"'Tis an unweeded garden, That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature Possess it merely." Hamlet (1.2.135-136)

Speka's mood rivalled that of a thunder cloud. The moment we returned to the others her sour mood spread through the flu like a new plague. I couldn't blame her, though. Anyone would be angry, confused and scared if they found out they'd killed ten innocent people.

I spared her from the questions and told everyone about our discovery in Hamel. Yet, the curious eyes never left Speka as she curled into a ball at the base of a dead tree. When I finally mentioned the priestess that went missing Chung grew hysteric.

"A-are you sure you heard them right?" He asked for what felt like the fifth time.

"Yes," I answered, slightly annoyed at the repeated question. "What's so important about her anyways?"

Chung raked his hand through his hair and cursed, seemingly unaware of my question. This time it was Elsword who spoke up," Ara's right, what's worse than knowing we're wanted now?"

"That priestess may be our only link to the next El Shard," Chung replied in an instant. That shut Elsword up for good. "Dammit, and I thought we'd have an upper hand this time."

"Hold on," Raven piped in curtly. "How can you be sure?"

"The priestess, Sasha, is in charge of protecting and purifying an ancient jewel." He elaborated. "That jewel raised our city from the depths of the ocean, or so I've been told. I think the jewel might actually be the next Shard."

And with the priestess gone, we may not be able to locate the legendary jewel.

"Does that mean we may have arrived too late?" Eve's voice resonated tightly.

Amos' eyes bulged," w-what?! D-does that mean we can't p-prove we are good? A-are we gonna stay as bad guys?"

"Don't worry," Raven wrapped his arm around Amos' shoulders, narrowing his eyes on Eve for a brief second," we'll figure something out, Amos." Unfortunately, his reassuring facade failed to calm Amos down.

"You shouldn't have scared him like that," Raven murmured to Eve.

"I was only saying what we were all fearing."

"We shouldn't scare Amos any further. He's been through enough for his age."

"Chung, do you believe the Priestess was taken by the demons?" Elsword directed his question at Chung.

"I-I don't know," Chung turned his back on the group. "Sasha can normally handle herself, but now that the demon army has grown stronger I can't be sure she's fine.

A flock of seagulls flew overhead. The fact that they could swim through the air, seemingly free from worry, taunted us.

I absentmindedly played with my fingers, my mind running through all the possible actions we could've taken in the past to prevent the outcome we were left with now. Maybe if I'd tried harder to gather my group together we would've left earlier and saved Sasha. Maybe if I didn't waste so much time drowning in my sorrows I could've done something to convince my team to come to Hamel sooner. Maybe, that single word ignited bitter flames in my chest.

"We might still have a chance," Chung's voice was frail and delicate as an autumn leaf. Everyone (except Speka) raised their head at his comment. Chung sighed," Sasha has several places where she prays and nourishes the jewel's magic. If I had to guess, she may have gone missing while she was out praying or purifying the jewel. Plus, if she was killed there's a chance she might not have had the jewel with her. She may have left it in a secured location."

"What's the point?" Speka sniffled, head still rested against her knees. "This Sasha girl may already be dead, and knowing our luck she probably died with the damn Shard."

"You think I don't know that?" Chung curled his hands into fists. "But until we find the body of the Priestess there's still a chance she's still alive, there's still a chance we haven't lost the Shard."

"Where do you think we should search?" I inquired.

"The Resiam Outskirts," he replied, visibly relaxing from the change of subject. "It's a small town by the border of the city. There's a small population in that area so we'll be safe from getting caught."

"And you're sure the Priestess would have gone there?" Raven challenged Chung.

"I never said anything about being sure," Chung clarified. "I just think the Resiam is one of the most likely places we'll find her."

"And if our search comes out empty?" Eve queried next.

"Then we move onto the next location. We'll keep checking until we find her, dead or alive."

"I think it is a waste of time," Eve folded her arms. "Why waste our time on a missing person, whom we are unsure if they are alive or not when we can focus on locating Hamel's Shard?"

"Because Sasha may be our only chance at finding the Shard before the demons will."

"Wow, calm down you two," Elsword interjected before the debate could get any worse.

