Disclaimer: Guild Wars does not belong to me, rather, it belongs to Arena Net and NCSoft. All characters and locations are copyright them.

Summary: Fills in what happened to the four core characters where the offical Guild Wars lore only briefly hints at. Takes place immedeately after the Searing, focused primarally on the elementalist Cynn and the warrior Devona, slight Shoujo-ai content in later chapters.


How long she had been trapped in the rubble of her home, she didn't rightly know. Three, four days maybe, since the crystals had rained from the sky, since the feel of flames and the smell of smoke had poisoned everything to the point that she had begun to think she'd never have the joy of fresh air again. Being unconscious for an unsure amount of time didn't help either. She wasnt sure how long it had been since it never got dark enough to signal nighttime, never light enough to show noon, only the constant flickering of fire that danced through the once proud city of Surmia. She supposed her parents were dead, she knew that if they werent, she wouldn't be trapped under the stone slab that was once the dining table. So many times she cursed the thing for being stone instead of wood, wood she could at least burn away with her magic. Being stuck in one place was infuriating, not to mention painful. Her entire body was bruised and aching, and she was convinced that her left leg was broken. Thankfully, both of her arms and hands were still in working condition, and she passed the time by flinging flares against the stone wall nearby, creating a larger and larger scorch mark on the wall, and hoping that someone would hear and come to her aid. It also helped keep her mind sharp, on the off chance that those who would hear her werent Ascalons, but rather, those horrible beasts, the Charr.

More time passed as she drifted in and out of sleep, and she began to talk to herself, gradually growing weaker from her ordeal. "This isn't how you envisioned your death, now was it Cynn?" She traced the pattern of the marble that cruelly held her down with one finger. "No, you had dreams of becoming a Guild leader, or at the very least one of its officers. Instead, here you lie, wasting away under a table, to be found as nothing more than bones." She shuddered faintly at the thought that she'd become like those in the catacombs, undead and filled with hatred for the living. It was most certainly not something she wished for, but the longer she lingered, the more convinced she became that it would be her fate. She cursed the gods again, only to angrily brush away tears and ask for Dwayna's forgiveness a few minutes later. Balthazar's fire burned in her angry eyes, the young Elementalist swearing several times that she would avenge her countrymen using the very thing the beasts worshiped, fire, in her war god's name. That was, of course, provided that she get out of this mess. "Sweet Dwayna, I don't want to die this way! There's so much I wanted to do..." The lack of hearing anything but the flames that continued to burn, and occasionally hearing someone scream, all served to wear away at Cynn's hopes of ever being found. As far as she knew, everyone else could very well be dead. She sighed, then angrily pushed at the table again, biting back a yelp as the slight motion ground the rough edge at her twisted leg. Laying back and staring upwards through the broken roof at the sky above, she amused herself with thoughts of escape, and of fleeing over the mountains to Kryta, or preferably to the kingdom of Orr. The thought that the Charr had destroyed them was pushed away, stubbornly clinging to the hope that somewhere, the world was still in some resemblance of being normal, that the gods hadn't completely forsaken them all, and that somewhere, there were still Ascalons alive. A faint smile drifted over her features as the first sign that it was night slowly moved into her sight, the moon creeping into view as it tossed off the veil of clouds. It was still red, tainted by the haze of smoke, but it was also a sign that the horrors of the last few days had the chance of fading. With that hopeful thought in mind, Cynn closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift off to sleep.

Guttural growls and the sound of stones being moved pulled her from her dreams, her eyes flashing open as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. A shock of fear and a bit of anger settled in her stomach, she quickly recognizing the sounds of the Charr as they moved closer, likely looting the burnt city. She clenched and unclenched her hands, her eyes flashing as she prepared to cast flare at the first furry head she saw. As she heard them move into the remnants of her home, an unusual calm settled over her, her anger fading and being replaced by a cold determination to get out of this alive, and if she could use the beasts for her own means, then by Balthazar, she would do it. Not even hearing what she could only guess was the excitement generated at finding her parents bodies was able to penetrate this calm that was so unnatural for her fiery personality. She briefly glanced upwards, the moon long passed, the streaks of sunlight instead showing the coming dawn, and took a deep breath, slowly letting the tension flow from her as she lay back down.

