Tales of Symphonia:
Rodeo Ride Tour
Explanatory Notes: Please read this!
On May 25 and June 24 of this year Namco released two Tales of Symphonia Drama CDs, called "Rodeo Ride Tour". A Drama CD is basically like anime but without any images: you hear the characters talking, you hear sound effects and music but your imagination does the rest.
That aside, "Rodeo Ride Tour" is the biggest treat Zelos/Sheena shippers could hope for. Two entire CDs filled with romantic tension and adventure – what else can one wish for? But unfortunately, they are all spoken in Japanese, so for the average fan it's not only hard to find, its also almost impossible to understand… quite a waste, I think.
So I decided to make a fan-fiction adaptation of this two Drama CDs, 'cause I like to share and (mainly) because there just isn't enough "Sheelos" around and also because this is an official side-story; meaning that our fandom is now supported by Namco. AREN'T YOU HAPPY!
The final note, now: English is not my first language. Neither is Japanese. I'm struggling to give you all an accurate translation and a well-written work, but if you happen to be an English/Japanese mayor and notice I made some mistakes, then please, please don't come and yell at me things like "I noticed you can't properly spell the word 'whether', therefore you are stupid" or "OMG u suX0rs lol". Instead point out my mistakes, feel free to correct them, it'll make me real happy. Please.
So anyway, sorry for the big-ass notes, thank you for reading them and unto the story.
-- WRD
Disclaimer: I don't own the Tales of Symphonia license, the Rodeo Ride Tour license, the characters of Zelos Wilder, Sheena Fujibayashi, Orochi or any other that might appear. I only own a pair of very legal "Rodeo Ride Tour" CDs and I'm not making any money out of this, so you'd do me a favor if you didn't sue me.
Tales of Symphonia; Drama CD Anthology
Rodeo Ride Tour
A fanfiction adaptation by Winged Dancer
Track One –
The Carnival's Night
The streets of Meltokio were filled to their brim on that night. All around the city the streets were filled with not only people but various stands; some selling food and various drinks, some others offering their clients a chance to test their ability at various skill games.
The sound of a fire-cracker rising to the sky pierced the air and drew all eyes towards it as it exploded in a rain of blue and purple sparks, quickly followed by many more. The people cheered and in the stage that had been built at the Castle's plaza the curtains were drawn to reveal all sorts if entertainers.
"Aaah, welcome, welcome to all of you who are reunited here! But it is too early to call it a show – our circus has quite a spectacle for you all, in this anniversary for the Uniting of Thethe'alla and Sylvarant! Now watch as all around the lands red, blue and green race to the sky! If it goes well, it'll surely be fun!"
The people opened their eyes as the first machine lit up, sending a red beam towards the night-sly. "One!" the crowd called, "Two!", as the second beam, this time blue, followed the first, and "Three! " was followed by much clapping as the green beam joined the first two.
Ignoring the carnival and completely unnoticed so far by the people enjoying it, three dark-clad figures watched the city's clock tower with apprehension, turning towards the Meltokio church every now and then.
"…what sheer number of people!" the first of them grunted, "To make this many people evacuate the city right now – "
"Impossible!" one of his comrades interrupted.
"There's no way to do it!"
"If they knew what is really going on, they'd panic!"
"What – what can we do, Orochi?"
No answer was heard from their leader.
"Orochi! Master Orochi!"
The man's dark eyes were kept on the unaware happy crowd. "To the expected time… how much time do we have 'till then!"
The second man in command looked at the clock. "Three minutes. Not much more than that."
Orochi frowned. "With that remaining time… we are counting on you, Sheena!"
Inside the church no other sound besides her footsteps could be heard. If she didn't know better, she'd say she was completely alone in the city – but she was completely aware of the hundreds of people just some yards below her and of the danger they were all in.
Sheena Fujibayashi kept running down the corridor, panting. She was tired but every instant was precious and there were just a few more rooms left to check. Sharply turning at a corner, she opened a door and was greeted by a beeping.
A sense of relief washed over her as she saw a small apparatus on the floor. "…finally found it…" she said to herself and, still panting, walked towards the machine and kneeled next to it. "…to change Meltokio into a sea of fire… a Mana-Cannon Bomb," she whispered, looking in half-wonder at the bomb for an instant before snapping back to reality. "There's no time – if I don't deactivate it within the time limit, it'll - !"
