New beginnings

Elsword (Base) - Age 11

Elesis (Base) - 14

Chapter 1

(Prologue)

A promise of an lifetime

A lone shadow raced against the brush of the trees, racing towards the light amongst the darkness the forest brought upon. The figure ran with a speed unrivaled towards the light which increased in size as they ran forward. With a quick jump, the figure jumped out into a clearing, their shadowed features being revealed as the wind blew the wearer's hood off. The hood revealed a young girl, barely at the age of 14. Her scarlet hair was tied a pony tail which both complemented her face and crimson eyes although light scratches adorned the sides of her face. She was covered in a light dulled colored coat that completely covered her form. A large claymore was equipped to the back, an elegant decoration of red embraced the claymore warmly as gold linings made the claymore seem unique and decorated. And near the point of the claymore, laid a golden Velder symbol. In the distance, a small town was shown with plumes of smoke rising up into the air as faint screaming can be head.

Elsword..

With that thought in mind, she dashed off onto the main road leading into the burning town. She heard thuds and explosions in the distance. Giving a side glance towards the outskirts of the town, she spotted bulky figures, covered in light armor, moving onwards into the town, cannons laying heavy artillery fire upon the town. Plumes of smoke and dirt billowed out into the sky as the cannonballs made their deadly descent onto the town. Explosions echoed throughout the once peaceful town. The farm buildings on the outskirts were razed down to the floor in the demon's advance.

Demons..

Not willing to spare an additional glance, she ran into the heart of the town. An immense heat greeted her, blood stains remained splattered across the buildings as she ran by. Heavy debris and bodies of both demon and human laid across. Upon closer inspection, the demon seemed to resemble a grey bi-pedal dog. She concluded that the invading demons were Glitter soldiers. Roars of laughter and hooting became louder. The occasional barks of commands as Glitter soldiers recieved orders from their chain of command. She didn't both to try engage them as she concentrated upon her main task. She dashed forward, maintaining her mad pursuit to fulfill main directive. She ignored the screams as the town inhabitants yelled out their dying breaths and the explosions that periodically rocked the ground. Heavy smoke clouded her vision as she delved further inside the town. She witnessed a man being impaled right in front of her eyes as a spear wielding Glitter soldier sought his doom. His eyes widened in terror and pain. A raspy cough left his mouth as his body convulsed. A crimson river emerged from both ends of his mouth as it quickly went down his chin and decorated the bloodstained street. The area the spear was protruding from his stomach, a increasing red stain grew across his shirt as an enormous amount of blood sought freedom from it's fleshy restraints. Elesis hurried off but managed to get in one last look at the man as his body stilled and the Glitter soldier brutally yanked out his spear, dragging along the victim's intestines before the demon dumped it down his gullet. Elesis pushed the gruesome sight back all the way to the head as she attempted to forget the memory and hurried off even faster. She ignored the crimson river that seem to gleam and decorate the street below her as she stepped over the various mangled corpses that littered the town street.

Please.. Be okay..

The girl quickened her pace as she ran through the side ways and alley expertly as if she had been raised there her whole life. Scorched corpses remained on the sides. Burning debris and bricks rained down the alleyway as the rooftop exploded into a brilliant ball of flame. At long last, she slid to a stop in front of a house near the far end of the town, having dashed through the town at a break-neck speed to meet her destination. The house stood at the verge of a forest that surrounded the town. Although it wasn't just a small house, nor a big one, it was a normal, plain house that stood amongst the distance from the burning town. A smashed flower pot, cracked windows, and blood patches met her gaze. Surprisingly, the house was not burning like the rest and bodies of demons were littered across the ground in front. A telltale sign of a battle in front of the house took place. That worried her. She ran up the staircase leading to the shattered door and barged into the house. A heavy scent of overwhelming blood made her face scrunch up in distaste. However, upon further notice, she saw that the blood stains splattered all across the house were purple rather than red. Glitter blood. She smiled knowing that Elsword had put up a fight before she got back onto task.

"Elsword! Elsword! Where are you!" She yelled. She desperately searched the building, blood stains littered across the floor and walls. Inside the building, the house itself seemed like a tornado had gone through it. Countless of tables were flipped over, cracked dishes and vases, books and furniture littered everywhere. Nearly 5 minutes later of desperately trying to search her brother, she had almost given up hope, that her brother was not safe, that he was gone, injured, or worse, dead. However, a familiar shout came from the backyard.

