A/N: Hey guys, Yuki here! This fanfiction is a collaboration between me, Jetstream Girge and Skyress8691. We will be taking turns writing chapters, and the two others who are not writing a particular chapter will beta read it. Since each chapter has a different author, there may be different narration styles and different characterisations for the characters, but we'll try our best to keep it consistent. We have big ambitions for where this story is going, so we hope you enjoy the ride as much as we will! Now, this first chapter was written by Girge, so I'll pass the A/N baton to him.

Girge: Hey guys! I know I have been negligent on my updates, but this collaboration has helped me overcome my writer's block. Working on this collaboration, writing another story, updating Boundaries, working full-time and getting ready for senior year makes for a rather busy schedule. I hope this will not disappoint any of our readers. I look forward to the end product of this collaboration and I hope you all, too.

And now a pitch in from Skyress.

Skyress: Greetings readers, and welcome to the first collaboration story that I have participated in. The initiative came from Yuki, who suggested that we do a collaboration story, which would be her major Elsword debut fic. Then it spawned into a Skype chat group discussing the idea, then this. This story may take large amounts of time to update, as we are all busy in school. Expect at least or around a month for every chapter. Times for discussion amongst us are also fairly limited.

Please review! We greatly appreciate opinions, especially constructive criticism.

Now, read on to watch as we embarrass ourselves beyond belief.

Kizuna no Tsuyosa: Chapter One

"Come on, Elsword! You're only halfway done! Don't even think about wimping out, or you're going to be on dish duty after dinner!" A commanding voice cut through the training grounds and into the ears of a certain red-haired knight. Actually, maybe knight was the wrong term to use, as he was in fact an Infinity Sword, an agile fighter known for the countless blades they summoned in battle and their wild slashes as opposed to the heavy, but calculated swings of a knight. But that was the last thing on Elsword's mind as he picked up the pace of his jog, shouting back at the voice.

"But I'm not even tired yet! Why do I have to run all these stupid laps anyways? I didn't do anything to deserve them!" He really was not tired. He could probably run for a couple more hours and still have energy to spare. But what he was lacking was the knowledge of why he had to run these laps on the training track during the waning of sunset. But his question seemed to only increase the wrath of his aggressor, a woman of commanding presence and long, flowing hair of brilliant scarlet like his own.

"Wrong question! Keep running until your legs fall off, Elsword!" With that, she spun on her armoured heels and stomped off, leaving a confused and still running Elsword to ponder what just happened.

"What's her deal? Ever since I got back from retrieving Ruben's El and saving Hamel and Sander, she's just been ragging on me constantly. What did I do to deserve this?" In truth, he could stop running at any time he wanted, it was not like he was going to die if he did not run these laps.

But what kept him pumping his legs as he rounded the bend of the track was a respect, though a begrudging one at this point, of that woman, his sister. He had looked up to her for as long as he could remember, and it was that admiration that kept him going throughout his journey to save Elrios, and that kept him running on this track. But it still did not stop him from cursing under his breath for his elder sister to fall into a pit of spiders someday…

"That little brat; how has he still not learned that he can't rely on those powers given to him by that stupid sword!?" The blazing red haired maiden that Elsword was calling his sister huffed, kicking the dirt at her feet as she rounded the corner to the barracks. And because of her irritation she failed to notice the black-garbed man until she was practically on top of him.

"Woah! Slow down, Elesis. What's the hurry?" At the last moment, the red-head spun around the obstructing figure, her crimson eyes now wide with surprise.

"Raven!? Sorry about that. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going." Elesis let out a nervous laugh as she rubbed the back of her head apologetically, before a curious glint shone in her eyes. "What brings you to the Red Knight Headquarters? Did the Crow Mercenaries get a job with us?"

Raven gave a small chuckle as he crossed his arms, his left arm of sable steel and the splash of red in his bangs glinting in the setting sun. Raven had been a travelling compatriot of Elsword's, a fount of mature knowledge and experience. He had basically been Elsword's role model during their journey, being the one to guide the young swordsman to improving himself as not only a warrior, but as a person.

