Today's reality check is brought to you by Green Magicite...without him, there'd probably be fish in the skies and birds in the sea. Yey for him, he's also the guy that co-writes this shmuck when the need arises.
Ah yes, and if you think anyone's out of character, well, I'm sorry, Mr(s). Nitpicker. I tried. (point to any who can find where I got that)
Based on the now-dead (at least her fanfiction account) Manami the Ninja Goddess' idea, if it weren't for her starting this all I wouldn't have thought of it. If you're out there, go you!
Lloyd yawned, wondering how carrying buckets at the back of the class was supposed to help him pay attention. All it was doing was making him so very tired...
All too soon he had fallen asleep.
"Lloyd?" a voice whispered.
Lloyd kept sleeping...
"Lloyd!"
Something was shaking him awake.
"Whaaaat?"
Genis sighed and dragged him away. "Class was dismissed a half hour ago!"
"Really?" Lloyd wondered. "Only a half hour? Usually it's late during the afternoon you come to wake me."
"I remembered," Genis shrugged.
"Did the Prof say anything important?"
"Not much."
Lloyd stretched, feeling better. Being cooped up in that old classroom was uncomfortable.
"Heya," he called out to the blonde currently bent over a tablet.
"Hello," she smiled before returning her attention to it. "Just doing some last minute studying."
"Oh yeah...tomorrow's the day you get your oracle, right? You'll be able to start your world regeneration journey," Lloyd nodded, proud he remembered.
"Yeah...I'm reviewing some angel script, to make sure I didn't forget anything..."
"Don't forget to sleep. Won't be very good if you fell asleep and the oracle called."
A quiet evening...for some. Colette couldn't sleep, there was something troubling her, not the oracle, but something else. She had something to do before she could sleep and wake up to her 16th birthday. She lit a candle and took out a piece of parchment and a quill, Dear Lloyd, by the time you read this…
Another day, another day of class, another day of Lloyd standing at the back of class with buckets in his hand.
The class was in the middle of a conversation only video game junkies listen to when there was a blinding flash of light.
"That must be your oracle, Chosen," the teacher said, rubbing her eyes. "I'll go to the temple and make sure everything is alright." She left then, leaving the class unsupervised and trusting in their judgment..
"Well this sucks," Lloyd groaned, shifting his weight to another foot. "I'm not supposed to let go of these stupid buckets until the Prof tells me to."
"Oh, put them down if you must," Genis sighed, taking them away from him. "No one will care anyway."
The rest of the class was up and about, chatting aimlessly. Only Colette remained sitting, fidgeting nervously every once in a while.
"Why so jumpy?" Lloyd asked, sitting on a desk next to her. Genis stood nearby, leaning on the wall.
"I'm so exited, I'm finally going to go out and do what I've been preparing all my life for, after years of 'you'll do this' and 'you'll do that' I'm going to do something and make the world a better place...I can't really describe it."
"So..." Lloyd began, thinking of an excuse to get out of class. "Let's go to the temple."
"But Raine said!" Genis yelled, causing everyone present to turn. For such a small boy he had a loud voice...and a big mouth.
"I think it's a great idea," Colette whispered, nodding. By now the rest of the class had lost interest.
"After all, no one will care anyway," Lloyd smirked, poking Genis in the side.
"But..." Genis sighed, giving up.
"Okay, majority rules, we're going," Lloyd file out with his two friends close behind.
Right after they left the school a random monster approached.
"Oh fun, a tutorial battle," Genis complained with evident sarcasm. "Why do all journeys have to start off with a tutorial battle?"
"Free experience?" Colette offered.
"Can't argue with that," Lloyd jumped into the fray.
A few rather easy tutorial battles later...
"Anyone hurt?" Colette asked, dusting herself lightly.
"We could take a nap at your house, get all healed up," Lloyd proposed.
"I don't quite understand that logic, but oh well," Genis shrugged.
One nap afterward...
"Temple time!" Lloyd ran out of the village.
