Accel World - FanFiction Discussion

[Orange Duke]

Yes, but Haru's problem is his low self-esteem, which was made worse by his pairing with someone who is way above average. It is how Brain Burst has helped Haru counter this scar that is what the novel volumes have been about. There is no way one can believably make a template protagonist have self-esteem issues that are of Haru's magnitude.

[judasmartel]

So the emotional scars of someone like Shu Ouma aren't believable enough for AW's theme?

[Orange Duke]

Yea. I think Kawahara would at least have enough respect for his reader's intelligence to not try and fool them (force-feed might be a better word here. I'm sure you've heard how "believable" as a character the denizens of AnimeSuki find Shu.) into believing it is totally possible for a template protagonist to have self-esteem issues of Haru's magnitude.

[judasmartel]

Hmm... I see...

I guess it seems that a lot of people simply can't read past Haru's figure because 1) they aren't fat in real life; 2) they have never been bullied in real life; and 3) even if they are both, they haven't seen people who look exactly like Haru in real life.

I think one of humanity's greatest flaws is its failure to look at each other beyond their outside appearance. A lot of people are stuck judging people based on outside appearance, because that's the only thing that can be seen directly by the naked eye.

I can see people RAGING when they see a gorgeous girl like KYH falls for a fat guy like Haru, but what they don't know is that KYH possesses one ability they don't have: the ability to look at a person beyond his outside appearance, the power to see through a person's heart and soul, the power to determine a person's true character regardless of outside appearance.

Because really, it's easier to believe that Beauty Is Goodness than Goodness Is Beauty.

[Orange Duke]

From what I've seen it's more about how different Haru is from what we've come to expect from the protagonist of a story written by a Japanese author. While the template protagonist is the tried and true way to properly make money, Kawahara has taken a gamble and made Haru a fat, bullied loser. Clearly his gamble has paid off, since AW is numbered at 12 volumes, with more to come, along with an anime with a possible 2nd season.

Some people just like the status quo, that's all.

Also, people tend to dislike things that remind them of a past memory they wish to forget, usually because there were things they wish they did differently. Seeing Haru's reactions to his torment does make them wish he would just man up so he could avoid the things that they went through, so ironically it isn't a case of not being able to identify with him but rather, identifying too much with him.

[judasmartel]

Originally Posted by Orange Duke

From what I've seen it's more about how different Haru is from what we've come to expect from the protagonist of a story written by a Japanese author. While the template protagonist is the tried and true way to properly make money, Kawahara has taken a gamble and made Haru a fat, bullied loser. Clearly his gamble has paid off, since AW is numbered at 12 volumes, with more to come, along with an anime with a possible 2nd season.

Some people just like the status quo, that's all.

But at the cost of Haru being hated so much in the West, which is stereotypically obsessed with MANLINESS. And apparently, Haru isn't so manly by Western standards.

I would like to iterate what I have posted from a different forum:

"I really hate it when people say this MC is cliched, and yet they expect him to follow the same cookie-cutter design that has dominated anime for DECADES."

Also, people tend to dislike things that remind them of a past memory they wish to forget, usually because there were things they wish they did differently. Seeing Haru's reactions to his torment does make them wish he would just man up so he could avoid the things that they went through, so ironically it isn't a case of not being able to identify with him but rather, identifying too much with him.

So they hate Haru because he reminds them of their own failures? Well, I don't mind being identified with a character with the exact same failures as I have, because it allows me to reflect even more on them.

[Orange Duke]

I think we should move the discussion to Haru's character discussion thread or we'll drive the Fanfiction thread off course.

See, the point is Kawahara ISN'T writing for a western demographic. Western people aren't the one who are buying most of his novels. Western people aren't the one who are buying most of the Blu-ray anime volumes, so why cater to them, especially when it's such a narrow viewpoint?

Watching Haru to them is sort of like watching their past being played back with them having no control of the events and can only cringe as Haru makes one mistake after another.

