"Father, I'm so sorry," Krystal shuddered, feeling ashamed of what she had done. With a blink of her eyes, the reflection of her two crimson irises returned to their natural sapphire color. Turning away from the fountain, Krystal gazed in horror at the expressions on the guards faces as they lifted their metal helmets. The guard whom she had injured had fallen to the ground, the orange fox's hands pressed against his shoulder where Krystal had deflected the plasma shot into him.

Krystal looked to her father helplessly, unable to find the words to speak as he approached the scene. His gaze was fixed sternly on his daughter, eyes not leaving hers as he spoke.

"It looks like we've had enough for now," the King murmured, rubbing his chin with one hand. "Guards, you may return to the palace. Get your injuries dressed at once; I apologize for my daughter's actions."

Two of the Cerinian soldiers helped their injured comrade to his feet, one supporting him on each side as they made their way from the courtyard. The remaining guards exchanged shocked and bewildered glances at each other as they headed towards the palace entrance.

As they passed by, the most injured guard halted as he reached Krystal. Seeing the apprehension and guilt on the young vixen's face after being chastised by her father, the guard spoke up. "Your majesty," he grunted, addressing the King, "don't be too hard on her... it's only a scratch; this was bound to happen in such intense training."

The King of Cerinia turned from his daughter, holding the gaze of his bodyguard without speaking a word. His stern expression was unchanged by the soldier's kind words, but Krystal felt a light burden lift from off her shoulders. As she scanned the mind of the injured guard, she found his words to be sincere.

Over the years as Krystal had grown up, the members of the Royal Guard had been close friends to the royal family. From the time she was a small child, she could always remember the kindness and support she and her parents received from their warriors; she would have hated for this moment in time to damage that relationship. At times, the Royal Guard seemed almost like an extended family.

Krystal gave the three remaining guards a warm smile before they proceeded up the stone walkway toward the palace gates. She dared not say another word before her father, still upset and unsure of how she let her emotions become so out her control. Instead, she held her tongue, meditating on her behavior in front of her father and the guards during the training session.

Does this have something to do with my dreams? The vixen wondered, reflecting on how her eyes appeared to hold the same crimson gaze as those from her nightmares. Krystal thought she felt the presence of a foreign entity around her for weeks, since the start of her recurring nightmares, but this strange spirit had never felt as close to her as it did now.

The king also remained silent for several moments, as if he too was analyzing what he had just witnessed. Father and daughter stood before each other in silence for what seemed like an eternity before the King finally spoke up. "Krystal, what was that about? This was meant to be a training session, not a real battle."

"I could read the minds of the guards," Krystal burst out, unable to keep quiet any longer. "They shot at me with the intent to harm, I felt it in their thought patterns!"

"They fired as they were commanded to, that is no excuse!" The king dismissed her response. "I gave the guards their orders knowing that you could defend yourself. I know how you handled yourself during your encounter with the invaders from Venom yesterday; the fact of the matter is that your emotions got out of hand, and I'm sure it has something to do with the nightmares you've been having recently."

Krystal's heart skipped a beat. "What do you know of my nightmares? What could they possibly have to do with how I reacted today?" The knowledge that her dreams were no longer a secret filled Krystal with fear. What if something was wrong with her? What would her father think about the visions that tormented her every night?

"I am a telepath, just like you," the King reminded her, the tone of his voice shifting from disappointment to concern for his daughter. "Some nights I am kept awake with the thoughts of many Cerinians troubling my mind. Yours have disturbed me most recently; I know that something dark and mysterious haunts you at night, and of the visions you've seen. Turmoil, pain, the suffering of our kind is coming."

"Then surely you must have answers," Krystal pleaded as her eyes began to water with tears. "Surely you must know who or what this presence is? I can't escape its crimson gaze; it even follows me into the waking world. And Cerinia, our planet... does this have something to do with the Venomian invasion?"

The king's reply was simply to step toward his daughter and embrace her, wrapping her in his loving arms and pulling her to his chest. He let out a deep sigh, his mind betraying that he was just as short of answers as she was. "I don't know," he confessed. "For now, the best we can do is monitor the workings of your mind. Your telepathic powers have developed so rapidly, almost unnaturally so. Maybe this has something to do with your nightmares, but I can't say anything for sure yet."

"What of the visions, and the armies of Venom?" Krystal wiped her eyes and looked into her fathers', searching for comfort and hope even more so than answers.

