Genji

 It was a cool day and the clouds had begun to blacken. The Second Floor was only slightly more dangerous than the first in these days since the Floor Boss was cleared, but there were still many potential dangers for weaker players who got caught unawares.

He had sent the message to her inbox out of both interest and loneliness. They had not spoken a word since the Guild disbanded and they went their separate ways, but he had no reason to believe that they were on bad terms.

"Lessa, I hope you are well. It has been some time. I've been doing some work around the lower floors since we parted but I've recently become interested in expanding my skills. I wanted to see if you were well, and interested in meeting up. Aincrad is a lonely place, and I've found myself stricken by it. 

Regards,

Genji"

For now, he had taken to watching the skies from the gate, letting the breeze gently wash over his features. There was a storm coming.

@Lessa 

It creaked before anything else.

The bone rattled as the snow-covered floor quivered beneath the weight of a waking Titan. Genji watched as the jaw of the beast came unhinged and dropped open, and two frigid orbs swept across the two men. He watched as starch-white flesh and uncovered bone scraped up tundra and fresh powder in its effort to tower over them. He chewed on his lower lip in anticipation as it let out a half moan, half roar.

"Wight," the silver-haired boy muttered as the beast stopped at its full height to glower down at its prey. "Not at all what I was expecting, but-"

It seemed disinterested in what he had to say, and since he was the closest of the two of them, it deigned to send its ire in his way first. He was lucky enough to see the hint- a lurching movement, sweeping from left to right in an attempt to send him sprawling to the ground.

Genji threw himself out of the way in abject surprise as the attack came, more powerful and vicious than he had expected. He hit the snow face first and slid, losing any opportunity he might otherwise have had to launch a counterattack.

But, he was alive. That was what mattered- because he doubted that the thing was going to show him any kind of mercy.

"I think it has its own ideas on who's going to swing first," Genji jested.

@Bahr

Genji crouched next to the other player with his arms folded neatly across his thighs. "I'm frankly surprised so many people outside of Japan were able to get copies of the game, but I suppose when there's enough money involved, anything is possible." He never thought much about how the world worked, honestly, before he had become trapped. It had only made him more cynical.

As @Bahr picked himself up quickly and dusted off the remnant snow, Genji slowly rose and stretched his arms behind his head. The man seemed to have found his prize, whatever that prize was. Maybe they both came in knowing something the other hadn't. That would have been worth a chuckle.

"It's quite pretty, honestly, I think," he murmured in response to the exasperated assertion of his acquaintance. "But I'm not used to these sorts of weather patterns. I may just be envious."

When the other man started getting serious, he peeled the Scimitar from his belt and readied it. "Oh, I wouldn't dream of leaving before I finish what I start. It's important to always follow through, you know." He fell low into a stance, bent at the knees, with the curved sword held outward behind him. 

Of course, he'd let the other man confirm he was ready, first. "Let me know when to start."

"Once or twice, perhaps," Genji answered modestly, albeit with a smirk. "There's not too many adventurous types who know much about weapons you can't start off with. Actually, I'm quite interested in that. Can you tell me more?"

"About the Katana? Well, actually, I'm not the one who you should ask. The old man, once upon a time, knew a thing or two about weapons. If you ask nicely, he might be able to show you something about what you're looking for."

Genji blinked. The blind, mute old groundskeeper? He looked to the unassuming old man with some skepticism, then back toward the NPC. "You're certain?"

"If you'll excuse me, I'm only able to stay for a short time today," the odd figure bowed and excused himself. "Maybe we'll meet again?" Genji bowed one last time as the man disappeared through the front doors and was gone without a trace.

"Well," the young man moved toward the old groundskeeper and bowed respectfully. "My apologies, Jiisan," he greeted, "the stranger who just left told me that you might be able to teach me more about the Katana. Can you really?" 

The distinct, bitter flavor of incense wafted across his tongue as Genji snapped back to reality. The clock had ticked several hours away as he considered the secrets that this temple kept hidden, but he only grew weary. "Ah, hello there," greeted a gruff man who entered from behind as Genji started to stand. "It isn't often I find anyone else here than the old man, and he doesn't talk much."

