Note: Now that The Gloves Are On is done, I can work on this and my rewrite of Love Or Lust. Of all the stories that are open, this is the one I want to finish the most. Before we move on, I have something to say to four reviewers.
UltimateCCC: Well, if it can survive in a war against Venom, then the Great Fox can make it back to Corneria after floating above Sauria.
Big Bossk Man 92: Everyone has a hidden depth to them, so guitar playing is Sabre's. After all, Krystal was being reminded of something, so she would definitely think of someone who was kind to her. How she'll join Star Fox isn't clear, but maybe you'll find out. Stay tuned.
Ron: Who doesn't love Krystal? Other than the haters, of course.
The White Wolf named Alex: Thanks. Stay tuned for this chapter.
Now that I've done that, it's time for chapter thirteen.
Chapter 13: Welcome Aboard
It had been three months since the Saurian Crisis, and things hadn't been terribly busy for Star Fox. They had received their reward from the General, so they had plenty of money on hand in case they needed to buy something or pay a bill. In addition to that, Falco was back in the Great Fox, meaning that it wasn't as empty as before. Despite him being a pain in the neck at times, the team couldn't help but admit that he made each job better. The pheasant was, after all, the team's Ace pilot, which none of them disputed. Nonetheless, he was back, and the team was complete again.
Despite the team being back together, there was someone who wasn't happy: Fox. For the three months that passed the Saurian Crisis, the orange tod couldn't help but miss Krystal. The last time the team saw the cobalt vixen, she looked like she was about to cry. She had said that she would consider Fox's offer to join the team, but she needed some time to decide. Considering what had happened, Fox respected her need to be alone for the time being. Even if Krystal was surrounded by the tribes of Sauria, she was still lonely.
A thought then crossed Fox's mind: How would Krystal integrate back into society? She was living on a jungle planet like Sauria for four months before she met Star Fox, which meant that it was a while before she saw advanced technologies again. While the cobalt vixen could use technology like that, she probably didn't need to. She wasn't naïve or easily-manipulated, but Fox worried about what how she would do on Corneria. How would a telepath not get overwhelmed on a planet with a larger population than Sauria? What would happen if she encountered someone with malicious intent?
Noticing how Fox was doing, Peppy approached him. The hare sat down next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Still worried about Krystal, Fox?" Peppy asked.
"Yeah." Fox said.
"Krystal was on Sauria for a few months, so you have nothing to worry about." The hare said. "If she could survive and make friends during that time, then she can live on that planet for a few more months."
"That's not what I'm worried about." The orange tod said. "I'm worried about what she would do if she were on Corneria. Not only that, but I'm worried about what would happen if someone found out she was a telepath. Would she be used as a weapon? Would she be locked up in a facility for the rest of her life?"
"I'm more worried about what would happen if she got angry." The lepus said. "What if someone said or did something to anger her? Regardless of what that person deserves, would they press charges? If Krystal is proven guilty, then she would either be fined or put in jail!"
"If Krystal gets arrested, then we would have to testify for her." The vulpine said. "We could only hope that she would act in self-defense."
"Incoming message! Incoming message!"
Without warning, ROB walked up to Fox and Peppy. The bot had a glowing light on his chest, meaning that someone was trying to send a message. Intrigued, Fox pressed the light on the machine, hoping that it didn't harm him. By looking into ROB's database, the orange tod tried to find the message. To his surprise, there was no sign of the message. Going through the database again, the vulpine still found no trace of the message, as if whoever was sending it had stopped it from traveling.
"ROB, where's the message?" Fox asked.
"The message will not be in my database!" ROB said. "However, the caller might message the Great Fox!"
Sure enough, the main communicator was met with static. For a few minutes, the message struggled to play on the screen, with the caller being barely visible. After another minute, the message straightened up, revealing who was calling the Great Fox. Star Fox were surprised to see that it was coming from Sauria, having assumed that it was either General Pepper or one of their allies. However, it wasn't, as the message had shown. What surprised the team more was the identity of the caller, who happened to be a familiar EarthWalker.
