A Melancholic Escape [Saiko/Ash] [Ask To Join Only]

Tracked and located -- at long last.

Clouds of crimson mist spread through the rooftop of The Melancholic Maiden's estate. With it came a sense of unbridled and oppressive demonic presence. It altered the atomsphere and made the air as cold as ice, the sights around them filled with scarlet glows and left an imprint of irked intent all around. As his energy belonged to one of the strongest entities of this hellish realm: The Princess of Demons -- Neoveta Asthavon.

Why was she here? Simple: Saiko had brought un-needed struggle upon them.

As her blood eyes pierced the disgusting sight of two enemies huddled together like a pair of lovers, all The Royal Demoness could see was trouble. Through her superb command of recollection and knowledge, The Asthavon was certain that was the son of Azure Iramasha -- her sworn enemy and hated foe. With that being known and relevant, one could only assume that The Archduchess kidnapped and brought this scum to her land.

That -- was dangerous.

While Neoveta was undoubtedly ready to slay and pierce any Vanguardian scum which came her way, this could set the beginning of something foul to occur with her entering into that accursed metropolis of Karakura Central. So, as her small stature came into view, the pale haired Princess was ready to investigate and prod into why one of her own committed such a reckless and dangerous decision.

Thus, this childish royal rose her right index finger and pointed it at the two fugitives as her six crimson wings extended from the back of the demon's shade hued dress. With the winds increasing and lashing out at all around, the child's eyes would become filled with shadows and one could sense the malice brewing forth from her being as her gruff words stabbed into the air around them:

"Just what is THAT heretic doing here? Do you have ANY idea of what you've done by bringing that creature to our kingdom?"

Rocks and earth would seem to rise, fall and break into thousands of pieces as her anger became more apparent in the form of a scowl while the Princess's voice became further irritated. There were still many plans that the higher-ups within the Asthavon and Shadow Fall factions were planning, and this was not a pursuit she was very keen on wasting resources on.

Thus, the annoyance and discontent could only raise higher as her dead eyes gave a dagger-filled gaze at Ash Iramasha.

"You two have both jeopardized not only your own lives, but your comrades as well for some sick and twisted sense of love for one another? Have you NO SHAME?"

With another shout, The Princess of Demons would holler to the heavens and have an eruption of blood light spew forth from behind and paint the skies around them in a shade of glum red. While clenching her fist, she'd have no idea on how to quite cope with this situation, or even what she would do, but The Demoness would watch her temper and attempt to get to the bottom of this mess.

"Tell me: just what DO you intend to do, Son of Azure? Are you here to oppose me, or are you sincerely going to join our faction? I haven't patience for enemies in my sacred land."

In that moment, Ash would almost be drowned in putrid and filthy waves of demonic energy. It would feel as if knives, guns and bombs alike were all aiming around him and ready to fire based on the answer given. That was just the kind of vicious malice that brewed around the fury of The Princess. Which is why Saiko to would feel this pressure crushing down on her body as Neoveta, more than anything else, had higher levels of contempt for The Archduchess than she ever could for Ash. For she was the one who caused this situation to occur to begin with and she would most certainly be disciplined somehow, someway.

"That question applies to you as well: just WHAT do you intend to do with this heretic's son? Are you THAT forlorn of a wench that you sought out HIS company above all else?"

While clinching her teeth, Neoveta could almost strangle her if it weren't for the fact she was still a comrade in this moment. Even if she was one of the most destructive and powerful creatures in Demon World, it was not in her nature to reprimand her own until she knew the full story. So, whatever these two spewed at her, it had better be DAMN good enough to pass her acceptance. As she was working on a short fuse.

Love. It was a force that held many great feats, ranging from decimating entire nations to building them up from scratch. Such a strong feeling and emotion was something that could inspire many beings to take a stand when they would normally fall down and cower. Ash? This was his first time feeling true love, feeling as if he belonged with someone, feeling truly happy. Not happy over a present or happy with friends, but truly happy. Truly content. Truly at peace. With Saiko, Ash felt as if she could do anything in the world. Truly, anything.

