Rai listened to the light conversation between Lloyd and Genis with one ear and to the stillness of the desert with the other, but his thoughts whirled chaotically, keeping him on edge.

He hadn't been able to use the communicator for quite some time. He'd reported to Yuan once, on the way to the ruins, but what with the rockfall and such he hadn't had the chance to do it again. He resolved to find some opportunity to sneak off alone when they got back to Triet, and to make sure nobody followed.

Then there was the subject of ... of W. Having thought about that was the whole reason his palms still throbbed dully, and why he knew it would be extremely painful to fight with his katana. But as much as he hated to admit it, Akira had been right - he had to face it, unless he wanted to risk W taking over completely and getting them all killed. Allowing such a thing was completely unacceptable.

Rai had at least been able to train a little with his sword, taking the chance to practice whenever possible with Akira giving instructions from his mind, and its weight was starting to feel more familiar. According to his past self, when he became accustomed enough to it the sword would start to feel like an extension of his arm. As it was, though, he wasn't yet nearly good enough with it, and he currently had Akira on the lookout while he used it, controlling his muscles when necessary.

On the other hand, Kratos still hadn't told him whether he'd gotten the Cruxis Crystal yet. The mercenary had disappeared multiple times - during the night particularly, he often vanished to "get some air" whenever there was another keeping watch - so for all Rai knew Kratos might already have the crystal by now. It was just a matter of talking to him about it. And, speaking of that, he needed to first ask Yuan what he had been going to say about the transformation. Ugh, this was all so complicated...

More positively, he'd tested out his new gauntlets on the way to the ruins and they'd worked perfectly. Sheathing and unsheathing the attached claws was a mere matter of prompting them ever so slightly with his mana, and storing mana within them was easy as well. They had a limit, Rai could feel with his mana sense, but they should still definitely hold about twice as much mana as he normally had within himself; during a given fight he could have up to three times the amount of mana he normally did. He wondered if these gauntlets had been some sort of rare artifact and that the human selling them hadn't understood how valuable they really were, not being able to use magic himself. He'd been insanely impressed when Rai had proved able to extract claws from them, after all. Rai allowed himself a grin. At least things sometimes worked in his favor.

Still, he did need to obtain better clothes for fighting, he thought, glancing down at himself. Currently he was compensating by casting well-timed local Guardian fields and keeping a very thin layer of mana over his skin to blunt blows (although it couldn't completely block them); he also relied heavily on Raine's healing. But the mana layer required an inordinate amount of concentration, which he was dearly hoping would get better with time. He knew clothes that provided magical protection, fueled in part by your own mana, could be found somewhere, but there had been no such garments in Triet. It made sense, he supposed; how would humans have access to that? The fact that they'd had some magical artifacts was astonishing enough already.

At any rate, he couldn't wait to get out of this desert. The heat and this stuffy cloak were both insanely annoying.

He heard a giggle from near him and realized it was Genis; his brother and Lloyd were now flanking him, grinning. Maybe they'd been trying to get his attention.

"You were off in your own little world again, is that it?" Lloyd teased, putting his hands in his pockets.

"I suppose so," Rai replied promptly, but he smiled a little to soften the words. "I've got a lot to think about," he added, and it came out a bit more darkly than he'd meant it to. Genis and Lloyd both shot him meaningful looks.

"Rai, can I talk to you later?" Genis asked him. "When we get to Triet?"

No, no, I need to talk to Yuan and ask Kratos and practice and...damn it. Out loud he said, "Sure. But I'll want to get some air first, though. So I'll be gone for a couple of hours."

Genis grinned and gestured widely around them. "You're not getting enough air right now?"

Rai kept his composure. "Night air," he amended. "Air that isn't sweltering hot."

"Oh," Genis said, deflating a little. "Well - I can come with you, then. We can just talk outside."

"No!" Rai said, and then paused and checked himself. He thought he heard Kratos give a short snort of laughter from behind them, though his face was completely impassive again as soon as Rai glanced back. "Sorry, Genis. I just...I meant I'd want to be alone for a while. I can talk to you afterwards."

His brother still seemed a bit suspicious, but he nodded. "Okay."

Lloyd spoke for the first time in a while. "I actually wanted to talk to you about something, Genis," he admitted. "So while Rai is out getting his... air, just hang out with me." Genis grinned.

