Episode 69 - Preparing for the Future
Floor 35
June 15 - Year 2
It had been a tough day in the labyrinth, even working with Geigi Clan. The two guilds began to say their farewells, having made new friends throughout the day. The ground won in the labyrinth was barely worth the effort they had put in, but the friendships they had built were certainly worth the day’s struggle.
Astro approached Lobelia before she split off. "We have had a wonderful day with the Geigi Clan. You all have a strong heart and are beautifully deadly."
"Three more have decided to not join us tomorrow," Lobelia said. The words were filled with pain despite her stoic facade.
"As I heard," Astro replied. "We would like to discuss a few matters, like that, with you and your guild leaders."
"I alone am the leader," Lobelia replied. "Kamishi and Shikiku support me, but they do not want to hold official titles, despite all they do for the guild and me."
"What has them so important?" Astro asked. “And why do they not lead?”
"They do not wish to,” Lobelia kindly explained. “Kamishi is a good second. Many look up to him and he is essentially the leader of our males. Shikiku too leads, but in the background. We rely on her to make sure we are presentable, among other things. She is more of a mother to us than a fighter."
"Let's meet at our headquarters," Astro insisted with a smile. "The three of you can have dinner with us as we discuss guild matters."
"We would be honored," Lobelia said, giving a short bow to Astro. "We shall be there. Give us a little time to freshen up. However, it really should be us who are having you over."
"We can worry about that later," Astro assured her. "I wish we could throw something more traditional."
"Nonsense," Lobelia giggled. "Part of what makes you so special is how you approach the game with less emphasis on the etiquette you do not know. You are straightforward and avoid overt ceremony. We do not want to lose that spirit."
Astro informed Backbreaker and Bladescape of their company. They both agreed. Astro then told AFCK they would be having guests. AFCK was already thinking about dinner and had them covered. Astro also made sure that casual attire was going to be worn. After a day like they had, some of the Wondercolts would change straight from their armor into their sleepwear. They couldn’t dress all the way down quite yet.
Bladescape changed into the evening dress she had decided upon on their way back. A knock came at the door and Bladescape opened it to find Backbreaker with her high-backed chair. All of their rooms were large enough to have a sitting chair, along with their desks. The idea was to provide a comfortable, but elegant, place they could read and relax, alone.
Astro had her chair and she had brought the spare chairs from Rooms 3 and 12. They procured the other chairs from Diemond's Room, and Thunderborne's room. Diemond would be making clothes and Thunderborne never stayed in her room except to sleep.
They had created a nice roundtable of sorts, despite the lack of a table, for them to discuss things in private. The bed and desk restricted their room a bit, but it was enough. Their guild hall was too open for this discussion, and the same for their dining hall.
Bladescape was letting Backbreaker and Astro lead. She sat down in the chair that was nestled in the corner between her bed and desk. It gave her access to her desk if need be, but it also removed any of their guests from being so close to her bed, a personal object.
Backbreaker took a seat next to Bladescape. It was clear that they had arrived. It had barely been 30 minutes, which was a good thing. Astro was giving them a tour because Kamishi and Shikiku had not been to the Wondercolts' headquarters before. The tour was quick and they entered the room.
"And this is one of our forward rooms,” Astro explained. “They are the same as the rear rooms, except they have the view the others do not. This is Bladescape's room."
Bladescape and Backbreaker were standing as they came in.
"Welcome to my room," Bladescape said with a short bow. She gestured to the seats opposite of her bed. "Please, take a seat. We are meeting here because our guild hall is too high traffic. We are going to be looking for a new one soon. One with the guild hall as a separate room, and not a throughway to the other sides of the headquarters."
"That is understandable and I think this is more than acceptable," Lobelia said. She took the chair opposite of Bladescape, mirroring her. "It is quite comfortable, warm, and welcoming in here. Even with the armor dummy you are trying to hide and your display of that ugly spear...my room isn’t even half this size. You are lucky to have what you have."
