Chapter 1

November 6th, 2022

The top of my bed was a complete mess, what with all the boxes and instructions scattered around, but I didn't really care. An irritatingly foolish smile refused to get off of my face as I stared at the game box in my hands. Getting my hands on the only game I had been anticipating had definitely been worth the long wait. That game being, of course, Sword Art Online. The store where I purchased my copy had almost run out of the game, and after I managed to buy one of the few remaining copies the line still stretched out around the block. Regardless, I was one of the lucky 10,000 that got to play on launch.

Ah. Come to think of it, it should be about that time. A check of the time on my wall monitor confirmed that it was getting close to 1:00, the time when the game would be open to the public. I swung myself off of the bed and started getting the NerveGear hooked up. I'd already fallen victim to my weakness and put it together as soon as it arrived, several days ago, but I'd managed to retain enough self-control to not turn it on until just before it was time.

After everything was plugged in, I strapped it onto my head and powered it on. After running through the basic start-up sequence, it asked me to run through a simple calibration sequence. It made sense; after all, the machine needed to know how my mind worked in order to run the virtual reality correctly. I followed the instructions exactly, not seeing a reason to disobey. After all, it would be bad to end up with a distorted nerve pattern.

The calibration had taken less time than I'd allocated it, however, and I found I still had a few minutes before the game started. Since there was nothing better to do – everything was plugged in, lunch had been eaten, and the game had been inserted – I let myself relax on the small bed in my room. I was alone in our small house, my only company my cat sleeping on the floor, basking in the sunlight coming through the window. Both parents were at work and wouldn't be returning until after 7:00. That gave me a full six hours of uninterrupted game time.

I kept catching myself glancing at the time at the top left of the display window. 12:53, 12:54. I tried to not watch the clock. When my resolve betrayed me, I closed my eyes in anticipation of the linking. Leaving your own body and hopping into a virtual one seemed so amazing; you could be someone completely different. Someone with power and skills unlike your own.

The best part of virtual reality games was using your mind to control that person. If you tried hard enough and practiced enough, you might be able to drill skills into muscle memory. Either way, you became someone else and not yourself. For me, that could only be an improvement. My body was less than stellar, and the list of flaws was as long as it was varied. I was weak, I was small, I was…

The familiar thoughts made my lips curve into a wry smile. Self-loathing and disgust – two very familiar emotions. Most of the time, I kept myself busy enough and avoided thinking about it, but in these occasional moments of relaxation and silence the outside noise was diminished enough that my mind would start running in circles. Inevitably, I would end up spiraling deeper and deeper into a thorough contemplation of how much was wrong with me.

Sighing, I opened my eyes and checked the time again. Fortunately, I was rewarded with only a minute left before the game launched. As I shifted to a slightly more comfortable position on the bed, I felt my cat jump up onto the bed and curl up next to me. He did enjoy sleeping next to me while I was on the bed, though I would always end up making him leave by moving too much. In that case, he would adore the FullDive, since I would be paralyzed while Diving.

The time on the monitor clicked to 1:00. I felt my heartbeat rise in anticipation as I uttered the words that would let me log into Sword Art Online. The talented authors of the fantasy books I read would have called it a magic spell or something ornate, but really it was just a trigger phrase the NerveGear's software recognized. "Link Start!"

Immediately, my vision went white as the real world slipped away. Streaks of light stretched out to greet me as if I was falling. The next few seconds were disorienting as I fell; it was strange to have all of my senses checked and verified one by one, but I stoically sat through the different tests. I didn't particularly mind so long as nothing went wrong.

Before too long, though, I was presented with a screen that any fool should recognize – the avatar customization screen. I was momentarily stunned by the sheer variety of options available to me; I could even play as a female if I so desired, though I quickly dismissed that as a possibility. In a fit of impetuousness, I manipulated my avatar so that it was slightly taller than my real body, though only by a few inches. I was shorter than most in my class, though granted that's because I was a year younger than they were, and so I was well aware of the power of height. I didn't really see a reason to change much else, though I did change the hairstyle. It wasn't hard to find something that looked cooler than I normally did.

Eventually I was ready to go, as soon as I decided upon the name of my SAO character. I considered just using one of my usual handles, but discarded that idea. This was a different person. This body wasn't me, so it had to have a different name. Hm… Rythin has a good ring to it. Ironic, yes, but it will work. I swiftly typed that in and entered the rest of the game.

I was greeted by Sword Art Online's welcome screen and swiftly tumbled through streaks of blue light and electricity. When my vision cleared, I saw that I was standing in an open arena, swiftly filling with other bodies as soft chimes heralded other players logging in. I looked down to see that I was wearing a typical set of brown boots and dark pants that other players seemed to be wearing. But that wasn't my body. I couldn't help the smile at the thought. This was virtual reality. I reached out in front of me and stretched my fingers wide, the leather of my fingerless gloves stretching, knowing full well that back in the real world my physical body hadn't moved an inch. The spawn area was starting to get oppressively crowded, though, and further experimentation had to wait as I ducked to the side to get away from the crowds. I never was comfortable in large groups.

As I drifted to the side, my thoughts drifted to the creator of this game and the NerveGear, Akihiko Kayaba. The man was a genius; he created this game and the hardware necessary to play it all by himself. Apparently, he'd been developing the game for such a long time that development started when he was in his twenties. That takes real dedication. I doubt I could be that dedicated to something. My absent musings led me down a path with plenty of shopkeepers selling items and equipment – though I didn't bother looking at the wares, since I'll likely be getting acquainted with the NPCs that ran the shops in due time.

