[IC] Far From Home [ Scout & Vena Sera ]

[Scout]

Far From Home

June 2023, Floor 25

Fitch clapped his friend on the back with a somber smile, "You know, Suto... Despite everything, your attitude's always refreshing," He said honestly as they moved through the dungeon. The mobs were scarce and very easily dispatched as the group of forty-nine pushed onward.

Heathcliffe's speech at the start was enough to bolster the moods of most around, but about halfway through the walk to the boss room, Yari had pulled Fitch away from the rest of their group, her voice low, "Alex..? What's wrong?"

He paused for a moment before realizing she had used his actual name; a name he hadn't heard much since the start of the game, before sighing, "It's nothing. Just... something feels off," He muttered, looking around as they kept pace with the raid-party.

No matter how he blew it off, Yari's look of concern would be equally genuine, "Maybe we should sit this one out, then? With Heathcliffe, I'm sure everybody will be fine... It is the twenty-fifth floor... Or maybe it's just nerves. We can fall back if you want to," She offered with a small smile, wanting nothing more than to ease his mind. Fitch just shook his head and rejected the thought adamantly; perhaps it was nothing more than an eerieness about the dungeon - his intuition had been wrong before.

Everybody froze at the door to the boss room, Heathcliffe standing directly before it, giving the entire party a break in order to prepare themselves and their nerves for the other side of the door. Fitch found himself standing in the center of the crowd, as the others moved about, making sure their groups were all together and their equipment was battle-ready. He smiled tiredly as he spotted Kenshin consoling Alphard... They were such a fine pair; it was a wonder they weren't married yet, even in the game. "Are you sure you're okay?" A voice rang out near him and he shook his head, blinking.

"Of course," He said with a small nod as he looked at Yari, taking her hand. "Let's tell everybody at the party tonight," He suggested briskly.

The girl seemed entirely surprised at the suddenness of his proposal, "Oh... Uhm... W-well... Are you sure?" She asked, lowering her voice with a blush and a broad smile. "I mean... what about Suto?"

"I think it's worse not telling them... And... I want them to know..." He said positively.

Yari's face lit up as she nodded and wrapped her arms around his neck, "Then we'll tell them..." A few moments passed like that, the two holding one another as Fitch took a deep breath and let it out. They were going to be okay. All of them. "I'm so happy..."

The sword-and-shield user smiled, finally shaking that terrible feeling he'd had only minutes ago, "Me too... I love you, Mizuki," He stated, embracing her for several more seconds.

She blushed and nodded into his shoulder, "I love you too..."

Finally, they parted - Fitch was to join the other shield users toward the front and Yari was going to join the rest of the squads which came in after a blocked attack and small groups that focused on minions. The doors opened to a new, ornate room - it seemed to be full of black marble, but it was lit to the perfect degree of vision. Fitch looked around, scanning the others in the room, but Yari was well-concealed amongst the drove of other players. He sighed and pulled up his shield, ready as the entire force charged in and took up their positions.

First came the skeletons; they were a fairly basic minion, but they would occupy a fair number of players and Kenshin and Alphard took off with one another, a team of two tearing through the beasts one by one. However, mere moments after the group had entered, two massive flames burst forth at the base of the stairs leading ot the next floor and showed an absolutely massive two-headed giant. It's mouths seemed far too large for the heads; it appeared slow and a bit challenged, but there was no way to dispute that it would be formidable. Fitch swallowed hard and braced himself as the command was issued and the entire front line bolted forward, only to be met with powerful stomp. They were all thrown back and stunned, rendering them useless for several moments - including Fitch - which left only a select few shield-users and heavily armored players to take the swipe of the giant's blade. It was already absolute chaos and two players had been killed from the initial slash. The front line recovered as quickly as the system would allow and had prepared to avoid any kind of knock-back attack again. The battle seemed to go smoothly for the first two of five health bars. The monster was incredibly powerful, but it seemed to be rather lacking in abilities - it wasn't very dynamic, so the party was easily gaining confidence with each sliver of health they stole.

"Switch!!" Heathcliffe called out as the monster was stunned by a combined block. Yari and Nero had both charged forward together, Nero unleashing a six-hit Sword Skill before Yari followed. Close behind her was a group of five more players ready to hit with everything they had. Just as she finished her three-hit skill, the third health bar vanished and the weapons of her comrades flashed. Nero was gone moments after his attack was finished and Yari was just about able to move away when the beat materialized a second weapon in his free hand - which had originally been used for his knock-back attack. It was a massive hammer which, even at the boss' great size, should have required two hands to use. It came from over his head and slammed into the ground; had it been waiting for such a concentrated force to come before it, or was it a result of the health bar dropping? The game was usually so fair... So it was merely coincidence that they had all moved in to attack at the same time as he gained the weapon... In fact, everything lined up so perfectly in its favour that four players would watch as their health turned from green to yellow and nearly red... Two of them would be thrown back by the Area of Effect from the pound and any who saw them would see the health drain straight to empty.

Fitch cried out and threw himself forward, only to be grabbed by something and thrown to the ground, narrowly avoiding a slash from the giant's blade. Nero quickly scrambled off of the boy whose life he had just saved, though Fitch hadn't truly realized it as he forced himself up and forward. He pivoted as his feet kicked up dust for a couple of short feet before he fell to his knees, surrounded by shimmering crystals which were once Yari. His blade clattered to the ground and Fitch was halted no more than a couple of feet from the mighty creature. What would happen to him without her..? He watched as his mind's eye showed him a behemoth dragon fighting a small party of players... He recognized them as his friends, but he wasn't there... Kenshin was murdered. Then he was watching, in first person, as his own hands took lives... life after life... and he enjoyed it. The embrace of and desire for his own death as he dealt it out to others. Nero donned in red and white... Suto and himself toe-to-toe, staring defiantly at each other before lunging forth, each with their own attack... What was he watching?

"You idiot! Get the hell out of there!!" Nero's voice called, now coming from the side. The boy seemed to teleport at times, it was ridiculous...

Three... Four... Five...

Nero's feet beat against the ground, one in front of the other. His hands desperately fished in his coat pockets, "where did I put it..? God dammit!"

Six... Seven...

"FITCH, MOVE!" Finally, he pulled it out, a small, blue crystal which he had been keeping for months... He didn't want to have the burden of deciding when to use it, but it took only a moment of thought to realize what kind of harm could come from this group losing somebody so important...

Eight...

Under his breath, Nero muttered, "Revive... Yari." The crystal dissolved in his hand and every shard in the air around Fitch slowly turned direction, gradually forming a recognizable kneeling figure. In a flash, its armour and spear appeared in its hands and it rose to its feet. Within only a second of life reaching Yari, Nero dove into both of them, throwing all three of them to the floor, a large cloud of dust trailing behind them as they slid forward. Despite some dumbfounded fighters, the entire force regrouped and doubled their efforts to take down the boss.

Nero muttered under his breath, "Shut up. Don't let it happen again," His words sounded harsher than they were meant as he hopped to his feet. "No time for questions, get up and fight." He ordered, leaping into the fray once more.

Fitch stared at the girl before him, finally snapped from his reverie as he noticed that she wasn't gone. She was right here and he pushed himself up, beaming excitedly at her confused expression. "Stay out of the fight, baby... Please." She seemed to obey, clambering to her feet without a word as she ran to the far side of the room, unnoticed by most of the other players who were now either concentrated on the boss, or skeptical of Nero himself. Fitch sprinted into battle after his friend, shield ready as he scooped up his sword with an upward swing to get the boss's attention. At the end of his swing, Fitch sprung with the momentum, rising powerfully straight into the air, facing the monster threatening all of their lives.

"Don't fuck with me!" He shouted, following through with a powerful three-strike combo, interrupting another overhead swing that could have taken more lives.

The battle was sweaty and hard-won, but by the end, those who had lost nobody were simply relieved and those that did were both somber and infuriated, staring daggers at Nero. Fitch panted, staring at his last-hit spoils. A new straight sword labelled Giant-Forged Sword appeared in his inventory and he equipped it. The style was quite simple, but the blade itself was a brilliant gold-and-red fiery mix, flavour-texted with a small description of being forged in the fires of ancient giants and cyclopes, as a knife with a heated enchantment; however, so much time has passed that any magical effect of the blade has since worn off. It was a hand and a half hilt, but of course Fitch would only wield in one. He sheathed it to his back and his shield joined it.

His gaze moved to Suto and they seemed to have the same thought as they dashed for Yari. He made it first, wrapping his arms around her dazed form in a tight hug. Once Suto joined them, she would take a step back and shake her head, "I'm... sorry... Uhm... Thank you for being so kind, but..." She rubbed her neck awkwardly as their small crowd of friends grew into their extended Aincradian family, all smiling at her with relief. "But uh... Who... are all of you?"

Fitch tilted his head slightly, giving a small laugh, "Yari... That's not funny, c'mon..." He looked to Suto uneasily.

She shrugged and solemnly shook her head, "I'm sorry, but there's no joke here. What's going on?" The girl was clearly trying to remain calm, but she began to fidget a bit worriedly, growing afraid.

Meanwhile, Nero was trying to get to Yari before several people formed a line in front of him. "Move," He commanded firmly.

"No," Their impromptu leader stated defiantly. Suddenly, Nero was surrounded, "What the hell did you do back there? I know what I saw... That girl was dead. She was crystals in the air, and then she was fine?"

Nero shook his head, "I saw it too, that doesn't mean I caused it! I don't know who did it, but I'd be willing to bet it was a glitch. You think a short month and only a thousand people can find all the bugs in a game? No. Maybe her NerveGear reversed or malfunctioned, or even had no toxins in it. How the hell should I know?"

