Hey! I know it's been a super long while, but I'm back! College absolutely kicked my ass. *Hopefully* updates will be more regular, but I can't guarentee anything.

It was early morning when the party headed out for the far edge of the Fallen Arm. Tucked far away from the beaten path was a locked bulkhead, behind which was the only thing connecting the fallen arm to the Titan it had once belonged to. The passageway had been built by the Machina long ago. It had been to try to return to the Mechonis, but that project had been abandoned and all that remained was the path.

The bulkhead opened with a loud noise as it likely hadn't been opened in a long time. They started walking toward the Mechonis. They did so quietly, looking up at the two Titans above them.

"I can't believe that such huge things once fought each other," Sharla said.

"I can't imagine what it must've been like," Gadolt said.

"The Machina must have been terrified at the time," Melia added.

"Fear robs us of reason," Dunban said. "Out of fear we commit terrible atrocities and call them acts of self-preservation."

"Fear gives rise to more fear," Kallian said. "A never ending circle of hatred."

"I wonder," Melia said. "Could that circle be broken?"

"Fear must be what's made Egil act this way," Gadolt added.

Shulk looked up at the Mechonis, towering above them. Somewhere up there, Egil was waiting for them. The answers to their questions would be found there. He could feel Meyneth tugging at him, urging him to go to Agniratha.

Could fear truly have been the reason for all of this? Fear was the reason that thousands upon thousands had died? That Homs were nearing extinction? There had to be something else to it. There had to be.

He would find out once he reached Agniratha. Once Meyneth told him everything. Once he confronted Egil.

Shulk walked ahead of the rest of the group. He could hear the others talking about something, but he wasn't paying attention. Every fiber of his being was screaming at him to rush to Agniratha, but he couldn't right now. He had to be patient.

He could tell it was Meyneth asking him to go to Agniratha. She'd told him before that was where his questions would be answered.

They stopped walking once they reached the foot. The walk had taken almost the entire morning, so they stopped briefly for food.

"This is the last chance for anyone who wants to turn back to do so," Shulk declared, surprising everyone. "I'm glad for your support, but I want this to be completely voluntary. I wouldn't anyone to feel forced to come along."

The others shared looks before looking back at him. "We all want to be here," Dunban declared.

"I am not leaving either," Melia said, taking a step forward.

"Yeah," Reyn said. "We've got your back until the end."

Shulk smiled. "Alright," he said. "Then let's head out. It's a long way up."

Shulk, Kallian and Gadolt watched the others expressions as they entered Mechonis Field.

"I didn't think the inside of the Mechonis would look like this," Fiora said in awe.

"I never even thought of what it might look like," Reyn said, "but this is probably the opposite of whatever I thought."

"It certainly is the polar opposite of the interior of the Bionis," Dunban added.

"It's so...mechanical," Melia said.

"It's hard to believe the Mechonis used to be alive," Sharla muttered. She looked at Gadolt. "No offence."

He shrugged.

Shulk led the way. There were Mechon everywhere and there seemed to be no way to sneak around them. As such, they ended up fighting their way to the lifts. Considering this place was a maze of lifts and corridors, it was hard to think it was called a "field". Maybe it was what a field looked like to the Machina.

The group moved quickly, not getting lost thanks to Shulk, Kallian and Gadolt's inexplicable knowledge of the place. The rest of the group was sure they would be desperately lost without the three.

Reyn kept the back with Gadolt. Together, they watched everyone's backs. However, Reyn could tell something was distracting Gadolt. There was something about the way he glanced backwards that wasn't the way someone who was keeping an eye out for potential attackers. He was looking for something. While he had no idea what it could possibly be, Reyn also kept an eye for it.

They paused for lunch on a lift, eating quickly. If Shulk was right, they'd reach a Machina camp a few levels higher. At the rate they were going, it would probably be a few more hours.

After a maze of hallways, lifts, floors that moved on their own and Mechon, they reached an outcropping. Through it, they could see the sun waning

"The camp is just ahead," Shulk said. "We'll rest for the night there."

While Shulk kept walking, the others paused. To think that in just half a day that they'd made it this far up the Mechonis was incredible. It had taken them weeks to get to Makna and Valak, yet they were already getting close to the chest.

From here, the Bionis was an ominous thing, towering above. Sword Valley was above as well, casting a shadow on the endless ocean and the outline of the Bionis' Leg. A cold wind blew, seeping into their bones and urging them to keep walking. They cast one last look at their home Titan. It didn't look so hospitable from here. It looked menacing.

They caught up to Shulk, who had stopped walking and was looking at an outcropping above.

"There were stairs here," Kallian said. "This is going to be a problem."

"You forgot our flight packs," Gadolt told him, patting him on the shoulder.

Reyn walked ahead of the two to stop next to Shulk. He stepped onto an air vent right as wind came flowing out of it. He yelped as he was swept off his feet. Shulk reached for him, but just barely missed him. He activated his pack and flew up to catch him. He found Reyn face down on the outcropping he'd been looking at. He landed next to him.

"Are you alright?"

Reyn flashed him a thumbs up and a grin. He'd messed up his landing, but the vents seemed like a safe-ish way to travel.

He looked down to tell the others as much, who jumped into the next air flow and had a better landing than Reyn did.

They kept walking, reaching the Machina camp long after the sun had waned. After eating, they settled in for the evening. They hadn't lit a fire, though Melia had summoned a few fire elementals to allow them to see and to warm them a little. Aside from the wind, the temperature was comfortable.

Sharla cleaned out her rifle, taking solace in the redundancy of it. In the chaos that had been the last few weeks, it was one of the only stable things in her life. Gadolt sat next to her, cleaning his own gun. The two talked in hushed whispers, wanting to keep their conversation private.

Fiora had the Monado on her lap, looking out toward the horizon. Melia was next to her, doing the same. The latter looked like she might fall asleep at any moment.

Shulk and Reyn sat next to each other. Reyn was asking about Shulk's year alone, and he was answering in the best way he could. He also helped him repair parts of his driver. The one Reyn had been using all this time was the one Shulk had made specifically for him. If he ever got the time and materials, he'd make him a better one. He was already thinking up of blueprints.

Kallian was talking with the other Machina in the camp, trying to gather info about the current situation. Ever since the attack on Alcamoth, everything had been quiet. However, there had been more convoys sent to Agniratha and the Central Factory than usual. Egil was preparing something, they just didn't know what. He also sent a message over to Miqol to inform him that they'd reached the camp and should be reaching the factory by sun wane the next day.

He stretched and yawned, deciding to catch some sleep. This place was currently the safest on Mechonis, so it would likely be their last chance to get a good night's sleep. The others followed him and within the hour, they were all sleeping.

All aside from Dunban.

Melia's elementals had disappeared when she'd fallen asleep, with her head on Fiora's shoulder. He smiled at the sight.

He looked to the sky and at the stars. They were the same as the ones on Bionis. It made sense, but it was still surprising. He remembered the nights where he would trek through Tephra cave with Fiora. They would lay in the grass at the Bionis' knee and he would point out the constellations to her. He did that now, hoping counting the stars might help him fall asleep.

They did.