Time that was Lost
by Osiris
All original Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross characters, locations, (and items, I guess) are copyrighted and are eternally bound to Squaresoft.
Hmm… where do I begin… I love Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross with all my heart and soul, but we all have to admit- there was a rather large hole left in between the two. I imagine Square wanted to make us think on this one- you couldn’t understand what’s what and you probably missed a lot of things in the two games if you didn’t think some.
Twenty years separated the two and me, with all of my theories, will try to fill those in, not leaving anything out, such as Lucca’s discovery of Kid, the disappearance of the Masamune, the fall of Guardia, the heartwrenching destruction of Lucca’s orphanage… and heck, even why Lucca left that letter to Luccia, and why Janus is mentioned in it, plus any other things/events my psychotic mind can slip in there… Enjoy!
11098 BC
JANUS
The two years Janus spent on the frozen rock that had become his world were not prosperous ones. He had no idea where Schala was, and didn’t even know where to begin looking… What with only a few islands dotting the vast expanses of the abyssal black ocean that now covered ninety-five percent of the world, Janus had searched each one thoroughly, yet came up with nothing.
He felt that Schala was no longer under the sea as he had thought when he returned back to the Dark Ages… He no longer sensed Schala’s presence anywhere in this Hell-frozen-over that had once been his home…
Two years ago he had reassured himself that he would never give up, and he never will, but…
LUCCA
Lucca awoke to the sound of her beeping alarm clock. The sound had become annoying over the past five years she’d had it, and she thought about replacing it with an alarm that would be a bit more… discreet. The beeping could’ve been loud enough to wake everyone in the house- but Taban designed it so that the sound could be as loud as possible in Lucca’s room, but couldn’t be heard outside her door.
He felt around for her large black glasses on her nightstand, and when she found them, she slowly put them on her face.
“They’re crooked…” she thought, grumpily. “Of course they’re crooked…”
She adjusted her glasses and used her middle finger to push them up her nose (although in a few minutes they’d just slide back down, and she’d have to slide them up again). Now that she could actually see five inches in front of her, she read the hands on her clock.
“Seven thirty-two…” she said aloud. Her voice had a slight hoarse to it, and she cleared her throat, then (finally) got out of bed. She quickly changed her clothes, and bounded down the stairs, meeting her mother and father for breakfast.
“Morning all.” She said, putting on her cheerful hat. She sat down at the table and her mother placed a plate of toast and oatmeal in front of her. “Thanks.”
“Morning, sweety.” Said Taban, wolfing down bacon and eggs. “You and the princess still going on that trip to… um… hmm…”
Lucca gave a faint smile and finished her father’s sentence for him, “The shed.”
“Oh! Right! What are you going to do down there, anyway?” asked Taban, finishing his bacon and eggs, rotating his plate, then starting on his sausage.
Lucca’s eyes shifted side to side… “Heh, just some random experiment.”
“Well, as long as you two are careful…” said Lara, her voice thick with concern. “Accidents can happen”-she snapped her fingers-“like that.”
“Don’t worry…” said Lucca. In truth, they were going to work on the Epoch some. After Lavos had been destroyed, and they used the Epoch to go after Crono’s mom- a rather funny story in itself, making Lucca giggle to herself- it hadn’t been working right… Taking one to 732 AD instead of 600 AD…
Lucca had promised herself that she would dismantle it, but… something might happen… in case of an emergency she had to keep it in tip-top shape.
Lucca began to eat her oatmeal quickly, and when she had finished it she moved onto the toast- t’was the inventor’s way of eating, and Lara had scolded them many times, but gave up some time ago…
Just as she had put her dirty dishes in the sink, she heard a knock on the door.
“Perfect timing, Marle…” Lucca thought. “I’ll get it.” Said Lucca, rhetorically. She jogged out of the kitchen, through the hallway, and into the “Entrance Hall” as she liked to call it. Lucca evaded the many cables as she made her way through the room and to the door, which was still being beaten. Lucca opened the door, to see Marle standing at the doorway, her hand still balled into the fist and up in the air, wearing her usual light blue pants and tube top, her hair up in a ponytail.
“I’m here!” she said, cheerfully.
“Finally!” said Lucca, grinning evilly to herself, “I’ve been up for HOURS waiting for you! I thought royalty had to get up at dawn…”
Marle’s face gained a slight pink tinge, and Lucca burst out laughing.
“Lucca!” said Marle, angrily, raising her fist to Lucca. “You KNOW I hate that…” Lucca took off her glasses and wiped tears from her eyes, then set them back on her nose, and slid them up.
“And yet…” she, said, giggling uncontrollably, “I continue… to do it…” Marle smirked, and waited impatiently for Lucca to lead her to the Epoch.
“Come on… let’s go to the shed… IT’S down there.” Replied Lucca, leading Marle outside, and to the “hidden” wood shed in the backyard. The unused wood shed had become the Epoch’s “hangar” of sorts, and it had been a miracle they got it down there in the first place…
Lucca ripped the tarp off of the time machine, in a graceful fashion, which ended up with the tarp covering up HER. Marle watched, biting her lip to keep from laughing, as Lucca ripped her way out of the large white sheet.
“Ta-da!” she said, her hands presenting the Epoch, with some of it’s covers torn off, leaving wires exposed. Tools were strewn about, and Marle clapped excited.
“Wow!” exclaimed Marle. “It’s all… in… pieces… I thought we were putting this thing in good condition, NOT dismantling it.”
“Well… Gimme time… Besides… even if it were somewhat dismantled… I can do anything I want! I’M Lucca the Great!” said Lucca, giving a sinister cackle.
