CHAPTER 4: They Meet

And here's another chapter! Woo! And that's all I have to say! So, bye! Please enjoy!

"…Ew…" Lloyd commented.

"This is…horrible…" Zelos added.

"Then you shouldn't have come," Kratos huffed. They had recently made their way to a 'city' called Triet, according to his map, and what they saw was not what they expected. Small adobe huts served as the homes for the civilians, and the streets were hardly visible because of all the sand that blew through the town. There were few inhabitants, and they lazily strolled through the streets, occasionally coughing because of the sand. They were all thin, and that was emphasized by the lack of clothing covering their stomachs. It was truly a terrible sight to see, especially for two city boys who had lived in the lap of luxury as long as they could remember. Naturally, said boys made several passes at any woman they saw, but the girls just walked past them without giving them so much as a glance.

Kratos watched his son fruitlessly attempt to flirt with another girl, who flipped him off after he subtly brushed against a private area. "Buzz off, jerk!" she yelled as she stormed off. Lloyd strode back to the tiny group that consisted of Zelos and his father, who gave him a disapproving glare.

"So, where are we headed, Dad?" the swordsman asked.

"We are going to spend the night at the inn in this town, and then we're going to wait in the Ossa Mountains for the Chosen One," Kratos replied nonchalantly, and then turned to walk toward the small inn.

"Man, we've got to stay in this dumb town? But it's so hot…" Lloyd whined as he followed.

"And there's so much sand…" Zelos complained.

"Shut up. If you weren't prepared for anything, then both of you should have stayed in Tethe'alla. I never even wanted you to come!" Kratos snapped from ahead. He descended the staircase leading to the door. "Now, come on. Stop your whining, because now that you're here, you can't go back." Kratos hated saying that with everything in him. Oh, how he wished he could get rid of them. But he had to keep an eye on them, because Anna would murder him if anything happened to the fruit of their love and his friend.

"Okay…" both Zelos and Lloyd moaned at the same time. They followed Kratos into the inn and watched as the man glared his way into receiving an extra-cheap room.

"Go, Dad!" Lloyd said proudly as he slapped his father on the back. "How many people can say that their dads can make anyone wet themselves just by looking at them? No one except me! Woo-hoo!" he shouted merrily as they headed to the room they'd acquired.

"Yay for Bud's dad!" Zelos chimed, and Kratos glared at nothing, praying that this would all be over soon.

"Yuan!" a feminine voice shouted angrily. "Where are you?"

The blunette's eyes widened as he recognized the tone she used. Quickly he responded with a "Coming, honey!" Then he rushed into the bedroom he shared with Martel. Said woman was currently lying on her back with her face in her pillow, stripped to nothing but a satin dress, if one can call it that. Yuan almost broke when he realized that he had been massaging her back when he was called away to go find Kratos. He couldn't believe that he had forgotten! Stupid, stupid, stupid man…

"Well, aren't you going to finish what you started? You were the one to offer, after all." Martel sighed from her spot on the bed, and Yuan sauntered over to her. He smiled lovingly at the back of her head. Though she was extremely pushy and had a temper, she was so beautiful and kind and loving…and she wasn't too bad in bed, either.

He kicked off his shoes as straddled her, massaging her thin shoulders, working his way down his back with his skilled hands. It was actually very relaxing to do this; a great way to escape from the never-ending paperwork that constantly flowed in from both Cruxis and the Renegades. It was nice that Martel helped him sometimes, and that lowered his level of stress, but there was no doubt that spending alone time with his wife was first in his list of favorite things.

The two lovers were so busy relaxing, that they didn't realize the twitching man in the doorway. "You-you pervert! What the hell are you doing to my sister?" Mithos—or, rather, Yggdrasill—shouted. You see, the footboard on the bed was high enough that Yggdrasill could not see below Yuan's torso, and so, naturally, thought the worst.

As fast as Volt's lightning, they scrambled from the bed, Martel struggling to pull down her dress so as not to appear too revealing to her little brother while flushing a deep red. "Mithos, it's not what you think!" she said, though the embarrassed tone she used did nothing to appease his anger.

"I think that it's exactly what I think!" Mithos growled as white runes appeared below his feet. After charging his spell, he called out, "Ray!" And a square of light materialized under Yuan. The half-elf yelped and dodged the attack just as a white pillar of light came down on where he had just stood. Yuan went pale, and collapsed, Martel catching him halfway through his fall.

"Mithos, please don't scare your brother-in-law. Don't get so jealous," Martel said softly, attempting to calm down her seething brother.

"B-but Martel! He's so wrong for you! And he's obnoxious! And—urgh! He just makes me so mad!"

