Sorry about the delay. My WiFi kept acting weird and screwed me out of typing and publishing this. My provider sucked, so I got new wifi installed. But, sadly, my intended one update to per week thing did not pan out. Maybe i can fix that for the last few chapters of this story? There is only like 4-5 left or so. Guess we will see.

Also,o to Arika, to the toxic troll who keeps trying to guilt me over things that did not happen or I did not do, and who also tells me to kill myself and delete my stories:

Shut up and shove your worthless insults and flames up your ass! And get a life instead of harrasing everyone damn person on this site for no reason.

Sorry, I got that out of my system. Carry on

Oh and I started a Kofi if anyone wants to leave a tip for any reason. Helps me cover my bills and free up more time for writing. This site does not do links but its called Biohazard2034

Anyways, back to the story, the story

"Well, I'm glad that's over with. "Fox muttered as he recovered from the pain of releasing the Krazoa spirit. It was now beginning to be his least favorite part of the mission. He had gotten used to it enough that he was back on his feet within seconds. Krystal had offered her hand to help him up.

"Thanks for that. "he noted as he was helped to his feet.

"Heroes, you have done well. Already, I can sense the balance of the planet's magic energy restoring. "The ghostly voice of the Krazoa told him, and he guessed Krystal in their minds.

"If you can bring at least one more spirit and Spellstone back to their rightful places, we may be able to pull in any remaining pieces of the world," it noted.

Fox smiled at that. "Good. We'll get it done then."

He thought she heard a hint of joy in the next thing the spirit said.

"Very well. Go forth and continue your quest." it beckoned them.

The vulpine took a moment to register the information before heading towards the teleporter they had used to get here.

"Come on, Krystal. Let's get out of here." he beckoned to her.

Having no further business in the palace, the vulpines made their way towards the nearest exit: the war pad they arrived on like the last few times.

(back at the hollow, they ask what is going on)

Only a short time later, the pair of foxes had been teleported back to the Warpstone. Having departed from him, the pair were returning to the queen's cave in the hollow, planning to discuss their next move.

However, as the two vulpines approached the cave, they were surprised to see Krystal's father sitting outside on one of the rocks, examining a pistol.

Fox could not help but act a bit surprised.

"Taking a liking to firearms now?" he inquired as they approached. Randorn nearly gasped in surprise when he heard Fox's voice. He almost dropped the pistol but caught it and set it down.

"Ah, Krystal, Fox, you're both back," he noted. "How did it go?

Fox shrugged. "Fine. I've got something to tell you, but first, I do have to ask: since when did you, of all people, start using firearms? You're a wizard, right? Surely magic is better than that rusty old thing." He noted.

Randorn laughed. "Well, yes. I'm not exactly very keen on these, but, well, there has been a bit of a situation. "he noted, with a nervous glance aside to another end of the hollow. He gestured for the pair to come over and sit next to him on some nearby rocks. "A Sharpclaw came by here a bit ago, offering an alliance," he stated. "This pistol is from her."

Both vulpines gasped in shock.

"A Sharpclaw?! They don't seem the kind to negotiate; are you sure you can trust them?" Krystal pressed.

Randorn sighed. "I would not have thought I could if I had not read her mind. She pleaded her case to the Earthwalkers; it sounded pretty genuine. To keep this short, she's from the lower ranks of the Sharpclaw army and is no stranger to their higher-up's abuse. She provided intel to us about the other Spellstones and the King Earthwalker's location." he said.

Fox's interest was piqued. "Alright, then. But where might those be?"

"The King is being held within the Walled City, along with a Spellstone. The last is somewhere in Dragon Rock, an ancient battleground from the Kamerian war, now a Sharpclaw base." He explained.

The two younger foxes nodded.

"Well, we have our targets then," Krystal noted. "I guess we best be off soon if you're ready, that is." She said, looking at Fox.

The meraery nodded. "Don't see why not. Sooner we save the King and get those stones, the sooner this whole thing is over." He said. "But what about that Sharpclaw defector you mentioned? What is happening with her?" He inquired.

"Her name is Fang. She's formed an alliance with the queen. She claims she is leading a rebellion of the enslaved Sharpclaw grunts and others who are fed up with Scale's and his supporters' abuse. She's already got something in the works and is about to spring it soon, she claims. The Earthwalker soldiers are currently watching her; she is unarmed, of course." he added.

He picked up the pistol and handed it to Fox for inspection.

