Krystal began to wake as her consciousness returned. She stood up from the ground, only to find herself surrounded by walls. She was the sole inhabitant of this prison cell, the door locked firmly and only a single torch provided some light. Krystal was deprived not only of her staff, but her satchel too!
"Fox?! Tricky?! Kyte?!" Krystal panicked inside the cell. Where could they have been taken to?
"I'm here," Krystal heard a familiar voice past one of the cell walls.
"Fox?!" She touched one of the walls. The voice came from that direction.
"At least the two of us are jailed together," Fox's voice murmured, "Scales mentioned bringing Queen Lilith and Kyte to the royal chambers of this place. I don't know where poor Tricky is."
Krystal was worried about Fox, Tricky, and most of all, Kyte. She promised captain Zeon that she would watch over Kyte during her mission, and she had let the poor princess get captured twice over. Without Sabre to guide her, was she doomed to make the wrong choices?
"Man, this stinks," Fox's voice grumbled, "We can't do a thing while we're locked in this dungeon. They took my sword, bag, and even my gadgets when they locked me in here."
"We can't give up now!" Krystal protested, hoping to right her wrongs, "There needs to be a way for us to escape!"
Krystal's hands touched every part of the cell's walls, hoping there would be something loose to pry. Examining brick by brick, Krystal eventually felt a set of stones that felt loose. They were too sturdy to push away with conventional strength, but if she tapped into her inner powers…
Krystal commanded her body to go through an awakening, her tattoos glowing slightly. It wasn't extreme, but the extra power that coursed through her body allowed her to thrust the loose bricks out of the way. The resulting gap was large enough for her to fit through.
"Fox!" Krystal whispered to her prison neighbor, "I think I found a way out of my cell! I'll talk to you again once I come up with a more thorough escape plan!"
"Okay," Fox replied, "Just be careful out there."
Krystal crawled through the gap and ended up in an empty cell with its door wide open. She couldn't sense any mental activity in the area besides Fox. Krystal peered through the door into the hallway to double-check the accuracy of her psionic scan, then walked carefully through the empty halls. The halls of the dungeon led to a T-junction, the turn heading left leading to the guard station, the hall straight ahead leading to another wing of the jail. Krystal opted to search this opposite wing first. As with the confines that trapped Fox and Krystal, the hall was lined up with more cells. Krystal could sense activity within the cells. No guards in this wing either, but a few prisoners. Krystal peeked through one of the cell doors. Its inhabitant was a bipedal dinosaur, a pachycephalosaurus with a spiky head, sitting next to the wall of the cell.
"Psst!" Krystal whispered to the cellmate, grabbing his attention.
"Who are you?" the prisoner asked.
"My name is Krystal," the vixen introduced herself, "We're here to liberate CloudRunner Fortress' spellstone from Scales' army. Princess Kyte and two other friends of mine arrived here recently, though we also got captured in the process."
"Some rescue that turned out to be," a masculine voice whispered from another cell. Krystal turned around. Another CloudRunner was trapped in a different cell, "Looks like you're stuck here with the rest of us."
"Hold your tongue, Roald!" the dinosaur of an unidentified tribe scolded the CloudRunner, "This one may be the real deal!"
"Yeah!" a more familiar voice rang from another cell, "Krystal's proved her worth time and time again! I'm sure she'll break us out!"
"Tricky! You're here too!" Krystal was relieved that the other member of her fellowship wasn't too far away.
The bipedal dinosaur cleared his throat, "My name is Gradabug, I'm CloudRunner Fortress' chief engineer."
"Oh?" Krystal was taken by surprise, "Princess Kyte said it was unusual for there to be outsiders in CloudRunner Fortress."
"The BoneHead tribe's experience in engineering is unmatched," bragged Gradabug, "We lend our services in exchange for reasonable pay. In my case, it also landed me a comfy position in CloudRunner Fortress itself!"
BoneHead? Keeping the rather unflattering implications of such a tribe name to herself, Krystal remained focused on more urgent issues. "Do you have any advice on getting out of here?" she asked.
