Night Raid Snippets [SAO][AU]

Spoiler: Very important please Read

So about a year ago I did an RP called NR or "Night Raid." It was set in Sword Art Online which I admit wasn't very smart of me. The audience I attracted wasn't very large and the RP died after a few months. Still, it was fun while it lasted and given it was a discord RP there were at least 200K words.

And that's just stuff that happened on screen. Night Raid was special in that there were hundreds of background events occurring on any given day for the players to run into and have fun with. A lot of them obviously happened off screen, moving the world forward anyway.

Night Raid was based on a simple prompt. "What if Kayaba was competent, definitely a sadist, and wanted to run SAO as a horror game?"

And then eventually the prompt evolved to include stuff like "What if reality broke a bit and Cardinal started picking people up from alternate universes to-"
You know what that's probably not important. Hehe.....

ANYWAY!

If you're here it is to read the scenes I deemed totally worthy of being posted for QQ amusement. They will be edited to be more novelesk, but in general these events either happened on screen as is, or happened off screen and impacted on screen stuff in some way.

I'll get around to posting them whenever, and I probably won't care too much about order. Just uh.
Here, have the intro.

In a blue light, the world comes into clarity, town Square.

"Do you know what's going on?" Some girl in the crowd, the massive, massive crowd asks. You weren't the only one flashed here.

"Hey, look up there!" Someone says.

The sky oranges, trails of cloudy gas float above you all.
You take a moment to wonder what it could be, before a shock wave sends you to your knees and the sky ignites.

For just a moment you’re deafened, several people scramble back to their feet around you before your eyes fully adjust to the horror that is a flaming sky. Little embers float down from it, surrounding the area.

A fraction of that blaze spins itself into a mini tornado.
After a moment that tornado transforms into a large flaming figure, as unstable as the gases that make it. Its heat bears down upon you, your face stings. Objectively you know that shouldn’t happen, there’s no pain in Aincrad, but objective fact and experience are two different things. And your experience is telling you this hurts.

As your hearing comes back you hear gasps and shuffling. Someone helps you up so you can move away from the figure with them, making the already overcrowded area even more crowded as everyone piles away from the center.

"Welcome to Sword Art Online!" It shouts, a deep, echoed voice distorted by the flames. "This is my kingdom, and you are now my peasants."

Someone whimpers, apparently unable to handle the special effects and theme switch. "This is intense." Someone else says to you in awe. “They really went all out for this.”

"By now you have noticed you cannot leave, that you are trapped here. You have also noticed your friends list get smaller at random, be honest, you have." It begins laughing, the figure's body shaking, trails of fire waving through the air.

Someone begins speculating aloud and spouting numbers. As if a madman’s incoherent rambles ever made any situation better. "Those people are dead." The statement is final, filled with mirth, a burning malice.

"I give you one chance to leave. Just one." A box appears in front of everyone.

[Leave?]​

[Yes]/[No?]​

Someone presses it immediately, a shivering mess of a girl who can't handle the joke taken too far. The box disappears for everyone else immediately, and in that moment she becomes fire, her screams, so very real, echo throughout the entire area. No other sounds are made except her thrashing form crying out, her beaten scorching body slamming against the ground with every twitch.

No one can speak, no one can move, no one can help her. Your actions have been frozen by GM control, and your voice silenced.

PXXXXXXST
The flames explode into pixels.
The crowded area is one person less crowded, somehow it feels no less tight or suffocating.

"You have now realized you are mine." It sounds as it looks over the crowd, "Do not despair, nothing has changed, you were always mine, you just hadn't been told yet." The laugh returns, long and maniacal.

"There is no hope, no escape, except one fools errand. Somewhere in the great castle of Aincrad, I have left a door. A door to the outside, to your old lives."

It pauses letting that sink in.

"Two hundred people have been killed by their loved ones, carelessly removing the nervegear as if I would be so crass as to forget to plan for that; brains turned into soup right before their eyes. You are the lucky ones."

Its hands move up, fire tunneling around it as it points to the exit of the area. So close, yet so far away, for you still cannot move. "My one gift to all, is proof that I am fair to my toys. Those that died in the game before this point had the function that would liquefy them halted, and their player data saved, so that they could be given another, more informed chance. You can find those that died due to health pool loss outside. It is your responsibility to tell them that this is real, and that this is the last time anyone will be respawning ever again."