"Eh…?" A small unintentional grunt of surprise interrupted my train of thought when I saw two figures sprinting off into an alleyway a little further down the street. From this far away I couldn't make out any details, but following them was as good an idea as any. If they knew where they were going, chances were good that one or both had been a beta tester. One in ten players in this game were beta testers, people who'd played the game before I had a chance to access it, and they most likely knew the locations of all the good quests, spawns, and drops. Following one or two of them would give me a good headstart on figuring out how this game worked.

I rounded the corner and saw the two figures standing in the middle of the alley. They seemed to be talking, but before I could get close enough to listen to their conversation they turned and continued on their way, most likely to go fight mobs and reap the rewards. I followed them from a safe distance, not sure if they'd mind my company. As they made their way out of the city and I followed, I noticed that the one with the black hair seemed to know his way around the Town of Beginnings better than the other one with a headband and lighter hair. Given the way the black-haired one was leading the headband one, I needed to revise my initial guess. The one with the black hair was most likely a beta tester, though I doubted the other man was.

Eventually, they stopped in the middle of the field and I took shelter behind a bush, hidden from sight. A flash of polygons signaled the spawning of an enemy, one that turned out to be a boar. The tusks looked vicious, though as a mook on the first floor they couldn't be too hard. The man with the headband took up a ready stance and charged the boar, though it quickly sent him flying away with a well-placed headbutt. I winced in shared pain, as the blow looked like it landed in a very sensitive region. The man with red hair writhed on the ground for a time before the beta tester got fed up with him.

"Oh come on, seriously? You can't feel any pain." At his words, the red-haired man blinked and stopped writhing.

"Oh yeah, you're right." He stood up gingerly, as if anticipating more pain. "Sorry, habit."

The beta tester looked at the other man, probably looking at his health bar. "Remember what I said – the first move is the most important."

The injured member slumped forward a slight bit. "Yeah, that's easy for you to say." He looked over to the boar; it was twitching its tail and calmly snorting occasionally. "But it won't stand still!" he grunted in exasperation. The beta tester smiled, and proceeded to kneel and pick up a small pebble.

"If you do your initial motion right…" While speaking, he tossed the pebble in the air and caught it. He drew back his arm to throw it. His actions made no sense – a pebble couldn't do much damage to the boar, if any. Its hide was just too thick. As he drew back his arm, though, something strange happened. The pebbled started glowing faintly red. "…and activate a Sword Skill at the right time…"

He narrowed his eyes, and threw the glowing rock. As it left his hand, it made a small boom and streaked toward the boar. I let out a small gasp of surprise, not expecting a pebble to be able to be used as a weapon. The pebble struck the boar on its left flank, causing it to squeal in irritation. There was a small red spot on the boar's hide where the pebble struck, though it quickly faded away. The man straightened and said, "…the system pretty much guarantees you'll always hit your target."

"Initial…motion…?" The man with a bandana sounded as confused as I felt. How were you supposed to know when to attack? Was there a small chime in your ear to tell you that the skill was ready? I knew about the Sword Skills, of course; the main draw of SAO was its fluid combat system.

The beta tester in blue had drawn his sword and was holding it in one hand, facing off against the angry boar. The enemy mook was scraping at the ground, preparing to charge. "Here's an easier way to look at it." As he spoke, the boar charged, though he dodged easily. "Right after you start your move, wait for a little bit." The boar charged again, and instead of dodging he parried the blow, catching the boar's horns on his sword. "When you feel the skill start to activate, drive it home!"

His words mad a lot of sense to me, and it seemed like they had a similar effect on the other swordsman. From where I was hiding in the bushes, I could see him look off to the side, probably thinking about what the other had said. "Eh… drive it home?" Suddenly, he gasped and got into a fighting stance, knees slightly bent and feet apart. The stance looked a little clumsy, though I didn't really have any room to talk. I spent all my time reading or playing games, rather than taking any sort of martial art. The red-haired man raised his sword over his shoulder and waited, just like the other had said. As expected, the sword blade started glowing a pale yellow. The color change was most likely a sign that a sword skill was prepared and ready for action.

Seeing that, the swordsman locked with the boar smiled and broke free from the boar, kicking it toward the other man. I caught myself holding my breath and leaning forward, trying to tell if the instructions would work. The red-haired man let out a yell and swung his sword, holding it straight in front of him and kicking off the ground. He moved at a speed that seemed impossible, slicing straight through the side of the boar. My eyes widened in surprise. So the sword skills really did work.

The boar, drained of its health, burst into blue polygons. A small screen popped up; from where I was crouching I couldn't read it, though it was most likely a list of experience, col, and items received from the fight. The red-haired swordsman looked over his shoulder, smiling in glee, before celebrating over his first victory. The black-haired swordsman watched with a small smile before saying, "Congratulations." He walked over to the other man and they slapped their palms together.

The beta tester swung his sword and sheathed it, saying "That was nice." As the other's smile grew bigger, he continued, "But that boar is about as weak as slimes in other games are." Upon hearing those words, the other's face fell immediately.