"Oh cut the crap. You're rich, you hunt alone, and you obviously knew what was going to happen when you went in there and threw them out of the way! Ho ware we supposed to know you didn't find some secret item and keep it to yourself, hm? You had some kind of revival item, and you're going to tell us where you got it and how. Fourteen people died today! And you chose to save some random one? She wasn't the first one..." The man's voice choked slightly before he could put his strong face back on, "And she died at the same time as my best friend. What gave you that right? WHY DIDN'T YO-"

Nero launched forward and grabbed the man by the throat, tackling him. The sound of blades leaving their sheaths sounded all around him as he snarled at the man, "I can't save you all you stupid bastard! I saved her because she would give her life for you in an instant. She would do it and not regret it, even though she doesn't know you. Would your friend do that? No. He wouldn't. Do you know how I know? Because I remember you guys at the boss raid meeting... You sat in the back muttering about how stupid the plan was. But you didn't tell anybody your brilliant ideas to improve it. She did. She weighed in. She thought about it and wanted to help everybody get out alive. But we couldn't do that because the boss wouldn't appear without the door closing behind us. We weren't prepared for this! I DIDN'T EVEN WANT THAT FUCKING THING!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. Somebody grabbed him from behind and threw him to his back away from the other man.

A voice called out, "So he did have it! It was him! How long did you have it? Where'd you get it? Why didn't you tell anybody?!" The questions came from every side over and over again. The boy crumpled.

"I don't know... I don't know, there was one... It was all luck... I didn't even mean to get it! We barely made it past the first floor... I just... stumbled on a package and it had that inside... I-I-I didn't know when I was going to use it... I don't know why... I didn't want it... I wanted to give it to somebody else... but..."

Questions turned to tears from the small crowd. Angry shouts, the sound of blades scraping... It was all too much. Then it started. First, a boot met his rib. Then swords began to sing as they powered up. After the boss died, the zone became safe, but each strike caused a jolt to Nero's entire being as he mind was thrown about. "Stop!" He pleaded as they violently continued attacking, though his health bar didn't budge.

A booming voice finally rang out, "Everybody freeze!" It was Heathcliffe, his figure standing tall over the other players. Nero stared up as he pushed through them, "How many of you can say you'd instantly know when to use an item like that? If you ever found one? If that's even what actually happened?! Sure, you'd use it on your friend... Of course! But if there were other people around who saw it happen outside of your party? They'd have the same reaction - where to get one, why didn't you tell anybody... He found it, it wasn't even a drop, so let it go. If it were a drop, somebody else would have found it. He was afraid of your reactions, let him go," He said commandingly.

"You're not the boss of us!"

He shrugged, uncaring and passive, "Yeah, so torment one of the best fighters you have. Look at him... Pathetic. If you guys found him anywhere else, he'd probably let you kill him. He wouldn't do anything to intentionally hurt you. Why don't you guys go open the new teleport? Those who need to grieve should grieve, not waste time pummeling some weakling." Nero watched the man walk away... Weak? WEAK? The mob began to disperse and Nero rose to his feet... He felt like he needed to defend himself, but could he really say anything at this point? He turned around and saw the close-knit group, but they didn't seem quite as excited as he thought they'd be.

He started for them, "What's going on?" He asked Kenshin from the edge of the semi-circle. The dark-haired boy looked at him, "She... Doesn't seem to remember any of us.

When Yari saw Nero, she looked over and smiled, "Hey! You're the one that saved me, aren't you? I thought for sure I was a goner there... What's your name?" She asked.

"I-It's Nero... You know that," He stated, only to watch her shake her head in frustration.

Yari scowled and stamped one of her feet, "Stop... Stop saying that, no I don't. Who the hell are you?" She asked, taking a fearful step back. She didn't know any of them... Why did they all insist she did? Did they expect her to know all of them personally just because they'd planned the boss fight together? It wasn't like she spent a lot of time with them...

[Vena Sera]

Outside of the boss room, Floor 25.

They had cleared 24 floors before this one with little trouble, so why should this be any different? Sure, one would think that as the floors increased so did the difficulty, but it wasn't a one sided change; as the floors went up so did their level, so long as they kept up to speed it shouldn't be too hard. It was for this reason that Suto could go into the dungeon confident, managing to be as lighthearted and joking as ever even during fights. No matter what the game threw at them he was confident they could handle it, they had thus far. From what they had gathered thus far it seemed every tenth floor was especially tricky, so they had a few more to go until they faced any real challenge.

Having cleared the final room prior to the boss room, all 49 of the Clearers, that is players who advanced the game, were taking stock of their gear and a much needed breather. No longer was Sword Art Online just a game, now you could legitimately feel tired. All of the battling they did, regardless of how well it went, was still tiring and required the occasional pause even for the most well versed of warriors. Rather than fretting about what lie beyond the doors most everyone was enjoying themselves, sharing a laugh with a friend or putting away a quick meal before the fight. Once this was done and over with there would be a party for the Clearers, the best part of any raid in Suto's opinion. There was always time for a party, and it was where most of his fortune was spent. Much as his friends tried to dissuade him from being so casual about spending his Col he couldn't help it, parties were his release in this world.

Sharing a laugh with another party Suto felt a hand slap his back, glancing around curiously and beaming seeing his friend Fitch. Alex in the real world, the two of them along with Mizuki had been friends for a number of years, and now found themselves trapped in Sword Art Online together. Aside from parties that was a saving grace as well, having some familiar faces along with the ride for you. Sure, throughout their travels they had made a few other friends, but nothing quite beat having someone from the other world at your side. Grinning at the complement Suto let out a chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck as he shrugged his shoulders.

"Well... You know, I just try to stay positive, that's all!" Suto replied, smiling as he gave a thumbs up, "But glad I can help. And things are only going to get better after this, because we've got a party to go to!" He couldn't wait, it was going to be huge! A quarter of the way through the game, and a whole new town, what were they going to do for this special occasion? Watching as Fitch and Yari went off to talk the martial artist went to join the other damage dealers, wondering what their plan of action was.

"Alright, remember everyone, we want to maximize our damage without drawing the focus onto us. So we'll take turns with our bursts, and rotate as needed for the adds." Takahiro was the man in charge of Suto's division, a lance-user and one of the few of their group. He was an older man, probably 30 or so, and for that reason alone he figured people gave a lot of weight to what he had to say. That and he had an extensive history of MMOs, enough so that he'd been playing them longer than some people, Suto included, had been alive. Glancing over at the door Takahiro got to his feet, smirking as he placed his hands on his hips. "Everyone knows their role, so let's get to it. We might not be the front fighters but we'll show everyone we're just a big a part as the tanks, got it?"

Suto couldn't wait, he loved battling in the game even with the threat of death looming overhead. After you adjusted to how combat worked it became a bit of a thrill, and being one of the very few hand-to-hand combatants in the game, let alone the Clearers, he got to enjoy a unique take on battles. Smiling confidently with Takahiro's little speech done with he glancing down at his hands, flexing his fingers in the leather gloves he wore before re-equipping his gauntlets. They were simply enough in design, with two half-cylindrical metal plates strapped to his forearms, flexible padding between the top of that plate and another which covered the back of his hand; while meant as an offensive weapon the gauntlets also doubled as a modest defensive tool, enabling Suto to block basic sword attacks with the protective plating. The dual-nature of his weapons played into his "class too", something he self-designated as a Monk. He could use three different stances in combat, each offering its own set of bonuses and skills; his Fists of Fire stance provided the most offensive power, but offered no defenses; Fists of Earth offered defensive power while halving his damage output, making him able to almost play as a sort of tank, and finally his Fists of Wind made him elusive and quicker, able to pull off quick, moderate damage combos with ease. His style was one of the very few in the game that had such a thing, and he loved it.

Having taken their brief reprieve and gathered their thoughts the group moved on ahead, finally making their way into the boss room. Like every other one before it the room was ornate, polished to a point of almost beauty as one could see themselves in the floor beneath their feet. It was empty upon entry, but experience told them that would change in just a matter of moments. Preparing himself for the impending battle Suto assumed a stance, crouching slightly and holding his fists up as his gauntlets glowed with a red hue, an intricate pattern forming at his feet before vanishing, signaling his Fists of Fire stance had been activated. Though he wouldn't be the first line to fight he wanted to be ready, and this way he could swiftly deal with whatever enemies came his way.

Like many battles before this one began with a basic set of trash monsters, a few waves of skeletons that threw themselves haphazardly at the players and met a swift end. Though everyone had been giggles and smiles moments before the mood in the boss room was more somber, and even though Suto could still smile he was hardly jumping around for joy. Confident as any player could be one needed to be careful, one misstep and it could spell the end for you. Until they knew what this boss was capable of, he reasoned, everyone was bound to be strung up as could be. It didn't take long for the boss to arrive, and when it did show up it did so in a thunderous fashion as it sent a good many players flying, even killing a few in its first attack. Tension was palpable at this point, and yet for Suto so was an inexplicable feeling of excitement. This was what they had been working so hard for these last few weeks, and now that they were here he couldn't wait to see it finished.

It was impossible to know what to expect from a boss battle, and even with the limited information they had gathered on the boss they were in effect going in blind here. The attack pattern seemed easy enough to follow, the skeletons were simple enough to deal with, the fight by all means should have been child's play. So why then were there now cries of terror and anguish filling the room? Suto had been busy in dueling a skeleton to see what had happened, though the shuddering of the room with the strike of the giant's hammer was more than enough to draw his attention over to the scene. He knew what had happened the moment he glanced over, seeing Fitch staring at shattered crystals helplessly. There was someone missing in all of the fray, someone he knew he would never lose sight of or forget. But how could that be? They were doing so well, they had come so far and done so unscathed, so how was this possible? He didn't know how or why, but it seemed that after all they had been through Yari was no longer with them; by some cruel twist of fate they had lost their friend to this game, and in the real world her family and friends still home would be learning of her death any moment now.

Suto being made to face this realization was all too daunting at once, and he nearly forgot himself in his battle. Letting out a yelp as he took a clean vertical attack to the torso he stumbled back from the skeleton, staring at its emotionless visage as it raised its sword again. Yari was gone... She was really gone. The game had to have cheated somehow, she was too good to die like that. Instead of his friend being here he was now left with this... Thing, this inhuman, shambling corpse. It was just numbers really, and yet he felt himself experiencing a sensation he'd never felt in this game before. The anguish of his loss of a friend, the feeling of being cheated by a game they were forced to play, it all came crashing down and instantly transformed into a fury. Watching as the skeleton prepared another strike Suto yet out a furious yell, pulling his hands to his sides as he got a skill ready. With the sword swinging fast down on him he dashed forward, leaving a blurry trail of himself in his wake as he closed the meter and a half distance between himself and the skeleton with ease. The first strike of the combo was a simple jab, landing square in the monster's sternum and making it stumble back. Immediately following that was a haymaker to the left side of its head, the skeleton leaning sideways as it reeled from the blow. To finish it off Suto's body twisted around, his leg raising up and smashing it in the side of the head again, the skeleton falling yet immediately being forced back up as he kicked it again, then one last time square in the jaw, knocking it off of its feet and making the creature shatter before it could even hit the ground.

