Alright, this story is now complete. i really did not do much at all, more just fixed consistency errors, and added some color to a single scene. i honestly expected to do a lot more. anyway, enjoy, and please, leave some reviews!
Mira sighed as she sat on her bed, facing the mirror in her room. Her eye's slipped across the image of her body, her long full hair, now smooth and silky as it had been before she became a soldier. Her fur had darkened over the past six months, changing from a dark tan to a lovely shade of brown, with tan highlights. She wasn't entirely sure what had caused this change, but being a hybrid, a genetic hiccup so to speak, likely had something to do with it. Her face was almost like a thicker, shorter version of a Vulpine's muzzle, her pointed ears sticking out of her hair. On her cheek, was a long line in the fur, marking a scar that the second she saw it brought up memories that were not altogether good, remembering how it felt to have her best friend and lover's knife slice through her skin. Another sigh slipped out of her mouth as she stood, fingering the small metal dog tags around her neck, her last memories of Will flashing through her mind. She tried to force her mind away from those memories as she pulled a tank top and pants out of the closet, quickly sliding them on. Before she left the room, she stole one last glance at the mirror, or more precisely, the photo taped to it. it was Mira and her human boyfriend, half intertwined on a cot, with the sun setting through one of the windows of the Krazoa palace.
"I cant believe it's been three months, and he hasn't said a word to me. So much has changed…. I really hope he is okay." Tears slipped out of her eyes as she spoke, more to herself than anything. In the three months since Star Fox's dismantlement at the hands of its leader, Fox McCloud and his subsequent disappearance, so much had changed. General Pepper, the once esteemed leader of the Cornerian Defense Force, was forced into retirement just days after the fateful law had ceased the use of all mercenary's, due to failing health. She had joined Peppy in seeing him at the hospital several times, finding him confined to a bed and on life support, but at least he had still been lucid. With the loss of his leadership, and the rallying symbol of the Star Fox team, the CDF's forces began to crumble. The invasion of Katina failed, Fortuna was reduced to nothing but a ravaged warzone, with very few Cornerian units still fighting on the ground or air. Most of the combat was now centered on the defensive zones put in place to prevent another Aparoid style invasion. Dozens of battle stations, each with massive and powerful cannons capable of destroying even some of the largest of human vessels in a single shot, were now the last hope for Corneria. Although some of the outer planets were still holding out on their own, Corneria was physically cut off from the rest of the system, with very little hope that it would survive the war unscathed. But, even as Corneria was falling into its last days, the punishment the Cornerian fleets had caused on the United Earth Coalition had drastically slowed their advance. But even a young mercenary such as herself knew that it was only a matter of time before the inhabitants of the virtually untapped Sol system would rally and crush what little resistance was left.
Mira's feet carried her out into the hall that contained the team member's rooms, quickly slipping down the hall and into the main room of what had once been the Star Fox head-quarters. Now, it was the silent living space of Mira and Krystal, having nowhere else to go. The main room was full of very comfortable plush sofas and recliners, with a single massive flat screen TV along one wall. There was a balcony on the ocean side of the building that they could walk out on, a small kitchen space nestled into the corner by the balcony door. The TV was currently on, playing the Cornerian News Network, Krystal and, much to Mira's surprise, Bill were sitting on one of the many couches in front of the TV.
Bill grey was a snub nosed, floppy eared, canine with light grey fur and was usually smiling about something, although that smile seldom came out since Fox left. Krystal was a vibrant blue Vixen, hailing from a strange and now destroyed world called Cerinia. She had hair falling down to her shoulder blades, almost totally unkempt and knotted in more places than one. Her right wrist was currently in a brace, having recently been able to remove the cast. It had been shattered during a running firefight here on Corneria, and was likely going to require several more weeks to heal. She usually stayed locked up in her room the whole day, only coming out to watch the news for any word of Fox McCloud.
"Hey Bill, didn't expect to see you here." He smiled to Mira as she lightly leapt over the back of the couch, landing softly between them. Krystal simply grunted at her, as her norm had become. "Anything on Will and Fox?" she directed her question more at Krystal, but given Bill had taken a desk job with the CDF, holding Commander Winters old office as the local defense Captain.
"Nothing yet in the news. Just Muzzin putting in more articles to the new defense act. All humans are to be rounded up and placed in internment camps now." Krystal's voice was extremely rough, primarily because she rarely used it anymore. Mira sighed, feeling Bill pat her shoulder.
"Hey, those two knuckle heads know what they are doing. And they got Falco and Katt watching over them. They're probably safer than we are right now. There have been whispers that the police are looking into arresting any mercenaries on Corneria, both active and former. I'd watch my back from now on if I were you two." Krystal just shrugged and Mira held a finger up, the TV drawing her attention.
