Chapter 8: Elucidations

"Master Van!"

Van looked up as he came out of the tunnel and spotted his apprentices across the way. It seemed that Asch had located his wayward other and Guy had been equally successful in locating the two boys, but what interested him most was the unique company that they kept. One of which was going to be trouble as she already had a knife drawn.

"Stand down Tear," he said defensively.

"Give her a good reason to," his eldest student called out.

"Talking should come before aggression, you of all people should know that," Van replied.

"Yeah well, you've got a lot of talking to do. From what I hear, you should be in Kaitzur looking for Luke," Asch threw back.

"Settle down Asch. I'd heard that they closed the border at Kaitzur, so I came through this way to continue searching for Luke, aAnd from the looks of things I'm glad that I did. Now, care to explain why you're so worked up?"

"Only as soon as you explain why your subordinates kidnapped the Ion that you thought had gone missing."

Van looked genuinely shocked at Asch's last statement. Luke couldn't say he was surprised, of course Master Van was shocked! He would never have anything to do with kidnapping Ion. In fact, he probably could have protected Ion if he hadn't been so busy looking for him. So why was Asch so upset all of a sudden? Didn't he trust Master Van?

Van lowered his voice. "This isn't the place to be speaking of such things. Come this way, we can borrow a room at the inn and speak there."

The short walk to the inn did a good job of redefining the term 'awkward silence'. Tear had put her knife away but was still sending daggers through the back of her brother's head with her eyes. Asch, Jade and Anise were all tense, though not as entirely mistrusting as Tear seemed to be, they were uncomfortable around him at best. Only Luke and Guy were somewhat relaxed, well as relaxed as one could be with the other four ready to pounce on the Commandant if he so much as hiccupped. But several hours later, and by hours Luke meant the tense few minutes their walk to the inn had taken them, they had all finally settled around a table in a makeshift conference room.

"Now," Van started the discussion, "what is this about Ion being kidnapped?"

"Don't play stupid! Why are you interfering with the Fon Master's attempts to avert war?" Tear blurted out.

"The God-Generals attacked us and took Ion away," Luke provided before anyone could further aggravate the situation by throwing in their two cents worth. "Tear has a point though. I thought you'd said the God-Generals were under your command, Master? You're their Commandant right? You don't really want a war to start, do you?"

"Slow down Luke," Van interrupted the tirade of questions that his overly concerned student was putting forth. "To start with, I don't even know how you met up with the Fon Master in the first place."

"Well…" Luke hesitantly trailed off, reluctant to admit to the trouble he'd gotten himself into.

"I believe I can explain," Jade offered.

"And you are?"

"Colonel Jade Curtiss, Third Division Malkuth Imperial forces."

"Ah, the Necromancer. I must say this is an honour. To what to we owe your esteemed presence?"

"Emperor Peony has requested that we present a proposal for peace to Kimlasca's king. At Fon Master Ion's request, we picked him up from the Chapel in Daath and proceeded to escort him to Baticul. We picked up these three during a brief stay in Engeve, and they have been so kind as to agree to assist us in this endeavour."

"Then the Tartarus was attacked by your God-Generals and Ion was taken away," Asch finished.

"Then the situation is indeed graver than I thought. While it's true that I command the God-Generals, they are part of the Grand Maestro faction. It's likely they're under orders from Mohs."

"So you're saying you have absolutely nothing to do with this?" Tear demanded, still angry.

"No. I was unaware of what my own troops were doing, so therefore I must bear some responsibility. I will go search for Ion. If it is indeed the God-Generals that have him, I have an idea as to where they might be holding him. I'll see to it that he is returned safely to Daath. In the meantime, you proceed to Baticul and ensure that negotiations proceed as planned."

"Now just wait a sec Commandant!" Anise spoke up, "We need Ion to help out with negotiations! Returning to Daath just means we would have to start all over again!"

"She has a point," Jade added, "It is unlikely that King Ingobert will see us without Ion as a neutral ambassador present."

"Yeah! And I'm not going anywhere without Ion!" Anise added.

"Ah, I see now." Van glanced over at Asch who had suddenly fallen silent. So that's how it was. He always was foolishly prudent. Not that he could blame the boy with a past like his.

"Then how about I meet you at Kaitzur Naval Port?" he offered as he handed Luke a set of tickets. "These are tickets I picked up for the ferry that leaves from there. There should be enough to get all of you back to Baticul."

"Wow! Thanks Master Van!" Luke held the tickets gratefully. He hadn't even thought of taking the ferry. Now they wouldn't have to walk so far; and he had never been on a boat! He'd always wanted the chance to ride one of the big ships that came and left from the port in Baticul.

"Where do you think you're going Van?" Tear protested as Van began towards the door.

