Well, it is the chapter that some of you have been waiting for. Thank you all for your hits, reviews, and favorites. Your encouragement keep me writing and improving my story. I also hope you guys had a safe and fun 4th of July, for my readers in the United States.
Now, onward to the story.
Chapter 6: Banishment
Lloyd groaned as he lifted his head off his desk. He must have fallen asleep while he was crafting. He looked out his window and saw that the sun was not completely overhead, showing that it wasn't quite noon yet. Good, he didn't oversleep.
He looked at his hand and saw the now completed necklace. It took all night, but it was finally finished.
The necklace was simple. It was a bronze chain with a circular charm as its centerpiece. It had a simple red stone in the middle, which he found in the mountains months ago. It wasn't his dad's quality of work, but it was still the best he had personally made. He knew Colette would love it.
He went to the bathroom and gave himself a quick wash before he dressed. Since he was going on the journey, he grabbed his steel swords and put them on his belt. Hopefully, the village guards won't see them, although they shouldn't be too picky considering what happened yesterday.
He ran downstairs and was surprised to see that his dad wasn't there. Dirk was always in the house in the morning either working or cooking. He briefly wondered if he was working on the furnace.
Lloyd went outside and headed towards the old cave. He stopped, however, when he saw Dirk standing by his mom's grave. He seemed deep in thought and didn't turn to face him. He carefully walked towards his dad and bowed his head in respect at the gravestone.
They didn't speak for a long moment as Lloyd found his voice. "Dad...I'm sorry."
Dirk slowly turned to face Lloyd and grabbed his hand. He gently placed something in Lloyd's palm.
Lloyd looked at the item and his eyes widened in shock. "This..."
"The key crest that you wanted," Dirk finished for him. "You can use it however you please. Just remember, I did try to stop you." His last sentence had a small hint of humor.
Lloyd tightened his grip around the key crest. "Dad, thank you!"
"Dwarven Vow number two, never abandon someone in need. I'm just going along with the teachings," Dirk quickly added.
Lloyd stared at Dirk for a second. "Dad, I'm going on a journey. I'm going to help Colette regenerate the world so that I can avenge my mom."
Dirk gave a long sigh. "Yeah, I figured you were going to say that."
So many thoughts ran through Dirk's head. He briefly wondered if he should tell Lloyd the truth. The truth about Cruxis and what would happen to Colette at the end of the journey.
He quickly dismissed the thought, however. If he told Lloyd, he would undoubtedly rush off to stop Colette and put himself in great danger. Colette wouldn't believe him anyway regardless of their friendship and may even reject Lloyd. It would break Lloyd to have such a dear friend call him a liar. Even if Lloyd could convince Colette of the truth, as he was now he would be crushed by the power of Cruxis.
If Lloyd did make it to the end, could he let Colette go? Would he fight to keep her from fulfilling the purpose she was born for? At this moment, nothing could be done. It was all in Origin's hands.
"Take this with you," Dirk said as he gave Lloyd a bag of gald and a map. He trusted the tracking skill he had taught Lloyd to keep him from getting lost.
Lloyd looked at the bag and then backed at Dirk. "So, you forgive me?"
Dirk gave a small smile. "Yeah, but remember, this is your home. You're still my son, regardless of blood."
Lloyd gave him a big smile. "I'll remember that."
Dirk began to smirk. "Don't forget Dwarven Vow number seven." He knew how much Lloyd hated that one.
As predicted, Lloyd rolled his eyes. "Justice and love will always win. Man, that's such a cheesy line for anyone to be saying these days."
Dirk chuckled as Noishe approached them. He had been silently watching the entire exchanged. Even now, Dirk still didn't know what went through that creature's mind.
Noishe whined softly as he nuzzled Lloyd's arm.
Lloyd patted his dog. "Noishe, it's time to regenerate the world!"
Noishe barked happily. He then turned around and looked towards the forest entrance.
Lloyd followed Noishe's line of sight and saw Genis running towards them. "Genis, what are you doing here?"
Genis ran until he was standing across from Lloyd. He attempted to catch his breath as he stared at his friend. "Lloyd, what are you still doing here?"
"Genis, good timing," Lloyd smiled as he held up the key crest. "I got dad to make Marble a key crest."
