Author's Note One: I'm trying to slightly avoid/alter the games already used dialogue. After all, there are more people present, and the situations are going to be a bit different than before. As you can tell by the number of Desian's attacking the temple.

The Female OC was originally going to make her appearance in this chapter, but… not anymore. She's been pushed back out to a later time. *mystical noises go here*

Uggh, fight scene in chapter One. I BLAME ALL OF YOU!

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Chapter One

Assault

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Blood, it seeped into the dirt walkway creating a sickeningly colored mud at the feet of the temples attackers. Why were they there? What could they possibly want, and why were they killing the priests? Questions, Fayt already had too many questions on his plate as it was without this lot adding more to them. A smile played across the charcoal haired leaders face. "Tell us where the Chosen is boy, and we'll let you and the old woman live."

The what? He didn't know what a 'chosen' was; let alone where to find it. His teeth gritted in determination as the old woman, Phaidra, spoke up. "Leave the boy out of this, he does not know anything, and you will not get the information you seek from me."

The eyes of the sharp eared man narrowed dangerously. "Very well, The Chosen is bound to come to the Temple eventually now that the signal has been given. Kill them; we'll wait for the girl here." The group's leader stated as his hand motioned for his men to advance.

Fayt's heart was like a jackrabbit trapped in his chest trying to get out. It hurt, but at the same time a light tingle was spreading throughout his body from his core. He was… excited? How… why… WHAT was he excited about? Running? Hiding? Dying? Fighting? Was there no other way out of what was coming. His violet eyes glanced to the right to find the old woman backing up slowly. Should he follow suit? Should he run away alone? After how nicely he'd been treated, how he'd been cared for? They were his source of information! For all he knew he could walk for weeks without running into anyone else. This place could be hostile, how many of these groups of insane sharp eared people were out there waiting to attack? Too many questions, not enough answers… let alone time to answer them.

The snow haired boy's voice shook slightly as he spoke. "Miss… Phaidra, please… go inside and bar the door to slow them down." He'd already placed himself between their assailant's and the older woman before she could protest. "I'll be fine." He lied confidently after steadying his voice… somehow.

He was just going to have to run on instinct here and hope that it would be enough. "I'm sorry boy." The old woman stated as he heard the door close. Peace settled over him… strangely enough. What kind of psychopath would be at peace when they were going to die a horrible, and judging from the enemy's weapons, probably painful, death.

"Foolish, the door will hardly be an impediment." The man, their leader, stated. "Kill him quickly."

On cue, the three that had moved his way charged him in a staggered three sided formation. The one on his right came first and he barely managed to duck under the cracking whip. The one on his left was there moments later his shining steel sword swinging in a terrifying downward arc. Fayt's feet slid around in the dirt bringing him alongside his attackers arm sword. His right hand reached out and snatched the helmet headed man's wrist while his left palm slammed viciously into swordsman's elbow snapping it back in the wrong direction. A cry tore itself through the man's lips as he dropped his sword to clutch clumsily at the broken appendage. Snatching the bade out of the air before it hit the ground the snow haired boy turned just in time to block the third assailant's blade inches above his head. With his right hand on the hilt and left pushing back on the dull side of the single bladed weapon, he was still being pushed back.

"BASTARD!" The man with the whip called as it slammed into Fayt's back savagely. While gritting his teeth the violet eyed teen tried his best to hold back the second swordsman's downward push, but if that whip hit him again his face was definitely going to meet a disfiguring end. What could he do? Was he really was going to die here… now… before he remembered anything else? Fear filled wide violet eyes stared up into the smirking face of his assailant as the sun glinted lazily off his shining helmet. Would this be the last sight he beheld?

'Calm yourself Fayt, letting fear or anger control you during a battle will only lead to injury or death. Peace and serenity wins the day Fayt… Peace… and serenity.' His master's words echoed through his mind. Right… he… he had to relax. He had to be calm… calm… calm.

The sound of the whip whistling back readying for its next blow reached the violet eyed teens ears. So and he made his move first! After tilting his sword more to the left his opponent's blade ran down the length of his own and Fayt managed to slide and out of the way just in time for the whip to meet the opposing swordsman's face. The enemy he'd been locked inot a life and death struggle with so recently cried out painfully as his free hand reached up and grasped at the injury his ally had inflicted.

A CHANCE!

Leaping nimbly forward the snow haired boy brought his foot slamming up into the swordsman's stomach, then his elbow down onto the back of his neck. The helmet wearing male dropped to the ground either unconscious… or… or dead. The screaming of the first swordsman was still in his ears as he turned to face the last man of the group that had advanced on him. The man with the whip seemed hesitant… for some reason.

