--Half Elf Protector--
The light disappears and—ack! I hit the water... Dad is also in the small stream from the looks of it. Somehow, Suzu's standing on the rail of the small bridge next to us, and the rest are standing on or next to the bridge—except Arche, who's flying above all of us on her broom. How did we manage to hit the water?! "Chester, Klarth-san, are you two okay?!" Cless asks.
"Yeah... just fine..." We stumble out of the water and on to dry land. I finally take a look around.
Wow... is this really Miguel?! It's so old, and there are barely any houses here! To my right is a small pavilion with a tree. There's a path in front of me that leads around the pavilion and another small stream—a stream I've never seen before—towards a well. The unfamiliar stream is more of a moat around a small, wooden house with a straw roof with a stone path leading towards it. On this side of both streams, to my right, is what looks to be a ninja selling things with a pet dog.
...Wait, a ninja?!
Across the bridge is another house, and on the far side of it I see crops. There are a few people here—all staring at us—but their clothes remind me more of...
"Hey Cless, are you sure we're not in Japoni?"
"It certainly looks like Japoni..." the swordsman agrees.
"This is no doubt our culture," Suzu speaks up as she stares at the people. "The layout is also similar... This may be Japoni in the past."
Ah great. These are ninjas... they're pulling out daggers on us, glaring us down. "H-hold on!" Cless calls out. "We come in peace!"
"How'd you find this place? Who are you?!" one of them demands.
"Calm down," Suzu speaks up. "We come from the future. Is this town either Miguel or Japoni?"
"Or Toltus..." Cless adds.
"This is a secret village that outsiders are not allowed to step in unless given permission!"
"Japoni, then," Suzu confirms quietly.
The ninjas look like they're about to attack! "Suzu, I don't think we have time for talk! Let's get outta here!"
"Where to?!"
"Alvanista—let's talk to the king of this time!" Cless suggests.
"All right..." As Suzu begins concentrating, the ninjas lunge at us. "Shadow Storm!" Leaves swirl around us just in time and we teleport away. Phew...
Now then, the Alvanista of this time...
We're on a beach with many people having a good time. Upon our sudden arrival, they turn to stare at us, awe-struck. I can see the city to our right... but where's the castle?! That tall building on the right sure as heck doesn't look like a castle!
We follow the beach around to a set of blue stairs that lead into the city... or is this a city? I don't see any houses... There are shops to the right, where the entrance is, and a large, concrete and glass building ahead of us. To our left, the path loops around and there's a bridge across the ocean water, leading to what looks to be a transport system... Wow, it looks really modern! "Are you sure this is the past?"
"Trust me, Chester, I'm wondering the same thing you are..." mutters my best friend.
"This place looks fun, though! Maybe we should get some bathing suits and spend time on the beach while we're here!" Arche suggests. Heh, that would be nice... but we have too much to do!
"Let's go in this building and see if they can tell us where the king is," Dad suggests. We walk in the large building.
...This is not a castle. There's a counter in the center with a receptionist. In the center of her circular counter area, there's a strange light that looks like a teardrop... The path is circular, leading to another counter on the left and—an elevator?! Wait a second, but this should be the past...! The area below the walkway is water, with decorations of palm trees with lights in them and stones with waterfalls. The glass shows the ocean outside... Where are we?! Dad walks up to the counter.
"Welcome to Hotel Lezareno," the woman behind the counter greets us. "It is 400 gald a night. Would you like a room?"
Well at least we know their currency is the same... but what's such a modern-looking hotel doing in the past?!
"No, actually, we're looking for the castle..." Dad explains. "We're new around here."
The woman tilts her head. "The castle's no where around here... Everyone knows where it is..."
We exchange confused glances. So it's not in Alvanista... "Where is it? How do we get to it...?" I ask.
"It's across the ocean. Here, let me get you a map..." The woman digs under the counter until she produces a map, which she places in front of us. "We're here," she says, tapping a small island on the map. Yeah, I can see that... though it sure does look different! "And the castle's here." ...That's the other side of the world! ...Wait a sec!
"Milard...!"
"I'm already getting it," the woman says as she pulls our map out of the pack. We set it down next to the other map and start comparing the two.
"What's that a map of?" the receptionist asks.
"This world in the future," Dad mutters, not paying much attention to her.
To the woman's confusion, Mint explains, "We've traveled back in time from the future... This is the map of our time."
