chapter 17
Liquid Flame
To my readers,
Drama at the Geyser, some humor, and after being called a jerk so many times Kratos gets a not so subtle revenge on the rest of the group in the temple. Warning, long chapter, and that battle I skimped on the details… well in the game I find listening to them fight is almost as entertaining as watching, so I now inflict it all on you. (evil laughter) First half of the temple, this one's two chapters long… Main issue that slows me –and them- down, RAINE, I swear she needs psychological help… Review responses will be at the bottom of the next chapter! Enjoy!
Kasan Soulblade
Raine had crawled out of the tub, crawled across the dock and upon reaching the beach of the small island had closed her eyes and refused to move. No one had gotten her to move, not Genis, not Colette, no one. Shrugging Kratos had walked off, said "time alone would help" and had taken Genis and Colette with him. Lloyd had been worried, didn't like the idea of leaving Raine by herself, so despite the fact that it scared him a little by how she was acting he sat on one of the posts on the dock and stood watch over her. Her silver hair was tangled; it fell into her eyes, obscured her face and hid her pointed ears. Her orange coat pooled around her, like folded bird's wings, and her black pants were turning scaly from picking up the grains of sand and not letting go. Raine's fingers gripped the rocky earth so tightly that her somewhat naturally pale skin looked bone white. He remembered how pale she was, how she trembled, taking his hand in her own and allowing him to pull her from the boat.
OK it wasn't a boat but a washtub but still…
"Professor," He walked to her, gripped her shoulder and she was still shaking.
She had been crouching in the sand for at least ten minuets and she was still shaking. Hesitantly he slung an arm over her shoulders, she shivered, whimpered softly. He crouched besides her, held her and she shuddered less then an animal from her terror. He knew this kind of fear; it was the same paralyzing fear that took him when it was thundering outside.
"It'll be easier if you don't look at it." He whispered, and helped her to her feet. They didn't go far, just to a large enough rock for her to sit on. She collapsed, bowed her head and again her hair served as a screen for her face. Stubbornly he held her up, did not allow her to curl up into a ball, though that's all she really seemed to want to do. He held her up, patted her back, let her know she wasn't alone. It seemed to work, she stopped whimpering at least. Now that she wasn't as bad he could hear and focus on the outside world. Up a head, beyond a winding path, there was a babble of voices, a loud hiss and some cries of shock, some scattered applause. They were clapping for a geyser, and people called him weird!
"You OK?" He mumbled, feeling like the stupidest guy on the earth. Of course she wasn't OK! Dummy, he mentally kicked himself, she's not going to be OK until they left.
She only gripped him like a lifeline, her nails were kinda sharp. Still he didn't say anything. Half held her up, half hugged, and she leaned against him shivering. She burrowed her face into his shoulder and a suspicious wetness gathered around her eyes and fell onto his shoulder.
"We're safe; we won't be going back for long while." He murmured, hesitantly stroking her hair.
She seemed to relax a little more, a least she wasn't gouging him with her claw like fingers.
He felt eyes on him, looked up and saw Kratos staring at them both. His eyes were wide in horror and shock, then they seemed to burn as he thought of something that he didn't like. Oh shit, Lloyd knew that look! The black clad mercenary was going to bite off Raine's head because he was mad. He gathered the ruminants of his courage and met the man's fiery gaze; he then jerked his head, mutely telling Kratos to leave. Kratos' lips curled in a silent snarl, he was going to come down the path and probably hurt Raine because… well who knew why! It didn't matter! He met snarl for snarl and the man blinked, looked weary. Lloyd jerked his head again, firmly ordered the man to go somewhere else, and Kratos met his gaze. There was a long tense silence, the air crackled between them, then Kratos nodded, backed off for now. Sighing a little in relief Lloyd patted Raine's back.
"Professor, can you walk a little?"
Raine shivered, nodded, and stood using her staff to stand. She leaned against the staff, he slung an arm under one of her own and helped her too. Slowly he led her away from the beach away from the ocean. She staggered, almost Colette stepped, but between staff and him she couldn't fall. The farther they got the more like herself she was. The second they couldn't see the beach anymore she lifted her head, looked at the mess of tourists and seemed to take comfort in the babble of voice. She was almost better, almost walking on her own, until she saw the geyser, her blue eyes went wide and she crumpled against him with a soft little cry. Spotting some benches Lloyd took her to them; helped her sit down. Water all around, a pit of steaming water that spat out at the heavens and thrashed against the pull of the earth, little wonder she was scared to death. Whimpering Raine was unaware of the pitying looks she was gathering from the tourists, she was unaware of the stares. Lloyd ignored them best he could, held her up best he could. She was taller then him though, so it was harder then it looked.
A noise of disgust made him look up, he looked into the scornful face of Kratos. The mercenary stood, a black smear against the pale colored garments of the tourists, he crossed his arms, glared at Raine.
"If you are this weakened by your terror Ms. Sage…" he began, Lloyd's patience snapped and he stood.
"Kratos shut up!" He snarled.
The mercenary favored him with an icy glare, Lloyd met those cold eyes, did not cringe back as he had so many times before.
"What did you say?"
"I said…" Lloyd hissed. "Shut the Hell up! Leave her alone, she's having a bad enough time as it is without you making it worse!"
Kratos' eyes filled with fury.
"She's using you as some damn…"
"Go away, go somewhere else, now." Lloyd whispered, gripping the hilt of his swords.
Kratos was a trained swordsman, a soldier, he would not miss the tale tell clenching of the fists, would not miss the animal fury that burned in Lloyd's eyes. Lips curling in a snarl Kratos shifted his stance slightly, gripped the hilt of his blade.
"You have no right…" Kratos hissed, his eyes widened when Lloyd drew a blade on him.
"Leave us alone."
Staring at the steel, eyes blazing with hatred he spared a glance at the trembling Professor, clearly pinning all the blame on her. He nodded, walked off, and Lloyd sheathed his sword. He told his hands to shake on some other day, and then sat down.
"I'm sorry…" Raine whispered, her hands holding onto her knees so hard they were bloodless white. "If I…"
"Don't worry about it." He tried to smile, patted her shoulder. "He's just being a jack ass, and how could we go to this historical place without you anyways. Think of all the stuff we'd miss learning…"
Raine's eyes brightened a little and she hugged him, though not with the desperation she'd shown earlier. Being hugged by Raine was just… weird. She smoothed his hair and told him to go run along, he hesitated and she gave him a small nudge.
"Go on dear, I'll be fine."
Hesitantly he did so, but when he turned back to check on her she was as pale as she had been on the beach…
Frowning, staying close enough to see her and the geyser he wondered what he could do to make her better, he kicked a small rock under the protective rail, watched it skitter over the edge and sink into the water with a loud hiss. He stared at the water, trying to kick his normally slow mind into some level of speed to think…
"Man this is sooo boring!" One tourist in plain brown tunic and pants grumbled. "All the stupid guild says is what's on the sign; you'd think they'd post someone here that knew about this thing!"
Lloyd smiled, a slow smug smile as his idea came together with a near audible click. He left the rail and slipped in the tail end of the tourist group, then spent a long moment getting his last look a the world around him. Satisfied that he'd seen all he wanted to before he died he cleared his throat. The guild looked at him, looking very offended.
She got even more offended when he opened his mouth and began to whine in what was known as "Genis whine high form" it was the kind of whine that could be heard for miles around and was guaranteed to grate on the nerves.
Which is exactly what he wanted.
Xxx
"I can't believe…" Kratos snarled, pacing in the shadows of a cluster of boulders on the far side of the geyser. It was the only patch of gloom in the whole area, a spot of darkness, and he blended in with it well enough. "The nerve of… I'll… that damn woman's…"
"Jealous?" piped a voice behind him. Kratos turned, stared at the silver haired elf with enough venom to pollute rivers for centuries. Unfazed the short elf that came up to his waist glared up at him, hands resting on his hips. "I guess the fact that Lloyd actually cares about someone besides you really gets to you huh?"
Kratos went crimson, his lips curled into a snarl.
"Well guess what, you may not like us, I certainly don't like you, but if you're going to stay on Lloyd's friend list you're going to have to suck it up."
Kratos shivered in anger, gripped the hilt of his blade.
"You have been acting like a spoiled brat. The second he hangs with anyone besides you, you pout and sulk like the brat you accuse me of being!" Genis flared, no longer scared of the man, seeing perhaps the truth of the swordsman at long last.
