Ariel's School for People with Abnormal Abilities

Ch. 7

"Hey, Elsword?"

"What, Rena?"

"Let's not... uh, meet with them," Rena said, out of breath. We were really late in meeting with Aisha, Chung, Raven, and Eve, and we both knew we were in BIG trouble with Aisha. I didn't mean to oversleep... My alarm wasn't loud enough!

"What! Why?!"

"Um, well... I just wanted to... show you... something?"

I frowned. "Is that a question or a statement?"

"..."

"Fine. But make it quick! Aisha's probably mad enough already."

She turned and walked toward a group of stores. I followed. What part of 'quick' does she not get? But I didn't complain. Maybe if I'd said something or refused, none of this would have happened. But I was a year younger than Rena, so I assumed she knew what she was doing.

Once we reached Echo's shop, she stopped and burst into tears.

"I'm so sorry! He-someone forced me to do this. If I didn't, he-that person said they would kill one of my friends!"

"What?! Whoever it is, I'll kill them first!"

"I can't tell you. If I tell anyone, they'll still kill one of my friends!"

"Who would be killed?"

"I don't know! They didn't say!" What if they killed Aisha? "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

"Who told you-"

"Oh, no, someone's coming!" Panicking, she pushed me against a wall, put her thumbs on my mouth, and kissed her thumbs. What the hell is she doing?

Soon, I heard footsteps, too.

"So you guys didn't play with us so that you could do grown-up stuff? That's not nice and very rude! Ditching your friends is also rude!" I looked over to see Aisha glaring at us. My eyes widened. Crap! Why did it have to be her of all people! Now I won't get to tell her... Stupid Rena!

I opened my mouth to explain that it was Rena's fault and not mine, but Rena spoke first.

"Uh, Elsword doesn't want to play with you anymore, so... uh..." Rena grabbed me and took off running. What the hell is going on? Why would Rena say that?!

"That's not nice! Elsword, you meanie, I thought we were friends!" Aisha called after us. She's never going to forgive me now...

"Rena, what's your problem?!" I yelled at her, glaring.

"I'm sorry! One of the Elders told me to..." She trailed off.

"Who are the Elders? Why would you listen to them? Why would you do this?!" I was angry, really angry. That was cruel to both Aisha and me.

"The Elders are the leader of our tribe back in my homeworld. We cannot disobey them except if they are overthrown and replaced. And that only happens if they are corrupt..." She trailed off again, lost in thought.

"Well, then, they must be corrupt! I know elves are kind. They wouldn't purposefully hurt someone for no reason. And they should be able to explain."

"Now that you mention it, one has been acting odd recently... I'll look into it. Let's tell the others what happened. How is that going to help anyone? I will never understand Rena. "There they are! Chung, Raven, Eve!" she called out while running towards them. I followed at a slower pace, sulking.

As she was explaining the situation, I tried blocking out her voice. I REALLY didn't want to relive what just happened. Instead, I worried. What am I going to say to Aisha? She'll never believe me!

Feeling the weight of a gaze, I looked up to see Aisha at the edge of the town square. She looked like she was about to cry. Did I hurt her that much? Giving us an accusing stare, she turned and ran off. I ran after her. I'll tell her it was a mistake, that I didn't do anything.

I was faster than her at running, but she knew the town better, thanks to her wandering around when she was young, memorizing every nook and cranny. I'll never understand her, either. But I figured she would go to her house, since her mom always resolved our fights. Maybe her mom could help me out...

I soon lost sight of her, but by then I was pretty sure she was going to her house. I felt relief when I saw her house, the front door slightly open. I was right. But my relief was short-lived. I heard an ear-splitting scream, which made me run faster.

"Aisha!" I called out as I burst through the door, but there was no answer. I walked into the closest room: the living room. As I neared it, I saw red all over the carpet. I thought her carpet was white, not red... There was Aisha, staring at the floor with a look of pure terror.

Following her gaze, I saw her parents and brother on the floor, mutilated. It scared me, so I focused on Aisha and tried not to look at the gruesome sight before me. She started falling, and I jumped to catch her. She collapsed into my arms, and I hugged her close to me. "It's okay, Aisha. We'll be okay. They're not dead, we'll fix them." I could tell my voice didn't give much comfort; it was shaking too much. But that didn't matter: Aisha was asleep.

...

Aisha was taken to the hospital. I hadn't left her side, and I was miserable. My friends tried to comfort me, but were very unsuccessful.

"When will she be awake?" I asked a passing nurse.

"I don't know. She's been traumatized, and she might go into a coma." Sensing my rising distress, she added, "But she won't die, that's for sure. You'll get to talk to her again, it just might not be soon." She walked away. Her words hadn't comforted me at all.

I was forced to leave when visiting hours were over. When I came the next day... she was gone. All the tubes that were in her arm had been pulled out. The sheets were crinkled, and the pillow had been flattened where Aisha's head had been.

No one knows what happened. There was no blood, no footprints, no clues at all. The door and window had remained locked, the keys were all where they were before, and nothing had been disturbed. Everyone assumed she'd just vanished...

-End-

A/N: I'm SOSOSO sorryyyyyyy for the SUPER late update! I got in trouble, and I wasn't allowed on my computer or iPod for forever. But I was writing chapters during school, so I should be updating a lot more during summer. Yay, no more waking up at 5 in the morning every day! I've FINALLY been able to play Ib and Mad Father, and I'm SOOO happy! And I ABSOLUTELY LOVE the new update for Elsword! I've been having trouble downloading Witch House, so if any of you have any advice, please PM me! Thank you SO much for being patient with me. I've been getting in trouble a lot recently, and I've been lazy. Again, I sincerely apologize.

Disclaimer: I don't own Elsword or any of the characters in it. I've been forgetting to do this, haven't I?

Review response time!

An0n Author: I'm glad you understand! :D Once again, I'm REALLY sorry for the late updates. I have a terrible case of LAZINESS. I heard it's a disease that affects teens and adults worldwide. I hope they come out with an antidote soon...

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