Chapter 9

I lay back against the head board, flinching to the touch of the cold wood on my sunburned back. We made it to Palmacosta yesterday night as the sun was setting. As everyone wanted to look around the town at the new shops and buy new weapons and books, I decided to go back to the room for a little nap. I wish I was able to lie down without being in immense pain. Raine said that she was going to try to look for a spell in the library that could help with sunburn. For now, I looked out the window from my bed, watching the water splash against the docks. I took a deep breath in, letting it out slow. Everything seemed so peaceful here, the air so crisp, and temperature not too hot or too cold. So what kept me inside? Why wasn't I out there with the others, roaming the shops? I got plenty of sleep last night. Why was I so tired?

I leaned up when I heard a knock on the door.

"Come in…" I waited as the door opened slowly.

"I've decided to come in peace at the moment, but this will not happen again. I need to speak with you." Yuan walked into my room. I gulped, grabbing one of Ami's extra knifes we use for cooking.

"What are you doing here, Yuan?" I stood up from my bed, backing up.

"Are you deaf, girl? I said I came to speak with you. I mean no harm, not yet anyway." He stepped across the room. His hair was pulled back put of his face almost entirely. The small amount of hair he usually has hanging down over his face was pulled back cleanly. His long cape hid his arms and draped to the floor by his feet. I couldn't see a weapon, but that didn't mean he didn't have one.

"W-what about? Would you rather speak with-"

"I came to speak with you. Will you kindly shut up and let me?" He gritted his teeth. "I've been searching through data from your home. I've noticed a few things that are beginning to confuse me. I believe it would be easier to get the information I need out of you than the Chosen."

"What information? Didn't you get background information on our world before you made an attempt to teleport us? Don't you know where we are from?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No…all details about the Chosen's life were… for lack of a better word… blurry, to our systems. Her name brought up a few things, such as data on her school record file and any crimes she has committed against your city, and also the names of her mother and father, her blood type, and any medical history that was ever recorded digitally. The same goes for you. However, I never planned on bringing you here, so your data was not looked at until just a few days after you where already here." He went quiet for a moment.

"So? Why are you here…?" I gulped.

"What is…a facebook?" He stared at me questioningly.

"E-excuse me?" I nearly burst into laughter. "Facebook? Why the hell are you asking me about-"

"What is it?" He glared.

"U-uh…well…it's a social networking website for friends to communicate through a computer. What on earth is going on h-"

"When I typed in your name, Jennifer Peterson, it sprung up. I found this was a way I could learn the missing details. Your friends, your education, and your interests, such as games you like to play." He stared me down as my eyes got wide.

"I still don't understand your point. I get that you want to do a little background check on who's going to be on this journey, but-"

"What is Tales of Symphonia and what is your connection to it…?" He took a few steps more toward me.

"u-uh…" I backed up. The floor beneath me creaked. "I-it's just a video game I played back in my world!" I was sweating, shaking, and nearly about to pass out from the shock of this intrusion.

"What are you not telling me, Jennifer?! It's more than just a game, because it has illustrations that are significantly similar to a lot of important things. You and I both know that-"

"H-HELP!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. "SOMEONE PLEASE! HEL-" Yuan silenced me with a shock to the stomach. It was a punch that kept going and going. Yuan had one of his electric spheres do his work. I couldn't scream, let alone breathe as the shock waves ran across my skin and buried into hairs on my arms and legs. I slid down the wall, attempting to gain control of my lungs again when Yuan stood at my feet. I lifted my eyes to the half elf.

"J-jenni?! Jenni, open the door!" I heard Lloyd yell from the other side of the door. He began to bang on it. I also heard Ami out there, trying to get in as well.

"I will be back, Jennifer, and I want answers next time. I don't have any trouble with killing you. It's the chosen who is far more important than you are." Yuan said as he left my gaze. I couldn't move. I guessed that he escaped out the window. I closed my eyes and lost consciousness when I saw Lloyd break in the door, kneeling beside me on the floor.

When I opened my eyes it was night time. I was lying on a bed, on top of the sheets with the covers pulled up to my waist. I felt a hand on my bare stomach and it was cold. As everything started to come back to me, my blurry vision subsided.

"She's waking up…" Genis said quietly. I heard a chair move as someone stood up from across the room.

"Everyone needs to just give her some space. Lloyd, Genis, leave for now while we talk to her." I heard the professor say.

"But professor-!" Lloyd protested.

"Come on, Lloyd. She's right." Genis dragged his friend out of the room and the door closed.

"W-what happened?" I asked, trying to move. Kratos had been healing me, his hand still on my stomach. He put a hand to my shoulder, pushing me back down.

"Please do not move, I'm trying to concentrate." He said quietly.

"We were hoping you could tell us what happened to you." Raine said, walked up to the bed.

I gulped, shaking my head.

