Chapter IX: Quis Custodiet.....

To say this day had it's fair share of surprises would be as gross an
understatement equal to calling the Mississippi a small creek. Crono thought
back to all that had happened on this day. Had been told all that he would
undergo, Crono would've simply stayed in bed. and from the looks of things,
it'd be a while before he'd get to sleep in his own bed.
Crono sighed, and looked down. He regarded the bonds which bound his
wrists together, and decided to look back up. His footsteps echoed in the
massive stone halls. Crono looked at those who lead him.
'Step lively son!' demanded the old Chancellor, his voice was full spite and
bitterness. He slapped Crono upon the ribs with his cane
'THat hurt you old bastard!' for an old man, he shouldn't've been able to
swing his cane that hard and not have fallen over.
He struck Crono again. 'Silence you ursuper!'
'I'm innocent, I won your stupid trial by your own rules!'
'Keep Quiet and keep marching!' He struck Crono a third time.
He was about to retailiate when the gaurd pushed him foreward.
What a day it had been. Crono thought back to all that happened.
Now Crono was expecting his share of surprises, but nothing like he expected
in the past 24 hours. Going to the Millennial Fair was a good start. As he
expected, the festival was not as he predicted. Meeting a stunningly gorgeous
red-headed princess, would generally be enough to satiate most people, and
Crono was very satisfied with having met MArle. And the two had a
wonderful time together.
Crono could've seen that coming.
However, Marle getting sucked 400 years into the past by an invention created by Crono's best friend Lucca, and for him to go after Marle, was completly unexpected. And Crono had no foresight whatsoever that his rescue mission would be aided by a talking, walking, sword slinging Frog.
Perhaps the greatest surprise was Crono's reward for saving the past and
present. Even though he had rescued Marle from a certain unfortunate and
premature doom, upon his return he was rewarded with a trial. It wasn't so
much a trial as it was a failed attempt to miscarriage justice.
So here he was marching to the dungeon, hands in bonds, fuming. They exited the castle main structure, and reached a bridge. The bridge was wide as a river and long as a mile, and stood between two massive towers. The wind whipped vengefully upon them from a dark sky, stirring his hair back and forth. Crono pivioted his head so as to deflect the wind, and gazed upon the mountains. He did take some comfort in the view. The mountains seemed to be at eye-level.

He marveled at the crags and clefts, and wished desperately to be there.
They crossed the bridge, and came into an office. A gaurd sat at a desk, that
looked as though it would collapse beneath the stack of paper upon it. Crono
was shoved before the desk. the Chancellor cast off the papers to reveal a
dormant supervisor. He slammed his cane upon the surface, causing them to
jump.
I'd love to stick that cane of his right up his antique wrinkly decrepit lying--
'SIR!' the supervisor snapped to attention from his nap.
'You fool!'
'What can I do sir?'
'This piece of crap is the monster who kidnapped the Princess. He has tried
and convicted of treason, and attempting to overthrow our sacred throne.'
'HIM?!' The supervisor reacted as though the Chancellor told him Crono had
just returned from the moon. He regaurded Crono. His eyes narrowed, and he shot a scornful glare at him. 'You monster! taking advantage of our fair
Nadia!'
Crono rolled his eyes. He wanted to threaten them, to insult them, to belittle
them, but no words came.
'I expect you to cary out his sentance. Execution is scheduled in three days.
DO NOT let him out of your sight or you shall join him!'
'Execution, that's queer. I don't recall an execution being the itinerary'
His voice cresendoed with each progressing word, 'The paper work is simply
clogged in the system!'
'Are you sure?'
'YOU DARE QUESTION MY ORDERS?!!?!?! If you do not execute him,
than I will consider you a cohort of his and you shall both perish!'
'Yes sir! understood Sir!'
'Good! Let me know when the Guiltine blade is good and keen. I shall inspect
that before the execution.'
'Yes sir.' He moved out from behind the desk, and up to Crono. 'Gaurds!' He
summoned. 'take this scum out of my site.'
Crono heard the metal clad footfalls of two armoured soldiers. Something
about they walked, was almost primordial. Their arms hung low, and they
slouched, their necks crained foreward at a low angle. They took heavy
trudging steps, that were not too swift. Something about them just didn't
seem, human, thought Crono.
The final thing he saw as an iron gloved fist sailing into his forehead