Fayt's hands were sweaty as were most parts of his body, though it wasn't like he'd actually done much yet. The adrenaline running through his system had him high as a kite, ready for anything. Waiting… watching the whipman, and the rest of the group that had yet to move his way without orders. Their leader's eyes seemed to be focused solely on him, but Fayt couldn't keep his gaze from the man he was fighting at that point in time; lest he have a whip hit him somewhere he'd prefer it not.

Taking the initiative, the violet eyed teen made his move. Sprinting forward, he took the brunt of an attack by letting his assailants whip wrap painfully around his left arm. His right hand dropped the sword, formed into a fist, and crushed its way into the last attacker's stomach. It was over… the whipman crumpled to the ground at Fayt's feet. To be quite frank, the violet eyed teen was probably more surprised at the outcome than whoever these men were.

Another glance at the assault group's leader confused Fayt as he retrieved the sword he'd dropped during the final attack. The pointy eared man was staring at him with something akin to a ponderous smile. What could cause a man to smile who'd just had three of his men incapacitated? Joy? Excitement? Insanity?

The sound of numerous feet hitting the ground reached his ears as he stopped once more in front of the door with his stolen sword at the ready. Dread crept through him at the thought of his attackers gaining reinforcements. He was going to have a hard enough time handling this large group of enemies as it was. Impossible task that it may actually be… he needed to have hope, right? The case this time, however, was different than he'd originally predicted. Though, no better than reinforcements, the three who topped the hill would no doubt be more of a hindrance than help. He couldn't worry about others right now, and though he was loath to admit it, he hoped some of the group would go after them just so he may be able to survive this.

"RUN! COLETTE!" The voice of the old woman reached his ears from somewhere to the left, above, and behind him. Damnit! The old woman knew one or more of them. What was he supposed to do now? Was he just going to abandon the small group to a grisly fate? No, he didn't want to, but if he moved away from the door he may be doing the same to Phaidra. Indecision blossomed inside of him, and the chance to do either was taken from him.

"Lord Botta," one of the helmeted men that all looked the same in their metal and red leather armor started. "There she is, that's the Chosen," he finished with a pointed index finger.

The Blonde girl of the group was this Colette, this 'Chosen' that the helmet heads and their leader were willing to wipe out a temple just to kill? Gahh! Did it really matter at this point? "You're life is Mine Chosen." The leader, apparently 'Lord Botta', claimed his apparent victory. Could the group of three get away? Surely they weren't so stupid as to try engaging this lot, were they?

Aaaaand, he was wrong; the one with brown hair unsheathed a sword crying out that he wouldn't let them get away with anything. News flash crimson boy… if they killed all of them, then they were going to get away with it. No… no, maybe the hazel haired teen would prove more of a fighter than Fayt could believe. After all, he'd just astonished himself, why couldn't there be other people with abilities that didn't make sense? Sixteen Helmet heads… one a bit of a giant, and their leader, it was probably more than enough to finish off ALL of them and come away without too many more losses.

The new boy started speaking this time, "I won't let you Desian's get away with-." Fayt took his chance while most of the group was turned around listening to the newly arrived teen, it was now or never. Snatching up the second blade he poured as much speed into his legs as he could, and sprinted toward the throng of enemies.

"LORD BOTTA!" two of the helmet heads that had been watching him cried out. Without a moment to spare the snow haired boy hurled the sword in he'd been clutching in his right hand as hard as he could directly at their leader. Whirling around and pulling the sheathed scimitar from his side in one fluid motion; the knife eared man deflected the blade, which twisted, turned, and sliced deeply into the arm of one of his subordinates.

Fayt was upon them in a flash of steel and blood, his sword slicing madly through the air in motions that came to mind milliseconds before he performed them. The added partial surprise of his attack on two of the men who hadn't been looking assisted him in incapacitating them. The first went down with a diagonal slash across his chest, and the second with a deep leg wound. Spinning lightly on his feet the violet eyed amnesiac knocked a third attacker's sword from his hand with his own stolen blade.

DANGER!

Fayt's instincts screamed at him and the snow haired teen slammed himself to the ground as a blade howled through the space he'd occupied mere milliseconds before. Without waiting for whatever was to come, he rolled away and using his free hand push-sprang back to his feet in an acrobatic mid air twist roll. He landed a bit harder than he thought he should, but on his feet none the less. The violet eyed boy faltered; barely managing to bring his blade back to bear in time to block the incoming blow of a copper colored scimitar.

It wasn't as much help as it should have been, and with the man's apparent super human strength Fayt was pushed back off of balance, then a few feet through the air. Landing painfully on his butt with a now broken sword had him lightly dazed. However, he could only afford a moment as the group's leader wasn't going to give him the time to recuperate. The scimitar swung quickly, precisely, and horizontally for the snow haired teens head, or more accurately, his neck.

