Angels of Cruxis
Written by Rena Chan
Finished on 11/11/2004
Chapter 1 - Time, Heart, Sekundes and Verius
We are the last of the Angels of Cruxis, spending which most likely would be eternity on Derris-Kharlan, floating around in space. "If a half-elf of Cruxis remains here, then the discrimination against half-elves will never disappear." is what he said. I'm here on Derris-Kharlan not because I agree with him on that, but rather, because he is my friend. The only close friend I have left. Besides, there is nothing left for me to do on the surface. The two worlds have been reunited, and the Giant Tree is probably growing well. From this time of writing, it would take the Giant Yggdrasill Tree five more years before it would be fully grown and provide infinite mana to the land. And when the time comes, I hope that a war won't start again. It is because of this and the birth of magitechnology that the Ancient Kharlan War began in the first place. The war between the countries of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla, and the discrimination against the half-elves.
I must say, I must praise the kid, for thinking of such a name for the Giant Tree. Yggdrasill...I guess he named it that as a tribute to Mithos and Martel Yggdrasill, and also as a symbol of a world without discrimination. Mithos...We were unable to stop him from dropping into the depths of despair. But...at least he's been put to rest now, probably together with his sister Martel, also my love, the light of my life, in their world. Yes...It's been five years since the two worlds have been reunited. They have been separated for too long. 4000 years...is no joke. I hope that by now, there would be less discrimination against the half-elves. I know it's impossible for the everyone to accept the half-elves in such a short time, but if I ever get the chance, that is a big if, I would love to see what has become of this discrimination.
"Yuan, you're writing in that 'thing' again?"
Yuan looked up from what he was doing, brushing a lock of his blue hair back to his right. "For your information, this is not a 'thing'. It's a diary," Yuan countered as he turned to look at his companion.
"Are you so bored with nothing to do that you have to count time?" His companion muttered in the angelic language.
"My. If you're using the angelic language to say something like that, it must mean that you're really cranky today, Kratos," Yuan replied, drumming his fingers on his table lazily.
"It's that dream again," Kratos said as he walked over to Yuan and sat down, sighing.
"That same dream you have been having for the past few days?" The blue-haired half-elf replied as he closed his diary and turned to face Kratos. "The one which shows you that the Giant Tree is dying for some unknown reason?"
"Yes. That dream," Kratos replied. "I'm worried...When someone repeatedly has the same dream, it usually means that it will come true. I don't want that to happen."
"I know, but you don't have to speak in both common and the angelic language," Yuan said, slightly irritated with the mixture of languages used in the previous sentences by the swordsman.
"I'm sorry," Kratos apologized, taking a quick glance at the empty space, and back at Yuan again. "It's just that I'm worried...and frustrated at this. It kinda makes me not want to sleep anymore."
"Then, don't sleep," Yuan muttered without thinking.
"Yuan!"
"Whoa, no need to go all bent out of shape because of this," Yuan cried, waving his hands in-front of his face. "Besides, there is nothing you can do about it. We can't leave Derris-Kharlan, at least not without the power to transcend space. Besides, if something is happening to the Giant Tree, Lloyd will fix it, right? He promised Mana that he won't let the tree wither away."
"But...why am I the one having the dream instead of him?"
"That's..." Yuan started, scratching his head thoughtfully. "I'm sure Lloyd will fix it. No faith in your own son?"
"No...I have total faith in Lloyd..." Kratos replied. "It's just, there might be something that only I can do. I didn't go and betray Lloyd and everyone else and secretly gathered the materials for the Eternal Ring for nothing. I just...wanted to reunite the two worlds. And after all that I have done, I don't want the world to die because the Giant Tree withered away."
"You should have just stayed on Symphonia. I wonder why Lloyd didn't stop you from leaving with Derris-Kharlan?" Yuan commented thoughtfully.
"Because he is a bit dense and clueless about these kind of things."
"He probably inherited it from you."
"He did not!"
"Yes he did!" Yuan retorted.
"...You're just trying to cheer me up...right?"
"Whatever you want to interpret it as," Yuan replied, as he turned back to his table.
"Thanks...but I'm still worried."
"Why don't you go and find out for yourself, the meaning of your dream?"
"Who's that?" Both Cruxis angels yelled out as they turned to face the owner of the new voice. The newcomer was floating above them. He was dressed from head to toe in dark gray clothing and had long silver hair tied up in a loose ponytail. He also wore an gold colored armlet on each of his wrists, silver leg guards on both of his legs, a silver colored neck guard and a brown belt on his waist.
"That mana signature...you're a Summon Spirit?" Yuan asked, visibly shocked. "What's a Summon Spirit doing down here? And I've never seen you before!"
"Of course not, but he has," The Summon Spirit pointed to the other Cruxis angel.
Yuan turned to look at Kratos. "You know this Summon Spirit?" Then the half-elf noticed that Kratos was clenching both of his fists tightly. Very tightly. It was almost like he was trembling.
Kratos finally turned to face the Summon Spirit. "Sekundes...what do you want? Did you come to mock me? To mock me of trying to form a pact with you and failed, especially when no other summoner has succeeded before?"
