Kursed was recovering greatly, in this one month time period to rest. Though she really couldn't get much closer to Fox then he already was. Even though she had been recovering, they wouldn't let her out of the medical facility due to her injuries. Even after two weeks she could just barely walk, most of her cuts and bruises were gone, but she was still extremely sore all across her body. She couldn't walk far or long, only a few minutes to stretch her legs.

It was practically the same routine, Fox came to visit often, and during that time Kursed would have her meal and he would take her to the observation deck just as he did the first time she was able to get out of bed. Today seemed to be no different, after her meal she would slowly get out of bed as she was now. Today though it seemed a bit harder then usually did, as she slightly collapsed but caught herself from the bars on the sides of the bed.

"Whoa, are you alright?" Fox came up to her worried it seemed. Usually she was just fine, today though it seemed she was a bit weaker or so. She gently lay back down, grunting in pain.

"I don't know. I'm just faint, weak." She lay down completely, closing her eyes and breathed heavy. Fox hovered himself over her, trying to spot anything obvious about her figure that would give away the leach on her strength. After a few moments, he just sighed heavily; nothing easily hinted away what was happening to her. Maybe this was just a bad day again.

"I figure it's a bad day for me or so, it happens to everybody." Kursed said in a slightly weakened tone, as Fox looked to her strangely; a hint of annoyance on his muzzle. The whole "mind-reader" ordeal was getting old, and she was dead on and center with whatever it was he was thinking. She opened her emerald gaze only to see his smug smirk.

"What? See something you don't like?" she asked sarcastically, he only kept his focusing gaze, but batted it away after a moment; and replaced it with a small smile.

"No, not really." He stood up, as he kept the eye contact. "Need some help?" he gave to her quietly, only to receive a nod in return. After getting approval, he slowly fed his arms under and around her body, and slowly lifted her off the bed, as gently as he could. She wrapped her arms around his neck for support, giving him a gentle smile.

"Thanks." He gently laid her into the wheelchair and got behind her, pushing her through the front door.

"No problem." They went down the hall, as they did this same routine everyday, and went out towards the viewing platform; a few other Royalists up there as well. They stayed like that for a moment, until Kursed started to get up on her own. Fox quickly moved in, his paws hovering over her figure; but she refused and started to get up on her own.

It was a tremendous struggle, but she pulled through; and leaned on the balcony slightly zapped of her energy. Fox stood back, looking over to her; she had a strong determination to get better and quickly.

"Fox, Kursed." A voice interrupted his thoughts, as they turned to the sound of their names being called, to see Firion emerging walking toward them. Kursed slightly stumbled and would fall to the ground, but Fox caught her fast and held her up; her figure slightly leaning up against him. Firion only gave them a strange look as he approached them, and handed Fox something in his paws.

"Here, your tickets." Fox slowly grasped the thin slices in his paw, looking at Firion with a strange gaze.

"Tickets? Tickets for what?"

"Your tickets for the pleasure yacht heading to the Death Tour's private resort." Firion answered while flicking through the papers on his clipboard. He looked up to see Fox still looking at him strangely.

"You're joking right? Firion, what death tournament gives its contestants a vacation to an island resort?" He looked back to the smaller vulpine, slight annoyance in his gaze and tone.

"Didn't I already explain this to you? We may force the Royalists to fight, but we do not! Treat them like trash, we do this every year." He went back to his papers, and turned his back on the two foxes, about to depart.

"The doctors say you're okay now Kursed, you're free to go back to your room. I'll arrive in the morning for the both of you, were going to be spending the next two weeks on that island, so best pack nicely." He walked away, his eyes glued down to his clipboard. Fox looked over to the tickets for their 'pleasure yacht' two simple pieces of parchment that meant probably the world to any of the Royalists.

He slowly shifted his gaze downwards towards Kursed, as she was looking up to him with a small smile on her muzzle; this was probably heaven on her weary body. He walked over and kneeled down to her height, slowly wrapping his arms around her in a gentle hug. She slowly returned it to him, even though her body has mainly healed up; she was still very sore.

