Conflict

by Ourania Aella

Chapter 1 - A Warrior's Birth

Kirigaya Kazuto was not your average teenager. He was a very anti-social person that didn't fear others, but rather found himself shunning them without thought or reason. He was never one that could interact properly with those of his own age, something that he seemed have no control over. When he was younger, he had been avidly involved with kendo along with his younger sister. He has also been better at conversing with those his own age. Now, he seemed disillusioned with reality, sometimes not even talking to his own family.

It was not like he didn't care about them, no he loved his younger sister and mother. He just didn't know what to think anymore. When he was younger, he learned the truth about his family; that his sister wasn't really his sister and that his mother wasn't really his mother. His real parents had died years before.

That fact didn't affect him in the way that one would think it would. He still loved his family, it was just that he didn't know how to act around them any more. So, he just did the first thing he thought of and shut himself out.

This past year however, things had been getting progressively worse. He'd been falling deeper than ever before into gaming and his family were beginning to worry. His grades were still at the top of his class, but he didn't even speak to his classmates anymore.

He was lost.

His sister, or rather his cousin, Suguha had become increasingly worried this past month now that he'd become even more distant. All he'd been doing lately was listening, reading or watching something on the internet. He wasn't even playing his games any more.

As he woke up, Kirito stretched and sleepily got out of bed. Eyeing the alarm clock with a lazy expression, he found that he had woken up late once again. The telltale signs of muffled conversation flowed from below, likely Suguha and his mother conversing. They were probably talking about him over their breakfast. Something they had been doing frequently.

He sighed. They were becoming more and more concerned about him. Getting up, he walked over to his computer and checked the MMO Today website for any news. As a long time subscriber, he had access to knowledge before the public did, something he'd always found immensely useful, especially on days like this. Looking back at the screen, he saw that MMO Today had a new post on their public blog. Once he saw the title though, he immediately set everything aside and read it.

"Argus Opens Beta Applications for Aincrad Online!

This morning at around 06:00, Argus posted a link on their main website to the sign up forms for the Aincrad Online beta. According to a source within Argus, the sign ups will only be available for one week. A month prior to the beta event itself, all accepted beta testers will be mailed a special data chip for the Nerve Gear to allow them to play Aincrad Online.

If you would like a chance at playing this game, as well as being assured a copy upon release, you better sign up soon! Time is ticking and plenty of people want to win!

On another note, we at MMO Today will be bringing you live coverage of the MMO throughout the beta period and are now also allowed to tell you of any contests that will award a beta invite, including our own. Be sure to watch out for them!

- Thinker, Admin of MMO Today"

Quickly snapping to attention, Kazuto navigated to the Argus website to sign up for the beta. According to the blog post, the beta applications required a lot of personal information, which some would be uncomfortable giving, such as one's address. However, given the fact that one would need to be mailed their copy of the beta version of Aincrad Online, it was understandable.

As he navigated through the forms, he readily filled out his name, address, date of birth, as well as the other necessary information. Once he reached the end of the application, he found there was another step; a survey. 'They're probably trying to weed out people who wouldn't find bugs and get the best possible playerbase to test everything...' he thought idly.

Finishing up the application, he decided to get ready for another day of relaxation and watching for information about Aincrad Online. He had several feeds set up to give him updates as soon as they came.

As he sat down by his computer, he heard his sister getting ready to head out to her kendo club's daily practice. Even if it was the weekend, it was her daily routine to be there every day to practice and improve.

"I'm off, Onii-chan!" Having called that out so many times recently, it had already become something of a habit for her. It was a bit of a dismal thought. These days, it was more common for her to say 'bye' then for her to actually speak to him.

She sighed at that train of thought. She wished she could just spend time with him like before, but he never seemed interested. When she called him down to eat with the family he was always silent. She knew he cared, after all he would always listen, but spending time with her of his own accord was rare. Sometimes, she wished he would return to Kendo just to spend more time with her. He was surprisingly talented back in the day; he'd probably be winning tournaments everywhere nowadays had he stuck to it.

As she approached the school, she began to see more and more students heading in for their clubs or meets. All of them were chatting animatedly, overall just enjoying themselves with friends.

Once she got to her kendo club's building, she overheard two of her sempai talking. "Did you hear that they're actually hosting a Kendo tournament with a game as a prize? Apparently the game is special, something called Aincrad Online, but it's still a game." At that point she tuned out the conversation. She didn't really care. Gaming was her brother's hobby, not hers. 'Maybe I'll enter and get Onii-chan the game... maybe he'd like it...'

