Greetings, everybody! Welcome to chapter 21 of Tales of Symphonia: Second Chance. We last left off at a cliffhanger, with Sheena returning to the Inn at Luin, only able to speak of terrible things she had forced to be witness to within the halls of Cadell's fortress. What are these terrible things that could render a Kunoichi to such a state? You'll just have to read to find out, won't you?
On a side note, I have written in two of the characters that have been emailed to me for this chapter. The timing for them could not be better, and I foresee many uses for them in the future. This chapter is also long, much longer than the last chapter, so make sure you're comfy when you sit down to read it. I recommend a pillow or two.
Now then, on with the show!
Speech-normal speech
Speech-thoughts
Speech-Origin speaking
(Speech) Author speaking
Flashback- several hours ago
The way and art of the shinobi life consists of many various skills and learned instincts that are used to help said shinobi adapt to their environment, situation, and enemies. With each individual shinobi comes a variation of methods and techniques for them to use in the tasks set before them. They train, train efficiently, endlessly, repeatedly, to insure that there can be no mistake when used out in the field of battle, or in the shadow of battle, as it may be. Stealth, assassination, spying; all of these things are part of the way of life for the various shinobi and Kunoichi of Mizuho.
Sheena Fujibayashi was no exception to this rule.
From the beginning, Sheena demonstrated a natural feel for stealth and spying, even at an early age in avoiding being caught with food that may not have necessarily been her own food. She could feel by instinct where to hide in the shadows to not be noticed, how to control her breathing, and how to hide in plain sight. As time passed and she grew, she presented an excellent talent for information gathering, having been credited by the Vice-Chief personally for discovering a hidden agent planted inside Mizuho by a rival village, who intended to finish off the comatose Head Chief of Mizuho as a means of weakening Mizuho as a whole. Sheena was cautious to not let the achievement go to her head, as she reminded herself that it was her doing that caused the Head Chief to be in a comatose state.
Finally, Sheena was recognized as a full-fledged and accomplished Kunoichi, when she was approached by the leader of the Renegades, Yuan, to seek out and protect the Chosen of Sylvarant. At first, Sheena was utterly confused by the idea, as she understood that Sylvarant was the world that was draining mana away from Tethe'alla, due in part by the ritual of the Chosen carried out by their world as well as her own. She questioned the purpose behind the task, but was told that it was part of a plan that would end up protecting Tethe'alla, rather than helping to shelter a threat against it. That task had now led her to here, the outskirts of the base of one of the Desian Grand Cardinals, in order to spy and gain information on the base and the Desian forces within.
From her view within the tree she had taken refuge in, the front entrance was heavily guarded, with cameras posted on the front that scanned an estimated 180 degrees from left to right, as well as armed guards who stood at attention in front of the main gates. Sheena had expected this, as most bases of this sort would guard the front entrance to insure no one simply walked in. Otherwise, what would be the point of security when someone could walk right in? (cough Triet Renegade base cough)
'I'll have to take another entrance to get inside…the best bet would be somewhere along the sides, out of view of the cameras and the guards.' Sheena thought to herself, leaping from her hiding spot through the trees to try another entry point. As credit to her skill, not even a single leaf rustled in the wind left by her departure, allowing her to move quickly without being seen. Soon enough, Sheena discovered a small opening, a ventilation shaft along the eastern wall, though it was higher than some of the trees nearby could reach (1). Pulling out a Pyre Seal, Sheena threw it towards the covered shaft, using a minimal amount of mana so as to avoid making noise. The seal did its work, causing the cover to slide off and hit the grass quietly. Sheena decided to move quickly before a patrol came around to discover what she had done, leaping from the tree to the wall and then using her momentum to run up the wall until she caught the entrance and leapt inside.
'Piece of cake.' Sheena thought as she slipped inside. Unbeknownst to her, a small red butterfly fluttered outside the base, pausing over the fallen grate and then floating up to the small entry, before flying away…
Once inside, Sheena was immediately on guard to watch for any wandering soldiers, taking care to silence her own steps as she made her way into the base. The constantly bright lights lit the hallway from beginning to end, causing no shadow to exist behind Sheena as she walked. Reviewing the quickly made plan she had made while observing the front entrance to the base, Sheena's first objective was to locate a computer or terminal somewhere within the base that would allow her to see at least the makeup of the fortress. It would be handy to know where the prisoners are located and be able to find them, as well as any other points of interest Sheena could check out or avoid entirely.
The hallway she had broken into was empty at the time, containing only a few supply closets and extra materials and such. Moving along, Sheena progressed further into the base, and found herself quickly becoming more and more bored out of her mind at the repetitive colors and paint that adorned the walls surrounding her. She avoided a patrolling robot unit, doubling back into a hallway when she saw the floating machine make its way along whatever path it had been given to follow. 'Does this place ever end?' Sheena thought to herself after the machine passed. She only had to travel another hallway before finally locating a room with a large computer system within it (2). 'Yes!' She quickly slipped in as the doors shut behind her.
Approaching the large machine before her, Sheena went to work on trying to pull up a map of the facility. But, when it began to download and present the image, it suddenly paused and requested an I.D and password combination to continue. Sheena cursed under her breath, and was about to try and bypass the request, when she heard loud footsteps followed by a voice outside the door she had just come from. Sheena immediately rushed out of view from the doorway, moving to crouch beside another large machine within the room, its bulkiness providing her with adequate cover.
