Chapter 138 - War in the Shadows

AUTHOR'S NOTE

First of all, I want to thank everyone for your understanding these past few days, and for all your well wishes.

The little girls I mentioned, my cousins, are better. Not great, but better, which is really all we can hope for in such a situation. We are already making arrangements for them to get therapy to try to work through it. That, along with time, should hopefully help.

My thanks again for all the kind words, and please enjoy the chapter.

//////////////////////

START OF THE CHAPTER

On the insistence of their friends, Drifter and Yuna took three days off as a honeymoon of sorts. They went back to the floors they already passed, this time not rushing to conquer them, but as tourists.

It was great. Although with how in love they were at the moment, anything they did would be so, as long as they were together.

Yet, all good things must come to an end. The 21st floor boss raid was rapidly approaching, and Drifter and Yuna themselves couldn't help but want to go back to the frontlines. It didn't feel right to not be there while their companions were fighting.

So the married couple cut their honeymoon short, and rejoined their guild. In truth, not much changed in their dynamic. They were still Broken Spear Drifter and Songstress Yuna of Reaver's Requiem.

Nevertheless, the meeting before the boss room doors was an unusual one this time around. When Reaver's Requiem arrived, plenty of people, including Kibaou and Lind, came forward to congratulate the newlywed couple.

The news had spread quickly, and many single men and some women in Aincrad were disappointed. While it was well known that Drifter and Yuna were dating, their marriage made both of them properly 'off-limits'. Well, no skin of their backs. The couple only had eyes from each other.

Such a festive mood felt wrong before a major battle took place. SAO should have been a dark and gloomy place. Close to 3 thousand people were already dead, including many friends. And yet, even here, good things could come about. That made a difference.

The 21st floor boss was hardly unique. A giant stone construct, with some kind of backstory no one really cared about. Most of the intel about it came from the two-people multi-floor quest Argo had Drifter had.

The raid was not easy. They never were. But it was much more uneventful compared to the 20th floor. No deaths, no pain from losing someone dear to you.

By now, the pattern was clear for the frontliners. Every round floor was a checkpoint. Always the hardest battle. And, unless something changed on the 30th floor, the round floors would come to be known as sure-death floors. The ones which always required a toll in blood.

Drifter was still thinking of that when he fell asleep that night, but his dreams were peaceful. They always were, when he had his wife in his arms.

------------------------

While to most players the day was ending, for some it had just begun. One such player was, quite obviously, Akari.

But not just her. Twenty of Fuumaningum's players, all those who weren't on some critical task, were with her.

The air was heavy with tension, and for a simple reason. Yesterday, one of the role-players hadn't reported in. When Akari went to check her friend list to send a message, she found the name gone. It had also vanished from the guild register.

With a heavy heart, she went to the Monument of Life to confirm what she already knew. There was the name she wanted, crossed. Killed by another player.

Akari looked at the assembled players. Most were dressed like her, covered from head to toe in black clothes, only their eyes showing. But those eyes showed a myriad emotion. Anger. Fear. Loss. She clenched her fist.

"Ermao was tasked to follow one of the red players that was on the Hill of the Cross that night. That he is dead means Laughing Coffin knows about our existence now."

The ninja stared at each of her subordinates. Unlike her words, her eyes were cold.

"They probably didn't even kill Ermao because he was one of us. They killed him just because they could, because they wanted to."

Her eyes were cold, but not out of indifference. Akari touched the dagger on her waist.

"Regardless of their reasons, they crossed a line they shouldn't have. An eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth. We are the shadows of the frontliners. They are the darkness of SAO. If Laughing Coffin refuses to come out into the light... We will fight them in their element. It's home to us too."

Not one of the Fuumaningum players moved. Akari didn't offer them a chance to back out either. That discussion had happened and been forgotten.

An eye for an eye.

"Laughing Coffin desires war. We will give it to them. Move out."

------------------------

Unknowing of the conflict that was brewing under the surface, another meeting was taking place that night, this one a much smaller gathering.

