(A/N:) Hey there, all you fanfiction readers! I'm a big fan of this site, and I've been a long time reader. I guess I finally decided to start writing my own stories, so this would be the beginning of my very first fanfic. Constructive criticism is welcomed, but please try not to be too hard on me, guys. Well, here goes nothing!
Prologue: Late-Night Panic
Fox flew his Arwing through the vastness of space, giving chase to enemy fighters fleeing the battle zone, or so he thought. Quickly maneuvering through the asteroid field, Fox saw a few fighters turn around to flank him.
'Oh, no you don't,' Fox thought.
He pulled his Arwing into a right-barrel roll, swinging around an oncoming asteroid, and sped up to break the enemy line.
"Gotcha," Fox said to no one. "I've got you guys cornered."
Fox fired his dual laser cannons, and after few successful hits, five of the six ships in the area exploded in a shower of machinery. The last remaining ship turned and fled, the pilot obviously intimidated and hoping to fight another day. Satisfied that his work was finished, Fox turned on the COM channel linked to the Great Fox, the dreadnaught- class cruiser that served as Star Fox's base of operations.
"Peppy, this is Fox. I'm returning to base." Fox said.
"Roger that. What's the situation?" Peppy Hare asked.
"The mission is a success. We managed to defeat the enemies around the base. Looks like some of them fled the battle, though. Must have gotten scared or something." Fox reported.
"Hmph, you're making it sound like it was hard to beat under-trained pilots. What about Leon? Did he escape, too?" Peppy questioned.
Fox sighed lightly. "Yeah, I think so."
There was a long pause over the COM before Peppy spoke again. "Hm, alright. It's not a problem. We've still gained ground with this victory. Good job, Star Fox. Come on back to the ship. I'll leave the hanger open for you."
"Got it. Thanks, Peppy," Fox stated. "Falco, Slippy, Krystal, let's head back."
... No response...
"Come on, guys, quit messing around. It's time to head back." Fox instructed.
More silence greeted his words.
"Guys?" Fox called more worriedly this time. "Falco, Slippy, Krystal, report!"
When Fox still heard nothing from his teammates, he began to panic. 'Oh no!' Fox thought.
Fox's Arwing accelerated through the asteroids, doing pitch-and-rolls through them. Fox couldn't see his friends anywhere. 'Damn it. Not even the radar can pick 'em up. What in the world is going on here?!' Fox thought. As he turned around another asteroid, Fox came upon a scene that made him gasp.
Parts of many different fighters were scattered everywhere in the vacuum. In the background, the Sargasso Hideout floated among the asteroids, but what made Fox freeze was the sight right in front of his Arwing.
Falco, Slippy, and Krystals' Arwings were completely dismantled. Wings, boosters, engines, G-diffusers, all of it randomly placed in space. In the middle of it all, however, were Falco, Slippy, and Krystal, dead.
Fox stared with wide eyes in disbelief. "No..." he whispered. "No! No, no, noo! This can't be happening! Why?! It's not happening! Why? Why?!" Fox shouted as he held his head in his hands, crying.
"Fox? Fox! What's going on?" Peppy piped in over the COM.
"Nooooo! Noooooo-"
"-oooo!" Fox shouted as he jolted up out of his sheets. He was breathing heavily, sweat running down his face. Fox ran a hand down it, sighing through his nose. 'Holy shit, that was crazy. Glad that was just a dream.' Fox thought.
As the vulpine finished his thought, Peppy walked through the sliding door, with a candle in his left hand.
"You OK, Fox? I heard you screamin'." Peppy asked with concern evident on his face.
"I'm not entirely sure, Peppy." Fox answered.
"Was it a dream?" Peppy asked.
"Yeah. A nightmare at that, and I'm not sure what to make of it." Fox replied.
"Do you want to talk about it. It might clear your head." Peppy requested.
Fox sighed. "No. Not right now. It kinda shook me up."
"That bad, huh?" Peppy asked, giving Fox a thoughtful look.
"Yeah." Fox said in a low voice.
Peppy rubbed his chin in a thoughtful way, eyeing his team captain. "Well, alright, but only if your sure."
"I am." Fox said, more to himself than to Peppy.
"OK, Fox. Get some sleep, though. You're not going to be much use to the team if your tired." Peppy said, ending his session of 20 questions.
Fox chuckled at the hare's comment. "Got it. Thanks, Peppy."
"Not a problem, Fox." Peppy said, going back to his room.
'What would I do without that old rabbit?' Fox thought cheerfully. The vulpine got out of bed to go to the washroom and get a drink of water. He also checked to make sure that the Great Fox was still docked on Sauria before going to bed. As he made his way back to his room, he tried his best to forget about the nightmare. When he got back into his bed, he checked the time on his wrist communicator. It read 2:30 a.m. 'Damn, even with a good 5 hours of sleep, I'm still going to be tired as hell in the morning.' Fox thought as the power of sleep overcame him yet again.
(A/N: Well, there's the start! let me know what you think in the reviews, since that's kind of the point! See ya for Chapter 1!)