Crono was awakened by the bitter saltwater kiss of the hard, frigid, harsh
stone floor. He let free a groan. Crono noticed the scent of a crumbling
skeleton drifting into his nostrils from a the next cell over. The torchlight cast tall shadows that consumed the floor and walls. The dank, musty, rancid air did little to aid his awakening. The cell was dark and the longer he stared at the walls, the nearer they approached. He could hear the metal footfalls of the gaurds echoing between the walls. They seemed to taunt him. Very little light entered into the cell. Crono took in a deep breath.
Stars flickered in his gaze, and fluids swirled between his ears. Crono sat up and thought. Aside from his head, his ribs ached where the Chancellor struck him. Crono hurt when he drew in the stagnant air. He felt a bruise upon his latismus where Yakra had landed a blow. His throat felt lined with sand paper. He felt nails sticking in his feet, and lining his shins. He considered getting up and walking about the cell, but decided to lay back down for an extended voluntary respite.
He could feel the energy seep out of his body.
I am unsure how much time elapsed untill Crono awakened. He let free a deep
long yawn, and slowly came to his feet. Crono stretched out his arms, twisted his frame, streched his legs, cracked every joint, and shook himself out. Crono went over to the window, and gazed out. His cell, sat in the center of a grand tower. He could not see the base of it, nor the peak. Crono noticed some provisions, a flask of water, and some bread. A note before them read

