Sword Art Online: A New Beginning

[Mega90]

When he reached the top of the staircase, he saw the girl bent over with her hands on her knees. She was breathing heavily, though he got the sense that her exhaustion was not caused by the strenuous movement, but rather from the same emotions that had caused her to shriek so loudly when first the rats had appeared.

She looked up at the teen as he rounded the corner, and a deep blush overcame her delicate features. Her embarrassment did not last long, however, as the scratching sound began to grown again. She backed up a few steps and recited a quick incantation. Throwing her hand in front of her, a ball of teal light flew forward and expanded, illuminating the staircase that not was across the room from her. Dozens upon dozens of rats were making their way up the winding steps, moving with all haste in their direction. Again she cursed.

They were trapped. To their back was a solid stone wall, the only opening leading to either the roof, or a stone balcony that hung over the Crystal Lake below them. They could no more go forward than they could back, and staying where they were wasn’t much of an option either.

Over the years, one thing that Hiroku had learned in his experience was that it was harder to fight numerous small enemies than it was to fight one large monster. However, this was exactly the situation that they were now placed in. He knew that the number of rats that were making their way towards them was so great that no amount of melee skills would be enough to defeat them all. That being said, the small, cramped area that they were confined in wasn’t conducive to large scale magic attacks either.

He could see the wheels turning in the young girls mind, though with no knowledge about her capacities, Hiroku felt uncertain about whether or not she would be able to come up with something in time.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku held his sword loosly in his hand as he glances around, searching for ideas.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his eyes continuing to scan the area. As far as he could tell the water was the only viable option of escape. Hiroku knew however this was likely the goal of the trap. Present only one way out and use an unstoppable force to drive the target toward that sole option. He had seen mobs use similar techniques on the higher floors of Aincrad.

Despite the fact he knew it would likely fail, he tried to materialize his wings. Under normal circumstances flying wasn't allowed in dungeons, but this place was far from normal and he was running out of options.

As Hiroku tried to activate his wings, he glanced to his companion.

"Any ideas?" He asked.  

[Mega90]

As he expected, the wings did not appear, and he was met with a system message informing him that flying in dungeons was not allowed.

The young girl looked frantically for a moment around the room. Seeing no other options, she let a soft sigh escape.

“Just one…get behind me if you don’t want to die, and stay close.” She didn’t wait for the man to respond before she closed her eyes and began to chant a strange spell. As she did, a dark haze began to fill the room, spreading to every corner. As the first rats touched the smog, they crumpled immediately, falling dead where they stood. As more and more rats were killed, the smoke appeared to take on almost a life of its own. It twisted and writhed, slashing out at anything that moved, and even some rats that had stopped to observe the curious sight before them. The chamber was now glowing brightly, as thousands of rats burst into millions of shards of light. The only safe spot in the entire chamber was a small, roughly four foot circle around the caster.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiruko leapt quickly to the girls side, making it with moments to spare before the haze began to form.

The tall teens brow furrowed as he watched the rats die, first one by one then by the dozen.

"Poison? He muttered the question thoughtfully, as much to himself as to the young girl beside him.  

[Mega90]

The young girl remained silent for as long as the spell was in effect. When the last of the noxious mist faded, she looked over her shoulder at the man behind her.

“Sort of.” She said as she lowered her sword. The room fell silent again with little more than the distant sounds of water to fill the empty chamber. After waiting for a few moments longer, she began to make her way back towards the stairs.

With slow, measured steps, she carefully made her way down to the room below once more. The serpent still lay in a heap on the floor, its skin burst open by the army of rats that tore out of its flesh. She nudged it slightly with her foot before making her way to the body of the strange man that lay behind it. His body was covered in scratches from the rats that had clambered over him, but he was otherwise how he had been when first he had appeared. As she neared, his head rose slowly. The half crystalline face reflected what little light was left in the chamber, and he attempted to give a weak smile.

“Fear Lorias, little one, the City of Rats.” His voice was weak and shaking, and he held out a withered hand in warning. She knelt down next to him and looked into his one good eye.

“You said this place was called Lorias?”

