As promised here is the new chapter. I had to alter the story a little bit in order not to mess up the story too much.
The group wants to go to the Tower of Salvation. Will they go there with hope or with despair and what happen once the group reaches the Tower?
Find out in this chapter!
Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia. If I did, everyone would have final attacks and not just Lloyd, Genis and Colette in the GameCube version.
Dean didn't want to go to the Tower of Salvation, but at the same time he did want to go. He wanted to confront the angel Remiel with the facts that they knew about Tethe'alla and that the Journey of Salvation was just a way to reverse the mana flow between the two worlds. He wanted to question what the reason was behind this pointless system, what the Journey of Salvation was really about and why the hell the girl he was in love with would have to suffer so much. The angel would probably not answer his questions, but that was all right with Dean. He would just have to beat the stupid arrogant angel to pieces and force him to answer the questions. That would be tomorrow. It wasn't tomorrow just yet. Dean had been standing on the mountain top for some time and he hadn't realised how cold it was up there until now. Seeing how pointless it was to remain standing there, he headed back down, trying to find Colette. It didn't take long for Dean to find the blond girl. She was playing with the dog that was in town. Dean could remember how Colette would run towards every dog they met in a town or village and gave a name to it if the dog didn't have a name. She would then play, pet and feed the dog. It had happened this time as well. Like Lloyd, Colette wasn't bright and she was kind of a klutz, but she was innocent and pure. How could the angels and the Goddess Martel send such a girl on a journey that would only bring suffering to her? Was that their idea of some kind of a joke. The girl Dean had fallen in love with was strong. She was prepared to give her life to save the world she was living in. It was because of her determination and strength that Dean wanted to protect the girl and make sure that she didn't need to sacrifice herself. There had to be another way, but he lacked the knowledge. He would need to confront the angels and if needed, the Goddess Martel herself in order to get the knowledge and power to protect his beloved one. But it wasn't just Colette that Dean wanted to protect. He wanted to protect his parents back in Iselia and all of his friends as well. His skill with the blade had become so much better and his magic powers were not to be taken lightly. He would take on Heaven itself tomorrow, but that would still be tomorrow. Dean tried to shut down his thoughts and come back to the present. He walked towards Colette, who was getting friendly licks from the dogs.
"Are you having fun?" Dean asked the girl. Colette nodded and got bumped to the ground by the dog, who was playing with her. "Can I play too?" The girl stood up and grabbed his hand and they ran across the field together. The dog would follow and chase them around. It was like they were playing tag with the dog. Sound of laughter sounded from Colette and Dean noticed after a while that he was laughing as well. They played with the dog until they were too tired. The dog's energy seemed limitless, but it lay down in the sun after Dean and Colette were sitting on the ground, panting. Dean embraced the girl, smelling the sweet scent of her hair. They sat in the sun for a while. After a while The Professor ruined their time together. She asked if they had finished their homework yet. Dean was almost done as well as Colette. When the two of them shook their heads The Professor send them inside and saw to it personally that they finished their assignment. Dean couldn't understand the woman at moments like this. The following day was the day when history would be written. Colette would turn into an angel, whatever that meant. She still insisted that they finished their homework. It was a nice diversion for Dean. By focussing on the school work he forgot for a while that he was on a big journey that decided the fate of Sylvarant. It made him feel like a regular student again and it was almost like they were back in Iselia. Lloyd even got scolded by The Professor when he was trying to sneak to his room to get something. He was forced to work on his homework for the rest of the afternoon. Dean and Colette were finished after a while and were allowed to go after The Professor had checked their work. Lloyd however had just started on his assignment and wasn't allowed to go. Freed from the clutches from Raine, Dean and Colette wondered what they should do next. Genis then asked them to play a game of cards with him and Sheena. They did that for the rest of the afternoon. They ate the dinner the inn had prepared that evening. Sophia had cooked the meal. It was a decent meal, but it missed some things. Hima was a remote village and was depended on merchants who were willing to go this far into the world. Because of that it was hard to get supplies here as well. Sylvarant was truly slowly dying. Food supplies were getting harder and harder to get with each year. Each year the harvest was getting less and less even if they tried to compensate by using more land. This world couldn't take much more anymore. It needed the mana that was flowing to Tethe'alla. After dinner everybody split up. Dean wanted to talk to everyone until he would go to bed. He needed to give maintenance to his sword as well, wanting the sword in the most superb form for the next day. He found Sheena first.
"Hey Sheena. What are you up to?" Dean asked the summoner.
"Not much… Just thinking. It's just… Tomorrow, Sylvarant will be saved." Her voice was soft and it seemed she was having internal struggles again.
"Yeah… So, what are you going to do? Are you going to stop Colette?"
"I don't know. I don't think so. The only thing I can do is believe in Colette. The Chosen from this side seems to be trustworthy."
"We shouldn't rely too much on Colette. Let's question Remiel and find out what he knows. As an angel he should know what the Journey of Regeneration is really for. He has probably kept us in the dark all this time, playing as mere puppets who are trying to save this world."
"You really don't like that Remiel guy at all, do you?"
"I don't trust him. I doubted him from the beginning. He gives off a bad vibe and I can't ignore that."
"Yeah, he sure likes to act all high and mighty."
"You got that right." There was a silence between them for a while. "You said sometime about Tethe'alla's Chosen?"
"Yeah, I can't stand that guy…" Sheena sighed. "If there really is a goddess, why did she make a world like this?"
"I've been wondering that as well. I hope to find the answer to that question tomorrow. Will you help me? Like I said, we can't rely on Colette alone."
"Sure, I'll help you. Finding out what the angels really know will help me with saving Tethe'alla as well. I'm on your side Dean."
"Thanks Sheena."
"No problem."
"I'm going to talk to the others for a bit as well."
"I'm going to sleep early, I'm still tired from all that travelling." Dean searched the village for the rest. He found Kratos standing at the graves. Dean stood by him and paid his respect to the dead and hoped that after tomorrow, no others would have to suffer from the Desians or would have to starve from the lack of food and shelter.
"So we're finally nearing the end of this journey." Kratos said.
"Yeah…" Dean replied, not knowing what to say to the mercenary.