"Why am I always the one who has to get monitor duty these days? Not once have I seen any of the rest of the guys come in here and scan the cameras for any trouble. No, it's always Leo who has to do it, while everyone else gets to go outside and enjoy fresh air while I'm stuck with fluorescent lights and floating scraps of junk." The now aptly identified Leo complained as he entered the room. The usual rotation for the guards was to let most of the one's with experience outside to go on patrol, in case of anyone wanting to try and spy on the fortress, while younger ones, like Leo, were kept inside and left to do the jobs and tasks that nobody had time to do, a.k.a, doing all the footwork while the rest get credit. Leo looked up from his complaints to himself and noted that the main computer for the base was up and running, and had been abandoned in the middle of a task. 'Likely by someone else whose as bored as I am in here', Leo thought. He approached the computer with the intention of ending the program and going about his task, pulling out his I.D card to gain user privilege.
Sheena noticed the Desian pulling out a small plastic card key from his pocket, and realized that must've been the I. D she needed in order to access the computer. She waited till the right moment before suddenly dashing out from her hiding spot, appearing on the Desian's left side and shooting a quick but strong hit where his kidney was located. Such a hit caused the guard's body to be stunned for a moment, unable to speak save for letting out a small cry of pain. Sheena quickly followed up with a leg sweep, knocking him to the floor, his helmet and armor clattering as they met the metal floor. "What the-?" he managed to say before Sheena silenced him with a swift chop to his neck, hitting a bundle of nerves that caused instant unconsciousness.
Sheena picked up the dropped card key and looked down at the fallen Desian. "I'm getting a little sloppy. He managed to get two words out before I knocked him out." She commented to herself before heading back over to the comp. She swiped the I.D card into the slot and was rewarded with the access denied screen being replaced with a password requirement. Sighing, Sheena was about to go search the Desian again when she noticed writing on the backside of the card. Flipping it over, she saw the word Cadell written in sloppy handwriting. Deciding to go with it, she typed it into the computer and watched as a map of the base and all its contents were revealed to her. 'Jackpot!' Sheena cheered mentally as she scanned over the map's basic details. Once she could retrace it in her mind's eye with her eyes closed, Sheena began to try and get more information out of it, but stopped when she heard more footsteps coming. 'Why is it when I don't need someone to come out, that everyone decides to come visit the computer room?' the Kunoichi thought before she made a dash for another door nearby the computer.
The doors slid open, but Sheena took only one step inside before suddenly jumping back in. The room adjacent to the computer room was filled with guards watching over some of the inner machinery of the base. There wasn't any room to hide in there. Thinking fast, Sheena looked for another exit, but failed to see any anywhere aside from the two she already knew were covered. The doors from the first entrance began to slide open, and Sheena's breath hitched in her throat. 'Crap!'
"I'm telling you, the guy needs to get out more and do more stuff. He's getting cramped in here and if we're not careful, he'll probably quit." Dean stated as he entered the computer room with Felicity. He had chosen to come and get Leo out from doing lacky duty, feeling pity for the guy. No one enjoys it; so of course, they normally leave it to the lackeys. He got Felicity to come with him just in case he needed to explain to a superior officer what they were doing.
"Sure, of course he can go do that; if he wants Cadell to hunt him down and mount his head on the wall." Felicity replied. "But whatever; If you can sneak us off from guard duty, I'm happy to come along."
"See? I knew you would agree to-Leo?" Dean dashed forward, seeing his comrade lying unconscious on the ground. "What happened? Leo?" he asked, but received no response from the out cold soldier.
Felicity walked up and checked his neck for a pulse. "He's alive and breathing. It looks like he got knocked out by something though. Maybe a droid came in here and mistook him for an enemy?" she suggested.
"Dunno. But just to be safe, let's activate a general alert, in case it's an intruder running around here." Dean replied. Felicity nodded and she helped Dean to lift Leo's body and get him to the infirmary.
Meanwhile, up above the room, Sheena watched the scene play out from her prime spot within the ventilation shaft. She had jumped up in time to avoid being spotted, but was cautious to not even sigh in relief as the Desian soldiers left the room. Before she could relax, she heard a loud, klaxon alarm ring through the base, followed by the announcement of "General alert-level one. All soliders be on the lookout for intruders. Use force to apprehend if necessary. All computer systems save those for security purposes are now on lockdown." Sheena cursed under her breath at the last sentence. That meant that she couldn't use the computer that was sitting right beneath her unless she wanted to give away her position.
"I guess it's time to do a little reconnaissance work from up here." She muttered to herself before beginning to crawl through the shaft. She took her time, as she didn't want to make it obvious that the intruder was right above everyone's heads. She thanked the elemental spirits that she had learned stealth as well as she had, and continued moving through the base. She kept in mind that while she was here to get information, she needed to be looking for a route of escape to take to get back to Luin.
Sheena recalled the map she had memorized from the computer and took a left at the first intersection of vents, intent on locating either the prisoner's quarters, or perhaps a weapons area to better know what she and the rest of the group were up against. She never took notice of another red butterfly that flew up to the ventilation shaft the same way she had came and watched her crawl through, before fluttering away…
Approximately 15 minutes later, and after much wiggling and complaining about her figure fitting into the shaft, Sheena came across what she believed to be the holding cells for the prisoners. There were several cells contained within a large room, with many civilians inside each, dressed in ragged, dirty clothes that the Desians provided for them. Sheena was quickly reminded of what she was doing this for, and carefully removed the cover to the vent leading out and into the room. There were no guards present in the room, possibly due to everyone searching for the alleged intruder in the rest of the base. After all, no intruder would go straight for the jailing cells, or so their logic told the Desians. The civilians all gave soft gasps and exclamations as Sheena suddenly appeared before the cell door.
"You…you're the intruder that the alarm mentioned!" A young woman exclaimed from within the cell. Sheena nodded and they gave quiet sighs of relief and praise to Martel that someone had finally come. "Are you here to break us out?" another voice asked, this time an elderly man.
