Sword Art Online: From Spark to Flame

Part 1 - Trapped

-----Aincrad 13:00-----

It was amazing. The warmth from the sun, the soft push of the wind. A world so alive and real. Aincrad. The land of Sword Art Online.

Mitsuki Shaizu sighed, glancing up at the player name <Hikari> that displayed above her health stats and level <1>. She chuckled at the silly thought process she had gone through when creating her name, pressing her avatars hand against her forehead. For her avatar, she had chosen the third medium height option, which was around 160 centimeters, a little taller than her actual 157.5 centimeter height. The hair was a dark vibrant violet, wavy and extending down to the tip of her waist. The costume was simple, a low level outfit of mostly cloth with a thin leather shoulder guard on the left, accompanied by a leather belt and long tailcoats that went down to the avatar's ankles. The boots went up her shins, stopping and tucking downward just below the knees. She had chosen flat bottomed boots, as she didn't like the way heels felt. Her color scheme was a mixture of reds, oranges, and yellows, the main part of her avatar's costume a dusty red. On her left hip, attached to her dark leather belt, was a simple long-sword in a sheath.

The hills spilled out just beyond the starting town's edge, rolling off into the distance, a shining artificial sun spraying down an orange hue across the sky. Hands on her hips, Shaizu looked out onto the hills beyond, excitement and wonder filling her as she pondered at all the possible adventures she could have in the amazing world of Aincrad.

"Okay," she muttered confidently to herself. "Time for an adventure!"

"An adventure?" A man's voice came from behind her, startling her and causing her to jump as she glanced over her right shoulder. "Do you mind if I tag along?"

The man's avatar was tall with simple leather chest armor, his straight dull pink hair held down by a iconic red bandanna with a pair of yellow streaks above the right eye.

Immediately Shaizu flustered. "Ah! You weren't supposed to hear that!" she blurted out, turning toward him and flailing her arms. "Gah, this is embarrassing!"

He laughed. "You were talking kind of loudly, how was I not supposed to?" He laughed again, causing Shaizu to flush a little from the embarrassment.

"Sh-shut up! I got excited!" Shaizu snapped, her avatar blushing across the face.

"Hey, hey! I get it, okay?" he responded, waving his hand to calm her down. "You got excited, and started talking."

Shaizu glared at him, the blush slowly fading away. "You'd probably do the same."

The man chuckled. "If it makes you feel any better, probably! Anyway, back to what I said before, about your little 'adventure'? Do you mind if I tag along?"

A little bit of confusion swept through Shaizu. "Tag along? What do you mean by that?"

"Oh, you know. Party up, share the experience and loot... that's what I meant."

A player avatar ran passed them out of the town, his movements suggesting he was eager to begin his adventure.

Shaizu cocked her head to the side. "Uh... okay. I guess. Just..." she blushed a little, averting her eyes and shifting the tone of her voice to awkward embarrassment. "How do you... 'party up' in an RPG?"

The man smiled. "You must be new to RPGs, huh? Here, I'll send the invite." He waved his right hand in front of him, scrolling through the interactive Sword Art Online menu system. After a few swipes up and down and the blips of menu selection, a small message box appeared in front of Shaizu. 'Player <Klein> wishes for you to join his party' it displayed, as well as the 'accept' and 'decline' options. Shaizu peered at the message for a moment, then moved her avatar's hand and selected 'accept'.