CHAPTER 3: Two Worlds

Hey, look! It's my first update of 2011! I can't believe that it's already a new year…I hope everyone had a great decade, and let's hope that this coming one will be better! Let's all work together for a peaceful world! We can do anything if we try! And remember not to ever abandon someone in need! And we can't depend on others, so we have to walk on our own two legs! Also, it's better to be decieved than to decieve! Oh, and remember that lying is the first step down the path of thievery! And finally, goodness and love will always win! And yes, I was totally copying the Dwarven Vows there. Take that.

Ahem. Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to my humble abode. Or something like that. Now, I bring to you, more screwed-up warped story! Today on "One Completely Messed-Up Fic", you get to read about Colette's messed-up life! How will she survive without Lloyd or Genis? Will she commit suicide? Well, she kind of already did…but that's not the point. So, without further ado, I present to you…Chapter Three!

Disclaimer: I don't, nor ever did, own anything other than the man I keep in my freezer.

"Colette, darling, it's time for school," Frank said gently to the blond girl, who was still in bed.

"Remind me again; what is the point of going to school?" the girl moaned. "I'm going to die soon, anyway. I don't need knowledge where I'm going."

"Come on, please get up, everyone will worry if you don't show up…" Frank sighed. She was going through so much, and she just couldn't handle it. She was the Chosen of Regeneration, and if that wasn't enough, she didn't even have any friends other than the priests. She was right; she didn't need knowledge where she was headed.

"…Fine…" Colette rolled out of bed and trudged to her closet and threw on her usual outfit—the ceremonious robes given to her from the Martel Temple. Oh, how she loathed being so poor. It would be nice for one to just, you know, go out with friends—oh, wait. That's right. She didn't have any.

Downstairs, Frank and his wife's mother, Phaidra, heard Colette's voice ring out: "I hate my life!" Their cheerful faces grew solemn as they thought about how neither one could do anything to prevent Colette's fate.

Later, in school, the teacher was asking questions. Again. Whoop-dee-freakin'-doo.

"Brian," the teacher said, pulling her out of her self-pity momentarily at the sound of his name. She turned to look at the boy whose name had been called. She had known him since the second grade, when he moved to Iselia from Triet. His dark skin complimented his midnight-black hair flawlessly, and his beautiful body was chiseled to absolute perfection. She often dreamed of a future with him, but of course that wouldn't happen. Because she was the Chosen. It really sucked that she could never have a normal life, but she tried to cope. Sometimes.

"Brian," the teacher repeated.

"Ma'am?" the boy answered.

"Who ended the Ancient Kharlan War?" she asked.

"Mithos, the Hero."

"Where?"

"The Holy Ground of Kharlan."

And he was smart. The perfect man. Colette sighed. Then she tuned out the rest of the lecture. There was no point in listening, really; it was all about the Journey of Regeneration. Of course, they had the facts wrong, but did it really matter? They didn't have to know.

And then the oracle came.

Lovely.

"Colette, the oracle. Go on to the temple," the teacher said to her. Heh, stupid teacher never cared about her. It was rare that she even called her "Colette". And so the Chosen stood up from her seat and, without trying to appear nervous of scared, she walked out of the schoolhouse.

"The Tower of Salvation has appeared in Sylvarant, Sir," a Renegade reported to their leader.

"Damn. We need to find an assassin, quick." Yuan slammed his fist down on the table. "Mizuho's been ruled out, because of the…incident." He was talking about a time when he had walked in to Mizuho and had been promptly mutilated by the ninjas. Apparently, one must be invited to the village by a citizen before they are able to set foot on shinobi soil.

"Sir, what about the Aurion family? Kratos is an excellent fighter," the Renegade offered.

"That's perfect!" Yuan stood up so quickly that he knocked over his chair. "I'll be back." He left the Flanoir Base and headed to Meltokio to report to Kratos about his proposition.

"No," Kratos said as Yuan all but begged him to assassinate Sylvarant's Chosen.

"Why not?" Yuan pouted. Both of them knew that Kratos couldn't resist Yuan's kicked-puppy look, just as Yuan—along with everyone else—couldn't help but shrivel up under Kratos' glare.

"I have a family to think about, Yuan. I can't go running off anywhere, much less another world." Kratos glared at Yuan, and the two were caught at a stalemate; it was now a battle of wills.

Yuan's pout intensified. "But there's no one else to do it! And, think: do you want Tethe'alla to become a desolate wasteland, like Sylvarant?"

Kratos considered what would happen in Sylvarant's Regeneration was successful. His glare disappeared. Tethe'alla couldn't go into ruin. His home would be destroyed, and his perfect life would slip right through his fingers. "…Okay, I'll do it."

Yuan cheered. "Yay! Thanks, buddy!" He patted his long-time pal on the back, and Kratos sighed.

"I'm not doing it for you. It's for Lloyd and Anna," he told the half-elf.

"Oh, I'm so unloved!" Yuan mock-cried.

"You'll get over it. By the way, how's it going with Martel?" He hoped Yuan wouldn't notice his subject change.

"We got in a fight…again. I didn't mean to turn her dress pink! I forgot that my lucky boxers were in the dryer! But she didn't understand and unleashed a giant fish storm on my head." Yuan sighed.

"A…fish storm?" the red-head asked incredulously.

"Yup. Smelly fish, too."

"…"

"Don't mock the powers of the Goddess…" he warned. Since they had split the world four thousand years ago, she had become both worlds' deity—by her own will, of course. Maybe sadistic, power-hungry insanity ran in the family.

"How in the worlds did she get that technique?" Kratos asked.

"I…have no idea."

They paused.

"…Think she'll teach it to me?"