"It is important that I depart as soon as possible if I'm to catch up with Arietta. We'll have to wait until later to discuss the problems between us. I will try to meet up with you within a few days. If I don't, I will send word to the port." Van closed the door behind him and was gone before anyone else could protest.

"Interesting," Jade muttered to himself.

"What's interesting Jade?" Luke curiously inquired.

"Nothing at all, Luke, don't concern yourself over it."

"Alright," Luke shrugged. He had already discovered that prying information out of Jade was a hopeless venture.

"I don't trust him." Tear stated, still glaring at the door though which her brother had left.

"Me neither." Asch agreed.

"You don't trust Master Van?" Luke asked incredulously.

"No." Asch trailed off, still deep in thought about everything Van had just said, and even more so about everything he hadn't said.

"Why not?"

"It's nothing you have to worry about!" Asch let out with a frustrated sigh. So much for his train of thought. "Though while we're on the topic of trusting and not trusting people," Asch continued, "You're part of the intelligence division aren't you Tear?"

"That's correct." Tear replied, unsure where Asch was going with this.

"Well the intelligence division is directly under Mohs command, so why don't you explain why you're so eagerly tagging along on this journey?"

"Come on Asch, stop it. If she was going to try anything, she would have done it a long time ago. She's proven she can be trusted!" Asch ignored Luke, his argument was empty anyway. He kept his gaze fixed on Tear, indicating he still wanted an answer.

"Thanks Luke, but its okay. I'm searching for something under orders from Mohs. I'm not at liberty to say more than that, but I guarantee that I have no intention of trying to harm any of you, or get in the way of your journey. I don't want a war, any more than Grand Maestro Mohs does."

"Well that's not saying much if Mohs is the one looking for war." Asch stated discontentedly , but decided against pushing the issue any further.

"So, now what?" Guy hesitantly broke the silence.

"Well, I don't see many options." Jade replied. "Commandant Grants so very kindly did not inform us of where he intended to go, so Kaitzur Naval port is all we have to go on for the time being."

"You're right, he didn't say where he was going." Guy realized. "So we're off to Kaitzur port then?"

"Not until tomorrow," Asch cut in.

"Why not? We've still got quite a bit of daylight ahead of us." Tear noted.

"No, Asch is right," Jade agreed. "Remember, the God-Generals set up a watch in the area around Kaitzur. At this rate it will be dark before we get out of the mountains. If possible, I'd like to try and make it to the port in a day."

"What? It took us three days to get here!"

"Chill out Luke," Guy said with a chuckle, "The mountain pass on the Kimlascan side may not have been used in awhile, but it's much shorter. But still, all in one day…we'll be getting up early again won't we?"

"That's correct, so I suggest that you make use of the rest of today to rest up a bit." Jade grinned in a way that sent chills down everyone's spine.

"So we have the rest of the day to ourselves huh?" Anise noted. "Man, why couldn't we get a day off while we were at a resort or at least someplace with a beach nearby?"

"Well then you'll just have to make do. Maybe you can find the hot springs Akzerieuth is famous for," Jade suggested.

"Hot springs? Really? I love hot springs! I'm so on it! You wanna come Asch?"

"No thanks," he replied without even looking at the young Fon Master Guardian.

"I'll come! I'll come!" Mieu bounced over and hopped up onto Anise's Tokunaga doll.

"Okay then! Your loss," Anise sang as she practically skipped out the door with Mieu in tow.

"That was pretty cruel of you Jade, those hot springs dried up years ago," Guy noted once Anise was gone.

"She's going to kill you when she finds out you know," Asch said with an amused grin.

"Oh I'm sure I'll manage." Jade shrugged. "In the meantime, I'm going to go for a walk. We'll be up before sunrise so be sure not to stay out too late." He instructed as everyone started to file out of the room. "Oh, and boys?" The two redheads in question turned around. "No switching this time please."

Both of them snickered. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Tear sat on a rock and watched the sunset. It was beautiful from the mountain town, despite the fact that it came a bit earlier than she'd like it too. The sky was ablaze in shades of red and gold and bathed the small town in an orange glow. The workers had all finished for the day and children could be seen running and playing, oblivious to the troubles of the world, as they should be.

The solitude was nice after spending so much time with such a lively group of people. No one had seen Anise since she had set off searching for the non-existent hot springs. Guy had been practically bouncing from fon machine to fon machine, but she hadn't seen him in awhile either. As for Asch and Luke, they had both disappeared somewhere right after everyone had disbanded with no one the wiser as to what they had planned for the remainder of the day.

Those two…. She was still embarrassed over what had happened earlier. It served her right though, but all that time telling Asch to be more like himself! She halted that train of thought right there, before she drove herself crazy trying to figure out exactly what she had told Luke that she wouldn't have wanted to during the time he was playing Asch. Oh dear, that certainly could prove to be a dangerous trick they had going. She made a mental note to watch what she said to Asch as well.