He was short, not stupid, he's seen the glares, he'd seen Kratos anger when Lloyd came with Raine, when he took care of Raine instead of leaving her alone. Genis would have stayed too, but he wouldn't leave Colette with this guy alone for five seconds if he could help it. He knew Lloyd could help Raine, probably better then he could, so he'd trusted Lloyd.
He might wonder if some of the things he'd do were stupid, but there was one he'd never doubt. He'd always trust Lloyd, even if Lloyd was a little thick sometimes.
Taking a deep breath Kratos released his blade, his expression thoughtful, maybe he wasn't as stupid as Genis thought he was.
"Perhaps… you have a point."
"Whatever." Genis turned away from the man in black, not caring anymore; he'd talked to him because Lloyd needed him to, not because he wanted to.
"Give your sister my apologies." Kratos said softly.
"How about you act mature and do it yourself?" The wizard growled, storming off, he meant to go back, a loud scream of fury made him stop. Kratos joined him, blade clearing its sheath in a heart beat. That was Raine but what…
"How dare you!" She screamed, there was a loud thump and the crowd of humans parted, a dazed man wearing a long brimmed hat smashed into the earth, dazed. Writen on his hat were the words, "Trodia Geyser Tour Services", Genis knew that because a breeze rolled the hat in his direction and he picked it up to read it. "Can you not comprehend the historical significance of this place! This geyser, I'll let you know has shaped the whole history of this region! How are you claim that it is of no significance, a mere natural phenomenon, what kind of guild are you?" Raine shrilled; in full Ruin Mode glory she was oblivious that her well placed kick had knocked the man out cold. "During the ancient Khalan war… don't you DARE slink off Lloyd! We're on an island and you can't get away from listening to me this once! You're the one who asked the question, you will listen to the answer!"
"Yes Professor…" Lloyd sighed, bowed his head.
Colete skipped up to them, left the dog –how she found a dog on the island was beyond them- a smile wide on her face.
"Isn't it great? The Professor's feeling better! Come on Genis, let's go listen to her talk!" Colette snatched Genis' arm.
Noishe, who had been abandoned so that the stray could be petted whined a protest, he padded up to Colette and favored her with his best puppy eyed gaze. That earned him a scritch, which gave Genis one second to think that Colette would forget about going to the lecture. But it only lasted a second, and when that time was up Colette dragged him with her with all enthused.
"Come on Genis, I'll be fun, we haven't had a lesson in a while!"
"Oh fun…" Genis grumbled, really having no say in the matter.
He saw Kratos give the tourist group a weary glance, then caught Genis' eye.
"Help me!" The wizard mouthed, not caring who saved him so long as he was saved.
Kratos lifted his hand, waved, than decided that the rocks he had been pacing in front of might serve better as a shield if he slipped behind them.
Noishe went with him.
Lucky dog…
Whimpering a prayer Genis was dragged through the group of startled tourists.
Xxx
"Oh I have a question!" Colette lifted her arm and danced in place. Everyone had glazed eyes, the tourists, the scholar from PlamaCosta, Genis, and Lloyd, and maybe somewhere behind his rock so did Kratos and Noishe. All except Colette, who kept asking question after question.
"Go right ahead and ask dear." Raine beamed, the physical embodiment of cheer, it was so strong it seemed to shoot out of her eyes and make them glow with happiness.
Well it was happiness if you asked Coeltte.
Anyone who'd survived Raine's "Ruin Mode" knew insanity when they saw it.
"Why's there something shiney in the geyser?"
"Hmm?" Raine looked over went a little pale at the sight of the water but found the shiny thing on the wall. It was the far wall, a section with no rail, but then a solid wall of stone dripping water that was hundred of degrees how was impassable to even the most skilled mountain climber. The steam was thick, it was impossible to tell what it was.
"I don't know dear, someone must of dropped someth…"
Raine went paler, Genis woke up from his trance, as did Lloyd did from his nap.
"Mmm…" Lloyd yawned, stretched, "that was a nice nap! Is class over?"
For once Raine didn't pounce, did not yell at him for falling asleep during a lecture, they all scooted to the rail and stared at the flickering metallic item.
"The statue I presume." Kratos announced dryly, they all hopped, no one had heard him sneak up behind them. "The priest did not joke when he said it would be difficult to retrieve."
"Drop.. drop… he must of thrown it!" Lloyd sputtered, "How the heck can we get that, when it's way out there?"
"See, look past the steam, there's stones, a log of them we could stone skip across." Colette offered, and then frowned. "It'd be really hard though because of the steam wouldn't it?"
"Not forgetting the thousand degree water, I think the steam would be the lesser of two evils." Kratos said, leaning against the rail, he stared at the statue, or what they thought the statue was.
"Now what?" Lloyd whined, picking up a rock he was going to throw it in the pool but Raine stopped him.
"Don't you dare!"
"It's not like I'm gunna hit someone!" Lloyd protested.
He was promptly smacked and dragged away from the rail by the elder of the Sage sibs.
"Raine!" Lloyd whined, "I swear, I wasn't going to do something stupid!"
"Lloyd, you always do stupid things." Genis grinned. "Like that time you hung the white sheet as a hollows fest prank from out rafters."
Lloyd was smacked again, as Raine had not known who did that and scared them both sensless by jumping from the rafters saying boo while wrapped in a white blanket.
"And the time when you went to class by climbing down the bell tower…"
There was another smack, as Raine had not known about that either.
"And when you climbed up to the temple roof and the priests were leaving dumped those fish you caught on their hats."
Lloyd whimpered, and was again hit.
"Or how about…"
There was a firm smack as Kratos cuffed the small elf's ear.
"Sorry, I thought I saw a wasp."
Genis glared up at him, Raine was firmly taking Lloyd's ear between two fingers and given him a sharp lecture about pulling stupid stunts.
"Ow ow ow… OK OK I'll never do something stupid ever again!" Lloyd wailed. "Please… ear bleeding…"
He was let go at last. He limped off, nursing a sore head, ear, and butt.
"You are soo dead when I can move." Lloyd whined as he limped past.
Genis only stuck out his tongue. "That's what you get for calling me shortie!"
Kratos put his hand on the elf's head, leaned against him as he had the rail and then looked up startled.
"Excuse me; I thought that you were the rail."
Sputtering, for the rail was actually shorter then he was, Genis wiggled his fingers and summoned a chunk of ice. Kratos ducked the mana driven throw, and there was a 'chink' from below.
"Oh lookie! It's all icy now!"
Everyone, minus Lloyd, went to the rail.
Noishe whistled through his fangs, his tail making slow sweeps as he stared at the ice platform Genis had made, it was large enough for the horse sized dog to stand upon.
"Well that solves one problem." Kratos muttered, "Now who's going to be stupid enough to actually go down?"
"No, I won't do it!" Genis said firmly. "I can't freeze up the whole geyser like that, it is way too big!"
"Someone could hop across on the platforms." Colette chirped.
There was a loud crack, the ice had split in half, drifted apart and in a few seconds was totally gone.
"Who'd wanna do that?" Genis wondered aloud, staring at the now gone ice in horror, it had lasted less then thirty seconds.
"Someone very stupid" Kratos rumbled, "or very desperate."
Xxx
"It's just like hop skip right?" Lloyd asked, rolling over on the bench to look at his horrified friends. "What'd I say?"
"No, absolutely not!" Kratos snarled. "It's suicide to…"
"Look, if I get some practice it won't be bad." Lloyd said confidently.
"Lloyd Irving do you understand what a thousand degrees ferenhight means?" Raine gasped. "It's hotter then your father's forge!"
"It's not that hot." Lloyd protested. "I mean nothings hotter then Triet, and if Genis ice's it then it won't be bad."
"Ice explodes when it meets boiling water." Raine protested, knowing that first hand as she had once tried to boils some ice to make the mythical dish of 'ice cream' some years back. "Even if you make the jumps you'll be slashed up."
"I'll take Kratos' shield." Lloyd offered.
"Get up." Kratos said quietly.
"Huh?"
"Just get up."
Lloyd did so, looking confused.
"That's thirty seconds, you getting up took more then thirty seconds."
"I'll. Be. Fine. I can take care of myself OK?" Lloyd smirked. "With a little practice I'll be fine."
