[A]ddiction
By MargaritaDaemonelix
Chapter 4: Addiction
Addiction(noun; plural: addictions) (Ah-dik-shun)
An unusually great interest in something or a need to do or have something.
As she stood on the palace doorsteps of Altera, being held by two nasods with deadly-looking spears, Ara wondered why she was in Altera to begin with.
It was the dead middle of summer in Lurensia, and despite being an island and surrounded by water, Altera was not exempt from this rule. It was still sweltering, and Ara was wearing a cloak that fell down to her ankles. "Please, just let me in," she groaned as the guards continued to bar her entry, "I just need to take a piss, get a drink, and talk to the queen. Not necessarily in that order."
"ENTRY DENIED," recited the automaton in perfect monotone. "PLEASE SUBMIT A TICKET IF YOU WISH TO HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH THE QUEEN."
"Oh, for fuck's sake-" Ara grabbed the walkie-talkie out from the guard's belt, summoning her spear from the shadows cast by the two nasods. "You two will stand back and do absolutely nothing," she hissed, pointing it at them awkwardly with her left hand.
"WE WILL STAND BACK AND STAY RIGHT HERE," they whimpered in unison.
Ara looked at the buttons on the walkie-talkie. There were only two: one for talking, and the other presumably a power button. She clicked on the one for talking. "Is anyone there? Over," she said, hand on hip.
"PLEASE RETURN THE SPEAKING DEVICE TO OUR GUARDS, MISS HUMAN," said a trembling voice on the other side. Ah, so nasods can feel fear~ Although I already knew that from Eve…
"Who's on that side? Hmm?" She hummed.
"NUMBER 203-496, MISS HUMAN."
"Call me Ara. 203-496, dear," said Ara in the sweetest voice she could muster, "do me a favour, okay? Could you please bring this walkie talkie to Her Majesty, Queen Evangeline?"
The nasod paused for a moment. "AFFIRMATIVE," it said. "HER MAJESTY WILL BE ABLE TO SPEAK WITH YOU SHORTLY."
There was a burst of static before the line went silent for a few moments. "203-496 HAS NEVER MET HER MAJESTY," said one of the guards.
"203-496 HAS NEVER EXERCISED THE NECESSARY ETIQUETTE FOR CONFRONTING THE QUEEN," added the other. "IT IS DOUBTFUL THAT 203-496 WILL KNOW THE ETIQUETTE."
"Chillax, guys," drawled Ara, leaning against the wall. "You guys got numbers too?
"I… I AM 138-249, AND THIS IS 138-250," said one guard, gesturing to the other as well.
Ara snorted. "Too complicated. 138-249, you are now Bob, and 138-250, you are now Stuart. 203-496 can be Kevin. You see? Solved in an instant."
Stuart tilted his head. "I AM… STUART?" He dictated, pointing to himself.
Bob, on the other hand, positively beamed. "I AM BOB!" He said quite loudly. "THANK YOU, MISS ARA!"
The walkie talkie whirred back to life. "ARA HAAN!" Yelled Eve. "What do you think you're doing, harassing my guards?"
Ara pouted. So the sneaky little marshmallow had video surveillance, after all. "I'm not harassing them, promise!" She said, looking at the two guards innocently. "We were just talking, I swear! Anyhoo, are you going to let me in or not? I really have to piss…"
Eve sighed. "Guards, please accompany miss Haan to my office," she said. "I have a feeling that this is going to be a long conversation."
Bob and Stuart both saluted. "YES, YOUR MAJESTY."
The doors of the great Alteran palace opened, revealing the millennia-old architecture that graced its halls. The floors were carpeted in red, but tapestries of every colour in the rainbow adorned the walls, depicting the history of the great nasod empire.
"I AM VERY SORRY, LADY HAAN," chittered another nasod who ran up and bowed deeply. "I AM 203-496. I WILL ACCOMPANY YOU TO THE LAVATORY."
