-AUTHOR'S NOTES-
Yay, I'm back from my vacation. As far as I could see nothing much seemed to happen when I was gone, other than CrAsHlOvEr (or Tsunami90 from DA) managed to join here, the amount of repetitive "being sucked into world of Jak and Dax" fanfiction being on the increase, and Turquoise Phoenix putting forward a lovely MST (not on this site) during the time.
So, yeah, it's time I might as well continue with SR3. And it's in this one that we head into a crucial grudge against Tiko, standing tall and trying to defend his factory for what it was. A bit on the simple side, but has just enough drama to keep suspense going.
I should have uploaded it sooner had it not been for the site's hardware failures last night. But either way, hope you like it.
Peace out,
-Rexy-
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A while later, the group left the large room, leaving the light to shine into the darkened corridors ahead of them. Martha stood ahead of the group, looking more optimistic than she was a few seconds beforehand, with her hands getting closer to each other as time passed.
"I think I understand what this is all meaning! N-Trance must have constructed the machines here, ever since we know that Tiko can barely do a thing around here! They needed the magic of Volcano Isle to run on, probably to keep this wrecked warehouse alive again and creating the Spiro Cannon. But I'm not sure about a place for Aiko's saying and the stone."
"It's okay, you'll get there", whispered Neo with a smile.
He placed his hand on her shoulder. That left her in silence, causing her to start twitching her nose in deep thought. Then... she somehow gave out a light jump of surprise. That caused Neo to step back at the sight, giving her room to step forward slightly.
"She said that good causes would reach the island at something else's expense. But... does this mean that the island will be sucked dry of its magic, but be shown as a holiday destination or something?"
Sparky gave out a light growl. "Oh please, would I really want to try something like that to the island?"
The wolarcoot then folded his arms, and started pacing up and down the sides of the corridors, showing a more moody glance than before. Then, he faced the others, whom exchanged thoughtful faces back at him. The thoughts of a holiday destination for Volcano Isle went through Bev's mind, leaving her with a confused look.
"I don't know if that's necessary, but if we have to know the truth we may need to follow our noses."
Most of the others around her gave out light nods of agreement. While that happened, their route started to show a lighter path ahead of them. That caused them to look directly forward, towards a large metallic door, decorated with green strobe lights that flash every two seconds.
"Our answer could lie right there!" beamed Gary. "Come on chaps!"
Smiling, he took a hold of the knob, and the door opened. But... from there, a small gap is seen. They went inside it and squeezed through it one by one. This left them to walk away from it, until... the sound of squeezing caused Crash to turn back, and see Crunch stuck inside it.
"Crunch, what's taking you so long?"
"The door's not big enough! I can barely breathe here!"
He looked over at him, and saw his large muscular chest struggling to fit in the narrow gap. That caused him to sigh at it, before rushing to his side and taking a hold of both of his large muscle-packed arms, pulling them back as far as he possibly can.
"Get here you!"
He then started stepping back as far as he can, starting to budge Crunch up by an inch or so. But... it didn't quite seem to be enough. Then... a few cracks started to show up on the door. He pulled harder still, until the brown bandicoot soon ended up popping his way out like a cork. He landed on the ground with a thud across his body. Once in, the larger door outside swung itself shut, leaving them into a pitch-black room. Only their eyes can be seen lit up in the darkness, making their way around the room only by using touch and hearing.
"Is there anyone here who can eat their pineapples?" asked Lozzy in a low tone.
"What do you mean?" said Sparky in a confused tone.
"I think..." Jenny gave out a pause. "She's meaning if there's someone here who can see in the dark."
As she said that, she stepped further ahead of herself, but... she brought her leg inside a box-shaped compartment. That caused her to lose her balance slightly, before she ended up landing on her back with a thud. This caused some of the others to step back slightly.
"I think I got doubts", muttered Zephyr with a wink.
Before anything else could happen, the room started to light up with a misty purple light. That caused them to look on at their surroundings, and see them in a mission control-like area. The equipment there amazed the majority, while DJ was seen making his way over towards the left, where an opening was seen.
"Look at all this stuff ahead!"
He pointed out through there, and it wasn't long until most of the others came around him. They looked on at the scene ahead, and saw the transfer of the Spiro-Cannon continuing. They faced the direction of the cannon itself, and at this stage it has now shown itself to be thirty feet tall!
