Chrono Corruption
Act 5: Revolution
Chapter 29: The Life Sparkle
*Gerzbuehlan Encampment*
"Alright everyone," Crono began with a deep breath. "Let's go back to my time and see if Ty's research bore any fruit."
Tomo whined a little, "Yeah, please let's hurry...!"
Crono's party left the encampment and made their way all the way back to the Neo Epoch. They boarded, started the engine, and away they went.
*The Present, 1005 A.D.*
With a crackling in the air, the Neo Epoch appeared over the skies of the Medinan continent. The party landed and found no villages to speak of. Just a dark and unrelenting forest. The party entered the forest and it was as dark and creepy as it was nearly a thousand years ago. As the party investigated the forest, it appeared as though it remained the same and Tomo began to worry, "D-Did Ty succeed?" she muttered nervously as the wind howled through the moaning tree branches. "It doesn't look like he managed to change anything at all!" her worry continued.
"Clam down, Miss Tomo," Lex said softly. "I am sure he left us with something we can use!"
Then suddenly, a rustling in the trees nearby. Janus threw back his cape, "We are being watched..."
With a jump, zombified Roundillos and Imps made themselves known. Lex came forward with a confident grin, "Please, allow me!" he said as he began to chant. He summoned his Mist Beast. Janus was impressed. Lex let out a war cry as the misty caricature raced toward the undead Fiends. It crashed into them, freezing them solid as it did so. Their sludgy bodies then crumbled from becoming so fragile.
"Lex," began Janus as he threw back his cape. "...Summon another."
Lex nodded as he chanted. Another Mist Beast formed and this time Janus combined it with his Dark Bomb. This new spell created a chilly beast that was as dark as ink. Purple eyes illuminated the face of this caricature. Lex was astounded and Janus grinned. Both shouted in unison, "Go, Dark Beast!"
The Dark Beast barreled toward the last Imp, who was riding a Roundillo. The plume of chilly darkness collided with the Roundillo Rider and exploded. Nothing of the zombie was left behind save for a dark frost that was plastered all over the small crater left behind.
The way now seemed clear and the party moved on as Tomo's stomach continued to ache with worry. The party fought their way through the forest, and Lex showed off his skills as he did. Mist Hoard!" he bellowed as a hoard of Mist Beasts trampled the walking dead.
After trampling the monsters underfoot, the party made it back to the Necropolis and it was largely unchanged over the course of 1000 years. They returned to the place where Ty was supposed to be studying the plague but they found it to be sealed up. Tomo moaned as she took her hammer and smashed her way in, "This can't be good if he had to seal himself away!" she said frightened.
"He probably just didn't want anyone to disturb his studies," Crono thought out loud.
"I hope so...," Tomo said with a pale face.
The party entered the room and found the room to be trashed. Any experiments were destroyed. A large stone coffin sat at the back of the room with writings etched into it. Crono approached the coffin and read the text, "Here lies a grubby little human thief...ha, ha, ha...!"
Tomo shrieked, "Oh, no! The Undead got him! I can't look!" she said as she retreated to a corner and closed her eyes, and crouched down.
Lex and Crono swallowed hard as they began to remove the lid on the coffin and beheld the skeletal remains of Ty. He held a little book in his hand. Crono grabbed it as he tried to keep a straight face and not make a grimace.
Crono opened the little book, "I can't read anything in this...,"
Janus came forward, "Here, allow me...," he said as he took the book. After a few moments of flipping through the book, Janus gave in with a low sigh, "This man's penmanship is absolutely atrocious... I have another idea." he said as he handed Crono the book and faced Ty's skeleton. He waved his hand over the remains and glowed with a purple light, "Exhume..."
The magic soaked into Ty's remains and Tomo covered her ears and hummed to herself. Ty's skeleton sprung to life with a painful moan. He sat up and faced Janus, "Oh..., hey. I was just chillin' in the most beautiful place... Has it been 1000 years already? I couldn't tell time where I was," he said.
Lex leaned into Crono and whispered, "This is astounding! I didn't know this man had such magic!"
Crono whispered back, "Yeah, Janus is..., pretty well learned in the stuff."
"Speak Drayguard, what did you manage to accomplish here?" Janus asked flatly.