"Elsword's right, guys, we don't want to be at each other's throat," I added. "We can't afford to get into a fight with each other."

"Then what should we do?" Chung snapped. "We can't sit here all day."

I instinctively looked at Elsword, normally he'd have a solution to help guide the team. Elsword visibly tensed as Raven, Chung and Eve all shared the same idea as me.

"W-we could do a group vote," Elsword rubbed his nose. "It can't satisfy everyone but it'll at least provide us with a starting point." When everyone gave their positive response to his suggestion Elsword sighed a breath of relief.

"Let's start with you." Raven motioned to Elsword. "What are you voting for?"

"I-I think we should try checking the Resiam out. It's better than nothing." He answered shyly, still timid and scared to voice what he thinks we should do.

"I...I think it's not a bad idea," I said with reluctance. At the back of my mind, I knew this may be a fruitless effort, a desperate attempt to deny what has likely happened to the Priestess and her Shard. But Chung had a good point, we can't be sure the priestess is dead until we see her for ourselves.

"There's always a rainbow after every storm," Amos' attempt to reassure us fell flat on its face, but that wasn't enough to extinguish his childish hope. "I vote we go!"

"Sorry, Amos, your vote doesn't count." Eve placed her hand on Amos' shoulder.

"What?! Why?" Amos bellowed incredulously. "Is it because I'm a kid?"

"Amos, you do not have enough experience to make intelligent decisions."

"So it is because I'm a kid." Amos pushed Eve's hand off and stuck his tongue out. "Adults suck."

"I think it's too much of a risk." Raven voiced his opinion, ignoring Amos' remark. "We've just barely escaped Velder and I don't want to risk getting caught by Hamel knights."

"I agree with Raven." Eve nodded.

All eyes turned to the only member that has yet to vote. For a while, no one dared to speak a word to the Dark Mage. No one was brave enough to confront the storm brewing through her head.

"Speka," Elsword managed to say without stuttering. "What do you think?"

Speka pulled her legs closer to her chest. When she refused to reply Elsword tried again," Speka, we need you to vote. You're a part of this team."

"I don't care!" She screamed, catching everyone around her off guard. She lifted her head up, eyes puffy from her silent tears. "I've had enough, okay? You guys can do whatever you want. I don't care anymore."

Elsword seemed to want to reply but for one reason or another, he remained quiet. I could only assume he was scared of comforting her or he doubted his ability to help a friend in need.

He may also be afraid to approach someone who looks exactly like Aisha. Eun suggested. I feel pity for your leader.

"What are you gonna do then?" Chung narrowed his eyes on her. "If you're going to stick with us you'll need to contribute in the vote."

"Who says I'm going to stay with you losers?" Tears welled up like a fountain in her eyes, giving her no time to wipe them dry before they could run down her face.

"Speka, you don't mean that," Elsword's defeated voice evoked tears to burn my eyes. He gazed at her with defeated eyes. It must've been hard, hearing Aisha's voice telling him that she didn't want to stay on the team. As if having her die in his arms wasn't bad enough.

"Where do you plan on going then?" Eve inquired. "You are now an outlaw in the eyes of the knights, how do you expect to live a normal life now?"

"I don't plan on living a normal life." Speka hiccuped. "I-I'm a murderer. I-I can't ever live a normal life."

"Speka-"

"Don't tell me I'm not!" She cut me off sharply. "I'm the first person here to have actually murdered someone. S-someone like me doesn't d-deserve to live."

I wanted to tell her I understood how she felt, how much it hurt knowing you were the reason why someone's life was cut short. I couldn't bring myself to say it, though. The fact is I didn't know what it was like. I didn't personally kill Aisha. Speka, on the other hand, accidentally killed ten knights with the Shard. I know she didn't mean to kill anyone but that doesn't change the fact that she did it. I wish I could sympathise with her and be the hero to take her sorrows away, but I can't.

What happened next left me speechless. Elsword gingerly approached the bawling mage, careful not to walk too fast and overwhelm her. She screamed and cursed at him, none of her words could push him away. When he finally reached her he crouched down in front of her and spoke softly," we know you aren't a heartless killer."

