SAO Quest (SAO inspired RPG Quest) [Dead]

Victories and Fears: (8/11/22, 12:01)

You're unfocused, shocked, and emotionally exhausted. This is not the time to be coming up with on-the-fly, life-or-death plans.

You do it anyway.

You need someway to deal with the boss' new aggression and wind attacks. You think for a moment, and quickly hit on an idea.

If the two of you split up, that will make it a lot easier to move from platform to platform quickly. Humans have a hardwired ability to compensate for their own movements—others... not so much.

You nod to yourself; that's good, but what about offense. You ponder this for a bit, before recalling a basic principle of planning: "When in doubt, stick with what works." You and Cascade have both severely damaged the «Schultang of Despair»; why change a good thing?

Your lips turn upwards as you follow this train of thought to its conclusion. If the two of you stick relatively close together—within two to three platforms—then you can both exploit any attack opportunities. If the «Schultang of Despair» goes after Cascade, she can distract it while you get ready for a dropstab.

You're getting kind of excited now. Similarly, if you get attacked, then you can use a «Sword Art» to rob the boss of its momentum while Cascade gets in place for another flurry of attacks. You're outright smiling now; you feel like you have a plan to take on this monster, to win and be done with this—

—you reign yourself in. Part of your mind notes that you must still be in shock; you can't think of any other reason you'd be experiencing this kind of manic state. Your lips firm, and with an even greater force of will you compose yourself. You can break down afterwards, when there aren't lives on the line.

You turn to Cascade. You open your mouth to speak, but for a moment nothing comes out. Then you force past it and begin to talk. Your voice is a little shaky, but it soon firms up. You snort to yourself inwardly; "fake it 'till you make it" indeed.

"...I—we—should split up." Cascade quirks an eyebrow, and you hurry to explain. "It'll make us more maneuverable, better able to dodge the wind attacks and dive bombs." Her face changes, adopting a more pondering countenance. You hurry to add: "It'll also allow two pronged attacks—for example, one of us distracts the boss while the other attacks from above."

"Got it." she says—and for a bare moment you think you hear a slight quaver in her voice. Your lips quirk up involuntarily at that; at least you aren't the only one scared out of your mind by this.

"Saaaah. Let's go then," you say before putting actions to words. Your legs pump, and you launch yourself across the gap between this platform and the next. The boss circles above you; you spend a moment... not worrying, but thinking, before you land.

The shock and impact is oddly distant, and not just in the usual sense that comes from your awareness that it isn't real.

You correct yourself; it is real. This is your reality now, you think as you run across the platform. It's almost become a mantra to you by now; the constant denial of unreality, the focus on acceptance of your situation. You think that it's something healthy to do, but at the same time you wonder if it can't become unhealthy.

Out of the corner of your eye, you catch sight of the boss; it looks to be circling down, probably for another dive bomb. You spend a moment scolding yourself for getting distracted, before again jumping across to another platform. This one tilts slightly, and you are slower to react than you thought you would be. The shock, or something else? You aren't sure, and as much as that bothers you, you have more important things to be worrying about.

You sway from side to side, almost falling to your knees in an attempt to lower your center of gravity. You don't have to though; this platform seems to be in a sort of goldilocks zone. Not so big as to have the delay in reaction be a problem, but not so small as to jerk all over the place. The beginnings of a scowl cross your lips; that only makes it more annoying that you're having trouble with this.

Still, you steady yourself. It isn't a problem for you, you resolve. Your mouth firms, the seed of a scowl previously planted within it wiped away by the motion. The platform has locked, and—you look up—the boss' target seems to have become apparent now.

As you expected, it's going after you. A glance over to the side confirms that Cascade hasn't suffered any of your problems, continuing to move along normally without having to pause. You smile and hope that she isn't concerned by your stillness, even as a bubble of worry forces itself through the stiff haze of the shock wrapping your mind. If you had to compare it to something, you might think of the aerogels that've been advertized on television lately; a sort of fog, frozen solid and preserved in glass.

You look up at the monster; it seems to be approaching from your... right-front? (You think that seems kind of odd; you must have gotten turned around somehow.) You aren't quite sure how to put it, but it's sort of on the diagonal between your front and your right side.

Your eyes rove over the scene around you, piecing together the places of the platforms that you should have noted down automatically. You wince at that little failure of situational awareness; you must be more out of whack than you thought.

You'd scowl, if you weren't more occupied with other things. The boss is getting closer and closer; you lost the chance to avoid him easily a while ago in the fog of your distraction. You aren't exactly happy about that, but you have to work with what you have.

You think for a moment, hammering out the vaguely formed plan that comes to mind. You'll have to jump at the last moment, you know that much, but where? And just when exactly is the "last moment"? You don't have exact answers to those questions, but you can guess at them.

You'll jump to the platform you came from, then take another route around to try and catch up to Cascade, who is... coming back to you? You spend a moment confused, then another panicked, before remembering the plan. You realize that she must be planning on attacking the boss after you lure it in. You nod to yourself, a short, sharp thing; that'll work quite nicely with the actions that you've taken up to this point.

You almost wonder if you'd somehow planned this unconsciously, but logic reasserts itself. That'd be a bit absurd, you think. It's much more likely that this is just a happy coincidence.

Your eyes, fixed on the boss as they are, notice that it's starting to get too close. You tense, moving closer to the edge in preparation to leap. You almost cross your fingers, but think better of it.

...you really hope this works, because otherwise you might die. You almost huff at how simplistic that chain of thought is, but simplicity doesn't prevent truth. If this doesn't work—

Ah! Your legs move almost without conscious thought, pushing forwards and launching you into the air. You land well, causing the corners of your lips to turn up as your knees flex and absorb the motion. By the end, you're left standing and in the perfect position to keep moving, something you're certainly going to take advantage of in the coming moments.

You only spare a moment to look at the boss before falling into the run your landing had so perfectly positioned you for. You see the boss makes a last ditch effort to pull up, but Cascade smashes into its side from above, her daggers raking hitpoints away as they cut a swath through boss' wing.

But you're distracted by the need to jump to the next platform. Your muscles flex in a now mostly routine motion, and you soar through the air before touching down on a... steady platform? You're almost surprised, but you scold yourself instead. There's no reason for every platform surrounding another platform to have a different state; indeed, if they're randomly arranged, that wouldn't make any sense.

You look back at the boss; it seems to be taking off, its heavy wings buffeting the platform with wind. You don't see Cascade anywhere on the platform, and for a moment you worry that she was knocked off by the «Schultang of Despair». You breathe a sigh of relief as you catch sight of her moments later, standing on another platform. You look over to her; she probably took some damage in that exchange, and you're still at full health.

You take a deep breath, then shout over to her. "I'll try to get above it!" She looks startled for a moment, looking around—ah. She can't find you. You're about to yell out something along the lines of "Over here!" but she catches sight of you before you can get further than the initial intake of breath. She makes eye contact with you, then nods; the plan is on.

