ZnT belongs to Noboru Yamaguchi and J.C. Staff. I own Cronoz.

A/N: For anyone who asked a question about Cronoz, I have your answers! They are at the bottom, as well as a long overdue update as to why I'm so late! But for now, enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 8: City Folk

The sun had begun to set by the time the trio of travelers made it to the city. Lucky for them, no one really wanted to take a look in the back of the carriage, no less ask them who they were or what their business was in the city. That notion gave Cronoz much needed relief, seeing as if anyone spotted who him would create quite the commotion.

He was somewhat surprised, however, at how large the city - which he assumed was the capital of the land - was. Even from the small window in the carriage he was able to see multiple shops and vendors selling a variety of goods. Of course, at this time, they were packing up and finishing any last minute deals to buyers. Cronoz calculated that during the day this place must have been packed with people. He could only theorize how bad it would have been if they came in during the day.

Siesta was more than happy to allow Cronoz and Louise entry into her uncle's bar, although the latter was a little annoyed she would have to stay in a commoner's home, and a bar for that matter. Cronoz didn't mind in the slightest, especially after meeting Siesta's more-than-enthusiastic uncle behind the building.

"Oh my~! Aren't you the biggest lovable metal… thing I've ever seen!" Scarron practically sung, not really minding Cronoz's daunting appearance. "Siesta's told us all about how you beat up that boy back at the school. You're a real bona fide knight in shining armor, aren't you?"

"Well… I wouldn't say that." Cronoz scratched the back of his head. Louise simply rolled her eyes.

"Well! In any case, you are welcome here, anytime! Let me go prepare the back room for you, big guy," Scarron then motioned towards Louise. "And you, little lady. My daughter Jessica will prepare the upstairs room for you, alrighty~?"

"Yeah, I guess so." Louise answered. Cronoz nudged her with his finger, which got her attention. He gave her a glance that said 'come on, lighten up. They're just trying to be friendly.' Cronoz didn't have to read his master's returning glance to know what she was feeling: Irritation.

"Great! I'll get started inside, you guys hang out here for now." Scarron winked and smiled, then went inside, leaving Siesta, Cronoz and Louise to themselves.

"Uh… Siesta. Is your uncle always this… uh…" Cronoz couldn't exactly piece together the right adjective to describe his gracious host.

"Inviting?" Siesta answered with a smiled. "Yeah, he's a bit eccentric. Guess that comes when owning your own bar."

"Uh-huh," Cronoz turned his head towards Louise. "So, Louise are you… hey! Where are you going, Louise?"

He hadn't noticed it, but the pink haired mage had already made her way halfway out from behind the pub towards the main shops of the city. She turned on her heel and shouted back towards the mech.

"I'm going out for a bit! Need some fresh air! I'll be back soon!"

"But it's going to be dark in a few… minutes… Ugh…" Cronoz shut his optics, knowing his protests were falling upon deaf ears, as Louise was already gone. "She has a habit of doing that, doesn't she?"

"I wouldn't know. Besides, you're the closest one to her, right?" Siesta responded.

"Yeah… I assume so," Cronoz looked back to his friend. "I just worry about her sometimes and…"

Siesta scooted over and leaned up against the mech's rusty frame. "And?"

Cronoz realized what he was saying, and quickly tried to resolve it. "N-nothing. Never mind."

Siesta giggled. "Whatever you say, Cronoz," She bobbed up and down as she headed towards the door. She opened the back door, turning her head around to meet Cronoz's gaze. "I'm going to help my uncle, you just stay out here for now, OK?"

"Because, you know, there's so many places for me to go right now."

"Oh, just say 'affirmative' or something."

Cronoz chuckled. "Affirmative."

It wasn't much later until Louise returned to the pub, looking as she did since she left some time ago. She rubbed her eyes, realizing how tired she actually was. For once, she actually hoped her familiar's friend - Siesta, that was her name! - and her family had prepared the room they had said they would have for her. The young mage opened her eyes again, and cocked an eyebrow. She was surprised to find none of the famed waitresses around to clean up the closed pub. Even Scarron seemed to be absent.

"Where can everyone be?" She muttered to herself as she walked farther in. She found no one in the kitchen or behind the liquor counter. It was completely barren.

I'll bet all my skills as a mage… Louise thought to herself as she looked toward the direction of the door that lead to the back room of the pub. She marched over to it and opened it quietly, hoping for once she was wrong. Unfortunately, she wasn't.

