Wendell sat in the middle of the floor when suddenly he got a mental message.
Wendell! Are you there?
Wendell looked around, then realized who it was.
Sherkal?!
Of course it's me you idiot...did they come through yet?
Yes...in fact I just gave up my lightning powers...
Good...
Wendell was puzzled.
What do you mean good?
You'll see in time...everything is going according to plan...
Through the mental conversation, Wendell heard Sherkal laugh.
*
Magus, Lucca and Glenn walked down the hall slowly...heading towards the Gate they came in through.
"We'll get back to the end of time, and we need to see if we can get another Time Travelling machine...we'll need another Epoch for this mission, these gates may not be stable much longer..."
Lucca thought all of this out loud as she unlocked the gate and they stepped through it slowly.
*
Gaspar came out of Spekkio's room with a large staff.
It was about six feet long, on one end was inscribed in an ancient language "Terra" or in other words "Earth".
"Rebecca, you may need this on your mission."
Rebecca took the staff slowly, and suddenly, as if she were born to wield it, began to do amazing tricks and attacks with it.
"Tri-strike!" she yelled as she jumped into the air, flipping the brought the staff into the ground, cracks shooting out from under the impact as she pushed off of it into a backflip, pushing off of her back leg into a powerful lunge with the staff, and then spun, the staff would have hit the enemies head with incredible speed and strength, easily knocking them unconscious, if not removing their head first.
"Wow...Rebecca...where did you learn to do that?" Gaspar asked in wonder.
Rebecca looked to her staff in wonder.
"I...I...I don't know..." she said...not really sure if she could trust herself anymore.
Suddenly from the bag a thunderclap was heard as suddenly Magus, Lucca and Glenn appeared.
"Hello everyone...I trust you felt what we did?" Glenn said with a smile.
"What 'we' did? Excuse me oh ye of little brain, I was the one doing all the fighting..." Magus chuckled.
Glenn turned to Magus, but strangely without a look of hatred, rather that of a joking comrade.
"That's true..." Glenn chuckled as well.
Lucca walked over to Gaspar.
"What's Ayla doing with that staff?"
Gaspar looked to Lucca.
"That's right, you weren't here..."
Crono stepped out of Spekkio's room suddenly, with Marle and Robo.
"I'll explain Gaspar..."
Crono looked to Lucca.
"While you guys were gone, Matzu came by here...and he was talking to Gaspar. We arrived and Ayla took a jump at him, as Ayla usually is with enemies, gung-ho..."
Magus chuckled.
"Foolish woman..."
Crono shot a glare to Magus and then continued the story.
"Anyways...Matzu slammed her into the ground...hard...and now she's lost her memory of being Ayla. Now her name is Rebecca...and she seems pretty handy with a staff."
Lucca, Glenn and Magus took a moment to catch up on that.
"So...her name is Rebecca now?" Lucca asked.
Gaspar nodded.
"And...she's good with a staff?" Glenn confirmed.
Gaspar nodded again.
All of them were silent for a moment...and then Magus realized something.
"What about her earth magicks? Are they still intact?"
Gaspar looked to Rebecca, and then back to the party of heroes.
"For the most part, she won't be a hindrance."
Magus looked to the others.
"Is this ok?"
Crono looked around, individually at Marle, Robo, Lucca, Glenn, Rebecca and then back to Magus.
"I don't see why not..."
Magus nodded.
"Very well then, Gaspar...tell us more on these three other callers...Rendroth, Anshal and Jarl..."
Gaspar nodded.
"Rendroth...master of Shadow...exists in the year 428 AD...a little before your times, Glenn and Magus..." Gaspar looked to them for a moment, then continued.
"Anshal....the master of Space, exists in the year 2743...closer to Robo's time..." Gaspar looked to Robo.
"Finally, Jarl...the master of time...he exists in the year 10465 AD...slightly before time ends, and all periods meet here...I advise you he may have a solution to the transportation problem you are experiencing...you haven't said it, but it can't be very easy having one time travelling machine and travelling through gates as well...but I warn you, he is the most powerful of the callers, and may be difficult to beat, even with your newfound powers."
Gaspar looked around.
"Before, Ayla, Crono, Marle and Robo were heading to fight Quentor...now...do you want to maintain that plan? Or would you rather take on a different caller with all 7 of you? Or split up into two teams and take on two callers?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ok, bigger set of decisions...more places to mess up, and more places to go right....so here we go
first:
Do you want to change the parties?
