StarFox Fan Fiction ❯ The Shards of a Broken Krystal ❯ Departure ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: Surprise. I don't own the Star Fox series or any of its characters. I do, however, own the story. Keep that in mind before you steal it.

 

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The Shards of a Broken Krystal - by Staindgrey

 

Chapter III - Departure

 

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The Cornerian Conference Dome was filled to the brim with characters of all races from the tiny miniature dachshunds to the overwhelming polar bears taking up two seats each and fanning themselves tremendously to keep cool beneath their engulfing white coats. They were chatting amongst themselves, their many small whispers combining into a roar that echoed off the numerous walls of the arena as they waited with anticipation for General Pepper to speak. Pepper was the only general many in the audience had grown up with, and, consequently, he had gained the respect of most everyone in the Lylat System. He was a strong political figure- stronger than even Corneria's Head Ambassador, their top government official. In Pepper's time as Supreme General of the Cornerian Army, he had evolved the military role into practically that of leader of the Lylat System as far as influence went, and it frightened the System's citizens to think of who would replace him when he finally decided to step down. If that person decided to abuse his power... The thought was mind-boggling.

 

“Ugh,” Falco grunted, once again looking at his watch in obvious irritation. “When is this thing supposed to get started? I'm practically molting over here.”

 

“Just wait it out, Falco, it shouldn't be too much longer,” Fox coolly replied. He sounded like a parent calming down their aggravated child. Falco answered with a huff and a cock of his head, signaling, `This conversation is over.' Fox was alright with that; he had other things on his mind as it was. On either side of him and Falco were empty seats- probably the only ones in the house- and they belonged to their absent teammates. Slippy had been missing ever since they landed, choosing to go straight to his dad's side and miss Peppy's inauguration. Fox didn't blame him; he knew what it was like to be missing a father and, at times, it was unbearable. If his father suddenly showed up, there was no doubt in his mind that he'd be at his side, regardless of where he was.

 

“Say, where's she?” Falco pointed out, nodding his head towards the empty seat at Fox's side. Fox looked at the seat for a moment then back at Falco, gloom overtaking his emerald eyes in an instant. “Oh,” was Falco's only reply before he reverted his attention back towards the stage at the front of the arena. Bad question, but it had to be asked.

 

Suddenly, a hush befell the gathered crowd as a decorated bloodhound marched up to the podium in militaristic style, his crimson and gold attire showing lavishly under the limelight. He coughed into the microphone just in front of his lips, hushing the few small murmurs still left in the mass before him. With the newfound silence, he began his speech.

 

“Good evening, citizens and officials of Corneria. I thank you all for attending this conference tonight. As you know...”

 

“This is gonna be long,” Falco huffed. Fox merely glanced at him, but tried not to show him attention. It was true; Pepper's speeches were known for being strenuously long and dragged out, but they weren't here for Pepper, they were here for Peppy. Falco knew that; at least, Fox thought he knew that. “I'm outta here.”

 

“What?” Fox questioned as he turned towards his companion, already getting up from his seat. “You can't just leave-”

 

“I can, and I will,” Falco persisted. Fox began choosing in his mind whether to try and force him to stay through scolding or ask where he was going; in the time it took to decide between the two, Falco was already halfway down the row, so he said nothing. “`Scuse me... Pardon me... Yo, move your fat legs, pudgy!” could be heard as he made his way out. Fox hid his face in his paw as he waited for Falco to finally get out, leaving him alone with three empty seats surrounding him. Fox heaved a lonely sigh as he focused his interest back on the General, still talking a storm and losing more attention spans by the moment. It's gonna be a long night, Fox thought. Within seconds, his mind was once again set on the image of that beautiful blue vixen, staring at him with the stare of a broken heart...

