Another chapter already, yes we're on a roll again. Thank you all for supporting this story despite my lousy update schedule. Hope you all continue to enjoy as we slowly complete this journey together.
Now, onward to the chapter.
Chapter 75: Iron Will Rodyle
There was a flash of light that blinded everyone the moment Rodyle active the Cruxis Crystal. When they were able to see again there was a giant monster where Rodyle once stood. It looked similar to an Exebula, except it was bigger, bulkier, and it appeared to be wearing armor. It also lacked the limpness seen in an Exebula.
Zelos' eyes narrowed as he observed the new form. This wasn't the work of a Cruxis Crystal. If it was, he would have become a type of angel. So, what the hell was Rodyle using?
Genis gasped as he stepped back. Rodyle's mana was dangerously unstable. It reminded him of Marble and Clara. Did Rodyle really have a Cruxis Crystal? This looked more like a crestless exsphere.
Regal shook his head in disgust. "Rodyle…it's only fitting that you die in that horrible, twisted form." Without another word, he charged the monster. He attempted to kick Rodyle in the chest, but the Grand Cardinal blocked the attack.
"Pathetic!" Rodyle wheezed as he pushed Regal back and brought his hand down to gut him with his long claws.
Lloyd charged in and easily blocked the fatal blow. Rodyle growled as he attempted to push his claw into the young swordsman's face, but Lloyd's arms barely budged.
Lloyd gave a wolfish grin. "You were much faster before."
"Shut up!" Rodyle shouted as the ground suddenly bursted under Lloyd's feet, knocking him off balance.
"Careful, Rodyle knows Earth spells!" Raine warned as she cast Barrier and Sharpen on the group.
Rodyle laughed at them. "You're puny magic is no match for me. With the power of the Cruxis Crystal, my magic now surpasses even Kvar's."
"Kvar is old news, loser," Genius mocked as he finished his own spell. "Absolute!"
Jagged ice formed around Rodyle before they exploded on him, knocking him back.
"Victory Light Spear!" Zelos shouted, taking advantage of Genis' attack to stab the Grand Cardinal in the midsection.
Rodyle roared in pain as he glared at Zelos. "Tethe'alla's Chosen. I will take special care ripping you apart." Runes appeared under him. "Gravity Well!"
A dome of black magic surrounded the group. It suddenly felt like they were several pounds heavier.
"Damn, what is this…" Lloyd groaned.
Rodyle chuckled. "Now, you can't move. Grave!"
Pillars of sharp earth rose from the ground and attempted to impale the entire party. Raine was able to protect the group by casting Barrier again.
"Struggle all you like. As long as you're in my Gravity Well, it's only a matter of time before…."
Presea suddenly jumped out of the Gravity Well. "Rising Punishment!" She spun vertically and hit Rodyle at least four times, spilling his yellow, infected blood across the floor.
Rodyle screamed in agony, but before Presea could do even more damage she suddenly cried in pain too.
"What's wrong!" Genis shouted in dismay as the Gravity Well finally disappeared.
"Look at Presea's arm," Sheena said in alarm as she saw smoke leave it. It was like she was burnt.
Lloyd's eyes widened in remembrance.
He moved in and performed a Sonic Thrust at Marble. She moved just enough so he only hit her arm. Blood sprayed everywhere as Marble fell back.
Some of it landed on Lloyd's cheek and it stung. He hissed in pain as he wiped his face, it was like a bee stung him.
"Lloyd, be careful!" Genis warned. "The blood is like acid!"
"It's just like Marble…." Lloyd whispered before he got his head back in the battle. "Be careful everyone! Rodyle's blood is like acid. Don't let any of it touch you!"
Regal also froze as memories assaulted him.
"Master Regal…please…kill me!" the mutated voice of Alicia begged as she moved in to attack him.
"I…I can't. I could never kill you with my own hands!" Regal shouted in denial.
