Chapter 2! yay! This picks up right where we left off, with Lloyd and the group entering the Martel Temple.
I don't own Tales of Symphonia.
((Lloyd's POV))
"Wow! So this is the inside of the Temple!" Genis said, looking around.
"Yeah…" I muttered, looking around as well. The main interior was eerily dark and moody, a drastic change from the bright outdoors. There were three paths from the main point: left, right, and dead center. The left path had collapsed during an earthquake early in the year, and the center path led to the altar, where I was usually tutored by Venny. I had no idea what was down the right path. I'd been in here a million times in the last fourteen years, but this time felt different. Something was off…
"Lloyd, is something wrong?" the Professor asked, studying my face.
I shook my head and looked around more carefully. "I'm not sure. Something doesn't feel right…" I said.
"It's the monsters, I'd assume. No doubt part of the trial." Kratos said, nodding slightly, as if in approval.
"Monsters?" Colette asked, glancing fearfully around.
"You remember from class, don't you? The Chosen has to undergo several trials in order to save Sylvarant. This will just be the first of many." The Professor said.
Genis nodded. "All the more reason for us to go with you, right, Lloyd?"
I smiled at him. "Of course! And don't worry, Colette. I'll protect you."
Colette flushed, but nodded.
"Which way, Lloyd?" Genis asked.
"The left path collapsed during an earthquake a while ago, and the center path leads to the altar. I think we should head up there." I said.
The Professor nodded, and we turned to face the center path when Kratos' voice stopped us.
"Wait, Lloyd. Are your fighting techniques self-taught?" He asked.
"Yeah. What of it?" I asked, still slightly miffed that he was a better fighter than me.
Kratos shook his head and reached into his bag, pulling out a book. He handed it to me. "Here. It's a training manual. If you want to fight and protect your friends, at least learn the basics."
"Hmph. You think you're SO smart." I grumbled, but accepted the offered book.
Kratos nodded. "Let's go, then."
The five of us proceeded up the center path. Just when we would have come to the warp up to the altar, though, we were stopped by a giant blue pulsating barrier.
"What the…?" I said, hesitantly putting out my hand.
"Wait." Kratos said, grabbed my wrist. I winced and looked up at him, and noticed he was staring at my Cruxis Crystal. A look of pain flashed across his face, then disappeared. It happened so fast, I might have imagined it.
"It's a mana barrier. If you touch it, you'll get shocked." Kratos explained, dropping my wrist and taking a few steps away from me.
"So now what?" Genis asked.
"There should be a way to disable it somewhere in the Temple. Lloyd, do you have any ideas?" The Professor asked.
I shook my head. "This was never here before. I think Venny once mentioned something about a Ring with the power to shoot out mana being somewhere in here…"
"The Sorcerer's Ring?" The Professor asked, eyes sparkling.
"Yeah, I think so." I said.
"I see. Yes, that should be able to deal with this barrier. We should hurry and try to find it." The Professor said enthusiastically.
"Sis…" Genis muttered.
"Where would this Ring be?" Kratos questioned.
"I'm not sure." I said, shaking my head. "This is the only part of the Temple I've ever been in. I've never been down that right path."
Kratos sighed. "It appears we have no choice but to search for it, then. Let's go, Chosen One."
I winced, and stuck my tongue out at his back, but followed, the rest of the group close behind me.
I really hate being called "Chosen One", especially by people like Venny who say it as if it's my name, as if that's all I am, all I'll ever be. I mean, once I save the world, I'll go back to just being plain old Lloyd, right?
"Get ready!" Kratos shouted, before charging at the group of monsters ahead of us. We had just entered the rightmost path when three enemies appeared in front of us: a ghost, a zombie, and a large centipede-looking creature.
