Tales of Symphonia- The Aftermath of Yggdrasil Chapter 8
Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia or any of the characters. They are the property of Namco Inc. I do however, own the character Ricky Elusa and any other OC characters in my fic.
As he sat in his room pondering what had happened, Ricky began to become increasingly afraid of what might happen that night. "I don't understand why Sheena could just be like that all of a sudden. The weeks that we spent together prior to getting to the Tomb were great. We talked, laughed, kissed, and cuddled. We even looked at the stars together. But after that day…everything changed." he thought. He banged his hands on the wall in frustration. "This cannot be happening again!" he shouted. He sighed and sat back down in the chair by his desk. A second later a knock was heard on his door. "Who is it?" he asked.
"It's me Ricky." said a soft feminine voice that he knew all too well. It was his sister.
"Come in Chocolat." he said, moving to one of the chairs by the small table in his room. The door shut behind her as he took a seat and faced her. He knew why she was here, and decided it was best to get it over with sooner rather than later. "Take a seat sis, I know why you've come." he stated flatly. Ricky noticed that Chocolat seemed tense as she sat, which only furthered his suspicions.
"Ricky, what happened to you and Sheena after you left? You two seemed so cozy then. Now…it's like you don't even know each other." she said. It was true when she thought about it. After the night they'd admitted their feelings to one another, Chocolat had seen how happy her brother and Sheena had been together. Yet now the air in the room seemed to grow cold whenever the two were in it.
Her brother sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "I'm afraid that things didn't seem to work out like we'd hoped Chocolat. I'm sure you heard from Kratos what Regal and Raine told him about what happened those couple days." he said.
Chocolat stiffened, and her face grew dark. Oh she knew what had happened, and she didn't like it one bit. "I tried to tell you Ricky, but you didn't listen to me. First chance he got, that idiot Zelos not only turned her against you, he got her for himself. She could've listened to you, and yet she chose him over you. Sounds to me like she didn't care as much as you thought she did." she said.
Ricky's hand visibly clenched into a fist at the remark. He knew she was right about it. "I know, I know all too well now. And if you think that was bad enough, you haven't heard the worst part yet." he remarked sourly. Oh yes, there was something even worse that happened.
Chocolat's eyes narrowed, and her lips formed into a thin line. "What do you mean Ricky? Did something else happen after you all came back?" she asked.
Ricky sagged his head, letting it rest on the table for a moment. When he looked back up, his eyes were shining and dripping with tears. "I tried one last time to apologize to Sheena, so I went to her room. But when I opened the door, I…she…" he started, openly crying yet again.
Although she was loathe for him to finish that statement, she needed to know. "What was she doing Ricky?" she asked.
Ricky tried to compose himself as he walked over to his bed. Sitting down on it, he put his face into his hands. "Chocolat, she was…she…SHE WAS MAKING OUT WITH ZELOS ON HER BED!!!" he yelled. He then flung himself onto his bed and cried.
Chocolat was really angry now. Without a word to Ricky, she got up from her chair and stormed out of the room. "Oh, those two are going to pay for what they've done!" she thought. She headed straight for Sheena's room, intent on knocking the crap out of her. What she didn't know, was that the two were getting grilled by their friends just then.
At the same time Ricky and Chocolat's conversation began, one of another sort took place in Sheena's room…
After hearing about what had happened, Kratos decided to have them all sit down and talk about it. Sheena and Zelos had argued with him about it at that point, but he had none of it. After all, he was older than them by 4,000 years. "Now, you two are going to tell us what kind of hell you put Ricky through, and you are going to do it now!" he snapped.
Sheena made a snort at that remark. "Heh, he put himself through hell. He couldn't trust me so he decided to go all cold and crap." she replied.
"You've got to be kidding me. That is the lamest excuse I've heard you say all day. We know everything that happened, so don't try that with us." Raine replied, having had quite enough.
"Lame excuses huh? I suppose you're taking his side just because he's probably bawling like a baby right about now?" Zelos retorted.
Colette fixed him with a glare so cold Zelos would've been a popsicle by now. "That was very rude Zelos. We know Ricky has tried to apologize, but you wouldn't have any of it Sheena. It's not his fault if you listen to the advice of someone who cheated on his girlfriend." she said.