"I wish that I was, but I'm afraid not. I'm not capable of taking on an entire base alone. I came here to gather information on the forces here, as well as Cadell herself, if possible. Can any of you tell me anything relating to either of those?" Sheena replied, speaking softly but with urgency. She didn't know how long she had before the guards might return to check on the prisoners.
At first, there were general no's and shaking of heads, which made Sheena feel that she may have to attempt using a computer after all. But then, she heard someone say that they could answer her questions, and she looked up and down the cells for the owner of the voice. She witnessed a hand waving two cells down, so she rushed over to find a young man there. He had medium length brown hair, enough to cover his eyebrows and ears, though Sheena could see glimpses of white mixed in the brown hair. He seemed fairly tall, approaching 5'10, and his body was well-toned, probably due to work on farmland nearby Luin. "Who are you?" Sheena asked. She felt a little put-off by the glare he seemed to be sending her, though she chalked it up to the fact he was imprisoned while she was not.
"The name's Toshio Cosine (3). You said you were lookin' for information on the people here?" Toshio replied gruffly. His voice was deep, close to Kratos', but with a sterner edge to it. At Sheena's nod, he continued. "If you're lookin' to bring a fight to Cadell and the Desians here, I hope you have good backup. You'll need it."
"Trust me, we can handle it. Can you give me any solid numbers or maybe details about the soldiers here?" Sheena questioned.
Toshio seemed to weigh it in his mind for a moment, the glare never receding, before answering, "Numbers wise, I can't say for sure. I know Cadell has more machines here than men. Seems to prefer them to real people. As for the soldiers themselves, nothing too special about them, aside from the usual standard weapons they keep. But the machines are what give Cadell most of her power and workforce."
Sheena nodded and said, "Thanks. Knowing all this will help us to fight her and get all of you out of here. You can count on it." She gave a short polite bow before running off towards a side doorway at the end of the cells. But before she got far, Toshio called her back. "What is it?" she asked.
"There's one last thing you need to know. About Cadell." He replied. If anything, his glare seemed to become more intense, as if fueled by his memories. Sheena fought back the urge to shiver, but nodded for him to continue. "There are things here that are worse than either the soldiers or the machines, even Cadell herself. Much worse. You better hope you don't run into them."
Sheena felt eerie at hearing him speak of whatever secret the base held within it. 'Something worse than Cadell and the soldiers? What could that be?' She thought to herself before nodding and then dashing away, storing the info for later.
Toshio watched Sheena vanish through another doorway before sighing and leaning back against the wall of the cell. 'Dunno if that did her any good or not, but maybe she'll be the one to break us out of here. At least, I hope she can…' he thought before choosing to let it go for now and just wait and see.
10 minutes later
'Dammit, dammit, dammit!' Sheena thought frantically as she fled as quickly as she could down another hallway. She had managed to sneak through the rest of the base undetected, trying to find herself an exit way, but with no avail. She had turned down one hallway with red lines, hoping it might be one leading to an exit (4). However, her luck seemed to fall out on her, as what she found were two more Desian guards walking the halls, no doubt looking for the alleged intruder, a.k.a Sheena. She had managed to dispatch them without any trouble, but not before someone else had taken notice of the noise from her location and yelled for others to come and check it out.
This led her to now fleeing from possibly many more guards than she could take on and win, running down a hallway with green stripes. She could hear many footsteps of several soldiers approaching, and chose to dive into a doorway, hoping that it was just another supply closet. The doors quickly shut behind her as she rolled into her dive, coming back up on her feet, panting. Wiping sweat from her brow, she thanked She had managed to avoid being caught, but now where was she? Turning around, Sheena surveyed the room, and felt a growing sense of dread build within her.
There were many, many machines within this room. Some towered over her head by a good height, lined with switches and lights enough to possibly confuse even Raine. The normally bright lights the rest of the base had seemed to have skipped over this room, since it appeared darker in her opinion. Shadows cast by the machines extended every which way inside the room, causing Sheena, out of paranoia, to be wary of approaching any of the far away and shrouded ones she couldn't see very clearly. Hiding in the shadows is one thing: it's another when you know full and well that something could appear right out from behind the shadow you hide within. Several large metal cables extended from machines to a small platform in the middle of the room, where a large vat that was green and see-through was placed with the cables connecting to it at its base. It was as if she had stepped into a mad scientist's laboratory, Sheena told herself, only to remember that the man who originally built this place, was indeed a mad scientist. (5)
"What is this place?" Sheena whispered to herself, approaching one of the nearby computers. There was no indication of just what these computers were for, and Sheena was certain she wouldn't dare touch them for fear of setting off another alarm. "Something tells me I shouldn't stay here…" she stated before turning towards the door to walk out. She took three steps before she heard a voice she had hoped upon hope to not hear.
"I told you, I do not care if one of the soldiers was unconscious at his station. The lazy slacker was probably asleep at his post, and should be reprimanded by you, commander, not me. I expect you to keep those soldiers in line, because if you do not, I can assure you that they, along with you, will be disposed of quite easily. Now, get out of my sight!" the sinister voice of Cadell bellowed, shortly followed by the sound of running feet away from the door. Thinking quickly, Sheena made a dash for one of the taller machines by the wall, seeking refuge behind it and within its shadow, out of sight.
The automatic doors opened and in strode Cadell, followed by a figure whose features were hidden by a brown cloak, but stood at a height akin to Genis'. She could make out black bangs of hair that peeked out from the shadow of her hood, but couldn't get any more detail than that without risking her hiding place. Sheena watched as Cadell strode up to the computer that she guessed was the main control for whatever purpose this room has. "Bring in the test subject." Cadell called out over an intercom, and was soon presented with the priest she had taken from Luin only a short while ago. An exsphere had been placed without a key crest into his left hand, causing visible scars to appear all around the exsphere on his hand.
