NOT EDITED

Her heart was beating fast, too fast in her opinion. Heart in her throat, and throat burning she pushed herself to run faster down the hill towards the school. Jonah and Tova were right in front of her, while Raven was to Ava's left, Tempest wasn't in her view, she wanted to stop, see if she was anywhere near, but the fear, the memories of Kaden flashed before her and she couldn't stop running. She didn't want to relive it again. They were dodging trees and rocks, leaping over fallen logs as fast as they could. Ava could hear the snarls and growls from the thing behind them, it wasn't letting up on the chase. It dug its claws into the soil, ruining the forestry around it, clawing at the trees as it pushed itself forward. They broke out of the treeline, darting straight for the dorm rooms, where everything seemed dead, not surprising as it was well early in the morning. Ava knew they wouldn't get any help there and instead darted straight for the main building, yelling for the others to follow suit. Guiding the beast straight into the hands of instructor Blake, who seemed to have been patrolling the school. He immediatley lept to action seeing the students run with everything they had towards them. Pulling his sword out he ran towards the beast, pushing the kids out of his way. Ava caught her foot on a rock, stumbling to the ground head first. She took in deep, ragged breaths, trying to calm her racing heart. The fall hurt, but she couldn't help the feeling of relief that shot through her finally resting. Even though she was stiff, ready to leap back up at any second, it was still a comfort not running. Though, she didn't stay there for long, getting back onto her feet to make sure the rest of the group was okay. Around her she saw everyone, bar Tempest. Blake was battling the thing and Ava felt the need to help, however without a weapon she was practically useless against the otherworldy thing. That was until she had an idea, distract the beast.

Ava ran towards Jonah and Tova, telling them to spread out around the beast, and make sounds on her signal. Raven was still lying down when Ava approached her, tired and sore, out of breathe.

"Raven, we gotta help Blake." Ava held out her hand for the taller girl to grab onto, which she gladly took. Ava let Raven catch her breathe for a split second before ushering her to the opposite side of Jonah. She wasn't sure if the plan would work, all she hoped for was a second of distraction for Blake to hit a final blow. Though as she ran to face the beast, it had already overpowered Blake, leaning over him as it snarled and thrashed against Blake's sword. She knew he wouldn't be able to hold out for much longer, so without a second thought, she yelled, "now!" Setting off a chain reactions of screams and shouts, taunts and hollers. It's head twitched, but not enough of a distraction for Blake to get back up. Ava knew, without help Blake would be done for it, the beast was clearly too strong.

She took in a deep breath, readying herself. Then the next moment she was running towards the beast, pouncing straight at it, knocking it over onto its side with a thud. It's form was solid, the black goo, that the beast seemingly was made of, had absorbed the hit, barely phased as it snarled. She landed next to it, but was too slow to get out of its way as it swiped its claws at her, slicing down her back. She let out a scream, feeling her body recoil and fly back down to the ground as her back burned. All she could hear were screams and shouts around her before the world went dark.

The world around her was dark, but not quiet, Ava could hear the whispers of people around her, the fast footsteps that went past her from time to time. And the pain, a searing pain in her back that seemed to snake itself around her whole body. She remembered what had happened, how and why. It all came back in a flash, the group sitting around a magic fire, drinking and laughing, and then they were running, so fast through the forest. She remembered Blake as he struggled beneath the beast. And the beast, the thing that looked like death itself, a tall dark beast with shadows surrounding it, its yellow teeth with white foam mixed with saliva dripping down it, decaying the ground beneath it. It was like nothing Ava had heard or read about.

"What if she never wakes up!?" Ava heard someone yell, no longer whispering next to her. She opened her eyes, the world going from a pitch black to a bright white in seconds. Scrunching her face and squinting her eyes, she scanned the room, only to find Raven, Tova and Jonah all sitting on a bed next to hers. Tova was the first to notice Ava, leaping to her feet to give Ava an awkward hug as she laid still on the bed. "oh god you're awake!" Tova said, tightening her hold on Ava.

