Hi there once again readers! I'm sure that many of you at this point may have lost hope in my story being completed. But I am still committed to finishing this thing off! I won't bore you with personal details so lets get right to it. Enjoy the next chapter everyone! And as always thank you for taking time to read my fic!

Chapter 7

The small craft buzzed along slowly through the asteroid field toward the large station. It was huge. The lights of the station were bright and seemed to almost compete with the brilliant glow of the nearby star. The field was full of the small mining ships buzzing back and fourth. Each one hovering up to an asteroid before using arm-like attachments so secure themselves to it. Then the ships would charge up and unleash a concentrated cutting beam into the asteroid. Once they where depleted of their resources most of them would shatter in an impressive and rather entertaining manner."What could they be pulling from the rocks out here?" Falco asked, his arms crossed as he leaned against a wall and watched out a window to the side. "Nickel?..." Rylan spoke up, also watching the ship. "...Or maybe titanium?" The crew sat watching for a bit as the ship emptied the asteroid and detached before heading to the next one. "Scans just show aluminum." Slippy said, looking at some readings on the control console. Rylan gave a surprised look. "Aluminum? That couldn't possibly be worth that much." "Maybe not..." Slippy replied, "but the starship parts they make out of it probably are." The crew seemed to accept this answer and not much more was said until they came in for their landing.

The shuttle eased through a bluish see-through wall. It was a large field of powerful energy strong enough to keep the oxygen inside and the unrelenting suction of space out. The ship floated toward an available platform and sat down with accuracy and grace. The crew exchanged a quick glance before moving toward the exit door. The exit ramp slid down to the surface of the landing pad. The crew walked out of the shuttle and stepped down to the main floor. Rylan looked all around as ships both big and small entered and exited the large bay. So many ships floating in and out of the station. Strange to think about how so many different people gather at this spot in the middle of nowhere.

"How's it going?" A voice said, snapping Rylan out of his daze. The crew turned their attention to a young raccoon walking up to them. He was holding a little glass electronic device that had what seemed to be a spreadsheet of names and money amounts. "Hello." Slippy returned with a friendly smile. They exchanged a quick handshake. "How many days are you looking to keep it here?" The raccoon said, gesturing toward the shuttle. "Oh uh... just today." Slippy answered. The two talked a bit more and slippy payed the docking fee. The raccoon told them where they could find the repair bay and the market before turning to leave. "Well lets go see about that ship of yours." Krystal said, turning to face Rylan. He smiled a bit simply at the thought of seeing the Aroura Lance again. Just these two days had been the longest he'd gone without the ship before. "Sounds like a plan." He said. "You two go on ahead." Slippy suggested. "Me and Falco here are gonna go get some fuel and supplies for the Great Fox." He pointed to a small kiosk at the other side of the landing bay where people were placing orders for fuel, ammunition, and raw materials for their ships. "Alright sounds good." Krystal returned. "We'll meet back here in two hours." She said as she stepped over next to Rylan. "Sounds good." Falco replied as he and Slippy turned to leave. Krystal turned to face Rylan. "Guess we better get moving. You're probably anxious to see your ship again." She stated. They turned and headed toward the door. "For sure!" Rylan said, outpacing Krystal as they strolled laughed a bit to herself at Rylans crazed preocupation with his ship. it was almost... kind of cute.

They reached the door at the edge of the hangar. It was large and made of what looked to be solid steel. At least 8" thick, maybe more. Rylan was impressed with the ingenuity it must've taken to build such a big and advanced station. The large door detected them and slid open as they neared it. In the next corridor there was a small array of signs on the ceiling. Each pointing down a different hallway. The market and food district was up ahead. The ship service hangar was to the right. Finally to the left was the maintenance and janitorial rooms. The two hung a right and began following the long hallway that circled the entire station. Some of the people in the station would give Krystal a second look when they passed by. Some because they recognized her from the Starfox team and others because she was probably the most beautiful girl they'd ever laid eyes on. Rylan strolled alongside her, present in his physical form but absent in his mind. A thousand questions seemed to wash him away from everything that he was seeing. "What if they can't fix it?" This was the most frightening of the thoughts he had. He would momentarily become distracted by Krystal. Looking over at her as they walked but trying not to make himself obvious. The seperate situations were weighing heavily upon his mind. On one hand he's on his way to find out whether or not his prized posession even exists anymore. On the other hes walking alongside an insanely beautiful woman that he barely knows... but something about her. The way she carries herself. And the warmth and trust she seems to place in Rylan while knowing so little about him. He felt as though she was very trustworthy. Like a part of him already knew her so well.