"It's because I love you that I want you to do it!" Alicia screamed as she began to lose every ouch of her humanity and she brought her clawed hand down upon her beloved.
On pure instinct, Regal punched a hole through Alicia's chest, spilling her yellow blood across his hands, badly burning them. But the physical pain was nothing compared to the emotional agony as he heard Alicia scream.
"Regal, are you okay!?" Raine yelled, knocking Regal back to the present.
Regal was unable to speak.
"Hey, no time to space out!" Zelos shouted as Rodyle cast Grave upon them.
Regal shook his head. "Yes…yes, I'm sorry…" He quickly cast Healer on Presea's burns.
Sheena blocked several sharpened earth with her paper. "How is this bastard even still alive? Presea's attack should have torn him apart."
"People who transform into monsters like this become highly durable," Lloyd replied as he dodged more of Rodyle's Grave spells. His eyes became downcast. "It made a half-dead old woman capable of nearly killing me and Genis. With Rodyle already being fairly strong, it's going to take a lot to bring him down."
"Fine by me," Presea whispered as she stood back up. "I want Rodyle to experience more pain before he dies." She ran in for another attack.
"I think not!" Rodyle yelled as he attempted to cast another Gravity Well to entrap Presea. He was stopped, however, when a haunting song reached his ears. "What….?" He suddenly felt the strength leave his body. He glanced up to see Colette singing. "Holy Song? Even as a failure Chosen, you're troublesome."
While he was distracted, Presea brought her axe down with the full intention of beheading Rodyle. The Grand Cardinal quickly performed a Ground Dasher, forcing Presea to retreat.
Even with that, Rodyle realized that he was in grave danger since everyone in the Chosen's group was now glowing. A fully powered Holy Song not only depowered an enemy, but also empowers all the Chosen's allies. He saw what the incomplete version did to Magnius.
"Troublesome Chosen, begone!" Rodyle shouted as he cast Grave at her.
Lloyd jumped in front of his childhood friend and performed Guardian. Despite Guardian being weak to magical attacks, it held off Rodyle's assault. "I'll protect Colette! You guys, take out Rodyle."
"Got it!" Sheena yelled as she prepared her summon. " I call upon the disciple of everlasting ice. I summon thee. Come, Celsius!"
From the runes of ice came Celsius.
Rodyle growled when he saw her. It would seem Kuchinawa's reports were correct.
Celsius didn't waste another moment before charging Rodyle and rapidly punched him across his body. The Grand Cardinal's body withered under the merciless assault as he felt his body freeze over.
"Absolute!" Genis shouted, adding to Rodyle's misery as his body completely froze over.
"Now to finish this," Regal said as he ran in with Presea right behind him. "Eagle Fall!"
"Resolute Infliction!" Presea yelled.
Both attacks hit shattered the ice that Rodyle was entrapped in. To everyone's surprise, Rodyle was still standing, although heavily bleeding everywhere. His blood burnt the metal floor under him and he now had an odor of decay.
"You…YOU INFERIOR BEINGS!" Rodyle screamed as he brought his claw hand down and nearly gutted Regal.
"REGAL!" Lloyd shouted, causing Colette to stop her singing.
"Cure!" Raine yelled, quickly healing Regal's wound before he bled out.
Presea quickly followed her assault with a downward chop, lopping off Rodyle's right arm, causing the Grand Cardinal to scream in agony.
Raine looked towards her brother and they both nodded in understanding. "Ray!"
"Explosion!" Genis shouted.
The two attacks merged and Rodyle was pelted with stars from all directions.
Colette saw this as her opening for her own attack. " O' holy one, cast thy purifying light upon these corrupt souls... light of judgment! Judgment!"
When her light attack fused with Raine's Ray, which was still lingering, several crosses of light suddenly appeared and exploded around Rodyle.
"What the…" Lloyd spoke in shocked.
"It seems we found a new spell combination," Raine observed.
Rodyle emerged from the fierce attacks badly damage, but somehow still standing.
