Eclipse stirred and opened his eyes slowly. He blinked a few times, and rolled out of bed, doing his best not to disturb Auria, who seemed to still be sleeping. He padded over to the door, when he heard a voice behind him.
“Where are you going?”
He blushed a little.
“Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up...”
“I was already awake, so don't worry about it.”
Auria stood up and leaped off the bed. She nuzzled him gently before pushing the door open and proceeding out into the hallway. Eclipse followed her. He stopped for a minute to stare at the view outside the large windows that lined the hallway. The blackness of space, dotted with a  million tiny points of starlight, stretched as far as he could see. He didn't know if he'd ever get used to seeing so many stars during the daytime...it had been almost a year now, and he was still amazed every time he happened to glance out of a window. He turned and followed Auria, who was now several yards ahead of him. They proceeded to the dining hall for breakfast. Eclipse saw that all kinds of things had been left out, probably for them, since Wavelength knew about what time everyone ate their different meals. Eclipse looked around, but he couldn't find Wavelength anywhere, which was odd; usually he was around somewhere to greet them... He decided not to think about it any further, and enjoyed his breakfast, which consisted of several different kinds of fruit, most of which he still couldn't remember the names of. Feeling happy and full, he left Auria to finish her breakfast and went to see Star. He didn't stop to look out any of the windows now, instead running around the circular hallway to the other side of the station. He approached a large, imposing door, which opened upon sensing his presence. Star looked up when he heard the door open.
“Oh, hi Eclipse.”
“Any news?”
“Not yet...”
“Aww, cheer up, you'll find something!”
“Sorry, I'm fine.”
Star smiled to show he was telling the truth.
“It's just that, with no news for so long, I'm afraid he's working on something...big.”
The door opened again as Auria joined them.
“Any news yet?” she asked.
“No...” Eclipse answered for Star.
Auria sighed.
“This waiting for something to happen has everyone on edge,” she observed.
Eclipse lost himself in thought again as Auria and Star started a conversation about something. His ears shot straight up as he realized something he had almost forgotten.
“Auria!”
She turned to look at him, a little puzzled by his sudden outburst.
“I can't believe I almost forgot! I'm so sorry!”
She blinked a couple of times, having no idea what he was talking about.
“You forgot, too, didn't you?” he asked, laughing a little.
“Forgot what?”
“Two years ago, today...don't you remember?”
Realization sparked in her eyes.
“I didn't even realize...the day I finally told you...”
He hugged her as tightly as he could, and she hugged back.
“The day you told me you loved me,” he finished for her, smiling.
Star grinned, watching the two of them until a noise behind him made him turn back around. He hit a few keys on his terminal, and brought several charts and maps on-screen. He stared at them for a moment, and then he saw it again: one of the graphs showed a brief spike accompanied by a small blip. He hit a few more keys, bringing the graph to full-screen view. He scrolled back a bit and examined the spike. It didn't seem like much, but he knew an energy spike like that wasn't normal, and anything out of the ordinary could possibly be a threat from the Dark Wizard. Star knew the Dark Wizard must have some kind of plan, possibly one which was close to succeeding, for he had been much more bold in recent years than ever before, even going so far as to attack the main Star Team headquarters. The entire base had been destroyed, but it hadn't taken long for Wavelength and him to finish building the new one: the Interplanetary Defense Installation, an orbital satellite on which they were all currently residing.
A small crackling sound signaled the arrival of one of the newest members of the Star Team.
“Hi, Eclipse!”
Eclipse's ears drooped at the high-pitched voice.
“Hi, ShineSpark...” he replied, a little coldly.