 

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Krystal took one last look at her Star Fox uniform as it lay wrinkled up and motionless on her unmade bed. She now wore her normal attire from before: a two-piece made of low-karat gold with a faded russet garment hanging between her thighs on both sides of the lower piece. The light blue fur of her chest and stomach were now exposed, along with her slender, navy legs and arms. On her right arm and hip, she had the white glyph marks of her people; they had been there since her birth, though she never learned what they meant. Warriors' shin and forearm guards made of bronze could be found on her as well; she was well-adapted to fighting in primitive areas like Sauria. That was the only place for her now, the home she had grown up on for so many years of her life. It was time for her to return there, to leave her new life behind and go back...

 

Her eyes displayed every bit of sadness they could, but it still couldn't match the agony found within her. Here, she had finally found a place she could believe she belonged, a place she could live, a place she could settle in and grow in and, eventually, die in. She had found love here of all places, and she had grown more attached to it in two short years than she had ever grown attached to Sauria throughout her entire adolescent life. Sauria was a beautiful planet with many creatures and tribes that she befriended, but... she no longer viewed it as her home anymore. This was her home, here on the Great Fox, with... Fox...

 

Tears tried to form again in her eyes but she didn't allow them to do so. She forced them back; after all, there was no room for tears on the unsympathetic grounds of Dinosaur Planet. If she went back there the way she was now- forlorn, dejected, and heartbroken- she'd be devoured by a Red Eye in the blink of an eye. She had to go back with the same diligence she had before, and the will to live for herself, not for someone else.

 

While her head tried to tame her rabid emotions, she finished packing her small knapsack with two changes of clothes, a canteen, and her unextended Cerinian staff. This staff was the only thing she had left from her lost home world, and it had saved her life more times than she could remember. Placing the bag lightly over her shoulders, she began walking towards the room's exit, stopping for a moment to take one final look at her previous life. Her bed, her closet, her bathroom, her mirror, her nightstand... The thing that struck her most was the small picture of her and Fox, his arm around her and her head leaning back on his shoulder, eyes half open, but full of love for the Lylatian fox holding her. Behind them was the striking scene of a falling sun reflecting on Aquas's oceanic surface with a robe of red and pink clouds shrouding it. That was their first `date' she supposed, before she was officially inducted into the Star Fox team. He was so sweet then, and so charming... She couldn't believe how things had so suddenly changed. “Fox,” she muttered half to herself, half to the distant fox she so longed for, “I'll miss you... Will you miss me?” She stayed in her mesmerized position for more than a few moments as if waiting for an answer, but none were to come. She could feel the dam she had built begin breaking as tears once again forced their way to the corners of her eyes. With a violent shake of her head, she tore out of her emotional state like prey fighting for its life, then hastily opened the door beside her and walked out, letting it close, for the last time, behind her.

 

“Going somewhere?” The voice stopped Krystal dead in her tracks, sending a wave of fear through her skin and causing her fur to briefly stand on end. Her ears perked as she finally recognized the voice as that of an arrogant old bird standing behind her. Giving her eyes a precautious wipe, she turned and faced Falco, who was leaning back against the chrome wall right beside the door she'd just come out of. Krystal could almost always sense others' presence when they were close; how could she not have noticed him? She had really lost herself in her emotions a few seconds ago; she couldn't let that happen where she was going.

 

“Yes, I am,” she barked back. “Don't try and stop me.”

 

“Who said anything about stopping you?” His expression remained callous, his eyes closed and his arms folded loosely beneath his chest. The comment caught Krystal off guard, but she remained determined. She could sense that Falco wasn't putting on a show- he really didn't care enough to stop her. She wasn't sure if she should be grateful or feel a strong desire to slap her thought-to-be-friend.

 

“Well, if you're not here to stop me, then what are you here for?”

 

“To say goodbye, of course,” Falco said with a flare in his voice and a small smirk creeping along the side of his beak. “And to give you some advice.”

 

“Advice,” Krystal repeated, her voice sounding more robotic than questioning.

 

“Yeah. Don't think Fox is some cold-hearted bastard that wants you to leave. He cares for you more than he shows, and it's tearing him up to let you go. When he gets back here and finds out that you're gone, he probably won't talk to anyone for a good week or two- assuming, of course, he has someone to talk to.”