“Lucca the Insane, Eccentric, and Absent-Minded, maybe…” replied Marle, dryly. Lucca sighed in exasperation.
“Crush my fun…Alright let’s get to work.”
MELCHIOR
Melchior, who had just turned 121 a week ago, picked up the hilt of the hot blade with a burnt towel.
“Here we go…” muttered the ancient sage. He set the katana down in a large tub to let it cool, and steam hissed as cool water came into contact with the blade. “Now… I would have to say that THIS is one of my better masterpieces… I’d think that only the Masamune would be better than this…”
Crono nodded in thanks as he watched his new sword cool. Melchior took a handkerchief out of his orange sash and dabbed his face, which was glistening with sweat.
“Well, that sword had everything I could toss into it, except Dreamstone, mind you… denadorite, rainbow shard… I hope it works out for you… it’s a bit longer than the others I made for you.”
“Thanks, I’m sure it’ll be perfect.” Crono said softly, in his usual quiet murmur.
“That Masamune… I wonder what EXACTLY happened to it… I can’t be so sure…” Melchior began in one of his incoherent ramblings.
“Glenn…” murmured Crono, quieter than usual... “What happened to you?”
LUCCA
“Are we done, yet?” whined Marle. “I wanna go home! Crono’s probably already back at the castle!”
“Oh, hush, you! We’re almost finished! Gawd, remind ME never to get married.” Replied Lucca, in a voice not too quiet for Marle to hear.
“You never want to get married?” asked Marle, rather shocked.
“No… but I do want to have a child… a girl… and I’d name her Kid…” said Lucca, mostly to herself.
“But… you usually have to have one with the other… unless you kill your husband after you have the child. And, wait, Kid?!” asked Marle, incredulously. “Pfft.!” Lucca dropped the small hammer she was using.
“ExCUSE me?! Did you just ‘pfft’ my child’s name?!” asked Lucca, somewhat hurt.
“Well… you know… it’s not really a… common name…”
“It was my grandmother’s name, thank you very much!” said Lucca, matter-of-factly. She resumed working, but only for a few minutes, those few moments going silent. “Oh! Done!”
“Wha-? Finished? What about all the exposed wires and other… things?”
“Those’ll take five minutes to fix up.” Said Lucca, waving that aside.
“Does this mean I get to go home now?” asked Marle, hopefully, looking outside, to the setting sun.
“Sure, go ahead.” Lucca set down her hammer, and picked up a screwdriver, and starting to reattach the casing. Marle ran out of the woodshed, leaving Lucca to her thoughts- mostly on marriage.
11098 BC
JANUS
Janus woke up the next morning- though due to the lack of sun, one couldn’t tell- picked up his scythe, and walked out of the cave that had become his home. Today, his thoughts were plagued by Crono and his lackeys. He remembered the last day he saw them, as if he were reliving it.
JANUS
THE FAIR’S FINALE
“So, are you going to search for Schala?”
Magus turned to face them all. He gave a faint smile, and then jumped backward through the time portal.
JANUS
Janus’ eyes snapped open. Before him he saw Lavos… and Schala. He tried to speak, but no words would come out. Lavos opened his beak, and a blast of grey energy blasted out, speeding towards Schala. Janus tried to move, but he was bound to the ground. Lavos’ attack hit Schala and she was thrown backward. She hit the ground forcefully.
“Janus…?” she whispered, weakly, as she faded away into nothing. Janus looked back to Lavos who- wasn’t there. Instead, he saw the girl with the purple hair and glasses.
“Janus! I was so worried!” Janus blinked, and she was no longer there. The frog’s human form stood there.
“Wizard! Are you ready? It’s coming!” The knight drew the Masamune, which glowed a brilliant blue. The sword fell out of the knight’s hands, and into Janus’, in which then, it changed into a ruby red knife, then into a demonic red sword, and ultimately vanished altogether. Finally, he saw Crono.
“A battle is coming. You’d best prepare yourself. I hope you’re able to handle it!”
JANUS
Janus woke up for real this time- only he wasn’t in Zeal- he was in the Guardia Forest.
LUCCA
“Alright everyone… We are about to travel in the Epoch once more. This trip is ONLY to see if everything is alright. We’ve messed with time more than we should have. If we see trouble, we leave it alone, unless, of course, it gets caused because of us, and in that case, we’ll deal with it immediately.” Lucca was clad in a yellow tube-top, camouflage pants, and she even had a cane, whose top was adorned with golden coin bearing the Guardia crest.
Crono and Marle stood and watched Lucca, trying to keep from laughing at the mad scientist. Lucca had been acting very strange all morning. In fact, Lucca herself thought she was acting very strange… She was nervous. She thought that something was going to happen, something they would cause, something that they would have to fix. She tried to shrug the thoughts off, but to avail.
“Alright troops, everyone aboard.” Lucca pointed her cane to the Epoch’s cockpit, and Crono and Marle filed in. Lucca jumped in the pilot’s seat. She flipped a few switches, pushed some buttons, and the Epoch hummed to life. Lucca broke out into a nervous sweat, as she set the coordinates for the Middle Ages. The Epoch rose, and blasted out of the woodshed, demolishing the shed itself, and flying beyond the speed of sound. They flew over the world once, and once they reached their take off point, they broke the barrier of time.
GLENN
Frog was walking through Truce Canyon, overseeing the excavation team. ‘Twas the order of the king that Truce Canyon be dug out, and made into a large square, where great events would be held, and where Leene’s Bell (currently under construction by Banta) would ring throughout all of Guardia.
