The back door to the house opened silently, an invitation to the unexpected guest. Kratos stood slowly and entered, pausing to close the door behind him.
Inside, the room was dark save for a single window that let in a pale stream of moonlight. The angel walked over to where the light illuminated a single chair. As he sat down, someone cleared their throat in the darkness. "Why have you come here, and at this hour?"
Kratos inclined his head in a sign of respect. Brown locks fell across his eyes as he straightened his pose. "I need to know how a human can wield the sword."
"Forged for him by the master of the dwarves?" A frail chuckle came from the darkness, where Kratos could just make out the Elder's form. "That I cannot tell you, for I do not know all the pertinent facts. There is someone who does, however. Go, seek out the storyteller. In that one refuge of truth, you will find your answers, though I won't promise you any hope. Hope died when Martel perished."
The angel nodded and rose from his seat. "Thank you. It was more than I expected." He hesitated, his hand on the door latch. "As for the lateness of my arrival, I had no wish to advertise this query to my friend. He would not be well pleased with it, and I have others to consider as well."
His thoughts flashed briefly to a previous stop on his journey, and for a brief instant, a longing welled up inside him. 'Perhaps...' It was cut off in a moment by the Elder's voice. "I understand. Go in peace."
With a brief nod, Kratos slipped outside and was soon lost to sight among the trees.
Alighting in the area around the storyteller's hut, Kratos could hear the thunder of the waterfall in the distance. This time he didn't wait for an invitation, but instead entered the dwelling immediately. Silence met his ears, his senses telling him that the domicile was empty at this time. He sat down to wait; the storyteller had strange habits, and could be anywhere on the mountain.
The constant chatter of the falls lulled him as he sat waiting. It was a dangerous position for the Seraphim to be in, but he let the calm of his present situation get to him - he fell asleep. The next thing that he noticed was the warmth of the sunlight upon his cheek, and the wrinkled face of the storyteller.
"Foolish angel." With a shake of the head, the old one motioned Kratos to the table. "Sit and eat. And while you do, enlighten me as to the reason for this visit."
Obediently, Kratos stood and walked over to the table. Sitting down, he regarded the storyteller keenly. "I have come because I wish to know how a human may wield the sword forged by Origin."
The old elf strode across the floor, stopping at the end of the table. Keen eyes regarded the angel. "First you would have to release Origin from his seal. Otherwise you will be unable to even approach the sword. Secondly, you must be able to convince the sword itself that you have met the requirements to wield it. Forged properly, there is one metal that holds the same magic as elven blood. With the proper materials, a ring may suffice."
"All the sword requires is a human with magic in their blood. That is the only thing that sets half-elves apart from you."
The storyteller turned and walked out of the hut, leaving Kratos to eat his breakfast in peace. Kratos pondered the old one's words as he ate; finally understanding what had been implied. "I see."
Standing, he removed his dishes from the table and washed them in a bucket of spring water. Drying them with a ragged towel, he placed them on the desk before returning the rest of his clean-up implements to their places. He found the storyteller waiting for him by the bridge. The elf raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Took you long enough. You've been slacking off since your last visit."
Kratos shrugged, leaning on the bridge railing. In the silence he found his thoughts returning to the party that he was trying to save. The old one watched him closely, and then laughed aloud. "For an angel with amazingly high intellect, you are quite stupid. I think you wouldn't know that you are in love until it kissed you full in the face. I've only ever seen you this absent once in your life, and it took you a full five months to work up the courage to say anything to her. You really ought to let the young lady know that you're dating her."
The angel stiffened. First Undine and now the storyteller, this was getting to be a bit much. "Must everyone arrange my personal life for me? I am not dating anyone. There is too much to be done in order to save the world."
"But you don't deny that you're attracted. Progress at last!" Kratos reddened at this last statement. Glaring at the waterfall, he shook his head savagely. "No. Don't go there. Please."
The old one shrugged. Elven eyes regarded the angel from underneath the gray hood. "Fine, I'll let you get away with it for now. Of course, since you have decided to be surely, I've said everything that I'm going to for today. You'll have to visit me again to get any more information."
The angel nodded brusquely and spread his wings. "So be it. You have my thanks." With a grim look in his eyes, he disappeared into the horizon.
Raine sighed as she watched Zelos blunder ahead, seeming half-lost in the labyrinth that he claimed to know so well. His red hair and purple vest clashed with the grey tones that made up the underground portion of Meltokio. Behind him, Lloyd and Genis kept Collette and Presea between them. The two boys didn't seem to like the Chosen, but at least tolerated him to a degree. Not so with Sheena.
