I am so sorry for going over a month without updating this story. I had been busy with both school, my brother's wedding, and posting my other story. I decided to finish posting Shadow of the Dark Moon since it was a much shorter story before coming back to this fanfic. I hope this chapter was worth the wait and thank you for all the hits during the month break.

Now, onward to the story.

Chapter 17: Overseas

It would seem Lloyd spoke too soon about having some luck. On the day they were supposed to take off for Palmacosta a giant thunderstorm decided to roll in during the middle of the night. Kratos decided it was too dangerous to allow Maxe to leave, so they were all effectively grounded until the storm passed. Three days had already past and the storm still showed little sign of stopping.

Lloyd attempted to suppress a shiver as another thunderbolt flashed across the inn's window. Colette and Genis have been trying to cheer him up, knowing how he felt about storms, but even their best efforts did little to help. It didn't help that Genis was starting to get cabin fever and was driven everyone crazy with his shaper than usual tongue. Even Raine's punishments did little to stop him.

"With all this rain, I could have started work on my water spells," Genis grumbled.

Raine didn't bother to put down the books she was reading. "I've already told you that you can't go out. I don't want to risk you getting sick."

Genis rolled his eyes. "It takes more than a little water to make me ill."

"Regardless, you're still not going out," Raine said firmly. "Once...we're on the ship, it will take a day or two before we reach Palmacosta."

Colette looked towards their teacher. "Are you alright, Professor? You look kind of green."

Raine shook her head. "I'm fine."

"You're not getting sick, are you?" Colette asked in worry.

"Wouldn't that be ironic," Genis muttered.

"No, no, I'm fine," Raine assured quickly. "Just a little stuffy from being inside for so long."

"Regardless, I'll be glad when we finally leave," Lloyd said as he put his hands on his cheeks and leaned forward on the table.. "I'm so sick of all this rain and I want to ride on the ship."

Raine visibly paled at the mention of the ship.

"From the looks of things, the storm should clear tomorrow," Kratos said as he cleaned his blade.

"How do you know that?" Lloyd asked.

"A gut feeling," Kratos answered. As he said that, another clash of thunder rocked the inn causing Lloyd to nearly jump out of his seat.

Lloyd finally had enough and stood up. "I'm going to the kitchen," he muttered as he almost ran out of the room.

Colette frowned as she watched him leave. "Poor Lloyd."

"Do you know why he fears thunder so much?" Kratos asked.

Colette shook her head. "He has always been like that."

"So, he never told you," Kratos stated with a note of concern.

"Lloyd has always been ashamed of his fear," Raine said. "He likes to think of himself as a tough guy when in truth, he's extremely sensitive."

"If he talked about his fears, he may had conquered them by now," Kratos remarked.

"Perhaps, but it isn't something you can force," Raine replied as she turned a page in her book.

Truth of the matter, she tried several times to get Lloyd to open up about his fears after she witnessed his nightmare, but he always managed to dodge her by either changing the subject or shutting down completely. She attempted to get help from the Church, but the best she got were the priests wanting to convert Lloyd. She even asked Phaidra and Frank for help, and they admitted that they haven't had much luck either getting through to Lloyd. While some of it was Lloyd being stubborn, a lot it was because Lloyd simply didn't remember what traumatized him.

Although, according to Frank, Lloyd used to be much worse to the point of being emotionally shut down until he befriended Colette. So he had thankfully made progress and by all accounts, Lloyd was showing signs of recovery since his nightmares lessened and he was more happy overall. Phaidra even thanked her one day for Genis and her becoming so close to Lloyd, saying it was the most normal they had ever seen him.

Genis bit his lip in thought. "I remember that Dirk told us that he found Lloyd during the winter's storm. Maybe that has something to do with his fear."

"I forgot about that," Colette gasped. "I now remember the year that Lloyd came to us. Dad...I mean Frank said it was the worst storm in decades."

Kratos physically flinched when he heard the Chosen referred to her own father by his first name. No doubt that Remiel's cruel lie was tearing the girl apart.

On the subject of Lloyd, he already knew why Lloyd feared thunder. After what Kvar did to them, he was surprised that the fear was not even worst. He wanted to console Lloyd, but he didn't know how without revealing too much about himself.

He had hoped his friends would have known more so they could tell him. That way, he could use his knowledge without raising suspicion.