Elsword?

She ran towards the shout. She jumped and landed in a crouch amongst the clearing, a row of trees on both of her sides surrounded the clearing. As she glanced upwards, her eyes were met with a familiar sight. A red haired boy wearing a long sleeved red shirt and simple red shorts. He was covered in light scratches and was heavily breathing. He glanced to the sides, crimson eyes stared back against crimson eyes. He smiled.

"Sis! Your back!" The girl now known as Elesis smiled back as well, but the smile soon turned into a frown as she glanced towards the figure across him. There in front, stood a demon with short, spiky silver hair. The demon was coated in heavy armor with a mixture of blue and black colors, although seemingly crimson as human blood decorated the armor upon the demon. The armor was decorated all across with demonic runes and signs. Upon further inspection, she noticed the lack of skin aside from it's face. And from it's chest armor, a demonic looking dog protruded from the armor, giving an feral and intimidating look upon his bulky figure. Pale purple skin exhumed from the demon's face with silver sideburns trimming the sides of it's face. The demon's eyes seemed to grow an eerily teal light from within as it stared menacingly into the red siblings. A jagged scar ran down it's left eye, slightly giving an insane look to his face.

"Ku ku ku.. So this is the infamous red knight.. I've been expecting you.." The deep voice uttered from the demon gave identification that it was a male. His face erupted into a maniacal grin. "Have you come to join the others in their splendid death?"

Elesis stared back towards the demon. Her face turned into a snarl. "How could you do this to these innocent people! What is the meaning out of all of this!" Her eyes gleamed with righteous anger and fury towards the demon mainly responsible for the destruction of her home town.

The demon's grin grew even wider. His large canines jotted out of his lips. "Isn't it simple? I was bored. The demon realm was getting antsy. I had to act.. You see.. I can't keep the insolent fools waiting around any longer.. Their craving grows stronger by the second. They need.. No.. Demand human blood.. And I, Scar, will satisfy their needs and destroy Elrios and their inhabitants. Such a shame really.. Your small little town didn't even put up much of a fight.. Oh how I enjoyed their slow screams, the terror filled eyes as they realized their fate. I just love the feeling of crushing human skulls below my feet. Humans are pitiful beings, they deserve to be annihilated." She scoffed. Elesis slowly reached her hand back to grab the handle of her claymore. Her face narrowed down, shadowing her features. Her grip upon the claymore tightened.

..How could they.. How could they do this to everyone... How could they do this to Elsword..

The thought of her little brother being harmed outraged her. She lifted up her face, her eyes ignited by the flames of her anger. Her arm gripping the claymore lashed out into a position where it was pointing towards the demon now known as Scar. The cloak fluttered out from her form as the force and an breeze of wind blew it away into the distance. A long sleeved, collared red shirt covered her top with with a dash of white coloring at her waist. A small black tie was neatly fixed onto the colars of her shirt. Below, she adorned a small red skirt decorated with golden symbols of Velder in the front. A brilliant combination of red, yellow, and white that covered her skirt fit nicely with her uniform attire as she wore white stockings that were above her thighs and ran down until it met her also red and white steel clad shoes.

"Then I, Elesis Sieghart, vow to defend Elrios from you demons and avenge everyone here." She stated. And from that statement alone, she rushed forward towards Scar, intent on ending his reign of terror. Scar's grin grew even wider until he began chuckling. A demonic yet maniacal chuckle filled their ears. "At long last! Don't fret my dear Elesis! I will let you stay alive, long enough to see me slowly torture your little brother to death before finally moving onto you ku ku ku. Or.. I might even make you into an slave for the demon realm!" He cackled. He gripped the mace besides him that leaked a crimson liquid down onto the floor. He swung the mace to the side, spraying the crimson contents towards Elesis in an attempt to blind her. She dashed to the sides to avoid it, before continuing her mad pursue towards Scar. Her claymore dragged across the ground, trailing a scar amongst the weary ground as her grip tightened.

I swear it.. I'll avenge everyone..