“Workers! Thou art shall rest, for I can see thee very weary after a long day’s toil.” He said. The workers all cheered for Frog, and put down their picks and shovels. As they left, Frog could hear someone- or something chanting. He wouldn’t ever forget where he first heard it- Magus was chanting in that same exact tone when he tried to summon Lavos two years ago.
Frog drew the Masamune, and prepared for anything- except for what actually happened. A bolt of lightning came, screaming from the sky, and struck him. The sensation felt strangely familiar, and Frog’s body began to glow radiantly, and he collapsed.
Glenn awoke to the sound of shouting. All of his joints ached, his flesh burned, and every inch of him was itchy.
“We’ve found someone, Your Majesty! And he wields the mystical sword!” a man shouted. Glenn forced his eyes to open and saw a crowd of people standing around him- the most prominent were the king and queen. Both looked at him in horror.
“No… Magus… The sorcerer… He changed me again… What did he..?” Glenn’s thoughts were slow and sluggish, as he struggled to stand, or move any limbs- considering he had any left.
“G-Glenn?” murmured the queen. Glenn. A name he hadn’t heard in ages… Not since… Glenn spit some words out.
“Your… Majesty… How gruesome has the evil wizard made me..? Have I met fate worse than death?” Glenn was amazed at his speech. He had lost the tongue that had plagued his mouth ever since he had undergone the transformation… his first transformation anyway… Did this mean…
“Glenn… Y- You’ve become… human again…” said the queen, her voice quivering. Finally, Glenn was able to stand. He pulled off his left glove, which revealed a hand. A hand with fingers and human skin… He put that hand to his face. He felt the contours of his once long-gone chiseled features. He let that hand run upward along his face, and felt hair. He was human… Magus had made him human! Glenn stared up to the sky, blessing his former-foe.
The next day, Glenn was knighted. He knelt before the king who spoke the words, last cited to Cyrus on his knighting, the king touching his sword to Glenn’s right shoulder, to his left shoulder, then back to his right.
“Glenn of Truce, I dub thee, Sir Glenn, Head of the Knights of the Square Table, Protector of the Throne, Guardian of Guardia. Rise, Sir Glenn.” Glenn rose, and turned walking toward the castle doors. He walked on the red carpet, the Masamune in its scabbard at his side. Two men opened the doors, and Glenn walked out of the castle, into the setting sun.
Glenn hadn’t made it to Truce when he saw a familiar… something… It was in the sky, towards the Yet-To-Be-Named Ashtear Island. Out of a portal of blue light, came a streak of yellow. It was the Epoch. Glenn waved his arms victoriously, signaling for the time machine to land near him.
LUCCA
“Who’s that insane man waving his arms at us?” asked Marle. Crono gave a characteristic shrug, and Lucca stared at the man through the windshield.
“Oh my God… That’s Frog. Or Frog’s roguishly handsome human form…” said Lucca, in complete awe. “Look! You can see the Masamune sheathed in his scabbard!”
“Let me see!” yelled Marle, diving forward so she could see.
“Hey! Quit shoving! You’re squeezing me against the controls, you ditz!” strained Lucca. Lucca was held against the Epoch’s control stick, and the Epoch plunged towards the ground. Marle immediately sat back in her seat, as Lucca fumbled with the controls, sweat forming on her face, making her glasses slip. Luckily, Lucca stabilized the Epoch, and set it down gently on the ground.
As the four were inside the castle, there was much talking, laughing, celebrating, and visiting in general. Glenn talked of how he became human, Crono and Marle (though mostly Marle) talked of their recent marriage, and when it came to be Lucca’s turn, she only said she’d been “as busy as a bee”. She didn’t have anything interesting to input- she fixed the Epoch. That was about it… it really made her hate herself.
Finally, Lucca came to the point of their trip.
“Glenn, we want you to return with us, to our time.” Said Lucca, knowing he’d be ecstatic to see their time once more. Of course she was wrong.
“Lucca… I cannot leave… This is my home… I was knighted today! I am the protector of all Guardia… if word spread that I had left… who knows what chaos would erupt in your time.” Said Glenn, being as honest- and unknowingly pretentious- as he could.
“But…” Lucca trailed off, knowing she probably couldn’t convince Glenn to go. This was his home, and he was fiercely loyal to the king and queen…
“But, won’t you be protecting Guardia in our time as well?” asked Crono, in an out of character remark. Glenn froze. He had no response.
“Does something happen in your time, that you might need my help?” asked Glenn.
“Lucca seems to think so…” said Marle, as everyone’s eyes turned to Lucca herself. Lucca’s eyes shifted side to side, and she remained silent. “…right Lucca?”
“Well… It was just a feeling… An overcoming one, yes, but still… I think something is going to happen that will affect Guardia- no, the whole world, and if we aren’t prepared to stop it…” Lucca looked to one side, not knowing what to say next.
“Well, Lucca, if you… If you think that something may happen in the future… Guardia is my country now and forever. I shall protect her until my final days!” said Glenn. Lucca smiled, proud that her pathetic premonitions were able to sway the most noble knight in all history.
Much to the king and queen’s dismay, Glenn said goodbye and promised to return to them safely if he survived the oncoming battle. The four pondered how to get all four of them back to the present, and Lucca decided they’d take two trips. Lucca took Crono and Glenn the first trip, then returned for Marle. When they were all in Lucca’s house, her mind drifted.