"Given what we know, it is possible that Lloyd's family was attacked during that storm and it had been embedded into his mind as the fear of thunder," Kratos stated in a control voice.

Raine nodded. "That has been my conclusion as well once I heard what happened to Lloyd's mom."

"But Lloyd doesn't even remember what happened," Genis argued.

"Don't underestimate the power of the subconscious mind," Kratos said as he finished cleaning his sword. "You would be surprise by how many of our actions are influence by faded memories."

Raine's eyes suddenly became downcast. "Very true. It can some times drive a person mad trying to remember something that their mind won't allow."

Kratos raised an eyebrow. Was she talking about her own experience?

"Maybe Lloyd could find peace if he accepted Martel into his life," Colette suddenly said. "I mean, the road to Martel always leads to happiness."

"It is not as simple as that, Chosen," Kratos replied in an even tone.

"But Martel would help light his path and put his soul at ease," Colette argued. "With her guidance, Lloyd could finally break free of his fears and be at peace."

Genis looked down at his hands. "Maybe...maybe it would also help Lloyd get over his anger of the Desians as well."

"It takes far more than faith to ease such wounds," Kratos said. He had to fight to hide his annoyance about how their 'faith' could heal anything, especially with the false goddess they had learned to worship.

Raine lowered her book. "You're not a believer in the Church of Martel, are you Kratos?"

Both Colette and Genis looked towards Kratos in surprise.

"I can't say that I am," Kratos answered neutrally.

"But...how can you go on a journey to regenerate the world if you don't even believe in it?" Genis asked.

Kratos gave the boy a hard stare. "Why does Lloyd care about this journey since he too doesn't believe in Martel?" Genis cringed by the harshness in Kratos' voice. "I don't know Lloyd's reasons, but mines are simple. It is a job."

Raine narrowed her eyes. "So, it is all about the money to you?

"That's correct," Kratos answered emotionlessly.

"That's really all?" Raine asked, not completely believing him.

"That's so sad," Colette spoke, near tears. "Surely, you must have been touched by Martel some time in your life."

If she only knew. "One does not need to believe in a goddess to do a job," Kratos answered.

"Then what do you think happens to the Desians when the Chosen completes their journey?" Genis challenged. "Or where the Tower of Salvation came from and the angels?"

Kratos had to keep himself from chuckling. How ignorance must be bliss. "I don't bother to answer such questions since I, as a mere mortal, would never know. However, I have my own reasons for not believing in the Church of Martel."

"Then, I will pray for you, Mr. Kratos," Colette said as she put her hands together. "I pray that you will find your way along with Lloyd."

Kratos stood up and said nothing more as he left. Although the Chosen meant well, her unwavering faith was starting to make him ill. She was the Chosen so he shouldn't be surprise, but to hear her believing so strongly in this twisted and cruel lie was too much, even for him.

He didn't stop walking until he reached the kitchen, where Lloyd was still hiding. Kratos paused for a moment as he considered how best to approached his son. He still wanted Lloyd to come to him, but he knew that the boy didn't trust him. He had doubted that Lloyd even liked him.

Deciding it was best to take the direct approach, Kratos walked into the kitchen, startling Lloyd. The boy really needed to work on sensing his surroundings.

"Oh, it's just you," Lloyd muttered.

"Are you feeling better?" Kratos asked.

"No, but I just needed to get out of the room," Lloyd said as he went back to moping.

Kratos took a seat next to Lloyd. "I think I know the source of your fear. Your friends told me about what the day was like after you were found by your father."

"I don't remember that day at all," Lloyd said bluntly.

"You were still fairly young, so you wouldn't remember much," Kratos said. "However, it would appear many of your memories became sealed within your own mind. Because of that, your memories return in the form of dreams."

Lloyd said nothing for a moment. "I...I do feel I should remember something whenever I have my nightmares, but I keep forgetting once I wake up. It's so frustrating."

"It could be your mind's efforts to protect you because it knows you're not ready to know the truth," Kratos offered.

"How do you know so much about things like this?" Lloyd asked.

"I have seen and experience much in my life, both good and bad," Kratos said. "Because of that, I too sometimes suffer from waking nightmares and flashes of memories."

Lloyd's eyes widened. "You...but, I thought nothing gets to you."

"We all have weaknesses," Kratos said in a somewhat far off tone. "But as I said days ago, it is acknowledging our weaknesses that makes us stronger."

