A Krystal Encounter
Chapter 4: Whatever Arms will Hold you
The crew was assembled in the lounge; I could hear their chatter just as I stepped out of the infirmary. ROB managed to stop the bleeding, but the scars would take a while to heal. It felt painful just to reminisce on the whole fight. I definitely wasn't about to underestimate their skill again. It was strange yet satisfying all at once; I got hurt, but kept them from interfering with the job. I never thought myself capable of the feat. The doors to the living area parted as I neared them, and I stepped through without hesitation. I didn't feel like hiding the marks, they'd see them anyway.
"Ah, there you are." Said Falco, "We thought you'd snooze you're life away." I chuckled, thankfully his sense of humor is unwavering.
"How's my face look?" I had to ask.
"Wolf left a mark on you, that's for sure." Fox answered, "But you're still here. That's all you need to worry about." He was right, I had to focus from here on. I took a seat and covered my face, letting out a tired sigh. With what I've gone through so far, I'm surprised I didn't have a heart-attack.
"Did Jaina make it through alright?" I asked, "I mean, I was kinda worried about her."
"Oh, she was fine." Said Peppy. "She spoke to us before you woke up, saying that she hoped you would feel better."
"I was this close to smacking that kid across the face." Added Falco, "She called up Star Wolf when we had everything covered! "Ugh, makes me feel like molting!" He ruffled his feathers, making his face puff out like a cotton ball.
"Cool it there, birdbrain." Said Slippy, "I'm just glad we all made it safely. We rock!" I laughed, feeling like the conflict was far behind, even though it had only been a couple of hours since.
"You did good down there Justin, you kept a cool head." Fox said.
"No, we both did." I replied, looking at Krystal. "I wouldn't have gotten out of there alive if she didn't come. Who knows how long I could've been stuck there?" The blue vixen blushed. Fox nodded and assured that my actions helped them secure the mission. I felt like I had finally earned his respect after all this time, especially after he heard about the conflict. Him and I have been respectable of each other thus far, but he never actually treated me like a comrade. That's not to say we hated the other's guts but you get the idea.
With immense relief in my heart I relaxed amongst my partners and friends in the lounge area, wearing only my soft flannel pants and my necklace(which somehow survived the scorching hot descent onto the tan planet). The single mark that they all equally stared at was the scar on my face from Wolf's claws. Three long, slices across the left side of my expression generated an indelible reminder of his strength, especially for me. Even so, the gathering felt like a class reunion; I was with the people I trust and care for to such a lofty extent, and they were happy that I returned safely. Yet my consciousness held a lingering sense of wonder, what else could this universe throw at me? Have I been through the worst of their adventures? Probably not. I drowned the notions, literally, with a few sips of water. I felt Krystal's eyes on me, and I turned to her. Now I owe her my life. She smiled and kissed my face, unafraid of my scars.
"Hey Justin now that you're back, You wanna face me in V. C. E.?" Those three letters were an acronym for "Virtual Combat Evolved;" it was a game that Slippy and I played all the time during my training days. It's a fighting game that features a full, 3-D battlefield with shifting terrain, moving platforms and other hazards. A maximum of 4 combatants could battle it out in a single match and whoever is left standing wins. The movement of characters was very fast and fluid, with automatic jumping from platform to platform, and the ability to initiate aerial combat. I was never one to play fighting games back on Earth but I gave it a shot, and was thoroughly owned by Slippy's skills.
I thought about it for a moment and smirked, "I'm a little tired but…yeah let's do it!"
"Sweet! Lemme just get the system set up." Slippy exclaimed as a dashed over to a control box on the wall and flicked a switch. The light's steadily dimmed and a large 82-inch monitor descended from the ceiling. This time I wasn't surprised at the layout but the first time he turned it on, my jaw was on the floor for several seconds. He soon handed me a controller and turned the power on. Within a few moments the screen came to life bearing a stylishly blue title: "Virtual Combat Evolved." Slippy quickly navigated through each option and set the fight for a 5 minute, 180 HP battle. Soon the character selection screen appeared, with about 30 fighters to choose from. They ran the gamut of Anthros from a swift and deadly snake creature named Xin Ye, to a massive armored mech character named Delta Mk II. Slippy naturally chose the Frog fighter named Calivur; who was a muscular amphibian clad in long, tan cargo pants and a red bandana around his head. His weapons were twin, spiked tonfas which he gripped in firm and battle-ready stance.
