Well crap, that took way longer than it should have to upload. Sorry, since the last update (in mid December) I had gotten a new Nintendo Switch and some games on sale. Was spending a lot of my time playing through those while I had free time from school.
Also, as I keep noting, this story takes awhile to write. I would appreciate any input in the comments if you guys think I would prefer I break up chapters into two, shorter parts, as opposed to longer chapters like I have been doing. I am curious what you all think. Anyways, back to your regularly scheduled dinosaur adventure story.
The morning had come and gone without incident. The team and their wards woke up and went about a typical morning, as did the tribe. Fox and Krystal were offered fruits for breakfast, and some water by the tribe. Kyte ate with her family, while Tricky stayed with the vulpines.
After their breakfast was done, the group began making their way to the Arwing, informing the royal family along their way, and being met there by both Saffali, Kree, the Fortress's Chief engineer, Gradabug, and the princes and princesses, as well as a flock of guards , who held their wings out in honor of the vulpines. It was clear to the group the queen had arranged this squad to honor the vulpines.
Kree was the one to speak first, standing in the front.
"Thanks to you, the tribe is free. As we have said, you our tribe is forever in your debt."
"With Scales gone, my tribe can now start to rebuild their lives," Saffali announced, with a bow.
"Indeed, now we can repair the damage to the fortress" Gradabug added.
"Glad to be of service." The vixen added.
After this, Tricky spoke. "Your highness, it has been an honor to meet you and your tribe properly." The young prince said, trying to compose himself as he felt royalty should. The queen eyed him briefly.
"Prince Tricky… know that you are welcome amongst my tribe, for showing a willingness to look past the prejudice of our tribes, and to form bonds that transcend your titles and race. "She said, referencing the prince's friendship with Kyte and the other princes and princesses.
At this statement, several guards glanced over at their queen and the young Earthwalker, with neutral expression on each of their faces, not wanting to show anything. Krystal could sense mixed feelings about the prince amongst some of them, with some approving and others disapproving of the prince's friendships. Nevertheless, the queen spoke on.
"Tell your mother I intend to speak with her personally, soon. We have much to discuss." Saffali stated. Tricky knew she was referring to the possible alliance between tribes and nodded.
After this, Fox spoke up. "Should be pretty straightforward from here, I guess. We will have your fortress back to the surface in no time." Fox assured the Cloudrunners.
"Returning the stone should be a breeze for us," Kyte noted.
"' For us? You are still going with them?" Saffali parroted, a bit surprised.
"Yes, of course. We still need to return the rest of the Spellstones." Kyte said. Saffali shook her head.
"Perhaps we should have talked about this sooner. Kyte, my darling, you just got back home safely. After everything that has happened, why would you wish to continue following them? You are safe now." Saffali went on
"Everything that we have been through is all the more reasons to stay with my friends and aid them," Kyte responded. "I know I would be safe at home ,but we have helped so many, and feel i have learned so much by travling with them." The girl reasoned.
Saffali again shook her head, as the others watched in silence. "I am sorry, but I most forbid you from traveling with them further." The queen said, to which Kyte frowned.
"Mother-"she began, before the queen pulled her in close with her wings and hugged tightly.
"Kyte, my darling, please understand. I almost lost you. I almost lost all of you." She said, gesturing to the rest of her children and her brother with one of her wings. "Ever since Scales took you, I feared he would kill you. Then he took over the fortress and captured the rest of the tribe, and I thought all was lost." The queen said, tears starting to roll down her eyes a bit. "I… I can't lose you again. After everything that happened, I can't bear the thought of anything else happening to you." She stammered, before regaining her composure a bit. After a second, she let Kyte go.
"I am sorry, but until this conflict is over, I must keep you here. It's the only way I know you will be safe." Saffali said firmly. Kyte looked conflicted, understanding where her mother was coming from, but at the same time, still wanting to press on.
"But I have helped. Tell her Krystal." The young girl said, gesturing for Krystal to interject.
"It's true, she has been a massive help and has shown much bravery." The vixen said.
"Yeah, we couldn't have gotten this far without her aid. Her guidance and recon have proven beneficial to us in many ways." Fox said, recalling the times she helped the team. Sure, maybe they could have gotten by without Kyte, but he wanted to acknowledge the help she provided. He if it was not truly vital, she deserved credit and had accomplished much.
Saffali listened but shook her head. "I could not be prouder of her for her feats, but I still must decline. Its been dangerous, and I do not wish her any more danger." The queen spoke.
Kyte frowned and looked at Krystal. "Krystal, you have to convince her." The young girl pleaded, not wanting to sit out the adventure. Kyte had learned a lot and wished to venture onward with her new friends; she felt a part of the adventure and like she was making a difference. It felt wrong to her to sit out the rest of the journey after they had come so far together.
Krystal could only give her an apologetic look. "I am sorry Kyte, but we must do as your mother says. She only wants you to be safe." The vixen said. She did not want to disappoint Kyte, nor did she like leaving her out of the adventure, after coming this far. But she knew she had to respect the queen's decision. This was the degree of a monarch, and of the girl's mother nonetheless; she could not defy the queen. She glanced over at Fox, who gave Kyte a similar look. It was evident to the blue vixen that he felt the same way.
Kyte pouted. But before she could say anything else, Kree spoke up.
"Saffali, I see where you are coming from, but I would suggest you reconsider." He said, catching a look from his sister.
"What do you mean? Kree, you were on the forefront of everything that happened; you know how dire the situation is; how many times her life has been put in peril." Saffali retorted.
