As of right now, I've decided to try to wrap the story up in, including this chapter, about six more chapters. This is only a tentative schedule, and is almost certainly going to be subject to change, but this is where I stand for now. I hope to continue getting chapters out at this pace, perhaps even faster once Christmas break rolls around, but I fear the next chapter will be a week late as I've got about four papers and a bunch of finals due, and I'd rather not have a chapter hanging over my head as well, but we'll see.

On another note, what I intend to write after Paradox is finished is up on my profile, as well as a poll that I'd really appreciate some input on. I've got a few different ideas for what I want to write next, all Tales related, and I'm curious what my readers think. You have to suffer through reading it, so you may as well pick your poison. Like I said, I'll really appreciate what you have to say!

In the meantime, enjoy chapter 35.

…

The Gaoracchia Forrest was a maze of dark, twisting paths that led far out of the way, only to bring one circling back after hours of wandering. It was though it was ideally meant to exhaust the casual wanderer and discourage them from closer examination. It was really no wonder that both the Tower of Salvation and Mizuho were hidden within its depths. The forest was so vast that it surrounded several cliff-like mountains, and was filled with little-explored territory.

As such, it came as no surprise to Lloyd that, in their slow wandering, they were attacked not an hour into their Journey.

A small group of Papal Knights, clearly a scout of a larger group, gasped first in surprise, then in thrill at the sight of them. "We found them!" gasped their leader. The man was set apart from the group by the almost gaudy gold additions to the green papal symbols on his armor. "We found them! If we bring the Chosen back… Goddess this is gonna be good…" What little could be seen of the man's face curled into a greedy smirk. "Get 'em boys!"

Zelos snorted and tugged out his sword, "I'm just dying to see you try." The rest of the group took up their places behind the Chosen of Tethe'alla. Genis and Raine pulled Colette to the back with them while Lloyd, Presea, Zelos, and Sheena took to the frontlines. Mithos and Noishe alone were left scrambling; not only did both lack weapons, but they were unused to the group's style and were undernourished. After a moment of hesitation, Mithos grabbed Noishe and pulled him to the back, scowling.

"Stay behind me and don't do anything stupid, Mutt." Ignoring Noishe's insulted grumblings, the angel began muttering what sounded like an absolutely terrifying spell. Raine and Genis followed suit.

Lloyd managed to turn his attention back to his own battle in time to dodge a full-on axe strike from one of the men. While he was struggling to raise the heavy weapon again, Lloyd slipped around behind him and slashed at his armor, looking for a weak place. None was found, but he managed to knock the man onto his stomach, the handle of the axe denting the front of his bulky armor.

Not letting himself think, Lloyd flipped the man over and stabbed the knight at the center of his concave armor. The already warped metal gave easily and the man's death was almost instant. That was one down, four to go. Just as Lloyd thought it, a burst of light mana sent another soldier stumbling back, away from Presea, and to the ground, dead.

The other three men all stopped to stare in horror at their fallen comrades, giving Zelos and Sheena the opening they needed to finish off another, and Presea to slice of a fourth's legs. He screamed and toppled to the ground before he was silenced. The last man standing was the leader, who had wisely let his men surge forward while he hung back. Even as the group turned on him, he was already running back the way he had come, presumably to report to his superior.

"…we need to move, now," Raine commanded. "They'll be coming back with greater numbers. Let's take the path that goes east and hope for the best, we don't have time for more figuring than that." She was right, and they moved off into the woods. For almost half-an-hour, they moved as quickly as they could while making as little noise as possible. Finally though, Raine allowed them to slow.

"This should be far enough for now, but we should keep our ears open for them…" She hesitated and glanced back at the winded group. "…I have a question, though. Mithos, where did you learn that attack? It was incredibly powerful, and not something I'd expect from a half-elf boy from the slums." Suspicion riddled her voice and her eyes were narrowed.

Mithos hesitated a moment, first looking at the ground, then at Lloyd, before returning his eyes to the Professor. "I traveled with my elder sister for a long time before she was killed. She was a healer as well as a master of the usual sorts of light mana and she taught me much of what she knew." His explanation was perfect; it was not only reasonable, but also clearly touched something in Raine as she nodded silently and let the topic drop.