"Hey, guys!" Tricky spoke, practically jumping with joy.
"Tricky?" Fox asked.
"Weren't expecting a call from Sauria, were you?" The EarthWalker Prince said. "Well, it didn't take much to get the communicator working, but it was hard to repair!"
The team was surprised that there was a working communicator on Sauria, given how the planet lacked technology. However, their mood changed when they saw Tricky in an area that didn't look like any of the locations on the planet. It was a rather small place, albeit being big enough for the Prince of the EarthWalkers to fit in. Everything around him looked technologically advanced, but it wasn't something made by the Saurians. The technology looked identical to Cornerian technology, but it was different. Star Fox even looked at every aspect of the area around Tricky, as it even looked familiar to them.
Like a spaceship.
"Guys?" Tricky asked in concern. "Are you okay?"
"Where did you get all of that technology from?" Slippy asked.
"What technology?" The EarthWalker Prince asked.
"The stuff that's all around you!" Falco spoke. "The communicator, the paneling, everything! Where did it all come from, Tricky?"
"Well," the Saurian said in a near whisper, "I shouldn't really spoil the surprise, but we had been working on a new ship for Krystal. After you guys left a few months ago, Kyte and I worked on it with a few of her fellow CloudRunners. We even had help from some LightFoots!"
"That's really sweet of you to do such a thing!" Peppy said.
"Does Krystal know that you're working on it?" Fox asked.
"Actually, yes!" Tricky said. "She's even helped us on the more difficult parts, including this weird thing called circuitry!"
"Is she near?" The orange tod asked.
"She's outside of the ship, I can go get her!" The EarthWalker said.
Watching as Tricky walked out of the ship, Fox couldn't help but smile. Every bit of news that he heard made him feel happy. Not only were some of the citizens of Sauria working together to build a new ship for Krystal, but it looked almost done. The orange tod couldn't wait to speak to the cobalt vixen again. He could tell that his teammates felt the same way, as they looked excited. After all these months, they never thought they would speak to her again.
After a little bit, Krystal walked into the ship. She hadn't really changed since the last time Star Fox had seen her. However, the cobalt vixen had bandages on her hands, presumably from when she was working on the ship with her friends. The vulpine was wearing an overcoat, which happened to be the one that she wore in the SnowHorn Wastes. Upon entering the ship, she sat down and looked ahead. She smiled as she saw Star Fox, and they smiled back.
"Everyone," Krystal spoke, "it's so good to see you again!"
"Good to see you, too, Krystal." Fox said.
"I take it that your ship is fully functional?" Falco asked.
"Indeed, and all it took was a bit of rewiring and hot wiring the circuitry to get everything working!" The cobalt vixen said.
"That's good to hear, Krystal!" Slippy said. "Have you considered the offer that Fox gave you months ago?"
"I have." The vulpine said.
"What's your answer?" Fox asked.
The team watched as Krystal's expression went from happy to sad. None of them could blame her, given how she had found herself a new home. It seemed wrong to take her off of Sauria, but they knew that the cobalt vixen couldn't survive on the planet forever. Even if she had access to food, water, shelter, and a way of defending herself, the vulpine probably wouldn't survive severe natural disasters. While the Saurian population seemed to be gaining a better understanding of technology, they didn't have the right stuff to detect an incoming disaster. Krystal could handle herself better, but it seemed like a bad idea to leave her on the planet in case of emergency.
"I want to join the team, guys." Krystal spoke. "But, by leaving Sauria, I would be saying goodbye to all the friends I have made here. Ever since I arrived on the planet, I was treated like I was another citizen here. The EarthWalkers and the CloudRunners were the only ones who made me feel like I was welcome on Sauria, as if I was just another member of the family. I couldn't just change homes after all this time, the planet would be in trouble again!"
"You don't have to carry the fate of a planet on your shoulders anymore, Krystal." Peppy said. "Even if we wind up fighting a threat to the universe with you on board, you won't be alone. We'll take it on as a team, giving it our all!"
"No matter what happens, you'll be valued as a member of the team." Slippy added.
