"Hypersonic Slash!" Raven charged forward, striking the Nasod with multiple times; his imposture hastily navigated itself backwards, leaning back as it tried to avoid the attack.
The Nasod jumped back, stumbling as it landed. Raven hurried forward, barely giving it enough time to adjust its footing. Jumping into the air, Raven slashed his sword down, launching a blue shock wave down on the Nasod.
The Nasod tried to side step, but could not outrun the attack. It stumbled back as the shock wave made contact with it, nearly knocking it down on its feet.
Raven ran toward the Nasod once more, with his sword pointed at its chest. I held my breath as he drew closer to the enemy----if he can successfully execute this attack, he will win this fight.
Just as Raven was about to pierce through the Nasod, it held its arm up and launched a fireball at him. Raven quickly halted in his tracks, the strange orb following Raven around jumped in front of him, extending its black claws around Raven to shield him from the attack.
I wish I had something like that to protect me.
The Nasod jumped behind him and launched a series of fire balls at him. Raven howled in pain as the fire balls sent him flying forward; that must have opened his wounds further.
"You have grown weak." The Nasod scoffed. "These humans have softened you."
"Shut...your...trap." Raven groaned----his body trembled as he tried to stand back up.
"You stand no chance against me." The Nasod dashed forward and grabbed Raven by the neck.
"Raven," Elsword began to run forward.
"Don't," Raven weakly held his Nasod hand up and launched a fireball at Elsword----Elsword quickly jumped back from the attack.
"What are you doing?" Aisha cried. "Let us help you, Raven. We're your friends, we can't just sit here and let you get beat up."
"This is my fight--" he squeezed his eyes shut as the hand around his neck tightened.
I felt sick to my stomach. I swallowed, hoping to keep down whatever content is left in my system.
If it weren't for our little faith in him, he would've been in perfect shape to fight. If he dies in this fight, it would be because of us. We're horrible friends.
It is true that we had distrusted him, thus injuring him greatly prior to this battle.
Raven squinted his eyes open," my sins...my responsibility..." He smiled. "Only fight when I...fail."
However, it is his decision to fight alone. He wanted no help from us, and he is willing to accept the consequences that come with such decision. The blood is not on your hands, only the dagger that had pierced him on the back is.
The Nasod laughed, tightening its grip," you are just as pathetic as those humans. We should've known better than to save your life, all humans are the same; they are all pathetically weak."
"Be quiet," Eve piped in, her voice sounded with anger. "I will not allow a Nasod like you to speak poorly of my friends."
Eve raised her hand up, in and instant her drones flew by her side," Raven, I understand that you wish to tackle this fight alone as it is the first step to facing your sins; however, this initial step should also be taken by me."
With a flash of light Oberon appeared beside the Nasod and pierced its side with its sword. The Nasod instantly released Raven from its grip and doubled back.
Eve hurried to Raven's side while Oberon guarded them against the Nasod," I apologize for interrupting your fight." She said with a warm smile.
"Eve..."Raven coughed; blood dripped from the side of his mouth.
"I abandoned by kind and left them to suffer; their death is weighed on me." She wiped away the drip of blood off his face. "You and I are much alike, our sins are equally as heavy and our hands are stained with innocent blood. So why should we not fight together; to work with one another to repent for our sins?"
"You useless Queen," the Nasod launched a trail of fireballs at Eve and Raven, Oberon swiftly intervened with each fireball. "Do you honestly believe you can repent? You have betrayed the entire Nasod race by siding with them, the only way to repay us is through death."
A pink aura engulfed Eve----a hovering orb, similar to Raven's, emerged from a flash of light," a peasant like you has no right to give orders." She spoke slowly. "I will take my throne back, and I will rebuild the Nasod race. You can choose to help me rebuild my kingdom or you stand with the new ruler and fight against me----that choice will lead to your death."
"I would like to see you try to kill me," the Nasod rushed forward, Oberon stood in front of the Nasod and clashed swords with it.
"Spit Fire - Flush!"
With a flash of pink light, Ophelia appeared above the Nasod. It spun into the air, releasing electric shock waves in the process----the Nasod was instantly stunned by the attack.
Eve launched at the Nasod," Illusion Stinger!"
Eve summoned out a set of spears and launched them at the Nasod, a path of electric shocks followed the spears' path. The orb hovering by Eve released a blue laser at the Nasod once the attack finished, stunning it once more.
