Legacy of Travas

by MetalFox2013

Travas Starfox, the older brother of future Solarfox/Extinctioners members Scarlet and Erica, has been given a second chance thanks to Nosgoth's Legendary vampire, Janos Audron. His new life, however, hasn't been easy on him, ranging from enemy encounters to visions of the future. Will he be able to live his new life and create a new legacy, or will the dangers get the best of him?

33. The Championshop Match

Legacy of Travas

Chapter 33: The Championship Match

The rain continues to pour all around the Sky Islands within the Dimensional Dome. But on the South-western Sky Island, an injured, bloodied young Timber wolf in a loincloth continues to walk, or in his case, limp towards a path nearby. The wolf wondered if whether or not it lead towards the Tower. But he didn't care at that point. All he wanted to do was to find Aerocrothe and destroy him for what he put him and his now deceased friend through, especially during their match against the raging phoenix, Xenif.

While he was walking through the trail, he realized that he was nearby the entrance of the forest. But as soon as he entered, he suddenly collapses onto the ground and hits the muddy floor below. Despite the fall, however, he manages to remain conscious and crawls towards the back of a pine tree, using his left hand-paw to pull himself up. Because of his weakened state, all he could do was sit on the grass and have his back lean against the bark of the tree, too injured to progress towards his destination.

"Damnit… my injuries might've been more severe than I had anticipated", the wolf cursed softly while breathing heavily a little. "Well… it looks like it might be the end of the road for me…" he continued while grabbing a lighter and a cigarette out of his leg pouch, biting the butt of it gently and closing his lips onto it. He then grabs a lighter from the same pouch and lights it, allowing him to inhale the smoke into his body as crisp sounds burn part of the cigarette down. Finally, he exhales the smoke out of his lungs, thus allowing him to calm down enough to close his eyes and clear his mind.

*On the South-eastern Sky Island*

As the storm continues to pour down upon the land like rapid-fire bullets, Travas continues to follow the path he found after giving his deceased ally a memorial. As he was walking, he couldn't help but place his right hand-paw on his left cheek, feeling the newly formed cross shaped scar, which was no longer bleeding. But within a matter of minutes of walking within the pouring rain, he comes to the end of the trail, only to see the edge of the Sky Island himself.

"Shit…" Travas cursed, kicking the mud with his left motorcycle boot at medium force. But within a few seconds, however, his ears perk and cause him to turn and face the South-western direction. And there, located within a few miles, was yet another Sky Island… and a steadily depleting energy signal close to the heart of the Sky Island itself. "I can sense another energy signal just on the Sky Island over there… and it doesn't look good", he thought before closing his eyes and summoning forth his teleportation energy.

Within a mere fraction of a second, he stands right in front of an injured wolf, whose appearance was rather tribal and similar to that of an enemy he fought a few years ago. The wolf wore a loincloth that covered his private section of the body and has a dark brown pouch attached to his right leg. His fur was that of a brown and white color, with his hair, leaning over the left side of his head, also having some black stripes on it. But the vulpin also discovers him having some bloody wounds along with some blood stains on parts of his fur. As a response, the vulpin kneels down and places his left hand-paw onto the wolf's right shoulder, thus getting his attention as a response.

"Hey are you alright", Travas asked as the timber wolf takes another puff of his cigarette and exhales.

"No…" the wolf answered before grunting in pain. "I feel like shit right now… ugh!" he groaned in pain once again, gripping onto one the wounds on his left side with his right hand-paw. Travas grabs a medical kit out of his bag and places them to his right, causing the wolf to look towards the kit curiously. "What are you doing?"

"You need medical attention right now and this is all I have to treat some of your wounds", Travas answered while grabbing some gauze pads, peroxide, first aid spray, and medical gauze rolls from the kit. He applies some of the peroxide onto the wound, causing the wolf to growl in pain as a response. A minute later, he sprays some of the first aid spray onto his wound before placing a couple of pads onto his wounds. Finally, he wraps a large gauze roll around his sides and carefully ties the roll together, thus managing to stop the wound from bleeding any further. "This should last you a long while, but we need to get to the tower and get the rest of your wounds treated", he said before the wolf smiles towards the fox.

"Thank you, sir…" the wolf replied with a weak, but thankful gesture, causing Travas to nod in response.

"It's not a problem", Travas replied before carefully grabbing the wolf's left arm and placing it over his shoulders. "But the bandages won't hold for long. We have to get to the Tower and get you some help before your wounds reopen", he continued while placing his hand-paw over the wolf's right side, thus allowing him to hold onto the wolf as they begin walking towards the trail. "What's your name?"

"My name's Keith…" Keith answered before grunting briefly in pain and looking back towards the vulpin. "And you must be Travas Starfox, correct", he asked.

"Yes", Travas answered before turning his head towards the trail. "Can you tell me what happened, Keith", he asked, causing the wolf to turn away from him and face the ground.

"It started when my partner and I were trying to search for the tower and fight against Aerocrothe", Keith started. "But during the search, we ran into some trouble when Xenif showed up on the South-western Sky Island. We fought against him with everything we've had. But unfortunately we weren't strong enough to defeat him and Xenif defeated us with ease. Vernon was killed after Xenif summoned an attack that tried to kill us both".

"And you managed to survive", Travas asked as Keith spits the cigarette out of his mouth and puts it out by smushing it his left foot-paw.

"Yeah… and I thought I was gonna die from my injuries", Keith claimed before grunting in pain, causing Travas to stop on his tracks. "That is until you arrived and bandaged some of my injuries… and I must thank you again for what you were able to do for me", he continued just as Travas resumes their journey towards the Tower.

"It's not a problem, Keith. I was rather fortunate to find someone else still alive in this shithole", Travas claimed, causing the wolf to chuckle from his comment. Soon, the vulpin begins tightening his grip around the wolf's waist, allowing him to carry his newfound ally easier. "Can you tell me where you were from?" he asked.

"Yes… I came from the land known as the Gardens of Eden, and I reside amongst a clan known as the War Wolves" Keith answered, causing Travas eyes to widen upon recognition of the land he had seen in his visions. The wolf notices this and looks towards the vulpin with curious eyes. "Have you heard of the place?"

"Apparently, I have…" Travas answered before tilting his head downwards slightly and looking towards the ground. And it's the same place where Xenif came from as well, wasn't he?" he asked calmly. The wolf couldn't answer with words, however, but that of a simple nod.

"Vernon… I'm sorry I couldn't save you…" Keith thought within his mind, causing Travas to stare at him curiously while walking along the trail. "One day, Xenif, you're gonna pay for what you've done to him… even if I have to use my own two hand-paws", he continued thinking before clenching his left fist.

"Keith…" Travas spoke softly, but sympathetically, getting the attention of the wolf as he turns to face the vulpin.

"Travas…?" Keith started.

"You're still bothered by the loss of your friend, aren't you?" Travas asked with a calm, but sympathetic tone.

"How did you know?" Keith asked while looking towards him curiously.

"I have the ability to read mind and see the future", Travas answered softly. "And Xenif was responsible for your friend's death, wasn't he?" he asked before the wolf turns to face the ground again.

"Yes… and I wish I was strong enough to destroy Xenif and save my friend", Keith spoke softly, but with self-loathsome anger for not being able to save his friend's life. "And I promise to make him pay for what he's done", the wolf claimed before closing his eyes out of anger and sorrow.

"I already know he's gonna get a taste of his own medicine", Travas replied, causing the wolf to look towards him curiously.

"What do you mean?" Keith asked, curious to know the vulpin's reasons. But before Travas could answer, he tilts his head up as he sees the end of the trail, which was about a thirty story cliff that pointed directly towards their destination.

"We're here", Travas said, eying Tower that was located about seven hundred meters away from their position. And telling by its size, it was about the same size as the Empire State Building in New York City. "C'mon, we gotta get to the tower and get you help at once!"

"Wait!" Keith exclaimed; grabbing the vulpin's attention as Travas looks at him curiously. "What did you mean when Xenif's gonna get a taste of his own medicine? Is someone else gonna defeat him? I need to know", he continued, causing Travas to shut his eyes sigh calmly before opening them again.

"Alright, listen carefully", Travas started before facing the tower for the second time. "I'm not a hundred percent accurate about this… but in about several years from now, there will be a group of humanimals that'll run into Xenif at the Lost Angles Mall on Alden before being teleported towards the Gardens of Eden during a pursuit. They're gonna get separated when first entering the realm at the start, but in the end, the same group will defeat Xenif and shoot him into another realm", he explained before giving out a calm sigh and closing his eyes. "However, he's gonna be shot into the portal by another phoenix by the name of Phenix, who also happens to be the other half of Phionix when she and Xenif fuse".

"Hold on! Are you telling me Xenif is merely one half of another phoenix… and that the second half is a female phoenix?" Keith asked with shocked, widened eyes.

"Exactly", Travas answered before facing him once more and opening his eyes. "But there is one more thing you should know about the future".

"What else is there regarding it", Keith asked, curious of what the vulpin is going to say.

"As this event takes place, one of the members of the group that's in pursuit of Xenif will land within the same territory you reside in", Travas started before shutting his eyes once again. "Scarlet Starfox, a vixen with long brown hair and white bangs will be saved and brought to your village by another wolf named Lucas Lobo", he continued just as the injured wolf recognizes the name.

