This chapter is REALLY long. Sorry if it bugs anyone! Hope you like it anyway!
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Broken Memories
"Crystal, your first assignment is to go to Iselia. We've recently heard a rumor that there is a young boy there by the name of Lloyd Irving. We need you to go there and confirm that rumor." Yuan instructed.
"Yes Sir. Am I to remain undetected?"
"It would be best if you were not seen, but if you are discovered there is no help for it. Just be sure you do not reveal your reason for being there, and get in and out as soon as possible."
"Understood."
0~0~0~0~0~0
Crystal reached Iselia later that afternoon, and stayed in the forest while she waited for her target to appear. According to the information she had received, Lloyd lived in the woods with a dwarf named Dirk, who raised him.
As she walked through the woods she felt a chill as she passed the human ranch ran by Forcystus. Once she got passed it, she looked around the forest. It was full of huge trees, but unlike some forests she had seen, this one was allowed in plenty of sunlight.
It was also full of flowers and herbs, and Crystal found herself wanting to collect a few of the medicinal herbs to take back with her. But she was on assignment, so she continued on.
Crystal found the house they lived in a few minutes later. It was a two story, wood house, with a second story deck connecting to an animal pen. There were also vines growing up the side of the house.
As she studied the house, she heard voices coming from inside, through an open window. Quickly retreating to the shadows, she waited silently, and a moment later the front door opened. A young man with messy brown hair came out, followed by a dwarf.
Assuming the dwarf was Dirk, she confirmed the rumor when she heard him refer to the boy as Lloyd. Now that her job was complete Crystal could have left the area, but she felt certain that she could obtain more information if she stayed.
So she waited until late at night, when she was sure Dirk and Lloyd were asleep, and left her spot in the woods and approached the house. She didn't go in, but she walked around the property until she came to the pen that housed a strange animal.
It was large like a horse, furry like a dog, and had mostly white fur with green around its neck and top of its head. It also had lilac colored feet. It also had very large ears, almost like an elephant.
The animal was sleeping, so Crystal approached it silently, but as she watched it, one dark eye opened to stare at her. The other opened a moment later, and it opened its mouth and cried out a loud whine.
Mere moments after the sound ended, a window opened on the second story and Lloyd stuck his head out.
"Noishe? What's goin' on, boy?" He asked, still half asleep.
Crystal had pressed herself against the side of the house and slowly inched away from the pen, unseen by Lloyd. After a few seconds Lloyd disappeared back into his room, and Crystal released the breath she didn't realize she was holding.
"Okay, time to go." She whispered, but as she turned away something else caught her attention. At the back of the property was a grave stone, and as she approached it Crystal saw that it read 'Anna'.
Having collected all the information she was going to get, she left the area and headed back to the desert, to the Renegade base.
0~0~0~0~0~0
"I was sure that someone was there, Lilly. And Noishe thought something was up too." Lloyd said. He was eating breakfast with Lilly, one of his best friends. The two were at the schoolteacher's house, where Lilly was staying.
"Hmm… maybe someone was there, and Noishe chased them off."
"Maybe. Noishe is good at chasing people off." Lloyd agreed.
"Okay, you two, time to get to school." The Professor said, entering the room.
"Already?" Lloyd sighed, standing up from the table he sat at.
"Come on, Lloyd. You got here late, so don't be surprised that you don't have time to lounge." Lilly told him, picking up her bag.
Though Lilly was twenty years old, she hadn't had much official schooling, as most of her life was spent traveling all over the world. So after arriving in Iselia she began attending classes regularly.
0~0~0~0~0~0
"Lloyd Irving, wake up! Lloyd!" The Professor called, but Lloyd didn't budge.
He was standing in the back of the classroom, holding water buckets as punishment for disrupting the lesson earlier that morning.
"I'll wake him, Professor." Lilly said, throwing an eraser at her friend.
"Gah!" He sputtered, finally waking up.
"How do you manage to sleep standing?" The Professor asked, retrieving the eraser.
"Oh, Professor… Is class over?"
"Nevermind. Let's have someone else answer the question. Genis, how about you?"
A silver-haired boy stood up.
"Yes, Raine. Mithos the Hero brought about the end of the Ancient War at the Holy Ground of Kharlan."