“So this is where Glenn went off to…” he came with us, that’s why we couldn’t find him in any history books…” Lucca thought. Marle and Crono invited Glenn to stay at the castle, and Glenn accepted the offer. That left Lucca alone… again. But it left her alone with her thoughts. “Hmmm… I might need Robo and Belthasar to help us… Besides… I want to check on Robo anyway…” She decided to do that the next morning- she was exhausted and thought that convincing Robo might take some tinkering with his programming if necessary, and Belthasar… If he wouldn’t come, he wouldn’t come.
BELTHASAR
Belthasar packed a few random things he thought he might need, and gathered Robo, and his Nu.
“Are you two ready to leave?” he asked in his feeble voice.
“Yes, Master Belthasar. I am very eager to see everyone again…” replied Robo. Belthasar nodded, looking around. He felt quite content with everything here. Chronopolis had been established, Mother Brain was being reprogrammed, and Belthasar had contributed everything he could to this age. Upon looking through the history logs, he knew he had to warn everyone. “How ironic. The Guru of Reason doing something so irrational…” He shrugged off those thoughts. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it.
Belthasar, Robo, and the Nu got inside the NeoEpoch’s cockpit, and Belthasar flipped only a few switches. He set the coordinates for Princess Nadia’s era and he was simply there.
BELTHASAR
Or he thought. He looked at his surroundings. He seemed to be in the basement of some sort… The basement was cluttered with so much junk, he had to clear some out of his way to get to a set of stone steps.
“Wait here.” He ordered Robo and the Nu. He walked up the stairs, and saw himself in a large library. Four men, somewhere in their thirties or forties, had stopped speaking.
“Aye, old man, who do ye think ye be walking in on our plans? Be ye a spy from Porre?!” the man with the strange accent growled.
“Where am I?” asked Belthasar looking around once more.
“You are in my manor.” Replied a large man wearing a large black overcoat. “Welcome to Viper Manor, old man.”
1002 AD
LUCCA
“Alright. I’ll be pulling this one solo. Don’t wait up for me!” said Lucca, hopping into the Epoch’s cockpit. It was midnight in Lucca’s backyard, and everyone stood by the Epoch, shivering.
“Good luck, Lucca!” cheered Marle, her teeth chattering. Lucca set the coordinates, fired up the Epoch’s engines, but as soon as she did, they died down to a faint whine. Lucca furrowed her brow, annoyed. She flipped the switches again, and the engines didn’t even want to bother to start. The Epoch’s display showed the hull, blinking red in alarm. Lucca opened the cockpit in a panic, and jumped out.
“RUN!!” she yelled, tearing towards the house. Crono, Marle, and Glenn charged after her. The Epoch exploded in a blinding blue light, which furiously rotated, sending a beacon into the sky. Pieces of the time-traveling airship went flying in all directions, and night was almost as bright as day, until the light finally died down. When the chaos had ceased, Lucca looked at her backyard.
The scene was something to marvel at. A small crater had taken the Epoch’s place, along with something else… a time gate. As Lucca was despairing over her backyard, and the Epoch, Crono walked up to the gate.
“Ummm…” Marle started to say something, but thought better of it. Lucca had finished mourning over the Epoch, just as her parents walked out.
“Wha-?” Taban couldn’t say anything as he looked around the scene, and Lara’s mouth dropped to the ground as she saw the crater.
“Lucca… Do you mind telling us just what the hell happened?” asked Taban, in a calm, collected voice. Lucca giggled to herself, and her father glared at her disapprovingly.
“Um… Well… We were doing an experiment, of sorts, and, heh, well… It kinda… you know… went… wrong…” said Lucca, trying not to say something that would worsen the situation.
“Oh. An experiment, well!” Lara stormed into the house, slamming the back door behind her so hard, it just swung open again. Lucca sighed and, got to her feet, brushing herself off.
“Lucca. Just what, exactly, were you trying to do?” asked Taban. After Lucca had told her parents about saving the world they’d worried themselves sick, and told Lucca to dismantle the Epoch… if she told them the truth…
“Sir, I believe she said she was trying to make a way for… um… what did you call it Lucca?” asked Glenn, helping Lucca, and stalling while they could come up with a good lie.
“Predistortional Establishment of..,” Lucca started but couldn’t think of the last word, and said the first word that came to mind: “FATE.”
“Fate?” asked Taban, somewhat confused. “Predistortional Establishment of Fate? That sounds suspiciously like you were trying to travel through time!”
“Daddy… Please… do you see the Epoch anywhere?” asked Lucca, very slyly.
“Yes! I see it scattered across my backyard!” Taban yelled.
“Tch. I dismantled it, just a few hours ago, and, well… forgot to clean up the mess. I’m sorry. I’ll do that tomorrow.” Said Lucca, throwing up her arms, in fake remorse. Taban stare pierced through Lucca’s innocent gaze, and burned into her skull. It was almost as if he knew she was lying…
“No… clean this mess up tonight!” said Taban very quietly, even more so than Crono. He walked back into the house, gently closing the door behind him. Lucca breathed a sigh of relief, and turned to the others. Crono was still transfixed on the gate that had appeared, and Marle was whispering something to him, and after a few minutes of trying to eavesdrop on them, Lucca gave up after Marle ran out of the backyard, towards the castle. Glenn was picking up some of the Epoch’s larger pieces, and was putting them in a pile.
“It’s alright, Glenn, you don’t have to…” said Lucca, getting the smaller pieces.
“No, it’s alright,” insisted Glenn, continuing to clean. Lucca helped them and they started to talk.
“You do know that people stare at you strangely in Truce.” Said Lucca, smiling to herself. “Your clothes are a bit outdated.”