"Then...how did you conquer your weakness?" Lloyd asked carefully.

Kratos said nothing for several seconds. "I try to remember what I am fighting for. In your case, it is remembering your duty to the Chosen."

"What about Colette?" Lloyd asked.

"You want to protect her, right?" Kratos asked, although it was more of a statement. "To protect the ones you care for, you must rid yourself of all doubt and hesitation. That is the first step in conquering any fear."

Lloyd shook his head in confusion. "I don't know what that has to do with being afraid if lightning."

Kratos stood up. "You will understand someday. You still have some time to grow." He proceeded to leave the room.

"I still have time to grow? What the heck is that suppose to mean?" Lloyd grumbled.

Just as Kratos had predicted, the weather was completely clear the next day. If it wasn't for the damp grass and sidewalks, one couldn't tell that it had rained for almost a week.

The clear weather also brightened Lloyd's mood and he was nearly jumping up and down at the thought of riding a boat for the first time. Genis couldn't even make fun of Lloyd since he was equally excited, especially since he was finally out of the inn.

The youngest in the group ran ahead of the two adults, who were noticeably lagging behind. Raine didn't look so well and seemed to have gotten paler as they walked closer to the dock.

"Are you unwell, Miss Sages?" Kratos asked.

Raine nodded, but didn't bother to say anything else.

Kratos didn't know what to make of her shifted in mood, but he knew that Raine was going to be useless to them on the boat if she kept acting like this.

"Hey, you guys are late," Maxe grumbled as he finished putting the supplies on his ship.

"Sorry, I was kind of...ill yesterday," Lloyd said slowly.

"Well, whatever," Maxe shrugged. "I'm ready to go whenever you are."

"Thank you for given us this ride," Colette said politely. "We really appreciate what you are doing."

Maxe blushed slightly at Colette's words. "Uhmm, thanks."

"Raine, are you feeling alright?" Genis asked as he helped Raine on the boat. She was actually starting to shake and looked like she was going to run off the ship.

"Professor?" Lloyd asked worriedly.

"I'll be fine. I'm just not used to the unsteadiness of a ship," Raine said slowly, trying to hide her fear. She then looked around the ship and sighed. "I was afraid this journey would force me on a boat sooner or later."

Maxe looked very concern at Raine's demeanor, but decided not to voice his worries. "If everyone is onboard, I will be taking off now. But don't blame me if we run into any monsters."

Kratos nodded. "Understood."

Maxe then pulled anchor and the ship began to slowly move forward.

"Now we can finally go to the next seal," Lloyd said excitedly.

"Yeah!" Colette cheered as she stood by Lloyd's side.

The boat slowly left the main dock and they were soon off into the open sea. Within thirty minutes, there was nothing but water around them. Lloyd and Colette busied themselves at looking at all the different fishes that were swimming along side the boat. Genis just stared into the sea in complete wonderment. Noishe found a nice corner of the boat and spent most of him time sleeping. Raine looked like she was wanted to jump ship at any moment.

It had been years since she had taken to the sea. The last time was nearly ten years ago when Genis was still a toddler. She didn't remember why, but she had always been deadly afraid of the sea. It was like a vortex of death that wanted to consume her and dragged her into its icy depths.

She knew such things were silly, but she couldn't help herself. Which was why she always sympathized with Lloyd's seemly childish fear of lightning. She was thankful that Genis didn't pick up on her fear and he could enjoy what should have been a beautiful and educational experience.

Laughter caught her ears and she looked over to see Lloyd and Colette pointing at something in the water. She gave a small smile as she watched the two played like they had no troubles in the world. Ashamed that these times would soon be coming to an end, forever.

Raine felt her heart sink as she thought about what Colette told her about what would happened at the tower. The student she had helped guide and teach would be lost to them in order to save this world. The ultimate sacrifice to ban the Desians and restore the world's mana.

It hardly seemed fair to ask a girl at the dawn of life to give up her existence. She had always believed in the Church and Martel, but she could hardly understand why such a cruel thing had to happen to someone as sweet as Colette. The logical part of her told her that nothing was gain without sacrifice and it was naive to think that there could be any true happy ending from this kind of situation, but she couldn't help but to want a better outcome. She didn't want to see Colette die.

