | Outer Fields | Two hours before the announcement
I fell into the practiced patterns that he had learned and memorized during his time in the beta. Killing wolves, boars, or any other low level beast was hardly exciting anymore. Thankfully, my skills and equipment had transferred over to the real game. Only his level had been reset. And it hadn't been reset entirely, only reduced. I was now just at LV10 now instead of LV25, which had been the cap for the beta. Looked down at Ascalon, his personal ornate curved sword that I had earned during the beta brought a smile to my face as I sheathed it on my left hip. I was more than happy that they let me keep it. This sword had been with me while I gained the reputation and built the legend of Crowe. So it was safe to say that there was a little bit of an attachment there.
Looking up into the sky he admired the level of reality that the NerveGear achieved. Never before had people been able to so literally get away from reality into a fantasy world and live it. That was the beauty of the invention. It gave grieving people a chance to do so in a world that wasn't real and allowed them to face the real world with a smile. I could be anyone I wanted to be here or anything. That appealed to me. A saint or a sinner. I'd chosen to be both. More accurately, I'd chosen to be what he needed to be. Which was exactly who I was. Crowe.
The virtual air smelled fresh and the breeze of wind felt good against my realistic virtual body, even with the armor and cloak shielding most of me from it. This was the only place I wanted to be right now. Enjoying the virtual world of «Aincrad» and continuing my new legend was the only thing on my mind. None of the other stuff mattered.
Floor 1 | Town of Beginnings | One hour before the announcement
The Town of Beginnings was pretty lax right now. The majority of players had shifted out into the fields to practice with their new weapons and try out skills and such. It was to be expected. Crowe however was hitting up shops and selling loot, checking to see where there were any differences or discrepancies between the beta and the real SAO. To my satisfaction they had fixed all of the bugs and glitches that the beta testers had noticed and brought to light. Not that there were many to begin with. This world was nearly flawless and it was a magnificent creation. No doubt SAO would go down as the best game ever created.
As I was walking out of one of the shops with his hood down, I noticed an armored woman with a calevera mask on. I paused in front of the door wondering why she bothered to wear a mask in this game but realized that I was hardly different with how he kept his hood up most of the time. Then I threw on my hood on. I was about to walk off before a large man came rushing up to me with a glare that made me wonder. He had brown hair and a number of scars peppering his avatars body. Probably for looks alone. He also had a large beard that made him look like a large grizzly bear of a man. He was probably in his mid 40's in real life.
"Hey, you're Crowe right?"
"Yes, who are you and can I help you?" I had given him a nod despite wanting to say no.
The burly man smiled. It was an unfriendly looking thing, "Yes. As a matter of fact you can. My name is Legault. Let's duel."
I gazed at him with a disinterested expression and shook my head, "No."
"You attacked and killed one of my friends in the beta! You will duel me!" Legault demanded fuming and turning beat red in rage.
"Then why doesn't he come get his revenge himself if he wants it so badly?" I had already backed up to lean on the shop in annoyance at this point.
Legault drew his large dual-bladed two-handed axe (wielding it with one hand) and pointed at my neck, "Does it matter? He owes you a debt and I'm here to pay it!"
Sighing in contempt, my hooded figure started off towards the fountain that was located in the center of the town, "Follow me then," I called out. There was still no desire to do this but if I crushed him now maybe that would discourage others from bothering me for a while until I had regained some of my form.
---
Thankfully there wasn't an overly large population of people in the area but there were enough players around for there to be a good sized crowd since the two of us had our weapons drawn in the center of town within the first few hour of the game. Both men stood ten meters apart and the larger man sent the request. I accepted shortly afterwards, "First Strike Mode fine with you?"
"Yeah. I should be able to kill you in one strike. This axe is wicked strong!" Legault barked with an equally confident smile on his face.
I simply stood there quietly glaring at my opponent with a dangerous gleam in my eye. In a duel the two players are allowed one minute to prepare for the duel after which they were allowed to clash. The 60 second countdown had already begun. As the countdown neared a the 10 second mark I gave my sword a few twirls in hand and switched my hold on Ascalon into a reverse grip. It was a subtle maneuver that would make my plan easier to execute.
3... 2... 1... DUEL!