The king released his grip, assuming a firm demeanor once again as the planet's leader. "War will likely come to Cerinia, whether we want it to or not," he replied, grimly. "If the armies of Venom are allowed to grow and spread, our enemy will soon become unstoppable. We may need to engage them ourselves to prevent this from happening... Right now, we need to find out why they are here of all places, and what they want from Cerinia."

Before Krystal could say anything in reply, her father continued, changing the subject. "Right now, what matters is your training," the King murmured, switching focus. "We will deal with the armies of Venom when the time comes. You will need your mental powers at full strength if you are to carry the weight of this world on your shoulders."

"What do you mean?" Krystal probed, sensing a sudden barrier over the thoughts of her father. She seemed to encounter a strange fog hovering over him when she tried to read his mind, as if there was something he didn't want her to know.

The king closed his eyes and shook his head. "It's nothing, for now. You will learn when the time comes... now I will show you another useful application for your inherited gift of telepathy. The link between your mind and that of another is not a one-way track; not only can you receive incoming information from others, but you can also project your thoughts back to them."

Krystal placed her hands on her hips, suddenly more curious and intent to learn more. "So that is how I have been able to sense some of your thoughts? You don't just think them for me to read, but also cast thoughts into my mind?"

"Yes," the King of Cerinia nodded. "This power has quite many uses. With time and training, you will be able to project thoughts, feelings, even memories, into the minds of those around you. The mind is a complex tool; it can be made to bend to the will of a telepath if he or she wishes. Sometimes it just takes some... creativity, and imagination to achieve a telepath's full potential."

"Great, how do I get started?" Krystal felt more energetic and optimistic than she had all day. The cares and concerns of the world around her started to slip away as she immersed herself in the present with her father.

Enter into the plane of mental space, the young vixen sensed her father's thoughts enter her mind. Focus on my mind alone, as you did yesterday. Create a link forming our thought patterns together.

Krystal obeyed, closing her eyes and focusing only on the mental and letting the physical world around her fill the background of her concentration.

Good, the King's mental voice sounded again. Now create your thoughts, imagine projecting them along the link you have formed with my mind. If you succeed, I will be able to hear you without searching your mind myself.

Krystal meditated silently, imagining a memory that she would project into her father's mind. Yes, this one, her heart warmed as she formed a memoery in her thoughts and cast it forward with a jolt. Opening her eyes, she found that her father had closed his eyes as well, smiling lightly without speaking. "Well, did it work?" she asked, working her telepathy to scan his mind as she was more accustomed to.

The king nodded, eyes remaining closed. "A memory of us at the beach, when your mother and I took you to see the ocean on our eastern shores. This was so long ago... you were only a small child, I'm surprised you even remember it" he reflected, experiencing the memory as if living it there and then. Curious, he asked, "what made you choose this?"

"You already know why," Krystal could sense that he had already read her thoughts and knew the reason for her choice. "This memory was one of the first to come to my mind. Something calm, and peaceful. Far from all the worries and fears, when all that existed in the universe was our planet, this village, our family..."

Opening his eyes, her father gave her a solemn nod in agreement. "Those were simpler days than those we face now," he acknowledged. "No matter what happens, Krystal," he urged, staring deeply into his daughter's eyes, "always hold on to these precious times. They give us something to live and die for, a purpose and reason to keep fighting."

Though these words inspired Krystal, they also sent shivers running down her spine. Why was her father suddenly speaking in a way that was so deep and philosophical? In the warmth of the Cerinian sun, the young vixen couldn't keep from feeling almost chilled to the core. What aren't you telling me?

"Projection into the minds of others will come to you more effortlessly with time and practice, just as your ability to maintain control of thought patterns and mental images became easier yesterday," Krystal's father continued, either ignoring her mental question or not hearing it entirely. "There is one more useful skill that I want to show you today. Then maybe you can spend some time alone practicing these things for yourself."

Krystal blinked, trying to shake her feeling of apprehension as she listened patiently to her father's words. Whatever it is, surely it bodes ill for us all... You aren't always like this, Father... The vixen could start to feel her stomach tightening and knotting up, twisting like a snake inside her as she forced to calm herself down.

