Kratos Aurion (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
simulsimul) wrote2016-11-02 07:40 pm
simulsimul) wrote2016-11-02 07:40 pm
a thing; w/ ruinsprofessor & conductingresistance
canon
breached
confessed
dadly
future
grigori
mercenary
MEover
origin
reversal
titans
scenario list
canon: Kratos needs to stop running off
confessed: wing reflex
confessed: actual wingpull
confessed: turning Renegade
confessed: son meets father
dadliness: confrontation
dadliness: awakening
dadliness: illness
dadliness: a fundamental lack of understanding on the word 'abducted'
dadliness: updating parameters
dadliness: assassination assignation
mercenary: hiding in the library
mercenary: aftermath of librarian saviour
reversal: oracle destroyed
titans: storming the tower
titans: safety in the canyon
titans: night horrors
canon
- combo of Kratos and Zelos ending
- Zelos does the stupid thing, but not so far as his death, and is still the eighth member of the party to Derris-Kharlan.
scenarios
scenario one: Yuan tracks Kratos down at Dirk's.
breached
- canon right up until after Botta’s death
- no one uses Yuan’s name around Mithos so Mithos walks right into the Triet base with them
- cue an epic OH SHIT in which Yuan gets a lil bit beat up while covering the evacuation of the rest of the base
- until Kratos appears to intervene and have the Chosen group get Yuan out of there
- Mithos gets Kratos tho and he’s a bit mad cos, yanno, traitor and all
- time to be locked up and punished and need to be rescued
- kind of puts a crimp in the creation of the Eternal Ring plans
- mostly cos Mithos turns Kratos lifeless, with some armour to regulate his mana so he remains a seraph. can't have the seal becoming less powerful, yo
- it does mean he can only obey orders tho
- the first rescue fails miserably but at least no one dies and they know they need to reforge his key-crest
- the second rescue attempt (circumstances of canon-point under percolation) goes a little better, though Yuan almost gets killed by Kratos trying to attach the key-crest
- luckily that and the first telepathy in a while gets through and Kratos manages to break out a la Colette, and heal Yuan enough for Raine to get there
- after which, angreh father-son beatdown on Mithos.
scenarios
None yet.
confessed
- almost successful assassination lands Kratos as an injured stranger in Iselia (1-2 years pre-canon)
- recuperation leads to accidental-on-purpose 'holiday' in Iselia
- doubts result in a request for Dirk to make a key-crest like Kratos' own
- oracle room undergoes some stealth sabotage
- regeneration journey is slightly delayed, prompted by Genis and Lloyd being discovered at the ranch
- Triet is awkward. so very awkward. for the Renegades -- whose side is Kratos even on these days and why was he vanished for two years?
- initial overall journey similar to canon, save that Kratos is a bit less circumspect about advising Colette on how to cope with angel transformations
- there are more overt Dun Wanna Feelings
- then Luin, wherein things happen and the group is in town during the Desian attack. the others naturally want to fight but tis a mite difficult against an army and building-destroying magitech. luckily, angel on their side. unluckily, wingpulls in order to muster the power to cover the townspeoples' retreat
- questions and confessions ensue
- Colette rejects the key crest (for the moment) so there's still hopefully maybe ambiguity about Kratos's position re the last seal
- it wouldn't fit anyway, it's modelled for the hand like Kratos's is because he was a derp and did not specify otherwise, so Lloyd needs to make a thing to make it fit
- slow protective retreat toward Asgard.
scenarios
scenario one: Kratos confesses before Salvation; Raine wants to follow up.
scenario two: Raine's examination of an angel; and also Kratos realises how far he's put his foot in it.
scenario three: Kratos goes to taunt Yuan a little, and also ask for his help.
scenario four: in which Raine makes Kratos tell the children all the things, and Yuan takes too much amusement from it.
dadliness
- Kratos retires in Iselia under the name Irving to raise Lloyd after the death of his wife
- no exsphere. ageing occurs! so does a beard and a braid
- teaches Lloyd swordplay, but on the sly, to avoid the other villagers noticing. his daytime job is weaving
- Lloyd finds the box of their exspheres and wants details. after some prodding by Dirk, Kratos explains how exspheres are made and that one is Anna's life. Lloyd is too young yet, but when Lloyd comes of age (~15) Kratos lets him make his own decision re wearing it
- Lloyd chooses not to wear the exsphere
- Genis befriends Marble and Lloyd meets her, as in canon; this happens before the journey begins, with the fallout
- difference being that Colette is still in the village so they can't be too horrible, so they just demand Lloyd be turned over for a flogging
- Kratos stands in his stead because natch. luckily, they're only mooks and don't recognise the bearded weaver as anyone important
- gives Lloyd his guilt complex early tho
- the oracle happens much the same way except Botta doesn't quite recognise the weirdly familiar bearded swordsman
- he does when he's reporting to Yuan tho
'there was an exceptionally skilled human'
/brief physical description/
/did x other faintly recognizable thing/
and both he and Yuan are aware that Kratos has been awol for a while, so there's a moment of pure silence and dawning 'no, it couldn't be'
- but then obviously one of them has to go make sure
- cue an interruption just out of Triet.
