Title: Tales of the Prophet
Description: Elijah Shaw was pulled into the world of Tales of Symphonia, and now it's his duty as the Prophet of Martel to make sure things are not screwed up.
Rating: T for the time being
Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Drama
Pairings: ColetteLloyd;ZelosSheenaOC
Author's Note: I do not own Tales of Symphonia.
Chapter 1
A Letter from a Goddess
"Mom, Dad... left. That was okay wasn't it? For me to let him go... it was okay, right?" A young man in red spoke, kneeling down at his mother's grave.
"...Lloyd. You wanted to go with him, didn't you," a dwarf said in a heavy Scottish accent.
"No, I have my own path to follow. And dad has his. ...And besides, I have a dad here already!"
"I see. Then I won't say anymore."
"...Mom, I'll leave Dad's sword here beside you. Well.. I'm off." The young man walked past his adoptive father as the view pulled out to reveal a blond haired girl and a large dog-like creature waiting for him.
A sigh escaped into the quiet apartment living room of Elijah Shaw. "Well... yet another successful play through of Tales of Symphonia. 10x EXP makes all the difference," the young man said with a bit of a laugh. He stood up and stretched, then walked over to the large window on the other side of the room. It was late afternoon on a lazy Saturday, the sky slightly overcast, threatening to release the moisture held in the clouds. "Still have some daylight," he said aloud, "Might as well..."
Leaving his Gamecube controller on the couch, Eli stood up and gathered a few things into a bag. Two notebooks, a few pens, his iPod, a hoodie to through over his t-shirt, and a few other miscellaneous things. He slung the single strap bag over his shoulder as he walked out the door, locking it behind him. He slowly made his way across the apartment complex's parking lot toward his silver mini-van. It was a high school graduation present from his parents. They bought a new car and gave him the family van. He kept it rather clean, seeing as how he couldn't stand it being dirty, one of the few things he was OCD about. He slid into the driver's seat and pushed the key into the ignition and turned it.
It was an uneventful drive to his 'spot', a cliff overlooking the ocean, covered with grass and a single large tree standing over it. Eli came here to think, or write, or draw, or sometimes even do homework. He just felt at peace here, and he always enjoyed looking out over the ocean. He discovered it a while after moving to Northern California with his parents four years ago. Before that, he had live in the suburbs of Los Angeles his whole life. The twenty year old breathed in the moisture filled air as he leaned against the tree and slid down it until he was sitting at it's base. He pulled a notebook and pen out of his bag and started doodling something. However, soon the daylight disappeared from the sky and was replaced with a black sky, the only sources of light the moon and a few stars. Eli released a frustrated sigh, and put his things back in his bag. He leaned back against the tree and closed his eyes, deciding that he would just relax there a bit before returning home.
He wasn't sure how long he had been asleep when he started to feel odd. From behind closed lids he could tell that the area had just gotten a whole lot brighter. Maybe headlights? He slowly opened an eye when his whole body started to feel numb. He looked around, making an attempt to stand, but he couldn't move his legs. Then he realized where the light was coming from, underneath him. The ground beneath the tree was glowing, and as odd as it seemed, he felt like he had seen this before. He panicked, trying to get away, but he was paralyzed, unable to even move his neck now. Elijah soon passed out, the world around him growing dark.
"Ugh..." Elijah moaned as he awoke from his sleep. "Why do I feel like I slept on concrete?" He slowly sat up, rubbing his head to stop the throbbing pain. He opened his eyes, expecting to see his apartment bedroom. "What the hell!" He observed his surroundings and most definitely did not see his bedroom. He was in a room with brick walls, with windows on either side of the room. Oddly enough, there wasn't any glass in them. He looked down to what he was sleeping on. It was a red, see through material, harder than plastic, but not quite metal. Somehow, all of this was familiar, and quickly the events of the previous night came back to him. His eyes widened as it all came together. "Holy shit! I'm in Sylvarant!" He was sitting on the seal in the Martel Temple, and sitting on the altar in front of him was Colette's Cruxis Crystal. This had to be a dream, that's it. He fell asleep last night under the tree and this whole thing was a dream, an awesome dream, but a dream none the less. He looked out the window and saw no Tower of Salvation, and the Cruxis Crystal was still here, meaning that the World Regeneration journey had not yet begun. Or maybe he wasn't even in the same time as the game took place.