Amongst the large barrels and kegs of assorted wine and drinks stood everyone working at the bar. All the waitresses, clad in their maid outfits, all stood around a singular point of interest, gawking in awe. Scarron and Jessica both stared interested. At the center hold of it all was Siesta, nodding with her hands on her hips, acting all superior and what not. And, of course, the 'point of interest' was none other than Cronoz, whom, although unable to show it, felt awfully uncomfortable with all the attention he was receiving.

Louise, whom had been unnoticed, grew more and more angered by this. How dare that maid flaunt him around like he's some kind of personal accessory! He was HER familiar! Her servant! Her-

She blinked for a second. Why was she getting so worked up over something as trivial as her servant? It wasn't… that big of a deal. Why was she thinking so much about it? She shook her head. She'll think about it later, when the time allows her. For now, she kept on spying on the gathered crowd, who were still oblivious to her presence.

"So, as you can see, ladies, Cronoz is a highly advanced… uh, thing," Siesta still had a little trouble defining what her rusty metal friend was, even after he had explained himself to her in the simplest terms multiple times. "And now! He shall show you one of his many kind of… thingies, that he used to beat the student from the academy!"

Whilst the waitresses 'oooed' and 'awwed,' Cronoz stared at Siesta with uncertainty. "By 'thingies' do you refer to my M390 minigun?"

"The spinning one, yeah!" Siesta tapped his chest with the palm of her hand.

Cronoz sighed. "Alright. But this course of action seems most… regrettable."

He lifted his right arm, and, with only a small second thought, activated the shifting sub-routine. Like before, his fingers stretched and spun around before recessing into his, with the armor around his arm expanding and sliding away, revealing the long barrels of the minigun. The circular rods spun and spun until they were in place, with the transformation ending with multiples clicks and clanks.

The waitresses all coed, obviously not having seen anything like this before. Cronoz took some slight enjoyment out of their astonishment. It was out of place and odd, but he enjoyed it nonetheless. One of the maids placed her hands upon the massive weapon. "Can you sure how us how it works, metal man?"

"Of course he can!" Siesta proudly declared.

"No." Cronoz replied.

"What!" Many of the maids' faces turned sour, disappointed to hear the denial so quickly. Siesta was most irked. "Why not?"

"Normally, I would do this favor for you. However, not only are we inside a building, there is a high probability that I could injure someone here," The mech shook his head. "Even worse, I could attract unwanted attention from people outside. I hope you can-"

Before he could finish, Cronoz found his arm being grabbed by Siesta, who fruitlessly began to tap whatever buttons she could find.

"Come Cronoz! Don't be such a stickler!"

"Siesta, can you please stop that before-"

Again, the mech was unable to finish. Siesta slammed one too many buttons and controls with her fists that the weapon fired, letting loose a stream of bullets. The maids screamed at the sudden burst, dropping to the down and pulling their hands on their heads. Cronoz, surprised that his own weapon fired without him telling it to, responded quickly by overriding the unnecessary command to shoot. The bullets immediately stopped, leaving the only sound in the room the barrel of the gun slowing down. Cronoz scanned around the room, trying to detect if anyone was injured. He registered that no one was hurt in anyway, thankfully. The only thing that seemed to suffer any damage was the door that led to the main part of the pub. It was completely full of holes, barely hanging on its hinges.

Scarron, who popped out of a nearby barrel, let out a heavy sigh. "At least no one got hurt," He then turned to Cronoz. "You, sir, are one powerful thing!"

Cronoz didn't respond, as he was too busy staring at the destroyed door. Bits of wood fell from it, before it ultimately fell to the floor with a slam. If he could gulp, he would have. Behind the door, stood a bug eyed, pink haired - now ruined by the hail of bullets that whizzed past it - Louise, who shivered in place for a few moments, giving everyone enough time to see her ghostly pale expression, before she fell flat on her back and fainted.

After a full day of sleep, Louise eventually woke up, and, as expected, shouted and berated Cronoz, saying how he could have killed her. The mech tried to explain, but his agitated master wouldn't have any of it. After a while, though, she calmed down, as Cronoz had calculated. The next few days seemed like a blur to Cronoz. Louise went in and out of the tavern whenever she pleased, leaving once to inform the palace of a time when Cronoz and her would be able to meet with the princess. In the meantime, Cronoz stayed at the Charming Fairy. He helped fix whatever he had accidentally damaged, talked plenty to the ladies of the pub, and even learned a few happenings within the city. Scarron and Jessica informed him of the ignorant nobles who would barge in, ordering drinks as if they owned the place.

"Although, I bet they wouldn't stand a chance against you, Crozy!" Scarron had reassured him.

Cronoz faked a chuckle, unsure how to react to being called such an odd pet name. Familiar was one thing, but… 'Crozy?' Now that's just silly.