If yes...state your parties from these selections:
A) Rebecca/Magus/Lucca/Glenn- Robo/Marle/Crono
Crono/Magus/Lucca/Marle- Robo/Rebecca/Glenn
C) Magus/Robo/Rebecca/Glenn- Lucca/Crono/Marle
Once your party has changed...pick your Caller for each party...remaining Callers:
Narkon- Water (500 AD-Atlantica)
Prenthis- Ice (5000 BC-Bendroth-Sharin)
Rendroth- Shadow (428 AD-Grokthor)
Anshal- Space (2743 AD-Nertinth)
Jarl- Time (10465 AD-Chronictor)
Quentor- Fire (1980 AD- Washington, USA)
If you don't wish to change parties...
Rebecca/Crono/Marle/Robo: Continue fighting Quentor? Yes or no...
If Yes...who will Magus/Glenn/Lucca fight next?
If no...Who will these four fight next as well as Magus/Glenn and Lucca?
Okay, I guess I'll just have to go off of two votes. I really want more people to get in on this...so try and spread the word a little more. SO it's Party A-Space Caller.
BTW...decent choices...but not the best. You move up to a 7...but the better choices could have got you up to a 9...and the worst ones all the way down to a 3. Ok...let's move on shall we?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We should redistribute the groups..." Crono said softly.
Everyone turned to Crono, some shocked, some relieved it seemed like...that they were getting a change of pace. Rebecca probably had the most worried look of all of them, after all...she barely knew these people.
"Alright...Lucca Magus and Glenn...you guys go with Rebecca...I'll be with Marle and Robo...we'll be heading out to fight Narkon...you guys go and find the space caller and see what he can do. He might have another ship we could use."
Magus looked to Glenn, and then Lucca, and finally to the bewildered Rebecca.
"If I'm going to be stuck with them I better be getting the front seat..."
Magus said with a gruff scowl.
Lucca smiled.
"I'm sure Rebecca won't mind sitting in Glenn's lap..." Lucca shot a suggestive smirk to Rebecca, who was now as red as a beet as she turned to Glenn and made an aggravated face, almost like she thought that Glenn had planned it from the beginning.
Glenn shrunk back for a moment, then stood fast again.
Rebecca then turned her gaze to Lucca, who really couldn't care less, she was revelling in the moment...the silence was unbearable, beginning to coagulate to the point where it was almost tangible until finally Rebecca said.
"Fine..."
Lucca nodded and looked over to Crono.
"So you guys will be taking the Bucket to Narkon's Atlantica...oh my god!"
Marle looked to Lucca quickly.
"What is it?"
Lucca paced for a moment, rubbing her forehead like she was deep in thought of pondering one of the most difficult questions posed to mankind, the pacing drove everyone crazy...back and forth...back and forth...finally she stopped and pivoted on her heel...turning to Gaspar.
"Is there a Gate underwater? We were counting on using the Epoch to get to Atlantica...remember?"
Gaspar slapped his forehead.
"That's right...I suppose that Magus and his party will be using the Bucket then."
Rebecca sighed...relieved. Almost like the entire world had been lifted off of her shoulders she smiled.
"So...what's the Bucket anyways?"
Gaspar turned and pointed at...well...the bucket.
"That is the bucket, and it's what I open optional Gates with. This one will take you to Anshal while the others go to fight Narkon..."
Rebecca looked at the bucket doubtfully for a moment...then nodded.
Rebecca looked back to Magus, Lucca and Glenn, who were all equally disappointed that they had to use the bucket.
"Fine, we'll take the bucket, but we need to hurry up, because Matzu is probably heading after the callers as well." Magus said as he walked towards the bucket slowly.
"Oh! Gaspar?" Lucca asked as she walked over to the old man.
"What is it child?" Gaspar asked.
"Well..it's about Kid...would it..."
Gaspar smiled.
"Of course, Spekkio is having a great time with Kid...she'll be fine...don't worry."
Lucca smiled and sighed with relief.
"Thank you so much...! Goodbye Gaspar!" Lucca waved and turned around, walking to the bucket with Rebecca and Glenn following after her.
Magus waved his hand towards the bucket as it opened and he stepped in.
"Come on! We don't have time to waste..." Magus snarled as Rebecca, Lucca and Glenn stepped in quickly and the gate closed in front of them.
Crono looked to Marle and Robo and smiled.
"To the epoch! We'll meet Narkon underwater and take him head on!"
The three ran and leapt off of the side of the End of Time as they set the dial to 500 AD and placed the location just over a sea that was known to the 1000 AD folks as the Aquariam Leene.
Crono smiled as he pulled back the lever and input the execution code to take off with a thunderclap as Gaspar took a deep breath.
"God help them..." he muttered as the heroes spread out.
*
Magus stepped out of the gate first, Rebecca holding her staff as she came out second...followed by Glenn and Lucca.
"Creepy...let's hurry up ok? I don't want to be sticking around for too long." Rebecca said with a shudder.
Magus looked to Rebecca with a mocking grin.
