Chapter six… have been having such a hard time writing lately lol
Wait, why did I say 'lol'? That's not funny…oh whatever
Disclaimer: I own nothing
"All I'm suggesting is that it might be more dangerous than we know of if we go ahead with this plan."
Kratos frowned lightly, beginning to grow irritated with the skepticism he was getting from both Raine and Regal, whom were seated at the table with him. He'd asked to speak with them as the younger group went about getting to bed and sleeping, exhausted, though Raine and Regal may have been sleeping by now as well if he hadn't asked to speak with them. He had brought up his doubts with their plan for the pactmakings, figuring if he could convince the more cool-headed and logical members of the party they would in turn influence Lloyd, but they seemed to be more suspicious toward him than anything, at least Raine did.
"Raine, truthfully he does present a point," Regal pointed out to her, "the spirits said themselves they do not know for sure what will happen, and the earthquakes after the bond severings are a tad suspicious…"
"Yes but it's no small task, we should expect effects like that," Raine frowned, though she seemed to consider his words, "It's true what you say…we should look into this more thoroughly, but what's strange to me about this is why you would so quickly bring this up…"
"Why wouldn't I?" Kratos tilted his head a bit, both irritated but amused by her logic. "Is it odd I ask questions about things I know little about? In fact I'm more surprised no one has considered this possible flaw before hand…"
"…" Raine sighed, rubbing her face, "That is true, I suppose…but I don't know how we could go about finding out what will happen if it has never occurred before. It seems rather pointless to study something that had no precedent or has no data on the matter…"
Kratos frowned a bit. Yes, she was right he supposed…the only real place that could possibly give them and answer was the Kharlan Core system, and that of course was well out of their reach. Why hadn't he realized this? Think, there had to be something else…
"These Renegades you said you were working with," Kratos asked, his eyes glancing over the pair, "Do they have any such information? Or anything that would allow use to get our own?"
"Hm, they may have…" Raine frowned, "But they were the ones that told us the specifics of the situation to begin with. They found out we broke the first mana link and then asked to join with us, it seemed they knew the situation as it was already…"
"And you're willing to risk the fate of two worlds on an assumption that they did their homework?" Kratos raised one eyebrow slightly, his eyes narrowed despite it.
Raine fell silent a moment, looking half insulted and half abashed, considering her rather reckless conclusion-making process.
"Perhaps we should indeed ask the Renegades if they have any further information on this matter," Regal said, examining Raine and then Kratos, "We should be sure, after all."
The Renegades? Well it was likely no one would question his presence after all, it should be safe enough-
"Yuan's the one that came up with this plan," Raine frowned, "He's the one that looked into the data in the first place, I think he would have told us anything he knew."
Yuan? He tried not to twitch. Yuan was the leader of the Renegades? How- …well…actually now that he thought of it, it wasn't that surprising. Just how the half-elf had managed to keep such a secret for so long-
He froze.
No he couldn't possibly go with them to the Renegades, then, Yuan would know in an instant that he was a fraud. All Lloyd would have to do was declare him his father and then….then…
No, he couldn't do that, he'd- but…
"Perhaps we should check into the archives of the Tower of Mana," Raine said, frowning. "The Book of Regeneration might give us some hints as well…I think we've heard all we can hear from Yuan; that and I still don't trust him enough to waltz into his base again."
"Yes…perhaps that would be best," Regal nodded, turning to Kratos in expectation of an answer.
"Thank you," Kratos closed his eyes, releasing a tiny sigh of relief, "You two seemed the most intelligent, I had figured you'd hear me out… I didn't want to confront Lloyd first, because he would have merely become upset- I believe."
Luckily no one seemed to notice his blunder, they merely agreed quietly, glad that Lloyd was already fast asleep.