Kree nodded his head. "Yes, but at the same time, she has grown considerably. We, and her guardians, have seen her through everything safely; and she has accomplished so much. Thanks to her, the queen of the Earthwalkers is alive and was even open to the alliance, one that could prove vital for the salvation of Sauria. To say nothing of how she aided in the retrieval of the Spellstones." He went on. "My point is, traveling with the outworlders as she has, she has learned much and has provided them invaluable aid. On top of that, her friendship with the Earthwalker prince lays the foundations for future generations to be free of the prejudice and hatred that has plagued our tribes for centuries." Kree went on.
Saffali thought for a second and realized that he had a point. What Kyte was doing now was beneficial any many ways; for her personal growth, for the war with Scales, and for the future of her and the Earthwalker tribes. Perhaps there was some merit to this. But it was still dangerous.
Krystal, opting to read the queen's emotions, sensed her unease at the dangers ahead. Krystal felt in her gut that allowing Kyte to continue to join them was the right thing to do. She would have to try to convince the queen.
"Your grace, you have my word: if you let Kyte continue to journey with us, we will keep her safe and return her to you unharmed. My teammate and I can guarantee you this." Krystal spoke, signaling Fox over.
"I can double that. We will see your planet saved, and your daughter away from any harm. We will redouble our efforts to keep her and the prince safe; I promise you that." Fox pledged.
Saffali pondered their words for a few more seconds and sighed. With a quick glance at her daughter, she spoke up again.
"Very well, Kree you raise a good point. As for you, outworlders, I do believe you have been excellent guardians to her. I trust you to continue to do so." She said firmly, to which Kyte's expression lit up.
"Does that mean-?" She began. Saffali nodded.
"Yes, darling. You may continue to accompany them."
Kyte's expression lit up. She then hugged her mother. "Thank you. I promise I will continue to help my friends best as I can." Kyte responded.
"Yes dear," Saffali said, a bit unsure.
"Well, as much as I would like to continue debating this, I believe you have a Spellstone to return," Kree said, knowing it was important they get back to their mission. He felt they had gotten to the point of this conversation, and that they must move on. Everyone nodded and continued.
With that, Kyte hugged her siblings goodbye and Fox's party got onboard the ship. The queen bid Tricky goodbye as well, being met with a respectful nod from him, as he and Kyte boarded the ship's hull. The queen blinked at this, wondering how they could put up with such a tight space but said nothing. Before Krystal and Fox boarded their ship, the queen spoke one more time.
"Remember that the Ocean Force point temple is near Cape Claw; ask the nearby tribes for further directions." She stated. "And thank you again, for everything. If not for your pair and your team, I fear the Cloudrunner tribe would be no more. We are forever in your debt." She said.
Fox was growing tired of the thanks but accepted anyway. Gratitude was always appreciated. He bowed respectfully and began boarding the cockpit. Krystal, however, sensed unease in the queen and figured she should reassure her.
"Don't worry, you grace; we will see this planet free of Scales' evil and your daughter back to you safely. Very soon." She promised. Saffali actually hugged the vixen, breaking her royal demeanor briefly.
"Thank you, Krystal. It means everything to me." The queen released her from the embrace.
Soon after, the vixen was on the ship, as well as the rest of her group. Fox began the liftoff sequence and took off soon after, waving goodbye through the glass of the cockpit. After a minute or two, they were back in orbit, glancing at Sauria from above.
"Well, another one down," Fox noted.
"We make quite the team, Fox." Krystal responded back, with a slight seductive edge to her tone. Fox blushed slightly, though Krystal could not see his face.
Fox was slightly caught off guard by her tone but decided to roll with it. Internally, he almost jumped for joying, taking as a hint she might like him back. He had to wonder if she secretly read his mind and knew of his growing crush on her. Regardless, he would act on this when a better opportunity presented itself, not wanting to rush things. They still had a job to do, after all
"Yeah… we do, don't we?" Fox chuckled a bit awkwardly. Krystal gave a laugh. "But in all seriousness, I really think we did great together back there. I look forward to fighting alongside you on the Star Fox team. " She said, thinking of her future after Sauria was safe.
Just then, an incoming message appeared on the front monitor and Fox hit accept. The two foxes were surprised to see Randorn appear on the screen.
"Father?"
"Randorn? Wasn't expecting to see you on here." Fox said. Randorn laughed
"Believe it or not, I know how to work an inner comm. You mechanic patched the shuttle into the team's comms." Randorn explained.
"So what's up?" Fox asked.
"Seeing how you are Krystal are doing. I heard about what happened in the fortress." The old fox explained.
"Doing fine, father. We drove off the Sharpclaw, now we have the Spellstone.
The Cloudrunner royal family is safe, as is the rest of the tribe." Krystal stated.
"Good. Glad to see you two are ok, same for the tribe. And great work, you saved a lot of innocent lives."
"Just doing the right thing," Fox said, humbly.
"So what are you doing on the shuttle, anyhow?" Krystal asked,
"Going back to Warlock Mountain. I have a few things that I wish to retrieve." The wizard answered.
Fox nodded. "Ok, how are your injuries?"
"Healed, mostly. The stim Mr. Hare gave me helped a ton. No further problems." Randorn responded.
Fox and Krystal smiled.
"Good. Well, we will catch up with you later." Fox said, shifting his focus back to his flight path."
Randorn nodded. "Alright. Good luck you two. I will be in touch later." He said, as he hung up.
Content with the conversation, the two teammates left the wizard to his own devices and charted a course back to the hollow.
The group landed shortly after this and disembarked from the craft. The two foxes hopped out, while Tricky and Kyte excited the bomb hatch, stretching their joints shortly after.