"Of course, the pack leader's son", Keith replied upon recognition of the name before grunting in pain. "Ya know, I've always thought that Lucas would be the one to do great things, not his brother, Jeran, like his parents are expecting him to be", he claimed as the vulpin nods.

"I see…" Travas claimed before gripping onto the wolf's side carefully, but firmly. "And if I'm not mistaken, Jeran is the one responsible for their parents' disappearance several years from now", he thought before walking closer to the edge of the cliff, preparing to launch towards the Tower. "Ready, Keith?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, Travas", Keith answered before grunting slightly in pain.

"Good, just hang in there", Travas said before launching towards the Tower with a mere, powerful leap, causing the war wolf to grasp onto his torso within sudden notice. And within a matter of thirty seconds, they land just about thirty feet from the entrance of the Japanese style Tower shrine. And there, waiting at the entrance of the Tower were the same two female kitsunes that expelled Xenif from the tournament earlier that day. They approach the two kitsunes as they bow before the two warriors with a welcoming gesture.

"Welcome to the Shrine of master Aerocrothe, fellow warriors", the first female kitsune greeted while giving a soft smile to the two warriors. "I sense the two of you have undergone many trials regarding the one identified as Xenif, and we apologize for the inconvenience", she continued before turning her expression into a more serious one.

"However, your friend cannot compete against out master and champion. He's too greatly injured to barely even stand on his feet-paws", the second female kitsune said while observing the injured war wolf Travas continues to carry by his waist.

"I'm aware of that, ma'am… and that's why we were in a hurry to get here", Travas replied a moment before Keith grunts in pain. "He needs immediate medical attention… he needs ya'lls help", he continued just a moment before both female kitsunes shut their eyes calmly, tilting their heads down slightly as Travas looks at them curiously.

"We are aware of his condition, Travas", the first female kitsune replied before opening her eyes and facing the curious vulpin. "But unfortunately, we cannot help him in his state, even if we were inclined to", she claimed just before Travas begins looking at her with widened eyes.

"Wait, what are you talking about? Why can't you-"

"Because only one of you can enter the Tower and challenge Aerocrothe!" the second female kitsune interrupted with a rather loud, serious tone, causing the vulpin to turn and face her. "It's against our regulations to help any of the competitors at the final battle of the tournament! It is our duty to follow every expectation our master-"

"I don't care!" Travas shouted, causing the kitsunes to look towards him with surprised faces. "I don't care if he gets disqualified from the tournament! I don't care what the regulations say! And I damn well don't give the slightest fuck about what Aerocrothe expects you to do or what he'll do to ya'll if you don't! All I care about is getting Keith the medical attention he needs in order to continue living!" he continued as the first kitsune begins to tilt her head down and shut her eyes, with tears starting to form in her eyes.

"Travas, you don't understand!" the first female kitsune shouted. "If we don't follow our master's expectations, he'll-"

"I'll protect you both if it comes to that!" Travas interrupted loudly, causing the kitsunes to look at him with surprised eyes. Before the vulpin could continue speaking, he closes his eyes and begins breathing slowly. Within a moment or two, he manages to calm down enough to focus and reopen his eyes. "I don't want any of this championship bullshit! All I'm asking you is to get him some medical attention for him… please", he pleaded while looking at them with calm, urgent eyes. Within a moment, the two kitsunes sigh with reluctance and nods.

"Alright… we'll provide Keith with the medical attention he needs", the first female kitsune replied calmly as they take the war wolf's arms and wrap them over their shoulders. "But know this, Travas: once you enter the threshold of Aerocrothe, there's no turning back".

"You must fight him with everything you've got", the second one added. "And don't you dare stop fighting until you know for sure he can no longer fight", she continued before the two turn towards the left hallway. "Your friend's wounds will be treated in the infirmary at the west wing. As for you, I suggest you begin walking towards the heart of the Tower itself. Aerocrothe will be waiting for you inside", she suggested before Travas nods and smiles at them with a thankful gesture.

"Thank you…" Travas thanked, causing the first one to softly smile back before the two kitsunes turn to face the Infirmary in the western wing, walking hastily towards it with haste.

As the kitsunes take Keith to see medical attention, the vulpin turns to face the main doors in front of him and begins walking towards them. Upon entering, he can see various statues of the kitsune champion himself along with some statues of other dragons and kitsunes, ranging in styles from bronze Japanese sculpture to Neoclassical. But despite the discovery, however, he makes it to the final pair of doors that lead straight to the champion himself and opens them, entering into a massive circular room with the same diameter as that of Rome's famed Pantheon. In a similar note, the chamber interior was also about the same height as the empire state building, with each floor containing Japanese architectural elements on them. And there, standing at the heart of the massive circular room was the kitsune champion himself, dressed in the same robe and smirking in delight upon the vulpin's arrival.

"Ah yes, the legendary Travas Starfox finally arrives within the heart of the Tower at last", Aerocrothe greeted with a smirk on his face while eying the vulpin in front of him. "Tell me, did it trouble you when Xenif murdered your ally with the legendary Star Blade?" he asked as his smirk widens only slightly.

"Did it trouble you in the fact that he possessed the Star Blade right from the start?" Travas asked back with a calm, serious tone in his voice while walking down the small, wide set of stairs and onto the platform. "And did it bother you in the fact that he could've used it against you if he made it to the final match?" he asked before the vulpin stops walking, standing just about twenty feet from the champion himself.

"Perhaps… but I would've had my mistresses cast him back to the dimension whence he came at the moment he tried to pull the damn thing out", Aerocrothe claimed as his smirk fades into a more serious expression. But before he could speak again, he discovers a new marking he bore on his left cheek and smirks softly. "And I don't suppose that was from your fallen comrade as a dying gift", he asked with a calm smirk on his muzzle, causing Travas to turn his eyes towards the cross shaped scar on his left cheek and gently stroke it with his right hand-paw.

"Perhaps", Travas answered before turning to face the champion in front of him. "And his dying wish was for me to defeat you and get out of this god forsaken place!" he claimed before getting into battle position. But as he did, he notices Aerocrothe remove the robe from his torso, only wearing a pair of solid black Gi pants with a white colored belt. And within short notice, the kitsune chuckles and gets into battle position, setting his sights towards the vulpin in front of him.

"Of course", Aerocrothe replied with a slight chuckle before smirking eagerly towards the vulpin. "Now then, let us not waste time engaging in a staring contest. Let us begin the battle at once".

"Good, because I'm tired of waiting to kick your sorry ass", Travas replied before he and Aerocrothe dart towards each other like two bullets hitting each other and ricocheting in different directions.

As the two warriors start clashing, both warriors begin hurling powerful punches towards each other that send shockwaves throughout the room. Yet despite parts of the chamber interior beginning to shake, Aerocrothe jumps into the air as Travas follows him towards the higher levels, continuing to strike the kitsune with everything he's got. Because of Travas' efforts, Aerocrothe begins to smirk at him while chuckling evilly; blocking every single attack he threw as Travas does the same with him.

"Travas, Travas, Travas…" Aerocrothe started while continuing to strike the vulpin endlessly. "I must admit that I'm rather impressed with your level of skill. Usually, my opponents tend to die just within a few moments into the battle. But you, however, are certainly something else", he claimed.

"Heh, looks like my hardcore training is paying off", Travas claimed before teleporting behind the kitsune as an attempt to strike him down.

"We'll just see about that, young fox", Aerocrothe thought before quickly turning around and striking a blow on the vulpin's muzzle, causing him to crash onto one of the wooden rails on the thirteenth floor. As a result, Travas recovers with a bloody nose on his muzzle, causing him to wipe it off before darting towards the kitsune once again. "Back for more?" he asked with a satisfied smirk on his face. But at the moment he tries to strike the vulpin again, Travas teleports behind him and strikes a blow on his back, knocking him straight to the ground. However, Aerocrothe manages to make an aerial recovery before the impact would ever happen.

Once the kitsune manages to recover, he immediately flies hastily towards the vulpin above, with two fiery blades forming in the palms of his hand-paws. Travas also forms a couple of blue colored aura blades within his hand-paws as well, allowing him to even the odds of the battle. And then, with a sudden shockwave, the two warriors start striking each other with their aura blades armed.

"Honestly, Travas! If you think arming yourself with two aura blades is enough to even the odds, think again!", Aerocrothe he yelled before piercing through the vulpin's defenses, striking both blades right through his chest as Travas starts coughing up blood. This in turn causes the kitsune to grin heavily as a response to his work. "You lose", the kitsune claimed just before chuckling in delight. But that soon changed as soon his target turns into bright green glowing energy, which starts moving towards diagonally behind Aerocrothe's right side. And there, floating just within sixteen meters behind him was that of the vulpin himself, causing the kitsune to widen his eyes in surprise.

"You seem surprised, Aerocrothe. Were you not expecting me to pull a trick off such as this one", Travas asked with a soft grin of his face. In return, the kitsune looks at him with a calm gesture, relieving his widened eyes in exchange for more serious ones.

"I will admit that I was taken by surprise by that trick of yours", Aerocrothe admitted. "However, it doesn't surprise me in the fact that you were going to use that technique sooner or later", he claimed before smirking. "But if I were you, I wouldn't rely on that trick of yours for long", he claimed.

"And why is that", Travas asked while looking at him with serious eyes.