Genis' eyes went wide. That was new information to him. "So you and Kate were already broken up because you cheated on her? I should've known you'd be stupid enough to do something like that. You and your talk about liking half-elves…lies I think." he said, anger in his voice.
"Pathetic, absolutely pathetic. You act the same way you did when we first met you. No wonder the Dagger refused you Zelos. You're still arrogant like before." Lloyd said. Then he turned to Sheena. "As for you, I thought better of you Sheena. Apparently I misplaced that trust." he replied.
"Oh come on, I can't believe you actually accept what he said over us. Some friends you all are." Sheena said coolly.
Regal shook his head in exasperation. "On the contrary, we listened to both sides of the story before coming to our conclusion. Ricky was insecure after what had happened with Fia, so it was only natural that he felt a little upset. You didn't give him time to sort things out and apologize. That is your own fault." he said.
Sheena glared at Regal. "Oh, so it comes back to Fia again does it? Pathetic, using her as an excuse. What an idiot." she said.
"You are the idiot if you believe it to be the true depth of his pain. He asked for no pity, so Yuan and I gave him none when we first met him. He was indeed devastated over how Fia had duped him into thinking she loved him. Yuan attempted to get him to talk about it, but Ricky became angry when he asked him. The two didn't talk for a couple of weeks after that, he barely even said a word to me. I asked one day later why he became upset like that. It was what he told me that I didn't expect." Kratos said. He gathered himself for a moment before plunging on. "He believed that Fia had not been herself. When Ricky tried to confront her about it, she'd blown up on him." he said.
Everyone's eyes widened at the new knowledge. But it was Presea who voiced their thoughts. "That is so horrible. To have to go through that…" Presea exclaimed.
Kratos made to say something else, but was interrupted by the door to the room crashing open. Everyone turned their heads to see Chocolat towering in the doorway, her face livid with rage. "You…the both of YOU! How dare you do what you did to him! How dare you do that to my brother!" she yelled as she crossed the room. No one saw coming the punch that she threw at Sheena. The impact of the hit sent her careening into the side of the bed behind them.
"Why you rotten little bit…!" Zelos tried to say, but was stopped when Chocolat hit him in an altogether sensitive area. Zelos was down on the floor, gasping in pain.
Kratos gently tried to get Chocolat into one of the vacated seats, which he'd moved over in front of them. After a little bit (and some deep breathing) she managed to calm down. "Now why don't you tell us what happened? What made you punch Sheena and knee Zelos like that?" he asked.
"With all do respect, I don't think that was the best course of action. She should've waited before flying off the handle like that." Raine offered.
Genis gave his sister an icy glare. "Oh come off it Raine! This isn't something you can read about in some dusty old tome. This is real life here!" he retorted.
"I'm afraid I must agree with Raine on this. It wasn't wise to do that." Regal added.
Presea just looked at him like he was scum. "And this from the man who did anything to protect my sister? Pathetic Regal." she said.
Sheena and Zelos were on the bed by this point, and Raine and Regal had moved to stand by them. They were divided down the middle, and that wasn't good. "Well well, it would seem there's a division of sorts here." a voice said in the doorway. They all turned to look and there Yuan was, standing in the doorway. He walked into the room with a sour look on his face. "I just tried to speak with Ricky, but he wouldn't allow me to. What's happened Kratos?" he asked his friend.
Kratos just shook his head. "Chocolat here was about to tell us that very thing." he said, sending a knowing look the girl's way.
"Well if you must know, what Sheena and Zelos did back at the Triet Ruins wasn't the worst blow to Ricky, so he told me." she said.
"What do you mean?" Yuan asked sharply.
Chocolat steadied herself. "Ricky tried one last time to apologize to Sheena, so he went to her room. When he opened her door, the sight that greeted him hurt him badly." she said. Everyone could see Zelos and Sheena blanch at this statement. What she said next would drive a wedge between the group for quite a while. "He saw Sheena and Zelos making out on her bed." she said, visibly shaking with anger.
The reactions from the group were mixed.
"That's a lie!" Zelos yelled.
"Another story of his no doubt." Sheena said as well.
"Why did he have to lie about something like that?" Raine asked.
"Sad that he would say something like that." Regal replied.
Colette, Lloyd, Genis, and Presea were highly ticked off by this. They each had a nasty retort when they were interrupted again…by Ricky.
"Nice to see that I'm the topic of discussion." he said flatly. He was holding the travel bag he'd carried with him before he'd met the others. He also had Excelion belted to his waist.