"Holy crap, you gotta be kiddin'!" His voice was raised in confusion, somewhat mirroring my own puzzlement. The enemies really were dangerous here – the game wasn't playing around. You got good or you died, over and over again. I briefly wondered about the rules of respawning, but drove it from my mind. After all, I didn't plan on losing to a collection of ones and zeroes. "I thought that was a mid-level boss!"

The beta tester looked over to another field where more boars spawned in a glowing blue light before laughing slightly. "Yeah, as if." He looked lost in his own thoughts for a moment before looking around. As his gaze landed on my hiding spot, I shrank back into the cover of the bushes. I don't know why, but I didn't want him to know that I was there. It could be that I anticipated scorn from this beta tester who knew exactly how this game was played. His attention was recaptured by his friend trying out all kinds of manners of attacking.

After trying out another Sword Skill, the red-haired warrior let out a small cry of appreciation. The beta tester looked over, curious as to what he was doing. After seeing him staring at the blade, he said "Addictive, isn't it?"

"I'll say." The other man swung his sword, stabbing and lunging, trying out different motions. "So these skills, there's a ton of them like blacksmithing and stuff, right?" He spat out the last words through gritted teeth thanks to attacking.

The other man nodded. "Uh huh. I heard the game has an unlimited number of them. All except for magic, though." While he was speaking, the red-haired swordsman was flipping his sword around, deciding how he liked to hold the blade.

After the beta tester finished speaking, the red-haired man charged up a Sword Skill. "An RPG without magic. That's a bold decision, man" he said as he unleashed the attack. After successfully attacking, he brought his hands up and celebrated, laughing joyfully to himself.

The black-haired swordsman watched the other with a smile. "So, what do you think? It's pretty fun to move your body as you fight, isn't it?" He was right – moving about in this game was like nothing I had ever experienced before. I could almost forget that it was a virtual game. The game automatically focused on whatever I looked at, to the point that it looked real.

The red-haired swordsman turned around with a smile. "Aw hells yeah!" The black-haired player smiled and nodded his head.

"You ready to move on?" he said.

"Yeah, man!" the other player replied. "Let's keep going!"

"Sure. There's some business I have to take care of first, though." For some reason, the black-haired player's words made my blood run cold. Had he discovered me? I didn't think he could have found me. I did know a few things from reading the articles talking about the game mechanics; I had tried to remain hidden by crouching in the bushes. I thought it would have been difficult to see me from there. As we both started off today with fresh characters, his beta testing wouldn't help - he didn't have access to the Searching Skill. The only possible way that he could know I was there was if he had seen me.

"I know you're there. There's no point in hiding."

Well crap. I backed out of the bushes and came around with my hands up. My dagger was clearly sheathed on my hip and so I obviously was no threat. I did my best to appear sheepish. I slightly regretted those extra inches – when the shoe was on the other foot it would be best to appear as non-threatening as possible. "Eheh…. Hello there."

"What the-" The other swordsman was shocked at my appearance. Apparently, he hadn't noticed anything. "Are you a PKer?" Suddenly, he had his sword out and threatening me.

"Whoa whoa whoa," I waved my hands frantically. "Nothing of the sort. I simply noticed you two training while I was out fighting."

The black-haired swordsman laughed. It didn't sound threatening, which made me feel slightly better. "I saw you back in the alley." That was strike two. One more and I would have been out.

"Alright, I give up." It was time to tell the truth. "The name is Rythin. I'm a complete newcomer to VR games and I guess I hoped you could help me out a bit."

The player threatening me sheathed his sword. "That's it? Man, you could have just asked. I'm Klein." He offered his hand, which I shook after a nearly imperceptible pause. My distaste at personal contact was muted, possibly because of the twin factors of not being skewered and it being virtual reality. "This here's Kirito. He used to be a beta tester, can you believe it?"

I didn't have the heart to tell him I figured it out by watching the two. "Really? That's quite remarkable. My first day and I've met one of the lucky 1,000." I turned to Kirito. "I would have said something earlier, but I was slightly averse to mentioning my presence."

He waved off my spying on them. "I just hope what I said helped." His kind smile relaxed me from the scare I had earlier; I probably wouldn't be dying today. "So, what did you choose to start with?"

His question broke me from my thoughts. "A dagger." I unsheathed it and showed it to him. "I'm thinking of aiming for a more agile build." To be honest, that had been my aim from the beginning. In other RPGs I'd played, I tended to gravitate towards the weaker classes that stayed away from the front lines, like the mage or the archer. I had a strange knack for finding patterns and rhythms in the AI's battle routines, and being in the back would let me use that knowledge more effectively. Still, though, this game seemed a lot more complex than the others I'd played.

Kirito grinned. "Well, since you've already come all the way out here, why don't you join up with us?"

That was a bit of a surprise. "You…you don't mind? Even after I watched you from the bushes?"

Klein jumped in. "Nah, man. I'd have done the same thing if I saw two guys fighting mobs."

Well then. "With an offer like that, how can I say no?"

I joined up with the two friends. Kirito was very respectful, offering advice when we needed it. Turns out, daggers could be very useful when used properly. We fought various mobs for some time, leveling up as we went. The mob drop system filled my inventory with plenty of what appeared to be crafting materials, an assumption that was verified by Kirito.