"I am, did I miss something?" Ava chuckled, positioning herself in a sitting position when Tova finally let go.

"Other than that thing shrieking and bursting into ash and an earful from Blake, not much." Jonah was the next to speak, standing at the edge of her bed with a small smile. He looked relieved as if he already cared after barely knowing her for twenty-four hours. As if he knew what she was thinking he chuckled, "I was worried about you." He placed a hand on her leg, giving a squeeze of comfort. She smiled at him.

"Are you alright?" Raven questioned, still sitting on the opposite bed. She had masked her feelings well, her lips stretched into a thin line.

"My back has been better, other than that I'm peachy." Ava said with a lopsided grin, trying to ease the room. The feeling of death was suffocating.

"I'll get the nurse," Jonah said before disappearing.

"Where's Tempest?" Ava questioned, noticing the blonde was nowhere to be seen. The sullen looks on the other girls' faces only made Ava panic. "Is she alright?"

"She never made it back, Blake has sent a search party for her, she can't be dead, the beast followed us." Tova assured, smiling slightly. "Try not to worry, they'll find her soon." Ava nodded, she trusted the faculty, they'd find the missing girl. Though deep down, she berated herself for letting fear take over, she could've stopped, made sure Tempest was following. Instead she had just ran, without a glance behind her.

"Do you remember anything?" Raven questioned after a moment of silence, a look of fear flashed across her face before she masked it again, why Ava didn't know. But she had her guesses.

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"I remember us having fun, then running, then Blake..." She trailed off, flexing her fingers. "Is he alright?"

"Fuck Ava, you saved his life for crying out loud, he's absolutely fine." Tova wasn't one to swear, so it caught Ava off guard, and so did the statement.

"So it worked?" She questioned, silently praising herself for saving an instructor, she would never let him live that down.

"If you mean throwing yourself at an unknown foe, essentially risking your life, worked then yeah, it worked." Raven scoffed, either not pleased that Ava had done it, or angry she wasn't the one who saved Blake. It was always a competition with her.

Ava nodded, in no mood to continue conversation with the girls. It didn't take long before Jonah was back with a nurse, who introduced herself as Miss Ophelia. A small woman, dressed in a dark red and black outfit. Her dark hair was tied in a bun on her head, and she held a noteboard in her hands.

"Well, look who's finally awake," were her first words, smiling as she scribbled down some notes.

"Was I out for long?" Ava questioned, watching the nurse usher her friends away, they left with a wave.

"Around twelve hours, it's nearing night now." Miss Ophelia responded, gesturing for Ava to turn her back towards her. Ava did as she was told. "This might hurt."

"Already stings like a mother." Ava bit back as Ophelia pushed her top up her back and removed whatever bandage she wore. It felt as if the fire was reignited as it got fresh air, forcing Ava to bite down onto her lip to stop the scream from escaping. The nurse gently touched her back in different areas, humming as she did. It wasn't until Ophelia yelled for another nurse that Ava started panicking slightly. Was the wound worse than she thought, sure, it felt as if her body was on fire, and the pain in her back was a constant sledgehammer, but was it really that bad? Apparently it was as she heard the nurses behind her whisper, each taking a turn at poking her back.

"How bad is it?" Ava turned to face the nurses, wanting answers immediately. They stared at her for a moment, taking their time to form words.

"We'll have to get a healer on this, it's no normal wound." The new nurse said, noticing Ava's glare and need for a direct answer.

"Okay, when will they be here then? I have classes and a team to lead." Ava huffed, crossing her arms, though she didn't stay in that position for long, the pain worsening, so she opted to rest her hands in her lap instead.

"We'll call for one immediately," and with that, the other nurse left, leaving Ophelia to put a new bandage on her back wound alone. She was careful, but fast, leaving as soon as she was finished after scribbling some more notes down on her notes. Ava laid back down, after some shuffling trying to get comfortable, she fell into a sleep, one filled with white eyes and gnashing yellow fangs.

