Part VI
Escape from Lightfoot Village
"Wha, where am I. I'm I dead?" Everything was a blur. "What happened?" Krystal said to herself. Her eyes slowly focused into her surroundings. "What is this place?" She looked around. It was dark, almost pitch black, and foggy. It looked as if she was in a small cave. She started to get up but was immediately pulled back down by her wrists. "What the," she started. "I'm chained to the wall!" Her wrists were locked in large metal bands connected to a chain attached to the wall behind her. She looked to her left and saw something sitting against the wall. "Hello?" The figure very slowly tilted its head upward.
"Who is that?" the figure asked.
"My name is Krystal. Who are you?"
"Well everybody use to call me Musclefoot, but I have no idea what they call me now." The creature talked slowly as if been put through tremendous torture.
"How long have you been here?"
"It's been too long to tell."
"Why are you-" she was interrupted by the sounds of moaning. She looked toward her left and saw a figure in the shadows.
"Aaaahh," came noises from the figure. "Ohhh. my back! Where am I?"
"Who is that?" asked Krystal. Musclefoot concentrated on the figure at Krystal's left too.
"No," it started, "it can't be! Is that Fox McCloud?!" The creature was talking at a much faster and louder rate.
"Yeah I'm Fox," he replied. "Aww ohh, my aching back! Stupid Lightfoots don't know how to-"
"YOU ARE THE REASON I'M DOWN HERE!" Musclefoot shouted.
"What? What are you talking about? I have nothing to do with you! Who are you anyways?"
"It's me Fox, the one you humiliated in front of the ENTIRE CLAN!!" He tried to get up, but was also chained to the wall by his wrists. He let out an enormous yell and fell back down against the wall.
"Musclefoot?" Fox said. "Is that Musclefoot?" Fox had a worried look on his face.
"Oh, it's not your fault I'm down here. it's my fault for not leaving when I had the chance."
"Leave? But why? You are part of the Lightfoot Tribe."
"Yes, I know. But they wanted me to leave after you beat my records. They said I was a failure, and failures don't belong in the clan."
"And I suppose all of them could beat your record!" Fox said in a sarcastic voice.
"You're right, it was a stupid reason."
"Yeah, they shouldn't throw you in prison because of a stupid record."
"That's not why they threw me in prison. They threw me in prison because I kept begging for a second chance. They finally gave me one..." he paused for a moment.
"Yes?"
"And I failed again!"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"Please Fox, don't make me think it was your fault. It wasn't your fault."
"Hey, I heard Krystal's voice a minute ago."
"Yeah I'm here Fox," she said. "Don't worry I almost got it!"
"Got what?" Fox asked her. She didn't answer. "Almost got what?" Just then, Krystal jerked her hand back and freed herself of the metal band on her right wrist. "What just happened? It's too dark I can't see a thing!" Krystal freed her other wrist a couple of seconds later. She walked over to Fox and grabbed his right wrist and the metal band on it. She tried to jerk it free.
"It. wont. budge!" She stopped trying. "I'm sorry Fox, but you'll have to stay here until I can find a key of some sort. Your hand is too big to go through the rings."
"Okay, but please hurry. I think my back is bleeding but I can't tell."
"Which way do I go?" she asked Musclefoot.
"To my right," he replied. Krystal rushed off to the path at Musclefoot's right. She started at a running pace, but within a couple of minutes of going though a slightly curved narrow path, she slowed to a walk. It seemed to never end.
"How long is this tunnel?" she asked herself. She continued for what seemed to be more than thirty minutes. She saw a larger opening ahead of her. "Finally," she said. She walked out into the large cave. She looked down and noticed a dark figure against the wall.
"Krystal?" the figure began. "Did you find a key?"
"Fox?" she said. "But I-"
"Went in a big circle," Musclefoot said. "I apologize. I forgot how big these caverns are. I'd draw you a map if I could, but your gonna have to memorize the way." Musclefoot explained, as best as he could, the way out of the caverns. "The Lightfoots made these caves this way to make sure that if a prisoner escaped he would die of starvation before he could find a way out."