Joltron came in carrying a tray. "Knock, knock,” he said announcing himself. “I have tea, fruit water, and mini cake um, things. I didn't fully understand AFCK in her fury of baking spirit as she sent me up with them. The tea is not made the traditional way, so forgive that. I don't know how, nor do I have the time to learn."
Joltron set the tray down on her desk, in the middle between Lobelia and Bladescape. He took everyone's orders and served them. He was thanked and departed, closing the door behind him. He left it cracked for hands free opening, but otherwise they were free to discuss things without being overheard. It had never been directly discussed, but Bladescape was certain Joltron had wiped a crafting skill and replaced it with Cooking.
"You guys are a good guild," Astro said, opening up the talks. "We have seen your work for a while on the front lines. I even fought with Lobelia on the 59th Floor Boss, and then I got to personally see your skill today.
"However, to be frank, you are running out of steam. Typically, when a clan runs out of steam, it breaks down and usually disbands. We don't want that. We want to make sure you stay a clearing guild, because all of you have earned that from all your hard work, and you are good at it. There is a bit of selfishness to our desire, because the rest of us would have to pick up the slack, but that is a good thing. You would leave us having to pick up the slack from your absence because you do solid work on the front lines."
"We are struggling right now," Kamishi agreed. "Yes, we lost three players and good friends the other day. It was not something that was anyone's fault. The monsters know conquer and divide techniques and they used them. They got caught with only a small shield and no Forward. We tried, but we missed, and not by much. They put up a worthy fight.
"You just need a confidence booster and a push," Astro replied.
"How?" Kamishi pressed. "You can't fix us. Push us forward, and more die, pull us along, and we will be treading water above our head. So how are we going to do that? We should be training, grinding XP, not clearing the Labyrinth. And yet, there is no place to do that right now because all of the other guilds are needing them."
"Once the next Floor is opened, the training spots will be open for a few days," Astro replied. "You strike then, seizing that lapse so you can catch up. It's a hard balance, but you are losing members. Safety is key"
"We have 40 of us," Lobelia said. "We have 3 who are done fighting, and we pulled along another 7 or so with us today. They don't want to fight on the front lines anymore. And I don’t blame them."
"That's fine," Bladescape replied, leaning forward. She was going to ask the question. “We like what we see. You said earlier you like our straightforwardness. The Wondercolts are interested in acquiring the Geigi Clan in an effort to keep you all on the front lines and safe.”
“I was getting that feeling,” Lobelia replied, a pained smile on her lips. “We have fought hard and made a good name for us.”
“Yes, you have,” Bladescape agreed. “You guys are about the art of being human, and we are about harmony and being the best each of us can be. Our foundation is in Honesty, Loyalty, Generosity, Laughter, Kindness, Empathy, and Friendship. Those are very close to your ideology. We made friends today and our two guilds mixed well under stressful conditions. Conversations in between battles were smooth and fun. I believe there is a balance we can strike.”
“I agree,” Backbreaker added. “But we're offerin', not orderin'. We don’t want to lose those friendships.”
“It is very close,” Shikiku said quietly. “Different language, different mode of expression, but the same idea. Be the best you can be. What is it you want to see?”
“You are tired, as are we,” Bladescape prefaced. "If we were to merge, we don't need all of us hitting the front lines every day. We can sort out a rotation or something to keep us fresh, but relevant. I would like to see us fielding four full parties on the front lines on a daily basis, the other parties can be resting, or questing, or grinding dungeons for Col and items, or supporting the guild in other ways. This game is brutal. But together, all of us can live a much better, safer, existence. Those of you who want to keep on the front lines, get to stay, the others get to fall back, and yet we all will continue to be a top clearing guild."
