The castle is large and imposing. Bats hang from the twisted trees nearby. Frog steps forward.

2-22 魔王城 (Magus Castle) plays. The bats flutter out of the trees and toward the moon, partially hidden behind a huge gargoyle atop the tallest tower. The bat from the cave is still following Crono.

Inside, no music plays. There don't appear to be any monsters, but neither is there any sign of any way to continue inside. The party checks the hallways to the left and the right, which, oddly enough, seem to have humans in them, some of whom are very familiar. After exploring both side halls, a save point appears in the main hall. Sort of. When Crono touches it, it disappears, 2-23 錯乱の旋律 (Melody of Derangement) starts playing, and a shadow with a familiar shape fades in....

The bat flies up and hovers next to Vinnegar as he comes into clear view.

Vinnegar: Good job getting here, Glenn.
No, wait, you're just a frog now.
So this makes those guys your
substitutes for Cyrus this time?
But Magus-sama is in the middle of
an important ritual at the moment.
I'll take you on.
If you can beat the Dark Arts Swordsman
Soysaw, and the Void Mage Mayonnay.
And!

Soysaw (soy sauce) and Mayonnay (mayonnaise) fit into the same sauce pun theme that Vinnegar and Tarta do. My spellings are chosen to look like they're supposed to sound without being completely unbelievable.

The bat flies away, and monsters appear, surrounding the party.

Thankfully, physical attacks work fine on most of the monsters in the castle. Melody of Derangement keeps playing even during the battle, as it does throughout most of the castle. After the party beats this bunch, the bat comes back to stalk Crono again. In the western hallway, there are now skeletons, and larger monsters overseeing them.

The bat flies away as the creature notices the party.

Simple battle. The bat returns afterwards. Futher ahead, some skeletons are alternately stabbing each other as another big monster looks on.

The bat flies away as the creature notices the party.

Another simple battle. The bat returns afterwards, again. Further in, there are what appear to be five humans. Most won't talk, but the apparent leader....

She turns around and becomes obviously skeletal.

The bat flies away again, as the others shed their disguses. The party is suddenly surrounded by skeletons, and have to fight through, though this fight is even easier than the last two. After the battle, a voice is heard, without the bat returning.

"Oh...?
How easily you dealt with
the corpses I slew....

The screen fades out briefly, then back in to reveal a tall humanoid. His head is blue and resembles a goblin's.

Frog: It's been a while.
Dark Arts Swordsman Soysaw...!

The childish insults are pure fabrication and out of character. Frog and Soysaw actually seem to have something of a professional respect for each other.

The bat returns briefly, then leaves again when the dialog resumes.

Soysaw: I never even supposed that
you might come this far, Glenn.
If Cyrus hadn't been there back then,
you would have had the same fate as well.
The same as the corpses earlier!

Boss battle time. Soysaw fights bare handed, even though he's supposed to be a swordsman. He doesn't hurt very much... but when his hit points run out, he retaliates with a weak fire attack against the party, then starts talking again.

Soysaw: Pretty good.
Guess I'll get serious for once.

Soysaw seizes a sword from the wall and pulls it from its sheath.

Soysaw: But without Cyrus, will you...
be able to take me!?

The battle continues, tougher than before. Soysaw zips around the room, and uses an attack similar to Crono's Whirlwind Slash to hit several characters at once. He'll also strike one character with an jumping slash from overhead, similar to Crono's Full-Power Slash. There's also a wimpy normal slash, but don't expect to see it very often. Later into the battle, he starts counterattacking with a multi-slash attack, too.

Soysaw: Well done...!
But to fall in battle for Magus-sama....
My life is without regrets!

Soysaw fades out, leaving behind a save point and his sword. The bat flies back, too.

Crono and the others go back and check the right hallway, which has some strange sights. First up are four children standing around a treasure chest.

The bat flies away, and the kids turn into those mutant goops from the future that need to be killed with magic (the treasure is a Barrier Ball). The bat returns after the battle. In the next room is....

The bat flies away.

The bat flies away.

The bat flies away.

In any case, it turns out to be a group of monsters in disguise, and the party has to fight them. They're not too tough, especially if you kill the mage first. The perpetually orbiting bat returns after the battle. Further along is Queen Leene, or at least a lookalike.