"Actually, forget the number, and don't call me "lady Haan," that just sounds stupid," said Ara. "You're Kevin, I'm Ara. Got it?"
"YOU ARE KEVIN, I AM ARA. UNDERSTOOD."
"No, you're Kevin."
"YES. YOU ARE KEVIN."
"AGH! Okay. I am Kevin, you are Ara."
"I AM KEVIN, YOU ARE ARA."
Ara clapped in glee. "Good."
A trip to the Alternian loo later(it was tinier than Ara's clothes closet back home in Fahrman) and Kevin was taking Ara to finally see Eve. "YOUR MAJESTY, ARA REQUESTS YOUR COMPANY," chirped Kevin, pushing the door open.
Eve's office was a mess, unlike everything else about the queen. Papers were flying everywhere, the office chair seemed to have been replaced with a filing cabinet, and Chung was sitting crosslegged in the middle of the room, buried in a pile of sticky notes and pen caps.
"Welcome to hell," joked the former prince of Hamel. "Would you like a free pen? Ah shit, this cap doesn't have a pen attached to it. Eve's been running through these things like beer." Said queen smacked him in the back of the head. "Right, nasods can't have alcohol. I digress."
"What brings you to my… disorganized office?" Said Eve, her eye twitching as she mentioned the state of her working quarters. "And where's Add?"
Ara sighed. "I have no clue, honestly. I just need information about him."
Chung pulled a sticky note off a strand of his hair. "I'm listening."
"So I found out that Add's a wanted criminal by the Velder government, right?" She began. "Long story short, he freaked out and ran for the hills."
"But you have no clue why he's wanted," concluded Eve, writing something down on a pink sticky note and attaching it to Chung's ponytail.
"Exactly," agreed Ara.
Eve sighed, capping her pen and dropping it in a cup that might have once held coffee. "Are you sure you're ready for this?" She asked.
Ara nodded. "Absolutely."
"Okay. Three years ago," explained Eve, "Add was living in a town not far from Elder, an outpost called Twin Watchtowers. He was experimenting heavily at the time, and Velder was convinced that he was insane. One of his experiments blew up half the town and pretty much obliterated it. He has always felt remorse for this, and I doubt that he will ever deny it."
Chung and Eve watched in somewhat awkward silence as Ara's legs slowly gave out underneath her, causing a cloud of papers to fly out when she sat down with a thump. "Heh," she laughed weakly. "Hehe. Heh."
"Ara?" Asked Eve, uncertainty tainting her voice. "Are you sound of mind?"
The black haired girl stood up, smiling. "Thanks, guys," she said, giving Eve a huge hug and Chung a hair ruffle, causing the sticky notes to flutter down around him like butterflies. "That's all I really needed to hear. I've got to get going now."
Eve smiled faintly. "If you ever need a place to stay, the Alteran palace will always be open to you," she said, dipping her head.
"Oh! That reminds me," said Ara, eyes lighting up, "the two guards at the door, and the one that brought me here. Can you give Kevin, Stuart and Bob pay raises or something? They deserve it."
As she flounced out the door, she couldn't help but giggle as the two royals glanced at each other out of sheer confusion.
Her three little nasod friends accompanied her to the door. "COME AGAIN!" Chirped Bob, waving cheerfully as Kevin bowed politely and Stuart patted Ara's arm.
Ara beamed at her three new friends. "I'll come back soon," she promised, "and I'll bring Add to see you guys. He'd love you all-he has an obsession with nasods, honestly. It's not really healthy for him. Maybe I won't bring him along after all."
Bob stared up at her adoringly. "Okay, fine! I'll just grab Add by the collar and make sure he doesn't destroy this place while fangirling out," she chuckled, giving the nasod a pat on the head. "I've got to go now, buh-bye!"
The three nasods waving in the distance, Ara walked farther and farther away from the Alteran palace until she couldn't even see the enormous building. "Next…" She murmured, removing a folded up map of Elrios from her pack and examining it closely. Once she'd finalized her destination, she headed towards Altera City, the industrial hub of Eve's empire that would doubtlessly have a COBO Teleportation Centre.