"Perhaps it is best to find out for yourself", Aerocrothe replied before teleporting behind the vulpin and attempting to strike his back. However, Travas quickly turns around and catches his opponent's fists with ease. And just within a fraction of a second after catching it, the vulpin performs a high-jump kick and strikes his muzzle, causing him to crash onto the uppermost floor of the tower itself. The vulpin quickly begins to summon two electrical energy spheres and hurls them toward the kitsune above, thus exploding the area of the top floor he resided in. Instead of smirking, he remains calm and looks toward the same direction he threw the spheres, knowing better than to assume that the job was done.

Just like any doubt or suspicion many people have, it becomes confirmed at the moment Aerocrothe darts through the smoke and towards Travas like a bullet. And to even the odds against him, Travas uses his knee to block the powerful punch. He also manages to use his other foot-paw to strike the kitsune's face, again knocking him towards the same hallway like before. Before crashing, however, Aerocrothe manages to recover and teleports behind the vulpin and manages to strike his back, knocking him towards the tenth floor of the chamber.

As the vulpin tries to recover from the sudden attack, Aerocrothe begins darting towards him hastily while unsheathing his claws. The kitsune manages to quickly strike Travas' chest with his claws, leaving four fifteen inch slash marks on his torso as the vulpin grunts in pain. As a response, Travas shoots straight towards him and strikes the kitsune endlessly, hitting the middle parts of his torso up to his face. Within a sudden moment, however, Aerocrothe manages to catch the vulpin's fists with his hand-paws, grabbing a firm hold of them as if they were mere softballs.

"Impressive work there, Travas", Aerocrothe said with a smirk on his face, but soon looks at him with a more serious expression. "But not impressive enough, I'm afraid", the kitsune continued a moment before raising the vulpin over his head. Then, with sudden force, he throws the vulpin towards the shiny amber floor below, where the vulpin creates a deep crater as if he were a meteor from the skies above. Aerocrothe seeks this chance to summon an energy blast within his hand-paws, cupping them together and pulling them towards his left to form a sphere. After about a prolonged moment, he pushes his arms forward and fires it towards Travas below.

Within a mere second after firing the beam, the energy blast destroys the entire floor below, with black smoke shrouding it as a result. This causes the champion to smirk deviously upon his work, almost certain that he managed to destroy the vulpin at last. But when the smoke begins to fade, his smirk shifts into a more confused expression as he discovers the vulpin's body wasn't there nor desecrated into ashes. In fact, he quickly starts looking around the chamber interior for the vulpin, unsure about his opponent's current position

"Where the hell is he?" Aerocrothe wondered while giving a soft growl in annoyance. "I know he's in here somewhere… but where?!" he continued thinking before growling out of aggravation as a result from not being able to find the vulpin. But within a sudden moment, however, his ears perk and cause him to turn around one hundred eighty degrees to the right. And there, coming towards him like an arrow shot from a bow gun, was Travas himself, seeing him with fiery fists ready to strike.

"I'm right here, Aerocrothe!" Travas exclaimed before pulling his right arm backwards as means to strike the kitsune champion down. As he does so, Aerocrothe notices that the vulpin's eyes were filled with a fiery like aura, a technique in which he had never seen before until this moment. "And you're going down, you ruthless son of a bitch!" he shouted before managing to strike the kitsune's face, leaving a burnt bruise on his left cheek as Aerocrothe plunges toward the amber floor below.

Within a sudden moment, the kitsune crashes onto the ground violently face first and tries to recover, but his injuries seem to be too great for him and collapses. After the kitsune had collapsed, Travas begins descending towards the ground and lands just about four meters from his position. But as he landed, Aerocrothe tries to recover for a second time, with this attempt allowing the kitsune to get him on his hand-paws and knees. Travas merely gives him a soft smirk as the champion begins breathing rather heavily.

"Had enough?" Travas asked before crossing his arms and looking at him with stern eyes. But within a couple of seconds, however, he begins looking at the kitsune with confused eyes as Aerocrothe begins chuckling in delight.

"Travas, Travas, Travas…" Aerocrothe started before turning his head towards him, looking at the vulpin with a mischievous look on his face. "You can never stop amazing me, can't you?" he asked with a calm, evil tone.

"What are you talking about?" Travas asked suspiciously. But before he could get an answer, the kitsune manages to gather enough strength to get back onto his feet-paws.

"Though I admire your determination and level of combat skills, I'm afraid that it's not enough to defeat one such as myself" Aerocrothe said with a smirk on his face, clenching his fists and spreading both his arms and legs apart only slightly. "And if what I said didn't go through your head, then perhaps this will", he continued before a bright red, flame-like aura starts to cover the outlines of his body. In response, Travas begins to look towards the kitsune with surprised, widened eyes.

"Oh shit, this isn't good! His energy is increasing at a massive rate" Travas exclaimed within his mind, continuing to eye the kitsune in front of him. "I don't know what other tricks he has up his sleeve… but it looks like I might wanna prepare for the worst", he continued thinking as he watches the transformation Aerocrothe begins to undergo.

While the shocked vulpin continues to watch the kitsune's transformation, Aerocrothe's muscles start to bulge as his golden yellow eyes quickly shift into a blood red color. But as they did, Travas notices something bulging from the kitsune's back. Then, within a mere moment, a pair of bat-like wings penetrates right through the furred flesh on Aerocrothe's back, allowing them to stretch as far as they could. Finally, he looks towards the vulpin's surprised, almost shocked state and smirks evilly towards him.

"Now, Travas, do you finally realize the extent of my capabilities?" Aerocrothe asked with an evil grin on his face, eying the vulpin with pure satisfaction. But before Travas could answer, however, the newly transformed kitsune teleports towards him and strikes him with his claws, hurling the vulpin towards the entrance he came through. One of the female kitsunes outside screams in shock after she notices the vulpin crash right through the doors and onto the floor. In a similar manner, she screams loudly at the moment she discovers her master in his new form, frightened by what he's become.

"Ugh… god… damnit", Travas uttered softly, but painfully while trying to recover. But as he did, he feels a sharp pain on his chest and grabs a hold of the severe slash wounds just above his abs. But when he turns his head to face him, Aerocrothe manages to grab a hold of his neck and pick him by the throat, suffocating the vulpin as Travas begins struggling to get free.

"Aw, what's the matter, Travas? Are you running out of breath", Aerocrothe mockingly asked as he tightens his grip around the vulpins neck, causing him to struggle even harder than before. In fact, he started struggling so hard, that he's starting to kick his legs back and forth to add to his efforts. He even tries to kick the kitsune as hard as he could, but Aerocrothe's grip wouldn't budge. But within a few moments, one of the female kitsunes that greeted Travas and Keith at the entrance enters and looks upon her master's horrific transformation with shock.

"Master Aerocrothe! What the hell are you doing?! You're not supposed to take the battle out of the Chamber!" The female kitsune shouted with a mixture shock, seriousness, and horror. In turn, the newly transformed kitsune turns to face the female kitsune with stern eyes while growling in a furiously annoyed manner.

"You stupid god forsaken harlot, you dare question my actions and tell me what the hell I'm not supposed to do?!" Aerocrothe exclaimed angrily, turning his sights to the angered, frightened female kitsune some twelve feet away. Almost immediately, Aerocrothe throws the nearly unconscious vulpin towards one of the red wood columns and turns to face the female kitsune. In a similar manner, she begins walking backwards just as her angered master begins approaching her. "Perhaps this ought to teach you a lesson, you filthy whore", he claimed before teleporting towards the female kitsune and grabbing a hold of her throat. At the same time, Aerocrothe lifts her from the ground and begins to strangle her with his right hand-paw whilst preparing a deadly wraith blade on his left.

As the newly transformed champion continues to strangle the female kitsune, Travas begins to recover while coughing rather fiercely and repetitively. But while he was recovering and breathing heavily, he looks towards the female kitsune with widened eyes as her agonizing screams fill the room. In that moment, he begins to stand back up onto his feet and support himself with the damaged wooden pillar, turning his sights towards the transformed kitsune several meters away.

"AEROCROTHE, GET THE HELL OFF OF HER!" Travas shouted angrily before teleporting towards his right side, managing to strike him fiercely with the side of his boot and free the female kitsune from her master's grip. Although he managed to knock the transformed kitsune nearly several feet towards his left, he manages to make a recovery and turns to face the vulpin a couple of meters away. In that moment, the female kitsune hides behind Travas as the vulpin gets back into battle position. "Ma'am, are you alright", he asked while turning his sights towards the frightened female kitsune.

"Yeah, I'm alright", the female kitsune answered.

"Good", Travas started before turning to face the vicious champion one again. "Listen to me carefully, miss! I need you to find the others and take them some place safe", he ordered.

"Wait, what about you, Travas? What are you-?"

"Look, we don't have time to argue right now! I need you to find the others and get them somewhere safe", Travas interrupted while adding seriousness in his tone.

"But-"

"That's an order!" Travas yelled, interrupting the female kitsune as she looks at him with curious, slightly frightened eyes. But despite this, she manages to regain her composure and nods.

"Alright… but before you continue there's something you need to know", the female kitsune said as Travas turns to face Aerocrothe, who suddenly dashes towards the vulpin and begins punching him with red aura covered fists.

"I'm kinda occupied at the moment!" Travas exclaimed while trying to block the kitsune champion's attacks. Soon, however, he manages to fire a powerful blast towards Aerocrothe, knocking him backwards and blinding him as a result.

"Travas, listen!" the female kitsune shouted as the vulpin turns to face him with curious eyes.

"What is it", Travas asked calmly, but curiously as well as the female kitsune starts breathing heavily from yelling.