"Oh, that's right! The mushroom thing!" Ty began with a rattle. "I was on the right track the whole time, but according to my studies, the environment here isn't quite bad enough to create the Life Sparkle. I need a catalyst of some kind. Something really nasty! If you can find one and add it to my-!" Ty was cut off as he noticed all his stored specimens were destroyed. "What the hell? Where are all my samples? How did I even end up in this coffin? I don't remember climbing into it!"
"It would seem someone ambushed you and made some changes to your experiments," Janus said as he gazed at the destruction. "Strangely, this sarcophagus you are laying in seems stained with something vile..."
"I wonder if someone tried to use me as an experiment," Ty rattled on. "I tried using as many chemicals that I could find. Fiends got some pretty gross things stored in this place. It looks like someone tried to marinate me in some of my own samples. Ha, jokes on them! My body's too resistant to be useful... unless. Hey, I just got an idea! Since I'm already dead, why not use my body?"
"What do you mean exactly?" Janus asked with a raised brow.
"My body may be more resistant to toxins, but maybe I can become the spawn point for the Life Sparkle if you add that catalyst I mentioned. It's gotta be strong though! If I'm being soaked in something just add that catalyst to this coffin like, say, back in the Middle Ages! My corpse should age like 'fine wine' from there on out!" Ty joked.
"I see, so you want us to find some sort of embalming fluid?" Janus said.
"Ugh..., I'm getting real sleepy all of a sudden but yeah..., that's the gist of it. Lem'me just lay back down... for a sec...," he mumbled as his remains went limp and the spell wore off.
"So what do we do now?" Lex asked, out of ideas.
"He called this plant, the 'Life Sparkle'?" Janus asked rhetorically. "The only person who could possibly shed more light on this problem is the Guru of Life, Melchior."
"Well, let's go pay him a visit!" Crono said as he stuffed Ty's little book into his bag.
Lex approached Tomo, "Miss Tomo? We're leaving, we know what we have to do!"
"Really? Then let's go, I can't take this!" she said as she hurried out of the sepulcher.
"Poor woman...," Lex mused.
*Chronopolis*
The party hastily returned to Chronopolis and made their way to Melchior. On the way, Lex was astounded by what he was seeing. "This is incredible! Never in my wildest dreams have I ever thought a place like this would exist!" he said in awe.
"It's kinda like our base of operations here!" Crono said. "This is where we've been planning most of our countermeasures to Dalton's meddling."
"Dalton? You mean the Dalton of the strange religion from overseas?" Lex asked confused.
"Yeah, he was the guy that spoke to us over the Frozen Flame in that dungeon when we first traveled with you. He's planning to take over the world," Crono said sternly.
"Do not all cults try that foolery?" Lex asked with a shrug.
"Yeah, but this one has a leader that's on our hit list. We should have ended him a long time ago but he kept surviving. Now we are kinda paying for it," Crono stated glumly.
"He will meet his end just like all cult leaders do," Lex said with a shrug. "If he intends to spread his influence even in my home, then he must be stopped. I am happy to help!"
"Thanks! I knew you'd make a great addition to the team!" Crono said happily.
As they reached Melchior, he seemed concerned by their need of him. "What's the matter? Did something happen?" he asked curiously.
Crono faced him and handed him Ty's little book, "Well...," Crono started. He explained Ty's plan hoping Melchior could lend them his wisdom.
Melchior flipped through the notes taken by Ty and his ancestors. He seemed impressed as he spoke, "Horrible penmanship aside, the Drayguard family does some impressive work!" he began. "They managed to deduce that the Life Sparkle exists despite never actually finding one. I can say that while the Drayguard's work is sound they are indeed missing something. I studied the power of life extensively back in Zeal, that was my profession after all, so I can help and fill in the blanks."
"That's wonderful! What do we need?!" Crono asked excitedly.
"Allow me to explain," Melchior began. "The Life Sparkle is a mysterious flower that blooms from an unknown source when the environment has suffered greatly. I saw the sapling for myself back in Zeal but it would cleanse any environment I had prepped for it before it could fully bloom. So I wasn't able to create the full bloom. Your friend tried to create this environment using his samples but his body might also work. An interesting experiment to be certain but his body is too resistant to the pollution needed to create such an environment. As he said he would need something very nasty to 'spark' the reaction."
Crono thought hard for a moment, "Wait, that's it!" he said with an idea. "Ty and I fought the Hydra in Glenn's era. That thing nearly killed him! I remember his ancestor gathered bodily fluids from it! Maybe we can make a catalyst from that!"
