Floor 61 - Thorn Island
June 30 - Year 2
Bladescape was lounging at the top of the stands, by the edge. Her butt was on the floorboard, while a pillow protected her back from the bench behind her. Her legs were draped over the bench in front, nestling her nicely between the boards.
From her position, she couldn't help but see the door open and Jade bring Knightstar into the courtyard. It was good to see Knightstar, even at this distance and in those scholar robes. Bladescape wasn't going to jump up and run to her friend. At this point, she still had no idea why she was here.
Thunderborne kicked at the ball. Only her toe clipped it, sending it way out of bounds. She had noticed Knightstar. Every player froze, first because that was not like Thunderborne to make such a simple mistake, and then because they saw who she was looking at. If they hadn't met Knightstar, they knew her face from some of the photos AFCK already had hanging up around the main building.
Bladescape knew that stopping the game wasn't going to help Twilight. Plus, they were on a short clock for their opening soccer match. Dinner would be ready soon.
"Thunder!" Bladescape yelled. "Get your head in the game! The Rainbooms only have a single goal lead on the Scorpions! You can't afford to lose that!"
Bladescape pointed at Knightstar. "Get over here before the ball is put back in play and you can't cross!"
Knightstar followed the order. Jade ducked back into the building to continue helping AFCK with dinner. They had to wait a few seconds for Knightstar to finish getting across before the ball was put into play again. The game resumed as if it had never been interrupted.
Knightstar didn't climb up into the bleachers. She walked to the side, standing below Bladescape. Bladescape looked down at her. Knightstar was confused, unsure what was going on. It was trumping any nerves she had. It was an advantage Sunset Shimmer wasn't going to waste.
"I said get over here!" Bladescape exclaimed. Her lips slipped into a warm smile as she extended her hand down to her friend. "Come on up."
Knightstar paused, looking up at her, and then she grabbed her hand tightly. It wasn't hard for her to put her feet on some of the braces and climb up. She stepped over Bladescape and sat down beside her.
"I only just found out you moved. Like half an hour ago," Knightstar said.
"A lot has changed," Bladescape shrugged.
Astro slipped the ball past Kate and then kicked it. Backbreaker was good, but this time Astro outsmarted her and Backbreaker dove the opposite way of where the ball went. The game was tied 3 to 3.
"Come on!" Bladescape screamed. "I thought you guys had this! Thunderborne and Backbreaker, what could go wrong!"
"That is AJ?" Knightstar said, shocked as she watched her get up and dust off her uniform. "She is actually playing a game‽"
"Yep," Bladescape grinned. "Like I said, a lot has changed. Astro has Kiefer as her goalie, with Pell and Satureja on her team as well. Thunderborne has BB, Kate & Mjolna. We are running out of time in our opening game before AFCK rings that dinner bell."
"Is she cooking alone?" Knightstar asked.
"Nah," Bladescape said, waving the idea off with her hand. "Joltron, Jade, Ithilienm, Delton, and several others help her. We have like 10 cooks now."
"Joltron?" Knightstar stammered, surprised by that.
"He wiped a Skill, Blunt Weapon Forging, and took up Cooking. Apparently it was a few days before you left. He has a crush on AFCK. She knows, but she hasn't decided what her answer is. Either way, we have a significantly larger kitchen than our old one and three cooks always on duty. It allows AFCK to focus on the important parts of the meals, and the things only she can make."
"How long have you been here?" Knightstar asked.
Thunderborne scored, slipping the ball past Kiefer. Bladescape yelled, pumping her fist as Thunderborne hyped up the crowd for the goal. Competitive words were exchanged as the ball was put back in play.
Bladescape focused back on Knightstar. "We moved in two days ago. The same day as the merger officially happened. Astro has taken the third seat on our council. Geigi Clan was floundering, and we not only could offer them the stability they needed, but it meant we could keep them on the front lines. It was not an easy decision on any side. It took time.