"Acting like he's just won a million gald," Genis grumbled while trying to keep up.
"Wait up!" Colette shouted after him, lagging behind.
After fighting wolves, falcons, and a rather nasty hare, (That's the most foul, cruel, and bad-tempered rodent you ever set eyes on!) the 3 arrived at the Martel Temple.
Colette shivered nervously. "Something's...wrong..."
"Chosen! Get away from here!" a priest staggered out weakly, speaking in a raspy whisper.
"What happened?" Colette demanded, helping the priest stand up.
"The Desians..." he went limp.
"Let's go!" Lloyd unsheathed his swords and charged up the stairs to the temple.
"Yes, sir," Genis mumbled.
At the site of the temple, a few Desians were gathered. The one with black hair that was obviously their leader turned to the three.
"What's this?" he smirked. "The Chosen and her goons have come to challenge us?" He had an obvious accent.
Lloyd pointed a sword at them. "What are you Desians doing here? We have a peace treaty with you!"
The leader blinked a few times but recovered. "We have our reasons. Get the girl!" he pointed at Colette and a few fighters armed themselves.
"More experience!" Lloyd smiled, slashing through a soldier.
Genis had something witty to say but slammed by a giant wrecking ball carried by a trollike thug.
"Canaries!" he said stupidly, pointing to some invisible object in front of his face.
"Get up," Colette helped him on his feet. "We'll need all the help we can get with this guy!"
But no matter what they did, the task seemed impossible. The brute shrugged off any attacks they threw at him and hit five times as hard.
When all seemed lost, a mysterious, purple-clothed, red-haired (and hot, according to some) stranger appeared, casting healing spells as he went.
Lloyd, with new strength, stuck the giant, sending him flying.
"Kratos? Damn! Retreat for now!" the leader Desian growled, fleeing with his remaining soldiers.
"Who are you?" Colette asked the stranger, unsure about his intentions.
He dusted his armor lightly and sheathed his sword before speaking. "My name is Kratos. I've been sent to protect you, Chosen."
"Thank you," she bowed modestly.
"And you are...?" Kratos noticed Lloyd for the first time.
"I'm Lloyd," he answered, not completely trusting the newcomer yet.
Kratos nodded solemnly, walking toward the temple. "Come, Chosen. Lloyd, stay here."
"What!" Lloyd burst.
Kratos halted, but didn't turn around. "The road ahead is a dangerous one, Lloyd. You'd be safer if you didn't come."
"But she's going!" Lloyd pointed at Colette. "She'll be in danger as well!"
"She goes because she must," Kratos snapped, his tone getting icy.
"Stop!" Colette shrieked. "Please! Mr. Kratos, let them come along, they're my friends, I want them here with me..."
Kratos took a few calming breaths, maybe gained a grey hair or two, before finally saying "Alright."
Colette squealed happily and wrapped both her friends in a hug.
"Don't they clean these temples once in a while? This dust is choking me."
"You're welcome to leave," Kratos turned a corner, stopping in front of a pulsating door.
"Is this your seal?" Lloyd asked, pointing. Colette nodded.
"We can't open it yet...it's 'locked'."
"Try looking for the Sorcerer's Ring," Kratos suggested. "It'll be able to open the door."
"One little ring? We'll find it in no time," Lloyd bragged, joining his friends in a search for it. "Hurry up, Kratos, or we'll leave you behind!"
Once Lloyd was out of earshot Kratos leaned his head on the wall, muttering about how children these days had too much energy.
"I give up," Lloyd panted, kneeling. "This ring is impossible to find!"
"I hear voices," Colette piped brightly. "I'll ask them if they've seen the ring."
To everyone's surprise, it wasn't a small group nattering away, but rather one girl grumbling to herself, trying to open a chest. She smacked it, dragged it along, (tried to) throw it, and picked at the lock with a piece of wire. She didn't look like much, her clothes weren't in the best shape, but her hair dragged along behind her like a veil, maybe even longer than she was.