"This is only half of the world!" Dad suddenly exclaims.
"What do you mean 'half'?! How can it only be half of the world?!" That doesn't make any sense!
"Look here... this continent, where Miguel is. That's right here..." He shows me on both maps; on ours, it shows that continent on the left middle of the map, whereas on theirs, it's large and in the top center. "Lone Valley and Venezia aren't even on this map... but Friezkiel—that's this group of islands up here"—he's pointing to a white area in the top center of our map—"is here on their map." Wow, the Friezkiel on their map is more broken up and in the top right... "Then if you come down here to Alvanista," Dad continues as he points to the small island between the continent with Miguel and the largest one, with Heimdall, Morlia, and the Valhalla Plains. "Which would be here on this map..." he switches maps on me. The island is in about the same spot relative to the continents around it, but they're all tilted at a different angle... "That would put Heimdall at about here and Morlia here," Dad continues, pointing, "but Midgard and the Valhalla Plains are no where to be seen! It's like they don't even exist in this time... Freyland—the desert continent with Olive—isn't here, either! This big continent... This is where the castle is?" Dad asks as he taps his finger over the large continent taking up the lower left of this time's map; the receptionist nods, bewildered. "This looks much like Arlee... but on this map, it's shown to be almost twice Arlee's size, not to mention green. Still... that's three large landmasses completely missing!"
"But how...?! They couldn't have just formed, could they, Klarth-san?" questions Cless.
"According to this map," Dad answers, tapping the one the hotel owns, "there's no room for them to form. There's lots of ocean room, but not a single area large enough for Venezia, Valhalla, and Freyland... So then what happened to Aselia...?"
"Aselia? Venezia? Valhalla?" We've more than confused the receptionist.
"This world is Aselia, isn't it?"
"This world is Tethe'alla..."
"The moon?!" we all exclaim at once.
"Huh? The moon's Sylvarant..."
"That's the other moon... Both Tethe'alla and Sylvarant are Aselia's moons..." Dad pauses, thinking about this. "What's this city called?"
"Altamira."
"Everything's completely different, then..." Dad mutters. "The city with the castle, what's it called?"
"Meltokio."
"And is there a dock around here?"
"Yes, there's one just outside of the city."
"Well then, thank you for your time and for letting us look at the map."
"You can keep it if you want. We have extra maps."
"Thank you," Dad says as he folds up both maps—Arche sadly watches them go—and hands them to Milard. We leave the hotel and head out of the city.
The dock isn't far, and not busy at all... it really is nothing more than just a dock. I let our ship out of the wing pack and we board up. Milard, Dad, and Suzu take over directions while I take the wheel. I don't really know what the others are doing... I'm too busy trying to follow the directions these three are giving me, which keeps changing...
"Wait, but if we go west..."
"Will we be able to make it through that shallow area? We should go east..."
"Okay you three, just pick a direction!" I yell.
"Let's go west," Dad decides and I stare at the compass Milard is holding. I turn the ship towards the west and wait as it turns. Once we're headed west, I straighten it out and wait patiently, watching the open sea ahead of me. Suzu leaves the area while Dad and Milard stay here.
Well this is boring... but this world is nice. I'm still confused... what exactly is this world...? Are we really on the moon? Then why does it look so much like Aselia...?
We come up to beaches on each side that I have to curve around. "Look!" Dad calls out as he points to the one on the left. That fog... "That must be Ymir Forest!"
"So then we are on Aselia...!"
"Steer carefully, it's shallow around here," Milard instructs, and I follow her advice. She's right, the ship's having a hard time getting through...
"Hey Dad, can we get some more wind?"
"Right." He begins concentrating on a summon, the green light of his magic circle around him. "I, Klarth F. Lester, summon thee on the right of thy pact, breeze of the Aselian winds... Come, Sylph!" The Sylph twins flow out of the summoner's ring like colored wind and blow behind us. I feel the ship move quicker as Sylph hits the sails.
"Thanks."
We make it out of that area and back out onto open sea. It's getting late now... I can't help but yawn.
"Let me take over," a voice says from behind me: Cless.
"Have fun with it," I tell him as I allow him to take the wheel and back off. I'll go see what the others are doing... or maybe get some rest...
I walk below deck and into the dining area, where I find Ami, Suzu, Mint, and Arche. "Chester! Would you like something to eat?" Mint offers—she's standing behind the bar. I take a seat next to Arche since my sister's in the middle.