Zelos raised a perfect red eyebrow at the exchange, then shrugged and laughed. "Well, Martel only knows that we could use a good light-user or two in the Forest of Thieves." He conveniently missed the way Mithos flinched at his sister's name. "Sheena, you remember the stories, right? The thief who got away with a King's ransom and buried it somewhere in this forest. Then he left to wait out a few years until all the hype died down and he could collect his treasure. 'Cept he never came back: the guards got him and killed him before he could collect. Apparently, his partner rotted him out. Few weeks after his execution, the traitor was found dead in his bed. Wife didn't hear anyone sneak in, and she'd spent the whole night beside him. The next day, the first monsters started appearing in the forest again, and people started disappearing. Everyone who got too close just vanished!"

The adults of the group chuckled lightly, though some, like Mithos, found themselves more annoyed than amused. Genis, however, jumped slightly, but tried to cover it up, "T-that's so stupid, Zelos. Everyone knows that ghosts are just a dark-mana monster, there's absolutely no scientific evidence to support this stupid lost spirit stuff!"

"Souls are stronger than you'd think, Genis," Mithos said quietly from where he and Noishe were walking a bit apart from the group. Oddly, the canine Noishe walked along beside his humanoid counterpart as the latter gently scratched his ears.

Strangely, Lloyd realized as he wandered along the dark path, continuously glancing down to check that he wasn't about to stumble over a branch, this was the first time that Mithos had spoken directly to Genis. While they hadn't known each other more than twenty-four hours, it had taken much less time for them to become friends the first time the two boys had met. This was another number on the growing list of reasons that Lloyd wasn't entirely sure he could trust the former leader of Cruxis. It wasn't so much that he doubted the half-elf's story, but that he wasn't sure how much sanity Mithos had retained after seeing all of his closest friends murdered.

Genis glanced back at Mithos, his crystal eyes narrowed, "What do you know about souls? You're just a kid!"

Mithos met his gaze without emotion, "More than I'd like, actually. And—" His voice tapered out when he saw the glare Lloyd was sending his way. If he didn't give everything away, than he would paint a very incorrect picture of who he was, and that was the last thing Lloyd wanted to deal with. "…and it's beside the point."

When the group had fallen back into an awkward silence, Lloyd heard Noishe whisper, "Great Origin he looks like Kratos when he does that!"

"You can't honestly be surprised," Mithos snapped back under his breath.

Lloyd looked away, wondering if he had been meant to hear the exchange, and if anyone else had heard it. In his quick twitch away, Lloyd caught sight of a figure appearing through the trees and he froze, his sword already in his hands and pointed at Regal's throat. "You again," he hissed. Despite the duke's open stance, it wasn't difficult for Lloyd to tense, ready to fight.

Regal raised his hands, wrists clamped tightly into handcuffs, above his head, "I mean you no harm, I merely wish to talk to that girl." He carefully nodded toward Presea, cautiously not allowing his hands to move. Some logical part of Lloyd wondered at why Regal had put his hands above his head in the first place: they were useless when he fought, and at the rate Lloyd was going, he was still open to attack if Regal decided to aim for anywhere below his stomach.

"What do you want with Presea?" Genis demanded, stepping protectively between the girl and the convict. "You tried to kill us before, why should we let you anywhere near her?" Around Genis, the rest of the group moved to protect the girl, and Lloyd saw Regal's face tense slightly, but other than this, the man gave no reaction.

"Her name is Presea, then… I only want to talk to her. And as for your other accusation, I had no intention of killing you, and I have no reason to now. I only had orders to bring the girl known as Colette Brunel to the Papal Knights." His face twisted in disgust as he spoke of the Knights.

Raine hesitated, "We're being perused by the Knights now; how do we know this isn't a ruse to slow us down?"

Something between annoyance and admiration flashed across Regal's face. "And what could I do to convince you I mean you no harm?"

"Get the hell out?" Zelos suggested innocently.