[MeisterBabylon]

Originally Posted by judasmartel

So I guess if Kawahara-sensei wrote it so that the story will be all about defeating the Six Kings instead of delving into the MC's progress as a player and as a person, it would be accepted much more easily? But then, the story would end much faster and people would keep asking for more!

In other words, a clone of SAO.

I'm glad AW came out as it is. Its painful to watch as yes I find myself reflected in Haru. Which is why I hate his guts completely, as much as I hate myself sometimes. Which makes me realize what a geniusly designed character Haru is. And that leads me to a bittersweet admiration for the same character.

Yes, I'm tsundere for Haru. Ugh. XD

Time's completely sucked out from me, haven't been doing that promised Gold Cub update since ever. Sigh.

[judasmartel]

Yeah, that's right, a clone of SAO. Some people preach that Kirito is the savior of anime and therefore should be the template of all succeeding anime MC's, but others think he's so perfect it's boring. I've never seen a character so polarizing, and it shows how the West craves for MANLY anime, which quite frankly, is quite the rarity nowadays.

[Sunder the Gold]

I rather like Haruyuki. I think he's a decent guy and a great character.

Those are very different things. A character can be awesome as a character in a story (by fulfilling the role they're meant to play in an interesting and plausible fashion) while still being an utter bastard.

Noumi, for instance, is both a good character and a rotten person.

[MeisterBabylon]

Speaking of SAO clones, I think you can guess the inspirations behind the characters of the Dark Epoch arc. This arc takes place a few months before Haru is inducted:

Gold Cub - Described as "a lion that is not tame", Gold Cub is a solo Avatar with an incredible power that he does his best to keep secret. He once was part of a PVE legion, but a set-up saw most of the senior officers permakilled and him expunged. Only Cub knew of the truth of what happened back then, and remains mute. While he claims to have only started AW recently, it is suspected that he has been around for much longer. In fact, having been logged in almost 24-7 since launch, Cub has logged almost 7000 years of gameplay. And yet he chooses to remain at Level 8, neither increasing nor decreasing his point pool. He wears a long jacket over his gold body, and prefers to start a fight dual-wielding a pair of mundane blades -- these 3 items give a set bonus, and are incredibly rare drops of UNF bosses.

Ultramarine Bolt - A self-styled Avatar of the Blue Legion whose fear is losing her ability to choose her destiny, a fear very much grounded in her reality of life. She's a newbie at the time when she runs into Gold Cub, but later joins the Blue Legion and rapidly rises in rank to become a Captain of her own company by the time she and Gold Cub cross paths again. Bolt can appear brazen and commanding, but she too has an adorable side. Like Cub, Bolt also indulges in some Accel World PVE, in the form of professions. She is the only max-level Cook left in the dead world.

Crimson Hatchet - A close friend of Ultramarine Bolt but does not belong to a legion. Instead, like the Bartender in Hokkaido (I need to look this up, the one where KYH went far away and ran into Crimson Kingbolt), Hatchet takes up shop in a corner of the UNF and spends her time when farming mats, smithing Enhanced Gear then selling them for Burst Points. She encounters Gold Cub who comes in asking to repair an exotic Enhanced Gear, goes on an adventure and ends up falling for him... only to find that Bolt and Cub already know one another. Now, she hires help from her friends to go kill rare bosses, bring her the mats so that she can make even more powerful gear.

Sunset Sand - A ranged specialist who has a pet newt. She has only appeared once so far.

Black Cat - A close-combat newbie who Gold Cub got to know a little of during the Dark Epoch arc. She lost all her points in a botched boss fight, leaving Gold alone in the Accelerated World once more. But not before leaving behind a few wise words...




*RUUUUUUUUUUNS*

[Sunder the Gold]

Here's a challenge: Try to come up with names, personalities and abilities for those three female Burst Linkers who keep appearing as spectators.