"Yeah, how about a hamburger?"
"All right!"
"Eh? Not a cheeseburger, Onii-chan?" Ami questions, confused.
"I feel like having a plain hamburger today," I reply.
The princess giggles. "And what would you like to drink with that?"
I have half a mind to say a beer just to see how she'll react, but... "I'll take some water."
"Okay, coming right up!" Mint retreats into the kitchen.
"So are we really on the moon?" Arche asks.
"I don't think so," I answer. "We saw Ymir Forest outside... Or at least, we're pretty sure it's Ymir Forest."
"Plus the maps are too similar," adds the ninja. "Besides the fact that half of the world's missing, everything else is exactly where it should be and the same shape... On top of that, we used two teleportation skills. It seems unlikely that they'd both fail."
"Something must've happened to this world, then..." the weasel concludes.
"This is six thousand years in the past, right? Maybe the world's just changed a lot over six thousand years!" suggests Ami.
"But Dad said there's not enough room for the three missing continents..."
"O-oh, right..."
"This world also has only one moon from the sound of it," Arche points out. "And this world is called Tethe'alla... Gaah, this doesn't make any sense!"
"I don't think you're capable of grasping it," I joke. "Ow!" She kicked me... "You didn't have to kick me!"
"Hmph! I'm not talking to you!"
"Oh yeah, way to be mature there," I mutter sarcastically.
"Idiot! I hate you!" Arche yells as she punches my arm. She can't punch very hard...
"Was that supposed to hurt? Weakling!"
"I'll show you something that hurts..." Arche mutters as magic starts flowing around her. Ah great...
"Arche-san, please don't hurt Onii-chan... he already has that strange curse on him..."
"Tell him not to be such a jerk then!" the witch demands as she stops charging up; she folds her arms and plops against the back of her seat, angry.
"I'll stop being a jerk when you stop being an idiot. How's that?"
"Look who's talking, idiot!"
"Chester-san," Mint speaks up as she pokes her head out the kitchen door, "what do you want on your hamburger?"
"Nothing. Plain is fine."
"All right." She retreats, but seconds later she comes back out with my plate and drink. She sets them in front of me and smiles kindly; "Here you go!"
"Thanks," I say as I pick up the hamburger and start eating. "Mint, your cooking is always so good! I'm glad you're part of the team!"
"Oh stop it... it's not that good..."
"Mint-san, will you teach me how to cook?" Ami asks.
"Of course!"
"Yay!"
"You're always the cook on the ship," Suzu points out. "It's almost as if you're starting your own business..."
"R-really?"
"Yeah, Mint's the ship chef! You just need menus!" Arche agrees.
"Maybe we'll make some next time, then..."
"All right! I'll help!"
"Me, too!"
Heh, Suzu and I are the only ones who aren't getting excited by this... She looks to be a little amused by the other's reactions, though. Good, maybe she's loosening up some...
There's a knock on the door and Dhaos walks in. "We're there," he announces.
"All right, just let Chester-san finish his food and we'll be up," the dove says kindly. Dhaos scowls and turns around, walking out. Geez, I hate that guy!
"Onii-chan..." my sister speaks up. "Why is he always so serious?"
"Who, you mean Dhaos? He's just a big stick in the mud."
"Is he sad...?"
"Who cares?!"
"We should help him, Onii-chan! If he's sad, we should help make him happy again, right?!"
Wha?! "Ami, stay away from him! He's dangerous!"
"But he's our teammate, isn't he?"
"Keh, I don't care! I hate him! Just stay away from him, okay?!" Conversation dropped. I continue eating the last few bites of my hamburger.
"But he's lonely..." I hear my sister mumble. Geez... she just doesn't get it. I'm not going to let that Dhaos get anywhere near my sister!
I eat the last bite. "I'm finished," I announce as I stand up. Mint takes my empty plate and cup away and the rest of us head above deck. Here, the others are waiting for us. We're at a port and—
"Whoa! Look at that!" Arche exclaims, pointing. I see what she means... There's a long bridge to our right... It's the largest and longest bridge I've ever seen! I can't even see where it ends!
"Wow..."
"From the looks of it, there's a city just ahead," Dad says, pointing. He's right... Ah! And there's the castle!
"That must be Meltokio! Let's go!" We clamor off the ship and I store it in the wing pack. Safely stored, we walk towards Meltokio.
