Her Mission To Save Them All || Sword Art Online Fanfic

Chapter 17

Me: This would be a perfect time for me to update HMTSTA

My French Teacher: Finish your french assessment overnight because you were ill last lesson

Me: well there goes my plans...

POV: Kayoko

Tiredness is a weight on my back, depressing into my virtual skin like it is really there. Should I even feel tried in this game?

I just want to close my eyes and forget this day ever happened. Turn the clocks back to a day where there wasn't the threat of Kyo dead or Saki spearing her sword through my back from sheer hatred.

I would welcome the relief of death if there weren't a mission ahead of me. I have to hold on longer. Just until I can find him and end this, then I can finally, truly rest my body.

We don't attempt to explain or make conversation; same as me, they just want this to end. My newly acquired charms hit my skin like ice particles, chilling each time.

When we reach the entrance hall of the dungeon, pink glows both from the jell and my bracelet, the barrier shattering into game data before me when I reach out to touch it.

A cool wind brushes against my face, sending my hair rippling upwards into the blue sky. I am surprised by the crowd gathered, but when I think about it again, I am not. Any chance to make life here a little better, people will take it.

"Wait, someone's coming out!" Someone shoves, sending a domino of different voices and movements, each crowding around me, Kyo and Saki.

They are too close, suffocatingly close, stragglingly close to me. It is almost as if they can smell a secret on me; a massive secret they want to know more about.

A secret that can be as much of a weapon as a help here.

"I wonder who the couple is?"

"What attack bonus did you get!?"

"Are they a high level?"

All the voices muddle in my head, a fog swirling around in my mind, clouding all my thoughts. And one light shines all that away.

"Move," it is quiet at first then all my anger of the day heads my next word "MOVE!!"

Reluctantly, the crowd parts, murmuring again as a pass them, uncaring, only wanting rest, and lots of it.

I endure a lot of mumbling from when we start to descend the hill, stuff about things I don't even want to think about, so I don't.

I put an unshatterable barrier upon my mind, let my body operate on autopilot for a while, just getting down this hill for what seems like the 100th time.

I am never going up it again.

"Sachi!" The form of Keita morphs out of the identical faces of the crowd, instantly hugging the girl.

Suddenly, I am glad I could bring myself to kill her back there, even if it would have been easier, with no witnesses. A clean kill.

"I am so glad you are okay." He sounds beyond relieved. I don't even know how much it would break his heart to hear that she had died.

I am glad I didn't do it.

"You too Kira, and Kyo, looks like we are going to have to put up with you a little longer."

His humour is appreciated, lightening up the awkwardness between us. Again, there are so many things I don't want to think about; real lives and identities revealed.

"Yeah! Looks like we might be partying together for a little longer." Kyo laughs, but when he looks at me, I see the sadness in his eyes.

Everything between us had changed. It isn't going back to the way before, even if we want it to.

But I am not ready to answer him just yet. Maybe I never will be strong enough to actually say anything and his words will hang between us forever.

It is like I don't know how to be strong anymore. This day has taken every bit within me and I just want it back...I need to rest.

"How about we go back then?" I ask, hinting.

"Sure!"

We continue down the hill, eyes glaring into our backs with each step towards the teleport point while I listen to Keita nag Sachi about running off.

It is calming to hear, normal almost and if I concentrate enough, I can imagine how in the real world, we would be walking home now, down a hill just like this, with identical cherry blossom petals around us.

The forest offers shelter from all the stares, it seems safer here, I remember thinking before we ran into a mini-boss.

Typical. Just typical.

The closest animal that resembled it in the real world was a deer. But this one was 7 metres tall, with a skull-like face and ribs jutting about of its leathery skin plus the two abnormally large teeth protruding out of the mouth.

Sluggishly, I dodged the first swipe of its elongated arm, sending a woosh of air, into my red locks tangling into my face.

I brush them aside, quickly charging up a sword skill. As I ran towards it, it pounded all four of its legs onto the mud, that trembled in response, knocking me back and into Kyo, similarly preparing to attack.

Great, a woodland devil deer, at this rate, me and the moonlit Blackcats aren't ready enough, not good enough to beat it, as tired as we are.

Will I already have to use one of my charms so soon? I would have liked to have kept them unknown for a while longer, but if it is to save Kyo, to save them, I would do it.

It feels strange to want to save the 5 of them, even if I have known them for even less than a day. The things that have happened, all the memories between us, even if they are bad ones, they connect us together. There is no undoing that.

I guess it makes me remember that there are other players other than me and Kyo out there, struggling just like us. If they were stronger, and I knew them better, they could even help us with our mission.

If we live through this, I vow as the deer once again lifts its legs above us, me and Kyo are joining the Moonlit Black Cats.

Just to keep an eye on Saki, just in case she spills our secrets. And with the guild, because they know Kyo's real name, and maybe just maybe, they could figure out mine from that too.

Maybe.

The deer rears again, I can see my health bar hovering in the orange, but I mostly see the thin bars of red on undermine.

I grip one of the charms and prepare to yank it off the bracelet when someone jumps in front of me, using his sword to block the raised legs of the deer.

I can't see much of him from behind, other than an empty sword sheath across his back and a black coat studded with silver embellishments on the shoulders.

I roll out from my crouched position, ducking over the other player and stabbing the deer right between its skinny ribs.

"Switch!" I yell as I and the other player jump back, while Tetsuo hastily defends in our Saviour's face.

I don't get time to look at him though before I switch out in place of Kyo, a twirl of the blade, like an arc of death and it shatters soon after.

I pant, hands over knees, tired, tired, tired, even though this isn't my body doing any of this.

I want so desperately to crumble over on the grass and close my eyes, even just for a while but I straighten, forcing a smile.

"Thanks for saving..." I trail off as I stare at the player, a boy. Onyx eyes and with hair that dips in between them and a coat, so similar to the one back in the first dungeon.

"Kirito?"

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