•• Spoiler Warning: this page contains detailed plot
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Common Inquiries
| Table of Contents:
Chapter 01: What is the Dragon God?
Chapter 02: What is Radical Dreamers?
Chapter 03: What exactly is Flea's gender?
Chapter 04: Why did Schala's hair change color?
Chapter 05: What happened to the Masamune in El
Nido?
Chapter 06: What exactly happened to Serge in 1006
AD?
Chapter 07: What is the connection between Kid and
Harle?
Chapter 08: How is it possible Lucca was captured by
Lynx?
Chapter 09: Why is the Dragon God called the Time
Devourer?
Chapter 10: How did Guardia defeat Magus without Crono's
help?
Chapter 11: Why isn't El Nido on the Chrono Trigger
world map?
Chapter 12: Why are there so many differences between the
dimensions?
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Chapter 1
What is the Dragon God?
The Dragon God was a machine comprised of organic living tissue the Dragonians
had built in their own dimension. It's purpose was to regulate and maintain
balance between the six elements of nature. It resided in Dinopolis and was
pulled along with the city into the human dimension as a result of the Time
Crash, circa 7600 BC. There the Dragonians found themselves living amongst
humans - a race that had become extinct millions of years ago in the Reptite
timeline. Humans and Dragonians waged war against one another in what fans
have unofficially called the "Polis War" (after the two cities involved,
Dinopolis and Chronopolis). FATE issued fighter jets to fire on the floating
Dinopolis, severely weakening the Dragonian base. The ice age the reptilian
Dragonites appeared in also found them at a disadvantage for, being ectothermic,
they could not tolerate the chilling climate. As a result humanity emerged
victorious and FATE used the powers of the Frozen Flame found inside Chronopolis
to put a seal on the Dragon God. This act split the Dragon into the six weaker
lifeforms that we see in El Nido today. FATE was able to control the dragons
by doing this and until 1020 AD had protected humanity by refusing the dragons
to merge into their rightful form. The Dragon God's ultimate goal is to destroy
humanity by reforming the human dimension into the one with which it is familiar
- one flourishing with the Dragonian race.
It should be noted that the Dragon God additionally serves as another component
of the Time Devourer. At some unspecified date the Dragon was engulfed by
Lavos in the Darkness of Time, just as Schala had been. The details of this
are unknown but many have surmised this occurred during FATE’s sealing
of the Dragon since the Frozen Flame (a known link to Lavos) was used in
this process. After this fusion had happened the six individual dragon gods,
as well as the complete merged version, were only able to appear in the timelines
as illusionary projections emanating from the Darkness of Time but ultimately
created by the Time Devourer. Read futher for more information regarding
the Dragon's association with Lavos.
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Chapter 2
What is Radical Dreamers?
The second game in the Chrono series, Radical Dreamers was a pseudo-sequel
to Chrono Trigger. It was released in 1996 but was only available
in Japan. In order to play the game one must first buy an add-on for the
Super Famicom (the Japanese equivalent to the Super Nintendo). This device
was called the Satellaview and it made it possible to download games via
satellite onto a memory chip. Once saved, the games could be played at any
time on the Super Famicom. No cartridges of Radical Dreamers were
ever produced, and as a result the game is impossible to purchase now that
the Satellaview service is discontinued. Now if one wishes to play the game
he must emulate it on his computer. Until recently Radical Dreamers
was only available in Japanese, but thanks to the work of the
Demiforce team an English
translation patch was released in April 2003.
At the time of its release Radical Dreamers was intended to be a short
sequel to Chrono Trigger. While it makes brief mention of some characters,
it doesn't continue the tale of its predecessor. Rather, it begins a new
story with focus on Kid and Serge during their infiltration of Viper Manor,
the sole setting of the game. The title eventually became the basis for
Chrono Cross. A little while after Radical Dreamers' release
the development team decided to remake it to include an expanded story and
further ties to Chrono Trigger. With the advent of Chrono Cross
as the primary sequel, Radical Dreamers has been relegated to a spin-off
of Chrono Trigger more than anything else. In order to tie it into
the series many fans regard its story as taking place in a dimension entirely
separate from the ones found in Chrono Trigger/Cross. As a result,
anything that happens during Radical Dreamers has no impact on the
story of the other two games and in no way furthers the plot of the series.
