"Are you ready for the Test of Combat, Cornerian?"

Fox nodded. "I'm ready."

"Then let us begin. I will bring several SharpClaw soldiers for you to face in battle and you must defeat them all in three minutes and three seconds." The Spirit automatically set a timer on Fox's PDA of 3:30. "If time runs out, you fail."

Fox drew his staff. "Sounds easy enough."

The Spirit started up the timer and disappeared. In an instance, four regular SharpClaw soldiers appeared out of thin air, right before his very eyes. Fox felt that even without Krystal helping him, beating them would still be child's play. He charged forth at the nearest SharpClaw, and slammed the head of his staff down on his head. Another SharpClaw attempted to attack him from behind, but Fox, despite not being a telepath, quickly saw him approaching him from behind, and then kicked him in the stomach, stumbling him, then jammed his staff into the SharpClaw's stomach. He then swung the staff in a 180 degree arc so vigorously, he attacked all four of the SharpClaw at once, taking down the two SharpClaw he landed blows on earlier, and knocking down the other two down on the ground. Fox checked his timer and the timer said he had three minutes and eighteen seconds left. Then two large SharpClaw with shields suddenly started appearing into the room and surrounded Fox on each side. Both of the larger SharpClaw swung their axes at Fox, ready to slice him in half. Fox leapt into the air performed a wall-kick off of the face of one of the big SharpClaw, then drove the tail end of his staff into the skull the other big SharpClaw. The brute collapsed on the floor dead, but the other one raised his axe into the air and swing it down upon Fox to slice him in half, but he immediately dashed out of the way with one of his gadgets from Slippy, which allows him to make a forward dash while leaving a clone of him behind before it dashes back to him. Fox charged his energy into an uppercut with his staff, then he waited for SharpClaw to prepare another attack, dropping his guard in the process. At that moment, Fox unleashed the uppercut on the Sharpclaw, killing it, then quickly dispatched of the other two regular SharpClaws. Three more spawned in, and he quickly took them out two. He checked the timer. He had two minutes left. Five more normal SharpClaw soldiers started appearing in the room surrounding him at all times. Fox became desperate to beat them very quickly so that he would pass the test so he charged up his staff's energy until the red jewel in the head started glowing a bright crimson, then hit the SharpClaw with a spinning attack, taking them out instantly. Then four large shielded SharpClaw appeared at once, surrounding him on all sides. Now, things were really starting to get serious. Fox dashed through the largest opening between two of the large SharpClaws, and once there was enough distance between him and the SharpClaws, charged up a Ground Quake and once they got close to him, released the attack, stunning all four of them at once. He charged at the closest one and smacked him around with his staff, but after landing a few hits on him, another one of the SharpClaw attempted to split Fox in half but he quickly blocked the attack and moved out of the way, and shot at him with Fire Blasts, and then moved in for the kill, smacking him around with his staff like crazy, then kicking him so hard, his axe flew out of his hand. Fox then picked up the axe and threw it at one of the other large SharpClaws' head, killing it. On minute left. Fox wailed on the weakened SharpClaw brute some more but after he killed it, the healthiest brute swung at him from behind. Fox blocked the blow with his staff yet again, but was knocked to the side of the room and his staff flew out of his hand. On the other side of the barrier, Krystal gasped in horror as it seemed Fox wasn't going to succeed in time. The more injured brute started standing between Fox and his staff, but then Fox used his Illusion attack again to get past him. He appeared behind the brute while the illusion injured the SharpClaw soldier some more, before Fox picked up his staff and smacked it a few more times, killing it. Thirty seconds left! Fox turned to the last SharpClaw and froze it in place with his Ice Blast. It was taking him a while to freeze him solid, and the clock was ticking, leaving him thinking, 'Come on, come on, come on!' Finally, the SharpClaw was frozen. Fifteen seconds left. Fox smashed the SharpClaw, shattering it into a thousand pieces. With only nine seconds left on the timer, all of the SharpClaw have been defeated. Fox let out a sigh of relief.