The sound of claw on stone announced the presence of the beast as it moved into the corner of her vision. It was an axe warrior, one of the grunts of the Charr army. The lion like beast lifted its head and sniffed the air, quickly fixing its beady eyes on Cynn's form. She didn't turn her head to look at it, but stared steadily at it from the side of her vision. The axe warrior turned and barked something to those with it before it stepped closer, continuing to eye Cynn and attempt to determine if the trapped girl was a threat. She held still, keeping an eye on the one that moved closer before glancing at the two that followed. One was a hunter, easily recognized by it's bow and arrows, the other was another axe warrior, this one smaller than the first. A fire caller appeared behind them, but even the appearance of this formidable warrior didn't penetrate the cool aura that was keeping Cynn from snapping. It eyed her, then growled something to the two axe warriors before turning and stalking out of her sight. The axe warriors looked at each other then down to her, the hunter repeating the same sounds the fire caller had and gesturing towards the table. With a shrug, the two warriors moved and began tossing aside bits of rubble, working to free up the table from her body. She kept her eyes locked with the hunter, a part of her mind swearing that the thing was leering at her in its confidence that she was an easy catch. That same part of her mind asked why she was being so calm, but at this point, her decision had been made, and she wasnt about to back down from it. Barely able to hold back a yelp as the two warriors roughly pushed the table aside from her legs, she was then grabbed at the shoulders from behind by a Charr she hadnt seen before, one that likely had come through the remains of the wall behind her. Grimacing and unable to keep from struggling as it pulled her from her home, she gasped as she was dropped to the ground in front of the once grand entrance to her home. She glanced up towards her house, taking quick stock of the fact that one of the crystals had fallen directly onto her it, and that she faced six Charr; the two axe warriors, two hunters, one of the hunters being the one which had pulled her from the house, along with a flame caller and one she had never seen the likes of before. They had left her to shuffle through a bit of the rubble, assuming that her injuries would keep her from doing much of anything. Cynn slowly smiled, a wicked, dark expression that seemed out of place on her delicate features, and somehow, likely from the calm which still filled her, managed to push herself up to her knees, and then to standing, despite the twisted state of her leg. One of the hunters made a sound of surprise as it saw her, reaching for an arrow to notch in its bow as the two axe warriors started forward.

They didn't stand a chance. With a speed greater than even her flare spell usually held, she gestured outwards with her hands before flinging them forward, an arcane symbol forming above her head as the massive fireball flew towards the surprised Charr, blasting all six back and into the rubble of her home. Throwing her head back as she raised her hands above her head, a ring of runes appeared at her feet as she levitated up into the air. Tears began to stream down her cheeks as she screamed out her emotions, and with a forward toss of her head and arms, watched as meteors began raining down upon the trapped Charr, destroying what was left of her home and killing the beasts within. Falling forward to her knees, she screamed and threw flare after flare at the burning rubble, finally falling to her side as her spells drained her of the remnants of energy, darkness creeping over her vision. She smiled as her last thought before falling into the dark was that she at least had saved her parents some bit of dignity and cleansed them with Balthazar's fire instead of the twisted flame the Charr worshiped.

Devona moved grimly through the land north of the wall, working her way with her companions towards the ruins of Surmia. Scouts had reported Charr activity in the ruined city, and Prince Rurik had commanded his Vanguard to step up their searches for survivors from the initial Charr attack. The barely secured old city had been the sight of constant streams of survivors from beyond the wall ever since the first wave had been pushed back, and now, a week later, things had reached an uneasy lull. The number of survivors entering the city had slowed to a trickle, and with the current lack of attacks upon the walls, Prince Rurik thought it prudent to send out search parties to seek out those Ascalons who may still survive but be unable to make it to the city on their own. Aidan the ranger and Mhenlo the monk were along with her, one of the small groups that were slowly making their way out through the charred landscape. The three of them walked in silence, Aidan taking the point to search for any Charr warbands and determine if they fight or sneak about, Mhenlo walking behind her and murmuring quiet prayers for the dead they passed on their way. Many fires still burned, and Devona entertained the thought that they would for all eternity. She shifted her hammer from one shoulder to the other, making a soft whistle to catch Aidan's attention. When the ranger glanced back at her, she tilted her head towards a shaded bit of ground below a rocky outcrop, indicating to him that she wished to take a break. He nodded and followed as she and Mhenlo made their way to sit. Devona sighed as she placed the head of her hammer on the ground, leaning forward against the handle. Her eyes scanned the landscape wearily, watching the sun set as Mhenlo fussed with the piece of a statue of Dwayna he had found earlier, Aidan standing a short distance away and looking forward towards where they were heading. It was the monk who broke the silence.

"How many do you think we'll find?"

