### Chapter 1 – New Leaves
 
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>_It has been seven months since SAO went online_

>_and players from both the official server and _

>_Second Server are still trapped inside the game. _


>_Of the roughly 14.5k players that entered this server, _

>_around 9k remain. Meaning around a third have died. _

>_It has been five days since the 35th and 36th floor were_

>_cleared and there are many questions still left unanswered. _


>_It would appear that things are changing, that the game_ 

>_is throwing new challenges at players and worse still…_

>_that the players are beginning to challenge each other._



The Memorial Chamber was a gloomy place, a large hall reminiscent of an old stone church. There was no flock though, and no hymns that lifted ones spirits. The dark hall’s only light came from two candles at its back wall where the silhouette of a man could be seen sitting on a bench. This was the largest room in the Burning Hold, the guildhall of The Braziers. Situated on the 24th floor, the very small castle was covered in embers and was made purchasable after being cleared. 

“Hey Hawke, are you in here?” echoed a voice as the door to the hall slowly creaked open. As light poured through the doorway the man on the bench could be better seen. “There you are! You know it’s customary for the host to greet his guests… not hide in a creepy room and wait.” Bulbasaur grabbed one of the torches from the hallway and walked over to his friend. Bulbasaur was a short lad, no older than 17, with chubby rose cheeks that defied his otherwise slim build. Messy brown hair could be seen poking out from his cape’s grey hood and it seemed to match the colour of his leather armour. 

“Sorry Bulby. I gave you permission to enter but then I became distracted…” Hawke trailed off without turning to face his friend. He was hunched over, resting part of his weight on his spear and had his gaze firmly set on the decorated wall ahead. Bulby let out a very quiet sigh as he himself looked upon the wall. Seventeen plaques occupied ten columns, with the first three columns only housing one plaque each. On every plaque was a name beautifully engraved to remember all those who had served the Braziers. 

“It’s OK Hawke, I understand. I can’t imagine what you’re going through.” Bubly carefully placed the torch down on the stone floor before sitting beside his friend. He winced as he thought about the rumours that had begun to spread. He knew Hawke and the others well enough to know that his friend was innocent. “I know you didn’t kill them Hawke. I don’t think many of the front-liners seriously do. People are just jumpy at the minute.” Bubly let out another sigh before continuing, “Perhaps they would understand if you just told them what happened…” 

Hawkes eyes drifted to meet Bublys and there was a pang of anger in them. “I told you what happened. The details aren’t important, and I don’t want to talk about it.” Hawke stood and gestured for his friend to follow as he strolled away. “I need to move on. It’s what they would have wanted. I hear there is a raid meeting in a couple of days. Bring me up to speed.” 

Bulby stuttured as he tried to think of where to begin, “Er- Erm- Yeah- There’s a meeting on Tuesday morning, two days from now. The front-liners are convening in the main city of the 37th Floor, Mourningwood Fort. It’s the smallest main city we’ve come across. It’s a dank miserable fortress with the most depressing NPCs you could hope to find. All the stone buildings are in crap condition and I don’t think a single player has purchased-”

“Tell me about the rest of the 37th floor.” Interrupted Hawke, uninterested in the city.

“It’s swamp themed. We’ve only been able to venture south of Mourningwood so far though. To the North of it is a large open piece of Marshland and any that try to cross are attacked by the field boss, ‘Níðhöggr’ aka ‘The Mother in-law’. It’s a giant Lindworm; imagine a mix between a wingless dragon and a giant worm. Common mobs on the floor actually include Lindworm Hatchlings, which are a piece of cake compared to the big one.”

“Nothing else of interest been found yet?” 

“No, not really. We can’t really do much until the Field Boss is taken out.” Bubly stopped in his tracks as he realised what this conversation meant, “Wait! Do you plan to attend the meeting?” 

Hawke too stopped but made a snorting sound as he did so. “And why not? As of five days ago I’m the only player to have been present for the clearing of every floor. You need the Braziers there, as you always have!” Hawke matched up to his friend, but he didn’t mean any aggression; rather he was just caught up in the moment. 

“But… there are no Braziers.” Bulbys mumbled. He knew Hawke was valuable, he might even be in the top-10 now, but he would be a fool to show up alone given the rumours circulating. 

“I know.” Hawke replied with a sullen tone, “That’s why this morning I put out a message to say we’re recruiting. With any luck I should have some decent applicants treacle in over the next day or two.”