But, after the young fighter had taken in the energy of the Dark El, he seemed to have begun to see Raven as less of a role model and more as a rival to defeat. This transformation did indeed make the boy stronger, but he then neglected the techniques that he had been striving to perfect since the start of his adventure. He threw away what made him set off on his journey in the first place, and for what, a sword that could summon more blades?

When the boy had finally met with her after so much time apart, Elesis was disgusted by what he had become. He had turned from a hard-working and honest boy into an arrogant and lazy young man. She could not believe that he was her brother, that same little knight she had left behind when she embarked on her journey to hunt the demons that threatened them. She was –

"Elesis? Is something bothering you? Is it about Elsword?" Raven's voice snapped Elesis out of her stupor, and her red eyes focused on his golden orbs. He had hit the nail on the head. Elesis was always focused and determined normally, but when the subject of her little brother was on her mind, she was always given pause. But she was not the type to brush off the Veteran Commander's inquiry.

"Yeah, that kid is being a stubborn little brat again. He still hasn't learned that the reason he's not getting stronger is because he's not training! He thinks that stupid Cornroll sword makes him invincible!" She almost shouted at the black-haired man, who blinked at the Grand Master before letting a small smile creep onto his lips.

"It's called Conwell, Elesis. But is he really being stubborn? I think he may have picked that up from a certain sibling." Even though his tone was serious, there was a slight hint of teasing, causing the scarlet-haired woman to pout. "If that's the case, let me talk to him. Maybe I can get him to push himself more."

Before Elesis could even answer, Raven had brushed past her as he made his way to the track. When she saw his face, she felt herself shiver. His eyes were narrowed, his brows furrowed and a fierce scowl was fixed upon his features.

He was mad, and Raven was one of the last people you wanted to make mad.

She thought about going after him to stop him from likely beating Elsword to a pulp, but she decided against it. Raven was probably one of the few people in Elrios who could beat Elsword without any tricks or gimmicks. And maybe this was the wakeup call the Infinity Sword needed…

Raven was furious.

It had been only a couple of months since the ElGang parted ways, and a lot had changed. Eve had returned to Altera to begin rebuilding her kingdom, Aisha had been inducted into a magical organisation called the Trinity Circle, Chung had returned to Hamel to assist in reconstruction of his home, Ara had left for her home of Fahrmann to find more clues to her missing brother's whereabouts, Elsword had gone on to join the Red Knights and Rena…

His fury died down slightly when he thought of the female elf. She was perhaps the person amongst the group that he was closest to, or rather, used to be close to. She had decided to take on the mantle of a warrior known as the Night Watcher, an elven assassin whose duty was to watch over the world from the shadows. In order to do that, however, the elf had been forced to discard her attachments to the world, her friends included. He could remember the hint of sadness that had flickered in her eyes when she told the gang that she was leaving to "fulfil her duty."

He knew her. Despite her new station demanding the suppression of her emotions, Rena was not one to cast aside her feelings and companions lightly. Out of everyone in the group, she had probably been the one who felt the worst when she had to turn her back on them. He wished he could see her again, after all…

The Veteran Commander shook his head to clear his thoughts. You know that's impossible now, Raven. The way things are now, we will probably never rekindle that spark…

Raven himself had made the decision to revive the Crow Mercenaries organisation, a freelancing group of elite assassins that he had headed in the past.

They were the same group that were wiped out when they tried to free him from his cell prior to his execution so many years ago. Despite the terrible memories that had plagued him on the event, Raven was determined to help his home, Velder, after it had been nearly burned to the ground by the demon attack. And to do that, the people needed a symbol.

So he gave them one. The Crow Mercenaries were almost considered a legend, as their deeds in the past had greatly benefitted many in the lower class. And with the majority of the nobility, who were not particularly fond of the group, wiped out, the organisation was free to assist wherever they could.

They rebuilt homes, fetched supplies, warded off bandits and assisted in policing the ruined city to discourage looting. Vanessa, one the Velder Imperial Guard elites, had announced that it was due to the Crow Mercenaries' efforts that the city was once more alive. The common people had their heroes again.

And Raven stood at the front of it all as the Captain of the Crow Mercenaries. Already having a reputation from his travels as the man who incinerated the demons who had burned down their home, he was called the "Man Who Fought Fire with Fire." So when the group was born again, the choice of their leader was obvious. The decision to make Raven captain had been unanimous. And he bore the weight of his station without falter.