Sheena's hand balled into a fist as she recognized the prisoner, but managed to keep calm and stay focused. It wouldn't do her or anyone else any good to just leap out and try to rescue the man. No, she would have to remain within the shadows.
"P-please, for martel's sake. Please, stop hurting the townspeople. We've done nothing wrong, nothing to deserve such animosity. Take my life if you wish, but spare them. I beg you!" the priest begged. Cadell paid him no heed and instructed the guards to place him within the container. Once it was shut and locked into place, Cadell pulled a lever on the console, causing the bottom of the container to open and green liquid to pour in. The priest panicked, thinking he was going to drown. He banged on the glass frantically, the water rising past his midriff, his chest, until the entire chamber was full. He closed his eyes and held in what he believed to be his final breath, and when it finally came that he had to breathe again, he opened his mouth and awaited death to take him. Imagine his surprise when he found that he wasn't just alive, but capable of breathing completely normally in the liquid.
"Wh-what is this?" he asked, his voice muffled by the container.
Cadell simply smirked and brushed a strand of hair out of her face. "Did you really think I would just drown you, father? Kill you in such a simple manner? No, I have many more uses for you." She stated, laughing a small evil laugh that promised much worse to come for the devout man. Sheena looked on as Cadell seemed to type in a code for a program on the computer, which caused some of the machines to come to life. Robotic arms extended and bent to position themselves around the container, some having clamps while others appeared equipped with some form of laser or beam. As each second passed of the strange experiment before her, Sheena's foreboding feelings of danger grew. It made it worse that she was unable to act, incapable of helping this man, left only to watch and observe from behind the machines.
"Entering phase two. Preparing to inject subject with zaelithirium (6)." Cadell stated. For Cadell, talking about the experiment being carried out before her usually helped her to enjoy her scientific endeavors. It was her, after all, who had furthered Lord Kvar's research into exspheres, so it should be her right to oversee and partake in the experiment. That and it helped to keep the room less quiet. Oh, the screams and begging and pleading of her subjects were quite loud, for certain, but she grew bored with them often after listening for a minute or two.
A small needle suddenly extended from within the container's base up to shoulder height, containing a dark liquid that was soon emptied through an injection by the needle into the man's arm. He yelped out in pain and the needle soon disappeared back from where it had came from just as quick as it had appeared. The priest suddenly became much less energetic, his movements slowed and lethargic. He had stopped trying to beg for mercy and was quiet, though his hand did keep pressing against the glass in a futile effort of escape. Sheena nearly let out a small gasp as she watched small red lines extend from the injection point towards the exsphere in the priest's hand. It followed the course of his veins, and seemed to divert into the small cracks that had formed around the exsphere. The injected fluid then glowed with a bright blood red hue before the priest suddenly let out a scream, its sound muffled by the liquid and container.
He thrashed about in the vat like he was possessed, clawing at the glass and bashing it with his arms wildly. The afflicted man kept struggling in the liquid, and Sheena's eyes widened as he began to…transform? Yes, his appearance was beginning to alter within the container. His hands began to darken to a sickly green as his fingernails became claws. The new color spread quickly throughout his body, changing his skin tone to a much darker shade, nearly matching the liquids he was contained with. His clothes began to tear as he ripped at them, and he grew in size. His arms and legs expanded, stretching his clothes to their limits as they tried to accommodate what was happening. Through all this, the priest had not ceased screaming, but his voice and tone had grown steadily deeper, more bestial as the process continued. Cadell wasn't even bothered by what happened before her. To Sheena's horror, she was grinning. Like a child being presented with a new toy to play with.
The transformation continued, pushing the priest beyond what defined a human being into something like that of a nightmare. His facial features began to distort and fade away, while his skin turned even darker green. Yellow lines began to skitter up and down his arms, while his legs became bent. His feet grew claws, and seemed to change no more, while the rest of his body finished. On his head, all of his hair was now gone, and his facial features, his mouth, his nose, his eyes, were all gone, replaced by a single red orb. The once-human priest was gone, now replaced by what was, in Sheena's mind, a terrible being. It uttered a final cry before going silent, its arms falling to its side as it lay still.
All was quiet within the room, and Sheena was struggling to remain in her spot any longer. Her stomach was churning; sickened by the display she had just been forced to sit through. Her legs and hands were shaking. She had seen enough. She wanted to flee, and to never return to this Martel forsaken place. Forget just defeating Cadell; the entire base needed to be destroyed, with this room being the first to go.
"Well, well. He survived phase one and phase two. I am impressed." Cadell commented. "I wonder if he can withstand phase 3, or should I simply save him for the prisoners as an example? Decisions, decisions…" she appeared to consider it a moment before turning to her cloaked companion. "Mio, how many of the Exbelua survived the transformation process to reach Psybelua form?" she asked.
Sheena's eyebrows furrowed as she racked her mind. 'What in blazes is a Psybelua?'
The now identified Mio didn't remove her cloak, but answered quietly, "5, Lady Cadell. The rest either exploded from the attempt, or did not survive the transformation."
"Hmm…only 5…an even 6 would be better, wouldn't you say so, Mio?" Cadell asked. The girl did not reply, but kept observing the newly created Exbelua before them. "I knew you would agree, Mio. Prepare the subject for the third phase." Cadell ordered into the intercom. Several guards suddenly rushed in, and took post all around the container that held the creature. "Bring in the mineral sent by Rodyle. And handle it with caution, you fools. I don't want any accidents like before."