"Sheesh, what does it takes to kill you?" Zelos asked in frustration.
"I won't die…. Not before I become the new ruler of the two worlds!" Rodyle declared as the entire ground exploded in stalagmites, piercing several of the Chosen's group.
"Nurse!" Raine yelled, attempting to heal the group.
Rodyle glared at her. Without a word, he summoned a giant spear of earth and threw it right at Raine in the middle of her heal. Just as she completed the spell, the spear of rock pierced her heart.
"RAINE!" Genis screamed in horror as he started to run towards his sister.
"I'll take care of her!" Zelos shouted, cutting the young mage off. "You take care of Rodyle."
"I'll help too," Regal said as he rushed to Raine's side.
Genis glared daggers as Rodyle as tears fell from his eyes. "You bastard!"
Rodyle laughed at him. "Now with that that bothersome healer gone, I can pick you all off."
"Don't get cocky!" Lloyd yelled as he performed a Rising Falcon and dived right into Rodyle's remaining arm.
Rodyle sneered at him as he backhanded Lloyd away, despite the viciousness of the blow, Lloyd landed gracefully on the floor.
Sheena got her next summon ready. " I call upon the hammer of godly lightning. I summon thee. Come, Volt!"
The hammer of godly lightning appeared and awaited his orders.
"Attack Rodyle!" Sheena shouted.
Volt glowed and hit Rodyle with a barrage of lightning so bright that it nearly blind everyone.
"I WON'T LOSE!" Rodyle screamed in defiant as more earth exploded around the group, knocking them over.
"We have to put Rodyle down now," Presea said as she stood up and looked at Lloyd. "Lloyd, please lend me your strength."
Lloyd looked up at the small girl and nodded. "Got it."
Presea ran in for the killing blow. "Deadly Destruction!" She slammed her axe onto the floor, causing rocks to be blasted from the ground and head right for Rodyle.
"Demonic Chaos!" Lloyd shouted as he released three waves of mana.
When the two attack fused, a giant ball flames exploded on Rodyle.
The Grand Cardinal could only scream in anguish as his mutated body was burnt all over.
"And this is for Raine! Explosion!" Genis yelled as he added to the flames.
When it was over, Rodyle finally fell to his knees. He was covered in third-degree burns and the yellow blood pooled under him, leaving a trail of stream.
Seeing that Rodyle was currently disabled, Genis ran to check on Raine. "Is she…"
"She's fine," Zelos assured. "Between me and Regal healing, we were able to stop the bleeding and heal the wound."
Regal sighed. "And not a moment too soon. I feared we were too late."
Genis nearly fall to her knees in relief.
Raine looked at her savers weakly. "I was careless. I should have known Rodyle would've eventually take aim at me."
"Just be thankful that you're not the only healer in the group," Zelos said.
Rodyle suddenly began to cough violently, gushing out even more acidly blood, and holes began to rapidly appear on his body. It was like he was being eating away from the inside out.
"What's going on?" Colette asked.
"I have no clue," Lloyd answered. When he fought Marble, this didn't happened.
"Ugh…what's happening? My…my body…my body is disintegrating!" Rodyle shouted in horror as more holes appeared across his body and his already deformed skin started to decay.
Lloyd had to fight not to cover his nose. While Rodyle reeked before, he began to smell like death.
"Pronyma, you tricked me!" Rodyle screamed in rage, horror, and hatred.
Zelos narrowed his eyes.
Pronyma? Well, that would explained why Rodyle's 'Cruxis Crystal' didn't act correctly and was now eating him alive. But why the hell would Rodyle ever trust Pronyma, Yggdrasill's most trusted servant? He truly was a moron for all his suppose cleverness.
Rodyle forced himself to stand up, causing the entire party to be on guard. With barely glancing at them, he walked over to the main computer with his remaining strength. "But I won't die alone!" He pressed several codes into the panel. "I'm taking you all with me!"