Genis stared at him for a moment as his eyes narrowed. "That's great and all, but what about seeing Colette off!"
"Oh yeah, about that, I've decided to join her," Lloyd informed Genis.
"Are you stupid or something!" Genis exclaimed in frustration. "Colette and the others left a long time ago!"
All the color drained out of Lloyd's face. "What?"
"I came looking for you because you never showed up!" Genis continued to yell.
"You got to be kidding me!" Lloyd began to yell.
Colette had actually tricked him. No, she downright lied to him. He was so emotional about his mom that he had failed to read Colette's feelings. How could he be so stupid?
"Lloyd, go to the village, now," Dirk said firmly.
Lloyd didn't need to be told twice as he jumped on Noishe. He pulled Genis up as well before they took off towards the village.
Dirk watched them go before he turned back towards Anna's grave. "I did the right thing, right lass? He may find out more than he could bear." He sighed deeply as the wind ruffled his beard.
Lloyd's mind raced as he thought about what had happened. A part of him was mad at Colette, but another part of him was greatly worried. Colette only lied to cover something really bad. What could she be hiding?
"Colette said she was leaving at noon!" Lloyd yelled out loud to Genis. "So, why did she lie?"
Genis frowned deeply. "She was acting overly cheerful before she left. She was telling everyone, 'I'll be fine' and 'I'll do my best'."
Lloyd closed his eyes in thought. "I bet she's hiding something. She always acts like that when she's worried or hiding something."
"Maybe so..." Genis said sadly.
Lloyd's eyes snapped opened. "I bet Phaidra probably knows something."
Within fifteen minutes, they reached the village's entrance. Lloyd and Genis quickly jumped off of Noishe, not waiting for the guards to go into their usual rant. They went straight towards Colette's house, not paying too much attention to the stares they were getting from the villagers.
When they reached the house, Lloyd didn't bothered to knock as he pushed the door opened. Phaidra was sitting in the living room with Frank. They both looked upset for some reason. Frank looked almost ready to cry and Phaidra was not doing much better, but was holding it together better than Frank.
"We knew this would happen," Frank muttered. "But for this day to actually come..."
"I know," Phaidra said somberly. "It's Martel's will. She was never meant to be ours forever."
"Phaidra?" Lloyd said, not sure if he wanted to interrupt the moment.
Phaidra looked up to see Lloyd. "Oh, hello, Lloyd."
Frank quickly wiped his eyes.
"Phaidra, is it true that Colette already left?" Lloyd asked softly. He had burnt off a lot of his earlier anger.
"Indeed," Phaidra said, her voice equally soft.
Lloyd looked down at the floor. He wasn't sure what to think at the moment.
Frank saw the distress look on Lloyd's face and quietly stood up. He slowly approached the young boy and handed him a crumpled piece of paper. "Colette...asked me to give you this letter."
Lloyd gently took the letter from Frank and carefully unfolded it. He began to read the letter.
Dear Lloyd,
By the time you read this, I will have already left on my journey. I'm sorry
for lying to you. The world regeneration journey is full of peril—many Chosens
have failed. I care about you too deeply to let you get involved. I'm going to
do my best to stop the monsters and the Desians, so I want you to live a happy
and peaceful life in the regenerated world. Thank you so much for your
friendship and kindness all these years. I'm really lucky to have met you.
-Farewell, Colette
Lloyd put the letter down in shock. "What is this!" he almost shouted. "This sounds like some kind of will."
Frank couldn't meet Lloyd's eyes as he began to speak. "Yes, you could call it that."
Genis, who had remained silent the entire time, looked at Frank for answers. "What do you mean?"
Frank bit his lips. He wasn't sure if he should tell them. Genis may understand in time and accept Colette's fate, but Lloyd was another story. He was a nonbeliever and didn't study the word of Martel. He would not understand what Colette had to do. He may even try to stop her.
At the same time, however, how cruel was it to allow them to believe that Colette would return home someday? For Raine to be the one to tell them that their childhood friend was no more and they knew nothing about it. Could he honestly live with himself?
Frank glanced at Phaidra who nodded her head. He then had the courage to face Lloyd. "Lloyd, Genis, there is something we hid from you and everyone in the village."
Lloyd and Genis both stared at Frank.
He took a deep breath as he continued. "Colette...no, the Chosen...is already..."