"That sounds good," Lobelia nodded. "The ability to find their place in this changing world will be enticing." Lobelia looked at the tea in her cup. “I have fought hard and long. We have lost players, but we have grown. Geigi Clan’s history is complex, but surviving. I put…”
Bladescape waited a bit and then finished it for her. “You put your heart and soul into the guild. As have I. We haven’t always had a council. In the beginning, it was looser, but still on me. Once we solidified the council, Backbreaker can attest to the fact that it really fell on my shoulders. I understand. I haven’t slept for days trying to make sure I was strong enough for us. I have probably spent half of the nights since we got trapped grinding for XP, and only getting a quick nap in while I was out of rotation at the training location.
“The Wondercolts are the 10 of us. Geigi Clan is 40. More is at stake than ideology. But history doesn’t have to be erased. Names will change, but we still have our roots, and our common ground. We will build a new image, strengthened by both guild's history and experience. If anyone can find a way to put that image together, it is Diemond. With help from you of course. I am feeling like that will specifically be Shikiku.”
“It will be,” Shikiku said.
“I won’t make the decision without the others,” Lobelia decided. “I want them to be a part of the decision making. Kamishi, you have not said anything.”
“We need it,” Kamishi stated. “We need fresh blood. I’ve made Geigi my home. The five of us guys did. We joined Geigi, happily and readily. We took on your name and your image and proudly wore your flag, even though it means no one saw males in Geigi’s ranks. Perhaps I am not the right one to speak, since I have been more mobile than you and Shikiku.” Kamishi took a deep breath in. “With this option on the table, I think Geigi Clan’s time is over. We have a good home to move to, with the same ideology, and they have the stronger image. We will strengthen it even more. However, if we don’t, I will go down fighting as a member of Geigi Clan until my last day here. Geigi Clan is my home, but the current group standing is largely because of the strength of me and the guys.”
“You have carried us far,” Lobelia admitted, eyes watering. “We were finished before you guys gave up your guild to join ours.”
“You inspired us,” Kamishi said. “We found a beautiful and strong leader to devote ourselves to.”
“We don’t have any more specifics worked out,” Astro said. “This is a highly mobile situation. Let’s just enjoy dinner, toast to a great job done in the Labyrinth without any deaths, and our success so far in the game. You can introduce the idea to the others, and we can all gather here in five days' time. We have the room to host all of you. That should give you time to think over things.”
“It will,” Shikiku said. “I think it is a good plan. We don’t have the room to host you, so here will be best. And your willingness to be fluid and adaptive is appreciated. It does mean that we can find the best solution for both of us, and what that will mean if we join together. If we were to disband, we would have to conform to another guild’s image and standards. That isn’t bad, but even if we disbanded, and I joined the Wondercolts, I would conform to your colors. This means we can decide how a merger will work, so we all come out on top and are satisfied.”
“That is the goal,” Bladescape agreed. “And the truth is, only the three of us officially know. Others might suspect, but we have not spoken to them about it. Both of our clans are in the same position; the leaders are making the initial deal and letting them know the options.”
“Knock knock!” Joltron said as he pushed the door open. He was carrying two trays of food. “AFCK is in a baking fury, so it was up to me to bring you the food. Thunder is earning her dinner by helping get the other’s food to the dining room.”
“Joltron,” Bladescape said, stopping him from leaving. He was expecting a food question, not what he got. “Did you swap a skill for Cooking?”
“Yeah,” Joltron nodded. “At the end of April. I was helping AFCK out anyway. Now I can actually do stuff rather than assist by grabbing ingredients and pots. Plus, I wasn’t using the crafting skill. I will never get my smithing up high enough to make anything, and even if I did, Blunt Weapon Forging is for two of eleven. It is the least useful forging skill for our guild.”
“Making spears is the least useful,” Astro chuckled. “But that change is appreciated.”
Joltron shrugged. “I didn’t have spears. Blunt Weapon Forging was my least useful. My cooking is halfway to where I wiped Blunt Weapon Forging at. My progress has been better than it was with the forging. I have an odd feeling like, I am able to do higher XP yielding things without burning them because both AFCK and I usually work on the projects. Sort of, like I have her skill level, but my XP level, and I am gaining the XP from it at what she would be getting if she wasn’t maxed.”
