The darker side of the story.

[King Roxa Hiaten]

Hello there! My name is Ave Sairen, some of you will know me or will have at least heard of me, a few of you may even have had the luck to have met me in my brothers flesh. In reward for that, I shall shorten your suffering when I eventually break free of these futile mortal bonds and carve out a large chunk of history specifically labeled 'Ave Sairen. But we can discuss that later! Please, sit! Put your feet up and relax whilst I go warm us some wine, it's much better warm, you know! It adds a bit of extra flavour. Right, now that that's warming up how about we get down to business, hm? Well, I suppose the first thing you'll want to know is who I am really and where I came from?

But first, a question! Can you remember my name from earlier? It began with an 'A' no no no, that's the one that makes an 'ah' sound you fool! Yes, keep going... Aaaaaahhhvaaaaaay, Sairen! Yes! That's right, I just like to keep you all on your toes and makes sure that you're listening, with that done you can cling on to your godsforsaken life for a few more minutes. Oh! The wine is done, here you go... And more for me... Maybe some more... I know, I'll just drink from the flagon. Anwyay! As I said, I've given you a few more minutes to live, and what better way to spend them than hearing about me, right?

Let us get started. Let us go back one thousand years to the time of Duo, I shall paint the picture! This evil tyrant rules all of Allorum and many people are dying at the hands of Duo and his minions, imagine that! People dying and it is not my fault, well obviously I'm angry at that! But that's a story for another time. Right now we are in Alberisato, or more specifically a clearing within the forests of Alberisato, a place called 'Gods Garden' ironic considering what will conspire there over the course of a few years. A fledgling family is spreading it's poisonous roots within this particular garden, a large bear of a man who makes a living felling trees for the pompous rich folk and hunting for the wretched poor folk, he lives with his wife, a beautiful women with sapphires for eyes and spun gold for hair... She's obviously madly in love with her bear of a husband and gave up everything for him! Again, a story for another time. Now, I know what you're thinking! 'Awww, true love prevails again!' Well you're wrong! Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, WRONG! The damn fools tained the garden of the Gods! Let me just say that the bear planted more than crop seeds in this garden, hm?

And what sprouted of those seeds? Two disgustingly and horrifyingly adorable wretches. Oh, do not get me wrong, the two children who were not born all that far a part from one another were comely to say the least, but children cry. And the spirits of the forest do not like to be disturbed by the cries of children. For years this family grew up as if all was well, the boy became strong and his father hoped he may even become a knight in service to Alberisato! What a fool! How could such a low born child become a knight?! There's more chance of me putting on a skirt and dancing along to a bard's songs, and I hate dancing, might I add. Anyway, the girl also grew older, becoming smarter and ever more beautiful, her mother wanted her to become some fair maiden who would win the heart of some splendourus knight like the one her brother was sure to become, and between them they would raise the house of Hiaten up to live amongst the greater houses. Now, at this point I'm hiding in the forests, but shh! Don't tell Roxa that! He's the young boy, a spikey golden rodent filled with passion and energy, the very opposite of me. At this point I was being a slick dark predator just lurking and waiting for my chance. You know, sometimes I look back on those days and wonder if th- Hey! Your wines getting cold... Don't make me waste good wine on you fool! Now... Where was I..?

Oh yes! Sometimes I look back on those days and wonder if that was really me, I always saw myself through someone else's eyes, but whoevers eyes I was using they would never register my presence at all in those trees! Almost as if only I could see me, which when you think about it is a bit odd... I usually saw things from the girl, Eva's perspective. My, she was unique! Much like her disgusting brother in appearance, but she was more quiet, reserved, imaginative. She had a gift that she kept hidden from her family, she was a skilled mage, or she would have been had she given herself time to allow her gift to prosper. I believe that's why I was so drawn to the girl, we were kindred spirits of magic in a sense...

One day I was looking through the eyes of Eva whilst she played some game of hers. I was watching myself as always, I stalked into woods all menacing and when I returned I... I was not me, I was some bandit, notching an arrow in the trees... Aiming towards me! Imagine the cheek of it! I was planning on shooting myself with an arrow... Sort of! And it was definately me, I could tell, somehow... We stumbled into our oaf of a brother and the pair engaged in conversation whilst I screamed bloody murder at Eva telling her to run, willing myself to shoot the boy instead, he was not strong enough, not in mind! He didn't have Eva's gift which in turn locked me from his head, and I didn't like that.I let loose the arrow and gods be dmned I hit the girl... What sort of a fool was I! In her dying throes the girl threw me all control an i soon realized she didn't have the strength nor the training to heal herself or kill the archer, it makes me wonder, you know, if she ever knew that I was there... Sure to hand over control you need to know who it is that is taking your place, right? Either way I turned the girl to her brother and tried to make him swear vengeance, if I was going down with this girl I would not go un-avenged! But lo and behold! I had shot myself in the throat! As I choked and gagged, I locked eyes on Roxa and reached out to him, I was not going to die within this girl without a fight, as much as I wished her to live over this futile relation, he must hold some of her strength, right? Either way, in his terrifyed state he actually let me in... He seeked comfort, warmth... Strength. Things that I could give him, but as soon as he felt me he locked me away in his fear, something that Eva had never done... I was there, but I knew I could escape, and by then he would have forgotten all about me... And it was then that a plan came into my head, one that would make him far more accepting of me... Before I was chained up for the next few years however I inspired one thought into the young boys head...

Vengeance

But listen to me babble! Ha! Almost drives you insane doesn't it? Makes you want to rip someones arms off and beat them to death with them! No? Just me? Hm... Tough crowd... Either way, I think I should thank you for listening to my rant and drinking my wine... Which you seem to have let... Go... Cold...

*Sigh*

Get out! Go! Now! Before I decide to show you your own intestines and play skip rope with them!

[Vash, the Angel's Moon]

Ohhhh, this is soooo cool. Creepy, but cool. God, Ave is awesome. But, the story's kind of difficult to follow... let me get this straight, Ave was some kind of predator that could enter and take over peoples' minds? And he was possessing Eva when she died, but also simultaneously possessing the bandits, somehow? Kind ofinteresting... doesn't really seem like 'possession', either, more like... I dunno, like hitching a ride. Really, really interesting...

[King Roxa Hiaten]

That's sort of right! I've sort of left it deliberately vague, I hinted at something in here that will be clarified later on in other arcs, but you've got the gist of it! ^_^

[Vash, the Angel's Moon]

Whee! I can't wait to see more~