Alkor

Alkor had done this part before, many times. In his time among those at the forefront, he learned to jump into the fire and out on a whim. Whether it be an opening created by tank, or jumping in to take heat off another damage dealer who went too heavy, the art of the Switch was something he had honed well.

The flames were intense, but he had experienced far worse between the Twinfire Phoenix and the Molten Hydra on the Ninth Floor. Compared to those monolithic beasts, Byakko's flames were a third rate imitation. Alkor raced through as they unleashed their hellfire on NIGHT, sliding beneath the torrent of searing  breath, placing himself between the other Player and furious reprisal from the Field Boss.

No more Players would suffer because of this creature, at least, not this iteration. He timed his movement to the moment it reared back to renege its heat, and Alkor dashed up beneath the hefty torso of the massive beast.

In the span of a furious roar, he planted the blade deep in the chest cavity of Byakko, bringing the blade thundering downward and slicing the creature in twain, stem to root.

A brilliant flash of light followed in his wake as he dropped low one hand pressed firmly to the ground for balance as Byakko burst into pixels. Data spiraled upward between the two Players as he slowly stood, tucking the blade safely away at his side.

Would she say something? Would he? Would all they ever exchange be awkward glances? Did it matter?

They had won.

"Makes sense to me," he mumbled uncertainly. She was different now, and in a way that he could actually get a sense for. It wasn't what she was saying so much as the mood that surrounded her. They weren't the same two people they had been when they first met. Distrust and despair had wedged their way between the two Players, and there was a high chance that things would never be the way they had been before again.

Alkor didn't glance back at Lessa, this time. There was no reason to voice concerns about the obvious. Things were estranged, and they were going to be that way, because it made sense for them to be that way.

Instead, he glanced toward the High Fields of Crossing in the distance and shoved his hands in the pockets of the jacket that crazy man had thrown at him. "Then, we'll pick up the pace and get through with this so we can get to the next dragon in record time."

The way he spoke, one might have believed he already knew where the dragon they were looking for was. In reality, he just wanted to not be there, in that emotionally awkward situation. He knew he didn't have the words to offer her, or comfort to give. She probably had somewhere to find those things now, and she certainly didn't want them from him.

Some friend I am.

@Lessa

It was expansive and to make matters more complicated, arid. This was the sort of place Alkor hated the most. He spent the better part of his life living in humid places, and close to large bodies of water. The only sand he had experience with was at the Oceanfront; so when he saw fields of grain, he immediately sagged. "Oh, screw this," he lamented verbally as he checked over his inventory and slogged down the path that led to where he intended to go. "This thing better die fast, because I'm not trying to spend any longer here than I absolutely need to."

He was instantly rewarded by intolerable heat. Alkor felt his eyes watering and rapidly drying out as he moved across the shifting sands. Dry winds assaulted him and buffeted the desert up at him like a protesting child, unhappy that he had come to this place at all.

If the rumors were true, a field boss lay in wait somewhere deep within the area; and if they were to be believed at all, it had already put a few names on the monument. Alkor disliked the idea that Players could wander that far off the beaten path and simply die- the beast had to be dealt with at all costs.

"Let's see... it should be... this way..."

@Cordelia

"Yeah, you're probably right," he laughed offhandedly, one hand on the back of his head. "But I could use the extra experience from just completing it. Every little bit helps, and just killing a mob here and there doesn't yield nearly as much." The grind was harder as they got higher in level, so backtracking and finishing quests was a crucial means by which to improve in Sword Art Online.

"Either way, I'll tag along just in case. Might as well get it done faster, right?" he asked, though he didn't really expect an answer. "Worst case scenario, it's over quick. Won't get bored walking alone, though."

Alkor took the hilt of his blade in hand and rested his arm along the crook of the blade. At worst, they'd keep each other company for a short trip around the second floor, and perhaps see each other again some other time. Or perhaps not.

She seemed reasonable enough as a person, to the point where Alkor wouldn't mind tagging along with her.

@Cordelia

Alkor landed just in time to watch as the woman took an incredible swipe with her large blade and bit a massive chunk out of the Field Boss' health bar. It seemed like his help might not even be necessary, and yet, to simply back down at this point would run counterintuitive to his purpose. He had to take a stand, even if it meant he contributed absolutely nothing to the war effort.