"Okay!"

Their voices died off again and for some time, the group walked on in silence. Rai sighed, flexing his hands a bit and trying to ignore the sting. He really did need to learn some healing magic, even if it was just minor pain-numbing stuff. He hoped he had the aptitude for it. If he didn't, it would be pretty ironic, he thought wryly, since Akira had been studying healing, hadn't he? Maybe he should talk to Raine about that now. Maybe he should apologize to Raine, actually. They still weren't really talking, were they? Maybe he'd been a little too harsh with her back in Triet.

Finally he made up his mind and walked forward to Raine's other side. "Raine?"

She ignored him, her gaze fixed on the Triet Oasis far in the distance, but her mouth hardened into a thin line. Colette, who was perhaps more perceptive than Rai gave her credit for, slipped back a little to walk with Lloyd and Genis, leaving Raine and Rai alone in front, a short distance away from the rest of the party.

"I'm...sorry," Rai said. It still felt sour in his mouth, but seemed to get easier each time he said it.

"What for?" she asked tersely.

"Ah...for being rude to you?" he said uncomfortably. "You...you are my guardian after all. And you've been taking care of me since I was four. So I guess I was...out of line."

She didn't say anything for a few long moments, while Rai wondered what else he could possibly say to make her forgive him. Then finally she sighed, "You want something, don't you Rai?"

He felt a rush of relief mingled with slight annoyance that she immediately assumed that. "This is the kind of thing that makes me think you don't really love me, you know," he said lightly, making sure she could tell he wasn't trying to pick another fight. "You immediately assume I have an ulterior motive." He paused, then admitted, "But...I guess you're actually right. I did have something to ask you."

Raine let out a long breath, but there was a hint of a smile on her face. "Yes, Rai? What is it?"

"Could you teach me how to use healing artes?" he said in a rush. She glanced at him in surprise.

"You want to learn healing, Rai?"

"...Yes. Well, it would be really useful," he admitted. "Do you think I have the...aptitude?"

Raine looked thoughtful. "Usually, it's said that to use healing artes you need a certain capacity of empathy and compassion for others," she said. And you lack that, went unsaid.

"But what if you're healing yourself?" he persisted. "I'm sure I could muster up the intent to heal myself..."

"I'm not sure it works that way," she sighed. "Still, it's not unheard of for people to master it anyway, though it may be more difficult for those of a certain temperament. We can certainly try. But first, Rai..."

He'd expected she'd want something in return. "Yes?"

She paused for a few moments and Rai fought the urge to fidget. What would she ask?

"Please know, Rai," she said finally, "that I do love you. It is true that I don't always understand why you act the way you do, but I've raised you since you were four and both you and Genis are almost like sons to me. If I am more overprotective of Genis, it is because I feel he needs it more, not because I prefer him over you. As far as I am concerned, we are all blood-related siblings."

Rai opened his mouth and closed it again.

He felt like an absolute jerk. He could hear Akira laughing, as he always did, and Future was saying haughtily, I told you it was a bad idea to be rude to her, if you would just listen...

Raine glanced at him and smiled. "It's okay, Rai," she told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Don't be too down on yourself. I understand. I just don't want you to feel that I'm not on your side. And I'm sorry for slapping you, too, all right?"

Hell, I'm more than a jerk. I am literally the scum of the earth right now. ...Damn.

"I'm...I'm really sorry," was all he managed, finally. What else could he say to that? She smiled at him again.

"It's all right, Rai. But don't think this means I'll go easy on you! I hope you'll pay more attention to what I say from now on, young man."

He breathed out, relieved that the heavy mood was starting to dissipate. "I'll try," he said, feeling more than a little off-balance.

"Just try?"

"I will," he corrected. "Sorry. I was just...I've been a bit on edge since we left Iselia..."

"I think we've all been," she agreed. "But as long as we don't lose sight of who we are, I think we'll all be fine."

And maybe, just maybe, Rai agreed.

Rai's newfound tranquility was short-lived; as soon as the party began to approach Triet, it was clear that something was wrong. Screams and the clanging of swords could be heard in the distance. Lloyd made to sprint toward town immediately, his face set in fury, but Raine caught at his arm.

