Hiyori is not very mentally stable and she has a person she wants to kill in agony in front of her eyes, she is going to lose her shit a bit. If you really want to play that game, we had scenes after this and her shadow did not interupt at all, the M scene was a shadow scene. Hiyori is fine.
Also there has been many options that had shadow tag increase alongside with them. It was "reject yourself" vs pito (which was a mystery box we didn't pick) and refusing to pick a priority between ourselves and our party member back in ALO after the stunt we pulled with Asuna.
...What game am I playing exactly? I was just pointing out that I found it interesting that when Hiyori ran a "there are two paths before you" in her head neither was the one we went with and I thought that was an interesting insight into her state of mind. ...I wasn't attacking the vote or anyone was on it if that's what you thought. I mean, sure, I would have preferred if the vote I was on would have won but pretty sure this wouldn't have even made the Top 25 list of "votes I wish I prevailed on" lol
Also there has been many options that had shadow tag increase alongside with them. It was "reject yourself" vs pito (which was a mystery box we didn't pick) and refusing to pick a priority between ourselves and our party member back in ALO after the stunt we pulled with Asuna.
I didn't say there haven't been opportunities to change Shadow Tag - I said that it had only happened (that is, a winning vote) one time and that it was at TRAITOR Rank 3 (vs Norn when our whole party got wrecked by Abysmal Surge.) The whole thing with Asuna that I feel gets harped on too much didn't affect Shadow Tag at all - i.e. it's the exact same case as this. If what Hiyori just went through with her Shadow was nothing special then neither was that incident. Both were situations where the vote led to a situation where Shadow!Hiyori was like "hol' up" and led to their argument breaking through in part to the real world (Then it was Hiyori being able to actually speak the vote out loud. Here was Hiyori's internal argument breaking through to her yelling it out loud.)
At the end of that particular update in ALO we had a potential choice to vote on that could have altered Shadow Tag but yet again we did not select it so it never happened as far as the story is concerned. All I'm saying is if "it can't be called a serious internal conflict with Hiyori and her Shadow unless Shadow Tag gets affected" then AFAIK Hiyori has never had a serious conflict with her Shadow, including that time, because if you just look at the votes that have won we've never selected in a manner where Shadow Tag went up. The only winning vote that ever altered it in any direction it was TRAITOR 3 which reduced it.
I think too much was made of the previous incident in Alfheim and I don't think what we chose here was "bad" or anything - even if it wasn't my preferred vote. I do think that this vote reveals more on PoH's effect on Hiyori's mental health and that it is bad. Lugh essentially recommended that we "forget" PoH (ie the walk out option... but presumably at the next critical juncture we have with PoH and/or if Hiyori reflects on it) though Hiyori herself expressed some skepticism that she's capable of it as she currently is (which may be a result of the winning vote since we explicitly didn't make a choice so of course Hiyori herself is unsure.) I mean, that was my preferred position and as someone who wants Hiyori to be happy I think it's best that we try to move in that direction but I understand we might not, as a collective, vote that way.
The whole thing with Asuna that I feel gets harped on too much didn't affect Shadow Tag at all - i.e. it's the exact same case as this. If what Hiyori just went through with her Shadow was nothing special then neither was that incident.
It was "something special" because she fucking fainted and had her personas sealed for a fat moment after this, she called Etteila without prompt from us, it messed her up.
Both were situations where the vote led to a situation where Shadow!Hiyori was like "hol' up" and led to their argument breaking through in part to the real world
It was honestly barely an argument, mostly felt like a mini panic attack manifested as her shadow screaming at her while she tries to focus. Back then was a full blown panic attack (hey, progress!).
At the end of that particular update in ALO we had a potential choice to vote on that could have altered Shadow Tag but yet again we did not select it so it never happened as far as the story is concerned. All I'm saying is if "it can't be called a serious internal conflict with Hiyori and her Shadow unless Shadow Tag gets affected" then AFAIK Hiyori has never had a serious conflict with her Shadow, including that time, because if you just look at the votes that have won we've never selected in a manner where Shadow Tag went up. The only winning vote that ever altered it in any direction it was TRAITOR 3 which reduced it.
We, indeed did not really have a serious argument with our shadow since traitor 3. The reduction was because Hiyori decided that she didn't want to argue with her shadow- i.e herself- and wanted to become one. Since then our shadow is just not an entity of her own, just manifestation of our current psyche since they haven't reconciled fully.
Lugh essentially recommended that we "forget" PoH (ie the walk out option... but presumably at the next critical juncture we have with PoH and/or if Hiyori reflects on it)
And anyways, PoH is bad for Hiyori's mental health but even walking away won't save us from him- we can't ignore reality, he's involved. We either take him out (preferably with no witnesses i.e Hydra) or we put an eye on him. Hiyori chose to save the world y'know, pain and suffering comes with the territory.
The shadow here acting as the Id. It wants immediate action, snap decisions, it cares less what those decisions are as much as it cares about the momentum of making them and giving in to some base level impuse.
Lugh asked if you'd be willing to kill. You couldn't decide. And now you have PoH right here. You have the capabilities. You have the firepower! You have the Black Star! If not in the Derby, then when!? You gonna wait for Kayaba Akihiko to solve it for you!?
The capacity to kill leads to the shadow's desire to push us to a decision, but the act isn't that simple. It's a matter of not just who, but why. Should PoH become an obstacle or a threat I am not against Hiyori killing him, but premeditation or passing the job to another unstable individual falls outside of how I want the character to grow.
I will agree with Alcor that it's bad for Hiyori's emotions state at present, but that's the uncomfortable situation or alliances have put us in.
Lugh sets down his cup. He looks gentler— older. More his age. "On the contrary. For old-timers like me, giving advice is one of our sole pleasures. So if you are in the mood, please allow me to indulge."
As someone who's not overly attached to Lugh mechanically, I am actually quite attached to him socially or as a friend. Aside from any overhanging threats, he seems to genuinely care for us and has been quite helpful in Hiyori's growth.