scenarios
scenario one: Yuan feels the need to investigate; this results in Kratos injured and abducted.
scenario two: Yuan realises he can't kill Kratos with his own two hands; Kratos gets mothered.
scenario three: Kratos gets sick on the heels of his recovery. Yuan mothers him some more. Botta disapproves.
scenario four: Kratos recovers and makes an escape attempt. Sort-of.
scenario five: Kratos recovers more and talks to Botta, when not needling Yuan about his lack of preparedness.
scenario six: Sheena's contract takes a slight shift into undercover instead of assassination work.
future
- Aselia is Earth ~10,000 years in the past
- all is peachy-keen except the tree is now underground and the elvens/half-elves/some humans are in hiding in the centre of the planet, hidden thanks to the summon spirits
- Colette is working with humanitarian aid in various impoverished nations
- Zelos is a diplomat in West Asia / Middle East trying to keep the peace
- Yuan is a crotchety lecturer at Cambridge who's also HUGE into environmentalism
- Lloyd and Kratos are having family time in space
- occasionally the trio on Earth meet reincarnations of people they used to know
- but rarely at the same time and almost never in a position where they meet
- but then they start meeting them
- lots of them
- all in the same span of years
- they're starting to think something's hinky
- until the space-elves attack
- and then they know something is hinky.
scenarios
None yet.
grigori
- at some point significantly before canon, Kratos actually calls it quits
- the Church's institution calls him a fallen angel of vengeance
- really he's just going around trying to help people and avoiding being taken back to Cruxis
- assigns himself to the Chosen parties whenever he can, up to Colette
- ????? idk some kind of profit somewhere
scenarios
None yet.
mercenary
- when Yuan visits Kratos at the beach when Lloyd is 3 months old, he does not manage to escape before Anna and Lloyd return
- accidental attachment to this kidlet who likes pulling his hair
- three years later, Yuan can't stand to hold back while Kratos fights Kvar, so he throws caution to the wind to help
- Anna is still killed but they rescue Lloyd and Noishe and both are branded as traitors
- Lloyd is raised as a Renegade with Dad, Uncle Yuan and the extremely reticent Uncle Botta (how dare)
- meanwhile in Tethe'alla Yuan infiltrates the castle as the library archivist
- stays out of sight, mostly, but has a good ear around the politics thanks to recruiting Princess Hilda
- also happens to stumble on Zelos hiding in the library right after his mother's death
- look he's got a 'nephew' he can't just do nothing (even if all he meant was to recommend a book)
- unwittingly accidentally 'adopts' the Tethe'allan Chosen by virtue of being the only one who doesn't treat him like the Chosen
- sometimes Kratos brings Lloyd to visit and basically they're all separate pairs of exasperated bros
- by canon Lloyd and Kratos are wandering mercenaries, helping people on the sly while gathering intel to send back to the Renegades
- Yuan and Zelos are actively building resistance to the Church using inside knowledge
- the ninja are all Renegades
- Colette is escorted by Raine and by the priests
- yes the 'chain up the Chosen and drag her to every seal if necessary' priests
- she meets Lloyd randomly in Triet but Lloyd doesn't know her as the Chosen. they're a bit out of touch on the Journey of Regen timeline
- stuff happens and they keep missing each other up until Palmacosta, which is a warzone between the Desians (and Dorr as their figurehead) and the Renegades (with Neil as their leader)
- Colette wants to help; priests say no
- out come the chains
- Raine objects, but she has no exsphere so what can she do
- btw Genis got caught in the Iselian ranch and tossed in as a traitor to be made a host
- he gets sent to the Palmacosta ranch
- right after Neil manages to take the city, after Colette and Raine leave it, Botta takes the Palmacosta ranch and rescues Genis, among others
- Genis becomes his little shadow and is much preferable to Lloyd, in Botta's opinion
- Lloyd and Kratos are still trying to catch up to Colette to rescue her when they drop by
- Genis hears what they're trying to do and insists on coming along.
scenarios
scenario one: in which Yuan accidentally adopts a Chosen instead of a book from a library.
scenario two: in which Yuan is accidentally-deliberately adopted by the Meltokio Castle Knights.
MEover
- Mass Effect crossover someplace in the realm of 15,000 years after TOS canon
- except started before then, cos elves are really from Feros, planet of the cranky telepathic plant
- got decimated by the protheans trying to assimilate them into their empire
- elves objected, got killed a lot, fled Feros and got stuck in Aselia's orbit
- kinda forgot a few things but planted a seed from the Ferosian mother plant on Aselia
- Origin hasn't forgotten tho, kinda has a grudge against grumblegrumbleprotheansgrumble
- the entirety of TOS happened, and then some
- Kratos, Yuan, Lloyd, Colette and Zelos are the only ones left, but tis okay, they have each other
- somethingsomething natural space disaster, Aselia is destroyed but they manage to move Yggdrasill onto Derris-Kharlan and do a quarian by becoming a roaming ship
- mana is a variant of eezo lbr
- Derris-Kharlan's too big to use the mass relays, but c'mon it generates its own mass effect field so they develop tech to do hops on their own
- they're in no hurry tho, i mean lbr primarily angelic, elf and half-elf population
- so they're just bumming around their local clusters doing thorough investigations on all the things
- so much eezo on their ship
- so much
- suddenly the Normandy running from a reapers comes along to hide behind them
- reapers start shooting
- everyone on Derris-Kharlan objects
- JUDGEMENT IN SPACE
- so much profit and judging of reapers.