"Aren't you going to stop Colette?" Kratos asked Dean.
"I don't know. It depends on what happens tomorrow. I really want to confront Remiel first. I want to ask him the reason why Tethe'alla and Sylvarant are competing for mana and why it is necessary for Colette to suffer this much in order to reverse the mana flow. I also want to ask if there is a way to change this pointless system."
"I see… So you're not planning on relying on the Chosen?" Dean shook his head.
"Colette wants to sacrifice herself so that Sylvarant can be saved. That won't solve anything. I don't want to lose the girl I love for a temporary solution. There has to be another way."
"And if there is not another way?"
"I'm not going to say that there has to be another way. We lack the knowledge why this all is happening. We're just puppets being controlled by the angels. Even if all that knowledge isn't enough, I'll create a way myself."
"Even if that means sacrificing everyone else?" Kratos asked Dean while looking intensely at him. After some time Dean shook his head.
"I don't plan to. If I'm about to turn into that road of madness I'm counting on you to question my reasons and to stop me doing anything that can't be reversed or make things only worse."
"You trust me to do that?"
"Yeah. I know you will be able to do such a thing. I'm counting on you, teacher of mine."
"I see… I won't let you down then…" Kratos said softly. He didn't really sound convincing and somehow seemed down at the moment.
"I want to talk to the others as well. I'll see you tomorrow." Dean left behind the mercenary who now seemed to be lost in thought. Dean wondered if he had said something that had caused Kratos to act this way. Well, it didn't really matter. He needed Kratos by his side tomorrow to confront the angel. He would need all the help he could get. The next person he found was Genis.
"Hey Genis. What are you doing?" The elf boy was looking at his kendama and not doing anything.
"Oh hey Dean. I was just thinking…"
"What's up with everyone? You all are lost in your own thoughts."
"You're one to say. The last few weeks you've been doing the same thing."
"Then stop copying me. Sulking won't solve anything."
"Then what will?"
"As a matter of fact, I have a favour to ask of you. I'm asking for your help. Please lend it to me."
"It's not like you to be all this formal about things. So what do you need my help on? Need help on your homework?"
"I'm not Lloyd, you know? No… Colette would try to solve everything herself tomorrow. What I want to do is to force Remiel to answer our questions. He must know the true reason behind the Journey of Regeneration. I want to find out as much as I can and ask for a way if there is another way."
"He might not want to do that, you know?"
"That's why I need your help. I'm going to force the answers out of him at that moment. I expect him not wanting to answer the questions. We'll just have to use force in order to get our answers."
"That sounds a bit aggressive…" Genis said with a grin on his face. Dean wasn't laughing.
"The life on Colette is depending on the answers that the angel gives us."
"Yeah… Let's work together to find a way!"
"Thanks Genis."
"You can count on me!" Until now everyone has agreed to help him. Dean was in good spirits. Convincing Lloyd wouldn't be a problem. The Professor was another story. At that moment Dean found the elf woman.
"Dean…" She just said to him when he got closer.
"Are you sulking as well? Don't copy me." Dean said with a grin on his face.
"It seems you're in a better mood than lately."
"Yeah… The time to be lost in thought is over. The time to act is tomorrow."
"So what about the present? What are you going to do now?" Raine asked. She was observing Dean and looking at him closely, trying to figure out what he was thinking.
"Convince you."
"Convince me?"
"Yes, convince you. You know as well as I do that Colette will try to sacrifice herself to save Sylvarant. And you know as well as I do that doing so won't change anything. Like we talked over with Sheena the last time, it will be only temporarily. It's not the thing we want."
"Yes, you're right about that, but what are you planning to do about it? We don't know any other way."
"Exactly, we don't know any other way, but the angels will. Remiel will know another way. He has kept us on the dark this whole time. It's time to confront him with that and force the truth out of him, but I can't do that on my own. Will you help me?" Dean looked his teacher right in the eye. He wanted her to see his determination.
"You're serious about this? You will defy the teaching of the Church of Martel?"
"We've been told lies by that same Church of Martel. It's time for us to find out the truth. As a scholar, aren't you interested in the truth as well?"
"Well, I was interested in how Colette would turn into a true angel, but this sounds way more interesting." Raine was smiling now. "I can't let a student of mine sacrifice herself, now can I? As a teacher I have the responsibility to protect and as a scholar I simply must find out the truth. I'm on your side Dean."
"Thanks Professor. This means a lot to me."
"Go on to Colette. She needs your support as well."
"I will." Dean smiled and went towards the top of the mountain. It was the only spot he hadn't searched yet. On the way to it he came across Lloyd.
"Dean. I'm sorry." the young swordsman said to Dean.
"You're sorry, about what?"
"I couldn't convince Colette not to sacrifice herself."
"Of course you couldn't." Dean said. Lloyd looked surprised at him. "She is set on sacrificing herself for the sake of us and for the sake of Sylvarant, but we can't let that happen. You agree with me on that, don't you?"
"Of course I agree with you!" Lloyd said fiercely. "But what are we supposed to do?" The boy in red looked frustrated and in doubt with himself.
"We'll force the answers out of Remiel. That angel knows the true meaning behind the Journey of Regeneration. He's been using us all this time. If there is another way, a way where Colette doesn't has be to sacrifice herself and where the both worlds can live in harmony with each other, then that angel should know the answer. We can't let Colette solve everything on her own." Lloyd first looked surprised at Dean. Then slowly a smile was formed on his face.
"You're right Dean. I thought you had given up on hope, but I knew we could count on you. I'm in!"
"Thanks Lloyd."
"We're friends right? That's what friends are for!"
"Of course we're friends. I'm going to Colette now."
"Good luck. You can do it." Dean went up the mountain as Lloyd walked towards the inn. As Dean thought, it was still hard to climb the last part until you would reach the top of the mountain. Colette was standing near the edge of the mountain, looking at the Tower of Salvation. The sun had already set, but still a little bit of light was coming through. A lone girl was standing at the top of the mountain, looking at the place where her fate lied. She was born to live to do what was going to happen tomorrow. That was what she thought. Dean had other plans. He walked towards her and stood next to her.