"Kuro, one last bit of advice. No... maybe it's better phrased as a warning. You decided to work with us, and for that I am thankful. But you didn't decide to join us. You didn't decide to trust us. You are not one of us. See that it stays that way."
I take his dialog this update goes to show that we probably picked the best option available to us. We successfully navigated around both tying ourselves further to people even Lugh agrees we shouldn't be embedding ourselves with long term and Hiyori falling down a much darker mindset.
And you're down two whole plushies. Kuma-kun was bear napped and Kiba-chan has gone to a more pure land. But there was this penguin you saw in Shibuya and it was too cute to let go...
The prophecy is true, after 197 pages of waiting the new Heir has been chosen! All Hail Peng-chan the Pengu! Lord of the Oceans, Queen of Ice Caps, she who alone holds back the Sea from swallowing Japan. Long may she remain soft and perfectly plush!
Iirc, that was because we made the absolutely brilliant reason to put the Death Gun to our head after spending weeks saying how bad it was. And even the antagonist at the time was baffled. So our shadow would naturally have a problem.
I'm pretty sure it was a bait option alongside pulling the trigger or trusting ""Rossa"" as a consequence of misplays.
I actually wonder if recommending to Miller to take PoH off the op because he would likely take Akihiko's offer would have been the best idea. Even if Miller wouldn't likely follow through, it would definitively say that we are against him, without relying on an equally scummy party to follow through on a backstabbing plot, or just walking away with nothing (which makes our efforts sort of wasted, and sets up future problems).
Iirc, that was because we made the absolutely brilliant reason to put the Death Gun to our head after spending weeks saying how bad it was. And even the antagonist at the time was baffled. So our shadow would naturally have a problem.
I'm pretty sure it was a bait option alongside pulling the trigger or trusting ""Rossa"" as a consequence of misplays.
I actually wonder if recommending to Miller to take PoH off the op because he would likely take Akihiko's offer would have been the best idea. Even if Miller wouldn't likely follow through, it would definitively say that we are against him, without relying on an equally scummy party to follow through on a backstabbing plot, or just walking away with nothing (which makes our efforts sort of wasted, and sets up future problems).
The thing is I don't think PoH is going to betray anyone here. Both because Pete's writing him as someone who's smart enough to realize how bad an idea that is and because the real world can easily give him what he desires most; to manipulate others into killing people. Him being alone in a fake world filled with NPCs would actually be a real turn off for him. He also seems to be taking sadistic glee in being the 'good guy' and rubbing it in. This whole thing is hilarious to him and he isn't giving up the joke.
Just as a general comment, no individual character is a QM mouthpiece. At the same time, as the author, every character is technically a QM mouthpiece.
Shadow Hiyori being mad that effectively the 'Neutral' option won is not a reflection of it being the wrong choice. I actually added the Lugh scene (wasn't in first draft) to explicitly call out that Lugh sees the choice as the best possible one. It's just one Shadow Hiyori dislikes enough that your 'fusion' broke down briefly. Shadow Hiyori is about moving forward without caring what's behind her. It's why Shadow Hiyori has been so anti-Rossa the few times she's shown up. That doesn't mean it's the 'right' choice, it's just one perspective.
There are things I will not let Hiyori do. But I disagree in principle at least for a quest that PCs should stay 'in character'. I hope the character is informed by the choices, and not vice versa. Partly the whole 'Shadow-Hiyori' idea is that it's useful narratively for me to justify any choice as potentially 'in-character'.
Also I didn't want to comment on the two big 'write-in' moments before but I don't want people to argue back and forth. I had that in my last quest and I really didn't manage that well, I'd rather not repeat it again.
To be explict, let me tell you my thoughts on the two big 'write in' moments. First is the whole implication of offering suicide when speaking with Asuna. When I saw the write in on my update notes I think I wrote something like 'lux tries to convince Asuna, but she still is untrustworthy' or something like that. Basically when I do an update I usually cribsheet it first (A needs to happen, drag in these details, blah, blah) and then I start the actual process.
It was only when I was staring at the page trying to write combat dialogue that I realized... wait a second. This ties explicitly into this subtextual characterization I've been skirting around all fic. And then I made the write in the focus of the next update.
This also applies to the 'use the Black Star' moment in the Pito fight. When I was writing the fight the ending I had envisioned was the Rosa option. Kuro sacrifices herself to the doom laser, it reinforces a character conflict I can use in the OS arc, etc. I did have a 'use Black Star' plan preset, and I had envisioned it as Kuro taking off the gloves, giving into power and using Ash Nazg to mind control everyone (sorta like a, I am sick of all of you, now sit down) moment.
When the big laser option won I was just rolling dice for stats when I realized wait a second, did we just vote to use the big evil macguffin to try to pull off a sacrifical ploy?
In summary, as the QM, these moments are very exciting for ME as I get to plumb the character more. But I imagine they can be frustrating for the players. There's always going to be some push and pull. I'm aware there's a ton of tone whiplash in this quest, some by design, much of it not. There's whole essays of postmortems I can write, but I'll save that if I actually reach the finish line.
I'm not going to chicken out and do a 'whooooo knows this MIGHT be a good ending if you play well enough!' bullshit. I plan on there being a good ending. It may be a ETTEILLA coated one, it may be a PHILEMON coated one. It may be something in the middle. The details may change and the degree of things may change, but I don't have it in me to pull off a grimdark apocalypse.
I bring this up because I anticipate the next vote may be a rough one. I strongly believe in questing as a medium, and I'm still figuring out my style. I'm not smart nor detail oriented enough to run a full simulationist quest. I have a personal dislike of just... raw power fantasy quests. I am going for a Persona/SAO story. A story with light hearted elements, with dark elements and a ton of the intersection between philosophy and tech.
So I'm fine with debate here and there, but please remember everyone in this quest are ultimately paper puppets dancing in one isekai-addled brain. So you know... "Let's all have fun and play together!!"