"Wait," she said urgently. "We should avoid - "

"We have to help," Lloyd insisted, his voice almost a snarl. "I won't let those Desian bastards get away with this anymore." Beside him, Genis and Colette wore expressions that said they agreed.

Raine let out a breath. "We can go scout out the situation," she said, "but don't rush into it headlong. Be careful about this."

Lloyd hesitated, then gave a slight nod before wrenching his arm out of her grasp and continuing to run towards Triet. Rai felt overwhelming weariness as he moved to match Lloyd's pace. Of course nothing could go peacefully - and going the same way as it had originally? Preposterous.

He felt the angry coiling of Lloyd's mana, its desire to protect, and its desire to kill, and his own insides twisted with unease. He never wanted that single-minded determination and killing intent directed at him.

Within minutes they'd reached Triet. Predictably, Lloyd started towards the entrance, but Rai grabbed him quickly by the arm, yanking him forcibly to the side until they stood hidden just shy of the perimeter, not visible to those in the town but within earshot of whatever was going on. The others settled in beside them, air thick with tension. Lloyd glared at him, but Rai was too busy listening to really care.

"I'll give you one more chance," a sneering voice was saying, clearly audible over the sobbing and screaming that continued to echo throughout the town square. "Where did the Chosen's group go? And did they have a green-eyed half-elf with them?" Rai's blood ran cold. They know who I am.

"I t-told you," came a quavering male voice, "The Chosen was here. But I don't know where they went - !" His voice rose desperately and cut off in a wet choke. Rai's breath caught, but he forced himself to stay focused and in the sudden shocked silence, the Desian's low voice came through clearly.

"Wrong answer," he growled, and Rai heard the thud of a body hitting the ground. Lloyd tried to make a dash for the entrance but Rai held him there with difficulty, letting his mana lend him strength.

"Lloyd, please. Drawing us out is what they want," he said in an urgent whisper.

"But I'm the one they're looking for," Colette murmured softly from their other side, her fingers twisting the edge of her dress. "Maybe I should just - "

"No," Rai hissed. "Shut up and stay put unless you want to sacrifice the whole world because you were too weak to listen to a little screaming." He turned away from her, not able to bring himself to care that there were hurt tears forming in her eyes. Raine put an arm around Colette and Lloyd and Genis both glared at him. Of course - he was always the bad guy.

"Rai - we have to do something," Lloyd grit out, obviously struggling to control his volume. "We have to."

"Regenerating the world is - " he started, feeling slightly hypocritical because he knew that wouldn't happen anyway. Lloyd didn't even let him finish.

"How can we regenerate the world if we can't even save the people standing right in front of us?"

Rai stared at him, effectively silenced. The familiar line was so stupid, so nonsensical, and yet he couldn't think of anything to say to it. Of course we can still regenerate the world even at the cost of a few lives, since it'd be a net gain, he wanted to say, but he knew that wouldn't go over well. Nothing he could say would convince Lloyd, because Lloyd's priorities were just different. That was the way it was.

The swordsman took advantage of Rai's hesitation and pushed past him, racing into the square, and Rai felt his heart plummet through his ribcage.

Shit.

Colette and Genis and even Kratos and Raine followed suit, the former two with no hesitation and the latter a bit more cautiously. Rai was left frozen with indecision against the outer wall of Triet. It seemed like he had no choice but to acquiesce, to reveal himself, but the revelation that the Desians were looking for him specifically had shaken him. More than that, it appeared that these were really Desians, not Renegades - what were the Desians doing so far out of their jurisdiction? Did Yuan know about this? Impulsively, he palmed the communicator the seraph had given him and glanced at it. Nothing. Just his luck.

There was nothing for it. But if he wanted the information to stay somewhat contained, they'd have to slaughter every last Desian in the oasis. And even then, the rest of the Desians would be suspicious when the group didn't return.

Resigned, Rai made his decision and entered quickly, the large group of enemies coming into view. There were about twenty of them, which should have intimidated him, but he knew his group was skilled enough to take them down. Whether they'd be willing to was a different matter altogether. Lloyd stood between the Desians and the townspeople, who had all flocked to hide behind this unexpected savior, and Rai could hear surprised and awed murmurs of "Chosen One" among them. He fought to keep down his derision, unsure where it came from. The people had done nothing wrong, after all; in fact, apparently none of them had stepped up to give him away.