“I would not be surprised,” Bladescape chuckled. “She has an odd area affect about everything around her, even I.R.L. And thanks. You helping her is appreciated. We will get you a cooking outfit. It won’t be as cute as AFCK’s, but-”
“She covers herself in flour,” Joltron interrupted. “That cute outfit doesn’t stay cute. At least, not in the same way. She has dressing flour for her final layer, and then she has cooking flour. Same flour, different jars. I’ll take something manly like I know Diemond can make. But! I am interrupting.”
Joltron slipped out before anything else could be asked.
“How many of you cook?” Bladescape asked.
“Eight have the skill right now,” Lobelia said. “Although the three who are not going to be on the front lines are going to swap skills so they can cook.”
“Don’t let them swap out combat skills,” Astro said. “Just in case something goes wrong and they have to defend themselves. I don’t mean them going in the field, just purely defense.”
“I will make sure of that,” Lobelia replied with a smile. “That is good, forward thinking.”
The mood lightened as they got to know each other better over the rest of the evening. The food was great, as expected, and it was above what Geigi Clan could usually make. The difference in size made making the same quality of meals logistically harder. They bid their guests goodnight while the evening was still young. Geigi Clan was going to have a long discussion in the morning. They might not make it back to the front lines over the next week. The Wondercolts would hit the Labyrinth, but they would also need to have the same talk in the morning.
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
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Bolts not colts
I'm pretty sure its wonderbolts right?
Wait.. does she mean as in buying up the clan and absorbing them into their guild?
I knew they'd get more members sooner or later
10436359
Yes. Sooner rather than later. Too late, and it won't be helpful. The higher the floors, the the harder the smaller guilds will have functioning with only a party or two, even at the top of the curve. I wish I had realized it and written Geigi Clan in earlier though, to have more interaction with them.
At least it's not the other type of "flour"
I honestly forget if its wonderbolts or wondercolts now..
Wow, it has really been a year? That is crazy.
First of all, this has been a wonderful story and the current two chapters have been wonderful additions to this long running series. But I am a bit confused as to your plans with the rewrite, it sounds like you are switching over to the rewrite and discontinuing this one. If that is true then that is fine, but how would you exactly manage that transition? Would you stop updating to focus on the rewrite and once it reaches completion, delete this story? Or are you going to update the older chapters with the rewrite? And what exactly would become of the asides side story? You mentioned in a previous chapter that an update might be coming, will we still see that? Or will you completely rewrite that as well? Just a few questions I was pondering about.
Well, I am glad that you enjoy our feedback, makes us feel appreciated you know? Anyway, on the topic of a suggestion for the rewrite, I did comment many chapters ago on AO3 about a theory I had with the star spiders and Pinkies ramblings. I don’t know if you know which one it was but if I find it, I will repost it here. But the main point was that I thought their equestrian counterparts where in the game with them due to a magic connection with them, well the aside story disproved that theory entirely, but I think the theory had an interesting idea that I might ask you to consider putting in the rewrite. Another thing I was thinking about would be to have Equestria be a bit more involved in the aside story, it would not have to be full on crossover like I suggested in my previous post, even though I personally believe that a full on crossover between FIM and EG with another crossover with SAO would be insanely interesting with many interesting ways on developing the story. But the way it was written gave me a feeling of disconnect between the two series. On one end you had a slice of life slightly dark story of SAO, and on the other you had a slightly serious and a bit humorous aside story. Yes, Princess Twilight was deeply concerned and worried for her friends but it did not feel like she fully grasped that their lives where in danger, one would expect anyone in that position to be a bit more emotional about their friends being threatened, much more Twilight, who is known to over stress over the smallest things. In the aside story, she was worried but very very calm, something that just feels of about her character. Anyway, that particular tangent aside, having Equestria more involved would definitely complement the first suggestion I had in mind, because if the girls are trapped with their counterparts, then the elements of harmony would be unavailable, leaving Equestria unprotected. This would give Equestria a personal stake in SAO incident as well. And those are the two major changes I suggest, it would allow those that are interested in the SAO events to have the main story and those who are interested in the effects of the real world, both human and pony, as a result of SAO to have the aside story.