Before he could say any more a loud bang shook the entire house. It was like a bomb went off in the village.
"Whoa!" Genis exclaimed as he looked around.
"What the heck was that!" Lloyd yelled. He ran towards the window and saw red and orange lighting up the sky. It looked like it was sunset.
Soon, the sounds of screams flowed into the house. Without waiting another moment, Lloyd and Genis ran towards the door. When Lloyd opened the door, pure heat hit him in the face. It was like the cave when Dirk had the furnace at full blast. He quickly looked around and saw the horror that was before him.
The houses were on fire. From the foundation to the roof, they were completely engulfed in flames. People ran in all directions as Desians chased them across the road. A strange smell also filled the air. Lloyd quickly realized what he smelled was human flesh burning. It made him feel physically sick.
He had to stay strong, however. He couldn't lose it now. Not in front of Genis.
"Wh...why are they doing this," Genis muttered in revulsion. He was shaking violently.
"Burn, burn!" someone laughed over the roar of the fire.
Lloyd looked in the direction of the laughter and saw two Desians setting a house on fire with torches. The family of the house was still inside since Lloyd could hear their screams coming from one of the opened windows.
Lloyd rushed towards the scene and removed his swords. "Stop, dammit!"
The Desians turned towards him and grinned darkly. They were like unholy demons standing next to the burning house. "Look, more survivors."
The other Desians laughed sadistically. "Kill them! Kill all the miserable worms!"
Lloyd turned towards Genis. "Go put that house out."
"What?" Genis questioned.
"Just calm the fires so the family can escape!" Lloyd ordered again more harshly.
Genis nodded. "Got it." He ran ahead.
The Desians were too focus on Lloyd to care. They took their whips out and prepared to attack.
Lloyd growled. "You'll pay for this!" He charged the two Desians.
The Desians welcomed the challenged and snapped their whips at him. Lloyd ducked, and rolled out of the way before he brought his sword down on one of them. The Desians blocked the fatal blow by bring his whip up. The whip was stronger than Lloyd through and he was unable to cut through the thick leather.
The other Desians used this time to snap his whip against Lloyd. The whip hit Lloyd square in the back, causing him to flinch. He quickly jumped away before the guy could get another hit. The Desian looked surprise that his attack was so ineffective. Lloyd had to thank his dad for the steel woven.
"Demon Fang!" Lloyd yelled as he released a wave of mana.
The Desian put his whip up to protect himself, but it proved futile as the blade of mana cut through the whip and hit its target head on. The Desian screamed in pain as he collapsed on the ground, blood spilling everywhere.
"Damn you!" the second Desian screamed as he charged Lloyd.
Lloyd was ready and thrust out his sword. "Sonic Thrust."
He hit the Desian straight in the chest. It was nowhere near as gory as Kratos' attack, but it got the job done as the Desian grasped in shock as the sword embedded itself into his gut. He coughed up some blood before he went completely limp.
Lloyd pulled his blade free from the Desians' body, allowed it to crumple to the ground. He turned to check on Genis, who was using his magic to help the family escape from their home. He used spells like Wind Blade to destroy parts of the house and make the opening bigger for the people to escape.
"Thank you, Genis!" they yelled graciously as they ran by Genis.
Genis wiped the sweat from his forehead. "No problem. Just get to safety."
"Let's move!" Lloyd said. "We have to help more people."
Genis nodded as he followed Lloyd through the village.
They couldn't find many survivors and the smoke was so thick that Lloyd and Genis could barely see in front of them. Lloyd coughed violently as he attempted to catch his breath. Genis faired a little better since he was lower to the ground.
"Get low, Lloyd," Genis advised. "Smokes rise, so it's better to lie low."
Lloyd kneeled down a little to get a better look. The smoke was causing his eyes to burn.
"The school house!" Genis exclaimed as he ran ahead.
A man stood at the school's door and blocked it with a broom handle. "Get back!"
The Desians chuckled at him as they walked closer.
"What are you going to do, human?" the Desian sneered.
The man stood firm. "I'll die before I let you half-elves touch the people here."
"My pleasure," the other Desian smiled as he aimed his bow at the man.
"Stop!" Genis yelled. "Don't kill him!"
The Desian glared at him. "Who the hell are you, kid?"
Genis held up his kendama. "Leave this village!"