Also I can comment on GGO now that all the actual PLAN stuff is settled. All in all: 7 Bullets was a mistake. =/
Like for ALO I deliberately, when planning, told myself... no complicated multi-tiered GOT style nonsense. I tried that with the SRW quest cause those type of Kudzu plots from the stories I loved the most were what I was trying to emulate. But I was not confident going into ALO so I decided to keep things simple. I was going to have a Sauron, he was going to sit on Mt. Doom and absolutely nothing would make him descend. I happily and gleefully handed OBERON an Idiot Ball the size of Narnia and told myself that if you can't plan a quest around a villain this simple, you should not be a QM at all.
For GGO I decided to go back to what I wanted to write. No like 15 different evil conspiracies stuff I had in SRW but reduced in scope but not in concept. 7 competing conspiracies, each individually very simple, becoming complicated as they weaved around. That was the idea, at least.
But like now? I've officially attempted this type of plot structure twice and I've come to believe that well... it just doesn't work well for quests. It leads to this thing where you beat up one problem you pretty much IMMEDIATELY move to the next problem. It leads to problems with pacing and definitely with planning.
Like consider this. We used up like... half a dozen? Updates on the Pitohui plotline. I was pretty much ready to have that fight happen the moment Kayaba infodumped her backstory. Some of the later updates included fight-specific mechanics. Like I had an 'M-Plot' planned for the Pito fight. Originally it was going to be the NG Switcheroo thing. But I cannabilized it to use in an update that probably didn't need to happen, and you get the booby trapped mercenary instead.
Frankly I struggle to remember why I offered so many Pito options. I didn't like writing them, Pito has very, very little beef with Hiyori, and you're basically just LLENN's sidekick for the whole arc which I dislike. If I could go back in time I'd just cut AGGO entirely. Maybe make the First Bullet BAZALT JOE and the tragedy of his DEAD TALKING POLICE CAR (This is BAZALT JOE's canon backstory and I love it so much and I hate that I decided to cut him).
Comparably Kyouji was like... 2 updates? I didn't expect you to just immediately hit the 'fight' button when you did. I had stuff planned like raiding his house and scenes with his father (I spent a ton of effort on this guy!) leading to a XaXa face to face confrontation...
Ironically I do really like how Kyouji came out. It helped that I had the general idea of his fight planned from minute one (LAPLACE's many, many insults she uses on Kyouji were explicilty scatalogical). And I actually really liked the "arrest XaXa" option. I had things planned that XaXa's backup would be log in with a NerveGear and refuse to log out, literally forcing him to stay a threat in the story. But then I'm like...
Kiks aint' an idiot. You did not vote to send in Itami (who would've fucked it up). You didn't vote to go yourself. You voted to flashbang his room. There's on way Kiks, who literally deals in VR crimes, would not have considered XaXa forcing himself into a dive. So I had XaXa arrested without any complication and I really like it. It feels like a fitting end for XaXa, even more so than a dramatic confrontation.
...
Well, anyways, that was just me rambling. I'm planning OS, but also planning another quest, so things are liable to slow down. OS should be more concise if only because I do not plan there being many subplots.
Arc 4 is the big kahuna. The finale. It's the arc I am by far the most excited to write but most scared about pulling it off. I've been dreaming about the Quinella fight since the moment this quest started, it was literally one of the first things I had in mind when I this whole can of worms came into fruition. Hope to see you all around then.
You find Yakutani in his natural state— working. There's a towering coffee cup set onto an empty seat, the pharmacist typing on his laptop even as he waits for you in the hospital lobby. You have your NerveGear in a gym bag, the contraband hastily retrieved from the hospital bed you last dived in. For what's about to happen, you suspect you'll need it.
"Yakutani-sensei?" He looks the same— eyes sunken, a pale complexion, bags under his eyes. Only marginally less dead than last time.
"I'm glad you made it," he says, looking up from his laptop. "There's no time to waste. Come with me."
He takes you through the bowels of the hospital, the hallways growing less and less populated as you go. You follow him down a staircase, past the main floor, and into a basement. A sign indicates the door leads to a restricted section, and Yakutani scans his ID.
The doors slide open, and the lights illuminate the room. You've never been here, but the layout— the atmosphere is familiar. Sterile air, exposed wires, and electronics humming quietly in the background. You've seen the like in RATH's Roppongi branch. This was no hospital ward.
This was a laboratory.
"What is this place?"
"An extension of the research wing, built to test the Medicuboid." Yakutani motions around the room, a series of computer terminals and a single machine behind dark and tinted glass. He slowly reaches for a switch, and the lights come on.
A behemoth of steel and polymer, a hulking steel cage that stretches from ceiling to floor. The logo of RATH lies etched into the side, as if this creation was something to be proud of. Hundreds of wires connect the device to a series of monitors, and at the bottom of the structure, like a monster swallowing its victim, is a single, frail-looking corpse.
No... there's breathing. Slow but steady. So faint you're worried it's your imagination.
You've never seen this. Cayna didn't want you to see it. Yuuki didn't want you to see it.
This is the Medicuboid.
The prototype «Soul Translator».
This is Yuuki Konno.
"Medicine rarely looks pretty," Yakutani remarks, noticing your horror.
"I knew she was sick but..." you had more muscle on you after waking up in SAO. This is the shell of the warrior that you know as the «Absolute Sword». There's a half dozen catheters and tubes running in and out of her body, and you struggle to pinpoint where the girl ended and the machine began.
"Recently a certain individual has taken an interest in her case." Yakutani explains as you put your hand up against the glass. "The RECT heiress, Asuna-san, has managed to negotiate with the Medicuboid clinical trial team and the hospital ethics board. They agreed to allow me to begin treatment while keeping her in Fulldive."
You recall the previous argument. Yakutani wanted Yuuki off the Medicuboid in order to participate in his clinical trial. Kurahashi, Yuuki's main doctor, wanted to keep her enrolled in the Medicuboid.
"So Asuna just... fixed that?"