 

“Hm?” Every retortive comment she had been mustering inside her mind had suddenly vanished at his last words. “What do you mean, `assuming he has someone to talk to'?”

 

“Well, you'll be gone, Peppy'll be gone; Slippy too, at least for a little while.”

 

“And you?”

 

“Me too,” he said with no trace of emotion in his voice. “I'm going solo again for awhile. Something's come up that I don't want Fox to know about.”

 

“So he'll be... all alone?” Concern flooded Krystal's eyes where her tears had once been. Suddenly her thoughts returned to loving Fox as opposed to loathing him.

 

“Unless you intend on staying now.”

 

Determined Krystal once again took the place of her troubled variety, her eyes narrowing into a death glare that Falco didn't even bother to look at. “If you're trying to convince me to stay, you're wasting your breath, Falco,” she barked. Without waiting for his answer, she turned and continued walking down the corridor, the seductive sway of her hips now replaced with a vigorous stomping motion.

 

“I knew I couldn't convince you to stay,” he said nonchalantly, “just like I couldn't convince Fox to stop and think before he went and ruined his life. All I wanted to tell you was that, though he won't admit it now, he loves you, and when he comes racing back to you to tell you that, don't push him away.” Krystal was fully stopped now, standing still as a statue with the expression of disbelief carved into her face. Before she could say or ask anything, she heard the ruffling of Falco's feathered arms as he pushed himself away from the wall he was against and began walking in the opposite direction of where Krystal was facing. “Well, catch ya later, Krystal,” he said with a wave behind him, “Hope you and Fox are finally together by the time I get back.” After a fraction of eternity in Krystal's bewildered mind, she heard a door unlock, slide open, then drop back into its place, Falco's footsteps now but a memory.

 

Falco... she thought, how can you know so much? She grit her teeth and closed her eyes tightly as she tried to shake the conversation out of her head, but it still stuck with her despite her efforts. She could run away from Star Fox, she could run away from all that she had here and every person that she had come in contact with the past two years, but she couldn't run away from the memories, just like she couldn't run away from the memory of her parents. Was she damned to a life of hopelessly running away from everything that mattered to her...?

 

Finally, she began to move again towards the end of the hallway, not allowing herself to look back. No matter what Falco said, the words Fox gave her were what controlled her actions now... “I don't want you to be a part of my life.” The words echoed inside her despondent mind like the knell of a funeral bell, rather than the happy ring of wedding chimes that she had imagined so many times before. Finally she exited the hallway and made her way towards the docking bay where her Arwing was set for launch. Falco, I hope to the gods that you're right... “Fox...”

 

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The forest was calm, save the rustling of branches as a soft breeze blew past and the constant hum of nighttime insects freely flying about. Fireflies stuck out among the crowd, signaling to one another with small bursts of light and glimmering in the dead of night like shooting stars. The trees of the forest were of hefty size, reaching up a good twenty meters before reaching their peak, some even taller than that. There was a small path of infertile dirt below, but it was less than a meter wide and shrouded by the wild bushes surrounding it. Through the cloak of darkness and its mass of flying bugs pranced a small two-legged reptile happily feasting on the gourmet that surrounded it. Its long, frog-like tongue snatched the airborne pests with ease as it occasionally slowed down for a certain delicacy, but never coming to a complete stop. Its two tiny arms seemed relatively useless as they hung at his chest like two crippled limbs, making the ten pound critter resemble a miniature T-rex. Its snout, however, looked nothing like that of a carnivore, as it was smaller and more adapted for insects, hardly made for chomping on the limb of a larger victim.

 

“Haa!!” The predator was instantly turned to prey as a sharpened piece of wood pierced through its tiny neck, breaking it and causing instant death. The animal's momentum carried it forward still, forcing its legs up off the ground as its head and neck stayed in place where it had been attacked, then the entirety of its body slammed against the ground with a small thud and a cloud of dirt to signify its defeat. The victor grabbed his prize by the stick now jammed into its throat, then grabbed its head and yanked it forcefully off of his weapon, leaving a trail of bodily fluids running down the piece of wood like molasses. He then threw the stick aside and examined his catch, his light blue cybernetic eye gleaming amidst the surrounding darkness like a lighthouse at the edge of a bay. “Hmph,” he grunted, “it'll do.”

