Chrono Trigger: Timeless Angels Part 16

The New Quest

By Mefathiel

"Robo," Magus said, "tell me, which one of us has more power, you or me?"

Robo performed a scan and blipped. "My scans show that in your current state, you have more power," Robo said. "Why do you ask?"

Magus clutched the amulet Schala had given him to his chest, and he looked out into the rupture. Everyone was still floating toward it slowly, and it was only a matter of time before it consumed them all. He knew that they had to do something to stop it, but no one knew what.

"I think that releasing enough energy, like the explosion you did, will seal the rupture."

"We thankest thou for reiterating what hath been said a dozen times prior," Glenn said. "Thou art a man of many intelligent thoughts, Magus."

Magus turned on the knight and grabbed him by the bandanna. "I’ve had enough from you, Glenn. You’ve just crossed the line, and now I’ll have to kill you for that."

"Stop it!" Marle shouted, breaking the two apart. "We can’t let this situation cause us to start fighting. Arguing and fighting won’t get us anywhere. We need to spend our time trying to figure out what we can do to fix this time warp."

"I already know what we must do," Magus said. "And I’m going to do it myself, whether you like it or not."

The warlock’s cape fluttered behind him as he raced toward the time rupture. "Magus, what you do?!" Ayla exclaimed.

Magus refused to answer, focusing on what he set out to do. Robo didn’t have enough energy to seal the rupture, and only managed to make it worse. He intended on fixing the rupture and giving the team more time to figure out a solution to the problem. Schala would surely be proud of him for making such a selfless sacrifice.

"Black Hole!" he shouted, thrusting his hand forward.

The black hole opened up at the center of the time flux and started pulling in stray energy from the rupture, assuring that an energy spike would not interfere with Magus’ plan. As he floated toward the hole in space, Magus summoned more dark energy into his hands. He focused on the Black Hole and released the energy.

"Dark Matter!" he screamed as he entered the Black Hole.

As the Black Hole closed, the energy formed into a Dark Matter attack. The combined energy of the two attacks caused a massive explosion. The rupture closed a little, and stopped sucking everything nearby into it. Glenn looked on and frowned. "A pointless sacrifice," he commented.

"No, it was very beneficial," Spekkio said. "He managed to reverse the flux enough that the time vacuum was destroyed. We don’t need to worry about being sucked in."

"But it didn’t fix the time flux itself," Crono said. "And there’s nothing else we can do to stop it. Robo proved that releasing energy is just going to reopen the rupture."

Suddenly, there was a flash of light as all of time finished its convergence. Everyone fell to the ground and looked around. The ground started rumbling. "That can’t be good," Marle said in the same tone Crono had used when he first said it.

Rempha appeared next to them as the End of Time joined with the Beginning of Time. "This world can’t last for long," he said. "I created it for one reason."

"And why is that?" Lucca asked.

"Because we need the Timeless Angels again."

"What? Why? What good can they be to us this time?" Marle demanded.

"It was their energy that disturbed the time streams, and only their energy can realign them. Their bodies turned to crystal and scattered across time. I figured that since the time streams were converging anyway, it would be easier to find the crystals if a solid world was formed within the flux. So I used various parts of the time streams to create this world."

"And we need find crystals?" Ayla asked.

Rempha nodded. "Five of you have to go into this world and retrieve the crystals. After all five are brought together, their energy will realign time and everything will go back to normal, just the way it was before the rupture."

Spekkio joined his fellow Master. "We’re going to have to stay here and maintain this world, because if at any time the time streams fall apart, you’ll be destroyed," he said, knowing of Rempha’s plan.

"But there art six of us," Glenn pointed out. "Who shalt be the odd-man-out?"

"Crono will be," Rempha said. "He has a special quest all his own to undertake."

Crono nodded in understanding. A Gate opened up next to the Master of Time, and he beckoned to it. "All of you will enter this Gate, and it will take you to where you need to go. This world is immense, and it would take you too long to go by foot; for most of the way, for that matter," he explained.

The five warriors stepped into the Gate, leaving Crono behind. "So what is my quest?" he asked.

"Crono, your mind isn’t sharp enough to undertake the same quest as the others," Rempha said, "because you’ve been dwelling on things that happened in the past, things you believe are your fault. So, just as Lucca had, you will have a chance to avert a tragic event in your life." The boy knew that there was only one thing Rempha could be talking about. "You must undergo this quest, whether or not you succeed or fail, in order to lighten the burden on your soul. If this is not done, then everything will fail. We must have enough positive energy for the Angel Stones to work. Are you ready?"

Crono nodded, and Rempha opened up an orange Gate. "Good luck, punk head," Spekkio said.

With a smile and a look of hope and determination, Crono stepped through the Gate to receive his destiny.

.

