Disclaimer: See the Prologue

A/N: Sorry it's been so long. I'm at college and don't have a whole lot of spare time. And what spare time I do have is usually spent doing class work, going to activities, checking e-mail, or updating.

Tales of Symphonia

Chapter 2

Finding Genis

Raine yawned as she woke up in the inn at Triet. It was around 5:00 in the morning. She looked to Tara, who was already dressed and ready to go, "Good morning."

Tara smiled, "Good morning. Are you ready to go to Iselia?"

Raine nodded, "Yes, I am." She got up and went over to the chair near the bed. She put on her orange robe and looked at Tara, "After I eat something, that is."

Tara replied, "Okay then, I will wait for you." She left the room.

After eating a light breakfast of milk and toast, Raine headed down the steps and met Tara in the front lobby, "Shall we go then?"

Tara nodded, "Yeah, let's go."

Raine and Tara traveled for the better part of the day.

Upon arriving at Iselia, Raine fell to her knees. She hoped Lloyd was somewhere close, for that would make it easier to tell him what had happened.

Lloyd saw Raine in the distance and gasped as she fell, "Professor Sage!" He ran over to her, Colette following close behind him, "What happened?"

Raine replied, "We were…attacked by someone who hates half-elves…she hurt me badly, poisoned me…and took Genis away…" She coughed, "I'm sorry…I should've done more to protect him."

Lloyd sighed, "It's not your fault, Professor. I'm sure you did everything you could." He glanced at the sun momentarily. It looked to be about 11:30 in the morning, "Uh-oh…I'm supposed to be in Luin in half an hour! I'll catch you later, okay, Professor?"

Raine sighed, "Wait, Lloyd…why are you going to Luin?"

Lloyd told her, "I already knew Genis was gone…and Kratos is coming back to help us look for him. You just go and get some rest, okay?" He looked at Tara, who was standing behind Raine, "How…how much longer does she have?"

Tara replied, "She has approximately 3 days before the poison will enter her bloodstream. After that…it'll be 24 hours before it enters her heart…" She sighed, "I've done everything I can to slow its progress though. I gave her a Panacea Bottle last night."

Colette nodded, "Thank you for everything you've done. Now….who are you?"

Tara responded, "I'm Tara Lian, a doctor. I took care of Raine while she was at the clinic in Luin."

Raine looked at Lloyd, "That's the last place I saw Genis too. You might start your search there."

Lloyd nodded, "I'm going to Luin anyway to meet Kratos. I'll tell him and we can ask around if anyone's seen him."

Colette told Lloyd, "I'm coming too, okay, Lloyd?"
Lloyd smiled and nodded, "Sure, Colette." He took her hand and squeezed it, then looked towards the entrance. Someone else was coming.

Sheena walked up, "Hey guys, sorry I'm late. I heard that Genis was missing. The Mizuho Information Network is already working on locating where he is being held, but…well; I wanted to help find him, for old time's sake." She noticed that Lloyd and Colette were holding hands and grinned, saying, "Wow, you really are getting serious, aren't you?"

Lloyd blinked, blushing a light pink, "Well, I—uhhh—how did you know, Sheena?"

Regal laughed as he also walked in, a strange, but welcome sound to the group, "Oh, please Lloyd, your feelings for Colette are as obvious as the bright red shirt you wear." His shackles were gone, for he had promised Presea and everyone else that he would remove them once the worlds were saved.

Lloyd grumbled inaudibly, "So…everyone's here, huh?"

Presea spoke from the distance, "That is incorrect at the moment. We are missing Kratos."

Colette spoke, "Yeah, but we're meeting him in Luin, Presea. It's good to see all of you again." She smiled.

Sheena nodded, smiling back at the blonde Chosen, "Good to see you too, Colette. Anyway, let's get going to Luin. I'm sure Kratos is getting impatient with us."

Presea gave a real smile and nodded, "Yes, it is good to see all of you as well." She sighed and gave a small frown, "Genis…does not deserve to be treated like this."

