(A/N) I know it's been a while, but my college applications are essentially DONE! Huzzah for blessed free time! The long awaited addition has been written and posted, I only hope that you all still remember what's going on...Thanks for sticking with me xD R&R!

Disclaimer: The closest thing I have to owning ToS is a single wooden blade...It should be clear enough that I don't.

Chapter 25

The forest grew more and more wild- violent and feral in a viciously dying kind of way. The trees were wiry and the remaining leaves clung on to them with a sallow brown color as their frames trembled above in a terrible impression of a grisly canopy. Darkness seeped up from the cracked and bone-dry grasses as if it was leaching the life from the very air. It was a draining sensation that settled in the pit of the stomach like a desperate parasite, and Yuan suppressed a shiver as the air grew colder and his body strove to repress the sinister sapping of his energy.

It was exhausting to be this close to the Tree, a place Yuan had never once set foot so close to. The Sylvaranti army had aimed to retake the Holy Grounds an age ago, but it took so long to get to the continent by sea from the opposite coast of Sylvarant, that they could never circumvent the Tethe'allan blockade where the waters changed hands. Still, even at the heart of his enemy, Yuan had always pictured the Holy Grounds like a paradise. The travesty of that picture was painted in harsh, ugly, and jagged strokes around him.

The only thing he could sense was death and it made his gut churn with nausea. The few living beings around him felt like warm flames in the midst of a freezing winter, and he clung to the sensation like a lifeline. At least something was capable of living in this realm of death and decay.

"How are we to find the proper stone once we reach a crater site?" Yuan said in order to break the suffocating quiet. If they didn't talk he would surely start to believe that they were dying as well.

"To be honest, I was just thinking about that." Xilia muttered softly from behind him. "Usually I'd bring an instrument of sorts and take samples, but that's out of the question right now. I can't sense mana, but I would conjecture that it would feel different to someone who can- its composition is remarkably flexible regarding the surrounding mana. That's partly why we're looking for it." Yuan saw Kratos nod his head in agreement.

"Can you sense it?" Yuan asked him incredulously. If Kratos could, then why couldn't Yuan? Kratos shrugged half-heartedly as if to say 'maybe' and Yuan took a closer look at the Tethe'allan's gauntlet, as if he could see the Cruxis Crystal at work. It was something to augment the mana sensory abilities of a human, but it was another to elevate it above that of a half-elf. "Well, if you can, how close do you think we are?" Yuan wasn't sure how to take the vague gesture, but darkness was falling and he was getting restless.

Kratos raised an eyebrow and tilted his head to the side, clearly directing Yuan's attention forward. A short motion with his hand and Yuan understood. The ground slanted downward and the slender and unhealthy trees found the rockier and uneven terrain harder to take hold in, because they became few and far in between. They stood on the edge overlooking a deep and rough dome-like depression in the earth, spanning perhaps a mile or so across to even ground. Rock and dusty debris lay gathered at the center, where Yuan figured any rain or landslide had brought an onslaught of silty sediment.

It was definitely a crater, of that much Yuan was certain.

As they found the path of least resistance down, Yuan attempted to extend his senses to feel what Xilia was speaking about, but he couldn't pinpoint much with the big blot of interference that was the Great Tree. The finer points of many of his senses were dulled by the massive force, and he found the entire location increasingly distracting. He was itching to get out of there, but night was falling. Torn between the prospects of staying a night and the idea of traveling through it, Yuan felt his mouth tug into a frown. Either way he didn't like their situation. Everything about the Tree made it more dangerous.

"I think I get it." Mithos broke the absolute silence with an emotionless chirp. "I can feel it, too." His eyes were downcast and serious, but he still sped up slightly to where Kratos had inadvertently become the leader of the pack. The rocks jutted out in certain places, marring any smoothness in the crater with irregular dips and bends, but the path was not a difficult one. The boy's feet found their way without effort or hesitancy. Yuan's brow creased. Kratos had a Cruxis Crystal to enhance abilities, but if Mithos could sense it, then he should be able to as well. He was saved from commenting when Martel spoke out.

