Note: I apologize if I'm taking a while on my stories, there are lots of things going on in my personal life. Despite that, I hope that all of you are okay with me just taking my time with stuff. Now that I've said that, it's time for chapter six.
Chapter 6: With Help from My Friends
Fox and Krystal made their way to Ocean Force Point Temple, where the SpellStone of CloudRunner Fortress was going to be put. The two had fought off hostiles, making quick work of them. There weren't an awful lot of enemies, so the two foxes were, for the most part, in the clear. Once their attackers were out of the way, Fox and Krystal found where they would put the SpellStone. After being inserted, the artifact activated and surged its energies through the Temple.
"Well, we got that taken care of!" Fox stated.
"Let's go look for the other two SpellStones and the remaining Krazoa Spirits." Krystal said.
"Yeah, this planet will crumble without them." The orange tod said.
As they walked back to WarpStone, Fox received a call from the Great Fox. Answering his communicator, the orange tod was greeted by ROB64.
"Fox, permission for conversation?" ROB64 spoke.
"What is it you want to talk about, ROB?" Fox asked.
"Slippy Toad and Peppy Hare have taken flight." The droid told him. "They are going to ThornTail Hollow."
"That's great, we can regroup there!" The orange tod said.
"End conversation?" The robotic male asked.
"Sure." The vulpine answered.
Fox hung up and put his communicator back in his pocket. After that, he went over to the warp pad that was on WarpStone's hand with Krystal. The cobalt vixen only looked down, her telepathy on. Fox looked at her in concern.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"I'm sorry if I didn't tell you everything earlier." Krystal stated.
"You're fine, even if it wouldn't have made sense to me if you did." Fox said. "I mean, you're in an arranged marriage with the leader of the SharpClaws?"
"Yes, it's ridiculous." The cobalt vixen stated.
"Never mind all that, let's get back to ThornTail Hollow." The orange tod said.
"Alright," the Cerinian said, "I just hope that your allies don't do anything stupid."
WarpStone lifted his hand, activating the warp pad. After that, Fox and Krystal found themselves in ThornTail Hollow, where they were greeted by the EarthWalkers. In particular, Tricky ran up to his friends. Fox and Krystal returned their friend's embrace, in spite of how heavy the Prince of the EarthWalkers was.
"I'm glad that you guys are here," Tricky spoke, "two strangers were in ThornTail Hollow earlier!"
"Tricky, those strangers were Fox's teammates: Slippy Toad and Peppy Hare." Krystal stated.
"And what do you mean by earlier?" Fox asked. "Where are Slippy and Peppy, Tricky?"
"They left for Moon Mountain Pass!" The Prince of the EarthWalkers said. "I told them that my father was captured by the SharpClaws and they took off! I'm sorry, guys!"
"Well, great, I came back here for my teammates and they took off and went to a different location." Fox sarcastically said. "Can you believe it, Krystal?"
"Don't worry, we'll find your friends and save Tricky's father, Fox." Krystal told him.
"We better," the tod said, "I don't want my friends to die!"
"Can I go with you?" Tricky asked.
"It's better for you to stay here, Tricky." Krystal said. "We'll save your father, don't worry."
"Good luck, guys!" The Prince of the EarthWalkers said as he ran off.
"Take care of the others, Tricky!" Fox shouted.
Fox and Krystal then walked up to WarpStone, being greeted by the sentient boulder.
"Another trap, lad and lass?" WarpStone asked.
"WarpStone, we need you to send us to Moon Mountain Pass!" Krystal stated.
"Moon Mountain Pass, are ye sure?" The boulder asked.
"We're sure, WarpStone, send us there!" Fox said as he walked onto the magical rock's hands with Krystal.
"Patience, lad!" The larger male chuckled.
WarpStone then began to warp Fox and Krystal to Moon Mountain Pass. The two foxes patiently waited for his magic to work, even though they were eager to find Peppy and Slippy. Once they reached Moon Mountain Pass, Krystal would do the fighting while Fox would look for his teammates. When he found them, the orange tod would give them a talking to. Despite that, he just wanted to see them safe and sound. As for Krystal, she was eager to meet them in person.
Back in Moon Mountain Pass, Slippy was hiding behind a rock with Peppy. The old hare was exhausted, laying on the ground. As for Slippy, he was standing near Peppy, his blaster out.
"Man, this planet is crazier than I remember!" Slippy spoke.
"Sauria's falling apart, Slippy!" Peppy moaned. "Everything's going to hell, and the planet will blow unless Fox and that girl manage to save it in time!"
"Then why did we come down here?" The toad asked.
"Fox and Krystal can't do this by themselves!" The hare stated. "Besides, we can't just let a cry for help go unanswered!"
"Sauria can't cry, it's a planet!" The amphibian stated.
"Never mind." The lepus said, facepalming.
All of a sudden, Slippy and Peppy overheard something approaching them. Getting their blasters out, the two got ready to attack any hostile that came their way. However, no enemy approached the toad and the hare. Rather, it was Fox and Krystal who were approaching them. The orange tod and the cobalt vixen were looking around, brandishing their weapons.
"Fox!" Slippy spoke.
Upon hearing Slippy's voice, Fox took Krystal over to where he was at. The two foxes saw the amphibian standing near Peppy, both of them having their blasters out. While the two were happy to see their teammate and the girl who was with him, Fox and Krystal didn't share their happy expressions. In fact, the two vulpines looked annoyed.
"What's wrong, guys?" Peppy asked.
"Why didn't you stay in ThornTail Hollow?" Fox asked, glaring at his teammates.
"We were just looking for you, Fox!" Slippy stated.
