Orion vaulted out of the Wings of Time and waited to hear Alpha land beside him. After a moment he looked down into the Ark and felt his heart wrench. Alpha was still seated, shoulders slumped, with the most pitiful expression upon his amphibian features.
"Come, my friend," Orion said softly as he offered his hand.
Alpha looked up, squared his shoulders and leaped to Orion's side. They walked down the corridor to Gaspar's lamp post in companionable silence.
Ariel and Elora immediately raced over and began raining kisses down on Alpha's cheeks.
"He's still cute in a froggy kinda way..." Elora noted to Ariel.
"Yeah, and his eyes are now a dreamy golden yellow," Ariel responded.
"He's a lot easier to kiss when he's this height," Elora commented as she planted another kiss on Alpha's left cheek.
"Hmph! I guess it wasn't my kiss that uncursed him before..." Ariel pouted as she kissed his right cheek.
Orion simply stood
to one side and beamed. Prime started to ask something and finished
by shaking his head in his confusion. Gaspar smiled ever so slightly.
Magus regarded the girls as if they had completely lost their minds.
He swallowed convulsively a few times.
"Are you mad?
He's a slimy, hideous frog!" he roared.
"He's not slimy!" Ariel retorted. She ran one hand lightly over the top of Alpha's hairless head. "'Tis smooth and cool," she placed a gentle kiss there.
Alpha just stood there with his mouth open, stunned to depths of his soul.
"Girls!" Orion said, mock-severely. "How many times must I ask you? Are you quite finished?" He echoed his question from when they had greeted Glenn in his human form for the first time.
"Nope!" Ariel asserted. "He's my own dear frog-knight!" She kissed his cheek again.
"Who knows? Maybe a hundred kisses, or a thousand will break Magus' curse. Can it hurt to try?" Elora added as she too kissed Alpha.
"That does not make sense..." Prime began.
"I assure you silly girls, my curse cannot be broken by kisses, but only by my death!" Magus stated severely.
"You did this to him!" Ariel flashed in anger as she turned on him. "Don't tempt me or I will end Alpha's curse again. Now, shut up and let us greet our friend! Thank you, Glenn, for...for rescuing..." her voice trailed off as her eyes widened in sorrow.
She leaned over and hugged Alpha. "You are not hideous to me," she whispered to him. He blinked. Elora whispered something that made him blush.
"Do not despair, Glenn. I've seen in many times and places, people who will help all of you in your quest. They help whether you are a frog or a man. There are generous hearts in your future," Gaspar notified him.
"There are enough of them right here," Alpha rasped as he subtly turned toward his friends and away from Magus.
"Indeed," Gaspar replied as he locked eyes on Magus.
"As touching as this revolting reunion is to you, we've still got to find out what happened to Schala. Before we go gallivanting through time and space, I need to return to my castle. As the Prophet I did not wear armor or carry a weapon. I must retrieve my magic books as well," Magus informed them.
"What a lovely way he has of asking for help," Ariel noted sarcastically to everyone else. "I've no desire to travel with him more than necessary. Who will take him on his errand?"
********
The Wings of Time materialized over Magus' castle. Orion and Alpha leaped down in their customary way as Magus levitated down. As soon as Magus' feet touched the ground he screamed and fell over.
Alpha reacted a fraction quicker than Orion, lifting Magus' head and shoulders and clearing the pale blue hair from Magus' face. Orion drew Rainbow and circled, scanning desperately for Magus' attacker. Noticing nothing he resheathed his sword before coming to Alpha's side. Alpha likewise did not see anything obvious but Slurped Magus just in case.
"He's breathing," Orion said helplessly.
"'Tis almost as if he wert knocked unconscious," Alpha noted. "But he did not hit his head..." he trailed off.
"...do...you think it could be...Schala? She's been trying so hard to reach him that you and Ariel were receiving...some kind of overflow. Do you think maybe her message is so...urgent that it could do this?" Orion asked hesitantly.
"Aye. That seemeth quite plausible. Well, if 'tis so, Magus wilt not be o'erjoyed to waken in mine arms," Alpha jested as he carefully laid Magus on the ground. He removed his cloak, folded it into a pillow and placed it under Magus' head.
"Let us withdraw somewhat, so as not to startleth him when he awakes," Alpha whispered. He and Orion stepped back a few paces, half-turned from Magus and conversed together in low tones.
