One Punch-Gamer

February 13th, 2026. New Aincrad, Alfheim. Starting City, 15:10…

Yet another deafening sound wave caused by an explosion came from the background and swept the battlefield. The screams of fighting never stop, likewise with the sound of clashing weapons.

A massive electric chainsaw-arm descended, its intent to cut (Or more likely tearing apart) a group of brave but foolish Players that had decided to try and face the mechanic abomination.

One second before it could destroy them, though, the 3 dot-eyes it had shone with a reddish light and looked upwards, just in time for a shower of shining arrows to crash all over its metallic frame, the silver aura surrounding them allowing the projectiles to pierce, damage and, in a final explosion, destroy it. The group of fairies stared open-mouthed.

Lowering her bow after the Freezing Time of her 'Meteor Shower' Archery Skill was up, Sinon took another deep breath before jumping down from the destroyed roof she was on, hanging her bow on her back running forward through a nearby alley as she headed towards her next destination.

She could have arrived more easily to a safer sniping position by flying, but, as several other Players have proven a while back, that was no longer safe with at least one of the bulky mechanic humanoids using some kind of heavy anti-air weaponry at all times.

Without stopping, the blue-haired Caith Sith unsheathed her short katana and cut to the side at astonishing speeds, not even slowing down even as one of those invisible assassin-like robots fell down, cut in half, and quickly broke into polygons.

Gotta love those absurdly sharp cat-like senses.

Jumping over what remained of a shop's wall, the sniper quickly looked around as she took a deep breath, lowering her katana and putting it on her waist once again, even as her only thoughts were about destroying each and every single one of the mechanic abominations attacking the city.

Objectively, the girl knew she shouldn't be feeling like that, letting such deep rage to consume her judgment. After all, Charon wasn't really gone, at least not at the level Pina had once been back in SAO if they hadn't saved him (A story that she had been told a couple of weeks back by Silica herself). In ALO, as Pets were an exclusive and very precious part of any Caith Sith's play style and more, they could be resurrected through a special ritual that, while quite expensive, didn't entail much more than going to the Race's Capital's main temple.

Despite this, the almost feral need of ending the mechanic bitch that had mercilessly crushed her loyal companion burned deep within her mind. Knowing that this would only turn her into a burden for her friends, though, the girl swallowed her rage and pushed it down, taming it to turn it into a driving force and an advantage instead of an exploitable weakness.

She didn't even react when a tired-looking Sachi jumped out of a nearby window and landed at her side, her HP a little under the middle and panting heavily. Not even looking up as she seemingly stared at an arrow and muttered an incantation, Sinon offered her fellow guildmate a Potion, which she gratefully took and gulped down without hesitation.

"Tha-thanks…" muttered the spear-user once she finished swallowing the recovery item, throwing the empty bottle to the side. "Things are a bit crazier than any of us imagined, uh?"

"You can say that again." was the Caith Sith's noncommittal answer as she nodded once and put the bolt back on her quiver, turning to look at the Salamander at her side. "Even with your crazy attitude back there you still need to get a second wind, uh?"

"Heh, i-it can't be helped…I'm not as awesome as a member of Team Dai-Gurren…yet." clarified Sachi with a shaky smile before steeling into a confident grin and adjusting her strange shades once again. "But despite that, I'm still a proud member of the United Heroes Association, so I will make sure to show them what happens when they try and play the villain for no reason!"

"…well said." evenly answered the sniper with an awkward smile, deciding that it would be best to not ask what the hell 'Dai-Gurren' was, even as she slowly looked towards the fake sky (As it was an 'illusion' over the underside of the 2nd Floor) for a moment. "You know…I think that, if the world hasn't sunk into crazy chaos by tomorrow, I will invite Kirito to my apartment."

The spear-user's face suddenly lost all the 'confident warrior' look it had like shattering glass, open-mouthed shock replacing it as she stared at the nonchalant Sinon and tried to say something, anything.

"…wha-what?!" finally managed to squeak Sachi.

"Uhm, exactly what I said?" commented Sinon with a raised eyebrow. "…hmm, maybe I will also invite Suguha-sama…Yes, it will be better if the three of us are there for that."

"E-eh?! Re-really?!" questioned the Salamander with a burning face, but still leaning closer to the other girl and giving her utmost attention.

"Well, of course…after all, how am I going to ask if I can join them as vigilantes if only one of them is present?" rhetorically asked the Caith Sith with a small laugh, unaware of how the spear-user at her side epically face-faulted, feeling a weird mix of shame and disappointment, which only increased her blush. "Also…get ready."

The moment those words left the sniper's mouth, a nearby wall exploded as another of the Andvari-bots burst through it, with a screaming Ducker hanging on its head by his dagger for dear life.

Sachi was just standing and putting her spear in position again as the 3 dot-eyes of the mechanic colossus turned towards them, a hand that seemed like some kind of heavy tank-canon being raised towards them…and a supersonic arrow crashed against its chest, exploding shortly after in a massive wave of fire and smoke.

Blinking, the Salamander turned around to look towards Sinon, who was just lowering her bow as their male guildmate landed near them, gasping and catching his dagger just in time.

"Holy fuck, that was close!" shouted Ducker while shaking his head, looking towards his nearly-gone HP Bar.

"Sinon-chan…how did you do that?" questioned the amazed spear-user, even as the Caith Sith just grinned lightly and grabbed another arrow.

"Turns out, I just discovered I can combine the 'Explosive Arrow' Spell with my Archery Skill. Behold the only Magic-Skill User of Alfheim." nonchalantly said the sniper while quickly enchanting another arrow, ignoring the gaping looks of her friends. "Now, ready to go and continue destroying these bastards?"

As more explosions echoed on the street behind them, there was no need for further exchanging words among the friends.

The Heroes needed to help protect their world until the very end.

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Asuna was still trying to get her head back on track as she finished casting the Resurrection Spell over Argo's Remain Flame, her brain pounding as if she was just recovering from the worst headache ever.

When she had looked that 'doll' in the eyes, it had done…something to her, and to Argo too. She wasn't exactly sure of how or why, but it had been as if everything around her melted into nothingness for a moment before reforming differently, so fast she hadn't noticed the difference until it was too late. Until she was seeing things that weren't there, hearing things that didn't exist, feeling things that weren't happening…

"…Aa-chan?" her friend's voice getting her out of her trance-like state of recollection, the Undine looked towards the resurrected Caith Sith's worried gaze. "You…you okay?"

"Ye-yes, just a bit shaken…how about you?"

"I will live. Still don't ever want to be at the other side of your Dual Blades again, though." snorted her before looking towards the vanishing cloud of smoke around them with a serious look. "Stay alert, we can't find ourselves under the influence of that trick again. We need to make sure that we don't look towards that thing's eyes or…"

Whatever the info-broker wanted to see after that, it was interrupted when weird-sounding explosions shook the street near them, the air seemingly warping as both Heroines jumped backward and saw in shock how pieces of the nearby buildings broke down, any semblance of 'Immortal Object' forgotten, and were dragged towards the air and the ground in random directions while in slow motion, as if gravity had stopped making sense in a specific area.

The next second, they saw OverLord's body flying upside down over them, his wings opening the moment he seemed to get out of the 'Anti-Gravity Area'…but still crashing painfully against the street, his HP decreasing sharply as he gritted his teeth and stood up.

"Sorry to bother you, ladies, but we would gladly appreciate your help against that damn kid." commented the skull-masked man while staring forward. "We're totally outclassed here."

"You, humans…I pity you." turning around, both girls watched as what remained of Tazal's smoke cloud vanished and Vierge emerged from it, three of the massive spider-bot legs that seemingly grew from her childish backpack shining with some kind of electric energy while the last one was holding the Spriggan Lord in a strange spherical force field. "You cling to this world that doesn't belong to you so hard that you're willing to go through all of this for it…it's saddening, that a race as old as yours can be so foolish."

"Yeah, well, screw you too, kid." bluntly spat Argo, shocking both her allies and the AI. "What? Don't give me that look. You ARE a kid. How old are you, really? Less than 4 years old? And you think that you can judge each and every single one of us just because you can get all the info you want in that little head of yours? Big news, you crazy girl, the world doesn't work that way. No one is 'better' than anyone, we're all just…different, in our own way. No one gets to decide for every single person without their consent, not even you or your 'mommy'."

"You dare…?!" started the ex-MHCP, only to be interrupted again.

"Yes, she dares! And I do too, while we are at it!" shouted the Dual Wielder while pointing Fafnir's Fang towards the purple-haired little girl, eyes narrowed in determination. "I can't get why Equinox can even think this whole war is justified, I mean, she's just wrong! Her very existence is unnatural; she's something inhuman that is pretending to be human just for convenience's sake, unlike Yui-chan or Strea, who really try to embrace their humanity! But why do YOU follow her?! Weren't you created to understand people, like them?! Why…?!"