His hands moved backwards with his head as the blade passed through the collar of his coat. Grasping onto the dirt the teen rolled back a full 360 degrees then kicked off of the ground and back flipped through the air, landing on his feet just before the temple door. Wild violet eyes stared back at the crazy pointy eared 'Lord Botta' that was trying to kill him. Narrowed eyes stared him right back as said man-thing approached slowly, already falling into an attack stance. What was coming next? How was he going to avoid it? Would he have a chance to attack at all, or was he just going to flee until he ran out of luck and ended his forgotten life at the tip of that curved blade?

Panting lightly Fayt tried to blink the dust from his left eye as sweat seemed intent on pouring down his forehead to make the two orbs burn something fierce. The man's first step into the charge was interrupted as both Fayt and his assailant's eyes were drawn to an enormous helmeted man in green slamming into the temple wall. The snow haired teen looked through his current opponent to see what could possibly have happened. Had the small group of four actually done something like that… impossible… right?

No, someone new had entered the fray on their behalf. How popular was this temple? How many visitors could it possibly get in a single day like this? It was barely audible, but Fayt heard the first part of the sentence the 'Desian' leader spoke. "Damn, Never thought he'd show up," which was followed up moments later by an order for what was left of his group. "Retreat!"

Really? Was purple guy really that strong? With a quick glance to his left Fayt decided that he was, the auburn haired swordsman had to be at least FIFTEEN feet away from his recent foe's current position next to the door. Swallowing lightly he thanked whoever may be listening to his inner thoughts for the man's timely arrival.

When the doors opened up behind him, Fayt's knee's gave out and he collapsed onto his butt in the dirt. He had lived through it… he'd actually lived through it. Running a dirt covered hand back, up, and through his snowy hair the violet eyed teen let out slightly off kilter laugh; which after a few moments turned into a much louder joyous one. He'd actually survived that insane situation! The group of three, plus the super man in purple, were staring at him when he finally stopped. A wide smile remained on his face as he sat there happily; nothing was going to bring this moment down for him.

"THIS GUY'S INCREDIBLE!" the younger silver haired boy cried out about the mercenary after jumping lightly into the air.

Fayt agreed with that statement wholeheartedly. It wasn't everyday you met someone who could hurl a six and a half foot tall muscle bound man through the air like that. Actually… it was probably never. "Is everyone fine? No injuries?" The swordsman questioned.

"My butt hurts…" Fayt mumbled as he slowly made his way to his feet. Miss Phaidra had moved past him moments before to greet their mutual savior. The dashing auburn haired swordsman in purple!

"IS THAT AN EXSPHERE?" Shout-questioned the crimson clad teen. 'A what when why,' Fayt asked himself. Really, how many terms was he going to have to learn before he remembered everything he'd forgotten? He was up to what… six now… probably?

Leaving the question unanswered the old woman questioned the swordsman, "how could I ever thank you for saving the life of the Chosen?" 'HEY! He saved the rest of us too!' Fayt shouted in his head… it was probably best to keep things to himself for the moment. Didn't want them thinking he was any less… sane?

"This girl is the chosen?" The auburn haired man questioned as he turned to face the group once more.

"That's right! I have to go and accept the oracle!" the blonde stated as if she'd forgotten why she was there. The snow haired boy took that opportunity to move towards them as the group of six conversed about trials, monsters, and radiation.(1)

"Sadly, the priests that were to accompany the Chosen through the trial have all been…" The old woman choked off as she tried her hardest not to look at the bodies of the priests on the ground nearby.

"Then I'll take on the job of protecting Colette!" The crimson clad boy exclaimed aloud. Didn't he just get through fighting? Was he already ready, willing, and able to throw himself back into it all again?

"Lloyd, I would feel uneasy with just you going-," the woman began, but the auburn haired man interceded.

"You're name is Lloyd?" his voice and face were calm reflections, but the question itself seemed a bit odd. The old woman had just said his name after all, hadn't she?

"Yeah, but who are you to ask for my name?" the boy, henceforth known as Lloyd stated. 'ooo snappy,' Fayt thought as he came to a stop next to the odd little group with a smile still upon his face. He had lived… hehe.

"Hmmm, my name is Kratos-" the man began, but was cut off himself.

"I'm Fayt!" he stated while throwing his hand into the air. The group turned to face him and he took a step back. "I mean… uhh. I take that back. I'll introduce myself later."

The man, Kratos, seemed a bit perturbed, though the Chosen covered her mouth and laughed lightly. "As I was saying, I'm a mercenary, so long as you can pay me I'll take on the job of protecting the Chosen."

He meant Colette… was it alright if he already thought of her as Colette? Did he need to call her 'Chosen One'? Was he going to have to act respectful to her? Did she have a last name? What was his own last name? How many more questions were going to pop into his head before the conversation progressed?

The old woman stared down the length of her cane at the ground for a long moment, as if contemplating hiring the complete stranger to protect the blonde girl while she traveled through a monster infested temple in search for… whatever the thing was that she was looking for. "Very well, if you can do so we- I would be most grateful."

