Chapter 8

Reunion

Serge felt his footsteps fall upon the dirt path that he was traveling on. His ears could hear the serene sounds of falling water nearby. The sky above him was blue as he continued to walk on in silence. In his one hand, he was clutching the Dragon's Tear.

Schala was beside him. She walked silently, her body seeming to flow up the path they were on. Her purple robes trailed behind as her blond hair blew gently with the wind.

As they approached the top of the path, they came to a cave opening in the wall. Stopping for a moment, they peered at the entrance.

Schala looked at him for a moment. "Go on, Serge. I'll wait here."

Serge nodded, then passed through the entrance to the cave. Inside, he found the surroundings to be dark and damp. Knowing where he needed to go, he bore left onto another path. He passed by jagged outcroppings of rock as he heard bats fly around him.

Up ahead, he saw another rocky doorway, leading to a room carved into the wall. As Serge passed the threshold, he found the room lit by an eerie light that emitted from a single torch. Two pedestals stood within the small room. Before he had arrived, they were dark. When Serge had entered the room however, small shafts of light had risen from the pedestals, as though there were waiting for something.

Raising his hand, Serge peered at the Dragon's Tear closely. From deep within, he could make out a faint light that had begun to glow when he had entered the room. The soft blue light given off by the orb ran its way along the intricate patterns winding their way around the inside.

Serge stepped forward, towards the nearest pedestal. He raised the Dragon's Tear and placed in the small pillar of light. The orb left his hand and began to float as Serge took a step back.

It twirled in the light for a second before falling downward. It landed on the pedestal, teetering for a second before rolling off and landing with a thud on the rocky floor.

Gazing at it for a second, Serge bent over and retrieved the relic. He looked at it again, wondering why it hadn't done anything. The Dragon's Tear still glowed faintly, teasing him with its mystery.

Serge turned and was about to exit the room, thinking that Schala would know what to do, but he was interrupted by something.

As he stepped toward the doorway, he felt something. In an instant, the room began to tremble. Some rocks fell from the ceiling as Serge struggled to hold his footing. The trembling increased and he somehow felt as though his body was trying to tear in two. The shaking continued for a few moments more. In the second before it stopped, Serge felt, rather then saw, a shadow pass over the room before it flickered out of existence.

In his hand, the Dragon's Tear suddenly flared. Its light radiated throughout the cavern, reaching through the doorway to the room beyond. Attempting to look at it, Serge was forced to shield his eyes from the intense light. Blind, he heard a sound, like something had hit the floor.

The light in the room died as quickly as it had come and he blinked his eyes, trying to readjust them. At his feet, two crystals had been strewn. Serge realized that the Dragon's Tear had been torn asunder. Its two remaining halves lay on the ground, the Tear of Hate, and the Tear of Love.

Both crystals shown brightly, their soft blue light illuminating the room. Serge stooped over and picked both up. He turned and faced the pedestals again. Stepping forward once more, he placed each Tear in a pillar of light and stepped back.

The two pieces flared from where they hovered and another burst of light filled the room. Serge once again had to shield his eyes from the light as he heard another sound ringing through the air. As the light died down again, he looked upward.

Floating between the two pillars an object had appeared. Serge knew what it was. He had used it before, in order to save Schala, who was still waiting for him outside.


Reaching a hand upward, he took the object carefully. Its blue exterior chilled his hand with a calm sensation. The gentle light it gave off seemed to bring peace to his very soul.

After standing for a minute, just gazing at the object, Serge turned and exited the small room.

The Chrono Cross.

The lost 7th element, the unknown attribute.

Serge walked from the cavern and into the daylight once more. Schala was waiting for him near the entrance. Even though Serge had emerged with the Chrono Cross, she wore a sad look on her face.

"Serge. It has come," she whispered. Her eyes looked into his, searching for something.

Serge was silent, nodding his head. He knew what she was referring to. He now realized why the Dragon's Tear had not worked at first. Even though FATE was eliminated, there were no Dragons in the world to make the Dragon's Tear effective. Serge figured that was the reason it had stopped glowing as soon as Belthasar had given to it him.

The rumbling he had felt inside the cavern was the force of the Dragon God from another world forcing itself into his.

"Time has been forced apart, Serge," said Schala. "I fear it is on the brink of collapse. This time stream is unstable, due to all the forces acting upon it. Lavos, the Frozen Flame, the Dragon God, the Planet…"

She looked up at the sky for a minute, scanning the horizon. "And in the middle of it all, us humans." She turned to Serge, "when will the planet forgive us? When will time and fate let us be at peace?"

Serge shook his head unknowingly.

