Disclaimer:I don't own Tales of Symphonia, or Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World. If I did, I'm pretty sure you would have seen my name in the credits somewhere after beating the game.
Author's Note: Salutations. I've been reading and reviewing many a story on this website for as long as I can remember, but I've never really had the courage to post any of my stories here. Since tenth grade, I would always eat lunch in the library just so I could browse the many creative stories I would find here. After much debating, I've decided to write and post my first story for others to read. "Tales of Symphonia: A Birth Anew" is an alternate conclusion of what would occur as the "Bad Ending" of Dawn of the New World.
Title: Tales of Symphonia – Dawn of the New World: A Birth Anew
Written by: NsShadowSerpent
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Rating: T
Warning: Nothing out of the ordinary for this story, just plenty violence and a bit of gore. However, this is Tales of Symphonia, so it is to be expected. I really don't recall why I needed to create a warning about this…
Story Summary: With the fall of Ratatosk along with the Heroes of Regeneration at the rebirth of Niflheim, the demonic realm, the world spirals downward once again to its demise. Aselia's final salvation rests with the hope of an uncertain future…
TALES OF SYMPHONIA - DAWN OF THE NEW WORLD: A BIRTH ANEW
ETERNAL BOND: CHAPTER I
"…Richter, there you are," Emil said, addressing his former mentor and friend with the utmost resolve. After Marta and Lloyd's group gave him reassuring words, words that he needed to hear, Emil decided that he would stop Richter to seal off Niflheim, and once again take on his duties as Lord Ratatosk.
He and the rest of the group entered Ratatosk's domain, taking careful notice of their surroundings and proceeding with the utmost caution. They were very alert and wary of Richter; the half-elf stood afar with his back turned to them, only moments away from gaining what he desired most; reviving Aster and turning the world into a demonic realm.
Richter, hearing Emil's words, turned to face them, a scowl of contempt and anger ever present on his face.
He eyed Emil with disgust.
"I'm afraid you're too late Emil… No, Ratatosk," Richter said, readjusting the thin frames resting on the bridge of his nose. "You see, I have already summoned more demons. Soon, I will gain incomprehensible power from them."
Emil only hung his head and looked away from Richter to the ground, his fists clenched. "Aqua told us everything. She told us exactly why you're doing this."
"Did she?" Richter asked, though his tone seemed as if he had already known that Aqua had done so.
Emil only nodded, his head still hanging low. "I understand that losing your friend was agonizing for you, even heartbreaking," he said, and then lifted his head up to face Richter, "but turning the entire world into Niflheim just to resurrect a single person, one single life is not right! Do you really think that Aster would be happy to come back to a world completely ruled by demons?"
An awkward silence followed, with everyone waiting for a much expected response from Richter.
The Half-elf man balled his fists, and an eerie flame rose up from behind him, symbolizing his unwavering rage.
"You dare tell me what to do?" Richter said, his voice rising. "You, who wears Aster's face? You, who murdered Aster in cold blood?" At that, Richter's whole body became engulfed in flames, and his eyes seemed to spark with pure hatred.
Lloyd and the others stared on as Richter's body burned with demonic flames, then readied their weapons.
Emil stared a bit longer, then frowning with determination, drew out his blade.
"Very well then," he said, bringing the weapon in front of him and holding it out towards Richter, "I'll just stop you by force!"
"Haaaaaaaaaaaaa!" Richter, taking Emil's gesture as his cue, charged at the blonde boy, swinging both his flaming weapons at him.
Emil parried both fiery blows with some effort, and rolled out of the way, with Lloyd running up from behind. The swordsman jumped off Emil's back, flipping in midair and took a horizontal swipe at Richter's head with one of his swords. Richter tangled the thin blade in his axe, and threw Lloyd in the opposite direction.
Lloyd managed to land on his feet some yards away.
"Ugh… he's fast," he grunted.
Richter averted his fury from Emil to Marta, who was preparing an offensive spell while being guarded by Regal, Presea and Sheena. The spell she was chanting was meant to dispel his flaming barrier from what he could gather.