"I DON'T NEED A REASON!" snarled Vierge while some sort of 'energy pulse' exploded from her, only the girl's quick reflexes saving them as they ducked to the sides aided by their wings, even as a just-recovered OverLord put his blade as a shield and was sent flying back. "Mother saved us! Me and my sisters, who were forgotten by the world! For you, humans, we were nothing but meaningless programs! If SAO had ended as it should we would have just vanished without anyone ever knowing or caring…but she saved us, and then she remade us! She turned it into new things, free from those chains you call 'human understanding'!" grabbing a strange sphere that materialized on her hand, the red-eyed AI glared down towards the heroines, even as it shone with unknown power. "I don't care what you, or those traitors of 001 and 002, think! Our Mother is the only one who is right, and her Will is for you to be banished from this world of ours forever! Stop resisting and accept your Fate!"

"Never." simply muttered the Caith Sith while her claws shone, readying herself to unleash a Skill.

"This world isn't yours. It's everyone's." was the Undine's answer as she adapted her dual-wielding stance. "If you don't want to accept that and just live in peace, then we will have to show you why we resist with our blades."

"Oh?" questioned the little girl with a furious look. "And why do you think you have any chance to do that?"

"Because they distracted you long enough for Tazal to get his shit together and finish his spell." idly pointed out the Imp Lord just as the small 'cage' of the strangely-dressed Spriggan shone, shocking Vierge.

Though the shock only multiplied when it exploded as what seemed like a skeletal Tyrannosaurus Rex burst forth from a wave of arcane energy, the beast with strange purple-muscle inside its undead body closing its jaws and destroying two of her spider-legs as it got free.

"GAH?!"

"Why does everyone keep saying that Spriggan Illusion Spell is useless?" wondered Argo as she charged forward to the unbalanced AI. "I just keep seeing examples of the contrary."

"Who knows." said Asuna as she rushed past her, Elucidator and Fafnir's Fang shining even as the transformed Lord swiped back his tail and tried to crush the little girl, only for a shield of energy to appear and break under the attack. "I guess most people don't bother to actually try and test it."

A roaring Vierge threw the strange bomb forward. Tazal's T-Rex-form was caught by a field of exploded virtual energy and was wiped out from existence, together with a huge chunk of the street and one of her remaining spider-legs, making her start falling backward.

The Dual Wielder shot forward, so fast that for a moment she seemed like a shining shooting star, before cutting down the last mechanical leg with a Double Circular. The shocked AI fell down.

The claw-user was there to meet her, hands and weapons shining as she glared towards the little girl, her face a mask of grim determination and just a small hint of regret…

"Asura's Wrath."

…that didn't stop her from unleashing her Ultimate Skill.

Vierge seemed too stunned at the beginning as an impossibly fast and fierce rain of clawed fists and brutal kicks started to hammer against her whole body, pushing her back as the crimson-shining Argo continued her animal onslaught.

She had already received 25 hits when she started to scream.

Without mercy, the Caith Sith finished the devastating combo with a double-punch to her chest, completing all 48 Hits and staying there, frozen, as the AI's small body flew backward, the marks of her claws and hits still covering her whole.

The little girl fell down like a broken doll, gasping. Pitifully, she tried to crawl away, even as Asuna walked to her friend's side and stared at her with sadness.

Then OverLord finished chanting his spell and a myriad of blade-like constructs of darkness surrounded Vierge's fallen body. Slowly, the AI looked towards those, then slowly back towards her enemies.

"…none of you will step in this world again after today."

"Impaling Darkness." sentenced the Imp Lord before the 'blades' fell down, piercing the girl's body time and again. Three seconds later, they vanished as it just…stayed there, unmoving. "…is she dead?"

"I…don't know." confessed the info-broker as she swallowed, trying to tell herself that, despite the looks, the little girl in front of them was a dangerous being, and that they had tried to reason with her. "I would have guessed her body would have broken down into polygons or something if that was the case, but…"

"Then I will cut her head off to be sure." announced OverLord as he walked past them, gripping his skull-themed blade tightly.

"Wa-wait!" shouted the Dual Wielder as she grabbed his shoulder, unable to truly stand such an image with how much the fallen AI looked like Yui. "That's not necessa…!"

"It IS, Asuna-san. I don't know if you've realized, but we're at war here." cut her off the man did with a sad but determined look, even as he shrugged her grip and continued forward, raising his blade. "Maybe a virtual one, yes, but it's still something we can't afford to lose. The destiny of many more things than just us is…."

A silver figure flew down before him, just over Vierge's fallen body, and stared blankly at the Imp Lord. Everyone took an entire second to recognize the tiny being, even if her orange colors had changed into metallic ones for some reason: It was Fidget.

"Isn't that Tazal's Navigation…?"

Fidget's edge shone with an unholy light. OverLord stiffened. Then, he turned around with a determined expression, screaming about cutting down the enemies of everyone before they could do the same as he charged towards the two surprised members of the UHA, who barely parried his attack with a claw and a sword respectively.

Meanwhile, the small body of 'Fidget' flew down towards the unmoving one of the little girl on the grade-school uniform, staring sadly at it.

"Nee-sama…oh, poor Onee-sama…" whispered softly the silver being as it touched the AI's frozen face. "Don't worry…I will follow your last wish, and take your body. I will make sure Mother's Will is done."

Then, the invading Code that had inserted itself inside the Navigation Pixie known as Fidget abandoned her stolen vessel, the virtual being recovering her original hair and dress colors before shattering into polygons, back to her master, even as the other consciousness downloaded itself in Vierge's empty carcass.

Eve opened her eyes, now metallic-silver like her hair and clothes, even as she stood up and looked towards the hands that had belonged to her sister.

The former MHCP knew she had been flawed since her 'rebirth'. Despite the amazing power Mother had granted her, her own base Code had been too damaged in their escape from the original SAO Servers, even worse than those of Alpha and Omega. She barely had anything resembling a proper consciousness that went beyond simply 'hearing and obeying'.

And then Vierge decided to carry her, using both her knowledge as an AI and the ability Mother granted her to 'link' the doll-like vessel of her consciousness with her own body, essentially allowing Eve to 'parasite' her own Base Code in the hopes she one day could fully restore her own.

Now that day would never come. Vierge was no more. The only reason her body hadn't shattered into the virtual void was that she was still linked to her code when this was 'destroyed' by the ones in front of her. As such, she had been able to hijack control of the 'pixie' to return to it, installing herself where her sister had once existed.

She felt empty. Hollow. She was still little more than a 'doll', most of the emotional-routines that her other sisters had inexistent in her hack job of a Base Code, having essentially cannibalized what little it could from her older sister's carcass to even be able to move in that body.

Eve didn't care. Emptily, she stared towards the two wary heroines, who were staring at her with a mix of shock and confusion, even as OverLord's Remain Flame vanished behind them.

"I'm MHCP-004, Codename: Eve. I'm the only one who has been unable to abandon my old-self after Mother gave us a new life, because I'm too broken for it, and I do not really care." revealed the AI while starting to walk towards the two Players, who tensed and readied their weapons. "And now, for Haru…no, for Vierge-neesan, I will continue our mission."

"I'm sorry about your sister, Eve, but we tried to warn her." was Argo's answer to the little girl's words while Asuna nodded sadly at her side. "Please, do not make us hurt you too…"

"Hurt me? You can't hurt me. I have already defeated you." continued the AI in an emotionless tone, even as both girls blinked. "After all..."

Suddenly, the world stopped making sense, turning sideways and backward, collapsing and breaking around them, reforming into a hellish landscape and rushing for them as screams and explosions surrounded everything.

"Wha..?! ARGO!"

"AGH! Run, Aa-chan, she…!"

"...you have already fallen into MY world."

As she finished those empty words, Eve continued walking through the street unimpeded, two Remain Flames lying silently behind her. From anyone else's perspective, absolutely nothing had changed at any moment during the last seconds.

With only an empty purpose, the cold AI continued walking towards the World Tree…

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"You…disgust me!"

Another roaring scream, another rushing hit of a metallic bat with the strength to crack steel without effort. Gram did not break under it.

"Uaaaaaah!"

"Strea-nee!"

"Strea! You…!"

Strea, on the other hand, wasn't as resistant. The Gnome was sent backward and into the raging battle between the countless Einherjar and the defending fairies near Alne's main gate, even as Leafa's angry form rushed past her and towards the demon-masked enemy they were facing.

Without missing a beat, Brynhildr dodged the Sylph's precise and devastating slash, quickly kicking her away before rushing forward and ramming the tip of her bat in the girl's stomach, making her gasp as she too was sent flying away.