"Don't worry Colette. We'll find a way where you won't have to sacrifice yourself." Dean said while looking towards that blasted tower. In his mind's eye he could see how that tower was about to be destroyed. Colette had turned towards him. Dean could see because of her expression and by looking in her eyes what she was thinking. "Yes, I knew Colette. I knew that you're planning on sacrificing yourself tomorrow." The girl looked down to the Earth. "Don't apologise. I'm not going to let you do that. Tomorrow, we're going to ask some questions to Remiel. He should know some other way. He's an angel from Cruxis. He knows the true meaning behind the Journey of Regeneration. Even though we know that now too, we know way too little. The church of Martel has told us lies. It's time for us to find out the truth." Colette shook her head. She didn't have her pen and paper with her. "Please Colette… I know you want to save Sylvarant, but sacrificing yourself… I can't let that happen. I don't want to lose you." She then looked at him with eyes that were almost pleading, asking for help. "It's not just me Colette. The rest of the group feels the same. We're all in this together. We'll find a way how to return your voice and get you back to normal." The girl smiled at him and embraced him. She held him tightly. "It's okay Colette. You're not on your own in this. Everybody agrees." Together they headed down to the inn, walking while holding hands. Dean tended to his sword in his room, while Colette was watching him. They 'talked' about what they would do after tomorrow. That they would start to look for a way for both worlds to be at peace tomorrow. They would do that together, with the help of their friends. The two of them stayed together until it was time to sleep. The inn didn't have many rooms. They only had two rooms. One for Colette, Raine and Sheena and the other for the rest. They were separated by gender. Dean really wanted to spend a night together with Colette, but it couldn't be helped. Dean had no trouble falling into sleep. Genis and Lloyd seemed to be in better spirits than compared earlier that evening. Kratos was the only one was seemed to be lost in thought. The following day they would go to the Tower of Salvation, but it would not go as the angels wanted it to go. Dean wouldn't allow that.
"Do you really think it would be that simple?" Remiel asked Dean. Dean was bleeding and he was in pain. The others were lying on the ground, unconscious. Colette was hovering in the air, her eyes were empty and hollow. "You wretched humans should know their place!" Remiel seemed to cast another spell and Dean screamed out in pain. Why was this happening? How could they be defeated? After all this time… After all the things they had gone through. Dean got up again, preparing to fight to the better end. "So you still have some fight left in you? Perfect... We can't have you dying on us. That Exsphere on your hand is still incomplete and it is a gift to our leader. Unfortunately both the Luin and the Palmacosta Human Ranch are no more, but that matters not. We'll take you into the heavens with us and we'll continue with the experiment as well. Did you really think that the nightmare was over? Hahahaahahahahaha! It is just beginning Dean!" Overwhelming pain came over Dean, but he didn't lose conscious. His body did fall to the ground and he was unable to get up again. He then could feel himself getting dragged somewhere. Then he left the ground and went up into the air, towards the great white light of evil.
Dean woke up with cold sweat on his back. He was breathing like crazy. It was dark in the room where he was.
"It was just a nightmare…" Dean softly whispered to himself as soon as he realised where he was. The others were still asleep. He hadn't screamed this time while he was sleeping. He was glad he didn't. The images and the pain from his dream were still haunting him. He didn't know what time it was, but he needed a little bit of fresh air before he could fall asleep again. Still in his pyjamas, he quietly left the room. Without making a noise he left the inn. The air brushed against his face and immediately Dean felt cold. He didn't mind. That he felt cold meant that he was alive and that he wasn't dreaming. He walked around for a bit until he noticed a whining sound. He followed the origin of the sound and found out that Noishe was whining.
"Hey there Noishe. That's right. I forgot to say goodbye to you." The 'dog' wagged his tail in return, happy to see someone. "So you woke up in the middle of the night with no one to comfort you as well? Well, it seems we're in the same boat." The dog whined again. "Look, I'm sorry I forgot to say goodbye Noishe. Lloyd did tell you that we can't take you with us tomorrow. You'll have to go back to Dirk. I know you'll be fine. We'll be fine as well. Don't worry, I'll protect the others in your place and they will look out after me as well. I'm glad that you showed up when you did. You've helped us greatly." The beast licked his face. "Hey, cut that out! You know I don't like that. You can lick the face of Colette as much as you want, but not mine." Dean petted the animal for a little while more and gave it a nice big hug. Noishe was nice and warm and warmed Dean up for a bit as well. "Well, I'm going back to sleep. Tomorrow is a big day. I can't allow myself to oversleep. Take care Noishe." Dean walked back to the inn and back to his room. His bed didn't feel so sweaty and damp anymore. Dean could sleep outside with hard ground beneath him, but he couldn't sleep in a bed that was all covered in sweat and was all damp. That was another reason why he took a stroll outside. Dean pulled the covers over him again and it took a while before he was all warmed up again, but he fell back to sleep as soon as he was. This time he didn't have any dreams at all.
Dean could feel someone pushing again him and calling his name. Still tired, Dean didn't want to open up his eyes.
"Come on Dean, everyone else is already awake." the voice of a young boy said to him. "If you don't wake up soon, I'm going to call Raine to wake you up." Hearing that Dean quickly pushed the covers him and he was suddenly awake.
"Come one Genis, don't scare me like that." Dean said to the grinning elf boy.
"I had no choice. You wouldn't wake up. Come on and get dressed. Breakfast is almost done."
"I'll be on my way, but could I get a little privacy." Genis looked at him confused, but still left the room. Dean was glad that the rest was awake already. He still didn't like showing his scars to everyone. He quickly got dressed, checked three times if he really had everything. When he was done he had to smile. The axe of Magnius that he stole was still tucked against his pack. He hadn't used the axe ever since that he got the silver sword he obtained in Asgard. Dean headed downstairs to meet the others. They were already sitting at a table where at that moment breakfast was getting served. Dean wasn't really hungry, but he still ate his breakfast. Colette was even taking some bits of the food that was on her plate. She smiled when he looked at her. He smiled back at her. When he was at the summit yesterday after they had arranged the dragons for this morning, he had been in so much despair. Still, he had been able to turn that despair into determination. He wasn't going to let his emotions get the better out of him. He was going to fight. After breakfast everyone grabbed their stuff and they headed to the mountain top. It was nearly sunrise and there hadn't been any others at breakfast. They had requested for breakfast to be served to them early in the morning. They had paid a little extra Gald, but that hadn't been a problem. The guy from the Dragon Tours was already at the summit and so were the dragons. The winged dragons were big enough for two people to ride on. They looked majestic and quite beautiful as well. It seemed that the guy from the Dragon Tours had tamed the dragons, but he was also showering them with his love and the dragons looked like they were being taken care of quite well.