"…Star Fox team is now missing and unaccounted for. Their Dreadnaught, the Great Fox Two, can be seen deactivated in Cornerian Orbit, even though by all accounts, it's repairs are complete. The members of the team on the other hand, have seemingly disappeared. I now take you live to an interview with Detective Balk Wulfern, who has been attempting to arrest the Star Fox team for several months." The screen changed from the female anchor that always passed along the news to what looked like a small, comfy looking conference room with two chairs placed across from each other. In one chair was a deep brown wolf with eerie yellow eyes. He was wearing a black trench coat and grey slacks, one leg twisted up to rest on his knees, hands comfortably clasped in his lap. The other was CNN's political analyzer, a brown long muzzled canine who was never seen outside of a suit and tie.
"Detective, it has been rumored that you have been assigned the task of hunting down and capturing the once beloved Star Fox team, is this true?" the detective smirked and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
"Yes and no. I have been assigned as the head of a new specialized task force, one who's sole purpose is to track down and apprehend high danger criminals. These include Mercenaries, bounty hunters, assassins, anyone who will kill for money. So yes, one of my prime targets are the former members of the Star Fox team." The man's voice was very smooth, almost like listening to a spring breeze rather than a voice.
"Is it also true that you have had multiple members in custody in the past?" the detective clinched his fists for a second, letting them open back up before he spoke.
"Yes, I have. And both times that I had members in custody, the military swooped in and rescued them, once with the use of a full squad of soldiers. And yes, before you ask, those barbarians should have stayed behind bars. Just remember three months ago, they were the source of a running gun battle down a crowded street, injuring almost two dozen civilians in total. Thankfully, with General Pepper no longer in command of our forces, and Muzzin's new Combined Arms act, I can finally put these criminals where they belong, behind bars." Mira went to turn off the TV but Krystal stopped her, earning her a rare glare from Mira.
"But, do you really believe they are criminals? They were once seen as the heroes of the Lylat system for many years, and were responsible for the demise of both Andross and the Apariods? Most would argue that there are reasonable explanations for all of the incidents regarding the Star Fox members, including the broadcast from a rebel group proclaiming they killed a member." This time, the detective didn't hold back his anger, his smooth voice changing into an animal like growl.
"They exploited us to make a profit! I wouldn't be surprised if they helped create the Lylat War and the Oikonny rebellion just so they could swoop in and save the day and a big fat paycheck! All mercenaries are out for is money! No one else matters to them!" Mira snatched the remote out of Krystal's hand and shut the TV off, almost chucking the remote at the screen.
"Damn it, I hate those fucks! If they would just open their eyes for five minutes maybe they would realize that none of us are out there for the money!" Krystal's cracking voice cut Mira off before she could keep ranting.
"Hey, don't you need to get going?" Mira looked at her wrist computer and cursed, giving Bill a quick hug.
"Say hi to Fay for me Bill. And keep an eye on Krys." He nodded and Mira waved to Krystal before she stepped out the door, Krystal's voice following her.
"Good luck at work Mira!"
I tapped a few keys on the dash board, readjusting the G-diffusion field for the tenth time. A sigh escaped my mouth as my eye's drifted over to the small picture I had stuck to the dashboard. Even in a printed photo, Mira's sapphire eyes could still pull me into a trance. It was a small wallet sized photo of Mira, from shortly before I joined the Star Fox team almost seven months ago. She had been standing out on the HQ's balcony when Katt had gotten her attention, snapping a picture of her smiling, the sun setting off in the back ground. I touched the picture and a single tear slipped out of my eye, the faintest trace of a smile at my lips. I cant believe it's been three months already.
"Hey Falco, how are things on your end?" Falco's modified Arwing slipped up beside mine as he spoke.
"Not a peep buddy." I smirked as I gently slipped around another asteroid. Falco's Arwing was a modified Arwing Interceptor, with enlarged G-diffusers and small, feather like G-Diffusers running along the wings. This coupled with bigger ion engines, and a rail cannon attached along the underside of the fighter, gave it insane maneuverability and firepower, at the loss of some speed. He had also added a pair of Plasma cannons into the tips of the split nose, lighter than those normally on the Arwings but providing a little more malleability with his fighting style at the loss of shielding. The fighter was also repainted, the hull being stark white with a wedge shaped area around the cockpit painted a deep blue, as well as the G-diffusers. Although I had upgraded the systems as much as I could, I kept Mira's second generation Arwing roughly the same as it had been, repainting the hull a solid black and darkening the canopy. Our two fighters gracefully ducked and weaved through the asteroids until we reached a clearing that had an old mining base in the center. It had once been the home base of the notorious Star Wolf until Star Fox had driven them out, leaving the base abandoned. A perfect hiding place for members of the Andross remnant.
