Second-to-last chapter. Chrono Trigger isn't mine.
They continued traversing the dungeon halls, the sickly lime lighting giving their ceremony a surreal feel, the damp bone-chill numbing the body. Lyn knew she'd have nightmares about this. That, or she would allow the final change, accepting the name… Mazoku. The thought of the final and complete betrayal of race she was born to was still enough to make Lyn shiver, but she was starting to see its appeal. As a Mazoku she would have a place, free from guilt and regrets. She was still lost in her thoughts when a stone hit her hard in the back.
Lyn pitched forward, thrown off balance by the impact. She caught herself, one hand scraping a track of glowing moss off the wall, the other hitting the floor hard. Janus spun around, knowing it was an attack as soon as he heard Lyn fall. The attackers, again Humans, charged Lyn and Janus, intending to take the pair out by brute force. The cerulean-haired boy was already acting, though, chanting a spell and gesturing fluidly. There was an explosion of darkness in the already-dim hall, and the Humans fell. Lyn was back on her feet now, and she turned, trying to see what had happened.
Janus walked over to the fallen attackers, checking quickly to see if either had survived, and if they had the item he needed. When he was done, he glanced at Lyn and shook his head, almost seeming to apologize. "There's nothing left for you, but you'll get more chances. We have to keep looking, and there's three teams left."
"I…" Lyn gasped out, not sure what she wanted to say as her mind tried to make sense of what happened.
Seeing Lyn's confusion, Janus sighed and decided to explain more. "You already know that this is a trial, an acceptance ceremony you could say. The better we do here, the higher status we'll have there," he motioned vaguely towards the rest of the castle. "Right now, it looks like I'll be outranking you," he added, an arrogant smirk on his thin lips.
"You already do," Lyn stated automatically before processing his words. If she did well here, she wouldn't be a slave anymore, might even be free of Flea. Might even gain enough status to outrank Janus. But to do well, she'd have to actually try. She'd have to accept the change.
Janus watched Lyn, guessing at her thoughts from her open expressions. "Stop being so damned readable," he snapped, a certain amount of fondness in his voice. Her face closed, and he nodded in approval, "Right. Let's go."
Most of the remaining day was spent in the search for the last three teams. Lyn was forced to abuse her healing spells to keep their strength up, as the damp and chill sapped at their strength. Lyn was fighting very hard not to fall into a stupor as the chill and the poisonous green light mixed with her dwindling magic power. She was still walking but was only minimally aware of what was going on around her. A recognizable ring of steel on steel aroused her with a burst of adrenaline.
Janus put an arm out to keep her from charging into the battle, somewhat surprised at her trance-born battle-lust. Looking down the hall, he saw steps, with the fighting around a corner beyond. "Let them fight; the winners will be weakened, easier prey," he whispered, creeping down the steps.
Lyn nodded in agreement, allowing herself a moment of reflection. Her life had shattered around her, and she had spent too much energy trying to hold to it. Things hadn't miraculously gotten all better, and it was time to leave the dream of her old life behind, something she should have done a year ago. She hadn't wanted to be Mazoku, but it seemed she already was, and now she had to accept it.
Peering around the corner, the pair saw that the corridor widened into a room, where a team of Mazoku battled a pair of Humans. The Mazoku had the obvious advantage, one casting magic and a Freelancer with a sword. The Humans, however, were putting up a good fight, not letting the magic frighten them. The unarmed man was attacking the Freelancer with skilled blows, nimbly avoiding the sword. The other, armed with a club, was hitting the magic user, though the Mazoku, odd for a mage, didn't seem to be feeling the full force of the blows.
The bird-like Freelancer feinted high, then cut low just as its opponent charged in. Pulling the sword out of the man's skull with a wet noise, the Mazoku raised the blade again. The cloaked magician, a Juggler, lifted a hand from its robes and sent a stream of fire toward the bloodied steel. Lyn knew what was coming next. The Freelancer whirled with the flaming sword, cleaving the club-wielding Human in two. The sick smell of burnt meat filled the air.