You run your gaze over the platforms surrounding your current perch, confirming your first impression. You can make it to a platform on your left that should in turn lead you to a pathway upwards. You aren't sure if it'll be high enough—it's difficult to compare heights without a reference frame, and it isn't like the «Schultang of Despiar» is going to be kind enough to stay at one height.

Your lips quirk slightly as you get moving, legs pumping as you rush towards the edge of the platform and leap off. The next platform is an unstable one, but you manage to wrangle it handily, and are soon leaping off to the next. This is another wobbly one, and the landing is made harder by the fact that it's higher up than the previous. You slam into the side of it, your hands clawing for purchase as it tilts.

Your mind goes blank for a few seconds, but by the end you're secure. You don't pay the event much mind, too focused on getting to the next platform to worry. This one is closer, and your feet land solidly on its surface. You spare a moment to look around you before continuing, phantom blood pounding through your heart.

Your eyes glide over Insidious and Query47 in the distance—Insidious looks to be doing a bit better, though the cloud of mini-mobs around them has only thickened—before bouncing off Cascade—she's standing on a platform, looking up—and landing on the boss—where something makes you pause. Your eyes rove over it for several moments, confirming your initial impression.

It's slower.

You keep your gaze on it as you try to work out the cause. Your mind casts about for an answer, trying to dredge up all of the information you've read. After a few seconds, realization strikes you like a bolt of lightning; it's the wing! When Cascade attacked it, it must have triggered some kind of debuff.

A grin spreads over your lips, only to disappear when you realize something else: the boss is heading towards Insidious and Query47.

Panic rushes through your heart, accompanying a rush of regret over wasted time. You start to move towards the boss, gesturing for Cascade to follow. Insidious and Query are going to need help; the only question is how. You spend a few moments in between leaps to confirm your first impression; you aren't going to be able to arrive before the beast.

You find yourself oddly calm at this realization. You wonder if it is shock, or just adrenaline. You don't think it really matters right now.

Your hand swipes downwards, opening your menu as you move. You type out a message in party chat: "Boss incoming!" You aren't sure, but you think that Insidious nods in your direction.

You pour on the speed, jumping from platform to platform as quickly as possible in an effort to make it there in time. After the second time you almost fall off, you have to rein yourself in; you won't do anyone any good dead.

You lose track of time as you move, jumping from position to position. After what could be seconds or hours, you look over to see that Cascade is on a nearby platform. You open your mouth as you prepare to jump to the next platform in your path—and then close it. Cascade looks... scared. Her normally relaxed expression is tense with worry, but the way she moves betrays a sense of determination.

You almost want to examine her more, but the need to keep moving overrides any such desire. You are thankful that this is not the real world; no way would you be able to keep up this pace in your normal, rail-thin thirteen-year-old body.

Then again, you remind yourself, if this was the real world, none of this would be happening. You turn your thoughts towards planning, preparing for what will happen when you reach Insidious and Query47.

You start by trying to guess at what condition the two will be in by the time you arrive, but soon discard that as a fool's endeavor. You would find such a task difficult at the best of times, and now... is not the best of times. Instead, you focus on your plan of attack; you imagine that such a thing will be useful in the majority of cases.

Your mental wheels spin aimlessly as you try to find some sort of traction from which to start. Your mind moves skittishly, leaping from topic to topic under the influence of fear and shock. Finally, you hit upon what seems like a solid foundation for a plan: overwhelming force.

It's a simple precept, but a reasonable one. The boss is wounded, and if you and Cascade can hit it hard enough, you should be able to at least distract it long enough to buy Insidious and Query47 time to recover.

You take a moment to examine the barebones plan for flaws. You can't find any, but you are well aware that does not mean they are not present. You can only hope that they are not fatal.

...You wince at the double meaning behind that word. Fatal, in the sense of a flaw that ruins a plan, and fatal in the sense of a flaw that kills someone. You were not aware that your subconscious was in the business of making puns.

You shake your head, trying to clear it of distractions. You have a plan; now you need to communicate it. You look over to Cascade; the two of you have drifted apart some, different choices in platforms inevitably leading to some degree of distance, but it is a distance easily closed with a simple course adjustment.

You regret the delay the deviation will impose, but you don't see a way around it. You alter your course and call to Cascade with an oddly heavy heart. "Cascade!" you shout as you touch down on an unsteady platform, compensating for the sway with only a slight stumble.

"Rain?" Cascade says, brow furrowed as she stops in the middle of preparing for a jump. You see her expression flicker for a moment, her usual calm trying to assert itself as she turns towards you. It fails, and you find that the brief moment of composure only highlights her current tension.

"We hit the boss hard, stun and distract from the others." You are trying to communicate as much information in as few words as possible; you hope you don't fail. Tension born from confusion washes over Cascade's face; you open your mouth to elaborate, cursing yourself for misjudging things in the first place.

But then—before you can really begin—that tension loosens, understanding replacing confusion. "Oh," Cascade says with an air of understanding. You nod, relieved. "Got it." she confirms before continuing onwards.

You watch her for a few moments before jolting yourself back into motion. As you start to jump to another platform, your mind already plotting out a new path to Query and Insidious, a new wave of shock rushes through you. The «Schultang of Despair» is almost upon them. You redouble your efforts, trying to move as quickly as possible; you're only a few platforms away, maybe you can make it in time.

You scramble and balance as you navigate upwards, trying to gain a height advantage over the beast in preparation for a staggering blow. You watch with thin lips and worried eyes as the swarm of «Tired Eyes» surrounding Insidious and Query pulses and sways, hindering their ability to keep track of the «Schultang of Despair». The boss begins to slow, and you feel a swell of hope rising in your heart—for a moment, you think that you might succeed, that you might reach the boss in time.

Then you realize what is about to happen, and try to shout a warning. "Insidious! It's a gust—" The «Schultang of Despair» brings its leathery wings down in a great beat, and a powerful blast of air buffets the platform Insidious and Query are stationed upon. The swarm of «Tired Eyes» is quickly dispersed, revealing the perilous position Insidious and Query have been placed in.

Insidious is only barely hanging onto the edge of the platform, one hand gripping the ledge and the other tightly clasped by both of Query's hands. Insidious' eyes are closed, and—in the strange hyper focus of an adrenaline rush—you can see his lips moving rapidly.

You pound towards the boss, a strange sense of purpose overcoming you. Your eyes jerk back and forth as you analyze the situation. You are in a remarkably good position; only one jump away from a platform you can launch an attack from. You make the necessary leap with wholehearted focus, smoothly performing the motions as if you had practiced them a thousand times.

From there, you only have to make three more steps before you are leaping out into the void, stretching your sword forwards as it begins to shed purple particles. The Sword Art viciously stabs into the side of the «Schultang of Despair», the beast lilting as your weight drags it downwards. A terrible, high pitched screech fills your ears as the monster cries out. You twist your sword in response.

You glance downwards at the platform Insidious and Query are standing upon, trying to gauge when you should let go. Because of this, you are taken by surprise when Cascade joins you upon the airborne beast, her twin daggers anchoring themselves in the monster's back.

