Author's Note: I don't anything here. All related to StarFox and StarFox
Adventures belong to Nintendo and Rare. Anything related to Japanese
mythology (Jigoku and the chains) belong to... well, Japanese mythology.
Otherwise the only thing I own here is the plot and Diva and Starr Jenson
and Kuro Youkai. The Bafomdad, Drip, is mine, but his name isn't, for he's
named after the Sin of Lust, Drip, from David Hopkins's comic "Jack"
() I warn you, it's a rated R web comic ^^;;;.
Sorry if the plot strays a bit, the second part of the story is a bit
chaotic, I'm struggling to keep face. I've been writing this fic ever since
November, and it's near completion now, but that doesn't mean I'll update
my fic every day because of school. I've taken The Grammar King's
suggestion to change the genre, but I'd rather keep it in the horror
section because the story centers around ghosts, death, and Jigoku. I mean,
c'mon, "The Frighteners" (a movie starring Michael J. Fox or someone) was a
horror movie, but for most part is humorous ^^. So in other words, if I was
to make a full genre, this story would be
Horror/Action/Adventure/Humor/Angst (angst for things involving Diva, and
no, I don't mean her falling into holes ;). Don't worry, Grammar King,
the scary stuff will return soon, and the deaths of the StarFox Team will
be taken more seriously, just wait a while. Please R&R. Thank you.
~Imagen~
***
Part II
Chapter 4: "Menacing Minds"
"What? What? WHAT???" Shabunga gasped as he hopped up, looking in all directions as the sirens wailed. He didn't immediately run to the room where he held the Golden Bafomdad, and instead he pulled down a lever to trap whoever entered the room behind bars.
Slippy grumbled. "Darn! I was hoping at least he would come here so the traps would be unleashed upon him!"
"That moron is smarter than I thought," Falco muttered.
Shabunga quickly teleported in front of the room. Inside, the traps were unleashed, the axes chopping, knives thrusting, crossbows shooting, anvils dropping, and steel balls swinging. Slippy, shielding Happy, ducked low and dodged every fire of the chaos, Happy whimpering. Falco leaned against the wall, enjoying himself as Slippy ran around like a fool. As soon as the confusion ended, Shabunga leaned in closer into the cell. All he saw were the traps and the cage and Golden Bafomdad, but nothing else. Not even the attempting thieves. He gasped with eyes wide open, "H-How did you escape?"
"What do you think?" Falco blindly muttered. Slippy slapped his beak shut.
Shabunga didn't see any of the two ghosts but only heard one of their voices, and fell back, frightened and freaked out. "W-Who's there?"
Slippy stared. Falco smirked and whispered in Slippy's ear. "I have an idea. Give me that Bafomdad." Slippy glanced at Falco with a blank expression then handed the Bafomdad. Falco held up Happy like Rafiki did in "The Lion King" and deepened his voice to a booming, almost deity-like voice. "I AM A KAMI LORD OF JIGOKU, SPEAKING TO YOU, MORTAL, IN FORM OF A BAFOMDAD! HEAR ME ROAR!!!"
'Oh, like he's gonna fall for that!' Slippy thought. He glanced back at Shabunga, who was shivering with fear. 'Good grief!' He thought in his head. 'Okay.... maybe he ISN'T as smart as we thought!'
"Keep it up, Falco!" he whispered in Falco's ear.
The blue tiercel nodded. "HEAR ME, LOWLY MORTAL!"
"Your servant is listening!" Shabunga wailed, kneeling then bowed low, his head and palms touching the ground. Slippy gaped in disbelief.
"I HAVE ASCENDED FROM THE FIERY DEPTHS TO THE EARTH TO GUIDE YOUR FELLOW MORTAL IN HIS JOURNEY, YET YOU CAGE ME LIKE AN ANIMAL AND TREAT ME LIKE A LOWLY PET! IS THAT ANYWAY TO TREAT ONE OF YOUR GODS?!!!!!!"
"No!!!!" Shabunga bawled. Slippy fell on his bottom, sitting down, his hat tilting on his face, still in disbelief.
"NOW!!! RELEASE ME FROM THIS CELL OR I SHALL OPEN THE SEVEN GATES OF JIGOKU AND SNARE YOU WITH ITS CHAINS AND THROW YOU INTO THE FIERY PITS!!!"