Genji recognized him immediately as an NPC, but there was something else about him that seemed different. His level value was set to where players too low could not determine it, which meant that if Genji attacked him, there was a chance that he could become aggressive. Thankfully, he had no designs about that. "Ah, yes," the silver haired youth smiled softly. "I came seeking answers regarding the secrets of this Temple."

"Ah yes, the story of the hero and the beast?" He chuckled, "you want to know about what happened to him? Or are you seeking to challenge the beast?"

Genji bowed respectfully as he looked the NPC up and down, uncertain how either response would move the conversation forward. He imagined that the answer about the beast might take him toward a fight that would be well above his luck.

"I came to learn," he answered, "and I heard that the hero was incredibly skilled. His story might help me on my way."

Well, I can't claim to know much about the hero himself, but I do know something. He was a wanderer from a far away land, and he wielded a blade unlike anyone had ever seen. The style has become popular among blacksmiths since, but few people actually know anything about how to wield it- perhaps you've heard of the "Katana?"

He remembered visiting this place with Lessa some number of months prior. Their visit was eventful, filled with aggressive monsters that seemed to want to have their fill of him until the stronger of the pair unleashed her skills and fended them off. Genji had learned his lesson after several such encounters, thanked the woman for her time, and decided to come back on his own at another time.

During the time since then, he had trained himself to be more powerful, to the point where he could make the ascent alone, and he had done his research. Many players sought to wield single handed weapons for their quickness and because they paired well with shields. He had no such preferences.

Born Japanese and near obsessed with the Samurai, there was not a better weapon for the youth to seek. His skill was here, hidden within the Temple of Three, although the puzzle was one few had solved, and information brokers had never been able to get those who had some so to loosen their lips on the matter.

So here he sat, seiza, and stared at on three sides by separate statues. Their names were involved somehow with Buddhist mythos, or something like that, as he recalled, and dealt with the philosophies of Siddhartha during his time on Earth. The pacifistic tenets of that ideology sometimes were reflected, albeit paradoxically, in the Code of Bushido.

Contrary to most cultures, the word Samurai did not mean "warrior." It meant "One who Serves," or "to Serve." His duty was to his Lord, and to the People. He sought to find peace within all things, even at the heart of conflict. That was what Genji meditated on now. The nature of Bushido.

The Way of the Samurai.

"Uh," Genji permitted an awkward laugh to escape at the thought he might have heard of the other man, "すみません," he shook his head slightly, speaking his native language before blinking rapidly and correcting himself. "Erm, excuse me, I mean," the silver haired youth shook his head, "no, I'm sorry, I had never heard of you. But I have now. It is good to meet you, Bahr. My name is Genji."

He continued to lead the man through the path, designated more by the map than anything he could see ahead of him. It was obvious he had navigated the area thoroughly, and very likely more than a few times. "After a while, it's just a memory game," he commented. "Knowing which turn it take comes down to the quest you want to do, and I imagine when these were the frontlines, it was a lot more dangerous than it is these days."

He gestured as they entered a copse of trees and the massive skull stood at just about the self-proclaimed Samurai's shoulder height. "Here we are," he gestured toward the place he had agreed to show Bahr. "This is what you're looking for, right? The path back isn't too hard to remember, but I'd be glad to show you once your business is done."

@Bahr

He tied the scarf off securely so that it covered his nose and ears, letting the short and long tails leftover once he was finished flap about in the wind. It was hardly a thick, protective layer of clothing, but it did good to keep the chill from getting in his lungs. He had long since learned how winter crept into the body and left a lasting impression.

Winters like this were rare in his section of Japan, but the Fourth floor was everything he wished for as a child, pining after weather he would never see in the living, breathing world. In this reality, he could be whatever he wanted, and on some level of Aincrad, he could be wherever he wanted. At some base level, there was a projection in his efforts. But that wasn't what he told people.

"I've been whittling away at this floor for several days," he admitted to Bahr as they soldiered through the blistery gale. It was nastier than normal, but Genji attributed that to this being his second trip out for the day. Normally, he would have been in the inn by now, warming his bones next to an open flame.