After exchanging a glance with her, you return to focusing on your descent—now even quicker with Cascade's added weight. You wait a few moments, then judge the moment to be ripe. You give Cascade a thumbs-up, and yank your sword from its position embedded within the «Schultang of Despair»'s body.

You hit the ground hard, your sword clattering from your hands despite your attempt to roll with the fall. Your side buzzes with pins and needles as you pull yourself back to your feet, the sensation informing you of registered damage. You glance up towards your health bar, and wince as you realize that fall took a fifth of your total HP off.

You grab a tiny health potion from your side and down it, leaving your mouth feeling slightly fuzzy. You figure that it's better to be safe than sorry. That task completed, you scan the surrounding area for your sword. Your eyes lock onto it, and you rush to scoop it up. You find the return of its weight as you slide the blade into its sheath on your back reassuring.

You pause, then curse as you realize that you prioritized retrieving your sword over helping Insidious and Query47. By the time you get there, your assistance is mostly perfunctory, but it still serves as a balm for the regret you feel.

"You alright, Insid?" you ask cautiously, crouching by his side as he opens his previously closed eyes.

He breathes out shakily as he nods. "Yeah, I'm fine." Both you and Query47 are polite enough to not mention the quiver in his voice when he speaks. "Better with time, but I'm fine for now." You almost believe him; his voice is a lot firmer this time.

You stand up anyway, offering a hand to Insidious afterwards. He takes it gratefully, and you pull him upright—something you'd never have been able to do in your real body. You find yourself wondering what set of game abstractions is responsible for that result; character weight? Character strength? Something else?

"Midori!" Your contemplations are disturbed by Query's exclamation. You turn to see what he is looking at: Cascade has just jumped from the back of the boss, and it looks like she's only just going to manage a landing on the platform. Your heartbeat accelerates and you start to imagine worst case scenarios. What if she misses? What if the boss somehow knocks her off course? The rush of fear and worry is exhausting, and all too familiar.

The three of you start to move towards her, even though there's nothing that you'll be able to do. After a few moments, you stop, and instead turn around to survey the room. You reason that since you can't do anything for Cascade that Insidious and Query can't, you should instead focus on planning. You ignore the feeling that this is a coward's excuse, and instead focus on performing your self assigned task.

First, you cast your eyes towards the boss; you and Cascade have done a number on it, but not enough. Your teeth clench.


From there, you sweep your gaze across the room, noting the gathering spots where new swarms of «Tired Eyes» have begun to reform after their dispersion by the «Schultang of Despair»'s gust attack. You frown. Those... are going to be a problem.

You turn your attention back to the boss, this time trying to get a better feel for its flight patterns. It's even slower than before, and its left wing looks to be in tatters; Cascade must have done a number on it when she dropped down.

Your eyes flicker over to where Cascade has landed on the platform. You feel a knot of tension melt away; she is safe. You note with a vague sense of amusement that she has even taken less damage than you—likely due to jumping from a lower altitude.

You return your attention to the «Schultang of Despair», your mind no longer distracted by concern for Cascade. You peer at the beast, struggling to figure out what it is doing. Your best guess is that the boss is preparing for a dive bomb, but its slow speed and erratic movements makes it hard to have any degree of confidence in your assessment.

You alert the rest of the party anyway. "The boss is getting ready for a divebomb," you say, not quite yelling, but definitely speaking louder than normal. You watch a jolt of shock ripple across the party, everyone turning their eyes skywards towards the boss to watch. Then, before all of your eyes, it begins to descend.

You act quickly, your mind racing to come up with a plan in time. You open your mouth, and—after what seems like an eternity of contemplation but which cannot be longer than a second—speak. "Insidious, Query, stick to the far right side of the boss; once me and Cascade lure it to the left, you guys will come in and attack it. If any of the minion-bats—" «Tired Eyes», your mind mentally corrects "—come in for an attack, deal with them."

They both look somewhat shocked, but nod and move to the area you gesture towards. While they're doing that, you walk over to where you want to be positioned and look over to Cascade. She's smiling, and already in place; you don't ask why. Then—

—you wait. Two seconds, three seconds, four seconds—you aren't sure how long, but it seems to stretch like wet taffy. You shake your head, trying to clear some clutter from your mind. You don't think it works.

Then, suddenly, the «Schultang of Despair» is right in front of you, you're dodging to the side, and oh its wings are spread Insidious Query don't—

You barely have enough time to throw yourself flat to reduce your cross-section before the wind hits. You can feel yourself sliding, slowly slipping towards the edge. It's a terrifying feeling. Each lost inch brings you closer to the edge, and from there, death.

You notice the wind start to slacken, and a spark of hope emerges. You prepare yourself to leap up and end this boss; it needs to die before one of you die. When the gust finally ends, that preparation pays off; you launch yourself off of your knees, your longsword already glowing with the blue of a «Diagonal» Sword Art. Peripherally, you note Cascade accompanying you, her daggers shining with the light of a Sword Art and ready to tear into the beast's flesh.

You fall upon the «Schultang of Despair» like rabid wolves upon a helpless calf. Sword Art after Sword Art, slash after slash, strike after strike—you know that it can't be that many, but it certainly feels like it. At some point you realize that Query47 has also joined in on the attack, his motions fast, furious, and heavy.

You carefully don't think about what Insidious' absence might imply.

You gasp as the boss finally shatters with a heave of your longsword. Your stamina is nearly exhausted from using so many Sword Arts so quickly. You ignore all of the notifications that pop up, instead training your focus on Query47.

"Wh... did... Insidious...?" You can't quite get the question out; the words seem to lodge in your throat, and those few you do force past have to deal with a suddenly leaden tongue. "Is he...?"

But Query47's expression tells you everything you need to know.

...You...

Your face is frozen. You can't seem to move; your lungs work only in bursts. You feel like the world is shattered, broken, unable to be put back together. And then—

—you hear a voice, attenuated and distant, but still present. ""Guys!"" it says in a familiar tone. Your mind shifts, like broken pieces of glass tumbling inside a rotating kaleidoscope. The first conclusion you jump to is rather silly, and you discard it out of hand. Ghosts are not real.

No, you think with a glimmer of dawning hope, you're either hallucinating or... you race to the side of the platform and look down. Sure enough, there's Insidious lying on a platform amidst a sea of others that quite plainly weren't there before. Your eyes fly to his health bar; half of it is gone, but the other half is still there.

You don't cheer, or let out a gasp, or anything like that. You're too stunned to think. You feel tears well in your eyes, and a distant part of your mind registers surprise that Cardinal simulates those. You take a deep, stuttering breath, then swallow and attempt to compose yourself.

You don't think you succeed. You look to both Cascade and Query; they look just as relieved as you do. Your lips smile shakily. You—

"Hey! Guys?" Insidious calls again, and you realize that none of you have actually responded. You blush faintly, and move to correct that mistake.

"Y-Yeah! We're here!" Your voice hitches slightly as you speak. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah! You had me worried, man!" comes Query's accompanying voice, containing more than a hint of bravado. You catch Cascade casting a disapproving look at him from the corner of your eye, and you think you know why. You saw how sickly Query looked earlier, and you doubt he has recovered that quickly. You suspect that his composure is nothing more than a facade, just better put together than yours.

