Tales of Symphonia (world, characters, etc.) ® Namco

Plot, content, and writings ® Goddess Jeshi of this site…

If you read this, you are entitled to review it. Meaning, I write it. You read it. Therefore, you should also review it! Else wise, it's not fair!

Prologue: Cynicism

The papers she held were yellow with age and smeared with dirt. Whether the dirt was from it's recent high usage or the many years it had no doubt been stored didn't matter. The dirt didn't even matter, because the precious text was still visible. Visible, but outdated.

"Chief…" A man sighed from behind. She hadn't heard his footsteps. He had probably been elected from the townspeople to bring her, the chief, their pressings. He didn't sound enthusiastic about it, though. Or maybe he was just glum because of the news, not having to deliver it… The man's hair, a light shade of chestnut, was pinned to the back of his head, letting the long strands fall up from above, like a fountain. He wore a common kimono: the coloring was painted on with many simple but beautiful designs, themed with trees. The colors stood out in the environment, making him look odd. Every human looked odd; all color did here.

The chief nodded. Her black hair, also toppling over her head's back, shifted. The strands left out, to the sides of her face, covered her eyes when she bobbed in agreement. Maybe she did that on purpose. "I know." She muttered.

The man looked very uncomfortable, shrugging nervously and glancing around at the dead lands. He shivered once or twice, trying to restrain himself. Finally, the man spoke… Or rather, cried out: "Sheena!" It was informal to call the chief by her first name, but she didn't reprimand him. "What are we going to do?!" The man began to panic. His brown eyes grew wide, head titled down so they could plead upwards to the chief's back. He unconsciously lowered himself, and his body began to shake with every breath. "Look! iLook/i! For god's sake look da-"

"I know!" The chief cut him off with a fearsome shout. The abrupt reply had come out much louder and angrier than she had intended. Sheena wasn't angry, just equally scared. "What do you think I've been doing?! Standing here with my eyes closed?!" Her body shook. It caused her purple bow to bounce. There was no pervious wind, so when the large ribbon suddenly gashed out and in, the ninja's shivering became crystal clear.

The pause was quick, as Sheena continued to shake, but more lightly now, and the man's breathing grew heavy, moreover he calmed down. "I'm sorry." He finally sighed. The man dipped down to try to show his respects, knowing that what he had just down was wrong.

"It's fine." The teenager heaved, feeling bad herself. The exchange had been quick, but that made it more mature, she figured. "We all have something to vent." Sheena turned her head half-way to facing the man behind here, smiling weakly. Then her eyes traced onward towards the dead land that stood all around them. It was the classic scene of death – black mist fogged out the ugly, hilled wasteland.

The man's gaze followed Sheena's onto the hopeless area. He sighed, shaking quietly with the breath's release, and then asked, "What are we going to do?" His voice was small, scared, and unsure.

Sheena turned her watch back on him. He was asking the question to a friendly fellow clan member, but also to his chief, for future directions. Sheena took in a curt breath, did one last glance at the dead land the documents had misled them to, and said, "Assemble the clan. I'll chart out our next location and we'll move on."

The man did turn around to follow her orders, but he mumbled faintly to himself. Sheena could still hear it. "iFor the fifth time..?/i" The ninjas had been traveling around for about three months now, looking for a new home. They had the town's records of suitable lands, kept for times when they need to relocate, but it was old and mostly outdated. Once, it led them to an area that already had a town on it… That was a mess. It was Sheena's job to find a home for her clan! It was her first large job as chief... And she had to do better.

"I can't keep dragging them around like this! What kind of leader am I..?!"