Always Again

The pallid light of an early spring morning fell quietly upon the empty streets of Ruben village, casting out the shadows that covered the barren fields and empty storehouses. Huddle together in the tavern, the villagers hung their heads and waited, their silence more pervasive than that of the lifeless forest just outside. Standing by the door, Lowe stared through the window with a solemn resignation painting his face. It had been two days since the last of the last of the village's food stores had run dry, meaning that most of the adults hadn't eaten in almost a week. More than that, it had been two days since the start of the planting season and, with the land still trapped within a deathly stillness, their hopes for the village and for their own lives were all but shattered.

As stomachs grumbled and the weathered floors creaked and groaned, a small child tugged on his mother's sleeves and buried his head in her side.

"Mommy... I'm hungry..."

"Shh..." The boy's mother patted his head and stroked his forehead. "Soon. There are bandits on the road now, but when they go away, we'll go into town and buy food for everyone..."

With his eyes red and watery, the boy looked up and pulled away, throwing aside his mother's gaunt arms as he began to sob. "That's what you said yesterday! What if they don't leave!? What..." He coughed, nearly choking as tears poured down his cheeks. "What if we can't..."

Quivering and afraid, the boy turned and ran outside, tearing through the tavern door before Lowe could reach out to stop him. Stumbling across the threshold, Lowe reached out desperately only to feel his fingers graze the boy's shoulders as they both lost their balance and fell out into the barren streets. A cold shriek shook the air as the boy's mother rushed to the door, followed closely by the horrified villagers as they turned away from what they knew must be a ghastly sight. With El so scarce in the village, even taking two steps outside of the tavern meant certain, immediate death. As a doleful wail rang in his ears, Chief Hagus slowly pulled himself toward the door, his hands shaking unsteadily as he stepped into the pale daylight. Reaching out to pull the bereaved mother back inside, Hagus heard a second voice sobbing faintly and he nearly fell forward into the tavern wall. Outside, in the air that was unbreathable just moments before, Lowe was patiently coaxing the startled child up to his feet, struggling to guide him back inside. It was only then that Hagus saw the signs of life stirring in the forest beyond.

Waking from their long slumber, the trees breathed a gentle sigh as the wind whistled through their ragged limbs and stirred the leaves in the underbrush. Overhead, the sunlight beamed brightly and scattered across the surface of the roaring river, its waters finally flowing freely for the first time since the start of winter. All around the village, from the fallow fields to the tattered gates, the crisp light of El saturated the air, bathing the land in a warm, radiant glow.

"T-T-The El...!" Hagus staggered out into the street as the villagers crowded the tavern door, stunned by a sudden surge of enraptured relief. As they stared into the sky, transfixed, a low rumble and a shrill howl pierced the forest's calm and a great shadow moved between the earth and the sun. With their eyes turned to the clouds, the villagers of Ruben watched as a massive airship cut across the sky and slowly circled around the ancient tree of the El.

Hovering above the canopy, Raven hurried across the ship's bridge pulling levers and toggling switches as he stabilized the ship's engines and guided it on its descent toward the El tree. Standing at the back of the bridge, Eve managed the rest of the ship's systems from her console as Oberon sat quietly at her side, gobbling up an applebread pastry and reaching into a large box at his side for another. Just before he laid his hands on another sweet roll, Eve shot him a sharp glare and he froze in place.

"Enough. You have had three already. The rest of those are for the villagers." Eve stared coldly as Oberon jumped to his feet and stood at attention, anxiously awaiting further orders and anticipating some form of harsh reprimand. Spreading out an array of displays, Eve touched several screens in sequence and each flashed quickly before shrinking into a tiny speck that hovered at her side. "Oberon. Prepare to open the cargo hatch."

Nodding and saluting, Oberon gladly rushed off into the hallway and down to the lower deck, powering on the whirling motors that opened the ship's belly and revealed the giant, glistening El. With the ship holding steady just above the tree tops, Raven pulled down a broad lever and the El began its gradual descent into the forest, shivering in the wind as it returned to its nest. As the gleaming crystal dropped through the sky, Elsword, Aisha, and Rena slid down along each of the three thick steel cables that held the El aloft, standing on its side and guiding it gently toward the cradle of woven limbs that once held it so tightly. As the El landed with a comfortable clatter, Aisha, Elsword, and Rena released it from its bonds and hopped down to the branches beside the shimmering font of life. Now at rest in its verdant home, the El sparkled and flashed brightly, filling the sky with an ecstatic energy as the trees swayed in the breeze and the life returned to the forest at last. Within a few hours, the population of Ruben had more than tripled as the villagers from all around the forest gathered together to celebrate the return of the El, to welcome their triumphant heroes, and to eat as many of the Ponggo's pastries as they possibly could.

