"And...where do you think you're going?"

Sid chuckled from behind her ginger plants. She was squatting next to the pot with a basket of freshly cut herbs at her feet. Boo slept right at the center of the basket and the herbs encircled him like a garland.

Sid's hand clutched the stem of the ginger plant but she had paused to uproot it when she saw Aisa run right past her with her now empty bag swinging at her side. The child froze mid-step with a foot still dangling in the air. Sweat beaded from her forehead while she slowly turned to face her interrogator.

"Nowhere...?" Aisa squeaked.

Sid let go of her plant and picked up her basket. The medicine could wait another time for her to prepare. "Had a nice nap?"

Aisa's foot lowered to meet its twin. "Yep. Thank you for letting me use Boo."

Sid nodded and went back into her tent. Just as Aisa was about to sprint off again, the healer called out over her shoulder. "Have fun in Upper Yard!"

It didn't take long for the child to turn around and scurry right back to Sid. Aisa jumped up and tried to cover Sid's mouth with her hands. "Shhhh! Don't say it so loudly! Wyper might hear and get mad!"

Sid was too tall for the child's reach so she knelt down, just to indulge Aisa. She set her Boo and her basket down in the shade of her tent. "Okay...then what's it going to take to buy my silence?" she mumbled against Aisa's still soft and battle-free hands.

"I'll...I'll bring you more Vearth for your plants," Aisa hissed.

"Hahaha-pffffft," Sid's laugh was cut short when Aisa pinched her lips together with her fingers. It only seemed to amuse the healer more and her lips sputtered from the force of her laugh. Her outburst woke up her pet and he blinked up at her from the basket.

"Boo?"

"EWW!" Aisa shrieked. Her hands drew back and she wiped off Sid's saliva on her dress.

Boo floated up next to Sid's head and his paws jutted out from underneath. He flopped himself over her shoulder and rubbed his body against the side of Sid's neck.

"How about this?" Sid said with a grin as she rubbed Boo behind the horns, "Let me come with you."

Aisa's eye widened. "What?"

Sid pinched Aisa's cheeks and pulled it away from each other. "What? I'm not good enough to tag along? Don't get cocky just because you can use Mantra."

"Let go!" Aisa reached up to grab Sid's hands but she was no match when it came to strength.

Sid chuckled and released the reddening cheeks. Then she sat in a cross legged position in front of the child and her face turned solemn. "I know you've snuck in and out of Upper Yard many times but it still doesn't make it any less dangerous."

"I know that," Aisa said. Her hands reached up to clutch the straps of her bag and she looked down at her feet, "But..."

"I get it," Sid sighed and planted a firm hand on top of Aisa's head, "As a proud Shandia warrior, it's frustrating for you to stand by and watch the rest of us do our part in helping the tribe, right? You want to help out too, don't you?"

Aisa nodded. "I just...I just want to bring some of our homeland back to us..."

"That is honorable," Sid said and she lifted her hand, "And as a proud Shandia warrior, myself, I can't stand by and let a fellow warrior run into enemy territory alone."

"You're really not going to stop me?" Aisa asked with a wondrous whisper, "You really want to come with me?"

Sid grinned and gave a hard jab to Aisa's forehead. "You lead the way. I'll follow and you just signal to me if someone is approaching...and if they are...well, you'll leave the rest to me."

"Ow!" Aisa's hands went to her head but then a smile grew on her face, "Okay but...you'll have to be really quiet."

"Not even a peep," Sid promised and then returned to petting her sky sheep, "Or even a 'boo'."

It was easy for Sid to come in and out of village without getting questions from anyone on guard. It was a different matter, though, if Sid was to be seen leaving with Aisa. After all, what business would a child have outside of their village? Sid only hoped that the person on guard wouldn't be Kamakiri. Her cousin was as intuitive as Wyper was hot tempered.

The ancestors must have been in a generous mood because the person standing guard at the village's entrance was a warrior named Barite. He had just turned 18 and recently put on duty. Best of all, he was a patient of Sid's.

"Ah, Sid!" He stood up from the base of the totem pole he was resting on and rolled his left shoulder, "Look! It's all better now.. No pain, no aches, nothing."

He flexed his left arm, pumping up his bicep, and beamed at her while she placed a hand on it to give it a squeeze. "Yes, very good," Sid said with an approving nod, "How's your aunt doing, by the way? Does she still have that cough?"

"Yeah," Barite replied. He lowered his arm and picked up the spear that was leaning against the totem pole, "I paid attention to it like you told me to. It's a dry cough and it only happens at night."

"Got it. I know just the thing for it. Do you mind if I drop by later tonight?," Sid asked.

