Chapter 11: Collecting Dust
Cold water ran across Fox's calves. He balanced against the current and carefully lowered his jar into the water. Once it was full, Fox lifted it to his chest. He rested the weight predominately on his right arm.
"Are you okay with that?"
Fox turned to Krystal, who held her own jar. "I'm fine," he smiled easily. He lifted his left arm, which was finally out of the sling, and flexed it for show. The gentle concern in Krystal's eyes brightened into a smile.
Together, they returned to the house. Now that Fox could use both arms at last, he worked towards regaining the strength lost in his left side. Fox started by helping to carry a larger share of the Sharrde family's water than he used to. At the moment, Fox held about 40 percent of what he and Krystal had in total.
"Thank you for your help today, Fox," Krystal said when they set their jars down inside the house.
"You're welcome." He rolled the feeling back into his weaker wrist.
Krystal's eyes dazzled with her smile. "My life is a lot easier now that you've started helping out around here."
Fox's heart floated. "I'm glad. It feels good to be useful again."
In the corner of his eye, he caught Krystal's tail wag once. It elicited the same action in Fox's. He reflected on his long road to recovering, as well as to adjusting to this new life on Cerinia. Less than two months ago, he could barely communicate with Krystal and her tribe, and relied heavily on their generosity to survive. Now he could pay them back by pulling his own weight. He could also converse with Krystal if she spoke simply enough. All of that was only possible because she was kind enough to help him through what has been one of the hardest times in his life.
When Fox wanted to ask Krystal what else he might be able to assist her with, a voice invaded his mind. "Fox McCloud. Doctor Andross has requested your presence at the laboratory. Please come immediately."
"Are you alright?" Krystal fretted as Fox keeled over. He gripped his head in discomfort.
"I'm fine," he grimaced. "That woman, Thene, just barged into my mind. Andross wants to see me."
"Does she do that often?"
"No, but it's annoying how she always orders me around."
Krystal crossed her arms. "She shouldn't be entering your mind without consent like that." The dark frown on her face softened. "Will you go?"
"Have to," Fox groaned. "Otherwise, she'll come back and won't leave me alone until I do."
"I'll go with you," Krystal said with her glare renewed. "I don't like how that woman treats you."
"She's still nicer to me than a lot of other friends Andross has," Fox grumbled. There was a large degree of truth behind the sarcasm. He and Krystal gathered a few items in case this led into running some stupid errand for the ape.
"So, do you know much about Thene?" Fox asked as they left the house. "It looked like you were familiar when I first met her."
The frown persisted as Krystal nodded. "She used to be a sister in the Lythan Jad, but she was cast out for invading our masters' minds."
"She invades my mind quite often," Fox huffed. He couldn't even take a dump anymore without wondering if Thene was spying on him. The part about her reading people's thoughts without their knowing sounded par the course for Andross and his typical company.
"Fortunately, I don't think she can understand everything I'm thinking. Andross and I grew up on different worlds. I just happen to know his language. Thene doesn't know mine." Fox let out an aggravated sigh. "Still, the amount that she can read is more than I'm happy with."
"I can keep her out, if you'd like." Krystal glanced away from him as though shy about her offer. "I would… need to be inside your mind to do that."
Fox chewed his lip as he thought about it. Normally, Krystal only used her telepathy for a specific purpose, then left Fox's brain as soon as it was satisfied. What she now suggested felt like stepping into uncharted territory, with him giving Krystal the opportunity to gaze at whatever she pleased.
"When we get there," he decided. Letting her hang around inside wasn't something he was sure was a great idea. His thoughts weren't always… proper… when Krystal was around, despite Fox's efforts to tame them for the sake of their friendship. He'd easily be able to focus on Andross when they arrived at the lab. Seething hatred could have its uses in the right circumstances.
Krystal nodded, smiling though her eyes were as anxious as he felt. She glanced towards Fox's side. "How does your arm feel?"
Fox flexed his wrist in front of his face. A line of scars arched between it and his elbow where Fox's fur no longer grew as thickly. The marks bent around the other side of his arm in the same pattern. "It aches sometimes. I still feel sore from carrying the water."
