I would like to say that today I had a happy Pronyma-free day. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
She attacked nigh five minutes after I had left Ozette, after questioning an inn girl about the sacred wood. Of course, I knew it grew around this area, but where was it? It burned many times hotter than normal wood, but to me, it looked no different than ordinary wood.
"There you are Kratos. Making trouble and not following Mithos's orders I see." Pronyma flew down, using the wind currents to give her a more dramatic entrance. "Mithos is not pleased with you."
"You really shouldn't call him that, you know." I said, thinking of previous times when lackeys had dared to call him by his first name. "The results could be…deadly."
"Ha! I don't care what you say, Kratos. I know Mithos better than you do. He already likes me." She said gaily, summoning an aimless ball of lightning the size of a small coin. She played with the ball, tossing it from hand to hand to… impress me, I suppose?
"Do as you will. But don't reach to me for help when he turns on you." Mithos, despite whatever enamored impression Pronyma had of him, was not a nice guy. He did not take fondly to anybody calling him by that name, not even Yuan or me.
"Aren't you going to ask me about something?" Pronyma said coyly, ignoring my warning in favor of juggling the little electric ball between her fingers. "Something you were… hysteric … about just this morning?"
Determined as I was to not let her words get to me, I still couldn't help but feel a twinge of anxiety. Did I really have another child? Had I failed again as a father, to protect yet another son or daughter?
I desperately wanted to know. Yet, I knew that Pronyma wouldn't let that information go easily. At this point, it might even be easier to coax the information out of my late enemy Kvar.
I said nothing to her, opting to fly towards Derris Kharlan instead. Of course, she followed. Once inside, I turned to her. "I'm going to report to Lord Yggdrasill. You might not want to come along."
"Fine Kratos, be like that. Just remember, I'm the only one alive who knows the truth."
She pouted, flicking her lightning ball at a passing lifeless being. It frowned at her, but did nothing more. Eerie. "I'll be waiting for you."
Clenching my teeth, I walked towards Mithos's castle, wondering just how big his ego must be to have an entire castle built for himself.
"There you are Kratos. And I was just beginning to think you had forgotten about me." Mithos appeared in his aged form next to me in the corridor, fanning his multicolored wings through the stone walls again. Oblivious to this glitch in the game, he strolled along and continued talking. "I wouldn't be surprised if you really had forgotten me, you know. I hear you've turned into quite the senile old man."
"Hmph. Whoever told you that was clearly mistaken." I stated formally, but inwardly my mind went quickly through a list of who could have reported such information to him. Pronyma. It had to be her. Hello captain obvious…
"Really? I'm not so sure." Mithos was clearly enjoying this far too much, taunting me with a nearly sing-songish voice. Just why he felt the need to berate me was beyond me, but at least it seemed to lift his mood.
He had been so different in the past. Yes, quite different from how he was now…
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"You've got it all wrong. First parry, and then thrust." I instructed, showing Mithos one of the most basic tactics of proper swordsmanship.
He really was a very promising apprentice, but for all of his talent, he definitely had his flaws. Mithos had his own way of doing things, and once he had decided on a path, nothing could change his mind for the world.
"Why do you always insist on that? It's not the best method by far. It would be much quicker if I could stun the enemy first, and just attack while they're stunned." Mithos pouted, mimicking stunning an enemy with a wave of his hand then attacking with his blade.
"I insist on that because you can't always rely on stunning your enemy. Not every opponent will be susceptible to magic, I know that's what you're thinking Mithos. Even if you were skilled enough with magic to stun multiple enemies simultaneously… or even to inflict them with something minor like poison or silencing… most enemies won't fall for the same trick twice. The most skilled of opponents will likely never succumb to such a simple tactic."
"I'm sorry Kratos, but I can't accept that." He said, looking at me with a determination that made me inwardly sigh. It was a look that meant he wasn't going to give up, no matter how …stupid…his idea might be. But, he was learning after all, and I could not fault him for that.
In the end, I smiled. "Very well Mithos. I'll leave you to your work."
