Not even thirty minutes ago, a sweet, reddish bandicoot named Crash was peacefully listening to the rustling of leaves. After an afternoon of playtime, he had gotten worn out, and wanted to take a nap, although he would later regret it. After awaking, Crash just lied there, listening to the whistling of the wind and, of course, the rustling of leaves across the plains of his Australian island home.

The next thing he knew, Crash noticed a duo of short, yet surprisingly intimidating, people that picked him up, shoved him into a box, and tossed into the back of a Jeep. Unable to do anything, Crash just squealed helplessly as the Jeep began to creep forward for a few seconds before speeding along through the desert. With nothing else to do, Crash just bundled up in a corner and fell asleep again.

"Are you sure we are guaranteed success?" the green coated man asked.

"Trust me, Brio," the white coated man replied. "Sometimes, it's the unexpected that works out for the better. You, of all people, should know that."

"Well, sure," Brio replied. "But c'mon, Cortex. Sometimes, I question your judgment. Even for you, this plan is a long shot."

"Bah!" Cortex snarled. "For world domination, nothing is too farfetched. We have been working for far too long to give up now. And, like I said, the unexpected can sometimes benefit the prepared."

"But…"

Cortex snapped. "I will not allow such negligence get between me and control of the world! I will take whatever risks I want to, and if you don't like it, you can just walk away. In fact…" Cortex brought the Jeep to a screeching halt, and pointed to the passenger side door.

"There's the door, Brio. If you don't want onboard, then just walk away. I'll get what I want, and your conscious is clear. It's your choice." Brio thought about this for a moment, for he wanted to have control of the world, but he also didn't want his lifelong goal to be gambled with a long shot of a plan.

"I… don't want to throw it away," Brio finally replied. "I'll stay, no more questions asked."

Cortex smiled, patting Brio's back as he continued to drive the Jeep through the hot, unforgiving desert.

The drive, just like Crash's nap, was mostly peaceful, save for the small roar of the Jeep's engine. Brio and Cortex had not discussed much else to each other except for some small talk concerning their plan.

Crash could hear them speak, but he couldn't understand either of them. Still unable to do anything, Crash looked through the slotted door of his cage. Outside, he saw an astonishing, monolithic castle; the castle was colored dark grey, stood almost 1,000 feet above the ground on a mountainside, and a plume of ash erupted from the nuclear plant stationed behind it. Three large stone towers rose from the castle as well, giving those who observed it a sense of inferiority.

As the Jeep drove up the mountain road, a large figure emerged from the castle; from a distance, it almost looked like a Sasquatch-like being, but as the vehicle neared, this was not the case. Upon closer inspection, the figure looked to be about six feet tall, covered with bluish fur, and had the face of a koala.

"Ah, Koala Kong," Cortex said to the creature. "We brought you some more weights to carry to the cells." He pointed to the three cages in the back. "Knock yourself out." Koala Kong grunted, seemingly as a sign of thanks. He walked to the back of the Jeep as Cortex and Brio entered into the castle. When he looked into Crash's cage, Crash, once again fearing for his life, backed into a corner of the cage.

Grinning, he picked up the three cages and disappeared into the castle. Marching through the hallway, Kong stared into the piercing darkness, while Crash looked around at the gloomy faces that made littered the cells. Finally, Kong halted in front of a cell with the word "bandicoot" printed on the metal nametag located above the door; impatiently, Kong opened Crash's cage, shook him into his cell, and slammed the cell door shut.

Alone in his cell, Crash once again looked at the dark, gloomy faces that peered at him through the dimly lit hall of cells. From koalas to kangaroos, he was amazed by the variety of animals locked up alongside him. Just as he lost all hope, Crash recognized a familiar face…