Categories > Games > Tales of Symphonia > Winds of Fate: A Thousand Needles
Chapter 1: Say Hi For Me
1 reviewHaving just started their journey for the Exspheres, Yuan shows up out of nowhere, it seems, telling Lloyd that his father, alive on Derris-Kharlan, wishes to meet with him concerning a matter of g...
2Exciting
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The Destinia Saga...
Winds of Fate: A Thousand Needles
Chapter 1- Say Hi For Me
The skies were clear and blue, with a few splotches of cumulus splattered about them. The sun was bright and radiated its joy upon the newborn planet. Two worlds merged together as one as they had been ages ago- this was their new home. The fields were vast and rolling, sprawling before them like the open sky itself. The wind blew with slight force from the west as they journeyed northward.
As air rushed past his face and through his wavy hair, Lloyd felt satisfied with what the result of his quest. At least, somewhat. When he thought about it, he realized how ambivalent he was. This world was the result of fighting, bloodshed, and the hurting of hundreds- thousands. Should he be happy with this? Guilt sunk in for a while as he rode through the fields upon Noishe's back. Noishe, his faithful companion, had been eager and willing to help Lloyd on this personal vow.
Lloyd hadn't said a word for quite a while, lost in his conflicting emotions. But it all was shattered when a voice spoke from behind him. It was caring yet hesitant.
"So, um...Lloyd, are you all right...?"
Lloyd was freed from his thoughts in that instant. It was as if she'd melted the ice that had frozen his brain. He turned around to give her a quick glance, and he saw the glow in her glazed brown eyes.
"Nah, I-..." He looked back ahead of him to face the trees, the grass, and the way the wind carressed everything around him. After a moment to reflect, he swerved his back around and was calmed by observing Sheena's soft, black bangs flapping in the zephyrs that ran past her. "I was just wondering...Is this all worth it?"
Sheena lifted a brow, confused by such a question. After brushing her hair out of her face, since it was blurring her vision as it was being shoved into her eyes, she slowly responded.
"...Is WHAT worth it?"
Lloyd huffed as his gaze shifted up to the clouds.
"This...new world," he whispered with guilt. "Was it really worth the suffering of so many people?"
Sheena frowned sadly, trying to absorb the guilt he was experiencing so he didn't have to worry about it himself.
"...I don't know," Sheena mumbled gloomily. "But it's over now, right? I mean...it's not like we can change what happened, so..."
"I KNOW we can't CHANGE it," Lloyd grumbled, his eyes bitter. She couldn't see his face, but she could feel his frustration.
"Lloyd," she began. She reached out her arm, but her reflexes yanked it back when Lloyd growled to her quite suddenly.
"That doesn't mean we should just forget it!"
Sheena's insides felt like pulp from his lashing, but after a few seconds to calm down, he took a deep breath.
"...I'm sorry," he murmured, feeling ashamed that he was taking out his anger on her.
"...I-it's okay," she stammared back quietly.
"You're right," he agreed solemnly. "We all did our best...There's not much more than that you can give, huh?"
"...Mm."
After about two minutes of sailing the green seas of grassblades in tranquility, Noishe began forcing himself up a steep hill, and Sheena began to lose balance. Her hands instantly gripped the sides of the dog-like creature, but she was slipping quickly. She let out a sharp cry, but Lloyd's strong hand whipped out and caught her before she fell. He pulled her back onto his life-long companion and laughed.
"A little bumpy?" he chuckled.
"...Y-yea, just a bit," Sheena mumbled back shyly. She felt like such an idiot.
"Ya know, if you held on, that wouldn't happen," he slowly explained to her, mocking her intelligence with humor.
"I know that," she defended herself. "But-..." She trailed off, leaning forward on the white dog's back.
"What is it?" Lloyd wondered, genuinely clueless.
"Ih-it's just that, well...I don't wanna make you feel weird, or-..." Her sentence volume gradually diminished, and Lloyd turned his head around to see her nervous grin.
