A/N:

Sorry for not posting this sooner. I've been rather busy lately, not just with Morning Hope Academy, but with some other things in my life. I am working on Chapter 5 and will get it out as soon as I can. This week has been quite hectic for me, and I just have no time for a few things. I do hope you like this chapter. This may not be my best work, but eh I don't care. I'm just writing this for fun, and cuz I get really bored sometimes and end up getting weird ideas, so hey why not write them down eh? Anyway, I hope you all had a Happy Halloween, we can now begin Preparing for the Holiday season...oh man...2018 flew by huh?

SAO Alternative

Gun Gale Online: Fatal Bullet

Chapter 4

Halloween Jam (Squad Jam)

xxx(No Mercy, Level 3: The Sewers)xxx

Haru stared at the holographic map in his hand. The scan had already started, and was displaying 10 white dots on it. All of the dots were starting to get closer to Mercy Hospital. There were four dots that were near their location, which happened to be near the Burger Tank, a fast food chain in the Left4Dead series. That meant that they were all starting to head toward Mercy Hospital, as half of the squads had been eliminated. Though ten squads remained, there were still a lot of players to deal with, and their exact number wasn't known. It was rather worrying, but they had dealt with many squads before, so they would have to keep their heads down and get ready for up close combat.

Having memorized all of their locations, Haru pocketed his map, giving a nod to the others. He grabbed his Savage 110, loading a fresh magazine into the receiver. He pulled the bolt back, the sound of the rifle's action making him smile. He gave Hinata a nod, and she opened the door. He walked out, peeking out into the abandoned alleyway, the door to Burger Tank lay open, two Infected being visible from where he was standing. He walked forward, resting his gun on the hood of a car, leaning forward as he rested the stock against his shoulder.

"Hinata, what's the wind speed?" he asked.

"We currently have a minor wind coming from the west. 4 miles an hour." she replied softly. He adjusted his scope a bit, a few clicks filling the air.

"Haru, can't we just get up close?" Kureha asked.

"Sure...but what's the fun in that?" he asked, not bothering to look back. He closed his eye, lining up the shot. He waited for a moment, for the Infected to walk forward a few steps, one of them crossing the path of the other. His lips curved into a smirk as he pulled the trigger, their heads exploding as the round flew through them, striking the back wall.

"Nice...you'll surely get points for that." Zeliska said.

"Maybe...hey look, a video feed." he said, looking up. He saw a floating circle above them that had the word, REC written on it. He gave the camera a smile, waving at the onlookers. Kureha shook her head, walking ahead instead of greeting the camera.

"Looks like it's following us. You know...if they wanted to make it look more realistic, why didn't they add a drone in the game?" he asked curiously.

"Because people tended to shoot the drones down. The beta version of GGO had them. Some asshole kept shooting them and the programmers didn't like it." the Uncrowned Queen said, pressing herself against the wall, her Honey Badger in her hands.

"Wait...were you in the beta?" Haru asked curiously.

"Sadly no, but I do have a friend who was." she replied. Haru nodded, walking into the kitchen of the fast food joint, scanning the area for players and infected.

"We're clear, move up." he called back, lowering his pistol as he walked into the restaurant.

Kureha followed up behind him, glancing through the windows. The area past the Burger Tank was a UPS sorting facility. It had eight meter fences, keeping the area closed in, just past them was the open street, the flashing lights of police cars being visible. There were several cargo trucks in the lot, the brick building being dark and ominous from where they stood. There were some flaming barrels nearby, as the entire lot had no lights. She looked up at the sky, Mercy Hospital was very close now, the search lights on the 30th floor filled the skies with light. She saw a small blinking light high above them, the rescue chopper they were supposed to call. She let out a surprised scream as an infected slammed into the glass, not hard enough to break it. She growled, rising her MP5, delivering a single shot to its head, the glass splintering as she did.

"Seriously? If that window fully broke that sound could have alerted more." Haru scolded, earning a glare from the girl.

"I got mad, what do you want me to do?"

"Whatever, I usually shatter it too." he said, kicking the glass door open. It swung open, the glass shattering and falling to the ground.

"So much for staying quiet." Zeliska said, earning a giggle from Hinata, who walked out behind her.

The lot was rather empty, save for a few Infected that were walking around. Haru rose his Sig, firing at the nearest Infected, its body falling down with a thump. He shifted his aim, taking down a second and a third. Kureha did the same, not wanting to waist ammo, she just bashed their heads in with the stock of her AK, chunky red blood flying through the air. There were several flaming barrels lighting up the dark area, a large wall nearby had been blown out, piles of bricks and cinder blocks laying on the ground. Haru had always wondered what had done that, but figured a Tank must have burst through it. He eyed the Gas Pumps, a smirk appearing on his face.