"How do you propose to practice?" Kratos sounded desperate, trying to stall and talk Lloyd out of it, good thing he was because Raine and Genis were too horrified with the images that were playing in their minds of Lloyd being cooked alive to say anything.
"The beach, there are a ton of rocks there; I'll do some hopping back and forth there to warm up."
"Oh that's a good idea Lloyd!" Colette chirped
Kratos looked at her in horror, Raine and Genis agreed with the mercenary for once because they looked at the Chosen and the young swordsman in terror.
"What?" Lloyd stared at them, confused as heck.
"You want practice, fine, you'll get it." Kratos said in a tone that set chills down everyone's back. "Genis I'll have a word with you in private, the rest of you go find those rocks of his."
Raine hesitated, not liking the idea of Genis being alone with Kratos, after all she had promised.
"It's alright…" Genis waved Raine off. "It's OK this once.'
Nodding Raine left them alone, after all if nothing else she trusted her brother to know if he needed to call out for help, and there were a large number of interested tourists flocking about them. Kratos wouldn't dare do a thing to her baby brother. And if Kratos did hurt Genis he'd go after the statue, but with no ice spells to offer even the smallest bit of protection. She'd shove him in herself.
Xxx
"Ready!" Lloyd called to them he was standing on the beach, a large number of rocks jutted out from the water, making the beach impassable but to save the smallest of crafts.
"Mr. Sage, give him the signal when you are prepared." Kratos flexed his fingers in his gloves, fire then ice, all the rocks would be pelted with fireballs, the waters would steam and boil under his power then Genis would begin to freeze the rocks and Lloyd would begin his mad scramble. Raine's staff had been put on the rock farthest out, since it was heavy and inconvenient to carry it would represent the worse case scenario for the Spiritua Statue had be a one of a kind and none knew how much it had weighed and none could recall it's exact shape since it had been a few weeks since they'd seen the counterfeit.
A spear of lighting slashed through the air, Lloyd crouched, ripped Kratos' shield as tightly as he could.
The waters hissed, exploded with red light and swelled lapping at the swordsman's toes. Lloyd merely lifted the shield to block some of the droplets, which could burn like acid now that they were super heated.
"Left!" Genis roared, calling on his mana to freeze the rock to Lloyd's left. The platform was large, Lloyd jumped to it easily.
"Right!" Genis barked, his voice rising over the pounding of the tides.
And so it went, Lloyd got to the staff with no mishaps, the crowd of tourists cheered and Lloyd spun the staff over his head in response.
"Cut the platforms to a fifth of their old size." Kratos whispered, he set a flash of fire to the sky indicating that they were taking a break to charge their mana.
"Rodger."
Noishe whined, tugged Raine's sleeve with a gentle bite. The elf could not look from the spectacle of her pupil risking life and limb to prove he was worthy of taking a suicide mission. She could not look away. So she missed it as another tub reached the dock and a young woman in purple slipped out.
Xxx
He made it back, almost falling in two times on the return trip. The tourists screamed in fear when he had to use the staff to check a slide to avoid a bath in the scalding hot waters. It was only then he realized just how dangerous this was, ad began to pay a little more attention to what he was doing. He made it back, the water cooled, stopped boiling, and before anyone could bother with sending a tub he tied shield and staff to him by way of his extra belt then swam back.
"Happy now?" He called to them, as he doggie paddled back. Kratos rose an eyebrow at his swimming style and Lloyd stuck his tongue out, and almost had a mouthful of salt water to drink as a result. "Noishe taught me to swim." Lloyd growled. "So I swim like my dog, I bet you can' even swim at all!"
"I can swim." Kratos shook his head. "Have you thought this through? Considered everything?"
Everyone around him could hear the unspoken plea, that the boy take back his offer.
"Yep, let's take a break so Genis can freeze more stuff and then let's go- ouch!" Lloyd scrambled out of the water, clicking it's hands together like teasing applause was a crab.
"That's an ill omen if I ever saw one." Raine said in a tight voice as the crab chased after the swordsman claws clicking together.
"Run Lloyd!" Colette chirped.
The crab reared up, claws clicking madly, then scuttled back to the water.
"Stupid crab… oww… Why does every animal hate me?"
"I bet he was just trying to shake hands!" Colette said brightly.
"Un huh…" Lloyd untied the belt and tossed Raine her staff, he tehn worked off the shield and dumped that on the ground. At last no longer burdened he put the belt back in it's place. "Come on, let's go guys!"
"How did you manage to live this long?" Kratos sighed.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Exactly as it sounds." Kratos rubbed his temples. "I am more then capable of fetching…"
"I got it, don't worry so much old man." Lloyd patted Kratos' head. The mercenary's glare was not as vicious as normal and seemed touched with something else. Lloyd not skilled at reading the man's subtle expressions within an expression, could not see the quiet desperation in those brown black eyes.
Xxx
She gapped, stared at shock as the red clad boy tossed his swords aside and swung himself over the rail to lean into the seaming edge of the geyser's rim. It was so small that his toes were hanging over. The black clad man with wild auburn hair that masked his face frowned, arms crossed over his chest. The young swordsman made a shooing gesture and the man snarled something back. Obviously he wasn't leaving yet. They had a heated exchange of some sort, the tourists around her were babbling like mad men. They talked of the Chosen, of these two being companions of the Chosen and going after a statue. If she wanted to really hurt the regeneration she could merely step in, make this attempt a failure. Yet to be honest it was doomed to failure, no way a little kid like that could gather enough mana in this dried up world to ice a geyser. She decided to sit back and watch, if things went badly enough perhaps the Chosen would give up and she wouldn't have to do her job. That was a cheering thought, killing the Chosen, from what she'd seen and heard of her, would be the same as drowning a puppy, as she was a complete innocent.
She drifted to the edge of the crowd to eavesdrop, and paled when the black clad man snapped his eyes on her. His lips curled back into a snarl, and the green monster at his feet mimed the gesture.
"Be careful Lloyd." The blonde hugged the red clad boy. Wasn't that the kid who'd demanded surrender rather then battle when he held all the advantages? If so little wonder on her part he was crazy letting an assassin go, this was just another sign of his craziness.
"My healing can only go so far, so be cautious." The tall silver haired woman ordered in a cold controlled voice.
"Cau-te-ss?" The boy laughed at the woman's expression. "I'll be fine, guy's me and Genis do crazy stuff like this all the time."
"Like changing my test around last class?" The silver haired woman called "professor" asked softly.
"Yep, compared to that this is nothing!"
"Oh Lloyd…" She ruffled his hair leaned forward and muttered something in his ear that the assassin couldn't catch. Then gave him a peck on the cheek.
"I promise." The red clad boy -Lloyd?- said, blushing.
"Take these." The black clad man turned from her and fished out something from the packs that were scattered around his feet. He tossed them and Lloyd freed up a hand to catch them.
"Leather gloves?"
"They'll offer some protection for your hands when you pick up the statue."
"Thanks Kratos!"
"Hurmph, don't thank the man who sends you to your death boy." The man gripped the rail, stared into the steamy waters. "I'll cast my wind spell to disperse the steam as much as I can, Mr. Sage will then begin when he is ready."
"Alright…" The kid fumbled on the gloves, actually letting go of the railing with both hands to do so!
That caused everyone, tourists, Chosen, Chosen's friends, and Assassin to gasp in terror.
"Oh Gods…" The man was as pale as a sheet, he leaned weakly against the stone wall behind him. "I am not suited for this…"
"Genis! Let's go already!"
"Kratos… can you do this?" A kid so short she'd looked over him asked, he had silver hair like the cold woman with the pointed ears.
"Yes…" The man swallowed, looked sick. "I have no choice it seems…" He bowed his head, lifted a hand to the heavens.
"The breath of life, the motion between the span of eternity, come to my call. On thy wings fly forth to from my hand unto this world to shape, to change…"
"Maiden of ice, shower us with slivers of your spender…"
And the steam hissed and stood aside from not the breeze that the black clad man summoned, but a gale. The skies darkened and the howling entity seemed to caress him, set his cloak to flapping like a pair of sinister wings. Snowflakes appeared from no where, fell around the silver haired child.
The boy jumped, with no word, landed upon the block of ice barely large enough to hold him. It had appeared as large as a horse, but already the hellish hot waters were working it down to nothing.
"Left!" The silver haired woman screamed. So deep was his trance that silver haired child responded to her cries as well as the red clad boy.