If Speka wanted to respond she couldn't, her lips her quivering too much for her to form any words.

"You might not believe what I said but I do." He gently wiped her tears dry with his thumb, she froze from his touch but didn't attempt to push him away. "I don't really care what you vote for, Speka. All that matters is that you stay with us. You're a valuable member of our team, don't you dare forget that."

One moment Speka was trembling, her arms wrapped around her legs, and the next she was embracing Elsword and sobbing on his shoulder. Elsword hugged her back, embracing her like he'd used to embrace Aisha. I wasn't sure if this sudden act of kindness was a result of his unconscious instinct to comfort a teammate, as any good leader would do, or if he was compelled to help her because she looked so much like Aisha.

I want to believe he confronted her out of the kindness of his heart but I won't exclude the possibility that he couldn't stand seeing Aisha's crying face.

Once Speka was finished exerting all the tears her body could afford to lose she cast her vote. We were going to investigate the Resiam after all.

The Resiam Outskirts was just as destroyed as the slums. All of her snow-white buildings were torn into the ground, towering structures left broken and scarred with irreversible cracks. To make matters worse, the abandoned streets were flooded with salty water; the water level was so high Eve had to carry Amos or else he'd run the risk of drowning. It was impossible to see where the ocean started.

Chung led us through the ruins of the suburban area with his head held high. I stayed close by his side and kept a sharp eye on him, I couldn't believe he could walk through his damaged city without feeling sorrow. I could only hope my presence would help him hurt less on the inside.

"We're almost there," Chung spoke up for the first time since we entered the ruined sector. "If we don't find anything we can take refuge in the prayer room if we don't find her."

"Are you sure it's safe?" Raven asked.

"There's nothing left here," Chung answered flatly. "I doubt anyone would bother coming back." I pained me to see him act so emotionless toward the destruction of the Resiam.

"Chung," I whispered, making sure my voice could only be heard by his ears.

"Yeah?"

"Are...are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he said in an instant, refusing to look me in the eyes.

I shouldn't be nosy, if he doesn't want to open up to me there's nothing I can do to change that fact. I clenched my teeth together and continued forth, the questions I suppressed continuing to prick at my throat.

"Why do you ask?" He breathed. I mentally jumped with excitement at his willingness to open up to me.

"Well, we're basically walking through the remains of your home," I pointed out, hoping I didn't sound too eager to hear him respond. "I guess I'm a bit worried about you," I added sheepishly.

He met me in the eye for a brief second, a smile shining on his face," thanks, but I'm really doing okay." He looked away once more, his handsome grin vanished with a blink of an eye. "Thanks for asking."

"A-anytime." I wish he'd be more honest with me. At a time like this, it's unhealthy to keep painful emotions hidden.

"I can see the prayer area!" Chung announced, pointing to the dome-like structure ahead.

"Should we try to sneak in?" Elsword asked, unsheathing his swords.

Chung shook his head," like I said before, there's nothing left for anyone to want to stay here."

"What if there are guards inside?" Raven pointed out.

"If it's Red Knights we knock them out."

I absentmindedly took a glance back at Speka. Her face was white as snow and eyes seemingly staring into space. Elsword took notice of her gaunt expression and placed his hand on her shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze. A ghostly smile stretched on her lips, though his gesture didn't seem to ease the anxiety and guilt devouring her spirit.

"What if it is not the Red Knights?" Eve arched her brow at his cryptic answer.

Chung's jawline tightened," if we come across Hamel Knights I'll deal with it personally." He quickened his walking pace before anyone could inquire him any further.

"Excuse me?" Raven repeated. "What do you mean by that exactly?"

"Don't worry about it, man."

"How can I not worry? What are you planning to do if we run into Hamel Knights?" Raven pressed on.

"Can you just drop it already?!" Chung hammered his cannon into the water, splashing his armour with salty droplets. Everyone seemed to stop in their tracks, staring wide-eyed at his sudden outburst. He dropped his head, muttered a quick apology, and continued forth. We tentatively followed shortly after him.

"Eve, what's wrong with Chung?" Amos asked after an unusually slow minute passed.