The laughter begins again as a background [BGM] as the figure continues speaking. "Find the door, clear my kingdom. Beware. The Night Raid has begun, and without heed for you, The Darkness Breeds"

The [BGM] fades as the fire disperses, gone as suddenly as it had appeared. Blue flashes of light erupt around everyone, and their features change, more natural, less perfect, reality.

The GM pause lifts, the mute releases.

And the screams begin.

 

Spoiler: Note

This is an event that actually took place in the RP. The Player was my friend Sable, who actually took a look at my novelization of it and really helped me bring it up to snuff for everyone. I hope people enjoy it.

The white haired boy doesn't really have a path in mind, but he quickly recognises the one his legs begin to take him on. Back in the beta there were only three NPC blacksmiths which could even perform temporary reinforcement. Grizzled old [Gribbald], God forsaken [Rodger], and [Ol' Barne]. Well, [Gribbald]'s name was just [Gribbald], and [Rodger] was just [Rodger], but their names were very accurate. [Rodger] was... Well he’s glad his feet are taking him to [Gribbald] and not [Rodger], he'll leave it at that. Far be it from him to insult a blacksmith, no matter how bonkers the man is.

He doesn’t really have much experience with [Gribbald], [Old Charlotte] bought the blacksmith shop the moment it had become available back in the beta. People had wondered what would happen if someone bought all the blacksmith shops and then left the game, but, thankfully that didn't happen. It didn't appear [Rodger]'s shop could be bought, and [Old Charlotte] had been online constantly.

Inwardly, he hopes [Old Charlotte] came back to the game, no matter how horrible such a wish could be. He'd grown quite attached to the blacksmith, and fighting through SAO without her familiar face fixing up his sure to grow collection of big, fat, gleaming blades would be annoying at best, devastating at worst.

As he walks into [Gribbald]'s shop, he can't help but feel nostalgia rush through him. He'd missed this place during the month between the beta and the official release.. [Old Charlotte] hadn't really changed it much after she bought it, from the shifty old display pieces to the gritty sooty smell which makes him think of home.

"Heya lad, what can I do for ya?" A gruff and large NPC says from behind a counter, it takes him a minute to place [Gribbald] even knowing he was coming here. The image of Charlotte's gentle face superimposing in his view.

The boy looks away, blinking. The long iron blade he'd been gifted by the sword-king-guy clutched heavily in his arms, giving him strength and flushing color into his face.

He can do this, he chants to himself inwardly. He can ask without messing it up. It's not Charlotte, who had understood him even at his worst. It's just an NPC, just, an NPC.

"I-I'd l-like.. I'd l-like.." He looked down, toeing the earth with his boots as he works himself up. It's just an NPC right? He ponders to himself. It won't notice if he does anything weird. Nor judge him for being different. "I-I-I'd.. I’d l-like t-to.. To have th-this sword e-enhanced, s-sir.. p-please.." The boy pokes his index fingers together, nearly tripping over the iron blade in his grasp as he walks to the counter.

"Enhanced you say?" The gruff man says before rubbing his stereotypically massive blacksmith beard. "Are you sure?"

"Y-Yes, I'm su-" Wait! Oh God, how much did this cost again? His mind whirled in sudden panic and anxiety.He had forgotten value and money over… Everything that had happened.

The boy opens his menu and stares at his counter. 100 Col, the piddly amount given at the start of the game. While many were excited by it, he knew how small that was.

He sighs. He doesn’t want to keep surviving on the hand outs and kindness on others. He’s a man, he swears, regardless of his size or age, he’s a man in a twisted game, not a victim nor a burden!

"H-How.. How much d-does enhancement c-cost, s-sir..?" He mumbles, struggling to meet the eyes of the blacksmith in front of him.

Desperately, he avoids inhaling the wonderful fragrance of steel and soot as a safety blanket. Instead, he holds his breath like the well adjusted child he definitely is. For a few seconds, anyways, before becoming short breathed and ending up panting and gasping for air.