Yuan almost forgot that Kratos had the ability to summon. It has, afterall, been over 4000 years since he saw Kratos summon, before, due to persistent begging from Mithos, he taught Mithos how to summon, and relinquished his pacts with the Summon Spirits which he already had pacts with, just to let Mithos form a pact with them.
"Oh, don't get me wrong, Kratos," Sekundes replied and teleported in-front of the swordsman. "Don't you want some closure on your dream?"
"I'm not sure..."
"Oh, don't be like that," Sekundes growled, waving his hand in-front of the angel's face. "And do you still have that armlet I gave you 4000 years ago when you lost the battle against me?"
Mentally grumbling to himself, Kratos fumbled around in his pouch and produced a golden colored armlet which seems to have an empty hole in which to put something in. "Here it is. You want to take to back or something?"
"Not really," Sekundes replied as he touched the armlet. It disappeared and reappeared on Kratos' right wrist.
"Hey! I swore never to put this on!" Kratos growled at the Summon Spirit. "This is...a constant reminder of my failure against you..." The seraph tried to take it off but to no avail. "What in the name of the Giant Tree...?"
"It's stuck on you, whether you like it or not," Sekundes smiled. "I've imbued it with the power to transcend space, so you can use it to travel back and forth Derris-Kharlan and Symphonia. Whether you decide to go or not, it's your decision to make," Sekundes continued as he turned away from Kratos. "However, if you decide to go, seek Verius. He's the one that will be telling you the details."
"Why are you doing this?" Kratos questioned as he gave up on trying to remove the armlet on his right wrist.
"Let's just say...that I've taken a liking to you, ever since the first time I saw you, 1000 years after the Ancient Kharlan War started and Verius' power disappeared. It had been too long since someone tried to make a pact with me when that happened," Sekundes turned around, smiled, and shook a finger in-front of the swordsman. "You actually had the guts to challenge me when the sole power that could beat me had disappeared. And I admire you for that. Also, at that time, I saw the future..."
"The future? What did you see?"
"Ah, that's a secret. I cannot tell you what I saw. Or time could be messed up. And Kratos, don't consider your failure to pact with me a failure in itself. You simply didn't have the power to beat me at that time." And with that, the Summon Spirit teleported away.
"Didn't have the power to beat him at that time..." Kratos sighed, with his head hanging. "Is he trying to mock me?"
"You still haven't answered my question," Yuan finally spoke after Sekundes teleported away.
"He's...the only Summon Spirit that I tried and failed to make a pact with," Kratos replied, muttering his response, lifting his head up after a few seconds. "The most powerful of the Summon Spirits, the Summon Spirit of Time. He possesses the power to transcend time and space."
"Whoa! Hold on a second!" Yuan replied, surprised. "The power to transcend time and space? Then the Eternal Sword?"
"The power of the Eternal Sword comes from him," Kratos explained, sighing. "Origin merely forges the sword and gives the right to use it, but its power was imbued by Sekundes himself. I wonder how much trouble Origin had went through just to get Sekundes to give power to the Eternal Sword..."
"You mean you could have just form a pact with that guy and be able to reunite the two worlds?"
"I did think of trying that once," Kratos said, turning away from Yuan. "But then, after more research, its power to alter the world, is related to Origin himself. So even if I had a pact with Sekundes, I still would lack the means to reunite the two worlds."
"For how long have you known that the Eternal Sword's power to transcend time and space comes from the Summon Spirit of Time?"
"Ever since the Eternal Sword displayed its ability to transcend space," Kratos replied, without turning back to look at Yuan.
"I've got a hand it to you," Yuan commented, shrugging his shoulders. "You actually know more than what I credit you for. So, decided to go back to Symphonia?"
"I'm going to go. You can stay here if you want," Kratos replied as he started to make his way over to the warp which used to lead to the Tower of Salvation at Welgaia.
"Hey! I never said that I'm not going!" Yuan cried, flustered. "Besides, you'll be lonely without me."
"It's more like you'll be lonely here without me on Derris-Kharlan," Kratos muttered in the angelic language as he continued on his way to his destination.
"Hey! I heard that!" Yuan cried as he ran to catch up with his human friend.
"Sword Rain: Alpha!"
"Whine bite bite"
"Not bad, Noishe! You can do it! Overcome your sensitivity to monsters!"
"Grrr Roar"
The monster the duo was fighting finally fell. "Good job Noishe!"
"Howl"
Ever since Noishe had protected Lloyd from his mother turned monster, he had been sensitive to monsters and ran away at the sight of them. Lloyd was trying to teach Noishe to stop being so scared of monsters, and there had been signs of progress.
The boy of about 22 years of age sheathed his swords, walked over to his pet and friend, and patted him on the head. The swordsman wore his usual red clothing with gray pants, except that it's modified to fit him if he grew any larger. Then he turned to look towards the direction and location of the sun.
"Holy cow! I'm going to be late!" Lloyd cried as he realised how late into the morning it was already. "Noishe, looks like you're gonna have to take me the rest of the way to Mizuho."
"Howl" The arshis said in reply. And the current wielder of the Eternal Sword got on.
"Avoid all the monsters, okay, Noishe?"