"Alright, we have to get up on that lift, walk across the roof to that window and climb in. It's gonna attract a horde though so be ready." he said, shrugging off his Sniper, aiming the barrel down.

"Seems simple enough...what was your idea on blocking the path though?" Zeliska asked curiously.

"It's easy...once we're up here, I'll just shoot the hydraulic fluid lines. It's a scissor lift, without that fluid it won't work." he said.

"That's pretty smart, do you always think ahead or is it because you've always wanted to do something like this?"

"I'll let you decide that on your own, Kureha." Haru replied, his voice sounding a bit firm. He jumped up onto the lift, helping the girls onto it. After they were on, Kureha pressed the red button, causing the lift to slowly start moving up. A loud gargle of voices filled the air, causing the group of four to grab their weapons tightly. As soon as they reached the roof, the Infected started running at them, all of them trying to climb up.

"Move across the roof, I've got this." Haru said, placing his feet firmly on the ground. He held his rifle up, lining his sights with the gas pump. Zeliska lowered her rifle, pulling the empty magazine out, glancing at the boy. Her eyes widened when she saw where his muzzle was pointing.

"Haru...what the hell are you doing?"

A loud bang cut through the sounds of the horde, the bullet striking the gas pump. It rapidly burst into flames, which started to rise higher. Haru ejected the shell casing, rapidly taking aim, this time hitting the bottom part of the pump, causing gasoline to start pouring out of the lines, which immediately caught flames. He ejected the round, shifting his muzzle toward the incoming horde, firing through the chest of the first infected, the four bodies behind it dropping into a pile behind the first. He lowered his rifle, urging the girls to round.

"Goddamn it Haru!" Kureha shouted, just as the gas pumps exploded. The shock of the explosion knocked them down, they all watched as the awning shot high into the air, breaking apart before it came crashing down, crushing some of the Infected that were coming right at them. Haru quickly turned around, pulling his side arms, opening fire on the incoming horde, tucking himself in the corner of the building. He flicked his wrists, ejecting the magazines quickly replacing them with new ones.

"Master are you alright?" Hinata asked, standing next to the boy. She drove her bayonet into an Infected's jaw, kicking the body back with all her strength.

"I'm fine, that was bad ass! Keep it up!" he said, quickly standing up as he continued firing.

"Haru, Hinata! Get your asses up here, we'll cover you!" Kureha cried out over Zeliska's gunfire.

"Copy that! Let's go Hina!" he said, pushing the girl forward. They jumped onto the pipe, shimming across it slowly. The boy slipped due to his shoes being wet, but quickly caught himself. He jumped up, crawling into the building, holding his hand out to Hinata, pulling her up as well.

"Anyone got a light?" Zeliska asked, holding a bottle of Jack Daniels in her hand. Kureha nodded, not lowering her rifle.

"In my pouch, on the left. Just grab it while I keep bringing these fucks down." she said.

Haru gulped a bit as he walked toward the pinkette, reaching into her ammo pouch. He fiddled around for a second, finding the silver lighter tucked inside, tossing it to Zeliska who flicked it open. The rag caught fire immediately, she grinned as she wound her arm back, throwing it full force across the roof. It shattered, the alcohol catching fire, setting the infected aflame. Kureha bumped fists with the girl, a grin on her face.

"That was tight, where did you get it?"

"I picked it up over there. Guess someone dropped it." she said, pointing to the hole in the corner of the room.

"Good eye, now to bring down that scissor lift." Haru said, raising his rifle to his shoulder.

"Haru, think I could take it?" Kureha asked curiously. He glanced at her, seeing the hopeful look on her face. It was rather odd, but he knew he wouldn't be able to deny her. He nodded, handing her the rifle, which she gingerly rose to her shoulder. He kept the barrel straight, fixing her posture a bit.

"Hinata, what's our wind speed?"

"There's a slight wind from the west, it hasn't changed direction. The speed has actually decreased to 2 kilometers." the AI replied, earning a nod from the boy.

"Alright, the wind will carry the bullet. You see those black cables? That's the hydraulic line, a single shot will suffice." he said. She gave him a nod, closing her eye as she peered through the scope. She pulled the trigger, a dull click filling her ears.

"What the? Is the safety on?"

"Pfft...no. This rifle doesn't have a safety, it's a sniper rifle...you didn't chamber a round in." he said. The girl flushed, her hand grabbing the bolt, pulling it back. The shell casing popped out, landing on the ground with a dull metallic thud.