Regal nodded, "Agreed, Presea. We shall save him though."

Raine told them, "I…will stay here. For one thing, I'm poisoned and hurt. I would just slow down your progress."

Sheena gasped, "Raine? You're poisoned? How?"

Raine replied, "The girl who took Genis also poisoned me. Does Mizuho have a potion to cure it?"

Sheena nodded her head, "Yeah…why don't I take you to Mizuho? Lloyd, you and the others go and meet Kratos while I take Raine, all right?"

Lloyd replied, "Okay, sure, sounds like a plan to me. You'll meet us there once you're done in Mizuho though, right?"

Raine responded, "Count on it."

Sheena nodded and looked at Tara, "And who's this?"

Tara smiled and nodded, "I'm Tara Lian, Raine's doctor from Luin."

Sheena told her respectfully, "Nice to meet you, doctor. Do you wish to come to Mizuho with us?"

Tara shrugged, "I don't know. Would you have any use for me there?"

Raine told her, "Well…I guess not. You can go back to Luin with Lloyd and the others, I guess. The medicine man in Mizuho could take care of my poison and wounds. Thank you for everything."

Tara gave a bit of a smile, "You're welcome, Raine. If you ever need anything, feel free to stop by my home. It's not that far from the inn."

Raine smiled back, "I will."

Tara nodded and went to catch up with Lloyd and the others.

Raine and Sheena went to Mizuho.

Lloyd and company arrived at Luin a few hours later.

Kratos was waiting for them outside of the inn.

Lloyd gasped, "Dad!" He ran at Kratos and gave him an almost rib-crushing hug.

Everyone else laughed a bit, though they were all glad to see Lloyd so happy.

Kratos smiled and put one arm around Lloyd, returning his embrace loosely, "Good to see you too, Lloyd. So, do we have any idea of where to start looking for Genis?"

Presea spoke up, "Raine told us to check at the inn here in town. That is the last place she saw him."

Regal and the others all nodded their heads in agreement, though not in unison.

Kratos told them, "Then let us ask the innkeeper. Raine and Genis most likely stayed the night at the inn and I'm sure she knows something. Let us go to the inn."

Lloyd let go of Kratos and nodded his head, "Yeah, let's find out what we can about where Genis is."

Presea nodded her head, "We shall rescue him. I…should've gone with them. Genis offered, but…well, I was helping Regal with something."

Lloyd walked over to the pink-haired ax girl and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Knowing Genis, he won't blame you at all, Presea. We all want to find him, and we will."

Presea looked up at Lloyd, giving a small hopeful smile, "Yes, we will find him, and bring whoever did this to him and to Raine to justice."

Shanna, who was now just casually walking through the town, had overheard the mention of Genis and gave a bit of a squeal.

Kratos caught the sound and turned to face her, "Is there some problem?"

Shanna replied, "Uhm…err…well, I…I might know where your friend is." She seemed to want to help them, yet she also seemed hesitant to.

Presea glared and yelled at her, "If you know where he is, then tell us!"

Regal placed a hand on Presea's shoulder, "Calm down, Presea. Yelling at her won't help our cause at all."

Lloyd sighed, "Then please…tell us where he is, or show us. He's our friend and we don't want to see anything bad happen to him."

Shanna told them, looking at the ground, "Something…already has. He's still alive, but…well, he's being beaten as we speak, by someone I was paid to work with named Hexa. She…she had me…" She stopped herself, shaking her head. She couldn't speak of it now. If she did, they'd kill her without hesitation, "Never mind. Let me show you the way to where he is being held."

Colette spoke up, "Shouldn't we wait for the Professor and Sheena? We promised we would."

Lloyd looked at Shanna, "How long will you be in town?"

Shanna told him, "At least three more days. Surely your friends will be here before that."

Kratos nodded, "I'm sure they'll be back within those three days. Why don't you meet us at the inn and we can all leave from there once the Professor and Sheena get here?"