The Pink Catgirl, the Green Snailgirl, the Yellow Rabbitgirl (?).

I mean, they're already there, so why not use them for fanfics?

For giggles, I'm going to say that the reddish Catgirl throws ball-type cat toys at her opponents. Bouncy balls with jiggly bits inside, or balls of string/yarn. Except whatever these look like, they're actually grenades.

The yellowish girl with the doll... I'm going to say that the doll is an Enhanced Armament. A puppet that can move according to her will, spy on enemies remotely, and even assume her appearance to serve as a decoy.

The greenish Snail-girl will be slow, but probably stronger than she looks, and durable. She probably has defensive powers, and perhaps has a hose-gun that sprays the battlefield with a slippery or adhesive fluid, impairing her opponent's ability to move around.

[Sunder the Gold]

For some next-to-original character names, here are some that appeared on the Tag-Team matching list when Aqua Current teamed up with Haru:

Bush Utan (lvl3) and Olive Grab (lv4)

(Canary Murder??? hard to make out) (lv4) and Magenta Kitty (lv2)

Violet Slicer (lv1) and Jade Net (lv3)

Platinum Ribbon (lv2) and Blood Love (lv3)

Meadow Hermitcrab (lv4) and Mudder Ball (lv4)


I'm guessing that Magenta Kitty is the catgirl avatar often seen in the audience (since magenta is a shade of pink), which would make the smaller, yellowish one with the doll "Canary Murder", or whatever that name was.

Based on a picture of names taken from the light novels, Bush Utan and Olive Grab are members of Great Wall (Green Legion) who will appear later on.

[MeisterBabylon]

Violet Slicer sounds like a Red-Blue ranged-melee hybrid.

[Sunder the Gold]

As to that, it's my theory that Purples and Greens tend to have stronger and/or faster bodies than Reds, Oranges and Yellows, with Blues having the best potential for strength and speed. Red relies on distance rather than physical prowess, and Yellow relies on tactical trickery. Blue has neither advantage, and so needs to make up for it with straight-forward power.


I also figured out that... Well, you know those two guys that Cyan Pile and Silver Crow fought just before Crow leveled up? And who also showed up later, in the Episode 8 territory battle?

The first was Powder Bear, whose name seems to be a slight pun on his powder blue color. Possibly also on how close-sound "powder" and "pounder" are, given his piston fists.

The second, as far as I can glean from Episode 10, is called Amber Penguin. Nevermind the only resemblence he bears to a penguin is the beak.

There was a female avatar in the first territory battle; a purplish-red avatar with two throwing axes connected to her body by chains. I doubt she was Blood Love, since she's not Blood Leopard's color, and she's not Violet either.

But among the Burst Linkers we see fighting the enemy, one of them looks like a sure bet for "Platinum Ribbon", given her metallic white ribbon weapon.

[Orange Duke]

Fanfiction thread, revive!
______________________

Chapter 1: Premonition

Haruyuki blinked.

Or at least he tried to, before realising his eyelids were gone. Still groggy, it took him another two seconds to fully process what was actually going on. He had been challenged to a duel in the middle of class, halfway through a nap.

Instinctively, he looked at the challenger's name.

"Orange... Duke..."

Silver Crow had always wondered why there was no Orange King, even though it was as much of a pure colour as green and purple. He had asked Kuroyukihime once, but even she had no clue, suggesting that perhaps it was simply because there was no orange avatar.

This would be an interesting fight.

Crow looked around for his challenger. It was the 'Thunder and Lightning' stage, thus visibility was limited to the occasional flashes of lightning, which would illuminate the entire field for a few moments before everything was plunged into darkness again. It was also one of the few stages that ignored most of the buildings in the surrounding area, instead replacing certain landmarks with fairly weak rock formations.