"I'm so confused, Eun," she mumbled, flopping back on the bed and trying to ignore the pain shooting up her back. "What did he do that makes him so… Scared of me? And the world?"
Child, you need to remember that he's got the weight of whatever crime he committed on his shoulders, reminded the kumiho softly. But it all depends on what he did.
"Alright, then!" Declared Ara, sitting up straight. "I'm going to find out whatever he did, and then I'm going to try and help him. I know he feels bad right now, but I am going to make sure he knows that he can redeem himself and that he is the bestest partner in crime ever!"
Eun made a noise like she was hacking a hairball. And where do you expect to get this knowledge? It's not like Penensio is just going to explain to you how Add is a wanted criminal. He's probably going to be mad enough that Add escaped to begin with.
Ara froze. "Ehehe… I guess you're right. I'll go ask Eve; she's known Add for longer than I have," she amended.
Heh. Better. Now go!
She didn't have to be told twice. By the time Penensio came in to check on the bedroom, all the occupants were long gone.
"So here we are," murmured Ara, standing in a grove in the forest outside Elder City. She'd found a guide to get her to the remains of Twin Watchtower, a young woman named Luichel who ran a clothing store and was known for being the one to have turned Banthus in to the police. "Luichel, what happened here?"
The ginger girl gazed at the remains of the town sadly. "I was born and raised here," she said. "My parents were living here when about three years ago, there was a man who owned a house about…" She stopped at a square of land that was blackened and bore no plants. "Here. Yeah. We called him the Lunatic Psyker, because he was crazy as fuck, and when things didn't go right he'd go into the woods and punch trees and shit.
"So three years ago, I was visiting my uncle Hoffman in Elder City, because he had been elected as mayor and he wanted me to take over my grandmother's tailor shop," she explained, "so I survived the blast unscathed. My parents and my sisters weren't so lucky. They told me that the explosion levelled our house. The Psyker disappeared afterwards." She spat on the block of dirt that was once Add's house. "They still haven't caught the dirty bastard yet."
Some sort of rage filled Ara as she rushed forwards and picked Luichel up by the collar. "Listen to me, Luichel," she said, trying to keep her voice as level as possible, "the so-called Lunatic Psyker is not crazy. Not lunatic. Not insane. He's a scientist, which means he's creative."
Luichel gulped. "He is too insane," she insisted. "He hooked his generator-things to his mind! He can control them with his mind! When he walked outside, they flew at people and he denied ever trying to hurt us!"
Ara dropped the girl and stomped her foot down, letting out an enraged yell. "That's because he put the damned controls under his toes!" She yelled. "Add, you idiot! Of course they're going to fly everywhere if you walk on the controls!"
Luichel waited patiently as Ara's rage fit ended. "I'm assuming you know him," she deadpanned.
Ara nodded.
"You folks are real strange people," sighed the ginger. "Do you know where he is now?"
"Probably off somewhere, punching trees and trying to forget that he ever met me," admitted Ara. "Or trying to turn himself in to the Velder police. Both are highly likely. Come to think of it, he might just be drinking himself silly off that ten-year old bottle of whiskey he said he had…"
"Okay, let's cut to the chase. Clearly," said Luichel, pointing at Ara, "you two have some really weird sexual tension going on in there. Next, if he really is trying to kill himself, please haul him back. If anyone's going to kill him, it's gonna be me or uncle Hoffman, in which case I can drink myself silly off that whiskey. If he's trying to turn himself in to the Velder police, he's going to be killed by them, so same rule applies. And, miss Haan," said Luichel, turning to her with giant brown eyes, "if he's truly repentant for what he did to my home, then, please tell him…" She gulped. "That he still owes me twenty bucks for when I bailed his ass out of stealing apples from Gran."
Ara promptly collapsed to the ground in laughter.