"I might have said something yesterday about the 'mind's eye,' how telepathy can be used as a means to 'see' and 'sense' the world around you." Krystal's silence caused the King to second guess himself as he quickly added, "well, maybe I did, maybe I didn't... anyway," he chuckled, loosening his stature slightly, "as a telepath, your 'mind's eye' is not restricted to the immediate world around you, as you have surely discovered already."

Krystal nodded in response. Clearly, he was remarking on how she was able to navigate through the southern forest and locate the Venomian army's position in the woods.

"Your mind can do more than simply scan nearby areas," the King informed her. "You are also capable of casting your mind out to far away locations, far exceeding that of any of your other senses. Begin by concentrating on the plane of mental space around us," he instructed," then widen your gaze so that you can sense the entire courtyard and village surrounding us."

Krystal did as she was told, first focusing her mind on the thought patterns of her father and herself. Accustomed to this, she concentrated on expanding her mind's sight. At first, it seemed that nothing at all was happening; only their two mental images were visible.

"Just breathe," the voice of her father penetrated Krystal's ears and mind. "What else do you feel?"

The young vixen did not respond immediately. Straining to widen her gaze, Krystal suddenly felt another mental trace. It was that of one of the Cerinian guards, patrolling the palace courtyard nearby. Then she felt another presence, and another, and another, until the thought patterns of dozens of Cerinians occupied her mind. Each thought that she sensed gave with it a physical location, revealing a mental map of the surrounding area.

"Well done, my daughter," the King of Cerinia praised. "This is another skill that can be improved, until you can see for miles and miles with your mind's eye. You achieved something similar yesterday, but this new way of perception is far more precise, giving exact details and locations of those nearby and even far away–" The words of the King were cut short, and immediately Krystal realized why.

"I sense it too," the vixen relaxed her telepathic focus and returned to the world around her. Without another word, she found herself sprinting outside of the palace courtyard and toward the enormous stone wall surrounding the village.

Krystal's father raced out of the village, taking a sharp right turn as he headed for the village's western border with Krystal hard on his heels. "So you cast your mind that far?" The king mused, seeming again impressed with Krystal's mental prowess. Giving no time for an answer, he continued, "I sense activity occurring along our western border. I should have noticed it sooner..."

"I'm sorry I distracted you, Father," Krystal apologized between breaths as she darted beside him. "If you weren't so busy training me–"

She was cut off by a swift glance from the King. "There is nothing more important than training you right now... besides, this is hopefully just a border skirmish. I'm just surprised the enemy from Venom is bold enough to follow our soldiers so far from their camps deeper in the forest."

"So much for being grounded within the village walls," Krystal grinned sarcastically, sensing that they were approaching their destination as she detected the mental images of many Venomians, mixed with the thoughts of a Cerinian patrol as they battled to escape from their enemies at the edge of the western woods. Krystal tensed when, among her allies, she sensed the thoughts of Atticus, Savannah, and Fero. The three found themselves with the rest of their patrol being pursued by a vast multitude of Venomian forces. Judging from their mental activity, they had reached the forest's edge. They must have been heavily outnumbered and outmatched; Krystal could feel their fear and panic emitting toward her in waves.

As the edge of the forest began to appear, the King addressed his daughter seriously. "From here on, this fight is real. Unlike in training, show these invaders no mercy; you shall also receive none. I'm sending a distress signal to the Captain of the Guard, but until then we must provide whatever aid we can to our warriors."

Krystal nodded in acknowledgment without saying a word. She wished that they could have gathered reinforcements before arriving to her friends' aid, but she could tell from her father's haste that there simply wasn't the time. Apprehension began to gnaw at her heart, the truth of her reality slowly sinking in; she and her planet were now at war.

A battlefield began to make itself clear on the horizon, stretching out across the landscape as it transitioned from open fields to the beginning of the forest beyond. Krystal could scarcely make out the shapes of Atticus, Savannah, and Fero, along with several other guards as they held their ground outside the edge of the forest. Dozens of laser beams flashed from outside the thickening trees, aimed for the Cerinian warriors as they took cover behind several trees and hills that rose slightly above the rest of the plane. The natives were trapped, unable to make a move among the endless barrage of laser fire streaming towards them.

The King of Cerinia reached into his holster and drew his magical staff, extending it from half to full length with his mind's command.

Krystal followed his lead as they approached the ongoing battle, gripping her laser sword in one hand while activating its glowing yellow blade with the other.

"Don't worry Krystal," her father tensed as he prepared to enter the fray. "Whatever happens, I will follow you in combat with my mind and be ready to aid you whenever you need."