Melchior became intrigued, "The Hydra is a Fiend, it's invasive. It belongs in the world of the Fiends not the swamps of our world. I hear that its very presence changed the swamp to a degree. That might just work."
"All right everyone, let's go see Eston!" Crono said energetically.
*Middle Ages, 605 A.D.*
Crono landed nearby the swamps of Choras and the party made their way into the thick foliage and muddy waters. The party walked about for a bit as they recalled the way to Eston's hideout. Then suddenly, a familiar shape caught Crono's eye. He gasped, "No way! It can't be!" he said as he rushed over to an object that was slightly hidden from view. He and the party followed past the brush and what they saw took them by surprise. "It is, it's the original Epoch!" Crono said mouth agape.
"Then this just got more complicated...," Janus said with a serious tone.
"There's another time machine?" Lex asked in confusion.
"So this is the original one?" Tomo asked rhetorically. "It looks like it just arrived but who drove it?"
Crono focused up, "There's only one person who could have...!" he said as he was cut off.
"Hello son," said the voice of Caelus, his dad.
"Dad, what are you doing here? How did you get a hold of the Epoch?" Crono asked strongly.
"Still so tense I see. Fine, I've nothing to hide from you," Caelus said calmly. "Captain Viper seized this device from your Royal Scientist's home. Some tinkering had to be done to get it to start but Dalton has many great engineers. As for why I'm here, I'm going to stop you from meddling with the new world that our Neo Emperor is building. Please, son, come back with me. Stop this foolish resistance and let this world change for the better."
"Dad, you're being brainwashed!" Crono pleaded. "Dalton is a false God who has done nothing but spread deception! That power he's bonding himself to is the reason the world ended in the first place!"
"Yes, but now we, the humans, have control of Lavos's power!" Caelus said with his spirit rising. "Lavos was a mindless bug that only wanted to feed and reproduce! We humans first used it to create magic! Think about what else we could do with that power!"
Janus stepped forward, "...So this is your father? I didn't think he would be so easily fooled."
Caelus glared at Janus, "Ah, you must be the man that once called himself the Fiendlord. According to Dalton, you're also a false prophet as well. You have quite a reputation. I don't think I like my son hanging around such a person."
"...Do you take your son to still be a child...?" Janus asked bewildered.
Caelus radiated with Lavos's sickly energies as he drew his sword. "These 'friends' of yours are a bad influence on you son. After I'm done with this Fiendlord I'm going to remove that thief friend of yours's ancestor from history and him with it. En garde, my son, show your old man what you have learned!" he said with a charge.
Crono clashed swords with his dad, "Tomo, Lex, find Eston! Janus and I will handle my dad!"
"Right!" Tomo agreed.
"Very well!" followed Lex.
Tomo and Lex began going in a different direction, "I'm afraid I can't allow that!" Caelus said as he performed a sword strike that howled like the wind toward them.
Janus leaped in the way, "Magic Wall!" he shouted as he cast a spell. Janus's special shield greatly reduced the damage of Caelus's attack. "Did you not hear what your son just told you? We will be your opponents..." he said as he shrouded Crono in one of his Magic Walls.
Caelus shrugged, "Very well, Fiendlord, if that's the hill you wish to die on, then so be it."
"Thanks, Janus!" Tomo said as both she and Lex took off running.
Crono and his dad clashed swords and Janus levitated off to Caelus's flank to cast a spell, "Dark Bomb!" he shouted as his spell barreled toward the man. Caelus grinned and simply leaped away allowing Janus's spell to land harmlessly in the brush. "Damn it!" he cursed. "He's so fast!" he mused.
Caelus pointed at Janus with his index finger, "Photon Ray!" he announced as a blinding ball of light materialized on the tip. The ball transfigured into a narrow laser that nearly hit Janus in his right shoulder but his Magic Wall reduced its power significantly. "Your shield is impressive but it won't protect you forever...," Caelus warned.
Tomo and Lex dashed through the swamp and finally found Eston's hideout. "This must be it!" Tomo said as she tried to catch her breath.
"That was quick, we must be lucky!" Lex followed.
Tomo approached the door and started banging on it, "Hey, open up, Eston! We need some help!"
Eston was stuffing his face with a salad made from the strange plants of the swamp when he heard the noise. "I wonder who that could be?" he said as he placed his salad on the table and hurried to his metal door. He opened the door in astonishment, "Yes, who might you two be?"