"Perhaps your mana was strengthened from Volt," she began thoughtfully, "because I cannot feel whatever it is that you two can." Mithos didn't answer, but remained ponderously quiet. Yuan felt a little better about it, though. His thoughts were broken off as they came upon the middle of the depression, seen by the leveled out ground and accumulation of debris. Picking their way around some rubble, Yuan's eye caught up ahead.

"That must be it." Everyone looked up to see an enormous stone jutting out of the ground like an unchangeable relic. Though it must've run deep into the ground, the oblong rock was wide and uneven, passing a good twenty feet over their heads and easily that same distance in diameter. It's texture was grainy, like sandstone, but it didn't seem to have weathered much at all.

"I must say, I didn't expect it to be so large." Xilia ran her fingertips gingerly along the edge. Yuan prodded it with the hard leather edge of his boot.

"It seems as though it's pretty solid. I can't imagine reentry would do something we can't to break this up." Martel clanged her metal staff hard against the unforgiving stone, and sparks flew. "I don't think we can break anything off of it." She sighed softly. She was right, Yuan noted that not the smallest scuff or dent was visible in the perfect surface from her attempt.

"That makes this a lot harder." He agreed, sizing up the rock for any weak spots. "How much of it do we need?" Xilia rested her hand on her chin in thought, eyes darting about the structure behind her glasses.

"I'd think anything small would do. It's in such concentration that it would equal the amount in any elf's bloodstream alive today. Pure Aionis is rare, but I have no doubt this was certainly a part of Derris Kharlan before it came crashing down." Her manner of speaking made sense to Yuan, but he cocked his head to the side when a thought crossed his mind he hadn't considered.

"How exactly are we going to get a rock into his system?" Yuan saw Kratos stop and look sharply up in what may have been curiosity. Expecting an answer, they both had their attention fixed on the Tethe'allan researcher.

"Well, the simplest way would be to ingest it." Yuan's brow creased, and his gaze darted to examine Kratos. The man looked caught between skeptical and opposed. Even under the unruly mess of auburn hair, Yuan could see his eyes flashing in challenge. 'You want me to eat a rock?' his expression read clearly for once, Yuan had to check his laugh before it bubbled out. Mithos only exacerbated the situation.

"You want him to swallow it?" The blonde boy crossed his arms, unintentionally mirroring Kratos' form. Xilia, as always, was unfazed by each of their unconvinced objections.

"It is the easiest way, aside from an injection, that it might be absorbed by his mana." Before the suggestion had left Yuan's lips, Xilia shut it down, "-and an injection is out of the question when I can't fathom any way we could break this rock, let alone crush it to powder. Also, because of how nearly indestructible it seems, I doubt stomach acid would have much of a disastrous effect on it- it wouldn't travel past the stomach, then."

Begrudgingly, Yuan had to admit it was the only option. Even a far off one at that, for all he knew, they wouldn't be able to scrape off any piece small enough to use. Kratos was ahead of him, with that thought, because he handed him a slip of paper.

'I suppose we'll have to end up foolishly attacking a stone? I don't sense any smaller pieces nearby.' His expression was resigned and annoyed all at once. Yuan snorted at their situation and summoned his butterfly blade with a flash of green light.

"I guess we will." He agreed and hammered his blade against the rock, putting as much mana behind the strike as he could. Unfortunately, the blade deflected off uselessly. Martel, Xilia, and Mithos all looked at him in astonishment. Regardless of their disbelief, he began chanting a simple grave spell in an attempt to split the gigantic thing down the middle. The intricate glyph spun into existence at his feet and began to glow with mana, before it froze and dimmed. Yuan slumped in disappointment.

"My earth spells won't work on it. The ground is far too deep below for me to call upon it. The rock must go down for quite a ways, and it doesn't respond to my magic in the slightest." Yuan scratched his head in thought. Wind wouldn't do well, same to fire; water and ice might be able to naturally degrade the surface, but it had lasted so long subject to those elements that Yuan doubted their success. Mithos hummed to his left.

"What about Lightning style magic?" The boy suggested, stretching his arms and pulling out his kendama. Lightning was Kratos' specialty, though, and the Tethe'allan held out a hand to call upon it before Mithos even had a chance to utter his spell. Arcing out of the darkening sky, the flash was brilliant and deafening, but the stone seemed resolute and frustratingly unscathed.