………………………………………………………………………………………………
"….Kratos?" Mithos leaned forward in front of me, his head tilted to the side and eyes wide with nearly childish wonder. In any other circumstance, I would have found it comical, but his smattering of laughter quickly wiped that thought from my mind. "You really are losing it! You didn't hear me at all, did you?"
I couldn't find any words to say. We continued to walk through his castle in silence as frustration dug its ugly paws in the back of my mind. Never before had I slipped like this in front of him. Who would have thought that Kratos, the legendary swordsman of the past and now one of the four seraphim, would fall victim to such a mysterious ailment?
"What is happening to you." It was more of a statement than a question. Mithos looked at me quite intently, determined to figure out everything. If he ever discovered what was wrong (and I bid him good luck with that, since even I did not know) he would surely find a way to use this to his advantage.
Begrudgingly, I relented just a bit of information to him. "…I was remembering the time you decided to learn the Retribution spell."
"Ha! Oh that." He laughed again, choosing to look at his fingers as if quite proud of himself. "You didn't think I could do it… but you were wrong."
"Apparently." Were he still my apprentice, in a time four thousand years past, I might have cautioned him again about relying too heavily on the spell. But time had changed the relation between us, and he no longer valued my instruction. At this point, I wouldn't have given it to him anyway.
"Well Kratos, you senile old fool, I have a surprise for you." He said stopping before the massive double doors which lead to his room. A monstrous being that Mithos liked to call "Kibbles" stood baring its ugly fangs in front of the door.
That creature hated everyone. They only one who could make him behave was Mithos himself. After dismissing his pet, he touched a hand to the doors with a large grin, forewarning me right away that something terrible was about to happen. Without further adieu, he threw them open.
There were times when Mithos was completely unpredictable… when his sick and twisted imagination found a way to manifest itself in some godawful form.
This was one of those times.
He had redecorated his room, but that was not what disturbed me. "Yuan…! Mithos, what have you done to him?"
My feet carried me to the battered half-elf while my mind raced, wondering just what Mithos had done to hurt him so terribly. Yuan was slumped over on one of Mithos's newly refurbished Victorian era chairs (I still didn't know why he kept those awful things around) his head and arms laying like a lifeless rag-doll on the table in front of him. When I walked closer, I noticed that he had been bruised and beaten in nearly every visible spot. Even the flowing clothing that he had always worn so proudly had been ripped in so many places that they clung meagerly to his slender frame.
Mithos was saying something, but I didn't hear him. Instead, I was caught in an impossible mind game. Should I pull out the strongest healing spell I knew and attempt to heal his wounds? Or if I did, would Mithos punish me as he had obviously done to Yuan?
Caught in the mental struggle, I almost missed Mithos's words again, but I couldn't after he walked smoothly up to Yuan, caressing his long now-tangled blue locks. "Poor poor Yuan… It's really such a shame this had to happen to him…"
"Mithos, why did you…!" I began, but a cold grin and glance from Mithos told me there was something more to this story than I knew.
"Me? Oh Kratos, don't make me laugh!" He said, chuckling anyway. "This happened to Yuan because of you."
"What kind of fool do you take me for? I would never hurt him like this. Only you would be heartless enough to hurt your own friend…"
"Hardly," Mithos said with distaste. "Do you remember that funny looking boy from a while ago… what was his name? Larry... loser…?"
"Lloyd…" I murmured the name before I could catch myself. Was it really possible? Had Lloyd really done this to Yuan? Had they really grown so strong?
"Oh yes, that was his name. That boy that you let live back in the tower of salvation. You let him go, and now look at what he has done to our dear friend…" He said, holding Yuan gently and caressing his cheek. "He's such a menace, that Lloyd. If he did this to Yuan, think of what he could do to you! …if you let him grow strong enough, that is."
"What you have done is disgraceful, but…" I said solemnly, watching to make sure that Mithos fully bought my next statement. "I will not fail you, Lord Yggdrasil."
What a lie.