Presea told the seraphic mercenary, giving a nod, "That is a sound plan, Kratos. We shall stay here."

Lloyd told Shanna, "All right, since the consensus seems to be to wait for the Professor and Sheena, we will. Don't forget where to meet us. If you were lying, and you really have no idea where Genis is…well, let's just say I won't be the only one who you'll have to worry about." He looked over at Presea, then back at her.

Shanna nodded her head, "I'll meet you there then. I'm sorry for everything that has happened. I always seem to get mixed up in the wrong thing."

Kratos told her, "That is no one's fault but your own. If you really wish to become a better person, you must examine your inner self and mind then ask yourself, 'Is this who I really want to be? What can I do to better myself and those around me?' I struggled with my own self-acceptance after battling Lloyd in Ymir Forest. However, by asking myself these same questions, I was able to move on from that and become the father I was meant to be to him…no matter how late in his life I came."

Shanna walked a bit away then turned to face him, "You have NO IDEA what I'm feeling right now. You aren't carrying the child of Tethe'alla's Chosen….oops."

Kratos blinked, "Zelos…actually fathered a child?"

Regal looked bewildered, "When did he have time to do THAT?"

Lloyd shook his head, "Too much information….same question as Regal though."

Colette covered her ears, "My virgin ears!" ((A/n: I had to put that in there.))

Shanna sighed, "It was a week or two before he died, in Flanoir. I told him how much Gald I needed in order to let him…ummm…"

Colette cut her off, getting uncomfortable, "I'm going to the inn. You all have a nice chat." She took off running, not wanting to hear anymore. ((A/N: Poor little Colette. XD))

Lloyd blinked, "Colette, wait!" He followed her.

Presea sighed, "…So, if I am understanding you correctly, Zelos paid you to…"

Regal finished the sentence, "She sold herself to Zelos. That's a better way of saying it. When did you find out you were going to have a child?"

Shanna answered him, "About a month after he died. I didn't know the gender of the baby until a few weeks ago. I'm going to have a little boy."

Kratos nodded, "Good for you. You are still in trouble. You said you did something to Genis. What is it that you did?"

Shanna glared daggers at him, "I don't have to tell you. You're lucky I'm showing you where he is." She punched him in the jaw, then turned and ran away.

Kratos went flying from the punch, hitting the wall of the inn.

Presea rushed over to Kratos, "Are you all right, Kratos?"

Everyone followed her.

Kratos looked at Presea, "I'm fine. I think all that was injured was my pride."

Regal nodded upon hearing this, "That's good. Let us go inside then. It is getting late and we need to rest up in case Sheena and the Professor arrive tomorrow."

Presea nodded too and got up, "Good idea, Regal."

Regal offered Kratos a hand, literally.

Kratos took the former convict's hand and pulled himself to his feet, "Then let us rest. I will see you all tomorrow." He headed into the inn and paid for five rooms, to give everyone their own personal space.

Presea and everyone else also went into the inn, to the rooms.

Once everyone was in their own rooms, they all went to sleep.

The next morning, Kratos was the first one up, and went around to all five rooms to wake everyone else up.

Once everyone was up, they ate breakfast as a group. Regal had made them all pancakes and sausage.

Regal commented, after swallowing his pancakes, "Let's hope this Shanna person was not jerking us around about knowing where Genis is."

Presea glared hard at her sausage, stabbing it purposely with her fork, "If she did, she will experience a fate worse than death."

Kratos blinked, then nodded, "Yes, she will, Presea. We're all worried about him, but why are you overly so?" He gave a bit of a smirk.

Presea blushed a light pink, a rather cute sight, "Well, I…ahh…he's my friend. Should I not be that worried about him?"

Colette smiled, "If he were just your friend, you'd be worried about him the same amount we are, but you are overly worried. What Kratos is asking is if you love him…I think…"

Presea blushed redder, "Well, I…ummm…I don't know. He does spark a certain kind of feeling."

Lloyd smiled at her, "It's okay to feel that way. What you feel for Genis is probably…the same thing I feel for Colette." He blushed a light pink and scratched his neck as he said this.