Fox saw the Krazoa emerge from a shimmering field set high into the wall at the end of the shrine. "You have passed," it said to him. "I am yours." and the barrier blocking Krystal disappeared. Without warning, it shot into his body, lifting him up off the floor slightly in the process. Fox yelped in surprise as his feet left the ground, and feared he would fall, but instead felt himself floating gently back to the floor. He felt a thrill of victory course through him, and then Krystal ran up to him and embraced him tightly, shouting, "You did it!" then the room suddenly seemed to dissolve. The area in their vision rippled and twisted nauseatingly, then they found themselves standing on the pad in Moon Mountain Pass.

Tricky was so happy to see them return safely. "You made it! What took you so long?!"

Fox chuckles. "Sorry, Tricky, but we had a few obstacles to get past. Krazoa Shrines are kinda tricky like that."

But Tricky looked a little worried. "Um, Fox? Your eyes…" Tricky saw that Fox's eyes were now glowing with an eerie blue light.

Krystal said, "That's because he now has the Krazoa Spirit. My eyes went like that when I acquired the previous one."

Fox, Krystal, and Tricky headed out of the room back to Moon Mountain Pass. As soon as they stepped out, the Krazoa Spirit they saw before appeared before them and spoke to them again.

"You have proven yourself to be pure of heart. Bring the Spirit to Krazoa Palace. I will guide you further when you get there. Come to Krazoa Palace." The spirit then disappeared.

Fox felt ready to set off. "All right, Krystal, let's head of to…" But then he noticed a terrified, almost petrified look on Krystal's face. "Krystal? Are you… okay?"

Krystal trembled in panic and fear. She was sweating profusely.

"Krystal, can you hear me!? Are you all right!?"

Krystal took a deep breath. "Fox? Remember when I told you about that evil presence that I felt when I fled Cerinea?" Krystal had avoided mentioning this to Fox the last time she mentioned it to him, but now she felt that there was no way around it. Tears started bursting in her eyes. "The last time I went to Krazoa Palace, that very presence manifested itself as a phantasm and tried to attack me after I released the first Krazoa spirit! It nearly pushed me into a beam that activated after I released the spirit and just like when Cerinea was destroyed, I barely escaped with my life! He tried to… and then I..."

Fox embraced Krystal tightly and patted her on the back of her head. "It's all right, Krystal. You've said enough."

Krystal breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Fox."

"You're welcome, Krystal. Actually, since I'm the one with a Krazoa Spirit this time, I was thinking I could go to Krazoa Palace by myself while you stay somepla…"

"NO!"

"Krystal?"

"What if that horrid entity has been watching us the whole time!? What if he knows of our lo… I mean, our friendship!? If you set foot into Krazoa palace alone, you'll be as vulnerable to him as I was! What if he uses you to bend me to its will!? What if he takes you as a hostage, threatening to kill you if I don't do as he tells me!?" Tears started forming in Krystal's eyes yet again. "What if he possesses or brainwashes you forcing me to… to…" Krystal couldn't bring herself to finish her sentence. She feared that if Fox went into Krazoa Palace alone, her pursuer would use Fox, the man she loved, as a means to hurt Krystal, which she felt that was even more cruel than trying to hurt her himself. Fox hugged her. Krystal continued to cry. "I'm sorry, Fox. I know you mean well, but I just don't want to…"

"It'll be all right, Krystal. We're in this together."

Krystal smiled. She suspected that even with her staff back she wouldn't be a match for the phantasm alone, but as long as she and Fox worked together, they might stand a chance. They headed down the downward slopes that led back to the Moon Mountain Pass.

After the group walked along the trail, they ran into a pair of Kalda Choms, and Fox and Krystal groaned at the notion that they still had fight these things. Fox hit one with a Ground Quake hitting both of them at once. Fox and Krystal each locked on to a different Kalda Chom and hit each one in the purple spots on their backs. Then Krystal used a Ground Quake and they repeated the process again. They decided from then on to run past any Kanda Chom they come across, since they can't move, and didn't even bother picking up the MoonSeeds that appeared after the Kalda Choms died. When they got to the end, they found a Fuel Barrel and a few platforms to a cliffside, with gusts of wind in between them. At the cliffside was a cracked wall that required an explosive for them to get through. Of course, the Fuel Barrel had a timer, which meant it would detonate after a certain amount of time.