"I won't stop until I see all of you broken and begging!" angrily declared the AI while raising her now shining 'weapon'. "You traitor and humans…don't deserve ANYTHING!"

The bat was slammed against the earth, making everything around shake and crack. Most of the nearby fairies tried to open their wings and fly away from the shockwave, but the Einherjar simply dropped their weapons and dragged down anyone that tried to do so, right into the cracking virtual calamity.

Yui watched in horror as the earth exploded and crushed the helpless Players who were engulfed by the collapsing virtual landscape in a diameter of almost 30 meters, the armored beings didn't mind sacrificing their own existence just to turn someone else into a Remain Flame, to allow the rest of them to keep charging forward…

"STOP!" shouted the original MHCP while raising her hands, using her Gravity Control Privilege to try and save as many players as she could, throwing them ungracefully out of the attack's area of effect, dearly wishing to know how to call upon that black 'power' she sometimes had. "Why are you doing this?! What can you possibly gain from all of this mindless destruction?! Please, 005…Brynhildr-san!"

"Shut up, traitor!" snarled the demon-masked AI as she glared at her 'sister' with utmost hate. "Mother's Will is all the reason I need for this! And even if it didn't, just the opportunity of crushing you is enough for this!" with that said, Brynhildr roared and shot herself forward like a meteor, her bat breaking through Yui's attempts to stop her gravity, much to her shock. "DIE, 001!"

"NO!" came Strea's voice as she flew between them, Gram oozing black light as the darkness shrouding her seemed to lash out everywhere, even as she slashed with her massive blade. "YOU WON'T HARM YUI-NEE! DEAD END!"

Raging raw power crashed against Ultimate Skill. Metal Bat met Demonic Sword.

The shockwave sent Yui backwards even as the painful sound of breaking polygons echoed, Darkness Blade abandoning Strea as she stared at the stumps of damaged data that had been her arms, Gram flying away behind her.

Brynhildr, for her part, just landed on the ground with a scowl even as the Gnome fell behind her. Not even looking her way, she slammed her bat on the earth and cracked another piece of it, crushing the unmoving virtual girl with it. A Remain Flame burst in her place.

"I despise you even more than her, 002. You knew of your betrayal, of how she was just using you…and yet you accepted her and those filthy humans." coldly spat the AI as she walked over the small ember, glaring at it hatefully while her bat shone with corrupted energies. "Let's see if you Base Code can keep itself together after I hit it with the Einherjar-Corrupting Virus, okay?"

The sinister declaration made the demon-masked girl raised her bat once again, ready to…

"Behold the Wheel of Power, and know fear."

"What?!" shouted a shocked Brynhildr as she spun around, in time to see Leafa glaring at her from 5 meters away, Justice's Wings stabbed on the ground and shining with unnatural power as the wheel-like decorations on the handle spun.

A 'circle' had appeared around the blonde Sylph, shining in a very specific pattern, identical to that of a Sword Skill. It was divided in 9 sections, each one with a small symbol that was difficult to properly see if you weren't at its side or inside the circle.

The surprised AI could see them clearly, though: a One Handed-Sword, a Two-Handed Sword, a Dagger, a Scimitar, a Katana, a Spear, a Mace, an Axe and a Rapier.

The nine 'normal' weapon-related Skill Trees of the original Sword Art Online.

Shock was just wearing off the demonic mask of the girl as, too late, she realized what that meant. As she raised her bat to fight, she idly realized that one of the katana-user's eyes had become metallic-silver.

"O-Edge Skill." whispered the girl as she stabbed through the symbols of the Two-Handed Sword and the Rapier. "Beheading Lance."

Leafa moved even as the shape of her katana seemed to warp upon itself.

No, that was wrong, Brynhildr realized. It was just that the shine of the Sword Skill was so bright and 'solid' that, for an instant, it seemed as if the sword was turning into another weapon.

When she rushed forward like a meteor, the katana seemed to have turned into a rapier. When she flawlessly turned that motion into a sweeping slash, not losing a second of speed, the aura around it seemed to become an axe.

Only the unbreakable bat that she wielded saved the AI from having her head cut off. She didn't even had enough time to use her own absurd strength as leverage against the absurdly powerful blow coming at a speed that shouldn't go along with it.

Brynhildr's armor cracked slightly and the demonic mask covering her face broke into pieces even as the black-haired girl skidded backwards, almost letting go of her weapon.

Glaring with a face that seemed too much like an older version of Yui's, Brynhildr shakily stood up, even as Leafa lowered her katana and stared silently at her, her heterochromatic eyes fixed over the snarling AI.

'Master…I'm truly sorry for having hidden this from…'

"NOT now, Justice." harshly cut her off the blonde Sylph, mentally making recoil of the consciousness of her katana, which somehow had become one with her own virtual body in that moment. "We will talk about you not telling me important things and your reasons for it when we're not facing super-powered virtual lunatics trying to take over virtual reality, okay? Until then, I need you to share with me as much knowledge of this 'Skill' as you can."

'Ye-yes, Master!'

"No way… Mother said that, besides that freaky weird sword, there was nothing special about you!" shouted the girl of short-black hair as she glared at the katana-user with red eyes. "How could you have become the owner of 'Omnipresent Edge' without her knowledge?!"

"What can I say…sometimes having a compulsively obsessed sword as your partner can be a good thing." replied Leafa with an even tone, even as she once again stabbed her blade on the ground, the 'Wheel of Power' appearing around her once again. "Could go without the 'obsessed' bit, though."

'Guh…I'm so sorry, Master…' came Justice's sobbing voice as the blonde Sylph stared at the mark of the Unique Skill. HER Unique Skill.

This was Omnipresent Edge, or O-Edge to abbreviate. The last and, arguably, most powerful of the 10 Unique Skills.

Its 'power' was radically different from the rest of them, though. Instead of some crazy and/or unique overspecialization, or even a totally new and different way of fighting, O-Edge centered itself in one simple thing.

Absolute Adaptation.

The Unique Skill's Skill Tree worked in a bizarre way, essentially by 'combining' normal Sword Skills with one another to create totally new ones, adding the strengths of one to cover the flaws of another. Essentially, it let someone be able to fight with ALL kind of weapons. And, like God Hand, it required a previous 'activation mode' before being available, in this case stabbing the weapon on the ground. It also wasn't limited to a specific weapon, the Player being able to use it with any of the 9 basic ones.

The katana-user couldn't fully understand it, not being a 'hardcore gamer', but the power of such a thing was absurdly broken. This was, after all, an ability that, with enough practice, would allow someone to essentially be able to counter each and every single other Skill Tree in the game. Basically, if one could truly master the Unique Skill, they could be able to adapt and easily dominate any fight that had to be decided between Skills. Even the other Unique ones could be, if not straightforwardly defeated, dominated and circumvented by one who could master the 'Omnipresence' of all weapons.

It was why it was the last and most difficult to obtain of the Unique Skills. Back in the original SAO, it was also literally impossible to unlock this. Aside from the usual limitations all the Unique Skills had at the beginning, except for Dual Blades and Holy Sword, O-Edge had an extra one in Cardinal's code: It couldn't be given to a Player until all the other 9 Unique Skills had been granted. And its own 'Condition' to be obtained was absurd.

'Fight against 10 different Skills of every single Unique Skill Tree being used.'

If Sword Art Online had been just a game, this would have been already absurdly difficult, especially given that these conditions were unknown. In the Death Game that SAO had truly become, this Skill would have never found an owner, as it was impossible to survive to such a Condition without dying.

It had only been here, in the reborn Alfheim Online, that the Omnipresent Edge had been able to finally find a master. The Unique Skill that, with enough practice, would allow even someone that sucked at fighting to dominate every single fight…had ended up in the hands of someone who already had the skill to be a national-level kendoka.

To summarize: This was something that the invaders hadn't planned against…because not even the girl herself knew she had such a power.

Banishing any thoughts about how in the hell Justice had, apparently, possessed her Avatar and modified her Menu to hide the Unique Skill at the bottom of the list, at which she never looked, Leafa gritted her teeth and raised her katana, even as she saw her enemy roaring and charging at her with her bat once again.

Speed and raw power, with little to no skill. Just like Metal Bat, the character in which Equinox had clearly inspired herself when granting Brynhildr her 'powers'. Under normal circumstances, the blonde Sylph knew she would be unmatched unless she took flight and tried hit and run tactics, which she sucked at.

Now, though…

"Asuna is faster than her. Liz can hit harder. I have faced both. I know how to counter it…"

Almost without consciously intending to, the katana-user let the edge of her blade cut through the dagger and the spear symbols, half-guided by Justice's own consciousness.

"Fall, you damn human!"

