This is a little later than I wanted to post today, but was giving me a lot of problems. It kept crashing both of my web browsers when I tried to load a document. I finally had to try the copy&paste option. Thankfully, that worked.
Anyway, thanks again for all of your support. Now, onward to the chapter.
Chapter 13: Ossa Trail
The trip out of the Fire Temple was almost peaceful. With the puzzles solved they were able to reached the entrance with only a few encounters from monsters. By some luck, they were able to avoid the more powerful beasts such as the Fire Warriors.
The dry breeze outside never felt so good as Lloyd climbed out of the temple's entrance. It was a welcome change from the pure heat that they were forced to endure. He actually began to feel a little chill since the sun had already gone down along with the temperature.
Colette was the next one out of the temple when she suddenly collapsed.
Lloyd grasped in horror as he ran towards her side. "Colette, are you alright!?"
Colette sat up a little and gave Lloyd a weak smile. "I'm fine..."
Genis, who saw the whole thing as he was climbing out, also rushed to his friend's side. "You don't look fine at all! Your face is completely white!" He shook his head as guilt filled his eyes. "It's all my fault. I got carried away and kept making her pull her wings in and out."
Lloyd doubted that was the real reason for Colette's sickness, but he wasn't sure what to say to the young mage.
"Now's not the time for that," Raine spoke firmly as she pushed Genis away from Colette and she began to examined her. She put her hand on her forehead and knew she had a slight fever. Raine could also see sweat beginning to form on Colette's face. However, that wasn't the thing that caused her the most concern. "Her lips are turning purple. We must get her to a doctor in the city immediately."
"It is best not to move her," Kratos advised as he joined the group.
Lloyd glared at the older man not only for the cold suggesting, but also for being so emotionally distance. Colette was sick and he didn't seem to care.
Kratos noticed Lloyd's glare and answered the unasked question. "Remember the angel's words. The angel transformation process requires her to overcome a trial."
"So, you believe that this is part of her test?" Raine asked. It made sense, but was becoming an angel really this painful?
Kratos stared at the Professor. "Rather than taking her to a doctor, it would be best to let her rest here." Beside, there was little a doctor could do for her, he added to himself.
Colette sat up as she looked towards everyone. "I'm okay. I'll be fine after a little rest." She looked down in shame. "I'm sorry to cause so much trouble."
Lloyd put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Stop apologizing all the time, you dork. It's not as if you can help it."
Colette smiled a little, but refused to look at Lloyd. "You're right, I'm sorry."
Lloyd gave a sigh of frustration. He didn't know why he bothered. He could hear Genis attempting to hide his giggles, easing some of the tension.
Kratos pulled away from the group and began to set up camp. Raine made sure to spray the area with repellence to keep the weaker monsters away. Genis and Lloyd went to find timber brush to use to make a fire and when they returned, the campsite was ready.
Luckily for them, Genis was cooking tonight. Although Kratos was an okay cook, he tended to make very simple meals that didn't fill anyone.
Nonetheless, by Genis' standards, the meal wasn't much. It was a simple dish of tofu curry, however, Lloyd enjoyed it since it did managed fill him.
He couldn't fully enjoy it, however, since Colette was too ill to eat anything. Raine made sure she drank a lot of water, but that was it. Even if they smashed her food, he doubted Colette would be able to hold it down.
Lloyd pulled his thoughts away from Colette and stared at Kratos, who was sitting right across from him. They stared awkwardly at each other for several minutes. For once, Lloyd couldn't think of a thing to say to the mercenary. This man was unlike anyone he had ever met. A part of him was greatly jealous of Kratos' power, but another part of him couldn't help but to admire him. He was like a swordsman god from legends.
"Your exsphere has an unusual color," Kratos suddenly spoke as he looked at his crystal.
Lloyd reactively pulled his left hand up to look at his exsphere. He rubbed it gently in his gloved hand. "It does seem to be a little different from yours and the others." It was only now that he noticed that all the exspheres that he had seen were a tinted red. He then remembered Dirk's words about exspheres. "By the way, why do you have an exsphere?"
"I took one from a Desian," Kratos answered neutrally. He gave Lloyd a hard look. "I heard that the Desians force the humans at the Ranch to make them." It was partly true.
Lloyd flinched when he heard those words. "So, that's why Marble had an exsphere too..."
