Chopper's Star Adventure

by Mechanical Oven

After centuries, Maquano's plan has finally come to play thanks the power of the Silver Stars. Things get worse when he uses this new power to involve other villains from different universes. Chopper is unfortunate to get involved too, and now he goes out to find the twenty Silver Stars throughout the multiverse and restore their power. Only this time, he's not alone.

14. Sand Over the Sky

Chapter 14: Sand Over the Sky

The sun shined down on their faces as the three stepped out of a hidden stairway from the fake mountain. They were all surprised to see that they were in the same area as when they first entered Kataknife Hideout. Only this time, they were in a more open area of the desert field despite the many mountains around.

And it just so happened to be a mere coincidence that they could already see a mountain taller than the rest dead ahead.

"Yeah... I can feel some familiar energy coming from there." Silvera said, flying out of Chopper to get a better look. "But boy... That's a pretty tall mountain. How are we supposed to get up there?"

"I think there should be a way..." Flyer pondered. "Maybe we'll find out when we're closer."

"Yeah! Maybe Berry can help us!" Chopper said, turning to Berry. However, his cheerful look became that of surprise when he noticed the nervous look on her face. "Berry? Are you OK?"

"I'm fine..." Berry assured.

"But... You looked scared for a moment. ...Hold on, was what that ninja said before true?"

"...Yes," the pink girl sighed in defeat and lowered her head. "I'm...the reason why my grandpa and the rest of the Scarvanas are gone. I wasn't supposed to intervene...yet I thought I could help them stop Saderta..."

"Why were you going after the dragon in the first place?" Silvera questioned.

"Saderta has this incredible treasure. My grandpa said it was unlike anything else on Ava. So... We all made our way there...but Saderta had already spotted us before we could get to the mountain... I thought I could take him on, even when I was told to stay back. Unfortunately, things didn't work out, and my grandpa went out of his way to save me... Sure, I was safe, but our strategy was ruined, and Saderta... Well, he had an easy time taking everyone out..."

"I'm sorry to hear that..." Flyer said sympathetically.

"And even though I promised to help you find the Silver Star..." Berry looked up at Chopper with tears in her eyes and grabbed his arms. "I don't want you going there! There's no way I want to lose more people I care about!"

"But... We need to go there..." Chopper trailed.

"I know... But... Saderta is dangerous! I may have improved my skills, but there's no way I could fight him on my own!"

"Well... You're not fighting that thing alone. Flyer, Silvera, and I are here! And I don't care if this monster hurt a lot of people! If I can take on a lot of other dangerous bad guys...then that dragon should be no problem! Besides... Maybe you might have a chance."

"You really believe that?" Berry asked.

"I...think so..."

Just hearing that made Berry smile and blush as she placed two of her hands on one of Chopper's. "Thanks... At least you're there for me, Choppy..."

For Chopper, he was looking confused at the look she gave him, along with her hands on his. One thing for certain, his hand was shaking from the sudden drop of comfort level. Flyer noticed his nervous look and approached them.

"Perhaps we should get going?" Flyer suggested.

"Yeah, you're right," Berry nodded, letting go of Chopper's hand, who was left bewildered. "Let's...just try to be careful, OK?"

"Uhhhh... That's probably going to fly over Chopper's head..." Silvera trailed, flying back into Chopper.

After adjusting the cuffs on his gloves, Chopper started moving forward. Along the way toward the mountain, there were a few small sand tornadoes moving around. Some were particularly near tall, rock-like structures. By getting caught on one of these, Chopper found himself being spun around. However, with his Star Spin, he was able to whirl around rapidly and get sent flying upward. This especially helped reach the top structure, where a small hole led into a tiny cave-like room.

There wasn't all that much in this small cave, but some small grass revealed some red Starries hidden. A Star Medal was right in the open for Chopper to collect before he stepped over to the ray of light shining down from the hole. A Spring was there for him to launch out and land back on the sand.

"I found a Star Medal!" Chopper smiled, showing off the Star Medal before putting it away. "Anyway... Let's move on!"

The trio continued forward, clearing out any Darklings or Tartaras that got in their way. All Chopper had to do was use his Stealth Slash, and they were history, and it helped that he was able to keep running after doing so.

However, his run had come to a sudden halt when several starships had flown past him from above.

"Huh? What was that?" Chopper questioned, looking up at the ships. They appeared to be gray, but that was all he could see from that distance.

"Ships?" Flyer gawked. "Do you have any idea what those are, Berry?"

"No... Not at all." Berry replied, shaking her head. "But... They look like they're going straight for that mountain!"

"Hopefully they're friendly..." Chopper pondered before proceeding forward.

When the trio had finally reached the base of the mountain, they found a few footholds sticking out. Chopper tried to run up instead, but the slope was way too high for him, even with a Star Dash or Star Boost, and in the end, he ended up tumbling down.

"Sorry, Chopper, but I don't think running is an option here..." Flyer said, flying up to the closest foothold above. "But they don't appear to be too high for you to jump up."

