The Origin of Hope
Chapter 11: A New Beginning
Inside Dirk's cozy underground dwelling, a single light shone from a lamp in the kitchen area. Only two figures were awake. The rest slept deeply, crammed around the dwarf's small living room and study.
Yuan and Kratos sat across from each other over Dirk's small, masterly crafted dinner table. A blank piece of parchment and a roughly hewn pencil lay on the table in front of Kratos. Kratos, however, was gazing blankly at the rocky ceiling, and leaning against the back of the small chair with his legs arranged awkwardly around. Yuan sat with his legs tucked in, his hands together on the table. His lips were pursed. This was not normal Yuan behavior as far as Kratos was concerned.
The happy delight Yuan felt earlier at coming up with such a brilliant plan for Kratos' future ebbed quickly into the feeling he had been trying to ignore all night.
"I'm sorry, Kratos." Yuan finally blurted.
Kratos craned his head back forward and looked at him quizzically. "For what?"
Yuan shook his head slightly. "Anna... Anna would've been fine if only I had come back from Welgaia earlier... I had heard news about Kvar having plans on going to Iselia. But I... I was feeling jealous of you with your family, I kept thinking of Martel, and I couldn't get myself to come back. I should have, I could've warned you."
Kratos sighed and leaned his head back to gaze at the ceiling again. "She's still alive, Yuan. I'm thankful for that already."
Yuan wanted to retort with the fact that the medic said she suffered a serious head injury and a damaged spine and loads of broken bones... and the fact that she may never walk again. Instead, he just sighed.
Kratos resumed talking. "I know she will have to suffer so much... but... she's still alive. Lloyd is still alive. Don't be sorry, Yuan. I was the one that intruded on your hospitality. And... even if the medic said that she'll have problems and possibly never be able to walk again, I don't believe that. Nothing is incurable. I'll find a way, one day, even if I have to beg Origin."
"Yeah, I do think it shouldn't take Origin to help... but I can't say I know what will help. Neither of us are very knowledgeable in the healing arts." Yuan unclasped his hands, throwing them behind his head and let out a deep sigh. "But thanks, Kratos. For understanding."
Yuan looked at the piece of blank parchment in front of Kratos. "What are you going to tell her?"
"I don't know."
Noishe padded into the little kitchen and rubbed against Kratos. Kratos looked at him with a weak smile. "I'm sorry, Noishe... you can't come with me this time. I need you here to take care of Lloyd and Anna..."
Noishe whined, but nodded in understanding. Kratos gave him a small hug around the head before the protozoan laid down on the floor to sleep.
"You better start writing. I guarantee you'll need more than that little parchment when you really get down to it." Yuan chided, and reached over to grab whatever book was lying on the counter. "I'll just... read a book."
Kratos stared at the light brown, mottled paper. Soon he was starting to see weird shapes in the colors. He shook his head and picked up the pencil.
Anna
When you wake up, I will be gone.
Kratos paused.
When you wake up, you will have so much to overcome from the fall. I want to be there with you to support you... but I will not be able to. I will have gone back to act as Mithos' lackey. Mithos believes you to be dead and he does not know of Lloyd's existence. I want to keep it this way, so you can slowly recover and Lloyd can grow up and have a regular life free from running and fear. I've decided this to be the best choice.
Dirk has offered to build a house for both of you to live next to his underground dwelling. The town Iselia is nearby, Lloyd will be able to go to school and meet friends as he grows. I will try my best to visit whenever I can. It may be a long time at first as I need to get back Mithos' trust, but I promise I will come back as much as I can later without compromising us.
I will never stop searching for a way for you to walk again. I do not believe this is impossible, nor do I believe any other complications you may have are incurable. One day, you will walk again and be completely recovered. Before then, I will take you flying every night I am there.
Anna, I believe it is imperative that you use your maiden name of Irving instead of Aurion. This should apply to Lloyd as well. I want to be certain that you are absolutely safe. My surname is not common enough not to arouse suspicion.