So, he didn't know how exspheres were made. It was not surprising considering that most people didn't even know what exspheres were and he doubted Dirk would have told him given how he hid the truth about Anna. He hoped that Lloyd would never find out the price that was paid to create the exspheres at the Ranch, especially the one he now wore on his hand.
"Is it alright if I ask you something as well?" Kratos suddenly asked.
This got Lloyd's attention. "Sure."
"Why were you raised by a dwarf?" Kratos asked.
Lloyd lowered his eyes. "Dad found me collapsed in the forest along with mom and Noishe." He began to tightened his grip as the all the too familiar feeling of rage and hatred filled his heart. "Although what really happened was that we were attacked by Desians."
Kratos had to keep himself from frowning. If Lloyd didn't learn to let go of his bitterness, it would one day led him down a dark and dangerous path. At the same time, he couldn't blame Lloyd for his hate. "So, the Desians are responsible for the deaths of your parents. Your life has been completely torn apart by them."
"Huh!?" Lloyd exclaimed, completely taken off-guard by the statement.
"Your mother was killed and then you were chase out of your village," Kratos observed. Lloyd was more than justify for hating the Desians. He was equally responsible as well since he helped to create and supported them as their took countless lives.
Lloyd wasn't sure what to say towards Kratos statement. It was all true. The worst being that he was powerless to stop any of it.
Kratos seemed to read Lloyd's thoughts. "…People are…hopelessly, powerless."
"Yes, they are, but you can't blame others for that weakness," Lloyd countered as he looked up, his eyes burning with determination. "That's why I'm going to grow stronger. I'm going to become powerful and defeat the Desians."
"...I see," Kratos whispered. If only it was that easy. "Then, no matter what awaits ahead, you must not forget that determination." He wondered, however, if it was really a good idea to give Lloyd false hope.
Lloyd paused for a moment in thought. "Why am I talking to you about this, anyway?" He didn't know why, but he always seemed to bear his soul in front of Kratos. He barely knew the guy.
Kratos said nothing more as he took Lloyd's dish, effectually ending the conversation.
Lloyd stood up and began to walk towards Genis, who was talking to his sister. He quickly looked up when he heard Lloyd approaching.
"Hey, how was the tofu curry?" Genis asked.
Leave it to Genis to talk about food. For a kid, he took cooking a little too seriously at times. "It was missing something," he answered honestly. Then again, he maybe missed the taste of metal from his dad's cooking.
Genis, however, looked very surprise by the answer. "Wow, you noticed."
Lloyd glared down at his friend. "What's that suppose to mean?"
Instead of his usual teasing, Genis actually looked ashamed. "Sorry. I mean, I didn't expect to hear you say that."
"That's the same thing!" Lloyd exclaimed.
"I didn't have all the ingredients," Genis said in annoyance. "It would have been perfect if I had some Kirima fruit."
Lloyd gave a small chuckle. "It was still good regardless."
Raine turned to look at Lloyd. "If you want, you could try my cooking next time."
Genis franticly shook his head. "If you want to live, you'd better not." Raine glared at Genis who ran behind Lloyd for protection. "But it's true..."
Lloyd looked between his teacher and friend for a moment. The Professor's cooking couldn't be that bad, could it? After some of the stuff he ate under Dirk, he was certain he had a steel stomach.
Raine dropped her anger towards Genis and glanced at Colette, who was still sitting next to the fire. She gave a relieved sigh when she saw that Colette's color had slowly returned. With luck, she would be back to old herself by morning. "It seems Colette's felling better now."
Lloyd became somber at the mention of Colette. "Yeah, it looks like becoming an angel is pretty rough." They didn't say anything at the Church about becoming an angel being so painful. Why would the Goddess Martel be so cruel to inflict such pain on anyone, let alone her most fateful follower?
"I wonder if her biological structure is changing," Raine remarked offhandedly.
"Bio-what?" Lloyd asked.
Genis shook his head. "I swear, Lloyd."
"In other words, I wonder if she's becoming a different kind of life form," Raine simplfied.
Genis frowned. "Aren't angels already classify as a different species?"
Raine nodded. "By the Church's standards, yes. However, we don't actually know the physical differences between us and the angles. Since Remiel is her father, that means he was capable of mating with Colette's human mother. That means there was enough similarities biologically to allow them to create a child. Much like a human and an elf."
"I never thought of it that way," Genis said in awe.