"Correct. Afterwards, Mithos the Hero formed a pact with the Goddess Martel to seal away the Desians whom caused the war."
"But the Desians came back and are now causing everyone to suffer!" Lloyd pointed out.
"We covered that in class last time, remember? When the Seal weakens the Desians reappear. Just like they have now. Today is the Day of Prophecy. It is a very important day, which the Chosen of Mana will receive an oracle from the Goddess Martel. Now, Chosen One…Colette."
This time a young blonde girl stands.
"Yes, Ma'am?"
"Tell us about the journey of world regeneration."
"It is a journey to seal the Desians. Upon passing the trials of the Goddess Martel, the Summon Spirits that protect the world awaken, and mana is restored."
"Correct. I suppose we should expect the Chosen herself to know the answer to that one. Mana depletion is the cause of the current food shortages and droughts. It is said that this occurs because the Desians consume vast amounts of mana in their human ranches."
"But what is a human ranch?" Lilly asked.
"That's one thing we don't know. They seem to be nothing more than a means for the Desians to torture humans. The Desians are half-elves and as you know, half-elves and humans despise one another."
"It seems ridiculous." Lilly muttered.
As a one-quarter elf, she was despised by most humans, half-elves and even full-blooded elves, simply because she was different. The people of Iselia didn't know her true bloodline, except for Lloyd, Genis, Colette and Raine, but they didn't care. They were the only people Lilly had ever encountered that didn't mind.
"The Chosen's journey has two purposes—to revive mana as well as defeat the Desians. Now, for the next question—" The Professor continued, but stopped when a bright flash of light shone through the building.
"What was that?" Lloyd asked.
"Light from the temple. It's time for the Oracle!" Lilly answered.
"Everyone calm down. It would seem that the time for the Oracle has come. I will go and check on the chapel-the rest of you stay here and study on your own." The Professor said, turning to the door.
"Professor! I'll go with you!" The Chosen offered.
"No, Colette. If it is the Oracle, the priests will come for you. Remain here with everyone else."
"We're seriously going to stay behind?" Lilly questioned when Raine was gone.
"Nope." Lloyd answered.
"Didn't think so. Come on, Colette, we're going to the temple!"
Genis protested that decision when he heard of it, but in the end he was outnumbered, and went with them.
0~0~0~0~0~0
When Crystal returned to the base, she reported to Yuan as soon as possible. He seemed pleased with the information she had acquired, especially about the grave stone, but he also seemed distracted by something. He dismissed her as soon as she finished giving her report, so she decided to go to the training room.
When she arrived, she found Botta there training with one of his subordinates, a large man named Vidar. When he saw her, Botta invited her in to train with them. So she spent the next hour training with them.
"You fight well, Crystal. Are your techniques self taught?" Botta asked.
"Mostly. Though I did train a little with the Chosen of Tethe'alla a few years ago."
"Oh, so you know the Chosen of Tethe'alla? That should be useful for future assignments."
Just then Yuan's voice cut in over the speakers.
"Crystal Aurion, report to my office."
"Well, gotta go. See ya later, Sirs."
As she walked out, Botta thought about what he had just heard.
"Aurion…?"
Once in Yuan's office, Crystal was given a new assignment.
The Day of Prophecy was the following day, and Botta and a few of the other Renegades were going to Iselia to ambush the Chosen at the Martel Temple. Yuan wanted Crystal to go along with them. So she spent the next day training in preparation, and when it was time she headed out with Botta and the others, including Vidar.
When they arrived in Iselia they went to the Martel Temple, where they found the priests and high priestess waiting for the Chosen to arrive. Botta sent some of the men inside the temple to eliminate the priests in there, while he, Vidar, Crystal and a couple of other guards questioned the high priestess, an older woman with blonde hair.
"Where is the Chosen?" Botta asked.
"I won't let you harm her."
"We don't have time for games, lady. Where. Is. The. Chosen?" He said each word as its own sentence, and just as he finished three children ran up the steps behind them, Lloyd among them.
"Run, Colette!" The priestess cried, looking at a blonde girl.
"Lord Botta! There she is!" One of the soldiers with Botta said.
"Chosen One, your life is mine!" Botta told the girl, sending the two guards after her.