"Of course. You are always welcome in our tent," Barite said with a grin and then he looked curiously at the child, "Aisa? Are you going with Sid somewhere?"

Sid clamped her hand down on Aisa's shoulder before the child could react. "She's going to help me gather a few things from Angel Beach," Sid said with a wink, "I figured why not use her Mantra to be a lookout while I steal a couple of plants from the Skypieans."

"Oooh," Barite beamed down at Aisa. "Doing your part, I see."

"We really need to get going," Sid said and pushed Aisa in front of her. She could already feel the child sweating beneath her hand. It was doubtful she would be able to speak in a convincing tone, "Oh! Don't tell anyone that we went, okay? I'm actually supposed to be on scavenging duty but there just hasn't been enough Blue Sea ships sailing our way recently."

"Oh, of course," Barite said, "Your secret is safe with me."

"Thanks," Sid said with a wink.

Sid waved good-bye as she and Aisa ran off. They reached the opening to Skypiea, which was a softened Island Cloud that nestled along more solid ones to form the foundation of an outer island. The Shandian village was nestled between two layers of clouds with Skypiea being on the upper level. They were hidden from plainview.

Sid and Aisa jumped on the expanded Boo and he lifted them up towards the opening. They climbed through it with some struggle from the child and the sky sheep. Once Sid was through, she sat at the edge and pulled both of them up.

They ran across the outer island towards Upper Yard. When they got to the Sea Clouds, Sid and Aisa rode on Boo for the rest of the way. He had increased enough in size for Sid and Aisa to be completely hidden in his cloud.

Sid's breath caught in her chest when Upper Yard came into sight. No matter how many times Sid saw their homeland, the finite patch of Vearth that carried so much hope and devastation, the only thing she could look at were the trees. They reached towards the heavens with strength and stability while holding their ground for centuries despite the endless battles they were forced to witness. Even though they were going for the Vearth, the true treasure for Sid were the trees.

When they got to Upper Yard, Sid and Aisa climbed out of Boo. Sid allowed herself to rub her barefeet against the moss and bark on the exposed root they stood on while Boo decreased in size and had a quick dunk in the Sea Cloud. She savored the feeling of the hard, jaggedness of the bark and the dry, itchy feeling of the moss. It was so different than the texture of clouds that Sid was more accustomed to. Even so, the feeling against her skin felt more familiar to her than when she stood on clouds.

When a slightly dripping Boo dropped onto her shoulder, Sid looked at Aisa and motioned for her to go ahead. She meant what she said. She would let the child take the lead.

Aisa took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She listened intently to the unheard voices around them for a moment. Then she opened her eyes and ran deep into the island.

Sid followed the child through roots as thick as a totem pole as well as branches higher than their village. Aisa may not have much experience in battle but she certainly knew her way up and around a tree. The only time the child had a slight misstep was when her foot slipped on a narrower branch but she was easily caught from behind by Sid, who clamped a hand over Aisa's mouth to stop her from letting out any type of scream.

They stopped only when they reached a particular tree next to a river of Sea Clouds. The tree roots had grown high and strong enough that the tree base had lifted off the ground just enough for a child to run through and a grown adult to crawl in. Once in, the ground dropped so it was high enough for Sid to stand up straight without any problem. It was a cavern made with a roof shaped of tree roots.

Sid crouched near the opening with her spear in hand while Aisa shoveled moist Vearth into her empty bag with her hands. Sid smoothed her free hand over the root hovering just over her head. She closed her eyes so that she could concentrate on every bump and groove against her fingertips.

Suddenly, she felt a tug on the back of her tunic and she quickly looked over her shoulder. Aisa's eyes were wide and fearful.

"Priests?" Sid mouthed to Aisa and the child shook her head. She motioned for Sid to come deeper into the cavern and Sid followed.

When they were near the back of it, Sid knelt in front of Aisa with one arm protectively covering the child and her spear at the ready.

"Do you think we should check out the other shore?" A soft, female voice asked from the distance. She somehow sounded familiar to Sid but she couldn't put her finger on it.

"No way! What if we get attacked by sharks again?" Another female shrieked.

Sid stiffened with realization. It's that Blue Sea girl...The one with the tangerines. Nami? What are they doing in Upper Yard?!

"Geez, you're hopeless," a male voice grunted.

"Hey! You had a hard time with them yourself!" the tangerine girl yelled, "It makes me a little worried that we left Chopper all alone on that altar..."

"He'll be fine," the male voice said.

Sid's back straightened and her ears perked up. Chopper! The small animal. He's alone on the Sacrificial Altar! The tangerines are clear for the taking!