"Almost all of the guild unconditionally merged with us. Several are unsure. Jade, who I saw show you into the courtyard, is one of them. We want to keep them in the guild, without needing to deploy them to the front lines. We need support players for a large guild. They can provide it, and the big bonus is that they get to stay in a guild with their friends. They don't want to fight on the front lines anymore, but they also don't want to leave their friends. We are a great option for them."
"That's," Knightstar stammered. Her head dropped in a complex mix of emotions. "That is wonderful. For all of you."
Sunset Shimmer had to wait for her to look back up at her. She finally did. Twilight Sparkle wanted to look away from the no longer smiling face, but Sunset had locked her eyes onto the wet ones of her friend. She could not pull away from the gaze.
"The offer has never left the table," Bladescape stated. "You came here for a reason. No one cares what happened. We only care that you are not beside us. It won't be hard to catch you up and we have plenty of rooms available. I don't want to stress you, because I can see the shock you are in, but we would love to have you back as our statistician." Bladescape held up her hand, stopping Knightstar from speaking. "That would be a consulting position, not a council position. We managed without you, but you launched a successful store overnight off of the information you already had. I saw your guides. No one can do what you do. We missed you for that and more. So much more than I can express. But it also would be nice to have that awesome power of my friend assisting with the new clan members. Rarity is working hard to make their armor, but they still need weapons analysis and stats examination."
Knightstar looked around. She wasn't sure what had happened. Her initial panic drove her to the old Headquarters, and then she truly felt like she had lost her friends. After it all happened, she was now being told nothing had changed, despite the obvious and major guild changes she saw around her.
"I..." Knightstar stumbled. "I came because Fluttershy had a gift made for me that reminded me of the friendship we had made. It was delivered to my shop an hour ago. I came seeking forgiveness from her. All of this is overwhelming. You are not the Wondercolts that I left...I..."
"We all screwed up that morning," Bladescape stated once it was clear Knightstar had lost where she was going. "AJ and I know we could have, and should have, done things in private. It was a very hard lesson that we learned. We want our friend back. We want her to feel safe. We want her to feel the love we have for her. However, and whatever that means. We will all be better off for it."
"What would my duties be?" Knightstar asked.
"Off the top of my head," Bladescape said, a big grin on her face. She was making it obvious that there had always been a plan for Knightstar's return. "It’s light work. If you want to be in the field we can do that. But we would only need you to help keep our stats, equipment, and other things up to date, along with guiding us towards the most effective and efficient way to the top. All the way to the top of Aincrad so we can finish this game and get out of this nightmare. I want to hug my real friend, Twilight Sparkle, with my real body."
"Sunset..." Knightstar whispered as a tear finally escaped her wet eyes.
Sunset Shimmer rolled over and embraced her friend in a tight hug. "I never, ever want to lose you again. Not in this virtual world, the real one, Equestria, or any other world, realm, or reality."
Twilight Sparkle squeezed her back as hard as she could. "I'm staying," she declared with a wet sniff. "I mean, I'll have to go back and get some things from the store. And I will have to close it down."
"Why?" Bladescape asked. "Can't the NPC run most of it?"
"True," Knightstar replied. "And it would provide me with a more accessible place for players of any level to do the consultations when that comes up."
"Then keep it and a spare bed too for the times they go late. I know you will always be coming back to us. But you know, these robes will need to be Wondercolted by Rarity."
A huge commotion on the field caused them to break off the hug and watch. Astro had kicked the ball, but Backbreaker had caught it. She chucked it all the way across the field. It drifted off towards the corner. Thunderborne was there to receive it. She jumped up, delivering a perfect bicycle kick. Kiefer was no match for the flawless kick and instant redirection. The score was now 4 to 3.
AFCK busted open the back door. "DINNER TIME!" She yelled while whipping an extra-large hand bell and drowning out the celebration with the brass tones she sent ringing over all of the island. No matter what room you were in, you heard that bell, which was exactly why AFCK had it designed as big as it was.
Knightstar let out a giggle. "I have been missing her food."
"It has only gotten better," Bladescape grinned. "Especially now that she has help, she can do more."