Suto wasn't sure what had happened in the fight after that point, only that they won. How many of the skeletons had he even killed in those last few minutes? He'd even made a rotation in on the boss itself, but that had been so fleeting evidently he couldn't even recollect it. By the time the fanfare had begun signaling their victory he was left panting from exhaustion, his shoulders sagging as he stared down at the ground abysmally. They had won, but what good was it when they had lost a friend? Victory wasn't going to bring Yari back, nor would any special drop or stupid party. Feeling tears welling up in his eyes the Monk sniffled, trying to keep himself from bawling like a baby as he rubbed at his face. Then, overhearing a familiar voice Suto froze, lifting his head and turning in confusion and disbelief; standing off in the distance was none other than Yari herself, but how? She had died, he knew she had died, so how was she here now? Exchanging a glance of utter confusion with Fitch the two boys dashed over immediately, no doubt both utterly baffled by the turn fo events.

"Y-Yari...? But how... I thought..." Suto began, blinking rapidly as tears threatened to flow down his cheeks. Letting out a half-sob, half-laugh he shook his head, having to cover his eyes with his arm as he smiled meekly. "I can't believe it, you're alive..." He didn't know how, it didn't make any sense and yet for the moment he hardly cared. Feeling such a conflict of emotions he only became even further confused when Yari's response threw them through a loop, sounding earnestly unsure of who they were.

"Heh... W-What...? Come on Yari, it's us! Alex and Hiro, who else? What... Did you hit your head or something?" Now he was getting scared, this really wasn't a funny joke. She hadn't died, if she had she wouldn't be here right now, so what gives? Why couldn't Yari remember them? Or was she just in shock?

Everyone had quickly caught wind of what had happened here, and in no short order the party began to fight amongst itself. Then again it might be more correct to say the party began to fight against Nero, as all hostilities were quickly focused solely on that one boy. So he was responsible for this, for somehow bringing Yari back to them? If he were able to so much as lift a finger right now Suto would probably be groveling before Nero and showering him with thanks, but this was just too much. His friend had been dead, yet now she was here, and somehow Nero had been responsible for it? They were told once someone died they were killed in the real world, so how was their friend here now? Watching as things began to escalate all Suto could do was stare at his friend, wondering if it truly was her, or perhaps some imitation that the game had created. It might explain her not knowing anything, no way could the game fake all of her memories like this. Yet deep down he refused to accept that explanation himself, more wanting it to be the genuine article than anything.

Finally the infighting was brought to a halt by Heathcliffe, though no doubt hostilities would persist. Happy though Suto may be the others did raise fair points, why hadn't their friends been saved? He didn't mean to be ungrateful or anything, yet with so many lives lost why was their group the one spared anguish? He had no part in the matter and yet he couldn't help but feel responsible, looking around at everyone else with a frown before lowering his gaze. There was no way this would go over smoothly, he could already tell. They could worry about the potential backlash later, for now he was more concerned with helping his friend.

"Yari... It's me, Suto... And Fitch, we're your friends," Suto explained, smiling sadly as he took a step forward. When Yari stepped away defensively he halted himself, his lips trembling as he extended out a hand for her, "Come on... We've been friends forever. Before this game, before any of this, the three of us have been friends for years." How could she forget all of that? Everything they had done, the countless hours spent goofing off together and everywhere they had been. Feeling a definite dampness on his cheeks Suto made no effort to hide the tears, chuckling nervously as he reached out, "We're your friends... Don't you remember?"

[Scout]

Yes, of course I remember... she wanted to honestly say it, really, she did. But as she looked at all of the apprehensive faces around her, she just stammered, "I-I... I'm sorry, you all seem very nice, but... I don't..." She said solemnly, looking down, "I don't... really remember anything at all."

That's not true! Alex, Suto... Nero, Kenshin, guys... Make her remember! A voice nagged at the back of her head, but she couldn't make it out, she didn't know what it was saying as she looked to all of the faces around her. She wanted to say something, but she wasn't quite sure what. Nero was the first one to speak up, being the always-present voice of reason.

The material hunter cleared his throat and stepped forward, "Something is clearly off here... Let's regroup - we'll find a small, quiet tavern in the next city and sit down to talk about it, okay?"

Yari, still rather dumbfounded, nodded, "Y-yeah, maybe I just need to recollect and it'll come back..."

Fitch was still speechless as he stared at the floor. The group began to move, even Kenshin and Alphard walked with them. Fitch kept glancing at his hand, then at Yari's, but it was hardly noticeable as he visibly shook. Nervous was a word rarely, if ever, used to describe him and suddenly he was an absolute wreck. She has to... Those that weren't so absorbed in themselves would notice the glares that Nero was receiving from nearly every person they walked by.

Once they were all settled in a small inn, eyes were again on Yari, who had walked there slightly detached from the group. Rather than one of the small rooms, Nero took a suite, which was an absolutely massive room with a common area and a few beds in the dorms off the side. Expensive? Yes, but it was usually meant for a party to split the price. The common room was a large, round space with more than enough seating, it had its own kitchenette attached as well. Yuna made herself right at home - figuring it might be good to have something for everybody to eat. It wouldn't be long before the room was full of amazing smells, despite the conversation they were about to have.

Nero looked at Yari, "So... you don't remember anything at all?" He finally asked as everybody tried to figure out how to start.

She shook her head, "I don't remember anybody... at least."

Nero furrowed his brow, "So... you know this is a video game, right?"

"I'd hardly call it that at this point... Considering I also know I almost died for real today. I just don't know anybody here..." She looked apologetically to Fitch and Suto, a small frown on her face. "I want to... But there's nothing there..." That's not true, you love him... That nagging voice called again, but Yari still didn't hear it, it was just another frustrating thought she couldn't reach. Like there was something she wanted to say, and it was right there, but she forgot it the moment she thought of it.

Fitch stood up suddenly, "How could you forget?" He finally asked, his voice laced with hurt and anger and frustration... His clenched fists trembled.

She flinched and stared at him, rubbing the back of her neck, "I'm sorry... But I don't know what you want me to do..."

He watched her, "But... I... We... We're married, how could you?" He asked, completely forgetting that it was something of a secret from Suto.

[Vena Sera]

Why wasn't Yari able to remember them? Had she taken a hit to the head when that thing had killed her? Come to think of it, was this even really her? Ugh, everything was just so confusing right now and Suto really couldn't handle the stress that was building up in everyone. She was their friend, she had to be, and yet she had no idea who any of them were. While at first he placed it as some sort of sick joke there was no real way it could be that easy; Yari looked earnestly disturbed by the accusations and questioning, so she really had no clue who they were. Suto could feel a lump in his throat forming at the sight of it, blinking back tears and managing a weak smile. Maybe it was just temporary, a sort of revival sickness if someone died. After all, everyone knew exactly what happened when someone perished in this world, but nobody had experienced someone coming back. Yeah... That had to be it. All they needed to do was wait for a little while, maybe an hour at most, and things would be back to normal.

That was the hope anyways, yet it became increasingly obvious that Yari's problem wasn't going to just vanish. Try as he might to be optimistic over the situation Suto found himself inevitably becoming crestfallen; one of his dearest friends, and one of the very few people he knew from the real world no longer recognized him. While it was somewhat of a taboo to discuss their real lives now he couldn't help but think of it, feeling like a tie to their reality had just been severed. If this was the condition their friend was in now what would she be like back home? Would she recognize them then or still be clueless? On one hand he should be elated that Yari was alive and well, but with her unable to even remember those closest to her it was almost like she wasn't here at all. There was a very real possibility now that once they beat this game they may go back alone, him and Alex, and never see Yari again. It was a terrifying prospect, just as much so as the brief spell of panic when they had seen her die.

When they had finally made it to the inn on the next floor Suto felt like anything but partying. Generally at this point his Col would be nearly all spent, music would be filling the air and everyone would be having a good time. Maybe that would be for the best, just something to get everyone's mind off of the problem and put tensions at ease. Much as the Monk might like to throw a party for that very reason however he wasn't about to; not only would throwing a party now be grossly inappropriate, but he sincerely doubted anyone, himself included, could get behind it. Instead of a celebration then everyone gathered in the suite of the inn, a somber mood settling over like a dark rain cloud. Everyone knew what the topic of conversation was going to be, but for a while no one dared speak, an uneasy silence falling over the group. Finally Nero broke that silence, though Suto almost wished he hadn't.

So Yari did remember something, just not them. It was of little solace that she knew this wasn't just a game, though at least that meant she'd not throw herself willy nilly around in dungeons. If she were to die again... Suto didn't even finish the thought, shaking his head to rid himself of it completely. He needed to remain positive even with things as bad as they seemed, someone had to at least. Just content with being a bystander for now he intended to keep out of the discussion until Fitch spoke up, sounding rather upset. Suto was just as upset as his other friend, but he couldn't see what shouting or getting angry was going to do for them. "Fitch... It's not her fault..." he offered meekly, frowning up at the other boy.

What did Fitch just say then? Maybe it was a slip of the tongue what with everyone being under stress, or maybe it was some kind of metaphor. Even to himself though Suto knew that wasn't the case, calling himself stupid for thinking such a thing. How could he have been unaware of this? Did the others around him know? He wasn't sure but he was almost afraid to check, not wanting to confirm that he was in fact the only one left out of the loop. Why though? He was nothing but supportive of them, and he knew they had been dating at the very least. So marriage was a big step up, even in Sword Art Online, but it didn't change his view of them. They were his friends before all else, the fact they might be married changed nothing. So why then was he never told? Did they not want him to know? There was probably a reason, yet with everything else already going on it was a bit too much for him to handle.

