Ch. 9: Bonds

Young: So here it is! Another chapter c: I feel like I'm really getting back into this story. It's good times.
Lloyd: Yes. Yes it is. Shall I disclaim you?
Me: Definitely.
Lloyd: Young doesn't own ToS or Namco.
Me: Onward, to the story! I hope you enjoy! Also, please remember this story is unbeta'd, so it's not going to be perfect. If you see any terrible mistakes, feel free to point them out. But don't hate. c:


A growl of annoyance escaped Lloyd's lips as he shook himself to try and remove the sand from his coat. Yes, being a wolf felt...right, but it was goddamn annoying to have to shake himself every three seconds to keep from being weighed down by the sand. Why was there so much sand? Oh yeah...this was a desert.

"Something wrong boy?" Questioned Genis, glancing towards the wolf.

Said animal just huffed a sigh and continued walking.

"Don't worry, doggy, we're almost there!" Colette grinned, patting the wolf on the head lightly. She had been the most optimistic out of all of them throughout their trek through the desert. Her face still shined even though her hair was becoming thoroughly coated with sand.

Raine sighed, "We don't know for sure. The only thing the Triet villagers told us was that it was in this general direction. But I do feel as slight difference in the amount of mana in the air, so perhaps we are nearly there." Her blue eyes gained a strange light in them as something in the distance slowly became visible.

"Is that it?" Genis called, excitement evident.

Lloyd narrowed his eyes, trying to understand the weird feeling he was getting. Like there was an odd energy in the air. Could this be...mana? It felt, although strange, like it was natural. Like it had been there for a long time, and it was created by the world itself. But that wouldn't explain why he could sense it now. He'd never been able to before. Maybe it had to do with his current state of being?

Suddenly he realized that he was being left behind by the others, having slowed down as his thoughts became more and more complicated. Only Kratos stood by his side, still eying the wolf with a weird look on his face. The auburn haired man gestured towards the structure in the distance, frowning slightly.

"Come, Arkus. Let's not fall behind."

Lloyd stared into the man's eyes, a sudden understanding coming about him. Did...did Kratos know? But how could he? Then again, that man, Yuan, knew about him, so perhaps Kratos did too. It would make sense, and it would explain why the man was waiting for him to follow along. Why else would the mercenary worry about an insignificant wolf?

With a quiet yip, the wolf followed the mercenary towards their destination.

It wasn't until they had reached the inner part of the Triet Ruins did Lloyd realize that what he was feeling was indeed mana. Because as they got closer to the altar, it was almost enough to make him pass out. He stumbled, but managed to keep himself on his paws.

As Colette approached the altar, Lloyd could feel something in the air shift. It was almost as if the air around them was becoming more hostile. His eyes narrowed, and he could tell that something was coming out of the shadows. It almost looked like...with a growl he charged forward, tackling Colette just as another creature launched itself from the darkness.

Immediately he was back on his paws, ignoring Colette's call of thank you to instead take in his foe. It was...a ktugach. He remembered reading about them in a mythology book that Dirk had owned. The creature met his gaze evenly, and for a moment, it felt as though they were communicating. Lloyd could understand what it was saying, through the slightest movements of its body, and even through the emotions evident on its face.

'I'm sorry. This is not my doing. Please forgive me.'

And then the monster charged him.

Lloyd let out a whine, but threw himself to the side to avoid the attack from the creature. It was then that he noticed there were smaller versions of the one he was fighting attacking Kratos, Raine, and Genis. Colette was just getting to her feet, pulling her chakrams from their holsters under her coat. But still...there were children.

The fight continued on, but Lloyd couldn't find it in himself to focus. The ktugach had said that it wasn't doing this on purpose, so what did that mean? Was it being controlled? Did someone actually have the power to control such a beast? And if that was even possible, then who was it? Who would do such a horrible thing?

Before he knew it, however, the battle was over, and the beasts were fading out of existence, their bodies returning to their original state. That is, mana. A mournful whine escaped Lloyd's lips as he sat himself down next to Kratos. Said mercenary knelt by the wolf and began feeling around his pelt, checking for injuries.