A quarter of an hour later, Magus woke, sat up and gazed into space for a moment. He rose, gathered up the cloak and walked over to Alpha and Orion. Without a word he handed the cloak to Alpha. He ran his fingers through his hair and brushed his shoulders off.
"It was the force of Schala's messages that...inconvenienced me, not anything your accursed 'Slurp' could have fixed. Didn't I warn you about this once?" Magus glared at Alpha. "Schala is in some terrible danger, but she fears more strongly for our world. She's concerned about some 'Dread Lord' changing the past, present and future. I don't think she means Lavos. I couldn't understand all of her messages...undoubtedly from the frog's interference, receiving what was not directed to him, but that can't be helped. Perhaps Gaspar can more clearly read the time lines now that Schala's messages aren't cluttering them. I still need to retrieve my equipment," Magus explained, then turned and walked off.
"Orion?" Alpha asked as he donned his cloak. "Ere I try'eth to do something nice for him again," he indicated Magus' retreating back, "Do thou slap'eth me silly!"
********
"Ah, home!" Magus said as he breathed deep.
Orion tossed a startled glance to Alpha who only lifted his shoulders in a 'I know'eth not' expression. Magus did honestly seem to be comfortable in the dark, moody, brooding edifice.
"Well then," Magus said sourly. "Follow me. I guess it doesn't matter much now if you see some of the secret passages."
He walked over to one of the hideous paintings on the wall, it looked like it was painted by a talented, but insane, artist who had set his easel on a hill in hell, and pushed a concealed switch. Part of the wall swung open.
Magus lead them
through a maze of concealed passages. Occasionally, Orion and Alpha
would recognize part of some of the corridors they passed through, but
most of the journey was through new territory.
"Stop!"
Magus held up a gloved hand to halt their progress. "Do you hear
something?"
"Aye. It seem'eth to be coming from here," Alpha agreed pointing toward a side passage.
Magus brusquely pushed pass him and down the passageway. He pushed another hidden switch and the wall opened. Orion and Alpha followed Magus out into the room, blinking in the stronger light.
Magus strode over to a curious lump on the floor. The lump was groaning and writhing about. Magus pushed at it with the toe of one boot.
"Ozzie," He spat out in explanation. "What a waste of time! Come, we have a fair amount of distance to go yet," he swirled his cloak as he wheeled sharply and re-entered the secret corridor.
Orion and Alpha looked up and took note of the rectangular hole some fifty feet above them.
"He'll live," Orion said, noting the vigorous movements Ozzie made in his pain. "We better follow Magus before he loses us."
The secret panel swung softly after them and closed with a tiny click.
"T...traitor!" Ozzie lifted his head and called weakly after Magus before slumping again to the floor.
********
"I guess I don't need the books on Lavos anymore," Magus remarked later in his library. "'Advanced Theory of Magic', 'Mystic Uses for Practical Objects', 'The Grim Reaper's Grimoire', 'Curse Me Once, Curse Me Twice, Do Not Ever Curse Me Thrice'...yes, I think I shall need these again," Magus muttered as he tossed the books in his pack.
"This one," he held up the slim book of curses, "Alpha should find interesting reading. It is, after all how he became the frog he is today!" Magus sneered. Orion smashed him up against the wall, the bared length of Rainbow threatening Magus' neck.
"I spoke with you once about respecting Alpha or holding your tongue. I shall not warn you a third time," Orion promised in a low tone. He pulled his sword from Magus' throat and slammed the mage into the workbench. He turned to wipe his blade on a piece of parchment before sheathing it.
Magus touched his throat and drew back gloved fingertips tinted with blood. His eyes promised mayhem as he dabbed his neck with a cloth. He then reached down and retrieved the book of curses. He regarded Orion for a long moment from under veiled eyes, smiled tightly and flipped through the book.
"Magus..." Alpha warned. "Think'eth it not!"
Orion turned to see what was going on behind him.
"Very well," Magus grumbled returning the book to his pack. "Another time, boy!" he promised under his breath.
"Well, I am finished here," Magus said a few moments later. "My armor and scythe are in the next room. I should not need to warn you, most of the flasks contain poison, acid and other such pleasant fluids. Touch them at your own risk!" he swept from the room.
"I don't think I even want to know what he would have cursed me into," Orion noted lightly.
"'Tis no laughing
matter!" Alpha remonstrated.