"The key to the cells is under the protection of the guard stationed at the prison entrance," Gradabug told Krystal, "The guards regularly take shifts. Maybe if you can trick him, you can get your hands on that key. The current sentry likes to nap, but he'll wake if you get too close."
"Which means trying to steal the key while he's sleeping isn't an option," Krystal assumed.
"The room where they confiscated our belongings is next to the guard post," Roald added, "The SharpClaw modified it to require a SharpClaw handprint to access."
"I'll head back to my other friend to see if he has any ideas for us," Krystal addressed the prisoners before returning to the wing where Fox was being held.
Fox thought to himself as he paced in a circle around his cell. If he had years to spare inside that confinement, he could create a circular trench with just his feet at the pace he was going. What was he going to do? He had no weapon, no belongings, only the clothes he had his body. He was deprived of his gadgets too, the illusion and the reflector. Only his PDA and rocket boots remained, and the latter wouldn't bust him out of that cell!
His PDA! That was it! The walls of the prison weren't thick enough to stop any signal from going to and from the Great Fox from here, and if anyone could program a holographic disguise kit, it was the team's chief engineer. Fox dialed on his PDA to contact Slippy. The toad's visage appeared over the PDA's communications disk.
"Slippy, there's been some complications during our infiltration of CloudRunner Fortress," Fox briefed the tinkerer toad, "Our team got captured. Krystal and I are stuck in the fortress dungeon, and we need a way to escape."
"What do you need me to do, Fox?"
"You know those disguise kits some Corneria's secret agents use? I'm going to need one for the SharpClaw."
"You got it, should be a piece of cake for me to program into your PDA," Slippy bragged, "I'll even make it able to fool genetic scanners for good measure!"
The PDA displayed a loading bar, indicating the data transfer from the Great Fox into Fox's wrist-bound device.
"Alright Fox, the program is complete," Slippy smiled, "Give it a try! Just remember that engaging in combat or drawing that sword of yours will cause the disguise to break. Hope it helps on your mission! Slippy, out." The holographic display of the toad disappeared.
Fox tapped on his PDA to activate the disguise protocol. A blue light passed over Fox's body from top to bottom, changing his appearance along the way. Fox looked at his hands. Two reptilian arms were stretched out in front of him. He attempted to look at the rest of his body. With no mirror, it was difficult to determine how effective the disguise was, given that he could not feel the effects of a holographic disguise, but he could at least tell that his legs were also affected, as they were bare showing off SharpClaw scales.
Fox heard footsteps approaching his cell. Whether it was Krystal or a SharpClaw guard, he hoped Slippy's disguise kit proved effective. He looked to the cell door window. Krystal's face stared through, her jaw hanging open in shock. Fox waved his hands, trying to calm down his Cerinian companion.
"Krystal, it's me!" he whispered as he tapped on his PDA, removing his disguise. So, it managed to fool her for a little bit after all, "I called in a favor from Slippy, and he provided me this holographic disguise!"
"That's good, because I need to fool the guard at the prison entrance," Krystal told Fox, "He holds the keys to the prison cells, and all of our items are locked in a room behind some kind of genetic handprint."
"That sounds like the perfect time to use this disguise," Fox grinned. He couldn't believe his luck. He removed his PDA from his wrist and passed it to Krystal. "Since you're already out of your cell, you'll need to use the disguise to get our stuff back and set us free."
Krystal removed the armband from her right forearm and clamped the PDA in its place. She passed the bracelet she removed to Fox. "Take good care of this until I return," she whispered, trusting Fox with her article of clothing.
"I will," Fox promised, "Now, press these buttons to activate the disguise."
Krystal followed her pilot friend's instructions to the letter. A blue light enveloped Krystal's body. Fox gazed at the thin, feminine figure of a SharpClaw that stood on the opposite side of the cell door. The disguise worked like a charm!
"Good to see that Slippy got everything about the disguise right!" Fox exhaled in relief, "Now, go trick that guard, Krystal!"
Krystal headed to the guard station where the SharpClaw sentry was fast napping at his desk. As Gradabug had described, the guard held the key to the cells in one hand. Krystal approached the guard, still in her SharpClaw visage. The guard's eyes opened as he woke from his slumber and rubbed his eyes.