"So I take it this will take a while by walking," Krystal assumed.
"Please, don't go to fast . . . but not too slow, for the Lightfoots come down to check the prisoners often. Once they know you're gone, they'll probably torture us until we tell them where you are."
"Wait a minute . . . they'll what?" asked Fox with a worried look.
"Okay then, I'll hurry," Krystal finished. With that, she rushed off to the right exit again. She tried her hardest to remember Musclefoot's directions. She turned left, right, left, straight, right, right, up a flight of stairs, right, left . . . she couldn't remember the rest. She guessed the rest of the way. A short time later, she ended up back at the same flight of stairs she went up. She went around in circles several times. She had an idea. She undid her crown and separated the beads. She picked a direction, but before she went through she left one bead at the start of the tunnel. She thought that if she ran into a tunnel with a bead already there, that meant she was going in circles. She knelt down to place a bead, but she accidentally dropped it instead. It fell on its side. and began to roll! She followed it and it went through many passages until it hit a dead end. "I've got it!" she yelled. The yell echoed through the caves for a few seconds. "If, when I roll the bead on it's side, it falls flat then I should go that way. If it keeps rolling then I should go the opposite way!"
She backtracked as far as she could remember from following the bead. When she wasn't sure which way to go, she put down the bead on it's side, gave it a good roll, and watched it fall flat. She was going the right way! She soon reached the flight of stairs she was at before. She picked a direction and rolled the bead. It rolled in, so she picked another, then another until she found one where the bead fell flat. "This must be the way," she said. She did the same thing every time she ran into a fork. After a while, she noticed the air smelled fresher. "I must be close," she said to herself. She continued down what seemed a never-ending tunnel until she heard voices. She stopped and listened.
"Stupid blue fox hurt some of ours!" the voice said.
"I go check on prisoners. I think I give the blue fox a hard time when I get there," said the voice of another, followed by a cruel chuckle. They were obviously Lightfoots.
"I come with! I don't want to miss this."
"Oh no!" Krystal said. "If I don't hurry, they'll know that I'm gone. And then what will happen to Fox?!" She thought to herself for a moment. "I'll never get help in time!" She put all her beads back onto her crown then disconnected the small red crystal from the crown. "There's only one thing to do."
"I'm gonna stab her in the feet!"
"I'm gonna pick her up by her hair!"
"Well, I'm gonna-" he was interrupted with Krystal's foot in his eye. The Lightfoot she kicked went flying into the cave wall, quickly falling to the ground. The other Lightfoot looked at his partner for a moment then looked back at Krystal. He readied his spear. Krystal stood still looking carefully at the Lightfoot. Suddenly the Lightfoot sprang forward, spear first, and gave out a loud yell. Krystal waited until his spear was only a foot away from her then jumped into the air. She flipped upside-down and used one hand to balance herself on the spear, while the other hand slapped the back of the Lightfoot's neck. She landed perfectly on her feet. The Lightfoot stood there for a couple of seconds, made some weird noises. then just collapsed. Krystal knelt down beside the Lightfoot and felt around the back of his neck. Then, she gripped a small object sticking out from his neck and pulled back. Slowly, out came her small red crystal from his neck, followed by a large amount of blood. She wiped it off with her cloth then reattached it to her crown.
"That should buy me a little more time," she said. She continued down the tunnel for a moment, but suddenly turned around and ran back to where the Lightfoots were. She grabbed the spear from the Lightfoot she kicked earlier. then used it on him. "Just in case," she said. She took the spear with her for a weapon incase she ran into any more trouble.
Not long afterwards, the cave was getting brighter and brighter.
"I'm so close!" she said. Soon she reached the caves entrance. She peeked around the corner of the entrance to check for any Lightfoots. There were none. She leaped out into the open and inhaled as much fresh air she could. "Ah! It smells so nice!" she said. She breathed the fresh air for a minute then sat down. The only thing she was thinking about was how she was going to get Fox and the other Lightfoot out of the caves. She had no idea where a key could be, and she had no idea who to go get for help. She sat for a while. thinking. hoping that Fox and Musclefoot would get out of this alive.
