A few days later...

"You must be Ayva Stryt, the Stonevale Ranger the master brought in."

Ayva turned and looked to see a slim young woman with long, straight and glossy black hair that reached down as far as her own dressed in a strapless dress of varying shades of blue with a large slit on the left side that exposed her thigh. "You must be Lady Minerva, the former Master of Sabertooth's daughter." She bowed her head. "Well met."

Minerva looked her up and down, seeing a lean and well built young woman in her early twenties with bronze tan skin, brilliant emerald green eyes, navy blue hair that hung down to her lower back with half tied up in a bun, a cerulean blue diamond mark in the middle of her forehead, two simple and small silver hoops adorning her pointed ears, a scar over her left eye. She had a black choker necklace, a light blue-grey cargo vest over a black sleeveless top, dark blue leggings, and black boots.

"Was there something that I could help you with?" Ayva asked.

"I'm curious how it was that one of the Eranosian has survived all these years. Did your people not die out centuries ago?"

Ayva's eyes narrowed. "I was among the few to survive the culling that took my people from the this world."

"And how was it that you weren't sold into slavery? Such a weakling as yourself couldn't have possibly escaped from a fate like that."

"I got lucky." Ayva turned away, wanting nothing more to do with her. "If you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to with the Master."

"Running away? Like you run away from your past?"

Ayva stopped. "Whatever you think you know of me, I can assure you that it does not affect my ability to do my job." She turned to look at Minerva. "My heritage has no part to play in my life, unlike yours. How does it feel having the blood of demons running through your veins? Does the stench of it not bother you?"

In the main part of the guild hall, the members of Sabertooth were busy talking or enjoying a meal or relaxing after returning from a job. All was well until a crash came from the west wing and something came flying through the wall, slamming into one of the walls.

"What the hell?"

"What was that?"

The dust cleared and they saw Minerva coming through the hole in the wall and walking towards Ayva who was pushing herself to her feet and brushing off the rubble on her shoulders.

"What's going on?"

"This elven wretch needs to learn her place." Minerva said, glaring at Ayva as she stepped down from the landing.

"That's rich coming from a heartless bitch like you." Ayva said, shaking the rubble from her hair. "And here I thought you were supposed to be a lady. I guess I was wrong, 'cuz all I see is a demon spawned brute."

Minerva threw another spell at her, slamming her into another wall. "Shut your mouth, you soulless wretch!"

"What the hell is going on?"

Sting and Rogue came running in when they heard the commotion.

"Milady, what's the meaning of this?"

"The elven wretch does not know her place, so I'm simply showing her."

"More like destroying the guild hall because you got your feelings hurt." Ayva said, spitting a bit of blood onto the floor. "You shouldn't be too hard on her, Master Sting. Your so called 'lady' just needed a reminder of what manners were. She seems to be lacking in them."

"Like you're lacking a soul?"

Ayva glared at her. "Shut your mouth before I make you."

"Touched another nerve, did I?" Minerva smirked, loving the look on Ayva's face. "Have you not told the master of this guild your deep, dark secret? Does it not affect your ability to work?"

"What's she talking about, Ayva?"

Rogue could feel Ayva's anger rising, a red and blue-violet aura beginning to glow around her. "Ayva?"

"It's no wonder the Rangers sent you instead of one of their strongest. They must have been so relieved to rid themselves of their weakest link and be free of the shame you brought them."

"I said shut it!"

Sting and the others watched as she disappeared in the blink of an eye and suddenly had Minvera pinned against the wall, gripping her face and covering her mouth.

"Milday!"

Ayva glared at Minerva, squeezing her face and causing her to whimper in pain. "Before you speak, you should think more clearly about what you're going to say."

"Ayva, that's enough!"

Ayva shoved her back into the wall before dropping her and stepping back as the aura dissipated. Those gathered got out of Ayva's way as she walked away. "My past does not prevent me from doing my job. And before you think you can sully the name of my people or that of the Stonevale Rangers, you best reconsider. I will not hesitate to rip that filthy tongue of yours from that pretty little head and feed it to the wolves."

"You think you scare me, little elf?" Minerva said, standing and panting from the force of Ayva's attack. She looked to Sting and said, "You see what your little Ranger friend is capable of? This is what happens when someone does not have a soul!"

The room went silent and everyone stared at Ayva, who had stopped and stood in the centre of the room.

"Ayva, what's she talking about?"

"Ayva Stryt is nothing more than a husk, an empty vessel." Minerva said, smirking as though she had won.

"Ayva?"

"What she says is true." Ayva said, her fists clenched as she fought to keep calm. "But that does not prevent me from doing my job." She barely glanced at Minerva as she added, "You think you've won, little demon spawn, but do not think I would not hesitate to finish what you started. Cross me again and you may never get back up."

Sting and Rogue looked at each other, then watched as Ayva left the room as it erupted into questioning murmurs.

Rogue had been searching for hours for Ayva, worried about her after what happened with Minerva. Just as he was going to give up searching for her, a wind blew through the town and he caught her scent.

'The forest?'

He followed the scent out of town and into the forest, finding himself at the spot next to the river where they had sat and talked the day before. "Ayva?"

