Halftime
By Aaron Ziegler
alziegle@norcia.cs.csbsju.edu
http://bingen.cs.csbsju.edu/~alziegle

Chapter 23: Time to Go

   "There, finished!" Lucca exclaimed with satisfaction as she
pounded the last nail into place.
   One benefit of Lavos's demise was that all of the time Gates
had reappeared in their closed, spherical form. Three of these
gates had appeared right in front of Lavos's dead shell. Of these
three it was known that one lead to the surface, where Dalton had
had a private access to Lavos's lair (a Gate which greatly
expedited the evacuation of Lavos's destroyers). It was theorized
that of the other two, one led to the Millennial Fair, where
Crono's mother had disappeared, and the other led to a point in
midair, miles above the frozen ocean in 12,000 B.C., where Dalton
had battled Frog, Ayla, and Robo for possession of the Epoch (the
uncertainty as to which Gate was which made using either as a
portal home rather dangerous). With the appearance of these three
Gates, it was assumed that the other Gates had reappeared as
well. It was finally agreed that the safest Gate to take home
would be the one that had delivered Frog (most of the others were
less appealing--Ayla's led to a point in midair halfway down a
mountain, Magus's was located three years in the future and sixty
feet underwater, and Robo's hovered over a pool at Jusenkyo).
Unfortunately, according to readings that Lucca took with her
Gate key, the Gates were not going to remain open much longer. A
day, maybe two at most, were all that remained.
   So, after Ayla bid a fond farewell to her adopted people, they
had all returned to the present. Lucca had taken just long enough
to reinstall the dreamstone box into the Epoch, and then had
begun work on this new project, throwing furtive glances at her
Gate key every now and then to make certain that the Gates were
still stable. Now, it seemed, she was finished, and Nabiki wanted
to know what it was. (She was slightly irritated that the project
had taken away time that she had hoped to spend with her friend
before she departed.) Naturally, the easiest way to find out was
to ask. "So what is it?"
   "Half of a teleporter," Lucca responded cheerfully, slamming a
panel shut.
   "A teleporter?" Nabiki asked, eyes widening. She studied the
machine. It consisted of a circular base, its top plated with
some sort of translucent white material criss-crossed with a grid
of black lines. A rectangular column of machinery was attached to
an edge of the circular base, extending up to a second circular
panel about seven feet above the first. Geez, anyone would sell
their own mother for technology like this... Nabiki ruthlessly
squelched  the involuntary bout of greed. Then the second part of
Lucca's statement registered. "Only half? Where's the rest?"
   Lucca smiled. "Nowhere yet. I'll build it when I get back
home."
   "You mean-"
   "Yup. We've made so many friends here, it would be way too
painful to say goodbye forever." Then she grinned mischievously.
"Besides, we have to come back. Crono's mom is gonna need a cure,
big time. It's not going to be easy living with a woman who turns
into Dalton whenever splashed with cold water! Maybe we could
even give Frog a dunk in that Spring of the Drowned Man, so he
could be human again, at least part of the time." Lucca glanced
around with an attitude of mock conspiracy and added, "I don't
think he even wants to be human again, full time. He's grown
rather attached to being a frog."
   Nabiki looked uncharacteristically excited. "You mean you can
actually make a link between here and your world?"
   "Yup, I've set up a sort of beacon at this end. All you have
to do is keep the teleporter intact, and I'll be able to find it
eventually. That's the hard part. I can build the machine itself
in a day, but it may be difficult to find out what time period
this is."
   "Huh? What do you mean?"
   "Well, 1995 A.D. here could be 12,000 B.C. at home for all I
know. The cronometer on the Epoch isn't any help. It was reading
2300 A.D. when we arrived here, but I have no idea what Lavos's
meddling might have done to it. The important thing is that Lavos
brought us through both time and space, and this teleporter only
deals with space. I'll have to build the other end in the correct
era if this is gonna work at all. Could take years to find."
Lucca glanced off to a far corner of the yard, where Mousse was
practicing the odd variety of katas that came with his unique
style of martial arts. She smirked, and her glasses glinted in
the sunlight. "It WILL take years to find, if I have any say in
the matter."