"Could you maybe call upon Volt to try?" Martel suggested with unconcealed anticipation. Mithos seemed to think for a moment before he filled the weighty pause with words.

"You want me to attempt to contact a Summon Spirit- a really strong and scary one- to see if he can help us break a rock? Doesn't that appear a little too trifling?" Yuan had to agree when he put it in those terms; there was a very small chance of Volt helping them and an infinitely higher one of them getting drawn into another battle.

"Well, what other options do we have?" Martel reasoned patiently, "We were meant to heal Kratos before returning to spread news to Meltokio. I would rather not return to this place afterwards." Yuan sighed. Her logic was just as sound and Mithos, skeptical as he was, looked somewhat brought in by his sister's argument.

"I'm not sure how to summon him, either." Mithos sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck and dropped his eyes to the ground. Yuan was distracted by a tap on his shoulder and accompanying script from Kratos.

"From what was spoken, it seemed that you merely have to concentrate and call upon him." He read aloud. Martel nodded appreciatively.

"I don't see any harm in trying." she added with an encouraging smile, and Yuan's mind was filled suddenly with how perfectly genuine that smile was. It had the power to transform her sullen, driven demeanor into one undeniably radiant and contagious at that.

"I'm not sure how effective it will be," Xilia conjectured, "considering the rock is a ground for electricity in itself, but the power of such a being might still do the trick." Nodding half-heartedly to the researcher, Mithos let out a shaky breath and smoothed out his simple tunic. His eyes fluttered shut as he focused, and Yuan could sense the air stirring with the boy's mana. Cerulean eyes snapped open.

"I call upon thee, Volt!" The energy rising in the halfling was unmistakably the same signature they had faced in the archaic temple. Sizzling and uneasy, it felt cautious to surface, but had all the intensity of a fierce thunderstorm. When Mithos began to flicker with a purplish light, it was all the more impressive and chaotic in the dusky evening.

The mana drew from Mithos himself, but also rose from the dying earth beneath them, condensing into the single entity that was the Summon Spirit. The flickering purple orb hissed and spat sparks of mana.

"What do you require, Summoner?" the low drawl was like white noise, barely understandable and fringed with sound like static. Mithos was white as a sheet, easily seen even in the darkness, but to the boy's credit his voice was strong and had no hint of fear.

"We need you to smash this elven stone in order to restore our friend. We found no way to break a piece off, and your power would be of great assistance." His tone direct, yet still respectful, Yuan found no fault with Mithos' approach. However, the glowing red orbs of Volt were eternally menacing, and he could not read if the request was met with scorn or acquiescence. Volt's presence was dark and dangerous, and his reply was even slower than before.

"Very well."

Yuan blinked after deciphering the deep rumble. That was it? Volt was evidently of few words, because before any of them could formulate an acceptable response, the now dark sky was lit with a brilliant strike of lightning- fast and wickedly thick with the Spirit's mana. The crack was deafening, and the Aionis mass blasted apart from the center out. In a moment's time it was as if a massive axe had been drawn across the top with enough force to splinter the stone like the chopping of firewood.

Rocky debris cracked and bounced off of the trunks and stones littering the center of the crater. Just as quickly, Volt's presence began to fade away. Mithos looked shell-shocked at the display and seemed to remember something right before Volt had completely vanished.

"Uh, thanks." He had regained his color and the Spirit mumbled an inarticulate reply. Yuan figured it was something akin to one of Kratos' 'Hn's. Soon they were left in quiet, near-darkness and nobody was inclined to speak. Dark and deep shadows were cast about the risen ground above them, but in the middle of the crater, the shade was like a film covering everything.

Martel kneeled down to examine the fragments of Aionis lying about- several pieces smaller than a fist were scattered around her and the viciously jagged fault through the rock stood a testament to Volt's power. Her fingers closed around a solid piece, no larger than the tip of a finger and relatively smooth apart from a straight break on one side.

"Will this do?" She held up the scrap to Xilia.

"I think it might," the researcher nodded as it was prodded and examined delicately.

