((Author's Note: O hai, I found more time to write up the story. Ohoho :D Also- I forgot to re-read and edit all mistakes. SORRY! Will do that in my spare time. lawl))

"If you believe that, then you should stop loving her. It's not healthy for you both." Eve told Raven.

As he sat there, contemplating on what Eve told him, Raven gave off a sigh and watched as Eve finished up her bath. For a few seconds, Raven contemplated on why Eve didn't react harshly to him spying on her bath. In fact, now that he noted it, Eve didn't really attempt to push him off.

"Eve, are you comfortable with people watching you bathe?"

She looked at him, a bit confused. "I'm more than familiar as to why it should be uncomfortable. Why do you think I was playing around with you a few minutes ago?"

Raven shrugged his shoulders. Of course, it was uncomfortable to him- only because she didn't react the way he expected. Here, he thought she would slap him and tell him to run off, but Eve appeared to have no desire to do so. Before he could get up and get closer to the edge of the water, he heard rustling sounds from behind him. Immediately, Eve turned her head to the sound and Raven reacted. His left arm shot up, ready to attack whatever was coming toward them. It wasn't until a familiar voice rang into Raven's hears that he finally let his arm down.

"I found General Raven!" the captain's voice cried out.

Elsword jumped out of the bushes and examined the situation. There were 2 drones rolling around Eve's clothing, Raven was standing there, and Eve was bathing. Seeing such a situation, Elsword's face turned red as he attempted to back up. Raven swiftly snatched Elsword by the back and dragged him back.

"Captain, what are you doing here?" Raven asked Elsword.

Elsword looked up to Raven, scratching his head from embarrassment. "Er… Rena was getting worried about you. The scouts that went with you came back after a while, but you weren't back. She sent me to come find you."

A sigh escaped Raven's lips and he shook his head with his left arm going over his face. "She knows that I'm strong enough to defend myself. Go back to the air craft and tell her I'll be back within a few hours."

Once Raven let go of Elsword, he turned back to Eve and continued examining her as she got out of the water to put on her clothing. Elsword moved to the side to see what Raven was staring at and his face turned dark red.

"M-my…! Queen Eve, shouldn't you be asleep at this time, rather than bathe?"

Raven snapped at Elsword in shock. "Queen?!"

Eve watched as Moby and Remy covered her with her clothes and started drying her off. She stared at Elsword for a few seconds before walking towards him and slapping him in the face. "Were you not taught any manners?! Do not stare!"

Elsword rubbed his cheek and his eyes darted away before going back and watching Eve turn back to Raven. Raven looked back to Eve and contemplated for a few seconds. "You're the queen of Altera Island…?"

She tilted her head a bit in curiosity. "Does that intrigue you?"

"You did not mention any of this to me." He answered her back.

Eve couldn't help but shrug her shoulders. "I didn't believe it was the time and place to do such a thing. After all, you did interrupt my bathing."

Raven didn't say anymore and all he did was just turn to Elsword to see what he was thinking. All Elsword could do at this moment was just watch and wait.

"Captain, did I not already order you to go back to the ship?" Raven asked.

Elsword looked back to Raven. "What about you?"

A look of anger raged in Raven's eyes. "I told you that I would be back within a few hours."

"Why, because you're watching Eve bathe to fulfill your selfish pleasure?"

"Because I told her I would accompany her back to her quarters."

Splashes were heard and Eve was finally out of the water. Remy and Moby floated around Eve, clothing her, as she walked to the two men. "If you two are done with your conversation, I'm ready to go and head back to my resting place."

Elsword immediately turned to Eve. "Oh… yeah, we're done. But if I may ask you one more question?"

"Speak." Eve commanded, sounding a bit more softer than before. There was a hint of concern within the word. For some odd reason, Raven caught wind of that tone.

"I know you won't let us conquer Fluone because of… personal reasons. But I believe we can come to an agreement that would ensure that the safety of Fluone won't be conquered through fighting." Elsword proudly spoke.

"…That's not a question, Captain." Eve said, straight-forward.

Elsword just scratched his head in embarrassment. "But I didn't even finish!"

"Then get to the point." Her tone sounding more demanding than before.

Before Elsword could say anything else, Raven finally spoke up. "We request that you come back with us to the continent of Rurensia. There, we will speak to King Wally and request for an arranged marriage. By abiding by this special contract, not only will he have control of Fluone, but you can rule along his side as his queen. Not only that, but you would also have the whole world under the palm of your ha-"

"No." Eve immediately replied. Before she could say anything else, she walked in between Raven and Elsword. After a few steps, Eve stopped and turned to look at the two men.

"Come, Raven. I believe you said to me that you would protect me until you lead me home?" She mentioned.

Raven gave a small nod. He knew this was going to be harder than expected, but what puzzled him was Eve's quick answer to their proposal. Was Eve paying attention to every word he said? Did she not realize that she would have power over the whole world? Elsword shook Raven and looked to him. Quickly, Raven snapped out of his trance and turned to Elsword. A look on Elsword's face read, 'I need to talk to you.'

"Eve, please give me a few moments with my Captain. I'll be with you shortly." Raven answered.

He turned his back towards Eve and then looked to Elsword. It appeared as if he had a plan. "Raven, I know this must be difficult, but I'm more than confident that Eve will come if you just convince her to. That's why, you should take your time in walking her back to wherever she stays."

Raven started putting the pieces together of Elsword's plan. "If I talk to her during the process, there's a possibility that she will be able to come with us."

"Exactly! So don't worry about having to rush Eve back home."

Raven's stomach turned, thinking about their plan. It wasn't a good turning feeling, either. Before he could say anything, he watched as Elsword ran off to the direction of the ship. At that moment, his attention immediately turned to Eve and they started off.