A slight rustle inside the house caught Elsword's attention. Chatter and hoots came from inside. Glitter demons had managed to enter the house and were bound to interfere with their fight. He looked towards his sis as she started her battle against Scar.

Good luck sis, kick his ass for me..

He rushed into the house, intent on finishing the demons and get back quickly to help out his sister with her fight. Once she was in close enough range, she lashed out with her claymore to hit his sides, a counter from Scar holding his mace against Elesis deemed it an failure before he pushed her off. Using her momentum, she flipped in midair and landed graciously upon the floor. Scar then began to unleash ferocious but wild swings with his mace towards her. Having just landed and Scar quickly gaining upon her, she switched to the defensive and brought up her claymore to her front in an effort to shield against the attacks. Scar grinned in delight as he whammed away happily onto Elesis while she was slowly pushed back against the force of Scar's attacks.

I have to get out of here..

While she maintained her defensive posture, she saw multiple openings within his attacks. It seemed to her point of view, he was just a beserker that used his power to overwhelm his enemy. Adrenaline pumping in, she dropped her guard the moment Scar raised his Mace to slam it down upon her. She dashed off to Scar's side in a burst of speed while attempting to slash through his armor. The thick heavy armor proved useful as it protected him from her attack. She retreated to the back while Scar was still turned around. Not giving a hesitation, Elesis exploded into a flurry of actions as she kicked off from the ground and jumped towards Scar, a cloud of dirt emerged from her leap. She soared across the air and towards her victim. She shifted her arms to settle her claymore poised to penetrate Scar's shoulder in a downwards motion from above with all of her force and inertia. As she neared her destination, she gritted her teeth and braced for the familiar sound of flesh being sliced through and the rough landing.

CLANG

A loud noise sounded out to the clearing as Elesis claymore failed to piece through the thick armor that Scar wore. She jumped off from his shoulder and frowned as Scar was able to recover and faced towards her. She dashed towards him once more to reach him head on. Scar launched a series of attacks with his mace towards Elesis's direction. Swinging in an effort to hit her as she skillfully weaved in between the attacks and got in close. She landed in a crouch in front of him and swung her sword up in an attempt to slash him on his chest. The heavy armor once again protected him from the attacks and Scar soon was able to regain control and swung his mace towards Elesis's back. She rolled to the side, again dodging the repeated swings of Scar's attempts of an attack. And thus she ran in and attacked again and were met with the same results. Elesis snarled towards him in frustration, gaining renewed vigor and strength, her speed shot into a blur as she dashed towards Scar.

Rushing Sword!

Clink

Within a second, Elesis slipped into his defense and slashed against him. While the attack was once again unsuccessful, a slight crack amongst the armor gave signs it was wearing down. In her burst of speed, she landed a distance away from him before disappearing once more. A slash to the same area and Elesis soon stood at her same spot before the attack. It was a constant never ending battle. Elesis would be able to dodge all of Scar's wild attacks and land attack Scar unsuccessfully as his armor proved too much for Elesis's attempts. Dusk came. Night fell. A continuous burning amongst the town and screams that soon became less and lesser across the night. Buildings would fall and crumble amongst the town. While in the clearing, clashes of steel were constant. Soon, daylight came upon them. The two fighters were breathing heavily. Blood and sweat dripped across their faces as they stood a distance across from each other, momentarily catching their breath to continue the battle once more. They were equal. She couldn't win, nor could she lose. At this rate, everyone was gonna die. She had to do something. Amongst their battle, Scar had manged to land in an heavy attack on Elesis. His mace had slammed into her sides and threw her across the field beforehand. A small but increasing blood stain coated her shirt as the battling gave way for more attacks and wounds. Scar had not escaped unscathed as well, among his head, a large welt sat. She had bashed against his head with the blunt end of her sword at some point during the fight.

As they stood a distance apart, she idly noticed her claymore was starting to dull from the constant grinding against Scar's armor. Although, his armor also were on the verge of shattering from the continuous onslaught of Elesis's attacks. Her legs grew heavythroughout the constant battling as she tried to drag them away. She attempted to make a single step towards Scar in hopes of renewing the battle and ending it here and now. Alas, it was not meant to be. Even her claymore was starting to feel like it had gotten a few tons of weight added to it. With a single shaking step taken, she collapsed body demanded rest from the physical exertion she placed upon them. She gritted her teeth as she struggled to stand up She was human. She too, had her own limits. Scar's gaze as he grinned, walking into needed range to land a finishing blow. He raised his mace high above to swing down upon it's victim.