"Take a deep breath, and just squeeze the trigger." he said. Kureha followed his instruction, steadying her breathing a bit. She slowly squeezed the trigger, the rifle jolting back slightly. The bullet struck the line perfectly, causing the lift to fall down with a slam.

"Nice, I thought she was gonna miss." Zeliska said, lowering her telescope.

"You have little faith in me Zeliska." the pinkette said, handing her rifle back to Haru, who ejected the shell casing.

"Little known fact, whenever we played Call of Duty, Kureha would always be the sniper. She was pretty good too, always No Scoping those fools. Hell, I remember that one time, she ended up killing me with a Tomahawk, she banked it off the building and it flew right into my head." he said, holding back his laughs.

"Pfft...yeah, but you got revenge on me. You killed me with an RCXD right to the nuts." she said, a grin on her face. The two shared a laugh, looking at each other. Haru cleared his throat, heading toward the hole, looking into the room.

"We should keep going, it isn't too far now." he said, causing the pinkette to nod sadly.

Haru jumped down first, shooting the only Infected inside. He walked over to the First Aid box, popping it open. Four bottles of pills rested inside. He took one of them, tossing them to Zeliska who caught them with ease. He grabbed one for himself, placing it in his pocket.

"Grabbin' Peelz." Kureha said, grabbing a hold of the final bottle. Haru let out a chuckle, brushing past her into the next hall.

"I remember you saying that a lot when we were in the chat. I think you also played that goddamned song when we played C.O.D." he said.

"Yep, I remember that. Grabbin' Pills, Grabbin' Pills, Louis! Good thing I'm indestructible."

"I feel so out of the loop right now." Zeliska said, looking a bit deflated.

"If my memory serves, I believe those are lines from the original characters of Left4Dead, specifically, Louis and Francis." Hinata replied.

"Yeah...however I didn't hear it often. I modded my game to shit, so I had custom voices and stuff. Watch out, the next area will be the loading bay. We'll need to be careful around the forklift."

"Why is that Haru?"

"Because the goddamn Tanks always fling it at me." he said, laughing a bit as he walked down the stairs. The entrance to the warehouse was clear of anyone, living or dead. He gave the girls a nod, and started walking forward. He paused, holding a fist up to stop his squad from moving. He pressed himself against one of the shelving units, kneeling down next to a wooden crate. He heard something rolling across the floor, his eyes widening in shock.

"Grenade, get down!" he cried, running back. They dove behind some crates as the grenade exploded, seconds after bullets struck the walls around them.

"It's an ambush! What do we do Master?" Hinata cried out, a look of fear on her face.

"We fire back, duh. I'm borrowing this." he said taking Zeliska's Honey Badger, a grin on his face. He knelt down, breaking into a sprint toward one of the shelving units, avoiding the red bullet lines aimed at him.

"Haru, take it!" Kureha cried out, tossing a Flash Bang at the boy. He caught it with ease, pulling the pin and rolling it down the aisle. The canister exploded, and the violet haired boy moved forward.

He let out a short burst at the first Player, taking him down with ease. He quickly shifted his aim, peering through the scope, lining up his targets. The gun clicked empty and he lowered it quickly drawing his handgun, finishing the player off, before ducking behind another crate. He panted a bit, sweat pouring down his face. He could feel his heart beating in his chest, this feeling was exhilarating. He could understand why it was the Kureha loved closed quarters fights so much. He cringed a bit, the crate he was hiding behind being riddled with bullets.

"You fuckers! I'm gonna kill you all!" a player shouted, keen on avenging his fallen friends.

"Haru."

The boy glanced up, noticing Zeliska at the edge of the other aisle, crouched behind a crate. She tossed a magazine across the way to him, which he easily caught. He exchanged it with the empty one, shoving it in his back pocket as he pulled the loading rod. He held a finger to his lips, earning a nod from the Uncrowned Queen, who made sure her AA-12 was loaded. He noticed her exchanging the 8 round box with a 20 round drum mag, getting ready for the fight.

"I don't hear them Frank."

"Me either...they might have moved on."

"Doubt it, we would have seen them right? They're in here."

"Oh boys." the voice of Kureha said, causing the three young men to turn around. She was standing at the other side of the room, giving the boys a wave, her MP5SFK in her grasp. They all quickly rose their guns, taking aim on the girl who jumped for cover.

The next few seconds were filled with rapid gunfire, accompanied by loud shotgun blasts. It didn't take a lot of ammo to bring down the remaining members of the squadron that had ambushed them. They both lowered their guns, grinning happily at their accomplishment. Haru held out a fist, bumping it with Zeliska's.

"Nice job Master! You handled that splendidly!" Hinata said.