Colette blushed, "Uhm…yeah, and I feel the same for Lloyd." She smiled at the red clad hero and took his hand, squeezing it gently.

Lloyd squeezed her hand back.

Kratos cleared his throat, "All right you two, you've made your point. Presea, before you say anything, don't be afraid of these feelings. They are completely natural."

Presea sighed, "But…I feel like I'd be betraying the memory of my sister…and he is much younger than I am."

Regal looked to her, "Weren't you the one telling me that I should move on? Now you must do the same. Your sister would want your happiness more than anything. If that means dating someone who is younger than you, then she would not try to stop you if she were alive. Nor will any of us try to discourage you."

Lloyd laughed a bit, "Yeah, Genis's crush on you was no secret, Presea. After we rescue him and get he fixed up and everything, you should talk to him."

Presea nodded, "I will."

Kratos looked out the window, "I hear something…footsteps. Everyone stay alert." He walked toward the front door.

A moment later, he opened it and took out his sword in one swift motion, pointing it at the person's throat.

Sheena threw her hands in the air, "Whoa, Kratos! You can put that down now…sheesh!"

Raine sighed and shook her head, "Yes, please relax, Kratos."

Kratos sheathed his sword, sighing, "Sorry about that. It's a reflex."

Sheena smiled, "No problem…just don't go pulling your sword on me again or I might have to sic Celsius on your butt."

Lloyd smirked, "Try to Sheena, and I will give you pain you will never forget."

Colette giggled, "She wasn't serious, Lloyd. You know that."

Lloyd then looked at Raine, "How are you feeling Professor?"

Raine told them, "I'm feeling well. Thank you, Lloyd. So, are we going to find Genis?"

Kratos nodded, "Indeed. There's a girl here that knows where Genis is, that is not the innkeeper. She…is carrying Zelos's child and told us she was forced to do something to Genis but did not say what."

Raine glared slightly, "….Take me to her. I'll massacre her!"

Lloyd gulped, "Easy, Professor. She has to show us where to go before you do that."

Regal looked to Raine, "Calm down, Raine. As Lloyd said, before you do anything to her, she must show us Genis's location."

Raine fell silent and nodded, brooding silently.

Sheena sighed, "Let's just go before Raine decides to take her anger out on US." She walked out of the inn, and saw Shanna standing there, "Hey, there. Are you the girl that's gonna show us where Genis is, and the one who poisoned the Professor?"

Shanna blinked, but nodded, "Yeah, but...owwwww!"

Everyone came running out at her shout.

Lloyd blinked, "Oi, Sheena…you really let her have it, didn't you?"

Raine sighed, "And you said I have no self-control?" She walked over to Shanna and healed her jaw, using her healing arts, "There. Now, show us where Genis is, or this staff will be slammed into your forehead."'

Lloyd looked at Shanna, "Yeah, show us where he is."

Shanna nodded her head and stood to her feet, "Right then follow me." She led Lloyd and company out of the town and approximately 10 miles north of Luin, "About 4 miles of east of here, you will see a small, cave-like house. That's where Genis is being held by an acquaintance, Hexa. I don't know…what she's doing to him now, but…well, I know what she had me do."

Kratos glared, "And just what was that? You'd better tell us or we'll find out from your employer."

Shanna gasped, "Wait a second, I never said Hexa was…you figured that out on your own, didn't you? Exactly who and what are you?"

Kratos replied, "I was a mercenary at one time, and know that I never revealed any client information to anyone, not for any price."

Shanna sighed, "Figured as much. Whatever, you all know where Genis is, so you can let me go now, right?"

Presea shook her head, "Not until you have told us what you did to Genis."

Sheena looked at Shanna, "We've all done things that we aren't proud of, Shanna. Why not just tell us? Hmmm?"

Regal nodded, "Your freedom will only come when you have told us what all has happened to Genis."