Yakutani visibly sours, "The clinical trial team was dissatisfied. I..." he rubs his glasses. "Was also against a combined approach. Simply put, the presence of the Medicuboid alone means any information we glean from the clinical trial will be contaminated— the Medicuboid is so under wraps they won't let me access the specs. It's impossible to control for—"
"I don't care about the experiments. I doubt Asuna cares either," you snap. "What happened?"
The pharmacist looks away. "It's simple. I started the medicine. She did not take it well."
Your eyes widen.
"...wasn't it supposed to help her...?"
"It's an experimental medicine. It's making progress in wiping out the disease, certainly, but it's caused an immune complex buildup leading to a serum—"
The words drone in and out of your ears. Jargon you can't comprehend. The medicine didn't work, it effectively made Yuuki's condition worse.
"...which brings us to here. I've adjusted the dosages, and I've recommended a new treatment plan. There's an additional chemotherapy agent that I hope can help blunt the symptoms."
You look at the pharmacist under a different light. He said this was a trial. You... you didn't realize that meant...
"Y—you have no idea if any of this will work. This could have killed her."
There's no guilt, no shame, and no pride. You know that he nearly worked himself to death on this. Death is a matter of course in his line of work and you can tell he isn't even surprised. "Many people die during clinical trials. Sometimes because of the medicine, sometimes because the disease is simply too far gone. Too conservative, and nothing is gained. Too aggressive and..."
The medicine becomes poison. And because it's a new drug, that threshold is uncertain.
"I need to know if Yuuki wants to continue. Asuna-san has urged her to continue with my treatment. It remains her best chance. Yuuki's other friends see the best hope in the final stages of the Medicuboid project— whatever that happens to be. Unfortunately, Yuuki has been in Dive since her condition worsened— and she has refused to log out."
You stare at the pharmacist. "Then log in and talk to her."
"We have tried. She is not interested. Last we communicated I indicated that Medicuboid disconnection is non-negotiable, this complication could've been caught much earlier if her body wasn't kept in full paralysis. Because of that machine, we can't even lay hands on her, much less..." He shakes his head. "Suffice to say, Asuna-san's balanced approach must end. Yuuki has asked for more time to decide. Time she does not have."
He brings you over to a dive room, and you find an outlet to plug in your NerveGear. Yakutani raises an eyebrow at the device but doesn't press. He gestures over to the adjacent room. "I believe Asuna-san can tell you more about the specifics once you dive, she should be waiting for you in «Serene Garden». I called you here early in the morning to get you in before the Medicuboid team arrives. Once they're here, they'll likely kick you off."
"...what do I even tell her?
Yakutani sighs, a bitter smile forming on his lips. "Tell her that if she continues with the medicine she will likely still die. If she agrees to disconnect, there is a slight chance she will live, one I cannot quantify. If she cannot decide please log her off, she needs to realize what's become of her body. And finally..."
"And finally?"
He stares at the ceiling, a thousand-yard stare. "That come what may, the decision is hers to make."
"And there we were, staring down «Siegwurm the Sky Ruler», the golden wyrm itself! Its roar shattered mountaintops and its flaming breath evaporated whole oceans! Hehe, of course it thought us all just ants— but little did Siegwrum know, that we «Sleeping Knights» have felled a golden dragon before!"
You log in to find Yuuki in her element. She's standing on top of a small stage, a makeshift podium, her hands waving and her voice booming as a group of children surround her.
"The wind pressure was immense! Lightning burst out between the scales! But we all clung on with all our might!" She holds her hands together. "The dragon took to the sky!" Yuuki thrusts her arm upwards. "Flying higher and higher, trying to choke us out! But it was flying right into a trap!"
Asuna was waiting for you here, or so you were told. It's been months since you freed her from ALO, and you've not spoken a word to her since. You feel a feather deep within your soul resonate at the very thought but you try to suppress the feeling. Not the time for this. You're here for Yuuki, and you've heard she's been glued to Asuna's hip since her rescue.
Now where was she...?
"Then Talken dropped the Gravity Bomb! The thing was suddenly as buoyant as a brick— but we weren't following. Nope, we had already let go, airborne for just a teensy bit longer than the dragon..."
You decide to push through the crowd. You're here to at least force a decision and—
"Let her finish."
A hand on your shoulder, a whisper in your ear. One you've heard many times before.
"...Cayna?"
She's in an approximation of the Sylph avatar that you first met her as. Kuu, her private pixie, gives you a small wave before hiding behind Cayna's short blonde hair. She doesn't seem entirely pleased to see you here.
"Let Yuuki have this moment. What she's not telling is the part where we had to redo the prerequisite quest chain a dozen times per day just to get enough attempts at that dragon to pull it off. God, I can hear the quest dialogue in my sleep."
"Where's Asuna?"
Cayna shrugs. "I logged her off."
"You... did?"
"She's a wreck. Has been since we rescued her. Talking to her isn't going to be healthy for you, Lux. She's not getting enough sleep, pushing through rehab far too quickly. She's been on the warpath with like... everything."
Cayna pauses for a moment. "Asuna's been a great friend to Yuuki, but she isn't seeing the full picture. Yuuki hasn't exactly been all that good about holding secrets, and Asuna... well she found out about RATH. That boy, Kirito, whom you and Yuuki saw at the end of ALO? Asuna suspects he's tied to RATH."
"It's true."
Cayna doesn't look surprised. Instead, she looks tired. "And of course you're digging too. Lux, I've told you before. RATH are trying to help. They're trying to save us."
Higa Takeru. By all accounts he likely thought of himself as a 'good person'. After your conversation with him certain realities have crystallized. This «Soul Translator», Yuuki's entire experiment, was a brain upload project. One that was little more than Fluctlight Duplication. And then there's Nanairo-sensei and Higa's theory... even Shigemura-sensei...
Fluctlights are connected. In isolation they are prone to destabilization.
But together...
"Cayna... what did they promise you?"