"Does it hurt badly? Can you move it freely?"
"No, and yes." Fox rolled his arm around. No loss of mobility to report.
Krystal became at ease. "That's good. The aches should fade soon. If they don't, please let Mama or me know."
"I will," Fox smiled. He appreciated her concern. She was way better than paying for a physician.
Thene waited at the front door as they marched up towards the laboratory. Fox felt Krystal's gentle touch and bade her entry. This wasn't like previous times she had linked to him. There was no narrow presence to relay a specific message. Now, Krystal permeated her thoughts amongst Fox's. He felt her strong desire to protect him, as well as her disdain towards the vixen who threatened the sanctity of his mind.
Krystal's aura bristled with her hackles. Her attention fixed on a phantom that Fox could scarcely perceive. She threw her will against the intruder. Thene's cool glare locked onto Krystal. A standoff hung between them until the other woman turned away into the building. The tension laxed within Krystal, yet she did not drop her guard around Fox.
"Learn some respect, you borshtac!" Fox did not understand what Krystal called Thene, but it felt like a sufficiently scathing insult.
They found Thene again standing beside Andross. He leered over the setup of some experiment. An electric wire ran between a small lightbulb and a pair of metal strips driven into a round vegetable. Halfway along the circuit, a test tube hung inside a mounted clasp. Pink dust sat within the glass.
"Thank you for coming," Andross spoke as if the words were only for courtesy. He looked over to Krystal. "Did you bring her to interrogate me some more?"
"More to keep your assistant out of my head." Fox glowered along with Krystal towards Thene. The woman's chin remained high and unflinching. "What do you want, Andross?"
He beckoned Fox over. "Come. Stand closer."
Fox moved alongside the table and looked down at the equipment. It looked like something from an elementary school science fair. The little bulb shone with a weak, red light that slowly flickered in and out. "What am I supposed to take from this?"
"This is a sample of the dust that we recovered from your Arwing," Andross explained. "It clung to your fuselage as you entered the planet's upper atmosphere. See how it interferes with the current flowing into the bulb?"
Fox rolled his eyes toward the light on death's door. "That could just be because of the potato battery."
"Perhaps this will demonstrate my point better." Andross moved the dust away from the wire. The lightbulb suddenly shone strong and consistently.
"Okay, colour me impressed," Fox cocked his brow. "So what?"
"This confirms that the dust particles in Cerinia's atmosphere have some sort of influence over electrical currents. They don't appear to have noticeable electromagnetic properties or emit any type of radiation that we're familiar with. That leads me to believe that their effects derive from a more fantastical phenomenon."
"Magic." Fox kept his expression stoic. "You're trying to say magic."
Andross waved a derisive hand. "If that's what you want to call it. There is much in Cerinia's environment that cannot be explained by our understanding of the laws of nature. Lifeforms with psychic abilities; spirits; magic… Most scientists could never hope to make sense of it all."
"Wow! Most?" Crossing his arms, Fox tilted his head. "You mean to say there's at least one out there who can make sense of it? Wherever can we find them?" He took pleasure from the filthy look that Andross threw him.
"By studying these forces in play," Andross gritted his teeth, "it's possible that we can find ways to harness them. Or work around them."
"So, we experiment with the dust until it tells us how to fly home?"
"In a manner of speaking." Andross picked up a glass jar, which contained more of the dust. "But not with the amount that we have here. We need much more if I'm to analyse it properly."
Fox straightened as they got into the meat of the matter. "Where do we get it from?"
"That is the first problem we need to solve. We've scoured the entire body of your Arwing, but there may be pieces that broke away during the crash. They might still carry traces of dust. Until we discover another way to acquire samples, I want you to go and search for more pieces of your ship. In any event, you'll be bringing us more materials to build with."
"I thought you had the Cerinians helping you strip my ship?"
"For a short time," Andross huffed. "That time has now expired, though. There's still much of the vessel left out in the forest, and it looks as though we'll have to fetch the rest of it ourselves."
"So, you're expecting me to drop everything to go out into the woods alone?"