It was then that Elijah realized that he wasn't wearing his outfit from yesterday. He looked himself over, and saw what he was wearing. A long sleeve green jacket with a silver trim and a hood, unzipped and cut off at mid chest. Under that he was wearing a white and green sleeveless zip-up shirt with a raised collar. He also was wearing a pair of khaki pants, cut off at the ankles, with a pair of brown leather belts, one slanted and the other in the normal position. His hands were covered in a pair of brown fingerless gloves and he had a pair of brown boots on his feet. This was just so odd. He stood up slowly, his body feeling sore. Eli then noticed several things that were scattered around were he was laying, the thing standing out the most a sheathed sword. A freaking sword! It was a one-handed sword, and the hilt was different then that of a traditional sword. Instead of the cross hand guard there was a circular guard, with an design carved into it. He had no idea what to do with it, he had never used a sword, let alone held one. Elijah's gaze drifted from the sword to his bag which had apparently followed him into Sylvarant. The last thing he noticed was a small black leather bounded note book that he didn't recognize, as well as a small gem with an intricately carved device next to it.
"An Exsphere?" He picked up the jewel and what he supposed was a Key Crest, as well as the note book. He opened it and saw faded yellow pages, most of them blank except for the first page on which was written a letter.
Dear Elijah,
I am deeply sorry to have dragged you into this. If I did not think it was important, I wouldn't have brought you here. I'm sure you have many questions, and they will all be answered in time. I brought you here to ensure that everything goes according to plan. I do not know why, but I feel as though something is different, and no matter what the cost, the world's must be united. Please, assist Lloyd and the others, for the sake of the world. You shall be a Prophet for a Goddess that does not exist. Once again I apologize for dragging you into this, but you were the best possible choice.
Sincerely,
Martel Yggdrasil
"What the hell..." he said softly. "I thought Martel was bodiless, her soul part of the great seed." At least he knew now that he was in the same time that the game took place. He shrugged and put the black notebook in his bag. He figured none of this really mattered, since it was just a dream. He then looked at the gem he still held in his hand. It was a human life that held in his hands. Such a fate was too cruel, and the people who took so many lives should never be forgiven. Figuring that this was given to him for a reason, his curiosity over powering his thought that this was just a dream, he pondered over where he should place the gem. He had narrowed it down to either his chest or his hand, and then decided on placing it on his chest. After all, if need be he could hide it if it was on his chest, a task that would be much more difficult if it was on his hand. He slowly grabbed the Key Crest and placed it just below his neck. It was painful to put on, it felt as thought the skin underneath was being burned. Eli wondered if you could ever take a Key Crest off once you put it one. He then lifted up the Exsphere. It was a light blue color, that shimmered green if it caught the light at just the right angle. He placed it on the Key Crest and felt the jewel attach itself to his body. He felt as thought the energy in his body was fluctuating and he felt about ready to pass out when it settled. Elijah felt a wave of power come over him, and he felt better, stronger, than before.
"Well, might as well head to Iselia," he said aloud, feeling utterly ridiculous talking about going to a fictional town. He slung his bag over his neck, and attached his sword to the belt at his waist. Eli walked forward onto the purple warp pad, a little hesitant about doing so. The moment he stepped on he felt himself being moved from one place to another. "That was an interesting experience." He looked ahead and saw that the path was clear. 'Hmm, the force field must only be active when the Oracle has come,' he thought as he continued down the short path to the main room... which was filled with priests. He tried not to draw attention to himself, hoping that he would be able to slip by unnoticed since all of the priests were praying. Fortunately, he was able to get half-way through the room before some one noticed him, so he was able to make it look like he came from the other direction.
"Excuse me," an old man spoke, drawing the attention of the others in the room, "what can I do for you?"
"Uh... I..." Shoot! What in the world was he supposed to say. "I'm... on a pilgrimage to pray at all the temples. I... I heard that it would soon be time for the Chosen to start her journey, so I decided to go on a pilgrimage to pray for her success in regenerating the world." Hopefully that sounded plausible to them.