Devona glanced up at the younger man. His face was a mix of emotion, uncertainty still prominent among them. She imagined that he likely thought that he'd never be called into war like this, despite being a member of her squad as they went through the academy and trained for just this thing. But then, she also thought, none of them expected this to happen.

"Survivors?" She queried pointlessly.

"Yeah. Surmia was hit hard, so few from it have reached Ascalon City..." he trailed off, setting down the stone wing in front of him. She knew he held some level of guilt over the things that had happened, the rumors that he had discovered before the attack having been proven right.

She sighed, shrugging her shoulders a little. "I'm not certain. We have to hold some hope that we'll find someone. The people of Surmia are stubborn and proud."

"A survival technique to be certain." Aidan spoke as he moved closer to the other two. He was on edge, his curt tone evident of it. Though he trusted Devona and Mhenlo's ability to fight and trusted them with his life, the fact that they were missing a member caused him to be even more cautious than usual. "And she's more stubborn than most." He briefly alluded to what was on all of their minds, the fact that the fourth member of their training group had lived in Surmia, and had been visiting her home when the attack happened.

Devona nodded, standing again as she stretched her arms up over her head. "There's no doubting that." She smiled faintly and once again hefted the hammer up over her shoulder with practiced ease. "Let's go, we've got about half a nights walk yet."

The two men nodded and settled quickly into the same walking pattern as before, Aidan moving forward a distance. He crept forward to a ridge, cautiously peering up over the edge as Devona and Mhenlo waited at the base, watching him. The warrior arched a slender eyebrow as she noticed Aidan jerk slightly, the ranger quickly dipping down and slipping quietly down the hill to the two below.

"Well?" Devona watched Aidan's face, sensing that something was wrong.

Aidan pointed east. "We go that way. Charr. Lots of them, between us and the city, we need to sneak around, there's no way that we'd be able to fight through."

Devona sighed and ran her hand through her hair as Mhenlo paled visibly. She dropped her hammer down into her hands as she slipped slowly up the ridge to see herself. She bit her lower lip as she surveyed the large grouping of Charr spread out below her, it seemed that they had set up camp between Ascalon City and Surmia since the last scout report. She looked out towards the west and then to the east, nodding lightly as she agreed with Aidan's decision that they should go to the east. Slipping down the ridge, she nodded to Aidan to start again. They had traveled for about an hour without incident, dodging the sight of a warband of six members, and taking out a small group of three hunters. Cresting another ridge, they slipped down between two groups of rocks, the exposed position making Devona nervous. She had good reason to be so as an axe warrior rounded the rocks and blocked the path in front of them.

For the barest of moments, the Charr stared at the three humans, they likewise startled motionless by its appearance, as if holding still would keep them from being seen. No such luck as the Charr yelped out a call before swinging its axe in front of itself, charging forward, claws digging into the dirt as two more came into view behind, alerted by the axe warriors call. Devona cursed and stepped forward to meet the charging warrior as Aidan dropped back behind her, crouching as he began to quickly prepare his arrows. With a clang, she blocked the swing from the warriors axe with the handle of her hammer, twisting to smack the side of its head with the end of the hammer, knocking the beast off balance. With a spin of the hefty weapon over her head, she brought the proper end of the hammer to bear against the side of his skull, satisfied as she heard the crack of bone before the Charr slumped to the ground. Aidan stood now, letting loose an arrow into one of the two approaching warriors, one wielding an axe, the other a sword, the arrow clanging uselessly off the shoulder armor of the swordsman, causing Aidan to curse. Devona met the axe warrior with an even blow of hammer to axe, hissing as the steel cut her upper arm. Her blow glanced off the warriors chest, and quite suddenly, both the axe warrior and the swordsman were upon her, she focused on defending herself more than attacking. To make matters worse, the high-pitched whine and explosion of flame, which singed her cheek, announced the presence of hunters, and she spied the two Charr at the entrance of the path.

"Get the hunters!" She shouted to Aidan, who had already trained his sight on the opposing rangers. She cursed again as the axe warrior struck a blow which knocked her off balance, gritting her teeth as she waited for the expected blow from the swordsman, but it didnt come. Mhenlo shouted out a curse of Balthazar as he backpeddled away from the swordsman which had turned its attention from Devona to him, the divine spell sapping some of the creatures strength while it gave him more, the balls of energy from his wand impacting against the Charr's chest and causing it to fall back a bit. Taking a hit to her back from the axe, Devona swung her hammer and connected with the swordsman's shoulder, causing it to twist about and take the full brunt of the hit she directed to his chest.