"I wonder if Colette would be kind enough to allow me to test her," Raine wondered out loud.
Lloyd narrowed his eyes in annoyance. He didn't care for how the Professor was referring to Colette like some science project. "Colette is Colette."
Raine's eyes widened as the full impact of that simple statement hit her. She felt ashamed for thinking about Colette in such a callous way, especially with what she was going to be given up for their salvation.
"Yes, you're right. You always point out the truth," Raine stated. It always amazed her that Lloyd seemed so wise about the human heart even though he didn't believed in Martel.
Lloyd began to blush slightly. "Ah, well..."
Genis rolled his eyes. "It's because he lives only by instinct."
Lloyd gave Genis a harsh glare, but it only made the younger boy even more smug. He finally gave up and went to check on Colette. She did look much better and her lips were no longer blue. Which was a big relief. She was still too pale, though.
Nonetheless, she still had a somewhat sad expression on her face. Lloyd frowned as he put his hands into his pockets, trying to think of something that would cheer Colette up. His fingers felt something hard at the bottom of one his pockets and he suddenly remembered Colette's birthday gift.
So much had happened that he had completely forgotten about it. If anything would put a smile on Colette's face, this would be it. Lloyd smirked to himself as he walked besides her.
She immediately snapped out of her stupor when she saw Lloyd approaching her. She could tell by his confident walk that had something on his mind.
Lloyd gave her a wide smile once he reached her. "I know it's a little late, but here's your birthday present." He reached his hand out to give Colette her necklace.
As expected, her eyes widened and moist at the gesture. She carefully took the necklace and gently rubbed the pendent. Her smile, however, fell when she looked at the chain.
"Oh, no. It's broken," Colette said sadly.
That was the last thing Lloyd was expecting to hear. He carefully took the necklace back from Colette and gave it a quick once over. The chain that held the pendent had broken in half.
"I wonder when it broke?" Lloyd wondered out loud. Although he suspected that all the fights he had been doing lately had something to do with it. His dad always said he had to be more careful with his things. Still, it reflective poorly on him as a craftsman to have his work break just from a little fighting. "I'm sorry, I'll make you a new one."
Colette gave him a warm smile. "Thanks…and I'm sorry that I keep causing trouble for you." She started to look back down.
"Don't worry about it," Lloyd said gently, not wanting her to blame herself anymore over things she couldn't control. Beside, he was trying to cheer her up, not make her feel worse. "By the way, you haven't been eating at all. Are you still feeling sick?" She didn't even want the light soup that Genis had offered to fix for her.
Colette lifted her had and shook it. " No, I'm fine. I just don't seem to have much of an appetite."
Lloyd frowned. "You won't be able to keep up your strength if you don't eat."
"I know," Colette said before she began to cough lightly.
As soft as they were, they got everyone's attention, including Kratos. For a spilt second, Lloyd could see the look of pity in Kratos' eyes.
"Lloyd, don't push her," Raine scowled as she walked towards her students.
Genis followed shortly behind her. "Colette is delicate, unlike you." The remark itself was not so much an insult, but it was clear from Genis' tone that it was fully meant to be one. Especially when Colette wasn't that delicate. The girl could fall through stone and not get hurt, after all.
"Shut it!" Lloyd snapped before recomposed himself. He then turned back towards Colette. "I'm sorry, Colette."
"No, no, I'm okay," Colette assured as she touched Lloyd's hand. "I'm really sorry for worrying you."
Lloyd knew it was pointless to tell her to stop apologizing.
"I'm going to go for a little walk," Colette suddenly said as she stood up.
"Do you want me to come with you?" Lloyd asked.
"Thanks, but I'll be fine by myself," Colette declined, which took everyone off-guard, saved for Kratos. Anyone who knew Colette knew that she never turned down an offer from Lloyd.
Lloyd was so taken back that he was actually slacked jaw.
Raine gave Colette a sympathetic look as she walked off some distance from the camp. She was still, however, within the barrier of the repellence so there was no need to worry about a monster attacking her. She could also see that Kratos was keeping a close eye on her.
Genis suddenly began to giggle. "Ha ha, you got rejected."
Raine had to keep herself from laughing out loud over the childish outburst. Leave it to Genis to be able to cut the atmosphere.
Lloyd, however, was not amused. "Shut up, Genis!"
Kratos ignored the bickering as he opened his senses towards Colette. He could hear her still softly coughing in the wind.