"I've been waiting for you. Please board the dragons in pairs." the man as soon as he noticed them.
"It seems like one of us will have to ride alone." Dean said, doing the math. Four dragons and seven people, that meant one of them had to ride one alone.
"I will ride on the same dragon on the Chosen. Protecting her… is my job." Kratos said. Dean nodded towards the mercenary. Dean trusted Kratos and he was sure the swordsman would be able to get her safely towards the Tower of Salvation.
"So, who will ride with each other?" Dean asked. "As for the one that rides the dragon alone. I don't mind riding the dragon alone." The others nodded towards him. It seemed Sheena and Raine would ride one dragon together and Lloyd and Genis, as the best buddies they were, would ride the other one together. Dean carefully climbed on the back of the dragon. It had a saddle on its back, so it wasn't hard to sit comfortable on the back of the dragon. One by one the dragons took off. The dragon with Kratos and Colette took the lead. The rest followed them. Dean was in the back and keeping a close eye on everyone. Everything was going fine, until suddenly all the dragons beside the one with Kratos and Colette turned around. They had been given a quick instruction by the guy from the tours how to act if the dragons would suddenly turn away. The dragons would according to the guy fly towards the tower, land there and let the others off before taking off again. Dean tried to control the dragon, but it would not listen that easily. It was making strange roars and flying in circles. Dean noticed that Lloyd, Genis, Sheena and Raine were having the same problems. Then suddenly without any notice the dragons stopped flying in circles in headed towards the Tower of Salvation. The dragon carrying Kratos and Colette was nowhere in sight. Dean had a bad feeling about this, although he didn't know why. The dragon also landed a bit away from the Tower of Salvation, but Dean could see that Lloyd and the others did manage to land close to the tower. Dean jumped off the dragon as soon as it landed. The dragon let out of roar and immediately flew back towards Hima. Feeling uneasy about the whole situation Dean hurried towards the tower. He had to run for quite some time until he reached the others. When he finally came out of the forest that surrounded the tower he saw that there was trouble up ahead. Lloyd, Genis, Raine and Genis were up ahead, but they seemed to be fighting someone. Dean thought he saw wings when he got closer. Gathering mana Dean ran towards his friends, his sword out of his sheath and ready for battle. He leapt into the air, jumping over the others and bringing his sword down on his enemy. That enemy did indeed seem to be an angel. The attack of Dean had caught the angel of guard and the strike had been enough for the angel to fall to the ground, defeated.
"Are you guys alright?" Dean asked. "What happened?"
"We were about to ascend the stairs to the Tower when suddenly an angel appeared before us. It told us we could not pass. When we insisted we wanted to pass it drew its weapon and attacked us." Lloyd explained.
"I have a bad feeling about this. Let's go inside the tower!" Dean said and he ran up the stairs. The others followed behind him. As soon as they were in the tower another group of angels blocked the path.
"You cannot pass!" One of the angels said with a sword in both hands.
"Let you through! Spark Wave!" Dean shouted as he unleashed a lightning spell on the angels. Not expecting an immediate attack, the angels were electrified by the magic attack. Dean attacked one of the angels, not giving it a chance to recover. Sheena and Lloyd attacked the other angels.
"What the hell is going on?" Lloyd asked when they finally had defeated the last angel.
"I don't know, but it can't be good." Dean said. He hoped Colette was alright. Kratos should be with the girl. She should be okay, but still Dean was worried about her. Dean then took a look around. Up ahead was a warp panel and they were walking on a floating platform. There was nothing but the walls from the tower all around him, or so Dean expected. In the form of a helix there were things floating around.
"What are those?" Genis asked looking around as well.
"They're… bodies?!" Lloyd said after looking closely. Dean had seen it as well.
"Then those must be… coffins." Raine said. Dead bodies in coffins. As far as the eye could see those coffins were floating around, forming a helix.
"Why are all these dead bodies here?!" Lloyd asked shocked, not expecting to see this inside the Tower of Salvation.
"They may be… all the Chosen that failed the world regeneration up until now." Raine answered. Dean was really worried about Colette.
"I don't trust where this is going. Let's go find Colette!" Dean said and he ran towards the warp panel. He could hear the others following him. The only thing he could think about was Colette. When he came to the other side of the warp panel he saw a sight that filled him with horror.
"Muahahaha! I have finally done it! With this, I will become one of the Four Seraphim!" Remiel laughed out loud. "The vessel for Martel is finally done. Our Lord will be most pleased." Remiel was flying towards Colette. Dean could see that the eyes of his beloved one were hollow and empty. The once so beautiful blue eyes of the blond girl were now red and dead. Colette was in her angel form and she was floating around. Dean was paralyzed and nailed to the ground. He couldn't believe what he saw to him. A thought came over him that he was dreaming, but he knew that this was no dream. It felt way too alive. His dreams were never this vivid, this full. The details of his surrounding were never shown in his dreams, but he could clearly see around him at that moment.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Lloyd shouted as he saw the scenario.
"Oh, you're still alive? You wretched humans are tougher than you look." Remiel said with a bitter voice. His voice was filled with hate and arrogance. He looked down on them like they were insects, not worthy to his presence. "The vessel for the Goddess Martel is complete. I have no further use of you."
"What the hell did you do to Colette?" Sheena asked enraged to Remiel.
"The Chosen has sacrificed her heart and memory and has become a true angel! She has been reborn as an angel!" the angel Remiel said to the others. Dean couldn't believe his ears. Not only was Colette unreachable, but she had forgotten about him as well. Anger and rage were taking over him, but still his body wouldn't move.