"Thanks Hinata, and thank you Zeliska, I surely would have died without your rifle." he said, holding the firearm out to its owner, who grabbed it from his hand.

"You're welcome Haru, we're a squad. We gotta watch each others backs, the distraction was Kureha's idea you know." she said, glancing at the pinkette who was busy looking her gun over.

"It was nothing, this genius probably dove in there without a back up plan. Once again I had to bail you out."

"Dah...don't give me that...come on let's move on." Haru said, once again taking the lead. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Kureha's grin.

He lead his group outside, scanning the fenced area, leading toward the next area of the map. He ducked down, avoiding the steam that was pouring out of the nearby pipe. They arrived at a stairwell, which lead them down toward the water processing plant. He stopped at the top, reaching for his Sniper rifle, loading a round into the chamber.

"Remember the plan, we gotta place that bomb on the underside of that cap." he said.

"Yes, we remember. Me and Hinata will cover the rear, you two are on point." Zeliska said, a playful smirk on her face. Kureha looked at her oddly, but said nothing as she followed Haru down the stairs.

He reached the foot of the stairs, the remains of a police officer laying back on the floor, his entrails being ripped out of his chest cavity. He noticed an M1911 on the floor beside hi. He knelt down before the body, taking a hold of the gun, checking the body for more ammo, finding four spare magazines, each containing 15 .45 caliber bullets. He handed it to Hinata, who lacked a pistol for herself. She looked it over, giving Haru a thankful smile before tucking it into her waist, placing the four magazines in her stockings.

Entering the facility, Haru noticed the large white tanks placed in rows in this large room. As soon as he set foot in however, the screech of a horde caused him to stop. His eyes were wide as they started pouring out of the other room, rapidly filling up the processing area. He grabbed a hold of Kureha's arm, pulling her with him.

"Start firing!" he said, pulling his rifle over his shoulder. Kureha started mowing down the horde, waiting for the boy to pull out his pistols.

"Kureha, Haru! We've been cut off!" Zeliska shouted over the gunfire.

"There's another entrance nearby, wait until the crowd thins and go for it. We'll be waiting in the service room within the sewers!" Haru cried out, walking toward the nearby cap, he pulled it open, enough for him and Kureha to wedge in.

"Haru I'm out!" the pinkette cried. The boy moved forward taking over while she reloaded. The sheer number of zombies was unimaginable.

"Hey Kureha, you still have that Pipe Bomb?" he called out, pushing an infected back. The slide of his Sig locked back, making him grit his teeth.

"Already ahead of you Haru!" she cried out. She lit the fuse of the bomb, pressing the button before throwing it forward, at the corner of the room. Half of the horde went after the bomb, giving them the time they needed to get into the sewers.

Haru let out a small cry as the bomb exploded, making him stumble off the pipes below. He landed on the ground hard, the air exploding out of his lungs. He clutched his back, groaning a bit as he lost his sight for a few moments, seeing nothing but stars. His vision cleared up a bit, and he saw a few infected, moving toward him, sloshing through the human waste in the ditch beside him. He rose his gun, pulling the trigger only to remember it was empty. He grabbed a hold of his P30L, pulling the trigger once before it locked, having fired the last round in the mag.

"Goddamn it!" he shouted. Before the infected could start kicking him, a soft buzz filled his ears, the bullets tearing apart the bodies. Kureha jumped from above, holding her hand out to the boy.

"Sheesh, I thought you had reloaded."

"Kinda hard to when you have a horde on your ass." he said, helping himself up. He dug into his ammo pouches, finding only four magazines left for both of his pistols.

"Great...almost outta ammo again."

"There should be a dump in that room you mentioned. I'll take the lead, my rifle still has most of its ammo." she said, earning a nod from the boy.

He remained silent while the girl took point. He was rather amazed with her skills with a rifle. She was able to take down the Infected before they even noticed her. The two of them walked down into the excrement, following the path toward one of the side entrances. They crouched down slightly, aiming their flashlights in the path.

"Well...at least they didn't add the shit stink into the game." he said, glad that all he could smell was wet dirt.

"Yeah...that wouldn't have been good. I dunno if you can puke in VR, but I clearly don't want to find out." Kureha mused, keeping her eyes forward. They appeared down another path, both looking around for a second. They took down the nearby zombies which were wading through the waste.

"If I remember correctly, it's this way." he said, taking a left. He walked next to an entrance. A loud cackle filled his ears, his eyes widening as a Jockey jumped through, trying to jump onto his back. He fell back, landing in the waste.

"Gah! Haru, get it off me! It's digging its claws into my neck!" Kureha shouted, causing the boy to rapidly stand up.

