Chapter 9: Paris, France

  In Paris, the City of Love, Lupin III, Homer and Terra came out of the portal in an alleyway, as Lupin III recognized that they were in Paris, as they saw the Eiffel Tower in the distance. As Lupin III told Terra that they are in the City of Love, Terra felt like it’s a beautiful idea of where couples can get together. Homer on the other hand disliked it, as he says the French had nuked Springfield one time due to Major Quimby's "frog legs” joke, just when a hippo became the town's deputy. The other two just stared in disbelief, not believing something so dumb could have happened, till Homer said it did, and everything somehow went to normal the next day. The Master Thief told everyone that they have to go on forward, and not talk about this idiocy that happened in Homer's world. once they are out of the alleyway, Lupin III was shocked to see that Mr. X’s face is everywhere from on billboards, to on the Eiffel Tower, the Notre Dame, bus stations and even on trees. Lupin III realized that this is his version of Paris. He then told Terra that she should watch his step carefully not to be detected, while more sternly to Homer, due to his idiocy.

  They had to move on to find a portal ball, as there were soldiers of Mr. X and the Scorpion organization he owns. As they went through, they had to pass by the police who were evil servants of Scorpion who harassed many women they met and other innocent people. They had to continue, to avoid detection, but this did not sit well with Terra, who wished to save those people, but the thief argued that they could get back to square one, as he does not want to deal with the guy again. They made it to the park where there was less of the police force guarding there. Lupin III told his allies that they need a plan, as they can’t constantly hop from one reality to another, so they need to barge into one of the government buildings to get a computer and flash disk with data that details where each dimension is safe or corrupted by Shadow Bugs. Terra got everything, but just as they were about to enact the plan, Mr. X appeared on the screen, overshadowing the park. Mr. X would greet Lupin III in a "we meet again" fashion, as he's glad that he came back, hoping that the master thief will return, as he had hopes of making the irony happen in having Lupin III serve him. Homer just got angry, saying that Mr. X stole his pseudonym for when he was a news writer, demanding royalties, including a ton of money and a personal movie theater to watch any movie or T.V. show he desires.

  Mr. X got furious about Homer’s remark and demand, but chose to simply ignore it. He explained to Lupin III, his old enemy that he already lost, and was foolish to even come back, as the Scorpion troops came to surround the trio, with their guns pointing at him, and arrived at the scene was Fujiko, Jigen and Goremon, all with outfits resembling those of supervillains, and now has the blue skin of, meaning they have become Cyborgs. Not just only Mr. X took control, but many of Lupin III’s past foes have come back to life and teamed up to take revenge on Lupin for ruining their schemes. And Mr. X concluded that he should just give up, and that Terra must be captured, “cured” of her “condition” and returned to Barb-e. Mr. X cut off, and the troops edged in. Terra was already afraid of that threat, reminding her of when she was controlled by Kefka with the use of the slave crown. Till Homer did his quick thinking was able to get angry in response to an insult that Fujiko said about him being a fat idiot, as he gained strength from this anger and was able to demolish a third of the troops. As this was their chance to escape, Terra helped out, as she casted Holy to take another half, while Lupin was looking for an opening. Upon doing so, they all went in there, as he had some smoke bombs he threw to create a distraction for a get away.

  The trio had to fight across the streets of Paris, then Homer turned to one direction and noticed Barney chewing on a served arm. The arm was leaking a red liquid from the end with a bone sticking out, and from Barney's teeth marks, red stains were all over. Homer was in disbelief and concern, but Barney told him it’s alright, and he has not been affected by the Shadow Bugs. Terra questioned him with upmost anger, as she ask why would he do that. Lupin III thinks that Barney may actually be dumber than Homer and survived due to luck. Terra wondered why he’s there, demanding an answer. The Town’s Drunk then explains that he actually knew firsthand about the corruption, as he saw a few Shadow Bugs, and somehow they affected the world, turning a bird into an Auroros, then the Shadow Bugs spread, as he and Moe witness this from the tavern. Barney thought it was a hallucination, only for the people in Springfield to turn into monsters. Moe and Barney decided to take the precautions as if it’s Halloween, except that it was not that time of the year, it was real. He, Moe, Skinner, Willie, Lenny, Dr. Nick and Professor Frink met up in the lattermost’s house as he made a Transdimensional Machine he had made before just in time, and that Doughnuts were banned gave it all away that Mr. Burns created a cult to take advantage of the populous. They escaped just as Comic Book Guy, now the Collector arrived. So Barney said they are now with the SCP, which he forgets what they are about, except that they “contain” the corruption, and “protect” those who have not been affected. Upon hearing some footsteps, Barney gave Homer and co. a portal ball, as he quickly jumped in one he made saying he can’t any longer and that they have to find them, as he has to keep their location a secret.

  As this happened, Terra begged Barney not to leave them behind, but it was too late. Homer was just disappointed with his best friend about this and was also afraid. He ranted about his betraying him, but Lupin III understood the reason Barney chose not to do so because the SCP could become what they are fighting against, so the best option was to follow the drunkard’s advice. Although Terra would point out that this guy is dumber than Homer, and they could just be as bad as the Corrupters, then saying no offense to the nuclear technician. They had to fight the oncoming soldiers, as more came. Lupin III told them too quickly to make up to the top of a nearby building. So that is what they did, with the thief making protecting the half-esper his first priority while the lazy dad had to face oncoming fire from soldiers, screaming.

  They made it to the roof, where Lupin III threw the portal ball, and one portal emerged. He threw Terra first, as he wanted to save her in the doubts of living himself, then he went in as he had time. Homer saw the portal closing, so he had to go and made it just when it closed.