"YES, MY LORD!!!!" Shabunga cried as he scrambled to the wall where he kept the lever of the cell's bars. He pulled it back up, and the bars rose and hid in the doorway.
Falco grinned as he lifted the Golden Bafomdad higher. He boomed, "NOW STEP ASIDE, MORTAL!!!"
"Yes, sir!" Shabunga muttered as he stepped aside. Like a god he is impersonating, Falco strutted past the subdued dinosaur, holding his head up high, his back straight, and steps march-like and precise. Slippy squeezed his hands over his mouth, trying to restrain a laugh.
***
"I can't believe Shabunga actually fell for it!" Fox laughed as he petted Happy on the head the next morning. Happy nuzzled Fox's hand and purred like a content kitten before joining its fellow Golden Bafomdad Hoppy and Haughty.
"Yeah!" Krystal agreed. She turned to Falco, "You did a pretty good imitating a Jigoku Kami, Falco. I'm pretty sure that Shabunga would never go near another Bafomdad!"
"I was hoping he would convince him to make honest sales now, though," Fox said, sighing.
Tricky piped in, "Why didn't you guys beat him up with the traps? It would be soooo cool!"
Slippy chuckled. "As much as we hate it, we just let it slide. Besides, I think Shabunga went through more than he should have."
"Awwwwwwwww.... you stink!"
Peppy glanced at Happy playing with Hoppy and Haughty. "What about the little girl?"
"You mean the former owner of Happy?" Falco said.
The old rabbit nodded.
Fox, who was sitting under a Dumbledang Tree, noticed the same ThornTail who told about the girl who lost her pet nearby. He got up and picked up Happy then approached the ThornTail, "Greetings!"
"Greetings," he mumbled. He noticed the little golden creature in Fox's hands. "Ah, so you have Happy now, I see."
"That's right. Do you know where the little girl is?"
"She's not a little anymore. Shabunga stole the Bafomdad twenty years ago."
Everyone's eyes widened in surprise.
"She lives in a cave where the WarpStone dwells. You can meet her there."
"Oh," Tricky started. "It's the same ThornTail whose eggs were in danger last year!"
"Yeah!" Fox said nodding.
***
"Happy!" the female ThornTail cried happily as soon as Fox returned the Golden Bafomdad to its original owner. Happy leaped out of the vulpine's hands and hopped to his owner and nuzzled her, the ThornTail nuzzling back like a mother dinosaur to her child.
Fox sighed, standing nearby and rolling his eyes and crossing his arms like an impatient child waiting in line at a candy store. He let by the sentimental reunion of master and pet, then grumbled, "Are you quite finished?"
The ThornTail walked to Fox and licked him. Fox panicked, "HEY!!!"
"Thank you so much for bringing him back to me, Mister Fox! I've lost Happy for so long ago, I just missed him so much. I thought I lost him forever!"
"Yeah, yeah... no problem," Fox mumbled as he washed himself by the river that surrounded the WarpStone.
Tricky cleared his throat then began, "Um, Ma'am, we didn't... exactly come here to... um... well...."
The ThornTail turned to Tricky. "What is it? What do you need?"
"We need Happy to help us in our mission... so..."
The mother ThornTail paused for several moments then uttered, "Oh........."
"Yeah..."
The ThornTail bent down to Happy, "Looks like these guys really need you, Happy. Go with them and help them. Don't give them any trouble now."
Happy nodded.
The ThornTail looked up to Fox, "Fox, please take care of Happy. Return him to me when your mission is done."
"Yeah, I got it," Fox said as he wiped his face then picked up Happy. He turned around and started walking, "See ya, Mrs. ThornTail!"
"Good bye, Fox! Safe journey!"
***
"GEEZ, IT'S SO DAMN COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Starr and Tricky yelped in the SnowHorn Wastes, their voice echoing in the mountains.
Krystal smacked them on the head. "Shaddup! You don't have to tell the world how you feel!"
"It's a good thing we're already dead," Slippy commented. "Otherwise, I'd freeze in this temperature since I'm cold-blooded."
"We didn't come here to complain about becoming Lylatian-flavored popsicles!" Peppy reminded his comrades. "We're here to find out where the SnowHorns keep their Golden Bafomdad."
Fox was talking to Garunda Te about the location of the Golden Bafomdad. When he returned, he informed Starr and the late StarFox Team, "The SnowHorns don't keep a Golden Bafomdad."
