Hey everybody, it's time to update again! Yay! Starting to get close to the end of this story. Like I said there might be another story about Zelos and Storm. I am kind of thinking of ideas for another action/adventure fic that takes place after The Dark Age fics. Anyway, I don't know when that will be out or anything. Well, thanks for the reviews. Enjoy this chapter!

Chapter 12: The Truth

Storm woke up the next morning. She wasn't able to sleep, but after being beaten so badly by Pronyma the night before she managed to black out. She didn't feel as sore as she thought she would. She looked at where the cuts and bruises would have been, but they were all mostly gone. There were a few marks, but nothing that wouldn't disappear in a day or two. She figured that with the big battle that was sure to come today, Lord Yggdrasil must have come to heal her after her punishment. He definitely was not happy that she had been hiding things from him, and he usually let her suffer awhile, but he needed the help today.

Storm got off her bed at the thoughts of the battle. Zelos was going to lead them to the Tower of Salvation. For a brief moment Storm wondered if he would take her advice, but the look in his eyes the other night had made her feel that his mind was completely made up. She sighed as she got up and walked down the halls of Derris Kharlan. She had to get to the Tower of Salvation and help him, but she didn't want anyone to see her sneaking off. She was sure that if she looked too worried about him, someone might grow suspicious and think that she wanted to help Lloyd's group.

Storm rounded a corner before she heard an all too familiar voice call to her.

"Have you licked your wounds runt?" Pronyma asked her. Storm froze in her spot before she turned around and glared at the woman who had just happily knocked her across the floor the night before. "Where are you going? Are you off to help that stupid Chosen of Tethe'alla? He won't win, but at least he'll manage to get the Chosen. I'm picking up Slyverant's Chosen there so don't get in my way maggot," Proynma said before using the last sentence as a firm warning.

Storm watched as Pronyma walked back out of sight before she made her way slowly behind her. Pronyma was heading towards the warp that led to the Tower of Salvation. She snuck around the corners silently as she followed her. Soon, Storm was stopped by another familiar, but more relieving voice.

"Storm, where are you going?" her father's voice called out to her. Storm turned around to see Kratos standing behind her waiting for some sort of reply. "I went to check on you to make sure you were all right after yesterday, but you were already gone. Are you sure you should be up moving already?" he asked her.

"I'm fine, Lord Yggdrasil used his healing techniques on me," she told him as she watched around the corner as Pronyma disappeared into yet another hallway. When she was gone Storm turned back around to her father.

"He healed you? He must have been afraid that Lloyd and the others would make it here," Kratos said.

"What exactly are you doing wandering around here? Do you think that they're going to make it here?" she asked.

"I think that they will, and I'll be ready for them when they do," Kratos said confidently. Storm wasn't sure if that meant he was planning on fighting them or helping them. In fact, she wasn't really sure what she wanted to do herself. She only knew of one person that she wanted to help at that moment.

"I'm sorry Dad, but I have to go and do something," she said suddenly as she began to make her way back towards the warp pad that led to the Tower of Salvation. Kratos was left to wonder what side of the battle Storm was going to take. He hoped that she would follow her heart instead of following orders.

Storm finally made her way through the twists and turns of Derris Kharlan, and managed to get lost a few times. It didn't matter how many times she made her way through the city she could always get lost so easily. She was about to get to the warp pad when she noticed that someone was coming through it. She ran and hid, not sure whether the person who was coming through was someone she wanted to meet up with.

She soon saw Lloyd and his group coming through. The thing that worried her the most was that the group was short two people. Both Colette and Zelos were missing from the group. This made Storm even more frantic to get to the Tower of Salvation. Once the group passed through Storm got onto the pad and warped back down to the tower.

Once she got off the warp pad she what she was hoping she wouldn't. On the ground was Zelos, bloody and motionless. She walked to him slowly, almost afraid that he would slip away if she moved to quickly. She reached out her hand and placed it on his cheek. It was still warm, letting her know that he hadn't been there too long. She knelt beside him and grabbed his limp hand, feeling the small pulse that he had. He was alive, but just barely.

