Chapter 8: The End of Time
Act One
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It took but a moment for the four of them to realize they were not back in the Eleventh Century. They scanned their surroundings, and were quite intrigued by what they saw. The floor was cobblestone. Looking up, it appeared to be nighttime, yet there were blue streaks in the sky instead of stars.
There was a fence nearby. The four went to the fence and peeked over, only to see endless streaks of blue below as well.
"Where are we?" Robo asked.
"If you don't know," Crono replied, "I don't think anyone does."
"It doesn't seem scary here," Marle pointed out.
"I agree," Lucca concurred. "It seems so...peaceful."
Looking in the other direction, Marle could see a street lamp that seemed to rise out of the cobblestone. Below the lamp stood an old man. He had a hat and a cane.
And then, the old man looked at the four visitors.
"Ah, more guests!" he acknowledged.
"What do you mean, 'guests,'" asked Lucca as the four of them approached. "And where are we?"
"Or when?" Crono added.
"Why, this is the End of Time, of course!" the old man replied cheerfully. "All lost travelers in time wind up here! Now, where are you from?"
"We're from Guardia Kingdom, 1000 A.D.," Lucca replied.
"I come from 2300 A.D.," Robo added.
"When four or more beings step into a time warp, the Conservation of Time Theorem states that they will turn up at the space-time coordinates of least resistance," explained the old man. "Here. Disturbances in the space-time continuum have increased recently. Far too many folks are just popping in here. I fear something is having a powerful effect on the very fabric of time."
"Which means one of us has to remain here," Lucca realized aloud.
"Stay here?" exclaimed Marle. "Alone?"
"It is pretty bleak here," the old man admitted. "But not to worry. All time periods connect here. You can visit your friends whenever you wish! But you can never travel in groups greater than three."
"So, one of us must stay," Robo said.
"Who'll it be, Crono?" asked Lucca.
The four of them looked at each other for a whole minute. This would not be an easy decision.
"I'll stay," Robo volunteered.
"Are you sure?" asked Lucca.
"I wouldn't fit in with the Eleventh Century anyway," he said. "People will be frightened of me. They'll have no idea what I am. Please come for me whenever you need me."
"Then I guess it's settled," Lucca said, with a tone of regret in her voice.
"How do we get back to our time?" Marle asked.
"You see those lovely pillars of light?" asked the old man.
Marle looked up a small flight of steps. At the top was a square platform, with nine pillars of blue light emanating from the floor. She turned to the old man and nodded.
"Those hook you up to different eras," the old man continued. "Once you've been through a Gate, you can always use it to come here. To use a Gate from here, step into the light. But beware the Gate which leads from that bucket."
The four visitors turned their attention to an ominous-looking bucket a couple of yards from the old man.
"Where does that bucket lead to?" Crono asked.
"2020," the old man replied.
"What happened there?" Crono asked.
"You don't even want to know," the old man replied.
Crono nodded and began to walk toward the pillars of light.
"Hey!" exclaimed the old man. "Don't be in such a rush! Before you go, take a peek inside the room behind me!"
Act Two
The room behind the old man was about a hundred feet square. The cobblestone was still covering the floor, but here it also made up the wall and ceiling. The sky, or whatever it was, was not visible from here.
The only other feature of the room was a chicken standing in the middle.
"What're you looking at?" the chicken demanded.
"Talking chickens, too?!" Lucca exclaimed.
"I'm no chicken!" the chicken insisted. "I'm Spekkio, the Master of War! I've seen all kinds of battles from here."
"I-it's nice to meet you," the surprised Marle greeted politely.
"How do I look to you guys?" Spekkio asked. "Strong or weak?"
"Well..." Crono began, taking care not to offend him. He was...a chicken.
"I see," Spekkio interjected. "Let's put it this way. If you're strong, I look strong. If you're weak, I look weak."
"We're not weak," Crono insisted. "You have no idea what we've been through."
"You are strong of will!" Spekkio clarified. "That's why the old one let you through. Long before you were born, there was a kingdom where magic flourished. Everyone there could use it! But in time, people began to abuse their powers. It got so bad that no one was allowed to use magic except wizards. But you have it…determination, I mean! Magic needs power of the heart. It needs inner strength. Magic is divided into four types: lightning, fire, water, and shadow."
He turned to Crono.
"You, with the punk hairdo! You're 'lightning.'"
He then turned to Marle.