Was everything.. Gonna end here?..

A loud familiar shout caught her attention.

Elsword?

A grunt from Scar gave notice to Elesis that Elsword had thrown his sword against the back of Scar's head with the back end being the part to make collision. She felt another rush of adrenaline hit her body as she willed her body to move when she noted that Scar was distracted by this change of events. This was her chance. Scar wasn't focused on her anymore. Scar slowly turned around to face the nuisance. He was mad. The little brat had interrupted his moment of glory on striking down the infamous red knight.

I should have killed him when I had the chance too

His face crunched up into a snarl. A rustle from behind him caught his attention. He turned around to face Elesis and deliver the finishing blow while she was still down. It was too late.

SLASH

An intense amount of pain erupted among his chest. His chipping chest armor caved in as Elesis's claymore bashed in his armor. Although her claymore was considerably dulled, it had the desired effect on slashing her opponent. Purple blood exploded into the air as Scar was injured. His vision swam with dark spots appearing all across from the pain he was feeling and very soon, blood loss would even worsen his vision. He staggered and used his mace as a crutch to hold him up, lest he crashed onto the floor. "Gah.. I never thought the red knight would have the ability and skill to wound me so dearly.." His blood began to dribble down the dried out crimson blood that covered his armor. It slowly dripped onto the floor beneath him as he could feel the effects of losing so much blood beginning to hit him. He refused to fall unconcious in front of this.. Ragtag duo. "Mark my words.. I will come back.. And I will end you and everyone around you." He then started to chant in a demonic tongue as his blood on the floor soon morphed into a brilliant light teal. Runes began to erupt in a circle around him as he was forced to make an teleportation spell back to the demon realm. The siblings stared back at Scar just as he was about to disappear. They were too tired to stop him. However, a few words uttered from Scar made them uneasy for the upcoming future.

"This is merely.. The beginning of the end.." With that, he vanished in a bright burst of teal light that blinded the vicinity around them. As quickly as the light came, it was gone. The only tell tale signs of an battle were the blood patches that remained on the floor and the turned grass and dirt. A few seconds after Scar's retreat, Elesis collapsed down onto the floor in exhaustion. Darkness began to crept her around her vision. She heard a voice and felt an warm embrace from her little brother as he held her up. Elsword was safe. That was all she cared about before darkness took over.

Flashback starts

"Elesis.. Come here.." A frail voice uttered out from the comforts of their bed. A small girl at the age of 6, no doubt Elesis as an child, slowly tiptoed towards the voice and kneeled against the bed.

"Yes father?" She timidly asked. She gazed at her father on his death bed. His face was a deathly white while his former red hair seemed to have turned snow white. He had bags under his eyes with a tired expression to go along with his entire face. Elscud Sieghart was dying. He and many others including his wife, Penelope Sieghart, had encountered an unknown sickness amongst their small town, sparing no survivors except Elesis and Elsword. It had wiped out their entire village, leaving only Elscud, Elesis, and Elsword the last remaining survivors of the epidemic. The virus seemed to only affect adults as the siblings were not affected by the deadly disease.

"As you have no-" Elscud coughed violently, expulsing a large amount of blood to stain upon his blanket. A barely noticable trail of blood tribbled down from his lips. He regained his composure in front of his daughter. He gave a weak smile towards the timid girl.

"I'm dying.. I don't have much time left.. Elesis.. I-" A cough interrupted his sentence, once more splattering the crimson liquid across the blanket before he resumed talking.

"I.. Want you to promise me something.." Elesis cocked her head to the side, an slight angle. Her face in an confused expression before switching towards an warmhearted smile. She leaned in closer into his frail body. She grasped his out streched hand, holding it comfortly and tightly. A cold embrace met her tiny hands as she wrapped hers around her father's large hands. He really is cold.. He's not gonna be alive by tomorrow.. She came to a grim conclusion before banishing her thoughts away from such a thing.

