Fairy Dance 1

by Reki Kawahara

  “I see. Good idea.”

  I ran my finger across the whole inventory to select all the corrupted items. Some of them were mementos of Aincrad packed with memories, but the situation called for cold pragmatism. Besides, I couldn’t possibly pick out and save individual items when their very names were illegible.

  I summoned up my will and deleted them in one fell swoop, leaving only my starter equipment behind.

  “But what about this skill data?”

  “The system has no problem with it. They’re unnatural based on your playing time here, but you’ll probably be fine as long as a human GM doesn’t take a closer look.”

  “Oh. Okay…I used to be a beater, now I’m just a cheater, I guess.”

  No problem with my character being high-powered, though. I needed to climb this World Tree and find Asuna—I wasn’t looking for a rewarding gameplay experience.

  Besides, looking closer at the skill window gave me the sense that a character’s numerical data didn’t tell the whole story in this game. There was no agility or strength stat like in SAO, and the gains to be made in HP and MP were slight at best. Raising weapon proficiency only unlocked more weapon types to use, and it had no effect on power. And biggest of all, SAO’s abundant sword skills were gone.

  In other words, ALfheim Online was an action-heavy game in which a player’s actual movement and decision-making made the difference, not stats. It would not be like SAO, in which a high-powered character could simply stand still while much weaker foes failed to put a dent into him.

  The one major unknown was the existence of magic, which was not a part of SAO. There was an “Illusory Magic” in my skill list—probably a starter skill for spriggans—but I wouldn’t know more about how it affected gameplay until I used it…or had it used against me.

  Window closed, I had another question for Yui, who was still snuggled against my chest with her eyes shut like a contented cat.

  “By the way, how are you handled in this world, Yui?”

  She was not actually a human being but an artificial intelligence that broke free of SAO when its mental counseling program bugged out.

  In the present day of 2025, several research laboratories had announced the development of their own A.I.s that were extremely close to human intelligence. The ability for programs to act in an intelligent manner had improved to the point that the line between false intelligence and true intelligence was blurring. Those A.I.s that straddled the boundary were some of the most advanced technological feats in existence.

  Yui could possibly be counted among them. She might be the very first true artificial intelligence. But none of that mattered to me. I loved Yui, and she adored me. That was enough.

  “Let’s see. Here in ALfheim Online, it seems they have humanlike programs designed for player support, just as in SAO. They’re called Navigation Pixies…and that’s how I’m categorized.”

  As she said this, her brow furrowed. A second later, her body glowed and disintegrated.

  “What the—?” I shouted in alarm. I was about to leap to my feet and look around when I finally noticed what was resting on my knees.

  She was no more than four inches in height. Tiny limbs extended out of a light magenta dress styled like flower petals. There were even two pairs of translucent wings on her back: the very image of a fairy. The size might have been different, but the adorable face and long black hair were unmistakably Yui’s.

  “This is what I look like as a pixie.”

  She stood up on my knees, hands on her waist, and flicked her wings back and forth.

  “Oooh…”

  Impressed, I jabbed her cheek with a finger.

  “Hey, that tickles!” She laughed, flitting up into the air with a jingling sound to escape the wrath of my finger, before perching on my shoulder.

  “So, do you still have admin privileges like before?”

  “No,” she said, slightly disappointed. “All I can access are reference data and general map information. I can also view the status of players I’ve contacted personally, but I can’t seem to get into the main database.”

  “I see. The thing is…” I composed myself to deliver the most important news. “Asuna, your mama…is here in this world.”

  “Huh…? Mama’s here?” She leaped off my shoulder and hovered just in front of my face. “What do you mean?”

  “…”

  I was about to explain about Sugou but stopped at the last moment. It was the weight of negative human emotions that originally brought Yui to the brink of ruin. I didn’t want to expose her to any more malice.

  “Even after the SAO server disintegrated, Asuna never came back to reality. I came here on some information that a person who looked like her was spotted in ALO. It could just be a coincidental stranger, but without anything better to go on…”

  “I had no idea…I’m sorry, Papa. If I had the authority, I could run a check through the player database and tell you right away, but I don’t.”

  “Actually, I have a good idea where to find her. It’s called the World Tree. Do you know where that is?”

  “Ah, yes. That would be to the northeast, but it’s quite far off. More than thirty miles by real distance.”

  “Wow, that’s really incredible, huh…Five times the diameter of the base floor of Aincrad…By the way, why did I get logged in to such a remote stretch of forest?” I wondered aloud, but Yui didn’t seem to have an answer.

  “Either your locational data was corrupted or your information got mixed with another player diving within your real-life vicinity. But I couldn’t say for sure.”

  “Would have been nice if I’d been teleported right next to the World Tree. Anyway, I was told you could fly in this game.” I got to my feet and craned my neck over my shoulder. “Hey, I’ve got wings!”

  Sprouting from my back were sharply angled, clear gray wings—they almost looked like insect wings. I had no idea how to use them, however.

  “So how do you fly?”

  “It seems there’s a controller for assistance. Put out your left hand and motion like you’re gripping something.”