And so it began…
Xxx
"No!" Colette screamed, seeing the platform Lloyd was to hop to split in twain by a random gout of steaming water before her friend could even think of making the jump. "Lloyd!"
She drew her wings, a hand snatched hers, held her back. She was shoved back, fell over her won feet and watched in horror as Kratos threw his sword aside and jumped in after Lloyd.
"Oh My Goddes…." Raine gasped in horror. "Genis, focus on the beginning, Kratos went down there!"
"What!" Genis snapped his eyes open in shock, lost his trance and saw how bad things were. Kratos was milling about on one of the rocks in the beginning, Lloyd was cringing back from the widening blast of steam at the end. More importantly he felt the numbing waves of fatigue. He staggered, he'd tapped deeper into his power then he had ever before. Dumbly he stared, unable to even think of his own name much less cast a spell.
"Genis!" Colette was up, shaking him so hard it hurt. "Do something!"
"He can't he has nothing left!" Raine took her brothers hand in her own, her mana flowed into him, it wasn't much but it kept him from blacking out.
A chill slid down Raine's spine she looked, saw Lloyd staring at them with understanding in his eyes. There would be no more spells, he knew that, did no question or rage against it. He took a step back, lifted his arm. His ex-sphere glowed with a brilliance of a fallen star.
"Lloyd, no! Kratos roared, his cry blended with her own, with Noishe's, with Colette's.
Ignoring them he crouched, then jumped over the gout of water. There was a gasp from the crowd, cries, murmurs, they wondered and worried and did nothing, and those who might have been able to do something were to drained to even try. There was a long pause after that cry, Kratos was yelling something in that strange language of his, his own ex-sphere was glowing almost as wildly as Lloyd's had…
"I got it!"
Everyone stopped breathing.
"Well I think it's it…"
"Are you alright!" Kratos roared over the steam.
There was a long pause.
Y… yeah I'm fine… Kratos, what rock are you on? I can't see a thing here."
"The third!"
"Think fast!" Lloyd yelled, something flashed through the air, Kratos caught it hissed in pain and ripped off his cloak to wrap the thing up.
"Raine!" Kratos snarled, tossing the bundle up, the elf barely made the catch. She tossed the statue to the earth, not caring for it at the moment.
Genis was ripping his packs apart, drew the orange sludge like gel from a pouch and made a face. He wolfed it down with no complaints, ate three of them though on the third he nearly gagged. He shuddered as the mana stored in the packets filled him, shuddered because artificial mana restoration was not the safest of most comfortable way to have it done.
"Lloyd!" Genis yelled, "I can cast the spel again."
There ws an ominous silence.
"Lloyd!" Colette cried out. "Lloyd!"
"Alright…" The voice was quiet, subdued. "I'm ready when you are."
"Are you hurt?" Kratos called, "One of us can come for you!"
Which meant Kratos would be the would be rescuer, since he was hopping from foot to foot in agony as the super hot rock was eating through his boots and cooking his feet.
"I… can handle it…" There was a hiss, not caused by steam.
"Like hell you can, boy!" Kratos barked and Genis nodded.
"Icicle!"
Kratos made the jumps with a lazy grace that Lloyd had not shown. He did not skid or fall, or anything. He made each leap, and was there in much faster time then Lloyd had gotten there. He made the final jump, patiently waiting until the jet of water went all the way down, oblivious or uncaring how little 'land' he had left. He disappeared into the small grotto, and a stream of curses came out seconds later.
"Chosen, can you fly over the geyser and throw down a few apple gels." Kratos called. "He can't walk and I can't carry him through this."
"I'm fine, I can wal-"
There was a hiss of steal and Lloyd went quiet.
"Or I could…. Just lay here with your knife at my throat…"
Colette was already rummaging through the packs, fishing out red jells.
"Three only, more then three in less then five hours between them is dangerous." Raine said softly, brining the hysterical girl to some level of calm.
Colette did not fly with any grace, staggered through the air, but she managed to get to the grotto and toss two jells down before the heat made her withdraw.
Nibbling on his nails Genis moaned, and how Raine wished she could do so too. Not now, someone had to be calm.
"WHINE!" Noishe was padding the length and width of the geyser, whimpering with ever step, he seemed almost ready to hop over the rail.
"NO!" She grabbed his huge ears, made him look at her in the eyes. "Don't you can't go after them, we have to wait, it's all we can do."
Noishe shivered and looked up at her, his canine face twisting in an expression that she could read that no dog should be able to show.
There was pain, a gnawing torture, desperation, and a grief.
He looked up at her, and cried silver tears in his all too human frusteration.
Xxx
Kratos came back not to much later, despite his words he carried Lloyd in his arms, made the treck for them both. He was for once without tunic, as eh had ripped it of and made rough bandages around Lloyd's left leg.
Gently Kratos put the boy down and Raine pulled off the bandages, blustered, red, the whole of the left leg and some of the right was scorched. Raine nearly drained herself down to nothing to heal Lloyd's legs, he whimpered at the phantom pains, residue from her frantic healing, took him.
"Don't you ever do anything that stupid ever again!" Genis yelled, tears in his eyes even as he expressed his anger.
"You are in trouble young man." Raine whispered, stroking his face to tell herself he was no illusion. "Serious trouble… when I feel better…"
"We… have the statue…" Lloyd hissed, "That's all that matters right? Colette can… use that for Koton and…"
Kratos decided o snarl at that point, his fingers clenched as he imagined perhaps tossing Koton into scalding hot water for this.
Raine would have cheerfully joined him in that, made the hellish trip again just for the sake of watching.
"Everyone…" Colette whispered. "I found… another one."
"Another what?" Kratos stared at Colette his dark eyes brooding.
"I... found another oracle stone." She whispered her face red. "I tripped on some boxes and…"
"You mean we didn't even need to…" Lloyd gasped out in pain, whimpered, and lay down again. "We're doing the damn temple and then we're never ever ever coming back!" He croaked.
"Amen…" Raine whispered, ruffled Lloyd's hair and stood. "Colette if you could?"
"Yes Professor." She nodded, and went behind one of those obnoxious tourist signs.
There was a flash of light, and part of the wall crumbled away to reveal a massive mouh of a cave.
"At least…." Lloyd stood with some help. "The enrence is cool, right?"
"You think so, look, I can make it dissapear too!" Came Colette's voice from behind the sign. The light bridge between geyser and cave went out. It appeared, diapeared, appeared….
"Colette, stop playing with the holy artifact of ages past!" Kratos roared. "It's givin me a headache…"
Xxx
(spoilers ahead if you haven't gotten Sheena in your party then look for next set of x's!)
From across the geyser, still hiding amongst the tourists the assassin watched the bridge wink in and out of existence. About seven or eight times…
"I can't believe this kid I the Chosen!" The Assassin hissed.
"If you ask me," came a conversational voice from a sack she held in her hands, "I think it's much better then the alternative."
"You're telling me…" The assassin grimaced, thinking of how a certain other Chosen liked to pinch her butt ever chance he got.
"You know… it's a little stuffy in here? Just a tad, mind you, but still I'd like out if it's safe yet?"
"Oh sorry Corrine!" The assassin opened the nap sack and the fox with flowing green and blue waves as a tail tumbled out.
"Wooh… it's so nice to be out of there… next time please don't stuff me in with your old lunch nap sack, it smells of rice. While I like rice I don't like it that much."
Sheena blushed, Corrine did not like being called on and off and while it saved energy to just summon Corrine for an attack Sheena liked to make her friend happy. As a matter of fact Corrine liked to walk around, travel as a person did, and had the strangest fetish for being walked like a dog. Corrine said he thought it was funny to see the human's faces go all white and listen to them try to tactfully ask what type of dog he was Sheena figured it was just Corrine being silly. For a summon spirit Corrine was rather playful and silly at times.
"Ah… They appear to be going across the bridge, if you want to catch them…"
"Oh shit!" Sheena ran past the startled people, Corrine's bell was ringing as he dashed after her, killing any chance for stealth. Still they didn't notice, they went up the gently sloping path of light, the black clad man with a scarred back was helping the red clad one walk... If she went just a little faster she might be able to….
"Howl!"
A green blur with teeth and claws skidded to a stop in front of her, teeth bared, eyes blazing. She backed up and the second she did so the hostility went away, it sat and looked to the bridge…
"Get out of the way or I'll…"
The bridge winked out, her targets were gone.