Tomo was in a hurried state, "Hi Eston, we're friends of Crono and Glenn! We need your help, like right now!"
"Oh my, is... something the matter?" Eston asked worriedly.
"Yeah, there's a man here who's out for your life but Crono and another friend of ours have intercepted him!"
Eston grew pale, "W-what?! Why?!"
"He's...," Tomo started trying to think of an excuse. "He's just a hit man but we also need your help for Ty's sake!"
"Well, come on in then! I should work on finding a place to hide!" Eston said shakily. Eston escorted the two inside and they made it to his makeshift study. A desk was filled with antique chemistry equipment and many jars and vials had some nasty fluids in them. "I'm sorry, you said that fellow, Ty, needed help with something? What does he need? You know, before I hide... just in case your friends... erm, ahem, never mind."
"We need a vile concoction for an experiment we're doing!" Tomo said energetically. "I heard you stored some samples from that Hydra that Crono and the others killed. Can we, like, make something truly vile from it? We really need it!"
"Okay, okay, miss, please..., calm down," Eston said still shaking. "Well, you are in good fortune as I have been studying the Hydra's samples since you and your friends departed. Venom, Blood, Phlegm, and other fluids along with the meat, sinew, organs, and bones. I've kept them sealed in jars and placed them in a cool dry place. It would appear that everything about this creature is toxic in some way. I was attempting to make a panacea from it in case there are more of them. Having an antidote for Hydra Venom would be very useful and I'm getting really close with the Humour portion. My failed attempts are kept here in some of these other jars," Eston said as he spun one of the vile-looking jars slightly.
"So which one of these jars is the most toxic?" Tomo asked curiously.
"That would be this one," Eston said revealing a sizeable jar with a darkly colored fluid inside. "Four parts venom, two parts blood, and two parts phlegm. It is phenomenally toxic!"
"Since it's a dud can we take that one?" Tomo asked with a hopeful tone.
"Y-yes, go ahead!" Eston stammered. "Um, may I seek a place to hide now, you know, so that assassin does not locate me in case he manages to avoid Sir Crono?" he continued trying hard to not sound afraid.
"Yes, go! Find a good spot! We have to get back to Crono and help!" Tomo urged strongly.
"Thank you very much! You people are so kind!" Eston said as he scurried off nervously.
Tomo took the jar and stored it safely away, "I hope that doesn't break on our way back!" Lex said with concern.
"It's okay! I won't let anything happen to it!" Tomo said confidently.
Crono and Janus tried with much difficulty to hold off Caelus. They had both taken considerable damage in such a short time frame. Janus looked on, trying to catch his breath, as both father and son clashed Cyclone techniques. The clash broke and Crono was sent down to the ground. He caught himself as several of his extra swords planted themselves in the ground around him. He breathed heavily. "Dad, please, Dalton is deceiving you!" Crono pleaded.
"Son, you must understand that change happens!" Caelus retorted. "If you don't change with it, you'll be left behind!"
"Indeed it does dad, but some 'change' can be bad too! It all depends on who's in control and making it happen! Dalton is no God or a Hero! He's a demented General from his kingdom!" Crono said as he pointed to Janus.
Caelus gazed at Janus who was casting a shadow spell, "Dark Mist!" he chanted as the spell consumed Caelus.
Caelus shook off the spell and retorted with multiple Photon Rays. He showered Janus with them and Janus shouted in pain as he was pelted. "I've had all I can stand from the black wizard!" he shouted as he dashed toward a writhing Janus. He collected more light energy in the palm of his hand.
"Dad, stop!" Crono begged as he tried to reach Janus.
Caelus projected his hand over Janus's abdomen, "Photon Beam!" he shouted strongly as a massive sphere of bright white and bluish light grew in his hand until a single massive beam erupted from it piercing Janus's abdomen before he could escape. The beam went through Janus's abdomen badly burning the entry point and exit point. His armor soaked up most of the damage.
Janus was sent flying backward until he hit a tree and coughed up blood. "Janus!" Crono shouted trying to get to him.
Caelus interrupted with Wind Slash that ripped and tore at Crono's body in non-fatal ways. Blood poured from his wounds and mixed with the water and mud beneath his feet. "Now, enough of this meaningless resistance...," Caelus said menacingly.
Crono then suddenly raised both his arms into the air and grinned, "Janus, now!"
Caelus turned to see Janus, still alive and casting a spell. The two combined their middle-tier magic spells. "Scintillation!" Crono shouted in tandem with Janus.
