High above the skies of Sauria, approaching a bad thunderstorm, a flying galleon soared, carrying a loathsome crew. Manned by the Sharpclaw, the galleon was their general's prized possession; a testament to the advancements he brought the drive, as well as a monument to his ego. Onboard, the crew labored away at various tasks, some watching the port and starboard, a few manning the helm and helping navigate, while some below deck surveyed the cargo, mostly comprised of plundered goods.
In a rusty cage, just outside of the captains office, sat a younger Cloudrunner was fast asleep. Or at least was trying to.
The heavy rain that had fallen over the ship made things unbearable for the poor girl. She had no protection from the weather at all in her cage, and she had little room to move around. She had been awake most of the previous few days, being kept cousious both by the Sharpclaw's noisy laboring, and their taunting. Grunts would regularly show up to the cage, to throw cheap threats her direction. All Kyte could do was glare, least they smack the cage. She had been confined to this same spot for days by now, barely able to move and barely fed anything besides some slop or cold left overs from whatever the heck the Sharpclaw did eat. Worst yet they would not even release her to relieve herself.
As exhaustion overtook Kyte, she slowly found herself drifting off into a forced sleep, doing her best to lie down in her cage. Not even a few minutes into her fragile bliss, she felt the cage being rattled. As her eyes slowly opened again, she caught sight of something that made her yelp in fear.
A Sharpclaw grunt was sticking his mouth on the cage, in a faux attempt to eat her. Screaming in her fear, she recoiled and back up as much as possible, shaking the cage fiercely.
"Ahhhh!" The princess screeched.
"Hehehehehe..." She heard teh grunt laugh. He was a small yellow lizard, in leather armor.
Tears fell down Kyte's face as she cover her eyes with her wings, cowering in fear. The grunt was drinking the scene for all it's worth. After a few more laughs he left.
This was hardly the first time this happened while she was onboard the galleon. Kyte wipe the tears from her eyes, and shivered.
"Please hurry mother." She though, as she slowly tried drifting back to sleep.
Krystal and Kree had been flying for a few hours by this point. The two were traveling at a breakneck pace, eager to intercept the galleon before it could reach whatever destination it was heading towards. Despite the storm they had flown into, as the Cloudrunners predicted, the two remained undaunted in the task ahead.
Thinking for a moment, Krystal began to sense strong feelings of determination from the Cloundrunner sent with her. He was devoted to the task of rescuing the princess, as any loyal guard captain would be for their queen. But this determination went beyond that, almost onto a personal level. Krystal did not want to pry into his mind, but she was curious about this. So, she opted to ask the Cloundrunner.
"Captain Kree, I can't help but notice how fast you have been flying quite fast. I know we are in a hurry, but it could be dangerous to rush into a storm like this." Krystal stated, hoping to spark a conversation.
" I am aware of the risks of the storm, but there is no way I am letting Scales and Princess Kyte slip out of my grasp. Not again." Kree replied.
"What do you mean 'again'?" Krystal inquired
"Have you wondered how Scales even captured the princess, to begin with?" Kree asked in response. Without waiting for an answer, he went on, " A storm hit the fortress, and the princess slipped out after it ad ended to catch some fireflies for herself and her mother. Scales must have used the storm to mask his galleon. We don't know how exactly he did it, but he captured the princess and fled, right from under our beaks." Kree explained, sounding bitter."It was my fault that she got captured." She asked me if she could slip out of the palace for a bit to get a surprise for her mother, and I agreed. I left her completely unattended, thinking she would be fine since it would only be for a moment. Well, looked how that went down." Kree finished.
Krystal tried to comfort him. "It's not your fault; you had no way of knowing Scales could be lurking so close by. None could have predicted that
Kree shook his head. " I appreciate your attempt, but the damage is done. Our princess is now in harm's way. I've failed in my duty as a guard captain. " Kree said somberly. "But that is all the more reason why we must succeed in rescuing her. I will not let fail a second time, nor will I allow my niece to rot in the hands of an evil monster."
The last part caught Krystal a bit off guard. " You're her uncle?" She asked, a bit surprised.
