The next few days were a blurred panic for the humans, who were now convinced they had angered their goddess and now she was giving them divine retribution.

This was no end of amusement for Rodyle who would pick up people who were lost and make them into various experiments. He was even more excited to hear his greatest experiment had been successful in retrieving his lord's son. He quickly made his way to the throne room where they had just arrived.

Mithos turned to Rodyle as he entered. "Ah, Rodyle!" he said happily, "I see you've heard. Your experiment has brought back an unexpected joy: my son has awakened into his true power!"

"That is excellent my lord!" Rodyle exclaimed.

"Ohold man Rodyle, you're still alive?" Yuan asked.

Rodyle startled. "Oh ho, I see you still have that sense of humor"

"He is a marvel, isn't he?" Mithos smiled with paternal pride, "and this fellow - Genis, was it? - has done a remarkable job as well." He looked at the angel with an appraising stare.

Genis bowed. "I am your humblest servant my lord."

"He's cute too" Yuan smirked. "Father, isn't it time you got yourself a new play thing?"

"Wh-What?!" Rodyle screamed. "He's an angel! Not a fuck toy!"

"Boo, you're no fun Ryde" He smirked at the old nick-name, knowing it drove him crazy.

Mithos blushed in embarrassment. "Yuan, this is not the time or the place to be discussing my sex life," he scolded, "In fact, for you, the time is never."

Rodyle meanwhile was slowly turning into a tomato in unabashed rage.

Genis snickered. "I don't think red's his colour"

Yuan laughed. "I like youwe'll have great fun!"

"If you will excuse me, my lord," Rodyle said stiffly, "I have experiments to attend to."

"Of course," Mithos said, waving him off, "I won't keep you here, you've been doing such wonderful work."

Rodyle nodded, slightly mollified, and turned to Genis. "Come Genis, let's go."

Genis bowed to Mithos again then left with Rodyle.

"He has turned into a rather handsome young man, hasn't he?" Mithos mused, half to himself, after they left.

"Well, he does look pretty well endowed," Yuan smirked, "but you like it on top right? Hm"

Mithos blushed again. "Yuan, stop that!" he scolded, "I don't need that kind of advice from my own son!"

Yuan snickered. "Yes father." He walked over and kissed his cheek. "WellI've things to do, people to kill, bitches to rape, see ya!" He walked out of the room, smiling all the way.

Mithos shook his head in fond exasperation. "Honestly, that boy" he muttered.

-

Zelos gazed about the huge hall where they'd chosen to meet, observing all the stern and solemn faces of the remaining leaders of Tethe'alla. If all went well, they would have the rest of the country on their side by the time this was over. If notwell, things wouldn't look good for the human race.

"Welcome everyoneI assume you all know why I have called you here." Kratos started.

"We are aware." One of the councilors said. "After the destruction of Meltokio resulting in the king's death, and the recent death of grand councilor Hackett we have been discussing amongst ourselves on the leadership of the council and of Tethe'alla."

Zelos bit his lip slightly, understanding the council's words quite clearly. They'd been trying to decide who should be the next king of Tethe'alla. He knew that he and Kratos were the two most likely candidateshe just hoped they wouldn't pick him.

"And your decision?" Kratos asked.

Another councilor spoke up. "We believe that it is you who should take the throne Lord Aurion, after all you've been leading this precession thus farand you seem to understand the situation better than any of is."

"I see" Kratos said. "Then I will accept this honor and become Tethe'alla's new king."

Zelos sighed in relief, even as his heart went out in sympathy to Kratos. It would be a difficult job, especially in these times, but he knew that Kratos was more suited to it than Zelos would ever be. "Glad that's settled," he whispered to Lloyd, "How does it feel to be the crown prince of Tethe'alla?"

Lloyd just swallowed nervously, looking stunned.

"However we have no time for celebrations or proclamations." Kratos continued. "We have to work quickly if we intend for Tethe'alla, or even humanity, to survive."

