Author's Note: I tried to edit this many times, but the document manager has not been working for me. I dont think it's saving my changes. I'm sorry if things are mixed up, I really don't think it is (but sorry anways).

Tales of Symphonia: The Releasing Orb

Chapter 3 'A Past Revived in the Night'

The trip through the woods did not take very long. This time they had sunlight to guide them through the trees and foliage. They came upon the large metal structure, and waited behind a line of bushes. There was one guard standing in front of the large gate entrance. Everything else was still and quiet.

"What do you think we should do Lloyd?" Colette looked nervous as she peered around a bush at the guard.

"We can't assume anything yet. Let's first try approaching the guy. It doesn't matter if he is there for good reasons or bad, he will treat us the same either way. He will probably tell us to leave. Let's just go see." Colette started to walk around the bush, but Lloyd stopped her, "I think I should go alone. You being the old Chosen and all might cause a scene." Colette started to object, but finally agreed that her staying behind was the best way to gain information.

"Uh… Hello there, sir" Lloyd had come around the bushes, and was trying to act casual. It ended up looking more awkward than informal, "Last night I was heading to… Iselia and I noticed some smoke in the sky coming from here. It… intrigued me, so I decided to make my way here the next day… which is today…" He started feeling rather stupid at this point, "So, isn't this place supposed to be abandoned?"

"Were you the person that made the fire last night, and was in a tree spying on our night watch?" The guard had taken Lloyd's 'casual' actions as suspicious behavior.

"Oh... no of course not! I saw that smoke in the sky too. I was more interested in the fire coming from here, because this place is supposed to be abandoned."

"There are guards that take watches at different parts of the day and night." The guard continued to eye Lloyd doubtfully, "This is to make sure no one can retake this area. So if you don't mind please move on to a safer area."

"Well, you see, last night we... I saw a bunch of men gathered around the gate. It looked like they were holding a meeting or something!" Lloyd had completely given up on acting casual.

"...You saw? So you were the person in the tree!"

"Um... No! I think I will be on my way now..." Lloyd walked away quickly past the bushes. When he was far enough from the guard to not be seen he turned and snuck his way back to Colette. He quickly gave a summary of the conversation before, only with minor changes to help his case. However, with no information gained they decided to find a way to sneak inside the ranch.

"Wait, I remember a back way Genis and I came. It was up this cliff." Colette proceeded to fly up to the top of the cliff, while Lloyd was left staring at Colette's wings and wishing. He began to jump from rock to rock, and when they met at the top they made a plan to get them both unnoticed and safely inside. The cliff was positioned two feet from the ranches side gate. Lloyd jumped onto the gate and climbed down the electric wire carefully. He felt quite lucky that the ranch did not have its electric power anymore. Lloyd watched the guard, and signaled when it was safe for Colette to fly over to him.

The ranch was emptied, and the silence gave an eerie feel. It was as if the ghostly presence of the innocent humans that were tortured and murdered still lingered. They walked through the halls undisturbed by anyone. However, occasionally a machine would detect their presence which soon after would be silenced with a sword through its wiring. When they had searched every room they decided that maybe they were too quick to judge. On their way out Colette noticed a strange box, which had a warm energy flowing from it.

"So this is why I could feel the presence of the humans who use to be trapped here." Both Lloyd and Colette were staring at the box that held a small pile of Exspheres. "Dirk gave me this orb, and said I could store Exspheres in it. How about we collect the Exspheres in it, and once we have found them all we destroy the orb and the Exspheres with it?" Colette nodded in agreement, so Lloyd picked the stones up one by one and absorbed them into the Releasing Orb. As he reached to pick up the last one up it began to glow. A translucent figure appeared from it and spoke to them.

"When daylight falls and evening takes her place the shroud of lies will be removed. Darkness will reveal the truth."

"Wait what? I don't understand!" Lloyd had talked to the soul of an Exsphere before, but this woman seemed not to notice them, "HELLO? Is this a memory or a prophecy or what?"

"When daylight falls and evening takes her place the shroud of lies will be removed. Darkness will reveal the truth. Save us." Her figure returned to the sphere, and the two stones absorbed together leaving Colette and Lloyd pondering on what they had just witnessed.

Colette and Lloyd made there way unnoticed out of the ranch and back onto the top of the cliff. The day had completely passed while they were searching through the ranch. Evening was setting in, and the trees shivered from monsters beginning to lurk about the forest.

"What do you think she meant Colette? 'When daylight falls and evening takes her place the shroud of lies will be removed. Darkness will reveal the truth.' I don't get it! It sounds like jumble to me."

"Maybe it's a clue? I don't know either."

"Let's just move on. At least going in there wasn't a complete waist." He looked down at the orb, and noticed something strange on its surface. On one side of the sphere six small circles had appeared, "Colette, take a look at this!" Lloyd placed the orb into Colette's hands, and pointed out his new discovery. He was very pleased with himself.

"Lloyd, I think those are the Exspheres we found! Maybe as we collect more in the orb more orange circles will form!" Both Lloyd and Colette were getting excited.

"So, when the ball is completely covered it means we have regained all the Exspheres! Brilliant!" Their happy fit was soon interrupted by movement below them. Men began to come out of the ranch dressed as Desians, "No. Where did they come from? We checked through that whole place!"

"Lloyd, do you think the rumors were true?" Colette grabbed a hold of Lloyd's arm and held it tight, "Are they staying in an underground shelter? But... but the regeneration was supposed to seal them away wasn't it?"

"Well how much of the story of regeneration and Martel turned out to be true? I bet in the past when a Chosen regenerated one world the Desians would move to the other. So they were never really sealed away... They only moved from Sylvarant to Tethe'alla, and the other way around depending on which world flourished."

"So now that the worlds are joined... they can't move back and forth..."

"So maybe they decided to gather and hide until..."

"Until what Lloyd?" Colette looked like she was about the cry.

"I don't know... wait, could this be what that lady was talking about in the Exsphere? 'When daylight falls, and evening takes her place the shroud of lies will be removed. Darkness will reveal the truth,' of course! That's why we saw them last night! I GET IT!"

"Shh, come on Lloyd, let's listen!"