"I know...part
of me is shaking pretty badly. I think...I hope Magus was only kidding...I
don't think I could bear up as you have," Orion admitted softly.
Alpha blinked at Orion's candor and cleared his throat. "Yes, well, hmmm. What is taking him so long?"
Alpha walked across the room and opened the chamber door. Magus stood in the center of the room holding his pack, scythe and armor. It looked as though he had been walking toward the door when something on the wall arrested his attention. Alpha walked up to his side, noted his gaze and followed its line to the wall.
"Schala!" he breathed in wonder.
A life-size portrait of Schala graced Magus' wall. It showed her in exquisite detail, her quiet beauty, the tilt of her head, the concern in her eyes. She appeared to be looking just over the viewer's shoulder, almost as if at any moment she would refocus her eyes and smile warmly at him. Orion stood next to Alpha and studied the realistic portrait also. He noticed how a cat he recognized as Alfador, rubbed against her right ankle.
Orion looked side-long at Magus' face and saw the longing of a little boy for his older sister as well as a thoroughly adult resolve. The resolve was nothing new, but the vulnerability made him realize that Magus probably had been teasing about cursing him in the other room. He hoped.
"We...we should go...Gaspar might have some news..." he began.
"Yes," Magus shook as if he was waking from a dream. "We've dawdled here long enough. I must find Schala!" he turned to leave the room.
"Magus?" Alpha asked softly. "Who paint'eth this likeness?"
"I...I did, years ago. Why?" Magus asked defensively. "Do not dare to insult..."
"You have remarkable talent," Alpha commented as he stepped out of the room.
"She does look real," Orion agreed as he too left the room.
Magus turned back for one last look. "If only she were..."
"The time lines have cleared dramatically. I dare say Schala does not realize her own power! She never emerged from the Ocean Palace and yet the...thread that is her life was not...cut, indicating her death. Forgive me, but it is hard to explain the intricacies of Time in everyday terms," Gaspar admitted as he shifted the bowler on his head.
"Thou doth quite well, we can follow thee," Alpha assured him.
"When Orion was killed out of time by Lavos, it was as if the thread that is his life was cut out of the fabric of Time. The threads touching his began to fall apart from the pattern, like cloth unraveling. I cannot track an individual thread, or life, but I can sense gross disturbances in the whole of the fabric and track them to their source. Restoring the thread of Orion's life restored the weave of the fabric. By this I knew Orion's death was out of its normal time and my Chrono Trigger might work," Gaspar paused and look at each face in turn to make certain he hadn't lost anyone. He resumed talking. "Janus' death took longer to similarly affect the fabric, Schala's need for him is all that is untimely in his death. If not for her, Janus' death would not matter to the weave of Time. Schala is crucial for the time line we are in to continue at all. Her descendants are critical forces throughout the weave of the fabric of this time stream. If she is not restored, this reality will collapse. Not only her descendants, but the whole of this time line will disappear," Gaspar finished.
"So Magus doesn't matter for himself, but merely for his sister," Ariel said.
Magus simply stared at her expressionlessly.
"The death of anyone affects us all. Usually not in a good way," Gaspar noted quietly. Ariel had the grace to look ashamed at her nasty comment.
"At least, princess, my entire existence does not rely on my sister. I promise to remember all your lovely comments fondly if we should fail. I would be one of the very few who remembers the fact you existed at all," Magus sneered. "Bah! If not for my sister I'd not waste my time. A spoiled, vapid princess such as you is entirely beneath my notice."
"You!" Ariel sputtered as she launched herself physically at Magus.
He reacted instinctively as Ariel reached him. She crashed into his stiffened arm and fell heavily to the ground, hitting her head on the pavement. Immediately Orion grabbed Magus and slammed him up against the lamp post hard enough to shake it.
"Hey," Gaspar complained. Alpha rushed to Ariel's side. She was sobbing a little from pain and a little from the hurtful insults Magus had hurled her way. Alpha brushed her tears away from her face gently and noticed the black eye that was already beginning to show. Softly, he reached out and Slurped her cheek. She smiled wanly at him as her pain left. He helped her to her feet.
"Princess, thou brought'eth that upon thyself. Insults beget insults," Alpha pointed out.
"I...know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Magus," Ariel sniffled. "Orion, let him go. It was my fault."
"But he...he hit you!" Orion protested.
"Actually, I kinda ran into his arm. I shouldn't have rushed him," Ariel admitted.