He sprinted towards them, only to be cut off by Zelos's Lighting Blade and Raine's Photon. The spells sent him staggering for a few moments, and he was hit again with a follow up Lighting Blade from Genis and a Judgment spell from Colette.
Zelos smirked at Genis. "Not bad, twerp."
Genis returned the gesture. "I could say the same to you."
Raine frowned at them both. "Focus, both of you! Don't let your guard down!"
"He's going after Marta!" Colette shouted.
Richter regained his stance and as Colette predicted, charged after Marta and the others once more, but Emil placed himself in his path. Richter, getting more infuriated, thurst both his blades at him, only to have their weapons become caught in a deadlock, both struggling for the upper hand.
"Richter," Emil said, struggling with the flame-engulfed warrior and his own words, "this is not what Aster wanted!"
Richter grunted, and began to push down on Emil's blade, making use of his superior height. "Don't you dare talk about him while taking his form!"
Emil hesitated to speak, his mouth trying to form reasonable words. "It's true that I killed him, but—"
"Then cease!" Richter bellowed.
"I won't! Do you really think someone who said, 'Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality', would want to sacrifice the world just to come back to life?"
At that moment, a bright blue light blasted Richter backward from Emil with an incredible amount of force, with Richter skidding quite a few feet. The flames surrounding Richter's body dissipated as he was surrounded with a soft yellow light. Regal's outstretched hands fell to his sides as Marta stepped forward.
"He's right, Richter! I know you're better than this!" she said. "Please! Just listen!"
Richter scoffed, and outstretched a hand, a violent flame forming in his palm. "What do you know? My methods are my business!"
He flung the mass of burning matter at Marta, and Presea, seeing it heading toward her, managed to tackle her and defend against the spell with her large axe. Regal helped them both to their feet, and they stood behind the large man.
"I won't take orders from you," Richter said.
Emil and Lloyd both took their stances far from Regal, readying themselves for another assault from Richter.
"Why do you shut yourself off like that?" Lloyd asked.
Emil edged forward a little, lowering his blade. "Please, tell me your true intentions."
"My true intentions?" Richter asked.
He charged at Lloyd, swinging his sword first only for it to be blocked by him, then swung his axe and brought it down in a vertical blow, missing Lloyd as he moved behind. Emil rushed in to help, but Richter ducked another swipe from Lloyd, and kicked him into Emil, sending them both toppling to the floor.
"It's simple. It's to kill you, Emil!" he said, raising both of his weapons and restoring his flaming barrier. "To banish Ratatosk from this world! This is for the good of the world!" A fiery explosion erupted from the ground at Richter's feet, sending almost everyone off balance and toppling over as they struggled to maintain their footing.
"You blockhead!" Marta yelled, rising to her feet. "You may be hurt, but Emil is hurting as well!"
"Ratatosk is hurting? Hurt is not something he can possibly be capable of! He is intent on destroying this world!"
"We trust in Emil," Presea said, readying her axe.
Regal nodded. "We trust in Ratatosk."
"What you're doing is exactly the same!" Sheena said.
Richter looked back at her. "I guess that's how it would look from where you're standing."
Sheena dashed after him with her cards in hand, and Lloyd keeping an eye on her, did the same.
Richter sidestepped the blow, and tried to leg sweep Sheena, but she flipped over him and landed some feet away. Lloyd managed to catch him off guard with a Demon fang to one of his legs and attacked with a swift Sword Rain, nailing him thrice, and finished the elegant combo with a Beast arte. Richter staggered back a little, panting for breath.
"Who do you think you are anyway?" Sheena said. "I hate people like you who think they know all the answers!"
Lloyd stood beside her. "I don't know what you're thinking, but we sacrificed many things to regenerate this world."
Sheena finished his sentence for him. "And we're not gonna let some jerk like you destroy it!"
A Lightning Blade from Zelos and an Indignation from Genis crackled from the sky, almost catching Richter again, but his flaming barrier absorbed the potent magic.