The Desians stared at him for a moment. "You're...why are you helping these humans?"
"Yeah, you're one of us," the second Desian said.
"I'm nothing like you!" Genis said as he chatted his spell. "Wind Blade!" Several blades of wind struck the Desians, causing them to scream in pain.
"You brat!" the Desian yelled as he took out his crossbow and aimed it at Genis' heart.
"Demon Fang!" Lloyd yelled as the blade of mana hit the crossbow, cutting it in half.
Before the other Desian knew what had happened, Lloyd charged him and he barely was able to block him with his sword.
Genis used this time to chant another spell. "Fireball!"
Several balls of fire shot towards the Desian, who was still reeling from the lost of his crossbow, and he was set ablaze. He screamed as he ran off, attempted to put himself out.
Genis quickly turned around to see Lloyd dispatching the last Desian. He turned his attention to the man who had guarded the schoolhouse. "Are you alright?"
The man nodded, but he gave Genis an odd look. "I'm fine, thank you."
Lloyd carefully looked over the school building. It appeared to be undamaged. "Is everyone inside the school?"
The man shook his head. "No, there still should be some people in the village plaza."
"We have to save them!" Genis yelled desperately.
Lloyd the turned to leave. Genis still could feel the man's eyes on his back. He had heard the Desians' words all too well.
It was another slow trek through the burning village. Both Lloyd and Genis were soaked in sweat by the heat that engulfed them.
Genis suddenly screamed. "Our house!"
Lloyd stopped and grasped when he saw the Sages' house on fire. He felt his heart swell with anger as he watched the house he once stood in as a toddler burn. Even if it was just for a couple of months, it still was a part of his childhood.
"Damn the Desians," Lloyd growled.
"This is horrible. What am I going to tell Raine when she gets back?" Genis moaned. He was still in a state of shock. "And this village looked like it might finally be a place we could have called home."
"Huh, what did you say?" Lloyd asked. He was so distracted that he didn't quite hear Genis. The fire also made things hard to hear.
Genis realized that he had said his statement out loud. "N...nothing! Let's hurry up and get rid of the Desians."
Lloyd stared at him for a second longer before they ran again, even more determine.
They finally reached the main plaza and saw that many of the town's people had been herded like cattle to the center of the plaza. They were surrounded by Desians who eyed them like hungry animals.
"I will asked you one last time," one of the Desian sneered. "Where is the one named Lloyd Irving?"
"We don't know," one of the people said. "He doesn't live in the village."
"I suggest you don't lie to us!" the Desian yelled. "Or do you want to die like everyone else?"
"That's enough!" Lloyd yelled as he ran forward. His clothes and face were dirty from the smoke and he smelled of ash. "You dared to attack the village again! I've had enough of this!"
Instead of the usual mocked that Lloyd had come to expect from the Desians, they actually looked confused. "What are you talking about?"
"He speaks nonsense. Ignore him," a deep voice said from the back of the Desians.
A man stepped forward to the front of the group and eyed everyone carefully. Lloyd felt a chill run down his spine as he stared at newcomer. This guy was nothing like the other Desians. His aura reminded him of Kratos.
"Listen up, inferior beings! I am Forcystus, one of the Five Desian Grand Cardinals," Forcystus stated. "I am a superior half-elf who rules over the farm where we cultivate you pathetic humans."
Genis stared at Forcystus. "A half-elf."
Forcystus' eye fell upon Lloyd and it felt like the half-elf was peering straight through him. Oddly, Lloyd didn't feel contempt from Forcystus like the others Desians. He seemed more curious than anything.
"Lloyd, you, a human, have been found guilty of the crime of violating the non-aggression treaty." Forcystus continued, his eyes never leaving Lloyd. "Therefore, I bring judgment upon you and this village!"
"You violated the treaty too!" Genis yelled, once he had found his voice. "You tried to murder the Chosen!"
Forcystus stared at Genis, along with the other Desians. Forcystus' eye widened for a second before it returned to normal. The other Desians weren't as discipline as him and they began to laugh.
The captain of the unit was nearly double over. "I see, they must be after the Chosen."
Forcystus inwardly sighed. It was a good thing Cruxis sent down an agent to protect the Chosen, although he was annoyed that the Renegades managed to slip by him without him noticing. At the same time, it was pitiful how easy humans could be fooled.