"Uh, I hate riding in there. Its cramped to no end." Kyte muttered.
"Yeah." Tricky agreed.
Krystal gave the two an amused look. "Thought you two were used to it by now."
"Yes, but I still dislike it. At least we aren't arguing in it anymore." Kyte replied.
Fox rolled his eyes and surveyed the area, formulating a plan.
"Ok, if everyone is ready, I have a plan." He announced, getting the group's attention.
"Tricky, we should tell your mother of Queen Saffali's decision. While we are at it, lets get some more direction to the temple." The todd stated.
Tricky nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Sounds good." The prince responded. Kyte and Krystal gave nods of agreement as well. With that, the group started making their way to the queen's cave.
It only took a few minutes to walk to the end of the hollow where the queen was housed. As the group approached the entrance, Tricky noted a few Earthwalker soldiers walking out of it. He bounded over to greet them, ahead of his friends.
When the soldiers, who were each yellow and wearing plated armor on their heads and backs, saw the prince, they stopped walking and bowed. One of them then spoke.
"Aw, young prince. It is good to see you are alright." The soldier greeted the prince warmly.
"Likewise. How is mom?" The young boy asked.
"The queen is alright. Just checking on her. The other soldiers and I have been regrouping with other scattered groups; we are bolstering the guard in this area." He explained, before glancing over at the rest of Tricky's friends.
"And I see your friends are here too." The soldier stated, glancing over at the foxes and the Cloud runner. Both soldiers were not surprised to see the Cloudrunner amongst the group; the queen had explained the situation to them.
Krystal, having caught up to the prince, greeted the guards. "Greetings. How is the queen and the elder?" She inquired.
"Doing fine. They are inside." The larger Earthwalker stated.
"Good, she will want to see this." Krystal smiled, as she gestured for Fox to come forth. She took the Spellstone off his bag and showed it to the soldiers, hoping to give them some hope about the situation regarding the world.
At the sight of the stone, the soldier's eyes lit up in joy.
"A Spellstone! Well done, you four. The queen will be pleased to see this. My partner and I will inform the rest of the soldiers." The soldiers who greeted the quartet stated.
"A true sight for sore eyes. The others will be ecstatic to hear this." The group heard the second soldier mutter. They then stepped aside and allowed the group in, having nothing else to discuss for now.
Inside, the group found the queen talking to the elder. When the pair heard footsteps approaching, they glanced over at the group. The queen smiled when she saw the group approach.
"Mom, mom, you won't believe what went down!" Tricky said, with childish enthusiasm.
"What might that be?" She asked, deducing they had good news. Fox showed the queen the spell stone.
Bardon gasped. "Another Spellstone! Well done."
She smiled at the sight of this. "Well done. I trust it was quite the adventure?"
Kyte laughed. "Oh, like you would not believe."
"Yeah. There's a lot to cover." Tricky added.
Krystal decided to speak up, before the kids got too carried away. "We can tell you in a bit. The Queen Cloudrunner told us to take it to the Ocean Forcepoint temple, and you and the elder or Thorntails could point us in the right direction." The vixen explained.
Bardon nodded. "Indeed we can."
Tricky then realized something. "Oh, and before I forget, I got to tell you something else mom. Kyte's mom agreed to an alliance." Tricky said bluntly
The queen looked a bit surprised and pleased but sighed a bit. "That's good news, but we will discuss it in a bit. For now, why don't you all tell me what went down at the fortress? Then we can point you to the temple and such, ok?" Thera reasoned, feeling things were heaping on a bit too fast.
Tricky gave a sheepish smile. "Right, sorry. One thing at a time."
Krystal rolled her eyes playfully. "Always jumping into things it seems," She thought, before resigning herself to explain.
"Well, where to begin?" She said as she read her explanation. Each individual present sat down, as they all readied to talk things over.
(An hour or so later)
Fox was beginning to pack away the last fruit he had knocked out of a dumbledang tree. His friends and he had finished explaining what happened at the Cloudrunner Fortress to the queen and elder a bit ago, while always informing them of Saffali's agreement to meet for an alliance. Bardon had relayed directions to the force point temple to the group. Afterward, everyone has dispersed and begun making preparations.
Krystal watched over Tricky and Kyte, getting food for them to eat, as well as for herself. Fox had eaten dumbledang pod while he had gone about collecting them from a nearby tree. Soon after packing them in his bag, he approached his friends again, just as they finished their lunch.
"Alright, got the fruits and the directions. We all ready to go?" He asked. The vixen nodded and the kids cheered.
"Yeah, let's hit the road!" Exclaimed, eager to return the stone to its proper mound.
"The sooner we do, the sooner my kind can return to the surface," Kyte stated.
"Agreed. I am ready when you are, Fox." Krystal
"Sounds good. If there is nothing else-" Fox began, before a voice cut him off mid-sentence.
"Count me in as well." An old voice called to them. The whole party gasped in surprise, before turning around to find the source of the voice. To exacerbate their surprise, they found a certain Cerinain walking towards them.
"Randorn?" Fox asked, confused to see the old fox here.
"Father!" Krystal exclaimed, running to greet the aged vulpine. They both embraced, as Kyte and Tricky starred in confusion, surprised to see the wizard here. They had deduced he was Krystal's father, as they had just heard her shout.
"What are you doing here? You said you were heading back to Warlock Mountain." Krystal asked, confused at the sight of her father.
"Indeed, I was. I had to grab a few things. But now I am here." Randorn said, with a humorous hint to his voice.
