(A/N) Hope you guys are pleased- two chapters in one week! I'm on a roll now! Anyways, please read and review! xD

Disclaimer: Maybe if I bother NAMCO enough they'll give me ToS, but they have yet to, so for now I don't own!

Chapter 15

Kratos and Yuan lazily made their way back to Yuan's regiment. The thoughtful silence was now welcome, even peaceful. Kratos briefly glanced up at Yuan's ponderous expression. It was clear he was working on an explanation for Kratos' sudden appearance to tell the others. Just when Kratos thought he was about to say something brilliant and thought-provoking, Yuan opened his mouth.

"How does 'Raiden' sound?" Yuan's teal eyes met Kratos', as if he was experiencing serious mental turmoil over the matter.

"Come again?" Kratos' eyebrows crept together in mild confusion.

"As a name." Yuan clarified, "I think it's fitting for you." Kratos got defensive.

"Why do you get to pick my fake name? What's wrong with the old one?" Kratos crossed his arms.

"Everyone knows that you can't go around reusing aliases! Eventually this 'Daisuke' person is going to be wanted too, and then you'll have a problem." Yuan gestured emphatically.

"Hn. Point taken. But Raiden?" Yuan arched an eyebrow.

"So, what's wrong with it?"

"I'm not going for 'memorable' here. It's too unique a name." As an afterthought he gave Yuan a quizzical look, "Don't tell me that's what you've been mulling over this whole time." Yuan scratched the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Well, not exactly. How do you feel about partial truths?" Yuan didn't have much to work with.

"I'm familiar enough with them." Kratos bit back a little harsher than intended. They had just passed a ragged slope and now the torch-lit camp was in full view, a few stray soldiers filtering in the western gate.

"Then just follow my lead!" Yuan countered cheerfully, quickening his pace to pull ahead of Kratos.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kratos hadn't been watching the half-elf, and upon seeing him much further ahead he broke into a run. "Yuan! Hey!" The moment he needed to catch up with him, though, was at the point where both of them met the security guards at the perimeter. Yuan had timed it perfectly and now Kratos cursed that he couldn't communicate his plan with the young commander. Really, it all depended on what Yuan was willing to tell the rest of the Sylvaranti army, and Kratos fumed at the idea. Yuan waved off the guards unceremoniously, and Kratos scowled at him.

"I hate you." Unfortunately for him, that only made Yuan's grin widen.

"No you don't"

Xilia shuffled her papers anxiously. It had been four days. Five if you counted today. She had no idea where Daisuke had gone, and even more importantly: her experimental exsphere. Now the brunt of her research was put on hold until she could track the boy down. He had seemed nice enough. She didn't think he'd just walk out. So that only left a few options. Her analytical brain didn't like any of the remaining possibilities.

One: He could be incapacitated and prevented from returning due to the effects of her research.

Okay. That one was bad, she had to admit. She felt a little guilty. Though she had isolated some of the causes of his abnormal lack of hunger, she couldn't really be sure her solutions would work without Daisuke there.

Two: He may have attended the King's funeral and was running behind.

Travel was a fickle thing, and she wouldn't blame him if he were late due to mourning of any kind.

And three: He was held up by other unforeseen circumstances and would be back as soon as he could.

That was a vague excuse for an idea, and Xilia's biggest problem was that she really just couldn't predict anything without data. Lovely data. Information put everything in rows, classified it into columns and neatly drawn categories. She may not be a neat person, but she certainly had an organized mind. Without the omnipotent data, she was blind.

It would be best for her to let Daisuke resolve it. Tethe'alla was too big for her to search for him herself. Putting that aside, she had a new project courtesy of nobility from the island of Kharlan. They were sending a researcher over soon to discuss the specifics. She should devote her full attention to that; there was no use in worrying about something she was unable to change. From what she understood, this project was of the utmost importance and was supposed to take precedence over the Cruxis Crystal project anyway. She rubbed her index finger in circles by her temple. A headache was definitely coming on.