"That must mean it's a free critter," Falco grumbled. "Now we have to search for it?"
"I guess so..." Slippy said, shrugging.
***
Three hours passed, and the entire troupe was already complaining about their search. "I wish there was a faster way to look," Fox moaned. He looked up and spoke, hoping that Slippy is listening. "Slippy, can you make a Bafomdad Radar or something?"
"We won't have to!" Slippy shouted. "Look!"
Hopping all alone on the little icebergs on the freezing cold stream, a Golden Bafomdad, shivering cold from the chilly atmosphere, attempted to cross the stream. It noticed the fox and falcon boy and their Bafomdads at the other side, and it hopped faster over the ice. It slipped off one and fell and began to drown, splashing about in the icy water.
"I'll get it," Fox said as he picked up a stick from the ground and stuck it out near the Golden Bafomdad. The critter grabbed the stick with its teeth and pulled itself up, Fox then bringing him upon the snow.
Starr ran to it and wrapped his arms around the freezing critter. "Hey, hey, it's all right! Don't worry little guy!"
"That's great! We got our next Bafomdad. Now let's move to get the last one," Fox said as he turned to head out of the SnowHorn Wastes.
The iced Bafomdad looked up to Hoppy, the pink-collared Golden Bafomdad standing right next to Starr. It hopped out of Starr's arms then trotted to Hoppy and started sniffing all over it.
Slippy watched. "I think this one is a boy Bafomdad."
"How do you know?" Krystal asked.
"I examined the Bafomdads quite a while ago. Hoppy's a girl, and Haughty and Happy are boys."
"So?"
The Bafomdad continued sniffing Hoppy grinned weirdly. Hoppy began to look anxious. The male crept closer to Hoppy, continuously sniffing her, then finally licking her. Hoppy retreated and leaped into Starr's arms and dug deep into his embrace.
"Oh, great," Fox grumbled. "If that thing ever gets near me and starts humping my leg, I'm gonna dump it back in the water!"
"FOX!!!" Starr shot back.
"So what are we gonna name this one now?" Falco asked. "'Horny?'"
His question immediately resulted with the three other ghosts clobbering him into the water.
The iced Bafomdad noticed the glistening StarFox badge on Tricky's head and on Fox's shirt. It hopped to Tricky and sniffed him, then leaped on his horned nose then snatched the badge away. Tricky was shocked, and he yelled at the critter, "Hey! Give it back!" He lunged at the Golden Bafomdad, but the furry creature was too quick, and it made a hasty retreat into the forest.
"Great!" Fox moaned as he and his Team chased the Bafomdad into the forest.
***
"Any sign of him?" Tricky asked Fox after he and their friends searched for several hours.
Krystal spoke. "Sorry, Tricky. We'll just get you another badge-"
"I don't care! Fox gave me that badge when I helped him save Dinosaur Planet! That badge has sentimental value, man!"
"We'll find that badge and Bafomdad soon enough, Tricky," Fox said as he stepped out of the bushes. "So far, I can't find that thief or the badge. That little guy must be hiding somewhere."
"Well, find it soon! Please!" Tricky pleaded.
***
Before they knew it, Starr and the Bafomdads became lost. They have strayed far from the group, and now they're stranded in the middle of the icy forest.
Starr was exhausted from their several-hour long search. His legs gave out, and he slumped and leaned against a dead tree. Hoppy and Happy whimpered and nuzzled the falcon boy, Haughty leaping on his head.
"Sorry, guys," Star muttered. "I'm just so tired. I know it's not safe to fall asleep in an icy area, but I just can't keep going..." before he would finish, poor Starr fell asleep.
Hoppy watched the snowflakes fall on the little boy. She became worried about the child freezing to death, and she started hopping around to find something to warm him up. Happy gathered twigs and made it into a heap, Haughty rubbing them together to make a small fire. Hoppy sighed in relief.
*Snap!*
The three Bafomdads spun around where they heard a twig snapped. A fellow Golden Bafomdad holding a shiny StarFox badge was climbing a steep snowy hill and hid behind the bushes. Hoppy and Haughty glanced back at Starr and motioned to Happy to stay with the sleeping boy as they follow the Bafomdad thief.
