Disclaimer: I don't own Tales of Symphonia, all characters are property of Namco

The meeting - part II

Meltokyo – Castle Hall

Zelos gallantly entered through the gates of Meltokyo palace, where the king and his personal escort awaited him, the scene somehow seemed strange, the king was there all right, but that was not his usual escort, also Princess Hilda was missing too... Zelos sensed this was not going to be an "official" talk like the others, but right now it was manners first.

Zelos approached the throne and stopped about 10 steps from the king, just as protocol said; he then looked at the king and greeted him:

What's up king? Zelos the Chosen of Mana has come as you requested -

Ah, yes Chosen one, it's good to see you again – Replied the king with please and dignity fit for his title.

It seems that you are in good health King–

And you Chosen one –

Chosen one, I have called you to discuss a serious matter that is of great importance to both the kingdom and the church of Martel… – The king said trailing off, it seemed as if he wanted to avoid talking, or remembering.

- Is it about the Pope's incident? – Asked Zelos sharply with a business-like voice, hoping to press the matter a little.

- Yes… Chosen one, you see, after this whole incident went public, it raised a great scandal in both the nobles and the commoner's perception of the whole system of Church – Kingdom relationships–

- Yeah, I pretty much expected that but, is it that bad? – Asked Zelos.

- I am afraid so Chosen One, it seems that many nobles and people alike are discouraged about the church of Martel mainly because the last pope was the king's Brother… and so, they believe that the Church has been controlled and manipulated by me, in the other hand there are nobles that think that the Church has too much Influence over the Kingdom, for example many nobles state that the Lineage of the Chosen should not be the second most important noble line in the kingdom because giving that much power to the Chosen is in fact empowering the Church, and so… with this happening, unrest has risen recently after the worlds were reunited. –

- Yes that pretty much makes sense, but what does reuniting of the worlds has to do with this?-

- Well that's part of the reason I've called you here today, but first let me introduce you to someone- with that said the king waved a hand to the only guard near the exit, obeying the command of his king, the guard left the room but Zelos had the feeling that he would be returning soon.

A few moments later, the guard returned escorting an old man, he wore a green and bluish robe with composure of both dignity and pride, his face was shrugged with age, clearly showing signs of a hard life, knowledge and experience, this one could have been easily described as a "hardened holy man".

- Greetings Bishop Alingarossa, It's good to see that you are in good health - Greeted the king.

- Thank you your highness, You seem as healthy as ever- Replied the bishop.

- Well first things first, Bishop I'd like to introduce you to Zelos Wilder, the chosen of Tethealla –

- Glad to finally meet you in person chosen one - Replied the bishop as he moved towards Zelos with his hand extended, hoping for a handshake.

- 'My, isn't he friendly?' - Thought Zelos for Himself, not wanting to start bad with his new acquaintance, he returned the handshake with some force, trying to get a first good impression.

- It's good to meet you too Bishop – Zelos greeted as he studied the Bishop a bit more.

- Well, now that you two have met each other, I'd suggest we move to the red room – Said the king now sounding more business like.

- Very well king, I am pretty sure we have a lot to discuss today, so after you King, Chosen - the Bishop politely waved his hands to let his other business mates go ahead of him.

The red room… this was the room used by the king usually to entertain important guest before an audience in the throne room, but when there were important and "private" matters to discuss, this room provided the most intimacy in the whole castle, and not even the king's room matched it, because this room had a simple, yet safe security system, consisting of thicker walls and doors than the other rooms, making sure that no whisper escaped the room and the doors could only be locked from the inside with no other way out, this gave the room the nickname of "the red vault".

The group approached the room, there was only one guard at the door, which at the time they approached, he only opened the door and refused to say anything, it seemed as if he was determined to forget they were there in the first place.

Zelos was the last entering the room, he noticed that it had been previously prepared for a meeting of three people, surely he, the king and the bishop, the room was not luxurious at all but instead of classy furniture and expensive ornamentals, there was only a simple round table and three modest looking chairs.

- 'What kind of meeting is this?' - Zelos thought, this was unusual for him and most surely unexpected coming from the king himself, the very thought of having a private audience in the most intimate of rooms with the most humility was something he didn't know.