Ayva looked down from her perch in the tree above him, but didn't answer.

"Ayva, I know you're here. I can smell you."

Ayva stood, careful not to make a sound as she walked to the edge of the branch and transformed into a large bird. She took to the air and flew off, just wanting to be left alone.

Rogue looked up as a large bird took flight, its feathers glistening in the moonlight. 'Ayva?' He followed the bird, catching her scent as it flew further into the forest. He crossed over the river, running through the trees as he tried to keep the bird in his sight.

Coming out into a clearing that sat at the edge of a cliff overlooking the valley below, Rogue stopped. 'Where is she?' He looked around, but she was nowhere in sight. 'Did I lose her? No... I can still smell her...' He looked up as the large bird came into the clearing from atop the trees and watched as it transformed into a young elven woman. 'It was her...' He watched as Ayva seemed to glide down from the air and land softly on the grass, making her way to the cliff's edge.

"Persistent, aren't you?" Ayva asked, sensing Rogue come up behind her.

"I wouldn't need to be if you weren't so stubborn."

Ayva stood and looked out over the valley, the wind blowing through the clearing. "Did you come to mock me?"

Rogue shook his head. "No, not at all."

"Then did you come to tell me that my services will no longer be required?"

"No, not that either."

"Then why are you here?"

"Because I was worried about you."

Ayva looked at him, surprised. "Why?" She looked away, her face hardening. "I'm nothing more than an empty husk."

"No, you're not."

Ayva looked at him again, surprised.

"Whether you have a soul or not, that does not define who you are." Rogue said, looking up at the moon as it rested high in the sky. "What defines you is the actions you take, the path you follow. That's something I learned from someone I never thought I'd come to admire." He looked at Ayva. "You chose a path that lets you help the people around you, those who need it most. You've fought to overcome whatever has come your way, blocking your path. And it's brought you this far."

Ayva blushed and looked away, trying to hide it.

"What happened, Ayva?"

Ayva looked up at the moon, sighing. "I told you before that when I was a child, that men came and attacked my village, destroying everything."

Rogue saw the tears slip down her cheeks as the memory resurfaced.

"The Hellcry Devils... they had finally found us... after centuries of hiding, they found where my people had hidden away their greatest city. Lilvelone was meant to be the last hope for the Eranosian people to survive and not be lost to history forever, but..." Ayva felt the tears fall. "When the Hellcry Devils found us, the culling that we had escaped for centuries began again. They stole magik from those who possessed it, killing them along with those who didn't possess magik of their own. The children they took as slaves, ripping them from their mother's arms before forcing them to watch as they slaughtered their loved ones."

"Ayva, I..." Rogue didn't know what to say.

"When they captured me, I resisted and broke free- attacking anyone who came after me. But they forced me to watch as they executed my mother and father. My little brother cried out in agony as they tortured him, throwing his broken and bloodied body at my feet." Ayva felt the sadness and rage welling inside of her. "I tried to take my revenge on the guild master, but he stole my soul and beat me when it left me completely defenceless. He left me for dead, taking away the few who had survived the culling." She looked at Rogue. "If it hadn't been for the Stonevale Rangers, I would have lost my eye or my life. They took me in, healed my wounds, then offered me a new home. They raised me, trained me, believed in me even though I was left without a soul. I owe them everything. That's why, when they offered me this job, I took it in hopes of proving to them that they didn't make a mistake in bringing me in- that I was worth saving."

Rogue reached up and wiped away her tears, surprising them both with the comforting contact. "I'm sure they're proud of you for coming this far."

"But Minerva was right. I'm nothing more than a husk, an empty vessel." Ayva stepped away from him, her arms wrapping around herself. "I've always been alone, even in my own guild. People seem to sense that I don't have a soul and they end up avoiding, or running away as soon as they get the chance to get away from me. I've forgotten what it's like to have friends, to know what it's like to be loved. And nothing I've done will ever change that. The Hellcry Devils stole everything from me, not just my soul..."

Rogue made to step closer to her, but she tried to step out of his reach and tripped backwards. Rogue reached out to try and catch her, but as he stepped down, his foot got caught on a root and he fell forward- over the edge of the cliff.

Rogue fell rapidly down towards the valley floor, fearing his end had come too swiftly.

"Rogue!"

Rogue looked towards the sky, seeing a dark shape diving down towards him. He felt warmth surround him as it caught him, flying back towards the clearing atop the cliff. He wrapped his arms around it, trying to hold on as best as he could. As he was set down, he looked down to see Ayva in his arms- large feathered wings sprouting from her back.

"Ayva..."

Ayva looked up at him, worry and fear in her eyes. "Are you alright?"

Rogue nodded, his cheeks burning and a strange sensation running through his body as the moonlight shined down on wings as black as the night itself. He found himself reaching up to touch her cheek. "You're so beautiful..."

Ayva's eyes widened with surprise and she found herself momentarily lost in the moment. She pushed back and stepped away from him. "I'm sorry..."

Rogue watched as she took to the air and disappeared over the trees. He sighed, turning towards the path back into town.