Chapter Fifteen:

What's in a Name

"Lloyd!" came Genis' startled cry as the brunet struggled to get free from the heavy, furry mass that was crushing him to the floor. Rushing forward, the young half-elf freed his kendama, moving to loose the ball against Lloyd's attacker.

"Wait, Kid!" Zelos shouted, moving swiftly to block the attack with his still-sheathed sword.

"W-what? Zelos?" yelped a shocked Genis.

"Look," stated the redhead, pointing to where Lloyd lay, still crushed beneath the body of his furry assailant.

"I-it's going to kill him! We have to h—" he began, only to be cut off by the brunet's sudden chuckling.

"N-Noishe, get off of me!" Lloyd laughed, struggling to shift the heavy creature off himself.

"Wait...so you know that...erm, what is it?" Genis sputtered out, not really sure he was following what was happening.

Finally succeeding in freeing himself from the large creature, Lloyd brushed himself off, still chucking softly.

"I missed you too, Noishe."

With a soft whine, the green-spotted creature wagged its tail, although it was an up and down motion, as opposed to the normal side-to-side, that only proceeded to further confuse the young half-elf. What exactly was going on again? They had crept into the Tower of Salvation, by a means he did not understand, to rescue Colette, who had been kidnapped for reasons he did not comprehend, and taken to a place that should not exist. Or something. Now they were being attacked by some sort of white, green, and purple dog-thing!

And Lloyd was laughing. Why was Lloyd laughing? Maybe the poor boy had finally snapped. They had had a long day.

"Yo, Lloyd, better calm down before you give the brat over here a heart attack."

Thankfully, Zelos' comment was enough to snap Genis out of his shock enough to glare at the redhead.

"Shut up, Zelos."

Before the redhead could respond, Lloyd cut in, still smiling.

"Sorry, Genis. This is my...dog, Noishe."

Genis blinked. If it was Lloyd's...pet, why was it in the Tower of Salvation...wait, had he just called that thing a dog?! Call him crazy, but Genis was pretty darn certain that he had never seen a dog like that before.

"...what kind of...dog...looks like that?" he asked sceptically.

"Noishe's kind!"

Genis sighed, a very Lloyd-esque answer indeed.

"Noishe's kind? What kind is that?"

Lloyd shrugged. "I dunno."

Genis was about to challenge the statement when he was interrupted by Zelos.

"Hey, hey, I'm glad we're all interested in animals, but I can think of a few better places to have this conversation."

Genis wanted to retort, but he realised the sense in Zelos' statement.

"You're right, Zelos. We should go," Lloyd agreed, eager to drop the topic.

Genis finally nodded begrudgingly.

Without another word, the three young men slipped deeper into the tower, soft footfalls echoing eerily through the empty building.

Mithos Yggdrasill paced restlessly about his castle, his feet actually on the ground for once. Something was not right in the worlds—in his worlds. He could feel it. What it was, he could not yet say. Kratos was out there with his whelp, guiding the Chosen on her journey, and this time, this time it would be a success. He would make sure of that. Martel had been gone for too many years already. Four thousand too many, or he missed his guess.

Four thousand years was a long time for anyone to wait, and he had had enough of that. Martel would be brought back this time. She would be! No one was going to stand in his way this time. Kratos and Lloyd were there to see the Journey through, but...how far could he really trust them? Kratos had betrayed him once before, betrayed him for that human woman. Sure, he had come back, but not of his own free will. Yggdrasill was also fairly certain that he had only returned to ensure the child's safety. Now, out in the world on their own, who knew what could happen. If Kratos turned on him again...

Wings popping out suddenly at the mere thought, Yggdrasill took to the air, vacating his castle in moments. There was no way he could let that happen again, he would see to it personally that Martel was revived, and if that meant leaving Derris-Kharlan, than that was a small price to pay.

Entering Welgaia, he quickly switched forms. It would not be enough to fool Kratos, but with his boss there, the seraph was not too likely to say anything. Lloyd too, in the off-chance that he figured it out. Yes, those two would behave; if they did not, then they would suffer the consequences.

Once he was confident that the city would not fall apart in his absence, Mithos stepped onto the teleportation pad, and allowed it to pull him downwards, into the Tower of Salvation's base. Yes, this time the 'Journey of Regeneration' would be a complete success...

Kratos was far from happy, his normally cool demeanour shaken. Not that he would ever let that show. Even Raine was not herself, worry cloudy in lavender eyes.

