The Next Generation Part 12
Three Minds, One Life
By Krazy Sam
When Lana awoke, she found that she was in a comfortable, fluffy bed. She yawned and stretched, and ran her hands through her tangled purple hair. Lana gazed around the room and found it empty.
“Strange…” she muttered to herself. She vaguely remembered being in the same room as Stal and Sari. There were two other beds in the room, but they were neatly made, suggesting that either a maid had straightened the sheets, or the beds have never been slept in.
Lana climbed out of the bed and stood up. Some soft and light material brushed against her legs, and when she looked down, she found that she was wearing a lacy nightgown.
“Gee, Layith is nice…!” she exclaimed to herself. She sighed happily and began to look for her clothes. Upon finding them neatly folded on a wooden dresser, Lana picked up the clothes and inhaled deeply. “They’ve been washed…”
Lana quickly changed and pulled her hair back into a low ponytail. She would bother to brush it later. As she stepped out of the low stone doorway, she looked down the large hall. The red carpet was spotless, and the finely polished marble walls shone in the flickering lamplight.
Lana sighed again and made her way down the long hall, intending to look for her gracious hostess. As she walked, she ran into a short Mystic servant, clad in a simple blue dress.
“Pardon me, miss…” she murmured. Lana smiled.
“That’s all right,” She said softly. The servant smiled softly and curtseyed, causing her short blond hair to fall over her narrow face. “By the way… do you know where Ms. Layith is?”
The servant shook her head. “No.. she’s been gone all morning. I wonder where she went?” she shrugged and walked off.
Lana stood, riveted to the floor. “Gone…?” her head snapped to one side, and her vision clouded. Suddenly, she saw a single figure clad in a white cape glide through a field of brightly colored flowers. Her long dark hair flew in the breeze, and she came upon two chatting figures, both clad in similar dresses- one Mystic, one human… no… not only human… Sari! Lana gasped as she saw the woman’s eyes darken. She reached for her large sword, which was on her back, and raised it over her head. She saw the other Mystic shriek, and Sari stood angrily. She raised her robotic arm, causing her glittering purple bat to materialize. The Mystic also stood and drew an almost identical sword. Lana’s vision faded to darkness as the two swords clashed.
.
“Layith…!” Mio sputtered. She pushed with all of her strength against Layith’s sword, but was being overpowered. Sari let out a soft shriek of fury and raised her bat over her head. Layith turned and narrowed her eyes, causing Sari to lose her grip. Throughout that quick movement, her steady pushing against Mio’s sword hadn’t ceased.
“I knew I should’ve killed you, traitor!” Layith screamed. Mio emitted a cry of fury and threw her weight against her sword.
“Then why didn’t you?” she shot back. Sari quickly regained her composure and dashed for her bat.
“Because…” Layith started, becoming overwhelmed with the weight. “You…are…”
Mio screamed with fury. “I’m what?”
“You’re…my…”
Sari sighed and lowered her head. She remembered this moment of weakness well…
“You’re…my…sister!”
Mio lowered her sword. “Sister?”
Sari turned away. She knew what was coming...
Layith smiled cruelly and raised her right arm. “Yes. I’m ashamed to have a traitor for a sister, though…” a tiny black ball formed in her palm, and grew slowly in size.
“Go ahead and kill me. It won’t solve a thing!” Mio retorted.
Layith grinned. “Au contraire. It will solve all of my little problems!” She shot the ball forward, and struck Mio’s left leg. She shrieked and doubled over in pain.
“Sari… the sword…” she moaned. Sari quickly came to her senses and reached for Mio’s sword.
“Let’s see if I remember how to use this…” she laughed, twirling it expertly around her wrist.
.
“Sari!” Lana screamed. She ran down the hall to the glistening staircase, and dashed downward. She sprinted out the open door, and whirled frantically in all directions. Her gaze met a large field covered with flowers, and she automatically ran in that direction. She drew her golden gun and set it on the maximum setting, intending to kill Sari’s attacker.
.
Stal sat alone on a high cliff. As the intense waves crashed on the jagged rocks below, one thing was on his mind. Sari. It had been nine years since he had seen her, and the feelings he felt for her were as strong as the waves. If only she’d let him express them…
“Sari…” he murmured. Suddenly, a powerful sensation washed upon his drifting mind. It was like nothing he had ever felt, but it carried a forceful message. Sari was in trouble. Stal let his long hair blow in the sea breeze once more, and ran off to help her.