With our dearest sympathy

He was unsure as to who exactly they came from, but was greatful
nonetheless. To his delight the water was clean and the bread was fresh.
Crono looked out at the door, sizing up those who watched him like a wolf
spying it's prey. He counted two gaurds, and went up to the bars.
'Hey how much are you gettin paid to watch me?'
The gaurd replied with stoney, contemptous silence
'Oh come on now, just cause I'm a prisoner doesn't mean you can't talk to
me.'
'Shut UP!'
'Oh I see how it is! You're too good for me! Well then'
The gaurd turned, and thrust his sword into through the bars. Crono side
stepped.
'Whoa! Easy now! Don't take it too seriously!'
Crono grinned to himself knowing he had gotten into their heads. He waited for them to turn about. Crono gripped the bars, tight as a vise. He shook them like violently like a tremor. 'LET ME OUT!!!!!! LET ME OUT OF THIS HOLE!!!!!!!!! I'M INNOCENT DAMNIT LET ME OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'
'SHUT UP!!!!!' the gaurd's demand was drowned out by Crono's protest.
Both voices clashed like volleys of artillery from opposing armies. One gaurd ordered the other to raise the door. Crono backed off, and readied himself into a fighting stance. The entering gaurd cracked his knuckles, and sauntered like a bully. Crono gave a couple of bounces, and dashed at his oppressor. He threw a wide haymaker, that missed by a mile. THe gaurd swung, fist crashing into Crono's sterum. Crono let free a gasp, and staggered backwards, falling on to the floor.
'Stupid punk!', he gloated full of himself.
Crono lay on the ground, ear upon the stone. He listened intently counting the footsteps. With a swift silent stealthness, Crono snapped back to his feet, and snuck behind the gaurd. Crono took ahold of the gaurd's hilt. He grinned as he pulled the sword from it's sheath, raised, and like a scythe threshing wheat struck the gaurd. HIs sword was full of contempt thinking of the mistrial and abuse at the hands of the chancellor. As It stumbled foreward, Crono took it by it's iron arms, and neck and cast it into a wall. It sounded like a car hitting a tree. The gaurd crumpled and collapsed onto the floor. Crono exited his cell,
to see the other gaurd, diverted by boredom. He grabbed it, and turned it
about.
'Hey get back in your cell!'
Crono answered by bringing his sword crashing onto it's forehead. He felt a burden lift. There was a grand relief in knocking both of those gaurds out. His heart began to accelerate, his breathing grew stoccotto. Crono felt as though he was working his way out of the cathedral. Of course, then he had Frog and Lucca to watch his back. He wondered where Marle was. Surely she coulduse her influnce to free him.
He groaned at the prospect of having to explain the entire days events to his mother. Crono considered returning to his cell, or perhaps going to hte guiltine instead Crono scoured the vicinity, searching of anything that sould aid his escape. He found nothing more than dead rats, parched bones and rusty chain links.
Crono headed down a stairwell, steps as light as a wraith's. He spied three
gaurds standing in the center of the floor, hiding behind large sheilds that
covered their entire bodies. They stood between him and another stairwell.
Crono deliberated wether as to attack them, slip by, or find another route.
Crono counted them again. If he were to engage them, two could fight, and
the other could flee and get backup. The chances of him slipping through their grasp seemed a bit slim, so He opted for another route.
Crono returned from where began, and did some thinking. He explored the
other cells for anything. In one cell he felt a draft. Crono went to the wall and felt upon it. Finding the most frigid spot, he gave it a solid push. A sudden gust of wind nearly knocked Crono over. He crained his neck foreward and peered out. He looked right, looked left, looked up, and looked down. Crono squinted in the face of the whipping wind. He spat a small bead out, to gauge the distance, only to have it splash upon his boot.
Crono leaned out further. He spied off down and off to the left, another
opening in the tower wall. Before he could give it a second thought, Crono
wiped his hands and stepped out, clutching to the wall as a spider would. He could feel the wind lashing upon his back. The stones he clung to seemed lose and shakey like a stack of child's building blocks. Crono leaned in, in case the stones would crumble, hopefully he'd fall in as opposed to out and down. Again, Crono had no preminition he'd be climbing upon the castle walls in order to escape from the dungeon. He watched as his knuckles flushed white, and his fingers and arms grew stiff. HIs shoulders felt as though they were going to detatch themselves from their sockets, and his latisimus stretch further than they were designed to.
Crono counted the bricks he passed over as he descended. A fierce gale
attacked his flank, nearly peeling him off. Crono's eyes went wide as his right arm was torn from the wall. He grimaced as he pushed back. As soon as he re-established his grasp, the stone supporting his left foot ejected itself from the wall. Crono felt his stomach drop to his knees, and suddenly shot his knee up, searching for a new foothold.
Crono didn't take the time to breath a sigh of relief, but continued his descent.
As he climbed, he looked back up to where he began. Unable to find it, he
continued his climb.
Eventually Crono did reach a ledge on which to perch. He clave with all he
had within. Crono reached out with his left hand, and felt nothing, so he
moved to his left. He took a deep breath and stepped into the gap. Crono
exhaled broadly and gratefully as his feet came upon solid ground. He fell to all fours and smiled to himself.
Not bothering to look back up he decided to move on. The bars which stood before him, were opened half way. Crono crouched, as he did he heard stirrings from the other side.
'I'm innocent! The charges were crap! I even won my trial you can't do this to me!!!!!' his voice quivered with despiration like a parent pleading for a child.
Crono saw another cell. In the center was a guilitine, occupied by a young
man, perhaps Crono's age, if not older, and two gaurds, haughty and gloating. 'Will you just shut up! You're gonna be dead in a minuite so just shut up!'
'I have rights damnit!'
All the while Crono slipped beneath the bars, and drew his sword. His blade felt as heavy as wall. He stepped quietly, and drew in shallow stoccotto breathes. He clutched the hilt as tight as he could. Crono stalked one gaurd as the other readied the guilitine. Crono's bones shook loose as he slammed the sword into the chestplated of a gaurd. It fell upon the wall, and Crono delivered a kick to it's mid-section, and two more sledging strikes to it's helmeted head.
The other sentry turned and came dashing it at Crono. It gave a wide swathing cut, which Crono easily evaded. It swung so hard it teetered off balance. Crono hammered it low, slammed it's head, and finished with a strike to the side.
Like these goons are any match after Yakra
He went over to the guilitine. 'Are you alright?'
'Yeah just get me out of here!'
Crono lifted the brace which held the man's neck. 'Everything still attached?'
'As far as I know! Thanks a ton! That senile old chancellor threw me in here.
put on a fake trial and everything!'
'Me and you both.'
'My name's Fritz, stop by the store in town, I'll get you anything you ever
need.'
'Yeah alright thanks! Hey do you know your way out?'
'Yeah sorta. Want me to show you?'
'If you could.'
'Alright'
As soon as they stepped out of the cell, three more sentries found them.
'The prisoners are escaping!'
They shared a curse. 'Just go, I'll hold them off!' ordered Crono
'You sure?!'
'Yeah, go!'

