Chapter XXXII
-------------------


Was this really the one thing that Crono was "hanging on to?" He opened the can of cat food and poured it to Cloud's bowl. The cat meowed and began chowing down right away. The little guy must have been hungry.

Crono searched his house for his mom, only finding a note saying she would be waiting for him at the parade tonight. Crono decided to clean up the house for her. A good while later, he was taking the garbage outside to see the Epoch parked by the side of his house.

"Huh?" He climbed up its ramp to peer inside. All the others were inside looking a bit confused. "How did you guys get here?"

They all told a story about how they cleared things up for themselves, and passed out afterwards. Crono suddenly saw his mother approaching. How was he going to explain the Epoch.

"Crono!" she cried. "What is this thing."
"It's uhhh..."
"Lucca? Is this one of your new inventions?"
Lucca stood in her seat. "It's a horse-less carriage."
"Oh Lucca, you and your crazy projects. Who are the rest of your friends?"

Crono introduced, but his mom kept making up her own stories about who they were. Apparently, Marle was just a new friend, Robo was a new invention, Ayla was a model, Frog was a performer in the play, and Magus was just a guy who really looked like Magus - the warlock didn't find that to amusing, but then again he doesn't find much of anything amusing.

Crono's mom left, heading off to the fair. She wanted Crono and his friends to come to, but he said he was going to hang out here for awhile. After she was out of sight, Crono launched the Epoch and flew it above the clouds.

"For the future," he said, turning the dial to the Apocalypse, and blasted off into time to confront fate.

*** The Epoch arrived in the center of a war zone. The sky was burning red, buildings were crumbling to the ground, and Lavos stood like an overlord in the distance. Several other flying machines joined the Epoch's flight path. They were much smaller than the Epoch, but seemed to be faster. Fire rained from the sky as Lavos assaulted the earth.

"Wasn't Lavos supposed to be weak from the destruction of the Black Omen?" cried Marle. As if to answer her question, Lavos' attacks stopped. Crono landed the Epoch safely by its base. The enormous beast didn't move.

The dome to the time machine opened and a man in a heavy plastic war suit carrying an enormous laser rifle approached them.

"Who are you!" he yelled. "That's not one of our ships. Hey, your just kids!"
"It's okay," said Crono, exiting the craft. "We know what we're doing."

A number of armored machines fired at Lavos, but a mysterious green field stopped their blasts.

"He has shields!" said Lucca to Crono.
"Nothing can penetrate that thing!" boomed the soldier. "We've tried everything....Who are you people?"

Crono and the other began to walk toward Lavos. The world's only hope stood underneath the destroyer of entire worlds. They simply walked though the shields. The soldier also tried, but was blocked.

Magus levitated the group to meet Lavos' beak, which was wide open. A foul smell burned Crono's nose.
"The real beast is inside," said Magus. He leapt into the maw. The others followed.


Crono was the last to jump in. "This is it," he thought. "There's no turning back."

Lavos' throat was like a slide. Crono continued to shoot down and down. I was also pitch black, so he never knew when the passage would take a sharp turn or deep dip. The ride ended as Crono fell from the ceiling onto a soft, mushy ground. The others were waiting for him.

"Where is this place?" said Crono. "What a ride."
"Near the earth's core..." replied Lucca. "The real evil is just a bit further."

The green walls pulsated, and were lit somehow by what looked like machine parts, but it wasn't metal. A constant hum was heard in the distance.

"Then what are we waiting for!" Crono cried, drawing the Rainbow. "Let's get that damn parasite!"
"That's the spirit," said Magus, giving a grin to the red-haired hero.
"It's the world's revolution," said Lucca. "Let's end this."

They followed the slimy path to the very core of Lavos.

*** Lavos was a sight to see. Three stories tall, it 's torso was imbedded in the 'ground' of his insides. Its dark green skin covered the mass, while two large arms rested on the ground. The head, from what Crono could see, was home only to a pair of slitted eyes, its forehead was like a shield. The creature was slumped over, breathing heavily. It didn't react to their entrance. The room was covered with the same slimy gray walls, with countless tentacles covering the area.