"You must kill Aerocrothe if you wish to win the tournament and get out of this god forsaken place! It's the only way that you can truly defeat him once and for all", the female kitsune claimed before closing her eyes and turning her head away from him. "And it's the only way that we can reclaim our freedom that all of my friends and I lost because of him…" she thought while trying as much as she could to hold back her tears. But when she stops herself from crying and regains her composure, she notices the vulpin looking towards her with calm, sympathetic eyes. At that moment, Travas shifts his look towards a more serious one and nods at the kitsune.

"Alright, I'll make sure to kill this bastard. But in return, I need you to do me a favor and you need to do it as fast as you can", Travas started just before he turns to face Aerocrothe, who was starting to regain his vision, for a moment before turning to face the female kitsune . "Aerocrothe's vision is starting to recover, so listen carefully, because I'm going to explain this once! I need you to go to the Infirmary and meet with the patients and other kitsune staff members. From there, I need you to teleport towards the Vampire Citadel and take refuge there. I'll 'whisper' Janos and tell him about ya'lls arrival ahead of time", the vulpin explained before turning to face the angered, fully recovered kitsune champion. "Now get going", he shouted before darting towards Aerocrothe with great speed, thus engaging into battle once more.

"Alright, just don't die on us!" the female kitsune replied before turning to face the western hallway and sprinting towards the Infirmary just as the vulpin ordered her to do. Travas, on the other hand, turns to face the fully recovered champion and gets into his battle stance. But as he did, he notices the champion turning to face the fleeing female kitsune, where he begins to form a powerful, red colored energy sphere within the palm of his right hand-paw

"You pestilent little wench! Do you really think I would allow my servants to escape me so easily", Aerocrothe asked rather evilly before pulling his right arm backwards, preparing to hurl the deadly sphere towards the female kitsune as she turns to face him. "Think again, you wretched little BITCH", he yelled before suddenly throwing the spherical projectile towards the female kitsune. However, Travas quickly teleports in front of her and deflects the approaching blast towards the right, thus desecrating most of that hallway's side like dust.

"Hey! Your fight is with me, pal, not her!" Travas shouted before darting towards him and striking him hastily, with Aerocrothe doing the same. While they cancel out each other's attacks, the vulpin turns to face the frightened female kitsune. "What are you doing? Go to the Infirmary and get the others out of here while you still can!" the vulpin ordered before the kitsune nods and sprints hastily towards the Infirmary, where the staff members and the remainder of the patients reside. "Now then, let's finish this! Once and for all!" he shouted before darting towards Aerocrothe and striking the kitsune with a powerful kick to the face, sending him flying towards the chamber at a violent, haste pace.

At the moment Travas enters the chamber, Aerocrothe violently crashes through one of the wooden pillars and on the marble wall. Before the kitsune had time to recover, Travas strikes Aerocrothe's stomach with his knee, taking the breath out of his lungs as a result. Although Travas gave a soft smirk on his face, it soon shifts towards a more confused one when the kitsune began chuckling in delight.

"Oh, Travas, you pathetic fool!" Aerocrothe started before grabbing a hold of Travas' leg. "If this is all you have to offer me, then there is no chance of you getting out of this Tournament alive", he finished just as he pulls him towards his right and throwing him towards the opposite wall, which was a few feet from the doors they re-entered through. The vulpin crashes onto it violently as Aerocrothe teleports in front of him, managing to grab a strong hold of his neck and starts strangling him. "Really now, Travas, I was expecting more of a challenge from you, and yet you failed miserably to provide me the evidence of your power", the kitsune spoke with a displeased, slight mocking tone as he tightens his grip around his neck, causing the vulpin to gasp for air while trying to break free.

"Fuck…!" Travas exclaimed within his mind while he was coughing and violently kicking the kitsune with the underside of his boot. "I have to get him off of me before he kills me", he continued until he suddenly stomps his foot-paw onto Aerocrothe's face. But that apparently didn't get him to budge. Instead, the kitsune grabs a hold of his leg and smirks at him in delight.

"Nice try, Travas, but it isn't going to get you out of my grip that easily", Aerocrothe claimed before tightening his grip around his neck and leg, causing him to scream out in agonizing pain. The kitsune also begins laughing with satisfaction before throwing the injured vulpin nearly twenty meters from his position, causing him to crash onto the wall before hitting the floor violently. And as he was barely getting onto his knees and hand-paws, Aerocrothe begins to unsheathe his claws like switchblade knives. And with this, he begins to approach the injured vulpin slowly, taking his sweet time before he would strike the hand of death onto the vulpin. Unaware to the kitsune, however, Travas closes his eyes and clears his mind, hoping to come into contact with one of the other vampires before the battle resumes.

*Within the Citadel, Nosgoth*

Within the interior of the Sacred Chamber, Janos, Serenity, the other vampires, and Raziel continue to watch the ongoing battle between Travas and Aerocrothe. And as they watch, they see Aerocrothe injure, perhaps breaking his back by using a knee kick. As it happens, the vixen toddler quickly covers her eyes and starts running away from the watery projection and behind one of the palm trees. Janos and Aramantha turn to face the sobbing vixen child and run towards her. But when the winged vampire gets about halfway there, he hears some sort of faint voice within mind, thus causing him to shut his eyes and focus on the faint voice trying to call him.

"This is Janos speaking… who is this" Janos asked within the 'whisper', trying to figure out who it was calling his name.

"Janos, its Travas speaking", Travas said within Janos' mind. "Look, I don't have much time left, so I need you to listen carefully", he continues speaking until Vorador turns to face his sire.

"Janos, is that Travas speaking", Vorador asked, causing the winged vampire to open his eyes and turn to face his peer.

"Yes, it is", Janos answered before closing his eyes again. "Travas, what is it do you wish to tell me?"

"Alright, listen carefully. There's going to be a group of kitsunes that are about to teleport to the Citadel at any minute now. They should be teleporting towards the same chamber you guys are in right now, but be sure to look around for them in case they don't show up in the chamber you're all on", Travas explained within the winged vampire's mind before the sound of him coughing up a bit of blood can be heard on his side.

"Understood, Travas… just hang in there", Janos replied within the 'whisper' as the vulpin's coughing stagnates.

"Wait!" Travas exclaimed, stopping the other vampire from trying to disconnect the 'whisper'. "There's also another tournament survivor named Keith, a competitor who belongs with the war wolf clan back on the Gardens of Eden. He's gonna be with the other kitsunes as well", he continued.

"War Wolf clan…?" Janos asked within the 'whisper' in a confused manner.

"I know how confusing that sounds for you… but there's no time to explain! I have to get back to the battle at once", Travas answered within Janos' mind. "One more thing: tell Serenity that I'm going to be alright. Tell her that I'm gonna be home soon", he added.

"Understood, and don't you dare die on us, Travas! Your daughter needs you". Janos replied.

"I won't… and I have no intention on having my daughter lose her father at a young age", Travas claimed within the winged vampire's mind. "I gotta go! Just watch over my daughter til I return. Travas out!" he continued before disconnecting the 'whisper', leaving Janos to tend to Serenity as she begins to approach the winged vampire.

"Janos, I'm scared", Serenity spoke softly before Janos picks her up, upon which she buries her face into the vampire's white sleeveless trench coat.

"There's no need to be frightened about the battle. I have just spoken with your father, and he told me that he will return home soon", Janos claimed as Serenity looks up in response.

"Really", Serenity asked curiously before wiping her tears away with her right forearm.

"Yes", Janos answered before turning to face the sacred pool nearby, walking towards it until he was about two feet away from the edge. "I do not know if he will return alive or not… but dear god…please watch over Travas and bring him home safely" he thought as he watches the ongoing battle, where he discovers the vulpin starting to recover and stand onto his feet-paws once more.

*Inside the Infirmary*

The Infirmary was crammed with various kitsune staff members and doctors alike. While some were keeping watch of the battle from one of the monitors, a female kitsune nurse continues to tend to the needs of Keith, who was injured during the battle between him, Vernon, and Xenif. Then all of the sudden, the female kitsune Travas had spoken with earlier enters the Infirmary as the others turn to face her as she was trying to catch her breath.

"Misty, what's happened", one of the male kitsunes asked before the female kitsune looks up and faces him.

"Oh god, Aerocrothe's transformed!" Misty answered. "We have to evacuate everyone to some place safe! The final battle is about to get intense!" she exclaimed as some of the others gasp in shock just a mere second after the ground starts shaking all of the sudden.

"How the hell are we gonna get out of here? Where are we gonna go?!" the male kitsune asked urgently, but with a slightly exasperated tone.

"We're going to take refuge to a place called the Vampire Citadel in Nosgoth. I will teleport us there and-" Misty explained until she was suddenly interrupted when the ground began to shake. "Oh god, this isn't good. Look, I don't have time to explain right now. I need all of you to trust me on this", she said before starting to summon her teleportation magic. "Angela, go get the patient and bring him here! We're getting the hell out of here", she ordered as the female kitsune nods and runs towards Keith, who was also trying to stand back onto his feet-paws. But when the ground starts shaking again, he suddenly trips towards the sharp medical blades nearby. Thankfully, however, Angela catches the wolf before he would fall onto any of the sharp blades.

"I got'cha, Keith", Angela reassured while wrapping his right arm over her shoulders. "C'mon, we gotta meet with the others and get you out of here", she continued as she starts walking towards the group, upon which were ready to teleport out of the Tower and towards Nosgoth.