"What? Are you afraid?"
Rebecca snarled and spun, swinging her staff around it came about an inch away from Magus' nose, but he didn't flinch.
"At least she's still as violent as she was before..." Magus said with a snicker.
"Calm down now. Let's get going." Lucca said as she reloaded her gun and walked down the empty corridor. The cold air was surrounding them and seemed to encase them in their own solid tomb, something in the air was distracting them.
Magus sniffed around for a moment.
"There's...something in the air..." he noted quietly.
Lucca sniffed around, then Glenn, and then finally Rebecca.
"Yeah...I smell it too...what is it?" Rebecca asked curiously.
"I don't know...but I don't trust it..." Glenn said as he looked around and unsheathed the Masamune.
Suddenly, all fell silent.
Down the metallic, silent corridors all four of them heard something...
Breathing.
*
Crono and the others appeared over the Aquariam and looked down into the ocean.
"I guess now we get to see how well the Epoch can swim." Crono said quietly as they suddenly went plummeting into the water.
The epoch crashed into the sea, and continued barreling forward, its wings held steady and finally the engines kicked up, and they were on their way.
"The city of Atlantica should be down this way...about 15 miles or so." Crono said as they began their journey.
"You'd think at that low of a level we'd run into some sort of monstrous animal or something." Marle said quietly, not wanting to really push her luck on what may jump out of the shadows.
"No need to worry about those things, and you shouldn't say things like that. They might come true." Crono said with a smile as Marle slapped him upside the head.
"Very funny doofus! Now keep driving!" she ordered.
"Yes Ma'am..." Crono agreed.
The underwater drive was happening for about 15 minutes when all of the sudden a huge shadow darkened the epoch for about 20 seconds...but nobody saw what it was.
"Hey...did you see that?" Crono asked as he turned around to look at Robo.
"Negative, although my sensors are picking up an organic life form, and a rather large one. To our east."
Robo looked out the right window and saw the creature at the same time Crono did.
"MARLE! HIT IT!" he yelled as Marle stepped on the acceleration and they took off through the water.
The creature behind them was bigger than a blue whale and had teeth that could tear through steel like a hand through water.
"****! Hurry up Marle!" Crono yelled as he unsheathed his rainbow sword.
Marle saw him unsheath his blade.
"How the hell do you expect to fight him underwater?!" Marle asked as she slammed on the acceleration again.
"With great skill..." Crono muttered as the creature began to close in on them.
"Alright Marle...when I get to one, I want you to open the hatch very quickly so I can get out...alright?"
Marle looked to Crono with an unbelieving expression.
"What about the water that floods in here?!" She demanded.
"Honey, you can cast an ice shield almost immediately to keep the water out....Robo can help you too...I'll be ok."
Marle saw the look in Crono's eyes, and when she saw that look she always felt like everything would be alright.
"Fine...but you better come back to me alive..." she said as her eyes began to water.
Crono kissed her gently on the lips.
"Don't worry...I will. Now...5....4"
Marle got the hatch door ready.
"3....2...ONE!"
Rebecca peered down the corridor as hard as she could, trying to make out whatever it was that was breathing further down.
"I can almost see it..." Rebecca said softly as she held her staff readily in her right hand.
Lucca held out her hand and fired a small blast of fire as it went soaring down the corridor and collided with something soft.
There was a sudden shriek as the light was cast over the beast that was hiding in the shadows.
Rebecca and Lucca both turned in horror from the gruesome sight as Glenn and Magus could do nothing more than stare in awe at the creature's horrific figure.
Its torso was twisted and stretched...some bones sticking out of several parts of its body. One of its arms was short and stubby while the other was grossly overproportioned and dragged along the floor. Its legs bent forward and backward at a dislocated joint.
Finally, its face...which was the most horrifying of all. Its left eye was about six inches wide and twitched frequently, but never blinked. Its right eye was much smaller. Less than a 1/4 inch around and was completely red.
The creature staggered out of the darkness with an inhuman squeal as it dragged its left arm, which was the oversized one, into the light with the four heroes.
"By Cyrus' grave! What a creature!" Glenn declared in horror as Magus snarled.
"This guy makes those infernal Chaos monsters on the Black Omen seem like little puppies..."
Lucca turned and Rebecca did shortly afterward to face the demon.
The demon hissed and began to speak in a dragging, sickening tone.
"I have a question...yet there is no answer...respond well to my riddle...and I shall let you pass...fail...and you die...like so many others!" the creature bellowed as it began to cough.
It stopped coughing and looked to the heroes.
"I never was, am always to be,
No one ever saw me, nor ever will
And yet I am the confidence of all
To live and breathe on this terrestrial ball...what am I?" the creature gasped.