This retroactive adjustment does not dampen the story as Radical
Dreamers is an excellent game and offers players a glimpse at the often
ignored text-adventure genre.
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Chapter 3
What exactly is Flea's gender?
Most people look at Flea and assume he is female as he takes the physical
form of one. Once he mentions he is actually a man mass confusion breaks
out. Look at it this way: when Flea first appears in the Magic Cave he takes
the form of an ordinary bat. When he appears for battle in Magus' Castle
he changes into a human form. This leads us to believe he can assume any
shape he desires as he is a magician. Note that the demi-human Sprigg could
also change shape, so it is possible the trait is passed down through some
types of demi-humans. It is also possible the female exterior we see is not
even Flea's true form; it is impossible to know for sure what Flea really
looks like. The bottom line is Flea claims to be a male in Chrono
Trigger and is labeled as a male in Chrono Cross. Who would know
more about Flea's gender than the man himself? Why he assumes the shape of
a girl is unknown.
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Chapter 4
Why did Schala's hair color change?
Many are perplexed by the fact that Schala's hair is blonde in Chrono
Cross while it was blue/purple in Chrono Trigger. There are really
two schools of thought on the subject:
It is rumoured that in the Japanese release of Chrono Trigger for
the Playstation a citizen of the Dark Ages mentions the royal family
(and perhaps many of Zeal's citizens) dye their hair a dark blue in
order to differentiate themselves from the Earthbound ones and make clear
their magical superiority. I cannot confirm whether such a statement was
included in that version of the game, but the theory sounds plausible. After
being confined to Lavos within the Darkness of Time for a very long period
is it not unthinkable for the dye to have faded while the rest of Schala's
body remained unchanged.
It has been said that in the concept stages of Chrono Trigger Schala's
hair was designed to be blonde. The reasoning behind this was that her hair
would be naturally blonde while she was low on magical energy. Once her magic
powers had recovered her hair would turn blue to symbolize her strength.
Before the final version of the game was released this plan was changed and
Schala was given blue hair right from the start. This theory is also plausible
as once she had merged with Lavos her strength would have been severely drained
as she lost control, thus her hair would revert to it's natural blonde color.
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Chapter 5
What happened to the Masamune in El Nido?
After it was used in the conflict with Porre in 1005 AD the Masamune was
stolen from the battlefield by an unknown person. Within the next five years
(give or take) it wound up in El Nido - how this happened is not revealed.
The first place it is seen is in a cave at the top of Divine Dragon Falls,
on El Nido's main island. Radius and Garai take it with them when leaving,
whereupon Radius falls under the control of the sword's malicious influence
and kills Garai. We don't know what year this happened, but it is presumed
to have been between 1010 - 1016. The sword was discarded at the falls, but
apparently an individual placed it on the Isle of the Damn because that's
where it was seen in 1017. Presumably Garai's anger for having been murdered
coupled with the Masamune's amplification of negative energy had an effect
on the island which caused it to mutate into an isle of bones, tar, and the
undead. Dario and Karsh ventured to the island then and found the blade near
Garai's grave. History repeated as Dario picked up the sword, only to lose
all control as the enmity dictated his actions. Karsh was forced to attack
Dario. The blade was dropped and Lynx appeared to collect it. In Another
World we don't know what he did with it, but in Home World he placed it at
the entrance to Death's Door after he and the Acacia Dragoons ventured into
the Dead Sea. This was to prevent any explorers from venturing into the area
and causing trouble. In Home World the sword was purged of evil after its
spirits awoke after Serge's battle with Dario in 1020. The sword's fate in
Another World is unknown.
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Chapter 6
What exactly happened to Serge in 1006 AD?
What transpired during Serge's trip to Chronopolis is critical to understanding
the rest of Chrono Cross' plot as it served as the cornerstone for
all the problems that were to come.
In 1006 Serge was attacked by a wild panther while playing near his home
in Arni. He was poisoned by the beast and it is presumed local townsfolk
came to his aide as he was only three years old at the time and completely
unable to defend himself. After the animal was chased away Wazuki, Serge's
father, set out to sea with his friend Miguel in order to seek medical attention.