As if her thoughts had summoned them, Tear spotted Luke and Asch on one of the lower levels, their hair gleaming in the golden sunset. Luke was laughing and running as he played tag with a bunch of the local kids, while Asch leaned against a nearby fence and watched, a soft smile on his face.

"Be careful not to get lost in thought," a voice whispered into her ear. Her heart just about jumped into her throat, as the Colonel moved around the rock and stood beside her. "Ah there are our boys," he said noticing Luke and Asch.

"Hello Colonel," Tear finally managed once she had regained some of her composure. Really, did he have to do that every time? The two remained in silence for awhile watching the twins. After awhile Luke and the kids had coerced Asch into joining them. Tear smiled. "Do you suppose they've been at that all day?"

"Maybe, maybe not." Jade replied, "They certainly both have a soft side when they think no one is watching."

"So what did you do today Colonel?"

"I thought I'd see the sights. The Akzerieuth mines really are fascinating."

"Why were you in the mines? Was there something going on?" Tear asked worriedly.

"Now what would make you think that?"

"I highly doubt the sights were that interesting."

"My dear, I have a certain blonde enthusiast already in bed who would beg to differ."

Tear stifled a laugh. So that's where Guy had gone off to. Not a bad idea. They would need to be well rested.

"Actually Tear, there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about."

It was about time. She had been expecting the question to come up for quite awhile now, and was frankly quite surprised that the Colonel had held off so long. "My fonic hymns right?"

"That's right."

"I think your fonic hymns are really pretty," a familiar voice came from the path behind them. "Something about them is just so- so peaceful."

"Oh hello Luke. Asch." Jade acknowledged the two boys who came to join them, still somewhat out of breath, with Asch, as expected, doing a much better job of hiding it. Both looked pretty worn out. "Enjoying a bit of a break?"

"Yeah!" Luke answered with a big smile. "I like this place. It's a really nice town once all the machines are shut down."

"Just don't let Guy hear you say that," Asch said with a bit of a chuckle.

"You don't need to worry, he's in bed," Tear replied.

"Anyways," Jade dragged them back on topic, now that he'd finally raised the issue, he wanted his answers. "I've been wondering about your fonic hymns. They're different from the ones I know."

"Yes, I imagine they would be. The hymns I use are Yulia's fonic hymns," Tear replied.

"Really?" The topic piqued Asch's interest. He'd read about Yulia's fonic hymns once and their ability to go toe to toe with regular fonic artes. Supposedly they were handed down in secret from generation to generation. There was proving to be more to Tear than met the eye. "I thought those were useless with the words and melodies."

"To use Yulia's hymns, not only do you need to know the words and melody, but you need to understand the symbolism and true meaning behind those words." Tear answered, slightly uncomfortable at suddenly being the center of attention, not that she'd ever show it.

"Wow, that's pretty impressive." Luke commented. "So you know all the songs and all the melodies and all the meanings? How do you remember it all?"

"Actually I don't know them all. I only understand the meaning behind the first two."

"Hmmm, what I'd like to know is where you learnt them. I thought that the hymns themselves had been lost." Jade questioned.

"They've been passed down through my family for generations. I've been told that it's because my family is descended from Yulia. I don't know if there's any truth behind that or not."

"Wow really? That's cool!" Luke exclaimed. "Wait, I suppose that makes Master Van a descendant from Yulia too. I never knew that. Actually come to think of it, I didn't even know Master Van had a sister. He doesn't really talk about himself a lot, does he?"

"No, that wouldn't be like him," Tear sighed.

"So I suppose you don't know the Grand Fonic Hymn then?" Asch inquired.

"No, the Grand Fonic hymn is the proof of the covenant between Yulia and Lorelei. It's a combination of all the fonic hymns."

"Yeah, that's what I'd heard," Asch replied leaving Luke to wonder where Asch learnt all this stuff. It hadn't been until their adventure had begun that he realized just how much more knowledgeable Asch was.

"Well, I think I'm going to head to bed." Tear stood up.

"So early?" Jade taunted.

"Yes, because judging by how long it's been, I don't want to be here when Anise finds you." Tear shot back.

"I'll come too!" Luke jumped up. "Are you coming, Asch?"

"I dunno, I think I'd like to watch the little twirp take on the old man," Asch said with a grin.

"Aren't we in an awfully good mood," Jade noted. Asch just shrugged it off, still with a smile on his face. As amusing as it would be to watch Anise outright slaughter Jade, it would be an early morning, and it wasn't going to be the kind of day he could get away with being half alert. The God-Generals were waiting, and if they could sneak through unnoticed, he'd be very surprised.