"Not exactly sure if what I'm looking for is real or not, but I've got a few people trying to chase after some rumors. They're stingy with money, don't want to pay the brokers- but they're not making a great deal of progress."

He turned toward the forested area to the Northwest and trudged a few feet through the knee-high drift. "Just this way," he told the other player, pointing with the tsuka of his katana. "Shouldn't be too deep in, either. From what I can recall, nothing especially interesting about the skull, but you might have better luck than I do."

@Bahr

Genji was deep within his thoughts by the time this newcomer addressed him, and so when he glanced up to see the waving player, he blinked several times. Kid? he tilted his head skeptically as the translator detected a foreign language and instantly processed it into his native tongue. Another interesting person from another country, it seemed.

The words filled his thoughts with interest. A rumor about a skull... 

He had spent hours in the frigid tundra and the icy forests to find any possible secrets. There may have been a skull, now that he was thinking about all the things he had seen. Somewhere out there, where the sunlight couldn't reach.

"Things like that don't exactly stay well hidden for long," he nodded. "I think I know the area you're looking for. It's a bit of a walk from here, and cold if you're not prepared for the trip."

Genjia pulled up his inventory and toggled a scarf, nothing to add any significant bonuses to his stats, but something to fight off the elements. "If you like, I would be glad to show you the way."

@Bahr

Level 11

220/220 HP  22 Energy

1h Curved Sword skills

Rank 1

• [x1 Stun] Fell Crescent (4 Energy) - The user charges at a high speed at the opponent and makes one strong uppercut, stunning the opponent.
• [x2] Rage Blow (2 Energy) - The user makes one heavy blow, cleaving into the opponents chest.

"Woman," he repeated as she appeared dumbstruck at his assertion. "You know, post maturity human female-?" Before he could finish explaining, Esther launched into a fully awkward reciprocation, which caused the Shibuyan youth to stare at her blankly.

Then, he laughed.

He laughed, because for the first time he genuinely was not the only clueless one in the room. His gaze watched her hands smooth the clothing over her body with a small smile- he never intended to make her think whatever it was she had, but for that moment, he hardly minded.

"Sorry about that," he crooned in a low voice as he leaned toward her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

In his youth, Genji suffered through similar belittlement from both his parents and responsible adults, including teachers and coaches. Several leading doctors tried to diagnose him with labels like ADHD, or Asperger's, but he managed to maintain grades near the top of his class. Despite his social ineptitudes, he was perfectly capable of learning and functionality in a scholastic unit.

It did lead him to ostracism, and it created awkward situations with peers in his age group. Because of how different he was, people shunned him and treated him like an enigma.

He understood all too well what Esther was saying. "People who haven't lived your struggle rarely understand your reasons. That hardly makes you wrong."

He sipped once more at the tea she brewed, concentrating on both the complex flavor and the woman in front of him.

"The decision not to fight is hardly less bold than the one everyone else has made. Who would protect and raise the children, if not for your sacrifice?"

He thought it sad, that even in this world people never changed.

"You look every bit a woman to me," he added to reassure her.

"気じゃない," the youth muttered in his own tongue as he sank backward from the scene that unfolded. "誰もが、彼らは罰金だと言って続けて、誰も罰金ではありません." He sank into a chair along the wall behind him, one he had previously utilized while in full costume, and clutched at his head. "数ヶ月で私の家族を見たことがない."

How he made it this far, Genji had no idea. There was nothing familiar about Aincrad, and even fewer people. He wanted to cry, but knew that when the tears ended, the strife would remain. He yearned to scream, but understood it would do nothing but rob him of his voice. Genji understood the futility of his situation, but until this moment, he never really faced it.

It never occurred to him that Esther had left him, or that he was muttering to himself in a language only a few people would understand. By the time he glanced up, he was barely aware of anyone around him, or anything. He wore a blank expression, mouth slightly agape.

"Esther...?" he gurgled groggily.

@Esther

"Mmmmm... Ahhh... I..." Genji lost color as she casually mentioned the affliction he'd worn for several years since the end of High School. As an extreme case of self-deprecation and familial expectation gone wrong, Kotarou had folded in on himself and looked for every excuse he could never to leave the safest place in the world.