Hoppy and Haughty stealthily followed the thief up the hill, dodging every rock and twig and hiding behind every boulder and bush. The thief hopped behind a tall, thorny bush, and Hoppy and Haughty caught up with it and looked to where he hid. Behind the thorny bush a pile of riches were heaped up, jewelry, precious stones, golden bars, scarabs, even the SnowHorn Artifact Fox retrieved to a gray SnowHorn at one time. Leaning on that pile like it was a bed was a ghastly red-tailed hawk, sleeping.
Hoppy and Haughty shuddered in their stance, hiding deeper behind the thorny bush. The thief leaped to his master's lap, waking him up.
The red-tailed hawk ghost woke up and smiled at the Bafomdad. "Hey, Drip," he greeted the Golden creature. "What have you got for me?"
Drip dropped the StarFox badge in the hawk's palm. The bird of prey's raptorial eyes widened. "Oh?... so Fox McCloud is here..."
***
"That jasper star," the Krazoa Peppy muttered as he watched the night fall, the stars coming out of hiding and displaying their shining beauty. Only one, however, was almost not shining at all, fading out as if it was about to fall.
"Oh, dear..." Krazoa Diva mumbled. The caring motherliness of its shell was coming out, and the false Diva shuddered as she embraced herself as if hugging a child, her eyes coming near tears. "No, no....... it can't be..."
"We must let it happen, sister," the last Krazoa said as it hovered over the falcon's head. "When the next mortal dies, I shall take its shell. Then we can finally rejuvenate ourselves then rebuild the Krazoa Palace."
"We must take caution," Krazoa Slippy said as he stood up from the boulder he sat upon. "I have a feeling an old 'friend' is there with Fox McCloud... and he'll be responsible for the death of our next shell, just as he was responsible for our sister's over there," he said as he held a hand to Diva.
"Let us go," Diva said as she turned to leave.
Krazoa Krystal held up a hand. "Wait, sister, be careful for the-"
*THUD!!!*
"-Hole..."
Krazoa Falco chuckled. "Most unfortunate of you to take the shell of such a graceless woman," he smirked, the sarcastic side of his shell taking over.
Krazoa Diva's hostile side came out also. "Say that again, brother, and I shall make sure you leave that wretched man's body with MY hands!"
***
Hoppy and Haughty felt helpless. This man, Kuro Youkai, the same man who violated, impregnated, then killed Starr's mother, was lying on a pile of riches with his Golden Bafomdad, Drip, and bringing news of the arrival of Fox McCloud. Both were too afraid to approach the red-tailed hawk; this man was truly evil.
Kuro watched as Drip hopped up and down furiously. "What is it now?"
Drip hopped to a pile of branches and grabbed one that had a slight appearance to a spear with his teeth. He then leaped around like a warrior, flapping his ears (since Bafomdads don't have arms) like wings, then throwing the spear like a javelin.
Kuro took the hint. "Starr is here too... I see..." he smirked and stood up. "Lead the way, Drip."
Hoppy and Haughty gazed at each other then nodded, quickly making up a plan. Hoppy turned around from behind the thorny bush then hurdled away as Haughty leaped out and approached Kuro. Hoppy fled to where Starr slept as Haughty stood up to the ghastly hawk.
"Oh, ho, another one," Kuro said, smiling. "Finally. Another Golden Bafomdad. Now both my Master and I can be revived-"
Before the hawk could finish, Haughty bounded on Kuro's head and stomped on it. Kuro fell down the other side of the hill where the Bafomdads came from and ghosted through a tree, Haughty smacking into it. Drip bounded after them then tackled Haughty then bit him. Kuro ignored both Bafomdads fighting as he scrambled around the hill to follow Hoppy.
***
Hoppy scurried into the dead forest and found Starr still sleeping by the little fire her friends Haughty and Happy made. Happy was snoozing in Starr's arms like a little teddy bear when his ears twitched from the sound of Hoppy's whimpering and leaping. He hopped out of Starr's arms without waking him and skipped to where he heard Hoppy's whimpers, peering through the dead bushes then finding the female Golden Bafomdad running to the small camp.
Because of his great height and speed, Kuro eventually caught up with Hoppy and grabbed her. Hoppy screeched, kicked, and struggle, but she was no match for the much bigger Kuro. Happy watched helplessly as the hawk threw the Golden Bafomdad into the icy rapids nearby then stormed towards his son. Happy gulped and hid behind a rock, unable to help Starr as Kuro grabbed his child by the collar.
