Title: On my Honor
Author: Yamato795
Pairing: Lots of mentions of RegalxAlicia, but no other ones planned at the moment…
Rating: Let's go PG-13 to be safe, since they do swear in the game, and the violence.
Status: Chapter 9 out of ? parts. Lots planned, but a number is not clear just yet.
Disclaimer: Don't own Tales of Symphonia. Please don't sue me.
Spoilers: A TON, mostly for Regal. I'd say this story is better suited for those who have beaten the game if you ask me. Read at your own risk of spoiling anything. Since it starts where Regal comes in, it should spoil quite a bit of the game after that, don't you think?
Summary: Take a look through Regal's eyes as well as a look into his past.
Author notes: At this point, I'm really assuming that you've played the game through the end, perhaps even more than once. I am doing my best to tie everything together, but even so what I've chosen for this story that pertains strongly to Regal has some gaps in it. This is why you need to have played the game before, it will fill in the gaps for you. I hope you still enjoy!
On my Honor
Chapter nine
The worlds were not divided when the pact was made with Luna and Aska. Instead the Great Seed went out of control, destroying the city of Palmacosta. It took the power of the Summon Spirits of Tethe'alla to neutralize the threat, but that was only after we had to infiltrate the Iselia Human Ranch and defeat Forcystus, the Cardinal in charge of that ranch. Yet, even after his clash with Lloyd and the group that had gone to the core to shut down the reactor the Desian Cardinal was not finished for he tried to kill Lloyd again in spite of his injuries. He also lashed out when he discovered Kratos had helped us even though he was part of Cruxis. He aimed his arm cannon for Chocolat, because she was human and thus to him, untrustworthy.
Colette jumped in front of the girl taking the blow. It incinerated the sleeve of her shirt and revealed a crystal-like growth on her arm and shoulder. She was sick because of her Cruxis Crystal. After staying with Dirk in Iselia for the night even though the dwarf did not know really anything about the stone making the blond Chosen ill, we left for Altessa's.
Altessa knew the name of Colette's sickness but not how to help her. He suggested that we try to find something in the libraries of Sybak. Our search there told us that our chances of finding a cure lay sealed in the sealed archives in the palace where the documents pertaining to Mithos the Hero and the Kharlan War were kept. But to see such documents we would need permission from the King, a king who saw us as a threat and as fugitives. Even so, we had to try for Colette's sake, so we left for Meltokio.
To enter the Imperial City we had to venture through the sewers. I couldn't help but reflection on how different it was to walk through the underground passages as a member of the group I'd once waited here to ambush. It was dark in the tunnels, and so we had to proceed carefully. I stayed at the back of our party keeping a look out for monsters even as we began to approach the same staircase that I'd surprised them at not long ago.
Lloyd and the others stopped when they rounded the corner to the stairs and I stopped when I heard an unfamiliar voice from the staircase. "This is the money."
There were two shadowy figures on the steps, one in armor, and the other obscured by the poor lighting. The one in armor moved to give something to the figure I couldn't make out from where I stood.
"Yup. It's all there. Hehehehe…" That voice was strikingly familiar, and it held me frozen in place as I struggled to put together just what they were talking about.
"How long before the King is dead?" The man in armor sounded impatient.
"Probably another month or so with this poison," was the reply that flared a sudden anger through me. Someone was poisoning His Majesty? Who would have the audacity to do that? And why was I certain I knew that slimy voice of the man who was selling the poison?
No…it couldn't be…
"It takes a while." The armored man practically groaned. Neither shaded figure seemed to have noticed our presence, even though the others were standing at the end of the steps.
"I've been told to make it look like he died from an illness. It's slow, but he'll die for sure." The deep voice struck another cord in me. "Tell His Eminence, the Pope, to wait just a bit longer."
"I see," Zelos murmured quietly to the group. "I knew there was something wrong when the normally healthy King got sick."
"What are we gonna do, Lloyd?" Genis hissed to the swordsman.
I could make out the brunette teen's grin. "Isn't it obvious? If we save the King…"
"He'll be in our debt." Raine finished for him. "Let's go."
Sheena shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose, a sort of objection to the ulterior motives the others were displaying. "Why can't they just say they'll save him?"