The councilors whispered amongst themselves. "What do you suggest?" One of them asked.

"First I suggest we rally our forces." He began. "Then we should speak to Mizuho and Sylvarant about this threat and ask for their aid."

"As Mizuho's representative, I am authorized to pledge our aid in this situation," Sheena spoke up, "You have our support."

"I seethen our next goal is Sylvarant." Kratos thought aloud.

"We should send a message to their Governor-general of Palma Coasta, explaining the situation," Zelos said, despite his reluctance to involve himself in the politics he knew so little about, "Emphasize the fact that this Yggdrasil fellow intends to eliminate all of humanity, not just Tethe'alla, so it's in their interest to help get rid of him."

"I agree." Regal spoke up.

"Duke Bryantwould you give us your aid in this war." One of the councilors asked.

"Under two conditions, yes." Regal replied.

"Conditions?" another councilor spoke up angrily, "We are in a world crisis, and you are dictatingconditions for your aid?!"

"Let's hear him out," Zelos interjected, "I'm sure he has reasons for what he says." He turned to Regal, "Please continue, Duke Bryant."

"My first is the freedom of half-elves." Regal said clearly. "The next is an established country for them."

"What!?" One of the councilors shouted.

The room burst into indignant babble. Zelos attempted to speak up, but his voice was lost among the others. Finally he shouted, "Would you all listen for a minute?!" The noise quieted, and he continued, "Duke Bryant's request sounds reasonable to me. This entire situation has come about because of the way humans treat half-elves. If we intend to prevent a recurrence, we must take measures to ensure they are treated more fairly. Don't you think?"

"I agree." Kratos said. "This entire situation could have been avoided if we had not done the terrible things we had."

Zelos nodded, "The most dangerous army in the world is one with nothing to lose, and right now, that describes these half-elves. If we give them another way to go, I'd be willing to bet the number of foes we have to deal with shrinks considerably."

Regal smiled lightly in relief, then grew serious. "Those are my terms."

There was more grumbling and discussion, but eventually, most of the councilors nodded and voiced their grudging agreement.

"Now all we have to do is convince Sylvarant of the same" Kratos sighed under his breath.

-

Forcystus crept out of the city and to the clearing which was the designated meeting point, noting with vague dismay that the person he was supposed to meet hadn't arrived yet. "He'd better not have killed anyone on the way." He muttered.

"Forcystus" A voice whispered from right behind him.

Forcystus leaped into the air about a foot, startled out of his wits. "Kvar!" he thundered, "Don't do that!"

Kvar laughed. "Ah well I am in charge of gathering intelligence for a reason"

Forcystus sighed in aggravation. Kvar was the best spy they had, which only made the amoral fellow harder to deal with. "That's what I'm here to talk to you about. What have you found out about the Governor-general's attitudes?"

"Hm a 'good man' that one is" Kvar laughed. "Takes care of his ownalmost to the point of blindness. He'd be easy to crush if you know where to hit."

Forcystus smiled cruelly. "Excellent," he said, "and where would that be, have you found it?"

"His beloved daughter" Kvar laughed. "I'll advice Pronyma to place one of her dolls there in her place"

Forcystus nodded, "Wonderful. I'll report all this back to our lord, then, and inform him that we have a system in place which will effectively decapitate Sylvarant's leadership."

"After that then humanity will fall under the great castle." Kvar chortled.

"Indeed it will," Forcystus replied, chuckling darkly. After a moment, he grew serious again. "Remember, though, Kvar," he said sternly, "that we are not to cause any sort of disturbance in Sylvarant until Tethe'alla has fallen. They must have no warning of what we are to do."

Kvar nodded. "I know of his lordship's plans. Speaking of which did you hear, his son has fully awoken."

Forcystus' eye widened. "I wasn't aware of that," he replied, "That's excellent news, indeed. We should be able to move forward much faster, in that case."

