Sword Art Online Event: Launch!
Today was finally the day. It had taken a lot of negotiating and money to bring this event to the Academy. A brand new game was debuting now that the beta testing had been complete. The students of Eiyu Academy would be the first to get their chance to play the game shortly before it went worldwide. It was exciting, of course, a game far ahead of its time. Yes, this was the official debut of Sword Art Online. The headmaster smiled to himself, expecting that nothing would go wrong today as he oversaw the setup for the event. He was sure the students would love it. After all, wasn't this something that kids these days enjoyed?
As soon as the preparations were complete, he clapped his hands, drawing the attention of the student body that had now gathered in the area. Everyone from every house was there. He smiled, seeing the curious looks and excitement shining in his students eyes. Yes, this had been a very good idea. Surely, nothing could go wrong. He raised his hand and the chatter died away. “My dear students, we've got quite the treat for you today..Many of you may have already heard about this new game..A virtual reality game..fully immersive! You'll feel as if you're actually living inside of the game? Isn't that neat?” He chuckled to himself, clearing his throat before beginning again. “There are enough stations for everyone so please do not fight amongst yourselves for a place. May your adventures be prosperous and well-traveled! With that, you may select a Nerve Gear and begin your game!”
There was a cry of joy from a majority of the people gathered as they rushed to take their own place and enter this new virtual reality. Some where a bit reluctant to play, and others were more than happy to jump into place. It brought a smile to the headmaster's face, seeing his students and staff enjoying themselves so much. Little did he know that things would take a turn for the worse.
The new players meandered around the towns, some venturing out far enough to challenge monsters. Thirty minutes in, an announcement was sent to all of the players, calling them to gather in one spot. In the center of the virtual town, people chattered amongst themselves, wondering what this could possibly mean. An event to celebrate the start of the game? A new quest? No one seemed to have any idea, but no one could deny the fact that a chill ran down their spine as the sky darkened, the whole square being enveloped in some sort of force field.
A man in a red cloak appeared above them, floating and appearing like some sort of giant. He was huge, easily engulfing a majority of the crowd in shadow. He spoke in a booming voice, announcing himself as the creator of the game, Kayaba Akihiko. “By now you may have noticed there is no 'log out' button. This is not a bug! It is intentional! The only way to log out is to beat the game.” He called down to them. “You are now living within the game, trapped, until you can clear all the levels. And if you die in the game...well..” He trailed off and shook his head, intentionally leaving it up to their imagination. Of couse it was nothing serious. They would just be sent into a coma until someone managed to beat the game. If no one did succeed...well, then that would be a problem. “Don't even think about trying to remove yourself from the Nerve Gear either. The result will be excruciating..and I can't promise you won't walk away without some sort of damage.” A low chuckle rumbled in his throat as he spread his arms out. “Welcome to Sword Art Online! Enjoy this one last parting gift.”
A notification went off for every character, a new item suddenly appearing in their inventory. It was...a mirror? The moment they tried to use it, the avatar they had built for themselves disappeared, leaving them in their true appearance, only now wearing the clothes of their avatar. It seemed the man was serious about being trapped in the game. “It's only fitting that you should live as your true selves, is it not? After all...you could be here for a while.” Another chuckle sounded. “Goodbye for now...Enjoy your new lives!” With that the man vanished and the force field began to break down.
All hell was about to break loose...
Directions
Reblog this post and add your character's reaction to the announcement. (also make sure you delete this little direction bit when you reblog for your character's reactions!)
Include what they were doing in the game before being called to the square, what they made their avatar look like.
Please also include their feelings, both during the headmaster's speech and upon learning they are now trapped.
After this, you are free to begin creating open threads set within the game for your characters.
This event will last for a week. After this point, no new game threads may be started. Ongoing ones may continue until finished. We hope you enjoy our very first event!
For your character, you may pick two sword skills from this list here and two from here. From the second list, one must be combat/weapon oriented and one must be passive/non-combative.