As we fought and walked, I studied my two companions. Klein was relatively easy to read. Loud and boisterous, I could tell he gave his friendship openly and freely, though there were only a few that he supported without hesitation. Kirito was quickly on his way toward the latter group, and I was apparently part of the former. Not someone he'd buy lunch in the real world, but someone he might buy lunch for here.

Kirito, however... Kirito was hard to read. He had this slight smile on more or less the entire time we were fighting - something that would lead a person to believe he was more or less the same as Klein. However, there was something off about the smile; nothing I could guess at, but something I'd seen before. I'd seen it in my own mirror occasionally. On the surface, he seemed a friendly, helpful sort; at ease with the virtual reality we inhabited, though I attributed that to his beta testing experience. I must have been staring, because Kirito looked back at me and smiled. I was taken aback, though I returned his slightly tilted smile.

After a time, the sun started going down. This surprised me for a second, though in retrospect it really shouldn't have. The world of Sword Art Online, Aincrad, mimicked the real world in every way down to the feel of the wind on my face. It would be no stretch of the imagination to believe that Kayaba could have programmed in a night-day cycle. It would be entirely possible for different species of monsters to come out at night, though I didn't intend on playing after a certain time. It did seem that my allotted time would stretch into the night, as the clock on the bottom of my user interface showed it was only 5:15. We stopped by the edge of one of the platforms stretching out over a field, Klein sitting on the grass.

His voice broke the comfortable silence. "When I look around, I can't believe it. We're inside a game, bro!" As incredulous as it was, it was the truth. Such amazing and beautiful graphics were only possible with the Full Dive technology recently developed. I took my time looking around, tuning out Klein's and Kirito's conversation. The scenery really was amazing; Kayaba had a great sense of aesthetics for a game designer. The warm golden color cast by the twilight sun stretched over us from all around, making Aincrad seem almost real somehow. The soft background music was orchestrated beautifully; I played the violin for a bit before giving it up, but I still had a good ear for music, and this was pleasing to the ears. It really was a world where you could just relax and enjoy yourself. In the distance was a flock of some sort of winged animal flying over what looked like a castle. Next to it was a calm pristine lake that led to a waterfall. Overall, a calm and relaxing effect that soothed my nerves after fighting for several hours. I closed my eyes and just drank in the feeling of the sun on my skin.

Standing up, Klein broke my half-trance and I blinked. I'd let my guard down like an idiot – if I'd been attacked from behind right then, I would have been taken before I knew what happened. I turned to my comrades, joining the real world and paying attention to their conversation again.

"Hey… I was gonna go meet up with some people I know from another game," Klein said. "I don't know what you're up to after this, but if, you know, if you want to friend them and hang with us…"

Kirito looked at Klein, somewhat shocked. I would have considered accepting the offer, had there been the chance it had been extended to me as well. But, if I did accept the invitation, I would be joining a pre-established circle of friends. Would having people to party with be worth joining an established circle like that? Thinking on it further, it would probably just leave me feeling excluded and left out. Before long, I'd be on my own again. Kirito turned away, his face shadowed. The smile I noticed on his face whenever he talked about SAO was gone.

Klein wasn't oblivious to his reaction, though it's possible he interpreted its meaning incorrectly. "N-no, it's cool if you don't want to. No pressure. I can always introduce you two to them another time or something."

Wait, 'you two'? Had the invitation actually been extended to me as well? No, that doesn't make any sense. I had been distant from him the entire day, so why would he care? Either way, Kirito seemed relieved that Klein didn't take the rejection personally. "Yeah, sorry" he said as he looked down with that half-smile again. "Thanks anyway."

"No way! I should be the one doing all the thanking." Klein said. "Hey, one of these days, I promise I'm gonna pay you back for all your help. Virtually, that is."

I added my thanks as well. "Kirito, you helped me out a lot. I'd have been lost without you. Thanks."

Kirito looked shocked at our gratitude, though slightly happy. "Yeah, right." It was clear he didn't think he did anything worth gratitude for, though Klein and I knew the reality.

"Hey, thanks for everything man. Really." Klein's sincerity finally got through to Kirito, who reacted with a small gasp of surprise. Klein held out his hand. "Guess I'll see you around, then."

Kirito shook his hand. "If there's anything else you want to know, message me." It seemed Kirito enjoyed helping others, a trait I wouldn't have given him at first glance. He did take two new players under his wing and taught them the ropes, I guess, so it did make sense. There were a few similarities to myself, but there were those few core differences that made him a good person.

Klein then held his hand out to me. "I had a good time fighting with you, Rythin. Take care, buddy." As I shook his hand, I got the impression of a strength behind the mind; this was a man that would fight fiercely for his friends.

Klein then grinned and turned to log out. As he lifted his hand to open the menu, I turned to Kirito. "Kirito, would you mind doing me the honor of being my first friend in this game?" He looked surprised, letting out a small noncommittal sound. "I don't mind you turning me down, but – "

He interrupted me before I could finish. "N-no, of course I don't mind." He swiped open his menu and quickly navigated to the friends list. He tapped a few buttons and a pop-up appeared in front of me requesting my acceptance of a friend request. I smiled and tapped the blue button; that confirmed the request and added Kirito to my friends list. I looked up to see Kirito smiling without that twist for the first time.

"Huh?" Klein's unexpected voice surprised both of us. We turned to him as he continued, "Where'd the log out button go?" I was confused. It should be in the options menu at the very bottom. That's where log out buttons usually were in the other games I played.