As Krystal and her father reached the Cerinian warriors, Krystal took shelter with Savannah and Fero behind a wide tree trunk, while the King crouched beneath a rising hill to debrief with Atticus. The Cerinian patrol exchanged surprised and grateful looks at the arrival of reinforcements.

"Thank goodness you're here," Savannah breathed as she lowered her bow and docked her next arrow. "We are really pinned down; I didn't think help would come in time, are there any others?" She asked with a glance at the two new arrivals.

Krystal shook her head. "For now, just the two of us." Before Savannah could voice her disappointment, she added, "Father sent out a signal to Sera's father and the rest of the guard; help will come, but we need to hold on a little longer."

"Oh, great, just a little longer," Fero rolled his raccoon's masked eyes. "There's more of them in there than you think! We can't last a little longer."

The King of Cerinia waved his arm in a motion to silence his warriors. "Enough! Atticus, status report, now!" From a distance, the King's voice was nearly drowned out by the flashing of lasers past their cover.

"Our patrol was ambushed deeper in the forest and we lost several members," the feline reported. "It seems the armies of Venom are spreading, surrounding the village on all sides. None of the bordering forest is safe. The enemy consists of many foot soldiers, but something followed... a massive war machine rumbled through the woods behind them, crushing trees beneath its treads as we engaged the hostiles. We were forced to evacuate before we were run down."

Krystal's father hesitated for a moment, addressing the situation and deciding a course of action. "If we don't push the armies of Venom back now, I fear the worst for our village. The enemy will press onward, claiming all of our home as we know it." He glanced at his few warriors, knowing how much he was asking of them. "Do we have the strength to launch a counterattack?"

"I'm in, I can't stand all this sitting and hiding!" Fero was the first to give his support.

Krystal nodded, "we will follow our king. With you at our front, we will be strong." Even though the odds seemed against them, the vixen felt comforted following her father into battle. Though her planet had been peaceful for years, she had heard stories of how courageous her father had been in the past, wielding the magical staff of the royal Cerinian bloodline like a shield protecting their village.

The remaining Cerinian warriors shouted and voiced their eagerness to fight. It seemed that the entire company was behind their king, waiting for his signal to return fire and engage the forces of Venom.

"I'll create an opening," the King warned, "then we will face them head on. Bring the fight out to the open, draw out their gunners so we can fight them without their cover. Protect each other, remember they have the numbers until reinforcements arrive."

Without another word, the King stood up from behind his cover and the staff in his hands began to glow. As its magical energy channeled, green light emitted from its thin frame and a sphere of red flame formed at its tip. The fire grew in size, expanding to the point where Krystal could feel the heat at the tip of her fur as her father tossed his arm back and hurled the massive ball of fire forward.

"That's the power of our king," Savannah awed as the fireball sliced through the air, gaining speed and size as it hurtled toward the trees ahead. The multitude of lasers shooting out from the forest ceased as the Venomian soldiers panicked to find cover. In seconds, the flaming sphere crashed into the outer layer of trees, exploding with a roar and setting the outer woods ablaze.

"Attack!" Krystal's father commanded as he led the charge, racing toward the forest as the Venomian soldiers recovered from the impact.

Krystal and Savannah darted out from behind the tree, followed closely by Fero, Atticus, and the remaining Cerinian warriors as they rallied to their king. Krystal raised her laser sword and followed its glimmering yellow blade as Savannah raised her bow, firing into the horde of Venomians streaming from the edge of the forest.

Laser beams began to stream from the enemy lines once again, flashing past the Cerinians as they charged forward. "Get behind me!" Krystal called to her friends, deflecting an incoming round with her laser sword. Savannah, Atticus, and Fero formed up behind her as she caught up with her father. Another laser beam met Krystal head on, who with a furious slash of her sword, reflected it back toward the incoming Venomian army.

The two forces began to close their distance from each other, but the Cerinians were far out-ranged. Savannah fired another arrow into the crowd of enemies and loaded another as lasers continued to fly by, barely missing the native warriors as they raced onward.

"Watch this," Krystal's father called out from beside her as he raised his staff, shining a white veil of light before them. The clear barrier expanded as they ran on, surrounding the entire Cerinian patrol and engulfing them in magical energy.