Eventually, the night of the gala reared its head, making both Louise and her familiar nervous. She didn't like the idea of having the day of the ball to be the day of the meeting, and neither did Cronoz. But, that's how it was, the palace committee had said.

The maids of the pub, along with Siesta, Cronoz, Jessica, and Scarron, gathered in the back of the shop to watch as Louise came down from the upstairs room, wearing her dress for the gala. It was a very beautiful dress: snow white with pink frills and a pink bow on her back. Her hair was tied in the back, with only a few strands still falling down to her shoulders. A golden necklace completed the stunning image Louise hoped for. The maids clapped, making Louise turn a little red.

"You look great, Ms. Valliere!" Siesta smiled.

"Definitely." Jessica nodded.

"You'll be the queen of the ball, little lady!" Scarron cooed, making Louise feel… well, awkward.

She walked up to Cronoz, who nodded his approval. "You look very nice, Louise."

Louise made a triumphant smirk. "Of course I do. Why shouldn't a noble dress up for such an occasion?"

Cronoz chuckled. Before she began to walk toward the door, the mech thought she heard her say something. It was a very faint sound, barely even picked up by his audio sensors. Although she may not admit, Cronoz could have sworn Louise had said "Thank you." The thought of her doing said made Cronoz chuckle again.

Before exiting the tavern, Louise turned around. "Oh right. Cronoz," she pointed a finger at him. "An officer from the palace will come to get you after some time. I told him to come here directly, so please be on your up-most behavior."

Cronoz waved a hand. "When have I done otherwise?"

She made a short smile, waved to the rest of the group, and left.

Siesta walked into the back of the store to find some extra bottles of spiced wine, as service seemed to be in high demand today. She looked over towards Cronoz, who had said he needed 'maintenance,' to which he began doing whatever he was doing now. He rambled off saying things like 'Ammunition check: 50%' and 'Armor Damage: 85%.' Siesta decided to let him be and kept looking for the wine. Looking around, she eventually found it: a full case of the desired drink, hanging unnoticed on the top of a large wooden wine rack. The black haired maid stood on her tiptoes, trying to reach it, but to no avail. She decided to stand on the next ledge (luckily devoid of any bottles) to see if she could grab the case.

"Ah-ha!" Siesta triumphantly exclaimed once her hands grasped firmly on the case. Unfortunately, the sudden grabbing of said object made the wine rack wobble, causing her to loose balance. She felt herself falling backwards, and let out a short yelp before shutting her eyes.

However, instead of the ground rushing up to her, she felt something catch her. Something metal. She looked up, and smiled sheepishly. "Thanks Cronoz."

The mech let out a caring metallic sigh. "Your welcome." He helped Siesta back to her feat, who had been able to hold onto the case of wine despite the relatively small fall. Suddenly, another voice popped out of nowhere.

"Cronoz," Siesta and the mech turned to see Jessica standing by the doorway. "The person from palace has come to pick you up. She's waiting in the backyard."

The rusty machine nodded his horned head. He lurched around to exit the back room, but he felt something tap his shoulder. It was Siesta, holding the case with one arm. "Do be careful, alright? Don't let those palace guys intimidate you, OK?"

Cronoz would've smiled. "Of course. Besides, I'm an armor plated fully functional steampunk class seeker. I'm sure some guards aren't going to frighten me."

Cronoz, knowing very well he had no internal structures similar to a throat, still let out a short sound that could be related to a gulp when he scanned the 'escort' the palace committee sent to fetch him. A white robed sword wielding woman stared at him with icy blue eyes. She had short golden hair, with clothing that seemed to outline her authority with no need for words. She stared at Cronoz for sometime, even after he shut the door behind him.

"Hello, I assume you're-" Cronoz began, to which he was immediately interrupted by a quick flash of the hand by the woman.

"You are Louise de La Valliere's familiar, correct?" She asked, sternly.

Cronoz nodded. "I am." He calculated that extended conversations with this woman was going to be troublesome, so the mech decided he should keep his answers to a minimum.

The woman nodded. "I am Agnes Chevalier de Milan, Captain of Tristain's musketeers under her majesty Queen Henrietta. I'm sure you are aware that her majesty has asked to see you," She paused, as if expecting a response. Cronoz simply nodded. "I have a carriage large enough for you to fit in, as your master had instructed." She turned around, and began to walk out into the city. Luckily for the mech, the veil of night was descending, giving him some much needed relief.

This Agnes though… Cronoz thought to himself as he followed behind the short haired Captain. She troubles me.