They waited for a while and then three shadows passed by the tree. The voices started to get fainter and fainter. They were thick in a debate about whether or not to get to the other side of the island. Sid turned to Aisa and she wrote something along the softened Vearth. Go home. Wait for me there.

Aisa's eyes widened.

Don't worry. I've got Boo. I'll be back before you know it.

Aisa shook her head fervently and Sid splayed her palm along the back of Aisa's head. She bobbed it up and down, forcing Aisa to nod in agreement. Sid then dug into her bag and pulled out her waver skates. She handed it to Aisa and then pointed at the opening. Go.

Sid slung Aisa's bag over the child's shoulder and pushed Aisa forward. Aisa took one last look at her, gulped, and then ran out. Sid looked up at her sky sheep, who was in the middle of licking the mossy root. Sid used the back end of her spear to poke at Boo to get his attention. When he did, she grinned and tapped her shoulder. As soon as he landed on it, she took off.

Without the child, Sid let loose. Aisa may be fast on the trees but she did not hold a candle to Sid. She crawled up the tree trunk, swung through the vines, and slid along the mossy branches without much noise. She had only snuck in a handful of times when she was younger with her grandmother but that was all the time she needed to learn how to navigate through the forest. It was a natural talent that her grandmother could only explain as a gift from the ancestors.

By the time she got closer to the Sacrificial Altar, she had a big smile on her face and twigs and leaves sticking out of her hair. She stopped when she was only three trees away and motioned for Boo to expand.

She crawled into him and pointed forward. He slowly floated towards the edge the trees where a lake of Sea Clouds sat with the Sacrificial Altar right in the middle. It was a stone monument with carvings etched on it's side and a stone stairwell at the front. At the top sat the ship with the sheep-like figurehead but it's mast was missing and there was smoke coming from it's railing.

Sid grabbed onto Boo's horns and pulled him back from moving any further when she was close enough to see Gan Fall and one of the priests, Shura, battling it out above the ship. What is Gan Fall doing here?! Has he finally decided to take a stand against Enel?

Sid chewed on her lip. Her initial game plan was to wait for the inevitable priest to appear and take out Chopper. Once the priest had done his part, he would probably go off to take care of the rest of the crew. That would be Sid's cue to grab the tangerines and flee. However, seeing Chopper now, Sid wasn't so sure of her plan any more.

The Shandian warrior in Sid wanted to rush forward. After all, she would be taking down two formidable enemies, the former Skypiean God and the current God's priest. Another part of the same warrior in her told Sid to stay back, to assess the situation first. She supposed it wouldn't be too late once one was taken out for her to take out the other. It would be to her advantage since whoever was the victor would be in worse physical condition than if she went out now. The healer in her wanted to go to Chopper. There were blotches of blood on his fur and parts of it were singed. It was clear now that she saw him that she didn't have the heart to let this Blue Sea creature die.

What really held Sid back, though, was her struggle to decide whether or not she would attack Gan Fall.

Is the enemy of my enemy my friend?

The question weighed in the back of her mind and she was still contemplating the answer when suddenly, Gan Fall and Pierre froze in mid-air. They were unable to move and suspended above the lake.

"Why...why can't I move?" Gan Fall gasped.

Shura came sailing down on the back of his flame bird, Fuza, with his Heat Javelin at the ready. "You can figure that out yourself...in the after-life!"

Sid sucked in a breath when his javelin pierced right through Gan Fall's chest, causing a flame to burst at the point of contact.

"String Ordeal," Shura smirked as Gan Fall fell into the Sea Clouds below.

"SKY KNIGHT!" Chopper shrieked and jumped right into the lake after the former God.

Idiot! There are skysharks in there!, Sid thought with alarm.

"Pierre! Pierre! Pierre!" Gan Fall's bird screeched, still stuck in mid-flight.

Shura laughed and hovered in front of him. "That's right. You're a Zoan too."

Too?, Sid thought and then her eye's widened, Chopper is a Zoan! That's why he can talk!

"Why don't you follow your master?" Shura asked as he sent Pierre down into the lake with a harsh swing from his javelin.

Sid's mind was pulling her in so many directions that her body just couldn't move, in fear that it would be split apart. Should she go for the tangerines like she originally intended? Should she take down Shura now that it was just him to worry about? Should she save Chopper? Should she save any of them?

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. There was only one other way to get the answer she needed.

----------

-Flashback: 6 years ago, Right after Gan Fall's visit to the Shandia Tribe-

"How could that have gotten any worse?" Sid groaned as she slathered a cooling paste on a bandage and then smacked it right over Kamakiri's left eye.

"Ow!" Kamakiri said and gave Sid a punch in her bandaged shoulder, "You're supposed to heal my black eye. Not make it worse."