"Fox." He turned slowly to see Firion standing in the doorway of the hallway they came from. He gave Fox a beckoning motion, flicking a few of his fingers toward himself. Fox looked quickly back to Kursed, and gave her a small nod; just as she returned it.

"I'll be back in just a moment."

"Hurry." She quietly whispered as Fox walked towards Firion. Just a moment later he stood face to face with the large gray vulpine, with a questioned expression on his muzzle.

"What is it?" He didn't answer right away, Firion looked over towards Kursed while keeping his head motionless, his eyes flowed across towards the left, looking over toward the weakened vixen.

"Come with me." He announced quietly, in a sinister tone. As he walked down the hallway, Fox slowly followed behind. They walked about halfway down the halls, until Firion stopped. Fox surprised by his action.

"What's up?" He asked. Firion quickly spun around and shoved Fox up against the wall, grasping his jacket with both paws. He put his face close to Fox's, sending out a message with a sinister tone.

"I'm only going to say this once McCloud. Your relationship with Kursed is supposed to be strictly professional, remember that. Don't let her drive you in, no matter what." He paused for a brief moment, letting Fox soak in the information; his eyes wide.

"If she ends up dying somehow and I found out it was related to this, I'll take more then just that pay back." He pushed Fox up against the wall while letting go of his grasp, and continued walking down the hall, passing the nurse that freaked out in the sudden burst of violence.

He left Fox in a daze; he already knew that; it was just hard for him to completely accept that. He slowly walked down the hallway thinking to himself. Kursed obviously wanted to be close to him; as well as Fox wanted to be with her. Though, it didn't seem possible, this tournament was far from over. Kursed saw him emerge from the hallway; noticing he seemed a bit troubled. He walked up to her, his eyes said it all.

"What's wrong? What happened?" He seemed a bit shaky, not answering her right away. He cleared his throat, and straightened out his jacket.

"Uh nothing, so sense you can leave now. Let's say we get out of here." Kursed could tell just how shaken up he was from the 'talk' with Firion. She decided it was probably best not to worry about it for now; and that she would learn about it sooner or later. She gave him a small nod, as Fox took his position behind her, and pushed her forward. As she would soon be freed from this facility that not only healed her, but was torturous as well.

X

Kursed was packing up her few belongings in a small suitcase, closing it on her clothing, her body still sore from the fight. It was slightly dark in her room, only a few lights pierced through the blackness of night. She switched her gaze over towards the door that lead to Fox's room as it slowly crept open, to reveal Fox pulling a small suitcase behind him. He looked over towards her; she was dressed in one of the attire's he had gotten her. She wore slick light shaded purple pants that cut off at her ankles, and a light blue blouse. Her upper body was covered by a black jacket, not yet quite zipped up.

He wasn't really dressed up either, sure it was an island resort but they were told it was cold at night, the time they would arrive. Fox was in black jeans as well as a white tank top, also a black overcoat on. Without saying a word, he grabbed Kursed's suitcase and threw it on top of his, she then followed him out the door; where they were told to wait to be picked up.

They went out the door and near the curb, waiting for their ride. They weren't really speaking to one another, it seemed a bit awkward. Kursed had noticed it, ever since leaving the medical facility; Fox was trying to avoid her, or at least talking to her. They heard the sound of a hover car coming closer and closer, when it came into view they realized it wasn't a hover car, but a cruiser.

The doors opened and Fox and Kursed entered, to see Firion on one side of a large couch built in the ship, and Nemesis with Keira on the other end, some luggage on both sides. Fox set aside the luggage on Firion's side, and helped Kursed into the cruiser, and walked her over towards the couch Firion was on; Kursed took a seat right next to Fox. Still slightly in his arms. Nemesis gave the driver an approving nod, and the cruiser door shut; a moment later they blasted off.

