Janus: "Why do you put me through this?"
Weiila: "I had to do it somehow! Sorry, I don't like it that much either."
Janus: *sighs* "Oh well, could be worse I suppose."
Magus: "Oh yes, it sure could. Quit yapping and get in there."
Chapter 21, Trap of Lavos
Protected as he was by his spells, the storm didn't concern the royal wizard much. The other, mental wind did however, no matter how he tried to shake it off. The black wind was howling and crying in his mind all the while, knowing that disaster approached.
'I know, damn it! Will you shut up?'
So many deaths… wasted for their own selfish goals, it's terrible, terrible…
Janus grimaced and walked on. Listening to Flea commenting on his memories actually became a nice change as he didn't have much else to do than listen to the voices trying to overpower each other inside his mind.
'What was your Flea thinking? This one is even more horrible, he's got no style!'
'Ah, that,' Janus thought about the furry creature, 'quite nasty indeed.'
'What the heck is it supposed to be? Lizards doesn't have hair!'
'He seemed to like lizards.'
'Geez… and this one, what in Magician's name…?'
'Now that's the strangest one yet,' the Pawn acknowledged.
'No, it's still better than that last one,' the Prince stated.
And so on. The whole discussion was most certainly based much on the fact that they all were growing tired with listening to the black wind.
Janus smirked a bit at the whole argument and looked up, through the snow finally seeing two shadows in the distance.
"Glad you could make it," Janus softly said as his and Schala's fire spells merged around the three humans and the cat, doubling the protection against the snowstorm.
"Dalton and mother have been acting strange, I think they know something…" she said in a low voice, nervously taking his hands.
He nodded.
"The one-eyed scum almost caught me and my friends as we left the palace," he told her, guessing that she hadn't been informed, "and the timelines are against us. Dalton usually gets his way."
"Let us try to break it, then," she said with a hint of the bravery she'd fully awaken soon enough.
Janus nodded and let go of her sitting down on one knee in the ankle high snow to look at the boy.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"Yeah…" the child mumbled, hugging Alfador tightly though.
"You'll be fine, I promise."
The wizard smiled faintly, then closed his eyes and mumbled the teleporting spell, bringing them back to the chief's cave.
The earthbound ones almost fell over of the surprise, along with Crono, the two blond ladies and Melchior.
"What was that?" Schala asked, almost sharply looking at Janus, "that wasn't a human spell…"
He shook his head with a slight grimace.
"Alas," he said, "my teacher passed on spells learnt from a monster."
Schala opened her mouth again, but everyone else came in between.
"Janus!"
"Princess Schala, prince Janus, why have you come to this filthy cave?"
"Princess?!"
All pretty much at the same time.
"Melchior, what are you doing here?" Schala asked, smiling.
'Here we go again…' Flea briskly said.
Janus ignored the magician and glanced at the prince from the corner of his eye. The child shuffled over to a corner, hugging his pet even closer and looking quite tense.
'Better keep an eye on him,' the wizard concluded.
'Hmm…' the Prince said.
'What's "hmm"?' Janus asked, tensing and mentally reaching for his staff.
'It's just strange that she… never mind, it's nothing.'
'No, what?' the Pawn frowned.
The Prince shook his head.
'She probably just didn't hear the chief call his home filthy. It's nothing.'
'You mean about her comf…'
"You have to stop… my mother."
Janus made a warning gesture to his fellow time travelers and turned towards the entrance.
Three, two, one…
"Well, well, well…"
Dalton stepped through the cave opening. The earthbound ones pressed themselves against the wall, knowing him all too well from stories.
"What do we have here?" he said with a smirk, "a treacherous princess and a man who calls himself Cyrus. Delighted to see you again."
He looked past the wizard, even though Janus had spent the little threat speech bringing forth his staff.
"And you, my dear," he said, "your mother will hear about this, once we're in the Ocean Palace."
Janus heard the shuffling of Schala's robes as she backed.
"Can it already," the wizard growled and warningly changed the grip of his staff, "you're not getting her as long as I stand here."
'Might as well challenge fate while I'm in a good position for it,' he grunted with a mental roll of his eyes.
"You stand there, eh?" Dalton said with a smirk, "will you finally tell me your name, or do I have to put you inside a proper pyramid?"
"No need for that," Janus said with the hint of a sneer, "you may know now, as you found out last I was in this cave, thirteen years of my lifetime ago."
Dalton perked an eyebrow, and his gaze slowly but steadily wandered towards the corner where the prince now stood, hatefully glaring at him.
"Janus, get over there, it's safer," the wizard said, gesturing deeper into the cave.
The prince hesitated for a moment before he hurried over to the more crowded area, even if he most certainly didn't like it.
'Behind Schala, of course,' the Prince reported as Janus didn't feel like looking around, 'not the best pick but better.'
"What was that supposed to mean?" Dalton suspiciously said.
"I think you've figured it out already," the wizard said with the dry sneer, "I am Janus, from the future."
He lashed out his staff and Dalton took a step backwards before he could stop himself as one of the blades stopped just a few inches from his chest.