"I guess so," Chopper replied, jumping up to the closest foothold above him with a Side Somersault. He managed to grab the ledge and pull himself up. Next, Berry reached them by using his hammer as a propeller. After landing, they found two narrow walls leading up to the next foothold. Chopper had no problem getting up there with his Wall Jump, and upon landing, two Tartara Grunts were there to greet him.

However, they were no match for Chopper when he drew his katana and wiped the first out with a Ninja Slash. The blue wave from his swing also struck the other, destroying it as well.

After sheathing his katana, Chopper found the next foothold a few feet above to the left. So, he used his Long Jump to get closer, and for some extra height, used his Star Jump. This was enough to help him grab the ledge and pull himself up.

Lucky for him, there was a path curving up on the mountain, and it didn't look like it was going up too far. A Star Boost looked like it would be enough, so Chopper started running in place before taking off. Not only did he manage to reach a foothold higher up, but he landed right by a circle of red Starries. There was even a trail leading to a foothold too far for him to reach.

"This is pretty easy," Chopper commented, taking the Starries before using his Light Speed Dash to reach the next foothold. Awaiting him there was a Spring that looked like it was launching higher up. "Oh... I guess I don't have to do that much climbing now. Maybe I should wait for the others?"

Thankfully, all it took was around a minute for Flyer and Berry to reach him. When they took a look at the Spring, the latter was the one to approach it first.

"A Spring?" Berry looked up, noticing no other footholds to go up. "Well... I guess this is just a little shortcut. Pretty convenient for us!"

"Yeah, I keep noticing how there are always these objects that we can use to transverse around easily," Flyer remarked. "But maybe it's best not to question that."

Chopper jumped on the Spring, and he was instantly launched high up.

After flying through a few small clouds, Chopper finally made his landing on the peak. What he wasn't expecting, however, was the peak to be massive. After all, there were slopes, loops, and even some rocks to smash through. But off in the distance, he could spot floating sand islands in the sky.

As the other two landed, they had gotten a look at the place as well and spotted the floating sand as well.

"Well, looks like Sky Sands is not as close as we thought..." Flyer commented. "But I guess that's what happens when we find a shortcut up here."

"That's OK. I might have some fun here!" Chopper smiled, taking a few steps forward. Before he could go down the slope, two figures had walked up the incline, making Chopper recoil. The figures were in white masks, a red uniform with a black X, and goggles with a yellow trim.

"Whoa! Who the heck are you guys?" the first figure asked.

"We should be asking the same thing," Berry added.

"People may not know of us X-Nauts now, but once we get our hands on the Silver Star here, the multiverse will be under our control!" the second X-Naut chuckled, only to be smacked in the head.

"You idiot! Don't tell them what we're after!" the first X-Naut yelled.

"Wait, what?!" Silvera gasped, flying out of Chopper. "You're after the Silver Stars?!"

"Hey... Those chumps have a Silver Star!"

"...Crud," Silvera chirped before going back into Chopper. Now the X-Nauts were approaching Chopper, who gave them a glare.

"Aw, man! We seriously hit the jackpot!" the first X-Naut chortled. "Not only is there a Silver Star here, but this kid has one too!"

"But dude... Didn't Lord Crump tell us to let him know about a Silver Star?" the second X-Naut asked.

"You idiot! Use your brain! If we steal that Silver Star from this kid, then we'll get all the credit, man! Duhhh!"

"Oh, yeah..." the second X-Naut realized with a nod. "Right on. Let's give these three a beating!"

The two X-Nauts charged toward Chopper, and while he managed to hit one of them, the other managed to leap forward and tackle him onto the ground. His Ninja ability had been knocked away, and while dazed, the two X-Nauts grabbed him and started shaking.

"C'mon! Get outta there, you Silver Star!"

"Uhhhh... I don't think this is working, dude."

"Just keep shaking! We'll eventually-"

A hammer suddenly hit one of them in the head, leaving it dazed. The next one was then shot by a spark projectile. Their attention was quickly drawn to Flyer and Berry, who were approaching the two.

"Ugh... That was painful..." the first X-Naut grunted. "Maybe you were right about reporting to Lord Crump. If we're taken out, the others might not have any information on them!"

"Yeah..." the second X-Naut nodded. "Let's bolt!"

Once the X-Nauts were back on their feet, their legs moved quickly as they scurried away. Berry threw her hammer, but they were already gone the moment it came back to her.

"Crud..." Berry frowned, catching her hammer.

"They got away? Aw... I wanted to fight." Chopper whined as he finally got up.

"But Chopper... They mentioned the Silver Stars." Flyer informed.

"Then we better hurry," Silvera suggested. "If those guys get to Saderta first, then we came here for nothing!"

Chopper nodded and raced ahead via his Star Dash. With the slope before him, his speed increased with ease, allowing him to go through a loop ahead and toward a Dash Ramp and a Zip Line that was to the right. He decided to grab the Zip Line, which took him over to an alternate path with plenty of tall platforms. There was even some hints of grass sticking out of the rocks too.