After a moment Kursed rested in the couch on her own, looking over towards the other side; to see Keira's slightly intimidating stare, only to receive one back.

"So Nemesis, tell me how does all of this work? You're taking all the Royalists to this 'island resort' to relax? How do you keep the security all around and on them?"

"Good question Fox." Nemesis gave a kind gesture back, he pressed on a tab to his right, as a small key pad popped out. He typed in a number combo and shut it back open, a moment later the floor of the cruiser opened up and out popped up a table containing a bunch of different drinks.

"A question that needs to be answered with a drink." Nemesis went and helped himself, as so did everyone else. He mixed the assorted alcohols and took a good size gulp, sighing in relief as he set his glass aside.

"It's simple. The Royalists will have no weapons, nothing they could use to cause harm. They are searched before boarding all the yachts, and we have multiple armed forces to keep them in line. When we get to the resort, all the cruisers will leave, and there will be no way to escape the island. Also, those wrist bracelets all the Royalists are wearing, have small cameras in them. If it spots them out trying to pull something on a guard, or any other Royalist, they will go into a painful electric shock, and be rendered unconscious, the guards will then recover them."

The lupine explained for his vulpine friend. Fox took this all in. So the Royalists were completely disarmed, and were under watch 24/7. There are no ships on the island resort, so leaving isn't an option.

"Well planned out it seems." Fox gave a small smile, and swished down some of his beverage; to see the sly smirk on Nemesis' muzzle. He leaned back into his couch to look over to his white furred vixen fighter, to see her glaring down the other vixen.

"Come no my dears, there is no need to fight now. Sure, your still competitors against one another; but this is a time to relax." He closed his eyes, and let out a small yawn. Kursed took the lupines advice, and finished the remains of her drink; and leaned back as well. It would be a while before they reached the launching sight, she decided it was probably best to try and catch up on the few hours of sleep she was missing.

X

She slightly awoke at the feeling of the cruiser stopping. They had finally met their destination.

"Were here, let's get a move on now." Nemesis called out to him, opening the cruiser door and walking out, Keira followed him with her luggage. Along with Firion with his own, and Fox with their combined bags. Kursed stretched for a brief moment, and walked out the doors slowly, still sore and tired. Her eyes widened at the scene, they were in some type of hangar, a very large hangar indeed. The Royalists were in many lines, dozens of lines with many contestants standing in each.

They were going through security it seemed, as guards checked them and their bags out; making sure there was nothing that could be used as a weapon inside, many armed guards stood on balcony's and watch towers, making sure everything ran smoothly. Kursed watched on Royalist in particular. She was a blue feathered bird, as she had just gotten done going through security. After grabbing her bag, she went up the ramp that lead to the large pleasure yacht, where she joined many other Royalists.

"This way." Nemesis called out to them, as they all followed the lupine, he lead them to a dark and went through to emerge in a darkened computer room; illuminated by screens and buttons. They walked across and went through another door that lead them downstairs, lights giving off little light as they went down deeper and deeper. Eventually everything came into picture as they walked up a ramp, Kursed looked up to see another yacht, engines running as it were docked off to the side.

They went up the ramp onto the deck to see multiple guards standing in line, waiting it seemed for the order.

"Mr. Nemesis." One guard stepped up. "Were ready to depart, anytime you wish to do so."

"Good, let's depart now. I wish to be there before Solar goes down."

"Yes sir." The men broke off, all to their posts. Kursed noticed for the size of the yacht, it was empty. It was a private yacht for Nemesis and them; they all stood near the railing, as they heard the engines get louder and louder. As it was preparing for launch. A small golden force field quickly flashed across and encircled the pleasure yacht ship, encasing the air inside.

The large metal doors in front of them began to open, the vacuum of space affecting everything that wasn't withheld in the ship. The ship slowly turned and headed sideways away from the docking platform. After clearing it the thrusters kicked in, and the ship gained speed emerging out of the large metal doors and onto its destination. It was a magnificent sight, a whole new way of viewing the galaxy while traveling, not having to view it behind glass; as everything was wide.