Without so much as a word edgewise Suto rose to his feet, looking down at the floorboards crestfallen. He thought he was their friend, and a good one at that, but somehow this revelation felt like a betrayal; to say he loathed them for keeping it was a big stretch, because he didn't. If anything he was confused by the news, and inevitably came to the conclusion that for whatever reason he was the problem here, and maybe his knowing would have somehow ruined it. Not giving anyone a single glance he turned then and went for the door, silently leaving and going off to his own private room he'd rented out. There was just no way he could handle all of this right now, it was way too much. Shutting the bedroom door behind him Suto stood there for a moment, just staring down as he had been before he finally slumped to the floor, tears welling up as he rubbed at his face. Everything that had happened today was just killing him on the inside, and now that he'd learned of the marriage he just felt hopelessly unable to help his friends. If he wasn't able to do such a simple thing then what good was he to them?

[Scout]

There was an audible smack as Fitch stumbled to the side, a hand clinging to the side of his face. While the strike didn't exactly hurt, it was certainly shocking and there was enough strength behind it. Nero facepalmed and shook his head, "Could we slow down for just a damned minute, you two?"

Yari was now standing, tears streaming down her face again as she stared toward Fitch defiantly. "I don't even know who you are! How dare you say something so outrageous..."

The swordsman finally recovered, only just realizing that Suto had left... Where'd he go? Oh god, he spilled the beans. They were going to tell him together... They were going to tell him today. But not like this. God dammit, you idiot! He chastised himself. Kenshin and Alphard both left as the room began to heat up, feeling a bit out of place.

"I-I'm sorry," He explained, rubbing the back of his neck. Yuna then decided to join the group, as she'd heard the rather loud strike from the kitchenette, her expression now quite puzzled. "I just... Maybe you'll get your memory back in a couple of days..." He said, still a bit in shock, but definitely hopeful.

Nero rose and showed his agreement, "It's very possible. Miss Yari, I'm sorry things are so confusing for you right now... This is probably pretty frustrating, but I'm sure you'll recover soon," He said hopefully, giving her a reassuring smile. Fitch wasn't quite so convinced, but she nodded slowly and scratched her cheek.

"Sorry for everything, everybody... I'm just... going to lie down for a while, if you don't mind." Nobody argued as she retired to one of the rooms attached to the suite.

Nero looked to Fitch, "You know... Akihiko stated that neurotoxins are activated in the NerveGear when we die here... There's a chance that maybe that's what caused the amnesia, you know? Maybe, given a few days here, she'll recover what she's forgotten and everything can go back to normal. No big deal. Alright, bud? Get some rest."

The sword-and-shield user nodded somberly, taking to his own room, one separate from his wife. He decided, for now, not to show Yari the proof of their bond, hoping that this was simply a temporary spell.

-----

"Hey, you!" A small girl with long red hair, no more than fourteen years of age, in a black cloak called out to a seventeen year-old boy, a rapier drawn at her side.

He was laughing with a small group as they left the bar. The voice caught his ear and he looked over, "Ohhh, little Gami come out to play..." The others all looked a bit uneasy, but the boy, who was obviously the leader, spread his arms out. "What can I do for you?"

The redhead's face turned the same colour as her hair as she stamped her foot, "I told you not to call me that." Shaking her head, she regained her composure and flicked her blade through the air. "Don't you dare talk to me like that... After you steal my guild, ruin my trust in people, and try to ridicule me? Notice anything different?"

"Ooh," He responded sarcastically, "You bought yourself a new blade and jacket? Great work. It still won't stand up from the drops we got on our last training session! Why don't you go join the party they're having to celebrate the new floor? I know we're about to! Oh, that's right, you're an anti-social headcase who can't lead a party for her life."

One of the other boys in the group put a hand on his shoulder, "Hey, dude... I know we all agreed on her leaving, but... I think you're being a bit harsh..."

"Shut up." He spat in reply, about to spring into another slough of insults as he turned his head to Kimi again-

SCHWING! A rapier was pressed lightly beneath his chin with the short girl very near him. "You're just unbearably stupid, is all."

"Oh, can it. I'm not scared of yo-"

The blade glowed a bright blue before striking him, directly to the heart, blasting him into the side of the building. Immortal Object, it replied as the guild leader slumped to the ground, groaning. "You little bitch... Buy some new equipment and you think you're all that?"

"I didn't buy it." She snapped, "I earned it. Got some help from a material hunter friend of mine on the last floor, had it made from some of the beasts we hunted in the final dungeon... It's divine, really. Brings out my eyes, don't you think?"

The other boy rose to his feet, "Please, like you have any friends... Doesn't matter, you still can't hurt me out here and you don't have the courage to do anything in the danger zones anyway.

She smirked and sheathed her blade, "You're damn right I won't." Giving the boy a thumbs up, she turned on her heel for the building, "Have fun training on floor eighteen, guys. Really, hope you enjoy the slow climb to the top - it's not like you're helping anybody being down there anyway. Maybe you should take up a trade, I hear there's good money in it." As the others saw her back, they'd notice small bat wings protruding from the garment. Purely aesthetic, but surprisingly demonic.

One hand on her hilt, the other hanging at her side, the confident young girl took to the stairs of the inn. She felt refreshed. In all honesty, she'd been a wreck on the previous floor when her own guild shut her out... A unanimous vote. What she wouldn't have given for somebody to help her out of it. Instead, she poured herself into the training she'd already been working on apart from them. The girl avoided the boss fight.

As she ascended the small building, she finally found her floor and started down the hall. A young man bumped into her shoulder, knocking her into the wall as he passed by, clearly brooding over something as he turned and entered his own room. She twisted her face into a small scowl. She already decided she would not be treated that way after her own guild dumped her.

"Hey!" Kimi called out, her green eyes fixated fiercely as she pounded on his door. "Open up, guy."

[Vena Sera]

Suto couldn't stand to watch this any longer, it just wasn't natural. In all of their time as friends not a single one of them had fought with another, and he'd certainly not expected Fitch to be at odds with Yari. Their friend having lost her memory was an emotional experience, sure, but fighting with one another wasn't going to help it any. That aside being unrecognized by his friend was pretty painful in of itself; they had done quite a lot together, both outside and inside of Sword Art Online, and to think that could just be forgotten... Knowing a good friend should be there to try and help he felt quite guilty at leaving, but if he couldn't handle it himself then what good was he to his friends? Fighting back tears the entire way Suto shuffled back to his room, not even registering that he'd bumped into someone as he was on his way there. Not a second after he'd gotten inside and shut the door did he finally break, tears slipping out as he slumped against the door.

Just what were they going to do now? The game was only a quarter completed and yet their group may well fall apart. There had been plenty of parties like theirs in the game, friends who stuck together right away and kept going together. Through some circumstance, be it a death, a betrayal or just differences groups would break up and friends turn their backs on one another. That wasn't going to happen to them, was it? Despite his own outgoing and energetic attitude Suto wasn't handling the game very well, and he needed his friends there to help him. Both Fitch and Yari were strong, and while he might be good at the game that didn't mean he was a strong person. Heck, right now hew as crying like a baby while they needed help. Rubbing at his eyes with the heels of his hands Suto let out a shaky sigh, pulling his knees up to his chest and resting his chin on top. It was a possibility that he may need to find a new group, should theirs split up. He wanted to be optimistic about it and think it would work out but even the initial reactions to Yari weren't promising.

So imbedded in his dreading the Monk had barely noticed someone knocking at his door, or more pounding really. Feeling the wood shaking at his back Suto glanced behind himself, sniffling as he wondered who it might be. The voice shouting wasn't one he recognized, yet she sounded awfully mad at him for whatever reason. Was it someone from the Clearers? He really didn't need this right now, but if he just sat here in silence he was skeptical she'd go away. Sniffling once more Suto wiped his eyes on his sleeve, rising to his feet and putting a hand on the doorknob, taking pause before pulling it open. He'd expected a woman perhaps, or maybe someone a bit... More imposing. Instead of either of those he glanced down and found a younger girl glaring up at him, blinking confused before smiling uneasily and giving a small wave. "Uh... Hi...? Can I help you?"

---

Clang! Clang! Clang! The sound of metal striking metal resounded through the high-arched halls of the dungeon, carrying on for quite a ways from the scene of the battle. Numerous rooms and corridors were devoid of any life, the monsters in them having long since been slain. The dungeon itself was fairly unremarkable, just a small labyrinth with no real boss, moderate loot and a long respawn timer on its inhabitants. If anything it was a training grounds, and due to its otherwise minimal rewards it would likely not be a place frequented by players. For most training was only worthwhile if you could get something out of it, be that item drops or a large sum of Col, something to supplement the experience. Everyone needed the latter, but many wanted more to show for their efforts. Others, however, were perfectly content with just the experience.

A dodge to the left, the sound of a heavy metal blade slamming into the ground and breaking the cobble bricks that made up the floor. A slight blur of movement, a red streak, and a second later the sound of a monster letting out a howl of pain. Raising its blade again the centurion, a mechainical-humanoid took a wide swing at its target, cutting through nothing but air as the player evaded it again. Smashing its blade into one of the stone pillars in the room it became temporarily wedged, giving the player ample opportunity to react. First a lunging thrust into the gears of its abdomen, followed by a slash that brought it to one knee, and finally another, back-handed thrust which drove a blade through the back of its helmeted skull, cracking the steel as the dagger easily penetrated the armor. With a grinding sound the centurion released its blade, steam leaking from its joints before it fell forward, crashing into dozens of small shards as it vanished. As with every monster slain a small window would appear, Col as well as a few items for crafting appearing on the menu.

What level was he now? 25? 26? Curiously the player brought up his menu, scrolling to his stats screen in hopeful anticipation. Seeing his level only as 26, and just barely above the mark he let out a sigh, closing the menu and hanging his head. "Jeez... Power-leveling is impossible in these dungeons, these things aren't worth anything!" How was he supposed to get ahead of the curve like this? As it stood the Clearers were a good few levels above him already, there was no way he'd be able to catch up to any of them doing this. At least, not in any reasonable amount of time.