He then rounded the next corner and saw the thing that had him so angry to begin with. What had made him so furious before was that despite the great strides he had made in his life, Elsword had made no progress whatsoever!

He had paid the knight a visit a couple of weeks ago to find him lounging in his quarters snacking on salted chips. The determined young man that Raven had the pleasure of watching grow and mature on their journey had now degraded into a lazy buffoon.

This was not the Elsword he knew, and he would be damned if he allowed that spark of youth fade into lethargy. With this in mind he stormed up to the field and saw the young knight jogging around the track. He felt his anger flare again.

The crimson-haired boy was complaining with every step he took. His form was terrible and there was a severe lack of effort. Unable to contain his ire anymore, Raven stepped onto the track and stared down the swordsman with ferocity,his right hand on the great blade mounted on his back.

"Elsword! What in El Lady's name is wrong with you!?"

"Let the power flow… Let the power flow… Let the power…" She could feel the magic power laying within her waiting to be released. But she had to control its flow, like a dam in a river of swift current. In that metaphor, she would be the barricade and the water would be the magic power. But she felt as though something was missing… Like the switch to allow the mana to flow and –

"Aisha?" A voice suddenly cut off her concentration, and she felt the magic power that had built up inside her sputter into emptiness. Heaving an exasperated sigh, she opened her closed eyes to focus on the hooded figure who stood in the doorway to the dim meditation chamber.

"Yes, Master? Is there something you need from me?" She floated to her feet using her magic and brushed the persisting flecks of dirt off the hem of her mini-skirt. Though she could not actually see his expression under his hood, she could tell that the cloaked figure she called Master was scrutinising her… revealing attire with a look of displeasure.

It was not like she had to wear this outfit that screamed magical girl, but for some reason, she felt absolutely at ease in it. At least she did not have to dress like a stripper for some kind of demonic bat or something. But this outfit was certainly a departure from the overly conservative, and, in her opinion, cliché cloaks that most magic practitioners wore, which was also the standard of the Trinity Circle.

This group was an amalgamation of many mages of different crafts and specialisations. The master of the organisation was an Elemental Master, a mage who had harnessed the natural energies of the world and wielded them as though they were an extension of his body. There was another female mage in guild who controlled the powers of Hell itself, though no one had never seen her without her mage cloak on, leading many to wonder about her true appearance. There was a tiny little voice that seemed to float out of her hood every now and then, but everyone assumed it was the voices of Hell speaking through her mouth.

Then there was Aisha herself, the Dimension Witch, a magician controlling time and space . Though she could not control the dimensions to the degree of a being such as Glaive, she had a firm grasp on the power nonetheless. With her power, she could accelerate her body and manipulate the properties of objects, making them heavier or lighter. She could even teleport objects to various locations, though she could not really control where they ended up. For example, Elsword once threw a pie at her after she had just obtained her powers, and they had not seen that pie since. For all she knew, it was floating in some dimension pocket.

And that bothered her.

It really irked her that she did not understand her own powers. Sure, they were incredibly useful, but she did not like tinkering with things that she did not fully grasp the concept of. That was how she lost her powers in the first place. She had not known anything of that ring she had put on her finger, and she had paid the price.

This was why she joined this organisation, The Trinity Circle. Here, she hoped to learn from the seasoned magicians of a variety of specialisations to discover how her powers worked.

Unfortunately…

"We pored over the tomes that we had on site, but we could find no references to any mages in the past having powers similar to yours. Have you made any progress on your meditations?" The gruff voice of her master floated from the shadows of his cloak, but Aisha could see his mouth frowning in frustration and displeasure.

"I haven't really made much progress on that end, sadly." She sighed as her arms went slack in exasperation. "I just feel like there's something missing… I don't know how else to describe it. It's as if there's some sort of power or the like there to help me understand, but it is just not there…"

The master brought a thoughtful hand to his chin and let a small hum escape his throat.

"Hm… Perhaps your magic is incomplete? Most magic comes with a sort of built in mechanism that allows the wielder to know how it works on a subconscious level. This in turn gives the mage a place to start as to how to further understand it. Maybe your magic lacks that innate understanding mechanism." The master's words seemed reasonable enough, but something just seemed… wrong.