Once his two friends reached him, Chopper leaped across the platforms, and upon landing on solid ground, there was a green Item Star in front of him. Kicking it, he absorbed its Star Energy and suddenly felt an increase in speed when he started moving.

The moment he was running along a path curving to the side, Chopper just wanted to keep moving, even when he was launched off a Dash Ramp. This brought him back to the main path, but there were also a few other platforms sticking out and leading toward a Rainbow Ring. Chopper used a Star Dash while in the air to launch through a Dash Ring and land on one of the platforms.

"Wait... How am I supposed to do this when I'm much faster?" Chopper wondered. "Well... Maybe I should just try..."

So, Chopper started leaping from platform to platform. It was a little difficult, but he was able to get across them and to the Rainbow Ring. This let him perform a few tricks and let him go up near the top of this peak. All that remained was a path curving upward.

Luckily, his power-up was still on him, so he was already running up with ease. As he ran, several more ships from before had flown upward. At the same time, his Speed Up power-up had worn off.

Upon landing on the highest point of the mountain, Chopper spotted several X-Nauts standing before a yellow cloud made up of sand. One of them was trying to get a better look at it, while another was bouncing off it and not getting enough height.

"What the heck is this cloud about?" the X-Naut bouncing on the cloud questioned. "Apparently there's a place above this mountain, but what's the point of this cloud?"

"I don't know, maybe it could-" one X-Naut stopped when its head turned toward Chopper. It immediately got into a kung fu stance. "One of those chumps those two told us about are here!"

The other X-Nauts brought their attention toward the hero and got in the same stance. Chopper gave them a glare as they came charging his way. Thankfully, he was prepared for their attack by leaping into the air to stomp on their heads. However, one managed to knock him onto the ground, and soon enough he was being dogpiled.

Well, until a hammer came in and knocked them all away.

After Chopper shook his head, he noticed Flyer and Berry in front of him. The latter had caught her hammer and let out a sigh.

"That's the second time I had to save you..." Berry remarked. "Maybe you should wait for us more, Choppy..."

"Ummmm... Well, I found something." Chopper said, pointing at the sand cloud. "I don't know what it is...but I think it might go somewhere..."

"Let me see..." Flyer flew over to the cloud to get a better look. He touched it, only to make it jiggle. "Ah! This is a cloud that you can bounce off! Maybe if you use something like a Super Stomp, it should launch you high up! Surely we'll reach Sky Sands then!"

"Oh! I'll try it out then!" Chopper nodded, leaping onto the cloud. After bouncing, he used his Super Stomp to launch even higher. Flyer had followed him by flapping his wings, while Berry jumped on the cloud and used her hammer to help bounce her high enough.

Chopper found himself agape at the many clouds surrounding him while being launched up. Surprisingly, none of these clouds looked like any he had seen before. In fact, they, like the one he bounced off, had a sandy texture to it.

However, he didn't have much time to look at the scenery when he found himself dropping. Looking below, he noticed sandy ground several feet below him.

While his landing was soft, it wasn't exactly smooth...

Just as he pushed himself out of the sand, someone else had fallen on him, bringing him back to square one.

"That was a surprisingly soft landing..." Berry remarked as Flyer finally landed. Meanwhile, she got a look around, but noticed a certain someone was missing. "Hey... Where's Choppy?"

"Mrrrfmmh!"

Berry gasped as she looked down and noticed that she was standing on him. She quickly stepped back, grabbed one of his feet, and pulled him out. A pop was made as he was fully pulled out.

"Oh, geez! I'm so sorry, Choppy!" Berry cried, putting her hands on the sides of her head. "I didn't see you, I swear!"

"Huh? What do you mean?" Chopper questioned, making Berry fall forward.

"Never mind..." Berry mumbled as she got up. They all took the time to look around them. Sand was everywhere, but the path's edges looked like sand was pouring downward and slowly disintegrating. "So... We're on Sky Sands... I...never thought I'd be around here..."

"So you don't know anything about this place?" Flyer asked, taking out his Holomap. "Well, that's all right. My Holomap can at least track Saderta's Lair! And it's... Well, we're going to be moving for a while, that's for sure."

"I can handle that," Chopper assured, adjusting the cuffs on his gloves. "I'll go on ahead!"

"Chopper, hold on! Maybe we should stick together!"

"...Oh, I mean let's go on ahead...together!"

With his fists clenched, Chopper started moving ahead, with the other two following a few feet behind. To Chopper, it looked like this place did not have much life. A few broken pillars were on the ground, and even some rocks were sticking out of the sand. Chopper used these rocks like ramps to leap into the air and perform a Star Dash.

When he landed, Chopper's eyes caught sight of some form of life. Well, life he had already seen before.

"Uh oh... There's more of those X bad guys..." Chopper trailed, noticing a few X-Nauts kneeling down on the sand. Surprisingly, they paid no attention to him, even when he came to a sudden halt. "Wait... What are they doing?"