scenarios
None yet.
origin
- Kratos tells Lloyd the dad thing in Triet
- dad and son feelings ensue
- they culminate at the Tower of Salvation in Kratos stabbing Yggdrasill in the back
- unfortunately he does not quite die but impales Kratos against a wall and goes berserk on the Chosen party to the point of Yuan stepping in to help
- that is, by threatening to stab Kratos in the back while he's vulnerable (with Kratos's permission)
- Yggdrasill calls his bluff and fails, and Yuan does the thing
- while Yggdrasill is distracted the Chosen's group nail him but good and he retreats
- luckily while heart-stabbing happened, Kratos's cruxis crystal is still intact, and between Raine's healing and Yuan's mana transfusion he survives long enough to be taken to the Triet base and a refresher
- stuff happens in some fashion or other up until opening Origin's seal
- as it turns out, the mana tranfusion has fused the lock, so to speak, and Kratos can't unlock the seal even voluntarily
- only way to get Origin out at this point is to let him fuse with Kratos, so Kratos becomes Origin
- stipulation of this: Kratos refuses to let go of his humanity
- luckily Yuan already has a literal bond with him thanks to the mana transfusion, so with him as his summoner Kratos can keep his humanity, and only use Origin's powers when Yuan summons them
- commitment like woah for a literal eternity
- but hey, they messed up but good and it's the only way they can reunite the worlds.
scenarios
none yet.
reversal
~ 2000 years in, Kratos and Yuan conspire to kill Mithos and succeed, sorta
- he's stuck inside his exsphere, possessing people
- but he manages to survive and while Kratos and Yuan claim Derris-Kharlan for their base, he takes most of the angels as 'fallen', as well as the Eternal Sword
- most of his bases are hidden behind dimensional slips created by the sword - Iselia included
- Origin refuses to trust either Kratos or Yuan with the job, anyhow, and they don't have a summoner
- instead they're forced to fight Cruxis, embroiling the worlds in an angelic war between Cruxis and the new organisation of Chayim
- the Chosen bloodlines are more important to Cruxis than Chayim, but Mithos seals the seals so only the Chosen bloodline can flip the mana switch. Kratos and Yuan need someone to do that until they can reunite them, so the Journey remains an institution, just without compulsory death at the end
- there is angelification tho, if only so Chayim gets more soldiers and so the Chosen can defend themselves against Cruxis
- Kratos sends Anna and Lloyd to Iselia, because even though enemy territory, it's the safest place there is for them
- Anna get word to Kratos that the Desians are using Iselia as a long-term cruxis crystal cultivation location, and that the sword is held there
- her spy succeeds but is intercepted, and Mithos locks down the dimensional slip to prevent exit and access by angels for ~15 years
- Lloyd grows up in a town with a heavy half-elf population and believing he's training to help the good guys
- he has his own cruxis crystal as a host, but doesn't tell his mother due to the faith-based propaganda encouraging hosts not to bring it up or risk the powers not taking
- he wants to help though, so he steals a key-crest to ensure he can fight
- Yuan and Kratos plan to assault the town and shrine but Mithos uses the sword to interrupt travel between worlds, keeping Yuan in Tethe'alla and forcing Kratos to attack Iselia alone.
scenarios
scenario one: Iselia is attacked by Chayim to claim the sword, with the sword already gone
titans
- Yggdrasill captures Kratos before Kvar finds Anna and Lloyd, but after Kratos makes an Eternal Ring
- Yuan figures hell no and raises the Renegades to try and take Derris-Kharlan, rescue Kratos and solve the split-world problem
- the attack fails. a lot.
- Renegades are wiped out, Kratos is still in Cruxis's hands, but Yuan manages to escape with the Eternal Ring
- Cruxis follows him to Triet base, which gets destroyed and the few remaining Renegades scatter
- Botta is still around tho, helping out how he can
- mostly Yuan just goes searching for Lloyd and Anna
- doesn't manage to find them before Kvar does tho, and Kratos hears from Yggdrasill that they're dead
- this is slightly inaccurate, cos Lloyd still winds up rescued by Dirk in Iselia
- where Yuan eventually finds him, not knowing that he's 'supposed' to be dead
- so Yuan settles in Iselia for a bit to watch Lloyd and the Chosen
- cuts and dyes his hair, the whole shebang
- learns how to carpentry, invents a new use of magic
- winds up being Genis's role model just because scholar and magic-user and half-elf who can pass but also takes no shit from people
- is one of Colette's companions on the Journey when it starts
- he's been challenging their understanding of the Church's institution this whole time lbr
- Sheena is still a thing because the ninja have taken over the Tethe'allan base, which has survived, somewhat
- a grilling ensues
- sometime just after the Asgard Ranch Yuan does have to drop the bombshell
- about how the Journey is just a front, he and his bestie are angels, btw his bestie is Lloyd's dad
- how they're out to topple the institution of religion
- forget sacrificing Colette for the Regeneration, when they get to the seal they can do that without anyone dying
- and then move straight on to rescuing Kratos in Derris-Kharlan
- then they get to the Tower and realise Yggdrasill has Kratos under a Prometheusesque punishment a la 'impaled on the Eternal Sword to suffer the Seed's pain and watch the Chosen get murdered'
- luckily this does not happen, as they manage to rescue him and escape Yggdrasill instead, barely
- retreat to Botta's hiding-place in Asgard so Kratos can recover
- and also find out that Lloyd is actually alive
- the Chosen group goes around to make as many pacts as they can while in Sylvarant
- they get up to Aska when Yggdrasill sends his angels to attack Asgard
- cue Yuan and Kratos being unstoppable battle gods together
scenarios
scenario one: in which Yuan leads the Chosen's party to the Tower of Salvation to dismantle all the traditions ever, and find Kratos waiting for them in serious need of a rescue.