"Uggghhh, it's about time my shift was over," the guard mumbled, then smiled at Krystal's form, "Didn't know they'd send such a sweetie to take over. You know what to do: Keep an eye on the prisoners and guard this key. I'm going on break."
The SharpClaw placed the key and the PDA on the desk before departing from the prison. He approached a panel next to the door and placed his hand on the panel, causing the door to open. The door closed shut once he crossed the other side. Krystal nabbed the key. The vault that held her team's belongings was also in the room, locked behind a handprint scanner. Krystal placed her scaly hand on the scanner, and the door opened; the scanner was also completely taken in by the disguise. Krystal searched the vault for her staff, her satchel, and Fox's bag and sword. Fox's sword? Krystal shook her head, trying to keep herself together. It was Sabre's sword, and Fox was borrowing it for this mission of his, nothing more. She carried Fox's share of equipment in her arms as she returned to Fox's cell.
Krystal unlocked Fox's cell door with her newly obtained key. She had the courtesy to deactivate her disguise and return Fox his PDA along with his other belongings after he stepped into the dungeon hall.
"Thanks Krystal, I felt almost naked without this thing," Fox expressed his gratitude after placing the PDA back onto his wrist, returning Krystal's armband once he reactivated the automated Saurian translator for good measure.
"There are other prisoners in the other wing," Krystal said as she fit her arm through her bracelet, "We're going to free them next."
Fox followed Krystal to the other prison wing without question. She used the key to unlock the cells containing the prisoners who stepped out, stretching their arms out. Tricky was especially grateful to reunite with the vulpine duo.
"Who's this guy?" Fox pointed to Gradabug, "He part of a dinosaur tribe I haven't met before?"
"Name's Gradabug," the chief engineer introduced himself, "I'm part of the BoneHead tribe, and the CloudRunners' chief engineer. I designed many of the machines built around the fortress."
"BoneHead?" Krystal could see Fox struggling to contain his laughter as he covered his muzzle with his hand. He was clearly thinking the same thing she did at the time.
"I'm Roald!" Roald blurted out as he raised his wing, not wanting to be left out.
"Well, anyone have any ideas for what we should do next?" Fox probed for an escape plan.
"We'll need to activate the wind lifts to get access to the upper floors of the fortress," Gradabug started, "The key to the fortress power chamber was confiscated from me and placed inside the dungeon's vault."
"We've already unlocked the vault," Krystal pointed out, "Let's head there now."
The prison escapees ventured to the vault. Gradabug searched the room and took hold of a large lightning bolt-shaped stone.
"This is the key to the power chamber," Gradabug presented Fox and Krystal with the stone, "The power to the whole city is down. The wind lifts will only work if you reactivate the generator. I'm willing to gamble that Scales' forces have scattered the light gems that power the generator across the courtyard; you'll need to retrieve them and place them back in their rightful positions to reactivate the generator." Krystal placed the key into her satchel. The four made their way to the dungeon exit.
"How exactly did you bluff the guard and the scanner?" Roald pressed the vulpine duo.
"One of my team members from above programmed a holographic disguise for me," Fox explained, tapping on his PDA to activate the disguise. His body warped into that of a slender-looking SharpClaw in a standard uniform. Rather than hearing the gasps of wonder and awe that he expected, he heard Gradabug laughing hysterically, hugging his gut tightly to contain himself.
"What's so funny?" Fox frowned.
"Oh dear, it seems that disguise of yours could use some serious improvement!" Gradabug could barely contain his laughter as he held his hand to his muzzle, "The proportions are completely inaccurate! At least the disguise got the clothes right."
"Well, it worked on both the guard and the scanner when I used it," Krystal held her fists to her hips indignantly.
Fox approached the scanner panel on the dungeon exit to open the door.
"Well, it seems that this will suffice for now after all," Gradabug swallowed his pride.
Ahead was a grate with an inactive fan on the floor. They looked upward and saw a few sentry drones monitoring the vertical shaft. It was possible to climb up the stone walls, but any unauthorized personnel would be quickly spotted by the drones' searchlights.