"Yes, and the queen's brother. That's why this is so personal." Kree explained. " You see, after Scales murdered the King Cloudrunner, Queen Saffali's husband, my family was devastated. The Saffalli and King Regis loved each other dearly; his loss nearly broke Saffalli; to say nothing of Scale's continued war efforts. Sometimes it seems only her children and I are able to keep her spirits up." Kree went on. "She took Kyte's kidnapping particularly badly. And besides, I am probably the closest thing Kyte has had to a father for most of her life. I owe it to the king's memory to see her back home safe." Kree finished.
It all made sense to Krystal now why the situation seemed so personal to Kree. After hearing all this, she reaffirmed her dedication to rescuing the young princess. " You have my word Kree; we will save Kyte."
"Thank you, Krystal. That's all I needed to hear right now."
Suddenly, Krystal picked up a wide variety of coming from nearby. Pain, sadness, fear, sadistic pleasure, and enjoyment. " Perhaps the galleon must be nearby-"
Krystal was cut off by a fireball erupting right past them.
"DIVE!" She yelled.
Without hesitation, Kree dove down below the clouds, out of the enemy's sight.
"ALL HANDS, TO YOUR STATIONS." A Sharpclaw was heard to yell.
Krystal grabbed her staff from her back and readied the fire blaster. Kree, meanwhile, was pulling up on the ship's side, getting ready to shoot out some of the cannons with his fire breath.
"THERE, ON THE RIGHT." A Sharpclaw shouted. Signaling, he instructed the canons to aim towards the Cloudrunner. The duo began pelting the side cannons with fire blasts, disabling a few of them, only for a volley of even more fireballs to meet them in response. The duo barely dodged the shots.
"Kree, get behind the ship; I have a plan." Nodding, the Cloudrunner fell back and ended up behind the ship. Thinking fast, Krystal disabled the two back cannons with some of her staff's ice magic. Krystal had managed to buy them a precious few seconds to regroup before the galleon circled to get the duo in range of their cannons again. Luckily for the pair, Krystal was ready.
"Kree, take us below the clouds again. A head-on assault is not going to work."
"Got it." Kree acknowledged has he dove below the clouds.
Maintaining speed, they tailed the ship from below for a few minutes until Krystal sensed confusion coming from the ship.
"Must have lost track of us," She thought.
"Kree, take us back to the stern of the ship. I will try to sneak past them and extract Kyte from there."
"Understood," Kree replied simply.
Taking her to the stern as instructed, Kree sat down on the side. Quickly getting off of the Cloudrunner's back, she waved Kree off and ordered him to be at the ready. Just as fast as he landed, Kree sped off and maintained a line of sight on the galleon, masked by the clouds and storm.
"Hopefully, she isn't too heavily guarded." Thought the blue vixen as she looked for a door that would take her below deck. Locating one on the side, she quietly slipped through it. Coming down a flight of stairs, she was led into a narrow hallway with many different doors. None of which looked to be for prison cells.
Heading further down, she comes to a dead end, with a simple weapons rack at the end of it. Hanging on a hook near the rack, she found a key dangling off it. Realizing it might be the key to a cage, she took it and put it in her coat pocket.
Above her head, she could hear heavy footsteps dashing across the deck, followed by a loud series of commands. "FIND THAT DAMN FLYING RAT! NO WAY WOULD HE GIVE UP HIS PURSUIT THIS EASILY!" A raspy voice shouted.
"I need to hurry," Krystal thought as she opted to use her telepathy to locate the princess. Scanning the ship, she picked up many emotions from the top deck. Amidst the many feelings of anger and determination, she discovered a slight, child-like feeling of fear and sadness. This emotion was powerful; clearly, the child was in a great state of distress. "Poor thing," she murmured. Since the emotions were centered on the deck, the vixen figured that must be where the princess was being kept.
"Don't worry; I will have you home before you know it."
Footsteps sounded from above again, along with some from down the hallway. Guessing some were coming below deck, she left the room she was in and hid in one of the rooms further in the hallway. She peeked out of the doorway and spotted a few grunts searching the rooms of the hallway. Reading their minds and timing her purusit, she dashed and snuck back down the hallway and came back up the way she entered, appearing back on the stern of the ship. Exiting, she hugged the wall as she made for a corner. Glancing from around the corner, she noted that the Sharpclaw were in a frenzy to find their assailant, with many peeking through looking glasses. So far, it seemed they made no progress.
Peering closer, the vixen noted that there was a small birdcage kept on a hook near the steps leading up to the office near the captain's office. Around them she heard a smaller Sharpclaw adressing a largre brute.