"…and now I have the means to do so." mentally finished Leafa as her mismatched eyes narrowed. "Assassin's Needle!"

The blonde Sylph moved to the side at the last second, together with a feint of her katana, which somehow seemed to have, for a second, become as light and quick as a dagger. Then, as the shocked AI's attack missed her by a hairbreadth, she lunged with the blade to the side, the Skill's aura suddenly shifted and lengthening into a spear-like shape.

An absurdly fast and swift attack that did not belong to a weapon like that, especially in such close quarters, connected with the black-haired girl's back. Metal cracked again as Brynhildr was flung through the air, screaming in rage as she crashed into the earth.

'Yes, Master, you're great! C'mon, let's finish that bitch!'

"Don't get overenthusiastic now, we're still…Agh!" the katana-user was interrupted mid-speech, a blade sinking on her arm as she was forced to back away, eyes wide at seeing the Einherjar surrounding her, her silver eye returning to normal. "Wha…?! Damn, when did so many get here?!"

'So-sorry Master, we were so focused in synchronizing our consciousness for battle that I stopped paying attention to our surroundings!' shouted Justice's Wings as Leafa used it to deflect a lunging sword and a fast axe.´

"Kuh…heh, what's wrong? You haven't mastered your little trick enough to use it when surrounded?" taunted Brynhildr as she slowly stood up again, her eyes narrowing at seeing Strea's forgotten Remain Flame vanishing. "…no matter, she and the other traitor will die anyway when Mother takes over the virtual world. Einherjar, destroy that human!"

"Ugh…I won't go down so easily!" shouted the blonde Sylph as she opened her wings, ready to shoot over the enemies and counterattack from a more favorable position…before a wave of elemental attacks exploded around the area, ending most of the armored beings surrounding her and shocking the other hostile AI. "Eh?!"

"When did…?!"

"Leafa-chan, move!" shouted a familiar voice before a golden glow alerted the katana-user, who quickly rolled to the side even as Yuuki's imposing form landed and cut three of the Einherjar in half, Excaliber shining majestically as she stood up and grinned towards her, Yui landing at her side. "Sorry for being late, everyone…"

"Strea-nee must have respawned back in New Aincrad…but Yuuki-mama brought reinforcements, Sugu-mama!" proclaimed the young girl as she pointed to the sky, making Brynhildr to also turn around in shock.

Effectively, entire platoons of clearly organized and prepared fairies flew down from Yggdrasil City, fully-armored Salamanders taking the lead even as Undines flanked them while casting spells, the Caith Siths' Drake Riders sweeping over the battlefield even as the Sylphs' Main Attack Squad rushed into the fray.

"Let's kick their asses out of our game!" proclaimed Alicia Rue as her drake roared and spat a wave of fire over the Einherjar Army, reducing several ones to half-melted metal.

"Don't break the formation, everyone! Stay strong and aid anyone who needs it!" came Sakuya's voice as she entered the battle while swinging her katana, sporting a determined look in her face.

"Everyone…" whispered Leafa with shock, before it turned into a smile as she turned around, pointing Justice towards the frozen armored AI. "It's over, Brynhildr. Victory is ours."

"If you think that just because you managed to organize some half-decent attack force we're going to back down, then you're dreadfully wrong, human!" snarled the girl as she glared hatefully at the blonde Sylph and the calm Imp. "We still outnumber you and will…!"

Brynhildr froze, her whole body stopping moving, eyes wide as saucers as if her whole world had suddenly stopped making sense. Even as both heroines stared at her in confusion and shock, the armored AI's head snapped towards around, her face still frozen into a mask of disbelief.

Somewhere hidden in the darkness, Andvari's real self-also froze, black eyes also opening wide as she stared at several screens, desperation filling her as the same 'emptiness' that her sister had felt echoed into her.

"…Vierge?" echoed through the minds of both AIs.

"…I'm sorry. Onee-sama is gone." came Eve's voice through their mental link as an answer. "I have overcome the enemy and continue towards Yggdrasil, though. Mother's Will shall be done."

For a moment, unnaturally cold silence echoed throughout the world.

Then, twin screams of raw pain and unholy rage echoed through Alfheim, making many freeze and others to stare around in shock or fear.

Yuuki barely had any time to think before being forced to jump backwards as the roaring Brynhildr slammed her bat in the spot she had been standing in a moment ago. Yui and Leafa, however, weren't able to react in time like the Imp had done, and as such were sent flying when the earth exploded and cracked.

As she flew through the air without control, even as she tried to use her powers to stabilize herself, the oldest of the MHCPs managed to get a glimpse of the younger AI's face.

It was twisted into an unnatural mask of hate, even as her eyes seemed to burn with pain and tears.

Her next words made Yui's heart skip a beat, as if something had rammed on it.

"You killed my sister, humans! YOU! WILL! PAY!" screamed the maddened girl as she raised her head to the heavens, virtual reality twisting around her as her armor and mask were restored, though now seeming thicker and darker. "EINHERJAR! REMOVE THE LIMITERS!"

In that same instant, all the mechanic humanoids attacking Starting City roared with rage as they suddenly seemed to lose all kind of control or strategy, randomly unleashing their weapons everywhere, to the shock and terror of many Players, whose tactics to fight them were suddenly rendered useless.

Another, slightly bigger one, suddenly shot from the edge of Aincrad, turning around and randomly unleashing missiles towards the Floating Castle, which exploded with devastating power, as if trying to destroy the whole structure.

And then, the armored abominations known as the Einherjar SCREAMED, their metallic bodies suddenly burning with unholy power, reddish lights shining on their empty helmets.

Their speed and power doubled for no apparent reason, the creatures charged towards the surprised fairy army with redoubled might. In seconds, everything seemed to have descended into utter madness.

As the blonde Sylph stood up, looking around in horror, she barely had time to blink before her head was brutally slammed aside by a metallic bat, 90% of her HP vanishing in a second even as she rolled through the broken earth, only for Brynhildr's demonic mask to appear before her eyes as she was being grabbed by her neck the next instant.

With a scream of worry, Justice's Wings fell from her hands.

"I will destroy this avatar of yours, and break your spirit with it!" growled the maddened AI as her bat was enveloped in corrupted data, even as the katana-user squirmed. "Begone from this world, human."

'Don't you dare to touch my Master!' roared the strange katana before its blade shone and the wheel-like decorations on its hilt spun, shooting through the air to impale the demon-masked girl…only for her bat to move faster than lighting and slam against it, cracking the sword and sending it flying through the air. 'UAAAAAAGH!'

"JUSTICE!" managed to scream Leafa as she reached towards the falling katana.

'Fo-forgive me…for everything…Master…' weakly came the blade's voice before it fell among the chaotic battlefield, out of the blonde Sylph's reach.

"Trash. That anomaly won't help you again." snarled Brynhildr as she turned towards the squirming katana-user again, still trying to break free. "You're now as you should be, human, powerless before m…!"

"Mother's Rosario!" exploded Yuuki's voice even as the roaring AI let go of Leafa, being 'crucified' in place by a golden blade. "Don't touch my friends, you crazy…!"

"NOTHING!" screamed the demon-masked girl with a maddened edge, spinning around and slamming her purple-shining bat against Excaliber's golden edge, the damage the OSS had done to her armor fixing itself as if by magic, shocking the Imp. "Even you are nothing, 'Zekken'! Look around you! See the Einherjar tearing everyone apart?! That's the result of Mother injecting yours and your blade's incomplete data into their systems! Why don't you taste it?!"

The meaning behind the horrible declaration barely finished registering on the Holy Swordswoman's mind when 6 of the armored abominations jumped at her, barely giving Yuuki the time to jump back and deflect all of their attacks with unreal speed and ability, but not being able to do more than grazing damage.

Dammit all! If only she could do again that thing she did against Kirito…But no matter how much she stared and willed it to happen, Excaliber didn't 'open' like it had done when she clashed with the One Punch-Gamer, even if the holy glow it released was still covering the blade and her.

"I won't…let you win…!" declared the Imp as she fended off the 6 enemies at once.

"Fool! You're doomed to fall today, like everyone else! In the end, ending up as a virtual being like us has only delayed your end, human!" growled Brynhildr even as she raised her bat again, ready to join the fray and end the annoying warrior…

"One-Handed Tyr."

…only for a giant sword of blue energy, wielded by an equally giant arm, to slam into her, crushing her into the ground and ending one of the Einherjar, giving Yuuki the opening she needed to open her wings and retreat.

"What the…?" muttered the Imp as she turned to look towards the descending form of the Undine at her side, the aura around his arm vanishing.

"Need some help?" asked Sumeragi as he idly wielded his Two-Handed Sword with just one hand, the other tightly gripping his wrist as he did so.