"As I said, she was armed with this., he said as Fox began inspecting it.

"By the way, could you check it out for me? Safety's stuck on, and I cannot get the clip out," he muttered.

Fox looked the weapon over. It was shaped like a standard semi-automatic, just like his own blaster pistol, albeit with a bulky grip and barrel.

He began clicking the button near the grip to drop the magazine. He had to do so a few times before it finally came out. He inspected the plasma ammo clio.

"Huh, still full," he muttered. He doubled checked to make sure nothing was left in the

It had certainly seen better days; it was old and rusty, showing a blatant lack of maintenance or even basic care. Fox began to wonder if the Sharpclaw knew anything about maintaining these newer weapons. Well, newer to them.

"It's an old Venomian side arm; it's been out of service for years now, actually. Can't recall the model number, but I know Andross replaced these sometimes with a newer one, right before the Lylat Wars." he said, ensuring the gun was not loaded and inspecting it. "Looks to be in working order, though; this thing is nothing if not reliable. "He added.

He handed it back to Randorn. "Gonna keep it?"

Randorn shook his head. "Nah. Perhaps Krystal might?" he asked.

The vixen shook her head, too. "No. We still have that pistol we took off that mercenary we fought at Discovery Falls. Come to think of it, it might be good to get some practice in with that. Even my staff can only do so much compared to modern weaponry." she added.

"When we get a chance," he added. He stood up.

"Well, I guess we've got our target. No point in delaying," he stated. "Will you be joining us, Randorn?" the merecarny asked the older fox.

Rnaodrn noted a questioning, somewhat worried gaze from his daughter. After being silent for a minute, he sighed and shook his head. "No, no. I'm sorry, but I think I will slow you down; this adventuring stuff is hard on my body, Fox." He stated. "I saw that you both can take care of yourselves. You've already accomplished much without me." the old fox added.

He then glanced over to the side of the hollow, where he could make out some Earthwalker soldiers walking past with the Sharpclaw toward the river. "And it looks like I could be of use here; Earthwalkers are not too keen on a Sharpclaw being around. They could use me to smooth things over," he noted.

The two younger foxes glanced over towards the Earthwalkers, briefly noting the blue Sharpclaw.

"I see then… well, do as you wish then. But are you sure this alliance of theirs is going to work out? I could help mediate if you need." she said.

Randorn shook his head.

"Don't worry about that; I'll handle that. Plus, the queen is dealing with the alliance logistics. Just worry about the Spellstones and the King Earthwalker; that's what's important.

Fox raised a brow. "Yeah, sure, but are you positive she is not lying?"

Randorn shot Fox a look. "I can read minds. She's telling the truth; I made sure of that." He stated.

"Fair enough. Well, if that's all then, we'll go fetch Tricky and Kyte then." the vulpine added.

Krystal, however, gave him a weary glance and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Actually, Fox, I wanted to discuss that…" she stated, catching his and Randorn's attention.

"Something on your mind?" Fox inquired.

The blue vixen frowned. "I know we brought the kids on this adventure, and yes, they have helped us, but… maybe we should just have them sit this one out? They've been put in harm's way one too many times," she noted.

Fox looked at her. "I get your concerns, but we've done everything we could to keep them out of danger, too, right? I mean, it's not like we have been throwing them into battle intentionally; that time with the Galdon was by accident," he noted.

Krystal nodded. "Yes, but… I don't know; it still feels a bit dangerous. They've done great to guide us this far, but now that we know where the Spellstones perhaps we should leave them here in the safety of the hollow?"

Fox pondered this a moment. "I mean, that's a fair point. I don't want to drag them into danger in more, but I don't know if they would be particularly thrilled about being given the shaft after all their help on this adventure," he said.

Krystal sighed. "Yes… I don't exactly want to disappoint them…" she added.

Randorn then spoke up. "I agree that I don't want the children in danger, but surely their aid has been worth it. I mean, you've done everything you could to keep them out of the fighting, right? Just continue to do so; besides, I am sure Tricky and Kyte could be useful in convincing the King to join this alliance, right? Who better to do so than the king's own son?" he reasoned. "And Kyte helped save his mate, too, remember? Surely, the words of the Cloudruner's princess could aid in his

Krystal grew silent for a moment and then sighed. "I suppose you are right; I can't really argue against that," she said before turning to Fox.

"But we'll double our efforts to protect them along the way," she stated.

Fox nodded. "Of course."