They stood up to make their way inside. Bladescape grabbed her pillows and jumped off the side so she didn't have to skip over all the rows in front of her. It left Knightstar behind, but they were not in a rush. Most of the others watching the game were filing in through the door. The crafters were exiting from their tower and making their way to the main building. Diemond was sewing as she walked.
Bladescape purposefully timed it so that they were last. She didn't want Knightstar to get jumped. Everyone wanted her back, even the former members of Geigi Clan. They all knew her name and that they wanted their friend back.
Bladescape was first into the dining room, but stopped in the doorway. The head table had a bouquet of black roses as its centerpiece. They were fake roses. Black meant they were in the private dining hall for guild business. There was obviously only one matter of business to discuss.
Bladescape looked back at Knightstar with a grin. "I am needed in the private dining hall for guild business, and I am certain that means you are to join us. Heading through the dining hall is a pain though, so around we go.
The rest of the guild councilors were there, seated. An extra seat was set at the round table. The food was already on the table, steam slowly spiraling into the air. Bladescape walked to her seat, leaving Knightstar to take the one opposite of her. As Knightstar sat down, it was obvious that she was now very nervous.
"Welcome," Bladescape said, grinning at Knightstar. She was working to get Twilight focused on her, so Knightstar wouldn't shut down. "Welcome to our new headquarters outside Selmburg. The small island we are on is entirely Wondercolts territory, it all is a safe zone, and no one can get into our castle without being let in through the front door. That is Lobelia, our Sansa, or major. Next to her is Kamishi, with the rank of Ichii, or Captain. And then beside you is Shikiku. Her job is to be the voice of the members, to make sure they are heard. She is not a voting member of the council. She holds the rank of Socho, or sergeant major."
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you," Lobelia said, bowing slightly from her seated position. "As soon as I heard you had arrived at our front door, I was filled with incredible joy."
"It's mighty fine to see you again," Backbreaker added. "But Astro made me work hard, can we skip the rest and eat‽"
"Sorry," Bladescape said with a laugh. "Yes, let's eat!"
Knightstar raised her glass for a toast. "To the Wondercolts, the greatest guild in Aincrad. And to my friends, who have made sure it stayed that way and left me something amazing to come back to."
Cheers went up all around. Backbreaker relaxed a lot from hearing that Twilight was back. Astro was also less tense. They all dug into the food.
As they ate, Astro explained to Knightstar the soccer league that had been finalized this morning. They had six teams total: The Rainbooms, Scorpions, Antlers, Cerezo, TNT, and Bellmare. The Rainbooms, led by Thunderborne, and the Scorpions, Astro's team, were the first to play. They were still on holiday from the merger as they settled into their new roles as Wondercolts. The morning would play host to the Antlers and Cerezo opening match, and in the afternoon TNT and Bellmare would face off. Bladescape was the goalie for Bellmare, while Kamishi was the captain of Bellmare. Shonan Bellmare was the local team for Kamishi. None of them expected to beat either the Rainbooms or the Scorpions, but it was still going to be fun.
Lobelia brought the conversation back to focus. "Knightstar, I know the offer was always there, but I would prefer to hear it from you, that yes, you are coming back to be an official Wondercolt. And if that is so, then we need to make a public ceremony of it. We did a formal ceremony for all the new members; we need to do it for them all to see you as well. Conformity to equalize and normalize is key."
"That is reasonable," Knightstar said with a nod. "I am back. I ran from the very people who were trying to help me, and I won't make that mistake again. I will always be, and am, a Wondercolt."
Bladescape couldn't explain the feeling of hearing those words. "Sweet music" didn't fit, neither did "warm." It was more like her world, which had been tilted, was once again fully upright.
Shikiku soon left to give the others a warning about an official guild meeting, and the time. There was sufficient time for the members to finish and clean up dinner. The other Wondercolts would take care of their officer's table. It was a new thing that the members of Geigi had brought with them. It was their honor to serve their leaders in such a way. Bladescape was still getting used to it, but they had agreed upon a clear-cut unit structure, and that was something that came along with being at the top.