The Desians hadn't appeared to notice him, probably because his mana signature didn't much stick out among all those present and they mostly had their backs turned to him. And most people weren't nearly as good as they should be at sensing mana, so that was probably part of it too.

"So the Chosen shows her face at last," the one at the front sneered, adjusting his grip on his weapon and dripping more blood on the ground in the process. He'd obviously been the one to kill the man earlier - Rai could see the unfortunate victim lying on the ground by the Desian's feet. "Come quietly and we'll leave this village alone."

Colette hesitated, troubled, and Rai felt like slapping her for even considering it. Lloyd, obviously thinking around the same lines, snarled and brandished his swords. "Over my dead body," he snapped, drawing the Desian's attention back to him. The half-elf laughed.

"My pleasure," he said sarcastically. Obviously these foot-soldiers hadn't been told about the battle prowess of the Chosen's group. Rai decided this had gone far enough. The only choice was really to kill them all and get out of here, now that a confrontation had been forced. It would take some time for Forcystus - assuming these Desians were from Iselia - to send another fleet after them. The faster he got this over with the better.

Akira, you take care of the dodging.

He could imagine his other self's grin. You got it.

Rai fired off a wind spell that sliced the heads of the two Desians closest to him from their bodies. It almost gave him pause, so eerily similar it was to when he had killed Layn, but he shook off the feeling and continued with his onslaught, slipping past and killing another with a light mana-infused blow to his back and maneuvering smoothly into a move with his claw gauntlet, unsheathing its blades and driving them deep into another Desian's gut in one step. He coated them with sharp wind mana and ripped them out of his body sideways, doing his best to ignore the smell, and used a mana shield to deflect the blow coming at him from his right, though another from behind grazed him before Akira was able to twist to avoid it. The next blow came horizontally from the front and Akira bent him backwards away from it, but the sword still grazed his stomach and his mana shield had thinned with his lapse of concentration from the unexpected move.

What's wrong, Akira?

It's harder to control someone else's body than you think, Akira ground out. Especially when you're a fuckin' elf or whatever. Shut up and let me concentrate.

The Desians, having realized they were under onslaught, were now converging on him angrily, but the rest of his party lost no time in dashing into the fight; Lloyd cut down Desians with the fury of a warrior, killing six more before most of the townspeople even registered what was going on, and Kratos was just as much a killing machine as he always was. Within minutes, the entire group of Desians that had been in the clearing lay dead.

Breathing heavily, Rai tried to take a step towards Lloyd to yell at him for being so annoyingly impulsive, but his legs wobbled like jelly and he fell to his knees, hard. That must have taken more mana out of him than he'd thought, he realized, and as the adrenaline from the battle cleared away, the cuts were starting to sting. His new one-hit-kill technique was strong but highly mana-consuming; it required so much precision and control that the amount of mana expended in actually containing the attack was much greater than the amount used to execute it. Wearily, Rai braced himself against the ground and drew from the mana stored in his gauntlet. Before he could get to his feet again, somebody dragged him up roughly by the arm. The next thing he knew Lloyd was glaring at him.

"Why did you just attack like that, Rai?!"

He clamped down on his responding anger tightly. "What else was I supposed to do? We couldn't let them take Colette, could we?"

Lloyd snorted incredulously. "You've got to be joking. We could have made them retreat! There was no need to slaughter them all!"

"But they - " Rai's protest died in his throat. He'd wanted to kill them mainly so that nobody could report back with information on his being with the Chosen's group. It had been purely selfish. Lloyd wouldn't accept this answer either. Instead of saying more, he turned his head away, turning his attention to the rest of the people. Raine knelt by the man on the ground, healing him - perhaps he hadn't died after all - and Colette was being thanked by a gaggle of townspeople. Genis stood nearby, unharmed and looking a bit uncomfortable. The rest of the locals were staring at Rai and Lloyd with a strange mix of expressions - awe, gratitude, but also some disgust. Rai looked down at himself for the first time and realized how drenched in blood he was; it was less noticeable where it stained his black clothes, but on his exposed skin it stood out, splattered over his stomach and upper arms like crimson paint. There was probably some on his face, too.

