The girl stood in place, watching the ethereal being pacing from one side to another of the room. Her long green hair, covered in flowers, vines, leaves and seeds, floating with her nervousness. The young blond girl shifted her gaze to the other blond warrior entering the room.

The young man bowed respectfully. "You summoned, my liege?"

The woman stopped her heavy pacing and faced the two most trusted warriors she had. Her eyes were of a deep lavender, possessed by the ones able to control a flow of mana around them. "My defenders. I have called you, and only you, here for the worry that's been plaguing at my roots." She turned her back on them, grabbing a leaf from a nearby vine in the room. "First, you listen. Our world is grand, pure and magical – like a pearl. But alas, I sense a disturbance in the mana, a small one, like that of a grain of sand inside a clamp. That grain of sand has been itching and hurting the pearl inside – slowly, but surely, deforming her." The tall woman faced the warriors once again. "I have need for you to find and remove this grain, before something so small, could lead to catastrophic events."

Neither warrior budged, but seemed to be internalizing the command.

The girl spoke first. "My liege, the monsters have been growing more aggressive. We definitely can't rule out the possibility of a malicious source behind their change in behavior."

The boy crossed his arms. "The villages around Fa'Diel have grown quite unstable as well. Things have been quite different the more humans rely on their technology and loose the influence to harness mana. Only the mages have remained with that power."

The girl rose an eyebrow. "Could we consider a witch to be behind this disturbance?"

"Could be." He shrugged his shoulders. "But many humans are well versed in the arts of magic. Surely, our Goddess, won't expect us to lay them all to rest just to find a source."

The air became heavy and light seemed to dim. Both warriors felt as though the temperature had dropped suddenly as well. Their Goddess smiled, and such a vision caused a bone freezing chill down their spines.

"Why else are we here, if not to live with unreasonable passion for things? Even death?"

X

Rhea woke up trembling. She pulled the covers tighter around her, even though she knew cold was not the issue. She remained in a fetal position for what felt like hours, until the trembling stopped and she managed to sit by the bed side.

Her hand made the familiar movement of rubbing her head. "How did we not see it, Talomond?"

She decided to get dressed and head outside for some fresh air. But to Rhea's great annoyance, even at that early hour of the day, a nun came to find and urged her to go see Matilda, whom apparently had something to talk to her.

It wasn't like she could ignore the call, but she made sure to show her distaste with the situation when she entered the Dreamweaving room.

"I apologize to have called upon you." Rhea wondered if her facial expression was a bit too harsh, for Matilda seemed to have hesitated in what she was about to say. "There is a favor I need to ask. It's about Daena." The Priestess seemed very apologetical in her words. "I'm only asking, for Daena speaks very fondly of your friendship. She left here, saying she needs to talk to Irwin. She hasn't come back since yesterday. Could you please find her?"

Rhea couldn't help but raise an eyebrow in suspicion. Despite her appearance, there was nothing senile about Matilda. The two-bladed warrior wondered who Matilda was truly worried about – Daena or Irwin.

"Of course, I will." She said with little emotion, but if Daena was in trouble, she had no choice but to accept.

Matilda sighed in relief. "Thank you so much. I wish you luck." The Priestess smiled, gazing at the ceiling. "Daena was always like a younger sister to me."

Rhea believed her. She had little doubt that Matilda cared for Daena and Escad, to some extent. "So… Are you going to give me any idea where she might have gone?"

She was sounding rude and she knew it. Something about Matilda didn't sit right with Rhea and she couldn't figure what. The Priestess seemed to have taken the hint.

"Oh, you may ask the Wisdom at the lake…"

The warrior nodded once, and left. Outside, she began to walk back in the direction of the inn she was staying with Pearl and the twins. Her mind wondered about Daena and what she could possibly be thinking in going after Irwin – a Demon. The recent events must've shaken her more than Rhea realized.

As she approached the inn, her eyes picked up Pearl standing outside. She also saw a tall man yelling the Guardian into a corner. Rhea's pacing began to slow down, as the dark-green haired man turned around following Pearl's desperate gaze towards her. By the Goddess, it couldn't be… Rhea swallowed hard and came to a full stop, making sure to be at a safe distance.

"E-Elazul!" she nervously smiled. "What a coincidence for us to meet like this!"