Free from those restraints, they moved to the Guild Hall.
"This is..." Knightstar stammered as she looked around the regal hall. "It is so formal. It has purpose. Our other one was basically melded with a hallway. How many members are there now?"
"Fifty," Bladescape said. "Fifty-one with you. We field seven full parties and a smaller one of five, but you would make that eight full parties. And then there are our three exclusively support staff. All of them are officially cooks, two had to swap a Skill, but they are the reason we can put so many in the field every day. We have unit leaders and sub leaders, to cover any configuration we need to. Most of the time, we will be locked into BlueCon. We have YelCon for boss raid days. RedCon is for when we form up parties as needed. WhiteCon is our free day. We have ordered wall racks to mount color markers in rooms like the dining hall that we can change to let them know what condition we are in for the day."
"That will take some getting used to," Knightstar said.
Bladescape sat down in her Council Seat. "It won't be hard. Your assignment for BlueCon and YelCon never changes. You will know exactly who is in your party. RedCon takes us time to organize all of the members, so we do what we can to minimize that, or plan ahead appropriately."
"This is a lot different," Knightstar replied, still looking around. She was obviously overwhelmed and feeling out of place. "Why are there color tabs on the outside edge of each row of chairs? They are not your four color-conditions, and each row is different. The colors do not match the row on the other side of the center isle. I see White, Red, Green, Purple, Black, Orange, Turquoise, and Pink."
"Party colors," Astro stated. "It was Backbreaker's idea. We are still trying to figure out how to implement the colors tastefully onto the uniforms. Something subtle, like a patch. But that doesn't work on some of our metal armor designs. Diemond is working on that, but her priority has been new armor for the new Wondercolts and then the soccer uniforms accidentally happened. But for morning assignments in BlueCon conditions, the party sits in their row, while the officers sit in their designated spot in the front row. Our new furniture and furnishings are on order, but that will take some more time for it to be made and be delivered."
"We may be changing things up," Lobelia added. "We have not fully settled on the party layout. Our officers are on probation, as we ensure they are right for the job. Your arrival will require us to recalculate some things. In a good way."
"We will get that settled over the next week," Bladescape said. "We are still on adjustment holiday for another day, and then it is focus time for the level quotas we now have enacted... But we can worry about that after the ceremony. Things worked a little differently when we had forty players joining us. But it still will be very simple."
They didn't get a chance to even do a verbal dry run as the doors opened and the rest of the members enthusiastically filed in. There was a lot of chatter, drowning out anything the Council could say until they calmed it down. Bladescape resorted to pointing Knightstar to a specific seat, off to the side. Kiefer and the other party officers took their specific seats in the front row.
Bladescape held up her hand and the room quieted down. "I have no doubt that you all are aware of our visitor. I am happy to say that Knightstar's arrival tonight is not a temporary thing. Knightstar, a founding member of the Wondercolts, has come back after her leave of absence. We all made mistakes that morning, but we, like you, are friends. We have more, are more, than a few hotly traded words and poor choices. We went through a lot in the real world, and even more in here. Our friendship is stronger than that, even if we forget things at times. And as a guild, she will make us all stronger and provide an amazing friend to everyone.
"Knightstar, please rise and come to the center." Knightstar walked to the center and Bladescape continued. "Knightstar, upon officially rejoining the Wondercolts, your duties will not be the same as they were before. You will not be a member of the Council; those duties will not burden you.
"Do you accept our offer of membership? To be a full Wondercolt, to uphold all of our standards, to aid those in need, and to obey the orders of those above you, knowing that they will always do their absolute best to protect you, all Wondercolts, and every player they can."
"I do," Knightstar confidently stated.
Bladescape swiped up her menu and extended the guild acceptance request. The screen popped up in front of Knightstar. She didn't hesitate as she hit the blue circle, accepting it. Knightstar was a Wondercolt again.
"Then welcome, Knightstar," Lobelia declared. "We gladly welcome you again to wear the blue and yellow."
