To hope a glacier would melt instantly at the touch of sun would be nonsensical. Similarly, a Rena suddenly good-humoured and jovial after months of frigidity would have aroused more suspicion than delight. Such a development would have to be natural and unhurried.

Sander was still some distance away. There was still time.

Rena and Rua were out for a long time. Aisha, who could rightly be called the instigator for the two friends' reconciliation, twice sneaked out to check how they were doing before she caught the knowing eyes of Rena and scurried back inside the shelter.

"What did they say? Oh, do you think it'll go well?" Ara whispered beside her.

"I hope so," Aisha replied, "neither of them seems angry, at least."

"If Rua actually cracks through her head it'd be a miracle."

"Elsword!"

He snickered, his face suddenly becoming serious. "Not actually."

"I know."

Sitting away from them (but not too far), Raven pretended not to listen. Who wouldn't want to hope for some happiness, a sign that one's life still deserved gleams of sunshine?

He had seen Elsword and Chung reach out to those who mattered to them most, the ones who forfeited their humanity to pursue their goals. Elesis was a fragment of a fragment in the bloodthirsty woman. The only thing that separated Eve from a regular Nasod was additional code, nothing more.

Raven pitied them in themselves, but more so when he saw the boys—his boys—fruitlessly try to find anyone or anything behind the expressionless faces. He felt for them when he looked at Rena.

Maybe none of them were meant to have happy endings.

"Oh, hello." A dainty step into the abode, a cautious smile, both from Rua…

"Rua! Are you okay?" Her face was rosy, dotted by the faintest tracks of teary remnants. Aisha frowned.

"*sniff* Yes, I'm okay."

"Are you sure?" Ara asked. "Did she say something hurtful again?"

Rua's ears twitched at the last word, but she shook her head. "No." She straightened the crimps on her skirt before looking up and smiling again in such a way that her face appeared to glow. "No. I think she will be better now."

"Is she still outside?"

"? She went back inside a while ago."

"Oh, ha ha…we thought you guys would come back together." Aisha answered after an awkward laugh.

"Rena said she needed time." Rua sighed. "But she said she still cares for us very much. I know that she will come around soon."

There was no whooping of glee or celebration at this news—nor was it expected. Such a ruckus would be heard by Rena who would no doubt take offence and close off once more. But it was something to hold onto, however silently.

Raven sensed her confidence, and he spoke for them: "Let's hope so."

When they retired for the night, few could sleep peacefully. Elesis and Eve needed minimal rest, but the former accomplished sleep through restless tossing and the occasional growling. Those with unspoiled hearts and minds dwelled on themselves.

Finally at peace, Rena stared into nothing. So much of herself she had ceased to acknowledge out of grief and necessity. One of the few comforts she dared to take was that her loved ones were safe back home. At the end of her mission, she still had a home to go back to. A home she must go back to.

She settled back, and for the first time in a long, long time, allowed her thoughts to flow unchecked.

Home was her sole constant, you see. When she was home, she could rest and laugh without the vigilance of who was watching, getting ready to ambush. There was no question of who was on her side or who was only helping themselves. That was why she, Erendris, and the other people of the night fought to protect their last and only sanctuary.

Why not just tell me what happened? If I can't help, I will at least listen!

How could she tell her that one of the monsters she had to fight to become a Night Saver, was a Glitter Eater, an abomination that tricked and devoured its prey by worming into their minds and mimicking the ones they loved? How would she explain that those who failed were rendered catatonic for months?

You have the most wonderful friends. Elsword and Aisha said they adored you and you helped them countless times. Like you did for me! I don't know about the girl of the Dark El and the machine, but the humans are wonderful people…

Humans were little more than the subject of cautionary tales back home. There were few villages of them dotted at the edges, but Rena seldom interacted with them. Elders taught her that humans were dangerous, but that most would reciprocate if you left them alone.

Elsword, Aisha, and Chung were good examples of their race. Good but not good enough for Rena to believe that they were the examples of their kind rather than the rare exceptions. Still, she fought for them, believing in Elsword when she couldn't believe in herself.

The Night Savers? No one told us that you joined another group! I didn't even know there was an elven group that travels the human world! Oh, I wish I knew about them earlier—then I could've gone to them instead.

Rena's heart had skipped a beat at that. No, Rua. I don't think you would've liked it very much.

Oh, don't be ridiculous!

The gruelling training of mind and body, straining their limits, always risking breakage. Seeing the worst of everyone and everything—humans, elves, spirits, every creature. Learning when to step in and when to…not. That out of the finalists from the season's recruits, only a handful earned the badge by, in, and with blood.

It's so quiet, she had answered, and you don't even get to see the humans a lot. It's mostly spying and hiding.

How much did the Night Savers break her, correct her, and reshape her to fulfill the role they needed? They were still allowed to be people at the end of the day. They were honoured, not abused and tossed aside like a human foot soldier. Yet their influence was great and her loyalty rendered unquestionable.

Did something happen with you and Raven, Rena? He worries about you so much...it would be so nice if you reconciled with all of them, especially him. He looks like he suffered a lot.