scenario two: in which being in safety reveals that Kratos is not precisely unscathed, but he's doing his best.
scenario three: in which Kratos is emphatically not okay, but with Yuan's help, could be.
no subject
I suppose, with everything I'm asking you to reveal, it would be hypocritical of me to be unwilling to do the same. However, with everything else that's to be discussed...
[There will never be a good time, she thinks. She's frowning as she turns to Yuan, looking him up and down. It's always a little awkward -- to put it lightly -- when meeting another half-elf. At least, that's what she thinks he is-- half-elf in the same way Kratos is human.]
[For his part, Yuan is not at all oblivious to the calculations she must be making, and he can guess to what she's referring.]
That much is up to you. But if you own it, no one can use it to hurt you.
[From him, it's what passes for compassionate. He nods to the woman, glances in turn to Kratos. This is Kratos's endeavor, after all.]
[Raine, looking now both troubled and thoughtful, steps back into the room after Lloyd.]
no subject
[Given all the revelations Kratos intends to heap on the children, this is quite possibly the best time, not that Kratos expects either Colette or Lloyd to take the Sages' secret badly regardless of the timing. But Raine isn't just thinking about herself; she's thinking of her brother too, and Kratos had assumed she would keep their secret on his behalf, at least.
[There's a moment, when Yuan and Kratos are the only ones still in the hall, and Kratos happens to catch Yuan's eye. For a moment, Kratos teeters on the edge of saying something, anything; but when push comes to shove he doesn't know what. In the end he says nothing, but pushes open the door and steps in, leaving room for Yuan to enter before closing it. A touch brusquely:]
This is Yuan Ka-Fai. He leads the Renegades; be sure not to mention his identity in casual conversation where others may hear it.
[He turns his head just enough to indicate that he's talking to Yuan, nodding at each person in turn.]
You've met Lloyd Irving. This is Raine Sage, her brother Genis, Colette Brunel, and Sheena Fujibayashi.
[For his part, Kratos is watching Yuan's face to see whether he recognises Sheena or not; though Kratos had already told him they have the summoner, so the chance of Yuan being unprepared for the sight of her is remote. To say anything else is fairly unnecessary, anyway, given that Colette leaps in with a beam.]
It's so great to meet you. Are you an angel too?
no subject
There will never be a good time, and no matter what I do, the fact of the lie's existence will remain.
[She doesn't know what to do. Even now, her mind isn't made up. But that's all she has to say on the matter before leaving the hallway to the angels.]
[Yuan holds Kratos's gaze, feeling that same almost balance. But there isn't anything to say. Not now. He breaks the eye contact, and follows.]
[Inside Raine has taken up a far corner, expression still troubled though fainter than it was. Genis is near her, bemused, not clear on what's troubling his sister, only that he doesn't like it.]
[Sheena inclines her head to Yuan, an acknowledgement less formal than a bow but a little more than a simple nod. Yuan provides scarcely more than a 'hm.' He knows her, of course, though they'd hardly spoken much beyond the initial assignment.]
[In the end it's Genis who says something first.]
Ka-Fai... that's an old name. No one gets named like that any more.
[Yuan raises an eyebrow at him, and offers Colette a short nod, agreeing.]
It is, and I am.
[He doesn't provide much more, meaning to force Kratos to handle the bulk of things.]
no subject
Great! That means we've got an even better chance of being able to save Colette!
[Behind the smile, Colette's combined relief and guilt is nearly palpable -- at least to Kratos. He's familiar with the feeling.]
It's so great to know there are still good angels in the world -- the worlds.
[This last is with a gentle smile toward Sheena, including her. The sight of it is so familiar that it makes Kratos's chest ache, and he abruptly turns away to close the window. (It isn't really necessary; the location of this inn is designed to use the window obscure any noise, using privacy as their draw for patrons.)]
Unfortunately, we're few and far between. Most angels have been brainwashed and can barely think for themselves; those who can are like Remiel. They delight in manipulating people they see as inferior beings.
[At least he says all this with his customary evenness, and by the time he turns around there's no sign Colette had dug past his defences once again, as she is so wont to do.]
no subject
[It's still one of the reasons Yuan had Botta try to kill her. He didn't trust his own hands with it.]