  Following Yui’s instructions, I held out my hand and squeezed. Suddenly, I was holding what looked like a simple joystick.

  “Let’s see, if you pull it back, you fly up, and pushing it down makes you descend. Turn left or right for rotation, the button accelerates, and letting go decelerates.”

  “Sounds simple enough.”

  I tried slowly pulling back the stick. The wings on my back sprung to full extension and began glowing gently. I pulled hard.

  “Whoa!”

  Abruptly I was floating, gently rising from the forest floor. Once I was a few feet off the ground, my body went into neutral, and I tried pressing the spherical button on the top of the stick. I started gliding forward, smoothly and effortlessly.

  After a few experiments with descent and rotation, I started getting the hang of the controls. Compared to the flight-sim VR games I’d tried before, it was actually quite simple.

  “Okay, I think I’ve got it down. Next, I need some basic information. Which way’s the nearest town?”

  “There’s a place called Swilvane to the west. That’s the closest—Oh…”

  She looked up suddenly.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Players are approaching. It seems like a group of three chasing one…”

  “Ooh, a battle? Let’s go check it out.”

  “You never have a care in the world, do you, Papa?”

  I gave Yui’s head a quick knuckling, then turned to my inventory to ensure my starter longsword was equipped on my back. I pulled it out and gave a few practice swings.

  “Yikes, this thing is so cheap and flimsy. Oh well…”

  Once the sword was back in its scabbard, I produced the flight stick again.

  “Take the lead, Yui.”

  “Roger!”

  She alighted from my shoulder with a jingling of bells, and I started off on my
first flight in the game.

  The salamander’s gout of magic fire finally hit Leafa square in the back.

  “Urgh!!”

  There was no pain or heat to it, of course, but it felt as though a giant hand had caught her right in the back, and the shock wave toppled her balance. It didn’t do much damage, thanks to the protective wind spell she’d cast during her escape, but sylph territory was still a long way off.

  On top of that, Leafa’s speed was starting to slow. It was that damned flight limitation. In less than a minute, her wings would lose their power, and she wouldn’t be able to fly at all.

  “Hngh…”

  She gnashed her teeth and dropped into a steep dive for the trees. With the enemy’s mage, she wouldn’t be able to hide for long, but it wasn’t Leafa’s style to give up and get hit.

  She plunged through the canopy and made her way toward the surface, darting among the many layers of branches, her speed rapidly falling as she did. Eventually, she found a relatively clear space with plenty of thick grass. Leafa made a quick landing, the soles of her boots sliding on the ground to provide traction, and darted for cover around the back of a large tree ahead. Once out of sight, she put her hands in the air to cast a hiding spell.

  Just as in fantasy movies, magic in ALO required the chanting of spells out loud. The game system required them to be spoken at a certain volume with clear pronunciation. Any slip of the tongue would cause the spell to fail, and then the caster had to start all over again.

  Leafa successfully rattled off the memorized spell as quickly as she could, and a light green vapor issued from around her feet and upward, concealing her from the enemy.

  This would protect her for the moment, but a high-level Search skill or clairvoyance spell would quickly see through her disguise. She held her breath and stayed as still as possible.

  Within moments, she heard the approaching dull buzz of multiple salamanders. They landed in the clearing behind her. She could hear their measured shouts over the clanking of heavy armor.

  “She must be around here somewhere! Search!”

  “You know sylphs are good at hiding. We should use magic.”

  After that, she heard the dull chanting of a spell. She had to hold her tongue to avoid uttering a curse. Just a few seconds later, the rustling of grass being parted came closer and closer.

  The small shadows crawling over the massive tree’s roots toward her were lizards with red skin and eyes—actual salamanders. They represented the clairvoyance spell in effect. Several dozen searchers spread out in a circle formation from the caster. If they noticed any hidden players or monsters, they would leap out to make contact and burst into flames to alert the caster to the location.

  Go away! Try somewhere else! Leafa silently commanded the lizards. They crawled on their paths at random, but her prayer went unheeded. One touched the surface of the vapor concealing her and instantly unleashed a high-pitched cry before lighting into vivid flame.

  “There! She’s over there!”

  Sounds of clanking metal rapidly approached, and Leafa had no choice but to leave the shadow of the tree. She spun around, sword in hand, to see three salamanders facing her with lances at the ready.

  “You’re a pain in the ass, girl,” the man on the right said angrily, raising the visor on his helmet. The man in the center, who seemed to be their leader, continued.

  “Sorry, but duty calls. Leave your money and items, and we’ll let you go.”

  “Why? Let’s kill her! We haven’t had a girl sylph in ages!” the man on the left said this time, also sliding up his visor. The look he gave her was drunk with violence and power.

  Her year of experience had taught her that there were more than a few who made a sport of “women-hunting.” Leafa’s skin crawled with revulsion. Hurling sexist taunts and groping others outside of battle set off the game’s antiharassment protection, but killing was central to the game’s conceit. Some sick bastards even claimed that killing a female VRMMO player was the greatest pleasure to be found in the game.

  It was already bad enough in ALO, which was run with all the proper checks and balances. Leafa couldn’t even imagine what happened in that other legendary game without a chill running down her back.

