[Elsword] - Masked Renegade

18 - Ritual

...

Lu was pacing back and forth in Ara's bedroom, only to experience a wave of saltiness circulate through her veins. She absolutely hated the feeling of defeat, especially to Aisha. The soft, agile steps soon turned into rumbling, loud stomps, causing a horrid ruckus to the vicinity.

A moment of that had passed before any progress was made. Luciela was finally calmed, turning toward the other three people. Ara and Add were awkwardly sitting down on the bed, while Ciel was standing beside said bed, maintaining his usual 'cool' demeanor.

"Firstly," the Noblesse started, "I'll reveal my true identity to you." After the butler made his way to stand beside her, the petite noble continued. "As I've mentioned previously, my name is Luciela R. Sourcream, and this is Ciel. Together, we make LuCiel, the Demon Duo. I am a high-class demon, and I'll have you know, this isn't even my final form!" she laughed, her giggles echoed into the empty space.

Picking up from where Lu had left off, Ciel proceeded on. "I am a half-demon, and remain the loyal servant of Luciela. We share the same soul; don't ask. It was a long, horrendous story. Furthermore, to answer your shock and curiosity, we are indeed, real demons. We're from the mystical world of Elrios, where essentially, everyone you know is from too, including Aisha, Elesis, and even Add. Magic is not a simple 'concept', rather, it is real."

"Huhuhu! Do you understand now? This is precisely why you must bow down to me!" Lu exclaimed, her blue demonic horns materializing to adorn her delicate head.

Ara gasped, slightly trembling from the fear and power they may have had. "A-Ah... wait! If you two are actual demons, then, how is Brother acquainted with you guys?" she queried in a worried tone.

"Your beloved brother?" she smirked. "Why, this deal doesn't cover the relations of Aren to us. Perhaps in a different agreement, we can make that work, however. Another option is that you can always ask him, directly. Or are you too scared to do so?"

The Sakra Devanam bit her lip. "C-Continue..."

Ciel coughed, clearing his throat. "Excuse me. As my mistress has decided, it would be far too exhausting for us to explain everything at once, so instead, we shall show them to you as fragments of memories built together. At first, these pigments of recollections will arrive bit by bit, and when we have seen that it is safe to carry on, the rest will come flooding. We have not tested this method with any others, so it is an experimentation at the same time. Please, brace yourselves for possible side effects."

"'Side effects'? Doesn't sound all that pleasant..." Add scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"At least it's something!" Lu spat. "Be grateful!"

~

Beep beep! A noise escaped from Ara's cellphone, as it vibrated, indicating a notification. Swiftly, she retrieved it from her pocket, checking her phone as she swiped around the screen. It was a text message from Aisha, though she hadn't recalled giving the girl her phone number. It was more 'magic'.

...

AISHA:

[Ara is typing...]

ARA:

...

She hesitated. She pondered for several seconds prior to hitting the send button. That's what friends are for, right? Ara had considered her a friend, but, did the Void Princess actually consider her one in return? What was their relationship, exactly? She stayed stubborn about her beliefs, but Lu's suspicion, as well as Ava's words in her reverie, said otherwise. It messed around with her thoughts, but she pressed enter, anyway.

Immediately, the word 'seen' popped up beneath her message. Yet, there were no traces that her ally was going to reply. Nothing; it had remained that way for the longest while, and no other texts were received since.

~

"Well? What's so important on that device of yours that you had to ignore me?" Luciela scolded.

"O-Oh, sorry, Lu. Aisha texted me saying that she won't be returning to the Haan residence." she elucidated, bowing her head apologetically.

For once, the demon kindly smiled back. "Is that so? Great! One less hassle to deal with. Then, I can begin the ritual worry-free!"

The small, white-haired demon knelt on the floor, tracing the shape of a star inscribed into a circle. A light blue aura emitted as she had drawn it, forming the shape on the laminated wood ground. Afterwards, it shone, its illumination bursting through the ceiling. It was certainly enough to blind someone.

After chanting several phrases, there was a minuscule explosion, more of a splash of gas, at that. Two individuals appeared on the magic circle, both female. One had straight, yellow-green hair, and elf ears. The other had long, silvery hair that was parted down the middle, reaching far past the ground as she sat obediently; her head was adorned with a bright blue robotic core, as well as a crown that seemed to be an illusion. They both had a physical trait in common: handcuffs.

"Huhuhu! Welcome, hostages!" the Noblesse greeted innocently.

...