[Yuan does not give Kratos's turned back a significant look, but it's sincerely tempting.]
Angels were supposed to be... I dunno. Better.
[Genis has his shoulders brought up a bit, not feeling the cheer Lloyd's attempting to exude. Kratos qualifies, he guesses, but it's a pretty bleak picture for the rest of the angels. And also for the Church of Martel as a whole.]
[Raine sets a hand on his shoulder as some kind of reassurance.]
Kratos. Where do you want to begin?
[It isn't exactly a gentle prompt, and she's not offering all that much help. Yuan offers only slightly more:]
No one actually likes Remiel. How much has Kratos told you?
[Raine is, for the moment, conspicuously silent on that front.]
no subject
[Kratos exhales, an explicit thing, with his arms crossed and his head turned in the way it does when he's genuinely considering. It's a stance they all know, so Colette answers Yuan while Kratos is so obviously trying to think. She does this by turning her smile on the other angel, that soft, hopeful smile covering all the things she doesn't want them to see.]
Well, he's told us that Cruxis needs me as a vessel for the Goddess Martel. I don't think I'd mind that so much, except that it's not really necessary to the regeneration of the world. He's said we can do that without --
[She hesitates then, head turning toward Lloyd, and that's more than Lloyd can take, it seems. He bursts out:]
Without Colette having to die. I can't believe the Goddess Martel would set up a system where her angels tell people they have to die to save the world, when they can save it without that!
[Cognizant of Yuan's presence, of how deeply that must hit -- it hits deeply enough for Kratos, every time it comes up -- Kratos finds a place to begin.]
Martel isn't the one who set up the system. It's the leader of Cruxis who did that. Martel is a victim, no less than anyone else who's been killed for their race. Now she's being used as a justification.
no subject
An exceptionally poor one, given that Martel herself was a half-elf.
[His voice is only a little lower than usual.]
Make no mistake; she wouldn't have wanted anyone to die for her.
[Both the Sages focus narrowly on him, though ultimately for different reasons; and it's Sheena, in the end, who says something.]
You're talking about her like you know her.
[Yuan says nothing, only turns his head to Kratos. Raine sighs softly.]
Why don't you tell us about the leader of Cruxis?
no subject
[Colette and Lloyd both blink at that, but neither has much time for a full response aside from repeating that revelation. Kratos exhales softly and nods at Raine, then looks at Sheena.]
We did. The leader of Cruxis is Martel's younger brother -- a half-elf, turned angel. His name is Mithos Yggdrasill.
Ah --
[Colette's soft exclamation stops Kratos from saying anything more.]
You mean like -- the Great Hero Mithos? But I thought he lived thousands of years ago.
[Kratos nods shortly.]
Four thousand years ago. Yes. Mithos didn't journey alone. We were there with him -- and Martel.
[This might take a while, if this is how often he's going to be interrupted. Maybe he should have started with the story he'd told Raine.]
no subject
[Raine, ever watchful, catches something of the demeanor between the two of them.]
It's likely most of your questions will be answered over the course of Kratos's story.
[She remembers, after all, the way Kratos had spoken to her farther up among the mountains: like he could not be stopped, and needed not to be.]
[Sheena looks like she has more questions; but she narrows her eyes at Yuan, folds her arms, and subsides, listening.]
[Genis does not, bursting out instead.]
So then, why are half-elves still--
Genis.
[Raine tugs him a little closer to her. He grumbles.]
no subject
Once upon a time, there existed a giant tree that was the source of mana. A war caused this tree to wither away, and it left behind it a Great Seed too ill to germinate. A hero attempted to save it from its fate by appealing to the rulers of the two kingdoms; but they blocked their ears from his plea.
Instead the hero appealed to the forces of nature themselves, and he made to them this vow: 'I vow to split the worlds asunder to ease the burden upon the Seed. When a century has passed, and the great motherland of Derris-Kharlan returns to shine its light upon the earth, the Seed will be germinated, and I will reunite the world.'
The hero was granted a blessing in the form of divine power and became an angel to watch over the Seed and the two worlds. When a century had passed, the two ancient kings were called to the Holy Ground of Kharlan, where they were to forge a treaty that would last an eternity.
Instead of forging a treaty, the humans each attempted to take the Seed for themselves, and the hero's sister sacrificed her life to save it. With her death, the hero broke his vow to the forces of nature; he used their power to join her soul with the Great Seed, so that she might live on in a deep slumber.
On the ruins of his vow, the fallen hero made another, to his followers and to others like him. He would create a world as his sister desired, one without discrimination. He would find a girl, a Chosen One, whose mana matched his sister, even if it should take him countless millennia. He would lift her to divinity so that her soul could be traded, and his sister might be reborn in the body of the Chosen; and with her rebirth he would reunite the worlds.
But the fallen hero obscured the truth. For if the Seed should ever germinate, his sister's soul would be forever lost, and if she should ever awaken, both of the worlds would end.
no subject
If the pacts are broken, couldn't the power of the summon spirits be taken from him?
[She's already several steps ahead. Genis, by contrast, has been holding a little tighter to her ever since the mention of sisters dying. He is not, for perhaps obvious reasons, very fond of this story. Part of it is the conflict: he doesn't honestly know what he would do if someone killed Raine, and it's something Genis doesn't like thinking about.]