They had set off as soon as it was light enough, meaning to try and catch the youngsters before they got too far. Those three were going to be in such trouble once he caught up with them. Lloyd especially. Honestly, what was the boy thinking? Was the boy thinking? Kratos was going to guess no. Lloyd was being a damned fool, running off on his own like that. Then again, Kratos supposed that that was part of what made Lloyd Lloyd. In that, he was ever so much like his mother.

Smiling fondly at the thought, Kratos barely registered it when Raine settled herself down on a large, stone outcropping, announcing calmly that it was time they ate.

Setting his own pack down, Kratos nodded in agreement. He was not hungry, of course, however he doubted that the same would be true of Raine. She had not eaten yet that day, since they had been on the road since daybreak without stopping. Judging by the sun, high in the seemingly endless confines of the sky, it was getting on midday, well past time to eat.

"Shall I make us lunch, Kratos?"

With only the two of them eating, Kratos decided that it would be perfectly safe to allow Raine to cook. When there had been others who could taste was one thing, but this way the only one going to suffer would be the half-elf herself. Maybe she would even learn something.

"Yes," he replied after a brief moment of thought.

While Raine eagerly began sorting out ingredients—so eagerly it was bordering on creepy—Kratos wandered a short distance away, lost in his thoughts. He knew where Lloyd had gone, yet as long as Raine was around she would be nothing more than a hindrance to his taking action. Still, leaving her behind would look suspicious, and killing her was out of the question. For now, he was just going to have to act as he had been by guiding her along without her knowing it. When they reached the Tower of Salvation...well, he would deal with that when the time came.

He could not slack off, however, time was essential. So long as Raine kept going as she was, it would not be a major issue, but if she showed any signs of slowing him then he would be forced to act. He would try to keep his cover if at all possible, but Lloyd...Lloyd was too important.

Lloyd was his and Anna's son...

"Kratos!"

At his wife's voice, the auburn haired seraph turned, a concerned frown slowly coming to grace his lips.

"Anna, what are you doing out of bed? You should be resting," he chided gently, walking over to catch her in a loving embrace.

"Kratos," Anna stated, chuckling gently, "I'm not a glass figurine. I won't break. Lying around all day was driving me insane."

"But Anna, y—"

"Kratos!" Anna exclaimed again, cutting him off firmly, hands on her hips."Stop fretting so much. Having a child is a natural process. Really. It's going to be fine."

With a gentle sigh, Kratos nodded. "I know, I just can't help but worry because it's you."

Anna laughed. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"Interpret it as you like," he replied with a soft chuckle of his own.

"Well, if that's the case...I suppose I should be upset with you," she told him, pushing out of his embrace, a frown gracing her lips while mischief danced in brown eyes.

"Anna...come on, you know what I meant."

"Do I?"

"Anna..."

"Kratos."

Without warning, Kratos blurred forward, catching his pregnant wife firmly around the waist and dug his face into her neck.

"Yes, you do."

Anna was unable to reply as she was suddenly consumed by a rack of giggling as Kratos began tickling her.

"K-Kratos, s-s-stop!"

"What's the magic word?"

"P-please!"

Smiling himself, Kratos relented, instead wrapping his arms around her in a content hug.

"You really can be a jerk."

Kratos just chuckled.

They stood in silence for several moments, content in one another's arms, before Anna spoke again, "say, Kratos, have you given any thoughts to naming our baby?"

"We don't even know what gender it is yet, Anna."

"I know...but you must have some ideas..."

The truth was, Kratos had already chosen just one name for each gender. For the moment, however, he would choose to stay quiet.

"...what about you, Anna?"

"I...want to name it after one of my parents," she replied with a faint blush. "They...died so early, and will never get to meet my child. Or any of them, for that matter, and I..."

Tightening his arms around his love, Kratos nodded. "I think that's a wonderful idea, Anna."

Silent for several moments longer, Anna finally spoke again, her stubborn side winning through to get herself an answer to her question.

"You still never answered me."

Kratos chuckled again at his wife's persistence.

"I have..."

"Oh? Well, tell me!"

"I like your idea, Anna."

"Kratos! Our baby will need a middle name anyway!"

Finally relenting, Kratos told her, "Martel if it's a girl."

Squealing, Anna grinned brightly.

"Oh, Kratos! That's a lovely idea! What about a boy?"

"...I want our child to represent the hope of the world."

"So, that's explains Martel...but what about the other name?" she persisted.