"What's happening to me?" Colette whispered brokenly.
Kratos could hear and feel the fear in her voice. This was the first time he had seen the Chosen so unbalanced. Although she had been prepared for this task all her life, the reality of her situation was fully dawning on her. She was going to die and it would not be a painless death. It would be long, drawn out process that would continue until nothing remained of her being. To make it worse, she would be fully aware as she felt herself slip away a piece at a time. The final nail in how twisted this system was that she would do it all to herself willingly. All for the sake to 'save' the world.
He hated himself for leading this child to her death and watching her lose herself to her cursed crystal. However, this was his task. A task he took willingly year ago. For better and for worst, he had to see this till the end.
The question was, how was Lloyd going to take all of this? Would he be able to handle what was going to become of the Chosen? Given how attached he was to the girl, he doubted it. He may even attack Remiel when the final moments came, which would force his hand.
There was little point, however, worrying about that right now. They had a lot more of this journey to cover before they cross that bridge.
The night grew still as the group slowly settle down for the night. The Chosen better enjoyed her peaceful dreams while she could still have them.
Daylight came too early for Lloyd, but he still was still forced to get up. He thought he would be able to sleep longer since they had such a long day in that temple, but Kratos didn't know the meaning of mercy. Thankfully, they were finally leaving the desert. He was so tired of seeing sand and spending hours washing in order not to smell like Noishe.
Speaking of which, Noishe was there to greet them as they again made their way through the desert. He briefly wondered where Noishe slept yesterday, but knew he wouldn't get an answer since Noishe didn't talk, or least talk in a language he understood.
"Professor, where are we going next?" Lloyd asked after they had been walking for nearly two hours. "All we know that we're supposed to cross the sea."
Raine shrived at the mention of the sea, but attempted to hide it. "We should head for Palmacosta. I don't think we're going to find anymore clues on this continent."
Genis' eyes widened in excitement. "It's the biggest city in the world and The Grand Church is there."
"The Grand Church?" Lloyd questioned.
"It is the main Church of the Goddess Martel," Colette explained as she turned towards Raine. "We must visit a service while we're there."
"I see what we can do," Raine said.
Lloyd sighed. He was not looking forward to any church service.
"The Palmacosta Academy is also there," Genis added with a wide smile.
"If we're going to Palmacosta, we'll have to pass through the Ossa Trail," Kratos stated.
"What's the Ossa Trail?" Lloyd asked.
"It is a road that takes you towards the fishing men town, Izoold," Kratos stated. "It's not a treacherous trail, but it's best that we don't lower our guard."
"How long will it take for us to reach it?" Lloyd asked further.
Kratos looked at the position of the sun. "We should reach the Ossa Trail by the late afternoon. Once we cross it, it should only take a little over a day to reach Izoold."
"As long as we're out of this desert, it all sounds good to me," Lloyd said.
It took another couple of hours, but Lloyd finally got his wish. Slowly, the desert's sand yielded to green grass and the temperature steadily dropped. Soon, they were once again in an open grassy field, much to everyone's delight. They actually found the weather on the cool since they had gotten somewhat used to the desert's heat.
"We should break for lunch," Kratos advised. No one raised a complaint.
"Hey, what's that over there?" Genis asked as he pointed ahead. They all stopped to see a caravan.
"Most likely people on a pilgrimage," Kratos stated neutrally. He, however, knew exactly who it was and he did not want to greet them. Nova would no doubt recognized him and reveal details of his past that he didn't want the others to hear. Not to mention how he hasn't aged since he met the man.
"Why don't we go greet them?" Lloyd suggested.
"Do as you wish," Kratos said. "I will remain here and get lunch prepared."
Noishe began to whine softly.
Kratos said nothing, but gave the dog a firm glance.
Noishe whimpered, but sat down.
Raine gave Kratos an odd look. "Very well. We shouldn't be gone long."
Lloyd led the group towards the caravan and they could see several people gathered around the wagon. One of the older women spotted them and walked over to confront them.
"Who are you?" she questioned.
The only male of the group also walked over towards them. "Oh my, we don't get visitors very often. May I help you?"
Lloyd stopped in his tracks. "Ah no, we were just passing by." He recomposed himself. "Are you in the middle of a pilgrimage?"
The man shook his head. "We are traveling while studying the animals of the world. My name is Nova and I'm a zoologist." He turned towards the women. "This is my oldest daughter, Alduin, my middle child, Sarah, and the one over there is my baby girl, May."
