Disclaimer: Starfox is not mine.
Chapter 4: Memories and Dreams
As the red Fox stared in horror at the bloody, faceless figure on the floor, a bright white flash came and he was transported into a dark forest. The trees were so dense that you couldn't see the sky, but somehow the fox knew it was night. The silently walked deeper into the forest, not knowing why he was traveling even deeper into the dark. Something was calling him. As he pressed on for a few more minutes, he heard the bush rustle behind him. He ignored it, and continued on. After another few minutes, he heard a branch snap almost directly behind him. He turned around and peered into the empty darkness behind. Now more alert, he walked carefully into the darkness, and to the mysterious force that was calling him. He crept into a meadow, and looked up, the clouds were blocking out the moon. Something was calling him.
Fox woke up at the sound of his alarm. That dream had been haunting him for days, and with each passing day the dreams progressed even further. He feared to find out what those glowing eyes belonged to. Fox got dressed and performed his daily morning ritual, then left for Krystal's room. He pondered why he was constantly having this dream, and soon he was at Krystal's room. He knocked but no response, and he knocked again, still no response. He decided that she must have left for the kitchen, and made his way there. As he was about to enter the kitchen, Katt came out. "Good morning, lover boy" Katt greeted.
"Good morning to you too, and what was that suppose to mean?" Fox responded
"Well, nothing really" as Katt walked away, she said one last thing "try to make your move today, lover boy", and she left.
'wonder, what that was all about' Fox thought, and finally entered the kitchen
Krystal was seated closest to the door, Peppy was drinking some coffee, and Slippy and Falco were nowhere to be seen. Krystal turned around to the sound of Fox's footsteps, and greeted him with a smile. "Good morning, Fox" Krystal cooed
"Good morning, Krystal" Fox answered, then he asked "hey, do you know why Katt was acting awkward today" Peppy then left the kitchen.
She scooted closer to him "I don't really know, so what are we doing today?" She asked curiously.
Fox started taking the food on the table and putting them on his plate "well, since I gained access for hyperspace yesterday" he spoke between bites. "We can warp back to the Lylat system." Krystal just stared at him with a blank face.
"Basically, sometime this afternoon we are going back to my home planet" He took another bite, and took a sip of coffee.
"Ohhh, ok" Krystal lowered her head, and her face turned from a smile to a distant look 'home, that's a word I thought I'd never hear again'
"Hey, are you alright?" Fox asked, very worried.
She snapped out of it "huh? Oh yeah, I'm alright" she gave one of her special smiles.
He looked at the clock and finished the rest of his meal in silence, then said "hey Krystal, it's almost time for the warp to the Lylat system, let's go"
Krystal was trying to forget the pain of losing her home "huh? Ok" they left for the main control room, but on the way there Krystal was praying silently in her heart 'please, I've lost my home, please don't let Fox or the others share the same fate.' Fox entered the control room first, silently followed by Krystal. Fox told Krystal just to sit down and relax, while ROB, Peppy, and he prepared for the warp. During all the preparations, Krystal was lost in thought, thinking about the memories long forgotten, thinking about what horrors might await her in the Lylat System, and thinking about that one dream that has been plaguing her for these past days. She was soon brought out of her thoughts by a worried voice.
"Krystal, are you ok" Fox asked worried
"Yeah, I'm ok, just thinking" Krystal tried to hide her emotions
"Well ok, the preparations are finished, and we're gonna start in 5 minutes"
"Ok, I'll be there in a few seconds" they both walk over to the hyperspace controls
Fox sits down "and Krystal, if there's anything you want to talk about just come to me"
Krystal nods and put her hands on Fox's arm. "Peppy, are we ready yet?"
"We'll enter hyperspace in 15 seconds" Peppy stated doing a final check on all the systems "just look on the main screen for the countdown"
"Ok Krystal get ready because when we enter its kinda bumpy, but after that it's a smooth ride the entire way" Krystal nodded as everyone prepared to enter the warp.
Then Peppy said "ok prepare for the jump, in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Activate Hyperspace!"
The Great Fox lurched forward at the speed of light into space, Krystal gave a small shriek and tightly gripped Fox's arm, and she also closed her eyes in fright. Fox gently caressed her arm and spoke softly "everything is alright Krystal, there's nothing to be afraid of" Krystal opened one eye, then the other, and soon lessened the grip on his arm. She looked out the room's window to discover arrays of colors flying past the window. It was a wall of gold, red, and blue gracefully mixing together, enveloping the entire ship in it. She removed her hands from his arm and admired the spectacle of colors. "Oh my, it's so beautiful" she replied in the awe of the spectacle. Fox looked at Krystal and seemed to doze "Yeah, it is beautiful." Krystal looked back at Fox with a slightly disappointed face "Too bad it has to end, Fox will we ever enter the warp again?" Fox quickly came back to reality "Yeah we will, we use hyperspace to get just about anywhere in the Lylat system. So, we only have to wait for the next time." Peppy spoke up "preparing to exit hyperspace in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, and 0" the ship didn't stop "4, 3, 2……." The ship abruptly stopped and the colors vanished, the crew staggered forward and Krystal was thrown forward but saved herself by grabbing Fox's out stretched hand. "Hey Peppy, I think your timing was sort of…….well off, what happened are you getting old or something?" Fox joked. "Maybe, or maybe not" Peppy replied with a small smile.
