Okay on with the disclaimer: I solemnly swear (my ass off) that I do not own any aspect of Tales of Symphonia...Though I wish I did.
Enjoy, please don't forget to review. :)
Last Time:
"We can't stay here any longer; I don't even know what's wrong with him!" Raine stated exasperated, she sat down at the kitchen table holding her head in her hands.
Kratos sat the other end of the table, slowly sipping coffee, placed it down on the table. "I say we go to Altessa, he may know what may be happening to Lloyd."
Now:
Few days into the journey, Lloyd's condition continued to deteriorate. The broken shard had continued to burrow deep into Lloyd's chest, much to the dismay of the rest of the group, and he started to show early sings of Angel Toxicosis.
More frequently, fevers started racking the young swordsman's body and he became lucid only moments at a time. This whole turn of events was taking its toll on Genis' conscience; he became moody and reclusive from the group, and only talked when asked a question.
Kratos was becoming concerned that all together the group was falling apart. The Tethe'allens and the Sylvaranti were creating their own separate eating circles, each side ignoring the other.
"…K-Kratos…" much to his meager surprise, he swirled around to see Lloyd supporting himself against a tree.
"Lloyd, you should be back in bed. You will not do us any good if you are too weak to move." He chastised quietly.
"Kratos, you have to forget about me—there isn't much time. I…need to leave now!" These words confused Kratos; he opened his mouth for questioning, but snapped it shut seeing the complete seriousness on his son's face.
"And where exactly do you plan on going, hmm? And in that condition no less." While Kratos was trying to get answers without prying too much, he still felt that he needed to know what was going on.
"I need to go to…" Lloyd seemed uncomfortable with coming up with the answer, he instead mumbled, "…Kharlan"
Still catching the majority of his words, Kratos took how grave the situation was. "Mithos…" he seethed in anger, realizing who was responsible for his son's condition.
Eyes widened in shock as emotion drained away from Lloyd's face. "I must go…I must go…I must go…" Lloyd suddenly started droning on like a broken record player. Finally the rest of the group seemed to take notice of the ill swordsman.
Realizing that Lloyd had become a living doll, moods dropped down to new lows.
'This is entirely my fault, I shouldn't have held on to Mithos' crystal, if I had just let go…' Genis let that train of thought flow away with him as tears rolled down his cheek.
With glazed over eyes, Lloyd took one look over the camp and began walking away. Zelos was the first to notice the exit. "Bud…where are you going?" he jolted out of his seat to run after the boy. Lloyd continued to mumble, "I must go…I must go…to protect." Cold shivers had rushed down his spine as those two final words left his mouth.
"Zelos, stand back there is mana build up around him." Kratos stated sadly. Zelos could only stare in horror of the implications "…what?" the solemn question was answered by a tremendous force began encircling the boy's body.
A high pitched, pain-laden scream filled the night air…that meant only one thing: Lloyd was still in control. While that was good in its own right, it still meant that Lloyd could feel everything that was happening to him. Said boy had dropped down to his knees as his arms wrapped rigidly around his waist, panting heavily from the enduring torment.
"Kratos, we need to help him, he's in pain!" Collette cried out in anguish.
"Do you not think I already know that? You stupid girl!" Frustration and rage were apparent in the Seraphim's features.
"Calm down, Kratos, she is only worried about her friend!" Raine tried to calm the enraged father; however her words only made the situation worse.
Coldly, he replied, "You want me to calm down, of all people? How can I calm down when MITHOS is trying to kill my only son! Not only that; all I can do is sit here and watch as he screams in torment! So, don't you dare tell me to calm down." Nearing the end of his rant, a dull thud indicated that Lloyd had officially passed out; carefully Kratos picked up the teen and walked away from the camp.
"Kratos, where do you think you're taking him!" Raine yelled after him. "…away from you…" he replied shooting a fiery hot glare behind him.
Both Zelos and Sheena seemed to be in debate about something, until Kratos' final words were spoken.
Almost simultaneously, they both screamed out, "Wait!" both looked at each other in shock, though small smiles graced their features. "…We are going to come with you, you know? Bud won't be able to stand it without us, ain't that right Sheena?" he coyly smirked at the blush on Sheena's face.
Genis and Collette glanced sadly at the scene unfolding before them. They knew it was too late to save the bonds between the others, but they be damned if they let Lloyd perish in such a way.
"I wish to help save Lloyd!" Genis stated, determined to fix what he had done to his best friend.
"As do I." Collette stared on in fixed rigor.
Kratos eyed them all. Regal and Presea remained observant of the situation. Raine was seething in anger.
"I'm sorry, Genis and Collette. But you cannot come where we are going." Kratos stated cryptically as the trio turned to leave.
"Don't worry my pretty little angel. We will fix this, okay?" Zelos gave her a smile, yet Collette noticed it was somewhat forced. She stared directly into Zelos' eyes; a small frown marred her face. Zelos' smile slipped off his face realizing that she saw right through him.
'Zelos…' she thought quietly to herself. Collette gathered up her things and watched as Kratos, Zelos, Sheena, and Lloyd leave the encampment. She knew this was going to be the last time she saw them for a long time.
Chapter 2 is finished! W00TNESS