Hello everyone! Soo sorry for the long wait, just had a brief lack of inspiration, that's all! Anyway, here's the latest chapter of A Daughter of Symphony!!

Conspiracy

'Lord Yuan. A Tatheya is here to see you.'

The seraphim looked up from his desk. The Desian awaited his answer, as he stood up. 'Send her in.'

It appeared as if Tath had been waiting just around the corner, since as soon as the Desian had left, she walked in.

'Hello, father,' she greeted, immediately going to his desk, looking through some papers he'd been working with. Yuan mentally twitched at the cold tone she used whenever she called him father.

'Hmm,' she said, as she put the papers down. 'Nothing new has happened here, I see.'

'What is it, Tath?' Yuan asked impatiently, tired of her rudeness.

'I have some information for you.'

'Really?' Yuan asked bored, sitting down at his desk again. 'Enlighten me.'

'It is about Lloyd's group.'

Yuan looked up, eyebrows raised unimpressed, regarding Tath who leaned to his desk, her gaze locking onto his.

'I know Zelos is your source of information of the group's activity, but I know more than he does.', Tath said, suddenly eager.

Yuan's expression suddenly turned into interest. 'Then tell me what you know that I don't.'

Tath sunk down on a chair opposite him.

'The group is breaking all the seals to free the Summon Spirits, but this you already know, right?'

'Yes, I do,' Yuan said, suddenly standing up. 'And I also know that it will sever the mana links, causing the two worlds to break free.'

Tath looked at him, wondering where he was going with this.

He turned to his daughter. 'I will ask for the cooperation of Lloyd and his group. I believe we are for once, working for the same goal.'

Tath's eyes widened in surprise. 'Are you sure it will work? With all that mana… will the Great Seed really evolve?'

'It's our best shot,' Yuan said, his back turned to her.

Tath looked at him, suddenly regretting the words she was about to speak.

'Yuan, if we do this, then…' she paused. '…then Martel will die.'

A sudden silence followed, to which Tath actually felt sorry for her father for once. Then he suddenly turned around, his face determined.

'I know,' he said. 'But some things are more important.'

---

Finally Tath was on her own again.

It had been another two weeks since she had left Zelos and the others, and she had passed some time at Altessa's, who had upgraded her Key Crest. Shortly after Tath had left the others, she had quickly decided not to think about the conversation between her and Zelos, as she only felt torn when she thought about it.

The Rheaird soared quietly through the air in the skies of Sylvarant. After visiting Altessa, she'd figured that maybe she should report to Ian. Maybe tell him that she wanted to quit, that she was going to work with bigger resources, like the Renegades. She didn't know what to say to him, but she guessed she would improvise.

Suddenly over her Rheaird's soft humming she thought she heard another sound. A rumbling.

Tath stopped the Rheaird, by the Tower of Salvation. Something was causing her Rheaird to shake. It was then she realised that the whole ground was shaking and gravity was what was causing the shaking Rheaird.

Had another mana link been severed?

Tath brought the Rheaird a few metres down to see what was happening. There was something wrong. This earthquake was bigger than the others. Then she saw a movement by the Tower. A root, a giant root suddenly shot out of the ground, twisting itself around the Tower, shortly followed by another root. Tath gasped. What was this?

The…Giant Kharlan Tree? It couldn't be…

But then, as she thought again, it was possible. The roots kept shooting up, they had soon covered the whole Tower. The protection around the seed had been broken, and instead of absorbing Martel and growing again, it was spinning out of control and growing into this…monstrous thing.

Suddenly the roots lashed out and shot over the ground, then buried down only to reappear again, dangerously near Palmacosta.

Then, as Tath had a sudden urge to get away from there, a root shot out in front of her and the Rheaird, then bashed down in the ground with an enormous thunder. As Tath pulled the Rheaird upwards to avoid it her eyes suddenly caught a glimpse of something…

Deep within the demonic roots, there was a glimpse of light. And as Tath looked closer she saw that it was a person. The realisation came as a cold shower to Tath as she couldn't stop staring at her.

Martel. There she was, the Goddess, the Sister, the…everything. And it that moment of awe, Tath failed to notice the giant root shooting up from the ground right towards her…

It hit her with a large bang, cutting the Rheaird in two and sending Tath flying like a projectile through the air, not giving her time to save herself and she hit the ground so hard that no one, even equipped with a normal exsphere could survive. Except for Tath. Strengthened beyond belief by her exsphere and Cruxis Crystal, she lay on the ground for a while before groaning in pain.

'Ouch,' she grunted, 'now that hurt.'

Then she looked up, and managed to raise herself to her elbows. It seemed the tree had stabilised somewhat and wasn't growing as fast. But as she turned her head to her left she saw to her surprise that the whole city of Palmacosta had been wiped to the ground.

What the hell had happened? She staggered to her feet, looking around. She had to get to Yuan and Lloyd's group.

She looked around. Where was her Rheaird?

The answer came falling from the sky. Literally. The blue wing of her Rheaird suddenly crashed down by her feet.

Tath sighed. 'Oh, crap.'