Fox picked up the Fuel Barrel and carried across the platforms as he and the Fuel Barrel were carried off by the wind to the other side in between each platform. When he got to the end, he put down the Fuel Barrel, then went back to the penultimate platform, and waited for the Fuel Barrel to explode. After the Barrel finally exploded, he went up to the newly-created cave entrance, turned to his friends on the other side of the platforms calling, "It's all clear!" and using the "come-here" gesture and turned around and moved forward so that Krystal wouldn't have to worry about him peeking up her loincloth. Tricky followed the windy path across the platforms and then Krystal followed afterwards. Fox came across to the end of the tunnel which led to a powerful wind surge that would lead back out of the tunnel and then waited for the rest of the group to catch up. As soon as Krystal and Tricky caught up to him, the trio hopped into the wind vent and found themselves back in a more familiar section of Moon Mountain Pass. They came across yet, another Kalda Chom, but Fox and Krystal were tired of fighting them by this point, so they just dashed right past it. They had a good number of MoonSeeds by that point anyway. After dashing their way up the slope and jumping down the ledge where they planted their first MoonSeed, the trio went through the building where SharpClaw set up shop before Fox and Krystal took them out.

The trio walked under the structure and back into the pathway leading back to ThornTail Hollow and through the tunnel at the end. As they were walking through that tunnel, Krystal had something very important to ask. "Fox? Remember when I said that those villains responsible for Cerinia's destruction died when the planet collapsed?"

"I'm listening."

"Well now I'm thinking, what if I'm wrong? What if some of them some of them really did evacuate in time? And really did have an involvement in what's happening to this world?"

"I find that easy to believe. We should be on guard just in case." They reached ThornTail Hollow again, and decided to have a short rest before heading off to Krazoa Palace.

As Fox, Krystal, and Tricky left Moon Mountain Pass, over on the cliffs at the far side of the pass, a mysterious figure spied on them from afar with a high-tech scope. She reported to someone else on a communications line. "I've spotted the last Cerinian. And apparently, Fox McCloud is with her. That could be a problem."

"I don't think the boss should be too concerned. They'll deliver the goods in due time, so he shouldn't concern himself with what happened last time she arrived at Krazoa Palace."

"Doesn't his plan require a Cerinian in order to function?"

"If it does, I have a backup plan for that. I've reported it to the boss and told him not to concern himself with her. At least, not for now. Even so, I want you to keep an eye on them."

"Yes, sir."

As soon as Fox, Krystal, and Tricky returned to ThornTail hollow, the decided to take a quick look at the remaining eleven maps that Krystal bought before they headed into the DarkIce Mines. Fox scanned the maps for Krazoa Palace before they set off there, but then he decided to scan all the maps so that he would be fully prepared later on. Then, he headed into the ThornTail Hollow shop for any necessary supplies before he and Krystal set out to continue their journey. Meanwhile, a bummed out Krystal took off Fox's now ruined vest and put it back into the cockpit of Fox's Arwing. As soon as Fox entered the ThornTail Hollow shop, Shabunga appeared before him.

"Well, well. Long time no zhee. I never thought that lady friend of yourzh would be zho beneficial to my finanzhes. And I wazh worried my buzhinezh would crumble."

Fox stammered. "Well, I'm glad she was able to help."

"Anyway, I have zhomething zhpecial for you. Follow me." Shabunga glided to one of the other rooms and Fox followed him. When they got to the room, Shabunga showed Fox a high-tech pair of binoculars and it seemed to pique Fox's interest. "This is the High-Def Dizhplay Devizhe. Thizh allowzh you to zhee many thingzh from a dizhtanzhe. Pretty handy, izhn't it?"

Fox thought, "High-Def Display Device? Sounds like the name of an add-on for someone's TV. It would definitely come in handy, though." He said, "All right, I'll take it."

"That would be twenty zhcarabs, boy."

Fox's Scarab Bag was pretty much full, containing up to fifty scarabs, so, feeling that haggling wouldn't be necessary, paid for it at full price. He then purchased two more fireflies in case he needed them in Krazoa Palace. Afterwards, he left the ThornTail Hollow store and met up with Tricky and Krystal outside.

