The trip to Hima took up about a half a day with Kratos pushing the pace. Lloyd and Genis chatted back and forth the entire time, oblivious to the silence of the older party members.

Collette rode on Noishe, easily keeping pace with Raine as she brought up the rear of the party. A muted conversation began between them, one that not even Kratos picked up on. The mercenary forged ahead, clearing out the forest with Sheena's help.

Neither one spoke, but as they moved it became clear that there was no need for speech when they were in battle mode. Fighting nearly constantly for the past few days had improved the ninja's coordination greatly; she was much more confident now of her own ability to handle enemies. Watching Kratos had allowed her to begin to anticipate where he would be at a given time during a battle. Monsters were handled before the rest of the group was even aware of their presence.

Lloyd was complaining as they entered the town. Sheena snickered quietly as she listened to him whine about not getting to do anything on the trip. Kratos merely glared at the boy before leading the way to Hima's main attraction - the inn.

They were stopped at the foot of the stairs by a maid who rather curtly informed them that Pietro was dead. Sheena stood dumbfounded, had they really come all this way for nothing?

"What about his belongings?" Raine, ever the calm and collected one, was asking.

"Buried in his grave with him. Don't even think of digging them up!" Was the emphatic response from the girl. She turned away and ascended the steps. "Just go away."

The closing of the door punctuated her statement, leaving the Chosen's group standing in the entryway. The old man behind the desk ignored the scene playing out in front of him in favor of his newspaper. Kratos turned on his heel and walked outside, the rest of the group following his lead by default. He didn't stop until they were standing inside of the cemetery. The wind was calm at the time, only whispering through the gravestones. Gazing at the dirt, Lloyd spoke bitterly. "Well, that's another lead crushed."

"I suppose that we can't dig up his things." Raine pondered out loud as she attempted to thread her way to a logical next step. She stopped when the majority of the group stared at her. "I didn't say that we should, only that we can't!"

Her defense was cut short by Sheena pointing behind her. Raine turned and noticed the spectacle that held the others speechless. A man was staggering up the slope, his actions akin to a zombie's. He didn't stop until he stood at the entrance to the graveyard.

"Chosen... Must tell... Desians... Kill."

Collette looked shocked. "What did you say?"

"Pietro! There you are!"

The maid from the inn was hurrying up the path, worry evident in her face and tone. No one spoke until she arrived to stand beside the sick man.

"You lied to us."

Sheena was unusually abrupt, her tone disapproving. The girl glared back at her. "I don't care. Leave Pietro alone, he's suffering enough already!"

Raine broke into the conversation now, assaulting the woman's position. "I know that you're trying to protect Pietro, but if we don't get answers many others will suffer."

"Pietro may be sick," Lloyd was talking now, his voice earnest. "But everyone else who might be able to help us is dead. We need answers, any answers. If he can give them to us, please, please let him!"

That seemed to set the girl back. Her face, while doubtful was no longer openly hostile. "Alright. But I want something in return. There's a book in the Tower of Mana by Boltzman that has healing techniques. I want you to find a cure for Pietro."

Lloyd looked over at the Professor to get his cue and at her slight nod, he turned back to the girl. "Sure. If we can find it, we'll cure Pietro."

"Of course, infiltrating the ranch comes first. We have to insist on that." Raine's voice was firm as she spoke her condition to helping. The girl nodded. "Okay. His things are buried in that grave. He said something about a rock and a stone before he got this bad."

Hurriedly she took the sick man down the path and into the inn. The building blocked them from sight and the group all turned to stare at each other.

"A rock huh?" Lloyd scratched his head as he thought about it. Kratos paused in his unearthing of the grave and looked back. "I do recall seeing something peculiar when we were at the ranch."

Raine shook a finger in his face. "Watch where you're digging! We don't want to mess anything up!"

The mercenary's eyebrow twitched, but nonetheless he went back to digging ever so carefully. None of the items were buried very deeply, an oversight by Hima's populace. Raine picked through them with a magnifying glass, setting aside the things that she thought might be useful. Kratos silently resolved to cull through the collection later on, in order to dump unnecessary weight.

Lloyd was bouncing around the area, trying to see what the Professor was looking at. "Hey! This looks kind of cool!"

"Give me that!" Raine snatched back the translucent orb from his grasp. A quick slap to the back of his head left him complaining about a 'violent streak'. Raine simply ignored the insult and tucked the orb into her pocket. "Honestly Lloyd, you act as though this is one big game sometimes. I think that this might be what Pietro was talking about when he referred to 'stone'."

Sheena looked dubiously at the pile at the Professor's feet. "Well, it looks like it's the only thing of interest in there. Could we head into the inn before we blow off the side of the cliff? We could finish sorting inside."

"Certainly." Raine bent down and retrieved the rest of the items, carting them along with her as she led the way to the inn.