"Hello, how can I help you?" Said the man at the desk in the tiny Velder police station. Ara had blown nearly all her money on these teleportation trips, but it was worth it.
"Hi, could I speak to commander Penensio please?" She asked, fluttering her eyelashes. "I've got some business with him."
The receptionist gulped. "Third door down that hallway," he said, gesturing towards it.
"Okay, thanks!" Chirped Ara, skipping down the hall without a care in the world, as if people weren't noticing the giant spear covered in demon blood she was swinging around. She knocked on Penensio's door three times swiftly, just like she used to, and immediately his voice came back as an exasperated groan.
"Go home, Ara, I don't have time for this, we had the Lunatic Psyker and he escaped, dammit!"
Ara paid him no attention and opened the door anyways. "Greetings, Penny," she teased, plopping herself down on the lone chair in front of his desk. "Long time no see."
"You helped Add escape, didn't you," hissed the commander, holding a pair of scissors threateningly at Ara's throat.
"Oh, please, Penny, he skipped out of this by himself," she laughed, pushing the scissors away from herself. "While this time I am not here to spar you, I do have a very, very important request for you."
"And that is?"
"To let Add go," she said, shrugging.
Penensio immediately flew into a fine rage. The scissors impaled themselves in the ceiling, next to the shattered lightbulb. "HAVE YOU ACTUALLY LOST YOUR MIND, HAAN?" He spluttered. "That is a lunatic we're talking about-"
"No, that is a scientist who was mistreated and never got the chance to appeal to himself in court because Velder's judicial system has fucking issues!" She snarled, shaking him by his shoulders. "If you'd bothered to actually ask what happened from him, you'd have realized that he did not intend to destroy the place. It's his hometown, for El's sake!"
The commander sat down, and the room was silent as Ara glared at him. "I guess you know him better, so explain," he ordered.
"Add is a scientist," she said calmly, taking in deep breaths, "who accidentally blew up the town of Twin Watchtowers when his experiment failed. He is not insane, and he doesn't try to hurt people. He's fighting for Elrios now, trying to keep it safe from the demons."
"What about the Dynamos?" Interrupted Penensio. "They say he linked them to his mind."
Ara scoffed. "I'd be damned before that ever happened. He says that sometimes to look impressive. He has controls embedded in his gloves. The reason they attacked people while he was living back in Twin Watchtowers was because he put the stupid controls in his shoes and tried to use his toes to control the dynamites."
"That… Is a really stupid idea," admitted Penensio.
"Not the best one he's ever had," agreed Ara. "And I'm not saying you let him go free. He is truly sorry for blowing up Twin Watchtowers, I know it, but that doesn't mean he deserves to walk away from all this without some form of punishment."
"Ara," said Penensio softly, "he might not have done it on purpose, but the Twin Watchtowers incident had one of the highest casualty rates in Elrian history. The only punishment Velder can deal for a crime of that level is death."
"No," stated Ara, standing up again.
"Oh no."
"I AM NOT LETTING YOU KILL HIM!" She shouted. "OUT OF ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE WORLD RIGHT NOW, HE IS ONE OF THOSE THAT DESERVES TO LIVE THE MOST! HAVE YOU SEEN HIM RESCUE CHILDREN FROM DEMONS? MARCH INTO A DEMON STRONGHOLD AND LIMP OUT, BARELY HOLDING ONTO LIFE? HE SAVED MY LIFE, DAMMIT!"
Tears began to leak out of her eyes. "I know he's done something horrible," she gasped, "but please, jail him. Make him do community service. Draft him into the army. Anything. Lay his crimes on me, if you must. But I implore you, let him live."
Penensio was silent. Then he stood up. "One month, Ara," he decided, opening the door. "If he doesn't turn himself in within one month, the death penalty will stay."
Out of all the things that Penensio expected, Ara running up to him and doing something between crying uncontrollably, hug him and shake his shoulders like crazy was not something he expected. "Thank you," she sniffled, wiping her eyes with the furry ruffle around her neck before grinning at him. "I'll be seeing you around, I suppose."