Orion let Magus go. He stepped away from the lamp post, edged warily around Orion while rubbing his throat and stared at Ariel. She smiled weakly at him.
"Accountability," he noted. "I wouldn't have thought that you, princess..."
"Magus, Ariel offered you an apology. No more insults, okay?" Elora asked.
"Until the next time she needs to be let down a peg or two," Magus agreed.
Orion walked over and put his arm around Ariel's shoulders. She sniffled again and put her head on his shoulder. He half embraced her, offering her comfort.
"Just peachy. There's a Janus-shaped dent in my lamp post! Do you know how hard it is to get a new lamp post delivered when your address is the End of Time?" Gaspar complained.
Everyone laughed and the tension eased.
"Magus, can I ask a favor?" Ariel ventured a moment later. Truth be told the dark mage frightened her more than she wanted to admit. She knew he had killed Cyrus, cursed Glenn, summoned Lavos, tried to kill them all in Zeal Palace...His dark, grim and foreboding manner didn't help either.
He lifted an eyebrow sardonically and nodded.
"Please...please don't call me 'princess' okay? It makes me crazy. Call me Ariel," she requested in a small voice.
Both eyebrows rose in surprise. "You don't like being a princess?" he asked.
"No! My father would never let me out of his sight, if he could stop me. He's so afraid I will get hurt and then the kingdom would have no heir...I'm so tired of titles and names and formality...I could just scream!" Ariel finished.
"Ariel...Alfador and Janus would have agreed with you," Magus nodded. "So be it."
Gaspar had fallen asleep at the lamp post. They were so used to his snores they only served as background noise. He woke with a start.
"I've just looked at the time stream. You must return to Ariel's castle. Something important has just taken place. It's almost clear enough for me to see, but I need you to confirm what I think may be true," Gaspar said.
"My home? Daddy? Oh, Orion, let's hurry. C'mon, Elora!" Ariel danced in place so anxious did the Guru's words make her, before racing off down the corridor.
"We'll wait for you here," Prime called after them. "I've gotten good at waiting. Poker, anyone?" he offered producing a standard deck from somewhere.
"You want me to play poker with a robot and a frog? How does one play against two natural poker faces?" Magus complained. "Okay, deal, you two-armed bandit."
Prime laughed at Magus' reference which brought a slight smile to Magus' face. Alpha watched in amazement as Magus relaxed a little and joked with the robot. He lost the first five hands.
********
Orion materialized the Ark over Melchior's hut and then simply flew it to the castle. Ariel bounded down over the edge as soon as the ship touched down and took the castle steps by twos in her haste. Orion and Elora chased right after her.
"What's happened?" Ariel asked the first guard. "Where's father?"
"Father? I don't understand, my queen," the guard shook his head.
"Queen? I'm Princess Nadia and my father is the king. Where is he?" Ariel was becoming frantic.
"Too much sun," Elora commented as she turned Ariel from the guard. He nodded. Elora led Ariel to her room, chased out her tutors and sat Ariel down on her bed.
"Ariel, the Chronal Eraser must have reached him," Elora noted. "Don't panic, we can still find out..."
Ariel began to cry softly. Orion immediately went to her side to offer her comfort. She clung to him and sobbed against his chest.
"I...still have nightmares of when I was...erased out of time. So cold...so dark...so lonely...daddy, well daddy's been lonely for so long, I hate to think of him suffering that, I never did hug him before I left..." Ariel's misery overwhelmed her and Orion merely held her and rocked her as he stroked her hair. Elora looked on, pity in her eyes under her thick glasses.
Ariel's sobs subsided. "Okay. We need to figure out what to do next. There has to be some way to retrieve daddy. Maybe the time stream cleared up a little more with him gone..." her eyes welled up again but she refused to let the tears fall.
"I think we have a more pressing problem. King Guardia's disappearance is from the Chronal Eraser ripping back through time to Schala. Once it reaches her...well I'm not sure what will happen but it's not good. It has to come through you and as it nears Schala's time it accelerates. Ariel, you're next. I think if we get you to the End of Time and keep you there, you'll be safe from it, but I'm not sure..." Elora explained.
Orion stood and grasped Ariel's hands. "Let's not wait then! We should return to Ark now and..."
