Iselia

Iselia is the first town the player visits in the game Tales of Symphonia. It is the hometown of Lloyd, Colette, Genis and Raine, and is also the place where Colette receives her Oracle.
 * The Village of Oracles

Before the start
As mentioned, Iselia is the hometown of four of the heroes, but it looks like Colette is the only one who is born there. Lloyd began living with the dwarf Dirk after his mother died; Raine came later with baby Genis, claiming to be elves in order to live there. She later became the teacher at the Iselia school.

After the Chosen of Regeneration, Colette, was born, Iselia made a treaty with the Desian Human Ranch in the region; as long as they did not infiltrate with each other's business, the Desians would leave Iselia alone. It was all for the purpose to protect Colette, as it is believed that the Desians oppose the Chosen.

Day of Prophesy
The whole game starts at the Day of Phrophesy, in Raine’s class. Lloyd has fallen asleep while standing, and she wakes him up before getting Genis to explain the history about Mithos the Hero and the Kharlan War. Afterward, she asks Colette, the Chosen One, to explain the Journey of Regeneration. However, when Raine is about to move over to the next subject, a light suddenly blends them, but quickly disappears. Raine tells everyone to settle down while she goes to check on the Martel Temple. Colette says that she will go with her, but Raine tells her to stay and wait for the priests to get her.

After that, Lloyd goes to the door, but is stopped by Genis, who says that Raine will get mad at them if they do not study. Depending on the player’s choice, a deadly wounded priest might come into the school, looking for Colette. He says that the Desians attacked, and apologizes for not being able to protect the Chosen, before he dies. Colette then says that she has to go and receive the Oracle, and Lloyd and Genis will follow her. If the player chooses to not stay in the classroom, they will get Colette with them out to see the Oracle.

Outside, they see no one, but hear someone calling at Colette. It is revealed to be Frank, Colette’s father. He says that everyone is in the center of the village, safe from the Desians. He then tells Colette to go to the Martel Temple and receive the Oracle. He first tells Lloyd and Genis to go home, but as they refuse, he asks them to help Colette before he goes to the other villagers.

Genis’ friend
After receiving the Oracle, Lloyd and Genis go to the Brunel’s house, seeing the family talk with Kratos, Raine and the Mayor about the Journey of Regeneration. As a thank for protecting Colette, Phaidra, Colette’s grandmother, gives Lloyd the Collector’s Book. Lloyd, saying he wants to follow Colette on her journey, is rejected when Kratos says that the battles will not be as easy as in the Martel Temple, and that children should stay home. As the Mayor agrees, Lloyd and Genis go outside, but Colette quickly follows, falling in the progress when outside. Genis gives her some cookies as a birthday present, in which Lloyd becomes shocked as he has forgotten it. Colette does not seem to be upset by it when Lloyd says that he will give it to her before she leaves the village.

After she walks inside again, Genis asks Lloyd if he can follow Lloyd halfaway on his way home. When Lloyd asks why, the younger boy says that he is going to see a friend. Although Lloyd thinks it strange that Genis has other friends except for him and Colette, he lets Genis follow. After visiting the Sage’s house for a bit, they exit the town, after meeting Lloyd’s pet, Noishe, who scares the guards because of his look. Lloyd and Genis wonder why Noishe suddenly tries to get inside the village, and Genis says that he probably wants to see Lloyd (when he in reality most likely can smell Kratos’ scent and wants to meet him). They then exit.

Massacre
Early in the game, after Colette, Kratos and Raine leave, the village is burned down because Lloyd and Genis broke the treaty, being encouraged by believing that the Desians broke it first (when it actually was the Renegades, not the Desians). However, that is revealed to be only half of the reason the Desians attacked; the other part was to see if Lloyd possessed the Exsphere from the Angelus Project. As that was confirmed, Forcystus, the leader of Iselia Human Ranch, swore that as long as Lloyd had that Exsphere, the Desians would always be after him. This made the mayor of Iselia banish Lloyd for the safety of Iselia. Genis, having been the reason that Lloyd was discovered, wanted to also be in blame and was banished, as well. Having nowhere else to go, the two decided to find Colette and the others and help her in the Journey of Regeneration. The party will no longer be able to enter the village after this scene in the game, until in Disc 2.