"Haha! Oh, come on, Sheena. Do you think I have cooties or something?" he asked her with a snicker.
She returned the laugh with a shaky giggle and shrugged. "No, it's, ah-...I just wasn't sure if you'd be fine with-..."
"You dork!" Lloyd chuckled warmly. He swerved his head back 180 degrees and assured her, "If you ever do something that makes me 'feel weird,' I'll TELL you..." He cocked his head to the side as he recalled some sentimental moments they had shared. "After all, it's okay for you to just be YOU...Remember?"
Sheena gulped and began to slowly move her slender arms around Lloyd's waist. As she wrapped herself around him from behind, feeling uneasy from the shaking caused by Noishe's running, Lloyd felt worried.
(It's almost like she's afraid of me or something...I wonder what I ever did to make her feel like that?)
As he felt her gentle hands squeeze his stomach, he was overcome with warmth. He suddenly felt a soft mass pressing in his back, which was followed by an elegant form against his firm back. He could feel her soft, messy hair tickling his neck in the wind. WHat he couldn't feel was how embarrassed she was- though not a soul around could see her beet red face. Lloyd smiled and placed his right hand gentley on her two wrists, rubbing his thumb against them affectionately for a couple moments before leaving it there.
After that, it was smooth sailing for what felt like forever. For a couple hours, neither said a word as they rode on through hills. They took a break at some point during that time as they passed a river so Noishe could get a drink and rest a little, and they went on. A town was on the horizon now, the skies beginning to darken from the lack of sunlight.
"We're almost there," Lloyd murmured, easing out of the long silence. He didn't receive a response, though, as Sheena had fallen asleep leaning against him. He heard a low and subtle moan come from her, followed by the sound of her sucking in a deep breath of air and exhaling.
He smirked and rubbed Noishe'shead affectionately.
"She's sleeping, boy," he whispered to him. "Don't go to rough."
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"Lloyd..."
His eyes slowly creaked open, his body covered in sweat. It was a hot and humid night, that was for certain. Almost gasping for air, Lloyd pulled his sheets off. He scratched at his bare stomach groggily, glancing about the dark room. A window was present about ten steps to his left. Sheena's bed was about five of those away, and the window beside her.
"Lloyd..." The distant voice called to him again. It was familiar...Where had he heard that tone before...?
He gradually became more awake, and he took a few seconds to admire the way Sheena slept. She had a dreamy smile about her as she was cuddled beneath her light blanket. He could see because a small candle was lit on a small table against the wall between their beds. She didn't make any noise as she slept, either, but that tranquility was broken.
"Lloyd...?? Wake up."
The voice was loud enough to hear, but not loud. It was more like someone talking quietly. Lloyd could hear it, regardless, and it hadn't risen Sheena from her slumber. The young lad crawled out of bed, only wearing his pants, and snuck toward the window.
As he passed the Mizuho girl by, he could see some beads of sweat on her forehead, and he couldn't resist. He paused and lightly wiped them off of her head with his finger, beaming down at her like a ray of moonlight. As he approached the window, going around the bed, he finally recognized the voice as it called again.
"If you don't show your face, I'll wake you up by force..."
He lunged his head out into the black night and strained his eyes to look down at the ground below him. They had rented a bedroom at the local inn one story up. He couldn't see their face, but he could vaguely make out their shape and knew who they were by voice alone.
"...Yuan...?"
A sigh flowed through the air from the mysterious man's mouth as he crossed his arms over his chest slowly.
"It's about time..."
"...Wh-?..." Lloyd was speechless as he couldn't fathom why Yuan would be here, waking him at a time like this.
"We need to talk, Lloyd," Yuan said calmly up to him.
As he stared down into the dark night, his eyes wide, a groggy moan caught his ear from behind him.
"...Lloyd...?" Sheena croaked, half asleep. "...What are you doing...?" She'd rolled over in bed and was blinking at him drowsily. She couldn't really see anything, and she wasn't alert enough to really worry about it.