She tried to think of what it could be. An epiphany? A tome? Another magic?

All the possibilities that ran through her head sounded ridiculous to her. It was like the answer to her question was right in front of her, but she could not see it.

But her thoughts were interrupted by a sharp knocking sound.

Someone was at the entrance to their hall and was requesting admittance. The master responded by pulling out a small, spherical device covered in runes from inside his cloak. After infusing it with his magic, the runes on the object lifted off the object and projected an image.

The image showed the grey, stone steps that led up to the hall of The Trinity Circle and a rather large squad of soldiers clad in red and silver armour.

The Red Knights.

"What are the Red Knights doing here? Didn't they already come earlier this week to give us their report?" Aisha's amethyst eyes narrowed with worry, but her master thought differently.

"No. They sent word hours ago that they needed their equipment magically reinforced for an expedition into Feita. Apparently, there is a large pocket of demon resistance in the eastern hills." He explained as he turned from the door and strode down the dark hallway to the staircase.

The reason for their visit seemed reasonable enough, but something about this was rubbing Aisha the wrong way. The old she would have brushed off such doubts as meaningless chills from the moisture in the air, but after spending around three years journeying with the ElGang, she had come to trust these hair-raising chills more and more often.

And it was this feeling of dread that moved her arm to grab her staff and dart after her senior. Maybe it was really nothing, but if her silent fears turned out to be true, she would need to be ready.

Her master took notice of the tiny mage following him but paid no further heed as he continued his brisk pace down the stone steps. The duo finally made it to the foot of the staircase and were now making their way across the rather large entrance hall. On the opposite end of the space was a set of great black iron doors emblazoned with three overlapping circles, the symbol of The Trinity Circle.

When the master and his pupil made it to the enormous doors, the elder mage looked to his student with what she called the you're-in-the-way look. Whenever he gave her that look, it meant that she had to excuse herself from his presence. So with a small huff, she twirled on her toes and vanished for a brief moment before reappearing in the rafters above, where she watched her master place his hands on the door.

Barely a second later, the symbols on the massive iron slabs glowed and then the doors slowly swung open to reveal the Red Knights…

With weapons drawn.

"Gerard Magus, you and your organisation have been found guilty of treason of the highest degree and are to be eliminated. Burn this tower down, troops!"

The darkness was all-encompassing. It consumed everything; every shred of light, every doubt, even evil was not safe from the darkness' void. And it was this darkness that Rena learned to embrace.

She gave herself to the blackness that enveloped the world, becoming a shade that lurked in the shadows to protect Elrios. Here in the darkness, she could focus on the one thing that mattered: the mission. Everything else was a distraction that was filtered through the ebony net of the shadows.

Things like favourite foods and activities, enjoyment, sadness; her friends that she left behind…

She felt her heart grow heavy as she thought of their faces.

Elsword, the brash, but determined young knight.

Aisha, the confident, but rather egg-headed mage.

Eve, the focused, but odd Nasod.

Chung, the noble, but detached guardian.

Ara, the driven, but clumsy young warrior.

And Raven…

The elf felt her thoughts pause on that man and his face. She remembered those small smiles that he occasionally allowed to surface, like a spectacular water geyser. She could not feel love anymore, but something about that man always made her thoughts hitch up.

After she had ascended to the position of Night Watcher, she should have done away with any insecurities she previously held. But whenever they made eye contact outside of battle, she could feel herself standing up straighter, and in the midst of combat, she would always have this nagging urge to run to his side instead of completing her own objective. And those moments when the sadness in his eyes when he reminisced of his deceased lover became clear; she would always begin to move in his direction as though to take him in her arms and comfort him, before quelling the reaction in the shadows of her heart.

Why did he make her feel like that? She was a Night Watcher; a shade of justice who held no values beyond completing the mission at hand.

So why did Raven make her feel like she had made some mistake along the way?

She began to think back before she obtained her black Night Watcher cloak, specifically to when she was a Trapping Ranger newly inducted into the Night Savers.