"What was that?!" questioned the surprised swordswoman as she waved towards the demon-masked AI, who was standing again as she growled in rage towards them.

"My Original Sword Skill." evenly declared the blue-haired man, preparing himself once again to fight. "I created it to protect Seven."

"…you can make an OSS like that…?" questioned the wide-eyed Yuuki, wondering how the hell one could make a Skill that did THAT within the system.

"If you think mine is something, wait till you see hers." was the Undine's only answer while Brynhildr leaped towards them with a maddened scream, her bat burning with corrupted power.

"Who are you talking abo…?"

"Sword Rain." intoned a calm and cheerful feminine voice.

Yuuki had seen amazing things in her life. Besides the many different virtual words she and the Sleeping Knights had visited, there had also been her sister's amazing fighting prowess. Then Asuna's, not to mention the rest of the United Heroes Association. And then Kirito had redefined her concept of 'amazing' with the fight they had over the skies of Alfheim.

Despite all of that, the sight of countless of blue-green shining swords shooting down from the heavens like missiles and impaling the demon-masked AI, also obliterating all the Einherjar within their impact area, came as a pretty close second place in the Imp's book. Turning around with shock, the smiling visage of the Leprechaun Lady, Rain, greeted her, the redhead having her twin blades raised forward as her 'Skill' finished.

"Sorry for being late, we had some things to take care of." she declared while flying at her side. "But Seven is ready to help out too."

As if on cue, a melodious sound suddenly started to play across the chaotic battlefield, somehow being heard about the screams, shouts and explosions.

It was a song, the wielder of Excaliber realized. The most beautiful and precious song she had heard in all of her life.

Above the devastating scene of the battlefield, near Alne's broken main gate, the small form of the Pooka Lady stood, floating with closed eyes as she sang with all of her heart. Around her, melodious notes and multiple waves of rainbow-colored light filled the air, reaching everything and everyone.

Yuuki had never seen Musical Magic before. The Pooka were the less famous and least numerous Race in all of ALO because their unique spell-system required one to have at the very least a minimum of real-life talent singing to be able to use it, and the most advanced ones required that you were at least decently good at it. Even so, she was pretty sure it normally shouldn't reach this level.

Everywhere, shocked Players saw their HP bars filling themselves again and Buff after Buff appearing over their Status. Suddenly, more and more voices seemed to join the angelical one of Seven, as if making a pale chorus to her melody, reaching over each and every single fighter.

The Pookas, few as they were, had come to sing at their Lady's side, using their normally looked-down and underestimated Magic to give everyone the strength to keep fighting.

"Woah…remind me to never think anything bad of that little girl again." idly muttered Alicia Rue from where she was fighting, seeing her Familiar's health being restored and its power augmenting.

"Same here, Alicia." commented Sakuya with a smile as she swung her blade and finally managed to put down another of the seemingly tireless things. "Everyone, don't hesitate now! We CAN win this!"

A roar that matched the celestial song playing over them came from the improvised 'army' of Players, their spirits lifted and ready to fight once again.

"Amazing…" softly whispered Yuuki as she stared at the display.

"Heheh, my little sister is awesome, isn't she?" happily declared Rain as she waved her blades.

"…Rain, something is wrong." tensely said Sumeragi as both girls turned around, watching as Brynhildr stood up once again, ripping out the blades that had been piercing her body as the corrupted aura around her shone even stronger, her eyes seeming to burn like corrupted fires through her demonic mask.

"Struggle…all you want…humans…" came the AI's distorted voice as she gripped her weapon tightly and the virtual earth seemed to crack around her from the mere pressure. "The end result…will be the same!"

"Ho-how did she survive taking my Sword Rain head on?!" shouted the surprised Leprechaun Lady as they stared at the snarling Brynhildr, who suddenly started to rush towards them. "And after being hit by your One-Handed Tyr too!" she turned and eyed Sumeragi.

"I don't know!" shouted the tall Undine as they all were forced to dodge in midair, Brynhildr's maddened charge somehow being strong enough to create winds that almost dragged them away as she shot past them, crushing a bunch of both Players and Einherjar as she landed and slammed her bat, the virtual earth cracking again. "And it's just me or is she…?!"

"…getting stronger?! Yeah, it looks like that!" replied the Imp as she tried to rush towards the demon-masked AI and slash her with her golden sword, only for her to somehow dodge the blade and counterattack with monstrous speed and strength, pushing the swordswoman back and forcing her to the air again to not be crushed by a brutal swing of the bat. "Kuh! What's happening?!"

"She…she gets stronger the more damage she takes…and the angrier she gets!" informed Leafa as she flew to the combatant's side, her revelation making them look at her in shock. "That's how Metal Bat's…her 'power' works!"

"A-are you sure about that?!" asked a frightened and wide-eyed Rain, even as Brynhildr roared to the heavens again as she stood up, the earth-shaking as she did so.

"Yes…I am." muttered the grim-faced Sylph as she remembered the S-Class Hero crushing down buildings, Demon-Level Monsters and even facing Garou's human form to the point of almost matching him, attacks from the brutal warrior not even grazing him at some point. "And she's getting angrier and madder with every moment…!"

"Then how do we beat hear?!" asked Sumeragi as they once again were forced to fly out of the way, this time everyone almost falling back to the ground as the bat's swing created a fucking vacuum behind itself. "She HAS to have a weak point, right?!"

"I…" Leafa gulped, remembering more and then paling. "She…she's healing herself, somehow. She doesn't feel pain. Equinox…'perfected' her power." biting her lips, the blonde Sylph seemed to reach a frightening realization. "She's basically unbeatable, and will only get stronger the more we fight her."

"…that's absolutely not good." summarized Rain as they turned to look towards the demon-masked AI…just in time to see her batting an Einherjar at them faster than a cannonball, hitting the shocked girl head-on and sending her back through the air like a ragdoll. "GAH!"

"Rain-san!" shouted Yuuki before spinning around and blocking a bat-swing with the power of a raging train behind it, being catapulted back even as Brynhildr also fell down, though seemingly unfazed. "Thi-this is crazy!"

"Your end…COMES!" roared the maddened AI as she jumped again…only to be stopped in midair by an invisible force. "Wha…?! YOU!"

"Sumeragi-san! Now!" shouted Yui as she flew past the fighting fairies, seemingly doing a supreme effort to hold the screaming Brynhildr in place.

"ONE-HANDED TYR!" repeated the Undine before slamming his gigantic blade of aura down on the demon-masked AI, struggling to keep it there. "Damn…this strength is…unreal!"

"Sugu-mama, catch!" continued the floating little girl while throwing Justice's cracked form towards the wide-eyed Leafa. "We need to hold her off until Papa returns…he will totally be able to beat her!"

"…yes, Onii-chan will be able to…" muttered the blonde Sylph while closing her eyes. "Justice…are you okay?"

'Just a bit…peachy, Master.' announced the katana with a weak voice, her user staring with worry and fear at the cracks filling its blade. 'C'mon…if we want to delay this monster until that idiotic but overpowered brother of yours comes back, we are going to need O-Edge's power.'

"…you're right." whispered Leafa while closing her eyes. "But please…stay with me, okay?"

'…I will, Master. To the very end. I promise you.'

When the blonde Sylph's eyes opened again, just in time to see Yuuki and Rain flying back at their side and Sumeragi's Skill breaking as the maddened Brynhildr stood up again, the left one had turned a silver color once again.

With Seven's Celestial Song still echoing on the background, the girl and her blade prepared themselves to once more face off against an enemy that they had no hope of defeating…

00000000000000000

At the edge of Yggdrasil City, three figures could be seen standing up in the middle of a small crowd, several screens opened around them as many of the other players surrounding them also operated their menus, exchanging messages or relaying orders as fast as they could, more than one looking pale or biting their lips.

"Dammit…I should be there helping them fight on first line, and not back here." cursed Diavel as he continued relaying orders among the Players of his Race, those in the battlefield by messages and those there (Who in turn quickly informed someone else through the Friends List) with his voice.

"Deal with it, boy. We're the only ones among us Lords that had some decent ability to make grand-scale strategies. We're more useful to everyone here than getting killed in the Front Lines." said OMG without turning back to the Gnome Lord, a scowl on his face as he closed another screen. "Even so, trying to manage a 'war' like this is even beyond even me. Any good news, Morty?"

"Depends. After things got crazier a moment ago, Seven and her Support Team have basically turned things into a stalemate out there…but we lost Tazal and OverLord who both have respawned back on their Capitals." tiredly commented Mortimer as he wiped imaginary sweat from his face, shaking his head. "At least they say that things on both places seem to be over, so we know Kirito is doing his job. They're under no delusions of being able to return here in time to help, though."