A smile. "Good." He stood up, patting Yuan on the shoulder and nearly knocking the half-elf off his chair in the process. "See to it that your son doesn't cause me any more problems. You've already let him sever a mana-link. Oh, and tend to my little Kibbles."
I caught Yuan in my arms as he slowly slid off the chair, ignoring the fact that Mithos had pompously left without aiding him. I bowed my head, murmuring the words to an ancient healing spell that would certainly help Yuan back on his feet. Mithos's departure was a sign that I could now heal Yuan without repercussions.
As the half-elves in Sybak had just found out… magic wasn't my strong point. Yuan was lucky that healing was something I had learned long ago.
The green glow of healing magic radiated from my fingertips, surrounding Yuan in its soft glow. Once the magic had left, Yuan opened his eyes and gasped for breath as if he had just been rescued from drowning.
Before I could even say anything, he glared at me. "This is all your fault."
"So I've been told." Apparently he was back to normal.
A little later, we both sat in comfy café chairs in Welgaia. Yuan sipped a new cup of coffee, grumbling about the recent past, and I listened, watching the lifeless beings float eerily by.
"Kratos, that boy of yours is a menace." He grumbled, setting his cup on the glass table. "Botta and I were almost toast."
"You and Botta? He's really grown that strong?" I asked, sounding far more positive about the situation than I should have.
A glare. "Yes he has. Although I will admit that Mithos ripped my clothes, knocked me out, and tossed me around quite a bit more before he brought you in… you know, he's really gotten weird…"
"Tell me about it." I sighed.
"It's not just Lloyd that has changed, though." Yuan mentioned, digging into a muffin. I seriously wondered where that had come from.
"Oh, you mean his companions? Naturally they will improve too…" I said, suddenly remembering that I was supposed to meet Raine at some point. Oops.
"Yes yes, they're stronger, but that's not what I meant." He said, picking out a blueberry from his muffin, frowning at it, and tossing it behind him. Seconds later, a lifeless being came by to clean it away. "His exsphere has grown. Anna's exsphere has grown."
No longer were blueberries on my mind. "…what did you say? Yuan, if you're joking with me…"
"I kid not!" He said quickly, holding up a hand to claim his innocence. "He excels farther than his companions with the aid of that exsphere. It's almost creepy…"
"That exsphere… I want to know more…" I said, thinking that perhaps it was about time to let Yuan know what I was up to. "…but this really isn't the place to talk about it. In fact, I'm surprised that Pronyma hasn't…"
"Hellooooo Kratos!" On cue, Pronyma glided happily down, placing herself in another café chair, blowing a kiss to me and hugging Yuan jovially. "Oh Yuie I'm so glad you're better! Although you really should change out of those rags…"
"You know, you could have healed me too." He murmured, frowning and taking to sipping his coffee again.
"Now Yuie, what have I told you about being pouty?" Really, where did she come up with these awful words?
"Pronyma." I said, catching her full attention and drawing it away from the hapless Yuan. "I need you to do something very important."
"Yes, Kratos what is it?" Way too eager to please. Perfect.
"Go to Flanoir, the snowy city in northern Tethe'alla and…" I spoke slowly, smiling inwardly as the look on her face grew more and more unenthusiastic.
"Flanoir? But it's cold in Flanoir!" She whined, hugging her arms already.
"Maybe if you didn't dress like a slut…" Yuan mumbled, receiving an outraged glare from Pronyma. I wanted to congratulate him.
"Very well. If you don't want to go to Flanoir, then I shall go myself. Pronyma, please stay here and tend to Lord Yggdrasil's pet Kibbles. I believe it's his suppertime."
Yuan looked like he was about to spit his coffee over the table while Pronyma's face paled to a sickly color. "K…Kibbles…!"
Not waiting for any further objection, I stood up. "I shall see you both later. Pronyma, remember, your task is very important to Lord Yggdrasil." Wasting no more time, I teleported to the teleport, and teleported again down to Tethe'alla.
I really didn't have a special task for Pronyma in Flanoir, but despite that inside knowledge, I still headed for the frozen city.
