YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW LONG I'VE WAITED TO GET TO THIS POINT!
THE STORY CAN FINALLY GET INTERESTING NOW!
AT LONG FREAKIN' LAST!
Chapter IX: The Watcher
And when you reach those distant lands,
my children,
Shed your assumptions and biases,
And see the world with eyes unclouded.
-The Scriptures of Martel
Kratos slowly opened the door to his son's room, trying to make as little noise as possible. At this time of night the boy should be asleep, and Kratos did not want to accidentally wake him.
The room was dark, but Kratos' keen eyes could still see the shape of Lloyd laying on his bed. Judging from the snoring, the boy was already deeply asleep. Kratos entered the room and carefully closed the door behind him. Then he glanced around his son's room, before his eyes came to rest on the bedside table.
Sitting on a small table by the bed was what appeared to be a simple piece of wood, with a single symbol carved into it. To the average observer, it was nothing more than that, a simple object without clear purpose.
Kratos returned his gaze to his sleeping son. The boy's mouth was slightly open, and his breathing was slow and deep. Curled up under the sheets, Lloyd seemed so at peace, without any troubles in all the world. Kratos sat down on the end of the bed, and then turned to look at the sleeping boy. Lloyd always slept soundly, every single night, and not even a gale could wake him. Kratos supposed he got it from Anna.
The angel reached out a hand, reaching out toward his son, but hesitated. He looked down at his hand, his face blank, though there was now no one to hide his thoughts from. He curled his fingers a little, his expression remaining fixed. He stayed like that, staring at his hand, for several minutes, deep in thought. Then he shook his head, and lowered his hand.
"...Cannot last..."
He stood up, casting one last glance at his son. Then he walked away, left the room, and closed the door behind him, leaving behind only silence.
- ∞ -
It watched from the top of the tower, observing the world below. It turned its head to gaze to the south, staring at the distant shapes of the mountains and forests.
It had felt the others die, one by one, and now it was all that was left in this world.
It knew the Chosen and her companions were coming to this place, and soon it would disappear as well.
It did not fear death; this was its purpose, its reason for being. In any case, the word 'dying' implies the subject was alive to begin with. It was a creature with only the semblance of life, the shadow of emotion.
It accepted its destiny without question.
Iubaris closed its eyes.
- ∞ -
"Thunder Blade!"
A sword-shaped bolt of lightning struck the ground with a miniature thunderclap, charring the grass.
Genis grinned, and punched the air with a free hand as his friends applauded, and Raine simply stared with a slight smile on her face.
"You're doing great!" Lloyd shouted, encouraging his friend.
"Better," Yuan said simply, crossing his arms. "That's enough for today."
Genis' friends quickly stood up and ran over to him, praising him for that day's work. However, the sun was setting, so they were all forced to return to camp, where Colette was busy making dinner.
Genis paused as his friends left the clearing where Yuan and Genis had been training. He looked back at Yuan who had not moved; the Renegade was still looking at the sky, apparently deep in thought.
Raine, who had been following Lloyd and Sheena, stopped when she realized her little brother wasn't following her. She turned to face Genis.
"Let's go, Genis," Raine began gently.
Genis hesitated.
"I just want to talk to Yuan for bit," Genis mumbled, just barely loud enough for Raine to hear. "Is that okay?"
Raine looked at Yuan, who apparently was not listening to them. He hadn't done anything at all suspicious recently, and, Genis really did look up to him...
"Okay," Raine conceded, uneasy.
It was selfish of her to want to keep Genis away from Yuan. She still recognized that Yuan was helping her brother, both with his skills in magic and in his self-confidence, but she still did not trust the older man.
As Genis walked over to the Renegade, Raine began to walk through the trees back to the camp, her doubts and anxieties accompanying her.
Genis slowly walked toward Yuan, who had his back turned to the younger half-elf.
Yuan didn't appear to notice.
"Um..."
Yuan looked over his shoulder at the tiny half-elf. Genis fidgeted.
"I just... wanted to say thanks," the boy mumbled, "for teaching me."
The older half-elf raised his eyebrows, surprised by the boy's words. He returned his stare to the clouds, and paused for a moment.
"You have grown much over the course of this journey."
Genis stared, surprised by Yuan's reaction.
Yuan began to walk away again, back toward camp. "We should go back now, and assure your sister that you're still alive."
"W-wait for me!" Genis called out, running after his teacher.
- ∞ -
Predictably, Raine started frothing the moment they were inside the Tower of Mana. The library on the ground floor, the magi-technology scattered throughout the tower, it was simply fascinating!