However, she was stirred from her musings as a petite young woman softly cleared her throat. Xilia nearly jumped in her seat- the woman's steps were so quiet that they appeared to have never even touched the floor. Looking up and adjusting her spectacles, Xilia's gaze met sharp green eyes rimmed with tendrils of a peculiar sea-foam-colored hair. A half-elf? Her brain immediately processed the lady in front of her. Long billowy tresses of hair hung to her back, and she wore a rather basic traveler's cloak. Xilia concluded that she must have come a long way. Just as sudden as the half-elf's appearance, though, Xilia was met with a shock of blonde hair and crisp blue eyes peering from behind the woman's legs. The child couldn't be more than six or seven. Xilia glanced between the two, befuddled a bit at their entrance. She was saved from breaking the ice when the woman cheerfully extended her hand, however, she did not expect what happened next.

"You must be Xilia! I'm Martel DeNitro, and this is my brother, Mithos. I've been told that we'll be working together."

Kratos frowned silently at Yuan's side as he was forced to sit through the half-elf's idea of an explanation. Whether or not the Sylvaranti would take the tale with a grain of salt or not was entirely based upon its believability- something Kratos wasn't sure Yuan could endow it with. At the moment they had an audience with just Yuan's regiment, some forty or so men. The torchlight cast dancing shadows across their faces and hair, accentuating and deepening their expressions to the point of caricature.

"This is Raiden," Kratos suppressed the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose, "and before anyone says anything- yes, he is Tethe'allan." Kratos' eyes widened and he felt a sharp mixture of betrayal and regret as a grumble of unrest spread among the troops. His hand migrated to his hilt nervously and he took a short step back. Strangely enough, Yuan shifted to stand between him and the Sylvaranti soldiers. Hands raised calmingly, Yuan was able to quiet the murmurs.

"Hold up." he clearly had everyone's attention, and Kratos' eyes narrowed. "He's also the reason every single one of you are still alive." Kratos grit his teeth. Whatever happened to half-truths? He couldn't explain any of this if asked. Yuan got his desired effect as a sort of awed silence spread.

"How?" One of the men near the front asked, short and stocky in build. Yuan looked at Kratos expectantly. Now I see where this is going, Kratos inwardly groaned. Yuan wanted some answers of his own, and putting Kratos on the spot was just a bonus. Perhaps he just fancied making him uncomfortable. Manipulative bastard. Well two can play at that game.

"I wedged a spare dagger in the firing mechanism of one of the mortars, causing an energy build up until the pressure triggered self-destruction." Kratos dryly stated, gauging Yuan's reaction. Kratos was pleased to note that Yuan's left eye twitched at 'dagger'. Nevertheless, he had gotten his answer.

"Why would he do that? He's Tethe'allan." A quieter voice queried. Kratos' gaze found the face of the man that had asked. Bright blue eyes and brown hair didn't combine to make an intimidating effect. In fact, curiosity tinged with gratitude was all Kratos was met with. Kratos opened his mouth, expecting to have to answer yet again, but was saved from the trouble when Yuan cut in.

"Would you have allowed that massacre to take place, Kenta? Humanitarianism is not dead. I highly doubt all Tethe'allans want us exterminated." A few nods went around the crowd of men, and Kratos felt the tension in his shoulders relax.

"Anyway, he seeks refuge from Tethe'alla, where he is no longer welcome. And given the debt we all owe him, I have accepted." Kratos was pleasantly surprised. Perhaps the truth was somewhat useful in this case. Regardless, Kratos probably would've come up with something a bit more farfetched than Yuan's version; he was okay with simplicity. None of the Sylvaranti looked as if they desired to kill him, so it was a win. Tentatively.

The crowd began to disperse, and Kratos was only afforded several intrigued glances as soldiers returned to small barracks and tents for the night. Exhaling slightly when everyone was out of earshot, Kratos turned to Yuan.

