The Prince of Aincrad - Beginnings

Chapter 19: Spirit of Elucidator

Kazuto was ridiculously tired. His joints ached constantly and his head spun, even with his eyes closed. He barely realized where they were headed as they traveled, only relishing the times they took a break. It was like all of the energy he had slowly drained out of him. Of course, he experienced this many times before, but he resented the nausea and the headaches that came with it.

At one point, he knew the group stopped, something about visiting a town if he heard correctly.

He couldn't really comprehend what happened until he rested himself against a tree. Someone wrapped him up in a blanket some time ago, and Kazuto half dozed away with his father's sword in his hand. He closed his eyes for a moment. It felt amazing to just finally take the time to actually breathe. The weight of Elucidator felt comforting, almost as if it was his own mother. The pain in his body didn't fade, but it eased to a dull ache.

"What the - I didn't call anyon-... This has to be some sort of joke," came a voice in his head, "...Oh - shi-uhhh, sheets. Good loving Etra, it's not."

Kazuto twitched in confusion and gradually blinked himself away. The sight that greeted him left him stunned. He was no longer in the forest. Instead, he found himself sitting upright in the middle of a large stained glass room. The loud ticking of a clock caught his attention and he stared at a familiar reversed clock face. He had definitely seen it before.

No.

He had seen it a million times.

Memories (or dreams?) of a falling Faerie flashed through his mind, sending a shiver down his back. In that moment, Kazuto immediately knew something was just...not... right.

"This is... that Clock Tower...?" Kazuto muttered in disbelief. There was a tap of metal against stone behind him.

"In all its gloomy glory," came an answer, "I half expected you not to recognize it."

Suddenly alert, Kazuto leapt to his feet and spun on his heel, easily falling into a fighting stance. He froze at the sight before him with his hand midway to the non-existant sword on his back.

There, standing before him, was a solemn young man holding Elucidator in his hand casually. He wore nothing but black accented with white. Though he stood with certainty and a hand firmly planted on his hip, his dark, stormy gray eyes held a heavy weight of anxiety and conflict. Despite his weary expression, he smiled at Kazuto with a half-hearted wave of his free hand, "Yo. Are you my..." he cut himself off, then started again, "...Are you, by any chance, Kazune's son?"

He was obviously a few years older than Kazuto, but it was down right freaky that this man could possibly pass as his older brother.

A million questions flew through his head, but his jaw just dropped. The young man breathed a raspy, kind of cracky laugh, almost as if he was amused. "Oi - Now really isn't the time for you to be staring at me."

"What...?" That was all Kazuto could manage as he struggled to get over his shock. He really could've sworn that he was sleeping under a tree somewhere. Maybe he was dreaming?

"Are you Kazune's son, Kazuto?" the man asked again as he tilted his head a little bit. His eyes looked pained, almost begging him to say no. Yet, Kazuto mutely nodded his head and kept his mouth shut. The man lifted Elucidator to rest the blade on his shoulder. The short laugh he gave was obviously strained, "Damn, never before had someone in this family reached out to me on their own. And yet, here you are, right in front of me and sick as a dog apparently. Saves me the work, I suppose."

Kazuto finally swallowed his shock and leveled the man with a firm look, "Who are you?"

Stormy gray eyes blinked a few times before the man gave his answer with a casual shrug, "I'm Kirito."