Blade and Broker

I teased him about it, but it never really meant anything at the time… I guess he's the reason I feel all warm inside... KiritoXArgo. SAO retold from the beginning.

AN: So I always liked this pairing and decided "I should just write one," so here it is. Don't expect it to be too closely like canon, as this is my turn on the SAO story.

Chapter 1- Enter: Beta Test

"You, along with 9999 other players have been selected to join the Sword Art Online closed beta. The beta test will run for a month. There will be a week intermission where bugs are fixed and exploits are patched before the full game is released. All data will be wiped upon full release."

'Sword Art Online, huh? Can't believe I actually got in…'

"Estimated Download Time: 3 Hours."

'What to do while I wait? Guess I'll check out the wiki. If there is one… Ah, says right here, released by the makers of SAO, so this should be reliable.'

"Sword Art Online consists of moves called [Sword Skills]. These are predetermined moves, that activate based on the player's input…" Kazuto continued to read the wiki, reading about gameplay.

He learned that if he allocated his skill points correctly, he could be an unstoppable force, and be a major threat. He learned that this game had a basic level and loot system, that displayed the loot on a screen upon death of the mob. He learned that PvP was enabled in most areas, but towns were safe. He learned about NPCs and their usefulness.

He read about the quest system. He read about the loot system. He read about the currency system. He read about the player trading system. He read about the player customization system. He had just finished reading about the combat healing skill, when he was notified that the game had finished downloading and installing.

Switching on his NervGear, he entered in his username and password, before creating a character. Instead of customizing one, he simply let the game randomize a character for him, as he was more interested in getting into the game, rather than his appearance.

"Welcome To Sword Art Online"

He entered the game, and immediately saw some others getting in as well. Using his instincts as an mmorpg player, he realized that people would be all around this place, and that the mobs would be cleaned out.

As he began to run, he felt a tug on his back, as he turned around to see a girl in a cloak. She appeared slightly frightened, but what he didn't see, was the confidence in her. She had this persona to get people to help her.

"Um… Would you mind taking me to the next village with you? I-I'm not really much of a fighter, so I don't think I'm gonna be able to make it there that easily…" She said timidly.

Kazuto wasn't really one to be affected by girls when he was online. He knew that they could always be a guy trying to get easy help. But hell, it's just a beta test. Nothing'll be saved, so there really wasn't a point in leaving people behind.

"Yeah, I guess you can come. Let me just invite you to a team real quick so we can both get Col and XP from any mobs we come across."

Argo was surprised at this. She expected him to just lead her instead of inviting her. She expected him to be stingy, since most mmo players were.

Or at least her experience with them suggested that.

She accepted the group invite, and the two set off for the next town.

They came across a good amount of mobs on their trip, and by the end of it, Kazuto, now dubbed "Kirito," was level 3, while Argo was close to leveling, due to the way XP was distributed. Whoever did the most damage got extra XP, while the rest of the group got the same amount.

"So, Argo, we're here now. If you wanna stay in the party, feel free. If not, I'll be fine if you leave. I just wish you luck if you decide to," He told her

"Hey, how come you know my name?" She asked.

"Check the top left corner or your view. You'll see another name and health bar underneath yours."

She looked and saw his.

"Kirito, huh?"

"Yeah, it's… Well, it's a bit personal if you ask me…"

"Should I assume it's just your name, but sort of shortened?" She asked.

"Is it really that obvious?"

"Well, when you say it's personal, that was the only thing I thought. I've met other people like that, and no, my name isn't my real name shortened."

"Well, are you gonna stay with me? I'm gonna grab some quests and make the best out of this beta test. All our stuff is gonna be gone at the end, so why not?"

"Yeah, I guess I'll stay with you…"

"What's with your innocent personality? I can tell that you're holding something back, but I'm not really sure what…"

"Alright, fine… I expected you to be more attracted considering I have a female character. Based on how you acted, I assume you've played mmorpg's before."

"I don't treat someone differently based on their looks. If they've earned my respect, they'll get it. Never mind that… What're we gonna do? We've got a month for this beta, and I wanna make the most of it."

"Well, the wiki had some stuff on the current quests in the beta. I read that here, we would be able to find a quest for a choice of weapon that's a lot better than anything you can buy from an NPC. Sure, there are mob drops, but it isn't very likely that you'd get something very good."

"Well then, what're we waiting for? Let's get on with it!" Kirito said with a smile as he grabbed the girl's hand and raced towards the inside of the town, where she had marked a place on the map where the quest would be.

Last day of the beta test|30 minutes before closing

"Hey Argo, how's the business holding up?"

"Heh, any question you ask will cost you, ya know?"

"Yeah, I know. I just wanted to check up on an old friend of mine."

She inwardly blushed at his words, but didn't show any uneasiness. "If I knew any better, I'd think you have some sort of crush on me," She teased.

"Well, I might. Those whiskers make you look pretty cute, you know," Kirito countered, though on the inside, he was blushing.