His bedroom.

In his mind, he could be a hero, and in his dreams he was. In Shibuya, and everywhere else in the world, he was a shut in who failed to accept at anything. Esther couldn't have known that when she spoke up, but it made him feel infinitely less secure standing there in a room full of people, all of whom were infinitely more attuned to the world around them than he was.

When he realized he had stopped breathing out of acute terror, he took a short breath. Then, he took a longer one, and he wheezed loudly. A fit of coughing followed. Genji wiped the tears that formed in his eyes away and tried to focus on what she was saying.

She touched him, and offered to go out with him and do things in the real world. Like friends. Like normal people. Like he was a normal person. He felt her elbow brush against his, and he glanced quickly away.

"I haven't ridden any of the lines in quite some time," he replied quietly, "I barely remember their names." His voice was weak as he brushed a hand thoughtlessly over the front of his pants, and he pulled his cloak down further. He toyed with the hem of it idly, embarrassed about...

...everything.

@Esther

"Ah, no, no!" he sputtered. "No, I think your costume looks great. Seriously. Don't change it. You could keep wearing it all the time, and it would be great." He managed a toothy smile, cheeks flushed red by the heat that overcame his face.

She recognized him before he removed the costume? That part confused him. Genji was used to being a forgettable, easily cast aside person. He didn't much care for the laborious societal expectations of courtship or dating, and the sudden rush of emotions and hormones that spiked from interaction with Esther confused him as well. He was comfortable enough with her, and she seemed to feel similarly- perhaps it was society, and not these two friends, who had the wrong of it?

Perhaps interactions between man and woman, or woman and woman, or man and man, ought not be so difficult as they are often made to be?

Ah, well.

The friends he made in this world were ones he would not soon forget. After middle school, he had learned never to place a great deal of stock in deep, emotional investments. They tended to not pan out.

He reached out and ruffled her hair with a kind smile, both his eyes softly shutting in the process. "I suppose we never had many pumpkins," he managed to murmur, "Shibuya is massive, but it's crammed full of people and they're always busy."

@Esther

When she came close, he stopped. 

Somewhere in his mind, Genji knew this to be Esther, the pink haired girl he met recently on the second floor, and who had quickly moved to become fast friends with him. She was a lonely woman with a kind, accepting heart, and though her views on the world deviated wildly from his own, at least in terms of pacifism, he appreciated her desire for a soothing, calm atmosphere.

The gilded aura of gentility that radiated off her angelic costume only served to gut him further when her words to the dagger to his innards. "Miss Esther, I will have you know," he began, "that the tradition of Halloween began thousands of years ago, with a festival celebrating the freakish, demonic, and horrifying in order to frighten evil spirits away from people's homes and invite a safe, peaceful new year to come. So, essentially, mine is the only costume actually in keeping with the spirit of the holiday-"

He found himself rambling on about things most likely no one cared about, all the while ensnared by the ephemeral beauty in her eyes. He refused to blink, for fear that it would disappear in that instant and he would never see it again.

Genji gulped. 

"What I mean is," he started over, correcting the awkward feelings that threatened to rise up and make him say something stupid. "That it is actually me, Genji, in this costume." He flicked through his menu and switched to his normal outfit for her benefit. "It's good to see you again," he greeted her with a bow.

@Esther

People who seemed to know each other quickly blended into a single crowd and mingled, leaving Genji well on the outside. That was fine, but it brought a smile to his face to know that all the people trapped on Aincrad were able to come together for various events and just release some of that tension that the death game built up inside them.

It was almost like a high school dance, everyone parting into their cliques and talking amongst themselves about the flavor of the hour. For Kotarou, he had never chanced to become part of any of those crowds. Watching from a safe distance was not only his go-to move, it was his mainstay.

He noticed some awkwardness at intervals, and glanced toward the women who seemed to be stealing the show with their appearances alone. What a youthful crowd, he lamented to himself.