"Sir, the key below deck is missing!" He said, in a shrill voice.
"Clearly they are onboard. Get more guys down there and find them!" The officer barked. Compliing, the grunt gathered another few Sharpclaw and towards the stern. Beside them, however, something caught the vixen's attention.
A rusty cage, near the main office and a flight of stairs. Inside, there seemed to be a small, green Cloudrunner. The small Cloudrunner had been alerted to the commotion. She stared around at the contention happening before her, with large, fearful eyes.
With that, Krystal knew she had her target. But before she could devise a plan, a set of footsteps sounded close by her. Hiding herself, she saw several more Sharpclaw dash back to the lower levels of the ship. Sighing in relief, Krystal scanned the minds of the remaining Sharpclaw on the deck. Having the still been unnoticed, she tried to device a plan to slip past them. As she kept closer into view, she saw that the way the remaining Sharpclaw were spread out, that would not have been possible. A few yellow grunts and the larger officer were all that stood in her way.
She would have to been quick and precise in her blows, if she were to get to the cage.
Taking the element of surprise, she jumped out of her hiding spot, dashed, and she swiped at a grunt with the shaft of her staff, subduing him. Little did she know, the commotion did not go unheard. A mighty Sharpclaw within the captain's office had caught wind of what was going on, and began to get up from his chair.
Catching the officer by surprise, she kicked him away, causing him to trip and fall. Making a made dash for the cage while her foes were disoriented, the young women made it up the stairs and to the cage. Right as she was about to break it off it's chain, the office door's swung open, and a large Sharpclaw ran out. Catching the vixen off guard he grabbed her and threw her back down the stairs. Krystal landed some distance from the stair well, but managed to catch herself and somewhat stick the landing.
This Sharpclaw was significantly larger than the others, having green scales, a very muscular build, and a sharp metal claw replacing one of his hands. He was adorned in some kind of hide armor and wore a horned helmet. On his waist was a belt, which looked more advanced than most of the Sharpclaw's gear Krystal had thus far seen.
"This must be their leader." Krystal thought as the large Sharpclaw walked down the steps, almost casually. Shortly after, footsteps sounded from behind as the other Sharpclaw caught up and surrounded her. No way out now, it seemed.
"Impressive job, fighting through my men like that, animal girl. Though they weren't worth much in a fight, to begin with." The leader spoke. " I am General Scales, ruler of the Sharpclaw, and soon all of Sauria. Now tell me, what are you doing on my galleon?" Scales asked.
"My name is Krystal, and I've come for the princess," Krystal replied, standing with her staff at the ready.
General Scales was unfazed and laughed slightly before saying, "So the Cloudrunner queen is so desperate that she sends a stranger to do her dirty work? How pathetic."
" Says the coward who holds innocent children against their will and runs with their tail between their legs," Krystal shouted back.
Scales brushed the comment aside. " You see cowardice, yet I see only what must be done to ensure my rule." He explained, " See, I hold the princess to ensure the queen relents her attacks on my forces. Her forces have proven to be quite the handful. But not anymore; unless an unfortunate fate were to befall her beloved daughter," Scales said, eyeing the princess menacingly. Kyte fell back in her cage in response.
"So much as just touch that child, and you will pay for it, you bastard!" Krystal shouted.
Scales' just laughed. "You think I am afraid of you? I have nearly brought this planet to its knees. Creatures larger and stronger than you have tried and failed to stop me. They just cower before me now, trembling in complete fear. Observe." The general said before grabbing the princess' cage by his metal claw, shaking it. Kyte shrieked in fear.
Krystal had enough of this tyrants antics. She lunged for Scales but was swatted away by his other hand, being sent falling back down the steps. Regaining her footing, she readied for another attack.
"If you seek to free the princess, then you must go through me first." Scales said, releasing the cage and drawing a sword from his hip. "Stay out of this, guards.
With that, the soldiers surrounding Krystal stepped back but maintained a circle. Scales jumped down dramatically from the steps, preparing to engage the vixen.
"Sauria shall become your grave." Scales threatened before lunging for the vixen. Krystal sidestepped his attack, noting his surprising speed. She quickly swiped at the general with her staff, but he parried her blow with ease and kicked her away.
"You are going to have to do better than that." The tyrant taunted.