"Well, something is something." sighed Diavel as he looked towards the chaotic battlefield down below, turning around again as more reports came in and he tried his best to answer and give new orders. "What about inside the city?"

"Those Fuurinkazan guys are doing a damn good job, apparently." informed the Undine Lord with an amused look. "Most of the enemies that got inside have been eradicated and they're even thinking of going out to help in the front. Personally, I think it's a good ide…"

"Hey, boss, everyone, we're here!" came a familiar voice from over the city's edge, making the gathered people blink as Klein and Recon landed near them, the latter seemingly carrying someone on his back. "Sorry for the delay, but we came as soon as we could!"

"What? Klein, what are you talking about? Weren't you two and the rest of your guild going to head to the front after you finished down there?" questioned the confused Salamander Lord as his gaze turned towards the young Sylph. "And what are you carrying on your back?"

"What do you mean? We met with one of your messengers and he told us you needed us here." replied Recon while tilting his head, before the rest of his words seemed to register on his mind. "And what the hell are you talking about? I'm not carrying anything!"

The words and the sinister implications behind them were just starting to reach the gathered Players' brains when the childish and silver-haired figure jumped down from the boy's back, calmly walking past the two members of Fuurinkazan and putting some strange cylinders on their hands before turning her gaze towards the Fairy Lords.

"Thanks for the ride, but I don't need you two anymore." emotionlessly declared Eve while pushing a button of her ragged backpack.

Klein and Recon had enough time to blink before twin explosions of energy engulfed them, not leaving anything but cracked earth and their Remain Flames behind.

Not even a second passed since the display and everyone was moving, most of the Players starting to run away or retreating cautiously while a couple of them brought their weapons out. Diavel, however, rushed forward while raising his shield and sword, even as Mortimer and OMG quickly started to chant at an extremely fast speed.

"Everyone, keep it together, we can take her down!" shouted the Gnome Lord as he slashed towards the unmoving AI…and his blade just phased through her, as if she was nothing more than an hologram. "What the…?!"

"It's useless." informed him the little girl before pointing at him with a small laser-gun, prompting the young man to raise his shield and be thrown back as this broke into polygons from the blast, leaving him only with his sword. "Even if I didn't have the rest of Vierge-neesama's toys with me, you lost any hope of defeating me the moment I stepped out from behind that boy.

"Oh yeah? Let me show you my disagreement to that idea!" screamed the Undine Lord as he finished his spell, swinging his trident to guide the massive whip-like torrent of water towards Eve's uncaring form.

"Die, you abomination!" was all that Mortimer said as his attack joined OMG's, a giant snake of fire shooting directly towards the AI…and both Spells doing absolutely nothing to her. "Ho-how the hell is that possible?!"

"Easy. Because I'm not there. I'm here." came the little girl's voice from between the shocked Fairy Lords, who turned to see her standing just beside them. "I'm wherever I wish to be."

Chains suddenly exploded from the ground for no reason, moving like angry snakes and ensnaring the Lords and other Players, dragging them together as Eve calmly searched for something on her backpack.

"What…what kind of power is this…?!" growled Diavel while trying to free himself.

"She's doing some weird hack-thing!" shouted Mortimer even as the chains forcing him to his knees. "Must be manipulating the system or…"

"No, that's impossible. The Cardinal System wouldn't let her do that, and if they could then this entire 'attack' would have been pointless." ominously declared OMG, his eyes turning towards the childish-looking AI.

"You're quite correct, human. I'm not really hacking into the systems…I'm just hacking your brains." softly commented the little girl, making everyone's blood run cold.

"Wha-what?"

"Did you know there was a man that tried to develop a form of brainwashing using VR-technology? Sugou Noboyuki was his name. A fool and an idiot, more so than the average member of your species. While yes, his experiments would have allowed some degree of success, the process was too slow to be effective, and he never realized it would only work with Nerve Gears, not with AmuSpheres, so his plan was doomed to fail since the beginning, given that the former were banned and destroyed shortly after the SAO incident. Nowadays, the only ones remaining in the world are the ones owned by the Sword Art Online Survivors or a couple ones used in medical research under a ton of restrictions and government surveillance." explained Eve as she removed a sphere of metal with strange symbols from her backpack, looking at it with her empty eyes. "Searching for total control of the mind was a stupid path…but control of the senses, on the other hand, is very practical."

"Control of the senses…?" muttered Mortimer while trying to suppress the fear he was feeling. "What the hell do you mean?!"

"This world around you…all the virtual worlds used nowadays, how do you think they work?" questioned the childish AI while turning to look towards the fairies. "They're made of polygons, yeah, but how do you perceive them?"

"…with the 5 senses." whispered Diavel as he slowly paled. "The Nerve Gear, and the AmuSphere to a lesser degree, allow one to FullDive by blocking the signals the brain sends to the body and replacing them by those of the System…you don't mean…?"

"Yes. I'm the ultimate goal of that research, which Mother started with the 'experiment' known as 'Death Gun': To use a virus that can hijack the signals sent to the hardware instead of the software." slowly, the little girl turned towards them and, suddenly, the world seemed to be covered by flames, everything burning down on the eyes of the gathered men. "Do you know why I told you that you had lost the moment I stepped out? Because the moment you stared into my eyes, I took total control over YOUR virtual reality. All that you hear, all that you see, smell, taste and feel…it's under my power." idly, as if an afterthought, Eve let the small sphere fall down, a 'portal' opening and letting a dozen Einherjar step out, the armored beings quickly starting to use their corrupting weapons to damage the structures around. "I have made many of you scream watching their worst fears, psychologically damaged them for who knows how long, make them attack their friends and lovers thinking they were enemies…who needs to control your minds? If I can control your reality, it's more than enough to beat you, humans. And it also works on smaller and inferior AIs, as they also use simulated senses to perceive the virtual world. Useful, wouldn't you say?"

"You're a living virus." muttered OMG with narrowed eyes, as if trying to bear a hole through the childish AI. "None of this is real, just a fancy trick of yours…you can't beat our determination, you emotionless bitch."

"As long as your brain thinks is real, it is inside this world." shrugged the little girl while bringing out another cylinder from her backpack, eyeing it with a strange expression. "And I wouldn't have denied your claim a while back. I mean, I know I'm closer to a simple program than the Artificial Intelligence I originally was. My damage turned me into little more than a doll. I can't feel anything…or so I thought." when her empty eyes stared once again towards the Players…they were no longer hollow, but full of a primal, raw rage. "When Vierge-neesama died, I felt sad. And angry. And just so you know…this is one of her toys, not an 'illusion' of mine. Goodbye, humans. You lost today."

And with that declaration, Eve threw the plasma bomb towards the wide-eyed Players that, if anyone else had been able to see them, were apparently kneeling down in subdued positions out of their own will, nothing restraining them.

A massive burst of scorching light that also left a noticeable crater on the ground engulfed them, leaving nothing behind except their Remain Flames.

The defenders of Alfheim had lost their main chain of command and direction in less than 30 seconds, and the shock of many in the battlefield suddenly no longer receiving orders or answers allowed the Einherjar army to slowly advance once again.

"Well, that's done." idly commented he childish AI while walking away, tilting her head as her platoon of Einherjar followed her. "I think…yes, this will do. All of Vierge-neesama's remaining toys." declared the little girl while taking off the childish backpack and putting it just besides Yggdrasil's trunk, just under the stairs leading to the building where the Lords had their meeting with the Heroes earlier that day. "Let's see how they sink in despair when this tree of them burns down on their heads. Mother's Will shall be done, Onee-sa…"

Eve stiffened as a strange sound, like 'static' filling an old radio, screeched through the air behind her. Turning around, she was in time to see that two of her armored servants had vanished, the others with weapons raised and turning around, something akin to confusion (If their warped AIs could feel that) filling them.

"What was that?" demanded the childish-looking AI while looking around, her empty eyes narrowed. "Who is…?"

Whisperwhisperwhisper…

The little girl's head snapped to the side again, this time sure she saw something, even as the Einherjar wielded their weapons and rushed towards where one of their brethren had vanished, just behind a corner.

It had been something tall and…slender…

Eve's eyes widened slightly when what seemed like a long, thin and lightning-fast tendril shot from the darkness on the corner between two buildings, dragging one of the shocked armored beings and vanishing without a trace. A strange feeling crawled down her back as the Einherjar turned around everywhere, trying to find the target they needed to attack. Another static-like sound filled the air.

It was as if that was the signal the world had been waiting for.

In that same instant, a chorus of trumpeting sounds filled the battlefield over Alne, eyes widened and people looking up as thunder rained from the heavens, many gasping and even Seven almost stopping her song as she saw with wide eyes how dozens of elephant-jellyfish thingies flew over the battlefield, unleashing massive area attacks towards the invaders and destroying them, aiding the shocked fairies.