It took him a while, but Crow finally managed to spot his opponent. He had been standing atop a rock formation that was supposed to represent the fountain in the school garden, unmoving. A sudden lightning flash outlined his silhouette. He was of average size, not unlike Crow himself. He carried no weapon of any sort, simply standing there with his arms crossed. An aura of power not unlike what Crow felt from the Kings during the second Kings' Summit emanated from him.

Though it was difficult to make out which direction he was facing, it seemed as though his challenger had yet to spot him. Pressing the advantage, Crow ran towards Duke, hoping to use the element of surprise and knock the rock formation out from underneath him, allowing Crow to fill his gauge and observe his opponent from the sky.

"First mistake."

Hearing his opponent speak took Crow by surprise, having gotten used to the silence except for the occasional booming thunder in the background. The voice was slightly deep, yet still had the youthful ring of a child to it. Duke couldn't be older than 14.

When the next lightning flash came, Crow realised his opponent was gone.

Darn it, now he had to find him again.

Crow moved around, trying to stay as silent as he could, hoping the thunder would mask his footsteps.

"Second mistake."

Crow had barely heard the final syllable, before he fell headfirst into a pit. Surprised, Crow landed badly, impacting the bottom face-first and sustaining moderate damage. Cursing himself for the mistake, Crow scrambled to his feet and faced the heavens.

The silver lining to the fall was that the damage filled his special meter enough that he could activate his wings. Doing so, he shot up into the sky as fast as possible, fearing that every moment spent in the hole gave his opponent a chance to strike. Trapped in such a tight space, Crow wouldn't have the room to dodge.

Crow was disappointed. This wasn't a duel. It was a game of hide and seek.

Of course, there was also the issue of how this avatar had managed to challenge him through the school network.

Crow decided it would be easier to search from a higher altitude. Using what was left of his flight time, he flew around in the darkness, covering a greater area than he could have on foot thanks to his flight speed upgrades.

No luck.

Crow was starting to get slightly impatient. Where could his opponent be?

A third lightning flash revealed that Duke had returned to his spot atop the rock formation, again unmoving like a statue.

Realising that his flight time was running out soon, Crow moved into a dive bomb, counting on the fact that gravity would help to propel him right into his enemy.

"I do not allow my opponents to live pass their third mistake."

Crow was shot apart as projectiles tore through him from behind, leaving only his torso, held aloft by his wings. The pain threatened to overload his senses, but Crow had something to find out.

"Who are you?"

The words had barely left his mouth when a lightning strike hit him, causing him to fall towards the ground.

Crow was knocked unconscious by the fall, and thanks to his avatar's vulnerabilities, only had a mere fraction of health left. When he came to, he heard footsteps slowly approaching. As his opponent squat down, Crow came face to face with Duke for the first time. Etched upon his face was a permanent, fanged half-smile, though it was not the least bit sinister. Instead, it had a strange, inviting feel to it.

Yet the words that Duke spoke made Crow's blood ran cold.

"I am the future Orange King, and I am here to erase the Black King and take his legion."

He didn't had any time to react before his opponent snapped his neck.
______________________

Comments and questions are very much appreciated, as I am looking to improve my writing.

[Sunder the Gold]

Originally Posted by Orange Duke

He had been challenged to a duel in the middle of class

Which means Haruyuki's on his school campus, cut off from the global network; only someone logged into the school's network could challenge him.

Further, his school is in the Suginami territory that the Black Legion controls. Members of a Legion cannot be challenged by outsiders while they remain in their territory. That's the whole point of territory.

Before wondering about colors, Haruyuki should be scrambling to understand how this challenge was even possible.

Is the Orange Duke a transfer student, a new student like Noumi, or somehow able to hack into the school network?

perhaps it was simply because there was no orange avatar.

No purely orange avatar, perhaps. However, we've seen Rust Jigsaw and Amber Penguin, both of whom are orange in color and tactics.

Besides, while it is remarkable that all of the original Seven Kings of Pure Color were purely colored, there's so far no evidence that such an occurrence was more than unlikely coincidence. There might be no reason for it save that the author felt it was cooler that way.