"That's not to be handled so roughly…" a voice behind her interrupted, "You, damn Kingdom dog!"
She turned around, gasping. A man stepped from the shadows, slowly walking towards her. He had a scraggy, sickly look about him; his hair, stained with white, tangled enough to make it clear he hadn't bathed in a few days and his beard shaved unevenly.
"That bomb is an example of the finest art. It is not an article for you trash to be touching!" the man kept advancing, stopping once he was but inches away from her. "If someone was to treat it badly, it's boom! for all of us…"
She scowled. "To target the Carnival night… you crazy old man!" with the ease acquired by a lime-time of practice she moved away from him. "If you don't want me to hurt you, stop it quickly!"
She didn't even get a chance to finish her sentence before the man replied, in an eerily calm voice, "I refuse! This demonic festival… I, with my creations, I will destroy it! And then…" the man stopped sounding calm to start sounding completely lunatic, "And then I, and my art, will achieve perfection and beautiful freedom…!" he started laughing and Sheena no longer doubted whether he was insane or not. He was. By far. Past the point of being funny.
"What kind of perfection…" she spat between clenched teeth, "This Mana-Cannon Bomb… if it explodes, from this church it could easily spread and then all the people taking part in the carnival…!" Inside her head she could hear the sounds of an explosion, followed by pained screams – a scene from the past, one she could allow no more. "I need to think… think, Sheena! Something… there must be something I can do!"
The old man giggled madly at her desperation, "This cursed festival! Do you think we'd allow it! All of them, who are there, all are sinners! I'll crush them! They indulge in luxuries while having stained souls, they transform in monsters… in representation of the Gods, I shall – iyaaaa, what? Wait, what? That – what, what are you doing? That's my master piece, and you -! W-wait!"
Needless to say, Sheena had gotten tired of the lunatic's rambling and had started to lift the bomb. "One, two - !" she closed her eyes and jumped through the church's window with the bomb in her arms. She landed on top of a nearby house and dashed towards the city's walls, jumping along the rooftops as quickly as she could.
"Useless!" the terrorist called behind her, "Even if you get it out of the city, the explosion will destroy everything! Hahaha… hihihi!" and kept on laughing.
She didn't pay heed to him and kept running. In front of her she could see now the east side of the carnival, as crowded as every other part. She kept running.
"Look, daddy!" a small girl tugged on his father's sleeve as she caught sight of Sheena, "There's a lady beeping on the roof!"
"Eh…? Hey, it's true!"
Great. Now everybody was looking at her.
"Wow, that's some speed!"
"Nice legs!"
"Hey! Hey! Here!"
Sheena gritted her teeth. "I won't allow it. I won't! To see innocent people die… I'll pass on that!"
"Sheena!"
She startled, but didn't stop. "That voice -!" a man dropped next to her, easily keeping her pace. "Orochi!"
"Is that… is that the Mana-Cannon Bomb?"
"Yes. I'll carry it as far as possible from the city and make it explode there!"
"But… what will you do!" Orochi exclaimed, running ahead and forcing her to stop. "You'll be caught in the explosion!" he looked at her sternly. "I'll do it. You, as Mizuho's successor… there's no way I can allow you to…!"
She jumped ahead of him, and out of the city. He followed her.
"These walls that surround the city…" Orochi continued, "They'll contain the explosion at least a little. Not perfectly, but... leave the bomb to me! Sheena, you at least, get away from the city as – "
"We don't have time to lose talking." The ninja interrupted him, her voice resolute.
Her companion narrowed his eyes. "Do you intend to die? Sheena… is it that you still can't let go of that - "
"Orochi!" she commanded for silence, "Inside of me right now, I refuse to think of Volt. Right now, I'm thinking of what follows… of the sake of the future, only. That's what Mizuho has been fighting for during this last year. For the sake of our future!"
From behind his mask, Orochi smiled. "For the sake of the future."
"We've done it together. Orochi… you understand, right?"
He kept silent for a few instants. "So you are not trying to die."
"Nope."
"Then I'll leave it to you."
"Yessir!" still a girl in some aspects; she jumped ahead with the bomb and ran away from the city.