"Yeshis lordship is most pleased, however he is not happy about the situation arising to it." Kvar sighed, seeming almost remorseful, almost. "It seems the young lord caught the eye of a rather cruel crowd and suffered dearly at their hands."

Forcystus frowned deeply, fist clenching. "Those human bastards." he growled, "This is exactly why they need to be exterminated."

"I couldn't agree morehowever his young lordship did in turn enjoy slowly murdering the bastards who committed that sin," Kvar laughed, "and according to Rodyle's toy he did it in a most humorous matter."

"Well, that's something, at least," Forcystus agreed with a cruel smile, "I'll have to ask for the story from someone when I report in. Right now, though, we both have duties to fulfill."

Kvar stopped him before he could leave. "Oh by the way we may have a problem on our hands."

"A problem?" Forcystus asked, "What sort ofproblem?"

"His name is Duke Bryant" Kvar growled, "and he's a major supplier to the humans, however recently he's gained quite a popularity amongst half-elves"

"Bryant Bryant" Forcystus mused, "The name seems familiar isn't he the fellow who actually declared himself betrothed to one of us? That could be a problem, indeed" He shook his head, "Who in their right mind would agree to marry a human? She must have been coerced somehow"

"That or she's been promised great wealth in return for it though I can't understand why the human wouldn't just take whatever he wanted from her." Kvar pondered aloud.

"Possibly he's cunning enough to anticipate the effect that his actions might have on our authority," Forcystus replied grimly, "Keep an eye on that situation, too, if you can, and we should try to discredit the union itself too."

"That may be easy enough to doI have heard that they are searching for her little brother who has been 'lost'." Kvar replied.

Forcystus' eye widened. "That bastard's manipulating her with this, then" he muttered darkly, "Does humans' depravity never end?"

"Not in this life Forcystus" Kvar sighed.

Forcystus just nodded. "We'd best get going, it doesn't do to linger too long," he said, "Do what you can to tell people the truth of that 'marriage', spread the word around. I'll go report back to our lord on our progress."

Kvar nodded. "Alsoif you see Pronyma before I do tell her that his lordship would like her to report to him immediately for a mission."

Forcystus nodded sharply. "I'll do that," he promised. "Long reign Yggdrasil!" he saluted then turned and swiftly walked away, his form soon obscured by the night.

-

"But it's sooooooo boring!" Yuan whined for the fifteenth time that day. He had been cooped up in the underground fortress of the rebels, not allowed to go about for fear of his recapture.

"I know it's boring," Mithos replied patiently, "but we can't risk having you captured. Can't you find some way to amuse yourself here?"

"I'm not allowed to torture anyone here" Yuan pouted. "Get me a playmate!"

Mithos was about to say that he didn't have resources to spare for the amusement of petulant children, when a thought occurred to him. "A playmate, hm?" he asked, "What about that other angel? Would he be a suitable playmate for you?"

Yuan's eyes lit up, almost looking overjoyed, as though he were about to see a friend. "Definitely!! Get me him!"

Mithos grinned at his son's expression. "Very well then," he said, "I'll get someone on it right away."

Yuan gave a secret smile, before whooping in joy and hugging him. "Thank you papa!!"

Mithos laughed slightly at his son's enthusiasm. "You're welcome," he said, "Please don't strangle me!"

Yuan released him, still smiling.

Suddenly the doors burst in and a shouting Rodyle stumbled in. "MY LORD!" He ran up to his throne. "My lord! I have it! Another cruxis crystal, more powerful than my last!!"

Mithos' eyes widened. "That's excellent news!" he said, "Where is it?"

"Old man Rodyleyour pants are down." Yuan said with a raised an eyebrow.

"Ah? AH!" Rodyle shouted, when he looked down. He quickly pulled them up, shooting a glare at Yuan. "Ahas I was sayinghere" He chortled, holding out the red crystal.