There's a pair of wolves going after Cless! "Cless, watch out!" I call as I pull out my bow and aim at the wolves. "Piercing Line!" I call out and my arrow, charged with energy, goes straight through both of them. They're still alive...! Cless and Suzu each draw their weapons and hack at the wolves.
I notice runes form in the air—Milard's using a feather pen to create them! "Power Seal!"
"Demon Fist!" Dhaos yells as he punches and a blast of energy that looks much like Demon Fang's blast charges along the ground.
"Aegis Strike!" Cless uses his sword to create a barrier that the wolves run in to—one of them falls.
"Pow Hammer!" my sister calls out, and a hammer falls onto the remaining wolf, stunning it. I release another arrow as Suzu slashes at it, and it falls to the ground, dead.
"We did it!" Ami cheers. "Did you see that, Onii-chan?!"
"Yeah, but I'm the one that killed it!" I tease.
"I-I'll kill the next one!"
"Keh, not with your weak attacks!"
"Hey, Onii-chan! I'm getting better!" Ami yells angrily. "Tell him, Dad!"
"She is getting better... she's been practicing a lot."
"Hey, don't take her side just because she's younger!"
Dad chuckles. "Let's get to the city."
Keh, backing out already...
"It's getting late... we should probably wait until morning to see the king," Milard suggests.
"Yes... Father never liked it when he had visitors late at night," agrees the princess.
"Then let's find the inn," Cless decides and we walk into the city.
The city is surrounded on all sides by a beige wall, and an intricate copper gate is closed at the front of the wall. There are two guards surrounding it, but after checking our party and our bag, they let us through. The streets are light by lights—whoa, these are modern... they had this kind of technology back in this time?! Or are we in the future...? Anyway, there's a stairs that lead up, and I can see that they keep leading up ahead, all the way to the castle. There are also streets going to the right and left, which lead to houses and shops. There are banners around, and plants to make the city look pretty. Just to the right of the stairs we see a house with a blue roof and blue carpet out front which is labeled as the inn. We enter it.
The inside is terra cotta with a red rug in the center of the lobby. There's a counter on the back side of the room with a young lady standing behind it, and behind her are books and a door leading to the back area. There's a window to the right of the counter, but you can't really see much out of it. The couch on the right side of the room is red, like the rug, and it has a wooden end table with a blue vase. On the left side of the room is a set of stairs that leads up and around behind the desk with a red carpet running up it. Dad walks up to the counter and asks for two rooms.
After he pays, we head up the stairs; Dad with the key to our room and Milard with the key to the girls' room. The girls enter the first room while we head down the hall to the second.
The room's pretty small, but there are just enough beds for all four of us. There's also a table with a white cloth over it and a set of blue chairs around it. There's one wardrobe in the corner of the room. Dad and Dhaos sit in the chairs while Cless and I each sit on one of the four white beds. I yawn. "Well, I guess tomorrow we'll figure out exactly where we are, right?"
"Yes, along with asking the king about Martel," my father agrees.
"Are you sure he knows anything? Half elves aren't well-liked..." I point out.
"She had to do something special to become a goddess in the first place, right?" Cless points out.
"If nothing else, we can learn about this world and where the half elves stand," Dad agrees.
"Aren't you forgetting something?" questions the angel, and we all stare at him.
"What?"
"Contacting your researcher friend?"
"Oh right, Sardon!" Dad exclaims as he opens up the book Sardon gave him earlier. "Sardon, are you there?" Cless and I stand up and curiously huddle around the book, which Dad sets on the table.
"IT'S ABOUT TIME YOU CALLED!" Sardon's voice yells, and seconds later his face appears in the pages. What the...?! It's almost like a TV screen! "Where the heck have you been?!"
"We've been trying to figure that out all day. This world we're in is called Tethe'alla, and while its map is like Aselia's, it's only half of Aselia!"
"...Whoa seriously? Are you on the moon?"
"The maps—or what's there of them—are too similar to be the moon... Plus we saw Ymir Forest."
"Hm... You went four thousand years in the past, right?"
"Right."
"We don't have any records of that time... Oh wait!"
"What is it?!"
"I just remembered when Dad once read a fantasy story to me!" Sardon exclaims happily. What does that have to do with anything?! "Anyway, it was a story said to be before time, so I guess that'd have been four thousand years ago, right? Maybe it was real!"