"Serge, we must act quickly. I can feel the Dragon God that is now in this world. It is summoning its followers to it. Soon, it will attack the Frozen Flame. If it wins, humans will perish. We must hurry to Viper Manor…"

They nodded to one another, then turned and headed down the path. Serge walked silently, as memories of Kid began to return to him. He hadn't thought about her since his visit to Opassa Beach. His mind strayed to images of her throughout their whole adventure. His last memory of her was when she had a look of pain on her face.

As they left the serene surroundings of the Divine Dragon Falls, Serge swore in his mind that he would do whatever it took to save Kid.

"I'm going back," Karsh said quietly.

"Karsh, we don't know enough yet," Radius replied.

"That's exactly why I'm going back. To find out what the hell is going on. I'm sick of being in the dark," Karsh told the group.

"We understand the feelings you have inside of you. We all feel the same way," Viper said.

The group had recovered physically from their fight with the repite creature. Their emotional wounds still ran deep. They had silently, with tear filled eyes, constructed a grave for Miss Riddel. They buried her along side her love in life, Dario.

The wound the reptile had given her was too severe and she had died shortly after the battle. No amount of healing elements could bring her back. Karsh and Glenn were taking her death the hardest. Glenn still had the Einlanzer, placing it in the sheath at his side.

Silence ensued as they stayed at the gravesite for another hour. None of them said anything. Except for Fargo and Guile, each member was thinking of memories they had of the young woman.

After they had ran out of tears to shed, the group reentered the city. Near the entrance, Karsh had told them they he was going to return to Viper Manor.

"Karsh, I don't think we should rush back to the Manor," Radius explained.

"The hell with it!" Karsh yelled. "You all saw what happened to…Riddel. You all felt the shaking that occurred not too long ago. Can anyone explain that to me?"

Viper and Radius bowed their heads. Neither said a word.

"You see? We're running blind. These damn lizards appear out of nowhere, the Frozen Flame tears down the Manor, and now there was a huge tremor and it felt like we got ripped apart!" Karsh exclaimed. "We don't know what the hell is going on, but now I intend to find out. I'm going to the Manor, alone if need be."

"Please, we need to think about this," Viper explained.

"I'm going with him," they turned as Glenn stepped forward. "I intend to find out what is happening as well."

"I'M GOING," Zoah said. He was standing near the entrance to the city. He had recovered from the numbing effects of the spell the lizard had cast on him and now stood erect. "TOO MUCH HAS HAPPENED."

"I like, am so going," Marcy said. She had recovered from the pain of Riddel's death sooner than the others and was almost back to her former self.

"I agree with these matey's plan of action," said Fargo. He hadn't been directly wounded by Riddel's death, but seeing the others pain caused him to feel bad in turn.

"I will go as well. Nothing more can be done here," Guile placed himself up against the wall near the entrance. His coat had a hole in it where his own staff had pierced his side.

"It looks as though we have no choice then," Radius observed. "We will either have to tag along or be left behind."

"So it seems," Viper confirmed. "Then let us go quickly, and get to the bottom of this matter."

"Excellent!" Fargo yelled. "I'll go tell my pirates to hold down the city for a little while. Shouldn't be any more threats though." He exited up the stairway and headed for the harbor.

"I tink I vill stay in the city as vell," Luccia told them. "I shall do what I can to help the people here."

"Let's go then," Karsh ordered, his emotions still running high. "Whoever doesn't leave with me can catch up later." He turned and passed under the entranceway and began down the path leading to the Manor.

"We must wait for Fargo to return," Radius yelled at him, but Karsh paid little heed. Radius turned and looked at Viper.

"His feelings are blinding his judgement," Viper said. "He is acting irrationally."

Glenn stepped forward. "I will go with him. I'll try to slow him down. Please set a fast pace so you can catch up with us." After the group nodded at him in agreement, Glenn quickly followed after Karsh, who was already near the forest edge.

The group watched the two figures disappear into the forest then turned back and waited for Fargo to return from the harbor. He came back quickly and told them that the city would not be left unprotected. He also brought back a weapon that Zappa had forged for Radius. It was a staff with intricate design work on it. Radius took it gratefully.

"He said if that one breaks, he'll quit forging weapons and turn to painting," explained Fargo.

Radius nodded and summoned the group to the entrance of Termina.

"Let us make haste on our journey. I do not know what lies ahead of us, but I feel that we are not out of danger yet. Everyone, please stay alert."

They nodded and set a pace down the path, seeking to catch up with Karsh and Glenn.

Please…I want to be free…I can help people…

No…I want to kill people instead…

Serge…Please help me…Serge…

Serge…I'm going to kill you…

I can help stop this, I know I can…

Nothing will stop this…I can destroy the planet!

Serge…Please…hurry…

"Serge, I feel a presence on the path ahead of us. Be careful," Schala cautioned. She and Serge had left Divine Dragon falls as quickly as possible and had already passed through Fossil Valley. They were now traveling through the forest that bordered upon Viper Manor.