"Demon Fang!" I shouted at the zombie, rushing up the stab at it with my swords. Genis and the Professor both started charging up spells, while Colette distracted the ghost, shouting "Ray Thrust!" and attacking it with her chakrams. The zombie took a swipe at me, and I hurriedly shouted "Sonic Thrust!", stabbing it in the chest powerfully, collapsing its rib cage and piercing its heart. As it started to crumble, Genis and Raine both finished casting, with dual shouts of "Fireball!" and "Barrier!". The ghost went up in flames and I felt mana swirl around me, forming a slightly protective barrier between me and the enemies. Colette seemed to be holding her own with the ghost, which was almost dead anyways, so I turned to where Kratos was fighting the centipede, only to watch as he shouted "Hurricane Thrust!" slicing the bug as it was thrown wildly into the air, slicing it completely in two.
"Hmph." Kratos said, turning to face the rest of us. Genis cast another Fireball at the ghost and it poofed away. Kratos looked at us all, and seeing no injuries, nodded and sheathed his sword.
"Let's continue." He said, starting forward once more.
The four of us exchanged a look behind his back before hurriedly following.
"Lloyd." Kratos said.
"Wh-what?" I asked, having not been paying attention.
"You did well in the fight back there. Against weaker enemies, you show some talent." Kratos said.
"Heh. Thanks. Hey, wait…" I said, realizing he hadn't been complimenting me.
Genis laughed, and Colette tried to hide a grin.
"Lloyd, you should listen to Kratos. If you want to fight on this journey, you will need to improve your fighting skills. Perhaps he could train you…" the Professor said.
I grimaced and Kratos looked away.
"Maybe…" I muttered, and the subject was dropped as we came to a set of stairs descending downward.
We all peered down the stairs, trying to see where they led but failing to pierce the darkness.
"I will go first. Chosen One, please stay close behind me." Kratos said, as he started descending the stairs.
"It's Lloyd." I growled, following after him. We all silently walked down the stairs and came to a wide platform. At the bottom of the platform were more stairs leading underneath it, which we could see since the floor had several large holes in it. On the left and right were more stairs leading to alcoves. At the north end was yet another staircase, and out a ways from this platform, with no path in sight to get there, was a raised pedestal with a ring on it.
"Is that the Sorcerer's Ring?" I asked, pointing.
"Hm. It appears so." Kratos said.
As everyone continued to look around, I took a few steps away from the group, approaching the north end of the platform and intending on leaning over it to see if I could find a path to the Ring.
"Lloyd! Look out!" Kratos suddenly yelled.
I whirled around to see a giant rock golem standing behind me, raising its arms to strike. For the second time, I raised my hands in defense and prepared to take the blow. For the second time, Kratos streaked between me and the enemy, blocking the blow with his sword.
"Snap out it! I thought you wanted to fight!" Kratos yelled, as he tried to dislodge his sword from the golem's rocky arm.
I shook my head and drew my weapons.
"Tiger Blade!" I shouted, my Crystal glowing, as I quickly slashed the golem vertically twice. It stumbled, and Kratos performed a Sonic Thrust on it just as Colette hit it with Pow Hammer. It curled up into itself and started collapsing, suddenly forming a large cube of stone.
Genis and the Professor looked from the holes in the floor to the compacted rock.
"Ah! How marvelous!" The Professor said.
Genis nodded. "I get it."
"Huh?" I said, looking between the two.
Colette, confused as well, came closer to examine it when she suddenly tripped, causing the block to fall through of the holes and drop down below.
Kratos nodded. "Just wait, another should…" He trailed off as another rock golem appeared on the platform.
"Hurry and defeat this one as well!" The Professor shouted, stepping back and raising her staff as she charged up a spell. Genis, too, started casting, and Kratos wasted no time rushing it to attack the golem. Colette and I ran up to it as well, with me sending a Demon Fang ahead of us. The golem swung out its giant arms, and Colette yelped as one headed right toward her. I grunted, pushing her out of the way while raising my wooden blades, effectively stalling the golem's arm. Kratos nodded in approval, and performed the killing blow as Genis' Aqua Edge blasted it. "Barrier!" the Professor yelled, and once again I was enveloped in a protective coating of mana.