Similar to the wind seal, the light seal was on the roof of the tower. As they approached the sky turned black, little white lights forming over the altar. Then they dispersed and revealed the light guardian: a large armored unicorn with great feathery wings. It screeched, stomping its hooves as Lloyd and the others drew their weapons.
Though they had struggled to defeat the first seal guardian, Lloyd and his friends had improved over the course of the journey, and now defeating the guardian was not nearly as much of a challenge. Soon the light guardian was defeated.
The light guardian screamed as it died, beatings its wings wildly. It soon grew still, and fell. Its body dissolved into millions of small white lights and vanished, just as all the other seal guardians did. Colette prayed, the seal was broken. Then Remiel appeared.
"You have done well in reaching this far, Chosen" Remiel said, pure white wings keeping him aloft. "We of Cruxis bless this event, and grant you the power of the angels." He was smiling again, but it lacked the warmth it had back at the Iselia temple. "Now ascent the Tower of Salvation, and become a true angel!"
He disappeared again in a theatric flash of white light.
Colette returned to the ground, folded her wings, and looked at her hands. "...A true angel..."
Yuan slowly approached her, and held out his hand. "Your Key Crest."
She didn't turn around.
"Chosen," Yuan hissed dangerously. "You need to equip the Key Crest."
She glanced over her shoulder at Yuan, before slowly turning around. She took the Key Crest and put it on with what appeared to be reluctance. Yuan didn't notice.
"Now is it is time we left for the Tower of Salvation," said Yuan. He closed his eyes. "And then it will all be over."
- ∞ -
Hima was the closest town to the Tower. It was technically only an inn, a small store, and a graveyard clinging to the side of a mountain, but it was called a village nonetheless.
Tomorrow, Lloyd and the others would enter the Tower of Salvation, slay Yggdrasill, and then it would all be over. They planned to rest in the village, and leave for the Tower at dawn.
While everyone else was at the inn, Colette was standing on a plateau at the summit of the mountain. Her blue eyes were fixed on the shape of the Tower. It stood impossibly high, reaching up higher even than the clouds; all the stories she had ever been told said the Tower went all the way up to heaven. But there wasn't a heaven anymore, was there? In place of her religion, of everything she had ever believed in, was emptiness and hopelessness. Was this really the way of the world?
"Hey, Colette!"
The Chosen looked around and saw Lloyd. He was smiling; he was always smiling, it seemed. Even when he was sad...
"Oh... hi Lloyd!" the Chosen began, with a false smile.
"Hi Colette!" the boy waved a hand in greeting. He walked up to her, still grinning. Then he turned his eyes to stare at the Tower, and his grin suddenly vanished.
"Tomorrow we're going to the Tower of Salvation..." Lloyd stared out at the distant pillar. It really did seem to go on forever. "I can't believe we've finally made it."
Colette looked down at her clasped hands, and said nothing.
Lloyd looked over at her, worry on his face. "Is something wrong?"
Colette shook her head, and smiled up at him. "I'm okay! Hehehe..."
There was that fake giggle, the one she used only when she lied. She wasn't okay at all.
"Colette, what's wrong?" Lloyd asked, sounding pained now. "And don't tell me you're fine, you always do that fake giggle when you lie!"
Colette's smiled flickered, before evaporating. She looked at her feet, her courage faltering. "I'm just... worried, about going to fight this Yggdrasill person. You..." Colette paused. Her mouth suddenly felt dry. "You could die."
Lloyd stared at her incredulously, the gears turning in his head.
"Is that what's been bothering you all this time? You've been scared that we'd all die?" Colette fidgeted, and said nothing. Lloyd put his hands on her shoulders, and she finally looked him in the eye . "We'll win!" Lloyd continued, radiating confidence and reassurance. "We'll win for you! This way everything will be fixed, and you don't have to die to save the world!"
Colette hung her head. "But... Yggdrasill's supposed to be really strong..."
"Don't worry!" Lloyd repeated, his grip tightening on her shoulders in what he hoped was a reassuring way. "We'll beat Yggdrasill! I know we'll win, so we can save the world without sacrificing you!"
The Chosen looked up and into the eyes of her old childhood friend. He was so earnest, so hopeful. He really believed Yuan's plan would work, that Colette wouldn't have to be sacrificed.
"Thanks Lloyd," she murmured, her voice hollow.
She wouldn't have to die... but...
- ∞ -
Night fell, and the Chosen and her companions were all asleep, resting before tomorrow came. All save one.
Yuan stood at the summit of the mountain, gazing blankly at the distant Tower, alone with his thoughts. Little doubts had returned to fester in the back of his mind. So many things could go wrong. But they had little choice now, simply backing out was no longer an option. With the element of surprise on their side, Yuan could probably strike down his former lord quickly. Yggdrasill, though stronger than Yuan, would die just as easily as every other living creature. However, Yuan couldn't help but begin to wonder if -
Something flickered at the edge of his vision. He turned his head, but there was nothing there. He frowned, and considered his options.