Lloyd looked between all the Desians in complete confusion. "They? Are you saying you aren't the ones that attacked Colette?"
Forcystus stared back at Lloyd. For a being that Lord Yggdrasill wanted, he was dimly human. There was nothing to suggest that he was anything more to him. No matter, he didn't need the Angelus at the moment.
"I have no need to explain myself to the likes of you," Forcystus said in a firm voice. "The only thing that matters is that you, Lloyd Irving, have been in contact with host body F192 and attacked our guards."
The mayor ran forward and got into Lloyd's face. "What have you done!" he growled with righteous fury. "How many times have we told you to stay away from the Ranch!"
Lloyd put his head down in shame. These people were dying because of his actions. He knew something like this could happen if he was caught. But he had never imagined it would be this bad. "...I'm sorry."
Forcystus stood unmoved from the display. It was time to properly test this Angelus. "We've prepared an appropriate opponent for your crime!"
With a slight nod of his head, several Desians pulled a creature into the village. It was chained by the neck and stood several feet tall. One of its arms was longer than the other and it walked with a heavy limp. Its one red eye glared down at them and it gave a loud roar. The roar, however, seemed to be filled with pain instead of bloodthirst.
"What is that thing!" Lloyd exclaimed, although there was something vaguely familiar about this monster. For a brief moment, he felt like he had seen a creature like it before.
Forcystus almost smiled. The poor boy didn't know. It took away half the fun of these types of events, but that was of little importance. He only bothered to change this woman to see how this Angelus acted in combat for himself. If he was even halfway decent, he should be able to handle an Exbelua. Especially a half dead one from the Ranch.
Once the test was done, he would personally rip that exsphere from that boy's hand and per his orders the Angelus wouldn't be too badly damaged.
"Now, receive your punishment," Forcystus stated as he moved out of the monster's path.
The Desians let go of the Exbelua and let it run towards Lloyd and Genis.
"Crap!" Lloyd exclaimed as he dodged a sloppy swing from the monster. It was still strong enough, however, to put a dent in the ground.
The mayor gave a high pitch scream as the monster stared down at him. Before it could attack, Genis released a fireball at the monster. It reeled in pain and gave a loud screech.
"Get out of here!" Genis ordered the mayor. He didn't have to be told twice and the mayor rushed towards the safety of the surrounding crowd.
Lloyd quickly moved in and performed a Sonic Thrust at the monster. It moved out of the way at the last moment making Lloyd only hit its arm. Blood sprayed everywhere as the monster fell back. Lloyd was more than surprise to see that the blood was yellow.
Some of it landed on Lloyd's cheek and it stung. He hissed in pain as he wiped his cheek, it was like a bee had stung him.
"Lloyd, be careful!" Genis warned. "The blood is like acid!"
Lloyd turned towards his friend. "What's acid?"
Before Genis could answer, the monster was on Lloyd and he was nearly impaled. He moved just enough so the monster only tore his coat.
Genis started another spell, deciding he would tease Lloyd later if they lived though this. He concentrated more mana into the spell, attempting to perform a spell that he could only do at the temple. "Stone Blast!" Several bits of earth shot off from the ground and hit the monster, causing it to flinch.
Lloyd saw his chance and ran in. "Demon Fang!" The attack hit and the monster's left arm came clear off, spilling blood all over the ground.
The Exbelua fell to the ground, breathing hard and trying to clutched its injuries with its other hand.
Forcystus smirked in approval. Not too bad, although it took longer than he had expected. The Angelus had some talent, although it was very raw.
"Lord Forcystus, just as you thought, that boy has an exsphere!" the captain said when he saw Lloyd's exsphere glowing in the sun. The cloth he wore had fallen off again during the battle.
"It is the one from the Angelus Project," Forcystus said, deciding to fill in his men. He stepped towards Lloyd. "Give us that exsphere."
Lloyd pulled back. "No, this is a memento of my mom's, who you Desians murdered!" he yelled as his rage flowed out of his eyes.
Forcystus stopped short. Doesn't he remember what happened that night? Then again, he was just a toddler. "What are you talking about? Your mother was..."