"Ung, you stupid animal!"
Noishe wiggled his ears, lolled out his tongue and promptly lay down atop the packs that had been left behind.
"What a strange beast…" Corrine went forward, sniffed the air in front of the monster and his ears slicked back. "Ung… it smells like wet dog!"
"Bark!"
The tail wagged with glee and he padded up to them both rubbing himself over them both so he could share the charming smell.
"Whine whine bark!"
"It is not funny!" Corrine snorted shaking himself off.
"You can understand it?" Sheena gapped at her friend.
"Oh yes, it thinks it's being quite funny at the moment."
As if to agree the dog met her gaze and winked, it then went to one of the nap sacks, nibbled on the strings and pulled one of them open. Wagging it's tail, yipping happily it nosed through the sack and then came out with a tiny pouch that it presented to her.
"What the?"
"Whine?" The animal gave her this wide eyes pathetic look and its tail curled into a ball on its side. "Whimper…"
"I think… it wants you to take the pouch…" Corrine whispered softly.
"Alright…" Sheena reached out and took the small sack, and then as the dog whined again she opened it, inside was spiced jerky. The pouch was snatched out of her hand by glittering teeth, and the sack was promptly turned over. The green dog, with massive ears that would have done a rabbit proud in length and absurd size, helped itself to the contents of its treat bag. It did thoughtfully offer a slice to Corrine and then well… wolfed down the rest in a few moments. Sighing happily the dog wagged its tail then slipped the pouch back into the pack, and went back to nosing through all the packs it could get open.
"Excuse me Miss."
The purple clad assassin turned to see a battered looking man sporting the clothes suited to a guide of the geyser.
"We're closing now, we wouldn't' want to leave you on the island overnight now would we?"
He smiled at her, and she swore if his gaze went down he'd have another set of bruises to match the first.
He just smiled cheerfully at her, oblivious to her ah, physical endowments.
Biting her lip the Assassin tried to think of another excuse, she could lie, say she was with the Chosen. There were too many holes in that tale to make it even remotely feasible, after all the man seemed innocent, but innocence did not necessary entail stupidity.
"Do you have an inn here? Or a temporary EC tourist camp site for those who want to stay here over night?"
"EC what?"
"Talk about parimiti… err bark?" Corrine sent waves of embarrassment and an unspoken apology for forgetting his role down the thread of mana that bound them both together. Sheena tried not to smile, she had been thinking the exact same thing.
"Did that dog just…"
"I don't know what you're talking about!" The assassin grinned, a sheen of swear forming on her brow at the man's scrutiny. Then she recalled the pompous light girls she'd seen in Mal-tokio and picked up their tone as much as she could. "Come along poochy it's time to go back on the boat now."
Corrine laughed in her mind at his new name and poor Zelos' floozy impersonation. Sheena winked at him when the tour guide wasn't looking.
"I guess asking you to leave would be rather dumb huh?" The man said to the dog.
"Bark!"
"Well since you are with the Chosen I guess I have to leave you here."
Sheena could have hit herself, so he would have trusted her if she had said she was with the Chosen, stupid, stupid, stupid!
"Him, I'd say yes he is." Corrine muttered as he walked by her feet.
"I don't know about that, everyone here seems rather trusting, like a little kid trusting in an adult."
Corrine's bell rang out with a cheer neither were feeling at the moment, she recalled another set of cheerful bells and a man with red hair and soft green eyes. That priest had trusted, even as his town was being burned around him he'd drawn the children to him with a hushed tale of the Chosen, held them together in that hellish blaze and slaughter with his faith.
"When we face death and betrayal all we have is faith, isn't that what the Martel scriptures say?" Corrine whispered.
The hints that his worlds set a chill down her back, this place seemed dead compared to her own home. It lacked the vibrancy, the throb of life that she would feel screaming across the air of her home land, of her home world. This place had a faint pulse, a whisper. This world had the pulse of a dying entity, and even as she held that hand and felt that weak whisper under the skin of sight they handed her a knife and told her bring it across the wrist she cradled.
"That's all they have." Sheena whispered, staring at Corrine in horror. "That's it, everything else is dead."
"'Scuse me, is something the matter Missy?"
Sheena had wandered to the docks, not even realizing it, her muttering to herself had gathered her a few concerned glanced from the tourists about her.
"Ah… I… I'm fine thanks." She blushed, then scrambled into the tub Corrine hopping into her lap.
"They say." An elderly man who could not have been younger then seventy said conversationally as he eased himself into his 'boat'. "That those who speak aloud their innermost thoughts suffer their weight too keenly that they need an ear."
She smiled despite herself, and shrugged. "I'd really rather not talk about it."
"Aye, don't wanna tell me anyway, I'm a nosy gossiper and the misses is even worse!"
"Arold!" The elderly woman with him waggled a finger in the older man's face. "Be nice to the girl, she's by my reckon having a hard time as it is."
Sheena blushed, picked up the paddle and pushed off the dock. She'd lost her chance to do what she was supposed to do, she'd have others though. The guide clambered into his tub, rubbing his rear when he thought now one was looking, then picking up his own paddle he dipped it into the water, getting a bit of a head start.
"They say travels a little rough with only silence for company, so lets strike up some hymns to make the miles go faster!"
There was a cheer from the rest of the tourists.
In her lap Corrine cringed, his eyes begging that he be sent back right now!
No one was looking, it seemed safe enough, and she could always just summon him again when they got back near shore, that way no one would notice that he was gone. She let herself drift back, joined the tail and became the tail's tail of the line of boats. Someone else however was following…
"Well hello there missy, that's a mighty fine dog ya got thar!"
The cad wasn't looking at Corrine however, but her. In a way she did not like being looked at. Before Sheena could knock him into next week with the paddle Corrine nicely solved the problem for her by hopping out of her tub and into his.
And if there were a few pained screams the distance and off tune hymns that were being sung in loud voices were enough to cover it up.
Xxx
(Done spoiling you may continue!)
"Stop squirming."
"I am fine, I can walk!"
You'd think it would be Lloyd making all the fuss, but it wasn't, it was Kratos. He squirmed in Raine's grasp, and she had called on Lloyd to persuade Kratos to stay still. Lloyd had tried words, mainly please and pretty please, seeing those weren't working Lloyd had pretended to give up, subtly signaling to Raine that he wasn't done yet. He let Kratos go ahead a few feet, Riane fussing that the man was putting unnecessary pressure in his burned feet, Kratos insisting that he was fine and…
Lloyd had crouched down, winked at Genis and wiggled his butt like Noishe would when he'd pounce. Colette giggled; Genis had covered his eyes then spread the fingers to watch. Kratos had all of tens milliseconds to grow concerned before he was pounced. There'd been a struggle, Kratos had been pinned and Raine pulled off the tattered remains of the man's boots. His feet were red, a little blistered, and they were given a dose of healing mana. Then Raine had wanted to make bandages with Kratos' cape, the only thing that was covering his upper half, and Kratos had –metaphorically since he was still down as Lloyd had not gotten up from sitting on the man- dug his heals in the ground and grown even more stubborn.
"Lloyd, take it off of him."
"Don't you dare!" Kratos roared, he bucked sharply and Lloyd almost lost his seat.
"Genis, Colette, pin his arms!" Lloyd called to his friends, Kratos lifted his head and shot them such a murderous glare that the wizard and Chosen gave each other a long look.
"Un uh, you have to be insane to think I'm going to try to restrain him. He'll probably bite me or something." Genis took a few steps back.
"I'm sorry, but Mr. Kratos looks even more scary then he normally does, and I don't want him to bite me either…" Colette joined Genis in taking a few steps back.
"If you even try," Kratos rumbled, "I will break your arm in three places."
Lloyd wisely decided not to try, despite how Raine said that Kratos would not do that.
Eventually Kratos went still, glared at the air in front of him since the targets of his anger were out of reach. Genis and Colette scooted to either side of the cavern's wall to give that glare a lot of room. Raine sighed with relief, finished her healing and stood, brushing her hands off in front of her.
"Well, that is the last of that, you can get off now."
"Are you sure that's safe?" Lloyd whispered.
"If he proves to be wild I'll do the exact same thing I did to a rabbit that Colette brought in. I'll apply a heavy sedative and we'll just leave him here."
Kratos stopped cursing, went very still at that threat.