"Sonic Wave."
Oberon sprung forward and released a large blue shock wave with its sword, the Nasod was thrown back as a result.
Eve rushed forward, readying to launch her next attack," Illusion--"
"Maximum Canon." The Nasod quickly launched a fireball at Eve, sending her flying back----Oberon caught her in its arms before she could hit the ground.
"D-do you think they'll be fine." I asked, with heart pounding from excitement and fear.
This fight is not something you can everyday. In this fight both sides are throwing their life on the line, everyone is fighting with everything they have despite their injuries and fatigue. It's almost fascinating to see how strong their will is to take down their opponent.
"They'll be fine," Chung replied softly. "I've never seen Eve this angry before either, so I think they'll be okay."
I really hope so.
Hopping back to its feet, the Nasod rushed toward Eve.
"Power Assault." Raven charged forward, knocking the Nasod out of Eve's way.
As the Nasod struggled to find stable ground, Raven launched his next attack," Breaking Fist!" He punched the Nasod in the face, a small explosion resulted from the impact.
"Power Assault!" The Nasod charged forward before Raven could safely back away.
"Oberon," Eve pointed to the charging Nasod.
Oberon shifted Eve into one of its arms before charging forward, slashing the Nasod across its back. The Nasod slumped down from the attack, leaving itself wide open for Raven.
Raven held his sword up; glowing blue particles gathered into his sword, extending the blade by a few inches," Berserker Blade!" He brought his sword down, cutting deep into the Nasods' back.
The Nasod's body stiffened as the blade dug deep into its body. Raven cursed before lifting his sword out of the Nasod's body, the Nasod collapsed onto the metal ground once the sword was lifted.
I could feel my shoulders relaxing, even the tension that had plagued the room began to loosen.
Eve smiled as she hopped out of Oberon's arm," this is our win." She glanced back at her servant. "Good job, Oberon. You may rest now."
The Nasod servant bowed to its Queen before retreating into a bright light.
"You lost," Raven kicked the Nasod's sword out of its hand. "Now tell us where your King is."
The Nasod laughed," I will not...betray my King."
Raven placed his sword on its head," tell us now," he ordered sternly.
The Nasod continued to laugh, ignoring the blade that's about to dig into its head.
"It's fine," Eve piped in, kneeling beside the fallen Nasod. "It's loyalty stands firmly with the King, there is nothing we can do."
Raven simply nodded and kept his blade on the Nasod's head.
"I apologize for hurting our kind," she told the Nasod softly. "I know it is hard to forgive me, but I promise to rebuild the Kingdom in a peaceful manner. We will no longer make any more enemies, we will not be hurt again."
"P-pathetic," the Nasod wheezed. "You will never...repay us. W-we will never forgive...you."
"I know," she placed her hand on its shoulder. "However, that will not stop me from trying to win forgiveness."
"You're wasting...your time."
"I-I'm so sorry," she began to cry; it broke my heart to see her break down. "I-I can't imagine the pain you and everyone else has been through."
"I will never...forgive such a weak Queen." The Nasod spat. "I serve the...King only."
Raven plunged his sword into the Nasod's head; silencing it for the last time. Eve cried into her hands, while Raven kept his gaze down on the fallen Nasod. No one said a word for the next minute----no one knew what to say.
"You alright?" Raven finally asked.
"I-I'm fine." Eve helped herself back up. "Thank you for the help."
Raven chuckled," I should be the one thanking you. I'd be dead if you hadn't jumped in."
"It was your willingness to face your mistakes that motivated me to fight." She said, wiping the last few drops of tears away. "I felt like a coward when I saw you confront that Nasod."
"Quit flattering me." He laughed, resting his weight on his sword. "Good job on taking that first step. I applaud you for finally taking action."
"I am quite proud of myself as well." She said, with a smile. "You are in a very poor condition still, we must get you medical help."
Eve held onto Raven as his legs began to tremble.
Raven smiled," t-thank you." He whispered before collapsing.
I clutched my hands into tight fists as my vision began to blur with tears.
After all that fighting Raven can't be dead, it'd be unfair to him. I thought bitterly. The world can't be this cruel.
"Raven," Elsword rushed over to Eve---helping her to hold him up. "Raven, are you okay?"