"Dark Mist!" echoed Janus.
Caelus became enveloped by a black mist that resembled billowing clouds from the depths of space. Even star-like lights danced about within it as electric shocks were traded between them.
The spell ended and Caelus had finally taken significant damage, but instead of showing any signs of pain or even discomfort he sighed sadly, "What's a father to do?" he said depressed. He shot his hand into the sky and light collected in his hand. "Holy Healing...," he said as his body was surrounded by ribbons of white light. When the spell ended any damage Caelus sustained was completely healed.
"I should have known...," Janus said through clenched teeth.
Caelus turned to Janus once more, "This time I will take your head off."
As Caelus walked slowly toward Janus, Janus began to react strangely. His eyes glowed and his body radiated a faint light that softly pulsated. Crono looked on, "Is he...?"
"Hmm?" Caelus mused with his full attention.
A burst of light enveloped Janus and just like his time in the Furnace of Woe, he transformed using the Aura Surge. "He did, he can transform too!" Crono smiled.
As the stunning display unfolded, Tomo and Lex arrived. Tomo was astonished, "Wow, Janus can use the Aura Surge too?!"
"I'm sorry, the what?" Lex followed in awe.
"It's something that Frozen Flame gave us. You should have it too, Lex. You got hit with its power when we were in that dungeon," Tomo explained.
Lex looked at both his hands as he recalled the event, "So that's what that was? I was frightened by that effect but I seemed okay after it vanished!"
Crono watched in strange excitement as his body too gave off a minor pulse of light. Both Tomo and Lex noticed Crono and gave each other a quizzical stare. Janus rose into the air with a stone-cold expression on his face. "Go back to your own era. We'll handle the 'changes' to this world. Dalton will not be a part of it...," he said with a calm fury. Dark space-altering energy collected in his palm, "Gravity Bomb...," he said as a large black sphere with a red moon-like core barreled toward Caelus.
"Janus make sure you don't kill my dad!" Crono pleaded.
"He'll live...," said Janus as the Gravity Bomb reached Caelus.
Caelus shouted in shock as he tried to stop the attack with his Photon Rays but to no avail, they were simply swallowed by Janus's attack. The Gravity Bomb hit Caelus and caused much greater damage than their previous double technique and even threw the Epoch aside as collateral. Caelus survived but seemingly panicked as he believed the Epoch to be in danger. Counting his losses, Caelus sadly put his head down, "...Son, you win today but this is not the end...," he said as he retreated into the Epoch and started it. The Epoch sparked and sputtered as it lifted off and in an instant warped the space around it to take off into the fabric of time.
Janus relaxed and his Aura Surge dissipated. Lex rushed over to him to give his shoulder in support. Although he tried not to show it, Janus was in great pain. "Great timing with the Aura Surge, Janus! Good thing my dad showed that healing technique off. I'll have you patched up in a jiff!" Crono said as he threw his hand up like his dad.
"...Can you really hope to use such a high-level spell by just seeing-!" Janus said as he was cut off by ribbons of light. Just like Caelus, Janus healed completely.
Janus was surprised, "Well..., you are your father's son after all... What did you call that transformation? The Aura Surge?"
"Yeah, you must have come into contact with the Frozen Flame too!" Tomo said.
"Yes, the Fiends had it when I visited the Furnace of Woe for the first time," Janus explained. "When Dalton's voice came through it and explained to me that it was a part of Lavos, I attempted to destroy it, but alas, I failed. So you all have that as well?"
"Yep, it would seem so!" Crono claimed. "What did you hit my dad with anyway?"
"A Gravity spell that deals damage by percentages," Janus explained. "So it would not have killed you father."
"Great! Hopefully, this defeat will give my dad something to think about for a while!" Crono said solemnly.
Tomo approached Crono, "Um, we got the vile toxins Ty needs. So we are ready to go when you are," she said with an urgent tone to her voice.
"She is right, since your father has the Epoch, we cannot afford to waste any time," Janus claimed. "Let us visit Drayguard's crypt."
"Agreed!" Crono said. "Oh, and by the way, I'm calling that last Double Technique we used, Dark Nebula! That was pretty!" he chuckled.
"As you wish," Janus agreed. The party regrouped and made their way back to the Neo Epoch. They took off and began flying to Medina.