The bat flies away.

It's an identical battle, and the bat returns afterward. Further along the corridor is an imitation of Crono's mother Gina.

The bat flies away.

Yes, it's yet another battle, just like the others. The bat returns afterward. At the end of the hallway is a strange creature. The bat flies away again.

Normal battle. After being hit once, the creature retaliates by dropping the attacker's MP to zero (killing it with a counterattack avoids this), then dies. The bat flutters back.

Frog: The one just now wasn't Mayonnay....
Where's the real one!?

The bat moves differently from usual.

The bat flutters in front of the party and changes into a youthful female form, with a long pink ponytail and a swirling white cape.

方 (kata) is actually a respectful way to say "person", nothing like "fiend".

Frog draws his sword.

Frog: Don't get careless!
This one's the Void Mage Mayonnay!
She's not just any woman.

Mayonnay: Mukiiii!
Hey, I AM a guy after all!

Mayonnay uses the same feminine-tough あたい as Ayla did earlier.

Robo: I CAN think nothing BUT that the
appearance is obviously female....

Mayonnay assumes a provocative pose and blows kisses.

...which isn't exactly normal male bahavior, and the speech is feminine too... actually, on second thought, the speech gives me the impression of someone (like a cross-dresser, perhaps) trying too hard to sound girly and horribly overdoing it. Worse than when Ranma pretends to be a real girl, and that's pretty bad already, as I recall. Anyhow, thank Japan for screwing with your concept of what is and isn't female (see also 女装 and ふたなり).

Mayonnay: Huhun, but male, female,
either way, the strong are beauuutiful.

I'm embarrassed at how long it took me to realize that the exaggerated ヨネ (yo ne) that Mayonnay tends to end sentences with is the same sound as at the end of his/her/its name, so it's actually wordplay as well as sickeningly cutesy....

Mayonnay yawns showily.

Mayonnay: With Cyrussie gone,
you must be lonely, Froggie.
And turned into such an ugly form
to make things worse... yuk!

Mayonnay stops the showy yawning and stands normally.

Mayonnay: But you've gone to such trouble to
come play with me with your new friends....

Mayonnay crouches and draws the cape around her... him... whatever... self. Boss Battle 1 finally starts playing.

Mayonnay: I'll settle everything and
show you my hospitality!

The room fades out to be replaced with a scrolling starry backdrop. The carpet is still there, for whatever reason. Mayonnay has many special attacks, most of which end in hearts just to make them more annoying, but isn't unusually hard for a boss.

Mayonnay: H, how could I be beaten...?
Magus-samaaaaa

Mayonnay fades out, and the room returns to normal. A Magic Capsule appears on the floor. The bat, of course, doesn't return anymore.

Yes! No more bat! Now I can stop mentioning it flying away before every single battle and back once the battle ends! Though you can beat Mayonnay before Soysaw, and if you do, the bat won't be there for Soysaw's side of the castle. You won't have the Soysaw Katana to fight Mayonnay with, though.

Now that both Soysaw and Mayonnay are beaten, a save point appears in the main hall. Sort of. This time, it's actually a teleporter, and leads to a third, central hallway. Monsters stand guard here. Battle starts playing when the battles start, and keeps playing, even between battles, for the rest of the hallway. Vinnegar stands at the far end, blocking a stairway that leads upward.

Frog draws his sword.

Frog: Too bad, Vinnegar.
Those guys can't come help now.

Vinnegar: V....
Vinnegar PINCH!!

OZZIE: Oz...
　Ozzie's in...a jam!!

Vinnegar runs away, up the stairs.

Upstairs, Melody of Derangement resumes. There are a series of conveyor belts, with large blades moving up and down over them. Crossing the first one, the party sees Vinnegar, turning a crank.

After the party crosses two more, Vinnegar speaks up again.

Vinnegar: Huhu, not bad.
But I wonder how this is?

Vinnegar turns the crank faster, moving the conveyors and blades faster. Crono and the others cross anyway, and reach Vinnegar.