"You like them?" She asked as her hands went up to her cheeks. She had gotten them when her and Kirito had done a quest to get an unarmed skill. Realizing that it really wasn't worth the annoyance, she gave up on it, while Kirito continued.

Of course though, she stuck with him seeing as how it would be information she could sell, if he ever completed the quest.

He did, and when the two of them went back to the quest NPC, Kirito was given the skill, while Argo was given the whiskers for not completing it. She could always go back and finish them to remove them, but she never felt an actual need to do that.

It didn't weigh her down or anything, so why not?

"Well, considering I just said they made you look cute, I think it's safe to assume that I like them,"

She could see the blush coming to his face from flirting, as it wasn't really his forte, so she decided to change the subject to save her friends dignity.

"Well anyway, business is doing well. I've gotten lots of business surprisingly, considering the beta is almost over."

"Yeah, I guess they want to know everything before the beta ends so they can get a head start when the full game is released."

"Eh, that was kind of stupid to ask… They're gonna be giving their Col over like it's nothing because the beta's gonna end soon. They have no real use for it since all data will be wiped."

"Nah you're fine. You're just having genuine concern for a friend, that's all. There isn't anything wrong with that. How's being a solo player working for you?"

"You probably already know my awkwardness in groups, so playing solo has been really relaxing for me. I don't have to worry about talking about drops and stuff with other people. The only real problem with me being solo is that I have no backup whenever my health is low. I end up dying and having to respawn at one of the towns."

"Being an info broker's pretty fun too, you know. Just because I'm not fighting on the front lines doesn't mean I'm not doing anything useful. Me and a lot of other testers have been collecting data on the first few floors to make a book once the full game is released. We plan on distributing it throughout, whenever people join," she said.

"We plan on writing about every useful system from the wiki, dungeons, and the floors themselves to put in the book."

"Really? And here I thought you were just one of the best but most expensive info brokers in the game right now. You charge people for the slightest of things, and your info on special drops are insane."

"A girl's gotta make a living, you know," She grumbled as Kirito laughed.

"You sure are something else… Keep in touch while the one week intermission is happening, alright? You're probably the only person I've met that I can actually trust despite your habit of overpricing things."

"Yeah, I will. Take care Kirito. Although I'm pretty sure you used the avatar randomizer, I'm gonna miss seeing that silly face of yours," she said as a barely noticeable shade of pink, brushed her face.

"Attention players, the Sword Art Online beta test ends in five minutes. If you are not logged out by then, the system will automatically log you out."

"Huh, I guess this is it then. We've gotta wait a week after this ends," Kirito said.

"Well, we'll still be talking, right? By video, voice, or whatever you can access."

"Yeah how about we stick to voice and text. I don't really feel comfortable showing my face just yet."

"Sounds good, Kirito. I'll be logging off now. There really isn't anything left for me to do as of now."

"Alright, I'll see you, Argo. Floor 8, huh? Can't believe we made it there in just one month."

Swiping down, Kirito found the logout button. He took a look around his surroundings, seeing his friend leave, and turned back to also logout.

He opened his eyes, took off the NervGear, checked the time, then went to get something to eat.

Time skip, but not really. Just some conversations the two had during the week that the game devs were fixing bugs and such

Argo: Hey, you good? I just got out of the shower after eating and I was wondering if you're okay. The beta ended half an hour ago and I thought you would've messaged me. - 21:24

Kirito: Sorry about that, I guess I forgot. I was in the shower and that's why it took so long to reply. - 21:36

Argo: Nah, don't sweat it. I get it that you have a life outside of gaming and such. My parents are boring so we don't really do much together. My dad works as a surgeon while my mom is in the police force. - 21:37

Kirito: Do they? Your dad must be really smart then. The medical field isn't easy to get into. Tell your mom I said thank you for keeping the streets safe. I live with my mom and sister, so there is kind of a gap in things that interest us all. My aunt works at a hospital as well. She works in the tech department and does maintenance on all the equipment. 21:39

Argo: So I guess we're sort of alike. I have a sister as well, though she's in college studying engineering. 21:39

Kirito: SAO was pretty fun. I honestly can't wait for the full release. 21:39

Argo: Yeah, I've gotta agree with you on that. I'm probably gonna stick to being an info broker. Though, I'm pretty sure you could teach me a few things about swordplay if you get what I'm talking about. 21:40

Kirito: Argo, please… You know I can't handle things like this so why do you have to do this to me… 21:40

Argo: Whatever do you mean? I'm only suggesting that you know a lot about using your sword and maybe you could teach me a thing or two. - 21:40

Kirito: That isn't what it sounded like when you added the "if you know what I mean," part… - 21:41

Argo: Alright alright, it's fun teasing you. Even though I can't actually see you, you're probably blushing up a storm over there. Just picturing that brings up my mood. - 21:41

…

Argo: I'm going to bed now, it's getting a bit late. It was fun talking to you though. - 22:56

Kirito: Yeah you're right. I'm gonna go to sleep as well. I've got nothing else to do. I also enjoyed our chat. I learned a bit about you. I also never knew it was possible for people to talk in text for over 2 hours. - 22:57

Argo: Yeah, I didn't think so either until just now. I guess conversations are a lot longer when you're talking with a good friend. - 22:57

Kirito: Well then, goodnight, Argo. 22:57

Argo: Goodnight Kirito. I wouldn't mind sleeping in your bed tonight though… - 22:57

Kirito is now offline.

