AN: Well, I said it'd get AU fast, and here we are! I took some lines directly from this scene in the game, mangled others, and then completely made up my own in quite a few spots. (Hooray for mangling!)
I also realized this chapter was exceptionally long, so I split it up. This means you're now assured at least one more chapter. Enjoy!
The Tower of Salvation. It had been waiting for her ever since she first accepted the Oracle and now Colette finally knew what she needed to do. From the moment they set out from Hima that morning every action, every step and beat of a dragon's wing that led her closer to the Tower only strengthened her resolve.
As she and Kratos materialized on the warp pad high in the heart of the Tower, Colette took a moment to look around the huge space. So this was her final destination, it hardly seemed real now that she had arrived. Steeling herself for the last time, she started down the pillar-lined path to the altar, moving with a slow gait she hoped seemed like a grace befitting a Chosen, not like she was stalling for time. She didn't look over her shoulder as she climbed the short staircase up to the dais where the altar sat, but Colette was listening intently for any sign of her friends. She wanted- Needed them to be there, watching. They hadn't been too far behind on the dragons, if she could just buy a few more seconds acting dignified, the others would arrive on time. Colette knelt in front of the low stone altar and smiled as she brought her hands together to pray.
The warp pad whined behind her, signaling the arrival of Lloyd and the others, and seconds later a light began to shine down from above, heralding Remiel. Colette didn't need to look up, she could hear his wings flapping as he hovered in front of her.
"Now, my daughter, release the final seal! In doing so of your own free will, you will complete the final sacrifice of your human existence, your heart and your memories, and become an angel." Remiel's eagerness was obvious as he rushed through his speech, watching Colette impatiently. Down below the dais on the Tower floor, Colette heard Lloyd gulp.
"Colette... Colette, wait!" She paused, lifting her head to look at Remiel for the first time. The angel seemed distressed, focusing his attention on nothing but her.
"Why do you hesitate?" Remiel frowned. "You wish to say something?" Colette nodded and was surprised when Remiel drifted down closer to her. For a second she thought she saw him grimace as he extended a hand. "Very well, I shall relay your thoughts to your friends as you say farewell." Rising to her feet, Colette took the offered hand.
'Actually, Lord Remiel,' she thought, the sound of her old voice echoing through the Tower, 'I don't need to say goodbye. I'm not opening this seal.'
"W-What?" The rage on Remiel's face was almost enough to make Colette think she had made a mistake, but the surprised gasps and cheers from her friends convinced her it was right. "Chosen- Daughter, how dare you? You cannot defy the will of Cruxis or refuse your destiny!" The angel moved as if to jerk his hand out of Colette's grasp but she reached out with her other hand, latching into his arm before he could pull away.
'Yes, I can!' Colette fixed the angel with a determined stare, her tone respectful yet defiant. 'Ever since I was little, I've been taught that my purpose is to regenerate the world, even if it means I lose my life. But Lloyd is right, there has to be another way! I'm sorry Fath- Lord Remiel. I'll wake the Goddess and save everyone, but not as a sacrifice and not by becoming an angel.'
Colette had been studying Remiel throughout her entire explanation, paying careful attention to his expressions and body language, subtle hints to the angel's emotions that her sharpened senses could pick out. From what she could see, his initial fury had cooled while she spoke. He was even smiling! Well, a little. And it looked forced, but a smile of any sort meant Remiel understood. She convinced him! Right? The longer she focused on it, the stranger- Emptier the angel's cold grin became. Maybe, Colette thought, he's uncomfortable with me still holding his hand! That had to be it. Remiel understood her feelings, he just wasn't used to being touched by humans! He did try to pull his hand back earlier...
Colette bowed her thanks, then released her grip on Remiel's arm and stepped away- What? She had intended to just slip her hand out of his as she moved back, but... Why wasn't her letting go?
Before she could react, Remiel shifted his grip to her wrist and yanked, pulling Colette off-balance. As she stumbled closer, the angel clamped his other hand around her throat and leaned in.
"That I cannot allow." All she could focus on were Remiel's leering eyes. "You are Martel's vessel, Martel's new body which took years to complete. You'll not escape your fate so easily."
"Wait just a minute! What're you doing to Colette?" Footsteps. Sheena and the others were running up the stairs.
"You bastard! Let her go now!" A heavy thump from the edge of the dais, followed by the metallic hiss of a sword being drawn told Colette that Lloyd opted to shortcut the stairs and jumped up.
But none of that mattered as much as the fact that she couldn't breathe. Remiel was squeezing, choking her. She... Was he going to wait until she passed out then take her to heaven anyway? Couldn't breathe! Her vision was starting to go blurry as she summoned her wings and struggled to break free from the angel's grasp. She couldn't...! Moving on instinct alone, Colette reached under her tabard and grabbed one of the chakrams strapped to her back with her free hand. Swinging with all the strength her oxygen-starved frame could muster, she sliced a deep gash across the right side of Remiel's face and leapt back, gasping for air, when he dropped her.