With their final reunion, one where the both of them could finally interact with one another, words were shared and feeligns were given out. One of the feeligns that Ash would never get tired of is the feeling of his star-crossed lover's lips against his own, the soft touch of her own body pressing against his own. The boy was happy to prolong the kiss, his eyes slowly closing as his weight shifted just a bit more forwards in order to further enjoy this touching moment. So much had happened within a day, and Ash didn't seem to regret any of it, in fact, he loved it. Arms went to tightly grasp Saiko in return and hug her as tightly as he could, bodies only further forced to press against one another as the kiss was soon broken...

Every bit of Saiko's words brought a smile upon Ash's face, mixed with a bit of sadness. Hearing all about her sacrifices certainly hurt just a bit. The thought of Saiko sacrificing herself hurt, just the very thought of her being gone hurt not only him, but his heart.

"Saiko... No matter what, please remember that I love you. I love you so much, so much my heart could burst. I'll do anything for you, anything. If you wanted for me to die in front of you, I would... Just as you would for me. Even if something bad happens to me, please don't do it. It hurts more knowing that you would be gone than it would for you to still be alive and do great things, happy things, wonderful things. I-I... I-I'm bad with this, b-but I want you to know, no matter what...

I love you."

With those words uttered past his lips, a new feeling came around. It wasn't one of peace, love, or joy. No... it was demonic. Filled with energy. Deathly. It was a being he's never sensed before, or even truly heard much about. It was something that made his heart sink, made his skin crawl, and even lead to his mind already flooding with fearful thoughts. Despite all of these thoughts assailing him at once, just the simple glance towards Saiko's beautiful face helped calm him down. Seeing her happy brought him peace, seeing her alive made him feel complete. Just seeing her helped him with coping through the immense power that this being exerted. Soon enough, that being arrived, and they were just as powerful as they were awe-inspiring.

Six wings, power that could decimate nations... All in the body of Neoveta. This was a person he's only heard some stories about, but never got to meet. Just the very presence of her led to everything in his body to scream about escaping. To try and leave, to try and escape. Despite all of this, his heart refused. Saiko was here with him, and he was here with Saiko. One of the few strongest demons in this world surely couldn't be filled with malice and foul-intent, right? Not everyone was just evil, and the Vanguard twisted his views to the point of where he doubted himself. He was always born and raised to know that there was good, but Shadowfall was evil. It's a lie, a big, fat lie. If it were evil, how would Saiko still be here? THe girl that did so much for love, rather than destruction.

Saiko was proof enough for Ash to know that not everyone came to harm, and with that in mind, he paid close attention to every harsh, rude word that Neoveta had to give outwards. All the boy could do was remain silent and listen, eyes widening as the two of them were scolded by such a powerful being, one that could just erase them if she pleased. It was scary, horrifying even... but nothing to be afraid of. Ash wasn't here to do harm, and neither was Saiko. The two of them were here to love, to avoid the Vanguard and to find peace with one another. Ash didn't want to fight anymore, especially not in wars as expansive as his first.

Before a single word could be spoken outwards to Ash, his entire body seemingly tensed up. Muscles locked as he felt almost paralyzed. Neoveta had done something, and this something led to him feeling as if he was going to be executed in just a moment's notice, that his life would end before it could truly start. So much power, so much demonic energy, so much destructive potential. Feeling power such as this, it made him nervous. He never could stay around those that released their power fully, for such strength always made him think of the destruction that could be caused, and the people that could be hurt. No matter what his mind would say about running, he had to follow his heart instead, and it said to stay and prove his love for Saiko. To prove his worth. To prove that they deserved to live.

. . .

Those were all the words she needed to hear to know that everything was going to be alright. To embrace someone, to call them your own and to care for them with your very life was a sentiment that set a blaze through the corners of Saiko's oil soaked heart. For this inferno of passion blazed through the murky depths of her sorrow, scorched the dread of her spirit and freed this fallen angel of her tainted chains. It didn't matter what weaknesses they had, the pain which the two of them endured nor what danger they were in at this point.

NO. None of it mattered.

None of it mattered -- so long as they had each other.

With the touch and guidance of Ash's love -- anything was possible.

And that's all Saiko ever wanted more than anything else. To have his love, his warmth and his light for her own. It was so hard for her to admit, but she needed someone to hold on to, to find strength in and to seek out that adoration she so craved and fought at every bitter turn. As with that love, there was hope, possibility and purpose to be found in this life of dismay, destruction and chaos.