 

Wolf O'Donnell began marching through the heavy undergrowth back towards his team's camp, hacking at a branch here and there to clear his way. This was his second week on this filthy planet, but he had no other choice of quarters at the moment. Ever since Star Fox had practically demolished his team's base, Star Wolf's reputation in the underground was tarnished and mercenary work became all the scarcer. Unable to keep up with funds for their base, Wolf and his elites, Leon Powalski and Panther Caroso, left the rundown hideout in hopes of finding some sort of available vocation. However, with little luck in their search, the team had to finally settle due to lack of fuel, and here they were, on this prehistoric Dinosaur Planet, becoming dinosaur hunting savages. It was disgraceful, and Wolf was close to just killing the largest Red Eye he could find and calling it a day.

 

Finally, he had found his way out of the massive wood and into a flat clearing where he could see the beacon of light that was his group's campfire off in the distance. He scanned the darkened area with his cybernetic eye for awaiting predators then continued on toward his destination. He knew they wouldn't be at all satisfied with his catch, but he was growing tired of waiting and stuck with this little pest. If they really wanted a bigger meal, they could go get it themselves.

 

“Ah,” he heard the low purr of Panther as he approached the camp. The light of the fire reflected in the wildcat's golden eyes with an eerie luminosity and danced brightly on his silky, black fur. The chameleon sitting across from him turned to face his leader, a mere grunt escaping his mouth as he did.

 

“That's all you could get?” his shrill voice shot in a sardonic tone.

 

Wolf tossed his catch onto the ground between them, letting it lay lifelessly there. “Before you complain, let's see what you caught.” Leon glared at the wolf and his overbearing stature before finally looking away. “That's what I thought.” Wolf gave another satisfied grunt as he took a seat on the free log on the other side of the small fire, crossing his arms and stating, “You two can have it. I don't have much of an appetite.”

 

Panther looked as if he were about to say something, but his ears twitched and his head suddenly jutted slightly to the side, letting him get a look behind his captain and into the line of trees along the outskirts of the surrounding shade. Wolf heard it too: the faint snap of a branch. Wolf stood, turned immediately and pulled out his blaster, pointing it directly at the hidden figure that his robotic eyepiece kindly pointed out for him. “Show yourself,” he growled.

 

The cloaked figure came out from his hiding spot with his hands up at crown level, signaling his surrender; his gruff, sneering tone signaled otherwise. “I see your skills are as sharp as ever.”

 

“Yeah, thanks for noticing,” the team leader shot back. “What do you want?”

 

The hidden form stopped walking before he came too close to the light of the fire, keeping himself veiled in the dimness of the night. “I heard you were a bit under budget as of late and was wondering if you'd like a job.” Wolf couldn't put a finger on it, but he was sure he recognized his voice from somewhere...

 

“What job?” He continued his interrogation, never once letting his guard down. Though his eye had infrared vision, he still couldn't tell who this guy was or if he had any weapons on him.

 

“One that I'm sure you'll very much enjoy,” the figure said with a spreading grin. “It involves the Star Fox team.”

 

All three mercenaries stiffened into attention at those words. Leon suddenly seemed like he cared while Panther's eyes gleamed with a more terrifying brilliance than before. Wolf's stature remained for the most part unchanged. “Well, I'm sorry, but we're stuck here at the moment with no fuel. Unless Fox comes here, we can't help you.” There was a strong sense of arrogance in his tone, which caught both his teammates off guard. They figured he'd jump at a chance to finally finish off that “pup” and his team, but now he seemed too lost in his own pride to accept such a mission.