"Damn you, inferior beings..." Colette stared at the blood flowing from the angel's cheek as Remiel slowly pulled his hands away from the wound, numbness creeping into her limbs as the others fell into formation around her. She- It was in self-defense, but she just attacked Lord Remiel... She injured the messenger of Cruxis, the voice of the Goddess Martel herself! Just a half-inch higher and she would have blinded him. "I have no use for any of you except the Chosen! Begone!"
Colette couldn't move. What had she done? Remiel was preparing to cast something, but she was too stunned, too fixated on the angel's blood to do anything but watch as it dripped down his neck, staining the collar of his robes. She hardly even felt it when Lloyd shoved her out of the way of the spell and could only look on as he charged forward, slashing at Remiel and trying to drive him back.
Lloyd's first attack opened a shallow cut on the angel's chest, but before the second blade could connect Remiel vanished in a flash of light and glowing feathers, reappearing in front of Genis and Raine. Startled, the two barely had time to react as Remiel swung at them, his hand engulfed in an aura of golden mana. Raine leapt out of her casting stance and in front of Genis, staff held ready to punish, but Sheena was already there.
"Pyre Seal!"
The explosion blasted Remiel away, sending him skidding sideways across the smooth stone floor. He slid to a stop a few yards away from Colette, wearing a sadistic smirk as he climbed back to his feet and turned to face Lloyd and Sheena; both racing towards him, side-by-side with weapons drawn. In seconds Remiel had the spell ready.
"Holy Lance!"
Colette watched in horror as the ground below her friends' feet lit up, illuminated by a rainbow-hued array of runes, and shot glowing spears of light into the air, impaling the fighters in mid-charge. She couldn't make a sound, but Colette's mind was screaming. Why was Remiel doing this? Lloyd, Genis, the Professor, Sheena... They didn't do anything wrong! She should be the one Remiel was attacking! Was hurting her friends supposed to be a punishment for defying Cruxis? A punishment...
No, that couldn't be right. The Pastor at the Martel Temple always said the angels of Cruxis were servants of Martel an bound to follow the Goddess' ideals, even when she slept. Those that didn't became demons and monsters. Martel was a goddess of forgiveness and compassion, not retribution. She would never approve of any of this! Especially not the way Remiel was clearly enjoying inflicting pain. The Goddess probably wouldn't even want her new body if it had to be stolen instead of freely sacrificed. Colette pulled her second chakram from its place on her back, one thought lingering in her mind. From the moment Remiel disobeyed the Goddess and attacked, he was no longer an angel. He was a monster, a demon who was trying to kill them all, and he needed to be stopped.
Remiel advanced on Lloyd and Sheena, pacing himself against Raine's desperate First Aids and Nurses so that when he arrived by where they lay the two would have just enough strength to struggle entertainingly, but not enough to be a threat. Not that they were ever a threat to begin with. He was almost to them, just steps away and ready to smite when two heavy, sharp weights slammed into his back, driving him to one knee. The Chosen... He hadn't expected her to be able to muster the courage to attack him.
Colette braced herself as she prepared the second assault, silently chanting the incantation for Angel Feathers in her head. She was doing the right thing. Remiel was evil, it was her duty to try and stop him. The next spell would be stronger than any other she ever tried to cast before; the sheer volume of mana being pumped out of her body and into her wings was making her lightheaded, but it was almost finished. Colette threw her arms out wide, activating the spell and sending a hail of razor-edged feathers hurtling at Remiel. Still stunned from the chakrams and unable to dodge, he doubled over, grasping his wounded torso as the sizzling mana tore through him.
Remiel was down, it was an opportunity too good for Genis to pass up. Flipping his kendama one last time, he finished the spell he had been working on for the entire battle.
"Want a charge? Thunder Blade!"
The Tower grew dark as a huge sword of crackling energy coalesced above the angel and fell, running him through.
"Impossible..." Remiel slumped over as the blade pinning him upright released its shockwaves and faded away. "How can an angel, the ultimate being, lose to a group of humans?"
"It doesn't matter what you are, we'd never let you take Colette from us!" Genis yelled as he ran over with Raine and helped pull Lloyd and Sheena to their feet, glaring at Remiel the whole time. His determination earned a weak, gurgling laugh from the angel.
"Is that so? Foolish little brat..." Remiel turned his head to watch Colette as she drew closer. None of them suspected yet. Excellent. Once he started the process, there would be no way to reverse it. Focusing on the mana field surrounding the Tower's seal, he pushed at it, jarring the dormant energy enough to unleash it on the Chosen. "I'll break the seal myself. Now, Chosen, you belong to... Cruxis..."
Colette stopped dead in her tracks, hands grasping at her Cruxis Crystal as it burned, responding to the magic circle swirling beneath her feet.
"Raine, what's happening to her?"
Why did it hurt so much? The other seals were never this bad! She opened her mouth in a mute scream as the agony in her chest flared down her back, growing more extreme by the second as her wings forced their way out through her skin.