The shamans of Guldove and practitioners of Termina would be of no use, so
they set sail to Marbule in order to meet with the demi-human sages there.
During this time Schala reached out from her imprisonment in the Darkness
of Time in order to help Serge. This interference into the timeline caused
a magnetic storm which ravaged the islands. Consequently Wazuki's small boat
was blown off course and came to rest in the entrance to the Sea of Eden.
Because of the severity of the storm, the entire Chronopolis facility was
forced to shut down. This also disabled the defensive barriers put in place
to hide the complex. Thus it was easy for Wazuki's party to enter both the
Sea of Eden and eventually Chronopolis without incident. Once inside, Schala's
voice spoke through the Frozen Flame and called out to Wazuki, urging him
to bring Serge near. The Flame instantly cured Serge of the toxin, but it
is also had a hidden consequence. The Flame granted young Serge the powers
of the Arbiter of Time. As the security systems rebooted the FATE supercomputer
began to function once more. During this startup the hidden Prometheus Circuit
activated, disallowing FATE access from the Frozen Flame. Now only the one
designated as the arbiter could open the security lock to gain admittance
to the treasure. They key was, in essence, Serge’s body as a DNA and
retinal scan were required to enter the room in which the Flame was kept.
Moments before, Wazuki's presence near the Flame caused him to become
psychologically unstable. FATE immediately took hold of him and began to
manipulate his body into a feline form, the image Serge then associated with
fear after his recent encounter with the panther. Wazuki's metamorphosis
didn't take hold immediately though. He remained human long enough to take
his child home and to explain the recent happenings to his wife (thanks to
Link Kain for this correction). He then left his village to presumably continue
his transformation in private. It's unknown how long this took, but the first
known appearance of Lynx was in the year 1010 when he attempted to kill Serge.
Millennia earlier, the computer used the powers of the Flame to divide the
Dragon God and seal its powers. While FATE lost its grip on the Flame, this
sealed remained. In the brief period the supercomputer was offline the dragons
had realized their chance for escape and pooled what energy they could muster
into creating Harle, the 7th dragon. While the dragons were still confined
under the lock FATE had placed upon them, Harle would work on their behalf
to recover the Flame from within Chronopolis so as to free them entirely.
We are unsure if Kid was created during this timeframe as well. Perhaps she
was, and sent two years into the past so she would grow to one day free Schala
from the Time Devourer.
As the arbiter, Serge alone held the power to use the Frozen Flame in order
to form a link with the Time Devourer. Though it is somewhat ambiguous as
to what Serge’s destiny is, many have gathered from Belthasar’s
commentary that Serge’s role is to bind to the Devourer, completing
its development and releasing it from imprisonment within the Dakrness of
Time to cause everlasting ruin upon the world. This act jeopardizes the future
in which Chronopolis was built; if the Time Crash never occurs then FATE's
existence becomes uncertain. To avoid a monumental paradox FATE orders Lynx
to eliminate Serge so as to avert the future’s destruction. This also
creates a problem for FATE, as without Serge's body the computer will not
be able to access the Flame. Regardless, the preservation of both itself
and the future takes priority.
Meanwhile Serge spends the next four years growing up in Arni with his mother.
In 1010 AD while playing at Opassa Beach he is confronted by strange men
under the command of Lynx; their objective is murder. At the same time Kid
travels back in time from 1020 AD to rescue Serge. In one dimension she manages
to fend of Lynx and his henchmen and save Serge from drowning. This timeline
becomes Home World and in it Serge continues to grow and proceed with his
life. In Another World either Kid never made the journey or she failed in
the rescue and Serge died. In this reality the threat he posed is averted
and Chronopolis remains intact inside the Sea of Eden. However in Home World
the future is uncertain. Until Serge makes a crucial decision the future
hangs in limbo, but leans toward destruction, as can be evidenced by the
Dead Sea.
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Chapter 7
What is the connection between Kid and Harle?
The parallels between these two characters are remarkable. When taken to
Termina's fortune teller both girls are given nearly identical predictions.
