"Crono, get up! Your friend Lucca came looking for you!" A female voice echoed throughout the modest house, reaching the second floor and the room of a young man who was still sound asleep.
He stood up reflexively; after all, hearing your mother scream would put anyone on alert. Crono was a 17-year-old with red hair in a tousled, spiky style.
"I'm coming! Just a moment!" Crono shouted in response before getting dressed. As he put on his clothes, he focused his gaze on a wooden sword he had used for practice for a long time.
"Looks like I'm finally about to stop using you, doesn't it?" he muttered before picking up the sword and putting it on his waist so that it wouldn't bother him when he walked.
After preparing himself, Crono looked in the mirror and saw a tall young man with black eyes looking back at him. His hair was a mess that he had never bothered to fix since childhood; even his mother had given up trying to give him a more 'normal' hairstyle.
After making sure his clothes were neat and unwrinkled, Crono left his room and went downstairs to the living room. A purple-haired girl wearing a pair of goggles over a brown cap stood in it.
She had an excited look on her face. When she noticed Crono, she stood up and approached her friend. It could be seen that she was shorter than the boy, but Crono would never think his friend was a wimp.
'Looks like Lucca is in a good mood. She was scary the other day because of her machine failure,' thought Crono, feeling like he had dodged a bullet. A smile came to his face.
"Crono! My father and I finally managed to get that machine to work. Remember your promise to be my test subject?" Lucca's purple eyes focused on her best friend, causing a bead of sweat to appear on Crono's forehead. He knew he couldn't escape this situation.
"Yes... I haven't forgotten, but first, I want to have breakfast and explore the fair. After all, it's the Millennium Fair! It's also celebrating 400 years of victory against the Mystics." Crono told Lucca about his plans to enjoy the fair's activities. His friend's eyes narrowed as she watched him.
"I'll let you have fun, but don't forget your promise. If you don't arrive on time..." Lucca brought her hand to her waist, where a strange pistol was concealed, causing Crono to swallow hard.
Although he had trained in swordsmanship and could even hit bullets with his sword, he couldn't go against a laser-firing weapon! He didn't want to be the target of his friend's gun either, so he nodded.
"I'll be there on time!" the boy replied. Lucca looked at him silently for a moment before answering.
"Good! You should try the robot I made. It'll give you tickets to spend!" With Crono's confirmation, Lucca returned to her previous excited state. She said goodbye to her friend and his mother.
"Maybe Lucca is scarier when she's excited..." Crono muttered. His mother, who had heard him, shook her head.
"How will you treat her when you get married? She's not an easy girl!" Crono's mom commented, making her son blush.
"I'm not marrying Lucca, Mom! We're just good friends." Crono didn't dare think about being Lucca's husband. He loved that his body only had the necessary holes to survive, and he didn't want any more.
"Will you be like your father?" Going from flower to flower!" the woman growled, causing Crono to fall silent. He hadn't gotten used to his mother's strange mood about that situation.
His father, from whom he had inherited his extravagant hairstyle, was a swordsman seeking enlightenment. After spending an intimate night with his mother, he left her a copy of a sword manual because he wanted his son or daughter to inherit this martial art.
What a scumbag! Crono, however, was born with a lot of talent for the sword. He had mastered the techniques contained in the manual and had his ideas about it.
Crono felt different from the other children. He was much more agile, faster, and stronger. He didn't know why, but he felt that these advantages made him well-suited to wield a sword.
'I don't understand what this is about, finding the light within me,' Crono thought, remembering some strange things from the sword techniques he had learned. However, he stopped thinking about that and turned his thoughts to his relationship with Lucca.
His obvious differences from others were the reason he ended up hanging out with Lucca, a girl smarter than any adult in the city.
She had a powerful mind that absorbed and digested knowledge to derive new information. She could learn almost anything. If she had the means, she could create incredible inventions. Even the laser weapon itself was something she created and assembled herself.
Lucca was almost a biological computer! These differences connected them deeply, making them best friends. Because of their friendship, he was willing to serve as a test subject for her machine. After all, he was already accustomed to the wonders Lucca could create.
'I can't wait to try your teleporter. It must be quite an interesting experience,' knowing what the work his friend was working on. Crono's excitement grew more and more.
But first, he was going to enjoy the fair!
...
"For now, we have no concrete proof of the portal's operation, so I advise using test animals to see if the machine harms biological entities," said Doctor Gero. He was much more ruthless than the other scientists present. If he weren't self-aware, he would suggest testing the machine on prisoners.
"You must trust our creation, G," replied Doctor Norimaki with confidence not only in the collective work he had just finished but also in the other scientists present.
"Wouldn't it be better to send machines? It's much safer, and we can gather more information!" Doctor Brief was much more pragmatic. He thought that sending drones would be the best way to proceed; after all, who knew what might be on the other side?
Although the portal was supposed to reach other timelines, caution was necessary. There might be a pathogen in a given timeline that would not be harmful to the people there, but it would be devastating to them.