"Lord Crump! Lord Crump!"

Chopper's antennae sprung up at that moment when he saw those two X-Nauts running toward a new figure standing on top of a hill. For now, he and the other two hid behind a rock nearby and took a peek at the purple figure in the black uniform and red cape.

"Lord Crump! We came here for-" one of the X-Nauts stopped when it looked at the other group of X-Nauts. "Wait... What are they doing?"

"What does it look like? We're combing the desert, as Grodus said!" Lord Crump answered.

"With combs?"

"Well, yeah! Those were his orders!"

"Ummmm... OK..." the first X-Naut turned to the other. "I think he's being too literal."

"Anyway, what do you want?" Lord Crump asked.

"There's some outsiders here," the second X-Nauts explained. "And one of them has a Silver Star."

"Wait, really?" Lord Crump pulled out a small gadget and noticed it blinking. "Hey... I'm detecting some of that Silver Star energy nearby! Does that mean you got it?"

"Errrr... You told us to come to you about finding a Silver Star..."

"Pffffff! That's ridiculous! I never said that!"

While Lord Crump was bickering with the X-Nauts, Chopper, Flyer, and Berry exchanged nods before finally vaulting over the rock to approach Lord Crump. While he and one of the X-Nauts were arguing, the other took notice of them.

"Lord Crump! They're over there!"

"Not now, X-Naut! I-" Lord Crump stopped himself when he spotted the three. "Who the heck are you guys?"

"They're the ones with a Silver Star," the X-Naut informed. "That one with the antennae is the one who has it."

"Really? Huh... So you're the reason why my Silver Star Detector was going crazy. ...Wait a minute, if you have one, then that means there are two here! Buh! Buh! Buh huh huh! This is perfect! So, kid... Do me a good favor and cough up that Silver Star!"

"No way! And we're getting that Silver Star here first!" Chopper declared. "You guys won't stop us!"

Lord Crump pulled out a remote, and suddenly a small, purple hovercraft flew in and scooped up the commander. "I'd test out my new robot on you losers... But I'm gonna kill two bird with one stone and go after the other one myself! The rest of you can fight these guys and take the Silver Star off them!"

Once Lord Crump flew off, the X-Nauts leaped in the air to dogpile them. Chopper had used his Star Spin to send many flying back, Flyer fired whirlwinds to knock a few away, and Berry's hammer spin not only threw many backwards, but defeated several as well.

With many X-Nauts in a daze, Chopper was able to inhale a few near each other and fire a Star Spit at the rest. The large star had managed to finish off the rest, allowing them to go forward.

As the group ran forward, they spotted several more ships fly past them. Only this time, they turned around and started firing shots their way. Chopper dodged them, but his attention was quickly drawn toward a sandy road over to his right with several Starries. He decided to go that way, making the others follow him.

The sandy road looked as if wind had been blowing through it, thus pushing them forward. When they were on the next sand island, three X-Naut Starships were on their tail.

But before Chopper could run, he took notice of a large, orange Item Star. There didn't appear to be any barrier surrounding it or anything. Out of curiosity, he smashed through it with his Star Dash. Upon absorbing the red energy, he noticed his size slowly becoming gradual, along with sparkles surrounding his body.

Power-up: Giant

Chopper has increased in size! Take advantage of this and plow down anything in your way! No enemies can escape the wrath of Giant Chopper! Hurry, before time runs out!

"Huh? What's going on?" Chopper questioned.

"I think you might've absorbed Star Energy from a Giant Star," Silvera informed.

"Oh... Hey! I can reach those ships now!"

The X-Naut Starships started firing shots at Chopper, but they only bounced off him as he ran past them. One hit was enough to destroy them, and the other X-Nauts on the ground either became pancakes, or they were knocked off the sand and down below.

"Wow! I'm so fast!" Chopper gasped, noticing how easy it was for him to travel forward. Many pillars and rocks had smashed into pieces as he ran past them.

"It's because you've grown big," Flyer explained, flying by his side. "Everything else is just smaller."

"Yeah!" Chopper smiled, smashing an X-Naut Starship with one punch. "And my punches can actually do something!"

After taking down one more ship, he noticed his surroundings suddenly growing. Chopper blinked as he looked at his hands and then at the floor. And that was when he realized what was going on.

"Awww... It's already gone?"

"That stinks..." Berry trailed. "On the plus side, I can already see another windy sand path ahead!"

"Oh, yeah! ...Hey, is that Hyper Energy over there?" Chopper gasped, noticing the Hyper Energy over by a smashed rock. He zipped over to it, and after grabbing the Hyper Energy, he put it away with the others. "I think that's six! That must mean there's no more around here..."

Chopper returned to the others before going on the windy sand path. Like the other, it felt like they were being pushed forward by the wind. But that was no problem for Chopper, especially when he ran around in a spiral and a corkscrew manner. How the others were able to do the same thing, his mind was unsure about that.