Kratos stopped, thinking of what else he needed to write that was important.
Dirk has made the most compatible keycrest he could. I fear greatly that you may start developing angelic traits, though you should be spared from any negative reaction. Lloyd as well, since we cannot ascertain what he may have possibly inherited. If any symptoms show, keep them to yourselves. Especially for Lloyd, as he might slip out to his future schoolmates. Discrimination is what made the world the way it is. People are so afraid of what is different. I do not wish for either of you to be ostracized in any way.
You will always be welcome at the Triet Base for any reason or even no reason, Yuan wants to be absolutely clear on that. I would not suggest that you ever journey over there for a visit without a fully-functional Rheaird yet, but Yuan, Botta, and Nevil may visit you and Lloyd at your new home every so often as well, with or without me. Botta has offered to teach Lloyd as much about swordplay as he can and has time for. Yuan and I will always be glad to give him instruction as well, though much less often than Botta will be able to.
I also want to be certain that Lloyd does not know what exactly that I do. I can only hope you refrain from telling him something too fanciful however, which may result in him resenting us later.
I will miss you and Lloyd so much, I will think of you every second I'm away. Especially in a place as sterile and lifeless as Welgaia, the city of angels that Mithos crafted. I love you Anna. Tell Lloyd I love him, every day. I wish dearly that I could be with you every day. The next time I see you and Lloyd, it will be unannounced.
Yuan looked up from the Dwarven reference on Cruxis Crystal morphology that actually turned out to be fairly interesting. He quickly scanned what Kratos had written.
"Tell her to call Dirk if she has any plumbing problems in the house, too, while you're at it." Yuan put the book down on the table, looking amused.
"Shut it." Kratos replied, moving the parchment further away from Yuan.
"Kratos, are you sure she'll be able to read that? I know you have beautiful script, but we used that thousands of years ago. I had to learn to write the chicken scratch they use these days in order for the men to understand my orders. I think they spell stuff differently too."
Kratos stopped writing. Yuan's words did bother him a little as he looked over the letter. The letters seemed clear enough... for him.
"It's okay, if she has trouble reading it, I'll offer to read for her." Yuan said with a serious look.
Kratos shot him a withering look and scanned through the letter again. "If she doesn't understand some of it... as long as she gets the main idea... And I should be able to come back often enough." Kratos paused again, looking thoughtful. "I really owe Dirk a considerable amount, don't I..."
"So about tomorrow... let's go over what kind of mood you should be in," Yuan said. "I guess there is no point hiding that you can feel now, so you should still act depressed and upset. Well, your deadpan look is probably good enough..."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
8 years later, Anna and Lloyd's house
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"MOM!"
A boy with wild, spiky brown hair rushed into the house, nearly tripping over the welcome rug.
"MOOOOMMMM! LOOK WHAT UNCLE BOTTA'S GIVEN ME!" Lloyd shouted at the top of his lungs.
Anna sat in her favorite place in the little cottage, by the large bay window where the sun shined in and warmed her skin. The view from the window were of the garden she painstakingly made, and of the pine trees that always calmed her. She sat in a wheelchair that Dirk had crafted. At her son's voice, she turned away from the window.
Lloyd ran into the living room, waving a large gray pouch.
"It's a wing pack! He gave me a Rheaird! Now we can go visit Triet Base whenever we want!"
Anna looked at Lloyd with warm smile. Botta had come to her previously to tell her what he was going to do. Lloyd was actually very mature in some ways for his age, and after plenty of flying lessons, Botta felt he could give Lloyd one of his own. Since Volt's power did not extend as powerfully to this world, Lloyd could only fly within the radius of the Triet Base.
"What color is it, Lloyd?"
"It's blue! I wanted red, but Uncle Botta said I would stand out too much in the sky... But I'm happy anyway, I was so afraid Uncle Botta would give me the rickety pink one we were training on! I want to go fly now!"