Just then an eerie black Gate opened into Ariel's room. Two man-shaped black creatures stepped through. There was no sign of any features and no texture, no cloth or hair, skin or fur. Light seemed to simply fall into their forms and give up trying to show any detail. Orion jumped to his feet and drew his sword. He placed himself between these intruders and his friends. One of them struck Orion with a fist. He slashed Rainbow at him in a beautiful over-under two hit strike. It hit, but seemed not to trouble the creature at all. Ariel noticing Orion's failure to harm their foes with his powerful sword, cast a strong Ice spell. The creature shrugged the spell off.
Elora threw her Megabombs. Both enemies ignored it as they advanced. One of them grabbed Ariel's arm. Completely unnerved by their silent intent she struggled and hit him with the side of her crossbow. The invincible foe ignored that attack as it had ignored all others. Orion summoned the strongest spell he knew, levitated and sent the fury of his Luminaire attack into the creatures. Unfazed, they secured their hold on Ariel and stepped back through the Gate. It closed.
"Ariel!" Orion screamed. "Where is she? Elora..."
"A Black Gate? We've got to tell Gaspar. We can't do anything here. Come on," Elora grabbed Orion's hand and led him from the room.
"It's too much, Elora. First, she's threatened with Chronal Erasure again and now...taken...I don't even know by who...I...I love her..." Orion admitted as Elora dragged him from the room.
"Yeah, well, duh, tell me something I don't know," Elora replied. "Come on, Sparky! We gotta find out what we got to do to rescue her most serene royal pain in the..."
"Elora!" Orion laughed in spite of himself. "She'd be sitting on you, yanking your hair out by the handfuls if she heard you!"
"Good! I wouldn't even mind too much if she did! You gotta keep your hope. We'll find her. We'll rescue her. I mean, come on, we rescued you from death and the planet, the planet, mind you, from a space-born, giant, mutant planet eater. Whatever kidnapped Ariel, no way can take us on!" Elora boasted.
"I don't know," Orion said, sobering. "My sword didn't hurt it, ice, fire and lightning didn't touch it..."
"Everything has a weakness. We'll find it," Elora said as Orion gave her a leg up to Ark. "We have to."
********
"What hath thou done with Ariel?" Alpha asked as Orion and Elora ran up to them at the End of Time.
"She...she got kidnapped," Orion answered breathlessly. "A black Gate opened, two black goons jumped out and grabbed her!"
"Why didn't you stop them?" Magus asked.
"Prime, lock rambolts!" Orion cried as he grabbed the mage and hurled him at the robot. A small click from Prime's booted feet sounded just before Magus crashed against Prime's wall-like chest.
"Orion!
Why didst..." Alpha began.
"Understood,
but why..." Prime said.
"We're all upset, Magus didn't mean..." Elora started.
"While I am glad you did not use my lamp post again as your wall, why did you attack Janus? It was an innocent question," Gaspar noted.
"I...I know. I'm...sorry, Magus. It's just I get so crazy when Ariel's threatened and I've gotten used to throwing you against things. I know you didn't mean anything evil..." Orion began.
"Yeah, well my shoulder has gotten used to you hurling me at various walls, too," Magus noted rubbing his left shoulder.
Alpha began working his throat.
"Don't you dare Slurp me!" Magus warned. "I'd rather have a sore shoulder!"
Prime shot a green beam that engulfed and cured Magus instead.
"Hmph. Much better, thank you," Magus said, rather curtly. "If you are finished smashing me about, could you answer my question? Why did you let them take Ariel?"
"I tried to stop them!" Orion cried out in anguish. "My sword was useless...Luminaire didn't harm them...they were immune to every attack. I can't stand that anything threatens Ariel..." Orion paced like a caged tiger and finally hit the door to Spekkio's room.
Spekkio poked his head out. "It's open, you don't need to knock! Waking me from a perfectly good dream, Nu..." he closed the door again.
"A black Gate?" Gaspar asked. "That does not sound like a Time Gate. Perhaps one in space. Why don't you..."
"...go play with Spekkio again?" Orion finished. "Are we always going to have to babysit the god of war when you need to do research?"
"No...you could stay out here but I'm just going to look like I'm sleeping. It's rather boring to watch actually," the Guru offered.
"Let's fight Spekkio," Orion, Alpha, Prime and Elora said in unison as Gaspar began to snore.
"What is Spekkio?" Magus asked Prime as the others proceeded them into Spekkio's room.