"Why might that be?" Fox asked.
"Figured you could use some help," Randorn replied, catching them off guard. Krystal and Fox realized he wanted to join the quest.
"Father, I appreciate it, but, well…"
"Aren't you a bit old for this?" Fox asked bluntly, before catching himself. Krystal rolled her eyes but did not seem mad, beyond the bluntness of the statement.
"Sorry" The younger vulpine muttered.
"It's fine, I could tell you were thinking it anyway. Don't worry about me, I have more stamina than you might think; knowing magic has its perks."
Krystal looked unsure. "Yes, but I don't want to put you at risk. I would advise you to reconsider."
But the wizard shook his head. "I assure you, I will be alright. I haven't forgotten my experience in battle, and I can defend myself. With all of us working together, no Sharpclaw could even hope to stand in our way." Randorn countered. "I refuse to sit around and do nothing while Scales and his army ravage this world. Besides, I will just venture out anyways if you won't let me join." He added, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. His daughter shrugged and gave in. She doubted she could change his mind, even if she tried.
Fox shrugged. "Alright. If you are up for it, we will gladly accept your help. Welcome aboard our little adventure, guess." He said, catching a smile from the aged fox. A thought then occurred to todd.
"By the way, have you met Kyte and Tricky?" Fox said, gesturing to their wards. The two kids looked up at the wizard, who smiled at them in turn.
"Not until now, but I have heard much about you. From both your guardians and the King Earthwalker. " He added.
"Pleasure to meet you, sir," Kyte said, politely.
"Yeah, it's good to finally meet you." Tricky added.
"Feelings mutual. I must say, it his good to see you two were able to put aside you tribe's tensions and become friends. Others of your kinds would do good to follow suit." The wizard stated. "But I am getting ahead of myself.:
"Oh! I was hoping I could ask you a few things, actually. About yourself and such; you and Krystal have some, well, interesting traits I was wondering about." Kyte said, taking an inquisitive tone.
Randorn nodded. "Sure, I will gladly answer your questions, but we can talk more about that later." He said, before turning to Fox. "Fox, I believe you and Krystal have a Spellstone, yes?" The wizard inquired.
"Yes." She said, gesturing to the stone tied to todd's bag. "We are on our way to the Ocean Force Point Temple."
"As I expected," Randorn stated. As he and the others were beginning to think of leaving, Krystal figured she should talk to him now.
"Father, if I may, I have some news to tell you." The vixen stated, grabbing the attention of her father.
"Really? What might that be?"
Krystal smiled. "Fox offered me a position on the Star Fox team. And I accepted." She announced. Randorn smiled.
"Congratulations Krystal." He turned his gaze to Fox briefly, before refocusing on his daughter. "From what I hear, it should be a pretty exciting position.
And they seem like good company." He noted. Fox gave an appreciative nod.
Randorn was not too surprised to hear this news, given his daughter's involvement on this mission. He knew from his conversation with the team their work could be dangerous, but it helped others and he trusted Krystal to be able to handle herself, especially with the rest of the Star Fox team watching her back. Regardless of what he thought, it was Krystal's decision after all; it was her life and she could make her own choices. He did not blame her for not wanting to live in seclusion on Sauria; she likely wanted to explore the galaxy and find a new life for herself. And it was clear to the aged fox that his daughter might have found just that. That said, a thought occurred to Randorn; one he was certain Krystal might share.
"I appreciate your support in this decision father. But.." She trailed off a bit. "What about you? What will you do after we are done here, now that you know I am alive?" She injuries'
Randorn thought for a moment and shrugged. "Don't know; I will need to think on that." He replied
"You know, my team would surely have use of a wizard such as yourself if you are interested. Having a pair of the telepath's on the team could be beneficial." Fox chimed in.
Randorn shrugged. "Thank you, that's a generous offer, Fox. But, I will need to give it some thought; I am not certain what I wish to do, once this conflict with Scales is over. I am not certain how I might fit into such a life." He noted.
Fox shrugged. "I understand. The offer will stand if you decide to act on it. At the very least, you are welcome to tag along with us to Corneria after this mission, if you are wishing to leave Sauria. Just let us know." The todd finished
"Thank you. We will come back to this later. For now, the Force Point temple awaits." Randorn said, refocusing on the mission at hand.
Fox nodded. "No point in standing around then. If you want to join, why who are we to stop you? Now come." He said as he signaled with his hands for the others to follow. "I've got the map loaded, let's go," Fox said as he began to lead the group at of the hollow. Everyone, including Random, fell in line well, and the group began making their way to the temple. They were told that the temple lay near Cape Claw, but in a section separate from where they had freed the queen, and much closer to the mainland. They would have to travel past the Lightfoot village to get there. The odds were the journey would take up a good several hours, but the path that they were following would ensure they reached in a timely manner. The journey was mostly peaceful, so the group talked amongst themselves. Randorn spent the time getting to know Tricky and Kyte.
"So, you two have been getting along well it seems," Randorn stated after Tricky finished telling him about their adventure. He had heard most of it already from Fox and his daughter, but he felt he would indulge the child.
"Now, yeah. It's crazy to think, given how our tribes treat each other. But, after we set that aside, she's actually pretty cool." Tricky stated, catching a chuckle from Kyte.
"Feelings mutual." She said, perched on Krystal's shoulder, starring at Randorn. "I will add, I was glad that my siblings got along with him as well as they did. I thought they wouldn't be as accepting as they were of him." She noted.
"It's good to see you children are able to look beyond your tribe's prejudice. You should look to inspire that in others." Randorn replied, catching nods from both children.