Eve and Raven had arrived first, carrying a wagon's worth of supplies in their arms and followed closely by Oberon who hauled a huge cart full of food and fresh water behind him. As soon as they entered the village and emptied their arms, a swarm of tearful, jubilant survivors rushed forward and embraced them, leaving them both at quite a loss for some time. While Raven was eventually able to free himself from the grasp of sobbing farmers and a weeping old smith, Eve remained almost frozen in place as nearly a dozen children clung to her legs and shouted their thanks through a stream of joyful tears. As hungry parents and children crowded around the cart full of food, Hagus and Lowe approached the strangers cautiously, wary of their weapons and their mechanical bodies.

"We are eternally grateful for this generosity..." Hagus bowed his head slightly, "But I must ask, were you the ones who returned our El?"

Raven shook his head slightly. "No, not exactly."

"...What?" Lowe stared, skeptical and confused. While he was overjoyed to see the El return, he was also fairly convinced that he was just hallucinating this entire unlikely scenario. As the last of the children pulled away from her and hurried over to the cart of food, Eve brushed herself off and turned to Lowe and Hagus.

"We cannot claim full responsibility. The ones who retrieved the El will be arriving any-"

"Elsword, Aisha, hurry up!" The lyrical melody of Rena's voice broke through the forest's edge and drifted into the village streets as a gentle breeze fluttered through her shimmering hair. As the forest sighed fondly, Aisha and Elsword stumbled onto the road behind her, panting heavily as they paused to catch their breath.

"Hold on... a second..." Elsword leaned forward and braced his hands against his knees while Aisha leaned against a tree just beside him.

"Yeah..." Aisha wiped a bead of sweat from her brow. "Do you know how much energy it takes to put up a barrier that strong around the El? We just need... a few minutes..."

"Oh?" Rena grinned deviously, "If you two need some time alone you can just say so, I'll go on ahead and tell everyone that you'll be along in a little while."

"N-No, that's not what we meant!" Elsword blushed lightly and shook his head out, hurrying on down the road as he and Aisha rushed past Rena and headed through the gates of Ruben village. As they reached the village square, the din of enthusiasm and excitement shifted and the crowd quickly encircled them.

"Elsword..." Lowe pushed his way through the crowd and stared, stunned. "You... you brought the El back..."

"Well, yeah..." Elsword scratched the side of his head and stretched his neck to the side. "I mean, I helped out and everything... What's that look for anyway? I said we'd bring it back, didn't I?"

"Heh..." Lowe reached down and ruffled Elsword's hair. "It took you long enough, you punk."

"Hey, quit it..." Elsword winced and pulled himself away from Lowe's trembling hand as Aisha giggled at his side.

"Ah, young lady, surely this was your doing." Hagus shuffled through the wall of bodies and nodded to Aisha. "I thank you for all that you've done for your village."

"Oh, no..." Aisha glanced aside, bashful. "Rena and Raven and Eve really did most of the work..."

"Hey!" Elsword grimaced and glared at Aisha, prompting to Hagus to break into a jovial laugh. As Lowe joined in with a bright chuckle, the whole of the village crowded in around them and began shouting questions and congratulations. After a few minutes of being completely overwhelmed, Chief Hagus parted the sea of people and raised his hands high, quieting the crowd.

"Everyone, please calm yourselves. This is indeed a glorious occasion and there is great cause for joy, but we must remember our present condition. It is already the third day of the planting season, and we have yet to even till the soil. We have to hurry and begin planting as soon as possible..." He waited for a moment, watching with solemn eyes as the villager's enthusiasm waned and the reality of their situation sunk in. As soon as he saw everyone's hearts sinking, however, Hagus smiled broadly. "That is why we cannot be wasting time here in the street, when we have to get ready for our Spring Festival. You know we can't start planting until we've had at least one good feast."