"Well, he claims to be the god of war. He is immune to all but magic attacks and he...Elora, what is the expression? 'Kicked our butt'?" Elora nodded as she entered. "he kicked our butt the last time we fought him. Of course we now have Alpha back in his frog form so some of our combined spells will work," Prime explained.
"Back in frog form? Combined spells?" Magus muttered. "You must explain this to me later."
"Certainly, right
now let's see what we can manage with Spekkio," Prime agreed.
Gaspar grinned as five smoking, dripping, singed, smudgy-faced individuals emerged from Spekkio's room.
"Spell Town?" he asked.
"In spades!" Orion admitted. "I think maybe Spekkio's gotten so powerful we can't beat him anymore. We did better, Alpha and I combined a few Spires on him, but that's like saying I emptied more ocean because I drained it a cup rather than a teaspoon. It sure isn't enough."
"Too bad Magus and I can't combine our fire spells," Elora noted. "We could do a lot of damage together."
"And my lasers," Prime added. "Spekkio said they sufficed as Shadow magic. What could they do if actual Shadow were channeled through them?"
"I think I shall have to test each of you for sensitivity to Time. Your suppositions are uncanny," Gaspar said rather cryptically.
Five faces turned to him with various confused expressions.
The Guru smiled gently before sobering as he turned toward Magus. "Janus, you will fall again and perhaps fail to rescue Schala unless you learn to combine your magic with the others."
"Work with them? With my magic? Impossible! It's all I have..." Magus fell silent.
"All that makes thee unique?" Alpha ventured.
"Don't presume to understand me, frog! And don't you dare attack me again!" Magus whirled on Orion.
Orion pointed to himself in a "who me?" innocent look.
"It's the only way to find and rescue Schala. You will perish if you don't," Gaspar warned.
Magus walked to the rail overlooking the mists of Time. "To give...to give up control of my magic..." he said softly.
"Not always," Prime noted as he walked up to Magus' side.
"What do you mean? Explain it to me!" Magus appealed imperiously.
Prime regarded Magus impassively. "Let's you and I talk to Spekkio. All of you, wait here."
"How is it Prime can work so easily with Magus?" Orion asked as the door closed.
No one responded for a moment.
"Perhaps because he looks under the surface meaning. He looks for why Magus says something, not what Magus says. He doesn't take offense and so he is better able to communicate than the rest of you," Gaspar pointed out.
"We do tend to fly off the handle with Magus. Me more than anyone else," Orion admitted. "I never thought how...lonely he must be."
"His life wast stunted by Lavos, but that excuseth not Cyrus' death," Alpha stated.
"Or you. He's hurt you at least as much as Lavos hurt him. I'll work with Magus, but I can't see ever liking him," Elora admitted.
********
"Wait, before you wake him," Magus asked as Prime reached toward Spekkio, "...please...explain combining magic to me."
"Spekkio would be better able..."
"No," Magus' pale hair flowed as he shook his head, "I'd rather you did."
"Very well, but my knowledge is limited to what I do. I don't know how it is for humans. Orion and I combine my Shock and his Lightning equally to make Supervolt. Elora charges me with Fire Magic when I Fire Tackle something. I am the focusing element for Elora's magic, she is the one who powers it."
"So I would not be just a...magic battery for someone else..." Magus wondered.
"No. Combined magic does not have power struggles. It's cooperative."
"I...might be able to cooperate with you, possibly Elora; but that punk kid and the frog..."
"Orion and Alpha are my friends. Some of the most potent magic I have seen is when they combine magic or when I cooperate with one or both of them," Prime stated simply.
"You said before we fought Spekkio that Alpha was 'back in frog form'. What did that mean?" Magus asked.
"Glenn had returned to his human form when he had returned home to the Middle Ages after killing you. We realized that recovering you with Gaspar's Chrono Trigger would have the undesirable effect of reinstating your curse on him. To revive you Glenn had to become Alpha the frog again."
"That would explain the coolness and hostility toward me..."
"Yes. All of us are Glenn's, Alpha's...Alpha's...Alpha's friends. We would do almost anything to help him," Prime explained solemnly.
"Are you okay? That...stutter..."
"Merely a slight overload on my logic chip. I can compensate."
"Glenn...I haven't thought of him as that for years. It really is remarkable that he's survived. I thought I'd gotten rid of him when I cursed him. I never imagined he'd live this long," Magus mused.