Glenn looked to his comrades and shrugged...
*
Marle opened the hatch as Crono leapt out, Marle instantly shielded the top and kept too much water from coming in.
Crono snarled as he held out his rainbow sword.
~I have to make this quick!~ he thought as he charged at the creature and engulfed his blade in a purple flame as he went straight for the monster's head and plunged his sword in, channeling lightning through the beast as it fell lifelessly through the water. Crono turned to see the Epoch turning around to come back and pick him up.
*
Magus stepped forward boldly.
"It must be air...the air around us."
The creature hissed and scowled.
"No..that is wrong!"
Magus snarled and took a step back as Glenn stepped forward.
"The soul? A person's soul?"
The creature reared back, its anger growing.
"No...that is incorrect!"
Rebecca looked to the creature.
"Light...? Is it light?"
The creature now let out an inhuman screech as the heroes cowered and its eyes took on a fearsome red glow.
"NO! Be warned...you only have three more chances!"
*
Crono waited for the epoch to come back as it flew by beneath him he made his way into the open cockpit, with water inside of it, about three inches worth on the ground as he kisses Marle gently on the cheek.
"Good job honey..." he said as he sheathed his blade.
"Now then...off to Narkon..."
Lucca stepped up to the monster.
"Your riddle...the answer is...tomorrow, isn't it?"
The beast screeched and stumbled back a few steps.
"Yes..." it gasped as its eyes flared suddenly...baring its brilliant white fangs.
Magus snarled.
"Why do I get the feeling that he's still going to come after us?" he said as he took out his scythe.
Rebecca chuckled.
"Figures...but that's ok...I'm up for using this new staff on something nice and soft..." she said as some of her former persona seemed to break through.
Glenn and Lucca both armed themselves as the creature's breaths became growls and hisses, its eyes growing even brighter as it stepped back out into the light.
"The creature sure is a frightening heathen, isn't it?" Glenn acknowledged as the creature stood there, looking down on the unfortunate bunch who came to challenge him.
"Enough talk..." Rebecca muttered as she placed one end of her staff on the ground and launched herself at the creature's head, kicking it hard in the face as she kicked off of it into a backflip and landed on one knee.
The creature grunted and took a step back, and then lurched forward, taking a powerful swing towards Magus, Glenn and Lucca as they rolled backwards, away from the creatures mighty swing.
Magus pushed himself up and leapt into the air, holding out his hand as he murmured and a wave of fire shot out at the monster, engulfing him as a siren's screech seemed to fill the room, all of the heroes falling to their knees, clasping their heads in pain.
Meanwhile...back with Crono and company...
Marle, Robo and Crono approached the city of Atlantica rather quickly. Reaching its borders as suddenly a fleet of strange-looking ships surrounded the epoch as a voice came over a speaker.
"Who are you? Why do you dare to intrude and penetrate the barriers of atlantica?"
Crono pressed a button on the control panel of the epoch and spoke.
"We come in search of Narkon...would any of you be kind enough as to lead us to him?"
Laughs were heard over the speakers as another voice took the intercom.
"One does not simply be led to Narkon, he is the emperor of our world, we will not let you see him so easily."
Crono sighed as Marle took the intercom.
"What must we do to see him?"
"Why, request an audience with him of course..."
"And how long will that take?"
The guards were silent for a moment...and then another voice came on the intercom.
"About two years..."
Crono, Marle and Robo shared the shock as they all looked to each other with wide eyes and angry countenances.
"We can not wait two years to see his lordship Narkon, we must speak with him now."
"On whose authority are you allowed to speak in such a tone?"
Suddenly robo leaned over and took the intercom.
"On the authority of Gaspar, the Guru of time!" he said loudly and clearly into the intercom.
Suddenly, everything fell dead silent.
Crono looked to Robo, thinking that perhaps that one outburst may have cost them their ship, if not their lives.
Suddenly, a voice came over the intercom, low and calm.
"You said...Gaspar? The Guru of time? What proof do you have that you are indeed one of his own warriors?"
Crono got on the intercom once more.
"We have been chosen by Gaspar to be warriors of Time. We have all been given his blessing, and we are out on a mission to meet with the Callers...and so we now ask you to see Narkon immediately."
The guards all sighed and looked to one another as the captain carried out his own conversation within his ship.
"Can these outsiders be trusted?"
His second in command walked to him slowly.
"Sir, we can have them meet Narkon, and he can test them himself, then we'll know if they are truly Gaspar's chosen, or simply educated frauds. And if they are frauds, Narkon will be more than happy to destroy them himself."
The captain nodded.
"Very well..." he said as he turned on the intercom again.
"You can see Narkon...we will escort you to his palace...if you would follow us..."
The ships turned and led the epoch to a monstrous palace, where their next enemy awaited them.