Yuan risked a glance at Kratos. The man had been painfully stoic- his mouth pressed into a thin line and his eyes were steely and closed off in the darkness. Yuan had no clue as to the thoughts that beset him. Kratos' symptoms should be shortly cleared up, Yuan convinced himself. He hated the uncomfortable quiet between them, and he needed his questions answered verbally to catch his tone and underlying meaning. Because Kratos was already of few words, each one was worth more- and written responses grated Yuan's nerves in a new way. He'd lost an outlet to view his companion that he hadn't even properly recognized before. Often he worried for what Kratos wasn't telling him, but his wellbeing had never come into question so regularly as it had these past weeks. The situation was excruciatingly worrisome, and Yuan's sleep was suffering.

The thought of sleeping, though, caused his stomach to churn- Kratos could not sleep at all. His anger at the injustice of it was assuaged by the thought that it might be fixed presently.

Indeed, Xilia had properly cleaned the stone and gestured for Kratos to come near.

"It'd be best if we did this before nightfall to allow proper rest time. Then we could journey to the coast in the morning." A curt and business-like nod from the swordsman spurned Xilia on as she held up one of their canteens of water.

"This is really all I've got to help you swallow it- though it is small enough that you shouldn't choke." The corner of Kratos' mouth twitched up as he received the canteen, and Yuan could hardly suppress his own snort of amusement. Kratos' ability to find humor in the irony of his own situation was endearingly self-deprecating. In any other circumstance, swallowing a stone would be preposterous. Mithos looked at them both strangely- possibly in confusion- before he understood and hid his smile behind his hand. Xilia, oblivious as she was, remained on task and handed Kratos the Aionis fragment.

Swiftly, and without warning or caution, Kratos brought it to his mouth and tipped his head back mechanically. It was like taking medicine, Yuan supposed. It was soon followed by a long draught of water and Yuan found his breath catch in his throat. A weird, almost pained expression had danced across the swordsman's features before he contained it in a short grimace. Sensing his mana, Yuan could detect the violent change roiling inside the Tethe'allan.

It fought to either accept or reject the odd mana he had ingested.

Kratos swayed slightly for a moment and Yuan instinctively steadied him with a hand. Eyes hazy and out of focus, Kratos was besieged with all of the senses he had forgotten.

Everything was assaulting- the wind on his face sent a shiver across his skin and the coolness of the air was almost biting. It was if the exploits of the past few days were finally taken notice of, because his muscles felt weighed down and weary in comparison to the numbness he'd grown accustomed to. There was so much of it that he felt unsteady and vulnerable- weak even. As the ground threatened to tilt under his feet he leaned heavily on a nearby tree trunk. Absently, he noted the feeling of a warm hand on his shoulder, warm being the emphasis. Despite it only being a couple weeks since losing touch with his surroundings, the sensations felt ancient and alien.

"Did it work?" He heard Martel speak so softly it might've been a whisper. Only then did he remember his voice.

"I believe so." A collective exhale of relief broke free from most of the party, himself included. Even though it had neglected for a while, his voice felt unchanged and not cracked with disuse. Yuan squeezed his shoulder once.

"Welcome back to the land of the living!" He congratulated cheerfully. However, the swordsman's lack of reply dimmed his relief. "Are you okay?" He questioned when he heard the other's breath hitch. Kratos hummed in reply.

"It's just a bit overwhelming." But the brief sensory overflow dulled down and he could compose himself a bit more. Standing straight and abandoning the supporting tree, Kratos was all formality once again.

"I owe you all my recovery, and thank you for the troubles you have taken." He inclined his head to the two halfling siblings and the researcher. He felt incredibly tired all of a sudden, but he did not allow himself to be taken in by the prospect. Resting his hand on his hilt, though, he was surprisingly reminded of the near ancient injury he had sustained that brought on the trip to Tethe'alla. It was not a sharp pain, but it was a dry and tense feeling across his midsection. Despite how inconvenient it might seem, pain was pain- and it was better to feel it in warning than regret ignorance after far worse befell him because of it. Overall, he was in much greater spirits if not disturbingly exhausted.

"We owed you," Martel reasoned with a smile, "and it appears our paths should remain crossed until we warn Meltokio of the disappearance of the people of Yggdrasil as well as the cause." Her smile sunk into a scowl at that thought. At this, Kratos shifted slightly and gave another glance to their surroundings.