Marle grabbed Crono arm. "That's...Lavos?"

"It is unaware you our presence...." said Frog.
"That's because the SOB is out cold," said Magus.
"Aye, Magus. It seems that the beast is weary from his journey to the surface," Frog added.
"Anyone have a plan?" said Crono.

"We break its spine!" said Magus. "I can reach it."

The warlock stepped forward. He had only taken a few steps when a tentacle grabbed his legs, preventing movement. Several chambers opened around them, and small creatures began slipping out of them.

The spiny, snake like creatures slithered around the group.
"It's a defense system," said Robo.
"Spread out!" cried Crono.

The war begun as the adventurers attacked the snakes. They were defeated easily, but they continued to pour from their nests. Crono decided he must reach Lavos' neck and put an end to the creature.

"Robo! Throw me up to that ledge."

Robo hurried over to Crono and lifted him up, and with great strength, flung him upward. He jammed the Rainbow into the wall to end his flight. He was now several feet above Lavos' head. He peered down below. They were handling the defenses quite well. Marle and Lucca stood back to back blasting any snakes that they saw, covering the other when one had to reload her weapon. Ayla, in a primal rage, was ripping apart the creatures not only with her bare hands, but also with her teeth. The chest plate of Robo was open and expertly targeted bursts of energy vaporized any target that Robo could detect. And most surprisingly, Crono could see Frog and Magus working together. Their attacks, both with their weapons and their magic, matched exactly with the strategy of attack of the other. One spiny snake managed to wrap around Frog's foot. Seeing this, Magus shot a blast of dark energy to stun the beast. Frog pried the creature off and flung it into the air where Magus cleaved it in half with his scythe. Their eyes met, but their faces remained serious and grim.

The room shook. Lavos' head twitched. With a moan, the creature lifted it's body upright. He was waking up. Lavos noticed the battle, and made a surprised sound. His gigantic arms lifted and grabbed hold of two large tentacles hanging from the ceiling. "The attack is starting again!" thought Crono.

He thought quickly. He noticed a slender tentacle near him, maybe he could use it as a rope...He grabbed it and cut the end with the Rainbow. Crono swung toward the beast, and crashed right into its hard chest. He was able to grab hold of several indentations in the flesh in order to climb onto its shoulders. The massive head peered down at him. One of Lavos' hands let go of one of the tentacles and tried to smash Crono against his own body like a bug. He barely was able to roll out of the way and keep from falling off the beast. He crawled to the neck.

"Out of the way!" shouted a voice. Magus floated up behind him and grabbed Crono and flung him off the creature. As he plummeted to the ground, he felt a surge of water catching him in mid air, placing him gently on the ground, yet another cooperative reaction of Frog's to the actions of Magus. Frog was there when he landed, but was instantly attacked by a snake.

Crono looked up at Magus. His scythe was glowing red. After a few seconds, he jammed it into the creature's spine. Lavos let loose a painful cry. Magus was knocked off, and landed on the soft ground. Lavos let go of his controls, and grabbed his neck, which was bleeding glowing white blood. The attacking snakes suddenly fell to the ground, and the creature began to sway back and worth. After a moment, the enormous body dropped to the ground. A minute later, the resonating breathing sound heard throughout the battle could not be heard.

Lavos was dead.

Chapter XXXIII
-------------------

The group cheered. Marle ran up and gave Crono a big hug.

"We did it!" she cried.

Alya began doing some strange dance, some sort of tribal thing Crono guessed. Robo had Lucca lifted on his shoulder. Frog came over to Crono and made a goofy smile. While Magus stood staring at the fallen beast, as if expecting something.

"How do we get out of here..." said Lucca atop Robo.
"Good question," said Crono. "Maybe...?"
"The Dark Winds howl..." whispered Magus.