None among them dared approach the imposing figure of a Talormeen demon-deity, his six avian arms ready to [censored] up children and steal away with them in the night. That suited him fine. It meant people didn't know who he was- no one appreciated the lore that surrounded the character.

Or maybe, his conversation starting techniques were just failures.

Genji silently wished for someone to talk about history, or fantasy novels, or anything at all he could relate to.

Instead, the night went just as planned.

With Genji in comfortable, familiar silence.

As a holiday beloved by cosplayers the world over, Halloween held a special place in Kotarou's heart. The opportunity to forget who or where he was for a single day and just pretend to be something that made him smile was exactly what he needed at that moment, still struggling as he was to come to grips with life in Aincrad.

As a child, some of the first fantasy novels he ever read were the Chronicles of Narnia. In keeping with the spooky tradition of All Hallow's Eve, he decided that he would fashion his costume off the Nightmare Fuel that was the God of the Talormeen, the Inexorable Tash. And so, as he walked through the doors, he was greeted by Jack with a very enthusiastic.

"What a nice costume! It is great to see you here at this event. Here's your item for showing and I hope you enjoy yourself."

What everyone else would see might not illicit the same response. With the pixelated costume augmenting his size, Kotarou stood a good deal higher than any other player in the room at that moment. His lithe, skeletal frame and emaciated portions gave him the look of a hungering demon, and at his head, he wore the face of a bird of prey. He spent countless nights as a child obsessed with the character, hoping just one time to play the part and be half as terrifying. 

His time had come.

+1 Candy Guard!

"They're positively my favorite," he retorted sarcastically as the arachnid chased the blonde woman from its lair and into the open. She activated her hate skill like clockwork, almost like she had been in this situation hundreds of times before. Genji ripped the scimitar from his hip and crouched low, looking for any sign of an opening. "How did you know?"

It skittered along the bath and raked at her with large, furry mandables and  gripped as hard as it could manage with both forelegs. Still, Lessa was able to wrestle away from the most dangerous of bites.

The Spider was not so fortunate, for the moment it latched on to the blonde woman, the silver haired man lunged at its back and raked at it with a curved blade.

"I'm not going to be useless," he hissed loudly as his weapon bit deep into carapace and ruined tissue. It gave a horrendous wail and thrashed both of them away.

When he came to only moments later, Lessa was already facing down their new nemesis down once again.

Lessa: 700/700 HP //65/70 E (3 H)

Genji: 180/180 HP // 17/18 E (-1 E) (1 H)

BFS: 445/450 HP  (Genji deals 5 with his normal attack)

"Oh, no," he laughed and held up his hand, index finger and thumb spaced narrowly apart. "You know what they say about Asian men. Big expectations, small delivery. I'm sure those pants suit you far better than I, Miss Lessa."

Kotarou appreciated her desire to keep the mood light, and decided to deviate to one of the few social contingencies he actually had- telling inappropriate jokes at appropriate intervals.

In Aincrad, he had never lost anyone to death. It was not the same as the real life equivalent, though the two were certainly entwined. Some people in the world, you never got the chance to meet, or to bond with. Death was an everyday part of life, and it became easier to disassociate.

Sword Art Online gave people no room for such morally gray grief. You knew the other people trapped inside, even if not formally. You shared the same fate, and just hearing that Aincrad took them wrenched your heart and made you wonder, "am I next?"

No day went by that people felt safe, even in the so-called "safe zones."

They just learned to pretend to smile, and keep going.

Lessa's charm was that she had learned to take that reviled sentiment and turn it into hope. She stood as a beacon of light for those around her and showed the way, even for those far more lost than others. Genji could appreciate that.

"It looks like we're coming up on a breach in the rock face," he commented and pointed ahead. "Might be a cave. We should definitely look into it."

They were only part of the way up the mountain, still, and there was much further to go. That didn't mean the behemoth had no secrets to yield to them. It just meant they had more to explore.

"Keep on the lookout for large birds," he added.