"Just give up now and beg for mercy you loser!" Zelos said.
"You're all insignificant!" Richter yelled, his fury rising. "I will kill Ratatosk along with the rest of you!"
Emil stepped forward, closed his eyes, and brought his blade before him.
"I won't die," he said. "The courage you taught me spurred me on. We'll make sure that this world doesn't turn into a demonic realm!"
"Silence!" Richter yelled once more, ignoring all the others and advancing on Emil. "I won't be distracted by your appearance any longer!"
"Emil!" Lloyd and Marta called out to him in unison as Richter prepared to run him through, but Emil stood in the middle of the room, unwavering.
"Emil!" Regal, Raine, Zelos and Colette yelled at him.
"Look out!" Genis and Sheena yelled.
Presea looked on in shock. "Emil…"
Richter thrust his blade toward Emil, and a loud clash was heard.
Emil looked into Richter's eyes, the latter's being stricken with surprise.
"I… am not going to end here!" Emil said with determination, holding Richter's blade with his own hand.
A large surge of blue energy surrounded them both, and Emil lashed out at Richter with his own weapon. He attacked him from all sides, striking Richter's staggering body with each swing.
"I'm not going to lose!" he yelled with confidence. With a final cry, he brought his blade down on Richter, slashing him point blank.
A blue explosion erupted from the last strike. Everyone else struggled to see the aftermath, waiting for the smoke to clear itself.
After a few moments, Richter was revealed, resting on one knee. He had reverted back to his original form, defeated.
"Ugh…" he groaned.
Emil looked at Richter in concern for a few moments, before stepping past him and raising an arm to the door. His hand glowed, and the centurion's cores resonated with their own colors. The flames behind the door dissipated, and all became quiet.
But in the momentary stillness, a sharp banging pierced itself into the air.
Emil stepped back in recoil at the sound. "Ugh!"
Tenebrae floated beside him. "The demons are using all of their power to open the door!"
Richter struggled to his feet, and reached into his pocket for something. He pulled out the crystalline-like object, holding it out to Lloyd. "Here… use this."
"What the… That's the Sacred Stone!" Lloyd said, surprised.
Richter nodded, standing to his feet. "Yes, that's right. The stone that turns the mana in your body into flames." He readjusted the frames on his face. "Mana is a toxic poison to demons. It will help keep the door closed for awhile."
"But why do you have it?" Lloyd asked.
"I sent someone out to the village of the elves to get it for me. If you use it along with the Chosen's Cruxis Crystal, then it's possible to seal the door without Ratatosk being present."
"The Chosen's Cruxis Crystal has the ability to stop its host's internal clock, granting them eternal life," Raine said.
Lloyd eyed Richter. "You were willing to burn your body's own mana for all eternity and become a human sacrifice in order to guard this door."
Richter nodded. "Yes, because that way Aster could come back to life, Ratatosk would die, and the door would be protected. The world would be saved." He hung his head. "But in the end, I wasn't able to defeat Ratatosk."
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha…" An awkward, yet familiar laugh echoed throughout the room, and everyone looked in Emil's direction.
Marta walked up to him. "What's the matter, Emil?"
Emil only laughed louder. Then, he whirled around and grappled Marta by the throat.
"Uuuaggh! Uhhhghh…" Marta choked, her hands on top of his, trying to free herself from his grasp.
"Now, nothing can stand in my way. Once I bind Aqua to my will, I will have regained all of my power! Now, hand over Aqua's core!"
Marta only coughed. "I-I can't… breathe Emil…"
"Didn't you hear what I said?" he asked, hoisting Marta off the ground, with her feet dangling below a few inches. "Hand over Aqua!"
Richter brandished both of his weapons, and charging, rammed himself into Emil, freeing Marta. Lloyd dashed in and caught the petite brunette as she stumbled back, gasping for air.
"Emil…" she said, coughing twice, "why are you doing this?"
"I am not Emil!" he yelled. "I am Lord Ratatosk!"
Ratatosk whipped out his blade and began to slash at Richter. The half-elf rolled and ducked out of the way, panting for breath, most likely still weakened from the battle prior.