You ignore the questions that raises in favor of nudging Query with your shoulder. "Hey. It's okay." You don't say what exactly is okay, but from the look he gives you—half-annoyance, half-gratitude—he understands.

Cascade doesn't say anything.

Insidious' response comes quickly, hot on the heels of Query's comment. "Out of the two of us, I think I was a bit more worried." The tone is dry, despite the speed of the comeback; you guess that Insidious is more than a little shaken up from his fall.

You think that you would be shaken up after an experience like that, even without having a fear of heights. You can only imagine what it must be for someone who does.

"But yeah, I'm alright!" You watch as Insidious stretches slightly, before opening his menu. You don't quite catch his following words—they're more of a mumble than the half-shout that seems necessary at this distance—but from the way he withdraws and downs a health potion, you can surmise that they were something along the lines of "Just let me drink this health potion first."

You retreat a bit from the ledge, allowing the others to take over the conversation, then look at your own health bar. You judge it to be about two-thirds full, and not for the first time you wish you had a way of getting the exact amount. You down the last tiny health potion on your belt with a sigh.

As you watch your health bar rapidly refill, you wonder what caused the extra damage. You assume that it must have happened during your assault on the grounded boss, but for the life of you, you can't quite say when.

...You recall the kind of state you were in at the time, and blush. You suppose that overlooking something shouldn't be surprising. You distract yourself from such thoughts by dealing with the notifications triggered by the death of the «Schultang of Despair». You have to go into the menu to access them, the notifications having automatically minimized after being ignored for a certain amount of time.


You stare at the notifications appreciatively for a moment, then open your inventory to examine the item you got. The icon for the Schultang's Tear shows a black, oily tear drop, and the quality is excellent. You can't get a description though; you wonder if you need to have a skill for that.

You close your inventory and shake your head, looking around. You notice that the «Tired Eyes» have finished forming into swarms, though they seem both smaller than earlier and less aggressive. You eye a nearby swarm that seems mostly content to flap around a few platforms away, rather than aggressively attacking.

You hum, considering the change in behaviour. The most obvious factor is the boss being defeated; perhaps the «Schultang of Despair» somehow influenced the behaviour of the «Tired Eyes»? You tilt your head, wondering if that really makes sense. You aren't quite sure; you don't think you're in a position to judge.

You shrug, and return your attention to more concrete matters—namely, how to get the platform moving again. You examine it carefully, focusing on the lines and patterns left where the puzzles pieces slotted into it. You wonder if you have to somehow reset the puzzle and solve it again, though that seems unlikely.

Perhaps—

Your concentration is broken by a rumbling sensation from the platform below you. You raise your head, and look around you; is the platform starting to lower again? You feel the rumbling increase, and decide to move away from the edge.

"Hey, guys—" you say, turning to face the others, only to find them also retreating from the edge. "—oh good," you finish with an edge of relief.

Query looks back at you. "Yeah, I wasn't going to stay there. I may not be Insidious, but I'm also not Insidious."

Wordlessly, Cascade swats him on the shoulder.

You're about to reply when the rumbling suddenly increases, the edge of the platform erupting in blue light at the same time. You stumble backwards, only barely managing to keep your footing on the now-shaking platform.

"What—" You don't even have time to finish your exclamation of surprise before the event is over. The blue light fades away to a dull glow around the rim of the platform, and the shaking ceases, leaving only a dull, mechanical rumbling noise in the background. You straighten up, looking around as you do so—and smile.

You see the ceiling above grow more distant, and the platforms around you start to rise into the air. You shuffle closer to the edge, and confirm your suspicions; you are now descending. Your smile grows wider.

You hear Insidious call out to you from his perch on the platform where he fell. "So how did you get the platform moving?!" he yells.

"No idea!" you yell back. You look over to Query and Cascade. They look just as clueless as you feel, but you ask anyway just to be sure. "Either of you—?"

"No." Cascade replies softly. You suppress the urge to raise an eyebrow; she looks and sounds almost completely normal, to the point where you can't even tell if you're imagining the subtle hints that say otherwise. You find that both impressive and intriguing in equal measures.

"Nope." Query accompanies his girlfriend, shaking his head and popping the p in his response. "Not a clue."

You sigh. "Well, so long as this doesn't stop again, I suppose it doesn't really matter." You return your attention to Insidious, then freeze as a thought strikes you. "Oh no," you groan. "Insidious, are you going to be able to make it?"

Insidious is a bit closer now, so it's easier to make out his expression. It doesn't seem very confident. You watch as he visibly musters his courage, squaring his shoulders and standing up. His reply is mumbled, but you don't ask him to repeat it.

"Wait, what's—oh. Oh." You nod as you turn your head to look at Query47, a dawning look of realization on his face. "He's going to have to come over here, isn't he?"

You keep nodding.

He winces, and starts to turn away, but stops and looks back. "Wait. What if we tied some rope together and threw it to him from here? The three of us could probably pull him up if he missed."

You freeze, dumbfounded. "That's... a good idea." You... didn't think of that. You just accepted the problem in front of you and the obvious solution, instead of looking—

You cut off your self-recrimination, and instead open your inventory. Your mouth twists; you only have one coil of rope. You pull it out anyway, and judge the distance. You think it'll be a stretch, but it should work. "Good thinking Query." You smile at him.

You watch amused as he turns away, huffing exaggeratedly before speaking. "You don't have to act so surprised, you know." His voice is haughty, like that of an offended nobleman.

You laugh, but quickly sober. "You guys are going to have to help me hold onto this rope; I can't carry Insidious by myself." Both Cascade and Query nod.

"Okay."

"Of course."

With that taken care of, you turn to Insidious and get his attention. "Insidious!"

"Yeah?" he responds, still psyching himself up for the jump.

"We're—" You start to reply, but Query interrupts before you can finish.

"We're going to throw a rope! Catch it!" You restrain yourself from scowling at Query, and instead focus on Insidious. He looks more than a little relieved, and you can understand why.

"Thanks!" Insidious replies, a smile on his face that quickly slips away as he returns to getting ready to try and jump.

"I think we can throw it now." Cascade says softly, jolting you back into focus. You examine the angles, then nod.

"Yeah, you're right." You hand one end of the rope to Cascade, then playing out some slack between you and her. "Here, hold this." She nods.

"Got it." Query grabs onto the slack between you and Cascade.

You swing the end of the rope you're going throw a few times, getting a feel for it. Your heart is pounding as you turn your gaze to Insidious; you might be able to try again, but there's a limited amount of time before Insidious passes the platform by.

"Insidious!" He looks up, making eye contact with you. "Catch!" You throw the rope. The weighted end sails through the air, rope spooling out behind it, and lands perfectly in Insidious' hands.

You breathe out, relieved that you didn't mess up the throw. Insidious pulls on the slack, gathering up just enough to wrap it around his waist and tie a knot. You eye the rope, then turn to Cascade. "That was a perfect guess Cascade."