Another explosion of fire went up around Aidan as he exchanged volleys with the two, his arrows causing poison damage instead of fire, one of the two hunters falling as a well-placed shot struck its chest. He was evenly matched with the second, neither gaining on the other. Mhenlo had taken up a position near him, just out of the reach of the flames from the exploding arrows as he cast a spell to cure the archer of the injuries from the flames. A cry of pain from Devona caused him to quickly turn towards her, his eyes widening in horror as he saw the axe warrior with the curve of his blade buried in his friend's back, the swordweilding Charr crumpled at Devona's feet. Aidan spun about from the other hunter at her cry, a pointblank shot driving an arrow in and nearly through the axe warrior's skull, causing it to fall without a sound before he turned his attention back to the hunter. Mhenlo ran over to the unmoving warrior, crouching next to her as he wrenched the axe from her battered armor. Beginning a powerful healing spell, he swore as a shot from the hunter distracted him and broke his concentration before Aidan managed to finally fell the beast. Knowing that Mhenlo needed as much energy as he could get to help Devona, he crouched next to the monk as he prepared an unguent to help heal himself, casting a worried look at the motionless warrior. Mhenlo gritted his teeth and cast a weak healing spell while he tried to clear his mind of the fog caused by the archer's shot so that he could cast the more powerful spell needed to heal her wound properly. After a few moments, he began the incantation anew, sighing as the energy flowed from his hands and into Devona's body. She shuddered and blinked open her eyes, shaking her head a little as she pushed herself up, grimacing at the pain from the wound to her shoulder, holding her hand up as Mhenlo made to cast another spell.

"Save it." She told him through gritted teeth, her eyes roaming over him and Aidan to check their state. "I'll heal up as we travel, that's what this armor is for, remember? The healing properties." She tried a smile as she used her hammer to help herself stand.

Mhenlo looked about to protest, but Aidan silenced him with a look. "We're about an hour outside of Surmia now. I think that group was reporting back to that large camp, so hopefully, they were the only scouting unit out. I'll go a little further ahead this time though, okay?" The ranger looked to Devona for her decision, and the warrior nodded quietly. He nodded and moved ahead, picking up a bow from one of the fallen archers and glancing over it as he walked. He guided them around another group of Charr, his eyes scanning the sky as he watched the moon begin to set. Dropping back, he signaled for Devona and Mhenlo to stop.

"We're nearing the city. Should we set up camp now and rest for a day, or do you want to get into the city before we do that?" He asked, unstringing the bow he had gotten from the fight earlier in the night.

Devona thought for a few moments, leaning against a large rock. "Its not safe anywhere, really. At least inside the city we might find a fallen building that can shelter us well. Better than being out in the open and venerable to hunters arrows." Mhenlo and Aidan nodded, the three starting into the city.

Surmia was a mess. Not a single building was left unmarred, most nothing but burnt out husks. It was fairly obvious that the Charr had gone through and destroyed anything that was left after their crystals had struck and so devastated the city. Without really thinking, Devona took the lead within the close quarters of the ruined buildings, and found herself heading towards the nobles district. She also found herself murmuring a quiet prayer to Dwayna that her friend still somehow still be alive. As suspected, no survivors were found as they traveled, many burnt and mangled bodies, and an unfortunate spirit or two, but no living person was seen. Glancing over her shoulder to Aidan, she met his steady look in an attempt to calm herself some.

"Look!" Mhenlo shouted, startling the other two as he pointed ahead at the sky. A powerful fire spell had been cast, meteors raining down from above, shaking the ground where they hit about a mile away, felt even by those who watched. As the last one fell, further flashes of flame were seen as fire began to lick at the sky, dark smoke rising to blur the morning sun. The three exchanged quick looks with each other, each knowing that no Charr could cast spells of that magnitude, and without a word spoken, they broke out into a run towards its source.

The flames grew higher as they ran, Devona pushing herself harder with a murmured incantation to Balthazar, pulling ahead of Aidan and Mhenlo and turning the corner first, leaping over a fallen statue. Skidding to a stop, using the momentum to swing her hammer into attack position, she took quick stock of what was in front of her. One of the grand noble houses was completely engulfed in flames, a shattered and broken crystal shining in the firelight in the center of the building, the smell of burnt fur strong in the air, but there was no sign of any Charr. Instead, the fire highlighted a smaller figure laid out in front on the ground, and Devona felt her heart leap into her throat as she quickly recognized the one who had been on their minds the entire trip to the city. "Cynn!"