Black Skies: Preface
Disclaimer
I do not claim to own any part of Star Fox, which is held by Nintendo. All rights, including those to character, scenarios, and games are held by Nintendo. Unique characters and storyline are owned by me, Sir Raphael. If you wish to use these characters in a story or other piece of media, please contact me via personal message or at silverknight6 gmail . com.
Author's Note: Black Skies is intended to be a trilogy that details the adventures of the Star Fox mercenary team, the famed heroes of the Lylat System. The story takes place after the events of Star Fox 64, Star Fox: Adventures, and Star Fox: Assault. For the sake of the storyline, Star Fox, Star Fox 2, and Star Fox: Command never happened, along with the comics.
The story contains some references to the religions of the universe, though for the sake of neutrality, I have named this deity "The Creator." I am in no way attempting to favor one god or the other, so do not send me hate mail over this.
I have rated this story 'T- Teenagers' due to mild language and suggestive (sexual) themes. If you are not mature enough to read this story without bursting into laughter, then don't read any further!
That's all to say here. Author's notes in future chapters are denoted with the words 'Author's Note:' in italics (minus the colon (in italics)).
Synopsis
Less then a few years after the Aparoid Invasion, Star Fox is once again drifting around the galaxy. They have fared far better then they did in the post-Lylat War years, taking odd jobs to sustain themselves. Fox and Krystal have become popular speakers- likewise, Slippy has become a famous and eagerly-sought technician and speechmaker. Peppy Hare is the curator of the Star Fox museum in his free time, and any diplomat or persona with enough money to do so will hire Falco Lombardi as an escort.
This myriad of jobs keeps the Star Fox team very profitable, but its head still thirsts for some excitement. Reconstruction efforts are under way still in Corneria City, but he yearns for the thrill of combat.
For him, it is not too far off. Combat looms as the ever-growing Grallian System turns its sights upon the Lylat System. War breaks loose, and now Corneria strikes back...
Cast of Characters
Star Fox Team
-Fox McCloud (Leader)
-Falco Lombardi (Ace Pilot)
-Krystal --- (Telepath)
-Slippy Toad (Technical Support)
-Abbey Rimstead (Capital Ship Pilot / Weapons Specialist / Tactician)
-Peppy Hare (Senior Advisor / Capital Ship Pilot)
-ROB (Automated Droid)
Star Wolf Team
-Wolf O'Donnel (Leader)
-Leon Powalski (Torture Specialist / Stealth Operative / Technical Support)
-Panther Caruso (Ace Pilot)
-Katt Monroe (Combat Pilot)
Team Elengale
-
-
-
Cornerian Army
-General Pepper (General)
-Bill Grey (Major)
-Therald Pepper (Captain)
Grallian Army
-Tyron --- (Admiral)
-Medrion --- (Admiral)
-
Elorian Resistance
-
-
-
Various
-
-
-
The Technology Behind Black Skies
This is a section dedicated to the technology that runs the fighters of Black Skies- simple stuff we've all come to know and love, and some of the more complicated things that I introduce here.
Arwing: The Arwing is an all-purpose superiority fighter that is equipped with three lasers and a Nova bomb launcher. Depending on the game, it may or may not have a charge-shot launch. The weapons capabilities are as follows.
-Lasers (Single (Nose), Twin (Wings), Hyper (Wings), Pearl (Wings): A standard laser shot that flys in a straight line.
-Charge Shot Launcher (Nose): A charged laser which fires a charged sphere of energy that homes in on an enemy. Contains about a tenth of the destructive power of a Nova Bomb, and can be fired indefinitely. It does not deal as much damage as one tenth of a Nova Bomb due to the chain reactions and aftereffects of the latter.
-Nova Bomb Launcher: Fires a Nova Bomb, an intensely powerful energy weapon which damages only metals and certain other materials. They can home in on an opponent. The ability to carry these weapons makes the Arwing into a semi-light bomber. Certain variations of the Arwing can carry more bombs and are classified as mid-level bombers.
Arwings appear in all the Star Fox games in various forms and fashions. They are as follows.
