Tales of Symphonia - Plot
The main character in the game is Lloyd Irving, a seventeen-year-old friend of the Chosen who accompanies her on a long, dangerous journey to regenerate the world of Sylvarant. The Chosen, Collette Brunel, had been friends with Lloyd and another boy from their village, Genis Sage, since they were young. Genis is very smart and claims to be an elf. It is later discovered that both Genis and his sister (and teacher), Raine Sage, are really half-elves, with mixed human and elven blood. This is relevant because half-elves are not favorably viewed in Sylvarant or other places. This is partially because an organization known as the Desians made up of half-elves is wreaking havoc upon Sylvarant. According to legend, this occurs when the world's mana or life force grows low. To solve this, the Chosen of Mana, a specially chosen human, must go on a pilgrimage to awaken the Summon Spirits of the land and unlock the path to the Tower of Salvation (reminiscent of a completed Tower of Babel). There, the Goddess Martel can be awoken and the land can be regenerated.
Complications arise during the journey. Several times, a mysterious assassin attempts to . This assassin, Sheena Fujibayashi, eventually repents and joins the party. She explains that she is from Tethe'alla, a parallel world, and that Sylvarant and Tethe'alla compete for mana. While one world flourishes, the other suffers.
Tales of Symphonia - Tower of Salvation
When the party reaches the Tower of Salvation, with the help of Kratos Aurion, a mysterious mercenary, the truth is revealed. The Chosen legend is really a plot by Cruxis, a group of half-elves and evolved half-elves, or angels. The two worlds were formerly one, but Yggdrasill, Cruxis's leader, split them in two. Kratos is also revealed as one of the Four Seraphim of Cruxis.
The party narrowly escapes the Tower with the help of the Renegades, an opposing group, and begins seeking to reunite the two worlds. Other characters join: Zelos Wilder, the Chosen of Tethe'alla, Presea Combatir, the mysterious victim of an Exsphere experiment, and Regal Bryant, a convict, and, as is later revealed, president of a massive company named Lezareno and bearer of the title of Duke.
Tales of Symphonia - Revelation
The party eventually discovers that Yggdrasill's first name is Mithos, and that he is the hero of the Ancient Kharlan War. Mithos was cast out of the elven village of Heimdall for being a half-elf. He, along with Martel, his sister, Yuan, a fellow half-elf, and Kratos, his human teacher, journeyed to end the war. When this was done, however, he split the world in two with the Eternal Sword, which had been given to him by Origin, king of the Summon Spirits, for the purpose of ending the war. He did this to separate the opposing forces that had caused the war into separate worlds. The war had also caused the deaths of the Great Kharlan Tree, planted by the elves when they came to the world in order to provide mana, and Martel. Mithos, desiring to save his sister, bound her Exsphere, which retained her consciousness, to the Great Seed of the Kharlan Tree. Along with Yuan and Kratos, he set up Cruxis to rule the two worlds, convincing them it was the best way to maintain peace.
The Church of Martel and Chosen ritual were developed in order to provide a new body for Martel. Yuan and Kratos grew displeased with this, as it caused needless suffering through the waxing and waning of the worlds and the Desians, a sub-organization of Cruxis, that were necessary to stimulate fear in the Chosen to awaken his or her Exsphere. Also, Mithos gradually revealed his plans to transform everyone into identical, lifeless beings through the use of Exspheres in order to eliminate discrimination. Yuan secretly formed the Renegades, while Kratos began subverting Mithos's plans under the pretense of helping to carry them out.
Eventually, Mithos and his vision were defeated. Lloyd was able to use the Eternal Sword to reunite the worlds and germinate the Great Seed. Martel was freed from the Seed and her consciousness was deposited into Tabatha, an android
built in a failed previous attempt to resurrect her. Lloyd was bestowed with the opportunity to name the new Giant Kharlan Tree, but it is left a mystery what he names it. Some think that the tree's name is Yggdrasill, as there is a giant tree of the same name in later (chronologically) games in the series.
Credits: Wikipedia