- Everyone take seat – The king commanded and then turned his attention to the door giving a last instruction to the guard, then the king closed the door and began locking it from the inside.

Zelos and the Bishop, moved towards the chairs, none of them said a word, they didn't find any.

- I take for your silence that you are surprised of having this meeting with me in the most modest of ways – The king broke the silence, finally setting down after them.

– And I believe that you are even more surprised that there is nothing more than what we are wearing now that gives away who we really are outside this room –

The king paused for a while, observing both of his guest reactions, they still looked a bit disoriented, but finally both nodded in silent agreement.

- For that mater, I'd like to discuss a topic that will affect ourselves in the future after we leave this room, what we will discuss involves the church and the kingdom in a perspective that hasn't been seen in four thousand years - The king paused, he observed his guest faces trying to get a hold of their thoughts and for his relief, he only saw faces lost in deep thought, he was surprised that even the chosen was serious.

- So king, what is this matter exactly? – Asked the chosen, with a more sound voice, Zelos was confused and at the same time uneasy, he knew that as a representative of the church, and a nobleman in Meltokyo, this "matter" was going to affect him both ways, so he just decided that he didn't want more "hitting around the bush" from the king.

- The matter Chosen one is to reunite the church of Martel and establish new bounds with our new "neighbors" - The king responded.

The reactions did not wait, the chosen stood dumbfounded and the bishop's eyes grew wide, not to mention the sudden offended expression on his face, the bishop and Zelos realized that they were about to decide not only what to do with their positions, but now they were about to decide for the entire kingdom.

- Reuniting the Church of Martel? Explain yourself king! – The Bishop demanded in a sever tone, taking part of the conversation for the first time.

- Bishop Alingarossa, as you as all of the people of Tethealla know, our current situation is quite delicate after the last Pope's incident some months ago –

- Yes king, we had already talked about that, and finally we concluded that it was not a matter of great consequences and only time and work from both parties were needed - Replied the bishop.

- Yes… we did and we both agreed that, but we were not counting or expecting for the world to be reunited again –

- What does reuniting the world have to do with all this? - Asked the Chosen.

- The thing is chosen one, is that our neighbor kingdom or Silvarant as we call it now does not have any kind of Political infrastructure in it when it comes to have a ruler or king, but they have the church of Martel, the very same Church we have in Tethealla, and our laws –

- They provide their members some status and power in our kingdom – The bishop finished.

- Precisely, and especially to Silvarant's chosen, Collette Brunell – The king followed.

After the mention of Collette's name, Zelos face went pale, 'I am going to make a decision that involves Collette directly?' Zelos remembered the young girl fondly, the way she always smiled even in the worst circumstances and also her great strength she had in her chosen role. The selflessness and devotion she had towards her friends and everyone around her…

'Not like me…' Zelos mind drifted to the moment he had betrayed her and his friends back in the tower of Salvation and finally when she confessed that all she wanted was having a normal life…

'Definitely not like me…' the chosen admitted silently.

- Chosen one, Is something the matter? – A voice said, pulling Zelos back to reality.

- No, it's nothing, that name brought back some memories that's all –

-The king looked at Zelos more sternly because he knew that both chosen had been travel companions, nonetheless they surely developed a friendship between them, he hoped that the chosen knew to keep his personal affairs at bay.

- Then what do you think about this chosen one? – The king asked.

Zelos did not need to think twice to answer, he knew what Collette wanted and he would gladly oblige for her.

- I think that Silvarant's Chosen shouldn't be one of our concerns here, she has returned to her home village and has decided to stop being the chosen – Explained Zelos.

- Then that makes things easier for us, if she has declined her title then we can move onwards to -

-´Yes, that's right but that's still not quite enough – Bishop Alingarossa interrupted.

- And why is that? - Asked the chosen.

- Well, it's true that indeed that makes things easier but we need to make that announcement OFFICIAL to the church and the public, besides you can't back out of a chosen's title and duty just because you want to, and even if she gives up her title that doesn't solve anything - replied the bishop.

- What do you mean it doesn't solve anything!- The chosen asked incredously.