As she had said, the rusty mech found a carriage - much more regal than his last ride - waiting for him near the pub. It was a dark purple, with a high roof and golden framework. The horses hitched to the fancy coach bucked a little at the sight of the metal giant emerging from the darkness. Agnes calmed them down with some simple petting, and motioned for Cronoz to get in the back. He complied without a word, although still worried about being spotted in open, albeit at night. The carriage staggered as he stepped in, his metal frame arched to fit inside. Agnes quickly came around, shut the back door, returned to the front of the coach, hopped onto the seat, and cracked the reigns, starting the horses up.

Cronoz decided to look out the windows of the carriage. He found many buildings lit up like stars, street lamps turning on, illuminating the street, and the hustle of some of the citizens, either to return home or on some other business. He wondered what it would be like to be free, but then remembered how outlandish it would feel to be let loose in a world he still barely had scratched the surface with.

He looked up through the peephole that let passengers talk to the rider, finding Agnes still carrying out her simple duties. Inevitably, curiosity got the better of him.

"So, uh, do you live here in the city, Ms-" Was the only thing he could say before Agnes shut the tiny window without looking. The mech blinked his eyes, and sighed. "Not much of a talker, are you." He quietly muttered to himself before continuing his stare down with the city outside the windows.

Lucky for Cronoz and Agnes alike, the trip was short, with the Captain bringing the coach around the castle walls. Cronoz watched as guests poured into the humongous white building. It wasn't as many as the number he had seen when he first entered the city, but it was pretty close. Before he knew it, the mech had ended up staring at the magnificent construction longer than he should have. The carriage abruptly stopped, meaning the trip was finally over. The back door opened up after a moment by the short haired woman, letting the mech slowly lumber out. Agnes watched as he did so before speaking in her authoritative tone.

"Follow me." She began walking, not even checking to see if Cronoz was following her.

"I assume you have planned for me to get inside without any of the guests seeing me, correct?" Cronoz asked as politely as he could.

Agnes nodded without looking back. "We set up restricted areas for the guests, just for you to have your talk with her majesty."

"I see…" The mech said quietly as he followed the captain. From the back of the castle, she took the metal familiar through an door that led into the cellar of the pristine building. The two walked in silence, Cronoz's heavy footprints following Agnes' normal, yet quickened, pace. Eventually, they made it onto the clean, majestic hallways of the castle. Cronoz couldn't help but notice the guard's expressions as he walked down the long aisles. He wouldn't admit that it didn't give him a hint of entertainment. After turning a corner and walking a bit more, Agnes stopped and turned on her heel. She motioned towards the door that the two now stood in front off. It was large, painted red with beautiful, yet simple, designs on it, as well as guarded by two more sentries.

"Through that door is her majesty, Queen Henrietta, as well as your master, Miss Louise. They have been catching up for some time now…" She peered right into Cronoz's optics, her eyes as serious as the mech had ever seen on any human being. "I, as well as six other royal guards will be in the room while you speak with the queen. And I'll warn you right now: Try anything, anything at all, and you'll regret it."

Cronoz wanted to narrow his optics, but he thought of Louise and how much this meant to her. So, he simply nodded. "I understand, Ms. Agnes."

"We'll see."

The Captain opened the door, and stepped in, with Cronoz following close behind. He looked around, scanning the interior. It was as royal as he expected, with elegant banners that matched the long rug that his triangular feet stepped on (as carefully as he could, mind you). Large white pillars supported it, two at the entrance and two in the back. Speaking of the back, a couple of short steps led to an upper stage, where two large regal chairs lay, chairs that were both filled. Both girls, beautifully stunning in their own right, laughing together as if they had known each other their entire lives. They both looked at Agnes and Cronoz as they entered, each equally happy to see them.

Cronoz hadn't noticed, but Agnes had quietly bowed after they were close enough to the thrones. "Your majesty, I've brought Ms. Valliere's familiar, just as you asked."

The one Cronoz didn't recognize - but obviously could guess - stood up. "Thank you, Agnes. But please, you may call me by my name. No need for 'your majesty.' Henrietta will do nicely."

Cronoz, however, did notice the very slight, but ever present, relief - and surprise - that flooded over the gruff female captain. "Thank you, Ms. Henrietta."

"So, this is the mighty metal familiar I've heard so much about," Henrietta smiled as she stepped down the tiny steps and walked up to Cronoz. She wore a bright white gown, with a bright purple cape draped over her as well. A silver crowned was perched on top of her equally violet hair, which matched the necklace and gemstone on her chest. "Louise speaks very highly of you, Cro… Cro…"

"Cronoz, your highness," the mech nodded.

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry. It's just such a uncommon name for such an uncommon creature, if you don't mind me saying."