Being there was an important part of the fight. This Player- the very same woman who had given him an ugly look only moments before, could not be allowed to stand alone. It didn't matter if they got along, or if they became friends. What mattered was that they worked together as a team when the need arose.

Alkor slashed his own weapon, albeit to no avail as the Byakko turned quickly to round on the woman, growling menacingly as if to warn her that she was the only thing that the beast could see. It made sense. Alkor had not managed to make contact with his attack, so he had no hate for the beast to act on.

He gripped his weapon tightly and poised himself to strike. If this Player, apparently called NIGHT, didn't manage to slay the beast in the next exchange, Alkor would make sure to put it down himself. Then, everyone would be safe.

For Alkor, there was only one option. 

The other Players devised initiatives to keep weaker people away from the danger zone while stronger, higher leveled Players cleared out the clear and present threat. Various stronger Players would scout ahead for people who had bitten off more than they could chew and escort them out of harm's way. The better part of the low level Players would filter through the settlement and around the Floor to ensure that everyone who needed to know about the Field Boss was well informed. In this way, they would minimize casualties while working to restore some semblance of order.

Respawns like this were common enough, yet there were still Players who were slowly moving up through the ranks who did not know about them. Those Players sometimes ran afoul of the bosses, and in the worst situations, lost their lives because of it. Alkor intended to assure nothing like that could happen this time.

He had sworn that he'd protect everyone he could, after all. He would not fail in that task ever again. The swordsman rushed out ahead of the pack and brandished his blade, more than ready for the battle to come. He could feel the adrenal rush of conflict flooding his thoughts, erasing his doubts, and augmenting his desire to fight.

His only thought as he came close to the burnt out grove was about how few other Players he saw. "Where is everyone...?" he asked quietly.

It was bound to jump out at him before he got an answer.

@NIGHT

Alkor felt the impact, even if it didn't hurt. He turned to glance toward whoever had struck him with no real intention of saying anything. It was just a reflex, just something people did. There was no offense intended when most people ran into others, but there was almost always an apology. Alkor always found that funny.

It was when he saw the woman scowl that ideas started running through his mind. What the hot hell is going on? Why do people keep running into me and immediately drip with malice? Did I kick your dog, lady?

His brow rose as he watched her slowly turn away, even though he couldn't tell what her lips were saying despite obvious movement. Probably some kind of rude or nasty remark. Now that part he was beginning to get used to.

Though, why that was happening was beyond him.

The important thing now was the field boss. It was a terror to the Players just trying to do their daily grind on the sixth floor, and a problem if I were left unchecked to slaughter low levels. Alkor could absolutely not allow that to happen.

He fell into step with the rest of the group that met there to discuss their plan.

@NIGHT

Alkor had come into some information from a broker about a field boss on the third floor. Since his quest for strength restricted him to the lower floors for the moment, whenever something like this came up he jumped to investigate. 

There seemed to be more to the story than the broker let on as he trekked through the forest. The sixth floor was generally much less erratic than what he found. Where the floor was a placid battleground, a fragile peace was maintained by its denizens and the Players. It was not to be disrupted by their quarrels.

Until something else grew angry. 

He stepped out of the teleporter and into the sixth floor settlement purposefully, one hand on the hilt of his blade. People looked frantic as they moved around, buzzing and prattling. It seemed the reappearance of the field boss had disrupted their daily routine.

"I wonder if anyone is looking to go deal with this thing," he muttered to himself. "Might be rough on my own..."

@NIGHT

Alkor saw the quest appear, and watched the man hold out the unmistakeable shape of a curved sword. He stared at one, then the other blankly for a moment and finally let his eyes rest on Father Wuotan. The quest- the system itself had sent a reprieve for him, and whispered of his greatest weakness to him. No one else could see, but he was laid completely bare.

Alkor took on a grave expression as he considered those words for a time. "Learn what you are capable of with others." He could not begin to comprehend the entirety of what it meant, but he understood that the NPC was prompting him to go outside of his comfort zone. He knew it meant to meet new people, and perhaps even try to understand them. He knew that, and yet, there was so much he did not know.

But now, fear wouldn't stop him.

He flipped the o with his fingers and accepted the quest without a word. The item appeared in his inventory and he looked it over: a Demonic quality weapon. Stronger than anything he had ever held in Aincrad, and promising intensity in combat to whoever wielded it.

