Author's Note: Little name change. Gesper was the guru at the end of time; Baltesar was the one in the future. Thank You Milikochan, your story explanation for A.Z.: After Zeal, showed me I needed to make this correction.
Chapter 3
The End of the End
The familiar blue waves flashed
by as Crono thought about what had happened. He knew there was no way that the
three renegades could ever defeat the power Tempest possessed alone, they would
need help. He didn't have time to complete his thought as the drop into the
swirling gray that was the landscape of the region called the end of time.
"Where are we now?" Kain asked ignorantly.
"This
region of timespace holds the nomenclature of End of Time." Prometheus
said in his now normal monotone.
"Prometheus, what are we doing here?" Crono said drawing
his sword.
"Scanning.... target found. The main hall of the End of
Time." Prometheus stated beginning his way there. "Emergency,
humanoid life signs failing, needs immediate medical attention."
"Gesper! Move!" Crono said running into
the hall of time. When they arrive they saw a very angry looking Tempest.
"You insects! How many times do I have to kill
you!" Tempest said blasting them with her normal brand of tricks.
"Uhh, the last time I checked, we were the ones
who made you retreat!" Kain said.
"You're still here, do you think iron covered
fists have a chance to defeat me?" Tempest scream. She was cut short from
her rant by a prism energy bolt hitting its mark.
"Do you have any idea how much that annoys
me!" Crono was lifted off the ground. He floated motionless, not knowing
what was happening.
"Now see the powers I have learned prism
warrior." Tempest stated raising her arms. A column enveloped Crono. The
attack was unmistakable, Delta Strike, the attack that Crono, Lucca and Marle
had formed in the battle with Lavos. The difference now was it was being cast
by one person and against him. He could only float there as he felt the three
part attack rip through him. The paralyzing effect of the energy well was so
profound that he couldn't even let out a scream of pain.
"We've got to do something!" Kain said
shifting know that she was right, that without his lance he couldn't even scratch
her.
"Negative, acting know would mean certain
deletion." Prometheus said coldly.
"Your nothing like Crono said you were."
Kain said turning to Prometheus.
"That evaluation is correct, I am not like Crono
said I was. I am now without the weakness of emotion. Fear, hatred, greed,
lust, all the things that make humankind weak I am not." Prometheus stated
holding his position.
"If Crono dies it is not our concern. We must
stop Tempest before she can unravel timespace. If you allow your emotions to
cloud your logic then I will have to take you offline." Prometheus stated
turning his gunarm to Kain.
"Why you, emotionless, brainless, pitiful
excuse for a tool box....!" Kain said jumping to avoid a blast emanated
from Prometheus.
"You are to emotional and therefore must be
terminated before you compromise my mission." Kain dodged his blast until
he reach the point we he was against the energy well that held Crono.
"I've only got one shot at this." Kain
said as an energy bolt came hurling at him. He jumped and the bolt struck the
energy well. Kain turned around to see the energy well collapsed releasing
Crono. Crono fell to the ground, smoke rose from his seared armor. Cracks were
easily seen on it. Kain had released him from Tempest's assault but it didn't
matter. Crono's injuries were already too severe.
"Now you see that you fleas can't touch
me!" Tempest said turning back to the hall of time.
"Tempest for crimes against the citizens of
2317, you are here by under arrest." Prometheus said firing at both her
and Kain.
"Oh close your communications port you
glorified calculator!" Tempest stated. She turned around and formed in her
hands a shock pyramid. She lunged it at Prometheus. The force threw the now
lifeless droid back and caused a crashing return to earth.
"Now, do you wish to die as well, my fine
scalely friend? I can return you to your universe. Wouldn't you prefer to be
with Cecil and Rosa and all the others?" Tempest said.
Kain thought for a moment, why fight a battle that
wasn't his? Why not just go home to his friends. Then a horrible thought
crossed his mind. "How the hell do you know about my life?" Kain said
returning to his fighting stance.
"Simple,
this is the end of time. This is the junction between all the times of all the
universes. From here I will mount an assault to dominate timespace itself. I
will be a goddess, ruling over mindless peasants, but to do so I need generals.
Your friends, Cecil, Yang, Edge, and of course you, will make excellent
prospects. Your defeat of Zeroumus proves that by far." Tempest said
slyly.
"I would rather die then ever serve you."
Kain said indignantly.
"You insignificant worm, do you not realize the
power I am offering you?" Tempest stated showing anger.