"...Mithos." Following the statement, Anna was silent for so long that Kratos began to regret telling her. Maybe he never should have said anything at all.

"You...told me the truth. About what Mithos really did...and...and I think it's a wonderful idea. Our baby can be like...the worlds' saviour! Only he or she will do it properly. Like Martel and Mithos wanted, back before Martel died."

Kratos smiled at her words, relieved that she saw what he had meant behind the names.

"I'm glad you like it, but for now you need to get back to bed."

With a sigh, Anna finally relented and allowed Kratos to lead her off. Two days later, Lloyd Mithos Aurion was welcomed into the world by two very loving parents.


"Kratos? Kratos!"

Kratos was shocked out of his thoughts by Raine's voice calling to him. Looking up, he noted that she seemed to be done cooking...whatever that stuff was.

Sometimes he was relieved that he could not taste. Especially not if that...well, it certainly did not deserve the title 'food', was any indication.

Accepting the plate offered to him with barely a second glance, Kratos scooped up a glob and popped it into his mouth without a second thought. Chewing absentmindedly, still distracted by his previous thoughts, it was a careful few moments until the seraph began gagging.

"What is that?" he demanded, once he had regained his dignity...and taken a long drought of water.

"It's squid mixed with garlic, onion, milk, konjac, bread, miso, banana, and topped with cheese!" the half-elf recited proudly.

As awful as the mixture sounded, it hardly deserved the reaction he had received from it. There had to be something more...

"Oh! I forgot, there's tomato too."

Kratos gagged again.

Raising her eyebrow, Raine turned to look at him. "Something wrong?"

"I apologise. It's just that I am not a...fan of tomatoes."

"That's funny, you know, Lloyd's the same way. He'll eat anything except tomato."

Clearing his throat, Kratos nodded. "Is that so? I can't blame him."

"Personally, I think it is going to be magnificent!" Raine exclaimed, an eerie light in her lavender eyes.

Kratos could only wince quietly to himself as he watched her take a massive spoonful and pop it into her own mouth...and then run to the stream nearby, submerging her head completely.

When she finally re-emerged, Kratos shook his head slowly.

"How was it?"

"Hm...I think it needed some salt."

Shaking his head, Kratos dug a loaf of bread out of their packs and tossed it to her.

"Come on, we can eat as we travel."

As the two set off once again, Kratos scraped the remainder of the 'food' into a small hole he had dug, saying it was not fair to the wildlife to leave such an abomination to them.

Raine agreed.

Colette gazed around at her surroundings in wonder. She had never, in all of her life, seen such a large town. Palmacosta looked like a village in comparison. To her left, Sheena was counting their gald, trying to figure out how far it would get them. It was really a shame that rheaird thing was out of fuel, or whatever it ran on. It was a handy thing to use.

"How much do we have?" Colette asked, glancing over to the money pouch. The two had pooled their money to pay for things like food, a place to sleep, and the boat expenses.

"Enough, I hope..." Sheena replied with a sigh, not looking overly optimistic. "But we won't know until we ask. Let's head on down to the docks."

Nodding, Colette followed her further on through the town, away from the resort, to where the docks were hidden away for access by the townspeople, and tourists coming and going.

Together the two descended a shallow slope down to the wooden docks. Colette was then quickly dragged out onto the pier, to where several boats were tied, bobbing restlessly on their mooring ropes. As Sheena sought out a captain for one of the larger passenger vessels, the blonde Chosen set off to explore the area. The piers here really were very nice. The planks barely squeaked at all, and she was not afraid of falling in, like she had been at Thoda. Then again, Thoda also used wash tubs for boats, so maybe that was not really the greatest representative she could have chosen for Sylvarant. Still, the point was, the docks here really were very nice...

"Colette? Colette!"

"Huh, wha-?" Colette yelped in surprise. She really had been zoned out not to notice the young kunouichi calling to her like that.

"Honestly, you really are the most out-of-it person I have ever met..."

"Heh...sorry."

Sheena chuckled. "Nah, don't worry about it. I just wanted to let you know that I found someone willing to take us on."

"That's wonderful!"

"There is one problem though."

"Why? What is it?"

"We can't possibly afford to go all the way to Meltokio; it's way too expensive. For now, we can barely afford to get to Ozette...and even still, we're going to have to do some work on the ship if we want anything left over for our trip from there to Meltokio. Ozette isn't a very friendly village."

Colette nodded slowly, drinking in all of the information Sheena was feeding to her. She had no idea where any of these places were, so she would just have to take Sheena's word for it.