The head of Lavos began to shake, and a pathetic, squealing cry was heard within. The shaking became more violent. A hand burst from the beast's head shield. Steam rose up as the figure stood.

The being was very tall and slender, about a half a body taller than Crono. Its body was red and tan, its legs lanky, its arms bulky but not muscular. The head was similar the larger beast, but with a much wider dome, a longer face, and a single, round, glassy eye in the center. The being fell to its feet, looking around sporadically. It seemed much like a frightened animal.

"I understand..." said Magus. "I hear its thoughts...."
"What is it thinking?" asked Crono.
"His kind... they absorb the planets energy, guiding the course of evolution to suit its needs....until...it needs us no more..."
"We've been hearded like cattle!" cried Lucca. "Just to serve this...this THING!"
"This isn't his planet..." said Marle. "It's for my father, and Doan, and all the others!"
Frog looked troubled. "Mine life retainth its meaning, we hath our own will!"

Crono looked at the being...it was holding itself with fright.

"I don't think it's dangerous like this..." he said. He slowly walked toward the beast. It looked right back at him, its single, green eye blinking.
"Should we let it live?" said Marle, with her hands over the mouth.
"Of course not!" yelled Magus. "And I'll do the deed."

Magus pushed himself forward, but a field appeared, separating him from Crono and the being. Lavos sprung to its feet as the space inside the fields began to change colors. Crono tried to escape the field, but couldn't brake though.

Two slithering tentacles spawned from the being's back, and separated, turning into floating pods. The being screeched as it picked up Crono, and transported away.

***

The landscape was very confusing, like Crono was looking though a broken mirror, but the mirror was also changing shape and size. And they seemed to be traveling at high speeds, despite the fact that they weren 't moving. Crono got dizzy. Lavos stood just meters away, panting heavily.

It speed toward Crono, arm connecting with his chest. Crono was thrown back, unable to move. The being looked over Crono and picked him up once more, slamming him into the invisible ground. He found the strength to get up and draw the Rainbow, but the being kicked him over. Perhaps the being thought the fight was to easy, and it backed away as the landscape changed into a distorted jungle.

The good news was that Crono now felt a little more stable, but the bad news was now Lavos had trees to crash Crono against. Whenever Crono felt like he could take no more, Lavos would pass its hand over his head and he felt refreshed. And the beating continued.

Crono took advantage in one of the beings pauses and began to run though the lush, distorted jungle, but the scenery shattered and changed again. Crono was face to face with a demon. It took a moment to realize it was the statue in Magus' lair. He heard the being approached from behind, and blindly swung his sword, creating a deep gash in Lavos' right arm. At once, one of the floating pods covered the wound, and it was instantly healed. The beings emitted what seemed to sound like a horrible laughter..

The being threw Crono onto the floor of Magus Lair, the space around him still as if in motion. It pinned him down with a double-jointed leg. Lavos stared down at Crono as it let loose a skull shattering sound. It felt like a million drills were driving into his brain at once. When the noise stopped, Lavos kicked him square in the stomach.

The landscape changed again, and Crono crashed into a pile of crates. He was back at the Millennial Fair, filled with people.

Could they see him? The people weren't reacting. What kind of time portal was this? He saw Lavos running up from the distance, plowing down the unexpected humans, who couldn't see any of this. Crono jumped up and began to take the offensive. Even if for a brief moment, Crono was in control of the fight. Lavos blocked the blows with its arms, one of the pods healing, while the other began to pulsate even harder.... It punched Crono into a pile of boxes, which shattered into pieces. The people of Truce looked around, confused.

Lavos raised his arms and the scenery changed yet again, back to Lavos' core. He saw the others pounding at the field, trying to brake it open with magic and weapons. Crono unwillingly levitated off the ground. Lavos was also there, arms raised to its chest. He couldn't move in mid air like the being could.

Marle suddenly appeared inside the field.