"Hush. I'm lying him down. When he wakes up, apologize. If you don't, I will know, and you know what happens if you break the rules…" Martel glowered at him, and set Yuan down on the bed.

Mithos sighed in defeat. "Okay. But only because I don't want another Bigfoot in my bed."

Martel's glare changed instantly into a sweet smile. "Thanks, Mithos!" And then she skipped out of the room, forgetting about the fact that she was still in skimpy lingerie. Shocked gasps came from the seemingly emotionless angels of Welgaia, and the 'Goddess' ran back into her room to change.

Later, Mithos Yggdrasill, leader of Cruxis and the Desians, sat on his throne in Vinheim. He was bored. Yuan had woken up long ago, so he couldn't draw a mustache on him while he slept, and Martel was watching him (she was always watching…), so he couldn't goof around, either. He supposed that it would be best to hold a meeting. He hadn't had a chance to get reports from the ranches for this month, yet, so he might as well do it now.

"Send for the Cardinals," he barked at an angel, who bowed deeply and disappeared. What seemed to be moments later, the angel returned and stated in his monotonous tone that the Grand Cardinals would be arriving shortly. Sure enough, a minute later, there they were, in all their glory. Each of them bowed humbly to their leader, who waved for them to be seated at a table.

"Good afternoon, Lord Yggdrasill," Pronyma purred. She was such a flirt. It was a shame that Martel would never let him get closer to her…

Magnius and Forcystus each gave their leader another bow without saying anything. Then Forcystus sat down, folding both of his hands neatly on the table. Magnius grunted as he did the same, but with less class. Rodyle took off his cloak before sitting, barely making any eye contact with his superior. The last—and most respected—of the Grand Cardinals curtseyed and smiled at Yggdrasill before taking her seat.

"I haven't taken up your reports on the status of your ranches this month. I hope you all have brought them," Mithos said casually. Quickly, the Cardinals—with the exception of Pronyma, who didn't have a ranch—gathered their papers from Goddess-knows-where and presented them to him. "Hmmm…" Yggdrasill said as he scrutinized the documents. "Magnius, you fixed the broken gate? Took you long enough. And Forcystus, spotless ranch as always, and…Rodyle…what does this mean?"

Rodyle looked toward the man, smirked, and boasted, "I have filled my corridors with sea water!"

"…Yes, that's what you have written, but why?" he was completely lost.

"If any of my prisoners try to escape, then instead of sending the Desians to catch them, I can just press a button and the hallways are flooded!" Rodyle chuckled.

Everyone present with the exception of Magnius buried their heads in exasperation. They knew the man was nuts, but this nuts?

The youngest of the Grand Cardinals finally spoke up. With a calm, rational tone, Raine Sage explained, "That does not make any sense whatsoever. If someone is to escape, you would want them back alive, and so drowning them is completely pointless. You would have been better off just allowing them to escape; it certainly would have saved you Gald."

Rodyle's triumphant smile faltered, and he slumped back into his chair, defeated. "I-I guess you're right…" he mumbled.

"Sir," Raine said, changing the subject, "How are things going with the experiment?"

After pondering what she had said for a second, he remembered what 'experiment' she was talking about. "The girl is developing properly. I'm still grateful that you had me think about using the younger one before that Alicia girl."

"Good. Is she safe? We wouldn't want anything to happen to the Cruxis Crystal," she said.

Mithos was proud of the woman. She was so excited about the project and put her heart and soul into it, and she strived to please her leader. He smiled slightly as he remembered why he liked her so much.

Sixteen years ago, Yggdrasill had ordered his newest Grand Cardinal to his palace to prove her worth. He had heard that she was exceptionally gifted, and he planned to test it out. Ever since Kratos and Anna had run away, he had planned to find another suitable host body for the Angelus Project. The only thing he needed was the body. Fortunately for him, Raine was the perfect person for the job.

It had only taken her a month to sift through the files of all the possible candidates. When she came upon the Combatir girls, however, she had to analyze them further. Finally, after a few sleepless nights, she had determined that the eldest of the two, Presea, was the perfect match for the project. The experiment had started right away, and it turned out that Raine had made the right choice. Ever since then, Pronyma had to struggle to stay the leader of the Grand Cardinals.

"She's doing perfectly fine, Raine," Yggdrasill assured.

"That's excellent. Where is she, now? I had heard she was taken from Ozette because the area was too dangerous. Is this true?" she asked.

"Yes," Pronyma interrupted. She was such an attention hog. "She was placed here after I suggested that that peasant town was not safe."

