SAO: From Humble Beginnings

The Genesis Of Aincrad

July, 2001

A very young and curious Akihiko Kayaba sat in the sandbox. He patted another lump of wet sand into his large yellow pail, and flipped it onto the coarse surface below. He slowly raised the pail, putting his face close to it as it went, making sure that his structure stayed intact. As the pail arose, it revealed another wonderful turret, making it the fourth in little Kayaba’s castle.

                A large smile crept across his face as he started to see his masterpiece take shape. Soon he would put up walls, and a large centerpiece for all of his friends to live in. Soon.

                As Kayaba continued to form his structure, he thought of all of the amazing adventures his little people would have within the walls of the castle. They would face amazing creatures, great and small. There would be places to sleep, and places to eat. There would be shops, and lakes, and mountains galore. No player would ever have to be alone, because people would be able to adventure together, with their friends. They could fish, craft, cook, and so much more. Yes, it would be a universe crafted to what little Akihiko saw as perfect.

                As he finished, he looked at the top of the castle he’d created, within the safety of the turrets and walls. The top of his castle looked small, and plain. Surely a palace of this magnitude should have something glistening at the top. Yes, but only for the champions who proved their worth.

                Little Kayaba placed his hands atop the sand structure and began to remove some of the castle, until it looked much like a cone, but left a flat portion at the top. When he sat back and looked at the castle from a distance he was very pleased. He, again, looked at the empty space at the tip. He knew it simply would not suffice.  He began to look all around himself, within the box, trying to find something worthy of being placed at the top of his magnificent kingdom.

                When Kayaba could find nothing around him that he saw as appropriate for a castle topping, he awkwardly stood up and shook the dirt from his pants. He left the sandbox, and began walking around the rest of the playground, searching for his missing piece. He picked up sticks, but none stuck in his imagination. He compared rocks, but he found them too bland and too heavy for the lightheartedness of his amazing creation.

                Finally, after much adventuring, something caught his eye. As he ambled around the jungle gym, which was situated just a few feet from the sandbox, he saw what looked like a sea of beautiful red pieces of wood, scattered all about. As he stepped into this wonderful sight, the feeling of mulch moving under his shoes made him feel, that surely, his sought after missing piece would be found.

                Akihiko knelt down, sifting his small hands through the many pieces of red inspiration. He picked up the pieces by the handfuls, and examined each one meticulously. Nothing sub-par would do. No, certainly not for his kingdom. Finally, after many handfuls had been cast aside, he found what he was looking for. It must have been the biggest piece of red mulch on the entire playground, and it was mesmerizing.

                Excited, Akihiko darted back to his sand castle and plopped down beside it. He looked at the piece of red mulch and began to strip little pieces off of it. He placed the large chunk at the northern most point of the top of his mystical kingdom, and surrounded it with the little strips he’d pulled off of his castle piece. It was perfect to him.

                “Akihiko! Akihiko, it’s time to go!”

                Akihiko didn’t respond to his mother’s calls to leave. He was simply too proud of his work to be swayed from it.

                “There you are, baby. It’s time to go home. It’s almost dinner time.”

                Still, Akihiko didn’t move. He was too busy adding delicate features to his central castle with his index finger. His young imagination was fully alive.

                “Oh my, what a wonderful sand castle you’ve made! Who lives there, Akihiko?”

                Akihiko grinned and looked at his mother, pleased that she was impressed.

                “Everyone lives there, mommy. Heathcliff, too. He’s the king!”

                Akihiko’s mother was taken aback by such an intelligent answer. Although she wasn’t surprised. Even at such a young age, her child was very bright. At the young age of six, he was already reading books that most adults couldn’t even comprehend… she immediately knew what character her son was referring to.

                “Heathcliff? From Wuthering Heights?”

                “Yes! That’s him!”

                Akihiko answered and nodded with a beaming smile. He’d been reading the book and had become infatuated with the character Heathcliff, the master of the book’s estate. She, too, had read the book, and wouldn’t dare tell her son that his favorite character perished at its conclusion. Instead, she tried to change the subject.

                “Is that a house, sitting at the top?”

                Akihiko got close, touching the piece of mulch, lightly, with his finger to straighten it.

                “That’s the ruby palace, mommy, that’s where Heathcliff lives.”

                Akihiko’s mother bit her lip, her attempt had failed. She tried again.

                “Where is this castle? What country?”

                Akihiko giggled as if his mother had said something absurd.

                “Oh, mommy, it’s not in any country! It’s in the sky, floating!”

                Akihiko’s mother tilted her head to the side in confusion.

                “Well, sweetie, how do all of the people leave?”

                Akihiko’s face went from carefree and happy, to angry in an instant. He looked at his mother with a pouty face.

                “Why would anyone ever want to leave, mommy?”