Cayna's eyes narrow. "A solution. It will help Yuuki. It will help everyone."
"...Do you intend on going with her?"
She doesn't answer. You feel pressure boiling within her, and you're hit with a premonition. That maybe... you should be ready to defend yourself.
"Do you know what it's like to be... living in a body that's become your coffin? To not know if the next day will be the day you never wake up? That even if you do... all you have to look forward to is pain, testing, and the stares of doctors who are only there because they're being paid?"
You can't say anything.
"Lux. All that awaits out there for us is... decay, agony and death. That's all the hope the doctors can promise. That's why Yuuki is our... hope. You... you can call me selfish. I can't refute that. But this is... the best choice for Yuuki as well."
"...then what? Am I supposed to just let this happen?"
"Yes. No more experiments, and more importantly, no more pain. Yuuki spends what time she has... here. Where she belongs." She gestures out towards the eternal summer afternoon that is «Serene Garden», but you know she's not just referring to this single slice of paradise. "I want her worrying about dragons and krakens. Duels and adventure. Not needles, catheters and machines. So that when it's finally time she's in peace, and her soul will be ready..."
"To be harvested. For RATH."
"For what comes next." Cayna doesn't meet your eyes. "You sound just like Asuna. You all want Yuuki to fight, but it's not you nor Asuna who will be doing the fighting. It'll be Yuuki. Every day against the pain and uncertainty."
"I want to talk to her."
"You want to log her off. I know you can force her. I can't let you do that."
"I'm not here to argue." You call it from within your soul. Even this Garden is virtual.
System Call: Incarnate PERSONA [Urmetazoan]. ReferenceID:07.Droit
"Neither am I." And Cayna raises her hand.
System Call: ERROR COMMAND NOT RECOGNIZED ERROR
GATEWAY TIMEOUT ERROR 504: FLID 043 took too long to respond. Main Visualizer could not be reached. Entering safety mode.
A golden light washes through you, a warm, welcoming glow. It feels like waking up in the morning, the same light that engulfed you the day SAO was finally cleared. The effect courses through your body, but your avatar flickers, the strange energy finding no purchase into writhing flesh. This worm made of feather, sinew and everything else wriggles around your neck like a scarf, the GM command dissipating against its body.
"...is that a new one?"
"Yeah. Used to be the mountain eating Persona. Got a bit weaker in the process but..." you turn towards Cayna, who just tried to log you off. "It has its uses."
You stare each other down, the children in the background still absorbed in the story. You... you expected things to go like this. Cayna has been with RATH from the beginning. It took you till now to realize but she's been systematically blocking every attempt Asuna's made to talk with you.
"RATH does not have her best interests in mind."
"Do you?"
"Are you even considering what Yuuki would want?"
"She's family. This is as much her choice as it is mine."
"You're her prison guard."
"I'm trying to save—"
"HEY! Are you two fighting!?" The two of you stop. Yuuki's zipped over, a curious pout on her face, a small horde of children behind her. Cayna turns away at the same time you do.
"It's not a fight—"
"—we're just talking."
"Well stop talking and come listen! Lux, you're missing the show! Hehe, boy you should've joined SLF while you had the chance. With you on our side those jerks wouldn't stolen the first Colossi kill from us!" Yuuki's glowing, the vibrant smile on her face almost too perfect.
"Yuuki..."
She recognizes something from your expression. She shrinks in place. "Oh. You um... you're not here to congratulate me on defeating «Siegwurm the Sky Ruler» are you..."
"I'm not."
"So... you two really were fighting."
Cayna coughs, looking away. "It's nothing. Lux was just leaving."
"No, I wasn't. Yuuki I just... I just want you to realize the position that you're in."
Yuuki frowns. "The position I'm in...?"
"Nothing's changed," Cayna quickly adds. "Everything will work out. You can stay here with us forever."
"You are seriously downplaying—"
"ARGH! No." Yuuki jumps between you, her arms crossed, and a look of irritation on her face. "No. Fighting! You know what? I don't think any of are you are going to listen! HEY! EVERYONE COME QUICKLY!"
Before you can stop her, dozens of heads pop up, children, the elderly, it seems that half of «Serene Garden» here to watch. Yuuki gestures like a circus ringleader, and they're all drawn in, forming a crowd around Cayna.
"This is Cayna the «Sleeping Knight»'s strategist and the mastermind behind our entire guild! If it wasn't for her we wouldn't even have the opportunity to kill Siegwurm! Come give her a big round of applause!"
There's a thunderous applause, the crowd pushing themselves into Cayna, the girl's cheeks reddening, "Wh— what is this? Hey. Wait. Hold on—"
Yuuki grabs your wrist, pulling you down the hill, yelling back to the crowd for a final time.
"After we plunged Siegwurm to the ground, he revealed his secret weapon! We had only just conquered the first phase! He roared in challenge and he... uh... he vomited out a big sword and started swinging it at us! Then he set everything on fire! And Cayna, she was like, 'Now it's time to get serious!' And then she unleashed her FINAL FORM!"
The audience's eyes widen. The air fills with a thousand questions as Yuuki pulls you away from the mob.
"W—where are we going...?"
"Hehe, a secret place!"
THURSDAY - July 10th, 2025
????
You don't know when you started falling. One moment you were running downhill, the next your foot stumbled and your heart dropped, Yuuki laughing and running in the air ahead of you. She takes your hand, the two of you falling together.
You break through «Serene Garden».
The world becomes a kaleidoscope. The sun and moon swap places. Stars swirl around like raindrops. Yuuki laughing as she spins around you.
"WOOOOOO!"
It's not just the sky. Visions pass by you— a land bathed in twilight, filled with sound of gunfire— a shadow a tree ruptured and burning into embers— a crumbling golden castle— you pass by these and a dozen others, a hundred others, until your feet touch solid ground once more.
"Tadaaaaaaa~!"
Your hands grasp sand. Your eyes slowly adjust to the dim light. You find yourself standing upon a beach, the ocean around you black and endless. And behind you, a city of marble, its spires stretching upwards like a pillar connecting heaven and earth.