   Nabiki understood, and grinned in spite of herself at Lucca's
cunning. Lucca wanted to make sure that Shampoo would be far away
from Mousse for a good long while before returning. "I'll miss
you, Lucca," she admitted suddenly.
   Lucca nodded. "Plenty of time for good-byes later. Right now,
we've gotta gather the others and get ready to go."
   Marle experienced a feeling of deja vu as everyone gathered
around the Gate. The scene was similar to one so many weeks ago,
when she, Crono, and Lucca had said goodbye to their departing
friends. This time, though, she was one of the ones departing.
They were all heading home to their world, if not their time. The
Gate would take them to 600 A.D., Frog's home. All except for
Crono, who would be taking the Epoch home instead (Lucca had
assured him that Lavos's death had reinstated whatever link had
diverted the Epoch here; she theorized that a trip now would,
most likely, return the Epoch to 1000 A.D.). He would then be
responsible for traveling back to 600 A.D. to ferry everyone else
to their proper era. Really it would have been more logical for
Lucca to have done the job, but she had insisted on escorting
Mousse through the Gate herself. Marle giggled to herself for a
moment. Lucca had found her man, and she wasn't about to let go
for an instant.
   Marle gazed for a moment at the people who had gathered to see
them off. The Tendo's and the Saotome's were there, naturally.
Cologne and Shampoo had also made an appearance, possibly to bid
farewell to the departing Mousse. Of course, Ukyou wanted to be
there for Magus's departure, and Ryoga wanted to be there for
Robo's departure.
   Then, Lucca signaled that it was time to depart. She activated
her Gate key, and the spherical time Gate expanded to its flat,
circular form. Frog, who was to be the first to step through
(presumably to prepare the guardians of Guardia Castle for those
who would follow), strode up to the Gate. He turned, and lifted a
gauntleted hand in a gesture of farewell. "Farewell, my friends.
It hath been a pleasure making thy acquaintance." Frog cocked an
eye-ridge wryly. "I shall miss thy cooking, Kasumi." Kasumi
smiled at this. Frog addressed Ranma, "Thou art a capable warrior
of surpassing skill, Sir Ranma. Remain ever vigilant in thy
training!"
   Ranma grinned, "Thanks, Frog. Thanks to you, I know exactly
what to do the next time someone tries to attack me with their
tongue." Frog chuckled, and without a further word, stepped into
the swirling blue portal.
   Magus approached the portal, the second to depart. He had no
liking for emotional farewells, and fully intended to step
through without a word. Ukyou, however, had other plans. "Janus?"
she called. "I hope that you find your sister."
   Magus turned to her, hard eyes softening. "So do I," he
answered, barely audibly. A bit more loudly, he advised, "Ukyou,
do not ever surrender to obsession. It can give structure to your
life, but it is a structure far too easily shattered." A bit
sadly, he added, "Don't let anyone break you, Ukyou." He gazed
meaningfully, and a bit harshly, at Ranma, who began to look
somewhat guiltily at Ukyou. Magus stepped forward, and
disappeared.
   Ayla's turn was at hand. She bowed to Ranma and said, "Ayla
sorry she not able help Ranma." Ayla had, during the hours that
Lucca had been working on her project, finished her fight with
Cologne. Unfortunately, Cologne had defeated her with fair ease,
having rearmed herself and having had time to devise a new
fighting strategy that took Ayla's strange pressure-point
immunity into account. One did not live to be as old as Cologne
without being able to adjust to new situations.
   Ranma grinned at her. "That's alright, Ayla. It was worth it
just to see the old troll have to push herself! Ow-!"
   Cologne had rapped Ranma on the head with her staff. "Do not
be impertinent," she scolded. Then she turned her attention to
Ayla. "It has been a great privilege to have met with the founder
of our tribe. You were the most challenging opponent that I have
faced in many years."
   Ayla frowned, slightly. "Age not taught Cologne honor," she
noted.
   Cologne's expression turned grim. "Youth taught me honor," she
answered. "Age has taught me that there are some things more
important than honor."