"Very nice. Though I believe I had directed the question at Lord Yggdrasill, not you," Raine spat.

"Oh? And just what do you think you're going to do about that?" Pronyma mocked. This made Raine angry, and bright white runes appeared beneath her feet. "Awww, little Raine's going to cast a spell! Isn't that cute?" the teal-haired woman jeered. "Did your little brother teach you that, too?"

Now Raine was fuming. Genis was, in fact, a prodigy, and he was at the top of the ranks of the Desian army because of his magic, but she was smart, too! And there was no reason to bring in her little brother. So, to shut the irritating woman up, she finished charging her spell and shouted, "Holy Lance!" With a smug look plastered on her face, she watched as Pronyma's eyes widened in shock and a hint of fear as the spell came crashing down on her. The technique was certainly new. She had been practicing it in her time off, and no one knew of it, save for Genis, who shared a house with her within the Asgard Ranch. No one expected much of Raine when it came to fighting, because she was the scientist of the bunch, and not much of a fighter. And that was why she had to study so hard to make sure that she was never looked down upon in that category ever again. And besides, Pronyma ticked her off.

"Holy…" Forcystus murmured as Pronyma screamed. "Well, she did kind of deserve it. Raine, you did very well while executing that spell. Your studies are going magnificently." The man smiled, and Raine's heart leapt for joy. She had always had a thing for the man, and he was the only person other than Genis who never doubted her fighting ability. It didn't hurt that he always found something to praise her about. Though she always felt like a student in his presence, she felt like the student that was lucky enough to be the teacher's favorite and could therefore get away with anything.

"So, Pronyma, was there something else that you wanted to say?" Raine smirked.

The injured woman glowered but said nothing, and Raine decided that she had won that round. She sat back down with a sneer.

Meanwhile, Yggdrasill was still sitting in his chair, watching the entire scene with amusement. It was strange to see his subordinates fight amongst themselves, but he couldn't help that he found it fun to watch.

"Anyway, Lord Yggdrasill, I just wanted to check up on the experiment. I'm glad she's doing well." Raine gave Mithos a genuine smile, and the angel noted how pretty she looked when she was happy.

"Yes, it is good. Now, I'm done with this meeting. You may go." Yggdrasill waved his hands and the Grand Cardinals stood up. After bowing respectively again, they left the room and Welgaia.

"Meetings are always so much fun…" Yggdrasill mused with a smile on his face.

"So this is the Oh-soh Trail?" Lloyd asked Kratos the next day. The trio approached a dirt path that led through the mountains. It looked as if a landslide had recently been cleared, as indicated by the massive mounds of gravel and dirt pushed off to the side of the opening to the trail.

"No, Lloyd. It's the So-ah Trail," Zelos corrected.

"You're both wrong. It's the Ossa Trail. Now, come on. The Chosen and her companions are probably almost through the pathway. We need to hurry." Kratos pushed past his son and Zelos and continued briskly down the path.

"Hey! What's this red thingy-ma-bobber?" Lloyd asked as he examined a large pole sticking out of the ground. Then, stupidly, he pushed the stick.

Unfortunately, Zelos was standing on the inconveniently-placed trap door at that time, and with a yelp, Lloyd's friend fell down into the darkness below. "Zelos!" Lloyd called, and his voice dying out in the blackness of the hole.

"It's a maintenance passage for a mine," Kratos said as he scrutinized the hole that was created. "I assume it's been out of order for a while now, as there are no lights that we can see."

"How are we going to get to Zelos, now?" Lloyd asked as he looked longingly down the hole.

After a pause, Kratos sighed. "Come on." Lloyd turned around, puzzled, as his father grabbed his waist.

"H-hey! What are you—?" Lloyd started as Kratos started glowing. Bright blue wings erupted from the man's back and before Lloyd could say anything, he dove down into the passage with his son in tow. When their feet hit the ground, Kratos released the boy and dismissed his wings, leaving his son to stare in shock at the darkness.

"Wh-what was…that?" Lloyd asked quietly. Kratos didn't answer, but instead walked ahead, using his heightened senses to search for the Chosen of Tethe'alla.

There. Kratos heard the swish of clothing from ahead, and when he squinted, he could make out the faint silhouette of the pervert himself. "Come on, Lloyd. I see Zelos." Lloyd ran up to meet his dad and they walked through the darkness to Zelos.

As they approached him, Lloyd ran up to him and tackled him to the ground. "You idiot! Why'd you go on without us?"

"Me? You're the one who let me fall through a trap door!" Zelos accused. "Speaking of which, how did you get down here?"