"It should be there," Kirito said.

"Hmm…. No, it's not there," Klein said. Kirito and I walked over to his avatar, looking confused. We swiped open our menus and navigated to the main menu, searching for the button.

"Eh?" "Wha…?" We both made a similar noise when we discovered that our logout buttons were missing as well. The other two selections, Option and Help, were there, but the Log Out option just didn't exist.

"See, it's not there!"

Kirito was confused. "You're right, it's not."

Klein turned to us, and said in a slightly more upbeat voice, "Oh well. It's the first day outta beta; there's bound to be some bugs." He laughed. "I bet the server people are freaking out right now."

Kirito pointed to the clock at the top of his status screen showing his equipment. "You will too. Look, it's 5:25."

Upon hearing the time, Klein's face was hilarious. His eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. He clutched his head in his hands, saying "Oh my god, my Teriyaki Mayo pizza and Ginger Ale!" He continued to freak out; he must have ordered food for delivery around this time.

Kirito snapped him out of it with his calm words. "Why don't you just contact the game master?" Immediately, Klein stopped.

"Eh? Yeah, I did that, but nothing's happening; he's not picking up." Klein looked at Kirito, hope in his eyes. "Do you know if there's another way to log out of this thing?"

Kirito looked aside, and when he looked back his face was the most serious I had seen it. "No. There's no other way." He looked into the distance, past Klein. "Whenever a player wants to log out of SAO, the only way they can do it is by going through the menu."

"That can't be right," said Klein. He tried a variety of different methods, including striking poses and shouting. Nothing happened, and suddenly the beautiful world seemed much more dangerous and imposing than before.

"Told you so," said Kirito. He looked upset, but continued. "And there was no emergency exit in the manual, either."

"No way," Klein whispered, totally stunned.

I decided to enter the discussion. "Is it possible to just remove the NerveGear? That would break the connection and force him to log out."

Klein tried to do so, grabbing at his head and pulling. Kirito shook his head, still not breaking his dead expression. "Don't bother. Once you're hooked in, you can't move your body in the real world anymore." His stunned and blank face started to frighten me. "The NerveGear intercepts all the commands you give from inside the game using an interface built into the rig."

I shook my head. "The lack of a way to log out seems to be a rather large oversight."

Klein looked totally shocked. "Seriously? So now we gotta wait until someone gets to fixing the bug."

Kirito still hadn't changed his expression in some time. "That, or wait until someone in the real world comes along and takes the NerveGear off us. That's it." At his words, I felt chills. My parents were coming back at 7:00, so I had a way to get out at some point. They'd be concerned when I didn't acknowledge their returning home and come look for me. I told them I'd probably be playing until 7:00, but after an hour they would disconnect me in anger. I wondered if Kirito and Klein had a similar way of logging out, though Klein's next words confirmed that he didn't.

"Well, I live alone. You two?"

"I've got parents that will be back in a few hours, so I think I'll be fine."

"I've got a mom and a sister, and I'm pretty sure they'll notice by dinnertime, but – " The rest of Kirito's words were lost as Klein rushed over and grabbed his shoulders. His face was almost comical, and I'd laugh if I wasn't so concerned about not being able to log out. As it was, I was too concerned to be amused.

"You- you got a sister? How old is she, what's she like?" I couldn't be sure if he was questioning out of desperation or desire.

For the first time after learning that we couldn't log out, Kirito's expression changed. He was surprised and taken aback, his right foot half lifted off the ground. "Uh….she's into sports and hates games and is totally not your type, man!" Klein kept pressuring him, walking closer and forcing Kirito to keep stepping back. Their faces were getting more and more extreme, and despite myself I couldn't help but smile and start to laugh. "She wouldn't date a gamer if he's the last guy –"

Klein interrupted him "Who cares! I wanna –" Only for him to be interrupted in turn, as Kirito's knee slammed into his groin. I winced from imagined pain, though that didn't stop the laughter. Klein flew backwards, tears streaming from his eyes, and landed on his rear in the grass. He squirmed in imagined pain, before he stopped and said "Oh yeah, gettin' kneed in the balls doesn't hurt."

I looked at Kirito, though he had already gotten over the incident. He looked as lost as before as he said, "Get serious. Don't you think this is weird?"

As I was thinking the same thing, I nodded. "This issue will hopefully be solved soon. I ate at noon, though that was five hours ago. I don't think I'll be too hungry, but I'd rather not be stuck here indefinitely."

Klein nodded. "Yeah, totally. But it's just a bug, right?" I wasn't so sure. Something just felt off.

Apparently, Kirito had that same sense of something being subtly wrong. "This isn't just a bug. If we can't log out, it's going to cause some serious problems for the game." His logic made sense.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," said Klein.

Kirito looked off into the distance, toward the edge of Aincrad. "I wonder if the developers even know what's happening, because they could shut down the server and log everyone out." His eyes narrowed as he delved deeper into his thoughts. "But why haven't they made an announcement?" Klein and I looked at him, then sighed and went to our own thoughts.

Suddenly, those thoughts were scattered by the loud, deep rumbling of a bell. We all looked to the source of the sound, unconsciously drawing in breath, as the bell rang throughout the server. We remained motionless, unsure of what to do. I heard Kirito trembling slightly, though I labeled that as a result of his battle nerves tightening. Suddenly, everything faded to white.