"Crono!" she cried, reaching out her hands.
Crono managed to float over, reaching out to her. Marle disappeared right when he was about to grab. He heard her voice from behind this time...she had transported to the other side of the field. Lavos just floated there, watching Crono and Marle suffer. Then he noticed something very strange, the pod on Lavos' right side was pulsating in a very irregular manner, almost like it was panting.

Crono decided to do a quick experiment. He sent a bolt of lighting toward the being. When it struck, the pod dipped and then returned to normal, but the body of Lavos cringed in pain when the bolt did its damage.

"The being's life force is inside that pod!" thought Crono.

Lavos, disappointed that Crono wasn't playing it's little game, returned gravity back to normal. Crono, taking this sole window to strike, charged the being, turning his attention to the pod, and slashed it in two. The being froze, looking at the two pieces of the pod.... and then at Crono. Lavos began to glow white.

Crono fell to his knees, exhausted and bashed. Marle hurried over to him and held him as everything became white, and a final cry from Lavos was heard echoing in the distance. He hoped for the best as he lost consciousness.

Epilogue
-----------

"Wake up, boy..." said a voice.

Crono tossed and turned in the bed. His bones ached.

"It's time for you to face the King for your crimes."

He slowly got up. A guard was standing at the foot of his bed. Where was everybody? He didn't remember much.

The guard escorted him though the forest and to the gates of the castle.

"I thought I was innocent," said Crono. "What's going on."
"The King asked for your presence, that young scientist is here as well...."

Lucca? Sure enough, she was waiting in the King's chambers. King Guardia sat at his throne.

"They got you to, eh Crono?" she said with a perplexed look on her face.

The King rose. "Do you admit you ran off from the fair with Princess Nadia?"
"Yes," they both said.
"Do you admit putting the Princess in a dangerous situation?"
"Yes."

"Stop this at once!" cried a voice. Marle burst into the room. "Father, I thought we talked about this! Crono, I told him everything...."
"That she did," said King Guardia. "It was too extraordinary to believe..."
Lucca lowered her head. Why did Marle have to do that?
"However, that talking frog reassured me that it was the truth."

"Frog?" said Crono. "He was here?"
"And the robot and cave person...they reassured me of it all. They even had proof, as it was." He turned to Marle. "And why would my only daughter lie to me. Come forward, Crono."

Crono stepped toward the King. "Crono, I want to commend you for saving my daughter life, as well as the millions of lives that would have been lost in the bleak future."
"Thank you sir."
"Kneel Crono of Truce."

Crono knelt on one knee. He pulled out a sword, and touched the blade on Crono's shoulders.
"And rise, Sir Crono of Truce."

Crono slowly rose...he couldn't believe it. Marle rushed over and gave him a big hug.
"Sir Crono. It would be a honor to allow my daughter to be with such a brave soul."
Crono bowed. "Thank you."

"Now let's get going! I have a surprise for you," said the King, smiling.

***

Crono, Marle and Lucca arrived at the fair grounds just in time to see the unveiling of Nadia 's Bell. Marle was overjoyed. Crono was happy to see her and her father getting along. Lucca's parents were there as well; her mother was walking on her own two feet. And Crono's mother was there, smothering him with kisses and hugs for his new knighthood, even if he wasn't a full-blown knight just yet. Marle just laughed at the situation he was in.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the blue glow by the Teleporting Machine. He and the other made an excuse to leave and ran to the glow. Four very familiar figures stood near the open Gate.

"You're all leaving?" said Marle, sad.
"Aye," said Frog. "Ye know it be the right thing, Princess."
"Ayla need get back to Ioka. Make sure Kino not wreck village."
"I understand."

The Gate began to flicker. It was losing its stability.

Magus walked toward the Gate. "I can finally leave this foolish festival...." He moaned. "At least there was a play in my honor." Magus said with a chuckle.
"Wait!" cried Crono. Magus paused. "Your going to look for Schala, I suppose?"
"Yes."
"Good luck then."

The dark wizard was silent, and turned toward the Gate, back to the crowd. "Thank you." He disappeared into the Gate. Marle had the slightest smile on his face.

