A/N: If you're reading this and haven't read The Heart of a Guardian, I highly suggest you take a look at that story first. This is the sequel to the story and I guarantee those who haven't read the first part will get lost in the narration this story takes you through. A lot has happened that has changed the entire El Search Party and reading further without a clue of what's going will only make it more difficult for you as it progresses. If you have read it before then welcome to the sequel! Hopefully it can live up to your expectations!


Dearest Chung,

It has been officially three weeks since we have left Hamel as of writing this letter. I am not familiar with the methods or schedule for postage being sent overseas so please forgive the rather unconventional method at which this letter reaches you.

The return voyage to Velder was quiet for everyone on board the ship. The animosity they hold towards you is clear in all of them, including the remainder of the El Search Party. Our friends are in strong disagreeance with you. The Half-Nasod believes you were acting irrationally. The elf feels that your decision will only make life difficult for your people. Elsword's sister stated her inability to forgive you for throwing all their sacrifices away. As for Elsword himself: he seldom spoke at all. I believe he is still in mourning for the loss of our dear friend. As for your strange visitor from the future, she has clearly been taking steps in avoid communicating with any members of the El Search Party, especially towards me. I am unable to discern why. So far it is only you and I that know of her true origins and it's strange that she is trying to avoid dialogue with me considering how alienated she obviously feels riding the ship back.

We have since separated upon arriving in Velder. I am safely back in my floating home of Altera and, thanks to the sheer amount of El shards I have accumulated during our campaign in Hamel, I have restarted the reconstruction effort of my kind from the ground up. I'll spare you the nuances of reconstructing an entire race but know that given the situation I am in, it will not be easy to say the least.

On the topic of my situation - more specifically the state of repairs for myself - I am strangely still unable to fix my voice module that was damaged during the temple of trials. It was frustrating, to say the least, trying to communicate with the others and I ultimately resorted to projecting text to the others if my input was necessary. Hopefully, with time, I can find a way to repair my ability to speak. Otherwise, I would be quite ashamed to have to resort to using text to speak to you when we next meet.

I hope to see you, again, soon.

Yours,

Eve


Dearest Chung,

Today marks the 100th day since the campaign on Hamel has ended. How have you been? I hope my previous letter has reached you safely. I am unable to determine if it arrived, given the limited range of my communications with other Nasods. I'm sure you must have felt something similar when our neural connection was severed when I left Hamel.

I understand that building a nation with little more than a handful of your people can be quite difficult, especially for a human. The efforts on my end are starting to take show signs of progress. Most of the first few weeks have been spent piecing together what I could of my foundries by hand. Thankfully, Moby and Remy are here to help handle the heavier tasks. Afterwards I've dug out the rubble to one segment of my factory and, after some effort, managed to successfully create a backbone drone network to help with the clean up and revival effort.

I have kept little contact with the El Search Party since our departure, but on day 95 of my stay in Altera, I was approached by Elsword's sister who was on her way to the Elven Kingdom. With most of Lurensia purged of the demon threat, she spoke of the El Search Party's possibility of moving our services overseas and invited me to go should such a plan become a reality. With the rising tensions between Sanders and the native Coluso tribes people, more work opportunities would be present for us. I declined, however, for multiple reasons. With the workload I have with my nation's revival, I wished to focus more on my personal goals for the time being.

That's not to say my progress hasn't had any setbacks, however. I am still unable to repair my voice module. In fact, any damage I sustain during the revival effort takes significantly longer to repair than before. I will not bore you with the details in coding, but in summary, I must constantly create workarounds for repair protocols that, for some reason, refuse to work. Not only does this affect my ability to function at optimal levels, but it seems to have an adverse effect on my ability to command fleets of drones, as well. I have never had a problem being able to macro manage thousands of drones at a time but at my state my neural network is struggling to maintain a few dozen. I will have to look into this soon.

And finally - and most concerning of all - I have sensed something, a glitch perhaps, within the deepest reaches of my personal code. It was calling to me. I have not noticed it during the start of my revival program when my workload was most strenuous, but with more time to myself, I have grown faintly aware of this strange sensation in my systems. It is not magical in nature but, rather, mechanical; like static. It could be a fault in my damaged programs but I am unable to come to a clear conclusion as of yet. The thought that it was perhaps you calling for me through my nanomachines was amusing, but, given our distance, I knew that to be an impossibility.