He saw the pink haired girl trying her hardest to shake the creature off her back. It was controlling her movements, digging its sharpened bloody claws into her neck. He grabbed her discarded rifle, running toward her, slamming the stock into it, knocking it right off onto the ground. He quickly rose it, emptying the remainder of the magazine into its back. It gave a whimper, falling into the mounds of shit around them. Both of them panted a bit, the boy clearing his throat as he handed her the AK back.

"I uh...thanks."

"Sure...you got that Smoker off me." he said. They started walking forward, finding the correct path. Shortly after, they found the booth they had been looking for. They ran toward it, diving through the door, the violet haired boy closed it, locking it right after.

"This isn't going to hold." Kureha said softly.

"It'll have too. We need to meet up with Zeliska and Hinata, or else we might lose them." he said, walking toward the large wooden spool in the center of the room. He smiled a bit when he saw a pile of ammo on it. He tapped it with a finger, instantly refilling his ammunition.

"Shit...not health kits...I took my pills earlier too." Kureha muttered, a look of annoyance on her face. Haru reached for his pocket, pulling out his pills, rattling the bottle a bit.

"Who's your best friend?" he asked, holding the bottle up. Kureha sighed, looking away from him.

"I thought we weren't friends anymore."

"I thought so too...but then I remembered the fun we had as kids. Do you actually think I was looking at that map back there for fun? I know Left4Dead like the back of my hand, I don't need a bloody map to get around. I'm not leaving GGO, well...not forever at least." he said.

"What made you change your mind?"

"Well...I did promise to go pro with you. It doesn't matter that you don't like me back. You'll still be my friend...I can't hate you." he said, tossing her the bottle, which she caught with a single hand. She looked at the bottle, glancing at her HP. If she took it now, by the time Zeliska and Hinata returned, it would have dropped back. Pills only restored temporary HP after all. She looked up at Haru, who was busy looking at the leaderboards, taking count of the people who had already been eliminated.

"Haru...I'm sorry."

"For what?" he asked curiously. She placed the pills on the table, closing the distance between them.

"For what I said at the apartment...back in Glocken I mean. I'm sorry for yelling at you. You're right, I do have an inferiority complex...I've always seen myself as inferior to my sister. It wasn't always like that, whenever I was playing with you, I just forgot about it. It's why I love video games so much. Because she's not here."

"It's alright Kureha, I know that you believe yourself to be inferior to Yuri. But you have to remember, you may see yourself as inferior, but not everyone else does. There are so many things that make you, well you. Like the fact you love games, and are willing to try anything. How you love to shoot guns for fun, love lighting up monsters out on the fields and enjoy close quarters combat. You might not be as smart as Yuri where she excels, but at least you got one thing over her. That's GGO. She wouldn't make it in this world, not like you." he said, earning a giggle from the girl.

"You're right...she'd probably shoot herself in the foot with a .38 special."

"Kureha, you shot yourself in the leg with a .38 special. You told me that was the first gun you bought. Not only that you wanted to know what shooting yourself in the head was like, so you held a .45 to your dome and pulled the trigger. You have no room to judge."

"Says the guy who held a shotgun under his chin because he wanted to replicate that South Park episode." She snapped, earning a laugh from the boy.

"Okay...that was one time. How was I supposed to know slugs would destroy my entire head and not just the top of it?"

"It isn't rocket science, a slug is just a huge chunk of lead after all." she said, looking away from the boy. He smiled a bit, placing a hand on her chin, slowly making her look back at him.

"You know...I have something to tell you."

"What's that?" she asked softly. He quirked a brow as he stood up straight, his lips curving into a smirk.

"Playing hard to get was the dumbest thing you could have ever done."

"Eh...what?"

"Kureha you are an idiot you know that? You and Zeliska were having a conversation with me outside. Not to mention my listening skill is maxed out." he said. She looked away from him, having brushed his arm aside.

"You knew?"

"Yup...not at first, until you had that conversation with Zeliska. How was it? Being slapped I mean? She did it to me in the field once and I lost three HP points." he said.

"Fuck you! How dare you tell me you knew this entire time? What about the arguments we've been having? Along the way to here? All of that was just fake? A lie?"

"Hey, if you were playing hard to get, then why shouldn't I join in?" he asked, chuckling a bit. She growled in announced, throwing a left hook at his chin.

"Take that, asshat! Don't talk to me until we're done this fucking Jam!" she shouted angrily. Haru rolled his eyes, wrapping his arms around the girl from behind, holding her in place. She stiffened a bit, feeling her heart skip a bit.

"I missed this too you know...seeing you getting mad. Whenever I pissed you off, you would always punch me like that. You were a really violent little girl."