 

Before either of them could interject, however, the mysterious newcomer continued, “Don't worry about equipment, gentlemen, I already have that taken care of.” He then approached them, causing Wolf to heighten his gun to headshot level and deepen his death glare. The figure spread open his cloak, revealing two sacks strapped neatly on each hip, a small bit of blue luminosity showing through their aged cloth. He then opened the flap of one of them and pulled out a small cerulean orb with sparks of electricity inside, holding it up for all of them to see.

 

“Full cells?” Leon pointed out in the form of a question. The now visible dog-like snout of the intruder slowly nodded, though the rest of his face was still shielded by his long, black shawl.

 

“Yes. There's enough here to get you around the system three-fold. This, along with six million in Cornerian currency, will be your payment. The money, however, is only for if you succeed.” He then proceeded to put the bright, blue ball back in his pouch, his cocky grin never once leaving his face. Wolf hated that smirk almost as much as he hated this damn planet, but he had no other choice but to accept the guy's offer. He, however, wasn't the one who answered.

 

“We'll do it,” a deep, charismatic growl complied. Both Wolf and Leon looked back at Panther, who was now wielding one of his standard roses against his chest, the vivid, red petals resting nicely beneath his furry chin. “But, must we kill them or merely defeat them?” Wolf and Leon both rolled their eyes at the comment, knowing full well that he meant to get Krystal out of this job.

 

“Take them prisoner or kill them, whichever suits you. But I must see their bodies either way to confirm your success. Don't let even one member run free.”

 

“However,” Leon pointed out, “we'll be outnumbered just like the last time.” Wolf gave a small grimace at his outburst, knowing it was true but not wanting to admit it. He wanted to defeat that pup no matter what the numbers were.

 

“Not the case,” their proprietor said, a certain slyness overcoming his tone. “Peppy Hare has just today been inaugurated as the new Cornerian General and, as a consequence, left the team. Slippy Toad is caring for his father, the Research Director for the Cornerian Defense Forces, who has fallen ill in recent days to some unkown disease. Their ace pilot, Falco Lombardi, is leaving as well to join his former gang in the Sector X colonies, though I don't know if he has left yet.”

 

“That's three on three reguardless. We can handle that,” Wolf said, finally lowering his blaster and placing it back in its holster. He then gave a nod in silent confirmation, following with a repitition of Panther's earlier outburst, “We'll do it.”

 

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She was gone. She was really gone. She was nowhere to be found on the Great Fox, and neither was Falco. Both of their Arwings had been launched and were gone as well. Suddenly, the slight emotional high Fox had gotten when he ate dinner with Peppy earlier was nothing but a memory, and loneliness, anger, and utter confusion took its place. Sure, he knew Krystal was going to leave- he had brought that upon himself- but Falco too? Maybe he was only out for a little while and was coming back... No, Fox forced himself to think, he's gone too. That's why he left without a goodbye. Fox sat in his commander's seat at the head of the Great Fox, but this time, he was in command of nothing more than a machine; no one was around but Rob. Peppy... Slippy... Falco... Krystal... They were all gone. Memories Fox didn't even remember having suddenly flooded his mind with images of them, of their happy faces and embarrassing stories... And yet, with all the cheer that such memories usually brought, they now only shattered the pieces left of his heart into even smaller fragments. He was broken in both his mind and in his heart, and the emptiness showed itself fully in his dead eyes. Their placid gaze was fixed upon the framed picture he held in his hands, the one of him and Krystal on what he supposed was a date on the lone island of Aquas. The scene behind them was breathtaking, but the sapphire vixen at his side made that setting sun look like nothing more than a poor crayon drawing by a four year-old. Affection spelled out her entire expression, and he knew exactly who all of it was for... him. He... he loved her. He truly did, and no matter how much he suppressed it or found reasons to avoid it, that was the only truth. But now, she was out of his life, just as he had asked her to do. She was gone. But... how could he just let her go like this...?

 

“Rob,” Fox uttered as silently as a man's final words on his death bed.

 

“Yes?” was his robotic reply.

 

“Set a course for Sauria,” he ordered.

 

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