Hello character limit, my name is Mandie.

[fatherlineface]

Character: Kratos Aurion
Fandom: Tales of Symphonia
Player name: Mandie

[That was it. It was all over, he'd given every last bit of his mana to release the seal on Origin. Now he can finally rest.

That's what Kratos had been thinking before opening his eyes and finding himself in Vatheon, at least. He tries to suppress his anger at the fact that there's an afterlife, instead wondering if he can hope to find Anna here. It doesn't look like hell, at least, so maybe, just maybe sacrificing himself had been atonement enough...]

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[fatherlineface]

[Kratos has stopped listening, his tenuous hold on himself snapping. He's nearly delirious from lack of mana, he can hardly see straight, and now this place is throwing him visions of Lloyd spouting nonsense and staring at him with accusatory eyes. He starts to mutter to himself harshly, the words slowly rising to a yell by the end of his rant.]

Mithos is no friend to anyone. This is all wrong. Why am I here?! It was supposed to be over!

[redcladidealist]

[This might as well have been a hallucination for Lloyd, too, because everything in front of him is wrong. Kratos has always been calm, cool, and collected. The angriest Lloyd had ever seen him was when they'd been fighting Kvar. Even then, he hadn't yelled like this. It's hard to ignore the uneasiness twisting in his gut.

What's going on?

He's not going to be pulled in so easily, though. He folds his arms, still holding his back, and lifts his chin defiantly.]

Look, I still don't know what you're talking about, but you're definitely wrong about Mithos. He's just a kid who lose his home - because Cruxis are the ones who destroyed it.

[Oh yes, definite accusation in his tone. Still, he'll grudgingly answer one question.]

I guess you're here because the coral brought you.

[fatherlineface]

[Kratos finally runs out of energy after his tirade, falling to his knees and panting. He'd been stripped of almost all his mana before coming to Vatheon, after all. Emotionally and physically exhausted, he simply slumps his shoulders and lets Lloyd say what he will about Mithos and Cruxis.]

[redcladidealist]

W-whoa! Kratos?!

[That had been completely unexpected. Unexpected enough that he reacts without thought, reaching forward to try to catch the man. Too late, but now it's more than obvious. Something is very, very wrong. No matter what he feels about him, Lloyd can't stand and watch him suffer. Putting his hands on Kratos's shoulders to steady him, he peers into his face with alarm.]

Kratos, what's wrong?

[fatherlineface]

[His brow wrinkles in confusion as he looks at Lloyd. Finally, he decides to just be direct. What's the point in dancing around it?]

I gave all my mana to release the seal on Origin. Are...

[He can't quite get out the question on his mind - "are you dead, as well?". If nothing else, the talk about Origin might clue Lloyd in to the idea that Kratos is from a different time point.]

[redcladidealist]

Origin...?

[The name sounds vaguely familiar, like something he might have heard in school but hadn't been paying attention to at the time. He shakes his head. Whatever it is, it's not important.]

Never mind. Kratos, if you released all your mana...

[Okay, he's no expert on Mana, but that sounds really bad. Anxiety worms its way into his gut, drowning out any other clues he might have picked up. Not that it might not register later on, but...]

Come on.

[He tries to hook an arm under Kratos's arms to help him stand up.]

You need to touch the coral.

[fatherlineface]

[He allows Lloyd to help him without protest, another sign that something is very wrong. His head seems to clear once he touches the coral though, and some (but not all) of his stoicism returns. Thinking about it now, his body shouldn't have felt that way after death - he shouldn't HAVE a body.]

...are we not dead?

[redcladidealist]

[That lack of protest or resistance is seriously worrying. Traitor or not, Kratos's strength has always been unquestionable, a permanent fixture in Lloyd's mind. He shouldn't be acting like this. At all.

And that question doesn't help.

Lloyd stares again.]

No. No, we're not. We're in a place called Vatheon. It's... It's another world, like Sylvarant and Tethe'alla.

Kratos, are you all right?