Escape from Lightfoot Village
"Wha, where am I. I'm I dead?" Everything was a blur. "What happened?" Krystal said to herself. Her eyes slowly focused into her surroundings. "What is this place?" She looked around. It was dark, almost pitch black, and foggy. It looked as if she was in a small cave. She started to get up but was immediately pulled back down by her wrists. "What the," she started. "I'm chained to the wall!" Her wrists were locked in large metal bands connected to a chain attached to the wall behind her. She looked to her left and saw something sitting against the wall. "Hello?" The figure very slowly tilted its head upward.
"Who is that?" the figure asked.
"My name is Krystal. Who are you?"
"Well everybody use to call me Musclefoot, but I have no idea what they call me now." The creature talked slowly as if been put through tremendous torture.
"How long have you been here?"
"It's been too long to tell."
"Why are you-" she was interrupted by the sounds of moaning. She looked toward her left and saw a figure in the shadows.
"Aaaahh," came noises from the figure. "Ohhh. my back! Where am I?"
"Who is that?" asked Krystal. Musclefoot concentrated on the figure at Krystal's left too.
"No," it started, "it can't be! Is that Fox McCloud?!" The creature was talking at a much faster and louder rate.
"Yeah I'm Fox," he replied. "Aww ohh, my aching back! Stupid Lightfoots don't know how to-"
"YOU ARE THE REASON I'M DOWN HERE!" Musclefoot shouted.
"What? What are you talking about? I have nothing to do with you! Who are you anyways?"
"It's me Fox, the one you humiliated in front of the ENTIRE CLAN!!" He tried to get up, but was also chained to the wall by his wrists. He let out an enormous yell and fell back down against the wall.
"Musclefoot?" Fox said. "Is that Musclefoot?" Fox had a worried look on his face.
"Oh, it's not your fault I'm down here. it's my fault for not leaving when I had the chance."
"Leave? But why? You are part of the Lightfoot Tribe."
"Yes, I know. But they wanted me to leave after you beat my records. They said I was a failure, and failures don't belong in the clan."
"And I suppose all of them could beat your record!" Fox said in a sarcastic voice.
"You're right, it was a stupid reason."
"Yeah, they shouldn't throw you in prison because of a stupid record."
"That's not why they threw me in prison. They threw me in prison because I kept begging for a second chance. They finally gave me one..." he paused for a moment.
"Yes?"
"And I failed again!"
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"Please Fox, don't make me think it was your fault. It wasn't your fault."
"Hey, I heard Krystal's voice a minute ago."
"Yeah I'm here Fox," she said. "Don't worry I almost got it!"
"Got what?" Fox asked her. She didn't answer. "Almost got what?" Just then, Krystal jerked her hand back and freed herself of the metal band on her right wrist. "What just happened? It's too dark I can't see a thing!" Krystal freed her other wrist a couple of seconds later. She walked over to Fox and grabbed his right wrist and the metal band on it. She tried to jerk it free.
"It. wont. budge!" She stopped trying. "I'm sorry Fox, but you'll have to stay here until I can find a key of some sort. Your hand is too big to go through the rings."
"Okay, but please hurry. I think my back is bleeding but I can't tell."
"Which way do I go?" she asked Musclefoot.
"To my right," he replied. Krystal rushed off to the path at Musclefoot's right. She started at a running pace, but within a couple of minutes of going though a slightly curved narrow path, she slowed to a walk. It seemed to never end.
"How long is this tunnel?" she asked herself. She continued for what seemed to be more than thirty minutes. She saw a larger opening ahead of her. "Finally," she said. She walked out into the large cave. She looked down and noticed a dark figure against the wall.
"Krystal?" the figure began. "Did you find a key?"
"Fox?" she said. "But I-"
"Went in a big circle," Musclefoot said. "I apologize. I forgot how big these caverns are. I'd draw you a map if I could, but your gonna have to memorize the way." Musclefoot explained, as best as he could, the way out of the caverns. "The Lightfoots made these caves this way to make sure that if a prisoner escaped he would die of starvation before he could find a way out."