"Uhh..." Lloyd flung his head in and spun around to see her dreary face. "Don't worry about it. Go back to sleep."
Sheena shoved her face back into her pillow and hummed out something Lloyd couldn't make out. The boy tiptoed past her bed slowly. His mind was in too much of a daze to remember to put his shirt or shoes on, so he creaked the door open quietly and slipped out in only his pants. Making his way through the dark corridors, his brain began to process the situation. (Something serious must be going on. But what?)
He found Yuan waiting in front of the building, and he could finally make out his face. It was solemn and concerned.
"I was afraid you'd fall back to sleep," he admitted with a shrug.
"Hey," Lloyd cried out in defense, giving him a glare.
"Sorry," Yuan mumbled.
"What's going on? Did something happen to the Kharlan Tree?"
Yuan shook his head quickly. "No, the tree is fine."
"Then what is it?" Lloyd demanded calmly.
"It's Derris-Kharlan..."
Lloyd cocked his head to the side, puzzled.
"What's wrong?" He suddenly realized tht Kratos might be in danger if something had happened there.
"Is Kratos all right?"
"In a matter of speaking," Yuan muttered. Before Lloyd could spaz and demand what that meant, he quickly continued. "Your father was the one who sent me here to get you."
"Why??" Lloyd murmured with great curiosity and concern.
"It seems that Derris-Kharlan's path in space has gone beyond your father's control. It's being drawn toward a planet a decent distance from our own..."
Blinking at him in confusion, the boy shook his head. "What are talking about?"
"Derris-Kharlan is on a collision course with another planet called Weyward..."
Lloyd's face burst with worry and frustration.
"Weyward...?"
"There's little we know other than the name," Yuan commented. "But it was your father's request that I send you to where he is."
"..." Lloyd pondered all of this for a moment. He wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but if it meant that deaths would ocurr, he was all up for stopping it, whether he knew what he was doing or not. "All right. How do I get to him?"
"With this." Pulling his hand from out of his cloak, he revealed a small black pouch. Lloyd recognized what it was and was surprised.
"A Rheaird? But...Those aren't powerful enough to get me to another planet, are they?"
"Rheairds operate using mana. There is still a trail of mana left behind from Derris-Kharlan's departure from our atmosphere."
"...That sounds good, but...--" Lloyd thought back to a time when Raine had been theorizing about traveling between the worlds.
(If there isn't any air in space, then how do we travel to the other world?) Genis had asked during the conversation.
(I'm not entirely sure,) the Professor had replied. (But I believe that we survive due to the rich abundance of mana flowing between Sylvarant abnd Tethe'alla. The energy is so great that we don't require air to live.)
(Whoa,) Genis had moaned in awe at the idea.
"How am I going to make the trip?" Lloyd questioned curiously. "I thought that there's no air to breath...out there..." He wasn't entirely sure what to call the emtpy area between planets.
"That's what that Exsphere of yours is for," Yuan noted, pointing to the large, round gem embedded in the back of Lloyd's left hand.
"That's no ordinary Exsphere. I can assure you that with that, you will cross the gap between the planets with ease."
Lloyd sighed and nodded slowly. "But...Do I have to go alone...?"
Yuan huffed and glanced up to the window where Lloyd's head had been previously. "...I suppose not...You wish to take your partner, do you?"
"Of course. We've been through a lot, and I promised her we'd stick together. I'm not going to break it."
"Very well," Yuan mumbled, shaking his head. "But I can't guarantee her safety. You'll both have to use that Rheaird."
"...All right..." Lloyd nodded quickly as he stuffed the pouch into his pocket. "So...How do I know which way to go...?"
Yuan had turned around and was walking off into the shadows of night, toward the west.
"...Just activate the device. It should already know where it's going..."
"...Yea..." Lloyd watched his silhouette gradually diminish into the night. He called out to once-Rebel, "Say hi to...m-my dad for me..."
There wasn't an answer as Lloyd glanced up the heavens. A brisk breeze blew in, tossing his wavy hair and chilling his body.