"From what I can see, your injuries have healed. You'll be fine on your own, provided that you don't make the same mistakes as when you first arrived on this planet. Thene and I will focus on winning the chief's aid again." His gaze sharpened. "We need as much pink dust as we can get, and we can't afford a summer shower washing the leftover ship parts clean."
Fox grunted in clear discontent. "Fine. I'll go. But don't expect me to drag any panels from the hull all the way back here."
"Just small pieces that broke off the ship will suffice," Andross answered as he turned away. "We'll resume the heavy lifting once we have more foxes again."
With a huff, Fox walked over to one side of the lab, where a set of large baskets sat. He strapped one over his shoulders. Krystal followed him. "What did Andross say?" she asked.
He had forgotten in the moment that Krystal didn't know Cornerian. "He wants me to go into the forest. I'll be gathering pieces from my Arwing."
"The boat that you flew in?" Krystal asked, still learning the concepts of air and space travel. Fox nodded. "I'll come with you."
Through the link still overlapping their minds, Fox felt something other than a wish to help. Krystal was curious about his Arwing. She had not seen it since she watched Fox fall out of the sky. He couldn't think of a reason to refuse her, so he handed her another of the baskets. They then left the laboratory. Fox felt Krystal exit his mind once they were clear of Thene's range.
He let Krystal read Andross's map as they left the city, since she understood the layout better than he did. Fox only accompanied Andross and Thene that one time since their excursion together, so his memory of the path wasn't perfect. Krystal seemed able to orient herself. However, she couldn't read the Cornerian notes that were scribbled over the parchment. Fox translated them, though the writings themselves weren't of much value.
The woods were tranquil today. Birds sang throughout the trees. Leaves rustled in the wind with small, tree-dwelling mammals foraging across branches. Fox felt that he could relax, especially with Krystal walking by his side. Simply looking at her blue pelt calmed him. If she were at peace, he could only trust that all was well.
"This… Ar-wing of yours," Krystal said. "It isn't alive?"
"No," Fox smiled. "It's like a cart. Something you ride in."
"But if it isn't alive, how does it fly?"
Fox chuckled. "I'm not the best person to ask that." If only Slippy was here. He'd explain the nitty-gritty science until deep into the night. Then he would probably mumble the rest of it in his sleep. "My people don't have magic, but we do know how to build machines: metal objects that can help us do things we normally can't. Like flying."
Krystal's ears perked. "What other machines do your people use?"
Fox unholstered his sidearm. "I have my blaster." He pointed it at a large rock and pull the trigger. A green bolt of light flashed against the stone, charring its surface. Krystal yelped in surprise. "See? That's how I use my weapon."
She stared at the gun with a mix of intrigue and fear. "May I hold it?"
Fox fully expected that if he did, Krystal would then ask if she could shoot it. He tried not to frown at her as he considered the wisdom. Energy weapons were extremely dangerous, and Fox only had three battery cells for the blaster. He didn't want to expend ammunition unless he needed to. At least one shot was reserved for Andross. Still, Fox decided that it wouldn't hurt to let Krystal try the blaster just once.
He handed his weapon to her and showed Krystal how to grip it. Fox stood behind her shoulder as he guided her into the proper posture. Krystal aimed at the same rock that Fox had shot. She struggled with the trigger's resistance at first. Krystal wasn't prepared for when the blaster did go off. She screamed as she leaped into Fox's chest. He caught her and chuckled softly.
"I don't have much ammo though," Fox said as he took the blaster back, "so I can't keep using this. I'll have to find a new weapon while I'm here on Cerinia."
"You could try a bow," Krystal suggested. "You can use it from a distance like your blaster."
"I've never used one before." Fox did like the idea though. He could be like one of those heroic archers from fantasy movies, leaping from high platforms as he fired arrows into multiple foes while in mid-air. Plus, it would be simple to make new arrows. The materials needed were all around them.
Krystal smiled. "I could teach you."
A similar expression touched Fox's muzzle. "I'd like that."