The same goes for pathogens in their timeline, so anyone or anything passing through the portal would have to be thoroughly disinfected using drastic means, such as specific radiation.
"Yes... But it seems that someone doesn't agree with your ideas, gentlemen." Doctor Omori's voice made the three doctors focus their attention on Bulma, who was fiddling with the portal console. From her posture, it was obvious that she wanted to test the machine.
"Bulma, I know I've spoiled you a lot since you were born, but I don't think it's a good idea for you to test the portal." Dr. Brief was scared, so he walked toward his daughter, who had a big smile on her face.
"Old man, I'm pretty strong, so I can make this trip on my own. Besides, Lazuli already permitted me," Bulma replied to her father, sticking her tongue out in the process and making Lazuli pat her on the face.
"Hmmm, Bulma is a good choice, don't you think? Besides, we can see what she's doing and communicate with her, so everything will be fine," said Doctor Norimaki, causing Doctor Brief to light a new cigarette.
"You're lucky your youngest daughter is still small. When she grows up, she'll give you the same headache I'm suffering from now," muttered Doctor Brief, a strange negative aura surrounding him.
"Bulma, I only said I was interested in the portal, not that you would use it," Lazuli said, causing Bulma, who had stopped manipulating the portal console, to glare at her.
"That means you want to see how it works! Only someone like me can use it. I have techniques that can avoid many of the problems we discussed.
For example, I have a Ki technique that can address the problem of pathogens, so there's no chance of biohazards." As Bulma finished speaking, the portal in front of her began to emit a buzzing sound and generate a swirl of grayish energy.
The portal had been activated.
Everyone present fell silent, admiring the beauty of this momentous event. Even Bulma, who had a somewhat relaxed attitude toward completing the project, remained silent, allowing the solemnity of the moment to sink in.
"It's beautiful," said Doctor Omori, feeling that he could finally put his time-related knowledge and inventions to good use.
Ever since he had managed to stop the universe's time, if only for an instant, with a machine of his invention, Omori had wanted to apply his research to something important. Now, he had finally succeeded.
"Too bad it doesn't have a face..." muttered Doctor Norimaki. He was accustomed to his inventions acquiring sentience and anthropomorphic features for some mysterious reason. Perhaps the other scientists had neutralized its anomalous ability?
"We stand before the door of opportunity or absolute terror." Doctor Gero was not enthusiastic about traveling to other timelines, so Bulma did not tell him about the ones where he unleashed Cyborgs 17 and 18.
Therefore, Gero remained interested in the possible applications of the portal to his idea. If the machine worked as they hoped, wouldn't it be possible to open doors to dimensions near this universe? Then, could he create a path to the Other World?
"Bulma, are you ready?" asked Doctor Gero, making his daughter pat her waist, where she wore a simple belt. Her father recognized it as one of her creations.
"I have all the equipment we built: capsules full of food and nourishment, vehicles, a house, and various devices. I'm completely ready!" Everyone's interest grew with Bulma's answer, but she turned off the teleporter.
"Wouldn't it be nice to invite more people to watch? It would be boring to just walk in with only a few spectators present!" Bulma proposed, causing her father to finish his cigarette.
"Of course it would. How could we forget that? But Goku will want to go with you. What will you do to convince him not to go?" asked Doctor Brief.
Bulma stood still before subtly bringing her fingers to the console and turning on the portal again.
"Well, it looks like we can't wait for the others. How sad. Whatever. I'll let them see me on the other side!" Without waiting for an answer, Bulma jumped into the portal and disappeared.
"Will someone please explain to Goku that he can't go?" Lapis asked, making everyone present better understand why Bulma seemed so rushed.
Now, they were the ones who had to convince the young Saiyan.
"Arale has to be dealt with as well," muttered Doctor Norimaki. This made Doctor Brief pass him a cigarette with a look of understanding.
"Brother, do you want a cigarette? It won't cure your headache, but it'll make it bearable." Doctor Brief's proposal certainly convinced Doctor Norimaki. He soon joined the smoking parents' club because of the stress caused by his daughters.
It seemed to have members in that alternate timeline, too! When Bulma crossed the portal, the teleportation machine built by Lucca and tuned by her father, Taban, activated automatically.
Then, a gray sphere appeared between the two teleportation platforms, and Bulma emerged from it. To her, it was only an instant in which she passed through a strange fluid. Suddenly, she was in a strange place.
Without communicating or concentrating on the two people in front of her, Bulma's purple aura flared and unleashed several techniques in rapid succession.
'Air filter, pathogen protection, sun protection, radiation protection. I'm a genius!' After mentally praising herself, Bulma, who was hovering just inches above the ground, finally paid proper attention to her surroundings.
"Lucca... did we just summon something?" Taban asked his daughter while deftly lighting a cigarette. He thought perhaps his daughter's invention was not properly calibrated.
After all, a floating woman had appeared in front of them just as they were about to perform a test lighting!