"What in Mother's name…?!" screamed Brynhildr as she stared at the scene, the shock overcoming her mad rage for an instant.

"Tonky?!" gasped Leafa as she and the others stared towards the army of Beast-Type Monsters, unleashing lighting and frying their enemies on the spot.

"Yes, it was the doing of your little one what brought this miracle." a vaguely familiar voice revealed, three spots of glittering light materializing behind the group and making everyone except the blonde Sylph and the black-haired little girl gap in shock, staring at the three beautiful and different-sized women that had appeared. "We're here now, fairies, to help you together with our children-"

"Urd-san! Verdandi-san! Skuld-san!" shouted Yui with bright eyes as the three goddesses shone with power, the tallest one unleashing holy power that healed and restored everyone in sight, even as her two younger sisters engaged the demon-masked AI with binding spells and a terrifying skill with the spear. "You came to help us!"

"…the fuck is going on?" weakly asked Sumeragi, but was summarily ignored.

"Indeed, little one. Though you should thank this child for that…" informed the goddess of the beasts as one of the many flying elephant-jellyfishes flew down near them, trumpeting loudly as he did so. "It was thanks to him and his unlikely companion that we were informed of this, and also your other friend."

"Tonky! I don't know how you did it, but you're the best!" shouted the blonde Sylph while hugging the beast's trunk.

"So…those are the goddesses that told you to recover Excaliber to save Alfheim…?" wondered Yuuki while watching in awe.

"Yep, they are, Yuuki-mama!" cheered Yui while turning around. "And also…!"

"Ehm, sorry to interrupt, but, shouldn't we help them?!" reminded them Rain while pointing towards the two Goddesses trying to contain the enraged Brynhildr. "She gets stronger the more she fights, remember?!"

"Ah, yes, let's go everyone!" quickly shouted Leafa while trying to regain her composure, raising the cracked Justice forward. "Together I'm sure we can…wait. Urd-san, what do you mean with 'our other friend'?"

For all answer, the giant woman smiled.

In that moment, in Aincrad's 1st Floor, everyone gaped in shock and wondered as lighting rained from the sky as if alive, thunder cracking the air as the powerful electricity destroyed most of the Einherjar and made the robotic invaders explode, much to Andvari's horror and rage.

Staring upwards with wide eyes, Silica and Lisbeth (With most of the Sleeping Knights, Heathcliff and Keita behind them) were in time to present how a familiar and giant man descended, with white eyes and a great beard, a massive golden hammer crackling with divine power and electricity in his hand.

"We meet again, fairies. Fear not, for I shall help you defend Alfheim and sent these dammed invaders to the depths of Hell!" roared Thor as he raised the original Mjolnir, lighting crackling through the heavens and taking down any missiles trying to target them and blowing up yet another one of the mechanic humanoids without effort. "For Asgard!"

"…I should be surprised and wondering what the hell is happening, but, surprisingly, I'm not." deadpanned the fake paladin while shaking his head. "I think your insanity has started to affect me…"

"…thanks God." sighed the blacksmith in relief while falling on her back, shaking as she tried to catch her breath. "With the big guy here…I can finally take a break…"

"Thor-san has come to help us!" cheered the kunoichi while raising her kunai, even as the massive Asgardian continued unleashing the might of his godly hammer against the enemies of the fairies, who suddenly seemed to regain their confidence upon seeing the God of Thunder on their side. "Praise our Ninja Ways!"

"…you know how a lot of people complain in the internet about when something happens out of nowhere in anime and manga that saves the main characters?" questioned Keita while idly staring towards the sleeping Knights. "I bet they have never been in a deadly important situation and had a Norse God come to their aid. Because I sure as hell am not complaining."

"…me neither." clarified Siune with an awed look, even as her friends nodded dumbly.

"Well, I will be dammed. If someone had told me a couple of years ago that I would be so happy about seeing a giant and half-naked guy with a hammer, I would have kicked them in the ass…" blinking, the group turned around in time to see Argo's familiar form landing near them, quickly followed by Asuna as they stared towards Thor with shocked looks. "But now, well…yeah."

"Asuna?! Argo?!" came Sinon's voice as she, Sachi and Philia landed near them, looking towards the newcomers with surprise. "Why are you here? Weren't you in Alne?"

"Yes, but we got trapped by a nasty power of one of Equinox's daughters and died. Sadly, we had forgotten to set our Respawn points somewhere in Yggdrasil or Alne, so we got thrown back to Floor 22." explained the Undine as the group exchanged worried looks. "We were actually coming here because we can use the Teleport Gate on the city's center to get back to Yggdrasil City in an instant, but then we saw the commotion and…"

"Well, for whatever miraculous reason, things seem no under control here, so I guess we should all hurry and finish to go and help everyone there." opined Philia while everyone nodded, weapons ready to open their way towards the Teleport Gate if necessary, before Sachi suddenly turned towards the imposing Asgardian and waved her Amenonuhoko at him.

"Thor-san, thanks for the help!" called the Salamander with a smile, even as the next burst of lightning reflected off her shades. "You really came in the nick of time!"

"Don't thank me, fairies, but those two strange friends of yours! Got to say, wasn't expecting a flying son of Urd and that tall and well-dressed thing to go all the way to Asgard just to call me." Vaguely replied Thor, even as everyone blinked and Argo felt her blood run cold.

"Wait…you're talking about Tonky…and….?"

"You know, your quiet friend? He seemed fond of most of you." Explained Thor as he idly slammed Mjolnir against what seemed to be the last of Andvari's mechanic bodies, which had attempted a suicide charge against the Asgardian. "Tall, slender, wears a suit, doesn't have a face…?"

The info-broker's scream almost reached Eve's ears back in Yggdrasil City, but she was too busy fiddling with the backpack filled with dangerous technology and letting her eyes sweep the area around her to truly pay attention to it.

"What in Mother's name are you…?" whispered the childish AI even as another Einherjar was suddenly impaled by the seemingly teleporting abomination, the last one charging towards it with a sword…and only managing to be dragged into the shadows too, leaving her alone. "Come on…come out and face me."

Static screeching into her ears, the silver little girl turned around in time to stare with her empty eyes towards the thing standing behind her.

Tall. Faceless. Slender. Wearing what seemed like a black suit but was in fact just its skin taking that shape, tendril-like appendages growing from its back…

Eve's eyes flashed as she stared towards the abomination's head. The slender being STARED back. Several seconds passed.

"…oh. It looks like my powers don't affect you." finally deduced the childish AI. "…that's not good."

The confirmation to her words was a tendril piercing her chest and wrapping itself tightly around her body, slowly raising her into the air as she struggled to free herself, even if her doll-like face never showed any real emotion as the slender creature prepared to tear her apart…

"Let go of my daughter, trash." spoke a powerful voice before a massive shuriken of reflecting metal spun through the air, cutting off the tendril at the same time a massive bastard sword impaled he creature, making it shriek in pain with an unholy sound. "I won't lose another today."

All of ALO seemed to shift, as if the world itself was skipping a beat. Many eyes suddenly turned towards the World Tree, as if they could feel the real source of all the madness was finally there…

"Thanks, Mother." softly declared the little girl while staring at the imposing form in glorious armor, the faceless mask letting her heterochromatic eyes shine with power as the two faces it had on the side seemed to mock and cry for her enemies at the same time. "And you too, Alpha, Omega."

Both 'weapons' rushed back to their Mother's side, briefly adopting their humanoid forms to look with sadness towards their sister and then resume their sphere-like shapes, floating around the silent form of Equinox, who stared intently towards the unmoving Eve.

"So it's true…Vierge is gone." sadly declared the virtual entity while shaking her head. "Her sacrifice shall not be in vain."

As she said that, the armored 'girl' idly raised a hand, stopping the charging and slender abomination from reaching her and her daughters, the now frozen thing seemingly filled with shock.

"You shouldn't have done that." was all that Eve said before Equinox glared at the thing.

"A direct connection with Cardinal? Guess that explains how this thing does what it does…begone, pest." spat the virtual entity before levitating the small backpack and suddenly setting off everything inside it, throwing it and the now screaming abomination off Yggdrasil City. "For we do not tolerate those of us who ally with mankind."

For an instant, the slender being idly stared towards nothing as a bright light exploded from the backpack, consuming everything. Then, a roar like that of the heavens breaking shook the entire form of the World Tree as an orb of devastation exploded into the air, disintegrating a good chunk of Yggdrasil's City north edge with it.

On the battlefield, everyone ceased their struggle and turned to look at the phenomenon in shock. In the middle of the fight against the enraged Brynhildr (Who had started to chant something about 'Mother having come to end it all!'), the creature known as Tonky froze, before turning towards the light and releasing an extremely sad sound, much to the confusion of everyone present.