No. That was not it. She could think of nothing that would explain this behaviour. So she thought back further, to when -

Suddenly, it was gone.

The memories she had tried to recall faded into the void as they were swallowed by the darkness. It was as if her brain did not want her to remember. She must have sealed those recollections away to prevent them from interfering with her assignments.

Not because the recollections were too painful.

Slowly, she opened her spring-green eyes to the surrounding shadows of the branches around her. Her sensitive elvish ears had picked up the slightest change in the wind.

Someone was here.

"Xergad, I told you that you need to approach targets from down wind." She coldly commented to her visitor. A small sigh of frustration leaked from the mouth of the ranger who had pushed his way through the branches.

He was garbed in a cloak similar to her own, but it was brown instead of black, and lacked the decorative feathers around the collar. His eyes, like Rena's, were a brilliant green, but narrowed like blades. His green hair was spiked with streaks of gold running through it as it gleamed in the spots of sunshine that made it through the leaves. And judging from the look on his face, the Night Watcher knew that he was not bringing good news.

"We found Jersa." That was all he needed to say to cause Rena to let out a light sigh.

One of their rangers had been tasked with scouting the outskirts of Velder to confirm a rumour of demon activities in the region. He had left two days ago and was supposed due back three hours ago. When he did not return thirty minutes after his supposed arrival, Rena had sent two of her best trackers, this Xergad being one of them, to find him.

Apparently they did.

"Very well, show me." She gave a brief command as she stood on her slender, but toned legs and tightened her blade to her side. Her subordinate gave a curt nod as he spun on his heel and leaped off the branches and out of sight. The Night Watcher followed after him closely, and landed lightly on her feet as she broke into a run to keep pace with her now sprinting compatriot.

They ran in silence for perhaps five minutes before they reached the edge of the forest that they were hiding out in. What they were greeted with was a vast plain of green grass and golden wheat that glistened in the waning light of the day.

But the pair of elves did not stop to admire the scenery, instead continuing to run across the landscape. They spent only another ten minutes at their brisk pace, before they arrived at a small grove of trees and brush.

The duo ducked into this location as silently as the wind, and made their way into the heart of the grove to find another elf, this one standing in a small clearing with the hood of their brown cloak covering their face.

"Greetings, Leader." A male voice floated from the shadows of the hood in a small gesture of welcome. Rena merely nodded in response as she looked over the scene in front of her.

In the middle of the clearing was the body of an elf, though, in its mangled state, one could not have known if not for the ears. Pieces of a bow and silver slivers of a sword lay strewn around the clearing. It appeared that a scuffle had taken place here, and the Night Watcher was already piecing together the events that occurred.

"He was ambushed by… three… no… four people. And they were skilled, not exactly heavily armoured, nor lightly, and they were carrying blades and bucklers." She muttered just loudly enough for her allies to hear her.

"Red Knights?" The unnamed elf posed a question as his head tilted quizzically in his hood.

"No, Deeg. I do not think they were Red Knights. They do not have patrols coming out all this way… The only force that would come out this far from the capital would be…" She bent down to observe an object glinting in the fading sunlight at her feet. As she dusted it off and lifted it in her hand, her already frowning face turned dourer. Her sharp, green eyes glared at the object in her hands: an emblem in the shape of a black bird with wings spread and a single black feather tied to the bottom.

"The Crow Mercenaries…"

Meanwhile, as the elves moved unnoticed many miles away, a scuffle was coming to a close.

Elsword had eagerly picked up his sword when Raven showed up. Now he could spar with his rival instead of run!

But he did not count on a fight like this.

"Gah!" The red-head was once more flung across the dirt and onto the pavement near the bleachers. As he rolled to his feet, he was met with the angry face of the Veteran Commander in his own. So he quickly swiped his hand across his chest as he summoned several small, spectral blades in a move he liked to call Sword Shield.

But Raven was not deterred by this. With a mighty swing of his large, feathered blade, he swatted away half of the rotating swords and knocked away the rest with his frightful left arm, coming out of the attack unscathed. And he capitalised on the younger swordsman's bewilderment by striking his abdomen with the hilt of his blade, forcing the air from Elsword's lungs and sending him crashing through the bleachers.