She then asked Fox more about his world's technology. Not wanting to pass the Lylat System off as a place where people built only for war, he chose to tell her about more commonplace devices. Phones were easy for Krystal to compare to her telepathy. However, Fox didn't know the words needed to adequately explain what computers do and how the internet worked. When he then taught her about refrigerators, Krystal demonstrated her ability to freeze the air with her staff.
Fox began to understand why the Cerinians appeared so far behind the rest of their solar system. For almost every need that other worlds met with science, Krystal's people found their own answers through magic. He realised there was nothing wrong with how the Cerinians approached life's challenges. It was simply what worked for them, and they were happy with that.
Wonder shone brighter in Krystal's eyes the longer that they talked. She became so increasingly inquisitive that Fox almost forgot what they were out in the wilderness for. They stopped for lunch in the clearing where his parachute landed. The sail and pilot's seat had been carried back to Kezamat a week ago. As they ate, Fox told Krystal about the miracle of microwave ovens and how they cooked food without flames. She stared thoughtfully at the bun in her hands, though Fox was quick to add that it likely would have baked better in a normal oven. Slippy tried making bread in a microwave on the Great Fox once. It did not come out as well as he hoped.
A path had been carved between the clearing and crash site for easy movement of the Arwing's parts. When Fox saw his ship, his heart broke all over again. Half of the fuselage was gone. All the electronic equipment was gutted. The starfighter that had seen Fox through the Lylat Wars and helped him defeat Andross all those years ago was no more. Only a skeleton remained.
"Amazing…" Krystal breathed. She approached the Arwing to examine it closely. Her eyes scanned its body as though it weren't a wreck but instead a priceless treasure. "So, this is what it looks like!"
"It looked much better before Andross ripped it apart," Fox sighed. 'It's all so we can go home,' he reminded himself once again.
Krystal turned to him sadly. "I'm sorry," she hung her head. "Seeing your Arwing like this is painful for you. I should have been more respectful."
"Mookun," Fox said so that she wouldn't need to feel guilty. "It doesn't matter. I just wish we could have fixed it instead." He moved beside the ship and placed his hands atop a remaining section of the hull.
Krystal came to his side. She peered into the gaping cockpit. "What did it look like whole?" she asked, looking to him and tapping her head. "May I see?"
Fox blinked. "Um… Sure." As Krystal reached into his mind again, Fox recalled one of the many times he had seen the Arwing in its glory. Sharp and sleek like a bird of prey with blue and silver plumage. Krystal gasped inside his memories. He imagined his hand brushing across a polished wing. Its cool surface glided under his touch.
"It was beautiful," she thought to him.
"Yeah," Fox nodded. A tear burned within his eye. "It was."
Suddenly, he felt her palm atop his shoulder. Fox's attention snapped back to the real world. Krystal's gaze gleamed with sympathy. He raised his hand and brought it to rest over hers. "Thank you," Fox smiled.
They separated after a moment. Clearing his throat, Fox glanced around the site. "Andross wants us to look for any parts that broke off the Arwing. Look around for anything that doesn't look natural. If it's dirty, don't clean it. He wants the dust covering it."
"Fox?"
He stopped midway towards the thick bushes behind the ship. Fox turned back to Krystal. She wrung her wrists in front of her, speaking no further. "Yes, Krystal?"
Krystal did not meet his gaze. "When it's time for you to go back to your home… can…? Can I please go with you?"
Fox's brain drew a blank. Had he heard her correctly? "Could you… say that differently?" he replied. "I don't think I understood."
The second time, Krystal looked up at him. "I want to go with you to your world. I want to see what it's like with my own eyes."
Okay… It wasn't a case of miscommunication. Fox scratched his head nervously. "I… I don't know… I don't even know if it's possible for me to go back yet."
"That's part of why I want to help you and Doctor Andross," Krystal said. "I want you to be able to see your family, but I also want to see the world you came from. It's so much different to my home."
Fox fought the urge to chew his lip. Most planets in the Lylat System were different to Cerinia, to such a degree that it was easier to list what was similar. Everyday life as he knew it was busy, complicated, and made noisy with technology. Lylatian cities were overcrowded and often scant of nature. Their people weren't nearly as neighbourly as the Cerinians. Many lived only for themselves and maybe those they loved. Strangers were often overlooked. Those doing it toughest in life were ignored entirely by people who took their comforts for granted. If Krystal saw everything that was ugly about the Lylat System, she'd likely be stricken and overwhelmed.