The doors behind Cadell slid open a few moments later, revealing two guards bringing in a large container that was moved through the use of a floating carrier. As Sheena looked on, she watched as the guards brought it in her direction, and realized they were going to use the machine she was hiding behind. Her heartbeat began to race as they drew closer. When they stopped, Sheena breathed a small, quiet sigh of relief, hearing them open a hatch of sorts and loading it into the machine. "Very good, gentlemen. Now, stand back and away from the machine. I want nothing touching it during this process." Cadell ordered, and the men quickly moved aside and out of the way. "Begin phase three. Fire the mineral upon the subject on my mark." At her words, Sheena felt her cover began to come to life, energizing and preparing to complete whatever task it served.
Sheena remembered Cadell warning her guards not to touch the machine, and made sure that absolutely no part of her would be touching it either. She was prepared to make a break for it, ready to leave this hell-hole and get back to the others. She had the means to do so through the guardians she still had on her. But, if she used them now, she wouldn't be able to get anymore until she returned to Mizuho. And something told her she was going to need these guardians later on.
"Three…Two…One…Execute." Cadell called out. Sheena turned away from the container, not wanting to let her mind be scarred by anymore terrors of Cadell and her madness. She closed her eyes and shut them tight, her hands covering her ears to muffle out any noise she might hear. The only sound she could hear now was the blood pumping through her ears, and Sheena was grateful it was the only thing she could hear. But it was for naught as the creature that was within the container started screaming again, letting out high pitch squeals and yells that while not in any language she knew, she knew them to be screams of pain and agony. Sheena dared to open her eyes for only a moment after a minute had passed, and had to clamp two hands over her mouth to stop herself from screaming in fear. Though she could not see the being behind her, she could see the eerie shadows being cast on the wall in front of her. The room had taken on a red glow, causing the shadows to become even more menacing. Sheena unknowingly scooted back away from the wall, and pressed herself against the machine, forgetting Cadell's words until she was touching it herself.
She flew back away from the machine and shivered at what had run through her body in that instance. Feelings of sudden terror, fear, evil coursed through her and filled her. It made her want to curl into a ball and just hide from everything and everyone, and to hope and pray that those feelings never returned to her. They remained with her for a minute or so before they began to fade, allowing Sheena's racing heartbeat to start to slow down, and her heaving chest to get her more air to her body. When she finally could think straight again, Sheena lifted herself off the ground and peeked out to see what had become of the experiment.
The Exbelua had transformed, though it retained much of its former self. Its skin was now a reddish hue that was dark like brick, and its red eye had changed into a yellow one. The yellow lines that ran throughout the creature's arms and legs were now more pronounced. The biggest change appeared to be that it had developed a tail that extended behind it, weaving from side to side slowly on the ground. The container was now gone, shattered by the beast. The guards stood at the ready to fight it, should it turn wild on them. Cadell walked forward and presented herself in front of the Psybelua. "I am Cadell, your master. You serve me without question, without doubt, without though. Understood?" she asked.
The Psybelua took a moment to register these words, before it knelt down on one knee and replied with a distinct, almost hissing voice, "Yes, milady. I am yours to command."
"Very good. Escort this one to meet the rest, and the lock them up. I will retire for now to my quarters. The rest of you are dismissed." Cadell stated, turning to leave and passing by Mio, who watched in silence as the guards and Psybelua filed out of the room. She then turned to leave but paused suddenly, choosing to remove the hood of her cloak and reveal herself. She had pale skin, and black hair that was as long as her shoulder framed her face. She seemed delicate, fragile almost (7). She lifted up a hand and suddenly, a small red butterfly came out from where Sheena was hiding. She watched as it fluttered to Mio, landed on her extended finger, and then vanished without a trace. "You can come out now, Sheena Fujibayashi." Mio said quietly, turning to look directly at where Sheena was hiding.
Sheena considered simply running out and attacking the girl, but felt that with all that she had witnessed, she wouldn't even be capable of running, let alone engage an enemy. So she chose to step out slowly, cautiously, on weary, shaky, legs, doing her best to maintain her composure. She said nothing while looking back at Mio, meeting her gaze and giving her the most determined look she could.
Mio's red eyes blinked casually, looking over Sheena carefully before she spoke again. "I commend you for managing to get so far into here, Sheena. You've done extremely well in managing to avoid detection by the guards, the machines, and even Cadell herself. Sadly, you cannot hide yourself from me so easily. You left out tracks to follow you with, and so I observed your every move."
Sheena cleared her throat before asking, "Just who the heck are you, and what are you doing here?"
Mio gave a polite bow to Sheena before answering. "I am simply called Mio, Miss Sheena. And as for why I'm here, I have my purpose just as you have yours. Under other circumstances, I would've simply called the guards in here to apprehend you and place you with the rest of the prisoners. However…" she paused, choosing to walk around the console before continuing, "seeing as how you had to endure seeing this…experiment, and in respect for getting in here like you did, I will give you…5 minutes to escape. After that, should you still be here, I will call the guards and inform them of your location, and tell them to show you no mercy. Good day, Sheena." She turned and began walking away, but not before Sheena asked one last question.
"It was you who was spying on us at Balacruf, wasn't it? And all along since then?" Sheena asked.
Mio simply turned and answered, "Remember, Sheena: 5 minutes to escape. Starting now." She slipped through the open doors and walked to the left path as the doors shut.
Sheena tried to wrap her mind around all that she had paid witness to within the base. Her hands were still shaking, and she brought them to her eyes to watch them as they quivered uncontrollably. Enough was enough. It was time to go.
Flashback ends-present time
Sheena finished speaking and took another drink of water. By this point, all of the members of their group had awoken and gathered around to hear all that Sheena had seen and found. The entire time, when one hand was busy holding a glass of water, or clutching at the blanket she had wrapper around herself, her other hand had never left Lloyd's. He had refused to leave her side the entire time, letting her take her time to tell her story.