"I never understand how people think that," Kotarou laughed, "sure, it seemed easy for them to fly right in after the Ring was vanquished in Mount Doom, but prior to that, Sauron's power still held absolute sway within the confines of his domain. If they had tried to fly in while the Ring still existed, they would have been assailed by hellish storms and freaks of creatures conjured for the sole purpose of their destruction." This was the part where people's jaws slacked and their stared at Genji screaming "neeeeeeeerd!" Who else but the silver haired freak would read the Silmarillion more than once? For fun?

"But! Um, yeah, a horse wouldn't be too bad, I guess?" he tried to smooth over into her secondary topic of conversation quickly and easily, to the point that he hoped she might even forget about the tangent about Hobbits and Wizards. Their focus was on Aincrad, after all, not Middle Earth.

"I honestly never considered mounts a possibility, but this game is the first MMO- just the first virtual reality one." He looked excited. "That means the programming for something like a horse wouldn't be all that hard at all!"

She transitioned after a moment of back and forth to his question, and Genji sensed something somber about her mood. Talking about the past must have been hard for her. "It sounds like you've had a good deal of friends here," he told her with a soft smile after she paused. "I'm actually terrible with people, so I kind of envy that about you."

His eyes closed, and he knew of only thing one thing appropriate to say Lessa. "I'm sorry for your losses," he said. Genji offered her a deep bow.

"Really?" he asked, a poignant expression on his face. "Sorry I asked." He could scarce tell at times if Lessa said things simply to make fun of them, or if the hair brained scheme was actually feasible somewhere in that mind of hers. "If we get mounts, though," he added with a more easygoing look melting through the snowy visage, "I don't think I'd mind a large Eagle, like in the Lord of the Rings."

They rounded a rock face that sloped more steeply for a moment and Genji kept close to the wall, uncertain of his footing. After he sidled against the mountain for a few steps, the path widened and he resumed a straight walk along the path. "Ah," he sounded a bit surprised, but not overly so. "I would have taken you for a student of the art. You've taken to it with wild success. Or perhaps that's how the system works- I'm not too knowledgeable on the ins and outs of Cardinal, and I'm frankly too afraid to chase the notion down."

He gave a dry laugh to diffuse the tension that talking about Cardinal generally arose. Lessa seemed comfortable enough. It was probably just him. "Any friends specifically?" he asked. "Did you log in with anyone, or meet people along the way?"

He had been alone, until he met Lessa and her friends.

It was hard to get used to that life.

He fidgeted as she spoke and watched her hand prompt him to sit down. Genji started to speak, but he noticed what her hands were doing- a traditional tea set? As she continued to tell him about her time in Japan, bits and pieces began to fall into place. Ah, she's a lover of the culture.

He tilted his head and chanced a step closer, then sat adjacent to her quietly. "Earl Grey," he repeated the name as he accepted the cup graciously, tasted it, and closed his eyes. "Stronger than I'm used to," he admitted, "but not at all bad."

He let the tea come to rest on the saucer and matched her gaze. "I came to relax," he answered her final question, and his lips turned up in a smile. "There should be more of that, I would contend; but I'm no more than a lowly swordsman, eh?" 

Genji took one more sip and placed the saucer to rest in his lap. "What brings you to the lower floors?" he asked, "or do you remain here for the more peaceful atmosphere?"

"You keep talking about dragons," Genji thrust a finger in her direction in warning, "but what happens when we actually run into something like that? I barely did anything to a goblin on wolfback, I'm not too keen on facing down firebreathers just yet."

Genji took a step past Lessa to glance over and assess the damage done by the obscure impact. "I wonder what could have caused this, though," he said on a more serious note. "If it were a dragon, no doubt we would have seen more traces. This was agile, and stealthy."

He crouched to get a better look, and noticed indentation marks that were reminiscent of claws. "It looks like it tore out a good chunk. We're lucky we weren't in the way when it struck." The young swordsman ran his fingers over the soil and shook his head. "Real lucky," he muttered under his breath. 

"Alright, then. Let's press on before it decides we look tasty and flies down for another bite."

He let out a sigh and headed further up the path, still replaying all of the movements in his head. Lessa truly was far and away ahead of him as a player. "Who taught you to fight?" he asked suddenly. "You do it so naturally, it's almost like you've been doing it your whole life."