.
“I see you can still handle a sword, sister dear,” Layith growled mockingly. Sari smiled.
“Better than you think,” she snapped. She brought it down across Layith’s sword, and the metallic clang of the two blades rang throughout the warm air. Sari’s long dress flew wildly in the coming breeze, and Layith’s pure white cape was pressed against her legs. Layith took advantage of the situation by twisting her blade violently to the left. Sari gasped as the sword flew from her hands.
“Not as good as I, though,” Layith gloated. Sari narrowed her eyes.
“What has been done cannot change. I will not die now,” she murmured. Layith laughed cruelly.
“It may be ancient history for you, but for me, it is the present, and I can do whatever I please!” She aimed the tip of her sword at Sari’s throat. “Goodbye.”
“HEY!”
A gigantic blast of fire flew inches past Layith’s arms, and she withdrew her sword.
“What the…?” Sari murmured. She craned her neck, and found Lana sprinting desperately toward the three women. Mio gasped and clutched her wounded leg.
“What…I have to kill you too, human?” Layith sighed. Lana frowned.
“Why were you so nice to us if you were just going to kill us?” she asked.
Layith snorted. “I wanted to make sure that Sari was who she said she was. I was only going to kill her, but I guess you have to go, too.”
Lana grinned. “I don’t think so.”
Sari raised her arms, and a gigantic dark ball formed in her palms. Lana did the same, except a flame rose from her fingertips. Lana and Sari nodded in unison, and threw their magic power at Layith. She shrieked in fury and began to float.
Gradually, the sky darkened. One by one, stars began to appear, but one star grew in brightness and size, slowly at first, but quickly gaining speed. It finally reached the size of a small house and crashed into Sari. The impact drove her five feet into the ground and knocked her unconscious.
“Sari!” Lana shouted. She ran over to the resulting crater and knelt over the edge. She thrust her arms forward and the remains of the comet began to rise and settle on the edge of the hole. She then left one arm outstretched and Sari’s wounds began to heal slowly.
“Had enough?” Layith laughed. Sari groaned.
“I’ll die before I’ve had enough!” Lana shrieked. She whirled around and shot a ball of flame at Layith.
“…Stal…” Sari murmured. She slowly climbed to her feet and rose her arm. Mio’s gigantic sword began to slide her way, and soon was back in her control. She smiled wickedly and swung it around her head. She let out a fearsome yell and lunged for Layith.
“What the…?” she whispered as Sari struck. Layith’s Mystic reflexes, however, caused her to veer off to the left, causing the blade to graze her right arm.
“AAAIIIII!!!”
A piercing male scream cut through the air as Layith began to strike. She hesitated and spun around in time to find Stal fly through the air and kick her violently in the stomach. She doubled over with the sudden pain.
“Need help?” Stal asked jokingly. Sari smiled.
“Good timing.” Layith groaned and staggered to her feet.
“What… three against one…” she mumbled. Stal pushed his arms forward and the ground began to shake. Layith was knocked off balance and crumpled back to the ground. “Aagh!”
Sari grinned. “Had enough?” she asked mockingly.
Layith wiped her mouth on which a huge gash had formed. “The question, dear sister, is if you have the guts to finish me off!”
Lana gasped. “Sari, you aren’t going to…?”
Stal shook his head. “History doesn’t record it…but…”
Sari smirked. “I don’t give a damn about what history says.” She placed her palm out in Layith’s face. “Bye.”
Her palm grew a faint red, and the heat radiating from it grew more intense. Suddenly, an orange beam shot forth and incinerated Layith. As suddenly as it shot forth, the beam was cut off, and all that was left of her was her sword and a small pile of ashes. Lana gasped and covered her mouth.
“Sari…!” she whispered. Stal’s eyes went wide and he gulped loudly.
“How could you…”
Sari’s face contorted into a mask of pain and she screamed loudly in agony. She fell to her knees as a dark aura surrounded her. “Help…!”
Lana rushed forward and touched Sari’s arm. The aura spread over to her, and her hair began to stand on end. “Aagh!” She jerked back with a violent motion and finally broke free. The pain slowly ceased, and she sat on the ground, gasping heavily.