"Yes… I'm fighting for the future!" she repeated in her mind, "Just because some crazy old man thought it was funny to make a bomb…" said bomb's beeping grew louder and faster. "There's no way I'm dying here!" she exclaimed as, with all of her strength, threw the bomb aside just as it started to unfurl and prepare for the explosion.
"To contain a bomb there's only another bomb! I call upon the Red Giant, the Ruler of Hellfire! Come! Efreet!" the Summon Spirit of Fire appeared before her in a flurry of red, "Tear it do-own!"
A new attraction was born at the Carnival that night: not only did the people enjoy the spectacle of seeing Efreet's flames eating the Mana-Cannon Bomb's explosion, they also got to see the dramatic capture of the "Bomb Wizard" by the Meltokio palace guards, who were now trying to take the old man towards the prison; which was no easy task since most of the Meltokians wanted to, at the very least, see the madman and perhaps throw him an egg or two.
"C'mon! Walk, you stupid old man!" one guard urged.
"Agh – my – my art! My masterpiece was -!"
"Shut up, fart!"
"Take that, you idiot!"
"Don't mess with us, moron!" it was hard to say whether the populace was angry or having a good time.
Close to the city gates, Sheena was sitting on some empty juice crates. Orochi and the rest of the Mizuho people were standing close.
"So you canceled the Mana-Cannon Bomb's explosion with Efreet's mana explosion…"
"Yep, that was it."
Orochi smiled at her, seemingly proud. "The cunning, method, courage and the correct preparations… as expected from our village, Mizuho's Successor."
"There's no way I was dying there. I still have many things left to do after… this…?" Sheena stopped as she saw a small girl, in an overly-cute pink dress, running towards her.
"H-hey! You can't go bothering people like that, Meary…!" the girl's father called, but the girl ignored him and ran up to the kunoichi.
"Here!" she said.
"Eh?" Sheena asked, a little confused.
"My balloon! I give it to you!"
She smiled. "…is that really fine?"
"Yeah!"
"Heh. Thanks." She took the girl's blue hot-air balloon, patting her softly on the cheek. Laughing, the girl turned around and ran back to her parents.
In silence, both Sheena and Orochi looked at the happy retreating family. It was almost impossible to think they had been so close to…
Orochi broke the silence, "The future."
"For the future," agreed Sheena.
He turned to her, crossing his hand over his chest in apology. "I said something insignificant when I mentioned Volt. Please forget about it."
"Already forgotten."
"I see," and then there was a bit of very uncomfortable silence in which Orochi stared right at her eyes without saying anything. "Next time," he finally said, "If someone must die… Sheena, let me be the one. Not you – me. Do you understand this?"
She smiled at him, wondering if he meant anything… after all, love was supposed to be secretive in the Igaguri style… but still, no. She was just reading too much into it. So she smiled at him. "Thanks. Er, say, Orochi…?"
"Uh?"
She giggled sheepishly, "I kinda sprained my ankle… give me a piggy-ride?"
Orochi sighed. "My, my…"
…the way we are… why don't we just escape to some other place…?
"I open my eyes and see the roof I'm used to seeing… Mizuho's everyday morning… I do that and I know that that trip is over.
Why is it…?
I hold onto my heart that hurts just a little and I think… that travel… what was it for me…?"
Tales of Symphonia… Rodeo Ride Tour
Notes: So that's the first track. I know you didn't understand the last bit – don't worry, I didn't understand it either at first. You are not supposed to until farther into the story.
This "track" is mainly the setting of the story – the prologue, if you will. The story begins in track 2, in which Zelos appears and is as great as he always is.
Just a few things I wanted to mention here – there are a few translation details I'm not sure about, and needless to say I had to describe the character's actions based on what I imagine, so not everything might be accurate… my biggest doubt is when Sheena says she sprained her ankle, I think in Japanese she says "I sprained my hips", but that is way too weird. So er, I hope you people don't mind my rather bad translating Oo
If you are interested in hearing the original tracks (Zelos' Japanese voice is so funny) send me a mail or something.
Next time, Track 2. Teaser now! In Japanese! (If you can read it, don't tell the others P)
Yokisenu Houmonsha
"Omae issho ni ikanai?"
"Hah!"
"Tabi."
"Tabi?"
"Ore to issho ni tabi ikanee ka?"
So there. Until a few days! Please review, this ain't an easy job and I'd like to know whether its being appreciated or not.
Thanks for reading,
- WDR