Starr awoke from his father's waking. "Wha......... PAPA????"
"Surprise, surprise, son. Miss me?"
"Let me go!" Starr screamed as he kicked his father, but his foot only went through the ghost. Still, Starr shrieked and kicked. "Where's my mama? Where are you keeping her?"
"With me. But don't worry, my son. You'll join her soon." Kuro then ghosted his hand into Starr's chest then gripped his heart.
((to be continued...))
***
((Dun-dun-DUUUUUUUUNNN!!! Now that chapter's finished, please review! ;_;)
~Imagen~
***
Part II
Chapter 4: "Menacing Minds"
"What? What? WHAT???" Shabunga gasped as he hopped up, looking in all directions as the sirens wailed. He didn't immediately run to the room where he held the Golden Bafomdad, and instead he pulled down a lever to trap whoever entered the room behind bars.
Slippy grumbled. "Darn! I was hoping at least he would come here so the traps would be unleashed upon him!"
"That moron is smarter than I thought," Falco muttered.
Shabunga quickly teleported in front of the room. Inside, the traps were unleashed, the axes chopping, knives thrusting, crossbows shooting, anvils dropping, and steel balls swinging. Slippy, shielding Happy, ducked low and dodged every fire of the chaos, Happy whimpering. Falco leaned against the wall, enjoying himself as Slippy ran around like a fool. As soon as the confusion ended, Shabunga leaned in closer into the cell. All he saw were the traps and the cage and Golden Bafomdad, but nothing else. Not even the attempting thieves. He gasped with eyes wide open, "H-How did you escape?"
"What do you think?" Falco blindly muttered. Slippy slapped his beak shut.
Shabunga didn't see any of the two ghosts but only heard one of their voices, and fell back, frightened and freaked out. "W-Who's there?"
Slippy stared. Falco smirked and whispered in Slippy's ear. "I have an idea. Give me that Bafomdad." Slippy glanced at Falco with a blank expression then handed the Bafomdad. Falco held up Happy like Rafiki did in "The Lion King" and deepened his voice to a booming, almost deity-like voice. "I AM A KAMI LORD OF JIGOKU, SPEAKING TO YOU, MORTAL, IN FORM OF A BAFOMDAD! HEAR ME ROAR!!!"
'Oh, like he's gonna fall for that!' Slippy thought. He glanced back at Shabunga, who was shivering with fear. 'Good grief!' He thought in his head. 'Okay.... maybe he ISN'T as smart as we thought!'
"Keep it up, Falco!" he whispered in Falco's ear.
The blue tiercel nodded. "HEAR ME, LOWLY MORTAL!"
"Your servant is listening!" Shabunga wailed, kneeling then bowed low, his head and palms touching the ground. Slippy gaped in disbelief.
"I HAVE ASCENDED FROM THE FIERY DEPTHS TO THE EARTH TO GUIDE YOUR FELLOW MORTAL IN HIS JOURNEY, YET YOU CAGE ME LIKE AN ANIMAL AND TREAT ME LIKE A LOWLY PET! IS THAT ANYWAY TO TREAT ONE OF YOUR GODS?!!!!!!"
"No!!!!" Shabunga bawled. Slippy fell on his bottom, sitting down, his hat tilting on his face, still in disbelief.
"NOW!!! RELEASE ME FROM THIS CELL OR I SHALL OPEN THE SEVEN GATES OF JIGOKU AND SNARE YOU WITH ITS CHAINS AND THROW YOU INTO THE FIERY PITS!!!"
"YES, MY LORD!!!!" Shabunga cried as he scrambled to the wall where he kept the lever of the cell's bars. He pulled it back up, and the bars rose and hid in the doorway.
Falco grinned as he lifted the Golden Bafomdad higher. He boomed, "NOW STEP ASIDE, MORTAL!!!"
"Yes, sir!" Shabunga muttered as he stepped aside. Like a god he is impersonating, Falco strutted past the subdued dinosaur, holding his head up high, his back straight, and steps march-like and precise. Slippy squeezed his hands over his mouth, trying to restrain a laugh.