"Howl" Was his reply. And Noishe ran as quickly as he can towards the new location of the hidden ninja village, Mizuho.
Circular rings of green energy appeared near the Holy Ground, where the Giant Tree now grows. They slowly cleared to reveal two people. A human and a half-elf. In this age, it's rare to see humans and half-elves together, as friends. And yet, they were friends. Since 4000 years ago.
"Wow! We're really back on Symphonia!" Yuan exclaimed, as he turned to look around his surroundings. He surveyed every grass, every tree, every rock, everything, to confirm that he really was back on Symphonia.
"Yuan, you're acting like as if you're seeing this place for the first time," Kratos muttered, putting his right hand on his forehead. "We're not here on a holiday."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Yuan replied, crossing his arms on his chest and turned to face Kratos. "But how are we going to find this...Verius? Come to think of it, who is this Verius anyway?"
"The Summon Spirit of Heart. His power was lost when the Kharlan War started," Kratos explained. "And his power was recently revived thanks to artificial Summon Spirit Corrine and Summoner Sheena."
"Oh. But I guess I kinda understand why that guy's power was lost," Yuan said, nodding in understanding. Then he noticed the Giant Tree behind the blue-winged seraph. "The Giant Tree is behind you."
Kratos turned around. "And so it seems. Come on. Let's go."
The seraphim duo approached the Giant Yggdrasill Tree quickly and swiftly. Once there, the both of them examined the Giant Tree from trunk to root. They even tried to feel the mana flow to and from the Giant Tree.
"Do you sense anything wrong?" Yuan asked Kratos after five minutes of examining the tree.
"You're the half-elf. You're supposed to be able to tell more easily than I can," The swordsman muttered his reply.
"Hey! You're the summoner! Aren't the powers of the summoners closer to that of nature?" Yuan argued.
"The knowledge of magic transfusion, the ability to sense the mana signature and mana flow are all gifts from the Summon Spirits," Kratos replied.
"Taking pity on the powerless humans?" Yuan mused.
"I've always thought of it as that way. It would make sense why only those with human blood can form pacts with Summon Spirits and have the ability to summon."
"And I thought you were going to get mad," Yuan laughed.
"Wha? Were you thinking of inferior beings?"
"No! Besides, we're both angels, neither of us are inferior to each other," Yuan replied quickly.
"Huh? That still isn't entirely right either you know..." Kratos muttered but waved that conversation away. "Anyway, I can't sense anything irregular with the mana flow."
"Well, me neither. So...that means there's nothing wrong with the tree." Yuan concluded, crossing his arms.
"That's not entirely correct. You are just unable to sense it yet."
Both angels immediately turned around to face the owner of the new voice, Kratos with his hand at the hilt of his sword while Yuan was already charging a spell. And they came face to face with a large fox with nine tails. It was yellow-brown in color, and it has four green and five blue tails. It had blue colored paws and was wearing a bell on its neck.
"Verius!" Kratos exclaimed as he recognised the kyubi standing before them. He eased himself and Yuan stopped charging his spell.
"So you've decided to come, High Summoner Kratos Aurion. Just as Sekundes predicted," Verius replied.
"Just as...Sekundes predicted?" Kratos repeated. "And how did you know that I was a high summoner?"
"Sekundes was the one who told me," Verius replied.
"What is this...? This increased mana flow, and this taintedness...It's faint and not too much of a concern right now...but..."
"Is something happening to the Giant Tree's mana flow?" The long, green haired figure stood up suddenly. There were two branches of leaves sticking out on each side of her hair and she is carrying a staff, and quickly held it closely to herself in a defensive stance. "Who's there?" She spoke, ready to defend herself. She had thought that there would never be a need to raise her staff against another, since no ordinary being can enter this space. Perhaps, this was no ordinary being. "Fret not, Spirit of the Giant Tree, Mana," The other voice replied. "I mean you no harm. I am the Summon Spirit of Heart, speaking to you with my power. I am the only being that could possibly talk to you in this space, for I can see the true heart and feelings of all that is living. You can tell me what you see." "Something is happening to the Giant Tree. Someone is trying to taint the mana flow," Mana explained, lowering her staff. "It's not life threatening right now, but if it continues, the Giant Tree will die and be lost forever." "Can't a new seed be created?" "Unfortunately, no. The Giant Tree can only have a seed when it's fully grown, and that won't happen for about another five years. By then, it would be too late..." "If the Giant Tree dies, the world itself would end as well." "Please, we have to prevent this from happening. As I am a spirit of this tree, I am bound to it and have no external contact with the outside world. We cannot let the tree die...please...find the one who gave this new tree its name. Find the one with the pact to this tree, the Eternal Swordsman." "I will see what I can do." Verius blinked and looked up into the sky, and turned to stare at the visage of the Giant Yggdrasill Tree. "Find the Eternal Swordsman..." "And how do you plan on sending him the message?" Verius yelped from the sudden intrusion on his thoughts. He turned to look at who had spoken. "Sekundes..." "It's been 5000 years since I last saw you. When the Kharlan War started, the hearts of people wavered and your power disappeared. To tell you the truth, I was worried that your power will never be reawakened again." "Thankfully, it did..." "You're still as grand as ever. And you've got a new bell on your neck." "This is...a momento of the Summon Spirit that died