"Professor, don't just cast that on me. The others need it, too." I said.
She shook her head. "Right now, Lloyd, it's most important that you are protected. The others are fine for now. The monsters aren't too difficult."
I sighed, uncomfortable being the "important" one. "Professor, please. Cast it on Genis or Colette next. Okay?"
The Professor studied my face a moment before nodding slowly. "You're right, Lloyd. I will."
I nodded my thanks as Genis and Colette pushed this brick down as well. This, combined with the previous block, had made a path to the Sorcerer's Ring.
"It seems we can reach it now." Kratos observed.
"You four go down and get it. I want to explore these two alcoves first." The Professor said.
"But Sis! It's dangerous!" Genis said.
"I'll be fine, Genis. It seems that there are no more enemies on this level." The Professor said, her eyes sparkling as she made her way over to the right alcove.
I sighed. "Just be careful, Professor. We'll be back in a minute.
She gave an absent nod, and Kratos once again led the way down the steps and across our makeshift bridge to the Ring.
I reached out and took it from its pedestal, slipping it on my right hand.
Kratos shook his head. "No, you should wear it on your other hand; your… Crystal will amplify it." He paused slightly before saying Crystal and I looked at him curiously, but his stoic face betrayed no emotion. Instead, I shrugged and did as he suggested, wearing the Ring on my left hand.
"If I remember correctly from the books Raine's collected, all you have to do is concentrate and push a tiny bit of your mana to the Ring and it'll fire a heavily concentrated blast." Genis said.
"Cool! I can't wait to try it out!" I said, getting excited at the idea of blasting things.
Kratos rolled his eyes while Colette smiled hugely, clearly excited as well.
As we were crossing our rock bridge once more, we heard a shout of "MARVELOUS!"
"Was that the Professor?" I asked Genis.
"Y-yeah. She likes exploring…" He whispered.
I shrugged and we continued on, soon coming back to the main platform, where we found the Professor waiting for us, tapping her foot impatiently.
"There you all are! Let me see the Sorcerer's Ring!" The Professor demanded.
I held out my hand and she examined it thoroughly. "Hmmm… Yes, this should do just fine. Well, let's go, everyone. I found some apple and orange gels in the alcoves, as well as a few life bottles upstairs. I'm sure the priests won't mind if we take them with us, just in case." She said.
Kratos nodded. "It would be wise to have them with us."
The Professor nodded at him and I shrugged. I didn't really care if the priests minded or not; we could use them so we would take them.
We headed back up the stairs and back down the path. The Temple was eerily quite and as we neared the central area, my stomach started twisting into painful knots of nervousness. I only had a vague idea of what to expect, and was anxious to just get it over with.
We soon came back to the barrier and I approached it, turning my head over my shoulder and saying, "Leave this to me."
I aimed the Ring and sent a small amount of mana into it. My hand tingled and my Crystal flashed, and a jet of mana blasted the barrier, disintegrating it on contact.
"Oh. That's all it does?" I said, disappointed that it was over so quickly.
Genis laughed. "You get bored so easily, Lloyd!" He said.
I shrugged. "Whatever. Let's go get the oracle!" I said, stepping toward the warp.
"Let me go first, in case there are more monsters awaiting us." Kratos said, calmly stepping onto the warp ahead of me. His body stretched and faded as he was transported into the higher altar area.
I warped right after him and stepped aside to let the others through, looking around.
The room was rather small, with the main feature being the large altar in its center. It had large, floor to ceiling windows around most of it, letting a lot of light in. The room itself seemed to be glowing, though, and the altar was pulsating a soft white light. I approached it as the others warped in, standing behind me supportively. The light flashed and my Crystal flashed in response, then suddenly an angel flew in from the ceiling. He was about the same height as Kratos, and had on a white flowing robe. His blue eyes sparkled harshly, and his short blonde hair was tucked under his white pointed hat. But the most impressive thing by far was his wings. They were feathered like a birds' and of an off-white color, giving him a soft glow.