Even if it was wrong, even if she was greedy and even if she was a monster for having these desires; she would discard all those notions for his sake as she witnessed her partner stand so valiantly against one of the most influential clusters of demonic power.

If he could be so strong in this instance, why couldn't she be strong enough to fight her own demons for him?

Therefore, as that single notion repeated in Saiko's head like an infinite loop, the body of The Mistress of Glum responded by breaking the chains of restraint on her soul. In one foul motion would an eruption of plum and white energy explode and surround the area. In this burst of power, this flood of spiritual essence sought to devour both Saiko and Ash in the clutches of it's energized grasp. As it was an extension of The Maiden's soul and possessed the strong intent of protection that her Zanpakutô spirit possessed for Ash.

Even if they should be marked as enemies, hunted down like dogs and brought to their knees; both Saiko and Ude No Kanashimi would do whatever it takes to ensure the light of Ash's spirit would endure, survive and thrive. Hence, the new and reformed Saiko would emerge behind her lover as the right side of her eye became engulfed within a blazing indigo fire. This was her shikai passively activating from the strong emotions and sentiment that was coursing through Saiko's body like a raging river.

Her blood, heart, body and soul screamed to be strong for Ash and she had to contiune down that path. Ergo, she would cling to him, hug him and let the wild ends of her hair extend and flow to cover each of them in her warm embrace.

With fangs extending from her mouth, even the demonic portion of Saiko's soul saw fit to come out and protect it's master against this harm. For, the only thing that was pumping through her essence was one thing: determination. Determination to be strong, determination to see past this valley of melancholy and determination to find a better future with Ash as he saw so much in herself that she couldn't just roll over and die without a fight.

Therefore, she would scream these words out at Saiko with the utmost of boldness and assurance behind them:

"SISTER! He isn't a HERETIC, he is MY LOVER. If you can't accept that, then I will clash with you to the very bitter end."

In that resolved stance, the whirls of Saiko's energy cried and let out a wild screech into the heavens around THEMas her violet aura clashed and intermixed itself into the crimson light of Neoveta's demonic energy. Even if it was futile, even if it was pointless and even if it all made no difference; The Mistress Of Glum saw fit to make her stand here and keep pressing this battle until that warm happiness was found.

Their happiness -- WOULD NOT BE DENIED BY ANYONE!

"I am not your foe, nor is he. We simply wish to be left to our happiness as we do not care for this war. I am still apart of this family, even if I was forced into it, but I REFUSE to kill the person who has saved me from the abyss. Without him I would rather be DEAD. So if you are going to kill us, DO IT RIGHT NOW!"

Louder and louder would the yells, growls and screams of her spiritual aura extend until everything in a mile radius was covered in the resolute stance of Saiko's soul. This was her stand and there would be no compromises to her love as it was the one thing she cared about in this life. It was the one thing she so craved and found herself despaired over not possessing. And to have it in her grasp, only for some ignorant fool to want to take away?

It was -- UNACCEPTABLE.

Thus, in this moment of ambition and passion would Saiko then seek to give a warm and devoted kiss to her lover as she wasn't sure what response her sibling would have. And that meant it was time to savor the moment, live boldly and cherish the person who saved her from this hell of herself. As for him -- she would do anything. ANYTHING. And in this moment, she would cast aside her own delusions of mistrust, paranoia and doubt in order to trust that he would do the same for her.

....Why was she seeing Belle and herself in this moment?

Now wasn't the time for hallucinations or illusions, but they were happening none the less. To the rational mind of Neoveta, the depth of Saiko and Ash's love must have proven to be a catalyst for these visions. As the love that The Princess shared for Belle held the same amount of passion, conviction and admiration for one another as these two seemed to possessed.

Furthermore, as The Royal Demon peered deeper into the bond of her sibling, she could undoubtedly sense the unending affection burning and bleeding through her heart. This was important as The Princess desired to see just how strong, resolute and determined both Saiko and Ash were to staying true to their path of companionship and love. For, in truth, Neoveta was not nearly upset as one might imagine. Instead, this was her own sisterly concern for the dangerous path that a piece of her own family decided to take.