"Amazing...!" gasped Snappy. "But... how can this be in such brisk operation?"
"Look!" Aiko shouted.
She pointed over at a nearby balcony to the left, and that was where a large metal bridge leads towards Tiko, whom was seen standing there with his hair moving in the draft inside the cold room. They went to him as quick as they could, and upon their first steps on the bridge, he turned straight towards them.
"Ah, I never thought you'd be able to find me here. But... didn't N-Trance trap you in that cell?"
"Not when I was here, freak!" screamed Aurora.
She rushed ahead of the group and was the first to jump off the bridge, with her crafts knife held into her hand in a tighter grasp than before. The others soon followed her cue, and stood right behind Tiko in a line, each of which leering over at him as fiercely as they ever did before.
"We're starting to understand what you want with the magic of Volcano Isle!" Martha bellowed. "Why is it that you want to drain it like some useless fossil fuel for your own needs?"
She then started to snarl at him, with her hands gripping each other in tight grasps. Expecting a scream back... Tiko actually folded his arms and looked over at her like she was a tiny ant crawling across the ground, ready to be squashed in an instant with his own two boot-wearing feet.
"You seriously must have thought a bit too far ahead of yourself, didn't you little girl?"
"I have a name, jerk!!!"
She tried to rush towards him, but... it wasn't too long until Bev went towards her and took her by the arms, leaving her to trip up onto the ground, landing face first. From there, she looked up into his face with her face starting to turn bright red with rage, anger and uttermost disgust.
"We'll see which of you have the name long enough!" cackled Tiko.
He then rooted into his pockets, and pulled out a pistol. He then aimed it right down towards Martha, whom started to scream with panic at the firearm. But then... his attention was brought over to the Spiro-Cannon, reaching 33 feet in terms of height. That caused him to take a few steps back.
"On the other hand, I think you must have seen way too much for your own good! It's time to wipe the memories from your very minds!"
Neo took a step forward and waved one of his fists in the air before shouting, "You're on!"
He then stood ahead of the group with a smile on his face. He then gestured towards Aurora, Chyna and Martha in order, before looking out towards him with a face filled with part-anger part confidence across it. They then started to circle around the panel, trailing their hair - and in Tiko's case, his cloak - through the wind.
"Come this way!"
He then stood still and gestured with his arms to bring Neo closer to him. With a smirk, he brought back one of his hands and started running towards him, but... before he could inflict damage, Tiko brought out his arms and blocked him, before sending him down to the ground, leaving his limbs in a twist.
"You've faced too much of this! Stay away from him!"
With anger, Aurora rushed from behind him, jumped over her comrade's recovering body and pounded her way towards the top of his head. He tried to pull her off, but... it wasn't until she stood onto his shoulders and pushed him down to the ground on her feet when she finally could do so. He rolled across the ground, and looked back at her.
"My, you fight pretty good for a girl! Let's see how you can cope with this!"
He then went towards a nearby machine with a large aerial, and flipped the switch. It started to sparkle with bright white power, and from there, a bright spark was given out. A thunderbolt was sent down to the ground, almost hitting her feet. Then, more of them came near her, leaving her screaming for mercy.
"It's getting to be too much!"
"Not when Chyna here!" came a shout from behind her.
The wombat-creature pushed ahead of her, and rolled across the ground at a vigorous state, bringing the bolts far away from her and Aurora. Tiko gasped at her skill, before she soon landed, with all four paws firmly onto the ground. She got closer towards her, with a snarl brought onto her face and her tail sticking on end.
"Leave girl alone, or Chyna make mincemeat of Tiko!"
She brought her paws out even further still, and from there, sharp silver claws showed up in there. They shone so much they gave off a light twinkle as soon as it passed any light source around the room. However, it still didn't scare Tiko, as he folded his arms and twitched his jaw towards her.
"You've shown a worthy match of yourself there. But it won't be for long."
Snickering, he pulled back the switch on one machine, and pulled down one from another. This time, it started to shine with a bright red glow, and several flakes were spat out towards the top. They remained there for a while, before a larger set of shapes can be seen quickly making their way towards them all.
"Guys, look out from down below!" shouted Martha with fright.