Eve placed a finger on Raven's wrist, she closed her eyes for a moment before responding," he's still alive, but I would suggest giving him immediate help. He cannot afford to lose any more blood."
"Aisha, I need you to perform immediate medical treatment." Elsword ordered in an instant. Aisha bobbed her head and hurried to their side.
"C'mon," Chung nudged me forward. "We should join them."
"Y-yeah." I managed to word out----still stuck in a bit of a daze.
He ruffled my hair before rushing forward, I reluctantly followed behind him. I scrunched my nose with each step forward, the stench of Raven's blood grew stronger as I got closer----its scent reached its desperate hands out to me; begging me to keep Raven from dying.
The air thickened once I got a closer look at Raven. He looked so fragile in Elsword and Eve's arms; he could easily be mistaken as dead to a bystander, you could barely see his chest moving. His face was drained of colour as the blood seeping through his wounds continued to stain his white jacket.
"W-we should lay him down." Eve sniffled.
Elsword's eyes widened," Eve, are you--"
"Just lay him down." She cut him off. "P-please."
Without another word, Elsword and Eve gingerly lowered Raven to the ground----my chest ached as Eve's breath grew heavy, I wonder what she could be thinking right now. Someone took a sharp breath in as Eve began to bawl.
Aisha shuffled herself beside Eve and wrapped an arm around her," he'll be okay." She whispered; gently rubbing Eve's back. "I promise I'll take good care of him."
"I'll get the supplies from the bags." Chung whispered to Elsword----he hurried back once Elsword gave him the approving nod.
"S-sorry for making you all see t-this." Eve whimpered. "I-I'm s-sorry--"
"You don't have to be sorry for crying," I blurt out----my face warmed at my unplanned response. "I-it's normal to cry, so don't be sorry."
"Ara's right," Aisha added, smiling. "Raven everyone's friend, so it's normal to cry over him."
"B-but Nasods do n-not cry." Eve whimpered, burying her face into her hands. "W-we cannot f-feel emotions."
"There's nothing wrong about having emotions." Elsword said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "I think they make you even more awesome."
"Really, Elsword?" Aisha laughed, shaking her head. "Awesome is the only word you could come up with?"
"I'm just telling the truth," he winked. "Are you jealous, little miss boring."
Aisha pursed her lips tightly together, clearly unimpressed with his reaction," this is not the time to deal with you."
"I've got the medical supplies." Chung piped in, dropping a backpack beside Aisha. "Let's hurry and patch him up."
Aisha gave Eve one more reassuring pat on the back before gesturing us away. Chung helped Eve up to her feet, whispering some reassurance before sending her off. We gave Raven one last glance before walking away as Aisha and Chung began to work. Although they began to speak in hushed voices, their conversation couldn't hide from my ears.
"He's losing too much blood." Aisha said, shuffling through the backpack. "D-do you think we have enough supplies to help him?"
"Calm down, Aisha, we can't work efficiently if we panic." Chung replied. "Try not to speak so loud, they might overhear you."
"R-right."
I wanted to cover my ears up; to be as oblivious as Elsword and Eve. They're equally as worried about Raven, but at least they're spared from hearing Aisha and Chung's panicked conversation. At least they can hold onto some hope that he'll be okay.
"We should probably do something about the Nasods out there." Elsword broke the silence. "We should shut this place down as soon as we can."
Would going against an army of newly created Nasods really be a good idea?
"They would overpower us with number." Eve said, wiping her eyes. "It would be best if we attacked as a whole group."
"Eve, has a point." I piped in, hoping this will distract me from the conversation stirring behind us.
"If we continue to stall, the Nasods will gradually increase in number." Elsword folded his arms together. "We can have two people fighting off the Nasods while the last person aims for the machines. We'll still be at a disadvantage in number, but at least we'll be able to halt Nasod production."
Eve pinched the bridge of her nose," I don't know." She sighed. "Ara, what do you think?"
I would feel more comfortable fighting as a whole, but Elsword does have a point about stopping Nasod production. It's a risky move, but at least it'll decrease the amount of Nasods we'll face in the future.
"Fine, let's go." I replied----Elsword smiled brightly at his approved plan while Eve simply nodded.
"We're going out to finish our mission." Elsword announced to Aisha and Chung.
"You're going now?" Aisha asked, without looking back. "Are you sure you'll be able to handle those Nasods?"