Before he could say more, the Exbelua suddenly stood up and tackled him to the ground. Forcystus was completely surprise by the level of power this creature still had. Where was it gaining its strength? It only had one arm, was bleeding heavily in several places, and it was originally an old frail woman. Yet, it was able to completely pin him.
"Run...away...Genis, Lloyd..." the Exbelua stuttered in its broken speech.
Forcystus' eye widened in shock. "Impossible, it shouldn't have a mind left."
Genis gasped. "What...it sounds like...Marble."
Lloyd froze. "It could be..." The world couldn't be that cruel.
"Uh...ugh...guh...Get away...hurry!" the Exbelua yelled in a stronger voice.
Genis' eyes widened. "No, Marble is that you!"
Marble's breathing became more strained and as her mana built into her body. She began to glow and Forcystus struggled even harder to escape.
"Damn you, get off of me you old hag!" Forcystus yelled.
"Genis...you were like a grandson to me," Marble spoke softly as she glowed even brighter. In her one eye tears appeared to be falling. "Thank you and goodbye..."
The mana hit its peak and a loud explosion filled the area, knocking several people off their feet. People screamed in terror as they attempted to get a way from the explosion.
Through the chaos Genis' eyes caught something heading towards him. It landed peacefully by his feet and he stared at it for several moments. He slowly picked it up to get a better look at it. It was a crystal, no, it was Marble's exsphere.
Forcystus lay injured on the ground. Burnt marks were scattered across his body and his metal arm was badly damaged. "Damn that woman," he muttered.
"Protect Lord Forcystus!" the Desian captain yelled as several Desians ran to help Forcystus up. He was slowly able to stand up with support.
Forcystus glared at Lloyd, who was staring at the crater in shock. He was pissed that he couldn't complete his mission. He quickly glanced around the village and saw everyone staring at Lloyd. He knew those looks all too well. It was the same look that humans always gave just before they turned on each other.
He almost wanted to laugh. Humans were so predictable. Show them a little terror and they fold every time. He may have failed, but he was going to make sure that the Angelus would have no shelter to return to.
"Lloyd, we will always come after you as long as you possess that exsphere. Always!" Forcystus emphasized. He glanced at the mayor and saw the hate that he now had being directed at Lloyd. He knew his work here was done.
"Let's go!" Forcystus ordered as the Desians filed out. The village did nothing to stop them. They were too broken and scared to try.
Lloyd continued to stare at the crater. Did he really just kill an innocent person?
"Marble..." Genis muttered as he fell to his knees. He cuddled the exsphere in his hand.
"This is all your fault!" the mayor yelled as he glared at Lloyd. "Look at our village! Look what you have done!"
Lloyd finally broke his glaze away from the crater and began to look around the burning village. It all felt too surreal. It didn't seem real to see his adopted home burning to the ground. To see the people he saw everyday dead on the ground and smelling their remains. It was all like a bad dream.
"The Desians marked you as their enemy!" the mayor continued. He had calmed down a little, but never lost his glare. "As long as you are here, this village will never be at peace."
Genis snapped out of his daze and quickly stood up to face the mayor. "What are you trying to say! You can't be planning to exile him!"
"That's exactly what I'm saying," the mayor said, never looking a way from Lloyd.
Genis could feel his anger building. "That's not fair! Lloyd didn't do anything wrong! He just saved Marble..."
"Any involvement with the Ranch is forbidden," the mayor cut Genis off in mid rant. "There are no exceptions."
"So it's okay to let people die at the Human Ranch as long as the village is safe!" Genis asked in disbelief. He knew the treaty existed to protect Colette, but what was their excuse now? How could they be so cold to their fellow men?
"The people at the Ranch are just going to rot there anyway," a villager said coldly.
"Had you not done something so stupid, they'd have been the only ones that died," the major countered in agreement with his fellow villager.
Genis looked among the villagers for anyone sane to speak up. But they were all silence, some not even looking at him, which spoke volumes about them. They cared nothing for the people suffering and dying at the Ranch. As long as it wasn't them or they didn't see the horrors for themselves, it was all out of mind.
This wasn't what the word of Martel preached. The book never said to bury your head in the sand in the face of evil. Cowards, every last one of them.
"You humans are all the same," Genis muttered. To think he thought of them as his friends and this place his home. How naive he had been.
"That's enough, Genis," Lloyd said in a firm voice, catching the younger boy off-guard. "This was my fault." He turned towards the mayor. "I'll leave."