She walked through the door. "Oh, and protip," she said, turning back to him, "Vanessa's never going to notice you unless you stop staring at her ass while you think she's not looking."
And then she was gone again, leaving a very, very flustered Penensio in the doorway of his office.
Yet nearly two weeks later, Ara found herself in the middle of Ruben, confused and hungry and angry at the world and altogether just confused. She had no leads whatsoever on where Add was, and time was running out. She had to find him before Penensio called the chase back on, and no one had seen him in the past few days.
"Okay, let's solve this, one problem at a time," she said, taking in a deep breath of air and exhaling. "Okay, which problem do I want to tackle first?"
Her stomach grumbled. "Alright, I'll get something to eat first, I suppose," she said. Scanning her surroundings, her eyes rested on a small bar that was still lively, despite the time. "Ah, yes. Isn't that Adams' place?"
Her entrance into the bar didn't nearly have as big of an impact as it had, the night she'd met Add. Her long cloak, which she'd salvaged from the supplies that Add had left in the room, swept down to her ankles, shielding her long legs and large chest. She wandered towards the counter, where her old friend, Adams, was mixing a drink for a customer. Once a bioalchemist, he'd retired to open a small bar to cater to the hoards of warriors passing through Ruben.
"Hello, Ara," he greeted softly. "Vodka on the rocks?"
Ara shook her head. "Nah. I'll take a whiskey this time. The strongest you've got."
Adams whistled. "Wow, Ara Haan, having her least favourite drink in the world. It's the apocalypse," he said, dramatically pressing the back of his hand to his forehead.
"It's grown on me," chuckled Ara, graciously accepting the drink.
It was just one glass. One glass couldn't hurt. One glass couldn't make her forget.
"Forget who?"
Ara's eyes snapped back up from her drink, having realized that she'd spewed her internal monologue out. "A friend," she managed.
Adam sighed as he wiped a glass and set it on the shelf behind him. "Tell me about it."
"We're-well, we were good friends," she said, gazing back into her amber whiskey. "I don't know what we are now." She laughed dryly, chugging down the rest of her drink and ignoring the burn in her throat. "Another one, please."
"Ara, it's really strong," insisted Adams, holding the glass back from her. "You've already had three glasses; you can't handle it. It's got more burn than any of the vodka I have."
"Who fucking cares?" She laughed, flopping over the counter and pounding on it. A few other patrons' drinks spilled a little, earning her a few glares. "If Add can handle it, I can handle it. Besides, you've seen me drink an entire bottle of vodka before."
"Okay, time out," exclaimed Adams as Ara began reaching for the whiskey bottle herself. "You're drinking to forget someone. I get that. Ara, it's not healthy for you. You've come here after each of your breakups, and yet I've never seen you like this."
"That's because you don't fucking know Add!" She screamed, stomping her foot. "I want him back in my life, and I want him now!"
The entire bar stopped to stare at her. "Okay, either she's just really drunk," commented a redhead at a nearby table, "or she's just hit cold turkey."
"Someone's a little emotional today, aren't they~" Snarked the girl with purple hair next to him.
Everyone in the building returned to their prior activities as Ara lay on the counter, tears beginning to trickle out of her eyes. "Please, I just want him back," she whispered, a sob erupting from her chest.
Adams patted her shoulder from the other side of the counter. "If it helps, I can help you find him," he offered.
But she didn't respond. She was already fast asleep.
It had been a long day of fighting demons in Bethma.
Ara was tired, and clearly, the girl she'd teamed up with temporarily to fight with was tired too. "I'm going home," said the younger girl, whose name Ara could barely remember.
Her month was nearly up. She was three days away from losing Add forever, and her head hurt so much every time she thought of him that she'd pretty much just given up. After her last little rage tantrum back at Adams' bar in Ruben, she'd held back on the booze, but just this time, she looked up at the bar in the distance.