"I had to deal with a dumb ass, comes with the territory." she admitted.

"Momiji...I don't know why you decided to play hard to get. But I need to know...do you like me back? Answer me honestly." he said. She remained silent, bowing her head slightly.

"I don't deserve you, you know? I was mean to you...I yelled at you, not just once, but twice. I gave you the cold shoulder instead of admitting my feelings. Why...what do you like about me that makes you want to be with me? I'm just...so useless."

"Ugh...this again? Momiji I've told you so many fucking times. I don't give a shit about your sister okay? Well...I do because you know...she's your family. But I don't give a shit that she can do better things than you. You are sweet, you are kind, you look so damn hot firing a sniper rifle. You are so vibrant and charismatic in this world, and insanely beautiful. Even if your avatar doesn't look like you IRL, I would still love you. Because you are my best friend...no matter what I'll always love you."

"I see." she said softly.

He didn't say anything, allowing her to process what he had told her. She shifted a bit, turning around to face the boy. She gave him a bit of a smile, leaning forward. She pressed her lips against his, taking him slightly by surprise.

His hands moved to her waist, as he pulled her closed, eagerly kissing her back. It was a surreal moment, having the woman he was in love with kiss him. He had taken her by surprise at first, but this time she had been the one to initiate it. It was just as he had imagined it to be, sweet and chaste and full of emotion. He could feel her emotions clearly through that one kiss, and to him it was worth it. He pulled apart briefly, giving her a second kiss, pressing her up against the wooden spool, his hand traveling down to her leg, lifting it up slightly. She squeaked in surprise, but didn't stop his action. She licked his lower lip, begging for entree into his mouth, which he readily agreed to. She moaned a bit as their tongues met, wrestling each other for dominance. Her free hand moved up to his head, grabbing a hold of his hair, running her gloved fingers through it. She could feel sparks traveling through her body, along with the rather annoying harassment message flying through her HUD. She only saw it as fireworks, rather a blaring alarm in her mind. She could feel her lungs begging for oxygen, but she was stubborn, she didn't want this to end.

"I think this is it Hina. This is the only room that...well what do we have here?"

"Gah!" Haru cried, jumping away from Kureha, panting a bit as he saw Zeliska standing at the door, holding her AA-12 in her grasp. She sighed, shaking her head.

"I get that you two are teenagers, but would you at least wait until the Halloween Jam is over before you start hiding the sausage?"

"Shut up! It wasn't like that Zeliska, sheesh!" Kureha shouted, her cheeks tinged pink. She was panting a bit for breath, glad that she could finally breathe again.

"Zeliska, where is Master hiding the sausage? I didn't see him grab any provisions before we left Glocken." Hinata asked, a look of innocence on her face.

"Okay, we are not having this conversation. Zeliska you keep your damn mouth shut. Make sure your weapons are primed and ready, we leave in five." Haru snapped. His face was red in embarrassment as he looked away from the two girls. He licked his lips slightly, feeling rather giddy at the kiss he and Kureha had just shared. He looked over his shoulder at the pinkette, who was trying her hardest not to look at him. They locked eyes briefly, and she gave him a wink, a content smile on her face.

xxx

It didn't take them long to reach the correct path in the sewers. It had become a bit hard to traverse, especially when a surprise squad started firing on them. They had missed the satellite scan because of this, and now none of them knew just how many squads were left. Haru stopped right in front of the ladder that lead up to the street. He peered up, straining his neck a bit as he saw the swirling clouds above;feeling small cold pricks of rain water on his face. He patted his pistols, frowning when he remembered he was completely out of ammunition for them, and was relying only on his sniper rifle. He felt a tap on his shoulder, and glanced at Kureha, who was holding an M9 to him, along with a spare magazine.

"You left this at the apartment remember? It should carry you until we reach the emergency room." she said. He took a hold of it, giving the girl a smile as he racked the slide.

"Thanks Kureha."

"So, is it safe to assume you two have finally made up?" Zeliska asked.

"Yes...despite what you saw, I haven't given Haru a proper answer. I've decided to wait until the Jam." the pinkette said.

"I'm okay with that...allow me to go first. The last thing we want is another surprise ambush." he said. The girls gave him a nod, and he started up the ladder, keeping a hold on his pistol as he climbed.

He peered out of the manhole, glancing around the area seeing it completely clear of undead, a few bodies laying on the ground. He noticed some of them had Dead markers on them, marking them as players. He climbed out of the hole, approaching one of the fallen players, seeing his body had been sliced in half. He cringed a bit, glancing up at the hospial, seeing the helicopter on the top floor.