I could understand what Sheena meant, but at the same time if the King was in our debt we could access the archives. Besides, I was certain that I knew the voice of the man selling the poison and I had to confirm if I was correct or not. I stepped around the corner to stand at the end of the staircase. The movement caused the man in armor to take notice.
"Who's there?" He and his shadowy companion turned to see us.
"It's the Chosen." Zelos knew the weight of that title, and the authority it carried even compared to that of the Pope.
"Damn, it's Zelos!" In this light I could see it was one of the Pope's soldiers that had come to fetch more of the poison.
"What?" his companion gasped, moving into his light.
"It's you, Vharley!" I should have known! I should have seen it. On the Sky Terrace before I'd told the other's about my part in Alicia's death, Vharley had said that seen the King would die and the Pope would seize control. Of course he would say something like that if he had been plotting to aid in His Majesty's death all along! I glared at him in the dim light clenching my hands into fists.
Behind me I heard Presea gasp.
"Damn, I can't have people knowing about the assassination." Vharley growled out as he shoved the soldier towards the passage out. He then began to reach for a knife concealed on his belt. "Die here!"
"…Be quiet." I practically snarled as I moved to block his path if he intended to strike any of the others. When I started to approach, he began to back away, up the steps. Perhaps he was starting to realize how out numbered he was.
"…I won't forgive you!" Presea ground out through her teeth as she balanced her ax in hands, stalking to my side. Again, Vharley backed up, now at the top of the staircase. The Exsphere broker's eyes scanned over all of us as the sound of weapons being drawn echoed off the sewer walls, and it seemed to dawn on him that while he couldn't let anyone know about the assassination attempt, his chanced of defeating all eight of us on his own were slim to none.
Scrambling backwards, the stout man whirled around to make a break for the exit. Instantly, the muscles in my legs coiled so that I could chase after him, but an eruption of smoke in front of him halted my movements. Sheena had used a smoke bomb to block his chances of escape, glaring at him in challenge.
"You're not going anywhere!" the ninja remarked sharply with her eyes narrowed.
Vharley's eyes darted between the summoner and back to the rest of us. He could see now that he was trapped, even if he wanted to stop us from spreading word about the assassination attempt he was far too outnumbered to keep his secret. Desperate, he lunged, knife read to swipe at his target for perhaps his only chance to strike before any of us moved to take him down. The Exsphere broker had lunged at Presea.
There was no hesitation, no thought, behind my right leg sweeping out, catching in his round chin. Instinct had taken over, the need to protect Presea causing me to forget for just a moment that she was more than capable of defending herself. I spun on my left leg again with ease, this time my right foot slamming into his hand to knock the knife from his grasp.
Even dazed and unarmed, Vharley sprung at Presea again. It might have been because he blamed her for this, because he had to have known she was stronger than he was and that she would not hesitate to retaliate, but whatever the case he seemed to focus on her. I would have kicked out again to knock him back so that he did not lay a hand on her, but I saw from the corner of my eye that the girl's large ax was already in motion.
"Resolute Infliction!" Two upward cuts tore through Vharley's torso splattering blood over the stone walkway. When the Exsphere broker stumble back, Presea's eyes narrowed before she whirled around in a circle with her weapon held out to strike again. "Finality Punishment!"
"Argh!" Vharley collapsed to the ground in a bloated mass, blood seeping from his wounds. He cringed when he heard Presea and I stalk closer. He knew what was coming, what had been trying to catch up to him for eight long years, and he feared the punishment he would receive for his crimes. At one time I had wanted to see this man rot in prison for his hand in Alicia's death, but now I'd learned of his part in the experiments done on my beloved's sister and that he was helping the Pope poison the King of Tethe'alla. There would be no redemption for this man. He felt no guilt, no shame, for all he'd done.
"I'm going to die here?...You've…got to be…kidding me…" the Exsphere broker wheezed as blood dribbled down his lip. "I'm going…to die…here like…that damned…Alicia?..."
The flash of anger that ignited my blood was almost enough to have me attack him again. When Vharley had attacked Presea again I had thought that perhaps the best course of action would be to let her fight him. Alicia was her sister, her family, and this was the only retribution I could offer her for her older sister's death without laying down my own life at her feet. Yet when that vile, underhanded shell of a human being dared to insult the woman I loved I nearly ended his life myself.
"Don't insult Alicia!" Presea hissed, swinging her ax so that the blunt edge hit Vharley in the temple. It was far too merciful that he was unconscious instead of in pain as he laid there bleeding to death.