"So, if you don't mind be asking, what is up with the robes you were? The weather here is mild." Kyte inquired, noting the heavy, blue hooded traveler's coat Randorn was adorned in. He currently had the hood down but had a small sash on his side.
"It provided protection from climates and has a plethora of storage for my supplies." He said, opening it a bit to reveal hidden pockets within it. "It's not nearly as hot wearing it as you might believe." He added.
Kyte then noticed something hanging out of his coat pocket, much like Kyrstal's weapon.
"What's that thing in your coat there?" Kyte said, pointing at the sheathed weapon in the wizard's coat.
Randorn grabbed his collapsed staff and showed it to her. "This?" He asked, holding out the weapon in his hand.
"Yes. It's like Krystal's." Kyte muttered. The vixen turned her head and noticed her father's weapon.
"Ah, you made a new staff." She stated.
"Indeed. Built it sometime after I arrived on Sauria, using components I found in my travels."
Fox overhead this and turned his head. " A staff? Don't you cast spells with your hands? What use do you have for a weapon like that?"
"Recall how Krystal channels her magic through her staff, yes?" Randorn began. Fox nodded.
"Cerinians are born with an inherent ability to channel magic." He explained.
"But only some can cast it without a weapon. That's why I rely on my staff." Krystal finished his statement.
"I, however, was born with heightened magical abilities. Hence my spells." The blue-grey fox stated.
Fox raised an eyebrow. "I see, but that doesn't it explain why you need a staff."
"Its useful in physical combat. With my ability, its magic powers are increased further, in ways that aren't easy to manage through my casting. I will demonstrate these to you when we get a chance."
Fox nodded. "I see. So, if its alright, I am interested to hear more."
Krystal looked at her father and nodded. "Sure, ask away."
"Did most of your people fight with these staffs?"
"Many did, yes. They were not the only type of weapons we had, but most prefer them for their versatility. Some used other magic-infused weapons, such as swords, but the staff was the most common amongst our people." Randorn explained.
"Yet you had many modern advancements and convention, from what Krystal told me. Any firearms?"
Randorn nodded. "Some yes, through trading with the occasional offworlders. We developed a few of our own, but many Cerinians stuck to the ancient traditions. We find our weapons to be more versatile than firearms."
"Krystal told me as much," Fox noted. Another question then occurred to him, while they were discussing Cerina.
"You know, I was wondering about your and Krystal's telepathy; is that a common trait of your species?" Fox asked, thinking up questions that had not occurred to him until now.
"Yes and no. It was not too rare, but only certain families possessed the ability." Krystal replied.
"Interesting. So could you read other telepath's thoughts? Or have you tried?"
Randorn gave a brief chuckle. "No, we cannot." The wizard was slightly happy to be able to depart information about their homeworld to others, ensuring it lived on to some capacity. "Any other questions? We have plenty of time to answer."
Fox gave a nod, knowing they had a while to go on their journey to the temple. Might as well ask a few questions. "Yeah, if that's fine. Now that I think about it, you mentioned your family, but neither of you ever mentioned any sort of last name when I met each of you. Do you not have one?"
Randorn thought about how to answer the question for a second. "It's a bit difficult to explain. Technically we do, as our people were divided into different houses, as we called them. But our customs had it we never used our house names on a personal basis, only formally; everyone just went by their given name. Though, some adopted their house names as an 'official' last name of sorts, often for purposes of convenience, such as interacting with outworlders or offworld." The wizard explained.
"What was your family name then?" Fox asked.
"Vixon." Krystal replied. " I guess I could have mentioned it sooner but I am just used to people knowing me by my first name." She shrugged.
Kyte, having her interests piqued by the explanations, had a few questions of her own. "Can I ask a question next?" She said, with childish enthusiasm. The vixen rolled her eyes playfully.
"Sure. Fire away."
"Are all natives of your world like you?" She asked, catching a raised eyebrow from Krystal.
"Like me?" Krystal asked, perplexed.
"I mean, were people from your planet mostly foxes like you guys, or were there others? And was your fur color common?"
"Cerinia was mostly made up of mainly canine species, Kyte. Mostly foxes and wolves. And to answer your other questions, yes, most of us had blue or grey fur, but with different patterns. It was an adaption our species developed based on a number of environmental factors in our world.
"I see," Kyte responded simply. "But what was the environment of your world like that you ended up like that?"
"Cerinia was in orbit near a large blue star'; its rays gave the world a blue hue in the atmosphere and sky, as did the magic pulsing through the world. There is more to it than that, of course, but to make this brief, factors such as those were what caused us to be this color. As for biomes, Cerina was covered in many forests and jungles, much like Sauria. Though, we did have other biomes as well, like mountains and beaches, but the majority of the world's landmass was wooded areas. It's a bit weird by the standards of worlds like Corneria, but I am not in the mood to give a whole science lesson on this." Krystal said with a chuckle, not sure how to explain some of these subjects to the young girl.
Kyte tiled her head. "What is science?"
"Never mind it," Krystal sighed, realizing Saurians might not have much info on such a subject or term. Sure they knew of their environment, but its not like they had certain terms in their vocabulary such as this.
The group kept talking amount themselves, as Fox led them forward. As they followed the paths leading out the hollow, they started coming into a jungle area. The group stuck together, in case anything would try to get the drop on them. That being said, it would be quite hard to, given how they had two telepaths on them.
"Think we are going through the Lightfoot Tribe's territory. Let's try to avoid them if we can. We don't want to get sidetracked." Fox said.