"Get to the point," Dhaos says coldly.
"S-Sardon-san, what was the story...?" Cless glances between Sardon and Dhaos nervously, trying hard to keep everyone peaceful.
"The point? Oh right! Um, let's see... there was something about a Chosen of Regeneration... Oh yeah! The hero's name was Lloyd Irving—he was a hero who wanted to save everyone, so there would be no sacrifices! He's a hero, so maybe he can help!"
To save everyone... with no sacrifices... That's what we're looking to do, too. We want to save Aselia and Derris-Kharlan...
"We'll look him up if he's real, then," Dad says. "We're also going to ask the king about Martel tomorrow. Have you found anything about the curses yet?"
"Nope! I've been searching all day, too! Hey, Chester, how are you feeling?"
"Fine. I haven't fainted or anything."
"That's good! Maybe the medicine is helping!"
"Only time will tell... Well, is there anything else you need tonight?"
"Nope! Mainly wanted to make sure the connection works! Which it does—I'm a genius!"
He's definitely related to Dad...
"Then we need to get some sleep. Good night, Sardon."
"Night night!"
Dad closes the book and Cless and I retreat away from the table. We take our weapons off and set them down, preparing for bed. I lie down and pull the covers over myself. This is comfortable, but now that I'm lying down, I'm not tired... Dad turns the lights off and I hear him crawl into his own bed. The others must be tired...
There's a window above my bed, and I glance out of it. I see the moon... Sylvarant. It's mostly full, but there's still a large potion of it hidden by the dark night. Outside, I hear crickets chirping in the cool night air. I wonder how nice it feels out there... maybe if I can't get to sleep, I'll take a walk...
Huh? I hear... voices?
"I-I'm sorry!"
"Sh, keep your voice down! If they find us infiltrating the castle..."
"Oh yeah, like our big group is that hard to spot..."
"Quiet, all of you! We don't need to attract any more attention!"
Infiltrating the castle?! Are these guys assassins?! "Cless, Dad, did you hear that?" I ask, but I get no reply. "Hey, are you guys awake?" No answer... Figures. I nudge Cless. "Cless!" Still nothing... I don't have time to wait! What if these people hurt the king or Martel?! I grab my weapons and hurry out the door. I rush downstairs and run out the door of the inn. I can still pick up their voices, but barely... they must be headed towards the castle! I hurry up the stairs, trying to stay as quiet as possible, with my bow tight in my right hand.
I follow them through a pavilion and up another set of stairs. There's a wall surrounding the next area. "...I think someone's following us..." I hear one of them whisper, and I throw myself behind the wall.
"Are you sure? I didn't hear anything," another whispers back.
"I-I thought so..." the girl who heard me whispers. "I heard someone's footsteps... they stopped as soon as I said something..."
"It's not one of the guards, is it?"
"I didn't hear any armor..."
"Are you sure it wasn't the wind or something?"
"...You're right. It's probably just the night. Creepy, huh? It makes me think of those scary stories we used to hear when we were little!" That voice sounds oddly familiar...
"Yeah... Let's go!"
I hear them start walking again and I wait patiently. If one of them heard me, it'll be dangerous to get too close... from the sound of it, they have at least five people... maybe more. I might not want to get in a fight against them... but I can't let them hurt anyone!
Judging that it's safe now, I follow them again. Ahead is the castle, but they entered a building to the left of it. I slowly creek the door open and gently push my way in. Huh... this looks to be a church. No one's in here right now; all of the wooden benches are empty. At the far end, there's a pedestal and counter, behind which is a large statue of an angel. I notice a door closing in the back left side of the room and I hurry over. I can hear them inside...
"You're late," an old man says.
"Oh, I'm terribly soooorrry!" a familiar voice says sarcastically. Where do I recognize that voice from...?
"What?! What are you people doing here?!"
"We have something we want to ask you about."
"You're poisoning His Majesty, aren't you?" Wait, are these people the good guys or the bad guys?!
"...I don't know what you're talking about," the old man says.
"You're certainly a stubborn little liar."
"Is there an antidote?"
"I don't know anything!"
"Don't move..." That cold voice... a little girl... I recognize that, too...
"Then let's have you drink this poison. It doesn't take effect immediately anyway..."
"A-all right! It's in the drawer in the desk!"
I hear someone searching around... "Here it is!"