"I won't let you Desians get away with anything!" Lloyd said, drawing his sword.
The guards merely laughed.
"What's so funny?" A short, silver-haired boy asked.
"Well then, die at the hands of the Desians you so hate! Get them!" The man said, urging his partner on.
Unfortunately, they were defeated pitifully easily.
"No!" Crystal called out, rushing to their side with healing gels.
"Crystal, focus!" Botta shouted, sending her and Vidar at the children next. They were able to take the children down quickly, but just as Crystal raised her sword over Colette's head she was suddenly blocked by a man wielding a long sword.
She hit the ground hard, and looked up into cold garnet eyes. The man was tall and had messy auburn hair that hung in his eyes, and he would have been attractive if he wasn't so focused on the fight at hand. He was almost growling at that moment, and it slightly frightened Crystal. The children pulled themselves to their feet at that point, and joined the man in battle.
The man went after Vidar first, leaving Crystal to attack Lloyd and the others, but with three on one it wasn't easy. She managed to land a painful blow on Colette, but the girl's cry caught the man's attention and he turned to Crystal again.
She jumped back when he swung his sword in a wide swipe at her, pulling a knife out of her belt and hurling it at him. It distracted him only briefly, merely long enough for Crystal to swing her sword at him and be blocked.
"Dammit!"
As soon as the man blocked her sword, he twisted suddenly and struck out, knocking the weapon from her hands and catching a fistful of her hair in his hand. Then he turned so that her back was pressed against his chest.
He pulled her head back to where she was looking straight up at him, and though it was painful she refused to flinch. Her deep green eyes met his cold garnet ones again, and she could see that he had no qualms about killing her right there.
In the space of a second, the man brought his sword up and down onto her neck, cutting into it deeply. Fortunately for her Vidar had been busily attacking Lloyd and the others at that time, and a particularly loud cry from Lloyd caught the man's attention, causing him to shift his aim just enough that all he did was cut into the side of her neck, not hitting any veins.
As soon as he heard Lloyd's cry, the man released Crystal and turned to Vidar. Botta was at her side in an instant, helping her to her feet and trying to stop the bleeding of her neck. He tore a strip of the sleeve off of his clothes and pressed it to the wound on her neck, and after a few moments the bleeding stopped.
Vidar wasn't so lucky. The man turned and abruptly thrust his sword into Vidar's chest, right through his heart.
"No!" Crystal shouted again, trying to get to Vidar as his body hit the ground, but she couldn't get out of Botta's grasp.
When the battle was over, the man cleaned his sword calmly, and looked back to Botta and Crystal, the latter of which stared at him with her eyes wide.
"Damn…" Botta breathed, "Never thought you'd show up. Retreat for now!" So the two soldiers limped after Botta and Crystal, surprised that the man let them go so easily.
0~0~0~0~0~0
"Aurion, Aurion… where is the file on Aurion?" Yuan muttered to himself.
He was in Meltokio, looking through their archives on birth records. Botta's search had been interrupted when Yuan sent him to Iselia, so Yuan decided to take matters into his own hands.
"Aubrey … Audrey … Aura … aha! Aurion."
Finding the file he was looking for, Yuan flipped through to the page he was looking for. As he studied it, he found that it backed up everything that Crystal had said; where and when she was born, who her parents were, and her race. So she hadn't lied. Perfect. He could use that information at some point.
Closing the file and returning it to its place on the shelf, Yuan left the archive building and prepared to leave Meltokio. When he returned to the base he learned that Botta and the others had returned, minus Vidar.
When they came to report to him on their mission, he was surprised to find them in the condition they were in; Aaron and Saul were limping badly and had several cuts and bruises all over their arms, necks and faces. Crystal walked with a limp as well, and had a bandage covering a large portion of the right side of her neck.
"What happened out there?" He asked, taking in their appearance.
"Kratos was there, Sir." Botta answered simply.
"What?"
So they explained what happened, and when they finished Yuan dismissed them all. Botta, and the two soldiers left the room, but Crystal remained.
"Is something wrong, Miss Aurion?"
"Lord Yuan, I apologize. I swore I wouldn't let the Renegades down, and I have. I failed in my mission, and one of our people died as a result. I'm so sorry, Sir. I-" She began, but Yuan interrupted her.