"Anything father. What do you need?" She asked him. Her only father was dying. Elesis shifted uncomfortably at her father's condition. She didn't want to accept this cruel reality. Even if she wanted to run away, forget everything that happened and wished for everything to turn back to normal, it wouldn't ever turn back to normal. She just couldn't bare the thought to run away. She refused to leave her broken family. Fufilling a promise was the least she can do for her father for taking care of her when she was little. Even if she was small and couldn't do much, she was determined to at least fufill her dying father's last wishes.

Elscud was happy. No, blissful and jovial to be exact. Even if the family was starting to fade away. Even if he wasn't going to survive next morning. His family was perfect, even if it lasted for several years. How he longed to enjoy it a little bit more before fate cruely taken it away. He stopped his train of thoughts. It wouldn't do well to dwell upon the past. He gazed into his daughter's crimson eyes. Eyes similar to his own crimson eyes. Her face was taking after her mother, he thought. He smiled at the fond image of his late wife. How his Elesis would grow to be a beautiful woman one day just like Penelope was. He frowned. He was drowning in his past and thoughts once more.

"Elesis.. Please, take care of Elsword.. He is still yo-" He held back a cough that had been building inside his chest. The taste of iron filled his mouth before he swallowed his blood back down. "..He is still young.. I wanted.. To teach you two, to be a good.. Loving father. I can't.. Do it anymore.." His eyes glistened. "I don't have long. So please.. Take care of your brother.. Even if he is loud and obnoxious. Teach him, take good care of him.. Remember to find an suitable partner to settle down.. Eat h-healthy and sleep well." Streams of tears trailed down his eyes "I love you two.. So so much.. I'm so sor-" He was interrupted by Elesis hugging him. Her head muffled into his chest, her body shaking slightly. He felt a part of his shirt getting soaked from where Elesis was hugging him.

"D-don't worry father. I promise to take care of Elsword. You were the most wonderful father I ever had.. The only father I will ever have.." Her head shifted up to look at his face "Don't be sorry.. You did all you can do. I will teach Elsword everything I know so don't you worry." She smiled with her eyes closed, a river of tears running down her cheeks and onto her chin. "I love you too father."

Elscud couldn't hold it back anymore. He hugged his daughter and cried openly. He could feel his heart beat starting to slow down. His grip on her tightened. He didn't want to leave his family.. To leave his two son and daughter was unforgivable in his eyes. But he couldn't help it, even he could not escape death's cold embrace.

"Then I leave everything in your hands.. I will go.. And join your mother very soon. I can't, keep her waiting after all.. What kind of an gentlemen keeps his wife waiting." Elesis smiled at her father's lame attempt at trying to lighten the situation.

"Can you.. Sing me that lullaby? The lullaby you sang to me at night when you were carrying me back home from training before you go?" She hesitantly requested. She longed to hear her father's enchanting lullaby. She longed for his warm embrace, to be hold so comforting like back then. How it would all disappear in a single second. Elscud smiled at his daughter's selfish request.

"Of course dear.."

Beautiful dreamer,

Wake unto me

Starlight and dewdrops

Are awaiting thee

Sounds of the rude world

Heard in the day

Led by the moonlight

Have all passed away

Elesis felt her father's embrace on her slightly weakened. She waited a few minutes to wait for her father to finish the lullaby. She gazed into her father's closed eyes, his wide and genuine smile plastered on his face. Her eyes began to water once more. Her lips trembled as words spilled out her mouth. A soft gentle voice echoed amongst the world.

Beautiful dreamer..

Queen of my song..

List while I woo thee..

With soft melody..

Gone are the cares of..

Life's busy throng..

Beautiful dreamer..

Awake unto me..

Beautiful dreamer..

Awake unto me..

She regrettably finished the last of the lullaby for her father. She weeped and cried all night, holding her father's still form. Alone in the world, only two Siegharts remained.

I promise.. Father.. I will protect and take care of Elsword for you..