"I do not know," Eve replied. "Perhaps he has connections with the Knights and does not wish to fight them."

Or perhaps he has bad relations with Hamel authority and does not wish for us to know. Eun suggested solemnly.

'Chung wouldn't be on bad terms with Hamel Knights, Eun. He's not a criminal.' I chided at once. 'How can you even think that?'

The Chung we know now may not be a criminal, but how can we be sure he has held this status for his entire life?

'This is ridiculous, Eun.'

Is it? Did you not wish for your friends to know about Aren; about your past and relation with Karis?

'Those are completely different circumstances.' I found myself narrowing my eyes into thin air. Even as I was fuming at Eun for suspecting Chung of being a criminal I couldn't seem to push its suggestion out of my head. Maybe he was hiding something more sinister from us. If I was so reluctant to tell them about Aren being Aisha's killer who knows what Chung is so desperately trying to keep from us.

Our destination was soon in sight. The small dome structure sustained the least amount of damage compared to the other buildings around it, escaping with most of its walls and ceiling intact. Unlike many of the other structures, the prayer building was constructed on a higher levitation. A balcony, with what appeared to be an altar built on it, loomed over the crystal water below.

We were practically moving at a slug's pace, careful not to arouse the water sporadically. I held my breath as we proceeded up the stone steps stretching up to the entrance. The closer we inched to the entrance the more sweaty my palms grew. I was anticipating Red Knights to jump out at any second and surround us, thus every crack and shadow furthered my anxiety. When we reached the top of the stairs, however, we were not greeted with a surprise ambush. Instead, we stumbled across a shadowy figure in the centre of the damaged building, from the looks of it the demon appeared to be unconscious.

"Crap," Chung muttered under his breath.

"I don't assume that's the Priestess you told us about, right?" Elsword held his twin swords up in a defensive position. I nearly choked on my spit as the unknown creature stirred at the sound of the twin swords being drawn out.

"It's a demon," Chung explained in a whisper. "The locals know it as a Shadow Stinger, it's known to inhabit the mountains." He narrowed his eyes," why is it here?"

"Shadow Stinger?" Fragments of my very first fight with Elsword and Aisha played through my head. "That was the demon that attacked Elder way back when."

"What?" Chung snapped his head toward me. "Are you positive?"

"The demon who called for it spoke its name," I recalled. "The one we saw back then was gigantic compared to the one inside, though."

"Now that you mention it, I do remember fighting a giant demon in Elder," Elsword added thoughtfully. "It looked like an oversized, burnt meatball."

Chung cursed and turned his eyes back on the Shadow Stinger ahead," that could mean these demons have been working for our enemies before any of this happened."

"If that is the case then our enemies may have much bigger forces than we had initially anticipated," Eve theorised, letting Amos out of her arms. "Our chances of winning may be close to none."

"Eve, you can't say that." Amos chided, his loud voice prompting the demon to stir in its slumber. "You haven't even tried to fight the bad guys yet."

"Quiet," Eve shushed sharply. "Amos, winning this war is not as simple as trying hard. There are many factors that will determine our death and victory."

"We shouldn't focus on details like that," Raven piped in before Eve could frighten Amos any further. "Right now we need to focus and see if the Priestess was killed by that demon or not."

"Raven has a good point," Chung pointed his cannon at the beast and proceeded inside. "This demon might be able to tell us what happened to Sasha."

"Or it'll give us valuable information about the enemy demons." Elsword followed Chung's lead.

As much as I'd love to turn around and walk away from the sleeping demon, I chewed on my lower lip and followed the guys inside. Eve and Raven quietly but firmly ordered Amos to wait outside before making their way inside.

Our footsteps were delicate as an infant's grasp and careful as a surgeon's hand. Within seconds we had our target surrounded, our weapons drawn and ready to attack. Chung studied our formation one last time before raising his voice," hey, ugly, wake up!"

In an instant the demon jolted awake, I found my legs instinctively staggering away from it. Just like the demon that attacked Elder, this Shadow Stinger had orange markings to outline its face. I mentally reminded myself to stay aware of the spikes protruding from its spherical body.