"I've never done this before, but I have to try," Storm told herself quietly as she tried to transfer some of her mana to him. She could feel her mana begin to flow into him as she willed it to move to him with all her might. She wanted him alive and next to her, she couldn't stand to see him dead. Storm began to glow purple as she concentrated more and more on what she wanted.

Suddenly, Zelos' eyes began to slowly open as he looked around. He finally caught gazes with Storm who stared at him in disbelief and also relief. She was so happy to see that he was alive, but she couldn't believe that she had actually been the one that brought him back.

"Storm...?" Zelos asked her weakly as he squinted up at her. "What are you doing here?"

"Shh...I gave you some of my mana. Just take it easy for a few mintues," she told him as she looked down at him.

"Why did you save me? You guys have the Chosen," Zelos questioned her. Storm looked at him, shocked that he would even ask her something like that.

"You idiot! You almost died, and that's all you can say?" she yelled at him angrily. "I don't care about Cruxis and Yggdrasil anymore. I care about you, that's why I'm here," she told him. After seeing him almost die in front of her she knew that she had to tell him how she felt. She was about to do something that could cost her her life and he deserved the right to know.

"What!" Zelos asked her, shocked at her sudden emotions. This was nothing like her and he was wondering what was going on.

"Zelos, you're the only person who can really understand me, the real me. You let me believe that I can be more than what Yggdrasil tells me I have to be. It's because of you that I finally decided to follow my heart instead of following what Cruxis wants," she told him as she started to squeeze his hand tighter unintentionally as she revealed her true feelings to him.

"I did all that?" Zelos asked her.

"Yeah, I saw everyone after they fought you. What you did really hurt them. They all care about you too, you're important, and you taught me that I'm important too," she told him as she smiled down at him. Zelos sat up slowly as he looked her in the eyes. He shook his head at the things that she was telling him.

"That can't be true. Why would anyone care about me?" Zelos asked her, trying to get what he thought was the truth out of her.

"Zelos, if no one cared about you then why did I come here? Why am I sitting here beside you right now?" she asked him.

"I don't know...I mean..." Zelos stumbled with his words, a little speechless after what she told him. Storm was becoming more upset with his stubborn attitude as he kept trying to put himself down.

"I love you Zelos! What more do you want from me? You can be so stubborn sometimes!" Storm yelled at him, completely frustrated. Zelos looked at her with a shocked and confused look on his face, but it soon turned into a smile when he realized that the Storm he knew had finally returned.

Storm crossed her arms and turned away from him angrily, but soon felt a hand cup her chin. Before she knew what was happening her face was turned back towards Zelos and their lips met. This was what Storm had wanted for so long, but was too afraid to go after. Now she was going to break away from Cruxis, she was with the man she loved. She felt Zelos' hand move around behind her head as he placed it on her neck. He pulled her closer to him as they deepened the kiss. Storm and Zelos were both in bliss.

Zelos had kissed many women, but with Storm he felt something entirely different. This was the first woman that had actually gotten to know him for the person that he really was, and not for the title that he had. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity they parted for some much needed air. Zelos looked at Storm who had her eyes closed with a small smile formed on her face.

"Go help them Zelos, they need you," Storm whispered to him before she slowly opened her eyes to look at him.

"Aren't you coming?" he asked her as he cocked his head in confusion.

"I have some unfinished business to take care of first," she told him, growing angry at the thought of who she would be dealing with next.

"All right, please be careful," Zelos told her before he stood up. He posed a battle move like Lloyd usually did which Storm giggled at before she got to her feet. "Now...let's kick some Cruxis butt!" he announced. They both went to the warp pads before they separated at Derris Kharlan.

Well, that's the end of this chapter. I hope you don't mind if I kind of switched it up a little. I kind of wanted to change it a little. Anyway, hope you liked it. Please review and tell me what you think! Thanks! Oh, and stupid document managed wouldn't let me put in lines this time. Don't ask me why, but sorry if this is harder to read in any way. It's like when I never did lines in my first stories because I wasn't smart enough to realize that there was a feature to put them in. Oopsie! Hehe...