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  Chapter 10: The Cave

  Deedlit, Ike and Crono were already at a Lakeshore, as they were walking through the plains, next to a body of water. They only fought against a few Primids, and eventually they made their way towards a cave. The trio of swordsmen talked if they should go into the cave. Deedlit said that she’s fine, that with her shamanistic powers, they should be able to find their way across. Crono thought that it might be cool to fight more monsters in there, wondering if there are any more in there that are not just more Primids or zombies, as the time traveler is getting bored of them. Ike then went into the cave without second thoughts, and both Crono and Deedlit had to follow the Radiant Hero in there.

  As the three are going across the cave, both the time traveler and the elf shaman were both upset that Ike went in there without thinking things through. The two handed swordsman admitted that what he did was reckless, but justified his reasoning through the chances that more Primids could be chasing them, and although he did admit that there could be more in there, he decided that they should take the risk. Crono said that he already liked Ike for his reckless behavior, but started to have some distaste when Ike mentions that he hates the idea of war and drawing his sword all the time. Crono was bummed about that, as he loved fighting, and wanted to fight more monsters, and maybe even stay out a bit longer. Deedlit however agrees with Ike, as she always had to deal with eternal war going on back in her home reality and trying to stop it. With it going on again, started by Karla, Deedlit did not like the war, and since both her and Ike shared the same experiences of dealing with total war, they told Crono that if he keeps obsessing with glory, he will become a part of the corruption. Crono did not like the lecture, as he noted that he only liked killing monsters mostly, and he just preferred only one on one fights rather than bringing many people involved. The other two just rolled their eyes, and Crono was upset.

  They traveled across the cave, fighting against some more Primids, along with Shaydas, and more Shadow Bug Monsters, and even more zombies, they also had to deal with the confusing maze-like patterns of the cave with tectonic moving stones, poisonous gas, and many other dangerous traps. The three eventually made it out of the cave in time with bright light shining, and there they saw a small fortress that had a Roman-like architecture. It is almost as if the Romans were actually there. Neither Crono, Ike nor Deedlit knew who the Romans were as they did not exist in their worlds, so the three went to the fort to check it out. Once there, they saw ten Roman legionnaires guarding the gates. Crono just casually asked them if they could be allowed in, but the legionnaires were hostile as they took their gladius out and prepared to fight. Deedlit already said to the time traveler that he has all the bad qualities of her husband Parn, and almost none of the good. Then a Roman Emperor with white hair and armor came with a legion of 30, along with cavalry and chariots. The emperor told the legionnaires to stand down, and he spoke with the trio assuming that they might be victims of the growing interdimensional corruption. The emperor introduced himself as Trajan, and that he’s head leader of the army and the Roman Empire, or what's left of it. The trio quickly introduced themselves, and quickly explained in a nutshell how they got there. Trajan simply nodded about it and understood their situations, as he allowed them into the castle. Once there, the swordsmen and Trajan all sat in the dining room, where Trajan had eaten his Pecorino Romano cheese. The emperor did offer them food, but Ike and Deedlit both rejected the offer, as Ike explained that he’s not sure if he wants to accept, as he already faced some terrible monsters both before and during the corruption, and Deedlit also gave similar reasons dealing with evil emperors, not sure if they could trust him yet due to their situation. Crono wanted some food, but the other two told him no. Trajan understood why, and took no offense, as he also dealt with the same thing, as he tried to look for a world where he can bring his people and those of other lands, but every reality he went to he saw that the corruption made it there, right before they did. He explained that he was actually offered some evil power to control the corruption in his reality, by one he calls “Smithy”. Trajan refused, preferring to invade his world without outside help and just for the corruption to leave it alone. Smithy was irritated, instead decided to talk to Gandhi, who was more than happy to take up the offer. This did not end well, as Gandhi always wanted become a warmonger, as he started to invade the world, and nuking everywhere outside his borders. So as a result, Trajan, along with Enrico Dandalo, Mansa Musa, Ramses II, Suliman, Elenore of Aquitaine, Seondeok, and Shaka all held an emergency meeting due to the other civilizations being destroyed by Gandhi at an accelerating rate. They all just argued and got nowhere, and in the end, Seondeok had built a spaceship, where she left the planet behind with a portion of her population. Trajan was inspired by this, and found portal balls from Gandhi's forces who died, where he did the same thing as Seondeok, traveling to other realities, but had to put up with many fights with many villains who wanted to enslave his people and others he took with him. He now said he only has 4,000 left, but still refuses to give up in finding a new home.

  So that is where he got to where he is. Deedlit and Ike both felt bad, but were still not sure if they could trust him yet, and Trajan was fine, and by the end, the three went out, going to find if they could get their hands on some portal balls. Just when the three made their way out of the castle, the emperor told them that they should make more allies with some other people who have been affected by the corruption, as Trajan explained that with more allies, there could be a bigger chance for survival.

  The three continued on, and with remembering what Trajan said, Deedlit thought that his words ring true especially at a time like this. Ike agreed, as he lost many of his friends during the corruption, as many of them became evil like Elincia, and joined her evil army. The Radiant Hero claims that he will start fighting for his new friends, growing a connection with them both. Crono sighed once again, as he had to admit that he missed his old friends, including Marle and Lucca, as they both succumbed to the corruption. He however still wants to go on and survive, as he knows that life is worth living. Then Deedlit has gotten some messages from Sylph and Salamander that there was a giant robotic tank roaming towards a desert. The elf did not like the sign of this, so she told both the time traveler and the two-handed swordsman about this robot. The two agreed with Deedlit, so then she led the way in chasing this foe.