"Humans?" The demon sounded genuinely shocked at our presence. It staggered clumsily on the spot, it was somewhat comforting to know our numbers left the target intimidated.

"Stay still and we won't hurt you," Chung continued tentatively. "We have a couple questions for you."

"How did humans sneak into this area. We were told it was captured for us," the demon muttered.

"Do you know where the Water Priestess is?!'

"The Mistress lied," the Shadow Stinger went on to itself, seemingly oblivious to Chung's demands. "S-she promised us safety a-and now I am being attacked by humans."

Mistress? Perhaps it is referring to our infamous "friend".

It wouldn't surprise me if this demon knew something about Scarlet, though I doubt it'd be willing to tell us about her whereabouts and plans.

"Who are you talking about?" Elsword interrogated next. His voice resonating with stronger authority. "Who are you working for?"

The demon cackled," I may have been betrayed by my Master but I have not dropped low enough to answer to the likes of you."

"Answer our questions or we'll have to hurt you!" Chung roared, his voice echoing through the circular space.

Once again his threats dropped dead in the demon's ears," I thought life could only get better after Helputt went mad and turned against his people-"

"Shut up!" Chung's snow white aura burst to life, fuelled by his unexplained anger with the demon.

"Chung, control yourself," Eve rebuked, drones readying themselves to defend their Queen.

"What's wrong, White Wolf of Hamel?" The demon continued to laugh, taking obvious enjoyment in Chung's rage. "Can't stand to hear the betrayal of the infamous Helputt? Does it bother you to learn how weak his old, human mind was?"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Chung screamed, launching a horde of blue missiles directly at the demon. The Shadow Stinger was quick to roll out of the way, retaliating by extending all of its spikes at Chung. Thankfully Chung hid behind his bulky cannon and endured the deadly spikes.

"Dude, what are you doing!?" Elsword snapped. "We aren't supposed to attack so soon!"

Chung ignored Elsword and proceeded to pursue the demon, barely saving himself each time the demon attacked back.

"Looks like there's a change of plans," Raven aimed his sword at the Stinger. "Since Chung landed the first hit we have no choice but to fight back."

Elsword cursed," I'm gonna kill Chung after we deal this."

We charged into battle as one, with the exception of Speka who stayed back to prepare a spell. Raven and Eve took the lead, as the demon was busy catching up with Chung Eve shocked the demon with Ophelia's help while Raven pierced his sword into the demon's back side.

"ARGH!" Elsword and I were forced to leap back as the demon extended its spikes in our general direction. Before either of us, cold advance further Speka unleashed a line of laser beams, further agitating our target. This time it was Raven and Eve that had to move in order to avoid being impaled.

Elsword, clearly growing impatient from the demon's constant retaliatory actions, impaled three magically infused swords into the demon's body just as Eve, Chung and Raven continued their advance at the target.

I shrieked as the trio barely barrel rolled away from another set of protruding spikes. Elsword apologised briefly to them before making his advancement at the target. I, on the other hand, couldn't bring myself to participate in the fight anymore.

Back when Aisha and Yang were still alive we were able to fight in harmony, our attacks left enough room for another to pick up and continue inflicting damage. Now we were all desperate to land a hit, completely disregarding the others fighting by our side. The only ones who seemed to be able to cooperate were Raven and Eve, everyone else just kept getting in each other's way. We may have come together as a group again but we were far from being the team we once were.

"This demon is tougher than it looks," Elsword commented in the heat of the battle.

Maybe if we worked as a team we wouldn't be having so much trouble defeating it.

"Was it this difficult to defeat this kind of demon back in Elder?" Eve asked. The demon turned away from its fight with Chung, taking a quick interest in Eve's question.

"Yeah, but it was Ara and Eun who defeated it in the end." Elsword gestured his head at me. At that moment I wished Elsword would've kept my identity a secret from the demon. In a split second, I became the sole target of the Shadow Stinger, even with Eun's help it was difficult for me to dodge its endless storm of spikes.

"Elsword, why did you gesture to Ara?!" Raven bellowed.

"What? How was I supposed to know it'd attack her like that?"