***
"I can't believe Shabunga actually fell for it!" Fox laughed as he petted Happy on the head the next morning. Happy nuzzled Fox's hand and purred like a content kitten before joining its fellow Golden Bafomdad Hoppy and Haughty.
"Yeah!" Krystal agreed. She turned to Falco, "You did a pretty good imitating a Jigoku Kami, Falco. I'm pretty sure that Shabunga would never go near another Bafomdad!"
"I was hoping he would convince him to make honest sales now, though," Fox said, sighing.
Tricky piped in, "Why didn't you guys beat him up with the traps? It would be soooo cool!"
Slippy chuckled. "As much as we hate it, we just let it slide. Besides, I think Shabunga went through more than he should have."
"Awwwwwwwww.... you stink!"
Peppy glanced at Happy playing with Hoppy and Haughty. "What about the little girl?"
"You mean the former owner of Happy?" Falco said.
The old rabbit nodded.
Fox, who was sitting under a Dumbledang Tree, noticed the same ThornTail who told about the girl who lost her pet nearby. He got up and picked up Happy then approached the ThornTail, "Greetings!"
"Greetings," he mumbled. He noticed the little golden creature in Fox's hands. "Ah, so you have Happy now, I see."
"That's right. Do you know where the little girl is?"
"She's not a little anymore. Shabunga stole the Bafomdad twenty years ago."
Everyone's eyes widened in surprise.
"She lives in a cave where the WarpStone dwells. You can meet her there."
"Oh," Tricky started. "It's the same ThornTail whose eggs were in danger last year!"
"Yeah!" Fox said nodding.
***
"Happy!" the female ThornTail cried happily as soon as Fox returned the Golden Bafomdad to its original owner. Happy leaped out of the vulpine's hands and hopped to his owner and nuzzled her, the ThornTail nuzzling back like a mother dinosaur to her child.
Fox sighed, standing nearby and rolling his eyes and crossing his arms like an impatient child waiting in line at a candy store. He let by the sentimental reunion of master and pet, then grumbled, "Are you quite finished?"
The ThornTail walked to Fox and licked him. Fox panicked, "HEY!!!"
"Thank you so much for bringing him back to me, Mister Fox! I've lost Happy for so long ago, I just missed him so much. I thought I lost him forever!"
"Yeah, yeah... no problem," Fox mumbled as he washed himself by the river that surrounded the WarpStone.
Tricky cleared his throat then began, "Um, Ma'am, we didn't... exactly come here to... um... well...."
The ThornTail turned to Tricky. "What is it? What do you need?"
"We need Happy to help us in our mission... so..."
The mother ThornTail paused for several moments then uttered, "Oh........."
"Yeah..."
The ThornTail bent down to Happy, "Looks like these guys really need you, Happy. Go with them and help them. Don't give them any trouble now."
Happy nodded.
The ThornTail looked up to Fox, "Fox, please take care of Happy. Return him to me when your mission is done."
"Yeah, I got it," Fox said as he wiped his face then picked up Happy. He turned around and started walking, "See ya, Mrs. ThornTail!"
"Good bye, Fox! Safe journey!"
***
"GEEZ, IT'S SO DAMN COLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Starr and Tricky yelped in the SnowHorn Wastes, their voice echoing in the mountains.
Krystal smacked them on the head. "Shaddup! You don't have to tell the world how you feel!"
"It's a good thing we're already dead," Slippy commented. "Otherwise, I'd freeze in this temperature since I'm cold-blooded."
"We didn't come here to complain about becoming Lylatian-flavored popsicles!" Peppy reminded his comrades. "We're here to find out where the SnowHorns keep their Golden Bafomdad."
Fox was talking to Garunda Te about the location of the Golden Bafomdad. When he returned, he informed Starr and the late StarFox Team, "The SnowHorns don't keep a Golden Bafomdad."
"That must mean it's a free critter," Falco grumbled. "Now we have to search for it?"
"I guess so..." Slippy said, shrugging.
***
Three hours passed, and the entire troupe was already complaining about their search. "I wish there was a faster way to look," Fox moaned. He looked up and spoke, hoping that Slippy is listening. "Slippy, can you make a Bafomdad Radar or something?"
"We won't have to!" Slippy shouted. "Look!"
Hopping all alone on the little icebergs on the freezing cold stream, a Golden Bafomdad, shivering cold from the chilly atmosphere, attempted to cross the stream. It noticed the fox and falcon boy and their Bafomdads at the other side, and it hopped faster over the ice. It slipped off one and fell and began to drown, splashing about in the icy water.