"Speaking of which, though it is not wise for us to stay the night this close to the Tree, I see no timely alternative. Surely monsters must thrive upon the leaching of mana in the region. It would be treacherous at best to attempt to travel through the night." Upon further thought, Kratos wasn't even sure if he was capable of staying awake for much longer. All appeared in agreement on setting up a defensible camp and taking turns at watch, so he was spared from the tedious explanation. Absently, he noticed Yuan giving him a pointed stare in question.

"Are you sure we can accompany them to Meltokio? I hear it's been much changed since our last visit." The halfling muttered darkly, and Kratos saw his problem. Mithos looked upon them with interest, but their conversation was going to be rather oblique.

"I see no reason to deter our travel there that might be weighty enough to counter our purpose in going." Kratos raised an eyebrow, recognizing once again how much faster it was to speak than write. Yuan was still uncomfortable with the issue, and Kratos realized it was likely because he was born and bred Sylvaranti. A Tethe'allan capital would seem daunting to approach more than once in his career. Another part may have been concern for himself, but Kratos had long felt the guilt accompanying his father's death. He owed Nyx an explanation, and if the chance ever arose, he would not hide from it. Though Yuan's concern was well placed, it was unnecessary. Mithos slid closer to them and stretched tiredly.

"When was the last time you've been to Meltokio? I went last year with Martel, it's big isn't it?" Despite his obvious sleepiness, Mithos had become suddenly chatty, and Kratos had no idea what could be the cause of it. The boy's eyes were steadily fixed on him, though, so against his better judgment, he gave an honest answer.

"We have not been for a little over five years- when we last saw Xilia, to be exact." It looked as if the boy might respond, but Xilia pushed up her glasses and her mouth quirked up in fondness at the memory.

"Yes, he was much younger then- polite but not talkative in the least." Mithos tilted his head to the side.

"How old was he then?" He asked the researcher, possibly supposing that Kratos would not answer anything personal. Admittedly, though, Kratos thought he wouldn't have, so the redirect was well placed.

"Hm, hard to tell, but he couldn't have been more than fifteen. Not too much older than you, actually." Mithos was somehow excited by that, but Xilia wasn't finished, "He was much taller, though." She finished with a short laugh at the downtrodden expression that had befallen Mithos before going to assist Martel with the firewood. Face scrunched up in a frown, Mithos turned back to the soldiers.

"It's not like I'm short or anything." He muttered, and Kratos saw Yuan's face split into a grin.

"Of course not," the Sylvaranti was still undeniably cheerful, and even bothered to pat the boy on the shoulder. Mithos' eyes shot up challengingly, though.

"Don't patronize me!" Kratos rolled his eyes while the two began to bicker. Why didn't Yuan act his age? He moved to assist the others, lighting the fire with a short spell without being asked.

"I'll take the first watch." He stated calmly, relishing in the delightful heat that rolled of the flames. Flexing his fingers, to free them from the cold, he was about to draw his blade from the sheath, but was halted by a suddenly serious Yuan.

"Ha, don't even try it. I'll bet you're so tired you can barely keep your eyes open." At the narrowing of aforementioned eyes, Yuan continued, "I can see it, Kratos. You're exhausted, for good reason too. Sleep. I'll take the first watch." Kratos' scowl deepened.

"Who's patronizing whom, now?" He offered no other resistance, though, before moving from what would've been the perfect place to stand watch on a raised stone. Yuan was right, he was tired, but he hated that he was right about it. Yuan chuckled behind him- poking fun at something to do with 'who's' and 'whom's', but he was far from listening now. Kratos found himself leaning with his back against a tree trunk, and more comfortable than he thought was possible in such a situation. Sleep beckoned like a blanket, and he found himself drifting for the first time in a long time.

It was bliss.

(A/N) I'm ready for these next chapters, I have great stuff planned. But, if it's been too long since you last read what's been happening, I suggest re reading it, because I plan on tying in several past elements with the trip to Meltokio- but I promise some excitement! Hope you enjoyed, and sorry for the lateness! Thanks for reading!