"Maybe because the Shadow Stinger you fought back then may have been acquainted with the one in here!" Raven snapped.

"Geez, I'm sorry. How could I predict the two demons would know each other?"

I couldn't afford to listen in on their argument any longer. With the constant storm of spikes raining down on me I needed to focus on avoiding each attack.

"So you're the reason why my brother hasn' returned!" The Shadow Stinger cried, my movements faltered at the mention of its brother, that nearly earned me a spike through my chest. "You humans see my kind as evil, yet your species is the true root of evil!"

The Shadow Stinger curled itself into a ball and rolled in my general direction. Eun helped propel me to the side. Even with its quick reflexes, we avoided the attack by a hair. The entire building shuttered as the demon rammed into a wall, leaving behind an indent.

"I-I'm sorry," I managed to wheeze in between rapid breaths. "I-I didn't know he was your brother."

"Of course you didn't know. Then again, why would a human like you care?!" The demon uncurled itself and once again attempted to impale me with its spikes. I sprung back from its attack radius, staggering on my aching legs upon landing.

"P-please, we didn't have a choice back then. H-he was attacking us and-"

"Do you think we had a choice when that wench came to recruit us?" The demon cut me off abruptly. "Human, do you think nor care if we even had a choice to take part in this war?"

The rest of my team came charging in to interfere with our fight. The Shadow Sting didn't take their presence lightly, however. With one swift movement, it extended all its spikes, driving away anyone who wished to help me.

"I-I know what it's like to lose a brother," I confessed. Perhaps if it knew I shared in its suffering it wouldn't want to attack anymore. "I know how heartbroken and confused you must feel."

"A human can never understand such sorrows!" The Shadow Stinger attempted to run over me again, once again I dodged its attack by a hair. Although I escaped from physical damage my heart continued to ache for the Shadow Stinger.

"I-I do understand! I know how painful it is to wait for someone you love to return to your side. I know-" I screamed, somersaulting to my left to avoid an incoming spike.

Perhaps I should try talking to the Shadow Stinger. Eun proposed once I was back up on my feet.The demon may calm down once I make my appearance.

'That's a good idea. Maybe this doesn't have to end in bloodshed.'

We can only hope.

"If you truly understand my pain then allow me to kill you!" The Shadow Stinger roared, filling the entire room with its thunderous voice.

"We both know that will not bring your brother back," Eun spoke through my body. The Shadow Stinger, once burning with anger, stood speechless as Eun's physique bled into mine. "I am a demon known as Eun, this human is my partner. I can vouch for her claims of pain and loss."

At the corner of our eyes, we could see Chung and the others positioning themselves for another assault. Thankfully they took the hint and restrained themselves from attacking, at least for now.

"A demon working with a human," the Shadow Stinger rumbled with laughter. "That's unheard of."

"Yet here I am," Eun answered calmly, though I felt its nerves tightening with each second. "I am sorry for the loss of your brother. It was our fault he could not return home to you, we killed him under the assumption that he meant harm to our home. We take full responsibility for his murder."

"So you're saying you killed my brother to protect your people?"

"That is correct."

"And you claim this human understands my loss?" The demon asked.

"Yes."

"Interesting," Eun tensed as the Shadow Stinger inched closer to us, though Eun made no attempt to move from our spot. "Are you suggesting this human is to be trusted?"

Eun tilted our chin up," yes, she has proved time and time again to be worthy of my trust and power."

The demon gave no warnings when it decided to extend its spike at us again, and because we were so close to the demon Eun had no choice but to block the spike with the blade of our spear.

"It does not have to end this way."

"Silence! You are nothing but a filthy traitor! How can you call yourself a demon when you fight to kill us?!" The demon's words hit our heart like burning arrows. Eun didn't have time recover when the demon accelerated itself toward us, spikes ready to shred through our body.

For the first time since I've known Eun, it froze from fear. Normally I expected Eun to launch itself out of danger and proceed to fight back, now it couldn't find the courage to move. The aching in our heart intensified with our dread.

'We have to move, Eun!'