"Oh, don't worry about that. They will avoid you; they mostly keep to themselves." Randorn noted.
"Yeah, but my mom and I have visited them a few times. Their chief is at least familiar with me; I could talk to them if we have any trouble." Tricky added.
"Good. I don't know why, but something tells me we may need to pay them a visit later." Krystal muttered.
"Hope they don't mind Cloudrunners too much," Kyte added, a bit nervously.
Tricky looked up at his friend. "Relax Kyte, they are neutral to both our tribes. They can be rough around the edges, but not overtly racist. Besides, they hate the Sharpclaw just as much as we do, they won't bother us." Tricky assured Kyte.
With that, the group pressed forward. After about two hours, they were out of the jungle and back on a path. The trees and greenery were thick, but he managed to keep the group on the path that had been cut through the jungle, signaled by a dirt road and trees.
After a time, they managed to exit the jungle and were back on the road to Cape Claw. After about another hour of navigating the landscape, the group came to a large gate, built into a stone archway. The group stopped at this.
"Looks like the maps were right, we are on the right path. The other end of Cape Claw and the Ocean Force Point temple should be just a bit further ahead." Fox announced.
"Good. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can return the stone and return my home to the surface." Kyte noted, from atop the vixen's shoulder.
"And stabilize the planet's stream a bit more." Randorn chimed in. "The magic energy should further recede, once the stone is in place."
"Thank the Krazoa. You know, I am beginning to wonder how much time was left before, well you know." Tricky muttered.
"You know, my teammate actually managed to calculate how long we had, but I don't want to put a number on that," Fox said nervously.
"Yeah. You don't say." Krystal joked.
"Rest assured, we have a long time before the planet would actually explode after we placed the first stone. With this one, the energy will stabilize even further. And we will be halfway there to boot; Sauria will be fine, Tricky." Fox said, kneeling down and petting the young dino, to comfort him.
Tricky nodded. "Yeah, yeah. We've made it this far, haven't we?" He said, his tone shifting to one of confidence.
"And we have gathered allies. Both the ruling tribes have regained ground and are poised for an alliance. The tides are turning against Scales." Fox added, wanting to invigorate the group and remove any doubts in their minds.
"Yeah! We'll show him." Kyte said, triumphantly. Randorn noted this and smiled.
"Indeed. It's a wonderful thing, what your team has done here. I hope I can prove to be of assistance as well." The aged Fox added.
"Of course, you will. Now, let's get to the temple; I am sure the Cloudrunner tribe is eager to return their home to the surface." Krystal noted.
Everyone nodded and followed the path forward. It was a dirt path, that went on for a bit, before they it came out an incline that overlooked a large cove. Large rock formations encircled the area for a few miles across with sand along the ages of the shoreline below, and crystal blue water in abundance across the cove. The group all stared in awe at the beauty of the scene, before walking down the incline. As they came further down, Fox noted the path in the shore line on the left end of the cove, leading to a cave marked by torches and symbols of the Krazoa etched into the rock walls nearby.
"Guess that's our mark," Fox muttered as he led the group down the incline.
As they followed the shoreline path, Krystal looked around for any signs of danger. But she couldn't see nor sense anything, which surprised her.
"Huh. No Sharpclaw or any kind of enemies? I thought we would encounter something around here. I mean, surely they know where this is, seeing as they had to get the stone before, right?" She asked her teammates.
Fox shrugged. "I guess they wrote it off as a lost cause by this point, and didn't bother allocating any guards to the area. My guess is they are focusing on foreign their already held territories and outposts."
Krystal shrugged. "Just feels a bit too easy. Come to think of it, can't they just take the Spellstone's from here again if they know where they are?"
Randorn shook his head. "With the Krazoa back, the magic hold is placed over the stone area. Only those who are worthy can enter the Spellstone chamber. The Krazoa most have been driven off during the attack on the Palace before Scales could steal the stones." The wizard explained.
"I see." Fox said, unsure. Shrugging it off, they eventually made it into the cave and followed it for a bit, before walking out to the other side. There, they were met with a large, stone temple, built into a rock formation. The inside was likely carved into the rock formation. The entrance had several large stone pillars in the front of it, including a statue of the Krazoa god to the right. A ramp was in place at the center of the entrance.
"Guess that's our stop," Fox noted. As he and the others walked up the ramp, they were met with a stone door, and no apepenrl way to open it.
Krystal furrowed her brow. "Ok. How do we get in?" She asked, before looking up. The button was apparent at the top of the door. She then looked at her ward, perched on her shoulder. Kyte got the what Krystal was trying to say.
"On it," Kyte responded, as she flew off the vixen's shoulder flew up to the button and pressed it with her beak. At this, the door opened.
"Thanks," Krystal said as the young flyer landed back on her shoulders.
"No problem."
Fox looked a bit confused as he walked in with the others. "Why was a button up there?"
"This temple was under the jurisdiction of the Cloudrunners before the Sharpclaw attack. It was made so those who enter could be overseen by one of my tribe before entering." She responded.
A thought occurred to the vulpine. "Or if someone had a large stick or a ladder." He joked. The group shared a laugh.
"Yeah, that too." Kyte chuckled. They entered the temple and were greeted with a stone room, with some levers, a door large enough for Cloudrunners to fit through, and a few levers and a pressure plate on a platform above. On the opposite end, was a parrel platform made of stone with a ladder. ON one end to the room, was a water wheel, with a hole above it. IN the center of the room, was a drain. The foxes guessed that this must be where water flows. And the pressure plate must be the trigger mechanism.
Krystal and Fox shared a glance, as did Tricky and Randorn.