Yuan smacked Kratos. "Idiot!"

"No, you're mistaking me with Lloyd."

"Takes one to know one."

Kratos twitched.

"Ha!" Yuan performed a small victory dance, until…

"Eruption," Kratos calmly said, then walked away from his companion as a small volcano erupted from underneath him. Yuan yelled for help as the lava encircled him.

"Kratos! I'm sorry!" he cried.

"…Too bad."

"Kratos!"

Kratos pretended not to hear him.

Kratos was packing a small backpack that he would take with him to Sylvarant. He placed Flamberge neatly in it, along with two extra pairs of clothes and extra armor. He packed food in an air-tight container and shoved it into the pack.

"Hey, Dad!" Lloyd called as he walked past Kratos' room. Then he paused and backed up. "Dad? Are you going somewhere?"

"…Yes." He couldn't let Lloyd come. Why did he have to have such a curious son?

"Ooh, where?" He was getting excited, probably expecting to come with him.

"You wouldn't know the area." That was an understatement.

"Try me."

"…"

Lloyd huffed and crossed his arms. "Come on, Dad! Spill."

"I'm going to…Sylvarant."

Lloyd looked as if a calculus test had been placed in front of him. "Syl…va…rant?" he repeated slowly.

"Yes." He should have lied. He should've just told his son that he was going to the Temple of Darkness or something. Anything but Sylvarant.

"Where is that?" he asked.

"It's…" How could he explain?

"Kratos! Are you ready?" Anna called from downstairs. Kratos let out a sigh of relief. Thank Martel!

"Coming, honey!" Kratos yelled back, and rushed out of their room.

"Dad! Wait!" Lloyd followed him.

"I've got to go, Anna. I love you. But Yuan's waiting with the Rheairds. Bye!" Kratos had just touched the doorknob when Lloyd ran into the room with a furious and confused look on his face. Slowly, Kratos turned around. Busted…

"Who's Yuan? And what are Rhee-birds? And where the hell is Sylvarant?" Lloyd demanded.

"Rheairds, Lloyd…" Kratos mumbled.

"I don't care! What are you two keeping from me?" Lloyd glared at them. His parents shared a look and Anna nodded.

"Go on, tell him…" she whispered, and Kratos sighed in defeat. All he wanted was for his family to be happy. And ignorance was bliss, right?

"Lloyd…there's a world, aside from this one, that's connected to this one. That's Sylvarant. Anna is from there, and that is…where you were born." Kratos looked down; he couldn't face his son.

"And…you've been keeping this from me? Why?" Lloyd fumed.

"That world is impoverished and dying. There are many bad things there. We couldn't have you go running off there by yourself," Anna cut in. "We just wanted you to be safe.

"Why would I go off to a different word like that?"

"Because; you're just like me," Kratos said. He truly was. Annoyingly overconfident, extremely curious, nosey—all of the things Kratos was that he tried so hard to force down.

"Well…" Lloyd thought about this, and then came to a decision no one was expecting, even considering his past. "I want to go, too!"

"Lloyd—" Anna started, but was cut off by her son.

"No, Mom. I want to see where I was born. I deserve that much, don't I?" He made a point. Why did his intelligence show up at the worst times?

"…Fine," Anna said. Both Kratos and Lloyd had similar faces of shock on their faces, though Lloyd's was considerably more thrilled.

"Really? Thanks, Mom!" Lloyd ran up and hugged his mother, then ran upstairs to pack.

"Anna? Why…?" Kratos stuttered, still in shock. Why in the worlds would she agree to bringing their son back to the place that wanted them all dead?

"He deserves to know where he was born. The first three years of his life were spent there."

Kratos sighed in defeat. She was always right, wasn't she?

"Dad! I'm ready! Let's go!" An overly-excited Lloyd zoomed back into the foyer.

"…Let's just get this over with." He opened the door and saw…Zelos. And he, too, had a pack slung over his shoulder.

"Hey, Bud!" the Chosen said to Lloyd. "You ready to go to that place?"

"Sylvarant?" Lloyd offered.

"Yeah, that!" Zelos pumped his fist and smiled at Kratos. "Hey, thanks for inviting me, man!"

"I did not invite you," Kratos practically growled.

"Oh. Well, Lloyd asked me to come, so…are we ready or what?"

"Yeah! Time to go see some hunnies in a different world!" Lloyd looked dreamily into nowhere.

"Maybe they'll all be large-breasted, hot chicks!" Zelos mused.

"Or maybe you won't even make it to Sylvarant because of an unfortunate accident involving a Rheaird…" Kratos said, a malicious smile forming at his lips.

"Uh…let's just go."

And then they headed to the Renegade base in the snowy regions of Flanoir. Once there, the inter-dimensional transfer system was turned on, and they flew their Rheairds into the legendary Sylvarant.

Yay! Another chapter! Whoo-hoo! Yeah! Uh-huh! Par-tay!

…Sorry.

Review! And please, please, please, in your reviews, give me some suggestions on how to screw this story up even more! Because I love to see my pawns squirm! Thank you in advance, because I believe that you'll give me some wonderfully excellent ideas, even if you don't mean to!

P.S. For those of you who have read another one of my stories, High School, Brian might seem a little familiar. That is on purpose. It gave me a headache when coming up with the name for Colette's crush, so I decided to use her boy toy from High School. So, it's intentional, it's staying, that will most likely be the only time he's ever mentioned, blah, blah, blah…yeah.

P.P.S. Thank you, moondolphin96, for PM'ing me with the "fish storm" thingy. I totally stole it from you. Hope you don't mind. 'Cause if you did, too bad. But I love you anyway!