Though Harle wears makeup, we can still see she bears a striking resemblance
to Kid if we only look to the contour of her face and figure. Both characters
show affection toward Serge and even recite a similar catch phrase. This
is far too much to be merely a coincidence. I'm confident Squaresoft designed
the two to be symbolically opposed, and these aspects just help to drive
the point home. The problem then comes from trying to explain plot-wise how
they can be connected. We can look to the source of their creation to find
that both originated from the Time Devourer. The basis for this idea is simply:
• Schala is connected to Lavos
• Lavos absorbed the Dragon God
• The Dragon God created Harle
The Dragon God, Lavos, and Schala all merged to form the being known as the
Time Devourer. Since the Dragon God had a direct link to Schala in this way
it therefore used her body's DNA as a blueprint to design Harle. Kid also
came from Schala so the similarity in appearance need not be explained further.
Since both characters came from the same source, it is then not curious that
they should share some of the same mannerisms and feelings. It is as though
Kid represents the human half the of the Time Devourer. Created by Schala,
her goal is to achieve peace on behalf of mankind. Conversely, Harle represents
the dragon, or inhuman, side of the Devourer who works to achieve a world
free of humans - a world that perhaps can again be repopulated with Dragonians.
So in a sense, both Harle and Kid are clones of Schala.
Chapter 8
How is it possible Lucca was captured by Lynx?
Many find the idea absurd that the magic wielding, gun carrying genius could
have been taken down so easily by one such as Lynx. Understand that
even though Lucca participated in the battle against the world-destroying
Lavos, she was still helpless against Lynx because of the children living
within her home. Had Lynx threatened to harm them Lucca would have reluctantly
complied as she did not wish them to be hurt. Though some speculate that
perhaps Lucca did resist, and the fire erupted as a result of her own magic.
At this point we cannot be certain as to the cause of the fire, though it
is generally accepted Lynx started it, as it makes little sense for Lucca
to have. Yet even after the incident occurred she was helpless to escape
because Lynx stripped her of her glasses; we can see them lying broken on
the orphanage's floor when Serge rescues Kid. Without her glasses Lucca would
have been unable to see clearly, thus being incapable of aiming her gun or
finding her way to safety. Perhaps Lynx also tranquilized Lucca to avoid
any problems during the trip to Chronopolis. At this point the specifics
of the attack are unclear.
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Chapter 9
Why is the Dragon God called the Time Devourer?
This is difficult to explain and does not have a clear answer. Let me first
dispel a rumour which states that the being atop Terra Tower should rightfully
be called the Fused Dragon, or as some say, the Lunar Dragon. I have on good
authority statements of those who have played the Japanese version of Chrono
Cross citing that the creature is in fact called the Devourer of Time
(toki wo kurau mono) . No errors in translation were made, so let us now
see why this Dragon God is also referred to as a Time Devourer.
First let us be clear on our definitions. For this piece I will use "Time
Devourer" to refer to the Lavos/Schala hybrid found in the Darkness Beyond
Time, and "Dragon God" to refer to the Dragonian‘s biological supercomputer.
Belthasar tells us that the Dragon God was consumed in the distant past by
the Time Devourer. Since the Devourer exists independent of the timeline
in which the Dragon God exists we have to find a way to explain how the two
came into contact. We also know that the Frozen Flame provides a link to
Lavos, or more correctly, the Time Devourer. The hypothesis that is commonly
accepted is that when FATE used the Frozen Flame to divide and seal the Dragon
God a link was formed between the Dragon and the Devourer. As the two became
connected Lavos, in a sense, "devoured" the Dragon God and the two became
merged physically. From that point onward the six dragon gods of El Nido
were merely temporal projections originating from the Darkness of Time. Because
of this they physically existed in both Home and Another Worlds, but by the
same token they also did not truly exist there, so to speak. Their true body
was apart of the Devourer inside the Darkness of Time. Because they were
projections they were not subject to the laws of physics that everything
else must obey.
As a result they were not fully confined to any one dimension. It is likely
that before the time split of 1010 AD all six dragons resided on El Nido,
each to their respective isle. When the dimension became divided the dragons,
either by choice or by force, were also divided, three to a world. The dragons
also appear to be able to drift between the two dimensions, as seen when
the Sky Dragon appeared in the Dead Sea of Home World. Shortly before the
dragons merged all six congregated in the skies of Another World.