Lloyd's eyes widened when he heard those words and ran to stop Rodyle. He was too late as a loud alarm went off across the Ranch.
"No! He's activated the self-destruct system!" Raine shouted in alarm as she sat up.
"Botta warned us not to destroy this place!" Colette exclaimed in horror.
"Forget that, we won't be able to escape in time before the Ranch is destroyed," Zelos spoke in a near panic.
Rodyle chuckled as the last of his life slip away from him. "You'll all die…. I will deny Yggdrasill of his precious Chosen." He glared at Lloyd with his bloodshot eye. "And of the Angelus he so desires."
Colette gasped.
Then it was true. This was why Kvar and Yggdrasill wanted Lloyd. Was it all because he was born from a human mother? Did that somehow create a being that was able to challenged the spirits in power?
This made Lloyd paused. "Angelus? What is this Angelus? Kvar kept saying that too."
Rodyle laughed at Lloyd before he fell over. This time, he didn't get up.
Lloyd could only stare at Rodyle's now lifeless body. Dammit! What the hell was this Angelus and how did it connect to him?
Before he could ponder further, he was nearly knocked over by Raine. She quickly went to work trying to deactivate the self-destruct system.
Everyone gathered around her, but after nearly a minute, the alarm was still going off.
"Professor?" Lloyd asked anxiously.
Raine shook her head. "I can't do this by myself."
Lloyd looked at the Tethe'alla group desperately. "Can't any of you help?"
Presea lowered her head. "Impossible. The only one among us who can handle this type of machinery is Raine."
Zelos also sighed. "Most Tethe'allans don't really study the details of magitechnology very much."
At that moment, Botta and his two Renegades ran into the room.
"We'll take over from here," Botta spoke before the Chosen's group fully registered his presence. "The rest of you go and escape through the hatch over there."
"But…" Lloyd started.
"There'll be plenty of time for chit-chat later. Leave, now. You'll only get in our way!" Botta all but ordered.
Lloyd knew there was no used arguing with him. Besides, it wasn't like they could help in this situation. "Okay…"
They quickly left through the hatch. As soon at they reached the other side, they heard the hatch suddenly closed and locked behind them.
"What…?" Genis asked in confusion.
"Look, we can see Botta and the others," Colette said.
They looked to see a huge glass window where they could see Botta work on the computer. It was the same glass window they saw when they confronted Rodyle.
Everything appeared to be fine, until they noticed that the control room was rapidly filling with water. Despite the obvious danger they were in, Botta and the others continued to work.
"We've got to open that door!" Lloyd shouted. He ran to force the hatch opened, but it wouldn't budge.
Colette and Presea quickly joined him, but even with their unnatural strength, they couldn't get the hatch to move.
"Move!" Regal suddenly shouted as he ran pass Lloyd, Colette, and Presea. Instead of trying to open the hatch, he attempted to kick the window in. Despite Regal's kicks being capable of shattering bone and steel, the window didn't even crack.
Raine put her hand to her heart as the truth hit her. "Botta did this on purpose. They knew the water was coming and locked it from the inside."
"Why would they do that!?" Colette asked in tears, accepting that she couldn't open the hatch.
Raine was silent for several seconds as she stared at the window. "If the door opens, this area will be flooded as well. And as you can see, the ceiling is covered by a dome. There's nowhere for the water to escape."
"They did it…to save us?" Presea whispered.
Colette shook her head in denial. "No! We have to do something!"
"Dammit! Isn't there anything we can do!?" Lloyd shouted in despair.
"We've stopped the self-destruct system," the voice of Botta spoke from what appeared to be a speaker.
Everyone looked up.
Botta and the other two Renegades walked towards the window, giving them forlorn stares. The room was filling fast, and Botta and the others would be underwater in just a few minutes.
"Botta! Open the door! If we destroy the dome overhead…" Lloyd shouted.
