Chapter 3: Return To The Present
As the squad re-materializes on the other side of the portal, they tumble out of a closet and hit the ground. Finding themselves in the living area of someone's home they take note of 2 startled imps eating dinner at their dining table.
"Get outta here! What are you doing just barging into people's homes like that?" The imps yell. As the party leaves, one imp, having calmed down, informs them: "Wait a minute. There's an old man who lives near the cave in the mountains to the west. You might enjoy a chat with him."
"Thanks! Why are you being so nice? Mystics aren't supposed to get along with humans." Marle asks.
"Humans fought the Mystics over 400 years ago. My motto is "Forgive and forget." but not many seem to agree with me." the imp says.
The adventurers leave the home and walk out into a quaint looking market square in a town called Medina. There's a central platform in the town with a bright shining structure that they can see from the distance. As they approach they find several monsters worshipping the same cloaked image of their lord Magus holding s scythe just like they encountered in the Cathedral in the past. The group overhears them rejoicing at the idea of Lavos, Magus's creation awakening and destroying the human race. They leave to explore more of the town. However, trying to purchase supplies, every time they ask the locals for assistance it results in a fight. After only finding hostility among the Mystics, they travel Southeast to find the old man’s house. As they enter, they realize the home belongs to none other than Melchior, the sword smith from the fair that wished to purchase Marle's pendant.
"Ah hello! Could I interest you in a weapon?" He asks. After the gang exchanges some money for new equipment, Melchior informs them that if they desire to return to their village of Truce they should use the shortcut through the cave in the mountains north of them. Departing from Melchior's home they discover the trail through the mountain. Navigating a series of paths inside, along underground waterways while fighting off bats, insects and other monsters, they eventually encounter Heckran, the Mystics guardian of the caves. Resistant to physical attacks and able to block magic when he was in a defensive position, the heroes had to time their attacks to defeat him. Once vanquished, they found a water current to ride to the western continent and home.
As the water currents channel the team across the landscape, they emerge propelled from a whirlpool right beside Lucca's home. As they stop in to see how things have been going since they've been gone, Lucca's father Taban is excited to give her a new protective vest he developed just for her.
Now as the party is aware that Lavos's origin was the wizard Magus who created it to destroy the human race in 600 A.D., they retrace their steps to the Gate found in the fairground. Emerging once again in the Truce Canyon, they descend the mountain and make their way to the Guardia Castle to see if they can't learn anything about locating the lair of the evil Magus. As they enter the Castle, they hear rumours that a hero has appeared to drive off Magus's army. The King, injured in battle, lies bedridden recovering. He tells the party that the legendary hero searches the southern continent for the sword that can defeat Magus. In order to reach it they'd have to cross the southern bridge which has been recently repaired and being held by the Knight Captain who is in desperate need of provisions. As Crono and his friends leave, the head chef, the Knight Captain’s brother, gives them foodstuffs to give to the starving soldiers at the bridge and tells them to let his brother know he'd best come back alive.
Once at the bridge, the team hand over the rations to the soldiers who just finished defending against a new wave of enemies. As a soldier from the front line reports to the Knight Captain that Magus's troops have launched another attack and have started breaking through their defences, the heroes spring into action.
Travelling down the bridge moments too late to save several soldiers, a Mystic commander steps forward to gloat. He introduces himself as Ozzie, Magus's top general. Then they watch as the corpses of the fallen are raised as skeletal warriors. As they defeat the undead soldiers, Ozzie runs away further down the bridge. After once again being forced to battle the recently deceased, the group chases down Ozzie until he's forced to use his necromancy to summon a giant zombie beast created from the fallen corpses of several soldiers at the same time, and then promptly flees the battle. Once returning the dead to their eternal rest, they cross the bridge to the southern continent.
Passing a small town, they track down the home of the Legendary Hero, a village in the south called Porre. Upon reaching the village, the Hero who is apparently named Tata, is all anyone can talk about. It seems he's travelled to the nearby Denadoro Mountains to search for the legendary sword that he's destined to wield. As they retrace Tata's steps they find themselves in a lush and beautiful scene surrounded by waterfalls, forests, and monsters. Reaching a ladder which leads to a higher level of the cliffs, the young boy named Tata comes screaming down it chased by a goblin. After saving Tata, he tells them that this is a terrible place and they'd best run away while they still can. Tata the hero then promptly runs away.
The squad ascends the perilous mountain face, crossing suspension bridges and climbing rickety ladders, eventually reaching the peak where across from a tranquil stream, the mouth of a cave sits just as they were told there'd be.
Inside the cavern a young, erie child plays among a beam of light coming from an overhead crack which allows the sunlight into the dark, reflecting on an extremely well crafted looking sword buried in the cave floor. "I'm the wind! Whoosh!" the boys says. As the trio approach the sword the child calls to them: "Stop!" Jumping ahead of them on the path, he asks "Are you here for the Masamune?”