"You could not have anticipated this turn of events. You are not at fault here. No one knew Kratos would be there today, and if we had I never would have sent you on this mission. Go and rest now. I will have your next assignment ready by morning."
So Crystal left the room, and Yuan sighed.
"Dammit, Kratos, why must you always get in my way?"
0~0~0~0~0~0
"Lloyd, you're heading home, right? Can I come part of the way with you?" Genis asked later that afternoon.
"Sure. But why are you going into the forest?"
"I have someone I wanna see."
"Oh. Okay. Hey Lilly, you wanna come over for dinner tonight?"
"Sure. Colette is coming over later tonight, right? I can go home with her after dinner." Lilly answered as the three headed to the forest.
After walking for several minutes, Genis stopped by the Human Ranch.
"This is my stop."
"What? Genis, why are you going to the ranch? That's forbidden by the peace treaty!" Lilly protested.
"The Desians already violated the treaty by attacking the temple."
"Well, still…"
"If you're going to go, then I'm going with you." Lloyd said.
"You guys are hopeless. Go, then. I'll stand watch out here. Be quick."
So the two ran around the side of the ranch, so Genis could speak to an old woman. From her place as guard, Lilly couldn't hear much of their conversation, but she did hear the word "Exsphere" come up.
Exspheres serve as power-enhancers for those who equipped them, enhancing their natural strength and stamina.
As Lilly waited, Lloyd and Genis ran back to her in a hurry.
"We have to help Marble!" Genis said, pointing to where he had just fled from. Two Desian soldiers were whipping the old woman, while a third looked on.
"Alright, let's go up on the cliff so we can see better."
Once there they had a plan. Genis would attack the soldiers with magic, while Lloyd and Lilly acted as decoys to lure them away from the area. Then when it was safe Genis would make his way back to the village while Lloyd and Lilly headed to Lloyd's house.
Unfortunately it wasn't that simple.
Genis tripped on his way down the cliff, catching the attention of the soldiers. So Lloyd and Lilly had to confront them head on, meaning that they revealed their identities.
They were able to fight them off, but now that the Desians had seen their faces they would surely retaliate, probably against the village.
Genis apologized profusely, but the teens brushed it off and sent Genis home as they had originally planned.
Later that night Colette, Genis and Raine came to the house. They were accompanied by Kratos, the man who arrived at the temple earlier that afternoon. He claimed that he was a mercenary, and that if the Chosen's family could pay him he would guard her on her journey, seeing that the priests who were going to do it had been killed by the Desians.
"Lloyd, why don't we go up on the terrace?" Colette suggested.
"Sure."
While the two went upstairs to talk, the others went their separate ways in the yard.
Kratos went to stand before a grave marked 'Anna' and as he stood there, a young woman came to stand beside him.
"Hello. I'm Lilly Chaffe." She greeted politely.
"Kratos Aurion." Kratos answered, then looked back to the grave stone.
"Lloyd's mother." She said simply, knowing he would wonder. At least, she assumed he would – who wouldn't?
"What happened to her?"
"I don't know the details. I only know that she died, and Dirk found Lloyd in the forest when he was a baby."
"I see. And what of you? Are you his sister?" Kratos asked, though he was pretty sure he knew the answer.
"No, I'm not. I found this village during my travels, and forgot to leave. Lloyd and the others made me feel welcome, and that's something I haven't felt in a long time, if ever."
Then Lilly grew quiet, realizing that she had said more than she intended and not sure what to say next.
"I – I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" She offered after a moment.
"It is alright. If I may ask, is it because of your blood that you do not feel welcome anywhere?"
"What? No, of course not. Why would that be a problem? I'm just an elf." She answered a little too quickly.
"Miss Chaffe, you do not have to hide the truth from me. I know what you are, and it does not matter to me in the slightest."
Lilly was stunned. He wasn't going to judge her because of her blood? Other than Lloyd and the others, no one else had ever been that accepting. It took her a minute to process the fact that he didn't seem to mind that she was a quarter-blood.
"Thank you, Mr. Aurion. I truly appreciate that. You have no idea how grateful I am to hear that."