and was reborn...as me, the reawakening of my power." "That artificial Summon Spirit. I must say it was a good piece of work," Sekundes replied. "But, getting back to the topic, how do you plan on sending the Eternal Swordsman the message?" "How did you even know what's going on?" Verius asked suspiciously. "I am the Summon Spirit of Time. I have the power to transcend space. There is no space that I cannot enter." "Pardon me, I shouldn't have questioned you, the most powerful of the Summon Spirits." "I may be the most powerful, but you have the potential to be even stronger than me," Sekundes replied, turning away from the kyubi. "My power...depends on the summoner." "But you didn't want to form a pact. So how can you be strong?" "I have yet to find a summoner's heart...that is worthy. And...I'm afraid that it will happen again." "Tch. Excuses. And we're straying from the topic again," Sekundes pointed out. "I'm sorry. I intend to send the message through a recurring dream, until I have spoken to the one which I sent the dream to." "That's a sleek way to send a message," Sekundes muttered. "Do you have a better idea? Finding the person directly involves more time. It's faster to directly connect to the heart of the target." "Alright, fine. If you must send the message in the form of a dream, don't send it to the Eternal Swordsman, Lloyd Irving. Send it to the one called Kratos Aurion, biological father of the Eternal Swordsman." "Why? Are you sure about this? From as far as I know, he's on Derris-Kharlan, which is floating around Symphonia in space, no way for people to go or return without the power of the Eternal Sword!" "I can fix that, don't worry about it. Details," Sekundes muttered, waving his hand in-front of his face. "But I still don't understand why! Even if you can fix the space problem, will he even come?" "Oh, he will come. He will never abandon the world. Also, we...we are going to need his power...his power as a high summoner."
"Just what is Sekundes trying to do?" Kratos questioned. "He's always, always like this!"
"I blame it on his power, to be able to transcend time and see the future," Verius mused.
"But, to be able to see the future...it must be quite painful for him, isn't it?" Yuan said thoughtfully. "Knowing what is going to happen and yet not being able to do anything..."
"Perhaps," Kratos muttered as he crossed his arms and closed his eyes, thinking. "To be able to see the future...he said something about having saw the future during my battle with him 4000 years ago, back on Derris-Kharlan. Could that have anything to do with this?"
"Perhaps. But the thing that he said before leaving," Verius added, swinging his tails to the left. "About we needing your power as a high summoner... concerns me."
"I am the last of the true summoners, the last of the high summoners...but what does this have to do with me?"
"Hey, Kratos," Yuan intervened on the conversation. "Since you're a high summoner, maybe it has to do with something that only you can do, that is related to the Summon Spirits? Come to think of it, what is the difference between a normal summoner from a high summoner? From the way I've seen you summon, it doesn't seem any different from how Mithos summoned."
"Although anyone with human blood can be trained to have the right of the pact, only the true summoners, pure blooded summoners born of the Summoner Clan, can understand the true nature of the Summon Spirits," Kratos explained, shifting his gaze to the sky and back again. "This understanding of the Summon Spirits...allows them to call upon the true power of the Summon Spirits. That is the difference. You couldn't see the difference cause I didn't high summon when I was travelling with you guys during the Ancient War, before Mithos decided that he wanted to learn how to summon himself..."
"To be able to call upon the true power of the Summon Spirits...huh?"
"It is also due to this understanding that only high summoners can summon and control the tremendous power which Sekundes has," Verius added. "That's why, Sekundes only appears before high summoners."
"Well, it didn't seem to answer any questions we have," Yuan muttered, raising both of his arms into the sky and put them down again.
"Sekundes annoys the heck out of me anyway," Kratos growled in annoyance. "The question is, what should we do now? We don't know who's behind this. The only thing we know is that someone is tainting the mana flow which will kill the Giant Tree if this continues. And since it isn't fully grown yet, there won't be a new seed. So we need to find out what's causing this and reverse it before it's too late."
"I can only offer one suggestion right now," Verius offered. "Since Sekundes asked me to send the message to you instead of the Eternal Swordsman, and about needing your power as a high summoner, why not find the other Summon Spirits and form a pact with them? And at the same time, you might be able to find out what's going on and who's behind all this."
Kratos uncrossed his arms and turned to look at Verius. "It seems like this is the only thing we can do now. We can't stop something when we don't even know what we're dealing with in the first place. But to find the Summon Spirits now...It would be hard..."
"Hard?" Yuan questioned. "How come?"
"Yuan, have you forgotten? Summon Spirits are wandering creatures. With the exception of Origin and Maxwell, they are hard to locate. And now that they don't act as seals any longer, they are not bonded to anything and can wander freely as they please."
"Uh oh. I've forgotten that little detail," Yuan replied, rubbing the back of his head. "So, how are we supposed to find them?"
"We have to find the place where there is the greatest concentration of that particular mana," Kratos replied, crossing his arms once again. "That's where the Summon Spirit is. And once we locate it, we have to act quickly before the Summon Spirit moves, otherwise we have to locate it again."
"That sounds hard," Yuan replied. "Really...hard."