The bloodthirsty Ratatosk redirected his attention to Lloyd, still holding Marta, and lunged at him with the blade, with Lloyd blocking the blow at the very last moment. Lloyd motioned for Marta to get behind him, to which she did.
"Emil!" Marta yelled out to Ratatosk, panicked. "Stop this!"
Her words however, were ignored as he continued to slash at Lloyd, with the red clad warrior blocking every blow. Ratatosk kept laughing all the while.
"Ha ha ha ha ha! Die! Die! Die!" he cried, then suddenly, Ratatosk grabbed at his own throat.
"Guhh… what… what are you…" Ratatosk choked out.
"Marta!" Emil's soft voice was heard, ringing out to her ears.
"Emil!" she said, gasping.
"I'm so sorry. It seems that Verius's protection can stop me from disappearing, but this isn't enough to stop Ratatosk."
Marta, desperate, ran to him, but ducked in recoil as Ratatosk swung his sword into the air.
"Why… won't you… stop… interfering?" Ratatosk caught his own arm for a moment, and held himself still.
"Help me Marta! Please! Guh… You've got to stop me! Hah… Turn me into a core and use me to seal the door!"
The others could only watch as Emil struggled with Ratatosk for control of his body. He whirled around again, smashing his sword into the ground.
"Stop it! I won't let you!" Ratatosk yelled.
"This is it. I can't hold myself back any longer! Please, Marta… Lloyd…" Emil dropped to both of his knees and hands, panting for air.
Marta rushed to him in concern and knelt beside him. "Emil!"
"There… I finally got you out of the way." Ratatosk got up to his feet, and Marta backed away from him, moving to Lloyd. "Now, hand over Aqua!"
"Emil, no! Come back to your senses! Emil!" Lloyd pleaded with him, hoping Emil could somehow find the strength to regain control of himself.
"Shut up!" Ratatosk commanded. "That sappy little wimp is gone for now!"
"But… Emil… no, I…" Marta said, her words mixed and desperate.
"What? You want to fight me?" he said, laughing. "How amusing. I thought you didn't want me to disappear either?"
Marta didn't answer. She hung her head in silence, her face mixed with conflict.
He shrugged. "Well, whatever. Now be a good girl and hand over Aqua's core. If you do, then I might just spare your life."
Tense silence filled the air for a few moments. A snapping sound rang into the air, as Marta brought her unsheathed her dual-spinner from behind her back.
"No," she said.
Ratatosk stepped back, shocked at her sudden change of attitude. "What did you say?"
Marta's dual-spinner opened, and she looked to Ratatosk, with a scowl as determined as Emil's was against Richter. "I'll fight you for Emil and defeat you!" She looked to Lloyd, catching his eyes, and he understood the unspoken question.
"We will defeat you… and release you from your bonds," Lloyd said, readying his Gagnrad swords for battle.
Ratatosk only laughed. "You defeat me? That's a laugh. You stupid humans are ridiculous! I warn you, you'll regret it!"
Ratatosk unsheathed his blade once more, and shot himself at Lloyd. He dragged the blade along the ground, its tip making sparks as it scratched the surface.
Lloyd readied himself in a defensive position, bringing both blades up in a cross like manner to protect his face as Ratatosk leapt into the air, smashing the blade down on him.
The force of the blow was strong, cracking the ground below Lloyd's feet. Lloyd retaliated by pushing his weapons forward, sending Ratatosk back in a crouching position.
"Sword Rain!" Lloyd thrusted his blades at Ratatosk in quick succession, with one of the attacks cutting off a strand of hair close to his face.
"Demonic Tiger Blade!" Lloyd cried again, slashing upward and then down again.
He continued the combo with a Sword Rain Alpha, pushing Ratatosk backward as the crazed summon spirit defended himself from the onslaught of attacks, and Lloyd knocked him off balance with a fierce Beast Arte.
"I've had enough of this crap!" Ratatosk shouted. He struggled to his feet, only to be knocked down again by Marta's Prism Sword spell.