“Ha ha ha…” Sari began to laugh eerily, as if she were possessed by an evil spirit. “The Mystic blood courses through my veins… Lao’s life force… her memories… her consciousness… are one with me. I am Mystic! Mystics will rule the world atop the mighty shoulders of Lao!!!” She gasped for breath and collapsed.
“What’s happening?” Lana asked, frightened.
Stal lowered his head. “She changed history. This is the way she’d be if she had originally killed Layith.
Lana shook her head. “I feel… dizzy…”
Stal raised an eyebrow. “What?”
Lana whirled around in confused circles. “What is this? What is happening? Will someone please tell me what is going on???” her voice rose fretfully, and a look of sheer panic clouded her face. “HELP ME!!!” She fell to her knees, clutching her face and moaning. Stal shrieked in horror and turned away.
“What the…?” Mio groaned, suddenly standing despite her injury. She stared at the spectacle taking place before her. Without warning, she shrieked, too. Her eyes glowed a bright white and rays of golden light streamed from her lips. As suddenly as it started, the chaos stopped, and Mio fell to her knees. Lana’s face still showed confusion, but centuries of wisdom began to take effect on the way she looked at things.
“Sari…Mio…” she murmured. Mio gasped.
“How did she know my name?” she whispered.
“I am you… you are me…” Lana said aloud, as if everyone already knew. Mio frowned, and then her face lit with sudden realization.
“I remember!” she shrieked. Lana turned to face her.
“What?”
“If Layith were to be murdered by my own hand, or in Sari’s case, my future life’s hand… the age of realization would be lowered by almost a year! That’s what kept me from killing her in the first place! I knew that later on, I would want to maintain my childish innocence as long as possible…”
Sari slowly sat and winced at the sudden pain. She pulled herself to her feet and wobbled slightly. “ugh…”
Lana ran over to her. “Sari… you changed history. I know now. I am Mystic, too.”
Sari’s eyes fluttered and began to close. She started to crumple, when Lana grabbed her by the shoulders.
“We need to take her back to the End of Time…” Stal insisted. Lana nodded.
“Mio, you are the new ruler. Try to maintain friendships with humans.”
With those words, she and Stal picked Sari up and carried her to the Epoch. In seconds, the Epoch had lifted off and was out of sight, leaving a bewildered Mio behind.
.
“Robo, why aren’t you coming with us?”
Robo shrugged. “I cannot. It would be giving you an unfair edge, and that, for some reason, is against my beliefs for fair fights. For now, I’ll be giving advice along with Spekkio, and then when I believe that you are ready, I’ll join you.”
The answer was simple enough. Lana sighed and sat. “For some reason, I don’t feel like going on at the moment. I’m staying here.”
Maro raised his head. “Okay… Elena and Olana are with me…” Elena leapt up, still in her futuristic clothes, and Olana strode over to where Maro was standing.
“Where do we go?” Olana asked.
Spekkio smiled. “There’s a small thing left undiscovered. It’s a small mystery, and it concerns your ancestor, Olana. Go to 19,976 BCE and you’ll find out.”
“Magus?”
“Schala,” Robo interrupted. He gestured toward the Epoch. “Go.”
.
“Excuse me… Magus?” Olana was stuck with the disagreeable task of convincing the mighty sorcerer to let the party inside. As she mumbled those words, her face blushed scarlet and she nervously shifted her weight from one foot to the other.
“What do you want?” he asked coldly.
“Could we come in for a minute? We need to ask you a few questions.” Magus sighed.
“I knew this day would come. Well, come in.”
Maro pushed his way in front of Olana. “What do you mean?”
“It’s a question your parents never bothered to ask. It’s about Schala, isn’t it?”
Elena nodded gravely, stepping off to the side. “It is.”
Magus slowly ushered the three inside, and sat them down at a huge table. “Well?”
Olana sighed. “Is Schala actually your younger sister?”
Magus leapt back. “What do you mean?”
Maro stood up. “My father told me about everything, and he said that when you came back to this era, you were sixteen years older than she was, yet Sari read your mind and said that she was your older sister. How could this be?”
“I used to live here- in this era. Then, Schala was my older sister. I left for a while, and finally came back. When I returned, Schala and I reached an agreement. I would still consider her my older sister if she ignored the fact that I was cold hearted.”
“Why did she die so soon?” Elena cut in.