He opened his menu and toggled the weapon, which appeared in his waiting grasp. The blade was a sleek, green and black metallic color that shone faintly in the sunlight. "Banesteel," he uttered the name, listening to the sound of it. The words responded to his speaking them, and the name appeared on the description of the item.

Alkor gave Father Wuotan a respectful bow. "Thank you," he told the ancient entity. "Thank you very much.

The sky shifted to twilight, and the pressure in his throat relaxed just a bit. Alkor saw the moon shining through the clouds, which confused him because daylight had burned through the trees only moments before. What kind of dream was he trapped inside of?

You claim to understand what life isn't, but do you know what it is? 

The voice questioned him, and he almost felt mockery in the words that resounded all around him. Alkor looked around, but saw nothing. Mist billowed through the trees and masked the forest floor, leaving him alone with the voices inside his mind.

Did you not claim, once, that you had lost sight of everything? That you perjured to be something you were not? How could you possibly know what life is, when for so long you played pretend?

Alkor tensed as the words revived his doubt. His golden eyes burned with uncertainty as his shoulders began to sag.

"No," he repeated the word defiantly. "I won't lose to this. You don't even know me."

You don't even know yourself.

Alkor's last interaction with another Player ended in disaster, but Father Wuotan seemed to want him festive and cheerful in spite of the unhappy events. With that in mind, the swordsman had taken off toward the town with every intention of lifting his own spirits before heading right back into the thick of conflict and the daily grind that was life in Aincrad. Boredom had a way of creeping into the monotony, and things like this that only came on once a year broke through just enough to keep Players engaged.

It was almost like the wheel in a hamster cage: exercise for the mind and body, to prevent the spirit from breaking. A lonely version of captivity, but one kept carefully by a thoughtful overseer.

He stopped when he saw a younger looking woman busying herself in the snow. Was she preparing for a snowball fight, perhaps? Or would it be something less exciting and dubious than that? Alkor stopped and tilted his head, watching to see how things would proceed from there.

Snow wasn't abnormal where he came from, but he almost never went out to play in it. His family was very particular about proper attire and safety, and he thought it best to avoid anything that made him take extra effort simply to go outside- which he generally hated to do, anyway.

"What're you doing?" he asked her, not wanting to stare absently like some kind of weirdo.

@Andromeda

What was his name again? Yeesh. How did I forget that? He was pretty weird looking, and I swear it sounded like something important...

I guess I just wanted to forget. It wasn't my favorite run in with another person while I've been in here. 

"Yeah, I kind of thought he seemed unstable. First he helped me, then he got mad at me when I introduced myself. I didn't really get it. But it's no big deal." Alkor shrugged. "I'm alive, whether or not he would have preferred it otherwise."

He heard he say her level was somewhere in the forties and he frowned. He was nearly twenty levels behind her now. It used to be very different. "Doesn't sound like you need someone to jump in the way of swords anymore, ha ha ha..."

...ha...

Not like I've been any good for that lately, anyway.

"So, what does your broker have to say about this dragon?" he asked, changing the subject in a very obvious manner.

@Lessa

He grabbed at the grass with both hands in an effort to focus. His breathing came ragged and harsh, and he fought to his knees with throbbing in his head. The system had shifted to allow for this kind of experience in his mind. It may have been illusory, but sometimes Cardinal did things based on the thoughts and fears of the Players. It could see Alkor's resolve, and in his effort to seek strength, it decided to test him.

Rather, perhaps the creature that he sought had made such a decision.

What manner of beast had chosen him? What sort of calamitous creature would inflict this, rather than a simple contest of strength? These thoughts tore at Alkor as he weighed his options. Leave? Turn away now, so close, so very close to his goal?

"N...o..." His words flowed from his lips like poison, boiling on his tongue. Tears flowed from his eyes. The swordsman had never faced an enemy so readily willing to torment him not with the threat of death, but with the knowledge of his own frailty.

Sword Art Online constantly punished its prisoners with the knowledge of their inadequacy. That was life in this world. A simple mistake could bring them to their knees and beyond, to certain death both in the game and outside.

But this, the question he had asked himself all along: are you strong enough? Are you willing to do what it takes to become strong? Wouldn't you rather live easily, without suffering?

"No," he repeated. "That's not what life really is."