Nodding their heads yes, he then says "Thought so. Wait a second, okay? Oh big broooother... where are you Masa?"
Mysteriously appearing from behind the sword, a second identical boy walks forward. "What is it Mune?" Taking a look at the party, he then exclaims "Not again?!"
"So," he continues "you want to get a name for yourself by grabbing the Masamune? What a buffoon!"
His brother then says "Humans are so... silly! It's how you USE the sword that's important, not how you use it. You can't even understand something as simple as that. That's why you're human."
"What should we do?" Mune asks his sibling.
"The usual; test them. You can entertain us for a while." Masa replies.
"All right! Here we go! Whooosh!”
The 2 brothers then transform in front of the party into 2 golden skinned, pointy eared creatures and stand ready for battle. As they fight, the group realizes that if they attack Masa, the younger brother, then Mune instinctively counterattacks. So they realize they should concentrate on Mune first. Once he's defeated, Masa falls at the same time.
"Hey they're pretty tough." Mune observes.
"Only Cyrus made it this far." Masa agrees.
"What should we do?"
"This time it's for real!”
The 2 accelerate towards each other, and out from a glowing light emerges an extremely large, powerful looking golden skinned creature of a type the gang has never seen before. After an extremely tense battle, eventually the monster is defeated, and as he disappears, the 2 young children return to their previous forms.
"They beat us!" Masa says with joy in his voice. "That was fun!"
"Will they fix us?" Mune asks. "Will they find us an owner?"
"Yeah it'll be alright." Masa reassures him. The 2 step towards the sword and then transmute their spirits into it. As the group steps forward to claim the sword it begins to glow and reveals its true form, that of a broken blade.
"So this is the Masamune." Lucca says, awestruck. "But it looks like it's been broken for ages."
"Allow me! We'll ride the wind to the base of the mountain!" Masa says, his voice emanating from the sword itself. They collect the shattered sword and step forward into the beam of light, and a strong wind sweeps them off their feet and into the sky. As they fly towards the base of the mountain, the wind slows their descent. "Good luck to you!" The spirits of the sword say.
Returning to the home of the not so legendary hero Tata, they find him hiding under his stairwell. He tells them he's sorry and that some 'frog guy' dropped the hero medal in a cafe where he picked it up, handing the medal to the group. "I thought I'd sell it, but then everyone started calling me a 'hero'. I couldn't bear to get rid of it."
With the remnants of the Masamune and the heroes medal in hand, the group then tracks down the home of Frog the Swordsman in a swamp just North West of the town of Porre. Following a forest trail, they find the entrance to Frog's underground home near an unassuming bush. Climbing down the ladder they see a cozy residence with a table and chairs, a bed and a dresser. As they begin to look around, a voice calls out from the shadows. "Who's there?"
Frog jumps down from above. "'Tis thee, Crono! Thou art here to practice thy skill in swordplay?"
The group then shows Frog the hero badge.
"Aye, then thou hast seen the lad. Yet there's nary a thing I canst do against Magus. The legendary Masamune is required to fight Magus, and I've no right to wield it. Please leave now.”
As Frog turns his back on the party, a familiar gleam shines from his bedside. Opening the container while Frog isn't looking, the group finds the other half of the Masamune, the hilt of the sword.
"It's engraved with archaic letters. I think I can read it." Lucca says. "Um... 'Melchior'"
"Melchior? That guy in Medina Village?" Marle asks. "What does this mean, Crono?"
Taking their leave of Frogs abode, they travel back to the present by way of the gate in Truce Canyon and back to Medina village to speak to Melchior.
"You're back again? Come to see my collection?" Melchior asks. The party presents the Masamune to the swordsmith who is taken aback. "Th... this sword; it's the Masamune! How did you get it?"
"Why would your name be engraved on the sword?" Lucca asks.
"It's a long story." Melchior admits. "You do want to hear this story, right?"
"Of course! Tell us about the Masamune!" Lucca exclaims. "Is it possible to reforge it?"
"Hmmmm..." Melchior pauses thoughtfully. "It might be possible if we could get our hands on some Dreamstone, which the sword is made of."
"Dreamstone? Where can we get that?" Marle asks.
"You can't find it anymore. It was a red stone that was once used as money. Unfortunately, it hasn't been available for a very long time. I doubt that you'll ever find the red stone, but if you bring some to me, I will fix the Masamune. Keep the sword with you until then."
The party thinks about The End of Time. When they entered the pillar of light to reach Medina village there was a 3rd, unexplored pillar. They decide to return to the End of Time to give it a try. As they step into the new pillar, they are once again whisked away into the currents of time with no idea where they may appear next!
