Many thanks to my reviewers, Alloy Fox, bryan mccloud, Foxyfellow, and LnCpl. Luke Tamaken!
I have no words for how much your kindness and encouragement mean to me.
You really know how to make a girl feel like a million bucks! :3
I was so inspired by your support that I went ahead and wrote the next chapter!
Just to clarify: This story is indeed taking place shortly after the Saurian Crisis, aka the events of the game StarFox Adventures: Dinosaur Planet.
While it takes place in a slight AU, I'm hoping that it could ostensibly fit in between Adventures and Assault.
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StarFox Adventures
The Secrets of Dinosaur Planet
A Tale of Destiny
Chapter Two: "Salvage"
"What is it, Fox? Can you tell?"
Fox edged slowly toward the mangled ship piece, slipping on the omnipresent moss.
"It's part of a starship," he murmured, feeling a shiver of awe as it loomed eerily above him, illuminated in the moonlight.
"Woah," whispered Tricky. "Cool."
Squinting at the wreckage, Fox paced in a slow half-circle, poking the toe of his boot in the mud.
"From the looks of it, this crash happened a while ago," he muttered. "Maybe months, maybe years. Either way, it's had plenty of time to sink into the riverbank."
Tricky approached, looking worried. "What do you think happened to the pilot?"
Fox shivered again, taking a fresh look at the mangled metal. This was only a fragment; too thin to be from a hull or a cockpit. "I think this is just a part of the wing," he said quietly, unable to answer Tricky's question. Where was the rest of the ship?
"Just a wing?" Tricky voiced Fox's concerns. "Where's the other wing? And … everything else?"
"… I don't know."
They stood in silence, staring at what was quite possibly a tombstone.
Tricky's whisper made Fox jump. "Should we pull it out?"
Fox stared at the giant piece of machinery. "How?"
Tricky looked at Fox, who still had pieces of vine tangled around him.
"We can wrap some vines around it, maybe. And I can pull."
The two of them set to work, gathering a thick bundle of ropey green plants, which Fox began to weave in a braided mesh around the wing shard.
Even with Tricky's help, it was slow going. The bank was slippery and Fox's boots kept getting stuck in the mud. The vines frayed and slipped from his fingers. His paws began to rub raw from all the plucking, pulling, and knotting.
Finally, he stepped back, surveying his handiwork.
Thick green coils wove around the base of the twisted wreckage, looped around the metal countless times. A few loops stretched out onto the bank. Fox gathered them up into a bundle.
"Alright, Tricky. You ready?"
He guided Tricky to step into the bundle, so that it rested against his chest and forelegs. Tricky stepped forward, pulling the vines taught. They pressed against his breastbone, and the wrecked wing made a creaking sound as the vines around it tightened.
"I'm ready," Tricky said.
"Alright." Fox stepped back. "Try walking forward."
Tricky's feet slipped on the moss as he tried to get his footing. His claws dug into the ground, and he took a few slow, squishy steps. The metal squealed behind him, lifting from the mud a few inches.
"Good!" Fox cried. "It's working! Try a little bit more…"
Tricky stumbled forward, slipping, but made headway up the bank. His feet sank into the mossy mud, and the vines were starting to slip down his legs, but he kept going. The wing groaned, emerging further.
Fox's heart was pounding. "Keep going, Tricky! You can do it!"
The mud was making a loud, sucking noise as Tricky pulled. He was breathing hard, and his eyes were squeezed shut. "I don't know if I can, Fox," he gasped.
Fox stepped up to his friend's side, gripping the vines that pressed against his breastbone. "I'll try to help," he said, and the two of them surged forward with one last-ditch effort.
With a great, disgusting plop, the wing pulled free of the riverbank. Tricky tripped forward, taking Fox with him. Shouting, the two of them fell face first into soft piles of slimy moss.
Tricky laughed hysterically. "We did it!"
Fox spat out a clump of moss, stumbling to his feet. "Good work, Tricky," he choked.
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...
Dawn at Cape Claw was bright, washing the sparkling, sandy landscape with sunlight.
Just off the shore, a long-necked Hightop waded out to sea.
Krystal swam beside him, giving quiet directions.
Soon, they were at the mouth of the cove.
The Hightop watched skeptically as Krystal swam in, climbing out of the water and onto the slippery rocks.
"I don't think I'll be able to make it in there," he rumbled.
Krystal knelt on the rocks, giving him a warm smile.
"That's fine. I just need you to look under the water for me."
"That I can do," he grunted. "What am I looking for, and where?"
Krystal pointed into the waters of the cove. "Over there somewhere, deep down. It's a small box, and it's gold, like my staff," she said, pulling out the object in question. "It will have some symbols on it, like this." She gestured to a swirling white design on her hip.
The Hightop nodded. Then he took a deep breath, and stretched his long neck deep under the surface.
Krystal watched as the minutes passed, anxious, vaguely worried that he would drown.
Then, after what seemed to be an eternity, his head emerged again, curving gracefully down to speak to her.
"I see the box. I think I can reach it. Should I try?"
Krystal's eyes sparkled, and she gave an enthusiastic nod. "Yes! Please do."
The Hightop stretched back down under the water. Krystal's heart pounded as she waited for him to resurface, anticipation building in her chest.
But he was taking longer this time. Krystal's tail twitched. The minutes stretched on.
She tapped her claws on the rock, biting her lip.
Water sprayed as the Hightop's head splashed back through the surface.
Clasped in his beak was a gleaming metal object, which he dropped at Krystal's knees.
Her heart fluttered.
"Is this it?" he asked.
"Yes!" she cried. "Thank you so much, my friend!"
He nodded to her. "After the kindness you've shown me, it's the least I can do."
She smiled up at a him. "Shall we return to shore?"
He nodded again, backing out into the ocean.
Krystal wrapped trembling fingers around the small, dented treasure they'd salvaged, feeling the cool, damp metal press against the center of her paws.
Finally, she thought.
One step closer to the truth.
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Moving forward!
I thought about this story all night.
... Krystal is so cute. c:
Comments, suggestions, questions?
Review please! I'll listen to your words!