The two stood in silence for a few moments, and Kratos used that time to study the young woman.
She was a small woman, he noted, nearly a full foot shorter than him and young, barely in her twenties judging by her appearance. Her skin was light, her features strong but delicate, her eyes a deep, piercing blue.
Quite a beautiful young woman by all accounts.
There was a hard light in her eyes, however, and Kratos assumed it had been born out of the hardship she had faced.
As he studied her he felt sympathy crash over him. No one deserved to have as hard a life as she had, especially not at such a young age.
But though she had been despised all her life she didn't bear the appearance of one who wanted pity, and carried herself with pride and determination. It was an admirable trait, and Kratos found himself feeling a bit of pride in her ability to not let others beat her down.
While Kratos studied her she kept her eyes on the grave stone in front of her, but out of the corner of her eye she was studying him as well.
He was tall and muscular, with a skin tone slightly darker than her own. His hair was a deep auburn color, his eyes garnet. There seemed to be something dark and mysterious in his features, and Lilly nearly giggled as she thought of all the schoolgirls who would likely be swooning just for standing this close to the man.
Shaking her head slightly, Lilly banished such thoughts. She would not allow herself to become attracted to this man – he would only be in her life for a short time, until his services were no longer needed, and if she began to feel anything for him she would only end up hurt.
"So… what brought you to the village today?" She asked, desperate to find a safe topic for discussion.
"I was looking for work."
"I see."
"Will you be accompanying the Chosen on her journey?"
"No, I don't think so. Someone has to stay here and make sure Lloyd stays out of trouble." She answered, trying to keep the conversation light.
"I see."
Was that disappointment in his voice?
"Don't do this, Lilly. Don't allow yourself to read anything into it. You really think he'd be disappointed that little old you aren't going to go with Colette? Please." Lilly thought, shaking her head again.
"Lilly, Kratos…"
Looking up at the new voice behind them, they found Raine approaching.
"We're ready to head back to the village now."
"Okay."
"Very well."
So the two fell into step beside the professor, meeting up with Colette and Genis at the front gate.
As the group walked through the forest, Lilly fell into step beside Kratos. Neither acknowledged the other, but Lilly found herself wishing to continue conversing with him. Of course, with Genis, Raine and Colette within ear shot, it wouldn't be a private conversation, so she held her tongue.
She did, however, find herself wishing that she would be going with Colette in the morning. But she quickly dismissed that thought as well. This man was someone she barely knew, and in the morning he would be out of her life as quickly as he had entered it.
0~0~0~0~0~0
The next morning, Crystal went to see Yuan about her assignment.
"Ah, Miss Aurion, I was just about to send for you. Come, there is someone you need to meet." He said, and then led her into his office where a raven haired young woman stood by the window.
"Miss Aurion, this is Sheena Fujibayashi. Sheena, this is Crystal Aurion. Sheena is from Tethe'alla, and she has been sent to Sylvarant by her people to assassinate the Chosen. You will help her in this task. Now I will leave you two to discuss your plans." Yuan said, and then left the room.
"Hello." Crystal offered, noticing that Sheena seemed a bit nervous.
"Hello. I suppose we should get to work. Yuan suggested that we go to the training room to practice sparring and learn how to fight together, maybe put together a few team attacks. That okay with you?"
"Sounds like a good plan. Come on, I'll show you the way."
0~0~0~0~0~0
"Lloyd! Where have you been? Colette left hours ago!" Lilly called as she saw Lloyd running up to the village gate with Genis.
"Colette lied to me! She said she was leaving at noon!"
"She lied? Huh… go see her family. They might have some answers. I'll wait here."
So Lloyd and Genis headed to Colette's house, but while they were gone a group of Desians entered the village.
"Uh-oh!"
"Where are Lloyd Irving and Lilly Chaffe?" The leader called out.
The villagers ran into their houses, and Lilly went to warn Lloyd.
"Lloyd! There are Desians looking for you and me!"
"What! Where?"
"Out by the gate."
"Okay, let's go. We have to stop them."
As they left Colette's house, they saw a group of soldiers burning a nearby house.
"Hey! Stop that!" Genis called, and the men turned.
"What, you gonna make us?" One of them said, and attacked them.