Eun (thankfully) snapped out of its daze and sprung to the side, our foot grazing against the rolling demon as it bulldozed by. We landed clumsily on our feet, using our spear to help keep balanced. The demon collided into the far wall, with full force, and broke through. Water sprouted up into the twilight sky as the Shadow Stinger plummeted into the salty waters below, though I doubt that'd be the last we'd see from it.

"I...I apologise." Eun blinked, eyes burning. "I failed you."

'How can you say that, Eun? You just saved my life.'

"Enough, I do not wish to speak of this any further," Eun requested firmly, wiping our eyes on our sleeves.

Eun practically pushed me back into control, my muscles jolted at my abrupt return. Even as Eun had left its dominance over my body I could still feel its heartache pounding through my chest.

"Dammit, Ara," Chung's voice sounded just behind me. Before I could turn around to face him he crushed me with a single-armed hug. He held me so close to his chest I made it difficult for me to breathe.

"Chung?" I gasped dramatically for air, that only seemed to tighten his grip on me.

"I thought you were going to die," he whispered into my ear. "We all thought you were going to die."

"I'm...sorry."

Chung unwrapped his arm around me, giving me just enough time to breathe in a lungful of air before the others encircled me.

"Next time you and Eun try to negotiate with a demon, don't," Elsword said with a forced chuckle. "Glad you're safe."

"I too am glad you are safe," Eve pulled me into a hug, thankfully her embrace wasn't as strong as Chung's.

"Don't go dying on us so soon, Ara. Our sanity can only take so many team deaths." Raven added with a relieved smile.

"Seriously, we can't handle another funeral," Speka mumbled as quietly as she could.

"Guys, I-" I choked up. "I-I'm sorry."

I am too.

It's hard for me to put into words how I felt at that moment. Not even a kiss from one's true love could rival the warmth I was surrounded with. You can only understand the sheer power of my team's collective concern when you've experienced that kind of kindness, the kind that left your heart warm with love. The fact that I was not yet back on friendly terms with everyone yet added onto the emotional impact their words had on me.

The moment was curtly cut short as Amos' high-pitched screams bounced through the room. We all snapped our heads at the direction of the sound. The Shadow Stinger was now out of the waters and making a mad dash for the young Ponggo. Eve and Raven exchanged no words and dashed toward their distress child.

"Amos! Run toward us!" Raven bellowed at the top of his lungs.

Amos, however, refused to oblige to Raven's order. Instead of sprinting to the safety of his two guardians, Amos hastily reached for his bag and pulled out three navy blue orbs. Ignoring the pleas and screams from Raven and Eve, Amos faced the incoming head on and hurdled the orbs in its face. The three orbs shattered upon contact with their target, encasing the demon's body in a thick sheet of ice. The Shadow Stinger roared in fury, its body held in place on the staircase.

"Ha! That's what you get for messing with the kid!" Amos boasted, oblivious to the cracking ice.

Speka wailed in horror as the spikes on the demon's body extended, breaking through its icy prison. Eve (thankfully) noticed the immediate danger Amos was in and summoned Oberon to his aid, luckily the Nasod servant snatched the Ponggo to safety before the demon could impale him.

"Eve, Raven, get away from there!" Elsword screamed. The duo didn't need to be told twice to run away as the demon behind them was now free to move, Oberon followed closely by his Queen with Amos still in his arms.

I wished the demon left the fight while it had the chance. After learning about the loss of its brother I didn't want to slay it anymore, it felt too human to be killed.

"We're all gonna die if we keep this up," I said grimly, watching as Ophelia was summoned to slow the demon with electric shocks. The demon paid little to no attention to the pink Nasod servant and continued to hone in on Eve, Raven and Oberon.

"T-this is bad," Elsword stammered.

"Come on, man, think of a smart way to end this fight quickly." Chung urged Elsword as he readied his cannon to attack. "We can't keep attacking it at random."

"W-why are you asking me?!" Elsword shot him an incredulous look. "Why don't you think of something?"

"Because you know the best way to attack!"

"No," Elsword's shaky voice dropped to a soft whisper. "I-I can't. W-we might fail, or worse."

"Elsword," I piped in, legs trembling underneath me. "W-we need you to help us fight again. T-there's no way we can win without a c-clear plan of attack."