“Mammon poisoning. When she disappeared, she was taken into the Mammon Machine. It was actually pretty interesting… how she managed to stay alive. When Crono, Lucca, and I brought down the ocean palace, she was freed and washed ashore seven weeks later. The effects of being trapped in the machine so long didn’t take hold until last year… when she aged so rapidly…” Magus’ voice broke at the end and his dark eyes glistened. “Please leave now…”
“Excuse me, am I interrupting?”
A strange figure cast a shadow on the four people and Magus suddenly glanced up. “You!!!”
The figure stepped forward. If Maro didn’t know better, he’d think that the man in the doorway was Magus’ brother! He had the same flowing blue hair, pointed ears, and build, but he had deep green eyes, and his expression was gentler and more thoughtful. He wore a simple purple outfit with matching cape that blew in a sudden wind.
“Who are you?” Olana asked.
“I’m Kash, the son of Schala,” he said simply. He turned to Magus. “What happened to Mother?”
Magus sighed. “Mammon poisoning… it finally caught up with her…” Kash’s cold expression didn’t change.
“I want to see her,” he demanded without emotion.
“You can’t,” Magus shot back. “She has already been buried.”
Kash’s face turned pale red. “Why didn’t you wait for me to at least see her?”
Magus stared at his nephew with mild interest. “You didn’t really care about her in the past, so why would you now?”
Kash couldn’t contain his rage. “Because she’s my mother!” He ran across to his uncle and reached at his own side, pulling out a shiny leather whip. “If you weren’t family, I’d kill you where you stand!”
Magus laughed in reply. “You don’t have the guts.”
Kash emitted a small cry of fury and grabbed Magus’ collar. He lifted him a foot off the ground and shook him quickly. “Just try me, Uncle.”
Magus choked a bit, and Kash finally set him down. “Nephew, you still have a lot to learn…”
“What do you mean?” Kash asked, his voice getting softer.
Magus sighed and turned away. “You have much to learn about your mother, your father… my past…”
Kash’s face softened and he walked up to his uncle. “What do you mean?” he repeated. Magus turned around.
“It doesn’t matter much. Your father died right after you were born, and your mother didn’t even seem to care. It was as if her heart were already in the possession of a demon… that was her first symptom of her Mammon Poisoning- apathy. When you aged, you got to be so angry and rebellious… it broke her heart. You ran off to find a better life, and we never heard from you again. When Crono and Marle decided to get married, your mother found it the perfect opportunity to forget, which is what she did.”
Elena gasped from a short distance away. “She actually forgot her own son?”
Magus shook his head. “Not really… she only forgot him for the two weeks we were in the future. She remembered him as soon as she got back, and she withdrew herself from everyone.” He sighed unhappily. “I hated watching her go through so much pain. She often asked me to end it for her, and a few times, she actually attempted to take her own life…”
Kash gulped. “It was my fault…?”
Magus’ grief gave way to anger. “Of course it was, you blockhead! It was all YOUR fault!”
“That’s it! I’m leaving, and I don’t care where I’m going!” Kash screamed.
“Fine!”
“Fine.”
“W-wait!” Olana cried out. Kash whirled around.
“What?” he almost screamed.
Olana shrank back. “D-do you want to come with us?”
Kash sniffed. “Where?”
“Of course!” Magus said in sudden realization. “Go with them! There’s a crisis going on that somehow could involve you. Go with them!”
“Go where?” Kash repeated.
“We travel through time,” Maro explained. Kash’s eyes lit up.
“So my uncle wasn’t lying…!” He said with sudden compassion. He turned to Magus and smiled.
“That’s why I didn’t care for you… You thought I was an old eccentric who had one too many shots of liquor. You never believed me!” Magus sighed. He smiled fondly. “I wanted for you to at least treat me like family, but you even wouldn’t do that!”
Kash turned away. His cape seemed to form a protective barrier around him, and his shiny golden boots reflected the setting sun’s light. “I was embarrassed that my own uncle claimed to have seen the future.” His long blue hair flew in another breeze, revealing a small scar on his neck. “I remember getting into fights to release my anger…” he fingered the tiny wound and sighed. “I thought you were crazy…but now… there is proof that you weren’t lying.”
Magus beamed. “Go, and take this with you.” He reached around his neck and removed a silver chain with a glowing amulet attached. “It’ll protect you from danger… Your mother gave it to me when I was a small child.”
Kash lowered his head and Magus put it around his neck. “Thank you. I’ll be going now.” He turned to face the three teenagers. “Where to?”