May gave them a short wave. She looked to be no older than six years old.
Sarah gave a slight nod and she looked to be a year or two younger than Alduin.
Lloyd gave them all a funny look. "Really, that's a weird thing to do in these dangerous times..." Before he could finish his sentence Raine slapped him hard upside his head. Everyone, except Colette and Genis, flinched.
"Traveling the world in pursuit of knowledge, that's wonderful," Raine said with deep admiration.
Nova was more then a little unnerved by her sudden change in Raine's mood, but he did his best to hide his discomfort. "I just like seeing all sorts of rare animals," he laughed nervously.
"It must be amazing to see so many types of animals," Colette remarked in wonderment.
Genis nodded in agreement.
"We even saw a giant glowing bird!" May suddenly exclaimed.
"Glowing bird?" Lloyd asked as he rubbed the bump that was forming on his head.
Raine put her hand on her chin in thought. "…That may have been Aska, the Summon Spirit of Light."
"Aska?" Lloyd repeated in surprise. He knew all about that summon spirit from the old stories his dad used to tell him.
Nova was equally surprise. "Really, that bird is a summon spirit?" He paused in thought. "I see, that would explain why it's a species I've never seen before."
"Can you tell us about the time you saw it?" Lloyd asked, barely containing his excitement.
Raine shook her head. Stories of the summon spirits were one of the few subjects that Lloyd listened to. Still, she was extremely interesting too. Despite knowing a lot about the spirits, she never had the honor of meeting one.
"The information might come in handy," Genis added before he began to blush. "Besides, I want to hear the story too."
"I think it would be better to ask my children," Nova stated. "I actually didn't get a good look at the bird."
Lloyd turned to face Alduin. She gave him a hard look for a moment before she finally spoke. "It was on the Ossa Trail. We were camping out near the peak and that glowing bird appeared."
"The Ossa Trail?" Lloyd muttered. As Alduin talked, Raine carefully took out her journal and wrote everything that was said in detail.
"The wind was also strong that day," Alduin continued. "A tree nearby played a mysterious melody as its nuts shook in the wind." She gave a small smile at the memory. "It was like a beautiful song."
"Tree nuts playing a mysterious melody?" Lloyd repeated in disbelief. He never heard of such a thing. "What the heck is that?"
Genis rolled his eyes at Lloyd's ignorance, but stopped short of insulting him when he saw the look on Raine's face.
"That's probably the Linkite," Raine stated. "It is a tree that is said to grow in high places. Supposedly when the nuts shake in the wind, they make a beautiful sound, like bells."
Lloyd's eyes widened in wonderment. "I didn't know there was a tree like that. But doesn't that mean we can meet Aska if we just go to the Ossa Trail?" He thought he was going to bust at the idea of seeing Aska.
Alduin shook her head. There was hint of sadness on her face. "No, the tree isn't there anymore. Either someone cut it down and took it away, or it was carried away in a landslide."
"That's so sad," Colette mourned. She wanted to hear the pretty tree.
"We've traveled all over the world, but we've yet to see that tree again," Alduin stated.
Raine frowned. "The Linkite Tree is thought to be extinct from over-harvesting and natural disasters."
"I picked nuts from the tree," May suddenly interrupted. "It makes a pretty sound." She held out a small bag and began to shake it. It sounded like she had a sack full of silver bells.
Lloyd knelt so he was eye-to-eye with the small child. "Could I see one?"
May nodded as she reached into her bag and pull out a rather plain looking nut. It looked like a slightly smaller walnut.
"So this is a Linkite Nut," Colette said as she leaned down to get a closer look at it.
Lloyd began to gently shake it and it made a low tingling sound. He couldn't help but to smile. "It really does make a pretty sound."
"You can keep that one," May said with a huge smile.
"Thank you very much," Lloyd replied graciously as he stood back up. He then walked towards Sarah. "If you know anything about the glowing bird, we would like you to tell us."
Sarah tilted her head in thought. "I imagine that bird can only be found among steep, impregnable mountains. Ones you could never reach by foot."
"Why do you think that?" Lloyd asked.
"Because we've been everywhere that one can walk to," Sarah explained. "If you could find it in one of those places, I think we would already have encountered it."
"I see," Lloyd muttered.