A new task
In Disc 2, after having tamed the Giant Kharlan Tree, the player is directly sent to Iselia, in the Brunels' house. Phaidra says that Colette is asleep, but that the fact that the Tower of Salvation disappeared is a disaster. Lloyd wonders why this will be bad for Colette, as she did not do anything to cause the Giant Kharlan Tree to go wild. Phaidra explains that all Chosens have paid their failure with their lives, but Colette is still alive, even though she failed. If Lloyd tries to go upstairs to Colette, Kratos will stop him and tell him to let her rest.

When going outside the school, Lloyd sees that the Mayor is furious when he gets to know that not only have Lloyd and Genis, who were banished, come back, but also that the Sage sibling lied about being elves. He is also angry at Colette for failing the Journey of Regeneration. However, the citizens of Iselia begin to take the party's side, forcing the Mayor to allow Lloyd and Genis to come back to the village again. However, the Sages' home is burned down to ruins, although it is unsure whatever happens afterward with it.

When at the exit, Kratos says that he was asked by Phaidra an Frank to escort Colette to Dirk, so that he can take a look on her disease. They agree to stick along for a little longer.

At the end
At the end of the game, Colette returns to Iselia, being welcomed by the villagers, including Frank and Phaidra, her father and grandmother. When Phaidra calls Colette Chosen One, Colette claims that she no longer is the Chosen and wants to be recognized as the one she is; Colette Brunel.

Also, Genis and Raine are talking to the dwarf Altessa, stating that whenever they get tired of traveling through the world, they know that they always will have a home in Iselia.

Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
In the sequel of the game, Iselia is known worldwide for being the birthplace to Colette, the Chosen of Regeneration, as well as the place where three others of the eight heroes (mainly Lloyd) lived.

Footfalls of Tomorrow
The new protagonists, Emil Castagnier and Marta Lualdi, comes to Iselia. There, they meet Paul, a little boy who says he is Lloyd’s number one apprentice, and also asks them if they want to go with him to the haunted ranch, meaning the Iselia Human Ranch. Emil gets angry at the thought that there actually are kids that like Lloyd, but Marta tells him to calm down. Paul then leaves after saying that they did not have any manners.

Encounter with the past
They go to the Mayor to ask about Lloyd. The Mayor says that they are not the first to ask about the Blood Purge of Palmacosta, and states that it does not make sense, as Lloyd would never lead the Church of Martel into something like that. This statement gets Emil to turn into Ratatosk-Mode, yelling that Lloyd killed his parents. The Mayor then tells how Lloyd broke the treaty with the Desians and made many people lose their lives, just to save a friend of his whom was held prisoner at the Human Ranch (referring to Marble). As the Mayor says that it was stupid of Lloyd to save one insignificant person instead of the thousand that were safe thanks to the treaty, Marta says that it is horrible of him to say that, but when the Mayor asks what she would have chosen, she gets silent, but Ratatosk-Emil is about to declare that it is obvious that it is to sacrifice that one person.

However, the normal Emil takes control before finishing and asks what the Mayor would have thought if he was the one who were to be sacrificed. He also asks how it could be if it was possible to save all the one thousand and one. The Mayor says that Lloyd thought so as well, but in the end, there are great differences between an ideal and reality.

After saying that Lloyd also works tirelessly to realize his ideals, the Mayor also states that he does not know whether that is good or not. Marta that says that he believes in Lloyd, in which the Mayor says that even though he does not like the swordsman, he does believe in him. Emil asks why everyone stands up for Lloyd, as he knows for certain that he killed his parents. The Mayor suggests them to ask the people in town. He also says that Lloyd’s old teacher also is back in town, and that Lloyd’s father is at the Martel Temple.

The lost child
When they have talked to Dirk at the Martel Temple, Emil and Marte see a woman named Lilia talk to some other villagers, telling them that she can not find Paul, which is apparently her son. The others assure her that “Professor Sage” will find him. A woman wonders if it is safe to have faith in a half-elf, but another woman yells at her for not trusting the professor, who saved their Chosen. Emil and Marta wonder if the person they met at the temple was Raine. Marta thinks that the reason she was alone searching for Paul was because she is a half-elf. She then explains how they used to be discriminated, and that she also used to be afraid of them. While Emil mumbles about what she just said, Marta says that she will go to the Human Ranch, and tells him and Tenebrae to wait for her. She is worried about Raine because, even though the Desians are gone, there are probably monsters there. Emil says that there will not be any guarantee that they will meet up with each other, so he will come with her. He also tells her not to consider his feelings all too much. They then leave for the Human Ranch.