"So there was a link between the Pope and Rodyle of the Five Grand Cardinals." Lloyd murmured after a long stretch of silence.
Sheena walked over to join us once again, her gaze downcast as she returned her cards to her sash. "The Pope is connected to Kuchinawa as well."
"The Exspheres in Tethe'alla passed from Vharley to Rodyle, and the experiments related to Cruxis Crystal were passed from Rodyle to Vharley and ultimately the Pope." Raine commented easily finding the logical links between the cruel, cold hearted men that had all found a way to negatively touch our lives.
Zelos ran his fingers through his hair, chewing his lip as he glanced at the passage out that the Pope's henchman had fled through. "The Pope probably asked them to assassinate the King in exchange for his cooperation."
"Insolence!" I growled. The Pope had been manipulating so many lives, hurting so many people, just to gain a throne that he had no right to. What sort of holy man would sully his hands with attempted kidnappings, falsely accusing the Chosen of being a traitor, and even trying to assassinate the King? He had to be stopped. Even he had had a part in Alicia's death if he had authorized the tests that had mutated her body. It was the same in Presea's case.
"All right." Lloyd clenched a fist and motioned to the ladder that led out of the sewers. "Let's go get the Pope!"
Genis, Colette, and Sheena were right on the young swordsman's heels as he ran for the exit in the hopes that we might still be able to catch the Pope off guard. Zelos and Raine were not far behind them. I hesitated, my gaze falling upon the body of the man that I had despised for so long and so deeply.
For perhaps the first time in eight years, I breathed easily, with a weight tumbling off my shoulders. I spoke without realizing I was doing so out loud. "…I've finally accomplished my goal of so many years…"
"…What will you do now?" The voice of the small pink haired girl at my side made me aware that she had not hurried off with the others and she had heard what I'd said. While her expression was almost completely blank, there was a glimmer of curiosity and perhaps what could have been concern. It was gone before I could be sure, but it made me wonder if she was actually worried that my journey would end there now that Vharley was dead.
"For the sake of Lloyd and the others who aided me in my revenge, and for Alicia's sake as well, I shall assist in what meager ways I can to eliminate Cruxis." I said softly as I gestured for her to follow me after our friends out of the underground passageways. I had come this far with them, and given my word to Alicia not to remove my bonds until those who toyed with Exspheres were defeated, so how could I turn my back on them now? While all I could really do was help them fight, at least that was something. That, and I still had yet to take Lloyd's advice and talk to Presea about her sister.
"…Yes." She seemed to agree with my decision, and it might have even helped her with her own as well. Already she'd defeated Rodyle, and now that Vharley was dead she could walk away if she thought her part in the journey was complete. "Defeating Vharley does not mean that everything is over."
"In fact…" I stopped as we came to the ladder. "It may just be the beginning."
In confusion, she tilted her head to the side. "Beginning?"
I nodded. "A new beginning…for the sake of turning our eyes from the past, and toward the future."
Presea considered this, her hands clenching and unclenching the length of her black skirt. She had taken down Rodyle, who had been behind the experiments, and Vharley, who had not only had a hand in what had been done to her but her sister's end as well, but perhaps she did not see it as the end of her revenge. I still remained. While she had promised Alicia to try to forgive me, was she really obligated to do so? After a moment, she glanced up at the ladder. "The others are probably waiting…"
"Yes…" I nodded, waiting for her to start up the ladder first while glancing back the way we had come. Perhaps I'd have to wait a while longer to talk to her, but I needed to speak to her about Alicia. I wanted her to not only know her sister, but to maybe, in some way, make up for the fact that she could not talk to Alicia herself.
I'd helped bring down Vharley, yet that wasn't the end. While I'd had revenge that would not redeem me of my crimes, that was not possible. What path I had to take now was my choice, and while I knew it wouldn't be easy, I wanted to go the way of atonement. There was no way that I could ever make up for what I had done, but I couldn't spend my life trying. The first step would be to talk to Presea. The next depended on her decision about me. I just had to hope that during our fight with Cruxis I would have the chance to attempt to reach out to her.
"Hey, Regal, let's go!" Lloyd called down to me.
Taking a deep breath, I started up after them. First, we had to stop the Pope from assassinating the King from the shadows. After that I would just have to wait for my chance and play the rest by ear.