Finally, Randorn stood up. "Well, if it's all settled, you best get to it." he urged them. "Tricky and Kyte are playing in the queen's cave," he told them, gesturing towards the entrance of the queen's shelter.

With that, Fox and Krystal finally got up to fetch their wards.

Briefly show Tricky's thoughts as he enters the Arwing)

Only a few minutes later, Tricky was walking towards the Arwing along with Kyte, who was walking by his side. He was mildly surprised she was not just riding on him or the others as usual. As he walked, he could not help but ponder the situation at hand. Fox and Krystal had alerted the pair and told the kids to meet the foxes at the ship in a few minutes.

He was finally returning home! Just as he had wanted to do so this entire time. Soon, if things went well, his father would be free, his home would be liberated from Sharpclaw, and maybe even the planet would be saved! Tricky did not doubt the abilities of Fox and Krystal. Both were incredible!

But that's not what was immediately worrying him. Well, it was, but something else took presence de…

His father.

Tricky was, of course, relieved to hear he was alive and well, but he could not help but wonder: how would he react to news of this alliance his mother formed with the Cloudrunners, other tribes, and even Sharpcalw?

Tricky knew his dad was okay with any tribe that was not a Cloudrunner, but he, of course, had nothing but contempt for the Cloudrunners; he had lost his siblings in the war with them all those decades ago. So, seeing the princess of the Cloudrunner tagging along with them was going to be a problem for him. To say nothing of ever allying with the Sharpclaw, after all the atrocities Scales' species committed against the Earthwalkers…

"Something on your mind?" Kyte inquired

Tricky looked over at her. "Well, yes… just thinking about how to deal with my dad. I am sure you know he won't be happy to see you or hear of all this…" Tricky said, somelny. "He's where I got my prejudice towards you," he added.

Kyte huffed, a bit irritated."Well, I am sure he will come around. I mean, I did help save your mom's life, right? Surely that counts," she insisted.

Tricky nodded. "I mean, yeah, I am positive he will appreciate that…" he said.

"And surely teaming up against Scales will convince him to look past it… right?" she asked, her voice losing its confidence edge.

Tricky sighed. "I think so, but he's… very particular when it comes to Cloudrunners." the little Earthwalker said.

Kyte frowned at him. "Why, though? Why does he hate us so much? I get what happened with our tribes, but he sounds a bit overboard. Besides Revallos, neither my mom or dad or uncle Kree hated you Earthwalkers on a personal level. Your mom seems fine with me. Why does your dad dislike Cloudrunners so much?" she pressed.

Tricky sighed. "Well… probably because it is personal. I don't know about the average member of my tribe, but Dad lost his older brothers in the war forty years ago. He was the youngest of them, I think; I suppose he just never got over it or let go of his anger." He admitted.

Kyte frowned. "I'm sorry to hear that…" she said, pity in her voice. "If you don't mind me asking… what is he normally like outside of that? Is he nice?" she asked.

The little Earthwalker smiled. "Oh yeah, very other than… that. He plays with me whenever he can and likes to tell jokes to make Mom laugh. He is always overseeing training in the yard and such. He gets along decently with the other Gatekeepers even…" he stated.

A thought then occurred to Tricky.

"Wouldn't your mom have met with him before, though? Dad never really brought me to meet the Cloudrunners but I thought he would have had to discuss stuff with your family at some point, being a Gatekeeper and King." he pressed.

Kyte sighed. "Mom never really said much about her talks with him. I think they were pretty rare, though… mostly just resolving any issue that was brought up. Said he was a bit blunt and curt though…" she mentioned.

Tricky shook his head. He just looked over at the Arwing, which Fox and Krystal seemed to be inspecting. "Let's just not think about it for now. I am sure I can convince him when we get around to that," he said.

As he and Kyte got closer to the Arwing, he saw Fox pull out the communicator device on his wrist-mounted PDA before tapping a button on it.

"What's up Peppy?" the todd asked.

"Falco gif back a few hours ago. Wanted me to tell you he wants to meet you, person to talk and help with the mission," he stated

Tricky noted the surprised expression on Fox's face.

"Alright… we are actually about to make our way to the Walled City. The Spellstone is there. Think you can send him the coordinate from the map?" He inquired.

"Got it. I'll send him there then. Peppy out." the hare said, hanging up.

Tricky noted Fox looked a bit apprehensive, but he seemed to shake his head. Tricky could not help but ask as they stood by the Arwing.