"Colette has forgotten about us?" Genis asked, not knowing whether to believe the words of the angel or not.
"Then… Colette is already dead?" Raine asked.
"No, the Chosen is not dead. Her heart has died and her body will be offered to the Goddess Martel. By removing her body, Colette will revive the Goddes. This is the true nature of the world regeneration! The revival of the Goddess Martel… is the revival of the world itself!" So that's how it was. That is why Colette had to go through all that pain and suffering. To revive a Goddess? Dean didn't even believe in this Goddess, so what the hell was this angel talking about.
"Reviving a Goddess… are you real?" Dean softly said, his voice filled with hate. Remiel ignored him. "What the hell will reviving the Goddess do, huh?!" Dean screamed out now. "This whole journey is just to reverse the mana flow from Tethe'alla to Sylvarant, just as it has happened many times in the past? That won't change the position of the two worlds at all. That won't bring peace. Why hasn't the Goddess been revived by the others Chosens, huh? Answer me, angel!" Dean screamed with all of his hate and his reasoning to Remiel.
"So you've learnt of the other world? From whom did you learn?" Remiel asked in return.
"I'm the one who's asking the questions here!"
"Very well." Remiel said as he took a pause and looked down on Dean in a too familiar way. "The vessels of the other Chosens were not fitted to revive the Goddess Martel. They were failures, but this vessel is perfect. Colette will surely revive the Goddess Martel. And with the revival of the Goddess, a new age will begin!" The angel was mad. The Goddess Martel hadn't been revived by the other Chosens? Then those bodies were indeed vessels who couldn't accept the Goddess Martel? Just who the hell was this Goddess Martel and why was it necessary that she should be revived.
"Don't you care that Colette will be offered to the Goddess? She's your daughter! Surely you don't want this as well?" Lloyd asked the angel.
"My daughter? Don't make me laugh. When I came down to play the role of guardian angel, you inferior being just started calling me her father on your own…" Remiel said.
"What?!" Lloyd said in disbelief. This was just too much. Every suspicions that Dean had had about the angel had been true. The angel finally was showing its true colours. Dean knew that arrogance and hate really well. They had been so familiar… Yes… This was just the way the Desians acted and looked at Dean when he was at the Human Ranch. Remiel was just the same as them, seeing them as inferior beings.
"But enough talking. I've said too much and wasted enough time. Be gone you inferior beings!" Remiel shot out light from out of his hands. The light had the form of an arrow. It was some kind of magical attack the angel was shooting towards Lloyd. Dean slashed his sword towards the attack, hitting it towards the wall of the tower. Dean could finally move his body again and he was filled with hate and rage. He was angry with himself as well. He had come too late and he hadn't been able to save the girl he loved. Dean stormed towards the angel. Remiel fired more arrows of light towards Dean and he was forced to dodge. As he jumped sideways to dodge the arrows, he could see two figures moving towards the angel at the end of his eyes. Lloyd and Sheena had moved out as well. Dean cursed the angel and himself. How the hell could this has happened? How was Colette captured? And where was that mercenary, Kratos? He had promised he would protect Colette. Had he failed, just like them? Dean shook away his thoughts and concentrated on the fight. As soon as they had defeated this corrupted angel, they would force some answers out of the angel that would help them get back Colette. As Dean once again ran towards the angel, he saw that the angel had risen above the level where Lloyd and Sheena could reach him, flying above the two warriors and shooting those arrows of light at them.
"Air Trust!" Genis shouted. The elf magician manipulated the wind spell in such a way that Remiel was blown towards the ground. Dean jumped as high as he could and slashed at the wings of his foe. Remiel managed to dodge the attack, but not entirely. A part of one of his wings was damaged and he could no more reach for the sky, although he could still easily float around and nimbly dodge their attacks. As Dean landed he concentrated on gathering mana. Lloyd and Sheena were busy keeping the angel busy and Dean noticed that the arrogance look on the angel had faded away as he was having trouble fighting this many enemies. The Professor was healing the wounds Lloyd and Sheena suffered during the fight. "Air Trust!" Genis unleashed another one of his wind spells, but this time the spell was focused entirely on doing damage on the angel.
"Power Trust!" Lloyd and Sheena used a combination attack of theirs. With the help of her cards Sheena formed some kind of barrier in front of Lloyd as Lloyd used a Sonic Trust towards Remiel. The barrier didn't slow Lloyd down however, it granted the swordsman in red extra speed and power. Dean was finished with preparing his spell at the right moment. Lloyd and Sheena were out of the range of his attack.
"Thunder Arrow!" Dean shouted as he unleashed his magic spell. Three orbs made out of lightning surrounded Remiel, with lightning sparks running in between them and forming an triangle, trapping the angel inside. Then several bolts of lightning fell from the sky and struck the flying foe. Dean thought he could hear some screaming, but the sound of the attack blocked out all other sound. Right after the spell, Lloyd and Sheena went after the angel again, not giving him a single moment to recover. Dean joined the duo in melee combat. The angel seemed to be surrounded by a strong magical barrier, as their attacks hit the angel, but what seemed to be lethal attacks for any normal enemy, only made cuts to the angel. Remiel was in pain and suffered from their attacks, so as long as they kept up this pace, the angel would fall.
"This isn't over yet." Remiel said with his voice full of hate as he disappeared. The angel somehow teleported out of the range of the three warriors. "You dare to defy the Heavens? You fools! Judgement!" Not knowing what kind of attack to expect and whether the angel was targeting him, Dean acted fast.