Lloyd added his voice to the persuasion too, "Yeah, just tell us. Believe me, I've done some major things in my time that I'm really not proud of. Like Sheena said, we all have. Come on, please tell us."

Shanna sighed, "Well, all right…but first, you have to promise you won't harm me once I have told you."

Kratos nodded his head, "Agreed."

Lloyd replied, "Okay…I won't, despite the fact that Genis is my friend."

Colette smiled, "I won't hurt you, Shanna. That's a promise."

Sheena sighed and nodded, "All right, I guess. I've already hurt you as much as I want to anyway. I promise."

Regal responded, "All right, I won't hurt you." He looked at Presea and Raine, who were being quiet, "Presea…Raine…?"

Presea shook her head, "I can't promise anything like that. Will you tell us anyway though?"

Raine commented, "Same here."

Shanna nodded, "As long as the majority of you promise, one or two people not saying the promise is fine. Anyway, regarding Genis…." She sighed then continued, "He was first beaten, by, as Kratos said my employer Hexa. She used one of her more lethal whips, one with spikes and made of hard leather. After that…she gave him to me and wanted me find some way to break his spirit. Hexa told me that it was the best way, so…I raped him…"

Raine gasped, "You…you monster!" She lunged at Shanna with her staff, but Kratos held her back.

Kratos told her, "She'll get hers soon enough, Raine. Relax…." He looked at Shanna in disgust, glaring slightly, "I hope you enjoyed him." His eyes had a hostile glint in them that no one had seen since the Desians had been sealed away.

Shanna's eyes welled up with tears, "I didn't enjoy it in the least! You don't understand! I don't share the hatred of half-elves that my employer does!"

Lloyd sighed, "Maybe not, but you still could've fought back…or gotten him to a doctor, or something! You're a coward who can't stand up for her beliefs when put under pressure!" He looked at Sheena and the others, "Let's go."

Sheena nodded.

Presea began trembling with rage, and launched herself at Shanna, punching her relentlessly on the face. She made sure not to hit anywhere near her stomach, for she knew that the woman carried Zelos's baby, "…" She was then spooked by some strange look in the woman's eye and squeaked, jumping off. She looked like she might start crying from fear.

Regal blinked, "Presea?" He walked over to the girl and placed a hand on her shoulder to calm her down, "What's wrong?"

Presea looked up at him, "That look…in her eyes…it was such a lost look. It was like…she was looking for a reason to live, other than the baby inside her. I'm…afraid for her now."

Kratos turned to look at Presea, "Is it safe to leave her alone?"

Presea nodded, "For now, it is. When we come back, though, we should turn her and Hexa in to the authorities."

Lloyd told everyone, "Let's go…for all we know, Hexa could be torturing Genis as we speak." He took off; running the direction Shanna had told them.

Everyone else followed.

About 20 minutes later, they found themselves at the house that Shanna had described.

Lloyd sighed, "Well, here we are. Why…why am I so uneasy about going in?"
Kratos told him, "You are likely anticipating something…." He trailed off, hearing Genis cry out, "never mind, let's go." He headed into the house and saw Hexa raising the whip, about to strike Genis with it again.

Lloyd and the others were following close behind.

Genis had heard Kratos's footsteps and looked toward the door, "K-kratos?! Is that you? Aaah!" He screamed as the whip came down, hurting him.

Kratos nodded his head, "Indeed." He couldn't help but flinch as the whip came down again. He then glared at Hexa, "Stop this madness!"

Hexa was raising the whip, "No, I won't!" She was bringing it down again, when she saw Kratos standing there, "You idiot. Get out of the way!"

Kratos shook his head in a silent no.

A second later, the whip, which was even more lethal than the one Hexa had used before on Genis (more spikes and slightly longer), was wrapped around tightly around Kratos's arm.

Hexa smirked, "Heh, that's what you get for interfering, blood traitor!" She yanked on the end of the whip.