"Travas… I know you will find the energy to defeat Aerocrothe", Keith thought just before he and Angela arrive to meet with the group, upon which Misty finalizes the teleportation technique. "Just hang in there for us…" he finished thinking before a bright light engulfs the kitsune group, leaving nothing behind but the spot where they once stood.

*Within the Citadel, Nosgoth*

Inside the Sacred Chamber, Janos and everyone else in the giant room continue to watch the ongoing battle between Travas and his opponent. But within a sudden moment, they turn about thirty-five degrees to the left to see a sudden bright light bestow the room, blinding them for a brief moment. And within a short amount of time passing, they regain their vision and discover a group of kitsunes and a wolf enter the chamber. But just when the vampires get into their battle positions, Janos raises his right hand calmly to signal the others to cease what they're doing.

"I assume you must be the ones that Travas told me about", Janos asked as Misty steps forth and calmly nods.

"Yes", Misty answered. "And I assume Travas told you about us prior to our arrival?"

"Correct", Janos replied. "He spoke of a group of kitsune staff members and medical workers were to teleport here to find refuge from Aerocrothe", he continued until he notices the wolf being held onto by Angela. "And you must be the War Wolf Travas spoke about… Keith, if I recall correctly", the winged vampire claimed, causing the wolf to look towards him with surprise.

"Wait… how did you know my name?" Keith asked before grunting in pain, which causes him to grab a hold of his side as a response.

"Travas 'whispered' me about the group's arrival, including you and of your clan, the War Wolves", Janos answered as Vorador tilts his head upward and faces his sire in response.

"War Wolves, you say?" Vorador asked before turning to face the injured wolf nearly three meters away from his position.

"Yes", Janos answered before turning to face Vorador. "Are you familiar with the clan?"

"I am", Vorador replied before placing his left hand behind his back and raises his right hand up, with the index finger being unclenched. "During the time I competed in the Sacred Skies Tournament nearly a century ago, I fought with a young warrior named Arthur Collins, who came from the same War Wolf clan Keith resides", he explained before lowering his right hand and placing it behind his back. When Keith heard that, however, his eyes quickly widen before he approaches him hastily, stopping when he was only a few feet away from the veteran vampire.

"Wait, hold on! You fought alongside my Great Grandfather!" Keith asked while looking towards the veteran vampire with surprised eyes.

"Apparently I have, and I assume that you must be his Great Grandson", Vorador assumed upon hearing the wolf's reply.

"I am", Keith answered before examining the vampire a bit closely. "Now that I think about it, he has told me a lot about you before he passed on when I was only a child. You must be Vorador".

"Yes", Vorador replied calmly before turning to face the pool again, where he discovers Travas fully recovered and blocking the kitsune's attacks despite his injuries. "However, we do not have any more time to discuss about our pasts. We need to shift our focus towards the battle at hand", he suggested as Keith walks towards the vampire, standing next to him while watching the battle before him.

"Hang in there, Travas… I know you can defeat him… I just know it", Keith thought within his mind while watching the ongoing battle between Travas and Aerocrothe. All they can hope for now is for Travas to defeat the champion and return home to his family and friends. But from where this was going, only the hand of fate can decide whether or not this could happen.

*Inside the Tower*

The battle continues to go on like a raging storm, with powerful, shockwave inducing punches being blocked like bullets hitting bulletproof armor. In fact, the shockwaves were so intense, that they start destroying some of the columns on the inside and for some of the ceilings to topple. Yet when Aerocrothe suddenly strikes Travas' crossed arms, the vulpin crashes towards the marble wall behind him and screams out in pain. Aerocrothe takes this opportunity to teleport in front of him and strikes the vulpin from his face down to his abs.

"Honestly, Travas, did you really think you could defeat me regardless of your injuries", Aerocrothe asked before grabbing the vulpin's neck with his left hand-paw and smacking his face with the back of his right. At first, the vulpin feels jolts of pain on his upper body. But the next thing he knew was that he was no longer in Aerocrothe's grip, but within the skies above the tower, apparently realizing that he blacked out when the kitsune decked him. Travas manages to make a quick aerial recovery just before the kitsune teleports behind him. But before Aerocrothe could strike the vulpin, however, Travas quickly strikes him in the stomach, knocking the air out of the champion for a brief moment.

"I'm not thinking, Aerocrothe! I know I can defeat you!" Travas answered with a serious, determined look on his face just before striking the kitsune's face with his right foot-paw. Aerocrothe was quickly knocked towards his right as a result, but makes a quick aerial recovery and flies towards the vulpin. "And I'm not going down without a fight!" the vulpin shouted before he starts flying towards the kitsune in return. But before they could clash, a sharp jolt of pain suddenly darts through his head like an arrow, causing Travas to close his eyes to the new vision he was about to see.

*Vision*

Nightfall has come and the residents of the small town of Nactholm start walking back towards their homes to sleep throughout the peaceful night. But the peaceful night was soon interrupted when an injured vampire with silver white hair, pale white skin, and black/red colored armor suddenly darts through the town. As a result, many of the citizens start to panic and scatter around the town like a pedestrian mob running away from the cops. But no, this vampire wasn't on the hunt for blood. Instead, he was being pursued by something monstrous within the distance.

Once the civilians realize this, they turn to face the north-eastern direction in which the vampire was looking at. And there, coming within a short distance was what appeared to be a monstrous nine tailed kitsune, which was running towards the town with its hind legs. The kitsune was roughly fifty feet in size contained orange and black fur on its monstrous, bulky muscular body. The monster's claws were as sharp as any freshly made blade in comparison to its unusually sharper fangs. And within a matter of seconds, it arrives before the town and looks down towards its main target: the vampire, Kain.

"So, the monstrous kitsune follows its prey to Nactholm, I see", Kain spoke softly with a smirk on his face. "Very well then, come at me you vile beast!" he shouted just before the kitsune growls ragingly and starts striking at Kain with its razor sharp claws. The vampire wasn't easily fooled, however, and starts to dodge effortlessly. Instead of striking the vampire, however, the monster accidentally slays a female and kills her. But the monstrous kitsune didn't care. All it wanted was Kain's blood in its hands.

As the vampire continues to dodge the kitsune's attacks, he takes the opportunity to feed off of the blood the monster accidentally slaughters to heal his body from the injuries he's sustained. But when he feeds off one of a young female human, however, the kitsune manages to severely strike the vampire and knock him right towards the cove shores. But when he tries to recover, he notices that the massive kitsune was just about ten feet from where he was, causing him to look towards the monster with widened, shocked eyes.

*Vision Pause*

As the vulpin tries to recover from the injuries, Aerocrothe takes this opportunity to strike the vulpin with a powerful knee kick, jabbing him with such power and taking the breath out of Travas. In response, he begins coughing up blood and growling in pain, but manages to recover and shoots an energy blast towards the kitsune's eyes. Aerocrothe immediately growls painfully before covering his eyes, thus allowing Travas to land onto the ground and recover for whatever time he was able to buy.

"What the hell was that…? What's going to happen at Nactholm", Travas exclaimed within his mind, unsure of what he foresaw in the vision. But soon the same pain jolts right back through his head, causing him to cover his eyes once again before the vision can continue where it left off.

*Vision Resumption*

"What the hell's become of him…? How was he able to acquire the ability to transform into a Were-kitsune just by looking at the full moon?!" Kain thought shockingly within his mind before the kitsune raises its claws upwards and ready to kill. But the vampire quickly starts to summon whatever energy he could manifest and closes his eyes. "I hate to be the one to flee from a battle, but it seems I am in need of nourishment and must return to the Sanctuary of my grave", the vampire thought just moments before the kitsune hurls its right hand-paw towards him. Thankfully for the vampire, however, he manages to teleport back to the place where he was resurrected, causing the kitsune to miss its target.

As an almost immediate response to missing its target, the kitsune starts to growl furiously before smashing its hand-paws violently and powerfully onto the cove shores. Then, it turns its sights towards some of the surrounding civilians and prepares its claws for a much needed slaughter fest. But before it could start striking towards the civilians, however, the monstrous kitsune suddenly sniffs its nose and catches the scent of what it believes to be its target. Almost immediately, it turns to face the southern direction in which it was coming from, causing the kitsune to grin and lick its muzzle in delight. Thus, it gets onto all paws and quickly sprints towards its destination like a sports car, knowing for sure that its prize waits within.

*Vision End*

While the kitsune champion continues to recover from the blast, Travas uncovers his eyes and looks towards the ground with confused, but slightly horrified eyes. Despite what he foresaw, he recovers and stands back up onto his feet-paws, turning towards the direction where Aerocrothe was standing. But like him, the kitsune champion starts to recover and face Travas with angered eyes.

"I don't appreciate that fucking trick you just pulled on me, Travas! That was really fucked up, you know that!" Aerocrothe shouted angrily before powering up, with his aura covering his body like a flame.

"Sorry, Aerocrothe, but I don't intend on getting attacked while I was in the middle of having a vision", Travas replied before doing the same thing Aerocrothe just pulled, with his purple-red colored aura engulfing his body like a flame. "Now then, where did we leave off", he asked with a smirk on his face.

"Right here", Aerocrothe answered before both warriors suddenly fly towards each other like bullets being fired from an assault rifle.

Within a matter of seconds, the two opposing forces collide against each other like a sports car crashing head on against another in a hurricane. Fists strike against each other with powerful magnitude and energy blasts were fired like artillery. Explosions were also happening as a response to the collision of the energy blasts, with smoke building up as a response. And once the smoke clears away, Travas and Aerocrothe look towards each other with determined eyes, obviously showing no signs of stopping just yet.