After a few more minutes the two finally came to another large door. The holographic sign at the top read "Maintenance Bay". The door slid open as they approached. Upon stepping inside the large bay both Rylan and Krystal were awestruck at what they saw. Dozens of ships of all different sizes were sitting on landing pads all throughout the hangar. Some were stripped down to almost nothing, and others simply had a single part pulled off. Rylan scanned the room hoping to recognize one of the ships he saw. He bolted his vision frantically throughout the massive bay. Suddenly he saw something, on the upper deck. "I think that's it!" He said to Krystal in an excited voice. He stepped on to the catwalk and hurried up the stairs to where the ship was laying. The black starship was sitting at an angle on the platform with one leg of the landing gear holding up a side while the other sat on the wing. Rylan let out a short sigh, though it sounded more like a whimper. His heart sank all over again at the sight of his ship. It was twisted, shattered, and scratched so badly. Rylan approached the craft and ran his hand down the hull. The hard steel was cold against his palm but contained a warm familiarity. Krystal stopped behind him. She could almost feel his emotion, his rush of excitement and despair for his ship. She thought it to be a bit strange for someone to be this attached to something like that, but what she sensed within him was very real. This ship was more than just something he flew and worked in. There was a strange connection between him and the ship. Rylan, the Aurora Lance, and... another thing. Something absent from the current equation. Krystal's thoughts were broken by the appearance of a large rhino that stepped up to them, striking her and Rylan in a bit of disbelief. He was tall and astoundingly broad.

"Something I can help y'all with?" He questioned in a deep but surprisingly friendly voice. Rylans ears flicked a bit as he glanced over to Krystal, then back over to the massive rhino. "This is my ship." Rylan explained. "Well... half of my ship..." he trailed off. He hadn't even noticed to this point that the Lance was cut in half. He stared at it for a long second before returning his focus to the rhino, who was now giving him a concerning look. "What happened to the rest of her?" Rylans voice began to slip down to the back of his throat as his fear grew. Krystal stayed put, a look of slight confusion on her face, as she waited along with Rylan to hear the rhinos explanation. "Well we got the report..." he began, seeming to know that Rylan would not like what he was going to hear. "An interceptor style ship incapable of self propulsion. Heavily damaged, in need of parts and body repairs." He took a paper from a file he was holding and handed it to Rylan. Rylan glossed over the page with deep concern as the rhino continued. "So it was so badly damaged that it would've been easier to chop it and bring it in two separate pieces. It was pretty much already cut in half." He explained. "Well my crew had the second piece and was on the way back when they radioed me about incoming ships. They underwent a sub space scan and some ships warped into their vicinity. They came under fire and when they realized what the pirates wanted I instructed them to surrender the ship to them. The pirates had a carrier grab the half of the ship and they warped off with it." He shared a look with both Rylan and Krystal before speaking again. "I'm extremely sorry... but I couldn't risk the lives of my crewmen for a starship so I told them to..." "no no no." Rylan interrupted "I would never ask someone to risk a life for a ship. That's fine. I'm just... where did they go with it?" Rylan pleaded. Already sure that he wasn't going to get an answer from the rhino. "I'm not sure... crew says the ships didn't look familiar so we wouldn't even know where to start looking." The news shattered Rylan all over again. "Now if you managed to get it here me and my guys have everything we would need to get her up and running again. But for the time being there's nothing I can do with half a ship." He was clearly trying his best to be delicate toward Rylan. He could see that it was a big deal to him. Rylan thought for a minute and turned to face the rhino again. The two shook ands and Rylan gave a sincere "thank you" to the large rhino before they turned to leave the hangar.

The two stepped back into the large corridor on the other side of the hangars door. Rylan moved over toward a wall and leaned forward against it with one hand. The other was clutching the report paper the mechanic had given him. Krystal stood behind him, watching as he leaned against the wall and fought off a fit of tears as hard as he could. She could hear him repeating something under his breath. "I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry..." Krystal observed in confusion and concern. Who was he apologizing to? She could almost make out a name in his quiet murmurs. He finally glanced back at her over his shoulder. He gave her a look as though he'd forgotten that she was with him. "I'm sorry I just... I'm a little upset over this news." Krystal took a few steps up toward him. "It's alright Rylan." She said placing a hand on his shoulder. "We'll figure something out." She assured him. Rylan looked back over to his side at the blue vixen. Her bright eyes seemed to contain an entire world within them. Casting their warmth and sincerity onto him. Her radiant blue and white fur flowed beautifully with her every move. Rylan gave her the warmest smile he'd likely ever given anyone. He fell headlong into his thoughts of the beautiful girl standing before him. Krystal blushed a bit at Rylans warm, friendly gaze. The two had unconsciously turned to face one another and now stood just inches apart, sharing this sweet moment that they had initiated without any thought. Krystal leaned in and her arms met behind Rylans back. Their chests pressed together as Rylan returned the embrace. Rylan let out a long sigh of comfort. The embrace of someone who clearly cared for him and his feelings was an overwhelming breath of fresh air. Krystal rested her head on Rylans shoulder as she ran her right hand up and down his back, trying to provide as much comfort and soothe as much of his grief as she could. The two stood hugging one another for a few seemingly infinite moments before they pulled back from one another. They shared a short glance of disbelief. Rylan scratched the back of his neck as he snapped back into reality. Krystal looked at the ground still blushing with the cutest smile on her face. Neither of the two were positive what had just taken place between them but they both found themselves unable to deny how real it had been. Krystal looked up at Rylan and finally broke the awkward silence between them. "Well.. we still have an hour. Wanna go get a bite to eat?" She suggested. Rylan wasted no time accepting the offer. Now that she had mentioned it he remembered he was starving. The two turned and strolled alongside one another, still shaken from the intense connection they had just made. They felt much more comfortable walking with each other now. More confident in themselves and their trust for one another. Perhaps there is more to this than they had first thought.