"I would have come back to ThornTail Hollow!" The orange tod said, his voice more full of worry than anger. "You guys didn't have to leave for Moon Mountain Pass!"
"Fox, let me speak with them." Krystal spoke, placing her hand on his shoulder.
Fox complied, stepping to the side. After that, Krystal came towards Peppy and Slippy, which allowed them to get a better look at her. The cobalt vixen's green eyes met with theirs, which prevented them from looking away. Despite that, the hare and the toad could see that she was wearing tribal clothing, with a bra and a loincloth. Whether it came from Sauria or Cerinia, neither of them knew, but they put the thought aside. After all, Krystal was getting ready to speak with them.
"Forgive Fox, he was just worried that the two of you would've gotten hurt or killed." Krystal spoke. "At the same time, he's right, both of you should have stayed in ThornTail Hollow. We would've come for you, like Fox said."
"We know." Slippy said, looking down in shame.
"Sorry, guys." Peppy said.
"Just don't do it again, okay?" Fox spoke.
"We won't," Slippy said, "we'll even tell you where we're going before we do so. But, we'll ask first!"
"Now that we've cleared that up, let's move on!" Krystal said as she began to walk back to the warp pad.
"Wait for us, Krys!" Fox said, following her to the warp pad.
Peppy and Slippy began to follow Fox and Krystal to the warp pad. That was until they all heard an ethereal noise. Out from the sky came a Krazoa Spirit, which was floating down near the four.
"A Krazoa!" Peppy said.
"Kill it!" Slippy screamed. "Kill it!"
"Slippy, no, we need it!" Fox told him.
Krystal stepped forward and absorbed the Krazoa Spirit into her body. After that, she came back towards Fox, Peppy and Slippy.
"Let's get this Spirit back to Krazoa Palace, gentlemen." Krystal spoke.
Fox, Peppy and Slippy stepped onto the warp pad with Krystal, allowing it to take them to Krazoa Palace. Once they got there, the four walked down a corridor, where one of the shrines for the Krazoa Spirits was at. Stepping forward, Krystal let the Krazoa Spirit out of her body, allowing it to enter the shrine. Before it departed, the being spoke with the cobalt vixen and her allies.
"Thank you for returning me to my shrine, my friends!" The Krazoa Spirit spoke. "You have done a good job, but it is not done yet! Three of my fellow spirits have yet to be returned, and two SpellStones have yet to be returned to their proper places!"
"Don't worry," Krystal spoke, "we're on it!"
"Bless you, mortal children!" The Spirit said as it dissipated, fading into the walls of Krazoa Palace.
After that, Krystal began to walk back to the warp pad, with Fox, Peppy and Slippy following her. With their curiosity at its peak, Peppy and Slippy decided to ask Krystal some questions.
"Hey, Krystal, how long have you been living on Sauria?" Slippy asked.
"Four months." Krystal answered.
"You've been on this planet since the war against Andross?" The toad was surprised. "We never even noticed you on Sauria before!"
"Well, I occasionally visit either the CloudRunners or the SnowHorns when I'm not at ThornTail Hollow, so that might be why none of you saw me before." The cobalt vixen stated.
"How old are you, anyway?" Peppy asked.
"I'm nineteen." The Cerinian answered.
"What was your home planet of Cerinia like?" The hare continued. "I've never been to it, but I've heard that your people used staffs like the one you have. Was Cerinia a tribal planet that was full of magic?"
"What? No." The vulpine stated. "I've read books on the other planets in the Lylat System, and if I had to compare Cerinia to any of them, it would be Corneria. The differences include Cerinia being ruled by a monarchy while Corneria is ruled by a general. You're right about the magic part of Cerinia's culture, but it coexisted with modern technology, from computers to spaceships. When my father became King of Cerinia, he had the magic pushed aside in favor of the technology we had. In addition to that, he took the role of the rightful ruler from my mother."
"Gee, your father was a sourpuss." The lepus stated.
Fox, Peppy, Slippy and Krystal stepped into the warp pad, getting ready to head to their next destination.
"Two of the SpellStone thingies to go!" Slippy spoke. "Where do we find the third one, Peppy?"
"In the land of the LightFoots." Peppy stated.
"Ugh, not the LightFoots!" Fox said. "Those guys are utter jerks! They're paranoid, but they're still jerks!"
"Fox," Krystal spoke, "I might not like the LightFoots either, but we still need to retrieve the SpellStone and save Sauria."
"Okay," the orange tod said, "but you're going to have to do the talking."
"And I'm okay with that!" The cobalt vixen said, smiling.
"Alright, let's go!" Peppy said.
Shortly after he said that, Fox, Peppy, Slippy and Krystal found themselves being teleported out of Krazoa Palace. Their next destination was the domain of the LightFoot tribe, where they would find the next SpellStone.
Note: Welp, I forgot what the area where we meet the LightFoot tribe is called. However, I'll find out what it was called in time for the next chapter. Anyway, I think I should explain why I want to make Cerinia, Krystal's home planet, like Corneria, but with minor differences. It's because most stories that explain what it's like portray it as a primitive, tribal planet. Personally, I think that it makes no sense, as Krystal wouldn't have survived in space if Cerinia was actually like that. With that in mind, I'm not the only person who portrays Cerinia as an advanced planet. One story I read even had it using advanced technology, even if the Cerinians still had tribal clothing. I mean, guys, it's Star Fox, not Black Panther. I'm sorry if I sound rude, it's just taken me a LONG time to complete this chapter. But, I hope that all of you have enjoyed it. Until next time guys, this is Newcomer24, signing off. Peace!