"Wait! I'm going too!" Lloyd interjected himself.

"No, you'll only get in the way," his purple savior commented.

"What did you say?!" Lloyd questioned angrily.

"Was my comment not clear? You are a burden, go home."

Aaaand judging from the look on Lloyds face, something was about to take a drastic change for the worst. Yet, the Chosen stepped in to save the day, though a bit hesitantly. "Umm, Mr. Kratos sir, would it be ok to take Lloyd along with us?"

The purple clad mercenary stared at the two for a long moment, "but."

"Please! I get nervous when Lloyd's not around," the girl more stated than requested.

A light sigh escaped the adult's lips as his hand reached up to his face before turning to walk inside. "Very well, do as you wish."

"Careful Mr. Kratos! It's like a maze…" Fayt began to shout after, but the man didn't stop so his words trailed off. "In there…" So, he wouldn't warn the superhuman after all. Maybe the Chosen knew the way to where she was going. She had followed the man as soon as he started off.

"Let's go, Genis," Lloyd exclaimed excitedly while looking to the pre-teen… with pointed ears... and a strange outfit.

"What, we're going too?!" The tiny pointy eared one, hence forth known as Genis, state-questioned.

"This is not a field trip you know!" Their purple clad savior called back as he walked through the door of the temple.

The old woman beside him laughed heartily then spoke. "You should go along with them boy, they may need your help."

Wide violet eyes turned to face the woman, shocked by her statement. "Need MY help? Did you see that guy? He just…" Fayt lost the own words he was speaking and merely motioned to the indention on the temples wall left by the large man. "-DID THAT! With a giant man!"

"Ho ho ho, you never know boy." She stated then paused to look away from the door and into his eyes. "Please, go with them." Auuughh! How was he supposed to turn down the smiling old lady? He owed the people of the temple for taking care of him while he was… after whatever happened to him that brought him here.

"Alright, but I don't know how much help I'll end up being." Fayt replied while scratching at the back of his head. Standing around would just get him left behind now.

"Thank you," were the last words he heard the old woman speak as he moved through the doorway.

Ok, he had to get these people straight in his head before he caught up with them. It was probably best NOT to call the mercenary by the red shirt boy's name.

So, first came the Chosen. Name – Colette, wears a white long… shirt? Or was that a dress? He didn't really know much about clothing, well, he didn't know much about really anything at the moment. So he was just going to say it was a dress, white boots, and tight black pants… or stockings. She did give off a 'cute' vibe.

NEXT! Kratos! The dashing purple clad savior of everyone at the temple (that survived)! He used a single sword; plus he was the eldest person there… probably. Fayt's memory was still a bit fuzzy on that point. And frankly, who believed in 'de-aging' anyways? It was a preposterous delusion brought about by the amnesia… probably.

After that was, Lloyd. Teenager, wears a funny looking red shirt with lots of buttons, suspenders, brown hair with funny comb over spikes to it. Black pants, red boots, and two swords. Very assertive… thus far, and was probably friends with most everyone he met after just a few words.

Next was GENIS! Small kid, probably eleven to thirteen… Fayt wasn't really sure how much help he would end up being. Though, in the kids defense, he hadn't seen the boy fight yet. He wore a light blue… something; looked like there was a one piece shorts-shirt combo with a mini jacket-thing over it. 'Pointy eared people must have an odd sense of fashion,' was the conclusion Fayt came to after meeting the few that he had.

So, he had Purple Guy, The Chosen, Red Boy, and… Munchkin. Yeah… that was how he would best remember them, visually. Though, frankly, the super human purple guy left the biggest impression!

It was brief, but as he walked through the door into the temple he wondered what they were all wearing for underwear. Should he include something like that in his evaluation of them? What did pointy eared people even wear for underwear? Was it the same as what round eared people wore? Actually… it was probably best if he didn't know the answer to any of those questions. A bad feeling developed in the pit of his stomach the more he thought about it, so finding out some of them was bound to end in a bad way… if not all of them.

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AUTHORS NOTE TWO: Hope you enjoyed that! Yaaay higher word counts!

(1). Kratos actually said 'evil presence radiates'. But, ehh, Radiation's better :P

Chapter Date: 02/01/14

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Imaginary Skit - 1

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Fayt walks slowly up to Kratos when he's watching for enemies in the rear. "Hey, Purple guy!"

"My name, is Kratos."

"Right, that's what I said." He replied fully believing he had in fact used the man's name.

A light sigh escaped the mercenary's lips before he deemed a response to be the only course of action that would rid him of the teen. "What is it?

"What sort of underwear are you wearing?" the boy questioned like it was the most common of things in the world to speak of.

"..."

"Hey! Kratos! Where are you going? Kratos!" Fayt called out to the figure who had picked up his pace.

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