Ayla walked to Crono. "Ayla have fun." She beat her chest once with her hand. Crono did the same. "Crono strong."
She turned to Marle.
"You better have some strong kids..." said Marle. "Or else I'll be in big trouble."
Ayla looked confused. "Ayla no understand."
"Don't worry about it."
"Marle smart, Lucca too."

She approached the gate, and waved before she entered the blueish portal. Robo approached Lucca a moment later.

"I suppose it is time for me to leave."
"You don't have to go, Robo," she said softly.. "You can stay here with us."
"This is not my correct time period."
"But....you might not exist in the future."
"Of course he will," said Crono. "Why wouldn't he?"
"I come from a alternate future, Master Crono. One which we erased..."
"A paradox..." said Marle, squinting. "How confusing."

Robo stuck out his hand for Lucca to shake. "Thank you Lucca, for being a such a nice person." Lucca jumped up gave the hulking machine a hug. Robo softly patted her back.
"It will be all right."
"Keep out of trouble, you hear? Because I won't be there to fix you...!"

Robo began to back away. "Goodbye, Marle, Master Crono, Sir Frog. I will never erase you from my memory files."
"Hold on Robo!" sobbed Lucca. She removed her helmet from her head and handed it to Robo. "Take this."
"Thank you Lucca..." He wandered to the Gate, paused, and took a big step into the unknown. Crono placed his hand on Lucca's shoulder.

And lastly there was Frog, who Crono was sad to see leave. The stout little knight kneeled in front of Crono.
"Now I can truly call you Sir Crono," he rose.
"Thanks for coming along Frog, we couldn't have done it without you."
"Nay, thank you, Sir Crono. Without you, I would still be hiding in that wretched hole in the forest. I owe you much. Thou art a true friend."
Frog bowed to Marle. "I shall protect your heritage with mine life, Princess."
"Thanks...."
"I will leave you a heirloom in the Castle my lady, to remember me by."
He turned to Lucca, who was still sobbing. Frog hesitated, but then chirped. "Ye still find me disgusting?"
"Of course not," she smiled and bent over and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Frog's cheeks turned red. "My.... I guess not."

He slowly walked to the Gate. He gave a salute. "Farewell." The Gate closed around him. It was now black, only the moon lighted the vacant lot.

***

Crono, Marle and Lucca sat on the hood of the Epoch, watching the lights of the parade atop a cliff face. "I guess we should dismantle this Epoch," said Lucca. "Belthasar would have wanted that."

Crono took a sip of the generale in his glass. He couldn't believe it - he was a Junior Knight, but they wouldn't serve him alcohol...

Marle was leaning on his side, watching the activity below. Crono was thinking. Far below them, Lavos slept, waiting for that day, 999 years in the future. Would history repeat itself? He looked far off into the distance. He could just make out the El Nido archopilapigo, barely visible in the moonlight. It was a beautiful evening. It was perfect.

"I think the Entity is at rest," said Lucca, peacefully.
"What do you think it was..."
"The gods only know," said Crono. "Forever a mystery."

Fireworks lit in front of them, exploding in the night sky.

"We should make a toast," said Crono.
"What of?"

Lucca lifted her glass. "To the memories."
Marle raised hers. "To good friends."
Crono took one last look at he night sky, and made his toast.

"To the future."


It is a journey to remember,
A journey to faraway times.
Loved ones are lost,
But new ones are found.
Dynasties fall and empires crumble,
But are never truly forgotten.
One's true self shines through,
Breaking the unbreakable curse.
New love blossoms,
And old friends never die.
But true evil is never completely gone,
It is always present in one's mind.
For this adventure has come to a close,
But it opens a door for another....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~THE END~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~



Author's Comments
------------------------

It all started (like so many things) in the summer of 2000. I wanted to practice my writing skills, so I began to write the game Chrono Trigger like a novel. But not just a direct "port," I was going to make it my own.. My own dialogue, my own actions, some times a slightly different personality or character design. (though my art) There was a time when I though about giving it up, because it was taking a long time. I was only up to Crono's trial, and I was losing some interest, and I began working on it less and less. However, I then came across Chrono Cross Infinity and it's message board. One of the members, Oirad (now Dario at Chrono Shock) created a post saying how cool it would be if some chronicled Chrono Trigger and Chrono Cross. I created an account just to reply, saying I was doing so. Even Princess Nadia, who was doing one of her (his?) own, was impressed. That gave the inspiration to continue. Unfortunately, CCI went off line for the creation of Chrono Shock, and I couldn't tell everyone how I was progressing.

