I am so sorry that this took so long to update, but I am officially in college now. Don't expect the same amount of updates that you'd normally get, but I will try my hardest to get something up every once in awhile. Sorry for any inconvenience. Well, on with the next chapter. Oh, and the lines are still being stupid, so I hope you like my manually made break in the story. Haha!
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Chapter 13: Decisions
"Hang on, we're almost there," Zelos thought as he ran through the halls with the rest of the rescued group on his heels. He knew where Mithos was, Storm had pointed him in the right direction before she split with him, and he knew that Lloyd would be there whether he was alone or not. He and the others had to get there before he got himself into more trouble than he could handle on his own.
Zelos and the others finally arrived, but where interested to see what would take place between Lloyd and Mithos. They would reveal themselves when an unprepared Mithos decided to attack.
"You're all alone Lloyd, do you really think that you can defeat me?" Mithos asked as he took a step closer to Lloyd who didn't back down one bit.
"I'll do whatever it takes to defeat you and get Colette back," Lloyd said as he pulled his sword from its sheath. Zelos and the others were about to jump down to join the fight, but someone else reacted before they did.
"Storm, I see Pronyma finally found you. Where did she go?" Mithos asked her as Storm landed in between Lloyd and Mithos. She spun around to answer her master's question. Zelos could tell that she was fighting a lot of thoughts in her head and he could see the uneasiness and nervousness in her.
"Pronyma won't be joining us, I made sure of that," she told him, adding a sense of finality to her statement to get her point across to him.
"You...you mean you killed her?" Lloyd asked, shocked that she would commit such a crime. He knew that Storm worked for Cruxis, but he never wanted to accept her as a murderer.
Zelos had to admit that even he was surprised by what he had heard. He knew that she didn't like Pronyma, and Pronyma didn't like her, but he never thought that Storm would ever kill her. The others in the group seemed to be as shocked as everyone else, but Zelos did notice that Raine didn't appear to be too surprised by the news. Didn't she trust Storm even that much?
Mithos stood in thought for a moment before shrugging it off and turning to Storm. "Well, I suppose she was just a weak member of the group anyway. So, do you want to do the same thing to Lloyd here for me?" he asked as he smiled a little at her.
Storm's eyes grew wide with shock when she heard his question. "No, I won't take part in this anymore. I will not hurt my family anymore," Storm spat at him, apparently upset that he would even ask her something like that. She turned around to look at Lloyd who was still staring at her in confusion. "I betrayed you once Lloyd, but now I know what side I'm fighting on," she told him with a large grin on her face.
"If you really cared about your family Storm then you would help me. I helped raise you since you were young. Don't forget about your 'Uncle Mithos'," Mithos told her as he tried to sway her back. "Don't tell me that you would betray me after everything I've taught you," he added almost angrily after not receiving a quick response.
Storm kept looking at Lloyd, she obviously had made up her mind, but was waiting for his answer. "Lloyd, please tell me that you'll let me fight with you once more. I know you probably won't be able to forgive me for what I did, but please let me try and make it up to you," she pleaded with him.
Lloyd continued to stare at her before looking at Mithos one more time. He then returned his attention to his sister. "I don't know if I can trust you if you're swayed so easily. What's to stop you from going back to Cruxis anyway?" he asked her.
Mithos used his reply to try and sway Storm back to his side again, not even giving the young girl anytime to think. "Look, even your own family rejects you. I still need you though Storm, I still care about you. Come back and help me. Together we can resurrect Martel, we're so close now," he said as he stepped a little closer to her.
Zelos hated seeing Storm put into this kind of situation. He wanted to shout to her, to comfort her, but it would blow their cover. Besides, he knew that Storm needed to work this out on her own. She needed to conquer this, and he knew that she would.
"Storm, I'm not rejecting you, I just want to truly know that I can trust you to fight on my side again," he told her, a small smile tugging at the side of his mouth.
Storm stood in between the two, obviously stumped as to each of their motives. Did they really want her with them, or did they just want her help to destroy the other.
"I'm growing tired of this," Mithos finally said as he raised his hand to launch an attack against Lloyd. Zelos noticed something glowing near him and before he knew it Genis managed to knock a magic attack near Mithos. Mithos stopped the attack and looked up at its source. Storm and Lloyd also looked up, and all three couldn't believe what they were seeing.
"Don't touch him," Genis threatened as he raised his weapon to give the half-elf a hint.
"You guys...you're all right? And Zelos you're here too?" Lloyd asked, both stumped and ecstatic about their appearance. They all came down to where Lloyd was standing as they went behind him for support.
"Yeah, but if it wasn't for..." Zelos began before he noticed Storm standing behind Lloyd shaking her head anxiously trying to get him to stop. He didn't understand why she didn't want the recognition, but soon understood that she didn't want any of his credit. She wanted him to gain Lloyd's trust back, she wanted him to pretend that he hadn't actually betrayed them. He would have loved to do that, but Storm needed the trust now more than anyone. Besides, he didn't want to watch her try and choose sides anymore.
"If it wasn't for Storm I wouldn't be alive. Besides, she told me where to find everyone before anything bad could happen to them," Zelos said as he pointed to the others in the group. They were all shocked as they looked at Storm who really seemed to hate all the eyes on her.
"Is...is that true?" Lloyd asked her, he couldn't believe it maybe he was wrong about her all this time.
"Is this true?" Mithos asked her angrily.
Zelos watched as Storm was forced to make a very important decision. If she chose to stay with Cruxis he would have to fight the woman he loved. If she chose Lloyd's side he would be able to fight alongside her. Whatever side she chose, he hoped it was what she really wanted. She had told him she wanted to follow her heart, and if that was the case then he knew what she would decide.
"Yes, it's true," she said confidently as she walked towards Lloyd's group as Mithos watched his pupil join his enemy's side.
"I knew you could do it Storm," Zelos thought as he watched Storm come over. She looked at him before smiling at him. She looked at him and silently mouthed a "thank you" to him before standing next to him ready to take down Cruxis.
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Well, that's it. I hope you liked it. Next chapter will probably have a little more action and such, but who knows! Anyway, sorry for the wait, but I don't really know when I can update again either. Anyway, thanks for all the reviews and I hope this chapter was satisfactory. Thanks!