(Well...I guess the Exspheres will have to wait...)
Lloyd's firm attitude concerning the strange stones would soon change when he realized just how insignificant such a problem really was.
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The Destinia Saga...
Winds of Fate: A Thousand Needles
Chapter 1- Say Hi For Me
The skies were clear and blue, with a few splotches of cumulus splattered about them. The sun was bright and radiated its joy upon the newborn planet. Two worlds merged together as one as they had been ages ago- this was their new home. The fields were vast and rolling, sprawling before them like the open sky itself. The wind blew with slight force from the west as they journeyed northward.
As air rushed past his face and through his wavy hair, Lloyd felt satisfied with what the result of his quest. At least, somewhat. When he thought about it, he realized how ambivalent he was. This world was the result of fighting, bloodshed, and the hurting of hundreds- thousands. Should he be happy with this? Guilt sunk in for a while as he rode through the fields upon Noishe's back. Noishe, his faithful companion, had been eager and willing to help Lloyd on this personal vow.
Lloyd hadn't said a word for quite a while, lost in his conflicting emotions. But it all was shattered when a voice spoke from behind him. It was caring yet hesitant.
"So, um...Lloyd, are you all right...?"
Lloyd was freed from his thoughts in that instant. It was as if she'd melted the ice that had frozen his brain. He turned around to give her a quick glance, and he saw the glow in her glazed brown eyes.
"Nah, I-..." He looked back ahead of him to face the trees, the grass, and the way the wind carressed everything around him. After a moment to reflect, he swerved his back around and was calmed by observing Sheena's soft, black bangs flapping in the zephyrs that ran past her. "I was just wondering...Is this all worth it?"
Sheena lifted a brow, confused by such a question. After brushing her hair out of her face, since it was blurring her vision as it was being shoved into her eyes, she slowly responded.
"...Is WHAT worth it?"
Lloyd huffed as his gaze shifted up to the clouds.
"This...new world," he whispered with guilt. "Was it really worth the suffering of so many people?"
Sheena frowned sadly, trying to absorb the guilt he was experiencing so he didn't have to worry about it himself.
"...I don't know," Sheena mumbled gloomily. "But it's over now, right? I mean...it's not like we can change what happened, so..."
"I KNOW we can't CHANGE it," Lloyd grumbled, his eyes bitter. She couldn't see his face, but she could feel his frustration.
"Lloyd," she began. She reached out her arm, but her reflexes yanked it back when Lloyd growled to her quite suddenly.
"That doesn't mean we should just forget it!"
Sheena's insides felt like pulp from his lashing, but after a few seconds to calm down, he took a deep breath.
"...I'm sorry," he murmured, feeling ashamed that he was taking out his anger on her.
"...I-it's okay," she stammared back quietly.
"You're right," he agreed solemnly. "We all did our best...There's not much more than that you can give, huh?"
"...Mm."
After about two minutes of sailing the green seas of grassblades in tranquility, Noishe began forcing himself up a steep hill, and Sheena began to lose balance. Her hands instantly gripped the sides of the dog-like creature, but she was slipping quickly. She let out a sharp cry, but Lloyd's strong hand whipped out and caught her before she fell. He pulled her back onto his life-long companion and laughed.
"A little bumpy?" he chuckled.
"...Y-yea, just a bit," Sheena mumbled back shyly. She felt like such an idiot.
"Ya know, if you held on, that wouldn't happen," he slowly explained to her, mocking her intelligence with humor.
"I know that," she defended herself. "But-..." She trailed off, leaning forward on the white dog's back.
"What is it?" Lloyd wondered, genuinely clueless.
"Ih-it's just that, well...I don't wanna make you feel weird, or-..." Her sentence volume gradually diminished, and Lloyd turned his head around to see her nervous grin.
"Haha! Oh, come on, Sheena. Do you think I have cooties or something?" he asked her with a snicker.
She returned the laugh with a shaky giggle and shrugged. "No, it's, ah-...I just wasn't sure if you'd be fine with-..."