He.. He just needs an upgrade.. Maybe some new gear, if there’s an early game promotion sale. Kayaba would do something like that right? He can’t be all bad, no one’s all bad. Mother said so!

"Ahh, I'm sorry lad. My enhancement hammer was stolen. I could give it a temporary sharpenen at da grindstone, or repair it, but until I get it back the cost to enhance would be infinity."

The boy takes another comforting whiff of soot to calm the blazing crucible and kiln of utter HATRED AND WRATH within his gut.. Someone stole from the blacksmith. Someone. Stole. From the blacksmith. SOMETHING STOLE FROM THE BLACKSMI-!

"A-Ah..Do.. D-Do you have any l-leads on what filthy, disgusting, worthless waste of air ai--Er..Who.. Stole your equipment..?" The boy shyly scratched at his freckled, reddening cheek, his hands grasping the wooden counter, knuckles white.

If it was a player, they would pay. If it was an NPC… They would still pay, he’d just have to figure out how to make ones and zeros mean it when they screamed for mercy.

"A-Ah.. And I.. I th-think I can se.. Settle for a sim.. Simple sharpening, sir." He smiles, tilting his head and imagining what he would do to the freaks who dared to steal from a paragon of amazingness like a blacksmith, with his awesome excellent terrifically wonderful sword, after it’s sharpened.

The first thing he'd do would be carving apart and gutting the thief, scoundrel, and filthy parasite that had the audacity to steal from a blacksmith of all people. The second thing he'd do would be to sell the vagabond's skin as a pelt, then use the profits to buy wooden posts, on which the scourge of humanity would be crucified and stoned. By this time tomorrow, one more sliver of the world’s darkness would be purged.

"I-If that's not any t-trouble of course s-sir!" Cold blue eyes shadowed by fluffy white bangs begin to glaze over, their owner just barely able to keep himself from maniacally giggling.

M-Maybe, Gribbald would even give him a reward for b-being so helpful!~

Yes.. He had to hunt the thief down.. For the good of Aincrad--Nay, humanity! And then later, he could check on Kumi-Sama’s progress with cooking. That candy of hers sounded delicious after a day of errands!

"Could you repeat your request lad?" [Gribbald] asks. This wasn’t, an uncommon occurrence. Kayaba didn’t really code in stuttering to the speech recognition system. Because he was a jerk, well, mostly a jerk. No one was completely one hundred percent jerk..

Once more, the boy sighs, his shoulders slumping. "I-I'd l-like-" He trails off, shame overtaking his features. “A-Ahem.” He takes a deep breath. "I'dlikeasharpeningprettypleasesir!" The white haired boy shouts, a self satisfied smile overtaking his timid countenance as he hesitantly extends his hands, offering the steel blade in his palms, prepared to finally find his pleas answe-

"Could you repeat your request lad?"

Fuck Kayaba!

...

That was alright! Maybe he was just distracted. Maybe he needed a moment after losing his enhancement hammer. He could imagine how distraught he would be in that situation.

"I. Would Like. This. Sword. Sharpened." He breathes out one word at a time, his face burning as a bit of dizziness overtakes his wobbly legs. He stuffs the blade into the Blacksmith’s hands a moment before collapsing in the seats off to the side.

He couldn't wait for Charlotte to take back the shop.

"Ah, yes Lad, no problem. As it's your first time, I'll do it for free. I should be done in about a half an hour, come pick it up then." He says, as he heads back into his forge, leaving the front counter unmanned and closing the door behind him.

The boy’s eyes shoot open wide as he jumps out of his seat, words dying a fool’s death as he chokes on his spittle. How was he supposed to find the thief if the blacksmith didn’t tell him where to start?! At least throw him a quest prompt!

Alas, the miniscule boy was left scratching at his snowy hair after searching the building aimlessly for any semblance of another prompt about the thief. A few bows and fervent thank-yous later, he hesitantly exits the shop, his old rusty starter claymore appearing in his hands now that the blacksmith had his good one.

That was… Something. Definitely.. Something, the boy decides, shuffling off on his way towards the cosmetic shop. He’d find something cute to gift Kumi-sama to pay her back for all her kindness.. Her smile would cheer him up.