"Going on a trip Ricky?" Yuan asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Hey, you can't take that! It's mi…ow!" Zelos started, but was shut up by Raine.
"Yes, I am in fact. If you don't mind, I'd like to use my old room at the Renegade base near the Tower of Salvation's ruins." he said.
Yuan regarded him closely before he nodded. "You may use it." was all he said.
As Ricky made to leave, the four who'd stood up for him made to follow him. "Where are you all going?" Kratos asked.
"Dad, we can't stand being around these four right now." he said, jerking his thumb at Sheena and the others.
"I have two extra rooms left, but you'd have to share." Yuan said uncertainly.
Colette nodded and walked over to stand beside Ricky. "That's fine with us." she said as Lloyd, Presea, and Genis walked over to her and Ricky.
"Chocolat, I don't know when I'll return, but take care alright? Yuan, I'll see you back at the base." he stated. Yuan nodded and vanished in a flash of light. Ricky turned to Kratos. "Take care of my sister for me. Don't let her out of your sight." he said.
Kratos knew what Ricky feared. He simply nodded.
"Take care Ricky, ok?" Chocolat said, hugging him tightly.
"I will sis, I will." he said. In a flash of light, Ricky and the others were gone.
Kratos turned and motioned to Chocolat, who followed him out of the room. As he turned to shut the door to the room, he gave them one last glare. "You brought this on yourselves." was all he said.
Hours later at the Tower Renegade Base…
Yuan sat in his office, the dim lights not helping his current mood. He'd been a little more than angry to find out what had happened to Ricky. "I'm sure he could've handled it better, but that was no excuse for the reactions he was given." he said to himself. Getting up, he walked over to the window that overlooked the ruins of what was once the Tower of Salvation. He sighed as he remembered those tumultuous days. "Oh Martel, what would you have said if you could see this?" he wondered. A beep from his desk jerked him out of his thoughts. Walking over to the desk, he hit the button on his video screen.
"I've done all I can that you asked of me Yuan." the voice said.
Yuan pursed his lips before he replied. "What were your findings then?" he asked.
The voice was hesitant for a moment. "It is as we both feared. She was apparently placed under some sort of mind altering control. Apparently Ieros didn't think she'd fight it." it replied.
Yuan sagged his shoulders in relief as he sat down. "Then there is still hope. How long before you think she'll completely break free of it?" he asked.
"From what I've observed, a few more months at the most. What are your final orders?" it asked.
Yuan paused for a moment. "When the time comes, I want you to bring her here. There's someone here that would very much like to meet her again." he said.
The person on the screen nodded. "Understood. I'll contact you when it happens. End transmission." the person said before the screen went black.
Yuan shifted his chair around to face the other person in the room. "What do you think Ricky?" he asked.
Ricky's face was an impassive mask. "I don't know about this. Despite what Feena told me, I'm still a little apprehensive about seeing Fia again." he said uncertainly.
"As to be expected. I'd think you a fool if you weren't. That, or exceedingly arrogant." Yuan replied.
Ricky nodded. "Indeed. I should retire to bed now. Our training will have to be doubled, now that our group size has been cut in half." he said, referring to he and the others (Lloyd, Colette, Genis, and Presea).
"Of course, you need to rest after what you went through yesterday. I may join your group since Kratos cannot offer his aid at the moment, which you know about. We shall see in the long run." he said.
Ricky nodded and with one last look at the blank screen, he left the room.
As the days passed by, Ricky and the others trained hard. They did anything possible so that their skills could improve to match what should have been a group of nine. Even so, they knew they'd have an easier time than the others. Raine's knowledge of ancient archeology was good, but when it came to finding the Weapons of Eternia, Ricky was by far the expert. Their training was paying off, and they were about to get the chance to prove it…
Lloyd and Genis were currently engaged in a fierce battle of steel and magic. With so much experience under their belts, they were pretty even for the most part. Although Lloyd had the advantage in speed, Genis wasn't too shabby with his rapid-fire spell casting either. Ricky was facing both of the girls, and having a hard time too. Who knew they could be so strong.
"You two are impressive. I've never had a better challenge." he breathed as he dodged another combo Fiery Devastation and Ring Whirlwind from Colette and Presea.