"I'll get it," Fox said as he picked up a stick from the ground and stuck it out near the Golden Bafomdad. The critter grabbed the stick with its teeth and pulled itself up, Fox then bringing him upon the snow.
Starr ran to it and wrapped his arms around the freezing critter. "Hey, hey, it's all right! Don't worry little guy!"
"That's great! We got our next Bafomdad. Now let's move to get the last one," Fox said as he turned to head out of the SnowHorn Wastes.
The iced Bafomdad looked up to Hoppy, the pink-collared Golden Bafomdad standing right next to Starr. It hopped out of Starr's arms then trotted to Hoppy and started sniffing all over it.
Slippy watched. "I think this one is a boy Bafomdad."
"How do you know?" Krystal asked.
"I examined the Bafomdads quite a while ago. Hoppy's a girl, and Haughty and Happy are boys."
"So?"
The Bafomdad continued sniffing Hoppy grinned weirdly. Hoppy began to look anxious. The male crept closer to Hoppy, continuously sniffing her, then finally licking her. Hoppy retreated and leaped into Starr's arms and dug deep into his embrace.
"Oh, great," Fox grumbled. "If that thing ever gets near me and starts humping my leg, I'm gonna dump it back in the water!"
"FOX!!!" Starr shot back.
"So what are we gonna name this one now?" Falco asked. "'Horny?'"
His question immediately resulted with the three other ghosts clobbering him into the water.
The iced Bafomdad noticed the glistening StarFox badge on Tricky's head and on Fox's shirt. It hopped to Tricky and sniffed him, then leaped on his horned nose then snatched the badge away. Tricky was shocked, and he yelled at the critter, "Hey! Give it back!" He lunged at the Golden Bafomdad, but the furry creature was too quick, and it made a hasty retreat into the forest.
"Great!" Fox moaned as he and his Team chased the Bafomdad into the forest.
***
"Any sign of him?" Tricky asked Fox after he and their friends searched for several hours.
Krystal spoke. "Sorry, Tricky. We'll just get you another badge-"
"I don't care! Fox gave me that badge when I helped him save Dinosaur Planet! That badge has sentimental value, man!"
"We'll find that badge and Bafomdad soon enough, Tricky," Fox said as he stepped out of the bushes. "So far, I can't find that thief or the badge. That little guy must be hiding somewhere."
"Well, find it soon! Please!" Tricky pleaded.
***
Before they knew it, Starr and the Bafomdads became lost. They have strayed far from the group, and now they're stranded in the middle of the icy forest.
Starr was exhausted from their several-hour long search. His legs gave out, and he slumped and leaned against a dead tree. Hoppy and Happy whimpered and nuzzled the falcon boy, Haughty leaping on his head.
"Sorry, guys," Star muttered. "I'm just so tired. I know it's not safe to fall asleep in an icy area, but I just can't keep going..." before he would finish, poor Starr fell asleep.
Hoppy watched the snowflakes fall on the little boy. She became worried about the child freezing to death, and she started hopping around to find something to warm him up. Happy gathered twigs and made it into a heap, Haughty rubbing them together to make a small fire. Hoppy sighed in relief.
*Snap!*
The three Bafomdads spun around where they heard a twig snapped. A fellow Golden Bafomdad holding a shiny StarFox badge was climbing a steep snowy hill and hid behind the bushes. Hoppy and Haughty glanced back at Starr and motioned to Happy to stay with the sleeping boy as they follow the Bafomdad thief.
Hoppy and Haughty stealthily followed the thief up the hill, dodging every rock and twig and hiding behind every boulder and bush. The thief hopped behind a tall, thorny bush, and Hoppy and Haughty caught up with it and looked to where he hid. Behind the thorny bush a pile of riches were heaped up, jewelry, precious stones, golden bars, scarabs, even the SnowHorn Artifact Fox retrieved to a gray SnowHorn at one time. Leaning on that pile like it was a bed was a ghastly red-tailed hawk, sleeping.
Hoppy and Haughty shuddered in their stance, hiding deeper behind the thorny bush. The thief leaped to his master's lap, waking him up.
The red-tailed hawk ghost woke up and smiled at the Bafomdad. "Hey, Drip," he greeted the Golden creature. "What have you got for me?"