"Oh, come on Cress, we're making good time!" a female voice chimed in, sounding from across the room. Walking over to join the redhead, the girl smiled at her companion, her smile changing to a look of confusion as he seemed to remain crestfallen. Letting out a sigh she reached out, smacking him on the back a bit to hard and near knocking him over, grinning enthusiastically as she did so. "We'll get there, we just have to keep working at it! So our method is a bit slower than the Clearers', that doesn't make it worse!"

"Actually... I have to agree with him Asari, our method isn't the greatest," another man chimed in, this one a bit older than his companions, and taller as well. Looking around the empty room he let out a sigh of his own, sheathing his blade before dusting off his hands and placing them on his hips. "At this rate we may catch up by the time they've begun clearing this floor, and we'll be behind them all over again. I'm beginning to think we need a change of pace," he added, closing his eyes and shaking his head. Hearing a sudden rush of footsteps and getting the feeling of being glared at he slowly opened his eyes, blinking as he found the lone woman of their group staring up at him.

Asari glowered up at her larger friend before finally letting out a huff, folding her arms under her sizable chest as she turned away. "Listen to you two, you're already getting down on yourselves! It's only taking a long time because you're making it!" she said, turning back and pointing up at the other man, "Yato, didn't you say it's going to take time and patience? Well, those were your words, so no complaining out of you!" Besides, even if they were behind the Clearers for now they were still higher levels than most, probably even able to join the clearing groups of the so desired. Smiling to herself Asari punched one of her hands into her fists, feeling all pumped up as she pointed down one of the corridors. "Enough rest men, let's keep moving!"

"Asari... This is the end of the dungeon," Cress replied, smiling amused as he watched his friend deflate a bit, "But hey... We can come back to it once everything has respawned. Maybe while we wait we can go and check out the fields a bit? Or go grab a bite to eat, I'm kind of starving."

[Scout]

Okay, yes. He was slightly taller than she had thought when she first knocked at the door. The most unnerving thing was that it was a little bit obvious how he had failed at trying to hide his state before opening the door. Her demeanour shifted slightly to accommodate the awkward situation. What was his question? Oh right... why did she knock at the door again? Oh. Perhaps not the best thought-out plan she'd had all day.

"Er. Y-yeah. Hey, you knocked into me back there. I know I'm small, but I'm not hard to see," She explained hastily, taking hold of a lock of her hair and holding it up, "I'm pretty noticeable." Oh dear god, why did she do this? Maybe it was just the adrenal high she was coming off of for standing up to her former guildmates. That didn't help here, as she had clearly stepped into territory she wasn't exactly well-versed in. "I uh... Kinda thought you were being an ass. I didn't realize you were... Uhm... Sorry," She shook her head and looked down for a moment, "Really, is there something I can do to help? I'm not really that mean."

You sound so stupid right now! The girl was consciously fighting her own brain for control of herself. What a stupid idea. Why couldn't she just let things go?

"I always get caught up in the moment like that," Her gaze lifted back to him, "Again, sorry."

[Vena Sera]

Suto had more expected Fitch to come knocking, or one of his other friends. He'd kind of left in a bit of a fit and figured maybe someone was coming to check on him, yet that didn't appear to be the case. Instead of a familiar face he was looking down at a younger girl, or who he only assumed to be younger as she was a bit short. Well this was perfectly awkward, here he was having a fit and some total stranger was coming to talk to him. Weird that she was here too, he'd never seen her before but she must be decent if she was on Floor 26 already. Was she a Clearer? He'd admit he didn't know every single face, yet she kind of stood out in a way so he doubted that.

"Eh... I knocked into you?" Suto repeated, blinking confused as he glanced past the girl into the hall. Oh yeah, he'd sort of felt something when he was trudging over but hadn't given it very much thought. This was a bit of an overreaction maybe to having someone bump into her but he wasn't going to tell her off for it. Looking back at Kimi he opened his mouth to apologize, instead standing there mouth agape as she both insulted him and apologized in one breath. So what exactly was her stance on all of this then? She seemed apologetic one second and angry the next, and on top of everything else going on Suto was pretty damn confused.

"I... Uh..." Should he accept the apology or give one in return? He didn't much mind her venting a little, mostly because she didn't seem to earnestly mean it. Oddly enough seeing her in such a fit he smiled meekly, laying his arms against his sides and bowing down almost ninety degrees, holding the position as he closed his eyes. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you, my mistake. Please forgive me, I wasn't paying attention." What a silly situation, both he and Kimi were trying to apologize to one another for something he'd done. For a peculiar reason it struck Suto as particularly funny, or maybe it was just him finally cracking a bit and losing his mind. Whatever the case was he let out a muffled laugh, starting to giggle a bit as he quickly stood up and covered his mouth with his hand.

"S-Sorry! I don't mean to laugh!" Suto chortled, smiling behind his hand as he shook his head, "J-Just give me a second, please." How ridiculous, he was being snapped at by a girl a good head smaller than he was and scrambling to make it up to her. Not that he didn't feel apologetic, but for whatever reason he'd been acting like she was some big, scary person. Heck, after that last boss fight he wasn't even sure why he was intimidated by anyone right now. Letting out a few more short snickers he finally managed to settle down enough, smiling at Kimi despite his cheeks still being slightly damp. "Heh... Uh... Everything okay now?"

[Scout]

Kimi's face turned red as he began to laugh. She pressed a finger into his chest, "Hey, don't laugh at me, I was trying to be nice," She explained hastily. The girl took a breath and let it out, relaxing herself, "Fine, fine... Yeah..." She gave a small bow, "I'm Kimi. I can be a bit... confrontational. Sorry about that."

"And, by the way, don't ever bow like that to me again... That was embarrassing," She pointed out, taking a step back and resting her hands on her hips. "I'm headed outta here for a bit. Nice to meet you." With that, the girl turned on her heel, still trying to recover her dignity as she left the inn. More training, she couldn't just go lay down for no good reason now.

Meanwhile, Nero was just leaving the large suite, letting Yuna stay to keep watch over their friends, as Nero was far from qualified to deal with something so... sensitive. He saw the small girl down the end of the hallway heading for the stairs just as he passed Suto's room, still slightly ajar. He knocked gently...

"Suto? Hey, you in here?" He asked, understanding that one might want a place for their own privacy after everything. He propped himself up in the doorframe, opening the door the rest of the way. God, this really wasn't his place of expertise... "You wanna... I dunno, go check out the floor opening party?" Nero crossed his arms hesitantly, watching his friend intently. "Might be good to get out and clear your head. Yari's okay, we're all safe... that fight could have been much worse, y'know?"

[Vena Sera]

Suto wasn't sure what struck him as funny about this, but boy did he need the laugh right about now. It didn't wash away all of the stress and uncertainty it felt and he doubted anything would right now, yet getting to actually smile was nice. Glancing at Kimi curiously as she prodded at his chest he couldn't help but giggle again, a little amused that a girl smaller than him was acting very authoritative. It was kind of cute in an odd way, and harshness aside she didn't seem like that bad of a person. As with before too she had a very two-sided comment, both introducing herself formally and then turning around and berating him again. Did she want to be mean or nice, he wasn't sure.

"Heh... Sorry about that, I get a bit carried away myself sometimes," Suto responded, smiling as he wiped at his cheeks with his hand, "I'm Suto, nice to meet you too Kimi. And good luck with training or whatever it is you're going to do!" Watching as she left he pushed the door closed, or more so as he debated on relaxing for the rest of the day. After today's close call there was no way he was ready to go back into the field, and returning to Fitch and Yari just now was only going to shake him up again. Maybe he had best go ahead and relax then, no reason to do anything that might upset him further. Bringing up his menus he scrolled through his equipment, changing out his battle armor for something a bit more casual; a long-sleeved white shirt with three buttons on the breast, undone lazily with the collar lying out to either side, a pair of well-worn jeans and a pair of simple black boots with plenty of toe room to spare. Satisfied with his change Suto was just about to lie down in bed until someone else came knocking at his door, glancing over curiously to see Nero standing there.

"Nope, no one's in here!" Suto responded cheekily, smirking as he waved to his friend. Just what might he want then? Giving Nero a curious look his face lit up some at the offer, finding the idea of a party to be far more appealing than just sitting by himself in his room. "Do I? Of course I do! And you're coming with me, we'll have a blast!" he declared, walking over and promptly throwing an arm around the other boy's shoulders, turning him around as he left his room, "And yeah, things turned out okay. Whatever happened is probably temporary, like a revival sickness or something. Yari's going to be back to her old self in no time!" That brief little exchange with Kimi had really turned him around, now he was back to his old cheerful self. Hell, he may even be ready to go and see Yari once he got back from the party. There was one slight issue with this plan of theirs though...

"So... Where is the party anyways?"

---

"Ooooh, I like the idea of food actually! I could go for a nice big steak right about now!" Asari exclaimed, beaming as she placed her hands on her stomach, "Yato! Your turn to buy, right? Let's go find a really nice place, I want to have all sorts of food!"

Yato looked at Asari unamused for a moment before letting out a sigh, reaching up and rubbing at the back of his head in exasperation. "With all due respect you two will eat me to the point of debt, probably past it in fact. I would imagine any steak will do-"

"Oh, I think I know a place we could try! I saw one on the way out of the city!" Cress chimed in, grinning as he reached up and clasped Yato on the back, "Come on Yato, it'll be fun! And we'll pay you back anyhow, so who cares how expensive it is? I say let's have a good time, we did just reach a new floor after all!"

There was no easy way out of this was there? Both Cress and Asari had their minds set on cuisine for whatever reason, and while he could foot the bill it wasn't going to be kind on his wallet. Between dungeon runs and farming he ought to be able to collect plenty of materials, and selling those should see his fortunes return in due time; having his companions promise to reimburse him wasn't the most reassuring of things, they had said that before and yet he'd still not gotten a single Col for them. In spite of his own protests Yato finally relented, letting out another sigh before nodding and starting to walk out of the room.

"Very well, I'll buy you your fancy steaks. Do try to have a little class while we're eating though?" he asked, glancing back at his companions with a frown, "You two eat like rabid animals, it's frankly embarrassing to have to dine with you sometimes."