Now to answer this question. Since the Dragon God eventually became a part
of the Time Devourer we can rightfully refer to the "Dragon God" seen in
Chrono Cross as being the Time Devourer since by this stage it is
only a projection emanating from within the Darkness of Time. Confusing,
yes? After the Dragon God is defeated atop Terra Tower it can be seen to
fade out of existence temporarily. This is because it does not exist in the
dimension in the way Serge does. With its temporal projection destroyed the
representation of the Dragon God disappeared. To full destroy the true Time
Devourer, the being that absorbed the Dragon God, one must travel to the
source: the Darkness of Time. Incidentally, because of their merger the Time
Devourer can be seen to have a tail. As neither Lavos or Schala had a tail,
many believe this was formed as a result of the consumption of the Dragon
God. Note that even though the Dragon God was a projection, it still retained
its own will and original personality. It acted on its own desires, not those
of Lavos.
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Chapter 10
How did Guardia defeat Magus without Crono's help?
To answer this we must first look to the events of the
original timeline. We know Guardia won the war against the Mystics in 600
AD even before Crono was teleported there to lend a hand as the people of
1000 AD mention their kingdom's victory. Before Crono's interference with
the past it is reasonable to assume Magus was not defeated by Guardia at
all. Recall what Magus was doing in the year 600 when Frog and Crono showed
up at his castle: he was summoning Lavos in order to destroy it. It is quite
reasonable Magus performed this ceremony in the original timeline as well.
With no Crono around he was allowed to finish the ritual, whereupon he was
transported to the blue water-like distortion where Lavos resides. The plan
backfires as Magus is not powerful enough to defeat Lavos. Rather the opposite
occurs and Magus is obliterated, just as he nearly was in the Ocean Palace
after history was changed. Thus Magus is killed in the original timeline.
With the leader of the Mystics gone Ozzie would likely assume control, but
would quickly lose to Guardia as he would make a horrible leader. Thus the
Mystic forces crumble and Guardia is able to secure the land.
After Crono discovers time travel he is able to interrupt Magus before the
summoning is complete. As a result Magus does not meet Lavos. Instead he
is teleported to 12,000 BC due to the massive Gate that formed as a result
of the summoning gone awry. In Zeal he became the Prophet and took to advising
Queen Zeal so he might have a chance to destroy Lavos in another way. In
this case Magus also disappears from 600 AD and the Mystics lose under Ozzie's
leadership.
Be advised not to fall under the misconception that Frog was responsible
for defeating Magus originally. The possibility of this happening is near
zero for many reasons. To begin with Frog was an emotional mess. He blames
himself for letting down Cyrus and further reprimands himself for failing
to protect Queen Leene. Without the hero medal he feels he can do nothing,
and it would forever be lost to him had not Crono retrieved it. Rather he
probably would have spent his time sulking in his foxhole just as we saw
him do for nearly half of Chrono Trigger. Secondly, Frog was without
the Masamune. The sword was only repaired as a result of Crono's trip to
the prehistoric age. Without the blade Frog would have been unable to break
the seal on the Magic Cave. Even if he somehow accessed Magus' island in
another way, it would be virtually impossible for him to sneak into
the castle undetected. Rather he would have been forced to fight a myriad
of Magus' followers. It is extremely unlikely he would have had enough strength
left to face Magus after all this, especially when we consider Frog would
have never been to the End of Time to receive any form of magic.
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Chapter 11
Why isn't El Nido on the Chrono Trigger world map?
Regardless of how diligently one scours the map it is assured he will fail
to locate the string of islands that is El Nido. This is due to the simple
fact the archipelago did not exist prior to the defeat of Lavos, which is
to say, during the entire timeframe in which Chrono Trigger occurred.
Nearly everything we see in Chrono Cross owes its existence to
Crono’s victory over the beast. The death of the extraterrestrial prevented
it from wrecking havoc on the planet. With the apocalypse averted human culture
was allowed to prosper far into the future.
Around the year 2400 AD the government funded research facility Chronopolis
was constructed on a small island in the midst of a barren sea. Experiments
within the laboratory were conducted under the utmost secrecy and it was
for this reason the structure was isolated from the rest of the world.