"And don't you even bother to give me that pathetic speech about me not really wanting to kill you due to Zealan belief about spilling own blood," the wizard said in a hiss, "I know who you are to me and I don't give a damn. You don't have anything against killing your own son, so why should I care about my father?"
There was a murmur of surprise behind him. Dalton's sole eye narrowed.
"So, so… Janus, you say?" he said, once again shifting between interest and anger.
"I see you still don't quite believe what I say," the grown prince said, helplessly a bit amused.
"It does seem more believable than your Cyrus tale," the general admitted, eying the man before him, "but you're nothing like the little brat I know."
"I know."
Had Frog or any other of the friends of the wizard seen Janus' smirk, they would have begun wondering who he was. Luckily, only Dalton and the spirits did see.
'There's hope for you yet,' the Prince mildly said while the general moved into a defensive stance.
'Blasphemy. And there's no room to fight in here.'
"How about we explore the differences between him and me, Dalton?" he said aloud though, and the smirk was hinted in his voice.
But only hinted, less he'd make his friends quite nervous.
Dalton growled something and threw out his hand, hurling a fireball against the wizard. Janus leaped backwards and swung his staff, sending the attack into the wall and thus harming none.
"This is how its done!" he snarled, "na farey tlo!"
The staff hit the ground and a second later Dalton furiously chanted a water spell to put out the flames in his cloak. Janus just stood there, tapping his foot scornfully while his father spat curses over him.
Finally the general managed to save his clothes and glared at the wizard.
"You'll regret that dearly," he promised in a growling voice.
"If I had a coin for every time an idiot like you had said that to me…" Janus snorted and got back in fighting stance, "you started it, don't blame me."
"Trust me," Dalton said and raised his hands, "this is the final time you hear it."
'Same fool as ever…' Janus thought with a roll of his eyes, this time ready and with pure will smashing the three walls trying to catch him.
'Hey…' the Prince suddenly growled.
"What are you doing, Schala?!" Marle shouted.
"Aaargh!"
The staff clanked against the floor as Janus' feet left it, his arms pressed down along his body by turquoise, flaring ropes erupting from Schala's hands.
'What the hell?!'
Melchior and the earthbound ones stumbled away from the princess as her beautiful features turned cruel in a sinister smirk, followed by a cold laugh free of any pity.
'This is bad, really, really bad!' Janus growled through the searing pain, more commenting on his own foolishness than the situation.
'Guys, sad to say it but we majorly suck,' Flea growled, 'can't even tell Schala from her mother…'
'I can't believe we didn't notice it!' the Pawn roared in outrage.
'She's clever,' the Prince snarled, 'or rather, he is.'
The purple robes melted to a heavy cloak and the thick blue curls straightened out as queen Zeal revealed herself. The small prince Janus didn't move, staring at nothing with empty eyes. The cat in his grip seemed pretty lifeless as well.
'This is ridiculous, we should have been able to sense it!' the Pawn growled.
'I guess we were focusing on Dalton a little too much,' Flea grunted, grimly shaking his head, 'there're flaws in our tactic…'
Janus couldn't reply as he couldn't straight any longer. Faintly he saw his three companions get ready to attack the queen, but she looked around at them with a smirk.
"Stone age," she snickered, "oh please, don't give me any trouble and your friend here might even live for another five minutes."
'I… can't… believe… I… did… it… again!' cracked its way through Janus' melting brain as Crono ruefully sheathed his sword, Marle lowered her bow and Ayla sunk down on all four like a panther, hissing.
'Well, it wasn't on purpose this time, at least,' the Prince grunted, moving his hands in a complicated pattern.
Janus' skin suddenly turned numb as his oldest mirror snapped his fingers. The pain was still there, but it seemed it couldn't really reach him.
'Thanks…'
'I experimented with a painkiller after a meeting with a dragon,' the Prince grunted, 'now, how are we getting you out of this one?'
'I guess something just will have to come up… crachert!' Janus growled as his parents stepped up in front of him, both smirking evilly.
"When Schala and Janus suddenly disappeared it wasn't hard to realize something was going on," Dalton smugly explained without questioning, "and they weren't exactly moving quicker than my men could catch up with. Then it wasn't hard to guess where they had been going, even if they wouldn't talk."
Janus could only try to look like he was still in pain, glaring at the two through slit eyelids.
'Prisoner again…' he bitterly thought.
"Sometimes you better do things by yourself," the queen said in a dangerously soft voice, raising her hand, "my own Janus, all grown up… fascinating…"
Her hand felt like a set of daggers against his forehead.
'Guys, I have a bad feeling,' Flea hissed, 'really baaaaugh!'
'Flea!' the Prince shouted, then his voice too turned into a roar of pain.
"And just what is this?" Zeal said, intrigued.
Twitching in agony the spirits were torn out of Janus' head, encircled by the same kind of lightning as him. Many gasps of shock were heard, but three of them were aimed only at the Mystic.
"This is just getting more and more intriguing I say," Zeal smirked
"It's not doing much of a change but I'm very glad Frog isn't here…" Flea cringed, snarling as he tried to break free.
