There was a staticy sound behind her, and she gripped her crossbow protectively. She spun around and found herself staring at a long metal pole that extended up into the clouds. At the tip was a tiny ball that was sparking. Relieved, she loosened her grip on her weapon.
She checked the side of the mountain again, searching for an indication of Crono's presence. There was none, and Nadia was actually glad for that. While mountain climbing was an easy task for her, doing so in a dress was a difficult task. She scanned the peak she was on for another place Crono could have gone to within the five minute timeframe between their departures from Lucca's house. She saw a wide path leading towards a cave in the distance.
Running the whole way there, she arrived slightly out of breath at the stony entrance. She peered inside and saw nothing in the barely lit cave. "Crono!" she called out. "It's me, Nadia!" She waited with held breath for an answer, but she heard nothing except her own echo.
The passageways were of strangely large dimensions, but Nadia didn't stop to think about why that was while she ran through the corridors. She had a limited amount of time to locate Crono and return to the peak where they had arrived. Lucca probably wouldn't be standing around all day activating the telepod for them.
Finally, she came to a tunnel that seemed more like a room than a passageway. To her surprise, there were various fruits lying on the floor and large blanket that seemed to be a bed. Several lit torches hung along the wall and down the other tunnels exiting the chamber. Nadia gulped as she wondered what sort of creature lived there, and if it had encountered Crono.
As she stood there thinking, a thumping sound echoed through the cave, growing gradually louder. Then a high-pitched squawk was heard. Terrified, Nadia pulled an arrow out of her quiver and notched it in her crossbow, waiting for whatever it was to come into view.
Suddenly, a large head poked into the chamber. It was shaped like the head of a white dragon, but there was a tuft of yellow fur growing between its ears. The beak-like mouth had several visible pointed teeth. As it focused its gaze on Nadia, no malicious intentions appeared in its large eyes. As she carefully lowered her crossbow, the white dragon came completely into the room. The large creature was not covered in scales, as the mythical creatures were rumored to be; instead, its back was covered with white fur. There were two pairs of nearly transparent multi-colored wings growing from its back.
She heard another loud thumping noise behind the dragon. Glancing behind it, she saw its long thick tail thumping from side to side enthusiastically, whacking the cave wall. Nadia smiled to herself. This dragon is as friendly as Crono and Lucca's cats!
The thought reminded her of her mission. Questioning the dragon was an option, but she didn't know if the dragon would understand her. She was still going to try, though. There wasn't much time left. "Um," she started hesitantly. "have you recently seen a guy around here with a red spiky hairstyle?" She indicated the spikes by mimicking their shape above her own head.
The dragon tilted its head thoughtfully, as if contemplating a response. After a moment, it shook its head.
Nadia sighed. There was no sign of Crono anywhere. Was it possible that the telepod had sent him elsewhere? Would they be able to find him? Oh, Lucca, what have you done this time? she thought angrily.
She turned to the dragon. "Thank you," she said to it as she stomped out of the room. The dragon turned its head and looked after her, confused.
The passageways flew by in her periphery as she sprinted back to the pole on the peak she'd arrived at, her fear and anger fueling her. As always, emotions were the driving force behind the young princess, and she acted by her heart.
It didn't take long for to arrive back at her starting point. She stood next to the metal pole with arms crossed, impatiently waiting for a portal to send her home. Her anger was already vanishing, and she looked forward to getting back to Lucca's so they could come up with a plan to find Crono.
A little more than an hour later, as the sun was starting to set and the dragon left its cave, Nadia still waited by the cave. She was sitting down, leaning against the pole. A blank look was on her face as she stared at the air as if willing it to open into a portal. By now, her anger had completely dissipated and was replaced by quiet panic.
She knew that if she was going to get back to Guardia 1003 AD, she would have to come up with a plan herself. But even though she'd been to countless discipline sessions since her adventure three years ago, she was still unable to make her own decisions, especially when under extremely high pressure. Someone had always been there to make her choices for her. Now she had to make one alone. She nervously fingered the chain of the pendant dangling from her neck.
The pendant! She brightened suddenly as she stared at the glowing red stone, recalling how it plus Lucca's telepod had opened the first Gate. She held it up and willed for it to create a way home, her eyes closed in concentration. Energy beams began sparking between the pendant and the air next to the metal pole. The air there seemed to liquefy as a dimensional warp began to form. Nadia's heart beat faster as she realized it was working.
But no sooner did the "Gate" appear than the pendant's glow began to fade, and the energy's flow ceased. In horror, she looked down and saw that the dreamstone now looked like any other red jewel. The Gate was closed again as well. "No!" she cried out in despair, sinking to her knees. Her eyes welled up with tears and she broke down into hysterical sobs.
The dragon, who had been watching, remained just outside its cave and maintained a silent vigil over her.