The toxic haze of red and black robbed him of vision. Pain wracked his body- 

Pain? No. Pain isn't real in this world. The limiters are in place and prevent any type of neural receptors from sending that kind of response to the brain. This isn't actually pain.

But it feels just like the real thing.

I haven't felt anything like this in years.

It felt like fire in his veins, flowing like red hot rivers. He understood that it was impossible, and yet here this sensation was flooding his body and washing everything else out of his mind. Alkor folded and writhed in the grass of the First Floor, crying out in helpless agony.

If you submit and leave now, there will be no cause for you to endure this. I will spare you ever having to feel anything like this again. What say you, man? Will you trade comfort for strength? Or will you live quietly and in obscurity with tolerable peace?

This is for you to decide.

They scattered, panicked voices echoing through his mind. Had he startled them by coming so close? Alkor tried to even touch one of them, but it was outside his reach. Crows swirled around him like a maelstrom, inky darkness threatening to consume his thoughts.

What is it you seek?

The voice crowded his mind suddenly, though it was not his own. Alkor blinked and thought to speak, but no sound came. His voice caught in his throat and remained there like a lump.

Is it power? Power that you lack, or that you would use? For what do you seek power?

He tried once more in vain to speak, but only succeeded in letting out a mangled cough. His voice was like razor blades cutting at the insides of his esophagus, failing to do anything but cause him intense pain.

Was this the world around him, or something else?

You will find nothing of power. Turn back. Leave this place, or find only despair.

"I went to see what it was like," he answered honestly. "And to check to see how far behind I had fallen. I didn't want to believe it was as much as it actually was. Some part of me wanted to think that I was important, and I'd had an actual impact on clearing floors."

Now I know better. It's not about one person, no matter how good they are. If we don't all work together, if not every one of us survives, we lost something important along the way.

But I can't just say that to Lessa. The last thing she remembers is me not being here. Me not being there when she needed me. Me failing to protect her, the way I always said I would.

All because I let some psychopath provoke me.

"If not for some weird guy who punched me in the face, I probably wouldn't have survived. Oh well," Alkor gave a half-hearted shrug. He didn't really want to get into that. "Lesson learned. I'm not heading that way again any time soon, I don't think."

Alkor turned his gaze toward the fields outside of Urbus. He had spent some time here recently. The Wasp Queen field boss, in particular. It wasn't far out, so he technically had invested no real time on the floor since back then.

"I haven't spent much time here since before the Hydra boss," he told her honestly. "So, I guess we're both out of practice?"

@Lessa

He stopped short of entry to the town, barred by none other than Father Wuotan. Alkor half expected the man to skip over him after the apparent lack of joy that his conversation had thrust upon him, but the kindly man appeared before him nonetheless. Alkor managed to smile at that fact.

"I can understand that," his voice softened and grew quiet. It hurt, in reality, that he couldn't do more for someone or offer a shoulder that they could cry on. Mari had decided she wanted what she wanted, and what she wanted, Alkor could not give. Christmas miracles weren't always possible, it turned out.

What it appeared was possible, however, was the kindness of the man before him. "I appreciate the gesture, Father," Alkor said with a bit more confidence in his voice, "and I need to get stronger. I've just started to learn the Curved Sword, and while I'm gaining some skill with the weapon, I find I don't exactly have a blade that can really do the damage I'd like to be dealing. Is that something you could help with?"

He opened both palms and turned them upward, offering the man a display of helplessness. "I'll totally understand if not, of course."

@Father Wuotan

Sounds good, let's get this party started.

Caw.

Their call was uniform, mocking him. Not one showed a health meter like an enemy, not one seemed to have any intention of interacting with him. They stirred occasionally, moving purposefully to some unheard rhythm. It felt like the Cardinal system had led him to this place only to play with his mind.

Illusory flapping of their wings at intervals played tricks on his mind. He turned at high speed on his heel, desperate to see anything that might try to blindside him. Nothing came.

"Okay," he changed tactics. Alkor was paranoid as a rule because he was a loner, so the very thought that something might sneak up on him caused his anxiety to spike. In a version of Sword Art Online where the distress limiters had been removed, it was a recipe for disaster, and yet, it also meant the most real experience possible.

The sadism of Akihiko Kayaba knew no bounds.