Niko's avatar isn't named "Red Rain", and yet she was able to officially assume the mantle of Prominence's Legion Master and become the next Red King.

Likewise, Legion membership isn't limited by color either, since the Black Legion has always had non-Black members. With that in mind, it's possible that Silver Crow or Lime Bell could become the new "Black King" if they ever succeeded Lotus as Legion Master of Nega Nebulous.

It was the Thunder and Lightning stage

I suggest capitalizing "And", since the whole phrase is a single name. Maybe bracket the name with apostrophes: the 'Thunder And Lightning' Stage.

illuminate the entire field for a few seconds before everything else was plunged into darkness again.

"Else" is incorrect, since nothing about the stage is left illuminated. It's "everything", without exception.

It took him a while, but Crow finally managed to spot his opponent. He had been standing a top a rock formation that was supposed to represent the fountain in the school garden, unmoving.

"Atop" is a single world.

I also prefer this kind of structure for that sentence: "Atop a rock formation based on the school garden's fountain, the challenger stood unmoving."

It seems his opponent had yet to spot him.

Why? Was Duke facing a different direction? That would be an important detail, but without saying so, I concluded that Duke was facing Crow directly. In which case, there was no way Haruyuki would assume Crow's bright silver body had gone unseen after a lightning flash.

Pressing the advantage, Silver Crow ran towards the rock formation, hoping to use the element of surprise and knock down the rock formation from underneath his opponent, thereby trapping him.

"knock the rock formation out from underneath".

Also, that's a terrible tactic. Crow's Silver body is weak against blunt impact, which is exactly what tackling a rock formation would be. Even just punching or kicking the rock would damage Crow, unless the stage has the condition of "easily destroyed".

Further, such an indirect, self-damaging attack would not garauntee an advantage. The opponent is standing on top of the rock, not below it, so why would it be likely to trap him? Why assume that he can't jump to safety, especially with a body that seems no bigger or heavier than Crow's?

Haruyuki knew how to beat Ash Rider's motorcycle; he knows physics better than this.

Crow moved around, trying to stay as silent as he could, hoping the thunder would mask his footsteps.

When did he stop running? You never said.

Crow had barely heard the final syllable, before he fell headfirst into a pit. Luckily for him, he simply flew out thanks to the damage he had sustained.

That is FAR too little attention given to both the fall and the activation of the wings.

"...fell headfirst into a pit.

"Surprised, Crow landed badly, impacting the bottom face-first and sustaining moderate damage. Cursing himself for the mistake, Crow scrambled to his feet and faced the heavens.

"The silver lining to the fall was that the damage filled his special meter enough that he could activate his wings. Doing so, he shot up into the sky as fast as possible, fearing that every moment spent in the hole gave his opponent a chance to strike. Trapped in such a tight space, Crow wouldn't have the room to dodge."

Crow was disappointed.

Haruyuki is not so confident that he would be merely disappointed that his opponent is capable of noticing sneak attacks, capable of disappearing immediately, capable of remaning hidden, capable of laying traps, and capable of scoring first blood without any sign of effort.

Oh, and all of that on top of challenging him when no challenge should have been possible. And possibly being Level 7+.

At this point, Haruyuki should be panicking. No, he would have been panicking from the start.

Of course, there was also the issue of how this avatar had managed to challenge him through the school network.

Oh, so you do know about this fact.

As I explained, it REALLY needs to be the first thing that occurs to Haruyuki.

Barely had the words left his mouth did a lightning strike hit him, causing him to fall towards the ground.

Crow was knocked unconscious by the fall, but thanks to his avatar's resistance

What resistance? Silver is weak against both electricity and blunt impacts.

Perhaps you meant to write: "Crow was knocked unconscious, and thanks to his avatar's vulnerabilities, he only had a mere fraction of health left."

Though if he was already missing all limbs but his wings, a lightning strike should have finished him off. Well, even if he wasn't; lightning is strong enough to kill a man in one blow, and that's before taking Silver's vulnerability into account.