“Indeed, though its name means little now. In the past, it was a great city full of many wonders. Palaces dotted the skyline, and there was grandeur everywhere you looked. You can still see the remnants of that now. But that all changed with the crowning of the new rightful king. He was the offspring of our former king, and through is hands alone, we were brought to ruin.” He seemed content to end the story there, but a quizzical look from the young girl urged him onward. “I was once the Royal Vizier to the king. Whenever he needed council, he sought me. However, that was under Luthram, the greatest king our city has ever known. When he passed away under strange circumstances, his son, Labdacus, inherited the throne. He immediately began to conduct rituals that would further his own power, and would listen to no council that advised him to do otherwise.”

“What were these rituals supposed to do?” Her voice was quiet, but she seemed generally interested in what was being said.

“It was known as the Sigil of the Crystal. You must understand, this was back in the day when the gods of the elements ruled over this world. The crystals you see all throughout here are amplifiers of magic. So great could they make a wizards power, that a single man possessing one of these was match enough for seven armies. However, they were forbidden in our plain, and to bring them forth required many arcane and taboo arts, the likes of which had never been performed within our walls. Labdacus, with the influence of one god, whose name I shall leave in the annals of history where it belongs, performed the rituals required to bring the crystals into our plain. I tried to stop him, but for my efforts, I was cursed, and imprisoned on charges of high treason. So it was that Labdacus became the most powerful sorcerer in the world…for a time. As I have said, it was taboo to bring these crystals into our domain, and his blatant disregard of the tenets that were set out by the gods brought their wrath upon him, and the whole of the city behind him.” He took a moment to breath, and with a shudder, continued. “So it happened that Jurell, the god of earth sunk the city to below the surface of Terra, such as you find us now. And Lycerin, the goddess of water, smote us with flooding such that we could scarcely leave our dwellings. In this lake, she gave birth to foul creatures so horrendous that even the sight of them was enough to drive some men from their minds. Finally, Shureal and Lycious, the god and goddess of darkness and light, stole all magic from the land, sealing it into the very crystals that had given so much power to his place. It was then that Jurell, who you’ll remember was the god of earth, gave his final revenge. He cursed the land with a plague that gave birth to the rats. Creatures more destructive and heinous than any other he could have created. For the largest beast can be slain, and the scourge of plague can be treated, but when the very veins that bring us life become infested with an incurable disease - that is when our deaths are assured.”

The young girl looked skeptical.

“If it was truly as long ago as you say, how are you still alive?”

“As I have said, I was cursed before being imprisoned. Labdacus used his rituals to meld my body with the crystals that would bring all the ire of the gods down upon us. This crystal is ageless, and now, so to am I. Cursed to live in agony forever more.”

Hiroku heard all of this, and only as the old man finished speaking did he receive a system alert. Flashing before his eyes was a red barred message that read, “Invalid Quest…Quest Details Currently Unavailable.”

Apparently, the young girl had received the same message, as she now stood up, coming away from the old man.

“How do we get out of here?” She asked, her tone unsympathetic.

“You cannot escape the City of Rats, for Lorias has become a prison more than a city. There is only one way out, and to attempt it is tantamount to tearing out your own throat and feeding it to the rats that scourge this land.” She raised an eyebrow to him, and he lowered his gaze.

“There is a portal below the deepest waves in the center of the city. It was once a chamber where Luthram would condemn the worst criminals of the land. As such, it is not only guarded by the vicious children of Lycerin, but it is also filled with manifest ghosts of those vile spirits sent to pay for their crimes. If you make it through, it will transport you to a land far from this one, and I suggest you stay away, and never return to this place once you have left it.”

The girl turned to Hiroku, staring at him as if to gauge his opinion on everything that had been said.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku listened intently as the man spoke, taking mental notes of all details that were given. Once his companion stepped back he looked down at the old man.

"I know these memories must be painful for you, but is there anything you can tell me about these gods or the creatures we are likely to encounter within the water below? We have no choice but to brave the depths of the town to reach the portal and any information you can provide with what we may encounter my well save our lives."

The teens tone was calm as he spoke, holding a hint of pity for the npc before him.  

[Mega90]

The man looked up at him and slowly nodded.

“You need have no fear of the gods, for they have gone long ago. They no longer reside in this plain. As for the monsters that reside in the deep, it is anyone’s guess what their forms are, or how numerous they may be. I have seen several of them over the years, and even you have seen one just now.” He pointed to the massive serpent that lay on the cold floor across the room. “How you are to get by them is beyond the scope of imagination for this poor old fool.”