He finally responded, lowering his voice so that their avid watchers couldn't hear. "Weren't you the one who said that all Desians were monsters and deserved to be killed?" he murmured, meeting Lloyd's eyes again. The swordsman deflated visibly, the fight going out of him.

"Never mind that for now," he said, also lowering his voice and appearing to take closer stock of the situation. He looked at Rai searchingly and gestured to his own face. "You've got blood on you. I think it's freaking them out."

Automatically, Rai put a hand up to cheek. "Is it that bad?" Lloyd was blood-spattered too, but there wasn't much on his face, just a few specks that you'd probably miss if you didn't look closely enough.

"Yeah," Lloyd admitted. "Can't you feel it? You've got it all over." Something else seemed to occur to him. "Wait, you're not hurt, are you?" he asked suddenly, stepping forward. Rai, having anticipated the movement, held him at arm's length.

"I'm fine," he said quickly. "Worry about Genis instead. Or the precious Chosen - she seems pretty shocked." This last was said mockingly, though even Rai himself wasn't quite sure why. Lloyd's brow furrowed, though he still glanced quickly at Colette to make sure she was okay. She was, of course - she hadn't actually gotten involved in the fighting, after all.

"What do you have against Colette, anyway?" Lloyd demanded.

Rai sighed and shifted his stance as he searched for a response, feeling the muscles in his legs burn. Though he'd replenished his mana, it always hurt something fierce when Akira had him move faster than he'd normally think possible.

Lloyd appeared to notice the shaking in his legs, because when Rai threatened to pitch forward, Lloyd caught him by the arm and gave him a look. "You are hurt," he accused, pushing him over to a bench in the corner and giving Rai a once-over. Rai let him reluctantly.

"I'm really fine. I just pulled a muscle."

Lloyd glanced back up again. "You have a bunch of cuts on your back and shoulders," he pointed out. "And now that I look more closely, it seems like you did get cut on your face, too." He reached out a hand and brushed aside a strand of Rai's hair to illustrate his point and Rai felt the sudden burn of pain that proved Lloyd right. "Why did you just rush in like that, anyway?" the other continued. "I could have handled it on my own."

Rai felt annoyance spark within him at that, partly because it might be true. After all, despite having killed around the same number of Desians as Rai had, Lloyd wasn't even injured. Still, getting told to just sit on the sidelines like a good little boy didn't exactly sit well with Rai.

"I'm fine," he insisted. "They're just scratches - I dodged the real hits. You wouldn't have been able to pull that off if I hadn't taken them by surprise like that. And maybe I wouldn't even have gotten wounded if you'd been more discreet in the first place."

Lloyd had the grace to look apologetic, even as he continued looking for wounds. "I don't get why you have to show so much skin," he observed finally. "It'd make it harder for them to cut you if you wore an outfit like mine."

"It has to do with my magic," Rai admitted. "It's actually the same reason why I only wear one gauntlet, and keep the other hand bare - easier to channel mana that way. And see, even this one keeps my fingers exposed." He lifted his hand for emphasis. "Anyway, I usually keep a thin mana shield up during fights - the only reason they managed to get me occasionally was because I sometimes lost concentration since I'm not used to close combat yet, and that made the shield thinner." He shrugged, watching as Lloyd prodded at his stomach. "I'm working on it - ow." He winced and glanced down, realizing that there was yet another wound, this one in his lower abdomen. He remembered belatedly that a blade had grazed his stomach during the battle. Lloyd looked at him disapprovingly.

"We'll have to get the Professor to look at this," he said, glancing over at the woman in question, who was now busy trying to disperse the crowd that had gathered around Colette and Genis so that she could make her way over. The villagers actually appeared to be avoiding Lloyd, Rai, and Kratos; presumably they'd been a bit off-putting with their unabashed killing of the Desians. But Kratos, of course, had utilized his apparent skill of melting away into the shadows and was nowhere to be seen.

Rai flinched away as Lloyd brushed against his wound again and realized that the swordsman had produced a cloth from somewhere and was using it to clean off the blood. "I'll do it myself," he protested, but Lloyd didn't even pause.

"Just let me, it'll be easier."