"You're a very poor patient Mr. Aurion. I've treated children of five or six who have behaved better then you. I hate to be in your company if you get a cold or the flu."
"Please professor, don' say flu…" Lloyd whined, getting up.
"Really Mr. Aurion, do you never go to the doctor? Not even when wounded?"
"I heal fine enough on my own." Kratos growled, standing he brushed off the sand on his bare chest.
"Your scars are horrible." Raine huffed. "I've never seen this many on someone before. You really should go to a surgeon about those fresh ones running down your back; at least they aren't so far healed that they can't be fixed…"
Kratos glared at her, shifted his cloak to hide the worst of his wounds.
"I am only offering a suggestion, as a healer the state of your health is of natural concern for me." Raine snapped, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "You should have some care, Goddess have mercy on you when cold weather set in and you're not in the prime of your life. What did you do to yourself?"
"I don't have to answer that." Kratos whispered.
"What happened to your chest?" Lloyd stared at the gem stone that looked like it was embedded into the skin, the idea of that made Lloyd's skin crawl.
"An accident…" Kratos snarled at the stare, but softened when he recognized the look of worry Lloyd was favoring him with. "Life happens Lloyd, some feel the lash of the gods more keenly then others."
"I'm sorry…"
"Do not let it concern you." Kratos shifted his cloak so that one of the wing-like halves of it slung over his shoulder and draped over the gem, getting the hint the Iselian's stopped staring. "Shall we move on?"
Xxx
Colette skipped down the passage, Genis lifted a hand, a fireball resting in his palm he served them as a torch bearer since they could not go back yet. Colette wouldn't go back, not even for their supplies, and Kratos, practical, logical, and totally agnostic as far as Raine could tell, backed her. He must have his own reasons for not wanting to go back, but try as she might she could not get him to say why.
"We should rest here. The area's secure enough."
Genis slumped weakly against one of the large rocks with a moan, the fire going out. Raine nodded, leaned her staff agains the wall and sat on the ground. The passage was large, there were no twists or turns in the path coming of going for quite some distance. There were a handful of boulders around them, crushed up against the walls, and they served as somewhat comfortable places to rest their backs against. Raine decided to lean against one of the strangely smooth rocks, Colette banished her glowwing wings, the mist chased itself into nothingness and then the last light in the cavern went out. In the dark she could see nothing and hear everything. Genis groaned, said something about taking a quick nap, Colette shifted around, moved to lay down Raine guessed.
"There's some weird light up ahead."
"Fungus I presume." Kratos said softly, answering Lloyd's question as he answered all of the boy's questions, bluntly and with as few words as possible. "Askana servu magnific."
Lloyd laughed as that. "in here any light's gotta be special."
"Indeed, I'll take first watch, we've all had a Hell of a day."
"Mr. Kratos, don't say bad words, it's not very nice."
"I say whatever I…"
"Guys, I can't sleep with all you yapping, and I swear I'll fireball the next person who talks." Genis hissed. "My head is killing me…"
Raine who would have offered to take the pain away was chagrined to realize that after healing Kratos' feet she had no energy left.
"The grounds awful hard…" Colette sighed, rolled over by the sound of it.
"Just think you're at home in your own bed." Lloyd offered with a yawn. "Or imagine the Professor giving a lecture about history or something… Puts me to sleep… ouch! Who threw that rock!"
Raine snorted, lay her head on her crossed arms, even as Genis whined that it wasn't him.
"It was so you, it's not like Kratos or Colette or the Professor would do something like that!"
Raine closed her eyes, in the dark whipped away the tell tale sand from her hand on her sleeve.
"Children." Kratos growled, and silence fell upon the group at long last.
It was only a few moments before she was asleep, leaving the dark of the tunnel for the dark behind her eyes.
Xxx
"So, you've been giving him lessons in Angelic as well." Raine had been watching him like a… well a hawk and he was expecting some confrontation as they traveled. Genis and Colette were no longer the sources of light, as the golden green algee on the walls provided enough luminescence so see by.
"Call it what you will." Kratos shrugged, he alluded to his 'unholy' conduct to hit one of her most sensitive nerves in hopes she'd lose her temper and he'd have a justified reason to gracefully stop the conversation.
"He's been complaining about the load of work we've been giving him, and I'm starting to wonder if he might not be complaining for a very good reason."
Kratos turned to look at the woman and she seemed smug that she held his attention. But then the mention of Lloyd, the only topic he ever showed any real interest in, was guaranteed to hold him captive audience for a few minuets at least. While she dubbed Kratos' interaction with Lloyd as potentially dangerous to the man's sanity –for those who lost their children were forever on shaky grounds for the loss of a child was much the same as the loss of a main structural beam in any building- it had little harm for Lloyd. Well except the situation of Kratos being insane, that would hurt Lloyd, but it would heal swiftly. So Raine had decided to let things stand, at least until she saw proof that Kratos was losing his objectivity. When that happened the mercenary would find himself without his job.
"How would I know what you are giving him for homework, it's not as if we spend any time together, I find your lectures to be… rather boring, and you have told me much the same of mine."
"Boring!" Raine snarled, eyes blazing.
Lloyd turned, looked up from talking to Genis and stared at them both worried that he was going to have to step in and break them up again.
"Recall the conversation about criticism we had some nights ago."
Raine took a deep breath, furious that the man would have the cheek to scold her, when she felt in more control of herself Raine continued, not bothering to answer his comments.
"What I was going to ask, was, what all are you lecturing him on?"
"The subjects so far have been; ancient languages, modern grammar, ancient history, swordsmanship, the general mythos of my religion, and astronomy."
Raine blinked. "I've been lecturing him on modern history, ancient history, the general mythos of the Martel faith, modern grammar, mathematics, and natural science."
Both adults stared at the other and realized now why Lloyd was practically running away from them when they started a lecture.
"No wonder he's been begging to share watch with your brother and the Chosen." Kratos mused, running a hand through his hair.
"I hate to have to ask this… but…" Raine gritted her teeth. "Obviously he's been benefiting from your lectures, and he has been paying me more attention in mine, at least until he started to complain of being exhausted." Swallowing her pride as a teacher Raine pressed on. "We may need to discuss some sort of lesson plan, so that we aren't bogging him down with homework."
Lloyd had began to fall behind to listen to them talk, and at the words lesson plan he whimpered.
"Lloyd, go up ahead, it's a man of poor honor who eavesdrops."
Blushing, the swordsman scuffed his foot across the sandy cave floor and went back up ahead and struck up a conversation with Colette.
"When we make it out of here we'll discuss it." Raine sighed. She frowned at the walls, with their golden green algee and the sandy floors. "The geological formation of this tunnel is illogical. The sands, the growths, make little sense, such a cavern should be a rocky stone expanse, no matter it's proximity to the water geyser."
"Perhaps something tends this place." Kratos suggested, pointing to the walls with his sword. "This should have by now grown to some form of irregularity, but look around the whole of it grows exactly an inch out, there is no… break in this growth pattern."
Raine caught the children sending them veiled looks. Llyod and Genis wore looks of dread and concern and Colette giggled when she looked at them.
"We are not going over this again!" Lloyd flared after Colette whispered something and giggled. "No way, they…"
"Who are you discussing Lloyd?" Kratos asked and the younger swordsman winced.
"Errr… nothing!"
Raine decided for now to ignore the conversation between her pupils and brother, she could bring it up again latter, at a safer time. Kratos snorted, his gaze piercing but Lloyd had a defense against that. He turned his back to Kratos and the mercenary's information drawing glare could not work when it could not reach the intended victim's eyes.
"One of these days…" Kratos growled softly.
"Concerning your comment on the person who tends this place, isn't it obvious? This is a sacred place, the angels must have some hand in the irregularities that occur here."
"You sound like the Chosen."
Raine shrugged, understood what he meant, it was a mild rebuke for her faith, for her relying on faith to explain something. But when there was no scientific, or logical explanation perhaps that was the place of faith.
Xxx
"Eww…" Lloyd hopped over the smear of dull yellow in the center of the path. "You better let me help you across Colette, you wouldn't wanna trip in that." He took Colette's hands in his own and helped her across. "Genis you need a hand?"
"Nah, I got it." Wiggling his finger, feeling much better after a long nap, he wasted a little mana and enhanced his jump with a gust of wind.
"Please…" Kratos sneered at the puddle and made the jump with an absent grace that Lloyd tried not to envy.
" Professor?"