"Looks like you two will need to proceed from here," Gradabug told Fox and Krystal, "Your disguises should be able to fool the drones and the various patrols above. Once you activate the fortress generator, the fan below us should blow away these drones into the ceiling."
Fox reached into his backpack and passed Krystal a spare PDA. It was smaller than the one he wore, around the size of a wristwatch.
"Here Krystal, you can use this," Fox offered, "It has most of the functions of my own PDA, including the SharpClaw disguise. We'll carry out this undercover mission together."
"What are the rest of us gonna do in the meantime?" asked Tricky as Fox shared the disguise program to the spare PDA and Krystal activated her disguise.
"There's probably more to the dungeon we haven't explored yet," Fox tossed the prison key to Gradabug, "I'm sure there are more prisoners waiting to be freed. When we activate the generator and destroy those drones, I'm sure that will raise the alarms. That's when you guys go guns blazing."
"Guns…blazing?" Roald exchanged a confused expression. The Saurians were unfamiliar with this turn of phrase.
"I think what my friend is saying is that when we activate the wind lifts and destroy the drones, you can engage the SharpClaw as you see fit," Krystal clarified. She and Fox made for the climbable rock face. "Mind if I get the privilege of climbing first?" Krystal smiled to Fox. With the uniforms provided by the disguise, not to mention that the SharpClaw generally lacked visible…attributes below the waist, this did remedy the frequently awkward situation that climbing usually presented.
"As long as you keep that disguise on in the process," Fox teased. Krystal began her ascent with Fox following closely behind.
The two incognito foxes climbed the walls of the chamber. The spotlights of one of the drones began to draw near. The two braced themselves for anything, but nothing came of the drone seeing them. The disguises worked perfectly! Fox and Krystal continued their rise until they reached the courtyard.
"Where are we going to find the generator's light gems?" Fox whispered to Krystal.
"We should investigate the area, see what we can find out," Krystal answered, "With our disguises we can eavesdrop on the patrols, hear what they have to say."
The disguised duo approached the plaza where they previously encountered Scales and Thorn. Two SharpClaw soldiers were deep in conversation.
"So, what was the code to the fortress cellar, again?" the two foxes overheard one of the soldiers ask.
"0451," the other soldier responded, "And don't forget it, this time! We put one of the gems that powers up the city generator there, so don't let anyone suspicious enter the cellars!"
"Doesn't make much sense to keep it there to begin with," the first soldier replied, "the wind lift and the safe around the balconies seem more secure."
"We're not in the position to question direct orders," the second soldier pointed towards the first, "As long as that generator's pitch-black, that's all that matters! And if those CloudRunners ever get uppity, we've got the 'insurance' plan to fall back on!"
The two soldiers began to depart from the plaza and noticed the vulpine pair undercover.
"What are you two knuckleheads looking at?!" one of the soldiers spat as they marched away.
Fox and Krystal looked to each other. "Guess we know where to find the gems," Krystal whispered, "I'll go after the gem in the cellar. You can go after the gems in the wind lift and around the balconies. We'll meet back at the plaza when we're done."
"Just remember," Fox told Krystal, "Our disguises will be blown should we activate our weapons."
"I'd wager using the PDA to communicate with each other would also bust the disguise," guessed Krystal.
"I guess I'll just have to wait for your telepathic voice to make sure it's you then," acknowledged Fox.
"Or I could search for the lankiest SharpClaw around," Krystal giggled. Fox sighed before they parted ways.
Fox glanced around the courtyard for any means of reaching the upper balcony. There was a mountain of crates stacked upon one another close by. The pile of boxes was sturdy for Fox to climb over. With his feet on the balcony, Fox jogged across the stone platform, passing by unsuspecting SharpClaw goons and drones unnoticed. Fox located the vault in question, locked behind another handprint scanner. Fox peeked around to make sure nobody was looking, then brought his hand to the scanner. The safe in the wall opened, containing an orange light gem. Fox shut the safe after pocketing the gem in his backpack to cover his tracks.
From here, Fox could see the wind lift the soldiers were talking about, all the way across on the opposite end of the courtyard. Fox jumped down to the grass below and approached the wind lift, the blue light gem sitting in an alcove at the bottom. Fox collected his prize.