The room erupted in cheers as every member stood and welcomed her with applause and other noise. Bladescape let it go for a while as Knightstar blushed. Once it was calm again, she had follow-up business.
"It is good to have you back," Bladescape said with a smile. "However, I have two pieces of business that must be attended to, the first being another question. We do not want any member to take on more than they can shoulder, and we ask that at any time, if you feel overwhelmed or unsafe, that you inform your officer immediately so we can settle the issue. In light of that, you previously gave us immense help and guidance with your skill of stats and number analysis. Can you and will you offer that service again to the guild, once again as our Statistician?"
"I can and will," Knightstar said with a nod. "Gladly. It is something I enjoy doing, and wish to do again: applying that knowledge for the good of the guild, and for every member in it, so that we can be the best we can be, the safest we can be, and the happiest we can be."
Bladescape caught Lobelia's glance at her, but that was all the heads up she got. "In recognition of your specialized duty, in the interest of what is best for the guild to allow you to be our Statistician, this Council grants you the rank of Juni, or Warrant Officer. A crucial part of any strong military organization is their technical specialists, the non-commissioned officers who perform a very specific function because they are the best at that job. Often, they are trainers. For your role, you will need to have authority to ensure that data and information is properly acquired. You will always be paired with a strong officer and sub-commander, but they may rely on your judgment for their choices. Especially if you are on information missions for your job."
"I understand and I accept," Knightstar definitively stated.
Bladescape held off more celebration. "Final point of order. Knightstar will be receiving a room shortly, but we need a party to be mounted to help get her things moved here. There still is time tonight. I will take her to get her a room. In twenty minutes, I need five others to make a full party."
Kiefer stood up. "I will head that party up."
"Wonderful," Bladescape nodded. "Then we are done here."
The room erupted in various conversations. Kiefer was trying to organize multiple people volunteering. Bladescape beckoned for Knightstar to join her. All of the Council slipped out through the very well hidden back door.
"With a ranked position, you won't be in what we are calling the barracks," Bladescape explained. "We will get you a full tour shortly, but the barracks is the second largest building, and it's entirely rooms for members to stay and own. There are ninety rooms in the barracks, thirty on each level. Diemond took up the room above the crafting hall, for better or worse. Doombunny has already abandoned her room, and instead took over the gardener's hut in the back of the garden."
"Because Colorra is a tree snake," Knightstar added.
"Exactly," Bladescape said with a chuckle. "But she also has another reason for moving out there. Not important right now."
Bladescape led Knightstar up a set of stairs. At the top was a wide hallway that ran along the rear of the building. The rooms were towards the front.
"This is the second floor. Lower officers reside here. Diemond, as our Armorer, was supposed to be on this floor. Shikiku has the far room from here, because it is closer to the Barracks. AFCK is also on this floor, so she can be close to the kitchen. The third floor is all senior officials; the Counselors and Kiefer."
"Kiefer?" Knightstar asked. "Why him?"
"Kiefer is our only Lieutenant, or Nii. He is also our training officer, and it was voted, out of my control, that he be placed up on the third floor. I just made sure the regular members drew lots to decide their rooms. Although, Lessa rarely uses hers."
"And why does she rarely use hers?" Knightstar asked.
Bladescape sighed. "Well, on the overnight trips, we finally got the two of them to hook up properly. The announcement of them dating was set aside for a bit."
"I forgot about that questionable romance," Knightstar admitted. "I am happy they finally sorted out what they wanted. Do you think it will go deeper, to marriage?"
"I half believe it will," Bladescape shrugged. "I can't tell though. Kiefer is the holdout, once again."
Bladescape stopped at a room with an open door. "This room is available. All of them are the same."
Bladescape smiled as Knightstar was taken aback. It was a huge room. There was nothing in it at the moment. The bedroom itself was separated into its own room.
"So, where are you in relation to here?" Knightstar asked as she took it all in.
"If you head down the hall back to the central staircase, go up, you get to the third floor, with the others. And if you go up one more time, you get to a landing with a door that blocks off my room. I am in the tower."