"Not really. They don't move as quickly as you think. Summon Spirits would stay at the same place for a few days or even months, before they move. The only bad thing is, you may have to search the same place again."
"Ooo...okay," Yuan commented, and decided to cross his arms also. "But what about the previous pact-maker? That ninja girl... What's her name?"
"Sheena."
"Yeah...Sheena. I thought she hasn't broken her vow, and neither has she passed on," Yuan continued. "Summon Spirits can't form another pact if the previous one is still valid."
"I'm amazed you remember that," Kratos replied. "But you don't need to worry about that."
"Huh? You mean you can form a pact even when a Summon Spirit already has a pact with another summoner?" Yuan asked, surprised. "Is it this thing about you being a high summoner?"
"No," Verius interjected. "It has nothing to do with that. Be it a summoner or a high summoner, as long as the pact-maker is still alive and hasn't broken their vow, the pact remains valid. It doesn't matter whether a summoner is of a higher class than another."
"Then, how is Kratos supposed to form a pact with the other Summon Spirits?" Yuan replied, slightly frustrated. "I don't get it!"
"There is one last condition that can happen to make a pact with a Summon Spirit to be no longer valid," Kratos replied. "It's not commonly known, as it has never been done before. This condition is only known to the summoners of the Summoner Clan. And that condition is, 'A pact can also no longer be valid if the pact-maker has fulfilled their vow'."
"Exactly," Verius replied. "That's exactly what happened with Sheena. She has fulfilled her vow and no longer holds a pact with the Summon Spirits. Which means the Summon Spirits are not bounded by any pact at this moment and another summoner can form a pact with them as they wish."
"This is all too complicating for me..." Yuan grumbled.
"And magitechnology is never too complicated for you."
"Those are entirely different things!" Yuan retorted, pointing an accusing finger at Kratos. "You're the expert on Summon Spirits! Besides, you're not too shabby with magitechnology yourself."
"I don't think this is a good time to be throwing random remarks at each other," Kratos replied and turned to walk away. "The faster we find the Summon Spirits, and the sooner we find out what's going on, the better."
"Hey! You're changing the subject!"
"I'm not changing the subject," Kratos countered.
"Yes you are!"
"Shut up, Yuan," Kratos muttered as he continued walking away.
"Hey! Wait for me!" The half-elf cried out as he ran to catch up with Kratos.
"Just what did you see in the future, Sekundes? Why do we need his power as a high summoner?" Verius mused as he watched the two angels walk away. "I'm a Summon Spirit too. If the powers of the Summon Spirits are needed for whoever is doing this, does that mean your power is needed too, Sekundes? If your power is needed, then my power is also needed. But the first and also the last summoner I made a pact with died...because he defeated you...would...would the same thing happen again?"
Verius continued watching the two retreating Cruxis angels, still unable to come to a decision. A decision on something very important. But this time it was different. If there was anything Verius knew about Sekundes, it was that the Summon Spirit of Time will never let something that has happened before, happen again. He would make sure of that. "It looks like the only thing I can do now is to trust Sekundes. Alright. Here goes. I better do this before they're out of earshot."
But it was hard for both Kratos and Yuan to be out of earshot so easily. They were, afterall, angels, and possessed heightened hearing.
"Kratos, wait!"
Both seraphim stopped when they heard Verius call out Kratos' name. The Summon Spirit of Heart quickly dashed closer to where they were, and stopped in-front of them.
"What's wrong? Do you have something else you need to tell us?" Kratos questioned as he crossed his arms once more.
"Kratos...I wish...to form a pact with you."
"Whoa! You want to form a pact with him? Are you serious?" Yuan joked, thrusting his arms into the air and put them down again.
"Shut up, Yuan," Kratos muttered for the second time today. "But Verius, why now? I thought you do not want to be bonded to anyone."
"That's because...I don't want what happened to the previous pact-maker to happen to other summoners. That's why I do not wish to be bonded to anyone. But...if Sekundes says that your power as a high summoner is needed, then it must mean that the power of all the Summon Spirits is needed. That's why..."
"A Summon Spirit that feels fear..."
"It's because I am the Summon Spirit of Heart that I feel these kind of emotions..."
Kratos uncrossed his arms and readied his hand at the hilt of his sword. "Very well then. I suppose the usual procedures apply?"
"Of course. Although I'm the one who wishes to form a pact with the summoner, it does not mean that I will not be testing them. I won't make any exceptions because of this."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Yuan asked.
"It means we're going to fight," Kratos replied as he drew the Last Fencer.
"Get ready!" Verius cried has he lowered himself, ready to pounce.
"Sheena, after much research, we finally found out why the pacts you have with the Summon Spirits are no longer valid."
"We spent a long time looking for this piece of information. And in the end, we could only find it at the ruins of where the Summoner Clan, the home of the true summoners, is." "So? What is the reason my pacts with the Summon Spirits are no longer valid!" Sheena cried. "It's because you have fulfilled your vow."
"Fulfilled my vow, huh?" Sheena sat, muttering to herself. "Must have been quite an accomplishment..." About two years after the worlds have been reunited, Sheena had realised that she no longer had the power of the Summon Spirits. She noticed this when the ninja could no longer find the gems, which are the proof of the pact with the Summon Spirits, with her.