Krystal explored the courtyard for the entrance to the cellar. An entryway leading downward was visible from the plaza. She slid down the ladder that led to the isolated room. The door to the cellar was barred by a door. Krystal turned her attention to the keypad nearby and entered the code "0451". The door gave way. Many wooden caskets lined the room, filled with their juicy contents. A SharpClaw was passed out with a bottle in hand and a green light gem sprawled on the floor. Krystal sniffed the bottle; these barrels did not smell of wine, but rather grape juice. With no time to wonder how this SharpClaw managed to drink himself silly, Krystal took the gem for her own.
Krystal waited for Fox's arrival back at the plaza. Fox's shrimpy SharpClaw form made its way back.
Did you get the gems? Krystal asked telepathically. Fox nodded.
"Now we need to find the generator room," Fox decided. With some navigating, the two located the generator room in the corner of the courtyard. The stone door to the generator room was closed. A panel with a crevice shaped like a lightning bolt was mounted on the wall. Krystal inserted the generator key into the panel, opening the door.
What Fox witnessed inside was not the kind of power generator he was accustomed to. The power chamber itself was a room built of stone, pillars lined every corner, and the walls were decorated with panels of carvings portraying CloudRunner figures. A large grate was in the floor in the middle of the room, with two prisms levitating above, one gold, one silver, the gold prism hovering above the silver one. The grate was surrounded by a trio of altars, colored orange, green, and blue, each having a gap that could fit the light gems that powered the fortress.
Fox planted the blue gem into the blue altar. A blue light emerged from the altar and into the silver prism. The gold prism emitted light back into the blue altar. Krystal inserted the green gem into the green altar. The process repeated, though with green lights. Fox placed the orange gem into the orange altar. The ultimate result was a trifecta of beams between the altars and the prisms, a prismatic display of differing hues.
Tricky, Gradabug, and Roald occupied themselves with freeing the prisoners in the rest of the dungeon. The SharpClaw army was concentrated on the upper levels of the fortress, foolishly lacking any additional patrols within the dungeon itself now that Krystal had fooled the entrance guard into abandoning his post. Time went by quickly as the trio spread the word about their eventual riot; they wanted the SharpClaw army to remain none the wiser while Fox and Krystal resumed their undercover operation. If their cover was blown too soon, it could mean the death of the royal family.
The vast majority of the prisoners were fellow CloudRunners, imprisoned by the SharpClaw occupants, the rest being of Gradabug's BoneHead kin. Some of them took issue with Tricky's presence, citing how unusual it was for an EarthWalker such as he to stick his nose into their tribe's affairs. Others, who weren't raised with a prejudice against the triceratops clan, took advantage of this rare opportunity to ask Tricky various questions about his tribes' experience in the world of Sauria. Tricky relished the attention he got but never forgot about the greater mission he agreed to embark on. He hoped that Kyte and her mother were still alive, and that Fox and Krystal would rescue them sooner than later.
Tricky, Gradabug, and Roald waited back at the entrance to the prison patiently with the freed prisoners staying further back. Everything was quiet, so they could assume that the SharpClaw disguises were working as intended. The fan below the grate began to spin, spurring a gust of wind upward. The drones in the shaft began to rise, and as Gradabug predicted, they were smashed into the ceiling. The automated sentries in the shaft were no more.
The way up was clear. Gradabug turned to his CloudRunner companion and the EarthWalker prince. "Ready to fly?"
"Hop on," Roald smiled to Gradabug, "Are you okay with me carrying you?" he addressed Tricky.
"I'm fine," Tricky nodded, "Kyte does it to me all the time." Gradabug leaped onto Roald's back, Roald grabbed Tricky with his talons, and Roald ascended the shaft, ready to meet Fox and Krystal at the courtyard. With the alarms blaring, the recently freed dinosaurs were hungering for some action.
Fox and Krystal returned to the courtyard, the SharpClaw sentries being none the wiser as they scrambled around the fortress with the alarm set off. The two spotted Tricky, Gradabug, and Roald hiding around the corner leading to the dungeons along with the other prisoners they freed. Seeking guidance as to what to do next, the vulpine duo approached their Saurian allies.