"You blew up my dagger?" Yuan fumed before Kratos could get a word off. He stood to his full height so that he could look down on the Tethe'allan.

"I thought we were going to use partial truths." Kratos hissed back, not in the least troubled by Yuan's glare. Fluidly shifting moods, Yuan smirked haughtily.

"Honesty is the best policy, you know." He mock-scolded.

"Not in a camp full of people who would love to see you dead." Kratos quickly retorted.

"Hm. Fair enough," Yuan conceded, starting to make his way to his own temporary sleeping quarters. Since those from Triet were not permanently stationed in the region, they set up the tents inside the trenches and other defenses that surrounded the outpost. Kratos was unsure of their destination, but followed nevertheless, with only a short falter in his steps to betray his hesitation.

"My tent's plenty big enough. You can bunk with me." Yuan clarified as he navigated the darkened pathways. "Until we get you situated, that is." Kratos stopped in his tracks.

"Situated? Yuan, I'm not staying." He thought he'd made that very clear when they happened to run into each other about an hour or so ago. Yuan had the audacity to look adamant.

"There's no reason for you not to." Yuan noted that Kratos' eyes looked near crimson in the dim red light. They started walking again.

"I should return to Sybak as soon as possible." was the monotonous reply. From the few encounters Yuan had with Kratos, he knew that the kid used a dry, emotionless shield whenever he was hiding something.

"And why is that?" Yuan prodded. It really wasn't fair of him to ask so many questions, but his suspicious nature and curiosity combined got the better of him. Kratos was very private, quiet, and strictly not talkative. Anytime Yuan could get him going was sure to reveal something interesting. It was doubly interesting when Kratos didn't want him to know.

"It's none of your concern." Kratos retreated back on to familiar territory. Yuan was a bit disappointed.

"Yea well, we're here." They found themselves in front of a navy tent, slightly larger than the others and heading the first row of Sylvaranti dwellings. Yuan lifted the strip of cloth that served as the entrance for Kratos to cross the threshold first. Kratos did so, and shook some of his hair from his eyes to better view the inside.

The area was spacious as far as tents went, ample room for the few belongings in the corner and plush fabric covering the tarp. The customary stake ran through the center, but other than that it seemed homely in comparison to other tents. It may have had something to do with the warm glow that splayed from the hanging lantern in the center, but the contrast with the faintly torch-lit night outside was stark.

For lack of a better option- and furniture for that matter- Kratos sat himself down on the right in a cross-legged position. It was rather strange to be intruding upon Yuan's living space and it felt too personal for Kratos' usual tastes. He was grateful, but dependence was not something he dealt with well. And being a burden was never something he associated with himself, either. He felt like he had crossed some sort of line leaving his comfort zone. It was peculiar.

Yuan lounged in himself and plopped down on the blanket across from Kratos, looking at him expectantly. Instead of answering him, however, Kratos reclined to lie down. Eyes fixed on the draped ceiling, he pointedly ignored the half-elf's stare. He was tired, and it would be an easy feat to simply drift off into sleep. But Yuan was still staring at him.

"What?" he finally asked in exasperation.

"This is weird." Yuan noted. "Seeing you here, I mean. Our lives are pretty screwed up." Yuan mimicked Kratos' position on the other side of the tent, folding his arms behind his head.

"Hn." Kratos agreed half-heartedly. Yuan might've said something more, but Kratos had already slipped into a blissfully deep sleep and was too far gone to hear him.

Martel was delighted that she was fitting in so well. Xilia, the other researcher, was a little put off a first, but she seemed nice enough after they warmed up to her. The study would be difficult and complex, so the better they got along, the easier it would be to complete. Most of the scientists she encountered had the usual half-elf phobias, which impeded her work ethic considerably. Xilia's only signs of discomfort were multiple displays of shyness. She could get over that.

Mithos and Martel had traveled quite a ways to get to Sybak, and Martel and no intention of wasting the opportunity.

