A/N: Ask and ye shall receive. lol. Ooh, I got two reviews already? ::happy time:: SunkissSMB and dood, thanks so much! Here's a longer chapter, per request! (or is it because I couldn't stop writing? ::sweatdrop::) Again, please R&R! Comments and Criticism welcomed! Suggestions are also appreciated! Now, enjoy!
Tales of Symphonia: Gaiden
Chapter One
Kratos leaned against the wall, brooding. He crossed his arms and sighed in annoyance. Hours had passed since he had found the stranger in the tunnels beneath Derris-Kharlan. Before she had dropped into unconsciousness, she had blurted out – nearly manically, he noted – about finding the Eternal Swordmaster. Unfortunately, that's all he found out before she passed out.
Kratos glared over at his bed, where she lay. He was irritated, no doubt because the Eternal Swordmaster was his son. Running his fingers through his hair, in what had to have been the one hundredth time, he wondered where the girl came from.
All warps in and out of Derris-Kharlan should have been out of commission. He had personally seen to that himself in his first few days in the city. After healing Aya of her wounds, Kratos had rechecked the power circuits, only to find that they were still shut off and not running.
Aya moved around in the bed, rubbing her eyes and sitting up.
"I see you're away," Kratos spoke, causing Aya – who had not realized he was in the room – to jump. "You're wounds are healed and I've left a change of clothes by the bed along with some warm water. I'll be stepping outside. Please come out when you are done." The request was forced; he meant it as a demand.
Aya followed him with her eyes as he walked out of the room before testing her arm. She was surprised that the man knew such advances techniques. Shaking it off, she dropped her feet over the side of the bed, sighing in aggravation.
"How did I miscalculate?" she mused, grabbing the cloth and plopping it in the bowl of water. She stripped herself of her clothes, kicking them into a corner.
Aya ringed the excess water out of the rag before beginning to quickly rub the dirt and dried blood from her skin.
She paused and took great care to clean a red gem attached to the back of her right hand. She cupped it with her other hand, holding them both above her heart, as if reflecting on a distant memory. Sighing once more, Aya dropped the rag to the ground and picked up the basin of water.
"For his sake, as well as the others, I can't give up," she sternly told herself, dunking herself with water. Shaking the wet locks of hair out of her eyes, she quickly set to braiding the honey-colored mess and tied it securely with a piece of string she found inside a drawer of the bedside table.
Not bothering to critique the man's choice of wardrobe, she pulled on the pair of black pants, which ended up being a bit smug. She grabbed the shirt, a loose red tunic that was a size and half too big and ended at her thighs.
Slipping on the boots – "Finally something that fits," she grumbled – Aya made her way to the door. Taking a deep breath of air, she opened the door.
"Ready to talk," the man half-ordered as she shut the door behind her.
"Listen... err..."
"Kratos."
"Listen, Kratos. I know you must have a lot of questions, but I don't have the time to answer them," Aya muttered. "I thank you for healing my wounds, but my mission is not of your concern."
Aya turned to leave; she instead took a few steps back, startled to find Kratos now directly in her way.
"I'm making it my business," he stated very clearly, eyes slimmed dangerously.
Aya wondered if she had touched a nerve, but gave in nonetheless with a sigh. My aunt is going to kill me for this...
"I need to find the one who made a pact with Origin. My... home needs the power of the Eternal Sword to save it," Aya offered in appeasement. Next to the door she came out of, she noticed her sack of items. Glad the man had at least brought them from below, she walked over to collect a few choice items.
"What did you mean that the swordsman would be in danger?" Kratos asked, getting straight to the point.
Aya glanced back at him, as she tied a leather belt around her waist. The red tunic fell over the belt easily.
"That wolf you killed earlier... if that made it through, then who knows what else came through the rift..." she answered swiftly, sliding a slim blade into its sheath and through a loop on the belt.
"Monsters aren't new to Sylvarant or to Tethe'alla," Kratos retorted as Aya continued to dodge the answer he was looking for. He could tell she was hiding information.
"True, but not the one who sends them," she sighed, grabbing a pair of black, fingerless gloves. She slipped them both on, the right one having an extra hole for the gem on the back of her hand.
Until then, Kratos hadn't noticed the red gem on her hand. But it caught his eye, temporarily making him change the subject.
"Why... do you have an Exsphere?" he demanded, one hand slowly moving to his sword.
"Exsphere?" she asked, before noticing his gaze fell on the stone on her hand. "You mean this Memory Stone?"
"What?" Kratos stuttered, thrown off by her answer.
"Memory Stones. They... contain the souls and life-force of love ones who've died. It's a tradition... where I'm from. This is... my father..."
"Your father?" Kratos mused, the revelation surprising.
"Yes. Now if you excuse me," she shot out, standing and swinging the now less empty bag over her head so that it rest diagonally along her back, "I need to go."
Closing her eyes in defiance, she stormed past Kratos and made her way to across the barren city.
"Go? Go where?" Kratos asked, amused. Clearly his guest did not understand where she was.