Lloyd sighed and lowered his sword, though he kept it in a better defensive position. "Two minutes, talk."

"But Lloyd-!" Genis cried in indignation.

"Two minutes Genis, if he does anything…" Lloyd mimed stabbing Regal through the middle. "He won't hurt her, trust me." Immediately, Lloyd regretted using that phrase as Genis' eyes darkened angrily. Muttering, the young half-elf stepped aside.

Regal moved forward, until he was standing before Presea who eyed him blankly. "What is your name…?" He asked softly, eyes flicking over her face.

It was a long moment before the girl responded, "Presea Combatir." Her words were so precise, so business-like, and so wrong coming out of such a young girl's mouth.

"Combatir…so I was right!" Regal murmured triumphantly to himself. "Presea, do you have an elder sister?"

This question took much longer to answer, as though she was dragging the memories up from some lost corner of her mind. "…no…" she shook her head, but some small light flickered behind her eyes. "Only a younger."

The duke's face fell as Presea fell silent again. "…perhaps she was a cousin then…" Regal muttered, and was about to ask another question when the distinctive clatter of armor echoed through the trees. Regal's face lost all color in the darkness of the forest. "No! No I didn't lead them here, I swear!" His words fell on deaf ears as Genis hurled a fireball at the prisoner.

Regal ducked under the fire, but Zelos was on top of him almost immediately, slamming the hilt of his sword into the man's head. "No one touches my hunnies and gets away with it, bitch."

There was a collective groan from the rest of the group, but Lloyd chuckled. "Good one Zelos. We don't have to fry him…but do you think he was telling the truth about not leading them here?"

Zelos shrugged, "How the hell should we know? Let's get the hell out of here before the Pope's men find us!"

"But we can't just leave him here! If he was telling the truth, he's dead!"

"We can't just lug him around! Ozette's still ages away!"

There were shouts now, and Lloyd felt his heartbeat quicken. "But-!"

"Lloyd, be realistic, we can't carry him to Ozette, and it's too dangerous to wake him up and take him along in case he is telling the truth! We'll move him to the bushes so that he's harder to find, but we cannot take him along!" Raine was trying to take control of the situation, but they were all jumping at the smallest sounds, expecting the Papal Knights to jump out and attack them at any moment.

"Or we could…" Sheena hesitated, then sighed, "…the Knights are too close for us to get to Ozette safely anyway, so…I guess I'll take you to Mizuho…" She looked utterly unsure of herself. Suddenly, Lloyd realized how little Sheena wanted to return to Mizuho. He hadn't imagined how a village that already disliked Sheena would react to her new appearance. "It's less than a mile, we can take him along as a prisoner."

He looked at her seriously, "If you don't want to, we don't have to."

While the majority of the group looked baffled, Sheena turned red and looked furious. "Of course I want to! I suggested it, and you really think I want to get caught! Let's just go already, somebody carry the big guy!" Before anyone could question her again, Sheena had turned on her heel and was storming toward Mizuho.

Lloyd carried Regal on his back off the trail behind Sheena and the others. The closer they got to Mizuho, the further behind the sounds of the soldiers became until even Lloyd's angelic hearing could no longer pick up their movements.

Mizuho was tucked between forest and mountain, and only a simple collection of wooden houses, small gardens, and shrines. The sentry guarding the gate looked up in shock as the group grew closer, and the shock turned to anger as he spotted Sheena leading the group. Despite the fear that Sheena must have felt, she walked forward purposely, not looking back. "Sheena!" called the man, "What are you thinking? Strangers aren't allowed in the village!"

"We're being perused by the Papal Knights, there was nowhere else we could go. I'll talk to Tiga, he'll understand…"

Orochi sighed, "…well, I can't stop you. Your friends will have to wait outside though."

"Of course."

The group was directed to a small, empty square in the middle of Mizuho. Lloyd carefully lowered Regal onto the dirt and rolled his shoulders: the man was heavy. "Well…Mizuho. Not what I expected to do today, I'll be honest." He plopped down beside Regal and Zelos joined him.

"I'll say. The ninja are super secretive. Your average Joe hasn't got a chance in a million of actually seeing this place!"