"Are you sure that you want to?" Fox asked hesitantly. "Your home is a lot nicer than where I'm from."
"Why do you want to go back then?" Krystal folded her arms.
Fox frowned. "Uh… Because it's my home?"
"Even though it's not as nice as staying here?"
"Hey! The Lylat System has nice things about it too!"
Krystal smirked. "Then that is what I want to see."
It took Fox a few seconds to process what had just happened. He couldn't believe that he had been outwitted by someone who didn't even know what a microwave was. Krystal's ears drooped as she clasped her hands in front of her chest. "Please, Fox?"
His will crumpled like wet cardboard. He couldn't bring himself to say no; not when Krystal was giving him the puppy-dog look. "Alright," Fox sighed. "If you really want to come along, I guess you can."
Krystal straightened with delight. Her tail wagged in swift arcs. "Do you promise?"
Fox hesitated again. He really shouldn't, but damn that look she gave him… "Sure… I promise."
She shot forward and hugged him. "Thank you, Fox! I promise I'll do everything that I can to help you get home."
His arms returned her embrace without Fox thinking. A smile spread across his muzzle. "I appreciate that."
Of course, getting him home meant finding Andross more of that pink dust. To do that, they needed to find more pieces of the Arwing. Fox and Krystal scoured different sides of the crash site for scattered parts. Worries about what he had promised her circulated through Fox's thoughts. However, he realised that there wasn't really anything that either of them could do right now. It could be a long time before Fox had to face the prospect of introducing Krystal to Lylatian culture. He could deal with those problems later. For now, he had to focus on living in this world today.
Slippy sweated through his flight suit. His throat felt dry, though no amount of water could soothe it. He was nervous. Slippy knew that he wasn't anywhere near where he'd be in danger, yet he was nervous. Purgatory stared at him with its hungry pinkness. It felt like at any moment, the jamming effect of the planet's dust would suddenly jump out and snatch him. Of course, Slippy realised how preposterous that terror was.
Unless he misread his star chart and his Arwing was floating within Purgatory's incoming orbit… Was he in the planet's path? Slippy checked the chart again. No. He was clear. Slippy wiped his forehead and sighed softly in relief. His hands trembled around the controls.
"Easy… Easy does it…" he murmured to himself. The high-powered camera mounted on his starfighter's dashboard gave Slippy an enhanced view of the drone floating ahead of him. A long cable stretched from it all the way to Purgatory. Slippy's monitor displayed a wireless connection still sustained between him and the drone. He pushed a button to retract the cable.
After a few minutes, Slippy could see the large bucket-shaped apparatus attached to the other end. He stopped the reel a metre short from the drone. With a few more taps on the controls, Slippy ordered the drone to return home. He followed at a safe distance behind it.
A small research carrier drifted beyond Purgatory's furthest moon. Slippy steered clear of the celestial body, knowing that it could similarly shut down his Arwing if he got too close. Slippy could soon make out the Space Dynamics logo on the carrier's side. He flew in to dock first. The vessel was a relic with a mechanical airlock to separate the hangar from the outside. After waiting for the chamber to pressurise, Slippy landed his Arwing. Then he called the drone in.
Despite being mostly certain that the airlock would work fine, Slippy wore his helmet just to be safe. The drone sat dormant on the floor next to his cargo. He dragged them both into the hangar and detached the drone's container. Its thick walls insulated the intense heat of its contents.
With his prize loaded onto a trolley, Slippy happily made his way through the carrier. His father, Beltino Toad, had lent it to Star Fox before Space Dynamics shipped it off for decommissioning. The heating barely kept the temperature safe for amphibians, and the automatic pilot was years out of support. Despite those faults, Slippy managed to get the old girl out to Balven without any major issues. So long as he always wore a parka and warm socks, being aboard didn't feel all that bad.