In an inn on the 13th floor, six players were sitting around a table. They were all males, but three stood out the most. The first was a large and boisterous man, who couldn't seem to stop laughing. His name was Godfree.

To Godfree's right, flinching every time the orange-haired player spoke, was a short and fat man, older than most players. He had an obviously fake smile on his face, and an avaricious glint in his eyes. His name was Daizen.

The last of the three was different. He sat at the head of the table, watching quietly. He was tall and lean, and by far the oldest. He looked about forty-something years old, which put him at one of the extremes of SAO's age range. His long hair was white, and his serious expression exuded calmness.

He was the leader of a new guild called Knights of the Blood Oath, and the people around the table were the founding members.

His in-game name was Heathcliff. His real name was Akihiko Kayaba.

------------------------

The 22nd floor was similar to the one directly underneath it. Less lakes, more coniferous forests, more twisty walkways, more log cabins for sale. Overall, a very tame floor.

The wolves destroyed that impression pretty quickly.

"Awoooo!"

A brown blur lunged towards Drifter, and he instinctively swung his spear to block. It cut into the Maroon Wolf's side, but three claw gashes also appeared on his torso as the mob flashed past him and disappeared into the forest again.

"Argh! This is so annoying!"

Drifter screamed, turned around, and threw his spear. The silver glow of Serpentcoil Impale left a glowing trail through the air before impaling the Maroon Wolf.

"Finally!"

The entire party shouted with him, and the mob was hit by two arrows and three swords before it could recover, dying immediately.

The Maroon Wolves weren't dangerous. Not even close. But they were extremely annoying. They were absurdly fast, and jumped at you without warning, before disappearing and repeating. Unless someone managed to react in time and tie them down like Drifter did, it took several passes to kill one mob.

"It's like Kayaba's trying to remind us that this floor is easy, but not to get complacent. I would scream if it didn't have merit. Petty bastard."

Sinon grumbled, kicking the ground where the wolf had been. Drifter, Yuna, Nautilus, Kirito, and Asuna nodded in agreement. When they thought of bringing the original party back together for a little grinding, this was not what they had in mind.

"Can't we go fishing like Agil and Kizmel? Or back to one of the lower floors. This is horrible."

"You are not the one having to nail them with arrows, Yuna. And someone needs to explore the floor. It will get better once we find the tower entrance."

"Plus, Drifter has that quest to complete."

Yuna glared at her husband, as if it was somehow his fault, and Drifter shrugged.

"Sorry love, but the rewards are important. Especially the boss' intel."

"I know, I know. I'm just annoyed."

The Songstress sighed. Drifter smiled and touched the back of her head. Yuna leaned into the touch.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Kayaba is going to throw something horrible at us soon. He would never make it that easy."

"This doesn't make me feel better, dummy."

The others rolled their eyes at Drifter's overly cheerful attitude. Sinon groaned.

"Please tell me you aren't going to be like this forever, Drifter, and that it's just a side effect of the marriage. Asuna, Yuna, Yuuki, Silica, Liz, and Agil are already too happy, I thought I could at least count on you to be somber and moody with me. Now I'm gonna have to stick with Kirito and Vallerk. Woe is me."

It was amazing how the archer could say all that with a straight face. The players burst out laughing, and Sinon smirked. She may not make many jokes, but when she did, they landed.

"Hey, this noise?"

"Waterfall?"

"Waterfall."

Yuna's trained ears brought the party to a stop, and they looked at each other. They were off the beaten path, so to say. No walkways, just the middle of a forest. So while a waterfall might be normal elsewhere, here it probably indicated something else. At least a change of scenery, which would be very much welcomed.

The party pushed through the trees, having to deal with two more Maroon Wolves before arriving at their target.

Up close, the roaring of the waterfall was deafening. What was curious was that it wasn't even that big.

"Does it sound... Echo-y to anyone else?"

Nautilus turned his head, a frown on his face. Asuna tapped her lips.

"A cave?"

"Wouldn't be the first time. The 4th floor had one. Or was it the 5th?"

"4th. Should we check it out?"

"Of course."