"Quicker than I thought. I need a new form of attack." The vixen thought before she got to her feet and quickly fired a blast at Scales' face. However, to her surprise, the general did not even react to the blast, almost as if he was fireproof. However, seeing a brief opening, Krystal whacked Scales with the end of her staff across his face. Barely flinching, he proceeded to try and claw the vixen with his metal claw.
Krystal barely dodged that attack as she blocked another blow from his sword, locking weapons with him.
"You show spirit, fox girl, but I have dealt with far worse than you."
Krystal exchanged several more blows with the general, managing to block most of them before she parried the last blow and landed a blow on top of his shoulder, drawing some blood. Outraged, the general suddenly lunged forward, aimed a decisive blow at Krystal's staff. This blow knocked the staff from the vixen's hands, sending it overboard and leaving her vulnerable to Scales' next attack. Suddenly, the general tossed aside his sword and grasped the vixen in one hand, lifting her by the neck.
"You fight well, but you never stood a chance against me." The general said flatly. "Now, how to dispose of you, I wonder?" Scales went on, melodramatically, as he contemplated the vixen's fate. He then glanced at the side of the ship, a wicked smile starting to form on his face." How about we let gravity finish the job." He said.
Krystal panicked as the general began to drag her across the deck, going for the sides. But before he could even lift him, General Scales suddenly lost his grip on her and dropped her to the ground. Quickly looking up, the vixen noticed that Kree had dived-bomb the general, clawing him and spewing fire at the nearby Sharp claws. He had even retrieved Krystal's staff from its fall. Tossing it to her from his talons, he quickly screamed. "Hurry! Get the princess."
Not wasting any time, Krystal jabbed Scales in the back of the head as hard as she could, hoping to buy some more time, then bolted towards the cage Kyte was in. Quickly, breaking the chain attached to it, Krystal holstered her staff and seized the cage. Kyte was terrified by the whole ordeal, but Krystal did her best to comfort her.
"Don't worry, you will be home before you know it, little one," Krystal told her as she ran.
"Jump off!" Kree shouted from across the deck, before fluttering away from the galleon.
Without hesitation, Krystal dashed to the edge and proceeded to hop off the galleon before any of the soldiers on board could get to her. She plunged through the ran for only a few brief yet exhilarating seconds before she felt herself land on the larger Cloudrunner's back. Relieved that the ordeal was over, the vixen breathed a sigh of relief. Flying back up, they passed by the galleon again, relatively fast to avoid any more fire. Krystal briefly sighted Scales again, an angry expression on his face.
"This is not over. You and your Cloudrunner friends will not escape me next time! I swear it, you will pain dearly!" Scales growled at them.
'Better luck next time then, general." Krystal sneered back as they passed. Turning back to the little Cloudrunner in the cage she held, she suddenly remembered the key she had kept in her coat pocket. Quickly unlocking the cage for the princess, Krystal pulled her out gently and then buried Kyte in her coat, hoping to keep her warm. Discarding the cage to the side, Krystal focused on the young princess. It was clear she was in bad shape; cold and terrified. Krystal could tell her body temperature was well below what it should be.
Krystal could sense many scared emotions coming from her. Understandable, after what the princess had just been through. Krystal started stroking the young Cloudrunner's crest affectionately, trying to calm her down.
"It's ok, little one. You are safe now." Krystal whispered, still trying to keep the storm off the princess. She had pulled up the hood of her coat by now, trying to make herself more comfortable as she settled down onto Kree's back while the larger Cloudrunner continued his flight path.
"We have to get the princess to safety. This weather is taking its toll on her." Krystal shouted, knowing it would be hard to hear over the storm.
"Working on it. The closest landmark I can think of would be Krazoa Palace." Kree replied.
"Good, we needed to go there anyway. I will try to keep the princess warm, but please hurry."
"Going as fast as I can."
The trio continued their flight through the storm, hoping for a reprieve soon. While they continued pushing through the weather, the young princess finally summoned the effort to speak.
"Thank you," she said weakly. Krystal smiled at her, saying nothing but hugging her tighter.
"Don't worry; everything will be ok." Was the vixen's only response as their flight continued.
Authors note. Well, I hope this one turned out ok. I have little experience writing action scenes. I hope the fight with Scales did not feel too short. Also, for anyone who would notice it: yes, I was inspired by some of the dialogue during the Tarron Mallicos fight from Jedi Fallen Order. I had played it recently, and I suppose I thought it would be an ominous threat to start the fight with.