Sword Art Online: A New Beginning

[Zarkon90]

Instinctively Hiroku raised his blade to try and block to attack with little effect. He was sent hurling farther down the dark tunnel, bouncing off one of the walls as he fell. It took all his control not to lose his hold on the crystal.

As he floated near the wall, still descending slowly, his head shot up to try and locate his companion. Deep red eyes scanned for any trace of her or the crystal she had been carrying.  

[Mega90]

The darkness of the water prevented Hiroku from being able to see back up into the tunnel, but he could hear and feel the creature’s roar as it rippled through the water.

From behind him, Hiroku felt a deep chill overtake him. The temperature of the sea chilled by several degrees in an instant, and a shiver ran down his spine. There was an audible hiss, and he caught slight movement out of the corner of his eye.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku planted his feet against the wall, pulling his knees close to his chest as he slid down it, letting the current drag him deeper in.

The reaper was all to aware of his rapidly decreasing air supply and the fatigue that the icy water was now causing his body.

Hiroku closed his eyes for a moment, letting his ringing ears serve as his only source of warning should the creature strike again.

After what seemed like a lifetime his eyes snapped open, his sword began to glow and he pushed off the stone wall, hurtling out into the tunnel. He used nothing but the blue glowing blade as a light source as he hurled into the darkness, keeping the green crystal close to his body.  

[Mega90]

As Hiroku glided effortlessly through the water, his blade found purchase in a strange, ethereal mass that floated in front of him. A wild hiss echoed throughout the chamber, the sound seemingly unaffected by the crushing depths that surrounded them. In the dim glow of the sword, Hiroku was able to make out what it was that his blade had struck.

In front of him floated a hooded, cloaked figure with skeletal arms, and massive, bony hands. There were no legs or features to be found on the creature, save for white, glowing eyes. A sinister blue, ethereal energy flowed around the creature, wisping off it like smoke.

There was a split second of silence before the creature moved with blinding speed. To his surprise, it didn’t go for his face, which was very clearly near it. It instead clawed at his chest and hands.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku immediately drew his blade back, managing to block only one of the swipes from the creature.

The black cloaked teen cursed the slowing effects the water had on him as he tried to retreat further down the tunnel. As he did he held the crystal out before him, being sure to keep a firm grip on it and keeping his blade at the ready should the creature attack once more.  

[Mega90]

At the sight of the crystal, the creature went wild, clawing with greater ferocity than before at his outstretched hand.

Above him, he could hear the massive sea creature roar, and he could feel the residual currents from its powerful attacks.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku kicked away hard, trying desperately to escape the creature. His mouth opened suddenly as he gasped. His eyes darted to the upper left of his visual just in time to see his breath run out. His head began to swim as his HP began to slowly decrease point by point with each passing second.

The reaper turned, ignoring the creature as he looked desperately for an air pocket or the portal, anything to escape the sensation of drowning and prevent his death.  

[Mega90]

Hiroku’s world was going black. All that surrounded him was the crushing depths of the water. There were no air pockets, no caves, and for all his efforts, he couldn’t make out any signs of escape.

The rush of water that flooded his ears began to lessen, and a sense of calm began to overcome him. Even as his lungs screamed for air, he felt little pain.

As his sight clouded, he saw the young girl swimming quickly in his direction. She was battered and her clothes were torn, but she was very much alive. Behind her, the creature weaved its way through the tunnel. It seemed impossible that she was keeping ahead of it, and yet, Hiroku could swear that what he was seeing was real. In her hand she still clutched the crystal, and this seemed to be keeping the creature at a slight distance, though it was still pursuing her with all haste.

Hiroku could feel his strength abandoning him, and his grip on the crystal weakened. Eventually, he couldn’t hold onto it anymore, and he felt it slip from his grasp.

Instantly, the wraith abandoned its attack on him and dove after the crystal. Grasping it, it held it close to its body and began to glow an even brighter blue.

Then, there were hundreds of them. The water was aglow as countless wraiths poured out of small crevices in the walls or otherwise swam up from lower down. They rushed past Hiroku and moved towards the young girl.

She obviously saw them coming and stopped dead in the water. The sea monster was right behind her, and as it raised a hand to strike her down, she hurled the crystal at it with all her might.

As soon as the crystal left her hand, any interest the wraiths had held for her was abandoned and they all moved towards the creature.

Even through Hiroku’s fading eyes, the sight was a gruesome one. Thousands of wraiths attached themselves to every inch of the monster, rending flesh from bone, and freezing it in a thick wall of ice.

All efforts to remain awake were being lost, and a gentle sleep called to Hiroku. There was no resisting, and his eyelids slowly slid closed as his health reached a critical point. The last thing he saw was the creature, which was now encased in ice, being dragged past him into the abyss by the wraiths. Then, he saw the young girl swimming towards him, and then there was darkness.
§
When Hiroku opened his eyes again, he saw the blue sky high above them. It took him only a few moments to realize that they were back on floor thirteen. Beside him, the strange young girl kneeled, still dripping wet, and panting hard. Her eyes were to the ground, and her hair had fallen in front of her face, shielding it from view.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku lay, unmoving on the grass, staring up at the sky for several seconds, only breaking his gaze to note the minimal health remaining in his HP bar. After a full minute, he spoke.

"What happened? How did we get here?"  

[Mega90]

The young girl took another few moments to breathe before responding. When she did, her voice was short and matter of fact.

“You nearly drowned, and I dragged you out.” She said as she looked over at him through her soaked hair.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku slowly sat up.

"I was more referring as to how you got us out. I didn't see any way out down there."  

[Mega90]

The young girl looked at him with uninterested eyes.

“And that’s why you’d be dead without me.” She said, seemingly being intentionally evasive.  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku reached up, brushing soaking wet hair out of his face.

"That doesn't answer my question. How did you get us out?"  

[Mega90]

The strange girl looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “I swam. How did you think?”  

[Zarkon90]

Hiroku closed his eyes, clearly irritated.

"How did you trigger the portal. What allowed us to pass through and return here? What happened to those wraiths?"

As he spoke, his tone was tired but held none of the irritation that was fairly clear on his face.