You are... in a dream. Celephais behind you, the shores of Innsmouth ahead.
"Whoooaaa. Never been to this part before," Yuuki sits on the sand, staring into the distance. "This place looks trippy. You've been here before, Lux?"
You cough, righting yourself, "I... um. Yes." You have been here before. You even find IGOR's lounge chair, half buried in the sand, a ways down the beach. "How did you bring us here?"
"Hmm... I think I was playing Insectsite? I fell through a crack in a wall or something? Once I did it the first time, it was kinda easy to just keep falling."
She points up at the sky, at the glittering stars that number near hundreds. Was every single one of them a VR game?
"Is this the world underneath?" you ask. "You mentioned that all the VR worlds were just... islands on top of this place?"
Yuuki experimentally dips her toes in the black ocean, recoiling. "Cold!" she yelps, hopping up and down. "Uh... I don't think so? This is another layer, the shape of what this place used to look like. The core is even deeper. I don't really get it, even after this weird goblin explained it to me. I think he called it the um..."
"The Sea of Souls? The Collective Unconsciousness? The Metaverse?"
Yuuki shakes her head, "Uh, nothing so cool sounding. This is the um... the Dreamlands?"
The «Dreamlands». The shape of the collective unconscious as it stands. Raw dream from which all VR worlds are shaped. This is what connects them. And underneath is something even greater. Every joy, every sorrow, they were all just here. In the dream.
You sit down on the sand beside her, taking in the familiar sights. This place is how Yuuki was so certain she could reach you in ALO even if you banned her from coming. You suspect so long as she's familiar enough with the setting, and has the imagination to reach across worlds, there was no barrier she could circumvent.
"I don't get the tech stuff, Lux." Yuuki says after a time. "The uh, the SEED I guess, takes a bit of this dream..." she lets the sand run through her fingers. "And lets it up as a star in the sky. All that log in stuff is just so you know which dream to use."
A hundred lights twinkle across the sky, and you note not how many there are but how few. There is room aplenty in the sky for not just a hundred stars but... billions.
"You... figured this all out yourself?"
"Hey, I can be smart sometimes," she chuckles. "But really I think I've just had a lot of experience. Came naturally!"
Yuuki wasn't stolen away like you were. She's been in a near continuous 24/7 dive for as long as the technology was possible. She was... a true child of VR. This was her home far more than the real world ever was.
"...Asuna asked you to log me off. Right?"
You flinch. "I haven't talked to her yet. I think Cayna is trying to keep us apart."
Yuuki sighs. "I knew it. Cayna's just worried. Don't be mad at her, please?" She looks out at the sea, her feet digging into the sand. "You're looking at me differently. Everyone does once they uh... they see that."
The corpse, the machine. Everything.
"I managed to hide it from Asuna for a pretty good while. We had a ton of fun together! I got her to play SLF and she's kicking ass— but she found out about that a few weeks ago. It's all she's focused on now. She's... um. A bit mad at me."
"...you hid your condition from her?"
"Hehe, well... yeah. It was nice to have someone who wasn't... well, so worried all the time. Lux... just... everyone is so kind. I know that I'm lucky, to be getting all this attention. A world famous scientist, all this medical equipment, people like you and Asuna, Cayna..."
Yuuki crouches on the sand, her legs in her arms. There's only question you need to ask.
"What... what do you want to do Yuuki?"
There's a moment of silence. Yuuki's head turns, and you're no longer seeing the invincible Absolute Sword anymore. The confidence melts away. She's younger than even you are. She's been through so much... and you know from experience.
You can pretend, you can struggle.
But you can't be strong forever.
"...I'm really sick of that question."
Her voice is so soft you barely hear her. She waves her hand on the sand, a wind swirling up around her and carrying the grains. They float about her, forming into a figure, then two. Ones you recognize.
"Ever since I fought OBERON I figured out the trick. If I just wish it hard enough, I can see them again. Whenever I want. They can laugh with me, scold me, they can tell me stories. Sometimes I can forget."
A green haired ninja formed from the sand of the dream crouches down and puts her hand on Yuuki's shoulder. A girl bearing Yuuki's face in a shrine maiden's robes holds Yuuki in her chest.
Their mouths are moving. You can't hear what they're saying. But you know Yuuki can.
"I know they're not real. I know..." Yuuki mumbles, the words spilling out. "They're just... memories. And well... I think that's what I am too. I've been between the hospital and... here. I've never been in this Real World you and Asuna keep going on about... so why shouldn't I just become my own memories?"
The sisters close in and Yuuki collapses in their embrace.
"When I leave the machine it hurts. It's like I'm playing the worst game ever. 0/10 on the Yuuki scale."
Yuuki's eyes meet yours.
"Asuna doesn't trust RATH. You don't either. I know that there's no promise they can keep. They could be lying about everything. Maybe what comes out the other end won't be me... but it'd still be from me. Yuuki 2.0. Someone who can do everything I can't, who can live when I can't."
She stands up. The sands swirl around her, the Incarnation of Ran and Merida vanishing. The lights of Celephais shine brilliantly behind her.
"The place RATH will send me, it's beneath us right now. The fundamental bottom layer— the «Underworld»." She blushes a bit. "And Asuna's uh, husband, is trapped there. I gotta go and sock him for leaving a beautiful bride behind! Hehe." She lights up, hands reaching for the stars. "I want to give hope to Cayna, to the rest of the «Sleeping Knights» who aren't as lucky as me. I want to keep exploring new worlds. I want the «Absolute Sword» to become legendary across all worlds!"
The hand drops. She looks back out at the ocean, the black water sapping her joy in an instant. Her next words are so soft you barely hear them.
"I... want to go to school. I want feel the sun on my skin, the rain in my hair....I don't want Asuna to cry. I don't want you worry. I... I don't want the pain. I... I don't want to forget Ran and Merida. I... I don't want to die..."
A sob escapes her.