"I am Remiel." The angel said. "I am an angel of judgment. I am here to guide Lloyd, the son of the mana lineage, on his journey of world regeneration in order to awaken the Goddess Martel, who sleeps at the center of the earth."
"It's just like the legend…" the Professor murmured, staring at Remiel in awe. Colette and Genis, too, were staring at the angel. Kratos, however, was looking calmly about, no hint of emotion evident in his features.
"From this moment, Lloyd becomes the Chosen of Regeneration. Cruxis blesses this event, and bestows the Tower of Salvation upon Sylvarant."
There was a flash of light, and everyone turned to stare out the windows at the far away Tower that had appeared, reaching up into the skies. I swallowed hard, wondering how the hell I was gonna get there, turning back to Remiel.
"So that's the Tower of Salvation." The Professor said, studying it as best she could.
"The world can now be saved!" Genis and Colette cheered.
"Chosen of Regeneration." Remiel said, looking down on me. "You must unlock the seals that guard the Tower, and ascend the stairs to the heavens. Cruxis shall give you the power of the angels at each seal you unlock, and once you are reborn as an angel, the world will be saved."
"I accept this task. I will swear my life to the regeneration of the world." I said, remembering the lines Venny had taught me.
"Very good. First head south, to the Seal of Fire. Offer your prayers at that altar." Remiel said, starting to glow brightly.
"I will." I said. Remiel gave us all one last look, seeming to smirk at Kratos, before vanishing in a flash of light.
"Wow! You really are the Chosen, Lloyd! You're going to become an angel!" Genis said, grinning.
I grinned back. "Yeah! I can't wait! Though I'll have to cut holes in my clothes for my wings…" I said.
Kratos looked pained for a moment but then smoothed his feature and said: "Chosen One, we should depart now. We needed to prepare for the long journey."
I grimaced but nodded. He was right after all, we had to hurry and save Sylvarant! I turned to my two best friends.
"Thanks for coming, you guys. I'll see you before I leave the village." I said.
"Okay!" Genis and Colette said.
"Genis, Colette. I want you to go to the schoolhouse. I will go with Lloyd and Kratos to the Mayor's house to help plan the journey." The Professor said.
They nodded, and I stepped onto the warp with the Professor and Kratos.
We exited the Temple quickly, and started down the stairs in silence. The bodies were gone, so I guess Venny had someone clear them away. I almost envied Genis and Colette, as they could make their way back to Iselia much more leisurely, while we were walking at a brisk pace in order to get there as quickly as possible. The Professor seemed lost in thought, and Kratos was warily scanning the area, looking for any potential threats, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
I sighed, bored. Within minutes, however, we were at the entrance to the village.
"Wh-who's there?" one the sentries asked. Both sentries looked scared, and it made me angry. Venny was supposed to have told them that we defeated the Desians!
"It's Professor Raine Sage and the Chosen One, Lloyd Irving. We have with us Kratos, a mercenary hired to protect the Chosen. Let us pass." The Professor said calmly.
The sentries visibly relaxed. "Thank Martel." The one murmured.
The other asked, "Chosen One! Did you receive the oracle?"
"Yeah. I'll be leaving soon to start the regeneration journey." I said.
"That's great news! We're counting on you, Chosen One!" the sentry said.
I smiled at him. "Of course! Don't worry, you can count on me! I'll save everyone!"
The Professor put her hand on my shoulder, and we entered Iselia with Kratos, for once, trailing after us.
"By the way Kratos, what is your last name?" the Professor asked.
"…Aurion." Kratos said,
The Professor nodded. "Well then, shall we head to the Mayor's house?"