"So...how far is Meltokio from Ozette?" she finally asked, tripping slightly over the foreign names.

Sheena shook her head. "Far enough."

"Well then, what are we waiting for? I don't see any point in waiting around here."

"Well, the boat doesn't leave until tomorrow morning, so we might as well look around for awhile. There's an amusement park here, want to check it out?"

"Is that okay?" Colette asked, wondering how they could afford any recreation.

"Not really, but I think you need it, don't you?"

Colette was about to adamantly refuse when the truth of Sheena's words hit her. It was true. It was so true. Everything that happened to her...she had managed to push it to the back of her mind thus far, due to all that was going on. Now that they were stopped for awhile, however, suddenly everything was crashing down on her.

"Admit it, Colette. You need a break, and some good entertainment. You've gone through enough lately. Let's just have some fun."

Slowly, Colette nodded as she processed Sheena's words. "Yeah...but, what's an amusement park?"

Sheena laughed. "It's a place where you go on ride, and play games, and eat junk food. Things like that."

"Oh, really?" Colette replied, finally deciding that a little bit of entertainment would not hurt after all. "That sounds like fun! Let's go!"

Sheena nodded and set off, leading an emotionally exhausted Colette to the park, where they could just relax and forget for awhile.

"Hey, what's that?"

Sheena chuckled at the excitement that had invaded Colette as soon as they had set foot in the amusement park, her blue eyes dancing with excitement. The blonde Chosen had been everywhere at once, trying to see and do everything.

"It's a Ferris Wheel; it takes you around in a big circle. It gives you a nice view up high, not as good as the rheairds, but still nice. Want to try it?" When Colette finally shook her head, Sheena sighed inwardly before asking, "well, what would you like to do?"

"Can we try those?" Colette finally asked, pointing to the Teacups.

Sheena nodded and led her over to the ride. Paying the man, the two got into their cup. Once they were settled, Sheena finally laughed.

"Figures you would pick a ride like this. It just seems...you."

Colette laughed with her. "What do you mean?"

"Well, the Roller Coaster doesn't seem your style, and you didn't want to ride the Ferris Wheel. That doesn't leave much else anyway," she pointed out as the ride began.

"Yeah...I mean, I get a lot of heights normally, so..."

"Yeah, I can believe that." Lowering her voice, Sheena indicated Colette's back in awe, "I mean...I can't believe you really have wings. I mean, that's so...unbelievable."

Colette just laughed.

"But really, how many people do you know that have wings?"

"Not many, only...Father and I."

Sheena was shocked. "You father has wings? Really? That's...wow."

"Well...I think he's my father. He says he is, but...he didn't raise me, or anything."

"Oh...well then, how is he your father...?" Sheena asked, knowing she sounded stupid, but unable to keep silent. To her, however, blood relation was not when made family.

"Colette just smiled. "I guess he's not, really..."

"Exactly, your family is the one who raised you. I mean...well, I guess it's weird. He's still family, but he's not family. Am I making any sense?"

"You mean...he's like a relative?"

"Yes!" Sheena agreed, nodding. "He's a relative, but not really your 'dad,' or anything."

The two fell silent for a moment before Colette spoke again, "what about you, Sheena? What's your family like?"

Shocked by the sudden shift in conversation, Sheena fell silent for several moments before speaking slowly. "I...don't have any birth family. My grandfather found me and raised me to become a ninja. Other than that, I don't know anything about who I am, or was. That's fine though. Mizuho is my home, I don't need any others."

Colette smiled. "Yeah, that's how I feel too."

As they departed from the amusement park several hours later, Sheena felt as though they had bonded on a new level. Now even more certain than ever before that she could not kill the pretty Chosen, she even felt determined to protect her. No matter what.

Zelos led the way carefully into Welgaia. If they were going to get into Tethe'alla, then first off they would need to reroute the warp pad to actually take them there. Creeping through the area silently, Lloyd and Genis at his heels, he thanked fate, not for the first time, that Genis was a half-elf. So long as they did not bump into anyone important, they should get away easily. With himself and Lloyd being recognised, then no questions should be raised as to their intentions. Unless, of course, they ran into someone who knew that Lloyd was supposed to be in Sylvarant. Then all hell would break loose.

"Lloyd Aurion and Zelos Wilder, I never expected to see you two here."

The whole party froze and, as one, turned to face the half-elf who had spoken.

"Forcystus," came Lloyd's response, his voice tinged with nervousness.