When our vision cleared, the three of us were standing in the spawn area – we had been teleported there by an unknown person. We looked around, confused, as hundreds of other players were teleported in around us. The bell was still ringing while people were teleported in.

As the blue lights stopped, so did the bell. "Someone forced a teleport," whispered Kirito. I hadn't even known that was a function of this game. The murmurs of the crowd where getting louder and louder in everyone's confusion.

Suddenly, someone shouted "Look up there!" Looking up, I saw a flashing red hexagon. I looked over to Kirito, wondering if it was some event from the start of the game. Unfortunately, he was staring at the sky looking as confused as the rest of the players. I heard him mutter something about a System Announcement, but before I could ask him what he was talking about, the sky suddenly changed.

The red hexagon quickly spread out, covering the entire sky. The hexagons said 'WARNING' and "System Announcement' interchangeably, and I relaxed somewhat. While I was still worried about the sudden teleport, a system announcement could only be one thing; to tell us about the bug and tell us not to worry.

Some viscous liquid starting seeping through the cracks between hexagons, pooling in midair. It bore a disturbingly close resemblance to blood. What was it? "What the hell is that thing?" Klein asked in an incredulous tone of voice, echoing my thoughts out loud. Soon, the pool of red liquid formed into a giant robed figure; I couldn't see the face. Dark smoke emanated from its hood, and I unconsciously backed away, stopping when I bumped into Kirito. I heard other players questioning the turn of events in confusion.

The hooded figure spread its arms wide and spoke. "Attention players." Its voice was loud and majestic, befitting the size of the figure. I assumed it was the GM talking to the concerned players. "I welcome you to my world."

Confusion set in quickly. "What's he mean by that?" Kirito asked. I was unsure, but a sinking pit in my stomach told me that this was the creator of the game, Akihiko Kayaba.

The figure's next words confirmed my suspicions. "My name is Akihiko Kayaba, and as of this moment, I am in control of this world." Everyone assembled let out a gasp of shock, and I noticed Kirito's face turned white. I'm certain he had read about Kayaba, just as I had. "I'm sure most of you have already noticed an item missing from your main menus – the log out buttons." My shoulders relaxed slightly, hoping to hear him say something along the lines of 'This is being addressed' or 'I will log you out now and we will restart servers when the issue is fixed.'

His next words, however, crushed that small bit of hope. Kayaba's large figure open up its menu screen as it spoke, "Let me assure you, this is not a defect in the game. I repeat, this is not a defect. This is how Sword Art Online was designed to be."

Those words had a strange effect. It was as if my whole body had been turned to ice – try as I might, I couldn't move or feel anything. What had he… he'd said that it wasn't a defect? Something was very wrong. Something was very, very wrong. I'm not sure how I stayed standing, but somehow I managed it. Klein's jaw had dropped. "He's kidding, right?" Several other players echoed his question, although I didn't see them.

My eyes were still stuck staring at the GM as he continued. "You cannot log yourselves out of SAO. And no one from the outside will be able to shut down or remove the NerveGear from your head." There went the only option we had left. My mind seemed to be running in circles, never being able to break out of the loop of despair. "If anyone attempts to do so, a transmitter inside the NerveGear will discharge a microwave signal into your skull, destroying your brain and ending your life." His calm manner of speaking was entirely dissonant to the words he said. He would speak about a small animal eating food the same way he talked about killing us. The man was clearly a psychopath.

The reaction to this announcement ranged from terror to indignation to confusion. Several people tried to leave via the passages on the edge of the clearing, only to find that we had been sealed in by a barrier. Klein scoffed. "Hey, are you listening to this crap? He's gotta be nuts, right? Right, Kirito?"

I can't blame him for trying to get reassurance, but I would have preferred not to hear Kirito's next words. "He's not. The transmitter signals in the head gear work just like a microwave. If the safety's disabled, it could fry your brain." The chill in my veins had sunk deeper into my body. I still felt numb, but I'd regained enough control over myself to be able to turn to Kirito.

"Is there some way to cut the power? No, wait." The screen I'd been staring at while waiting to dive into Sword Art Online had been burned into my mind, and in the top-right corner there was something I'd almost missed; a battery symbol.

Kirito nodded. "The NerveGear's got an internal battery."

Klein looked as pale as death. "No way… this is crazy! This is totally crazy!"

Kayaba continued speaking. "Despite my warning, the families and friends of some of the players have tried removing the NerveGear. An unfortunate decision, to say the least." I didn't want to hear what he said next, but his calm voice continued speaking with no way to stop listening. "As a result, the game now has 213 less players than when it began. They've been deleted from both Aincrad and the real world."

I gasped. "213? That many?"

Klein shook his head. "No way… I don't believe it!"

As if hearing his words, screens appeared and started circling the GM. "As you can see, international media outlets have round-the-clock coverage of everything, including the deaths." I stared at the screens, searching for a familiar space, and found none, fortunately. "At this point, it's safe to assume the likelihood of a NerveGear being removed is minimal at best." I had a brief terrifying image of my parents trying to remove the hardware on my head, an attempt that resulted in my brain turning into cooked meat, and my blood turned even colder. The inner ice solidified around my heart, chilling me to the bone. I could move perfectly well, but there was no need to do so. Kayaba continued, "I hope this brings you a little comfort as you try to clear the game."