"I see. Then as per custom of the Church of Martel, we welcome you to this temple. Please, stay as long as you like," he said with a large smile. "My name is Pastor Cecil, and if you need any help at all, please do not hesitate to ask. We have many rooms available for travelers such as yourself, so if you need a place to stay, you are more than welcome here."
"Hi, I'm Elijah," Eli said with a slight bow. "Thanks, but it really isn't necessary. I don't know how long I'll be staying anyway. I do have one question though," Eli hesitated slightly, trying to decided on the correct wording. "I heard from a priest at the House of Salvation that the Oracle would be coming soon. I was just wondering how far a way it is." Eli figured he would probably would be a great liar by the time all of this ended.
"It should arrive tomorrow," Cecil said with a smile, probably happy that World Regeneration is near. Eli couldn't blame him for that, but was upset that these people didn't have a problem sending Colette off to her doom.
"Thank you," Eli replied. "If that is the case, then I will make sure to wish the Chosen herself good luck. I will offer my prayers here and then head back to Iselia. Thank you for all your help," Eli said with a smile. "May the Goddess bless you." He laughed internally at the word Goddess, a title bestowed upon a girl by her brother who was entirely too infatuated with his sister.
"And you as well," the pastor said, then went on his way. Eli turned and stood in front of a large statue of an Angel. He pretended to pray and then walked out of the temple, and made his way towards Iselia. It was an uneventful journey, though it was a long walk, longer than Eli believed he had ever walked before. He was surprised that he hadn't encountered any monsters, though he assumed that was because the oracle had not yet descended, so there was no need for them.
By the time he had arrived at Iselia, the sun was nearly set. Eli was surprised when he saw the village. It was much larger than it appeared in the game, but he supposed that it was only natural that it would be larger in real life, or dream life, as Elijah insisted it was. He remembered there not being an Inn here in the game, though he hoped there would be since the town was larger than in the game. Elijah slowly walked through the town, taking in the sights. The first place he recognized was Colette's house. He saw her, Frank, and Phaidra having dinner through the the front window of the home. It was amazing, seeing the Chosen in real life as opposed to the cell-shaded graphics of the game. He stood there for a few minutes, taking in the sight, hoping not to be noticed... although if he was, he could pass it off as just wanting to see the Chosen.
After a while, he moved on, passing the school house. He eventually came to the Sage's house, and saw Lloyd and Genis sitting together, dangling their legs in the small pond. 'This is so weird,' Elijah thought as he quickly moved on, not wanting the two boys to spot him. He decided to search for an Inn, and found one quickly. It was small and cozy, looking to only have one or two rooms. He almost stepped inside when he realized he didn't have any Gald, or maybe... He searched through his bag trying to find anything that wasn't there before. When he felt something unfamiliar, he grabbed it and pulled it out. It was a small brown pouch, and when he opened it, Eli saw dozens of coins held in the bag. He gave a sigh of relief. Pouch in hand, he walked into the building. There was a blonde haired woman at the desk, looking somewhat bored. They probably didn't get a lot of visitors in Iselia. "Hi," he said shyly, "I need a room for the night."
"Hmm? Oh!" The woman was snapped out of her thoughts and smiled. "Sorry about that. It's 50 Gald a night"
Elijah nodded his head and reached into the sack. Luckily, the coins were marked with numbers, so he reached in and pulled out two medium sized coins that were worth 25 each. "Here you go," he said as he handed the woman the coins.
"Thank you very much. You'll be staying in the room just to the right here," She said, pointing to a closed wooden door.
Eli gave a quick thank you and proceeded to his room. It was small. Only big enough for one, maybe two, people. He sighed and sat down on the bed when his eyes caught site of a mirror. He hadn't seen a mirror all day, so he had no idea what he really looked like in his new outfit. He stood up and strode over to the mirror. Before anything else, he noticed that everything about him seemed little brighter. From his hair and eyes, to even his new clothes. It seemed as though the colors in this world were just more vibrant... or it was probably just a dream thing. He plopped down on the bed and blew out the small candle on the nightstand ridding the room of all light. Elijah then quickly fell asleep, hoping to wake up in his own bed tomorrow morning.
So, that's the first chapter. As you can kinda tell, it's the same sort of idea of a self-insert, but not, since Elijah isn't a representation of myself. Anyway, please review and let me know what you think! I'll have the next chapter up soon!