*
Wendell! Are you there?
Wendell looked around, then realized who it was.
Sherkal?!
Of course it's me you idiot...did they come through yet?
Yes...in fact I just gave up my lightning powers...
Good...
Wendell was puzzled.
What do you mean good?
You'll see in time...everything is going according to plan...
Through the mental conversation, Wendell heard Sherkal laugh.
*
Magus, Lucca and Glenn walked down the hall slowly...heading towards the Gate they came in through.
"We'll get back to the end of time, and we need to see if we can get another Time Travelling machine...we'll need another Epoch for this mission, these gates may not be stable much longer..."
Lucca thought all of this out loud as she unlocked the gate and they stepped through it slowly.
*
Gaspar came out of Spekkio's room with a large staff.
It was about six feet long, on one end was inscribed in an ancient language "Terra" or in other words "Earth".
"Rebecca, you may need this on your mission."
Rebecca took the staff slowly, and suddenly, as if she were born to wield it, began to do amazing tricks and attacks with it.
"Tri-strike!" she yelled as she jumped into the air, flipping the brought the staff into the ground, cracks shooting out from under the impact as she pushed off of it into a backflip, pushing off of her back leg into a powerful lunge with the staff, and then spun, the staff would have hit the enemies head with incredible speed and strength, easily knocking them unconscious, if not removing their head first.
"Wow...Rebecca...where did you learn to do that?" Gaspar asked in wonder.
Rebecca looked to her staff in wonder.
"I...I...I don't know..." she said...not really sure if she could trust herself anymore.
Suddenly from the bag a thunderclap was heard as suddenly Magus, Lucca and Glenn appeared.
"Hello everyone...I trust you felt what we did?" Glenn said with a smile.
"What 'we' did? Excuse me oh ye of little brain, I was the one doing all the fighting..." Magus chuckled.
Glenn turned to Magus, but strangely without a look of hatred, rather that of a joking comrade.
"That's true..." Glenn chuckled as well.
Lucca walked over to Gaspar.
"What's Ayla doing with that staff?"
Gaspar looked to Lucca.
"That's right, you weren't here..."
Crono stepped out of Spekkio's room suddenly, with Marle and Robo.
"I'll explain Gaspar..."
Crono looked to Lucca.
"While you guys were gone, Matzu came by here...and he was talking to Gaspar. We arrived and Ayla took a jump at him, as Ayla usually is with enemies, gung-ho..."
Magus chuckled.
"Foolish woman..."
Crono shot a glare to Magus and then continued the story.
"Anyways...Matzu slammed her into the ground...hard...and now she's lost her memory of being Ayla. Now her name is Rebecca...and she seems pretty handy with a staff."
Lucca, Glenn and Magus took a moment to catch up on that.
"So...her name is Rebecca now?" Lucca asked.
Gaspar nodded.
"And...she's good with a staff?" Glenn confirmed.
Gaspar nodded again.
All of them were silent for a moment...and then Magus realized something.
"What about her earth magicks? Are they still intact?"
Gaspar looked to Rebecca, and then back to the party of heroes.
"For the most part, she won't be a hindrance."
Magus looked to the others.
"Is this ok?"
Crono looked around, individually at Marle, Robo, Lucca, Glenn, Rebecca and then back to Magus.
"I don't see why not..."
Magus nodded.
"Very well then, Gaspar...tell us more on these three other callers...Rendroth, Anshal and Jarl..."
Gaspar nodded.
"Rendroth...master of Shadow...exists in the year 428 AD...a little before your times, Glenn and Magus..." Gaspar looked to them for a moment, then continued.
"Anshal....the master of Space, exists in the year 2743...closer to Robo's time..." Gaspar looked to Robo.
"Finally, Jarl...the master of time...he exists in the year 10465 AD...slightly before time ends, and all periods meet here...I advise you he may have a solution to the transportation problem you are experiencing...you haven't said it, but it can't be very easy having one time travelling machine and travelling through gates as well...but I warn you, he is the most powerful of the callers, and may be difficult to beat, even with your newfound powers."
Gaspar looked around.
"Before, Ayla, Crono, Marle and Robo were heading to fight Quentor...now...do you want to maintain that plan? Or would you rather take on a different caller with all 7 of you? Or split up into two teams and take on two callers?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ok, bigger set of decisions...more places to mess up, and more places to go right....so here we go
first:
Do you want to change the parties?