"I need to find the one who made the pact," she stated simply.
"Do you know how to find him?" Kratos asked in jest, a small smile creeping on his face.
"Err... Well... I know he's not here!" she snapped angrily.
"Do you know anything of the land or customs of which you are going?" he added in a patronizing way, catching up and walking with her.
"No, but that doesn't matter. I won't be staying long," Aya huffed, annoyed.
Kratos smiled, chuckling slightly. A faint memory tingled in the back of his mind.
"What? Do you find my plight amusing?" Aya grumbled, scowling.
"Not at all," Kratos stated in all seriousness. "But I am coming with you."
"Excuse me?" Aya stammered, looking at Kratos questionably. "I don't remember offering you an invitation."
"You'll need a guide. I think you also want to find... the Swordmaster as quickly as possible, correct?"
The way he smiled, Aya realized she didn't have much choice. Sighing, she took the second loss.
"So then," Kratos stated as they approached the large dead warp that formally led to the Tower of Salvation, "how do you plan to leave?"
"Same way I got her," Aya shrugged, squatting next to the warp. She felt the question coming so she cut off Kratos before he could speak. "I transfer a large portion of my mana into an existing warp space. Then, I concentrate on where I want to go and it takes me there. It's a variation of teleportation I learned from my mother. Naturally, I'm left drained afterwards."
"And the monster?"
"Must have come through before the warp closed. I just hope he was the only thing to come through..." Aya concluded, placing her right hand on the warp pad itself. Closing her eyes, she concentrated the required mana into the pad, which began to glow.
Kratos watched the exchange curiously. He noted the Memory Stone – as she called it – glowed in response to the mana flowing from her hand.
"Okay," Aya exclaimed, rising to her feet. She wiped the sweat from her brow. Without looking back, she stepped into the light and disappeared.
Kratos hesitated, now doubting his decision to go. How would Lloyd react to seeing him again? How much time had passed in the new world? He didn't have much time to contemplate his choice as the light began to shrink.
Doubt still on his mind, he stepped into the light and vanished from Derris-Kharlan.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Birds chirped loudly as he walked through the woods. Sunlight filtered through the trees of Iselia Forest. Inhaling the sweet smell of morning dew, the young man placed his hands behind his head as he walked.
He hadn't been in the forest for a long time. His travels often took him away from home. Allowing his feet to tread the familiar path, he reached into a pocket of his black pants. He stopped, frowning.
"Damn, where did I put it?" he asked himself. He padded down the pockets of his pants, checked the insides of his red boots, stared inside each of his sword sheaths, check under his red gloves.
Sighing in frustration, he took his red shirt. The tunic was plain and simple but the sleeves had been ripped off. Clothed now in a tight long-sleeved black shirt, the man waved the red shirt frantically.
His eyes lit up as a piece of paper fluttered to the ground. Pulling the shirt back over his head and putting both his boots on and his swords away, the man picked up the letter, scanning its contents with brown eyes.
Lloyd-
Happy birthday! I'm so excited that I'll get to see you again! It's been a long time, hasn't it? Anyways, the others and I... I mean, can you meet me outside Mizuho on the eve of your 21st birthday? Can't wait to see you!
-Colette
P.S. Ah! I'm sorry! Could you at least act surprised?
P.S.S Stop by your Dad's first. He misses you, too!
Lloyd Irving chuckled to himself at his dear friend's clumsiness. She had spoiled the surprise, but he was excited all the same.
Smiling at nothing, he continued on his way. He ran his fingers through the mass of brown hair atop his head.
"Wonder what Dad has planned..." he mused before smiling to himself. "Awww, whatever it is, it's bound to be good!" Deciding that he couldn't wait anymore, Lloyd broke into a jog as he made his way through the forest he knew so well.
Even though he was turning twenty-one, not much had changed. He no longer looked as boyish as before, though he still acted that way.
Lloyd nearly skipped as his old house came into view. Rustic that it was, he had always called it home. Clanking across the wooden bridge, he paused as he decided on a direction to take. He jogged quickly to the left, stopping in front of a simple gravestone.
"Hey mom!" he offered cheerfully in greeting. "Hope you're proud of me." He noticed that next to the grave, his Dad had built a small stone box. Looking through the glass top, Lloyd could see the long sword he placed there himself four years ago.
"Look, now Kratos is with you, too! Bet you're no longer lonely, huh mom?" Lloyd hypothetically asked. "Gee," he mused, straightening, "I wonder how Dad's doing..."
Lloyd Irving wasn't a typical child; he had two fathers. Raised by his adoptive father, the dwarf Dirk, Lloyd thought his biological parents were dead. Until four years ago, when one of the biggest events to change his life happened. That was when he discovered the truth of the older companion on his travels. That Kratos was his father.
"I wish he was here now..." Lloyd mused aloud, sighing and suddenly feeling a bit depressed.
"Lloyd, that you?" grumbled an elderly dwarf walking out of the house.