"Well that's because we're always so hungry!" Asari shot back, puffing out her lower lip as she put her hands on her hips indignantly, storming after Yato, "If we didn't spend so much time in the field and dungeons I wouldn't have such an appetite! Sheesh... And it's not like I'm making you buy a ton of sweets either, it's all good food!"

"Yeah, but even the good food can be bad!" Cress interjected, leaning over to Asari and giving one of her breasts a teasing poke, "I mean look at these things! Everything you eat must go to- OW!"

Yato wasn't paying his companions much mind as he was walking along, only stopping when he heard Cress shout and hit the floor. Looking back at the pair his brow furrowed seeing Asari standing over the redhead, arms crossed under her chest with a red hue on her cheeks. Rolling his eyes in disbelief he placed a hand on his forehead, not even needing to have seen what went on to know. "You are hopeless Cress. Now come along you two, let's go before the monsters begin to respawn. I'd rather not have to fight our way out."

[Scout]

"Town square, as far as I know. Usually is, let's find out," Nero replied, looking himself over in the mirror to make sure he looked fine. Typically he'd have something to change into, but leaving his battle gear on was just fine. The two made it out to the square, where the party was already underway. The mood was a bit more sombre than the typical floor party, but it was still fairly jovial. They'd lost a lot of people today, but it could have been worse. Floor Fifty would be one they prepared heavily for, of that Nero had no doubt. However, the moment he stepped into public, the mood instantly turned to something more tense. The sound of metal clicking and swords moving was wholly recognizable to the duo. Some people in the crowd had drawn their blades partially from their sheaths and others just rested hands on their hilts.

From the midst of suddenly quiet, watching people, a voice spat, "What makes you think you can walk out here with that kind of dignity?" A few jeers came with it, agreeing whole-heartedly, "The power to revive and we lost a dozen people today!"

Instantly, Nero's eyes were on the ground, Maybe this wasn't such a good idea... He shook his head, fists clenched at his side. "It was fourteen. Fourteen people died today and fourteen people aren't coming back," He snarled under his breath. "I'm not taking your shit, I came here to get a single god-damned minute where I didn't have to think about how I couldn't use that crystal on each and every one of them." It was easy to forget that he was still just a kid and suddenly the weight of every death that happened since the start of the game rested on his shoulders.

"Hey, can't we all just... take a second here?" A bright, orange-haired man in his twenties stepped out of the throngs of younger players, a hand up to signal that he was speaking. "You," He said, pointing the loud-mouth that seemed to have started the day's second mob. "Look to your right. Is that guy your friend?"

The boy looked over and shrugged, "Yeah. Been in a party since we started," He stated, "What of it?"

"You've still got somebody. This kid here didn't do anything to hurt anybody, it was his decision to make, let him live with it. He clearly didn't want to be the one to have to, and a more productive way to spend your time is to better yourself, make sure you can defend your own friends. Maybe you'll get the next revival item - do you want everybody turning on you because you picked that guy next to you over some random guy who might just go and die the next day by taking a wrong turn and getting trapped? Buck up, we've lost people before and we'll never forget them, but we'll carry on. We have to," He explained, giving the guy a thumbs up and turning to Nero. He beamed at Suto.

"Hey! I've seen you before... Don't you spearhead almost every floor's party? Where were you a couple of hours ago when we started here?" He asked cheekily, offering a hand to shake for each of the boys, "I'm Titus." He wore lightly coloured clothing, as opposed to the generally dark stuff that most of the teenage players wore. It was a bit of a 'loud' outfit, but he was certainly one to stand out in a crowd.

The white-haired boy looked curiously to the tall, clearly American man. Taking his hand, he nodded, "Nero."

"I know who you are, rich boy. You'll have to let me in on some of your trade secrets," He teased, looking to Suto again. "I don't know your name though, seems like you're gone the moment the party starts to die, glad I got to catch you before you got lost in the crowd again."

[Vena Sera]

Suto didn't quite expect the regular fanfare that came with a clearing party, so to see things toned down a bit wasn't any surprise. There were people lost in raids before to be sure, but never such a number of them like this time around. Nearly everyone present had lost someone they knew, and it no doubt put a big damper on enthusiasm for clearing this floor as well. For Suto things weren't quite as bad as they could be, even with the complications surrounding Yari; his friends were alive, that was all that mattered to him. Nero, however, already didn't seem to be having nearly a good a time of things, promptly seeming like he wanted to retreat back into the inn. No sooner had his friend come into view did the shouting start again, all of it directed at Nero himself.

"Hey, it's not his fault! He only had one crystal!" Suto shouted back, frowning as he looked at all of the scrutinizing faces before them. He was normally good-natured, yes, but screaming at his friend like that quickly did away with that. "If he revived someone else we'd still be having this problem, and you'd only be blaming him for a different person! He had it, he saved his friend, are you honestly going to tell me you'd save someone else over your own friend if it were you?" This was absurdly selfish of everyone, enough to the point where Suto found it hard to even sympathize with them. They were all in this game together, and that meant they had to stick with each other no matter what. If every time someone died like this and fights broke out then the players were going to kill themselves long before the game ever got a chance of it.

Suto wasn't the only person to come to the defense of Nero either as a total stranger began to argue on his behalf. He didn't know who this other man was or why he was taking their side but he sure was grateful for it. Chances were the effort wasn't going to completely stop the criticizing, nothing would other than time, yet it was an appreciated effort all the same. Watching as the crowd began to move back to the party itself he let out a sigh, smiling exasperatedly as he rubbed at his head. These were going to be a long couple of days, hopefully they could spend most of it out in the field, away from all of these people. Feeling someone looking at him, Suto glanced back to meet the gaze of the selfsame boy who had fought for Nero, smiling back uncertainly as he gave a little wave. Okay, what was he so cheery about?

"Me? Oh, well kind of I guess!" Suto responded, letting out a small laugh, "I help get it started but I wouldn't say I d it alone! And we were kind of, uh... Busy." He didn't want to say what with, that was personal stuff and he didn't want to put it on anyone else. Taking and shaking Titus' hand he looked over at Nero, a little disappointed to see his friend being quite reserved and crestfallen now. Not that Nero was ever exactly lively, but you could tell that brief exchange had gotten to him. Poor guy, he really had to understand that things weren't his fault, and he'd only done what was right. He might say that if it hadn't already been said too, he saw no use in repetition.

Suto didn't really know what to say to Titus now, a little confused by his line of questioning. "Eh...? Oh, my name is Suto! Well, kind of my name I guess," he replied, chuckling as he itched at his nose, "And yeah, I usually ditch once things start to slow down. Since I'm usually one of the first there I get tired pretty quick, so no reason to stick around, you know? And uh... Secrets? I don't get it." This person definitely had to be an American, he just looked the part. Odd, he hadn't seen many Americans in the game yet, or actually any for that matter.

[Scout]

"Likewise... Hey, uh... Thanks," Nero said, stuffing his hands in his pockets, huffing in irritation. "I... really don't know why I held on to that damned thing for so long... Just didn't know when it would be appropriate and... Well, I knew this would happen," He explained quietly, looking over at Suto with a rather unsure smile. The boy didn't regret his decision for a moment, but he wondered where they would be right now had Yari just died... What if he hadn't used it? What if Suto had found out he could have? Or Fitch for that matter. His circle of friends was never large before SAO and even in Aincrad he was often isolated, choosing to fend for himself.

Titus gave him a smirk, "Of course. There's little we can do to avoid that mentality... Believe me, in a few weeks, you'll be old news... People can't stay mad about something they had no business being in in the first place. At least, not a lot, but believe you me: you've made some enemies today. You'll have to be more careful in the future - people aren't going to be out for just your money anymore, yeah?"

This was a new angle, Nero thought, furrowing his brow and staring at Titus, "People are going to... like... hunt me?"

The American shrugged, "I'm saying be careful, kid. Aincrad has a lot more undesirables than one would think. Not everybody wants out, and some people are more than happy to make a fortune like yours from people who aren't thinking right. Like them," He pointed out, jerking his head toward the general group of people at the part. Finally, Titus stood up straight, clapped his hands together, "Now, who's ready to get this started? I've got Minerva on speed dial, anybody want some live music?" The mood instantly did a 180, several players whipping around and grinning - even the ones that had been angry moments before. Players who could play music were a rarity in this world and she was one of the best.

-----

Within the hour, an older girl would show up, much to the enjoyment of the players who could really use the morale boost. She had hair that was tinged a subtle, soft shade of pink. She came with a small group of friends which were presumably members of her band. They'd been together since the beginning of the game and many thought that they were a band in real life too, but she never really confirmed any rumours about herself. She just liked to perform and the crowd was happy to give her the room to do so, letting them set up their own instruments and give the ambiance a little bit more personality than any NPC band could ever do.

After their first couple of songs warming up the crowd, Titus escorted Suto and Nero to the forefront, taking the girl's hand and politely kissing the back of it with a rather regal bow. "Minerva, great to see you again. I'm glad you could come with such short notice."

"Shove off, Titus," She said, giving a small laugh to show she wasn't really being too rude. "You know I love to play the new floors, but the party's always dying when I get here. Maybe if the party-starters would call me earlier..." She pointed out with a bit of heat.

The American put up his hands, "Don't look at me, I never start it. I think most of them either can't contact you or think you'll charge 'em just to show up here."

She shook her head and rolled her eyes, "Well that's stupid. This isn't a private gig, this one's for a good cause and these guys need it. Hey, who're your friends?" She asked, nodding to the boys.

"Ah, sorry. Suto, Nero, this is Minerva. Musician Extraordinaire," He said cinematically, "And one of the prettiest girls in Aincrad, if I do say so."

The girl blushed slightly, "Nice to meet you boys. I'm really not that great, but I'm certainly one of the better looking girls around. We're rather rare, aren't we?" She asked with a playful wink, sticking her tongue out at Titus.

[Vena Sera]

Suto was just glad to have avoided any conflict, he really wasn't in the mood to be fighting right now. After all of the stress of Yari's near-death he couldn't take much else, he needed this party pretty darn badly. It was sort of strange not being the one to kick things off, as it was kind of customary up until now for him to be hemming the clear celebrations. By how he handled himself he guessed this Titus character was the one handling it this time around, and he was doing an alright job of it. Had Suto been planning the party there would be some things different, but overall it wasn't too shabby; the fact that he had somehow managed to get Minerva to show up and play was impressive. She was well known as an excellent musician, and sadly his pockets had never been deep enough to hire her on. That was one thing his parties never had, they usually had to settle for some lesser-names or even NPCs.