If yes...state your parties from these selections:
A) Rebecca/Magus/Lucca/Glenn- Robo/Marle/Crono
Crono/Magus/Lucca/Marle- Robo/Rebecca/Glenn
C) Magus/Robo/Rebecca/Glenn- Lucca/Crono/Marle
Once your party has changed...pick your Caller for each party...remaining Callers:
Narkon- Water (500 AD-Atlantica)
Prenthis- Ice (5000 BC-Bendroth-Sharin)
Rendroth- Shadow (428 AD-Grokthor)
Anshal- Space (2743 AD-Nertinth)
Jarl- Time (10465 AD-Chronictor)
Quentor- Fire (1980 AD- Washington, USA)
If you don't wish to change parties...
Rebecca/Crono/Marle/Robo: Continue fighting Quentor? Yes or no...
If Yes...who will Magus/Glenn/Lucca fight next?
If no...Who will these four fight next as well as Magus/Glenn and Lucca?
Okay, I guess I'll just have to go off of two votes. I really want more people to get in on this...so try and spread the word a little more. SO it's Party A-Space Caller.
BTW...decent choices...but not the best. You move up to a 7...but the better choices could have got you up to a 9...and the worst ones all the way down to a 3. Ok...let's move on shall we?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"We should redistribute the groups..." Crono said softly.
Everyone turned to Crono, some shocked, some relieved it seemed like...that they were getting a change of pace. Rebecca probably had the most worried look of all of them, after all...she barely knew these people.
"Alright...Lucca Magus and Glenn...you guys go with Rebecca...I'll be with Marle and Robo...we'll be heading out to fight Narkon...you guys go and find the space caller and see what he can do. He might have another ship we could use."
Magus looked to Glenn, and then Lucca, and finally to the bewildered Rebecca.
"If I'm going to be stuck with them I better be getting the front seat..."
Magus said with a gruff scowl.
Lucca smiled.
"I'm sure Rebecca won't mind sitting in Glenn's lap..." Lucca shot a suggestive smirk to Rebecca, who was now as red as a beet as she turned to Glenn and made an aggravated face, almost like she thought that Glenn had planned it from the beginning.
Glenn shrunk back for a moment, then stood fast again.
Rebecca then turned her gaze to Lucca, who really couldn't care less, she was revelling in the moment...the silence was unbearable, beginning to coagulate to the point where it was almost tangible until finally Rebecca said.
"Fine..."
Lucca nodded and looked over to Crono.
"So you guys will be taking the Bucket to Narkon's Atlantica...oh my god!"
Marle looked to Lucca quickly.
"What is it?"
Lucca paced for a moment, rubbing her forehead like she was deep in thought of pondering one of the most difficult questions posed to mankind, the pacing drove everyone crazy...back and forth...back and forth...finally she stopped and pivoted on her heel...turning to Gaspar.
"Is there a Gate underwater? We were counting on using the Epoch to get to Atlantica...remember?"
Gaspar slapped his forehead.
"That's right...I suppose that Magus and his party will be using the Bucket then."
Rebecca sighed...relieved. Almost like the entire world had been lifted off of her shoulders she smiled.
"So...what's the Bucket anyways?"
Gaspar turned and pointed at...well...the bucket.
"That is the bucket, and it's what I open optional Gates with. This one will take you to Anshal while the others go to fight Narkon..."
Rebecca looked at the bucket doubtfully for a moment...then nodded.
Rebecca looked back to Magus, Lucca and Glenn, who were all equally disappointed that they had to use the bucket.
"Fine, we'll take the bucket, but we need to hurry up, because Matzu is probably heading after the callers as well." Magus said as he walked towards the bucket slowly.
"Oh! Gaspar?" Lucca asked as she walked over to the old man.
"What is it child?" Gaspar asked.
"Well..it's about Kid...would it..."
Gaspar smiled.
"Of course, Spekkio is having a great time with Kid...she'll be fine...don't worry."
Lucca smiled and sighed with relief.
"Thank you so much...! Goodbye Gaspar!" Lucca waved and turned around, walking to the bucket with Rebecca and Glenn following after her.
Magus waved his hand towards the bucket as it opened and he stepped in.
"Come on! We don't have time to waste..." Magus snarled as Rebecca, Lucca and Glenn stepped in quickly and the gate closed in front of them.
Crono looked to Marle and Robo and smiled.
"To the epoch! We'll meet Narkon underwater and take him head on!"
The three ran and leapt off of the side of the End of Time as they set the dial to 500 AD and placed the location just over a sea that was known to the 1000 AD folks as the Aquariam Leene.
Crono smiled as he pulled back the lever and input the execution code to take off with a thunderclap as Gaspar took a deep breath.
"God help them..." he muttered as the heroes spread out.
*
Magus stepped out of the gate first, Rebecca holding her staff as she came out second...followed by Glenn and Lucca.
"Creepy...let's hurry up ok? I don't want to be sticking around for too long." Rebecca said with a shudder.
Magus looked to Rebecca with a mocking grin.
"What? Are you afraid?"