"If that is everything, we should be heading back towards camp," Raine advised as she finished taking the rest of her notes.
Lloyd nodded and smiled at the group. "Thank you for everything."
"No problem," Nova replied with a huge smile. "Come back anything."
May began to jump up and down. "It was nice meeting you!"
They all gave their goodbyes and began the short trip back towards the camp.
Raine quickly scanned through her notes. "I'll sum up the situation in which they encountered the glowing bird. First, they encountered it on the Ossa Trail. This indicates that the glowing bird only appears in high places. Next, a Linkite Tree made a beautiful sound, as if the nuts were producing a melody. Finally, on that day there was a strong wind, and the sound of the Linkite Nuts was carried a long distance by the wind. I think that about sums it up."
"They also said that after traveling around the world, they went back to the Ossa Trail, but the Linkite Tree was already gone," Genis added sadly.
"And they've yet to find another Linkite Tree on any of their journeys," Lloyd sighed.
"Which means in order to meet Aska, we need to search for a Linkite Tree in a place you can't get to on foot," Raine stated nonchalantly.
"That sounds impossible," Lloyd growled.
Raine closed her journal. "We don't need to accomplish it immediately. Even if we did find a Linkite Tree, it wouldn't do us any good if it was dead."
Genis nodded in agreement. "The sound has to be carried on the wind and playing a melody sounds difficult too."
Lloyd wrecked his brain over the problem for a second. "Couldn't you do something about a dead tree with your healing arts, Professor?"
Raine shook her head. "My power alone would not be enough. In order to heal something that is already dead, I'd need something that could strengthen my skills. Something that could call forth the Linkite Tree's will to live." She paused for a moment as a thought came to her. "Something like an exsphere or even just a small fragment of one. Also if it's dead, that means the ground there is weak. We'd need to replenish the earth and make it nourishing again."
"Dad's the only one I can think of who might have a spare exsphere," Lloyd remarked.
"Although if there are any other dwarves around, they might have one too," Genis added. Even though he had never seen another dwarf besides Dirk.
"There's nothing we can do but to give up on Aska," Raine concluded with a note of disappointment.
"Man, I wanted to see the summon spirit," Lloyd mourned.
Colette gave him a small smile. "Don't worry, Lloyd. I'm sure you'll see Aska one day."
"What are you people talking about?" Kratos asked when they finally got close enough.
"We were talking about those zoologists who saw a glowing bird," Lloyd answered.
That got Kratos' attention. "A glowing bird?"
Raine nodded. "By the description, it fits the profile of the Summon Spirit, Aska."
"I've heard that Aska was supposed to be a wondering summon spirit," Kratos said slowly.
"Yeah, but meeting Aska sounds tough," Genis stated. "We have to find a tree known as a Linkite."
"Aw, the mysterious tree who's nuts can play music," Kratos said.
"You know about the Linkite!?" Lloyd exclaimed in surprise.
"I am a mercenary who has heard many types of legends and folklores," Kratos stated. "I, however, heard that the Linkite no longer exist."
"Yes, and even if one was still alive somewhere, it would be extremely hard to find and reach," Raine said as she gave Kratos a curious stare. He seemed to know a lot, even for a mercenary.
"Even so, the Aska and the Linkite are out of our scoop," Kratos said. "We shouldn't lose track that we are on a journey to save the world."
Colette put her hands to her chest. "You're right. The Journey of Regeneration comes before anything else."
"Sit down and eat. We move out in thirty minutes," Kratos said as he went to get lunch.
I agree on Lloyd on this, I am glad to be done with the desert. We are slowly approaching one of my personal favorite parts of the game, so I really look forward to all of you reading it.
Kf2104, once again thanks for all your support and feedback. Once again, I always try to add a pinch of humor no matter how serious the situation is. I am just glad the joke worked out since I am not very good a writing humor. Although a character like Lloyd makes certain jokes easy.
peachesiscute, thanks very much for your review and I hope you continue to read. Tales of Symphonia is one of those few games that has a good mix of story, characters, and gameplay. What made Tales of Symphonia one of my personal favorites were the unique characters and the multiple player option. My brother and I spent the remaining of the summer before my first year in college playing this game and beat the game twice. It is one of my most fondest memories.
Anonymous Girl, I missed your reviews. I hope I will see you more often. Glad that my spelling is getting a little better. I really do try and I am happy that I am showing some results.
With that said, until next chapter.