Vinnegar flees through a door in the back. The conveyor belts and blades stop moving. The door leads to the outside of the tower. It's sort of like Donkey Kong, but with rolling monsters instead of barrels, and you can't jump. Hitting a roller starts a fight with it and any other monsters that are floating around nearby. Another door leads inside farther up the tower. Vinnegar stands next to a crank on the far side of this room. If you step on the wrong (completely unmarked) spot, Vinnegar turns the crank and opens a trapdoor underfoot. The first time the party falls down, they have to fight a group of skeletons. Once the skeletons are dead, there are some treasures to collect, including a Magic Capsule in one corner. After that, it's just figuring which of the four save point lookalikes is actually a teleporter that leads back to the room above. Two of the others are monsters that don't fight back, and the third is a real save point. Open trapdoors stay open, so each only works once. The party eventually reaches Vinnegar.

And he retreats again. This door leads to another outside area, much like the first, except that there are now ground monsters, and the rollers here explode when killed. There is again a door back inside higher up the tower. In here, there are holes along the walls, with chains extending down into them. When the party passes certain chains, they start moving, pulling up monsters to fight. Battle plays from the beginning of the first fight, and continues even between battles. At the far end is Vinnegar, turning a crank. When the party beats the last set of monsters....

He turns the crank furiously, but nothing happens. The music fades out.

Vinnegar retreats upstairs. Melody of Derangement resumes. Upstairs, monsters ambush the party from behind statues, and Battle plays plays continuously from the beginning of the first battle. After one more staircase, they find Vinnegar again, this time with nowhere to run. Four cranks are nearby.

You know, he must not be in very good shape, despite all that running (away) he does...

He draws his sword and holds it threateningly. The others also ready their weapons.

Vinnegar: Ghgehgeh....
But I'll bet Magus-sama
is already summoning....
Lavos-sama!!

He reaches an arm out menacingly.

Vinnegar: I won't be beaten, I WON'T be!
My barrier rejects all attacks!

Boss Battle 1 starts playing. Vinnegar raises his arms, and encases himself in what looks like a block of ice. If anyone tries attacking him, the damage is pathetic, and Vinnegar taunts....

...a wave of energy blasts from the barrier, damaging all allies. So they try hitting a crank instead....

...and a trapdor opens to the left of the party. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit another crank....

...and a trapdoor opens to the right of the party. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit a third crank....

...and a trapdoor opens in the midst of the party members, but not where anyone is actually standing. Attacking directly is still useless, so they hit the last crank....

...and a trapdoor opens under Vinnegar. He falls in, and hits the ground some distance below with a loud cracking sound.

Robo: What COULD his problem have BEEN?
That Vinnegar....

Two apparent save points appear. One is an actual save point; the other is a teleporter to continue in.

Frog: We're in a race against time!
Hurry, to where Magus is!

The teleporter leads to a simple staircase outside. An eerie chanting is heard, and bats swoop down from above.

Remember how Vinnegar said there were 100 monsters in the castle? Not counting the fake save points, the rollers on the two outdoor ledges (they never stop coming), and Magus, Vinnegar, Mayonnay, and Soysaw themselves, these bats, the final monsters before Magus, bring the total to exactly 100. Amazing.

At the bottom of the stairs is a doorway. The room inside is dark, and the chanting is louder.

There's no apparent meaning, so I went with a phonetic approximation.

The party walks into the room. Blue flames appear to either side of the path at regular intervals in the otherwise dark room as they pass by.

The party continues into the room, and the flames keep appearing as they pass by.

Or possibly, "in exchange for this earth's fate..."; the term usually means life but does have some alternate uses. Perhaps more importantly, it's unclear who is exchanging the earth's for for what. The obvious meaning, at this point in the game, is that he's offering up the earth's life to this Lavos creature he's creating, but anyone who's played through the game knows that not only did he not create Lavos, he actually furiously hates it. More likely, he seeks to offer something to Lavos in exchange for Lavos giving up its hold on the earth's life... and not a friendly offer, since the only thing he seems to want to give Lavos is death.

The chanting suddenly stops. The flames continue ahead of Crono and the others, circling around an area just ahead. A circle that looks magical comes into view, ringed by the blue flames, and Magus is standing in its center. Frog pulls out the Grandleon.

The others also draw their weapons. The Magus doesn't even turn around.