Chronopolis researchers dedicated themselves to the study of time manipulation
but during an accident the facility was sent 10,000 years into the past in
an event known as the Time Crash. Finding themselves stranded in what is
presumed to be the year 7600 BC, the laboratory employees chose to utilize
the incredible technological resources at their disposal to artificially
construct islands in the vicinity of Chronopolis. The goal was to create
a habitat in which the scientists and their descendants could live. Having
their memories of the future cleared, they populated the islands and placed
themselves under the guidance of the FATE supercomputer. Under its supervision
residents were discouraged from leaving the islands so as not to risk causing
a paradox through contact with the mainland. This is the story of El Nido’s
creation and why its presence was only introduced to the timeline after the
end of Chrono Trigger.
If, hypothetically, one were to find an up to date map of the world El Nido
should be found in the seas west of Porre and east of Choras, based on the
glues given in Chrono Cross. It is likely found near the equator,
as it does have a tropical climate. Keep in mind that the island chain is
very small when compared to the mainland, so it would appear as but a mere
speck in an all-encompassing sea. View the
map I have created
showing the approximate location of El Nido.
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Chapter 12
Why are there so many differences between the dimensions?
One of the most noticeable aspects of Chrono Cross is the attention
devoted to the differences which occur between the dimensions of Home and
Another World. While there are a multitude of ideas as to what could cause
these disparities, the fact remains that Serge’s existence played an
integral role in determining the fate of all the residents of El Nido.
Superficially it seems absurd to attribute such things as Gogh’s financial
status or Skelly’s occupational choice to Serge, especially when one
considers the boy does not know these people nor does he have any authority
over the decisions they make. However there is one entity that does: FATE.
The supercomputer uses the Records of Fate found throughout the islands to
steer people into making certain choices. This is done to deter anyone from
venturing to the mainland and disrupting the recorded history of the world.
As a consequence of Serge’s survival in Home World FATE is gravely affected.
In this dimension the Dead Sea forms, replacing Chronopolis and nullifying
FATE’s existence. Because of this, residents of El Nido stop receiving
counsel and are for the first time allowed to make choices of their own accord.
As a result Gogh chose to live humbly on the income from his paintings instead
of being swayed to gain profit through forgery, which is his destiny in Another
World. In this, the dimension in which Serge dies, the Chronopolis facility
continues to exist as the future has been secured due to the removal of the
arbiter as a threat.
To be sure, many of the discrepancies can be traced to General Viper’s
governing presence on the islands. Without his leadership the Porre military
quickly occupied the area and the economy turned sour, affecting many locals.
Orcha, no longer employed as Viper’s chef, returned to his home in Guldove.
Zappa closed shop as he could no longer supply arms to the dragoons. Solt
and Peppor found their way into Sneff's troupe after the Acacia Dragoons
disbanded. Without the occurrence of the annual Viper Festival characters
like Nikki never traveled to Termina, which caused a cascade of even greater
differences. To date it is undetermined what role FATE, or more specifically
Lynx, played in influencing Viper’s actions. The actions of Home
World’s Lynx were considerably different from those of his counterpart.
In that dimension he allied himself with the general and convinced him to
journey into the Sea of Eden. It was there the dragoons perished in 1017.
However in the other dimension the voyage was not made and Viper owed his
continued existence to this. The reasons for this difference in behavior
elude us and any ideas put forth would be entire speculative. It is probable
his failed attempt at killing Serge, in combination with FATE’s destruction,
spurred Lynx to take other actions.
Of course not all differences can be blamed on Serge. Other contrasts can
be attributed to the presence or absence of a regional dragon god. Each of
the six dragons represents a force of nature and can, to a limited extent,
control the environment. One such case involves the abundance of water on
Home World's Water Dragon Isle. The blue dragon‘s residence there allows
for rains to come, whereas in the alternate dimension a drought as occurred.
Another example comes from the claims of one native who states it is because
of the Red Dragon that local temperatures are higher than usual. The archipelago
is not natural in any sense of the word and its climate is directly correlated
to the dragons. This is why so many different ecosystems can be found within
such close vicinity to one another, such as the arid Earth Dragon Isle’s
being only a few miles from the humid Hydra Marshes. The
dimensional
differences page has a more complete listing of the changes found between
the worlds.
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