Name: Kratos Aurion
Hometown: Derris-Kharlan
Age: 28 (physical); 4000+ (mental)
Weight: 173lbs; 78kg
Height: 6'1"; 186cm
Race: Human (pre-game); Angel (in-game)
Occupation: Mercenary, Four Seraphim, Cruxis
Weapon: Swords, Daggers
Kratos is depicted as a cold and heartless mercenary in the game, yet he is also an expert in swordsmanship, which irritates Lloyd. Initially, his sole focus is to protect Colette, as that is his assigned mission. However, as the journey progresses, Kratos starts to open up a little, hinting at a past where he made a terrible mistake.
Throughout the early stages of the game, Kratos demonstrates outstanding knowledge of the ancient world, raising Raine's suspicions about his true intentions. Despite his malevolent secret agenda, Kratos takes a keen interest in Lloyd's development as a warrior, although he approaches this with a fairly callous attitude. Through a side-quest, Kratos trains Lloyd in swordsmanship and offers advice that helps the younger boy grow.
Despite his long life and extensive experience, Kratos remains a fatalist until the end of the game, not realizing for a long time that Mithos’ way is not the only possible path to save the worlds. It is Lloyd's actions that make him realize how much choice and control over his destiny he truly has.
Ancient Hero:
Kratos's story begins approximately 4000 years before the events of "Tales of Symphonia" take place. As the only human companion of the hero Mithos Yggdrasill, Kratos traveled the world and helped to end the Kharlan War, a conflict that lasted one thousand years.
During these adventures, Mithos formed pacts with each of the Summon Spirits in the world. After forming a pact with Origin, the King of Summon Spirits, a seal based on Kratos himself was created to prevent anyone else from gaining Origin's power. This seal could only be broken once Kratos' mana was released, ending his life. Mithos then had Origin create the Eternal Sword, which he used to split the world into Sylvarant and Tethe'alla.
Shortly after Mithos, Kratos, Yuan, and Martel ended the war, they were betrayed by a human who had aided them during their journey. This enigmatic human killed Martel. Grief-stricken, Mithos misinterpreted her dying wish for a world free of discrimination as a wish for everyone to be the same. Mithos then established the order of Cruxis, with he, Kratos, and Yuan as its first angels. Since Kratos was human, he was forced to ingest a magical rock called Aionis, allowing him to cast magic and use magical weapons, to become an angel. The companions became three of the Four Seraphim, with Martel being the fourth, ascended to Derris-Kharlan and founded the Church of Martel. They also founded the Desian Organization to aid Mithos in his plans.
Tortured Paramour:
After learning about Mithos's plans for the "Age of Lifeless Beings," Kratos left Cruxis and descended upon Sylvarant. There he met Anna, a human woman and a research subject in the Angelus Project, which aimed to culture a Cruxis Crystal within a human host. The two fell in love.
Kratos soon realized there had to be a better way to reunite the two worlds, so he began searching for a way for a human to wield the Eternal Sword, the omnipotent weapon Mithos used to split the worlds. However, the pair was pursued by Cruxis, and soon they had a child, Lloyd. Eventually, the Desian Grand Cardinal Kvar caught them, removing Anna's Exsphere, causing her to become a mindless monster. She attacked infant Lloyd, who was saved only after their pet Noishe intervened. These events temporarily caused Anna to regain her old self, at which she begged Kratos to kill her. Unable to do it, Anna soon lost control again. She turned on Lloyd again, and with Noishe too injured to help, Kratos killed her in desperation to save his son. Kvar then attacked, causing Lloyd, Noishe, and Anna to tumble down a cliff near the Iselia Human Ranch.
Kratos managed to defeat Kvar and his men, then descended the cliff, only to find Desian corpses half-devoured by monsters. Believing his family to be dead, Kratos lost all meaning in his life. He returned to Cruxis, aiding Mithos, believing the half-elf would reunite the two worlds after Martel was revived. It is not known why Kratos didn't immediately kill Kvar for his actions afterwards.