In a flash I was gone, leaving nothing but a cloud of dust where I had been the moment before. A long second later I ended up behind my challenger. The axe fell down in front the larger man as his wrists had been ceremoniously slashed and Legault fell to his knees howling in agony. The duel was over within a few seconds of it starting. After all, I had used one of my special attack. The only one I had available at the moment. Which was why I had only attacked his wrists and reversed my grip. To be sure not to kill him with it.
Glancing back over my shoulder at the defeated man I asked, "I thought you said you would kill me in one strike?"
A window popped up reading -WINNER- over Crowe's head as I sheathed Ascalon and walked away.
The crowd was in an uproar about the duel already. Some people recognized me and others were for the first time hearing the name of my avatar. It annoyed me that anyone had to see me fight at all, but it had to be done in front of people so that the results were clear and that my message could be spread.
Don't mess with Crowe.
Last edited by Marsyas; 07-15-2013 at 09:32 PM.
Floor 1 | Town of Beginnings | One hour before the announcement
Somnia knew this man very well though she had never met him before in her life. Those forums and blogs had told her enough. There was one story in particular that stood out in her mind. One of the beta testers had decided to put himself in charge of testing the duel systems. That was where he had his unfortunate encounter with Crowe. According to various other posters. the battle was short and gruesome. Crowe chopped the poor man's head off with one blow, essentially killing the beta tester in «Sword Art Online».
The young woman was so caught up in her thoughts that she noticed Crowe's gaze almost too late. A gasp hitched in her throat. His eyes were so sharp, yet so empty. Yearning for touch, yet yearning for loneliness. His face was a maze of confusion for a girl like Somnia, a girl who had trouble analyzing emotions. When the man threw his hood on, the blonde could only look away. Her chest throbbed with the beating of her virtual heart. Crowe…
"You will duel me!" Somnia heard. She snapped her head up. There was an oversized man holding an axe to Crowe's neck. It seemed that there was some debt to be paid.
--
To miss this scene would have been a waste.
A small group of players gathered around the pair of men, most with their arms crossed or faces contorted in mixtures of fear, anxiety, and anticipation.
First Strike Mode. The first player to successfully strike the other wins the duel. Statistics show that Assassin- and Rogue-class users win the most FSM duels - speed and evasion seemed to be very important factors in winning. However, Somnia could very easily bet the entire contents of her inventory and the currency she deposited in the bank on Crowe. He would win. Some of the other players were siding with Legault, but perhaps out of pity.
She was right.
Legault's hands shattered into pixelated polygons as they separated from his arms. A bloodcurdling howl was released into the air, and we all knew who won. The circle of players suddenly erupted in the most intense fury and fear. People started to call for Crowe's immediate death. More and more duel requests were being submitted, and Crowe submerged in them.
Things were getting out of hand. Though she would regret intervening, the blonde had already made up her mind. A flick of the wrist opened up her inventory. Right at the top of her inventory was a secret loot item: «Mystery Box». It was the reward for finishing a fairly simple escort mission on the first floor. With a simple press, the mystery boxed opened and revealed a case of smoke bombs. Typical, Somnia giggled to herself. She flicked the tiny ball right in front of Crowe like flipping a quarter and watched it explode in a huge cloud of white smoke. It's days like this when I'm glad I chose the Assassin class.
Other users became stepping stools. She leapt across them as a frog leapt across lily pads before flying high into the air and landing directly in front of Crowe. "Just hush and follow," she whispered, taking one of his empty hands and pulling in the direction she wished to go. There was a secret tunnel in this town that would lead them directly to the Market District without crossing paths with other players, and they happened to be right in front of it. The tunnel was not included in the beta version, and the only reason Somnia knew about it was because she spent a good thirty minutes looking around the Market.
--
"You're quite the desired man," Somnia chuckled from behind the mask, her Russian accent flowing lightly. "But this you already know."
She opened her inventory once more, tapping a food item with her index finger. It would be the last thing they ate before the GameMaster's unknown announcement.
"Hm?" Somnia ushered a sandwich towards the man. It was her quite poor way of trying to make peace. A part of her hoped that Crowe would see that she was bad at these kinds of things.