"You dork!" Lloyd chuckled warmly. He swerved his head back 180 degrees and assured her, "If you ever do something that makes me 'feel weird,' I'll TELL you..." He cocked his head to the side as he recalled some sentimental moments they had shared. "After all, it's okay for you to just be YOU...Remember?"
Sheena gulped and began to slowly move her slender arms around Lloyd's waist. As she wrapped herself around him from behind, feeling uneasy from the shaking caused by Noishe's running, Lloyd felt worried.
(It's almost like she's afraid of me or something...I wonder what I ever did to make her feel like that?)
As he felt her gentle hands squeeze his stomach, he was overcome with warmth. He suddenly felt a soft mass pressing in his back, which was followed by an elegant form against his firm back. He could feel her soft, messy hair tickling his neck in the wind. WHat he couldn't feel was how embarrassed she was- though not a soul around could see her beet red face. Lloyd smiled and placed his right hand gentley on her two wrists, rubbing his thumb against them affectionately for a couple moments before leaving it there.
After that, it was smooth sailing for what felt like forever. For a couple hours, neither said a word as they rode on through hills. They took a break at some point during that time as they passed a river so Noishe could get a drink and rest a little, and they went on. A town was on the horizon now, the skies beginning to darken from the lack of sunlight.
"We're almost there," Lloyd murmured, easing out of the long silence. He didn't receive a response, though, as Sheena had fallen asleep leaning against him. He heard a low and subtle moan come from her, followed by the sound of her sucking in a deep breath of air and exhaling.
He smirked and rubbed Noishe'shead affectionately.
"She's sleeping, boy," he whispered to him. "Don't go to rough."
////////
"Lloyd..."
His eyes slowly creaked open, his body covered in sweat. It was a hot and humid night, that was for certain. Almost gasping for air, Lloyd pulled his sheets off. He scratched at his bare stomach groggily, glancing about the dark room. A window was present about ten steps to his left. Sheena's bed was about five of those away, and the window beside her.
"Lloyd..." The distant voice called to him again. It was familiar...Where had he heard that tone before...?
He gradually became more awake, and he took a few seconds to admire the way Sheena slept. She had a dreamy smile about her as she was cuddled beneath her light blanket. He could see because a small candle was lit on a small table against the wall between their beds. She didn't make any noise as she slept, either, but that tranquility was broken.
"Lloyd...?? Wake up."
The voice was loud enough to hear, but not loud. It was more like someone talking quietly. Lloyd could hear it, regardless, and it hadn't risen Sheena from her slumber. The young lad crawled out of bed, only wearing his pants, and snuck toward the window.
As he passed the Mizuho girl by, he could see some beads of sweat on her forehead, and he couldn't resist. He paused and lightly wiped them off of her head with his finger, beaming down at her like a ray of moonlight. As he approached the window, going around the bed, he finally recognized the voice as it called again.
"If you don't show your face, I'll wake you up by force..."
He lunged his head out into the black night and strained his eyes to look down at the ground below him. They had rented a bedroom at the local inn one story up. He couldn't see their face, but he could vaguely make out their shape and knew who they were by voice alone.
"...Yuan...?"
A sigh flowed through the air from the mysterious man's mouth as he crossed his arms over his chest slowly.
"It's about time..."
"...Wh-?..." Lloyd was speechless as he couldn't fathom why Yuan would be here, waking him at a time like this.
"We need to talk, Lloyd," Yuan said calmly up to him.
As he stared down into the dark night, his eyes wide, a groggy moan caught his ear from behind him.
"...Lloyd...?" Sheena croaked, half asleep. "...What are you doing...?" She'd rolled over in bed and was blinking at him drowsily. She couldn't really see anything, and she wasn't alert enough to really worry about it.
"Uhh..." Lloyd flung his head in and spun around to see her dreary face. "Don't worry about it. Go back to sleep."