Hours later Ava was awakened by an unfamiliar man, who quickly introduced himself as Alcott, a healing mage. As soon as he had heard from the nurses about the unusual case, he had come as soon as he could, more than intrigued to explore the wound. Though he wanted nothing else than to heal the patient, he also wanted to study the wound. Two gashes on Ava's back stood proud, sticking out, a dark red colour. Mixed in with it was a black swirl, seeming as though it was alive, it recoiled whenever something was placed near it. Further intriguing the young mage.

"I'm going to see if I can siphon the black energy out of your wound so we can properly heal you," his voice was soft, with an underlying tone of sterness. Ava only nodded, sitting at the edge of the bed, she grasped the linen, bracing herself. She assumed it would hurt, only because of a hunch, and her hunch had been correct. This time she couldn't keep her mouth shut, letting out a scream of agony. Ava thought she heard the mage whisper a 'I'm sorry', though she wasn't entirely sure if her head conjured it.

"Can I get some help!" She heard him yell, her vision dotting with black spots. "She losing conciousness." He yelled as someone held her up by the shoulders. As she felt her back burn, her body seemed to be fighting the mage, or the dark energy within her wound. She had no time to figure it out as her world went dark again and the nurse was left to support her entire weight.

Ava didn't wake for another couple of days, her body drained from healing her. She had been under constant observation, they feared she wouldn't make it, but she was a Senshi, she'd have to be murdered to give up. The search party for Tempest had continued while Ava was out cold, searching the entire Chesry Wood, the forest surrounding the Academy. The faculty had discussed the future with a new foe seemingly risen. They hardly thought it was the only one, so while most were out searching for the missing girl, others were tasked with seeking out more of the unknown beast. Everyone had come up short, the beasts, alike the girl, had all but vansihed. Disappeared into thin air it seemed.

The evening Ava finally woke, her body ached like no other, but the searing burns she had been experiencing previously had diminished into a miniscule flame. She glanced around the infirmary, it was dark and empty, no one around to notice she was awake and not dead. She didn't feel like laying still a second more, so after a groan of frustration, she sat herself up, her legs dangling off the edge as she braced herself, she was weak. She wasn't entirely sure she'd be able to hold herself up, but tried nonetheless. With a gentle slide of the bed, her bare feet met the cold stone floor beneath her. It wasn't comfortable against them, but she pushed through, allowing herself to gain her strength to hold herself up again.

It didn't take her long to start walking, slowly, out of the infirmary. It was eerily silent in the hallways, the sun was setting casting a warm orange glow through the windows. Ava didn't know where she was walking, she didn't have a set destination, she just walked. The walls were made of stone, so were the floors. A stark contrast to the dorms, that were made of wood, the Academy building assumed more of a castle like image. No torches were lit, so the only form of light was the setting sun through the window. She walked for a couple of minutes more, she took a left turn, finding herself at the kitchen, she almost wanted to laugh at herself, of course she'd unconsciously make her way there. Inside it was dark, like the rest of the building, however much to Ava's delight, a plate of ham sandwiches were left on the side counter, awaiting her arrival. Without a care, she grabbed the plate and made her way into the lounge room where she curled up on the sofa, munching away on the sandwiches. She had already finished them all, six in total, when she felt her eyelids become heavier with the second. Placing the pate on the floor beneath her, she sunk into the sofa, letting her body rest after her adventure.

Ava woke up only a few hours later due to a searing pain crawling up her spine. It felt as though it was pushing itself up to her head, aggressively burning as it did so. She let out a groan, clasping her head and neck, shutting her eyes harshly, trying to get the pain to stop. It didn't listen, instead continued it's way up her back, her neck and finally settling in the back of her head. She stood up abruptly, hands still clasped around her head, she tried to shake it away, only resulting in making herself dizzy. With a pained shriek, she fell to the ground, landing on her side, knocking herself unconcious in the process, or it was her body giving into the pain, that had now morphed into a cold chill, attaching itself to her every atom. Blending in with her DNA, seeking refuge in a body that did not want it.

But she was a perfect host after all, a strong one, exactly what it needed.