Kratos bit his lip as the spikes tore up his flesh, but he didn't give her the satisfaction of crying out. He was too proud for that. Blood flowed freely onto his white sleeves, and he dropped to one knee. ((He's wearing the Judgment outfit now, just because I like it a lot. XP))

Lloyd gasped, "Dad!" He ran over to his father and stood by his side, "Stop! I won't let you hurt anyone else I care about!"

Hexa laughed, "I'd love to see you try, red boy." She grabbed two daggers from the wall and threw one at Kratos and one at Lloyd.

Lloyd called out, "Guardian!" A green bubble of mana surrounded him and Kratos, the daggers flipping away and harmlessly sticking in the ground near Sheena.

Sheena sighed, "That was way too close. Lloyd, is Kratos okay?"

Lloyd looked at the seraph that was still bleeding badly. He tore a sleeve from his shirt and tied it tightly around the wound, "I'm not sure. He's bleeding pretty badly."

Raine looked at Presea, "I will go and heal Kratos as much as I can while you and Regal cover me. Okay?"

Presea nodded, "That plan makes sense. We shall keep Hexa distracted." She took her ax out and threw it just over Hexa's head.

Hexa yelled, "Ya! Watch where you're throwing that, small fry, you could take someone's eye out!" She walked over towards Presea.

Presea grabbed her ax out of the wall and began the job of distracting Hexa.

Regal helped Presea keep her distracted.

Sheena also helped.

Raine went over to Lloyd and Kratos. She looked at the seraphim, "Are you okay, other than your arm?"

Kratos nodded, "I think so."

Raine gently removed Lloyd's temporary bandage and gently placed her staff at Kratos's elbow, since the wounds covered his entire arm. She began healing him.

Lloyd gasped, "Watch out! Guardian!" A green bubble of mana came up to protect them again, "Regal, watch your aim!"

Regal gave a brisk nod, "Sorry." He went back to fighting.

Raine sighed, "Well, I've done everything I can, Kratos. Your arm isn't fully healed, but I've at least gotten the bleeding to stop. If you don't strain yourself, it should fully heal up by tomorrow morning."

Hexa was now bloody and unconscious, lying on the ground near Regal.

Regal looked at Lloyd, Kratos, and Raine, "Shall we take her back to Luin?"

Genis, meanwhile, was softly crying on the ground, "…I'm…I'm so glad you guys came for me. I was afraid…you'd never find me…" He whispered between sobs.

Kratos got to his feet after Raine bound up his injured arm and walked over to the tied-up half-elf, "But we did, Genis, and we will get you to a doctor. You're safe now."

Lloyd nodded, "Yeah…its okay, Genis." He walked over to the half-elven boy and gave him a gentle hug as he untied him, "We heard about what happened…I'm sorry we didn't get here sooner."

Raine sighed and walked over too, "I'm sorry, Genis…I should've fought harder."

Genis shook his head slightly, "It's…it's okay…sis…you did everything that…you could." The youngest Sage sibling passed out, nearly hitting the ground since he had been tied to a statue, and Lloyd had untied him.

Kratos moved so that Genis would land on his back, "Come, let us go back to Luin. Raine, will you contact your doctor friend, Tara?"

Raine nodded, "Sure…" She stroked her younger brother's silvery hair affectionately, worried for him.

Regal spoke, "Raine, I think Genis will need all of us a lot over the next few days. When we take Hexa and Shanna to the authorities, they may ask him questions about what happened…"

Colette nodded, "Yeah, Regal's right. We need to stay close to Genis for a while."

Lloyd sighed, "But what if he doesn't let us? What if he tries to push us away, saying that he can deal with those things himself? We can't exactly tie him down and keep him here. Goodness knows, his skin is already raw enough from the ropes that kept him here…"

Sheena finally spoke again, "If he tries to push us away, we can tell him that we care about him too much to let him try to make it through something this catastrophic without help. We're his friends and whether he admits it or not, he needs us."

Regal nodded, "Wise words, Sheena. Let's head back to Luin then." He walked out of the house and headed that direction.

Presea soon followed him.

Lloyd and company followed them.