"And you can visit Sauria whenever we aren't on a mission." Falco said. "I'm not fond of the planet, but if it's good enough for you, it's good enough for everyone!"
"With everything considered," Fox spoke, "you won't be treated any different than how you were on Sauria. If anything, we'll treat you better than how they did, to the point where you'll feel like a Queen."
"I wasn't looking forward to becoming a Queen back on Cerinia, but it's rather nice of you to treat me like that." Krystal said.
"We can even give you a place to stay at the Great Fox." The orange tod said.
"Fox, you don't have to do that!" The cobalt vixen chuckled. "I can just live on Corneria, so that I can join you and the team whenever you have a mission on it!"
"Krystal, we'd be more than happy to let you live with us." Peppy said. "Besides, you would have better access to clothes, considering how the stuff you had from Cerinia got destroyed."
"You make a good point there." The vulpine said. "I suppose I should go tell everyone that I'm ready to leave. See you later!"
Once the call had ended, the team knew that Krystal would be at the Great Fox at any minute. With that in mind, they decided to tidy up as much as they could. Knowing that the cobalt vixen needed a room, Peppy remembered that there was one that served as a guest bedroom. While Star Fox didn't receive visitors who would stay at the Great Fox, it was kept open in case someone wanted to.
"Fox, I'm going to tidy up the guest bedroom for Krystal!" Peppy said.
"And I'll help!" Slippy spoke.
"Make it quick, guys, she'll be here at any moment!" Fox said while cleaning the floors.
"Sauria's miles away from the Great Fox, guys, Krystal's not going to be here as quick as it took her to send us a message." Falco said.
"Just work on something, Falco!" Slippy shouted, having went to the guest bedroom with Peppy.
Falco grumbled, having no idea what to clean. He swallowed his pride, deciding to look for anywhere that needed some spick and span. Now that they were preoccupied, Star Fox wanted to make the Great Fox look alright to Krystal. Even if she didn't mind how it would look, they just wanted to give her a new home.
Forty-five minutes later, a small starship flew up to the Great Fox and greeted it with a beeping sound. As the pilot essentially honked the horn, the Great Fox opened up its docking bay. This allowed the pilot to enter their ship. Upon seeing the ship land, ROB went up to it. He watched as the cockpit opened up, revealing who the pilot was. The pilot happened to be a beautiful cobalt vixen with green eyes dressed in Saurian clothing.
After landing her ship, Krystal opened up the cockpit. Now that she was able to get out, she was greeted by a robot wearing a suit and tie. The cobalt vixen couldn't help but smile at this. She even got a glimpse of the area around her, interested in what was in front of her. Near the vulpine were the four Arwings of Star Fox, being parked until further use.
"Your hand, Miss?" ROB said.
"Thanks!" Krystal said as she grabbed the metallic hand in front of her. "By the way, I like the outfit that you're wearing!"
"If I were organic, I would be charmed!" The robot said, sounding as happy as he could.
Letting out a small giggle, Krystal walked up to the entrance in front of her. It turned out to be an elevator, complete with numbered buttons for each floor. The cobalt vixen never liked elevators, as she was afraid of getting stuck in one. She also felt that they took too much time, especially when compared to walking on the stairs. Nonetheless, the vulpine pressed a button, hoping that it would be the right one. Her telepathy was on, and it was scanning for the team.
After a little bit of waiting, the elevator door opened. Now that it was open, Krystal saw Fox, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy standing in front of her. The four were dressed nicely, each having a suit and tie. Krystal blushed, feeling somewhat embarrassed to be wearing a skimpy outfit in front of her suit-wearing allies. She swallowed her pride, considering that they were well-dressed when she met them.
"Hello, Krystal." Fox said.
"You didn't have to dress up, guys." Krystal said.
"We just felt that it was necessary." Peppy said. "It's not everyday that someone joins the team."
"Are you ready to see your new room?" Slippy asked.
Krystal stepped out of the elevator, giving her answer. Now that she was in, Fox and Slippy led her down a hallway. They then stopped, coming near a door near the end of the hall. Fox was ready to open the door, but he wanted it to be a surprise.