"Guhhhh!" Ratatosk seemed to lie motionless on the floor for a moment. Gasps could be heard from everyone else.
Tenebrae only watched in silence.
Marta stepped toward Ratatosk's form. "Give Emil back to us."
"It's over, Ratatosk," Lloyd said, lowering his weapons.
Ratatosk chucked to himself, his laughter shaking his body, as he stood up again with some support from his sword. "Over? I hardly…" he began, and lashed out at Lloyd once more, Lloyd looking surprised, "…think so!"
"Havoc Strike!" Ratatosk leapt into the air once more, almost kicking one of Lloyd's swords out of his hands.
"Savage Reaper!" Ratatosk thrust his blade in a forward motion, missing Lloyd and cutting off a strand of the swordsman's hair as he had done to him.
"Converging Fury!" he yelled, swinging at him, with Lloyd only parrying four of the swings with a single sword, the other two catching the clothing at his side, slicing off one of his suspenders.
"Lloyd!" Marta rushed over to him, hearing Ratatosk's maniac laughter as he continued to assault the red clad warrior.
"This… is the final strike!" Ratatosk continued to laugh at Lloyd, as he brought down the blade on the weakened swordsman.
A blur of brown hair ran in front of him, the raging Ratatosk's blade making contact with the mass.
Lloyd stared in horror, and Ratatosk froze.
Marta's body hit the floor hard, motionless.
"Emil…?" Marta managed to squeak. "I'm so sorry… I wasn't able to save you…"
Emil dropped his blade in realization as to what he had done. "M-Marta. Marta!" he said, sounding mortified and rushing to Marta's side.
Lloyd's eyes widened in surprise. "Emil! No! You mean this whole time, you were just pretending?"
"No… No…! This can't be happening! I-I never meant to hurt Marta! How could this happen? M-Marta! I'm sorry!"
Raine and Colette rushed past them to Marta. "Move! I can try to heal her wounds!"
Sheena stepped forward. "Emil… what were you thinking?" she asked him, whispering in an angry tone.
Raine waved her staff over Marta's body, and a white light enveloped her form.
"Emil?" Colette asked, sadness in her voice. She looked at him with questioning eyes, hoping for an explanation to his actions.
"I-I didn't…" Emil began, but he was interrupted by a loud banging on the door.
Tenebrae floated toward it, stopping in front.
"Lord Emil! The door! You must seal it now before the demons of Niflheim enter this world!"
"Dammit!" said Lloyd. "Emil! You've got to do something!"
"I knew you couldn't do this without me. You should have never bothered to seal me away, you damn brat."
Emil gasped, the words of his former personality echoing throughout his mind.
"What are you waiting for? If you're not going to do anything then move! Let me take over now!"
Emil rose to his feet and grabbed Aqua's core, his bangs covering his eyes. Hesitating a little with each step, he headed toward the door and held out his hand, pouring energy into the lock in an attempt to keep it closed.
"My head…" Presea almost fell over, but Genis caught her in time.
"Presea!" the silver-haired boy cried, looking at her in concern.
"No…" Richter whispered to himself, staring at the ancient gate as it cracked more with each bang. "It's too late."
With one final bang, the ancient lock, the door that held the demons and kept them from ever entering Aselia for so long, shattered.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Author's Note: And of course, I have to end it at a cliff hanger.
The battle where Emil duels against Lloyd and Marta in the game actually caught me off guard. I was surprised to find that I was playing as Emil rather than Marta or Lloyd, and was contemplating whether or not I should fight. Before I had the chance, I was sliced to ribbons by Lloyd and finished off with Marta's Prism Sword spell. Luckily, being beaten to a pulp turned out to be the better decision in the end, hehe.
It may take a couple of days to get the next chapter up and running, as I'm pretty lazy. Well, that depends on if I can get the creative brain juices flowing. It seems as though the lock has finally been broken. What on Aselia could possibly be waiting for the Symphonian gang on the other side of the gate? Check out Chapter II soon and see.