It's almost time. I'm sitting in the Epoch, along with Crono and Frog. We're on our way to 1999 AD, the Day of Lavos. Neither one of us is making a single move, nor talking a single word. We know what might happen, and what might not.
Crono said his goodbyes to everyone with much emotions, and little words. Especially to Marle. Frog didn't say much, just a few farewells. I didn't say anything at all, but that was something they expected.
Last time I faced Lavos, it ended in ruin. Not completely though. In the end, no lives were lost.
…Schala…
I can still see her in front of me, trapped by the shield, barely breathing. But she is alive and I know it. It will only be a matter of time before someone finds her. I can only hope that it will happen soon.
Looking back on my life, I've lived a more content one than most others. My years living in Zeal, and my years as commander of the Mystics. 32 long years. And not a single birthday.
"Hey Magus."
Out of all in this tiny space, Crono talks to me. I can't see his face, because he is in the drivers seat.
"What now?" I ask.
"Did you ever.. uh.. you know.. fall in love?"
What is he talking about?
"What are you saying?"
"Well, love."
I hear Frog chuckle.
"Which is…?"
"Come on! Sure you know what that means?"
"I don't." I simply reply. I have absolutely no clue about what he is talking about. Love? Sounds strange.
Frog seems to be trying not to break out in laughter. I give him an angry face. He calms down a bit, but still chuckles from time to time.
"Are you insulting me Crono?" I ask the driver.
"Take the dictionary in the back. Lucca left it there."
In a situation like this, he sounds very serious. What does he want from me? Hesitating, I pick up the gray book lying in the back of the Epoch. After searching it for a while, I end up with the word 'love'. So it does exist.
"'To hold someone dear? Me?" I say after reading the meaning of the word.
"Yeah. For example… you love Schala."
He's got a point there. I do 'hold Schala dear'. Then why did I never knew about it?
"Thou art just stone-cold, aren't thy, mage?" chuckles Frog again.
"You stop laughing, or I'll make you!" I hiss at the amphibian.
Finally Frog stays silent. So does Crono. I put the dictionary back where I got it.
"He's right though. You're as cold as ice, in both your emotions and expressions." says Crono after a while.
I don't care to reply. It seems that my attempt at not showing any emotions didn't work. They now see as some sort of object, instead of a person. This is getting strange.
Before I can go into any other thoughts, the Epoch comes out of its high-speed travel. This is it.
"Dost we... fight now or turn back while we can, sir Crono?" asks Frog.
"I don't know…"
"We fight now. We'll have to do this eventually. For you, it's saving the earth. For me, it's revenge. I don't care what you do, but I'm fighting him." I answer.
That was stupid to say. What if they backed out, and I'm left here alone? I can't win on my own. I know that.
"He's right Frog. We fight now, or we fight later. There is no difference."
"Aye…"
We step out of the Epoch, to see that Lavos has already erupted. The landscape is already as barren as one can get, and there seems to be no-one out here anymore. Except us.
I don't remember much of the fight we had, it all went too fast. We fought lots of other enemies first, which Crono and Frog seemed to recognize. I didn't. I simply tried to win every one of them, without losing much of my health. Crono had packed up quite a few Ethers and Tonics in a backpack, so we wouldn't run out of them during a fight.
After we had defeated the enemies, we fought Lavos himself. At least that's what we thought. It was nothing more than a shell, his defense from the world outside. We fought another version of Lavos, which looked more like a giant ape. We managed to survive, still without much damage. When we defeated his second form, his final, true form appeared.
It was the most difficult task I had ever done. But I expected that. His final form looked more like a chicken with two melons next to him. Strange, how you can think of food while you're battling pure evil. It almost costed us our lives, but we made it…
I feel relieved, but tired. I can just keep my consciousness long enough to see the warp field he had created while we were fighting him, fade back to all of the places in my deepest memories. Zeal, the Blackbird, the Ocean Palace, Guardia in 600 AD, Ozzie's castle, and finally my own castle. Then it all turns black.
"Hey, Magus… wake up! Wake up!"
The voice sounds distant, but it's coming closer fast. I open my eyes to see Marle.
"You feeling allright? 'Cause you've had quite a battle…"
I try to say something, but my head hurts when I try to.
"Can't talk? Don't worry. I'll fix you up."
What does she mean by that? Wait. No. Not healing magic! Oh well, what do I care anyway. I see her cast Heal 2 on me, and I instantly feel better. I get up, to examine my surroundings. I'm in the Knights Quarters in Guardia castle.
"You feeling better now? No wait, don't try to move yet, it might…"
"What happened? Did we kill him? Did we win?"
I can't remember it all at the moment. It seems kind of blurry right now.
"Yes, you did. To put it in the words of Crono when you guys came back, 'he's duck-toast'. Now, take some rest. Healing magic only heals physical damage. You know that."
I take the girls advice and lay back, trying to get some sleep.
When I woke up, I found out that I had regained my memory of the things that happened during the fight. It was already night, and Marle had left a note on the table beside my bed.
Magus,
If you wake up, please come to Leene square if you want to return to your own time. If it's past midnight, I'm afraid you are too late.
Marle
How thoughtful. Is it past midnight yet? I look around, to see a clock hanging on the wall above the conference table. It's thirty minutes till midnight. I get out of my bed, put on my cape and quickly fly out of the castle.
Where was Leene Square again? I'd only been there to win a Crono clone in that stupid game from Norstein Bekkler. I had expected better from him. Wait, now I remember. There was supposed to be a Millennial Fair, right? Then those bright lights in the distance must be the square.
Without wasting anymore time, I fly over the forest, and into Truce. I think it's better to stay low in the town, or people might get upset. What's this? Is this the millennial fair? Too happy for me. Now where do I go? People are staring at me. Ignoring them, I run past them, to the upper part. I believe Lucca's telepod is still there.
"Magus. So you made it." says Marle.
Everyone is gathered around the telepod. I can see Lucca saying her goodbyes to Robo.
When Robo is gone, I walk up to the gate.
"So, you're going to search for Schala?" Marle asks me.
While I am hovering in front of the gate, I turn around to face those who are left on the small square. To much surprise of everyone, I smile and nod, then turn around and enter the gate. No mushy goodbyes for me.
Wait. Where am I going to end up? Where will this gate, the one that started this whole ordeal, take me? I can only hope it's the right time. The image at the end is starting to become clearer to me.
With a soft thud, I land on the ground. Now what time is it? Green grass? Sun shining? No.. this can't be. This can't be the prehistoric area. What place is this? I turn around to see the ocean. The ocean? I turn around again, to see a small village of huts. It's the village of the last survivors, and the commons. Thank god. This must be the former kingdom of Zeal.
I'm standing on the North Cape. I now understand what this place became. Or becomes, in the future. This can only be the Dendaro Mountains, and Death Peak in the future. It all starts to make sense now. All pieces of the giant time puzzle are starting to fit into each other.
I face the ocean, and close my eyes. I can feel the soft wind blow through my hairs. For the first time in countless years, I silently cry. I'm finally free of the burden that calls himself Lavos. I'm finally free from the thoughts that haunted me from my past. Finally free…
And there isn't a single thing in existence which can change that now.
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So there it was. The ending of this small story. Hope y'all enjoyed it reading as much as I did writing it.
Any final comments? Please? h_h