Previously unencountered area of the Beginning of Time:

The Gate opened and Lucca stepped out into an unrecognized area. She looked around to get the lay of the land as she removed the Wonder Shot from its holster and cocked it. "So, this is where I’m going to find Zephon’s stone, is it?" she asked, assuming that it would be Zephon’s stone she sought. Suddenly, her eyes rested upon a volcano in the distance, and Lucca’s jaw dropped. "Volcano? Well, since it seems that it’s the biggest formation around, I guess the stone must be there."

Lucca set out across the plains, headed for the volcano she saw off in the distance. Above her, the time flux rumbled. "I don’t have much time," she realized, breaking into a run. The Wonder Shot hung around her body from a strap, and it slapped against her side with each stride. Despite the fact it slowed her down slightly and made her strides extremely awkward, Lucca held the gun close to her body to prevent the annoyance. "Not much time," she said, trying to even out her breathing, "not much time…"

.

Glenn stepped out of the Gate as it deposited him just a few miles from where Lucca landed. He looked around and saw that he landed on some sort of coastline, as there appeared to be either an ocean or a sea to his left. He drew the Masamune and closed his eyes. "Please, show me where Cyrus’ soul now rests," he begged the sword.

The Masamune started glowing and pointed toward the water. Glenn opened his eyes and peered into the clear emerald sea water. Below the surface, he could barely make out the dark hole that signified a cave of some sort. "So, that’s where he be. I suppose this would be easier if I were still a frog, but I must do this nonetheless."

Glenn dove into the water and started his descent to the cave, hoping beyond hope that it had an air pocket…

.

Marle dropped from her Gate and hit the ground with a thud, throwing up a cloud of dust in the process. She stood, dusted herself off, and looked around. "Well," she said, looking over a nearby ledge, "it looks like I’m on a mountain. Now, where am I going to find this stone?"

She continued looking around and found no clue to where an Angel Stone would be kept. Until she realized that she was in the shadow of something huge. Marle looked up and saw that she was standing beneath a floating island. Cringing in surprise, as she thought it was falling toward her at the time, she sighed once she realized there was no danger. "Well, I’m probably going to have to go up there," she muttered. "Probably Schala’s stone, too. Why is it that I seem to get all of the tough work around here?"

Spotting a chain that held the island to the mountain, Marle started climbing the rocks in the hopes that it wouldn’t be as hard as she thought it would…

.

A primal scream shook the forest as Ayla was deposited in a tall tree. Like a cat, she found herself stuck with no way to get down. Spotting a bird flying by, Ayla jumped from the branch and landed on it. Unfortunately, the bird was a sparrow, and it and Ayla started plummeting to the ground. A huge cloud of dust was thrown up into the air from the impact point, and Ayla stood, coughing heavily.

"Ayla no like falling," she said, rubbing her head. "Me no want go boom no more. Just want find rock and leave jungle." She looked around, her primitive mind trying to surmise where the stone would be kept. A Nu plodded by, carrying a green rock. "Hey Nu! What that rock you got?"

The Nu looked at Ayla and scratched its head. "What do you want with Nu?" it asked. "You come to steal my rock?"

"That rock called Angel Stone?"

"What Angel Stone? I not know about thing called Angel Stone. This just a green rock I find in the forest."

"Give Ayla rock!" Ayla extended her hand to demand the stone in the Nu’s hand.

"No! You can’t have rock, it mine!" The Nu started running away through the brush, prompting Ayla to give chase.

"You come back, Nu! Ayla no hurt Nu if Nu give Ayla rock!"

But the Nu wouldn’t listen; it just kept running at full tilt to get away from the cavewoman.

.

"Scanning," Robo said as he landed on the ground after his Gate opened. "Searching for sources of high energy output… found."

He turned in the direction of the energy he detected. "The energy pattern is definitely Tata’s, and it isn’t too far away from current location. ETA, approximately 15 minutes at medium pace." Robo started walking in the direction of the energy source. Suddenly, a Giga Saur dropped from the sky and landed in front of him. Robo was forced to jump back or be crushed by the giant lizard. "Proximity alert. Scanning…target: Giga Saur. No known weaknesses."

Robo took a battle stance, and the Giga Saur advanced, gnashing its teeth at the robot. Robo let loose with an Uzi Punch when the dinosaur got close enough, and the Giga Saur reared up and roared in pain and anger. It spun and swung its tail at Robo. He was caught in the side by the attack and thrown into a nearby boulder. A dent was put into Robo’s armor, and a crack formed in his helmet, exposing some wires and circuits. They were the same circuits that Lucca had fixed when she first repaired him. Sparks started shooting from his head, and Robo’s motor functions started failing.

The Giga Saur took advantage of the malfunctions to sink its teeth into Robo’s armor plating. Its diamond-like teeth easily cut through the dented metal, and more sparks flew from Robo’s body. The wires started sparking even more and burnt through Robo’s circuitry. The robot’s optical sensors flashed green, and his memory boards executed their emergency operations. Robo lifted his arm and smashed it into the Giga Saur’s skull. There was a sickening crack, and the dinosaur released its grip with a roar.