"Well done, both of you!" Gradabug commended the two heroes.
"Do you know where we should head next?" Fox questioned the BoneHead and the CloudRunner who stood next to Tricky.
"The wind lifts should take you to the sky dock," Roald instructed, "From there, you should be able to reach the royal chambers."
"Are you ready to fight?" Krystal asked the dinosaurs.
"Ready as we'll ever be!" Roald and his fellow CloudRunners took to the skies to bring the fight to their SharpClaw oppressors. Gradabug and his fellow BoneHeads raised a ruckus on the ground. Tricky, on the other hand, was all too eager to reunite with his foxy friends.
The wind lifts that Gradabug and Roald spoke of were located on both sides of the courtyard, providing the means to ascend one floor up. Fox, Krystal, and Tricky headed to the northern wind lift and rode the windy current. Fox and Krystal knew that with Tricky at their side that their SharpClaw disguises would be of no use to them, not that they needed to thanks to the cover of chaos caused by the prison break. On the upper floor, the three proceeded through the hall. On the other side of the fortress stood the sky dock. Many large transport ships were stationed there. These were of a modern design, far beyond the technical prowess of the SharpClaw.
"More of that fancy Lylat Wars-era tech," Fox grumbled, "Scales must be using ships like these to move his troops between the satellite continents and Sauria."
"Who could be supplying the SharpClaw with these modern machines?" Krystal wondered.
"I've been asking myself that very question since I made my first Arwing voyage to this world," Fox muttered, "I still don't know where those interstellar fighter drones came from."
"Why can't those machines ever be on our side?" whined Tricky.
Navigating around the sky dock, Fox and Krystal entered through the hall leading to the royal chamber. It was another grassy courtyard with a few cherry blossom trees planted around. What probably wasn't normally a part of the royal chamber were two cages. With the prisoner revolt happing outside causing a turmoil, it proved to be enough to draw whatever guards that should have been monitoring the room away. The two cages were of differing sizes, likely to accommodate the prisoners they were designed for. The smaller cage contained Kyte, trapped in a cage once again, and the larger held a motionless Queen Lilith.
Fox, Krystal, and Tricky wasted no time in rushing to Kyte's cage. She was relieved to see them all.
"Fox! Krystal! Tricky! I knew you would come to save me!"
"Kyte!" Krystal could barely hold herself together, "I'm so, so sorry that I let you get captured again! That's twice that's happened to you under my watch, not to mention how you got eaten by Galdon!" She nearly began to weep. "I've…failed you as a guardian…"
"Krystal, it isn't your fault," Kyte tried to put Krystal's mind at ease, "The first time was due to my carelessness trying to find Tricky, the second time it was due to Scales overpowering us all. Not to mention that Galdon swallowed all of us up one time each."
"I'm just glad to see you in good health," Fox smiled.
"I wish I could say the same about mother," Kyte grew despondent, "The injuries she suffered at the hands of Scales and Thorn are critical. If we don't administer medical attention soon, she might die!"
"So that's what Scales meant by making an example of you and your mother, all to have you die slowly and painfully in front of all of your people here! We can't let that happen!" Fox pounded his fist on his palm, "What do you suppose we do?"
"First, you'll need my assistance," Kyte started, "You need to get me out of this cage!"
"Where could the keys to the cages be?!" Tricky looked around.
"Hey! What are you doing in there?!" a voice shouted. Fox, Krystal, and Tricky turned around to see the SharpClaw guards who were likely designated to keep watch over the two high-value hostages stare back at them menacingly.
By now, Fox, Krystal, and Tricky were accustomed to fighting these bipedal lizards. With how routine and reliable their fighting prowess was, the trio stood victorious almost as soon as the fight began! Krystal located the keys to the royal chamber's cages and unlocked the doors to both. Kyte relished in her regained freedom as she flew out triumphantly.
"Let's hope this is the last time you end up trapped in a cage," Krystal smiled, grateful that her friend was free once more.