"The one with the ponytail is 'water,'" he announced.
He then turned to Lucca.
"The one with the goofy glasses is "fire," he announced.
He then turned his attention to Robo.
"That's the biggest toy I've ever seen," he observed. "Hey, you're not alive, are you?! You've got great strength, however, since I can't measure your inner character, I can't give any magic to you. But your laser weapons will suffice. They can inflict 'shadow' type damage."
"With all due respect," Robo began, "this does sound like superstition."
"Not just magic, but everything is based on the balance of these four powers," Spekkio said. "Think magic, and, starting from the door, walk clockwise along the walls of my room three times. Don't lose track, now."
All visitors, even Robo, complied.
"Very good!" Spekkio complimented as he waved his hands. "Ipso facto, meeny moe…MAGICO!"
A flash of yellow light surrounded Crono.
A flash of blue light surrounded Marle.
A flash of red light surrounded Lucca.
"What just happened?" Crono asked.
"You've just become the proud owners of magic!" Spekkio announced. "Try it out!"
Slowly, Crono raised his finger. A moment later, a bolt of lightening struck Spekkio, causing feathers to fly in all directions.
"Not bad," Spekkio complimented. He then turned to Lucca. "You try."
Lucca raised her finger. A fireball shot from it and struck Spekkio, setting him ablaze.
"I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed.
"What?" the still-blazing Spekkio replied sarcastically. "You've never had roasted chicken? If it really bothers you, I guess we all know who can help me."
Marle quickly raised her finger. A water bubble escaped, and floated right over to Spekkio, hitting him and dousing out the fire.
Spekkio stood there, charred, but, amazingly, still alive.
"Thanks," he said nonchalantly.
Act Three
Crono, Marle, Lucca, and Robo emerged from the side room.
The old man was still standing by the lamp post.
"Well, well!" he greeted. "People who lived long ago all enjoyed such powers." He paused. "But why are you traveling through time?"
"This one ran away with itself," Crono began. "It started when Marle's pendant opened up a Gate and sent her back to the year 600."
"Let me see that pendant," the old man implored. "Say! That's made out of the red rock!"
"The what?" asked Marle.
"Your Gates react to it," the old man explained. "That's why it sent you where it did."
"What about this?" Lucca asked, as she produced the key.
"That's the red rock, too," the old man said. "But where did you get it?"
"My pendant's an heirloom," Marle replied.
"I was given the key by a merchant," Lucca added.
"So you went back to 600," the old man continued. "And then you met our metal friend and you all tried to come back at once?"
"Not exactly," Crono replied. "We also went to the year 2300. That's where we met Robo."
"The ruined world," lamented the old man. "Destroyed by Lavos."
"You're familiar with him?" asked Crono.
"Lavos is an it," the old man corrected. "All I know is that Lavos brings destruction."
"Can it be killed?" Crono inquired.
"I would think so," the old man replied. "All living things die."
"Where did it come from?" Marle asked.
"No one knows," the old man replied. "But I'm certain you can find out by exploring history's many eras."
"We've only seen three," Lucca said.
In response, the old man pointed his cane towards the pillars. There were nine of them.
"Pick a pillar," the he implored. "Any pillar."
Lucca, being the curious one, made her way to the nearest pillar.
"Wait!" Marle warned. "You don't know where it will take you!"
Suddenly, Robo approached Lucca.
"I'm afraid I'm forbidden to allow any harm to a human being," he announced.
Lucca scanned her friends. Then she turned to Robo.
"Then I guess you better follow me!" Lucca taunted as she ran into the pillar.
Sure enough, he did.
And then, Lucca and Robo vanished into thin air.
Marle placed her hands over her mouth and gasped.
"Oh, don't worry," the old man assured them. "They'll be alright. They'll reappear in the same spot shortly."
MEANWHILE...
Lucca suddenly felt the light and warmth she had longed for since she had arrived in 2300. Looking around, she noticed foliage like none she had ever seen before. She could not describe it; she had never seen so many ferns in her life. She also noticed that it also rather humid.
It almost seemed the opposite of 2300.
"Where is this?" she said aloud. "When is this?"
"Scanning," Robo answered as he began to observe the flora around them.
Lucca nearly jumped out of her skin.
"You really did follow me?!" she exclaimed.
"I told you," Robo insisted, "I can't allow harm to come to a human being."