"For now I think we should rest," Raine sighed, rubbing her face, "it's been a long and difficult day…"
Hmph, it had been a difficult past two days, really…
Still Kratos didn't find it in himself to protest, gladly going into the room he was sharing with his son. Lloyd was splayed out in a miraculously impossible position already, snoring loudly. A faint smile flicked across his face and he sat on the edge of his bed, watching his son toss a bit. He would have stayed there all night and just watched him, as he had made a habit of during the journey, but the softness of the bed was too comforting to ignore; that and once again the stinging of his eyes that indicated the need for sleep. It was odd, and inconvenient really, but it was kind of…nice to be human again.
So reluctantly he lay down in the bed and closed his eyes, letting sleep overtake him.
He stirred back into the world of the living several hours later, feeling the sun warming his face. The muffled sound of 'Dad?' kept tweaking at his ears, making him mutter back in his sleep.
"Not now…Lloyd…" he murmured, half-asleep.
"Dad."
He nearly called for Anna, to tell her to take care of Lloyd, to tell her he was tired. Then he realized…where it was he was, when he was. His russet eyes flicked open and he looked up, Lloyd's own russet eyes looking down at him.
"Dad it's time to go, the Professor just said we had to get ready."
What? Had he really slept in so late? Well perhaps not…'late' but he had always woken up before everyone else…when he did use to sleep. With a light groan he sat up, scanning the room and his son's smiling face.
"We're going to head for the Tower of Mana apparently…I mean I know a spirit is there but I didn't think we could see her yet…" he frowned, shrugging a bit.
"Luna?" he stated, eying him.
"Oh, yeah that's her name- how'd you know?" he blinked.
"I've been around and heard a few things." he chuckled a bit, getting to his feet in the process. "Well then- …the Tower of Mana?"
"Yeah." Lloyd nodded.
So they were going so soon. Good; good to see that Raine and Regal were taking this threat seriously. Kratos went about preparing to leave, trying not to look as if the traveling attire was foreign to him. He adjusted the belt that fastened the sword to his hip, noting again how much heavier it was.
He met up with the group with Lloyd, who had gathered in the inn's kitchen for the breakfast Genis had made. Kratos knew he would be expected to eat, as he had the past couple of days, but in all honesty he found he didn't quite mind. It smelled very good, it had been so long since something like a scent had garnered so much of his attention. It wasn't that he couldn't smell before, no, it was more..the scent had no meaning. He could smell it, it just didn't mean anything, a useless sense.
The taste seemed to be just as vibrant as the smell. He enjoyed his meal much more now that his body actually needed the nutrients.
"All right, now that everyone is ready, let's get to business." Raine spoke up. "We're going to head for the Tower of Mana before we try to make the pact with Sylph, it'd be in our best interests to see if we can find any information about the links before we break them all."
"Is that really worth the effort?" Zelos asked, leaning back in his chair with his arms behind his head. "I mean, if Yuan couldn't figure anything out with his high-tech stuff and if the spirits themselves didn't know, how the hell is looking in a few old books going to help with anything?"
"Given that the fate of two worlds is at stake, I would say it's impossible to be too careful." Kratos spoke up, stating his opinion calmly. "From what I know breaking these links cannot be reversed, it's dangerous to play with something you can't undo."
The group silenced, eying him, and once again he wondered if he had gone too far.
"Mr. Scott is right." Raine nodded. "We can't be reckless about this."
There were more books in the tower than there appeared to be, and there already appeared to be very many to begin with. Nonetheless they began to search the shelves for anything that might give them any sort of clues for the situation that might point out anything they would overlook. However they appeared to be little information if any in this place. Damn it all, if Yuan didn't have any information for them and there was nothing here then that still only left the Core System...which was impossible for him to get at like this. He sighed and rubbed his face.
"Find anything, Dad?"
He blinked, turning to look down at his son.
"No, have you had any luck?" he asked as he set the book back.
"No." he sighed. "I mean I know this is important and all but- Dad?"
Kratos' attention had diverted from Lloyd at the next book he pulled out, his russet eyes locking on the faded cover. Lloyd looked at him curiously as his father scanned the text and then glanced down at him.
"Dad? What is it?"
"This…" he said slowly, looking between him and the book. "This is a book of old myths, stories…the like."
"Oh..yeah, you like to read, right? Is it one you like or something?"