After being launched off the path, they landed on the main one. The three could already see a building ahead, so Chopper rushed toward it first, taking the small staircase up to a small room with two staircases on the left and right going to a doorway. Up ahead, meanwhile, was a heavily damaged floor.

But they weren't the only ones in this room. Two X-Nauts, along with another two on silver mechs sporting an X-Naut symbol behind them were waiting for the three. The X-Naut Walkers fired a red laser that nearly struck Chopper's foot. Flyer flew over to one of the machines, and with his Morph-O-Tool, used his wrench to disable it. This helped him take down the X-Naut piloting it. Chopper easily took care of the other X-Naut Walker with a Star Dash, while Berry spun her hammer to take care of the X-Nauts.

Once they were through with them, Chopper's attention was drawn toward the damaged floor before him. Sure, he could take the Pulley up the stairs, but this grabbed his attention more, especially since a trail of red Starries led to it.

"The structure appears weak," Flyer analyzed upon getting a better look. "Maybe you could-"

Chopper jumped in the air, and with a Super Stomp, he smashed through the floor and landed on a rail made of sand.

"...Never mind," the Wingel shrugged as he and Berry followed him down. Chopper's speed on the rail increased thanks to a Dash Rail. This had led him upward and through a corkscrew manner around a narrow path. Along the way, he had collected a Star Medal before landing by a Dash Ramp.

Once he was in the air, Chopper found another floating sand island to his left. Sure, there was a Zip Line going to another one ahead, but curiosity got to him when he saw that Starry trail going to a Dash Ring.

"Uhhhh... Hold on tight, guys!" Chopper warned, grabbing Flyer and Berry's arms before performing his Light Speed Dash on the Starry trail. In less than a second, they were through the Dash Ring and onto the next sand island.

But they certainly weren't alone either. A Wizzam and Lasher were walking around, but a lime-colored figure shaped like an X was also floating around too. Details included round, yellow lips, yellow circles on the ends of their bodies, and a black paint job around its eyes. Judging by how it was with the X-Nauts, it was safe to assume that they belonged to them.

"It's a Yux," Flyer informed, identifying it with his Ray Scanner. "Looks like they can create these Mini-Yuxes that make a barrier around it."

Chopper went up to the Lasher first, and after inhaling it, he regained his Whip ability. The Yux, however, fired a pink projectile in the shape of a ring. He leaped through the opening to avoid taking damage, and as he swung his whip, the Yux summoned a green, triangular figure with a black paint job around its yellow eyes. The green, round barrier it created caused Chopper's whip to bounce off.

Annoyed, he struck the Mini-Yux, and with it gone, the Yux was now vulnerable. After dodging another ring shot, Chopper got up close, and upon grabbing it, slammed it onto the ground, destroying the Yux. Meanwhile, Berry had run past the other enemies while twirling her hammer, taking them out.

Chopper's attention was quickly brought to the end of this floating sand island. For a moment, he saw a few more sand clouds over there. He rushed over to the end, and thanks to a Wide Spring, he was launched up to one of the clouds. They weren't as big as the others cloud getting here, and it didn't bounce him as high, but it was still better than nothing. How else would he get the Electric Shield from that yellow Item Star in the air?

After going through a Rainbow Ring, Chopper started performing some tricks to stay in the air and collect a Star Medal. Once he landed on the next sand island, he spotted a large caved in path with a slope going upward. A few X-Naut Walkers and Yuxes were in the way as well.

To make things even more interesting, Chopper found another rainbow Item Star, which he immediately struck to absorb its Star Energy. Now that he was invincible, he didn't have to get up and personal with the enemies. Just running into them was enough to take them out!

"Another invincibility already? Very convenient." Flyer remarked.

"Hopefully that purple guy isn't too far," Chopper said, destroying an X-Naut Walker with a Star Dash. By the time he reached the top of the slope, there were two exits out of the cave. Chopper decided to go to the right, where he found himself running along another sand path made up of wind.

When the wind moved upward, Chopper had started running up until he was launched off. He saw another sand island below, along with several sand clouds surrounding him. As Chopper began to free fall, he found a Star Medal on one of the clouds, so he canceled his slow fall by landing on one of the clouds. By bouncing off, he found another Starry trail, so after grabbing both Flyer and Berry, the pale green boy used a Light Speed Dash to head for a sand rail leading to another island.

"How high are we?" Berry asked, looking down below.

"If I knew, I'd probably tell you," Flyer answered as they went through a loop and onto the island, where Chopper's invincibility wore off. A Major Dice, Diamo, and two Yuxes were there to greet him. Chopper managed to take out the Major Dice with his whip, but one of the Yuxes shot a ring at his Electric Shield, destroying it. The Diamo had also jumped and crushed Chopper, knocking away his Whip ability.

Berry glared at the Stony as she was about to crush it with her hammer, but Chopper managed to unflatten himself and inhale the enemy, thus gaining the Diamond ability. Then he took out the Yux that shot him by firing diamond shards after unleashing his Shard Burst.

