Disclaimer: I don't own Star Fox, or any recognizable characters or vehicles.

Descent Into Darkness

Fox wandered through the corridors of Great Fox, looking for Slippy. He didn't want to admit it, but he was very worried about his friend. Ever since their last trip to Corneria two days ago, Slippy hadn't been himself. As he walked through the ship, Fox pondered the events that led up to his friend's unusual behavior.

While exploring the space around Sector Z, the Star Fox team received an urgent message from General Pepper. The general informed them that Beltino needed to talk to Slippy face to face. Upon ending the message, Fox ordered Rob to turn the Great Fox around and head back to Corneria. When they arrived, Beltino was waiting for them just outside the military base. Slippy walked into the base with him, while the rest of the team waited just outside Great Fox. When Slippy returned some time later, he seemed really shocked and upset. When they asked what was wrong, he just shook his head and walked into the ship.

Slippy had locked himself in his quarters and refused to come out. When he finally did emerge from his quarters, he went out of his way to avoid everyone. 'And now, I have another reason to worry about him,' Fox thought.

Fox walked into the rec room, hoping Slippy would be there, maybe working on some mechanical device. The room was empty, save for Peppy who was sitting in a chair in the far corner, reading a book. As Fox was turning around, he heard Peppy ask "what's up, Fox?" Fox barely looked over his shoulder as he said "nothing," and started to walk out the door.

Peppy wasn't fooled by Fox's statement. Before Fox could leave, he cried "wait!" When Fox turned around, Peppy said "come sit down and talk to me." While Fox walked over to the chair next to his mentor, Peppy sat the book down on a nearby table. "What do you want, Peppy?," Fox asked as he sat down. "I want to know what's wrong," Peppy replied sternly, "and don't tell me 'nothing' because I know it's a lie." Fox sighed. "Alright," he said in a resigned tone, "I'm really worried about Slippy." Peppy reached over and put a hand on the young leader's shoulder. "I know, Fox," he said soothingly, "we all are." For a few moments, Fox just sat there, giving Peppy his most serious look. "I'm not sure, Peppy, but I think that Slippy has stopped eating," the young red fox said in his most serious voice, "I don't know what to do for him." At that, Peppy jumped out of his chair. "What?," he cried, "what is that kid doing?" Peppy gave Fox his most fatherly look. "Go find Falco and have him help us look for Slippy. Look everywhere!" Fox, glad for once that someone else was taking charge of the situation, jumped up and ran out the door, while Peppy ran for the hanger where he figured the young frog might be.

Slippy was sitting in the back of the hanger, sandwiched between the Landmaster and the Blue Marine. He felt as if he was slowly being torn apart. He didn't know that it was possible to feel so horrible. He knew his friends must have been really worried, but he didn't, couldn't, care. He was hungry, but he cared less about eating than he did about being with his friends. All he could think about was the conversation he'd had with his dad two days ago...

Slippy was confused as he followed his father into the base. Beltino seemed really upset and tense, and Slippy had no idea why. Beltino quickly led his son into an empty conference room and shut the door. "Sit down, son," he said in a strained voice, "I'm sorry, but this won't be short." "What's going on, dad?," Slippy asked, starting to worry. Beltino sat down across from his son, and looking him in the eye, said, "I'm afraid it's about your younger sister, Violet." Slippy jumped out of his chair, shocked. "Violet? What happened to her?," he cried, remembering the day, six months ago,when she'd left Corneria in her custom-built ship, the Starsong, on a scientific mission that was meant to discredit rumors that Andross had collaborated with another intelligent species; a war-like species, when he designed his weapons. Although both Slippy and Beltino had tried to discourage her, in fact, Slippy got into a huge argument with her about the mission, Violet had replied that the safety of the Lylat System was far more important than her own safety, and she left, alone, to search for other intelligent beings. Beltino sighed, and said "your sister has been in regular contact with Corneria until recently. Her latest update is weeks overdue. I learned of this only today. Apparently, they wanted to make sure that her latest transmission wasn't just delayed before worrying us. If she had sent her overdue message on time, we would have received it by now." Beltino paused to let his words sink in. "So, when did she send the last message we received?," Slippy asked, the hard edge of panic in his voice. Beltino hesitated before answering. "Three months ago, as she was entering a large planetary system that she thought might contain an inhabitable planet." Slippy started hyperventilating. Violet would've had more than enough time to make contact with any life-forms the system may have contained. "Did they pick up any sort of distress signal from Starsong?," Slippy asked desperately. Beltino shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry, son," he said, "but no one's heard anything from Violet. As of right now, your sister's being counted among the missing."