Lloyd did WHAT?!
Later, after helping Paul from the Iselia Human Ranch and being introduced to Raine, the latter asks them to wait for her at Iselia’s school, where they see drawings of Lloyd and some of Colette on the wall while waiting. Raine then comes in, and tells them how Paul’s father died when Iselia was attacked by the Desians when Lloyd and her brother broke the treaty. When Emil asks why Paul then admires Lloyd, Raine explains that after that incident, Paul stopped smiling and closed himself in. She says that after reuniting the worlds, Lloyd went to visit Paul every day every time he was in Iselia, even though Lilia did not want him to. In the end, Lloyd thought that if he married Lilia, he could take over the empty place of Paul’s father; thus, he proposed to Lilia. Raine tells that Lilia became so upset by it that she threw a tomato at Lloyd, who in instinct hit it back at her. Before they knew it, tomatoes were thrown everywhere, and Paul and Lilia laughed for the first time in months.

Suddenly, Emil goes into Ratatosk-Mode, saying he is sick of hearing how wonderful Lloyd is. Raine then says that the Mayor told her about them, and that she was Lloyd’s teacher, who also traveled with him in the Journey of Regeneration. When Emil says that he does not want to hear how Lloyd’s innocent anymore, Raine suddenly asks what made him think that she was going to say that he was innocent, which makes them surprised. Marta asks if that means that she does not trust Lloyd, even if she is supposed to be his friend. Raine answers by saying that trusting Lloyd and believing the reports about what happened in Palmacosta six months ago are two entirely different things. She then orders Emil and Marta to calm themselves before they are blinded to the truth. When Marta asks why she even cares, Raine says maybe she does not. This makes Marta angry and runs off, making Emil turn back to normal and run after her.

To stand up for each other
When Emil finds Marta before the Sage’s house, Marta says that she can not stand people like Raine, who says such cold things about people even though they are her friends. However, when Marta says that if someone had been talking bad about Emil, she would have defending him to the end, Emil says that he finally understands why everyone is defending Lloyd. He says that he does not have reason for getting angry at people just because they like Lloyd, because he and Marta are just like them. Tenebrae suggests that that may have been the reason Raine told them to calm down, as anyone would become mad if someone they liked and trusted was insulted. With this, they decide to talk to Raine again.

They find Raine looking outside a window at the school, and Raine they do not have to apologize, as she understands that for Emil, Lloyd is the man who killed his parents. However, she reminds them that there also are people who were saved by Lloyd and owe him their lives. Marta is still confused about her opinions for Lloyd, and Raine then explains that she likes Lloyd and trusts him, but she also knows that people change – for better or for worse – all the time, and thus, she can not be sure what kind of person Lloyd presently is. But still, she does not think that her faith in Lloyd should blind her from the people who suffered from the Blood Purge. When Emil asks if she trusts them, she says that she trusts that the Blood Purge happened, not that she trusts them, because she doubts they trust her, as well as the fact that they have just met.

Raine then says that if they tell her about their journey and about the Centurions' cores, she may tell them where Lloyd is. Emil and Marta do not understand how she knows about the cores, but Raine says that it is because she met Colette earlier, and that she explained everything for her. After explaining about the cores and the Knight of Ratatosk, Raine says that she heard that Colette’s neighbor, Pepe, saw Lloyd recently. They then go and talk to him.

When they find Pepe, he is a little against telling them about Lloyd, as he knows that they are after revenge. However, when Raine assures him that it is okay, Pepe explains that he saw Lloyd on a strange flying machine, toward the Triet Ruins. Emil and Marta are about to leave when Raine asks to come with them, as she is worried for Lloyd and want to find out if he really has changed; if he has, she sees it as her duty to get him back to the right path. They agree to let her with them, and also introduce Tenebrae to her. As Tenebrae thinks Raine is an intelligent person, he looks forward to travel with her.

Half of the past
In a side-quest, it is revealed that Alice is a half-elf when they encounter her in Iselia, and one from the orphanage in Hima she lived in before, Bernie, sees her. He says that he has heard a lot about her, and that they always knew that she would become something big. However, after Alice is gone, to Emil and Marta that Alice is dangerous, as she used magic to control monster to destroy the orphanage eight years ago, ending with many people losing their lives. When Marta asks, Bernie says he does not know why she did it, but he states that she was picked on for being a half-elf, so it may have been the reason.