"Have you finished your homework?" Anna said sternly, knowing he hadn't.
"Oh there's a no need today... it's Phaidra teacher's last day! We are getting a new teacher tomorrow!"
Anna laughed. "Lloyd, do you think the old teacher wouldn't tell the new teacher what the homework is? Come on, I want to see your homework done before you try the new Rheaird."
Lloyd grumbled something about wishing he didn't tell her about the Rheaird, which made Anna chuckle. Lloyd suddenly turned back around. "Mom, did you take your medicine yet?"
Now it was Anna's turn to not look so happy.
"I'll go get it." Lloyd said, after seeing the darkened look on her mother's face.
Anna looked out the window again and sighed. In some ways she would almost prefer not the take the medication and just suffer the headaches and pains in her neck. But she knew from past experience that it would all just get worse... until she would get dizzy and disoriented on top of everything. But she really didn't like the numbing feeling the medicine made her feel.
Nevil came at least twice a month now to see how she was faring and to refill her medicine. Trauma was actually something he knew about, since he's had to treat plenty of traumatized, injured Renegade soldiers. And Anna's crash down the cliff was pretty traumatic, mentally and physically. He nearly cried when he saw Anna's X-ray. He had dreaded telling Kratos, but it wasn't as bad as he thought since Kratos was still elated that she was alive. But Dirk, who saw the X-ray, was so moved that he had instantly offered to build her and Lloyd a house close to his underground house so he could help her and the baby as much as he could. It took Anna months to recover but she counted herself lucky enough to have plenty of support, not least from a blacksmith who could build her a wonderful wheelchair and a house.
Dirk, on the other hand, had been a solitary dwarf, having long left the familiar caves of Moria to escape Cruxis' drafting of dwarves for their services. Since dwarves were by nature social beings, he had never been so happy to have a constant energetic companion as Lloyd. Lloyd was his little apprentice. When he wasn't helping his mother with household chores or buying groceries, he could often be found underground in Dirk's house learning how to craft metal or woodwork.
This was Lloyd's life, it existed in the little clearing north of the Iselia Woods. If he wasn't here, he was being escorted by Dirk or Noishe to or from school, of which he was not fond of. The Iselians, let alone the young children of the Iselian school, were not broad-minded, well-traveled people. They considered Lloyd very strange for not living in the village. He seemed even stranger that he came to school escorted by a dwarf or... a strange large green/white dog-like creature.. But the strangest thing about Lloyd was his mother. Anna had come to the village once with Lloyd and Dirk (the Iselians would not let Noishe in). It was the day she decided not the take her medicine, because she didn't want be all numb when she met the villagers. At first the townspeople felt sorry for her, that she couldn't walk. Then when they came to talk to her, Anna began conversing well enough... until she started feeling restless and disoriented. Then it started taking all her energy to try to make out what people were saying... and replying was even worse.
One of the biggest mysteries about Lloyd and his mother, was the father. Who or where was the father? Dirk was certainly not Lloyd's father, and she made it clear he was just a neighbor. Sometimes Lloyd would come escorted to or from school by someone else other than Dirk. Occasionally it was a man with blue hair, or a man with black hair, or a man with red hair. Everyone in the town treated Lloyd politely. Of everyone in the town, he had only one real friend, the Chosen girl named Collete. They bonded quickly since everyone also unintentionally ostracized the Chosen for being, well, the special Chosen. Collete was never nosy about Lloyd's peculiar life, and she never harbored the underlying resentment he felt from the other villagers. There was only one curiosity Collete had about Lloyd's life, and that was his father. She was curious, because Lloyd was so fascinated, and always talked about him constantly... though Lloyd never told her exactly what he did.