Raine had pulled out a notepad and had written down key notes from Sheena's memories. She didn't want to appear insensitive to the girl, but she knew that she needed to get down what she had seen before she repressed any of what she had seen. Such terror and trauma like Sheena had witnessed would undoubtedly cause her some trouble, though she seemed to be managing. Next to her on the table, Raine also had the map that Sheena had drawn upon coming back. She said that it would be best for her to draw it while it was still fresh in her mind, rather than after getting rest. Having said that, she had trouble at first, her hands shaking with each line traced, but eventually presented a completed map.
Kratos had been listening and watching from the doorway, and several times throughout the recollection, particularly with the Exbelua and Psybelua, he had felt the strong urge to simply go to the base himself and make Judgment rain upon the base, letting none escape his wrath. He had endured seeing his wife be transformed into such a thing, and been nearly broken by having to kill her. And now, someone else was engineering these creatures, for their own use. It made Kratos sick, and certain of one thing. Cadell was going to die. Oh, she would die.
All were quiet, letting the weight of Sheena's words rest upon their heads as they tried to assimilate what she had told them. Raine was the first to finally speak. "From what you describe…it would seem the base is quite large, larger than anticipated. Finding those prisoners and helping them to escape will be difficult enough, let alone having to deal with the guards and soldiers who will fight us along the way. And then there's Cadell herself to deal with." She stated softly.
Lloyd nodded. "It looks like we'll need a plan for this fight. It won't be as easy as Magnius or Kvar were back in Palmacosta."
Kratos spoke up from the doorway. "Agreed. Cadell has quite a number of soldiers and grunts she can throw at us. If it were not for the prisoners, we could've easily snuck into the base and destroyed it and everyone else with it. But that opportunity isn't present here, so we must work with what we have."
Genis decided to pitch in his thoughts, having been quiet the entire time from his seat next to Colette. "Maybe we could have the prisoners help us to fight back against Cadell? We could maybe match her numbers if we include them with us. And I'm sure the townspeople would help us too." He proposed.
Colette added in as well, saying, "What about maybe contacting Neil back in Palmacosta? Maybe he could send the army there to assist us here?"
Kratos shook his head. "No, I'm afraid that would take too long. Before the army could arrive, become well-organized, and be prepared to face Cadell's own army, she would have likely set up counter-measures that would render them useless. We know she can easily keep track of us, as we saw with this Mio character. She can likely use her just as easily to monitor anyone else she sought to know about."
Raine pondered for a moment in quiet before she offered another plan. "What if we challenged Cadell directly? Draw her out of the comfort of hiding behind her base and her army, and fought us herself?"
Lloyd scratched his head as he thought, his other hand still holding to Sheena's own. "Would she take that kind of bait?" he asked, looking to Kratos for his take.
Kratos closed his eyes in thought before replying. "She knows that she has an army to use at her disposal. She also has much confidence, almost too much, in her own abilities. As we saw when we first met her, she holds herself in a much higher regard with her own status as a Desian. It wouldn't be too far-fetched to imagine that we could entice her using her arrogance, leaving the base leaderless and her without support. It would require the right timing, placing, and location to pull it off. But I foresee one issue with that plan." Kratos stated. He took another breath and continued his explanation.
"Even if we did manage to get Cadell to leave the base to fight us, do you really think she would fight fairly? The moment she would begin to lose her ground, she would call upon her forces to come and overwhelm us. If we are to prevent that from happening, it would require us to take out the base while at the same time, holding off Cadell and preventing her from calling for support. And we can't do both tasks while acting as one group." Kratos finished.
"We would have to split into teams. One team to take out the base, the other team to hold off Cadell until the base is taken out." Genis said, filling in what Kratos was implying. Kratos' nod confirmed it. "Then I guess that leaves us with choosing who goes to the base, and who goes to fight Cadell."
"I wish to go to the base. We need to ensure that the prisoners are able to escape and get them to safety, back to Luin." Colette said. "It's my duty as the Chosen One to protect this world and the people in it."
"I too, wish to go to the base. If we want to destroy it, then you'll need me in there in order to use the computers." Raine stated.
"I'm going to fight Cadell. I'm not going to allow her to get away with hurting any more innocents. No matter how tough she is, I'll cut her down to size." Lloyd said, clenching a fist. He also personally wanted to defeat Cadell for the terrors that Sheena had been put through, though he kept this reason to himself.
"I will join you in the fight against Cadell." Kratos said simply. In his mind though, his reasons were direct. He was going to protect his son. It was as simple as that, and no one else would make him do otherwise, not even Lloyd himself.
"That leaves Genis and Sheena. What would you two wish to do? It's up to you." Lloyd asked, turning to glance at the two remaining individuals.
Genis sat in thought for a short time before standing up to announce his decision. "I'll go with Raine and Colette to the base. As much as I would like to fry Cadell to the ground, I feel better knowing I'm there with my sis. Besides, you're gonna need someone backing you up in there." He stated, directing the last comment to his sister. She grinned at his protectiveness of her, even if he was her younger sibling.
Lloyd turned to Sheena, who looked up at him and gave a weak smile. She wasn't sure how she had managed to stay awake this entire time, her experience having driven away all her energy and leaving her exhausted. She chalked it up to Lloyd's presence, finding strength knowing he was there for her. "Sheena, it's up to you. I understand if you don't wish to fight Cadell. You've been through a lot lately and-" he was cut off by Sheena putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him.
"Thanks, Lloyd. I appreciate it. But after seeing what I saw, it's not a matter of being afraid of going back. I want to stop her from ever doing it again. And the only way I can do that, is to go after the one who started it all. I'm going with you to fight Cadell." She said with resolution visible in her eyes. Lloyd considered arguing, but stopped when he saw the emotion in her eyes. He remembered feeling just the same back in Iselia, when he swore to protect Colette from the Desians, and again when he took an oath to change the world from Mithos' plan and vision. There wasn't any way to fight it.