Rai held himself stiffly, gritting his teeth against the sharp sting as Lloyd poured some water over the cloth and then carefully cleaned the gash on his stomach, now visible after some of the blood had been wiped away. It was ticklish, too, when the cloth ventured too near his sides, but he managed not to react. "This might scar," Lloyd observed as he finished. "Even though it's only skin-deep." He frowned again. "You really should be more careful, Rai."

"It doesn't really matter if it scars," Rai said carelessly, then glanced back over at Lloyd when he said nothing in reply. "What?"

"Are you sure it doesn't matter? You - " Lloyd cut himself off, breaking eye contact and coloring slightly. "Never mind."

Rai eyed him suspiciously but let the matter go. "If you say so." He made to turn away, but Lloyd's hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"You still have blood all over your face," Lloyd explained, already wetting a fresh cloth. Rai raised a hand in protest.

"I can do it myself," he offered again, feeling a bit like a broken record, but Lloyd shook his head.

"You can't even see yourself right now," he pointed out. "Just let me do it. And then let the Professor heal you. If this makes you uncomfortable, then be more careful and don't get cut in the future."

With that questionable pronouncement, lifted Rai's chin with one hand and started cleaning the blood off his face, tucking his hair gently out of the way. Rai rolled his eyes and allowed it, wincing a little when the cloth reached the cut on his cheek. Raine's voice from the side cut into the scene.

"Are you hurt, Rai?" she asked clinically. He opened his mouth to respond, but Lloyd answered for him.

"He got cut on his face, back, and stomach," the swordsman said immediately, finishing with Rai's face and tugging at his arm, starting to wipe off the blood on his shoulder. Rai shivered a little at the cool touch of the cloth, shying away automatically, but Lloyd put his hand firmly at his neck, holding him there as he finished. Rai glared at him. Raine raised her eyebrows, but to her credit she said nothing, just touched her staff briefly to Rai's stomach, back, and finally face and knitting the wounds closed with healing mana.

"Mostly good as new," she said finally. "None of these should scar as long as you take it easy and don't reopen any of them." Lloyd looked relieved at this, his brown eyes fluttering closed momentarily as he let out a breath. He nodded to Raine.

"Thanks, Professor," he told her before turning back to Rai and giving him a stern look. "You're lucky," he scolded. "But like I said, you should be more careful."

Rai stared at him incredulously, unable to speak for a few moments. Enough was enough. "You're not my mother, Lloyd," he said finally. Lloyd didn't react.

"No, I'm your friend," he responded simply, and Rai felt his face heat up a little and his next words died in his throat. He hated it when people just said things like that. Particularly Lloyd. Raine laughed a little and he glanced her way, startled. He'd almost forgotten she was there.

"I'm glad to see you two are getting along," she said, a smile in her voice. Then her tone became more serious. "We should get going, though. Change of plans - it's best if we can make it through the Ossa trail and to Izoold as quickly as possible. It seems the Desians are looking for us, and what's more, we've already wasted time here with this unexpected delay."

Rai nodded, glad for the diversion, and got up quickly, deliberately not looking at Lloyd. Genis had run over as well.

"Are you okay, Rai?" his brother asked worriedly, and even though he knew Genis meant well, Rai felt a stab of irritation.

"I'm perfectly fine," he said shortly. Genis didn't seem annoyed at his tone, though, and gave him a commiserating look.

"You did a good job for having so little experience in combat," the younger half-elf pointed out. "I'd be more surprised if you weren't injured."

Rai grinned at him and ruffled his hair, some of his irritation melting. "Aw, thanks, cute little brother," he pronounced. Genis scowled, flushing.

"This is what I get for trying to cheer you up," he muttered, but Rai knew he wasn't really angry. Still, Genis was pointedly avoiding looking at any of the bodies. He was definitely put off by the loss of life, but keeping himself from saying anything about it now, especially since he'd probably already seen Rai's altercation with Lloyd. Rai resigned himself to getting a lecture from the young half-elf later.

A few short minutes later, the party left Triet, tense and weary, with Lloyd trailing closely behind Colette (she still looked a bit pale from the Angel Toxicosis) and Rai and Genis walking silently in step with each other. Though no words were exchanged, all the members wondered what trials were next in store.

A/N: What do you think? Anything you want to see more or less of? I won't know unless you tell me...

Either way, next chapter should be up soon ^^.