"I used to tell you stories from this book." He said, scanning the pages. "Of course I didn't have the book myself, but I told you what I remembered of them.."
Lloyd blinked. The teen shifted a bit, glancing at him, then smiled weakly.
"Like the stories you were telling me about the stars?"
"Yes." he nodded, managing a weak smile of his own.
"Hey- …Dad? The Professor and Regal think you..uhm.." Lloyd scanned him a moment, biting his lip as he considered his words.
"Yes?" he asked, trying to ignore the tension that seized him as a result of the suspicion.
"They said you're really…smart, for a soldier." He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "And you like books and all, so I was just wondering, were you a scholar or…?"
"No." Kratos answered, tilting his head a bit to examine his son.
"Oh, well I was just wondering…."
They looked at each other in silence, unheeding the bustling of the rest of the group among the shelves. Kratos scanned his son and considered a moment, thinking if and how to answer him. It'd be best to say nothing, but- …no, actually it could help him keep his cover if he were to tell Lloyd more. A real father would, after all, and a backstory would further secure his position among the others…
"My parents were wealthy," he stated, looking at his son. "My mother stressed my education in the academic fields and arts, whereas my father taught me combat."
Lloyd tweaked, scanning his father once over before nodding.
"Wow- really? So- wait if you were rich then why did your dad-"
"He was a…high-ranking, soldier." He said, looking side, losing himself in his memories. "The leader of a militia."
Militia? Feh, not quite, but it was the most believable situation for Sylvarant's current era. His father was a general, he himself had been a knight. Still, it was true for the most part..
"Really?" Lloyd stared. "So- if your parents were rich and stuff how did you end up being a mercenary?"
Kratos was silent a long moment, staring into the shelves as if somehow the infinite words in their pages would spring to life and arrange for him.
"Dad?"
"They died." He said flatly, setting the book back. "I began traveling with some friends and…after a long time I found myself meeting your mother."
Lloyd fell silent and Kratos pulled out another book.
"If you'd like, I wouldn't mind teaching you some of my father's techniques," he said, quickly changing the subject, hoping it would secure his son's attention more than his previous story.
Luckily for him, it did.
"You mean- like training?"
"I suppose." Kratos nodded, a weak smile coming to his face. "I don't think Zelos has enough drive to train, you need to keep your skills polished somehow after all."
There was no harm in continuing to train with his son. After all, prior t this the majority of his instruction was drilling in the fundamentals that Lloyd lacked. He had advanced enough past that, he had grown strong enough for him to start teaching him more advanced techniques. It would help him, and teaching different techniques and styles would only aid his cover as well.
Well, judging by the look on Lloyd's face, there was no backing out of it now.
"All right," Raine spoke up after what felt like hours later. "did anyone find anything the least bit useful?"
"No," Sheena sighed in exhaustion.
"Negative." Presea agreed.
"All I did was give myself papercuts and a headache! I hate reading!" Zelos whined, resting his hands behind his head.
'So it seems there was nothing here." Regal stated.
Kratos bit his lip, frowning as he mulled over the information. He had already checked the archives in Tethe'alla, there was nothing here, Yuan had found nothing…dammit, if this didn't happen he would be able to get to the Core System and find an answer for sure. There would be no doubt….
"Well…no news is good news, right?" Zelos shrugged.
"Well…" Lloyd frowned, thinking it over. "I mean, if there is no way of knowing then what can we do? I mean we can't just sit around and do nothing just because we're not sure. The longer we wait the more time Cruxis has to catch up with us."
"I agree." Raine frowned. "The only other option I could think of is to ask the spirits themselves, but none of the ones we have met seem to know anything about it."
"Then let us continue on and inquire the spirits as we come across them."Regal nodded.
"…" Kratos nodded. "There doesn't seem to be any better course of action."
"So then…we're going back to getting pacts?" Lloyd nodded. "Let's go make the next one- the Wind Spirit right? That's…Sylph, right?"
"Wow, Lloyd, you remembered."Genis smirked.
"Shut it, Genis."