"What was that about Fox? "the child asked. "You okay?"

The vulpine looked at him, then at Kyte, and finally at Krystal, who all looked a bit concerned. The red fox simply sighed.

"An old friend of mine is gonna be joining us once we get to the Wall City. He's a great pilot and crack-shot with the blaster. A bit rough around the edges and, well, cocky, but you'll get used to him." he said.

"But why do you seem so weary of him. He's a friend, right?" Krystal asked.

Fox nodded nervously. "Yeah, he is. Or was. Or, hopefully, it still is. You see, the thing is, we had a pretty nasty fallout a while ago." he said. "Before you ask, it's a long story. "he began as he started typing something into his PDA. Tricky guessed it was coordinates or something for his ship to follow. Not that he fully understood how this whole "space travel" thing worked.

"But to keep it brief: I Corneian Officer named Sears tricked us into fighting against an old friend of Falco's, a lady named Katt. We had been working with this guy to track down some remnants of Andross' army trying to clone the man," he said.

"Who is this Andross?" Kyte asked.

Fox frowned.d "A tyrant who nearly took over Lylat. Anyways, Sears turned out to have tricked Katt into smuggling some sort of lab equipment or something the Venomian remnants needed for their little project. I'm not sure what it was, but it was a pretty powerful energy source from an old Venom research facility during the war. It was hidden in a secret chamber even the Corndreina army did not find during their occupation of the place. Anyways, things went south after that…" he said.

Tricky did not like the sound of that.

"I… my friend, Falco, and Slippy infiltrated Venom remnants soon after Katt had arrived. Things kind of escalated; the Venom troops she was selling to got wind of us, we got into a firefight, and Katt, I guessed, seemed in the dark the whole thing. She fought alongside the Venomians at first, and I … may take a few shots at her and damn near hit her before Falco through off my aim."

He admitted Krystal gasped. "What? Why did you do that?" She asked.

"I did not recognize her at first, plus it was hard to make sense of everything in the heat of the moment. Falco hit her with a stun and pulled her out of danger after we dealt with the Venom soldiers. She saw him, recognized him, and he explained what Sears had told us, and she told us of this contract she had taken to smuggle this power source thing of hers. She helped us take out the base; go figure, we found Sears over there too. "he explained as he finished typing on his PDA.

"What happened after that?" Kyte pressed.

Fox shook his head. "We took out the soldiers in the research facility and dismantled the joint. Sears tried to flee with some kind of research notes, but I ended up giving chase. He opened fire on me, and I ended up having to shoot him dead to prevent his escape. We alerted General Pepper of what happened, and he dealt with the situation after that. The scientist was arrested, and the place was shut down, but we never saw any signs of an Andross clone; it had just been rumors. We still don't know why Sears was working for those guys to begin with, but I guess that info died with ihm." he finished.

Krystal raised a brow. "But what about you and Falco?" she asked.

Fox sighed. "He was pissed at me for almost killing Katt. We argued a lot about it; I, of course, felt bad; she had helped us before in the Lylat Wars. I tried to tell him I could not recognize her during the chaos of the fight, plus she was wearing a helmet at the time. I apologized a lot, but Falco was still livid for a while. He kept escalating these arguments whenever I tried to make amends. After a while, he just got sick of all this. He was already pretty bored with the lack of any sort of "exciting" work for our Team since the end of the war anyway. I guess this finally made him get fed up, and he left to pursue his own interests. "Fox stated.

Krystal frowned. "Sorry to hear that… what about Katt? Wasn't she working for criminals? You said she infiltrated and stole from a military base to get that power source, right?" she asked.

"Falco insisted we let her go, and we did. I mean, she was lied to by Sears and helped us take out Sears' little operation there. Also, she returned the "power source" or whatever the heck it was to the authorities anyways." he explained.

Kyte flew over and perched on Fox's shoulder. "Were they like boy and girlfriend? They sounded close?" she pressed.

Fox laugh.d "Yes and no. They were always an "on again, off again" kind of couple. But they had run together as criminals for a while. They were partners in crime, as Falco said. Both grew up in poverty together, so I guess they just knew each other from those days. Falco never said a whole lot about his past before signing up with us." Fox stated.

Kyte tilted her head in curiosity, and Fox sighed.

"Look, that was a longer story than I meant to make it. We should probably just get on the ship and get to the Walled City. He is probably waiting on us, actually.." Fox noted, a bit embarrassed.

