//------------------------------//
// February 28 - 115 days trapped 
// Story: EQG:SAO - Aincrad Asides 
// by Mindrop 
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Real world — February 28 - 115 days trapped inside SAO

Kikuoka Seijirou paid the taxicab driver and exited the cab. He adjusted his suit and walked into the hospital. Unlike Japan's hospitals, this one didn't require visitors to even sign in. It was incredibly insecure. The visiting hour times were also a joke that were easily circumvented. 

However, he was in no need to circumvent them. This was a business trip and his second one to the location. Inside was 8 of the "lucky" international players of SAO. They were trapped just like everyone else. 

Unlike the others, their access to care was different, which was a problem to Japan. It was footing the bill for their care, and the Japanese government required the absolute best for the victims. It wasn't just a ploy to smooth international relations. 

It was Kikuoka Seijirou's job to monitor these 8 victims. Others in the Second Office, the virtual division, of the Ministry of Internal Affair's Telecommunications Bureau looked after the other international players. As part of the SAO Incident Victims Rescue Force, he had the pleasure of a cramped international plane flight to settle things face to face and get accurate updates.

When the game launched, it was international news. And the virtual kidnapping by Akihiko Kayaba was likewise international news. But not all of the international players had family that were aware of the situation. He had been given a list of names of players in the same city. It had been Kikuoka Seijirou's job to call the families and inform them of the situation at hand.

The first family he contacted was for the girl Applejack. He was pleased to learn that seven of the eight players in the city were good friends in the same high school. The news spread quickly to the other families and they successfully got the girls into the best medical center in the city. It was soon discovered that the 8th individual was believed to be with them in the game.

But upon his first visit, in early December, their care was deemed less than satisfactory by his superiors. Medical technology applied in Japan — specifically the special long care gel beds — were not being used. The availability of the beds was severely limited since they were a Japanese enterprise. After his report, his superiors bought and shipped 8 beds to the hospital for use by these patients. One of the long list of things he had to report on was the beds.

He walked into the first room on his list. It didn't require a pass card and the door was open, completely unsecured. But he understood that was how the patient care happened over here. The player's name was Bladescape, but her given name was Sunset Shimmer. The game logs they had access to had her on the 19th Floor, along with the rest of the players who were working to advance the game. That was about all they knew from the logs.

He stopped and adjusted his glasses. The room was occupied by more than Sunset Shimmer, and it wasn't staff or her Doctor, who he would be visiting soon enough. It was two women, both in pant suits. The taller one's pastel hair was quite long and she wore a sun broach. The other had dark hair and a crescent moon pin on her collar.

"Forgive me," Kikuoka said. "I was not anticipating any visitors. How are you two related to the patient?"

The two of them were taken aback by the question. 

"I am Celestia and this is my sister Luna. We visit regularly. They are our students. You must be the man from the Japanese network group."

"Ah," Kikuoka said with a slight nod and a a slight smile on his lips. "And I am, but I work for the Ministry of Internal Affair's Telecommunications Bureau. They are the branch of the Japanese Government that oversees all telecommunications, and in this case, they are in charge of the care for the trapped players. Forgive my bluntness, but isn't it a school day?"

"Yes, it is," Celestia replied. "However, we actually are on a field trip of sorts. The girl's are well loved by all at Canterlot High School. Their friends can take field trips to make sure they know that their friends are near. You have to meet several criteria, like outstanding grades, and you can only come so often on school time, but it is a good way for the students to cope with the uncertainty of the situation."

"It is similar to the approach used by friends and families of those in a coma," Luna added. "We know it is not exactly the same, but we hope that somehow, maybe they can feel their friends love and care when they need it most."

"That is a... interesting approach," Kikuoka replied. "How many students are currently visiting with you?"

"Twenty," Luna stated. "That is the maximum number we allow to come on a trip. I should go check up on them."

Kikuoka stepped aside so Luna could pass and then he walked to the foot of the bed. It was one of the beds sent over. That checked one item off his to-do list. 

"You really care about them," Kikuoka stated. "My understanding of the education system here is that it is rather hands off for teachers. Less investment into each student."

"I don't know how you do things in Japan, but the seven of them are a special group. My sister and I are their school principles, not direct teachers. Our relationships were different that way. But they were well loved by all in the school for some very good reasons. They impacted all of the student body in a positive light."

