((Fufufufu! I wrote something! Gah~ I'm feeling really exited about this story again~ :D Yuan made a small reprise! Though we wont be hearing about him again for a while~ Though I really thing this particular fic will be drawing to a close soon. Though the story won't be over, the will certainly be some sort of sequel, though the next one will truly involve everyone. :3 Anyway~ please review or I will cry! See ya'all soon! Bye!

Oh! and I consulted a source and found that generals control tanks whereas, admirals control ships... So General Escott, is now Admiral Escott... Just though I'd mention that...))

The groan of strained metal shook the travelers awake. Whatever she lay on, pitched and rolled and Estelle felt for one terrifying moment that the whole of the world had been ripped in half and that she was left in the darkness between. But before she could even make a sound, a strong hand caught her wrist and she knew she was simply in the cabin of a human airship. It was really dark for some reason.

"Are you okay?"

Estelle flinched at that familiar voice in the dark. It had only been a short time ago that that voice had been raised at her in admonishment. Kratos had been so angry at her for going with those half elves, he said that they had meant to sell her into slavery. A shiver ran down the girl's spine at the thought, she remembered the web of harsh scars that had traveled across her own father's back and arms. She knew what they did to slaves. There had been a reason Dad had run away from human lands when elven lands had also threatened death. It was the same reason that so many half-elves made their homes in the woods of Yemmre, the forest offered a remote taste of freedom.

It all made sense, but she still couldn't see how it made sense in her own life. To everyone else, Kratos was her master and she his servant, they weren't friends and they had no reason to protect one another. While she was lucky enough to be owned by someone who did mean to protect her, she was still property to anyone else who looked upon her. She had said that aloud, but that was when Kratos had grown silent. "Better property than dead." he had said with desperate finality. Estelle knew that her companion really didn't think of her like that, but the very idea was so wrong that she didn't know what to think. The warring emotions had been fighting within her head until the moment she had drifted to sleep.

"Estelle?" The strong hand shook her arm, worry becoming more audible. The girl opened her mouth to reply, but found that she was all choked up. It took her a few tries to finally say something.

"I-I'm fine."

"Good." Were his only words, "Get up, it sounds like something's wrong with the ship." Shakily, Estelle let herself be pulled up. Without sight, the cold buzz of the ship's mana was even sharper. She tried to focus on something else before it started to make her head pound, but it was proving to be difficult. There was something desperate about the energy, she thought, like a bird trapped in a chimney. And surrounding it there was something more, something warm and endlessly strong. And Estelle realized that it wasn't the ship's energy that was desperate, it was this other energy. Cloaked and surrounded by the coldness of metal, being choked to death by the smoke of sin. Estelle heard a low whine and wondered where exactly Noishe was in the blackness.

Estelle's feet felt heavy as she was lead for a few steps. When her clumsy legs let her trip, she was immediately swept off the ground. Despite herself, she was comforted by the height, security and body heat of being carried. Kratos was still Kratos despite their social standing. Though, the young man wasn't much steadier in the dark than she had been. He lurched forward a few steps, as Estelle clung for dear life, and grasped around for something on the wall.

A mechanical whine filled the room as Kratos found the switch he had been looking for. With that whine, a fast-growing strip of light split the darkness revealing the sparsely lit landscape of the room.

Kratos took a split second to thank whatever gods there were that the window shade was not on the same circuit as the lights. The moon was soon pouring in, revealing the same gawdy room as before. Noishe seemed restless, still curled on the bed, but sharply watching his surroundings.

The floor beneath them rocked again and Kratos braced himself against the wall, holding onto Estelle tightly. He could finally see her face now, pinched and pale with fear as she looked out the window. The child glanced up at him and he inwardly cringed in shame. He had been so harsh with her before, telling her everything about human society and the life of the average half-elf. He hated to even think about those realities, it scared him more that he had once simply accepted them. But Estelle had to be cautioned against running away like that again and she had to be prepared for the way she would be treated once they reached a human city.

"Everything will be okay." He said, vainly trying to comfort the girl. She nodded in reply.

Kratos focused on not falling over, the ship was still rocking dangerously, the cause of the turbulence was unclear and it was too pitch black to enter the labyrinthine hallway. They were at the mercy of whatever had crippled the ship. Kratos leaned against the wall and hoped the problem would sort itself out.

"What's that!" The hushed but sharp question caught Kratos by surprise; Estelle was staring out the window, eyes wide. Kratos followed her gaze and had to suppress a gasp himself at the awesome sight that waited. No wonder the ship's engines were unsteady...

The large trunk dwarfed even the girth of the warship and the millions of branches that fanned out from that core only let the tiniest flecks of moonlight reach the ground below. Every branch was heavy with dewy green leaves. The Giant Tree Of Kharlan looked close enough to touch. Even Kratos' dull human senses could feel the immense, life-giving power that flowed from that very place to the rest of creation. This wasn't Efrell.

...

"Get these lights working or I'll box those pointy ears of yours till you've gone deaf!" Some mid level foreman barked.

I don't have pointy ears, you ignorant bastard... Yuan thought as he quietly sifted through the tangle of wires and fuses of the main power conduits. His own snark surprised him, before he had made a concerted effort to keep thoughts like that at bay, they would do nothing to keep him alive. But now his usual personality seemed like even more of a lie.

"Understood, sir." He said with a disingenuous smile, it was hard not to gag or bite his tongue. Furthermore, it was impossible to fix the lights as of now, how could that human not even feel that raw power coursing through the air? None of this technology was designed to withstand such staggering amounts of mana. Whose bright idea had it been to fly through the Holy Ground of Kharlan anyway? They should be shot...

An eerie glow started to bathe the room around him. Shit! The excess energy was discharging, that could lead to permanent damage! Under his breath Yuan muttered a spell to safely burn off the excess mana. The room went dark again and it created a few flickery, fire-like lights that drifted around the maintenance passageway.

"Hey! Stop fooling around!"

In what he thought to be the safety of the dark, Yuan indulged in one exasperated eye-roll. This idiot was worse than the usual foreman, at least that human seemed to understand that magitchnology involved magic. He fixed his face again and turned back to the human, but too late, he realized that the light of his own spell had betrayed him. He man was red in the face and staring down at him with a furious gaze.

"You insolent-" He seemed to want to elaborate, but wasn't nearly articulate enough, instead he made good on his a fore mentioned threats. The young half elf soon found himself laying on the cold ground, ears ringing and tasting his own blood.

"This one's no good!" He heard the same gravelly voice saying to another. "Take him downstairs and straighten him out!", and with that, he felt himself being roughly dragged away...

...

"It's so big~! And beautiful!" The little girl was pressed up against the glass, all fear forgotten in the shadow of the giant tree. "What's it called?" She looked back at Kratos with wonder in her eyes.

"That couldn't be anything but The Giant Tree of Kharlan..." Kratos replied, caught up in the same awe as his younger companion. Everyone knew about the world's source of life, but not many got to see the great tree within their lifetimes.

"Woooow!" She finally looked like an eight year old again as she stared out at the breathtaking scene. Kratos couldn't help but smile as he placed her back on the ground and let her look at the tree on her own. Though, the smile quickly faded as the ramifications of this flight sunk in. The Holy Ground of Kharlan was a dangerous place to use technology; even gradeschoolers knew that too much mana could be dangerous. Furthermore, Efrell was far back to the East and North. In order to be here, the flight path was already way off course.

Unfortunately, nothing could be done until the lights came back and he could find someone to ask. The rumors he had heard nagged at him as he sat in the thin light and watched Estelle gaze out the window. He clenched his fist, the last person earth he would ever rely on, was Admiral Escott.