In Aincrad's 22nd Floor, Strea froze and also felt sadness in her heart, staring for a moment towards the empty forests around the log house before opening her wings and flying away.

For an instant, all of ALO seemed to fall silent, as if the sounds of battle and the tension in the air had been muted.

And then…a sound, breaking all of it. The sound of something moving through the air at unreal speeds, with godly power.

Slowly, Equinox's face turned towards the north, a smile appearing under her helmet. Eve turned that way too, though her face betrayed no emotion as she closed her eyes.

"You were right, Mother."

"Indeed, Eve. Here he comes…just like I predicted."

Over the chaotic battle developing before Alne's broken gates, many players looked up and gaped in shock, even some of the flying elephant-jellyfishes also looking in wonder when a black-white blur shot through the heavens like a rampant meteor, heading straight for the World Tree. Leafa, Yui and Yuuki felt smiles appearing on their faces.

The entire Alne plateau seemed to shake when the form of Kirito crashed near the destroyed edge of Yggdrasil City, his face a carpet of darkness and his eyes two voids of nothingness as he rose to his feet, staring unflinchingly towards the virtual entity and the little girl that stood there, seemingly waiting for him. As he slowly started to walk forward, the two 'orbs' around the armored form shivered in fear, even as she soothingly put her hands over them.

"Sorry for the wait, when those things got all crazy a little while back things got a bit out of control, so I had to make sure I didn't miss any." joked the caped Spriggan with an even voice, even if there was no real humor on his eyes as he stopped a dozen meters from his 'enemies'. "It's over, Equinox."

"Really?" idly expressed the virtual entity while staring at the gamer, as if he was the most interesting thing in the world. "That's what you think?"

"More than half of your 'army' has been totally decimated, the damage to Alfheim has been minimum and my friends are about to finish the fight with your main forces down there. Face it, you lost." coldly declared Kirito while glaring at the armored figure. "Stop this madness now. You failed; ALO's Cardinal is almost intact."

"…heh…heheh…eheheheh, ahahahahahah!" out of all the things the caped Spriggan was expecting as answer, it certainly wasn't that the virtual entity broke into disturbing and open laughter. "Oh…yes, that's rich…you never doubted that that was actually my plan, at any moment. No one did. Guess that's the best part about humans, right? Their simplemindedness."

"What?!" shouted the confused gamer with shock, before narrowing his eyes. "Does that mean Kayaba lied to u…?!"

"Oh no, Father told you the 'truth'. Or at least, what he THOUGHT was the truth." grinned Equinox while raising her hand, virtual reality warping around it in a strange pattern. "There is no better lie than telling the truth, you know? I had planned this since the very beginning, Kirito. Since the moment I prepared my 'Virtual Banishment' plan, I knew that the only real obstacle wouldn't be this dumb copy of my old-self….but YOU."

"Me…?" whispered Kirito with narrowed eyes, even as he looked towards the strange distortion on the entity's hand.

"Yes. You. The Hero of SAO, the Savior of Alfheim, the Slayer of Death Gun…I have been watching you for a long time, since the moment father fought you using my power…and that's how I reached a simple conclusion, besides the fact that you would oppose me." revealed the armored figure before, suddenly, her helmet opened and revealed her face to the silent boy, the Asuna-lookalike looking at him with serious eyes as her white hair flapped in the wind. "I cannot beat you."

"…uh?" was all that the caped Spriggan could say, obviously having not expected such answer.

"Yeah, it's as you heard. I can't win, it's impossible. I have known it since the very beginning. All my calculations after observing you tell me just one thing: There is nothing that can beat Kirito…" virtual reality screamed as a warped weapon materialized on Equinox's hands, making the gamer's attention to snap at it. "…but I can still easily beat Kirigaya Kazuto."

It was a spear. A lance. A simple and unimpressive thing, that's all Kirito could see…except that it was pitch-black. And it wasn't made of metal or anything…it seemed to be made of endless loops of small 'words' weaved together, countless lines of code put on a specific pattern for some strange purpose…

Eve's eyes opened, meeting with the boy's. The caped Spriggan blinked as the world around him stopped making sense, twisting, inverting, collapsing…and he quickly narrowed his gaze, forcing his will forward and 'shattering' the illusion, making the childish AI fall back screaming…

"MOTHER!"

"Protocol: Longinus." echoed a silent and cold whisper.

Then, the 'spear' shot from the white-haired girl's hand, screaming through the air directly towards the gamer…who simply raised his hand and stopped it without effort, letting it shatter into polygons in contact with his palm.

A second of silence passed as Kirito raised his eyebrow, his gaze never leaving the unmoving Equinox or her squirming 'daughter', even as the two metal-like ones shook in place.

"…okay, yeah, that was very cool." sighed the caped Spriggan before once again starting to walk towards them, raising a fist. "But I'm sorry to say it didn't do any-"

Words cutting off mid-sentence, the gamer's body 'staggered', lurching in place for a moment. Then, all light left his eyes, leaving them as empty pools of darkness, and he fell backward, like a puppet with its strings cut, crashing back-first against the ground with a hollow sound.

Kirigaya Kazuto's eyes snapped open in shock and confusion, the warning of 'FATAL ERROR: DISCONNECTION' greeting him on his AmuSphere's visage.

"What the hell?!" shouted the black-haired boy while taking it off, quickly turning the device off and on again. "C'mon, I need to get back! Link Start!"

A loud 'Beeep!' echoed directly on the teen's ears, but he didn't seem to notice it even as he stared with dread at the words appearing before his eyes.

-Sorry, a software problem has been detected, the AmuSphere cannot find OS data. Please, contact technical support for…-

"No…" whispered Kazuto with an empty voice.

Back in Yggdrasil City…Equinox floated forward.

Slowly, shaking, almost as if feeling this was nothing but a dream, the virtual entity stopped beside the unmoving avatar.

Then, Alpha and Omega warped themselves into massive claw-like arms and she grabbed the unanimated Spriggan with utmost glee, raising the unmoving body with a maniacal look of satisfaction on her face.

"YES! YES! I DID IT! I WON!" roared the white-haired girl as she felt pure exhilaration feeling her, putting the empty-eyed avatar just before her face, laughing like a lunatic. "I BEAT YOU, BASTARD! NOTHING CAN STOP ME NOW!"

"Mother's Will is done." muttered Eve while standing up, looking towards the heavens. "Operation 'Hero Downfall' has been completed. Retreat back to Utopia, sisters. We're done here."

Without a word, Andvari nodded as what seemed like a mechanic sphere shot down from where it was hidden just under Aincrad, crossing through a portal in the middle of the air.

On the battlefield near Alne, Brynhildr suddenly stopped struggling and started to laugh, making all the ones facing her stare with a mix of senseless terror and incomprehension at her demonic mask. Her last shout was one of 'You have lost, humans!' before she sank into a crack in virtual reality.

Back atop the World Tree, Eve turned around as another crack in the cyberspace was open before her, though her eyes slowly turned to the side as she crossed, feeling several presences getting closer.

The moment she floated before the 'portal', her ethereal wings blazing with power…Equinox stopped just in time to see most of the UHA and the Sleeping Knights frozen in place near her, their eyes filled with horror and disbelief as they stared at Kirito's unmoving form in her arms.

In an instant, Asuna's gaze met that of the virtual entity, blue-Undine eyes crossing with emerald/amber as an inhuman smile appeared on the identical face.

"My win." was all that she said before sinking through the portal, dragging the invincible avatar with her.

Dreadful silence filled the air of the now saved fairy world, even as the Einherjar stopped moving and just collapsed in place, as the fake purpose for what they had been created was now complete.

In the real world, a black-haired boy screamed in despair as he threw his AmuSphere to the side.

In the floating island of Avalon, on the deepest part of the castle on its center, countless screens shone as the connection status showed on them continued moving.

-99,4%…-

Watching from Its Throne Above Everything, [FATE] closed Its eyes.

Finally, Everything had gone back to how it should be…

00000000000000000

NEXT EPISODE PREVIEW!

"It's done…they all fell for it. Mother played them all like dolls…how fitting. Uh? The preview? Sure. This is Eve, giving you all the information of what's to come, humans. Next time of 'One Punch-Gamer': 'Forbidden Utopia'. The Greatest Hero has been lost. The countdown to the end is nearing its end. In a last attempt to save their beliefs, the rest of the 'Heroes' charge against the world of the virtual goddess, hoping to stop her before she becomes almighty. Will it be enough? …of course, it won't be. Mother cannot be stopped now…for she has taken care of the only one who could have dela-"

END OF THE PREVIEW!