I stood near the base of a large frigid mountain, watching the snow swirl and fall peacefully around me. It was tranquil out here, not a single soul to bother me.
As I waited for the snow to quietly fall, thoughts found their wayward way into my mind that I would rather have left alone. I just might have another child out there, but even if I did, how could I ever keep up with him or her? Lloyd himself was more than I could handle. Apparently more than Yuan could handle too.
Yuan. I almost felt bad for him. I hadn't seen him in that bad of shape since the ancient Kharlan war, long long ago…
………………………………………………………………………………………………
None of us saw it coming. The wayward arrow from a nearby battle struck through her, piercing her delicate body before any of us could do a thing.
As I watched her fall to the ground, Mithos crying out and catching her body in his arms, I felt the world around me slow down. Color faded from the sky, trees, and grass around her helpless body. I had the impression that we were living part of an old fashioned moving picture where the good guy doesn't win.
"Martel!" Yuan exclaimed, pushing Mithos aside so that he could also hold her close. "Martel, you can't die!"
All three of us began to cast a healing spell almost at the same time. But before any of us could finish, she smiled weakly, looking at each of us in turn.
Quietly, she murmured, "Please, find a way for everyone to live on in happiness forever… in a world… free from discrimination…"
When Martel closed her eyes, it seemed she was only going to sleep. Her angelic face was calm, not a trace of consternation or fear. More serenely than I would have thought possible, she exhaled her last breath and departed from this world.
"M-Martel….? Sis? You're not dead…" Mithos was on the verge of hysteria already, pulling the arrow from her chest, and casting every healing spell he knew to no avail. "…no… no you can't be dead!"
"No… MARTEL!" Yuan lit the very air around us with his anger, his aura powerful and vivid as he rose to his feet. "Martel… they can't do this to you! They can't!"
"Yuan, there's nothing you can do, don't…" I cautioned, trying hard to be heard above Mithos's wailings. I wanted to grieve too, to cry and hold Martel as Mithos was doing, but right now, Yuan was doing something stupid that required far more attention.
Running into a large battle between half-elf hating humans with large pointy swords and half-elves who probably wouldn't care if he was one of their own or not.
"Why her! Of all the people, why did you take her!" He screamed, tears of anger and rage in his eyes as he brandished a double-edged blade that I knew for a fact he was not ready to use in battle. The words of an Indignation spell were already on his lips as he charged towards them.
Stupid stupid stupid. But somehow, I couldn't blame him. I did the only thing I could do… run in after him.
Sometime later, I managed to drag him away from the wreckage. Who would have known that he was that powerful? In the height of his fury, his indignation spells had done at least triple the damage they usually did, but he had certainly paid the price for his reckless use of magic.
Yuan and I were the only ones left alive.
We had both been badly injured, but Yuan had used all of his mana, leaving him nearly dead on the ground.
I carried him away, back to where I knew Mithos would still be grieving over Martel, the sounds of that haunting battle slowly subsiding with each step. Even I did not have the mana left to fly us back, so we were stuck traveling by foot.
"That was a stupid thing you did, Yuan." I waited for a response before I realized that he probably couldn't respond. "But… I don't blame you for desiring to avenge her."
I really couldn't think of anything to tell him that would be even remotely comforting. Martel had been our joy and hope through this entire struggle. She had carried us all through with her undefeatable courage, helped us through the worst, and in a way been the very spirit of us all.
The thought of a future without her was bleak, nearly empty.
"…No life should be born for the purpose of dying… right? Right Martel? You weren't meant to die…no… no you weren't…" I heard Mithos talking to her when I entered the clearing.
"Mithos. I know you are suffering, but we cannot stay here." I said, noting the eerie way he so tenderly stroked his sister's cheek. "Bring Martel along. Quickly."
Mithos did as he was told and took her into his arms. "I won't let you down, dear sister."
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
"What are you doing!" The familiar sound of Lloyd's angry voice pulled me out of the memory.
"It's you," I said, slowly pulling my gaze down from the falling snow to Lloyd. "I was just looking at the sky."
He only seemed to get angrier. "Don't lie!"