Just like both warriors predicted, they quickly start flying towards each other hastily and strike at one another with high magnitude physical attacks. Within about half a minute after starting, Travas manages to land a fierce uppercut onto the kitsune, causing Aerocrothe to shoot towards the roof faster than a sports car driving radically during a high-speed police chase. And just as Travas expected; the kitsune darts through the roof like a bullet and destroyed the majority of it. Despite this, however, the vulpin quickly powers up and flies through the hole leading to the outside. But once he got through the hole, he discovers that night time has arrived, with Aerocrothe managing to recover right behind the full moon, with the kitsune chuckling with satisfactory delight.

"Travas, Travas, Travas… you never seem to quit entertaining me, do you?" Aerocrothe asked with a smirk on his face, feeling the moonlight hit his body as his nine tails start wagging eagerly.

"What do you mean", Travas asked while eying the kitsune with suspicion.

"Although I have to admit that you were able to withstand against my true capabilities, you have not yet fought against me when I'm at my full potential", he claimed before chuckling with an evil tone.

"What the hell are you talking about", Travas asked with stern eyes.

"Allow me to demonstrate", Aerocrothe replied just a moment before he turns to face the direction of the full moon, looking at it with alert, evil looking eyes.

As the kitsune starts looking at the full moon, Travas begins to stare at him with curious, confused eyes. But within a moment, he hears the sound of Aerocrothe's heart beginning to pound slowly and powerfully. Soon, the kitsune's blood began to boil and his muscles once again start to bulge. His fangs began to grow sharper than they once were and his blood red eyes turn yellow. And within moments, the kitsune's body starts growing at an astonishing rate as Travas looks upon the champion's transformation with shocked, almost terrified eyes.

"What the hell's going on…?! How is he able to transform like that", Travas thought within his mind in a nearly horrified tone as he watches Aerocrothe's wings desecrate from his body. But as he examines Aerocrothe's body growing larger, his eyes widen upon recognition of what he witnessed in the vision earlier. "Wait a minute… is this the same kitsune that fights against Kain and slaughters some of the other people in Nactholm…?" he wondered just as Aerocrothe finishes his transformation, with him now being nearly fifty feet in size. "Looks like I'm gonna have to stop him here and now! I can't allow him to terrorize Nosgoth or my family there for that matter", the vulpin thought with newly determined, serious looking eyes as Aerocrothe turns to face him and chuckles evilly.

"So, do you finally truly understand the full extent of my power", Aerocrothe asked with a deep, almost guttural voice. But despite his monstrous appearance, the vulpin continues to look towards the kitsune with determined eyes.

"I do… but that doesn't mean I'm going to give up just because I witnessed your transformation", Travas replied before clenching his fists and powering up at an incredible rate. Aerocrothe merely laughs rather hysterically at the vulpin in response to his words, but nonetheless smirks in delight.

"C'mon, Travas, do you really think you can defeat me in my current form", Aerocrothe asked while smirking in delight. "If you think it's possible, you're wrong" he continued as the vulpin closes his eyes and gives out a calm sigh.

"Maybe…" Travas admitted while having his eyes shut calmly. Then he tilts his head upward and opens his eyes, looking towards the newly transformed kitsune with determined eyes. "But that won't stop me from trying", he shouted before suddenly powering up and flying towards the transformed kitsune's face. However, Aerocrothe immediately responds by merely smacking the vulpin's body without any effort, sending the vulpin plummeting violently and hastily towards the outdoor garden below.

At the moment Travas crashes onto the earthly land, he tries to make a recovery by attempting to standing back onto his own feet-paws. But when he was supporting himself with his knees and hand-paws, the kitsune smashes the vulpin with his foot-paw, stopping him from trying to break free. Despite the vulpin's restraints, however, he continues to try and free himself as Aerocrothe continues to apply pressure onto him.

"As I asked moments ago, Travas, do you really think you could defeat me in the form", Aerocrothe rephrased his question from earlier as he continues to apply stronger amounts of pressure against his opponents body, causing him to scream out in agonizing pain.

As the vulpin's agonizing cries continue to grow louder, Aerocrothe's smirk widens and continues to apply pressure against his opponent's body. While he does, Travas continues to try and push the giant kitsune's foot off of his body. However, his efforts have so far shown to be in vain as Aerocrothe's starts to apply more pressure against his body. And within a matter of seconds, the vulpin was at the mercy of the transformed kitsune, in which he finally crushes his body with the exception of his head. Because of this, Aerocrothe begins laughing hysterically as he hears the agonizing screams of Travas.

"Now that's what I like to hear from you!" Aerocrothe yelled enthusiastically before continuing his hysterical laughs. "Honestly, Travas, there's no chance for you to win!" he claimed just as he notices the vulpin beginning to lose consciousness. And within a matter of seconds, Travas closes his eyes and finally loses his consciousness just as Aerocrothe had expected him to. The kitsune removes his foot-paw off of his body and picks him up with his left hand-paw, eying the vulpin with narrow, sinister eyes along with a mischievous smirk on his face. "You lose, Travas Starfox", the kitsune spoke softly before throwing Travas towards the ground next to one of the temple's columns, in which he lands right onto his torso and his face was tilted to his right side.

*Within the Citadel, Nosgoth*

Inside the heart of the Sacred Chamber, everyone looks at the projection of the battle with shocked, saddened eyes, upon which they witness the defeat of their fellow warrior, Travas. The males shut their eyes and turn away as most of the females start crying at the sight of they assumed to be the vulpin's death. But the one that was affected by his defeat the most was none other than Travas' daughter, Serenity, who immediately starts crying in response to witnessing her father's demise.

"Oh no… DADDY", Serenity shouted with sadness in her tone. She turns her face away from the projection and buries her face into Janos' pant leg as tears began to stream down her face uncontrollably.

"Travas… no…" Janos thought within his mind before closing his eyes and picks up Travas' daughter, holding onto her and tries to comfort her as much as he could. Whether or not the Vampire Resistance would be able to cope with this, or Serenity for that matter, he did not know…

*Somewhere within another world… perhaps in another dimension*

The area was entirely bright white and foggy and it appears to go on forever. And within the heart of the new world or dimension, Travas starts to awaken from his unconscious state and begins to stand back up onto his feet-paws. He looks at the new dimension with confusion and silence, unsure of what to make of the foggy white place he bestows upon.

"What… where am I", Travas asked softly, hearing his own question feeding back in an echo-like manner that grows quieter until fading away a couple of seconds later. Within moments, however, he begins to hear the sounds of footsteps echoing inside the dimension, causing him to turn around and face the source of the noise. And there, stood a familiar face with black crescent moon shaped markings in her face, silver-purple colored eyes, and long, luxurious black hair, with her bangs leaning towards the sides. She also wore a solid white sleeveless robe with a golden cloth belt around her waist and now has light gray angelic wings on her back. Despite these distinctions, however, Travas' eyes widen as soon as he recognized the familiar person he lost just a couple years ago.

"Travas", the familiar person spoke before softly smiling towards Travas' shocked state. "It's been a long time since I've seen you…"

"Umah…" Travas started just as Umah starts walking towards him and holding the vulpin in her arms. "I can't believe it's really you".

"I know…" Umah replied before letting go of Travas and looking at him with calm eyes. "But are you doing here? You need to get back to the battle before Aerocrothe wins the Tournament and destroys our world", she continued before Travas tilts his head down slightly and moves his eyes towards his right.

"I would… but I don't even know how to get out of this place…" Travas replied softly before sighing slightly heavily. But as he did, he tilts his head upward and begins to survey his own surroundings. Speaking of which, where am I?" he asked before looking back at the woman who was once his wife, but now deceased. "Am… am I dead?"

"Dead, no… but in a different state of consciousness, perhaps", Umah answered theoretically before placing her right hand onto the vulpin's left cheek, where his newly formed tilted cross shaped scar was located. "And I must assume Asher gave this to you before he passed on", she assumed before Travas nods in response.

"Yeah", Travas answered. "But how did you-" he was interrupted when he began to hear the faint sounds of crying coming from behind him, thus causing him to turn and face that direction quickly. It wasn't the cries of the dead, however, but something that the vulpin was able to recognize. "Serenity?!" he calmly exclaimed while looking towards the same direction with curious, slightly widened eyes.

"Travas, you cannot reside here any longer. You must awaken and return to the battlefield before the world as we know it is destroyed", Umah ordered as the vulpin turns to face his deceased wife.

"Wait, but what about-"

"Listen to me", Umah yelled with seriousness in her tone, causing her to grab onto his fur and keep a good grip on him. "Right now, everyone at the Citadel needs you! For Christ's sake, Travas, our daughter's crying! She needs her father! She needs you!" she continued before breathing in and out slowly, allowing Travas to nod in a calm gesture.

"Alright, where am I supposed to go", Travas asked just before a bright light starts to shine behind him, causing the vulpin to turn his sights towards the light.

"The light is your ticket out of here, Travas", Umah answered as the vulpin turns to face her again. "Now go! Hurl yourself towards the light and defeat Aerocrothe once and for all", she ordered just before Travas tilts his head down and barely turns it towards the right. In response, Umah's expression softens and starts to look at her still-living husband. "Travas… what's bothering you?"