“What do you mean?” asked Glenn, oblivious to the fact that he wasn’t up with the current fashion.
“Crono’ll have to give you something. Or if Magus ever comes back… Magus was a great dresser.” Admitted Lucca.
Belthasar had heard of this place… It was Viper Manor, on the El Nido Archipelago. The Viper Clan had been El Nido’s benevolent rulers for ages… In 900 AD the Viper Clan established the Acacia Dragoons, lead by the Acacia Dragoon Devas.
“Old man, what might ye think ye be doin’ here? ‘Tis not the place for ye!” grumbled one of the renowned Acacia Dragoon Devas, his accent very thick.
“Calm down, Zappa. The man doesn’t seem to pose any serious threat.” Said another Deva, this one with white hair.
“This is… Viper Manor, correct?” asked Belthasar, looking around the vast library. The four men stared at Belthasar, as if he should be put in the asylum.
“Yes… Are you alright, sir?” asked the man with the large overcoat. “I am General Amadaeus Viper. Are you lost? Not many people enter from the basement.”
“General Viper? The ruler of El Nido?” asked Belthasar, his eyes lighting up. General Viper laughed loudly to himself.
“Well, I like to think so, although nothing is official.” Said Viper, wiping tears out of the corner of his eyes.
“Where do ye hail from?” asked Zappa.
“Me..? I’m… hmm… just think of me as a prophet… In fact, that is what you may call me. The Prophet of Time.” Said Belthasar, thinking quickly. The Devas that didn’t laughed only stared at Belthasar even more.
“A prophet, eh?” said the quiet one. He wore blue pants, and a white shirt. A deceptively plain rapier was sheathed at his side. “Well then, it seems to me that you should back up some of these outrageous claims.” Belthasar frowned.
“A prediction?” he asked.
“Well, it is what prophets usually do.” Said the Deva with white hair.
“Hmm… Alright, let me… um… access the lunar… cycle… of the… black moon… and…” Belthasar was making up gibberish, and searched through his memory from Zealian incantations, that he knew wouldn't work. “Neuga, ziena, zieber, zom!” Belthasar only said those words to make it seem flashy, if he actually said words that once held magic meaning. He had no idea what would happen.
The manor rumbled and all of the candles in the manor were snuffed out by an unfelt wind… The Black Wind… Belthasar now saw a battlefield… He saw, a much older Prince Janus, a knight, and the adventurer, Crono, leading an army into battle against an army in blue… After flashes of white in is mind, the scene switched to Crono fighting inside the castle against… a "familiar foe", who struck him down. After more flashes of white, the scene switched to the Guardia castle from an aerial view, which showed Porre’s flag, a black winged lion, with a blue background, waving peacefully in the calm breeze.
Belthasar fell to his knees, his brain in wrenching pain, blood oozing from his nose. Zappa kneeled next to Belthasar.
“Are ye alright? What did ye see?” asked Zappa. “Radius! Go get someone!” The Deva with the rapier, Radius, ran out of the library. Belthasar was gasping for air, as he uttered four words.
“The… fall… of… Guardia…” and Belthasar fainted.
Lucca, Crono, and Glenn, clad in black pants, black shirt, and a black cape, stood in Lucca’s backyard, which was somewhat cleaner than it was two nights ago. The trio stood before the time gate, Crono holding the Gate Key, which would allow them passage to through time.
“Should we…? I mean, I thought the gates vanished after we killed Lavos…” said Lucca, fidgeting with her gun. Glenn, holding the Masamune, its blue blade giving off a faint glow, spoke.
“We should see where it leads… It may take us to our original destination, and due to our recent lack of Epoch… Which still remains a mystery.”
Lucca scowled at the knight. She hadn’t had any time to study the Epoch’s charred remains, let alone determine what caused the explosion.
“Tch… It’s not my fault… I think... Though… what if it leads to where Robo is?” asked Lucca, thoughtfully. Crono had made up his mind, for he put the key into the portal and turned it. The portal expanded releasing dark blue light. The three looked to each other, and finally walked into the gate, and it closed behind them, taking them to who-knows-when.
Author’s Note:: Argh! Yes, I know… this chapter contains a very complicated paradox, but, hey, it wouldn’t be Chrono Trigger fanfiction without a few hundred paradoxes anyway!
?????
LUCCA
The trio found themselves in Lucca’s backyard. Looking around, it seemed not too much changed. An extension had been added and the woodshed had been rebuilt. The crater had been filled in, it seemed, and grass had grown over where it once was.
“How far did we go? It seems like the future… only not that far off…” said Lucca, walking around the yard. Glenn walked towards the front of the house, while Lucca and Crono stayed in the back. It wasn’t until Glenn came roaring into the back yard that Lucca’s foreboding suspicions came true.
“The castle! You’ll never believe what happened!” The trio walked to the front yard to see what Glenn was talking about.
“Oh my God…” said Lucca, looking at the castle of Guardia… or the castle of Porre, rather. A great battle was being fought, and the castle was under siege. Porre had gargantuan battle tanks, firing guns, missiles, and other advanced weaponry, while small bands of Guardia knights were being picked off one by one, charging towards Porre snipers, armed with nothing but swords.
“This is horrible!” exclaimed Glenn, in an outrage. Lucca was about to agree, when someone did it for her…
“I’m in your boat, Glenn.” Came a familiar voice. It was Lucca’s voice. The three turned to face… Lucca.
“Hello everyone,” said the Lucca from the future.
