Surprisingly, the princess was true to her word after all. It weighed heavily on Frog's mind throughout the whole week that Princess Nadia would need further persuasion to abandon their designs. Sure enough, like any other week, it came and it had gone. There were no more survivors. There were no more bodies. The coastline was free from anything but wild beasts who most likely fed themselves on any bodies that no one had the chance to recover and bury. The people of the village began to be more and more cheerful and nightly they would gather together outside (for the winds had almost completely stopped at this point) and it was warm enough that people didn't have to wear their heavy mantles by the fire anymore. The gentle, but unyielding warmth of the sun began to lighten people's hopes and it seemed to make them feel better about the future ahead of them. Perhaps the general mood had an adverse effect on Princess Nadia, because at that moment she was packing her things without a word.

She said nothing at all. Whenever anyone asked her a question she would nod or shake her head in response. Lucca was almost the same way in her replies when she was preparing. Ayla was unusually somber whenever she spoke and she always spoke quietly. Robo, who usually did not fully comprehend the complexities of human emotion, was very careful not to put anything bluntly. As for Frog, he had a strange feeling brewing within him. It wasn't like the others. He felt reluctance to leave, yes; but with that was a feeling of anxiety. It felt like something was going to happen today. He gripped the hilt of his sword and he turned to every single sound with a startled expression. The others had noticed, but only attributed his reaction to the cause of their reactions. Nothing was said.

All five of them left the hut and went out into the open. If they weren't so exhausted and disheveled by their recent experiences, they would have taken a look at the sky that was nothing but cloudy before. A warm sun beamed down on them and it made the thick snow glow under its bask. Little children (whether it was Earthbound children or children from the kingdom of Zeal, there was no animosity between children anymore) played together as the grown-ups went about to bring further order to their world. Already there were dirt roads cleared of snow that led from one hut to another. The party did take note of a large building that was being constructed from stone and a strange sense of nostalgia filled them as they looked at it.

"Hold." Frog said.

He walked towards the site and looked at it. The foundation was being laid at the moment and a few walls were set up only a few feet off the ground. The party had followed him and had become stunned when they realized that some people were constructing church paraphernalia. Frog saw a man that they all knew off in the distance. It was the same man who pulled them ashore after the fall of the Zeal Kingdom. He was the elder of the village, or the chieftain if you will, and he was observing the work on the foundation. Frog stood behind him and cleared his throat for his attention.

The elder spun around. He was an old man with a long, wispy, white beard. His eyes drooped and he had wild eyebrows that seemed to stand up wherever they wanted to be. He was adorned in a thick mantle like most of the people in the village, except he carried a sturdy wooden staff to support himself. His voice was slow and raspy, but it was gentle and soothing to listen to as well. He smiled as he greeted all of his friends, "Ah, it is the heroes of Guardia!" They were all taken aback by such a familiar name spoken in such a place. "How do you know of it?" Said Frog. It was not known among any others that they had control over time and used it to set off on a quest, and they were shocked to hear him mention their hometown. The old man's face contorted in confusion, "What do you mean, 'how do you know of it?'" The elder pointed with his staff to the foundation and said, "This is a church that we are building so that people can be comforted in these dark times, but it is only the beginning."

He hobbled along the site while the party followed. He stopped in front of a man who was wearing the same kind of clothes as the elder, but he wore a gold bracelet that was made in the Kingdom of Zeal. "This is an architect that worked with the three sages on various projects." The man extended his hand to Princess Nadia, trying to tactfully ignore Frog. He smiled brightly to the group and seemed very enthusiastic. "Yes, yes! You may not remember me, but I am one of the hundreds that you saved. Thank you so much for saving me!"

Frog simply ignored him back and talked to the elder and asked him what the beginning was and what was to come next. The elder laughed, "Ho, ho! I'm sorry! I'm getting ahead of myself!" Just as quickly as he had led them around, he took on a reverent tone of voice as he explained what his words meant. He walked along as he spoke. "Everyone was devastated by the fall of the kingdom of Zeal. True the gifted ones had the hardest blow, but it came hard to the earthbound as well. Tidal waves engulfed entire villages in other places. The tidal wave had destroyed the order of the old tribes. Not only that, but the government of Zeal had lost its leaders in the fray. Over these last few weeks the eldest of both groups gathered together nightly to decide on an action. We decided to build a new kingdom that will rival the Kingdom of Zeal itself in all its glory!"

A wave of understanding and amazement had come over the party. Marle, who hadn't said a single word that whole morning, stated what was slowly starting to become obvious, "So, since we are the heroes of Guardia…You must mean that that is the name of the new kingdom?" The rest of the party felt chills going up their spines (except Robo of course, who had no spine) and it felt like such an honor to see the very construction of history in the making. The elder nodded in reply, "We have no time to waste, because the lifeblood of the peoples' magic is beginning to fade from them."

"But why?" Lucca asked.

It was the man from Zeal who could answer this question. He looked sorrowful as if he had committed a great sin and was going through confession. "The people of my kingdom had grown lazy from having such power given to them. We no longer needed to do anything. For hundreds of years, while the earthbound people toiled with their hands, we relied on the power of Lavos to supply us. We grew careless and our powers had atrophied. Had we used our own power and not the power from the Mammon machine we could have kept it and strengthened it through our bloodline. Since we had not, and relied on an unsafe power, we had forgotten how to strengthen and retain our skills."

Ayla rubbed her forehead in confusion and growled. The man looked at her and realized she didn't understand. "Let me explain it this way: if a wolf becomes a mother, she needs to teach her children how to hunt, correct?" Ayla nodded. "Well, what if they became dependent on a stronger animal to feed them and the mother never taught her children? Once the stronger animal leaves once the mother is dead and the children are all grown up, will they know how to hunt?" Ayla clapped her hands and smiled broadly, and the man saw that she understood. "We are foolish cubs who were too lazy to do things ourselves, and our punishment is this. Now we are a burden and can do nothing but try to do what we can through instincts. We must do what we can before our magic fades. In the end, it is better this way. There will be nothing to separate us when we finally all learn to live together."