And what about Lloyd? If he saw this through to the end, could he honestly let Colette go? She half imagined Lloyd raising his swords to the angels themselves if he ever learned the truth. It didn't help that Lloyd would not truly believe that Colette's death would bring salvation to the world. He may believe in Colette, but trusted nothing else from the Church of Martel.

Perhaps she was jumping to conclusions too early. There was still a long way to go before they would be ready to enter the Tower of Salvation and many things could change before they reached that point. At this moment, she could only hope for the best.

The day passed slowly for the group. There was only so much one could do on a ship and the novelty began to run out. Although it was not Lloyd who got bored first, it was actually Genis. Unlike his other friends, he couldn't find too much amusement at looking at fish. So he decided to study up on his magic. He wanted to be able to do more mid-level spells, besides Eruption.

"That is a very good book you are reading." Kratos remarked as he watched the boy study.

Genis lowered his book. "You know what I'm reading?"

Kratos nodded. "The History of Magic Arts was written by a renown elf that decided to share her knowledge with others, especially half-elves."

"This person was an elf?" Genis remarked in surprise as he looked at the author's name. There was no last name given as he read her name. "Malachite."

Kratos gave a far off stare into the sea. "Very few remember her, but she was a woman who devoted her life for the equal rights of all races."

"I thought elves were forbidden to share their knowledge with others," Genis remarked.

"They are, but a few brave souls managed to step out of the confines of their upbringing," Kratos said. "Much like you and your sister."

Genis looked confused for a moment before he began to laugh nervously. "Yeah...but my sister and me were not born in an elven village. Our parents were kind of liberal, which is why we've mostly lived among humans."

"I think that is a good thing," Kratos said. "Elves tend to be too isolated and set in their ways. Which is why I admire people like Malachite."

Genis frowned. "I wonder why I've never heard of her until now."

"Much of her history has been lost to the void of time," Kratos said. "I only know of her through luck."

"I have to research her too one day," Genis said.

"May I ask, why did you decide to master fire spells first?" Kratos asked, changing the subject. "From what I can tell, isn't your spirit symbol that of Celsius?"

Genis eyes widened in shock. "You can tell that? You ability to sense mana is amazing!"

"From what I remember, learning spells from the opposite of your spirit symbol is extremely hard," Kratos said, ignoring the mage's surprise.

"Well, that's why I wanted to master fire spells," Genis explained. "Once you've learned to control the element that is the opposite of your spirit symbol, it becomes much easier to learn magic in general."

"Makes sense," Kratos said.

"That's why I only knew basic spells until recently." Genis began to absently stroke his exsphere. "Usually, elves my age would know several mid-level spells by now."

"Some people are faster learner than others," Kratos said with a note of fondness. "However, magic becomes easier to use when one has an exsphere to aid them. If you keep up your studies and training, you will grow much stronger."

"I hope so," Genis said. "I don't want to depend on Lloyd or you to protect me forever. One has to learn to stand on their own in this world."

Kratos nodded. "Indeed."

"You know, you're very knowledgeable about these kind of things for a human," Genis remarked. "I find it hard to believe that you're not a half-elf at times."

"I grew up with a lot of half-elves," Kratos said.

This took Genis by surprise. "You grew up with half-elves? But you're a human."

"That has little to do with anything." Kratos said. "Humans and half-elves can coexist in peace if given the chance. It is the bias and arrogant point-of-view from certain individuals that make it nearly impossible."

Genis lowered his eyes. "I guess. I just thought everyone would hate half-elves because of the Desians."

"One who studies history will find that half-elf discrimination was in practice long before the Desians came to power. One could even argue that the Desians were born from the seeds of rejection and hatred," Kratos said.

"But the Church says that the Desians were born evil," Genis argued. "They are the personification of chaos itself."

Kratos gave Genis a long look. "If you believe that, there is nothing more to discuss." He then got up and went to another part of the ship.

Genis wasn't sure why, but Kratos looked upset and disappointed by his statement. He was just repeating what he has always been told by the Church. The word Desian even meant chaos in the language of the elves. But what Kratos said seemed truer. Maybe it was easier for him to believe that the Desians were products of their environments than unrepentant agents of darkness. He wasn't sure what to believe.

He decided to clear his head by going back to his studies. He didn't want to think about the Desians anymore.