"Ok, so now what?" Krystal voiced.
"A puzzle, it seems," Randorn stated.
"What do we do?" Fox asked Kyte. The girl shrugged.
"I don't know. My mother didn't tell me anything about the puzzles; they are supposed to prove one's intellect or something." She muttered.
"I guess if it deters intruders," Fox muttered, before scanning the room and seeing a few platforms that looked like they would come out of the walls. He then glanced at the levers.
"Guess we pull those." He told the others.
"In a certain order, I would bet." Tricky added.
The group spread out and each took a lever. They took turns pulling their respective lever, which caused one or two platforms to come out, but the next lever pull caused one or both platforms to retreat. After a bit, Fox grew frustrated.
"Ah, come on! How are we supposed to know the order of this?" He moaned. Kyte shrugged her wings from atop Krystal's shoulders.
More thoughts crossed Fox's mind. "Wait a minute, the Sharpclaw came through here right? Did they really take the time to solve this? I mean, the door is intact."
Krystal caught his train of thought. "You know, you are right: why did they? And who put everything back in place after it was solved?"
Tricky and Kyte shared a glance. Neither had even considered these questions.
"And for that matter, how long did it take them to solve this? Did Scales come here personally? What was that like?" Fox wondered, trying to imagine the tyrant solving a puzzle like that.
"Better yet; why build it like this anyways? Couldn't you dinos just make a normal entrance and post some guards?" Fox went on.
Kyte shrugged again. "I don't know, ask my mother or something."
Randorn sighed. "Look, just keep trying, I am sure we can figure this out eventually." He suggested.
"Maybe we could bypass the puzzle and throw someone up there? Or jump one of missing platforms?" Fox suggested.
"If you think you can make the gap. I don't weigh enough to handle the pressure plate." Kyte said.
Fox sighed. "Ok, just keep trying." He grumbled.
After a few more minutes, the group eventually got the puzzle down and Krystal was sent up the ladder, and to the pressure plate. She stepped on it, and triggered the water flow to the wheel, causing the door to open. The group shared a collective sigh and regrouped on the bottom floor. As Fox walked climbed the ladder, he rambled a bit to himself.
"It's funny how this ancient world can have puzzles and stuff that would seem straight out of a video game. " Fox muttered. Tricky and Kyte glanced up at him, and gave him confused looks.
"You could say a lot of your adventures are like that, Fox." Krystal replied, sarcastically. "I mean, your team's exploits are a lot like what I saw on some of the games I played on my shuttle." Krystal noted.
"You had games on there?" Fox asked.
"Yeah, pick up a console at one of the few stops that sold any. I mean, I had to stave on the boredom of drifting from place to place somehow." Krystal explained. She mentally noted to herself that buying the game system might not have been the wisest use of her scarce money at the time, but killing the boredom was well worth it.
"Um. What's a video game?" Kyte asked, perplexed. Fox and Krystal shared a laugh.
"Oh, don't worry about it," Fox said before the group walked through the door. Random was only slightly perplexed; some Cerinians had access to video games through trading with other worlds. There was a market for then on Cerinia, as their society advanced, but it was not too big. Regardless, he was only passingly familiar with the concept of them. To hear a mercenary leader make such a reference surprised him slightly, but he shrugged it off.
The group walked through the room
When the group walked through the door, they were met with a larger room, with a few pressure plates and a door, as well as some levers. The thing was, the levers were broken off their podiums and discarded on the floor, while the stone door was open, in that it was ripped off where its post.
The vulpines in the group shrugged, not caring too much the puzzle was broken.
"Guess the Sharpclaw got impatient?" Fox wondered out loud.
"Probably," Kyte muttered, surveying the room from Krystal's shoulders. "The engineers can probably fix this later, though," She said to herself.
"Why did they bother trying to attempt the other room then?" Randorn asked, bemused.
"Maybe to prove to themselves that they were smart enough to accomplish the puzzle." Krystal joked. The group shared a laugh.
"Must have taken all the patience they had to do so." Krystal shrugged.
The group proceeded through the room and finally came to the end of the temple. The room they were met with was massive; with a walkway suspended over a large pool of rushing water, which led at it a drain leading to the ocean. Decorative waterfalls poured into the pool. The room itself was made of carved stone, with some of the carvings of the Krazoa present. At the end of the walkway was a warp pad, likely taking them to their destination.
The group admired the room for a few moments, before proceeding over the walkway and getting on the warp.
"I call first," Tricky said, getting on the pad before anyone else could, and being enveloped in a beam of blue light after a few seconds. Fox shrugged and used the warp next, followed shortly after by Randorn, and then Krystal and Kyte.
After a few minutes, each member of the group was teleported into the Spellstone chamber, which was similar to the one in the volcano temple. Two slots for the Spell stones were present on the central podium, which had energy bursting out of it. When Kyte and Krystal arrived, Kyte fell off her guardian and landed on the floor, on her back.
"You ok?" Krystal said, kneeling down to attend to her ward. She helped Kyte back on her shoulders.
"Yeah. Just lost my balance from the warp." The girl replied.
"Uh, that warp never ceases to be weird," Fox muttered.
"Yeah, I am used to it, but that tingling sensation always gets me." The young Earthwalker muttered.
"I'll say, when you get to my age, it gets worse," Randorn added.
Fox shrugged. "Well, no point in standing around," Fox said, taking the Spell Stone from his bag and placing it. At this, the energy in the center column of the room intensified, and he managed and a blue stream joined the energy emitting from the podium.
The group cheered as they saw this.
"Another one down," Fox said with a grin.