"Guardian!" Dean surrounded himself with a barrier made out of mana. Just a moment after that a magical light from above hit Dean with full force, but Dean wasn't the only one who was being targeted. These powerful rays of light that fell from above targeted the whole party and everyone was hit by this magic spell. Only Dean and Raine had protected themselves with a shield of mana. The rest was hit by the spell. Remiel then shot those arrows of light towards Lloyd and Sheena. Dean jumped in front of Lloyd and blocked the arrows, but he could not block the arrows heading towards Sheena, but the summoner had jumped out of reach at the last moment. Dean then could hear the Professor screaming in pain. Remiel had used a spell on their healer, hoping to take out the one who was providing support for the rest of the group. The angel was then hit by several fireballs, which stopped the angel from attacking Raine. Remiel wasn't holding back anymore and prepared another spell, now clearly targeting Genis. Dean quickly unleashed a basic lightning spell on the angel, diverting its attention. Although Dean could feel the hate erupting from inside, his thoughts were now clear and he felt both unusually calm and enraged. As he calmly walked towards the angel, he unleashed one basic lightning spell after another. Remiel now looked towards him and shot his arrows at Dean, but Dean blocked them as he kept unleashing basic lightning spells on the angel. His walk was confident and he was taunting the angel. There was no way Dean could this pace up. He could feel that the mana he used for artes and spells was slowly depleting. It was a bluff. A taunt so that the angel would set his eyes on Dean and not on the elves, whose defence was weak at the moment. Finally the angel flew towards Dean, but then suddenly disappeared again and showed up behind Dean. Dean was hit in the back by an attack, but the pain he now felt physically was nothing compared to the feeling of his crushed heart and the raging storm of hate that was inside of him. Dean quickly turned around and attacked the angel who was laughing for a little bit, but looked surprised the way Dean quickly recovered.
"Flame Strike! Wind Gale! Lightning Blade!" Dean unleashed one of his deadly combinations on the angel. The elemental artes seemed to do much damage, as the angel was staggered a little bit more after each attack. Dean continued with his attacks, but wasn't using artes anymore. His mana was getting low and he had the angel pinned down. The angel teleported away from Dean, but now faced Lloyd and Sheena in front of him. Lloyd reacted immediately and attacked the angel with his artes as well.
"Demon Fang! Sword Rain! Tiger Rage!" A shockwave, a flurry of attacks and a upward and downward slash hit the angel.
"Power Seal! Life Seal! Pyre Seal!" Sheena unleashed her combo of artes on the angel, knocking it to the ground.
"Photon!" Raine shouted as her used a light spell on the angel, the same spell Remiel had used on her.
"Thunder Blade!" A blade made out of lightning fell from above and pierced the angel, who was lying down on the ground helpless. The spell then exploded, finally finishing off the angel. Unable to get up anymore, the angel crawled forward, trying to reach for Colette.
"Impossible… How can an angel, the ultimate being, lose to a group of humans?" Remiel asked himself this question, but nobody paid attention to him.
"Colette, come back to us! I'm going to restore you back to your normal self! I promise!" Lloyd shouted towards the winged blond girl who was floating in the sky, not responding to anything that happened around her. Dean could not speak. He was tired from the fight and too afraid to look at Colette. He knew what he would see there. The girl he loved with all his heart, turned into a being without a soul, emotions and memories. Just an empty vessel was floating around there, not Colette.
"Colette.. Have you really forgotten us?" Lloyd asked the floating Chosen.
"You're wasting your time. Not only did she lose her memory, but she has lost the soul to listen to your words. Now Colette is merely a puppet standing before death's door." The voice of the mercenary said. Dean looked up towards the altar, where Kratos was standing now. Dean hadn't heard him approaching, even with his improved hearing. The mercenary was standing there, unharmed, with his arms over each other and aura that distanced himself from the others. The way he spoke, the way he was standing there, Kratos behaved like a different person now.
"Kratos!" Genis shouted as he noticed the mercenary as well.
"Where have you been?! What are you saying?!" Lloyd asked the mercenary. There was both relief and confusion in his voice.
"The Chosen desired the regeneration of the world and chose this path herself. By the summoning of the Chosen to Derris-Kharlan, the seal will be broken and the regeneration will be complete." Kratos said calmly as he slowly walked towards the floating blond Chosen. Dean didn't understand and at the same moment he did. It was like another dream of his had come true. Kratos was standing there, but he didn't belong to them anymore.
"Kratos, have you really?" Dean spoke softly. The mercenary glanced at him for a moment, but then returned his gaze towards Lloyd and the others. Dean was standing between the angel and the others.
"Kratos? What are you talking about?" Lloyd asked the mercenary, now even more confused.
"It is what you wanted as well. We will take the Chosen as the new body for Martel." Remiel had said those words as well. Dean didn't want to believe it, but he knew it true. Kratos was on the side of the angel, on the side of Remiel.
"Lord Kratos, have pity on me. Please… lend me your aid." Remiel just confirmed what Dean thought.
"No… Kratos… Why?" Dean said as a great sadness took over him. The mercenary who had trained him. The gentle, but mysterious man who had taught him so many things and had stand at their side this whole time, hadn't been on their side from the beginning. Kratos turned his attention to the dying angel.
"Have you forgotten, Remiel? I was once of the inferior race… a human. Does the ultimate being seek help from that which he despises the most?"
"Guh…" Remiel coughed up some blood and then fell silent. The angel had died. The group had finished him off. Dean cursed himself again. He had wanted to defeat the angel, not to kill him. Dean needed the angel. He needed answers. Dean looked at Kratos again. But maybe they didn't need Remiel in order to get the answers they wanted. Maybe Kratos would tell them… A hope came over Dean. While this was happening Lloyd ran towards Kratos and stood between him and Colette.
"Move out of the way." Kratos simply said to Lloyd, ordering him around.
"Kratos… Who are you?" Lloyd asked the mercenary. At that moment the body of Kratos began emanating a blue light.
"I am of Cruxis, the organization that guides this world." Kratos answered as the wings of an angel sprung from his back. "I am one of the Four Seraphim, sent forth to keep close watch over the Chosen." The wings of Remiel had seemed to be made out of feathers and therefore, looked more realistic, but the wings of Kratos looked the same as the wings of Colette. The only difference between the wings of Colette and those of Kratos was the colour. Colette's wings were pink and those of Kratos were light blue.
"Kratos is an angel, too?!" Genis reacted shocked. Dean had been in shock the whole time. He didn't know what to think and believe anymore. Slowly the sadness over the loss of a companion turned into hate. Because the sadness had been strong, this hate was now turning into a rage that was stronger than the hate Dean felt towards Remiel.
"You deceived us!" Sheena said fiercely to Kratos, defying him.