"I see," Kikuoka nodded. "They certainly seem to hold a special place in your heart. It is sad the number of students who are getting left behind. In Japan, while we offer cram schools, the structure is difficult to get back into if you fall out. For example, all students must take entrance and placement exams for high school, and we have a large number of middle school players who are now left behind, and in a few months their class will move on. And if they hit a year inside, they will not be ready or capable of passing the placement exams and placing into a high school."

Celestia nodded in understanding. "The school district is trying to solve how we will catch them up. They are so close to graduating, but even now, they couldn't make up what they have missed. They would have to repeat the grade. Classes like language credits, economics, and government are not easy to make up."

"Do any of them know Japanese?" 

"None. We understand that much of the game is in English."

"Quite a bit is, but only written, and the players will be speaking Japanese. Yes, they all will be fluent, or mostly fluent, in English, as required by our school system, but the girls should have a firm grip on the Japanese Language by now. Perhaps that helps solve one problem for you."

"Oh, sorry," a new voice said. 

Kikuoka turned to see a girl who looked exactly like one of the others under his watch, the girl named Twilight Sparkle, except she didn't wear glasses. And she was carrying a large book with plenty of papers. A small dog was by her side as well. 

"You look like a twin of one of the students trapped," Kikuoka stated. "But she doesn't have a twin, let alone a sister."

She chuckled nervously. "We get that. A lot. I'm not from the same school. I know them from outside scholastic endeavors. My name is, Starlight. Yes. Starlight Glimmer."

Kikuoka raised his eyebrow as he stared at the girl. She certainly was hiding something, and she was not confident in her name. But he didn't have the resources he had in Japan to verify her identity. As far as he could tell, it didn't actually matter. She posed no immediate risk to the victims under his care. 

"It is good to know that they are well looked after by friends and family," Kikuoka said to Celestia. "My supervisors will like hearing that."

"Have you gotten any closer to figuring out how to free the players?" Starlight Glimmer asked.

"No, we haven't," Kikuoka stated. "It seems Kayaba did effectively rig the entire game to have several dead man switches in the programming."

"Have you tried inserting a reflective shield?" Starlight immediately asked.

"You are working to free them, aren't you," Kikuoka said. It was a statement, not a question. Her nonverbal body language answered it for him. "And yes, we have. But we can't get a material thick enough to stop the burst fully. There isn't enough room in between the head and the NerveGear. The gear needs to be as tight as possible to make a solid connection. All our tests lead to at least partial brain damage. It is significant enough that the method was quickly dismissed. Plus, we can't guarantee that removing them mid game will not damage their minds after the time they have spent connected. And we can't tell how their neural networks are being rearranged either.

"At this point, all we can do is wait and watch their progress as they climb the Floors of Aincrad. We can at least see when they unlock a new Floor. However, they are beyond the highest level the Beta Testers got to. We have no idea what they are facing."

"How far are they?" She asked.

Kikuoka sighed. "I'm not allowed to say. In fact, I already said too much. The status of the players is confidential."

"They aren't very far then," she sighed, hugging her book tightly. Her dog put his paw on her leg for support. It was like it completely understood them. 

Celestia spoke up. "I understand the need for discretion, but can you at least tell us if they are together?"

Kikuoka gave a slow nod. "From the intermittent location data the server provides us, all seven of the girls are together."

"And Poly Stitch?" Starlight Glimmer asked. 

Kikuoka had no idea why she was concerned with the other victim, but her concern was evident. He decided to answer. "She is also with them."

Both women were relieved to hear that. 

"Actually, since I have you both here, can I ask you some questions? My supervisors would love to get a better handle on the social situation here. They believe the support of friends and family is important for all. What you are doing will bring them great relief, but I still have some other questions."

"We will answer what we can," Celestia said. 

"Sunset Shimmer has no known family, correct?"

"That is right," Celestia said. "She is living with her legal guardians. They found her, disoriented and confused. They have been fostering her. The hope is that her family could be tracked down, but our records had no data about her at all, or where she came from. Her fingerprints came up empty, but many kids are not fingerprinted. It is not required by law here. They had a facial recognition match, but the match was alive, safe and sound, and didn't live anywhere near where she was found. I understand that technology isn't perfect either."

"Interesting," Kikuoka replied. "Do her legal guardians visit?"