The Jumi said nothing, something that terrified her even more as he shortened the distance between them with a large heavy pacing. She dared not move once he stood right in front of her and forced eye contact.

He raised a finger in front of her face. "You will tell me the whole story as to why our paths are crossing here at Gato, when I specifically asked for you to take care of Pearl."

Rhea moved his finger away. "Could it be over breakfast?"

X

It hadn't been easy. To explain the whole story, that is. Mostly because Rhea herself was unsure how to fill in the blanks in Daena's, Escad's and Matilda's tragic tale. The Jumi Knight listened, and agreed the whole tale to be confusing and tragic.

"Then why are you getting involved in other people's problems?" He asked, harshly glaring her.

The twins rolled their eyes and shrugged in a very dramatic way. Making Rhea sure they felt the same – something that had been brought to her attention before.

Only, Rhea did not find the remark funny nor did she become angered by it. "Daena is my friend."

Her upright poster, serious expression and determined tone in her voice, made for no one else to question her resolve. Her friend needed her and she would be there for her.

Elazul took the last bite of his bread. He wondered about her words and the whole 'friendship' thing. The two-bladed warrior in front of him was consistent and true to her feelings. It was something very admirable about her. In his mind, he was sure to understand Rhea a little better, how her thought process worked at least. She had considered himself and Pearl as her friends as well, and made no hesitation to help them the best way she could. It was just who Rhea was.

"I'll go and help you find Daena."

His statement, caught Rhea by surprise. "Why?" she simply blurred out.

The Jumi smiled. "Same reasons you gave me the last time we went to Lake Kilma."

The blonde woman smiled back at him, almost laughing. "That little road trip dragged us into a bigger problem. You sure you want to risk something similar?"

He crossed his arms in front of him, still smiling. "It's always an adventure with you."

The two warriors seemed to agree. As long as Pearl stayed under the supervision of the nuns, and providing there were no more imposters, then she would be safe. Bud and Lisa also promised to be by her side and protect her if needed be.

The group split and Pearl seemed about the only one with many thoughts to deliberate. Elazul smiled, her Knight had smiled without having to think about it. His admiration and respect for Rhea grew, her core felt it, and his behavior around her had become more relaxed and natural. She wondered what that meant.

X

There was an eerie feeling in the air around Lake Kilma. Neither Elazul nor Rhea commented on it, but their bodies tensed up when entering the area. To their distaste, they could still see the faeries around them, and to say they were very unpleased with their visit was an understatement.

"Where shall I go now…?"

"You didn't gain a thing by killing our master, did you?"

"See how foolish you humans are?"

"I think he's better off dead." Elazul finally snapped back at one of them.

Rhea grabbed the Jumi's arm and dragged him away, before they were trusted into a battle uncalled for. They walked around the familiar area for a while, but there was no sign of the monk warrior. Their search led them to the cliff overlooking the lake, and there, they found Tote.

The Wisdom sat on the barren cliff, watching anxiously the landscape that surrounded him. The wise turtle did not turn away, though, as the footsteps of two individuals approached him. The Wisdom accepted the familiar face as his purgatory, a pain necessary if he was to honor his title.

"Do you know how we differ from Faeries?"

It amused him to leave his pursuers baffled. The cloaked Jumi seemed about ready to protest, were not for his female companion, a tad m ore familiar with the ways of the Wisdoms.

"Do you mean our appearance? Humans and Faeries can both make use of Mana to benefit their needs." She crossed her arms, seemingly thoughtful. "We're really not that different." She shrugged. "At least, that's what I believe."

A pleasing enough answer, he expected no less from her. "We see the Faeries by receiving images in our minds. We do not actually see them with our eyes, we feel them." A fin rubbed the back of his head. "It's rather hard to explain this."

To Rhea's great surprise, Elazul seemed to understand what the Wisdom was really trying to tell them.

"You think the Faeries are the answer to our problem?"

Tote smiled. "Maybe jumping into a circle of Faeries will send us to the land of Faeries. A lady was here a while ago to ask about that."

"Daena… Elazul, the Faeries."

The Jumi began retracing their steps before Rhea. "We search for them."