In the end these are just my personal suggestions, if you want to do something else, then that’s fine by me :), have a great day, and I hope to see you in the next story.
SonicDJM
10436486
Found my old comment on AO3
10436486
So, first off, Aincrad will be completed. This story is written and finished on my end. It needs some polishing, and my amazing editor will help with that. It will continue to be updated weekly until it is complete.
The "rewrite" is a term I am using lightly. This story puts the girls into the SAO universe, the "rewrite" will be a true alternative Universe. Aincrad is canon SAO, which is why I initially never expected it to develop as it has. They were put into the universe. The next one will allow me to mix up some of the canon aspects of SAO, giving the girls a more "central" role, and potentially bring in EQG magic into the game, in some form that still fits in SAO's game system. I can't take too much away, because I still need Asuna, Kirito, Klein, and the others to be central figures, and they are shaped by the canon events that happen. Of course, some will be the same since the girls are going to act in a similar way, but I will be reworking the "copied" chapters to update them, as well as expanding even more into the early floors. I also plan to expand the list of OCs/guilds to flesh their interactions out even more, and from an earlier starting date.
SAO also uses a Junishi calendar. The only stated one is the Month of Cherry Blossoms, which is April. I will be expanding it and using it as a header for the dates.
Some of the character named will be different. Poly Stitch will be reworked, Pinkie and Applejack will also be renamed/reworked. More slice of life will be added, as well as more drama, but adventure will be a central theme.
And I thought that was you on AO3! Lol. I remember that comment well.
10436504
The premise for the rewrite sounds amazing, though I would like to inquire if you also consider Kayaba Akihiko a central character as well? Because it might surprise you to know, that he happens to be my favorite character in the series. This is because he is much more complicated than simply being a 2D villain. In both the manga and anime, he is depicted as a very well developed character that does not trap the players in the game with malicious intent, as proven by actions in the later series. And at the end of SAO, Kayaba’s monologue conveyed a sense of sympathy, even if his motives for doing everything in SAO are not exactly clear. One of the things I would like to see in this type of crossover would be Princess Twilight interacting with Kayaba because his personality is definitely one that would intrigue her. This stories interaction with him has gotten his character spot on, for that I must commend you on. And I must say that I am touched that one of my first comments on AO3 left an impact on the author, a positive impact I hope?
First off, thank you for clearing that confusion up, while it looked like you where continuing on with the story, the author’s notes really threw me for a loop.
See you next time,
SonicDJM
Personally, I think you should dial back on the game stuff. I find these kinds of stories work best when the focus is left squarely on the characters themselves such as their interactions and personal struggles, with the game stuff left purely as a framing device for such things. Now you have a bit of that here but so much of the story seems focused on pointless game stuff with the central conflict of the story (being trapped in a death game) somehow always left as an afterthought instead of the main focus. Maybe this is just me but I find myself just skimming through the stuff that is mostly about the game itself.
Another thing you could stand to fix is not having the characters recap things so much. It's fine when it's used to remind players of something that happened in previous chapters but more than once you have had several paragraphs devoted to characters essentially recapping something that happened earlier in the same chapter. Heck, sometimes we go from one scene to immediately having the characters go over everything that just happened in detail. Just a personal annoyance that I feel really drags down the pacing.
10580009
Thank you for the input. I will be taking all of those into consideration. I know of my recap issue. I haven't figured out how to fix that, but am working on it. As to the game stuff, this originally was just an adventure story, with less emphasis on the death game. With its morphing, that has created an interesting mix, which I plan to fix. In the rewrite/full alt-U I am planning, I still want the adventure, but I definitely will be focusing more on the daily stuff.
fight."*
key."*
I wonder what Twilight would say about this merger?