Ayla

Overview

Ayla is one of the main playable characters in Chrono Trigger. She is a cavewoman from 65,000,000 B.C. She is the chief of the Ioka tribe, and is a strong-willed warrior. Despite her being a woman, the people of the Ioka tribe still recognize her strength and respect her as such. She is one of the most active people in the battle against the Reptites, and urges her tribe to be as fervent (and urges other tribes as well). She speaks in a stereotypical caveman speak, saying things with limited punctuation and leaving out words. Ayla cannot use magic, as she is born before the creation of magic.

When the party first meets Ayla at the base of the Mystic Mountain, she saves them from a group of Reptites by using her impressive physical prowess. Ayla herself is impressed when she sees Crono's ability in combat, and becomes fast friends with the rest of Crono's friends. Ayla then invites them to a feast. Kino, one of Ayla's close friends, does not understand why she would throw a feast in an outsider's honor, and steals the Gate Key from the party (which is necessary for them to travel from time period to time period) while they are asleep after the party. He runs into the Forest Maze, but is attacked by Reptites. The Gate Key is stolen from him, and the party has to track it down. Ayla agrees to help, and they go to defeat Nizbel.

Later, Ayla gave Crono the Dreamstone, which is necessary to forge the Masamune. Ayla doesn't join the party permanently, however, until the Laruba village is attacked by Reptites. The party later goes to defeat Azala and the Reptites once and for all, and Ayla joins them on this. Upon Azala's defeat, she says that she respects him as a warrior, but as this exchange is being made, Lavos comes flying down from the sky. Ayla names it in the ancient language, La meaning fire and Vos meaning big. Despite being prehistoric, Ayla still possesses great intellect in the ways of the world. She also believes in the law of the earth, that the weak will die and the strong will live.
 

Reference

Although Ayla, like almost all the other characters from Chrono Trigger, did not make an actual appearance in the sequel, Chrono Cross, she was referenced. One of the dozens of recruitable characters was a five-year-old cavegirl named Leah, who was found on a time-displaced island full of dinosaurs. At the end of the game, Leah returns to her island just before it is restored to its rightful place in history, but before she goes, she talks about how she admires protagonist Serge for his strength, and promises to teach her children the importance of being strong, to the point of saying that she would name her first child after her peoples' word for strength in honor of him. That word, of course, is "ayla."