BELTHASAR
It took Belthasar a long time to recover from his mind-wrenching vision. He decided, for the safety of him, and others, not to induce a vision upon himself, unless it was mandatory. In fact, he’d even pretended to be in pain, long after he had recovered from his journey into the realm of the uber-migraines, to make it seem it gives him more pain than it truly does, and everyone seemed to fall for it.
But, Belthasar decided he couldn’t keep the charade up for much longer, and was “miraculously healed”. Theologians from the manor looked upon the current events in the world, and what Belthasar saw in his vision, and even said that the vision had a large chance of coming true. Belthasar scoffed at the results, for he knew it would come true, because in 2300 AD, one could dig up old records on the end of ancient empires, and surely enough, Guardia was on that list. Now that he knew he was in Crono’s era, he would warn everyone, saving Guardia from the destruction from Porre.
LUCCA
The two Lucca’s faced each other, the one from 1002 AD with short purple hair that came to just below her earlobes, and wore a green skirt with an orange shirt. This other Lucca had shoulder-length purple hair and wore camouflage pants (complete with hat) and a jade green tube-top.
The older Lucca wasn’t very surprised to see the trio, still consisting of Lucca, Crono and Glenn, but the three were shocked that someone from the future knew they were coming. Lucca seemed to know enough about time to figure it out.
“You’re me… you’ve lived this day before…” Lucca whispered, amazed.
“Yes, I have…” replied the older Lucca. “And I knew you would be here. I’ve come to warn you.”
“Warn us? About what?” asked Crono, completely out of character. As he looked around, Lucca- both Luccas- could tell he was worried for Guardia.
“Crono… Glenn… It’s so good to see you again…” said the older Lucca, sighing. Lucca quirked a brow.
“Don’t I usually see them?” she asked, kind of worried about the answer that would come. The older Lucca sighed again.
“I knew you were going to ask me that…” said the older Lucca sadly. “And… no, Lucca… Crono, Marle, and Glenn are dead now… along with most of the people in Truce.”
MARLE
After her father passed away, Marle became very lonely… Until Crono proposed to her. They were married that same week, only a few months ago. Crono liked the royal life no more than Marle, but he was dedicated to keeping Guardia happy and peaceful.
But something worried Marle. The new country, Porre. Porre had once been a peaceful town, under Guardia ruling, but a revolt occurred immediately after Marle’s father, the king of Guardia, died. A dictator, calling himself “The New King”, lead the revolt, and rather violently, at that.
The New King was putting Porre into an accelerated industrialization, and Crono, not wanting to go to war, let Porre be. But Marle, who kept her suspicions to herself, had a theory that when Porre became advanced enough, it would take Guardia over. She had no idea if this was true, but was very worried about it.
She walked across the royal chambers, which Crono “ordered” her to stay in. Tch. She didn’t take orders from her father, let alone Crono. She walked out of the royal chambers, and outside of the castle, walking towards Guardia forest.
LUCCA
Both Crono and Glenn were shocked to hear this news, and both, although they didn’t show it externally, were deeply disturbed by this news. Lucca didn’t want to stay on the subject any longer… knowing she’d be all alone…
“There is a way to prevent it.” Said the older Lucca.
“How?” asked Glenn, looking up from his boots.
“Porre.” Said the older Lucca. “I know you may think to leave it alone now, but eventually…” The older Lucca waved her arm behind her, letting the trio look upon the carnage. The battle still raged, Guardia’s side looking hopelessly defeated.
“What must we do?” asked Crono, gulping.
“Here.” The older Lucca handed her younger self a letter. “I can’t stay much longer… Guardia needs me…”
“But that’s suicide!” interjected the younger Lucca. The older Lucca smiled.
“I remember myself saying that, and how I felt… I can’t quite explain it… You’re going to go through a lot in the next four years… Many things are going to change…” said the older Lucca. “It’s just that… Wait… I know what happens after this…” The older Lucca turned, and the trio saw the back of her shirt being soaked in blood, almost immediately. The older Lucca turned, and collapsed.
“She! She was! She was shot!” yelled the younger Lucca, who drew her own gun. She fired towards the Porre snipers, which only drew their fire.
“There’s no time! Come on!” yelled Glenn. Lucca nodded, and the three ran behind Lucca’s house. Before going into the Time Gate, Lucca could have sworn on her grave- which now she knew to be her front lawn- that she heard a very familiar voice yell her name. Lucca had no time to ponder this, for she was literally thrown into the portal, and out of the warzone.
CRONO
Crono was worried about Lucca. They returned through the Gate- which, mysteriously disappeared after they came through it- she hardly said anything. He could tell she was disturbed, after all, she just saw herself die.
“I-I’m not real… I’m dead… I’m dead…” she muttered under her breath.
“Lucca! Are you alright?” hissed Crono, shaking Lucca’s shoulders. Lucca looked up to Crono.
“I’m not real… I’m not real… I’m not real… I’m dead…” Lucca’s words struck Crono. After all, he had died once… He couldn’t remember anything during that, everything was too muddled for him to do so…
Lucca, though… She was confused…
“Perhaps we should take her to Porre. Their hospital has a psychiatric ward.” Suggested Glenn. Crono nodded, and helped Lucca to her feet.
“Lucca, can you walk?” asked Crono softly.
“No… I’m not real…” said Lucca. Crono sighed, and picked Lucca up. They took turns carrying Lucca, and took a break once they had crossed the Zenan Bridge. After a short rest, Crono carried her the rest of the way. When they passed Mt. Denadoro, they saw a construction site. A sign read, “Future Site of New Dorino! Coming Soon!” The two didn’t have much time to think on it, Lucca’s craziness was occupying most of their minds.