"They do. On most weekends from what I understand."

"The records we got are ambiguous about her age."

Celestia double checked that no others had joined them. "They gave an approximate age. And when she was tested for school, she fell into the age bracket. I believe you have her school records. That is the age and date they determined and set for legal purposes. She is an excellent student who made the academic transition well."

"Wait!" Starlight Glimmer exclaimed. She had been trying to quietly and subversively go about some form of testing while Kikuoka appeared to be busy talking to Celestia, but he was fully aware of his surroundings. "You mean you don't know how old she is? Is she aware of that?"

Celestia thought for a moment. "I don't know. I wasn't there when that was decided. I was only there for the academic testing. But she seems to believe they are correct."

"And most of the data for her age is based on knowledge testing?"

"She knew a lot despite her mental trauma. She suffered in history and written language, but that was all. They enrolled her in the grade she was at and she soon adapted and began excelling."

"So she could be 25, but being told she is 17?" Starlight Glimmer asked, getting oddly excited.

"I guess," Celestia replied. "She still will need either a GED or diploma. It was determined best that she attend school and have that structure in her life. But she never showed any signs of remembering who she was."

"Fascinating," Starlight Glimmer said to herself.

Kikuoka wanted to dig into who exactly the girl was. She was very odd, to say the least. And yet Celestia was oblivious to it all. And if it was a mental disability, he was certain she would have given him some indication. She was up to something, but nothing nefarious. 

A teenage male stepped into the room. "Oh, I guess this room is full."

"Nonsense," Kikuoka said. He recognized the boy from a picture by her bed among the flower vases. "And you are?"

"Uh, Flash. Flash Sentry. And you?"

"Kikuoka Seijirou, from Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs."

"You came from Japan, to check up on Sunset Shimmer and the others?"

"It is part of my job," Kikuoka replied. "I didn't exactly have a choice in the matter. But I don't mind. You are one of the visiting students?"

"Yeah," he said, a bit quiet. "We used to date. Seeing her like this...well I know that she is bringing the same passion and fire she is known for in the real world into the game."

Flash Sentry stepped over and picked up the picture. "That is me, you already know the girls, these two are Snips and Snails, then we have Trixie, Lyra Heartstrings, Sweetie Drops, Micro Chips, Bulk Biceps, Sandalwood, Vinyl Scratch, and Octavia. It was a random photo taken at Camp Everfree for the yearbook, so we printed it, framed it, and brought it for support." Flash Sentry chuckled sadly. "Anything for support, no matter how dumb it may sound."

"You care," Kikuoka stated. "Quite a lot."

"Yeah," Flash Sentry replied with a bit of a blush. "But they...well, the whole school just isn't the same without them. They united us as Canterlot Wondercolts and made the whole school better. They make each of us want to be the best we can be. I don't even have a class with any of them this year, but just having them around the school is amazing and special."

"Well," Kikuoka started before pausing. "Well, we know they are together."

"Then the magic of friendship is with them," Flash Sentry said, excited. "I am sure they are make a good impact on the others around them and making friends."

"I believe they are from the limited data we receive," Kikuoka said. "I can't really discuss what we know, but I hope that news can help you all handle the situation a little more comfortably."

Kikuoka looked at Celestia. "However, I want to check in with the others before I meet with the doctors. Sunset Shimmer isn't the only one under my watch." 

"Of course," Celestia smiled back. "It was a pleasure meeting you. It is comforting to know that someone is caring for them and keeping track. From where I am, we are helpless. At least you are where the situation is being taken care of. I am confident in your abilities to get all of the players free."

Kikuoka gave a short bow and departed to check in on the others. Each were in the same state, in the correct beds, surrounded by flowers, students, and the same picture from Camp Everfree. Poly Stitch was also being visited by the students, but she lacked the photo. Kikuoka met with the other students and talked with them. There was a strong theme about the girls. They were very good friends to each other and inspirational for the whole school. He wasn't sure exactly what they did to earn it, but it was earned. 

The logistics of the beds and their care was all in order. The report from the doctors was exactly what they had been getting sent to them. It didn't surprise him at all, but he had a job to do and face to face time was always good. He wasn't sure when he would be here next, if he ever came again. 

Still, he was here for five days by direction of his superiors. He would get the weekend off, allowing him to get out and see some of the city, but his focus would be on the victims under his care.