Kyte smiled and nodded. She and Tricky decided to enter the bottom of the Arwing while Fox and Krystal climbed into the cock pit.

As Fox started the lift-off sequence, he could not help but contemplate what he had heard.

Whatever this Falco's deal was now, he hoped that he could at least be beneficial in saving his home. He could not help but worry if Fox and Falco would butt heads too much, though…

It did not take long to reach the Walled City's place in orbit. Perhaps only under 20 minutes or so, if even that. Fox and Krystal perched out the Arwings' window as Fox started the landing sequence. The Walled City lived up to its name; it was built around a jungle and had many massive walls around it, with a stone Temple in the vague shape of a pyramid in the middle of it. Everything here was made out of carved light tan and brown stone blocks, although much of it had been taken by overgrowth and vines.

Strangely, though, there were no signs of Sharpclaw cannons or any sort of anti-air gone. Fox guessed this palace being separated from the surface meant the Sharpcalw had not been able to move the supplies needed to build such a large installation.

However, none of that was what had Fox's concerns right now. What was of note to him was the Arwing parked on the far side of the northernmost wall, in an open area just outside of it.

"Guess I have my landing spot." the vulpine thought to himself.

Wordless, he brought his ship down a few hundred yards from Falco's Arwing. He could see the bird himself leaning on it, with his arms crossed and grinning as he looked up to see Fox.

"Hear goes nothing." Fox thought as he landed his ship, starting the landing sequence.

The cockpit lifted open, and he and Krystal climbed out.

Fox stared over at Falco, a mix of happiness and apprehension surging through his mind.

"Hey, Fox. It's a different time, a different planet, and you still need Falco's help?" the bird jested lightly, walking over to greet the vulpine.

He offered a hug. "It's good to see you, buddy," he said, a rare hint of sincerity in his voice.

Fox could not help but smile as he walked up and exchanged a hug.

"Good to see you again, Falco." He stated.

After they let go, Falco turned his gaze to Krystal. He looked her up and down.

"Well, I'll be damned; Peppy was not lying when you said you picked up an "interesting" new teammate." He noted, catching A raised eyebrow from her.

"Falco Lombardi, a pleasure to meet you… Krystal, right?" He asked.

Krystal shook his hand and nodded. "Likewise. I do have to ask, what did Peppy mean when he called me interesting?" She pressed.

Falco grinned at her. "He said Fox hired a telepathic blue magic lady wearing robes. Can't say I've seen that anywhere before." He noted.

Krystal blushed. "Yeah… I get that a lot. Though it's my staff, that's magic. Granted, don't be surprised if you see more outlandish stuff on this mission." She noted.

Fox turned to see the kids finally approaching from out of the ship. The bird glanced at them.

"And these are the royal kids you two have been babysitting, right? ." He noted. He looked at Fox. "Preppy said you were using them as guides. Seems a bit dangerous to bring them…" he noted wearily.

"We've kept them out of harm's way as much as we could," Krystal noted. "And we needed guides. Look, it's complicated; the situation kind of called for them to come with us at times." She explained.

"Oh, but where are my manners? I'm Falco." He said, a bit quickly, as if impatient or wanting to move on.

Kyte perked up at them and landed on Tricky's back, bowing in respect. "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Falco. I'm Princess Kyte of the Cloudrunners. This is Prince Tricky of the Earthwalkers." She said as formally as she could.

Falco could not help but smirk at the bow. "Why, it's a pleasure to meet you both," he said before turning around.

"Sorry if I am a bit curt, but I think we should get to the mission. We can catch up and get to know each other more later," he added.

Tricky spoke up. "Yeah… speaking of which, I kind of need to talk to my dad; there's this whole alliance going on and-"

But Falco held you by his wing. "Right, save your dad and find the magic rock. The rest of the Team told me prior to this. "he said,

Tricky nodded. "Yeah, and I know just where to go," he said, pointing over towards the main temple with his snout. "That's where we should start. The whole temple has all sorts of chambers; it would be an ideal place to

Kyte laughed. "It's easy. Just fly over to the temple with me." Kyte stayed, smiling as if it were obvious.

Falco and the rest just looked at the child dumbfounded.

"Kid, what do you mean?" Falco asked, bewildered

The Cloudrunner just stared at him, utterly baffled.

"What do you mean? What do I mean? Just flu. You are a bird." She pointed out.

"Yes, so?" Krystal pressed.