Well, he did give off that aura. Her fingers stiffened. She didn't want to think about Raven.

Really? He said you look like his wife?

Not wife, no. They never had the chance to marry.

And if they had, Rena mused, would things have panned differently? A wife, bound by ring and a declaration transcending even the grave; no forlorn pondering and accidentally stumbling without the fear of breaking a forged promise.

Rua begged her to come back as the loving friend she knew. Her, and everyone else. But her new role was not a mantle she could cast aside at any moment, and she told her. She had to be more than a person, more than what she was to ensure that their people had a future.

Eve stepped into that role perfectly. Elesis too, in her twisted way. Rena knew why she failed in comparison to them, for she had not made a costly trade that whittled herself down to will alone. Her mind, her emotions were still her own, regardless of whether they aligned or diverged with her duties.

She thanked Rua for reminding her of this, that she was still flawed, which meant her capacity to love remained uncompromised. She needed that; without it, there was no home to return to, no hope to salvage.

It didn't change what mattered, though.

But she allowed herself to dream. Sunbae Rylen told her aside that she needed to know what she was fighting for so that she knew she was more than just a soldier, no matter how elite. That was a secret, though. The leader didn't like it when they talked like that too much.

So she thought of the home she left behind, the people she promised to meet again under an unsullied El, and this time, she also thought of the people with her.

It was a long night, but it was fine. Rena had all the night to dwell on phantoms.

We are friends and I will always care for you.

Sweet Rua. Her cheerful, open, and caring personality mirrored her own when she first met Elsword and Aisha. They had the best of times together. With the sun rising past the eastern gorge, her resolve hardened. She was ready.

XX

Sander Village was a lonely, faraway destination. The desert that surrounded the town sustained little life, and thus unfamiliar spirits unused to forest elves. They reflected their environment: brusque and unyielding. Some expressed enough curiosity to answer her questions about the area.

"Village far. Many moons."

This one wasn't too verbose about its answers. Perhaps another one would be more informative. She nodded and the wisp moved along.

Was she sorry that the rest of the team she once doted on were now alienated? Yes, she always had been. She believed that they could achieve their goals, even with the oddities and shortcomings attributed to their race. There was a time she doted on them openly.

However, if being estranged from her companions was what it took to join the highest order of her society, then it was a price she was willing to pay. Even if she was conflicted to her very core. She turned and went inside.

Everyone had an idea of her steel resolve, but as Rena's thoughts were her own, everyone's faces showed varying degrees of curiosity/surprise when they saw her approach the breakfast table.

"Good morning Rena!" Rua chirped, obviously pleased.

"ᵐᵒʳⁿᶦⁿᵍ"

To Rua's slight disappointment, the elf sat beside Elesis (who still ate at the table by Elsword's insistence), eating her plate with usual silence. But her expression was less frigid, her pose less stiff.

It was, as expected, awkward. Rena hadn't engaged in casual conversation with these people in a long time.

"So, uh…did you guys sleep well?"

"Sure!" Rua beamed.

"Yeah, you?" Aisha asked with a smile.

"Yes, thank you." Ara replied.

"Well enough." Chung nodded.

"Same." Raven drank his coffee.

"Mm." Rena grunted.

Tentatively, the meaningless banter continued. Rena contributed little, but she was sitting with them. She was eating with them with an expression that was almost lighthearted. Aisha could scarcely believe it.

Even with an experienced eye, Raven could decipher little. Whatever she and Rua talked about must've warmed her, but how exactly did she say or do what he and everyone else had failed?

"It's strange. I feel like I could find more than happiness with you, Raven."

When she said that, Raven didn't know the depth of those words, nor did he understand how meaningful they were. When he finally did, she was already lost to him.

He admired Rua for doing what he could not, and felt another rush of guilt for having been so close to Rena—closer than her best friend, yet discarding that opportunity like trash.

Elsword, Aisha—even the respectful Chung had asked him (the first two actively pestered him for a period of time) what really happened between him and Rena. They knew something happened, presumably a romance gone awry by jealousy or grief for the deceased. When Raven refused to divulge the details, curiosity urged them to concoct anecdotes of their own that ranged from ridiculous to downright insulting.

Raven knew there were several accounts of the same war, thus multiple stories of a shared conflict. A veteran would know this. A commander would use this to motivate his people and secure victory.

He had his side of the story, and would've given much to hear hers. Both, he knew, were filled with bitterness and regret for each other and themselves.

Quietly he returned himself to the present, just in time to see Rua laughing at something Elsword had said. Elesis ate mechanically while Chung kept trying to convince Eve to stay at the table and talk.

And Rena was with them. That was a step towards a piece of the past that was missed and a hopeful future.

They had to pack quickly after breakfast. The weather was slowly receding and this was their chance to gain as much mileage as they could. Rena bit her impatience back, observing the others dawdle. They were still children, still wanting to have fun.

Rena waited outside, watching the winds calm. How could she do this?

"Rena!" Rua sprang behind in a surprise back-hug. "Good morning!"