"I got the last of the samples," Slippy announced as he entered the ship's laboratory. The smile fell from his face when he found Vixy staring out through the portside window.
Sorrow filled her distant eyes. One hand clutched at the front of her winter coat while the other rested against the glass. Slippy set the container aside and approached her quietly. "Doctor Reinard…?"
Vixy jolted out of her fur. "Oh?! Slippy! Welcome back." She pulled her arm away from the wall and rubbed it sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I didn't hear you come in."
"Are you okay?" Slippy asked.
She opened her mouth once but closed it. Her gaze returned to the window. Through it, they could see the expanse of Purgatory. "I'll be fine," Vixy answered weakly. "You don't need to worry."
"Are you sure?"
A haggard sigh escaped Vixy. "It just doesn't seem fair," she confessed. "My son is somewhere on that planet, and I have no way to reach him."
She gripped at her heart. Tears dampened her cheek. "I can feel it. I can feel it in my chest that Fox is out there. But I'm powerless to rescue him. All I can do is stand out here and pray that my little boy is alright."
Slippy fought against the sniffle that threatened to break him. He had taken a silent oath to be strong for Vixy. She had always been there to comfort him when bullies made his life miserable at school. He and Fox had been friends ever since he saved Slippy from the mother of all swirlies. Nobody else had been quite as nice to him before then, and Fox's mother was even nicer. Vixy always made sure that Slippy felt welcome at their home. Her cooking was almost as good as his ma's. However, what Slippy liked most about Vixy was her fascinating and deep knowledge of planetology.
Vixy had dedicated most of her last 30 years to studying planets. Her achievements ranged from discovering resource deposits to assessing what worlds had potential for terraformation. Vixy had plotted the sites for many of the mines on Katina and MacBeth. She had been involved in designing the Climate Control Centre on Fichina. Slippy even remembered her once mention that she had almost helped transform Venom into a garden world. That was before the Catalyst happened and Andross turned the planet into James McCloud's tomb.
Slippy was counting on Vixy's expertise to help him make sense of Purgatory's strange properties. It pained him to see her on the verge of tears. He took a step forward and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Fox is going to be okay," he told her. "He's the toughest guy I know. I'm sure that he's found somewhere safe while he waits for us. And we are going to find him. I know we will."
Vixy sniffed deeply. She gazed down upon him with a soft smile. "You're a sweet, young man, Slippy. Thank you." She stroked her hand behind his head. "You're right. No one else is going to save Fox but us. And we won't achieve anything if we just stand around crying."
They parted and moved away from the window. "Did you get another case of samples?" Vixy asked.
Slippy pointed to the container next to the bench. "It's right over there."
Donning a pair of latex gloves, Vixy opened the box. Two litres of Purgatory dust settled inside. The fine granules were quite alluring up close, Slippy thought. Vixy scooped a pinch into a glass tray. "Let's find out what this stuff is made from," she murmured.
Vixy inserted the sample into a scanner. The machine's monitor flickered and glitched for a split second before blacking out. She jammed the power button several times to no avail. "It's stopped working."
"But you only put in a little bit!" Slippy exclaimed. "How did it break the dang thing that easily?"
"It is sensitive equipment," Vixy said, touching her chin. She removed the sample tray and tried booting the scanner up again. It came to life but only showed a corrupted display.
Slippy balked. He made a mental note to keep the dust samples far away from his tech. "So, what do we do now?"
Vixy frowned in thought. "We might have to go old-school to analyse these samples. For that, we'll need a proper chemistry lab."
"Dad offered to let us use the R&D labs at Space Dynamics," Slippy said. "All we have to do is call him when we get back to Lylat."
"That will help us." Vixy turned to look at Purgatory once more. The mournful look returned to her face. "There's nothing more that we can do here right now. Let's go home so that we can continue studying the dust."
Slippy hummed in full agreement as he sealed the rest of the samples. The secret to getting Fox back was in these boxes of powder they'd collected. As much as he wanted his best friend home with them again, Slippy couldn't help but feel excited by the mystery sitting right in front of him. He and Vixy would find out what exactly this stuff was and, more importantly, find a way to beat it. They had to. For Fox.