"Don't worry about us." Elsword replied, pushing us into the hallway. "I want you two to take your time with Raven. Remember, Eve's counting on you two."
Eve bowed her head," he didn't have to say that last part." She whispered to herself.
He's just trying to say you're worried about Raven, there's no shame in worrying about a friend. I wanted to say.
"Let's hurry and go," Elsword pushed us further down the hall; oblivious to Eve's comment.
"Why are you in such a hurry to go back out there?" Eve frowned. "Are you not concerned about the potential danger we could face out there?"
"We need to get out of here before Aisha comes running after us," he explained hastily. "She might force us to wait for her to finish with Raven."
I think Aisha is more concerned about keeping Raven alive than tagging along with us.
Elsword grabbed onto our shoulders, holding us back as the exit came into view. My stomach turned at the possible scenarios that could occur on the other side. We could walk out victorious, or we could be cornered and lose our lives. There's no telling what could happen to us.
"Get ready you two." Elsword unsheathed his swords. "Things could get a bit messy out there."
"Who shall be attacking the machines?" Eve asked, with her drones hovering closely by her side.
"Eve and I have more of an advantage in combat," I began. "Eve can summon out her own fair share of Nasods to fight while I have Eun to assist me."
"Awe man, why do I have to get the boring job?" Elsword whined. "I want to fight too."
"You can participate next time." Eve answered, smacking him on the back of the head. "Just stay focused on your task and do not mess up."
"You two are no fun," Elsword walked ahead of us. "I'm going to charge out there and aim for the closest machine, you two cover for me."
"Understood," Eve answered.
Elsword quietly counted up to three before charging forward, the metal door flew open as we proceeded forward. Elsword immediately launched an attack at the first machine sighted, causing a skin crawling screech as his blade slashed against the metal.
While Elsword proceeded to dissect the machine, Eve and I lowered our defences----we had nothing to raise our weapons against.
"Why aren't you two attacking?" Elsword asked in between breaths.
"We would attack as planned," I began; feeling very uneasy at our situation.
"However, there are no Nasods here for us to fight." Eve added.
_________________________________________________________________________________
The factory was completely empty, making our jobs much easier, but the abandoned building only put us on edge further. We refused to split up as we proceeded to destroy the machines in the many rooms----we wanted to stick together in case the Nasods planned to ambush us.
I wish I could say we ran into something to add some flavour into our adventure, but nothing made an appearance; except for the occasional misplaced Nasod parts on the ground.
It took no time for us to destroy the remaining machines before returning to Aisha and Chung; Raven was still being treated by the time we came back. We decided to rest up while Aisha and Chung did some finishing touches on Raven.
From what I could make from their conversation, Raven appeared to be in a much more stable condition than before. At least he's gotten through the worst of it.
"What time do you think it is?" Eve asked.
"Late," Elsword laid himself down. "I hope we didn't worry Agatha and Amos."
"I doubt Agatha cares for our safety." Eve scoffed.
Agatha might not care about Raven's safety----possibly Eve as well, but I doubt she won't be thinking about the rest of us. She was really nice when I spoke with her last night, if she really didn't care for us she wouldn't have said a single word to me.
"Give her a break, Eve." Elsword yawned loudly. "She just wanted to protect her brother from a bunch of strangers." He sighed. "Besides, her parents' murderer was with us."
Someone in the room coughed.
"I-I can't believe Raven actually murdered Amos' parents." The word 'murder' rolled bitterly off my tongue.
"That's a normal thing to think," Elsword turned to his side. "Truthfully, I'm not all that surprised."
I wanted to kick him for saying that. I might not have a high opinion of Raven, but I think it's cruel for one of his friends to say something like that about him.
"I'm not trying to be a jerk," Elsword quickly added, as if he just read my mind. "You would say the same thing if you knew the dude's past."
"His past?" I asked; this topic quickly caught my interest.
"Raven was scary back then----he almost cut my head off," Elsword laughed. " Good ol' memories."
That's some way to make a first impression----I shouldn't be one to talk though.
"Do you not think this should be Raven's responsibility to tell her?" Eve raised her brow. "What right do you have to spill such information?"
Elsword waved his hand dismissively," I'm sure Raven won't mind. Ara is a trusted friend now."
I couldn't help but smile at his comment.