"First time I can't open a stupid chest," she muttered. "I swear, once I break it open I'll..."
"Excuse me," Colette spoke up, causing the girl to look up. She had the most striking yellow-green eyes.
"What?" the girl growled, returning to the chest.
"What are you doing here? There are monsters around, you could get hurt," Colette worried.
"I'll be on my way," she waved. "Just after I get this chest open." She jumped on top of it and bit on it, clearly desperate and out of ideas.
Colette walked up to it to see what was wrong with it, tripped, and fell on top of it. Something in the chest recognized her and opened in the classic RPG "chest-opens-only-when-a-party-member-touches-it" style.
"Sweet!" the girl squealed, plundering it. "Bye now."
"Come back here!" Lloyd shouted after her, already giving chase.
The girl tripped over her own hair and did a perfect nosedive onto the stone floor.
"Oh no," Colette gasped, rushing over to her.
The girl was dazed, eyes going in and out of focus. "Where am I?"
"You're at the temple of Iselia," Colette nodded.
"Ohhhhh yeaaaaahhh..." the girl said dumbly. "I was trying to get into this chest and it just wouldn't open..."
"I opened it," Colette nodded.
"You did?" the girl exclaimed, jumping a few feet. "I, Lynn, the great, famous (well, not yet anyway) thief couldn't get into a chest...but you...did?" she questioned, pointing at Colette.
Colette nodded.
"Wow...so, uh...what'cha doing here? Come to steal from all the chests too?"
"No," Colette explained. "I'm the Chosen, I'm here to unlock a seal...but I need a ring, called the "Sorcerer's Ring" to open a door...have you seen it?"
"That weird thing on the pedestal? It shocked me when I tried to take it. Want me to show you where it is?"
"Please," Colette bowed.
"Right this way," Lynn dashed off.
"Are you sure you can trust this kid?" Lloyd whispered to Colette.
"Well, she hasn't tried to hurt us yet. She seems friendly, goofy too."
"I heard that!" Lynn shouted from another hall. "Say that again and I'll-eeeeeeeeeekkkk!"
When they found her, she was already in mid-battle with a stone golem, effectively using a metal fan and a spear to damage the thing.
"A little help, please?" she shouted, leaping onto the golem's head and dodging the strikes he made to get her off.
"Right," Colette armed herself, joining the battle. After a few minutes the golem decided it had enough punishment and became a block.
"What now?" Genis asked no one in particular, poking the block.
"Let's push it around, see what happens," Lloyd suggested, already pushing against it. Despite Kratos' protests all four children managed to push the block over a hole, creating a passageway.
"It worked," Lloyd panted.
"It worked..." Kratos sighed.
"It worked?" Lynn wondered. "Anyway, there's the ring, go get it."
Colette walked over to the pedestal and procured the ring.
"Thank you, Lynn," she smiled at the yellow-eyed girl.
"Aww, no big," Lynn waved away the praise. "What are your names anyway?"
"Oh...well, I'm Colette," she began.
"Nice to meecha," Lynn nodded.
"This is Lloyd and Genis," she pointed them out.
"Guy in red, Lloyd. Little guy in blue, Genis," Lynn said as she shook their hands with both of hers. She walked over to Kratos, shaking his. "And you are...?"
"Kratos," he sighed.
"Ah, Kratos," she waved one hand lazily. The other was nowhere to be seen. "Lovely group you got here, Chosen. So what's this door you were talking about...?"
"Alright, just point the Sorcerer's Ring at the door and it should open," Colette said to herself, putting on the ring. Like she said, it opened as a small flame hit the door.
"Cool," Lynn smiled mischievously. "So where's this seal?"
"We should be there when we step on this pad," Colette said, stepping on a warp pad. "Come on."
As soon as everyone was standing on the warp pad they teleported to the seal room.
Lynn looked around, searching for something while Colette received her angelic blessing.
"I see no seals..." she said sadly.