Then she looked up to the sky. There was now only one way.

Lloyd's group and Kratos walked slowly through the Forest of Iselia. Kratos seemed to be more silent than usual, his eyes travelling up and down the hills. No one in Lloyd's group knew that this was the place where he had lost Anna and Lloyd, fifteen years ago.

Suddenly there was a movement in a bush and everyone turned, weapons out, only to see Tath stumbling out of the bush, loose her footing, but Kratos quickly caught her. With his help she managed to stand up, and the group now saw that she was fatally wounded. Her bruises had started showing, she had a big cut in her side and she was holding her arm that probably was broken.

'Tath!' Lloyd exclaimed, 'Are you alright?!'

Tath looked up. 'Well, if you consider the fact that I was hit by one enormous root and fell from the sky-' She was hit by another shot of pain from her arm and suddenly grew angry. 'Dammit! …Just what the hell happened!?'

'The Giant Kharlan Tree,' Kratos was first to answer. 'When the protection around the Great Seed disappeared it spun out of control, and will soon absorb Martel.'

'…I saw her,' Tath suddenly said, and looked up. 'Martel.'

Everyone seemed in awe, saved for Kratos, who helped Tath stand up better.

'You need medical treatment. Right now your exsphere is supporting you but you need help. I suggest we take her back to Dirk.'

Everyone nodded, except Lloyd who stood with a puzzled look on his face.

'Do you two…know each other?' he asked, and suddenly the others in the group realised that Lloyd was right in his question and they, too, turned to look at Tath and Kratos.

'Yes,' Tath said, heaving a sigh, 'we know each other. But,' she then added, 'that is none of your business.' Kratos couldn't help to give a small grin and Tath's stubborn answer. The group gave up and followed as Kratos helped Tath move down the hill.

'What are you going to do now?' Tath asked them, limping by Kratos' side.

'The Mana that is feeding the tree must be shut off, but the Iselian Ranch doesn't obey our orders. We have to infiltrate it and stop Forcystus,' he replied. Tath nodded.

---

'Ouch,' Tath grunted, as Zelos and Kratos helped her sit down on a bed, and the group watched as Dirk quickly examined her arm and then moved on to bandage it. Tath looked up to the group. 'Shouldn't you get going?' she asked, raising an eyebrow.

'Oh? Yeah, right. Well, if you'll be alright…' Lloyd started, to which Tath interrupted him with a look, stating him as stupid, asking her if she would he all right. The group, without Sheena, Tath noticed, soon moved out of the room, down the stairs. Before they left, however, Tath looked at them.

'Hey,' she said, stopping Lloyd and Kratos with her voice. The others in the group had already descended the stairs. 'I've heard of this Forcystus. He's not a walk in the park. Be careful.'

'Okay,' Lloyd nodded and then walked down the stairs, and Tath's eyes moved up to Kratos, who gave a nod and the faintest of smiles, to then leave.

'He's looking very cheery today, isn't he?' a voice suddenly said from beside the bed. Tath looked up to see Zelos standing there, lingering in the room.

'Shouldn't you be going?' she asked him, as he sat down on the bed beside her. He suddenly reached out and gently took her hand. 'I'll catch up,' he shrugged. Tath gave a smile and put her hand on his arm. 'Zelos,' she grinned, 'go.'

He looked at her. 'Will you be here when we get back?'

Tath gave him a perfectly serious face. 'Yes, I will,' she replied.

And he left.

Whereas Tath immediately gathered some of her things and limped up out of the bed, pulling her jacket on and sheathing her sword. She stopped and listened for Dirk, who was moving around on the ground floor. She then stepped out on the balcony looking out at the horizon. Sure, she would be there when they got back, but she didn't necessarily have to be there when they were gone.

She closed her eyes and concentrated for a moment, and then leapt out the balcony, as if diving.

---

Tath tumbled down in a sand dune, and as she stopped she lay gasping in pain. She had landed right on her arm, and she guessed her bruises weren't going to feel much better of that fall. Still, as she looked up, she was outside the Sylvarant Base. Yuan's base.

She dragged herself to her feet and somehow managed to get inside. She completely ignored the pain; there was something she had to tell Yuan, no matter how much it hurt.

As the doors to the hangar opened, where she had somehow sensed her would be, she almost collapsed inside.

'Tath? Tath, are you all right?' she hard Yuan's voice beside her in a moment. As Tath looked up at him, she knew she was right. For as she had been falling through the air earlier that day, with the Rheaird and the Tree, she'd thought of one person. Yuan, her father. And it was then, when she thought she was going to die, that she realized she had missed him. Missed her father for all her life.

'I'm sorry,' she finally said, apologising for all her years of chill. Finally she had realized she did need him. For he was all she had, initially.

Yuan pulled away, and held her at an arm's length, looking into her eyes he knew was his, his own filled with tears. 'Tath, don't ever be sorry. I'm the one who is sorry. And I should've told you that every day.'