-Mark I: The Mark I Arwing has a primitive G-Diffuser system and was seen in Star Fox 64. The ship can carry a maximum of nine bombs and can fire from either the nose laser or the two side-mounted lasers (twin).
-Mark II: The Mark II Arwing was a cost-saving craft with no charging shot and a maximum payload of only three bombs. It can alternately fire lasers from its nose cannons (single) or both at once (twin). The ship's G-Diffusers are only slightly improved.
-Mark III: The Mark III is a sophisticated workhorse with powerful shielding and weaponry. It has the same capabilities as the Mark I with a boosted G-Diffuser, allowing for complete stops and other intricate maneuvers. The ship is not as maneuverable as the Mark I, but it is more versatile.
-Mark IV: The Mark IV is a prototype ship with stealth and cloaking capabilities, a legendary G-Diffuser system, and the intensely powerful pearl lasers. It can carry a large payload of nine Nova Bombs, can be equipped to fire four missiles, carries a bomb sight, and can fire a hyper laser from its nose cannon and emit an EMP pulse.
-Mark IIIa: The IIIa is a retro-fitted III with pearl lasers and improved handling. However, its overall capabilities are lower than the IV. Many in military circles deem it a pointless and costly expense.
-Mark XIB: The XIB is two Arwings joined together with a straight wing between them. This central wing carries three charging shot launchers which can each lock onto an enemy independantly. Both wings on the outside carry a two-barrel hyper laser with a twin laser redundancy, and the nose carries the standard single laser. The ship has two Nova Bomb launchers and can carry up to 14 Nova Bombs, and carries a number of advanced scanners and other utility functions controlled by the pilot on the right. The pilot on the left has a blacked-out cockpit that displays the view from the center of the ship via a camera. Due to the gun placement, the outer guns can swivel, and the right pilot can pivot each of the three charging shot launchers together, along with a single-laser automated point-defense cannon to hit enemies coming from behind.
-Mark XIC: The XIC is a specialized Arwing that carries a triple-barrel hyper laser cannon on both wings with a double-barrel hyper laser in the nose. An advanced cooling system allows all guns to fire at once for long periods of time, and the armor and shielding is reinforced. The XIC carries a large amount of power (clicks) and two charging shot launchers on both wings, along with three Nova Bomb launchers with four bombs each, making this a heavy long-range bomber. The boost suffers as a result, however.
Lerowing: The Lerowing is another workhorse of the elite, another all-around superiority fighter. The later models all share a circular wing, as does the first.
-Lerowing I: The I is the basic fighter, aging, but still formidable in its own right. The fuselage holds no surprises, but its wings (in a similar 'V' configuration like the Arwing) are connected by a circular support strut.
-Lerowing II: The II has a tubular hull with two vertical wings. It carries only a single laser, and was a cost-efficient way of building a large fleet. They can take considerable damage, and were seen in Star Fox: Assault.
-Lerowing III: The III is an odd tubular ship with only short, stubby wings. Despite it's formidable weaponry, they were almost all destroyed by the Aparoid Armada.
-Lerowing IV: The IV has a thin circular wing and wings jutting straight out from the fuselage. It is the workhorse of the better units of the Cornerian Millitary.
-Lerowing V: The V has a distinctive circular wing that is thicker then that of its predecessors. The standard wings have all but disappeared- the ship now resembles a Y with a circle around it (think of the standard hippie symbol). The two legs of the 'Y' shape contain a powerful G-Diffuser system, and further back on these legs are mounted powerful hyper lasers (which can be upgraded into the new pearl lasers.) The ship is a match for any Arwing.
-Lerowing Va: The Va is of the same design as the V, but it carries pearl lasers with a hyper laser redundancy set, and it caries two charge shot launchers and three Nova Bomb launchers, each with three Nova Bombs. Thus, it is classified as a medium bomber.
Dreadnought-Class Battle Cruiser: Another fleet workhorse, this is the design the Great Fox was built upon. It has several advantages, those being:
-The ability to carry multiple elite fighters.
-Two powerful, rapid-firing plasma cannons mounted in the front.
-Two state-of-the-art point-defense lasers mounted between the four wings.