"Close your eyes, Krystal, and don't use your telepathy!" He said.
Closing her eyes, Krystal waited for when it was okay for her to open them. She didn't use her telepathy, like Fox said, so that it wouldn't spoil the surprise. The cobalt vixen heard a door open up, followed by footsteps. Despite that, she kept her eyes closed, and had her telepathy shut off.
"Okay, now you can open them!" Fox's voice rang out.
Knowing that it was okay, Krystal opened her eyes. As soon as she did that, she gasped. In front of the cobalt vixen was a bedroom that looked brand new. Stepping inside, she looked around her, getting a glimpse at other aspects of the room. There was an empty closet and an empty dresser, both of which looked like they were just put together. To the vulpine, it was like entering a hotel room, but with better features.
"Well," Fox spoke, "what do you think?"
"It's not the Ritz, but I love it!" Krystal said. "Thanks, guys! The room might be empty now, but I can fill it up!"
"Which reminds me," Slippy spoke, "I should go help ROB carry your stuff in! I know that he's a droid, but I just want to help!"
Slippy ran off, leaving Fox and Krystal in the room. Krystal sat down on her new bed, feeling tired after a long day. Fox sat down with her. He put his arm around the cobalt vixen, which made her smile. The two sat in silence for a brief moment, waiting for the other to start up a conversation. Krystal's telepathy was back on, meaning that she could sense whatever Fox was going to say.
"So, how do you feel?" Fox asked.
"I feel a little nervous, considering how this is my first time in the Great Fox." Krystal said. "Other that, I feel great, knowing that I can become a pilot!"
"Have you always wanted to become a pilot?" The orange tod asked.
"Actually, I wanted to become an archeologist or psychologist, but being a pilot would be fun!" The cobalt vixen said. "I've even taken flying lessons on Cerinia, so don't expect me to be inexperienced at it!"
"I should warn you, it's not all fun and games being a pilot." He said.
"I know," she said, "I just want to help the team out. No matter what happens, I'll protect the innocent and fight any bastard who threatens the universe!"
"Good to know. I'm glad that you feel that way, Krys."
Krystal then lie down on her new bed, enjoying how soft it was. Getting up from the bed, Fox wondered why she was laying down. It didn't take a genius to know that the cobalt vixen was tired, given how long she might have spent on packing up for her flight. Seeing how comfortable she felt, Fox decided to leave her be. The Cerinian needed her rest, and he would feel awful if he disrupted it. The orange tod slowly stepped out of the room, turning back before leaving.
"Sleep well, Krystal." Fox whispered.
Once Fox was gone, Krystal was able to head to sleep. However, while doing so, she felt something under the covers. Seeing that, the cobalt vixen sat up and pulled back the covers. On the bed was a purple teddy bear with a black ribbon around the neck area. There was even a tag on its ear, which said "From Fox, To Krystal". It was another gift from the team, one that nearly made the new recruit tear up.
"Thank you, Fox." Krystal said to herself. "Thank you, everyone."
Holding the bear in her arm, Krystal lie back down, pulling the covers over her. The cobalt vixen fell asleep, feeling comfortable. She felt glad, knowing that she could feel that way. It was good for the vulpine, as she had been through a lot. From Cerinia's destruction to the fight with Drakor, she had a great deal of stress that she felt would never go away. With her stress lessened for now, Krystal slept in peace, waiting for dear morning.
Note: Krystal's now a member of Star Fox, everyone! Aren't you happy for her? I know that it looks the team might be coddling her, but they aren't. They'll still treat her as an adult. It's just that the Cerinian needed a new home and they gave her one. Nice for a team of mercenaries, aren't they?
Now that August is over, I feel glad that September is approaching. While we might know August as Krystal Appreciation Month, I feel like there isn't enough art or stories that portray her in a positive light. By positive light, I mean not portraying her as a damsel in distress or a bicycle for everyone around her. I hope that there's more stuff like that shows her kicking ass next August. Until next time, guys, this is Newcomer24, signing off. Peace!