"It's just…" Travas started before sighing calmly, though in a saddened manner, and turning to face his deceased wife once again. "… I miss you…" he answered, causing the female vampire to place her hands onto his furred cheeks.

"I know losing me was the hardest thing you had to go through, Travas…" Umah started before moving her hands to his muscular shoulders. "But right now, everyone in Nosgoth needs you, and I don't intend on having our daughter become an orphan at an age she is now", she claimed just a moment before she releases her hold on Travas' shoulders. And within a brief moment of hesitation, the vulpin turns to face the light and sprints towards it. But when he reaches nearly halfway, he stops and turns to face his deceased wife.

"Thank you for everything, Umah… I'm gonna miss you" Travas said, causing Umah to give him a soft smile in return.

"I'll miss you, too", Umah replied. "However, I will be watching over you and Serenity from the heavens above", she claimed before Travas nods in response. Then, he turns to face the light once again and sprints towards it, unaware that his deceased wife sheds a couple of tears before fading into the fog of the dimension. But despite her spirit fading into the fog, the vulpin continues to journey towards the light with newfound hope in his heart.

"Hang in there, Serenity. I'm coming home", Travas thought within his mind while giving a confident smirk on his muzzle. With this, he passes through the light with swift speed, knowing that he finally has the means to defeat the kitsune champion at last.

*Back at the Tower*

The night reaches its summit and the kitsune champion continues to smirk mischievously at the body of Travas Starfox. Within a matter of moments, though, he shifts his sights towards his surroundings and notices the damage caused by him and his opponent. Because of this, he shrugs out of aggravation and looks at the destruction with calmly aggravated eyes.

"Such bullshit", Aerocrothe spoke to himself with an aggravated tone moments before he starts walking towards the destroyed tower. "I'm gonna have to acquire the architects to repair this temple… but I suppose it's the price I must pay to defeat Travas", he continued before shifting his annoyed frown into a grin on his face. "Then again, at least I no longer have to deal with that pestilent little-" the kitsune started just before he was interrupted by sensing some sort of faint energy coming from the temple, which was where Travas' body was coincidentally located at. And there, standing near the crash site was the vulpin himself, whose body was partially covered in blood and breathing softly, but slightly heavily as well.

"Howdy, Aerocrothe, miss me", Travas spoke hoarsely, but somewhat sarcastically before giving him a smirk on his face while holding onto the upper part of his left arm. The kitsune, on the other hand, looks at him with slightly narrow, cold eyes before growling out of annoyance.

"I've had just about enough of you, you pestilent little fox!" Aerocrothe shouted before teleporting towards the injured vulpin once again. And once he arrives, he raises his right foot-paw and starts to stomp powerfully against the injured vulpin. At first he smirks when he got him, but then his smirk fades into a more confused expression when he feels something pushing his foot-paw upward. From that moment, he finally realizes that Travas somehow managed to find the strength he needed to at least stand a chance against him. Thus the vulpin pushes the kitsune's foot-paw upward and knocks him backwards, causing Aerocrothe to land onto his back rather violently.

"I don't think so, Aerocrothe! Your time here is about to come full circle!" Travas shouted before he powers up into an unofficial second ascension of his form, with energetic wings forming behind him and his eyes, now pupil-less, burn with the same purple-red colored fiery aura. Despite this, however, Aerocrothe stands back up and prepares to fight the smaller vulpin in another round.

"Oh really now", Aerocrothe asked rather doubtfully. "Honestly, Travas, do you really think you're going to defeat me with your newfound power?!"

"There's only one way to find out!" Travas shouted just before Aerocrothe uses his claws to strike against the vulpin. But when he did, the vulpin quickly teleports to the kitsune's face, landing a severe strike on the left side of his muzzle. To the kitsune's surprise, he was sent flying towards his tower and demolishes it entirely, which the crash surprisingly sends him immense amounts of pain to his body.

As the kitsune tries to recover from the crash, Travas teleports in top of the kitsune's chest and prepares to strike his heart with a powerful energy blast. But before he could fire at Aerocrothe's chest, however, the kitsune uses his left hand-paw to strike the vulpin's right side and sends him to another undamaged section of the Tower. Travas wasn't in pain, however, for he was smirking while facing the undamaged building. And instead of crashing onto the contact, the vulpin phases through the wooden door like a ghost, causing the kitsune to look at him with widened, almost shocked eyes.

"What in the hell…?" Aerocrothe wondered within his mind before noticing Travas phase right through the same door once again, seeing him smirk as the vulpin flies towards him with a deadly energy sphere hovering over his right hand-paw.

"Aerocrothe, you should never underestimate what a fox like me is capable of doing", Travas shouted with a smirk on his face. "Especially the true capabilities of Katherine Fela when she comes of age", he thought within his mind just before arriving to the kitsune's position. When he arrives, the champion starts striking the vulpin endlessly, but with each result being the same: his attacks merely phase right through the vulpin as if he were air itself.

"What the hell is going on here? How is he able to perform a technique like that?!" Aerocrothe thought out of anger as he continues trying to strike the vulpin as much as he could. Travas begins to smirk at the kitsunes flawed efforts before teleporting behind him and jabbing the back of his neck with a quick, almost simple and effortless karate chop. The result: Aerocrothe was sent flying towards the nearby mountain and crashes onto the heart of it, demolishing it as if it were mere ice. But when he tries to recover, however, Travas quickly teleports towards him and jabs him again in the stomach fiercely, causing the kitsune to scream out in agonizing pain.

"It's simple, Aerocrothe! I'm a hell of a lot more capable of doing shit than you realize!" Travas answered while punching the kitsune endlessly and almost with furious brutality.

Within moments, the kitsune starts growling and strikes the vulpin with his claws, but Travas manages to stop the attack before it could even touch him. Aerocrothe's eyes widen rather quickly after witnessing this just before Travas summons a powerful energy blast and fires it towards the kitsune's chest. The champion manages to deflect the attack using his right hand-paw and uses his left to violently shove the vulpin nearly forty yards away from him using a telekinetic projectile. But the vulpin wasn't hurt by the telekinetic attack. Instead, he merely looks towards the kitsune before beginning to summon an acquainted attack of his.

"Aerocrothe, I've had enough of your god damn tournament, and I've sure as hell had enough of you!" Travas shouted while summoning forth a fiery sphere slightly above his raised arms. As he was summoning the attack, Aerocrothe starts to get back up and summon a couple of deadly fiery spheres within the palms of his massive hand-paws.

"Two can play at this game, Travas!" Aerocrothe also shouted before pulling his arms towards his left side and combines the two fiery spheres into one, causing his own attack to intensify at a higher level he thought Travas wouldn't expect. Instead of seeing a shocked, perhaps terrified face from the vulpin, however, Travas continues to look at the kitsune with determined, serious eyes. "It's over for you!"

"I don't think so, Aerocrothe! Your time in this world is up!" Travas shouted just as his fiery attack starts to intensify greatly in contrast to the kitsune's own. "DRAGON'S FIERY KAMIKAZE", the vulpin screamed as he throws his arms towards the kitsune below, which his spherical attack fires a fiery beam towards Aerocrothe. Likewise, the champion throws his arms upward as his attack, too, fires a powerful fiery beam towards his.

At the moment the two beams come into sudden contact, the intersecting point sparks furiously like a torch blowing onto metallic pipelines. At first, Aerocrothe's attack was pushing back Travas' own attack, which actually comes close to the vulpin's own body. But no! The vulpin wasn't gonna give up without a fight! In fact, he quickly starts to push his own attack towards Aerocrothe and pushes the kitsune's blast back; causing the kitsune to look towards him with shocked filled eyes.

"What the hell is going on? Why is his attack overcoming mine so easily?" Aerocrothe thought shockingly within his mind as his eyes soon go as wide as someone overdosing on caffeine pills. And within that particular moment, he screams out painfully as the vulpin's attack quickly explodes and consumes him. As it did, Travas quickly turns towards his right and covers his eyes using his left forearm.

Once the smoke from the explosion starts clearing away, Travas uncovers his eyes and starts looking around for the fallen kitsune champion. But just about seventy feet below, his semi-unconscious, normal sized body was found by the vulpins eyes, allowing him to descend upon the kitsune below in a calm manner. And once he lands, Aerocrothe begins to awaken from his semi-unconscious state and notices Travas' stern look along with him reverting back to normal. As a response, the kitsune begins growling rather grudgingly before coughing up a portion of his blood. It was then that the fallen champion notices the hole in his chest, which lies right next to where his heart was located.

"You lose, Aerocrothe", Travas started as he narrows his eyes at the fallen kitsune before turning to face his and the late Asher's surprisingly undamaged belongings he placed in the Tower's battle chamber earlier and heads to pick it up. As the vulpin arrives and picks the duffle bags up, Aerocrothe groans painfully and tries to stand back onto his feet-paws. But when he attempts, he places his right hand-paw over the hole on his chest, hoping he could stop the heavy bleeding.

"Where do you think you're going, Travas…? You haven't finished me off yet", Aerocrothe spoke painfully before managing to get back up onto his feet-paws. But when he did, he walks weakly a couple of feet towards the vulpin, almost tripping as he tries to draw closer to him. However, he stops and manages to recover with one of the wooden walls of the destroyed Tower. All Travas could do in that moment was merely snicker and turn his back on him in response to what the kitsune had said. Despite this, though, he turns his head towards his left and looks at the defeated kitsune with serious, cold eyes.