   Ayla sighed. "Cologne right," she admitted, much to Ranma's
surprise. "Good bye," Ayla called out. She leapt through the
portal.
   The next to leave was Robo. He was about to speak, when Soun
suddenly threw himself to Robo's feet, wrapping his arms around
Robo's legs and sobbing uncontrollably. "Don't go, Robo!" he
cried. "What will we do without you?"
   Nabiki rolled her eyes. "I suppose we'll just have to buy our
french fries at McDonald's, just like everyone else," she
answered dryly. Soun's sobbing doubled in intensity.
   Robo gingerly pulled himself free of the sobbing man. The
mechanical man composed himself, and once again prepared to
speak. "Good bye, everyone. Ryoga, I wish you the best of luck,
but luck is not what you need. Remember what we discussed: the
longer that you wait, the worse off you will be."
   Ryoga looked uncomfortable. Akane was looking at him with
concern. "What's he talking about Ryoga?"
   Ryoga turned an interesting shade of scarlet, and responded,
"Um, nothing important..." He caught Robo's electronic eye, and
fidgeted. "Maybe I'll tell you later," he said.
   Robo spoke again, "Akane, I wish you luck as well. You can
learn to cook, if you try!" Robo's voice began to take a fervent
tone. "Never give up! Cook every day--every meal, if you have to!
You can do it!"
   Everyone but Akane was staring at Robo with abject horror.
   Robo looked uncomfortable. "Er, maybe it would be best to
leave, now." Robo quickly exited through the portal before anyone
could work out how one might lynch a robot.
   Marle approached the Gate next. She turned to face her
companions, suddenly aware that she had little to say. Unlike
most of the others, she hadn't formed any close attachments with
any of the denizens of this world. In a way, she supposed, that
was for the best. The parting would be less sad. Nevertheless,
she suddenly found herself wishing that she had taken the time to
get to know them better. "So long, everyone!" she called with an
airy cheerfulness that she didn't really feel.
   To her surprise, Nabiki responded, "Good bye, Marle. I'll
never forget you. You saved my life, after all. And I never
forget a debt."
   Marle smiled, a bit happier. She had touched someone's life,
at least. "Thanks, Nabiki." Marle stepped across the threshold
between worlds.
   "We're up, Moosey!" Lucca sung, gripping Mousse's arm tightly.
   "Just a moment," Mousse answered. He turned to Genma.
"Farewell, Shampoo. Leaving you behind is like leaving a part of
my soul. I only hope that, one day, you'll recall me with
fondness, and remember that I do this for you."
   "Just who do you think you're talking to, boy?" Genma asked.
   Lucca, somewhat reluctantly, turned Mousse to face Shampoo.
"Sorry," Mousse muttered, a bit embarrassed. "I'll never forget
you." Shampoo merely bit her lip, and tried not to look directly
at him.
   Under her breath, just loud enough for Shampoo to hear, Lucca
muttered, "We'll just see about that."
   Lucca released Mousse for the moment, and unabashedly hugged
Nabiki. "NOW we can say good bye," Lucca grinned.
   "Good bye, Lucca. I'll see you in a few years, then."
   "Just keep that transporter safe, and you will." Several pairs
of eyebrows raised. Nabiki was the only one who really knew what
Lucca had been working on.
   Lucca grabbed Mousse's arm once more, and the two of them
stepped toward the waiting Gate. Shampoo's eyes followed Mousse
as he approached the Gate. Shampoo turned her eyes onto Ranma,
looking for support, or even sympathy. To her chagrin, she saw
that he had begun holding Akane's hand, perhaps without even
knowing it. Shampoo's heart cried out once more in anguish, and
she took an involuntary step forward.
   "'Bye, everyone!" Lucca called cheerfully, and she and Mousse
stepped through. After a few moments, the Gate, apparently
deactivated by Lucca from the other side, began to close.
   Shampoo's warring mind finally came to a decision. Shampoo had
lost the war for Ranma's heart. She had lost to Akane. Now, she
could either fulfill the Kiss of Death she had given to Akane so
long ago, or she could pursue the one who had tried for so long
to win her heart. Which would it be, Love or Vengeance? There was
really no choice at all. "NO, MOUSSE!" Shampoo screamed, diving
through the Gate just before it collapsed into its spherical
form.
