Crash Bandicoot Reinvisioned (working title)

Part Two

Author's Notes: This idea's been kicking for a while now. Anyway, last Halloween, I started playing Crash Bandicoot again. I'm not any good at it, so I only got up to the first bridge level: road to Nowhere. Anyway, I began learning how to play Cortex's theme on guitar, which inspired me enough to write something. I wrote fear of falling, which wasn't so much of a great story, really. This Halloween, no known connection, I began playing Cortex Strikes Back. I've never finished before, but got up to the fourth warp room. (3 crystals, 2 gems.)

Anyway, now I'll be writing a full fanfic of the entire series. Part one will be before the games, but I need to find out where I can research Cortex's backstory before I do that. Part two will be the original trilogy. Part 3 will be CTR, 4 will be Cortex strikes back and Twinsanity, and 5 will be the mutant series, with changes. I think the plots are okay, not so sure about the new character models and the whole jacking off mutants thing. I mean, Brio, Nina and Coco can stay as they are now, but Crash, Cortex, Crunch, Aku Aku and Uka Uka need to go back to their Twinsanity models, and everyone else needs to go back to their Nitro Kart models. That's my opinion, anyway. I'd also suggest that Pinstripe go back to his original look.

Now, Reference Advertising time. Any metal fans out there? If so, search for Tolkuton's Crash Bandicoot remixes. In particular, the Dr Neo Cortex Ultimate Epic Metal Remix. It's on Youtube, and there's a download link on soundcloud.

Also, if you haven't checked them out yet, take a look at Austin Miller's stories, which make up another retelling of the first Crash Game. Actually, some of his ideas have inspired my story, so if you like mine, go and read those. There are three so far, and together they make up a short prequel to the first game.

Disclaimer: Crash Bandicoot and all related names, places, settings, plots and characters belong to… Activision? (I think)
Elements of the plot were inspired by Austin Miller's Crash Bandicoot fanfics
The rest belongs to me.

Summery: Rewrite, After the disastrous results of the Cortex Commandos project, Cortex and Brio find three remote islands off the coast of Australia on which they can hide out, but with their egos on the line and a shadowy investor reeling from their recent failure, their next plan for world domination won't be far behind. Major Characters: Crash, Cortex, Tawna, Pinstripe, Brio, Aku Aku OC Pairings: Crash/Tawna/Pinstripe Warnings: medium language, medium (gangster) violence

Dr Nitrus Brio walked down the intimidating stone halls of what had been christened Cortex Keep. The tall man kept his eyes on the dark, single door at the end of the hallway. The overhead lights they had installed throughout the castle shone down on the pale skin of Brio's bald, dome shaped head, illuminating the bolts at his temples.

Cortex Island: Their first official headquarters; and now, the only refuge they had left. The once massive legion of scientific researchers; now little more than a handful of lab assistants. So much time and money had been spent building their nuclear reactor and legitimising themselves as a power company. It almost seemed a waste now. The reactor still worked; electricity was still being generated and sold to the mainland via underground cables, but it meant little to the two remaining Commandos. Cortex Power had been taken from them. The traitorous board of executives had ejected them from ownership of their own company; a company that once only existed as a cover for their true operations.

After all the strife and effort of starting the company, of building the reactor, of securing the relevant contracts, it had all been taken from under them.

Still, it could have been worse, the scientist reasoned. At least they were still employees. At least they were kept on to manage the plant, at least they had employees beneath them to command and control, and most fortuitous of all: The plant provided all the free power they could use, and with the old lab fully operational; use it they would.

The wooden door opened with a loud creak, and Brio stepped inside. Though the curtains were drawn over the windows, the sun shone brightly outside. As Brio glanced around, he saw the horrendous state the room was in.

"D-Doctor C-C-Cortex?" Brio stammered. Was he in here? It wasn't that Brio was worried exactly, but he hadn't seen head nor tail of his fellow scientist for three days now. When answered with little more than a groan, Brio pressed forward. "D-Doctor? The nuclear reactor is running at full capacity."

"That's nice," Cortex replied. Brio spotted him. The man was still in bed, at this time of day, and his tone made it clear that he hadn't been listening.

"Neo, are you planning to waste away in this castle until there's nothing left?"

"I don't see why not," Cortex moped. "There's nothing left anyway. I have nothing. Nothing to show for my life. Everything I've done, All I've achieved, all of it, gone."

"You need to get up and …unboard those windows!" Brio added, pinching his nostrils. The stench of his fellow doctor's lamentation was making him sick.