Sheena shoved her face back into her pillow and hummed out something Lloyd couldn't make out. The boy tiptoed past her bed slowly. His mind was in too much of a daze to remember to put his shirt or shoes on, so he creaked the door open quietly and slipped out in only his pants. Making his way through the dark corridors, his brain began to process the situation. (Something serious must be going on. But what?)
He found Yuan waiting in front of the building, and he could finally make out his face. It was solemn and concerned.
"I was afraid you'd fall back to sleep," he admitted with a shrug.
"Hey," Lloyd cried out in defense, giving him a glare.
"Sorry," Yuan mumbled.
"What's going on? Did something happen to the Kharlan Tree?"
Yuan shook his head quickly. "No, the tree is fine."
"Then what is it?" Lloyd demanded calmly.
"It's Derris-Kharlan..."
Lloyd cocked his head to the side, puzzled.
"What's wrong?" He suddenly realized tht Kratos might be in danger if something had happened there.
"Is Kratos all right?"
"In a matter of speaking," Yuan muttered. Before Lloyd could spaz and demand what that meant, he quickly continued. "Your father was the one who sent me here to get you."
"Why??" Lloyd murmured with great curiosity and concern.
"It seems that Derris-Kharlan's path in space has gone beyond your father's control. It's being drawn toward a planet a decent distance from our own..."
Blinking at him in confusion, the boy shook his head. "What are talking about?"
"Derris-Kharlan is on a collision course with another planet called Weyward..."
Lloyd's face burst with worry and frustration.
"Weyward...?"
"There's little we know other than the name," Yuan commented. "But it was your father's request that I send you to where he is."
"..." Lloyd pondered all of this for a moment. He wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but if it meant that deaths would ocurr, he was all up for stopping it, whether he knew what he was doing or not. "All right. How do I get to him?"
"With this." Pulling his hand from out of his cloak, he revealed a small black pouch. Lloyd recognized what it was and was surprised.
"A Rheaird? But...Those aren't powerful enough to get me to another planet, are they?"
"Rheairds operate using mana. There is still a trail of mana left behind from Derris-Kharlan's departure from our atmosphere."
"...That sounds good, but...--" Lloyd thought back to a time when Raine had been theorizing about traveling between the worlds.
(If there isn't any air in space, then how do we travel to the other world?) Genis had asked during the conversation.
(I'm not entirely sure,) the Professor had replied. (But I believe that we survive due to the rich abundance of mana flowing between Sylvarant abnd Tethe'alla. The energy is so great that we don't require air to live.)
(Whoa,) Genis had moaned in awe at the idea.
"How am I going to make the trip?" Lloyd questioned curiously. "I thought that there's no air to breath...out there..." He wasn't entirely sure what to call the emtpy area between planets.
"That's what that Exsphere of yours is for," Yuan noted, pointing to the large, round gem embedded in the back of Lloyd's left hand.
"That's no ordinary Exsphere. I can assure you that with that, you will cross the gap between the planets with ease."
Lloyd sighed and nodded slowly. "But...Do I have to go alone...?"
Yuan huffed and glanced up to the window where Lloyd's head had been previously. "...I suppose not...You wish to take your partner, do you?"
"Of course. We've been through a lot, and I promised her we'd stick together. I'm not going to break it."
"Very well," Yuan mumbled, shaking his head. "But I can't guarantee her safety. You'll both have to use that Rheaird."
"...All right..." Lloyd nodded quickly as he stuffed the pouch into his pocket. "So...How do I know which way to go...?"
Yuan had turned around and was walking off into the shadows of night, toward the west.
"...Just activate the device. It should already know where it's going..."
"...Yea..." Lloyd watched his silhouette gradually diminish into the night. He called out to once-Rebel, "Say hi to...m-my dad for me..."
There wasn't an answer as Lloyd glanced up the heavens. A brisk breeze blew in, tossing his wavy hair and chilling his body.
(Well...I guess the Exspheres will have to wait...)
Lloyd's firm attitude concerning the strange stones would soon change when he realized just how insignificant such a problem really was.
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