"Shit...so, Kirito is nearby. That mean's were most likely going to meet resistance inside the hospital. It's gonna be so much fun...not."

"We're clear, be careful we might not be alone." he said, urging the girls to start climbing up.

He didn't know why, but he felt a shiver go down his spine. It was as if someone was watching him. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, using his listening skill to see if he could hear anything. His eyes widened a bit when he heard the subtle clicking of a scope adjustment. He slowly moved behind a nearby ambulance, pretending to check it for supplies. He shrugged off his rifle, kneeling down near the tire. He saw Kureha peek her head out of the sewer, noticing him kneeling next to the ambulance. She gave him an odd look, and he placed his finger on his lips, tapping his com link.

"Kureha, I think there's a sniper nearby. I heard the clinking of a scope, get back in the sewer, I'll tell you when you can come up." he said softly.

"And leave you with no back up, are you insane? You only have 30 rounds in that pistol."

"But I got nearly all my rifle ammo. You know I can go toe to toe with anyone as long as I got bullets. Just wait until I give you the signal." he said, earning a sigh from the girl. He started moving around the ambulance, rising his rifle to his shoulder, peeking through the scope.

"I gotta figure out where they might be aiming at. No vantage points anywhere...wait...there is one." he thought, glancing over his shoulder.

The street he was on followed a curve, it was a one way street where the Ambulances usually parked in front of the Emergency Door. The exit to the hospital was blocked by huge barriers, preventing anyone, alive or infected from moving forward. The other side of the street was also blocked, meaning there was only one way in or out, that being the sewers. But since this was VR, that meant people could enter the apartments nearby. There was one that gave a good vantage point of the hospital entrance and the manhole. Meaning if they got a good vantage point, they could potentially cover both. He moved around the front of the ambulance, looking directly at the apartment, seeing several open windows, all of them giving a good birds eye view of the entire street.

"Hinata, Kureha, Zeliska...the apartments that face the hospital are most likely hiding a squad. If I were to guess, it's either Kirito's squad, or someone else. They have the manhole covered as well as the entrance to the hospital, we can't let them shoot any of you. So until I say, don't leave that post."

"Understood, what would you like us to do until then?" Zeliska asked curiously. He sighed, remaining silent for a brief moment. He noticed the granite sign that was placed just outside of the entrance of Mercy Hospital, the golden letters shining in the low light. He smirked a bit, a plan already in mind.

"Okay...we have to get them to take a shot. If it's a sniper then the second shot will be visible. There's a granite sign nearby, I want Zeliska to move behind it. She has more ammo for her rifle than you Kureha. Hinata cover both of them alright?"

"Okay Master! I'll focus on covering Zeliska's movements!" the AI eagerly replied.

"Are you sure this will work Haru?"

"It'll have too...it's the only thing we can do." he said. He heard a sigh on the other line, but no one said anything. He waited patiently for Zeliska to start climbing up, moments later she appeared out of the manhole. She started walking toward the entrance, keeping her eyes peeled. Haru heard the clicking again, a smirk appearing on his face. He crouched down, his feet glowing slightly as he activated a skill.

"Omnia Vanitas." he chanted, dashing forward. He took three steps, grabbing a hold of Zeliska as he ran, ducking behind a car. At the same time, the sniper took their shoot, having missed entirely.

Having regained his footing, Haru quickly shouldered his rifle, aiming at the open window, firing a shot. He fired a second in quick succession, following it with a third, breaking the glass. Zeliska, though surprised, stepped up next to the boy, opening fire on the building, while he took cover. It didn't take long for Kureha and Hinata to come out of the sewers, joining their friends, hiding behind the granite sign. They all opened fire on the building, not relenting in the slightest.

Zeliska had a small smirk on her face as she continued lighting up the building. He eyes widened a bit when she saw a rather large bullet line in the center of her chest. Haru tackled her out of the way, just in time to avoid getting hit.

"Let's go!" he said, pulling her to her feet. He took cover behind the granite sign, which started being shot at moments later.

"We aren't letting you get in there Haru!" a familiar voice cried out. He peeked from around the corner, seeing the smiling face of Yuuki Konno, one of his friends. The violet haired girl was running at him, a photon sword in her hand. He tried taking aim at her, but she kept ducking left and right, making it impossible for him to get an aim.

"Master, take this!" Hinata cried, throwing something at him, which he quickly caught. His eyes looked it over in a brief second, a smile on his face. He pressed the button, the Photon Sword sparked to life and he rose it in time to guard Yuuki's strike, sparks falling all around them. He pushed her back, the extra seconds he gained were used to sling his rifle across his back.

"I wasn't expecting to see you here. Thought you'd be in the building." he said, earning a playful smirk from the girl.