Noishe settled on Lloyd's other side, laughing, "Sweetie, we are not Joe." The ridiculousness of this statement had the rest of the group giggling lightly and Noishe grinned. "Mizuho's pretty though, isn't Mimi? Way better than Sybak!"

"You're from Sybak?" Raine jumped on the tidbit.

"What? No, it's just, that was the last place we were in and it's really…stony. All bricks and books. Mizuho's got wood and trees! That's the way to go, man!" When listening to the Protozoan prattle, it was obvious that he had been a dog for several thousand years. He was so…chipper and he seemed to practically be smelling the air.

Mithos sighed, "Noishe, shut up. No one thinks you're cute." The boy had planted his head in his hands, his fingertips sliding up to his blond hairline and he spoke to the ground more than the protozoan.

Zelos cocked his head to the side, eyeing the pair. "So, can I ask how you two know each other? I mean… you're kinda a weird couple. Or am I pushing it? We'll find everything out soon, so should I wait?" Zelos' voice said quite clearly that he had no intention of letting the question go unanswered.

Noishe smiled, "Oh, we've known each other forever. Mimi's, like, practically my best Bro's brother! We're gonna see him soon, and I can't wait!" He clapped childishly, looking about ready to bounce to his feet and begin skipping circles around the group.

"Who's your Bro?" Zelos quirked an eyebrow.

"You'll find that out later," Mithos snapped snidely. "Enough questions. Beside, your convict is waking up."

It was true, after almost half-an-hour, Regal was stirring. He raised his head with a groan and blinked groggily at them. "W-where am I…?" Gingerly, he shifted so that he was kneeling and facing Lloyd. "Where have you brought me?"

Lloyd glanced around at his friends, not sure if they were going to permit him to continue to play leader with trust as low as it was, but they all seemed to think that, as Lloyd had insisted on bringing the man, he was going to be the one to run the interview. "…you're in Mizuho. We brought you here after Zelos knocked you out. We weren't sure if you had really brought the soldiers to us or not, so we brought you with as our prisoner. You can't hurt us if you did lead them to us, and you're not hurt if you didn't. Win-win."

Regal blinked; Lloyd friendliness was apparently the last thing he had expected to find when he awoke. "And…who are you?" He studied Lloyd with sharp eyes, carefully taking in the boy's face before turning to examine the rest of the group.

"Lloyd Irving. Who're you, and why are you after Colette and how do you know Presea?" If his friends wanted answers, he could at least get them here.

"…I do not know Presea, we met for the first time in the Meltokio sewers, but…she merely looked like someone I once knew, and I wanted to confirm my suspicions. As for Colette…I was under orders to capture her and return her to the Pope. She is, I have been told, a threat to Tethe'alla. I did not think that bringing in a threat to the world could be too great a sin. I was not told that she was so young, so for that I will apologize."

Zelos snorted, "Then why the hell were you trying to kill the rest of us? Seriously, you could have at least tried to talk instead of just freaking attacking!" Despite his angry words, the Chosen of Tethe'alla was lounging back, almost as if he was enjoying this. His eyes, however, were slightly narrowed as he tried to place where he had seen Regal before.

The convict glared at Zelos, "You, too, have been called a threat to Tethe'alla. A Chosen who betrays his people is hardly deserving of mercy."

"What you've told us is that you work for the Pope," Raine said, bringing the point back around. "This would imply that you were working for the Papal Knights in the forest. Why should we allow you to live?" She was coldly logical, and Genis was nodding along with his sister's words.

Regal seemed to expand with anger, "I am many things, but I have never been a liar! When I met you in the forest, I had no idea that the Knights were there to begin with. As I said, I wanted to ask Presea if she was related to my…acquaintance. That is all."

Lloyd glanced around at the disbelieving faces of his friends, then to the empty eyes of Colette and Presea. "…" He knew what he wanted to say, but to convince the group…this couldn't be one more thing to add to their supposed "trust" in him. Noishe and Mithos were both only with them because Lloyd had insisted that they were trustworthy, but nothing about Regal's story checked out.