"Ok then, Sheena. If that's what you want. You go on and get some rest; you've certainly earned some." He turned to the rest of the group. "As for us, let's take some time to prepare and go over the map. I get the feeling that we're gonna be in for one heck of a fight when the time comes." Everyone nodded, and Lloyd stood to escort Sheena to her room. He tucked her in and said goodnight, but noticed that she had already fallen asleep as soon as she had hit the bed. Lloyd smiled gently and made sure she was comfortable before closing the door and going back to join the others.
Cadell's base- Cadell's quarters
The newest Desian Grand Cardinal was looking over her files on the Chosen One and her group, the information provided by her little informant, Mio, showing itself to be invaluable as it was accurate. She knew that in due time, a confrontation with them would arise, as they would surely attempt a siege on her base of operations. She smirked at the idea of their feeble attempt to thwart her. With all the weapons she has at her disposal, how could she possibly lose?
She glanced over at a nearby clock and chose to go over her files one last time. She pulled up the files on her computer and had them displayed before her in ascending order from least threatening to most. A 3-d image of each of them was displayed with their information.
Genis Sage
Known Abilities: Magic user, capable of using multiple elements to varying degrees. Has displayed proficiency with Fire, Water, and Earth spells.
Strengths: Highly gifted intelligence, capable of identifying and adapting situations quickly. Excels at long range attacks, normally in the form of projectiles. Low height grants advantage in case of physical confrontation, allows him to move and avoid being hit if prepared.
Weaknesses: Demonstrates little to no real physical prowess in battle. Uses Kendama as means of channeling spells. Removal of said Kendama will most likely render him incapable of using his magic. Relies on remaining away from enemies in order to avoid being attacked, as well as being on offense.
Side notes: Do not comment on height of the mage. Has demonstrated immense rage at being mocked for it.
'So a miniature mage that I can flick aside with one hand. No problem.' Cadell thought to herself before moving on to the next.
Raine Sage
Known Abilities: Magic user-healing oriented. Has a large array of healing capabilities. Serves as support for the group. Also has an offensive capability, though these are limited. Offensive abilities lay in Light magic.
Strengths: Extensive array of healing spells and support magic. Also has highly gifted intellect, much like her sibling of the same name. Immense archaeological knowledge as well as medical. Due to extensive practice with healing magic, is capable of pulling them off with surprising speed. Light magic, while limited in diversity, is considered strong. Capable of use at any range, though used preferably at long distance.
Weaknesses: similar to younger sibling, not much in way of physical prowess. Fights at long range, and requires time to cast offensive spells. Uses staff to channel magic. Removal of staff will likely render her incapable of casting magic.
Side notes: Do not damage any archaeological artifact in her presence. Will cause infinitesimal rage until provoker pays the price for said damage. Also seems to have some form of power reserved in a head slap. Uncertain if used in battle.
'Ok…healer and support that's not completely right in the head…easy enough.' Cadell thought, sweat-dropping lightly at the side notes. 'Next.'
Colette Brunel a.k.a The Chosen One
Known Abilities: Uses Chakrams to do combat. Always returns when thrown, due to design of said weapon. Edges are sharp, can cut through armor if used with enough force. Capable of materializing mana into the form of so called "Para balls", as well as a hammer. Able to fly, and use abilities that are specifically bestowed upon the Chosen One.
Strengths: Usage of Chakrams for long and short range attacks, as well as other attacks such as aforementioned Para balls. Capable of flying through use of wings. Also has powers bestowed by Chosen One status.
Key Note: As acting Chosen One, Colette should be handled with caution. A Chosen One's abilities are never fully known. May possibly be capable of more than what has been observed.
Weaknesses: Has immense sympathy for all living beings. Dislikes combat unless necessary. While capable of flight, wings may be considered weak point. Also, displays average strength capability, though she has a more delicate body than others.
Side notes: no notes of importance at this time.
'The Chosen One…if you cross my path, you will be the first to go. As my master, Lord Kvar, would have wished it so.' Cadell made sure to remember to be cautious and effective should she fight the Chosen One.
Sheena Fujibayashi
Known Abilities: Uses art of seals to combat enemies. Has multiple seal types for various situations. Also capable of stealth and use of hidden tactics. Has noteworthy agility and speed.
Strengths: Uses speed to enact multiple seals in a chain to attack opponents. Assumed to start from lower level up to higher level, though this is unconfirmed from current data. Decent level of stamina and endurance to match speed. Unknown how diverse her capabilities with seals may be. Fight with caution.
Key Note: Sheena is capable of summoning one of the elemental spirits, Undine. While this ability has not been presented yet, if used, it will cause her danger level to rise immensely. Be on watch to prevent this from occurring, as it may turn the tide (ha-ha, a pun) in the battle.
Weaknesses: While offensive abilities are high, defensive abilities are not particularly noteworthy. Fights at melee range, but wields no ranged capability as of yet.
Side notes: May attack using stealth. Trained as spy and assassin, though where she was taught or who she learned under are not known.
'My, my. A summoner. You certainly keep yourself quite well-guarded, Chosen One. And we're still not done yet.' Cadell pulled up the next profile, and did her best to maintain her composure, but her frown and clutching of her fists demonstrated her anger.
Kratos Aurion
Known abilities: Excellent swordsman, capable of taking on multiple enemies with ease. Mastery of combat with sword and shield, never seen without them on hand. High intelligence, with a long history of combat experience. Very adaptable to any situation in battle. Handle with extreme caution. Possibly capable of magic, though this is not for certain. Carries an intimidating aura about him.