"Are you hurt?" The man questioned.

The wolf whined, but did something that nobody in the group expected. He shook his head. Like he was answering "no" to Kratos' question. Suddenly he was surrounded by the entire party, and it was making Lloyd nervous. He didn't like to have people this close to him, especially since he was so much smaller than all of them.

"Can you understand what we're saying?" Genis asked, eyes wide.

Lloyd casually rolled his eyes, and yipped in response, still not fully listening to the rest of them. He was still thinking about the monsters, and their odd behavior. The others, still shocked by their revelation, turned their gaze towards Colette who had, after hearing the wolfs response, decided to approach the altar and pray like she had been told to do.

"I always knew there was something special about you, Arkus. Now watch, cause when Colette prays we'll get to see an angel! Its amazing." Genis said, excitement evident in the smile on his face. He patted Lloyd's head before moving to stand by his sister. The wolf let out a breath of air before turning his goldeng gaze to the altar, where a ball of light was descending.

Then suddenly, a blonde angel dressed in a green and gold robe appeared.

And Lloyd recognized him as the one from before.

And his scent...was familiar.

Like from the forest...when he'd been attacked.

Suddenly it hit him. This man...this "angel"...was the one who'd changed him! He recognized the scent, and the colors from when he'd passed out before. This man...this thing was at fault for the fact that no one could recognize him. But what he wanted to know was: why? However at this point he couldn't really think anything else than the fact that he wanted this thing to pay for what he did.

So he really couldn't be blamed as his vision went red and he charged towards the floating being. A feral growl escaped his mouth as he flew through the air towards the angel. And then there was a burning in his side, and he was falling. Falling towards the ground. Lloyd let out a yelp in pain as he hit the ground, choosing to lie still because of the agony coming from his side.

"Filthy creature. Chosen, I ask that you rid yourself of this animal." The angel stated, glaring.

"Ah...that is, I would like to keep him. If...that's okay?" Colette responded.

The blonde man seemed thoughtful for a second before speaking once more, "I suppose that will be fine. But if it acts out of line again, and I am attacked, I will do more than slightly injure it. Now, you know your next destination. Head there and we shall speak once more." With that, the man was gone in a flash of light.

"Arkus!" Genis shouted as he ran over to the wolf.

Lloyd yipped quietly, still trying not to move. He could feel warmth through the pain, and decided that he was most likely bleeding. It was matting his fur down, and he growled in frustration. He'd just gotten the sand out of there! Wincing, he managed to lift his head to stare down at the wound. There was a gash where the angel had cut him, and it was bleeding profusely.

Raine was pressing gels into it, and Kratos was murmuring healing spells as the half-elf worked. Lloyd growled, trying his best not to flinch as Raine pressed harder against the wound. She was just trying to stop the bleeding, after all. His gaze traveled to Genis, who had tears in his eyes as he slowly stroked the wolf's head.

"Just hold still. The bleeding's almost stopped." Raine muttered quietly.

If Lloyd could respond, he probably would have cursed.

Instead he chose to lay his head back and close his eyes, resting for the moment.

It was a little while later when he opened them again. Kratos and Raine were standing up, having finished their work. The wound on his side was still present, but it was no longer bleeding and it was beginning to scab over. With a wince, Lloyd pushed himself to his paws and glanced around at the others, letting them know it was okay to go now.

Genis stayed by his side as they walked, "You sure he's okay to move?"

"We will rest as soon as we get back outside." Raine responded.

And so they began their journey back to the surface.

As soon as they pushed their way through the entrance, Lloyd breathed a sigh of relief. He was never fond of being underground. That and the ungodly amount of monsters down there was terrifying. The wound in his side was aching slightly, and he would be glad when he could finally rest it.

Then, suddenly, he looked up just as Colette began to fall to the side.

Dashing forward, he managed to get his body under hers as she was falling to the ground, thus catching her with himself. However, he was pushed to the ground as a result, and his wound in turn was shoved into the sand. He growled, but ignored it for the time being, wanting to see if Colette was okay.

"Ah...I'm sorry..." The Chosen murmured, eyes closed.