"All right, guys. I got some supplies for our trip to Krazoa Palace. You guys ready?"

Tricky jumped up, yelling, "Ready!? I'm pumped! Let's do this!"

Krystal on the other hand had a look on her face that clearly showed uncertainty. She was trembling and she squeezed her hands into fists. She was afraid of what that ghost would do to her if she encountered it again, but she didn't want to leave Sauria to die. But she knew that this time, she wouldn't be facing it alone. She turned up to Fox and said, "Yes."

Fox nodded. The group headed off to the WarpStone at the side of the Hollow. As soon as the team walked to the small wall-enclosed garden and to the WarpStone's alter, Fox and Krystal stepped to the circular platform in the middle.

The WarpStone greeted the two vulpines gleefully. "Weel, weel, it's great teh see ye kiddies again! Ah! I see yah've collected a Krazoa Spirit, laddie! Is the lass comin' with yah to Krazoa Palace?"

Krystal quickly interjected, "Yes! Krazoa Palace is too dangerous for anyone to traverse alone. I'm going with him."

"Ye've got guts, lass." The WarpStone lowered the hand opposite the one he lowered when he warped Fox to Ice Mountain much earlier on. Fox and Krystal stepped onto the hand. The Warpstone lifted his hand back up to eye level, and a look of concentration crossed his face. Fox and Krystal felt a strange tingle course through their bodies, then motes of light began to dance around them. Suddenly the light and tingling sensation intensified, and they disappeared from the Warpstone's palm.

As soon as Fox and Krystal were teleported all the way to Krazoa Palace, they stepped off the teleporting platform and stepped off the platform and began walking along the bridge leading to Krazoa Palace. Krystal took a deep breath. Then she turned to Fox saying, "Welcome to Krazoa Palace, Fox. I must say that it is a beautiful place."

"It most certainly is. You think so too, right Tricky?" Much to Fox's surprise, though, Tricky wasn't there. He and Krystal looked around for a few moments, but couldn't find him. "Tricky?"

The two vulpines heard the WarpStone's voice. "Sorry. Ah forgot to tell yeh. I can't warp dinosaurs."

Krystal asked, "But they are native to this planet! How are you unable to warp the natives of Sauria?"

"Fer some ahd reason, mah powers are incompatible with them. Cahn't comprehend their wavelengths."

Fox tugged at Krystal's arm saying, "We'd better go. The sooner we return the spirit, the sooner we can leave this place. And considering what happened on your last visit here, we shouldn't be here for long. Questions like these will have to wait."

"I understand, Fox."

"Now, I want to make one thing clear to you, Krystal." Fox held onto Krystal's hand tightly. "As long as we are in Krazoa Palace, I want you to stay close to me. If that thing attacks you again, I want to be able to protect you. Splitting up is out of the question. If we're separated, I won't be able to keep you safe. Do I make myself clear?"

Krystal nodded. "As clear as my namesake, Fox."

Fox smiled. The two walked along the bridge and into Krazoa Palace.

Author's Notes: In the video game version, the Test of Combat was way too easy, since even with the time limit, it was nothing more than you fighting a bunch of SharpClaw, so I decided to modify it so that the stakes are actually higher than they were in the game, and make it seem all the more like an actual struggle to accomplish. Plus, the way ninjafoxshadow wrote the scene with the Test of Observation made it seem like it went too easily, so I decided to make the Test of Combat seem significantly more challenging. I also decided to put Fox's Fox Illusion from Super Smash Bros. Melee into his fighting style in this story.

As for Krystal's encounter with that ghost from the third chapter (of ninjafoxshadow's "version"), I definitely haven't forgotten about it and it's being brought up again here. Speaking of which, I am legitimately curious about one thing: in the video game version, why did Andross capture Krystal at the start of the game anyway? He needed the power of the Krazoa Spirits to revive himself and Krystal was starting her mission to bring the Krazoas back to the Palace anyway, so why didn't Andross simply wait for her to bring the Krazoa back to the Palace on her own? Did his plan require a Cerinian to be imprisoned in order to function? Did he need the life force of a Cerinian specifically in case he didn't get all the Krazoa Spirits back in time? Please let me know in a review.