*Medina, 605 A.D.*
The party landed in Medina and quickly made their way into the dark forest that they had grown accustomed to. "Dark Hoard!" shouted Lex and Janus as they combined their magic. The spell generated a stampede of dark mist beasts that trampled over the encroaching undead.
After fighting a few more small battles, the party managed to find their way back into the sepulcher that Ty was kept in. Crono found the coffin with the same inscription as before, "Ah, here it is. He said we just have to pour this stuff on his body?" Crono asked as he removed the lid on the coffin.
"Eww, I can't watch!" Tomo said turning her back.
Ty's body was a little gooey and still decaying as it sat in a gross stew of chemicals that had been preserving him. Janus and Lex covered their noses as the smell was beyond atrocious. Crono gagged as he removed the lid from the jar containing the toxic brew. He poured the thick liquid all over Ty's rotted body and it soaked itself in every nook and cranny as it began to bubble and fume as it came into contact with the existing chemicals. Crono threw the jar away and covered Ty back up nice and tight, trying not to vomit as he did so.
"The deed is done!" Crono said as he gasped for fresh air.
"Now let's see if the Drayguard's research will bear any 'fruit'," Janus said stoically.
"D-did you just try to make a pun?" Crono asked with a grin.
"...," Janus blushed as he turned away.
*1005, A.D. Medina*
The party returned to the forest in the future and this time it was worse than ever before. Not a single leaf on the vast expanse of dead trees nor any grass could be seen. "Well, something has certainly changed," Lex said with caution.
Tomo swallowed hard, "It feels like I swallowed a swarm of butterflies," she moaned in worry.
"Hopefully, this Life Sparkle generated," Crono said.
Janus's mood took an ominous turn, "...I've got a bad feeling. We should keep our guard up."
The party readied themselves and entered the deadened brush. Like before, resistance was met with ghosts, skeletons, zombified Fiends, and other undead critters that wandered aimlessly, seemingly without purpose. Lex drew his sword and began rushing through with a 'Sweep' technique that cuts down many of the enemies at their knees or higher if the foe was much shorter. His long sword could cut through many of them at a time.
"Wow, you're all fired up, huh?!" Crono complimented.
"What can I say? This situation became more intense! I have much more mettle to show!" Lex claimed.
As Lex boasted a little, a skeleton crept up behind him but before he could react he witnessed the skeleton get swallowed up by the ground, "Quick Sand!" Tomo shouted. Tomo's spell swallowed the skeleton before it could reach Lex.
Lex turned to Tomo, "Thank you for the assistance!" he said with an embarrassed expression.
"A new little trick I learned, ha, ha...," Tomo responded, still trying to shake her nervousness.
"That was amazing! Hold onto that idea I may have something for that later!" Lex said with a tantalizing idea. "For now though, I think it will be easier to pass if I do this! Frost Veil!" he announced as he cast a spell. Suddenly, the entire field was covered in a cold fog that frosted the ground and slowed the movements of some monsters, and completely froze a few others.
Janus stood next to a Shadow spirit that was frozen solid and he was unsurprised. Before he could act though, Tomo shot the monster with her Gastromorph spell and it transformed into a whipped cream on top of a very thin wafer. Janus seemed more surprised by this than the monster being there. Tomo ran up to the wafer and popped it into her mouth, "Hmm, very light tasting. Kind of what I would expect from a Ghost. Diet food," she said as she swallowed it. She shivered as a magical aura engulfed her for a brief moment. "Oh, that's a creepy feeling, this monster really knows how to hold a 'Grudge'!" she said with a laugh.
"Hmm, interesting...," Janus said softly. "I have an idea. Tomo would you do that again?"
"Uh, sure!" Tomo agreed as she picked another frozen monster. Tomo blasted the monster and it glowed as it was consumed by her spell but before it could transform, Janus hit it with his own Polymorph spell. The shocking development chained to some of the other nearby monsters and they all transformed into very rare medicines and elixirs. "Wow, that was neat!" Tomo said with starry eyes.
"Hmm, good, these powerful items should be useful," Janus said as he scooped them all up.
"That was cool!" Crono said as Lex nodded in agreement behind him. "What was that one? Like a 'Megamorph' or something?"
"...," Janus mused.
"I like it, let's keep that one!" Tomo cheered.
"Cool, and it cleared a path for us! Let's get moving!" Crono said, getting back on track.
The party continued their trek through the hellish landscape until they finally came to the necropolis once more. A dark fog covered the graves and it was difficult to find the right sepulcher but eventually, they found Ty's resting place. "Ah, here it is. Everyone brace yourselves!" Crono said as he began moving the lid.
