Equis Art Online

As Twilight looked up from her studies, she turned her face towards the night sky. Gazing at the stars, she smiled before turning back to her work. As her right hoof gripped her pen, she wiped the sweat off her brow. She then resumed working on the order forms for the books she had lost in the Library explosion. She sighed and turned to her clock. A solid Eleven-Thirty. She sighed again, and looked back down at the paperwork, the battle with Tirek still fresh in her mind. As she finished a form, then set it aside, she looked at the stack of papers that still remained.

"Great. Still around...ten...fifteen...Twenty forms to go." she said, exhausted, as  she leaned back in her chair. Soon, she heard light footsteps, and Spike jumped up onto the desk.

"Yawn...still working, Twi? I mean, you've been going over those order forms for like, six hours now!" he said, failing to stifle a yawn. Twilight smiled at the dragon, then turned back to the order form.

"Well, I really want to replace everything I lost in that explosion. I mean, the library exploded! No book can survive that!" Twilight said, then something caught her eye.

"Hold on...Spike? Is there a book or comic called "Legends of ALfheim" in your collection?" she asked, eyeing the strange title on the list.

"Nope. Not that I know of!" Spike said, looking at the paper. "Why do you ask?"

"Because it's right here, under the "Other Worlds" category. I mean, I didn't see a book like that all the time I lived there!" Twilight said, confused. "It doesn't make any sense!"

"Well, write Celestia. She'll probably know." Spike said.

"Not at this hour. Luna's probably awake, but I'm not sure I can send letters to her, though." Twilight replied.

"Good point. Twi, get some rest. You can probably do all that in the morning." Spike said, stifling a yawn, and her began to walk up the stairs.

Twilight sighed and began to pack up her things. As she did, she failed to notice a small, dog-eared book, laying on the desk. Illuminated by the lamplight, the gold writing was not even faded, yet the leather cover was well worn and old. As she walked past it, the book glowed slightly. At that moment, a shooting star flew past. As Twilight checked her bag, she noticed she forgot her pen. As she went back to retrieve it, she noticed the book. Picking it up gingerly, she opened the cover. Skimming the title, she noticed a small photo come out of the book. As she picked it up, she noticed it was of two, no, three beings looking at a setting sun. As she looked closer, she could see the two beings on the left were holding hands, and the other was standing to the side, hands in the pockets of a white lab coat. Twilight smiled and put the picture back in the book, and as she walked back upstairs, she began to read. After around an hour, she stopped and began to think.

"ALfheim...Kirito...Leafa...Asuna...it doesn't make any sense! Who are these beings, how did this book get here, and what is this "Sword Art Online" thing they keep mentioning? What does "Online" mean? Why is Kirito searching for Asuna in the first place..." she said, but as she flopped back into her bed, she set the book on the nightstand. Letting exhaustion take over, she fell asleep quickly.

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Kazuto Kirigaya looked back at the computer screen and sighed. As his eyes closed, then opened, he yawned loudly. After a few minutes of silence, he looked at his wristwatch.

"Eleven thirty. Wow, time really flies!" he said softly, careful not to wake his sister, Suguha, who was currently sleeping in the next room. He smiled and turned back to his Mechatronics homework. As he continued, he sighed and fell back in his chair. As his eyes scanned the room as he spun around in his chair, they fixed on his wall calendar. Kazuto smiled at the piece of paper. Tomorrow was Saturday, a free day. He smiled at his NervGear and AmuSphere rigs, which were sitting next to the computer. He got up, and after changing out of his clothes and into sleepwear, he looked at the picture of Asuna on his nightstand, next to his clock and tablet. As he climbed into bed, he didn't notice a small and worn book peeping out from under his nightstand. The silver coloring was darkened from the lack of light, but a somewhat visible Legends of Equis was typed on it. Kazuto settled himself down, but as his hand drooped over the side of the bed, it brushed the book's cover. Kazuto jolted himself up, and reached for the book. As he skimmed the cover, a picture dropped out. Kazuto looked at it, and he furrowed his brow. A photo of five necklaces, each encrusted with a gem in different shapes, along with a tiara, were displayed on a black background. Kazuto frowned as he opened the book and he began to read. After a few minutes, he stopped.

"Man, this seems so odd, but a bit easy to relate to. I mean, basically one kid gets all the glory and honor, what do you expect the other's going to do?" he said with a smile, but something caught his eye. A small piece of writing on the back cover. Kazuto flipped through the pages until he reached it.

"Someday...what does that mean?" Kazuto said, frustrated at the single word written on the back cover. He sighed, placed the book on his nightstand, and he fell asleep.

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