I'm quite disappointed in how the NA version handles this scene. Magus is supposed to be calm and detached, for one thing....

Magus: The frog from that one time...?
How's your life been since then?

Frog: I'm grateful.
It's BECAUSE of such a form....

He waves the Grandleon.

2-24 魔王決戦 (Magus Decisive Battle) begins playing. It's rather creepy, but a more energetic kind of creepy than the castle music. And [editorial_comment]it's one of the best tracks in the game, which has great music to begin with[/editorial_comment].

Magus: Oh...?
You have the Grandleon....
But this time, others would
do better not to hinder me.

The above line is particularly poorly handled in the NA version. Far too many exclamation points, and it completely leaves out Magus's line about how it would be better for everyone to just leave him alone and let him finish.

The Magus stops talking for a moment. His black cape billows out behind him as a breeze is heard.

Magus: The black wind has again begun to howl....
Very well, come at me....

He finally turns around, cape drawn about himself.

He blinks out, then reappears on the edge of the circle, and the battle begins. Magus casts a variety of spells, and also may attack a character physically with a scythe. Physical attacks do little damage to him, and Magus responds to nearly every form of attack by using a barrier change skill that makes every element except one heal him, and casting a spell (Thundaga, Icega, Faiga, or Dark Bomb) of the element corresponding to his new vulnerability. The exception is hitting him with the Grandleon. Like all physical attacks, it doesn't hurt much, but....

The basic strategy is to hit him with the Grandleon, then attack with his vulnerable element. Repeat, healing as needed. After taking enough damage, Magus changes his attack pattern. He stops reacting to attacks, instead keeping the same vulnerability. Soon after, he casts something....

All attacks now deal normal damage, and Magus takes no other action for a while. But unless he goes down quickly, he finishes casting his spell....

All allies take massive dark-elemental damage. Magus will continue preparing and casting Dark Matter until he falls, but he shouldn't last much longer. The music fades out, and the flames go out one after another. Magus drops to the ground, keeping himself upright only with difficulty.

Magus: Y, you, that far, with the
Grandleon....

The candelabra and demonic statue behind him ripple strangely...

Frog and Crono draw their swords, and even Magus turns to look.

Magus: Not good!
Being awakened from its sleep now....

Marle: Sleep?
You brought it forth, right!?

Lucca: Sleep!?
Didn't you make it!?

Robo: Sleep?
According to the records, Lavos
WAS born right at this time....

Magus: Fools!
I did nothing more than summon it!
It has existed deep underground since
ancient times, and is leisurely continuing to
mature as it absorbs this earth's energy!

Lucca: Then that means it wasn't
born in this era....

Robo: Then that means the records
of MY era are NOT factual....

Lavos's Theme beigns to play.

Lucca: A, a Gate!?
And how enormous...!

Robo: This can NOT be!
The Gate reaction IS of unthinkable size!

Magus: Damn you, if only you
vermin hadn't appeared...!

While making weird Gate-like noises, the room distorts more and more, and something Gate-like, but not exactly a Gate, opens in the middle of the room. Everyone is sucked in. It shuts, with a hideous Lavos scream. The scene fades out....

Incidentally, beating the Magus in A.D.600 affects Medina in A.D.1000, but not by much. Basically, they no longer refer to Magus at all, instead heaping all their praises on Vinnegar, but everything else is still the same. On another side note, the distortion apparently either destroys or otherwise displaces Magus Castle, because there's no trace of it after this event.

The sound of a bell is heard.

"Crono....
Crono!
Hey, Crono!

Fade in to reveal Crono's bedroom. Marle stands next to the bed, where Crono is sleeping, and the cat lies on the floor. Morning Sunlight plays.

Marle: How long are you sleeping?
You'll be late for your job.

Marle walks over to the window and opens the curtains. Crono squirms in bed.

Marle: Ahh, Leene's Bell is
singing so pleasantly.
Crono!
We can't just keep depending
on my father for support, so get
to work like you're supposed to!

Marle walks away from the bed. Someone keeps talking, but it doesn't seem to be Marle anymore...

"Cro!!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! Cro!
Cro! CRO!!

The scene fades out, and hopefully you've figured out by now where and when Crono really is....