Shadow's Return: A Fanfic by Gyppy
Timeline: Based 2 years after 'Crystal Feathers'
Summary: Nebilim's will had been broken for a final time, and Symphonia was finally at peace after four years of hard fighting. The group that saved Symphonia parted ways, expecting to never see each other again.
However, the miasma has returned, and Lloyd has no idea why. The Tower of Destruction's ground is concealed by a rolling shadow, one that threatens to conceal the land. At the same time, the crystals have returned, obviously to defend the land... so there are obviously two opposing forces at work.
Lloyd sets out once again on a journey to save the world. However, this time he will be saving more than just the world...
Pairings: LloydxColette, SheenaxZelos and KylexReala will be the predominant pairings, with a few sprinklings of others, especially LonixNanaly and LeonxMarian.
Author's Note: Okay, this is what you call serious AU. This fanfic is the hotly-anticipated sequel to Crystal Feathers, which was the third in a series dubbed 'Rising Shadow'. If you'll notice, the entire series thus far has had the same rating, with sexual references and language generally increasing with time. I can't guarantee anything about this fanfic, so please expect anything.
There will be big-time spoilers for Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Destiny and Tales of Destiny 2, so if you do not desire to be spoiled on any of these games, do not read on.
In this fanfic, who was Judas in Crystal Feathers is now Leon. There is a reason for this that was easily explained in Crystal Feathers, if you've read the fanfic.
To all you ZelosxSheena haters, I advise you stay very far away from this fanfic. Reason why? Zelos and Sheena are married in this fanfic. Yep, that's right. It happened around a year after Crystal Feathers, which was why it wasn't mentioned in CF.
Some of you may have noticed that although KratosxRaine is indeed an official pairing in this fanfic series, there haven't been very many references to it in the actual series. There is a reason for this that I hope you've realized by now: I do not wish to offend any of the purists who happen to read my fanfic. This is to encourage more readers (and hopefully, more reviewers), while still keeping the interest of those that like the pairing.
This fanfic is based two years after Crystal Feathers, four years after To Kill An Angel, six years after Rising Shadow. For those of you who can't do the math, Lloyd is 23, Colette is 22, Zelos is 28, Sheena is 25, Genis is 18, Presea is 18, Raine is 29, Abyssion is 29, Leviathan is 22, Seles is 20, Allurya is 10, Mithos is 18, Karina is 17, Kyle is 17, Reala is 18, Loni is 25, Nanaly is 21, and Leon is 18. Stahn and Rutee have also removed their Cruxis Crystals, and therefore they are, respectively, 21 and 20. Philia is 21 as well, but she is expected to be featured less than the other Swordian masters.
This fanfic has the potential to introduce some more characters later on; if so, they will most likely be from either Tales of Destiny 2 or Tales of Eternia. I already have planned another Tales of Destiny 2 introduction... you'll see just who later on ;)
Disclaimer: I do not own Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Destiny/Tales of Destiny 2, Tales of Eternia, Namco, Final Fantasy or Squaresoft/Square-Enix.
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Chapter 2: Target Aileron
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It had started off as a normal rainy day, like all the others that had been plaguing the Iselia region for the past three weeks. The endless rain had seemed to isolate Iselia from the rest of Sylvarant, the clouds obscuring the sun whilst the rest of Sylvarant saw clear skies.
However, what started off as a rainy day would not end as one. In the late afternoon, a particularly strong thunderstorm rocked the region, accompanied by a most peculiar wind from the south. When the storm had passed, Stahn, who was staying with Lloyd, encountered a most peculiar person, along with the same Kaziro they had defeated two years ago.
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"Stahn, I wish to speak with you." Kaziro's voice was stern, as if he brought grave news.
Stahn nodded. "Kinda hard to trust you after what you did two years ago, but go ahead."
"First of all, Leon has disappeared," Kaziro said. "I have no idea where he or Marian have gone. The last I heard, he said he was going to the Tower of Destruction's ground to see what was going on."
"And that's not all," the red-haired person standing beside Kaziro said. "I heard there have been numerous attacks on various towns all about Sylvarant, but none in Tethe'alla have been affected. It is unknown who is leading this movement, but the attackers call themselves the 'Atamoni'." He shook his head, sending water flying in all directions. "It's pretty wet out here, maybe we should come on inside."
Stahn nodded, backing off. "Come on in, I'm not stopping you."
The two people entered the house, with the redhead closing the door behind himself.
"Trust me on this, Stahn," Kaziro said. "I've changed. Nebilim's will has been broken... all thanks to the work of your dearest friend Leon."
"Leon..." Stahn closed his eyes. "I wonder what happened to him... I hope he's okay."
"He should be fine," Kaziro said. "I know Leon. He's strong."
Stahn opened his eyes and glanced at the red-haired person. "Who's he?"
"I'm Reid," the person replied. "Reid Hershel. I'm from the Palmacosta region, and I've made acquaintances with a few unlikely people."
"I'd like to meet your friends someday," Stahn said, grinning. "But for now, I want to know." His grin faded. "Do you know anything about these 'Atamoni' people?"
"I worked with them for a while," Reid replied. "They were originally an organization against the Desians, but they've recently turned sour."
"Another thing, Stahn," Kaziro said. "You should watch out for the new leader of Atamoni. He is a descendant of someone in a time long past us, one who was a follower of Nebilim. And he has his eyes dead-set on you..."