"Our goal was to modify each Ranch's mana reactor in order to fire mana at the Great Seed," Botta interrupted Lloyd's pleas. "Now that we've finished reprogramming this control room, our mission is complete. We need you to get the message to Yuan that we have succeeded."
"Tell him yourself!" Lloyd yelled in both anger and desperation. "Open the door, now!" He took out his swords and swung wildly at the glass window. Just like Regal's kicks, he couldn't make a single crack appear. He growled in frustration. What the hell was this glass made of?
Botta gave a solemn smile. "We pray for your success in regenerating the world. Please see to it that Martel is finally allowed her eternal sleep, for Yuan's sake as well," he added before he pressed something by the window.
Without warning, the window's shutters closed and all was quiet. Apparently, Botta wanted to spare them the sight of seeing him and the others drowning.
"NO!" Colette's screamed, breaking through the silence.
Zelos lowered his head. "Man…."
He knew Botta was loyal to Yuan to a fault. But….he never expected the man to sacrifice himself for not only the mission, but also for their sakes. Whatever faults Yuan had, and he had a lot of them, he found some wonderful people to serve him.
Now…more than ever, he wanted Lloyd and the Renegades to succeed. Not only would it free him and his sister from the curse of the Chosen, but he also wanted to make sure Botta didn't die for nothing.
Lloyd put a single hand to the window and trembled in grief and rage.
Dammit! Why wouldn't Botta let him save him? And why did he still lack the power to save anyone despite all the training he has done? This wasn't right…
Even worse, all the people they freed were also killed. Drowned in the seawater like rats. There were children there for the spirits' sake! All so Rodyle could protect his Mana Cannon.
Damn that Rodyle! May that bastard rot in hell!
"Everyone, behind you!" Presea suddenly shouted.
They all turned to see half a dozen dragons floating behind them. They were coming out of a cage a little above the room.
Lloyd gasped. "Wh…what are those things!?"
"They look like transport dragons. Their cages probably opened when the self-destruct system was activated," Raine observed.
"Look out!" Regal yelled in alarm as the dragon flew right at them.
Thankfully, these dragons were nothing compared to the Winged Dragons from the Dragon's Nest. Still, they proved to be quite troublesome since they were still worn out from their fight with Rodyle.
"There are too many of them!" Sheena shouted as she performed a Power Seal Pinion to decrease the dragon's defense.
Lloyd sneered when one of the dragons attempted to bit his arm off. "Damn, they're tough!"
Colette finished casting Judgment, which took out a few dragons, but more kept appearing. "If we lose, we'll never be able to pass on Botta's message."
Sheena decided to throw caution to the wind and summoned Volt. The Lightning Summon Spirit managed to wipe an entire group of dragons, but that still didn't stop more from appearing. It was like cutting a hydra's head at this point.
"Damn…" Sheena whispered as she approached her limits.
Genis was also huffing in exhaustion. He cast too many advance spells in too short of a timespan. At this rate….everyone would be killed. He reached into his bag for a pineapple gel when his hand felt something hard. He pulled the object out and realized it was a flute. It was the flute Mithos gave them before they left to check on the Palmacosta Ranch.
"If you find yourself in danger, play it. I don't know what it can do, but it may just be able to save you," the words of Mithos said as Genis recalled their last conversation.
Well, at this point, they had nothing to lose.
Without another thought, Genis began to play the flute.
Within seconds of him playing, beams of light suddenly rained down and began killing the dragons.
"Wh…what was that!?" Lloyd exclaimed in surprise.
He looked up to see what appeared to be a golden bird flying above them. It shot more rays of light, breaking the glass dome. Each ray was strong enough to instantly kill a dragon.
"Was that a summon spirit?" Genis asked in shock. It looked vaguely familiar.
"Genis! Raine! Everybody!" a voice shouted from what appeared to be their minds.
"That's Mithos' voice!" Genis exclaimed.
"What's Mithos doing here?" Lloyd asked for everyone.