Rebecca snarled and spun, swinging her staff around it came about an inch away from Magus' nose, but he didn't flinch.
"At least she's still as violent as she was before..." Magus said with a snicker.
"Calm down now. Let's get going." Lucca said as she reloaded her gun and walked down the empty corridor. The cold air was surrounding them and seemed to encase them in their own solid tomb, something in the air was distracting them.
Magus sniffed around for a moment.
"There's...something in the air..." he noted quietly.
Lucca sniffed around, then Glenn, and then finally Rebecca.
"Yeah...I smell it too...what is it?" Rebecca asked curiously.
"I don't know...but I don't trust it..." Glenn said as he looked around and unsheathed the Masamune.
Suddenly, all fell silent.
Down the metallic, silent corridors all four of them heard something...
Breathing.
*
Crono and the others appeared over the Aquariam and looked down into the ocean.
"I guess now we get to see how well the Epoch can swim." Crono said quietly as they suddenly went plummeting into the water.
The epoch crashed into the sea, and continued barreling forward, its wings held steady and finally the engines kicked up, and they were on their way.
"The city of Atlantica should be down this way...about 15 miles or so." Crono said as they began their journey.
"You'd think at that low of a level we'd run into some sort of monstrous animal or something." Marle said quietly, not wanting to really push her luck on what may jump out of the shadows.
"No need to worry about those things, and you shouldn't say things like that. They might come true." Crono said with a smile as Marle slapped him upside the head.
"Very funny doofus! Now keep driving!" she ordered.
"Yes Ma'am..." Crono agreed.
The underwater drive was happening for about 15 minutes when all of the sudden a huge shadow darkened the epoch for about 20 seconds...but nobody saw what it was.
"Hey...did you see that?" Crono asked as he turned around to look at Robo.
"Negative, although my sensors are picking up an organic life form, and a rather large one. To our east."
Robo looked out the right window and saw the creature at the same time Crono did.
"MARLE! HIT IT!" he yelled as Marle stepped on the acceleration and they took off through the water.
The creature behind them was bigger than a blue whale and had teeth that could tear through steel like a hand through water.
"****! Hurry up Marle!" Crono yelled as he unsheathed his rainbow sword.
Marle saw him unsheath his blade.
"How the hell do you expect to fight him underwater?!" Marle asked as she slammed on the acceleration again.
"With great skill..." Crono muttered as the creature began to close in on them.
"Alright Marle...when I get to one, I want you to open the hatch very quickly so I can get out...alright?"
Marle looked to Crono with an unbelieving expression.
"What about the water that floods in here?!" She demanded.
"Honey, you can cast an ice shield almost immediately to keep the water out....Robo can help you too...I'll be ok."
Marle saw the look in Crono's eyes, and when she saw that look she always felt like everything would be alright.
"Fine...but you better come back to me alive..." she said as her eyes began to water.
Crono kissed her gently on the lips.
"Don't worry...I will. Now...5....4"
Marle got the hatch door ready.
"3....2...ONE!"
Rebecca peered down the corridor as hard as she could, trying to make out whatever it was that was breathing further down.
"I can almost see it..." Rebecca said softly as she held her staff readily in her right hand.
Lucca held out her hand and fired a small blast of fire as it went soaring down the corridor and collided with something soft.
There was a sudden shriek as the light was cast over the beast that was hiding in the shadows.
Rebecca and Lucca both turned in horror from the gruesome sight as Glenn and Magus could do nothing more than stare in awe at the creature's horrific figure.
Its torso was twisted and stretched...some bones sticking out of several parts of its body. One of its arms was short and stubby while the other was grossly overproportioned and dragged along the floor. Its legs bent forward and backward at a dislocated joint.
Finally, its face...which was the most horrifying of all. Its left eye was about six inches wide and twitched frequently, but never blinked. Its right eye was much smaller. Less than a 1/4 inch around and was completely red.
The creature staggered out of the darkness with an inhuman squeal as it dragged its left arm, which was the oversized one, into the light with the four heroes.
"By Cyrus' grave! What a creature!" Glenn declared in horror as Magus snarled.
"This guy makes those infernal Chaos monsters on the Black Omen seem like little puppies..."
Lucca turned and Rebecca did shortly afterward to face the demon.
The demon hissed and began to speak in a dragging, sickening tone.
"I have a question...yet there is no answer...respond well to my riddle...and I shall let you pass...fail...and you die...like so many others!" the creature bellowed as it began to cough.
It stopped coughing and looked to the heroes.
"I never was, am always to be,
No one ever saw me, nor ever will
And yet I am the confidence of all
To live and breathe on this terrestrial ball...what am I?" the creature gasped.
Glenn looked to his comrades and shrugged...