"Deceived?" Kratos asked. "If the Chosen merges with Martel, she will awake, and the world will be saved." Kratos stated. "Is that not what you wanted?" The awakened angel turned our own words against us.
"Once her body is taken by the Goddess of Martel, Colette will truly die." Raine stated. The woman seemed to be calm about all of this, but the eyes of the woman told a different tale.
"No. She will be reborn as Martel." Kratos corrected Raine. Dean had heard enough.
"Kratos… I will not forgive you…" Dean said softly and jumped up into the sky and turned his attack towards Kratos. The former mercenary had somehow spotted this action and quickly drew his sword to block the attack and pushed Dean away. Dean landed on the ground again. The world around him had disappeared. Only he and Kratos existed at this point.
"You earnestly think you can defeat me?" Kratos said to him, mocking him. Dean stormed towards Kratos, screaming out loud. Dean kept on attacking the blue winged angel, but as always his guard was perfect and showed no openings. Dean didn't care. He just kept on attacking Kratos in his rage. Kratos then blocked Dean and brought him out of balance, as his attacks were in a frenzy and were easy to predict, block and his guard was full of openings. Dean knew this, but he didn't care. Kratos now attacked him and it seemed the attack would land, if the attack wasn't blocked at the last moment by two swords. Lloyd had saved Dean at the nick of time.
"Pull yourself together Dean! You can't win fighting like that!" Sheena shouted at him. Dean gritted his teeth. Suddenly The Professor stood before him and gave him a painful slap to the face. Dean put one of his hands to his face.
"Are you awake right now?" Dean looked angry at the woman, but the rage he had felt was now somehow quelled down. "Good." Raine said, noticing the change in Dean. "If we want to defeat Kratos, we need to work together. If we do that, we can win." At the moment Raine said that Dean could see Sheena flying backwards. She hit the ground hard and had lost conscious. Dean doubted they could win. Even if they worked together.
"Professor, please focus on healing. Make sure that everyone gets out of this alive." Dean said to his teacher, as she looked shocked at Sheena, surprised that her companion had been taken out so quickly.
"Genis, try to land a spell on Kratos. It doesn't matter if we're hit by the attack as well. The Professor can heal us." The elf boy looked with big eyes at Dean and his mouth open, unable to speak. "Please Genis. Kratos won't be showing mercy. We'll all die if we don't take risks ourselves." Genis looked down for a moment, but then looked determined at Dean. Dean knew his answer. Dean had been watching the battle between Lloyd and Kratos the whole time while he was trying to convince the elves what they needed to do. Lloyd was already bleeding and it wasn't looking good for him. As the swordsman in red blocked one of the attacks of his former mentor, he was still swung to the ground due to the force of the attack. Dean took a deep breath. He didn't know whether he would survive this fight with Kratos. He would have to risk everything. He formed the most powerful barrier he knew around him and infused the power of the wind in his body, using his magic. He was already tired from the battle with Remiel and he really needed all of his strength, but that wasn't the case. He would risk everything with this. He didn't care if he would lose consciousness in the progress. He then ran towards his former mentor and the hidden enemy from the beginning with speed he had never shown until now. Dean and Kratos clashed swords. Their attacks were both powerful and created small shockwaves of sound with each clash the swords would make. Dean held back on the beginning and made his attacks predictable and easy to block. As Kratos pushed Dean in an unfavourable position and prepared to counterattack, Dean suddenly attacked with full speed.
"Wind Gale! Huricane Trust!" The wind elemental artes were now more powerful due to the infusion of the wind element in Dean. Dean then combined both the elemental of wind and lightning in his sword and attacked again. "Super Lightning Blade!" Kratos had taught him this technique not so long ago, but his former mentor did not know that Dean had already mastered the arte on his own. It was a trust attack, both the sword was charged with both the element of wind and lightning and it was like a combination of Hurricane Trust and Lightning Blade, but then even more powerful. A bolt of lightning hit Kratos and he was blown away by a blast of wind that erupted from the tip of the sword of Dean. Kratos had blocked the attacks of Dean, but he couldn't block the effects of those attacks. Dean now had the upper hand, but time was his true foe and not Kratos. He could only fight like this for one minute and maybe a little bit longer, but only a few seconds. As soon as Kratos would realise this, he would go on the defensive and delay the fight. Dean would get exhausted, run out of mana and would then get defeated in a blink of an eye. Dean wasn't planning on letting that happen. The downside to this was, that Kratos probably knew what Dean was doing. Dean continued with his assault. Moving faster than Kratos, he broke through his guard and attacked him relentless. The problem was that Kratos had the same magical barrier around him as Remiel. Lethal attacks weren't lethal on him now. The former mercenary had a guard where almost nobody could get through and still he had a barrier around him and armour around him that would protect him against heavy attacks that Dean was given him now. Kratos recovered from the assault and now went on the offensive. He unleashed several of his deathly combinations on Dean, which Dean managed to evade barely, even with his enhanced speed. After a combination the blue winged angel could go on like he pleased as he needed no time to recover from his everlasting attacks and long combinations. Time was running out and Dean was brought to the defensive.
"Thunder Blade!" Genis shouted and a blade of lightning struck Kratos. As the blade exploded Kratos brought forth a barrier made of mana and it seemed that the magic spell of Genis would hit Dean more than Kratos.
"Thunder Shield!" Dean formed the shield made of lightning just before the magic spell exploded. The shield not only absorbed the lightning attack, but also gave Dean back a little bit of mana. After the spell Lloyd came in and joined the fight, but he hit the ground only a few seconds later, being hit by a powerful combination of Kratos that you just couldn't block, only barely evade with still getting hurt in the end. The teamwork of Genis and Lloyd gave Dean enough time to resume his assault on Kratos and the blue winged angel was forced on the defence again. Dean attacked again with a combination of artes, but after it only a few seconds remained before his mana would run out. Black spots were already showing up in his eyesight. He had run out of time. Kratos was still standing and wasn't hurt enough. Several cards then hit Kratos and exploded, staggering the man. A warm light filled Dean and his eyesight returned to normal. The Professor had charged him with a little bit of her mana. Genis tried to hit Kratos with another magic attack, but the angel dodged the attack by jumping backwards. Kratos landed in front of Dean. Dean brought his sword up and charged it with all the mana he had left and brought it down. Kratos took on a defensive stance, but his sword was slammed out of his hands by the attack. Dean fell to his knees, unable to stand anymore. Kratos reached for his sword again and it seemed that they had lost in vain even with that last attack. Kratos was again hit with several explosive card attack. Lloyd then hit the warrior without a weapon with all his might and several artes. The former mercenary tried to block with his shield, but that too was shattered by the relentless attacks. Finally Kratos was brought down to his knees.
