Sword art online: Aincrad's Flash

Toyo sprinted quickly after her, accidentally knocking over several ladders as he ran. The chicken, brown and big and the loudest of the bunch, fluttered madly as it tore down the walkways of the warehouse, it's narrow head jerking back and forth as it sought a way out. As they neared the end of the path, its eyes glanced to another on the right which led back to the centre of the building.

"Circle around!" Naomi cried as they sped up to close the distance. "Same as before!"

Nodding his understanding, Toyo tore away and down another right-hand lane. Keeping an eye on his Stamina, he raced at top speed down the corridor of boxes and crates for a moment or two before peeling hard to the left in order to cut off the chicken's escape.

His eyes widened.

She was right in front of him.

"I got her!" Naomi shouted mid-sprint while reaching for the bird with both hands. "I-"

They crashed into each other at full speed before either could react, the momentum of the impact sending them both tumbling across the hard stone floor and the chicken flying. In the midst of their tangled fall, Naomi's elbow came up hard under Toyo's nose. He groaned in pain but was cut short when he hit the ground with enough force to knock the wind from his lungs. Naomi fell awkwardly on top of him a second later, and this time both of them groaned as their heads smacked together before they both finally stopped moving.

"Son of a bitch," Toyo muttered through gritted teeth. He lifted both hands to his throbbing head. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his health drop by one percent. "Why does pain have to be so realistic in this stupid game?"

"Sorry," Naomi said above him as she clutched the side of her head and squeezed an eye shut in pain. "That was my fault."

Toyo sighed and did his best to shake his aching head. "No, I'm the one that shot out around the corner like an idiot. I thought I had made some distance, but I should've checked first."

Naomi sat up and scooted back until she could rest against one of the wooden crate walls.

"I had her for a second there," she muttered.

"I saw. Then I saw the damn thing fly."

To his surprise, the beta-tester let out a sudden laugh.

"Me too. Pretty sure she thought she was doing it on her own: she started flapping her wings like a crazed lunatic. Held her beak up too, proud as a queen."

She laughed again at the absurdity of it, and her amusement proved infectious. In spite of himself, Toyo grinned and started chuckling along with her.

"That's almost inspirational," he said with a grin. "Gotta admit, she's got some class."

"That, or we've just borne witness to the next stage of chicken evolution."

They looked at each other and shared another good-natured giggle, but then Naomi's smile quickly faded.

"You're bleeding."

His mood lightened by the woman's good humour, Toyo couldn't help himself and raised an eyebrow as he replied, "well I mean, you did kind of punch me in the face. And nearly give me a concussion."

She smirked and crossed her arms over her chest, causing the leather armour she was wearing to creak softly.

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"You poor thing. I had no idea you were so fragile."

"Damsel in distress, remember?"

She chuckled and shrugged. "Well, at least you look the part."

Toyo paused, unsure how exactly to take that, but before he could form a reply, a ladder fell several rows ahead of them, followed by a frightened squawking sound.

Both of them rose to their feet.

"Alright." Toyo cracked his neck wearily. "Let's try this again."

In the end, it took at least another ten minutes of chasing and several toppled crates before Naomi, thinking fast, seized an empty box and managed to skillfully throw it over the chicken's head. They then quickly closed in and secured it before it could attempt another escape.

"Finally," Naomi muttered with a shake of her head while calming the captured bird. "This quest reward had better be worth it. Come on, let's get out of here."

"Hold up a second." Toyo turned and gestured for her to follow him. "I caught a glimpse of a cellar door back towards the centre before the chase. Might be some loot down there."

A flash of excitement lit up the beta-testers sharp green eyes, but then she hesitated. "Might be. Might also be something dangerous. Remember, anything below the city's ground level isn't covered by the safe zone."

*****

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