Kyte looked ecstatic. "Now my home will return to the surface. Thank you." She said, referring to her guardians.
Fox and Krystal both shot smiles at her. "Glad we could be of service," Krystal replied.
After a few more rounds of cheers, the group reconvened.
"Alright, well, that should stabilize the world a bit more. So where to next?" Krystal asked, wanting to plan out their next course of action.
The group thought for a bit. After a moment, Fox glanced down at Tricky, before an idea crossed him. "Ok, well, I have a suggestion. I am not certain of this just yet, but I have a hunch another Spellstone could be on another of the floating landmasses."
Randorn raised a brow. "Why's that?"
"Well, that would make sense. I imagine the Sharpclaw already have a firm grasp over the territories in the sky. Scales' already hid one stone in the Dark Ice mines, right? So why not hide another stone somewhere no dinosaur could reach, besides his own tribe." Fox pointed out.
Randorn nodded. "Good point."
Tricky was listening intently to this, and an idea popped into his head.
"I think you guys might be right. It would make sense." He remarked. Kyte raised a brow( or as much as she could)?
"What do you mean?" The young girl asked her friend.
"My home, the Walled City, was overrun before it left the surface. They took my dad captive, as well as what remained of the city guard and army, and the rest of the tribe present there. The Sharpclaw had the aid of the Red Eye tribe, and I imagine that they still linger up there. " He explained.
"And the perfect spot to hide the Spellstone then," Fox added. He then took an affirmative glance.
"We will look into it, Tricky." Fox said, to which Tricky gave a smile.
"Thank you." The young prince replied. Before the group could leave, however, a thought crossed Kyte's mind.
"Wait a moment. I just remembered something." She said, alerting the others.
"Yes?" Krystal inquired.
"My mother said something at Discovery Falls, when she spoke to that High Top. Maybe we should look into it?" The girl explained
"Ah. That's an important sight for both your tribes, no?" Randorn asked.
"Correct," Kyte said, glancing at Tricky, who nodded.
"Perhaps we should look into it," Randorn suggested.
The prince nodded. "Yeah. OH! How could I forget? I think there's a Krazoa shrine there too." He realized.
Fox and Krystal exchanged a glance. "Seems like we will have to pay it a visit," Krystal replied.
"Its not far from here. We can be there in a few hours; I know the way." Tricky replied. He wanted to save his home, of course, but he knew they would need to see what was going on at Discovery Falls and to grab the Krazoa spirit first. He knew that it was unlikely that the situation in the Walled City would be any different if they prolonged it by a day or so. He figured he should just accept that and do what he could for now.
"Well, guess we have our next destination then. Now come on, lets get a move on." Krystal said, eager to find the spirit and quell whatever problem-plagued Discovery Falls. The group each took turns using the warp the exit the temple, and after a few minutes, everyone was back outside the temple.
With that, the Earthwalker took the lead and the group began making their way towards discovery falls.
(Meanwhile, in the Cloudrunner Fortress)
Queen Saffali almost felt ecstatic as she watched the sky around the fortress shift, and felt the vibration in the ground. She and the rest of the tribe had been going about repairs across the fortress, with her directing them when the fortress had begun to shift.
Though many briefly felt panic, their fear quickly shift to joy as the different members glanced around and saw that the fortress was returning to the surface of the planet.
"Well done, Krystal." She thought, having grown fawn of the vixen for what she had done for the queen's family and tribe. She of course, knew that Fox and her daughter, as well as the Earthwalker prince, had a hand in things to, and mentally gave the credit as well. She then refocused on the task at hand.
With the fortress returning to the surface, she would have to begin coordinating efforts to retrieve any remaining lost patrols and to send out parties to resupply food and anything else they might need. Adding to this, she would have arranged a visit to Thorntail Hollow, to meet the Queen Earthwalker. Resigning herself to her duties, she informed the nearby guard to have Gradabug take over the repair efforts and to assembler the rest of the guards, as well as Captain Kree.
She had much to do, and little time to waste. She quickly flew out of the courtyard and off towards another end of the fortress.
Authors: I think this story is becoming to much like Star Wars, but to hell with it. I only realized after writing this how similar it is that a race of people with magic powers build their weapons with Krystal imbued into them, like Jedi. I swear, that I am not trying to make this furry Star Wars, it just kind of happened.
Also, we finally get more world-building about Cerinia. As for why Krystal's last name was not addressed earlier, it's because I could not think of one. Nor did I have an explanation for why she would not have had one in canon, to begin with. I guess I didn't think of it until now. Also, Krystal is now a gamer. Ah, the wonders of writing fanfiction.
And yes, I used the temple for a source of comedy; I felt we could use some more levity after the Cloudrunner Arc. I thought the 'lamp shading' of video game tropes would be amusing. Like the volcano force point temple, I find writing the puzzles for the temples boring, so I just skipped over it so we can get to more plot. I didn't completely omit it the temple from the story though because that would have broken the pacing of it. And I figured I might as well include the puzzles for at least this trip to the temple, seeing how I used them.
Regardless, I had fun writing that part. Anyways, I am happy this chapter is done, though, it was mostly filler with a dash of world-building. We can get onto more exciting parts of the story now, like Discovery Falls.
By the way, I went back and extended the scene in chapter 8 where they speak to Gerunda Te. A reviewer pointed out that Krystal should feel more strongly about extinction, in this case, Te sacrificing his tribe, and should have reacted more strongly. Well, I agree with what he said. Its not very big, it just extends the argument but thought I would note that to any readers interested in that.
Anyways, until the next chapter. See you later.