Every gamer knew you had to check behind waterfalls. 99% of the time there was nothing but a stone wall, but sometimes you found a cave with treasures or dangers. Usually both.

The third option was, of course, quests. And the party landed on that portion of the wheel today.

After finding a small ledge on the sides of the waterfall and precariously walking on it, they bypassed the thunderous wall of water and found the cave they were hoping for.

It was a small one. They could see all of it with a single glance. Not that there was such to take in. Humid walls and moss, mostly. And a NPC sitting cross-legged in the middle of it.

The NPC was human, although he didn't look like it. He was covered in dust, and completely immobile, almost like a statue. A thin, fragile body enveloped in tattered garments finished up the perfect 'recluse hermit' look.

Drifter looked at the others, who shrugged, so he pushed Kirito towards the NPC. The swordsman stumbled and glared at the spearmaster, but took a few hesitant steps, stopping just short of the NPC.

"Err... Hello?"

The party rolled their eyes. Here he was, Black Swordsman Kirito, guild leader of Reaver's Requiem, one of the most famous frontliners in SAO, looked up to by thousands of people in Aincrad and millions outside, talking to a hermit NPC, and that was how he opened up. Truly, that was a lot like him.

The NPC didn't answer. He didn't move at all, even his chest was completely still, as if he had stopped breathing. Were it not for the green cursor above his head, the players would think he was dead.

Kirito looked back, and they shrugged again. Each quest had different triggers. Most were just initiating a dialog with the NPCs, but sometimes you had to do something else, like bring them something, or perform certain actions. Figuring out what to do was the tricky part.

After trying to communicate several more times, Kirito hesitantly reached a hand to touch the NPC's shoulder.

He got the scare of his life when, his fingers just a few centimeters away, the NPC suddenly opened his eyes and grabbed his wrist. Before even he realized it, his sword was already raised and almost touching the NPC's chest, while a spear and a rapier poked his throat.

"Back. He isn't doing anything."

"Kirito?"

The swordsman lowered his sword, and Drifter and Asuna reluctantly retrieved their weapons. The NPC had a green cursor... But they didn't survive this long by trusting.

"Hello, sir. Can we help you?"

The NPC turned his head to stare at Kirito with a distinctive mummy-like feeling to it. The black-haired boy shuddered, but held still.

"Strength."

With just that one word, the NPC closed his eyes again. No matter how the players tried to grab his attention, he didn't move. But they had gotten a quest.

After ambling over the ledge and out of the cave, the party put some distance between them and the waterfall so they didn't have to yell. Then they stopped to discuss the quest.

"Weird, but pretty simple. Go to these coordinates, kill a bunch of elite mobs, come back."

"He said 'strength'. It's a clue."

"To what?"

"No idea. But I'm sure we will find out if we follow the quest."

Asuna made sense, so they all shrugged - they were doing that a lot today - and set off. They expected to spend a few hours between walking to the place they had to go, killing the mobs, and walking back. Nothing out of the ordinary.

But something - or rather, someone - unexpected happened. The founding party of Reaver's Requiem stopped on a walkway and looked at the group fighting Iron-Shell Tortoises - the mobs they needed to hunt - a few hundred meters away.

"Who are these guys?"

Yuna put a hand over her eyes and squinted, trying to get a better look.

"Red and white. I don't think any frontliner guild uses those colors."

"Well, they are definitely clearers. That sword-and-shield is really good."

Nautilus whistled, and the others stirred. They could see that the other players were good - clearer level at least, to be on this floor this early. But to get this kind of praise from Indomitable Knight Nautilus, they had to be a lot more than just good.

"I don't recognize them."

"There are clearers we don't know, y'know?"

"Most of them, sure. But a swordsman that skilled? That's frontliner material right there. We should know him."

"You know, we could always go down and talk to them instead of stalking them from up here. We need to kill Iron-Shell Tortoises anyway."

Drifter leaned on his spear while making his point. He was curious, but he was also a practical man. No reason why they should keep guessing when they could just ask.

Kirito, Asuna, Sinon, Nautilus, and Yuna stared at him. Then they shrugged.