"Alpha has many remarkable characteristics. Now allow me to wake Spekkio and see if we can combine our magics," Prime said, shaking Spekkio awake.
********
Spekkio's door opened and Prime walked out carrying Magus over one shoulder. Prime was soaking wet and yet strangely scorched. Magus' hair hung limply down the robot's side singed here and there with laser burns. A few burns blackened the pale skin of his arms as well.
"What hath happened?" Alpha cried as he leaped forward.
"He's not dead again, is he?" Orion asked.
Both were reaching toward Magus when they realized he was moving. His shoulders jerked spasmodically and as he looked up through his lank, tangled hair, Orion and Alpha realized he was helpless with laughter.
Prime set Magus down propping him against the lamp post. He promptly slid til he was sitting against it as tears streamed down his face.
"What hath thou done to our darkling ally?" Alpha asked Prime.
"I can't explain this. We had been doing so well, actually aligning our magic together when Spekkio magically Confused me. The next thing that I was aware of was...awakening at Spekkio's feet as is usual when he defeats us. Magus had also been revived. He was laughing hysterically so I brought him out here. Elora, explain this to me!" Prime demanded as he turned toward her.
"Oh! Oh! Don't! I will. Oh, Prime, it was just too funny! You have been...solicitous...helpful and with one spell Spekkio...oh, the look on your face...you do have emotions...it was priceless! Ferocious apology! I was laughing before your first laser blasts hit me. Those hurt!...but your face..." Magus dissolved into helpless laughter again.
"So, Prime befriends Magus by attacking him," Orion noted. "Should I try it?"
"Thou hath already,
several times. Methinks that is Prime's method only," Alpha
responded, semi-seriously.
"Oh, oh!
Ouch!" Magus clutched his sides.
"I've never heard you laugh before, Janus," the Guru said thoughtfully. "Chuckle rather evilly, yes, but laugh, no."
"'Tis a pleasant sound," Alpha added.
"Well, the robot is right," Magus confirmed as he composed himself. "He and I did merge our magic for a brief moment, enough to demonstrate to me how powerful combined magic can be before, well, disaster struck. Ouch!" Magus grabbed his left shoulder. He brought a lock of his hair forward and realized that about four inches had been lazed off. The look he gave Prime made Elora and Orion laugh.
"That Nu!" Gaspar muttered as he swept his arm over Prime and Magus. Restored, Prime reached down and lifted Magus to his feet.
"Can Spekkio be a little less...exuberant? I can't learn anything if he blasts us senseless every other minute," Magus asked the Guru seriously.
"No. Spekkio is...what he is. I think you need to return to Time, somewhere, and learn how to cooperate with the others. I can find you when I discover something new. Take some time, you have enough of it, to learn how to fight together. The only time you must not go is the Prehistoric Era. Arvia will not be affected by any of this and if you bring her into it..." Gaspar warned.
"...we risk changing things even more," Prime finished.
"Where...when should we go?" Magus asked.
"Well, I would like to take Prime to my workshop and fit him with the illogic chip, I really think it will help him, but there aren't too many monsters in the 1000's," Elora began. "Besides, we can't travel in groups more than three without ending up here," she noted looking at the End of Time.
"Okay, this is what we'll do," Orion decided after a swift moment of thought. "Elora, you and Prime take the Ark and go to your workshop. Do whatever you have to, take however long you need and then look for us at Alpha's pad. Alpha, Magus and I'll go to the 6th century, where there are many more monsters, and see what we can manage with combining our magic. When you and Prime rejoin us, you guys can work with Magus until Gaspar contacts us. That is if Gaspar will open a Gate for us to the 6th century?"
"By what right do you decide for us? Who made you the leader?" Magus asked pointedly.
"Actually, we did when we fought Lavos. Orion is quite skilled at deciding how to proceed. That is, when he isn't dead," Prime responded.
"You...follow him willingly?"
"Yes. I know he will listen to any suggestions I make and then decide on the best course of action. He also utilizes our skills in the best manner possible," Prime replied solemnly.
"Prime...can I talk with you privately?" Magus asked.
Prime drew open the door to Spekkio's room and followed Magus in.
"Don't...don't leave me with them. I don't...think I can work with them without you there. I don't think they respect me at all," Magus pleaded.