"Destroy target," Robo started chanting, "destroy target."

Robo spread his arms and started glowing. He released the stored energy in an Area Bomb, which threw the Giga Saur onto its back. Robo’s eyes turned red as his prime directive became more imperative. "Destroy target!" he shouted.

His chest panel opened up, and the crystal inside started glowing bright white. Electricity started arcing around the robot, and Robo released his Shock attack. A huge hemisphere of electric energy surrounded Robo and Giga Saur. The monster screeched in pain and toppled to the ground, smoke billowing from its carcass.

"Life signs zero," Robo said. "Target is dead."

But his directives didn’t stop there. The power surge through his memory board covered the programming Lucca had done when she first activated him, and Robo remembered what his original purpose was. "Destroy humans."

As Robo started analyzing his new mission, he discovered a priority that was higher on the list: find the Angel Stone. Robo scanned the area for the stone and found its energy pattern. Wheels popped out of his feet, and the robot started rolling across the plains toward what appeared to be a temple in the distance.

.

As Robo approached the temple where the stone was held, a dozen guards rushed out of it. "Stop right there!" one guard ordered. "We cannot allow you to have the stone!"

"Step aside, human. I do what I wish."

Robo lifted his arm and retracted the hand, turning the arm into a cannon. He took aim and fired. An explosion rocked the temple and killed all of the guards. Robo advanced and was about to enter the door when he detected another strong energy from behind him. He turned and saw a winged human floating there.

"I cannot allow you to desecrate this temple," it said, "not the way you are."

Robo fired his cannon arm, but the blast went right through the angel’s body without hindrance. "Just what are you?" Robo demanded.

"I am your salvation."

The angel approached and reached his hand into Robo’s head, trying to resurface Lucca’s work in an attempt to bring back the old Robo. "Your priorities are not what you think," the angel continued. "You believe your mission is to destroy humans, yet your true purpose is to protect them."

Robo’s eyes returned to their green hue. He looked around and was surprised by the massacre that he’d committed. "I did this," he said in a sad tone, "and there’s no way to take it back. If only I hadn’t originally programmed to destroy… The only way I can make it up is to help repair time and save all of mankind everywhere."

He proceeded into the temple, and the angel disappeared. Robo opened the door and saw the white stone laying on a pedestal at the center of the temple. "Tata’s Angel Stone," he said, lifting it up from the cushion it rested on. Suddenly, another energy appeared behind Robo.

He turned to see the temple had disappeared, and now a large unicorn was looming above him. "Robot, are you the one who seeks the Pearl Angel Stone?" it asked.

"Yes I am."

"Then I am the one who must challenge you for it. I win, and you give up the stone, you win and I leave. Agreed?"

Robo placed the stone into his chest cavity for safe keeping. "Agreed." He took a battle stance and launched his first attack, a Rocket Punch. The unicorn was caught off guard by such a sudden attack and was knocked back a few yards from the blow. It quickly shook off the attack and charged forward to impale Robo on its horn. Robo put his hands up and caught the horn before it could pierce his armor, but the momentum drove him back.

Robo and the unicorn struggled for a few moments before the unicorn tossed its head back and threw Robo through the air. Robo landed on his back, and the unicorn whirled around to attack again. Its horn started glowing, and a beam of white light cut through the air. Robo stood and the beam hit his shoulder, ripping a hole into the armor. Robo aimed his Heal Beam at it and allowed the energy to repair the wound while he started a counterattack.

The tube on his back opened up, and two laser emitters emerged. Robo started spinning from his pelvic joint, and the laser emitters started releasing their energy. With each sweep, the unicorn was hit by the Shadow energy and knocked back. Robo’s attack ceased, and he shot forward in a Robo Tackle. The unicorn lifted its head in time to stick its horn into Robo’s chest plate, just barely missing the stone held inside. Electricity crackled around the new wound as the Heal Beam moved to repair it. But Robo’s attack was not in vain, as the unicorn was knocked to its feet. Robo stuck his hand to the unicorn’s head and activated the Uzi Punch mechanism in his arm.

The attack devastated the unicorn, cracking its skull in a dozen places. With one last punch, the unicorn fell silent onto the ground, blood seeping from its broken head. Robo removed the Angel Stone from his chest and started walking away from the battlefield.

Much to his surprise, a Gate opened up. Knowing that it must be Rempha’s doing, Robo stepped into it, ready to return to the others. It was now their turns to find the stones. He hoped that they would all fair well in the battles that awaited them…

.

"Think about what you have to do now. Think about no longer having any regrets." —Ryôji Kaji, Neon Genesis Evangelion

.

Go To Part 17

Return To CT Fanfic