The ship carries heavy shielding and armor, and is capable of hyperspeed jumps and ramming.
Saber-Class Battleship: This battleship is a standard, utilizing the many advantages of the design of a naval battleship. The ship is a marvel of technological ability, and it is an incredible foe in battle. The ship utilizes a huge array of components for its performance:
-Two Ion-Discharge Wing-Mounted Engines
-Three Ion Flame-Discharge Stern-Mounted Engines
-60 Point-Defense Lasers
-Four Heavy Turrets (Nova Bomb / Hyper Laser)
-Four Heavy Waist Turrets (Nova Bomb / Hyper Laser)
-Two Heavy Mortars (Laser Shot / Nova Bomb)
-Two Heavy Waist Mortars (Laser Shot / Nova Bomb)
-Three Smoke Generators (Two Bow / One Stern)
-Two Focal Lasers (One Bow / One Stern)
-Plasma Bolt Cannon (Stream Fire: Two Panels Mounted in Bow)
-Three Hangars (Two Rear Command Post / One Below Bridge
-Two Wing-Mounted Forward Cannons
-Two Bow-Mounted Cannons
-Four Focal Laser Chargers
Cornerian Fighter: The standard ship for a standard pilot, this has two gull wings and a powerful single engine. The ship carries an advanced G-Diffuser system and twin/hyper lasers.
Standard Fighter: A Grallian standard fighter equipped with twin lasers and a charge-shot launcher. It carries only weak shielding and armor.
Anti-Fighter Craft: These ships possess an 'H' shape and are equipped with one central tracking laser and two anti-fighter machine guns on both forward 'prongs' of the 'H.' Boosters are mounted on the rear 'prongs,' and the main engine lies behind the cockpit in the center.
Weapon Platform Craft: These ships have a large arrays of weapons that might better fit a small cruiser. Equipped with hyper and twin lasers, a redundancy single laser, a bomb and missile launcher, a basic focal laser, two forward-mounted plasma cannons, and heavy shields and armor, they have less manuverability then other fighters, but they can take far more damage.
Heavy Defense Craft: A heavy, stubby ship with two powerful plasma cannons mounted in the front. It isn't fast, but it's got incredible shielding and armor.
Light Cruiser: The light cruiser is a 50-100 man ship that forms the backbone of most modern starfleets. They are small enough to be controlled by a helm, yet heavy enough to carry multiple weapons systems, including point-defense lasers. They are ideal dropships, with the armor and shielding to withstand multiple blows, yet quick enough to avoid sustaining critical damage.
Destroyer: Unique to the Cornerian Army, the destroyer is a 150-200 man ship that is larger than a light cruiser but smaller then an actual cruiser. They are generally long and thin, and are controlled via a helm. These ships provide anti-fighter cover, and are very manuverable and carry more point-defense lasers then actual cannons.
Cruiser: Cruisers are 250-300 man ships that are controlled through a computer, but still able to be flown via a helm. They are well-armored and manuverable, and carry a formidable weapon defense system. Many are capable of launching fighters. The cruiser is the first ship able to effectively conduct a bombardment on the planetary scale. These also provide heavy artillery cover for larger ships, taking blows to save the battle ships.
Small Cruiser: Used by both the Grallian and Cornerian fleets, these ships carry a crew of 5-10 men, and carry one point-defense laser and an escape pod. They generally have wide wings and two forward-mounted plasma bolt cannons. Some have missile launchers and the Cornerian cruisers have two forward-mounted plasma cannons, not to be mistaken with the streaming-fire plasma cannons.
Wildfire-Class Cruiser: The Wildfire-Class Cruiser forms the backbone of the Cornerian starfleet, with multiple streaming-fire plasma cannons. They are manuverable and easily three-fourths of the size of a Dreadnought Battle Cruiser, making them the largest cruisers in the fleet.
Brave-Class Bomber: The Brave-Class Bomber is a wide, short (vertically), delta-shaped ship with a forward cockpit and a long ion-flame discharge engine mounted on the underbelly. Four point-defense lasers, along with two plasma bolt cannons and an automated defense turret protect this bomber, which can carry up to 200 Nova Bombs, 200 missiles, and a maximum payload of 400 heavy all-purpose guided bombs. They are fairly fast, but are difficult to manuver. Used by the Cornerians.