"…It's a long story that I am not going to explain," Kratos stated as he walked in between the two friends and grabbed their arms. He dragged them through of the long tunnel that they were in until he saw light at the end. He reached the light and knocked down the boards that had sealed the tunnels shut.

They were just in time. A small group of priests were escorting a young girl down the path. "Halt!" Kratos said as he jumped from the darkness, startling the priests and the young girl. In fact, the girl was so scared that she lost her balance and fell down.

"Dad? Who's that?" Lloyd said as he came out of the darkness. Zelos followed, looking confused.

"It's the Chosen," Kratos growled, not letting his eyes leave the girl. He drew the sword that he wore at his side and held it menacingly in front of him. Then he directed his words toward the girl. "Don't move," he threatened.

"An assassin?" one of the priests called incredulously.

Kratos didn't seem fazed by the accusation. "Yes," he said calmly.

"Oh, no! Lady Colette, run! We will hold them off!" another priest said. "Hurry!"

"No. I want to fight, too. Come on!" The Chosen—Colette—narrowed her eyes and pulled out her weapon, which looked like flying discs. She ran up to Kratos without hesitation and spun around with her arms held out. "Whirlwind Rush!" she yelled, and before Kratos could react, she jumped back.

"Uh, Dad?" Lloyd said as he walked up to the fighting man. "I don't think I can fight a girl."

"The Chosen's a girl?" Zelos said, confused, as he, too, walked out from the dark haven of the mine. "Sweet!"

Kratos merely sighed. He didn't have time to lecture the two pinheads on how to treat a lady. "Chosen of Sylvarant, you must die," he said as he held his sward at the ready. "Zelos: focus on healing. Lloyd…stay back."

"What? Why? Don't treat me like a little kid!" Lloyd pouted, but his words were lost amidst the battle that had begun.

Kratos rushed the girl and with his angelic strength, he slashed his sword horizontally, hoping to cut open her stomach. Colette caught him off guard, however, when she leaped back to avoid from getting struck.

"You're good, assassin," she said as she stared him down. "But I've been trained professionally. Hah!" Colette threw one of her weapons at him with a shout of "Ray Thrust!" Kratos blocked the disc with his sword, sending it back toward the girl, who caught it easily in her hand.

Now angry, Kratos narrowed his eyes and thrust his sword out, yelling "Lightning Blade!" If the blow had hit the girl, she would have died at once. Instead, a priest pushed her out of the way and instead took the hit for her. He screamed as lightning rained down on him. Kratos tried again, this time using Double Demon Fang. This, however, was also blocked by a priest, who could no longer stand because of the impact.

"Fireball!" Zelos called from behind, releasing several flaming balls toward their enemies. The remaining priests then sacrificed themselves to create a wall of protection. One by one, each fell as they caught on fire and burned to death. There was no one left on the Chosen's side but the girl herself. Her eyes widened slightly in realization that she was alone, but she quickly regained her composure and assumed a fighting position.

The Chosen started to call out "Triple Ray Sateli—!" but a loud thud rang through the air and she fell to the ground, unconscious. Kratos looked for the source and found Lloyd standing behind the girl with his sword out.

"I-I knocked her out…" he said weakly, a look of fear on his face. "Oh, no!" He knelt down to try to wake her up, but Kratos came over and held his sword over her throat, preparing to strike.

"Thank you, Lloyd. But next time, listen to me," he said as he found the right place for a quick kill.

"Dad! Why do you have to kill her?" Lloyd said suddenly, just as Kratos was ready to thrust downward.

"Because we don't want our world to turn into this one," his father said simply.

"What if we can just stop her from finishing the journey?" Zelos suggested. Then, almost silently, he added, "No one would want that fate, anyway."

Kratos was the only one who heard that, but pretended as if he didn't. "…If she'll listen and follow the guidelines, then she can live. For now we'll take her to Izoold as her prisoner." He knelt down and lifted her from the ground, then turned on his heel and walked away from the two boys.

"Dude…" Zelos said as he watched Kratos depart.

"Yeah?" Lloyd asked when his friend didn't say anything.

"That Chosen girl's hot."

"Totally."

Well, here it is. And Colette didn't die! Yay! Even I didn't know that! I swear; I plan my stories in the strangest ways. I know the key elements, but everything else is completely made up as I type it. Does anyone else do that? Or does that just make absolutely no sense whatsoever? Anyway, please review, because without them, I'm left in the dark as to whether or not this is any good. And that's not good. Because then I get paranoid. And I'm not pleasant when I'm paranoid. So basically, this is all about me. And you. Even though none of you know me, so my paranoia doesn't really concern you. And now I'm babbling. Babble, babble, babble. Bye.