A ninja wearing blue ninja clothes walked into the Sheena's room and saluted her. "Chief! Your friends are here."
"Thanks Orochi," Sheena replied and stood up. "Who cares about the Summon Spirits anyway! I was...shunned because I have the ability to summon...it's better now that I no longer have the power of the Summon Spirits..."
The Chief of Mizuho quickly put her thoughts aside and walked out to meet her friends. The first people she saw were two silver haired people. They were talking about something. And it seemed to be of some importance.
"Raine! Genis!" Sheena called out, and gave the two siblings a wave.
"Hey! Sheena! It has been quite some time already, hasn't it?" Genis called back and returned the wave.
The two half-elves made their way over to the Shinobi.
"You look more matured, Sheena," Raine commented as she shook her hand.
"Yeah...A lot has happened these past five years," Sheena replied. "And everyone says that I make a good Chief! But you don't look any different from five years ago, compared to now."
"That's because we start to age slower when we hit twenty!" Genis said, smiling.
"And you've grown more handsome!" Sheena replied, returning the smile.
"Yes. And a lot of girls are starting to notice him now," Raine teased.
"Raine!"
"But it's true!" Raine countered. "Don't you think so too, Sheena?"
"Yeah! You definitely look more handsome now, Genis!"
"Hey! Sheena!" Another voice called out. All three of them turned to look at the owner of the voice. But they already knew who it was.
"Colette! And Regal and Presea too!" Sheena and the two half-elf siblings walked over to greet the rest of their friends. "You all look so different!"
"That's because we've aged," Presea replied in her usual monotonous tone of voice.
"I look older too!" Colette said happily. "My Cruxis Crystal didn't suppress my aging process!"
Sheena's eyes narrowed. "Is that supposed to be something to be happy about?"
"Uhh...haha...I guess not," The former Chosen of Sylvarant laughed nervously, scratching the back of her head.
"So, Lloyd isn't here yet," Regal commented as he gripped his right wrist and turned it around in his left hand. He had removed the handcuffs on his hands when the world was reunited, and he started a new goal for the Lezareno Company.
"Typical Lloyd! It's just like him to be late!" Genis hollered as he crossed his arms. "And to think it's his birthday too!"
"Guys! Sorry I'm late!" Another voice called out as he ran towards the gang. A large dog-like creature was following him. "Sorry to keep you waiting!"
"Don't worry, Lloyd! We haven't been waiting long!" Colette cried out happily.
"I had Noishe carry me the rest of the way here," Lloyd said apologetically.
"It's alright, Lloyd, we didn't wait very long," Raine assured him.
"It's a new record for you, Lloyd! We didn't have to wait one hour for you!" Genis commented, giving his best friend a huge smile.
"Geez, thanks a lot, Genis," Lloyd replied. Then he sighed.
"What's the matter, Lloyd?" Presea asked as she tilted her head to one side. "It's your birthday today. You should be happy."
"I wish he was here..."
The others immediately knew who Lloyd was talking about. They had often wondered how he was doing too. Although he had betrayed all of them at one point, but it was also him that helped lead them in the correct direction, in order to reunite the two worlds. He had secretly protected them, especially Lloyd, when they were in Tethe'alla. He was also the one who saved them from the death traps in the Tower of Salvation on the way to the Chamber of the Great Seed. And he was also the one who opened the way to the Eternal Sword.
"I shouldn't have let him go...I should have stopped him...Then maybe, he would be here, together with us," Lloyd muttered. Ever since that day he had sent the one person that was of any real importance to him, his only real family member left, to a place where he can never return, Lloyd had always wondered if he could have stopped him. So that he could make up for the lost fourteen years of time, together with him.
"Lloyd, now is not the time to regret your decision," Raine reprimanded the swordsman. "You're five years too late for that."
"And besides, it was his decision, was it not?" Regal added. "You knew very well he won't change his mind once he's made his decision, even if you had tried to stop him."
"Besides, he's not lonely up there," Sheena continued. "He has a very important friend together with him, up there."
"Lloyd," Colette said as she walked up and took Lloyd's left hand and held it with her own. "It's your birthday today. Don't let your regrets bother you, okay?"
"You're all right. I shouldn't let this bother me anymore. Afterall, it has been five years since I sent him and Yuan to Derris-Kharlan," Lloyd replied, looking up at all his friends. "Thanks, you guys. Come on! Let's get the party started!"
"Yeah!" And they all proceeded into Sheena's, the Chief's, house.
"Ugh! How the heck do you fight this guy! Our magic aren't affecting him!"
"I'm trying to remember!" Kratos snapped as he raised another protection spell to block another one of Verius' attacks.
The battle against Verius wasn't going well. For one thing, both seraphim's attacks were not affecting the Summon Spirit much at all. And another thing, they can't get seem to get close to the kyubi. So they were stuck using magic. Not that it bothered them much, since the both of them were quite proficient with magic. The thing that bothered the angels was that it wasn't having much effect. Thus, on a few occasions, Yuan had tried to get close to the Summon Spirit to try whacking him with his double-bladed polearm, Gungnir, but whenever he got close to Verius, the Summon Spirit of Heart would knock the half-elf back with some unknown force. And his reward was a First Aid spell from Kratos to heal his wounds, no matter how minor they were.