She took no notice, however, and Auria giggled at Eclipse's expression. She knew ShineSpark annoyed him, but she thought it was funny more than anything. ShineSpark, the Raydeon, had joined them recently after being discovered, abandoned, by Eclipse in a run-down factory of some kind. He had saved her life, and brought her back, and she had been doing her best to never let him have another peaceful moment since. Annoying though she could be, she was a very useful new addition: she was made entirely of energy. Lacking a physical form, she was impervious to all forms of physical attacks, and she could absorb energy attacks at will, even dark energy. In fact, she needed to absorb energy to live, she didn't eat regular food at all. She had proved a very effective weapon against Dark Matter, which was composed entirely of dark energy, making her a very valued member of the team. Eclipse still couldn't stand her high-pitched voice, though. But although he did find her annoying at times, he never wished he hadn't saved her, she really did have good intentions, she just didn't know when to leave someone alone. At least, that was Eclipse's view of her.
Eclipse finally noticed what Star was doing.
“Did you find something?” he asked, hopeful.
“Maybe...I can't be sure yet, but I'm looking...”
Suddenly a massive energy spike registered on the graph, and then flatlined. Star just stared at the graph for a moment before hitting a few keys.
“Wow...” was all he said.
Eclipse knew that probably wasn't a good sign.
“What happened?” he asked.
“Some kind of energy surge...it knocked out the sensors, I'll have to get Wavelength to fix them...”
“Wow,” Eclipse agreed.
“I wonder...” Star added after a moment.
“What?”
“Could it be...?”
“What?”
“Maybe...”
“What?” Eclipse asked for the third time.
“I don't know, maybe not...”
“For the last time, what?”
“Oh, sorry... I was just thinking that this must be related to the Dark Wizard, that's all.”
Eclipse doubted that very much, but he figured Star would tell him when he was more sure he was right. It must be bad for him to avoid saying it like that, though. The door opened again, and Wavelength padded into the room. He stopped, looking around at everyone.
“Did I miss something?” he asked, wondering why so many people had gathered in the control room.
“We might have discovered something of the Dark Wizard's plans,” Star replied.
“Wow, really? Finally! What did you find?”
“Well, right now all we know is that there's a massive spike in this area,” Star replied, indicating a section of map he had brought on-screen. “It knocked out the sensors, so we don't know any more at the moment.”
“Knocked out the...wow...” was all Wavelength could say. “I don't know of anything that could put out energy like that!”
“I do,” Star said darkly.
“What?”
Star hesitated a second, before pointing at Eclipse. Eclipse looked up at Star, a little confused.
“What, me?”
Star shook his head.
“Oh! The Crystal!” Wavelength exclaimed.
“Right...” Star answered. “If the Dark Wizard found even one of the other shards, we're in trouble...that's a massive power source, and apparently he knows how to exploit it.”
“That's not good...” Eclipse agreed.
“What's not good?” Kitsune asked, striding into the room. “News?”
Star sighed, and explained about the mysterious energy spike again, and about their theory about what was behind it.
“That sounds about right,” he replied. “Do you think maybe he's looking for them? Something that powerful would surely help him a lot...”
“I hope not, if he finds the other shards, we're in a lot of trouble...” Star said again.
“So...why don't we do something about it?” Kitsune asked.
“You're always so willing to rush headlong into trouble...”
“I can't just sit here if he's using something that powerful, he has to be stopped before he uses that power against us!”
“Fine, but we're all going. It'll be safer that way, we don't know what to expect.”
Star stood up.
“Eclipse, we might need you...are you coming?”
Eclipse thought for a moment.
“Of course I am!” he replied.
He turned to Auria.
“Stay here and be safe, okay? I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you...”
“Okay...but, you'd better come back to me safely, I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you, either...”
He hugged her tightly as Star turned to ShineSpark.
“Are you coming?”
“Eclipse is going, of course I am!” she exclaimed, jumping up and down a little.
“Wavelength, I need you to stay here and fix the sensors...then you can tell us if you find anything important, we'll be in communication.”
“Okay, I'll get started right away!”
He jumped up and ran out the door.
“Hmm...Lyyro is off somewhere, so I guess that's everyone. Auria, I'm sure you'll be safe here, with Wavelength and your siblings.”