"We have no time to think about the past," Kyte declared with conviction, "For my mother is not the only one in peril. My brothers and sisters have gone into hiding around the fortress, and I fear they may be in danger from the SharpClaw army. The entire royal family is needed to unlock the way to the treasury; that is where the spellstone is currently being held."
"What can we do about saving your mother?" Fox asked.
"It will take the healing energies of a bafomdad to restore her health in her condition."
"Ba-fom, what?" Fox groaned as there ended up being yet another entity that he had to look up on his PDA.
The Bafomdad is an unusual specimen capable of undoing grievous wounds that would otherwise bring someone to the brink of death. Upon expending their healing energy, the Bafomdad will simply vanish. This phenomenon has continued to stump researchers to this day.
"How many siblings are we looking for?" asked Krystal.
"Two brothers, two sisters. We can split up to find them," Kyte suggested, "I will scout out the fortress entrance. The two of you can explore the sky dock. Tricky, look around the lower courtyards."
The four spread out to locate the rest of the CloudRunner royal family.
Kyte flew to the entrance tower of CloudRunner Fortress, scouring the region for anything she noticed that was out of place. She saw one of her brothers hiding on the grass turf next to the sunroof leading to the plaza. Kyte landed gently next to her brother.
"Aizel, this is no time to be hiding!" Kyte chastised her brother.
"Kyte?" Aizel looked up, "Is that you? The soldiers are on high alert!"
"I have proven allies at my side," Kyte reassured Aizel, "They will protect us. We need to do our part and give them access to the treasury. We must all meet back at the royal chamber."
Kyte and Aizel took to the air, noticing how their previously captive kin were now taking the fight to the SharpClaw. Kyte was grateful for all the help her allies have provided so far.
Fox approached one prong of the sky dock and noticed a SharpClaw carrying a red creature in his hand. Fox didn't hesitate.
"Unhand that child!" he shouted.
"What?!" the SharpClaw was taken completely by surprise. Fox swung his sword against the villain, slashing through his armor. The hostage-taker was no more, dropping the hostage. Fox turned to the hostage.
"What the-?" Fox took a closer look at the thing the SharpClaw was carrying. This was no CloudRunner. Fox cross-referenced his PDA's data as the red gerbil with four ears, freckles, and no limbs stared back at him innocently. So, this was a bafomdad.
"Looks like I'm going to need you anyway!" Fox took the bafomdad and placed it into his knapsack, hoping the critter wouldn't mind.
Krystal ran to another dock, seeing a SharpClaw clearly antagonising a flying CloudRunner child. Unable to stomach the sight of such brutality, she charged towards the soldier and jumped into a flying dropkick. The soldier screamed as she plummeted into the endless abyss. Krystal waved to the CloudRunner kid.
"It's okay," Krystal reassured the child, "Kyte sent me to rescue you!"
"She did?!" the boy CloudRunner landed on a nearby crate, "My name's Hogard. Many of us are still being chased by those monsters!"
"Kyte said you all were needed to help open the fortress treasury, and to meet at the royal chamber. Your mother is hurt badly, we're working on a way to save her."
"Alright, that's enough to convince me!" nodded Hogard, "I'll make my way there!"
Tricky roamed around the courtyard as the battle for CloudRunner Fortress raged after riding down the wind chambers to the lower floors. This was his chance to prove himself! In a corner in the courtyard, he noticed a SharpClaw having trapped a small CloudRunner girl. Before the soldier could have a chance of laying a hand on her, Tricky sprung into action, unleashing a cone of fire at his enemy. The soldier flailed his arms around, attempting to put out the fire that engulfed his body. Tricky followed up with a headbutt, his body thankfully resistant to the fire he caused. The shock from the impact was enough to stop the SharpClaw in his tracks; he would no longer pose a threat to either dinosaur kid.
"Thank you! That guy almost had me!" the girl was truly grateful for Tricky's help.
"You one of Princess Kyte's sisters?" Tricky asked, "We need you to open the treasury!"
"You know Princess Kyte?!" the girl exclaimed, "I'm her sister, Trish!"