They had reached Porre, a military, technology giant, a grand metropolis, largest city in all the Zenan Mainland. The peasants lived in poverty, and the city was almost under constant martial law.
As the trio walked through the city, they tried not to do anything horribly noticeable- until Lucca started going into violent fits. Crono struggled to keep Lucca from breaking out of his grasp, and Glenn had to help him get her into the hospital.
The receptionist stared at them oddly, and it took a team of medics to get Lucca onto a stretcher, and onto a bed. Five medics pinned her to the bed, while a sixth strapped her into it.
Lucca sat on a chair, at the Kingdom of Zeal, before it fell into the ocean. Zeal was a majestic kingdom, floating in the sky, with the mystical palaces Enhasa and Kajar, and the Grand Palace itself.
Lucca was playing solitaire at a table a crowd gathered behind her, watching as she almost beat the game she was playing.
“Go Lucca!” cheered Marle, clapping excitedly. Lucca grinned cockily, but without warning, the playing cards designs, changed into that of tarot cards, and Lucca was no longer holding them.
A dark, hooded man was shuffling them, and placing seven upside down. Without speaking, he turned them all over, and moving from Lucca’s left to her right, he explained them all.
“Apollyon, the Destroyer,” the prophet stated. “A great enemy fell upon you, bringing pain and misery. It seems he is destroyed… But like all demons, one cannot kill that which can be reborn.”
“Serpensortia, the Temptress. You have loved once, but your love fell for another…” At the prophet’s words, Marle turned red with embarrassment and vanished. The prophet went on.
“Pylian, the Phoenix. A valued friend of yours fell in battle, but was resurrected. But even the phoenix must eventually meet his end.” After the prophets interpretation, Crono looked at Lucca inquisitively, and also vanished.
“Alexander, the Valiant. You have a growing attraction to a knight in shining armor. But be warned: knights always sacrifice themselves protecting those they love…” With that, Glenn winced in pain, as if stricken by an attack, and flickered out. The prophet didn’t stop… he did pause for a second, but continued.
“Magus, the Prophet. A mysterious prophet shall reveal your future… to an extent.” At those words, the prophet pulled his hood back, to reveal his face. It was Janus. This really didn’t surprise Lucca, Janus had portrayed a prophet once before. But as Lucca was thinking, Janus smiled, and vanished like all the others.
He left two cards completely unexplained though… One portrayed a baby, and had “Kid, the Savior,” and the other-
Lucca had no time to read it, for she woke up, strapped to the hospital bed. She felt very weak, and her eyes only opened partially. Crono wasn’t there, but Glenn was, pacing across the floor.
“Glenn?” Lucca whispered faintly. At her words, Glenn rushed to her side.
“Lucca?! Are you alright?!” he asked in a panicked concern.
“I-I’m fine, Glenn….” She mumbled, her hair matted with sweat. Her glasses were on nearby nightstand, and she tried to reach for them, but the straps restrained any movement outside of the bed.
“No! Don’t move, not yet…” ordered Glenn, picking up Lucca’s glasses, and gently placing them on her face. She smiled softly.
“I bet I look horrible…” Lucca muttered under her breath.
“No… Stressed, perhaps, but nowhere near horrible…” Glenn replied smiling. “Anyway, since you’ve calmed down within forty-eight hours, the doctor said we can take you home tomorrow.”
Lucca smiled hopefully… Tomorrow… A new beginning… Tomorrow, she will create a new future, no matter what her fortune told her. She would defy fate, to the best of her ability.
“Fate has no forgiveness for those who dare stand against it.”
~Chrono Cross’ game over screen
Forward: All right, if you wanted to get technical with things, one can consider this “Part II” of the story. Things are going to start to heat up now, especially between Guardia and Porre. I can’t tell you EVERYTHING that’s going to happen, though- mainly because I don’t know myself. Enjoy!
LUCCA
January, 1004 AD
Lucca breathed in the cold January air and let it out in an exasperated sigh. Glenn was supposed to be there hours ago… Lucca was waiting in Truce village, as the people bustled around. Lucca could smell fear amongst the people, as walls of steel and sandbags surrounded their houses. Three or four weapons shops were now in Truce selling guns, rifles, and even a mixture of a sword and gun called a “gunblade”.
When Lucca heard Marle had bought a gunblade over a year ago, Lucca burst out laughing, but now… Marle had become a more formidable opponent and had risen to the occasion, becoming one of Guardia’s best queens. Guardia was now going through industrialization, and Marle easily, and cleanly, dealt with five faction uprisings now.
Crono had become a sword master, and was training a group of Guardian knights in sword combat. Crono had also ascended, beside Marle, as king. He had started peace talks, debates, yet still maintained his trademarked stoicism.
Lucca… Lucca and Glenn had grown really close, and were dating. Lucca was slowly breaking Glenn to the ways of the present. Glenn no longer carried the Masamune wherever he went, and not to arouse suspicion of his origins, Glenn dressed in black pants, and shirt, complete with leather trench coat. His hair was long, and black, which made Lucca all the more attracted to him. And the bastard was making her wait for him.
He snuck up on her, tapping her on the shoulder, making her jump. “Dear Lord!” yelled Lucca, making a few of the townspeople stare at her.
“Good morning.” He said, bending over to kiss her cheek. Lucca smiled warmly.
“Morning,” Lucca replied, keeping her smile. “What took you so long?” Lucca’s tone of voice had changed to that of somewhat annoyed.
“Sorry, Crono wanted me to make sure Melchior’s move was going alright.” Melchior had retired from being a blacksmith, and was moving into the castle. What the public didn’t know was that Melchior was developing weapons for Guardia, with his new partner, Taban.