Kratos was desperately trying to remember something that his father had often told him about Verius. Because Verius' power was lost since the start of the Ancient Kharlan War, the summoners of the Summoner Clan did not bother much with the Summon Spirit of Heart, and instead focused more on the other Summon Spirits that were actually still existent. His father had often told him that it was his family lineage that refused to give up on Verius, thus they had always remembered that the kyubi was a Summon Spirit that had existed. It was their family that kept the memory of Verius alive. It was strange that he remembered that little detail, and yet couldn't recall what was that one important thing his old man had often told him during his training to be a high summoner.
"Kratos! Watch out!" Yuan's cry snapped the blue-winged seraph back to the present. It was then he realised that an attack was coming towards him. And there wasn't enough time to dodge nor block it. Even with Guardian. There just wasn't enough time to even ready the defensive skill. It was then Yuan came in-between Kratos and Verius' attack and used his Force Field defensive skill to block the attack. But even after that, Yuan was thrown back by it. Kratos quickly caught the half-elf in his arms to prevent Yuan from slamming into a tree that was behind them.
"Is it just me or are you always saving my life?" Kratos muttered as he helped Yuan get back to his feet. It wasn't the first time Yuan had saved the magic swordsman's life. When Kratos had released the seal to Origin, if Yuan hadn't came and transferred some of his mana and gave it to Kratos, he would surely had lost his life then. And mana transfusion was one of the many techniques that was developed during the Ancient Kharlan War that only angels could use. Just like the technique they used to stop their body's internal clock, thereby entirely stopping their aging process.
"Hey, didn't you do that a lot for me too when we were travelling together with Mithos during the Kharlan War?" Yuan replied, finally regaining his balance and sticking Gungnir to the ground for support. "So we're even."
"I don't think I can argue with that."
And both seraphim turned to face Verius once again, with more determination than ever.
"What is the reason that you fight me with all your strength? You, the one with the right of the pact," Verius asked as he stood there, unmoving from his spot. As the Summon Spirit asked that question, both angels realised that since this battle began, Verius hasn't even moved a single inch.
"This is ridiculous! That guy didn't even move an inch!" Yuan commented as he raised Gungnir once more in his guarding stance.
But Kratos wasn't paying attention to the half-elf. Instead, he was focused on the question Verius asked him. Indeed. What is the reason he is fighting the Summon Spirit of Heart with all his strength? Even though magic don't seem to be working, and they can't even get close to Verius, both he and Yuan pressed on and never let up their attacks, hoping that one might actually work. Why was he doing this? The swordsman had always been the objective one, knowing when to stop trying the same thing again and again. And yet, there he was, continuously trying to use magic on Verius when it clearly did not have much effect. Was he desperate for Verius' power? But it was the kyubi who wanted a pact. Not him. So why?
What Verius wants to see is not your strength, but your heart.
It was then and there that Kratos remembered that one important thing that his father had told him about Verius.
"Gah! This is getting annoying!" Yuan screamed as he cast Thunder Blade on Verius, and achieved the same results. There was hardly any effect on the Summon Spirit. "And what does he mean when he asked that question?"
Kratos stepped up and raised his left arm in-front of Yuan, as a sign of stopping the half-elf from attacking any further. "Yuan, I'll handle the rest."
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Just...leave it to me," Kratos replied as gripped the Last Fencer with both of his hands and raised it across his chest. Yuan did not question Kratos further and just stood back. "Here I come, Verius!"
Kratos dashed forward, towards Verius at an incredible speed. The kyubi fired an attack towards the swordsman, but he quickly sidestepped to his right and avoided the attack. As he inched closer to Verius, dodging attack after attack the Summon Spirit threw at him, his mind swirled with a mixture of thoughts, trying to find the reason why he was fighting Verius with all his strength.
I will not let the Giant Tree and this world to die. After all that I did, after all the pain and hurt I had went through and caused, betraying a very important friend from the past, just so that I can correct his mistakes. Betraying my own son and his friends whom I had grown to care for and trust. I was always running away from problems, thinking that there was no other way to correct past mistakes. But ever since that illusion at Welgaia, I had decided to stop running away, and face any problems, any mistakes, head on.
Martel knew I loved this world as much as she did, and that I would never abandon this world when it was in trouble. To stop the Kharlan War...was the vow I made the first time I made pacts with the Summon Spirits. And yet, I let Mithos split the world in two, and let him have his way. If it weren't for the fact that the Summon Spirits had acted as seals and the link which protects the Great Seed, I would have went and formed pacts with the Summon Spirits myself, searched for a way to release Origin's seal without ending up killing myself, and wield the Eternal Sword, just to fix all that. And at that time, my vow would have been, "To reunite the two worlds, and restore it to its original form". And now? What is the reason I'm fighting with all my strength? The Giant Tree was dying once again. And it wasn't because of a stupid war, like it was 4000 years ago. It was because of something unknown to us. And I must find out what it is and stop it. In order to protect this world. Maybe, it wasn't just Verius who desired this pact. I too, might have desired this pact. But...I'm not sure what is it that I truly desired. Is it because of all that had happened in the past, that I wanted to make sure that the world will not fall into ruin again? Or is it that I do not want the same mistakes to be repeated again? I...don't really know myself. But I do know one thing. That is, I will protect this world with my very life, for as long as I live.