"So I take it this will take a while by walking," Krystal assumed.
"Please, don't go to fast . . . but not too slow, for the Lightfoots come down to check the prisoners often. Once they know you're gone, they'll probably torture us until we tell them where you are."
"Wait a minute . . . they'll what?" asked Fox with a worried look.
"Okay then, I'll hurry," Krystal finished. With that, she rushed off to the right exit again. She tried her hardest to remember Musclefoot's directions. She turned left, right, left, straight, right, right, up a flight of stairs, right, left . . . she couldn't remember the rest. She guessed the rest of the way. A short time later, she ended up back at the same flight of stairs she went up. She went around in circles several times. She had an idea. She undid her crown and separated the beads. She picked a direction, but before she went through she left one bead at the start of the tunnel. She thought that if she ran into a tunnel with a bead already there, that meant she was going in circles. She knelt down to place a bead, but she accidentally dropped it instead. It fell on its side. and began to roll! She followed it and it went through many passages until it hit a dead end. "I've got it!" she yelled. The yell echoed through the caves for a few seconds. "If, when I roll the bead on it's side, it falls flat then I should go that way. If it keeps rolling then I should go the opposite way!"
She backtracked as far as she could remember from following the bead. When she wasn't sure which way to go, she put down the bead on it's side, gave it a good roll, and watched it fall flat. She was going the right way! She soon reached the flight of stairs she was at before. She picked a direction and rolled the bead. It rolled in, so she picked another, then another until she found one where the bead fell flat. "This must be the way," she said. She did the same thing every time she ran into a fork. After a while, she noticed the air smelled fresher. "I must be close," she said to herself. She continued down what seemed a never-ending tunnel until she heard voices. She stopped and listened.
"Stupid blue fox hurt some of ours!" the voice said.
"I go check on prisoners. I think I give the blue fox a hard time when I get there," said the voice of another, followed by a cruel chuckle. They were obviously Lightfoots.
"I come with! I don't want to miss this."
"Oh no!" Krystal said. "If I don't hurry, they'll know that I'm gone. And then what will happen to Fox?!" She thought to herself for a moment. "I'll never get help in time!" She put all her beads back onto her crown then disconnected the small red crystal from the crown. "There's only one thing to do."
"I'm gonna stab her in the feet!"
"I'm gonna pick her up by her hair!"
"Well, I'm gonna-" he was interrupted with Krystal's foot in his eye. The Lightfoot she kicked went flying into the cave wall, quickly falling to the ground. The other Lightfoot looked at his partner for a moment then looked back at Krystal. He readied his spear. Krystal stood still looking carefully at the Lightfoot. Suddenly the Lightfoot sprang forward, spear first, and gave out a loud yell. Krystal waited until his spear was only a foot away from her then jumped into the air. She flipped upside-down and used one hand to balance herself on the spear, while the other hand slapped the back of the Lightfoot's neck. She landed perfectly on her feet. The Lightfoot stood there for a couple of seconds, made some weird noises. then just collapsed. Krystal knelt down beside the Lightfoot and felt around the back of his neck. Then, she gripped a small object sticking out from his neck and pulled back. Slowly, out came her small red crystal from his neck, followed by a large amount of blood. She wiped it off with her cloth then reattached it to her crown.
"That should buy me a little more time," she said. She continued down the tunnel for a moment, but suddenly turned around and ran back to where the Lightfoots were. She grabbed the spear from the Lightfoot she kicked earlier. then used it on him. "Just in case," she said. She took the spear with her for a weapon incase she ran into any more trouble.
Not long afterwards, the cave was getting brighter and brighter.
"I'm so close!" she said. Soon she reached the caves entrance. She peeked around the corner of the entrance to check for any Lightfoots. There were none. She leaped out into the open and inhaled as much fresh air she could. "Ah! It smells so nice!" she said. She breathed the fresh air for a minute then sat down. The only thing she was thinking about was how she was going to get Fox and the other Lightfoot out of the caves. She had no idea where a key could be, and she had no idea who to go get for help. She sat for a while. thinking. hoping that Fox and Musclefoot would get out of this alive.