"Oh what a fascinating…"
"Never mind."
Raine cheerfully poked, prodded, and muttered a few words like fascinating when it wiggled in response to her poke.
Rolling his eyes Lloyd decided to let her play with the little yellow blob. When Genis asked what his sister was doing back a ways it was a good thing Raine never heard his "Playing with some gook, she's in you know what mode". Thy waited five minuets, Kratos finally called out that they would be leaving without her if she didn't come, in minor cases or ruin mode that would bring her back. She did not come, and Kratos tapped his foot in impatience.
"We need a leash and a muzzle for that one." He growled, looking bored.
"Kratos, shut it!" Genis snarled, or rather tried, it came out as a squeak when the mercenary favored him with the 'death glare'.
"Oh look, an artifact from the Khorloon war!" Lloyd called loudly, that should have brought Raine running.
No one came, except now Kratos was lecturing him that it was Kharlan not Khorloon.
"I'm worried; I'm going to check on her." Genis said, flexing his fingers nervously to set a spell.
"Go right ahead." Kratos called, obviously not planning to come.
"You know, you can be a real jerk sometimes." Lloyd muttered. "Hey Genis, hold up I'm coming!"
"Me to!" Colette chirped, drawing her wings in excitement and fluttering after them.
Rolling his eyes Kratos waited for them to come back, he decided that he'd be such a jerk that he wouldn't come unless they screamed for him to.
"Holy cow, it's huge!"
"Eww it's icky…"
"Raine! Let her go!"
There was a blurbling war cry, and a hiss of several of something whipping through the air.
"Shards of the sun…"
"Ha! Didn't like that?"
Kratos hummed a ditty, it was that damn boat song and it was stuck in his head, no better a time to get it out of his head then now.
There was a clack of limb on wood. "Is that it?"
There was a thud, and Kratos rose an eyebrow at the sound. "Oops… oh look it had some money in it's.. eww it's all gooey and sticky!"
"Colette, get out of there!"
"Eek!"
"Fireball!"
"Genis it's of the water element, use lighting mana!" Raine called out.
Drawing a knife Kratos looked at his nails, decided that they were getting a little too long and did something about it. He filed and hummed, listening with some approvel of the large number of hisses of blade passing through flesh.
"Lighting!"
There was a loud crack, and a few moments later Raine and Colette both dripping yellow ooze came up to him. Lloyd trailed behind, not looking the least tired, his blades coated in yellow goop. Genis grumbling was picking the filth out of his hair. Kratos looked up, assumed an annoyed expression.
"Ah there you are, I find it hard to imagine that you got lost in a one way cavern."
They all glared at him, flat unfriendly glares, all of them except Lloyd. He was a little surprised. He had imagined that the Chosen was incapable of glaring.
"Kratos, just shut up!" The elf sibs yelled at him as one.
"What's there problem?" Lloyd asked, a wide grin on his face.
"No idea." Kratos sheathed his knife.
"Man you should have seen it, that dinky thing that Raine was poking turned into this huge blob and it was trying to eat her. Of course it didn't, I mean a blob since it doesn't have a mouth it can't eat anything, so it was kind of hugging Raine and…"
Kratos allowed Lloyd' enthusiastic narrative roll over him, and only cut him off once.
"She fell and money just fell out of the thing?"
"Un huh, weird huh?"
"She stole, can a Chosen steel?"
"I didn't steal, I fell and the money just popped out!"
Kratos and Lloyd shared a knowing look, both having an the exact same amused cynical smile on their lips.
"Wow, when you both smile like that you look exactly like each other!" Colette chirped, her anger forgotten it seemed.
"Eww! Don't talk like that… It brings all of Izoold back!" Lloyd shuttered.
"Does it really bother you that much?" Kratos muttered, falling in step with the young man, letting Raine in her wild Ruin Mode take the point yet again and putting as much distance as was safe between himself and her. Lloyd wisely followed his example, unlike Colette who wanted to share Raine's happiness and Genis who could not work his hand free from his sister's grasp.
"Not as much as it used to. It would be beyond weird if you were my Dad, it'd be crazy."
"But not as unattractive as before…"
"Well I like you, I mean, you are a jerk sometimes… No offense or anything…" Kratos felt a thrill run down his spine, he could not be offended by anything at the moment, he somehow managed a shrug and Lloyd went on. "but it's not totally disgusting as it was before. I guess… despite being weirder then heck… it'd be kinda cool. But…" Lloyd looked downcast. "Your family is dead so… I guess it's not real huh?"
"Even if it not a physical reality, the sentiment is appreciated."
"Huh?"
"I'll explain it later."
"Unless…" Lloyd struck his thinking pose. The young man set the index finger to tapping tapped against his own temple, a smug smile curled his lips. "You have one of those… what are they called… old people get them… oh yeah, memory blank! If you have one of tho-"
Kratos mock punched Lloyd's shoulder and the boy staggered from the hit right into him taking Kratos down with him.
"Hey Kratos, you dropped this didn't you?" Lloyd held a pouch that had fallen from Kratos belt.
"Give that back." Kratos snarled, hopping to his feet.
"You and what army?" Lloyd smirked, tossing the gald pouch from hand to hand. "After all you just dropped this and I just happened to pick it up… so isn't it mine?"
"Only if you want to die." Kratos mock growled, recognizing the glimmer in Lloyd's eyes as all this in being a good humored prank.
"You have to catch me first, and old man you are, I bet… oh shit!"
Lloyd ran for his life Kratos only a step or two behind him.
Xxx
"Ohh look at the grace of this pillar, marvelous, you see the indents here, they're to capture the water from this ruins natural subterranean geysers who's vapors heat the geyser above that most think of as the only… oh this is so exciting, no one knows about these hidden geysers and…"
Colette was a pool of pure glee at Raine's feet, absorbing every word of the lecture. Genis was, for once, bored out of his skull. They'd gone ahead, went down winding stairs, and the one monster –a bipedal starfish- had taken one look at the enthused Raine and had whimpered and ran off. Genis took back his opinion that all monsters were dumb, kind of wished he could have joined it. But the crack in the wall was too small for even him to slide under. Riane raced down the winding stairs, monsters fleeing before them, Colette skipping besides them both, having spotted a structure below the seething pits of water faded into non-existence and she had them at the base of a massive pillar and was now going on a random rant about this being a temple.
She hadn't even stopped when Genis had pointed out that Lloyd and Kratos weren't with them anymore, and Colette didn't seem to have heard.
Then, speak of the swordsmen, there they were. Laughing Lloyd was running from an annoyed looking Kratos, a pouch in hand. They hit the final turn that was so tight that Raine had almost toppled into the water when she was racing down the stairs… Lloyd leading kicked off a large boulder, spun in the air and landed a good ways down the final slope. He tumbled a bit, got up, and was up and again running. The mercenary made the turn, skidded to a stop so not to fall into the pool of boiling water, then looked down to see Lloyd was getting away. Kratos then jumped along the side of the edge, cloak flaring behind him like a pair of black wings he landed less then ten feet away from them. Colette lost in the lecture, Raine lost in giving the lecture, didn't even see it. No one should of made that landing, but then he'd watch Lloyd make a similar fall in Iselia before they were exiled…
Lloyd turned, saw the mercenary had jumped and paled when the man cricked his knuckles.
"Heh heh…"
Lloyd looked around, saw another part of the ruin that Raine had already ranted over, saw the pillars and an escape. Lloyd ran to the white pillar, kicked off his boots, and scrambled up the pillar. The iIelian swordsman used the water drop catchers as finger and toe holds. It seemed to have worked, Kratos paused at the base, prowled around it like some demented panther with it's pray out of reach...
Now this was interesting! He turned away from Raine so he could better watch.
Kratos kicked off his boots, then began to climb up, if nothing else he was faster then Lloyd was!
"No fair, adults can't climb trees!"
"This isn't a tree boy, and I am quite capable of climbing a tree."
Lloyd then looked around, there were a series of pillars, all of them less then ten feet away from each other.
Genis covered his eyes, knowing that look on Lloyd's face, then spread his fingers so he could watch this turn as ugly as he knew it would.
Lloyd jumped from the pillar he was on, kicked off of it to the other, and after a long heart stopping slide managed to get a hand hold.
"No way are you catching me!" Lloyd chirped, and then began to climb up the second pillar.