*
Marle opened the hatch as Crono leapt out, Marle instantly shielded the top and kept too much water from coming in.
Crono snarled as he held out his rainbow sword.
~I have to make this quick!~ he thought as he charged at the creature and engulfed his blade in a purple flame as he went straight for the monster's head and plunged his sword in, channeling lightning through the beast as it fell lifelessly through the water. Crono turned to see the Epoch turning around to come back and pick him up.
*
Magus stepped forward boldly.
"It must be air...the air around us."
The creature hissed and scowled.
"No..that is wrong!"
Magus snarled and took a step back as Glenn stepped forward.
"The soul? A person's soul?"
The creature reared back, its anger growing.
"No...that is incorrect!"
Rebecca looked to the creature.
"Light...? Is it light?"
The creature now let out an inhuman screech as the heroes cowered and its eyes took on a fearsome red glow.
"NO! Be warned...you only have three more chances!"
*
Crono waited for the epoch to come back as it flew by beneath him he made his way into the open cockpit, with water inside of it, about three inches worth on the ground as he kisses Marle gently on the cheek.
"Good job honey..." he said as he sheathed his blade.
"Now then...off to Narkon..."
Lucca stepped up to the monster.
"Your riddle...the answer is...tomorrow, isn't it?"
The beast screeched and stumbled back a few steps.
"Yes..." it gasped as its eyes flared suddenly...baring its brilliant white fangs.
Magus snarled.
"Why do I get the feeling that he's still going to come after us?" he said as he took out his scythe.
Rebecca chuckled.
"Figures...but that's ok...I'm up for using this new staff on something nice and soft..." she said as some of her former persona seemed to break through.
Glenn and Lucca both armed themselves as the creature's breaths became growls and hisses, its eyes growing even brighter as it stepped back out into the light.
"The creature sure is a frightening heathen, isn't it?" Glenn acknowledged as the creature stood there, looking down on the unfortunate bunch who came to challenge him.
"Enough talk..." Rebecca muttered as she placed one end of her staff on the ground and launched herself at the creature's head, kicking it hard in the face as she kicked off of it into a backflip and landed on one knee.
The creature grunted and took a step back, and then lurched forward, taking a powerful swing towards Magus, Glenn and Lucca as they rolled backwards, away from the creatures mighty swing.
Magus pushed himself up and leapt into the air, holding out his hand as he murmured and a wave of fire shot out at the monster, engulfing him as a siren's screech seemed to fill the room, all of the heroes falling to their knees, clasping their heads in pain.
Meanwhile...back with Crono and company...
Marle, Robo and Crono approached the city of Atlantica rather quickly. Reaching its borders as suddenly a fleet of strange-looking ships surrounded the epoch as a voice came over a speaker.
"Who are you? Why do you dare to intrude and penetrate the barriers of atlantica?"
Crono pressed a button on the control panel of the epoch and spoke.
"We come in search of Narkon...would any of you be kind enough as to lead us to him?"
Laughs were heard over the speakers as another voice took the intercom.
"One does not simply be led to Narkon, he is the emperor of our world, we will not let you see him so easily."
Crono sighed as Marle took the intercom.
"What must we do to see him?"
"Why, request an audience with him of course..."
"And how long will that take?"
The guards were silent for a moment...and then another voice came on the intercom.
"About two years..."
Crono, Marle and Robo shared the shock as they all looked to each other with wide eyes and angry countenances.
"We can not wait two years to see his lordship Narkon, we must speak with him now."
"On whose authority are you allowed to speak in such a tone?"
Suddenly robo leaned over and took the intercom.
"On the authority of Gaspar, the Guru of time!" he said loudly and clearly into the intercom.
Suddenly, everything fell dead silent.
Crono looked to Robo, thinking that perhaps that one outburst may have cost them their ship, if not their lives.
Suddenly, a voice came over the intercom, low and calm.
"You said...Gaspar? The Guru of time? What proof do you have that you are indeed one of his own warriors?"
Crono got on the intercom once more.
"We have been chosen by Gaspar to be warriors of Time. We have all been given his blessing, and we are out on a mission to meet with the Callers...and so we now ask you to see Narkon immediately."
The guards all sighed and looked to one another as the captain carried out his own conversation within his ship.
"Can these outsiders be trusted?"
His second in command walked to him slowly.
"Sir, we can have them meet Narkon, and he can test them himself, then we'll know if they are truly Gaspar's chosen, or simply educated frauds. And if they are frauds, Narkon will be more than happy to destroy them himself."
The captain nodded.
"Very well..." he said as he turned on the intercom again.
"You can see Narkon...we will escort you to his palace...if you would follow us..."
The ships turned and led the epoch to a monstrous palace, where their next enemy awaited them.
*