Since Chopper had already taken care of the Diamo, Berry went after the last Yux instead. One hammer strike was enough to take it out.

After clearing them out, Chopper forged onward, finding a slope going through two loops. He happily ran through them, all the while finding a Zip Line that was heading down to the island below. Along the way, Chopper collected a few yellow Starries, along with another Star Medal.

To make things even more rewarding, the three landed on the upper portion of the island, which was made up of a marbled floor. Some X-Nauts and an X-Naut Walker was in the way, and while taking out the walker together was easy, the others changed things up a bit. For starters, one pulled out a green potion, and after pulling its collar, drank it down. This caused it to grow bigger in size. However, it went down the same way as the rest of the X-Nauts.

A Trick Ramp was ahead, and some food to the left was available as well. Chopper ate this food to recover his health, then he went on the Trick Ramp to perform some tricks. There wasn't much of a reason to do these tricks, except for using his Light Speed Dash on another Starry trail.

When he landed, Chopper spotted Lord Crump up ahead going along a trail. Near him, however, were three Copy Essences. One was Whip, another Chakram, and third Energy. Whip's Copy Essence was orange with an image of a whip on it. For now, he stuck with his Diamond ability before he and the others continued ahead.

"All right... That Silver Star is just up ahead." Lord Crump mumbled, noticing the blinking go faster on his Silver Star Detector. As he put it away, the X-Naut commander let out a chuckle. "Man, I'm such a genius. Letting those X-Nauts take care of those pests to get their Silver Star while I find the one ahead? Grodus is going to think I'm so cool! Buh huh huh! And even if they somehow beat those X-Nauts, they're not fast enough to catch up to me!"

"Hey, purple guy!"

"Buh huh?" Lord Crump turned around and noticed Chopper and his friends coming his way. At first, he shrugged it off and continued, but the moment he saw Chopper running by his side, the X-Naut commander found his eyes widening behind his goggles. "BUH HUH?!"

"You're not getting away this time!" Chopper declared, ready to throw a diamond punch at Lord Crump's hovercraft.

"Oh, crud... Well so much for this being easy." Lord Crump stopped his mobile when they were in a larger area. "But I guess it's not all bad! I can finally put my new robot to use!"

Pressing a button on his mobile, the machine suddenly suddenly gained a black body with a white X on its body, a purple head above the cockpit with goggles white fists, and thrusters on the bottom of its body.

"Buh! Buh! Buh huh huh! How do you like this, huh? I call this Magnus Crump! This bad boy's got it all!"

"Admittedly, it does look impressive," Flyer remarked. "But did you really need to design it to make it look like yourself?"

"Someone's got a big ego," Berry commented.

"Well... Who cares what it looks like?" Lord Crump dismissed. "What's important is that I use it to crush you and take that Silver Star from your hands!"

"Can he actually do that?" Chopper asked.

"He can't force me out, that's for sure," Silvera replied. "But take him down anyway."

"OK... Then let's fight!"

"Too bad this thing doesn't have tissues, 'cause it's what you're gonna need when I pummel the lot of you!" Lord Crump cackled, and with that, Magnus Crump had shot missiles from the lower portion of its body.

Mid-boss: Magnus Crump

Lord Crump's secret weapon is out, and it's ready to crush Chopper and his friends! Its fists can flatten you like a pancake, those lasers can give you quite a shock, and the missile's explosions can throw you back. There's even a few other tricks Lord Crump has with Magnus Crump...

The fact that Chopper did nothing to even dodge the missiles made Lord Crump grin as they made their impact. He started guffawing at the sight of this, but the moment the smoke cleared, his laughing slowed down and eventually stopped when he spotted a statue of an X-Naut in Chopper's place. And then it turned into Chopper, making Lord Crump blink in bewilderment.

"Buh-huh? How'd you do that?! Come to think of it... You weren't the same when I first saw you!"

"Yeah!" Chopper replied, leaping in the air to land his two feet on Magnus Crump. The stomp caused the robot to try to throw him back, but it ended up missing when he jumped back. Right when he was about to fire diamond shards, the goggles of Magnus Crump fired two orange lasers that knocked Chopper onto the ground.

"Huh! Take that!"

Chopper was quick to get back on his feet and leap toward Magnus Crump again. Turning into a statue of himself, he managed to strike the cockpit and do some serious damage to the machine. Magnus Crump tried crushing him with its fists, but not even that smashed through his diamond barrier.

Because of this, Berry was given the opportunity to strike. Running toward Magnus Crump, she slammed her hammer on the ground to give her some height. While flipping in the air, the pink girl eventually reached Magnus Crump's cockpit, and with one hammer strike, the robot was stumbling back with a few sparks coming out of its body.

"Crud... This ain't looking too good." Lord Crump gulped. "And I put a lot of effort into this thing!"