Raine was there in seconds, "She's running a fever. Genis, will you set up a bed for her? She has to get under some blankets immediately." Said half-elf nodded his head and ran to the bags. Raine glanced down back at the two on the ground an found herself smiling slightly, "I'm glad you were there, Arkus. She could have been hurt if she hit the ground."

Not much later, Colette was under a pile of blankets, they had a fire going, and Genis was asleep by Raine. The older sibling was reading a book and would every now and then glance at her brother as if to make sure he was okay. Kratos sat off to the side, having decided that he would keep watch for the night. With a yawn, Lloyd moved to sit by the mercenary.

"How is your wound?" Said man asked.

Lloyd was surprised that Kratos would even make an attempt at conversation, considering he couldn't really respond. So instead of answering, the wolf just laid himself down, the injury facing up. That way the man could see for himself, and Lloyd wouldn't have to try and figure out a way to tell him.

The mercenary leaned over to examine the cut, frowning, "You reopened it when you caught the Chosen." It wasn't a reprimand, just a statement. With a sigh, Kratos murmured a healing spell and closed it again, cleaning it out as well. With that the man leaned back and sighed, "I suppose we have some things to talk about."

There was a pause, and Lloyd could feeling the anticipation burning inside him. He knew now that Kratos knew. Knew that he was Lloyd. There was no doubt in his mind. His eyes widened and he shifted, wondering what would happen now. He couldn't possibly communicate with the man.

"So how did you become like this, Lloyd?"

Then there was a hand pressed against Lloyd's forehead, and he could feel something. Something between them...wait a second. Was this...was this a bond? But how could Kratos have a bond? He wasn't a wolf! The wolf's eyes flew wide open, and he couldn't believe what was happening. Kratos was sifting through his memories, as if he were an alpha. What...what the hell?!

'I'm sorry to have scared you, Lloyd. If we have more time, I will explain everything, but for now just accept it.' With that Kratos pulled his hand away and frowned. Why had Yuan contacted Lloyd? What did he have planned? Frowning, he murmured to Lloyd, "Get some rest." Before standing and moving further away from the wolf.

How in the hell was he supposed to get some rest after learning what he'd just learned?! Lloyd growled in annoyance, but found his eyes feeling heavy despite his rapidly moving thoughts. With a yawn, he closed his eyes and laid his head on his paws, feeling very tired.

It wasn't long until he was asleep.

And it was then that he had the weirdest dream.

xXxXx

His eyes opened, and he found himself in the woods just outside of Iselia. He could tell that it was that place because he'd spent so much of his life running around it with his family. It was at this point that he noticed that he was human again. How strange. A growl sounded to his right, and he turned his gaze to find the source.

A wolf. A BIG wolf, with shaggy auburn fur and burning golden eyes. It growled again, but not threateningly, just to once again prove that it was there. Lloyd knelt in the dirt, knowing by the scent that this wolf was an alpha. A male alpha. But he appeared to be pack-less.

Tilting his head curiously, he crept forward on his hands and knees, giving off an air of harmlessness. The large wolf moved forward as well, and suddenly its muzzle was pressed against Lloyd's forehead. Confusion swept through the boy as the wolf's thoughts filled his mind.

I'm glad you are safe, Lloyd.

And then the wolf was turning and leaving, moving through the thick bushes with ease. Lloyd's eyes widened and his hand flew to his forehead, where the wolf's muzzle had previously been. How...? But then he was falling, and suddenly he knew that he was waking up. From a dream...?

xXxXx

Lloyd gasped as he woke up, shooting up and realizing that he was still a wolf. It was awkward at first, because in the dream he'd been human, but he quickly adjusted. The wound in his side was aching, and he realized that it was still nighttime. The fire was dimmer though, and Raine was asleep, so he'd been out for a couple hours at least. His mind wandered back to the dream, curious as to what it meant.

And for some reason, it didn't seem like a dream.

It felt more like he'd been remembering something.


Me: I feel the need to state that they will discuss Lloyd's reasons for attacking Remiel in the next chapter. So don't freak out because they didn't bring it up. :)

TBC