Kyte rolled her eyes. "You have wings; just fly." She stated

Falco just laughed and shook his head. "I sadly can't." He said bluntly.

Kyte again looked completely taken aback.

"what do you mean!?" She nearly yelled in confusion.

"I just can't. I don't know why, but these wings are not meant to fly. It's just how I was born, kid."

Kyte just stood there on Yricky's back, looking as if she could barely comprehend that info.

Fox could not help but laugh. "Kyte, it's not that complicated. Don't overthink." He said, patting her on the head affectionately.

The girl just raised a 'brow,' as much as a dinosaur could.

"Come to think of it, aren't dinosaurs like you supposed to be covered or feathered?" Falco pointed out.

"What?" She asked.

Falco shook his head. "Nevermind. Look, kid, do you think you can give us some Ariel support? "

Kyte thought for a second but then seemed to realize what he meant. She nodded and spread his wings, ready to take off.

Before she did, Krystal put her hand on Kyte's shoulders.

"Kyte, be careful. We don't know what is out there, and we know the Sharpcalw have ranged weapons. I don't know if any of good shots though… "she noted.

Kyte took the hint. "Don't worry, I'll stay out of range." she insisted.

The child took off into the sky soon after, soaring very high into the sky, way above even the highest structure in the city, which, of course, was the royal temple in the middle, likely at dozens of stories in height.

The group watched as Kyte got higher and higher in the air until she was barely visible to them from the ground. Fox pulled out his binoculars from his back and zoomed in.

"What is she doing?" Krystal asked.

"Hmm… she seems to be circling around a bit" Fox noted. "I guess she took your advice to heart."

They watched the young CLodrunner for a good several minutes as she went on over the place. To their relief, they saw no sign of any Sharpclaw nor any drones like the ones used at the Cloudrunner Fortress.

After a bit, Fox saw Kyte was descending down back towards us.

"She's coming down." he pointed out.

After a minute or two longer, they had flown back to them. Not partially caring that this would give their position away to any Sharpclaw onlookers, seeing as they landed two very visible spaceships there already anyway, the group looked at her.

"Glad there were no anti-air guns or cannons around to shoot at us." Fox thought.

Krystal let Kyte land on her shoulder. "So, see anything?" she inquired.d

Kyte shook her head. "Nope. Zip, zero, nada. Not Sharpclaw in sight." she stated.

Fox looked surprised. "Not even one? Huh… that's pretty suspicious," he noted

Falco rolled their eyes. "Yeah, clearly. Probably a trap or ambush or something."

Fox nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, the vixen looked around a moment as if pondering something. Falco noted this.

"Something on your mind?" he asked Krystal.

The blue vixen shook her head. "No, just scanning the area. I sense faint thought patterns, but it's obscured," she said, only to be met with a raised brow from Falco.

"Uh, what?"

"I can sense brain patterns in the area, but without a direct line of sight, I can't focus on them enough to read their thoughts or pinpoint their location. I think everyone is inside the structures or underground," she noted.

Falco just shrugged.

"Fair enough. He said, turning to Tricky.

"There are tunnels or something they should be hiding in, kid?"

The young prince nodded. "Yeah, most under the royal temple," he explained.

Fox nodded. "Alright then; we best stay alert," he said, looking at the two children.

"Kyte, I want you to get to higher ground and stay hidden until we know it's safe. Tricky, we need you to show us the way around the place," he explained. "I don't like dragging you into a potential ambush. We are gonna need your expertise in the area." he knew he could have Krystal scan his mind for info, but he worried that it could take a while for her to actually memorize.

Tricky nodded, and Kyte spread her wings again.

"Good luck, guys. Be safe," she said.

"You too, Kyte," Krystal added as the child took off towards the nearby hills. The group watched the girl fly up over to a high point overlooking the Arwing's landing spot, a ledge that had no easy way up whatsoever. Kyte hid behind a rock up on it, keeping her wings folded.

Fox turned to Tricky.

"Alright, stay very close and follow our lead, Tricky. And if you would, tell us where we might find the entrance to the main temple," he ordered.

Tricky nodded and began to explain what he knew…

Just a few minutes later, Tricky had finished informing the group of what they needed to know. He had instructed them on where to find the main temple entrance, how to open it, and where SHarpclaw might be hiding.