"Hey!" Sid winced and watched blood bloom over her white bandage, "Be nice! How'd you think I got this wound? I was busy trying to prevent you from getting stabbed by those Divine Soldiers!"

"Both of you be nice," Taika called out while she wrapped a bandage around Braham's shin.

"Sorry, Grandmother," Sid said while Kamikiri flashed her an apologetic smile.

"What did you think was going to happen?" Kamikiri sighed, returning his attention to Sid, "You knew Wyper would never agree to a peaceful coexistence with the Skypieans. We've been fighting for too long. It's all or nothing."

"You really want to risk that?" Sid asked and looked deeply into Kamikiri's good eye, "Take the chance that we'll end up with nothing?!"

"If we had accepted a peaceful coexistence, then the blood that our ancestors have spilt would have been for nothing," Kamakiri stated and Braham nodded in agreement.

"But at least we would have even a moment back in Shandora! Something is better than nothing!" Sid shouted.

"A peaceful coexistence is not an acceptable answer!" Kamakiri said sternly. He was beginning to lose his patience and it showed in his tone but Sid was not one to back down.

"But it is the right answer!"

"No, it is not!" Kamakiri insisted.

"I remember when I was younger...Before Gan Fall became the Skypiean God," Taika interrupted before Sid could say anything more. The younger Shandians turned and looked at the old woman, who was staring thoughtfully up in the air, "The battles were a lot fiercer and occurred just as frequently in our village as Upper Yard. Every time the Skypiean's attacked, we had to move our village so they wouldn't find us again. I remember crying to my mother every time we had to move and you know what she said to me?"

Her listeners shook their heads.

"She would remind me of the South Birds. The birds that were knocked up into the clouds along with us. They were moved against their will as well and their bodies changed because of it...But they never stopped being who they were. They still had the same call and they still looked towards the south," Taika said and then she sighed. She folded her hands in her lap and looked directly at Sid, "Change is happening around us. For better or worse but all we can do is go with what is in our hearts...The South Bird looks to the south not because that is what they were taught to do but because that is what is in their hearts."

"So you're taking Kamakiri's side or...?" Sid said slowly and unsure of the moral of her grandmother's story.

Taika smiled. "The answer will always come from your heart...It will tell you what is right."

----------

"I wonder if those three escapees have already been hunted?" Shura wondered out loud when Sid opened back up her eyes. She watched as the priest pulled on the reins and Fuza flew up and over the treetops.

As soon as he was out of sight, Sid and Boo sprang forward. She was running purely on instinct now. She didn't think about it. She just acted on how she felt, on what her heart was telling her to do. When Boo came right above the lake, Sid leapt off and dove straight into the water.

Immediately, she could see Chopper, Gan Fall, and Pierre sinking towards the bottom and the skysharks were closing in on them and herself. Her hand went to her skirt and she hitched it up to retrieve one of several dials strapped to her legs. She closed her eyes, clicked the top and threw it down. A bright flash of light exerted from the dial. With the water around them, it was magnified and stretched to the very depths of the river.

Sid opened her eyes and swam quickly past the temporarily blinded skysharks. She reached out and grabbed the first person she could, which happened to be Chopper's leg. She only had time to save one and she had made her choice.

She swam upwards towards the surface and as she did so, she felt a foreboding shadow dive right past her at a brilliant speed. She broke through to the surface and threw Chopper onto altar's stairs. She pulled herself out just as a large South Bird came racing out of the water with Gan Fall and Pierre in it's talons.

Sid made her way up to the middle of the stairs and then sat back down. A whole flock of South Birds circled the skies above them. She sighed and leaned back against the stairs, feeling the stone corners push up against her wings and her back. Thanks, Grandmother.

----------

Back in the Shandian village, Aisa watched tearfully as her people geared up for battle. She had ran straight back and just as she entered the village, she had heard the voices of Gan Fall and a priest disappear. It was too big of an occurrence for her ignore. She had ran right to Wyper and told him the news along with the fact that Sid was still in Upper Yard. Sid...Boo...Please be okay...

"I don't know if Sid had taken out both Gan Fall and the priest but one thing is for sure," Wyper announced from the foot of the Great Warrior Cagara's statue, "Upper Yard is rattled now. This is an opportunity sent from the heavens and we must seize it!"

"Ah!" The Shandians cried back.

Wyper smirked with his cigar burning between his teeth. He would overlook Sid's callousness of going into Upper Yard by herself if she had indeed taken down a priest single-handedly or even Gan Fall. She hadn't pulled a stunt like that since her grandmother died. He figured either the fires of Shandora had finally lit within her or some sort of miracle plant had sprouted that she had to get her hands on.