(A/N) Sorry this update took longer than normal... just trying to work out the plot a bit more. Not a whole lot of action, but next chapter will be a faster pace. Thanks for reading, and please leave me a review!
Disclaimer: If I owned Tales of Symphonia, you would follow Kratos around after he betrayed you at the Tower of Salvation...
Chapter 6
"So what now?" Kratos inquired cautiously. The sun was tipping over the horizon and it brought a crisp, new morning sky the sharpest shade of cyan. His headache had muted to the occasional throb, but it was mostly cleared up. He could think straight, which was all that mattered.
They had been walking off and on since their escape, and must've covered several miles under the guise of the night sky. Yuan knew he needed sleep; he'd been up the past twenty six hours. Twenty six very eventful hours in which he had to run, battle, drag a fifteen year old kid, run again, get captured, escape, and do even more running. If he allowed himself to sleep, he doubted Kratos would be there when he woke up. Contrary to his fatigued state, he had not failed to notice that Kratos kept the dagger after slicing his own bindings.
Yuan was sleepy beyond reason, and Kratos was battered and injured. Together they made quite the pair. It didn't help much that neither knew exactly where they were. Yuan yawned.
"We find a town." Kratos hadn't really meant to get that kind of answer, but it was a simple enough option to go with. He let the 'we' rest as it was for now, though he didn't really know where they stood. Yuan hadn't asked for his dagger back, and Kratos wouldn't have given it. He figured if they had been in the general vicinity of Meltokio when he'd woken up, then they'd be somewhere near the forested region around Sybak. They traveled east since their escape, and though he wasn't sure how much farther it was, or how much north or south they were of it, Sybak was probably nearby.
Sybak was, and likely forever would be, a small, bustling town brimming with research and technological innovation. Several universities had their campuses there, and Kratos had briefly attended one of them some years ago to culminate the brunt of his academic education. His father was pleased that Kratos was called 'exceptionally bright', and had deemed his edification complete upon the report. While he had continued to be taught in Meltokio, it was nothing on scale with Sybak. There research was the first priority. Luckily he knew the place pretty well, and could probably recognize the surrounding area if they got close enough. Sizing up Yuan, Kratos figured he looked about ready to collapse, and he was running on willpower alone.
Kratos felt his stomach grumble. Coming upon the realization that he hadn't eaten anything since the previous morning, his appetite seemed to contemplate devouring itself in mutiny. The sooner they made town, the better. He didn't imagine Yuan had eaten recently either. There was a small inn and diner in Sybak now that he thought of it, and it was optimum because hardly any travelers came there except on business. The town was looking better and better.
After a few long minutes of walking, Kratos perked up. Yuan remained oblivious to his companion's change in demeanor, however, lazily focusing on his next step.
"I recognize where we are now," Kratos changed his path for a more direct route. The trees would clear up soon, but the meadow through the brush ahead was a lush landmark prior to Sybak's major entrance. They weren't more than ten or fifteen minutes out. Somehow they were lucky enough to end up incredibly close with lack of good direction.
Mulling over his recent change in fortune, Kratos decided that Yuan must simply be a lucky person. How else could one expect to kidnap a high ranking Tethe'allan and make it through a tightly controlled border unscathed? Conceivably it was arrogance, or a dearth of foresight, but perhaps he was used to things going his way. Kratos had the opposite mannerisms aside from the occasional arrogant remark. He was never lucky; he just accepted that if something could go wrong, it likely would. That was just how it happened, how it always was. Now he had escaped a miraculously sloppy perimeter, and just found himself at the front step of a city when he expected to be hopelessly lost. What luck. It must be Yuan, Kratos concluded a bit enviously.
Yuan followed him without a second guess, and Kratos wondered fleetingly if he suspected anything from him. He was trailing him blindly; they could be headed straight into the Tethe'allan army again. Yet, Kratos supposed if he was going to spring a trick like that, he wouldn't have been a conspirator in their dramatic escape. They stepped out of the forest and into the grassy clearing. Sybak was visible ahead, mostly low buildings, two stories at most, and a dullish gray hue encompassed the skyline. It wasn't a particularly extraordinary sight, but Yuan hefted a great sigh.