The three sentries came rushing in. Crono dashed foreward to meet them.
When he was a sword stroke away, he slammed on the breaks and hopped back. All three thrust their swords, putting themselves awkwardly out of any defenseable position. Crono shot out like a hornet, swinging wildly like a rabid bear, thrashing and slashing the sentries.
Crono again stopped to catch his breath. Why can't they just leave me alone?
He looked back where Fritz had ran to. He glanced the other way where the gaurds had come from. Crono had no explanation as to why he went in the directions of the sentries. Perhaps it was the same reason he climbed down the tower wall.
He came to a stair well. At the bottom, Crono saw three more sentries, hiding behind large, full-body shields. Each was facing out at a different direction, forming a tight but small phalanx. He wondered how he'd penetrate their ranks. Crono found three stones upon the floor. He climbed about 1/4 of the way down, and threw one directly at one. It gave a loud clang, that echoed in the chamber.
THe sentry peered from about it's shield at the room. Crono fired another stone with all of the speed in his arm. he watched as it rocked forward, and fell onto the ground. He lobbed another stone high and arcing onto the head of another gaurd. As it crumpled onto the floor, he charged into the third. IT
jolted it's shield foreward knocking Chrono onto his rear. It tossed a few stones at Crono. He snapped up, and attempted to engage the sentry. Crono knew better than a head on assault. He circled it trying to get it to take a bad step. Crono feigned a direct charge, and took a quick step back to his left. He was unable to find an open avenue, so he circled the other way. Crono feigned right, stepped forward, feigned right again, and charged left. He took a hold of
the shield, turned it, and swift stroke, hit the sentry.

Crono continued down to another stair well. He laughed in spite of himself realizing he could've saved himself a great deal of trouble by simply taking the stairs in the first place. The steps led him into an office, where the supervisor sat, reading some schematics the Chancellor gave him.
Crono rapped his sword upon the wall. He let free a shocked gasp, and leapt out of his chair onto the desk. He reacted as though he had seen a three eyed cat. 'You!?' His knees trembled like the new Madrid fault, and beads of chill sweat poked out onto his brow and pits.
'Yeah me!' Crono was reminded of the injustice he endured, and the
frustraitions began to boil to the surface. his teeth ground together, and he grasped faster upon his sword. 'You're gonna wish you'd never seen me!'
All though that sentiment had already sank in. The supervisor jumped down and dashed out the door back to the palace main. The next thing Crono heard was a loud crash, like an airplane, followed by the supervisor screaming a curse. He didn't know how to react as he saw the supervisor tumble back through the door and crash on the ground. He grinned when he saw a set of shoes standing upon his chest.
'Dang Crono I go to all the trouble of rescuing your worthless self to find you've already freed yourself, I oughtta just leave you here!' complained Lucca.

'Good I didn't need you anyways. And I am NOT going back to that dank cell so you can play hero with me.'
'Fine! Let's just get outta here!'
'First sensible thing you've said to me.'
'Don't start that.'
Crono walked by Lucca. 'Are you coming?'
She shook her head. 'Why do I even bother?'
'Cause it's mostly your fault that I get into these situations.'
'Okay let's count the things wrong with that statement. So where's Marle?'
'I don;t know'
'Probally forgot all about you. I mean she is a princess after all, I bet she's got men beating down her door!' taunted Lucca.
'Whatever.'
'Ooh, touch a nerve?!' Lucca knew all of his buttons, and just how to push
them in just the right order. He had grown used to it, but still wanted to throw her off the bridge.
They trekked back out onto the bridge, and began to run. The wind was still as harsh and cold as it was when Crono first crossed it. It was a bitter spiteful wind, much as the Chancellor. That angered him further. The bridge began to tremble, as though a large semi were passing by. It was subtle, but grew more vehnement the longer they ran.
'Do you feel that?' inquired Lucca between breaths. Crono paid no heed,
merely kept running. The trembling stopped. Lucca thought nothing more of it. that is untill the trembling began again. This time it shook with such force, Lucca wondered why the bridge didn't collapse.
'Onward! Onward! Crush those vile fiends!' Ordered a screatchy, angry voice.
Crono and Lucca came to a dead halt and nearly jumped to the to top of the tower when they saw the Chancellor riding upon a huge mechanized dragon.
He stood like Caesar upon his chariot, waving his cane franticaly.
'Hahahahhahha!!!!!!!' His laughter was like the hissing of a viper. 'Let's see
you escape my Dragon Tank!'
The Dragon Tank as, the Chancellor called it, was exactly that. It was as large as a room. It was wrought out of solid iron, instead of feet it rolled, instead of wings were small cannons. When it moved foreward the entire palace shook. Had Lucca not been in mortal fear, she'd have loved to examine it.
It opened it's metal jaw, and spewed a blast of fire at Crono and Lucca.