I sighed, placing a hand to my head, as I had grown so accustomed to doing whenever Lloyd was around. "…Hm, then how about… I was scheming how to get rid of those that are in Lord Yggdrasill's way. Now, are you satisfied?"
He didn't answer me, for whatever reason. Possibly because he was really as upset as he looked.
There were so many things I wanted to tell him. Far more than I had time for. I opened my mouth, ready to say some highly inspirational words. "You seem well."
Well, that didn't turn out quite like planned.
"Wh…what?" Apparently I had confused him.
I tilted my head to the side, a small soft smile finding its way to my lips. Sometimes he really did seem hopeless, but I believed in him. I knew he could make it if he tried… and had the proper prodding. Time for another lesson. "Lloyd, don't be so trusting. There may be those close to you who are malicious."
"…You're talking about yourself." Smartass.
I tried not to sigh, feathering my fingers through my hair again. "…Hm. We'll see. Be ever judicious."
He pouted, looking more upset than before.
I couldn't stay around him too long, there was always a chance that someone might see me talking to him. It was entirely possible that someone else besides Pronyma could be tailing me. "Now, I shall excuse myself."
I walked away from him through the snow, deciding that he had definitely grown stronger in many ways, possibly even knowledgeably. Then I heard him mutter, "I forgot to ask what 'judicious' means." Ok, maybe he hadn't.
He trudged through the snow, running after me. "Hey Kratos! I have another question for you!" He shouted, the angry look of teenage befuddlement written all over him.
"What?" I turned around, fully expecting to be asked what 'judicious' meant.
"What does…" He began, then for whatever reason, he paused. Clearly, he had decided that his question was a little silly, given the circumstances, and probably made a mental note to ask Raine what it meant later. "…what were you really doing?"
"Thinking about the past." I answered simply, wondering briefly how long he would make his friends wait in the cold while he talked.
"Oh." He said, seeming at a loss for anything else to say. Lloyd looked at me then, sadness in his eyes that made me want to drop everything I was doing, tell him the truth in its entirety, and take him away from all of this mess. But, of course, I could never do that. "You know, you don't seem like someone who should be our enemy."
"Lloyd, let me tell you something very important." I said.
"Ok." He responded casually.
"Don't forget this." I said sternly.
"OK!" Lloyd exclaimed, a little less casually this time.
"I meant what I said a moment ago," I walked a little closer to him, regretting the fear that immediately sprung into his eyes and his instinctive little sidestep backwards with my every step. "Don't underestimate your enemies. They could be closer to you than you think."
"Ok Kratos, you're being weird and creepy now… and the rest of the group is being attacked by weird mutant penguins. I think it's time for me to go." He said, backing away. Mid-backstep, he paused. "I want to tell you something too though. I really wish you weren't our enemy."
He smiled then, reminding me that there were still people in this world who were hopeful, people who still were willing to fight for what they truly believed in. After that, he walked away towards his group, helping them battle the penguinists and leading them all back towards the city of Flanoir.
Well, almost all of them.
"Kratos, I told you that I wanted to talk to you a long time ago." Raine's demanding words lingered in the air as she lingered away from the group. Lloyd and co. quickly became engaged in another battle against some penguinists, but after a mild deliberation, Raine seemed to decide they were all right on their own.
"Yes. What did you want to say?" I asked, wondering briefly how much longer it would take Pronyma to feed Kibbles and find me again. Knowing Kibbles, I had at least another hour.
"Kratos, I know you aren't who you say you are. I can sense that the blood running through your veins is… different. I have for quite some time." She said calmly.
"And your point is?" I asked.
"Why are you doing this? It's obvious that you don't really want to hurt any of us, in fact, you lead us in the right direction all the time. Earlier you practically told us that Colette was being held in the Dragon's Nest!" Raine held her hands up, exclaiming in an excited yet outraged manner.
"Yes, I did do that." I agreed.
"I know you did that. I said that." She looked at me crossly. "But why did you do that?"
"I'm sorry, I can't tell you that." I said, feeling that I was telling that to far too many people lately. "Is that all you wanted to say?"