Trudging to the delightfully unguarded entrance, Kratos started to feel better already. Sybak had no reason to suspect Sylvaranti intruders this far into Tethe'alla, and they wouldn't think to search for a Tethe'allan royal either. Simple and wonderful anonymity. His feet automatically set course for the inn; they might get some strange looks for checking in this morning, but it wasn't that rare for travelers to trek through the night to avoid confrontation.
"Two rooms" He found himself telling the stout man staffing the wooden counter in the small establishment. He payed the required amount of Gald and received two room keys. Tossing one to Yuan, he made his way up the stairs to find his own room.
Yuan grabbed his own key and proceeded to unlock the door adjacent to Kratos'. The room was small and tidy, barely large enough to fit the bed. For Yuan it was perfect. He plopped down, not even bothering to take off his shoes, and slept for eight hours straight.
When Yuan woke, it was late afternoon. Just by glancing out his meager, square window, he could tell it was one of those sweltering days. A particularly hot glow glanced off of the walkways, and those that bothered to go about their daily business were sweating profusely. Yuan sighed and reluctantly pulled himself off of the soft comforter. As much as he wanted to stay and sleep a bit longer, he needed to check up on a couple things.
He fixed his cape and smoothed his clothes free of wrinkles. He opened his creaky wooden door and trotted down the short flight of stairs. Not surprisingly enough, the same squat innkeeper from earlier that morning was on-duty. Yuan cleared his throat.
"Excuse me, but I was wondering if the red-headed boy I came in with had checked out yet. Have you seen him?" Yuan asked. He didn't expect Kratos to have stuck around. He was probably in the wind by now, and if he didn't want to be found, Yuan doubted he would surface again. That made his mission's failure easier to accept. He couldn't honestly say he wanted to bring Kratos to Sylvarant where he would most likely be sentenced to death purely because of his upbringing.
"He hasn't checked out. He left a few hours ago, though. Said to tell you he'd be in the market or something." The man shrugged indifferently. Yuan's brow creased. Kratos hadn't ditched him like he'd expected, even accepted. Without a plan of action, Yuan found himself making the short pilgrimage to the marketplace outside the inn. It wasn't as if the kid was stupid, so Yuan had no idea what angle he was playing. Yuan couldn't think of any way Kratos might benefit from his company.
It was hot outside, as he expected, and the pounding sunlight made him want to crawl back to his hotel room and sleep some more. The market was a small assortment of stands and one-room shops. Kratos' messy auburn hair flashed in the sunlight, and Yuan could spot him across the way. He started towards him.
Kratos was purchasing a long sheathed blade from a weapons vendor. He forked over the Gald that he now had less and less of. It was worth it for a new sword nonetheless. He nodded to the salesman and turned to stock up on some more supplies, but was interrupted by a hand on his shoulder. He spared a glance up to Yuan, but continued walking anyway.
"Good morning," he greeted the half-elf who still looked bleary with sleep. Yuan's eyes were sharp though, and he fell into step with Kratos as he went about his business.
"Why are you still here?" Yuan asked bluntly. Kratos smirked; he was rather straight and to the point, wasn't he?
"This place is perfect." Kratos inclined his head to the city around them. "No one would think to look for me here, and I know it like the back of my hand." Yuan remained puzzled.
"I think that I'd think to look for you here." He muttered half-heartedly. Kratos should consider him a threat; it wasn't healthy for them to stick around each other. Tethe'allans and Sylvaranti's were like oil and water.
"I'm not really concerned about that." Yuan blinked. Did Kratos just insult him? He clarified, "You seem like a decent person, and I don't come across too many of those." Yuan examined Kratos' face. He didn't look as if he was lying, or joking for that matter.
"It also wouldn't have been honorable to ditch you at the hotel after our escape. I'd have felt like a poor sport, which I am most certainly not." Obligation then, Yuan decided, admittedly more confused than before. Kratos risked his life on the assumption that Yuan would be chivalrous? Yuan pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I won't pretend to understand your thought process on that one." But really, what was he going to do? Should he try to take Kratos back to Sylvarant with him? They were in a public place, and the boy just purchased a new sword. And Yuan didn't really want to.
"Hn." He could hear the victory in Kratos' response, that implicit 'I was right' he emanated. Yuan was about to retort that he wasn't a decent person or chivalrous and that Kratos' attitude was starting to get to him. Unfortunately, before he could get his thoughts together they were rudely interrupted.