Maro shrugged. “I dunno. Wherever we gotta go, I guess.”
Kash laughed. “Sounds great. Let’s go.”
Olana pulled the metallic gate key out of her gray bag and pressed the shiny purple button. A Gate instantly appeared, swallowing her whole and spitting out the key. Elena bent down and scooped it up, handing it to Maro.
“What’s that?” Kash asked, his eyes widening. Maro grinned widely.
“I’ll explain in the Epoch,” he said enigmatically. He walked out of the hut with Elena on his heels, and Kash following not far behind.
.
“So what it basically does is transport no more than three people through time,” Kash said softly at the End of Time.
Elena nodded. “Yep. That’s exactly what it does.”
Spekkio grinned. “Hiya! I’m Spekkio… you must be Kash.”
“How did you know my name?” Kash asked suspiciously. Spekkio giggled.
“I know everything. I’m the Master of WAR!!!” he screamed giddily, pumping his fist wildly.
“Yyyyyeah.” Kash turned away and strode over to the edge. “How far down does this mist go?” he asked, suddenly preoccupied with his new surroundings.
“Eternity,” Spekkio replied, drawing out the word so it seemed to go on forever.
“Eternity…” Kash repeated.
“Is there an echo in here or is it just me?” Spekkio asked rudely. Kash pivoted and glared at Spekkio.
“What’s wrong with you? If you have something to say to me, why don’t you just say it instead of being rude to me?” he questioned softly.
Spekkio grinned. “That proves it! Your inner character can’t support shadow, but it can support wind!”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kash shot back. Spekkio rose his furry paw.
“Ipso Facto Meenie Mo!” he screamed. A frightening gale flew from his forepaw and surrounded Kash in a whirling vortex.
“What the…?!?” Kash screamed from the center of the tornado. It suddenly ceased, and his eyes glowed a frightening white. “What did you just do???”
Spekkio breathed on his short claws and rubbed them on the front of his fur coat. “You now possess the magic of wind. Wanna try it out?”
Kash sighed. He had no time for childish fights. “No, thank you.”
Spekkio lowered his head, disappointed. “Oh, okay…” He suddenly brightened. “Hey, Olana and Elena… you can learn new things!!!”
That sparked Elena’s interest. “Like what?”
Olana sighed. “Sure… I guess I’d like to learn new things…”
Spekkio smiled. “Elena, if you crouch down and time a jump just right, you can spring high into the air! When you bring your sword down, it can inflict massive damage! Try it out!”
Elena smiled as Spekkio held his arms out. She crouched down, and closed her eyes. A sudden sensation of readiness came over her. She chose that moment to leap. The timing was perfect! As she leapt ten feet into the air, she drew her sword. At the peak of the jump, she raised the sword above her head and pointed it downward, driving it deep into Spekkio. He instantly came apart and reappeared right in front of the spot where he was stabbed. He laughed and leapt excitedly into the air.
“Perfect!” he screamed. He then turned to Olana. “You can cast shields. Go ahead and picture a shield around yourself.”
Olana shut her eyes and concentrated on protecting herself. Soon, she had a glowing gold aura around herself. She opened her eyes and smiled.
“Also, there’s an added bonus. The shield also acts as a filter, highlighting the weak points in certain enemies!”
Olana grinned. “I didn’t know that you were weak in the knees!”
Spekkio smiled. “Don’t go hitting me there. If you do, I’ll bust you upside your head!”
Sari, who had regained consciousness, laughed delightedly. “You sound like a teenager from my time!”
Robo turned to Sari. “I’ve known you since you were little, and that was the first time I heard you laugh… I mean, I’ve heard you laugh, but it was always cruel or nervous. This is the first time that I heard a happy laugh out of you.”
“Really?” Sari giggled and leaned back. “I don’t know what came over me. Am I drugged?”
“I hope not!” Robo exclaimed. Sari smiled.
“Maybe I am!”
Lana smiled thoughtfully. “Maybe we should test it!”
Robo thought quickly and began to tickle Sari’s ribs. She immediately shrieked and giggled helplessly. She laughed and rolled over the stone floor until Robo stopped. She finally sighed and sat up.
“Why did you do that?”
Robo sighed. “See what I meant? You never once laughed a genuine laugh.”
Sari looked up. “I didn’t?”
Robo shook his head. “Not once, not ever. I thought that you were depressed.”