Alkor drew his blade as he circled backward through the Grove, seeking any sign of the sole creature his quest had indicated. There had to be one, somewhere. There was nothing in this place to fight. Nothing to find. There had to be something.

S-senpai, you left Saying Vows on the list~

*B L U S H*

In all seriousness, however, how does Treant Rivalries sound to you? That sounds feasible for someone at my level to be at least somewhat useful.

@Ariel - The Crowned Lion

He stepped into the Grove with an expression of awe plastered across his face. The murder of crows only stared down at him from every direction, almost certainly disinterested in the single Player that had stumbled upon their secret lair. If they were afraid, it was not apparent; and if they intended to chase him off, they had not given any sign of such.

"Are you all familiars?" he asked quietly. "Or... I guess, are you the type of creatures I'm able to tame?"

He reached up as if to touch one, and the message flickered across his HUD. Immortal Object. The bird cawed lazily and flapped its wings twice to signify it had been disturbed, but otherwise made no attempt to move. It seemed that they had no interest in him whatsoever.

But they were there, they were everywhere.

He watched several of the avian creatures take flight, as if perturbed by the sudden intrusion while others seemed not to take any notice whatsoever. As Alkor moved through the dimly lit copse of trees, he stared with mouth agape.

The Swordsman glanced skyward and shielded his eyes from sunlight that peeked through the leaves. It always felt surreal to him how the warmth and cold in Aincrad actually felt so real. He reached out as though he meant to take the sphere of fire in hand, spilling the shadow of his hand over his face.

"Okay, I've come pretty far from the Town, so north is this way..." he mused as he used the position of the sun relative to the time shown on his HUD to determine direction. He hated toggling the mini map when he could just use his surroundings to navigate. He had learned that from his Grandfather. "Guess I'll keep heading deeper into the trees and see what I can find."

The sound of a bird calling grew louder as he went, and he heard more of them join in like a chorus. Was there a settlement of some sort of avian nearby? How had he never heard about that? The info brokers should have been aware if there was a secret hidden on the first floor.

"I've got some idea how to proceed," he told while folding both arms across his chest. Alkor stood so that he faced both Mari and Macradon. Both Players spoke like they had information to impart about builds and strategies, but while Alkor was behind, he still understood the bare basics.

That wasn't to say that he had applied them to any degree. He had a healthy number of skill points allocated and some strength to show for it, but that was all. Any real development or specialization had yet to manifest in his play style.

It made sense that they didn't see him as on that level, because effectively, he was not. He wanted to be- he had the drive to be. He just had yet to attain it.

"But I'm not quite ready to commit to it, yet. I've only just reached level 25, see. I've been behind for a while, and I've got to put in the work to catch back up."

@Macradon @Mari

He spent a brief amount of time after his run in with Lessa's new friend Bahr on this floor. The conversation and altercation between the two men could remain secret for all he cared. Whether Bahr had disclosed it or not was unclear, and Lessa hadn't treated him any differently for it if he had.

However, the conversation between them had left things icy. Truths lost for multiple years within Aincrad had thawed and come to the surface like a great glacier sundered by the climate. Water levels had risen and Alkor began to drown. It seemed Lessa felt the effects as well.

"They're good with information, but I doubt they're that well informed. Unless they have someone watching you." He didn't think that was realistic. No info broker was that invested in a single client. "It's possible that they started digging so they could profit further. That's much more likely."

He rested his forearm on the hilt of his blade and shifted his weight onto his right foot. "Second floor's not much less tame than the first," he said. "Shouldn't be a bad time here, either."

@Lessa

The creatures he could see never came close. Sparrows flitted through the treetops and paid him no heed. Snakes slithered through grass, though he had seen other Players with them, but never interacted with him. He heard a faint growl somewhere nearby, but no beast appeared to accompany it.

He stopped low and ran his fingers through the dirt, using his untrained tracking skill to look for clues. Nothing. "Is there anything out here that I can actually befriend?" he asked. "Maybe the system knows I'm a loner and it's responding to that."

Somehow, he doubted that.

The Swordsman stood upright and took stock of his surroundings. There was something, somewhere that would react. He just had to be patient and keep looking. The game didn't give quests that couldn't be completed.

Alkor folded his arms and bowed his head in thought. He needed to find a familiar to train, but his skills were yielding no fruit. "Now what...?"