"Besides, he's knocked out, so somebody's gotta spill the beans for him." Elsword rolled onto his back. "Our boy was once a Velder Knight. He was pretty good at his job from what he told us."
"However, he was one day framed and turned against by those he trusted. Even the people that he had protected turned their backs on him." Eve added.
Elsword slammed his fist on the ground," Eve, I called dibs on story telling." This earned him a death glare from Eve. "It's not fair."
Eve rammed her feet into his side. Elsword curled up into a ball, moaning loudly in pain. Satisfied with the damage done, Eve went on," his fiancee helped him escape, but she was slain by a knight in the process."
"H-he didn't tell us anymore after that." Elsword moaned, clutching his side. "He just said the Nasods saved him and then he started working with them."
So not even Elsword knows the full story to Raven's past. I guess I'm not the only one hiding things from my friends.
"We met Raven when he was the captain of this air ship, he was the only non-Nasod on that flying piece of metal." Elsword winced as he sat himself up. "H-he had attacked Velder and was headed to Elder."
"Long story short, they managed to knock some sense back to Raven and he requested to join the party in order to return to the right path." Eve concluded. "I was not yet part of the team yet, but I had heard of such information early on."
Raven must have had his fair share of kills during his days with the Nasods, so it does make sense that he was the one that killed Amos' parents.
But that leads to yet another question. Eun joined in. Why would the Nasods attack Velder and Elder? It doesn't appear the Nasods have made extreme actions until their King had been given a chance to revive.
'Just another question we have no answers to. Maybe Raven would know something about it.'
"Are you sure Raven will be happy with you two loud mouths?" my heart quickened as Chung invited himself into the conversation. Sitting himself beside me he went on," I doubt Raven would want you two to tell Ara about his past."
"If I don't tell her now she'll never find out," Elsword said, shuffling back to grab one of the backpacks. "You and Aisha must be hungry. We have some extra food in here."
Aisha propped herself down beside him; her face was as pale as snow," we appreciate your offer, but we can't exactly stomach any food right now."
"Raven gave us quite a scare." Chung emphasized. "We're still shaken up."
"You two still need to eat," I frowned. "If you continue on like this you could collapse from exhaustion."
Chung ruffled my hair; it felt like my heart had instantly melted upon contact," thanks for worrying, but we'd rather go without food."
"Ara has a point though," Elsword said, while digging through the backpack. "You two may not want to eat, but we don't want any more of you fainting on us." He pulled out two bags of salad----it's a miserable lunch but it was the only food left that had no bugs in it.
Aisha gagged as she received the bagged vegetables," don't yell at me if I throw up." She threw the second bag to Chung.
Chung wrinkled his nose up in disgust, but accepted the lunch without further complaints.
I averted my eyes away from the group and looked over at Raven. He was asleep where Chung and Aisha left him, with the backpack acting as his pillow. He finally looked relaxed and peaceful----something he hasn't shown throughout these past few days.
I almost don't want to wake him up. He'll only have to face more danger and pain when he wakes up.
"So the factory is now officially out of business." Aisha spoke up----I averted my attention back on the group.
"So what will we do now?" Chung asked with a stuffed mouth; I wanted to snap his mouth close, doesn't he know not to talk while chewing?
"Do you guys know what happened to the worker Nasods?" Aisha added.
Elsword shook his head," I guess that imposter Raven told them to leave." He frowned. "Why do those Nasods have to be so smart?"
"The village is in greater danger now that those Nasods are on the loose." Eve said, ignoring Elsword's remark. "We should hurry back to the Ponggos as soon as we can. I fear the Nasods may target them."
"What are we going to do about sleeping beauty?" Elsword cocked his head to the side. "We can't just leave him here."
"We'll need to carry him back." Chung helped himself up to his feet. "When I say we I meant you."
Elsword opened his mouth to protest but Aisha interrupted, "Eve has a good point, we should head back to the village as soon as we can. I doubt those improved Nasods would want to leave the village alone." She glanced over at Raven. "Besides, Raven needs to rest."
"I think we could all use some sleep after today." I admitted; I could use some alone time to relax and allow myself to process the events that took place today. "Today was a long day."
"We'll discuss our next plan of action when we get back." Aisha swung a backpack over her shoulder. "Let's go back to the village. I could really use a warm bath and a nice long nap."
I couldn't agree more.