“Maybe I was…” Sari murmured sadly.
Robo sighed. “When you and your brother were little, I’d tickle you all the time… to try to make you laugh. All you did was scream for me to stop because it hurt. I thought it was because I didn’t know my own strength, but it turned out that your brother didn’t think so at all!”
“Sari… maybe this change in history was for the better…” Lana suddenly exclaimed. Sari nodded.
“I like it so far!”
Spekkio walked over to the group. “I’m going to get some shut-eye. How about you all?”
Lana shrugged. “Okay… I guess.”
.
“Listen, Lana… Maro…” Spekkio murmured the next morning, “Something’s changed in your world… and you need to see it.”
Lana gasped. “What?”
Spekkio suddenly realized how his advice came out sounding. “It’s not bad… but you need to see it!”
Maro stepped behind Lana. “What happened?”
Spekkio sighed. “It concerns Lana’s family. I don’t know if she’d like it.”
.
“I’m coming, too.”
Robo slowly strode over to Lana and Maro. “I have to see if anything’s wrong with Lucca.”
Lana nodded and walked over to the Epoch.
“What could be amiss?” Maro asked pensively.
“I don’t know.”
.
The sun shone brightly, and seemed to shimmer. As the Epoch landed gracefully in Lana’s front yard, Lucca came running out.
“You’re back!” she shouted. Lana rushed over and tightly embraced her mother. Nothing had changed…yet.
“Yes, mom… I’m back!” Lana replied happily. From behind her, Maro and Robo shrugged.
“Your father and I are working on a new invention. Do you want to see?”
“So far, nothing has changed,” Robo whispered to Maro.
Lana didn’t say a word- she just followed Lucca inside.
.
“Hi, honey!” Vincent called from behind a large machine. Lana saw his left hand hastily pry a piece of junk metal off the side of the highly polished mess, and he stood up. Lana gasped.
Vincent looked different. His normally short dark hair was long and tied neatly back in a ponytail, and his right hand was replaced with a golden palm with claws.
“D…dad?” Lana asked frightfully. Vincent looked upward.
“Yes?”
“What happened to your hand?”
Vincent laughed. “Don’t you remember? Stupid invention of mine cut it off at a demonstration two years ago!”
Lana smiled weakly. “Oh…”
Lucca smiled and put her arm around Lana. “When we’re done, this thing’s gonna cook our food in an instant!”
“That would be an excellent machine, Lucca!” Robo cried out. Lucca nodded.
“I’m going to call it Tam, after the person who came up with the idea!”
“Mom… how did Tam come up with the idea? He’s only four.”
Lucca laughed. “He just said, ‘Mommy, I want my food cooked now!’ I got an idea from it, so it is basically Tam’s idea!”
Lana smiled. “Whatever.”
Lucca raised an eyebrow. “Okay… do you three want to spend the night? It looks like you all were through some tough times!”
Maro nodded. “Sure… that would be great… Actually, how about they come over to the castle? Mom and Dad won’t mind.”
Lucca looked hurt, but she nodded. “You’re right. Tam’s a handful at times… I’d be embarrassed if he through a tantrum- especially if it were in front of Robo!”
“So it’s settled,” Maro said with finality. He turned to Lucca. “Sorry… but I realized that maybe you and your husband would probably need some time alone to work on the machine.”
Lucca’s eyes widened. “That’s right! I totally forgot!”
Lana narrowed her eyes. “That’s not like you, Mom…”
Robo nodded. “Lana’s right. Is something wrong?”
Lucca hastily shook her head. “Nope. Everything’s fine.”
“Okay…” Lana murmured.
.
Night had fallen quickly, and Maro sighed, settling into his familiar bed. He smiled, gazing at the brightly woven tapestries covering the walls of his room, and turned to a painting on the wall above his desk, which was sitting right across from his bed. The painting was of himself and Lana when they were both seven, and they were hugging and laughing. He remembered that day well…
.
“Come on, Maro!”
Maro sprinted to catch up to Lana, but she was too far ahead of him. She happily brushed her chin length hair behind her ears and sprinted again.
“Lana…!” Maro whined. He sighed and tried his best to catch up. She finally stopped and turned to face him.
“Maro Guardia, I’m ashamed of you! You’re so slow… why can’t you just run like all the other kids?” she asked rudely.
He sniffed in reply. “I have better things to do than run around.”
