Kratos Aurion

Kratos Aurion (クラトス・アウリオン Kuratosu Aurion?) is a major key protagonist from Tales of Symphonia. He is the fourth person to join the party, aiding Lloyd, Colette, and Genis in a battle at Martel Temple. Later, he takes on the job of guarding the Chosen of Mana on her journey to regenerate the world. Kratos is displayed as a cold and heartless mercenary early in the game, though is also an expert in swordsmanship, a fact that makes Lloyd angry. The only thing he has in mind at the beginning of the game is to protect Colette, as that is what he is assigned to do. However, as the journey progresses, Kratos begins to open up a little, giving hints about a past where he made a terrible mistake. Throughout the early stages of the game, Kratos displays outstanding knowledge of the ancient world, raising Raine's suspicions. Despite his secret agenda, Kratos takes a keen interest in Lloyd's development as a warrior, although he takes a fairly callous approach to this. Through a side-quest, Kratos will train him in swordsmanship and give him advice that helps the young boy to grow.

Despite his long life and many years of experience, Kratos is, up until the end of the game, a fatalist. For much of the game he believes that Mithos' is the only way. This changes if you trigger the scene with Kratos at Flanoir. It is Lloyd's actions that make him realize how much control of his destiny he really has.