In just a few seconds, the crowd's sullen eyes brightened and the villagers jumped and shouted happily as they pulled their returning heroes toward the village hall and prepared them for the night's festivities. By nightfall, word had spread to the neighboring towns and all the forest's residents gathered together in Ruben's square beneath a blanket of stars, each feasting on pastries and sweetwater as they danced around a roaring bonfire and cheered. Weary from their work and relieved to see the village back in the realm of the living, Aisha, Elsword, Rena, Raven, and Eve sat atop a small dais as the townsfolk danced by and thanked them profusely. Smiling brightly, Rena bit into a ripe red pear and sighed happily.

"This turned out much better than I thought. It's been a long time since I could actually relax after so much fighting..."

Raven nodded solemnly. "Yeah..." He smiled slightly, content as he took a sip of bittersweet mead. "I can't remember the last time I was satisfied with a conclusion like this."

"What're you guys talking about?" Elsword tore into a slice of pear cake and swallowed almost immediately. "You're startin' to sound old."

Rena giggled sprightly and smiled as she leaned back onto her hands. "Sorry, I'm just relieved... I'm not used to finishing things with such a short list of casualties."

Plopping a large roasted cherry into her mouth, Aisha stared up at the sky and contemplated the price of their victory. "Hm... Yeah... There haven't been many, but still, I didn't really expect anyone to die when we started out. Although..." She pouted and huffed lightly. "We took most of the damage ourselves."

"...I apologize for the amount of trouble the nasod have caused you all." Eve lowered her head, staring blankly at the pastries heaped onto her plate as the passing dancers threw garlands and reeds at her feet. Nearly choking on her sweetwater, Aisha slammed her hand against the table as she cleared her throat and turned to Eve.

"You don't have to apologize for anything. Besides, it was that big jerk's fault in the first place."

"Mmfh-hmm." Elsword nodded as he chewed a mouthful of buttered cake, swallowing quickly to clear his throat. "I told him he'd get slapped if he kept messin' around like that."

"I-" Eve looked over to them and hesitated, nodding softly as she finally relaxed a bit. "Thank you..."

"They're right though." Raven set his mug down and stared up at the sky. "We'd still be stuck on that island, maybe even still inside the top of the mountain without you. And..." He breathed in slowly closed his eyes, scowling slightly. "I still have to thank you for fixing this arm."

"...I understand. If it ever causes you any further trouble, I will fix it immediately." She nodded slightly, her voice wavering as if she was unprepared to respond to Raven's gratitude. While Aisha and Elsword occupied themselves with the mound of fresh rolls on their plates, Rena leaned forward and peered across at Eve.

"Hey, Eve, why don't you come dance with me for a little bit? Oberon seems to be having a lot of fun down there." Rena pointed down to to the revelry below where Oberon pranced happily around the bonfire as children chased after him, tossing garlands onto his head and giggling as he spun and twirling about. Seeing her butler in such a state, Eve's eyes narrowed.

"...I will have to instruct him in the proper form of royal dance... later. For now, I would prefer to sit. T-thank you though, Rena..."

"Just let me know when you're up for it." Rena smiled broadly and took a sip of warm mead. "Oh, Eve, what are you going to do after the festival? Are you heading back right away?"

Eve shook her head slowly. "No. We will remain here until the villagers have finished their agricultural duties. We will return to Altera afterwards, to begin rebuilding the Core and to recover the other El that King Nasod stole and stored in his extractors. It will likely take several years to negotiate the purchase of that El from the principalities where it was taken..."

"I suppose so... There's no telling just how many villages like Ruben lost their El, and if they're still around. If you get lonely though, we'll come visit you~" Rena smiled softly and Eve blushed.

"I-I will not be lonely. H-however, if you insist, I would not object to seeing you all again..." She closed her eyes and sipped her tea delicately. "...What will you do now, Rena?"

"Ah, me? Hmm... I wonder..." She leaned back and poked Raven in the shoulder. "Well, I do have to keep this guy in line, so I'll probably have my hands full with that too."

"Why?" Raven blinked and glanced aside at her. "I'll be fine without supervision."

"Hmmm, really?" Rena grinned and took another sip of mead, staring coyly over her cup. "So you're planning to help rebuild Velder while also being their most wanted criminal, all on your own? Maybe I'll just come along to watch." She smiled cheerfully as Raven's voice caught in his throat and he averted his eyes.