"Please, get on your Rheairds!" Mithos voice shouted.
"Let's worry about the how and why later," Raine advised, although she was just as lost as everyone else.
"Alright," Lloyd said. They would figure this out after they got away from the dragons.
They got out their Rheairds and flew out of the now shattered dome. Mithos was waiting for them on his own Rheaird.
They quickly flew away from the Ranch, getting as much distance as they could from the dragons.
"Mithos! It's really you! But what was that attack just now? And how did you get a Rheaird?" Genis asked, just now digesting everything that has happened.
Mithos looked down in shame. "I'm sorry. I was worried about all of you, and I just couldn't stay behind. So I asked the Renegades to let me borrow a Rheaird."
Zelos raised an eyebrow at the story. How did Mithos know they were working for the Renegades? It wasn't like Yuan would tell him. And it wasn't like Yuan to let some random kid take one of his Rheairds. Also, how did he even find them?
"But what was that powerful attack?" Colette asked, not concern with the holes in Mithos' story.
"That was a…actually, I don't know either. When I heard the flute, I tried my best to get inside, so I just started blasting the dome with fireballs. Then all of a sudden, a golden sparkling bird appeared and helped me," Mithos replied.
"Golden sparkling bird?" Sheena repeated before her eyes widened. "Could it be…Aska!?"
Raine shook her head. "It can't be! Why would a summon spirit…"
"What do you mean?" Presea asked.
Lloyd looked at Raine. "Do you think Genis called Aska when he played the flute?"
"Mithos' flute?" Genis repeated.
"I wonder…We'll need to investigate the flute itself to find out the truth," Raine said after a moment of thought.
"But shouldn't you all rest first? Let's head back to Palmacosta," Mithos advised. "I must apologize to Neil. I left without telling him."
Lloyd sighed.
It has been a long day despite it barely being pass noon. So many losses….he could barely wrap his mind around it. "Alright. It's not like we'll figure anything out by dwelling about it here."
"Yeah…" Zelos whispered as he side-eyed Mithos.
He knew something was up with this kid, but now he was certain that he was beyond normal. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what it was.
Could he be a spy from Cruxis like him? That would explained how he survive a random angel attack that killed everyone else, but left him with barely a scratch. Would Cruxis really stoop so low as to recruit children to do their dirty work?
He could be an angel in disguise. Kratos, after all, was able to infiltrate the original group without them suspecting anything despite having two half-elves. But could he really fool Colette?
He glanced at his counterpart.
Colette could be featherbrain, but with her increased senses from the Cruxis Crystal, she should be able to sense an angel. Yet, Colette has shown no signs of distress around Mithos. So either he wasn't an angel or he suppressed his Cruxis Crystal to the point that even the Chosen couldn't feel it. That seemed unlikely since it would take mastery of a Cruxis Crystal that he has never seen before. Not even Yuan could completely hide his angelic presence.
In any case, he was almost certain that Mithos had to be some type of spy. The question was, for which side? He had to keep a close eye on the kid.
"Thank you, Mithos! We owe you our lives. I didn't realize how amazing you are!" Genis exclaimed with a big happy smile on his face.
Mithos blushed from all the praise. "N…not…not at all."
"I'm so happy we're friends!" Genis declared.
Mithos gave a small smile, feeling happier than he's been in a very long time. "Yes, me too."
They made it back to Palmacosta with little fanfare and walked to the Governor-General's mansion. They were immediately taking inside by the guards and Neil was waiting for them in his office.
"Everyone! You're back!" Neil declared happily.
"Yeah, but barely," Lloyd said with a note of humor to try to hide his sadness.
Mithos stepped forward and gave a small bow to Governor-General. "Neil, I'm sorry for leaving without telling you."
Neil shook his head. "I'm so relieved you're safe! I was so worried about you. As long as you're safe, that's all that matters."
Mithos was taking back by how forgiving Neil was.