Kratos growled, then did the exact same thing… well he didn't get a hand hold and he smashed into the pillar with heart stopping thud. Genis laughed at the man as he fell, it wasn't much of a fall, he'd been a lot lower then Lloyd was and the jump killed a lot of height. Kratos snarled, whipped his face and prowled the base of the second, Lloyd raining down taunts. Kratos clambered up yet again and Raine finally saw that Genis was not paying attention. She followed his gaze, went bloodless white then went scarlet. Lloyd started his jump to get to the third pillar and Kratos was prepped to try another jump as well.
"Lloyd Irving!"
Raine's scream was so furous the target of the yell missed his landing and smashed into the pillar, he landed on the ground with a moan and rubbed head.
"Oww… Oh hi Profess… errr I…"
Raine was coming for him, staff raised in fury.
"Sweat Luna!" Lloyd paled, then scrambled up the pillar.
"Lloyd Irving you get down and stop hurting that innocent ruin right NOW!"
"Be logical Ms. Sage, a ruin is an inanimate…"
"Logical! LOGICAL! And what are you being? Both of you get down here NOW!"
Lloyd and Kratos shared a long look.
"Ms. Sage, I plan on living to see tomorrow, so I will decline and remain up here until some of your anger fades."
"Lloyd!"
"It's kinda nice here, safe, so I'm gunna stay up here…"
"This is a relic from ages past not some… gymnasium! I can not believe one of my own students would…"
Raine went on… and on… and eventually Lloyd's glazed eyes slid shut. With a mumble he fell asleep, hands and feet still caught in their respective holds so he did not fall. Raine hardly noticed, until at the end of her lecture she screamed "WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELVES!"
Lloyd's only answer was a quiet mumble, Kratos looked to Lloyd a small smile on his face.
"I would say Ms. Sage, you are correct, Lloyd is capable of sleeping anywhere through anything."
Raine's jaw sagged open, she looked torn, torn between curiosity and outrage. Curiosity won out however, her voice was probably aching from her last speech anyways.
"Impossible he can't be…"
"Oh I know how to check!" Colette chirped. "Lloyd, class is over!"
"Huh.. what…" Lloyd yawned. "What's I… Ahhh!"
He lost his grip. Kratos loosed a hand, drew his sword and threw it after Lloyd. It went into the stone with a loud crunch and Lloyd's hand shot up and snatched the hilt. Genis winced as Lloyd bobbed up and down like a cat's toy, the sword sawing back and forth under the force of absorbing Lloyd's weight.
"Th.. thanks Kratos…" Lloyd squeaked.
"Not a problem, watch yourself better next time."
Raine was trembling, torn between concern for her pupil and outrage for the damage now wrecked on the ruin she turned to Kratos.
Rage won out.
"Do you know what you just damaged…" Raine shrieked.
Lloyd just quietly got to the pillar, worked the sword out, and weaving it through his twin belts climbed down.
Genis sat back, happy that Lloyd was alright he waited in evil anticipation for Kratos to fall asleep and fall.
Xxx
"Leash, must buy a leash…" Kratos muttered as they walked down a path with water lapping along either side of it. It was made of stone, Raine tried to study it, and Kratos and the rest of the group allowed her to do so, stepping over her or around her and going ahead.
After waiting out three other acute fits of Ruin Mode no one, not even Colette, was waiting for her anymore. They only went back when Raine fell silent, because that meant that some aquatic monster had come out of the depths and seeking peace and quiet went to dispose of the endless shrill babble.
"A gag." Genis moaned. "Or better yet, earmuffs!"
"Brilliant, would you like me to worship the ground you walk on now or…" Kratos muttered, trying to bring his collar up to muffle the sound of the babble.
"If you magic up me a set of earmuffs I'll do it." Lloyd whined, rubbing his head.
"I'll pay you." The mercenary added.
"What's wrong everyone?" Colette chirped, "I like this place it's really nice. Look there's another smiley fish!"
Genis bent down over the edge of the walk way, muttered a few words, put a hand to the water, and with a hiss electricity running across water and the smiley fish –AKA a shark- rolled over belly up and drifted down on the tide.
"This is so easy it's getting…" Genis began
"Boring?" Kratos added, he winced as Lloyd aimed the sorcerer's ring at him and doused him with water for the tenth time.
"Hmmm that'd be bad if I got bored before Lloyd huh?"
"Very," Kratos wrung out his cloak, "bad form if nothing else."
"Hardy har har… for that!" Lloyd doused Kratos on the back of the head.
"You douse me one more time boy and you'll swim instead of walk."
"You'd throw me to the sharks?"
"Yes, I will."
Lloyd considered it, then gave Colette the ring so he wouldn't be tempted.
"Oh wow this is fun!" Colette summoned a stream of water and Lloyd was doused.
"Well at least it isn't…" Kratos was doused. "must not kill client… must not throw her to sharks… unprofessional…." He muttered under his breath, and winced as he was hit yet again.
"Colette, stop it, it's cold!" Gneis whined, hopping as he was hit.
"OK, here Mr. Kratos, you can have a turn now!"
"Why thank you Chosen." Kratos put on the ring and smirked at Lloyd. "come along boy, you've always wanted to take point, here's your chance."
"Are you crazy! No way!"
"As you will." Kratos lined the ring with Lloyd's face and the swordsman dripped for quite a while.
Xxx
The filled the vase with the ring, a boring exercise that drained Lloyd's love of the new ring power down to nothing by the time the were done. There was a riddle, Genis solved it, and they were headed back, a glowing light from the higher levels telling them the door was opened. Raine ran up to them, eyes shinning with ruin mode glee.
"Where were you? I was concerned."
"Just out of morbid curiosity, do you even know our names right now?" Kratos muttered, Lloyd snickered and Genis chuckled.
"Oh, where were you Professor? You missed a riddle and an artifact and…"
"Artifact, where?"
"Back there?" Colette pointed to the path they went down with a shrug.
"There's no where else to go." Genis pointed out.
"There's a lot of places to go if you don't follow the road!" Colette explained.
Raine zipped by them, oblivious of the water to see a new artifact.
"you know… can she control it?"
"Pradon?"
"Raine, her ruin nuttiness? Do you think she can control it?"
"Ah. A psychological defense against her phobia, after today I'd say… yes."
"What?"
"Shorter words Kratos." Genis sighed. "Never mind Lloyd, it's not important."
"Oh, OK, hey I'm hungry."
"Me too." Colette blushed as her stomach rumbled.
"Wasn't there a pool that wasn't boiling in the cave room before the temple halls?" Genis wondered.
"Yes," Kratos sighed. "I'll catch some fish and we can use some of the hot pools to cook with."
"Fish sounds yummy!" Colette chirped.
"Provided I catch any."
"Don't worry." Genis' hands crackled with electricity. "I can shock them and you can pick them out."
"That'll kill everything in the area." Kratos pointed out.
"I can control it, even if the water fans it out a little as long as I see a fish I can stun it." Genis sniffed sounding offended. "I am after all Iselia's best wizard."
"You're Iselia's only wizard aren't you?"
"Colette…" Genis sighed. "Not again…"
"She's got a point you know, so maybe you aren't the most powerful wizard after all." Lloyd smirked. "Heck I bet Kratos is just as good."
"Take that back!"
"Take what back I was just spec- spok… Hey ouch!" Lloyd rubbed his head, he'd leaned down to tease Genis and the elf had reached up and shocked his head. His hair was even more spiky.
"Genis!" He whined, reached up and winced as sparks snapped at his fingers. "You I'll…"
"Maybe that woke your brain up!" Genis laughed.
"I'm not stupid!"
"Lloyd you can't even say speculate!" Genis stuck his tongue out. "So how's that proof that you aren't dumb?"
"You… you're such a brat you know that!"
"Me?"
"Ha take this!" Lloyd used the ring on Genis' face.
Sputtering Genis whipped his face, then lifted a hand, he held a mini-fireball.
"Ack!" Lloyd ducked the first and cast Guardian to reflect the second. He managed a few counters with his ring and the fight and flight was on.
Kratos crossed his arms in front of his chest and sighed as another cry of marvelous rang out behind him.
Craziness behind craziness in front, well at least his client was showing some sense for once…
"Come on Mr. Kratos, they're getting away." She was hovering in place, having drawn her wings in her happiness.
Two roads that went the exact same way, he cracked a slight smile.
"Alright," he shifted his sword. "Let us go."