Eternal Bond
As the group splits up to see the world one last time, Emil goes to Iselia and meets Colette there. Colette says that by remembering the good things about the world helps him to protect it against Nifleheim, in which Emil agrees in. Colette then says that it is sad to think that they might never see each other again, now that they have finally got to know each other fully and well. Emil says it is his duty to accept, though. Colette says that she used to think like that, too, and how she would have given up her life as long as it was her duty, not saying that that actually was the case. However, she says that no matter now naïve people think it is, one can not just decide to die from the beginning. That was what she learned from her Journey of Regeneration: she loves the world and wants to live with it and protect it along the way. They then agree to show those in Nifleheim what they are made of.

Lloyd’s soul-mate
Next time, when the group is reformed again, the player can unlock a side-quest about the one Lloyd chose as a soul-mate in the original game. By going to Iselia, Lloyd will tell about his journey for collecting Exsphere, though he is worried that he will “not be able to keep his promise to his dad in time”. When Emil asks if he means Dirk, Lloyd simply shoves if off and says that even though the journey is long and hard, he will not give up. Emil asks if it is not lonely to do it all by himself, but Lloyd then says that until six months ago, there were two of them. The player then gets to choose a name between the seven other heroes of the original game, and whoever the player chooses is Lloyd’s soul-mate from the other game.

After choosing, Lloyd will talk a little about the chosen person. Emil will then ask what they will do after this journey is over, and Lloyd says that they will continue to search for Exspheres, though they will continue to visit Iselia now and then.

Tales of Symphonia: The Animation
After the opening of the first episode, the anime shows the school in Iselia, where Genis reads aloud for the class about the Kharlan War. Lloyd, however, is not listening and instead is probably thinking about Colette, who is at the Martel Temple in order to receive the Oracle. When Genis is finished, Lloyd mumbles something, which is what causes Raine to throw her chalk on him. In the break, Genis and Lloyd sees the light of the Oracle, and hurry to Raine, who is about to go to the Martel Temple. They manage to convince her to take them with her.

Later, Lloyd and Dirk get to know by Genis in the middle of night that the Desians have attacked Iselia. All three hurry to the village, where Forcystus asks the Mayor where the boy with the Exsphere is. The reason they are attacking is not because of breaking any treaty, but because a Desian saw Lloyd use an Exsphere in the Martel Temple. When the Mayor does not understand what they are talking about, Forcystus is threatening to use an arte on them. Another place in the burning village, Genis uses Aqua Edge on some of his soldiers while Lloyd guards him from distracters. Dirk uses a giant hammer to attack Desians, telling Lloyd not use the power of the gem. He then tells the teenagers to go to the center of the village to save the citizens while he continues to fight.

When Lloyd and Genis arrive, Forcystus says that he will not kill the villagers if Lloyd fights against him alone. Lloyd tries with all he has got, but Forcystus always hits him back with great power. After being thrown into a house, Forcystus tells Lloyd to show him the power of the Exsphere. Angry that he is made fun of, Lloyd’s Exsphere shines, and he get new power. Jumping incredible high, it looks like Lloyd tries to attack Forcystus with a Tiger Blade, but fails as the Iselia Human Ranch leader uses his canon arm as a shield. Lloyd tries once again with either Demon Fang or Fierce Demon Fang, but Forcystus once again blocks it, instead sending some of the attack it back at Lloyd. After saying how disappointed he is that the Exsphere did not give out as much power as he expected, he uses his canon arm and shoots Lloyd. However, when Lloyd opens his eyes, he is in a completely other place, resembling the skies. There, he sees a shining silhouette which he calls “Mom”. The figure then says “Protect those dearest to you”, before sending Lloyd back to reality. They are all shocked that the canon did no damage to Lloyd, who just looks shocked at his Exsphere. The latter then suddenly sends out a radiant light which hits Forcystus and nearly kills him.

Forcystus, falling on his knees, says how wonderfully incredible power that Exsphere really had, and tells Lloyd that as long as he has that Exsphere, the Desians will always be after him. He then passes out.

Later, after the fire is stopped, Lloyd, Genis and Dirk face the remaining villagers, silent. However, in the anime, Lloyd himself decided to leave the village in order to keep it safe; in the game, he is banished along with Genis.

Tales of Phantasia
It is hinted throughout the game that Tales of Symphonia is a distant prequel to Tales of Phantasia. It is also highly likely that Aselia, the world in Tales of Phantasia, were named after the village of Iselia, for the reasons that Lloyd, the hero in the game, grew up there, as well as the last Chosen One of Regeneration. On another note, four of the eight heroes lived in this village, making the assumption bigger.