Key note: Credited with the death of Lord Kvar on the field of battle at Palmacosta. This fact alone demonstrates the skill contained within Kratos. This was after doing combat with hundreds of other Desian soldiers.
Strengths: Usage of sword on the field of combat, as well as combat experience. Immense levels of stamina and energy. Considered by many to be unbeatable in combat. Knows much of magic and magic users, and likely knows how to combat them as well as in hand to hand combat. Very powerful.
Weaknesses: None known of at this time. Only possibility may be his will to come to the aid of others on the field of battle.
'For killing Lord Kvar, you will pay, Kratos Aurion. I will see to it myself that you die just like you killed my master. I swear on it.' If looks could kill, Kratos would've probably spontaneously combusted, just from how Cadell was glaring at his image.
Lloyd Irving a.k.a Hero of Palmacosta
Known abilities: Dual swordsman, wielding two blades at the same time. Has a high offensive capability while insuring an opponent cannot get too close. Capable of various sword techniques used at either melee range or long range. Combat style allows much adaptability in battle, able to take on one enemy or multiple if needed.
Key note: Credited with death of Desian Grand Cardinal Magnius. Defeated on field of combat at Battle of Palmacosta. This is a mark of skill and should not be ignored or overlooked.
Strengths: Offensive capability with twin blades, wielding with immense proficiency. High levels of stamina and endurance. Strong physical capability to match stamina. Seems to also operate as leader of the group, aside from the Chosen One, and can rally his fellow fighters to keep going. It is this charisma and spirit that assisted with his victory in the Battle of Palmacosta.
Weaknesses: Defensive capabilities are not as efficient, with no real means of defense aside from his blades. Not as much battle experience as Kratos Aurion, allowing for more mistakes. There is the possibility that he cares greatly for his fellow group, particularly Sheena. Could be used against him, but expect that if harm comes to them by your hands, that you will be his next target.
Cadell leaned back and sighed. Tallying all of her information in her mind, she credited the group with having an impressive repertoire of abilities, each changing with the next member. In lesser hands, this group would be quite a challenge. However, to fight her, they would have to step into her playing field, and that turns the advantage to her. With her combined forces of machines, soldiers, and the Exbelua and Psybeluas, there was no way she could lose.
'When we meet on the field of battle, Chosen One, it will be your end, and the glory of the half elves will begin!' she thought in her mind, allowing an evil smile to grace her lips as she let out a small cackle of evil laughter.
(1). the sneaky way in that our good friend Pietro had is unusable at this point, since we haven't gone to Hima yet.
(2). I couldn't think of a proper name for this room other than computer room, simply because I wasn't aware of there being any other name for it.
(3). Character created by a reader going by the name Insomniac. I hope I portrayed his character as he had envisioned it. He was perfect for this role, and I'm certain I will continue to use him.
(4). I realize that this may not have been a detail within the game, but I created it to give more detail to the base, as we only see small portions of it in comparison to the base as a whole.
(5). Design inspired by this image I found on DeviantArt: .com/?qh=§ion=&q=lab#/d8bvs5. All credit for the image goes to the artist who created it, Yonaz. It is copyrighted work, and belongs solely to this individual. I used it as inspiration to create Cadell's secret lab.
(6). I needed a mineral or some form of element as a plot device for this chapter, which will be explained further below. For now, understand it to be an element that is the opposite of Zircon, which as we can recall, was used to make one of the best key crests around, a Rune Crest. Therefore, as the opposite of Zircon, it would cause the opposite effect of zircon.
(7). another character created by…well…they didn't exactly leave me a name…*sweatdrop*. Mio is another character submitted to me that I found to be very useful, especially as she was the only one so far that was made to oppose the group, rather than support it. I see several uses for this character, and intend to use her also. So thank you, whoever you are!
And there you have it.
Ok, this one took a lot of work to try and do the right way. I had to go through Kvar's base again on the game, multiple times, going over the hallways, over the rooms, how everything was built, and then adjust it for this chapter. There are obviously changes to the base as the leader of the base has changed from Kvar to Cadell. As with any major change with leadership, there comes a change in location and environment, so these changes aren't really anything major or important.
The lab scene…this was mostly done for two main reasons. One was to emphasize and build up on the experience Sheena was put through to render her in such a state in the previous chapter. Realistically speaking, it would take an immense amount of mental stress and terror to shake an experience Kunoichi like Sheena is. She has been trained as an assassin, a spy, and as an agent of stealth for Mizuho. This would obviously imply as much strength of the mind as well as physical ability. So, I would have to put her through an experience that would go beyond her limits. This leads to my second reason for that scene.
The creation of an Exbelua has never actually been demonstrated or presented, save for the usual three step method. First, you get an exsphere without a key crest. Second, you start to get sick and hurt from the exsphere, but not much else aside from that. Third, you're suddenly a giant monster. So, I decided to create the process, and who better to do it than psychotic ol' Cadell? She could've obviously picked it up from Kvar, who had done countless exsphere experiments. As for the Psybelua, I made this as another aspect of events and people being affected by the time warp caused by Lloyd. As for just what turns an Exbelua into a Psybelua…yeah, you're not gonna know that yet. Now, as for what can make someone go from human to Exbelua so quickly, that's where Zaelithirium comes in.
So, I suppose that's enough for now. 10,000 plus words is becoming a standard for me almost these days, hehe. I'm afraid you won't be able to expect an update for awhile. I'm going off to college soon, as in within a couple of days, and I intend to get settled in and focused on my classes first before I can focus time onto this. That's not to say I won't work on the story, but just don't expect another update for at least a couple weeks.
So, pretty much, the usual waiting time.
Wish me luck at college, I'm gonna need it. Read and review!