"No, really Lloyd, I would be quite interested in hearing about why you're here when you're supposed to be watching the Chosen."

Zelos listened carefully to the exchange, ready to interfere should it come to that. It was just their luck to meet one of the Cardinals that recognised him as well as Lloyd. He knew that few of the cardinals knew both himself and Lloyd. What he did not know, however, was how well Forcystus recognised Lloyd, or what sort of relationship the two had. None of that mattered right now, anyway, as the half-elf had just become a very real danger to them. While what they were doing was not exactly bad, if Yggdrasill learned that they had lost the Chosen...well, then Sheena's life would be in direct danger also. He could not let that happen.

"How do you know that?"

Zelos raised an eyebrow at Lloyd's words. So Forcystus had not known that Lloyd was guarding the Chosen? Well, that was interesting. If that was the case, then who could say how much any of the other Cardinals knew?

"I looked into it. It seemed too curious to me, to see the only son of a seraph running around and causing me trouble."

Behind him, Zelos heard Genis gasp audibly. This was not good. The bratty half-elf was not supposed to find out about that! Now he was really going to have to keep an eye on the kid.

"And what about you, Wilder? I hardly see a reason for Tethe'alla's own Chosen One to be helping with Sylvarant's Regeneration Journey. You surely realise what success for her would mean for you, do you not?"

The sound of Zelos' sword clearing its scabbard drowned out Genis' second gasp. "You know what? You're really starting to piss me off. Lloyd outranks you in this system, so who are you to question what he does to help the Journey of Regeneration?"

"Zelos, calm down."

Ignoring Lloyd's words, Zelos carried right on speaking, "it's hardly your place to even think about that. Just carry on harvesting your humans, half-elf, and stop questioning your superiors. The world will be Regenerated, and this time will be the last time. No way do I want anything to do with this game. Chosen One is a crappy title anyway."

This time, Lloyd's gasp mirrored Genis' perfectly, but Zelos did not regret speaking for one moment. If they were to silence Forcystus, then they were going to have to overpower him completely. Even the slightest hint of suspicion would likely send the Cardinal running to Yggdrasill. Right now, that was the last thing that they needed happening.

"Fine...go on your way. Just remember this: if you cause any trouble for Lord Yggdrasill, I will personally hunt you all down."

"Speaking of Lord Yggdrasill, he in?" Lloyd ask, looking bored with the threat.

Zelos smirked inwardly at Lloyd's words. Perfect cover up. Forcystus would have no real reason to tell Yggdrasill about them if he believed that they were there to see him. He highly doubted the Cardinal was the type to bother checking with someone to make sure they had been to see him.

"No, actually. He left just a little while ago. I think he was heading for Sylvarant. You should be able to catch him if you hurry along."

Zelos saw the faintest flicker of fear enter his friend's eyes as Lloyd nodded.

"Well then, I suppose this was a wasted trip. Let's go back. C'mon, Noishe."

Without another word, the trio departed with Noishe trotting at their heels.

"Zelos, did you check the destination?"

Shaking his head, Zelos stepped over to the control panel for the warp pad. Why it had to be located away from the pad itself, he would never understand. Now all he had to do was set it to Tethe'alla and they could be off.

Switching the dial, Zelos made sure to mutter about angels messing with the dials for the benefit of any who might be eavesdropping—specifically Forcystus.

"There, we're good to go!"

The small group then hurried on, intent on getting to Tethe'alla without any further trouble.

After they had departed, Forcystus strode over to the control panel and gazed at it in curiosity. Shaking his head, the half-elf could not help but wonder why it was now set to Tethe'alla if they were supposedly heading back to Sylvarant.

Clearly those three would need some watching.

Speaking of three, just who was the half-elf kid that was with them? Forcystus could not quite put his finger on it, but he got the feeling he had seen the boy before...

Well, it did not matter right now. For now, he was going to have to head back to Sylvarant himself. He had a ranch to run.

He was most certainly not going to forget this incident though...

Well now, that was fun to write. –grins- I realise that the story is probably getting retarded. Don't worry, I plan to do a recap in the near future. I hope that will help everyone who's getting lost. Myself included. DX

Once again, many thanks to all who review, I love you all dearly! We're nearly at 100, think you guys can get me there this chapter? Please? –heart-

Also, eternal thanks to my beta: Baby Kat Snophlake. You. Are. Awesome.

Look for the next chapter sometime in January, I hope. Until then, guys! Thnaks for reading, and please review!