Lloyd and the others were able to defeat them easily, and thankfully the house that the soldiers burned was empty. The three pressed on toward the gate, until they came to another house that was on fire.
"Our house!" Genis and Lilly cried in unison.
They could hear the crackling of the flames, the splintering of the wood as it was consumed by the fire. The smoke surrounding the house was thick, and the longer they stood there the more of it they were breathing in.
"We need to get moving." Lloyd said.
"But-!" Lilly tried, but Lloyd interrupted.
"We have to stop the Desians from hurting anyone and burning anymore houses."
"Yeah, you're right. They're gonna pay for this. Let's go!"
So the three continued on, seeing other burning houses as and as they approached the gate they could hear the lead captain of the soldiers calling out.
"Lloyd Irving, Lilly Chaffe, come forth!"
"You've come to attack the village again? I've had enough of this!" Lloyd said.
"What are you talking about?" One of the soldiers asked.
"He speaks nonsense, ignore him." A new man, the apparent leader of the whole group, said as he approached.
Lilly recognized this man as the leader of the human ranch they had been to yesterday.
The leader was a man named Forcystus, with short, aqua colored hair and a metal patch over his right eye. He also had a cannon barrel on his left arm.
"Listen up, inferior beings! I am Forcystus, one of the Five Desian Grand Cardinals.
I am a superior half-elf who rules over the farm where we cultivate you pathetic humans."
"Farm? Cultivate…? What are we, cattle?" Lilly shouted.
Forcystus looked over at her for a moment, then at Lloyd, before he began to speak again.
"Lloyd! Lilly! You, a human and quarter-elf, have been found guilty for the crime of violating the non-aggression treaty. Therefore, I bring judgment upon you and this village!"
Lilly could hear the villagers murmuring behind her.
"A quarter-elf? Lilly? Unbelievable!"
"She lied to the entire village!"
Clearly no one was happy with her right now.
"You violated the treaty, too! You tried to murder the Chosen!" Genis pointed out.
"Us, kill the Chosen? Hahaha! I see now. They must be after the Chosen." One of the soldiers said.
"They? Are you saying you aren't the ones that attacked Colette?" Lloyd questioned.
"I have no need to explain myself to the likes of you. The only thing that matters is that you, Lloyd Irving, have been in contact with host body F192 and attacked our guards. We've prepared an appropriate opponent for your crime!"
Then Forcystus stepped to the side as a soldier brought a strange creature into the area.
It was vaguely humanoid, but much taller than anyone in the area. Its skin was green, veined with yellow and red, and had one large red eye in the middle of its forehead. It wore the remains of a dress of dark brown, the same that the people at the ranch wore, and there was a metal collar about its neck.
"What is that thing?" Genis cried.
In the back of her mind Lilly was picturing the old woman Genis had gone to the ranch to see the previous day.
"Wait! That's Marble!" She told the boys, remembering the name Genis had called her.
"What? Man, we can't fight her - we might kill her!" Lloyd said.
"But what can we do? We can't let her destroy the town!"
At that moment Marble chose to attack one of the villagers.
"Marble, stop!" Genis cried out.
"She can't understand you right now! Try to distract her so I can use my Omega Arts! That might save her!" Lilly called to them.
So Lloyd and Genis ran around Marble, trying to keep her busy while Lilly charged her mana for the Omega Arts. When she was ready she had Genis use magic to stun Marble, so she could approach her without getting hurt.
"Okay Marble, I'm gonna try to help you. It's alright…" She said, her voice low and calm so as not to frighten Marble.
Reaching out, Lilly placed a hand on the woman's chest, or at least as high on its body as she could, and began chanting incantations quietly.
"Kad Kaf Hani E…!"
A soft yellow light glowed around her hand and covered the woman, getting brighter and brighter until it was nearly impossible to see. When the light faded whispers surrounded the group as they saw that Marble was no longer in the form of that strange creature.
"Lilly, you did it!"
"Way to go!"
"I… what…?" Lilly asked between breaths. She felt incredibly dizzy and weak, and when she tried to turn around to look at the boys she collapsed, falling into all-consuming darkness.
When she woke again she was in a bed in a hot, stuffy room.