"Luke, are you sure? I'm almost positive we've been this way before." Guy commented as he lifted a branch out of the way and allowed Tear and Anise to pass before sneaking under it and letting it snap back, almost hitting Jade in the face. Oh he'd pay for that one later.

Luke just mumbled for the millionth time that yes, he was sure, and no, they had not been this way already, it was just the fact that every tree in this Score-forsaken forest looked identical.

It had been a long day for all of them. True to his word, Jade had them all up and gone before sunrise. Not before the delayed sunrise in the mountains, before the normal sunrise, so they were all on edge. Even Mieu wasn't in his usual bouncy mood, and opted to ride on Luke's shoulder in spite of the many branches he had taken head on. Even he was half asleep. Granted he had gone hot-spring hunting with Anise so there was no saying how late he'd been up. In the end, whatever occurred between Anise and Jade after the rest of them had gone to bed, they would never know, but Anise had been in a chipper enough mood to tell them they probably didn't want to.

Trudging through the mountain path in the dark had been tediously difficult at best and the dodging of Oracle Knights they had to do once they'd gotten out of the mountains wasn't much better. Which was why Luke had suggested they cut through the woods to get off the main road. Bad idea.

Luke pulled back the last branch that blocked the way out of the forest to a very familiar sight. Deo Pass. Or more specifically, the entrance to Deo Pass, which they had now seen three times today. It wasn't the same as the last three times, this time the sun was slowly creeping down turning the sky a soft golden, which would eventually proceed to a bright orange, then a dull purple, and the night would set in, and they would be vulnerable.

Asch let out a frustrated sigh. Just great. He should have known better than to let Luke lead. Luke couldn't tell east from west at sunrise much less navigate a forest.

"Well, this is lovel," Jade commented. "As much as I enjoy the view of Deo pass at sunset, I can think of a few other sights I'd rather be seeing."

"So now what, do we look for somewhere safe to make camp?" Guy asked, trying his best not to get angry with Luke, he had only been trying to help.

"No, we'd be sitting ducks with all the Oracle Knights in the area. There are more than I thought there'd be," Tear pointed out.

Asch let out another large sigh. He had really hoped it wouldn't come to this. "This way." Asch turned around and walked back the way they came.

"I do hope your sense of direction is better than your other half," Jade stated, exasperation beginning to sound in his voice. Even he wore thin after awhile. "Either way I would like to know where you intend to go. There's nowhere close enough for us to reach by nightfall."

"Well you have two options. Stay here and sleep with the God-Generals, or follow me. Take your pick," Asch snapped back. He really didn't want to argue. That he was forced to resort to this was bad enough without Jade's sarcasm added to the mix.

Asch made is way through the woods, the group silently in tow. Every now and then he'd stop and check a nearby tree, each one he checked bearing a mark, an old score in the bark that had never fully healed. It took about an hour, but by the time they made it out of the forest, they were no longer anywhere near the mountains.

Rather, the cool breeze that cut through the air was refreshing and spoke of the sea. The sun was now setting and the sky was a bright orange, and against the burning horizon, they spotted the outline of what looked like a castle.

"Choral Castle, good thinking Asch," Guy commented when he saw the building on the horizon. "I forgot that it was in this area."

"Choral Castle?" Luke looked at Asch confusedly.

"Don't be silly Luke, don't you remember? It's the Fabre family's vacation home." Guy answered.

"Wow!" Anise looked up at in awe once they had gotten closer. "This is just your vacation home?"

"Well to be accurate, it was our vacation home." Asch replied. "It was abandoned back when I was still pretty young."

"Yeah," Guy added, "When the front line of the last war got too close."

"Hm, is that so?" Luke looked up at the castle. "I really don't remember it much. Must not have been very memorable."

"It wasn't bad when it was still maintained, can't say much for it now." Asch glanced around the courtyard. Weeds had overtaken the gardens that had once been alight with flowers; the stone walls had crumbled and were falling apart. It really was a pity; it had been a nice place, but that was before everything happened. In all honesty, this was probably the last place in Auldrant that Asch wanted to be, with the single exception of being lost in those woods with the God-Generals on their tail.

Guy opened the castle doors with relative ease. The inside was as much of a mess as the outside had been. Asch's stomach involuntarily lurched as he looked around. Nothing had changed. This place trudged up a myriad of memories he'd much rather leave buried.

Asch stuck out his arm preventing his brother from running out into the entrance hall and silencing him on the spot. Something was amiss. Asch looked around. Things weren't right. The door should have been bolted shut, and none of the windows were boarded up anymore. There was no dust gathered on the floor either.

"Asch, what's the matter?" Guy whispered. Asch didn't turn around but replied in a hushed tone.

"We're not alone."