A pause. "...I have something I've been wanting to ask you, too. Why did you try to have Kate executed?! She's your daughter!"
"Sh-shut up! What do you know?!"
"Yeah, I don't! I don't know, so that's why I'm asking you! Are you stupid or something?!"
"You have a half elven daughter! Why would you take the initiative in creating rules to oppress half elves?"
These people... are sticking up for half elves? Arche...
"When I was young, I also thought the oppression of half elves was wrong," the old man says.
"Then, why? The church exists to offer salvation to all, does it not?"
"Are you capable of understanding the terror of growing older, while your child, who supposedly shares your blood, does not?!"
"That's not Kate's fault. That's the kind of species half elves are."
Arche won't grow older while the rest of us do... She'll be alone after we die... she'll still have hundreds of years to live... Aren't the one's already suffering half elves?!
"Yes! And that is why they are shunned!" the old man yells. "I understand the feelings of those who persecute them, because my daughter is a half elf. She terrifies me!"
Why that...! I kick open the door, aiming my arrow at the retreating man on the far side of the room. "People like you disgust me! Half elves are the ones that have to suffer! How do you think they fare when all of their human friends die?!" I demand. Everyone stares at me, their mouths hanging open. Wait a sec... "L-Lloyd?! Zelos?! Sheena?! What are you doing here?!" All of the rebels are here save Kratos and Morrison...!
"Who are you?!" Lloyd demands, drawing his two swords. "Were you the one following us?!"
"H-hold on! I'm on your side!"
"How do we know you're not working for the Pope?!" Raine demands. I hear footsteps behind me—as I spin around, I notice the bookcase move; the old man retreats down the secret passage it opened while two knights rush up behind me. I shoot the arrow at the knight on the right, knocking him back.
"Hey! He's gonna get away!" I hear Zelos call out.
"Move," Presea commands—I think she's talking to me... "I will take care of him." I step back and the young girl swings wide, her ax cutting through the knight and knocking him back. Lloyd turns to me.
"I don't know who you are, but please... we have to save the king!"
"...All right. I'm coming with you!" I declare. They don't remember me... are they from the world I'm in now? Tethe'alla? "I'm Chester. Chester Barklight."
"You already seem to know us, so let's hurry!"
"Lloyd, wait!" Raine stops him. "I'm not so sure about this..."
"We don't have time, Professor! We have to save the king, and Chester fought against the knights..."
"It's okay, he seems like a good guy!" Colette agrees.
"I'm not going to win, am I? All right, let's hurry." They run down the secret passage and I follow. Whoa, it leads straight into the castle from the looks of it! Everything around her is white and fancy...
"Damn! He got away..." Lloyd exclaims.
Two more knights run up to us, and we prepare our weapons.
"Ch-Chosen! I'm sorry!" one of the knights says. "Please prepare yourself!" ...What? If he doesn't want to fight us, then why is he?! And who's this 'chosen'?!
There's a flash of light—Colette's in the air, her translucent pink wings flapping on her back. One of the knights yells.
"It's an angel!" the other shouts. "An angel has come down from heaven! It's the second coming of Spiritua!"
"Look! Your heretical deeds have brought down an emissary of Cruxis!" Zelos declares, sounding overly confident. The rest of the group looks confused... I know I'm confused! Spiritua? Cruxis?
"Chosen One! Then this must truly be...!"
"Yes. She is the angel of death and destruction. Spiritua has returned!" ...Colette? Angel of death and destruction? Okay, now I know Zelos is lying!
"Ah... um... um... what should I do...?" I hear Colette whisper softly.
"Hey, what's going on?" Lloyd whispers as well.
"Don't worry and just follow my lead." Speaking up, Zelos continues, "Oh, holy angel, how shall we deal with these creatures?" Colette stalls, unsure of what to do.
"Say you're going to kill them!" I hiss.
"B-but..."
"Just do it, like a command. Trust me!"
"Um... um... Die!" Colette says nervously. That is so unconvincing...
"P-please! Forgive us!" ...Obviously it was enough to trick the knights. Just how stupid are these tin cans?!
"Holy one!" Zelos calls out dramatically. "Please spare their lives in my name. I will defeat those who oppose you and once again act as the Chosen to spread the teachings of Martel. Please!"
Martel?! Maybe I can ask Zelos about her...! "Say you'll forgive them," I whisper as softly as I can. I hope she heard me... She's the one who had the good hearing earlier, right...?