  She felt her feet grip the ground and raised her beloved two-handed blade over her head, saving her most powerful glare for the salamanders.

  “I’ll take at least one of you down with me. Do your worst, if you’re not afraid of the death penalty,” she growled. The two men on the sides swung their lances, snarling with rage. The leader cut them short with a gesture.

  “Give it up. Your wings are at their limit, and we have plenty of stamina to spare.”

  He was right. Stuck on the ground against a flying enemy was the last place anyone wanted to be in ALO—especially one against three. But she wouldn’t give in. Especially not if the alternative was giving them money and begging to be set free.

  “You’ve got a strong will. Very well.”

  The leader shrugged, raised his lance, and beat his wings so that he hovered off the ground. The salamanders to either side followed his lead, controllers in hand.

  Leafa’s biceps clenched, preparing to deliver at least one deadly swing at full power, even if it meant she wound up pierced by a trio of spears. They spread out to surround her on three sides. But just as they were set to charge, the scene was interrupted.

  The shrub behind them rustled, and a black silhouette emerged. It slipped just past the salamanders, went into some kind of tailspin, and crashed into the grass with a tremendous clatter.

  This wholly unexpected diversion caught Leafa and the salamanders off guard. They all stared at the mystery interloper.

  “Ugh, oww…I’ve got the flying down; it’s the landing that’s the tricky part.”

  That carefree comment came from the lightly tanned man who pulled himself off the ground. He had lively spiked hair and large, slightly slanted eyes. The overall combination suggested a rambunctious kid. The clear gray wings on his back marked him as a spriggan.

  Leafa couldn’t believe her eyes—both that a spriggan would be here, so far from his territory in the distant east, and at the equipment he appeared to be wearing. He was dressed in a simple black doublet and trousers, no armor whatsoever. A flimsy-looking sword was his only weapon. It was clearly starter equipment. What was this newbie thinking, wandering out deep into neutral territory like this?

  She called out a warning, unable to stand seeing a clueless newcomer brutally hunted for sport. “What are you doing? Run!”

  But the boy in black didn’t budge. Did he not realize that PK-ing was legal among the different races? He shoved a hand into his pocket, surveyed the scene of Leafa and the three airborne salamanders, and said, “You need three heavily armed warriors to attack one girl? That’s kinda lame.”

  “What did you say?!” Two of the salamanders took offense to his lazy insult and flew over to flank him, front and back. They lowered their lances and prepared to charge.

  “Ugh…”

  Even if she wanted to help, Leafa was effectively pinned down by the leader, who was still watching her like a hawk.

  “You must be an idiot, barging directly into our business like this. Let’s start with you!”

  The salamander positioned in front of the boy loudly snapped down his visor. The next moment, his outstretched wings glowed ruby red, and he charged. The one in the rear prepared to charge on a slight delay, so he could catch the boy if he dodged the first attack.

  It was a helpless situation for any new player. Leafa bit her lip and averted her eyes, not wanting to see the boy run through…

  But something unbelievable happened.

  With his right hand still in his pocket, the boy extended his left hand and simply grabbed the deadly tip of the charging lance. The air was shattered by the light and sound of a successful guard effect. As Leafa watched, openmouthed with shock, the boy used the salamander’s momentum to hurl him backward
, lance and all.

  “Aaaah!”

  The salamander wailed in surprise as he collided directly with his waiting partner, and they fell to earth with a metallic clatter.

  The boy turned around to face them, put his hand on the sword behind his head—and stopped, looking to Leafa hesitantly.

  “Um…so am I allowed to waste these guys?”

  “I’d say so…That’s certainly what they’re trying to do to you,” she answered, still taken aback by the boy.

  “Ah, good point. In that case…”

  He pulled the weak-looking sword from its scabbard and let its tip trace along the ground. For all his talk about “wasting” their foes, neither his movement nor his manner suggested much confidence. His weight was balanced much too far forward, with his left foot perched in front, when—

  A sudden shock wave erupted where the boy used to be. Even Leafa couldn’t follow his path, and she’d never once been caught blind by an attack in the game. She spun around hurriedly to see the boy crouched over, far from where he’d been standing. His pose suggested he’d brought up his sword to slash directly in front of him.

  The salamander who was closer to standing after their collision suddenly erupted into red End Flames, then disintegrated. A small wisp of flame was left floating in the air.

  How can anyone be so fast? Leafa wondered, terrified. Her body was trembling with the shock of witnessing a move she’d never experienced before.

  Only one thing defined a character’s movement speed in this world: the speed of the brain when processing the signals sent by the full-dive system. The AmuSphere sent out a pulse; the brain received it, processed it, and then sent feedback in the form of a movement signal. The quicker that response system, the faster a character could move. It was said that only through considerable experience could one eventually move faster than his or her natural reaction speed.

  Though she didn’t like to toot her own horn, Leafa was one of the very fastest among the sylphs. She’d honed her reflexes over many years, and twelve months of experience in ALO had taught her that no one could get the jump on her in a one-on-one fight. But this shattered that preconception.