And yet, the words that came out from Duke made Crow's blood ran cold.

"I am the future Orange King, and I am here to erase the Black King and take his legion."

It's common knowledge that Black Lotus (or at least her avatar) is female.


EDIT:
Okay, looks like I seriously misremembered something. The dueling Heads Up Display DOESN'T reveal the Level of one's opponent. That seems odd, but whatever.

Maybe you can open up a menu screen to look at your opponent's public stats, but that's a risky thing to do in the middle of a fight.

[Orange Duke]

Yay! Feedback! Thank you so much!

his school is in the Suginami territory that the Black Legion controls. Members of a Legion cannot be challenged by outsiders while they remain in their territory. That's the whole point of territory.

Correct, but that is explained in the setting which the story takes place. I did not elaborate much on this setting as I was planning to reveal it at a certain point in the future. However, if you would like, I can PM it to you.

No purely orange avatar, perhaps. However, we've seen Rust Jigsaw and Amber Penguin, both of whom are orange in color and tactics.

Aye. By no orange avatar I meant no pure orange avatar.

Besides, while it is remarkable that all of the original Seven Kings of Pure Color were purely colored, there's so far no evidence that such an occurrence was more than unlikely coincidence. There might be no reason for it save that the author felt it was cooler that way.

Mmm, well, drawing from my previous experience in helping to run an Accel World RP, I had noticed that for avatars, the more heavily invested in a certain aspect an avatar was, the easier it was for them to win fights, due to the fact that certain attack types only had a certain number of weaknesses, certain number of strengths and for everything else, they are evenly matched. While you would lose horribly if you were paired against one of your weaknesses, when you were paired up against an attack type that has no advantage nor disadvantage against you, the avatar who is more heavily invested in a certain aspect would come up top compared to one who is more evenly distributed, as his individual stats are too low to overcome the avatar who is heavily invested in a certain aspect. As the Kings of Pure Colour are as invested in their respective attack types as can be, they had better chances of winning duels than everybody else. Thus it would be logical for them to ascend the most easily.

This is why even though Brain Burst is said to be a balanced game, aspects of imbalance are still frequently seen.

Niko's avatar isn't named "Red Rain", and yet she was able to officially assume the mantle of Prominence's Legion Master and become the next Red King.

Yes. When Red Rider died, everybody in Prominence were fighting each other in a bid to ascend to level 9 and take the title of Legion Master and Red King. Scarlet Rain is well-equipped for attacking multiple targets in a specific area, so she managed to ascend quickly by blowing up everybody.

Likewise, Legion membership isn't limited by color either, since the Black Legion has always had non-Black members. With that in mind, it's possible that Silver Crow or Lime Bell could become the new "Black King" if they ever succeeded Lotus as Legion Master of Nega Nebulous.

Yes, but a legion would have to be headed by a Orange avatar as its first master in order for it to be the Orange Legion. In this case, there is no mantle to take because one doesn't exist in the first place.

I suggest capitalizing "And", since the whole phrase is a single name. Maybe bracket the name with apostrophes: the 'Thunder And Lightning' Stage.

Not a hundred percent sure on this as most company names do not capitalise their "and" either.

"Else" is incorrect, since nothing about the stage is left illuminated. It's "everything", without exception.

"Atop" is a single world.

"knock the rock formation out from underneath".

Slap me for not double checking everything before hitting submit.

Why? Was Duke facing a different direction? That would be an important detail, but without saying so, I concluded that Duke was facing Crow directly. In which case, there was no way Haruyuki would assume Crow's bright silver body had gone unseen after a lightning flash.

Crow had assumed his opponent hadn't seen him because he was not taking any action. Most people won't stand there like a statue if they see their opponent coming towards them. Also, even with the lightning, most of the avatar would be shrouded by shadows cast from his own body, thus it would be difficult to make out which direction he had been facing. Of course, we now know that he had been watching Crow because he knew what he was doing.

