Chapter I: Current Events

11098 BC JANUS

The two years Janus spent on the frozen rock that had become his world were not prosperous ones. He had no idea where Schala was, and didn't even know where to begin looking. What with only a few islands dotting the vast expanses of the abyssal black ocean that now covered ninety-five percent of the world, Janus had searched each one thoroughly, yet came up with nothing.

He felt that Schala was no longer under the sea as he had thought when he returned back to the Dark Ages. He no longer sensed Schala's presence anywhere in this Hell-frozen-over that had once been his home.

Two years ago he had reassured himself that he would never give up, and he never will, but.

1002 AD LUCCA

Lucca awoke to the sound of her beeping alarm clock. The sound had become annoying over the past five years she'd had it, and she thought about replacing it with an alarm that would be a bit more. discreet. The beeping could've been loud enough to wake everyone in the house- but Taban designed it so that the sound could be as loud as possible in Lucca's room, but couldn't be heard outside her door.

She felt around for her large black glasses on her nightstand, and when she found them, she slowly put them on her face.

"They're crooked." she thought, grumpily. "Of course they're crooked."

She adjusted her glasses and used her middle finger to push them up her nose (although in a few minutes they'd just slide back down, and she'd have to slide them up again). Now that she could actually see five inches in front of her, she read the hands on her clock.

"Seven thirty-two." she said aloud. Her voice had a slight hoarse to it, and she cleared her throat, then (finally) got out of bed. She quickly changed her clothes, and bounded down the stairs, meeting her mother and father for breakfast.

"Morning all." She said, putting on her cheerful hat. She sat down at the table and her mother placed a plate of toast and oatmeal in front of her. "Thanks."

"Morning, sweety." Said Taban, wolfing down bacon and eggs. "You and the princess still going on that trip to. um. hmm."

Lucca gave a faint smile and finished her father's sentence for him, "The shed."

"Oh! Right! What are you going to do down there, anyway?" asked Taban, finishing his bacon and eggs, rotating his plate, then starting on his sausage.

Lucca's eyes shifted side to side. "Heh, just some random experiment."

"Well, as long as you two are careful." said Lara, her voice thick with concern. "Accidents can happen"-she snapped her fingers-"like that."

"Don't worry." said Lucca. In truth, they were going to work on the Epoch some. After Lavos had been destroyed, and they used the Epoch to go after Crono's mom- a rather funny story in itself, making Lucca giggle to herself- it hadn't been working right. Taking one to 732 AD instead of 600 AD.

Lucca had promised herself that she would dismantle it, but. something might happen. in case of an emergency she had to keep it in tip-top shape.

Lucca began to eat her oatmeal quickly, and when she had finished it she moved onto the toast- t'was the inventor's way of eating, and Lara had scolded them many times, but gave up some time ago.

Just as she had put her dirty dishes in the sink, she heard a knock on the door.

"Perfect timing, Marle." Lucca thought. "I'll get it." Said Lucca, rhetorically. She jogged out of the kitchen, through the hallway, and into the "Entrance Hall" as she liked to call it. Lucca evaded the many cables as she made her way through the room and to the door, which was still being beaten. Lucca opened the door, to see Marle standing at the doorway, her hand still balled into the fist and up in the air, wearing her usual light blue pants and tube top, her hair up in a ponytail.

"I'm here!" she said, cheerfully.

"Finally!" said Lucca, grinning evilly to herself, "I've been up for HOURS waiting for you! I thought royalty had to get up at dawn."

Marle's face gained a slight pink tinge, and Lucca burst out laughing.

"Lucca!" said Marle, angrily, raising her fist to Lucca. "You KNOW I hate that." Lucca took off her glasses and wiped tears from her eyes, then set them back on her nose, and slid them up.

"And yet." she, said, giggling uncontrollably, "I continue. to do it." Marle smirked, and waited impatiently for Lucca to lead her to the Epoch.

"Come on. let's go to the shed. IT'S down there." Replied Lucca, leading Marle outside, and to the "hidden" wood shed in the backyard. The unused wood shed had become the Epoch's "hangar" of sorts, and it had been a miracle they got it down there in the first place.

Lucca ripped the tarp off of the time machine, in a graceful fashion, which ended up with the tarp covering up HER. Marle watched, biting her lip to keep from laughing, as Lucca ripped her way out of the large white sheet.

"Ta-da!" she said, her hands presenting the Epoch, with some of it's covers torn off, leaving wires exposed. Tools were strewn about, and Marle clapped excited.

"Wow!" exclaimed Marle. "It's all. in. pieces. I thought we were putting this thing in good condition, NOT dismantling it."

"Well. Gimme time. Besides. even if it were somewhat dismantled. I can do anything I want! I'M Lucca the Great!" said Lucca, giving a sinister cackle.

"Lucca the Insane, Eccentric, and Absent-Minded, maybe." replied Marle, dryly. Lucca sighed in exasperation.

"Crush my fun.Alright let's get to work."

***~***

MELCHIOR

Melchior, who had just turned 121 a week ago, picked up the hilt of the hot blade with a burnt towel.

"Here we go." muttered the ancient sage. He set the katana down in a large tub to let it cool, and steam hissed as cool water came into contact with the blade. "Now. I would have to say that THIS is one of my better masterpieces. I'd think that only the Masamune would be better than this."

Crono nodded in thanks as he watched his new sword cool. Melchior took a handkerchief out of his orange sash and dabbed his face, which was glistening with sweat.

"Well, that sword had everything I could toss into it, except Dreamstone, mind you. denadorite, rainbow shard. I hope it works out for you. it's a bit longer than the others I made for you."

"Thanks, I'm sure it'll be perfect." Crono said softly, in his usual quiet murmur.

"That Masamune. I wonder what EXACTLY happened to it. I can't be so sure." Melchior began in one of his incoherent ramblings. "Glenn." murmured Crono, quieter than usual... "What happened to you?"

***~~~***

LUCCA

"Are we done, yet?" whined Marle. "I wanna go home! Crono's probably already back at the castle!"

"Oh, hush, you! We're almost finished! Gawd, remind ME never to get married." Replied Lucca, in a voice not too quiet for Marle to hear.

"You never want to get married?" asked Marle, rather shocked.

"No. but I do want to have a child. a girl. and I'd name her Kid." said Lucca, mostly to herself.

"But. you usually have to have one with the other. unless you kill your husband after you have the child. And, wait, Kid?!" asked Marle, incredulously. "Pfft.!" Lucca dropped the small hammer she was using.

"ExCUSE me?! Did you just 'pfft' my child's name?!" asked Lucca, somewhat hurt.

"Well. you know. it's not really a. common name."

"It was my grandmother's name, thank you very much!" said Lucca, matter-of- factly. She resumed working, but only for a few minutes, those few moments going silent. "Oh! Done!"

"Wha-? Finished? What about all the exposed wires and other. things?"

"Those'll take five minutes to fix up." Said Lucca, waving that aside.

"Does this mean I get to go home now?" asked Marle, hopefully, looking outside, to the setting sun.

"Sure, go ahead." Lucca set down her hammer, and picked up a screwdriver, and starting to reattach the casing. Marle ran out of the woodshed, leaving Lucca to her thoughts- mostly on marriage.