[It's Sheena who says something first, both horrified and angry.]
That's terrible. How could anyone--
[She has difficulty even forming the words.]
[Yuan has pointedly not watched Kratos as he tells this story. It's too flowery for the bitter truth of it, and while that may be fine for written stories or attempts to bother Kratos in lighter times, it cushions Mithos's -- and their own -- actions too nicely.]
Make no mistake about what we're dealing with. The worlds cannot survive Martel's resurrection, and Mithos knows that.
If we must sacrifice one life to ensure the future of the world, then we must. But Martel is-- already dead.
[He has spent long enough already hoping she is not aware of what they've done.]
Allowing the Seed to bloom means only letting the dead rest in favor of the future. Nothing more.
no subject
Yes, the pacts are broken. They would claim to already have a pact, but I doubt any of them will object to an annulment.
[Though possibly they will to Kratos's presence -- some of them. They should start with Undine; she's among the more level-headed of them, and once established to one that Kratos is there to help, the others might be more amenable. Lloyd breaks in before Kratos can warn them of that, though, his expression confused.]
I don't understand. You said -- you said you knew them, back then. But if you did, why didn't you do anything to stop Mithos?
[Ah. Here is the painful part. Kratos manages not to look away, but his head unconsciously dips just enough to shade his eyes, so it appears as though he's looking at Lloyd when he isn't. He doesn't know how he'd manage to get through this, if he had to look Lloyd in the eyes right now.]
You remember -- at the water seal, I told you that I made a terrible mistake?
[Even without seeing Lloyd's face, Kratos can see the rising tension in him, the way he shifts forward to stand between Kratos and Colette.]
Yeah, I remember. But what's that got to do with anything? There's a difference between making a mistake and letting someone do something evil right in front of you!
[Kratos's head moves to the side fractionally, like a head-shake aborted before it begins.]
It -- wasn't like that. Not at first. Mithos promised to reunite the worlds. He promised to save the worlds, to regenerate the worlds, to ensure that no one would have to suffer again. And I believed him. I believed him over and over. That was my mistake, Lloyd. I let someone else shoulder a burden I should have shared.
[He'd even done it with Yuan, centuries ago. He'd always let someone else shoulder the burden. The same way Lloyd has been letting Colette shoulder the burden of the Chosen, without bothering to question.]
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[Improbably, it's Yuan stepping in to help Kratos, with a sidelong, rough-voiced sort of support that he would absolutely deny.]
I began to organize the Renegades once Mithos proposed the idea of human ranches. Until then, I believed enough in him not to stray.
[Martel.]
Looking back, I believe he kept certain things from Kratos. It's harder to see a gradual change happening in front of you. That doesn't excuse our actions, naturally.
[He's only explaining how it is they could have come to this point.]
Regardless, those actions can't be undone now. That's why, I assume, Kratos has chosen to come clean with you all now.
[At this Raine's eyes narrow, though none of the others are looking at her and Yuan can't ascertain exactly why she's giving Kratos that look.]
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[How much of that was truly necessary, and how much because Mithos was even then planning things to which he knew Kratos would object?]
I -- I guess.
[And now Lloyd sounds so uncertain, a moment later bolstered by fierce determination.]
But the ranches are definitely evil! Why didn't you stop him then? I mean, if Yuan could start the Renegades -- why didn't you help him?
[The blow lands, for all that it doesn't show outwardly. Inwardly it hurts, so very badly; anyone else, and it wouldn't have hurt nearly so badly. From Lloyd, it did. Enough that when Kratos speaks, his voice is low and rough.]
Because I promised Martel I would take care of Mithos ... and when I looked at him, I still saw the fifteen-year-old boy with stars in his eyes and the world at his feet. If it was my fault he'd fallen, then I needed to save him -- somehow.
[And he'd failed even at that.]
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[Damned if Kratos is going to take all the responsibility for this. Perhaps he hadn't done anything active; but his position was a different one, too.]
Neither of us trusted the other. Although apparently he's known all along.
[Yuan doesn't sound best pleased by this, like it's some personal offense against him that Kratos could do so.]
[He takes a step forward, bringing himself almost shoulder-to-shoulder with Kratos. Drawing some of the attention better. Kratos is being a fool, naturally. And Yuan does not want to talk about Martel. But Mithos...]
Mithos is past saving. But he was very much like you once, Lloyd. He didn't see the reasons people might let evil pass and say nothing. He saw only that evil was being done, and that half-elves were considered the worst of the world for no fault of their own, and he thought it was wrong, and he had the power to do something.
[Genis is biting his lip to keep from saying something, with Raine's hand on his shoulder. Yuan gives the two of them a deliberately passing glance, looking around the rest of the room.]
Make no mistake. He was a hero, once. The change happened gradually.
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[Before Kratos can say anything at all, the tension in the room is broken by the unexpected sound of Colette's laughter. Lloyd turns, blinking and incredulous and frowning.]
Colette! This is serious!
[Colette takes a deliberate breath, but when she smiles, it's as though she's still struggling to contain its brilliance.]