This was the first I had heard of clearing the game. To do so, theoretically, would be to climb through every floor and kill all the enemies. Seeing how tough those boars were, I could not possibly believe it would be successful. I listened to Kayaba's words as he continued. "It's important to remember the following: there is no longer any way to revive someone within the game; if your HP drops to zero, your avatar will be deleted from the system… forever." I glanced at Kirito; he was glaring angrily at the hooded figure. "And the NerveGear will simultaneously destroy your brain."

Kirito gasped; I didn't do the same only because of the ice around my heart and lungs. I couldn't breathe; all I could see was an enemy striking me when my guard was down and bringing my HP to zero. I would never see my cat or my parents again. I would be gone without a trace.

I felt, rather than heard or saw, Kirito clench his fist. As I was chilled by ice, it was as if he was surrounded by a burning fire, consuming all but the desire to win. I expected Kayaba's next words, "There is only one way for a player to escape now; you must clear the game." He pressed a button, and a holographic image appeared with a red dot on the bottom. "Right now, you're gathered on floor one, the lowest level of Aincrad. If you can get through the dungeon and defeat the boss, you may advance to the next floor." The holographic image flushed red from bottom to top. "Defeat the boss on floor 100, and you will clear the game."

Everyone was stunned and confused. Cries of "how can we believe you" and "what does he mean" rang out. Klein whispered, "We can't clear all 100 floors. That's freaking impossible. Even the beta testers never made it that far!" He had a point; in all the articles I read, none mentioned any floors higher than eight.

Silencing all muttering, Kayaba raised his hand. "Last, but not least, I've placed a little present in the item storage of each player. Please, have a look." I furrowed my brow, confused, but opened up my inventory anyway. Inside was a single item, a Hand Mirror. I pulled it out, and it was just a mirror. It reflected my image.

From the corner of my vision, I saw a white glow surround Klein. Before I could do much more than call out, my own mirror emitted a white glow that surrounded me. When the white glow disappeared, there didn't seem to be any difference. For some reason, though, I felt shorter. I turned to Klein and Kirito. "Are you two alright? Wait…" They looked different. Klein's hair didn't fall as neatly as before, and it was a deeper shade of red. Kirito was shorter, with a more youthful face; his hair was the same color, though it was shorter. As the two looked at each other in confusion, I looked back at the mirror. My own face stared back at me. I felt shorter because I was shorter – the mirror had somehow restored my actual face.

"Is that you, Klein?"

"Is that you, Kirito?"

I felt somewhat left out, though it was nothing new. In fact, I smiled slightly at their actions.

"But how?" asked Klein.

Kirito thought for a second before realizing. "The scan. There's a high density signal device inside the NerveGear rig. It can see what my face looks like. But how's it know my height and body type?" I tuned out Klein's explanation, as I figured it out for myself. The calibrations in the NerveGear's initialization must have been a sham to get my physical data. Ingenious, actually. Kayaba was more of a genius than anyone realized.

Klein put his hands to his head. "But – this is – What's the point? Why would anyone do this to us?" Before I could hazard a guess, Kirito raised his hand.

"I think he's about to tell us."

"Right now, you're probably wondering, 'Why?' 'Why would Akihiko Kayaba, developer of Sword Art Online and NerveGear, do this?' Ultimately, my goal was a simple one. The reason I created Sword Art Online was to control the fate of a world of my design." The man was insane. That had to be the only explanation; he had no possible idea what he was doing.

Kirito narrowed his eyes and growled, "Kayaba…" The fire surrounding him was blazing hotter, though it was centering around his body. If I had to guess, I was imagining his fighting spirit and determination to be the strongest.

Kayaba continued. "As you can see, I have achieved my goal. This marks the end of the tutorial, and the official launch of Sword Art Online. Players, I wish you the best of luck." The image of the GM seemed to corrupt and dissolve into smoke. Any remnants of that strange red liquid were quickly reabsorbed into the cracks of the red hexagons, leaving the sky clear.

Everyone was silent and motionless, stunned into silence by the ultimatum delivered by the creator of the game we were playing. No, not game; it was a new reality. I was trapped in this game by a brilliant madman, and to escape I had to fight my way out. The ice in my core solidified and no longer seemed cold; it was a familiar feeling, one I felt every day. Beside me, the fire in Kirito blazed brighter than ever; if I had to guess, I would say that he reaffirmed his decision to fight his way through all the floors and defeat the boss.

From what I had read of Kayaba, his words were the truth. He wouldn't lie about this, especially since he worked so hard for so long to create this world. The death of Rythin would mean the death of my real body, and I couldn't let that happen.

In the crowd, a mirror shattered. A girl screamed, and general panic set in. People rushed forward, trying to escape the mad man's twisted game. This dream had become a nightmare. Many players just collapsed, unable to bear the thought of dying. Near the exits, a nearly imperceptible glimmer meant that the barriers blocking exit had lifted; beside me, Kirito stiffened. He had noticed it as well.

He leaned over to Klein and whispered "C'mon, Klein." Grabbing his hand, Kirito raced for the nearest exit, I being hot on his heels. Once in an alley and away from the prying eyes of others, he stopped.

"Okay, listen. I'm heading out right now for the next village. I want you two to come." There had to be a catch somewhere. There was no way Kirito would just offer to help me like that, not without wanting something from me in return.

