#talesmas

“So you're leaving?” the blue-haired man asked, though it came out as more of a statement. His arms were crossed in front of him, his legs slightly apart, his gaze straight and true-- he appeared as stoic and uncaring as ever. Yet there was a small glint in his eye, a hint of fragility. Kratos could read that face easily-- Yuan was certainly not emotionless about this.

Kratos turned away and looked up at the sky. Mithos had been defeated, the worlds reunited, the Great Seed planted, and Cruxis was gone. Everything that had to be done had been done, except to cut off one last tie to the planet and its past: Derris Kharlan. A soft and slightly chilled (but not cold) breeze brushed past their faces, Yuan's hair moving ever so slightly in the wind. Yuan walked up and stood next to Kratos, sighed, and smirked. He looked up at the sky with him.

“It's hard to believe, after four thousand years, the worlds are one, again,” he said. “To be honest, I never thought I'd ever see the day the worlds would be reuinited. I didn't know the worlds could be reunited. It's all thanks to Lloyd.”

“Mm-hmm,” Kratos barely replied under his breath. Yuan looked at him, raising his eyebrows.

“You're serious about leaving aren't you?” Yuan asked. Kratos was silent again. Yuan turned his attention back towards the sky. “I won't stop you. You're quiet, but you're also incredibly stubborn. Once you stick your foot in the ground and say you will do something, you do it. You're true to your word. At least, you were much truer than I ever was.”

“What do you mean?” Kratos asked, turning to Yuan. “You are the one who defected from Cruxis first. I'd say you stayed true to Martel's wishes, at least when you noticed Mithos' resolve to save the worlds wavering.”

“It's not that,” Yuan said, shaking his head. Yuan frowned and looked down at the ground. “You were there for Mithos this entire time. I... I gave up, at some point.”

“He was iredeemable,” Kratos said. “...Though I suppose I'm not one to say that, as I kept turning a blind eye to the things he had done.”

“But that's exactly what I mean,” Yuan said. “I promised Martel I would look after him, I promised her I would make sure he wouldn't go down this path of darkness, but when he did I ran away. Maybe I had good intentions, maybe not, but I still ran away.”

“You realized what Cruxis was doing was wrong--”

“I still abandoned him, though.” Yuan gritted his teeth. His voice was beginning to waver with anger, but that anger was directed towards himself. He took a deep breath and exhaled, sighing. “I couldn't even be the one to strike him down. Neither of us could. I guess we're both cowards, relying on your son to do the job for us.” The two were silent. Yuan hadn't meant to be as crass as he did when he made that statement, but it certainly came out that way. He shook his head and made a small smile.

“Sorry if that was too far,” he said.

“No, it's true.”

There was a moment of silence between them.

“Well, like I said, I can't stop you,” Yuan said, sighing, turning back to Kratos with a slightly concerned look on his face. “But I have to ask: are you sure this is what you want? Are you sure this is the right thing to do? You just found out your son is alive-- and the worlds have just been combined. Mithos is gone, Cruxis is disbanded. You're not tied down by your responsibilities as a Seraphim of Cruxis anymore. Why do you insist on leaving?”

“My place is not here,” said Kratos, turning to Yuan. “My time... our time. It's long passed. This isn't our world anymore.” Those words hung in the air. This isn't our world anymore. Part of Yuan wanted to scream. He wanted to grab Kratos by the collar, get in his face, and yell and scream at him; these four thousand years they had been working, whether it was in vain or not, didn't it mean anything to him? Four thousand years ago, when they stopped the war, did that mean anything? What about this world now? They were responsible for the way it was-- they had to stay!

But Yuan also knew that Kratos was right. The world was one again, and that really was not because of any effort Yuan or Kratos did. Sure, they had tried and even helped, but in the end, it was not them who changed the world to what it originally was-- that was thanks to Lloyd and his companions. Kratos was right: their time being guardians and watchers of the world was over.

Despite this inner turmoil, Yuan's face remained calm. Kratos, however, had known this man for over four-thousand years; he knew what Yuan was thinking just by looking at his face.

“You don't have to go with me, you know” Kratos said, sarcastically scoffing the statement.

“I don't plan on it,” Yuan said curtly. “We worked too damn hard for this world, and I-- I want to protect it. For both of their sakes. It's the least I owe them, I mean, I failed before, so I don't want to fail again.” Kratos did not need to ask who he was referring to; he knew. They were silent for another moment, but it was a silent understanding. No words needed to be said. Yuan turned and started to leave.

“You know,” Yuan said, as he was leaving. “I mean it. You don't have to leave. I... We're both free to choose whichever path we want. Are you sure that leaving is what you want to do?”

“It is for the best,” Kratos said. Yuan sighed and turned back around and stood next to Kratos for what he thought would be the last time. And, well, it was.

“It's a shame,” Yuan said, shaking his head and smiling now. “A new chapter's just begun, and you're going to miss out on all of it. But once you've made your mind up, you've made your mind up. I can't stop you.” He turned to leave.

As yuan was walking way, he turned around one last time.

“Hey,” Yuan said, stopping in his tracks and not looking back. “I'll look out for the boy, so you have one less thing to worry about, okay?” A breeze blew between the two one more time. Kratos turned and looked at Yuan. His cape and hair were flowing in the wind, and he wasn't turning around, but he stood there, as if he was waiting for a response.

“...Thank you,” Kratos said.

Not another word was spoken between the two of them.

They both went on their way after that, neither one looking back. What had been done had been done. What had been decided had been decided. They needed to walk for their own future and destiny, whatever they may hold. Occasionally, Yuan had thought about that last encounter, and wondered why he had let things finish the way they had. But a chapter in their lives was closing-- after four thousand years, it was finally closing. He knew they needed to go their own way, not only for the new world, but for themselves, too. Perhaps that's why he was so worried about Kratos leaving-- he was worried he was doing it because he felt he was tied down by his past. But by letting go of the world they had tried to build, he really was letting himself be free. Yuan was envious of that. But only a little.

In truth, Yuan would miss his last remaining ally and friend from all the millenia gone by, but he did not want to admit that. His pride would not let him. There were moments where he thought it would have been nice to have Kratos' company (and Kratos certainly felt the same way too.) But Kratos had been right: this wasn't their world anymore. He had to find his own new path, alone, without any ties from the past-- including Kratos-- to be there with him. This was his new chapter, his new beginning.

Kratos would always be there in his memories of the past; now, he had to look towards the future.

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