Kratos and I both nodded and the Professor blinked, staring at us for a moment before shaking her head and leading the way to the right side of town, where the Mayor lived. His house was the largest in the village, and made of the best lumber. The Professor swiftly knocked and a housekeeper answered the door, quickly permitting us once she saw me. Don't get me wrong, having a higher status than everyone definitely had its advantages, and I may have used that fact a few times for myself, but when random people I've never met start treating me as if I am a King, it really irritates me. I mean, I know I'm the Chosen and all, the one who will save basically all their lives, but I'm still just a seventeen year old boy. If I didn't have Genis, Colette, the Professor, or my Dad, I don't know what I'd do.
Anyway, shortly after we were seated around a large conference table, the Mayor came in.
The Mayor is kinda short, just a few inches taller than Genis. His hair is fading and receding, making him look older than he is. His eyes are a dull brown and his bushy mustache twitches when he talks. His voice also gets to me because it's so haughty and full of contempt. I'm sure I was told his name at one point, but everyone just calls him the Mayor, and I've forgotten what it is.
"Ah, Chosen One. I trust you've successfully received the oracle?" The Mayor said, taking a seat at the head of the table, between Kratos and the Professor.
"Yes." I said, nodding.
"Very good. Then you will depart at once on the journey of regeneration. We are all counting on you to succeed." The Mayor said.
I barely stopped myself from rolling my eyes. No pressure, right?
"Surely the Chosen One should take the remainder of the day to rest before heading out on such a journey?" Kratos questioned.
I shot him a look. Though he was arrogant, and a better fighter than me (though I'd never admit that out loud), he was slowly moving up in my eyes for sticking up for me, a kid he barely knew.
"And just who are you?" The Mayor asked, suspicion and outrage in his eyes.
"This is Kratos Aurion. He is a mercenary, whom I have hired to protect Lloyd." The Professor explained.
"Ah, I see. A man with loyalty only to whomever the highest bidder is." The Mayor spat.
"Mayor!" The Professor cried, outraged.
Kratos raised his hand. "It's fine. That is the definition of a mercenary, I suppose."
The Mayor grinned in triumph while the Professor fumed.
"Then, Chosen One, I will see you off on the journey!" The Mayor said.
"We will be staying the rest of the day and night here in order to prepare for the journey. I will, of course, be accompanying Lloyd, so you will have to find a replacement teacher for the schoolhouse for the duration of my absence." The Professor ground out, her jaw tight.
The Mayor's face turned red. "You're siding with him?" He asked incredulously, jabbing his finger in Kratos' direction.
"Oh, give me a break. If you took your head out of your ass for two seconds, you'd realize that they are both right! I'm the Chosen – I outrank you. We leave tomorrow." I said, grinning happily.
"Lloyd…" The Professor murmured, softly rebuking me.
I just rolled my eyes as the Mayor turned even redder and sputtered for a few moments before forcing himself to say: "As you wish, Chosen One. I will not delay your rest. Good night." With that, he stormed out the room.
The Professor smacked the back of my head. I raised my hand to rub the spot, glancing at her accusingly.
"That was for your language." She said simply.
"It may not have been wise to make an enemy of a prominent figure in your home village…" Kratos said, looking at me.
I dropped my hand and stood up, shrugging. "I don't care. That guy's a jerk. Besides, I don't live here. I live with my Dad, just outside the village."
"I… see." Kratos said, standing as well along with the Professor. We exited the Mayor's house just as Genis and Colette were approaching it.
"Sis! Lloyd! We came to see what was taking you so long!" Genis said.
"Yeah! Lloyd, everything okay?" Colette asked.
I smiled. "Yeah. Everything's set. We're leaving tomorrow."
"I can't wait! We're going with him, right, Raine?" Genis asked.
"Genis… I will be accompanying Lloyd and Kratos. However, I think you and Colette should stay here." The Professor said.
"But…!" Genis started, before the Professor cut him off.
"Hear me out, Genis. This journey will be a very dangerous one, with harder enemies and greater difficulties than the ones we faced in the Temple today. You two are simply too young. It's safer for you to stay here." She said.
"I agree. Children should stay home." Kratos said.
"No way! Lloyd's only a kid, really, too! And if you're going, Sis, I wanna go too!" Genis said.