"I thought we would lay an ambush. We're a recon squad of sorts, me, Rain, Klein, Strea, and Philia. We've been taking down players, waiting until we ran into you." she said.

"You aren't going to make this easy for us are you?" he asked curiously, causing her to shake her head.

"Nope, I'm afraid not." she replied. She ran forward, swinging her sword at him, which he easily dodged. He grabbed a hold of her arm, throwing her away from him, but she regained her footing, coming back at him just as quick. She pulled her sword back, activating the skill Sharp Nail, thrusting her sword at him.

"God what do I do? My sword skills are a bit rusty, I haven't used any of them since I got my sniper rifle." he thought, weaving back and forth to dodge her attack. He swung his sword hard, abusing the post skill cooldown to push the girl back. She hit the ambulance, stumbling a bit before regaining her footing. He swung his sword again, leaving a glowing orange gash on the side of the vehicle.

"You aren't gonna win Haru! Just give up!" Yuuki teased, a smirk on her face.

"Aw come on Yuuki! Just let me be, I took you on a motorcycle ride remember?"

"Muu...don't use that on me!" she cried back, reaching for her handgun. He reached behind his back for his M9, dashing at her at the same time. He pulled the trigger five times, stunning the girl as each round struck her body. He pulled his sword back, driving it through her mid section.

"Too slow!" he teased, earning a growl from the girl. She pressed the barrel of her gun to his chest, pulling the trigger once. He lost his footing, falling to the ground, clutching the bleeding wound. Yuuki was about to finish him off, when several bullet lines appeared on her body, courtesy of Kureha and Zeliska. They opened fire on the girl, who was forced to retreat to the safety of the ambulance.

"Haru! Get your fucking ass in here!" Kureha shouted. The boy quickly stood up, grabbing a hold of his weapons, racing toward the Hospital entrance. He dove over the reception counter, just as a hail of gunfire tore into the emergency room. Haru peeked above the desk, seeing a crimson blur dashing forward, a pair of familiar SMG's in its grasp.

"Shit, it's Rain. They're moving in, hurry and close this door!" he said, pulling himself into the room. Zeliska closed and locked the door, placing the bar in the slats, preventing it from opening. They pulled a pair of filing cabinets in front of it, just for an added measure, bullets tearing through the wall.

"We can't stay here for long. Klein is with them and he has an RPG, they'll blow this door open soon." he said, forcing himself to stand up. His eyes drifted to his HP bar, seeing it was still slowly dropping. Kureha grabbed the last remaining Health Kit, and started patching him up.

"Then let's hurry up and go."

"There's another thing you should know, Yuuki told me they were a recon squad. Seems to me like they aren't interested in winning, the real challenge is already in the hospital. Kirito, Asuna, Leafa, Sinon, Liz and Silica are most likely already here. They're probably staking out this place, waiting for squads to take them down." he said.

"Not a bad idea...what about the infected spawn rates?" Zeliska asked curiously.

"I'm not sure, but the spawn rates seem to be at random. Cardinal is using something called "The Director." meaning it allows this option to decide what goes on." Hinata said. They all let out a sudden yelp as another hail of gunfire started striking the wall. Haru hit the small pile of ammo, quickly replenishing ammunition on all of his weapons. He grabbed the M4A1 that had been left on the table, along with all of the ammo he could carry with it.

"Let's go, I think I know where Kirito and his squad are making a stand. There's an ammo dump in front of the elevator on the fourth floor. They're probably taking care of the infected and going back to it. This is gonna be the hardest leg of the journey. So let's go in and give them hell...the Young Bloods are gonna win this shit!" he said firmly.

"Ura!" Zeliska shouted happily. She started heading for the door, along with Hinata.

"This is gonna be fun...are you ready Haru?" Kureha asked.

"Damn straight, you love close quarters combat no? This is gonna be fun for you too. Before we go, is it alright if I give you something?" he asked.

"Sure." she replied, a confused look on her face. She was half expecting to get an item, when she instead received a kiss on the lips. She giggled softly, leaning into it before breaking it.

"What was that for?"

"Good luck. I know your aim is true, but we'll need it more than ever now." he said, giving her a wink.

"Oi lovebirds, any day now." Zeliska said, a look of amusement on her face. Haru rolled his eyes, heading toward the exit. Kureha followed suit, cheeks flushed pink.

"I feel so happy...I was such an idiot earlier. Maybe...I'll finally have something my sister doesn't have. A sweet guy that loves me for myself...I can't wait until this is over. I'm gonna kiss him until he passes out." she thought a grin on her face as she thought about her childhood friend, and the boy she had fallen hopelessly in love with.