Rhea walked along with Elazul down the mountain's lower, winding passes. The few Faeries they saw on the way, now kept far to the warrior's side, whether out of fear of their skills, or, they knew something else. Truly, the relationship between the Faeries and the Humans was not a friendly one.

The Knight and the two-bladed warrior then decided on a defensive approach, following lines of shrubs, and kept to the shadows as much as possible.

"By the way," Rhea turned to her Jumi companion. "I've been meaning to ask what were you doing in Gato? Have you found other Jumi?"

The Knight pushed a tree branch away. "I was actually on my way back to your house. I haven't had any luck with finding others, but I did learn of someone who might help."

"Oh," she was intrigued. "You know where to find this person?"

"His name is Alex and he has a shop in Geo full of rare gems. He's rumored to be very knowledgeable about stones, and knows a great deal about the Jumi history. Was hopping to ask Bud and Lisa to get me there fast on their teleport thing."

Elazul had left for weeks now, but all his travelling in Fa'Diel gave him nothing but a shop owner with history knowledge in Geo. Rhea could only wonder if the Jumi had indeed struggled for such a clue on others from his clan – and if that were so, she had to admire his dedication – on the other hand, there was the possibility that Elazul was just dreadful at detective work.

She dared not to speak her mind, as they kept to the shadows in search of the Faeries. Only to find the person they had been looking for in the first place.

"Daena." Rhea's voice expressed relief, as she revealed herself.

The feline didn't seem too surprised to see her. "Rhea, did you come all the way here looking for me?"

"Yeah, Matilda asked me to see if you were ok."

Elazul also revealed himself, and his presence did surprise the feline monk. Though, she would not show it. "Thanks. But it seems I got to go further. Did you hear Tote's story?"

Rhea inadvertently gazed towards the cliff. "He told me you were searching for the land of Faeries. Is that right?"

"I came here to see Irwin." Daena crossed her arms. "I guess it was true that he was hiding in the land of Faeries. The Faerie's strange activities gave him away. She gazed upon the sky. "Is it Matilda's powers he wants? Or is it revenge on Escad?" her gaze shifted towards the Jumi Knight. "…Sorry. I don't know why I'm telling you this."

He reacted with a shoulder shrug. "Do you know how dangerous entering the Faeries realm could be?"

Daena's ears perked up. "I know Irwin is here. I don't think I'll have to travel to the land of Faeries to find him. Rhea, promise me you'll let me talk to him and won't interfere."

Rhea pulled a face, as Elazul tried to hide his amused smirk at the comment.

"I promise not to interfere." She declared, her index finger in front of her. "Under the condition I stay nearby."

Daena rolled her eyes, landing a bored expression on Elazul.

"You won't win this argument." He warned her.

"I know. Fine, but keep to the shadows as you have been. I want to confront him alone."

The two females seemed to agree on the conditions. Daena walked along the normal path, while Rhea and the Jumi kept themselves hidden. But following Daena, and keeping themselves at a hidden distance, was harder than Rhea had anticipated. She was aware of her footing, but struggled to see her target. Much to her annoyance, Faeries had now revealed themselves, and not only that, they were up and close speaking with them.

"The stone Eye is now just a rock for us Faeries, too? How can we protect ourselves from the Humans?"

Rhea shooed the Faeries away. "Evasion is a great defense. I hope not to catch you Faeries using such a dangerous weapon again."

More Faeries approached them.

"The Master has died, but we have not. That is wonderful."

"Humans frighten me."

Their complaints were the same as when they entered the lake area. They were both angry and sad their master died, and Humans scared them. But if the Faeries were so evasive about Humans, and they knew Rhea and Elazul to be the ones responsible for killing their master – then why were they swarming and getting in their way?

"Rhea…" Elazul called her.

The warrior scanned the area. There was no sign of Daena. Her lavender eyes also picked up the sly smirk on the Faeries faces. They were purposely slowing them down.

"Damn it!" Rhea jumped from her hiding spot, followed by Elazul.

They had been separated from Daena, just like the Faeries planed. And something told Rhea that the tiny beings were simply following orders.

A/N: I wanted to write more, but the chapter was getting way too long. We'll continue on the next one! I went back to the other chapters and mainly corrected some grammar and spelling mistakes (boy, were there a lot of commas missing). I'm actually having fun writing this fic again! Hopefully I'll manage to get the Faery arc done at least.