"Ah, okay... I shall forgive you," Colette says, relief in her voice.
"Did you hear that?!" demands Zelos. "The angel has recognized the Chosen as the true holy will of the church. Leave at once and capture my enemies, the Pope and his private soldiers, the Papal Knights!"
"Y-yes, sir!" Wow, Zelos seems to hold some status here!
"Revoke the wanted status of the Chosen and his companions at once!"
"Yes, sir! Everyone, do as the Chosen commands!" The knights rush away. What's with this 'chosen' gig?
Safe from the knights, Colette flies down and lands on the floor; her wings vanish. "Wow! Everyone did what you said, Zelos! And thank you for all of your suggestions, Chester-san!"
"We were saved by the Legend of Spiritua," Regal speaks up.
"Is that related to Spiritua, the Chosen of Sylvarant?" questions Raine.
"Hey, what's with all of this chosen stuff?!" I demand.
"...Where have you been?" Lloyd asks.
"Wow, you know even less than Lloyd?! I didn't think that was possible!" Genis exclaims, taken aback.
"Hey, shut it!"
"So then where are you from?" Zelos asks me.
How should I answer that? This is Tethe'alla, so... "Miguel, in Aselia."
"You're from Iselia?! B-but I don't recognize you...!" Lloyd exclaims.
"I haven't taught you before..." mutters the eldest half elf.
"What would someone from Sylvarant be doing on Tethe'alla?" questions Suzu's sister. Huh?!
"I don't know exactly what's going on, but... I should be from the future, unless the Sword of Time made a mistake in transporting us..."
"A time traveler?!"
"Wow! That's amazing!" exclaims Colette.
"I'd like to hear more about this, but first we have to save the king," Regal reminds us. Hey, his hands... they're bound by handcuffs! But why...?
"Right! Let's go!" Lloyd commands and they set off through the castle, with me following behind them. They rush all the way upstairs and to the back, where there's a set of red doors. Inside, I see a young lady with blonde hair and a large, fancy dress standing over a bed. In the bed looks to be the king...
"W-wait!" the young lady says.
"Princess. Please let us see his Majesty," commands Zelos.
"I don't know anything about the return of Spiritua, but my father is sick. My father only wanted to protect Tethe'alla..."
"...We know. Are you aware that his Majesty has been poisoned by the Pope?"
"That can't be..." the princess gasps.
"It's true. The Pope has run away upon being investigated for it," Lloyd agrees.
"We must hurry to neutralize the poison," speaks the healer of the group. "Please move."
The young woman moves out of the way and Raine approaches the king. She gives him the antidote while the rest of us wait patiently. "It looks like this is definitely the antidote..."
"Oh... hmm..." The king sits up.
"Father!"
"Ahh? What..."
Zelos steps forward. "It looks like he's regained consciousness. Your Majesty, do you recognize me?"
"The traitor... Zelos. Have you come to kill me...?"
"No! Zelos saved you!" argues Lloyd.
"Traitor... yes, that does suit me. Anyway, we were set up by the Pope. We have no intention of harming Tethe'alla."
"Even if the ruling family were to doubt him, the church, soldiers, and citizens will certainly side with Zelos the Chosen," Raine points out. "We have the return of Spiritua with us, after all."
"...What do you want?"
"We want to see documents concerning the hero Mithos and the Kharlan War that are maintained by the royal family," Lloyd requests. Kharlan War?! Does this have to do with Derris-Kharlan?! If so, then these records could be useful for us as well! Maybe I should stick with Lloyd and the others and ask them about Martel... if we need to talk to the king instead, my group can do that tomorrow.
"They are stored in the archive on the second floor. Do what you will with them... Do not show yourselves in front of me again. I am... tired. I want nothing more to do with the church's power struggles."
"You're just being selfish!" Genis accuses.
"It's all right, kid," Zelos says. "Then, Your Majesty, we shall allow ourselves access."
We turn around and walk out of the room in complete silence. Once outside, Lloyd turns to me. "You wanna come with us to the archives? I want to learn more about the future..."
"And I want to learn more about this time. Let's go." I follow them to the left and down a set of stairs. There's a door here that leads to a large library. This must be the archives... Let's see what I can find!
Ami gained the title of Kind Soul. Even if he's mean, I want to help him!
Chester gained the title of Half Elf Protector. It is a title given to one who sticks up for half elves, no matter what!