Fanfiction: Chrono Crystal: A Love Story Across Time 2

Chapter 2: The budding flower of fate

The glowing beams of the wall seals were all he had left now. He had managed to catch a rabbit strayed to far from it’s companions. It was small, but then again so was he. More then likely he would toss out most of it.

There was no fire going, only a few dim embers barely providing heat. He shrugged it off, seeing as he was going to bed anyway. He drank whatever he could of the soup he had concocted, discovering anything tasted good with a few herbs, and dumped some of it onto the fire who it would go out. He headed down the empty hall way, his finger limply tracing along the seals terra had set, their glow still as brilliant as always, and open the door to his room. He didn’t know why he always expected them to be there. They never were, they were never going to.

It had been four months since Terra, Plume, Tsunami, and Gale has left him. Four months since that strange woman in similar cloths had last patted him on the head. Four months since he had last found any real reason to smile.

At first, when her eyes opened, Janus was curious. They were like a beautiful shade of ocean blue jewels, laden on her equally beautiful face. As She slowly realized he was staring a few inches away from her, she smiled, and said softly “hi.”

“HI!” He replied eagerly. He pulled back into a sit, his legs tucked beneath him. She jostled the covers to the side, and pulled her legs out over the bed. “You’re pretty!” He said, not knowing anything else that she would like to her.

She smiled at his makeshift compliment. “Thanks mate. Head hurts though… bugger…where am I?” She whispered, grabbing the area in pain. Janus smiled. If it hadn’t been for Tsunami, neither of them would be here right now.

It was one giant blast, his powerful strokes sending him careening through the water faster than anything could move. As his legs jostled back and forth against the pulling water, he dove quickly, grabbing the two boys from the dark hole.

“Hold on boys, I’ll save us.” He said, though it went unnoticed. Janus couldn’t hear, let along see, Tsunami in his current state. He had somehow known it was him, which it was something he would have said. The great beast that lent his back, large and impressively built, muscles crisscrossing the body. But… what was he at this point.

Cold dirt, He had laid them down. A moment later, a scream, some rumbling, and then… his bed, warm and welcoming.

As he had awoken, there she was, next to him. She appeared soft as ever. The scars on her arms were gone, as was the one on her cheek. He sat up. Smiling, for no other reason than she was there. Somehow, he felt happier with her there, near him, safe and asleep. He stared over her. She had awakened. This is how it came to be as it was now.

“Your at our house! Me and my friends saved you!” She turned an eye to him, and then stood up, still holding her head. “My name’s Janus! What’s yours?”

“Kid, mate.”

“Kid? That’s a funny name! I like it!” He hopped off the bed after her. “Um…”

“What mate?” She asked. “You know it’s rude to stare at a girl like that.”

“I’m hungry.”

“Bloody hell! You want me to feed you or something?” She snorted, cause Janus to jump back a little. He hadn’t really meant her! “… Sorry. Where’re your friends at?”

“Right here, child of zeal.” Terra snorted. Janus plucked himself from the bed, and hopped down next to the girl. He wasn’t sure, but Kid looked worried, and somehow, it made him worry as well. He really didn’t like people to be in bad moods, and he guessed that either she had never met someone like Terra before. Terra folded her arms, and turned to Janus.

“There’s supper if you want it in the dinning room, Janus.” She said. “I’m sure the girl is hungry as well, why don’t you take her down with you?” Terra sighed and walked away, muttering something to Kid. “If you’re going to stare child, don’t do it with such hostile eyes.”

“I’m sorry.” Kid nearly growled. “I’m not used to being…”

“Safe? Well, now you are, so go get some supper.”

Terra never showed up for supper. She had already eaten and Plume was in a foul mood from being the day before. Gale was as quiet as usual. Janus was in the middle of his meal and a conversation with Tsunami, who was as chipper as usual, both of them spilling some food as they spoke. Kid sat quietly, briefing sipping at her soup before Plume snorted, “Eat up girl, men don’t take much liking to skin and bones.”

“Oh yeah, Kid, this is Plume, Gale and Tsunami.” He said, pointing at each one, “They helped save you. The one you met earlier is Terra.”

“That woman.” Plume snorted. “That woman. You do not refer to people as things. That’s just rude.” Janus bowed apologetically. Plume cracked his neck, and turned to Kid. “Child, I believe Terra wants a word with you afterwards. ALONE.” He peered back at Janus and tsunami, watching both dive back into their food. Their conversations continued, in short whispers.