The celebration wasn't too shabby, though it might be better if Suto didn't feel like some of the other players were watching them. A lot of people had been angry over what Nero had done, which all things considered wasn't fair at all; if it hadn't been Yari he'd saved then it would be someone else, and the others would still be dead. Realistically there was no way everyone could have been saved, so blaming him for not resurrecting someone else was unfair. In lieu of the sure glares they were getting he did his best to have fun, socializing with some of the familiar faces and helping himself to a fair bit of the food available. There really wasn't much reason to eat here in Sword Art Online, but many players did it simply as a habit more than anything. There was a small hunger pang if you really thought about it, but the reality was they didn't have to eat; Suto had quite the appetite in the real world, so here he tended to eat a lot just out of habit.

After some time had passed Minerva had made her appearance, accompanied by the rest of her band. Suto was far from the kind of person who normally chased girls, but even he had to admit she was awfully beautiful. The fact that she could sing well was an extra perk, and he found himself watching Minerva more than the rest of the show during her performance. Wondering what they might play next Suto was taken aback a bit when they were brought to the front of the crowd, feeling his face heat up slightly at the thought of facing the musician. Oh crap, what should he say? Standing a bit behind Nero and Titus he smiled sheepishly, watching as she came down to greet them. Seeing their new friend kiss her hand made him squirm slightly, wondering how well they might know one another. They only seemed to be friends, but then he wasn't exactly an expert at relationships; Fitch and Yari had gotten married and he was totally oblivious, and if he missed that he doubted he could pick up on two strangers. Huh... So Titus hadn't started this party after all, so then who did? He'd been the one to start them usually so it was a bit confusing, he'd have to find out who the person was before they left.

"Oh, uh... N-Nice to meet you too!" Suto responded, hardly realizing he was being spoken to. Bowing politely he looked back up at Minerva, a shy smile on his lips as he stood upright and rubbed the back of his neck, "Well... I think you're a pretty incredible musician, and I'd agree with Titus actually, you're definitely pretty," he added, shifting his weight around on his feet. He wasn't exactly alien to speaking to girls or being around them, as he spent an awful lot of time with Yari; when it came to trying to sweeten up to a girl though he always became a meek mess. "And it's a good thing you're rare... I mean, it wouldn't be so special if there were a ton of you, I mean you wouldn't be so special," Suto said quickly, his face reddening further before he looked away, embarrassed as he rubbed at his neck again.

Off to the side the sound of laughter echoed in the crowd, with a few annoyed shouts following suit. Over the heads of some of the shorter attendees a red mess of hair could be seen, swaying to and fro unevenly as the person walked through the crowd. Cress was certainly enjoying himself, as his rosy face and the mug in hand could attest. After accidentally knocking into a girl and inadvertently grabbing her chest to steady himself the redhead was promptly laid out on his rear, having been pushed over by the girl's jealous boyfriend.

"Hey idiot, watch where you're going! And hands off!" the player snapped possessively, putting his arm around the girl as he glared at Cress.

Blinking in confusion Cress looked up at the pair then down at his hand, trying to put two and two together. When he finally connected the dots his face reddened even further, gawking before quickly getting onto his knees. "Oh I'm sorry! I didn't mean to, I swear!" he said hastily, beginning to boy at a rapid pace, "Sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry!"

Behind Cress, Asari and Yato stood on and watched, staring down at their companion dumbfounded. Neither of them had anything to drink and for good reason, as a crowd of players was hardly a place to get wasted. That hadn't stopped Cress though and he was making a huge scene because of it; even if he wasn't drunk Cress would find a way to cause problems, but the drink certainly didn't help.

[Scout]

"That makes three of us then," The musician replied with a devilish grin, "Unless the all-too-famous beast hunter cares to weigh in..?" She asked cockily, looking to Nero.

He blushed very faintly and shook his head, "No, my lips are sealed. I've already got one of you," He stated, realizing a moment later how much better that sounded in his head.

Minerva was already on to the next topic, laughing faintly as Suto fumbled about himself, "Cool down, buddy; you look like you've had quite a day. You guys wanna grab a few drinks?" She suggested, stuffing her hands in her pockets, "Band doesn't need me for every song, I'm allowed to enjoy parties all I like. Especially if I'm not getting paid to do it anyway," The girl waved a hand dismissively, glancing to Titus, "Some people are just too cheap."

The ruckus in the midst of the crowd was all too noticeable as a bumbling redhead tore through the crowd in a statement of anti-sobriety. The musician rolled her eyes, "This guy is just everywhere, isn't he?"

Titus shrugged, finally chiming in, "He's a good guy. A bit of a dolt, but his heart's in a good place. From what I've seen, his little group has a real good outlook on things around here. They're not the strongest, but they've certainly got the mentality that'll take them straight to the Hundredth Floor," He observed, waving and stepping forward. "Yato, long time no see!" he called out to his acquaintance, grinning again - this was gonna be the best floor party yet.

[Vena Sera]

Suto was acting like a moron in front of Minerva, but then he always acted like a dolt in front of pretty girls. Yari was pretty and all but he never saw her as someone he might date, only as a friend, so maybe that was why he didn't have any problems with her. This musician was another story though, and when she teased him for it his face reddened a bit further. "Ehe... Yeah, drinks sounds like a good idea to me." Not that he was really much a drinker, he hated not being in control of his actions. Alcohol in Sword Art was weird, it didn't really make you so much physically drink as it did mentally, if that made sense. Everything from motor control to your vision and even speech became difficult, though apparently it wasn't the same as actually being drunk. Far as Suto was concerned intoxicated was the same no matter how you labeled it, so at most he'd have one and be finished. That couldn't be said for everyone however.

Cress had probably apologized at least half a dozen times or so before Yato finally picked him up, swaying as he was led along by his arm. Heh, maybe he had a little too much in the way of mead, but it sure had been good! Right now he just really wanted to party, so why had the music stopped? Looking around confused to see what the deal was he jumped slightly when someone shouted at them, peering across the way and spotting Titus. Ooooh, he remembered that guy, he and Yato were buddies! Smiling goofily Cress waved back, hiccuping as he somehow managed to get free of his friend's grip. "Hey... You! How's it going!" Cress called, chuckling as he staggered forward. Realizing there were other people there too he looked at Nero and Suto curiously, giving both of them a wave as well, "Oh hey new guys, how's it going! My name's-" he began, gasping when he stumbled and near face planted, somehow catching himself. Looking up at the group he smiled sheepishly, reaching up and rubbing at his head, "Name's Cress, hi."

"Hello there Titus, it's been a while," Yato responded casually, giving a nod before glancing down at Cress, "I do apologize for his behavior, he's a little... Or a lot drunk, I'm afraid. We usually keep a closer eye on him, but he seemed to slip away during the celebrations." Cress wasn't a bad drunk persay, he was just hopelessly cheerful and friendly when intoxicated; innocent enough on its own, but when he went around cuddling up to strangers fists were liable to begin flying. Seeing his friend attempting to slink off again he rolled his eyes, reaching out and grabbing him by the back of his shirt, pulling him over and forcing the redhead to sit down at his feet. "Lovely performance as always, Miss Minerva. It was a pleasure to watch you perform."

"Yeah! You're really something else Minerva!" Asari chimed in, giggling as she abruptly popped up between Nero and Suto, having somehow slipped around them during all of that, "You've got an awesome voice and all those people in your band are really good too, the whole show was wonderful! I mean... You're up there, singing and making it seem easy, and then the guy over there is all weeeeeeh, weeeeeh weeeeeeh," she said, poorly emulating a guitar as she made the motions. She couldn't see it, but Yato was wearing an expression right now that just screamed 'I am actually friends with these people'. Beaming as she straightened herself out, Asari stood upright and clasped her hands together, looking between Minerva and Titus. "So, what are you two doing? I hope you finishing doesn't mean the party is over Minerva, I wanna keep dancing!"

[Scout]

Yari frowned, looking closely at her reflection in the shop window. She felt bad... That Yuna girl really did seem nice, but she couldn't be around everybody right now, so she slipped out when she didn't think anybody would even notice. Thankfully nobody came after her so far. Guilt weighed heavily on her shoulders; why couldn't she remember any of them if they had been such a large portion of her life. She barely knew herself now as she stared at the blue-haired figure that was her reflection. There was no spear on her back, but she'd found a nice garment in her inventory which had long ribbons of beige accenting a red top and semi-modest skirt. She quite liked it, but that hair... dear god, why had she decided that looked good in the first place? She swiped her hand through the air and opened a map, looking for the nearest place to 'fix' her hair. There wasn't one far away - vanity alterations were made constantly in this world and it wouldn't take more than a few minutes to have it done, thankfully. When she left the 'shop,' as it were, she had altered it to a short, almost blonde, light brown. She thought it brought her eyes out, at least.

It didn't take long for the town to come alive with people and she was blissfully unaware of the drama happening on the other end until the music started playing and she simply had to find out from where it came. The band continued, but their singer seemed to be taking a break for herself. It allowed the music to become more ambient for a while and Yari, upon noticing that Nero and Suto were both at the center of the crowd, was quite glad for that as she darted into the nearest pub. That wasn't exactly a mistake, no, but it certainly might have been less than what one might call a 'good judgment call' as a man called out "One more on the house!" A drink was thrust into the girl's hand and she was slapped on the back jubilantly as she clutched the glass in her hand and tried her damnedest not to spill it everywhere. They wouldn't dare just hand some stranger alcohol, would they? ... She took a sip.

A wave of relief washed over her like she'd never known, every muscle in her body relaxing. Of course, she wasn't the slightest bit drunk, it was just this feeling of something new as she tasted a smidgen of alcohol. She turned eighteen forever ago, it seemed, had they even had any of this stuff? Why wouldn't they? It was amazing! And it took all of three more intensely burning gulps for her to come to such a realization.