"You can relax, the Palmacosta Ranch is not operational," Raine informed.
Neil gave a long sigh. "That's good to hear. So what are you going to do now?"
"Well, we need to continue the world regeneration journey…right, Colette?" Lloyd answered before glancing at Colette.
Colette put her hands together awkwardly. "Ah, y…yes. We're…uh…working hard on it."
Neil smiled. "I'm sure you are! We're all counting on you, Chosen One."
Colette lowered his eyes. "I know…."
Neil turned his attention back towards Lloyd. "I've been meaning to ask, what happened to your mercenary friend? Kratos, right?"
There was a short, awkward pause.
"He had other urgent business to attend to," Raine answered. "He figured the Chosen would be safe since we've gathered more disciples to protect her."
Neil looked over the Tethe'alla group. "I see."
Lloyd gave Raine a grateful smile.
While this was happening, Genis walked over to Mithos.
"I want to give your flute back," Genis said as he reached into his bag and realized that the flute was snapped in two. Genis gasped in horror. "Oh no!"
Mithos stared at the flute, feeling like his heart was ripped to shreds. "It's…broken…"
Genis was closed to tears. "I…I'm so sorry! I know how important it was!"
Mithos held his hand up, trying to calm Genis down. "No, it's alright. The flute may be broken, but my memories of my sister are still intact."
While he was upset seeing one of the last things from sisters destroyed, he felt strangely at peace. Why? He actually felt…happy that the flute was used to save Genis. Sure, it also saved the Chosen whose body he needed and the Angelus, but he was relieved more than anything that Genis made it.
But…it would work out. Martel would be back soon and he could make a new, better flute for her. Although, she would be upset that her first present from Yuan was destroyed. Yuan also wouldn't be happy either since despite it being Zilveren's idea, he knew the flute also held a special place in his heart too.
And as an added bonus to this entire mess, they manged to killed Rodyle. Another annoyance that he no longer had to deal with. Granted, the Mana Cannon was now in the Renegades' hands, but that was of little concern. Although, he was curious to know what the Renegades planned to do with it. They had no Cruxis Crystal and the worlds lack the mana to use it.
Lloyd heard what had happened and bowed his head. "Mithos, I'm sorry. If I can fix it…"
Mithos shook his head. "It's alright, really. It was very old. But thank you."
They made their way out of the Governor-General's office.
"Mithos. Does this flute have some kind of special power?" Raine asked when she was sure they were out of Neil's earshot.
"I…I don't know. But my sister said that it was made from the nut of a tree that become extinct long ago," Mithos answered.
Lloyd rubbed his chin. This all sounded familiar. "Hmm. The nut of an extinct tree…" He eyes lit up. "Wait! Didn't Nova talk about this!?"
"Nova…" Genis repeated before he remembered. "Yeah! That guy we met by Ossa Trail. Man, that feels like another lifetime."
"Yes, yes, you're right!" Raine exclaimed as she reached into her bag pulled out her journal. She rapidly flipped through the pages. "Yes, Nova's daughter, May, said that they saw a glowing bird. Alduin confirmed this by saying it was on the Ossa Trail and they were camping near the peak when that glowing bird appeared."
"Do you think we can used this information to find Aska?" Lloyd asked almost eagerly. "After all, we need to make a pact with all the summon spirits, and Luna won't make a pact without Aska." Plus, he really wanted to meet Aska.
Raine looked over her journal. "The problem is that the Linkite Tree that was able to summon Aska withered. And Linkite are thought to be extinct."
Zelos sighed, listening in to the conversation. "So, we're back at square one."
"Not necessarily," Raine replied, reading further in her notes. "If what I wrote is true….I should be able to revived the tree using the power granted to me by the unicorn horn."
Lloyd's eyes widened. "You can raise the dead?
"If the Linkite Tree has any life left in it, I should be able to will it back to life. And with the Rheairds, we should be able to reach where the tree was," Raine said, closing her journal.