"Hey, you're awake!" Lloyd said, standing up from a chair on the other side of the room.
"How do you feel, dear?" Marble asked.
"I think I'm okay. What about you?"
"Oh, don't worry about me. I'm perfectly alright, thanks to you."
"What you did was amazing!" Genis put in.
"Yeah! How did you do that?"
"It's very simple really. In Marble's case, she turned into that… being… because her Exsphere was removed, which caused her mana to go out of control. So all she needed was for someone to restore her mana. And since my healing ability is based on mana manipulation even more than the normal healing arts, it was something I could do rather easily." Lilly explained.
"Wow! That's so cool!"
"It is rather interesting, I admit. But shouldn't you three be looking for your friends?" Marble spoke up.
"Oh, right! Where are we, anyway?" Lilly asked.
"We're at the inn in Triet. After you saved Marble that Forcystus guy left, but the mayor and some of the other villagers were angry at us for causing the Desians to attack the town, and they banished us. We can't ever return now." Lloyd explained sadly.
"Then we put you on Noishe and left." Genis added.
"Well, once we help Colette regenerate the world, maybe they'll change their minds. Anyway, we should get going."
"Lloyd found out where Colette is headed; there are some ruins near here that should be the location of the first seal. We should try there first." Genis put in.
"Okay, good. Hey, Marble, what are you gonna do? Where will you go?"
"I think I might stay here for awhile, actually. I rather like this town. Don't worry about me, dear. You go find your friend."
So the three left the inn and prepared to leave town, but before they reached the gate they were attacked by Desians.
They fought them off easily, but before they could leave the area they were ambushed and Lloyd was knocked out. Lilly and Genis surrendered at that point, and the three were taken away.
0~0~0~0~0~0
Sheena and Crystal spent the entire day and most of the night practicing, and Crystal found that she fought better without her sword, trading it for a pair of daggers. With the smaller blades she could move around more easily, and get more attacks in than a longer sword.
Sheena fought with cards infused with magic, a secret art taught only in her village. She was also a ninja, and taught Crystal how to be lighter on her feet in order to be quicker in battle.
The two got along well, and by the end of the first night they were as close as sisters. Crystal felt that Sheena was a lot like Jocelyn, and while it served as a painful reminder of what she had lost, it also served as encouragement to see that she completed her assignments quickly, in order to defeat the Desians and free her family.
"Hey, I hear Lloyd is in the prison ward." Sheena said the next afternoon.
"What?"
"Apparently some of the soldiers found him and a couple of other kids in Triet."
"Other kids? Are they here too?"
"One is. It's a girl named Lilly, I think. The other was released."
"Huh. Thanks for letting me know."
0~0~0~0~0~0
"Ohh… my head-! Where am I?" Lloyd wondered when he woke up. Looking around, he saw that he was in a cell in a long hallway, and a guard was pacing nearby.
"Lloyd, you're awake! You okay?" Lilly called out from the next cell.
"Yeah, I think so. What about you? And where's Genis?"
"I'm fine-they didn't harm me since I came quietly. They let Genis go, since he was a fellow elf."
"But aren't the Desians half-elves?"
"Yeah, but it's still elf blood, right? Apparently I didn't count though, since I'm only a quarter-blood. Anyway, we gotta figure out how to get out of here."
"Hey, no talking!" The guard said as he approached their cells.
The two sat in silence for a few moments, until they heard a woman's voice.
"Soldier, Lord Botta has called for you. Report to him at once."
"Yes Ma'am."
The echoing of footsteps could be heard for several moments, then silence reigned for another long moment before a woman appeared in front of Lloyd and Lilly's cells.
"You! You're the woman that was in Iselia!" Lloyd said.
"Shut up! Do you think they know I'm here right now?" The woman hissed.
"Then what do you want?" Lilly asked.
"First of all, name's Crystal. I'm tired of being called 'that woman'. Now, I don't know why they came after you. As far as I know it wasn't part of the plan. So I'm sorry."
"That's it? You came down here for that?"
The woman hesitated, looking down the hall quickly and stepping closer to Lilly's cell as if she'd been seen. Then after a moment she turned away.
"I don't have to explain myself to you." She answered, and walked away.
"Well, that was nice." Lloyd said sarcastically.
