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[img]https://i.postimg.cc/L5r26P82/Star-Fox-Final.png[/img]

[color=5edaf6]Level:[/color] 4 (29 -> 30/40)
[color=5edaf6]Location:[/color] Eryth Sea - Smash City Alcamoth -> Sandswept Sky - Desert Landing
[color=5edaf6]Word Count:[/color] 730 (+1 EXP)
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Even for those among Yellow Team who couldn’t fly (which made most of them), the adjacency of the Eryth Sea to their destination made for a painless, largely quiet trip there. It wasn’t as convenient as, say, [i]teleporting[/i], as the other teams had done, but not everyone had the luxury of being so close to their target region’s border that they could simply cross over it on foot. Fox kept a pace or two ahead of the grounded share of the squad--those that were officially part of it anyway. The masked teens and their cat moved and worked at their own pace, seemingly uninterested in uniting their efforts with the collective beyond what was incidental to the conditions of their travel.

The downhill trail through the tight mountain pass bled into the hot, sparkling dunes under blistering, sedimentary air exacerbated by the sun made somehow brighter with the transition--all previously obscured by the range of peaks leading there. It was enough to prompt Fox to mask himself with his collar bandana for the first time in… well, perhaps ever. His eyepiece--not terribly useful under the current conditions--picked up just as much detail as his squinted eyes hand-shielded from whistling dust winds, which was of course very little, but enough to faintly discern a great silhouette snaking around the distant summit. The question (one of several anyway) was whether or not they would actually be able to cross the vast desert on their own power to make it there, or be in fighting shape by then should they manage. For lack of a better way, Fox was just about to hazard it until the youth gang’s feline transmuted itself into a passenger friendly vehicle and, at Tora’s plea, graciously allowed the grounded number of them aboard with a friendly disclaimer of possible discomfort.

Fox, for one, was quietly grateful for being lent a ride, none too bothered by the occupancy shortage or lack of cooling. In line with the others, he slipped off his flight jacket to expose his bare, now sleeveless fur to what cool air there was to take in while they were sheltered, and would make a point to don it again after stepping out into the buffeting sands. In the meantime, while everyone else was getting familiar, Fox zoned out into the HUD of his headset trying to find any viable line of communication he could between him and any of his comrades. Alas, all that showed up was a shortwave, one-way radio receiver on the Courier. Still, mixed results were better than none. At least Fox could potentially talk to [i]him[/i], if not vice versa.

After a minute the car came to a stop, bringing Fox’s attention back to his surroundings. He stepped out of the van and donned his bandana and jacket once more, and he began to survey his surroundings while Morgana rested. It seemed they could use an adjustment to their heading, seeing as they had made no visible progress. The teenage gang and a couple of others deliberated on which direction to take. Toward the mountain following the sun lay their apparent destination, but the gang seemed to have other plans first. Peering into the distance where the sandstorm worsened they could see a great mechanical ungulate slowly treading a circle in the sands, and while it showed no immediate signs of aggression or hostility, one look at it made it difficult to believe that it wasn’t potentially dangerous.

[color=5edaf6]“Wherever we go from here,”[/color] Fox began aloud to no one in particular/anyone who was listening, [color=5edaf6]“my guess is we’ll have to get past [i]that[/i] to get there,”[/color] he said alluding to the giant clockwork camel. As well as that, the roiling movement beneath the sands some short ways off didn’t escape him either. [color=5edaf6]“And maybe more…”[/color] he uttered more softly this time. Already he was running through a headful of scenarios for the most likely inevitable series of engagements they were in for. As no one had yet approached the lone woman posted up at the totem-lined path, Fox decided to be the first, hoping she might have (and offer) some insights. [color=5edaf6]“Anything you can tell us about this place? What we can expect to run into?”[/color] In his inquiry, Fox opted to dispense with the introductions and salutations, taking the woman from her bearing to not be much for them.