"Ugh!" The blue winged angel showed that he was defeated.
"Time to finish this!" Lloyd prepared to deal the final attack, the killing blow. Just before that a light flashed and Lloyd was pushed backwards by an unknown force. Dean could all see this, but he could not move. He was just sitting there on his knees, with his sword still in his hands, which were cramped and unable to relax. Black spots were once again in Dean's eyesight, but he could still see and he was still conscious. After the flash there was another winged being floating next to Kratos. The man had long blond hair, a white tight suit covered on his whole body and a crystal just below his neck. The suit had parts of gold at the edges. The wings on the back of this man were much bigger than the wings of Kratos and Colette. The wings were as tall as the man himself and he was floating in the air due to their force. A powerful aura emitted from the man and Dean knew immediately that his angel was even stronger than Kratos, thus a creature that they had no hope of defeating even if they were at full force.
"I guess not even you could bring yourself to fight against such an opponent…" The angel said to Kratos as if he had watched the whole fight.
"Lord Yggdrasill." Kratos said as he turned his attention to the angel. The former mercenary was already on his knees, but it seemed like he was now kneeling to the new angel whose name is Yggdrasill.
"Who's that?" Genis asked from behind.
"Another angel?" Sheena asked surprised, wondering how many more angels would pop up any second now. The angel named Yggdrasill turned his attention to Lloyd, who was still standing there with his swords in his hands.
"Are you Lloyd?" the angel asked, apparently knowing the name of Lloyd.
"Give me your name and I'll give you mine!" Lloyd said back, demanding some kind of respect.
"Haha… people need not introduce themselves to a dog." the angel said, seemingly amused, as he looked down on Lloyd. Though in Dean's eyes when it came to difference in strength, Lloyd was nothing more than an insect compared to that angel. Dean had cast only one glance at the angel and he had realised the difference in power between them.
"What did you say?!" Lloyd asked angrily, ready to fight.
"Fine, I shall tell you my name, wretched human. I am Yggdrasill. Leader of Cruxis… and the Desians!" Hearing that answer, Lloyd wouldn't want to hear no more and stormed towards the angel along with Sheena. The angel slammed his fist to the ground, creating a powerful shockwave that blasted the two warriors into the air. With two movements of his hands Genis and Raine were brought to the ground. The two elves immediately lost conscious. Sheena was passed out again. Lloyd somehow found the strength to get up. Dean gathered his strength to get up and slowly walked towards Yggdrasill who was floating towards Lloyd. Lloyd swung his swords at the angel, but it seemed like the swords just passed right through the angel without causing any damage. The angel smiled and raised his arm, ready to attack Lloyd. Dean pushed Lloyd out of the way and fell to the ground in the progress. The angel lowered his arm and seemed to relax.
"We meet again Dean." the angel said to Dean who was on the ground, too tired to get up.
"Have we met before?" Dean weakly said to the angel. He turned to his back and tried to sit up, so he could face the angel.
"Yes, we have. Although you probably can't remember." Yggdrasill said to Dean. To Dean, it was the first time saying this man, this angel. He had no recollection of him. Still, this man knew him and knew that he wouldn't remember.
"What do you know about me?" Dean asked, curious now. At that moment Lloyd got close to them and tried to attack Yggdrasill, who just floated a bit backwards in order to dodge the attack.
"Get away Dean, I'll deal with him." Lloyd said to Dean, trying to protect his friend.
"Lloyd, stop. It's no use. We're just flies compared to him. Can't you see that?" Dean said to Lloyd. Lloyd stopped attacking.
"You should listen to your friend. He has keen eyes." Yggdrasill. It seemed that somehow the fighting had stopped. Then several cards flew towards Yggdrasill and circled around him. The angel swung with one arms and the cards flew towards every corner of the room. Yggdrasill raised its arm and somewhere inside the room a huge sword appeared. A powerful shockwave was emitted from the sword which send everyone flying. Lloyd was sent in the air and got knocked against a pillar, from which the upper part collapsed. Lloyd got to his knees and Yggdrasill seemed to want to bring forth the killing blow. Dean was lying on the ground, barely conscious. He could do nothing anymore, but he couldn't let another one of his friends die. With willpower alone he got to his feet. His sword was still in his hand. He was out of mana and walking was impossible at the moment. All he could think of was to throw his sword towards Yggdrasill. So Dean threw his sword towards Yggdrasill who caught it from the air and then crushed the sword into many tiny pieces with just one gesture. Yggdrasill then turned his attention back to Lloyd.
"Kratos, I trust you have no objections?" the angel asked Kratos. The former mercenary kept quiet, but did not dare to look at that which what would take place. "Farewell." At that moment shots of concentrated mana were coming towards Yggdrasill. The angel easily dodged the attacks. Dean could see soldiers who looked like Desians, the 'Desians' from Triet Desert if Dean recalled correctly and Botta at the back. The soldiers picked up the whole party, including Dean and Lloyd. They even guided Colette back with them. Some of them were killed by Yggdrasill, but somehow everyone escaped from the clutches of Yggdrasill. Dean's sight was getting worse and worse. In the end he could only remember getting carried somewhere before he lost conscious.
Kratos has betrayed them, Colette is now a lifeless doll and Dean's sword is broken. All hope seems to be gone. What will have those 'Desians' have in store for them? Please find out in the next chapter.
If you have some feedback whether it be positive or negative, please give it to me. I always want to improve my story.
It will probably take some time until the next chapter will come out. I really wanted to write this chapter, so this one came out really quick in my eyes. So, until next time.