It was familiar. Too familiar.
That's the bar where you met Add, dummy, smirked Eun. Go on, I won't bite.
It had been a long day. Ara decided that a drink was in her best interests. Slowly, she walked into the tiny building. It had suffered a lot since her last visit; the demons had been merciless with Bethma when they'd attacked suddenly.
People inside were still having fistfights and drinking beer like wild animals. I should bring Eve and Chung here sometime, she thought, or maybe not? Didn't Chung say that nasods can't have alcohol? Ah welp.
Her cloak still wrapped around her, she didn't make an entrance like she had the first time, but she did sit down at the same spot in front of the bar. The bartender smiled. "What can I get you, miss?" He asked, tilting his head slightly.
"A glass of whiskey, please," she requested, smiling softly.
The drink was soon handed to her, in exchange for two dollars. She gingerly took a sip before letting out a sigh. That's much better.
"That's mighty strong for a delicate flower like you."
The voice coming from beside her made her nearly made her drop her drink. Add, she thought, gripping her glass a little tighter.
Her gaze travelled down to where his hands were, clasping a glass of clear liquid tightly. Judging by the scent alone, Ara could tell it was vodka.
It was like they were meeting for the first time, all over again. Except it felt like the last.
"Oh really? You'd know how strong whiskey is, you drink it all the time," she said, shrugging as she sipped her whiskey again. "Come to think of it, do you still have that ten-year old bottle of it? You should probably give it to Luichel. She says you owe her one-something about stealing apples?"
They didn't even glance at each other, but Ara knew Add was smirking from the way his breathing changed. "Ah, that little bitch," he snorted. "I guess I do owe her one, but no way in hell am I betting my whiskey."
"She says you owe her twenty bucks," offered Ara, downing the last of her drink.
Add stood up. "I guess I do," he said, turning and leaving.
Ara whirled around, but he was already halfway through the throng of wrestling men and half-naked women. "Wait, Add!" She yelped, hurrying after him.
When she managed to catch up to him, he was already on his Dynamos, preparing to disappear into the night. "Oh no you don't," she exclaimed, pulling him off the gadgets by the shoulder and putting on the fiercest glare she could.
Add removed his hood slowly, still not facing her. "Just leave me alone, Ara," he said, still as blank as ever. "I don't want to have to hurt you."
"But you are hurting me," she pleaded. "Add, it hurts me for you to stay away. Please, just come back and I swear I'll never let Velder catch you-"
In a flash, Add whirled around, grabbed Ara by the shoulders, and pushed his face into hers. Ara suddenly found herself kissing back, wrapping her arms behind his back as his hands tore her hood off, burying themselves in her hair.
As she opened her eyes, Ara was shocked to find Add's eyes filled with tears. "Thank you," he whispered, tearing away from her, "I just needed to see your face one last time."
The world exploded with light as a few of Add's Dynamos knocked her away from him, sending her flying a few metres away. By time she'd blinked the dark spots out of her eyes, he was already flying off into the night.
Ara, if you want to catch him, I suggest you get a move on. Ara? Hello, earth to Haan?
For a moment, Ara couldn't hear anything. She was frozen on the ground, her fingers trying to capture the last of Add's warmth.
HAAN! GET YOUR ASS OFF THE GROUND! WE STILL NEED TO CATCH YOUR IDIOT OF A BOY TOY!
"Don't call Add my boy toy!" Snapped Ara, her face turning red. "Hold your horses, I'm coming!"
Spirits rushed by her side as she dashed through the night after Add, who seemed to be headed towards a forest. Something bright overhead flashed, though, and the next thing that Ara saw was a streak of purple falling out of the sky.
Oh no…
The moon was bright enough that Ara was able to reach behind herself and pull her spear out of her own shadow. "Who could that have been?" She muttered, getting ready to attack whoever she saw in the light-filled clearing up ahead.
Ah, of course.