"Nnn... I suppose you have a point there..." As Raven resigned himself to his criminal status, Rena giggled and turned back toward the end of the table. "Aisha, what about you? Where are you headed next?"

"Well..." She licked her fingers clean and took a swig of sweetwater, "Originally, I came here to relax and take a vacation and drink some of the spiced cider they make from the Ruben forest apples..." She shot Elsword a sidelong glance and gave him a stern glare. "So I'm not leaving until I get some."

"Er-" Elsword turned toward her, "You know they had to drink all that over the winter, right? There won't be any more cider till next fall."

"That's fine." Aisha closed her eyes as she chomped down on a honey covered biscuit. "I can wait."

"Wait- You're gonna stick around all year!?" Elsword nearly bolted from his seat, suddenly conscious of the mixed excitement and anxiety in his voice. "W-why? The cider's not that great..."

Aisha tried not smile and failed as her eyes met Elsword's, "So? You don't care where I go, right?"

"Shhhh~" Rena held her finger over her lips and winked, "You two can plan your dates for the rest of the year later. Eve's about to start the fireworks."

Blinking, Aisha and Elsword both turned toward her and stared blankly. "...Fireworks?"

"Please look up, and be sure to cover your ears if you have sensitive hearing." Eve slid a pair of sunglasses onto her face and ran her hands across her console, filling the sky with a brilliant burst of blue sparks and scarlet flames. The warm spring night embraced the subtle glow of gold and silver as a rain of thunderous echoes fell across the forest floor, glimmering against the haze of crisp smoke and festive cheer. As color splashed across the clouds and drowned in the sea of stars, Aisha leaned back and stared off into the depths of the night. A slight panic trickled down her spine when she realized that she might not be able to see everyone everyday anymore, but her fears quickly faded as a strange sort of certainty wrapped itself around her. By the look on Elsword's face, she could tell he was thinking just the same thing and she smiled as the warm breeze ruffled her hair and stirred the lanterns at her sides. Even if they were finished fighting against monstrous machines and obnoxious overlords, even if they were all going off to separate corners of the world, she was fully confident that they would see each other again.

Five months later, Ruben village was finally a lively, thriving hamlet once again and Lowe had just finished running a new field of recruits through their first month of training. With the forest villagers free to return to their homes, Elder had grown quiet and calm, though the newly elected Mayor Hoffman was still running around the city frantically each and every day, still busy resolving the chaos left behind from Lord Wally's rule. Overall, things were peaceful in the city and all around. Peaceful, with the occasional exception of lunchtime in Elder's market square.

Today, as the sun beat down upon the cobbled roads and scorched the dry earth, Elsword and Aisha sat down to eat at a crowded streetside booth where each patron was busy enjoying a mountainous platter of glazed meat and fried potatoes. After plowing through two plates each, Aisha and Elsword were nearly satisfied and the cook was at once amazed and horrified.

"Hey, old man, can I get two sweet kebabs?" Elsword slapped a few coins down on the counter as the middle-aged cook glared at him bitterly and handed over a pair of steaming kebabs, filled with fried meats and dripping with a sweet, succulent sauce. As Aisha reached for one of the kebabs, Elsword swiped them both and chomped down on the end of one.

"Hey!" Aisha pouted and glared fiercely. "You can't keep both! Those are the last two they had!" She leaned over and reached across Elsword, grabbing for the remaining kebab as he held it high over head and just out of her reach.

"Mnff, Iss not yors! Getchyur ofn!"

"You-" Aisha lunged and nearly knocked them both off of their stools. "You took the last creamroll this morning! You owe me-" She grabbed his arm and tried to pull it down, struggling against him as the other patrons stared uncomfortably at their quarrel. As Elsword chewed on the kebab in his mouth, a spark of inspiration struck Aisha and she grinned, reaching down quickly and pulling the kebab from Elsword's mouth and biting into it happily.

"Ah!" Elsword glowered darkly. "Give that back!"

Aisha quickly slid the rest of the meat onto her plate and began chomping it down with a satisfied hum. "Mmm... this is so tasty..." She turned aside to Elsword and smirked. "Don't worry, I'll buy you ice cream later so stop glaring at me like that."