Krystal watched in amazement as the plasmatic rounds fired from the Venomian soldiers fazed right through the magical barricade, rendering she and her allies unharmed. "What power is this? You are truly amazing!"

The king cast a loving glance at his daughter, just as the waves of Venomians came into range. "This power will someday be yours," he answered. "This is our birthright; now, we fight to defend it!"

The first of the Venomian soldiers threw himself at Krystal, lunging with a glowing red laser sword. She retaliated with her own, sparks flying from the two weapons as they clashed. The lizard aimed a second slash across her torso, but she read this attack telepathically. Lowering herself to her knees and thrusting upward, she pierced her enemy's chest with her blade and withdrew it, allowing the lifeless body of her foe to fall before her.

A soft whistle sliced through the air past Krystal's ear as one of Savannah's arrows struck the next lizard, penetrating his armor and impaling into his shoulder. Before Krystal could take him down, the grey and black fur of Fero flashed past her vision as the racoon tore through him with his kamas.

Krystal's telepathic powers spiked, sensing that several Venomian soldiers had taken aim. As they fired their weapons, the vixen readied her laser sword and aimed for the target of each shooter. In one fluent motion, her blade met the laser aimed for her head, then her waist, then her torso, reflecting each round back into the waves of Venomians. The vixen's blood began pumping in her veins as her adrenaline rose. This was her first real battle; she felt both terrified and filled with the thrill of combat at once.

Rushing forward into enemy lines, Krystal deflected several plasma rounds on each side. Her blade clashed with that of another Venomian soldier as she rotated to block his incoming attack, grabbing him by the arm and flipping him over her shoulder with his own momentum. The counterattack left the lizard stunned and rendered him useless, so Krystal moved on.

This is my home, Krystal thought as she pushed onward, and I will fight to protect it! Suddenly realizing that she was surrounded by enemies on all sides, she raised her weapon to strike when a new figure dropped down in front of her, clearing the entire wave in a flash. The fox turned around, greeting Krystal with a slight grin. It was her father who had come to her aid, giving her a small nod of acknowledgment before thrusting his staff into the ground. As its magical energy channeled, the King was propelled back upward like a rocket shooting into the sky.

Thanks, Father, Krystal voiced with her mind. Knowing that her father would pick up her gratitude, the vixen stopped to observe the battlefield and decide if any of her allies needed aid. The small Cerinian patrol fought impressively, making ten warriors feel more like one hundred as they battled with all they had. Even still, the Venomian invaders were beginning to close in around them, flanking on all sides and forming a ring in an attempt to crush them in one blow.

Savannah! With a jolt, Krystal sensed her friend's distress; the feline found herself at close range with her attackers, unable to gain distance as she desperately fired each arrow from her bow. Hang on, I'm coming! Ignoring many of the Venomians along her path, the vixen leaped over the falling body of a lizard and hit the ground running. Just before an ape could strike Savannah, Krystal launched herself off a nearby rock and threw her body backward in a backflip kick, knocking her enemy to the ground and landing neatly on all fours.

"Wow, thanks," Savannah was nearly speechless. Before Krystal could respond, the tabby feline drew another arrow from her quiver and fired. The projectile soared rapidly past Krystal, meeting it mark as it clipped a lizard and knocked him on his back.

"I guess that makes us even," the vixen stared down at her attacker in surprise. Several laser rounds flashed by in rapid succession and Krystal drew her laser sword, parrying each shot closely before they could hit their target. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of her father again, combatting many enemies at once.

The king's combat skills caught his daughter off guard, even after training with him for her whole life. She had never seen him fight in real combat before, calculating each maneuver with his weapon and body carefully and precisely. It felt as though he was battling his enemies in slow motion, needing no time at all to predict each warrior's moves before every swift counter. Just when Krystal thought a lizard had him from behind, her father's staff began to glow, emitting an icy blue beam from its tip. As the Venomian felt its biting chill, his body was frozen on the spot and encased in a block of ice. The king then smashed the icy slab with a single pound of his open palm, forcefully shattering it into dozens frozen projectiles.

Krystal shook her head back and forth in an effort to retrieve her focus from her father and return it to the rest of the battle. Her father could take care of himself; her focus needed to be on helping her friends and allies. Suddenly a sharp mental trace formed itself behind Krystal as an enemy soldier aimed to strike while she appeared to be caught off guard. Little did the Venomian know that his foe was far from it.