"Aye. It is well. I respect thy resolve. And I wish you all well." Frog said, giving them a nonchalant wave farewell.

"Are you leaving?" asked the elder.

"Yes."

"But where can you possibly go? There is no other place!"

"No," interrupted Robo, "there is a place, but only we can go."

The elder chuckled as he shook his head. "I could never understand just what you guys were up to, so I will let you do whatever is needed. I only wished we could have helped you find your friend." There was an awkward silence among them all at his mention of Crono. He quickly tried to remedy this with something he suddenly remembered. "Are you taking that apparatus with you by any chance?" He pointed over a hill to where a ship lay in wait to take them beyond the flow of time. It was a beautiful device designed by one of the wise men of Zeal and it carried the name Epoch. Lucca answered in the affirmative as the man nodded in understanding and added, "Before you leave, you should visit someone that has been asking for you."

The attention of the party instantly became piqued at the mention of someone looking for them. The women of the group even went as far to think it was Crono, but quickly realized that if that were the case the elder would have told them a long time ago. If Frog had eyebrows, they would have risen at that moment. "Do you know the identity of the man?" The elder shook his head, "No sir. This man was different. Something was strange about this one. He almost seemed unworldly and malicious. If I were you, I wouldn't go." Frog held his chin as he had always done whenever he was deep in thought. Suddenly, he remembered how he felt earlier that morning and felt that this was somehow connected. In fact, a strange sense of anxiety flooded into him as he thought of it.

"Frog? Are we going?"

"What?" He asked.

"Are we going?" Asked Lucca.

"What is it thou asketh of me? Am I now the leader of this party?" He said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

"Yes." Ayla replied.

"Crono had always asked you what should happen next if he could never think of anything." Marle added.

"A knight has far more tactical insight than any of us possess." Robo added. "You are the natural choice."

At that moment the anxiety seemed to turn sour in his stomach. Frog was the type of person that would bravely follow anyone into battle, but he never was willing to lead someone into something that was dangerous. Crono had done that, but he was able to atone for it with his life. Would Frog be capable of that same sacrifice? Was this anxiety nothing? Would it really be safe to pursue something that stirred Frog so much in the soul? What if it resulted in another death? What if this was really important? What if it could be Crono (as absurd as that could be)? So many questions went into him that he felt paralyzed with choices. Thankfully, a member of the group suggested that it was most likely nothing. That helped Frog enough insomuch that he agreed to visit whoever was hunting them out.

As the party moved towards the Epoch, Frog whispered to himself, "Mayhaps it is nothing but sorrow I feel…Strange sorrow…"

It was always exhilarating to fly in the Epoch. Sometimes you would fly alongside a group of birds as you zoomed past clouds and the birds didn't seem to care about your presence. The land below had small spots of green poking out from underneath the snow, so the party had realized for the first time that the world had already begun to change. Lucca was the aviator, being the most able of all of them to drive, and she did so expertly. They all almost forgot their sorrow as she would dive close to the surface of the sea and let the wing dip into the surf. Finally, the appointed meeting place came into view. The elder had said that there was an old place to the north that had once been a place of prophesies to the old tribes. It had long been forgotten and only become a part of ancient history. From the sky there was someone visible who was looking back at them.

"Who is that?" Marle asked, her nose pressed against the dome-shaped window.

"Why don't you ask him?" said Lucca with a smirk as she tipped the Epoch so that Marle fell against the window.

Marle shrieked and the party laughed as she realized that the window was unbreakable. That didn't stop her from rapping Lucca on the head.

It was a ways off, but they couldn't land any closer to the cliff. The snow here had fully melted, because blades of grass were seen all around them, but it was frozen in the dew of the morning. Even a flower (which the girls felt happy to see) had begun to grow amid the cold conditions. Frog led the way as the path inclined slightly and went up a while. Finally, the point of the cliff and a solitary figure could be seen. Whoever it was, he wore a long mantle that flowed out behind him as the cold ocean breeze went through him and the innumerable blades of grass. As they got closer, they began to realize who it was. How could they not see it before? A huge scythe was in his hand, with the handle's end buried in the ground. A flow of blue, silvery hair flapped in the wind. A bare arm was pale white as if he had frozen during his wait. Unfortunately, he had not.

"I've been waiting for you…" His voice was cold and low and had no hint of emotion in it.

Frog felt his hand instinctively fly for his sword. That feeling of anxiety was suddenly replaced with a vile hatred that seemed to ooze from every faucet of his being. His gloved hands (which hid from his own eyes the curse that had caused him a life-time of torment) tightened around the one sword that was fabled to bring the death of a mystic as powerful as this. He was not the only one who greeted the mystery guest like this. The whole party stood poised with their weapons bared. The figure only turned about to face them, his hood still covering his face. With a quick motion he grabbed the fastener of his mantle and let it fly off, letting it blow past Frog as brushed his leg. (He did not pay it any mind and only kept his eyes on the owner)

There he stood. A man that had caused the death of countless people in a war that was only for his selfish ambitions. He was a man devoid of all feeling and a man of powerful magic that was strong enough to bring fear of his opponents. Yet, he was a defeated man. A tired man. And it showed somehow. He was not smirking in a taunting manner as he did the first time they met. He almost seemed melancholy as he turned around to face the sea, turning his back on his enemies that had their weapons drawn. Frog glared as he hissed out his name as vehemently as his companions had ever heard him say it.

"Magus…"