"Lloyd, she gave us exactly what we needed."
"What?"
Lilly held up a small silver key.
"She gave this to me when she stepped closer to the cell. We can get out of here now."
Then let's go."
0~0~0~0~0~0
Moving silently down the hall, Crystal slipped into the training room unnoticed and breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't worried that what she had done would be discovered, it was more a matter of not wanting to be sent to recapture Lloyd and Lilly after they escaped.
After hearing that they had left the base, Crystal relaxed, and went to find Sheena to continue their training.
0~0~0~0~0~0
"You guys all came for us?" Lloyd questioned. The group had just left the base and was headed back to Triet for the rest of the day.
"Well sure, Lloyd. It's not like we were gonna just leave you here. You're our friends!" Genis answered.
"Still, you lost a day's worth of travel because of us. So thank you." Lilly put in.
"We couldn't just leave you with the Desians!" Colette told them.
"Indeed." Kratos agreed.
"I wonder why they let Genis go but kept Lilly. She still has elven blood, even if it's in a lower amount than a full or even half-blooded elf." Lloyd commented.
Lilly's head snapped up at that, but Lloyd didn't notice.
"I mean, they let Genis go because he was a 'fellow kinsmen' right? Well wouldn't Lilly be their kinsmen as well? Or is it because she has such a low amount of elven blood that they don't consider her one of their kind?"
Everyone hesitated for a moment. Kratos and Raine had seen Lilly's reaction to Lloyd's comments, and wished to find a way to direct the conversation away from her, but neither knew exactly how to do it.
"Lloyd." Kratos suddenly said.
"Yeah?"
"When we reach Triet, you and I are going to spar. If you are going to accompany the Chosen on her journey, you must improve your swordsmanship."
"Ah, man, already? Can't it wait for tomorrow?" Lloyd whined.
"Very well. If you wish to wait for morning, meet me at the gate at five o'clock."
"Uh, Nevermind! Tonight will be fine!"
As Lloyd continued whining to Lloyd and Colette, Kratos cast a glance back at Lilly, who was watching him.
"Thank you." She whispered and he nodded, holding her gaze for a long moment.
"Hey! There's Triet!" Colette announced, and Kratos and Lilly looked up. In the distance the faint outline of buildings could barely be made out.
"How long will it take to get there?" Lloyd asked.
"An hour and a half, perhaps."
"Great, I'm exhausted."
"Me too. I can't wait to get to the inn and rest."
0~0~0~0~0~0
Back at the base, Crystal and Sheena trained together for a few hours, and after their training ended for the night, the two went their separate ways. Crystal decided to take a walk outside, and without realizing it she found herself outside the town of Triet. She was about to turn and walk back to the base when something caught her eye; in a pen outside the inn was the animal Crystal saw at Lloyd's house, the one he called Noishe.
She approached him quietly and found him asleep again, and as she stood watching him, one eye opened just like last time. Unlike last time, however, he didn't protest. Instead, he simply stood and allowed her to pet and examine him.
"You're a good boy, aren't you? Why do I feel like I know you, though, huh?"
After a few moments she sighed, and pulled her hand away.
"Well, I guess I better go. See ya later, boy."
But as she turned around she found herself at the end of a sword. Looking up, she saw the same cold garnet eyes she had encountered the day before.
"What are you doing here?" He asked, pressing the sword tighter against her neck.
"Somehow, I just can't get away from weapons at my neck, can I?" Crystal sighed.
"I meant no harm. I live nearby and was out for a walk, and I saw this animal. I've never seen anything like it, so I wanted a closer look. That's all."
"Who are you?" Kratos demanded, and Crystal almost flinched at the sharpness of his words.
"Who I am is irrelevant. I honestly didn't come here for any purpose other than to look at this animal. If you would allow me, I will gladly leave. I'm not stupid enough to start a fight here. If you hadn't found me, I would have simply gone home, and I still can if you'll excuse me."
For some reason, unknown to even him, Kratos decided to let her leave. He followed her to the town gate, however, and watched her until she was no longer in sight.
Once she was out of his line of sight, Crystal headed back to the Renegade base. While he was watching her she had walked in the opposite direction of the base, unwilling to let him know where she was staying.