She spent the rest of her time at club practicing, pushing herself to her utmost limits to try and improve. It was her usual routine and very fulfilling, but it could be pretty dull at times. Doing the same thing day after day can get tiring.

She was the last to leave her club that day and, as such, she had to put away the equipment. A tedious task, but not one that she wasn't used to. While finishing up, she passed by one of her classmates, Nagata Shinichi was his name if she remembered correctly. The boy was talking animatedly to one of his friends about the same game she heard of earlier, Aincrad Online.

She'd decided to get it out of the way now and just interrupt and ask. "Uhm... Nagata-san, why's everyone talking about that game?"

"Ah... Sugu-"

"Kirigaya. Don't call me by my first name." She wasn't friends with him and wanted to make that clear.

"Ah, well there is a lot of talk of a new game coming out soon for the Virtual Reality system called the Nerve Gear. You actually become your character and use swords and magic, you see. It's not something you'd like though, at least I think..." By the end of his explanation, he was mumbling, obviously embarrassed by talking to a girl.

She thanked him and left. It was an interesting premise to be able to experience something like that. She could certainly imagine herself wielding a sword, plowing through any obstacle in her way. Was this how her brother imagined himself when he played games, she wondered. She quickly rid herself of those thoughts and finished putting everything away before heading home. She had to get there in time for dinner or her mother would be angry.

Sprinting home, she arrived just as her mother was still cooking. Taking in a breath of relief, she went to shower and dress in something a bit more comfortable. While her track uniform was nice for practice itself, she was sweaty and so were her clothes. It was kind of disgusting to continue wearing them.

When she finally finished dressing after showering, she heard her mother call them down for dinner. Seeing that her brother didn't answer, she called out to him.

"Onii-chan! Mom's calling us for dinner." She waited a moment for an answer but got nothing. Knocking on his door, she still got no answer. "Onii-chan and his games..." she mumbled out and opened the door.

On his screen was the MMO Today website with a video of a girl showing some pictures of something that looked oddly real for one of his games. Walking up next to him to see, she looked closer and saw that it was something about the game everyone was talking about. Aincrad online. 'Everyone is talking about it... It's even getting to the point people who don't care about games are starting to hear about it. It'll probably be on the news too!' It really was getting crazy in her mind. What was so special? It was just a game! Maybe a special one, but still a game!

Pausing the video once Kazuto glimpsed his sister out of the corner of his eyes, he took off his headphones.

"Sugu, what's up? Something wrong?"

"Ah!" She quickly snapped out of her thoughts. "Mom called us down to eat dinner. I'll head down first." As quick as she was surprised, she left, not wanting to look flustered in front of her brother.

As Suguha left his room, Kazuto was worrying about how he would get into the beta. There were a couple tournaments and contests, most of which required one to have some kind of talent. He himself... well the only talent he really had was gaming itself, quickly ascending to be a top player in almost any MMORPG he played. Though, being the top player in an MMO didn't necessarily mean he had any special talent. He knew there would be a kendo tournament for a copy soon but he didn't have enough time to brush up on kendo enough to actually compete. He could ask his sister to enter for him, but he felt it was wrong to do so. He pushed his family away, he didn't have the right to ask them for help.

Even at the table with his family, his thoughts went back to the new post that popped up in the subscriber's section of the MMO Today website.

"Beta Invitations and the Aincrad Online Combat System!

After a few days of debating, we've finally decided what to do the beta codes given to us at the conference. This did not come easy as there are many of us within MMO Today that would love to play the game.

We've decided to give 14 of our employees a beta code and one to use for myself. For the next twenty, we will be giving them away to YOU, yes YOU, our subscribers. Sadly, while we encourage people to subscribe, we've archived those who are subscribed prior to this post and 20 of those people will get a code. If you subscribe after this post, you will not get a chance at winning a code.

The last 15 codes - well, we've decided to try something new.

We're looking for 15 people willing to create posts and blog about their adventures within Aincrad Online. To apply, we'll post up an application soon. We're looking for different kinds of people, so good luck if you apply!

On another note, Argus has released the first information about their combat system. We are told that there are four classes: the Mage, Warrior, Templar, and Scout. Apparently there is no healing class which seems to be a very daring move on the part of Argus.

You can find a bit more information on the Argus website or wait for our podcast for an in depth analysis of each class. I promise, it'll be worth your time!