"But Lloyd is the Chosen One. And as his teacher, it's my duty to help him through the many trails to come." The Professor said.
"Lloyd! Don't you want us to come with you?" Colette asked.
"Of course! You guys are my best friends!" I said.
"See? Lloyd said we could go!" Genis said stubbornly.
"But…" the Professor said.
I interrupted her. "Professor, please. They're my only friends. I don't know if I can do this without them. I'll protect them, don't worry."
"If you truly wish to protect them, you will have to grow much stronger." Kratos observed.
"Shut up! I will grow stronger! I will grow strong enough to save everyone – the whole damn world!" I said.
"Lloyd…" Colette said.
"It's okay, Colette. I'll protect you." I said.
Kratos studied me for a moment before nodding. "This will be an ardent and dangerous journey. But to do so without the support of your friends would make it even more hazardous."
"Thanks, Kratos." I said, surprised the mercenary had sided with me.
He shrugged. "It will not be difficult for me to protect all of you. As long as you don't rush into battle carelessly, it should be fine."
"All right." The Professor said, caving in. "But at the first sign that you two can't handle it, I will send you straight back!"
"Yes, Raine." Genis said, grinning.
"Yes, Professor." Colette said, smiling at me.
"But, Lloyd." Kratos said.
"Yeah?" I asked.
"Your swordsmanship is unrefined and lacks basic skills. You will need training. I will train you during our journey, if you are willing." Kratos said.
It took everything in me not to explode at him. Then, I did the hardest thing I will probably ever have to do – I swallowed my pride. "I am. Please teach me to be stronger."
Kratos nodded. "Very well."
"It's settled then. Colette, I will go with you to discuss things with Frank. Genis, go to our house and start packing things we will need on the journey. Kratos, you are more than welcome to spend the night in our guest room. Lloyd, I assume you're heading home?" The Professor said.
"Yeah." I said, nodding.
"All right then. We'll stop by later tonight to make sure everything's ready for tomorrow. Be careful on your way home." The Professor said.
With that, the Professor, Colette, and Kratos went in the direction of Colette's house.
"Lloyd, you're going through the Forest now, right? Can I go part of the way with you?" Genis asked, as we headed towards his house and went inside.
"Huh? Yeah, but where are you going?" I asked.
"To see a friend." Genis replied, gathering up a few things, including some gels and sandwich ingredients, before relocking his house door. "I'll pack for the journey when I get back."
"Well… okay." I said, curious as to who Genis could be visiting in the middle of the Iselia Forest.
We walked down to the main entrance of town, to see Noishe hassling the two sentries posted there.
"Noishe!" I said, grinning as I ran over to my dog. Dog is a loose term for him, considering his shoulders are as high as my chest. His fur was a weird green and white mix.
He whined at the sight of me, leaning in to my petting.
"Chosen One! Please keep your pet away from the village. You know he's not allowed in Iselia." One of the sentries said.
I scowled but nodded. "Yeah, yeah. C'mon Genis let's go."
Before we could start to enter the forest, though, the other sentry asked: "By the way, you two aren't messing with the Human Ranch in the forest, are you?"
"N-no, why would you ask that?" Genis asked, wringing his hands nervously.
The sentry shrugged. "Just make sure you stay away. You know we have that non-aggression treaty with the Desians."
Genis nodded and swallowed hard. "Lloyd, can we go now?" He asked.
"Yeah. Let's go. See you guys tomorrow!" I called over my shoulder as we entered the forest.
"Good night, Chosen One!" one of the sentries called after us.
So, what'd you think? When I was writing this, I kept forgetting that Lloyd calls Raine "the Professor" so I kept having him refer to her as Raine - let's just say that editing was not fun :P
Sorry for any mistakes I didn't catch - this is not beta'd.
Next chapter we switch to Sheena! Woot! Get to see what she is up to in Tethe'alla, living the life of the Chosen. I'm excited :)
Review?