The strange girl chimed in at this moment.

“Couldn’t’ we just go back out the way that we came in?”

“No, I’m afraid that is impossible for that is part of the cursed magic of this prison. You can enter all you like, but a powerful ward prevents any from leaving. Its magic is held in place by the very crystals that were pulled here from that sacred land. Many have tried, and all have failed. The only other way to escape here is to be reborn a fledgling along your journey. But in order to do that, you must give up all that you know, and all that you are.

The girl turned to Hiroku with a serious gaze.

“I’ve heard of these areas. The only way to escape them without completing the task that the NPC’s talk about is to reset your character. It will basically re-roll all your stats, and you’ll be back at level 1 with no money, no items, and no skills.” The old man began speaking again, bringing their attention back to him.

“As for what you should expect, I can say that it is something worse than your greatest nightmares. You will face the monsters from the sea, as well as the vengeful spirits from the beyond. You’d be far better to slit your own throats now and count your lives as complete.”  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku turned from the old man, his face and tone serious.

"I'm afraid that isn't an option. I wish you well old timer. May you one day find the peace you so desire, and thank you for the information."

With that the tall black cloaked teen walked away, not waiting to see if the young woman was following.

Hiroku's eyes took in every detail as he made his way toward the large stairs leading to the room they had been in previously. His mind categorizing each piece of information the npc had shared with him.

The teen made it to the top of the dark stairway, at last pausing and glancing back to see if his new companion had followed or not before proceeding.  

[Mega90]

The girl stood a few paces behind him, a look of concern coloring her youthful features.

“Given the monsters that we have seen already, are you sure we should do this? We know that the quest isn’t working properly right now, so the information that he gave us could be inaccurate. For all we know, the Dev’s put that in there as filler text.”  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku closed his eyes, nodding slightly.

"You may be right, but the only other alternative is to restart our characters. For me, that isn't an option. That being said however, there is a high chance we don't make it out of this alive and with the quest bugged as it is, the result of our dying here could be even worse then resetting. I don't expect you to come with me, nor do I intend to ask you to. I have made my intentions clear.

Hiroku paused, opening his eyes and glancing back at the young girl before finishing.

"What you do, is your choice and yours alone."  

[Mega90]

The young girl let out a soft sigh before shaking her head and walking beside him.

“If this is what you’ve decided, then I suppose that we don’t have much choice. Starting my character over isn’t really a choice for me either.”  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku nodded and continued down the stairs, vanishing into the darkness.

Upon reaching the bottom he stepped out into the open room, glancing around.

"The npc said that there is supposed to be a portal to get us out at the bottom of the deepest part of this sea. I would rather remain on land for as long as we can but swimming is inevitable sooner or later."

The tall teen sighed as he made his way further into the dim room, glancing around for anything that could be used to aid them.  

[Mega90]

It was clear that the years had not been kind to the room in which they now stood. Layers of dust covered every surface, and the tattered pieces of what had once been carpets and tapestries dotted the pitted floor.

On the walls, several different coats of arms could be seen displaying different emblems, suggesting there were various nations that had culminated within Lorias. One thing of particular note was that all the swords within the Coats of Arms were pointed up, rather than the more traditional downward facing blades.

Beyond that, there were some candelabras scattered throughout the room, a decrepit old table that appeared to have once been a grand piece of furniture, and a few serving trays and other utensils scattered across the ground.

A rat scurried past quickly, and the young girl shrieked briefly, before clasping her hand over her mouth and looking at Hiroku with a blush, trying once again to ascertain if he had heard.

Her expression hardened again quickly, and she came up to take her place beside him.

“I don’t have that many underwater skills.” Her tone was calm and even, and she looked forward, rather than at her companion.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku shakes his head, either not noticing the girls embarrassment or simply choosing to ignore it.

"There aren't many I know of in the game, unless you are an undine. They are the only race with dedicated skills for underwater combat. That being said, there's no reason we can't make use of the skills we have at our disposal. Do you have and stealth skills that are leveled?"  

[Mega90]

The girl nodded, but hesitated for a moment.

“Yes, but we will still run out of air if we can’t reach the portal soon enough. There are also the monsters to consider. They are naturally strong in the water.”