Deactivating her laser sword, Krystal pressed the button on its hilt before throwing her elbow backward into the face of the ape. Bewildered at the vixen's speed and reaction, the Venomian soldier threw a punch for her head. Reading this move telepathically before it was made, Krystal shifted her weight sideways and dodged the attack, leaning into her enemy and reactivating her weapon. The yellow blade of energy pierced through the ape's chest as it emerged from its hilt, causing him to shriek in astonishment as blood sprayed from the wound.

Krystal narrowed her eyes and glared into the stunned expression of her attacker as his body collapsed to the ground. As the soldier's lifeless body lay in the thin grass, she almost began to feel remorse for what she had done in taking the life of another so effortlessly. These invaders have come to our home planet bringing this war and destruction with them¸ she reminded herself. Show them no mercy; you shall also receive none, her father's words echoed in her mind. This was war; there was no room here for hesitation nor doubt.

A slicing pain ran through Krystal's mind, quickly distinguishing it as someone else's rather than her own. She was alone with her thoughts, still staring over the warrior she had just slain in her own self-defense when she detected that one of her allies had been wounded. Searching the thoughts of her comrades with her mind, the vixen froze when she stopped on the thoughts of Atticus. Wherever he was, he was in trouble!

Without a moment to spare, Krystal raced from her position near the middle of the battleground, urgently searching for Atticus as she followed his thought patterns. He must have been near the outskirts of the fight, judging from the location of his thoughts, but when Krystal focused harder she realized there was another presence along with his. This second mental trace was unlike any the vixen had ever felt before, shrouded in darkness and hatred to the point that she could hardly detect any individual thoughts at all. It was nothing like any of the minds of the Cerinians she had touched with her telepathic powers.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" The words of Atticus found their way into Krystal's ears as she neared him, gasping in shock at the scene before her.

The feline Cerinian warrior stood lowered on one knee, hunched over gasping for breath as blood clung to his body armor. One hand grasped his chest while the other stretched toward the ground, planted firmly in the grass to hold the rest of his weak frame from collapsing. As Krystal shifted her angle on him, she could make out a gaping hole carved through to his back, surely burned through by the blade of an energy sword. Blood spattered from his lips as he coughed out his next words.

"Why have you brought this war and ruin to Cerinia? What do you possibly hope to achieve through all this bloodshed?"

Krystal followed her injured friend's gaze upward to his foe, a dark-furred fox wearing a black flight-suit equipped with additional armored plating. The soldier was covered in firearms from his durable metallic boots to the helmet and visor shielding his eyes; some strapped to a belt on his waist while others were kept in pockets lining his pants and outer jacket. Of all the Venomian warriors Krystal had seen, this one appeared to be of a higher rank, something of a general she would have guessed. A younger general at that, seeming to be only five or so years beyond Atticus himself.

"Your planet holds something we desire," the fox simply replied, speaking each word with a malicious edge to it. He spread his arms in admiration, clearly taking great pleasure in the battle waging around him. "Our coming to this planet, this war... every inch of progress we make brings us one step closer to our final goal." Krystal caught a glimpse at the weapon in his hands, a red-bladed energy sword similar to the one she carried.

"Stop this!" Krystal finally forced her way in between the fox and the feline, unable to listen anymore. "I won't let you hurt my friend!" Raising her energy sword, she challenged her enemy to make another move. This must be the one who injured Atticus, and the one whose thought patterns I sensed before... Krystal reflected. He must be strong if he could defeat Atticus, especially without a scratch on him. Looking her foe up and down, the fox appeared to be essentially unharmed.

The Venomian general tilted his head as his mouth formed a deceitful grin. "Well, what do we have here?" Lowering his weapon, he gave little time for a response. "Step aside, little girl, so I can finish this one off. I promise I won't prolong his suffering; I'll get to you next."

"You never answered his first question," Krystal retaliated, hoping to stall for time. Come on, Sera, where are you? "Who are you? What does Venom want with us?"

The fox tilted his head back with a laugh. "You know what? Normally I don't take time to answer my prey, but I think this time I'll humor you a bit."

Without warning, a sudden gust of wind swept over Krystal and she found herself staring face to face with the other fox. He reacts so quickly, just as I can start to detect his thoughts he has already begun to act on them! Krystal's heart began to throb in her chest and she started to panic as she faced this fearsome foe, eye to eye. Father, help me!

"My name," the dark fox growled with a snarl, "is Revan."