- What I mean is that never, ever a chosen has given up his/her title before, every single one of them have lived their entire life with it and many have died for it while carrying out their duties and I believe Silvarant is the living proof – the Bishop paused a little before continuing.

Zelos knew that was true, he remembered when he saw the floating bodies of his and Colette's predecessors, all dying according to their title in their journey of world's regeneration… none of them had pulled back from their "destiny".

-Besides according to the law of the church if a Chosen dies or is unable to carry out his/her duties anymore, the title goes to the closest relative in the Bloodline–

Both Zelos and the King were forced to see that the Bishop had a point, Collette couldn't simply quit being the chosen, wanting or not being the chosen was a responsibility and a "privilege" given to her since birth until the very last of her days.

- Well I am pretty sure that we can change some rules right? This is a new regenerated world after all, we don't need to maintain two main chosen's bloodlines right? Then why don't we make my bloodline the first most important in both worlds and make the church acknowledge that. –

- Chosen one I am te…-

- Bishop, I will be answering this if you don't mind - Interrupted the king, the bishop did nothing at this, and Zelos faced the king wondering… what kind of answer can a king give in a religious matter?

- Chosen one that request of yours is impossible at the moment, and I am the one to blame about this – Stated the king.

Zelos couldn't reply anything to the king just yet, he only faced the king trying to pay the most attention he could to him, if this conversation were to influence Collette's future the least he could do was to listen well and help her anyway he could in this room right now.

- The scandal generated after the Pope's incident, an incident I caused for pulling the strings in church in order for my younger brother to become the Pope has shaken the morale of the people, nobles and commoners alike-

- At the beginning bishop Alingarosa and I discussed the matter and came to the conclusion that with a bit of work and patience, this incident would only be remembered as an eccentricity from my part and that the church and the kingdom can function alongside, but now that there are two chosen, the power of the other noblemen has decreased according to our laws. -

Zelos tried to make some sense out of the king's comments at this point, he couldn't help it but to repeat the most important ideas in his head.

- Two worlds, two chosen – So far, so good.

- Two chosen, two main noble families – Still everything was going fine, one chosen line for each world, each carrying out their duties and privileges as usual, only one family could be the chosen bearer to avoid conflicts… but this rule had its flaws… Zelos knew that from harsh experience.

- Two main families, one church, one kingdom – That was not a very bright forecast, the same church, same privileges for two families… Zelos knew what that meant… especially knowing how greedy his noble kin could be… but something was not still right, not in his reasoning but in the king's words, Zelos decided to ask as soon as he could.

- The only kingdom in the world? – That fact didn't set in Zelos mind.

- Unfortunately, Silvarant cannot be considered a country or kingdom of some sort anymore, there is no political structure left in it but the church, the rest is just a bunch of scattered villages' trough the land so there is no kingdom nor country to support her bloodline, the world we now live in will be influenced directly by us, the only kingdom in the entire world, Meltokyo. –

Zelos and the bishop looked flabbergasted, none of them knew the true purpose of this little "talk" and the possibilities it could unleash upon the world, he didn't know if the bishop felt the same, but Zelos felt as if a great weight suddenly fell on his shoulders, crushing him.

The king observed the reactions of both of his guest before continuing, he knew that this news would bring stress to the conversation, if they only knew that the worst had yet to come…

- But king, you are not planning to use the church as a catalyst to conquer the lands of Sylvarant! That would be preposterous! – Alingarossa spoke in a grave and panicked accent, not wanting to believe what he had just heard.

- Yeah king, tell us what's really going on here! – Zelos demanded.

- You have misunderstood me, I don't want any war with Silvarant or what's left of it, but in the other case, I want to avoid it, now sit back and listen I will tell you about a report I received yesterday –

- Because of the unrest the pope incident caused, the papal knights were disbanded for good for posing a treat to the peace of the kingdom, but many of our nobles decided to hire them to strengthen their position and status… even if just a little, some nobles can't stand feeling inferior to other nobles… unfortunately that's something merely seen as an act of vanity, I am afraid vanity and greed runs deeper than I imagined –

- In the last report I received, many of our nobles found out about the lack of structure in the kingdom of Silvarant and many have turned their eyes towards that kingdom or I should say what's left of it, because their most important cities are in shambles right now –

- Then the nobles are setting their eyes on Silvarant? – Zelos added.