Regardless, I still long to see you, again.

Yours,

Eve


Dearest Chung,

It has been 200 days since we've parted. I have yet to receive a reply back from you. I am beginning to question whether or not these letters are reaching Hamel and wondering if I should, instead, use Velder's postal system as Elsword's sister had suggested a few months ago. If you are getting my letters please do your best to reply. I just want to know how you're doing.

Progress in my nations revival is… sluggish to say the least. I have fallen so far behind on my projected milestone schedule that I have long since abandoned it. It is my coding that's holding me back. But any attempts to repair my personal code has proven to be a waste of time and I am forced to continue the project at a drastically slower pace. I have established a basic worker drone assembly line at least. That is correct, many drones similar to Moby and Remy are slowly being constructed daily. With each passing day, the efficiency of our cleanup effort rises. It will only be a matter of time before I can begin construction on standard Nasod civilians enmasse.

I was visited by another member of the El Search Party, today. The mercenary had come to Altera, this time, expressing how they needed my participation in their move overseas. I asked why I was needed and apparently the elf had fallen out of contact with the group. The mercenary said that, after some time to think on things, the elf believed you were in the right and that she would have no part in helping the Velderian Empire expand its reach by using the El Search Party.

I wanted to help them. I could feel the frustration and sense of loss from the Blade Master. With the elf no longer part of our group, that would mean only three of the remaining members would be left: Elsword, Raven, and Elesis. But, given my condition, I did not wish to burden them with my presence.

As you may have guessed… I'm still unable to repair myself, fully. My ability to communicate is strictly limited to text on hologram and doing so would be inefficient in combat situations should that be required if I go with them. With my slower repair speed, I can no longer reliably be there ready to deploy as often as usual. And furthermore, the presence I've mentioned buried within my personal code still lingers.

The entity is still faint but it is definitely stronger than before. It is beckoning me to go to it. I don't know where this entity is when it makes such a suggestion but it continues as if it expects me to know the answer. It knows what I'm experiencing. It does not speak but it reassures me that it can fix me. I don't trust it. The only thing I can do is ignore it. In the meantime, I will try and establish a basic Nasod civilian construction grid to keep me occupied. I don't hear the entity when I work.

Chung, when you receive this letter, please… please write me back.

Yours,

Eve


Chung?

I'm scared. 300 days after leaving Hamel and my condition has not improved. In fact, it has grown worse. Since day one, I have tried to fix my corrupted code. I've tried writing and rewriting work arounds, as inefficient as they may be, but they are simply treatments. Not a cure.

My project has currently fallen to a standstill and I am no longer able to control the small fleet of worker drones by myself. To make things worse, the maximum units I am able to control is steadily declining. I'm trying my best to ignore this entity but the more I try, the more I realize that my options are wearing thin. I cannot ignore the obvious anymore, I need help… And there is no one on this island or this continent that knows how.

I have searched for solutions. Word from the pongoes have directed me back across the sea; a rumor of a mechanic who can fix any machine. I have no other leads from here so I must continue my search as I go. Fortunately, I may have the means available to make this trip, though I don't know how long I'll be gone.

Chung, if you are reading this, know that it may be awhile until I write again. I hope to see you again, soon.

Yours,

Eve


"Eve?" Raven stood over her shoulder as she added the finishing touches to her letter. She compressed the projected window into a holographic envelope and held it in front of a floating black drone fitted with shimmering silver wings. The contents of the letter dissolved into data and, with a dutiful chirp, the messenger drone flapped its mechanical wings before floating out the door of a bar named "The Cold Wash".

"The ship to Sander is loaded and about to set sail. Are you ready?"

He didn't expect a verbal answer from the Nasod, but it took her a significantly long time to answer. She wanted to say something but instead continued to stare at a strange red display that hovered in front of her. She reached out to shut the display but not before Raven was able to quietly read what the was on display: "Ex_t c C&d3 Corrupt1;n". The window was minimized just as the number ticked up to 59% and Eve turned to the mercenary with an acknowledging nod.

A bright text window appeared in front of him as a single word was mentally typed out.

"Ready."