"It's Remiel, he must have triggered the angel transformation in Colette. If she transforms completely, it will be as if she sacrificed herself in the first place!"
Her vision was starting to haze again, the vibrant colors of the Tower fading under a wash of bloody red. The others were shouting, their voices mixing into a roar of distraught noise that Colette didn't want to untangle. All she wanted was to fall to the ground and curl up into a tiny ball. She would have if not for the seal's power that was keeping her standing.
Darkness was pushing in on the edges of her mind as Lloyd limped towards her, Colette knew she couldn't hold on much longer. Remiel's final words, not Lloyd's, were the last thing she heard before consciousness slipped away from her.
"I've done it! It's finally complete. Martel's vessel is... Finally complete... With this, I shall become one of the Four... Seraphi..."
- X -
"Colette? Colette! No..." Lloyd couldn't believe it. Colette said no, she refused! She wasn't supposed to transform. She was supposed to be alive and happy, searching for another way to regenerate the world, not- Not like this! Remiel, that bastard! "No, Colette, please...!"
"You're wasting your time." All eyes turned to Kratos as he climbed the stairs to the altar. "She has lost the soul to listen to your words. Now Colette is merely a puppet standing before death's door."
"Kratos!" Lloyd was torn between surprise at the mercenary's sudden arrival and anger at his callous words. Where have you been? What're you saying?" Kratos ignored both questions, continuing to talk about Colette in an infuriatingly calm manner as he approached the party.
"It's unfortunate that the Chosen did not choose this path herself. She may be useless to us now... Her death, however, will not have been in vain. We will take the chosen as the new body for Martel. By summoning the Chosen to Derris-Kharlan, the Regeneration will be complete an Sylvarant will be saved." Kratos stopped in front of Lloyd, who was standing between him and Colette with swords drawn, and gazed down at the younger swordsman. He had no interest in fighting over Colette, but it seemed inevitable now. "Move out of the way, Lloyd." Lloyd didn't budge. He was just as stubborn as his mother...
"What are you talking about?" Lloyd held his swords steady, one pointed at Kratos' heart and the other ready to defend in an instant. He hated threatening the man, but there was just too much that had happened, too many questions, and Kratos' weird behavior wasn't helping. "Why do you want to take Colette? Kratos... Answer me!" For a moment neither spoke, neither moved, then Kratos sighed and Lloyd felt his heart skip a beat. No... It couldn't be! A pair of cool blue wings materialized behind Kratos in a ping of mana, flapping lazily and throwing off silver sparks of light. "Kratos, you..."
"I am one of the Four Seraphim of Cruxis, the organization that guides this world, sent forth to keep close watch over the Chosen."
"Kratos is an angel too?" Genis gasped.
"You deceived us!" Sheena shouted, reaching for the deck of cards tucked under her obi. There was no question how this encounter would end.
"Deceived?" Kratos raised an eyebrow as if to ask 'Oh, really?' "I guarded and protected the Chosen throughout her journey so she could make the sacrifice to regenerate the world. Is that not what you wanted?" His hand drifted to the hilt of his sword. He didn't plan on using it, but it couldn't hurt to be prepared in case Lloyd or the others decided to do something foolish. "Now stand aside, the Chosen is coming with me."
"Damn it! Kratos-" Lloyd cut himself off, gritting his teeth as he held back the wounded 'We trusted you!' that echoed through his mind. "You think I'm going to let you do that? Colette is our friend!"
A small, almost imperceptible frown tugged at the corners of Kratos' mouth. Did Lloyd honestly believe that he would even stand a chance in a battle between the two of them? In his condition? If so, every lesson he had ever given about judging an opponent's strength and strategic retreats had been lost on the boy. But... No, Lloyd's determination was a bluff. He would never abandon Colette, but Lloyd knew there was nothing he could do. Kratos could see it in his eyes; full of desperation, fear, and a profound pain. Lloyd had the nearly shattered look of a person hoping to wake from a nightmare, safe and sound in their bed, but who knows it won't happen.
That look of anguish, loss, and betrayal sent a jolt of guilt racing through Kratos. For one insane moment he actually considered allowing his former traveling companions to 'escape.' It was only the thought of Mithos' reaction to his carefully laid plans being derailed that kept Kratos from acting on his impulse. Last time Mithos ordered Anna's murder, what vengeance would a second betrayal bring? Hating himself for what he was about to do, Kratos drew his sword and held his arms out in front of him, the flat of his blade pressed against his left palm.
"Sacred powers," The others reacted instantly, scrambling to mount an attack before he finished the incantation. Kratos leapt back, avoiding Lloyd's lunge and continuing his chant uninterrupted as he dodged. "Cast thy purifying light upon these corrupt souls. Rest in peace, sinners! Judgment!"
AH: I like the idea of an angry, avenging Colette. Also, Holy Lance and Dark Sphere. Two attacks I really, really hate. Now I'm off to an early Thanksgiving dinner. Wahoo!