They looked over towards Solar, it was amazing how bright it was without the intensity of the glare, nor the heat as the force field protected them. Nemesis finally broke apart, as guards came up to the group; took their luggage and escorted them towards their respectful rooms. This would be a few hour trip, might as well get comfortable.

X

Fox was guide down a nice looking highway, as the insides were all wooden framed and a red carpet going down the hallway; where multiple doors were aligned across from one another and a few feet apart as they continued down the hallway. The guard opened up his room, and let him step inside; taking his luggage.

"Thanks." He called back towards the guard, only to realize he was already gone. He closed the doors to his private room to take everything into effect. The room contained to large beds, across from one another, each bed had a night stand on its left side. He had his own bathroom, as well as a dresser for his clothing; though he would only be here a few hours, and would just keep his things in the suitcase. The walls were all a baby blue color; a single light illuminated his room through the darkness of space.

He pulled up the suitcase up to near his bed, he noticed that on the dresser was a small table of drinks and snacks for his disposal, but he would tend to those later; he was tired, and needed some sleep. He lied down, face first and buried into a pillow, laying one just one side of the bed. He slowly looked up at the sound of his door opening, to see Kursed leaning up against the door frame, quickly entering and locked the door behind her. She let out a loud groan of pain due to the soreness of her body, and the strain she was putting on.

"Kursed?" He asked in a questioned tone. "What's wrong? What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you." She slowly walked over towards Fox's bedside, as he stood up to face her, feeling as though it was important. She took a grasp on the sides of his jacket, as she was resting in his arms. She looked up to his emerald gaze, as his eyes were filled with concern.

"What is it?" He asked quietly, though she didn't answer vocally. She pushed him forward, as he fell back onto the bed. Kursed fell on top of him, her head on his chest. He was a bit uncomfortable, as Kursed was on top of him for some unknown reason. She crawled to get face to face with him.

"Firion talked to you didn't he? About us." She looked down to him with a steadied gaze, he only looked away and blinked slowly; she was dead on right. "Don't listen to him, there's nothing he can do about us."

"What do you mean?" Kursed gave out a gentle chuckle, and looked back up to his gaze.

"He needs me to win this for him, and he needs you to protect me. How I see it, he can't get rid of us; so there's nothing he can do to stop us." Kursed almost sounded insane, how strong her desire to be with Fox was. But maybe she was true, she very well could have been wrong; but you never know. Firion was a game master, but he also couldn't afford to lose them. Fox decided that maybe, just maybe she was correct.

"You're right." He gave her a small smile, as she moved in to give him a brief kiss onto his lips, just what they needed after all this tension that has been flowing inside them.

"That's right, were untouchable as of now." She laid her head back onto Fox's chest, she felt so warm; so comfortable. As if she could have just fallen asleep right there and then, just a few moments later Fox heard the sound of light snoring and breathing. The vixen on top of him was fast asleep, he laid his head down on the bed; closing his eyes. As she joined him in a peaceful sleep, heading towards their kingdom of relaxation.

Author's Notes

Hey guys, sorry about the whole week delay on the story ^^; I got a little busy during the school week, preparing for a bunch of tests I had on Friday…Sigh, I think I did alright. My 6 week grades came in :D And I got all A's but one B -_- Damn marketing class I went to a friends Halo 3 party on Friday night, after not playing for a year and a half; I believe I did pretty well :D As I was 3rd, a close 2nd to my friend, and he's been playing a lot xD They say my Azian skills kicked in Maybe they did :P

I went to my friends house on Saturday to see a friend I haven't seen in months, due to result that he moved during the summer. But yea, and now Sunday is relaxing day; besides the minor work I did, I finally got a chance to sit down and start typing again! Yay :D

Take it easy

Zythxx

Josh :D