She pointed over at the shapes, now looking more like they were half as big as the platform. Neo, Aurora and Chyna all looked up at once, seeing the shadows for them expand across the ground. Without question, they ran to the bridge and waited for the shapes to make contact in giant meteor-like forms, giving off a bright red fog around them.
"How close was that?" questioned Neo with shock.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out!" Martha screamed back.
She started to scratch her head at the thoughts of the giant balls, now starting to settle within her mind. Then, from nearby, Tiko made his way towards the others and smirked at them all before getting out his pistol. That caused the four to start running through the fog together, with their vision becoming blurrier.
"Don't go too fast!" panicked Martha.
Her screams echoed, yet they didn't quite listen to her. The more they ran forward, the more the fog started to clear up. It wasn't long until they brought themselves into a corner, facing Tiko, who was there with his pistol out. He was on the edge of pulling the trigger, when... Neo went ahead and took a hold of the nozzle.
"Time for you to meet your maker!"
Smirking, he pulled his hardest, and all of a sudden, the gun flew out of his hands and started flying around the air, spinning at several revolutions a second. Tiko tried to run for it, but... hidden in the fog, Martha stuck her foot out and left him to trip up over the balcony edge, screaming and with his cloak waving around. His cries soon faded into nothing, and that left them all to look over the edge. But... all that could be seen was a large drop leading into darkness. That caused some of the group members to gulp at the sight of it. This left them to look at each other, exchanging concerned looks on their faces.
"Is he..." Neo paused before blinking. "...gone?"
Silence came around them, as they knew that it was too early to get a direct answer. Then, they started to leave the bridge together, and they were about to leave the room for themselves, until... the sound of a gunshot was heard, causing them to turn around back at the scene of the encounter.
The group soon rushed back over the bridge towards the balcony where Tiko fell over. Most of them brought their heads over the side, with their hair going down over the side. This left them to blink over at a bright white fog starting to form twenty feet beneath them.
"What's going on?" Martha shouted, starting to shake.
The fog started to develop more into a swirling cloud, giving off bright white sparks every two seconds. It started to get thicker, and then, a shadow started to float from deep inside it. The figure then floated up towards them, and showed himself as Tiko, but his colors were black and white with only his emerald green eyes intact.
"You thought you got rid of me, didn't you brother?"
Neo tried to speak, but Crash pushed his way ahead of him. "We never had any intensions on doing so in the first place! Now how about we settle this over a cup of WumpaNog, ya?"
He then leant towards the wall and brought a hand onto there, giving off a light smile as he did so. That caused Tiko to look over at him with a look of anger and agitation, before he started floating towards him with his cloak flapping within the draft that passed through him.
"What kind of creature do you think you are?"
He then reached the platform the group was standing on, with his feet ending up two inches above the ground. He brought out his pistol and aimed it towards Crash, but... that was before the sound of a rumble was heard. He turned around, and saw the Spiro-Cannon glowing a bright white color. That caused him to sneer at it.
"Wait! The Cannon is almost finished, so it'll be over before you know it! It was nice knowing you!"
Cackling, he hovered his way towards it, and this left them in silence for five seconds. The cannon soon stopped glowing, and it was then when he twisted a knob, and out from the nozzle of the cannon came several white embers towards the ground, coming towards them like a fuse to a bomb.
"I suggest we run right about now!" ordered Neo in a high tone.
Martha gave out a scream at the sight of the embers - that was their cue to run back over the bridge, far away from the embers. They left behind soot-marked footprints onto the ground, passing through the purple room and out towards the dimly lit corridors ahead of them.
"Quick!" Beverley shrieked. "Get out of the door before the magic burns us!"
She pointed over to the large warehouse door where the group reunited after the mine cart incident. Then, they started heading inside one by one, passing through it. Again, DJ stopped at the door, checking everyone passing through, but... Gary didn't make it. His eyes widened as he looked down the corridors, and saw him hopping his way away from the flames, tying his shoelaces.
"I think it's almost got me!"
"Not when I'm here!" smiled DJ. "Hold onto me!"
He rushed towards Gary with his furry clothes floating in the air. Then, he brought his outstretched hands onto Gary's chest, bringing him onto his back. Then, they ran together, only leaving behind the remains of a shoelace to burn to ashes. He gave out a sigh of relief.
"Whew, thanks!"