"I'll keep my eyes open," Stahn said. "Has the Crystal of Barbatos been found?"
"Not yet," Kaziro said. "But I'll look for it. Might you have any idea where Lloyd-"
He was cut off by a massive explosion from deep within the forest. Stahn's eyes widened, and he quickly shot out the door, not even bothering to notice that Reid was following close behind him.
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"So, I see you've come." A creature that appeared to be mostly humanoid with the tail and legs of a Ktugach stepped out of the brush, his eyes glowing red. "Atamoni has been looking for you for quite some time."
"You can't be serious," Stahn said. "I thought you knew, I'm of little significance to the world now. Dymlos is old and worn-out, and the other Swordians aren't even here."
"That's where you're wrong," the creature said. "Dymlos is not old and worn-out. It is just as capable as if it were new. And the other Swordians... remember your little friend Rutee left hers here?"
Stahn growled. "Don't insult Rutee!"
"Oh, yes, of course, that's right," the creature said, an evil grin growing on its face. "Just because you made love to her, she's automatically better than all the other Swordian masters. I should've known that by now."
Reid drew his sword. "And just who are you, he who believes he can insult a Swordian master and get away with it?"
"I'm one of Atamoni's latest recruits," the creature said. "I am Tykerion, Lord of Flame Quadrant and second only to Atamoni's leader himself."
"Atamoni..." Reid's eyes narrowed. "If it can bring you back to the side of light, I'll have to kill you!" He loosed a Double Demon Fang, which Tykerion swiftly evaded.
Another person, this time fully human, walked up behind Tykerion. "Come on, Sir. We can't be screwing around here. We'll kill Stahn later."
Tykerion glared back at the soldier, then gutted him with a clawed foot. "Hmph... he was worthless anyhow." Then, he turned to face Stahn again. "You're my next target, you know."
"How brutal..." Stahn's eyes widened. "You... you can't just... kill people like that..."
"And if I can't?" Tykerion folded his arms in front of his chest. "It's not like you're gonna make me stop it or anything."
"Okay, now you've just gone over the top," Reid said. "I'll make sure Mjollnir here is happy when I'm done with you!"
"Mjollnir, huh," Tykerion said, smirking. "I've always wondered where that sword got itself to." He drew a sword of his own from behind his back. "It was always such a glamorous sword in comparison to its counterpart, Poseidon."
Stahn glanced at Reid's sword, only to notice something about it that he hadn't noticed before. It was colored with a translucent purplish-blue, almost like the Vorpal Sword, except darker. Its blade was long and curved, with a serrated inner edge and a smooth, well-sharpened outer edge. A notch cut through the middle of the blade, making it have the appearance of a lightning bolt.
Reid held out the blade of the sword. "You can't defeat me if you don't have Poseidon, you know. Those two swords are opposing forces."
"That's where you're wrong," Tykerion said. "Only the weaklings believe that a sword can only be defeated by its counterpart."
Tykerion quickly launched a Fierce Demon Fang which knocked back both Stahn and Reid. However, Reid quickly got up and brought his own sword forward, performing Lightning Strike.
Stahn seemed amazed at this. Is he infused with Aionis or something...?
"You won't be returning to Atamoni," Tykerion said. "As long as you continue to work against it, you will never be able to join up with it again."
And with that, Tykerion smacked the side of Reid's head with the flat of his blade, knocking him out. Tykerion then left, summoning forth flaming wings of mana and taking to the sky.
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"Reid! Are you okay?"
Reid opened his eyes slowly, noticing that there was someone standing above him. He was also lying down on a bed, and had a massive headache.
"Ugh... where am I?" Reid was confused, glancing around. "And... who are you?"
"I'm Lloyd," the person standing above Reid said. "I figured you would've known me, judging by how Kaziro was talking about me."
"Oh, yes, you," Reid said. "But where am I?"
"You're at my house," Lloyd replied. "I saw you knocked out in the forest, so I decided to take you in. You're Kaziro's companion, right? What's your name?"
"I'm Reid," the red-headed swordsman replied. "I was looking for you."
"Well, hello, Reid," Lloyd said. "Looks like you have your wish. I can talk to you later... but for now, just rest, okay? You look like you got beaten up pretty bad."
"I was attacked," Reid said. "Someone named Tykerion... he seemed to be half human and half Ktugach. He said he was part of Atamoni."
"Kaziro told me about that," Lloyd said. "He also told me to watch out for the four sector leaders. Maybe Tykerion was one of them?"
"Yeah," Reid said. "He's the Lord of the Flame Quadrant. He said it himself."
"Lord of the Flame Quadrant, huh," Lloyd said. "That doesn't sound good. We should keep an eye out for him."
"I wanted to look for Kyle, myself," Reid said. "That's why I was coming to get you. We're supposed to head south today, so we can hopefully catch up to him."
"I'll keep my eyes open," Lloyd said. "I've been wanting to see Kyle again myself for a while." He looked off into space. "Man, I wish that kid would stop running off on us..."
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Author's Note: Yeah, I know, crappy action. But we've had our first Eternia character revealed, as well as a baddie! And Kaziro's turned back to the side of good... I hope you all saw that coming at the end of Crystal Feathers, because otherwise...