The group entered the city directly through the gate near their ships. Falco and Fox had their weapons on ready in case of any sort of sneak attack by the Sharpclaw. Krystal had been given the pistol taken from Vulga and had shown some familiarity with the model from previous scraps with pirates during her past travels before Sauria. She kept it drawn and her staff on her back. She was focusing her telepathy to try to sense any kind of enemies nearby.

Tricky stood in the middle of the three adults as the group hugged the wall, sticking to the shadows of the large city walls as best as they could. The group would dash from cover to cover, almost as if they were on an infiltration mission.

Oddly enough, nothing had happened, although the vixen proclaimed she could still sense lingering thoughts. None exactly within range.

"It's quiet. Too quiet…" Fox said, pointing his pistol around the scenery

"Where is everyone? There should be guards everywhere? Where are the prisoners and Sharpclaw?" Falco pressed.

"I don't know, but I don't like this, Fox. They have to be in the temple," he said as they were approaching the main gate.

Suddenly, Krystal stopped dead in her tracks. "Someone's coming, hide.!" She insisted.

The group all jumped behind a nearby large rock, Fox keeping his hand down over Tricky to shield him from any sort of harm that may come his way.

Out from their hiding spot, the group saw a lone Sharpclaw walking over from a nearby gate. He was around five feet tall, with yellow scales, and wearing the standard hide armor the Sharpclaw were known for. He did not have a helmet, however, but carried a club in his right arm. On his hip, he had a key ring with several keys dangling. His face had a nasty scar on the right, likely left from a claw. Likewise, his arms and legs had similar marks and bruises, too.

Fox did not need much time to formulate a plan.

"Alright, let's ambush him. He would probably get answers from him. When he gets near, be ready to jump out. Fire a warning shot if needed," he said.

"Tricky, you stay here." He ordered. Tricky nodded silently.

As the Sharpclaw got closer, the adults sprang out, Fox sending a warning shot a few yards off from the Sharpclaw.

The Sharpclaw dropped his club and held up his arms.

"No! Don't shoot! I surrender! "the grunt said.

"Kick your weapon away." Fox barked harshly.

The Sharpclaw complied and kicked his club yards out of reach. He knelt down and put his hands on his head.

Fox got up closer with his pistol drawn and searched him for any weapons, removing the keys from his hip and putting them in his pocket. Krystal drew her staff and put away the pistol in the coat pocket, pointing the staff at his neck.

"Where are the other guards?" Fox asked.

"A few underground, with the king and other prisoners," he admitted. "Not many of us left; boss pulled out most of the stronger soldiers and higher-ups, left us to keep things in order," he stated. "The current foreman is elsewhere; he is busy with Spellstone," he stated

Fox put his gun down but let the others keep their weapons trained on the lizard.

"What do you mean?" he pressed.

The Sharpclaw looked nervous. "Boss-Scales is getting desperate. Scales is planning something and no longer cares about this place. Left a skeleton crew; only a few officers are here to keep us in line." He admitted.

Fox huffed. "Alright… but why tell me all this? Your lips are pretty loose, even for someone under threat." He noted. "I thought your boss hated tattle tales." He pressed, gesturing for his friends to lower their weapons.

The Sharpclaw seemed to recognize this as a chance for trust.

"Me… me tired of being lorded over by boss. Scales and the others treat us like slaves. He won't even trust us, Witt, new weapons!" The grunt growled. "The foreman here beats us for fun; me sick of it! "he admitted. Gesturing to the scars on his body.

"These not are not from battle." He added with a growl.

Fox gave him a look of sympathy. "Sorry to hear that… "he muttered.

"So what were you doing with the key?9, "he asked.

The Sharpclaw grunted. "I have nothing to lose, I suppose. Me freeing prisoners; ne tired of grunt work. Me and others get their help to kick out foreman and grunts."

Falco hummed in interest at this.

"You staging a mutiny?"

The grunt grew silent for a few seconds, and he shook his head.

"Might as well say, me guess. Scales is faltering; even with new weapons, he is losing grand. The other Sharpclaw and

I made a deal with Earthwalkers. We help them escape in exchange for clemency. Other guards are free prisoners as well, speak." He admitted.

The three Star Fox members grew wide-eyed.

"But wait; surely, with these new weapons of yours, the tide of war should turn in Scales' favor, right?" Fox pressed.

SHarpcalw groaned. "Me not care; me and other grunts are sick of him! We getting deserters in droves; we take new weapons, use it on Scales," he stated

"Why tell us all this then? What if it does not work."