"This is Ghost to Shadow leader, we have arrived on site and will have the defenses cleared out in five mikes. You are cleared to begin your approach." The entire group had taken to using call signs, primarily to hide who we were, myself being Ghost, Falco being Sky Claw, and Shadow team was the code name for the Special Forces unit under Captain Ramirez. His voice came back over the radio, in the same deliberate careful speech the burly Hispanic had always had.
"Roger that Ghost, happy hunting. See you five mikes." I smirked and opened fire on the base, targeting the turrets that had been built since Star Wolf's stint there. Small angular strike fighters zipped out of the two doors, almost a full squadron moving to engage our two fighters. I smirked, casually rolling out of their fire and firing a pair of linked blasts back, destroying one fighter and crippling another. Three of the blips dropped off from Falco's fire, leaving only seven more fighters. I killed my thrust and flipped around, not able to pull the near instant flip Falco's craft did. But it ended up in my advantage, being far enough back from the enemy craft to let loose a barrage of eight missiles, five of the fighters detonating from the weapons. The other three were quickly mopped up by Falco before we both turned our fighters back toward the base, finishing off the remaining turrets.
"Ghost to all elements, area secured, we are clear for boarding procedures." Falco didn't even respond to me, lining up on one of the hanger doors and firing his rail gun, the door blasting inward. A few more plasma blasts slagged what remained of the door, an atmospheric shield keeping the air in the station. As soon as it was clear, I shot into the hanger, hovering above the deck and firing on the soldiers inside, careful to not hit the large cylindrical reactor in the center of the area. As soon as the enemy stopped shooting, I set my fighter down on the hanger floor, grabbing my rifle and slipping out of the cockpit. The dropship came in as I swept the room, the craft landing on the deck. The dropship was a quad engine craft, looking like a mixture between the Chinook and the Osprey. As soon as it touched down, the rear ramp dropped and a dozen armored humans trotted out, weapons raised. Behind them were a pair of Cornerians, Wolf and Fox. Wolf was, as the name implied, a very wolf looking person with dark grey fur and matching grey eye. One of his eyes was covered with a glass plate, glowing an eerie red from underneath it. Fox was, again as the name implied, an orange and white Fox with deep emerald eyes. Both of them were relaxed as they marched over to me, smiling.
"Any trouble Ghost?" Wolf's deep voice was the one speaking.
"not one bit Timber. Now where?" he used his small Cornerian carbine to point up at the ceiling, making me sigh. "Shoulda known. Lead the way." We spread out as we moved forward, leaving eight of the UEC soldiers at the dropship and fighter. After several shallow ramps and an elevator ride, we arrived in the command and control area of the station, not encountering a single piece of resistance. It was dark in the triangular halls, forcing the group to all pull out night vision goggles. Mine hummed to life, plunging me into a strange green version of the world. Fox was on point, Wolf just behind to his right, and myself behind and to his left. Anytime we came across a crossway, Wolf and I would aim down it, looking for any signs of the enemy. Suddenly, as I was aiming down a side hall, Fox's carbine went off, causing me to snap my rifle down the main hall. There were at least four soldiers stepping out of side halls, one collapsing from Fox's shot. I squeezed the trigger and my rifle sent a burst of blue bolts down the hall as red bolts ripped back at us. My burst dropped two of the shooters, only to have three more take their places. At this point, the entire group had slid into the side halls and doors for cover, silvery bolts from the human plasma rifles joining the frantic battle.
"Ya know, I'm kinda getting tired of shooting up this place. Gets a little too repetitive!" Both Wolf and myself glared at Fox as red bolts continued to rip by.
"Well I'd rather my hide wasn't tanned here! Ghost, on me, lets flank these fuckers!" Wolf darted across to my side of the hall, leading the way through a side hallway. We came up on their flank and I opened fire, letting the fully automatic Cornerian rifle in my hands tear the force into ribbons. The counter in the scope hit zero and Wolf dropped the last few pirates, giving me a chance to swap out the power pack.
"Anyone hit?" the humans all called out as okay to Fox's question, my voice following them.
"Me and Wolf are good up here." Fox acknowledged and caught up, the group trotting a few more meters until we reached the control room.
"Will, spike the main computer, let's see what they got. I nodded to Fox and slipped a small drive out of one of my pouches, slipping it into the computer. A few key taps later and the entire system unlocked, coming up blank.
"Damn it! system's empty again! Fuck!" I kicked at the terminal with the last word before tugging my full face flight helmet off, my rifle dangling loosely by it's sling.