They then went through the door together, Gary having to duck underneath the low barrier. Once inside, he jumped off, and then they ran out towards another door nearby. In there, a darkened area can be seen, filled with families of possums. Chyna's eyes widened at the sight.
"Jump in quick!" shouted Martha. "It may look like a pitfall, but it has to be worth it!"
She started to cower slightly, until she brought back her paws and jumped inside the room. The others soon followed, and once inside, Sparky's hands lit up in the darkness, showing their way down a dark and damp tunnel. Their run was left in silence for a while, until... stirring can be heard from the sides of the room.
Aiko quickly turned around. "Uh-oh, I think I can see monsters lurking in here!"
"Not when I'm here!"
With a smirk, Zephyr brought his hands behind him, and pulled out a bright blue light saber. He then ran towards the left of the room, and that was where a panther-type creature with wings jumped up onto him. He sent his saber down to it, pounding it to the ground and kicking it back into the darkness. Then... another one came from behind.
"Take that!"
He twirled his saber in a majorette stick fashion, before sending it down towards the creature, bringing it off its feet and back into the darkness. He started to smirk at the sight of it, with his tail wagging at the sight of it. But... it was soon pulled down to the ground by another creature.
"Hey, mind the tail!"
He looked towards it and sent his saber straight towards it, sending it down to the ground, with a bruise starting to form on the top of its head. Then, he ran back with the others towards a light at the end of the tunnel - a bunch of mine carts were seen leading outside and around the factory.
"Quick, take the carriages!" Aurora shouted as she held onto the side of one of which. "It'll probably be faster than us!"
She jumped in it, with most of the others jumping in random carriages after her. Then, they started to move at a gradual pace at first, before heading down a slope towards the ocean. They reached the bottom and started speeding along the path... but so were the flames - as Jenny looked behind her, they were seen coming their way up the track.
"It's almost caught up with us! I don't think we're going to make it!"
"Oh yes we are!" Spike said as he took a hold of her hair. "Be confident on yourself!"
He pulled her face back forward, and that was where they took a sharp turn towards the right. They gave out screams, before holding on tight and making the turn. As she predicted, the flames got closer to them and started to burn underneath the carriages, causing them to shake uncontrollably.
"Hold on tight!" Lozzy closed her eyes tightly. "I think we're about to capsize in this bloomin' thing!!!"
She held on tight, with her teeth gritting as tight as they can. They saw themselves going over a stretch of water, starting to illuminate bright platinum down beneath them. They held onto the sides of their carriages, trying to keep balance... until the front one had one of its front wheels dropped off.
"Steady on!" panicked Crunch. "I can't hold on much longer!"
And so he seemed right - most of the other carts started to face the same torture. They faced another corner, and they went around it, but... instead of staying on, they all flew off and spun around as they headed down towards the water, the whole group expecting an early shower, if not instant demise.
(scene fades to white and blends in)
In a back street somewhere, a figure was seen making a walk towards the ocean. It soon brought its figure into the light - a man in a large brown trench coat, big shoes, scruffy brown hair and same colored eyes. He had a smile brought upon his face, until... he ended up with one of his feet going against a lump in the ground.
"What is this?"
He then crouched down to its level and brought his hand down towards a lemon yellow stone. He blinked over at it, and brought an eye closer to it. All that he could see in there is its marble-like pattern. He then shrugged and placed it in his pocket. He walked closer towards the shores, but... he saw Volcano Isle turning a black and white color.
"I don't believe this...!"
It started to shake, continuing to flash a random color every second. Then, the sound of whirring brought his attention - he looked towards the factory, where the Spiro-Cannon was seen being brought out of the roof, standing as tall and mighty as it ever did. He gasped at the sight of it.
"What on Earth is that?"
A bright flash started to occur from it. Then, the nozzle started to shake, and a bright ball of light started to form in there, before being shot out and aiming straight towards the island at a furious pace. It struck it, and as soon as the light cleared, it then showed up as nothing more than a mountain of ashes among the ocean. He panicked at the sight of it, and he tried to rush to it himself, but... he tripped up, and looked over at five rail carriages stuck among the shoreline. He brought his nose over to a hand sticking out from the wrecks, sniffed it, and his eyes shot open.
"I'll get you out of there, I promise!", he shouted before he started pulling the figure out from the wrecks.
-end of chapter 9-