Kratos was a superhero, the coolest being on earth. Lloyd always begged his mom for more stories about his father. The reason his father couldn't come home very often was because he was an undercover agent in an evil secret organization. It was a dangerous job, and it was going to take a very long time before he can come home and join them permanently. But for certain, he was going to find a way to bring down the wicked head villain one day. And Lloyd couldn't tell anyone about it for fear of the evil men finding out. It was a great secret, and Lloyd made a solemn vow to keep it classified.
When Kratos first came to visit, he found a two-year-old boy with the starriest eyes in the world. However, he rather enjoyed Anna's interpretation of his job, even if it was a bit too uncomfortably close to the truth, and went along with it. Every year his visits became more frequent, from about once every six months, to about once every month. When he appeared, it was always a momentous few days. Kratos started getting better and better at dramatizing his work and telling Lloyd the best stories in the world. When Lloyd got back from school (if he had school) then they practiced with swords (wooden ones, of course). At night, it was stargazing. Sometimes Anna would join them, but many times it was just them two together.
And when Lloyd was asleep, Kratos would take Anna out to fly. Under the moon, over the ocean, forests, and lands (though nowhere near the Iselian Desian base). Many times, they would just sit in the uppermost branches of the trees or on the beaches, just sitting quietly and enjoying each other's precious company. Anna never did seem to develop any angelic traits... except that she never really felt like sleeping when Kratos was there. When he wasn't there, well, sleeping was still refreshing. Lloyd certainly didn't seem to develop any angelic traits or anything out of the ordinary either. Kratos was happy about it, though Anna was a little upset that something as powerful as a Cruxis Crystal couldn't at least do something to heal her battered body. A shadow always crossed Kratos' eyes when she mentioned that. He could only reply that the Crystal was meant to only enhance natural abilities... and for her sake, as a permanent mana stabilizer as well. She didn't mind so much about the Crystal however, since she considered much of its energy came from her anyway.
Kratos never could really forgive himself for Anna's present condition. After getting over the euphoria that she was alive, the pain she actually had to put up with became much clearer. The most aggravating point being the narrow-minded discrimination Anna and Lloyd had to put up with from the villagers. Searching for a way to cure Anna's paralysis and head injuries seemed like an easy task at first, but he soon realized that unless he was a well-trained magical healer, it would be near impossible. And he lacked the magical prowess to even learn the deeper arts. Yuan had no background in the healing arts and Kratos wasn't about to make him study a whole different field. In the end, Kratos even begged the elves, but they were too self-absorbed to care about a singular human life. He still didn't let himself give up... but he could only wait and see.
Anna always occupied herself day by day with voracious reading (supplied by Kratos and Nevil) if she wasn't training and practicing sword skills with Lloyd, perfecting her throwing skills (now not limited to knives), tidying the house, talking with Dirk and/or whoever was visiting, trying to cook better, or soaking up the sun. She was not unhappy, but she now realized how she would never take a pair of working legs for granted again. That and a healthy nervous system. Training with Lloyd was one way she felt she could at least not let her fighting skills completely rust to nothing.
Lloyd was fiercely protective of Anna. He never complained when he needed to help her with anything. And he worked hard training with his two swords (because two swords has got to be better than one, no matter what anyone says) with the sole intention of protecting his mother and possibly helping his father defeat the evil villain in the future.
There was one thing Lloyd didn't understand. And that was school. His parents were adamant that he go to school, but he saw absolutely no use for it. Nevertheless, he went anyway, to make his mom happy. At least he had Colette to hang out with.
So the next sunny morning, Lloyd came to school by way of Noishe. As he slid off the protozoan and onto the dewy grass, he gave Noishe a big hug (Noishe tried to hug him back with his ears), and ran off to school (a few minutes late).
When he opened the school door, he was greeted by a young woman with short, white silvery hair. Then he noticed a new student sitting in the front row, who also had white silvery hair. He was so much younger than the other students in the class that Lloyd wondered whether he was placed in the wrong class (Phaidra also taught a class for very young students in the early mornings). The only empty seat was the one by this new student, so Lloyd took it without hesitation.