Lana rolled her eyes. “PRINCE stuff that I wouldn’t understand, right?”
“Yep,” Maro said proudly. Lana laughed.
“That’s no excuse,” she teased. Maro shrugged.
“I guess not… Come on! Let’s get to the fair!” he urged.
Lana giggled and ran forward to Leene Square. That day was a very special day. It was the sixteenth anniversary of the defeat of Lavos, and it seemed as if the whole world were celebrating in the large town square.
“I hope that Daddy’s going to be there!” Maro cried suddenly. Lana scowled and turned back.
“Of course he is, idiot!” she exclaimed, “He’s the one who saved the world, along with Mommy, and Princess Nadia!”
Maro walked up and punched Lana playfully. “Just call her Aunt Marle!”
Lana frowned. “I’m going to treat the royal family with respect. That’s what Mommy told me.”
Maro laughed. “But it sounds so weird when you call my Mommy by her real name!”
Lana punched him- for real. “Shut up!” Tears sprung to Maro’s eyes, but he managed to hold them back.
Maro sighed. “I bet all the best rides are already taken…”
Lana rolled her eyes. “I don’t care. I want to try out Mommy and Daddy’s battle trainer.”
“Wildcat?”
Lana smiled proudly. “Yep. This one’s REALLY hard!” She paused and grinned even wider. “I helped build him!”
Maro smiled. “Race ya!”
Lana’s eyes took on one of confidence. “You know that I’ll kick your butt!” In reply, Maro dashed frantically for Leene Square. “HEY! NO FAIR!”
Lana immediately sprinted as fast as she could to try to catch up with the disappearing figure… and lost.
.
Maro grinned, remembering that day. It was the first time that he had ever beaten Lana in a race. His eyes drooped with fatigue, and his thoughts began to fade.
“Maro!”
Maro groaned. “Wha….what?”
The softly whispering voice seemed to move closer. “Maro…”
“What?” Maro was wide awake now. He immediately reached for his candleholder, and searched desperately for a means to light it. His groping hand finally came across a book of matches and he struck one, allowing the light to fill the room. He carefully lit his blue candle, and held it up, allowing the light to discover the tiny corners of the room. He gasped, seeing the whole room.
No one was there. The room was empty, except for himself and all of his belongings. Maro sighed and blew out the candle.
“No one…” he muttered. He tried his best to drift back off, but it was more difficult. He finally began to doze, and his mind peacefully clouded.
“Maro…”
.
“So, how’d you sleep?” Crono asked at the breakfast table the next morning.
Maro shook his head. “Not good. Someone kept calling my name all night.”
“That’s funny… someone was calling my name, too!” Lana cried. Maro glanced up and stared at her face.
“Lana… maybe we were both doing that… you know… unknowingly…?”
Lana shrugged. “Maybe… but it’s pretty unscientific…”
Crono laughed and pounded his fist on the wooden table. “Spoken like your mother!” He chuckled and took another sip of his coffee. Marle gazed over at her son from across the table and frowned.
“You have circles under your eyes,” she remarked.
Maro rolled his eyes. “Mom…”
Marle laughed, running a hand through her tangled hair. “I know… mothers shouldn’t act like that… but you look horrible!”
“Thanks a lot, Mom!” Maro said, half angry.
Marle giggled. “What are moms for?”
.
“Bye, Mom!” Maro shouted at the entrance to the castle. “Bye, Dad!”
Crono waved back. “Bye, Son! Stay alive, you hear?”
Lana laughed. “No promises!”
Marle giggled at the joke. “You better be kidding! I’m going to hold you partially responsible if we have to scrape your flattened carcasses off the grass!”
Robo sighed. “Let’s hope not!”
.
“Oh, no!”
Maro put his arm around Lana’s shoulders. “What?”
Robo turned to face Lana. “What happened?”
Lana pointed a trembling finger toward the site where they landed the Epoch. “The Epoch… it’s gone! Someone stole it!”
.
Sam’s Note: Whaddya think so far? With Vince, when I wrote Finally Married, I had no idea that there was actually a character named Vincent in FFVII! To make a long story short, I’m merging the two together, okay?
Oh, by the way… Here’s a poll! Everyone, I want to know if Tavi should be brought back to life or if he should stay dead!!! Mail me with your answers!!!!!
-Krazy Sam
aka Vincent
aka Kenny
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