"I want to see my sister again. I want to apologize to Merida. I want... I want everyone to be happy. I... just want a happy ending."
You stand, and embrace her. You can feel her shivering. You can feel tears rolling down her cheeks. The Real World cannot offer her this comfort, you can't even hold her there. Only the dream.
"Asuna... she wants me to fight. Cayna wants me to stay here..."
Yuuki's sister sacrificed her own position as the research subject for Yuuki. Anything for better odds, anything to keep on fighting.
Yuuki's parents enrolled her into the Medicuboid trial because they saw no future for her in the real world.
Yakutani sees not just Yuuki but all the data her treatment could generate.
And RATH... sees something far grander than even that.
"I'm... I'm sick of acting strong. Lux. Please. What do you think... what would Merida do..."
The Knight who would've joined SAO. The Knight who wanted to burn her life bright, but ultimately decided to sacrifice that dream to stay with her friend. A part of her is within you, and Yuuki senses it. Even her Incarnation of her friend cannot give her the answer, because it is not her. Merida is dead. You can't be Merida.
But you know what Yuuki's asking.
Yuuki cannot decide. She's gotten used to others deciding for her.
She's asking you to take this choice away from her. She would consider it a mercy.
...
What do you do?
[ ] Leave This is not a decision you can make for her. No matter how much she may want you to.
[ ] Log her off. She cannot do it herself. So you will let her go in the light.
[ ] Tell her to stay. She has friends who miss her.
[ ] Write-In
THURSDAY - July 10th, 2025
Velvet Room
You hold it within your soul— the beating heart of a new world. There is nothing for her in the twisted old world. Nothing for you. Nothing for the souls she carries within her heart. Peer within and see the potential beyond the horizon.
The Absolute Sword will wander the heavens. She will take from each friends and partners, and leave behind only smiles and joy. Perhaps she will cross into the new worlds of her friends, perhaps she will find peace. And perhaps the Sleeping Knight will awaken and find her journey will never end. It is a choice MANKIND will make, and one she will make with a smile. It is a far better choice than the one this twisted world now demands from her.
If they wish it her friends can be there with her. You can be there with her. Each horizon a new adventure, a new triumph. You will need not contend with chaos— only dragons and giants. There will be struggle but never despair. There will be conflict but never hate. It is nothing less than a life, shining brilliantly, across the sky.
There are some who can envision only one dream. You who hold this brilliant SEED that seeks to sprout in new worlds hold something truly precious. There is a happy ending awaiting for MANKIND, you need but guide her to it. HEAVEN awaits you both.
>The light of MANKIND's SEED is growing more brilliant.
>Archetype [Reader] is solidifying! Alice now gains +1 ADVANTAGE when used in any write-in plan or action that Kuro performs in accordance with her Archetype!
>The QM will likely change this bonus once he thinks of a better idea. For now we'll just stick with this type of basic upgrade.
I will be blunt, since I really like Yuuki and I do not want this to be about, well... about medicine. And trolleys. I really don't want this to be about trolleys.
I will not be so crass as to roll a dice to determine if Yuuki dies of her vague disease of vagueness. I am not entirely satisfied with how SAO depicted AIDS, a topic I have some expertise in, hence I decided early to just make her suffer from the fictional disease of Crawforde-Ende Disease. But fundamentally that means I can make her disease do whatever the fuck I want it to, up to and including Deus Ex Machinaing it to be better or worse, whenever I want.
So I think it's only fair that I be clear about what will happen.
As I currently have her mental state, Yuuki will default to sticking with RATH if left to her own devices. This is more a reflection that she has more people telling her to go that direction than people telling her otherwise (and it lets me use her in the UW arc).
Choosing not to choose is a legitimate answer here. But I wanted to be clear what Yuuki's default choice is.
If Yuuki takes Yakutani's Plan her condition will stabilize. She will be in her 'Gameverse' condition. That is: vaguely better, but not cured. Her ultimate fate will not be clarified in the text, even in epilogues... and I believe in death of the author. Textually her disease state was written to be up in the air, not in a 'I'll figure it out later'. But in a 'this uncertainty is a core part of her arc' kind of a way. There's an inescapable fog of uncertainty when it comes to medical decisions, from both sides of the bed. I want to reflect that. So textually whether Yuuki is ultimately cured will be kept vague.
But yes, in my mental model, by WOG, accepted to the same degree as kids in Harry Potter pooping their pants, Yuuki will survive and thrive.
Vote for what you think is thematically appropriate. Do not think that either vote means you are voting to a kill a person. That will not happen. I do not want this to be a trolley problem with extra steps.
I agree but she just doesn't have it in her to make an informed decision...
This is the most justified we'll ever get using Star Child Kirito, will make her understand the situation and maybe even make a decision on her own, but:
1. she'll blab to Asuna about it
2. Its still really fucked to do it to him...
[X] Log her off.
[X] Write-in: What lies at the end of that road
Whether the circumstance is shaped through fate, fortune or choice, isn't it still about abandoning the real for the ideal? It feels insensitive to even pick, but I don't like the endless dream that Phil is offering.
Hmm, I find myself in a tough position because I think this should be Yuuki's decision but I also feel Cayna has kinda gaslighted her into defaulting to RATH. Yuuki's insightful enough to know that Cayna is hiding things so it's not like she's unaware of the situation but it's an imbalance on the scale that leaves me a bit uncomfortable just having Lux leave (also that seems kinda mean - though I assume it's not abruptly literal.)
If forced to pick one of the 3 default options, I would very hesitantly lean towards Log Out, I think... but really I'd rather write-in with Lux advocating for it but ultimately leaving it to Yuuki. I guess whether it succeeds in convincing Yuuki would come down to how she takes it (or maybe it resolves as a Log Out vote because even if we're not literally logging her out she asked our thoughts and we'd be choosing a side) so I don't really know how it would resolve and I'm okay with that and seeing what the next update brings.