Thank you for being a loyal subscriber,

- Thinker, Admin of MMO Today"

This was without a doubt probably his biggest chance. While the applications weren't open yet, he had a good chance to be one of the top candidates as he'd dealt with MMO Today previously, being interviewed by the for a small column they held for some of the top PvPers in a big MMO he had played a year ago. As long as they weren't randomizing their choices, he felt he had a pretty good chance but he wouldn't know for sure until the applications went up.

He sighed, it was no use worrying about it before he could do anything. He had other things he could think about, less stressful and far more positive things.

Argus had released information about their classes and he already knew which one he would pick. He, as usual, would be a warrior; a close combat damage dealer. And in Aincrad Online, it gave him an even better incentive to choose one.

In Aincrad Online, many - including himself - believed that one could evade attacks altogether if you had fast enough reflexes, something he was sure he had. That meant he would be able to effectively solo his way through anything except bosses. Maybe if he was skilled enough... even some of those could possibly be solo'd. No, it would be better not to presume anything, but he could certainly hope.

"Kazuto-kun, what are you thinking about? You haven't even touched your food yet." His mother told him.

"Sorry, just another game. haha..." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly before digging into his dinner. This wasn't the first time he'd zoned out and it most certainly wasn't the last.

As Kazuto and his family finished eating, he decided to leave his thoughts to another day and went to bed. It wouldn't due to worry about this the entire day. 'Maybe I'll play a game for a bit first...'

He really was a dedicated gamer.

As for Suguha, she was deep in thought. 'I wonder what makes Onii-chan want to play games so much? Is it really that much fun? I don't get it...'

Seeing as her thoughts were on the topic, she turned on her laptop, laid down on her stomach and decided to browse the internet for some information about this new game that had everybody going crazy. 'Aincrad Online...'

Overall, she found a quite a bit of information as well as a large amount of speculation. Apparently, not a lot of people actually knew much about it yet. Aincrad Online was a recently announced MMORPG for the Nerve Gear. It was the first of its kind in that it employed Virtual Reality to truly give a new and exciting feeling to the game. The game itself was said to have an almost unlimited amount of these things known as skills and allowed the player to do whatever they wanted at any given point in time.

Its combat, the only part she was even remotely interested in, was unknown as of yet, but it focused on four classes. The Templar, which was called the 'Pinnacle of defense'. The Warrior, which was said to be 'The perfect class for those who want excitement and in your face action'. That would likely be her class. The Mage, which was said to be the most flexible class. The last class, the Scout, wasn't revealed yet but said to embody every aspect that you could think it would mean. According to most MMOs, that would mean a ninja like class, at least that's what she thought. Other than that information, everything else was speculation, although Argus had said that there would be several more surprises in store within the 'immense' class and combat system. She was curious as to what they meant by immense. It seemed pretty simple to her.

The rest, such as the guild, crafting, and other systems, she didn't have much interest in. There were, however, a lot of things to do, which meant she probably wouldn't get bored too quickly. Well, she hoped she wouldn't. After all, she didn't actually know much.

After yawning rather loudly, she decided that was enough for the day and went to sleep. School didn't agree with late nights and neither did kendo practice.

Before she fell asleep, she resolved to enter the tournament the next day if only to figure out why her brother liked these games so much. Who knows, maybe she would even be able to have some fun with him again. It had been a very long time since she'd done anything with him.

The next morning, before Suguha got out of the house to head to school, she made sure to submit her entry form for the tournament before leaving. That way, Kazuto wouldn't find out that she was going to try and play a game out of curiosity and she wouldn't be embarrassed in front of him.

Two weeks later, Suguha, along with one of her sempais, were in front of the building that would hold the tournament for the game. While she was somewhat embarrassed she had to tell her sempai about it, she couldn't hide the fact she was entering too. She just hoped they wouldn't face each other or she'd feel bad for beating her. She was the best at kendo among the students in her school. The only person she ever lost to was her brother and even then, that was a long time ago. She had improved greatly since then.

As she walked into the old building, she saw that there were quite a few people participating. All of them seemed to be around her age, within four or five years at most. They had divided the tournament into two brackets, as they had two codes to give away. The first were for those still in school while the second was for adults who had decided to join. It was slightly unfair for the younger people that entered, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Once she got a look at the brackets, she was relieved to find that she wouldn't be fighting her sempai unless they both made it to the finals. It was something she had partially hoped would happen, as she wouldn't have minded the challenge.