Of all the people they could have run into, it was Ran who was currently tying Add up(or at least trying to). "Ah, welcome, baby sister," he said all too cheerfully. "I was going to use your boyfriend here as bait, but I suppose I didn't have to after all."
Ara dug her heels into the ground, braking herself in the middle of the clearing. "Okay, which of those sick fucks told you that the whole family thing gets on my nerves?" She demanded, pointing her spear at him. "Was it In? No, we killed her. Dammit, it was that Ignia bitch, wasn't it. Agh, we let her get away."
"Hey, at least you left that nasty bruise on her ass," amended Add. "Gave her a taste of her own medicine."
"WILL YOU TWO STOP FLIRTING FOR TWO SECONDS AND LET ME KICK YOUR ASSES BACK TO VELDER?!" Shrieked Ran, waving his sword in the air. "Jeez, what does it take for a fucking demon general to get a word in with his own sister and her boy toy?"
(Somewhere, Eun was giving Ran a huge thumbs up.)
"Also, brother dear, who told you that Add and I were dating?" Growled Ara. "Just because it's not confirmed doesn't mean you should be making assumptions, Ran." She paused for a moment. "That all said, who let you hurt Add? I'm fairly certain that I sure as hell didn't give you permission."
She locked eyes with Add for a moment before charging at the demon she once called her brother.
Ran avoided Ara's first attack, jumping out of the way as she slashed down at him. "You really think you can catch me with that kind of speed?" He taunted.
Ara's eyebrows furrowed. "Wind Wedge," she muttered, jabbing forwards with lightning speed. None of the hits connected with Ran, though, leading him to laugh.
"Dear sister, what are you trying to do? Because you sure as hell aren't hitting me."
"Oh, but dear brother," smirked Ara, "that was not the intention."
Ran stared in awkward silence as he realized that his foot was no longer planted on Add's back, and all the rope that had been loosely wrapped around him had been severed by Ara's second attack. Add stood up, rolling his sleeves up and flexing his fingers a little. Behind him, the six Dynamos whirred to life.
"Really, Ran, you're going to have to do better than that."
Ran bared his teeth at the both of them. "Hah! Two wimpy kids, against me? I'll probably just sit down and watch the two of you beat each other up."
Add looked like he was about to just walk up to Ran and give him a righteous beatdown. Instead, he settled for flipping the bird at him.
One of the Dynamos reacted and shot a short bolt of electricity at Ran, which the dark earl just flicked off with his sword. Add chuckled nervously. "Whoops."
Ran raised an eyebrow. "I take it that was your declaration of war?"
Both Ara and Add charged in at the demon, bodies crackling with the souls of the damned and the rush of electricity. Ran barely just managed to hold their attack in place with his sword, though the impact sent him hurtling back several metres.
"Ara, stand back," commanded Add in a voice she'd never heard him use, strong and yet soft.
She backed away as a massive whirlwind of electricity began to whip violently around Add, creating a tornado around him. "Prepare to meet your maker, Ran," cackled Add, "caus' it's Doomsday for you."
As Ara watched in slight terror, Ran got sucked into the tornado, spinning through the air in what had to be plasma before shooting up at least ten metres into the sky and crashing down like a meteor. The moment she managed to open her eyes to see what had happened, though, Ran was back on his feet, swinging his sword at Add, who dove out of the way in time.
Ara, listen to me. Do you want to spare him?
"No. He hurt Add. I can't let this monster get away," she growled, gripping her spear tightly.
Eun smirked. Then I will lend you my power.
The moment the celestial energies flowed into her, Ara felt spirits of all kinds gather beneath her feet, awaiting her command. Please guide me, Mother and Father, she prayed. This is no longer my brother, but a demon, that I must face. Please give me the strength to give my brother peace…
Ran let out a guttural scream and charged, his sword aimed right at Ara's heart. Stepping to one side, she forced him back with a few slashes before dropping her spears into the shadows and raising both her arms.