"Power does not a warrior make. I would rather
die fighting you then live as your servant." Kain said knowing that his
life would soon be over. Tempest charged her power and blasted him with all she
had. When the dust settled she screamed. Kain stood, not even a scratch.
"How, why are you not a pile of ashes?!"
Tempest said annoyed.
"Well if I knew, you would be the second to
know." Kain stated brushing himself off. Light enveloped Crono. His armor was
restored and he could feel his energy returning to him.
"No! Your dead Crono, who is doing this?!"
Tempest said blasting everything her power could reach.
"Perhaps you should check everywhere before you
begin destroying a realm." Spekkio said appearing from the shadows.
"Spekkio, how did you survive the original
assault?" Crono questioned as he got up.
"Simple, though powerful, Tempest isn't very
thorough. Well, it seems you had a little upgrade spiky hair." Spekkio
said charging his powers.
"Marle's pendent, it fused to me as if wanting
to find her as much as I did." Crono said picking up his sword.
"Yes, the powers contained within those
pendants bonds to their holders. It does want to find her as much as you do,
and it knows the challenge you will have to face. With its power, you have been
given a new alignment, and its time to receive a new power. Eni meni, ipso,
facto, magico!" Spekkio chanted the familiar incantation.
Crono felt a new energy surge through him. The spark
of lightning he once possessed was replaced with the absolute light that was
prism energy. "I don't know what it is, but I like it!" Crono
charging his new found prism magic.
"Can we
get on with this!" Tempest said breaking the moment.
"With
pleasure Tempest, but first tell me where you've hidden Marle." Crono said
preparing.
"Why? She's dead, you want to see her grave
stone?"
"You liar, I can still feel her energy through
the pendent." Crono said charging.
Tempest
vaporized and appeared to the left. "Oh yes, that stupid pendent. Oh well,
I guess I can't fool you. So I will just have to destroy you."
Kain sat back and watched the battle that Crono and
this other creature were doing with Tempest. He knew that if they weren't able to
beat her she would be able to cross the dimensional boundary. He thought he had
to help, but without his weapon or magic there was nothing he could do. He
looked over to see a funny little man struggling to try to get his feet from
within the hall.
"Maybe that's that Gesper that Crono talked
about." Kain thought. He ran over to help him. "Guru Gesper I
presume." Kain said helping him to his feet.
"I haven't been called that in a long time
young one. "Gesper said trying to move under his own power.
"Whoa old man, those injuries are to severe,
you're not going anywhere."
"But I must. Tempest is only partly true. The
end of time is the end of this universal possibility, all universal
possibilities have end of times. It is through these gateways that the gateway
to all other universal possibilities are reached. You and Crono must prevent
Tempest from reaching forever." Gesper said being helped while walking
forward.
"How do you propose I do that?"
"Simple, take my cane and destroy the lantern at the top of
this post. This post generates the gateway to forever. She must not be able to
possess it! Take my cane, dest...roy... it... n..ow." Gesper fell limp in
Kain's arms.
"Rest in peace old man." Kain said laying
him down. He picked up the cane and it transformed. In his hands was now the
greatest lance he had ever laid eyes upon. Shimmering white with the emblazoned
seal of the dragoons.
"Thank you ol..... Guru Baltesar." Kain
stood up and lunged at the lantern that had before shone the light to Crono and
friends in their battle with Lavos. With one strike the shattered glass fell to
the floor. A windstorm flew from the wrecked lantern.
"What! No, my gate to forever! No!"
Tempest screamed as the winds escalated.
"Desperate Gesper, but necessary." Spekkio
stated holding himself to the ripples in the ground.
"Crono, open a gate! I don't think this place
has much longer to exist!" Kain said dropping from the wind-ravaged sky.
"Do it Crono" Spekkio yelled grabbing what
was left of Prometheus. Crono raised the pendent and the group jumped through
just as a massive explosion ripped through the end of time, obliterating it.
The energy well from the explosion followed them through the gateway. Crono
look back to see Spekkio utter his last words before the power overran him.
"Crono! She is alive! You have to find her to defeat.... ahhh!" Crono heard these last words as he saw Spekkio become warped and distorted. He snapped in half and the halves shimmered away into nothingness. The team jumped through the exit portal. It began to shut but wasn't fast enough. The energy from the explosion ripped through it, striking Crono, Kain and Prometheus to the ground, incinerating everything around, destroying the natural flow of time in that era, and wiping out everything that ever existed in it.