She nods, eyes downcast. There's a short pause.

Query speaks up. "We should probably move out of the way if Insidious is going to jump." You nod, and shuffle to the side. You're currently about two meters above Insidious' platform, and he probably wants to be at least a meter above yours when he jumps. Maybe more, if there's enough slack in the line. You start to try and guess at how long you have to wait, but find your train of thought interrupted by Cascade's voice.

"That was..." Cascade trails off, seemingly unable to find the words to describe the experience we just went through.

"Horrible." Query47 fills in.

"Exhausting," you say, then pause. You started speaking just moments after Query finished. "That too," you add, nodding towards Query47.

You hide a frown. But it wasn't particularly hard, either. If this wasn't a death game, if you were just playing for fun... you don't think you would have disliked this. Actually—

—you think you would have enjoyed this. You can easily imagine yourself cheerily laughing about the battle with the others, teasing Insidious, ribbing Query and Cascade...

Your expression sours. It almost makes you sick, just thinking about such a thing. You feel irrationally resentful, like you want to punch your laughing alternate self in the face. You take a deep breath, and try to let go of the bubbling, acidic anger sitting in your stomach.

You don't think it works. Fortunately, you're distracted from your issues by Insidious announcing that he's going to jump. You back away from the edge and brace yourself for a sudden yank on the rope you're holding. You train your eyes on him as he takes a few steps back, then launches himself forwards.

You inhale sharply as he lands heavily, falling to his knees two-thirds of a meter away from the edge. You let go of the rope you're holding, choosing to walk to Insidious' side. "You okay?" you ask, trying to restrain the edge of worry in your voice.

He takes a few breaths, then looks up at you. "That..." he says, almost wonderingly "...was not as scary as it should have been." He takes another few breaths, and then pulls himself into a cross-legged sitting position while you try to figure out what to say.

You eventually just settle on a simple question: "What do you mean?" you say neutrally.

Insidious laughs and scratches the back of his head. "I'm not really sure either," he admits sheepishly. You withstrain your frustration, waiting for him to continue. "...I think falling like that, thinking I'm going to die..." he says slowly, pausing before finishing "...it did something to me."

Insidious shrugs uncertainly. "Like I said, I'm not really sure. Does it matter?" he asks.

"Not really," you reply neutrally while considering his statement. You could probably try and guess at what happened, but you know that you'll just get it wrong. And you think that in a situation like this, that might be even more dangerous than being uncertain.

"I'm glad you're safe, Insid." You smile, and start to stand up. "Oh—you might want to untie that." You point to the rope wrapped around his waist. He chuckles and blushes.

"Yeah, probably." You turn away and tilt your head upward, thinking. You don't really have any idea what effect this fight—and the rest of the death game, you amend mentally—could have on you or the rest of the party. You suppose that you'll just have to keep an eye out for anything harmful or self-destructive.

You let a scowl flit across your face for a moment before you banish it and lower your head. You aren't very fond of "wait and see," but you don't think you have a choice. You clear your mind and look over to Cascade, who has just finished pulling the rest of the rope up from over the side of the platform. Query, on the other hand, is talking to Insidious.

You start to move towards Cascade, already composing an apology mentally. You can see her hands moving through the air; she must be dealing with her notifications. You glance back towards the others for a moment; you imagine that they must have their own notifications to deal with.

"Sorry for leaving you with the rope—I should have helped." You shouldn't have just assumed that someone would deal with it.

"No, it's fine," Cascade says, smiling mischievously. It puts you on edge, but you dismiss the sensation as paranoia. Then Cascade delivers the coup de grace: "I would have done the same if it was Query." It takes you a moment to realize what she's implying, but when you do you sputter.

"No—but—it's not... this is getting me back for earlier, isn't it?" You glare at Cascade balefully; her smile doesn't budge.

"Perhaps."

You groan. "But you're going to keep teasing me about that anyway, right?"

"Perhaps." You're pretty sure that Cascade's smile actually grows at your comment.

Your only response is to groan louder. "Whatever." You glance over the side of the platform, noting that the ground seems to be a lot closer now—though it looks just as psychedelic as the walls. You wonder if you're going to have to walk on it, but a moment later you spot the hole right underneath the platform. "It looks like we're going to be getting out of here soon."

Cascade joins you in looking downwards. "That's good," she says softly. You nod, and don't say anything.


You look around as the platform settles into a depression in the floor, the blue glow around the edges flaring up before fading away. You're standing in a stone room, divided in half by a torrent of water flowing through the middle. The flow of water is confined to a deep, vertical channel cut into the floor. A plain, unadorned slab bridges the two sides of the room, set into the floor on either side to prevent it from moving.

Your eyes note the presence of a sluice gate where the water enters the room, though you can't see any way of controlling it. From there, your gaze is drawn to the two large metal doors sitting on either bank. They stand in the center of their respective walls, framed by intricately carved torch sconces. Your spirits are somewhat lifted by the presence of handles on the doors, and the lack of anything resembling a lock.

You hope that means that you can just open the doors instead of having to solve a puzzle or find a key.

Your eyes then move to the elaborate carvings adorning the walls and floor of the room, though the ceiling seems to have been left bare. You note a certain symmetry in the design—though you find that the sections framing the plain metal doors differ from each other. The door on the same bank as you is framed in elaborate pipe-like designs, with stylized water flowing out of openings and into basins connected to other pipes. The door on the other side of the channel is similar, but different at the same time. It features what looks like a pair of waterfalls spilling onto it and then filtering down to floor level through a complex maze.

You assume that the carvings carry hints as to the nature of the rooms behind the doors they surround. You wonder what they mean, but decide to put that question aside for the moment. You assume that whatever meaning they carry will only become useful when interpreted in the context of the rooms they describe. You simply don't think the carvings provide enough information on their own.

Your curiosity sits heavily in the back of your head despite your decision to wait to explore it.

"So... which door?" You glance back to Insidious, who shrugs. "I mean, there's not really a whole lot else to do, is there?"

You hum, then nod. There are other things you could examine, but the doors are the most obvious.

"Does it matter?" You turn your head to Query, who is already walking towards the nearest door as he talks. Cascade follows behind him, and after a few moments you and Insidious join her.

"Not really," you say as you come to a stop and begin to inspect the door. You can't see anything that differs between this door and the other door, except for the carvings and the location of the platform-elevator relative to it. You watch as Query steps forwards to pull on the handle. You take note of how much effort he puts into it; he uses both hands, leans backwards, and seems prepared for a sisyphean task of strength.

You laugh as Query lands on his ass, unprepared for the door to swing open almost instantly. You try to stifle your laugh as you step forward to lend Query a hand, noting Insidious moving to examine the door out of the corner of your eye.

"Hehe... Sorry about laughing, Query. It's just..." You aren't quite sure what to say next; you know what you mean, but not quite how to put it into words. You're still unwinding from the stress of the boss fight, you think, and that makes everything seem funnier.

"Nah, I get it." You smile gratefully as Query takes your hand and pulls himself up. He smiles self-deprecatingly. "I mean, it was kind of funny, wasn't it?"