Also, that's a terrible tactic. Crow's Silver body is weak against blunt impact, which is exactly what tackling a rock formation would be. Even just punching or kicking the rock would damage Crow, unless the stage has the condition of "easily destroyed".

That was his plan. Being able to move faster in air, Crow would manage to accumulate a substantial amount of flight time from this and he would be able to better observe his opponent from the air.

Further, such an indirect, self-damaging attack would not garauntee an advantage. The opponent is standing on top of the rock, not below it, so why would it be likely to trap him? Why assume that he can't jump to safety, especially with a body that seems no bigger or heavier than Crow's?

I suppose trap would be incorrect. More like surprise the hell out of him when his little pedestal suddenly falls from under him.

I did not mention how high the formation was, so let's assume it would be too high to jump off safely.

When did he stop running? You never said.

He didn't. He was moving when he fell.

Haruyuki is not so confident that he would be merely disappointed that his opponent is capable of noticing sneak attacks, capable of disappearing immediately, capable of remaning hidden, capable of laying traps, and capable of scoring first blood without any sign of effort.

I think of Haru as a gamer first and foremost. Haru does like duelling, and especially since this was against a never before seen avatar, it is reasonable he did not notice this during the duel in his excitement. For now, the duel seems like this: Finds Duke -> Loses Duke -> Falls into pit. Kinda boring, isn't it, compared to other duels which had much more action going on.

As I explained, it REALLY needs to be the first thing that occurs to Haruyuki.

I did this to emphasis Haru putting the basic aspect of Brain Burst , a 1v1 fighting game, first, before its politics

What resistance? Silver is weak against both electricity and blunt impacts.

Aye. I have been away from this universe for too long. It seems I have forgotten certain facts.

Though if he was already missing all limbs but his wings, a lightning strike should have finished him off. Well, even if he wasn't; lightning is strong enough to kill a man in one blow, and that's before taking Silver's vulnerability into account.

Yes, that's why I had originally mentioned his resistance. It would be what had saved him from dying. However, we can simply assume that this was somewhat like his duel with Cyan Pile, where he didn't die even after being smashed through multiple floors, shot at by missiles and had his arm blown straight off.

It's common knowledge that Black Lotus (or at least her avatar) is female.

Yes. Once again, it has something to do with the setting.

[Orange Duke]

Chapter 2: Information

BWAH!"

Haruyuki jerked involuntarily from the pain, causing his chair to fall backwards.

To the others present in the class, it had seemed as though Haruyuki had just snapped out of a horrible nightmare, causing everybody in the room to break into bouts of hysterical laughter.

As Haruyuki picked himself off the floor while rubbing his neck to ease the pain that was still there from his duel against Duke, he caught his teacher's eye.

"Arita-kun, see me after class."

Haruyuki sighed.

"Yes, sensei. I'm sorry."

It was going to be a long day.
__________________________

"What was so urgent that you needed everybody to gather, Haruyuki-kun?"

It was Kuroyukihime who spoke first, as usual.

After Haruyuki's encounter with his mysterious challenger, he sent an email to Chiyuri, Takumu and Kuroyukihime, asking to meet urgently. The last thing they needed was another anonymous avatar running around the school network wrecking havoc, especially since they still had to think of ways to return the Suginami territory back into Nega Nebulous' control.

"This morning, I was challenged by a mysterious avatar, Orange Duke," he started.

"We know. We were watching from afar," replied Takumu, who was referring to the spectator system.

"I would have asked to meet if you hadn't. Yesterday, halfway through kendo practice, I was also challenged by that same avatar."

"No way! I was challenged yesterday too! Though it happened outside of school so I thought nothing of it."

"That would mean that all three of us were challenged on separate occasions by the same avatar. That means he has to either be a student here or is using a backdoor program in order to be able to challenge us on the school network. Master, have you been challenged yet?"