"Well, looks like that hard work isn't going to get you anywhere with us around!" Berry smirked, who ran in for another attack. Lord Crump simply pressed another button, and Magnus Crump swung a fist that sent her flying back. "Ow..."

"Taste missiles, chumps!" Lord Crump cackled, his robot shooting missiles into the air. By the time Chopper reverted back to normal, he saw the missiles flying down. He dodged their fire and created a fist made of diamond in his hand. His Diamond Fist managed to knock Magnus Crump back even further.

Shaking angrily, Lord Crump banged his fists on two buttons, causing Magnus Crump to fire lasers and missiles at the same time. Chopper yelped and turned into a statue of Flyer, while the real Flyer flew around to dodge their fire and shoot electric shots from his Blast-O. With more sparks flying out of Magnus Crump, Chopper turned back to normal and looked at Flyer.

"Let's use a Whirlwind Launch, Flyer!" Chopper cried.

"Good idea," Flyer agreed, flying down to scoop his best friend off the ground. "Berry! Keep that robot busy!"

"You've got it!" Berry nodded, speeding up to Magnus Crump to land a few twirling hammer attacks in the air. Lord Crump noticed this and brought his machine's attention toward her. Now that Chopper and Flyer had a distraction, the latter started spinning around until he was in a whirlwind. After enough spins, the Wingel let go of Chopper, who used his Diamond Fist to land a direct hit on Magnus Crump's cockpit. The robot found itself tumbling around until it was lying down on its front.

"Yeah! We did it!" Chopper cheered, giving Flyer and Berry a high five.

"Wait, you're celebrating my defeat? I'm not even done yet!" Lord Crump exclaimed. "I've got plenty of more in store for you!"

Pressing another button, the cockpit suddenly flipped horizontally, while the fists had become pincer claws. At this point, Magnus Crump looked more like a starship than a battle robot. But looks can be deceiving...

"Buh! Buh! Buh huh huh! You really thought this was finished?" Lord Crump cackled. "Wait 'till you see how much faster this thing is!"

Magnus Crump started flying backwards faster than before, forcing the trio to run after it. Being the fastest of the three, Chopper was able to catch up to Magnus Crump with ease. However, a few, purple spiked bombs were dropped along the way. Because of this, Chopper found himself jumping and dodging a few of these bombs. Berry, however, had put her hammer to use and swung the bombs back at Magnus Crump.

"Ow! You're gonna pay for that!" Lord Crump yelled, making Magnus Crump open its pincers in order to snap at Berry. She jumped over these and brought her hammer down on them, while Chopper lunged forward at the robot with his Star Dash.

The impact of this attack caused Magnus Crump to tumble backwards, but Chopper wasn't done there. He sped up and got close enough to the robot to use his Diamond Fist to throw a diamond punch that knocked it even further. To finish off his attack, Chopper chased Magnus Crump once more and struck it with another Star Dash.

"Gurk! Urrrrrrgh... That was really painful..." Lord Crump moaned. "But it ain't over yet, chumps! Prepare for a missile barrage!"

Magnus Crump fired a few missiles, and while one managed to hit Chopper and throw him back and knock away his Diamond ability, Flyer was able to destroy the rest of them with a few ice shots. They froze in the air, and Chopper and Berry were able to send them flying back toward Magnus Crump.

But it wasn't done there. It attempted to grab them with its pincers, and when that failed, they opened up and fired green lasers instead. Chopper yelped as Flyer flew him and Berry over it safely.

"Geez... How long do you think this is going to go?" Chopper asked.

"I don't know, but we should end this now," Flyer insisted, letting the two go when the laser stopped.

"Well... We could try another Team Attack."

"I don't know, Chopper... I'm a little worn out from that. ...Unless you and Berry can do one?"

"A Team Attack with Choppy?" Berry smiled. "If it makes you happy, I'll help you out."

"Make it quick," Silvera suggested. "Because it looks like that Crump guy is firing missiles your way."

"OK... Well... Oh! I think I have an idea, Choppy! Can you spin around?"

"Ummmm... Yeah! I can do it now if you want!" Chopper nodded as he started to spin around via his Star Spin. Once he was spinning enough times, Berry jumped onto him while spinning her hammer. The two began to spin faster than before as they sped forward, creating a trail of green and pink behind.

Thankfully, Flyer seemed to be doing a good job at keeping Magnus Crump at bay with his Blast-O. Because of this, Lord Crump was not expecting a spinning blur of pink and green to come his way and knock it farther than before. Only now, a shimmering light was emitting from Magnus Crump's body.

"What the... What's going on here?!" Lord Crump cried.

With one explosion, Lord Crump was sent flying out of his destroyed robot and landed right in front of Chopper and Berry. Only now, he was covered in soot.

"Buh! Bu-AAAAARGH! No! Magnus Crump! My beautiful creation that was cooler than Grodus!"

"So, did you have enough?" Berry smirked, putting her hands on her hips.

"Buh-hurrgh..." Lord Crump panted as got himself up. "Hurff... Hurfff... Hurffff... You guys are definitely more than I thought. Who the heck are you, antennaed freak?"