"It was the expression on your face that sold it." You and Query47 both turn to look at Cascade, somewhat surprised by such an uncharacteristic remark. Your lips twitch slightly as you take in the placid, neutral smile on Cascade's face; she's teasing Query.

"Ah! You wound me madam! What have I done to deserve such cruel treatment? Nothing! Nothing, I say!" You watch with a faint smile as Cascade struggles to hold her composure in the face of Query's dramatic response.

"Do you want the list sorted alphabetically, chronologically, or categorically?" Your subtle smile blossoms into a full on grin at Cascade's biting response, though her inability to conceal her growing smile somewhat belies the effect.

Query leans back, gasping as if struck by a fatal blow. "Touche! I am helpless before such wit!" You feel the mood change as Cascade's cheer suddenly subsides. She steps forwards, wrapping her arms around Query47 and whispering something to him.

"You better be." You can barely hear Cascade's voice over the rushing of the water, but the emotion it carries is loud and clear. Query softens, and returns the hug.

"I always will." You watch as the two embrace, then look away, embarrassed to intrude on such an intimate moment.

You take a few steps away from the couple, moving towards Insidious. He's awkwardly standing by the open metal door, evidently done with whatever he wanted to look at. You wonder why, then realize: he must be just as uncomfortable as you.

You take heart in that, using that knowledge to help suppress the last shades of the blush staining your cheeks. "Hey," you say uncertainly as you join him in staring out into the room behind the door.

It's a fairly large room, vaguely rectangular and rather tall. The door opens up onto a mezzanine-type platform, with railings all around it. The floor and walls have the same carvings as the previous room, though they seem more flowing and graceful than before. A single lever sits at one end of the mezzanine, opposite the end the door opens out onto. Water surrounds the platform, with several gaps in the railings allowing access to it.

You take note of two types of platforms sitting on the water, their surfaces about level with the floor of the mezzanine. The first type of platform is a plain stone square, with faintly glowing blue runes forming an inner square. The second type of platform is carved in the same manner as the walls and floors of the room, and is longer, snaking between different points. The square platforms seem to form joints, the connecting platforms beginning and ending at the square platforms.

Your examination of the platforms done, you turn your gaze towards the source of the water. Two columns of water fall from the ceiling, constantly filling the pool. Reasoning that for the pool to stay level, there must be a way for water to be let out, you cast your gaze around the edges of the pool. You quickly find what you are looking for; there are several drains just below the surface of the water that must serve to keep the water level constant.

From there, you peer upwards. You note with an interested gaze that there seems to be a second balcony level above you. Furthermore, you note that there are several of the connecting platforms hanging in the air level with the second balcony. Something occurs to you, and you give the airborne platforms another once over. You nod, your guess confirmed; there are none of the square, rune-engraved platforms on the second level.

What do you do?
[X] Write in.



So. First off, sorry for the four (or is it five now?) month delay. I... really don't have any excuse.

On the bright side though, this is by far the longest update SAO Quest has seen, clocking in at a whooping 8.4k words in length. Hopefully you guys will enjoy it.

With all that said, I should probably talk about the puzzle room you guys are in. If you have any questions about layout or other details, feel free to ask; I'll try and clear up any specific details you guys are interested in, since I can't really describe every inch of the room in the update.

Also, feel free to comment on the writing of the update and how you feel it works; the size of the update and the time passed since I last worked on this project makes any feedback especially valuable.

But yeah, I'll stop talking now and let you guys get to voting.

Water and Lever: (8/11/22, 12:08)


You take a few steps towards the water, motioning for Insidious to follow you. He looks back at Query and Cascade for a moment, then follows, an almost palpable sense of relief about him. You can understand why.

You reach the edge of the water and peer downwards into the depths of the pool. Your eyes take a few moments to adjust to the distortion and darkness of the water. By the time they've finished, Insidious has joined you.

"See anything?" you ask, straining to make out any details. You think you can see some impressions in the floor of the pool underneath where the square platforms float, but the dim light makes it hard for you to be sure.

"Not really. Although—" you look over to where Insidious is pointing "—if you look down there you can kind of see a design in the floor." You find it after several seconds of searching, but once you do it seems obvious. You're reminded of those optical illusions that look like one thing, but if you sort of shift your perspective it looks like something else.

"That..." you say slowly, "looks like a grate. Or a drain." You tilt your head, and catch a glint of a reflection. It's definitely metallic, at least.

"Are you—?" Insidious begins, before examining the artifact more closely. "...Huh. Yeah, that definitely isn't part of the floor. I'm not sure it's a drain, but it's definitely something."

You nod. "I could be leaping to conclusions, but..."

Insidious bobs his head in agreement. "It does seem to be the most logical explanation, doesn't it?"

You hear footsteps, and turn as Query and Cascade take that moment to arrive. Insidious follows moments later. You consider teasing the two—something like "So the lovebirds return"—but Insidious beats you to it.

"So the lovebirds return, eh?" You can't help but shot him a glance; did he read your mind?

You shake your head minutely, dismissing the wild thought. That would be silly. Your attention returns just in time for Query's reply.

"Ah, shut up." Your lips quirk as you take note of the light blush on Query's cheeks, and the hand sheepishly scratching the back of his head. It's a stereotypical, nigh archetypal, image—something straight out of a bad anime.

You wonder if it's intentional.

"Have you figured anything out yet?" Your absent musings are interrupted by Cascade's voice, and you scramble to reply.

"Ah—not really, no." You force an apologetic expression onto your face.

"We think there might be a drain over there, at the bottom, but..." You watch out of the corner of your eye as Insidious gestures, then shrugs.

"...it's hard to tell," you finish, turning your attention back to Cascade and Query.

"What about one of the platforms?" You follow Query's gaze to a platform near where Insidious had pointed, slightly confused by what he's saying. A few moments later, you realize what he's saying, and nod thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that'd probably work." You notice a puzzled look on Insidious' face. "If we swim out to—"

"—we might be able to see it better," Insidious says, understanding dawning on him. Then he laughs. "Well, I'm not going to be able to do that." You give him an inquiring look, wondering if he has a fear of water as well as a fear of heights. "I, uh, can't swim very well." You mentally translate that into "I can't swim."

You close your eyes for a moment, then open them to scan the room. "That shouldn't be a problem," you say. You doubt Cardinal would make a puzzle that requires all players to be able to—

You pause for a moment. "Huh," you say out loud. "I bet there's a swim skill."

Query looks interested. "Really?"

"Yeah. There's a sprint skill, right? And it would be weird if a game like SAO just wasted the..." you search for the right word "...potential of water." You pause, trying to find the right way to word things. After a few seconds, you continue. "...SAO is about realism. It would be really strange if you just couldn't swim, right? So they have to allow swimming, or else there's a huge break in disbelief."

You double check everyone is following. Cascade has an interested look on her face—the sort worn when something is interesting, but not fascinating or especially relevant. You think it's the kind of thing that gets worn at parties a lot.

Your lips twitch upwards as your eyes fall on Insidious' face. You're pretty familiar with that expression. It says "I know where you're going with this, and I don't know why I didn't figure it out sooner."