   Everyone stared in shock at the place where Shampoo had
vanished. Cologne recovered swiftly. "Oh, foolish, foolish girl!"
she muttered. She glanced around, and focused on Crono, the only
one yet to return home. "Boy, I will be coming with you!" Crono
looked at her quizzically. A bit slyly, Cologne continued, "You
don't want Shampoo to ruin your friend's chance at romance, do
you?" Crono shook his head. "And I need her here. She is my heir,
after all. Nabiki Tendo!" Cologne called, twisting to face the
middle Tendo daughter. "Five million yen for the maintenance of
the Neko Hanten until we return."
   "Five million yen and eighty percent of the business profits
after taxes and bills while it's under my care," Nabiki responded
automatically.
   "Twenty percent."
   "Eighty percent," Nabiki repeated.
   Cologne sighed. She really had little alternative. "Done," she
answered. Cologne reached into a pocket and withdrew a scroll.
"This will provide you with all that you need to know: our bank
accounts, our realtor, everything. I made arrangements to prepare
for sudden departures such as this. Sign here." Nabiki quickly
scanned the document, always prepared for hidden clauses. It
seemed legitimate. Once she signed, the Neko Hanten would
essentially be hers until Cologne returned. She signed, and
Cologne signed below. Without a further word, Cologne vaulted up
to the cockpit of the Epoch.
   Before entering, she turned and smiled wearily at Ranma.
"Well, Son-in-Law--Ranma," she corrected herself. "It appears
that you have won." Then her eyes glinted with promise. "But I
would advise you to be safely married before we return.
Otherwise, all bets are off." The ancient Amazon disappeared from
view.
   Crono waved a final good bye to everyone before sealing the
canopy and lifting into the air. One last time, the Epoch shot
off into the distance, accelerating to incredible speeds. When it
had circled the globe, it vanished with a bright flash of light
and a thunderous clap of sound.
   For a few moments, everyone merely stood silently. Finally,
Ranma spoke. "Shampoo dumped me...for Mousse?" he asked
incredulously.
   Nabiki and Ukyou groaned, while Akane fumed, "Ranma you
jerk!" and proceeded to mash Ranma into pudding.
   A few months later, Nabiki was sighing happily as she reviewed
her accounts. The Neko Hanten had turned out to be a real cash
cow. Nabiki had been operating it for a few months, and found
that she really knew how to run a business. Naturally, it didn't
hurt that it was so easy to find cheap labor. Working at the Neko
Hanten had become a standard method of payment for the
various...favors Nabiki rendered to the students at school.
Nabiki especially loved to see Kunou hard at work in the kitchen.
Kunou despised the menial labor, but was willing to do anything
for pictures of Akane and his Pigtailed Goddess. Even better,
business tended to boom on the (frequent) occasions that Ranma
owed her money. Ranma just looked so cute in that waitress's
outfit!
   Nabiki chuckled to herself. Yes, the Neko Hanten was a great
way to line her pockets, but Nabiki was waiting for another, more
profitable endeavor to...bear fruit. Oh, her Dark Fruit plant had
died weeks ago, more than long enough for her to have determined
that the seeds in the seven fruits it had produced were sterile.
It was obvious that Magus had known. It was equally obvious that
he had intended to trick her into thinking otherwise. But Nabiki
was not one to be so easily fooled.
   Nabiki's room now contained two new additions. One was the
teleporter Lucca had created the day she left. The other was a
small, powerful refrigerator. In this refrigerator, each frozen
and sealed in a small black box, were thirty-two cuttings from
the Dark Fruit plant. For now, Dark Fruit was a thing of the
past. But in the future...
   Wasn't it amazing what people could do with cloning, nowadays?