I'm trying, Alicia, I just hope that it's enough.
To cure Colette, we needed to collect the items needed to create a Rune Crest for her Cruxis Crystal. One of the items that would be the easiest to get would be the Zircon. Fortunately, at one time, the Lezareno Company shipped Zircon to different locations, so if we obtained past shipping records we could find some for the Rune Crest easily enough. Relieved to be on our way with our fugitive status lifted thanks to some quick thinking by Zelos and a little acting on the part of Colette, we headed for Altamira.
On the way it was easy to see that Lloyd's sullen mood had lifted a bit since we knew what to do to save Sylvarant's Chosen. When we touched down on the island he strode up to me with a big grin. "Say, isn't it hard to balance when your hands are bound together?"
I was a bit surprised with his question that relatively came out of nowhere, but nodded all the same. "It was difficult at first. I fell on numerous occasions."
Lloyd grinned with his head tilted to the side. He laughed, running his red gloved fingers through his spiked brown hair, and he looked me up and down one more time before he shook his head in what could have been disbelief. "That's hard to imagine. I can't see you falling."
"Really?" I couldn't help but laugh along with him, wondering why he couldn't see me falling while trying to fight in handcuffs. Was it because he'd seen my skills now or because he knew me to be a Duke, a noble that was supposed to be graceful and refined? "But it all comes down to getting used to it and training your lower body. Even if you have a sense of balance, it's useless if your muscles are unable to react."
"So that's why you're so buff." He smirked a bit before he looked down at his own arms and legs. "I wonder if I'll get more muscles if I train a lot."
I held my chin, smiling back at him. "Hmmm. Then would you like to do some early morning training with me?"
His features instantly lit up with the enthusiasm he was known for, even if it was then usually coupled with a short attention span and then boredom. At the very least Lloyd understood that if he was going to reunite the worlds, he would need to be stronger, and I doubted that even his short attention span would keep him from working at that. "Yeah! So what time should I wake up?"
"Usually a little after four." I told him. I'd grown accustomed over the years to such early training, for whatever reason. Waking up so close to dawn was routine for me, I'd even been doing so over the journey, taking the last watch so I could practice at the same time.
"…Uh, forget it." Holding up his hands in surrender, Lloyd backed away from me, then sped up to fall into step next to Genis near the front of the group. For once it wasn't boredom that had claimed Lloyd's interest and excitement about something. This time it had been his love of sleeping in.
I couldn't help but grin as we entered the city, instantly becoming part of the flow of tourists. When Zelos tried to stop to flirt with a girl, Sheena slapped him upside the head and reminded him why we had come all that way. Colette had looked a bit uncomfortable at the reminder that we were looking for items to cure her, but a smile from Lloyd and Genis as they stepped onto the car of the Elemental Railway seemed to brighten her spirits.
It was strange to once again enter the Lezareno Company headquarters as if nothing changed, and the employees did not seem at all surprised to see me back again. The receptionist flashed me a bright smile as she informed me that George was in the President's office on the third floor. The guards at the sides of the elevator even gave me a cordial nod as we passed them to board the lift.
George blinked in surprise to see me, as I was the first one off of the elevator, but he was quick to flash me a welcoming smile.
"Is everything running smoothly?" I couldn't resist asking even though I knew we were there for a purpose other than the dealings of the company, because this company had been in my family for generations. Lezareno had always been a part of my life. I'd been raised to run it.
"Yes, the business is. However, the sealed Exsphere mine was raided by someone," my old servant informed me as his grin quickly faded into a frown and he straightened his tie. His posture had suddenly shrunk, closed in on itself, and I took it as a sign that he didn't really want to tell me what was going on. "We believe it was the work of Vharley, but fortunately it appears access to the core area was prevented."
No one could enter the core area without my voice print and cornea scan, a security measure that had been thwarting the Exsphere broker for years. Had Vharley tried again to breach the security system and failed since we had encountered him in the Toize Valley Mine? Either way, he hadn't reached the Exspheres, and for that I could be grateful.
"So it would seem." I murmured with a nod. "But it's safe to assume that there will be no more trouble of that nature. Vharley is dead."
George's eyes went wide as he took a small step backwards. "Are you certain of this!"