I know. I'm sorry, Lloyd. It's just that -- they look exactly like you and Genis, when you're both trying to take responsibility for something both of you did. They must be such good friends.
Huh.
[Lloyd turns around again, his gaze more scrutinising this time as he looks and Kratos and Yuan, the way their stances unintentionally mirror each other. Colette's voice softens, but it still fills the room.]
And -- they're trying to help, Lloyd. They wouldn't be here right now if they weren't willing to fix what they did wrong. Just like you're going to keep trying to fix what happened in Iselia, right?
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[And he glances toward Kratos when Colette speaks, even if he looks away right after. Perhaps there's... a little more left than he thought there was. That doesn't change how broken things are between them all. Yuan folds his arms, and watches the children.]
[Sheena has had something on her mind for a little while; now that there's a break in the conversation, she speaks up.]
Why now? Coming clean, and all that. Kratos, you could have just told us you were an angel. Yuan didn't have to come into it at all. And it sounds like last time anything big changed, there was some kind of a cause, right? What aren't you telling us yet?
[It comes from a place that's as much suspicion as it is curiosity.]
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[Kratos finds time to be faintly amused by the 'we', given that Sheena hadn't even technically been part of the group by the time Kratos pulled his wings, but that amusement dies quickly under the weight of her actual question. He manages not to look toward Raine, but it's a near thing. He does not manage not to dip his head again.]
Yuan does need to come into it. There are things we need which can only be gotten from Derris-Kharlan, where Mithos resides. As soon as we get to the Tower of Salvation and Mithos realises Colette has a key-crest, he'll know who gave it to her, and I'll lose any degree of trust he might still have in me.
[It's so very tempting to leave it at that, except that he knows Raine won't let it go at that. Kratos inhales slowly and lets it out as a deep sigh, forcing himself to relax, forcing his fingers to loosen their grip on his arms.]
The man who runs the Asgard Ranch. I know him. His name is Kvar. He's in charge of the Angelus Project -- the project trying to create cruxis crystals from scratch. My wife was one of his test subjects.
[Even without quite seeing their faces, he can see Lloyd's double-take. He can certainly hear Colette's gasp. It is Lloyd who answers, however.]
You -- you had a wife?
[He sounds uncertain, cautious. He knows enough to tell that this isn't the punch-line, but he isn't analytical enough to follow the line through to why it's important.]
Yes. That was after the first time I betrayed Mithos, and came down to Sylvarant. I helped a resistance movement stage a prison break in the Asgard ranch. Anna was one of those who escaped, with the cruxis crystal.
[This time Lloyd's breath is audible.]
Anna?! But that's my mom's --
[It's hard to tell whether Lloyd's voice dies with a strangle or Kratos just cuts him off. A bit of both, perhaps; now that Kratos has started, he's leaning toward rolling on, just to get the words out.]
We spent a few years on the run. In that time, we had a son ... whom we named Lloyd.
[Now there's only silence, as though Lloyd is holding his breath; and then he says, shakily:]
This -- this is a joke, right?
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[And then Kratos goes for the thing Yuan honestly didn't think he would. Apparently Kratos is determined to break down all the walls he can, all at once. Yuan has no idea what he can add to this, but...]
We have better things to joke about. You have the look of an Aurion.
[...Yuan's dismissiveness will probably not be the most helpful thing here.]
Lloyd.
[That's Raine, as gentle as she knows how to be.]
I believe this is true. I've observed something of a resemblance in the last several weeks, in appearance as well as mannerisms. I had thought at first he might be your brother.
[Sheena was not nearly expecting this kind of a reaction to her question, and she's gone quiet for a moment, eyes wide. Lloyd is the son of an angel. Lloyd, Kratos's son.]
[...Huh.]
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[Lloyd's floundering hard, and it makes Kratos's heart ache, though for what reason he can't possibly untangle. He can't tell if Lloyd's reaction is pure shock, or the idea of being the child of an angel, or the idea of being the child of someone who'd done the things Kratos had done.
[Luckily, Colette steps forward on the heels of Raine's words and Lloyd's denial, taking Lloyd's hand to smile at him.]
Lloyd, it's okay. Remember what you said to me, after we met Lord Remiel? Not everyone gets two fathers.
Yeah, but -- Kratos -- how can you drop all this on me at once?!
[This last, directly at Kratos, and very nearly accusing; though he hasn't dropped Colette's hand.]
Wh- what am I meant to do with all this? If you knew that I was -- why didn't you say something?! Why weren't you there?
[Somewhere along the lines, habit and adrenaline kicked in. Kratos's face is as blank as it's ever been, the tangle of his emotions set aside. His voice comes very flat and distant.]
I thought you were dead. You and Anna. We were attacked by Kvar and his men outside Iselia -- Kvar had hunted us down to take back Anna's exsphere. During the fight, the two of you and Noishe fell down a cliff. By the time I fought off Kvar and went after you, all I found at the bottom were Desian corpses and the monsters feasting on them. I thought there was no way you could have survived.
[Lloyd shakes his head.]
You were one of them. Then you weren't. If the Desians are the reason you -- if they were behind all that -- then why would you go back to Cruxis?! How can we trust you if you've kept changing sides all the time?
[... It's a fair question. Kratos isn't sure how to answer.]