The day slowly gave way to night and soon the group was sailing under a blanket of stars. It was the first time they had seen the sky in several days and it was a sight Lloyd greatly missed. The stars always brought him comfort, no matter what was going on in his life.

"The stars are so bright tonight," Colette said. "Like a bunch of shiny diamonds in the sky."

Lloyd chuckled. "Yeah."

Colette pointed up at one of the stars. "That's Volt over there, right Lloyd?"

"Yeah, it is," Lloyd said. "Volt, the summon spirit of might and enlightenment. It can also be dangerous if provoke or anger."

"Wow, I would love to meet someone born under Volt one day," Colette said in awe.

"That would be cool," Lloyd chuckled as he looked towards Colette. "Glad you're feeling better. You had me worried when you collapsed at the ruins."

Colette smiled. "Yeah, I'm feeling much better now."

"But...you're still not eating as much," Lloyd noted in concern. "I thought once you were well again that you would start eating normally."

"I'm just not as hungry as I used to be," Colette said slowly.

Lloyd frowned. "Colette...you'll tell me if anything was wrong, right?"

Colette nodded. "Of course." Her voice, however, didn't sound that convincing. "We better get to bed. We have to be ready to go in the morning." She quickly walked towards the cabin everyone was staying in.

Lloyd watched her until she went through the door. He wasn't sure, but Colette hadn't been honest with him lately. It didn't help that Colette showed she could lie without any qualms after what happened at his father's house. Something was wrong, but he had no idea what it was.

Lloyd gave a long sighed as he too retired for the night.

It wasn't until late afternoon the next day that they finally saw Palmacosta in the distance. It looked like a giant castle floating in the sea since all the buildings looked connected together.

"Look at that!" Genis yelled in excitement. "Palmacosta, the biggest city in the world!"

Colette began to clap her hands. "It's prettier than I imagine."

"Wow, I never seen a city this huge," Lloyd said in awe. "I wonder what kind of weapons they sell there?"

"Is that all you can think about?" Genis grumbled. "Palmacosta has the greatest school where all the great minds of our time studied."

"Not to mention the main branch of the Church of Martel." Colette said. "All the Chosens have gone there to received the blessing of the priests."

"But why would you need the priests blessing?" Lloyd asked. "Isn't the angels' blessing enough?"

Colette turned to face Lloyd. "Well, the angels make everything official, but the priests are to present the Chosen to the people."

"That makes no sense," Lloyd muttered.

"That's because you know nothing of the Church," Genis teased. "If you've attended a service every now and then, you would know this stuff."

"Shut up, Genis!" Lloyd snapped.

"You will come to the service?" Colette asked, ignoring the exchanged.

Lloyd rubbed his head. "I don't know. It's not really my thing."

"It won't kill you to go to one church's service, Lloyd," Genis said. "It isn't like they're going to ask you to convert."

That actually was Lloyd's greatest fear. It was not unheard of for the Church to ambushed nonbelievers in their services and put them on the spot in order to convert them. Although he had never seen it, Dirk had told him more than a few stories about such things happening. He saw no reason for his dad to lie about something like that since he didn't care whom he chose to worship.

"I'll think about," Lloyd finally said.

"Get your things ready," Kratos told the trio. "We dock within the hour."

They all ran towards the cabin, not wanting to hold up their departure. Kratos looked towards Palmacosta.

It has been a long time since he has been to this city. He briefly wondered if anyone would remembered him. Although he worked as a sailor and didn't interact too much with the other natives, there was still a chance he would run into someone he knew. They did lived within those walls for almost a year.

He had to be careful; otherwise he could blow his entire cover. Things would not be made easy since it appeared that they would be spending several days inside the city.

Kratos shook his head to clear his thoughts and left to prepare for their departure.

We finally reached one of my favorite story arcs in the game, Palmacosta. Seriously, this part of the game does not get enough love among the fandom and I hope I do justice to it.

E, thank you for your review and I hope to keep reading and sending feedback. To my knowledge the Centurions cannot make pacts, at least not in the same way as a summon spirit. When Sheena talked to Email during Dawn of the New World she wanted to make a pact with him so they could stay in contact, but said nothing about wanting to make a pact with Tenebrae even though they also became close during the journey. The Centurions were also still lock in sleep until the new tree was planted so I don't think they could of helped with the monster tree incident.

With that done, until next time and it will not take a month this time.