The End

Afterword:
   Well, that's all folks! I can honestly say that I never
expected this story to become so long (640,145 Bytes as a raw
text file, minus all of these Afterwords and Tips and stuff, for
any who care). When I started it, I had a few basic ideas of what
I wanted, a few scenes that I had worked out in my head, and an
extremely rough outline. Then, as I started to write, entire
chapters sprung up out of nowhere. The story branched in manners
that I had never foreseen--the whole Ranma/Ranko subplot was
inspired by a dream that I had, for instance. I had no idea that
Miss Hinako was going to play a role in the story, but *poof*
there she was. (Tragically, I had intended to include Happosai
from the very beginning. I know that many prefer fanfics to be
Happy-free, but in this case I needed him. Now, and always, I
apologize for any gratuitous use of Happosai in any fanfic I
produce. Still, it could have been worse. I had originally
intended Happosai to be one of the 'heroes', and to form a Double
Tech with Lucca using their respective bombing attacks. *shudder*
As it turned out, Happosai was, instead, an Agent of Chaos, and
filled the role rather nicely.)
   In addition, I had not expected the story to change continuity
in any way. Lucca's infatuation with Mousse was originally
intended to be a hopeless endeavor, much like those of Mousse and
Shampoo themselves. Instead, the entire China gang ended up
vacating the planet, leaving the Neko Hanten in Nabiki's capable
hands. Go figure. For those of you who are offended by fanfics
which change Ranma continuity, I apologize, and strongly suggest
that you not read 'Justice', another of my works (which really
makes a hash of continuity, resolving every relationship--in one
way or another).
   Do I intend a sequel? No, not really. But stranger things have
happened.

Chrono Trigger Tip #23:
   Do I really only get one more question? Waaaah!
   Yep, so better make it a good one.
   *Sniff, Sniff* Okay, how 'bout this: You mentioned something
about different endings. How do I find them?
   Well, there are only a few endings that you're gonna be able
to get the first time through the game. By far the easiest is
simply to die any time after witnessing Lavos's destroying the
planet on that visual record in 2300 A.D. The ending you get when
you die displays Lavos's emergence in much greater detail.
   That's not an ending!
   Sure it is! Just not a good ending. As for good endings, there
are really four you can get the first time through. All require
destroying Lavos (in fact, every happy ending PERIOD requires
Lavos's destruction). They involve Crono and the Epoch. If you
destroyed Lavos without rescuing Crono, and by flying the Epoch
into it, you get one ending. Rescue Crono and attack with the
Epoch, and you get another. Don't rescue Crono and attack via the
bucket or the Black Omen, and you get another. Rescue Crono and
attack via the bucket or the Black Omen, and you get another.
(Note: it doesn't change the ending, but the only way to enable
the 'New Game+' option, which allows you to start a new game with
characters retaining their experience and items from a previous
game, is by winning via the Black Omen.)
   The other endings you can find by attacking Lavos at various
stages during the game (often via the bucket, long before the
Black Omen has risen). The absolute quickest route to Lavos is by
standing on the right pad of Lucca's teleporter at the Millennial
Fair, and trying to pick up the glimmer of light there. (This,
incidentally, is the only way to fight Lavos with Crono alone.
With or without a mop.) It's one of the coolest endings too. I'll
not describe it; you can see for yourself! Other endings can be
found, for instance, by destroying Lavos before defeating Magus
in his citadel, before helping Ayla to defeat the Reptites, etc.
Search, and you'll find them all (I'm not sure how many there
are; the numbers I have heard have varied from as few as ten to
as many as fourteen). If you're too lazy to search for them all,
well, I'm too lazy to write them all down. :P However, a nice
list of endings can be found on the Unofficial Squaresoft
Homepage. (Its address is 'http://www.sqla.com/unofficial',
perhaps soon to be the Official Squaresoft Homepage. If you want
an exact address for the Chrono Trigger endings, slap on
'/ct/text/info/ct-ends.txt', but the page really is worth
exploring in detail.)
   Technically, of course, there are scores of possible endings,
if you take really trivial details into account (number of cats,
for instance, or whether or not Lucca's mother can walk). And
let's not forget the subtle differences that arise if you slay
Magus. Experiment! The Mindlessly Obsessive can whittle away
hundreds of otherwise productive hours with no effort at all!