The mayor actually seemed surprise that Lloyd was not putting up a fight.
"Mayor, surely you don't have to be so strict on a child," one of the villagers spoke up.
"What are you saying!" someone else yelled over the crowd. "Do you know how many people died because of that 'child'?"
"I'm the one that took him to the Ranch!" Genis shouted, causing everyone to turn towards him. He ignored their accusing glares. "It's my fault, not Lloyd's."
"It's Lloyd the Desians want," the mayor countered back. "Besides, Lloyd isn't even from this villager. He's a heathen raised by a dwarf."
"This is Martel's punishment for letting his kind into our village!" another villager yelled. "Those who chose to stray away from Martel's light are destined to live in darkness."
Those words angered Genis more than anything. He had heard the exact same thing his entire life. The reasons maybe different, but the hate was all the same.
"Then I'm leaving too," Genis declared. He would rather take his chances with the monsters than to stay with these hypocrites.
"Fine then," the mayor said as he walked a way from them. He then stood in front of the crowd as they all glared down at them. "By the rights vested in me as mayor, I hereby announce the banishment of Lloyd and Genis from the village of Iselia."
"Get out!" someone yelled angrily.
"May Martel have mercy on your soul, heathen!" another screamed.
Lloyd turned to leave.
"Lloyd, wait!" someone shouted. Everyone turned to see Frank running up towards them with Phaidra shortly behind them.
"High Priestess Phaidra," people muttered.
Lloyd looked at the older woman with shame in his eyes. "I'm sorry for everything that has happened."
"It wasn't your fault," Frank said. "You tried to do the right thing. No one can fault you for that." He glanced angrily as his fellow villagers.
"But because of me, so many people has died," Lloyd muttered.
Frank was going to say something, but Phaidra stepped in. "If you feel that way, then please catch up to the Chosen and protect her."
"High Priestess, you can't possible think he..." the mayor started.
"It is the Chosen's decision to accept them," Phaidra said firmly, cutting the mayor off. "Since you have banished Lloyd and Genis, you no longer have any authority over them."
The mayor was lost for words.
"If you help the Chosen, you would be redeem by the Goddess," Phaidra continued.
"I'm sure Colette would want that as well," Frank added.
Lloyd looked into Phaidra's face. He didn't want or care for Martel's forgiveness. He wanted to make up for the lives that were lost because of his foolishness, but Phaidra had a point. If he helped Colette, the Desians would once again be seal away and no one else would have to suffer under them. It was the only thing he could do now.
"Yes, I will atone for what I've done. I swear to protect Colette for the sake of those who have died because of me," Lloyd vowed.
"I'll follow you, Lloyd," Genis said as he stood by his side. "I promise to stick by you, always."
Lloyd took one last look at his childhood home and turned to leave. He wouldn't let the lives lost here be in vain. Whether the Goddess Martel existed or not, he would see the end of the Desians.
Frank watched them leave and gave a small prayer. "May the Goddess Martel protect them."
Yes, I finally got Lloyd and Genis out of Iselia. It only took like 30,000 words and we still at the beginning. Fun times ahead.
As a heads up, I will be going out of town this Sunday, so I may not be able to update for the next two weeks. I will do my best to keep updating on time, but no promises.
KF2104, I do agree that some fanfic writers do a bad job characterizing Lloyd. I think this is mostly because it is hard to write a character who is really book dumb and somewhat stupid on some subjects, but is also very smart and observant. I think I actually write Lloyd a little smarter than he is in canon since I do not go into too much detail about Lloyd's lack of book smarts and more about him being socially awkward.
Forcytus was a little hard to write too since I do understand that he does have his noble side, but he is still a Grand Cardinal. I see him as a person who is good to his men, respectful to his superiors, and have no selfish motives besides making a better world for half-elves. If it wasn't for the fact that Forcytus is a racist he could have been a truly good person or even friends with Lloyd.
Scream Machine, thanks for your review. Yeah, sorry about the grammar errors. I went back to the last chapter and did make minor grammar changes. My chapters are so long that I do tend to skim near the end and it is hard to get all your mistakes when you do not have that extra pair of eyes. Know that I do my best and I do hope my beta gets better soon.
With that said, until next chapter.