Serge had been walking in a deep silence. He was trying to think of a plan of action once they reached the manor. So far all his attempts had failed, since he didn't really know what to expect. At Schala's warning however, he snapped out of his thoughts and was more cautious as they made their way deeper into the forest.

The trees around them stood in a foreboding manner. Even though Serge had passed through the forest many times on his travels, he had never noticed the trees to be like they were. Even the sounds of the environment had changed. Animals were now quiet and stayed hidden in their holes, fearful of a change in the atmosphere.

They continued along the path, nearing the edge of the forest when they heard voices in front of them. Carefully, the two crept onward. As they drew closer to the voices, they noticed that there were many of them and that they were having some sort of conversation.

"I don't think going through the main entrance would really increase our chances of success…" a voice said.

"Well, any other ideas?" another asked. "That isn't exactly the Viper Manor I remember…besides, I didn't even see anyone at the entrance."

Serge recognized the voices. One belonged to Radius, the other to Karsh. Without listening to more, Serge walked forward, into a small clearing where the other group had taken shelter. Schala was close to follow, knowing who the people were as well.

The group turned to the two newcomers in surprise and some put a hand to their weapons. After a moment's pause of wonder and disbelief, some of them cried out.

"Serge!" Radius made no effort to hide the excitement in his voice. "How…?"

Serge looked around for a second without answering. In the small clearing he noticed Karsh, Zoah, Marcy, and General Viper of the old group. He also noticed the few that had entered it since he left. Guile stood near a tree, his figure held in poise. Glenn stood near the edge of the clearing, his face bowed in silence as though he was remembering something. Fargo stood near Radius and was eyeing Serge and Schala with great interest.

Serge couldn't help but notice that Luccia and Riddel were nowhere in sight.

"How…?" Radius repeated himself, at a loss for more than a few words at a time.

Schala stepped forward and all eyes turned toward her. In their faces it showed that they were thinking about something, as if they knew her before.

"There is little time left," she told them. "Forgive me, but I must be brief." She let out a little sigh. "Let me tell you of an blurred past, where all your stories intertwine…"

"I knew that I had recognized Serge," Karsh hesitated for a second. "But I couldn't put my finger on it. But if what you say is true, it would be starting to make sense…"

Schala had told the bewildered group of their former adventure, from Serge's traveling through dimensions, to his defeat of the Time Devourer with the help of the Chrono Cross. She told of what part all of them had played in it. She had just finished telling them of what was happening now, as far as Serge and she understood it. From their escape of Viper Manor, to where Serge had acquired the Chrono Cross once more.

"Blimey!" Fargo exclaimed. "Quite a tale!" Of the group, he seemed to be enjoying what was going on the most. "It got me blood boilin. To think, I helped save the planet!"

Radius had in turn, told Serge and Schala of their findings, and of the tragic death of Riddel. The group had gone silent when he told the story. In their faces it was easy to see the pain of the memory of their battle. Glenn, Karsh, and Viper seemed particularly stricken.

"So like, what do we do now?" Marcy asked after a silence that occurred when Radius finished his story. "We seem to be like, running blind."

"Not entirely blind," Radius answered. "We now know what most of the cause of the event is and of what is happening outside of Viper Manor right now."

Karsh took a step forward. "Speakin' of Viper Manor, can anyone tell me just what exactly happened to that place?"

At a strange look and a raised eyebrow from Serge, Radius explained what they had seen when they had returned to within eyesight of the manor. "It appears to have molded itself into a strange structure of some sort. It looks as though it is a giant, spiked object now."

"Lavos…" Schala exhaled a breath. Serge looked at her again. Her hair flowed down shoulders as she stood with a proud, but gentle, poise. Her face…Kid's face…looked weary, but alert and Serge couldn't help but notice the glint in her eye.

"Come again?" Viper said. His tired expression hid the proud warrior within. Instead, his shoulders were now slumped and he looked like a defeated man, one who has nothing left to gain or lose.

"Lavos, the ancient extraterrestrial that crashed into the planet millions of years ago. The Frozen Flame must have integrated the manor into a structure more to its liking…and to make a defiant stand against the planet," Schala looked northward, to where the manor stood. "Time is running short."

"Well, even though I'm still confused as hell about the whole thing, I don't think we should just stand around here…" Karsh hefted his axe into the air. "I'd say we go do something about this whole situation right now. If we did it once," he glanced at Schala and Serge, "then we can sure as hell do it again."

"I agree," Glenn spoke for the first time. The Einlanzer hung at his side as he took a step forward. "Things are growing worse by the moment. I cannot explain, but I feel as though something very big is about to happen. Please, for Riddel's…" he trailed off for a moment. "for her sake, let us end this nightmare now…"