[Elsword] - Masked Renegade

20 - Memories: Ava

...

The expression flashed through within the atmosphere Ara had awoken to; bright, soaring letters that were capable of alluring the attention of many, though because the space was void, it seemed that she was the only one to see them. It was simply pitch black, with utterly nothing but the words gliding freely.

A gentle voice rang in her head. "Ara, can you hear me? I hope this telepathy works..."

It was unmistakably Rena. "Yes, loud and clear!" she responded.

"Good. I will now begin the connection, so hang on tight! If anything goes wrong, I'll notify you as soon as possible-- thank you for placing your trust in me! I'll try my best not to fail you, Mistress!"

~

Ava Haan was far from ordinary. She was a figure who possessed the power of the nine-tailed fox demon, an entity called Eun. It was purely by accident that she came into contact with the thirteenth division of Search Party Officers of Justice, and it was a mere coincidence that she had built up a close relationship to one of its members.

It was a stormy, windy night. The recollection was still vivid in the Asura's mind, because if it were not for her savior, she would have been dead. Earlier that evening, she was assaulted by a group of assassins, barely managing to escape her demise with Eun's blessing. She had scrapes and cuts everywhere, and her clothes and claws were especially stained and tattered with blood. Ava desperately clung onto life, she desperately crawled until her legs weren't able to move any longer, in the cold, harsh rain.

She reached a stronghold, a base that was labelled 'Search Party Officers of Justice'. That, she was able to make out. The Asura pleaded, crying for help. It seemed hopeless; no one would answer her pitiful shouts, muffled by the storm.

Her consciousness was fading away from her bit by bit. Everything faded to black, as she thought those would be her final words, and last moments on Elrios.

She was wrong. With the odds against her, a seemingly kindhearted soul had saved her. Add, the Diabolic Esper-- though she thought of his title to be unfitting. To her, he was far from diabolical. He reached out to her when nobody else would. The rest of the gang, including Elsword, Aisha, Elesis, Lu, and Ciel, were skeptical and hesitant about the matter. He, of all people, accepted her when nobody else would. He, of course, was her hero.

'What if she was an enemy? What if she was sent to harm us? To spy? To infiltrate our headquarters?'

Yet, despite the logical queries, Add denied all reasoning due to instinct, which was odd, as he was usual the most rational individual there, next to Elesis and Ciel.

It took a long time for her wounds to heal, but they eventually did. Add was the only person she felt close enough to trust, although the others soon warmed up to her too, even if it was slight. She was absolutely thankful of how things had turned out, and how she had wonderful caretakers and allies to stay by her side. Promptly, she even helped out with the duties of the Officers of Justice.

The mutual feelings that Ava and Add harbored for each other blossomed into a romantic relationship. They both loved and cherished each other very much.

The tale finally met a dead end. The happy, playful recollections stopped, abruptly. Eun had warned her to leave, yet, the maiden declined. She loved the Esper far too much to depart. She didn't want to be separated from him; she didn't see anything wrong or out of place with the life that she had been living.

The last thing Ava wanted to do was to be detached from her bonds with Add. Nonetheless, because of those lovely emotions and feelings she bore for him, the inevitable fate of death awaited her.

The inexorable destiny she held, was sorrowful.

Her demise started on a sunny day, as she went grocery shopping for her team. Elrios was filled with unusual creatures, so a nine-tailed fox and human hybrid wasn't too odd. Picking up the usual list of goods, which consisted of Ruve Herbs, Stella's Powder Mixes, Aquas, Whole Grain Flour, and some other minor fruits and vegetables to cook. On her way back, however, she was becoming weary. She stumbled and fell onto the ground, dropping her bags of groceries.

It was difficult to move. Her body was stiff and tense, and because she had taken an uncommon route back to the base, nobody could see her.

No one.

Before falling unconscious, she saw a girl. Purple twintails, it was distinctively Aisha. There was another feeling of hope, as she saw her as a friend, who came to aid her.

She wasn't going to be saved a second time.

Everything fell into a hazy blur, as her body gushed out fresh blood.

~

The recollections that Ara had been experiencing began to crack. The memories she was viewing slowly broke into shards of imagery. Everything fell and tore apart as she watched in fear; was it supposed to happen? She waited for Rena's telepathic confirmation.

"Ara...! This is bad, I need to cut the connection as soon as possible!" the Elf alerted.

Before she could, however, a figure representing Ava herself materialized with an entertained simper. "My, my. Disconnecting so fast, are we? Rena, I can hear your telepathy, even if you're transmitting it to Ara. I've been listening in to your previous conversations, after all, you can consider Ara and I as the same person."

Rena pondered before giving a response. "What are you here for, Ava Haan?"

The Asura shrugged. "Looks like you've seen the summary of what happened to me back in Elrios. Some minor details left out, but it's fine. Unfortunately, you're going to have to pay a price for this stream of reminiscence, Ara. Sure, for you to be seeing these remembrances is perfectly fine with me, but... have you forgotten my words to you, about trust? To answer your question, Miss Grand Archer, I know what you've been set up for. Your relation to Aisha, of course."

"'My relation to Aisha'? E-Explain!"

"Well, there's no need to let this drag on. Just tell Ara the truth behind what your motives are, or what you've been forced to do. I'm also expecting you to take care of her while she's in... whatever the hell you put her in when she wakes up. Ciao~"

After Ava disappeared, the trance concluded, however, the forever-confused Ara wasn't feeling quite well as she regained consciousness.

...