"I'm Chopper, hero of my home world, Clara!" Chopper declared.

"Chopper, huh? Well, I won't forget this! You will rue the day you messed with us X-Nauts, 'cause now you're our number one target!

With that, Lord Crump made a run for it...only to trip over a small rock before getting up to continue running.

"Well that takes care of him," Chopper smiled.

"But who was that Grodus he mentioned?" Silvera questioned.

"Ummmmm... Probably no one special?"

"He acted like this Grodus was his superior," Berry pointed out. "So... I wouldn't say he's no one special."

"Oh... I guess you're right." Chopper nodded.

"You two did an excellent job with that Team Attack," Flyer remarked, flying over to them. "What's its name?"

"Well... Maybe we can call it the Couple's Attack?" Berry smiled while looking at Chopper. However, he only gave her a confused look, while Flyer was raising an eyebrow. "...OK, fine. I think Cyclone Dash works better. ...But I like my other name better."

"Anyway, I think now's the time to continue on," the Wingel looked on ahead and spotted a giant sand island off in the distance. "Perhaps...Saderta's Lair is over there?"

Berry immediately froze in place, while Silvera flew out of Chopper to take a look.

"Hmmmmm... Yeah, it's there all right." Silvera confirmed. "I can feel the energy of a Silver Star coming from there. So... I hope you guys are ready."

"Yeah, we can do it, right Berry?" Chopper said, turning to her. "...Berry? Are you OK?"

"We... We're actually c-close to Saderta's Lair?" Berry stammered. "I didn't think w-we'd be so close..."

"But... We have a chance, don't we?"

"I don't know why... B-But I still have that nervous feeling... Don't you ever f-feel like when you think you can do it, y-you're still scared inside? ...Th-That's kind of how I feel."

"Well... I used to have that feeling before... I think as long as you do your best, you should be able to face whatever's against you. Plus, you said this Saderta found you guys near the mountain...and look where we are!"

"That's so encouraging of you, Choppy... Thanks..."

"Well, I want to help people," Chopper nodded before looking over at a sandy path going toward the island. Nearby was some food they chose to eat to recover their health, along with three more Copy Essences. This time, it was Ninja, Whip, and Diamond. For now, he decided to go with the Whip ability. "OK... Let's go, guys!"

Once everyone approached the windy sand path, they sped onward through a few corkscrews and toward the large sand island ahead.

"Bah! I can't believe we underestimated our foes! The fact that they're much more than I thought angers me!"

Unbeknownst to the trio, the Shadow Sirens had been watching the entire showdown between Chopper and his friends, and Lord Crump and his robot. Beldam shook a fist, which emitted a few snowflakes.

"Curse that Chopper and his friends! The mere thought of being beaten down by a group of children is humiliating!"

"Well, to be fair, Sis..." Vivian began, rubbing her bruised cheek. "Just because someone is young doesn't mean-"

"Silence, you ditz! You have no right to speak after your incompetency against Chopper!"

"Guh!" Marilyn exclaimed.

"You too, Marilyn! While you did a much better job against that winged freak, you could've done better. And who would've thought that the one I was fighting against was just some little girl-" Beldam stopped herself as she watched Berry get closer to the giant sand island. A large grin formed on her face as she chuckled. "Actually, my lovelies... Maybe them being children isn't so bad, especially those lot. They seem too good...and pure of heart, especially that girl..."

"Sis, what do you..." Vivian stopped herself when she blinked in realization. "You... You don't mean...?"

"Guh! Guuuuh!" Marilyn grunted.

"You're right, Marilyn. We could surely use some help here... And I think we already have an idea of who can help!"

Beldam slowly slipped into the shadows with her sisters and rose right in front of the fleeing Lord Crump. The moment he saw them appear, he yelped and fell on his bottom.

"What the... Who the heck are you freaks?!" Lord Crump exclaimed. "I'm in the middle of running here!"

"Rest assured. We're not here to fight." Beldam assured. "My name is Beldam, leader of the Shadow Sirens. We happened to watch your fight against that Chopper, and we were impressed with how you fought."

"Well it didn't turn out so well..."

"Oh, that doesn't matter. What does, matter, on the other hand, is something that can benefit you and the rest of your kind!"

"Really? And what's that?"

"Take us to your superior, and we'll give you all the details."

"Hmmmmmm..." Lord Crump put his thumb and index finger underneath his purple mask to ponder. "If it's gonna be helpful, then I'll take you to Grodus. ...But that's all up to him in the end!"

"Mmmwee hee hee hee! Excellent!" Beldam grinned. "Trust me, you won't be disappointed!"

---

The Giant power-up was actually going to be something only used in certain Giant Bosses, but I decided to scrap that idea and make it something like the Mega Mushroom in later Mario games.

Anyway, believe it or not, the next chapter is the last part of the Ava Arc. Yeah, this one was quick - except I just posted them faster than usual. :P