Kratos made the final dash towards Verius. Just before the blue-winged seraph reached the kyubi, he asked once more, "What is the reason that you fight me with all your strength?"
"Because I too, desire this pact, just like you. So that I can protect this world and the Giant Tree, for as long as I live! And that, will be my vow!"
Kratos paused in-front of Verius, raising his sword above his head, and summoned his crystal blue wings.
"Shining Bind!"
A circle appeared below Kratos' feet, with the seraph at it's center, and Verius within the edges of that same circle. Rays of light started rising all around the circle, striking Verius at where he stood. The Summon Spirit was trying very hard not to be knocked down by the attack, but it was quite difficult. Verius was barely holding his position. It was then Kratos flew up, with his sword still raised above his head, and came down at the kyubi, swinging his sword down, causing an explosion of light when the Last Fencer came into contact with the Summon Spirit of Heart. Verius could no longer hold his position and was blown backwards and Kratos' wings disappeared as he landed.
Lowering his sword and getting back into standing position, Yuan came up to the swordsman and stood beside him.
"You did it!" Yuan cried triumphantly. "You managed to strike Verius! But...how?"
"You can't fight Verius with your strength. You must fight him with your heart," Kratos replied as he watched the Summon Spirit get back to his feet.
"Huh? I don't get it..." Yuan muttered as he scratched his head with his free hand.
"If you don't understand, then you do not know what it means to fight with your heart."
"Kratos, you didn't have to put it that way..." Yuan murmured as he decided to play with his little fingers.
Verius approached the two seraphim once more, and stopped as he reached where they were standing.
"Verius..."
"I have seen your heart. And we will form a pact based on that."
"Whoa!" Yuan cried out, surrendering both of his arms into the air. "You mean he passed?"
"That's right," Verius replied as he turned to look directly into Kratos' eyes. "I hereby grant you my power, pact-maker Kratos!"
Verius disappeared in a swirl of pink light, and in its place, a green colored gem slowly floated down into Kratos' left hand. It was an emerald, the proof of the pact with the Summon Spirit of Heart.
"So that means you can summon Verius?" Yuan asked excitedly as he put away his weapon.
"Why are you so excited about me summoning? It's not like you've never seen me doing it," Kratos replied, shaking his head, sheathed his sword and put the emerald away into one of his pouches.
"No! I mean, will I get to see you high summon?" Yuan replied, waving his arms in the air wildly like a child.
"It depends," Kratos simply said as he started walking away.
"What do you mean, it depends?" Yuan questioned as he ran to keep pace with the human angel.
"Exactly what I said."
"Kratos! You're no fun!" Yuan cried as he made a funny face at his human companion.
"And you're acting like a kid," Kratos simply commented.
High Summoner Kratos Aurion, I hope to grow strong together with you, the one with a heart that knows despair, pain, regret, hurt, but also know kindness, love, friendship, courage and hope. So that we can protect this world...
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Gah! It's been such a long time since I wrote a FanFic! Just take a look for yourself when was the last FanFic chapter I finished.
But, anyways, this is my first FanFic for Tales of Symphonia. And most of you have probably already figured it out, Kratos is my favourite character and I wouldn't give him up for the world! (The world of ToS that is...)
I've always thought that, as I went through the game a second time, getting Kratos again (I got him the first time too), it was kinda scary how he knows so much about the Summon Spirits. It's almost like he's a summoner himself! And that is also why he could seal a summon spirit. Well, anyways, that's exactly what I did, and I made it so that he not only taught Mithos how to wield a sword, but also how to summon. Fun, isn't it? And also, I dunno whether you've noticed it or not, Kratos likes to slip into speaking the angelic language when he's annoyed or frustrated. It doesn't happen in the game though. He always seem so calm and collected, except that they when had to trash Kvar! Did you see how he brutally -gasp- murdered the Desian Grand Cardinal?
Yep. Yuan gets a lot of time in this fic, since he's always with Kratos. I dunno much about Yuan's character, so sorry if he may seem a bit OOC (Wait, Kratos seems a bit OOC too...) And I've always wondered why Kratos said "we" in the ending when Lloyd was about to send him to Derris-Kharlan. Well, it could either be a translation error, or he had really meant "we", meaning both him and Yuan, he is, afterall, an Angel of Cruxis too.
The others won't get much time in the fic yet, until a bit later, considering the main focus of the Fic to be Kratos here. And in case you haven't figured it out, Zelos is dead in this fic, sorry, Zelos fans. Yes...I'm mainly using stuff from the Kratos path, and there is also a reason why Kratos is using the Last Fencer. It probably won't be explained until later. I wonder when...
And the name Sekundes is from the Greater Craymel of Time from Tales of Eternia (Tales of Destiny 2 in the US), in case you're wondering. So, I essentially plucked the Greater Craymel of Time from ToE and put him in this fic as the Summon Spirit of Time.