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Kratos didn't have to tell you any of this. He could just as easily have stopped with the details about Cruxis. Chance resemblances happen.
[Yuan shifts a little, angling himself away from Kratos. This isn't moral support. This is a matter of trust and practicality.]
Losing everything can break a person. What do you do when all your hope, all your reason for trying, is taken away?
[He unfolds himself long enough to wave one hand, as though to put all that to the side.]
Again. I'm not excusing anything. The sooner you understand how we came to be as we are, the sooner we can move on to doing something about this world. That's all.
[He sounds as disinterested as he can. Distance is the only thing that's letting him talk about this, really.]
[Sheena shifts uncomfortably.]
Hey, I'm in the middle of changing sides too.
[She knows not all of them trust her yet -- the Professor in particular has a way of eying her -- but Lloyd and Colette were easy enough with it.]
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[Lloyd cringes at Sheena, and then he sighs, tugging at the tufts of hair on his nape.]
I'm sorry, Sheena. But you were fighting for the survival of your world. Cruxis is trying to destroy them both.
[Colette still has Lloyd's hand in hers, and she squeezes it, stepping forward to properly catch his eye.]
Wasn't Kratos fighting for the survival of the world too? Back then, and right now, with us. And he's thinking of you, Lloyd. I can tell, because when he fell into Iselia, he didn't leave, even after he got well. He got his hope back. That's why he has the strength to try. I know how he feels, because -- if it weren't for you, I don't think I'd have the strength to be the Chosen.
[It very neatly diverts Lloyd's attention, and his expression morphs into concern.]
Colette --
[She shakes her head, smiling.]
It's okay. Really. But I think Yuan's right. They've known each other for a long time, and they've been on opposite sides. If he can still trust Kratos, I think we can too.
[Lloyd takes a deep breath, and another, and looks at Kratos. Kratos has been silent this whole time, not even by choice; his voice seems to have vanished with Yuan's defence of him, and then Colette's. Now their gazes lock, and Kratos finds he can't look away. Lloyd nods firmly.]
Yeah. You're right. Okay.
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[Or maybe it isn't. Friendship or lack thereof aside, Yuan probably can let Kratos at his back. The space between his shoulder-blades will prickle all the while, but he has no cause right now to think Kratos will turn on him.]
Fine, then. Can we continue?
[The sooner they move on from matters that are likely to be emotional, the better. It's for Yuan's sake as much as Kratos's.]
[Raine nods, agreeing.]
For the moment, we'll agree to trust you. Is that all the background we'll need to move forward, or is there more?
[She's gently prodding, trying to keep everyone on track and -- maybe -- spare them having to bare too much of their souls. She herself is still caught in the crux of decision, still assessing whether or not to reveal their heritage. Although she does suspect Lloyd and Kratos will need to have a long talk later.]
[Sheena glances between Yuan and Kratos a few more times, trying to make sense of their relationship by their posture alone. It really isn't working. Maybe Colette's on to something, but then again Colette also started assuming Sheena was her friend long before Sheena stopped trying to kill her.]
[...all of these people are weird. But she does like them.]
So, uh. I'm guessing you want me to... make pacts with the spirits instead?
[Harking back to much earlier in the conversation, before any awkward familial revelations started happening.]
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[It's about all Kratos can think of; the conversation with Raine had seemed much longer. Of course, Kratos had stumbled over what to tell her for most of it. Regardless, Sheena has the right tack, and Kratos nods at her.]
Yes, we'll need you. Mithos made pacts with all the spirits in order to split the worlds. The spirits cannot break a pact themselves, but if the pact-maker breaks their own oath, the spirits are capable of annulling the pact on their own behalf. You should be able to convince them to make a pact with you instead -- if you can convince them to deal with people again.
[This last is added rather grimly; and naturally Lloyd leaps on it.]
What? Why wouldn't they?
[Kratos exhales, long and slow.]
We betrayed them badly. It may go better if I weren't with you -- but I can't imagine any of them would react well to discover I'm a member of your party after the pact is made. Undine is the most level-headed of the spirits in Sylvarant; if we approach her first, she'll be the most likely to accept that Yuan and I are opposing Mithos. Having a pact with her would ease the objections of the rest.
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[Yuan's just as happy to let the matter of the past, and who's done what, settle to rest for now. He surveys the lot of them again, nods to himself.]
[He'd prefer Volt, personally, but that's just a matter of elemental taste. It's true that Undine is the most temperate of them, and if she listens, then the others may begin to ease.]
Of the others on this side-- perhaps Sylph, as a second, though they can be capricious.
[Luna would be fine, true. Aska is the one to worry about.]
[Sheena is a little less sanguine about this. She opens her mouth to say something, closes it. Her head lowers a little before she catches herself and straightens it out, but she still glances slightly away.]
I can't guarantee anything, you know. This might not work.
That's why it's best if you have our company, I think.
[This from Yuan, with a look at Kratos.]
Kratos is right that they won't be best pleased, but we know things about the formalities and the spirits which have otherwise been lost. And full disclosure will be the better policy. As I said, we won't be able to help with the formation of the pact itself; but we can speak with Undine, and offer advice to you.
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