"…well, I suppose we could hand him over to Mizuho to knock out and drop off in Sybak or something," Zelos suggested. "If he's the Pope's man, they'll be glad to have him back, and really, what would they learn from this? I mean, Mizuho doesn't even really count as an ally yet, so they wouldn't even gain that. Course…nah, that's stupid."

Raine sighed, already knowing that Zelos was playing with them . "Out with it already, Zelos." She crossed her arms and glared down at the Chosen.

"Weeeeellll…" he drew out the word comically. "If he is the Pope's man, he could guarantee us safe passage through the forest in exchange for, say, his life when we get to Ozette, and if he's not, then we sneak and fight our way through like we'd have to anyway! If anything we gain two more hands…er, feet. Whatever."

The group looked at Zelos in shock: let this convict fight with them? What the hell was he thinking?

Lloyd grinned, "Sounds fool-proof to me! Let's go say hi to the ninja, stay the night here, we can get going in the morning, and be to Altessa's by tomorrow night!" They would probably even beat Yuan, Mithos, and Kratos to the dwarf's home, which would give Lloyd a little time to prepare. "Man the group's growing fast!"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Genis snapped, "Who the hell said you could make that decision? I say we vote. When Sheena gets back, we decide if he lives or we send him on or what. I'm not just going to follow you blindly! The last time we did that, we got them, and you still haven't explained!"

Zelos sneered, "Brat, this was my idea, not Bud's!"

"And you think I trust you? You've been on Lloyd's side from the beginning and you barely know him! Plus, you're a jackass, so I don't see why we should listen to your suggestions!"

All eyes were on Genis now, shocked and wide as the half-elf's face lit red with anger. His fists were, again, clenched at his sides and he was glaring from Lloyd to Zelos. Raine's hand gently rested on her brother's shoulder. "…Genis, that's enough. While I agree that we should take a vote, now is not the time to argue among ourselves…"

"That's just because you're going to be on his side! I know you are! You always are! I don't see why you trust him, he hasn't told us the truth yet and I'm sick of it! This is just one more thing that's going to threaten Colette and Presea and…and you. What else do you want me to do! If no one else is putting their foot down, then I will."

Lloyd swallowed, his breath catching in his throat as he tried to take in Genis' words. This was yet more proof that his friend hated him…and Lloyd was beginning to wonder if there was any way to fix his relationship with his best friend. He somehow doubted that the truth would do it. Not this truth, not after all this time. "Genis," he whispered finally, "I'm sorry… when Sheena gets back, we'll have the vote and…please…I'll explain everything soon, but…I just need a few more days…"

Genis snorted, "Yeah right. Fine, whatever, let's…let's deal with Mizuho first."

This was already arranged for them as Orochi appeared from nowhere a moment later. "Vice-Chief Tiga will see you now."

Tiga's living quarters were small, like much of the rest of the village, but it was filled with stuff. Everything from huge hand-painted masks to tea sets to what looked like a glowing sword was stored, stacked, and, in some cases, stuffed in the room. A large, open space had been cleared in the center of the room and Lloyd and the others, including Regal, settled themselves before Tiga. He was a small, pale man with messy black hair and a small goatee to match. His hair, eyes, and beard were all flecked with gray, and there were large bags under his eyes from overwork. Sheena sat just behind, her head tilted down and her hair covering her eyes.

"…so," Tiga began in soft tones, "Sheena tells me that you have intentions to help your friend and then… what? Beyond your immediate goals, what are you going to do with yourself? You have allies in the Renegades, and you seem to have found a following in Tethe'alla as well. But why? What is it for?"

No one answered, for they all had different goals. Finally, Lloyd met Tiga's eyes and said quite seriously, "I want to say "Save the worlds." I want to say that it's doable and that there must be some way to help both Tethe'alla and Sylvarant, but…right now, I don't know…" The room had gone silent; no one was even breathing.

The ninja eyed Lloyd, "But you clearly do not think you can say it; what is stopping you?"