She nodded, and then spoke up,
“Just...please protect Eclipse...”
“Of course,” Star replied, smiling. “With my life, I promise.”
Auria nodded again, hugging Eclipse one last time before they began preparing to leave.

Star, Kitsune, Eclipse, and ShineSpark met at the control room again an hour later.
“Everyone ready?” Star asked. “Wavelength has almost finished fixing the sensors, and then he'll be in direct communication with Kitsune and me.”
“I'm ready,” Eclipse replied.
“Me too!” ShineSpark exclaimed loudly, making Eclipse flinch slightly.
“I was ready an hour ago,” Kitsune said, grinning evilly.
Star turned and held up his paw.
“Synchronize...” he whispered.
The terminal screen flashed and brought up the map he had been studying earlier. It zoomed in on the location where the energy spike had originated from, and displayed a bunch of numbers on the screen.
“Coordinates...set.”
He fired a blast of energy that tore open a portal in space, and he motioned for the others to enter. Kitsune leaped in without a second thought, and Eclipse ran after him. ShineSpark followed him closely, and Star entered last, with the portal closing behind him. Eclipse closed his eyes to combat the nauseating sensation of whirling through space at high speed. They emerged on the other side very near the location the map had been displaying earlier, down on the surface of the planet. Eclipse looked around. It was a fairly mountainous region, and he realized they were at a high elevation. He shivered slightly as a cold breeze blew through his fur. He didn't see anything that seemed out of the ordinary, but he supposed Star knew where he was going. Star looked around as well, and then suddenly set off in a seemingly random direction. The others followed behind him, unsure of where they were going, but trusting Star to have some destination in mind. After all, he was the most practical one of the group.
“Um...where are we going?” ShineSpark asked after a while of walking in silence.
“I'm not sure exactly...” Star replied. “But the source of the energy readings are just ahead, we need to be careful.”
The view ahead of them was blocked by a large, rocky hill which they were currently climbing. Twice Eclipse almost lost his footing, but he managed to dig his claws into the soft ground and stop himself from sliding back down. He carefully picked his way up the slope, apparently the only one having difficulties. Star and Kitsune simply bounded from rock to rock, and ShineSpark defied all logic and walked straight up the slope. Eclipse sighed, placing his paw on another rock. It gave way and he slipped again, sliding back down the hill and hitting his paw hard on a sharp rock. He cried out in pain, and he lost the grip he had on the ground. He closed his eyes and braced himself for the fall, but he suddenly stopped moving. He looked up to see Star standing above him with his paw outstretched. He felt himself levitate back up onto safe ground, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
“We can't have you getting hurt now,” Star said, smiling. “After all, I promised Auria I'd bring you back safely.”
Eclipse nodded and smiled back, glad that Star had been there to help him. He took another step, accidentally using his injured paw. He cried out again and fell over. Star knelt down and put his paw over Eclipse's. Their paws glowed gently for a moment, and when Star took his away, Eclipse's paw was completely healed.
“Thanks...” he said, smiling a little.
“Don't mention it,” Star replied, standing again.
Star resumed his ascent, and Eclipse stood up slowly. He tested his paw to make sure it didn't hurt anymore, and then began climbing again as well. Eclipse sighed. He felt like he was slowing everyone down...without him or ShineSpark, Star and Kitsune could have just flown, but instead they patiently took the slow method. Well, Star was patient anyway; Kitsune was already waiting at the top of the hill. He looked out from his high vantage point and called,
“I still don't see anything...”
Star joined him at the top and looked around also. ShineSpark finished her gravity-defying upwards walk, and looked back at Eclipse.
“Come on, you're so slow!” she called back, jokingly.
Eclipse's ears drooped a little, and he stopped for a moment.
“I was just kidding, I didn't mean it...” ShineSpark added after, sorry she had said anything.
“I know...” Eclipse replied. “But you're right, I am slow...”
“Aww, come on, we can't all have awesome climbing powers!”