As contestants were called up to fight, she paid attention to who was good and who wasn't, looking to see if they might be a challenge. From what she could see, most were absolute beginners just here to try and get the game. A part of her was annoyed - no, completely furious with these people. They all underestimated kendo and the discipline involved in it. A couple of people hadn't even known the rules!

Once her name was called, she quickly took care of the amateur she was matched against and sat back down in the stands.

For a tournament that anyone could enter, it wasn't that bad. Well, as much as she wanted to think that, it was in actuality... quite terrible. She saw a good couple of competitors that were going to be a good challenge but at this rate, out of the 128 people that were in the tournament, only about forty had a formal education in kendo.

Round one was over. 64 people were left. She and her sempai both passed this round. Thankfully, most of the challenging opponents with formal education were on her sempais side of the bracket so she wouldn't have to worry about too many people.

Just as round one came and went, round two did as well, ending with 32 people still in the tournament. Most of the people that shouldn't have entered had been eliminated. Suguha had gone against a boy of decent skill, but she had easily managed take him out. However, her sempai was not as lucky. She had gone up against a 17 year-old boy whose style showed an immense amount of practice and experience.

The rest of the rounds went similarly with Suguha continuing to win, while the boy on the other side did the same until the finals. Though, with the age difference, Suguha was obviously a bit intimidated. He was stronger than her and probably had more experience than her.

As the two walked up to the center of the stage, they put on their equipment and waited for the referee to start the match.

The moment the match began, the boy took advantage of his size and Suguha's intimidated mindset to quickly break through her defence and score a hit on the top of her head.

The first point was awarded to him and there were only two points left for Suguha to get. She couldn't make another mistake. Another mistake would end in a loss. That was something she couldn't afford. 'Onii-chan wouldn't back down and I won't either!' Her brother was more than just that. He was her idol and the person she cared about most.

With new resolve, she quickly parried the next swing and then went for a point by hitting the back of her opponent's hand. While he was able to avoid it, she was moving much faster than before and was now using her size to her advantage. Her opponent was not prepared for the sudden change in her style. The aggressive moves she'd been using proved to give her the advantage and she scored a point on the neck.

The boy immediately saw her in a new light. This wasn't going to be as easy a fight as he thought it would be. Of course it wouldn't be. Even in a tournament like this it was still the finals. Surely there would be at least one other talented competitor. He realised that now, and shifted his stance slightly.

It was now one point to one point. Within Kendo, and in a competitive match, there were only three points. The first with two points would win the match. They would get the prize and go home with one of the most sought after things in the world. They could sell it for an absurd sum of money or use it for themselves. It was up to winner, but they would be sure to put it to good use.

With the final point up for grabs, both of them were nervous. The moment they began, both played it defensively. Suguha's eyes widened slightly once she realized a flaw in his form. She'd seen it when he fought her sempai. Whenever he made a downward swing, he'd always bring his hand up too high. While the flaw was there, it wasn't blatantly obvious. It wasn't something someone could easily take advantage of either.

'Do or die then...' she thought.

Quickly making a feint, she made an opening for him to strike and the moment he saw it, he took it. Changing her stance mid swing, she made an uppercut towards his wrist. The moment when his hands came down, she hit his wrist cleanly, seconds before he hit her head.

She quickly looked towards the referee and saw the white flag up in the air and jumped for joy. She did it! She won! It wasn't easy at the end but she came through just like her brother always did. Looking behind her, she saw her sempai run up to her and hug her, all the while congratulating her for winning.

Turning back to the boy, she thanked him for the great match and he in turn did the same with a small smile on his face. This wasn't just a tournament for a game for them. It was a battle, one that she won against the odds. She deserved the win.

As she got her prize and left the building to head home, all she wished was for her brother to have been there watching her. It didn't make it any less of a win, but it was the first competition in which her brother wasn't there to cheer for her. Next time, she decided that she would take him along no matter what. Still, she knew he would be proud of her.

When she finally got home, she hid the chip away and decided not to touch it until a bit closer to the beta.

Later that day, Suguha made sure Kazuto was either in his room or asleep, before going down to talk to her mother. Slowly, she explained what the prize for the tournament was and how she wanted to keep it a secret from Kazuto. The reason for this was for the simple fact that she needed a Nerve Gear in order to play. Those were expensive. Thanks to her beta code she could buy one directly from Argus, but she still wouldn't be able to afford it without her mother's help. Thankfully, they were well off and convincing her mother would be the only problem.

"Don't worry, just make sure not to get sucked in like your brother, all right?"

"Yes! Thank you mom!" She quickly hugged her mother and went up for bed.