"So where are we?" Lucca asked, this time to her companion.
"It's 65,000,000 years ago," Robo replied. "The end of the Cretaceous Period."
"The what?" asked the puzzled Lucca.
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble.
Then, a head appeared behind the foliage. It was soon followed by a long neck. Finally, its quadrupedal body and long tail became visible.
"A leviathan!" Lucca exclaimed. "I never thought I'd ever see one!"
"A leviathan?" Robo asked.
"Yeah, a leviathan," Lucca replied. "They're mentioned in the Book of Genesis. I take it you call it something different?"
"In my time," Robo answered, "we call them dinosaurs. This one's called a brachiosaurus."
"I never thought I'd ever see anything that big," Lucca said in awe.
"There are even bigger dinosaurs," Robo informed her. "Or should I say 'were.'"
"What are you saying?" asked Lucca.
"If I was you," Robo answered, "I'd get out of here."
"Are they dangerous?" Lucca asked.
Robo shook his head.
"I don't know. They're herbivores. But they're the least of our worries."
"I suppose we don't belong here, anyway," Lucca agreed.
MEANWHILE...
Crono and Marle stood peering over the fence. It was their first time alone together, and both of them had a lot on their mind.
"Do you think it has a bottom?" she asked, for the sake of an icebreaker.
"Probably not," Crono replied.
Marle could tell that Crono was thinking of something just as much as she was.
"What's on your mind?" she asked.
"There's something I've been meaning to ask you," he began. "Ever since we arrived in Bangor dome."
"Go ahead," she permitted. "Ask away."
Crono turned to her.
"You were really willing to give up your title to follow me to the future?"
The split second between his question and her answer seemed like an eternity. It had been on his mind for days.
"Yeah," Marle replied. "I was more than willing."
"Why?" he asked.
Marle looked up and laughed.
"It's kind of funny," she replied. "Before, I never would have even considered it. I thought my lot in life was to be a princess, and then a queen someday."
"What changed?" Crono asked.
"I met you," Marle replied with a smile.
Crono was silent.
"Ever since my mom died," she said, "I never knew there were still kind people in this world."
She then turned, and placed her hands on his shoulders.
"I'm not perfect," Crono admitted.
"You don't have to be," she assured him as she drew her face closer to his. "I only knew my father. He doesn't know how to love anymore."
"Marle..." Crono began, but he couldn't finish.
He couldn't think of what to say.
"And as I got to know you more," Marle continued, "something in my heart kept saying 'he's the one.'"
Crono remained silent. By this point, their faces were less than an inch apart.
"I said I would trade my royalty for Lucca's intelligence in a heartbeat," she whispered. "But I'd trade it for you in less than that."
And their lips met.
It was a sweet feeling; her lips pressed against his.
Then, Marle withdrew her face so she could see Crono's, keeping her hands on his shoulders. Her eyes were wet.
"I've wanted to kiss you since you rescued me!"
"Marle..." Crono began again. He was stumbling because he felt the same way about her, and she could easily tell.
"Crono, Marle said sincerely. "You're the only man for me. I'll follow you until the end of time."
"But this is the End of Time," Crono pointed out.
Marle began to giggle.
"Stop it!" she laughed as she playfully slapped his shoulder.
She then placed her hand on his cheek.
And she kissed him again.
The sweet feeling of their lips together felt just as good for both of them the second time as it did the first.
"Does this make me your girlfriend?" Marle asked with a giggle.
"I'll have to ask Robo," Crono replied, smiling.
"Most definately," Robo answered.
Crono and Marle immediately turned to see Robo and Lucca standing a few yards away. Their smiles quickly faded.
"How much did you see?" Marle asked as her face began to turn red.
"Everything," Lucca replied.
Marle quickly buried her face in her hands.
"It's okay!" Lucca insisted. "Do you have any idea how happy I am for you two?"
"Hey," called the old man, who was still standing by the lamppost.
Crono, Marle, Lucca, and Robo duly approached him.
"Now," the old man continued, "I know you are itching to go ripping back and forth through time, but first you need to return to your own era. And you must hurry. The longer you remain here, the harder it will be to change that which must be changed. Stop by whenever you're in the area!"
"No problem," Lucca said as she, Marle, and Crono approached another pillar.
"Come back and see me any time," the old man assured them. "Think of me as your guide."
A moment later, Crono, Marle, and Lucca stepped into the pillar.