"Dad!" Lloyd shouted, turning around with a smile on his face. Whatever sadness he was feeling, he pushed to the back of his mind.
"Blamey, look how you've grown," Dirk joked, stroking his graying beard. "It's been, what, two years since your last visit?"
"Sorry, Dad," Lloyd apologized, feeling embarrassed. "I've been busy."
"Collecting those Exspheres, right?" Dirk pressed, starting to walk back towards the house. Lloyd followed.
"Yeah. It's going well, too!" Lloyd happily added as Dirk reached the door to the house.
"When do you plan on gettin' rid of yours?" he asked softly, not bothering to look at Lloyd's left hand. Lloyd sheepishly covered the Exsphere on his hand.
"Soon!" he offered in defense. "It's just... hard to let go, ya know?" Lloyd exhaled as he entered the small house. He pulled out short stool from the wall and plopped down.
He examined the Exsphere on his hand, watching the light reflect from its red surface.
"It's just... that it's the only thing I have of Mom's..." Lloyd reflected solemnly, not noticing the dwarf shuffling around. Lloyd suddenly felt the weight of the gold chain around his neck.
Resting just next to his heart under both his shirts was a small golden locket. In it was the one thing he treasured most: a picture of himself, his father Kratos, and his mother Anna. Several times when he was lonely, he would pull it out and stare longingly at the picture. He saw how happy everyone was and wondered what life would have been if the Desians hadn't interfered. No one knew he had it, though, except the man who gave it to him on that snowy day long ago. It was his special secret.
"Lloyd," Dirk spoke, snapping Lloyd out of his thoughts. "I wanted to give this to ya earlier, but time was never on our side."
Lloyd blinked as Dirk shoved a large bound book into his hands.
"What is...?"
"Just open it," Dirk offered, not looking at Lloyd as he sat in an old wooden rocking chair he had built himself.
Lloyd looked the book over. Outwardly, it seemed like a normal book, old with age, but normal nonetheless. However, something special seemed to radiate from it. Carefully, Lloyd opened the cover. His eyes went wide and he gasped. The first page contained a much larger photo of the one in his locket.
Earnestly, he flipped the page. On the back was an entry written in feminine handwriting. Lloyd could tell without reading that the handwriting belonged to his mother. Eagerly, he scanned the pages. Pictures were scattered throughout the book. Several pages were written in the same, loopy writing. Scattered here or there were a few with larger, messier fonts. Those belonged to his dad, Lloyd was sure.
The last few pages had a few pictures of Lloyd himself as a child. Mostly they were of his first steps. Beneath one picture were five large blocky letters. Lloyd traced them himself, realizing that he had written that – his own name. The last several pages were blank. Lloyd shut the book and looked over to Dirk, tears in his eyes.
"I found it with ya mother's stuff the day I found ya. Figured it be something you'd want as a keepsake, when you were ready," Dirk explained, avoiding Lloyd's gaze.
"Dad!" Lloyd cried out, nearly leaping over and bringing the dwarf into a tight embrace. "This was the best present ever! Thanks so much!" he laughed happily, hiding the tears he couldn't control in the dwarf's beard.
Dirk sighed, and patted Lloyd's back affectionately. "Don't you mention it. I know how much ya miss her," Dirk explained, smiling sadly. Lloyd nodded, wiping any traces of tears on the back of his hand.
Glancing outside, Dirk's smile left his face.
"Would you look at the time! If you don't leave soon, you'll miss your friends," Dirk chuckled, rising. Lloyd blinked a few times before looking out the window as well. The sky was already turning red as the sun sank on the horizon.
"Ah!" Lloyd cried out, jumping to his feet. "I'm so going to be late!" he moaned, smacking himself in the face and sliding his hand down the side. He slipped his new book into his traveling sack which he flung over his shoulder. He then gave Dirk one final hug before bounding outside. "NOISHE!"
A large dog ran up to Lloyd, barking happily. Dirk made his way over to the window and watched Lloyd playfully pat Noishe on the head. Introductions over with, Lloyd lifted himself onto Noishe's back. Being late, Noishe provided faster transportation.
"Bye Dad!" Lloyd called out, waving madly. "I'll come back soon, I promise!"
"Don't you worry about little old me," Dirk called back, laughing. "Have a good time with your friends!"
"All right!" Lloyd yelled back. Motioning to Noishe, the dog leapt forward and the two ran off into the forest.
The two bounded through woods and over valleys and plains. Mizuho, the hidden valley of Shinobi, was their goal. Lloyd smiled and looked up towards the sky. Light clouds couldn't hide the stars or the large, full moon. On the horizon, Lloyd could make out the top of Yggdrasill, the giant mana tree.
"I can't wait to see everyone again!" Lloyd shouted, to which Noishe barked in response. "Hehehe... Yeah! It'll be just like old times!"
He had no idea.
--Silverwings
Dun dun dun! More cliffhangers! Where did Aya and Kratos end up? Will Lloyd be able to convince his friends that he didn't know they were coming? Will he even MAKE it to the party? Oo Find out next time! (R&R please!)