This partner that Saiko had chosen was one which could trigger quite the dangerous set of affairs for Shadow Fall and Khalaism. However, Neoveta's own wrath soared far above most of these notions. As she would not allow any outsider, heretic or foe to inflict their sense of misguided justice upon any whom share her blood, fight for her cause or remain allied to The Princess. Ergo, given that she was already down the path of vengeance, this mishap was nothing compared to the war already waged in Iceland.

The only thing Neoveta desired to know out of all this is if the two were truly committed to this task of such a difficult love. And, from what she observed, it was true and she could not stand to induce such a pain upon one of the few things she fought for in this world. As these visions of Belle still danced in her perception, The Princess would leave a heavy sigh before lowering her hand and deciding to cease this needless punishment.

"This union still feels quite uneasy, but I've witnessed enough and can determine this love is true. However, the moment you do anything against this realm, I will rest assure that you regret this. The same holds true to hurting my sister."

With that, The Princess turned her scarlet gaze upon Saiko and shook her head with a sense of disappointment.

"As she is the only reason why I will spare you and give you this chance to live among us monsters. If you truly do not desire to wage war, then stay on the sidelines and continue to love my sister. It will NOT be easy, but if you have enough bravado to stand against me, I'd assume you are more than prepared for that commitment."

Turning her back to the two of them, The Princess could feel her own heart beginning to quiver and shake as she could feel semblances of her former self were slowly starting to come back with this act of mercy. While gripping her chest, the shadows within her eyes shifted and danced between light and darkness as she could still feel the warmth of Belle's love soothing and subduing her troubled mind.

Therefore, to tend to her own worries, Neoveta would begin to walk away from them both in order to lose herself in the nature of this lush plum forest.

But, not before a grim warning:

"Boy, do not throw the blame to us if your life ends in ruin. You've turned a traitor to your cause and they will undoubtedly mark you as an enemy. I care not if my sister uses the resources of Shadow Fall to protect you, as she and yourself would be unwise to, but this fragile life of ours is unpredictable and the lost of love is so easy to take place. You both should prepare for that potential outcome of lost and weigh your decisions carefully...."

And with that, if not stopped, she would begin to simply walk away from the two and attend back to more urgent matters of Demon World as she knew her sister was dead set on this love and there was no going back....

Not only was a stand made against the oppressive being known as Neoveta herself, but a declaration of love was professed outwards. One that not only the demon would hear, but those around the world would hear. Those in the Vanguard, her father, her friends, her enemies. Everyone should now know the love that was felt between the two beings, the emotions that swirled between the two, and the devotion that would make itself known for hopefully years to come. Ash remained resolute, body standing as firmly as possible with her poise as strong and confident as possible. Was she scared? Of course! Would she back down? No longer. No longer would he be fearful for what may happen, but instead, hopeful for the future ahead of him.

When his one lover, the single light in his life that spurred him to move onward and even commit such an act of bravery, stood besides him and released her true self... it moved him. To know that she would stand by his side and go her full strength with him, even if it made his act of commitment seem all the weaker. He was leagues below his lover, and even further blow Neoveta... but that still didn't mean he should back away. Even if Saiko showed true strength and true determination, he had to stand by her side as one. Not as the Iramasha in love, not as the one who ran away with her, no, as her equal. As her lover. As the one that wanted to spend their life with her. When Saiko had finally burst with all of her energy, Ash's own went to interlace with the pure pressure she let out. It was an attempt of comfort, not for Ash, but for himself. He was scared, and just having the hold and touch of his lover would help him feel all the better.

This request for affection and comfort was rather easily met. With the beautiful words of Saiko echoing out within his mind, and soon, the reaching embrace of her body, how could someone so deep down the tunnel of love refuse? Despite the situation, Ash would always seem to get just a bit flustered when sharing a kiss, soft lips meeting the lovely touch of Saiko's own. It was sweet, filled with passion, and meant to prove a point. That no matter what happened, no matter what tried to tear them apart, they would remain together and fight. No being could tear them apart, not Neoveta, not Azure, not even Mana herself. When one would fall, the other would lift them up, and if both were to fall, they'd be together forever in the afterlife. Ash's hands slowly reached outwards for her lover's, fingers aiming to interlace with one another to hold them tight, their warm touch shared between the two.