"What's the point?" Cortex asked. "We've been here for three years, Brio. Three stinking years!"

"Yes, I know," Brio answered, laughing nervously. "I've been here the entire time."

"Three years!" Cortex ranted, ignoring his sole companion. Doctor Ranged was supposed to have contacted us by now. What's he thinking? He's given us no word, no resources, no orders… he's just taken what we've given him and left us here to rot!"

"I was a little concerned when he announced himself CEO of Cortex Power."

"That was your idea. You let him get away with it," Cortex blamed, pointing a finger squarely into Brio's face.

"Oh," Brio replied, loosing a nervous giggle. That wasn't the way he'd remembered it at all.

"All the offshore power he wants and first crack to buy any evil contraptions we invent. That was more than a fair deal, yet he still managed to screw us over!" The large headed scientist tried to swat a nearby fly from his face.

"I want the old days back," he continued.

Brio had to admit, he missed those days as well.

"For a moment, I was on top."

"We were on top," Brio giggled.

"I was respected!"

"We were–"

"I was feared!"

"We were… forget it."

"I was on top of the world. Global conquest was within my grasp!" Cortex let lose one of his sinister laughs. The kind of laugh that would cause chills to run down one's spine. The kind of laugh that would scrape paint off a wall.

It was the kind of laugh that would take candy from a baby, and remove said baby from its crib. The kind of laugh that would make muscles wilt and turn to blubber, the kind of laugh that would make women feint and grown men cry.

Suddenly, the sound ceased, and the balding man's sinister grin fell to a pout. "Now look at me," he whined. "These scrawny arms couldn't crush the world if it had been shrunk with some sort of… of shrinking ray!"

The large fly continued to buzz incessantly around the scientists, finally coming to perch on the top of Cortex's large head, much to his dismay. He let out a sigh. "This puny body of mine couldn't hurt a fly." His right hand swiftly moved through the air, curving upward, coming to land violently at the crown of his head, coming to slap the fly with lethal force… only for the insect to move at the last second. The winged creature flew away to safety, and Cortex's hand came into contact with his own head, hurting only himself. "See?!" he pointedly exclaimed.

"That's all in the past now," Brio laughed. "It's time to move on."

"Let's face it. As an evil scientist, I'm a failure. I had one chance for world domination, and I blew it." Cortex's eyes flitted over to his fellow scientist, taking in the man's almost indignant expression. "Fine, he sighed dejectedly, as if giving in to Brio's unspoken protest. "We blew it."

Nitrus Brio cackled at the admission for a good solid minute before the humour was lost on him. "Wait, what did you say?"

Cortex stood from his bed, still clothed in the attire he'd last been seen in, minus the gloves, boots, and lab coat. Walking over to a tall full-body mirror, the man examined his appearance. "Oh, how the years have been unkind to me."

His brown eyes were bloodshot; his pale skin carried a yellowish tinge. What remained of his once thick black hair was frayed, frizzled, and wild, as though it had been maimed in some horrible accident. The man raised his arm and sniffed at his armpit, only to recoil at the stench.

"My god I need a shower," he commented. "And a shave." He ran a thoughtful hand through his goatee. "Well, a shower anyway," he concluded, stroking his beard. "We still have indoor plumbing at least. That is still working, isn't it Brio?"

"Yes, D-Doctor C-C-Cortex!" Brio replied.

"And I suppose we have heating? I'm not in the mood for cold showers again."

"Of course D-Doctor," Brio chirped. "Our water heating's been flawless, ever since that horrible, horrible winter a few months back."

"Ah yes, I remember that vividly. I try to warm myself up with a nice hot shower, turn on the water, and get a freezing concussion from the resulting hailstorm of ice cubes. Enough! As fond as these memories are, I have tired of them. Tell the lab assistants to prepare for my arrival, but first, I must use the bathroom! Be ready, I'll be down shortly."

"Of course, D-Doctor," the bald headed scientist replied, retreating from the king-sized bedroom and leaving his companion alone with his thoughts.

Bear with me on this. I might take a while to get into the main swing of the story. I will be making some changes and taking creative licence on this. Cortex's personality will be a fusion of his old sinister one, and his newer blundering, comedic one. Crash will be mostly comedic to counterbalance Aku Aku. Finally, Tawna will be a more active character. I suspect many of you might not like what I do to her, but she will be different, she will return beyond the plot of the first game and stick around at least untilWarped, and she will be more than a mere Princess Peach clone Damsel archetype.