"Can you be serious just for one single second?!" the Pawn growled.
"I'm not…"
Flea's voice trailed off as his former leader let out a slurring groan and fell over, if that was the word in his tied up state. The queen's hand floated above the heavy blue stream that was his hair.
"Hey!" the pink skinned magician snarled, "get your grubby hands off him!"
"This one is weaker," the queen purred, ignoring Flea completely.
The Prince's head went up due to the queen's grip of his chin. His eyes were closed.
"Still quite… tasty."
"Lavos…"
The hoarse whisper was hardly audible, and also quite needless.
Flea's eyes caught a dangerous glow deep below the grimace of pain.
"I said," he growled, "get your hands off my Janus you parasite!"
"Aren't we perky?" Dalton scornfully said.
"We're perky and I spent a good part of eternity chewing on my fingers for his sake, I'm not even talking to you!" the magician snapped.
His easily said improper for the situation and silly behavior caused everyone to be caught off guard as he suddenly shot forward through the air and tackled the queen away from the Prince. She stumbled backwards with a growl.
"Urgh…"
Shaking his head the old king of Mystics regained his senses.
"Ain't leaving ya hanging now," Flea muttered with a tiny smile before Dalton swatted him away like a big fly.
"Now!" Janus shouted.
With a growl Crono leaped forwards and clung his arm around Zeal's shoulders while pressing his katana against her neck. She snarled as the cold metal touched her skin and even Dalton was caught off guard, staring at the youngster who had managed to get a deadly grip of the queen.
You might be able to electrify me with one movement, Crono growled, but I'll most possibly be able to cut you before that...
'Let's just hope Lavos doesn't realize that the boy probably can't bring himself to do it like that…' Janus thought, mentally wincing.
"What are you doing, parasite?" the Prince scorned, even if his voice was hoarse, "risking your fine vessel?"
Zeal growled.
"You will come for your precious sister in any case," she said with a dangerous glistening in her eyes, watching Janus, "then I will have you all!"
She snarled the teleportation spell and Crono stumbled forwards as she disappeared. With a short Zealan curse Dalton followed her, glaring at Janus.
The ropes disappeared and the four that had been bound thumped against the floor, in the wizard's case gasping for air. That had been quite a strain.
"Managed to keep him away from you at least," Janus grunted to his old teacher, who grimly nodded as he stood.
"Wouldn't have been pretty if he had sensed himself inside of my mind. I've got to find Molor and get rid of him soon…"
"Uh, Janus…?" Marle's voice said.
He looked up.
"Yeah, hello to you too," Flea said with a grimace, leaning his head in his palm with the elbow on his bent knee cutely.
Janus sighed.
"Not a word to Frog, understand?" he grunted, "he'd go ballistic if he knew I'm walking around with that in my head."
"I am not a 'that'!"
The Prince stood with a rather dangerous growl.
"He managed to disguise her as Schala, and now he knows we're here," he said, "pathetic!"
"At least we got out of there, thanks Crono," Janus muttered, trying to smile a bit at the young man who still glared suspiciously at Flea.
"We'll have to hurry," the Pawn grimly said, "or he will take his chance to kill the boy as he knows that he's a threat."
"Why is Flea here?" Marle asked.
"He's different from the one you know," Janus calmed his friends.
"Nobody's feeding anyone to Lavos in this time stream either," the Prince growled and threw an irritated glance aside, "not even Flea."
The magician looked up with a silly smile and wide open eyes.
"Oh, my lord," he cooed, "I didn't know you cared!"
"And if you call me that again I'll make sure Lavos chokes on you," he frostily replied.
"Call you what?" Flea innocently said, "you mean 'my Janus'? Hurk!"
"You. Heard. Me."
"Yessir!"
"Good. Now, we don't have time for this, the boy is already in danger."
Still holding Flea's throat in one hand the Prince disappeared back into Janus' head, followed by his mirror. The wizard looked at his friends, reaching out for his staff.
"I'll explain on the way through the Ocean palace, I promise!" he said, urgently, "but we have to hurry now or the prince and Schala might die!"
Hanging around with you is quite freaky, Crono said with a smirk as he sheathed his sword, but it sure never gets boring… let's go, people!
Marle and Ayla nodded, determined.
"Wait a second," Melchior mildly said, reaching into his robes, "this should be able to help you."
He pulled out a dagger with a strangely reddish blade. Crono took it with a questioning look.
"It's made in the same material as the Mammon machine," the guru explained with a smile, "it might help you. Good luck everyone, you're our only hope now."
We'll do our best, Crono grimly promised.
He put the dagger in his belt and exchanged glances with his friends.
Let's go, Janus.
"Alright…"
'You'll do your best, all right,' the wizard sadly thought, clenching his teeth as he began muttering the spell, concentrating on Schala's room in the palace.
"And Janus better tell Ayla and other what monster do in his head or Ayla will have to cave it in!" the cave woman stated as the light swept around them and the earthbound ones called their good lucks.
Janus smiled a bit.
"I will, I will…"