"Hmph..." Elsword surrendered, unwilling to give up easily but more than willing to accept free ice cream on a day when the heat of day had driven almost everyone indoors. As he dug into his last snack of the afternoon, a broad shadow fell across their backs and a gruff voice called out to them.

"Excuse me. Are you Aisha and Elsword, the ones who retrieved Ruben's El?"

"Huh?" Elsword turned around to see a tall, haggard soldier from far to the south, clad in armor that was far too warm for this part of the world. "Yeah, what's up?"

Panting and wiping the sweat from his brow, the soldier reached into his belt pocket and produced a small, tattered letter. "This... is for the two of you."

"Oh, hey, it's from Rena..." Elsword peeled off the letter's seal and opened it, holding it at his side as he and Aisha scanned its contents. Initially apprehensive, they finished the letter quickly and, as they reached the last line, a pair of broad grins answered Rena's urgent request.

"Oh? This sounds like it could be fun." Aisha happily polished off the last of her meal and hopped down to the ground, stretching her arms out above her as Elsword pocketed Rena's letter and joined her.

"Heh, yeah. I've never been to Feita before. Let's go."

Whispering waves swelled and swirled in the shadow of Altera as it hovered just over the ocean's surface, still encompassed by the light of El though with decidedly less intensity than it had been a few months before. Standing in the wind as the sea spray washed against her face, Eve watched as a small crane on the shore reeled in a thick steel chain that dove deep into the water below. Reconstruction was proceeding, albeit slowly, and Eve was just now retrieving the last of the debris from the nasod fleet that had fallen into the sea. Fortunately, since every ship had exploded in the air, almost all of their toxic fuel had burned off before the ships sank beneath the waves. Still, a significant amount of valuable metal and El was still resting on the ocean floor, and Eve would need every spare scrap to rebuild the Core and the foundry.

As the crane drew its cargo up from the water's surface. At the end of the line, Oberon was wrapped tightly in chains and rope, holding a pile of rusted metals and fragmented El in his arms as he gradually rose up to the island's surface. Growling quietly, the crane swung Oberon over a large heap of rust and machinery and he opened his arms swiftly, dropping another mound of metal onto the mountain of scrap.

"Good work, I believe that may be the last of it. I shall release you after I finish scanning the ocean floor."

Oberon nodded happily as he swung in the breeze and Eve studied her console, scouring her sonar readouts for any sign of scrap metal or El left in the sea. Having spent almost every day of the past four months dredging the ocean floor, she was beginning to wonder if they would ever clear away all the debris and retrieve every heart from the nasod that had been loaded on the fleet, but with nothing but clear screens all around, it seemed as if the first phase of Altera's reconstruction was finally complete. Just as Eve was about to close her console, a faint signal rang out from the surface.

"What is this... Metal, El, and it's movement...! Is it a nasod?" Eve's eyes went wide and she immediately swung Oberon back over the ocean and dropped him down into the sea foam. Rushing to the cliffside, Eve stared over the grassy ledge and down into the murky grey waters below. For a few moments, there was no sign of life at all as the cool sea breeze swept across Eve's face and fell across the plains. Then, after a sharp turn, Oberon tugged on his chain and Eve started the crane up, hauling him up with whatever creature he retrieved from the rushing waves.

As soon as Oberon cross the horizon and hovered over the island's edge, Eve was robbed of all speech. In her butler's arms lay a small creature covered in shining white armor, its chest and arms adorned in with brilliant streaks of blue. At a glance, Eve couldn't tell if she was looking at a human, or a nasod, or something else entirely. As she drew closer, she noticed the massive cannon clutched tightly in the creature's right hand, its barrel glowing faintly as seawater dripped from its side. Cautiously, she reached forward and brushed aside the ragged blue plume that rose from its head, uncovering its dark, hollow eyes. As Eve stared, transfixed by the sheen of ivory and sapphire, the creature suddenly shifted in Oberon's arms and opened its eyes.

Author's Afterword: Good Morning everyone! With this chapter, we finally conclude the first season of The Breathless World! Thank you all for your wonderful reviews and comments, I've been so glad every time I read them ^_^ Now that the Altera Arc is finished, I'll be going on a short Hiatus for a couple months while I buckle down and finish up the semester at school and work on a few other fics, but I shall return! Thank you again for being such wonderful readers!