Slippy pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapped his arms around his legs, put his head on his knees, and started sobbing.

As soon as Peppy entered the hanger, he heard the sound of someone crying. "Slippy?," he called as he followed the sound. He found the young frog curled up between the Blue-Marine and the Landmaster, crying. "What's wrong?," Peppy cried as he rushed up to his teammate. "Nothing. Leave me alone," Slippy moaned in response. Kneeling down, Peppy wrapped his arms around Slippy and held him. When Slippy calmed down, Peppy said, "now, tell me what's going on." Slippy shook his head and muttered, "it's just a family issue." Peppy sighed in exasperation. "Don't give me that, Slippy. We all know something's seriously wrong. Earlier, Fox mentioned to me that you've stopped eating." Slippy looked up at Peppy, shocked. "How did he find out about that?," he asked. Peppy gave Slippy his sternest look. "It doesn't matter. What does matter is the fact that you've stopped eating altogether. That's really not good. You've got two choices: either you talk to us about what's going on and why you won't eat, or I'll personally put you in the hospital until you start eating again and talk to someone." The expression on Peppy's face was so serious, Slippy knew full well he would do it. After a short pause, Slippy asked, "you know my sister left the Lylat system?" When Peppy nodded, Slippy muttered "what you don't know is that I got into a huge argument with her shortly before she left. I didn't want her to go, but she insisted. So, I told her that if she went, she might as well not come back. I told her I hoped she'd get killed by a hostile force. I didn't really mean a word of it. I was just mad at her at the time, because she wouldn't listen to me. And, I didn't get the chance to apologize for my stupid comments before she left." Slippy paused, and Peppy got a sinking feeling in his stomach, although he couldn't say why. "Hasn't she been in contact with Corneria?," the rabbit asked. Slippy nodded. "She was. Until three months ago. The last time anyone heard anything from her was when she discovered a new planetary system. We should have heard something from her weeks ago. She's been listed as missing, assumed dead." At that, Slippy buried his head in his hands. Peppy held him tighter. "It's not your fault, Slip. I'm really sorry your sister's missing, but sitting here feeling sorry for yourself and refusing to eat is not going to help the situation. I know it's really hard, but you need to be strong for your father. He's really going to need you now." Slippy moaned in response. Peppy stayed in the hanger with Slippy, until the young mechanic was ready to get up.

Later, after getting Slippy to eat something, Peppy rounded up the rest of the team, and told them about the situation. He expected Falco to make some smart-mouth remark, but the falcon was just as supportive of Slippy as Fox was. "Wow," Falco said, "that's horrible. I can't imagine what he's going through. Poor Slippy. I feel sorry for him." Fox nodded in agreement. "It must be really hard for him, not knowing what's become of his sister. I remember when I lost my father. It was a really hard time for me, but at least, I knew his fate." Falco looked over at Fox, and said: "I think you handled that a lot better than Slip's handling the current situation." At that point, Peppy stepped in. "That may be true, but Fox didn't have to spend two days wondering what had happened to his father. Plus, Slippy told me that the last thing he'd told Violet was that he hoped that she'd get killed." That shut Falco and Fox up real quick. Fox and Falco stood there, the most exquisite expressions of shock, disbelief, and horror frozen on their faces. If the situation wasn't so serious, Peppy might have laughed at their expressions. After a few moments of total silence, Falco spoke up: "Whoa. I really hope she's alright, wherever she is..."

TO BE CONTINUED...