The spirits underneath her lifted her up into the air as she generated all the energy she had into one massive orb, a collection of the thoughts and power of those that Ran murdered in his campaign across Elrios. Aren, forgive me.
She took in a deep breath. "I hope you liked Hell, Ran," she said, eyes blazing with a fire that had never been lit until then, "because you're never coming back."
Ara couldn't tell whose terrified scream pierced the air when she hurtled the ball at Ran. As she settled to the ground, Eun's power draining out of her, Ran thumped on the ground as he keeled over, clutching his chest. Without even bothering to look at his chest, Ara knew that the damage was fatal. After all, no one, not even a demon, could survive two attacks of that caliber consecutively.
When Ran finally fell to the ground, defeated by two of the very people that he tried to hurt the most, Ara saw a wisp leave his body. Pale skin, dark hair, golden eyes just like hers…
Her eyes welled up with tears. "Aren."
Aren's smile was serene. "Thank you, Ara," he whispered. "Thank you for letting me pass on. I thought I'd be stuck in the body of that demon for all eternity, but you set me free. Thank you."
He turned to Add, who had managed to walk up to Ara. "And you two, Add," he said. "Thank you for taking care of my sister. For protecting her." He seemed to wipe away a spectral tear. "Please, protect each other from now own, and help the people of Elrios end this blasted war."
Ara nodded, a smile finally blossoming on her face. "Go, Aren. Mother and Father are waiting for you."
As Ara and Add watched, the wisp of spirit that was Aren Haan disappeared into the air, where Ara could have sworn she heard the sound of laughter and reunion.
"I guess… I'll be taking my leave now," said Add, turning away and waving a hand at his Dynamos. Instantly, Ara whipped around and grabbed his shoulder, digging her nails into his sleeve.
"You will do nothing of the kind!" She snapped. "Is this how you're going to leave me? After all we've done together? After I went through hell to get you a chance with Velder? I thought we promised not to leave each other anymore, Add. And I swear, I'll never leave you again."
Her voice trailed off as her grip on his shoulder loosened. He didn't respond. "But if you've got somewhere else you need to be, someone you need to look after, that's fine by me," she concluded, beginning to tear herself away from him.
Maybe I was wrong all along.
Maybe he was the best thing that's ever happened to me, but I'm the single worst thing that's happened to him.
"Ara."
Add suddenly laid his hand over hers, preventing her from leaving. "I'm sorry," he said, facing her finally. "Maybe I haven't been the best business partner, or the best friend. I just… I'm…"
He shook his hood off, revealing his unruly mane of white hair. "Let me just show you, please," he begged, pulling his hand off hers and cradling her face.
Ara didn't have to be told twice. Standing as tall as she possibly could, she hooked her arm around his neck, pulling him down to her level, and pressed her lips to his.
She didn't dare to open her eyes. She was afraid that she'd just wake up, and this would all be a dream. But when she felt Add's gentle fingertips brushing away the tears she didn't know she had under her eyes, Ara finally opened her eyes to face him.
Add was smiling, but it wasn't like before, when it was a smile of happiness. She knew every inch of his face, and he was sending messages at her. Things like I'm sorry and it's finally over and I was afraid I'd lost you forever.
"Ara, I think… I'm in love with you," he whispered, his forehead still pressed to hers.
She couldn't shake her head, not like that, but she knew love wasn't the answer. "No, Add," she replied, "I'm addicted to you."
A/N: And we're done, ladies and gentlemen! Thank you for following this pet project of mine for so long, and thank you supporting me all the way! Everytime one of you follows, favourites or reviews any of my works, I get a little jumpy inside. So once again, thank you!
As for what I'm doing now... Blink is still in the works, but i'M FREE AND SCHOOL IS OVER HALLELUJAH! I will probably be able to finish the first chapter of the first part by the time my summer school course begins(I cri), but as for next week, I have a silly little oneshot planned out~
Again, thank you for supporting me, and I hope you have a great summer!
~MargaritaDaemonelix