Equis Art Online II

As the group charged, The Eyes grinned and drew a sword similar to the Gleam Eyes. Raising it into the air, he slammed the ground, causing a tremendous explosion and earthquake. As Kirito jumped to dodge, the Eyes slammed his fist into him, sending Kirito flying into the coliseum walls. Asuna cried out, and charged, her rapier ready. Landing a Sword Skill to the boss's chest, it roared before attempting to slice her in two. Asuna used her wings to dodge the blow, but just narrowly, as she felt the blade's edge nearly slice her cheek. As she fell back to heal Kirito, Leafa took up a defensive stance, while The Eyes cackled in a demonic way.

"Is that the best you can muster?" Sombra bellowed from his position atop the coliseum. "Is that truly the best you offer?"

"Not by a longshot!" Alice roared, drawing her sword and charging. Deftly dodging The Eye's swipes, she curled and landed a heavy blow to the underside of his long muzzle. The Eyes roared in pain, and his HP bars depleted by a decent amount. Kirito, now healed to full HP, charged alongside Lizbeth, who slammed her hammer into his left thigh. The Eyes staggered, and Kirito seized his chance. Drawing his Dark Repulsor, he slashed several times. The Eyes roared before landing an uppercut straight to Kirito's chest. Flying into the ground, he groaned.

"That...hurt.." he said, drinking a potion. Sinon fired a series of arrows, but The Eyes swatted them away like flies.

"You are making fools of yourselves!" Sombra laughed. "Just give up!"

"Screw you!" Klein replied, helping Kirito up. "We've still got HP left, and we can still fight!"

"A lovely sentiment." Sombra replied. "But it will cost you your LIFE!"

As Klein dodged the resulting slash from The Eyes, Kirito growled and stood up again. Looking over at Asuna, she nodded. As the two of them charged, The Eyes reared back and sent a purple blast of energy towards them. As they dodged to the side using their wings, Kirito landed his foot on the ground. Using his momentum, he gave himself a burst of speed that allowed him to plant both of his swords into The Eyes's side. As the Boss tried to swat him, Asuna leaped onto his arm and launched Starry Tear right to his face. As the boss recoiled, Kirito withdrew his swords with a mighty slash and triggered Skill Connect. As the two players fought against the boss, Sombra watched them with interest.

"The blue one seems to hold affection for the one known as "Kirito." I might exploit that later. But...now, let's make things...interesting."

Sombra triggered his Dark Magic, and three beams of black energy struck the field. They formed into smaller versions of the boss, only without the golden jewelry, and they carried smaller blades.

"Minions!" Aries yelled, engaging them alongside Silica and Agil.

"Got it. Hold them off!" Kirito replied, still battling the boss alongside Asuna. Then, The Eyes began to glow black and purple.

"What's going on?" Agil yelled.

Then, The Eyes roared with greater force, and he prepared to smash the earth with his fists.

"Midnight Rage attack incoming! Get into the air!" Yui yelled from her perch at Asuna's shoulder. As the group scrambled to get airborne, the Eyes smashed the ground, causing a black, crystal-laced energy wave to blast in all directions. As the smoke cleared, Asuna and Kirito gasped. The only players who had managed to get airborne were them and Alice. Everyone else was on the ground, crackling with black electricity.

"We can't move!" Klein yelled, struggling to get up.

"Just hang on!" Alice replied. "We'll finish this!"

As The Eyes slashed and them, they dodged and weaved, reasoning it wasn't safe to touch the ground. As Alice, then Asuna fell to the earth, Kirito growled. Charging with all his might, he prepared to slash with everything left. Then, the Eyes opened his arms and caught him, before throwing him into the ground with a sickening crunch. Was everyone gasped, Kirito was sent flying back. As he slowly stood up, Asuna gasped. His coat had torn in several places, and there was a large gash on his cheek. Then, he growled.

"That the best you got?" He chuckled. "Let me show you mine."

As he chanted a spell, Yui gasped.

"Yui? What's wrong?"

"That's a Spell from Old ALO that Daddy knows! It just might win this!" Yui said.

"What spell is it?" Asuna said.

"Beast Form!" Yui yelled as a cyclone of fire covered Kirito. As it whirled around, Asuna saw Kirito's body changing. As the cyclone exploded, Kirito had changed. He was now similar to that of the Gleam Eyes, only his skin was a dark ebony, unlike the Boss's purple skin. He didn't carry a sword, but razor-sharp claws and a bladed tail were the only weapons he needed. As Kirito's eyes opened, Asuna has his HP being restored to full, and then, it glowed black, and three additional bars appeared. Kirito roared guttural lay and charged, slamming his clawed its into the boss's chest with enough force to make The Eyes recoil. He slashed and clawed away, as The Eyes landed punches and slashes with his sword. As the two titans fought, Asuna was focused on the steadily decreasing HP bars belonging to both of them.

"Be careful..." She whispered. "...Kirito."