"…we're having some issues right now," Lloyd said at last, and the sound of several sighs echoed around the room again. "Right now, I want to take one thing at a time and go see Altessa and try to help Colette and Presea. I don't know what'll happen from there." Because the future was all bent of whether or not Lloyd's friends believed him, or not, and helped him…or not.

"You are very bent on saving your friend, very loyal…" Tiga was disappointed. He had been hoping for more, Lloyd could see it in his eyes. He had been hoping for a hero to swoop in and rescue the worlds, and Lloyd had failed. It was obvious his group was falling apart, mutiny was clear in Genis' eyes, and they had no goal other than to help their friends. "I must regretfully inform you that I cannot afford to enter Mizuho into this war. It is yours to do with as you wish. You may stay the night, of course…"

Lloyd nodded, "Thank you… What about Sheena? If…if she wants to, she's welcome to continue traveling with us if you let her."

"…" Sheena didn't look up, "…as worried as I am about Colette and Presea, I know I have to stay with the Village…"

Tiga smiled slowly, "Sheena, officially, I cannot support this, however… If you wish to continue traveling with your friends, I cannot force you to remain. You are of age, I might remind you, and can choose what to do with yourself."

Sheena's brown eyes lit, "…I can stay with them? Really?" She finally looked up at the Vice-chief. "Thank you! Thank you Vice-chief!"

"Then you will leave in the morning. In the meantime, sleep well. I'll have food and rooms prepared."

…

Lloyd could hardly believe how badly his day had gone. Perhaps his only consolation was that Sheena wanted to stay with the group, but he sensed that it was not for his sake that she was there, but for Colette's.

"Let's get this over with," he called and all heads turned. "We vote whether to let Regal come with us or if we knock him out and drop him in the woods." Lloyd sighed. "All in favor of letting him come…?"

Lloyd and Zelos both put their hands up, followed by Noishe.

"Idiot, we're not allowed to vote," Mithos snapped. The protozoan's hand dropped.

With a jolt, Lloyd realized that the vote hung totally on Raine. Sheena was not going to be encouraged to bring Regal along, and Colette and Presea were in no shape to vote. All eyes were on her as Raine's own eyes closed, then, slowly, she raised her hand.

"WHAT?" Genis shrieked, "You're siding with Lloyd again?" The half-elf could see a loss on the horizon, and he was sorely bent against it. "What about Presea? Doesn't she get a vote?" A tie. Lloyd wasn't sure how to handle it, but he also couldn't deny Presea the option. "Presea, what do you want to do with Regal?"

Presea blinked, her blue eyes vague, but slowly sharpening. "…no threat detected," she intoned quietly, "and group's chances of surviving the forest increase by 10%. Allowing him to join us would be the logical choice."

Genis could not have been more horrified.

"Aww, that's my ladies! Going and sticking up for their Zelos!" The Chosen threw and arm around Raine's shoulders. "I love you; you know that, right?"

Furious, red-faced, and having just been humiliated, Genis spun on his heel and stormed away from the group.

…

Several hours later, the group was asleep, and Zelos plopped himself down next to Lloyd. They were playing Regal's "guard" for the first part of the evening, though the prisoner was as deeply asleep as the rest.

"…Zelos, can I ask you something?" Lloyd asked slowly.

The Chosen looked side-long at him, "Sure, don't see why not." He shrugged and slouched against the wall they had their backs against. "Shoot, bud."

"Why are you on my side? I'm making weird decisions that no one else trusts, I'm keeping secrets, but you're still on my side. You're suggesting all the things I agree with and you're…actually defending me. Why?" Since the Chosen had brushed away Gens' suggestion of Lloyd working for Cruxis, Lloyd had begun to wonder why the Chosen was helping him. "And don't give me any of your shit."

For once, the Chosen looked impressed. "…maybe I just like your taste. Or maybe I think you've got good reason for what you do. Or maybe I've got insider information. Can't you just be happy you've got someone on your side?"

Lloyd shook his head, "I'll believe insider information, but those first two are just stupid."