I worked like mad, some times writing several chapters in a week, sometimes not even working on it all. There were parts that were fun to write, others were just plain boring. A few months later school started again, and things slowed down a bit... but I still worked on it, taking time to do other writing projects like my Zelda fan fictions (The Dragmire Series), updating my Zelda Plot Report (The Legends of Zelda, see below for address) with Majora's Mask, and even working on a original story called "Galactic War." (It's my baby.) But the Chrono Novel was always in the background.

Chrono Shock was born just a few weeks prior to me typing this message, and I brought up my novelization again at the message boards. A lot of people were surprised I was still writing this. Well, I never quit a project...maybe put it on hold for a bit, but never kill it. Dare I say it's the only original Chrono Trigger Novel on the net? It just might be..... (And it isn't....there are at least one other)

But is it really a novel. Heck no. Just call it a big fan fiction, but novel sound so big and important. Is it the best thing on the planet Earth? No. Could other people have done it better than me? Without a doubt.

I hope you enjoyed it. It's without a doubt the biggest project I've done yet. I had a great time writing and designing it. I hope you didn't mind some of the changes in personality, but I believe it adds to the characters, not take away from them. Please send me your comments, as it help's me improve. It just might receive a face lift if a find the time...

Keep on gaming, and may the Force be with you.

Signed, Joseph Blanchette "Frog", "Mortis"
12/14/00

PS Oh, and I apologize to "Suave" for leaving out the Sun Stone Quest; and to Cassie for not hurting Marle and leaving out "Hottie Glenn" :)




Look at me!

For some CT Novel related artwork, check out my listings at Chrono Shock. (Joseph B. "Frog") Nothing is there now (March 2001), but I expect to add a cover, back cover, and hopefully several "Act" pages showing important events. Comments are of course welcome.


----------------------------

Chrono Trigger
-A Novelization-

By Joseph Blanchette
aka "Frog", "Mortis"


E-mail: mortis765@yahoo.com

Thanks to:

Squaresoft, for making one the best games I have ever played
"Dario" of Chrono Shock for editing (Thanks!)
The members of the Chrono Shock Message Boards
My free time, for allowing me to waste its time
Winamp. Do you know how dull it would have been to write without music?



Shameless Self Advertisement:

The Legends of Zelda: A Look into the World of Hyrule


This plot report covers the stories for the entire Zelda series. If your a Zelda fan that enjoys a good read, I suggest you check it out. Look for it under my name at Fanfiction.net!

-Look for me under the name "Frog" at Chrono Shock's message board. Sometimes, I have something spiffy to say.... Do you dare to gaze upon my photo at the CS Album?-

Silly "Copyright" Notice
---------------------------
(Is this document protected by copyright law.. Hmmm, I don't know, but I always put this at the end of big projects! Speaking of copyright, these names are owned by Square...uh oh.)

This document is for personal use only and can only appear on the site Chrono Shock and Fanfiction. net unless told otherwise by me and me alone. Any unauthorized modification, reproduction, duplication, or some other "-tion" word is probably breaking some sort of copyright law, so don't do it. This document can be shared only if the sender is not making any sort of profit or personal gain, and is a copyright (c) 2000-01 Joseph Blanchette.... and I'll kick your arse if you steal it.

copyright 2000-01
"Your so funny, Crono! Hey, I want candy! Signing Robots! *giggle*"
"Shut up! *SLAP!*"

-end document-