"I told you I can't do it!" He backed away from us like a frightened animal. "I-I can't lead this damn team anymore."

"This is not the time to argue!" Speka spoke for the first time since her breakdown. Her sudden burst of outrage furthered Elsword's distress.

"I-I'm not fit to lead right now a-"

"Stop making up excuses and help your team win!" Speka slapped her staff across his face, nearly knocking him off his feet. "Man up and act like our leader, Elsword! Don't you dare disappoint my sister any further!"

The daze and fear in Elsword's eyes shattered at the mention of Aisha, yet he took no action to spit out commands for us. Chung cursed and proceeded to fire at the demon. His attacks, fortunately, forced the demon to stop advancing toward its respective targets, allowing Eve and her servants to return safely to our side.

"Thanks, Chung," Raven gasped in between breaths.

"Amos, do not pull another stunt like that again!" Eve scolded, the Ponggo now returned to her arms. "You had us worried sick."

"I-I just wanted to help," Amos confessed with droopy ears.

"You're too young to get involved in fights like this," Raven chided.

"No, I'm not! I had the situation all under control."

"Did you? Because it seemed like you would've been impaled in Eve hadn't summoned Oberon to save you."

"Enough!" Elsword interjected before Amos could continue the argument. "I need you two to stop fighting this instant." Raven kept his mouth shut but he gave Amos a particular look that indicated this conversation would be picked up later on. The Ponggo blinked back his fat tears and turned away.

"I have a plan to take the demon down. I-I don't know if it'll work or how well-"

"Get to the point," Chung cut him off, preparing for another attack as the demon resumed its path toward us.

"R-right," Elsword breathed in deeply. "I-I'll need some of those ice orbs, Amos." Amos huffed and turned his head away. It was clear the young Ponggo wouldn't be cooperating with us anytime soon. Eve took the initiative to dig through his bag until she pulled out three of the same coloured orbs used previously.

"We should immobilise the demon before attacking as a group," Elsword explained in haste. "I-I'll need everyone to do as I say once the orbs are thrown. I-I understand if you have doubts in my leadership b-but we don't have time to debate on a new plan right now, understand?" Everyone bobbed their heads at his order, a trembling smile stretched on his face. "Alright, team, split up!"

In a heartbeat, we separated ourselves from each other and the demon's general path.

"Eve, throw the orbs!"

"Understood!"

The demon's body was forcibly frozen to the floor in mere seconds after the orbs shattered on its body. I instinctively increased the distance from myself and the demon as its icy prison began cracking from the growing spikes underneath.

"Chung and Speka, prepare for a long ranged attack!" Elsword commanded in haste. Just as he implemented those orders the demon's ice prison shattered from the protruding spikes. The Shadow Stinger cackled at its new found freedom, that did not waver Elsword's plan, however.

"Attack as many spikes as you can, you two!" Elsword directed.

"Plasma Cutter!"

"Dread Chase!"

Lights of red and blue zipped to and fro from the demon. I winced under the demon's thunderous howls of pain as each of its extended spikes were either snapped in half of broken off. The Shadow Stinger staggered back, screaming and cursing at us.

"Raven and Ara, help me weaken it!"

"Sorry," I whispered before dashing to my target. "Moonlight Slash!" I put in as much strength as I could into my attack, hoping it'll be enough to end the demon's misery. Instead, I increased the extent of its suffering. With one last apology, I pulled my spear out from the demon and jumped back.

" Shockwave Cutter!"

"Sword Blasting!"

Our collective attacks left the demon crippled in pain. Its chances of escape were close to none.

"Eve, finish it!"

"Curse the Demon Mistress! She offers us nothing but pain!" The Shadow Stinger announced to the heavens. "Brother, we were foolish! We should've known she wouldn't have protected us! Brother, you would still be here if she did not come!"

Eve paid no heed to the demon's final words. With one hand she summoned a massive robotic spear above her head, carefully positioning the blade on her target's weakened body.

"Assault Spear!" I squeezed my eyes shut just before her Nasod blade could impale the demon's body. A sickening crunch resonated in my ears. The mourning demon fell silent.