"Won't deny it. Fine, Bud, I do trust you. I don't think your friends Mimi and Noshy are dangerous…to us, and I've seen Regal before. He's a noble; we met when I was a kid and he wasn't a bad guy. He was put in prison 'cause he killed his girlfriend, but there were a lot of crazy rumors going around after that, and I heard… I heard she had an exsphere that went bad and she went all crazy and he had to kill her. He's not a bad guy, that I know.

"And as for trusting you…I saw the way you ran after Raine and Genis even after they lied to you. Anyone who's that good a friend isn't a complete bastard. You don't want to hurt them, or Colette, that's obvious. The brat's just too jaded to see it. Especially what with his sister and his girlfriend both being on your side and all." Zelos laughed. "You're too good a guy to be a bad guy, Bud."

Lloyd couldn't help but smile. It felt almost like old times, when he and Zelos had spent hours together joking around. Lloyd was the friend Zelos needed and Zelos was the relief Lloyd needed from being the "hero." For the first time in weeks, something felt right.

"Zelos…thanks… I won't let you down, I promise."

…

The forest was dark and quiet the next morning, but that was the way the group liked it. They were taking some of Mizuho's less-used paths; far from where the Papal Knights had almost caught them the evening before. Regal was walking willingly in the middle of the group while Raine and Sheena had dropped to the back of the group with Colette and Presea and Genis, Zelos, and Lloyd carefully guarded Regal. Mithos and Noishe were far off to the side, talking quietly.

"Ozette's just a little further on," Sheena called, "these paths are more direct than the others, so it's just a few more minutes."

The ninja was right; within the next ten minutes, the first tree house-like home appeared above them. The next was just a little ways beyond. The houses looked to be in disrepair, and Lloyd suspected that these were the homes of half-elves. Lloyd wondered if he were leading his friends into a trap; there was always the chance that the Papal Knights had gotten to Ozette first, or that with Kratos, Yuan, and Mithos having left the battle on Derris-Kharlan, Kvar had won and his Desians had set up an ambush. All the same, they trekked on and soon found themselves joining the main path, which was lit by lanterns even at midmorning.

Presea's eyes lit as they moved further into the village, "I…must go…" She started to run off, but Lloyd caught her arm.

"How about you go after we've seen Altessa?" He held her gently so as not to give Genis any reason to become angry. "Go walk with Genis, we'll get you home soon, kay?"

"But…I have to take care of my Daddy…" Her voice was hollow, only the faintest echoes of emotion playing behind her intonations.

Lloyd sighed, "I'm sure he's alright on his own. You need Altessa's help, so come on. We'll take you to your Dad afterward, okay?"

"…I must also return to work…"

"Please, Presea? Let us help you." Raine stepped forward and took her hand. "We've come all this way to help you…"

There was a strange conflict behind Presea's eyes as the logical part of her argued with both her pre-programmed personality and Presea's natural personality for dominance. "I…" she took a breath, "I…shall come with you…but then I must return…"

Raine nodded encouragement and pulled the girl gently back to continue walking with her and Genis. For once, the young half-elf looked almost pleased as he very tentatively took Presea's other hand. The rest of their short walk through was uninterrupted, though the citizens backed away and doors closed around them. It was obvious that whatever happened at Altessa's, they would not be returning through the village.

The forest ended as they left Ozette, and for the first time in several hours, Lloyd felt the sun dance against his face and he took a breath of fresh, billowing air. It was another hour's walk to Altessa's, but Lloyd felt the tension leave his shoulders as the warm air blew around and the sun sat where it was supposed to be in the cloudless blue sky.

Altessa's home was largely underground as, like most of his dwarven brethren, he preferred the darkness of caves, unlike humans and half-elves. It was built into the limestone cliffs that surrounded the Tower of Salvation in the heart of Tethe'alla. Already, however, Lloyd could tell something was wrong and, a moment later, Yggdrasill burst out of the front door and froze when he saw the group.

Lloyd swore.

…

I'm being serenaded by two sirens. And by sirens, I mean bitches. Dear goodness, my ears will be ringing all night. This is what I get for not being capable of producing an in-key note. So, Merry Christmas from my caroling betas.

Please check out my poll!

R&R

~Yoshi