"Well, before we worry about Aska, let's finish the rest of the pacts," Sheena advised. "Since we now have free access to Sylvarant, we can make pacts with Efreet and Sylph."
Lloyd smiled. "Yeah, that's true."
"You've grown quite confident about this. Nothing like the way you used to be," Raine noted. The girl who used to shiver at the thought of a summon spirit was long gone. Sheena has become a true summoner.
Sheena lowered her eyes for a moment before she looked at Raine. "It's all because of Corrine. Corrine gave me courage."
The mentioned of Corrine caused everyone to fall silence and Mithos could only look around in confusion.
Colette was near tears hearing his name. She wasn't around when he died, but she heard what happened. Corrine died so they could make a pact with Volt to save her. Corrine gave so much and….she couldn't even thank him for it. She could only pray that his soul could rest in peace.
Lloyd's mood sunk even more, the joy of possibly meeting Aska melted away. Corrine….another life he couldn't save.
"Yes, to us, he was a dear friend, a trustworthy comrade," Raine said, speaking for everyone.
"Raine…." Sheena started.
"...and a fascinating research subject!" Raine suddenly exclaimed, breaking the somber mood.
The group stared at the Professor in shock. If it was anyone else, they would have thought it was a joke. But Raine was dead serious.
Genis sighed. "Really…"
Sheena was closed to growling. "You...you're unbelievable!"
Zelos laughed loudly. "Leave it to the Professor to lighting the mood."
"Wait! Before we make anymore pacts, we can't very well drag Mithos into a fight with the summon spirits," Genis spoke up, getting his mind back on the main subject.
Lloyd hummed. "Good point, but I'm not sure where to take Mithos. We can't ask Nail to keep watching him."
"We can take him to stay with Altessa," Raine mused. "It's easier that way since he knows what's going on."
"Before all that, we should find a hotel to rest. That way, we can start fresh," Regal suggested. "It has been a long and emotional day for all of us."
Colette lowered her eyes. "We also have to tell Yuan about Botta."
This got Mithos' attention.
"Yeah. We also need to find out if we can use the Rheairds so Mithos can return to Tethe'alla," Lloyd said. "We can do that first thing tomorrow."
With that, Lloyd led the way to the nearest hotel while Mithos lagged behind.
So…Yuan was the one behind the Renegades.
That explained how they knew so much about Cruxis and kept evading him. He knew that they had to be a traitor working for them, but…he never suspected it to be Yuan. He honestly thought it was Kratos, which was why he had Pronyma keep an eye on him during the Journey of Regeneration and even after he returned to Cruxis. After all, traveling with his son for several months undoubtedly stir some of his rebellious fire again. Especially since Kratos wasn't keen with having Lloyd joined Cruxis, willingly or not.
With Yuan, he knew that Yuan could never be fully trusted after he raised his weapon against him, but to think that he was still plotting when they were so closed to Martel's revival…..he wanted to kill him. In normal times, he would, but Martel was so closed to being resurrected that he didn't want to explain to her why he had to execute her fiancé.
For the time being, he would used Lloyd and the others to keep an eye on Yuan and the Renegades. Along with Kratos if he was proven to be a traitor.
He smiled to himself.
That poor fool thought he had gotten the upper hand, aligning himself with the Angelus behind his back, but he had gotten to them first. Now, he had the advantage. Yuan was also more vulnerable now with Botta apparently being dead given the Chosen's tone. It all worked out too perfectly.
Soon, all of Yuan's millennia of backstabbing was going to crash on his head.
And with that, Rodyle is finally dead! I'm still annoyed this guy outlived Kvar given all his history and I honestly considered giving Rodyle the manga adaptation treatment, but trying to square that with Presea and Regal's backstories would have been a pain. Unfortunately we also have to say goodby to Botta. I honestly enjoyed writing him, especially since he gave Yuan someone to talk to. Now we're stuck with Yuan monologuing.