The girl left the bar a little bit more light hearted and with a second drink in hand. She'd tried an ale, but when it didn't give her the same burn as the first one, she just found something new and delicious. Something English called a "Long Island Iced Tea" - it translated strangely, but it tasted like a normal drink. Dangerous, but good. She sipped at the straw absently, floating threw the crowd with a bit more aloofness than before.

-----

Titus gave Yato a casual salute. "Glad to see you here; seems that Cress here has started to enjoy the festivities quite fervently..." He teased, smirking. "Mind if I talk to you for a bit, Yato?" He asked, nodding his head toward a more secluded area, away from their group.

Nero introduced himself to Cress and Asari, but they both seemed to have short attention spans.

Minera gave a modest, little bow, "Thank you, Yato. I appreciate it." Those drinks might have to wait a minute, as it seemed they were now exposed to a bit more 'party.' She looked to Asari and couldn't help but laugh, covering her mouth, "Aww, thanks, we love that people like to hear it at all, really. Party's not over, my guys'll keep playing, but I'm allowed to enjoy it too!"

Suddenly, Yari pushed between Suto and Nero, leaving the white-haired beast hunter a bit bewildered. Where the hell had she come from? To be fair, she didn't even realize it was them, she was more interested in the redhead as she stared at him, "Hey! You need to stop... Bumbling through this crowd or whatever... You're making a scene!" She pointed out, "And my god, what are you drinking?" She was not being nearly as sly or matronly as she thought when she reached for whatever drink Cress had in his hand at the moment, wanting a taste of it for herself.

[Vena Sera]

"Cress is enjoying the festivities a bit too much. I never understood the allure of becoming so drunk you can't even walk," Yato replied, frowning as he glanced down at his clearly smashed companion, "I would rather be lucid and enjoy the party myself, but then I suppose everyone has their own way of having fun." Some good music and company was all he needed, other than that he refused to touch the drink. Not being control in your own actions was perhaps his greatest fear, plus he'd just never had a taste for liquor, even back in the real world. Seeing that Cress was talking to himself and even singing, Yato figured that he was free to go and do something for himself now. Just as well too, as it sounded like Titus wanted to have a word with him.

"But of course, I hope everything is well?" They knew one another well enough, so what could possibly need to be discussed in private? Yato supposed Suto and Nero were strangers, but aside from that most everyone present had met once before at least, it shouldn't be a problem then. Following Titus over to one of the few secluded areas the swordsman glanced back at his group, frowning as he watched Cress collapse and seem to fall asleep, rolling his eyes before turning his focus back to Titus. "Now then, what was it you need to talk about? Is everything alright?" There had been quite a lot of drama with this last clearing effort, Yato hoped that some of that hadn't found its way onto his friend's plate.

Cress, even in his extremely inebriated state, was making the most of the party. With face nearly as red as the mane of hair on his head he was giggling cheerfully on the ground, swinging his hands along to the music that continued to play. "I bottle up my -hic!- memories, and let them... -hic!- keep me company!" he sang, or rather slurred musically. Letting out a carefree laugh he then sat up in his spot, grinning up at everyone around him as he raised his cup. "Here's to friends! And all that good stuff!" Heh, these parties always were such a blast! With a smile Cress moved to take another draught of his drink, gasping as he suddenly felt the glass be lifted away, looking at his empty hand puzzled before up at the girl holding it. "H-Hey! That's mine!" he whined, reaching up for it and instead falling forward, groaning as he face-planted on the ground.

So these three were... Interesting. The Yato guy was the only one who didn't seem a bit weird, whereas Cress and Asari were both sort of all over themselves. Or Cress was anyways, Asari just looked like she was having a good time with all of the party going on. Chuckling amused as he watched the pair acting out as he only could guess they regularly did. In a way it kind of reminded him of his group of friends, only these two were a bit over the top. Suto had no awareness whatsoever as to what was going around them, so when someone pushed him out of the way he nearly fell over, stumbling a bit and looking over confused. "Yari...? What are you..." he began, blinking as he watched her steal Cress' drink. Was she... Drunk? She had two drinks now and she definitely seemed happier than before, but part of him worried that might be the liquor. Gasping when she tried to drink the mystery beverage Suto hurried over behind her, grabbing her wrists and smiling nervously as he tried to keep her from having more. "H-Hey, uh... What're you doing out here? Come to join the party?" he asked, kind of a dumb question as what else would she be here for. "We should uh... Try some of the food! They've got great food here, come try some! Just set down those drinks so you can hold a plate."

[Scout]

"Oh, everything's great; I just had some things I wanted to hear your take on," Titus said innocently. The two of them found their own area and the man offered Yato a seat first before taking his own, resting his ankle on his knee leisurely. "So, I've seen how you and your friends interact... They might be a bit eccentric, but they're strong and you guys have the right outlook on this place. I can respect that. It's something more people need to know, need to see, and they need to be a part of it. We'll never get out of here without that kind of attitude, so I was trying to think of ways to get the attitude you guys have out into the world beyond just parties. It'd be good for everybody to see that you don't have to be a clearer to help and furthermore one can make a life here without losing sight of the life they knew before we were all locked in. I don't have to tell you that Aincrad has more dangers than monsters and trap dungeons..." Titus grew a little somber, watching his fingers drum with concentration on the table, "We have some problematic players too... Ones that don't think this is even real, ones that seek to either prevent the progress of the floors or to simply satiate their own psychopathic desires. Men and women of vice. Now, I'm no saint, and I'll never claim to be perfect or even religious... But... These are kids. They're going to live with the decisions made here for the rest of their lives. I don't want them to have to shoulder the deaths of their friends or have to fight for their own lives against real people."

There was another pause as Titus chose his words. "Sorry if I'm moving quickly here... I really don't know what to do about all of this, but it's something that needs to be addressed. The KoB is a large guild of extremely talented warriors. But they're... They're not great people. They're okay, but they're not idealists, they stand only to clear the floors. The players need somebody who stands as a beacon of strength for moving on like that, but they need somebody to look to for protection, and they can't find that with the Knights or the other major Clearing Guilds. I know I'm throwing a lot on you here, but I was curious to hear what you've seen out there for yourself too."

-----

Yari's face scrunched up a bit as she tasted the drink. "Ew, ew, take it back..." She muttered, shaking her head and letting Cress have his drink back. She nursed her own slowly, having already noticed that she was reacting kind of slowly. In honesty, the girl was even beginning to notice that the things she noticed were stupid, like how her eyes moved a second after she told them to. Suddenly, there were hands on her wrist and she blinked in surprise. "Eh? I guess I could eat," She observed, gripping her drink more tightly. "But nuh-uh! I can hold a plate with one hand; don't take my drink awaaaayyyy!! Please, Nero?" She asked, looking pleadingly to Suto, clearly getting his name wrong. Whether it was because she simply got the names all mixed up or if it was because she had been drinking nobody could know for sure. "Don't be so uptight, gosh!"

Nero covered his mouth, turning away as he laughed and tried not to let Suto see it. The poor guy was trying so hard, but Nero had to give him points for determination. Clearing his throat, he turned back to them, "C'mon, I'll help, where do you guys wanna go eat?"

[Vena Sera]

Yato didn't know what to expect out of Titus, only that it must be serious if they were slinking off like this. In a way it almost seemed inappropriate to be discussing something so somber during a celebration, though he couldn't fault his friend if the discussion needed to be had here and now. Having found a moderately secluded area he helped himself to one of the chairs, taking a seat with his back flush against the rear, folding his hands on the table and leaning forward slightly. Of all of the players stuck here in Sword Art Online he seemed to be one of the older ones; mid-to-late teens and young adulthood appeared to be the normal range of ages in the game, meaning a lot of the players were inexperienced and young. There were plenty of issues with that in of itself to be sure, though that may not be necessarily what Titus wished to discuss.

"So in short, you're concerned about the PKing problem as of late?" Yato asked, clarifying what was said in a few words. Letting out a somber sigh he nodded his head, glancing down at his hands as the corner of his mouth turned down into a disconcerted frown. "We've had a few encounters with players like those, I won't lie about that. Thankfully we've yet to have to take a life in self defense, but I can't help but wonder when that might change. Since myself and my friends tend to be the first to venture out we happen to run into a fair number of nasty players, most of which know better and give us a wide berth. Occasionally, however, we get into conflict." It was hardly an ideal situation for anyone, especially players who weren't quite at the Clearers' level. Yato and his companions were on par with some of the best, so realistically they could handle just about anything the current game threw at them, including other players. Most of the base of players however were well below the current level cap, meaning a good portion of the population was at risk. "So we knew there's a problem, I suppose my question now to you is... What do you intend to do about it?"

---

Suto's mouth twitched with disbelief as Yari got his name wrong, struggling to keep a smile as a single drop of sweat slipped down his forehead. Oh no, she really was drunk! If Fitch found out he was going to be so pissed, they had to try and get her to relax and sober up. "I uh... I was just going to carry it for you! I never said you couldn't have it back," the martial artist lied, smiling nervously as he kept a grip on his friend's wrist, "And my name is Suto... That's Nero, the one with the white hair. Remember? Suuuuuto." Letting out an exasperated sigh he rubbed at his head, smiling gratefully when his other friend offered to give him a hand. "I figure somewhere quick and easy, and nearby preferably. I'm pretty sure I saw a sandwich shop around here on our way out..." If they could even get there without Yari passing out, or wandering off in search of another drink. Oh man, what a day!

With his hand still around Yari's wrist, Suto began leading his friends away from the hustle and bustle of the celebration, and hopefully away from all of the drinks. He'd never known his friend to drink before, so why suddenly start? Maybe it was just the stress of everything that had happened, which if that was the case he could hardly fault her. Everyone had their own way of dealing with the difficulties that SAO presented, and for him it was drowning his worries in fervent celebration; Yari drowned her problems as well it seemed, only she did it with alcohol, not parties. As he had suspected there was indeed a sandwich shop not two blocks from where the party was being held, manned by an older NPC and what looked to be his assistant. Smiling in relief as they got into the short line, Suto turned to Yari and again tried to ease the drink from her hand, nodding his head towards the menu above the counter. "What do you want to eat? My treat!"