---

Tath was sitting by the table, watching Dirk cook breakfast. She was feeling strangely at peace. No longer feeling the anger towards her father, she felt like she could truly be at peace. She focused in on the dwarf again. During her days at his house, she had gotten to know the dwarf pretty well. He was kind, yet filled with honour. It wasn't hard to see where Lloyd had learned his good conscious.

Suddenly she heard something. She knew the dwarf couldn't hear as well as she could, but she definitely heard foot steps. Of a group. Suddenly she lit up.

She looked at Altessa. 'They're back!'

And with that, she suddenly got to her feet, ran to the door, and burst out. Once outside, it took her some time to spot them, but then she saw the dark brown hair of Lloyd, the reddish tone of Zelos' and the fiery hair of Kratos in the back of the group.

Without really thinking, Tath suddenly started to run towards the group, straight into the arms of Zelos. She had no idea why, but she had really missed him. She buried her head in his neck, feeling his scent, and how his arms went around her, his breath breathing in her ear. 'Hi,' was all he said, whispering in her ear. No stupid flirting, no cheap comment. Just hi. And it made her go weak at the knees.

She broke free, realising what was happening. Could it really be that she was falling for the man in front of her? His blue eyes met her, and she could see that the Chosen had grown. Grown away from the immature man he used to be. Now, he was that serious man Tath had been determined to draw out. And it made Tath scared of her own feelings.

She turned to Lloyd, and hugged him as well, to make it seem less suspicious. 'How did it go?' she asked the boy, but he was not the one to reply.

'Forcystus is dead.'

The grim voice of Kratos reached her ears, and she turned to face him. As she set eyes upon him all her emotions seemed to explode. How was it she could feel that way for Zelos, when while looking into Kratos eyes she felt her whole blood tingle? How could she feel like this for both of them? And why?

It was strange, whenever the looked into each other's eyes, they read each other like an open book. So that was why Tath adverted her eyes, dropped them to the ground and turned her focus to Genis instead, who appeared to have hurt his arm.

'Are you alright?' she asked him, looking into his eyes before dropping them to his wound.

'Y-yes,' he stuttered, and Tath knew why. He was surprised that she cared. As she looked up she could see Raine smiling at her, for caring about her brother. Tath smiled back. Maybe this team-thing wasn't so bad. Someone always cared for you.

Raine draped her arm around Genis, and led him towards the house, after Lloyd, Regal, Presea, Colette and Zelos, leaving Tath kneeling on the spot were Genis had been standing. She could not help to feel light-hearted. Somehow, she felt as if everything was going to be alright.

Then she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. She rose to stand beside Kratos, who looked at her with his velvet eyes.

She let her hand nestle itself into his, and he surprised her by responding to it. He dropped his eyes, letting his hair fall into his eyes, as he gave a small smile, to himself or Tath, she didn't know. But as he looked up, she saw something that chilled her blood. The layers of stone were back in his eyes, the softness creeping back inside him. He had relaxed, been the real him while with the group, but now he turned back into the emotionless angel he posed to be.

He turned from Tath, towards Lloyd and the rest of the group, letting his hand slip from Tath's. She felt like she was crashing on the inside, as she watched the angel turn down Lloyd, dismissing him, telling him he was going back to Cruxis. Tath, as Lloyd, could not believe it. For one brief moment, they had all thought he was on their side, for once. But he never was.

Lloyd, angry and disappointed, walked into the house again, slamming the door behind him. Kratos looked at it for a while, before turning towards the bridge that led away from the house.

'Why are you doing this?' Tath's voice suddenly reached his ears. He was halfway across the bridge, as he stopped and turned, looking at the redheaded woman, the wind catching her hair, as she stood looking at him with accusing dark blue eyes. The eyes of Yuan, he noticed.

'Why are you leaving them?'

'Tath...' he started, but she interrupted him. 'Why are you leaving us!?' Tears suddenly sprang to her eyes. 'Leaving this, me…' Her voice cracked, but she held in the tears. When she spoke again, her voice was strong again. 'Why are you leaving everything?'

Kratos looked down in the ground, ready to walk away again, when Tath opened her mouth again.

'He is your son!'

Kratos looked up again, and Tath saw that his eyes were suddenly struck with an immense grief.

'…I know,' he said softly. Then he turned, disappearing in the shadow of the trees, leaving Tath to the chill of the night. Suddenly she felt like nothing was going to be alright anymore. Everything was going to hell. It was then she noticed she was crying. She hadn't cried for real for 13 years, but the thought only made her cry harder, and she sank down to the ground. Why did things have to go this way? Why did everything have to be so wrong?

Tath had never been able to handle sorrow. When she escaped Altessa at age of six, she had turned her father's betrayal into her desire for revenge. When she'd seen him at the Palmacosta ranch later, she'd handled her sorrow into numbness, while in Meltokio with Zelos. Neither of the times had she dealt with her sorrow.

And she wouldn't this time either, as she suddenly stopped crying. She did not feel sad anymore. Her sadness, like always, turned into hatred. This time, not for Kratos, or Yuan, or anyone else she knew. This time, she felt such a hatred she had never felt before.

She felt like killing someone.

That someone, being Mithos Yggdrasill.

Alrighty! Any comments or questions, please review!!