"According to what you've told me, that would be the ruins of the Wind Seal, correct?" Kratos asked, glancing at his son. "That would be the island to the southeast."
"Huh-? Oh, yeah." Lloyd smiled. "With the rheairds we can get there in a couple hours."
"Let's be off then."
The flight was a bit more hazardous than the way there. Of course, given the winds around he Wind Seal, of course the flying would encounter more turbulence. They had barely arrived on the island when they were forced to land, as the conditions for their flying had certainly not gotten any better in that time. So it was they landed and had to walk the rest of the way, much to the party's contempt- …or that is a certain Chosen's contempt.
"Are you kidding? Walk? This is ridiculous, haven't we done enough walking as it is? My legs are going to fall off!"
"If only your mouth'd fall off instead." Sheena muttered darkly.
"Well that's all right, I mean some training on the way there wouldn't hurt us, right?" Lloyd asked the group in general.
"You just want to see your dad beat things up again." Genis rolled his eyes, but gave at easing smirk to his friend.
"Wh- do not!"
"Well it IS a marvel that the old man can move at all, much less that fast." Zelos cracked a smirk, shrugging dramatically. "You over your aches and pains from yesterday, Dick?"
"Stop being a jerk, Zelos!" Sheena scowled.
"…My daddy…was…a soldier too."
Silence fell, aside from that of the wind, as the group turned to the one that had spoken. Presea appeared to be deep in thought, or as much as her expression could convey; Kratos looked at her, questioning as the blue eyes looked at him in response.
"You were a soldier, yes?" she asked. "My daddy…my father was a knight."
Kratos' throat tightened just a bit. Oh..yes, that grave he had seen them make…that had been her father's. The one with the axe laid against it, it had seemed familiar…an old, worn, knighthood axe, but one all the same. Tethe'alla had always boasted knights that had a variety of skills with weaponry, though they usually specialized in one. He himself was a master of several martial arts in addition to swordsmanship, but he had known others who used axes and the like.
"I apologize." She said, tilting her head a bit. "Just…you carry yourself like Daddy did, you see. Even when he retired and was growing old, he still…"
"No, no it's…quite all right." He frowned a bit, but nodded. "I'm sure your father was a good man."
"Thank you." she nodded her head, the barest shadow of a smile flicking across her face. "He would have been honored to have the respect of a skilled soldier."
Kratos felt a flick of a smirk before he clamped it down, nodding and turning away from her, looking toward their destination.
"Wow, Presea, I didn't know your dad was a knight!" Genis exclaimed, at the pink-haired girl's side in an instant.
Presea, correct? Yes…she had been the Angelus Project in Tethe'alla… That girl had been experimented on just as his Anna had been.
He must have been frowning, because Lloyd picked up on his darkened mood.
"Dad?" he asked. "Are you okay?"
"Hm? Oh, yes." he shook his head, rubbing his face. "I'm sorry, I was just thinking."
"About what?"
"…" he shook his head again. "Nothing. Let's hurry on so we can make camp at the ruins tonight."
He scanned his son, his eyes falling onto the exsphere on his left hand. The gem that had taken Anna's life, that held her life, that now protected and endangered his son alike. Was she watching? Could she see him now? What would she think? Was she angry? Was she happy on some level?
Did she even know it was really him?
"Dad…? You're staring at me…"
He blinked, realizing he had somehow turned his eyes to his son's face. My how he looked like his mother…
"I'm sorry." He said again. "…You look a lot like your mother."
"You told me that already." Lloyd cracked a weak smile, but rubbed the back of his neck as the red flush came across his cheek.
"I did? Oh…I'm sorry then."
Had he? Had he already told him that? Well it wasn't unlikely….
"No, it's okay." Lloyd laughed, smiling at him. "But I think I look a lot like you too."
His insides chilled.
…Was it true? Did Richard Scott look more like Lloyd's father than Kratos Aurion?
"Dad?"
"Nothing, Lloyd." he forced a small smile. "Let's hurry on."
Did he want to know?
Yaaaaay an update 83 Finally -_- have had such writer's block lately…
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