It was early morning and the rest of the party lay asleep on their makeshift beds. Kratos sat awake in a corner, staring at the coals that still radiated a great deal of heat from the grand fireplace. The fireplace, he decided, was the only attractive feature of the place.

He stirred restlessly, shifting his position. 'Kvar. One of the most contemptible members of the Grand Cardinals. The cause of Anna's illness. A scourge protected from revenge by the tenets that Yggdrasil himself had set forth.' He sighed over the last point.

"Once, he was my friend. Now he remains obsessed with propagating this hoax."

Martel. Kratos himself had grieved deeply upon the young half-elf's death. Her gentle spirit had been the bonding glue for the fabric of their fellowship. Even in suffering she exuded a love for all life that made all their efforts seem divine. In the suddenness of the grief, Kratos had designed the bond for Origin, as well as agreed with the stricken Mithos as to the course to take. Yuan had said nothing, only nodding his tear stained face when Mithos looked his way.

So the worlds had been split and the nonsensical system of "The Chosen" was propagated to cover up reality. So many had died, and he had turned a blind eye to it all for the sake of his friendship. It was time to start looking at things how they really were, in spite of the pain that this might cause. After all, pain would forever be his...

Kratos may have once been what he appeared to be; the cold hearted mercenary, only interested doing his assigned mission. But as he looked over the members of the company asleep on their respective bedrolls, it occurred to him that he would fight fiercely to protect all of them.

Lloyd, the son he'd never known. The legacy of a happier time. Collette, Chosen but not dead. The girl who hurt for everyone. Genis, young spitfire. The child had too much love for 'Fireball'.

Raine, healer and cynic. Kratos knew that she carried a great burden away from the sight of the children. Her eyes told him this much, though what great depths she hid still left him guessing.

And Sheena, displaced assassin. Traveling alone to a hostile world in order to save her people, she'd found the task to have many more layers than the simple command. Now she was torn by conflicting duties, two worlds laying their claims at her feet. Still she bravely forged on, facing foes and inner fears with stubborn resolve.

When she looked at him, Kratos felt that she could almost see the pain that lay buried within his soul. A part of him desired her to be able to see, but yet another kept erecting walls to keep others from catching a glimpse of his true self, reminding him that this was punishment for his failures. Very few doors remained open in his heart, though some were beginning to bend inward under friendly pressure.

Kratos turned his gaze back to the fire, deciding to leave further soul searching for another time. Outside the inn the wind whistled among the rocks, while a pair of eyes watched the building from the darkness.

"So Kratos, what are you here for?"

The next morning found the party up early, Lloyd himself forgoing his usual sleep schedule in order to get started. Retracing their steps to the Human Ranch didn't take long, and very few monsters seemed to be out in the morning. Sheena wondered privately if perhaps they hadn't picked up the slack for the happy-go-lucky swordsman.

Kratos seemed distant this morning, acting almost tired as he stalked through the few creatures unlucky to stand in his way. Sheena noted that the mercenary hadn't spoken aside from a few words to get them started on their way. 'Did he even sleep last night?'

She studied him carefully as they went along. If things went well today, they would put an end to the Human Ranch and eliminate Kvar from the equation. If things went well.

This time she wouldn't have the guardians to fall back on. They resided in the village now, protecting it as was the custom. There would be no retrieving them until she could return to Tethe'alla, and that would not occur until the Chosen of Sylverant was dead. Not stating absolutely that she had to kill Collette. It was still touch and go on the matter, even though Collette seemed determined to find a way to save both worlds from decline.

The ninja shook her head and left that train of thought. It wasn't profitable to consider possibilities that may not happen. Instead she went back to watching the mercenary as he lead the party to the ranch, stopping them by a strangely shaped rock.

"Here it is."

As the rest of the party stood idly watching, Lloyd jumped forward and threw his weight against the rock. It didn't budge. "Oof!"

The Professor rolled her eyes. "Lloyd, use your head for once."

Pulling out the orb, she held it near to the boulder which promptly slid aside to reveal a ventilation shaft. "See?"

Lloyd chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head. "Er, yeah."

"Enough."

Kratos' voice cut through air, stopping any further conversation. "It's time to go."

The mercenary disappeared into the shaft, leaving the rest of the company staring after him.

AN: I really, really meant to have actual romance in this chapter, but Kratos rebelled and strictly refused to broach the subject outside of his own thoughts. He just wouldn't be written as anything other than what you see above. It was very annoying, considering that I don't want to drag this out with boring drivel. I know that the last chapter was a little bit rushed in the beginning, but that was because I decided to not write the Exspheres scene.

KK - Yes, I am planning on doing the triangle. Possibly. Probably. (As in 'I hope they cooperate with me'.)

To the rest of my reviewers (you know who you all are) - Thanks. You make me feel so wanted just by leaving a note to let me know you're reading. Seriously. Of course, aside from this, I really don't have much else to proclaim here, so go read one of my other stories. Or someone else's story for that matter!