"Cool, Trish," Tricky said, happy that Trish wasn't as judgmental of EarthWalkers as Kyte was initially, "I'm Tricky. Now let's go to the royal chambers!"
"I'll be right behind you!" offered Trish. Tricky and Trish ran side by side towards the royal chambers.
Fox, having made his way to the last dock, found himself sparring against two SharpClaw soldiers. He had arrived just in time to distract them from the CloudRunner kid escaping their wrath. One of the soldiers threw his mace at Fox, hoping to land a strike from a distance. Fox activated his reflector, causing the mace to deflect straight into the other soldier's skull. With one soldier dead and the other disarmed, Fox thrust his sword into his target. It was an instant kill.
"Kid! I'm with Kyte! She sent me to help you!" Fox addressed the kid still flying in the sky.
"Thank goodness! I'm Eilis, one of her sisters."
"We need to regroup at the royal chamber," Fox explained to Eilis, "Something about opening the fortress treasury? I've got the bafomdad that can save your mom!"
"Then what are we waiting for? We need to help her!" Eilis flew towards the royal chamber with Fox running after her.
Fox and Eilis were the last ones to return to the royal chamber. Along with Krystal, Tricky, Kyte, and the rest of Kyte's siblings, Fox noticed that Gradabug and Roald were also present. Many of the other CloudRunner inhabitants still fought the SharpClaw army elsewhere in the fortress.
"Guess you folks took it to the bad guys since our cover got blown," Fox chuckled.
"Did you get the bafomdad?" Roald asked.
"Yup, got it right here!" Fox reached into his backpack and presented the gerbil of life to the others. Kyte brought it over to her mother, still clinging to life. The bafomdad began to glow a huge of yellow, a mist of green surrounded the Queen. Queen Lilith's various cuts and bruises began to vanish as her strength was restored. The bafomdad disappeared vanished in a flash of light as Lilith slowly stood up.
"Mother? Are you in good health?" Kyte asked Lilith nervously.
"I remain in the land of the living, thanks to all of your virtuous efforts!" Queen Lilith cheered, "And you have rescued the rest of the royal family!"
"We have yet to retrieve your spellstone from Scales," Fox pointed out.
"Then this shall be your reward for saving us all," Lilith gestured to her children to gather round.
"You remember the top-secret sequence that I taught you?" Lilith whispered to her children. Kyte, Aizel, Hogard, Trish, and Eilis all nodded in unison. The CloudRunner royal family flew to the rooftops of the royal chamber, activating various switches that were installed on the rooftops. It looked like a complicated sequence of lever pressing. The others heard a marble surface moving.
"The way to CloudRunner Treasury is now open to you!" the Queen CloudRunner announced to Fox and Krystal, "Scales has hidden the spellstone deep in its chambers. Find it and return it to the Force Point Temple."
"There they are!" a hostile voice shouted. An army of SharpClaw goons stormed the royal chamber. The CloudRunners, Gradabug, and Tricky engaged them in combat.
"We'll hold them here!" Kyte told Fox and Krystal, "Head to the treasury! Get that spellstone! The fate of the planet is in your hands!"
"Kick his tail extra hard for me!" Tricky added.
Fox and Krystal nodded to their stalwart allies as they went to the treasury entrance.
Author's Note: The first draft of the story had the entry into CloudRunner Fortress be separate from the aftermath of Fox and company's capture in separate chapters, with an entire chapter dedicated to Fox describing his encounters with Star Wolf and Krystal's encounters with the Obsidian Legion in between. This ended up becoming a bit of an overly long pace-breaker, so the flashbacks were cut, and the first half of the CloudRunner Fortress was combined into a single chapter, which ended up becoming quite lengthy.
Gradabug, as part of a dinosaur species that existed of just him (the BoneHead tribe), was originally going to be a rogue SharpClaw in my first draft to avoid the implications of having to write around his rather unusual existence. This story intends to make the BoneHead tribe a proper tribe who will make a later appearance.
In Dinosaur Planet, the Queen CloudRunner was flat-out killed when Scales interrogated her before Krystal's capture. In Star Fox Adventures, she's simply captured. I decided to split the difference, making her critically injured as well as captured, requiring a bafomdad to save her.