Floor 1 | Town of Beginnings | One hour before the announcement
What happened next I couldn't have predicted. . . I was flooded with duel requests! Men and women were shouting at me and starting to close in on me in protest to my. . . style and demanding that I duel them. Most of them seemed to be Total Lose Mode requests, meaning they intended to try their luck at killing me. Not that I was scared. Ascalon and I welcomed any challenge wholeheartedly. Just not quite so many.
How this had so suddenly turned from a simple gathering to watch a duel into a lynch-mob calling for my death was beyond my interpretation capabilities. I knew all too well that I was hated for the way that I carried myself, but this was a little ridiculous. As confident as I am in my abilities (and my blooded sword), there's no way for me to handle twenty or so players mobbing me all at once even if all of them were at Lv1. It was one of the beauties of «Sword Art Online» and a personal fault of mine. Numbers meant something here and I usually had the numbers against me. I preferred the odds that way. Call me a masochist.
I couldn't find an escape route with all the duel request screens flooding my vision. They kept reappearing even though I continually denied them several times. My digital fingers were getting tired for Christ's sake! These players were both bold and persistent. Admittedly things were looking grim. I didn't know if the Crowe would make it out of this one without making a nasty example of a few people and taking a few bruises in the process. Maybe even losing a life. Oh well. So I drew Ascalon and gave him a few practice swings. Which served to anger some and discourage others.
I found it amazing how simple people were. It was easy for someone to be brave in the midst of a crowd who would've been a coward on their own. That was something I hated about people. I singled out one of the larger men in the crowd. I decided I was gonna start taking down anyone who looked the part. My hopes were that it would scare some of the less courageous out of this madness.
That was before the smokescreen. And the masked woman -whom I was sure I saw earlier- came to my rescue. In style at that. Brownie points.
"Just hush and follow."
My mystery savior received a curt nod in response. I knew when to listen and when to voice my opinion. Now was definitely the time to listen. I held her hand firmly and followed blindly as we weaved through the confused crowd at what would have been a breakneck pace for any other classes aside from a rogue or assassin. Has to be one or the other, I thought. She moved too quickly and fluidly to be anything other than a that or a rogue. I liked to consider myself a good judge of talent. She had already shown me that she was a quick thinker.
---
Looked like I was right. She was the woman with the Caldera mask on from earlier. What a turn of events.
"All too well," I replied with a grin of my own as I stared into the mask. I had spoken with characters who wore masks before but those were usually assassins who weren't what you would consider normal players. They had cold persona's. There was no way to read them and they acted like assassins. They didn't rescue the most infamous players they bumped into.
I was further thrown off when she offered me a sandwich. I stared down at the digital meal for a moment before taking it reluctantly. "Thanks, now I owe you twice," I said while I held onto the sandwich not quite ready to eat it just in case this was a set up.
"But. . . Who are you? And why'd you save me? I'm sure you know the risks be associated with someone of my reputation?" My face hardened in anticipation to her response. It wasn't that I didn't have friends who played this game, but I didn't have many and I didn't trust many people either. Almost no one willingly associated with me. So I wanted to know her angle if there was one. Can't afford to trust easily with Crowe's reputation. Though I hated to seem ungrateful.
Last edited by Marsyas; 07-23-2013 at 10:15 AM.
Floor 1 | Town of Beginnings - End of the tunnel | 50 minutes before the announcement
She pressed the edge of her mask between her thumb and index finger, a force of habit developed after years of anxiety. Here in «Sword Art Online», her anxiety manifested as toying with her mask, and in reality it was toying with her hair. No matter how calm the other party is, Somnia couldn't stay calm herself. Social situations were not her forte by any means. "You don't owe me for anything. I just can't stand mob-like mentalities," she replied softly, slipping the Calavera mask off. Her hand was too small to hold it comfortably; but she still flipped it around her fingers, slowly - a coping mechanism. Her green eyes shifted up to look at Crowe's face. Her own was almost entirely emotionless, not by choice however. Obviously, there was a massive barrier between them. Distrust on his part.
"…My name is Somnia. I don't care for reputations. I just… I have a low tolerance for the stupidity of people." Her voice was quiet, not harsh or cold like most people expected. There was nothing psychopathic about her; she was just someone who knew too well how to stay silent.