The half-elf looked back and sighed again. Sheena had stayed in the rear and taken charge of the sorcerer's ring after Zelos had gone perverted again. The summoner looked like she was keeping a tight rein on her temper, but hadn't wanted to be anywhere near the Chosen after he'd experimented with being big while the girls were small. Tethe'alla's Chosen seemed to have taken her slap session to heart, deciding to get the group through the sewers and into the city. He hadn't so much as eyed the girls since.
Raine refocused her attention forward as the group neared another set of stairs. Zelos was getting giddy up front. "Yes! I knew I could get us in!"
Presea spoke up now, stopping in the middle of the walkway. "I sense...danger." At her words three thugs jumped down to block the path. All of them wore tattered rags and carried clubs. "We've been waiting for you, travelers from Sylverant."
Another piped up, clearly eager for the conflict to come. "The pope promised to lighten our sentences if we got rid of you. We've got nothing personal against you, but we need you to die!" He slapped the club against his open palm to accentuate his point. Lloyd sighed and drew his swords...
The fight was pathetic and short. The thugs were entirely lacking in combat skills. They retreated in haste, staring wide-eyed as the Chosen walked towards them confidently with his sword at his side. His grin widened, momentarily.
"Ahh!"
A blur fell from overhead and knocked the red haired man to the ground. Zelos flailed his arms impotently as he tried to rise. A foot placed squarely in his back prevented him. For the moment, the Chosen was face first in the dirt...
"Don't move. If you move, the Chosen dies. Understand?"
Nobody moved, with the exception of the aforementioned Chosen. "Whoa man! You think you can get away with doing something like this to the Chosen?" The man didn't even bother to look at Zelos. "One who plots the destruction of the world...can no longer be deemed the Chosen."
Zelos' voice floated back to the group, a note of terror and pleading evident. "Hey, Lloyd! If you abandon me here, I swear, I'll come back to haunt you!"
Lloyd shrugged and looked back at the rest of his traveling companions. "I just had a sudden, violent urge to abandon you."
Presea leapt forward, her axe cutting through the air. The man leapt back from the blow, regaining his balance with ease. He stared at the pink-haired girl, ignoring Zelos' hasty retreat. It was apparent that the appearance of the young woodcutter had startled him. "You!..."
He never had the chance to finish his sentence. Genis noticed who he was staring at, and immediately jumped to her defense. "Fireball!"
The man leapt back a second time, dodging the magic. Without taking his eyes off of the group, he spoke to the criminals behind him. "Retreat for now." They rushed up the stairs, the stranger the last one to leave. His eyes remained on the group for as long as they could still see him. When they disappeared, the party relaxed.
Lloyd put away his swords and pushed Zelos away from him. "Looks like it's over for now."
"Thank goodness everyone is okay!" Colette's overly cheerful pronouncement broke through the gloom that returned to the sewers. "Speak for yourself..." Zelos muttered as he brushed off his clothes. "That idiot might have killed me."
"And that would have been bad, why?" Sheena's voice was tinged with sarcasm. The summoner slipped around the group to peer up the stairs. "No wait, I really don't want to hear a listing of the 'benefits' that you bring to women-kind."
Turning back to where the Chosen was spluttering in denial, she eyed him with disdain. "Well? Are you going to lead us out of here, or do we have to ditch you and find our own way?"
Raine struck the walkway with her staff suddenly. The sound broke through the bickering. "Enough, both of you." The half-elf looked at Zelos firmly. "Just please get us out of here."
"Okay! Will do, my Ultra-Cool-Beauty!" Zelos fairly pranced up the stairs, leading the party further into Meltokio...
AN: SO sorry about the long time betwixt updates! I had to go back and play through TOS to refresh my memory of some of the events...such as the sewer scene. Regal is so cool when he drops down like that - I had to do him justice. I hope I did. Granted, it's kind of hard to do with just words, but man!
The storyteller and Kratos scene...heh. I wanted some humor in here, and I'm not sure how good I did. shrugs I figure that Kratos has known the storyteller for quite some time. He did show up at the Elven village to ask the elder to help Lloyd's party, so I'm inferring here. The storyteller - well, I'm using a little creative license. (I'm not sure whether teller is man or woman. I think woman - they tend to be more perceptive...)
There will be more conflict and lack of romantic moments in the next installment. (Er, wait! You didn't just hear me say 'lack'!) Anyway, till the next chapter!