Back at the ship, Elsword met up with some of the crew members and told them of what was going on. With the flurry of soldiers running around, Rena walked up to Elsword and crossed her arms with a look of concern.

"Elsword, where's Raven?"

Elsword turned to Rena and gave a smile. "He's helping someone go back home. Raven found them while running around and trying to find the Queen."

"What?! There are people still living on this island?!"

"Shockingly, yeah. But you don't have to worry about that anytime soon, Rena. They seem to be well stocked!"

Worry decorated Rena's face. "But still, who knows how much longer they could survive? Come on, Elsword! We need to catch up with Raven and bring those people back home!"

Rena charged out of the ship, but Elsword was close behind her. He grabbed onto her arm and stopped her in place. "Rena! Relax! Those people don't want to come back with us!"

She looked to Elsword, a bit surprised. "T-they don't?!"

"They already made their decision. Raven and I tried talking to them. Let's just go back to the ship and wait for Raven to come back." Elsword said as he let go of Rena and slowly walked.

"Well, it's their choice. But still…" Rena relaxed and crossed her arms, looking into the horizon as she followed Elsword. "Those people must feel very lonely… having no type of contact with the outside world in so long…"

_

Meanwhile, Raven and Eve were walking through what appeared to be a junkyard of nasods. Piles and piles of advanced machinery that appeared to be of waste. Raven looked around, examining the area as he followed Eve.

"…Your highness." Raven said.

Eve heard Raven's formality. "Just call me Eve."

"But it seems very rude to call you by just your first name." He said.

"You didn't seem to have any trouble with it before."

"That was before my Captain mentioned that you were a Queen."

She stopped in place and swiftly turned to Raven. He stopped, looking at Eve and wondering why she just stood there in place. For just a few seconds, they stared into each other's eyes. Raven's eyes were full of determination while hinting a little bit of worry. Eve's eyes seemed cold and distant, but it was as if she was calling out for something.

…or someone.

Eve walked a bit closer to Raven and took hold of his left arm. He quickly jerked a bit; it was his natural reaction kicking in. She gave off an annoyed sigh when she noticed Raven moving in disagreement to her touch, but everything seemed to have melted into one single moment. Slowly, she turned and let his arm wrap around her. Then, she took his right arm and wrapped it over her stomach.

Raven and Eve stood like that for what felt like hours on end. It only lasted for a few seconds.

"E-Eve!" Raven finally spoke up.

She didn't say anything. After that, all she did was carefully pull out of Raven's forced hug. He was quite shocked from her actions. Eve finally turned to Raven and gave a small sigh. "…Let's go."

Once again, they started walking. Recalling Elsword's plan, Raven started walking right next to Eve and initiated his part in it.

"So Eve…" Raven said, sounding a bit hopeful.

"No." Eve immediately answered.

"You didn't even listen to what I had to say."

"I believe you were trying to convince me to go back with you to your city."

Raven didn't say anything. She was definitely right on target with that one.

"…I will agree to go, only if you will agree to a special request of mine." Eve said, stopping in place in what appeared to be a large tunnel.

"A special request?" He asked her.

Eve turned to Raven. "Yes. It's a very simple request. I won't go back on my word. If you do this, then I will go back to wherever you came from… no objections."

Numerous thoughts ran through his mind as he thought about this special agreement they were going to come to terms on.

"What is this special request of yours?"

"Stay with me. Your Captain can go back and make preparations to ensure that the arranged marriage will go unhindered."

Raven was uncertain about this. "How long will I have to stay with you?"

"As long as the preparations take." Eve answered.

"And if I refuse?"

"I will continue to deny going with you. And don't assume this island won't last for too long. I've prepared it with intense care that it can float above the continents for eternity if necessary." Eve answered.

"I don't believe you." Raven said.

A smile appeared on Eve's face. It was weaker than the one she gave him before when he challenged her drones' power. He couldn't tell if this was a bluff coming from her or if there was a much bigger secret than she was keeping from him.

"Is that a challenge?"

Honestly, Raven didn't want to push Eve any further. "…If you will give me time, then I will agree to stay with you."

"How much time do you need?"

Raven looked to Eve, actually looking a bit irritated. "The King will have a tantrum if he finds out that I'm unavailable to do the work he assigns me to. I need to go back and explain to him that I must stay here with you while the marriage gets prepared."

Eve thought about this and her eyes widened. Her hand reached out and immediately snatched his right arm. Raven, again, reacted by moving back a bit. He didn't know what to do at that moment.

"…Come back soon." She told him.

He gave her a nod and a reassuring smile. "I will. Don't worry."

"So… let's continue on?" Raven asked.

Eve shook her head. "You can go back. You'd be unable to get through this place from this point on."

"Why not?"

Her silence answered Raven as she turned and walked through the tunnel. A large sigh of relief was released and quickly, Raven charged back to the ship.

Hours have passed and he finally got back.

"BOARD THE SHIP! WE'RE HEADING OFF NOW!" Raven yelled out.

Everyone scrambled to their feet. Rena caught up to Raven and hugged him.

"I was so worried about you! Are you alright? Are you hurt?" She asked, examining Raven.

He looked to Rena, looking as determined as ever. "I'm fine. Don't worry. We need to get back to Velder as soon as possible!"

Elsword found Raven. "What happened? Did she say yes?"

Rena looked to Elsword, confused. "…She?"

Raven ignored the two and went to the front of the ship. "We're heading back to Velder immediately. I need to speak to the King about a temporary hiatus."

"WHAT?!" the whole ship cried out in shock.