Eyes gleaming, Mithos snatched the crystal from him. "Beautiful," he whispered, examining it, "and you say I simplyput it on my hand?" He tried, pressing the gem into the back of his hand, and looked on in childlike amazement as it became embedded there. "That feels very strange." He commented, lifting the hand to inspect it.

Rodyle smiled. "It gives the bearers unimaginable powers"

"At a price." Yuan finished for him, summoning his swallow and pointing it at Rodyle who jumped back. "What will it do to him?"

"N-Nothing more than what a usual angel suffers my lordI assure you" Rodyle answered, throwing himself to his knees.

"And what about a rejection or some sort of consequences?" Yuan pressed.

"None that I know ofnot for that one" Rodyle replied, cowering in fear.

"Yuan, let him be," Mithos told his son calmly, "I know the risks. No power worth having can be gained without a certain amount of danger."

Yuan sighed, but lowered his weapon. "Don't be so reckless with your life father"

"Thank you for your concern, Yuan," Mithos said, "but I've already spoken with Rodyle about this earlier. We've determined some properties of mana signatures and which ones are most likely to cause rejection. I'm at a very low risk for it. There won't be any problems."

Yuan pouted at him. "Whatever" He cast one last glare at Rodyle, then began to walk out of the room, whispering to him as he left. "If my father dies it'll be you that joins him"

Rodyle squeaked, but just continued looking down.

Mithos sighed. "That boy," he muttered, "Some days, I just don't know what to do with him. I'd better get to work on finding him that playmate, before he gets bored enough to start wreaking havoc."

"I agree full heartedly my lord" Rodyle said, casting a glare over his shoulder.

Mithos smiled. "I don't suppose Genis would be up for another kidnapping mission?" he asked slyly.

"Ah I am afraid not my sire he is currently out collecting exspheres with my unit" Rodyle said.

"A pity," Mithos murmured, "Perhaps another, then I wish to bring the angel Zelos Wilder here, for my son's amusement."

There was a knock on the door a little again, this time a female voice echoing through it. "My lordship"

"Ah, come in, Pronyma," Mithos called out to the woman.

Pronyma entered, bowing to him. "I have heard that you required my services?"

"Ah, yes," Mithos purred, "I had some tasks for you regarding Sylvarant, but something else has recently come up that I believe will require your unique abilities."

Pronyma bowed her head. "I am yours to use."

Mithos smiled. "I wish to kidnap Zelos Wilder for my son," he told her, "Your task is to create a duplicate which will replace him, so that his friends won't discover his disappearance until it's too late."

"As you wish." Pronyma answered, bowing again. "I shall get on it right away." With that she turned and left.

Rodyle scoffed as soon as she was gone. "The dark arts she usesI'm not to fond of them"

"Her methods are somewhatunsavory," Mithos agreed with a nod, "but her work is quite beneficial to us, and until you can duplicate her abilities with some invention, it's in my best interest to keep her around."

"Oh course my lord" Rodyle replied. "I think that she has shown great interest in the angels powersand while I know she won't touch your son, I fear for my test subject."

Mithos frowned. "That is a problem," he admitted, "You keep a close watch on him, I assume?"

"I trybut the child is very strong, and while he obeys orders it's hard to keep him still" Rodyle sighed. "Perhaps I'll get Magnius to watch him"

"Why don't you let me keep an eye on him for a time?" Mithos asked, "After all, I'll soon have the same powers he does. I should be able to keep him reined indon't you think?"

"As you wish my lord" Rodyle said with a bow. "However now I must return to my studies today they brought me a woman and I'm going to see if I can reverse to age flow"

"Very well, then," Mithos said, "You're dismissed. Send the boy up here, and I'll keep him out of trouble while you do your experimenting."

Rodyle smiled and walked out, whistling lightly as he left.

Mithos' smile turned predatory as Rodyle left, and he waited for the youngest angel to arrive.