"No!" She quickly answered, then faltered a bit. I tilted my head to the side and raised an eyebrow in confusion as I saw the gears working quickly in her mind. "Kratos, what do you… put in your sandwiches?"
I stared at her blankly. "My… sandwiches?"
"Y-yes. You know, when you make sandwiches." She said firmly.
What the hell? "I use… bread…"
"I put bread in my sandwiches too!" She exclaimed, a little too happily for her own good.
"…sometimes meat, or cheese… it all depends on what is available." I finished. Something was clearly amiss. "Look, Raine, what do you really want?"
"I want to know…" Raine began, then paused as if thinking again. "…to know your opinion on the use of double-edged weapons in the great Kharlan war." Very random.
"Stupid. Extremely." I answered immediately, thinking of Yuan.
"Oh. That's interesting." She said, appearing slightly intrigued. "So how do you think Genis is progressing?"
"What?" I asked, thrown off again by her bizarre choice in questions.
"You know, fighting and using magical spells." She said, indicating towards her brother.
"He seems to be doing well. Genis has learned a lot since we parted ways, but I still question his use of the kendama as a weapon." I answered, beginning to grow more than a bit befuddled with her questioning. "…and it appears as though he has just finished off the last penguinist with a new lightning spell. You may want to rejoin them soon so as to not attract attention."
"Right." She agreed, then looked at me severely again. "But don't think I've let you off the hook. I want to talk to you again soon, and when we do talk, I expect real answers from you."
With that, she marched proudly back to the group, congratulated her brother on learning the spell, and joined them in their next fight against the strange penguins.
I was confused. Very very confused. Never before had I seen Raine act in such a strange manner, and to my knowledge none of her questions really lead anywhere or helped her in any way.
If I had to guess, she seemed to be stalling more than anything else. But stalling for what? There were no signs of life other than monsters for miles in this frozen land. The only thing she could have stalled for was….
…my attention?
"No…" I shook my head, unwilling to believe it. Raine couldn't be that desperate for attention, she had the kids around her at all times asking her everything. Maybe she was desperate for… another adult's attention?
Things were beginning to make more sense. Since I had left, she had nobody she could talk to. Nobody who would understand her concerns as an adult or help her with the calm rationalization of the group's progress.
If she was expecting for me to be that person, she would have to think again. It was clear that something needed to be done, and quickly. If Raine needed to talk so badly that she would turn to a traitor… even though it was clear that she knew I was up to something else… then I needed to do something soon.
But what could I do?
I'm not proud to admit it, but I stared at the group for ten minutes as they scurried around, fighting groups of penguinists and happily picking up their quills. Suddenly it hit me.
Regal. Why couldn't she talk to Regal?
I watched them closer, looking for the interaction between Raine and Regal. It was clear that they worked decently together in battle, but outside of battle, she always seemed to conveniently scurry away from him.
They took a short break, and Regal prepared what looked like award winning Ramen. Lloyd complimented his cooking, and although everyone seemed to cheerfully agree, Raine glanced at him dubiously. Perhaps she was concerned for the children, but it didn't seem as though she was keeping them from speaking to him.
No, it was Raine and only Raine who seemed doubtful of Regal. That wasn't good. They needed to work together. Everyone must be at their best to succeed, especially if they ever hoped to defeat Mithos.
I had to act, and soon.
Thankfully, they decided to spend some time shopping in Flanoir before they hit the temple of ice.
Finding Regal was easy enough, he really stood out wearing nothing but a worn white t-shirt, pants, and those attention-attracting shackles. I entered the town, using back alleyways to avoid the others. When the right moment came, I called him over. "Regal."
He turned, curious as to who had called his name, and walked into the alley. As soon as he saw me, his eyes widened a bit with surprise. "You're…"
"Kratos." I answered for him, leading him a bit away from the crowd. I didn't want anybody else to see us speaking, especially not Raine. "I can see that you are wary of me, and I don't blame you. But what I am about to ask of you is not for my sake, it's for Lloyd's."