Ty's body was far from a skeleton this time. It had become something else entirely. He resembled a human-shaped 'swamp' and the smell caused everyone to back up. Tomo covered her mouth as a burning sensation brought tears to her eyes. "Ugh, that's foul...," Crono said with a gag. "So how do we-?!" he said as he was cut off by a twitch from Ty.
"D-did he just move?" Lex asked breathlessly.
Tomo backed up in fear as Ty's hand rose from the coffin and he propped himself up. She almost fainted standing up as she took in the terrifying visage of her best friend. Janus threw his cape aside and readied himself, "Everyone, take a back! I knew I sensed something ominous," he warned.
Ty removed himself from the coffin and opened his mouth. Toxic sludge drooled from his exposed teeth. Red glowing eyes shined faintly through his goggles as he sneered at the party. "Are you doing all right there?" Crono asked, hoping Ty would answer just like before.
There was no response but one of hostility. Ty drew his daggers and rushed Crono with surprising agility. Crono stepped aside allowing Ty to lumber passed him. He drew his sword. "It's not him...," Janus claimed. "Everyone, be careful!"
Lex drew his sword and Janus his scythe but Tomo seemed to be lost in shock as she couldn't take her eyes off Ty. Lex pushed Ty back and with a glow in his eyes, his sword became shrouded in mist. "I am sorry you had to suffer in such a way for us! I will end this quickly with my Mist Strike!" claimed Lex vigorously as more mist filled the room.
The room was completely shrouded and only glimpses of Ty and Lex could be seen and the sounds of their parries could be heard. Tomo mumbled nervously, "No, this won't work on Ty. His Ghostly Strike is the same kind of tech!"
She gasped as she heard Lex's sword connect. Lex came through as he managed to dismember Ty's left arm. It flopped to the floor with a wet noise. "Nice going, Lex!" Crono said as he came in with a few slashes of his own. Ty was ripped and torn but was unfazed as his wounds glowed and regenerated. His arm even crawled back to him of its own accord and he effortlessly reattached it. Janus swooped in with his scythe, and with a grunt and a hard swing, decapitated Ty but his head did not fall to the floor. Instead, it simply reattached itself. "Damn, it is his regenerative abilities! Our weapons cannot deal enough damage to prove effective!" Janus announced.
"That's okay, I'll just end this with a Holy Light spell!" Crono stated as he threw his hands up high. Ty seemed to notice this immediately as he turned his head in an inhuman way to focus on Crono. He rushed toward Crono and got within spitting distance. "Uh oh...," moaned Crono as Ty breathed deeply. He lunged forward as he exhaled toxic smoke all over Crono. Crono coughed and hacked as he stumbled around.
"Oh, no! What was that?!" Tomo shrieked.
Janus sneered, "A nasty tech that just reduced Crono to a sickly detriment."
Indeed, Crono was stricken with many ailments. He stumbled in confusion, was blinded, badly poisoned, burned, shivered with a chill, and dizzy, and that was just to name a few. His most debilitating handicap, however, was that he could no longer cast his magic. "That was a very nasty case of Bad Breath!" Lex said as he clenched his teeth.
"If he hits all of us with that skill we are doomed," Janus warned.
Tomo was horrified, "His poisons are so strong like this! I hate this! Is this what I was like when I was a monster?!" she thought as she reminisced.
Janus mused as he placed a Magic Wall between him and the zombie, "My Shadow magic will do very little to an undead creature so I am already at a disadvantage. Perhaps a taste of medicine will end him," Janus thought as he grabbed an Elixir from his pouch.
Janus dashed to Ty and grabbed his mouth with the pill in the palm of his hand hoping to shove the Elixir into Ty's mouth. Ty swallowed it as Janus retreated. Lex moved to Crono to try and calm the confused man but Crono kept swinging his sword comically and wildly as he tried to defend himself. "Why did you give Ty one of our Elixirs? Should we not conserve those?" Lex said as he detained Crono with a headlock.
"Zombies cannot process healing salves and potions like the living. This should destroy his body," Janus explained.
Lex finally got a Panacea in Crono's mouth and he calmed down as his ailments began to fade. Ty on the other hand bent forward and spewed up a grotesque liquid. However, he seemed unaffected by the Elixir. Janus's eyes widened in surprise, "What? It did nothing? How is that possible?"