My on-screen highlighter randomly scrolled through each character's portrait as Fox and Falco shouted back and forth.
"Yeah, use Grevik he's awesome!" Fox proclaimed. "No way, Freedan could whup his ass in 5 seconds flat!" Falco protested.
"I use Grevik everytime I face you, and I always win." Fox said with a cocky smile.
"That's because you keep spamming his Earthquake move!"
"I never did that once!"
Both of them argued for about a minute or two until Peppy stood up, "Will you two just shut your beaks! Jeez, it's like listening to a pair of four-year olds fighting over a toy!" Falco looked ready to explode when he heard Peppy say 'beak' but he sat back anyway. I couldn't help but laugh out loud at their arguing, and got distracted from the game entirely. Midway through my laughter I had accidently dropped the controller.
"What's so funny?" Fox asked, infuriated. My chest started to ache as I tried to contain myself, after a few last-minute chuckles I looked back at him.
"I don't know, you and Falco remind me of how me and Jared used to fight." I said still holding back giggles. "Sorry."
"Heh, it's alright. But who's Jared?" He asked. I looked down steadily, "My brother."
"Um Justin? You still haven't picked a character yet." Krystal said as she tapped my shoulder. "Oh, right." I picked the controller back up and scrolled through some more fighters.
I was trying to find Jeggei, the character I used when I first played the game. Then within 2 scrolls, I found him: A white tiger wearing flashy, silver garb on his body and bearing a scar on his right eye. His weapon of choice was a platinum sword that he kept sheathed on his back. Without hesitation I selected him and the screen changed to a collection of stages. Slippy impatiently chose the RANDOM option and waited for the game to load.
"Well Justin, you ready?" He asked.
I extended my arm and bumped his knuckle. "As I'll ever be Slippy."
I watched as the fighters digitally materialized onto the glacial battlefield, going through their introductory lines.
Calivur spoke first in a rough, gravely voice and rapidly twirled his tonfas; "Show me what ya got fresh meat!"
Jeggei then gracefully somersaulted into the air and drew his sword upon landing, "Let my path be illuminated by the light of the Moon." He said calmly. Suddenly there was a countdown: 3…2…1…FIGHT!"
As the battle drew on, I saw that we were at a stalemate, Calivur had strength and a stout spirit, while I was swift and precise. My slashes seemed to be like tiny bug bites in the face of my adversary, yet I wasn't afraid. After knocking my opponent back with Lunar Repulse, I leapt from glacier to glacier and eventually found a spot to collect my thoughts. I knelt down and thrusted my sword into the icy ground as the faint glow of the morning sun shimmered off of the blade. "There must be a way." I thought as I gripped the swords hilt. Suddenly an idea came to mind, "The Star Divide! Yes, it has to work." "Star Divide" is my ultimate move, one that requires careful timing and practice in order to be executed by my controller. I trusted that the controller registered to me as Justin would be able to pull it off without fail. I observed as much during practice rounds. I can hear Calivur drawing closer to my hiding spot, it's only a matter of time before I'm discovered. Be careful Justin…
With rapid button presses and rotations of the analog stick, I jumped up from behind the small ice-floe and lunged at Calivur.
"I knew you were hiding there!" Slippy yelled as Calivur took a few hits from Jeggei.
"I've gotten better Slippy, just you watch!" I retorted confidently. Instantly after Calivur's guard was broken I tapped a quick button combo: X,X,Y,X, Up+B. (Which translates to Punch, Punch, Kick, Punch, Waning Crescent.) The final move was a rising sword slash that sent Calivur flying. I could hear Slippy franticly mashing the recover button in order to break his flight.
"Damn Justin, you have gotten better." Fox chortled from the other side of the couch. "Thanks, I do my best not to disappoint." I replied with a wink.
Then as I returned my focus to the fight, Slippy's fighter somehow recovered before slamming into a wall and charged back at Jeggei.
I tried for a heavy slash but to my horror, Calivur used his counter move and stunned Jeggei; unable to move for a few seconds, I was helpless to his next attack.
