Chapter 8: Keys to the Past

With 4 of the Estrella Diamond's pieces found, one by the villains, and 3 by our heroes, Aero and Sakura were feeling good about themselves. Though they blamed Yuesbi's clumsiness for losing a piece of the diamond to the villains, they figured they could try to get it back.

Upon going to ACIPD, the chief told them that they had found a suspicious signal that looked like an Estrella Diamond signal. He told Aero and Sakura to investigate.

"So, do you feel confident about this Aero?" Sakura asked.
"I think so." Aero replied.

Aero(thinking): I'm not sure if I should tell her, but something about that signal doesn't feel right to me.

They were just about to take off when Yuesbi arrived.

"Can I come with you?" he pleaded.

"No, you messed up so badly last time you came that the villains took that diamond shard." Aero said.

"Aww," Yuesbi said.

Aero and Sakura then lifted off and flew down towards Velbus.

Yuesbi, watching them as they left, said "I really want to do some good for once. I also implanted a tracker in my goggles that lets me track them." Suddenly he got an idea. "I know, I'll stay in Atmo City to see if something happens, and if something bad happens, I can use my new tracker to find them and tell them about it."

Aero and Sakura were about to reach their destination.

"We're almost there" Sakura said.

"I don't know, something about this signal doesn't feel right to me." Aero said.

"Why doesn't it?"

Suddenly, four goons came flying up out of the trees to meet our heroes.

"It's an ambush. Vaxtus' minions must have designed an energy signature similar to the Estrella Diamond's to lure us here." Aero figured out.

"You are correct" one of the goons said. "Now prepare for your destruction."

"Quick, fly away!" Aero told Sakura.

The two of them flew away dodging explosion after explosion, but got separated due to the panic and confusion. Flying as fast as he could, Aero dodged his attackers and eventually made it to the trees.

"Yes I made it, Sakura." He looked around. "sakura?"

Just then, an explosion came from over him. He saw a small dot of pink fall from the explosion and knew what it was immediately.

"SAKURA!"

Flying back up, he managed to catch her and carefully carried her down to the forest floor.

"Sakura, are you all right?"
"I'm afraid not. That blast damaged my right leg engine though no other components got fried. I think it's just the engine."
"Don't worry. I've detected a lab about 1000 feet from here. I'll go there and see if there's a replacement part for your engine."
"Ok..."

Aero left Sakura and ventured in the direction of the laboratory. Before he arrived, he noticed a small crater in the ground. Upon further inspection, he noticed a metal object in the crater. Pulling it out, it was a piece of metal wing that was red and yellow in color and triangular-shaped. It was severed and charred. "could this have been part of a Jetroid?" he wondered. He decided to take the charred wing with him.

Continuing towards the laboratory, he started to have deja vu. "This lab, so familiar, but why?"