"It's his body!" Tomo shouted. "Ty's zombified body is such a cesspool of chemicals, it probably can't process anymore, good or bad!"
"That is most unfortunate!" Janus replied as he began struggling with Ty.
Janus managed to block most of Ty's strikes as Lex provided backup in the form of magic. "Hold on, let me give us some reprieve! My Healing Fog should do the trick!" he said as he cast a spell.
The entire room was saturated in a dense fog and Crono began feeling much better as he rose to his feet. "Thanks for the save, Lex, this fog is making my wounds heal so fast!" Crono stated.
"Ty is not the only one with regenerative capabilities!" he said with a chuckle.
Then suddenly, the levity was broken as Ty came through the fog straight for Lex. Lex's eyes widened as he was caught off guard and Ty doused him with his Bad Breath. While the overall damage Lex took was small, something began to occur in Lex as the Healing Fog faded away. He got angry. His skin took a bright reddish tone as his muscles increased in size and the ailments he was afflicted with seemed to not be bothering him nearly as much. Lex roared with power and he assaulted Ty. He cut Ty apart with fast, critical blows.
"Woah! He went Berserk! Who knew getting hit with all that crud would be a trigger point!" Crono deduced.
Lex breathed heavily as he stood over the twitching, pulsating pieces of Ty. Just like before, the pieces of rot pulled themselves together even including his clothing as he regenerated. Lex growled in anger as he clutched his sword.
Janus quietly floated to Tomo's side as Lex continued his rampage, "Tomo, I could not help but notice you have lost your nerve since we left Ty to this fate. Does seeing Ty like this cut that deeply into you?"
Tomo stammered as she tried to find the words, "I had a similar problem... not too long before we met Crono and the others. I turned into a monster too and Ty managed to save me but...," she said as a hint sadness overtook her. "...I feel like I can't do the same for him."
Janus spoke softly, "You do not need to. There is nothing to save here, it is just flesh. Ty is still himself back in the era we left him. All we need is to claim the Life Sparkle and return to him."
Tomo shivered as she closed her eyes, "...I know that... and even then, why does this make me feel this way...?" she said as she breathed deeply. Tomo clenched her hands into tight fists as she watch Ty begin to regenerate again. Lex's Berserk mode began to wear down.
"You must steel your will, Tomo," Janus spoke. "You will find the answer soon as it is like a treasure that only you can find."
Tomo breathed deeply as she began walking toward the regenerating corpse of her best friend. Once he fully regenerated, he faced Tomo and he seemed to stall for a moment as a single tear ran down her cheek. Ty leaned in almost as if he remembered something and he reached out with a single finger to collect the tear. As Ty was distracted by the display of emotion, Tomo placed her hand over his heart. "Your heart still beats... even like this. I'm sorry I can't do for you what you did for me back then but this has to stop... or it will tear me apart...," Tomo said holding back the urge to cry. She cast a spell on Ty and a poof of stone-gray dust consumed him. It cleared, seemingly doing nothing until Ty began to change.
His body began to stiffen as he began to turn to stone starting from his hands and feet and working its way up. His gooey body became a dry husk made of stone and it began to crumble. Janus watched intensively, "Incredible, she Petrified him. Most impressive..."
Ty's arms broke off and crashed to the floor as the rest of him turned to dust. His death-stained, dried-out jacket was all that was left in Tomo's hands as she collapsed to the floor with a blank expression. In the dust that was once Ty, a mysterious seed sprung forth with a bright glow. It had also sprouted.
Janus came to the seed and picked it up, "So this is the Life Sparkle. Congratulations, Ty, your haphazard work bore fruit."
Tomo got to her feet albeit weakly and said nothing as she began slowly walking towards the exit to the sepulcher with Ty's jacket clutched tightly into her chest. Lex consumed a Panacea and he winced as he recovered from the ailments Ty had placed on him. Crono, however, inspected Ty's remains, "From ashes to ashes, dust to dust, I guess. I wonder if Ty would like to inspect his own remains?" he said as he gathered the dust into a small jar and stored it away.
"We should get back as soon as possible," Janus urged. "Tomo's mood is quickly approaching despair."
"Oh, right! That was... probably very hard for her to do," Crono followed.
"I wonder who turned Ty into such a vile creature?" Lex asked curiously.
"We will find out soon enough," Janus said ominously as the party left the necropolis.
*End of Chapter*