"Why thank you Ricky." Colette smiled as she attacked again. It was amazing how she could smile and attack at the same time.
"Indeed. You're not too bad yourself." Presea said, smirking as her hit finally landed home.
Ricky flew into the wall with a thud, but he got up. He was grinning from ear to ear. "Been a while since me and the wall had a chat eh?" he said.
This caused Genis and Lloyd to burst out in laughter. "You talked…to a wall?" Genis said, holding his sides as he chuckled. Lloyd knew what the joke was about, but it was still funny.
"Perhaps it's my turn to show you a thing or two. Volt Arrow!" he cried, using a powerful lightning spell. The triangle of lightning encircled Colette and Presea as they were attacked from both the sides and above. They went down, but got up after a few moments.
A clapping sound was heard from the side of the room. They all turned to see Yuan crossing the left side of the room to greet them. "Well done, all of you. You've vastly improved in the days since you got here. Very impressive, really." he said. Then his face took on a serious tone. "I think it's time to see just how much you've improved. Ricky, Lloyd, Presea, Genis, and Colette, I have a mission for all of you." he told them.
They noticed Ricky's face go white, and his hands had begun to shake. "Is this about what I think it is?" he asked.
Yuan nodded. "Indeed. It would seem that the time has come to bring Fia to us." he said.
"What? Why do you need her here? Wouldn't it only hurt Ricky?" Presea asked.
Yuan shook his head. "No, not after what we've discovered. While it's true that she hurt Ricky…it was not of her own free will." he stated.
This caused the four to gasp in shock. "You're saying she was controlled, by Ieros?" Lloyd asked.
"Exactly that Lloyd, exactly that. My inside informant has already gotten her out, but they are being pursued by Dyaos and his men. Most likely on Ieros' orders." he told them.
"Well then, let's go rescue her so she and Ricky can be reunited. So romantic!" Colette said, beaming.
This statement only made Yuan, Ricky, Genis, and Lloyd groan in response.
"You must leave now if you wish to reach them before Dyaos does. I've already packed your supplies in here. Good luck." he said, handing them a bag as he turned to leave the room.
Without a word to each other, the five dashed out the side of the base and off into the forest of Palmacosta.
Somewhere in the forests of Palmacosta…
A cloaked figure was running through the woods, carrying a person over their back. When Kuchinawa had agreed to be Yuan's eyes and ears inside Azura, he'd never expected his cover to be blown. "In any case, at least I fled before they took much notice." he said to himself. He started as he felt a sharp pain in his side, indicating he was nearly out of breath.
"Need a little help there Kuchinawa?" a voice to his right said.
The Mizuho ninja turned to see five people step out, four of them he knew. "It has been quite some time Lloyd Aurion. Ah, I see you have come as well Ricky." he said, slightly bowing to them.
Ricky bowed back, and nodded. "I felt it was something I had to do. Besides, I owe the guy who's pursuing you an arse kicking." he said.
Genis saw the girl with flowing green hair lying next to the ninja. "Is…that Fia?" he asked with bated breath.
Ricky's head snapped to where Genis was looking, and his eyes stared for what seemed like forever. "What happened to her?" he asked softly, dropping next to her, trailing her green tresses in his hands. There was a faraway look in his eyes.
"She's been drugged asleep apparently. When they got wind of her fighting back and breaking the memory spell, they slipped something into her drink. But…not before she finally knew everything. She'd been crying for hours on end before she fell asleep." the ninja replied.
Lloyd made to say something, but a cold laugh interrupted them. "Well well, we meet yet again Ricky. At least now I can kill two birds with one stone." a cold voice said. Out of the woods stepped Dyaos and five assassins. He wore a smug look on his face. "You still love her. Oh how she would've loved to know it. Too bad she's asleep." he said sarcastically.
Colette growled low in her throat. "Stupid idiot, drugging someone!" she said, throwing her chakrams at him. With the power she put behind it, Dyaos was cut quite easily in his side.
He growled in pain and anger. "I see that you've all improved since last we met. It's time to test that new strength of yours." he said, drawing his lance as his soldiers drew their own weapons.
"Time for round two Dyaos. And like I said before, you'll be the one who gets their butt kicked this time." Ricky said as he stood protectively in front of Fia. He drew Exushia from its sheath and prepared for battle, as the others did the same.
"Let's do this!" Ricky and Dyaos both shouted. The battle had begun…