"W-why can't feel anything…?" I asked Kratos.

"Your burn was pretty server; I didn't want you to be in pain. It will wear off soon."

"Are you okay Jen?" I hear a voice say. It barely sounded like her, but it was Ami. She was sitting beside me in a chair, holding my hand. I couldn't even feel her. She was so quiet; I didn't even realize she was there until she spoke.

"I…I think so. Yeah. I'm okay." I smiled for her. Her cheeks were damp from tears. She usually got very upset whenever I got hurt or anyone did for that matter. I wonder if she blamed herself. It's what it looked like.

"Okay…good. I'm so sorry, Jen." She gulped. Raine put a hand on her shoulder.

"It wasn't your fault, Amelia. Any one of us could have been in here. We don't know why they attacked her, but she's going to be just fine. I trust Kratos' healing arts even more than my own." The professor reassured her. Ami nodded, but still looking pretty guilty.

"Its fine, Ami. Its…an occupational hazard." I smiled again. And she smiled back softly.

"Do you remember anything, Jennifer?" Kratos asked, taking his hand away from my stomach, and pulling my shirt down over the purple, slightly burned, wound.

"N-no. Not really. Just some guy jumped in from the window, sent that damn ball at me, and left me there." I gulped. I felt the numbness wear away when Kratos stopped casting his healing arts. There wasn't as much pain as I was setting myself up for, thanks to Kratos. "Thank you…" I started to sit up, just a little. Not enough to get Kratos fussing at me again.

"Make sure you're always with someone from now on. We will tell Genis and Lloyd later, but we can no longer be alone." Raine spoke.

"We got it." I heard Lloyd said from the door. "Can we come in now?" They both begged.

"Yes." I said loudly as they both then filed into the room. "What is our next move tomorrow?" I looked at Raine.

"I did some research and if I'm not mistaken, the next seal isn't far from here." She answered. "Thoda dock is only just north of here."

"If we went straight there. Like over the mountains. Can we DO that?" I raised an eyebrow. Raine gave me a strange look.

"I don't see why we can't." She pulled out a map, rolling it out on the table that stood in the middle of the room. I couldn't see it very well but I knew what she was talking about. The rest of the group stood over the map as she pointed down the paper. "We could cut a few days off our travel if we went over this mountain range instead of going around it." She nodded.

"I agree. This seems like the best way to make use of our time." Kratos said, looking at the others.

"What about the next seal after that? I'm sure it's gotta be to the north, and if we can't take another boat out to sea, we have to find some way to get through Hakonesia Peak." I said after clearing my throat.

"You know your geography…" Raine said, looking at me suspiciously.

"I'm from Asgard, its right next to the Peak. It's said that the wind seal is around that area. Who knows if the seal could be in Asgard itself?" I shrugged.

"Alright. To Thoda dock…then Hakonesia Peak? Sounds like a plan I can follow!" Lloyd smiled. He was glad there was no more confusion as to what we were going to do.

Our heads turned as we heard some arguing coming from outside our window. We were on the second floor of the Inn.

"Leave her alone!" A woman's voice rang.

"Mom!" A young girl yelled. We heard laughing. I couldn't see what was going on down on the street, but I knew it was Chocolat and her mother.

"It's those desians again! Damn it! Why isn't anyone doing anything?" Lloyd said as he was getting on his jacket and boots.

"Lloyd, wait. Don't get involved. This town doesn't have a non-aggression treaty with the desians like Iselia did, there's nothing we can do!" I said, shaking my head as I tried to get out of the bed. Just then, we all heard a slap, and the laughing stopped.

"Just stay away from us!" Chocolat's mother yelled.

"How dare you, peasant?! You will pay for this…" I heard the men leave the scene.

"Are you guys alright!?" Lloyd poked his head out the window, looking down at the women.

"Just fine, now." I heard the mother say. Once the two women went back inside, Lloyd closed the window, turning around to the group.

"Those filthy desians! I wouldn't be surprised if your attacker today was one of them too, Jen." He gritted his teeth. His fists were closed tight as he glared at the floor in anger.

"Lloyd…" I frowned. "It will be alright. As we just saw, these people have dealt with the desians and know how to fight back. They can take care of themselves until we have a better plan than just to attack." I gulped, hoping these words would calm him down. I looked over at Ami, who was staring right at me. I had sort of just made our plans for the next week or so.

In the video game, you could choose what order you wanted to do things. We COULDN'T fight back until we heard news that chocolat's mother was to be executed. That wouldn't happen until we got to Hakonesia Peak. I couldn't find a good reason to go there unless we were going to the wind seal. So this was how it had to be. We had to keep the journey going, and let these things happen. Once the water seal was taken care of, that's one more check of the list, then next is to end the oppression of desians on Palmacosta.

Ami gave me a nod, which I guess meant she agreed with what the plan was.