Your lips twist and your heart sours as you remember why you recognize that expression. You blink away memories and instead turn to Query next.

You find yourself surprised; Query has an intense look on his face, one that you aren't sure you've ever seen before. You wonder if this is the "real" Query.

Satisfied, you enter the denouement. "...so since they have to design with swimming in mind anyway, they might as well make it a skill so it's not limited to just people who already know how to swim."

You watch as Query and Cascade share a look; you wonder what they are thinking. You suspect that it has something to do with Query's interest in your mention of a swimming skill—perhaps they both enjoy swimming?

You aren't sure, but your ponderings are interrupted by Insidious' voice before you can advance them any further.

"So I might be able to learn to swim then?" Insidious asks, genuine curiosity in his voice.

"Yeah—we can probably find a nearby lake, if you want. For you to practice in." You swallow slightly as you make the offer.

"A day at the lake sounds like a nice way to spend a day." Cascade adds, her voice bright and persuasive.

Query chimes in with a snort; "God knows I'm going to need a break after this."

"Heh, yeah." Insidious smiles easily, but there's something fragile in the way it takes shape. The eyes crinkle strangely, the cheeks move slowly, and there's something warped about the way his mouth curves. Again, you wonder how his fall affected him.

You close your eyes, uneasy about the idea of taking a break. After a brief moment of debate, you open your eyes; you'll think about it when you're less on edge and the setting is more appropriate.

With that taken care of, you open your mouth and begin to try and get things back on track. You're starting to get sick of this temple.

"Who wants to swim out?" You ask, your eyes moving between Query and Cascade. "I can—"

"Nah," Query says with a cocky grin. "I'll do it." Your eyes flicker over to Cascade; she sighs, but doesn't say anything else. Reassured, you nod and push away your doubts.

You have to trust your party members. You feel your lips begin to twist into a bitter smile, and suppress the emotion. You don't have any choice but to trust your party.

You find that time passes rather quickly after that. You watch as Query puts away some of his gear so he isn't as encumbered by it in the water. After a few moments, you avert your eyes and get ready to attack if some monster comes out of no-where. You doubt that it will happen—you're confident you would have seen any enemies in the pool earlier—but you have a hard time putting anything past Cardinal.

You think that's a pretty healthy trait to have in SAO.

You breathe a sigh of relief as Query steps onto the floating platform and nothing goes wrong. The blue runes shine brighter for a moment, and the platform bobs. You think it almost an anti-climax, until you realize that Query still hasn't gotten into the water.

Your body tenses in anticipation as Query gets ready to dive into the water. A small part of your mind again marvels at how realistic it all feels—your muscles flex, your heart beats, and your lungs breathe. You still aren't sure how it's all possible.

You push those thoughts away as Query springs forwards, slipping into the water head-first with a small splash. You wait a few seconds—one, two, three—each one seemingly punctuated by ten beats of your heart. You breathe out in relief as Query surfaces, his brown hair plastered to his scalp by water. He smiles, and gives a thumbs up.

"Water's fine!" he says with a shout. You raise a skeptical eyebrow, and start to step forwards before Cascade beats you to it. Her hand plunges beneath the surface, and you watch her face for any reaction. A few moments pass, and Cascade's face only grows more focused.

"See? I told you it was fine." Query says, a smirk on his face as he treads water.

"Yeah, but it's... weird." Cascade shakes her head and pulls her hand out of the water. Puzzlement is written all over her face. "It's like..." You watch as Cascade struggles to find the right words.

"It's off, isn't it?" you interject. "Water is really hard to simulate because of all of the particles. You didn't notice, Query?" You cast a questioning glance towards Query, who shrugs.

"Now that you mention it, yeah, but I wasn't really paying much attention to the subtleties. Though..." Query trails off as he slowly moves his hands through the water, a look of concentration on his face. "...Yeah, it is kind of weird." Query shakes his head, a grin returning to his features. "It's pretty clean though! A bit brisk, but not even that chilly either." The smile fades a little. "That's kind of strange too, isn't it?" he asks questioningly?

"It's a game; they might not want to have disgusting water that players are going to swim in," Insidious says from his position leaning against the railing.

You nod along, but internally you're troubled. After all, Cardinal had no trouble making the swamp surrounding this temple, and people are probably going to end up swimming in that. No, you're pretty sure that the quality of the water is simply a result of the design of the temple. You scowl; you don't really know enough about water to make any guesses about what it indicates.

You return your attention to Query, only to find that he has disappeared beneath the surface of the water. You cast a glance towards Cascade, reasoning that she knows more about Query—and was actually paying attention—than you. Reassured by the lack of worry or concern on her face, you relax back against the wall you had moved to.

Perhaps thirty seconds later, your eyes are drawn by Query bursting back up to the surface. He takes a deep, controlled breath—none of the gasping you engage in after diving when you go swimming. You wonder if that's due to the game, or due to Query.

"Yep, it's definitely a drain." Query's smile is thin but present as he treads water. You wonder if it's because he's swimming. "And there's something else too—underneath the balcony—" he nods his head towards the platform you and the rest are standing on "—there's another door." Query shrugs his shoulders. "It looks sealed shut though, and I couldn't push it open."

You nod, somewhat impressed, and look up towards the level hanging above. You're willing to bet that there's another door up there.

"I guess that just leaves the lever," Insidious says. You follow his gaze to the somewhat out-of-place iron construct.

"Yeah." You smile slightly as a passing whimsy occurs to you. "Wanna bet that it has something to do with the water level?"

"No way," Insidious retorts immediately. "I don't take bets I'm going to lose."

"Mhm." you say skeptically. "Wanna bet that's a lie?" You see a smile start to show on Insidious' face.

"Like I said, I don't take bets I'm going to lose." You feel a smile start to spread across your own face in response.

Your discussion is interrupted by Query pulling himself up onto the ledge. Water drips off of his body, and a scowl graces his face as he stares down at his soaked clothes.

"I'm going to be wearing these for a while, aren't I?" Query sighs, and the scowl melts away from his face to be replaced by exasperation. You think the defeated look on Query's face is more genuine than the scowl—you wonder if he uses that delinquent attitude to try and push past weakness. You dismiss the thought; your speculation is starting to get pretty wild, and you need to reign it in.

"Probably," Cascade says with a sympathetic smile. Your eyes follow her as she steps closer to Query and puts a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe we should invest in spare clothes, if the game is going to be this realistic."

"Do you think they sell swimsuits?" Query wonders in an idle tone as he pulls his stuff back out of his inventory.

You feel a mischievous grin cross your face. "So eager to see your girlfriend in a swimsuit, Query?" You watch the blush spread across Query's face with a sense of satisfaction.

"No, I just—" Cascade squeezes his shoulder, and Query deflates.

You feel your own glee leave you at the sight, a sense of guilt instead replacing it. You wonder if you should be teasing them like this; you wouldn't appreciate it if you were in their place. With a heavy heart you resolve to hold off on any jokes about their relationship until you've had a chance to consider it better.