Janus touched Lyn's arm, then pointed to the Freelancer, who was cleaning the now-cool sword. Lyn hesitated just a moment, surprised that they would have to kill even the Mazoku in this trial, and then she nodded and stood. Stepping around the corner, Lyn tightened her hold on the chain, ignoring the stench, and hearing Janus start a spell. "Birdie!" Lyn called, causing the Mazoku to squawk and raise his blade. Dark Bomb, the familiar explosion of blackness, detonated on the Juggler, and Lyn raised her chain to deflect the charging Freelancer's sword.
Somehow managing to twist the chain around the sword, Lyn pulled down. The Mazoku didn't let go in time, unsure how to fight her, and overbalanced, falling forward. Taking a step back, Lyn let the sword pull free of the rusted links as she chanted, calling fire. She pointed a chain-wrapped hand at the darkly feathered creature and the magical flame shot forth. With a loud screech, the already weakened Freelancer fell to the dungeon floor, smoldering slightly. From behind her, Lyn heard Janus call.
"This one juggles defense! Use a spell after I hit it!" As the young man spoke, his scythe flashed, wounding the Juggler.
Lyn's mind was back in a fog from her exertions, but she understood Janus' order. With another chant, she hurled a bolt of ice at the red-cloaked Mystic, then frowned. That spell was far weaker then it was intended to be.
Janus spun around, hitting the creature with his scythe once again, burying the tip in the Juggler's chest. The Mazoku's eyes widened, and it fell back, pulling free of the metal with a wet sucking sound. Breathing heavily, Janus looked around. Seeing the dead Freelancer, he nodded slightly before asking "How are you on magic?"
"I'm out," Lyn replied dully, unseeing eyes covering the carnage as her adrenaline faded.
"Lardon take it," Janus cursed, banishing his scythe. "I'm out too, and there's still a team left. And they're the ones with the item."
"How… how do you know?" Lyn asked.
For answer, Janus motioned to a decorated niche in the wall. "That's empty." He looked up at Lyn, red eyes meeting red eyes. "We have to stop them. Ambush, I think; we can't take another drawn-out fight. Stay quite, stay close, and stay ready."
Exhaustion showed in Lyn's eyes as she nodded. "We should hurry…."
Janus smiled encouragingly, grateful she wasn't locking up anymore. "Right. Let's go, Lyn." Janus became stern again, and he ran out of the room, Lyn on his heels.
With blue hair streaming behind him like water, Janus seemed to be following a path he knew, never hesitating at intersections. The two youths ran nearly silent despite their exhaustion, quiet being too deeply ingrained by harsh teachings to be forgotten. From up ahead, yellow and blue torchlight began to outshine the sickly lichen, and Janus again called his scythe to his hands. They rounded a last corner and saw two men running for a closed gate. Lyn tightened her hold on the chain, and then they had caught the Humans.
Instinctively, Lyn flung the chain around the nearer man's neck, crossing her arms and pulling it tight. He fell forward from his own momentum, but her backward pull was too gentle to break his neck. Lyn was pulled to her knees by his weight, and he tried to take advantage of the sudden slack. Realizing what he was doing, she managed to get a knee on his back, and she rested her weight on it, thrusting him forward while still pulling back herself. Why wouldn't he just die?
Janus caught his target cleanly through the neck, nearly severing the head. The Mazoku beyond the gate watched expressionlessly as Janus retrieved the small artifact, then turned to see what Lyn was doing. He saw her with the chain around the man's neck, strangling him. Why hadn't she just used enough force to break the spine?
Each little motion as the man tried to breathe pulled on the chain, until Lyn thought that she could feel the muscles in his neck, feel the windpipe beyond, which she was slowly crushing. No, she didn't want it to be this way! He was supposed to be dead by now! Her arms slackened a moment from sheer weariness and despair, and then she pulled the iron links yet tighter.
By Lardon's chain and all calamities, is she -enjoying- this? Janus wondered, paling at the thought. It couldn't be; half a day before she had trembled at the thought of killing! But what other possible explanation could there be, he wondered, watching as she relaxed her arms enough to give her victim the slightest hope of mercy, only to wrench in from him the next moment.
Die already, just die! Warrior, what did I do wrong? Lyn screamed in her mind, bearing down on the Human's back harder. He was curved so much it seemed his back would break, and he shook in the grip of her chain, making small gagging noises. With one last shudder, the man went suddenly still and limp, though she held the pressure for a long time after. And then, with a slow blink, she released the chain, letting the body fall to the ground.
And... end. One chapter left. Please leave a reveiw.