"In other words," Zelos remarked with a roll of his eyes at the elder man's surprise, running his fingers through his long red hair. A grin curled his lips as he glanced from me to the pink haired young woman. "Alicia was avenged, through the actions of Regal and Presea."
"I see…this is good news." George commented after a moment of taking the news in. Gripping his chin, he let his eyes rove over Presea first, and then he met my gaze evenly with a tilt of his head. "Are you here just to report this information?"
"…No." I was a bit put off by his question, trying to ignore the feeling that George seemed ready to have us leave. He was changing the subject a bit pointedly, so I supposed it was best not to delay any longer considering this was only our first stop on finding the items to create a Rune Crest. "I have other business. I want to take a look at the records concerning past mining operations. Please unlock the door to the archives."
"Documents concerning past mining operations should be in the left room of the second floor archive." He replied after he gestured to one of his assistants to go unlock the door.
"I see." I nodded, gesturing to Lloyd to follow after the young man that had gone ahead to open the vast archive of the company for us. The young man shrugged and then led the way back to the lift, the others beginning to follow one by one until I was left alone with the man that had served my family for several years. "Thank you."
I heard the elevator return, so I started for the door, but George's tentative voice caused me to stop and turn back to him.
"So Vharley is truly dead?"
His interest in the matter struck me as odd, but then again the last time I had been to Altamira the Exsphere broker had been leaning on my former servant for access to the mines. George was probably relieved that Vharley would not be coming back or trying to ransack the mines. "Yes. Vharley is dead."
Again adjusting his tie, he glanced to the side, away from me. "I see. So…by your own two hands Vharley was…I'm sure Alicia is happy as well."
While his words were probably meant to be kind, comforting, I couldn't help but press my lips together while bawling my hands into fists. It was not really by my hands that Vharley was dead, and yet I'd had my part in it, wanted it, and had done other underhanded things to achieve revenge. No matter when in her life it had been, Alicia would never have approved or wanted something like what had happened in the sewers. And George, who'd assumed she would, had never known her, or tried to, well enough to make such an assumption.
"No. Alicia would not be happy about such a thing. And…" I shook my head, my eyes trailing over to the desk where I had sat and talked with my beloved over the years. No matter if I'd gotten revenge or not, no matter if I'd brought him to justice or not, there was no way to get back the one thing I wanted most. "…Even after accomplishing my revenge, Alicia is not coming back. The only thing left now is emptiness."
"Master Regal…" George started but didn't finish. I walked right past him to the elevator, pushing the thoughts and images of my coming moments void of the woman I loved from my mind.
There was nothing he could do but panic. George had known that Regal would take the girl's departure badly, that he might have to argue with the younger man, but he never expected anything like the confrontation in the servants' chambers to happen. Nearly eight years ago he had fired the entire staff of the Bryant mansion to begin isolating the Duke, and at the time Regal had only offered a few words of protest before conceding. George had figured that his master would be upset, that Miss Combatir's removal would anger him, but he'd been sure that the noble would just take it in stride and move on as he had the last time.
Instead Duke Bryant had lashed out. He'd even gotten violent, not to the degree that some might have, but George had never before seen Regal so enraged. What made things even worse for the old servant was that now his job was on the line, for without Alicia, he would face the wrath of his employer. At this point he feared what the nobleman might do to him if he did not bring back the girl as ordered.
The only problem was that he had given the girl to Vharely, and that slimy Exsphere broker was not going to be happy when he learned of these new developments. But Vharely would just have to make do, because if George was fired Vharely would lose the only tie he had to the Lezareno mines.
So what could he tell the Duke? That Alicia had been sent by her family to Vharely in light of her sudden unemployment? How would Regal react to that? Could Vharely use the situation to finally secure them control of the mines, and that in turn would finally get the Exsphere broker out of George's hair? Perhaps if the Duke had to confront Vharely over Alicia's return the situation would come out that either Vharely or Regal would finally be out of his way. The Duke was very angry about Alicia being taken away, what if George could redirect that anger at Vharely? George had no idea the outcome of this predicament, but he could only hope that in the end he would be the one to gain.
To be continued
End notes: I have to say, I enjoyed this. Vharley is a character that I can't stand considering all the things he does. I apologize that it is short, but I feel like I'm speeding towards the end of the game as well as to the climatic ending of this story. I guess you'll have to stick around for that though. Hope you enjoyed!