"You have the tower‽" Knightstar exclaimed. "Wow! That is really cool. That was what, two stories?"
"Height wise, 3," Bladescape replied. "But I only have 2. The first is a seating area and study, like your main room. Then I go up to the top and I have the whole floor as my bedroom and private chambers."
"I want to see," Knightstar stated with a grin.
"Tomorrow," Bladescape smiled. "Your moving assistants should be ready to go now."
Bladescape led Knightstar back to the central staircase and then down it. They all were having to learn to navigate the hallways of the main building's first floor. She got them to the front entrance to the guild hall. Kiefer had a party set with a second one being led by Joltron. A lot of Wondercolts, old and new, wanted to help her move in.
Knightstar joined Kiefer's party and she led them to her bookstore. Bladescape didn't leave the guild hall though. Doombunny deactivated Hide and appeared in her designated chair.
"What did you do to finally spark her return?" Bladescape asked. "I have been patiently waiting on your attempt, but you were here all day."
Doombunny nodded. "I was. That means my friendship sculpture was finally finished and delivered. I didn't even have a note to go with it. I just paid the crafter to make it, which required special and hard to get materials. Then I had them use the delivery fee to pay for one of Sasha's kids to do the delivery. The delivery kid, whoever it was, had no idea who the statue was from, only who it was for."
Doombunny went on to explain the statue itself. At least what she had ordered. Creative license was given in some parts to allow for the artist to be that, an artist, but the core features were there. Sunset Shimmer loved admitting that Fluttershy knew exactly how to target Twilight for an apologetic reminder in this game when she had shut herself off from her friends. She hadn't been sure about betting on Fluttershy to pull Operation Midnight Redemption, but she hadn’t had a better idea, so she put her full trust in Doombunny. Bladescape had to learn that betting on Fluttershy in SAO was always a good choice. She had proven herself in a variety of ways over the past year.
Bladescape (SS): Lvl 83 – Two-Handed Sword – Search – Weapon Defense – Leather Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Sprint – Acrobatics – Blade Throwing – Extended Weight Carry - Greatsword
Thunderborne (RBD): Lvl 75 – Rapier – Sprint – Acrobatics – Armor Pierce – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Leather Armor – Weapon Defense – Extended Weight Carry – Search
Backbreaker (AJ): Lvl 78 – Heavy Shield – One-Handed War Hammer – Extended Weight Carry – Heavy Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Fishing – Search – Martial Arts – Acrobatics
AFCK(PP): Lvl 75 – Two-Handed Axe – Parry – Cooking – Weapon Defense – Martial Arts – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Thrown Weapon – Musical Instrument
Diemond (R): Lvl 75 – Heavy Shield – Mace – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Heavy Metal Armor – Tailoring – Light Metal Armor Forging – Heavy Metal Armor Forging – Jewelry Making – Extended Weight Carry
Doombunny (FS): Lvl 78 – One-Handed Dagger – First Aid – Hide – Search – Listening – Battle Regeneration – Fighting Spirit – Familiar Communication (Colorra) – Drug Mixing – Reveal -- Fencing
Astro (PS): Lvl 75 – Two-Handed Spear - Purchase Negotiation – Armor Pierce – Acrobatics – First Aid – Light Metal Armor – Battle Regeneration – Weapon Defense – Parry – Extended Wight Carry
Kiefer: Lvl 73 – One-Handed Curved Blade – Parry – Weapon Defense – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Slash Weapon Forging – Katana – Martial Arts - Search - Armor Pierce
Lessa: Lvl 72 – One-Handed Sword – Shield – Light Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Equipment Repair – Metal Equipment Repairing – Armor Pierce – Search - Acrobatics
Joltron: Lvl 75 – One handed Axe – Heavy Shield – Heavy Metal Armor – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Metal Refining – Cooking – One Handed Weapon Creation – Two Handed Weapon Creation – Extended Weight Carry
Knightstar (TS): Lvl 69 – One-Handed Sword – Shield – Equipment Appraisal – Parry – First Aid – Battle Regeneration – Light Metal Armor – Search – Armor Pierce