“I wish I did, I can't even climb a tree...”
“Come on, you're not going to get anywhere thinking like that!”
Eclipse sighed, conceding that she was indeed correct in that, at least. He pushed himself to climb up over the last rock, and collapsed on the ground at the top, panting. He got up and looked out ahead, stepping back a little at what he saw. A few feet in front of them, the ground abruptly fell away to reveal a sheer cliff face. There didn't appear to be any way down safely.
“Hmm...how to get down there...” Star muttered to himself.
“We could fly, I guess,” Kitsune suggested.
“They can't,” Star pointed out, indicating Eclipse and ShineSpark.
“Right...”
“I guess we'll just have to walk all the way around...” Star said after a moment, sighing.
He set off again, and the others followed behind him. Eclipse edged away from the vertical drop on his left. Not only did the ground fall away at nearly a ninety-degree angle, but jagged rocks protruded from the cliff face in various places. Eclipse gulped and kept walking, doing his best to ignore his fear of heights. He felt a little light-headed all of a sudden, and he slowed down a little. He fell behind the others, and eventually stopped walking at all. ShineSpark noticed he had fallen behind and turned around.
“Eclipse? Are you okay?”
“I'm...fine...”
He started walking again slowly, and ShineSpark walked next to him.
“I'm fine...really...”
He stumbled and put his paw forward to catch himself. Suddenly, the ground gave way under his paws, and he felt himself sliding. He looked up and saw ShineSpark staring back in horror as he slid off the side and out into empty space.
“Star!! Kitsune!!” she cried, running to get help.

Eclipse opened his eyes slowly. He tried to move, but this awakened his nerves, sending burning pain coursing through his whole body. He cried out, and lay still. He felt like he must have broken every bone in his body, but he was lucky he hadn't impaled himself on any of those rocks... Still, blood pooled around him on the ground, and he knew he was hurt very badly. He was glad his nerves still weren't responding right, or he'd be in ten times as much pain. He closed his eyes and tried to concentrate.
“Mega...Recover...” he breathed hoarsely.
Glowing light surrounded him and he felt his injuries heal themselves. His bones rearranged themselves and knitted back together, and his gashes closed themselves. He lay still for a moment, panting from the effort. He stood up shakily, unsure if he could hold his own weight yet, but his legs didn't give out. He looked around, and saw that he had landed in front of some sort of cave. He stared at it for a moment. It was almost as if it was beckoning him inside; he felt some compulsive force drawing him into it. He limped slowly into the cave, leaving bloody pawprints behind him. He was still covered in his own blood, but he slowly grew more confident as his newly-mended bones and muscles began to work properly again. He proceeded into the cave, and stopped before a flat rock wall. Somehow he knew that this wall was not the end of the cave, but he couldn't explain where this knowledge came from. He reached out with his paw and placed it on the wall, which glowed slightly in response. It slid away into the side of the tunnel, revealing a passageway behind it. This passageway was cut from the solid rock, but done in such a way that it was almost as smooth as marble. Eclipse marveled at the craftsmanship before he continued down the passageway. The rock wall slowly slid back into place behind him, a bloody smear on its surface the only indication that Eclipse had passed that way. He continued on until he reached a massive chamber, made all from marble. He looked around, and saw a familiar design etched into the floor and inlaid with precious stones. Seven colored crystal shards formed a circle in the middle of the floor, representing the seven shards of the Crystal. Eclipse wondered what kind of place he had found hidden here, and if it was perhaps the source of the energy spike they had witnessed earlier. Whether it was or not, it was clearly an important place to be crafted in such a way. It finally occurred to Eclipse that he didn't even know who had built it, or why, except that it must have something to do with the Crystal. He felt his two shards pulse within him, matching some unheard rhythm of the place that Eclipse couldn't begin to understand. He continued across the marble floor and into another passageway. He knew that whatever he would find here would be important, although he couldn't have any idea how right he was...