Everybody's eyes fell to the Legion Master of Nega Nebulous, controller of the avatar Black Lotus, Kuroyukihime.

"No, I..."

Kuroyukihime didn't manage to finish her sentence. As the four of them accelerated, Kuroyukihime's form changed into Black Lotus while the other three turned into their spectator avatars.
__________________________

"He's strong."

"A draw. This avatar must be on par with the kings... But even Kuroyukihime-senpai hasn't heard of him..."

"Also, it seems he can reject challenges."

"But that would mean..."

"That he's a member of the Acceleration Research Group," Takumu finished, confirming everybody's fears.

Haruyuki slumped in his chair. It would be much more difficult to take back the Suginami territory if the ARG had such a powerful ally on their side.

"Anyway, the first thing we should do now is to share everything we know about Duke. This way, we'll have a better chance of defeating him."

Everybody was staring at Chiyuri now.

"What?"

"We didn't expect such a good idea to come from you."

That remark earned Haruyuki a hard kick in the shin. It took all his willpower to stop himself from screaming in pain. Chiyuri could kick harder than a kangaroo.

"I'll start. He has some sort of skill to conceal certain elements in the field. He made me walk right into a wall in the Purgatory stage, before dropping me three floors with a well placed hole. That is all I know as I died soon after."

"My turn! He has these strange machines that he places all over the map. Some shoot projectiles, others self-destruct when something comes near and another type sprays smoke everywhere. I managed to deconstruct most of them with Citron Call but I had too little health left to survive a salvo from the last few."

"I had some time in the opening seconds of the match to check his level. He's level 8."

"That would explain why all three of us lost so easily and even Kuroyukihime-senpai only managed a draw."

"As you saw, he used the skills both of you mentioned, but judging by his level he probably has more tricks up his sleeve. He also seemed very interested in my avatar colour."

"Oh right! I had clean forgotten!"

"Senpai... About that...In our fight he revealed his goal. He wants to erase you and take Nega Nebulous as his own."

Kuroyukihime gave Haruyuki a quizzical look.

"But that's impossible. You can only become Legion Master of an existing legion if you are a member of that legion. Now that we know of his intentions, it is impossible for him to gain membership. He is definitely smart enough that he wouldn't destroy his own plans. No... it must be something else...but what?"

At this moment, the bell rang, signalling the end of lunch.

Kuroyukihime sighed.

"We'll discuss this again after school. For now, keep an eye out for anything suspicious."

[Sunder the Gold]

Still haven't finished my response to the last post.

Originally Posted by Orange Duke

"Yesterday, halfway through kendo practice, I was also challenged by that same avatar."

"No way! I was challenged yesterday too! Though it happened outside of school."

Why would Takumu and Chiyuri fail to warn their legion that someone was able to challenge them in school or in their own controlled territory?

My friend, that's just ridiculously out-of-character.


Wait, what is this about losing the Suginami territory? When did THAT happen?

But even that doesn't excuse Taku, since territory and school are different, and someone who doesn't appear on the matching list is an even bigger concern than an enemy who physically attends the school.

"No, I..."

Kuroyukihime didn't manage to finish her sentence. As the four of them accelerated, Kuroyukihime's form changed into Black Lotus while the other three turned into their spectator avatars.

Sincerely, this is nice dramatic timing.

It's somewhat ruined by the fact that you skip completely over a fight in which Black Lotus could only manage a draw.

I understand that trying to depict a fight between two Level 9 avatars is daunting, since we don't know all of what Lotus or Level 8 characters can do, but at least some effort should be made.

I managed to deconstruct most of them with Citron Call but I had too little health left to survive a salvo from the last few."

Now there's an interesting use for her ability I hadn't considered. It would be cheaper to just bash them to pieces, but since Citron Call is a ranged "attack", she can use it when unable to reach the target.

I wonder if she could return Scarlet Rain's armor to storage?