You really hope that you haven't annoyed or hurt them too much. You kind of doubt it—you think this was really the first sign—but just the possibility scares you. You're supposed to be the party leader; how can they trust you if you jump on them when they show weakness?

You think you might be over exaggerating things, but that doesn't mean it isn't a problem. It just means that it's less of one than you think.

You aren't willing to have problems with your leadership. You don't think you could bear the guilt if someone got hurt because of your flaws.

Your mouth opens and closes a few times before you get the words out.

"I—sorry." You have trouble looking at them. "That might have been a bit too much." You hate to show weakness.

Insidious gives you a look, but your eyes are focused on Query.

"It's—it's fine," he says with a sigh. "We're all kind of stressed, and..." he shrugs helplessly, at a loss for words.

You can't help but feel the same.

Your eyes drift from Query to Insidious, seeking some sort of help in escaping from this awkward mire you've put yourself into. His eyes fill with sympathy—your heart flashes with frustration.

You dislike showing weakness.

"Maybe we should throw the lever now?" Insidious asks into the suffocating silence. It's not the best rescue you've ever received, but it's a lifeline all the same.

You grasp onto it all the same, and apparently so do the others.

"Yeah, that sounds good." "Sure." "Definitely."

You watch Insidious smile and throw the lever.

You hear a grinding sound from behind you. You turn to look at it, and see that the doors are starting to close, and quickly. You don't think you can make it there in time.

You hear another sound, this time from out in the pool. Your gaze snaps over to the source—the drains around the edge of the pool are starting to close. You glance to the columns of water still flowing into the pool from the ceiling, then to the water level. You can already see it starting to rise, though not very quickly. You should have plenty of time.

You turn to Insidious, ready to tell him to reverse the lever, but the words catch in your throat. Insidious is already trying, straining against the lever with all his might—but you don't see it move an inch.

You feel a certain calm slip over you as your heart begins to pound. The awkwardness you were feeling previously disappears, banished by the needs of the moment, and you can't help but think—thank god there's a crisis.

You shake your head, and return your attention to the water level. The square platforms seem to be rising with the water, but the larger ones are staying still. You don't find that entirely surprising, since similar platforms are hanging in midair above the pool.

You breathe deeply and turn your attention to the square platform right next to the balcony. You stare at it for what seems like an eternity, though it passes in less than a second. You don't think you can all stand on the same platform.

Your follow up look around the party confirms it; you're going to have to split up. You take another breath and a moment to order your thoughts, and then—

"We split up. Query, swim over to another platform. Cascade, how good are you at swimming?" You curse internally as the last words leave your mouth. You have no way of objectively gauging how good at swimming Cascade is.

"She's good," Query says distractedly as he strips down his gear ad starts to stuff it in his inventory. Cascade starts to perform a similar procedure, and you feel your heart lighten.

"—Thanks," you say, mindful of the water now covering your feet. "Insidious?" You turn to look at him, and find that he's still straining to try and move the lever. As you watch, his grip slips and he stumbles, his feet kicking up spray from the layer of water that now covers the ground. "Insidious."

You meet his gaze, and for a moment you think he's trying to stare you down. Then he sighs, and starts to jog over. "Got it."

You smile, an expression that grows when you hear two splashes from behind you. You turn back to the floating platform, and find it gently rocking in the water. You reason that Query and Cascade must have jumped off of it, but...

You stick your foot out to stop the back-and-forth motion, then put some of your weight on it. Sure enough, the platform only dips partway into the water instead of flipping over. You stare for a moment, then shrug and chalk it up to video game logic. You adjust your positioning, then step up onto the platform with your other foot. The platform shifts, but your experience in the previous chamber pays off and you manage to bring the motion under control.

With that accomplished, you turn to offer a hand to Insidious. He takes it wordlessly, and you pull him up onto the platform as well. It's cramped, and kind of awkward, but the two of you manage to make it work.

Shortly afterwards, you see first Query, then Cascade pull themselves up onto another of the floating platforms. You watch with concern as Query nearly falls off while Cascade is pulling herself up, but the two manage to recover. You let out a happy sigh, and relax some of the tension in your mind.

You cast your gaze over to the balcony the you started on, and see that the water has only just surpassed the railing. You look upwards, towards the floor above, and sigh. You guess that you have another minute or so before the water reaches that level.

Insidious chuckles, and you see that he's watching the same thing. "Looks like it's going to be a bit of a wait, huh?" he asks, looking down to meet your gaze.

"I just hope we don't get any monsters to spice things up," you grumble. "Though—if we don't start moving faster, that seems pretty likely." You add thoughtfully, a grimace stretching across your face. You cast around the room trying to spot possible entry points for enemies. A few moments later, your grimace deepens; you can't find any on a cursory inspection, and somehow that only makes you more suspicious.

"Hey Cascade," you shout over to the other platform. "We're probably going to get attacked, so be on the ready, okay?"

"What about me?" Query asks, managing to whine despite the volume.

"Oh, you'll be fine," you say dismissively. You and Query share a look; twin grins, both barely suppressed, stretch across your faces. You think you like this kind of joking much better than teasing about a relationship.

Your train of thought is interrupted by Insidious exclaiming something and pointing upwards. "—look! Up there!"

You jerk your eyes over to focus on the column of water he is pointing at. For a moment you stare uncomprehendingly; you can't see what caught Insidious' attention. Then a flash of movement, right on the edge of your vision, catches your eye and you suddenly understand.

You see four shapes—spherical, with four stick-like limbs extending outwards—land on the surface of the water. You flick your gaze to the name hovering above them: «Irritated Eyes». Your expression twists; you doubt the similarity to «Tired Eyes» is accidental. From there, your eyes move to examine the central body, which is vaguely lizard-like and covered with scales.

Next your eyes jump to the limbs, and you marvel at how accurate you were to describe them as "stick-like." They are black, smooth cylinders, their textureless surface marred only by a single joint placed halfway down their length. You find yourself drawn to the point where the legs make contact with the water's surface, something niggling at you in the back of your mind. Your eyes narrow as you try to recall...

Your eyes snap open. Water striders—the «Irritated Eyes» remind you of water striders! You scramble internally, adrenaline making you flick through old memories as quickly as you can. Water striders—you remember them as small insects that exploit surface tension to allow them to walk on water.

Your mind skips a beat—you wonder what disturbing the water will do to their balance. An evil grin creases the corners of your lips. You aren't sure, but you think you need to find out.

You think of something and quickly glance over to the side to check the water level. You judge that it's about a third of the way to the next level, and relax slightly. You think that should be plenty of time to deal with these monsters.

What do you do?
[X] Write in.



And there we go! It took longer than it probably should have, but at least it wasn't another four months. School is starting tomorrow, so I'm not sure I'll be able to update any faster next time, but I'll definitely try.

Hm... other than that, I suppose I should mention the word count—3.7k words—and thank @veekie and @TurtleDucks for their wonderful help betaing this. This update would be a lot worse without their contributions.

...I can't really think of anything else to say right now, so I guess all that's left is for you guys to start voting. Have fun!