However, she was also one with a lot to say. Her opinions knew no bounds.
"I saved you because you're interesting. People are too quick to judge, and they judged you on your ferocity whilst fighting. It's ridiculous. You are not a weapon of destruction; you are Crowe."
"I personally don't mind," I managed to say before she removed the mask completely. It was unfortunate that the top half of my face wasn't still being covered by my hood, as the look of surprise in my eyes gave away my utter shock. She was a very attractive woman. Not that it mattered but, I had definitely expected someone more. . . menacing under the mask. I recomposed myself quickly but not quickly enough. I mentally reprimanded myself for not saving judgement until later but human nature had gotten the best of me. Nothing to be done about it now.
I listened quietly to her introduction and nodded my head as I agreed with her sentiments. "Well Somnia, thank you for the rescue and although you already know who I am, my name is Crowe." I stretched out a hand as a formal greeting between the two of us and as a parlay of my suspicions. "I should correct you on one thing," I added, "While I'm not a weapon of just destruction, I am a weapon of mass destruction." I smiled crookedly and gave her a wink. A legend is a legend right? A bit of corniness here and there never ruined the mood. Completely at least.
After we shook hands I finally ate the sandwich. I inhaled it quicker than I should have, but apparently I was hungry even though it was only a mental thing in the virtual world of «Sword Art Online». Feeling relieved and a bit more friendly on a satisfied virtual stomach I glanced over to my savior, "So, Somnia, what's your reason for playing «Sword Art Online»? You don't have to say if it's personal." For everyone the reason was different. Some played just for the enjoyment and some played to get away from reality. Others played for personal reasons. To each their own.
With pursed lips trying to barricade her laughter, Somnia let out a few hushed snickers. "Were you expecting someone scary?" she asked, covering her face with her hand. She needed to collect herself before he wrote her off as a giggling schoolgirl. The girl sighed. "I promise I can be as ruthless as a wolf, if necessary." Contrary to popular belief, Crowe was actually kind of cute. Though she didn't want to admit it, Somnia initially fell prey to the horrible stories, thinking that he would be cold, robotic even. So far, he'd proven them wrong.
At that, the blonde let out a short burst of laughter. He was cute. "A weapon of mass destruction, huh? I can believe that whole-heartedly." She grasped his hand firmly- their formal meeting. There was a part of the girl that wanted quite badly to partner with him through this journey. But, they were both solo players. It could work, but it could not. Only time would tell, perhaps?
The two were hungrier than they initially let on. The sandwiches were gone in less than a minute, and they actually tasted fairly good. The joy of playing a world-class VRMMORPG. "Why? Oh, my reasons are somewhat silly," she replied, peeking at him. "I'm not very social, and I've always been bullied. I started gaming a long time ago in order to combat the loneliness, and then «Sword Art Online» popped up." Somnia gradually lowered her voice until she could barely be heard. The past was the past. "Well," she started to add. "I'm also here because it's fun. I followed the beta testing of this game through some forums. That's how I knew about you."
I couldn't hide a coy embarrassed grin as I rubbed into my long wavy locks at the back of my head, "Not necessarily scary." I allowed a light chuckle to escape my lips momentarily before continuing, "I did expect someone a little more intimidating. You're much more beautiful than I would've imagined." I had a habit of being blunt all too often. Sometimes that was a good thing, other times not so much. This time a actually laughed when she told me how ruthless she could be, "I believe you. You're a quick thinker, so I have no doubt that you could make proper split second decisions."
As I listened to her reasons it was easy to tell that they were personal, and I was grateful that she shared them with me. It was a little difficult to hear what she was saying but I managed to pick it all up. When she was through, I gave her an understanding head nod and placed a large hand gently on her shoulder as I met her gaze steadily. "It's tough to be alone. It takes a strong person to keep going when the tide's against them. Trust me, I understand how you feel." Then Crowe gave a bright smile, something I reserved for very few people.
"So you followed the forums during the beta huh?" It was hard to contain my signature crooked grin, "So what were your initial thoughts of Crowe?" It was always interesting to hear what people thought of the legend I had created during the beta. I was still pretty shocked at the outcome myself honestly.
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