Master of Secrets
Hey, It's Hieinokoishi again. Oh my god, I wanted to post this a week ago but…here is my promised Father's Day oneshot. I couldn't post it on the actual day because the 17th was my 16th b-day. :D Anyways, Wings of Heart already made one about Lloyd and Dirk in the Symphonia fandom, so I decided to contribute to the much-neglected Phantasia fandom. I titled this "Master of Secrets" because at the end of the game before you defeat Dhaos, you can return to Toltus and sleep in the inn to see a small flashback from Cless. I thought it was sweet so I used it here, both the flashback (parts…okay, huge chunks…of it) and the title received.
Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Phantasia. If I did…Klarth would be younger and there would be an alternate ending where Mirald would be shot with a machine gun. (Even though I like her…)
Enjoy!
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"Cless, is something wrong?" Mint looked at her friend, her blue eyes filled with concern. The young swordsman had been quiet and distant all morning, causing quite a few accidents in the reconstruction. Now, he didn't respond. "Cless…?"
His head shot up, stopping the hammer before he slammed it down on his already abused fingers. "Huh?"
"Are you alright? You've been…distant all morning." She spoke quietly.
"Oh, no, I'm fine." He smiled. She couldn't help but notice that it was a little sad.
"If you need a break-" she began.
"No, it's fine. Today is Father's Day so…" he trailed off. Recognition dawned on her face and Mint opened her mouth to say something but he shook his head. "You know what? I'm…I'll…be back in a bit, okay?"
She nodded. "Sure."
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Cless wandered to the back of the village, to an area untouched by all the reconstruction of Toltus. A number of simple stone gravestones and crosses filled the area, fresh flowers at the foot of each one. A small flame of anger couldn't help but lance through Cless' body when he thought of all the people who had died at the hands of the Order of Black Armor…when they razed the village. All because of the pendant that he had received for his fifteenth birthday.
Shaking his head, he banished the thoughts from his mind and made his way to two graves at his right.
Miguel and Maria Alvein4264-4304 Aselian Calendar
4266-4304 Aselian Calendar
He knelt down. "Hey, Mom…hey, Dad…" he murmured. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Chester at his own parents' graves. They had been killed in a bandit attack in the Euclid pass when Chester was eleven but every year when Mother's Day and Father's Day came around, he would visit.
Cless sighed. "The…reconstruction is coming along well." He began. "The sword school is almost complete, as is the inn. Hopefully, more people will come along…so far it's just me, Chester, Mint, and about a dozen people from Euclid. Work is slow, but steady." He paused. "I…wish that you'd be able to see all this. Well, maybe you can, but…" he trailed off. "You know…today is Father's Day…"
"Hienrenkyaku!" Miguel took a step back and rushed forward at the practice dummy, knocking it down with a few well-placed kicks and a thrust of his sword.
"Whoa!" Cless' eyes were wide with admiration and he began to clap enthusiastically.
"This skill is called Hienrenkyaku." He told his young son with a small smile.
"That's amazing!! You look so cool, dad!"
Miguel looked a bit sheepish. "You think?"
Cless nodded. "Yep! Show me something even better!"
"Okay then, how about…"
Cless sighed. "Sorry, I couldn't think of anything to give you this year." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "You know how bad I am at things like this…"
"Dad! I want to see something even better!"
"Really? Well…" Miguel looked away. "It's hard to say no when you ask like that." He looked embarrassed. "And then I get carried away…"
Maria looked at her husband. "Isn't it about time, though? To teach Cless swordfighting?"
"Yes. And it would be best for him to start at a young age." He nodded. "After all…one day it will be his time to guard the Pendant of Imprisonment."
Cless looked between his parents. "Pendant? What Pendant?"
Maria smiled. "We'll show it to you when the time is right, Cless."
But he had already lost interest and turned to his father again. "Okay, whatever. Now show me something even better, dad!"
Miguel began to set the practice dummy back into place once more. "Even better…hm…"
He ran a hand through his light golden brown hair. "Actually…I've had an idea for a while, now. Dad, you…protected the village when the Order came…and everybody loved you. When Toltus is rebuilt…I want to name it after you. Miguel." He felt his face begin to heat up with embarrassment. "It might sound a bit ridiculous and it's not that I'm deciding this because of what I saw in the future!" he began to ramble and Chester glanced at him in amusement from a distance away. Cless' face began to heat up further but he squashed his embarrassment and looked pointedly at the ground. "But…I think that it fits." He mumbled. "I mean, I kept asking stuff from you, a better technique, a new skill…It's time that I gave something back, you know?"
Miguel moved the dummy closer to him and he turned his back. "I'm still practicing this skill, but I'll give it a shot." He turned around to face it. "Here goes! Meikuu Zanshouken!" He lunged forward with a slash, forcing it back. Another slash, another slash, he finally jumped into the air and brought his blade down on the dummy, tearing it to pieces. "Well?" he asked when he regained proper footing. "What d'ya think?" he grinned.
Both wife and son stood there in utter shock and admiration, unable to say anything for a few moments. "WOW!" Cless was he first to regain his voice and he began clapping. "Amazing! You cut it to pieces!"
"You've still got a ways to go…" Miguel smiled softly, turning a bit away.
"…Hey dad?" the young boy had suddenly grown quiet.
"Cless?" Maria looked at her son questioningly.
"Do you think I'll become a swordsman one day if I keep practicing?" he asked.
His father turned to him with a grin. "Of course you will! I know you can do it!"
"Really?" he looked at his father hopefully.
"Really." He nodded. "If you practice hard, you'll be even better than me."
Then I'm gonna keep practicing as hard as I can!"
"That's my boy!" Miguel laughed. "I'm going to keep practicing too, so I can master this technique. Then I can teach it to you too!"
"Meikuu…Zanshouken…" Cless thought for a minute before grinning. "Okay dad, we'll both practice hard then!"
"You know…that skill was what finished Dhaos off. I…have you to thank for that, dad…" he paused. "I'll take over the school. I'll teach the students what you taught me. After we finish rebuilding Toltus…no, Miguel." He corrected himself.
There was a pause and Cless could hear shouts and hammering in the distance, the sounds of yet another day in the Toltus reconstruction. He stood up, staring at his father's name on the small stone cross. "…Happy Father's Day…dad…"
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Meh, I don't like the way it turned out…oh well. Some translation notes…
Hienrenkyaku: Swallow Kick/Swallow Dance. For uniformity, I used the Japanese name for this skill, even though I'm actually fine with the English translation…
Meikuu Zanshouken: Dark Blade(?) The most powerful skill in the Alvein School of Swordfighting. I didn't like "Dark Blade" so I used the Japanese name.