The grunt shrugged. "What harm is there? I doubt you will tell the boss anyways. He not listen,"

Fox got an idea from hearing this.

This"How convenient… perhaps we can help each other," Fox stated, thinking back to what Randorn had said earlier about Fang.

"As it stands, a certain Sharpclaw named Fang already formed an alliance with the Earthwalker queen and is working to secure more support as we speak. Perhaps you could aid us; she secured the promise of clemency for those who support her cause and rebel against Scales." Fox stated

The Sharpclaw looked surprised. "She succeeded already?!" he gasped before smiling. "Me like that; me already convened," he said. "So what me need to do now then?' he asked.

"Take us to the king; we'll have his son out in a good word for you and your buddies. And hey, maybe we can form an alliance?" Fox proposed. The other two Star Fox members raised their brows but said nothing.

The grunt barely needed to think. "Fine by me; whatever gets us rid of Scales." he said.

Fox smiled, as did the other two Star Fox members. However, something then crossed Fox' 's mind.

"Well, that was faster than I expected. I thought you would hesitate a bit.' He stated. "We've been your kind's greatest enemies since getting here, right? You don't even sound bitter about what we've done." he pressed.

The grunt shrugged.

"About soldiers you kill? Me not care. I do not know others; Sharpclaw lives for war. It is a fact of life for us; me know it's just how thighs are." he admitted solemnly. "They and aid Scales tyranny anyways, me not lose sleep over them." The grunt armoire. "We grunts never bond with soldiers; only the stronger are allowed on the front line; soldiers look down on us. They do not trust us to follow orders; Scales is paranoid. He keeps weaker among us for labor. It's that simple.

Fox thought about what he said; he would have considered that a bit cold-hearted, but he guessed that's just how the Sharpclaw are. He hardly regretted the ones he looked at; they did not seem any less cruel than the other Sharpclaw soldiers. They aided a tyrant's atrocities all the same. He knew it had been a messy city to kill; he had done so in wars and conflicts before.

As for the rest, he understood the Sharpclaw's viewpoint of it; death was just another fact of life for them, cruel or not.

Though maybe now they could put an end to that status quo: if they could bring an end to scales, that is.

With that, the Sharpclaw turned to lead the Team back into the royal temple.

"Alright then. Take us to the king, if you would please. "

Fox stated.

Meanwhile, Krystal retrieved Tricky from his hiding space as they entered.

Nodding, the Sharpclaw moved to pick up his club again. While they did this, Krystal told Tricky what the Sharpclaw was doing.

He nodded and went over to the front of the temple, where he pushed in some protruding stones from the walls. Buttons, if Fox had to guess.

The 'stone floor' in front of the temple caved in and gave way to a ramp leading down.

The Sharpclaw lead the way in from the front, with the other adults keeping Tricky behind them and keeping their weapons at the ready just in case.

"You sure we can trust him?" Falco whispered to Fox quietly as they entered the temple.

Fox nodded. "Think so. Not like we can't handle him if not," he stated.

Krystal got closer. "Yeah. And I read his mind anyways; he is telling the truth." she chimed in.

Content with that, the group entered the temple.

I figured I should do something different with this part of the story instead of the predictable rehash of the missions from the game, so I added a Sharpclaw mutiny.

I think I am gonna stop the chapter here; there has been enough exposition. In the next chapter, we have Tricky talk to his father, of course, and then the big epic T rex boss fights and such.

Gee, I wonder if that Venomian remnant and Sears plot I mentioned earlier in detail will be important later?

And sorry if there was no action in this chapter; nicer ones will have more. I need more dialogue to set up the characters and plots here. Also, I know you probably expected the Falco/ Fox heart-to-heart conversation, but I realized there was too much here, and being in the middle of a mission did not give them a good time. So, I am moving that to a different scene; rest assured it will happen.

Also, why did they forget to bring Kyte to the royal chambers? Of course, they did not; they left her out on purpose. I did not really touch on it in the chapter, but they know Tricky's dad is pretty racist against Cloudrunners for what they did in the war between their Tribe and Earthwalkers when the King was a child.

Seeing a member of the Cloudrunner royal family is sure to make him angry; they need to ease him into this whole alliance thing.

Anyway, I hope to see you next week with this. I don't know; I am bad at staying on schedule. I want this story concluded properly, though.

We only have a few chapters left as a whole; the next ones should be more action-focused since the climax is very soon. But I might need to make those a bit longer. Just depends on how well I can pace them.