The isle of Kharlan was immense as far as islands went; some even went as far as to classify it as a continent. The Great Yggdrasil, or the Tree of Mana, resided at its center. Protected by a generous amount of the Ymir forest in the surrounding areas, the center was the most secluded of the region. The coastal cities were few and far apart, and as such didn't have much to do with each other. Mizuho lay to the east, secretive and isolated, whereas the elves of Heimdall constructed their village to the south. The elves didn't want much to do with anyone, so communications with them were scarce. Martel and Mithos lived in a small research outpost near the Tree of Mana. Their father, a human, had been studying the properties of the tree for his entire life, and Martel had taken a liking to the mystery of it as well. In his footsteps, she was working on developing her own research. Intriguing as it was, no real investigation had been done into mana other that merging it with weapons.

She had done her utmost to convince the few of noble blood in her hometown village of Yggdrasil- named so because of its proximity to the Great Tree itself- to back her project. She could be really nice when she needed to, and her powers of persuasion were unrivaled.

Sybak had all of the equipment she needed to formulate maps of the worldly mana flow. If she was right, there were concentrated bubbles of mana in specific locations. She had yet to know if these places held any true importance, but from what she had put together, there were several in Tethe'alla. In her mind, there was a reason for everything. She was itching to find out the why. Unfortunately, between her and her father's busy schedule, she was forced to take Mithos with her.

She was quite fond of her younger brother, but he would be very bored over the next few days. A six-year-old could only do so much when it came to high level algorithms and magitechnology. Good for her that Mithos loved to travel.

She sighed contentedly as she seated herself at one of Xilia's computer stations, happily fingering one of the intricate devices that analyzed a person's mana signature. Xilia seemed very into her work, and told her to get settled, but upon glancing over to Martel's choice of seating, she got up.

"Oh, you don't want to work here. This is all for a completely unrelated project that's been put on the back-burner."

"Ah." Martel nodded and switched seats to an empty station, though the other material had looked fascinating. Xilia sat across from her and pushed up her glasses eagerly.

"Okay, so where do we start?"

Kratos awoke suddenly despite the lateness of the hour. He supposed it was early by now, but it was still dark. Tendrils of guilt coiled in his chest from the nightmare, though he couldn't precisely remember what had happened. As his common sense returned to him, it wasn't hard for him to guess what his subconscious had dredged up. Gratefully, the vibrancy of the dream began to fade as reality reasserted itself. A cold icy feeling had settled in his lungs, and he sat up to survey his surroundings. He remained in Yuan's tent, and he could hear the even breathing of the half-elf somewhere to his right. It was all very steady and calming, yet his heart rate was elevated and his breathing was faster than it should have been.

After slowing his breathing considerably and shaking off the night terror, Kratos settled back onto the blanketed floor to shut his eyes again. The dull buzz of a breeze wafting across the tops of tents was the only sound in the camp. Oddly enough, he wasn't tired. It was remarkable what a few hours of sleep could do, but really he hadn't slept soundly for a couple of days. He should easily be able to sleep through a night and then some. He felt completely awake. The dreariness of sleep didn't cling to his muscles in the slightest, as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on his head.

The only possible cause of his unrest was the exsphere. Kratos quickly slipped off his glove. The jewel was mutely glowing, a soft and dull light that could in no way be compared to previous bursts. He had no clue as to why it was acting up in the middle of the night. If it reacted to stress, a nightmare shouldn't be nearly as taxing as blowing up cannons. Either way, it was stress. Kratos pondered the device's mechanisms for a moment. He didn't know how safe it was to remove it, but seeing as how it was directly attached to his skin, it may be more difficult than he'd thought. He had to return to Sybak before its affects became even more serious.

Attempting once again to fall into the embrace of sleep, Kratos found it was impossible. He settled for peering up into the darkness and losing himself in his thoughts.

Who knew how long it would be before he could ever sleep again?

(A/N) The plot's finally coming together...review? XD