The man certainly had a sense of grace about him. He regarded my words, and quickly came to a conclusion. "You're his father, aren't you?"
Not the conclusion I was expecting. "I would prefer to leave that undisclosed for the moment."
"I understand." He stated calmly, nodding as if showing his appreciation for my opinion. Despite the shackles, he appeared to be a very classy guy.
I wanted to ask him just how he had figured that out, but before I could, Genis ran by in the main street, not even twenty feet away from us. I didn't have time for chit-chat. "Regal, I need you to talk to Raine."
His expression was quizzical, but he didn't interrupt.
"Meet her in the small café near the back of the town in about ten minutes. She should be there already. She likes archaeology, as I'm sure you know. Sit with her and talk about that, or explain how you make sandwiches." I said, thinking of something neutral that they might both be interested in.
"May I ask why you want me to do this?" He posed the question in such a polite manner that I found it difficult to tell him no.
"Raine seriously needs help with her cooking. And…" I paused, thinking of the best way to phrase the next part. "…I don't believe you two have had the chance to really speak with each other yet. It is imperative that you trust each other if you want to succeed in the struggles ahead of you."
"I see." He took a moment to think about it, then nodded. "I understand. You must really care about your son to go this far to ensure his safety. I respect you for that, despite everyone's talk of your dubious nature. I shall be at the appointed place at the proper time."
I thanked my lucky stars that Regal Bryant really was the intelligent and benevolent man everyone said he was. After a short thank you, I left to find Raine.
It was also easy to find her in her bright orange clothing. After she finished selecting a few charms from a shop, I pulled her aside into another back alley. "Raine, it's me. I need to talk to you."
"Twice in the same day? I'm shocked Kratos." She looked surprised despite the touch of irony in her words.
"Yes, I need to discuss something important with you." I said, leading her towards the café. "I hope you will not judge me too harshly for the question, despite all that has happened."
"That depends on the question." She answered wisely, a little surprised again when I led her into the café and ushered her to a small table near the front.
"Please, have a seat first." I said, pulling out the chair for her, then pushing her close to the table before I sat down across from her.
"My my. What manners!" She said, giving me the feeling that perhaps I had done something I shouldn't have. "Lloyd needs to learn how to be this polite too."
"Yes, he does." I agreed. It had been about five minutes already, and it was about time for me to make my escape.
"So… you brought me here to say…?" She asked.
"Ah yes, that. It's very important, but first I…" I paused, fishing for something to say. "…I have to use the restroom. I'll be right back."
Nice going Kratos. She'll never buy that.
"Ok. But don't take too long, I think Lloyd wants to leave soon." She answered calmly, settling herself more comfortably in the chair.
Thanking the stars again for my second lucky break, I excused myself from the table and headed to the back. However, instead of entering the restrooms, I used the back exit and flew through an upper window. Once inside, I waited just inside the room where I could clearly see Raine sitting at her table.
On time as he promised, Regal entered the café and sat by Raine. Even though she said nothing, I could tell that she was inwardly cursing me.
They sat together in silence.
"………." Said Raine.
"………." Said Regal.
"………."
"………."
I was just about to leave, my dreams of bringing them together crushed, but suddenly it became wildly interesting! At least, I pretended that it was.
"…..so…." Regal began.
"Ehh… yes?" Raine inquired.
"….you like archaeology, right?" He asked, shifting in his seat as if very uncomfortable with something, which he probably was, since his hands were still in shackles. That would naturally be a very uncomfortable thing.
"Yes! I love it!" Raine suddenly became interested, and her mood brightened considerably. "Do you?"
"Umm… no. Not particularly." He responded a little sheepishly.
"…. Oh." She said, a little sadly.
Once again, they returned to silence.
I was about to leave again, deciding that this was indeed hopeless after all, when suddenly it became wildly interesting yet again!
"So… what do you like to do?" Raine asked, obviously racking her brain for anything to say.
"Well…" Regal responded very slowly. "I enjoy cooking. Especially Fruit Cocktails."
Damn. Regal had bested me in something. I narrowed my eyes. Not for long….