"Why bother? You're not even worth killing anymore", Travas started before turning his head towards the direction where the main Sky Island was at. "I'm through with fighting you. I'm going home…" he continued before he starts walking towards the main entrance of the destroyed Tower… but then stops after walking about twenty feet from his original position. "Besides, you can bleed to death for all I care", the vulpin said before continuing to walk towards the exit, not like the door is even there anymore. But then he stops at the moment when he hears Aerocrothe chuckling rather evilly, but hoarsely nonetheless due to the fatal injury he's suffered.

"You may have won the tournament, Travas…" Aerocrothe started before coughing up a rather heavy portion of his own blood and holding onto the bleeding wound on his chest. "But that doesn't mean you're leaving here so easily", he claimed as he, unknown to Travas, summons forth a powerful, rather electrifying yellow energy aura from the palm of the same hand-paw holding onto his injury.

At the moment Travas cocks a confused brow at the kitsune, Aerocrothe suddenly fires the electrical bolt of lightning towards him, causing his opponent to collapse backwards violently. Travas quickly tries to break free as Aerocrothe smirks in delight. But the kitsune couldn't hold his attack for long. In fact, he too collapses onto the ground almost face first just before his electrical blast dissipates. And when Travas manages to recover, his vision begins to slightly blur and get out of focus at times, almost as if he were becoming dizzy himself.

"What…? What the FUCK DID YOU DO TO ME?!" Travas shouted angrily as his vision starts becoming distorted from the attack Aerocrothe suddenly struck him with. In a similar manner, his body starts to unusually burn up like a person becoming ill with pneumonia, causing him to sweat quite a bit in response.

"Simple, Travas…" Aerocrothe started before coughing up a heavy portion of his own blood. "I've bestowed my final gift to the victor… the champion's prize", he continued before he starts to laugh hysterically, though hoarsely as well. Before he could speak again, he suddenly coughs up another portion of his own blood onto the marble floor that flows towards the soil like a river. "And soon, you will finally understand what kind of monster I'm truly am… and the same one you will become as well", he finished before his hysterical, but hoarse laughs grow loudly enough to make it to where it no longer sounded painful. In that moment, Travas somehow manages to regain his vision and leans his upper body upward, looking at the dying kitsune with eyes filled with anger and hatred. He now summons one last powerful fiery energy blast with his right hand-paw and pulls his arm backwards.

"Argh, SHUT UP!" Travas screamed out of fury as he pushes his arm towards the front and fires the deadly fire blast, engulfing the kitsune and blowing his body so powerful, that it almost had the same potential intensity as a nuclear bomb. Once the smoke starts to clear away moments later, Travas begins breathing heavily out of frustration and some exhaustion as well. "I hope you rot in hell, you filthy piece of shit", the vulpin uttered softly before he starts to get back up onto his feet-paws. But before he gets back onto his feet-paws, a ghastly form of energy forms at the spot where Aerocrothe's body once was. And within seconds, the energy consumes his body with life-giving energy, thus his wounds were restored.

Once the vulpin was back onto his feet-paws, his vision starts to unexpectedly blur again, only seeing the area around him rotate like an altitude meter on a jet. But unlike a jet's altitude meter, it was rather distorted, perhaps psychedelically as he suddenly collapses onto the walls nearby and covers his eyes. But what starts bothering him was that his heart was racing more rapidly than normal, yet he feels countless number of chills course throughout his body like a network. And soon enough, the vulpin starts uttering painful cries as he uses his left hand-paw to grab a hold of the place where his heart lies.

"What's happening to me? Why is my heart racing too rapidly? And why am I feeling chills on my body?! WHAT DID AEROCROTHE DO TO ME?!" Travas thought within his mind as his painful cries soon grow louder at the Tower. But despite how loud they were, his painful cries merely echo the silencing land he continues to bestow upon.

*Inside the Sacred Chamber, the Vampire Citadel*

Everyone that was inside the Sacred Chamber continues to watch the ongoing battle between Aerocrothe and Travas. But when they discover that the vulpin has managed to obliterate the kitsune champion, many of the vampires and kitsune staff begin shouting glorifying chants in Travas' favor. In a similar manner, many of them start hugging each other cheerfully as their chants grow louder. However, Vorador begins to eye the projection closely when he discovers Travas acting rather oddly. But when he sees the vulpin grasp onto his chest where his heart lays, his eyes quickly widen in response, knowing well that something was wrong… dead wrong.

"Everyone, cease your chants!" Vorador shouted, grabbing the attention of Raziel, the other vampires, and the kitsune staff alike. "There's something wrong with Travas!" he continued as the others quickly rush towards the pool and look down at the projection of the vulpin, seeing him scream out in pain as some of the kitsune staff look at this with widening eyes.

"Oh dear god no…" One of the male kitsune staff members uttered softly while watching Travas scream in pain and tighten his grip slightly onto his chest.

"He didn't…" Misty also spoke softly with shock, but with slight suspicion in her tone as well. In that moment, Vorador notices what she said and turns to face her.

"What are you talking about, girl? What did Aerocrothe do to Travas?!" Vorador asked urgently as Misty turns to face him. Then, the veteran vampire starts looking at the female kitsune with stern eyes when she doesn't answer him the first time. "I demand you answer me at once!" he shouted before the female kitsune sighs calmly and shakes her head.

"I don't know the right way to explain it to you… but I can tell you there's a strong chance he might die from this", Misty answered, causing Vorador's eyes to widen in surprise. At the same time, Serenity walks to the veteran vampire and her eyes, too, widen after she also heard what the kitsune just said.

"Daddy's gonna die", Serenity asked the female kitsune with a shocked, saddening face as Misty turns to face her as well. Before replying, the female kitsune kneels down and places her right hand-paw onto her left shoulder.

"I'm sorry, sweetie… but unless we find the means to save him… then there will be no chance of saving him", Misty answered with a calmly saddened expression on her face, causing tears to stream down the vixen child's face. Serenity did not know what to do in that moment except to look left and right with her head tilted slightly downward. Within a moment, however, she turns away and immediately runs from the female kitsune, causing Misty to look up and follow her hastily alongside Celestia. It was then, that Vorador turns to face the projection in the pool with serious eyes. From there, he knew what he had to do.

"Janos is it possible for us to teleport towards the Sky Island where Travas resides", Vorador asked calmly, grabbing the attention of the winged vampire as he turns to face the green skinned vampire. However, Janos tilts his head down slightly and closes his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Vorador… but I do not think it's possible for us to teleport there. His energy is masked by some sort of magical barrier that shields the Sky Islands", Janos answered before tilting his head up and opening his eyes. But then he turns to face Misty, who was holding onto Serenity by means of providing comfort, and an idea comes in mind. "But I think one of the kitsunes can. Wait here", he spoke theoretically before he starts walking towards the female kitsune nearby, who also starts to look at the approaching vampire with curious eyes. "Misty, if I remember your name correctly, do you have enough energy to make a round trip to the Sky Island?" the winged vampire asked.

"Yeah… I should be able to…" Misty answered with a slight confused tone. "Why do you ask?"

"Good, and I ask because Vorador and I need to ask a favor from you", Janos replied.

"What do you ask of me, Janos", Misty asked before placing Serenity down and standing back onto her feet-paws. And as she did, Vorador approaches the group and stands next to his sire.

"We ask of you to teleport to the Sky Island and retrieve Travas", Vorador started as Misty's eyes slightly widen in response. "And once you return, we need you to take him to his room and place him on his bed. Janos and I will take care of the rest", he explained as Serenity looks at Vorador with widened eyes. And as the vixen child hugs and buries her face into Vorador's pant leg, the female kitsune nods and looks at him with serious eyes.

"Alright, I go ahead and make immediate preparations for the trip", Misty said before clutching onto her hand-paws and compressing her arms together as if she were in the middle of a prayer. "However, I will need you to accompany me on my quick journey. It's best if Travas' hopes were kept up with the presence of a fellow ally", she claimed as a bright white aura begins to engulf her like a slow flame.

"Very well", Vorador replied as Serenity releases her hold on his leg. Then, he steps into the teleportation aura and stands next to the female kitsune. "Janos, we will return with Travas shortly. Wait for us in the Main Chambers; it might be the best place to teleport to when we transport him to his room", he suggested before Janos nods in response.

"Alright… but be sure to return with Travas as quickly as possible. I want to ensure that we have as much time possible to save him", Janos said, causing the veteran vampire to nod with a soft smile on his face, despite his calmly serious look in his eyes.

"Of course… we will return as soon as we can", Vorador replied as the aura begins to intensify like a flicker of a flame. "Until then, see you soon", the veteran vampire finished before he and the female kitsune disappear from the face of the Sacred Chamber. And in that moment, Janos picks up Serenity and turns to face the others. From there, he begins to gather the others and starts running towards the Main Chambers, the place in which they will wait for Misty and Vorador to return with Travas in their possession.

---

Alas, it appears Travas has won the tournament and has become the new champion. However, it came with a heavy price in the end, with Aerocrothe firing some sort of deadly beam and laying something on the victorious vulpin. Now he lies on the Sky Island alone while suffering from an illness created by Aerocrothe himself. What will become of Travas? And will he remain the same if he manages to survive this deadly illness? Find out on the next installment of 'Legacy of Travas'.

Travas © Shawntae Howard

Janos, Raziel, Umah, and Vorador © Edios/Crystal Dynamics/Silicon Knights/Square Enix Europe

Story and other Characters © me