...The watcher was still there. This was the first time Yuan had seen the watcher since Lake Umacy. Could he still try to talk to the watcher? He still didn't know if...
But to investigate the watcher meant leaving Lloyd and the others behind. He quickly brushed the thought away; they would be fine. Hima was a safe village to be in, without any roaming monsters, bandit gangs, or Desians nearby to trouble them. Nothing would bother them in the middle of the night.
Pretending he had seen nothing, Yuan began to wander down the mountain path, eventually passing though Hima, then leaving it behind. Yuan knew the watcher wouldn't go near him while he was on the path or near the 'town'; there were too many other people there. Halfway down the mountain, he walked off the marked path and headed through the rocks.
After walking through the rocks for several minutes, he stopped abruptly, for no apparent reason. This stretch of rocky terrain seemed to be the same as the rest. Yuan felt anger begin to well up as soon as he arrived at his place. He was being toyed with, he knew it, but he wanted answers.
"You still haven't answered my question," Yuan shouted at the stones. "Who sent you?"
"It does not matter now. You have reached the Tower of Salvation, which is your final destination."
Yuan turned to the source of the voice, and saw the watcher crouched on a rock above Yuan. The watcher did not have to hide in shadows anymore. There was an understanding now.
Yuan crossed his arms. "If it does not matter, then why don't you tell me?"
"Because of the day you betrayed me, Yuan."
The watcher's voice should have been cold and sharp with anger. Instead, the words were said in a frighteningly calm voice, as if he couldn't care less. Yuan felt a sudden chill.
"...That was a mistake," Yuan conceded.
The watcher slowly stood up.
"You have come all this way with your careful plans and quiet manipulation," the watcher began, as if Yuan had not spoken. "You fail to realize that nothing can be changed - your hopeless quest will end in failure, and quite possibly your death, no matter how much you struggle. The believer has placed her faith in her lies rather than your truth. Your journey has come to an end, seraph."
There was a brief flash of white light and the watcher vanished.
- ∞ -
Colette couldn't sleep.
It wasn't that she was physically incapable, as the Crystal would have rendered her, but it was a normal insomnia. Her mind was restless, questions and doubts rolling around inside her head. They were so close to the Tower, to their goal, but was this really the right thing to do? Lloyd and the others were doing this so she wouldn't have to die, right? But that was what she had been born and raised to do - to die for the salvation of the world.
If they fought this Yggdrasill person, her friends might die. Colette didn't want that. Lloyd wanted to save Colette, that was partially why he agreed to Yuan's plans. Yuan had also said that the angels had killed Lloyd's father, but Colette refused to believe that. Lloyd's dad had been an angel himself, right? Why would Cruxis want to kill one of their own? Why should Lloyd and the others have to risk their lives so she could keep hers?
Trying to make as little noise as possible, she sat up in her bed. In the only other bed in the room, Sheena, was still fast asleep, Corrine curled up on Sheena's pillow, next to the woman's head. They seemed so peaceful. Their tiny room contained a quite peace, a safe silence that enfolded them like a warm blanket. This only steeled Colette's resolve; this was what she had to save. Little moments like this were worth dying to protect.
Colette stood up, and tip-toed to the pile of clothes on the end of her bed, and started to get dressed. Her heart thumped in her chest the entire time, afraid of being caught, like a child that knew she had done something bad. Staying a quiet as she possibly could, she snuck out of the inn. As soon as she was outside, she started running up the path that led to the mountain's summit, where she remembered the dragon merchant was, the one who was selling dragons to take tourists near the Tower of Salvation.
The dragon man, luckily for Colette, was not asleep either. He was wide awake, and seemed to be feeding his dragons. They munched on what looked like slabs of raw meat, while the dragon man cooed at them as if they were fluffy puppies.
"Um... Um... sir?"
The dragon man straightened up when he heard Colette. He turned to her and raised an eyebrow, "Yes, miss? Shouldn't you be in bed, miss?"
"Um... I'm the Chosen," she said, meekly, "Can I have a dragon? I need to go to the Tower of Salvation."
"The Chosen?" The dragon man seemed doubtful on this point.
"Yes, I'm the Chosen," Colette repeated, "Can you give me a dragon?"
It was then the dragon man noticed the crystal at the girl's throat. Wasn't the Chosen supposed to be marked by such a crystal?
"I'm very sorry, Chosen!" the dragon man blurted. "I'll get my fastest dragon, right away!"