"Hahaaah you're finished now! Venom Jab!" Slippy cried as Calivur's tonfas became infused with a dark, purple substance; I tried to block but wasn't fast enough. Calivur thrusted his weapons as fast as machineguns into Jeggei's chest, hurling him backwards and dropping his health down to 58%.
This was met with an outburst of "Ooooww, that's gotta hurt!" from Fox and Falco.
"Don't worry Justin you still have a chance to win." Krystal said resting her arm on my shoulder. I took a quick look at Slippy who seemingly sat back and thought the fight would end itself, but unfortunately for him, he fell right into my trap…
With Jeggei's health that low, his Overdrive gauge filled up rapidly. Once it was at peak capacity, Star Divide was primed and ready. Without paying attention to Slippy's taunts or hesitation, I took one last leap at an unguarded Calivur.
With the button combo inputed, Jeggei's sword began to glow a bright blue color as he reared his hand; "Here it goes, STAAAAR DIVIDE!" Jeggei shouted as he flew forward with his sword extended.
The blade impaled Calivur in a brief spark and within seconds his health was completely depleted. Calivur echoed in pain as Jeggei jerked the sword out of his body. "Jeggei Wins!" The games announcer declared.
With a huge grin on my face I stood up and mimicked my character's victory pose; Jeggei rapidly twirled his sword a few times and said, "You still have much to learn" before sheathing it. Slippy just sat there with his gaping mouth wide open and didn't utter a single sound. I turned to Krystal and shrugged my shoulders.
"Be prepared, Slippy holds on to things like this for quite a while." She said, patting my back. He lost at a videogame; so what? At least face it with humility and honesty in defeat. Slippy paused for a few moments and let out an exasperated breath;
"Ok…how…the hell, did you manage to beat my best character?"
"I honestly don't know. I either got lucky or someone was helping me." I said winking at Krystal.
"Whatever, now come on! Rematch!"
"Nah, I'm gonna turn in for the night." I said with a yawn. "Hope you don't mind."
"Ackh, alright. Tomorrow okay?"
"Yes of course, good night guys; you too Krystal." I said giving her a peck on the cheek. They all bid me farewell in unison as I crossed the room to my door. They stuck around and continued to converse. Falco was particularly interested in where the money was going. Fox told him to be patient and that he'll always get his cut. I tuned out their chatter as I gave my teeth a quick brush, a routine thing that I had to get in before betd. With one last spit of toothpaste into the sink I looked up at the mirror and was startled to see Krystal standing near the doorway.
"Hey Justin, mind if I talk to you for a minute?…" She asked, a bit nervous.
"Sure, what's on your mind?" I answered wiping the remains of toothpaste from my mouth.
Krystal walked closer and began stroking my forearm gently, "I was…worried about you back on Titania. You could've gotten killed."
"But I'm still here, aren't I?" I said, lightly. She didn't seem amused.
"You can't be reckless, Justin. One mistake during a mission can cost you your life or worse." Her voice was grave, "Do you understand?"
"Yes, I understand."
"Please, promise me you won't try to be brave all the time. After all you…" Krystal said, Her eyes suddenly began to well up in tears and she gripped me even tighter than before. I realized that she must've been scared of losing me after thinking I burned up in Titania's atmosphere. The thought of saying goodbye for good…I don't even want to stomach the notion of her going through something like that again.
"No problem Krystal. I promise." I whispered to her. She looked up at me with watery eyes then immediately buried her face in my chest. I thought I heard her mumble "Thank you" as I felt her tears drip onto me. I knew now more than ever that my reason for being here was to do some good, and to protect others. Especially the crew. If not for their trust then for what?
"You want to stay with me tonight?" I asked, feeling bold again. She sniffed and looked back up at me, smiling.
"I'd like that." She said, happily.
I walked her over to my bed and we covered ourselves in the sheets. Before shutting the light off, Krystal laid down next to me and draped her arm around my neck. She seemed to purr as I tenderly stroked her silky, blue hair in return.
"You feel so warm. Why is that?" She asked in a soft voice.
"Because I know that fight wasn't for nothing, and that you're still safe.
She smiled as we shared one last kiss before drifting off to sleep. Her soft and rhythmic breathing was enough to make all my muscles feel relaxed and at peace. I was happy that she felt safe near me, because I'll never leave her alone again. I said a quick prayer to myself and snuggled close to her, letting all my problems in the universe be drowned out by tranquility.