So many things were changing… Glenn and Lucca… Guardia… Porre… Porre was going through an especially accelerated period of industrialization, and in only two years, their weapons had gone from muskets and gunpowder, to experimentation with plasma and new disks called “Elements”. Elements ticked Melchior off to no end, with him calling them “cheap, generic magic wannabes”.
Around three months ago, Guardia had “accidentally” sunken a ship that had an entire cargo of Elements, and “borrowed” the contents of the sinking ship. Although, the price was a “slanderous” accusation from Porre, the reward was more than worth it. Guardia had enough Elements to experiment with, and give to each member in their army.
Lucca and Glenn walked around Leene Square, which had just started a “Festival of Peace” in honor of a peace treaty that was recently signed by Guardia and Porre. It wasn’t anything near as grand as the Millennium Fair, it was quaint enough to catch Lucca’s liking. The two enjoyed each others company late into the night, when the fair closed for the night, the two went back to Lucca’s house.
Lucca’s parents had gone to visit Lara’s sister, Lana. The two had the house completely to themselves…..
……………
“Yes, yes, oh God yes, I win!” yelled Lucca triumphantly. Glenn frowned.
“Win? How can you win!? I have a strait, you only have a full house!” argued Glenn. Lucca eyed Glenn from above her glasses, and walked over to a drawer, digging through its contents to reveal a battered laminated scrap of paper, with the rules of poker.
“Here, see!? I win. You lose. Pay up.” Ordered Lucca, shoving the rule sheet in Glenn’s face. Glenn sputtered trying to think of a way to get out of paying Lucca, but he failed. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a red disk, runes carved onto one side.
“Here,” spat Glenn, grimacing in agitation. That was one of his better Elements…
“Oh, I’m sorry, dear…” Lucca said, sympathizing with him. “Oh, fine, hang on a second.” Lucca ran down into her basement, and a few minutes came up with a blue disk, complete with runes. “Deluge for Volcano, that’s very fair.” Glenn’s eyes lit up, and he greedily picked the Element up, putting it in a trench coat pocket.
The two played and talked some more, and the night dragged on into morning, and Glenn didn’t leave. After the two had gotten tired enough, they retreated to the couch to watch television, and fell asleep in each other’s arms.
The next afternoon, Lucca was woken up by a change in elevation. Her eyes slowly opened. She had slept with her glasses on, and though things were blurry, Lucca could see a black blob.
“Glenn?” she asked groggily. Glenn yawned in response.
“I’m here. It’s late… Crono and Marle will have wondered where we were…” said Glenn, stretching. Lucca sat up, and thought for a moment.
“Well… Tell them I’ll be at the castle soon, I want to freshen up some.” Glenn nodded, kissed Lucca, and left. Lucca stood, grabbed some clothes and took a hot, steamy shower. She got out, got dressed, thought about breakfast- although it was around lunchtime- and decided against it. Instead, she walked out into the rebuilt woodshed.
Epoch parts were everywhere. Strewn across benches and tables, various notes attached. Lucca tinkered around with a few of them, until she noticed something that didn’t fit with the rest… It was a small, mechanical orb, about the size of a baseball. Lucca found a flashing red button at the top, and Lucca pushed it in curiosity.
The orb split in half horizontally, and separated a small bit, revealing a small screen. Lucca watched in fascination as a man in blue and silver robes stood there, wearing an iron mask.
“Well… Ms. Ashtear… It is a pleasure, trust me. You may or may not remember me, but in any case, that will come later. Now, I’m sure you are sifting through the parts of that beloved machine you own, despairing over it most likely, and you found this... If the explosion didn’t kill you. What is this you may ask? A simple recording mixed in with something else… that will also come later.
“Now, you and your bunch in Guardia have probably found out by now that I want Guardia as a part of Porre. If not, then… oops. In any case, who am I? If you haven’t been able to figure it out yet, then shame shame. I am the leader of Porre!”
Lucca watched in fascination, as “The New King” rambled on and on about his loathing for Guardia. Why, was utterly shocking.
“Why do I hate you and your friends? Why did I plant the bomb your little ‘Airthrone’ as I liked to call it back then? Well I would have hoped that gave it away...” The New King, slowly unlatched and pulled off the iron mask. Lucca gasped in shock and dropped the orb, and it fell onto the workbench. “It is I! Dalton! Mwa-ha-ha! Surprised? Let’s hope so. I tried my best to not make any public appearances, just for this moment… If only I could see your face… Oh well. What’s coming next will be sweeter.
“Remember when I said that this was a recording mixed with something else? Well, here it comes. This is also a ‘Mind Bomb’, incorporating the magic from Zeal, and the technology of Porre. I speculate that you have around- oh, I don’t know, maybe… Ten seconds before your mind is turned into a sticky paste? Mwa-ha! See you later!”
Lucca bolted out of woodshed, running as fast as she could, pumping her legs. Left. Right. Left. Right. Left…
Lucca didn’t exactly hear the explosion, but she could feel a white-hot heat behind her, as she just made it to the front yard.
The doctor shone a small penlight into each of Lucca’s eyes, as she just stared blankly ahead. Crono, Marle, Glenn, Taban, and Lara all stood there, all dreading what the doctor was going to say. Lara couldn’t wait, though.
“Um, doctor… Will she be alright?” Lara asked, her eyes tearing up.
“There is… almost no chance of her recovering… She has a very rare form of coma, where she is constantly dreaming… I’m sorry… We’ve lost her…”