“Always in the dark, aren’t we?” Tsunami said.

“Yeah.”

Janus and Tsunami spent the night on one of the many branches of the tree that hung around the battered down house, right on the roof. Tsunami was proud of this tree. He had helped Terra make it grow. He had feed it when it was thirsty, dead in the middle of droughts, till it had grown to the size it was. It was the biggest in the entire forest, towering over the rest of it like some type of guardian. A guardian of the woods, like his friends were to him.

“How many leaves are on his tree, Tsunami?”

“So many,” he smiled, “it would take more than our lifetime to count them all. All of them different shapes and sizes. Different colors, like the world. A tree is basically the world encompassed, Janus.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, think about it. A tree needs to be planted to grow: needs a home to be nourished in. you don’t think much of a sapling when it’s small, do you? Can you honestly believe this big ole’ tree came from a seed about the size of your pink?”

“Really!” Janus plopped onto his shoulders. “That’s so small though!”

“Much like you are now.”

“Hey! I’m bigger than you are!”

“True, but I’m different from you.”

“Not by much.”

Janus scowled, noticing the fine change in Tsunami. He was being more serious now. His smile was smaller now, but somehow, more sincere. He was lost in thought, and, for a second, Janus could mistake him for Gale. “Yeah, I suppose your right. I’m a different leaf, I guess. But among your leafs, your tiny, but you’ll get big soon.”

“Tsunami?”

“Yeah Janus?”

“What attacked us yesterday?”

“Honestly, I can’t say for sure, but the way it fought… I have a guess.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, and if I’m right, things go a whole mess more complicated.”

Tsunami turned his head down. He was even more worried than usual. Janus flipped himself up, and proceeded down the hill. “Hey! Where are you going?”

“I’m sleepy, and last time I slept up here I got a cold, remember?”

“Alright Janus.” As he leap down, he turned back to Tsunami, who had returned back to the sky above. Tsunami knew something, as well. Janus could feel it. Still, he also felt like he should wait to ask something. Like… if he asked now, it would ruin something for him.

That night, he heard them, talking in low grades, barely audible through small gaps in the walls. It was a debate, between the girl and Terra, and he knew Plume a Gale was there. Tsunami was still on the roof, more then likely asleep. Whether or not it was a good thing was beyond him, but it seemed like he should have been there.

“So ya think it’s not over then? What else could there be to do?”

“I do not know, child, but the reemergence of you, the child of zeal, is proof enough that the battle you fought was merely a starting point.”

“Hold on a sec, mates. Child of zeal, I ain’t. I’m me, the flesh and blood version. I like myself like this.”

“You like your old memories and scars? How odd.”

“It’s not that.”

“It’s him, isn’t it?”

“Ya know!”

“Why not. We’re also wondering about him. If the timelines have, in fact, healed each other, I’m curious to know whether or not that bloodline was considered a virus or a lifeline. If so, why and what does that entail? When you think about it, child of zeal, There’s a bunch of questions that need filling. Why did the first disappear and the second is unknown? It was HIS world. Where is he n….”

Janus dreamed that night. It wasn’t like the other dreams. There was no girl, no creature staring down with blind white eyes and a gesture-less face. No falling, no waking up.

There was a beach. Rimmed with plants he had never seen. It stretched out to a rim of rocks, encasing the world around it like a prison. There was no way to move out beyond it. And there, on that beach, he saw him.

He was faceless, sitting with one knee bent up, arm draped over it, a giant to handed sword at his side. He was watching that rim, silently, endlessly. Janus started to him, and he vanished. Suddenly, he was behind him. He was staring at Janus, his hair blocking his eyes.

“So your him.” He mouthed wordlessly, though Janus heard it clearly as if he had shouted it out. He held out his sword. “You’ll need to be strong.” He said silently again. Janus stared at him, walking up to him slowly, hoping he would see his eyes.

“Who are you?” Janus asked.

“A memory.”

“A memory?”

“Don’t cry. He’ll be there soon.”

“What?”

“Don’t . . . forget . . .”

“Don’t forget what!” He shouted, realizing the world was fading into darkness. He ran to him, only to pass through. He spun around. He was now carrying the large blade.