A moment later, Colette was riding a blue dragon, which sped through the air, heading right to the Tower. Terrified, she clung desperately to the dragons' reigns, praying she wouldn't fall off before she reached the Tower.
And so the Chosen headed toward the tower that reached up unto the heavens.
She forgot to remove her Key Crest.
- ∞ -
Lloyd woke up when he heard a yell of anger and frustration. He jolted awake, wondering if the inn were on fire. He didn't relax when he didn't smell smoke. He heard yelling outside his room, and now recognize the voice as belonging to Yuan.
He sat up just in time for Yuan to slam open the door to the room and shout. "Get ready to leave for the Tower, now!"
"What's going on?" Lloyd asked, standing up.
"The Chosen is gone!" Yuan shouted. "Gone! She's probably gone ahead to the Tower on her own! That stupid girl!"
"Don't call Colette stupid!" Lloyd said defensively.
"You don't get it do you?" Yuan snarled. "If she goes alone, then Cruxis will figure out that something has gone wrong, because I was supposed to escort her there! And now she's run off on her own!"
Lloyd finally realized what it was Yuan was saying, and it was as if he had suddenly been immersed in ice-cold water. "You mean Colette's gone to the Tower? She going to sacrifice herself anyway?"
"Yes!" Yuan shouted, furious that Lloyd had only just grasped this particular concept. "That's the whole problem!"
Lloyd didn't need to be told anything else. He dressed and retrieved his twin swords as quickly as he could, the whole time the thought of Colette in danger constantly pressing on his mind, as if about to crush him. He felt his heart race, almost painfully, and his breaths became quick and shallow. Colette couldn't die, not after all they had done to save her!
A few minutes later at the top of the mountain, the dragon man nearly jumped when he turned and saw a small group led by a blue-haired man run up to him.
"Did a teenage girl with blue eyes and long blonde hair hire a dragon?" Yuan demanded. "She would have come perhaps half an hour ago."
The dragon man crossed his arms, "Perhaps I did. It hardly seems like your business."
This was enough of a confirmation for Yuan.
"Give us three dragons to take us to the Tower of Salvation, now!" ordered Yuan.
The dragon man frowned. "I can't go around just giving my dragons to every one who asks. You have to pay – "
The dragon man stopped talking when the blue-haired madman pulled out a sword and pointed it at him. The dragon man gulped.
"Give us the dragons," Yuan growled. "Before I lose my temper."
- ∞ -
Colette knelt in front of Remiel, her hands clasped as if in prayer. Above her, her angelic 'father' spoke of the salvation of the world.
"Surrender the final part of your human existence; your heart and your memory!" Remiel's eyes were filled with the light of triumph. With the completion of Martel's vessel, he would surely become one of the Four Seraphim! "By doing so, you will - "
"COLETTE!"
The Chosen lifted her head at the sound of her name. She looked over her shoulder and saw her friends running up to the platform.
"Lloyd!" she called, her eyes wide. She stood up quickly, unable to believe what she was seeing; why had they come here? This what was supposed to happen all along! If they came here then her friends could get hurt!
Remiel frowned. The Chosen could speak? Wasn't the crystal supposed to steal her voice before she arrived at the Tower?
Yuan drew his sword and leapt onto the platform with Remiel and Colette.
"Chosen, get away from Remiel, right now," Yuan instructed, pointing his sword at a hesitant Remiel.
"What is the meaning of this?" shouted Remiel, bewildered by his lord's behavior. "What are you doing?"
Colette looked in wide-eyed confusion and astonishment from Remiel to Yuan. "Yuan?"
"Do as I say!" Yuan snapped, not taking his eyes off Remiel.
Remiel's face contorted with rage. "You will not take the Chosen from this place!"
Then a cold voice that seemed to come from everywhere spoke.
"Now, now, why are my angels fighting one another?"
Two new figures appeared in a flash of light. The first was a man with long blond hair and green eyes with a cold stare. His broad purple wings were spread out behind him, flapping lazily, keeping him suspended in the air a few inches off the ground.
Remiel instantly fell to one knee, bowing his head in respect.
"Lord Yggdrasill..."
Yggdrasill's eyes bore into Remiel, a glare carrying a great disappointment. Yggdrasill turned his stare to Yuan. The angel frowned at Yuan, who was suddenly much less confident.
"What are you doing, Yuan?" Yggdrasill demanded in a soft, deadly voice. "Why did you interrupt the Chosen's ritual?"
"Lord Yggdrasill," Yuan bowed his head respectfully, though it was clear he was trying to stall.
Lloyd didn't hear anything. The rest of the world didn't exist. His attention was fixed solely on the person standing next to Yggdrasill. Lloyd's mind was paralyzed by shock.
"D... Dad...?"