"It's alright, Ms. Henrietta," The rusty familiar glanced over to Louise, whom had since gotten up and made her way to them. "My mistress speaks very fondly about you as well, Miss."

This brought a subtle flush of red to Louise's face, which also got her to finally speak. "N-not that anything is wrong with that! I… I was just bored, and decided to humor him with some stories of our friendship."

Henrietta smiled. "Oh Louise. You don't have to act so proper with me in front of your familiar. It's quite fine that you told him."

"Oh, really? Well… I guess it's alright then…" Louise smiled awkwardly.

The queen turned again to face Cronoz. "Of course, as you seem to know, I asked for you to come here with Louise to allow me to personally thank you for capturing the criminal Fouquet, and bringing her to custody." She bowed, which seemed to give great surprise to not only Louise, but to everyone in the room. Even Cronoz, who knew very well what he was here for, was taken off guard a bit.

"Well… Thank you, ma'am. I'm glad to have pleased you," He again took a glance at his pink haired master. "Of course, it was my master who was there for me. I wouldn't have been able to anything if she hadn't been there."

"Oh, is that right?" Henrietta turned to face Louise, who had resumed her transformation into a tomato.

"Credit should be given when credit is due. It is only logical." Cronoz said, unsure if his words were sounding genuinely kind, or soul-crushingly embarrassing. He decided it would be better to pick the former.

"Well, I am glad that you two are able to get along as well as you do, and once again I must thank you," She stared right at Cronoz. "Thank you for taking care of my friend, Cronoz."

The mech nodded again. "Yes, Ms. Henrietta."

"I must admit, when I first heard of a metal being not only defeating a student at the academy, but also a wanted criminal, I was sort of… speculative," Henrietta said, seemingly out of nowhere. "But after what Louise told me about you, as well as seeing you here now, I must say that I am absolutely certain that you would be perfect."

Louise and Cronoz exchanged glances, confused. "What do you mean, your maj- I mean Ms. Henrietta?" Louise asked.

The queen shut her eyes, her mood taking a surprisingly serious turn. "As you may know, Tristain has been receiving threats from Albion."

Cronoz nodded. "Yes, I'm aware. Louise has told me once or twice before hand about the country. They've been having some political issues, some of which deadly, if I recall."

Henrietta nodded. "That is correct. They wish for us to surrender to them, allowing the leader of the rebellion, Cromwell, to have direct control over this Tristain."

"But you've told them 'no' on several occasions, right? That you wouldn't give up this country for their own plans?" Louise inquired.

"We have, yes. But they are very stubborn, and have denied resolving this peacefully. And I am worried that we could very well be on the threshold of a major battle…" It was then that Henrietta opened her eyes, her gazed fixed on Cronoz. "However, that's where you would come in, Cronoz."

"Me?" The mech pointed to himself.

"Henrietta, what are you saying? That you want Cronoz to…"

"Yes, Louise. I would like Cronoz to help fight Albion for us."

A/N: Awww, sheet! He left on a cliffhanger?! That b*sterd!

Alright, alright. I have a lot to say as to why this has taken so long to be completed. But first, let me apologize for it. I wanted to get this out to you WAY before now, but I always found myself getting distracted. Also, a lot… and I mean A LOT of personal problems have been happening around my house as of late. I don't want to say it, but I hope you guys can understand. It's putting a lot on my plate. School is also a major, major bitch. Once again, I hope you get where I'm coming from.

But now! For more important stuff! Some of you asked some questions regarding Cronoz and his character, mostly about his recharging method. One of you put it very, very well: His recharging method is very similar to the Energon that fuels the characters in the 'Transformers' franchise. His ammunition and fuel, on the other hand, are a bit more complicated. His ammo reserves are plenty, since so much is needed to fire a weapon such as a minigun to begin with. In the chapter where he explained how he entered through the portal, he still had plenty of ammo despite the fight in his world. The question is… will it run out? That's a question that might have to be answered later…

His fuel is sort of on the same premise. Although I want to say that he could just use the energy from his energy core, I want it to be somewhat believable. I'm not a perfect writer, and I'm aware of this. Hell, this entire story could be filled with plot holes if you were to point them out (Please do, if you do). However, I do want to say this: Despite this being my fourth fan fiction, it is also one hell of a popular one (if you guys don't mind me saying). I really appreciate it, and I do really enjoy having so many people read my work and thoroughly enjoy it. Thanks so much guys! You guys rock!

I'll try my hardest to give you at least two final chapters before the year ends. And hell, if I meet my quota, I might even have something special for anyone who- Oops, don't want to give away too much!

Thanks so much for reading, reviews are helpful, and I'll see you guys (hopefully) soon!