They had reached Corneria, of the Lylat system. The entire crew watched Corneria slowly approach them, then ROB broke the silence "We have reached destination: Lylat System, Corneria. All crew members are unharmed and the Great Fox is intact. We will pass the planet's orbital scanners in approximately 10.683 minutes, and dock into Corneria base at approximately 30.348 minutes. Disembarkation will commence shortly after docking in Corneria base."
"Fox what are the scanners for?" Krystal asked curiously
"It's nothing to worry about, they only scan for illegal items aboard the ship, until we get to the base there's nothing we have to do." Fox responded, them he turned to Peppy "hey Peppy, I'm going to take a small nap wake me up when we get to the base"
"Ok Fox" Peppy was back to typing on his computer.
Fox walked off to his room, Krystal just sat and mused about what Corneria was going to be like, and everyone else was preparing for the scan.
------going to Katt and Falco------
"so Fox still hasn't made his move yet?" Falco asked
"Yup, Fox is just too shy or too proud, and Krystal just doesn't seem to get the hints" Katt stated in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Should we try and help them?"
"Nah, we should try and see how this turns out, and if it get a little weird then we'll help. But first we should see where this is going, and besides its kinda fun."
-----back to Fox-----
Fox, still wary of the being that is following him, walked through the dark. He soon came upon a meadow, he looked up to see that the clouds and looked up, the clouds were blocking out the moon. He turned his eyes back down, and his gaze met a pair of glowing golden eyes staring back at him. The clouds slowly parted revealing the moon. The moonlight crept slowly past Fox and touched the tip of the things nose and………
"Fox, we are approaching Corneria base. We'll be there in 5 minutes." Fox awoke groggily from his nap, and started heading back to the main control room.
'I can't even have a single nap without seeing that dream.' Fox thought.
He reached the room and was greeted by Krystal. "Have a good nap?" She asked merrily. Fox sat down in his chair and replied "I've had better." They soon reached the base, and a female voice came over the sound panel of the vid screen. "This is the Cornerian base, please identify yourself and enter your identification code."
Fox's ears perked up, in surprise, to the familiar voice. "Fara, Fara Phoenix is that you?!"
The female voice responded back in surprise as well. "Fox? Oh my goodness it is you. I can't believe that I'd actually meet you again. We have so much to catch up on."
Fox entered the id. Code and said "Well, maybe we can meet up sometime to talk."
Fara granted permission for the Great Fox to dock, and then exclaimed "Hey, I have a free day tomorrow, maybe you should come over and have lunch with me." The Great Fox docked "and then we can catch up on everything, and maybe even continue where we left off."
"Well the lunch and chat sounds just fine, but continuing where we……"
"Oh, I'd new you'd agree" She giggled like a school girl "I'm send over my address"
"But……" Fox gets cut off again
"Ok, I'll see you around noon time Fox, and remember just you and me. Well, see you then." Fara cut communications.
Fox slumped into his chair "Fara seems to have changed a little." Krystal curiously asked Peppy "who is Fara Phoniex?" Fox didn't seem to hear. Peppy responded "Well, Fox and Fara used to be, what you might call boyfriend and girlfriend. But after Fox defeated Andross, she disappeared and Fox found no trace of her, so he decided a few months later to move on."
"Was she always that giddy and hyper?" Krystal still asked in a curious tone.
"No, that was what Fox meant 'by changed a little'" Then Fox got up out of his chair.
He spun around and told everybody, "Well, it's kind of late now, so I'm going to hit the sack."
Slippy looked at Fox in confusion "But its only 8 o'clock"
He started to walk out "True, but I'm tired right now. So, I'm going to bed" He walked out. When he reached his room, he took off his exterior clothes and climbed under the sheets.
'What am I to do?' Fox asked himself 'Fara wants to start off where we left off and I'm just beginning to get to know Krystal.'
Before sleep took him, he asked himself one final and agonizing question 'Am I to remain with the memories of Fara, or am I to make way to the dreams of Krystal, what am I to do?'
A/N: Yes, I did finish this before Christmas, but since it was only a week away I held it until then. Also, please review, I want to know what you people think. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. The next chapter is called "The Wish."