The kiss was held for as long as possible, but one Neo began to speak, the Iramasha slowly pulled away. Longing eyes were forced to part for just a moment in order to give the Asthavon the attention she deserved. Ash remained silent, staring forwards as his chest felt heavy, and his very soul felt strained. The only reason he was able to still stand firm was because Saiko was at his side, and loved him as much as he loved her. At this point... he wouldn't mind dying for her, even if she went back to her destructive antics. As long as she would end up happy, Ash could be happy. She remained silent, listening to every syllable that Neoveta had to utter past her lips... it took Ash everything within her to not scream and shout and burst with joy, as the atmosphere still was tense and made things a bit awkward.

Once everything was said by Neoveta, the smile upon Ash's lips could finally form, though there was something else that began to form. Sorrow. Sadness within his heart, not for Saiko, not for himself, but for Neoveta. Would it be okay...? Something seemed wrong, something seemed to still be bothering the demon, but what could Ash do? She was grateful for everything that had happened, overjoyed at the fact that things were going to be okay again, things were going to be great, things would finally be able to go upwards, but something still nagged at the back of her mind. There was something else, something that needed to be done. But what? Just what needed to be done? Ash was fine with the warnings, they planned on not causing any harm and being as supportive to Saiko as possible... but there was something still there.

The kindness in her heart that led them to yearn after Saiko.

As the demon turned her back and began to walk away, Ash took a step forwards. They were nervous, scared, frightened... but they lived to see the best in people, to get the best result possible, to make things as great as possible. A single hand slipped away from Saiko, one remaining in her grasp as he tried to tug her along. If she refused to move with him, then he would remain by her side, but if not, then he would try something risky. Neoveta could feel something, something eldritch, something not natural... yet something caring amidst all of it. The Iramasha didn't want to surprise the demon, so just enoguh of his energy reached outwards so that she could sense him easily approaching.

If allowed too, her free hand would attempt to gently place itself upon Neoveta's shoulder. There was no intent of harm or distrust, no, there was only intent of trying to help. Ash could be risking everything with this, but perhaps it could bring forth a better ending to their tale.

"You're not a monster, nor are any demons. You all are beautiful beings, as is anything else that can feel, act, and think. I'll never leave Saiko, and I'll handle anything that could come our way as best as I can, but... there's something else. Miss Asthavon, I... I'm sorry for being nervous. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for making you come here. I'm sorry for making you worry. I'm sorry for making you doubt Saiko for a bit. I..."

The Iramasha seemed to be choking up a bit, trying to bring back tears. With all that had begun to happen, their mind was starting to shatter and break under the pressure, wanting to make the fairly young being cry their eyes out. Now wasn't the time for that, now was the time to speak, to try and get their message across. No more falling down and crying, it was time to improve upon what she could do.

"I don't hate you. I don't want to hate you. I don't want to hate any demons or humans or iramasha or arrancar. I... if you give me permission, I want to love you as family, as you love Saiko, and Saiko loves you. If anything happens, it is entirely my fault. All you wanted to do was what was best for demons, that became obvious after spending a bit more time learning rather than following. You just want to love all that you can for your people, and I want to share whatever love that isn't taken by Saiko with the world. I... I-I'm sorry, p-please don't be mad. Is there anything... Anything I could do to make things better? I don't want this to be rocky, I don't want this union to be looked upon as something not natural yet tolerated. I want it to be loved, and I'll work as hard as I can for it. If you need me to be a healer... I-I'll do it, just please... please tell me if it'll help at all."

The girl was next to tears. They were trying to pour out their heart, though their mind wasn't comprehending everything. The moving words they gave before soon turned into struggled whispers and groans. Their eyes became watery, as their body shook just slightly. They meant everything they said. They never wanted to hurt anyone or cause trouble, only to help. Race didn't matter, as long as people were happy in the end.

God. Ash felt as if they might have ruined everything by doing this... but she needed to try. She needed to see if maybe they can try to get the best ending out of them all, one that involved as much peace between them as possible. It is better to love your neighbor than to hate them, it takes so much less work to do it that way.