- Precisely Chosen, because Silvarant is no longer a kingdom and it's not part of ours either, the nobles have finally found a way to increase their power and status in a way they never expected, and I don't expect them to do it in the most peaceful nor the most noble of ways, after all this is one in a lifetime opportunity –

- I understand king, then you wish to stop the nobles from taking over Silvarant? –

- Yes –

-But how? –

- First we need to save what little royalty is left in Silvarant, including that kingdom's Chosen, Collete Brunell, and then we need the Church in Silvarant to raise a new royal family or make their people choose a new ruler –

- But the church doesn't have that kind of power – Replied the bishop.

- You are right, in my kingdom the church can't do that, but Silvarant is not my kingdom and surely the church is as strong as ever in Silvarant, that's where I need your help –

Zelos and Alingarossa watched the kind attentively, giving him all the attention he would need. The king realized that he had all their attention focused on him.

- Chosen one, I need you to fetch Silvarant's chosen Collette Brunell and make sure she is safe, we can't afford to let something happen to her, do this as you see fit –

- Bishop, what I need from you is to start contacting Silvarant's church of Martel and start the arrangements required for the kingdom of Silvarant to choose their new ruler, I expect an ambassador to visit me –

- From my part, I'll hold back the nobles in order to delay any of their plans for Silvarant, I will not be able to do so for long before they start suspecting, but It will give you enough time for you to set the plan in motion –

The three of them stayed quiet for a while, thinking at the strange proposal the king had made. Finally the silence was broken by the Bishop.

- King, I believe you are taking the right path on this, but there is something on my mind that bothers me –

- What is it Bishop? – Asked the king

- You are talking about keeping the nobles at bay, and give something to the people of a non-existent kingdom; couldn't it have been easier to expand your kingdom? Why do you try to keep the nobles at bay? Conquering Silvarant could bring greater power and riches to the kingdom rather than dealing with a new one –

'That's true', reasoned Zelos, it didn't make any sense that the king was interested in stopping something that would bring him benefits for him and the noble hood.

The king took one hand to his chin, and tried to keep himself from smiling, which he failed.

- Well, I see now why you were made a Bishop, you let nothing slip by –

- Well, what is it king? - Asked the chosen

- The reason, the main reason that I don't wish for Silvarant to be part of Tethealla is because the kingdom would be too big to administer, being too big, I am afraid I would have to give the nobles more power, and too much power within a few people is dangerous to the kingdom, my brother taught me that –

There was a long silence again, no one dared to speak, the chosen limited himself to think all about this meeting and the bishop looked crestfallen and in some way regretful of making such a question, or receiving such and answer.

- Very well then, I will take of your silence that you are considering my proposal – the king interrupted them.

-Yes king I am – Replied the chosen

- I must say King that from all the possibilities today I really wasn't expecting this – Answered the bishop.

- I will do as you say king; I will take care of Silvarant's chosen and make sure she is safe, don't worry! The great Zelos never fails! – Replied the chosen in an upbeat tone.

- And I will be departing to Silvarant tomorrow to start pulling the strings – Continued the Bishop.

- Very well gentlemen, I am counting on you, and remember, this conversation never took place, no one is to know about this, because I will not acknowledge it –

Zelos and Alingarossa nodded in agreement.

- Well gentlemen, I hope to hear good news from you soon – With that the king raised from his chair and walked back to the door, unlocking it, and finally opening it, a wave of fresh air walked inside the room making the chosen and the bishop to shiver, after both of them walked out of the room, the king followed, and nothing more was said, he went back to the throne room and kept doing his chores… as if nothing had happened.

Well, there you have it, I hope you enjoy this chapter from now on everything will be faster I promise.

Once again I must apologize for taking too long (way too long) to update again, if you wish to leave a review even if its just to flame this story, please do so, It will help me get better and if you wish to praise this story in any way, I will be thankful that you enjoy my work.

Until next update.