Drip dropped the StarFox badge in the hawk's palm. The bird of prey's raptorial eyes widened. "Oh?... so Fox McCloud is here..."
***
"That jasper star," the Krazoa Peppy muttered as he watched the night fall, the stars coming out of hiding and displaying their shining beauty. Only one, however, was almost not shining at all, fading out as if it was about to fall.
"Oh, dear..." Krazoa Diva mumbled. The caring motherliness of its shell was coming out, and the false Diva shuddered as she embraced herself as if hugging a child, her eyes coming near tears. "No, no....... it can't be..."
"We must let it happen, sister," the last Krazoa said as it hovered over the falcon's head. "When the next mortal dies, I shall take its shell. Then we can finally rejuvenate ourselves then rebuild the Krazoa Palace."
"We must take caution," Krazoa Slippy said as he stood up from the boulder he sat upon. "I have a feeling an old 'friend' is there with Fox McCloud... and he'll be responsible for the death of our next shell, just as he was responsible for our sister's over there," he said as he held a hand to Diva.
"Let us go," Diva said as she turned to leave.
Krazoa Krystal held up a hand. "Wait, sister, be careful for the-"
*THUD!!!*
"-Hole..."
Krazoa Falco chuckled. "Most unfortunate of you to take the shell of such a graceless woman," he smirked, the sarcastic side of his shell taking over.
Krazoa Diva's hostile side came out also. "Say that again, brother, and I shall make sure you leave that wretched man's body with MY hands!"
***
Hoppy and Haughty felt helpless. This man, Kuro Youkai, the same man who violated, impregnated, then killed Starr's mother, was lying on a pile of riches with his Golden Bafomdad, Drip, and bringing news of the arrival of Fox McCloud. Both were too afraid to approach the red-tailed hawk; this man was truly evil.
Kuro watched as Drip hopped up and down furiously. "What is it now?"
Drip hopped to a pile of branches and grabbed one that had a slight appearance to a spear with his teeth. He then leaped around like a warrior, flapping his ears (since Bafomdads don't have arms) like wings, then throwing the spear like a javelin.
Kuro took the hint. "Starr is here too... I see..." he smirked and stood up. "Lead the way, Drip."
Hoppy and Haughty gazed at each other then nodded, quickly making up a plan. Hoppy turned around from behind the thorny bush then hurdled away as Haughty leaped out and approached Kuro. Hoppy fled to where Starr slept as Haughty stood up to the ghastly hawk.
"Oh, ho, another one," Kuro said, smiling. "Finally. Another Golden Bafomdad. Now both my Master and I can be revived-"
Before the hawk could finish, Haughty bounded on Kuro's head and stomped on it. Kuro fell down the other side of the hill where the Bafomdads came from and ghosted through a tree, Haughty smacking into it. Drip bounded after them then tackled Haughty then bit him. Kuro ignored both Bafomdads fighting as he scrambled around the hill to follow Hoppy.
***
Hoppy scurried into the dead forest and found Starr still sleeping by the little fire her friends Haughty and Happy made. Happy was snoozing in Starr's arms like a little teddy bear when his ears twitched from the sound of Hoppy's whimpering and leaping. He hopped out of Starr's arms without waking him and skipped to where he heard Hoppy's whimpers, peering through the dead bushes then finding the female Golden Bafomdad running to the small camp.
Because of his great height and speed, Kuro eventually caught up with Hoppy and grabbed her. Hoppy screeched, kicked, and struggle, but she was no match for the much bigger Kuro. Happy watched helplessly as the hawk threw the Golden Bafomdad into the icy rapids nearby then stormed towards his son. Happy gulped and hid behind a rock, unable to help Starr as Kuro grabbed his child by the collar.
Starr awoke from his father's waking. "Wha......... PAPA????"
"Surprise, surprise, son. Miss me?"
"Let me go!" Starr screamed as he kicked his father, but his foot only went through the ghost. Still, Starr shrieked and kicked. "Where's my mama? Where are you keeping her?"
"With me. But don't worry, my son. You'll join her soon." Kuro then ghosted his hand into Starr's chest then gripped his heart.
((to be continued...))
***
((Dun-dun-DUUUUUUUUNNN!!! Now that chapter's finished, please review! ;_;)