Flashback End

Elesis woke up in a bed, covered with bandages. She sat up and gazed around her surroundings. It was a rather plain room, a window amongst her side which was however closed and covered with curtains. A simple bed desk sat on the other side of her bed with a flower vase sitting on top. Other than that, there was nothing else in the room aside from the dull color of brown that decorated the room and a dim lighting illuminated the room. She.. Wasn't in a room that she recognized at all. She climbed out the bed before a heavy searing headache invaded her. She quickly lied down on the bed and waited minutes for the headache to fade away. The headache was persistent in remaining there before finally fading away. Exhaustion after effects she deemed. Where was Elsword?.. She heard voices from below. It seemed that she was upstairs where ever she was. She slowly clambered out of the bed and hit the floor. She noticed her attire, she was simply covered in a white shirt and white shorts. She shivered to think whoever decided to bandage her and strip her of her clothes as not even a single speck of dirt framed her body.

She clumsily walked towards the door, intent on seeing whoever was talking. It seemed however, she had been out for a few days hence her clumsy attempts at walking. Her hand gripped the door handle, and with a slight turn and jerk, light poured into the dim room. Momentarily blinding her until her eyes grew accustomed towards the bright light. A red hallway seemed to stretch on with a couple of doors on both sides. She noticed a wooden, worn-out stairway that lead down towards where ever it went. She walked towards the stairs and down, winding around and around until it came to a stop. There, she smiled. Short red spiky hair covered the boy.

His crimson irises seemed to beam happiness and relief. His smile was infectious as he stared towards the newcomer. Elsword had changed his attire, a red long sleeved shirt that continued across his wrists where it was soon met with a nice red and black color combination of gloves. Iron framing covered the sides. He wore an belt, that seemed a size or 2 bigger than what he should wear for his size, that held up and mixture of white shorts with black and brown trailing down the middle and the bottom trimming of his shorts. From there, he wore simple black short socks and an silver shoes framed with steel. On the side, sat his sword, A handle covered with cloth, no doubt meant to make wielding the sword comfortable. and from there, a broad sword exhumed out from the frame. While the sword seemed big and decorative with white coloring along with red linings, it seemed to lack a pointed edge. Seemingly used to bash and whack at enemies rather than slicing and cutting.

"Good morning sis! How was your nap?" He asked

"Tiresome," Her smile seemed to decrease by little but still remained "How long was I out for?"

"Give or take.. A week or so? And we are currently living in Lowe's house! He was so cool coming in with the Red Knights and helping us in driving the demons back from the town! He said he was gonna go out looking for remaining survivors in the town "

She smiled at her brother's loudness and brash behavior. Perhaps, some things will never change. "I see, as much as I want to thank him, we must now leave."

Elsword's face turned from excitement into mere confusion, "Leaving?"

"We're going on a training trip. Specifically, to train you. I'm sorry Elsword.. For leaving you alone back then. Your big sister is back however," She cheekly grinned and flashed two fingers at him "And wants to introduce you to her "training"! So grab everything you need since we will be gone for a few years." She turned her back against him and walked outside. "We'll be together forever. i won't leave you alone anymore Elsword. I promise."

Elsword smiled in delight at getting trained and having his big sis back. It really sucked without her. Lowe would always cook such horrible food for him. Then again, he did burn down a few kitchens. It honestly wasn't his fault tho! It's not his fault he got distracted trying to chase a cat from the food he was cooking or when he poured too much flour onto his cooking... Well.. Maybe it was..

Heh, you know the usual saying, the 76th time is a charm?

He scratched the back of his head nervously. At least Elesis was back, that was all that mattered to him.

"Well, are you just gonna stand there all day looking cool and stuff or will we go train now? Let's go!" He yelled back at her before rushing out the door. Not even a feet he had manged to cover before he tripped and face planted against the floor, gaining a ton of dirt and grass into his mouth while at the same time, firmly stuck into the ground with only his lower body sticking out

"Mmmfh!" Elsword exclaimed. His legs flailing wildly as he tried to get free from his earthly restraints. Elesis chuckled.

Some things really wouldn't change at all..

She smiled fondly gazed into the distance, a slight image of her father and mother holding each other while smiling warmly at her.

I promise father..

She walked towards Elsword to free him from his prison. It wouldn't do well if he was this weak, she refused to have her last remaining family member to disappear. Maybe it was time to step it up a notch, they had a continent to save from the demon realm after all. And with time. Elrios and the demon realm would learn to fear the crimson duo.

Prologue End