"Pardon me sir." A hand practically yanked Kratos' arm out of its socket. Flustered, he spun around to see a young woman with thick spectacles flashing in the light. Her dark brown hair was pushed up into a bun and she wore a white lab coat that was the common dress for half of the people that populated Sybak.
"Can I interest you in a job opportunity?" She pushed up her glasses, and Kratos saw her blue eyes behind them were wide with excitement. He inwardly groaned. Why hadn't she picked Yuan? Oh yeah, Yuan was lucky. Outwardly, he pulled his arm away.
"A- A job opportunity?" He stammered in surprise. She nodded eagerly, and stepped closer.
"Yes, yes. A job." She replied fervently. Kratos wanted very badly to brush the woman off, but if he felt like staying in Sybak, he'd need a source of income. His diminutive Gald supply was already running low. It might be a good idea just to hear her out. She was painfully intruding on his personal space though. Cautiously taking a step back, he remembered Yuan's presence and glanced furtively up at him. He had his eyebrows raised in amusement. Kratos scowled. It wasn't funny.
"What's the job?" He was immediately sorry he asked as the woman grabbed his wrist and dragged him off to the nearest building door. It looked like a thickset research facility. There were tons of them in Sybak. Yuan shrugged and followed the show the woman was putting on with a jaunt in his step.
Inside it was noticeably darker and cooler. Kratos reclaimed his arm and rubbed the wrist, it was still raw from the repeated rope burns, and she'd almost reopened the thin gashes that he'd formed trying to escape from the Tethe'allan army. At this point he was about to turn and leave. No amount of Gald was worth putting up with this lady. She sat down elatedly at a wide gray table splayed with several layers of paper.
"Do you know what an exsphere is?" The woman leaned forward with her fingertips grazing the surface of the table as if she might fall and need to catch herself.
"Yes," Kratos knew that Aether was bragging about his new battle enhancement tool or something of the sort in his last letter. A select few warriors obtained them, but they were supposed to dramatically increase one's strength and speed. The lady blinked, taken aback by the apparent ubiquity of her research.
"Oh, well, I'd like you to test one." Kratos furrowed his brow. Test one? He was under the impression that the new technology was already in working order.
"Er, why? If you don't mind my asking that is." Kratos felt like he was missing something, some catch somewhere. For being a researcher, he had to spell out quite a few obvious things to this lady.
"Your mana signature is perfect!" She squealed in delight and pulled out a small device from her liberal pockets. A scanner of sorts that ran on magitechnology, Kratos figured. She tilted the screen so he could view the various bar graphs and a percentile match in the corner. He sighed at the '100%' match flashing in red.
"Perfect for what?" Yuan was standing beside him looking somewhat intrigued. He must have some experience with exspheres, being in the army. However, they were a Tethe'allan technology.
"I'm synthesizing an exsphere on a whole new scale, much stronger than the old ones. This way, I'm customizing it specifically to optimize power of our military's head officers. I was directed to make a high quality exsphere for the royal bloodline. To be quite frank, your mana signature is so close to that of the Aurion line that I'd never get another opportunity like this." Kratos stiffened at 'royal' and was extremely uncomfortable at 'Aurion'. Having an exsphere would be advantageous, especially one suited to his very own mana signature.
"How does one go about 'testing' an exsphere?" Kratos asked, now considering the offer.
"You just wear it around, train with it, and stuff. I might ask you to complete tasks in order to facilitate the exsphere's maturation. It needs to grow a bit to fit the person, which is why your mana signature is so important." Her eyes were big and hopeful.
"You mean like a medical experiment?" Yuan eyed the woman with distaste. She wanted to use a special rock of origins unknown to Sylvarant in order to make Kratos into a human weapon. Well, he already was pretty formidable in battle, but something didn't seem right about it. The woman shrugged.
"Sorta, though he shouldn't experience anything too uncomfortable. The benefits should outweigh anything else." She seemed indifferent to the possibility of side-effects. Kratos gave her a hard look. He didn't think it could hurt to try it out, and he could always take it off.
"I'll try the exsphere, then." Kratos decided. Yuan gaped at him. The woman clapped happily.
"Not just any exsphere, it's called a Cruxis Crystal."
(A/N) Sorry its shorter than normal... I'll fix that next time. As usual, tell me what you thought and or if you want me to fix typos I may have missed.