As she fell asleep, she couldn't help but smile with how well things were going.

For Kazuto though, things weren't going quite so well. He had been waiting for the MMO Today site to allow people to apply and blog about the game. Every post seemed to hint that it was soon and it was starting to get frustrating.

Finally, the morning that Suguha went out to her Kendo tournament, MMO Today opened their applications and he was, of course, one of the first to fill it out. Apparently the requirements for it were quite strict. You had to have logged over 100 hours on a single MMO, previously been involved with some form of publication, been somewhat known in the game you were playing, and then to finally be interviewed by them after they picked their top choices. And even then, you also had to write a blog post introducing yourself to the readers of MMO Today. It was a long list of things, but it was something he sadly had to do.

Surprisingly enough, he found out that he was chosen to be interviewed.

Waiting, he finally received the web call he'd been waiting for. As he answered and turned on his video camera, he was surprised to see the image of Thinker; the admin of MMO Today. He did not know who would interview him in advance, but he was pleasantly surprised.

"Hello, Thinker-san!" He said slightly nervously.

"Don't be so formal, Kirigaya-kun. Let's just take this interview like your last one." Thinker smiled kindly, trying to calm the boy down. He'd been there when the boy was interviewed last time and always liked him.

"So, Kirigaya-kun, why did you want to join our blogging team?" He asked, after Kirito had relaxed somewhat.

"Well, I wanted to ensure myself a spot in Aincrad Online. If that means helping provide information to the fans, I don't think I'd mind at all. I know I'm not the only one that's going to be playing this game." He really didn't mind it. If someone would ask him for help, he'd probably help them anyway. Although he preferred to help without being the center of attention. It was just the kind of person he was.

"I see. Now, just to make sure, you don't mind working with others, right? I remember you being a solo player." Thinker really did his research. He knew the exactly the questions to ask and how to ask them comfortably.

"Yes. While I don't mind working with others, I do prefer to play solo. It's a more of a challenge. I've played in parties often as well, even led a couple raids too!"

The questions went on as such for another twenty minutes and Kazuto was starting to get a bit nervous. Thinker seemed to have come to a conclusion about five minutes ago and the rest had just been a formality.

"Thank you, Kirigaya-kun. I appreciate the time you've given me here to get to know our fifteenth choice." Thinker suddenly said with a big grin before he started laughing at the look on Kazuto's face. It was the look of utter confusion. "Sorry, we've had you picked out for a while now and have already interviewed all the other candidates. You were always just so serious that I wanted to see your face." By this time, a couple of people came into the webcam's view, including the girl who had interviewed him last time.

"Hey Kazuto-kun! It'll be nice working with you!" she said excitedly. It seemed that these people weren't that bad at all. At least they were gamers just like he was. There would be some common ground to start off on.

He went to sleep that day with a smile on his face, he couldn't help but think that things were going well. The same thought his sister had when she had won her tournament and pass into the beta.

As the beta approached, more and more information was being released. MMO Today constantly released new information about crafting, dungeons, or just pictures of what the game looked like. Kazuto had gotten to know some of the people from MMO Today and had received his copy of the game in the mail.

One month before the beta, all the beta testers had received their data chips in the mail and were ready to go.

Finally, one week before the release, MMO Today posted what would be their last Aincrad Online related post till the beta began.

"Aincrad Online

One week from today will be when the gates open, and we take our first steps into Aincrad, the Castle in the Sky. As we have said before, we will sure to cover the beta every step of the way. Before then, we will bring you one last description of Aincrad Online.

Aincrad, the Castle in the Sky. A flourishing world full of endless things to do and limitless places to be, full of fantastic environments that will amaze you day after day. With each boss killed, a new challenge rises up. With each floor conquered, a new world opens up. With each task completed, new possibilities await you. Each craft, each kill, all culminating into one final fight for the fate Aincrad itself. One hundred floors cleared and conquered, that's our goal. Your goal, as the heroes of Aincrad.

Are you all excited? We are.

We look forward to playing with all of you,

- The MMO Today Aincrad Online Team"

A/N: Well guys, here's chapter 1 of Conflict. Thanks to Whiz and Touma for being amazing betas and helping me out with this.

So, things are starting to get going. Next chapter will be very exciting and a bit longer too. Hope you continue reading, some big changes are on the way.

I'll be starting the next chapter this week and will probably stick to updating regularily. Expect something to happen with my other fic, Lionheart, as well. Once I get my hand on my old notes this week.