Regal however, paid me no attention, since I was hidden very well.
"Really!" Raine suddenly brightened again. "I love cooking too!"
They smiled, and laughed, and shared a very blissfully happy moment. However, that moment soon passed by.
"but…" Raine spoke again, lowering her gaze.
"But what?" Regal asked.
"Well….. I can't really cook that well. For some reason, everything I try to make turns out tasting very bad. Or so says Genis. And Lloyd. And Colette. And Kratos. And Zelos. And Sheena. And Presea. And probably Corinne too, but even it was too afraid to try."
"But not me." Regal said regally. She gazed at him in awe and astonishment, as if she knew no words which would adequately describe her feelings. "Yes, I have endured far worse during my imprisonment. Your cooking is very… unique. However, I think that given time…."
Before he could say any more, Raine finished for him. "You can help me cook better?"
I turned away. My work was done. They now each had a sense of companionship that they could share with each other. Something they had both dearly needed and yet lacked. Now they could cook together and talk as adults could. For some odd reason, I felt a twinge of remorse, however I could not place why since I was indeed happy for them both. Besides, they would certainly be of more use to Lloyd now.
As I left the town, Pronyma assaulted me yet again.
"YOU!" She shrieked, waving a finger at me while trying to fix her clearly disheveled hair. "You you you! I'm never feeding Kibbles for you again!"
"Lord Yggdrasill will be disappointed." I didn't hide a smirk. She definitely deserved every bit of the butt-kicking "Kibbles" must have given her.
"Uuugh! Kratos! I'm sick of you!" She shrieked, pulling her slut-wear (name courtesy of Yuan) closer to her. "…and why do you always have to go someplace COLD!"
My new favorite pastime? Not answering Pronyma.
"You know what? You are such a LOSER! Yeah, that's right. You heard me! A big jerk-faced loser!" This was getting better and better. She threw her arms in the air, exasperated. "You know what else? I wish you did have another kid! If you did, I wish he was just as much trouble for you as… as stupid KIBBLES!"
Suddenly, she had my full and undivided attention. "….what did you say?"
"Oh, so your retarded brain didn't hear me the first time? I said I wish you had another kid so he could annoy you and make you crazier than you already are! Maybe then Mithos would finally get rid of you!" She huffed, pouted a bit more, screamed, and finally flew away.
For once, I was glad Pronyma had come by to annoy me. "So Lloyd… really is the only one. I don't have another son."
I can't even begin to put in words how relieved I was. Not that I wouldn't have cherished and loved another child, of course.
Lloyd alone was turning out to be much more than I could handle. If Yuan was telling the truth, and as of now I had no reason to believe he wasn't, then Lloyd could very soon become strong enough to face Yggdrasill. Of course, I would have to ascertain his progress before I ever let him face Mithos…
But I could deal with that later. For now, I needed to focus on gathering materials so that either Dirk or Altessa could forge the ring of the pact for Lloyd. Or Zelos, if Lloyd turned out to be a complete pansy and Zelos didn't end up getting himself killed somewhere along the line with his stupid ways. He would need origin's power and his blade to defeat Mithos, but the only way he could even hope to wield it would be with the aid of the ring.
Fortunately, Lloyd seemed to be even stronger than Zelos, especially with the added power of Anna's crystal. If Yuan was correct and the crystal was evolving… that could only mean that Lloyd was changing as well.
Wait. Was Lloyd… evolving?
Lloyd. Yes, it was beginning to make sense. The reason Lloyd could hear Colette in the Tower of Salvation, and the reason he was so quickly picking up new and complex forms of magical sword fighting…
Lloyd was becoming an angel.
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Marika's notepad:
Whew! Long chapter, but in my defense, there was a lot to cover!
Thank you to everyone who voted in the poll! It should be obvious, but just for the sake of being official, the poll is now closed. As you can see, the results for whether or not Kratos should have another child were an astounding "No!" But I really appreciate everyone's support and all of you who were kind enough to say you'd still read this story regardless of whatever happens. I feel the love. )