Dumbfounded, Klein could only make a questioning sound. Kirito took this as a cue to continue, "If what he said was true, and I think it is, the only way we're going to survive in here is by making ourselves as strong as possible." He pulled up a map of the first floor; we were blinking in a red area, which most likely denoted a town. "In an MMORPG, the money you can earn, the EXP, once the game starts up there's only so much of that stuff to go around. Look, the fields around the Town of Beginnings will be hunted clean soon. If we head to the next village now, we'll have an easier time collecting cash and points." He looked up at us. "Don't worry, I know all the paths and places we should avoid. Even if we're level 1, I can get us there easy." The plan seemed sound and logical; I had no friends or contacts in this world, and sticking close to Kirito seemed the best plan despite not knowing the cost. I silently moved to his side, nodding my thanks.

Unfortunately, Klein was not as free as I was. "Uehh… thanks, but you know those friends of mine I was telling you about? We stood in line for a whole night to buy this…" He smiled sadly. "They're back there, in the plaza. And I can't leave them." His position was understandable. If I had close friends I had played with previously in this death game, I would prefer to stay with them instead of a person I just met.

Kirito inclined his head, thinking. I wondered what he was thinking; probably nothing good. I hazarded a guess that he couldn't actually handle two extra players slowing him down. Sorry, Klein, but if it's you or me I choose me every time. If I didn't look out for myself, who would?

"Sorry." Upon hearing Klein's voice, both of us jerked out of our thoughts. "Can't ask a guy I just met to risk his life for a bunch of strangers, can I? So don't worry about me, get your asses to the next village." He smiled, and pointed his thumb at himself. "I'll be fine! In the last game I played, I ran a guild so I'm more than prepared. And with all the stuff you taught me, I'll get by, no sweat."

Kirito nodded. "Okay. If that's what you want, I'll get going." I could hear the hurt in his voice, though I'm sure he tried to hide it. No one likes being turned down, and I'm sure that Kirito felt guilty about leaving our friend behind to fend for himself. "But if you're in a jam, message me, okay? I'll be seeing you, Klein. Take care." We turned and started running down the dark alleyway, trying to get out of the city.

"Kirito! Rythin!" The sound of Klein's voice stopped us in our tracks. I turned to see what he wanted, but he didn't say anything more than "I…" I gave him a small smile and a wave and we started walking down. He stopped us again. "Hey, Kirito? Uh… you look better like this. Way cooler than your avatar. You too, Rythin."

Kirito turned around, smiling. "Yeah, and I think that scruffy face fits you ten times better too." Without another word, he turned and ran down the alleyway.

"Be seeing you, Klein," I said, putting on a smile. "Don't die on us, okay?" He just laughed and walked away. As I turned, walking down the alley to catch up, I realized Kirito had stopped running and had turned back. Was guilt eating at him? Did he want to apologize for running off? I glanced over my shoulder, but Klein was gone. It was too late for apologies. Kirito stared, eyes shining, at the empty entrance to the street before just taking off running. This world was cruel and unforgiving, Klein's absence just driving that point home. The best thing that we could do was move forward and accept that people would leave us.

I still felt a little hollow inside, though. That aching emptiness… But I knew how to deal with it. I turned and raced to catch up with Kirito, trying to distract myself from what I'd lost. I followed Kirito without question or thought as we ran through the empty streets and out into the fields, not stopping to buy supplies or items. Despite my best attempts, I found myself lagging behind Kirito, who rand like a man trying to outrun memories.

Two wolves spawned in front of us and snarled a challenge, lunging to attack. Without stopping, Kirito drew his sword and I my dagger. We charged a Sword Skill, and with a yell stepped off the ground, unleashing the power of the weapons. The blades split the monsters in half, destroying them in a single blow. They shattered into blue polygons behind us.

Beside me, Kirito screamed a challenge to the heavens, a proof of his inner fire. Unlike him, though, I didn't scream or shout. The cold emptiness within me swallowed anything like that. But I was determined that I would not die to this crazy death game.

I would survive and become strong. I would not be beaten.

I would win.

Thanks for reading my story. It would mean a lot to me if you could leave a review, whether positive, negative, mixed, or dumb.

A few things I want to clear up about this story:

1) Yes, this is technically a self-insert story. However, I believe they can be written well. I will (hopefully) not be falling into any of the traps of the genre, like Gary Stu-ing my way through the story.

2) Canon comes first over all. Technically I've already broken that by inserting another player, but I'm discussing things like character death and relationships. That means no "Kirito isn't the Dual Blades user" or "Asuna loves my character instead of Kirito". That's dumb and I hate it.

3) As it is a self-insert, I did model the character Rythin and his player off of me. I had my appearance in mind as I wrote the story, and thought about how I'd react to being trapped in a VR death game. I did try to emphasize and exaggerate my traits somewhat, though that's more for narrative flow. I exaggerated both my positive and negative traits, so hopefully I won't fall into the "My character is 1000x better than canon characters and flawless" trap.

4) This story is written in first person. This does mean that there will be a lot of introspection; this is increased due to Rythin's habit of thinking things over before speaking.

5) This particular story will go until the end of the Aincrad arc.

6) There won't be any of those arrow things, mainly because (a) I don't like them and (b) I've only seen the anime, where those guys don't exist.

That should be everything I need to address! Thanks for reading this far, it really does mean a lot. I had fun writing this, and I hope you enjoy reading it.