Video Game Journeys: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy

by CrashGuy41

Twilight and the Mad Scientist

Twilight landed with a loud thud in what appeared to be a dark, cold castle. Everywhere she looked, however, she could see various pieces of scientific equipment. Twilight slowly got up and looked around in amazement.

"Wow. This place is loaded to the brim with so much science I think I'm going to burst!" she squealed.

She was so entranced by all of the equipment that she failed to notice a wire directly in front of her, causing her to trip and fall flat on her face. Lifting up her head, she noticed a peculiar black rectangular object on a table. She walked over to the table and picked up the object. On the front there was a label with a large letter N on it. Twilight then noticed that there was some writing on the bottom of the object. On the bottom there was a yellow label with some writing in black marker that read Cortex Vortex Pre-Check 09-09-1996. She immediately realized that she was looking at a relic of the past: a VHS tape. She glanced around the area until she saw an old 90's television set with a VCR built into it. She walked over to the TV and turned it on, then put the videotape into the slot. The video on the screen then came to life with the audio and visual playback.

"Experiment Log: Bandicoot Subject Final Trial," a voice from the videotape said.

The voice sounded like it was coming from the speakers in the video. Twilight noticed that a metallic crane had dropped an orange male Eastern-barred bandicoot wearing blue shorts and brown shoes in front of some castle doors. She watched with amazement as the bandicoot made his way through the various crates with ease.

"I got you a little graduation present, Subject. A name: Crashworth Cortex I! Um, Crash, for short," the voice on the tape continued.

Twilight rolled her eyes and shook her head while smiling. The name made sense. The bandicoot was clearly crashing through various wooden crates.

"Just think what this kind of science could do for the good of mankind," Twilight beamed.

As the tape was nearing the end of its runtime, the bandicoot on the recording celebrated his victory through the test.

"Excellent work, Crash! It's time for you promotion!" the voice on the tape said before the video ended.

As Twilight ejected the tape, she heard some voices coming from one of the nearby monitors. She went over to the green monitor with a control panel and saw two men, presumably scientists, with the bandicoot from the tape strapped to an operating table under a ray known as the Evolvo-Ray.

---

One of the men was a short, yellow-skinned scientist with a large head. On his head was a large metallic capital N above his face. He had black frazzled hair on the back of his head, that showed up from the sides, a thick strand on top and a goatee. He was wearing a white lab coat with clothing underneath, yellow leather gloves and black leather boots. The man next to him was about a head shorter than Twilight, but still taller than the other man. The had a bald beaker-shaped head with two bolts embedded in his temples. He wore a green lab coat with blueish-green clothing underneath and blueish-green lab shoes.

"But, Dr. Cortex, we haven't determined the cause of past failures!" the tall man laughed nervously.

"N. Brio, you moron! This bandicoot will be my general. And he will lead my Cortex Commandos to world domination!" Dr. Cortex chastised. "This time I shall reign triumphant!"

Twilight gasped in horror. The voice she heard on the tape was the short scientist known as Dr. Cortex. The bandicoot, known as Crash, received one final blast from the Evolvo-Ray before he was transferred to another machine. This machine was the one that Twilight presumed was the Cortex Vortex. A brainwashing machine. Various other mutated animals, such as a tiger, a deranged kangaroo, a tough koala, and a mean-looking potoroo looked on from their cages in the lab as Crash was prepped to to be raised into the spherical-like contraption known as the Cortex Vortex. Just then, Twilight thought she heard a noise nearby. She quickly turned her head, but much to her surprise, there was nothing there.

"That's odd," she said to herself.

"We are closer than ever before! Quickly, into the vortex!" Dr. Cortex demanded as he pressed some of the buttons on his control panel.

He then threw the switch that turned the Cortex Vortex on.

"Nonononononono! If that thing goes in there being that smart, the world will be doomed!"

Just then, something caught Twilight's eye. It was a purplish-pink lightbulb attached to a machine with an X-shaped button. She assumed that it was the eject button.

"I hope I don't regret this," she gulped.

She hit the eject button on the machine, causing the lightbulb to pop out. After quickly catching it, she smashed it on to the floor.

"But, Dr. Cortex, the Vortex is not ready! We have no idea what it could do!" N. Brio laughed as he raised Crash into the machine with a lever.

As soon as he did, the machine malfunctioned thanks to Twilight's intervening. The brainwashing experiment was a failure. Twilight was relieved that the bandicoot ended up being incompatible thanks to the lightbulb being out.

"Failure again!" Cortex groaned.

This wasn't the first time one of his mutated animals wasn't compatible with the Cortex Vortex. The animals watching from their cages were also put through the Vortex and were considered failures, as well. Crash, despite now being dumb, had enough smarts to try to escape his creator's clutches.

"CAPTURE HIM!" Cortex bellowed.

Crash ran towards a window and broke right out of the glass. Realizing that he was so high up, he gulped.

"Uh-oh," Crash whimpered as he fell.

"Um, sir, there is a disturbance in the halls," N. Brio said.

He brought up an image of Twilight, who realized that she had just been discovered. She started to run off, but was soon captured by two lab assistants.

"Bring the girl to me," Cortex said sinisterly.

N. Brio went over to Twilight's location and saw that she was struggling to get free.

"My master has plans for you, my little purple one," N. Brio chuckled.

He ran his hand across her face sinisterly. What he had planned, she didn't know. All she knew was that it was going to be bad. The lab assistants, two tall men with brown hair and round glasses, both wearing white lab coats and black shoes, brought Twilight to Cortex's lab, where he was waiting anxiously for her.

---

"Hello, my dear. I am Dr. Neo Cortex, but you may call me, master," Cortex said.

Twilight spat in his face out of disgust.

"You kids today have no respect for your elders."

"I have absolutely no respect for what you're doing to these poor animals! If my friend, Fluttershy, saw what you were doing, she'd be very, very, VERY UPSET!" Twilight hissed.

"Like I care. I have only one goal in mind. World domination. And you, my dear, are going to help me achieve that goal, whether you like it or not."

He pulled out a red laser gun and shot it at his lab assistants, causing them to short circuit. Twilight realized that the lab assistants were only robots and not much of a threat. Cortex, however, proved to be a much more dangerous foe than she had realized.

"Oh, don't even think about using that little geode on your shirt, there."

"How did you?"

"My scanners indicated that you had some kind of power when they discovered about your presence in my castle. Now do you see what your up against? Oh, and don't bother trying to escape. I've got this whole area wired with security cameras, so don't think I won't see you at all times."

Twilight gulped. There was no way out of helping this guy. She had to do what he said, or else he might vaporize her, or worse.

"Now then, if you're going to be my new assistant, you might as well tell me your name."

"Twilight Sparkle."

"Odd name, but no matter. Your first job will be..."

Suddenly, Twilight saw a female bandicoot, named Tawna, punch a lab assistant to the ground from the shadows. She was a tall, beautiful-looking bandicoot with blonde hair and purplish-pink eyeshadow. She wore a similarly colored tank top with blue jean-shorts, a brown belt, white socks, and red shoes.

"Ah, perfect. Your first assignment as my new assistant will to be to help me prepare the female bandicoot, Tawna."

He snapped his fingers and the lab assistants closed in on Tawna, leaving her trapped. Tawna glanced at Twilight with a nervous look. Twilight gulped again. What had she just gotten herself into and how would she ever get back to Canterlot City with her friends? Would she ever find them? Would Tawna end being brainwashed? She had so many questions that were about to be answered.