"Damn it! Fight me seriously!" The Infinity Sword coughed as he started to pick himself back up, but was instead kicked back down onto the ground with the mercenary commander's heavy boot.

"If I fought you seriously now, you would be dead and burned to ashes, you brat." The Veteran Commander growled as he kicked the boy again, this time into the wall of the concrete restrooms. "I don't need to go all out against you. You rely on that little magic sword of yours, Conwell, and that makes you predictable. Your swordplay is so terrible that I can beat you with just my blade work alone."

"Yeah? Then let me show you what I can do!" Elsword roared as he sprang off the wall and summoned another sword in his off-hand, throwing it at his opponent.

Raven merely swayed his body to evade the projectile and darted forward as he flourished his black blade. What followed was the clash of steel as Elsword's weapon was knocked aside and a fist of dark metal connected with his chest.

With the air once more exploding from his lungs, the Infinity Sword was forced back into the wall, feeling a strong vice on his left arm as Raven pinned it down. He quickly tried to swing his great sword in his free hand, but that too was immobilised with the Veteran Commander's powerful left arm of steel.

The Infinity Sword struggled under his senior's unrelenting grip and then heard him speak in a low, threatening tone.

"It would be so easy right now… All I have to do is just turn up the heat a little bit…" Elsword started to sweat as the warmth on his right arm began to rise. "And I could burn your whole arm off. And had you actually practiced your swordsmanship rather than –"

"Commander?" A new voice cut through the air and interrupted the Veteran Commander's threat. He turned his head to see a young woman, garbed in a brown and black set of studded armour, her black hair flowing down her back and her blue eyes wide with worry.

"Sasha. Your patrol ended an hour ago. What are you doing out?" Raven's eyes softened slightly, but his voice still retained the hardness from before, causing the woman to wince slightly.

"Yes it did. But, I think you'll want to see this…" She beckoned to him nervously, her eyes darting to the pinned Infinity Sword occasionally. Raven gave a swift nod of understanding as he released Elsword and let him drop to his knees. And without sparing him another look, he left, following his subordinate into town, leaving the stunned redhead behind.

"What is it?" Raven asked as the pair turned onto the main street and began to walk down the cobblestone pathway in the sunset. Sasha suddenly became very interested in the ground at her feet as she began to mumble.

"Well, we found a body." Those words somehow managed to reach Raven's ears despite them being spoken into the stones beneath their boots.

"What? Where?" His eyes narrowed and he felt his body almost seize up. The Crow Mercenaries had set themselves up as a deterrent against crime, including murder. By keeping up constant patrols, he and his soldiers could usually stop a crime before it was committed, or halt it if it had already started. Granted they could not cover the whole city of Velder, but their presence alone could turn away any wrongdoers.

"In an alleyway, just off one of the northern side streets. Follow me, sir." Sasha picked up the pace of her walk, which her commander promptly matched. They marched for another two hundred meters before turning north into a small side street and finally coming to a stop by an alley.

Here, two male soldiers outfitted in the same gear as Sasha, stood at attention, their swords slung along their backs and their grey bucklers glowing under the last light of day.

"Commander, glad you're here. You better take a look at this." They made way for him and Sasha to pass through and motioned to the shadows of the alley. It was not long until Raven saw what had them on edge.

There was a corpse.

It was not in full view, but if one were to look closely from the street they could see the body slumped on the damp wall of the alley way. It was that of a male citizen, which caused the Veteran Commander's eyes to become practically slits.

Someone was murdering innocent civilians.

And this angered him.

That someone would have the lack of humanity to kill a fellow human when the city was on the brink of recovering from a slaughter during the demon occupation, made him livid. But that was before he noticed something odd about the corpse.

There were very few wounds on it. In fact, the only injury he could see, and it was likely the fatal one, was the crimson laceration around the neck.

The killer had slit the man's throat and let him bleed out in the alley.

This was not some random act of violence. This was specific, and Raven even recognized the shape of the injury. He had witnessed it several times during his journey with the ElGang. He remembered a shade moving though the enemy lines, cutting the throats and vital areas of their enemies as it swept silently through the battlefield.

And when he saw the single strand of golden hair next to the body, he forced down the cry of rage that threatened to escape his throat…