As Kirito blocked a slash from The Eyes with his armored fist, he grabbed The Boss's sword hand and bent it back, breaking the Boss's Grip on his sword. As it felt to the ground, Kirito launched a punch towards the boss's chest, while The Eyes launched a bite to Kirito's throat. As the two attacks collided, Asuna gasped as the HP bars decreased. Then, there was a crack, and the Boss disappeared, defeated. Asuna saw Kirito's HP drop to practically nothing before he slumped over and returned to his fairy form. As Asuna sprinted over and caught him before he fell to the ground, she looked down at him. He had taken several hits, and his HP was on the point of being depleted. His face was cut in several places, and his coat was torn and part of it was ragged. Asuna buried her face in his shoulder and cried. Sombra looked down at them, and he cackled.

"Bravo!" He said. "Bravo! I commend you on your victory, but do not rest on your laurels. There are worse fights ahead of you if you attempt to take back the Empire. I await your next move. But be warned. I still have many tricks left up my sleeve…" He said ominously as he disappeared into black smoke. As the alicorns and the ponies walked over, Asuna tightened her grip on Kirito, still crying.

"You..reckless...idiot…" She murmured. "Why'd you have to do that? Why?"

She cried more, and Yui hugged her cheek in an attempt to console her. As Asuna shouldered Kirito, Cadance sighed.

"In case he's been exposed to dark magic, can I cast a purification spell on him?"

Asuna nodded, and Cadance's horn glowed. As Kirito was covered in green particles, Asuna sighed at seeing his HP bar go up a small amount. As Asuna, along with Alice, helped carry Kirito back into Ponyville, Twilight shepherded the group to Ponyville Hospital, where they were given a private room. Rarity took Kirito's coat for repairs, while Asuna helped place him in a hospital bed. As the doctors set up medical tech, Asuna placed her head against his chest. She manipulated his hand and opened his inventory, and she equipped his casual t-shirt for him. As she laid back down, she began to cry.

"Mommy...Daddy…" Yui said, turning to her human form. As she curled up next to Kirito, she began to cry. Asuna stroked Yui's hair, soothing her.

"He'll be fine, Yui. I know he will. Just as you reassured me when he was in GGO, let me reassure you now that he'll be fine."

"Okay…" Yui replied.

"It's getting late, Asuna." Alice said, placing her hand on Asuna's shoulder. "Let's get some sleep back at Twilight's, and we'll check on him in the morning."

"Alright. Yui, let's go." Asuna said. Yui returned to her Pixie form and perched herself on Asuna's shoulder. As they rejoined the group and walked over to Twilight's house, they were led upstairs by Spike to a guest bedroom. As each player collapsed in exhaustion, Asuna picked a bed and slipped under the covers, and soon, she was asleep. As the rest of the group relaxed as well, Alice looked out the window towards the hospital.

"C'mon, Kirito." She said quietly. "Asuna was there for you in Underworld. Now, it's your turn to make it up to her. Fight for her. And me." She said.

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THE NEXT MORNING.

As Kirito blinked his eyes and eventually fully opened them, he looked around and saw he was in a hospital room. He looked out the window and saw to his relief that he was still in Equestria. As he stood up, he looked around. Then, he saw the door open, and Asuna came in. She, upon seeing him awake, smiled.

"Hey." He said quietly. "Sorry about that."

"Dummy." Asuna replied, throwing herself into his arms. "Did you have to nearly kill yourself like that?"

Kazuto sighed and hugged her tightly.

"Well, it was the last option I had."

Asuna looked up at him, into his face, and sighed.

"You're right." She said. "You hungry?"

"Yeah." Kirito replied. "Where's my coat?"

"Rarity has it." Asuna replied, helping him out of bed. "She said it was so torn up, she nearly had to make you a new one."

"Figures." Kirito said, as the two of them walked towards Sugarcube Corner, where the group was having breakfast. As they walked in and sat down, the group walked over and sat with them.

"Man, Kirito. You really enjoy doing crap like that?" Klein asked, taking a sip of coffee.

"Well, depends on what you mean by enjoy." Kirito said, as Asuna leaned on his shoulder.

"He has a point." Sinon said.

Klein scoffed and looked outside.

"Helluva Boss fight, huh?" He said.

"Yeah." Silica said. "I've never seen a boss summon minions here before."

"Must be a new feature." Aries said. "I mean, most bosses in New Aincard or ALO don't have them, and if they do, they're weak. Those monsters were giving me a run for my money."

"Speaking of." Alice said. "I think that Sombra might have more bosses like that in reserve. He did say something like that."

"True." Lizbeth said. "We'll, I guess we'll find out."

As they ate in silence, Twilight walked in.

"We've got good news. Sombra's army is pulling out of Equestrian territory. He's concentrating his forces at the Empire. I think that if we strike now, we'll be able to end him."

"Thing is…" Kirito said. "Didn't it take the Princess's combined powers to banish him the first time, the Crystal Heart the second time. What's it going to take to kill him?"

"You're right." Twilight said. "It has to do with his horn, and both times, that wasn't destroyed. I think that if we manage to find his weakness, we'll find a way to end him for good. For now, let's get some rest."

"Right." Everyone replied. As they ate, the sunlight illuminated Asuna and Kirito.