"Magus, you hurt Alpha intensely when you killed Cyrus and made his life a horror by cursing him. It will take time for him to forgive you enough to try to like you; that is if it happens at all. But, he is honorable a...frog of his word. He has pledged to find and rescue Schala; he was willing to accept back his curse to fulfill that promise. He will work with you and because of his example, Orion will also. As for respect, you wield the strongest single magic we've ever seen but for Lavos. Alpha has been changed entirely by your magic, he certainly respects you," Prime replied.
"That's not exactly what I mean..." Magus began.
"I know. Elora and I will be as quick as possible, but take this time to get to know them as allies, not as enemies. When we find your sister and deal with this 'dread lord' we will need to rely on each other. Like it or not, in this venture, Orion and Alpha are your allies," Prime noted.
"Thanks, Prime. I'll keep that in mind," Magus responded as he exited the room. Prime gazed after him for a moment and then followed.
Spekkio opened one eye. "Interesting. I'm starting to get a feel for your spirit, robot. I'll give you magic yet!"
************
"What an abhorrent little hovel!" Magus exclaimed as he descended the ladder into Alpha's home.
Orion bristled in his friend's defense and glanced about the little dwelling. He noticed anew the rustic bed and wooden chest of drawers, the two small presses and the table and chairs. Orion watched as Alpha calmly walked over to the table, struck a spark, lit a taper and circled about lighting the candles and lamps placed about the room. The warm yellow light cheered the underground room immeasurably.
"Magus," Alpha requested as he knelt to start a fire in the fireplace, "we must needs work together to rescue'eth thy sister. Please keep'eth thine insults to thyself."
"I suppose it is difficult to find someone willing to sell a home to...well, it's better now that it is lit," Magus offered.
Orion calmed himself and removed his sword belt and pack as he sat down in one of the chairs. "Okay...Alpha what can I do to help with dinner?"
"Nothing, 'tis a simple meal I prepare. Why doth not thou and Magus practice thy magic on the hostile creatures to be found in the Lonely Wood?" Alpha replied. "I shall have supper ready by sundown."
"Makes sense," Orion agreed taking up his sword and pack again. "Coming, Magus?"
Magus looked about the room one more time, his gaze lingering on the frog's back as Alpha tended the fire, before following Orion up the ladder in silence.
"As I recall," Orion stated as Magus followed him into a clearing a half an hour later. "You have both strong ice and strong fire spells."
"Yes," Magus confirmed.
"Well, Ariel has Ice and Elora Fire and they can...charge my sword so that it becomes an Ice sword or a Fire sword. I'm not sure how they..."
"How do they target just your sword? I suppose I can figure it out," Magus interrupted.
Just then four gnawers and two t'poles crashed into the clearing. Orion paused, giving Magus time to incant his Fire spell and took the full force of the spell as it targeted him alone, leaving the gnawer to his left unharmed.
"What are you doing?!" he roared in pain as he slashed the gnawer through with his sword, the whirl attack he had prepared for the Fire sword now forgotten.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to target just a sword?" Magus snarled as he scythed down a t'pole.
"Yes, I do! I target the Masamune when Alpha and I Spire something!" Orion retorted heatedly.
"Get ready, then! Incoming!" Magus called as he sent his Fire spell Orion's way again. The spell hit mostly on the sword and Orion whirled taking out the rest of the monsters in his fire-powered attack.
He looked up balefully at Magus and held up one hand showing Magus his blistered palm.
"Your hair is on fire, too," Magus noted drily.
Orion whispered something truly foul as he frantically patted his head to put out the flames. His mood was not helped when he saw Magus smirking at him.
"You have to give me time. I'm new to combining magic...although your fire sword is quite impressive," Magus admitted.
"Perhaps we should try a Luminaire scythe next?" Orion asked sweetly acid.
"No, I think I need to practice Ice and Fire some more, although for training only. I think you and I can devise some devastating Shadow attacks."
"Uh uh! I'm not taking Shadow hits until you have Ice and Fire perfected first. They hurt enough!" Orion warned.
"Yes well...the singed hair looks virtually the same but the burn on your face looks...painful. Perhaps we should return to the frog's..." Magus noted Orion's glare as he continued, "...hovel and see if what he concocted is palatable to humans," he finished blithely.
"Magus..." Orion said in a low tone.
"Yes?" Magus arched a challenging brow.
"Forget it," Orion stalked off toward Alpha's home. Magus followed smiling at how easy it was to bait this young man.
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