This could probably definitely be improved but a "first draft off the top of my head type thing"
[X]Plan: The Yuuki in Front of Me
-[X]Write-In
--[X]"You're not just a memory, Yuuki. You're a kind, upbeat, maybe-a-bit-too-impulsive-sometimes girl who was dealt a shit hand by the world through no fault of your own. Even if me, Cayna, and Asuna have our arguments about things we can all agree on that - you're our friend. And not just us, there was Shiroe, Gwen, Rain, Seven, those kids in Serene Garden, and probably a whole bunch more in other games I don't even know about that you crossed paths with."
--[X]"You're right that I don't trust RATH. I won't pretend to know all the science either. I don't know if what comes after is still you or Yuuki 2.0 or whatever. All I know is that the Yuuki in front of me is a friend I care about - the only Yuuki I know - and I'm not accepting substitutes. It's selfish, but that's the Yuuki I want to hang out with and talk with."
--[X]"But I can't make that decision for you. I won't. I told you what I think about it, but whatever decision you make I'll support you."
Hmm, I find myself in a tough position because I think this should be Yuuki's decision but I also feel Cayna has kinda gaslighted her into defaulting to RATH. Yuuki's insightful enough to know that Cayna is hiding things so it's not like she's unaware of the situation but it's an imbalance on the scale that leaves me a bit uncomfortable just having Lux leave (also that seems kinda mean - though I assume it's not abruptly literal.)
If forced to pick one of the 3 default options, I would very hesitantly lean towards Log Out, I think... but really I'd rather write-in with Lux advocating for it but ultimately leaving it to Yuuki. I guess whether it succeeds in convincing Yuuki would come down to how she takes it (or maybe it resolves as a Log Out vote because even if we're not literally logging her out she asked our thoughts and we'd be choosing a side) so I don't really know how it would resolve and I'm okay with that and seeing what the next update brings.
This could probably definitely be improved but a "first draft off the top of my head type thing"
[]Plan: The Yuuki in Front of Me
-[]Write-In
--[]"You're not just a memory, Yuuki. You're a kind, upbeat, maybe-a-bit-too-impulsive-sometimes girl who was dealt a shit hand by the world through no fault of your own. Even if me, Cayna, and Asuna have our arguments about things we can all agree on that - you're our friend. And not just us, there was Shiroe, Gwen, Rain, Seven, those kids in Serene Garden, and probably a whole bunch more in other games I don't even know about that you crossed paths with."
--[]"You're right that I don't trust RATH. I won't pretend to know all the science either. I don't know if what comes after is still you or Yuuki 2.0 or whatever. All I know is that the Yuuki in front of me is a friend I care about - the only Yuuki I know - and I'm not accepting substitutes. It's selfish, but that's the Yuuki I want to hang out with and talk with."
--[]"But I can't make that decision for you. I won't. I told you what I think about it, but whatever decision you make I'll support you. After all, we're friends, right?"
I think that without something to shock her out of her mindset, she'll just take the path most of her friends want her to take which is not logging out. If we want to convince her, we'll have to be rough and blunt- that's the vibe I'm getting at least. Tough love.
>"Before you make your choice, there is something you need to see."
>Call up Argo to tell her to urgently come over
>Log in with Cayna, Argo, Yuuki, and Asuna, but don't say what you're going to show them. Just tell them to make every second count.
>Manifest the STAR child.
>"Oh sorry, got to run. I need to send PoH to the Underworld."
>Refuse to elaborate
>Leave
If we wish to persuade her or offer an alternative framing, how about showing her the dream of staying with her friends on the Real side of things, in that context?
If we wish to persuade her or offer an alternative framing, how about showing her the dream of staying with her friends on the Real side of things, in that context?
I think that specific bit is talking about how Yuuki's dream isn't an Another World, but with the rest of the monologue, an actual story in the Dreamlands, of the Absolute Sword and maybe the rest of the dead and alive Sleeping Knights. It feels like a gateway to similar cases.
I don't think there's an argument that can answer with the Real over the Ideal that's rooted on Yuuki's friends and such, because I can't imagine how much has to be risked and endured for any chance to have a happy ending in the Real in their situation, not to mention just how much more can be achieved when reality isn't there. Something like the Yuuki in front of me, that's arguing about the essence of experience, could get you the answer but maybe ineffective on someone who gains so much by just moving on.
Well, if there was ever a time to be dark and edgy...or at least realistic...
[X] Write-in: What lies at the end of that road
-[X] *sigh heavily* "Yuuki, you've just forced me to do something I really don't want to do, but I don't think you'll truly understand the implications of sticking with RATH otherwise."
-[X] *summon the Star Child, pull up a visible stopwatch if possible, and try to keep him coherent as long as you can without subjecting him to status effects*
-[X] *after the Star Child inevitably destabilizes* "As far as I can tell, that's the best RATH has managed so far. A half-formed...thing that can't even stay 'alive' for more than-*check the stopwatch*-five minutes. And yes, it remembers every time it was woken up and then 'died'. Is that what you want 'Yuuki 2.0' to be? A test subject that's endlessly poked and prodded at, unable to escape an endless loop of death and rebirth for uncaring masters, who only want to experiment on it?! WHO DOES THAT REMIND YOU OF?!"
-[X] *take a deep breath to calm yourself down* "It would be no better than living in the real world as you are now. In fact, I argue it would be far, far worse, seeing as you'd essentially lose all control of yourself. I won't let you become something like...that. It would be too cruel. The decision is yours to make, but at least have the courtesy to say it in person, and not through VR."
-[X] *use Magdalene to forcefully log out Yuuki via Hama*
I realized midway through that this might inspire Yuuki to find a way to help during the Underworld arc, but eh, if it's only for that...
And for reference, 'who does that remind you of' if supposed to be referring to Sugou. I also wanted to reference how the only way to 'stabilize' the Star Child would be to subject it to a mind-altering status effect, which makes it even worse in the implications, but a, I don't think Yuuki would be able to appreciate those implications, and b, my write-in was already long enough as is.