Looking at the notification, Argo couldn't help but snicker at seeing him log off like that. He was most likely blushing his ass off, but if she were to look at a mirror, she would also see herself lightly blushing.

Day 5 of 7 before SAO is officially released

"So I've gotten a lot more info memorized for the beginners guide to SAO," Argo said as she looked at her desktop. On it, were plenty of text files that corresponded to each page of the handbook.

"Have you now? I thought you would've been thinking of other ways to get people to do things for you," Kirito said as he played an FPS to pass time.

"Alright, just because I'm known for overpricing things and trying my best to get money, doesn't mean I actively try to come up with new techniques to do so…" She said as she opened up the same game Kirito was playing. "Hey, I'm getting on right now. Invite me when your game finishes."

"Yeah sure thing. We're winning 15-12 so it shouldn't be too long," he responded.

Argo could hear him talking with his team due to her being in a separate call with him.

"Someone smoke cat and we can try an A split. 3 people with bomb go cat while 2 others go long. I'll take either one." (Bonus points to anyone who knows what I'm talking about)

"Alright, guess I'll take bomb cat with blue and purple. Orange and yellow go long then."

"There's one ramp, and goose. I don't think there will be one long since they should have only 2 A, one mid, and 2 B."

"Ah shit, the one on goose has an AWP while the one ramp has an M4. We better hurry this up before the guys from mid and B rotate."

"Guy ramp is down. One CT. One goose. One I think is going mid to cat."

"Long, try to smoke CT if you can. If not, just smoke the cross and come onto site."

"Planting for long, cover me please."

"Someone with AWP go long. I'll stay ramp in case they try anything."

"Shit shit shit, there are 2 on cat."

"I'm dead, AWP watch site and AK watch long doors."

"He smoked and he's probably gonna go for the defuse."

"Nice shot. There were 2 cat though, so watch out for the one that you didn't kill."

"I hear one coming from mid. AK watch for that."

"Alright, no time to defuse. Nice job guys."

"Okay Argo, I'm inviting you now."

"You know, for a solo player, you handle teams pretty well," Argo complimented.

"Well, this is an FPS, so I don't really have to worry about loot drops. Skins and cases are given at random, and even then hey aren't worth that much."

"I'm joining now. Take out Dust. That map is overplayed and quite frankly, I don't like it. Put in Mirage, Inferno, Cache, Cobble, Train, and Nuke."

"Yeah, alright. Woah, when'd you rank up? Same rank as me now, huh?"

"Oh shut up. You know that you aren't that much better than I am. MGE is pretty good, but before they messed with the ranks, I was an LEM believe it or not."

"Alright alright, calm down. I believe you. I can't believe Optic won that tournament though. Cologne 2022 was pretty exciting, since a decent amount of NA teams got in. Last time an NA team even came close to winning was years ago at MLG Columbus 2016. Liquid choked so hard back then."

"Ooo, found a game. Ready up yet?"

"Of course I did… Do you think I'm an idiot?"

An hour before SAO is released

"Guess you really meant it when you said we'd stick to voice and text. To be honest, I never really thought we'd get to voice chat. Thought you were too much of a wuss to do that."

"Yeah and I guess you actually are a girl if any of our conversations have meant anything. I'm pretty sure that moan you do to mess with me can't really be replicated by a guy."

"Why's that? Have you tried it?"

"No! What the hell? I learned from you that it's the only way to be sure if a girl is a girl online. You said it yourself. Voice changers don't have the capability of ma-" he was cut off by a random moan, followed by Argo bursting out in laughter at how he went completely silent.

"Seriously… You need help…" He eventually said, causing her to laugh even harder.

"Alright Kirito, I'm gonna end the call and watch the stream that's paying attention to the game's release time. I'll see you when we get in, alright?"

"Yeah, sure thing, Argo. It's been a fun week with you."

"On today's episode of the MMO stream we'll be covering the internationally famous, Sword Art Online, aka SAO!"

Time passed before Kirito put on his NervGear. He laid down on his bed as he watched the time strike 13:00.

Well, you already know what happens at this point.

AN: Oh boy, another new fic… Now you're all probably wondering "when are you gonna work on your other fics". I'll do it when I feel like it. I can't promise anything as I have a life outside of fanfiction writing.

All in all, I have high hopes for this fic, and I think this is gonna be a fic that I actually work on constantly.

Leave reviews or something.

I need a name for Argo.