It burst with a sudden light, and soon, he realized he had another dagger on him, with a blood red cross guard and pommel, and black rags covering the hilt. He spun around. The figured smiled. “Don’t . . . forget . . .”

“Forget what!”

“He’ll be there soon.”

Janus woke up, though without a scream, without any sense of fear, doubt, anger or worry on him. He woke up with eyes blankly intent on the intricate design of the roof markings, glowing away and keeping the roof from crashing into him. Something felt… amiss. He sat up. He noticed he had pulled the dagger from his sheath, and it was now firmly in his palm.

“A figure from a memory?” He repeated to himself. “What was that?” He leaped from bed. The wood was cold. It was probably still night outside. Somehow, though, he wouldn’t seem to accept that theory. Something in him wouldn’t allow the privilege.

“Terra?” He said, walking down the hallways. There was no response. The bitter cold floor creaked below Janus as he opened the door to Terra’s room. It was empty. On the walls hung a picture of a women with a her face burnt out, barely holding onto it’s nailing as it swung to the vibration of the door.

Come to think of it, I’ve never been in Terra’s room before. He noticed as he entered, looking around the dimly lit room. There was a magic seal on the floor, protecting the floor from braking in. Several smaller seal set in the corners of the room, which made Janus think this was the most damaged room in the house. “Terra probably took it because she worried.” He said to himself.

There was a dresser, he noticed, but the dusk collecting on it told Janus it had never been used. However, his attention drifted to the small chest in the corner. It was well-kept, gold trim running along its soft edges. It glowed with a faint red ambience, and was engraved with Terra’s personal seal.

He reached for it. Its brightness grew slightly. As he touched it, the light seems to dim, and then vanish altogether. Janus withdrew his hand, and the box grew with light again. He turned his head to the door. Hearing no one coming, Janus went back to the box, and started to open it.

A blood red hilt lay there, broken from its blade. He picked it up, slowly, as to not make a sound from its silk encasing. A note lay in the wrappings, tied up so loosely it fell out as he flipped the blade.

“Four miles to the north.” It read.

As Janus looked over the old note, which looked to have been greatly cared for, he noticed a glint of a metal buckle on an old book that sat on the only untouched piece of furniture in the room. On the self there was a picture, but it was too faded to see whom it belonged too.

“I better leave this alone for now. I’ll ask Terra about this blade when she comes back.” He thought aloud.

It was now a four full months. Every night he cried himself to sleep. He had no idea why it hurt so much, or why they were gone. All he knew is he was alone, and every night we would find himself in one of their rooms, sobbing himself to sleep in their cold beds.

Knock. Janus’ eyes shot open. The house made no sound, other then the wind that passed harmless through. Still, he knew better, and reached for his dagger. Knock. Yeah, something wanted his home for his own. Terra wouldn’t like to know the house was overrun, so he jumped out of the bed. Through his time alone, he had managed to refine his skill with the dagger. Now, if it had come back, he was ready.

“Who’s there?” He said, standing at the broken entrance that creaked idly.

Knock. The door jumped with fury, the string hold it in place straining to hold it in place. Janus drew himself in. “Go away.”

“I’m afraid I can’t do that Janus.” A voice called from beyond the door, sending a chill through his spine. How did it know his name? Was it… no… it didn’t sound anything like them. “Janus, open this door if you want to live. NOW!”

As on some playwright’s cue, the ceiling exploded. That creature . . . he knew it. Those deep red eyes, that thick ream of spikes running down its. Like a giant lizard with a demon possessing its soul. Plume had told of this thing. Told of how it had once tried to beat plume.

The fire demon, Xocotl, was staring him directly in the eyes. “JANUS! OPEN THE DOOR NOW!”

He needn’t be told twice. He demon hot on his tail, he ran for the door, pulled the tiny needle from the leather tie, and dodged to the side as a blast of fire expelled from the monster’s mouth.

He was lighting fast, moving into the blazed, and breaking it with a single hit of his sword. “If you think some little fire breath’s hurting me, you’re gravely mistaken.” What… was that he was wielding. “Janus, stand, get ready to fight.”

Fight? This thing was the fire demon Xocotl! It took Plume all he had to come to a stale mate!

“Stand and fight.”

He gained his feet, pulled the blue dagger from his sheath. No telling how far they could go, but something told Janus to trust this man’s powers.

Some told Janus to trust the man with the blazing red hair, with a long Katana at his side.

From: Fanfiction