"Hello, dear." Rena breathed as she turned around with a small smile. It was easy to smile around someone familiar, however small.

"You're smiling!" Rua gasped. "It's the first time I've seen you smile since I came here."

Rena shrugged, her expression now pensive. "Rua, when you came here…no, you stumbled here by accident, right?"

"Right." Rua nodded. "I never saw it coming. But I got to see you!"

"Of course, of course." Rena gave another slight smile and fluffed her friend's hair. "You're done packing?"

"No, not yet. I wanted to see you. Come quick, Aisha showed me how she preserves food supplies with her magic. It's sort of like what we do back home!"

"All right, Rua." Rena allowed herself to be dragged back inside, not unlike a gruff bear being pulled along by a squirrel.


The Night Savers were a harsh society, but like any other society, it was not without its perks. Every member was honoured. Luxuries were granted as rewards after missions, including, but not limited to: alcohol, delicacies, other vices…as it turned out, such circumstances made elves little different from humans.

Not in the open, though; never in the open. They were a secret order, and part of that burden was having limited places in where they could become regular people. Weaknesses, after all, were meant to be hidden if they could not be fully eradicated.

In that aspect, some of them turned to each other for relief. Few had civilian spouses with faraway families and infinite patience. More found comfort in each other, which the elders did not explicitly forbid.

Rena saw this and understood. After all, that was how they reminded each other and themselves that they existed and that they were more in a lonely and unforgiving world.

After a brutal tag mission that cost Erendris the top knuckle of his left pinky, the survivors were allowed a rare extended reprieve, where they were free to do as they pleased.

"You always enjoy the sunset." Erendris remarked as he sat beside her, two pieces of chocolate in his hand. Rena accepted one.

"I enjoy the sunrise more. Where'd you get these?"

"Money from the last mission." Thanks to El Essence and Spirit Salves, his pinky was now a stub with new flesh over it. No longer a bloody mess of splintered bone that made Erendris scream in agonizing pain. With more El essence, his finger would be able to grow back. Hopefully.

"You shouldn't have covered for me back there." Rena remarked casually.

"But I did and we're both alive." Erendris replied, eating his chocolate in one bite. "So don't worry about it."

Rena gritted her teeth. She had been careless and Erendris had paid for her mistake by shielding her, costing his fingertip. "Next time we won't be so lucky. Next time it might cost more than a finger."

"A hand, perhaps?" Erendris joked, which he regretted immediately upon seeing her face. "I'm sorry, that was immature. But you know how the elders love me. They won't send me back. They'll regrow my finger and…"

Rena was staring into the dying sun with an unfathomable face. Erendris was one of the very few friends she made that hadn't left the Savers or left entirely. The sun died with the rise of the moon to be reborn every dawn. Her comrades could not do the same.

"I don't want to lose another friend, Erendris."

"I'm sorry. We'll both be careful next time, won't we?"

He had feelings for her. That was obvious enough. The only notable point was that he told her openly, leaving nothing up to interpretation. When she quietly refused he had respectfully backed off, accepting only friendship without begging for more.

"Promise me that you won't do that again."

"I can promise that I won't lose my fingertip again, yes."

"I'm serious."

"So am I. I don't want to lose you, either."

"Erendris, don't be foolish." Rena stared on ahead at the dying sun. "I'm just a Ranger."

"You are more than that, not just to our people, but the humans as well."


They were finally moving, and to their luck, the good weather persisted.

"Rena!"

"?"

"I still have some dried El Fruit left. Do you want some?" Holding out the bag, there were still some pieces of the confection. The Night Watcher took one and surprised the others by smiling in thanks.

"They do taste pretty good." Aisha admitted. "But you don't have much left…"

"I'll have more when I go back."

When Elesis spotted the first sign of life—a passing pack of Desert Sand Seals—she charged ahead. She had been itching for a fight.

Native wildlife of Sander, the Sand Seals were used as beasts of burden by the Trocks. Coupled with their ferocious nature that already made them dangerous; it would do for Elesis.

"Elesis, wait!" Elsword cried.

But Elesis did not wait. When it came to fighting, she led the charge. Soon the sands were painted red, which attracted other Seals and Trocks to the surprise of no one. With vary degrees of excitement or reluctance, the others joined the fray.

Carefully, Rena scanned the area for the signs of an ambush. She had not forgotten last time and what it had almost cost her. This one seemed unlikely. Judging from the rubble, this was only a transport convoy. She hadn't seen much of the Dark Elves since the massacre. But they'd be back soon.

It was not an especially brutal fight. The Trocks and Seals were not prepared for a vicious assault. The Trocks were mowed down by Elesis' bloodlust, and those wily enough to escape her were taken care of by the rest.

Rua, Rena noted with approval, had improved on her sharpshooting. When the last Trock twitched to a still, Elsword slapped Rua on the back. "That was some nice shooting!"

The smaller elf blushed, pleased. "I am nowhere near as good as Rena." She said she looked at her.

Rena looked back, and smiled.

Looking at her, Raven smiled, too.