Elterian Bomber: A Grallian bomber that resemblesd an upright rectangle with a gradually sloping top and a slanted front. On the front is the cockpit, and towards the bottom are two semi-circular bulges and a thick rectangular wing that protrudes from the bottom. Five powerful ion-flame discharge engines are mounted on the ship's lower half (in the back), and a small aperture at the top (of the stern) can launch up to five fighters and an escape pod. Ten recessed point-defense lasers defend this ship, along with a powerful frontal battery of six plasma bolt cannons. The ship can carry up to 400 missiles and up to a stunning 1,000 heavy guided bombs, and is heavy armored and shielded. While not incredibly fast, it can turn rather quickly and can make hyperspace leaps for longer than theBrave-Class bomber. Because of this, the Elterian Bomber is feared throughout Grall.
Several hijacked and modified Elterians are in service and used by the Elorian Resistance.
Courier-Class Fighter: A sleek, elegant fighter that is rectangular in shape. The cockpit is a rectangular square of glass mounted at an upwards angle. The single engine is mounted on a swivel between two sections, and it carries two powerful boosters on the side. Guided missiles are mounted on both sides of the ship, and the Courier can carry two. On both sides of the front is a powerful hyper laser cannon, and in the front is a magnetic grapnel and EMP Canister Launcher. It carries a Field Rift and is used by the Elorian Resistance. (For appearance, think of a Sprint Samsung A900 that's black in color. The external display is the cockpit, the service light is the Field Rift, the camera swivel is the engine, the speakers are the guns, etc.)
Laser: A generic energy weapon that fires in a straight line.
Nova Bomb: A powerful weapon that can home in on an enemy and destroy it with a massive explosion. Carried usually by Arwings.
Blaster: A hand-held laser, either in a pistol or a rifle.
Machine/Gattling Gun: A weapon that fires out a stream of laser bullets. Generally devestating against vehicles.
Focal Laser: A powerful weapon that can be mounted on a blaster, but is most commonly used on a ship. It runs a laser current along the lines of a ship, firing it from a pointed edge on the ship ().
Missile: A self-propelled rocket that homes in on an enemy and explodes on contact. Varieties include EMP, Armor-Piercing, and Incinderary (Explosive).
Plasma Bolt Cannon: Used on Cornerian Wildfire-Class Cruisers, these fire a stream of blue light at a foe in pulses lasting several seconds. Devestating against shields.
Plasma Cannon: A weapon that fires a powerful plasma bolt at an enemy.
Point-Defense Laser: A revolving turret on a ship that is used to rapidly fire lasers at an oncoming foe, usually a fighter.
EMP Canister Launcher: Fires a revolving cylindrical canister which explodes in an EMP pulse.
G-Diffuser System: Mounted in 'wings,' these enable superiority fighters to come to complete stops and pull otherwise impossible aerial manuvers. They hold a ship together during such moves and in rough conditions, and prevent the pilot from developing nasuea by keeping the gravity within the fighter relative to the cockpit.
Gravity Blade: Another wing-mounted system, the Gravity Blade is similar to the G-Diffuser System, but it offers more speed and effectiveness in tight turns. Unfourtunately, it cannot bring a ship to a standstill. It uses less power then a G-Diffuser System.
Field Rift: The Grallian equivilant of a gravity system, this localizes the local graviational fields to allow for greater manuverability.
Power: Power is the generic unit for energy, used for shielding, lasers, and fuel. While the boosters on ships do not drain their power cells, the main engine, shields, and lasers do. The Cornerian measure of power is the click, the measure of which is displayed in a horizontal window that subtracts a given number from the total amount of clicks every second. A typical Arwing IV uses two clicks a second for thrust, two clicks for the G-Diffuser Systems, and one click for the computer. Thus, a drain rate of five clicks a second.
Table of Contents
Prologue: Unveiled Threats
Book I: Lylat
Book II: Eloria
Book III: Grall
Epilogue: War's End